A30122:113
The barren fig tree, or, The doom and downfall of the fruitless professor showing…The barren fig tree, or, The doom and downfall of the fruitless professor shewing…
The barren fig tree, or, The doom and downfall of the fruitless professor showing that the day of grace may be past with him long before his life is ended : the signs also by which such miserable mortals may be known / by John Bunyan ; to which is added his Exhortation to peace and unity among all that fear God.The barren fig tree, or, The doom and downfall of the fruitless professor shewing that the day of grace may be past with him long before his life is ended : the signs also by which such miserable mortals may be known / by John Bunyan ; to which is added his Exhortation to peace and unity among all that fear God.
London: printed for J. Robinson, 1688
Title page typeset from the transcription.
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.
Barren Soul! How many showers of Grace, how many dews from Heaven, how many times have the Silver Streams of the City of God, run gliding by thy Roots, to cause thee to bring forth Fruit! These Showers, and Streams, and the ⟨p. 36⟩Drops that hang upon thy Boughs, will all be accounted for; And will they not testify against thee, that thou oughtest of right to be burned? Hear, and tremble, O thou barren Professor! Fruits that become thy profession of the Gospel, the God of Heaven expecteth. The Gospel hath in it the Forgiveness of Sins, the Kingdom of Heaven, and Eternal Life: But what Fruit hath thy Profession of a belief of these things put forth in thy Heart and Life? Hast thou given thy self to the Lord; and is all that thou hast to be ventured for his Name in this World? Dost thou walk like one that is bought with a price, Even the price of precious Blood?
Fourthly, The Fruit that God expecteth is such, As is meet for himself, Fruit that may glorify God; God's Trees are Trees of Righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified; Fruit that tasteth of Heaven, abundance of such Fruit: For herein, saith Christ, is my Father glorified, that ye bring forth much Fruit, John 15. 8. Fruits of all kinds, new and old; the Fruits of the Spirit is in all Goodness, and Righteousness, and Truth. Fruits before the World, Fruits before ⟨p. 37⟩the Saints, Fruits before God, Fruits before Angels.
O, my Brethren, What manner of Persons ought we to be, who have subscribed to the Lord, and have called our selves by the Name of Israel? One shall say, I am the Lords; and another shall call himself by the Name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his Hand unto the Lord, and surname himself by the Name of Israel, Isa 44. 5. Barren Fig-tree, hast thou subscribed, hast thou called thy self by the Name of Jacob? and surnamed thy self by the Name of Israel? All this thou pretendest to, who art got into the Vineyard, who art placed among the Trees of the Garden of God: God doth therefore look for such Fruit as is worthy of his Name, as is meet for Him; as the Apostle saith, We should walk worthy of God; that is, so as we may show in every place, that the presence of God is with us, his Fear in us, and his Majesty and Authority upon our Actions. Fruits meet for him, such a dependence upon him, such trust in his Word, such satisfaction in his Presence, such a trusting of him with all my Concerns, and such delight in the enjoyment of him, that may