Every Christian man sinning, is to consider the horrible threatenings of the Gospel, the severe intermination of eternal pains, the goodness of God leading to repentance, the severity of His justice in exacting great punishments of criminals, the reasonableness of this justice punishing such persons intolerably, who would not use so great a grace in so pleasing a service, for the purchase of so glorious a reward. The terrors of the law did end in temporal death, they could affright no further; but in the Gospel heaven and hell were opened, and laid before all mankind: and therefore by these measures a sinner is to enter into the sorrows of contrition and the care of his amendment. And it is so vain a thing to think every sinner must in his repentance pass under the terrors of the law, that this is a very destruction of that reason for which they are fallen upon the opinion. The law is not enough to affright sinners, and the terrors of the Gospel are far more to persevering and impenitent sinners, than the terrors of the law were to the breakers of it. The cause of the mistake is this: the law was more terrible than the Gospel is, because it allowed no mercy to the sinner in great instances; but the Gospel does. But then if we compare the state of those men who fell under the evils of the law, with these who fall under the evils threatened in the Gospel, we shall find these to be in a worse condition than those by far, as much as hell is worse than being stoned to death, or thrust through with a sword. This we are taught by that excellent author of the divine epistle to the Hebrews 10:28-29: “He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses; of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing, and hath done de spite to the spirit of grace?” So that under the Gospel he that sins and repents is in a far better condition than he that sinned under the law, and repented; for repentance was not then allowed of, the man was to die without mercy. But he that sins and repents not, is under the Gospel in a far worse condition than under the law; for under the Gospel he shall have a far sorer punishment than under the law was threatened. Therefore let no man mistake the mercies of the new covenant, or turn the grace of God into wantonness. The mercies of the Gospel neither allow us to sin, nor inflict an easier punishment; but they oblige us to more holiness, under a greater penalty.