A09376:352
A cloud of faithful witnesses, leading to the heavenly Canaan, or, A commentary upon…A cloud of faithfull witnesses, leading to the heauenly Canaan, or, A commentarie vpon…
A cloud of faithful witnesses, leading to the heavenly Canaan, or, A commentary upon the 11 chapter to the Hebrews preached in Cambridge by that godly, and judicious divine, M. William Perkins ; long expected and desired, and therefore published at the request of his executors, by Will. Crashawe and Tho. Pierson, preachers of Gods Word, who heard him preach it, and wrote it from his mouth.A cloud of faithfull witnesses, leading to the heauenly Canaan, or, A commentarie vpon the 11 chapter to the Hebrewes preached in Cambridge by that godly, and iudicious divine, M. William Perkins ; long expected and desired, and therefore published at the request of his executours, by Will. Crashawe and Tho. Pierson, preachers of Gods Word, who heard him preach it, and wrote it from his mouth.
London: printed by Humphrey Lownes for Leo. Greene, 1607London: printed by Humfrey Lownes for Leo. Greene, 1607
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
It is a notable sentence, and one of the most comfortable in the book of God: and contains the second thing to be believed. The parts are naturally two: 1. How a man doth seek God. 2. How God rewards them that seek him.
It is a notable sentence, and one of the most comfortable in the booke of God: and containes the second thing to be beleeued. The parts are naturally two: 1. How a man doth seeke God. 2. How God rewards them that seeke him.
For the first: A man truly seeketh God, by doing four actions.
For the first: A man truly seeketh God, by doing foure actions.
First, a man must forsake himself, go out of himself, and as it were loose himself in his own judgement, when he intends to seek God. If any ask how that may be? I answer; Thus: A man must labour to see his sins fully and distinctly, and in sight thereof be cast down in himself, as a man is, when he seeth his debts: then let him look into himself, and see if he can find in himself any ability to pay those debts, or any means in the world to satisfy Gods justice, and purchase pardon. And if upon due examination he find none at all, no not the least, nor any thing in himself, but an accusing, and raging conscience: Let him then fall out of all love with himself, nay hate and abhor himself ⟨p. 86⟩and his own baseness: and lastly, let him despair of his own salvation in or from himself: and thus doing, he forsakes himself, denieth himself, and even looseth himself. And thus necessarily must he do to himself, that will set his heart to seek the Lord. For, God will be found of none that hope to find help at any hand but his: they therefore that seek God, but will seek themselves too, do justly loose both God and themselves.