very ring-leader of all the youth that kept him company in all manner of vice and engedlieefs.

10

But netwithlanding all this wickedness of his. God zot utterly have him, but followed him fonetimes woh convictions, and fometimes with juden nts, but yet fuch f as bad in them a mixture of mercy: At one time he fell in to a c.cek of the fes, and the hardly efcaped drowning; and at another time he fell out of a boat into Bedford river; but there be alfo was preferved, though with great dificulty. But, alas! it was neither mercy or judgment that could yet awaken him, for he had given up himself to the love of fin, and was fully refolved to go on, whatever rubs he met with in his way.

Yet God left not himself without a witness in bis foul, often checking him in one way or another; as one day being at Sly with his companions, a voice fuddenly darted from heaven into his foul, faying, Wilt theu leave thy fins, and go to heaven, or continue in thy fins, and go to hell? This pat him into fuch a confternation, that he immediately left his fport, and looking up to heaven, thought he faw the Lord Jefus locking down upon him, as one hotly difpleafed with him, and threatening him with fome grievous punifames for his ungodly practices.

But fee the works of Satan! No fooner had this made fome impreflion on his mind, but the devil fuggened to hi, That he had been a great and grievous finner, and that it was now too late for him to look after heaver, for Chrift would not forgive him, nor pardon his tranfgredicns. And this is no other than the devil's ufual practice, first to draw finners to commit all iniquity with greedinefs, and then to perfuade them there is no hope of mercy left, that there by the inner may be prevailed with to go on in fin. And this was the effect that this fuggefion had up n Bunyan; who, looking upon himself as one that had finned beyond the reach of mercy, thought within himself, that he would take his fiil of fin, it being the only pleasure he wat ever like to have. And yet thefe pleasures et fin, thro' the wonderful operation of the holy fpirit, were fo often imbittered to him, that he could take but little fatisfaction in them. For, The labour of the natural man, or man befort converfion, doth but weary him, because he knoweth not the way To the city of God, Ecclef. x. 15.

Mr.

Once

Once as he was going on in the full career of fin, and elching out oaths like the madman that Solomon fpeaks of, ho fcatters abroad fire-brands, arrows, and death, he was eproved feverely by a woman, who was a notorious finner erfelf; who sold him, That he was the ugliest fellow for wearing, that ever she heard in all her life; and that by his oing thus, he was able to spoil all the Youth in the Town, if bey came into his Company This reproof coming from fuch woman, whom he knew to be very wicked and ungodly, illed him with great fhame; and wrought more with him, han many that had been given him before by thofe that vere fober and godly: And made him with, that he had ever known what it was to be afwearer, and even made im out of love with it; and from that time forward very nuch to refrain from it. This puts me in mind of a story have read in the life of holy Mr. Perkins, who, in his young years, was as great a debauchee as any in the Unirerfity of Cambridge, where he was brought up. He coming one time through the out-parts of the town, heard a woman fay to her child that was froward and peevish, Either bold your tongue or I will give you to drunken Perkins yonder. These words were fo great a reproof to him, finding himelf made a comaion bye-word among people, that it made nim refolve upon a reformation; and this, by God's gracious and all-difpenfing providence, was one great fep towards his converfion

But to return to Mr. Bunyan God having a defign of grace towards him, gave him frequent checks and interruptions in the mid of his strongest refolutions to 'go on in his fin; fometimes fearing him with dreams, and terrifying him with vifions, in an extraordinary manner; verifying that of Elibu to Job, in the xxxiid chapter of that book, and the 14th verse, and forward: For God Speaketh ance, yea, twice, yet man perceiveth it not: In 'a dream, in a vifion of the might; when deep fleep falleth upon men, in fumberings upon the bed: Then be openeth the ears of men, and fealeth their inftruction: That he may withdraw man from his purpose, and keep back his fou from the pit, and his life from perijning. For Once he dreamed that he faw the face of the heavens, as it were all on fire, and the firmament cracking and fhivering with the noife of mighty thunders, and that an arch-angel flew in the midst of heaven, founding a trumpet, and a

thro

throne of glory was feated in the east, whereon fat a perfor in brightnefs like the morning ftar. Upon which Mr. Banyan, thinking in his dream that it was the end of the world, fell upon his knees, and with uplifted hands towards heaven, cried out, O Lord God, have mercy upon me! What fall I do! The day of judgment is come, && I am not prepared! And then immediately he heard a voice behind him, faying, Repent. And upon this he awaked, and found it was buc a dream; but furely it was a very awful dream, and a m mento fent from heaven; and it had an effect accordingly for, upon this he grew more ferious, and it remained in his mind a confiderable time. This was a part of God's deal äng with him, to withdraw him from his purpofe of finning, and to keep back his foal from the pit of deftruction.

