The saints dignity and duty· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardness. /…The saints dignitie and dutie· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardnesse. /…

2. For the further proof of this point, That there is a main difference between a child of God and an hypocrite, in their very knowledge: though I know it is the judgement of many, and those holy and godly too, that wicked men, in matters of ⟨p. 208⟩knowledge, may go as far as any Saint under heaven, yet I take it they are deceived: for no sanctifying work of the holy spirit of God is common to those that are wicked and reprobates; but the work of saving understanding and illumination, is a work of sanctification: and to prove that, go no further but to the naked consideration of a mans bare understanding. When the Lord is pleased to work effectually upon the soul, there is a sanctifying work on the understanding as well as on the will. Now that work which is upon the understanding of a servant of God, as truly differs from the enlightening of a carnal hypocrite, as the heart of a Saint from the heart of a man not sanctified: As the Spirit of God, I say, hath a proper and peculiar work of sanctification upon the will of Gods children, so also hath he upon their mind and understanding; therefore of necessity, wicked men having no work of sanctification, the children of God must needs differ from them in this particular of knowledge. Again, the Apostle is clear enough, 1 Cor. 2.14. The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. Before a man can discern spiritual objects, he must have spiritual light; therefore wicked men being (as all hypocrites are) but bare nature, and wanting spiritual light, are not able to perceive and discern the things of God. So you see there is a plain and broad difference between the Saints of God, and carnal hypocrites in the point of knowledge and understanding.

2. For the further proof of this point, That there is a main difference between a child of God and an hypocrite, in their very knowledge: though I know it is the judgement of many, and those holy and godly too, that wicked men, in matters of ⟨p. 208⟩knowledge, may go as far as any Saint under heaven, yet I take it they are deceived: for no sanctifying work of the holy spirit of God is common to those that are wicked and reprobates; but the work of saving understanding and illumination, is a work of sanctification: and to prove that, goe no further but to the naked consideration of a mans bare understanding. When the Lord is pleased to work effectually upon the soule, there is a sanctifying work on the understanding as well as on the will. Now that work which is upon the understanding of a servant of God, as truly differs from the inlightning of a carnall hypocrite, as the heart of a Saint from the heart of a man not sanctified: As the Spirit of God, I say, hath a proper and peculiar work of sanctification upon the will of Gods children, so also hath he upon their mind and understanding; therefore of necessity, wicked men having no work of sanctification, the children of God must needs differ from them in this particular of knowledge. Again, the Apostle is clear enough,