A30209:184
The strait gate, or, Great difficulty of going to Heaven plainly proving
The strait gate, or, Great difficulty of going to Heaven plainly proving by the Scriptures that not only the rude and profane, but many great professors will come short of that Kingdom / by John Bunyan.
London: printed for Francis Smith, 1676
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.
6. They will seek to enter in by pleading, that ignorance was the ground of their miscarrying in the things wherein they offended; wherefore when Christ charges them with want of love to him, and with want of those fruits that should prove their love to be true, as, that they did not seed him, did not give him drink, did not take him in, did not cloth him, visit him, come unto him, and the like: they readily reply, Lord, when saw we the an hungered, or at hirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not ⟨p. 71⟩minister unto thee: Matt. 25. 41. 42. 43. 44. As who should say, Lord, we are not conscious to our selves, that this charge is worthily laid at our door. God forbid that we should have been such sinners, but Lord, give an instance; when was it, or where? true, there was a company of poor sorry people in the world very inconsiderable, set by with no body, but for thy self we professed thee, we loved thee, and hadst thou been with us in the world, wouldest thou have worn gold, wouldest thou have eaten the sweetest of the world, we would have provided it for thee; and therefore, Lord, Lord open to us. But will this plea do? no, then shall he answer them, inasmuch as you did it not to one of the least of these my brethren, ye did it not to me. This plea then though grounded upon ignorance, which is one of the strangest pleas for neglect of duty, would not give them admittance into the kingdom. These shall go away into everlasting ⟨p. 72⟩punishment, but the righteous into life eternal.
6. They will seek to enter in by pleading, that ignorance was the ground of their miscarrying in the things wherein they offended; wherefore when Christ charges them with want of love to him, and with want of those fruits that should prove their love to be true, as, that they did not seed him, did not give him drink, did not take him in, did not cloth him, visit him, come unto him, and the like: they readyly reply, Lord, when saw we the an hungred, or at hirst, or a strunger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not ⟨p. 71⟩minister unto thee: