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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A97283	The penitent murderer. Being an exact narrative of the life and death of Nathaniel Butler; who (through grace) became a convert, after he had most cruelly murdered John Knight. With the several conferences held with the said Butler in Newgate, by the Right Honorable the Lord Maior, and several eminent ministers, and others. As also his confession, speech, prayer, and the sermon preached after his execution; with several useful admonitions, and excellent discourses. / Collected by Randolph Yearwood, chaplain to the Right Honorable, the Lord Major of the city of London.	Yearwood, Randolph, d. 1689.	1657 (1657)	Wing Y23; Thomason E1660_2; ESTC R209007	51,603	133

brought him to Execution and from thence conveyed to Gregories Churchyard London where about Noon he was burled That Evening at S. Gregordes Church a Sermon was preached by Mr Randolph Yearwood the Lord Majors Chaplain there being a great confluence of People The Substance wherof take as followeth I JOH 3.15 Whosoever hateth his Brother is a Murderer and ye know that no Murderer hath eternal Life abiding in him THE Apostles intent in this Epistle was and indeed my design in this Sermon is to promote true love in mens hearts towards one another His Arguments are many which he propoundeth as so many provocations to love Consider these seven 1 Arg. 1 John 5.9 10 11. He that saith he is in the light and hateth his brother is in darkness even until now He that loveth his brother abideth in the light and there is no occasion of stumbling in him But he that hateth his brother is in darkness and walketh in darkness and knoweth not whether he goeth because that darkness hath blinded his eyes as though he should say Love surpasseth hatred as far as light excelleth darkness Arg. 2. Men are not of God but they are the children of the Devil unless they love as brethren This is plain and manifest 1 John 3.10 In this the children of God are manifest and the children of the Devil whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God neither he that loveth not his brother 1 Joh. 4.7 Beloved let us love one another for love is of God and every one that loveth is born of God Arg. 3. He that Ioveth not knoweth not God for God is love 1 Joh. 4.8 Arg. 4. A man otherwise cannot clear up his love to God 1 Joh. 4.20 If a man say I love God and hateth his Brother he is a Lyar. For he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath not seen Arg. 5. 1 John 4.10.11 Herein is love not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins Beloved if God so loved us we ought also to love one another Arg. 6. If you love the Brethren ye have passed from death to life 1 Joh. 3.14 We know that we have passed from death to life because we love the brethren Arg. 7. The last Argument is drawn from the dreadful estate of a man that loves not his brother 1 Joh. 3.14 He abideth in death he is a murderer he hath not eternal life abiding in him And now I am returned to the words which I intend to handle Whosoever hateth his Brother is a murderer and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him Here we have two things very remarkable 1. A description of a Gospel-murderer for in the sense of our Law meer hatred doth not make a murderer Whosoever hateth his Brother is what is he a Murderer 2 A declaration of the damnable state of such a murderer And ye know 't is a known case that no murderer hath eternal life abideing in him Let us consider the first of these two truths in the words of the Apostle viz. Obser 1. Whosoever hateth his Brother is Murderer It is requisite to say something by way of Explication to this truth and then by way of Application Whosoever 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 every one every malicious man without exception whether he be reputed good or bad holy or unholy if he hateth his brother he is a murderer if he be rich or poor high or low Magistrate or Minister whosoever he be if he hate he is here included in the indictment of murder Whosoever is a term of universality Hateth By hating two things are hinted in Scripture 1. A comparative respect This first is plain in Gen. 29 30. And he went in also unto Rachel and he loved also Rachel more then Leah 31. And when the Lord saw that Leah was hated that is was loved less then Rachel Luk. 14.26 If any man come to me and hate not his Father and Mother and Wife and Children and Brethren and Sisters yea and his own life also cannot be my Disciple Now 't is not lawful properly and indeed to hate a mans self or his Relations though he might gain heaven thereby Observe Luke the Evangelist saith cap. 14.26 If a man hate not brethren he cannot be Christs Disciple and John the Apostle affirms Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer So that we must take the term hate in some places to signifie a less degree of love so in Luke He that loveth not Christ more then himself more then his Wife or Children more then Brethren or sisters cannot be my Disciple as suppose a man must either forsake Jesus Christ or else his natural and near relation this for saking of them and cleaving to Christ the Scripture expresseth by hating of them not that men hate or may lawfully hate their Friends but they love them less then they love the Lord Christ So Matth. 