n 
 
*.*#: 
 
 ^::^ a s^ i:a. ..£^ i^a "xs^ 
 
 OF THK 
 AT 
 
 PRINCETON, N. J. 
 SAMUEL AGNE\V, 
 
 OF PHtLADELPHIA. PA. 
 
 
 ,^^^i/2x!>>^ /c5'V;^^^^c/; 
 
 
 I Shelf, 
 
 Sec 
 
 •-;► e^^JS C ^^^© 5<^^>©i3<^^*^ £.^^0 £-<^^ ^ 
 
 '-^i 
 
 p^ 
 
 
 '1 
 
 p 
 
 ■i 
 
 
 i ,« 
 
 f 
 
 ...J 
 
 i^ 
 
 ? 
 
 
 "^ 
 
 ^ij 
 
 
 '^4^.: 
 
 B 
 
 WW'- 
 
'^w 
 
 ■f^^ 
 
 Ih^' W^Btk, 
 
 :v 
 
 
 ;/«gy^ 
 
 .k^ 
 
 
 mi^-M 
 
■^7;/ 
 
 J ^ 
 
 / 1 
 
 aj 
 
SERMONETS 
 
 ADOnr-SSED TO 
 
 THOSE WHO HAVE NOT YET ACQUIRED, 
 
 OR WHO MAY HAVE LOST, 
 
 THE INXLINATION TO APPLY THE POWER OF 
 ATTENTION 
 
 TO COMPOSITIONS OF A HIGHER KIND. 
 
 BY 
 
 HENRY AND L/ETITIA-MATILDA llAWKim 
 
 Our disconrsc., v.lth scriptural n.otloos affixed, are short, immethodi- 
 cal essays, in ^vhich the bc-ginuh^g c.n hardly be distinguished 
 from the end. ^ . ^ 
 
 LONDON; 
 
 PRINTED FOR F. C. AND J. RIVINGTON, 
 
 Ko. 62y ST. Paul's cnuRcH-yAitn. 
 
 1S14. 
 
b. GosNELL, Printer, Little GLueca Strcet| Loudon. 
 
TO 
 
 THE REVEREND 
 
 THOMAS MARTYN, B.D. F.R. & L.S. 
 
 REGIUS PROFESSOR OF BOTANY IN THE 
 UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE, 
 
 THIS HUMBLE VOLUiME, 
 
 WHICH MUST OWE ITS ACCEPTANCE WITH THE WOKLO 
 TO HIS PERMITTING HIS NAME TO RECOMMEND IT^ 
 
 IS, 
 
 WITH THE SINCEREST GRATITUDE FOR HIS 
 AFFECTIONATE FRIENDSHIP^ 
 
 rERY RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED, 
 
 BY 
 
 HIS MOST OBLIGED AND 
 
 OBEDIENT SERVANTS, 
 
 THE AUTHORiS. 
 
The first years of man must make provision for the 
 last. Johnson. 
 
 Revealed religion sets forth a proper object for imitation, 
 in that Being, who is the pattern, as well as the 
 source, of all spiritual perfection. Addison. 
 
 Our nearest approach to the grave ought not to put an 
 end to our desires of spiritual improvement. 
 
 Brewster. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 There is a sort of artificial boldness as- 
 sumed by very great cowards, which may 
 be usefully adopted by authors of no pre- 
 tensions, in preference to any show of real 
 or feigned timidity ; as it carries an appear- 
 ance of spirit and cheerfulness, which, if 
 the writer's disposition can influence the 
 reader's, may bespeak good-humoured at- 
 tention. We will not, therefore, name one 
 of the ten thousand misgivings with which 
 this volume is sent into the world : — we 
 Avill rather talk of the uniform inclination 
 there is in an enlightened public, to en- 
 courage any thing favourable to religion 
 or to morals : — -we will not recollect that 
 every body is now a critic, or that, when 
 we have passed the ordeal of the said 
 A 3 
 
Vr PREFACE. 
 
 every -body's, criticism, we must face a bat- 
 tery of powerful artillery, where eloquence 
 charges and wit points the ordnance : — wc 
 must not remember how often this and its 
 neighbour batteries have levelled, togethet 
 with the hostile erections of enemies, many 
 an humble dwelling where the weary tra- 
 veller was invited to take shelter, the 
 scientific to seek amusement, and the de- 
 sponding to look for encouragement. We 
 must brave all this, or at least tell our- 
 selves, that, in minuteness of dimensions, 
 there is some ground for hope of escaping. 
 
 But, though suffered to live, we may be 
 wounded or mangled in our limbs. We 
 must, therefore, prepare a little local ar- 
 mour, and, dropping figurative speech, en- 
 fdeavour to avert by anticipating. 
 
 Our TITLE will attract censure : we shall 
 be justly informed, that " Sermonet" is a 
 word, not only not naturalized, but never 
 yet introduced into our language. Wc 
 
PREFACE, Vii 
 
 shall hear of Canzonets, Barouchets, " et 
 omne quod exit in" et. Beside the charge 
 of barbarism, there will be a suspicion of 
 levity to encounter ; and we shall be de- 
 cried as nearly uncivilized, and little short 
 of profane. 
 
 Our PLAN opens two doors to criticism : 
 our choice of it will be contemned, and 
 our imperfect execution of it will be re- 
 gretted. We shall be reprehended for hav- 
 ing done what we thought essential, and 
 for having omitted what we supposed ano- 
 malous. When we have painted a moon- 
 light, we shall be blamed for a monotony 
 of tint; and when we have designed a 
 cottage, we shall be asked, " Where is the 
 dome ?" 
 
 Our ANECDOTES will be said to convert 
 a volume of divinity into a story-book; and 
 religious readers will avoid us as unholy ; 
 while those who wish to fiee the world 
 from the restraints imposed by revealed re- 
 a4 
 
viii PREFACE. 
 
 ligion, will denominate superstitious those 
 tenets which imply, not only a belief that 
 God made us and this goodly world, but 
 that by his Providence he governs it ; that 
 lie sent his Son, our blessed Saviour, from 
 Heaven, to redeem us from a state of fallen 
 nature ; and that, through Him alone, by 
 the operation of the Holy Spirit on our 
 corrupt hearts, we hope to enter the king- 
 dom of Heaven. 
 
 To these foreseen objections we respect- 
 fully reply : — 
 
 For our title. The adoption has not 
 been inconsiderate. We have discussed it 
 A\ itli those who were not satisfied with it, 
 and have put it to them to find one less 
 exceptionable : they have not been able to 
 suggest any, which did not carry with it 
 an appearance of presumption in persons 
 of our very limited pretensions. We have 
 ultimately referred to an authority, from 
 which no one, it is conceived, would wisJi 
 
PREFACE. IX 
 
 to appeal ; and are sanctioned in our choice 
 in this point, on the ground o^ fitness to our 
 performances — no'veltif, which may attract 
 attention — and an agreeable association of 
 ideas with diminutives, recognised by such 
 as are conversant with the languages of 
 foreign nations. 
 
 For our plan, w^e have to plead, that, 
 being too light for all other writers, it is 
 suited to those readers who have hitherto 
 found all serious works too heavy ^ This 
 must suffice to excuse our choice : for the 
 e.vecution of it, we have only to say, that 
 had we consulted our fame, rather than the 
 interests of the cause we wish to promote, 
 our performance might have been, at least, 
 diiFerent. Whether we have not done our 
 best, is another question, and perhaps, for 
 our credit, better not discussed. 
 
 For our anecdotes, which we consider 
 as endeavours to amuse and to convince 
 by relative facts, the practice and the pr^^ 
 
X PREFACE. 
 
 cept of the great Jeremy Taylor is our 
 warrant. If the pious still call iis unholy, 
 we must console ourselves in the com- 
 pany of a man never yet so deemed. But 
 to the charge of superstition we reply, in 
 a more decided tone, that, if this be super- 
 stition, we "glory in" our "infirmity." 
 
 But we must not expect to be let off 
 thus easily. A heavier charge — the charge 
 of plagiarism — is against us, and cannot be 
 refuted, even if it assert that we have 
 stolen our whole scheme from the " Hints 
 for Sermons," subjoined to the volumes of 
 the late venerable Mr. Gilpin of Boldre. 
 Such hints we thought wanted but little 
 to make them more useful than any ela- 
 borate composition, to those who are not iu 
 the habit of reading a grown-up sermon; 
 and if it be asked, how this volume has 
 accumulated, curiosity shall be satisfied, 
 and an accidental plagiarism acknowledged, 
 by referring to the practice of the learned 
 
PREFACE. Xi 
 
 Grotius, who made his " Commentary" his 
 Sunday's relaxation. It may recommend 
 some improvement in the modes of spend- 
 ing the day of rehgious industry and civil 
 repose, if we state, that without neglecting 
 the public or private duties of the Sabbath, 
 or even foregoing rational pleasure, and 
 fearfully cautious, lest, in attempting to 
 persuade others, we might omit teaching 
 ourselves, we have found time for the com- 
 pilation of this little volume, only by for- 
 bearing to mis-use the most valuable day of 
 the seven, either in devoting its leisure to 
 writing letters, settling accounts, or pay- 
 ing unnecessary visits. Neither, it is hoped, 
 has the employment been without some ad- 
 vantage reflected on ourselves, as every man 
 who preaches to others must of necessity 
 be one of his hearers; and it is impossible 
 to consider truths so important, as those 
 here insisted on, without feeling animated 
 to the practice of laws founded on them. 
 
■?"«??«»-.,_ 
 
 
 Sermonet Patre 
 
 I. On general and especial Providence . 1 
 
 II. On Mercy y 
 
 III. On the consecrated Elements in the 
 
 Sacrament 15 
 
 IV. On doing well unto ourselves 20 
 
 V. On the Deceltfulness of Sin 
 
 o 
 
 VI. On Employment 29 
 
 VII. On the x\dvantages attending the 
 
 Trouble to which we are born . . 35 
 VIII. On the various Estimation of the 
 
 Evils of human Life gc) 
 
 IX. On Temptation 4^ 
 
 X. On Meekness ^j 
 
 XI. On Discontent 5y 
 
 XII. On female Loquacity (ji 
 
 XIII. On the Wish for Precedence O5 
 
 xiv. On idle Conversation ' ; ^q 
 
 XV. On Self-deception 73 
 
 XVI. On the Restrictions of Christianity . . 77 
 
 xvii. On the Jeahmsy of God 80 
 
 xviii. On laudable Pursuits . 82 
 
 XIX. On certain Expressions iu the Psalms So 
 
xiV CONTENTS. 
 
 Sermonet ^ Page 
 
 XX. On making Religion the Subject of 
 
 our Conversation , . . 83 
 
 XXI. On the Union of the divine and human 
 
 Character in the Messiah Q2 
 
 XXII. On serving the Lord 98 
 
 XXiii. On Solicitude with regard to Dress in 
 
 Females 104 
 
 XXIV. On the Character of Jezebel 110 
 
 XXV. On Anger 1 16 
 
 XXVI. On the Vanity of worldly Pursuits . . 121 
 
 XXVII. On Wounds of the Spirit 125 
 
 xxviii. On taking the Name of God in vain . 132 
 
 XXIX. On departing from the Faith 135 
 
 XXX. On the Fruits of Iniquity 140 
 
 XXXI. On the Use to be made of some of the 
 
 Appointments of God 145 
 
 XXXII. On the Obedience of Abraham . . . 1.52 
 xxxiii. On the Cultivation of Respect for the 
 
 Deity 159 
 
 XXXI V. On Truth 165 
 
 XXXV. On the Preservation of Innocence . . 172 
 XXXVI. On the Freedom derived from the 
 
 Gospel 176 
 
 XXXVII. On moral and religious Duties .... 181 
 XXXVIII. On Preparation for the Sacrament . 185 
 XX XIX. On our Manner of receiving the Sa- 
 crament 192 
 
 XL. On the Importance of Religion to^the 
 
 Poor 197 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 XV 
 
 Sermonet Pa^^ 
 
 xLi. On Christianity as an Offence to the 
 
 Jews 202 
 
 XLii. On the Winter of Life 208 
 
 XLin. On the Bondage of Corruption ... 216 
 
 XLiv. On Envy 222 
 
 XLV. On Weariness of Life 227 
 
 XLvi. On Sorrow for Sin 232 
 
 XLvli. On Courtesy 2S,5 
 
 XLviii. On Revenge 239 
 
 XUX. On the Grace of God 243 
 
 L. On the Consolations of Age 248 
 
 LI. On the Rank of Man in the Creation 254 
 
 LI I. On Omissions in female Education . 259 
 
 Llii. On the Characters of Christianity . . 265 
 
 Liv. On the Endurance of Sickness . . . 270 
 
 Lv. On the Love of Instruction 279 
 
 Lvi. On the Commandments 285 
 
 LVii. On the Parable of Dives and Lazarus 294 
 
 LViii. On Charity 300 
 
 Lix. On the Resignation of Simeon .... 308 
 
 Lx. On Hatred of Evil 313 
 
 Lxi. On God as a present Help 3i() 
 
 liXii. On the Caution required in our Studies 324 
 Win. On the female Character of the pre- 
 sent Age 338 
 
 LXiv. On the Operation of the Holy Ghost 352 
 
 Lxv. On assuming Appearances of Evil . . 357 
 
 Lxvi, On tbe Example of Christ ...... 364 
 
 3 
 

 1^ 
 
 
 ^ViV^' 
 
 SERMONETS. 
 
 SERMONET L 
 
 PSALM CXXVU. 1. 
 
 Except the Lord build the hou&e, their labour 
 is but lost that build it. 
 
 Doubtless much of our aiixfety in this 
 world would he ahated, and much of hu- 
 man pride be humbled, if mankind fre- 
 quently recollected, that, in all their 
 schemes and occupations, it is the blessing 
 of God that must be relied on for their 
 perfection, and that, without it, man toils 
 in vain. He may plough the field ; ho may 
 commit the seed to the furrow; but it is 
 God who giveth the increase : it is by his 
 bounty that lie is i^^i\, and by his grace 
 that he is directed. 
 
 To convince us of this truth,, we have 
 little more to do than to look into the 
 
 B 
 
*5 SEUMONET I. 
 
 events of our own lives. How many things 
 have happened to us wholly unaccountable 
 on any other supposition than that of the 
 secret workings of Providence, continually 
 exerting its spontaneous beneficence in be- 
 stowing what is necessary or fitting for us I 
 in blessing with a fair return the honest la- 
 bours of the humble mechanic, or in raising 
 to riches and honours, him who in learning or 
 talents is " exalted above" his " fellows 1'* 
 We are led, by his unseen hand, to engage in 
 sonie particular employment in preference to 
 others offered to our choice ; or we form an 
 accidental acquaintance, which grows into 
 intimacy and ripens into profitable friend- 
 ship: we fix our abode, with scarcely a mo- 
 tive to incline our caprice, in some spot which 
 idtimately proves the best suited to our 
 wants and wishes : and these circumstances, 
 howevei' ordinary in accurrence and casual 
 in their aspect, shall perhaps lead to some 
 of the most important events of our lives, 
 whence our interests or our happiness take 
 a fresh spring. It is thus, that, unless 
 blinded by pride or ignorance, Vv'e are 
 obliged to confess that the good provi- 
 
SERMONET I. 3 
 
 deuce of God has directed us, and, it may 
 be presumed, with a benign regard to our 
 well-being. 
 
 Again, let us recollect from how many 
 evils and inconveniences the same kind 
 and watchful Providence has protected us, 
 and to which we should have been ex- 
 posed, had no better counsellor than our 
 own wisdom guided, and no stronger arm 
 than that of our own virtue defended us : — 
 how often we have incurred risks and ex- 
 posed ourselves to dangers, from which it 
 appeared impossible to escape unhurt ; yet 
 we have escaped, and even without our 
 own endeavours. 
 
 Thanks be to God ! the preservation of 
 his creatures is, as much as their creation, 
 his care ; and reason and experience, as 
 well as gratitude, call on us daily to ac- 
 knowledge, with all humility, that man 
 labours in vain unless the Lord be with 
 him. But this care extends not merely to 
 worldly concerns, such as are connected 
 with our existence in the flesh ; it reaches 
 likewise to our spiritual welfare; and it 
 is not more evident that the wisdom and 
 b2 
 
4 SEllMONET I. 
 
 mercy of God direct and prosper our 
 manual industry, than that his grace, and 
 that alone, enables us to perform, however 
 imperfectly, those duties on which his fa- 
 vour depends. Men may talk of the moral 
 sense and of natural religion; but unless 
 the frame and the propensities of the hu- 
 man heart, as developed from the creation 
 of the world to the present moment, are to 
 be considered as no evidence, it is most 
 indisputable that no man ever existed who 
 could reason out a perfect religion for 
 himself; nor, even if one had been re- 
 \ ealed to him, would he have been able to 
 fulfil its injunctions, witlit)ut the presence 
 cf the grace of God. '^ It is his Spirit that 
 worketh in us, both to will and to do ; and 
 jio man hath quickened his own soul." 
 
 Let us then learn to distrust all schemes, 
 either of religion or of morals, formed on 
 any other basis than that of revelation. 
 Sucli schemes generally have no better 
 origin than gross ignorance, presumptuous 
 pride, or the most despicable vanity. The 
 doctrines of Christianity — the humility 
 which it enjoins and inspires — the n€- 
 
Tesslty of a dependence on some superior 
 power, which it nmkes us feel, are so many 
 principles which gain strength and credit 
 in proportion to our knowledge of nran- 
 kind and of ourselves : and happy are they 
 who do not leave to experience to teac ii 
 them, as matter of dire necessity, that 
 Avhich Christianity would have gently in- 
 culcated, ere passion had urged them on to 
 a precipice, whence it is difficult to recede : 
 — who receive the precepts of the Gospel 
 as the contrivance of Infinite Wisdom to 
 emancipate mankind from the slavery of 
 sin, and who, sensihle of their own insuf- 
 ficiency to any perfect work, are willing 
 to seek assistance from Him whose " ears 
 are ever open," and who will not fail, to 
 borrow the phrase of the text, to "build the 
 house," if we are but disposed to establish 
 it on the only solid foundation. H. 
 
 b3 
 
SERMONET I. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 Instead of the extravagant fictions and monstrous 
 portraitures of imagined folly, which at times arc 
 sent forth from the press to make us more credulous 
 and more foolish than Nature intended us, it would 
 be well, and it might in all ways be profitable, to 
 confine ourselves as nearly as possible to truth ; and, 
 for the purpose promoted in the Psalm from whence 
 the text is taken, to trace the silent operation of the 
 good providence of God, as we conceive it to have 
 ruled the destinies of men. History furnishes much 
 food of this sort to the contemplative mind; our 
 own daily observation will add to the store. It is 
 attention of this sort which gives to some persons, 
 that power of " interesting," as it is called, which all 
 can feel and few account for. That which is the 
 gossip of the day to an miobserving chatterer, is mat- 
 ter of useful conversation to a digestive mind ; and 
 the same events, related with the insipidity of a 
 trifler, or with the rational acknowledgment and just 
 feeling of a Christian, will produce a very different 
 effect. There is not a village in England, there is 
 not a street in the metropolis, which would not, if 
 its history were revealed and properly considered, 
 afford more genuine interest and more profitable 
 moral than all the baby-books, and all the fancied 
 disclosures of the secrets of our superiors, with 
 
SIRMONET I* 7 
 
 iivhich young and old are satiated. If it be true tliat 
 *' there is a tide in the affairs of men," it is as true that 
 there is a hinge on which the events of a whole life 
 sometimes turn ; and little do we reflect when we 
 confess some circumstances " scarcely within the circle 
 of probability," and others " highly romantic," that at 
 that moment we are, without indeed the grace of 
 candour or humility, acknowledging the marvellous 
 acts of the Lord. Averse, as we ought to be, to 
 claiming in trifles the attention of our Father in 
 Heaven, we can never be beyond hope preserved from 
 danger, or beyond expectation made happy, and 
 omit safely the Non nobis of a grateful heart. 
 
 It is to be hoped that every mind left to its own 
 perceptions, will admit the following well-authen- 
 ticated fact, among the number of what are called, 
 with too little attendant reflection, " providential 
 escapes." The late Duke of-—, when Secre- 
 lary of State, going home from his oflSce one night 
 op foot, was attacked on Constitution Hill by two 
 footpads, who having taken his money, demanded 
 his watch. It was a very valuable repeater, and he 
 had deposited it so securely, that he thought it might 
 elude their search : but at the moment, and while the 
 men had their hands on him, the watch betrayed it- 
 self, by striking : — and, to increase his danger and cou* 
 sternation, the hour was most unfortunately Twelve ! 
 — 1»" I heard it," said His Grace, in recounting the 
 accident; *' and I thought it never would cease striking 
 s4 
 
S SERMONET I; 
 
 ■—I gaVfe myself up ; but they did not hear it." It 
 was with an overpowering sense of his escape that th« 
 Duke related this, 
 
 Numerous are the instances of men, ^fho having 
 .**urvived all the dangers of the camp and the sea, 
 have met a premature death in drawing-rooms 
 aiul on carpets. Still more striking are some pre- 
 servations from dangers minute in their form, but 
 fatal in their effects. Lord Heathfield, the brave 
 defender of Gibraltar, when returned to his country ta 
 enjoy his well-earned honours, was invited to name a 
 ship launched at Blackwall. A few gentlemen at- 
 tended him, and nearest to him stood a man, whose 
 country could as ill spare liim. At the instant of the 
 ship's going off, one of the supporting timbers^ 
 which had been omitted in clearing away, fell ; in 
 descending, it wavered, as if doubtful whether to 
 strike his Lordship or his friend— neither dared stir 
 —each expected it — it passed between them, and, as 
 if to show them their escape, it fell on a poor dog 
 who was running across, and with only a moment's 
 suffering crushed hica. L. 
 
SERMONET II. 
 
 SERMONET IL 
 
 PSALM CXXX. 4. 
 
 There is mercy with thee, therefore shalt thou 
 be feared. 
 
 Unprejudiced observation with regaj'd to 
 ourselves, would convince us that we act 
 with the best effect when least violent in 
 our proceedings; and observation of any 
 sort, with regard to our neighbour, shows 
 lis daily, that he acts with the greatest 
 wisdom, who, keeping feelings and judg- 
 ment apart, suffers a just moderation to 
 regulate his endeavours. Both cases prove 
 that vehemence is a tone of even worldly 
 conduct, to be cautiously admitted, whether 
 in our dealings with others or the prosecu- 
 tion of our own interests. 
 
 It might, were not the fact contradicted 
 by experience, le supposed that the hasty 
 man would be the man of the greatest dis- 
 patch, the covetous man be the soonest 
 rich, and the man the most prone to anger 
 the most implicitly obeyed; but though 
 b5 
 
10 SERMONET IT. 
 
 this may be true in some few single in- 
 stances, the exceptions preponderate and 
 may be said to form the rule ; for we see 
 hasty people perpetually obliged to do their 
 work over again, covetous people losing 
 all they aim at, by the greediness of their 
 grasp, and irascible people reduced to thq 
 most abasing condescensions. All this, 
 however in appearance remotely connected, 
 leads up to a recollection of the text, 
 *' There is mercy with thee, therefore. 
 shalt thou be feared." 
 
 We must not presume to say that the 
 Almighty might not, in his infinite power, 
 have made us fear him, had he chosen 
 cruelty for one of his attributes : from his 
 conduct towards us, there can be none of 
 those feeble or counteracting results which 
 are found in the dealings of men ; but cer- 
 tainly, in exercising mercy, he makes a 
 claim on our affections, as well as on oui* 
 consciences, which, converting the slavery 
 of obedience into the free-will offering of 
 love, holds out, by analogy, a lesson which 
 would be advantageously practised in our 
 intercourse with the world. 
 
SERMONET Tt. 11 
 
 The text says, it is therefore — for that 
 cause — that God shall be feared : it does not 
 say, 7ieverthdess, yiotxvithstanding, or al- 
 though ; it is because, if we are beings at 
 all of a generous nature, we could not, 
 we cannot, refuse to One so forbearing 
 towards us, that respect which love and 
 admiration always produce ; and if we are 
 creatures rationally attentive to our best 
 interests, we cannot hesitate conscien- 
 tiously to discharge duties, in themselves 
 light, in the performance repaying us, and, 
 in their intention, directed to our advan- 
 tage. Permitted, as we are, to imitate, as 
 far as human frailty allows us, the various 
 excellencies of our Maker, let us show our 
 good taste, by bearing in mind the beauti- 
 ful expression of the Psalmist, and adopt- 
 ing the spirit of it in our practice. A 
 Jittle further consideration Avill prove that 
 we cannot greatly injure ourselves, even 
 in the affairs of this hfe, by the adoption 
 of it. 
 
 It is a hard heart that would not prefer 
 serving a kind master ; the distinction is 
 not lost, even in our times : the common 
 36 
 
12 SERMONET U. 
 
 expressions of the labourer and the hlre- 
 hng prove that it exists. An unkind 
 master furnishes an excuse for those who 
 disobey him : when once his power is 
 faced and his violence expected, he is 
 defied to do his best for himself, and his 
 worst towards the object of his ill will: 
 relying on his own brutal force, which he 
 shows no moderation in using, he is turned 
 over to the mechanic povi^er of his own 
 single arm ; his justice is impeached by its 
 excess ; and his claim to any thing but 
 what his strength can wrest and retain, is 
 denied or contested. 
 
 But passion has no ears, vehemence has 
 no prudence, prejudice has no policy. The 
 man given up to violent emotions, does 
 not see, that, even when his rage is the 
 most tremendous, he himself may be an 
 object of contempt. He considers nothing 
 in the future — he makes no reserves, even 
 for his own contingent interests: he does 
 not see that those puiiish the most effectu- 
 ally who punish unwillingly; or that, while 
 the persons on whom he pours the full 
 measure of his rage, can impute any part of 
 
 4 
 
«ERMONET II, 13 
 
 it to his tyrannical temper, just so much 
 as they refer to this source, is lost on 
 them. Take an opposite instance, and this 
 is evident. What is not done amongst us 
 expressly ^^ for the sake," as we term it, 
 of any specific individual, seldom meets 
 with individual gratitude. " It was not 
 done to henefit or gratify mc^' is a rea- 
 son that seems to discharge us from all 
 obligation, at least to our fellow-creatures: 
 the good that is unintentional towards us, 
 is accounted caprice, accident, any thing 
 but beneficence ; and we refuse to trace 
 the stream which is vitiated at the fountain^ 
 And thus, in using superfluous violence 
 towards others, all that is more than is 
 called for by the occasion, is wasted 
 energy ; and if we overhear the murmurs 
 of servants, the contemptuous apologies 
 made by the poor for the privileged infir- 
 mities of the rich; if we detect the sneer 
 of the craft}^ and the derision of the in- 
 solent, we may learn, that to deserve re- 
 spect, to excite reverence, to obtain will- 
 ing compliance, it is prudent, nay indis- 
 pensably necessary, to have mercy. 
 
14 SERMONET 11* 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 Tn cases not merely between man and man, and 
 even in tlie silent operations of nature, the lesson of 
 moderation and mercy is taught us. The human 
 body suffers by immoderate exertion : the brute 
 creation deprive us of their .services when treated 
 without mercy : the animal spirits raised above their 
 natural elevation, sink as much below it. In go^ 
 vernments the maxim holds ; in every case where 
 power is carried beyond its due bound, it becomes 
 weaker. An instance will occur to the recollection 
 of every one, in the overstrained power of the Lace- 
 daemonians at the conclusion of the Peloponnesian 
 war, when Athens was reduced to slavery, and 
 obliged to submit to the yoke of thirty tyrants im- 
 posed on them by their conquerors. Who would, 
 not have supposed that thirty tyrants would have been 
 a force sufficient to keep a depressed and exhausted 
 people ill perfect subjugation ? — yet it was not. 
 Thrasybulus, with a few of his adherents, animated 
 the Athenians to resistance; and the power of the 
 thirty tyrants was annihilated. 
 
 A more familiar instance may be added, such as 
 will come home to " the business and bosom" of 
 every one. In a great conmiercial concern, it was 
 necessary for one of two partners to admit to an in- 
 terview and the explanalioii of a very unpleasant 
 inibunderslanding, a man of a low rank, and of tli(? 
 
SEKMONET If. 15 
 
 most brutal manners. One of the two gentlemen at 
 the head of the vast business of the house, being in 
 principle a man averse from noise and vehemence, 
 turned the conduct of the matter over to the other, 
 whose habits made him more a match for what they 
 had to expect. The war of words began, and vic- 
 tory, which would have precluded all accommoda- 
 tion, was inclining to the side of him who had the 
 fewest restraints on his tongue, when the other of 
 the principals, who had been present, though silent, 
 interposed a few words in a gentle undisturbed tone ; 
 not by any concession relinquishing right, or sub- 
 mitting to abuse, but expressing the just sense and 
 import of the matter. The ferment of blood which 
 the equal match of the combatants had kept up, 
 instantly ceased : the angry man listened with respect 
 to reasoning, in substance the same as that which he 
 had before treated with rude disdain ; and the affair 
 was amicably adjusted^ and almost in a whisper. 
 
T^ SERMON ET llf. 
 
 SERMONET III. 
 
 ST. MATTHEW, XXVI. Q&, 
 
 This is my body. 
 
 It may, perhaps, be truly said, that no 
 passage in the Scripture has occasioned 
 more difference of opinion as to its import, 
 than that now chosen for consideration ; 
 the question whether it is to be under- 
 stood Hterally or figuratively, having pro- 
 duced, not merely theological controversy 
 between those who in the essential import 
 mioht accree, but acrimonious schisms in 
 the church of Christ, which no arguments 
 wilt" ever (at least as far as w^e may judge) 
 avail to explain away, and no authority to 
 heal 
 
 Unless we are contented to renounce 
 much for which the Protestant seceders 
 from the Church of Rome have contended, 
 we cannot venture to assert that tlie literal 
 interpretation i^ the true one ; for, as iar 
 as the fact can be ascertained by any one of 
 
SKRMCTK'ET ITT. 17 
 
 our senses, the bread given in the Holy Sa- 
 crament continues such without any chang© 
 in the substance any more than in the form ; 
 but surely no such change or transubstan- 
 tiation, or even consubstantiation, is neces- 
 sary to render the text intelligible. Let us 
 advert to the institution of the Lord's Sup- 
 per, and we shall find a solution of every 
 difficulty. We know that it was instituted 
 in reference to the passover, Christ being 
 the real sacrifice of which the paschal 
 lamb w^as a type : the paschal lamb was' 
 required to be sacrificed, and all those wha 
 were to partake of the benefit of the pass- 
 over, were required to eat of it, and the man- 
 ner of eating it, was prescribed — it was to 
 be eaten in haste. The paschal sacrifice, 
 therefore, consisted of two parts — the death 
 of the victim, and the eating of it by 
 those who were to partake of the benefit 
 of the rite. — Jesus Christ, therefore, being 
 the sacrifice, suffered death as the propi- 
 tiation for our sins ; but as it would have 
 been impossible, or, if possible, otherwise 
 objectionable, that those who were to par- 
 take of the benefits of his death and paa- 
 
18 SERMONET III. 
 
 sion, should literally eat of his body and 
 drink of his blood, he institutes his Supper, 
 and tells those who are permitted to par- 
 take of it, that the bread which they theii 
 eat, and the wine which they then drink, 
 are his body and his blood ; so that these 
 elements may, in some degree, be consi- 
 dered as substituted in the room of the real 
 body and blood of Jesus Christ, at least so 
 far as the partaking of them worthily, con- 
 fers upon the participant the same benefits 
 which were conferred upon those who par* 
 took of the paschal lamb. 
 
 Our Saviour might, therefore, without 
 any violent figure in language, say, *' This^ 
 13 my body," when, to all intents and pur- 
 poses, the bread was his body to those who 
 ate it ; neither is it necessary to suppose 
 any change to take place in the elements, 
 so as to make them really human flesh and 
 human blood. To comprehend the pas^ 
 sage aright, no greater license of interpret- 
 ation is required, than such as is allowed 
 to writers on other subjects. Had not the 
 eating of the bread and drinking the wine 
 been thus substituted, the ordinance would 
 
SERMONET III. 19 
 
 have been deficient, it being a maxim both 
 of Jewish and heathen institution, that 
 the sacrifice which had been offered was al- 
 ways eaten by those who were to be bene- 
 fited by it. H. 
 
fO SETIMOKET IV. 
 
 SERMONET IV 
 
 PSALM XLIX. 18. 
 
 So hng as thou docU xvell luiio thi/selfy men 
 will speak good of tJise. 
 
 XiiE observations dispersed tlirough the 
 Sacred Writings, on the manners of n]«n, 
 must be either prophetical, or drawn from 
 wisdom and experience ; that is to say, 
 they either are the result of foresight which 
 has told what the corruptions of the world 
 will become, or they are recitals of that 
 which has occurred ; and not unfrequently 
 they partake of both these characters ; and 
 experience on the part of the writer, be- 
 comes prediction \\'hen directed to the 
 reader. The Psalmist, doubtless, had seen, 
 and he knew posterity would, ages after, 
 see, that wliilst wx can keep our hold of 
 the blessings of life, the opinion of the 
 world is in our favour ; and the court paid 
 to greatness, and the shameless and sudden 
 desertion of those who have fallen from it. 
 
SERMON ET IV. 
 
 T^4iich history, not of one age or one coun- 
 try, but of all ages and countries, records, 
 prove he was right in supposing that his 
 experience would be that of the generations 
 after him, and the meaning of his axiom 
 remain uncontradicted by any general in- 
 stances of the commendations of men be- 
 stowed on those who have thrown away or 
 lost the power of doing well unto them- 
 selves. 
 
 The persons " doing well unto them- 
 selves" would, perhaps, in the language of 
 the present day, be described rather as 
 those careful of their own interests ; and 
 of such, in worldly acceptation, there can 
 be but two sorts — the selfish and the pru- 
 dent. 
 
 However odious the vice of selfishness 
 must ever appear to those who know no 
 joy so great as that of dispensing the 
 bounty of Providence, there will always be 
 persons in the world, enough to admit of 
 numbering them generally, who, if selfish- 
 ness be successful, will commend the prac- 
 tice of it, though, perhaps, under some 
 softer name. The " children of this gene- 
 
g2 SERMONET IV. 
 
 ration" are so much wiser than the " chil- 
 dren of light," that they will praise, though 
 not on the same ground as our blessed 
 Saviour, the shrewdness of the unjust stew- 
 ard : their approbation says, they would, 
 m similar circumstances, act in a similar 
 manner. 
 
 The fairly prudent are entitled to be 
 spoken well of by the world, w^iether their 
 prudence be attended with success or mis- 
 fortune. And by those acquainted with 
 the ingredients of virtues, if such a term 
 may be used, something more than the 
 common " well speaking" of the world 
 will be granted to them; for prudence is ge- 
 nerally compounded of discernment, wis- 
 dom, and self-restraint — at least, it dis- 
 misses all passion, and rejects all foreign 
 impulse : it strives to do what is conducive 
 to the end proposed ; and if this end be 
 laudable, the practice of prudence, fairly 
 exerted, is virtuous. 
 
 It is pretending to make discoveries in 
 an explored country, to remark, as the 
 text naturally leads us to do, on the limit- 
 ation of that term which the Psalmist as- 
 3 
 
SERMONET IV. gS 
 
 signs to the well-speaking of men. The 
 stories of our infancy ; the scenic amuse- 
 ments of our riper years ; history, poetry, 
 painting — and happy are we if we cannot 
 add, our own experience — all will inform us 
 that the setting sun has no train of follow- 
 ers ; and that the lofty mind of Wolsey had 
 no more power to attract flatterers when 
 he had drawn the royal frown on him, than 
 the speculators of the present day, when 
 their bubble greatness has burst by their 
 unmeasured inflation. 
 
 We may profitably learn from the text, 
 that, by prudence, a valuable reputation 
 may be gained; and common sense will 
 teach us, that the good opinion of the best 
 part of mankind is better worth purchasing 
 by forbearance, than the superfluous indul- 
 gences of a capricious fancy, by the prodi- 
 gal dissipation of that which was designed, 
 by the Giver of all good, to be beneficial to 
 ourselves, or to others. That light which 
 our Creator has bestowed on us, to guide 
 us to everlasting life, will clearly show us, if 
 we are willing to be instructed, that in do- 
 
^4 SEUMONET IV. 
 
 iug our duty to Him, we do well unto our- 
 selves, secure from all the contingencies of 
 this world, and out of reach of that ca- 
 price which makes success the test of 
 merit L. 
 
SERMOXET V. 25 
 
 SERMONET V. 
 
 HEBREWS, III. 13. 
 
 The deceifjulness of situ 
 
 Ihts is one of the most important texts iil 
 Scripture, and, at the same time, attbrds one 
 of the most instructive lessons of human life. 
 If Sin performed all that she promised; if 
 her votaries could pass through life with* 
 out care and without any of those evils 
 which the virtuous are sometimes called 
 upon to endure, tlien, indeed, might slie 
 boast her superiority : but the fallacy con* 
 sists in this, that, whatever she may boasty 
 she performs nothing ; and, after all that 
 she can offer to allure, the virtuous man is 
 not only the wisest,^ but the happiest ; and 
 the vicious man ha's nothing to produce, as 
 the fruit of his enormities, but this aphorism 
 — that " all is vanity;" and that, were he to 
 live his life over again, he would choose a 
 life of virtue. 
 
 c 
 
36 SERMON ET V. 
 
 From otir first parents, clown to the pre- 
 sent moment, all mankind have felt the 
 deceitfulness of sin. No vice, no indivi- 
 dual act of vice, ever repaid the perpe- 
 trator. 
 
 Judas Iscariot found himself deceived in 
 any hopes of honour or happiness that he 
 might have sought to attain ; and by the 
 sense of guilt alone, was urged to confess, 
 that he had betraved the innocent blood, 
 giving up, at the same moment, the profits 
 of his treachery. And thus is it with every 
 one of us. If sensualists were frankly to de- 
 clare what they have gained by their ^•ices, 
 not a human being who has departed 
 Siom virtue, but must admit, that he had 
 not found what he wished : he would be 
 "uilling, were it in his power, to forego all 
 the apparent advantages annexed to vice, 
 but that shame, and the fear of being look- 
 ed upon as the dupe of his own folly, re- 
 strain him. 
 
 For, let no one suppose, that the sinner 
 who continues in a state of incessant viola- 
 tion of God's precepts — \N'ho passes year 
 
SERMON ET V. 57 
 
 after yeaf, deaf to all the warnings of expe- 
 rience, and blind to the decay of his own 
 bodily frame, perceptible to all but him- 
 self: — let no one suppose that a sin- 
 ner of such a description as this, con- 
 tinues in sin from any pleasure felt o'r 
 hoped for. He has bfutalized himself; 
 he has so far warped both his taste and 
 his judgment, that he has lost all relish 
 for any thing better; and from these causes, 
 as well as from a sense of shame, he 
 moves round in the same circle of satiety, 
 vice, and insipid foll}^, till death, kindly 
 interposing, prevents him, indeed, from 
 adding new crimes and enormities to the 
 overcharged catalogue of those already 
 committed, but turns him over to that ir- 
 reversible fate which he has either braved 
 or disregarded. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 Some of the most voluptuous nien of modern 
 times, men, whose high rank and large incomes put 
 every gratification in their |)ower, have declared ihat 
 c 2 
 
£g SERMONET V. 
 
 they did not know what it was to pass a really plea- 
 sant day ; and one of them, the late Earl of Chester- 
 field, has left this testimony in favour of virtue ; " Let 
 no one think he does wisely when he imitates us in 
 bur vices." 
 
SERMONET VI. Si) 
 
 SERMONET VI. 
 
 EXODUS, XX. p. 
 
 Sir days shalt thou labour. 
 
 We have two great ends to accomplish in 
 all that we do in this world — to avoid [n\- 
 nishment, and to obtain reward, if reward 
 can be claimed by performances so im- 
 perfect, as, in their best state, to require 
 the added merits of a sinless propitiation ! 
 Every forbearance should have the one, and 
 every action should have the other, of these 
 motives to sanctify it. 
 
 Short, at the longest, as is our time of 
 probation, and uncertain, as we are, whe- 
 ther the next moment may not end ir, we 
 might suppose, if our wants and our foHy 
 did not interfere, that man would have 
 but one species of employment — the service 
 of God, varied only by the alternative of 
 acts of devotion and deeds of charity ; and 
 could the inhabitant of another world sur- 
 vey our occupations, we must be deemed 
 c 3 
 
30 -SERMONET VI, 
 
 Jower in understanding than the brutes tliat 
 perish, when we are discovered either idle 
 or vainly employed. 
 
 The commandment including the prohi- 
 bition of labour on the sabbath, is seldom 
 referred to as containing a positive injunc- 
 tion to labour on the other six days of the 
 week : we read it in the sense of, " Jfyon 
 labour on six days, do not on the se- 
 venth." But surely, "Six days shalt thou la- 
 bour," is a commandment distinct from, that 
 ordaining rest on the sabbath. And as all 
 (he tcnour of the Gospel admonition, all 
 the .exhortations of the Apostles, and all 
 that advice which is founded on tlic expe- 
 rience of mankind, are in favour of labour 
 and industry, as preventing evil and lead- 
 ing to good, it is fair to suppose this a re- 
 petition of that sentence, which, at the fall, 
 was denounced against sinful man. The 
 necessity of labour was imposed; it became 
 a duty, and he who should have refused to 
 fulfil it, would have appeared as much a re- 
 bel as Adam himself. 
 
 The chanfrine: fashion of the world seems 
 to have dispensed with this law as to one 
 
SEKMONETv VT. SI 
 
 half of its inhabitants; but let us beware 
 how we niisunderstand the dispensation. 
 We may be allowed leisure ; but the stigma 
 is not removed from idleness : are we quite 
 sure that the punishment of it will be 
 .found attached to only a dormant law, 
 which the wisdom or mercy of our Judge 
 will certainly not now put in force? 
 
 Let it not be supposed however, that, 
 to fulfil this commandment in its strict 
 sense, it is requisite that every one should 
 have a manual occupation. There are ** spi- 
 rits finely touched," whose pursuits and 
 whose delights are contemplative ; and 
 man, in silence and inaction, may, by thtj 
 imperceptible labour of the brain, or, per- 
 haps, we may more correctly say,, by the 
 operation of that emanation of the Divinity 
 called the soul, be advancing himself in that 
 refinement from the grosser part of his na- 
 ture, which is necessary to entitle him to ap- 
 proach the footstool of the Almighty : and, 
 on the contrary, those who have little rest 
 and no leisure, who toil to excess, and 
 literally fulfil the injunction derived from 
 Adam^ may prove of that description of idle 
 c 4 
 
$i fiERMONET VI. 
 
 persons whom St. Paul scarcely allows^ tu 
 have a right to eat. 
 
 Perhaps the utmost stretch which th^. 
 commandment may now bear, tlie i^tmost 
 that will be conceded to remonstrance, is, 
 that every one should have an employment. 
 It needs surely not any thing* so authorita- 
 tive as tlie word of God to prove this; since 
 the nuisances, the pests of society, which 
 persons destitute of employment show 
 themselves to be^ would fully answer the 
 purpose of disgusting the rational with idle- 
 ness. 
 
 Look now round the world, and see how 
 many there are, who seem, neither in one 
 way nor the other, to understand the com- 
 mandment : some, happy in being exempt 
 from the necessity of labour; others, to 
 whose well-being, nay, to whose existence, 
 it is almost indispensably and unremittingly 
 requisite; and a third class, seeking happi- 
 ness in vahi occupations possessing nei- 
 ther the grace of labour or rest, and not 
 knowing that it is to be found only in the 
 duty they shun, but all, all acting just as 
 if the commandment had never been given 
 
SERMON ET VI. 33 
 
 uSj and natural inclination or caprice were 
 the only guide we could take. 
 
 See the lahours of the dissipated ; to 
 what do tliey amount? to the preparation 
 for inane pleasures ; the insipid reahzation 
 of them — for it cannot be called enjoyment; 
 and the vapid, or perhaps nauseated, recol- 
 lection of them. Are they ever heard to 
 say, " I was happy : it was a real plea- 
 sure which I enjoyed; it was a satisfac- 
 tion tliat I shall not soon forget?" No : 
 their language rather expresses disgust and 
 disappointment. You hcAr them resolve to 
 "go no more;" yet, the next hour, not 
 indeed allured by the hope of something 
 better, but dreading something worse — the 
 being left to themselves — they enter again 
 on the same satiating round. 
 
 The labours of a less despicable class are, 
 alas! hardly entitled to more mercy; those 
 whose daily circuit centres in themselves ; 
 and who, living a sort of fly's life, pre- 
 scribed by their rank, their situation, and 
 the liabits of others, &eem to themselves 
 bhuneless. But, in either case, a serious 
 question may be asked; '' What is achiev- 
 c 5 
 
34 SIRMONET VI. 
 
 ed ?" that is to say, " What have you to 
 show as the product of your day ?" Nei- 
 ther driving nor riding; neither reading 
 newspapers nor writing billets ; neither 
 frivolous visits nor useless purchases ; nei- 
 ther watching the transfer of property at 
 an auction, nor gaining an admission to 
 splendid modes of life; neither the assump- 
 tion of an interest in politics, nor the af- 
 fectation of taste, leave behind them " a 
 sherd to take fire from the hearth, or to 
 take water withal out of the pit." To es- 
 cape this wretched desolation of time, l^t 
 us, each one, endeavour to have something 
 positive to tlo ; something that shall be 
 eur pursuit, our labour : and if we would 
 not have a disgraceful reckoning at last, 
 let us adopt the good custom of daily rec- 
 koning with ourselves, L. 
 
SERMONET VII. 35 
 
 SERMONET VII. 
 
 JOB, V. 7. 
 
 Man is horn unto trouble as the sparks fly 
 upward. 
 
 We need not stop to inquire whether tlie 
 original word be rightly rendered "trouble," 
 or whether it should have been simply " la- 
 bour ;" but as trouble implies a greater de- 
 gree of suffering than mere labour, we will 
 assume it for granted, that the sense, given, 
 in the above passage, is correct. 
 
 And before any one takes upon himself 
 to condemn his hard fate, it may be rea- 
 sonable that he should ask, whether, ac- 
 cording to the constitution of the human 
 mind, and to what is passing every day be- 
 fore us, we have any reason to suspect that 
 man's happiness, either that of individuals 
 or of society at large, would be increased 
 by the total absence of all *' trouble;" that is 
 to say, for instance, that man had no one 
 for whose well-being he felt anxious, no 
 c6 
 
36 SERMON ET VII. 
 
 father, no mother, no brother, no sister, 
 nor wife, nor children, nor friend ; that he 
 had, ill his own pursuits, no care, no la- 
 bour; that certain and infinite success at- 
 tended him in liis vocation; that the book 
 of all knowledge were open to his compre- 
 hension, without the toil of study; and that, 
 in other things, he had only to feel the wish 
 to possess, and full possession would be im- 
 mediately consequent. 
 
 Yet, with all this, we will venture to 
 say, man would not be happy ; and those who 
 suppose the contrary, do not know the de- 
 light that arises from the hopes which can 
 only exist in the previous supposition that 
 there are fears which animate the human 
 mind to the best and noblest exertions ; 
 our success in which, we afterwards con- 
 template with increased satisfaction, from 
 the consciousness that we were, in some 
 measure, instrumental in the attaining it. 
 
