that are fomewhat craz d in their wits with their burden; To him, as I faid, thou may'it go, and be help'd prefently. His houfe is not a mile from this place, and if he fhould not be at home himself, he hath a pretty young man to his fon, whose name is Civility, that can do it (to speak on) as well as the old gentleman himself: There, I fay, thou may't be eafed of thy burden, and if thou art not minded to ૬૦ back to thy former habitation, as indeed I would not with thee; thou may'it fend for thy wife and children to thee to this village, where there are houfes now ftand empty, one of which thou may't have at a reasonable rate: Provifion is there alio cheap and good, and that which will make thy life the more happy is, to be fure there thou shalt live by honest neighbours in credit and good fashion. • Now was Chriflian something at a stand; • Chriftian but prefently concluded if this was true which feared by Mr. this gentleman hath faid, my wifet courfe is Worldlyto take his advice; and with that he thus fur- Wiseman's ther fpake. Chr. Sir, Which is my beft way to the ho neft man's house. World. Do you fee † yonder high hill? World. By that bill you must go, and the first houre you come at is his. words. + Mount Si nai. Chriftian afraid that mount Sinai will fall on his head. So Chriftian turned out of his way, to go to Mr. Legality's houfe for help: But behold when he was got now hard by the hill, it feemed fo high, and also that fice of it was next the way-fide, did hang fo mach over, that Chriftian was afraid to venture further left the hill fhould fail on his head; wherefore there he flood fill, and knew not what to do. Alfo his burden now feeined heavier to him than while he was on his way. Exod. 19 9. There came alfo | Alashes of fire out of the hill, 1 Ver, 16. that made Chriftian afraid that he should be Heb. 12. 12, burned: Here therefore he sweat and did quake | Evangelift for fear. And now he begun to be forry that findeth Chrihe had taken Mr. Worldly-Wifeman's counfel; flian under with that he faw Evangelift coming to meet mount Sinai, ; at the fight alfo of whom he began to and locketb .blush feverely upon blush for fhame. So Evangelift drew nearer bim. and nearer, and coming up to him, he looked upon him with a fevere and dreadful countenance, and thus began to reason with Chriftian. Evangelift. Evan. What doft thou here, Chriftian, reafons afresh faid he? At which words Christian knew not with Chri- what to answer; wherefore at present he flood Aian. fpeechlefs before him. Then faid Evangelift further, Art thou not the man that I found crying without the walls of the city of Destruction ? Chr. Yes, dear Sir, I am the man. Evan. Did not I direct thee to the way to the little wicked-gate ? Chr. Yes, dear Sir, faid Christian. Evan. How is it then, that thou art fo quickly turned afide? For thou art new out of the way. Chr. I met with a gentleman fo foon as I had got over the Slough of Defpond, who perfuaded me, that I might in the village before me, find a man that would take off .my burden. Evan. What was he? Chr. He looked like a gentleman, and talked much te me, and got me at laft to yield; fo I came hither: But when I beheld this hill, and how it hangs over the way, I fuddenly made a ftand, let it fhould fall on my head. Evan. What faid the gentleman to you? Chr. Why, he asked me, Whither I was going; and I told him. He asked me, If I had a family; and I told him: But faid I, I am fo loaded with the burden that is on my back, that I cannot take pleasure in them as formerly. When Chriftians unto carnal men give ear, Out of their way they go, and pay for't dear; Chr. He bid me with speed get rid of my burden; and I told him, It was eafe that I fought; And faid I, I am therefore going to yonder gate to receive further directions how I might get to the place of deliverance. So he said that he would fhew me a better way, and fhort, not fo attended with difficulties, as the way, Sir, you fee me in ; which way, faid he, will direct you to a gentleman's house that has kill to take off thefe bardens: So I believed him and turned out of that way into this it happily I might be foon eafed of my burden. But when I came to this place, and beheld things as they are, I flopped for fear (as faid) of the danger: But now know not what to say. Evan. Then (faid Evangelift) ftand ftill a little, that I may fhew thee the words of God. So he flood trembling. Then (faid Evangelift) See that Heb. 12. ye refufe not him that fpeaketh; for if they 3. 5. efcaped not who refufed him that fpake on earth, much more fhall not we escape, if † Evangelist we turn away from him that fpeaketh from convinces heaven. He faid moreover, Now the just Chriftian of fhall live by faith, but if any man draws back, his error. my foul fhall have no pleasure in him. He ‡Ch. 10. 