10.37 He that loveth Father or Mother more then me is not worthy of me and he that loveth Son or Daughter more then me is not worthy of me 2. Hating is taken for a very strong disrespect and a mighty implacable disaffection in the heart of one man towards another mans person insomuch that a man cannot find in his heart to say well of or do good unto another but he can find in his heart to speak all manner of evil and act all manner of mischief hurt and wickedness against another This is our Apostles sense He that hateth his brother i.e. he that sheweth no pitty or compassion to but prejudice cruelty and indignation against his brother is a Murderer This is utter hatred according to that in Judg. 15.2 I verily thought thou hadst utterly hated her Brother 1. Natural brother Mat. 4.18 And Jesus walking by the sea of Galilee saw two brethren Simon called Peter and Andrew his brother 2. Kinsman and Country-man Rom. 9.3 4. For my brethren and kinsmen according to the flesh who are Israelites 3. A Christian one obedient to Christ Mat. 12.48 49.50 Who is my mother and who are my brethren And he stretched forth his hand towards his Disciples and said Behold my mother and my brethaen for whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven the same is my brother Heb. 3.1 Wherefore holy brethren partakers of the holy calling 4. Any humane creature man woman or child Mat. 7.3 4. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brothers eye meaning in the eye of any other person but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye Or how wilt thou say to thy brother to any man Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye and behold a beam is in thine own eye Acts 17.26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth Is a Murderer That is in his desire and

unprofitable What will it profit you or yours to hear Sermons and after that never to hear more of them Take heed of ignorance and idleness ignorance in not knowing what ye ought to do and idleness in refusing to take pains with your people Mal. 3.16 Formerly They that feared the Lord spake often one to another and the Lord hearkened and heard and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord and that thought on his name But now how seldom do we see Families conferring among themselves Husband and Wife speaking of God and of Christ that Children may learn Where is a Master and Mistris or Master and Dame that now adaies drop one gracious word in the hearing of their Servants the whole week or moneth nay it may be the whole year throughout is it any wonder then for young ones and inferiors to fall into evil ways when you that are elder and their Tutors and Governors walk so loosely and unchristianly before them Will you now search the Scriptures and know your work and do it entirely will you be faithful and true to all those Souls the Lord hath entrusted you with and take heed least their present miscarriages and their after-condemnation be and it will be unless you do all that belongs to your part charged upon your account Nathaniel Butler hath given me under his hand that if he had continued with one Master to whom he was turned over he beleeved he never had come to such a pass as he did The day is coming when it will come to pass that God shall set your sins and defaults in order before your faces And dare you then accuse God or can you excuse your selves when in truth it shall be laid to your charge that such a Son such a Daughter such a Man-servant or Maid-servant had never done so wickedly in one kind or other they never had faller into the waies of the Devil nor fallen under the wrath of God if we who had the nurturing over-sight and admonishing of them had done our duty O remember the counsel of Christ in these two Scriptures That of Paul to the Ephesians 5.4 and latter end lately touched upon Bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord That is teach them to know and love to serve and fear the Lord give them such nurture and instruction such spiritual matter for their minds to work upon as the Lord prescribeth by the Scriptures The other Text of very great use and service to Masters is in Col. 4.1 Masters give to your Servants that which is just and equal knowing that also ye have a Master in Heaven 'T is not onely just and equal to give food and raiment or knowledge or understanding in a Trade to your Servants but 't is just and equal for you to give good counsel to your Servants to serve God and till this be you are unjust men and unequal in your waies unconscionable as to the souls of your Servants 'T is a very honourable