Chapter IV
The pleas which men who have only morality m.ake for themselves. They urge that they do not live in vicious courses; that they refrain from great and noto
rious sins that they are honest ; that they have some knowledge of the truths
of the Christian religion, as well as make a profession of it. What are the
reasons that men are so ready to account any moral righteousness which they have to be grace.
We are laying siege and battery to all those false pleas and carnal reason
ings (which the apostle calls strongholds ), which all sorts of unregenerate men build up for themselves to maintain a good opinion of their estates. We having demolished those of the profane and ignorant sort, whose strength and force are but weak and small, have already sat down before the holds and forts of civil and formal Christians, whose number, as it is greater, so their fortifications are of more strength, and will hold out a longer siege. Their outworks, such pleas as are drawn from external privileges, which are more common to them and all other unregenerate men,. we have already scaled and taken ; we will therefore now advance and set forwards towards the main strength and castle of defence ;. which is in view, and for the outside of it towards men, a fair and goodly one, consisting of much righteousness of
their own, founded and fortified much of it by nature, and then repaired and much enlarged by their education in the church ; and ere we begin to lay battery against it, let us take a general view of it altogether, and
* go round about it, and tell all the towers thereof, and descry wherein the great strength of it doth lie.
1. The greatest and eminentest tower belonging to it, is a negative righteousness, and outward abstinence from gross sins, so that they can not be charged with the gross defilements of the world ; so said the pha-
risee, I am no drunkard, no adulterer; they wallow not in the common
mire, and so think themselves pure in their own eyes. There is a gene ration that are pure in their own eyes, though they be not washed from their inward filthiness, as Agur saifch, Prov. xxx. (which imputation, though these
892 AN UNREGENERATE MAN S GUILTINESS BEFORE GOD, [BOOK X.
men would fasten and apply to others better than themselves, who are truly
holy, yet it will be found that they themselves are the men the Holy Ghost there meant and aimed at) ; yea, they further say, that they not only abstain from such sins, but find no great inclination thereunto ; yea, they utterly abominate such courses themselves, and are zealous against them to punish and reform them in others.
2. The second is, much good both in their natures and dispositions, many virtues, which are likewise expressed in their lives in many actions that
: as sweetness, candour, goodness, and ingenuity of nature ; meek
are good
ness, kindness and love to those they live with ; pity to others in distress,
honesty and integrity of heart in their dealings with men ; uprightness in a
good and just cause.
3. These, joined with keeping a good conscience, and doing out of con
science that which they do in secret. They say they would not wrong a man
that trusts them, no, not in secret ; they say they are diligent in their call
ings, provide for their families, and careful in the places they live in, aim
at the public good, and will be missed when they are gone. And though these be the most conspicuous parts of their righteousness, and which they most trust to, and therefore are denominated civil men, the denomination
being from that which is most eminent in them ; yet to countenance this
their honesty the more, and to set it forth and varnish it for grace, they plead they are not devoid of religion neither. Therefore they further plead, and say,
4. We know the truth professed and taught amongst us, and we do assent
to it, and do hate and renounce popery, and in our practice we conform to
all holy duties publicly professed, and constantly we come to church, as all
Christians ought to do, and are conversant in those holy duties with reve
rence, attention, and devotion (and if they have been more strictly educated,
they do sometimes say prayers privately), and unto all this we add faith in Jesus Christ, looking to be saved alone by him.
5. Unto all which goodness they put in many excuses for what they want
into the balance to make it weight. It is true, saith such an one, I am not
so scrupulous in every small thing as some are, as in petty oaths and vain
speeches ; and what need I stand troubling myself with my thoughts, which
are so various and infinite ? Nor do I much stick to take some liberty in some particular sin ; yet it is but my infirmity, and all have their imperfec tions ; and God will not be strict to mark all that is done amiss, nor there
fore need I be so.
6. And, again, what though I have not found such a work in me, as some talk of, to see myself in a damnable estate, to have such heart-break
ings for my sins, and have not had such longings after Christ, and con
tempt of and parting with the world, nor such a relish of or running after
sermons, and delight in duties ; I thank God I know no cause I have to be
troubled, I never knew myself in a bad estate, I have been thus well dis
posed from my youth ; I believe in Christ as well as they do, though I do not keep such ado about him, in talking or thinking of him ; I do not remem ber that ever I wanted him, for I believed in him ever since I can remember ; I am sorry when I ofiend and sin, and do heartily ask God mercy, as that
* God be merciful to me a sinner. And what though I am
publican did,
not so zealous nor so forward in many duties, as in talking of Scripture mat
ters everywhere where I come, or in teaching and praying, and repeating the word with my family, or confessing my sins, and mourning for them ;. I have not such gifts as others have, but my heart is good, though I make not such a show ; and though I spend the chief of my time and thoughts upon
CHAP. IV.] IN RESPECT OF SIN AND PUNISHMENT.
the world, and that all my care and desires, and chief delights, are taken
up in getting wealth and honours, and learning, &c., yet I follow but my
calling, and I take no unlawful courses to get wealth ; and he is worse than an infidel that provides not for his family ; nor do I spend time in unlawful
pleasures forbidden in the word. Unto which and the like excuses I shall
hereafter speak.