 Let us observe those placed in the 
 most certain slate of success and prospe- 
 rity, whase lives wear the least appearance 
 of difficulty or of trouble, and wiio, as far 
 as lunnan sight can penetrate, seem fixijd 
 
SERMONET VII, 37 
 
 in immovable prosperity ; are they, gene- 
 rally speaking, wiser or better than the rest 
 of the world? or, which is more to our pre- 
 sent purpose, are they happier? or are they 
 more beloved or more esteemed? They may 
 indeed have more of the homage of the world; 
 but that is no proof of their possessing 
 any one of those qualities which are neces- 
 sary to constitute happiness. 
 
 In most cases, we perceive in these fa- 
 vourites of fortune, an insipidity and lan- 
 guor, testifying, that, whatever may be pos- 
 sessed, very Httle is enjoyed ; they are fre- 
 quently put to as much trouble to find 
 amusement, as any one whom they may de- 
 spise; and unless they will consent to live 
 in many respects like those who feel both 
 hopes and fears, their wealth, their gran- 
 deur, their prosperity, will not be able to 
 achieve much towards rendering them ob- 
 jects of any other feelings than those of 
 compassion. 
 
 And hence arises the importance of that 
 state of mind, which, however essential to 
 our comfort and happiness, is one of the 
 last which men acquire ; I mean that state 
 
38 SERMONET VII. 
 
 which teaches us to be content in that si- 
 tuation, and with that portion of the good 
 things of this world, which Wisdom that 
 cannot err, and Goodness that cannot fail, 
 sees fit for man in his present state — in a 
 world where nothing is perfect, and which 
 is only preparatory to our promotion to an- 
 other — a better, a perfect state — where sor- 
 low shall be no more ; where the secret 
 counsels of God and his providence towards 
 man shall be understood; and when it shall 
 be plain to all, that in his dispensations, 
 however severe they seemed, God still pi- 
 tied us ^* as a father pitieth his own chil- 
 dren." H. 
 
SERMONET VIII. S9 
 
 SERMONET VIII, 
 
 PSALM XC. II. 
 
 For eve7i as a man feareth^ so is tliy 
 displeasure. 
 
 A VERY superficial acquaintance with hu- 
 man nature will teach us, that the good and 
 evil of this world are not to be estimated in 
 their operation on others, as they are in the 
 abstract, or even, perliaps, as they affect 
 ourselves. That is intolerable to one person 
 which is scarcely disagreeable to another; 
 that is pleasant to one, which is worse than 
 inditierent to another; that is laborious 
 exertion to one, which is the usual habit of 
 industry to another; and that is indispen- 
 sably necessary to some people, which to 
 others would be an incumbrance. Omitting 
 the trite observation on the caprice of pa- 
 late and the judgments of oar corpoml facul- 
 ties, there are, it will be found, few things, 
 short of extreme suffering, on which man- 
 kind are agreed. Nay, to such an extent 
 
40 SERMONET VIII. 
 
 may this difference of taste and opinion be 
 detected, in the artificial perversions of a 
 corrupt world, that a stranger to them 
 might fancy the overwhehning misfortunes 
 of some of their neighbours coveted as 
 amusements by others ; for on this ground 
 alone is it possible to reconcile, for in* 
 stance, the ruin of a family, the loss of im- 
 portance, of credit, of character, with the 
 apathy, nay, the hilarity which has so often 
 been manifested or affected, by the bank- 
 rupt-personages of what is called fashion, 
 of our age and country. The evil foreseen 
 at a distance, and in time to be averted, had 
 not the will been wanting, has not appall- 
 ed ; the occupation of an invaluable house 
 by the messengers of the law, has not 
 abashed ; the misery of the nearest relatives 
 has not awakened thestupified senses of the 
 man of taste, of sentiment, of pleasure! 
 
 The same species of misfortune, perhaps 
 far less merited and not so great in degree, 
 has, on the contrary, when befalling a man 
 ©f different frame of mind, been considered 
 as insupportable, and, in his estimation, to 
 be opposed only by means the most direful. 
 
SERMONICT VI n. 41 
 
 the only means that can preclude hope of 
 the intervention of Providence to save usi 
 Disgrace, prohable want, the share of others 
 in their ruin, have been pleaded in justifica- 
 tion and admitted, by the common consent 
 of mankind,. as more than suthcient to wipe 
 oiF the charge of cowardice or audacity, 
 one of which, perhaps both, must be the 
 stimulative to deeds of desperation. 
 
 Nor is this variety of opinion always to 
 be sought in different persons : the same 
 person will prove himself as inconsistent 
 as any two. To-day that is braved, which 
 yesterday was feared ; to-morrow that shall 
 seem an ideal evil, which to-day was de- 
 plored as the severest blow in the power of 
 the world's deity. Fortune. Catching at 
 every aid that can save us, we look on what 
 we call Chance, as a thing we can command ; 
 but when wounded by that on which we 
 had presumptuously relied, our pusillanimity 
 is the preponderating counterbalance to our 
 ill-founded arrogance. All this we daily see 
 in the world. 
 
 But there is, beyond this world, something 
 which ought not to be treated by us with 
 
4U SERMONET Vlli. 
 
 this waywardness ; something not subject 
 to the interventions of chance, fortune, or 
 accident ; something whose positive ex- 
 istence is known to us, whose proceeding is 
 regular, and whose effects are certain. Of 
 this therefore we ought all, and always, 
 to have the same apprehension, be our na- 
 tural conformation of body or mind Vv'hat it 
 may. There is no courage that can gain 
 credit by braving intlnite power to destroy ; 
 there is no despondency that can claim pity 
 in neglecting infinite powev to save. Thi* 
 therefore, which is the fear of the Lord, 
 should be a consistent habitual feeling of 
 our minds; and were it commensurate with 
 that which excites it, it would, in time, pu- 
 rify them from those erroneous estimations 
 which almost remove us from the rank of 
 rational creatures. 
 
 But the considerations which call our at- 
 tention from the world to the Maker of it, 
 are, we may plead, still more remote than 
 those claims on our understanding to wliich 
 we refuse to listen. If immediate ruin can- 
 not scare us, shall denunciations that have, 
 we trust, years to run ere they overtake us^ 
 
^ERMONET VIIT; 43 
 
 influence us? If we are negligent when pu- 
 nishment threatens, shall we be attentive to 
 a hope of distant reward? 
 
 There is a tone, a nod, a look, that says 
 more than the tongue : there is a way of 
 telling our hearers that we are not to be 
 contradicted, which will prevent contradic- 
 tion : persons successful in the use of these 
 substitutes for truth, have purchased by au- 
 thority the right of continuing unmolested 
 in error. The still small voice of him who 
 in deep abasement whispers to himself his 
 well-founded conviction, that ** the fear of 
 tiie Lord is the beginning of wisdom;'* 
 who, on hearing the comparative calcula- 
 tion on noxv and hereafter, recollects, that 
 '^ in the sight of God a thousand years are 
 but as yesterday," will not disturb the con- 
 fident disputant; and, averse to unprofit- 
 able argument against convenient preju- 
 dice, he will leave his adversary to learn in 
 his last moments, that it seems scarcely an 
 hour since he defied, as out of the reach of 
 him, that judgment which now stares him 
 in the face, and which is to decide his des- 
 tiny for ever. 
 
44 SERMON ET Vllh 
 
 Let us, who have no such convenient 
 prejudices to warp our faith, remain uni- 
 formly convinced, that the displeasure of tlic 
 Lord ought to be regarded as it is, not as we 
 may chance to feel it ; that it is a storm that 
 may overwhelm us, a mountain that may fall 
 on us, whether it appear so or not to our 
 short-sighted perceptions. Let us infer 
 from what we see daily in the world, the 
 necessity of a rule of life, a standard of 
 judgment, by which we may supply our na- 
 tural deficiency of power to discern good 
 from evil ; and let us reflect on the gratitude 
 we owe to the beneficence of the Divine 
 Being, who would make the timely fear of 
 Him whose favourite attribute is mercy, 
 and the love of Him, in whose hand are our 
 destinies, the dehorting and exhorting, the 
 efficient and final causes of all our actions. 
 
 Let not the mean inconsistency that 
 brands our dealings with the world, vitiate 
 our performances towards our Maker : let 
 not tastes, sentiments, feelings, require to 
 be consulted before we can decide whether 
 we sliall love " the Giver of all good," or 
 fear the tremendous ** Judge of the whole 
 
SERMONET VIII. 45 
 
 earth:** let not the displeasure of the Al* 
 mighty be ever out of sight in the vehe- 
 ment pursuit of our own fancied happiness, 
 or the fear of it be silenced by the mad reso- 
 lution to remove the barrier which we can- 
 not pass. 
 
 Let us mark the operation of this holy 
 fear on the religious man ; let us ask him 
 how he receives it, he will tell us it is the 
 only fear that can give real courage; he will 
 call it a welcome restraint, a constant mo- 
 nitor, a protecting guardian, a sure guide, an 
 invaluable friend. 
 
 If, from so delightful a contemplation, we 
 turn — reluctantly it must be — to survey a 
 mind of opposite description, in Vain shall 
 we look for the same effects : most proba- 
 bly, unless the merciful severity of an of- 
 fended Deity has begun to punish, the ex- 
 istence of any such fear is denied, or, if ad* 
 niitted, derided ; it is either Iiot known or 
 not understood, and consequently contemn- 
 ed, and its comforts are as little heeded as 
 its warnings. But should the justice of the 
 Deity require the submission of his mercy ; 
 iihould there be no place for penitence; Jiow 
 
4^ SflRMONET Viri. 
 
 horrible will be the subject of our specula- 
 tion! Grown bold in iniquity, practised in 
 hardness of heart, acting on his own war- 
 rant, and ready to take any responsibility 
 on himself, the thundering and the threaten- 
 ing of the Almighty are, to such a man, 
 vain. In the storm and tempest, even of 
 his own thoughts, he still asks, " Who is 
 the Lord, that we should fear him ?" and 
 only in the moment of quitting this world, 
 becomes sensible tahis tremendous concern 
 in that on which he is entering. From such 
 insane bravery and deplorable ignorance, 
 may the grace of God, added to our own 
 weak endeavours, preserve us I 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 To prove the different effects produced on two 
 great minds, by similar misfortunes, two examples 
 
 are at hand. ** Thank God," said Lady , on 
 
 hearing that there was an execution in the Earl's town- 
 house, " then we shall get rid oF those ugly chairs.'* 
 But Mrs. , when told that her husband had set- 
 tled his gaming-debts with a pistol, recovering from 
 the shock, replied to her informer : " I really thought 
 ^ou h^d been going to tell me the goods were seized." 
 
 L. 
 
SERMONET IX. 
 
 ST. MATTHEW, VI. 13. 
 
 Lead us not into temptation. 
 
 1 HAT every man, in his progress through the 
 world, is exposed to various temptations, we 
 have our own experience and the authority 
 of Scripture to inform us. The seducer, 
 who is the author and primary source of 
 t4iose temptations, is, in the language of 
 Holy Writ, described as a wild beast, go- 
 ing about, " seeking whom he may devour;" 
 and if we take the words of our Saviour in 
 tlieir literal sense, when he tells St. Peter 
 that he has prayed for him that Satan might 
 not draw him away from his duty, we are 
 justified in saying that it is by the grace of 
 God alone, that man is enabled to res'st 
 the arch-enemy of mankind. 
 
 We might suppose that the natural lights 
 which a man possesses, aided by a general 
 tenour of conduct long pursued, might have 
 been sufficient to secure him as-ainst clehi- 
 
4% SEliaiONET IX. 
 
 «ion ; but, unfortunately, the reverse has 
 often proved true ! Hence we read of the 
 wise king, who reared a temple to the wor- 
 ship of the true God, himself becoming, 
 through uxorious imbecility, an idolater; — 
 the man, the most after God's own heart, 
 becominga murderer and an adulterer; — and 
 the pious, the fervent disciple denying his 
 Master. 
 
 These are instances of temptation. But, 
 in other cases, we may rather be said to have 
 tempted the temptation, and to have been 
 oursehxs the seducer. Let us trace the 
 first impulse to illicit gratiiication : did we 
 not lay ourselves open to any train o/ 
 ideas, to any delusive suggestions, that our 
 adversary might present to us? were not 
 these ideas at that moment agreeable to 
 us? did we not cherish them? and, when 
 compelled to rouse from our reverie, did we 
 not wish for their return? till, at last, the 
 mind was not startled at any enormities at- 
 tending the gratification, but, on the con- 
 trary, learned to consider it as essential to 
 its happiness? Were we honestly to pene- 
 tiate into the recesses of the mincV u'e 
 
dicmkl frequently discover that we had had 
 no enemy but ourselves ; that we might 
 have stood, had not our own passions 
 betrayed us ; that the tempter only came, 
 because he was invited, and, consequently, 
 no one but ourselves is to blame in our 
 fall. 
 
 Hence arises the necessity of fortifyuig 
 our minds by good principles and good pur- 
 suits ; by those principles which, being 
 founded on the basis of eternal truth, are an 
 infallible guide, and by those pursuits which, 
 having a tendency to cultivate the intellect 
 without inflaming the passions, enable us at 
 all times to live innocently, and generally 
 beneficially to others and to ourselves. 
 
 In the hours which a man necessarily de- 
 votes to his calling or profession, his em- 
 ployment is regulated for him : it is from 
 his relaxations, from his pleasures, that the 
 danger is to be apprehended; it is then that 
 he is most open to the allurements (jf the 
 specious ; and against this period must ha 
 provide, by addicting himself to those 
 amusements only which may refresli his 
 wearied faculties, without involving him in 
 
 D 
 
60 SERMOKET IX. 
 
 aiiy thing derogatory to that exalted sense 
 of purity and rectitude, to attain or to pre-^ 
 serve which should be the primary object 
 of every moral, every intellectual being. 
 Let us betake ourselves to those occupa- 
 tions which do not desert us in old age, 
 but which, when we are no longer able to 
 pursue them, afford us pleasure in the recol- 
 lection, and whichy filling the mind with 
 ideas that rescue us from the misery of a 
 mental vacuum, enable us, to the latest mo- 
 ment of our lives, to make some progress in 
 "\visdom or in virtue, and allow us to hope 
 that our existence is not, by our fault, pro- 
 longed in vain, H. 
 
SERMONET X. 61 
 
 SERMONET X. 
 
 ST. 1\IATTHEM^, V. 5. 
 
 Blessed are the meek, for they shall i?t/ierit the 
 eartlu 
 
 1 HE reward held out here as the encou- 
 ragement to the practice of a virtue ex- 
 tremely important in tlie Christian cha- 
 racter, can be no otherwise understood than 
 by comparing it with expressions fami- 
 liar to us. — The Scriptures never demand 
 the renunciation of our common sense ; 
 though many circumstances combined may 
 render their meaning occasionally obscure. 
 They do not exact of us a literal belief that, 
 when we have obtained the grace of meek- 
 ness, we shall find ourselves and those of 
 the same pretensions, in possession of the 
 fee-simple of the globe ; but, as far as re- 
 gards ourselves, we may believe that by 
 the practice of meekness, we shall obtain 
 that which others of a contrary cliaracter 
 will fail to gain ; and perhaps wq are far- 
 D 21 
 
52 " SERMOKET X. 
 
 ther to understand, that at the second com- 
 ing of our Lord, " when he shall have put all 
 things in subjection under his feet," those 
 distinctions which the arrogant have chal- 
 lenged to themselves, will be awarded to the 
 meek. 
 
 Confining the sense within the bounds 
 that our interests touch, we have to ob- 
 sei've, that, in the course of this world's 
 ordinary government, we daily see the 
 truth of the prediction : persons of the most 
 violent tempers are not those in whom the 
 greatest confidence is placed : in times of 
 turbulence, tliey may be the tools of a mob 
 or a faction; but when commotion ceases, 
 they are generally left out in the division of 
 power, even if tliey survive to put in their 
 claim ; but how often do we see them the 
 v ic t i m s of an . earl ie r fate, an d des ti'oy ed by 
 each other! We cannot suppose the man 
 most eminent for meekness would have been 
 appointed by Infinite Wisdom to conduct 
 a people prov'crbially stiff-necked, had there 
 not been something in the character of the 
 virtue peculiarly fitted to the purpose. The 
 taults of those led were to be counteracted^ 
 
SLRMONET X. 55 
 
 not ove r pouter cd ; and Moses accomplisiiecl 
 that by mildness, in which the impetuosity 
 ©f Saul might have failed. 
 
 We may, indeed, pass through life, by the 
 blessing of God, without witnessing po- 
 pular tumult, and can never be called on to 
 fill the ofhce of Moses ;^ but let us consider 
 how a meek spirit may be made useful to 
 ourselves. That it is essential to our higliest 
 interests, needs no proof; whatever quali- 
 fications the Almighty has judged neces- 
 sary to our admission into " the society of 
 just men made perfect," must, in their na- 
 ture, be of the first consequence to us; and 
 the pattern set us by our Saviour, at once 
 shows the beauty and value of meekness ; 
 but in the world and our dealings with it, 
 its use may not be so obvious or indisputable; 
 and there are many vulgar axioms to lower 
 its authority, and render it contemptible. 
 And to vulgar apprehension it must appear 
 a despicable virtue, for shortsightedness is 
 one of the distinctions of vulgar intellects ; 
 and nothing would convmce them of what 
 is, however, an irrefragable truth,, that the 
 meek in this world can lose nothing that is 
 D 3 
 
1^4 SERMONET X. 
 
 not more than repaid to them in that pre- 
 sent Heaven, an approving conscience, and 
 will not he a thousand-fold restored by the 
 sentence of Him who taught us, by pre- 
 cept and example, to endeavour after meek- 
 ness. 
 
 But whatever may be the gross percepr 
 tions of those who know no good that is 
 nQt tangible, meekness has its use in daily 
 intercourse. The want of it is an obstacle 
 even in the attainment of our own wishes. 
 .Those of a submissive, meek temper, will 
 acquire knowledge much better and much 
 faster than those who lose their time and 
 waste their attention in arrogant cavil : 
 every virtue of society is easier in its prac- 
 tice to an humble mind ; the violent will 
 often yield to the gentle, in preference to 
 those who have more resembled themselves; 
 and the utmost extremity of rage has been 
 disarmed by a meek expression. 
 
 Yet we must not think a perverse ex- 
 treme the point of excellence we are to 
 aim at, in this or other virtues. Moderation 
 is a truly Christian quality. We are not to 
 
SERMONET X. S5 
 
 take the spring from our actions, and cast 
 them at the feet of the Almighty, saying, 
 ** Lo! thou hast that is thine!" Our duty 
 is to oppose our inclination to do wrong, 
 not to indulge, to culpable excess, in an er- 
 roneous notion of right. We are to be wise 
 as serpents, while harmless as doves; and we 
 are not to tempt our neighbour to sin by 
 laying ourselves open to him. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 TuEperverse practice of the virtue here recommenfl- 
 cd,is seldom attained in perfection till we have reached 
 what is called the age of reason, or years of discretion. 
 Some fine specimens of it have occurred in conjugal 
 life ; and a man with a wife so gifted, may be com- 
 pared to a traveller with a troublesome yelping dog, 
 who is incessantly staring him in the face, to see whicli 
 way he will go, and at the same time, by crossing his 
 path, either preventing his moving, or hazarding his 
 falling. Tliere is a silent libel in some families, that, 
 by artifice not always suspected, points to an indivi- 
 dual; and the affectation of trembling can never fail 
 to excite the supposition that there is a tyrant. Like 
 all other affectation, it is better dismissed : the prac- 
 tice of it has led to efl'ects little short of direful : it 
 p 4 
 
56 5ERM0NET X* 
 
 wearies, even if it be not detected ; it wounds, if it doejj 
 not insult; it alienates; it makes something, perhaps 
 worse, appear preferable. It is better to have honest 
 feelings, and to do our duty to the best of our power, 
 tn the best way a cheeiful sense of duty directs. 
 
 L 
 
SERMONET XI." 57- 
 
 SEllMONET XL 
 
 ST. MATTHEW, VF. 34. 
 
 Take — no thought for the morrow, 
 
 UouBTLESs a reliirion that makes it a fun- 
 damental principle of morality to banisli 
 anxiety and care, must be admitted to pos- 
 sess, to a careless world, great recommenda- 
 tions; and as, from the earliest ages, we have 
 been accustomed to hear mankind complain 
 of the cares, the misfortunes, the vexations 
 and troubles of life, we might be induced 
 to suppose that a religion which assures us 
 that every event wliich happens, is directed, 
 by infinite power, infinite wisdom, and in- 
 finite goodness, would, as soon as its maxims 
 Avere made known, find all ranks and con- 
 (htions of men ready to receive it; and thaf 
 those who had received it would, merely as 
 they preferred peace of mind before restless- 
 ness and dis(}uietude, gladly repose that 
 trust and confidence in tlie Deity, to which 
 he is entitled by every attribute that he pos' 
 p 5 
 
£S SERMONET XI, 
 
 sesses: but if we look into the world, do 
 \ye find this to be the fact? do we not every 
 day hear the necessary checks which avarice 
 or ambition experiences, -complained of as 
 positive misfortunes or deprivations, and 
 the goodness of God called in question, be- 
 vCause this man has not got a high office, 
 arid another has not amassed as much money 
 as he wished ? Do we not hear the que- 
 rulous complaining that some adverse acci- 
 dent has blasted all their hopes, and that 
 nothing now remains for them but despair ? 
 and do we not frequently see that those slight 
 disappointments which overwhelm us with 
 sorrow or dismay, in the end are productive 
 of some of the greatest blessings that we en- 
 joy, when the Deity 
 
 ^^ From seeming evil draws forth certain good ':** 
 
 By indulging this ungrateful and unbe- 
 coming distrust of Providence, and con- 
 sidering our own imperfect view of things 
 as sufficient to enable us to judge what is 
 best for us, we do not err more from the 
 jight path of religion and virtue, than froiri 
 tiia^t of peace of mind; and, indeed, it may 
 
SERMONET XI. ^9 
 
 be truly said, that no deviation can be maile 
 from duty, but which leads us as much 
 astray from the path of happiness, even in 
 this world. 
 
 The resignation here recommended, is, 
 hapj)ily, one of the many virtues that any 
 of us, even without great heroical fortitude 
 or supereminent talents, may practise. It 
 requires not the zeal of a missionary, or 
 the courage of a martyr; and it, moreover, 
 possesses this advantage, that, as soon as 
 we begin to exercise it, we are sensible of 
 its advantages. 
 
 Let him who is inclined to arraign the 
 bounty or the justice of Providence, recol- 
 lect the ten thousand mercies that he daily 
 receives; let him reflect, that were it not 
 for the gracious promise, that whatever may 
 be the sins of the world, yet, *' while the 
 earth remaineth, seed-time and harvest, and 
 cold and heat, summer and winter, and day 
 and night, shall not cease," " the fruitful 
 land might have been made barren for the 
 wickedness of them that dwell therein." 
 Let him ask himself, whether he has been aa 
 mindful of his baptismal covenant as God 
 p 6 
 
#0 SERMONET XI. 
 
 kas been of the promises which he has, from 
 time to time, made to man. Let him ask 
 himself, which of God's mercies lie can 
 claim as his right, or which of them he 
 Would consent to relinquish as needless to 
 him. 
 
 Before he repines that more is not given 
 him, let him learn to appreciate tliat which 
 he has, and be thankful. " Look at the 
 generations of old, and see, did ever any 
 trust in the Lord, and was confounded ? 
 or did any abide in his fear, and was for- 
 saken? or whom did he ever despise that 
 called upon him .^" H. 
 
 / 
 
SEUMONET XII. tfl 
 
 SERMONET XII. 
 
 ST. JAMES, I. 2G. 
 
 If any man — bridkth not his tongue — thk 
 mans religion is x^ain. 
 
 It is matter of common consent, that the 
 major inchicles the minor; the text, there- 
 fore, addresses itself to that part of the 
 creation, who, without any intended dispa- 
 ragement to their natural endowments, but 
 perhaps rather in a strain of compliment, 
 may ])e said to need this hint the most. For, 
 as vivacity of intellect is one of the dia- 
 gnostics of the female mind, the very tender 
 balance on wdiich the tongues of women are 
 sometimes hung, is a concomitant circum- 
 stance, and, v/hen not culpably perverted, as 
 little to 1)6 considered a subiect of disorace, 
 as quickness of sight or hearing. If our 
 eyes are misemployed in prying into our 
 neighbours' houses, or our ears engaged ^n 
 listening to detraction, they are as faulty as 
 our tongues in the exercise of loquacity. 
 
CV SERMONET XIT. 
 
 When, on the contrary, we use our eyes to 
 
 inform us how w€ shall best assist in the re- 
 lief of misery, our ears in hearing of sor- 
 rows or oppressions, with a view to mitigate 
 them, and our tongues to plead the cause of 
 the poor and needy, we are required only 
 to do all this with discretion; and it is thea 
 not only blameless, but laudable. 
 
 The ways in which, as the Apostle sug- 
 gests, the want of bridling our tongues ren- 
 ders our religion vain, are many ; so many, 
 that they must not here be enumerated. 
 But, as it is perhaps the readiest direction 
 to a traveller to keep the high road, rather 
 than to say. You will find a turning at tlic 
 first mile-stone to the right— take not that; 
 then another a little farther on the left — pass 
 that: so it may answer ail purposes, to advise 
 a constant habit of watchfulness — a dispo- 
 sition, which will soon be part of our mind, 
 to think before we speak, and a cultivation 
 of the accomplishment of silence, just so fiar 
 as to make us prefer saying nothing, to that 
 which will injure our neighbour and cause 
 jepentauce in ourselves. 
 
 There is always danger in reporting, un- 
 
SERMONET XII. 63 
 
 less we could repeat words, tones, ges- 
 tures, and looks ; therefore it is better not 
 to forward reports unnecessarily ; and when 
 they are called for, the strictest accuracy, 
 the most candid disposition to give, not 
 only the words, but the spirit of the former 
 speaker, must guide us. 
 
 In passingjudgment on others, the greatest 
 heed is necessary to keep ourselves safe 
 from the retribution promised in the Ser- 
 mon on the Mount. — And, we may add, 
 that even in praising we should be cau- 
 tious, if we would preserve the respect 
 for our opinion that may enable us to as- 
 sist the helpless. In vehement praise we 
 not unfrequently raise expectations which 
 nothing can fulfil, even if we do not rouse 
 the contradictory spirit of some one; and 
 if — for who but our blessed Lord ever yet 
 knew what is in the heart of man ? — a blind 
 prejudice has misled our affection, we may, 
 however innocent in our intentions, repent 
 of not having bridled our tongue. 
 
 On the whole, it would be well if " glory 
 to God, peace on earth, and good-will to- 
 
64t SERMOXET XII, 
 
 wards men," formed the limits of our con- 
 versation; and with tliis bridle on our 
 tongues, many of us would be far more 
 agreeable, and some less dangerous, than in 
 the present range we allow ourselves. 
 
SEUMONET XIIJ. 6B 
 
 SERMONET XIIL 
 
 ST. l^rATTHEW, XXIII. 6, 
 
 And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and 
 the chief seats in the synagogues. 
 
 No fashion of thinking, or perversion of 
 opinion, can recommend to us an imitation 
 of the practices of the Pharisees of our Sa» 
 viour's time. Their hypocrisy, and the vices 
 it was intended to conceal, seem to have 
 excited more anger in his forbearing mind, 
 than any thing which he found '*' in the 
 heart of man" besides. We are certain that 
 the weaknesses of human nature met more 
 compassion from him, and that he could 
 forgive his own death, and the infamous 
 means by which it was accomplished, much 
 more readily, than the silent crimes of 
 those who " made long prayers," and " de- 
 voured widows' houses." 
 
 Precedence was one of the demands 
 made by pharisaical pride; and if it had 
 confined itself to " feasts," the code of mo- 
 
66 SERMONET XllJ. 
 
 dern politeness might have superseded the 
 necessity of caution in imitating them; but 
 they demanded it in the synagogue ; and 
 in our synagogues the code of politeness 
 can have no interference. 
 
 We would hope it is more owing to 
 thoughtlessness, than to any ambition of 
 copying the Pharisees, that a very great 
 €rror has, of late years, crept into the de- 
 corum of our churches, and ** even unto 
 the horns of the altar." In a place where, 
 if in any in the world, the great should de- 
 spoil themselves of their privileges, while 
 contemplating those offered to the good by 
 Him who ** dwelleth in the heavens over 
 all," it is melancholy to perceive, ideas of 
 rank have intruded; and at many of the 
 most fashionable places of elegant wor- 
 ship in our metropolis, it is, without the 
 index of coronet or armorial bearing, very 
 easy to guess where may be found the 
 persons claiming them, or nearest to a 
 claim. This corruption might be duly stig- 
 matized as paltry, mean, and whatever is 
 contemptible, and, perhaps, with a better 
 chance of attention; for it would oppose 
 
SERMONET XIII. 67 
 
 one sort of pride to another. But we must 
 not " through Beelzebub cast out Beelze- 
 bub :" the means, as well as the end, must 
 be regarded, when the service of God is in 
 question ; and the vain-glorious of this 
 world must be told, in plain language, that 
 they are wrong — that they put themselves 
 in danger, or, at least, add to the sins that 
 must make work for repentance on a death- 
 bed — and that our Saviour, not only has 
 expressly pointed at the practice, but has 
 as explicitly said, that " if" our " righte- 
 ousness does not exceed that of the Scribes 
 and Pharisees," we " shall in no case enter 
 into the kingdom of heaven." Can there 
 be a fairer warning ? Can any thing admit 
 less of a question ? How, with this before 
 us, could such an error creep in amongst 
 us ? The contrary extreme, one might ra- 
 ther have expected, as the point of affecta- 
 tion. 
 
 If these challengers of precedence at the 
 gate of heaven, had any true taste, they 
 would seek its indulgence by putting them- 
 selves in situations where surprise would 
 increase the pleasure of meeting them ; and 
 
^8r SERMONET XIH. 
 
 tlie sentiment of the beholder would acM 
 to the catalogue of their graces that of hu- 
 mility : it is painting their portraits on a 
 bad back ground ; it is drowning melody 
 in harmony ; it is, in short, an error in 
 every way, and the sooner got rid of the 
 better. " Medio tuiissimus ibis" was the 
 admonition of a heathen poet ; let it be 
 adopted in the conduct of a Christian; and 
 let persons of rank, disclaiming their rights, 
 and disdaining affectation, content them- 
 selves with being, for a few minutes, in 
 that situation which the best judges have 
 always thought the safest — the middle stc^ 
 tion, L> 
 
SERMON ET XIV. G9 
 
 SERMONET XIV. 
 
 ST. MATTHEW^ XII. 36. 
 
 Every idle word that men shall speak, tlieif 
 shall give account thereof in the day of 
 judgment. 
 
 IrV expounding tlie texts of Scripture, aM 
 well as the writings of profane authors, it 
 seems safest, as well as most candid, to 
 take expressions in their natural and ob- 
 vious sense, as it would be difficult to set 
 bounds to the suggestions of human ima- 
 gination, were any other mode adopted. 
 And, therefore, though we frequently meet 
 with very lax interpretations given to the 
 offence above stated, which is to bring a 
 man into judgm,ent, we shall consider the 
 phrase *' idle word" precisely as the same 
 phrase might be adopted by any other per- 
 son than an ajx)stle or a teacher of righte- 
 ousness. 
 
 These words, then, will be found to 
 mean all frivolous discourse, or such dis- 
 
70 SERMONET XIV. 
 
 course as produces no benefit to him who 
 uses it, or to him to whom it is used. More 
 atrociously criminal discourse, such as pro- 
 fane swearing, lying, slandering our neigh- 
 bour, are prohibited by other texts of Scrip- 
 ture. The divine Author of our text treats 
 only of " idle words ;" of such words as, 
 considering man as an intellectual and ra- 
 tional being, it is beneath him to use. In 
 understanding the term '^ idle," in its strict- 
 est sense, we prohibit no use of speech, 
 that the necessities or the well-being of 
 society may require. We mean merely to 
 restrict it within its due bounds, and show 
 that, as it is criminal to trifle away our 
 time, so, by parity of reason, it is equally 
 criminal to tritle with another of God's 
 gifts, given for the noblest purposes, speech. 
 I\fen may, without censure, converse about 
 their necessary business : they maj^ with 
 equal innocence, converse on matters of 
 science or intellectual improvement, through 
 all the various departments where taste and 
 genius may conduct them. Neither are the 
 minor duties of social life to be neglected ; 
 the claims of courtesy, and still less the 
 
SEBSrONET XIV. 71 
 
 tender offices of kindness and humanity ; 
 because, by all these, the human mind ii 
 either enlarged in its capacity, or strength- 
 ened in its powers of exertion; or a better 
 ftpirit towards our neighbour is cultivated. 
 
 But the prohibition is directed to such 
 conversation as, unfortunately, too many of 
 us are apt to indulge in, that inane and 
 useless impertinence which produces no' 
 good whatever; where men themselves talk 
 and listen to others without the smallest 
 assistance from reason or intellect ; where 
 the adult is as uninformed as the child, and 
 the wise as ignorant as the fooL 
 
 How disgraceful is it that he, whom Pro- 
 vidence has blessed with a mind capable of 
 acquiring knowledge, and with opportu- 
 nities of improving it, should thus spon- 
 taneously stultify himself, and forego the 
 advantages held out to him, without even 
 the hope of gaining any thing as a com- 
 pensation for what is thus foolishly lost ! 
 
 Idle conversation can never be indulged 
 in, without loss of time and estimation : it 
 can never be otherwise than injurious to the 
 tnind, nor can it be the resource of any one 
 
72 ^U^NET XlV. 
 
 disposed to make the most of the passing 
 lioiir. He who recollects the slow degrees 
 by which knowledge and wisdom are accu- 
 mulated, will need little to convince him, 
 that whatever, either of our time or our 
 conversation, is sacrificed to folly, is so 
 much subtracted from virtuous pursuit, and 
 a misuse of God's good gifts, of which ev-ery 
 man must render account in the day of 
 judgment. IL 
 
SKRaiON 
 
 SERMONET XV. 
 
 iET XV. 73 
 
 ST. JAMES, I. 22. 
 
 Deceiving your own selves. 
 
 lo a mind disposed to honesty, there is 
 nothinij: more mortifying than the extreme 
 difficulty of preserving ourselves from" 
 self-deception. To the cursory observers 
 of themselves and their own conduct, tin's 
 may not, at lirst, be very evident; but a 
 dose attention, and the improvement m 
 nicety of performance consequent on close 
 attention, will, in a very short time, teach 
 us, that not a day, nay, scarcely an hour 
 passes, in which we do not deceive our- 
 selves. We deceive ourselves by the loss 
 of time, by {buffering it to glide away from 
 us, without effort on our part, or profit ob- 
 tained from it. We deceive ourselves in 
 undertaking: to do more than we even en- 
 deavour to accomplish. We deceive our- 
 selves in comparing the little we have 
 done, with the less that has been achieved 
 
by others, and thence forming a false esti- 
 mate of our own proliciency in Christian 
 virtues. We deceive ourselves by the hope, 
 that a time will come, and an inclination 
 will accompany it, to do more than we have 
 hitherto done. We deceive ourselves, by 
 fancying external obstacles, when the ob- 
 stacle within is our greatest hinde ranee. 
 Nay, there is no end of enumerating the 
 many ways in which we deceive ourselves. 
 But there is none more dangerous than 
 that self-deception attending the compla- 
 cent feeling of having been unquestionably 
 right. We say to ourselves, " If I never 
 spent au}^ day before to the satisfaction of my 
 conscience, yesterday was a day on which 
 I can look back M'ith perfect assurance;" or, 
 ^' If no other action of mijie was ever good, 
 this which I have just performed, is unal- 
 loyed by tbc corruj)tion of human nature.'' 
 Tis hard — it seems severe; but it is not 
 only wholesome, but necessary severity, 
 when we are bid again to review the day 
 r>r the deed, and, even when \\c have again 
 pronounced the sentence of self-accjuittal, 
 -*<) consider it as error. 
 
StRMONET XV. ?5 
 
 Were it possible for us to do deeds of un- 
 alloyed goodness, or to spend any one day 
 fiee from cause for repentance, the very 
 feeling of self-complacency would vitiate 
 tlie act, and deform the day. We are told 
 to " work out our salvation with fear and 
 trembling;" which must not be understood 
 as a condemnation to incessant misery, but 
 as an injunction to caution: — we are to ex- 
 ercise that care and circumspection which 
 a slippery path or a dangerous precipice 
 demands, in our journeys on earth : — we are 
 to be always on our guard; and, when once 
 this is our habit, it would be unpleasant to 
 be otherwise; and, so far from making us 
 feel miserable, it is the only one that can 
 make us feel safe. 
 
 Let us, then, be persuaded to prefer a 
 modest diffidence of our own powers, and a 
 qualified opinion of our own performances, 
 to any feeling of satisfaction that might 
 abate our vigilance, or introduce counter- 
 vailing presumption. Let us, at the same 
 time, keep at an equal distance from that 
 desponding self-condemnation whic m 
 weaken our physical powers. We must re- 
 ft 2 
 
79 SERarONET XV. 
 
 collect, if we have lived in the exertion of 
 industry becoming rational creatures and 
 disciples of Him who " went about doinj; 
 good/' many cases of success in our manual 
 attempts, when we have thought ill of our 
 chance for it, and of failure where we- 
 thouo-ht ourselves sure. The most diffident 
 in common things are not always the 
 most unfortunate ; and we are incompetent 
 judges of our own works : that has been 
 praised, for which we have expected blame; 
 and that, on which the expectation of fame 
 has been founded, has sometimes brought 
 nothing better than ridicule. "We must be 
 content to do our best, and still to doubt 
 whether it will be received as our best : the 
 exertion which we make, must be the utmost 
 Ave can make; and, instead of seeking self- 
 satisfaction, we must humbly rejoice in 
 feeling disposed to say, that '^ all our do- 
 ings are nothing worth." L. 
 
SERMON ET XVi. 77 
 
 SERAIONET XVI. 
 
 ST. MATTHEW, VI. 19- 
 
 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upoit 
 earth. 
 
 It is to be suspected, that, in many minds, 
 a prejudice arises against religion, from 
 the contemplation of the privations which 
 it enjoins, and the sacrifices which a man 
 is required to make, before he can be called 
 virtuous. But no^great powers of reasoning- 
 are demanded to show, that such a prejudice 
 must arise from an erroneous notion of tlie 
 nature of Christianity, and as erroneous au 
 estimate of its influence on society; for, ta 
 ascertain its claim to our reverence, we must 
 view it in all its parts ; and while we con- 
 sider the privations which are enjoined, we 
 should reckon likewise the benefits, the ten 
 thousand blessings, whicb it bestows. 
 
 It strongly prohibits the indulgence of 
 the violent passions; it prohibits anger, ava- 
 rice, ambition, revenge, and every species of 
 £ 3 
 
TS SEUMOXLT XVI- 
 
 evil concupiscence; feelings, all of them 4.5 
 hostile to man's peace, as they jire contrary 
 to his duty. But, as a compensation for 
 what he is thus called upon to relin([uish, 
 it gives him, besides the approbation of 
 his Maker, besides security from the ven- 
 geance of the laws of his country, which 
 he might violate in the gratification of any 
 of these passions — it gives that peace of 
 mind which the world cannot give. 
 
 Religion says, " Lay not up for your- 
 selves treasures upon earth :" but it does 
 not require the mind to pine in languor 
 and listlessness for want of a due object of 
 attention ; it subjoins a reason for the pre- 
 cept — because such treasures " the moth and 
 rust doth corrupt, and thieves steal." — '^But 
 lay up treasure for yourselves in Heaven, 
 where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, 
 and where thieves do not break through 
 nor steal." 
 
 What is this but saying, " Disdain the 
 smaller good, and I will confer on you the 
 greater?" — language far different from that 
 of an austere ruler, who exacts from his 
 servants -the' full measure of labour with- 
 
SI ILAIOM.T XVI. 7^ 
 
 out bestowing any tliiii<»; to cheer their 
 toil, or alleviate tlieir sufferings. 
 
 As for tliose who liave ventured to make 
 the expciinient how gracious a mistress 
 Rehgion woukl prove to such as, with 
 honest and zealous endeavours, enter into 
 iier ser\ ice, the result lias shown that she 
 is ever willing to reward those who dili- 
 gently seek her ; that her yoke has been 
 easy and her burden light; — that those who 
 obeyed her precepts, w ere enabled to avoid 
 numberless disasters, and W'cnt " on their 
 way rejoicing." These liave, in all the 
 Warmth of friendship, recommended to 
 others the same course that they themselves 
 had pursued ; — a course, in which no one 
 was ever known to complain, that in theac- 
 Oount given to him of what he might ex~ 
 pectin her service, he had been deceived. 
 
 H. 
 
 £ 4 
 
^0 ^KRMONST :xvji. 
 
 SERMONET XVll 
 
 EXODUS, XX. 5. 
 
 / the Lqrd thif God am a jealous God. 
 
 1 HIS declaration must not be understood 
 as of such jealousy as ux feel. It is that 
 jealousy which extends only to care for ho- 
 nour and authority in a paramount power : 
 it is a cautious preservation of the integrity 
 of a claim, and, as such, entitled to re- 
 spect not to be demanded by even the 
 most excusable or justifiable of human pa^^ 
 sions. 
 
 Admitting what we have neither right 
 nor cause to deny, that the conduct of the 
 Deity in governing us, is founded on his 
 knowledge of what is most conducive to 
 our best interests, we ought to regard this 
 jealousy as watchfulness for our advantage^ 
 on the same principle as that which ren- 
 ders the high character and entire power 
 of a patron or protector, of importance to 
 the interests of those whom he patronizes 
 
SERMONET X\IU 81 
 
 or protects. And, uniting our jealousy for 
 the honour of our Maker to that which he 
 expresses for his power, we ought never, 
 in ourselves or others, to admit any tiling 
 derogatory to his majesty, might, or domi- 
 nion. No resentment can he more honour- 
 able, none can be less in danger of trans- 
 gressing its just bounds, than that which 
 is excited by any offence committed against 
 Him, whom it is equally folly and wicked- 
 ness to offend. 
 
 With our attention thus awakened, we 
 can never see an act of irreverence towards 
 God, or hear a profane expression, un- 
 moved. It is prudent to be bHnd to some 
 follies, and deaf to some vexations, as far 
 as they respect ourselves alone ; but we 
 have no right to conniv^e at an insidt to a 
 worldly benefactor; and, where One so 
 much more entitled to homage is concern- 
 ed, our feeling should be, in proportion, 
 alert. AVe may discourage and correct, in 
 our own circle, by a very few words and 
 very little anger, if ^v^e are but respectable 
 ourselves. L, 
 
 z 5 
 
82 SERMONET XVIII. 
 
 SERMONET XVIIL 
 
 PHILIPPIANS, IV. 8. 
 
 Whatsoever thwgs are of good report. 
 
 C/HRiSTiANiTY havitig been designed as a 
 rule of conduct for those who were to live 
 in the world, it adapts itself with wonder- 
 ful wisdom, to that which the interests or 
 the necessities of society require. It does 
 not enjoin the solitary duties of the hermit; 
 though to him who is necessarily removed 
 from the busy haunts of men, it affords 
 all possible consolation by suggesting to 
 him the most profitable ideas of true vir- 
 tue and holiness: neither does it require 
 one state of mind to the prejudice of all 
 others; but tells us, that "whatever things,'* 
 evidently meaning occupations or pursuits, 
 " are of good report," are inoffensive in the 
 eyes of God. 
 
 • Correctly understanding this text, we 
 may suppose, that not only the divine, tte 
 minister who officiates at the altar, may 
 
SERMONET XV HI. 83 
 
 be the preacher of righteousness, but that 
 all others, the result of whose occupation, 
 recommends to our attention the wis- 
 dom or the goodness of God, may be re- 
 garded as promoting his honour and his 
 glory, and as serving, in the most essen- 
 tial manner, tlie best interests of man* 
 
 Thus, the mathematician, while he shows 
 that all things are Ibrmed " by number, 
 weight, and measure," produces the strong- 
 est evidence of the order and design mani- 
 fested by the grand Architect of the uni- 
 verse. 
 
 The poet may, by language and imagery 
 the most fascinating, and, at the same 
 time, the most impressive, recommend the 
 precepts of virtue, and stimulate mankind 
 to the hlo-hest actions tiiut the human mind 
 can conceive. 
 
 The painter, nearly akin to the poet, 
 may, by his pencil, kindle a flame not less 
 vivid in the minds of tliose who might be 
 more alive to the impression made by 
 what is seen, than, to tliat which is ad- 
 dressed to the ear. 
 
 Ihe musician may, by the science of 
 E G 
 
84 SERMONET XVIII. 
 
 sound, awaken the sensations of piety to- 
 wards God, or sweet affection towards our 
 species. And thus, every profession or 
 occupation, that is " of good report," may 
 be subservient to the cause of truth and 
 virtue. 
 
 We see, then, the close connexion that 
 exists between our common occupations as 
 3nen, and our duty, as rational creatures, to 
 'God, provided the pursuit be directed in 
 its due course, and not perverted by vice 
 or folly. 
 
 Instances might be increased without 
 end : the surgeon, the physician, the bo- 
 tanist, the mineralogist, might each be ap- 
 pealed to, to give his testimony to that 
 knowledge which tlie art of each sup- 
 plies ; but it may suffice to say, that when- 
 ever, and in whatever form, the investiga- 
 tion shall take place, it will be found 
 that piety and the best interests of society, 
 even in this life, are inseparably blend- 
 ed, and that he who subtracts from the 
 one, necessarily injures and impairs the 
 other. H. 
 
 3 
 
SERMONET XIX. 35 
 
 SERMONET XIX. 
 
 PSALM JV. 4. 
 
 Commune with your oicn heart. 
 
 In reading the Psalms, and making use of 
 them as spiritual exercises^ many of them 
 may be passed over as unfit for the pur- 
 pose, by those who, considering *' the un- 
 godly," under whatever designation they are 
 presented to our view, as merely the ene- 
 mies of the writer, can only lament, that 
 one so deserving the good-w ill of his fel- 
 low-creatures, should be so much the ob- 
 ject of their persecution. But as it is very 
 repugnant to the feelings of any one sensible 
 of the value of any thing, to misapply or 
 waste it, it may be gratifying to persons 
 possessed of this feeling, to know how 
 these admirable compositions may be best 
 turned to their advantage. 
 