character that the most High himself gives to Abraham Gen. 18.19 For I know him that he will command his Children and his Houshold after him and they shall keep the way of the Lord Abraham did not command his Children and Servants to honour him and serve him onely for so most men are apt enough to lay their commands upon children and housholds but his command required his Relations to walk in the way of God If men would follow Abraham herein what orderly holy and reformed Families would then be found in the Land I hope that these Scripture-passages and passages of providence also one whereof and indeed a very sad one you have seen in the fore-going Narrative will touch your hearts and engage you to look after this that you and your Children you and your Servants be henceforth found in the way of the Lord. Many Masters are very like the Egyptian Task-masters in two respects which are both remarkable viz. 1. The Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigor and they made their lives bitter with hard bondage in Morter and in Brick and in all manner of service in the field all their service wherewith they made themserve was with rigor Exod. 1.13 14. O the rigor and bitterness that some servants abide during the time of their serving some men how many merciless harsh cruel Parents and Masters are more like Egyptians then Israelites more like Turks then Christians by their cruelty provoking directly against the Gospel-Statute Sons Daughters and Servants to do that which without unreasonable provocation they would never have done 2. Too many Heads and Rulers of houses seem Egyptians rather then Christians not only in exacting service from their inferiours with all storminess and bitterness of spirit but likewise in this sense more wicked then the former that they will not so far are these men from pressing their servants to serve God suffer them to go and serve the Lord do not some upbraid and revile threaten and discourage Servants and Sons and Daughters if they look after goodness and exactness of life Exod. 7.16 And thou shalt say The Lord God of the Hebrews bath sent me unto thee saying Let my people go that they may serve me in the wilderness and behold hitherto thou wouldest not hear I beg of you these two things 1. That you would be content when your children and servants do perform to you reasonable service And 2ly that you would exhort and beseech them by the mercies of God to present their bodies a living sacrifice holy acceptable to God which is to God-ward their reasonable service But least I should not prevail with you I shall therefore direct my counsel and admonition to children and servants themselves that in case your Overseers see not their duty or do it not yet your selves may make conscience to carry it so towards God and all men that ye adorn thereby the Doctrine of God our Saviour Young people hear what Christ commandeth Eph. 6.1 Children obey your parents in the Lord for this is right this is well-pleasing unto the Lord. Gol. 3.20 The Lord is angry at and displeased with disobedient Sons and Daughters Eph. 6.5.6 7 8. Servants saith Paul a servant of Christ be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh for as to soul and conscience Christ only is Lord and Master and in this sense we are forbidden to call any man Master Matth. 23 8. with fear and trembling in singleness of your heart as unto Christ Not with eye-service as men-pleasers but as the servants of Christ doing the will of God from the heart With good will doing service as to the Lord and not to men Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doth though never so mean a servant the same shall he receive of the Lord whether he be bond or free Obj. But some servant may say My Master is a very harsh froward man or else I

seed of Jacob seek ye me in vain Isa 55.7 Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts and let him return to the Lord and he will ABVNDANTLY pardon The word abundantly he used to pronounce with an emphasis for he saw his eyes being now annointed with spiritual eye-salve that he had multiplied sins exceedingly and that he stood in absolute need of the Lords abundant multiplied pardons whereof he had good hope through this good word of Isaiah Ezek 18.23 Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die saith the Lord God and not that he should return from his wases and live 30. Repent and turn your selves from all your transgressions SO iniquity shall not be your ruine 31. Cast away from you all your transgressions whereby ye have transgressed and make you a new heart and a new spirit for why will ye die O house of Israel 32. For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth wherefore turn your selves and live ye Ezek. 33.11 Say unto them As I live saith the Lord here the poor Prisoner would note to his comfort that a repenting sinner hadnot onely the Word and Promise of God for forgiveness but the Oath of God to give such a finner the greater assurance of pardon