THE

RECOMMENDATION.

To the EDITOR.

Dear SIR,

Sincerely thank you for the Perufal of your Explanatory NOTES on the Chriftian Pilgrim's Progrefs; I really think your Plan is well adapted; the Notes judicious, fpiritual, and evangelical; that they at once bid fair to inform the Reader's Judgment, and warm his Heart. You have, Sir, my best Wishes and Prayers, that the LORD the Spirit may graciously breathe upon them, and make them a lafting Bleffing to many Souls. If you think my little Name may in the leaft Degree affift in recommending a Work I very much approve of, you are most cordially welcome to it. I am, dear Sir,

PREFACE.

By the EDITOR of this IMPRESSION.

THE many

Editions this Work has gone through, and the cordial Acceptation it hath met with from Persons of every Denomination, at once demonftrate its fingular Excellency. The Method of Writing adopted by our pious Author, in his most valuable Book, has ever been acknowledged, the most useful and inftructive, because the most engaging and agreeable. To offer any Arguments, in Favour of a Work fo univerfally approved of, would be fuperfluous; the almoft unequalled Simplicity of the Stile, and the great Depth of Chriftian Experience it contains, will ever render it a Book of real Worth. To this Edition is now firft added explanatory Notes, which are written rather in the Form of a Paraphrase, as the Author's Intention was to take feveral Pages together, in one Point of View, that the Notes might be rendered more generally useful; at the fame Time the moft ftriking Circumftances contained in the Text are alluded to, and implied, if not fully expreffed in the Paraphrafe. The Propriety of his Plan and Execution, must be left to the Determination

of

He is

of the serious and candid Reader. happy in embracing this Opportunity of publicly making his thankful Acknowledgments, of the Efteem and Friendship of thofe Gentlemen, who have been pleafed to exprefs their Approbation of his Design, and hopes it will be accompanyed with their Prayers, that the Whole may be made ufeful to themfelves and others.

He has not intentionally written a Sentence' but what, he trufts, was clearly deducible from the Paffage before him; neither has he attempted to pervert, or wire-draw, a fingle Pofition. His Endeavour hath been to offer a few plain Hints, fuch as the Subject naturally fuggefted to him, with a prac tical View to reach the Heart.

Reader, In the Course of these Notes, thou wilt find the careless Sinner alarmed of his extreme Danger; the Formalift detected in all the Splendor of a mere nominal Profession, and the true Believer furnished with fome neceffary Hints for Self Examination and Watchfulness.

May the eternal God accompany the Whole with his Bleffing, and make it useful to the Souls of Men.

The EDITOR.

THE

AUTHOR's APOLOGY

FOR HIS

BOO

K.

WHEN at the first I took my pen in hand,

Thus for to write, I did not understand

That I at all fhould make a little Book,
In fuch a mode: nay, I had undertook
To make another; which, when almost done,
Before I was aware I this begun.

And thus it was: I writing of the way And race of faints in this our gofpel-day,

Fell fuddenly into an allegory

About their journey and the way to glory,
In more than twenty things, which I set down:
This done, I twenty more had in my crown.
And they again began to multiply,
Like sparks that from the coals of fire do fly.
Nay then, thought I, if that you breed so fast,
I'll put you by yourselves, left you at last
Should prove ad infinitum, and eat out
The book that I already am about.

Well, fo I did; but yet I did not think
To fhew to all the world my pen and ink
In fuch a mode; I only thought to make
I knew not what; nor did I undertake
b

There

Thereby to please my neighbour, no, not I;
I did it mine ownself to gratify.

Neither did I but vacant feafons spend
In this my fcribble; nor did I intend
But to divert myself in doing this,

From worfer thoughts, which make me do amiss.

Thus I fet pen to paper with delight, And quickly had my thoughts in black and white. For having now my method by the end, Still as I pull'd, it came; and fo I penn'd It down, until it came at last to be For length and breadth the bignefs which

you fee.

Well, when I had thus put my ends together I fhew'd them others, that I might fee whether They would condemn them, or them justify; And fome faid let them live; fome, let them die ; Some faid, John, print it; others faid not so, Some faid it might do good; others faid, no.

Now I was in a strait, and did not fee Which was the best thing to be done by me: At laft I thought, fince you are thus divided, I print it will; and fo the cafe decided.

For, thought I, fome I fee would have it done, Tho' others in that channel do not run : To prove then who advised for the best, Thus I thought fit to put it to the test. I farther thought, if now I did deny Those that would have it, thus to gratify; I did not know, but hinder them I might Of that which would to them be great delight; For those which were not for its coming forth, I faid to them, Offend you 1 am loth:

Yet