But that thou mightest be sure to escape these dangerous rocks on the right hand and on the left, see that thy faith be such as is spoken of in Scripture. And that thou be not satisfied without that, which is a faith wrought by the mighty operation of God, revealing Christ to and in thee, as having wholly freed thee from thy sins by his most precious blood. Which faith, if thou attain unto, will so work in thy heart, that first thou wilt see the nature of the law, and [secondly] also the nature of the gospel, and delight in the glory of it; and also thou wilt find an engaging of thy heart and soul to Jesus Christ, even to the giving up of thy whole man unto him, to be ruled and governed by him to his glory, and thy comfort, by the faith of the same Lord Jesus.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] There were nine editions of this book published during the Author's life; all those subsequent to the first have the following title:—'Sighs from Hell, or the Groans of a Damned Soul; discovering from the 16th of Luke the lamentable state of the damned: and may fitly serve as a warning word to sinners, both old and young, by faith in Jesus Christ, to avoid the same place of torment. With a discovery of the usefulness of the Scriptures as our safe-conduct for avoiding the torments of hell. By John Bunyan. London: Printed for F. Smith, at the Elephant and Castle, without Temple-bar. At 1s bound.'
[2] In the 'errata' to the first edition, Bunyan says—'At the first I thought to put out with this a discourage of the two covenants, which since I thought to put forth in a piece by itself.' This shows that his great work on the covenants was the fourth volume which he wrote. In the second edition, the author altered the arrangement of the text, by placing in his comment on verse 28 a considerable part of what in the first edition formed the 'use and application.'
[3] In the second and subsequent editions, this was altered to 'I am thine to serve in the Lord Jesus.'—Ed.
[4] 'Sad' frequently occurs in this treatise; it is from the Saxon, saetan—set, fixed, gloomy, grievous, mournful.—Ed.
[5] The first and second editions have 'the saints,' instead of 'such are saints.'—Ed.
[6] In quoting these passages, Mr. Bunyan has mixed the Puritan version with that now authorized; very probably, quoting from memory. His text is from the present version; the reader will see, by comparison, the different words employed in the two translations.—Ed.
[7] Solemn truth! The heir of heaven and immortality has to trudge the street in the foulest weather, while the sinner's lap-dog is held up to the carriage window, taken out for an airing.—Ed.
[8] Reader, this feeling yet remains. Christians have recently, even in Scotland, had to meet in barns, or in the open air, for worship, because no landowner would sell or let a piece of ground on which to build a place of worship.—Ed.