Captives bound in chains, made free by Christ their surety

if I think that I had time, but it is past, I had means of Grace, Ministers once preaching to me in the name of God, forewarning me of this place, directing me, how I might have escaped these tormenting flames, and got safely to the place of bliss, and rest and joy, and did entreat me and beseech me with that earnest seriousness, as if they could not have been happy without my Salvation, as if their comfort ha• wrapped up in my ⟨p. 44⟩Salvation; but these have done with me for ever, I cannot expect one Sermon more, one offer of Christ, one tender of mercy more for ever, many a one I had, but now not one, not one, woe and alas that ever I was born, not one more for ever; woe and alas, that ever I had any, and did slight them all, and because I must have not one tender of a Saviour more for ever; this, all this doth add unto my sorrow. Or if I think, how loth I was to sorrow upon earth, to have my heart made heavy for my sin, nothing would please me but my pleasure; I was for mirth and joy, but the more I had of joy while I lived on the Earth, the more I have of sadness and sorrow now I am in Hell. I had indeed a short and merry life upon the Earth, but now I have a long and heavy sorrowful life in the flames of Hell; on Earth I was for joy and no sorrow, and now in Hell I have sorrow, and no joy. Oh I had better, I had better, I had a thousand times better repented upon Earth, and have been now rejoicing in Heaven, than to rejoice, like a fool as I was, upon Earth, and must now weep and howl, and fruitlessly lament in Hell; these would be the tidings of a damned Soul, & far more sad and heavy than these; he would tell you, that if one go quite through Hell, ⟨p. 45⟩there is not one merry heart amongst them all. Think then of this and see, and judge if there be any reason you should be prejudiced against the condition of Gods free-men, or the ways of holiness, because of sorrow and repentance there must be for sin. Oh that after this, poor captive, thou mayst be no longer bound with this chain of the Devil; but yet to knock off this fetter, and to cut this chain asunder, let us strike the other blow. Therefore I say,

if I think that I had time, but it is past, I had means of Grace, Ministers once preaching to me in the name of God, forewarning me of this place, directing me, how I might have escaped these tormenting flames, and got safely to the place of bliss, and rest and joy, and did intreat me and beseech me with that earnest seriousness, as if they could not have been happy without my Salvation, as if their comfort ha wrapped up in my