Chriftian fmiled, and faid, I think verily I know the meaning of this. Now, faid Chriftian, Let me go hence: Nay, ftay (faid the Interpreter) till I have fhewed thee a little more, and after that thou fhalt go on thy way. So he took him by the hand again, and led him into a very dark room, where there fat a man in an cage. iron * Despair like Now the man to look on feem'd very fad; he fat an iron-cage. with his eyes looking down to the ground, his hands folded together, and he figh'd as if he would break his heart Then faid Christian, What means this? At which the Interpreter bid him talk with the man. Chr. Then faid Chriftian to the man, What art thou? The man anfwered, I am what I was not once. Chr. What wert thou once? Man. The man faid, I was once a ‡ fair and flou- Luke viii. 18. rifhing profeffor, both in my own eyes, and alfo in the eyes of others. I once was, as I thought, fair for the cœleftial city, and had then even joy at the thoughts that I should get thither. Chr. Well, but what are thou now? Man. I am now a man of Defpair, and am fhut up in it, as in this iron-cage. I cannot get out, O! no, I cannot. Chr. But how cam'it thou in this condition? Man. I left off to watch and be fober; I laid the reins upon the neck of my lufts; finned against the light of the world, and the goodnefs of God: I have grieved the fpirit, and he is gone: I tempted the devil and he is come to me, I have provoked God to anger, and he has left me; I have fo hardened my heart, that I cannot repent. Then faid Chriftian to the Interpreter, But is there no hopes for fuch a man as this? Afk him, faid the Interpreter. Chr. Then faid Chriftian, Is there no hope, but you must be put in the iron-cage of Despair? Man. No, none at all. Chr. Why? The fon of the Blessed is very pitiful. Man. I have † crucified him to myself, afresh. I † Heb, vi. 6. have defpifed his perfon, I have defpifed his righte-Luke xix. 14. ousness, I have counted his blood an unholy thing, I§ Heb. x. 24, have done defpite § to the spirit of grace: Therefore, 29. I have fhut myself out of all the promifes, and there now remains nothing to me but threatenings of certain judgment, and fiery indignation, which fhall devour me as an adversary.. Chr. For what did you bring yourself into this condition ? Man. For the lufts, pleasures, and profits of this world; in the enjoyment of which I did then promife myself much delight: But now every one of those things alfo bite me, and gnaw me, like a burning worm. Chr. But can't thou not repent and turn? Man. God hath denied me repentance, his word gives me no er D courage couragement to believe, yet himself hath fhut me up in this iron-cage Nor can all the men in the world let me out. O eternity! eternity How fhall I grapple with the misery that I must meet with in eternity! Inter. Then faid the Interpreter to Chriftian, Let this man's mifery be remembered by thee, and be an everlasting caution to thee Chr. Well, faid Chriftian, this is fearful; God help me to watch and be fober; and to pray that I may fhun the cause of this man's mifery. Sir, Is it not time for me to go on my way now? Inter. Tarry until I fhew thee one thing more, and then thou fhalt go on thy way. 1 Cor. xv. 2 Theff iv. Jude xv John v. 28. 2 Thef. i. 8. Rev. xx. 11, 12, 13, 14. Ifa. 26. 21. Mich. vii. 16, 17. Pial. i. 2, 3. the mountains: So he took Christian by the hand agair, and led him into a chamber, where there was one rifing out of bed; and as he put on his raiment, he hook and trembled Then faid Chriftian, Why does this man thus tremble? The Interpreter then bid him tell to Christian the reason of his doing fo: So he began and faid, This night as I was in my fleep, I dreamed, and behold the heavens grew exceeding black: Also it thunder'd and lightned in most dreadful wife, that it put me into an agony. So I looked up in my dream, and faw the clouds rock at an unafual rate, upon which I heard a great found of a trumpet, and faw alfo a man fit upon a cloud, attended with the thousands of heaven: They were all in flaming fire, alfo the heavens were in a burning flame: I heard a voice, faying, Arife ye dead, and come to judgment; and with that the rocks rent, the graves opened, and the dead that were therein came forth. Some of them were exceeding glad, and looked upward. And fome fought to hide themfelves under Then I faw the map that fat upon the cloud open the book, and bid the the world draw hear. Yet there