I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked but that the wicked turn from his ways and live Turn ye turn ye see the importunity of God with poor sinners for the good of their souls from your evil ways For why will ye die O house of Israel Micah 7.18 was a place pleasant to his soul Who is a God like unto thee that pardoneth iniquity and passeth by the transgression of the reranant of his heritage He retaineth not his anger for ever because he delighteth in mercy Vers 19. He will turn again as one doth when his anger is gone he will have compassion upon us he will subdue our iniquities and thou wilt cast ALL their sins into the depth of the Sea Now I shall give you a short List of some New Testament Texts whereby the Lord conveyed Counsel and Consolation to this doubting staggering poor Wretch Matth. 18.11 For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost Joh. 3.14 15 16. And as Moses lifted up the Serpent in the wilderness even so must the Son of Man be lifted up that whosoever beleeveth in him should not perish but have eternal life For God SO loved the WORLD that whosoever this word whosoever he he spake with joy beleeveth in him should not perish but have everlasting life Now saith Nathaniel Butler I am one to whom this word speaketh and therefore God gave the Lord Jesus Christ for my soul I beleeve in him and therefore I trust to live eternally through him according to the gracious terms of the Gospel John 6.37 and him that cometh to me I will in no wise here he would repeat and reiterate these words in NO WISE CAST OVT in NO WISE in NO WISE cast out 1 Tim. 1.15 This a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief 1 Tim. 2.5 6. For there is one God and one Mediator between God and Men the Man Christ Jesus who gave himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time In hearing reading and conferring upon these and many more Scriptures he would often say to me and others these are good Scriptures brave Scriptures are they not brave Scriptures He would make very diligent and frequent search into his soul concerning the sincerity of his sorrow and would not easily beleeve that his repentance was true or that he had right to the precious promises of the Gospel But by much speaking to him by many good people that he would applie Christ and also by seeking unto God for a spirit of Faith for him he did begin to act a faith of recumbency and adherence being as he often said perswaded that the Lord Jesus Christ was able to save to the uttermost and willing to save such as come unto God by him yet he could not come up to that full assurance of hope and confidence as he desired and we also desired heartily on his behalf So that sometimes he would break forth and say How can I that have been gurlty of all sins whatsoever almost as Murder Fornication Theft c. challenge or apply a pardon He was much afraid of running upon either of these two Rooks that is presumption or despair I told him that diffidence and despair was the strongest presumption against God saying to him Is it not presumption for a man to dis obey God and not to beleeve him Now the command of God in his glorious Gospel is that men weary of and heavy laden with sins should come to Christ that they might find rest to their souls The design of God said I in the Scriptures is not to give some feeble weak hope of pardon but a lively hope and a firm expectation of salvation to all that mourn and really repent Which so wrought upon him that for the space of some daies before his suffering death it pleased the God of all comfort to give him joy and consolation and sometimes strong consolation insomuch that he would at times express very great inward gladness which all that knew his former mournings were glad to see and glorified God for giving him the joy of his salvation for he was so satisfied concerning the favour and mercy of God towads him in Jesus Christ that he rather now desired death then feared it as seeing death through Jesus Christ without a sting On the Lords Day towards evening the Lord Mayor to whose Conference I refer you went the third and last time to visit him for the next day he was to die and my Lords advice very much refreshed his spirit it being his Lordships design to speak of Heaven with the glory and joy of that Kingdom and to establish the Prisoners thoughts thereon After his Lordship had left him he seemed to be very chearful in his spirit blessing God that he should put it into his Lordships heart to condescend so far as to pray and confer with such a despicable poor wretch as he was heartily thanking his Lordship for his abundant love That night being his last night I kept him company in Newgate so did divers others continuing with him in the Dungeon or Hole for so the Keepers call it till towards midnight conferring with him and endeavouring to comfort him to the end he delighted all the time of his Imprisonment in Christian Company and spiritual Discourses but in his last night he was very much carried forth to spend himself about spiritual things So that we judged it meet to leave him alone a while lest being altogether without rest and refreshment in his body he might thereby be made unfit for the service of the next day intending then to

