A little cabinet richly stored with all sorts of heavenly varieties, and soul-reviving influences.: Wherein there is a remedy for every malady, viz. milk for babes, and meat for strong men, and the ready way for both to obtain and retain assurance of salvation: being an abridgement of the sum and substance of the true Christian religion; wherein the cause of our salvation, the way, the guide, the rule, the evidence, the seals, &c. and the connection of these points together, and dependancy of them one upon another: this I have endeavoured to do orderly, exactly, methodically, with much plainness and clearness. / By Robert Purnell.

Of Knowledge, first of God, secondly of our selves: the properties of it, and means of attaining it, and the benefits we have by it.

Of Knowledge.

TO lack knowledge is a very evil thing, to scorn to learn is worse, and to hate knowledge is worst of all. Hos. 6. 6. I desired the Knowledge of God, more then burnt offerings. Hos. 4. 1. The Lord hath a controversie with the inhabitants of the Land, because there is no knowledge of God in the Land. 1 Cor. 15. Some have not the knowledge of God, I speak this to your shame. Hos. 4. 6. My people perish for want of knowledge. Prov. 1. 22. How long ye simple ones will ye love simplicity, and fools hate knowledge? Prov. 2. 16. When wisdom entereth into thy heart, and know∣ledge is pleasant to thy soul, discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee. Eph. 2. 17. There∣fore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. What shall I say more, knowledge is that understanding which we have both of God and his Word and Will, and of our own selves; it is a store-house of all wisdom, and the beginning of salvation; it is a spiritual vertue to speak little and well; words are the shadow of works, and works the substance of words; much talking and little pra∣ctising, is like to an empty vessel, that doth give a

greater sound then they that be full; much knowledge & little practise is like a great tree that makes a large shew, but bears no fruit. To close up this, first of know∣ledge in general, let me tell the Reader, that a man without knowledge, is as a workman without hands, or as a painter without eyes, or as a traveller without legs, or as a ship without sails, or as a bird without wings, or as a body without a soul: there is a threefold knowledge or illumination: First, general and na∣tural, the light of Reason. Secondly, spiritual and supernatural. Thirdly, there is a knowledge of middle illumination betwixt these two, more then meerly natural, but less then truly superna∣tural.

Of the knowledge of God.

SOme have not the knowledge of God, saith the Lord by his servant Paul, I speak this to your shame, 1 Cor. 15, &c. Again another Scripture saith, This is life eternal, to know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent, John 17. 3.

Again, it is death to be ignorant of him, for he will come in flaming fire, rendering vengeance on them that know him not, 2 Thes. 1. 8.

So that all regenerate persons have true know∣ledge, though it be an imperfect knowledge: they do truly, though weakly know God, as doth ap∣pear in these Scriptures, Jer. 31. 34. John 6. 45. 1 Cor. 13. 9, 12. 1 John 5. 20.

In a word, to know him, is to know all things,

for they have their being from him; to be igno∣rant of him, is to be ignorant of all things: So that such an one doth know nothing as he ought to know. Let the reader turn to the first page of this book, where I have laid down as much as I understand in this mysterie.

Of the knowledge of our selves.

IT is a most excellent thing for a Christian to know himself, and then at the best, he would see himself to be but vanity, and an unpofitable ser∣vant to God, and so begin to cease from man, whose breath is in his nostrils. Oh what are the best of men! they have no better lodging for his noble soul, then a cottage of clay, and that so frail and cra∣sie, as were it not once or twice a day dawbed over, it would fall about his ears: and wheresoever he goes he is forced to carry this clog, this clay. Whereas Angels free from these shakels of flesh can move from heaven to earth, even as swiftly as can our ve∣ry thoughts. Nay, take the best piece in man, his soul, search and see, his understanding is full of dark∣ness, blindness and vanity, Psal. 94. 11. 1 Cor. 2. 24. Unteachableness and incredulity. See 2 Cor. 4. 4. Secondly, the will of man is wholly depraved, as being contrary to God, his will, word and spirit in all things: it will not depend nor wait on God, it is unconstant in good resolutions, it is very apt to diso∣bey the will of God, as we may see in Father Adam. Thirdly, as for the memory, that is also full of cor∣ruption, that it will forget the things that it should remember, and remember the things it should for∣get;

