'<■ ■ ■■'•■'•■ m FROM THE LIBRARY OF REV. LOUIS FITZGERALD BENSON, D. D. BEQUEATHED BY HIM TO THE LIBRARY OF PRINCETON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY S^-6 /3/S3 ^ PSH OF PMHgfy t h sef OCT 29 1931 BEAUT -■c- 9i *>; OF THE LATE REVEREND Dr. ISAAC WATTS; CONTAINING THE MOST STRIKING AND ADMIEED PASSAGES in the WORKS OF THAT JUSTLY CELEBRATED ZIVINE, PHILOSOPHER, MORALIST, AND POET: EQUALLY CALCULATED FO"R THE COMMUNICATION' OF POLITE AND USEFUL KNOWLEDGE, AND THE INCREASE OF WISDOM and HAPPINESS, ■——TO WHICH IS ADDED-—— THE LIFE 0F~ THE AUTHOR. Printed at NEWBURYPOR T, ey EDMUND M. BLUNT, for MATHEW CAREY, Philadelphia, ij0. CONTENTS. Page o A. ! F Fixing the Attention, 85 Adoration of the Almighty, S9 Abfence from God, 100 Expediency of gaining the Affections of Men, 116 On Argument, 122 Advice to a Young Man, 125 Againft indulging the Angry Pamons, 132 Gentlenefs of Addrefs, 142 On Parental Authority, 144* Advice to Authors, 140 Rules for moderating Anger, i^z B. Benevolence and Complacence, £$ Some Parts of the Bible not to Be read by Children, 151 Bills of Exchange Spiritualized, 21 5 C. The Bounty of the Creator, 32 The Church-yard, 185 Contempt of the trifles of this World, 42 Benevolence of the Creator, 50 Converfation, 69.- Benefit of converfing with Men of dif- ferent Parties, &c. 78 iv CONTENTS. Page To render Converfation inftruclive, 79 Rules for correcting Credulity and Con- tradiction, 96 The Influence ofCuftom, 97 Curiofity to be encouraged in Young Perfons, 141 On improper Curiofity, 158 Cruelty in Children not to be encouraged, i 60- Charitable Judgment of our Fefiow- creatures recommended, 17; The Church-yard, 38 I>. A Thought on Death, 39 Prpfpe&.of Death, 4; Dogmatifrrt cenfured, 62 Againft hafty Determinations, 76 Imputation, 83 Academical Difputations, a — Oppofite Duties, ico Academical Difputes apt to prejudice the Mind, . 105 Decency, 109 Reflecting upon Death recommended, 159 Dancing AfTemblies, 165 E. Excellencies and Defects, 39 Eloquence, 55 Entrance upon the World, 1 24 Ancient and modern Education, 176 Extremes to be avoided in Education, 181 CONTENTS. v Page F. Fear, 74 Unreafonable Fear, G. The invifible Nature of God 3 75 21 Praife of God, 2 5 Grace at Meals, 37 Truft in the Son of God, 4t Perfection of the Gofpel, 44 Gradual Progrefs of the Gofpel, no Advice with reipect to preaching the Gofpel, IT4 Gaming, i6r Guilt and Innocence, 187 Degrees of Guilt and PunifhmemV 200 PL The Man of Humility, 49 Leflbn of Humility, 61 Hatred of our Fellow- Creatures reproved 1. 7 2 Degeneracy of Human Nature, L Idolatry, 199 22 Ideas, Directions concerning them 7 29 Arrangement of our Ideas, 5 2 Verbal Inflruction, Erroneous Judgment, Obedience to the Laws,,- 63 S3 & Religious Liberty, 93 'A 2' vi CONTENTS. Page Ancient and Modern Language con- traded, 145 M. The Study of Mankind, 23 Spiritual and Animal Exigence of Man, 24 Meditation, - 63 That the Support of Miniiiers fliould be provided for, 9 1 The Duty of Minifters, 92 The Delign of our Saviour's Miniftry, 1 1 3 Of Strengthening the Memory of Chil- dren, 148- O. Superficial Observers, 30 Oblervation, 64 Orthodoxy and Chriftianit)Y 1 1 5; P. PafTions influenced by different Situa- tons in Life,. 3^ To fubdue Piicle, 36 The Bleflings of Prayer, 60 Prejudices contrafled, 94 Heriditary Prejudices, 99. Liberty of Prayer, 1 1 3 Why Parables were ufed by Chrift, 134 Fault of Young Preachers reproved, 141 Of Secret and Social Prayer, 170 Ot the Tone of the Voice in Prayer,. 171 Sinful to complain of Providence, 173 Qf Prayer, 195. CONTENTS. vii Page R. Reading, 31 Subftance of Natural Religion, 46 Advantages of Reading, 66 Reading and Conversation contrafted, 67 Method of Reading recommended, 76 Reaion a Source of Religion, 88 Revelation fuperior to Reafon, 108 Reaion alone not fufficient to procure Wifdom and Happinefs* 109 For improving the Reafoning Faculties, 119* Obedience due to Revelation, 14J Religion and Morality to be encouraged in Children, 14$ Late Repentance, 187 The Rake reformed, a Tale,~ 203 S. Spring, 26 Self-love, 40 Salvation through Jefus Chrid,. 57 Salvation to be extended to thofe who have not believed in Chrift, 58 Exhortation againft Sorrow, 81 Gt Science, 86 Ufe of Similitudes, 123 On the Sacrifice of our Redeemer, 136 T. Government of Thoughts, 50 111 Confequences of terrifying young Minds, 1 co viii CONTENTS. Page The End of Time, 183 Value of Time, 184 V. Vanity, 1 89 W. Wonder,. 