"The third o' the' world is yours, which with a snaffle,
You may pace easy, but not such a wise."
Antony and Cleopatra.—Ed.
[28] How familiar but striking an illustration. Reader, look well to the mainspring, and see also that the wheels are not clogged. We ought to be living epistles, known and read of all men.—Ed.
[29] "A royster"; a violent, riotous, blustering, turbulent, fellow—a species of men now much out of date, as are jails and gibbets, sword and burning stake. How great and true that courage which could look at, and expect, such trials, without shrinking, when they were threatened as a reward for love to Christ and holy obedience to his gospel!—Ed.
[30] This is a very strong and striking expression. "To soak," means to imbibe as much as we can contain; and as to the influence of godly fear, happy shall we be in proportion as we are enabled to follow Bunyan's advice.—Ed.
[31] The words, "he made them houses," we humbly suggest, may not only mean that these God-fearing women had safe dwelling-places, but, in a more extensive sense, God made them the heads of honourable families, see 1 Samuel 2:35; 2 Samuel 7:11, 13, 27, 29; 1 Kings 2:24, 11:28. So David's prayer was, "Let my house be established before thee; thou, O my God, wilt build me an house" (1 Chron 17:24,25).—Ed.
[32] Royal patents, in Bunyan's time, were lucrative but most oppressive, conferring upon favourites, or their nominees, an exclusive right to deal in any article of manufacture. But the patent to God's fearers, to trust in him when involved in darkness and distress, is a blessed privilege, injurious to none.—Ed.
[33] "Grabbling"; sprawling along, drawing the body, by the hands, through a small aperture in a mine.—Ed.
[34] "Tines"; from the Saxon; the teeth or spikes in the rowel of a spur.—Ed.
[35] "Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord." Blessedness shall attend him all the way to heaven, in proportion as that fear abounds. It is a heaven on earth to live in the constant fear of God—to have a reverential awe and fear of his majesty immovably fixed and implanted in the soul. The grace of fear has an eminent influence in a Christian's sanctification; it is a powerful restraint from sin. A holy fear of God, and a humble fear of ourselves, which are alike of Divine operation, will preserve us from sin and engage us to obedience. God will be our protector and instructor, our guide and our everlasting deliverer from all evil. Let us not rest satisfied with the greatest attainments short of "perfecting holiness in the fear of God."—Mason.
[36] By the goats we are to understand the hypocrites and the finally impenitent, who will depart into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels; see Matthew 25:32, 33-41.—Ed.