Captives bound in chains, made free by Christ their surety

no man is faster bound in fetters, than he that is ungodly, and yet strongly and confidently hopes that he shall be saved. If you could speak with damned Souls, thousands of them would tell you, this was their ruin and their bane; should you ask them were not you told, that sin would bring you to this place of torment? were you not told by Ministers and by God himself, that you were in the way to misery and damnation? what would they reply? Yes, yes, we were often ⟨p. 88⟩told, and we were plainly told, but this was it that did undo us, we hoped it would be better with us. Shall I then attempt to break this bond asunder? but because man can but show unto you the vanity of your hopes, Oh that God himself would come and powerfully convince you by his Word and Spirit, that your hopes are vain and groundless hopes, that you may be no longer kept in thraldom by the Devil, by these fetters of false hopes of Heaven. I know that this is a manifold twisted Cord; many things there are that you do bottom these hopes upon; but if I shall show from the Word of God, that they are no better grounds and reasons of hope, than graceless persons might allege, and many now in Hell once had to say, and did, as well as you, that then you will no longer suffer Satan to delude and to deceive you, and keep you as his captives in a state of bondage. Only let me ask you first, whether you will believe that that is true, that God speaketh in his Word, or will you dare to say, that what is contained in the Scripture is forgery and a lie; if you say the latter, God shall shortly convince you of the truth thereof; the flames of Hell shall shortly convince you, and the pains and torments you shall shortly feel shall powerfully convince ⟨p. 89⟩you, that all these sayings of God are true: If you say the former, that God's word is true, I do not doubt to make it appear, that your hope is false, if you do agree to try your hopes by the word of God, by which you and I and all must be shortly tried, and acquitted or condemned according to this Word, I do not doubt to show that Satan hath befooled you all this while; God hath as plainly told you, that in an unconverted state, without faith in Christ, without repentance and reformation, you cannot be saved, this is as plain as can be spoken, and yet contrary to God's revealed will, will you hope you shall be saved?