33 POETRY. Divine Judgment, 221 The Univerfal Hallelujah, 224 The Day of Judgment, 226 Fire, Air, Earth, and Sea, praife ye the Lord, 2 2-3 Launching into Eternity, 230 Breathing towards the Heavenly Country, 23 1 Converfe with Chrift, 232 Falfe Greatnefs, 234 True monarchy, 23^ Few Happy Matches*, a; 7 THE LIFE t O F DOCTOR WATTS. IT is not to be expected that the life of a man devoted from a ftate of infancy to itudy and retirement, mould be pregnant with fuch incidents as are apt to -excite pub- lic curiofity. The truly excellent perfon of whom it is our bufinefs to prefent the reader with feme biographical anecdotes, was diflin- guifhed by a cheerful and uninterrupted dif- charge of every religious and moral duty, an imagination fo fertile in original and great ideas as to feem incapable of being exhaust- ed, a profound and folid judgment, and very extenfivs literary acquirements. Having premifed thus much, we ihall pro- ceed to the narrative. The father of Doctor Watts kept a boarding fchool in the town of Southampton ; and his qualifications for the office of a preceptor were fuch, as procured him confiderable encouragement, while the integrity of his manners gained him the ref- peel of all who had the happinefs of his a<> IO THE LIFE OF DR. WATTS. quaintance. Of nine children, Ifaac was the elded. Though Mr. Watts was not in cir- cumftances of Opulence, yet his income was equal to the fupport of his numerous family in a flile of gentility, Iiaac Watts was born at Southampton on the 17th of July 1674. At a very early period of life he appeared to be ftrongly at- tached to reading ; and this difpofrtion was with pleafur^ obferved, and carefully culti- vated, by his parents. At four years old his father began to inftruct. him in Latin ; and after having made fome confiderable progrefs in that language, and in other fundamental branches of learning, he was placed under the tuition of the Reverend Mr. Pinhorne, a clergyman of the eftablifhed church, and matter of the free-fchool at Southampton. In this fituation our young ftudent aftcrd- ed very early proofs of an infatiable thirft for learning, and of an uncommon brilliancy of genius, which indeed rendered him after- wards fo highly diftinguifhed in the literary world. His rapid progrefs in the learned languages, and in various branches of the fciences, together with the fprightlinefs and vivacity of his wit, which he had the happy talent of attempering with a degree of fo- ber judgment, which was altogether extraor- dinary in one of his years, induced fome lib- eral-minded perfons to propofe engaging in a fubfcription for the purpofe of compleafc- THE LIFE OF DR. WATTS. II ing his education at one of the univerfities. This generous propofal, however, he declin- J ed with grateful acknowledgments, declaring his refolution of adhering to thofe principles he had imbibed from his parents, which im- pelled him to attach himfelf to the DifTent- ' ing church. In the year 1690, young Mr. Watts took up his refidence at an academy in London under the direction of the Reverend Mr. Thomas Rowe, who, it is recorded upon good authority, had not, during the years that he refided in his feminary of learning, a fingle occafion for addreffing him in a ftile even of the mildeft reprimand or reproof, fo early was hi mind imprefTed with juft fentiments of religion and morality, fueh perfect fimpli- city was there in his manners, and fo indefa- tigably afliduous was he in his ftudies. His moil intimate companions while at Mr. Rowe's academy were his' fellow-ftudents, Mr. Horte, afterwards archbifhop of Tuam, and 'Mr. Hughes, the Poet. Mr. Watts became a poetical efTayift at the age of fifteen, and, this art he cultivated, though rather as an amufement, or a relaxa- tion from more fevere ftudies, than as a mat- ter of ferious bufmefs, till he had arrived at fifty. For a confiderable time before the expiration of his minority he appears to have frequently directed his attention to Latin poetry, though not with a view of acquiring IZ THE- LIFE OF Dtt. WATTS. the reputation either of great learning or ex- traordinary talents, but chiefly to obtain a more perfect knowledge of the language. The ftrength of his mind, and his Angular induftry, are furrlciently manifeft in thefe productions, which. though probably the ef- fect of no inconfiderable labour, and not to be placed in competition with many of his other pieces ; yet there is fo much propriety both in the fentiments and the language, and they fo admirably correfpond with each oth- er, that commendation will even here be ex- torted from the utmoft feverity of