 If, then, these enemies of the Lord's 
 Anointed be regarded, as we ought to re- 
 gard our own worst enemies^ the inmates 
 
8{? SERMONET XIX. 
 
 of our bosoms, we may, with propriety and 
 advantage, join the Psahnist in beseeching- 
 the intervention of the IVlost High, in re- 
 pressing or destroying them, or in rescuing 
 us from their power; and we should soon 
 find the imaginary waste of complaint 
 much decreased. Almost every evil dispo- 
 sition of our nature, every folly that leans^ 
 to impiety, every clinging corruption 
 which our own strength does not suffice to 
 cast off, will meet its form of prayer and 
 its conscientious mode of opposition. We 
 must have " communed with" our ^' own 
 hearts" to very little purpose, if this alteration 
 of object be attended with any difficulty. 
 God knows, even if we do not, that we, 
 have enemies enough mtJiln, to represent 
 every class of those without us — and ene- 
 mies, whose machinations need far more 
 vigilance than a host of embodied foes. 
 Happy is it for us, that we may, in our re- 
 sistance to them, and our defence of our- 
 selves, rest assured that nothing is wanting 
 but the grace of God, which we know 
 how to obtain. We are sure of the victory, 
 if wx will but fight as we ought to do, and 
 
SERMONET XIX. 87 
 
 as we should do in any matter regarding 
 our worldly interests. The lion is assigned 
 as the similitude of Judah; and the strength 
 of a lion has been found in those who have 
 relied on the protectien and aid of his di- 
 vine Descendant. We are enrolled under 
 the banner of one *' mighty to save :" we 
 must acknowledge ourselves his soldiers, 
 and consider as our enemy whatsoever op- 
 poses his dominion over our hearts and af- 
 fections. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 V>^iTHOUT superstition or fanaticism, it may be 
 said of the Sacred Writings — and it will apply to no 
 other — that they possess a recondite sense, ^vhich, 
 whenever read with attention, makes them new to us. 
 Thomas a Kempis has said: " That which thou dost 
 not understand now, thou shalt understand in the day 
 of thy visitation /' and this consoling prediction will 
 be found verified whenever our distaste for this world's 
 vain eloquence, sends us to '^ listen to the words of 
 life." L. 
 
8i^. aERMOXET XX. 
 
 SERMONET XX, 
 
 DEUTERONOMY, VI. 7. 
 
 And these xvorch, which I ccmmaml thee this 
 day, shall be in thine heart ; and thou shall 
 teach them diligently unio thy children, 
 and shall talk of them xchen thou sittcst in 
 thine house, and rvhen thou walkest hy the 
 ivay, and zcJien thou liest dozen, and xchen 
 thou risest up, 
 
 liijs enumeration of the times, and seasons, 
 and circumstances, under which the Israel- 
 ites were to recollect and to communicate 
 the commands of the Deity, includes nearly 
 all the situations in wliich human beings 
 can be placed ; and we are to infer from it, 
 that no opportunity was to be lost of im- 
 pressing their own liearts, and those of 
 their children, with a sense of the great 
 things God had done for them, and the gra- 
 titude demanded from them. 
 
 Equal, nay, far greater obligation Jies 
 on us Christians; to bear in mind not only 
 
5ERM0NET XX. 89 
 
 tliese, but also the additional mercies voiich- 
 iiafed us by the mission of our blessed Lord: 
 and, if it was incumbent on the Jews to 
 think and speak, at every hour of the day, 
 of their deliverance from the bondage of 
 Egypt, and of the promised possession of 
 a land flowing with milk and honey, we 
 ought, to preserve any proportion in our 
 gratitude, to say, with David, " At mid- 
 night I will rise to give thanks mi to thee!'* 
 
 It cannot be supposed that any advocate 
 for the cause of religion would intention- 
 ally abate the respect due to this precept 
 in the text, or attempt to destroy its influ- 
 ence over us. But it may be considered 
 safely with that modification which will 
 best preserve its use free from abuse. 
 
 And, to this end, it must be recollected, 
 that it was highly necessary to make the 
 Jews, thus early in their theocracy, deeply 
 sensible of the importance of keeping iu 
 their minds the laws and the considerations 
 which were to guide and influence them ; 
 and nothing short of this repeated conver- 
 sation, we may be assured, would have suf- 
 ficed for the great purpose of making them 
 
so SERMONET XX. 
 
 the depositaries of so invaluable a tradition. 
 Beside, there was no fear, that, in theh- con- 
 versation on events so important and so 
 striking, there should be any abatement of 
 the veneration due to their Lawgiver. 
 
 But in the present corrupt state of the 
 world, and in the extreme license chal- 
 lenged by the toligue, the pen, and the 
 press, it becomes prudent to restrain any 
 practice, however in itself good, which by 
 facility defeats its intention ; and it must 
 be recollected by z/6', when inclined to speak,^ 
 " in season and out of season," on serious- 
 subjects, that what is done, out of season, is^ 
 frequently productive of mischief propor- 
 tioned to the Q'ood attendino' its seasonable 
 use. And this conviction it is which ope- 
 rates on the minds of pious people, when, 
 seemingly in contradiction to the injunc- 
 tion in tlie text, they will not suffer topics- 
 connected with religion, to be lightly inter^ 
 mingled with the ordinary discussions of 
 frivolous society. 
 
 In the earlv aoes of relio-ion, the name of 
 God could not be too often mentioned. 
 In the present age, it cannot be too seldom 
 
SERMON ET XX. ^l 
 
 proiioiuiccci, provided the iibstlnencc re- 
 sult, as did the former habit, from the sin- 
 cere wish to promote the respect due to the 
 Almighty. And every familiar gossipping 
 conversation on spiritual affairs, every 
 slight mention of the ceremonies connected 
 with them, is an act of irreverence. It is 
 woundino- to some indescribable feelinc: to 
 hear any one, even with honest intentions, 
 mention the Holy Communion as an obstacle 
 to some trifle, in the familiar terms of, " It 
 is Sacrament-day at our church, and there- 
 fore I cannot;" or to find the merits of the 
 yesterday's sermon discussed together with 
 the right and title to the advantages of a 
 card-table. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 It must be recollected, that this mode of perpe- 
 tuating remembrance was indispensably necessary to 
 tlie Jews, as no place of public religious instruction 
 amongst them, existed till after the Bobylonisli capti- 
 vity, L, 
 
!)j8 sermoxet xxf. 
 
 SEILMONET XXI. 
 
 61V MATTHEW, XXVf. 39* 
 
 O mj/ Falhei\ if it be possihky let this tup 
 pass from me. 
 
 In considering the words of tlie text, no 
 difficulty exists in ascertaining their mean- 
 ing ; for surely no intellect can be so ob- 
 tuse, no heart so unfeeling, as not to 
 comprehend the import of the ejacula- 
 tion, and to sympathize in the sufferings 
 which produced it. It is not with a view- 
 to elucidation, that the attention is now 
 called to the passage above quoted, but 
 merely to show the reason why the words 
 were uttered, as far as may be given to 
 mortals to know the reason of any of the 
 words of their divine Author. 
 
 We live in a time wlien it is the fashion, 
 and doubtless, to many, a very convenient? 
 fashion, as it anniliilates mucli of tlie cul- 
 pability of sin, to detract from the cliarac- 
 ter or the attributes of the Redeemer of 
 
SERMON ET XXT. 9S 
 
 mankind. Socinus, long since, taught, 
 that during his abode on earth, he was 
 not to be considered as a Deity ; and re- 
 fused to him all worship. Since the time 
 of Socinus, others, not pre-eminently gift- 
 ed, nor better instructed than those around 
 them, have more decidedly asserted that 
 Jesus Christ was mere man — that his 
 death was not for an atonement for sin, be- 
 cause, say they, no atonement was neces- 
 -sary — and that, however virtuous he might 
 be in his life, he was but of human na- 
 ture ; and, as some have contended, weak 
 and fallible as the rest of mankind. 
 
 With such a disposition in the world, we 
 can easily conceive that many a speech and 
 many a miracle proceeding from Jesus 
 Christ, would, by those who foresaw such 
 a disposition, be preserved in the Sacred 
 Writings, as guides for the true and honest 
 believer — for him, who, with an humble 
 dnd suitable spirit, should be desirous to 
 make the revealed will of God the rule of 
 his faith and of his practice. And, if we 
 advert to the general complexion of our Sa- 
 viour's deportment, we shall see this will- 
 
94 SER^IONET XXI. 
 
 ingncss to afford us a guide, fully exem^ 
 plified. 
 
 Ill tlie curlier part, then, of our Saviour's 
 life, when it was notorious that he was the 
 son of Mary, and that, in hi^ infancy, he 
 stood in need of the assistance, the care, 
 and attention of his mother, nothing was 
 necessary to prove, to those around him, 
 the human part of liis character : the thing 
 to be proved was, tliat part of it was di- 
 vine. Accordingly, it is related of him, 
 that, at twelve years of age, he was sitting 
 in the temple, and, with ])reternatural wis- 
 dom, disputing with the doctors, and pro- 
 pounding questions to them. At a later 
 period, we find him performing miracles — 
 convertino- water into wnne — healins: the 
 sick, and raising the dead ; whilst his very 
 enemies bore testimony to the miracle, 
 tliough they ascribed it to a wrong power; 
 '^ lie casteth out devils by Beelzebub." 
 
 Ikit wlien, towards the latter end of hi^ 
 life, he had, by the numberless miracles 
 which he had performed, proved the divi- 
 nity of his mission ; and when it may be 
 supposed,, in the course of nature, that 
 
 4 
 
SEUMONKT XXI, 95 
 
 >^uinv of the witnesses of his biitli, and of 
 Ills cailier years, were dead, it was iieces- 
 sar}^ again to show the human part of his 
 constitution; and lience we have the agony 
 in the garden: " J\Iy God! 1113^ God! why 
 liast thou forsaken me?" and the words of 
 the text, *' If it be possible, let this cup 
 pass from me." iVIaiiy otlier expressions 
 of the same kind miglit be adduced ; and 
 events in our Saviour's hfe are not want- 
 ing, calcukited to prove, as his miracles 
 ]iad demonstrated his divine nature, that the 
 nature of man, its passions and its suffer- 
 ings, were not absorbed by the superior at- 
 tribute of the Godhead. 
 
 The passages above quoted or alluded 
 to, must, to a candid and impartial rea- 
 der, supply indubitable evidence of the 
 twofold nature of Jesus Christ. It is 
 shown, that he had something of human 
 in his composition, and this his enemies 
 admit : from his enemies, at least from 
 those of his own day, his miracles, of 
 which they themselves bore witness, derive 
 their proof and authenticity ; those ene- 
 mies, perhaps, were not aware, that, at the 
 
96 S!5RM0NET XXI. 
 
 time they cavilled at those miracles, thet^ 
 were affording evidence of their existence. 
 Whether they were done by the aid of Beel- 
 zebub, or by his own power, is a matter of 
 secondary consequence; the miracle must 
 have been performed, before men would 
 have thought of inquiring* by what power 
 it was accomplished. 
 
 Thus it is conceived, that not only the 
 events of our Saviours life, and his mira- 
 cles, declare him to have been both God and 
 man, but that the evidence of each propo- 
 sition has been so arranged to suit the cir- 
 cumstances of those, among whom he was 
 sent, as that, at no time, could it have been 
 otherwise than certain that Jesus Christ 
 was God and man. 
 
 To the modern sceptics as to the divi- 
 nity of our Saviour, the only answer is, " If 
 they hear not IMoses and the prophets, nei- 
 ther will they believe, though one rose 
 from the dead." 
 
 Happy, thrice happy, are they, who, 
 having no passions, no prejudices to sub- 
 due, are contented to receive the Scrip- 
 tures with that simplicity of heart, which, 
 
SERBIONET XXT. 97 
 
 not seeking after vain things because they 
 are new, is contented with that interpreta- 
 tion which the general tenour of Scripture 
 justifies or requires; — who, disdaining ca- 
 priciously to mutilate God's holy word as 
 new theories may suggest, read, with pious 
 gratitude, that man is a frail and sinful 
 being, but that, through the merits of a 
 crucified and reviled Redeemer, he may 
 still hope to be admitted to the mansions of 
 eternal happiness, where the "secret things" 
 of God shall be fully revealed, and where 
 error and unbelief shall bQ no more. 
 
^ «ERMONET XKTl. 
 
 SERMONET XXII. 
 
 JOSHUA, XXIV. 15. 
 
 ^s for me and my houses xve will serve tlie 
 Lord. 
 
 X HE sentiment of the iioble-niinded JoshtKi 
 ought toije that of every master of a family 
 in the present day ; and the general prac- 
 tice ought to declare the adoption of the 
 sentiment. Without the afiec tat ion of su- 
 perior righteousness, — without distinguish- 
 ing ourselves by appellations which, if they 
 do not directly exalt us, serve the pur- 
 pose, quite as well, by degrading* others, w^e 
 should, as Cliristians, unseduced by the idle- 
 ness or as idle occupations of others, regu- 
 3arly and consistently stand firm in the prac- 
 tice of serving the Lord, and take care that 
 those whom we have the power to influ- 
 ^ence, do so likewise. 
 
 The external acts of this service are, au 
 attendance on public worship, uninterrupt- 
 cd by engagements for tlie Lord's day, and 
 
SERMONET XX 11, ^9 
 
 as regular as liealth and an attention to the 
 reasonable comforts of others, will permit ; 
 reading prayers to our households; instruct- 
 ing the ignorant, whenever opportunity of- 
 fers; and showing by our conduct, that the 
 will of God, not our own unruly wills 
 and affections, governs us : abstinence from 
 all profane expressions or light allusions 
 to subjects of religion, or witty quota- 
 tions and perversions of Scripture-phrase; 
 asking a blessing on, and returning thanks 
 for, our daily meal ; and, in shor-t, con- 
 ducting ourselves in such a manner, as 
 might lead an uninformed spectator to su[)- 
 pose us under the eye of a superior. 
 
 The origin of all this, must be in the 
 heart; and the practice of it will, to any 
 one adopting it, soon prove the most de- 
 lightful liberation that can be experienced 
 from innumerable cares. The world gives 
 us many masters, who issue orders contra- 
 dictory, obscure, imperfect, arbitrary, and 
 oppressive. Heaven affords us One, para- 
 mount to all, whose commands, never 
 grievous, have our advantage for their ob- 
 ject, whose "yoke is easy," whose "burdew 
 f2 
 
100 ^UMONET XXII. 
 
 is liglit," and who will never lay upon u%^ 
 more than he will enable us to hear. 
 
 Of no master passion, of no favourite 
 vice,^ of no habitual indulgence, can this 
 be said. Imbecile as these task-masters are 
 to serve us, they are tyrants possessing and 
 exerting unlimited power of oppression. 
 Neither body nor mind c^n escape their 
 subjugation ; they require more than our 
 strength can accomplish, and, at the same 
 moment, unnerve us. 
 
 It might be the expectation of the inex- 
 perienced, but it can be of none other, that 
 a life of thoughtless pleasure would diifuse 
 an appearance of being pleased over the 
 countenance and deportment of any one so 
 fortunate as to have had the power " vi' 
 *vere voto suoJ" But see who are the gloomy, 
 morose, repelling scarecrows of society. 
 Certainly not those, who, with Joshua, 
 have resolved to serve the Lord : his light 
 service does not plough such furrows in the 
 human countenance ; he does not give the 
 eye its suspicious fearfulncss ; he does not 
 bend the muscles to the odious expression 
 ^£ discontent with ourselves, and contempt 
 
SER^fONET XXII. tOl 
 
 for Others ; he does not tune the voice to 
 accents of complaint; he does not te«ich us 
 to curse the day of our hirth. The service 
 of the Lord is accompanied wkh all those 
 circumstances that show alacrity and cheer- 
 fulness : these give a spring to our step, a 
 glow to our cheek, a smile of encourage^ 
 ment, a tone of good-will, when we listen 
 or speak : they can give beauty to the 
 homely, grace to the awkward^ and dig- 
 nity to the inconsiderable* 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 The cheerfulness attendant on the practice of reli- 
 gion has never wanted examples, nor ought it ever 
 to want advocates : the man, of all others, in this 
 kingdom, whose exalted goodness w ould have justified 
 a contest with Scipio Nasica, for the distinguished pre- 
 ference given to him, will be long remembered, not 
 only as one of the most perfect disciples of the Gos^ 
 pel, but as embellishing and recommending its divine 
 precepts, by a colloquial hilarity and an uninterrupt- 
 ed cheerfulness, leaving, far behind, all the pretensions 
 of the professors of mirth and conviviality, who de- 
 pend on the palate of the cook, and die elaborate at- 
 tention of the importer of their wine. It may, and it 
 will be replied, that any man may be cheerful with 
 
102 SEllMONET XXII. 
 
 ail the blessings of life — health, wealth, domestic 
 happiness, and popular favoiir. True; but in the 
 instance quoted, the first is wanting ; and the senti- 
 ment of the world has, however precipitately and er- 
 roneously, told us that nothing is to be enjoyed with- 
 out it. Mr. ^****=*='^ would be what he is, in sick- 
 ness, poverty, domestic affliction, or the loss of public 
 favour : the fountain might not play so high, but the 
 spring would be as constant, as pure, and as copious 
 sis ever. 
 
 When recommending abstinence from light alltt- 
 sions to, and witty quotations from Scripture, the 
 Gentleman's Magazine for August 1813, had not 
 come under observation. It is » work entitled to re- 
 spect ; for it has a long existence to plead, and has 
 certainly been the mean of distributing knowledge, 
 and promoting inquiry : but unless a hoary head give 
 A. license to transgress, the Magazine for the month 
 referred to, must be content to receive a little gentle 
 i%prehension, and to be told, that in a review, other- 
 wise well written, of a little work, which as described 
 by the critique, seems not unlike the volume now in 
 the reader's hand, it ought not to have admitted a com- 
 parison to " a mesf? of pottage," if it was impossible 
 to stop short of an allusion to that mentioned in the 
 book of Genesis. There was no intention of being 
 serious ; therefore the transgression of good manners 
 cannot be justified ; it was designed to make the 
 
SERMOXET XXir> IjOS 
 
 reader laugh, tlierefore it is inexcusable, and welP 
 deserving the severe reproof bestowed once on the 
 writer of this note, who, in a moment of idle levity, 
 presuming to ask for a ruler to draw a straight line 
 with, by the name of " little Benjamin," was an- 
 swered, in the gentlest manner, by the conscientious 
 son of one of the most pious of Johnson's friends, " 1 
 never indulge myself in such liberties with the Bible." 
 There has been no need to repeat the reproof; dis- 
 gust and offence have been the uniform feeling suc- 
 ceeding to shame and repentance. May it be so with 
 the reviewer at St. John's Gate ! 
 
 -? 4 
 
104 sEiiMONET xxrii. 
 
 SERMONET XXIIL 
 
 1 PETER, III. 3. 
 
 luct it not he that outward adorning* 
 
 How is it possible to reconcile the solici- 
 tude evident even in some of the most re- 
 spectable females among us, about their 
 dress^ with any attention to, or respect for, 
 this injunction of the Apostle? And, above 
 all, what ought to be their serious reflec- 
 tions, not on others, but on themselves, 
 when this solicitude extends to adopting 
 practices that are unjustifiable, and to fol- 
 lowing fashions of a description not less 
 evil "for the multitude" that follow them? 
 
 If dress presented itself to the thoughts 
 •without this vain solicitude ; — if it came to 
 be considered as " matter of right and 
 wrong;" — no injury, to external appearance, 
 would ensue, but great advantage to some- 
 thing preferable to appearance. 
 
 A disregard to dress, a contempt for the 
 opinion of others on tills point, is neitlier. 
 
SERMOXET XXIIT. 105 
 
 meritorious nor prudent. Dress cornes under 
 the head of '' things of good report ;" and 
 Avomen are bound, by every rational consi- 
 deration, to be so far studious of their ap- 
 pearance, as not to disgust, to vex, or to 
 mortify those who feel an interest in their 
 estimation. There are circumstances and" 
 characters belonging to it, which must be 
 regarded. 
 
 First, cleanliness of apparel, and neatness 
 in the use of it. ** To be without spot," 
 as it is desirable, were it attainable, in our 
 moral and religious conduct, is a very laud- 
 able emulation in dress : it preserves a 
 nice sense; it demands caution and for- 
 bearance, always salutary to us ; and, as 
 what is right, practised in trifles, leads to 
 the practice of it in things of importance, 
 it is good to be pure in dress, that we may, 
 in time, attain purity of mind. On this 
 principle, to such as can indulge in clean- 
 liness, the garment that gives the quickest 
 alarm on being sullied, is the most proper : 
 to choose, without necessity, that which 
 shall hide its spots, is too much of kin to 
 the being content with a Pharisaical clean- 
 F 5 
 
106 SZRMONET xxiir, 
 
 liness. But, to the many whom occupa- 
 tion or narrow circumstances will not suffer 
 to be thus scrupulous, the best advice is, 
 that which may equally be applied to the 
 Gonscience — to preserve themselves " un- 
 spotted.' There is more merit and real 
 ^leatness in wearing our clothes clean, than 
 in changing them often. 
 
 Secondly, apparel befitting the various 
 situations in life, and the different ages of 
 it, should be chosen. Those are much mis- 
 taken, who imagine they obtain respect by 
 extravagance, or admiration by deceit; 
 no one will speak in their presence, but 
 no one forbears to speak when they are 
 withdrawn. And, in the lower classes, the 
 ambition of dressing so as to pass for some- 
 thing superior to their own rank, has been 
 the cavisc of ruin to more young women 
 than any other folly. Tlie men soon no- 
 tice it; they consider ii as a license to 
 tl^.em; such ^'foolish virgins" they will not 
 take for wives, unless they are equally 
 fools; but they are exactly suited to their 
 views of seduction: they are seduced and 
 deserted; the taste for dress cannot be given 
 
SERMONET XXIII. W7 
 
 \ip even in poverty ; there is a way to in- 
 dulo:e the one and avert the other : — the 
 streets are open to all comers, and we hear 
 no more of these wretched professors of 
 vice and folly. It does not follow that 
 there is no more to he heard : would that 
 the death-beds of these first betrayed, and 
 then betraying, pests of societ}^ were 
 ])rought into the public streets I There isj 
 perhaps, no want of friendship or kindness 
 among them ; every one knows it will be 
 her turn, and is ready with the cordial, 
 and her observations on the folly of taking 
 any thing to heart, to help her friend into 
 those regions of never-ending agony and 
 never-abating horror, which she cannot 
 presume to hope she shall escape herself. 
 
 And, in the higher ranks, what mischief 
 has not the love of finery produced ? How 
 many women have contributed to the ruin 
 of their husbands, by their senseless deco- 
 ration of their own persons, when, after all, 
 some good girl, without money or vanity, 
 frugal, neat, simple in her apparel, shall 
 have attracted the notice sought, and the 
 respect tliey disdained to seek! 
 F 6 
 
108 SERMONET XXIII. 
 
 Thirdly, the time of life ought to regu- 
 late the choice of women in the middle and 
 upper classes, in their dress. There are be- 
 coming modes for every station and every 
 age; and she succeeds best whose taste is the 
 most discerning in this discovery. It is as 
 improper to affect to appear ninety at the 
 half of that period, as to endeavour to look 
 twenty. There would be as much good 
 sense in trying to be tall or short. No unfair 
 attempt is respectable : none are deceived 
 for more than a short time; and the disco- 
 very that we are deceived, does not render 
 us kindly affectioned. 
 
 In short, the whole advice to be given 
 on the subject may be reduced to this : let 
 women govern themselves, as far as they 
 can, by the precepts of the New Testa- 
 ment; and, if they have any remaining 
 doubt, let them be assured, that to be very 
 clean, and to look agreeable, with as little 
 expense of time, thought, and money, as 
 possible, is the perfection of their attire. 
 
SERMONET XXIH. 109 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 An inquiry, made in one of the most fashionable 
 shops in London, as to the respectability of a lady 
 who was buying in it, was answered by an observa- 
 tion, that " No lady of respectability would be so 
 
 expensively dressed." How very mortifying to 
 
 those who fancy that public opinion of their taste, 
 their wealth, or their rank, must be proportioned to 
 their disbursements ! When Mrs. **** bragged of the 
 price of her drawing-room chairs, a great personage 
 did infinite good by replying, *' I got mine for much 
 less." 
 
110 SERMONET XXIV. 
 
 SERMONET XXIV. 
 
 1 KINGS, XVI. 31. 
 
 He took to wife Jezebel. 
 
 The wife of Ahab, king of Israel, has 
 never yet found an advocate to plead her 
 cause, or a friend to offer an excuse for her 
 faihnirs. She is regarded as a solitary ex- 
 ample of enormous wickedness, and as out 
 of the pale even of Christian charity : her 
 name has grown into a proverb ; and, if we 
 mean to describe a woman influenced by 
 every bad motive, and stopped by nothing 
 in the accomplishment of her purposes, we 
 call her a Jezebel ; and if we would add 
 the idea of a taudry, meretricious appear- 
 ance, we recollect that Jezebel "painted her 
 face and tired her head, and looked out at 
 a window," when Jehu was coming. 
 
 Yet history and experience leave room 
 to suspect, that, had she been fortunate in 
 a biographer, or had her errors been less 
 §j*o\vded on the page, she would not appear 
 
SERMONET XXIV. Ill 
 
 SO novel or so odious a character. Let us 
 collect what may be said in her defence. 
 
 She was tlie daughter of an idolatrous 
 king; therefore, all her spite to the pro- 
 phets and the worship of the true God, was 
 consistent. She seems to have been an 
 obliging wife ; for she had only to know 
 her husband's pleasure, and her most power- 
 ful services were at his command : she put 
 him in possession of that which he knew 
 not how to obtain without her; and, in 
 short, they seem to have been a very happy 
 couple, and well suited to each other : he 
 went to the house of Baal ; nay, he built 
 an house and an altar for Baal, the deity of 
 her countrymen, the Zidonians ; and she, 
 in complaisant return, struck out a most 
 ingenious plan for getting rid of Naboth, 
 and accommodated her royal copsort with 
 the vineyard which he wanted for the im- 
 portant cultivation of basil and sweet-mar- 
 joram ! Ahab appears to have been infe- 
 rior to her in what is called spirit ; that is 
 to say, the daring to do whatever he was 
 inclined to; but his inclination certainly 
 was not deficient : he was as ready to takob 
 
112 SERMONET XXIV. 
 
 advice, as she to give it; and she seems to 
 liave found servants very prompt to exe- 
 cute whatever her ingenuity planned. 
 
 But Jezebel is no anomaly. Not only 
 before, but since, the promulgation of 
 Christianity, there have been many Jeze- 
 bels, who have added to the enormities of 
 the Israelitish queen, others, in which, 
 their husbands having no participation or 
 interest in them, the credit was all their 
 own: and since, long since, the angels sung 
 " glory to God, peace on earth, good-will 
 towards men," wives, mothers, mistresses, 
 intrusted with, or usurping the reins of 
 government, have done things which would 
 have taught even the ingenuity of Jezebel. 
 
 Nor is it to royalty, that the imitation 
 or the information is confined. There hav^e 
 been wicked women of all ranks and 
 classes, who have suggested the deeds of 
 villany, for which men have paid the for- 
 feit of their lives. When Jezebel lived, she 
 might be a wonder ; but Jezebel, were she 
 now living, might exercise arts that would 
 disguise even hc7^ wickedness, and persuade 
 us, as we are too apt to be persuaded, that, 
 
SERMONET XXIV. 115 
 
 possessing the power to flatter and to gra- 
 tify, her vices were " her own concern." 
 
 But let no such palliatives be accepted. 
 While we feel and cultivate a genuine un- 
 affected sorrow for the depravity of man- 
 kind, and grieve for the follies and vices 
 of those who obtrude themselves on cen- 
 sure, let us remember that there is more 
 certain danger attending every departure 
 from virtue, than there is certain security 
 in an adherence to it : the demerit of a bad 
 action is decisive : no one can doubt the 
 motive to a deed of murder and rapine; but 
 the motive to the best action that can be 
 performed may be questionable. There ii 
 iio commutation for crimes : Jezebel might 
 have spent every hour of her life well, ex- 
 cept those in which she exercised her spite 
 to Naboth, and her wicked influence over 
 hfer wicked husband; yet still she would 
 have been a by-word and a proverb ; and, 
 in lower life, a proportionable share of 
 obloquy and dreadful retribution may be 
 looked for, by all those who suffer wicked 
 inclinations and a disposition to culpable 
 compliances, to mark out their path for 
 
114 SERMON ET X-XIV. 
 
 them. The influence of a woman ought 
 never to be exerted over the mind of man, 
 but for the most equitable purpose: to 
 soften just resentment — to use the moment 
 when anger is beginning to subside, — and 
 then to represent fairly that which, in the 
 heat of passion, is forgotten — this is the 
 office of a woman. The Sacred Writings, 
 particularly the Proverbs, have many use- 
 ful axioms on this subject, which will pre- 
 pare the mind, by convincing the reason, 
 for the teception of those positive injunc- 
 tions the Apostles have founded on their 
 personal knowledge of the will of our bless* 
 ed Lord, 
 
 The fate of Jezebel, familiar as it be- 
 comes by frequent and often inattentive 
 perusal, has been only that of subordinate 
 transgression written in a larger character. 
 History records circumstances of the death 
 of a mistress of a king of France, so simi^ 
 lar as to excite horror ; and, when we con- 
 template the fearful distance from virtue of 
 every kind, at which some women, origin- 
 ally, perhaps, " more sinned against than 
 sinning," have arrived at last, every civil 
 
SERMONET XXIV. US 
 
 disability, under which females labour, will 
 be acquiesced in as the decree of Infinite 
 Wisdom; every required submission to mild 
 authority, will be gratefully considered as 
 the condition on which protection is af- 
 forded ; and it will be left to the vulgar, 
 the licentious, and the unsexed, to con- 
 tend for ** the rights of women,'* 
 
 L> 
 
116 SERMONET XXV. 
 
 SERMONET XXV. 
 
 PROVERBS, XV. K 
 
 ^ soft answer turmth away wrath. 
 
 Whoever would estimate properly the 
 wisdom expressed in the text, should con- 
 sider the inconveniences, not to say the 
 absolute sinfulness, of anger ; for it hap- 
 pens with this, as it does with most other 
 maxims of virtue, that there is in it asr 
 much of good sense, referable to this world, 
 as there is of goodness or virtue, with re- 
 spect to the world to come. 
 
 That anger is odious, that the cha- 
 racter which it assumes is repulsive, are 
 truths which cannot be controverted; and 
 these, perhaps, might, with refined under- 
 standings, be a sufficient dissuasive from 
 suffering ourselves to be transported with 
 it; but there are, likewise, objections ad- 
 dressed, not to the elegant and the refined, 
 the dignified and the cultivated, but to the 
 plain man of the world. To him who would 
 
SERMONET XXV. 117 
 
 seek to turn away the wrath of his oppo- 
 nent by equal anger on his part, to him 
 the text addi esses itself; and by it he is 
 taught, that if he would " turn away 
 wrath," his most potent weapon is mild- 
 4iess, — is meekness,- — is a soft answer. In 
 order that he may comprehend this, let him 
 recollect how little the angry man is mas- 
 ter of himself, and of his own intellects ; 
 and, while he means only to be angry^ 
 how probable it is that he may likewise 
 he foolish, Solomon says, '' He that is slow 
 to wrath, is of great understanding; but 
 he that is hasty of spirit, exalteth folly." 
 " He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly." 
 Let him recollect the impotence of anger; 
 that what may be willingly conceded to 
 the claims of pity, of generosity, of friend- 
 ship, or of love, will never be extorted by 
 anger. The superiority of wisdom is in 
 nothing, perhaps, more evident, than in 
 the power of that deportment which is re- 
 gulated by it, to defeat the effects of that 
 which has its foundation in folly, or, in 
 other words, in the efficacy of a plain, 
 simple, moderate answer, to silence the 
 3 
 
118 SERMONET XXV. 
 
 roarings of rage and the turbulence of in- 
 vective. 
 
 Of the importance of the truth here con- 
 tended for, the life of every man might 
 furnish abundant proof; but we will refer 
 to higher authorit3^ It wculd be to weaken 
 the argument, to quote merely a desul- 
 tory answer, given in an individual instance 
 to an angry man ; the appeal may be made 
 to the uniform tenour of a whole life. 
 Let any one contemplate the conduct of 
 Him, w^hose whole progress through this 
 world was a continued state of suffering 
 and of insult, but who, when he was re- 
 viled, reviled not again; who, when he 
 was reproached with the woi-st of crimes, 
 answered those reproaches, and silenced 
 those who made them, not with taunt or 
 anger, but by a plain appeal to indisputable 
 fact and incontrovertible reasoning: "If 
 I cast out devils by Beelzebub, by whom 
 do your sons cast thepi out?" — " If Sa- 
 tan also be divided against himself, how 
 
 shall his kingdom stand?" The same 
 
 spirit was found in Moses and in the 
 Apostles* and for the same reasons^ for. 
 
SERMOKET XXV. 11<> 
 
 by the softness and the moderation of their 
 answers, they silenced their adversaries, who 
 felt how Httle their rage was able to avail 
 against those, who were not to be provoked 
 to abandon the dignity which moderation 
 possesses. 
 
 Let no one, therefore, imagine, that ])c- 
 cause his enemy is angry, therefore he 
 himself ouglit to be angry likewise. Let 
 him recollect, that anger is misery to him 
 who feels it, and may excite contempt in 
 those towards whom it is exercised. 
 
 Perhaps there is scarcely any infirmity 
 to which hnman nature is prone, against 
 ■which Solomon has given so many warnings, 
 as against anger in all its various shapes 
 and bearings: — whether as the answer to 
 the wrath of another, or in hastiness to 
 resent an offence, or in that petulant wasp- 
 ishness which occasions disgust. " The 
 discretion of a man dcferreth his anger ; 
 and it is his glory to pass over a transgres- 
 sion." — " A man of great wrath shall suffer 
 punishment." — " A froward man soweth 
 strife." These are only some of the many 
 -texts which might be produced to show tha 
 
120 SERMONET XXV. 
 
 folly of anger. Nothing has been said on 
 the foundation of those precepts, which 
 were delivered as part of a more sublime 
 system of ethics, by Him who said, " Be 
 angry, and sin not;" — *' Let not the sun go 
 down upon your wrath." The text has been 
 considered solely as far as related to the 
 expediency of indulging in anger, with re- 
 ference to our conduct in this world; 
 and, perhaps, no better test can be pro- 
 duced of the wisdom of the maxim, than 
 that, in addition to the breach of it being 
 highly offensive to God, it, even in this 
 world, defeats the purpose for which such 
 a violation of God's laws would be prac- 
 tised. 
 
 H. 
 
SERMONET XXVI. ]21 
 
 SERMONET XXVL 
 
 ECCLESIASTES, I. 2. 
 
 All is vanity. 
 
 It requires some discretion to ascertain the 
 precise import of the above maxim — how 
 far the author might intend it to influenco 
 the economy of human Hfe — or whether 
 lie might not wish simply to show how 
 poor and vapid are the occupatiolis to which 
 men are inevitably doomed, by their des- 
 tiny in this Wi^e. 
 
 Thus much, however, may be certain, 
 that he did not purpose to dissuade men 
 from the pursuits of honest industry, on 
 the consideration tliat industry might be 
 rewarded by wealth, which he that had 
 earned it, might not hv^e to enjoy. As little 
 should we be inchned to suppose- that he 
 might wish to censure the acquisition o^ 
 knowledge, because he has elsewhere said, 
 " He that increaseth knowledge, incrcaseth 
 sorrow;" since, were Industry to desist frcwn 
 o 
 
12^ SERMONET XXVI. 
 
 her labour, and Knowledge, like Astrasa, to 
 quit the earth and return again to the skies, 
 human society could not exist. 
 
 But we perhaps may, without the least 
 impropriety, annex to the text a meaning 
 which seeks not to disparage human exer- 
 tions, ordained and regulated by God him- 
 self, nor yet to exalt them to undue and 
 visionary importance. 
 
 We will consider the vanity here spoken 
 of, as expressing that short-sightedness of 
 man, wdiich prevents him from seeing the 
 end or tendency of any of those pur- 
 suits in which he is engaged : he labours, 
 but he knows not who shall inherit his 
 wealth ; he wearies his body and his mind 
 to acquire knowledge, but he sees no im- 
 mediate effects arising from that he has 
 thus painfully acquired. Perhaps ages 
 must elapse before his discoveries in sci- 
 ence shall affect the state of mankind at 
 laro-e, or remove one evil or inconvenience, 
 under which a w hole nation has groaned ; 
 or before those who have reaped the benefit 
 of his exertions, shall consent to acknow- 
 Icdo'c him as their benefactor. 
 
SEUJ^toNET XXVI. 123 
 
 Such is the state of human existence I 
 But still ^(?w?e comfort remains; and, thougli 
 the occupations of men must be vain, and 
 man is decreed to labour, lest *' the earth'^ 
 should not " bring- fortli her increase," and 
 to acquire knowledge, that he may aid his 
 own weakness by the experience of others ; 
 yet the Christian must recollect, that, by 
 the faithful discharge of the duties w hicli 
 are enjoined liim, he may acquire a rewaixi 
 that is not vain-^^' a glory incorruptible, 
 eternal in the heavens," where " the patient 
 abiding" of the adverse events of this life, 
 will be remembered and rewarded; where 
 He that has seen *' in secret, shall reward 
 openly." The necessary and inherent va- 
 nittf of all pursuits should operate with us 
 as a reason for not engaging in those 
 which are 9ice<lkssly light and frivolous. 
 What little of dignity may still remain 
 with us, let not man obliterate or forfeit : 
 ict every one, according as he is able, 
 fight strenuously against tbe world, the 
 flesh, and the devil, until the fasliion of 
 this world shall pass away; '^ when this 
 G 2 
 
124 SERMONET XXVI. 
 
 corruptible shall put on incorruption," when 
 " the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,"' 
 and man shall be clothed in everlasting* 
 righteousness. 
 
 H. 
 
SERMONET XXVII. 12. 
 
 SEMIONET XXVII. 
 
 PROVERBS, XVIII. 14. 
 
 J Xivimded spirit who can hear ? 
 
 /V QUESTioXj thus put, always carries w ilh 
 it a notion of extreme difficulty, if not of 
 impossibility ; and, put by Solomon, whose 
 wisdom and experience must have given 
 him the highest right of decision, it leaves 
 us only to acquiesce in that which seems 
 bis opinion, that " a wounded spirit" no 
 one can bear. 
 
 But, before we subscribe entirely to lu's 
 judgment, another question remains to be 
 solved, and this respects tbe meaning of tho 
 term, *' a wounded s})irit." Considered as 
 meaning a w^ounded conscience, the difii- 
 cuUy of endurance cannot be denied: but 
 translating '^ spirit" by " heart," xvc, per- 
 haps, are not justified in thinking exactly 
 as Solomon did. Understood, as it frer 
 quciUly is, a wounded pride veiled under 
 the specious name of honour, there may be 
 G 3 
 
}26 SERMONET XXVII. 
 
 correctives to the impatience by which 
 such a wound is mflamed ; the most effica- 
 cious is that which comes near demurring 
 to tlie authority under which we are pu- 
 iiislied. But let us consider the three meau- 
 iiigs — a wounded conscience^ a wounded 
 heart, a wounded pride. 
 
 It would be no employment fit for vir- 
 tue, to teach mankind that they may bea? 
 a wounded conscience; it is, in truth, so. 
 intolerable, that, in its wounded state, it 
 cannot be lx)rne ; yet, as nothing, under the 
 merciful dispensations of a God of mercy, 
 can justify despair, mankind are to be in- 
 formed that their honest endeavours to heal 
 the wounds of conscience, will never fail 
 of good effects to them. Repentance, con- 
 trition, restitution where a possibility 
 exists, thorough amendment of life, our 
 utmost endeavours to preserve others from 
 following our ill example, are balsams and 
 unguents not to be neglected; and their 
 efficacy, under the gracious scheme of the 
 Gospel, leaves still to every man, torment- 
 ed by ** a wounded sgirit" of this descrip- 
 
SKRMONET XXVIf. 1£7 
 
 tioii, the power to become whole, and to 
 enjoy peace at the last. 
 
 The wounds of conscience are the re- 
 bound of sin ; but wounds of the heart liave, 
 in general, the comfort of innocence, and 
 claim the pity of mankind; yet the afllic- 
 tion attending them, is deaf and regardless: 
 innocence is no comfort ; pity is aggrava- 
 tion ; and, unless religion and foresight 
 Iiave been our companions, the suflerer i.^ 
 consigned to all the misery of Imman weak- 
 ness, unsupported, unaided. 
 
 Most justly might any monitor be charg- 
 ed with ignorance and cruelty, who should 
 presume to underrate the wounds of the 
 heart. Whether occasioned by violence 
 offered to ties formed by nature, or those 
 we make for ourselves, while they are not 
 founded in, or fostered by vice or folly, 
 they who suffer nnder them are respectable 
 and amiable; and it must be matter of re- 
 gret, but not of reproach, that the frail te- 
 nure of human happiness was not previ* 
 ously taken into our account, and the mind 
 early intrusted with the sad secret, that "all 
 is vanity." It seems to require a sort or a 
 G 4 
 
128 SEiaiONET xxvu. 
 
 degree of courage, few people possess, to 
 tell young persons how subject they will 
 be through life to disappointments, and 
 those, not only grievous in their nature, 
 but intolerable in their weight, if any 
 earthly objects are allowed in our minds 
 too potent an authority. If friendsliips are 
 formed, if attachments are entered on, nay, 
 if natural affection is indulged in, without 
 considering that the friend, the lover, the 
 husband, the wife, the child, the brother, 
 the sister, may to-morrow die, or make us 
 wish ourselves dead ; we may be at once 
 injured, wounded, shocked, and stunned. 
 If our connexions were originally formed 
 for the short lease of this life, we have 
 no resource in case of accident. 
 
 But the wounds of the heart are not in- 
 tolerable to those who have considered the 
 fashion of this world. Its perfidies cannot 
 surprise those who are acquainted with 
 fallen nature; its privations cannot render 
 naked those who have clothed themselves 
 with the promises of the Gospel; and,^ 
 •whatever may be the influence of acci- 
 dents upon au])lunary happiness, they cau- 
 
SEUMONET XXVI r. J.29 
 
 not affect tliose wlio have calculated theirs 
 for a briohter reoioii — who know that wliat 
 has power to postpone, has yet none to an- 
 nihilate. The friends, the lovers, the kin- 
 dred, may be severed here ; but, if worth}' 
 of partaking of happiness, may be restored 
 to each other again. 
 
 Of that wound of the spirit which is 
 given to our pride, and which we transfer 
 to our honour, it is beneath Christianity to 
 take account, were not her ears open, even 
 to the complaints least meriting her atten-; 
 tion : wounded honour must be wounded 
 conscience, to make a wise man uneasy.. 
 He who knows what the opinion of the 
 world is worth, may sleep very sound with- 
 out obtaining its praise, if unassailed from 
 Avithin. Wounded pride ought to find its- 
 own remedy. Let us hun)ble ourselves be- 
 fore God, and we destro}- the authority that 
 vexes us. 
 
 On the whole, then, taking the matter 
 in this confined view, or in an extent ever 
 so large, it w^ill he found and felt by all; 
 who judge rightl}', that it is not in the 
 l^ower of any thin,;-, but\ice, tu wound thc^ 
 G 5 
 
ioU SERIVfONET XXVII. 
 
 spirit deeply, unless we have set up in our 
 hearts other gods than Plim who brought 
 our forefathers out of tlie bondage of 
 Eg}^pt, and who will, if we do not oppose 
 him, release us from a bondage still more 
 severe. But if those who have wounded 
 their spirit by sin, will not repent and 
 amend; if those who have been warned, 
 times without number, of the thread by 
 which they hold this world's dearest pos- 
 . sessions, will wound their hearts by forget- 
 fulness; if those whose pride is their spirit, 
 Avill make a god of this world — wounded 
 spirits, and intolerably wounded spirits, 
 there must be ; but it is not the intention 
 of the Almighty; he has provided a remedy 
 for all wounds : we cannot saj^, " Is there 
 no balm in GileadP' 
 
 NOTE.. 
 
 It is to be wished that all fathers would, in si- 
 milar circumstances, do, as did the pious !> 
 
 L , when asked by his son to give his aj)|)roba- 
 
 tion and concurrence to a proposal of marriage lie 
 •was desirous to make, and the success of v.hich, in 
 every way, was most jusliiiably matter of anxious bo 
 
SERMONET XXVII. 131 
 
 Jicitude : " You have," said he, " my full approba- 
 tion, and shall have all the assistance in my power ; 
 but only on condition, that, if you are refused, you 
 bear the disappointment like a Christian." 
 
 Could the young be persuaded, that readiness to 
 resign pleasure increases the enjoyment of it, how 
 much would it improve their happiness ! The thorns 
 of their path through this world, would be turned into 
 palm-trees, reaching to Heaven, and affording a re- 
 freshing shade upon earth. It was this early convic- 
 tion, that enabled Lady **** to say, " No one 
 can enjoy life more than I do ; no one has more 
 cause to be thankful : — but if there is any instance of 
 God's goodness, more claiming my gratitude than 
 another, it is, that he has given me grace to feel that 
 I could, this night, resign my soul into his hands, re- 
 lying on the merits of our Blessed Lord for pardon 
 of my sins, and on the promises of the Gospel, for a 
 life of eternal felicity." 
 
 L. 
 
132 sERMONEt xxvm. 
 
 SERMONET XX VII L 
 
 EXODUS, XX. 7. 
 
 For the Lord mil not hold him guiltless^ that 
 taketh his name in vain. 
 
 If we may infer the state of information 
 in some persons from their practice, the 
 commandment forhidding profaneness of 
 speech is very imperfectly understood ; 
 for the great license assumed hy those who, 
 without scruple or decency, break it, seems 
 excused even to themselves, by a convic- 
 tion, that nothing short of legal perjury is 
 meant by it. 
 
 One mean of getting at the sense, would 
 be, to compare the phrase, '' taking in 
 vain," as applied to the name of God, with 
 that we affix to it when applied to any 
 thing else. 
 
 To *^ take pains" in vain ; to " take 
 heed" in vain; to " take up the defence of 
 anotlier" in vain; nay, to " take measures" 
 ill vain, are phrases, each of which means 
 
 4 
 
SERMONET XXVIII. 133 
 
 to do something, supposed fully sufficient 
 to a wished-for effect, and to do it to no 
 purpose. " In vain" has no other meaning 
 but that which describes an effect not fol- 
 lowing a cause. 
 
 Cause being inseparable from instru- 
 mentality, we may consider the name of 
 God as the instrument we use, at one time, 
 to obtain belief, or, at another, if such 
 folly can be practised, to adorn our con- 
 versation. For the first purpose, it may, 
 on great occasions, and with due reverence, 
 be used without a breach of the command- 
 ment: the depravity of mankind leaves 
 nothing else on w^hich men can rely : but, 
 for the second^ there can be no excuse or 
 paUiation ; because, if '' taking any thing 
 in vain," has any meaning, " taking the 
 Lord's name in vain" must have exactly 
 that of de^radino- an instrument of the most 
 awful power, to the most frivolous, inade- 
 quate, and disproportionate purpose. Per- 
 jury, it must be granted, is the extreme de- 
 gree of this heinous sin ; but the habitual 
 custom of calling on God, or alluding to 
 his attributes, or anv circumstance respect- 
 
134 SERMONET XX VIII. 
 
 iiig him, may differ from the atrociousnes^ 
 of one act only, as a hahit of repletion, 
 which at length kills, differs from the 
 suffocation of a single act of inordinate 
 gluttony. 
 
 L. 
 
SERMONET XXIX. \r^6 
 
 SERMONET XXIX. 
 
 1 TIMOTHY, IV. 1. 
 
 So?ne shall depart from the faith. 
 