38. alfo did thus apply then, Thou art the man that art running into this mifery; thou haft begun to reject the counsel of the most High, and to draw back thy foot from the way of peace, even almoft to the hazarding of thy perdition. Then Chriftian fell down at his fee: as dead, crying, e is me, for I am undone! At the fight of which Evangelift caught him by the right hand, faying, All manner of fins ana blafphemies fhall be forgiven unto men: Be not faithless but believing. Then did Chriftian again a little revive, and ftood up trembling, as at the firft, before Evangelift. Then Evangelift procceeded, faying, Give more earnest heed to the things that I fhall tell thee of. I will now tell thee who it was that deluded thee, and who it was alfo to whom he fent thee. The man Mr. Worldly that met thee was one Worldly-Wiseman, and Wifeman derightly is he fo called, partly, because he fa- fcribed by Evoureth only the doctrine of this world; vangelift. (therefore he always goes to the town of Mora * lity to church) and partly, because he lov* Col. 6. 12. eth that doctrine beft; for it faveth him best from the cross; and because he is of this carnal temper, therefore he feeketh to prevent thy ways, though rights *Now there are three things in this man's Evangelift counsel that thou must utterly abhor. difcovers the 1. His turning thee out of the way. deceit of Mr. WorldlyWifeman. 2. His labouring to render the crois odious to thee. 3. And the fetting thy feet that way that leadeth unto the adminiftration of death. First, Thou must alfo abhor his turning thee out of the way; yea, and thine own confenting thereto; because this is to reject the counsel of God, for the fake of the counsel of a Worldly Wifeman. The Lord fays, † +Luke 12. 14. Strive to enter in at the ftrait gate, the gate to Mark 13. which I fend thee. For firait is the gate that leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it: 34. From this little wicket-gate, and from the way thereof, hath this wicked man turned thee, to the bringing of thee almost to deftruction: Hate, therefore, his turning thee out of the way, and abhor thyself for hearkening to him. 26. 2dly, Thou must abhor his labouring to render the cross odious unto thee: for thou art to prefer it Heb. 11. 25, before the pleasures in Egypt: Befides, the king of glory hath told thee, That he that will farve his life fhall lafe it. And he that Mark 8. 34. comes after him, and hates not his father, John 3., 25. and mother, and wife, and children, and breMat. 10 39. thren, and fifter, and his own life too, cannot Luke 11. 16. be his difciple. I fay therefore, for a man to labour to perfuade thee, that That shall be thy death, without which the truth has faid thou canst not have eternal life; that doctrine thou must abhor. 3dly, Thou must hate his fetting of thy feet in the way that leadeth to the miniftration of death. And for this thou must confider to whom he fent thee, and also how unable that perfon was to deliver thee from thy burden. He to whom you were fent for ease, being by name Legality, is the fon of the + bond-woman, which The bond- now is, and is in bondage with her children, and is in a mystery, this mount Sinai, which thou haft feared will fall on thy head. Now, if the with her children are in bondage, how canft thou expect by them to be made free? Ewoman. Gal. 4. ver. 21, to 27. This Legality, therefore, is not able to fet thee free from thy burden. No man was as yet ever rid of his burden by him, no, nor is ever like to be: Ye cannot be juftified by the works of the law; for by the deeds of the law no man living can be rid of his burden: Therefore Mr. Worldly-Wiseman is an alien; and Mr. Legality is a cheat: And for his fon Civility, notwithstanding his fimpering looks, he is but a hypocrite, and cannot help thee, Believe me, there's nothing in all this noife that thou haft heard of thefe fottish men, but a defign to beguile thee of thy falvation, by turning thee from the way in which I had fet thee. After this, Evangelift called aloud to the heavens for confirmation of what he had faid: and with that there came words and fire out of the mountain under which poor Chriftian food, that made the hair of his flesh ftand up: The words were thus pronounced: As many as are of the works of the law, are under the Gal. 3. 10. curfe: For it is written, Curfed is every one that continueth rot in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. Now Chriftian looked for nothing but death, and began to cry out lamentably; even curfing the day in which he met with Mr. Worldly-Wiseman; ftill calling himself a thousand fools for hearkening to his counfel: He was also greatly afhamed to think that this gentleman's arguments, flowing only from the flesh, fhould have the prevalency with him, fo as to caufe him to forfake the right way. This done, he applied himself again to Evangelist in words and fenfe as follows. Chr. Sir,* What think you? Is there hope? Chriftian May I now go back, and go up to the wicked- enquireth if gate; fhall I not be abandoned for this, and fent he may yet. back from thence afhamed? I am forry I have be happy. hearkened to this man's counfel; but may my fin be forgiven? Evan. Then faid Evangelift to him, Thy fin is very great, for by it hast thou committed two evils; thou haft forfaken the way that is good, to treat in for bidden paths; yet will the man at the gate Evangelift receive thee, for he has good-will for men; comforts him only faid he, take heed that thou turn not aside Pfal. 2. 12. again, left thou perifh from the way, when his B 2 wrath |