Ane treatise of conscience Quhairin divers secreits concerning that subiect, are discovered, as may appeare, in the table following.
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Title
Ane treatise of conscience Quhairin divers secreits concerning that subiect, are discovered, as may appeare, in the table following.
Author
Hume, Alexander, 1560?-1609.
Publication
At Edinburgh :: Printed by Robert Walde-graue printer to the Kings Maiestie,
1594.
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Subject terms
Conscience -- Early works to 1800.
Cite this Item
"Ane treatise of conscience Quhairin divers secreits concerning that subiect, are discovered, as may appeare, in the table following." In the digital collection Early English Books Online. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/A03827.0001.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 3, 2024.
Pages
CHAP. V.
Of the troubled spirit and conscience, and
how it differs from melancholie, from vther
naturall diseases, and warldly sorrowis.
THe Spirit of man, and every functi∣on
of the spirit (either the imaginati∣on,
the reasoun, the judgement, or the
memory) may be divers & sindrie waies
damnified and troubled: Some tyme by
naturall sicknes and diseases, sometime
descriptionPage 34
by naturall melancholie and euill dispo∣sition
of the body, sometime by contra∣cted
melancholie, quhilk man apprehen¦deth
through sorrowe and care of warld∣ly
thingis, sometime by the exterior lei∣sion
of the partes of the head, quhilk are
called, the seats of these functions: And
sometime through sudden and extreame
feare, loue, joy, or vther sicklyke passions
of the minde. Al the quhilk thingis, are
obserued by the mediciners and chirur∣giens,
& in thair warkis ar aboundantlie
set furth. Yea sometime the Lord by his
immediate power, wil abstract the judg∣ment,
the memorie, or vther offices of
the spirit, & wil strike man with frensie,
with madnes, or forgetfulnes; & restore
them againe at his pleasure. But the tro∣ble
of mans Conscience, is farre different
from any of these troubles: quhilk is ob∣serued
for the maist pairt, to arrise after
this maner. Quhen it pleisis the Lord at
any time, to shewe his angry face, and
to rebuke man for sin, incontinent man
is striken with sudden feare and tremb∣ling,
descriptionPage 35
and begins to call to remembrance
quhat sins he hes committit, and quhair∣in
he hes offendit his God: Ʒea, the Lord
will object his sinnes clearlie before his
eies, albeit they haue bene neuer sa lang
buried & forgot with man: Quhilk quhen
he remembers, seeth the vglines thairof;
is accusit by his awin Conscience, & feillis
the fearce wrath of God kindled against
him for his sinne; his spirit and Conscience
is marvellouslie troubled, and is sudden∣lie
oppressed, with extreame paine and
torment: In sik sort, that the trouble of
the spirit wil oftimes redound to the bo∣die,
and trouble the whole estate of man;
as thogh he were takin with sum agonie,
or sharp fevar. It is true, that every man
whome the Lord so visits, will not bee
alike sore troubled and tormented; But
sum in a higher, sum in a lower degrie,
according to the modificatioun of the
Lord: But hee that hes the feeling of his
awin sinne, and of the wrath of God aga∣nis
his sinne, in the highest degrie; that
man sall see nathing but the angrie face
descriptionPage 36
of God, burning like a consuming fire a∣gainst
him, and sal think na vther thing,
but that the Lord in his just judgement
hes castin him away, out from his pre∣sence
& kingdom: Quhilk of al torments,
that man can suffer in this life, is the gre∣test.
This kinde of trouble that proceids
from the Conscience, seemis sa strange &
difficil to natural and warldly men, that
thay can hardly consaue it, but takes it e∣uer
vp wrang: and estiems those persons
that are so troubled, either to be furious,
lunatick, or fantastick: either els to haue
taken sum apprehension, melancholie,
or vaine conceit: Ʒea, not onely appeirs
it hard vnto them, but also to the very
Children of God, vnlesse they haue ei∣ther
had some taisting of it them selues,
or else haue bene wel instructed therein,
by sik as hes had the liuely experience
thairof: As it is na wonder that flesh and
blude vnderstand it not: For it is a great
mysterie, and a woonderfull wark of the
maist high, quhilk by natural reason, can
not be comprehended. But as I haue said
descriptionPage 37
before, the difference betuix the trouble
of the conscience, & vther troubles, is no∣table
and great. For the diseases before
rehearsed are naturall; the disease of the
Conscience, supernaturall. The natural dis∣eases
proceids from the euill constituti∣on
and disposition of mans body, and his
warldly sorrow, and wanrest from the so∣licitude
& care quhilk he hes of warldly
things: But the wanrest and anxietie of
the conscience, proceids from the sicht &
consideration of mans sinne. Mairouer,
we see that the natural diseases of the bo∣die
may be cured, by vsing of naturall re∣medies:
sicknes may be healed, by the ap∣plication
of salutaire medicaments: The
melancholious humors may be purged,
and the body brought to a gude tempe∣rature
and constitution: But all the Phisi∣tians,
and all the natural medecine vnder
heauen, can na mair remeid the woundit
conscience, nor corporall meat and drinke
can nourish the saul; or naked words can
satisfie the hunger & thirst of the body.
