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

For the 2d. How cometh this to pass, or how can it be that men and women thus thwart with their Conscience? Answer. 1. It needeth not at all to seem strange, seeing God and his Word are thwarted with; will they think we stand in awe of Conscience, who stand not in awe of God, and who do not lay weight on his Word, to regulate their Conscience by it? This is the great ground of peoples thwarting with their Conscience, and of their regardlessness of it, even their not standing in awe of God. 2dly. The most part never consider their obligation to Conscience, nor what is the consequence of thwarting with, or of going cross to their Conscience; therefore it is, that they care not what Conscience sayeth; is there any considerable number of persons, who think that thwarting their Conscience, is such a terrible thing, at it is indeed, and as one day it will be found to be? Many had rather have a very little money in their hand, then the Testimony of their Conscience; and this regardlessness ariseth from the ignorance of it, and of what great concernment it is. 3ly. Men, even by accustoming, and habituating themselves to thwart with their Conscience in lesser things, do, by little and little stupefy, and in a manner, put out the life of their Conscience, and •s the Apostle hath the word, They cauterize, or sear it as it were with a hot iron: Hence it is, that when some truly tender Christians are troubled with, and have for the matter of their exercise, any little things, or things that have in them but the least appearance of evil, others will be ready to pray to be saved from such madness and folly, because they were never accustomed to, nor acquainted with any challenge, or exercise of that kind, but have taught themselves a way of stepping over their Conscience; and this provoketh God to give them up to a reprobate mind, to do things which are not convenient▪ They harden themselves by resisting the Challenges of ⟨p. 94⟩the Word, and Rod of God, and of their own Conscience; and are judicially hardened, so that either Conscience sayeth nothing at all to them, or they do not at all value what it sayeth; Thence, and therefore it is, that the profanest have most ordinarily fewest challenges, and these few that they have, they trample on them; and stifle them, as but un-regardable, and trifling things; Whereas the most tender Conscience hath readily manyest challenges:

For the 2d. How cometh this to pass, or how can it be that men and women thus thwart with their Conscience? Answer. 1. It needeth not at all to seem strange, seing God and his Word are thwarted with; will they think we stand in awe of Conscience, who stand not in awe of God, and who do not lay weight on his Word, to regulate their Conscience by it? This is the great ground of peoples thwarting with their Conscience, and of their regardlesness of it, even their not standing in awe of God. 2dly. The most part never consider their obligation to Conscience, nor what is the consequence of thwarting with, or of going cross to their Conscience; therefore it is, that they care not what Conscience sayeth; is there any considerable number of persons, who think that thwarting their Conscience, is such a terrible thing, at it is indeed, and as one day it will be found to be? Many had rather have a very little money in their hand, then the Testimony of their Conscience; and this regardlesness ariseth from the ignorance of it, and of what great concernment it is. 3ly. Men, even by accustoming, and habituating themselves to thwart with their Conscience in lesser things, do, by little and little stupify, and in a manner, put out the life of their Conscience, and s the Apostle hath the word, They cauterize, or sear it as it were with a hot iron: Hence it is, that when some truly tender Christians are troubled with, and have for the matter of their exercise, any little things, or things that have in them but the least appearance of evil, others will be ready to pray to be saved from such madness and folly, because they were never accustomed to, nor acquainted with any challenge, or exercise of that kind, but have taught themselves a way of steping over their Conscience; and this provocketh God to give them up to a reprobate mind, to do things which are not convenient They harden themselves by resisting the Challenges of