 That persons not instructed in the know- 
 ledge of the Holy Scriptures should keep 
 aloof from that faith by which we of the 
 church of God hope to be admitted to a 
 life of eternal happiness^ must be rather 
 matter of sorrow than of wonder. That such 
 as have made obstacles of their own errors, 
 should postpone an acquaintance with it, 
 is, to us who know the danger of delay, 
 cause of melancholy astonishment. But 
 that those who have neither ignorance to 
 oppose to conviction, nor vices to obstruct 
 it, and who have once been acquainted 
 with it, should ever depart from it, is al- 
 most incredible. In cases of worldly pru- 
 dence, it is common to hear men declare 
 that they choose to be on the safe side. One 
 man insures his house, though in no pro- 
 bable danger from fire, because it can do 
 
 2 
 
135 SERMONET XXIX. 
 
 no harm to be on the safe side. Another 
 redoubles his precautions against thieves 
 and robbers, because a lock or a bolt too 
 much can do no harm, and it is best to be 
 on the safe side. Ho\v^ many things do 
 mothers, nurses, and those who educate 
 youth, do that appear optional, because 
 they will be on the safe side ! What pre- 
 cautions are taken in investing our money, 
 and in every transaction of human interest, 
 that vv^e may be on the safe side ! And how 
 often do our judgment and inclinations, our 
 self-will and self-complacency, yield — and 
 all that we may be on the safe side ! 
 
 But this commendable circumspection 
 is, alas 1 all discarded when religion is con- 
 cerned ; and those whose parents and in- 
 structors have done all in their power to 
 guard tliem against the uusafe side, in 
 many lamentable instances, when left to 
 the vanity of human wisdom, or the pre- 
 sumption of human folly, without the 
 shadow of reason or excuse, and, as it weje, 
 merely to use their liberty of destruction, 
 have left the only side that is safe, and, de- 
 parting IVom tlie faith, have staked, not 
 
SEUMONET XXIX. 137 
 
 indeed tliis world, but that which alone 
 gives value to this world, on the chance 
 of their being wiser in their construction of 
 a sentence, than the many who have died to 
 testify their opinion, and the many more 
 who have lived to give to it every con- 
 firmation that truth, learning, and the grace 
 of God can afford. How this blindness is 
 obtained, is not so much the purpose of 
 the present consideration of the text, as 
 the gain to be made of this artificial, this 
 fatal, and, it is to be feared, this scarcely 
 pardonable blindness. 
 
 There are risks in the life of a soldier, 
 of a sailor, of a professor of medicine, 
 which he must run. There are risks which 
 tempt the covetous, and make swine of 
 the intemperate : the passions have their 
 risks ; every thing has its risk ; but it is 
 the choice of a wise man to lessen the 
 number and importance of these risks; and 
 a life of risk is by all considered as a life 
 of madness. No risk is ever excused but 
 that which holds out a great advantage; 
 none can be praise-worthy that does not 
 turn the danger on ourselves, the advantage 
 oi; another. 
 
138 SERMOXET XXIX. 
 
 But for risking our souls by cleparting^ 
 from the faith, what sliadow of plea or ex- 
 cuse can we find? Is the submission of 
 our judgment here, even if we are hard ta 
 be convinced, attended with any danger? 
 Is not the risk all on the other side? Sup- 
 posing any one disposed to forego all the 
 comforts and advantages of revelation, and 
 merely acknowledging that he had a Crea- 
 tor to whose will obedience is due, should 
 stop short in his belief, and deny the 
 Christian dispensation ; surely he would 
 not, entirely on his own caprice, take up his 
 opinions; he would endeavour to learn how 
 it had fared with persons acting on thi» 
 persuasion ; and if he heard the truth, he 
 must be informed that many are the sad 
 instances of death- bed remorse which it 
 has occasioned ; whereas not one instance 
 can be produced, except attended with 
 such circumstances as would take away all 
 inclination to follow the example, of any 
 person's expressing a disposition to repent 
 at the last, of faith in the Christian reli- 
 
 gion. 
 
 All disingenuous affectation of fear in 
 
SERMONET XXTX. 139 
 
 adnntthig tlie light of the Gospel, lest we 
 should pay to another the homage due to 
 one God alone, is done away by the very 
 character of the Deity. He is not a Being 
 to be propitiated by human sacrifices, or 
 who delights in vengeance. Even did we 
 err in accepting revelation as of divine ori- 
 gin, we cannot pretend to believe he would 
 avenge himself on us as wilful idolaters. 
 There is not a precept in the Gospel that 
 militates against any idea we can have 
 conceived of him. There is nothing in it 
 that is not to his glory. At least, we might 
 receive it with this mental reservation, ** If 
 indeed it be thine, which we humbly infer 
 it to be," what harm could this do us? Is 
 not this beins on the safe side ? And is not 
 the contrary being entirely on the unsafe 
 side ? And from that side may the grace of 
 God turn, ere it be too late, all those who 
 through prejudice, or persuasion, or men- 
 tal blindness, have become " of this evil 
 heart of unbelief." 
 
140 SEUlilONET XXX^. 
 
 SERMONET XXX. 
 
 JOB, IV. 8. 
 
 £ven as I have seen, they that plough iniquity 
 and soxv wicked neas, reap the same, 
 
 hucH were the words of a man who, at tli^ 
 time when he uttered them, had seen much 
 of the world, and who, consequently, to 
 that natural piety which formed the most 
 prominent feature in his character, added 
 that experience which cannot be learned but 
 by intercourse with men. Every member 
 of the sentence is of importance ; for he 
 not merely delivers a moral aphorism, but 
 he pledges his own observation of life and 
 manners in support of the truth of that 
 aphorism : '"' Even as / have seen, they that 
 plough iniquity and sow wickedness, reap 
 the same." And doubtless the maxim can- 
 not be too deeply impressed on the minds 
 of us all : for who is there among us whom 
 it does not concern to know that which the 
 text inculcates, that he who sows iniquity,. 
 
^imONET XXX. 141 
 
 or, ill other words, who leads a vicious Hfe, 
 must expect, not that which sin promises, 
 happiness, but misery and disgrace? misery 
 as to a man's own feehngs, and disgrace as 
 to the world around him ! It is with sin 
 as with all transactions between man and 
 man; we must look not to what is pro- 
 mised, but what is performed. 
 
 Every one, on entering the busy world, 
 should recollect the words of Omnipotence, 
 *' Behold, I have set before you good and 
 evil;" and let him well consider, for it is a 
 matter of no slight import, whether it be 
 best for him to *' plough iniquity, and sow 
 wickedness,'* and in the end to " reap 
 the same," or to adopt those rules for his 
 conduct which bring a man peace at the 
 last. 
 
 We do not mean to contend that worldly 
 prosperity is, under the Gospel dispensa- 
 tion, as immediately and as certamly the 
 reward of virtue as it was under the law of 
 Moses, when the doctrine of a future state 
 w^as not so forcibly impressed on the mind, 
 as afterward, by Him who "brought life and 
 immortality to light;" ])ut we certainly say> 
 
142 SERMONET XXX. 
 
 tliat a confarmity to the doctriines of the 
 Gospel, enables us to avoid many adverse 
 accidents, and those which we cannot 
 avoid, it enables us to endure with more 
 firmness, more dignity of character than 
 M^ould be possible without it; an advantage 
 which the infidel and the voluptuary never 
 had the presumption to boa^t. 
 
 To expect the harvest to be happiness 
 when the seed sown is iniquity and wicked- 
 ness, we perceive, from the text before us, 
 to be directly contrary to the nature of 
 things. It is not more true when applied 
 to the produce of the earth, than when ap- 
 ;^lied to morals, that the seed and the fruit, 
 the cause and the effect, have always a re- 
 lation the one to the other. The world exists 
 hy system ; ev^ry thing is order and re- 
 gularity as constituted by the wisdom, the 
 power, the goodness of the Creator. The 
 sophism, that happiness, or good of any de- 
 nomination, may be produced by sin, forms 
 no part of philosophy. There may be some 
 to whom it may be convenient to believe 
 that itd )es; and such persons as they, may 
 likewise wish to make other people believe 
 
srEUMOXET XXX. I4S 
 
 it : but philosophy is not founded on con* 
 veniencCf at least on such convenience as 
 seeks to banish from the world the funda* 
 mental truths on which every thing va- 
 luable to man is founded. 
 
 To those whose conduct mak^s it neces- 
 sary to controvert the maxim of the text, 
 we leave the task of finding arguments in 
 support of their opinions. Tlie real Chris- 
 tian, we hope, will recollect with due gra- 
 titude, and certainly more gratitude can- 
 not be felt than the benefit calls for, tliat 
 he is not left in a slavery to sin for want 
 of that instruction which is to make him 
 free ; neither is he doomed to the obser- 
 vance of an austere or ritual worship, 
 formed of maxims which derive their force 
 from being enjoined for our observance, 
 but which in no wise affect our passions or 
 our principles : but a law is given to us, 
 becoming the wisdom of Him who gave it, 
 and accommodated to the wants of those 
 for whom it was designed : calculated to 
 lead man, through the merits of his Sa- 
 viour, to everlasting happiness, by making 
 him, in this world, useful to society a 1 irge, 
 and estimable to those with whom he is 
 
144 SERMONET XXX. 
 
 connected ; and giving him that peace of 
 mind which, as the world cannot give, so 
 the world cannot take away. 
 
 From the testimony of Job, as stated in 
 the text, and from many other passages of 
 Scripture, equally declaratory of the folly 
 and the deceitfulness of sin, arises one 
 maxim founded on the same high authority 
 — the will of a wise and merciful God 
 revealed to man. " Let us hear the con- 
 clusion of the whole matter — Fear God 
 and keep his commandments, for this is 
 the whole duty of man." I\Ian's duty to 
 his Maker, to his neighbour, to himself — 
 man's duty to enable him to enjo}'- the 
 numberless benefits which are placed with- 
 in his reach, each of them designed to 
 make him a more useful, a more energetic 
 creature in his relations to society — a more 
 pious, a more resigned creature to the will 
 of his Maker, deriving from this depend- 
 ence an inward strength, a consolation 
 which enables him, after a life thus spent, 
 unrepining to say in his latest moments : 
 " Lord, now let test thou thy servant depart 
 in peace, — for mine eyes have seen thy sal- 
 vation." U, 
 
5ERM0NET XXXX. 145 
 
 SERMONET XXXL 
 
 JOB, X. 12. 
 
 Thou hast granted me life ami f avow*; and 
 thy visitation hath preserved my spirit. 
 
 iN" making use of that treasure intrusted 
 to our discretion, the Holy Scriptures, it 
 is loss of time and perversion of purpose, 
 when those who are under no obligation 
 to the inquiry, but who have simply to 
 make their practice conform to precepts, 
 assume the office of critics and commenta- 
 tors; when, before they listen to the word^ 
 of wisdom contained in the sublime book 
 which bears the name of Job, they must 
 satisfy themselves whether his character 
 and misfortunes be a fiction framed for the 
 purpose of instruction, or a recital from 
 which we may obtain it. — Does it appear 
 very probable that Job would have beea 
 named by the mouth of the Almiglity, con- 
 jointly with Noah and Daniel (EzekicI, 
 xiv. 14, 20), of whose existence wc eutci - 
 n 
 
146 SERMONET XXXI. 
 
 tain no doubt, if he were merely an ima- 
 ginary example? 
 
 But, in' either view of this elevated 
 composition, the texts it furnishes are 
 equally important, as they are founded in 
 truth, if not in experience ; and from them, 
 if we are so disposed, we may extract much 
 of that inestimable knowledge which will in 
 the end " make" us " wise unto salvation." 
 
 Of these fertile texts, one of the most 
 remarkable is that now chosen for con- 
 sideration. There are few of us who have 
 known the common alternations of good 
 and evil in the world, who may not ac- 
 knowledge with Job, that they are indebted 
 to God for life and favour, and to his visit- 
 ation for the preservation of their spirit 
 
 Without confining ourselves to what may 
 be the precise meaning of the Hebrew or 
 the Greek, let us see what we may under- 
 stand from the text, as given by our Eng- 
 lish translators. 
 
 That life and favour are blessings, and 
 that the visitation of God may be turned 
 to our preservation, is matter of experi- 
 (Micc : that we have our choice in our use 
 
.^KKMONEr XXXI. 147 
 
 of them, is equally true; and that tliey are 
 pervertible by human corruption, is subject 
 of regret and mortification. 
 
 Let us consider how we are to reo'ard 
 
 o 
 
 life and favour as subjects of thankfulness, 
 and liow tiie visitation of God may tend to 
 the preservation of our spirit. 
 
 If opportunity be of value, life is so; 
 it is the opportunity afforded us of obtain- 
 ing that reward which it is in the will of 
 God to dispense or withhold ; and if to be 
 allowed a place amongst competitors for a 
 prize, if to have a chance amongst mau}^) 
 if to have our names entered in a list of 
 select few to whom good fortune may in- 
 cline, is in thrs world called a privilege, 
 and the means to obtain it are sousrht 
 with avidity, on the same principle we 
 must regard life as a grant from the Al- 
 miglity, for which we ought to be thankfid. 
 
 But the parallel does not quite hold. 
 In all admissions to competition in the 
 world, be the prize something which only 
 one can obtain, or whicli many may share, 
 our endeavours cannot ensure success; but 
 in the race in which we arc allouecl by oiu 
 II Q 
 
j48 sEiiMONET xxxr. 
 
 merciful Ruler to engage, we must want 
 iiicJiiiation if we fail. 
 
 In this view of life, it is evidently a 
 privilege granted to us, not a necessity 
 imposed on us ; and as the benefit to be de- 
 rived from it, is, with the grace of God, 
 which we know how to obtain, at our 
 own disposal, it is the excess of folly 
 to misuse it, and of impiety to consider it 
 as the inflicted cruelty of an arbitrary mas- 
 ter. Be life to each of us individually, 
 what it may, as its end and purpose are to 
 lead us to eternal happiness, life is matter of 
 thankfulness, and not to be treated safely 
 with the insolent contempt of the short- 
 sighted half-thinkers, who boasting them- 
 selves Deists, are not far from Atheists. 
 
 The " favour" spoken of in the text, ad- 
 niits not of so confined and precise a sense 
 as ^' life :" it may be the favour of God, or 
 the favour of our fellow-creatures. Let us 
 take it in the latter acceptation. 
 
 Notions of independence, of what is due 
 to ourselves, of freedom from obligation, 
 and reliance on our own powers, very ill 
 mcord with what we are taught in the re- 
 
SERMONET XXXI. 14^ 
 
 vealeci word of God ; and as there can be 
 no question as to the prudence of listenhig- 
 rather to the instructions of Omniscience, 
 than to the dictates of our foolish pride, 
 the favour of our fellow-creatures must be 
 considered as a blessing, inasmuch as it en- 
 sures to us their disposition to assist us, 
 and confers on us the invaluable power of 
 assisting ihem. Setting aside all the agree- 
 able circumstances attendant on what is 
 called " standing well in the opinion of the 
 world,'* to conciliate by fair means its fa- 
 vour, is a part of social duty ; and to ob- 
 tain it and make a laudable use of it, is 
 to fortify ourselves against much evil, and 
 to entitle ourselves to a satisfaction not 
 easily snatched from us. No good ever re- 
 sulted from contempt for the opinion of 
 mankind in general : no harm, we may be 
 assured, can result from an honest deference 
 for it, since it is recorded of our blessed 
 Lord that he obtained it. 
 - All that has been i^aid may be readily 
 granted : it wants no argument to prove 
 its truth ; but the latter part of the text, 
 *' thy visitation hath preserved my spirit," 
 H 3 
 
,150 §EUMON£T XXJtl. 
 
 lequires to be considered. It will be said by 
 those who may grant *S'lsitation" to mean, 
 as in common language, and by common 
 consent, chastisement or affliction, that the 
 severe dispensations of the Almighty tend 
 rather to break than to preserve the spirit ; 
 but this cannot be urged by any who have 
 seen, or who will believe, that often when 
 we, in our rash judgment, censure the deal- 
 ings of the Creator with his creatures as 
 most cruel, they are the most merciful. 
 
 The visitation that preserves the spirit 
 is, indeed, sometimes that which most 
 grievously affects the body ; and the spirit 
 of sucli weak creatures as ourselves, may 
 fail under it; but the "spirit" which the text 
 means is not that which can fail. It is that 
 immortal part which nothing can touch, 
 and whose infinite value, when weighed 
 against the body and its interests, is so 
 preponderating as to make the corporeal 
 afflictions of this life dust in the balance. 
 Ail \\ ho can judge on this point — all who 
 can, if finite judgment may comprehend 
 \vhat is infinite — compare the sufferings 
 of a few years with the enjoyments of 
 
SEItMON^ET XXXI. 451 
 
 a blessed eternity, will remit cheerfully 
 every concern of the mortal body to the 
 will of its Creator, and submit to any visit- 
 ation that will tend to the preservation of 
 their immortal spirit. 
 
 H 
 
15^ SERMONET XXXII. 
 
 SERMONET XXXII. 
 
 GENESIS, XXII. 10. 
 
 And Abraham sU^etched forth his hand — to 
 slay his S07i. 
 
 In the use which we make of the Bible, it 
 is very much to be wished, that, considering 
 it is a book unlike all others, we should 
 treat it and read it with distinguished re-^ 
 verence, but yet with not so much dis- 
 tance of mind, as to lose the benefits of its 
 instruction, or the power of applying to 
 ourselves and our own advantage, its les- 
 sons of virtue or its historical facts. The 
 event recorded in the chapter from which 
 the text is taken, partakes of both these 
 characters : it is an historical fact, from 
 which great advantage is to be reaped; 
 and it is a lesson of virtue even to those 
 who may not be in the relative situatio][i 
 of Abraham. 
 
 To parents, however, it must be more 
 highly interesting than to any other de- 
 
SERMONET XXXIT. 15o 
 
 scription of persons ; and to their hearts 
 peculiarly must every circumstance record- 
 ed by the sacred historian, reach. None 
 but a parent, perhaps none but a father, 
 can know what is the earnest lonsjino* for 
 a son — the representative of a family — the 
 heir to its possessions — the companion of a 
 father's manhood — the protector of his se- 
 cond childhood. For this blessing Abra- 
 ham had waited, without even probabiHty 
 sufficient to justify hope : — at one time 
 mortified with the apprehension that his ser- 
 vant must be his representative ; then com- 
 pelled to fix his affection on the son by his 
 handmaid, and at last required to stretch 
 his fxith beyond the bounds of nature, and 
 to look for the possession of a treasure 
 which would be rendered more valuable by 
 the extraordinary circumstances under 
 which it was obtained. 
 
 Let us fio-ure to our imao-ination the new 
 bent given to Abraham's tliouglits by the 
 prospect of a legitimate son — a son, the 
 annunciation of whose birth promised that 
 in him every wish of a fond parent's heart 
 should be realized. Isaac was heir to the 
 II 5 
 
154 SERMONET XXXn. 
 
 distinguished lineage of the man whom the 
 Deity had undertaken to protect, to bless^ 
 and to advance : — in natural station, m 
 wealth, he was a prince — he was the only 
 son of his mother : Abraham does not 
 appear to have thought on any recom- 
 pense; and a second miracle they had no 
 reason to expect. Perfect in faith, and 
 taught by the event to rely on God, Abra- 
 ham must, when Isaac was promised to 
 him, have considered all care for the per- 
 petuation of his family and the regular 
 transmission of his wealth, as superfluous, 
 but yet as depending on the life of Isaac. 
 
 If there are feelings which we may say 
 we cannot renouiice, they must be those of 
 Abraham ; if there is a privation that can 
 make this world's goods seem nothing unto 
 us, it must be that which now threatened 
 Abraham. He is commanded, not to send^ 
 but to take the ingenuous lad to the place 
 of sacrifice : and let it be considered as a 
 bitter aggravation of the trial, that the 
 place of Abraham's abode was so distant 
 iVom the mountain of Moriah, where this 
 tragic scene was to take place, that^ on 
 
SERMONET XXXII. tSS 
 
 the third day of the journey, it was only 
 in sight — it was, even then, afar off. 
 
 Now let any one who knows what it is, 
 in the common occurrences of life, to lie 
 down at night with a heavy heart, and to 
 wake from disturbed sleep with some re- 
 collection of misery, at first indistinct, but 
 clearing up gradually into dread and an- 
 guish, let it be but the dread of common 
 bodily pain, or the anguish of an every-day 
 misfortune — think what it was for Abra- 
 ham, for there is no occasion to decorate 
 the truth, to lie down twice, and rise twice, 
 with a weight so oppressive on his mind. 
 If Isaac slept near him, fear that he might 
 betray in his sleep that which tortured his 
 feelings, must have added to his sufferings. 
 And on their way, when Isaac, in the unio- 
 cency of his heart, asked questions or made 
 observations, how must his paternal bosom- 
 have been agonized in recollecting how 
 few hours would silence that tongue, and 
 leave his fond parent no companion to so- 
 l,ace his woe : none but one to whose, per- 
 haps, more clamorous grief he must ad- 
 H 6 
 
156 SERMONET XXXII. 
 
 minister that comfort he had not for him- 
 self. 
 
 But Abraham did not hesitate : he took 
 his son, and clave the wood, and prepared 
 the fire and the knife ; and possessing him- 
 self, even at the end of the journey, suffici- 
 ently to preclude the probable tenderness of 
 his servants from obstructing his obedience, 
 instead of asking human assistance or sup- 
 port, he prepared to meet, unaided and in 
 solitude, the horrors he was to inflict on 
 himself. Even the heart-rending question 
 of Isaac, " Where is the lamb for a burnt- 
 oflTering?" he meets by an ev^asive but 
 collected answer — an answer which im- 
 ports the deep feeling of his bosom — " God 
 will provide himself a lamb." 
 
 It was a lamb indeed that the Almighty 
 provided ; but it was far more valuable, far 
 more necessary to its owner's comfort, thaa 
 that represented in tlie words of Nathan, 
 and whose endearing qualities claimed for- 
 bearance and compassion. If it was more 
 than ought to have been asked of a man, 
 to give up an animal he had reared and 
 fondled, it was because it might have beeu 
 
SEiniONET XXXTI. 157 
 
 supposed that the feelings of human na- 
 ture could not endure such violence. Abra- 
 ham's feelinojs sustained far sjreater. 
 
 The use to be made of the historical 
 circumstance is most important; and the 
 subsequent experience of mankind shows, 
 that what it teaches, it is, with the bless- 
 ing of God, within our power to practise. 
 It teaches us, and innumerable examples 
 prove, that with God all things are pos- 
 sible. " If God be for us," we may boldly 
 ask, " who can be against us ?" 
 
 It is good, even in the calm and security 
 of domestic peace, to look forward to those 
 accidents which may deprive us of its com- 
 forts, that we may not add to natural cala- 
 mity by the confusion of mind into which 
 surprise throws us. There is no reason for 
 embittering our present enjoyments, by a 
 gloomy contemplation of the frail tenure 
 by which they are held : our sensibility 
 to them might rather be increased, if we 
 rightly considered what it is, according 
 to St. Paul, the purpose of the sacred his- 
 torian to enforce — the possibility of finding 
 in " the arm of the Lord," that supernatural 
 
 3 
 
158 SERMONET XXXII. 
 
 strength, and in his support, that spiritual 
 fortitude, which, whatever our trials or our 
 weakness, w^ill enable us with patience, with 
 resignation, and even with satisfaction, to 
 say, *' Be it unto me even as thou wilt." 
 
S£RMONET XXXIII. \69 
 
 It 
 
 SERMONET XXXIII. 
 
 PSALM XC. 2. 
 
 Before the mountains were brougJit forth, or 
 ever the earth and the world were made, 
 thou art God from everlasting, and world 
 without end. 
 
 To a superficial reader of Scripture, the 
 words of the text, as, indeed, every other 
 declaration of the greatness of the Deity, 
 may appear little more than a mere display 
 of magnificence that cannot be exceeded, 
 or of power that cannot be resisted. De- 
 scriptions of that magnificence, and of that 
 power, occur in numberless instances in, 
 the Psalms, all tending to elevate our ideas 
 of the Supreme Being, and to show us 
 how far above all human comprehension 
 are his glory and his majesty. But, to the 
 reader who studies the Sacred Writings, 
 with an honest and discerning mind, and 
 whom we therefore oppose to the superfi- 
 cial reader, it will appear that the words 
 
l60 SERMONET XXXIH. 
 
 of the text, and all other similar passages, 
 are the language of wisdom ; for if we are 
 required to believe in him, to fear him, 
 and to obey him, what can be Uiore useful 
 to show the superiority of the true God 
 over all false gods, than those declarations 
 of his power so frequent in the Sacred 
 Writings ? or what can be more proper to 
 aid our faith, than the contemplation of 
 God's attributes, as the basis on which to 
 found all those derivative ideas ^vhich 
 ought to exist in the mind of a Christian ? 
 For Christianity does not, nor indeed 
 did Judaism, require faith and obedience 
 without some primary principle on which 
 either the one or the other should rest. 
 The Jews were incessantly reminded of the 
 miracles that had been wrought in their 
 favour, and of God's patience with them in 
 their secret murmurings, or open rebel* 
 lions ; and Christians are, at this day, re- 
 minded of what is due from them for the 
 sake of Him who laid down his life as the 
 ransom for many. But the miracles which 
 were performed for the Jews, and the atone- 
 ment that was made for sin, by the death 
 
SERMON ET XXXIII. l6l 
 
 and sufferings of Jesus Christ, owe all their 
 influence on the human mind, to the 
 power, the glory, the majesty, the wisdom, 
 and the goodness of God. Deprive the 
 Deity of any one of these attributes, and 
 he is immediately divested of that which is 
 essential to his government of the world, 
 and, consequently, to our faith. 
 
 From the propriety of expressions stat- 
 ing the greatness of the Deity, arises the 
 expediency of preserving and improving, 
 as far as we are able, all sentiments in our 
 own hearts which tend to elevate our ideas 
 of him — of considering him as he really 
 is, and as he is represented in Scripture, as 
 above us all, and in us all ; as governing 
 every thing according as is best, and as 
 never leaving those to perish, who call on 
 him faithfully. " And they that know 
 thy name, will put their trust in thee; for 
 thou hast never failed them that seek 
 thee." 
 
 From what has been said, though it may 
 be scarcely necessary to make the observ- 
 ation, we plainly perceive the folly and 
 the guilt of indulging such ideas as have a 
 
162 SERMON ET XXXIII. 
 
 tendency to efface from our minds the re* 
 collection of the s^reatness or the <>:o<:)dness 
 of God. All frivolous conversation on se- 
 rious subjects, and more especially all pro- 
 fane swearing, cannot be too pointedly 
 censured, as no practice can more conduce 
 to eradicate all good dispositions. 'Tis true, 
 the mind may not, at the instant of utter- 
 ing a blasphemy, be sensible of any great 
 degree of depravation; but depravity it 
 certainly is, and, like all other sinful habits, 
 brings with it more crimes than itself. 
 
 Seai;ch among the lowest orders of the 
 people, itnd see how many there are who 
 have liiboured under inconceivable misfofr 
 tunes, from the pvufligacy of their lives^ 
 joriginally produced by a disregard of things 
 holy. And in how many of these in- 
 stances might all the misfortunes, and all 
 tlie consequent misery, have been avoided, 
 had the mind been impressed with a fit 
 sense of the reverence due to God's holy 
 Word, or to his glory and majesty, and all 
 his other divine attributes ! 
 
 Let no one, therefore, suppose that the 
 levity of mind, with which a sin is coiji- 
 
SERMON ET XXXI 1 1. l63 
 
 anitted, does away the sinfidness or tlie 
 folly of it. We may rest assured that the 
 glory of God would not have been so often 
 alluded to, or so unremittingly enforced 
 upon our minds, Iwid not some good reason 
 required it; and what reason so becoming 
 Him, whose glory is thus promulgated, or 
 so necessary to the well-being of an infirm 
 creature like man, as that which we have 
 been stating, namely, that it might be the 
 basis of his faith and of his practice ? 
 
 If any will presumptuously contemn 
 the admonitions thus vouchsafed, theirs is 
 the peril. Christianity can but set forth 
 the hopes of eternal happiness to all : it 
 leaves man to accept or to reject the prof- 
 fered terms : it offers its assistance, by 
 teaching its votaries to discipline their pas- 
 sions, to purify their hearts, to elevate 
 their ideas, by placing before them, as the 
 object of their worship, a Being far exceed- 
 ing, in purity and in dignity, every thing 
 which the warmest imagination of ancient 
 or modern genius ever devised or depicted. 
 Finally, it allures them, by holding out to 
 all, "who, by patient continuance in well- 
 
164 SERMONET XXXIII. 
 
 doing, seek for glory, and honour, and im* 
 mortality, eternal life/' These are the offers 
 which Christianity makes; and may all 
 who hear them, so duly appreciate them, 
 that they may do, as did the Israelites of 
 old, when they heard the law at Sinai: 
 " And all the people answered together^ 
 and said, All that the Lord hath spoken 
 we will do." 
 
SEllMONET XXXIV, 1 65 
 
 SERMONET XXXIV. 
 
 PROV^ERBS, XII. 17. 
 
 He that speakcth truth showeth forth 
 righteousness. 
 
 It seems almost as unnecessary to recom- 
 mend the practice of truth in society, as to 
 recommend the care of health, to an indi- 
 vidual. The cause of the many, when al- 
 lotted and ap|3ortioncd, becomes that of 
 every one; and the good resulting to the 
 world from an observance of truth, is but 
 an eifect, the origin of which rests with us, 
 and the motive to which must be souolit in 
 resrard for ourselves. 
 
 But in our respect for this excellent and 
 indispensable quality, we must not lose 
 sight of the corrupted state of human nature, 
 by treating it as a feature of mind, which 
 w^e may be justly disappointed and angry 
 to find wanting in the young and the igno- 
 rant. After all the euloo-iums that can be 
 passed on the attractive beauty of truth; 
 
16(> SERMONET XXXI V. 
 
 nay, if wc can boast of ourselves as never, 
 from our earliest years, having been de- 
 ficient in our respect for, or our practice 
 of it, all who have had the Conduct 
 of children, or dealings with the lower 
 classes, must acknowledge that it is not 
 a character inseparably connected with that 
 of mankind. There may be some examples 
 of infants and ignorant persons, whom no- 
 thing could induce to shelter themselves 
 by falsehood; but the instances are rare; 
 perhaps as infrequent as those of a taste 
 for the arts or sciences discovered in the 
 cradle. And when parents flatter themselves, 
 that, whatever may be the custom in otljcr 
 nurseries, in theirs nothing like a departure 
 from truth can be heard, the child gains 
 encouragement in the practice of decep- 
 tion, and those who have the care of it, add 
 contempt to effrontery. 
 
 If this be true — and the most sensible pa- 
 rents aiKl masters are beginning to dis- 
 cover that it is so — it is a species of in- 
 formation that should teach patience and 
 industry. What is the wretched, corrupt 
 state of our fellow-creatures in general, 
 
SEUMONET XXXIV. ]67 
 
 must not be revenged or lamented as sin- 
 gular depravity : we must, by degrees, eni- 
 dicate the evil, and, with all our vigour, 
 fill its place with good. We must punish ; 
 we may pity : — we nuist wait ; we may 
 bope : — we must endeavour ; and we may 
 rely on the assistance of llim who is the 
 God of Truth. 
 
 But even in the exertions of industry to 
 root out the habit, we must not consider 
 ourselves as liaving passed the previous cli- 
 mates of forbearance and patience. Vio- 
 lent measures may suit best those who 
 know themselves incapable of steady, per- 
 severing conduct ; but, should they fail, 
 what is left ? Our industry must never 
 lose its forbearance or its patience, if it is 
 to be efficacious in removing a moral evil. 
 
 Towards sucb as are known not to pos- 
 sess a courageous preference of truth, no 
 authority that can frighten into falsehood, 
 should ever be exercised, while under cure 
 of this cowardice. Lies, at least those told 
 in families, are almost always the eifect of 
 fear ; the punishments due to negligence 
 or want of care, nmst, therefore, be forc- 
 
 o 
 
l68 SERMONET XXXIV. 
 
 gone, for the sake of encouraging to vir- 
 tue: aud we must take cheerfully the spoil- 
 ing our goods, if we regard the eternal 
 well-being of a fellow-creature as of more 
 importance. 
 
 All traps set to discover whether, unas- 
 sisted, a novice in integrity will stand or 
 fall, are stumbling-blocks put in his way. 
 Till we have some rt^ason to believe that 
 the oifender is confident, or till we have 
 reason for confidence in him, no experi- 
 ment, the failure of which we cannot bear 
 with temper, should be made. We must 
 allov/ time for our colours to dry, before 
 we varnish our picture: we must take care 
 our cement be hardened, before we move a 
 vessel once broken. 
 
 As soon as it is possible, the delinquent 
 should perceive our disposition in his fa- 
 vour : it must not be supposed that he will, 
 of necessity, fall; the coming failure must 
 not be anticipated : the first relapse should 
 be punished, but with evident regret : the 
 first triumph sliould be marked by encou- 
 ragement, approbation, and reward. We 
 cannot err much, if we ask ourselves, what 
 
SERxMONET XXXIV. }G9 
 
 TWOi!e of treatment, under this disease of 
 mind, would be that for which we should 
 fad the most grateful, and from which we 
 miglit hope the greatest advantage. 
 
 But where neither j^outh nor ignorance, 
 neither the want of experience nor of in- 
 formation, can be pleaded, every disposi- 
 tion to excuse, to palliate, or to consider 
 the evil as necessary, and ourselves as 
 bound, by the constitution of the world, or 
 for our own peace or interest^ to endure it, 
 is so much connivance in the ruin of a fel- 
 low-creature, as well as folly in ourselves. 
 Our choice of friends should he made on 
 this test : our favour ought to depend on 
 it; our affection ought never to be bestow- 
 e<l where it is wanting ; and no CGHsidera- 
 tion that fashion or selfishness can ofl'er, to 
 induce us to overlook that which destroys 
 confidence, must be admitted, even should 
 we be stigmatized with every epithet that 
 characterizes cruelty : severe reprehension 
 and relative ^punishment, must be tried in 
 cases where we have authority, if neither 
 information, persuasion, nor encourage- 
 ment, will succeed ; and, unless there i6 
 
tTSL sehmonet xxxiv. 
 
 treachery ia those who should join with 
 us, the nature of things must be changed, 
 if tlie inv^ariable succession of chastisement 
 to guilt, and the equally regular reward of 
 t^ictorious integrity, do not, in time, con- 
 vince the hardiest offender, that it is better 
 to tell truth, than to resort to falsehood. 
 
 In the polite world, there is a currency 
 of lying, which, like the smaller weeds in 
 agriculture, escapes deracination, because 
 it is too despicable to gain notice. But 
 the fungus will spread as well as the thistle; 
 and, though we may pass it by to-day and 
 to-morrow, it will, at the end of harvest, 
 give a character to- the crop. Those, the 
 most successful in petty deceit; those, who 
 value themselves the most on their ability 
 to palliate a breach of forms by a breach 
 of what is far more sacred ; those, who 
 sacrifice veracity to momentary applause, 
 though they may, perhaps, through life, 
 preserve something that gives them an en- 
 viable place in the ranks of society, can 
 neither excite emulation in the virtuous, 
 nor obtain imitation among the prudent. 
 Nothing is wanting but their exit from the 
 
S^RMONET XXXIV. 17 1 
 
 Stage of life, to learn their clue apprecia- 
 tion : if they are not immediately blotted 
 from the remembrance of their contempo- 
 raries, they are thought on with aversion, 
 and spoken of with sarcasm. They have 
 iio place in the hearts of mankind. 
 
 If truth wanted recommendations, the 
 same that attend any other elegant study 
 may be ascribed to it. The disciple may, 
 by docility and industry^ make the outline 
 of it correct; but the proficient, conver- 
 sant in light and shade, attains to a pre- 
 cision, a nicety, a finishing, which gives 
 the ability to discern between all its gra- 
 dations, and, when perfect, makes the acute 
 judge, the faithful historian, tlie moral phi- 
 losopher, and the conscientious Christian. 
 
 L. 
 
 1 ff 
 
2?2 SERMONET XXXV. 
 
 SERMOXET XXXV. 
 
 PSALM I. 1. 
 
 Blessed is the man that hath not walked ht 
 the counsel of the ungodly. 
 
 We will not here understiind the blessed- 
 Mess of the text farther than as connected 
 V, ith, or descriptive of, a state of superior 
 happiness in this world. It will afford 
 aniple scope for precept to those whom it 
 does not hiclude, and enco^^iriio'ement to 
 those whom the grace of God has kept out 
 of the counsel of the ungodly. 
 
 The disposition to ridicuJe, or to treat as 
 odiously singular, every thing serious and 
 every body professing regards beyond those 
 of the world in general, is one of the great- 
 est trials young persons have to endure; and 
 it should be the conscientious endeavour 
 of such as have the guidance of tliem, to 
 fence their minds early against these base 
 attacks, while, at the same time, in order 
 to keep their fortitude entire for great oc- 
 
SERMON ET XXXV. 173 
 
 easions, singularity in trifles should ht 
 avoided; and they should not, without a 
 reason that may he avowed, be called on 
 to blusli for, or to defend, an unnecessary 
 dissimilarity to the rest of the world. Real 
 strength of mind will never be obtained by 
 the young, with whom the opinion of those 
 around them is the highest appeal they 
 know, if it is called out on subjects beneath 
 it. He who spends all his shillings in tlie 
 fair, will never have an hundred pounds foF 
 an important purchase. 
 
 The most effectual means in most cases 
 will be found the simply honest ; and there 
 is nothing can so fortify young persons in 
 the fearless attachment to virtue and its 
 concomitant good conduct, which is neces- 
 sary to their peace and interests, as an 
 early impression of the truth in the text,, 
 that those are indeed blessed, who, not- 
 withstanding the sneer of fools and infidels^ 
 have not walked in the counsel of the un- 
 godly, or, in the language of the world, 
 who have neither imitated nor associated 
 with bad people. 
 
 It is the unhappy infirmity of man, in 
 I 3 
 
174 SEIIMONET XXXV. 
 
 his fallen state, to ht least sensilble of ad- 
 vantages, when in the most perfect enjoy- 
 ment. We must be poor, before we know 
 the comfort of affluence; we must be sick, 
 befoie we can be grateful for health : and,, 
 in like manner, we must see, or, at leasts 
 be convinced by the report of others, how 
 great is the misery of guilt, to be able to 
 iip predate the happiness of innocence. 
 
 To this happiness, some may be insen- 
 sible, through ignorance; but many, it is^ 
 to be feared, are so wilfully and perversely. 
 Some there are, indeed, so foolish, so in- 
 considerate, as to declare their insensibility 
 to it, and even when the interests of those 
 almost proverbially dearer to them than 
 themselves, ai^ involved in the question. 
 Many a father, and, shame to say [ many a 
 mother, would be disappointed if a son did 
 not show those dispositions in his early 
 years, which, in his last hours, must be 
 atoned for by bitter repentance, or carried 
 with him to receive the judgment of an 
 offended and insulted God ; and all those 
 vulgar expressions, which signify joy and 
 exultation, at seeing seeds of mischief and 
 
SERMON ET XXXV. l/J 
 
 vice ill children, too paltry for repetition, 
 even licre, are so many contradictions of 
 the Psalmist, when he says, that those are 
 hlcssed, who have '^ not walked iii the 
 counsel of the ungodly." 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 The disposition of women to be vain of fashion- 
 able vices in their sons, supersedes all necessity of i c- 
 niiiiking on the preference often given by their daugh- 
 ters, when they have their choice between a virtuous 
 mvi a vicious man. Something might be said, if ta- 
 lents or manners were al\>ays in favour of vice ; but 
 there have been instances of this perverted taste, 
 where nothing has decided but the charm of a licen- 
 tious character. Pride, perhaps, (but what a wretched 
 species of pride !) may have its share in the election : 
 him who has never yet been fixed, it may seem glo- 
 rious to bind. The delusion may last a short time ; 
 a*id, in some cases, a virtuous example may have in- 
 fluence ; but it is a risk not to be adventured ; and, 
 in the case of foolish mothers, the sacrifices made by 
 the idolatrous nations to Moloch, had, at least, obe- 
 dience to something they imagined right, to plead, 
 which is more than can be said of our contempo- 
 raries. 
 
 I 4 
 
176 SERMONET XXXVl. 
 
 SERMONET XXXVL 
 
 ROMANS, VII. 6, 
 
 But now we are delivered from the lam. 
 
 It is much to be regretted, and,, in our 
 .-self-examinations, it ought to be deplored,, 
 that whatever good we enjoy, be it ever so 
 great, when it loses the character of no- 
 velty, ceases to call on our attention. AVe 
 go to our rest, so certain of the return of 
 day, that the rising sun is unheeded by us : 
 Ave take a journey ; we set out on a voyage ; 
 we sow seeds; we plant trees; and, unless 
 <:alled on to do something unusually pre- 
 carious, we seldom consider the almost mi- 
 raculous process of nature which is requi- 
 site to give effect and success to our la- 
 bours and endeavours. There is hardly a 
 more convincing proof of the mercy of 
 the Deity, than the forbearance which 
 makes so rare those interruptions which 
 would best render us sensible of our de- 
 pendence. 
 
SERMOXET XXXVI. 177 
 
 One of the many blessings which it 
 would almost require an apology to observe 
 on in refined society, ought, however trit©^ 
 and obvious, and therefore disregarded, to 
 be, in rational minds, an incessant subject 
 of gratitude and praise — the grand eman- 
 cipation bestowed by the Gospel, particu- 
 larly on that part of the world the most 
 subject to the bondage of false opinion, or 
 the most scrupulously attached to the op- 
 pressive observance of rites and ceremonies, 
 the conscientiously superstitious among tl>e 
 Gentiles, and the punctual worshippers 
 amongst the Jews. It matters not, as to 
 their claim, to our notice, that the former 
 were in error, and that the latter were in 
 darkness. We are taught, and we have 
 reason to believe, tliat the one God could 
 look with pitying approbation on a mis- 
 directed piety ; and that he accepted the 
 literal perforniances of his chosen people, 
 ^s proofs of all- that he required of them, 
 their obedience, 
 
 / But let any one peruse the " Fasti" of the 
 jLpnjans, investigate the religious customs 
 
17* sEn^roNET xxxrr. 
 
 of the Greeks, or endeavour to commit to 
 memory the Levitical laws of the Jews ; 
 and he must be sensible to the labour, the 
 inconvenience, the expense, n^xj, the dis- 
 gust, imposed on mankind ; he will see the 
 extreme, the hourly danger of offending 
 conscience by error or negligence, the im- 
 mense claim on time and caution, and many 
 more fettering circumstances, which, what- 
 ever the intention of the Deity, in permit- 
 ting or enjoining them, ought to produce 
 in our minds, one invariable sentiment of 
 praise and thanksgiving, when we call to 
 mind our emancipation, and compare with 
 these burdens our beautiful religion — a re- 
 ligion of motives, in which every man may 
 be said to be his own judge, and a law to 
 himself; — a religion of observances, nei- 
 ther gloomy nor fatiguing; occurring often 
 enough to keep alive the gentle flame of 
 pious affection, and leaving us leisure even 
 for the iudulgences of body and mind; — 
 a religion that brings its altars to our doors, 
 and, to the feeble and infirm, still nearer; 
 to the hearth, nav, to the couch. We aw 
 
ser:\ionet xxxvr. 179 
 
 not obliged to go up to Jerusalem tiree 
 times in a year ; we have not the humilia- 
 tion of showing, in the face of the con- 
 gregation, that our worldly circumstances 
 do not afford the sacrifice of a lamb ; eur 
 eyes are not offended, nor our hearts 
 Avounded, by the effusion of blood ; — we 
 may touch tlie dear remains of those from 
 whom death can scarcely sever us, and not 
 incur the penalties of defilement. We can, 
 if our folly does not forfeit the privilege, 
 in all our actions refer to God and our 
 hearts, and feel acquitted. 
 
 To enumerate particulars would lead too 
 far: the most learned on the subject of 
 religious worship, will be the most thank- 
 ful for the blessing of Christianity; and 
 should the superstitions of Rome and 
 Greece, the ceremonies of Jerusalem and 
 Sanuuia, seem hackneyed themes ; let the 
 barbarians of that, which was once the 
 most elegant country of the terraqueous 
 globe; let the observances of the eastern 
 world, let the aggregated traditions of the 
 Jews, let Peru and Alexico, — those fancied 
 I 6 
 
180 SERMONET XXXVT. 
 
 realms of innocence and pimty ! — bring in 
 their rituals; and then it must be acknow- 
 ledged and felt, that it is " a great deli- 
 verance," which Christ hath wrought for 
 
SER^IONET XXXVII. IBl 
 
 SERMONET XXXVII. 
 
 MICAH, VI. 8. 
 
 And what doth the Lord require of thee^ but 
 to do justly^ and to love mercy, and to walk 
 humbly with thy God? 
 
 It would perhaps have been difficult to 
 give so excellent, so compendious a sum- 
 mary as this, of moral and religious duties, 
 had not the invention of man been assisted 
 by inspiration. For there is scarcely any 
 thing which is incumbent on a moral agent 
 to perform, which may not be referable to 
 some part of the text. In his transactions 
 with his neighbour, he must be called upon 
 by the sense of that which is strictly his 
 due, which is comprehended in the clause, 
 to ** do justly ;" or, it may be, that some- 
 thing more than mere right may be re- 
 quired ; in which case it is an act of " mer- 
 cy :" — so much for the two first clauses of 
 the text. The third relates to our duty to- 
 wards God. 
 
The phrase, " to walk humbly with thy 
 God," is but a very lax translation of the 
 original Hebrew. The margin of the Bible 
 gives a better: *' to humble thyself to walk 
 with God ;" for certainly he that can be 
 said to walk with God, must first be re- 
 quired to humble himself, to put away all 
 lofty thoughts, and to feel himself, and to 
 confess himself, a weak sinful creature, un- 
 worthy of the least of the mercies that are 
 -daily showered down upon him. And this 
 principle admitted into the mind, what vir- 
 tue is there, comprehended in our duty to 
 God, which does not emanate from it? 
 whether it be resignation to his will when 
 he sees fit to afflict us, or hope in his 
 mercy, his fatherly care and his pity, when 
 we need his support and assistance, his 
 guidance and protection, to prosper our 
 undertakings ; so that it may be said, that, 
 in tiie few w^ords of the text, man may 
 uead the summary of all his duties. 
 
 And here it may be observed, that, how- 
 ever various, however complicated the 
 paths of error may be, the ianguage of 
 truth is simple and intelligible ; and most 
 
SERMONET xxxvn. 1}83 
 
 true it is, no scheme of i-clrgioii purely of 
 liuman invention was ever promulgated to 
 riie world, but it contained, however de- 
 fective it might be in purifying the heart 
 of man, or in regulating civil society, more 
 difficulties, and more of mysticism, than 
 tiie whole code of Christianity, designed 
 by its all-wise Author to penetrate into the 
 inmost recesses of human corruption, and 
 to establish laws by which the highest and 
 the lowest should be equally restrained. 
 
 Let no one, therefore, suppose, whatever 
 may be promised by the inlidel and free- 
 thinker, that a man, throwing aside Chris- 
 tianity, can take up another system of re- 
 ligion that can afford him better protection 
 against the evils of this world, or even 
 against the tyranny of his greatest enemies 
 —his own passions : the Author of our 
 faith knew full well what man was, and of 
 what religion he stood in need ; and by 
 that acquaintance with our necessities has 
 Christianity been regulated : it is the wis- 
 dom of man in this world to conform him- 
 self to its precepts. 
 
