friend with bitter tears, and actually gives himself up to justice, acknowledging that he deserves death. All agree that a homicide of that kind deserves compassion, and should be treated far more leniently than one who is always on the look-out for quarrels, and deliberately attacks a man and kills him. The crime of the first was due to sheer misfortune; that of the second to malice. Again, if the guilty person is of importance in the country, or of a good family, or nearly related to the judge himself, he is generally dealt with more mildly, or even released altogether from punishment. But if he is a stranger, unknown, a bad character, caught amongst the hedges and ditches, and convicted of crime, then there is no mercy for him; he must away to the gallows. Thirdly, the sovereign is often moved to pity and pardon, or at least to mitigate the sentence of one who has the tears of his wife and children, or the favor of some powerful man to intercede for him. Oh, how many would have lost their lives if it were not for such intercessors!
None of these shall avail the sinner before Christ. Mark, O sinner, how ill provided you are in this way! If we die in the state of mortal sin, neither you nor I shall have one of these motives to plead for us, even if the Judge were capable of changing; nor shall there be anything whatever to move Him to be favorable or merciful. We shall examine the matter in order according to the rules of right reason.
Because he has sinned willfully and maliciously. And, in the first place, shall we be able to allege that our past sins and obstinacy in remaining in them was merely the result of weakness, or indeliberation, or accidental misfortune? But how could we say that? Were we not well aware when we committed the guilty act that impurity, vindictiveness, injustice, gross uncharity, voluntary intoxication, or grievous scandal must be a mortal sin? Did we not know that the sovereign God, to whom we owe all respect, obedience, reverence, and love, is grievously dishonored by such actions, and that they offend and insult Him before His very eyes? Did we not firmly believe that the same God has strictly forbidden each and every mortal sin under pain of eternal damnation? And in spite of all this we have not restrained ourselves, but of our own free will, with full deliberation, for some wretched thing, to gratify our senses, to make some trifling profit, to please a mortal creature, we have accomplished the sinful act.
Because he had examples
Have we not had examples enough of condemnations to eternal torments, examples that were intended to warn and terrify us,