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 himself to Almighty God's grace, and behave himself manfully in his holy service, with this caution, that we should not put our confidence in them, but in God.

This I say, because there are some who labor to reduce all rules into art, thinking that they have attained to the perfection of that exercise, if they observe exactly the rules thereof. But they who put good principles into practice, will quickly attain unto their desired end, which doing, they are not to reduce grace into art, nor to attribute that to human rules, which is the gift of God. Hence we say, that it is not necessary to follow these rules, and documents, as depending of art, but as instruments of grace; because a man will learn thus to know, that the principal means, which one ought to seek after, is profound humility, with the consideration of our own baseness, and a great confidence in Almighty God's mercy. To the end, that we may come to the knowledge of the one and the other, let us pour out tears without intermission, and continually pray, that as we expect at the gate of humility, so we may obtain by it all our desires, and persevere in humble thanksgiving to the divine bounty, without any trust to our own works, or to any thing that is ours.