 Those who understand the text aright, 
 
184 SERivroxET xxxvn. 
 
 will find in it ample matter for meditation-, 
 by which both the head and the heart may 
 be amended. They may learn that it is a 
 part of the gracious dealings of Providence 
 with man, that he is not " pleased with 
 thousands of rams, or with ten thousands 
 of rivers of oil ;" so as to accept them in- 
 stead of what little virtue man is capable 
 of performing : they will perceive that the 
 state of the world required a moral law as 
 well as an expiatory one, and that no law 
 could be so admirably adapted in all its 
 parts to human life, as that which Christ 
 Jesus came into the world to promulgate, 
 and which, thanks to God! it is our honour 
 and our glory to profess. 
 
5ERM0NLT XXX VIII. 185 
 
 SERMONET XXXVIII. 
 
 I CORINTHIANS, XI. 28. 
 
 Let a man ei^amine himself, cnid so let him eat 
 of that bread and drink of that cup. 
 
 Every day's experience, added to the 
 testimonials of history, serves to teach us 
 tlie tendency of the human mind to ex- 
 tremes, and the consequent difficulty of 
 preserving its equilibrium. It seems para« 
 doxical to say that indolence is the cause 
 of vehement excess ; yet the original sense 
 of the word indolence will almost jus- 
 tify the assertion. To indulge our na- 
 tural inclination, which is its nearest de* 
 Jinition, is to remain little better than pas- 
 sive ; and to let it lead us till it can lead 
 us no farther, is the perfection of inac- 
 tivity : it requires an effort to stop : we make 
 none; and we are carried to the farthest 
 point of weakness, and often beyond the 
 boundary of innocence. 
 
 So it is with our actions; and in the 
 
386 5ERMONET XXXVill. 
 
 conduct of our minds, there is little dif- 
 ference. To form a judgment for our- 
 selves, is more trouble than to take up 
 with one ready made for us ; and thus, 
 without the grace of modesty or the con\- 
 fort of humility, we transfer the charge of 
 our consciences to another, always more 
 inclined to listen to advice tench ng to ex- 
 tremes, than to that which recommends a 
 safe distance from them. 
 
 In no opinion is this more evident than 
 in tliat most momentous, respecting the 
 blessed sacrament. The superstition of tlip 
 Church of Rome leads to one extreme, ia 
 which, without asking a question, its dis- 
 ciples are permitted to rest; and believing 
 what is imposed on their faith, the mind 
 rolls in a bias that admits neither of oppo- 
 sition nor approbation : acquiescence is its 
 highest exertion ; and beHef becomes cre- 
 dulity. 
 
 In our own church, another opposite 
 opinion, and nearly as opposite to the legi- 
 timate doctrine of it, is, in some instances, 
 to be found ; and grave, learned, pious men 
 iiave adopted an extreme equally reprelueu- 
 
SERMONET XXXVIII. 187 
 
 sible, and perhaps more dangerous, in re- 
 ducing a rite, wliicli it is our best interest 
 to consider as a fountain of grace, to a 
 mere affectionate record of liim who in- 
 stituted it. 
 
 To what does so hght an acceptation 
 lead ? Ahnost to a supposition that, in 
 every ordinary use of bread and wine, we 
 might sufficiently fulfil the injunction of 
 our Saviour, by recollecting him. Or, if 
 WQ have stopped so far short of this laxity, 
 as to admit the church as the scene of this 
 ceremony, it removes all necessity of a pre- 
 vious preparation and peculiar frame of 
 mind, and kaves us nothing but the vain 
 satisfaction of having paid a tribute of re^ 
 spect. Can this be an advantage ? can it 
 form a motive strong enough to make us 
 regular in our attendance, except as forms 
 become habitual ? can we hence derive that 
 xiaticimiy without which the best and wisest 
 Christians have not thought themselves 
 fortified in their passage from this to ano- 
 ther world ? 
 
 Dare we not say, that the humility of 
 our Saviour prevented his leaving us a more 
 
188 SERMONET XXXVIII. 
 
 precise direction? May we not humbly 
 suppose he left it to St. Paul to inform us? 
 There is no inconsistency between the 
 w^ords of the master and tliose of his 
 apostle : the one says, " Do an act, per- 
 form a specific rke, lest the remembrance 
 of me may, like other remembrances not 
 revived by circumstances, wear out of your 
 mind." St. Paul says> that, to renew this 
 3-emembrance aright, our minds must b@ 
 brought into a suitable frame. But surely 
 there is something more meant than a merg 
 respectful remembrance, when he tells us to 
 ** examine'* ourselves — when he threatens 
 punisliment to the unworthy receiver— 
 when he bids us ** judge " ourselves, " that 
 we may not be judged." Can those teachers, 
 however respectable, and however deeply 
 read in sacred lore, be, in this point, safe 
 guides, who tell us, that ** tliey doubt 
 whether pious formularies which recom- 
 mend seclusion and other strictnesses be- 
 fore the reception of the sacrament, can 
 be of much use?" 
 
 To those, indeed, who have made a great 
 progress in a good life, these helps may b^ 
 
SERMONET XXXVIll. IS9 
 
 Tseedless : — to one who has been thus tender 
 to us, it is to be hoped and behoved they 
 were so ; but to us, who need " to be held 
 m with bit and bridle," th^y are indispen- 
 sably requisite; and no encouragement ought 
 to make us relax. Which of us who \i\o. 
 in the world, and with the world, can feel 
 fit to approach the table of tlie Lord on a 
 sudden? Is it from the theatre, the ball- 
 room, the public spectacle, that we can, 
 with the interval only of unconscious and 
 unprofitable sleep, go to the holy com- 
 munion to any good purpose ? W\t\\ music 
 in our ears, with the scene of a drama be- 
 fore our eyes, are our thoughts and affec- 
 tions in a train for devout exercises ? That 
 tJiey aught to be fit, at all times, is granted; 
 but the corruption of human nature must 
 be always taken into our calculations ; and 
 iHlmitting this, the probability is most dis- 
 couragingly against us — so much against 
 us, tliat no respect for authority, no pre- 
 ference, even the most justifiable, of ano- 
 ther's wisdom to our inexperience, can su- 
 persede the absolute conscientious neces- 
 sity of saying that this is a most dangerous 
 
190 SEUMONET xxxviir, 
 
 doctrine. Something rather more positive 
 and precise, may be usefidly subjoined to 
 this negative precept* 
 
 The sacrament was a memorial ceremony 
 enjoined by our Saviour. St. Paul tells us 
 it is more — it is an act not only of love and 
 ^vorship to Christ, but of spiritual advan- 
 tage to ourselves ; and whoever has ob- 
 served the effect produced in his own 
 mind by his best, though imperfect, en- 
 deavours to communicate worthily, must 
 be sensible to some of these advantages. 
 A week's moderate, quiet, imperceptible 
 preparation, is never time or labour lost. 
 To resolve on Sunday evening, that, during 
 the week thus begun, we will be still more 
 diligent in guarding ourselves from passion 
 and peevishness, from the admission of 
 trifles into our attention, from sentiments 
 of pride and indulgences of vanity — that 
 our appetites shall not be pampered — that 
 the poor shall have a larger share of our 
 commiseration — that little duties of kind- 
 ness shall no longer call in vain on our re- 
 collection, and that our minds shall be still 
 more firmly set towards Heaven; all this is 
 
SEUMONET XXXVIII. 191 
 
 not only wholesome, bat necessary ; and 
 when the purpose is performed, the im- 
 pulse, if we do not deceive ourselves, will 
 not cease. We need the spur of times and 
 seasons^ and those know little of human 
 nature, who talk of an equal tenour of 
 constant unrelaxing exertion. 
 
 To conclude — If we admit this very in- 
 dulgent doctrine, we must give up St. Paul's 
 Epistles; for, without pious formularies and 
 some seclusion, at least of mind, which of 
 us is, to any purpose, to "examine" him- 
 self, to "judge" himself, ''and. so eat of that 
 bread and drink of that cup ?" 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 The practice of those whom we esteem for other 
 observances of Christian duties, ought to guide us. 
 The afflicting discipline of Johnson, it is to be hoped, 
 is not needful for us all. His tender conscience pre- 
 scribed it to his gigantic mind ; and he best knew 
 what suited it. But if he thought all he could do 
 too little, can we be safe in thinking any thing we can 
 do too much ? 
 
igS SERMONET XXXIX. 
 
 SERMONET XXXIX. 
 
 1 CORINTHIANS, XI. 28. 
 
 I^t a man exainine himself, and so let h'wi cat 
 of that bjxad and drhik of that cup. , 
 
 This text has generally been considered as 
 exhorting to self-examination before par- 
 taking of the sacrament of the Lord's sup- 
 per; and certainly such an explanation is 
 to be justified, because he who partakes of 
 the sacrament without the examination here 
 recommended, obviously offends against the 
 very first words of the precept. But this 
 docs not appear to be the emphatical part 
 of the admonition ; for it goes on to say, 
 "andwlethim eat." In the original the word 
 so is as emphatical as any word apparently 
 synonymous coul<l be ; it is no expletive 
 — it is no error of an ignorant copyist — it 
 is an integral part of the text, and consc- 
 (juently ought to be adverted to in the elu- 
 cidation of it. We are directed so to eat — 
 that is to say, according to the self-cxa^ 
 
SEUMOXET XXXIX. 193 
 
 ttiination directed in tlie preceding part of 
 the sentence, and which ^eems to admit of 
 the following interpretation. It is to be 
 supposed, that, by examining himself, a 
 man becomes acquainted with his own dis- 
 position, his habits, his desires, his propen- 
 sities, or, to use the Scripture-phrase, with 
 the spirit that is in him. In some, this 
 spirit will be little other than that of 
 worldly concupiscence, having scarcely any 
 other object than the mammon of unrighte- 
 ousness : in others, it may be the spirit of 
 holiness, evermore looking to that time 
 when the things of tliis world shall have 
 passed away, and '' tiiis corruptible shall 
 liave put on incorruption,* 
 
 St. Paul, therefore, must be understood 
 as saying, that, whatever spirit a man may, 
 by this scrutiny, find in himself, tlie sacra- 
 ment is an useful and beneficial ordinance 
 to him who worthily receives it — that he 
 who, by investigating the suggestions of 
 his own heart, finds the thoughts of it arc 
 Z' only evil continually," so should receive 
 it with humble supplication, that, by the 
 .grace vouchsafed to him by such an insti- 
 
 K 
 
194 SERMONET XXXlX. 
 
 liition, he may be enabled to purify him- 
 self from his manifold corruptions, whilst 
 he who is not oppressed with such corrup- 
 tions, may receive it as a preservative from 
 them ; and thus it will appear, that there 
 is no description of persons not bound, as 
 they regard their salvation, to partake of a 
 rite ordained in consequence of the fallen 
 state of human nature, with a design to 
 remedy it as far as might be. 
 
 For though some who have been desirous 
 of relaxing, if not annihilating, every reli- 
 gious institution, have thought themselves 
 justified in considering the sacrament of 
 the Lord's supper merely as a memorial of 
 a certain event, and themselves as bound 
 to observe it, solely because they are com- 
 manded to do so; yet as there seems no 
 reason to suppose that our Saviour would 
 have instituted this sacrament, had not 
 something further been comprehended in 
 it, the Established Church of this country 
 impresses on the minds of all her children, 
 the belief that great and many are the 
 benefits conferred by God on such as com- 
 ply with what he has enjoined ; and with- 
 
SEKMONET XXXIX. 195 
 
 out some such belief, there does not seem 
 to be any cause for our Saviour's com- 
 memorating his supper, more than any 
 other event in which he and his disciples 
 ^vere interested. But as in many other 
 instances, which might be quoted from 
 the Okl Testament, where great benefits, 
 in some instances of a spiritual nature, 
 were about to be conferred on tbose whom 
 God had chosen, the emblem of gift and 
 acceptance was something eaten ; so here, 
 in the Eucharist, where the benefit of 
 grace was to be bestowed on man, the 
 mean, or emblem employed, was the eat- 
 ing the bread, accompanied with the drink- 
 mg the wine. 
 
 Hence it appears, that the sacrament of 
 the Lord's supper was intended to aid 
 the weakness of man ; and from the words 
 of the text, that all, whether more or 
 less pure, stand in need of the assistance 
 thus vouchsafed ; the precept must, there- 
 fore, be considered as extentled to all ; the 
 only difference in the two descriptions 
 of recipients being, that the one receives 
 k2 
 
W6 6ERM0NET XXXIX. 
 
 ill order to purify himself from sin, tlie 
 other as a ])reservative from that cornrp- 
 •tion to which he would be exposed with- 
 ,gut i;iich aid> 
 
SERMONET xi^ W7 
 
 SERMONET XL. 
 
 PSALM CXVI. 4. 
 
 I will call upon the 7ia?7je of the Lord. 
 
 Whoever should liave the wickedness and 
 cruelty to endeavour effacing from tlie 
 minds of the poor, that strong sense of 
 religion in general, and of trust in God in 
 particular cases, which is, in them, often pro- 
 portionate to their need of it;^ would merit,^ 
 at the hands of all mankind, the severest 
 punishment that justifiable indignation 
 could inflict. Yet there have been wretches 
 who, though not immediately addressing 
 themselves to the lower classes, have put 
 their poison in their way; and that in this 
 country it has failed of its intended effect, 
 is more to be ascribed to the goodness of 
 God, than to any want of industry in 
 them, or, perhaps, of disposition to evil in 
 the objects of their cruelty. 
 
 Let any unprejudiced persons visit the 
 habitations of the poor — let them see, in 
 k3 
 
198 S'ERMONET XL. 
 
 addition to the common and accidental ca- 
 lamities of life^ the almost mtolerable, and 
 often inevitable misery of having nothing 
 to offer to the sick or the starving — no- 
 thing to alleviate the pinching cold — to 
 fence out the beating tempest — to clothe a 
 new-born infant, or support its famishing 
 motlier : let them contemplate the relatives 
 of a family in the abyss of despair, not 
 knowing \vhence comes evil to them, why 
 it is sent, or whither it tends; take from 
 them their reliance on the wisdom and 
 mercy of the Deity, their submission to 
 his will, their resignation of those dearest 
 to them into his hands, in the hope of 
 meeting again in a world not subject to 
 the calamities that have overwhelmed them ! 
 —what shall hinder the father from rushing 
 out w ith a knife, and waylaying the first 
 unwary passenger whose appearance offers 
 to liis mad grief the means of alleviation? 
 A\hat shall restrain the sons from the haunts 
 of thieves, or the daughters from the loath- 
 some chambers of the brothel ? If there is 
 no justice in heaven, who shall ordain laws 
 on earth ? If thereis no punishment in hell> 
 
SEUMONET XL. 199 
 
 what retribution have they to fear ? This 
 Av^orld is their all, and they must make the 
 best of it: they will see examples enovv^ 
 of greediness and selfishness in those above 
 them, to teach them, and afford the com- 
 fort of retaliation. In short, take away 
 the fear of God ; and though, with it, you 
 may take away all other fear, there will be 
 no fortitude left; there may be despair, but 
 there will be no courage. 
 
 If we would rid ourselves of the cry* 
 of the poor — if we would fence ourselves 
 against the madness of their sorrows — if we 
 would turn over to Him ** who is miglity 
 to save," that which the feeble arm of flesh 
 cannot do — if w^e would soothe their sor-' 
 rows, increase their patience, give them' 
 fortitude, and raise their hopes; let us, by 
 all means, lead them to look to Him on* 
 whom we all depend, whether we acknow- 
 ledge it or not — let us decline their thank , 
 and direct them to Heaven — let us teach 
 them the use of chastisements, and exhort 
 them to bear them so as to obtain the re- 
 ward promised to those *^ who by j^atient 
 k4 
 
SOO S£RMONET Xi^ 
 
 continuance in well-doing, seek for glory 
 and immortality." 
 
 Bv this method — a method which re- 
 commends itself to us by motives of every 
 kind — we convert the ills of life into fu- 
 ture blessings, the cruelty of the world 
 into the mercy of God, the extreme of 
 despair into the commencement of hope,., 
 and that whkh would rack our hearts with 
 unavailing anguish, into a tender feeling 
 that has its immediate consolation, and, not 
 un frequently, its useful example. We re- 
 tire from the sad cottage better than we 
 entered it : we are shamed out of ©ur sus« 
 ceptibility of petty vexations, when we see 
 how the greatest griefs may be borne ; and 
 when it is our turn to mourn, we recollect 
 with gratitude, with hope and confidence 
 in the support of Heaven, that this, and 
 perhaps more than we are called upon to 
 endure, even with the lieavy addition of 
 pinching poverty, has been made light by 
 the counterbalancing promises of Him who 
 never yet deceived those who put their 
 trust in hirn. 
 
9ERM0NET XL. 201 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 ** And how, my good woman," said a lady to a 
 poor Irishwoman, a soldier's widow not entitled to a 
 pension, *^ would you have supported yourself in 
 your distress, had we not found you out? when you 
 had neither food nor money, what would you have 
 done next ?" — " Why, to be sure," said she, " L 
 kneeled me down there, just at the foot of that bit 
 of a bed, and I prayed to the Lord, with all my 
 heart, that as he had been so good as to send me 
 these three children, he would, in his goodness, send 
 me something to feed them ; and so, you see it is, 
 Ma*am ; for then came that lady that told you of my 
 distress." 
 
 5 
 
$02 «ERMONET XLT. 
 
 SERMONET XLI. 
 
 1 CORINTHIANS, I. 23. 
 
 Unto the Jews a stumbling-block, 
 
 1 HERE seems to be some difficulty in com- 
 prehending how the appearance of Him who 
 had been expected for ages, and who com- 
 pleted, in his own person and sufferings, 
 the many prophecies uttered concerning 
 him, should, in any sense of the phrase, 
 be a stumbling-block to persons who 
 were in possession of those prophecies, 
 and whose interest it was to accept him as 
 the j\'lessiah, sent amongst men to instruct 
 their ignorance, and to heal their infirmi- 
 ties. To say that the Jews were disap- 
 pointed, and that they expected a temporal 
 governor, a man who, like Joshua, was to 
 drive out idolatrous nations, and to esta- 
 blish the Jews in those countries whence 
 such nations had been expelled, does not 
 solve the difficulty: for if the Jews had 
 admitted Jesus Christ as their lawgiver, 
 
SERMONET XLI. 203 
 
 or, in other words, had conformed them- 
 selves to what he taught ; in what other 
 situation could he liave remained amono- 
 them, than as their sovereign, or their 
 leader, or their judge? under any one of 
 which titles, he miglit have conducted them 
 to as great honour and prosperity as the 
 vanity or the selfishness of the Jews could 
 desire : all which glory and prosperity were 
 defeated, not, as far as appears, by any 
 unwillingness or inability of the Messiah 
 to produce them, but by the Jews them- 
 selves sacrificing, or, rather, murdering that 
 Person who was alone able to advance their 
 glory or their happiness. 
 
 Perhaps, to understand the passage cor- 
 rectly, we should advert to other passions 
 and prejudices which might operate on the 
 minds of the corrupt and sordid Jews, to 
 make them consider the doctrine of Christ 
 as a stumbling-block : they saw, by what' 
 he daily taught them, that he was not 
 likely to favour their rapacity in devouring 
 widows' houses ; nor their hypocrisy, v\ hca 
 they stood at the corners of the strctts 
 to pray; nor their ostentatious display of 
 k6 
 
204 SERMONET XLI, 
 
 piety when they fiisted; nor their wide 
 phylacteries ; nor their traditions, which 
 had rendered the law given by Moses of 
 little or no eftect : — they saw that the poor 
 liad the Gospel preached to them, and that 
 the manifold corruptions of the Jewish 
 priesthood were openly and avowed l3r 
 pointed out to the poor in the Gospel thus 
 preached to them : all this must necessarily 
 have had a tendency to make Christianity a 
 stumbling-block, or, in other words, a scan- 
 dal or an offence to the Jews — whose power 
 would be ruined as soon as their frauds be- 
 came known : they would, therefore, it 
 may be reasonably supposed, be ready ta 
 term his language blasphemous, to im- 
 pute his miracles to the power of Belze» 
 bub, and to tell him^ ^' Now we know that 
 thou hast a devil I" 
 
 How far the death and sufferings of Jesus 
 Christ were attributable to malice or to ig- 
 norance, we cannot precisely say ; but from 
 many passages in Scripture, there seems^ 
 strong reason to suspect that they knew 
 him to be a divine person, even to the 
 full extent of that divinity ; neither should 
 3 
 
SERMONET XLI. 205 
 
 the dying words of our Saviour be under- 
 stood as denying such to be the fact. In 
 inany senses it might be true that they 
 knew not what they did : — they did not 
 know what they did when they cried, "His 
 blood be upon us and upon our children" — 
 they did not know what they did when 
 they exposed themselves to the calamities 
 which they endured when Jerusalem was 
 destroyed by the Romans — they did not 
 know what they did when they asked 
 Judas, who came to them to confess that 
 he had betrayed the innocent blood, " What 
 is that to us?" and lastly, they did not 
 know what they did (such is the power 
 and wisdom of God to bring forth good 
 out of the perverseness of man's will) 
 when they cast lots for Christ's vesture — 
 when they stood looking on Him whom 
 they had piercetl — when they offered him 
 vinegar to drink — when they numbered 
 him amongst the transgressors, by crucify- 
 ing him with two thieves : had they known 
 what they then did, they would have per- 
 ceived that they were themselves but com- 
 pleting the prophecies already in their own 
 
205 SERMON^ET XLT. 
 
 hands, respecting this great and ilkistrious 
 Personage, and by so doing, supplying the 
 strongest evidence that a sceptic would 
 desire. 
 
 Without attempting to assign a motive 
 to the conduct of the Jews, it may be suf- 
 ficient to say, that Christ crucified might 
 be a stumbling-block, an offence or scan- 
 dal to them, that is to say, to pride and 
 prejudice, without its necessarily implying 
 that they were disappointed in their hopes 
 of a restoration of their former power, or 
 of an advancement to still greater — they de- 
 clared that they had no king but Caesar; and 
 when the business was to crucify Christ, 
 they were, it seems, sufficiently loyal, 
 though, in former ages, when that loyalty 
 was to be shown towards the God who had 
 made them and had redeemed them from 
 innumerable evils, the only return they 
 then could make was rebellion and distrust 
 —open revolt or secret murmurs. 
 
 Such was the temper invariably — with 
 the exception of those who were brought 
 by Joshua into the promised land — of the 
 chosen people of God ; a temper doubtless 
 
SERMONET XLI. 207 
 
 permitted for wise purposes. May no one 
 who now reads the Scripture, be induced, 
 by any motive, to consider that which was 
 intended as a blessing to all, as a stum- 
 bling-block or a scandal to himself! 
 
 H. 
 
208 SERMONET XLII, 
 
 SERMONET XLII. 
 
 JOB, V. 26. 
 Thou shalt come to thy gi^aDe in a full age. 
 
 The season of youth in human life, like 
 the season of spring in the natural world, 
 has a sort of prescriptive preference in our 
 affections, which makes it appear the Hmit 
 of our cares. How to pass youth agree- 
 ably, and how to make the most of the 
 enjoyments of spring, seem solicitudes na- 
 tural to us on emerging from the restraints- 
 of childhood, and from the rigours of win- 
 ter. Few speak of what is to be done for 
 the decline of life ; and the gay votaries 
 of spring are not those the most anxious 
 for the event of the harvest. It might give 
 respectability and increase to the plea- 
 sures of both, if they extended their views 
 not only thus far, but to the ensuing win- 
 ter of the earth and its inhabitants. 
 
 But winter and old age have a bad repu- 
 tation : they are supposed to have nothing 
 
SZRMONET XLII. 209 
 
 good to offer ; they are suspected to liave 
 innumerable evils to impose : and the sup- 
 position and suspicion tend to realize them- 
 selves, as an imaginary dislike between 
 two persons who never yet met, has a tend- 
 ency to confirm itself by the means offered 
 to ascertain it. 
 
 But experience shows, many times in 
 the course of our lives, that the winter of 
 nature brings its peculiar gratifications, a 
 sort of humble comfort and consolation, in 
 lieu of the charms of more popular seasons, 
 which not unfrequently leaves their gaudy 
 pretensions some way behind in the com- 
 petition. The sense of security, which our 
 home and our hearth afford against exist- 
 ing inconveniences, adds gratitude to en- 
 joyment : society has its charms, and quiet 
 its advantages ; — the mind concentrates its 
 powers, when exertion is to be made, as 
 the blood mantles round the heart to pro- 
 mote the purposes of digestion ; and those 
 ideas which the images of gaj^er seasons 
 tended to disperse, now united, are return- 
 ed sometimes in fruits of industry, bene- 
 ficial to a rising generation. In short, the 
 
210 SERMONET XUU 
 
 clifterenc€ between the seasons is this : 
 those which invite us abroad exhilarate us 
 b}^ the pleasure of innocent idleness ; — 
 those which confine us at home, nervx us 
 by those of industry. 
 
 And, in the comparison of youth and 
 age, as equal a distribution may be ob- 
 served. We have not, in the latter part of 
 life, that keen appetite, that insatiable 
 thirst for variety and novelty of enjoy- 
 ment, which characterize our early years : 
 experience has taken the place of curiosity; 
 but, unless to know is less desirable than 
 to wish to know, the exchange is not to 
 be deplored. Tlu2 young heir, waiting for 
 the possession of wealth, and planning the 
 disposal of it, may be an object of envy; 
 but it does not follow that he must be mi- 
 serable when his hopes are realized : he 
 has pleasures of enjoyment instead of those 
 of expectation; and so it is in age, unless 
 our own improvidence has marred our 
 comfort. There is great pleasure in store 
 for increasing years: plans perfected, know- 
 ledge attained, services rendered, duties 
 discharged, a progress made in virtue, a 
 
SERMONET XLII. 21 1 
 
 gradual and encouraging emancipation from 
 our vices, our faults, our foibles ; to say 
 nothing of the nearer prospect of the coun- 
 try to which we are directing our steps : 
 all these are satisfactions equal to any vivid 
 pleasures. Nor is there, in the reality, or 
 of necessity, that stagnation which seems so 
 much dreaded by those who look at age as 
 a frozen sea — the rio:id barrier of two 
 worlds. With tlie industrious, with those 
 Avho have not misused or wasted their fa- 
 culties, there is no pause of improvement 
 while life lasts : we would not wish, on 
 the confines of it, to improve in the arts 
 of triflers ; but we may improve in know- 
 ledge of every virtuous kind ; and to-day 
 will tell the man of seventy something that 
 he was a stranger to yesterday. In a word, 
 we might all be younger than we are, if 
 we were less time children ; and he will 
 find himself a happy old man, who, wdieu 
 a young one, has not omitted to pray to 
 Him in whose hands are " the issues of life 
 and death," that he will not cast him off in 
 his old age. 
 
 A more melancholy sight is seldom ex- 
 
S12 SERMGNET XLII* 
 
 hibitecl to the world than that of a man far 
 advanced in years, bearing about him the^ 
 testimonies of an ill-spent youth ; and the 
 sensations it excites, one should think, 
 would induce those whose destiny is not 
 yet irrevocably decided, to shun the errors 
 that have led to such deplorable conse- 
 quences. But mankind seem to act like 
 fatalists : they take their chance ; and, as 
 much convinced,, that health is not to the 
 temperate, or repose of mind to the vir- 
 tuous, as that ** the race is not to the swift, 
 or the battle to the strong," they launch, 
 in early years, into every excess, leaving, 
 it to what they wisely nickname " the 
 chapter of accidents," to allot them, in fu- 
 ture, years of suffering which they have 
 well merited, or of exemption which they 
 ought to regard as a more awful warning — 
 as the dead silence which is observed by 
 naturalists to precede an earthquake. 
 
 Leaving these careless mortals to their 
 own calculations of. chances, let us con- 
 sider how we can best secure ourselves 
 against the most probable of all chances,, 
 that the harvest of old age will bear some 
 
SERMONET XLII. 21 13 
 
 resemblance to the seed we have sown in 
 Our youth. 
 
 Tlie number of persons who do not ex- 
 perience the advantages of early good ha- 
 bits, can never bear any proportion to that 
 of those who are punished by an indul- 
 o-ence in bad habits. It is matter of fair 
 wonder, if a man, who has been a drunk- 
 ard, a glutton, or licentious in any way, 
 enjoys, in old age, the comforts of the 
 sober and temperate; nor must our judg- 
 ment be formed on what we are allowed to 
 see : there is a management, well under- 
 stood in the school of vice, by which the 
 superannuated are, for a certain portion of 
 each day, nearly on a par with their neigh- 
 bours ; but, if their boasts are to procure 
 them applause, they must not be taken by 
 surprise. 
 
 But the rational, the pious man, disdains 
 even the knowledge of such resources. His 
 hand, if it be tremulous m old age, is not 
 tremulous with wine : however the func- 
 tions of nature may be decayed, he has not 
 contributed to their decay, by his own 
 faults or follies.; and, satisjfied that every 
 
214 SERMONET XLIL 
 
 thing is good which comes by the appoint- 
 ment of the Ahiiighty, he is prepared to 
 meet whatever may be the subtractions of 
 his long-enjoyed comforts. But the chances 
 are in favour of his retaining a large por- 
 tion of his comforts to the end of his life. 
 If he has done what prudence dictated, to 
 secure the blessing of health, he has reason 
 to hope that extreme sickness will not be 
 his lot. If he has used his faculties to the 
 best purposes ; if lie has kept them from 
 Tust by exercise: if he has cultivated a 
 taste for those pleasures which are to be 
 pursued without a sacrifice of conscience, 
 and enjoyed without danger of repentance ; 
 in short, if he has lived like a rational 
 being, accepting this world as a school, and 
 lookiuo' forward to another for the immea- 
 surable reward of imperfect endeavours; — 
 old age, he may hope, will be to him a 
 pleasant winter: infirmities will be re- 
 pelled or palliated by the vigour of his 
 mind, and his habits of exertion ; his af- 
 fections towards his fellow-creatures will 
 keep his life-blood warm, when the misan- 
 thrope is chilled by disgusts and suspi- 
 
SERMOXET XLU. 215 
 
 cions : in striving to assist others, he will 
 keep his joints supple ; and, in the hahit of 
 advising the inexperienced, he will pre- 
 serve his judgment ready for his own use. 
 Nor is this all: he will feel daily and 
 hourl}^ the goodness of God, in supplying 
 the place of those temporary gratifications 
 which will not last beyond their season. 
 He will find renunciations by which his 
 faith is tried, more than compensated by 
 the hope, for which the transitory joys of 
 life are exchanged : he will feel that every 
 day refines his practice and purifies his af- 
 fections; that, having passed the midway 
 between this and another world, as the 
 beauties of the one recede, those of the 
 other approach. He will even find his love 
 for the charms of Nature, as they are the 
 gift of God, increase as his taste for arti- 
 ficial pleasure decreases; and, looking stead- 
 fastly on that sun which never goes down, 
 he will, wnth humble hope, with well- 
 grounded confidence, with gratitude, and 
 resignation, " come to his grave in a full 
 age> 
 
51^ SERMONET XLIII. 
 
 SERMONET XLIII. 
 
 ROMANS, VIII. 21. 
 
 The bo?2dage of corruption* 
 
 Christianity being intended to make man- 
 kind wise unto salvation, wliichnoone can 
 ever be, who leads a life of vice and folly ; 
 the Scriptures, with all the power of rea- 
 soning and persuasion, recommend a life of 
 virtue, and prohibit a life of vice — prohibi- 
 tions which we now wish to make the sub- 
 ject of our consideration. And doubtless, 
 reflecting on the majesty of Llim who 
 gives the law, it might have been deemed 
 sufficient had he declared that he forbade 
 vice : for this no reason could have been 
 required, for who shall argue with infinite 
 power and perfect wisdom ? The decla- 
 ration, tliat such was his will, was suffi- 
 cient to establish his claim to obedience; 
 and man, if disobedient, would justly have 
 incurred the penalty of disobedience. 
 13ut the great Lawgiver remembered that 
 
StUMONET XLIir. 217 
 
 we are but dust and ashes ! and he hath so 
 done liis marvellous acts, that they ought 
 to be had in remembrance — not contented 
 Vvith declaruig, that sin w as liatcful to him, 
 he has done mucli to show the true nature 
 of sin. Thus, at one time we are told of 
 the deceitfulness of sin ; at anotlier, of the 
 timidity of sin ; and nov\^, in the words of 
 the text, of ^' the bondage of corruption." 
 In our view of the above-cjuoted expres- 
 sion, we shall not enter into any mystical 
 interpretation of it, but consider it simply 
 as implying the many disadvantages under 
 which he must labour, v. ho spends a life at 
 variance with the duties of the Gospel, and 
 consequently with the dictates of his own 
 conscience. A man, tlierefore, of this de- 
 scription must rely on it as au indisputable 
 fact, that nothing is so hostile to that 
 cheerfulness of spirits, which every one 
 must wish to enjoy, as that remorse or self- 
 reproach, which arises from the neglect of 
 moral duties; whilst, on the other hand, 
 it has been frequently observed by those 
 acquainted with the human mind, that none 
 are more cheerful than such as, pcrlvips, 
 L 
 
218 SERMONET XLIII. 
 
 living without any great share of the good 
 things of this life, pass the time which God 
 appoints them, in his faith and fear; and, 
 due allowance heing made for unavoidable 
 infirmity, in the discharge of the duties 
 annexed to their station. Of those who 
 have thus grown old, comfortable to them- 
 selves, and revered by all around them, 
 numberless instances might be adduced; 
 but, to adduce instances, would weaken 
 our argument; the experience of almost 
 every one may suggest examples. And, on 
 the other hand, what persons have seemed 
 more depressed, or less able to endure the 
 various accidents, in some cases, we may 
 say the adverse accidents of human life, 
 tlian those who have felt the truth of the 
 phrase, the bondage of corruption? — to 
 whom each succeeding year, showing more 
 plainly the vanity of all things whose ulti- 
 mate object is the world, brings with it fresh 
 reproaches, and new wishes, that the drunk- 
 enness, the profligacy, the thoughtless ex- 
 travagance, the sanction, the countenance, 
 the encouragement to vice of former years, 
 could be annihilated: when those whom 
 
SERMONET XLIII. 519 
 
 such persons as arc now described, have 
 seduced into transgression never to be 
 wiped away, shall, as it were, arise up in 
 judgment against their tempters, and ar- 
 raign tiiem as the primary cause of all their 
 sins and iniquities. Yet what is this more 
 than what every vicious man must expect ? 
 And is there any man of such unshaken 
 nerves, tliat he can say, he still, with all 
 this responsibility, maintains his serenity, 
 his peace of mind, and will proceed in 
 his career of iniquity, without being con- 
 scious of the bondage of corruption ? 
 
 Oj*, to carry our observations beyond this 
 life : — what must be the apprehensions of 
 such a person with respect to death! Con- 
 cerning the future stai:e of man, little is 
 known further than this, which Revelation 
 assures us is true, that the good are re- 
 served to everlasting happiness — the bad 
 to everlasting misery. Will not the fore- 
 bodings as to what may be his destiny, suf- 
 fice to show him the error of his ways, 
 and to prove to him, that, even in this life, 
 there is no peace for the wicked? 
 
 From these circumstances, which are no 
 L 2 
 
fSO SERMON ET XLIII. 
 
 exaggerations, we may learn to appreciate, 
 as friendly admonitions, all those phrases 
 of Scripture, which, by pointing out the 
 turpitude of sin, have a tendency to put 
 us on our guard against the arts of the 
 tempter; and happy is tha*: man, who is 
 thus contented to adopt the Bible as his 
 fiiend, without leaving it to experience to 
 render him wise. Happy is that man, who 
 does not trust to his repentance to make 
 his peace with God; but who, being timely 
 wise, remembers his Creator in the days of 
 his youth ; and who thus enables himself to 
 enjoy all his life, and not merely those days 
 which, when every external object ceases 
 to please, lie can rescue, by penitence and 
 prayer, from tlie sins which have dis- 
 oraced his former course ; who, lookins^ 
 round on the world, does not deem it good 
 or safe to sin, because the majority are 
 w'icked, but waits to see how many of 
 those who sin, would not give, on their 
 death- beds, all that the created M'^orld pos- 
 sesses, could they but erase from the book 
 of life, those transgressions which are re- 
 trorded against them, before he turns aside 
 
SERMON ET XLIH. £S1 
 
 from the ways of the Lord, or forgets \m 
 laws, but thankfully unites in the eja- 
 culation of David, ** Lord, I have loved 
 the habitation of thy house, and the place 
 where thine honour dwelleth I O shut not 
 up my soul with the sinners, nor my life 
 with the bloodthirsty. But, as for me, I 
 will walk innocently : O deliver me, and 
 be merciful to me !" 
 
 H. 
 
 L S 
 
SERMONET XLIV, 
 
 SERMONET XLIV, 
 
 ST. JAMES, IV. 5. 
 
 The spirit that dwelkth in us, lusteth to 
 envy. 
 
 There is no vice so ignorant as envy ; and 
 if the envious deserved to have their com- 
 fort considered, it might be an agreeable 
 office to persuade them that their painful 
 feelings will be annihilated, the moment 
 they get at the truth of the advantage for 
 which they envy another. It cannot be 
 denied, that riches, honours, talents, are 
 desirable possessions; but it may be assert- 
 ed, that they bear with them counterac- 
 tions that greatly abate their value. The 
 wants .of human life are, after all, so {^w^ 
 if we confine ourselves to realities, that, be- 
 yond a certain extent, riches are rather the 
 property of others than of ourselves ; and 
 we spend for the public, for our friends and 
 acquaintance, far more than for our own 
 convenience. But, as the gratification of 
 
SERMOXET XLIV. 223 
 
 vanity, ostentation, or ambition, may be 
 the purpose for which we spend, liere is, 
 to be sure, something which we may claim 
 for ourselves, if we will run the risk of 
 snatching at it. But who will dare to say 
 they envy us? The possession of honours 
 or distinctions in society places us in a si- 
 tuation of patronage that brings its pecu- 
 liar cares ; and the more dangerous gift of 
 talent has its more awful responsibility. 
 The rich are cheated, the powerful are 
 thwarted, and the wise and witty are mor- 
 tified ; and no envious murmurer against 
 the allotments of Providence, if knowing 
 the influence of these abatements on the 
 pleasure of possessing, can be reasonably 
 entitled to justification or excuse. 
 
 The last named of these gifts, the intel- 
 lectual advantage of what are called talents, 
 brings with it a sort of temptation, that 
 makes the two former, in the estimation of 
 the inexperienced, shrink into insignifi- 
 cance. Alas I how ill do they judge, wlio 
 consider them as contributing to the hap- 
 piness of life in their use ! They can be 
 used but in two ways : to amuse — what oc- 
 L 4 
 
^14 SEimOXET XLIV. 
 
 cupation so trifling ? or to instruct — and 
 what office so anxious? It may appear, 
 to those just rising into credit for any supe- 
 riority of mental power, that nothing can 
 be so honourable, nothing so gratifying, as 
 the situation of a public teacher of any 
 description. Let the disputes, the contro- 
 versies, the fashions of thinking, be consi- 
 dered ; and who would endure, without the 
 strong and blinding stimulus that almost, 
 by instinct, overleaps danger, the heart- 
 burnings, the suspension or denial of ap« 
 plause, which the learned and ingenious 
 often undergo? Would you accept the gra- 
 tification of possessing talents, if this were 
 to be your lot ? if you say, " Yes," you 
 are, it is to be hoped, of a mind too liberal 
 for envv ; 'tis honest emidation : 2*0 vour 
 way, and labour for the rising generation. 
 But in any envy, attracted by those ta- 
 lents used for the abatement of vice and 
 folly, let a secret be penetrated, and all de- 
 sire must end. Let it but be recollected, 
 that thof^e who spend half their time in 
 teaching others, ought to devote the other 
 half to teachino- themselves. 'J1iat science 
 
SERMONET XLIV. 225 
 
 which is meritorious in a scholar, is igno- 
 rance in a master ; and he who claims re- 
 spect from those whom he is instructing, 
 must be doubly, trebly cautious, that no 
 error in his own performances escape his 
 detection. 
 
 Our life, lengthened to the utmost, is, 
 with many of us, not long enough to cor- 
 rect half the evil we inherit and augment 
 by nature and our own perverse wills. In 
 teaching otiicrs, we must not fancy we are 
 discharging the duty of watching over our- 
 selves. On. the contrary, the time be- 
 stowed on the precepts of virtue, as they 
 regard others, may be subtracted from our 
 watchfulness over our own conduct ; and' 
 he who set out in life as a guide to the 
 blind, may himself, in tlie progress of it, 
 need, leading, more than they. What, but 
 the prosj)cct of CJod's displeasure, can be 
 more painfully oppressive tlian sucli a si- 
 tuation, where all eyes arc ^xcd on one ob- 
 ject, perhaps some disposed to fmd ble- 
 mishes, and where, after a life of labour 
 and fancied importance, a teacher awakes 
 to the conviction, and probably by means 
 
 L S 
 
QQ6 sermonet xliv. 
 
 not the most gentle roused to it, that, in 
 teaching others, he is in danger of being 
 himself " a cast-away ?" The probability 
 is a lesson to the possessor of talents ; — if 
 the envious would run this risk, he must be 
 envious indeed. 
 
 L. 
 
SERMONET XLV. 2C7 
 
 SERMONET XLV. 
 
 GENESIS, XXVII. 46. 
 
 I am weary of my life. 
 
 These words were uttered by the wife of 
 Isaac, in one of those fits of spleen, to 
 which her descendants, of her own sex, 
 are still, alas! but too subject. Rebecca 
 was weary of her life, because of the- 
 daughters of Ileth. What offence the 
 daughters of Heth had given her, matters 
 not. We know only that Isaac's marrying 
 two wives of the Hittites was grief of 
 mind to her and to Isaac. To the expres- 
 sion we will confine ourselves; and, ad- 
 mitting that a wife of those early ages 
 might meet with vexations exciting weari- 
 ness of that which she had not been taught 
 to regard as we regard it, we will only ask 
 ourselves whether it can, under any cir- 
 cumstances, be excusable in a Christian, 
 except under sufferings to which human 
 L 6 
 
528 SERMONET XLV. 
 
 nature is liardly adequate, to profess him- 
 self weary of life. 
 
 To get at the truth, we must consider 
 the purpose for which the Divine Wisdom 
 sent us into the world, and what is to he 
 our lot when it is fulfilled. 
 
 We were sent here, undoubtedly to pre- 
 pare us for an eternal life of happiness ; and 
 as this preparation was rendered, by the 
 fall of our lirst parents, a work of diih- 
 culty, our task is, to the best of us, ardu- 
 ous, and, to the generality of us, so severe, 
 that all the time that can be granted us, all 
 the labour we can bestow, all the assist- 
 ances we can procure, are scarcely sufficient 
 for it; and it becomes our prudence, as 
 well as our interest, to be as axonomica 
 of our minutes, as industrious in our exer- 
 tions, as earnest in supplicating for help, 
 as if we were to die in the course of the 
 present hour. 
 
 Does it need a word more to prove the 
 absurdity, tlie almost impious absurdity, 
 of being weary of the length of life? Is 
 the folly of a child so childish, when he 
 
SERMONET XLV. 229 
 
 thinks the few hours of the clay devoted 
 to his learnhig, tedious ? Is the presump- 
 tion of a youth so great, when he fancies 
 the period allowed him for fitting himself 
 for a profession, unnecessarily long? 
 
 In truth, none complain but those who 
 misuse : the industrious never find the 
 day too long; the pious never find life too 
 long. " I am ready to go when it shall 
 please God to call me;'' — " I wait with 
 patience his good time;" or, even under 
 suffering, " God's will he done !'' is the ut- 
 most latitude of speech they allow them- 
 selves ; well knowing how many have sup- 
 plicated, and in vain, at the last, for one 
 day, one hour more, to add to the work 
 of repentance, and to pray for the exten- 
 sion of mercv. 
 
 The persons most weary of life, are 
 those who either fancy they have nothing 
 to do, or who will not do what they have 
 to do. Pressed on all sides by neglected 
 duties — under such a heap of arrears, that 
 they know not v»'here to begin their per- 
 formances — the neoliiient and imniethodi- 
 cal are reasonably weary of life, because 
 
230 SERMONET XLV. 
 
 life is a perpetual scene of accumulating re- 
 proofs; while those who consider them- 
 selves as removed from the necessity of 
 exertion, are wearied by the want of self- 
 approbation ; and when we see the paltry 
 shifts to wliich they have recourse, to get 
 rid of a day, they have no occasion to tell 
 us that they are weary of life. 
 
 But if we cannot stimulate those mis- 
 led wanderers, to retrieve their lost time, 
 let us not be wanting in informing them. 
 It is not our being weary of life that re- 
 lieves us from the necessity of accounting 
 for it. Whether it has been time pleasant 
 or unpleasant to us, our use of it is re- 
 corded ; and no more than sleeping will 
 excuse an idle scholar, will our being weary 
 of the time of our probation, justify us in 
 appearing before our Judge, surrounded 
 with the infirmities of the flesh, which 
 that time was given us to overcome. If 
 our great poet makes us shudder at hearing 
 of the royal Dane, sent to his grave 
 
 " Unhousell'd, unauointed, unanneal'd/' 
 
SERMON ET XLV. 231 
 
 what ought we to dread in the prospect of 
 being called, 
 
 " No reckoning made, but sent to our account, 
 With all our imperfections on our heads ! 
 O, horrible! — O, horrible '.—Most horrible!" 
 
 L. 
 
232 SKRMOXET XLVl, 
 
 SERMONET XLVL 
 
 PSALM xxxviir. 18. 
 / will — be sorry for my sin. 
 
 Is it not Lord Bacon uho says, " every 
 age lias its vice?" He is an autboiity, in 
 opinion at least, not to be doubted : and 
 we may believe bim; and, if not bim, tbose 
 wbo bave lived before bim, and since bim, 
 and tbe bistory of mankind, tbat tbere 
 is a succession of infirmities, and worse 
 than infirmities, to wbicb buman nature, 
 in its progress to tbe grave, and to tbat 
 judgment, wbicb is to decide its lot for 
 ever, is liable and exposed; and wbicb, 
 witbout tbe counteracting grace of God, 
 must produce an accumulated task of peni- 
 tence too severe for sucb frail beings even 
 to resolve on. 
 