This is in brief the model of that goodness, which, like another Babel,
they themselves have built to climb up to heaven with, and are bold to set
in competition with the truth of holiness in the most regenerate ; and, in
deed, it is no wonder if nature, having any righteousness of its own, stands
upon it, and takes it for grace, without examining of it ; for surely, if out ward favours from God lead them into such an opinion, and their privileges as living in the church (as was shewn) which are things external and with out them, et qua non fecimus ipsi ; if these, I say, do yet flush men in a
good opinion of themselves, how much more any righteousness which is
their own, and in and from themselves ! And therefore Paul, besides his outward privileges of being circumcised, reckons up as the chief thing he made account of, that righteousness which was his own, Philip, iii. 6-9. And if they esteem and magnify adherent, relative and sacramental right eousness so much, then inherent personal righteousness must needs be much more extolled by them. A man s own righteousness in his own eyes, Oh, it must needs be grace, be it never so little ; any abstinence from sin, any virtuous disposition, any religious devout performances
: All a man s
ways are clean in his own eyes, saith Solomon, Prov. xvi. 2 ; which inti mates two reasons :
1st, In his own eyes, that is, himself being judge. And therefore, till a man hath new eyes given him from the holy word of God, and be enlight ened by a supernatural light accompanying it, which might represent men themselves to them and their condition, as it is set forth in the word, no wonder if they think well of themselves. Now these kind of men are never
put out of conceit with themselves by the light of the holy word, revealing their spiritual sinfulness in their natural condition to them, to humble them. Though they hear it, and understand many things in a general man
ner, so far as natural understanding reaches, yet they have not had such a
t to understand themselves by it, to see their own faces in it, as James speaks ; and therefore are but of the first sort of hearers, who did not understand the word, that is, not with an applying or affecting light as the other, the stony and thorny ground did ; and, therefore, having but their own eyes, no wonder if their ways be clean in their own judgments and opinions.
light as
2dly. And again, because they look but with their own eyes, their natural
light, so because they be their own ways, yea, even all their ways, as Solomon
speaks, so as even for the most of their wicked ways, they have some excuses and fair pretences to colour them, but much more their moral virtues, and
righteous dealings, and good dispositions, their own righteousness, these must needs be high in their own esteem. Every man is apt to magnify what
is his own above the worth of it; and by how much the worth of it is greater, by so much the more a man useth to magnify it. If men have children which are the fruit of their bodies, they doat on them, as the ape in the
fable, that presented its misshapen birth to Jupiter. If men have parts or
wit, which are the more noble and fair births of their brain, they much more admire them in themselves than in others. But above all, if corrupt nature comes to have any righteousness bestowed upon it, which is the noblest en dowment of all other, oh then, out of question it may be grace
! And by
894 AN UNREGENERATE MAN*S GUILTINESS BEFORE GOD, [BOOK X.
how much more men had rather think well of themselves for righteousness and goodness than for any other endowment whatsoever, by so much are
they yet made more prone to think well of their own virtues and performances rather than of any other excellency. And therefore Paul, in that inventory he gives in of what was gain to him, and of most worth, we find no mention made by him of his learning, which in other regards he stood upon ; but he stands chiefly upon his righteousness, and virtues, and conformity to the law. And therefore the philosopher also made the practice of virtue to be man s chiefest good, so high an opinion hath nature of its own righteousness.
3dly. And add to this, that to men fallen into such a state of general cor
ruption (as they hear all men are fallen into), any seeming righteousness and
goodness must needs seem the more to them, to prize it in that respect, that
they hear how corrupt mankind is. Beggars, we see how proud they are if
they get an old suit to cover their nakedness, a little money, to shew that
they have some, and this because they are beggars. So we the sons of men, that are bankrupts, and of whom the word says, that by nature we are alto
gether unrighteous, and that we are but flesh, wherein dwells no good thing; that we should have anything like goodness, it makes us the more conceited, and we think presently, surely it must be grace. So the church of Laodicea
says, Rev. iii. 17, that she was rich, and increased with goods, and had need of nothing ; yet she was poor, and blind, and miserable, and wretched. She had got some old rags of righteousness, some brass shillings and counterfeit pieces of good works and performances ; and how proud was she ! Therefore no wonder if men
* go about to establish their own righteous ness (as the Jews did, Rom. x. 2), if they advance it and set it up, if it
passes and gets out for grace, and be thought worthy of that degree in their own thoughts.