Reliquiæ Baxterianæ, or, Mr. Richard Baxters narrative of the most memorable passages of his…

§ 212. And concerning almost all my Writings I must confess, that my own Judgment is, that fewer well studied and polished had been better: but the Reader who can safely censure the Books is not fit to censure the Author, unless he had been upon the Place, and acquainted with all the Occasions and Circumstances: Indeed for the Saints Rest I had Four Months Vacancy to write it (but in the midst of continual Languishing and Medicine): But for the rest I wrote them in the Crowd of all my other Employments, which would allow me no great Leisure for Polishing and Exactness, or any Ornament; so that I scarce ever wrote one Sheet twice over, nor stayed to make any Blo•s or Interlinings, but was fain to let it go as it was first conceived: And when my own Desire was rather to stay upon one thing long, than run over many, some sudden Occasions or other extorted almost all my Writings from me: and the Apprehensions of Present Usefulness or Necessity prevailed against all other Motives. So that the Divines which were at hand with me still put me on and approved of what I did, because they were moved by Present Necessities as well as I: But those that were far off, and felt not those nearer Motives, did rather wish that I had taken the other way, and published a few elaborate Writings; and I am ready my self to be of their Mind, when I forgot the Case that then I stood in, and have lost the Sense of former Motives. The opposing of the Anabaptists, Separatists, Quakers, Antinomians, Seekers, &c. were Works which then seemed necessary; and so did the Debates about Church Government and Communion which touched our present Practice; but now all those Reasons are past and gone, I could wish I had rather been doing some work of more durable Usefulness. But even to a foreseeing Man, who knoweth what will be of longest use, it is hard to discern how far that which is presently needful may be omitted, for the sake of a greater future Good. There are some other works, wherein my Heart hath more been set than any of those forementioned; in which I have met with great Obstructions. For I must declare that in this as in many other Matters I have found that we are not the Choosers of our own Employments, no more than of our own Successes.

§ 212. And concerning almost all my Writings I must confess, that my own Judgment is, that fewer well studied and polished had been better: but the Reader who can safely censure the Books is not fit to censure the Author, unless he had been upon the Place, and acquainted with all the Occasions and Circumstances: Indeed for the Saints Rest I had Four Months Vacancy to write it (but in the midst of continual Languishing and Medicine): But for the rest I wrote them in the Crowd of all my other Imployments, which would allow me no great Leisure for Polishing and Exactness, or any Ornament; so that I scarce ever wrote one Sheet twice over, nor stayed to make any Blos or Interlinings, but was fain to let it go as it was first conceived: And when my own Desire was rather to stay upon one thing long, than run over many, some sudden Occasions or other extorted almost all my Writings from me: and the Apprehensions of Present Usefulness or Necessity prevailed against all other Motives. So that the Divines which were at hand with me still put me on and approved of what I did, because they were moved by Present Necessities as well as I: But those that were far off, and felt not those nearer Motives, did rather wish that I had taken the other way, and published a few elaborate Writings; and I am ready my self to be of their Mind, when I forgot the Case that then I stood in, and have lost the Sense of former Motives. The opposing of the Anabaptists, Separatists, Quakers, Antinomians, Seekers, &c. were Works which then seemed necessary; and so did the Debates about Church Government and Communion which touched our present Practice; but now all those Reasons are past and gone, I could wish I had rather been doing some work of more durable Usefulness. But even to a foreseeing Man, who knoweth what will be of longest use, it is hard to discern how far that which is presently needful may be omitted, for the sake of a greater future Good. There are some other works, wherein my Heart hath more been set than any of those forementioned; in which I have met with great Obstructions. For I must declare that in this as in many other Matters I have found that we are not the Choosers of our own Imployments, no more than of our own Successes.