 How ligbtly, tbcn, do we talk, wben we 
 express our bopes, tbat tbe gloomy discon- 
 tent of old age will be accepted as an 
 atonement for tlie eagerness of vicious en- 
 
SEKMOXET XLVI. ^3S 
 
 joyment in those not yet abated in their 
 capacity of gratification, or that an in- 
 creased sensibility to interest will, in ad- 
 vancing manhood, make good the defi- 
 ciency of moral and religious principle in 
 youth ! As well might it be argued, that 
 a change of meats is synonymous with ab- 
 stinence, or that variety of dissipated plea- 
 sure is equal, in virtue, to a life of con- 
 scientious forbearance : as well might we 
 claim reward for ingenuity in disobedience: 
 as well might we hope that contrary means 
 will produce similar effects. In any thing, 
 but that in which it is most evident, such 
 fallacies would be stigmatized by the well- 
 deserved name of nonsense ; and the repe- 
 tition would not be endured by such as 
 look for truth, reason, or consistency in 
 assertions. If we would not be deceived, 
 we must believe Lord Bacon, that every 
 age has its vice; we must, therefore, in our 
 advance in life, add fresh caution to that 
 which has hitherto carried us through, with 
 any tolerable safety : and where sensible, 
 as, alas ! too many of us must be, of our 
 sad fallino^ short even of our own intentions, 
 
234 SERMON ET XLVI. 
 
 we must take up the pious resolution of 
 the Psahnist, and, without seeking subter- 
 fuges or making precedents, which never 
 existed but in our own need of them, we 
 must, while we strive to the utmost, feel 
 the conviction which prompted him to say^ 
 " I will be sorry for my sin," and act as 
 those, who, honestly ashamed of their folly, 
 and offended with themselves on seeing its 
 fruits, are sensible to the inestimable com- 
 fort of knowing there is a God, who, when 
 we hvLV^forsaken^ not bartered sin, will, on 
 our turning to him with all our heart, 
 " abundantly pardon." 
 
 L. 
 
SERMONET XhVII. 255 
 
 SERMONET XLVII. 
 
 1 ST. PETER, III. 8. 
 
 . Be pitiful — be courteous. 
 
 Christianity, being the perfect law of 
 God, comprehends all the duties that man 
 can be called upon to perform. It takes 
 a grand view of the necessities, the weak- 
 nesses, the infirmities of human nature ; 
 and then promulgates its doctrines with a 
 kind and benevolent intention of supply- 
 ing the necessities, and strengthening the 
 weaknesses, of man. In strict conformity 
 with these intentions, it requires of its vo- 
 taries, that they should ever be ready to 
 administer to the wants of their neigh- 
 bours ; — and declares, that he who but 
 gives " a cup of cold water" to him that 
 is thirsty, shall not lose his reward. Had 
 the precept stopped there, it had certainly 
 done much to alleviate the sufferings of 
 Iruman nature ; — but the religion of Jesus 
 Christ was to go much farther ; it not only 
 
£36 SERMON ET XLVII. 
 
 was to declare, that the law of charity re- 
 quired our administering to the wants of 
 our fellow-creatures, but to regulate our 
 deportment: we were not only to be piti- 
 ful ; we were not to wound by asperity ; 
 we were to be courteous : a maxim equally 
 beneficial to him who practises it, and to 
 him towards whom it is practised. For how 
 many immoral acts, how many breaches 
 of the law of Christian charity, have been 
 committed by our not observing the golden 
 maxim here given usT An offending de- 
 portment, that which is unseemly and in- 
 decorous, is not only a violation of the law 
 of good manners, but likewise of that 
 which we all have pledged ourselves to 
 obey. 
 
 Or, taking the injunction merely in a 
 moral point of view, how many friendships 
 might have remained unbroken, had not 
 some one, in a moment of petulance, sinned 
 against the rule here laid down ! The pity, 
 directed in the text, is a duty which can 
 only be practised under certain circum- 
 stances; it presupposes the sufferings of 
 another : but the law of courtesy is of ge- 
 
SEUMOXET XLVII. ^37 
 
 neral and daily use, binding on all. And 
 though many pass through the world with 
 little thought concerning their general de- 
 portment; yet, doubtless, as we are fore- 
 v\ arne<l, that, for every idle word, a man 
 shall be called into judgment, it is to be 
 understood, that the general temper which 
 Ave adopt in our converse with the world, 
 must be regulated by those laws, according 
 to which we shall be judged. , 
 
 It has been observed, that human life is 
 made up of trifles ; and, consc([uently, 
 many a mind may be deeply wounded by 
 that which he wlio gives the wound, may 
 consider but as trivial. The discourtesy 
 may not always arise from innate malig- 
 nity. 
 
 The feelings inherent in our nature, 
 were indisputably given us for wise pur- 
 poses; for what has Almighty Wisdom be- 
 stowed on the animate or inanimate parts 
 of the creation in vain ? and those whicli 
 bespeak an elevated and a noble mind, are 
 not to be violated by grossness or petu- 
 lance : they are the gift of the Deity, and, 
 as such, entitled to our respect. 
 
238 SERMONET XLVII. 
 
 Let such, however, as are disposed to 
 set at nought the precept of the Apostle, 
 learn discretion from the maxims of the 
 world, and they will find, that no man ever 
 infringes the law of good manners, without 
 drawing on himself, even from the imper- 
 fect judgment of his fellow-creatures, a de- 
 gree of censure and disgrace, which no one 
 will ever find contribute either to his in- 
 terests or his happiness. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 Cicero has most happily described politenesfs, as 
 that deportment which neither violates the dignity of 
 another, nor sacrifices our own. 
 
 H. 
 
SERMON ET XLVIIl. 239 
 
 SERMONET XLVIIL 
 
 PROVERBS, XXIV. 29, 
 
 Say not, I will do so to him as he hath dofte 
 to vie. 
 
 Ihis is a maxim of wisdom, laid down, 
 not by the divine Author of the sermon on 
 the mount; nor yet by Him, to whom Hea- 
 ven itself was revealed, and tlie glory of 
 Him who was seated on the everlasting: 
 throne, to whom angels cry unceasingly, 
 " Holy, holy, holy Lord God Almighty ! 
 that was, and is, and is to come !" but by 
 him to whom wisdom was given in a more 
 eminent degree than to any other of the 
 sons of Adam — by Solomon the king : and, 
 like many other of the maxims inculcated 
 by this ilhistrious personage, it is replete, 
 not only with exalted virtue, but also with 
 that wisdom which every man might wish 
 to practise, with a view to his interests and 
 connexions in this world. 
 
 Doubtless, upon principles of virtue, it 
 
240 SEUMONET XLVIII. 
 
 is not justifiable to say, that, because ano- 
 ther has done an injury to me, therefore I 
 will do an injury to him; for, as the injury 
 done to me was an evil act, such must be 
 the act that I should do to that person ; 
 nor does it lose any thing of the moral evil, 
 by tlie circumstance, that a prior injury 
 had been done. In such a case, it is to be 
 feared, that the mind, liabituated to do an 
 evil act in revenging a prior injur}', might, 
 at last, be brought to offer an injury : for, 
 when once the idea of evil and of the faci- 
 lity of perpetrating it, becomes familiar to 
 the mind, it is to be apprehended that the 
 actual perpetration is at no great distance. 
 The author of our text tells us, " it is 
 the glory of a man to pass over a trans- 
 gression ;" and certainly that moderation 
 which enables him to do so, is a quality, 
 which, as vulgar minds do not possess' it, 
 is a proof of a loftiness and dignity of spi- 
 rit, which excite the applause and admi- 
 ration of those who are witnesses of it ; — 
 thus a man is rewarded in this world, by 
 observing a maxim of virtue : and, if we 
 consult history, it will be found, in num- 
 
SERMONET XLVIir. 541 
 
 bcrless instances, that those minds which 
 would have endured the severest punish- 
 ments without either repining at what was 
 inflicted, or amending what w^as evil in 
 their conduct, have been subdued hy mild- 
 ness and forgiveness, which has produced 
 a greater effect upon them than any punish- 
 ment could have done; at one time causing 
 the enemy to forget his hatred, and, at 
 'Others, converting him into a faithful 
 friend. 
 
 Such are the results, in this world, of 
 obeying the precept, "Resist not evil;'' 
 a precept which, though not delivered till 
 four hundred years afterwards, was, in fact, 
 anticipated by Solomon. llefening it, 
 therefore, to Solomon, and consequently 
 divesting it of that divinity, which would 
 belong to it, if considered as the maxim 
 of Him, who, in confumatlon of its virtue, 
 when he was reviled, reviled not again ; 
 we have only considered it as it appears in 
 this world, and according to the elfcx'ts 
 it produces on our own hearts, anil the iu- 
 ^uence it has over others. 
 
 In this case, as in many besides, it will 
 
 M 
 
242 SERMONET XLVIII. 
 
 be found, that the wisdom which enables 
 a man to pass through life with honour, 
 and that which is to make him wise unto 
 salvation, are perfectly consistent ; and, 
 doubtless, he only can be called a truly 
 Avise man, who builds his house upon a 
 rock, by establishing, not merely his faith, 
 but his practice, on the firm basis of ever- 
 lasting truth. 
 
 H. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 It is to be feared, that it is the sum and substance 
 of what passes in many adult minds, that a little boy 
 made perceptible, when he gravely asked, whether 
 it was not right that he should beat his younger bro- 
 ther, because he himself was suffering under the blows 
 of an elder one. 
 
 L. 
 
SERMONET XLIX. 243 
 
 SERMONET XLIX. 
 
 '" PSALM LXXXIV. 12. 
 
 { , The Lord mil give grace. 
 
 It iiS a fair reply to those votaries of sen- 
 sibility, who overrate the feelings of hu- 
 man nature, and consider them as the an- 
 chor of our conscience, to say, that if this 
 were true, and they might in all cases be 
 relied on, the necessity of laws would liave 
 been superseded ; and it is as fair an an- 
 swer to those who consider our feelinos as 
 our misfortunes, to tell them, that He who 
 gave them, will, by his grace, direct them, 
 and by that power which rules the wilful- 
 ness of men, Avill convert wliat are to our- 
 selves sources of delight, into means of 
 obtaining his approbation. Every feeling 
 of humanity towards our fellow-creatures, 
 by taking a higher motive than our own 
 selfish indulgence, becon^iCS the perform- 
 ance of a duty. lie has given the impulse 
 in tlie Gon^ passion of our nature, the sanc- 
 M 2 
 
544 SERMOXET XLIX. 
 
 tion in his command, the reward, even 
 liere, in tlie judgment of our hearts ; and 
 all tliat- feeling of awe, of fear, of appre- 
 hension, Avhich, excited hy our fellow- 
 creatures, would be base, becomes, by the 
 operation of this grace, when turned to- 
 wards his omnipotence, only the rational 
 acknowledgment of what is due to it; 
 while those sensations of devotion, of gra- 
 titude, of affection, of confidence, of reli- 
 ance, of hope, and exclusive preference, 
 which would, if expressed to tlie w^orld, 
 place us in a situation of dangerous de- 
 pendence, are, as regarding Him, only a 
 compliance, and, at the best, an imperfect 
 one, with that of which he has an uncon- 
 trovertible right to make a demand, but to 
 which his grace gives a value, by making- 
 it agreeable to himself. 
 
 To those who, on the one hand, allow 
 no control of duty or prudence to consist 
 with genuine sensibility, it will be inform- 
 ation to warn them, that such sensibility 
 can never, in the present state of human 
 imperfection, be safe ; there is none of the 
 grace of God in their effusions : it is put- 
 
SERMON ET XLIX. 245 
 
 ting* to sea all sail, no ballast, no rudder, 
 no compass, to take our natural feelings 
 for our guides. It is asking those to lead 
 us who cannot see their way themselves ; 
 and it is, by a great folly, and for no gain, 
 to throw away the little merit of our ser- 
 vices, by saying, " I desire something, not 
 much better than caprice, for my master, 
 iu preference to an all-wise, all-merciful 
 Governor, who has taught me how to please 
 iiini, and promised^ not only his law for 
 my guide, but his grace for my support, 
 and an eternal reward, even to my imper- 
 fect success in the endeavour." 
 
 To those, who, on the other hand, me- 
 ritoriously fearful of giving way to any 
 impulse but that of a divine command, 
 would set aside our feelings as the ^' ignes 
 fatui" of our fallen state, it may be en- 
 couragement to remark on the liberal 
 bounty of our Creator, in contriving the 
 harmonious accordance of our best propen- 
 sities, duly regulated, with his pleasure. 
 The experience of others may be adduced to 
 prove how delightful is the contact of 
 Christian duty, with a frame of mind fitted 
 
24^ SERMONZT XLIX. 
 
 for Christianity ; how ecstatic is the feel- 
 ing, when, giving '^ a cup of cold water'^ 
 to rid ourselves of the agony of seeing any 
 one a-tliirst, we recollect, that here we 
 have, for our monitor, Him who could not 
 err, for our aim the pleasing our Maker^ 
 and for our requital a promise of more than 
 tliis world can bestow. 
 
 And when our feelings, not called into 
 action, are perceptible to us only as the 
 commentators on God's blessings; Avhen 
 seeing, for instance, the ocean an object of 
 dismay to some, the destroyer of health 
 and comfort to others, the grave of happi- 
 ness to thousands, and the resort of want 
 to tens of thousands, we behold in it our 
 physician, our exhilarating amusement, 
 our relaxation, an expansion of almighty 
 power that gives us an idea of the Divine 
 Majesty, the element which disdains tlie 
 intervention of a thought between us and 
 the Deity, the mean by which life is sus- 
 tained and adorned ; or, referring to this 
 our favoured isle, the bulwark between us 
 and a spirit of war never to be satiated — 
 then cur fecHngs become the voice of our 
 
5LRM0NET XLIX. 247 
 
 hearts ; and when it is beyond our power 
 to give utterance to the mixt emotion, they 
 can, in silent gratitude, witness for us, in a 
 language that Omniscience alone can un- 
 derstand, the due sentiment with which 
 we see ourselves included in tlie number of 
 those who have cause to consider, as the 
 greatest of the blessings w^e can receive, 
 that *' orace'' which alone can sanctify our 
 thoughts, our words, or our actions* 
 
 M 4 
 
24B SERMONET 1. 
 
 SERMONET L. 
 
 JOE, XI, 17, IS. 
 
 A?id thine age shall be clearer than the 710071- 
 day : thou shall shine forth ; thou shall ba 
 as the morning. And thou shall be secune, 
 because there is hope, 
 
 lo expect an old age of blessing conse- 
 qxient to a mis-spent youth, is folly and 
 presumption that needs no comment. Let 
 us rather consider what old age may be 
 rendered by the exercise of such prudence 
 as it is in the power of us all to learn. 
 
 However attached to those pleasures of 
 the world which are derived from irrational 
 indulgences, there is surely no one so 
 foolish as to deny that he deserves envy 
 who can be happier without having re- 
 course to them, than their votaries are in 
 the enjoyment of them. If we see a man 
 in better health, more uniformly cheerful, 
 possessing clearer intellects, retaining his^ 
 powers longer than any of his neighbours^. 
 
SERMONET L. 249 
 
 and are credibly informed that he owes these 
 superior advantages to his temperance, none 
 of us in our senses would prefer the gratifica- 
 tion of our palate, for a moment, to this pre- 
 eminence of happiness; because we should 
 be aware that every purpose we seek to an- 
 swer by indulgence, is obtained without it. 
 Now this freedom is one of the many pri- 
 vileges of advancing age : we can be far 
 happier without the trouble of being foolish, 
 than those whose whole time and thoughts 
 are devoted to the search after happiness. 
 Even when the acuteness of the natural eye 
 is impaired, that of the intellect is im- 
 proving in its powers. The young man 
 gallops over the turf and calls it all grass, 
 wliile the old man finds every square yard 
 more than the occupation of a day, to his 
 powers of mental exercise : he has in his 
 recollection what the other passes by: his 
 amusements are without cost or labour: he 
 is at no trouble to be happy. 
 
 But the amusements of old age are its 
 least concern. There are far higher grati- 
 fications for those who have not misused 
 their youth. The more than noonday clear- 
 
 M 5 
 
t50 SEUMONET L. 
 
 ncss of the text, and the security founded 
 on hope, mean something higher than mere 
 pastimes. 
 
 In whatever sense we understand the 
 clearness promised to old age, it must be 
 something very desirable : if it be emanci- 
 pation from the fetters of passion — if it be 
 a kicid intellect — if it be an illustrious dif- 
 fusion of light around us, it is good, and 
 n]ust !)e productive of happiness : followed 
 as this pl-ou)ise is, by tliat of shining forth, 
 and being as the morning, it is reasonable 
 to suppose the good we shall be permitted 
 to do to otliers, is to reflect back on our- 
 selves; and the security founded on hope 
 includes in itself, and will unfold to every 
 thinking mind, a state second to none, but 
 that which shall admit us to the presence 
 of our IMaker. With security and hope, 
 Mho would ask anv thino- more on this 
 side the grave? It is complete felicity 
 guarded against satiety by the admission 
 of powers of increase. 
 
 Far from n:cre speculations, the promises 
 of the text are daily made good to those 
 wUu have in time endeavoured, as far as 
 
SERMONET Z. 251 
 
 human inlirmity permits, to merit a com- 
 fortable old age : they depend on few phy- 
 sical causes : they need only that conscious- 
 ness which we may hope to be as unperish- 
 able as the soul itself; and possessing this, 
 even if we cannot make our ** light shine 
 before men," we shall be sensible to the 
 never-failing sunshine diffused over our 
 own minds ; and in a modest retrospect, or 
 even in an excusing conscience, we shall 
 feel " secure, because there is hope." 
 
 To those who have added to the per- 
 formance of duties, and an habitual regard 
 to the precepts and promises of revealed 
 religion, their honest endeavours to pre- 
 serve, as long as possible, the faculties they 
 have been intrusted with, embellishments 
 of old age are not wanting : they can climb 
 the steeps of learning, when others have 
 supinely sunk again to the abyss of igno- 
 rance : they can press forward in paths of 
 virtuous knowledge, when the idle and the 
 careless are losino; tl^.at which has been 
 forced on their attention. 
 
 An old age uniting the power of inform- 
 ing the ignorant,, and that of continuiiig, 
 u G 
 
$5$ SERMON ET t. 
 
 our own improvement in knowledge, is 
 perhaps the most enviable period of human 
 life. Infirmities, diseases give way, or are 
 disregarded under such alleviations. The 
 venerable professor of the university, re- 
 signing his chair with dignity to his former 
 scholar, and becoming in retirement the 
 voluntary instructor of children and of fe- 
 males, is in possession of a satisfaction 
 matured by time, and not inferior to that 
 ^vhich he experienced in the outset of his 
 fame. It is far more easy to shine in the 
 eyes of a multitude, than to obtain the 
 ten.perate deference of the select few; and 
 hence results a reward lor the social kind- 
 nesses of age, which youth cannot ask. 
 When a long life has been w^ll used, and 
 the world has pronounced its plaudit, the 
 veteran can retreat into the bosom of his 
 nciglibourhood, and console himself anew 
 with the gratitude and affection of those 
 whoni he has contributed to render useful 
 in their generation. 
 
 And \vithGut talents, without learning, 
 without the power of making others wise 
 according to the wisdom of this world. 
 
SJERISrONET I^ '2S3 
 
 there is an em ploy men t for the aged that 
 none otlier can undertake. To lead the 
 inexperienced in tlie paths of righteous- 
 ness, we must have proceeded some way 
 in it ourselves; and cold and lifeless, be- 
 yond the deadness of extreme decrepitude, 
 must be that heart, which Avill not feel, in 
 communicating this knowledge, a gratifi- 
 cation beyond that belonging to any other 
 mode of pleasure, or any earlier period of 
 life. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 *' I HAVE been made an old baby just now," said 
 good Dr. V. , wiping his eyes, " by a leUer, tell- 
 ing me how well one of my young men is acquitting 
 himself at Oxford. This," continued he, addressing 
 himself to an amiable girl present, " is one of the 
 pleasures of old age : and old age, take my word on 
 it, young lady, has pleasures, of which you cannot, at 
 your time of life, have an idea." 
 
 L. 
 
254 SERMONET LI. 
 
 SERMONET LI. 
 
 HEBREWS, II. 7. 
 
 T/ioii madest him a little lower than the 
 angels. 
 
 To the eloquent and animated appeal to 
 the feelings of the human heart, contained 
 in this Psalm, little seems necessary to be 
 added to rouse every dignified and gene- 
 rous mind to the adoption of that course 
 of life which it is the duty of man, and, 
 consistently with the words of the text, 
 his glory to pursue. From a contemplation 
 of the great wxnks of the creation, the 
 heavens, the moon, the stars, the atten- 
 tion is directed to man. Nor is he without 
 his dignity : — he is declared to be, accord- 
 ing to the intentions of his Maker, " little 
 lower tlian the angels :" — pre-eminent over 
 all the creatures of this world which perish 
 and rise no more, he is permitted the pri- 
 vilege of knowing, of adoring, of holding, 
 some degree of intercourse w^ith his Crca- 
 
SERMONET LT. 255 
 
 tor, and of enjoying in this life a foretaste 
 of the blessings of a happy eternity. " Tliou 
 madest him a little lower than the an-- 
 gels." 
 
 How then does the pious sentiment ex- 
 pressed in the text, affect us ? What is re- 
 (juired of man? — or what feelings are na- 
 turally generated in his mind, on reading 
 the declaration of an inspired writer, that 
 man was made '^ a little lower than the an- 
 gels?" Human pride might almost be trust- 
 ed to return a suitable answer. If a man 
 be thus gifted, let him be careful that 
 he does not disgrace himself: — if he was 
 created in the likeness of the Deity, let 
 him do nothing that may obliterate that 
 likeness : — let him not exalt his passions, 
 which were designed to be his servants, 
 into the place of his tyrants : — let him ex- 
 ercise himself in the law of God — let him 
 meditate on it, and let him " holdfast that 
 which is good," knowing that this only 
 *' will bring" him "peace at the last :" — let 
 him not seek either for profit or pleasure in 
 sin; but let him learn that the first grand se- 
 cret in the science of human life is, that sin 
 
^5S SERMONET LI. 
 
 is a fraud, a delusion invented by the father 
 of lies, to deceive all suck as choose to bar- 
 ter peace of mind, and all honourable esti^ 
 mation amongst men, for what we will not 
 dignify with the appellation of transient 
 ,pleasnre', but for that which promises to be 
 pleasure, but is, in etfect, misery. Let him 
 learn prudence from a heathen ; let him 
 say, " I will not buy repentance at so great 
 a price.'' 
 
 It is no figurativ^e language which says,. 
 that sin leads to destruction; neither is it 
 necessary to refer the destruction conse- 
 quent on sin, to any judgment that may 
 threaten us in the next world. Christianity 
 does not wait for the precarious events of 
 another life, to prove the truth of her doc- 
 trines ; even this, world will show that 
 '^ wisdom is justified of her children." It 
 may be undeniably asserted, that there is 
 no vice which does not lead to destruc- 
 tion, in some sense of the term, even 
 in this life : it injures all the powers of 
 a man's intellect — some feelings of his 
 heart, or his fame, or his fortune, or his 
 
S£RMONET LI. 2.<»^ 
 
 peace — in some way or other he is sure to 
 pay the forfeit of his folly. 
 
 Neither let him suppose that the cor- 
 ruption of the times creates any necessity, 
 or affords any excuse, for misconduct : — the 
 times, in no age or country, were ever so 
 corrupt but virtue was honoured ; though 
 perhaps it has, in a very few instances, 
 been feared. Owing to the present state of 
 the world, and the general diffusion of Chris- 
 tianity, those instances are not likely to 
 occur again : and to us who live when the 
 Gospel doctrines are established, and perse- 
 cution is no more dreaded, the sufferings of 
 those by whose blood the Gospel covenant 
 w^as sealed, should affect us no otherwise 
 than to excite our pity or to animate our 
 zeal. 
 
 Thus, resting our observations on the 
 authority of the text, that man was made "a 
 little lower than the angels," we have con- 
 tended, that it becomes him not to degrade 
 himself; that he is responsible for his main- 
 taining that rank, by the practice of those 
 virtues which the Gospel inculcates. Vice 
 being that which more essentially degrades 
 
C58 SERMONET Lt. 
 
 a man, as it destroys those great qualities 
 with which he was endowed by the great 
 Artificer of the universe, doubtless it was 
 for wise reasons that man was thus dis- 
 tinguished : the debilitating our intellects, 
 therefore, or the liardening of our hearts 
 —the sacrificing our health, our fame, or 
 our fortune, as much mutilates the grand 
 work of his hand, as the want of a limb 
 may be said to mutilate a statue; and as 
 in proportion to the beauty of the remainder 
 of the statue, will the loss of that limb be 
 deplored, so will the absence of any one 
 moral quality in the human mind be more 
 regretted, from the consideration that he 
 who is in this respect deficient, was made 
 by the Power that fashioned him — "a little 
 lower than the angels*" 
 
SERMONET Lll. 25£) 
 
 SERMONET LII. 
 
 ST. MATTHEW, XXIII. 23. 
 
 These ought ye to haxe done^ and not to leaxit 
 the other undone, 
 
 Ihere is a latent suspicion of envy and 
 ill'Will, M'liich is very easily excited into 
 action, or at least into sentiment, whenever 
 our projects of gaining credit to ourselves, 
 are thwarted by the cool prudence of an 
 uninterested observer; and on no subject 
 is it more disposed to be awake than the 
 proud education of a promising offspring. 
 Perhaps it would be just to limit it to the 
 female part of the creation; for in the 
 fashionable education of the superior sex, 
 parents seem to make " the world "serve all 
 its purposes ; and a lad is, without any 
 painful vigils on the part of a thoughtless 
 father or mother, sent out of the nursery 
 to the preparatory school, to fit him for 
 that microcosm a public one, and thence 
 launched on the reality, with a firm re- 
 
S60 SERMONET LII. 
 
 liance on ^^ the course of things'' and ^^ the 
 chapter of accidents," and large allowances 
 for, and indulgences to, not the well-con- 
 sidered corruption of human nature, hut 
 the absolute necessity of being wicked. 
 
 The father's care for daughters lias a stiil 
 more precise boundary. The hour that in- 
 duces some man, cither possessed of, or 
 knowing how to obtain, a due portion of 
 this world's goods, to make his proposals of 
 marriage, is that of parental emancipation ; 
 and, taught to wink at vice, to be silent 
 under ill-usage, and to divert her attention 
 from folly by being more foolish, a poor 
 vain, accomplished, yet ignorant young- 
 victim is made a wife, before slie has begun 
 to perceive that her previous state of daugh- 
 ter had its duties. 
 
 The anxious mother, perhaps, no less de- 
 pendent on this chance of matrimony for 
 her daughter, has still another motive to 
 stimulate her endeavours ; and, determined 
 that good fortune shall not be disgraced by 
 lier supineness, she labours indefatigably 
 to render the young females of her family 
 superior to all on the level with them.. 
 
SERMONET LIT. 2Gl 
 
 T^very thing is sacrificed to what is thoiiglit 
 improvement; and industry, excusable, if 
 not commendable, claims and receives tlic 
 world's apphiusc. 
 
 And should any one shake his liead at 
 all this care — should any one presume to 
 see misch.ief in all this excess of w^orldly 
 solicitude, the suspicion hinted at, comes to 
 support intentions wdiose character en not 
 1)6 questioned; and some sinister purpose is 
 discovered, which invalidates advice and 
 renders caution siiperlluous. Nothing far- 
 ther can be urged in excuse by tlie foiled 
 monitor, than the words of the text, which, 
 paraphrased, may adm.it all tliat has been 
 adduced, to be justifiable, yet hint that 
 something is wanting. 
 
 This " something wanting," however, is 
 the corner-stone of the building : it is that 
 which is to keep us from the world, not 
 assist to entangle us in its delusion : it is 
 that which is to render us content, not 
 emulous ; to fit us for life as it exists, not 
 as we may fancy it ; and to lead us quietly 
 out of it, rather than to enable us to figure 
 on its gaudy stage : — it is '^ something" that 
 
•262 SERMONET Lll. 
 
 must perpetually remind us of the fallen.' 
 state of our nature, make us aware of the 
 tleceitfulness of our own hearts, and keep 
 our attention active to the ceaseless neces- 
 sity of strict watchfulness. How this can 
 consist with the views of our modern fa- 
 shionahle education, is best known to the 
 architects of young ladies' fortunes. 
 
 But let it not be supposed, to the dis- 
 honour of our country, that the vices and 
 follies which present themselves for ani- 
 madversion, arc, without exception, the 
 characters of modern manners. There are 
 thousands of families in this kingdom wlio 
 prefer to fashion and celebrity, their own 
 right sense and their own quiet retirement. 
 Innumerable are the young women now 
 ijducating under pious sensible mothers, 
 with the simple view of doing their duty 
 humbly, yet cheerfully, in that station of 
 life in which they are placed, or to which 
 they may be called. To make home fairly 
 attractive, and at the same time to acquaint 
 them with the state of society; to make 
 them thankful for their own happiness, and 
 compassionate to the wants of others ; to 
 
SERMON ET LIT. 263 
 
 bound their views of worldly enjoyment 
 witliin the circle of their natural con- 
 nexions, and to point the eye of faith to 
 Heaven, under the guidance of God's Holy 
 Spirit, and in reliance on the merits of Him 
 alone who was without sin : these are the 
 points of education even 7iozv insisted on 
 by many excellent mothers ; personal ac- 
 complishments are made subservient to 
 these high considerations, and even the 
 attainment of useful knowledge is forced 
 to receive its greatest value from its power 
 to conduce to these great ends. May the 
 blessino- of God attend all such endea- 
 vours ! 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 Whoever would, without trouble, and with the 
 excitation of deep interest, judge of the sum-total 
 of a thoroughly fashionable education, should read 
 the work of an anonymous writer, entitled, ^' The 
 Age we live in." That it is the production of a fe- 
 male, is all, at present, known to the world ; nor can 
 encouragement, and the best applause, that of the 
 best people, induce her to come forward. Ihus a 
 stranger, it must be the merit of her performance 
 that excites the wish to praise, to recommend, and 
 
S:-4 SERMONET Lll. 
 
 to overcome diffidence. Such an artist must not be 
 idle v\Iien so much is to be done. '* The Age we 
 live in," is a composition of no ordinary rank ; and 
 to those who, having palled their appetites with all 
 the sweetmeats of the circulating libraries, are at a 
 loss for something they can taste, it may be a recom- 
 mendation to inform them, that it has an interest 
 which, if one reader resembles another, may leave 
 its impression for more than twenty-four hours. 
 The French artist's picture of " The Vestal" con- 
 s'pgued by her own folly to an anticipated burial, had 
 not more touching strokes than this portrait drawn by 
 tlie pen : its importance is immeasurably greater : it 
 is a product of employment that may be laid on the 
 altar, or even before the rinone of llim who will 
 Judge our works. 
 
 ,A11 that we minor mcralists can do in exhorting, 
 we must confess superseded by religion ; and it is 
 only in the hope of gaining attention by a light step 
 and a smiling countenance, that we can proceed 
 without diffidence. Much more might be eflected by 
 example. If the detail of education in the best con- 
 ducted families were more known, it might be useful : 
 but then nothing ought to be admitted but the plainejit 
 tmth. Our statement should have the fidelity of the 
 lawyer's report, and the nakedness of the j)hysician's 
 prescription. 
 
 2 
 
SERMON ET LIU. 2(>^ 
 
 SERMONET LIIL 
 
 ROMANS, XIV. 17. 
 
 For the hlngdom of God is — righteousness, 
 and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost, 
 
 It perhaps would have been difficult to 
 find terms more expressive, or more con- 
 cise, than those made use of in the text, 
 to give an adequate idea of the duties and 
 the happiness of a Christian ; for what 
 duties can he be required to perform, or 
 what happiness can he be permitted to en- 
 joy, which are not comprehended in it? 
 
 In the first place, he is required to prac- 
 tise righteousness, or, in other words, the 
 duty which he owes to his Maker, by living 
 in obedience to his laws; and this is, of it- 
 self, no small ingredient in the happiness of 
 a good man : — in the next place, he is re- 
 quired in his general demeanour to be 
 peaceable, or, in other words, of a gentle 
 spirit — not given to quarrelling or anger, 
 but regulating his conduct according to the 
 
 N 
 
OQ6 SEUMONET LI 1 1. 
 
 Apostle's description of cluiriry — " Charity 
 siiffereth long, and is kind ; charity envieth 
 not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not 
 puffed up ; doth not behave itself un- 
 seemly ; seeketh not her own ; is not easily 
 provoked; thinketh no evil ; rejoiceth not 
 in ini{{uity, but rejoiceth in tlie truth." — 
 Sucli is the temper which we are required 
 to adopt in our intercourse with tlie world : 
 a temper wbich, it must be admitted, is 
 admirably calculated to remose many ot" 
 the little evils and uneasinesses which have 
 a tendency to embitter life. 
 
 The Apostle, therefore, having stated the 
 duties of man — righteousness, which fur- 
 nishes the principles of virtue, and directs 
 the application of those principles; and 
 peace, which regulates our passions and our 
 demeanour — subjoins, in the last place, the 
 joys of the Christian, under the term, "joy 
 in the Holy Ghost." 
 
 By these words it is not necessary to 
 •understand any visi{mary or preternatural 
 gifts of the Spirit, but simply tjiat joy 
 attendant on the glad tidings of the Gospel, 
 wnich was to dissipate the clouds of error 
 
SKUMONET LI 1 1. 267 
 
 then overhanging- the whole world, and 
 '' to brhig life and immortality to light." 
 
 Such is the conduct required of Christians: 
 duties are enjoined, and joys are annexed 
 to the performance of them. Our master 
 is not a grievous tyrant, exacting painful 
 service, and not requiting the service: — 
 neither does he, when men have performed 
 what little they are able, say to them, '* Ye 
 be idle." For God reproacheth not any one. 
 But let none hope to partake of the joys 
 of the Gospel, whose lives are at variance 
 with the precepts of it. In those joys 
 what share can the vicious man have, who 
 has lost his taste for virtue ; or the man of 
 malignant passions, in whose mind all in- 
 juries are written as on a tablet of marble? 
 
 Let those, therefore, who are desirous of 
 being partakers in the joys of a piuified 
 mind, remember, that, to attain them, the 
 righteousness and the peace which religion 
 recommends are necessary. Without that 
 discipline of the heart, which the righte- 
 ousness of the Gospel inculcates, what re- 
 lish can exist for those joys which arc 
 founded on it? To depraved minds the hca- 
 
 N 'J, 
 
0,68 SEimOXET LIIT. 
 
 veil of Mahomet is better adapted : — their 
 Jife has been sensual; why should not their 
 Paradise be sensual also ? of higher joys' 
 they are incapable. But from this degraded 
 state, every true Christian will pra}^ to be 
 preserved. He will doubtless consider, that 
 nothing is more base, or more vile, than 
 sin ; and, consequently, that the Scriptures, 
 and the doctrine which they inculcate, ex- 
 alt a man to a higher rank than unassisted 
 -nature could attain to. 
 
 No great portion of worldly experience 
 is necessary to show us, that even the most 
 plausible appearances of happiness will oc- 
 casionally fail us. Not to mention the 
 death of friends, or the ill success that 
 may attend our exertions in our pursuits, 
 and honest vocations, numberless accidents, 
 not seen by any eye, and not felt by any 
 lioart but our own, may cloud the brightest 
 <lay of any one ; but he who draws his 
 happiness from the joys of the Gospel, 
 may be said to draw from a well " of living 
 water." 
 
 To this source of comfort we must learn 
 betimes to betake ourselves. We must not' 
 
^ERMONET LIU. 2^9 
 
 think, when the danger is come upon us, 
 that it is time enough then to apply our- 
 selves to God. The Jews were forewarned 
 during their idolatries and rehelHons, that, 
 when afterwards they should seek the Lord, 
 he w^ould hide his face from them ; and 
 such will be the case with all who obsti- 
 nately or carelessly reject the good prof- 
 fered them, and forbear to strengthen their 
 minds and purify their hearts before the 
 evil day arrives. The whole mass of Scrip- 
 ture was formed by a Providence as merci- 
 ful as wise ; and every part of it was de- 
 signed either for our instruction or our en- 
 couragement. We are told, " without holi- 
 ness no man shall see God;" but we are 
 told likewise, that his grace is with us to 
 direct us, and to protect us against every 
 danger and every temptation. If, there- 
 fore, a man fall, whom shall he blame but. 
 himself? 
 
 H. 
 
 N 5 
 
27# SERMONET LIV. 
 
 SERMONET LIV. 
 
 ST. LUKE, XII. 40. 
 
 Be yc — ready also. 
 
 Of all the evil we are required to take' 
 patiently at the hand of Him who best 
 knows what is necessary to bring our hearts 
 to himself, none seems, to some of us, more 
 heavy to bear than the continuance of in- 
 firm health. Acute diseases we endure far- 
 better ; for, often attended by fever, they 
 can, for a time, furnish a support for them- 
 selves ; but chronic complaints, and those 
 (Consequent on an advanced period of life, 
 seem to require, and perhaps do in their na- 
 ture require, the exertion of something more 
 than human fortitude to make them tole- 
 rable by our weak frame. Yet as instances 
 are, now and then, to be quoted of persons 
 exemplary under this species of affliction, 
 it is to be inferred that they have some- 
 thing to teach which it may be useful to 
 learn. Let us endeavour to describe the 
 
SERMON ET LIV. 271 
 
 €vil as it exists, and then consider of a re- 
 medy, or at least a palliative. 
 
 A very short acquaintance with the vari* 
 ous lots of the hunuin species, will present 
 to us various modes in which this inipa- 
 tience of our fate exists, to the increase of 
 the sufferer's affliction, and tlie discourage- 
 ment of those who would mitigate it. Ac- 
 cording as the temper is disposed to strong 
 or weak passions, at the time, the impa- 
 tience will show itself in violence of re- 
 sentment on every imagined offence, (ir 
 wounding querulousness on every uninten- 
 tional omission. Complaints of a hard lot, 
 a rejection of all alleviations, a forehodiiig 
 of future evil, a.recollection of lost ahility, 
 a.comparison of the present wijth the past 
 — all. these things fill the mind, and oh- 
 struct the avenues of comfort; and con- 
 sidered in their bearing on those who 
 would gladly serve or please, they render 
 the nurse sometimes as great an object of 
 pity as the sick person. 
 
 An acquaintance with this common in- 
 firmity of disease, of age, and even of con- 
 valescence, should, on our parts, immedi- 
 N 4 
 
S7fi SERMON ET LIV. 
 
 ately produce a cool, firm resolution, taken 
 in health, to be prepared to sacrifice even 
 the most important of all our blessings, 
 with the spirit and temper of a Christian. 
 It is too late to put this resolution in prac- 
 tice, if it is to be made on the occasion. 
 *' How shall I behave to my Maker, and 
 my fellow-creatures, if ever I am in such 
 or such a situation?"^ is a question that must 
 be previously put to ourselves, if we would 
 be ready with an answer. 
 
 It is bad oeconomy to waste that time 
 in complaint and repining, w4iich perhaps 
 is the most valuable of our lives, and 
 that on which our future state may depend. 
 Do you ask how it is to be rescued from 
 loss ? Nothing, if the mind is at liberty, 
 can be so easy or so profitable — so consoling 
 or so animating. In cases affecting intel- 
 lect, it cannot be supposed advice can be 
 given; the time, if ever it occurred, is gone 
 by ; but in languor, in privation of the 
 comforts of society, in sleepless nights^ 
 and often in painful days, there is much 
 to be done ; and even the infirmity of age 
 can console the oppressed body. 
 
SERMONET LIV. 1273 
 
 Let these considerations be resorted to 
 by those who feel it grievous to want only 
 the power of enjoying the blessings of af- 
 fluence : " I have had my share of good in 
 this world, or at least as much as Infinite 
 Wisdom and Mercy thought fit for me; 
 and there is nothing I could bear, Avhich I 
 would not prefer to being turned over, by 
 my future Judge, to a state of stupifying 
 worldly enjoyment, as if not w^orth correc- 
 tion. In these hours of suffering, I am 
 secure from adding sin to sin. I have only 
 to be thankful and patient. Every pain that 
 dimuiishes the comfort and value of this 
 life, makes me more anxious to secure my 
 situation in that which now may be not 
 f^r oft*. All that is taken out of the scale 
 of this world's blessings, is laid up for me 
 in that which contains what is far more 
 valuable. The more this world repels and 
 escapes me, the more I feel attracted to- 
 Avards another. I have time to think : I 
 am in that state of quiet leisure, the want 
 of which has been my excuse for neglect. 
 What would thousands give to change 
 places with me ? Every thing is done that 
 N 5 
 
274 SEltlMONET Lir. 
 
 can be done for me. Were I poor, or neg- 
 lected, I should say, ' If I had money 
 * or friends, I would not complain.' I have 
 both. Let me suppose I were in a sinking 
 ship, with death in all its horrors surround- 
 ing me, and recollecting the comforts I 
 have perhaps on a shore I can see, but not 
 reach — is not my state preferable? And 
 many, many are the scenes of horror in 
 which I might, but for the mercy of God, 
 be endiug my days. Otliers have left it on 
 record, that situations, such as mine, have 
 consolations which the young and healthy 
 do not imagine or care for : these must be 
 derived immediately from God : — let me 
 then seek them ; and, supported by his di- 
 vine arm, let me be studiously cautious not 
 only to avoid wearying the patience, slight- 
 ing the kindness, or depressing the spirits 
 of those about me ; but by all the active 
 exertion in my power, let me strive to set 
 an example of cheerful resignation. If their 
 courage fails under the appeal their love for 
 me makes to their feelings, it is I who 
 must re-animate it : I must, as far as' I 
 c:ui, cons ince them that I prefer the trial to 
 
SERMONET LIV. 275 
 
 which I am called, and that, whatever be 
 its event, it is that which I would choosCy 
 and that for which I am prepared. I know 
 they must follow me, therefore I ought to 
 show them that the path is not rugged : I 
 know they xvill follow me, therefore I must 
 not act as if we were parting for ever in 
 despair." 
 
 It is good, likewise, to have in our minds- 
 the sentiments of persons wiser than our- 
 selves, w hich may, by recollection, atone 
 for the staonation of our ideas. The di- 
 
 o 
 
 vines and moralists of our owui countr}^,. 
 well studied in health and vigour, will 
 furnish us ahundantly, even if our stores 
 have not been collected from foreign 
 lields. The Scriptures are the property of 
 us all : these must be in our hearts and on 
 our tongues, or we can have no claim ta 
 pity for any privation, when we have vo« 
 luntarily submitted to the greatest possible. 
 Lord Bacon, than whom no man knew 
 better what was right, ends his Essay on 
 Death with these important axioms: "A 
 mind fixed and bent upon somewhat that 
 is good, doth avert the dolours of death; 
 V 6 
 
^76 SERMONET LIV, 
 
 and the sweetest canticle Is, ' Nunc dimitth/ 
 when a man hath obtained worthy ends and 
 expectations." 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 Instead of the high-flown panegyrics with vvhicli 
 the obituaries of the day are loaded, till invention is 
 racked for new forms of extravagant praise, and at 
 last nothing is so evident as the weak vanity of sur- 
 viving friends, a little fair and circumstantial biogra- 
 phy of exemplary persons, such as might inform the 
 young and stknulate the indolent, w ould be a useful 
 acquisition. When those ^hom we have loved " till 
 life can charm no more," and feel that we must 
 ** mourn till Pity's self be dead," have sho\Mi us how^ 
 the righteous die, it would be well to know how they 
 have lived, or at least prepared themselves for death. 
 Instances crowd on recollection, of those who, await- 
 ing, in patience and resignation, the event of a tedious 
 and precarious disease, have shaped their conduct, as 
 a mariner does his course, that they might not miss 
 *' the haven wliere they would be." " 1 know my dan- 
 ger," said ^Irs. A ; " and liowever it terminates, 
 
 I am pre[>ared. If I recover, I shall consider my 
 life as lengthened that I may do more good ; if I do 
 not, I shall suppose the fit time for me to die is ar- 
 rived, and I i»liall not repine." Consistent with these 
 sentiments was her conduct ; s>he omitted notliing 
 3 
 
SERMONET UV. 277 
 
 that could spare her friends the grief of losing her : 
 though unable to make the exertions necessary for so- 
 ciety, she never gave up her interest ui it, or spoke of 
 herself as an exile from it : her amusements were 
 cheerful to those around her, without being laborioas 
 to herself : her reading, which had been of the light 
 kind, but of the purest morality, by degrees assumed 
 a bias that made her covet religious instruction and 
 sober ethics, with an avidity no licentious writer ever 
 could excite in minds best fitted to relish poison. Her 
 letters breathed a spirit of hope and submission of the 
 highest description : — she could hope to die; she could 
 submit to live :— she could hope to live ; she could 
 submit to die. i\nd in this calmness, her puriiied 
 spirit disengaged itself from its fettering companion, 
 before age had pronounced any of its usual warnings. 
 
 " I am quite ready to go," said another exemplary 
 woman, of a more advanced period of life : *' there 
 is but one thing now that vexes me, and makes me 
 willing to bear a little longer my infirmities, which 
 are indeed more troublesome to others than to my- 
 self. I cannot always command my attention in my 
 devotions ; my mind will still wander, and I could 
 wish to get over this, before I am called to give up 
 my account ; but still I know whom I have to trust 
 to — Him who, unless he had taken our nature on 
 him, I could not hope would have had all the com- 
 passion 1 need for such an habitual transgression." 
 
 Will the reader's patience bear an irrelevant anec- 
 
278 SERMaNET LIV. 
 
 dote ? This amiable useful woman, who had mind 
 enough to have apologized for inactivity, and activity 
 enough to have gone through her path of life with 
 much less mind, had a considerable part of lier funded 
 property in annuities for a limited time, and which 
 those who so arranged her income, did not suppose 
 she could reach. Cut she was still likely talive some 
 years, when they were near expiring. Of this an old 
 friend of hers was aware ; aud to relieve her from 
 anxiety, in the most liberal way he insisted on her 
 consulting his ease of mind, by alloAving him to make 
 good the deficit. Before he could commit this in- 
 tention to paper, sudden death deprived him of the 
 power and her of his assistance ; and the day was 
 approaching when the evil would be first felt. The 
 widow jof her friend, however, made it her earliest care 
 lo come to her, and to say, tliat her having heard 
 
 Mr. 's resolution on this subject, was a suflicient 
 
 obligation on her to pay respect to his memory, and 
 indulge her own feelings by carrying it into effect. 
 Here was now the merit of a good -action divided 
 between two persons without being lessened. But 
 the wisdom and mercy of our heavenly Father did still 
 more : he suffered his servants to have all the enjoy- 
 ment such kindness in intention could reflect on their 
 excellent minds — but the delicate feelings of one not 
 accustomed to pecuniary obligation, were kept sacred 
 — she died before the day of payment arrived ! 
 
 L. 
 
SER^IONEt LV. 27Q 
 
 SERMONET LV. 
 
 PROVERBS, XII. 1. 
 
 JVhoso loreth instruction^ loveth knoxvkdge ; 
 but he that hateth reproof is brutish. 
 
 Ihe text above quoted has not been se- 
 lected as pre-eminently expressive of the 
 sentiment conveyed in it, but as one among 
 many, which declare the excellence of vir- 
 tue and the superiority of a life conducted 
 on good principles, over that which is 
 founded on the corrupt inclinations of 
 man ; and the specific excellence which is 
 now to be considered, is the elegance of 
 virtue, as opposed to the rudeness, the 
 coarseness, the rusticity of vice. 
 
 For as in our deportment, and the mode 
 of using our limbs, there w^ould be some- 
 thing ungraceful, were it not that we are, 
 jnour early years, disciplined and instructed 
 to avoid what is thus inelegant, so is it 
 w^ith our minds and dispositions. Were it 
 not that religion teaches us to avoid some 
 
280 SEUMOXET LV. 
 
 things, and adopt others, our minds, our 
 principles, and our tempers would exhihit 
 as much that is offensive and disgusting 
 as any tiling that we could Observe in the 
 gesticulations of the most untutored rustic. 
 For what is the difference between the 
 manners of the rustic and those of the 
 more elevated ranks, but that the latter are 
 taught to eschew whatever is unbecoming, 
 while the former is left without any re- 
 straints whatever? And what is the differ- 
 ence between the virtuous man and the vo- 
 luptuary, but that the virtuous man is taught 
 a more elegant, a more refined mode of 
 thinking, and considers it as inconsisten.t 
 with correct and elevated sentiments to 
 offend against morals, as the most accom- 
 plished courtier can conceive it contrary to 
 *^ etiquette," to be guilty of a breach of 
 what is called good breeding? 
 
