A59665:1893
The Parable of the Ten Virgins Opened and Applied
The parable of the ten virgins opened & applied being the substance of divers sermons on Matth. 25, I-13 wherein the difference between the sincere Christian and the ... hypocrite ... are clearly discovered ... / by Thomas Shepherd ; now published from the authors own notes ... by Jonathan Mitchell ... Tho. Shepherd, son to the reverend author ...The parable of the ten virgins opened & applied being the substance of divers sermons on Matth. 25, I-13 wherein the difference between the sincere Christian and the ... hypocrite ... are clearly discovered ... / by Thomas Shephard ; now published from the authours own notes ... by Jonathan Mitchell ... Tho. Shephard, son to the reverend author ...
London: printed by J. Hayes for John Rothwell, 1660
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
1. This is the great provoking sin; look throughout all the Book of God, let the sin be great, and immediately after conscience smitten, bones broken, and heart awakened, we shall never see the Lord but he is pacified, the Lord hears their groanings, and remembers his Covenant; but little sins fallen into, and by security continued in, the Lord visits for this, Psal. 50. When a man shall not only sin, but take delight in it, as a man doth in his sleep.
1. This is the great provoking sin; look throughout all the Book of God, let the sin be grear, and immediately after conscience smitten, bones broken, and heart awakened, we shall never see the Lord but he is pacified, the Lord hears their groanings, and remembers his Covenant; but little sins fallen into, and by security continued in, the Lord visits for this, Psal. 50. When a man shall not only sin, but take delight in it, as a man doth in his sleep.
2. This is a sin in places of liberty and Ordinances, whereas the Lord was never so good to thee, and thy heart never worse to him, never so secure, you thought and purposed never to be so watchful and tender as now; to be secure here, greatly aggravates such security.
3. This sin is a common sin; now this adds to a sin, when a man has a hand in a national sin, that runs in the blood of all the Churches; for so you see it is, all the Virgins secure: when all forget the Lord, as though there were not enough to lay more load upon the Lord; what doth this but harden others in security; thy wives heart, thy brethren's heart, such a one is secure; as though it were not enough to fight against the Lord, but Ciant-like to fall among the troops of them that securely dishonour the Lord: When the old world was secure we heard nothing of that; but when the Sons of God came to be secure, and all flesh corrupted their ways, the Lord falls a mourning, and repents that he had made man: When any sin groweth general in Churches, that sin is most grievous to God; Princes children when they sin alone it is grievous, but when they take part with all the mutinous crew against their Father, this strikes deep; Oh that ever mine eyes should see this evil.