was by reason of a fierce flame which iffued and came before him, a convenient distance betwixt him and them, and betwixt the judge and the prifoners at the bar. I heard it alfo proclaimed to them that attended on the man that fat upon the cloud. * Gather togather the tares, the chaff and fubble, and caft them into the burning lake: And with that, the bottomlefs pit opened, juft whereabout I flood: Out of the mouth of which there came in abunfmoak and coals of fire, with hideous noifes. It was also faid to the fame perfons, † Gather my wheat into the garner. And with that I faw many catch'd up and carried away into the clouds, but I was left behind. I alfo fought to hide myself, but I could not, for the man that fat upon the cloud ftill kept his eye upon me: My fins alfo came into my mind; and my confcience did accufe me on every fide. Upon this I awaked from my sleep. Mal. iii. 2, 3. dant manner, + Luke iii. 17. Theff vii. 16, 17. Rom.ii. 14, 15. Chr Chr. But what was it that made you afraid of this fight? Man. Why I thought that the day of judgment was come, and that I was not ready for it: But what affrighted me most was, that the angels gathered up feveral, and left me behind; alfo the pit of hell opened her mouth juft where I ftood: My confcience too afflicted me; and as I thought the judge had always his eye upon me, fhewing indignation in his countenance. Then faid the Interpreter to Chriftian, Haft thou confidered all these things? Chr. Yes, and they put me in hope and fear. Inter. Well, keep all things fo in thy mind that they may be as a goad in thy fides, to prick thee forward in the way thou must go. Then Chriftian began to gird up his loins, and addrefs himself to his journey. Then faid the Interperter, The Comforter be always with thee, good Chriftian to guide thee in the way that leads to the city, So Chriftian went on his way, faying; Here I have feen things rare and profitable, Things pleafant, dreadful things to make me fiable Now I faw in my Dream that the highway, up which Chriftian was to go, was fenced on either fide with a wall, and that wall was called falvation. Up this way therefore did burthen ed Chriftiar run, but not without great difficulty, because of the load on his back. * Ifaiah xxvi. 1. He run thus till he came at a place fomewhat af cending, and upon that place ftood a crofs, and a little below in the bottom, a fepulchre. So I faw in my dream, That juft as Christian came up with the cross, his burthen loofed from off his fhoulders, and fell from off his back, and began to tumble, and fo continued to do, till it came to the mouth of the fepulchre, where it fell in, and I faw it no more. Who's this? The Pilgrim, How 'Tis very true, Old things are paft away; all's become new. Strange! He's another man; upon my word; They be fine feathers that make a fine bird. Then was Chriftian glad and lightfome, and faid with a merry heart, He hath given me rest by his jorrow, and life by his death. *.. Where God releafes us of our guilt and burden, we are as thofe that leap for joy. * Zech. xii. 10. Then he ftood awhile to look and wonder; for it was very furprising to him, that the fight of the crofs hould thus eafe him of his burthen He looked therefore, and looked again, even till the Springs that were in his head fent the water down his cheeks.. Now, as he food looking and weeping, behold three fhining ones came to him, and faluted him, with Peace be to thee; fo the first faid to D 2 him, " * Matt. xxii. him, Thy fins be forgiven thee; the fecond trips him of his rags, and cloathed him with change of raiment; the third alfo ‡ fet a mark in his forehead, and gave him a roll, with a feal upon it, which he bid him look on as he ran, and that he should give it in at the cœleftial gate; fo they went their way. Then Chriftian gave three leaps for joy and went on finging: Thus far did I come laden with my fin Nor could ought cafe the grief that I was in, Till I came hither; What a place is this! Muft here be the beginning of my blifs! Muft bere the burthen fall from off my back! Muft here the frings that bind it to me crack! Bleft cross! bleft fepulchre! Bleft rather be The Man that here was put to shame for me! dream that he went on thus, even till he came at the bottom, where he faw a little out of the way, three men fakt asleep, with fetters upon their heels, the name of the one was Simple, the other Sloth, and the third Prefumption. A christian can fing tho' alone, when God doth give him the joy of his heart. I faw then in my Simple, Sloth, and Prefumption. § Prov. xxiii. 