 He, therefore, who is friendly to correct 
 maimers, should, upon a principle of con- 
 sistency, be likewise friendly to religion : 
 in botli, it is a principle of refinement; m 
 both, it is the rejection of what is gross, 
 and the adopting that which is, under all 
 
SERMONET LV. 281 
 
 circumstances, good — in many cases great 
 and glorious. 
 
 The young, therefore, to whom the pre- 
 sent observations are especially address- 
 ed, as they may be supposed to be more 
 solicitous in forming their characters than 
 those of an advanced age, would do well 
 to recollect, that if their wish is to be- 
 come elegant, they ought, in fair reason, 
 to wish to become virtuous : for what vir- 
 tue does Christianity call upon them to 
 practise which does not diffuse a grace over 
 the general character? Is it respect to su- 
 periors? — is it diligence in laudable pur- 
 suits? — is it reverence to parents? let them 
 but listen to those who speak of such as 
 practise these duties, and they will no 
 longer doubt what estimation the world 
 has of them. 
 
 To say that the times are altered, that 
 these virtues are not appreciated as for- 
 merly, is to trifle with morality. At no 
 period were mankind so corrupt as to with- 
 hold their veneration or their applause of 
 that which is fundamentally good in it- 
 self. Mankind, instinctively, from a natural 
 
£S!2f SERMON ET LV. 
 
 inherent preference of good to bad, will 
 always approve the former and condemn 
 the latter. Our Saviour and his disciple* 
 liad the reverence and the applause of those 
 who sought to put them to death ; but in 
 our days, when no persecution is to be apr 
 preliended, the virtuous are at liberty to 
 be virtuous without incurring any risk. The 
 royal Psalmist says, *' Wherewithal shall a, 
 young man cleanse his w ay ? even by ruHng 
 himself after thy word." And the writings- 
 of Solomon are replete with admonitions 
 to young men, supplying their inexperience^ 
 with the result of his wisdom ; in order 
 that they may not be left to remorse when 
 they contemplate the baseness, the worth- 
 lessness, the grossness of sin. 
 
 In what has been said, no propensity 
 to sin, as previously influencing the mind, 
 has been supposed to exist. The text 
 shows that sin, superadded to its moral de- 
 pravity in the eyes of God, is likewise, in 
 the eyes of all who can judge of it, odious, 
 gross, and inelegant; as it may generally 
 be referred to the lowest passions when un- 
 restrained by regard to the duty which we^ 
 
seMionet lv. 1^83 
 
 mve to God, to our neighbour, and to our- 
 selves. 
 
 No one will contend, that when sin 
 takes possession of the mind, though it 
 comes recommended by the soft phrase of 
 a *' fashionable failing," or a " juvenile 
 indiscretion," it is less sin, or less odious, 
 on that account : — what it is inherently, it 
 will still continue to be : sin it is, and sin 
 it always will be. Neither let it be sup- 
 posed, for it would be to adopt a most la- 
 mentable error ! that he who indulges in 
 this " fashionable failing," this " juvenile 
 indiscretion," merely indulges himself in 
 this one foible, and that it proceeds no far- 
 ther. When sin is admitted, w^ho can tell 
 how far the taint may ex. tend? The in- 
 dulgence of avarice, of prodigality^ and of 
 every vice, bring'S with it a train of con- 
 comitant evils, in number beyond all cal- 
 culation : — and the Vices might, like the 
 Sciences, be painted hand in hand, to de- 
 note that no one of them could be admitted 
 to the exclusion of her sisters. When the 
 sceptre is once in the hand of Sin, no eye 
 can see how fnv her tyranny may extend. 
 
!284 SERMONET LV. 
 
 or what iniquity her votary may be com- 
 pelled to commit. How many are therer 
 who have been allured, though but in an 
 individual instance, to abandon the fair 
 path of virtue, who steadily intended, after 
 this slight deviation, to return again ; but 
 who, bewildered in their deviation, have but 
 wandered on in their error, and have never 
 recovered that which they once quitted ! 
 till, at last, their minds have sunk down ta 
 the level of the situation to which they 
 were reduced, and no vice could shock 
 them by its enormity or its grossness. 
 
 No one, therefore, can sufficiently appre- 
 ciate that purity of mind which is equally 
 the prerogative and the bulwark of virtue; 
 and he who would seek to destroy it, or to 
 weaken it, is alike ignorant of human na- 
 ture, and an enemy to its best interests. 
 It was a protection given to us by the Al- 
 mighty himself, when he sent us into this 
 world ; and happy is he who, when tempt- 
 ation assails him, is wise enough to make 
 that purity his instructor to teach him his, 
 duty. 
 
SERMONET LVI. 28,7 
 
 SEMIONET LVI. 
 
 1. 
 And God spake all these words. 
 
 iNoNE of us can be at a loss to know or to 
 recollect what words are here meant. Tliey 
 are what are called, " The Ten Command- 
 ments/' which the Almighty, in his imme- 
 diate government of the Jewish people, de- 
 livered to their leader Moses, and vliich, 
 tlnoLigh addressed to the children of Israel, 
 our Saviour tells us, he came, " not to de- 
 stroy, but to fulfd." 
 
 Of these commandments, some, when 
 understood in their original limited sense, 
 must seem superfluous to us, who have ac- 
 cepted the terms of Christianity. We may, 
 in the self-congratulations of human pride, 
 thank God that zve are in no danger of 
 polytheism or idolatry, and conceal from 
 ourselves the Pharisaical character of our 
 boast, by admitting, with aflected can- 
 dour, that a few unwary expressions, which, 
 
286 SERMONET LVI. 
 
 after all, we persuade ourselves mean no 
 harm, may escape our lips, and a little in- 
 fringe the letter of that which forbids 
 *' taking God's name in A'ain." — '^ Sunday," 
 Ave may say, " cannot always be set apart 
 so strictly as we wish for religious ob- 
 servances ; such punctilious regard must 
 be dispensed with, in people who live in 
 the world ; and, indeed, it was for the pur- 
 pose of making this yoke light, that Christ 
 came upon earth.'' — " As to honouring fa- 
 thers and mothers, much, we are convinced, 
 depends on parents themselves; if they are 
 honourable, tliey will not fail of honour; 
 but if they are impediments to the happi- 
 ness of young people, or choose to enve- 
 lope themselves in singularities, they must 
 even take their chance." — '' With regard 
 to murder, unless duelling or suicide be 
 voted murder, we are in no danger ; and 
 the one being absolutely necessary, and the 
 other consequent on the nature of things, 
 for which we are not responsible, we may 
 hope to escape this censure, especially since 
 a most logical argument has been brought 
 forward (with a most laudable intention^ 
 
SERMON KT LVl. 28? 
 
 no doubt), to prove that a man's sacrificing 
 hinhself for the good of another, is suicide." 
 — " The seventh commandment stands 
 pretty much on tlie ground of the fiftli ; 
 the marriage-vow, hke filial obedience, has 
 two contracting parties. If persons who 
 luive solemnly at the altar, and in the face 
 of God, undertaken to spend tiieir lives in 
 tlie closest union, have no real or imao-i- 
 nary cause of complaint; and if tliey do 
 not chance to meet with somebody they 
 fancy they could like better than their le* 
 gal partner, they must observe this com- 
 manchnent; but it is to be supposed that 
 a beneficent Being meant his creatures to 
 1)6 happy in their own way; therefore, every 
 one must judge for himself." — " Stealing is 
 not a fashionable vice; it is confined to 
 those who have that wretched disease, the 
 cac< cthes habendi, which now and then is 
 heard of in shops, but never can gain 
 ground amongst liberal psople." — '' Bear- 
 ing false witness, can mean only perjury ; 
 as for reports to the injury of others, they, 
 too, must take their chance : and, if covet- 
 ing be a heinous offence, who can be iuno- 
 
2^8 SERMONET LVI. 
 
 cent ? and why were the good things of 
 this world made so attractive r" 
 
 Alas! alas! what reasoning is this? Can 
 we, the professed followers of Christ, 
 adopt, or even listen to it ? True, indeed, 
 our blessed Lord came to lighten our yoke; 
 he came to exchange servile fear for gene- 
 rous obedience ; but the commandments 
 are still in force • and whoever fancies that 
 the indulgence of a master-passion can con- 
 sist with the worship of the One true God, 
 has, as far, as is in his power, rendered 
 himself a polytheist and an idolater. Pro- 
 fane use of our Maker's name, is still, as 
 much as ever, a breach of the command 
 against taking it in vain ; and, unless we 
 can persuade ourselves that He who in 
 mercy says, ** I will not take all," means 
 to say, " I will take none," we cannot sup- 
 pose the observance of the Sabbath dis- 
 pensed witli. Parents are still to be ho- 
 noured, be they what tliey may. IMurder 
 is committed whenever we risk the life of 
 another by negligence, of which we are 
 aware, or obstinacy, of which we will not 
 be convinced. 
 
SERMONET LVL ^S9 
 
 The marriage-vow is not to be taken 
 with any grains of allowance, either for 
 change of sentiment or the chances of new- 
 objects. And all appeals to the caprice of 
 fortune, all contraband trade, all over- 
 reaching, all endeavours to get what we 
 wish for, at less than a fair price, are, in 
 motive and essence, thefts ; not to mention 
 the as frequent infringement of the com- 
 mand, by incurring debts without the in- 
 tention, or a prospect, of payment. The 
 emulation of the present day is too much 
 of kin to the covetousness proscribed ; and 
 whoever, in v-ying with his neighbour, in- 
 curs a laro-er debt than he can discliarLre, 
 at the same moment breaks two comriiand- 
 ments. Conlined to courts of law, as 
 seems the probability of l:>earing false wit- 
 ness, it is the unthought-of vice of every 
 day. From the political oppositionist, who 
 seeks to persuade the mob, that those 
 who are fio'htinii" their battles mean to cut 
 
 CD O 
 
 their throats, and tiKit views, as low as his 
 own, arc tlie liigliest that can call forth 
 the toijjni^' exnrtion of him M'hose pli^;'^ 
 he \vr,\i\i] Uil : t'owii <o i he f!iscar(!cf! ^V'.vi i % 
 
't390 ^ERMOKET XVI. 
 
 nvho, Gil the threshold, asserts that he kaves 
 mo honest man behinjd him, is this prac- 
 tice prevalent. Who now can be deluded 
 hy the notion, that he has little concervi 
 -with the comm^ndnients given to the 
 Jevys? 
 
 Such is the foundation of the virtues we 
 are -called on to practise, in coimteraction 
 to the yices against which the command- 
 mients were directed, that we cannot stir 
 wthout hitting oxir foot against some cor- 
 3ier-stone, on vyhich they are supported.. 
 It requures so many vices to make up one 
 act of sin, that we have many more guards 
 to defend, than, enemies to attack us; more 
 ^varnings than sudden surprises. 
 
 When our Saviour tells us, that we ar€ 
 to love the Lord our God as much as is 
 possible, his injunction may, indeed, be 
 <:alled the fulfillino; of the law. There can 
 he no fear from straying affections, where 
 heart, soul, mind, and strength, are all de- 
 voted to one object ; and to feel offended 
 when cautioned against choosing any other 
 ol^ject of adoration than God, is, perhaps, 
 ihe least reprehensible offence a Christian 
 
SERMOXET LVI. 2^1 
 
 can feel. " Whom have I in heaven but 
 thee? and there is none upon earth that I 
 desire in comparison with thee/' is the re- 
 plyiug sentiment. 
 
 But, alas ! there is no one of the com- 
 mandments given to the children of Israel, 
 which the world, or we the most enlight- 
 ened part of it, do not need to have per- 
 petually repeated; and to every one of these 
 belongs a ramifying character, a wide 
 reaching to unsearched corners and deep 
 recesses of the heart, sufficient to put on 
 their guard all who have not, till now, 
 considered how much more lie who framed, 
 these laws knew of what was in man than 
 he does himself. The voluntary confes- 
 sions of those about to pay to the laws the 
 fbrfeit of their lives, prove that taking- 
 God's name in vain, breaking the Sabbath, 
 dishonouring parents, forming illicit con- 
 nexions, accusing others to screen them- 
 selves, and coveting their neighbours' 
 goods, has been, in numberless cases, the 
 course by which the mind has been led to 
 brave the ignominy of detected thefi : it 
 may, therefore, be concluded that these 
 o 2 
 
SI92 SERMONET LVI. 
 
 roots of evil possess a property not com- 
 mon to the vegetable productions of na- 
 ture — tliat of ripening seeds of plants dif- 
 ferent from themselves. 
 
 The greatest care, then, is demanded 
 of us to prevent the flowering and fruiting 
 of vice, since we cannot tell how rank may 
 be the poison of its ultimate production. 
 We know not, perhaps, half the reasons our 
 gracious God had for issuing the negative 
 commandments: he might foresee the most 
 desperately active, complicated crimes in 
 a single transgression; and he might know, 
 what experience has taught us, that it is 
 impossible to sin in one single point. When 
 our Saviour says, that he who breaks one 
 commandment is guilty of all, we cannot 
 suppose he spoke without a precise mean- 
 ing. We may not be polytheists, in the 
 strict sense ; we may not be idolaters like 
 those nations whom tlie Jews were com- 
 manded to extirpate; we may not be per- 
 jured; we may not follow our lucrative oc- 
 cupations on the Lord's day ; we niay not 
 say to our parents. This is '* Corban,'' that 
 is to say, a gift to God, therefore not to 
 
SERMONET LVI. ^293 
 
 be given to you ; we may not have taken a 
 life; we may not have broken the marriage - 
 vow ; we may not rob ; we may not bear le- 
 gal false witness against our neighbour; we 
 may not have wished to possess, without a 
 purchased right, the propcrt}^ of another; 
 and yet we may, in spirit, have broken the 
 wliole law. 
 
 L. 
 
 o 3 
 
!294 SERMON ZT LVII, 
 
 >5ERM0NET LVII. 
 
 St. LUKE, XVI. 9,5. 
 
 But now he is contorted, and thou art 
 tormented, 
 
 1 HE parable of Dives and Lazarus, though 
 it has often been made the subject of reli- 
 gious instruction from the pulpit, seems to 
 have been very seldom considered with that 
 close attention to the strict letter of the 
 text, \vhich fair exposition requires. In 
 general, we have heard the character of 
 'Dives loaded with numberless crimes : he 
 was cruel ; he was hard-hearted ; he was 
 voluptuous; whilst, on the other hand, 
 Lazarus has been dio'nified with ten thou- 
 sand qualities, all calculated to aw^aken 
 sympathy and affection. For the one or the 
 other of these characters no authority 
 whatever exists. If, in the explaining of 
 any Scripture-text, he who explains is at 
 liberty to add, from his own invention, 
 whatever he may think necessary, he may 
 
SEK^rONET LVIK 2.<}> 
 
 Gall his explanation what he pleases ; but 
 i^t is not Scripture. In the present case,- 
 and, indeed, in every other, he is restricted 
 to that Avhich he finds written, and not air 
 iota farther is he permitted to go. The 
 story tells us, that a certain man was rich,, 
 and lived sumptuously; and that a certain 
 other man was poor, and begged to be fed 
 with the crumbs which fell from the rich 
 man's 'table : that they both died : the rich 
 man was conveyed to a place of tor men t^. 
 and the poor man to everlasting happiness : 
 and it is remarkable, that in the reason as- 
 signed for this difference in their destiny, 
 nothing seems to turn upon the merits or 
 demerits of the one or the other; but 
 it is simply said, " Son, remember that 
 thou, in thy lifetime" (addressing the rich 
 man), " receivedst good things, and like- 
 wise Lazarus evil things ; but now he is 
 comforted, and thou art tormented." A 
 sentence which refers solely to the worldly 
 state of the two persons, without any allu- 
 sion to their virtues or their vices. 
 
 For any thing that we know to the ccn- 
 ti'ary, Lazarus might have been very will- 
 o 4 
 
QQ6 SERMONET LVII. 
 
 ing to change worldly circumstances with 
 tlie rich man, and the wealth of Dives 
 might, perhaps, have come to him without 
 any imputation. The v. hole parable refers 
 merely to the situation in which they both 
 were; and no farther may we go for a so- 
 lution of any difficulty that may present it- 
 self. 
 
 It is, perhaps, not too fanciful to sup- 
 pose, that under these two characters the 
 Jewish and the Gentile church might be 
 portrayed. The rich man might be a type 
 of the flourishing and established state that 
 the Jewish church had long enjoyed ; and 
 lazarus, with his sores, might represent the 
 distressed condition of the Gentiles, before 
 the advent of Him who came " with heal- 
 ing on his wrings ;" but with any typical 
 allusion of this kind it is not necessary, at 
 present, to trouble ourselves ; we take the 
 story as we find it. With the restrictions 
 which have been before mentioned, the 
 text seems to admit this interpretation. 
 Intending to state the physical effects of 
 the world, and its pleasures, and its occu- 
 pations, on the mind, which render it less 
 
S£RMONET LVII. 297 
 
 arv^'-ake to the concerns of futurity, the di- 
 vine Author of the parable introduces a 
 person rich in his possessions, and sump- 
 tuous in his Hving; and, on the other hand, 
 wishing to show how the absence of the 
 good things of this world acts upon the 
 mind, describes a poor diseased man : and 
 as the mind of the rich man would not be 
 in such a state as to qualify him for being 
 received into heaven, the sequel represents 
 him consigned to everlasting -? torments; 
 whilst the mind of the poor man, not being 
 sophisticated by the pleasures of this world, 
 would be fit for the kingdom of Heaven. 
 And here no greater difficulty occurs than 
 in the text, " Blessed are the poor in spi-^ 
 rit." From the whole history of the Gos- 
 pel, we may infer how much more willing 
 the poor were to accept it than the rich ;, 
 and thus it is reasonable to suppose that 
 Lazarus might possess that spirit which the 
 rich man had not. 
 
 But let not any one conclude, that the 
 possession of riches, in this our day, neces- 
 sarily involves a man in a sentence of con- 
 demnation ; in speaking of the effects of 
 o 5 
 
29B SEnMONEt L'S^t. 
 
 A^ealtli, the term physical has been applied, 
 as what wealth may naturally be expected 
 to produce. But since the time when this 
 parable was delivered, much has been done 
 to res'cue man from many of the dangels 
 and evils that beset him: Christianity is 
 now established : the third Person of the 
 Trinity has been sent from Heaven to sanc- 
 tify the elect of God; and many of the vir- 
 tiie^, to which human njliture could ne\''er 
 have attained by its own unassisted exer- 
 tfeti, have been plated within our reach by 
 the gracious aid vouchsafed to us from 
 above. How many thousands are' there, 
 in this happy land, whose hearts and whose 
 p^irses are ever open to the calls of huma- 
 nity ! who, giving in secret, may hope, 
 that " He who seeth in secret" shall here- 
 after '' lieward them openly.'^ Our Sa- 
 viour's parable was formed upon the state 
 of the world when he uttered it : all were 
 then children of wrath ; for then no atone- 
 ment had been made for sin ; neither had 
 the Comforter descended, by whose opera- 
 tion all were to be sanctified. 
 
 Happy are those, who, by not resisting 
 
SERMON ET LVII. 299 
 
 the Spirit, have been so far sanctified, that 
 they can hope, in some degree, to practise 
 those virtues which Christianity enjoins, 
 and who. possessing great wealth, and con- 
 sequently great means of beneficence, apply 
 it in the way most acceptable to Him who 
 bestows that and all other blessings, in do- 
 ing good, in feeding the hungry and 
 clothing the naked ; who, in the midst of 
 numberless comforts, acknowledge the 
 hand whence they receive them ; and who 
 may be truly said to convert these snares 
 and temptations to sin, into steps to attain 
 that happiness ancl that glory which were 
 '* prepared from the beginning," for those 
 who were ultimately to be admitted " into 
 this joy of their Lord." 
 
 o 6 
 
500 SERMONET LVni, 
 
 SERMONET LVIIt, 
 
 1 CORINTHIANS, XIV. 1. 
 
 Follow after charity. 
 
 Hackneyed as is the subject of charity, 
 something yet remains to be said, to bring 
 it into common use. Let us see how its 
 various characteristics may be incorporated 
 Avith our daily deportment, in our inter- 
 course with the world. 
 
 No one, in this enlightened age, will 
 need to be told, that the charity of St. 
 Paul has no relation to that which is prac- 
 tised in our streets, or that we may be 
 eminently charitable, when ourselves in a 
 state rather to receive than to give. Pass- 
 ing by these possibilities of erring, we will 
 consider charity under all the lights the 
 Apostle has aiforded us, to discover it when 
 genuine, and detect it when spurious. For 
 the information of the inexperienced, and 
 to direct those who need only to be taught 
 what is right, to cuter on the practice of 
 
SERMONET LVIII. 301 
 
 it, we must descend to very minute con- 
 struction, and a close application of St. 
 Paul's general assertions to particular and 
 very ordinary cases. 
 
 The first characteristic of charity is, that 
 it " sufFereth long, and is kind." The trial 
 of this ability, in common life, often comes 
 from those with whom we live. Various 
 tempers produce in others various vexa- 
 tions : the petty malignity of some, the 
 irritating habits of others; the provocation 
 that our own faults, and, alas! we may say 
 even any little superiority of talent or me- 
 rit, will give, and which recoils on our- 
 selves ! — the thousand ways of manifest- 
 ing the hostility of human nature, and the 
 ten thousand ways of being disagreeable, 
 call for all the graces of charity to tolerate 
 them ; and those who can accomplish this 
 important victory over their own feelings, 
 whether culpable or excusable, and retain 
 a kind, benevolent disposition towards the 
 aggressor, are not only commendable, but 
 happy. It is a superiority of satisfaction 
 worth attaining ; and, above all, to attain 
 it, or endeavour at it, is an indispensable 
 
30Q SJEiiiviroNET LVrit. 
 
 part of bur duty. A great assistant in the 
 task is the cultivation of a spirit of cheer- 
 fuhiess, and a firm resolution not to be. dis- 
 turbed by trifles. On the contrary, any 
 encouragement given to a morbid sensibi- 
 lity, is so much deducted f'om our power 
 to please our Maker by our obedience. 
 
 " Not to envy," is a feature of charity. 
 If envy were not as much a folly as it is 
 a vice, in vain would be all preaching 
 against it. But most truly may it be said, 
 that nothing can so entirely rob us of all 
 pretensions to love and respect, as the sub- 
 jection to this base, this ig-norant feeling. 
 Its best punishment is its indulgence ; its 
 readiest cure, an extended knowledge of the 
 world. 
 
 If " charity vaunteth not itself," all 
 egotizing, all atternpts, whetheV veiled or 
 unveiled, to procurie to ourselves applause ; 
 all boasting of talents, of wealth, of dis- 
 tinctions, with ev^ery other adroit art of 
 self-exaltMion, must be renounced, or we 
 are ambhgst the uncharitable. Neither 
 must we be elated with praise wl^.en de- 
 served, or with honour wheu acquired. 
 
SERMON ET LVllt. 303 
 
 Flattery must have no sufferance beyond 
 that enjoined by charity ; and the chilling 
 recollection of our own fallen nature must 
 mitigate the scorching rays of an ignorant 
 or insidious adulation. 
 
 If ^* charity doth not behave itself un- 
 seemly," we nuist suppose its voice soft, 
 its gestures modest, its expressions divested 
 of all vehemence, its manners refined. If 
 it " seeketh not its own," it is content when 
 the credit it might claim is bestov/ed on 
 anotlief ; and in any failure of what is due 
 to it, more concerned to hide than to ex- 
 pose the error. If it is *' not easily pro- 
 voked," and ''' thinketh not evil," it is the 
 last to understand or to suppose an affront : 
 it is not of importance to itself sufficient 
 to keep its own interests always in view ; 
 and it therefore does not readily compre- 
 hend itself as the object to anotliier. 
 
 When it " rejoiceth not in iniquity," it 
 does not anticipate the defects of its neigh- 
 bour : it does not prophesy mistakes or 
 misconduct ; it is not employed in bearing 
 about the evil tidings of anotlier's disgraoe. 
 Having no pleasure " in iniquity," it ha^ 
 
304 SERMONET LVIII. 
 
 no interest in disclosing it, but turns, sick- 
 ening and disgusted, from the obtrusion of 
 vice on its attention. Its rejoicing is re- 
 served for ^' the truth ;" and when that is 
 made manifest, and triumphs over false- 
 hood, then its rejoicing is great indeed. 
 
 While it " beareth all things," and " be- 
 lieveth all things," it does not make itself 
 base by mean condescensions, or contemp- 
 tible by credulity; but it offers to view the 
 high considerations that overcome the pal- 
 try feehngs of mortals unassisted by reli- 
 gion : and it professes its disposition to be- 
 lieve, in terms that have often confounded 
 the liar. By " hoping all things," it gives 
 the yet unstable in righteousness, time to re- 
 cover from a false step; and by "enduring 
 all things," it makes the injustice of the 
 world profitable to its own future reward. 
 
 When we are told, that it " never fail- 
 eth," we have the word of God through 
 his inspired Apostle, that no repentance can 
 attend our sacrifices to this compendium of 
 Christian virtues. Be its consequences 
 here what they may ; be its inconveniences 
 all that a corrupt world can throw in its 
 
SERMONET LVIII. 305 
 
 way; be it contemptible to the violent and 
 foolishness to the cunning, still it shall not 
 fail of its requital hereafter. 
 
 Nor even amongst the worthy of our 
 own age and nation, shall it lose its value; 
 for every one, capable of judging of mo- 
 rals or manners, will be sensible to the re- 
 sult of a character composed of such fea- 
 tures, however ignorant of its genuine con- 
 struction ; and he who apj^roaches the 
 nearest to St. Paul's portrait, will be ac- 
 knowledged by every term of fancy or of 
 fashion, ** the best-bred person" of their 
 acquaintance. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 We must not be dejected, when, after our best 
 erdeavours, we find ourselves still short of this glo- 
 rious standard : we must persevere ; we must strive 
 dail)' ; we must overcome the evil of our minds, by 
 forcing good on them. When we would disparage, 
 we must find something to praise ; when we would 
 resent, we must recollect the juster resentment of 
 God towards us; when we would make ourselves the 
 object of attention, we must say, '' Get thee behind 
 me, Satan !" when we could rejoice in the disgrace 
 
306 *feRMONEt LVllI. 
 
 of others, or envy their honours, we must call up^ 
 feelings of self-abhorrence. In short, by a regular 
 system of counteraction we must gradually change bur 
 nature. 
 
 But nothing must induce us to believe the virtue of 
 charity, in all its branches, unattainable, or dependent 
 entirely on a conformation of the material part of us. 
 It is practised every day, by many who have had, at 
 first, the same difficulties as those which discourage 
 us, to overcome. Some true recital might be ap- 
 pended to every article of its description. Ooe must 
 suffice, and this attaches to " the hope" that it prac- 
 tises. 
 
 After a large dinner-party at the house of Mr. 
 " , a silver salver was missing, and suspicion fell 
 upon a lad newly taken into the family as a servant : 
 he was examined, but he persisted in denying all 
 know ledge of the loss, though he owned having had 
 the piece of plate in his hands, and in his custody. 
 No interrogation could make him confess more ; and 
 he seemed to add lying and hardened obstinacy, to 
 theft. Nobody but his master had any doubt of his 
 guilt ; and prudence dictated his dismission. His 
 master added no severity to his punishment : he en- 
 couraged him to refer any new employer to him ; 
 and, when called on to speak to his morits, he re- 
 vealed the circumstance ; at the same time stating the 
 suspension of his own belief. The lad was not re- 
 jected ; common cause was rather made between his 
 
SEILAIONET LVIIT. 507 
 
 old and new master, to protect hini tVom desperation 
 and from ruin. 
 
 The time of year not calling for the decorations of 
 the table, some time elap^^d before the matter was 
 revived : but at the very next occasion of opening the 
 plate-chest, the salver dropped from the foot of a 
 bread-basket, which had been heedlessly set down on 
 it, and had carried it away in a hasty movement : it 
 had fastened itself into the hollow, and there it had 
 
 remained. Mr. , it is scarcely necessary to add> 
 
 omitted nothing that could exculpate the lad. Va- 
 luable as was his acquittal to himj more valuable is 
 the story to us. 
 
 Gf a very different school was the nobleman, to 
 whom the following authentic anecdote belongs. la 
 a coffee-house in Holland, Lord — accidentally 
 met the Earl of , the straitness of whose 
 
 finances was no secret to him. He entered into con- 
 versation with him, during which he had the ungen- 
 tlemanly indiscretion to produce a bank-note of largs 
 amount, which he challenged the Earl to match. 
 The revenge to which he exposed himself was fairly 
 taken, by the drawing out a little shabby pocket-book, 
 and producing from it a bill with a receipt to it. 
 The Earl contented himself with saying, " I believe 
 your Lordship will find it as difficult to match this." 
 
308 SEKMONET LIX, 
 
 SERMONET LIX. 
 
 ST. LUKE, II. £9, SO. 
 
 Lord, now let test thou thy servant depart in 
 peace, according to thy word\ for mine eyes 
 have seen thy salvatmi. 
 
 Such were the words of the pious Simeon, 
 who had been permitted to hve to see Him 
 who came into the world to be the Saviour 
 of the whole human race! He who uttered 
 them had reached a very advanced age, 
 most probably in the earnest expectation 
 of the appearance of the Messiah, — which 
 expectation was now realized ; and having 
 been the witness of this great event, he is 
 prepared to die ! There is much in the 
 text that addresses itself to the feelings of 
 every one; for who is there who would not 
 wish, when his life, be it long or short, 
 is drawing to its close, to depart in peace? 
 Mankind hav^e, generally speaking, great 
 apprehensions of death ; but a philosopher 
 of our country has observed, that these ap- 
 
SERMON ET LIX. 309 
 
 prehensions mther resemble the fears of 
 children to go in the dark, than any innate 
 rational fear,, as there are many passions of 
 the human mind that make us either defy 
 or wish for death. 
 
 The influence which the text should 
 have on us, is to recommend the enviable 
 temper and resignation which Simeon seems 
 to have been possessed of; and it may be 
 hoped, it is not above our reach ; as there 
 seems no reason to suppose, that — in this 
 respect at least — Simeon was " favoured of 
 Heaven so higlily/' that what was grant- 
 ed to him, must be unattainable bv us. 
 But it by no means follows, that, if it be. 
 attainable, it is so without some exertions, 
 some care, on our part. To die like the 
 righteous, we must live like the righteous; 
 to die in peace, we must live in peace ; to 
 depart like Simeon, we must live, as we 
 may suppose Simeon had lived, else must 
 our hope he vain. " Do men gather grapes 
 of thorns, or figs of tliistlcs ?" We must 
 have lived in conformity to the law of Him, 
 whose grace alone can enable us to die in 
 
310 SERHONET IIX. 
 
 peace, before we can expect or have a claim 
 to this high prerogative. 
 
 But, let any one observe how few there 
 are, who seem, in their various occupations, 
 to bear in mind the probability of the 
 peace or the trouble of their latter end. 
 How many are there, whose v/hole da}^ is 
 spent in one continued succession of vice 
 or folly ! with whom the certainty of a 
 future state, and all that revealed rehgion 
 has communicated to us concerning it, is 
 of no more weight or authority than a fairy 
 tale! What reasonable hope have such per- 
 sons of departing in peace -^ 
 
 Of the text, it may be observed, that he 
 who uttered it does not make it a prayer, 
 tliat he may depart in peace ; but, probably 
 from a conviction that his life had been 
 such as justified the expectation, he breaks 
 out into the fervent anticipation of that 
 which awaited him, *' Lord, now let test 
 thou thy servant depart in peace." 
 
 To the above may be added, that tlie 
 
 peace which attended Simeon's death was 
 
 not the stupor of indifference and insensi- 
 
 bihty. He had, in pious hope, waited the 
 
 5 
 
SERMOXET LIX. 511 
 
 "Coming of Jesus CItrist; and that event 
 having happened, he was permitted to de- 
 part. Those, therefore, who affect by au 
 insensibility, which they are pleased to dig- 
 nify with the name of magnanimity, to 
 show themselves superior to the apprehen- 
 sions of death, may, at least, learn that the 
 peace of Simeon arose from his piety, and 
 not from a disregard of that which is most 
 ■awful and most important. They may 
 learn that true religion, at the same time 
 that it speaks, tremendous truths of the 
 power and avenging arm of Omnipotence, 
 can confer resignation and hope on him 
 from whose eyes this earthly scene is about 
 to vanish forever; and, disdaining to de- 
 lude its votaries with unfounded ideas of 
 security, openly declares that we all stand 
 *' in jeopardy ;" that it is only by the me- 
 diation of the Saviour that man can expect 
 to be saved ; but that stiR there is comfort 
 for all, and that man may hope. 
 
 H. 
 
512 SERMONET LIK. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 Can it be believed, that in the eighteenth century 
 of established Christianity, men could, on choice or 
 principle, seem relapsed into the barbarous ignorance 
 of the *^ times of darkness ?" What would be said of 
 an astronomer, who should now argue on the system 
 of Descartes and Tycho Brahe, rejecting all that has 
 been done for the science by Galileo, Copernicus, and 
 our immortal Xewton ? But is this worse than, when 
 " life and immortality have been brought to light by 
 the Gospel," and fallen man's sole dependence on the 
 mercy of God has been made so clear, to talk as his- 
 torians have done, of suicide as Roman death, and to 
 strive to amuse us with the nonsense of Charon and 
 his ferry-boat, in describing the last awful hour of an 
 infidel ! A hope might be entertained, that this in- 
 famous delusion, and contemptible trifling, can be 
 obtruded on us no more ; but though, perhaps, not 
 so daring as heretofore, the spirit is not quelled. The 
 national sentiment will now, however, we may trust, 
 under the blessing of God, keep it within the narrow 
 circuit of its proper domain ; for nobody can hope for 
 applause in revealing the petty wit of metaphysical 
 ladies, if they amuse their nurses and their waiting- 
 maids with their fancied invitations to the Elysian 
 fields, when they ought rather to be repeating, in all 
 the clamour of imminent danger and heart-rending 
 repentance, " Lord, save me, or I perish 1" 
 
 L. 
 
SERMON ET LX. 313 
 
 SERMONET LX. 
 
 PSALM XCVII. 10. 
 
 JIate the tiling which is eviL 
 
 Would to God we could obey this pre- 
 cept ! It has been said, and by one whose 
 pious spirit is now, it is to be hoped and 
 believed, rejoicing in the deeds done in the 
 body, that repentance, to be sincere, must 
 ])e grounded " on a real hatred to sin, and 
 a real desire to obey God." Which of us 
 can say we have a real hatred to sin } We 
 can conscientiously, as far as we know our- 
 selves, hope that we have a real desire to 
 please God; anc^ it may be rashly concluded 
 by those who judge of spiritual by worldly 
 matters, that the inconsistency of a desire 
 to please God, with any thing short of a 
 liatrcd to sin, proves that, if we have the 
 virtuous inclination, we must have tlie vir- 
 tuous antipathy. But here it is that we 
 show the vanity of earthly wisdom. No ma- 
 thematical demonstrations, no arithmetical 
 p 
 
314 SERMONET LX, 
 
 results, no mechanical processes, can reach 
 the waywardness of the heart of man ; no 
 line can fathom the abyss of folly into which 
 it sinks, wdienever it escapes from the hand 
 of God. No wonder that the Gospel was 
 '^ an offence," and '^ a stumbling-block ;" 
 no wonder that it was " foolishness to the 
 wise," for it was wisdom to the foolish ! 
 
 To convince ourselves of the state of our 
 disposition towards that wliich we are com- 
 manded to hate, it is necessary to enume- 
 rate a few of the characteristics of the 
 aversion recommended to us. Whatever 
 we thoroughly hate, we uniformly shun: — 
 we are in no danger from its attractions, its 
 temptations, its fascinations, or its allure- 
 ments : — consequently, if we really hate 
 evil, evil is not capable of acquiring an 
 ascendancy over us. Neither as a whole, 
 nor in part, can it be formidable : every thing 
 . that bears its aspect will sliare in our feel- 
 ing of dislike ; — as the resemblance of a per- 
 son who has never ofiended us, to one who 
 has given us offence, is sufficient to create 
 aversion, — and no fancied gratification will 
 induce us to tolerate even the offered kind- 
 
SERMONET LX. 315 
 
 nt:;ss of those who have incurred our dis- 
 pleasure. 
 
 Happy for us would it be, had we this 
 genuine feeling towards evil of all kinds; 
 but it is not so : and, in our corrupt state, 
 our utmost endeavours will fall far short 
 of what are probably the honest wishes of 
 many of us. We can love good much more 
 easily and perfectly, than we can hate evil. 
 Good says honestly to its votaries — '* Give 
 me the \\4iole heart; nothing else will con- 
 tent me in receiving, or you in givino-:"* 
 but Evil says, insidiously — ''I ask only the 
 smelliest portion ;" well knowing that one 
 footstej) makes way for anotlier. 
 
 The natural propensity of human nature 
 in its fallen state, is to evil ; but the pro- 
 pensity, tliough strong, does not amount to 
 a total })roneness. Good has a share in the 
 affections, more or less, of all but the most 
 abandoned of human brutes; and our in- 
 terest and our business are to take asmucii 
 as possible out of tb.e scale loaded with 
 evil, and add it to the liglit burden in that 
 appropriated to good. 
 
 But none of us must fancy, either that 
 
$16 SERJMONET LX. 
 
 we have attained a complete hatred of evil, 
 or that, M'hile we perceive any remaining 
 attachment to it, we cannot hope we have 
 any love for good. '' The heart is deceit- 
 ful above all things ;" and daily and hourly 
 are we exposed to attacks, which if they 
 make no impression, only prove that they 
 missed our weakest places. We are told 
 by the Gospel, that hatred of sin is neces- 
 sary to the love of God ; and it is our duty 
 to act, as far as is possible, in conformity 
 to this information. We must strive to hate 
 sin ; we must every day dismiss our love for 
 something connected with it. \\e must 
 purify our hearts ; but we must wait pa- 
 tiently, till " this corruption has put on ia- 
 corruption," to perfect our endeavours. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 To those who, guided by the light of revelation, 
 are acquainted wilh the fallen state of our nature, It 
 is as painful to hear the bragging boasts of pride and 
 self-complacency, as to a musician to listen to voices 
 and instruments m discordance ; or to a painter to 
 see a \vell-colou<ed picture where the outline is out 
 of all drawing ; or to an architect to witness the erec- 
 
SERMON ET LX. 317 
 
 tion of a noble edifice, which must fall under its own 
 ill-supported weight. " You are wrong; I am right" 
 ■— " I am quite satisfied with my own conduct" — '* 
 wish all the world did their duty as I do mine" — " 
 am sure I suft'er enough to atone for all my sins 
 whatever ihey are ;" are expressions no less surprising 
 when uttered by a Christian, than oaths would be 
 from the lips of a bishop. When the want of ex- 
 perience is at the bottom of this ignorance, it is piti- 
 able, and there is hope ; but when it is seated in ar- 
 rogance, there is, as we are told, " more hope of 
 a fool." 
 
 Children should be very early taught the grace of 
 owning themselves wrong, and rather to take demerit 
 to themselves than to throw it on another. As they ad- 
 vance towards judgment, the positive rejection of un- 
 due praise should be encouraged : their honest circum- 
 stantial proof that opinion was too favourable to 
 them, should be listened to, and followed by increased 
 esteem and confidence. The first sign of uncom- 
 mon integrity given by a lad, whom an early and 
 honourable death removed from the service of hi 
 country, was his contradicting a servant who apolo- 
 gized for him, by saying that something wrong he had 
 done, was accident: " Twas not accident," said 
 he ; *' I did it on purpose, in a passion." 
 
 Those really skilled in knowledge of the world, 
 will see the immediate advantages attendant on this 
 candour, as well as the more important reward which 
 P 3 
 
318 SERMONET LX. 
 
 may be hoped for hereafter : but others will be, 
 perhaps, as implicitly believed, when they see and 
 prognosticate the worst consequences from it, and 
 rank speaking truth and disclaiming praise amongst 
 the diagnostics of pitiable weakness. 
 
 L. 
 
 f r^^^ ?lrol 
 
SERMONET LXI. 3J9 
 
 SERi\IONET LXI. 
 
 PSALM XLYl. 1. 
 
 ji "very present help in trouble. 
 
 That tlie Deity is the shield of those who 
 are in distress, is the uniform language of 
 Scripture. The revelations made to the 
 Patriarchs — the leading the Jews up fron> 
 Egypt, by a miraculous deliverance; and 
 their prosperity in the midst of their ene- 
 mies — all performed by power more than 
 liuman, might be adduced to confirm the 
 truth of the text ; but an appeal needs not 
 to be made to the events of so remote a 
 period ; for though we do not expect the 
 sea to be divided to advance man's happi- 
 ness, or to rescue him from danger, yet the 
 occurrences of every day " in the changes 
 and chances of this life,"are sufficient, with- 
 out any farther allusion, to show that man 
 must endure trouble; tliat in his trouble he 
 is compelled to look for help, and that no 
 help can be found, save from God alon«. 
 p 4 
 
SQO SIRMONET LXI. 
 
 But even in admitting that God is the 
 only help of man, the most important part 
 of the text is omitted ; for we are told, not 
 merely that he is our help, but that he is 
 *' a present help f from which we must 
 infer, that by his nature, his connexion 
 with us, his spirit which he infuses into 
 us, and the dominion which he has over 
 us, he is a present help in trouble : yet even 
 in this we must observe, that a man 
 may fail of help from God, if he does not 
 properly apply to it; or, under particular 
 circumstances, God mai/ withhold that help 
 of which man may seem to stand in need. 
 But we do not address persons whose con- 
 duct has drawn down the judgments of 
 Heaven, or Avhom the Deity has, in his 
 wrath, left to follow their own imagina- 
 tions. 
 
 But those who are desirous that in their 
 troubles the help of God should be a pre- 
 sent help, it ma}^ be proper to remind, that 
 it is in every one's power to render it so, 
 as the essential requisite in obtaining it, is 
 that state of mind which the Gospel not 
 only requires, but has the greatest tendency 
 
SERMONET i.XL S2 1 
 
 to produce. With the light of the Gospel 
 to conduct him, a man cannot fail to per- 
 ceive the absolute inanity, as to any plea- 
 sure or profit, of the greater part of the 
 pursuits of the world; pursuits whicli have 
 110 other origin than the avarice or the am- 
 bition, or perhaps the idleness of men : in 
 these cases, the reason of man, unaided by 
 revelation, might be supposed of sufficient 
 avail; but it is desirable, inasmuch as there 
 are real cares and real calamities to which 
 all are subject, to point out to the truly 
 afflicted that never- failing source of con- 
 solation to which all are invited. " Come 
 unto me, all ye that are heavy laden, and I 
 will refresh you." To the Gospel then we 
 are invited for help : not that he who has 
 lived in a state of habitual sin, whose mind 
 is polluted and disgraced with corruption, 
 can expect, " when destruction cometh 
 upon him as an armed man," to receive 
 the help that he may hope for. — It was the 
 habitual temper of David's mind, most 
 probably, that enabled him to derive that 
 comfort which religion only can bestow : 
 v5 
 
322 SERMONET LXI. 
 
 it was from the constant sense of God's 
 superintending providence, that he acquired 
 that strength of mind which enabled him 
 to bear up under all his calamities, and to 
 discover that, in any degree of trouble, 
 God was a present help. 
 
 Neither let any one suppose, that though 
 David might experience this help, yet to 
 us who live under a different dispensa- 
 tion, when inspiration of every kind has 
 ceased, no such help is promised, and con- 
 sequently no such hope can reasonably be 
 entertained. To us the Spirit of God still 
 speaks, animating us, and enabling us to 
 discharge our duty, if haply we be found 
 willing and obedient. 
 
 If we look into the world, who amongst 
 tlie afflicted have behaved with most dig-- 
 nity ? — those^whohave trusted to the world, 
 or those who have trusted to religion for 
 support ? We appeal to every day's expe* 
 rience f t r the answer. 
 
 Religion does not require a man to dis- 
 grace himself because he is unfortunate : 
 it does not tell him tl.at the wicked have 
 peace ; for- the wicked have not peace : 
 
SERMONET LXT. 3^3 
 
 those only liave peace in tliis world who 
 seek it in the nc:it. The voluptuaiy, there- 
 fore, who hopes to banish his cares, or alle- 
 viate his afllictions, in vice, will ultimately 
 find himself the dupe of his own folly: 
 the enervated mind is no more calcidated 
 to resist the dart of affliction, than the 
 debilitated bod}^ the attacks of disease : — 
 from virtue alone is strength of mind to 
 be acquired. 
 
 Among the ten thousand blessings which 
 Christianity offers to her votaries in this 
 hfe, we may reckon, that she enables us to 
 avoid many of the direst evils to which 
 human nature is subject ; and those w^hich 
 we cannot avoid, her precepts alone can 
 alleviate. 
 
 Let him, therefore, who is tried with 
 affliction, forbear complaining or repin- 
 ing; let him learn, that whatever God 
 brings upon him, God will enable him to 
 bear : ^' iieaviness may endure for a night, 
 but joy Cometh in tlie morning." 
 
 "O! tarry tliou the Lord's leisure: be 
 strong; tiud he shall comfort 'thy heart; and 
 put thou tliv trust in the Lord.*' 
 
 p 6 II. 
 
324 SERMONET LXII. 
 
 SERMONET LXII. 
 
 )•} 
 
 PROVERBS, XIX. 27. 
 
 Cease, my soti, to hear the instruction that 
 causeth to err from the words of knowledge. 
 
 1 HE word knowledge shall here be used as 
 meaning knowledge of our duty towards 
 God, as derived from revelation : it is as- 
 suming no more than is allowed when we 
 translate " the fool" of the Psalms, as de- 
 signating him who has not sense enough to 
 find, or to seek, the only path in which a 
 wise man would wish to tread. 
 
 In applying the prohibition to our own 
 use, we shall instantly feel anxious to dis- 
 cover what amongst us, and in the course 
 of our instruction, is that which we ought 
 to abstain from hearing. 
 
 There never, perhaps, was a time in which 
 the caution was more necessary to be given ; 
 nor, it may be added, when it was more 
 difficult to avoid transgressing against it. 
 The blending of good with evil is now so 
 
 5 
 
SERMONET LXII. 325 
 
 intricate, that, lest we reject the former, 
 we accept the latter : — we postpone, beyond 
 the term assigned in the Gospel, the sepa- 
 ration of the tares from the wlieat ; and we 
 are sometimes so much at a loss to distin- 
 guish them, that we seem to acquiesce in 
 the resignation of the task to an order of 
 beings above us. All that can be done here 
 is, to enforce the necessity of distinguish- 
 ing them, as far as we can, and to warn 
 the inexperienced that snakes may lurk 
 where there seems nothing but verdure. 
 
