The dejected souls cure tending to support poor drooping sinners. With rules, comforts, and…The dejected soules cure tending to support poor drooping sinners. With rules, comforts, and…

The seventh Difference in orders is this, Wicked men are disquieted for sin, but it is as causing outward afflictions rather then as causing inward and spiritual withdrawings of Gods face, I may allude to that in Job. 41. 25. When he raiseth ¹up himself, the mighty are afraid: by reason of breakings they purify themselves. When God breaks them by outward afflictions, then they be think themselves what evil they have done, and how they must amend and better their days; but it is more because of danger of death then out of love of purity; this makes men say, I must purify my self not because ⟨p. 174⟩sin is impure, but because it breaks my body, and breaks my outward comforts from me: it sin did not afflict the body, it should never afflict the soul of a wicked man by his will. Wicked men are like that man that was in a deep consumption of his Lungs, and complained to a Physician of a Whitlow upon his finger. Men are troubled at afflictions that are but trivial and toys; but when they do consume in their graces, and near unto an eternal death, (sin and the consumption of grace) that doth not trouble them; men that are thus disquieted more because of affliction then the inward withdrawings of God's face from them, they are fitly set out by Ducks in a Pond of Water; let a little Pebble stone be cast into the Water and the Ducks will dive; but let it Thunder in the Heavens, the Ducks are not afraid. I may make this Use of it, Wicked men are like Ducks; let God but give them a blow on their outward man, afflict their bodies, this will make them dive, crouch, tremble and make them afraid; but let the Heavens be louring, let God's face be eclipsed, if sin did not trouble the body, it should never trouble the conscience: A godly man is troubled at affliction for sin-sake, but a wicked man is troubled at sin for affliction-sake; it is affliction makes him troubled at sin. But now a godly man is of a far different temper, he is disquieted at sin more because of the inward withdrawings of God's face, then because of the outward afflictions of the body. Psal. 30. 7. Lord by thy favour thou hast made my mountain to stand strong; Thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled. David had trouble in the Kingdom at that time, had troubles on his Person; but all this did not go so near his heart as the hiding of God's face;