it will hold fast trifles, and let go matters of moment. Fourthly, The Conscience that is whol∣ly corrupted, that is without feeling, whereas it should excuse or accuse: It doth abuse and pervert the light it hath, by making great sins small, and small sins great. Fifthly, Our affections, they are also corrupted, they come as a tempest, and carry us away; either to make us over-love, or over∣grieve, or over-joy; and so we hate our brother, whom we should love, and love our lusts whom we should hate. What shall I say? our understand∣ing is darkened, our will depraved, our affections dis∣ordered, our memory misimployed, and conscience benummed, &c. We were conceived in sin, brought forth in iniquity, we have lived in vanity, and without the riches of Gods grace we shall dye in misery.

The Charecters or Properties of true know∣ledge.

1. THE knowledge that is from God, subjects the soul to God: but the knowledge that is in the brain is notional, and neither subdues sin nor Satan.

2. Spiritual, experimental knowledge is a free gift of God, 2 Cor. 4. 6. God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give in the light of the knowledge of the glory of God, in the face of Jesus Christ. This Divine light doth reach the heart as well as the head.

3. True knowledge is a transforming knowledge,

2 Cor. 3. 18. Like as the child receiveth from the parents, member for member, limb for limb, or as the paper from the press, receiveth letter for letter, or as the face in a glass, answereth to the face, so the beams of Divine knowledge, shining into the soul, stamps the lively Image of Christ upon the soul, and makes him put on the Lord Jesus, and resem∣ble him. God will own no knowledge at last, but that which leaves the stamp of Christ, the print of Christ, and the Image of Christ upon the heart.

4. True saving knowledge doth spring from a spiri∣tual sense and taste of holy and heavenly things; this is that experimental knowledge, that will turn to ac∣count at last; the other litteral knowledge will only encrease our guilt and torment, as it did the Scribes and Pharisees.

5. True knowledge circumciseth the heart, and dissolveth the dominion of sin, Ephes. 4. 22. The root of lust is error; when Christ takes away the foundation, the lust dyes, and the Devils work is dissolved. First, the lust of the eye: Christ informs the soul that there is no such excellency in riches; but that they are dross and dung, and therefore why should the eye or heart be set upon them: So this lust is dissolved, there is an end of it.

6. True knowledge doth indear Christ and the things of Christ to the soul, Cant. 2. 5. I am sick of love, I cannot live in my self: I can live only in Christ who is my life, Galatians 6. 14. God forbid that I should glory in any thing but Christ.

7. True knowledge is soul-humbling, soul-abasing knowledge: John said, I am not worthy to loose his

shoo. Peter said, depart from me, I am a sinful man. Abraham said, he was but dust and ashes. Gen. 18. 27. Jacob said, he was less then the least of all his mercies, Gen. 32. 10. David said, he was a worm and no man, Psalm 22. 2. Job abhorred himself in dust and ashes, Job 42. 1, 2, &c.

8. True knowledge is alwaies attended with holy endeavours, and heavenly desires after a fur∣ther knowledge of God, Prov. 18. 15.

This knowledge of God goes before trusting in God, Psalm 9. 10. They that know thy name will put their trust in thee. There may be know∣ledge without grace, but not grace without know∣ledge.

How one Believer differs from another in know∣ledge.

AS saving knowledge is a free gift of God, so he gives to some more, and to others less, ac∣cording to the measure of the gift of Christ; and though it be freely given, yet the Lord doth hand it to us, and work it in us, in the use of means; age, and time, and communion, and study, and use of means, and experience do raise the apprehension and knowledge to far more degrees and strength then at the first; whereas before they saw dimly, at length they rise by degrees to a more perfect light of the same truths, and to a more full aad enlarged appre∣hension of other truths, which he was ignorant of before, even in this doth one believer differ from another.

Faith is the eye of the soul, and knowledge the ground of Faith, for believing is not rooted in igno∣rance, but in light: now every believer hath not so full and distinct a knowledge as another: there are several promises, and in them several parts and de∣grees Now all Christians have not been so long ac∣quainted with the word, as to know all the good which doth concern them.

Of what a large and vast measure of knowledge a man may attain unto, and yet be without this saving knowledge.

