Compassionate counsel to all young men especially I. London apprentices, II. students of divinity,…

§ 1. Through the great mercy of God, many Families are sacred Nurseries for Church and Kingdom; and many Parents have great comfort in the Grace of God appearing in their Children. From their early Childhood many are of humble, obedient Dispositions, and have a love to Knowledge, and a love to the word of God, and to those that are good and virtuous persons. They have inward convictions of the evil of Sin, and a fear of sinning, and a great dislike of wicked persons, and a great Love and reverend Obedience to their Parents, and when they grow up, they diligently learn in private, and in public: They increase in their love to the Scriptures and good Books, and to Godly teachers, and godly Company, and God saveth them from temptations, and worldly deceits, and fleshly Lusts, and they live to God, and are blessings to the Land, the joy of their Friends, and exemplary and useful to those whom they converse with.

§ 1. THrough the great mercy of God, many Families are sacred Nurseries for Church and Kingdom; and many Parents have great comfort in the Grace of God appearing in their Children. From their early Childhood many are of humble, obedient Dispositions, and have a love to Knowledge, and a love to the word of God, and to those that are good and virtuous persons. They have inward convictions of the evil of Sin, and a fear of sinning, and a great dislike of wicked persons, and a great Love and reverend Obedience to their Parents, and when they grow up, they diligently learn in private, and in publick: They increase in their love to the Scriptures and good Books, and to Godly teachers, and godly Company, and God saveth them from temptations, and worldly deceits, and fleshly Lusts, and they live to God, and are blessings to the Land, the joy of their Friends, and exemplary and useful to those whom they converse with.

§ 2. But all, even religious Parents have ⟨p. 21⟩not the like blessing in their Children. 1. Some of them, though religious otherwise, are lamentably careless of the duty which they promised to perform (at Baptism) in the education of their Children, and do but superficially and formally instruct them, and are too faulty as to the Example which they should give them, and seem to think that God must bless them, because they are theirs, and because they are baptised, while they neglect their promised Endeavours. 2. And some Children when they grow up, and are bound to resist temptations, and to use Gods appointed means for their own good, do wilfully resist Gods Grace, and run into temptations, and neglect, and wretchedly betray themselves, and forfeit the mercies which they needed.