Pneumatologia, a treatise of the soul of man wherein the divine original, excellent and immortal nature of the soul are opened, its love and inclination to the body, with the necessity of its separation from it, considered and improved, the existence, operations, and states of separated souls, both in Heaven and Hell, immediately after death, asserted, discussed, and variously applyed, divers knotty and difficult questions about departed souls, both philosophical, and theological, stated and determined, the invaluable preciousness of humane souls, and the various artifices of Satan (their professed enemy) to destroy them, discovered, and the great duty and interest of all men, seasonable and heartily to comply with the most great and gracious design of the Father, Son, and Spirit, for the salvation of their souls, argued and pressed / by John Flavel ...

Argument IV.

THE infinite importance and weight of Salvation is alone instead of all motives and arguments to make men prize and improve every proper season for it. It is no ordinary concern, it is your life, yea, it is your eternal life. The solemnity and awfulness of such a business as this, is enough to swallow up the spirit of a man. O what an awful found have such words as these, Ever with the Lord! Sup∣pose you saw the Glory of Heaven, the full reward of all the labours and sufferings of the Saints, the blessed harvest of all their prayers, tears, diligence, and self-denial in this world; or suppose you had a true representation of the Torments of

Hell, and could but hear the wailings of the damned for the neglect of the season of Mercy, and their passionate, but vain wishes for one of those days which they have lost; would you think any care, any pains, any self-denial too much to save and redeem one of these opportunities? Sure∣ly, you would have a far higher estimation of them than ever you had in your lives.

A Tryal for a mans whole Estate is accounted a solemn business among men, the Cast of a Dye for a mans life is a weighty action, and seldom done without anxiety of the mind, and trembling of the hand: yet both these are but Childrens Play compared with Salvation-work.

Three things put an unspeakable solemnity upon this matter: it is the precious Soul, which is above all valuation that lies at stake, and is to be saved or lost. The saving or losing of it is not for a time, but for ever, and this is the only season in which it will be eternally saved, or cast away: all hangs upon a little inch of time, which being over-slipt and lost, is never more to be recalled or recovered. Lord, with what serious spirits, deep and weighty consideration, fears and tremblings of heart should men and women attend the seasons of their Salvation!

Believe it, Reader, since thy Soul projected its first thought, there never was a more weighty and concerning subject than this presented to thy thoughts. O therefore let not thy thoughts trifle about it, and slide from it as they use to do in other things of common concernment.