Heavenly merchandiseHeavenly merchandize

2. The world is also no less prejudiced at Godly men for their tenaciousness of the Truth, to see them hold it so resolutely, and being so unpersuadable to part with it, by all the utmost endeavours used to bring them off, and win them to relinquish it; when they see how many, and what cunning attempts there are made to draw them over to give consent, or to force them upon making a sale, and after all, the one is rejected with an holy scorn, and the other is born with an invincible patience, and the most politicly contrived, and industriously prosecuted endeavours do finally prove unsuccessful: when they see how many and grievous things they suffer for the Truth sake, and all cannot prejudice them against it, but rather confirms their love to it, and adds strength to their ⟨p. 58⟩pious resolutions never to forget it; with how great cheerfulness they can take the being spoiled of their goods, deprived of their liberties, yea, and being robbed of their very lives, and all this because they will not part with Truth; yea, they do the more closely hug and embrace it; they hereupon do certainly conclude these men to be far gone of a frenzy: especially when they take notice how firm they are in the maintaining of the least Truth, so as rather to pull all the world about their ears, then let a syllable of it go: will (with the Three Children) run the venture of a Fiery Furnace; rather than bow the body to an Image; hazard the sufferings of all manner of tortures before they will throw a little frankincense into the fire, (as did the Primitive Christians) lose all the favours and preferments they have enjoyed, and might otherwise have still possessed, rather than Worship God otherwise than as he hath appointed; yea dye the most cruel death rather than deny any one article of Gods revealed Will; they either rail at them as wilful, turbulent, schismatical; the disturbers of Church and State; or else commiserate them as men intoxicated with conscientious niceties, whereby they become the unhappy disturbers of their own quiet; ⟨p. 59⟩but hold; these men are neither mad not drunk, as you suppose them to be, but in their right mind, and very well able to give a truly rational account of what they do; yea such as (if you will approve of the rules that wise merchants pretend to follow) will clear up their discretion: For,

2. The world is also no less prejudiced at Godly men for their tenaciousness of the Truth, to see them hold it so resolutely, and being so unperswadable to part with it, by all the utmost endeavours used to bring them off, and win them to relinquish it; when they see how many, and what cunning attempts there are made to draw them over to give consent, or to force them upon making a sale, and after all, the one is rejected with an holy scorn, and the other is born with an invincible patience, and the most politickly contrived, and industriously prosecuted endeavours do finally prove unsuccessful: when they see how many and grievous things they suffer for the Truth sake, and all cannot prejudice them against it, but rather confirms their love to it, and adds strength to their