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

And in prosecution of this, ye may remember, we came to answer that Case, or Question, what men are called to, or what maybe their duty, when, after some pains taken to know Consciences, Advice and Counsel, they do not discern, and take it up? Seeing experience tells us, that sometimes there may be Darkness, even when men would have Light; In Answering of this, we gave you this Direction, in the first place, after the premitting of some things, for clearing of it; That such as are thus in the Dark, would once put themselves to it, to try whither their Darkness proceed indeed from Conscience, or from some Distemper, and Tentation within, letting, and hindering them from taking up that which Conscience says; till once this be clear, men cannot make great progress, for if they should study to have Conscience speaking, and yet have their own ears stopped, this seems to be but lost labour; There is some other thing called for, that once they may be in a quiet, and composed Frame, to hear what Conscience says to them.

And in prosecution of this, ye may remember, we came to answer that Case, or Question, what men are called to, or what maybe their duty, when, after some pains taken to know Consciences, Advice and Counsel, they do not discern, and take it up? Seing experience tells us, that sometimes there may be Darknesse, even when men would have Light; In Answering of this, we gave you this Direction, in the first place, after the premitting of some things, for clearing of it; That such as are thus in the Dark, would once put themselves to it, to try whither their Darkness proceed indeed from Conscience, or from some Distemper, and Tentation within, letting, and hindring them from taking up that which Conscience sayes; till once this be clear, men cannot make great progresse, for if they should studie to have Conscience speaking, and yet have their own ears stopped, this seems to be but lost labour; There is some other thing called for, that once they may be in a quiet, and composed Frame, to hear what Conscience sayes to them.

A ad. Direction, for Answer to it, is, When men cannot discern any Temptation, or Distemper in themselves, but that they are content to hear what Conscience would say to them, and yet cannot take it up, then they would set themselves to try whither that silence proceeds from some sinful Cause in themselves, justly procuring that silence of Conscience, as a punishment to them, or from some Sovereign Cause in God, ordering that silence to try them, and to humble them, and that they may, by being kept a while in the mist, more singly give proof