24. hath no bottom: * will Chriftian then feeing them lie in this cafe, went unto them, if peradventure he might awake them, and cried, You are like them that fleep on the top of a § maft, for the dead jea is under you, a gulph that Awake, therefore, and come away; be willing also, and I will help you off with your irons. He also told them, If he that geeth about like a roaring lion, comes by, you certainly become a prey to bis teeth. With that they looked upon him, and began to reply in this fort: † Simple faid, I fee no danger: Sloth faid, Yet a little more fleep: And Prefumption faid, Every tub must ftand upon his own bottom. And fo they lay down to fleep again, and Chriftian went on his * Pet. v. 8. way. Yet he was troubled to think, that men, in that danger, fhould fo little efteem the kindness of him that fo freely offered to help them, both by the awakening of them, counselling of them, and proffering to help them off with their irons. And as he was troubled thereabouts he efpied two men come tumbling over the wall, on the left-hand of the narrow way; and they made up apace to him. The name of the one was Formality, and the name of the other hypocrify. So, as I faid, they drew up unto him, who thus entered with them into dif courfe. Chr. Gentlemen, Whence come you, whither Chriftian talk- go you? ath with them. Zion. Form, and Hyp. We were born in the land of Vain-Glory, and we are going for praise to mount Chr. Chr Why came you not in at the gate which ftandeth at the be ginning of the way? Know ye not that it is written, That be that cometh not in by the door, but climbeth up Jome other way, the fame is a thief and a robber? John x. 1. Form. and Hyp. They faid, That to go to the gate of entrance, was by all their countrymen counted too far about; and therefore their ufual way was to make a short cut of it, and to climb over the wall as they had done. Chr. But it will be counted a trefpass against the lord of the city whither we are bound, thus to violate his revealed will. Form. and Hyp. They told him, † That as for that he needed not trouble his head thereabout; for what they did they had custom for, and could produce, if need were, teftimony that would witness it, for more than a thousand years. Chr. But, faid Chriftian, Will it ftand a trial at law? † They that come into the way, but not by the door, think that they can Say Something in vindication of their own practice. Form. and Hyp. They told him, That custom being of fo long a ftanding as above a thousand years, would doubtless now be admitted as a thing legal by an impartial judge: And befides, fay they, if we get into the way, what matter which way we get in? If we are in, we are in: Thou art but in the way, who, as we perceive, came in at the gate, and we are allo in the way, that came tumbling over the wail; wherein now is thy condition better than ours ? Chr. I walk by the rule of my matter, you walk by the rude workings of your fancies. You are counted thieves already by the lord of the way, therefore I doubt you will not be found true men at the end of the way You come in by yourfelves without his direction, and go out by yourselves without his mercy. fhall To this they made but little answer; only they bid him look to himfelf. Then I faw that they went on every man in his his way, without much conference one with another; fave that these two men told Chriftian, That as to laws and ordinances, they doubted not but they fhould as confcientiously do them as he. Therefore, faid they, we fee not wherein thou differeft from us, but by the coat that is now on thy back; which was, as we trow, given thee by fome of thy neighbours, to hide the fhame of thy nakedness. † Gal. i. 16. Christian has got his Lord's coat on his back, and is comforted therewith. Chr. By laws and ordinances you will not be faved, fince you came not in by the door. And as for this coat that is on my back, it was given me by the Lord of the place whither I go; and that, as you fay, to cover my nakedness with. And as I take it, as a token of kindness to me, for I had nothing but rags before; and befides, thus I comfort myself as 1 go: "Surely, think I, when I come to of the city, the Lord thereof will know me for good, fince I have his coat on my back; a coat that he gave me freely in the day the gate that |