your sins Having finished his Speech he then called on the Lord by Prayer intreating the people to join with him He prayed with an elevated voice and with many tears this Prayer following O Merciful GOD which according to the multitude of thy mercies doest so put away the sins of those which truly repent that thou remembrest them no mnore Open thine Eye of Mercy upon me wretched Sinner that I am who most earnestly desire pardon and forgiveness of all my former sins and particularly for my late horrid Blood guiltiness Lord if it be not too late and I trust no time is too late for thee to shew mercy wash away this blood of my Brother which sticks so close to my soul in the blood of my Saviour O let me call him so which was shed for my sins and the sins of the whole world Let not the voice of my murdered Brothers blood cry louder for vengeance then the blood of our crucified Jesus be heard to cry for pardon Give me Lord a truly penitent heart and then accept of that penitent heart of mine which is thine own gift Given me plenty of brinish tears but first steep and wash those tears of mine in the wounds of thy Son Make me here to abhor and loath and judge and condemn my self that in thy great day hereafter The great day of the Lord I may not be condemned eternally both body and soul Renew in me most loving Father whatsoever hath been decayed by the fraud and malice of the Devil or by mine own bloody carnal will and frailness Cause me to set all my sins before my face and then do thou cast them behind thy back Cause me to spread all my sins before thee my God as Hezekiah did the the blasphemous Papers of Rabshekah and then do thou blow them away with the blast of thy holy Spirit And forasmuch as I do humbly and earnestly desire to put my trust only in thy mercy Impute not unto me my former or latter sins the sins of my body and the sins of my soul sins of omission or sins of commission sins which I have done to please my self or others sins against the First or against the Second Table against thee my God against my Neighbor or against mine own Sonb Let this first death of mine which I am now ready to pay in satisfaction to Man's Law be acceptable in thy sight O God and so do thou deliver me from the second death Deliver me from my Blood guiltiness O God and take me yet into thy favour through the merits and blood shedding of thy most dearly beloved Son Jesus Christ Amen! Amen! Wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from my blood guiltiness who shall deliver me from this body of sin and death Lord have mercy upon me a sinner Christ have mercy upon me a sinner Lord have mercy upon me a sinner A Merciless a Profane a Thieving a Bloody sinner Lord though I had no mercy upon my Brother yet do Thou have mercy upon me For Lord I have so much the more need of mercy for my soul by how much I had so little mercy upon his life Lord I confess with horror of soul that I killed him suddenly giving him no time to prepare for death Yet Lord I must confess to thy great glory and goodness that Thou hast given me time and respite to repent before I die He then desir'd me as I stood upon the Ladder to pray for him which I also did he joining therein very solemnly I then having done prayer asked him how he did He told me he doubted not of doing well he laid all behind him and would go to Christ alone for life and salvation saying Now I am lanching into the Ocean of Eternity Then he delivered to me the written Speech desiring the Executioner to forbear Turning him off till he lifted up his hands and said Lord Jesus receive my soul I then took him by the hands and took my leave of him After he had stood still a little while in a way of Ejaculations with his Cap over his eyes he lifted up his hands and said the words aforesaid Then the Executioner did his office and he was a dead man in a few moments And in a few moments more who knows which of us will not be dead men also Oh consider therefore all you that yet are alive the following Admonition An Admonition to all persons whatsoever especially to Parents and Children Masters and Servants c. TO Parents and Masters of Families hear what the Lord faith to you Ephes 6.4 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is a putting of a thing into the mind an urging and pressing of it an informing and instructing the mind Leigh crit sac●● Now this Text tells you of two very great faults viz. First In case admonishing of Children and Servants be totally omitted where 's then your obedience to God who leaves their Education to your care Nay instead of giving good advice and examples to Youth you many times I mean many Heads of Families rather ruine them by living without Knowledge and without Conscience your selves Oh