Heaven upon earth in the serene tranquillity and calm composure, in the sweet peace…

A 3d. Character is, That a good Conscience will both challenge and speak peace at one time; it can stand up and defend it self against a challenge; thus when the Law on the one hand comes and charges it with many defects in duty, and denounceth wrath against it because of these, it will humbly take with them; and yet on the other hand, in the very time it can betake it self to Christ and produce a word of peace that it hath ready at hand from him; this we may see in Paul, 1 Tim. 1. 13. I was (says he) before, a blasphemer, a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy. It is an evil token when men either have only challenges and no peace, or only peace and no challenges at all; as it is also an evil token to offer to maintain peace by shifting challenges; or to give over pressing after and maintaining of peace by giving way to challenges: But it is a good token when Conscience can take kindly with and be humbled under challenges, and yet debate against them so as to keep and maintain peace, and can give a warrant for its doing so, which is indeed a great practic in Religion; we may see a clear instance of this in Jo•, who saith chap. 7. 20. I have sinned, what shall I do unto thee, O thou preserver of men? where he acknowledgeth that he hath sinned, and cannot make amends; and yet chap. 27. 4▪ 5. he saith with holy boldness and peremptoriness, My lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit. God forbid that I should justify you; till I die, I will not remove my integrity from me. When God speaketh or seemeth to speak wrath, his angry countenance driveth him not away from him, though (saith he chap. 13. 15.) he should kill me, yet I will trust in him, but I will maintain mine own ways before him; and vers. 16. an hypocrite shall not come before him; The Hypocrite or legal man giveth it over, when he is thus put hard to it; • though it be easy for him to presume while the Law and Wrath break not in, yet when the Law cometh, Sin reviveth and he dieth; as it is Rom. 79. it is easy to have peace so long as God speaketh not down-right against it; but when he cometh to set all a mans sins in order before ⟨p. 54⟩him, he will with Judas run and hang himself, rather then abide that tormenting Conscience of his, terribly denouncing war and wrath from God against him.