Faith.  What! why, he objected against religion itself; he said it was a pitiful, low, sneaking business for a man to mind religion; he said that a tender conscience was an unmanly thing; and that for a man to watch over his words and ways, so as to tie up himself from that hectoring liberty that the brave spirits of the times accustom themselves unto, would make him the ridicule of the times.  He objected also, that but few of the mighty, rich, or wise, were ever of my opinion [1 Cor. 1:26; 3:18; Phil. 3:7,8]; nor any of them neither [John 7:48], before they were persuaded to be fools, and to be of a voluntary fondness, to venture the loss of all, for nobody knows what.  He, moreover, objected the base and low estate and condition of those that were chiefly the pilgrims of the times in which they lived:  also their ignorance and want of understanding in all natural science.  Yea, he did hold me to it at that rate also, about a great many more things than here I relate; as, that it was a shame to sit whining and mourning under a sermon, and a shame to come sighing and groaning home:  that it was a shame to ask my neighbour forgiveness for petty faults, or to make restitution where I have taken from any.  He said, also, that religion made a man grow strange to the great, because of a few vices, which he called by finer names; and made him own and respect the base, because of the same religious fraternity.  And is not this, said he, a shame?

{182} Chr.  And what did you say to him?

Faith.  Say!  I could not tell what to say at the first.  Yea, he put me so to it, that my blood came up in my face; even this Shame fetched it up, and had almost beat me quite off.  But at last I began to consider, that “that which is highly esteemed among men, is had in abomination with God.” [Luke 16:15] And I thought again, this Shame tells me what men are; but it tells me nothing what God or the Word of God is.  And I thought, moreover, that at the day of doom, we shall not be doomed to death or life according to the hectoring spirits of the world, but according to the wisdom and law of the Highest.  Therefore, thought I, what God says is best, indeed is best, though all the men in the world are against it.  Seeing, then, that God prefers his religion; seeing God prefers a tender conscience; seeing they that make themselves fools for the kingdom of heaven are wisest; and that the poor man that loveth Christ is richer than the greatest man in the world that hates him; Shame, depart, thou art an enemy to my salvation!  Shall I entertain thee against my sovereign Lord?  How then shall I look him in the face at his coming?  Should I now be ashamed of his ways and servants, how can I expect the blessing? [Mark 8:38] But, indeed, this Shame was a bold villain; I could scarce shake him out of my company; yea, he would be haunting of me, and continually whispering me in the ear, with some one or other of the infirmities that attend religion; but at last I told him it was but in vain to attempt further in this business; for those things that he disdained, in those did I see most glory; and so at last I got past this importunate one.  And when I had shaken him off, then I began to sing —­