HE may speak with the tongue of men and An∣gels, and yet be as sounding brass, or a tinck∣ling Symbal, as in 1 Cor. 13. 1. Again, he may attain to the natural knowledge of all natural things, and speak eloquently and distinctly, and in many things truly; he may be well skilled in Logick, Re∣thorick, Phylosophy, and have the letter of the Scripture at his fingers ends, and yet be an ignorant man in the knowledge of God, and in the account of Christ, viz.

1. A man may have a common knowledge of Christ, and yet be without a spiritual knowledge of Christ; he may gather together a great deal of notional know∣ledge of Christ, and have much natural knowledge, by the works of God, by hearing, reading, confer∣ring, or the like, and yet be ignorant of the Tri∣nity in Unity, and Unity in Trinity.

2. He may attain to vast and great measures of notional, and yet be without an experimental know∣ledge

of Christ: how abundantly is this proved in our dayes in all places, &c.

3. An unregenerate man may attain to a con∣templative, or speculative knowledge of Christ, and yet want and be altogether without a spiritual expe∣mental knowledge; he may know Christ as a man knows his neighbour; but now a believer knows Christ, as a wife knows her husband: a natural mans knowledge is like the Moon, it hath light, but no heat: but a spiritual mans knowledge is like the Sun, that hath heat as well as light.

4. A natural man may have much knowledge, but he is a stranger to an appropriating knowledge of Christ—he doth not know Christ to be his Christ; now in this sense, a man may be a great knowing man, and yet not know Jesus Christ.

5. He is without a practical knowledge of Jesus Christ, he may know much, but do but little, Tit. 1. 16. in their words they profess to know him, but in their works they deny him: though they know God, yet they glorifie not him as God. Now put all these together, and they speak out with open mouth, that a man may attain to a great measure of knowledge, and yet be in the account of God, in the account of Christ, in the account of Christians, an ignorant man, he is without spiritual and experimen∣tal knowledge, without an affective, and apprehen∣sive knowledge, and without an appropriating, and practical knowledge. I shall close up this head with a few cautions and considerations.

1. Take this for a truth, that in a Scripture ac∣count, to complain of ignorance, is a good degree of knowledge, Prov. 30. 2. And I have not the knowledge of a man, &c.

2. Take this also for a truth, that in Gods ac∣count, he knows most that doth most, Psal. 111. 10. A good understanding have all they that do his commandments: God doth not measure our know∣ledge by our questions and disputes, but by our practices, as in Jer. 22. 16. He judgeth the cause of the poor and needy; was not this to know me, saith the Lord?

3. Take this also, that it is not the wanting of some measures or degrees of knowledge, that doth make a man ignorant in the sight of God, but the want∣ing of true knowledge of the Father, Son, Spirit, and Scriptures.

Object. I am surely ignorant of God, saith many weak Christians: I do not know him, he will come in flaming fire, taking vengeance on me.

Answ. 1. Suppose thou art ignorant of God, yet if thou art not consentingly ignorant, if thou art not a self-conceited man or woman, that thinkest thou knowest much, when thou knowest little, thou art well enough, if thou art not like those, in Hos. 8. 2. Israel shall say unto me, my God we know thee, and yet there is no fear nor knowledge of God in the Land.

2. If thou dost not sit down contentedly in thy ig∣norance, but dost labour and endeavour after more knowledge, then thy condition is good enough; but if thou sayest unto God in thy heart, as in Job 21. 14. Depart from me, for I desire not the knowledge of thy wayes; then thy condition is extream bad.

3. If thou art not obstinately ignorant, like those spoken of in Psalm 82. 5. They know not, neither will they understand, but they walk on in darkness: When

men be ignorant, and will be ignorant, this is an evi∣dence they have no saving work of God upon them, 2 Pet. 3. 5. saith the Apostle, these things they are willingly ignorant of.

Now if thy ignorance be accompanied with these three circumstances, that you are conceitedly, and contentedly and obstinately ignorant, the Lord be merciful to thee, thou art in a state of death and damnation; but on the other hand, although thou hast abundance of ignorance in thee, yet if thou dost bewail it, and labour and desire after more knowledge, if you follow on to know the Lord, and are not obstinately ignorant, thy condition is good.