Siklike, the displesure and sorrow quhilk
descriptionPage 38
man contracts, either through the losse,
or through the care and desire of earthly
things; wil either, through tract of tyme
vanish away, quhair thingis lost cannot
be recouered; or be turned into joy and
contentment, quhen hee obtaineth the
things that he disired; whether sa it be ri∣ches,
promotion, or victory over his ene¦mies:
But all the riches, honour, and ple∣sures
of the warld, wil never releeue the
paine of a tormented conscience; (vnles it
befor a very short space) while inwarde
comfort be given of the comforter, the
haly Ghost. I deny not but that the Lord
will sometime vse outward affliction, as
a means quhairby hee will cause man to
call his sinnes to remembrance, & con∣sequently,
wil make his awin conscience
to condemne and torment him: But the
saule and conscience beeing once deeply
woundit; na worldlie consolation, nor
earthlie remedie can avail: while the spi∣rite
of God worke first inwardly in the
heart. Farther, it is to be vnderstand, that
not onelie the wicked and reprobate are
descriptionPage 39
accustomed to haue this trouble & prick
of conscience: But also the very chosen
children of God, yea his dearest servants
hes euer bene, and ʒit are, maist subject
to the feiling of thair awin sin and weak∣nes:
Quhairby thay wil be sometimes re∣duced
to sik extremitie, that thair faith
wil be altogether smored for a season, &
thay brocht to the very brinke, and bor∣dour
of desperation. Notwithstanding, al
their sufferings, in the end redounds to
their eternall joy and salvation: Quhair
by the contrair, the troubles of the wic∣ked,
turnis at last to their vtter wrack and
confusion: For albeit the Lord, to trie &
to humble his awin, & to let them knaw
thair awin infirmities, wil sumty me hide
his face for a litle season, and couer them
as it wer, with a cloud: during the quhilk
space, they wil be in greit anguish & per¦plexitie,
overshadowed with heavines &
darknes, like the Moone ecclipsed, & pri∣uate
of the licht of the Sunne: Neverthe∣lesse,
in the middes of thair miseries, he
wil edge by the cloude, and shewe thame
descriptionPage 40
blenks of mercy, of comfort, and of licht:
and at last will turne his louing counte∣nance
againe, and driue away al the dark¦nes,
and heavines of thair sauls, and illu∣minat
them with eternal licht, and glad∣nes.
To conclude, I wil say this meikle
farther, That there is nane whome the
Lord hes predestinat to salvation, quhilk
sal not, at sum time of thair life, be trou∣bled,
and tormented in some measure
(though not all equallie) in thair saull &
conscience, throgh the sicht of thair awin
sinne: For this is certaine, that we cannot
enter into the kingdome of God, except
we first suffer, and abide tryall: It is not
possible, that wee can be exalted with e∣uerlasting
exaltation, except wee be first
casten downe and brocht lowe: It is not
possible, that we can be partakers of eter∣nall
glory and gladnes in the heuen with
Christ, vnles wee be first participant of
paine with Christ, and feill with him, in
some mesure, the torments of hel in our
sauls and Consciences. Thairfore, let eve∣ry
ane of vs make vs for it, and prepare
descriptionPage 41
our selues for the day of trial and temp∣tation:
Let vs turne in time to God, by
earnest repentance, and amendement of
life, before he strike vs in his judgement:
Let vs alwaies flee sinn, and follow rich∣teousnes,
that in the day of trial the accu∣sation
of our Conscience may be the lesse
feareful: And aboue all things, let vs ap∣prehend
Iesus Christ crucified for our
sinne, with a true and a liuely faith: For
if we once constantly beleeue that; wee
may be assured, that how low soeuer we
be brocht, howe extreame soeuer our
paine and torment be, ʒit the issue thair∣of
salbe happie, & our deliverance joiful.
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