consider this and acquaint your selves with God and with Jesus Christ that you may be able to acquaint all committed to your nurture with the fame God and with the same Lord Jesus Christ the knowing of whom is the excellencie of knowledge Secondly A word to men of care but of very little care in this thing I grant you use prayer and you read Sermon-notes sometimes and the Scriptures themselves among your people at home but how often and how earnestly is that exercise Alas once it may be on the Lords day and then no great regard had how they profit or whether they profit or no so that something be done though nothing come by it by way of benefit to their Souls 'T is a wonderful weakness in many great Professors of Religion who will pray and beg of God strongly upon their knees for Light Knowledge Grace and Holiness to be given to their dear Children and to their Servants and yet these very persons will contribute little or nothing besides good wishes towards the conversion and welfare of souls that by their importunate supplications seem to be precious in their eye If praying be all you have to do for your Family what mean then those many Scriptures that command the doing of many other duties besides praying with and praying for your people and if prayer onely be not enough why do you onely pray Indeed 't is well done to wish well to them that dwell with you though it be part it is the least part of your duty doth not the Lord look for much more from you doth he not charge Fathers and Mothers and Masters to instruct rebuke correct their Children and Servants and to call them to account concerning their profiting in Gospel knowledge I am confident the carelesness of you in these things is that which renders Preaching so

could willingly serve him in singleness of heart Aus Thou art bound by the Gospel to obey and be in subjection to such a man if he be thy Master 1 Pet. 218 19. Servants be subject to your Masters with all fear of neglecting their lawful commands not only to the good and gentle but also to the froward For this is thank-worthy if a man for conscience toward God endure grief suffering wrongfully For what glory is it if when ye be buffeted for your faults ye take it patiently but if when ye do well and suffer for it ye take it patiently this is acceptable with God For even hereunto ye were called because Christ also suffered for us leaving us an example that you should follow his steps Who did no sin neither was guile found in his mouth Who when he was reviled reviled not again when he suffered he threatned not but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously I confesse it were well for Masters for wo to them that are naught and froward making their servants to suffer words and buffetings and other abuses wrongfully and well for Servants if they could serve men gentle and good but however they serve a God and Saviour that 's good and that will reward all that suffer lesse or more for his sake As my advice to you is that you would honour and obey and be faithful in all things to your Masters so I beseech you shun all sins and all appearance of evill but especially flee from idle companions Prov. 13.20 He that walks with wise men shall be wise but a companion of fools shall be destroyed Riotous deboist drunken swearing cursing whoring wretches are fools in the sense of Scripture and seeing it is self-destructive to be a companion with such persons wilt thou walk any more with such drinking to drunkenness Dicing and Carding are things of evill report and very evill things they lead likewise to other evils Nathaniel Butler was a great Company keeper and a great Gamester and what did he grow to at the last 2. Flee 2 Tim. 2.22 youthfull lusts Flee fornication 1 Cor. 6.18 But before a man will flee from any thing he must see that thing to be dangerous Now that Fornication Uncleanness and Whoredom is dangerous I demonstrate thus whereby it will appear every way destructive that it 1. Endangereth Reputation 't is a dishonour to the name and person of a Man or Woman Deut. 23.17 There shall be no whore of the daughter of Israel nor a Sodomite of the sons of Israel Thou shalt not bring the hire of a whore or the price of a dog into the house of the Lord thy God for any vow for even both these are abomination unto the Lord thy God Rom. 1.24 Wherefore God gave them up unto uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts to dishonour their own bodies among themselves Heb. 13.4 Marriage is honourable in all and the bed underfiled implying the defiled is shameful but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge 2. Endangereth substance Pro. 29.3 Who so loveth wisdom rejoyceth his father but he that keepeth company with harlots spendeth his substance How many have spent fair Estates by following this filthy sin Many spend their own substance and that also which is not their own but their Masters or Parents upon impudent wicked whorish women it is a disgracing and an impoverishing