one in

At another time he dreamed, that he was in a pleafant place, living in riot and luxury, banqueting and fealing his fenfes: where, on a fudden, even in a moment, a mighty earthquake rent the earth in funder, and out of the wide and dreadful gap came bloody and amazing fames, and in whofe flames the figures of men toffed up in globes of fire, and falling down again, with horrid fhrieks and cries, and execrations; whilft fome devils that were mingled with the Baughed aloud at their torments. And whil he stood trembling at this affrighting vifion, he thought the earth fook ander him, and a circle of fame inclofed him : But when be thought himself juft at the point of perithing, white fhining raiment defcended, and plucked him out of that dreadful place, whilst the devils cried after him, to leave Bim with them, that he might receive the just punishment his fins had deferved; yet he efcaped the danger. He was Extremely affrighted with this dream, and not a little glad The found it to be but a dream; tho' indeed it was a great deal more, for it was the fecret working of the Almighty upon his fpirit, to draw him from his fins, altho' he was ignorant of Chrift, and fo wedded unto fport and play that he could not leave it: But in a little time after, he fell into the company of a poor man, that made profeffion of religion, whofe difcourfe of religion, and of the fcriptures, fo affected Mr. Bunyan, that he betook himself to reading the Bible, efpecially the hiftorical part thereof; but was yet ignorant both of the corruption and depravity of his nature, and, by a neceffary confequence, of the want and worth of Jefus

Chrift to fave him. However, this produced outward refor mation both.in his words and life; and he now was fallen into a kind of legal religion, working for life, and making up a righteoufnefs for himself thereby fo that while he thought he kept the commandments he had comfort; but when at fome times he broke any of them, his pfcience was full of guilt and trouble: But then upon his forrow & repentance, he healed himself again, and thought thereby he had made God amends, and all was well.

And thus he continued for fome time, very near a year; his neighbours all that time taking him for a very good man, and wondering at his reformation. Tho' indeed all that time he was as far from the way of life as when he was the moft prophane; tho', as himself phrafes it, his change of life and manners was as remarkable as for Tom of Bedlam ta become a fober man,

And now thofe shat fpoke ill of him before, began to praife and commend him, both to his face and behind his back; which, notwithstanding his reformation, puffed him up with pride, and filled him with hypocrity. He had been mightily addicted to ringing, and for all bis reformation, was very unwilling to leave it: But his confciuce beginning to be tender, he thought the practice thereof to be but vain, and fo forced himself to leave it, yet could not keep hie mind from hankering after it; and therefore would not ring. But then he was furprized with fears, that poffibly one of the bells might fall and kill him, & then he dura no longer go into the teeple, but would ftand at the door; and even there he was afraid led the fleeple itself should fall upon him, This both but fhewed continual conviction, and that yet the love of pleafures ftill remained, and his corrupt affections were unmortified. Dancing was also another thing in which he much delighted, and he found it a hard thing to relinquish that allo; and it was near a year's time before he could leave it off. But, alas! this was but the lopping off the branches of fin, whilft the root of unregeneracy remained: This was but building upon the old foundation, which aruft all be overturned, where God intends to carry on his work in truth. But it pleafed God, in his wonderful wildom and goodnefs, to let him pafs thro' these things, that he might the better know how to direct thofe poor wandering fouls, that would be afterwards in fuch a ftate,

which in itself indeed is very dangerous: For no fort of fin ners are in a more defperate condition, than thofe that are pure in their cawn eyes, and yet are not cleanfed from their filthinesst Prov. xxx. 12. Not long after, the providence of God fo ordered it, that Mr. Bunyan went to Bedford to work upon his calling, and happened there to hear three or four poor women who were fitting in the fun, difcourfing together about the things of God, which caufed him to draw near to them, for he was by this time himself become a mighty talker of religion: But when he had heard them a-while, as himself confeffed, he heard, indeed, but he underkend not, for they spoke of things above his reach; difcourfing of the new birth, and the work of God on their hearts, and how they were convinced of their miferable state by nature: They talked how God had vifited their fouls with his love in the Lord Jefus, and with what words and promifes they had been refreshed, comforted, and fupported against the temptations of the devil: They alfo reafoned of the fuggefi ons and temptations of the evil one in particular, and told each other by which they had been afflicted, and how they were borne up under his. Affaults. He heard them likewile difcourfe of the wretchedness of their own hearts, and of their unbelief; and of contemning and abhorring their own righ teousness, as filthy, and infufficient to do them any gooo. And all this appeared to him to be spoken with fuch an of joy, and fuch pleafantnefs of fcripture language, and with fuch an appearance of grace in all they faid, that they feemed to him is if they had found a new world; as if they were people that dwelt alone, and were not to be reckoned among their neighbours. It was upon this difcourfe of theirs, that he began to feel fome unufual agitations in his own heart, and to be confcious to himself, that his own condition was mor fo good as he had thought it to be; becaufe, in all his thoughts about religion na falvation, the new birth never entered into bis mind? but he found it was a thing he wat wholly a trenger to, and unacquainted, with: Nor did ha ever know the comfort of a word or promife, nor the deceifols and treachery of his vn wicked heart: And as for fecret thoughts, he had never taken any notice of them; nor did he at all underftand what fatan's temptations were, os, how they were to be withitood, or refitted. But, however, this difcourfe of thefe good women mightily affected