critical examination. In the year 1693, Mr. Watts joined in communion with the church of which his tutor, Mr. Rowe, was paftor. Having paf- fed through a regular courfe of education at Mr. Rowe's academy, about his twentieth year, he returned to his father's houfe at Southampton, where he was received with the utmoft tendernefs of parental affection, every opportunity being afforded him for further qualifying himfelf toaflumethat im- portant ftation, to which in procefs of time he became one of the moil diftinguifhed ornaments. Having refided two years with his father, conftantly employed in ardent ftudy, and in the devotional . exercifes of a truly pious Cbriftian, he accepted an invitation from Sir John Hartopp to refide in that gentleman's THE LIFE OF DR. WATTS. I i family in quality of tutor to his fan. In this fituation he remained upwards of four years, during which period he peculiarly devoted his mind to theological and Scriptural iludies. His exemplary piety, the (implicity and ca- nine's of his manners, his extenfive knowledge, and various other great and agreeable quali- ties, eftablifhed the foundation of that reci- procal and lafting friendihip which fubfifted between this excellent preceptor and his a- rniable pupil. On the 17th July 1698, the day on which Mr. Watts attained his twenty-fourth year, he preached his probationary fermon at the chapel in Beny-ftreet, London^ to a very numerous congregation, who united in ac- knowledging, that, whether confidered in a theoiog eal, a moral, or a phiiofophical point of view, the difcourfe of the youthful candi- date for being admitted a labourer in the vine- yard of his bie tied S.iviou Jefus Chriit, would have reflected the higheft honour upon a divine who had grown grey in the fatigues of ftudy and the exercife of the pair oral functions. In the fame year he was chofen amtiant to Dr. Ifaac Chauncy ; but though his public la- bours procured him universal veneration, they were in a ihort time interrupted by a dangerous inuifpofition, which continued for the (pace of five months, and was iuppofed to h>vs been occafioned by too rigid an at- tention to his iludiesj and the unremitting B 14 THE LIFE OP PR'. WATTS. activity and fervent zeal with which he avail- ed himfelf of every opportunity of proclaim- ing the gofpel of Chrift, notwithstanding the natural weaknefs of his conftitution leemed but little adapted to iuch fevere and conftant exertions. But upon the*re-e[tablifhment of his health, his pious endeavours for the falva- tion of the fouls of his fellow-creatures iufTer- ed no abatement. Mr. Watts was, in January 1 701, appoint- ed to fucceed Doctor Chauncy ; and on the 1 8th of March was folemnly ordained to the paftoral office ; but prefently after his pro- motion, he was attacked by a very painful and threatening illnefs ; from which he re- covered by very flow, and, for a long time, by almoft imperceptible degrees ; and indeed jfpr feverai years, after this lhoek, his health remained in a very precarious Mate. In the interim, however, that his congregation in particular, and mankind in general, might not be deprived of fo invaluable a member of fociety. and fo exemplary a minifter of the gofpel of Chrift, by too ftric> an atten- tion to the difcharge of the duties of his holy office, it was deemed expedient that he fhould be relieved from too intenfe applica- tion by a regular and ftated affiftant ; and accordingly Mr. Samuel Price was in June 1703, chofen to that employment. Being now afforded an opportunity of al- Jowing his mind fome relaxation from the THE LiKE OF PR. WATTS. fatigues of his pafloral ofHce, his health was gradually reftored ; and he again returned to a diligent acquital of his holy miniflrati- on, to which taik, arduous as it was, he ad- ded that of eitabliihing a fociety of the younger members of his church, for the pur- poses of prayers and religious conference : and to theie pupils he, from time to time, delivered the fubftance of the book which he afterwards published under the title of A GUIDE TO PRAYER. Our Divine continued in the' regular at- tendance upon his public duty till the year 1712, when in the month ot September he was feized with a violent fever, from which he was not relieved till the cruel diieale had fb {nattered his nerves and enfeebled his con- fVitution, that though he recovered the full powers and vigour of his mind., it feemed uot in the learf probable that his exi (fence upon earth would be prolonged through half the number oi years which he afterwards enjoyed. During