sin who sees not this by experience oftentimes 3. Following Harlots will lead thee to Hell will provoke God to take vengeance on thee Jer. 5 7 8 9. How shall I pardon thee for this thy chidren have forsaken me and sworn by them that are no gods when I had fed them to the full then they committed adultery and assembled themselves by troops in Harlots houses the vengeance of God will rout and miserably destroy such troops when he sets himself in array against them they were as fed horses in the morning every one neighed after his neighbours wife Shall I not visit for these things saith the Lord and shall not my soul wo then to their souls be avenged on such a Nation as this Prov. 7.25 26 27. Let not thine heart decline to her ways go not astray in her path for she hath cast down many wounded wounded in their credit wounded in their Estates and wounded in their Consciences yea many strong men have been slain by her This is a bloody wounding slaying sin Vers 27. Her house is the way to hell going down to the chambers of death To live in chambering and wantonness is the way to lie down in the chambers of death Remember the two young men named in the Narrative who were lately bedfellows above ground and now are become chamber-fellows bellow for the fear of the Lord prolongeth dayes but the years of the wicked shall be shortned break off then speedily from all sin as you hope for long-lasting life here and for everlasting life hereafter Obj. We can repent and mourn and pray hereafter For did not Nathaniel Butler live a long time wickedly and repented in a short time at the last Answ Do not think that you can repent when you please if you put off Repentance you put it to a peradventure 2 Tim 2.25 In meekness instructing those that oppse themselves if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth Do as David did Psal 119.20 who made haste and delayed not to keep the Commandments of God Delays in matters relating to life are most dangerous I hope no man nor woman will presume that the Lord is any way obliged to wait upon them so long as they please indeed it pleaseth him to wait to be gracious but who knows how neer to a period the time of Gods attendance on sinners is Acts 17.30 And the times of this ignorance God winked at but now commandeth alt men every where to repent 2 Pet. 3.9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise as some men count slackness but is long suffering to us ward not willing that any should perish but that all as Acts 17.30 men every where should come to repentance The Gospel of God and the goodness of God are gone forth for this very end to lead men to repentance but if sinners refuse to repent then after their hardness and impenitent heart under the Gospel goodness and long-suffering of God they treasure to themselves wrath against the day of wrath Rom. 2.5 1. God hath a day of grace for every poor sinner 2. He hath a day of wrath for men finally impenitent Think on it is it not a thing proper and likely to provoke God against you to swear in his wrath you shall never enter into his rest seeing men despise his goodness and do receive his grace in vain Nathaniel Batler being Executed in Cheapside over against Milk-street End about eight or nine in the morning a Multitude of People being Spectators he was afterwards cut down and his Corps put into that Coach which

untill he came to be alone in his Chaines like Manasseh 2 Chron. 33 11.12 his prejudgment of the sentence of death brought in the thoughts of an eternall after-estate and then said he my conscience was enlightned and a wakened to see my self in the glass of Gods law and under the judgment of eternal death which wrought such horror consusion and astonishment that made me cry out in the bitterness of my soule as one under the wrath and tertors of the Almighty Moreover said he the thoughts of this second and after-death of my poor soule did blot out of my remembrance the death which was approaching Hereupon I began further to apply to him after this manner That in this your present condition there are two things of greatest concernment to your soule First that you be rightly regulated in your repentance Secondly rightly directed the way of beleeving in Christ I shall endeavor to make both plain and practicable 1. Not to swell the Narrative with the rehearsall of what I offered him about a true and right conviction of sin not of this notorious sin only but of others also and the corrupt root and fountain from whence all sprang with the nature and necessity of a Gospel-repentance pressing seriousness and sincerity upon him this not being a time to Trifle much less to dissemble about the weighty concernments of his soule a false and a faigned repentance being as bad as the sin it self with more the like as occasion was offered N. B. Answers very sensibly in these and such like words following not in a continued discourse but in an Intercourse of speech N. B. Oh saith he not only this one haynous sin but multitudes of