The Sincere Convert

I will begin with the first sort,¹ and show you the reasons why they are ignorant of their misery, that is for these 4. Reasons.

I will begin with the first sort,¹ and shevv you the reasons why they are ignorant of their misery, that is for these 4. Reasons.

1. 1The 1. sort.

First, Sometimes because they want §1the saving means of knowledge.¹ There's no faithful Minister, no compassionate Lot to tell them of fire and brim-stone from heaven for their crying sins; there's no Noah to forewarn them of a flood; there's no messenger to bring them tidings of those Armies of Gods devouring plagues and wrath, that are approaching near unto them; they have no pilots, poor forsaken creatures to show them their rocks; they have either no Minister at all to teach them, either because the Parish is too poor, or the Church-living too great to maintain a faithful man (the strongest Asses carrying the greatest burdens commonly) O woeful Physicians! sometimes they be profane, and cannot heal themselves, and sometimes they be ignorant, and know no• what to preach, unless they should follow ⟨p. 160⟩the steps of Master Latimers Fryer; or at the best, they shoot off a few pot-guns against gross sins; or if they do show men their misery, they lick them whole again with some comfortable ill applied sentences (but I hope better things of you, my brethren) the mans Patron may happily storm else. Or else they say commonly, thou hast sinned but comfort thy self, despair not, Christ hath suffered, and thus skin over the wound, and let it fester within for want of cutting it deeper: I say therefore, because they want a faithful watch-man to cry fire, fire, in that sleepy estate of sin and darkness wherein they lye; therefore whole Townes, Parishes, generations of men, are burnt up, and perish miserably,