Riches of mercy to men in misery, or, Certain excellent treatises concerning the dignity…

Again as there is a difference in the combatants, so secondly, there is a difference in the manner of the fight. ¹A natural man though he make resistance, yet it is but a faint resistance; he fights as one that is not willing to overcome, or ca•es not whether he get the victory or no; he gives but a faint denial. When a suitor is but faintly denied, we know it makes him the more importunate. So we shall see balaam, when the messengers came from Balaak King of Moab he indeed gave them a denial, but it was such a kind of denial as that they saw he had a good will to the journey notwithstanding; therefore they did not give over to importune him. So the prophet ⟨p. 365⟩that came to Bethel, when he began to enter into terms with the old Prophet, we see he was not strong and peremptory in the resistance; a parleying castle we know will not long hold out: when we come to these faint ²denials, and no more, there is no likelihood of prevailing.

Again as there is a difference in the combatants, so secondly, there is a difference in the manner of the fight. ¹A natural man though he make resistance, yet it is but a faint resistance; he fights as one that is not willing to overcome, or ca•es not whether he get the victory or no; he gives but a faint denyal. When a suitor is but faintly denyed, we know it makes him the more importunate. So we shall see balaam, when the messengers came from Balaak King of Moab he indeed gave them a denyal, but it was such a kind of denyal as that they saw he had a good will to the journey notwithstanding; therefore they did not give over to importun him. So the prophet ⟨p. 365⟩that came to Bethel, when he began to enter into tearms with the old Prophet, we see he was not strong and peremptory in the resistance; a parleying castle we know will not long hold out: when we come to these faint ²