other sins are set in order before me as well small as great and the smallest appeareth great to me as being against a holy God and an infinite good I never thought such things to be sins which I now see to be sins Oh what an ignorant dead Creature was I before I now apprehend the filthiness and feele the hardness of my heart my heart is discovered to the very bottome the whole trade and course of my life is brought to my remembrance and wringing his hands the most of the time Oh now saith he I discerne I was in a miserable and damnable condition before I committed this foule fact Others think themselves in a happy condition because they are not under the guilt of my sin and under the same sentence but alas they are lamentably mistaken as I also was Now do I apprehend the sinfulness of my thoughts and secret immaginations as wel as outward actions And all this and much more exprest with such a manner and measure of earnestness as did apparantly signifie that the two-edged Sword had past and pierced through the very powers of his soule discerning and abilitating him to discerne the inward thoughts and intents of his heart Oh saith he I dare not lessen my sins nor extenuate my great sin they are against the righteous law and holy nature of God and frequently in our discourse he would intermix this speech of Davids with hands wringing and strong affection against thee O Lord have I sinned against thee even thee O Lord have I sinned and done wickedly and Lord Pardon mine iniquity for it s exceeding great Psal 25.11 And when I proceeded upon the parts of repentance and contrition as one great branch of it he said That he did heartily repent to his utmost as before the Lord and did hope the Lord would break him more Oh saith he it s the griefe of my heart I can grieve no more and though my heart is broken yet I am sensible of hardness yet remaining and by way of concession to my words saying Oh it s not a time to Trifle indeed I know my heart is deceitfull but I desire nothing more then a through and faithful discovery of the deceitfulness of my heart by all that come to mee that I might not mistake and lose my soule and amongst other deceits I desire to avoid this of resting upon any repentance of mine but upon Christ only for salvation but I hate sin heartily not only for that it hath brought mee to this misery but also for its filthy nature and because against a holy and mercifull God 2. The second thing I endeavoured to mannage was the possibility of pardon and salvation notwithstanding the magnitude and multitude of his sins which when I began to speake his heart was raised to an earnest expectation and attention rejoycing to think there might be a dore of hope I proceeded to three or four considerations to evidence his sin pardonable and his soule salvable First because there was more grace in God to forgive and more vertue in the blood of Christ to save then was in his sin to damne him Secondly because God in the Gospel had determined all sins of all sorts pardonable except only the sin against the holy spirit Math. 12.31 1 John 5.16 which for sundry reasons he could not possibly be guilty of this I did inculcate the more that he might sted fastly and firmely beleeve the record and testimony hereof before he went further unto which he did profess a full and sound assent gathering herefrom hopes that he might be saved and exulted in those hopes Thirdly that God had recorded eminent examples in his word of shewing his mercy to such sinners who had committed the same sin and that with a higher hand viz. Manasseh 2 Kings 21.16 compared with 2 Chron. 33 11 12 13. I did endeavor to enforce the Parallel about the meanes and manner of Gods humbling by the same fetters of affliction upon which he said Oh I bless God for this affliction I bless God that I was discovered and taken I might have run out my course in sin and directly to hell had not God taken this course with me Oh I would not exchange my present imprisonment with my former liberty in sin for all the world I hinted also the Murder of David in the matter of Vriah and Davids prayer again Psal 25.11 which he said Mr. Samuel Jacombe of Lumbard Stret had preacht on in the Prison which did much help his hopes and he voluntarily called to remembrance the Jewes who murdered Christ Acts 2.36.37.38 and made a comfortable improvement thereof Fourthly I alledged that the Gospell did pronounce and proclaim pardon of sin and eternal salvation upon true repentance and beleeving on the Lord Jesus Christ and there was no visible barr to exclude him more then any other in world the substance of this faith lying in this that if upon the sight of his lost condition by sin and upon a firme assent to the record of God concerning his sons being an only and al-sufficient Saviour he could but cast himself upon the mercy of God and roule his sinfull sincking soule upon the Lord Jesus as a foundation heartily hateing sin and abhorring himself and cleaving to Christs righteousness