 It may startle the innocent readers of the 
 present knowledge-seeking age, if it be as- 
 serted that they court the danger of taking 
 evil for good, by the very form and fashion 
 of their studies ; but the assertion is well- 
 founded, and the danger is imminent. 
 
 To throw the bridle on the neck of judg- 
 ment, to spread the wings of imagination, 
 and to launch into the boundless empyreum 
 of fancy, can never be the sober advice of 
 those who wish well to a rising generation 
 — but advice of an extremely opposite tend- 
 ency is not less dangerous. It docs not 
 follow, that, in avoiding one edge of a pro- 
 
326 SERMONET LXII. 
 
 montory, Ave are safe on the other; nor will 
 it be found, that those who discard the 
 vivid powers of the intellect, and cultivate 
 exclusively the investigating or calculating 
 faculties of the mind, are at all nearer mak- 
 ing tlie only profitable use that can be 
 made of the best gifts that Infinite Wisdom 
 lias to bestow on creatures intended for im- 
 mortality. 
 
 This only profitable use, no one will deny 
 to be the advancing our eternal interests, 
 which interests can be advanced no other 
 Avay than by making all *' our thoughts, 
 words, and works," tend to the glory of 
 our Maker. In the liberal and affluent si- 
 tuations of life, our studies so much afiP'ect 
 this purpose, that to regulate them is a 
 prime concern Avith the conscientious., 
 
 One of the first questions such persons 
 should ask themselves, with regard to their 
 pursuits, is, " Do they tend to, or coun- 
 teract, the glory of our iNIaker?" If tlie 
 former, is the manner in w))ich they are 
 conducted, in harmony witli this tendency? 
 and is tlie motive such, as, on such prin- 
 ciples, may be avowed ? 
 
SERMONET LXII. 527 
 
 Certainly there are few of the innocent 
 species of study, such as those to whom 
 ^ve address ourselves Avill pursue, whicli 
 may not tend to a justifiable, nay, a laud- 
 able purpose, and be made conducive to the 
 glory of God : and to common observation, 
 and a mind not rendered suspicious by ex- 
 perience, it appears that there are none 
 more directly entitled ^to this praise, than 
 such as investigate the works, whether mi- 
 nute or magnificent, of the Creator, which 
 are called the productions of Nature : but 
 a question remains — Do we search in order 
 to confirm, or to impugn, religious belief? 
 And it is very much to be feared, that tlie 
 answer will justify the caution of the text; 
 for it is too observable, that, in this age of 
 calculation, of analyzation, of decomposi- 
 tion, of metaphysics and subtle reasoning, 
 shipwreck has been often made of that fiuth 
 Avhich is *^ the anchor of the soul," and for 
 which, in the storm that separates our 
 mortal bodies from their immortal part- 
 ners, we may seek and cry in vain, unless, 
 warned in tin^c hy the cxam])le and the ex- 
 hortations of some of the best and greatest 
 
328 SERMONET LXII. 
 
 of mankind, we can be persuaded to exa- 
 mine the heavens, and explore the earth and 
 its abysses, with our Bibles in our hands, 
 and a belief of their contents in our hearts. 
 The misery of neglecting this advice 
 may and must be great to an individual; 
 for, to forego the comfort, the satisfaction, 
 the support of religion, is, beyond all com- 
 parison, to give up the greatest that the 
 universe has to offer ; but there is a fur- 
 ther danger attending the neglect. In the 
 fashion of teaching by methods that spare 
 the trouble of learning, a very heavy re- 
 sponsibility is thrown on those who com* 
 municate knowledge — the mind of the dis- 
 ciple is prostrate — it pledges itself to im- 
 bibe whatever is poured on it ; and any in- 
 dividual guilty of such fearful presump- 
 tion as to conceal the hand of the Divine 
 Artificer, while displaying his works, or 
 who, admitting the hand, shortens its 
 power, has to answer not only for his own 
 defection, but for that of all those whom 
 he assists to lead astray. There is no one 
 amongst us who can answer for the last half- 
 hour of life : the wisest, the greatest, the 
 
SEUMONET LXII. 829 
 
 most admired and applauded iu the valua- 
 tion of this world, may, at that moment, 
 feel, and he forced to puhlish with his own 
 expiring- voice, that Christianity is no fahle, 
 and the threaten ings of the inspired writers 
 no ^* vox et practerea nihil." 
 
 Nothing is gained by all the knowledge 
 in this world, if our hopes in another are 
 shaken : men who would teach, could it 
 be taught, more than the wisdom of all 
 ages comprehends, are still pests of society, 
 if the glory of God be not part of their 
 system ; and the youth of our country 
 should be most studiously prevented from 
 hearing their instruction, unless that of a 
 far wiser set of beings can counteract the 
 mischief it may occasion. " You may see 
 your error when too late," is a prophecy 
 that must not be suppressed, and cannot 
 be imprinted too deeply or too early in the 
 mind. 
 
 But it is not only in pursuits of science, 
 that we are in danger from this species of 
 instruction : our amusements, trifling as 
 they seem, and vapid as they are, are now 
 made deep lessons of error, and are some 
 
S30 SERMONET LXir. 
 
 of the worst conduits of immorality and 
 an unsuspected infidelity. Profound writers? 
 may slay their thousands, but light writers 
 may boast their millions destroyed : learn- 
 ing may attack, but genius will sap ; and 
 the fortress may seem impregnable till the 
 moment when it crushes all whom its ruin 
 can reach. The popular taste for reading 
 is of late much refined ; and on the autho- 
 rity of one very Avell informed of the 
 world's palate, it may be asserted, that 
 better productions are now rejected when 
 offered for publication, than manj which, 
 thirty years ago, met with attention and 
 applause. Vulgar adventures of imaginary 
 persons have given place to portraits of 
 manners, by which the lower ranks hope 
 to get acquainted with the etiquette of 
 high life ; and readers who were accus- 
 tomed to seek amusement by seeing their 
 own modes and habits of life reflected,. now 
 take a superior track, and prefer the mind's 
 excursions of opinion. 
 
 Now, if there is one exercise of discre- 
 tion more valuable than another, it is that 
 which inclines us to ask, whether the writer: 
 
SERMONET IJCII. 3-31 
 
 whose opinions we seek to know, be of 
 a description that renders those opinions 
 worth learning and safe in adopting ; be- 
 cause a very little experience will inform 
 us, that if we are deceived in this point, 
 and at all incHned to be dazzled by the 
 glitter of false eloquence, we may, when 
 meaning only to indulge our curiosity, go 
 much farther. While gazing on a poisonous 
 substance, we may inhale its effluvium ; and 
 the terms of commendation used in closing 
 many a mischievous volume, by those who 
 intended to be disgusted, prove what is in 
 the power of words. 
 
 But, as if our own language and our own 
 power of human corruption were insuffi- 
 cient to the destruction of the moral sense, 
 we borrow from neighbours, of whose cha- 
 xacters we cannot be ignorant, but whose 
 sentence of condemnation to discredit, we 
 reverse or suspend as often as they give 
 notice that they will amuse us ; and under 
 the artful veil of idiom that will not yet 
 bear close translation, we seek error of 
 every kind — to-day in the profligate so- 
 phistry of an inflammable novel — to-mor- 
 
339, SERMONET LXII. 
 
 row in the enveloped poison of shallow, 
 mazy metaphysics — and all, perhaps, at the 
 time when, in compliance with what we 
 think fashion, we affect to be in search 
 only of the collateral relation of religion. 
 
 Nor are these poisons left to themselves 
 to operate, or these fire-balls to explode at 
 hazard. The public attention is forced on 
 them : we must 7Wt read ; and if we are 
 obstinate, and will not make ourselves ac- 
 quainted with that, of which we had better 
 be ignorant, the sum and substance are 
 afresh extracted-— the ingredients are anew 
 concocted ; and the critic has told us, be- 
 fore we are well aware of it, what we re- 
 fused to hear from the author. 
 
 Still there is hope. Curiosity is seldom 
 long-lived, and the quick succession of no- 
 velty superannuates last week's tale. The 
 caprice of Fashion might assist us ; and by 
 consigning the labours of the wise and the 
 foolish purveyors of amusement, promis- 
 cuously, to high shelves and utter forget- 
 fulness, she might save some from ever read- 
 ing, and others from recollecting, these 
 scum-like productions of diseased nature ; 
 
SERMONET LXII. 333 
 
 but if their authors follow them into our 
 attractive country — if they are to be re- 
 ceived as the arbiters of literary taste — if 
 we are weak and conceited enough to be- 
 lieve that they condemn themselves, when 
 they only fear detection ; and if we do not 
 see, that, ** becoming all things to all men," 
 they hope to recover tiiose whom their dar- 
 ing immorality may have lost them, we arc 
 gone as the virtuous Englisli, and must no 
 more look for that almost miraculous mercy, 
 under which, ungrateful as we arc, we have 
 been spared from " the sword, the pesti- 
 lence, and the famine." 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 Every thing ought here to lje said that can de- 
 fend the inexperienced from the misery of having, at 
 any period of life, listened to instruction in the wuys 
 of error. They should know how the pure mind 
 may and sliould resent any insidious attack. They 
 should learn by their fruits to know these upas-trees. 
 Asking a very well informed friend, in every respect 
 of the world of fashion, and an enthusiastic votary of 
 genius, what that production of literature could be, 
 Mhich in mentioning it, so shocked and disgusted her, 
 
534 SERMONET LXII. 
 
 that her voice, wlieii slie spoke of it, faltered, and 
 lier eyes seemed to appeal to Heaven, as under an 
 apprehension of guilt, her answer was — " It is a de- 
 scription of every species of illicit passion : it art- 
 fully takes its point of time when the French cast off 
 all the obligations of religion, consequently it has a 
 spacious range of possible iniquity : the wretched 
 creatures who stand forwardest in its dramatis per- 
 sonae are, the one an Atheist, the other a Deist : 
 't is true, they are all unhappy at last ; but the poison 
 is absorbed, and the antidote may come too late : it 
 may be a pretext, but it is no defence. I have in- 
 cautiously, and yielding to the present excitement of 
 curiosity, read it ; but I repent it sincerely ; for the 
 soil my mitid had received was not instantly to be re- 
 moved : it made me wretched ; but now, thank God ! 
 I feel oiiiv anger at having spent my time on reading 
 a work which, though the production of unequalled 
 talent, ajid the employment of the most attractive 
 powers of fascination, I do not scruple to say, not- 
 withstanding the professions of the author, deserves, 
 more than any libel, to be publicly burnt." 
 
 Now let any person, at an age to judge between 
 right and wrong, and witii the perfect use of reason, 
 recollect what we are by religious profession : — we 
 choose to be called ClnisliMus ; — well, then ! we ac- 
 knowledg<^ in the Ahnij;hty Crt ator of tlie woild, a 
 Father, a Protector, a,hul«^c: we must not, there- 
 fore, think lightly of his love, his provulcnce, or his 
 
 2 
 
SERMONET LXIF, 335 
 
 jastice : lie has, by our Lord, told us lliat ue must, 
 by every mean in our power, endeavour to recover, 
 as fi\r as fallen nature can, the purity of heart for- 
 feited by the transgression of our iirst parents : he 
 has warned us that it will be found very ditilcult to 
 accomplish this, in any degree, and absolutely im- 
 possible, unless we submit to the guidance of his Holy 
 Spirit. He has promised us we shall not want for 
 his help, if we will but seek it, and accept the atone- 
 ment otfered by our blessed Lord for our deficiencies : 
 lie has told us, that our reward shall be everlastino- 
 life, never-ending liappiness, and an admission to the 
 ettulgent glory of his presence ; and he has denounced 
 his e^itreniG displeasure, and its most terrific conse- 
 quences, against those who obstruct or mislead us. 
 
 What judgment then must such persons as are re- 
 ferred to, form of writers seemingly of the same, or 
 nearly the same church as ourselves, who, either by 
 gross obtrusions, or refined insinuations, place before 
 their fellow-creatures* minds, in the hope of fixino- 
 their attention and interesting their corrupt or their 
 weak feelings, exactly those scenes and those senti- 
 ments which must injure that purity, w liich, if wholly 
 lost, we should strive to recover ; if in any nitasure 
 retained, we must preserve, and by all means strive 
 to increase; but which at our peril we renounce? 
 ^' How any of us in our senses," said an amiable 
 and elegant young woman of birth and fashion, *'can, 
 when wc are told that the pure in heart sljall see 
 
336 SERMON ET LXII. 
 
 God, endanger that glorious privilege by listening t<9 
 the voice of passion, and, above all, how any one 
 can dare to teach others what must tend to corrupt 
 that purity, is matter of awful wonder. What is 
 tliere in wit or poetry that can allure to so heinous a 
 crime r — what talents can justify it ? — ^what repent- 
 ance can atone for it ?" She should have asked far* 
 ther, What credit is due to the essays, the disserta- 
 tions, the relations, tlie opinions, of such writers f 
 Is virtue to be sought in a work, because without a 
 story, \Yhen the former fictions of the same pen have 
 striven to root it out ? 
 
 \\ ere it permitted to describe the last hours of a 
 lovely accomplished young woman, who, only that 
 she might, as she fondly fancied, repel the attacks of 
 French moralists, had dipped into the liberal system of 
 doubt and denial, nothing more would be wanting to 
 make us cling to " the Rock of our salvation :" fe\evy 
 not to be subdued, was kept up by remorse; and when 
 encouraged to make exertions, on which her life was 
 thought to depend, her reply was, " If T recover, 
 and these horrible ideas return — O ! I had rather die 
 t'lan live." 
 
 Jn conclusion, let entreaty prevail on all who have 
 not renounced the terms of the Gospel, to make 
 its doctrines the strict rule of life : — let neither 
 fashion nor flattery, neither curiosity nor admiration, 
 mislead them. Evil, whether aimed at our purity or 
 our fail^p is to be avoided ; its access to us is, with 
 
SERifONET LXII. 537 
 
 all out niiglit, to be stopped ; and our appearance in 
 every point must declare under whom we serve. VVitli 
 firmness and honesty, every invitation to associate 
 with peojile of avowed, or even discovered bad 
 principle, must be declined : it is no honour, it is 
 degrading, to sit down w ith those below us in the rank 
 of morals; and no mock humanity, no cant of charity 
 and philanthropy, will apologize for it. No genius, 
 no eloquence, must recommend bad books to our 
 perusal : if we feel as we ought, that which should 
 entitle them to fame, is so much detracted from it : 
 it is the base, treacherous use of God's good gifts. 
 
 Having accomplislied, as may be easily and most 
 profitably done, the keeping at a distance bad people, 
 and shutting our ears and eyes against bad books, 
 our insidious enemies will go home again ; and we 
 may be left by tliem in happy neglect and inestimable 
 peace. 
 
 L. 
 
r^SS SERMONET LXIIT, 
 
 SERMONET LXIII. 
 
 ST. MARK, XV. 40. 
 
 There were also v:omcn looking on afar off^ 
 among uJwrn was Mary Magdalene^ and 
 JUary the mother of James the Less, and 
 <f JoseSy and Salome ; xvho also, xvhen he 
 was in Galilee, followed him, and minister^ 
 ed unto him; and many other women, which 
 came up with him unto Jerusalem, 
 
 Were it conducive to any useful purpose, 
 to decide who, of all those persons to 
 ■whom our blessed Lord condescended to 
 address his discourses, and whom he made 
 intimate with his gracious views for the 
 benefit of mankind, seemed most disposed 
 to listen and to learn, the female sex 
 might, perhaps, find themselves distin- 
 guished ; yet, any vanity or self-compla- 
 cency consequent on this distinction, would 
 hardly be excusable. The female mind, by 
 the goodness of God, was rendered, in its 
 original formation, more susceptible of the 
 
SEllMONET LXIII. 339 
 
 impression to be made by the gentle liand 
 of Christianity ; and while women, with 
 heartfelt gratitude, acknowledge tlie inva- 
 hiable privilege, they must remember, that 
 at the moment when they boast of it, they 
 forfeit it ; and, instead of retaining it as 
 an aid to virtue, convert it into an auxi- 
 liary of their busy tempter. 
 
 Happy for them if they meet, in time to 
 correct them, the reproof uttered by a 
 very unworthy man, who, when one of a 
 greatly superior character inadvertently, but 
 with the best intention, said, " I boast 
 myself a Christian," replied, " A Christian 
 never boasts."" 
 
 Admitting the female sex, in consequence 
 of its characteristics, to have been thus ho- 
 noured, our reason and our best feelinirs 
 will join in the remark, that some vestiges 
 of this fitness to receive a benefit, and of 
 the benefit received, may be expected to 
 subsist amongst the women even of our own 
 time. Family-likeness descends through 
 many generations; family-talents may be 
 traced ; and, alas ! family-infirmities are 
 communicable : but the likeness and the 
 Q 2 
 
340 SERMONET LXIII. 
 
 talents wear out in a few successions : the 
 infirmities, perhaps, adhere more strongly; 
 ai:d the hkeness most desirable, that 
 w Inch would, at once, declare the ladies of 
 the present day the uncoriupted daughters 
 of tliose exemplary females who ** minis- 
 tered ui;to" Jesus, and in the closing scenes 
 of his life followed him, weeping, is, it is 
 to be feared, nearly extinct amongst us. 
 
 It may be so; and it will appear so, if 
 iiidiscriminately we survey the manners 
 arid habits of this half of the creation; but 
 we must not content ourselves with a cur- 
 sory survey, in a matter that thus involves 
 the interests of the whole world ; and a 
 survey, not cursory, will prove that, at 
 least in this country, however the likeness 
 may be lost in general, it is preserved by 
 some, and, in our times, has been most 
 assiduously renewed, as far as assimilation, 
 the result of industrious in(iuiry, could 
 give the ability. Let the necessity of cen- 
 sure, and the disposition to censure, be 
 what they may, whoever chooses to keep 
 go:)d comjKiny, whoever seeks the friend- 
 .s'l'p (.f the vs-orthv, and shuts the door 
 
SERMONET LXIII. 341 
 
 against vice and vicious folly, may sec, and 
 must sec, that the character of women, of 
 the better sort, is daily rising, not merely 
 by the acquisition of elegant accomplish- 
 ment, or tlie pursuit of knowledge — for the 
 one is often frivolous, and the other vain — • 
 but by an honest, indefatigable anxiety to 
 know the will of God, and to do it. '* I 
 have it at heart to make my children good, 
 and I know no means but religion;" — " I 
 want a teacher for them, of morals rather 
 than of accomplishments" — is the language 
 we daily hear ; and young persons are cer- 
 tainly much more acquainted witli the 
 Scriptures, and informed in points of duty, 
 than they were fifty years ago. Aunts, in- 
 trusted with the care of nieces, are seen 
 fulfilling the duty of parents ; nay, those 
 proverbially odious beings, stepmothers, 
 have worn out or w^orked out prejudice. 
 
 But still, with a host of good examples 
 around us, there is, we well know, a large, 
 and, it is to be feared, a much larger part 
 of the female sex, who need being remind- 
 ed of their pedigree, to recollect that they 
 are, as Christians, the representatives of 
 Q 3 
 
342 SERMONET LXIII. 
 
 those women, who '* ministered" to our 
 blessed Lord, and followed him to Jerusa- 
 lem and to his cruciiixion. If we accuse 
 tliem of having lost their family-likeness, 
 it becomes necessary to compare the fea- 
 tures. 
 
 In doing this, every fair allowance must 
 be made for difference of existing circum- 
 stances, and even for the cessation of im- 
 pulse. During the short period of our Sa- 
 viour's active life, it is easy to concei-ve 
 that the curiosity and attention of women 
 as vain and as frivolous, perhaps^ as Eng- 
 lish ladies, in their usual habits, would be 
 so seized on and engrossed, that dress and 
 amusements might have sunk in rank and 
 estimation with them ; and that, wh6n 
 once " He who spake as never man spake," 
 had opened to their view a Heaven to be 
 inhabited only by those renouncing the 
 concerns of this world, these trifles would 
 have become matters of confirmed depre* 
 ciation. We are not thus seized on and 
 engrossed ; for the Gospel does not strike 
 us with its novelty ; neither are we, per- 
 haps, so disposed to think, that the cou* 
 
SERMON ET LXIII. 313 
 
 cerns of this world and another arc incom- 
 patible. The women, we may suppose, 
 who followed our Lord, might be stun- 
 ned into the adoption of such new doc- 
 trine ; they had, we may think, no time to 
 recover from the impression of a novel sys- 
 tem ; but, when once their minds resumed 
 their tone, it is not to be doubted, and 
 indeed it is evident from St. Paul's com- 
 plaints of them, that they became very 
 women again. 
 
 Some, alas! did so; and many might 
 do so; but still the Acts of the Apostles 
 tell us, that " not a few believed ;" and, 
 moreover, for the encouragement of tlie 
 great, these " not few" were " of the chief 
 women." Christianity must, therefore, he 
 supposed indebted, under God, to women 
 of rank for part of its furtherance; and 
 these women must, to have been thus re- 
 corded, have renounced " the pomps and 
 vanities" of a world much more hostile than 
 that we live in, to the interests of Chris- 
 tian ladies : they could take no pleasure in 
 vying with each other in distinctions of 
 any kind, but those of their '^ meek and 
 Q 4 
 
J44 SKRMONtT LXllI. 
 
 quiet' spirits; ///e/r cUTiusements must have 
 been the charities of Hfe ; tlie subjects of 
 their attention must have had a connexion 
 Avith things far above the frivolous occu- 
 pations of tlie nnbehevers amongst whom 
 they lived; and, moreover, and most incon- 
 trovertibly, as they must have seen that 
 their divine Master came especially to teach 
 lis to conquer the most absorbing passions 
 of our nature, ihey neither could have in- 
 dulged in a spirit of covetousness, nor 
 have, by the immodest exposure of their 
 persons, first excited, and then, thanks to 
 the fiat of the Almighty ! disgusted the 
 moral corruption of the other sex. They 
 piust have seen, if they thought at all (and 
 v/e have no warrant for supposing them 
 fools), that, in the one case, they were do- 
 ing all in their power to lead a soul to per- 
 dition ; and, in the other, defeating not 
 only their own intentions, but these of 
 their Creator, who, in the institution of 
 marriage, had prepared for these two parts 
 of his creation, a lot replete with all that 
 can fill the human heart with sensations of 
 
SERMONET LXIII. 345 
 
 gratitude, and secured by the fences of 
 reason and moderation. 
 
 Now, let us figure to ourselv^es some one 
 of these elegant Christian women : she 
 cannot have been, in appearance, much un- 
 like what we have seen, when the best 
 taste prevailed among us, and was not de- 
 formed by excess. No erroneous idea of 
 external sanctity or austerity, however ex- 
 cusable when provoked by the abominable 
 excesses of after-times, marked her out as 
 a candidate for a wxU-earned distinction. 
 She would understand that she was of a 
 religion inculcating innocent compliances ; 
 she would feel that dissimilarity lessens our 
 J power of recommending what is right; she 
 would, therefore, conform, that she might 
 not shock, and try to attach, lest she 
 ^ should repel. If she had any one to please, 
 ^ she would try to please : if the bounty of 
 'I nature had given her fine hair, though it 
 a would not occupy her time or attention, it 
 p.would partake her care with the rest of her 
 person : if her form was fine, slie thought 
 it justice to her Maker not to disgrace it ; 
 Q 5 
 
^^46 SERMONET LXHt. 
 
 but in the choice of her attire, recollecting 
 the spirit of Christianity, though the Ty- 
 rian purple, the heavenly azure, the golden 
 sunbeam, might vary her garments, and 
 give to her contemplative mind fresh food 
 for admiration; yet the rule of chastity, 
 and its precursor, modesty, would be ever 
 inviolable. Her decent garment would be 
 folded over her bosom; her arms would be 
 covered, because the display of them 
 would be no gratification ; and, unless 
 when convenience opposed it, her delicacy 
 would prefer a length of drapery that 
 should intercept the coarse gaze of a less 
 correct eye, when she moved. She would 
 neither expose herself for the sake of 
 being seen, nor hide herself for the sake 
 of being sought. Her spirit would be 
 pure, and her character would, therefore, 
 be simple ; and, like many that might be 
 quoted even now, she would be too much 
 occupied with her real interests, and the 
 discharge of her duties, to fancy that 
 allurement would procure happiness, or 
 the seeking her own pleasure be accepted 
 
SERMONET LXIII. 347 
 
 by her Maker, as the praiseworthy use of 
 her one talent. 
 
 Wlio now will venture to draw tlie con- 
 trasting* figure? It must not pollute this 
 page. Let it be left to the publications 
 of the clay, to point out how the women 
 of a country, almost the only one not vi- 
 sited by the scourge of the Almighty ! 
 do, and may still farther, degrade them- 
 selves, by not only offering to view, but 
 forcing on the view of their very ser- 
 vants, as much of their persons as they 
 think will be endured. It is a fitter task 
 for the religious moralist to warn them, 
 that they are worse enemies to Christianity 
 than worse women : the silly and inexpe- 
 rienced fancy it right, because it is done 
 by women of repute : if women of no re- 
 pute did as much, it could do no harm to 
 others ; but, in general, they are better 
 friends to themselves. God send a spirit 
 of reformation amongst the ladies of this 
 favoured country ! 
 
 q6 
 
54S SERMONET LXIir. 
 
 NOTE, 
 
 What mus! that sort of error be which taxes the 
 invention of an humble writer to find decent terms 
 in which to attempt correcting it ? The evil here 
 pointed out, is of this description; and now calls 
 almost for the interference of the legislature. Those 
 excesses which the law can reach, do not, perhaps, 
 as much mischief — Smollett and Sterne may have less 
 to answer for, than the Anacreon and Monk of our 
 day. If it be hideed true, that " a star of the second 
 magnitude" did send down mantles and shawls for the 
 needy ladies of a large company, we may hope ; and 
 certainly, as the newspapers have kindly announced, 
 that in the ensuing season the dress of high fashion is 
 ** to display the back, bosom, and shoulders, as much 
 as possible," we cannot have long to wait for his kind 
 exertions. Can any thing be so coarse, so disgusting, 
 as this advertisement ? Could it be credited, if our 
 enemies were to affirm it of us, that we shall see it 
 verified ? Let no one say it is of no consequence— 
 that the men do not mind it, and that women mean 
 no harm : — ^That the men are disgusted— that they leave 
 parties, wearied of endeavouring not to see " backs, 
 shoulders, and bosom —that they do not even laugh; 
 that they rave, is much to their credit, and is the 
 real effect, but not that intended : — the design is the 
 vulgar one ; and the only distinction tliat charity can 
 
SKUMONET LXIII. 549 
 
 make, is between active delinquents, those who set, 
 and passive delinquents, those wh© folloWf this nau- 
 seating fashion. No one will ever, or ought ever, to 
 reconcile the conscientious eye to this enormous de- 
 parture from right. Not a great lady's standing be- 
 fore corporations, and deputations, in a display of 
 person that made many thankful, for decency's sake, 
 that it was a visit not to be repeated, has done away 
 the feeling of renewed disapprobation : the mind's 
 eye cannot forbear to see it— it attracts or offends 
 observation ; and though the advantageous contrast of 
 extreme colours may make sables desirable on such 
 an occasion, it really only renders the folly more 
 deplorable. 
 
 Quitting the subject as it regards the meni— for it 
 is painful to think of it. in this relation— it remains to 
 be noticed, that instances of coarseness of manners 
 and expressions, are growing more frequent amongst 
 women : in their defence of the practice, they dis- 
 cuss and decide questions better suffered to rest : in 
 their orders to their artificers, they violate the respect 
 due to themselves ; and certainly, in considering how 
 much " they may show," they do not contract their 
 ideas. 
 
 The forbearance demanded of those who live in 
 the world, precludes the use of facts, the repttition 
 of opinion, and all the must powerful weapons <-f a 
 most unholy practice ; but thus much may be as- 
 serted, that if Aendiihip aud proteclipn have been witli- 
 
350 SERMONET LXIir. 
 
 held by it, and that a husband's life might have been 
 endangered by it, had he seen what all saw but him- 
 self. 
 
 Nor, in this case, must some %vho feel as they 
 ought for the sex, escape without reproof. Mothers, 
 perfectly decorous themselves, strip their daughters 
 into fashion ; and remonstrance is not spared Avhere 
 those not so immediately under authority, are averse 
 to the shameless custom. The wretched plea, of 
 *' doing like the rest of the world," that is, following 
 the multitude to do evil, is brought forward to ac- 
 complish their purpose, and to excuse their toleration 
 of the practice in their acquaintance. And in those 
 who in no way encourage it, there is still something 
 to condemn if they are silent. Why do not husbands, 
 fathers, masters of families, declare it shall not be f 
 Why do not wives, mothers, and women of influence, 
 say w hat they think ? There would then be no occa- 
 sion to " follow a multitude to do evil ;" for if there 
 were no admission to fine houses and gay amuse^ 
 ments, without decent covering, the multitude would 
 soon be covered, and, at least externally, decent. The 
 world is not as obstinate as it is thoughtless ; and the 
 
 very becoming courage of Mrs. , w ho stopped 
 
 fifty questions of. Have you been there? and, Will 
 you not go there ? by saying, " To speak honestly, 
 1 do not think it becoming me, as the wife of a 
 bisiiop, to be seen in all places of amusement — ** 
 wight be imitated to very good purpose, by those 
 
SERMONET LXIII. 351 
 
 whose years or situation in society give them a right 
 to say, that " bosoms, backs, and shoulders, exposed 
 as much as possible,*' are fashions not becoming thenv 
 as professors of Christianity, — and in themselves fit 
 only for savages, or a lower order of females. Mr. 
 S— was the advocate of decency, when at a ball 
 where was a lady of large dimensions, on the eve of 
 assuming the maternal character, and in the " first 
 fashion" of *' bosom, back, and shoulders," he whis- 
 pered his next neighbour, " Pray, is that lady fron* 
 any of the South-Sea islands ?" 
 
 L. 
 
35S SERMONET LXIV, 
 
 SERMONET LXIV. 
 
 ST. JOHN, XIV. 1 6. 
 
 I mil pray the Father, and he shall give you 
 another Coniforter, 
 
 In the declaration contained in the X^y^X., 
 we trace the same tender regard towards 
 his followers that had been manifested by 
 our Saviour during the whole period of his 
 abode on the earth. He was now about to 
 leave them ; — but he would not leave them 
 comfortless: — he therefore promises that 
 a divine Personage should be sent from 
 Heaven to perfect the work which he had 
 in part achieved ; and the operation of this 
 divine Perjsonage, who was to guide them 
 into all truth, seems sufficiently proved by 
 comparing the conduct of the Apostles, be- 
 fore that event had taken place, with what 
 it was, subsequent to it. Of the affection 
 of the disciples towards their Master, no 
 one can doubt : the zeal of Peter is not to 
 be considered as a single instance; all. 
 
SERMONET LXIV.^' 353 
 
 save Judas, though with different species of 
 attachment, according to their different 
 minds and habits of thinking, loved him 
 ardently : and if they failed in acting con- 
 sistently with that feeling, it was, perhaps, 
 to be attributed merely to human infirmity; 
 which might be permitted to slrow itself in 
 this manner, to point out the necessity of 
 something being done to aid the weakness 
 of man, or, in other words, of sending the 
 Comforter. 
 
 The subsequent narrative contained in 
 the sacred writings informs us that our 
 Saviour suffered — that he ascended into 
 Heaven, and that the Comforter, that is to 
 say, the Holy Ghost, was sent to his dis- 
 ciples, according to the promise given to 
 them. And what was the conduct of the 
 disciples when the Comforter had descended, 
 and filled them wnth his grace ? The dis- 
 ciple who had denied his Master was now 
 the most strenuous to show his allegiance; 
 and all those who, when their Master was 
 seized and carried away to be tried as a 
 criminal, had fled, and left him to his 
 fate, "were now" undaunted in facing and 
 
354 SERMONET LXIV. 
 
 confuting their persecutors, and dared the 
 most cruel and agonizing sufferings which 
 it was in the power of their persecutor* 
 to inflict. The contest was now, not to 
 evade pains and tortures, hut who should 
 show himself most prompt to undergo 
 that which he might he called upon to 
 endure. Such was the difference in the 
 same persons, between what they were, an- 
 terior to the descent of the Holy Ghost, 
 and after it. 
 
 And to what cause could this change 
 be attributed, other than the influence and 
 operation of that Spirit, which Jesus 
 Christ promised should be sent to his dis- 
 ciples, and which was, indeed, sent; and 
 which has never since that time ceased to 
 animate and to sanctify all the elect of 
 God? To seek to ascribe it to any other 
 cause would be preposterous : — for what 
 other cause could exist? — Our Saviour had 
 shown, in his own catastrophe, what might 
 be expected by his followers : — he was 
 now gone from them ; — his personal influ- 
 ence had, therefore, ceased ; and if they 
 had chosen to renounce his doctrines, they 
 
SEUMONET LXIV. 855 
 
 might have done so, as far as appears, with 
 perfect safety ; and their Master had fore- 
 warned them what they were to expect by 
 adhering to them : so that, unless we arc 
 to understand, that the Apostles had a cer- 
 tain predilection, however unaccountable, 
 for torments and miseries, such as human 
 nature cannot contemplate without shud- 
 dering, we must be satisfied that their 
 zeal is to be attributed to something other 
 than mere worldly views, or mere human 
 strength ; and what could this be but the 
 grace of God, vouchsafed to them by the 
 Holy Ghost, which animated theniy and 
 which worketh in all of usy both to will 
 and to do ? 
 
 The infidel who denies, and the scep- 
 tic who doubts, the Socinian and the 
 Unitarian, may find many other causes of 
 this change of mind. In order to exclude 
 every thing divine, they will attribute it 
 to any thing that is iiot divine; but against 
 any olaim for human nature, as if that 
 alone would be sufficient to create the 
 change, we call upon the whole history of 
 human nature to bear testimony ; for had 
 
356 S£RMOXLT LXIV. 
 
 human nature been capable of so great ex- 
 ertion, the power wouhl have manifest- 
 ed himself; but human nature never de- 
 vised an adequate system of religion, 
 from the creation of the world to the 
 present time; consequently, revelation was 
 necessary; and, therefore, those who de- 
 clare themselves the followers of Jesus 
 Christ, seeing that the purity of an 
 Apostle, the zeal of Peter, the aifection of 
 John, and the intended fidelity of all, save 
 the son of perdition, could not keep them 
 in the strict path of consistency and duty, 
 without the aid of the Comforter, but that, 
 when left to human infirmity, all turned 
 aside and went astray; will thankfully re- 
 ceive the assistance thus offered ; and, ba- 
 nishing from their hearts all pride and all 
 suggestions of human sufficiency, will duly 
 acknowledge the hand from whence salva- 
 tion Cometh, lest the Spirit of grace should 
 be withdrawn from them, and they should 
 be left to their own hearts' lusts, and per- 
 mitted to follow their own imaginations. 
 
SERMON ET LXV. 357 
 
 SERMONET LXV. 
 
 1 THESSALONIANS, V. 22. 
 
 Abstain from all appearance of evil. 
 
 With such an injunction for our guidance, 
 how astonishing, how worse tlian astonish- 
 ing, how deplorable it is, to see persons 
 who* would be offended at the question. 
 Are you Christians? maintaining in the 
 world an appearance so equivocal as to 
 make it matter of doubt whether they arc 
 not rather promoting the interests of the 
 devil than the glory of their ^faker; and 
 this, when most excusable, out of regard 
 to convenience, or from an imbecile spirit of 
 servile acquiescence, and a fancied neces- 
 sity of compliance with the corruptions of 
 the world ! — at other times, and when there 
 is no resort but effrontery, preferring, and 
 avowing their preference of an assimila- 
 tion with those worse than themselves, as 
 if they knew better what was fit conduct 
 for the inhabitants of Great Britain, tlinn 
 
35S s^:rmonet lxv. 
 
 St. Paul did what was good for the people 
 of Thessalonica. 
 
 One of the most dangerous, as well as 
 one of the most erroneous notions which a 
 changeable multitude coukl assume, would 
 be the vicissitude of moral estimation ; the 
 persuasion that what was virtue a thousand 
 years ago, would be merely prejudice now; 
 and that what our Lord and his immediate 
 ministers denominated vice and folly in 
 .their time, may, by the passing fashion of 
 this world, rise, in its turn, to a rank not 
 far removed from virtue and Vvisdom. But 
 we must not listen to any such delusive 
 teaching : the characters of good and evil 
 are immutable — they cannot adapt them- 
 selves to the interests or the will of man- 
 Ivind ; and although it may be held true in 
 the science of government, that a corrupt 
 people are not to be led to their advantage 
 but by corrupt means, the opinion can never 
 fmd admission into society, nor can it, in 
 any way, justify the conduct of an indivi- 
 dual. 
 
 If there be truth in an adage, if pro- 
 verbs are the concrete of experience, there 
 
SEU:\IONET LXV. 359 
 
 is no appearance of evil that can better 
 justify censure, than tlie associating witli 
 persons of immoral character; yet, as if in 
 utter forgetfulness of the Apostle's injunc- 
 tion, little scruple is now made by those 
 who profess to live in the world, of resort- 
 ing to tlie houses of persons of infamous 
 life, and returning to them those testimo- 
 nials of regard which are conveyed in po- 
 liteness and hospitaHt3^ But our forget- 
 fulness of a law does not abroQ-ate it : and 
 there is no one can be sure that the judg- 
 ments of God do not await such cool, de- 
 liberate transgressions of a rule laid down 
 for our preservation from the noisome pesti- 
 lence of bad example. 13e it remembered, 
 tliat we are responsible for whatever mis- 
 chief may ensue to others, for the false 
 credit we suffer to be derived from us. 
 
 To the facility with which we fall into 
 this snare, may probably be attributed the 
 extreme freedom of conduct now observable 
 between persons of different ages and sexes. 
 Those accustomed to compare that which 
 isy with that which ought to be, will be dis- 
 pleased in seeing the exchange which is 
 
360 SERMONET LXV. 
 
 now made of well-bred affection between 
 friends and relations, for an assuming fami- 
 liarity in juniors towards their elders, and 
 a strange, undescribable, equivocal sort of 
 French sentiment between those who avail 
 themselves of distant consanguinity, or near 
 alliance, to wear the appearance, and yet- 
 defy the charge, of evil. In domestic 
 circles of better principles and purer man- 
 ners, the parents and elder relations are not 
 supposed, in condescending to the young, 
 to forfeit the respect due to them ; and the 
 junior relations of both sexes understand 
 more correctly what their respective situa- 
 tions demand. Brothers are the protectors, 
 the guardians of sisters ; and under this 
 protection and guardianship, young women 
 pass a Jioviciate that fits them for a higher 
 station in society : they learn to respect the 
 superior intellect and larger scope of power 
 in men : they acquire a habit of endea- 
 vouring to please : they take an interest in 
 what occurs abroad, and learn to make 
 home pleasant : more distant relations fill 
 up the space between those whom they 
 drJlv, and those whom thrv seldom sre ; 
 
SERMONET LXV. 36 \ 
 
 and propriety of behaviour is learnt by the 
 fireside. But not so, where a mode of con- 
 duct, such as is now growing frequent, pre- 
 vails, M^here the intercourse of near rela- 
 tions of both sexes is deficient in delicacy, 
 and the alliance of a marriage seems to give 
 a license for indecorum to persons whom 
 it distantly connects. The appearance is 
 evil — the example is bad; and not a word 
 of complaint can be listened to, from any 
 who feel injured by censorious suppositions, 
 when it is to their own folly that they owe 
 them. 
 
 Another appearance of evil which seems 
 irresistibly tempting, is that of licentious 
 imitation in females : and not caring in the 
 least, whether the examples were persons 
 of repute or no repute, or perhaps a little 
 inclining to the latter, our women of in- 
 fluence have gone tli rough all the modifica- 
 tions of artifice and absurdity: health has 
 been sacrificed, and sometimes that which 
 should be more valued than health ; and 
 the courtezans of Athens, the seraglio of 
 Constantinople, and the more unpardonable 
 prostitutes of Charles the Second's court, 
 
 K 
 
562 SERMON ET LXV. 
 
 have been resorted to for novelty of inde- 
 cencies. 
 
 For evil associations in society, for in- 
 decorum of conduct, for the vain anxiety 
 that produces absurdity and indecency, 
 there is but one admissible excuse — a 
 perfect ignorance of the contents of the 
 Holy Scriptures ; and if any of us can 
 lioiiestly say, that tliese liints are the first 
 that have referred their practice to this 
 standard — that, till it was thus pointed out^ 
 they did not know tliat these appearances 
 Avere of evil, or tbat we were commanded 
 to abstain from all such, this most de- 
 plorable blindness and. fatal deafness must, 
 to their fellow-creatures, acquit them. How 
 it miy avail at a higher tribunal, must be 
 left in the secret counsels of tbe Most 
 
 High. 
 
 NOTE. 
 
 A DISPOSITION now most laudably indicated 
 amongst the younger females, to hear leason, and to 
 in)prove their practice by it, calls loudly on their se- 
 iners to be cautious in tlieir conduct, lest they not 
 only hinder the good inleiitions of others, but ksLeu 
 
 i#!^. 
 
SERMOXET LXV. 563 
 
 their own estimation. Those who are now educating 
 for exemplary wives and mothers, must not only not 
 see any indulgence to appearances of evil ; but they 
 must be convinced, that nothing bearing that appear- 
 ance will be tolerated. The wish to bring them for- 
 ward in society must give way to that of preserving 
 them from its dangers; and they must be taught, by 
 example, to decline pleasures offered by disreputable 
 persons, on the ground of conscientious regard to 
 " whatsoever things are pure." They must not be 
 referred to the world and its opinions, nor allowed to 
 dispute the fancied danger of contagion. The eye 
 must be directed, and die finger pointed, to Heaven ; 
 and they must hear of nothing |!gg5^ than the will of 
 God. The New Testament must be at hand, and 
 resorted to — as is the Atlas, to prove the local iden- 
 tity of an event, or a transaction; — to show, that here, 
 and here, and here, is to be found, under various- 
 forms, that law which, for the most merciful pur- 
 poses, and on the most intimate knowledge of the 
 human heart, enjoins us to '' abstain from all ap- 
 pearances of eviL" 
 
 L. 
 
 R e 
 
$64t SERMONET LXVI. 
 
 SERMONET LXVI, 
 
 1 ST. PETER, II. 21. 
 
 Christ also suffered for us, leaving us a?t 
 example. 
 
 Are not our endeavours to walk in the 
 footsteps of our blessed Lord, and thereby 
 to imitate the only perfect pattern ever 
 vouchsafed us, a little discouraged by a 
 supposition that he had means of perfection 
 which we have not ? And do we not ex- 
 cuse ourselves, tliough perhaps silently, by 
 thinking, that, mere human beings as we 
 are, it is in vain that we strive to copy a 
 divine original ? 
 
 If we reason thus, we are wrong. We 
 ought to be informed, that our Saviour, \i\ 
 his human nature, which contains our pat- 
 tern, had no assistance from his godhead. 
 
 The mysterious union of the two natures " 
 can never be clear to the limited powers of 
 human comprehension ; yet, to deny the 
 possibility of such an union, we must first 
 
SERMONET LXVI. 3^5 
 
 set aside that association, of which we arc 
 every hour conscious, of our minds and our 
 bodies. 
 
 But it is not the present purpose to prove 
 that which we are pledged to believe. We 
 must, if we are Christians, whether we un- 
 derstand it or not, take it on the word of 
 the Holy Scriptures, that Jesus Christ, the 
 only Son of God, associated our nature 
 with his, that he might, in obedience to 
 an established law, offer himself as an ac- 
 ceptable person to undergo punishment, 
 that would otherwise have fallen on us. 
 The point here to be insisted on is, that, 
 after this association, the two natures were 
 so distinct, that, as temporary man, he had 
 no support from himself as eternal God. If 
 he had not that support, nothing but the 
 evil of our nature hinders our imitating 
 him; and, if there is no other hindrance, 
 there is no excuse for our not making 
 every exertion for the purpose, especially 
 under the promise of spiritual aid. 
 
 Our Lord was as sensible to all the ills 
 of life as we can be; though born in po- 
 verty, and protected in his fust years by 
 
566 SERMONET LXVI. 
 
 maternal love, he might, indeed, as know'- 
 ing nothing better, be content. Facts 
 prove the sweetness of his temper : he had 
 no earthly ambition: he was kind-hearted: 
 he was diligent in the discharge of his mi- 
 nistry, while, as if afflicted by prescience 
 of his fate, a pensive gravity seems to have 
 rendered interesting the authority his mis- 
 sion gave him. In his temptation, he had 
 his choice to stand or fall ; and nothing 
 less than the grace he obtained by prayer, 
 could have saved him. When, houseless 
 and powerless, the devil, by illusion, of- 
 fered him universal dominion, .and suggest- 
 ed the means of supporting sinking nature, 
 it was the virtuous wan that refused to do 
 evil that good might come of it. His 
 exertions of supernatural power were not 
 made for himself, but to prolong a painful 
 life of duty : his hour was not yet come, 
 and, therefore, he could remove himself 
 when in daiiger, and walk on the sea ; for 
 here the God assisted the man : his tears at 
 the death of Lazarus were those of sym- 
 pathy : he could not mourn the death of 
 one whom he was about to recall to life. 
 
SERMONET LXVI. SG? 
 
 unless he was not ceitain of divine assist- 
 ance; but, in his agony, it is evident tiiat 
 lie had reason to suspect the withdrawiiio- 
 of his Father's aid. No expression xce can 
 use in tlie deepest grief, can equal the dis- 
 tress implied by his question : " My (lod, 
 why hast thou forsaken me ?'' His friends 
 had deserted him ; justice iiad quitted her 
 path to avoid assisting him: he was the 
 scorn of every one, and, till he v/as out of 
 liearing, no one dared lift up his voice in 
 his behalf: " he was despised and rejected 
 of men ;" and their rejection seemed con- 
 sentaneous with that of God. 
 
 We read all this, as we hear a tale twice 
 told; and, perhaps, it is not in human na- 
 ture, till quickened by the grace of God, 
 to retain interest without novelty ; but, 
 till this be vouchsafed us, we should do 
 well to prevent the hardening of our heaits, 
 by bearing in mind the incontrovertible 
 truth, that our Saviour was as susceptible 
 of cold, of hunger, of thirst, oi^ bodily 
 ])ain, and of iil-trcatrr.ent, as we can be; 
 but tl'Ut, possessed by a strong sense of 
 diir\', he acted in such a wav as to ensure, 
 
568 SERMONET LXVI. 
 
 though he did not always feel, the divine 
 protection. 
 
 Our judgment thus informed, it is our 
 duty, as well as interest, to acquaint our- 
 selves, as far as possible, with the charac- 
 ter of our blessed Lord, and, " as far as the 
 infirmity of our nature will permit," to imi- 
 tate the glorious example he has set before 
 us. 
 
 May the humble endeavour to excite this 
 diligence be attended by the blessing of 
 God 
 
 L. 
 
 THE EKD. 
 
 Printed by S. Goinell, Little Queen Street, London. 
 
m '' ^ 
 
 u* 
 
-'*■■■ . ♦ 
 
mm 
 
 %^: 
 
 •^ 
 
 '< \' 
 
 :avK 
 
 Ml- 
 
 'jf\ 
 
 \^^ 
 
 . '-yte.; ^ 
 
^ . 
 
 )?!^c^ ' <> 
 
■a 
 
 m