N00597:70
Solemn advice to young men, not to walk in the ways of their heart,…Solemn advice to young men, not to walk in the wayes of their heart,…
Solemn advice to young men, not to walk in the ways of their heart, and in the sight of their eyes; but to remember the Day of Judgment. / By Increase Mather, president of Harvard College in Cambridge, & preacher of the Gospel at Boston, in New-England. ; [Five lines of Scripture texts]Solemn advice to young men, not to walk in the wayes of their heart, and in the sight of their eyes; but to remember the Day of Judgment. / By Increase Mather, praesident of Harvard Colledge in Cambridge, & preacher of the Gospel at Boston, in New-England. ; [Five lines of Scripture texts]
printed by Bartholomew Green. Sold by Samuel Phillips, 1695
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. They please themselves with thinking that sin […] no sin. That when they sin fearfully they have not sinned at all. How common is it for men, if they intend well in what they do, to think all is well. Like Saul who excused his transgressing a positive Command of God, with saying, he did it for Sacrifice. Sin and Satan do wonderfully blind the eyes of sinners. Hence they sometimes take damning Errors to be rare […] as the deluded Christians in Thyatira did, Rev. 2. 24. The depths of Satan as they Speak. They said that the things which they did believe were deep rare Mysteri•• so did they speak concerning those Errors which at last they found to be no better than Satanical delusions. When men have ⟨p. 69⟩shut their eyes against the clear light, their light does become darkness, and how great is that darkness? A spirit of strong delusion is sent upon them, so that they believe a Ly. 2. Thes. 2. 11. And because men err in their Judgments, they are guilty of such practices as will prove the ruin of their Souls, and yet flatter themselves that their is no sin nor evil in what they do. Idolatry is a Soul-ruining iniquity, yet the Jews of old who lived in that sin, would not believe they were guilty of any such crime. The Prophets by all their Sermons could not convince them of it. Jer. 2. 35. Thou sayest, because I am innocent, surely his anger shall turn from me, behold, I will plead with thee because thou sayest I have not sinned. Men may be under the power of Sin and Satan so far as not only to believe that a damning sin is no sin at all, but that it is a duty. To persecute the faithful Ambassadors of Christ to death is a crime of an high nature: Yet did the Lord say to his Apostles, The time cometh that whosoever killeth you will think he does God Good Service. Joh. 16. 2. Thus it was with Paul before his Conversion. He verily thought with himself that he ought to do many things contrary to the Name of Jesus of Nazareth, Acts 28. 9. This indeed was not Sauls