this illneis fervent prayers to the throne of God were frequently put forth in his own church, and alfo in many- others, tor the preiervation of fo valuable a life ; and the ardour of devotion which was manifefted on thefe occahons, afforded a ve- ry remarkable proof of the high veneration and efteem in which he was held by all ranks of pious Chriflians, and particularly by hi$ brethren of the miniflry;. l6 THE LIFE OF DH. WATTS. Soon after being attacked by this illnefs* at his earned: intreaty, his afiidant Mr. Price was appointed a paflor of the church jointly with him. Between thefe pious mem- bers of the Chriftian. church there fubfifted a friendfhip difinterefted and cordially pious till the death of Dr. Watts, who bequeath- ed a legacy, to " his faithful friend and com- " panion in the labours of the miniftry, as " only a fmall teftimony of his great afifec- •' tion for him, on account of his fervices of " love during the many harmonious years • f of their fellowship in the work of the gof- ■< pel." The traces of his lail indifpofition were too man if eft for the eafe of his numerous friends, who feverely regretted the very pre- carious and alarming ftate to which his con- ftitution had been reduced ; and among the mod diilinguimed of thefe was the late Sir Thomas Abr.ey, who with an ardency of pcr- iuafion which the flncerity and warmth of Mr. Watt's friendfhip for his generous fup- plicant, and a thorough conviction of his ex- emplary piety and numberlefs public and private virtues, difqualified him for refitting, ifiVited our divine to eftabliih his refidence at his feat, at Stoke Newington. While he remained in the family of Sir Thomas Abney, " the notions of patronage " and dependence were overpowered by the and he hkewife ferved the office of Lord Mayor. As his private life was without reproach, fo he dlfcharged the duties of his public ftation w.th unimpeached integrity. He died Febiuary 6th, i-jzi-Zy »n the 83d year of bis age, B. 2 l8 THE LIFE OF p$. Vv'ATI a. ed there was lingular propriety, for he had long rendered himfeif worth)- of the diiTino tion, not only by his^liligenceand fueceis as a Chriftian miniuer,but atfb by -his numerous theological, philofophxa' and meta writings, and by b ing the man pvjto queftionably contributed more thana;,/ oth- er to convince the DifFenters, who had been ever remarkable for an affected contempt of the beauties of language, and a ftudied ine- legancy of expreflicn, that the great truths of the Chriflian gofpel would become doub- ly attractive when difplayed in the facinating powers of a poiifhed diction. In feature Doctor Watts was but little a- bove fix feet. Though his figure feemed not calculated to command attention, yet in; common difeourfe upon ferious fubjecls, as well as in the pulpit, there was a dignified fo- lemnity in Jnis whole deportment and manner of utterance that afforded a kind of irrefuta- ble energy* to what ever came from his lips* Gefticulation in the pulpit he rejected both as unnecefTary and as little correfponding with the gravity and importance of divine topics : but in familiar converfation he was not fo obfervant of a feverity of manner? 5 his fan- cy was excutfive, and his wit was brilliant i and he fometimes exercifed thofe faculties with freedom, though he ever reftrained him- Jelf within the bounds of ftrid decorum., fllJom difmifling a fubjett without deducing* THE LIFE OF DR. WATTS. 1 9 from it Tome excellent leflbn of religion or morality. While in the family of Sir Thomas Ab- ney and his La-ly, he conftantly devoted one 1* of 1 is income to charitable uies ; and ' ; t u e poj >r i-n iVknefs, aod c : drooping hearts t itii I Foart. Since his writings have been criticifed by that cnrnent judge of literary rnent Doctor Samuel Johnfon, it would perhaps be deem- ed a fort of prefumption in the writer of this narrative, were he to obtrude upon the read- er his own opinion as to the degree of ap- probation that is due to the voluminous works of Doctor Watts: and therefore he will introduce an extract which though con- cile, he trulls will prove fatisfactory. " Few men have left behind fuch Durlty «< of character or fuch monuments of labo- " rious piety. He has provided instruction <; for all ages, from thofe who are lifping put into all pofll'ole motion, can never think, reaion, and contrive ; can never hope and with as I do, and lurvey difc taat times, the pad and future. What am THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. £5 I then ? What ftrange kind of Being is this, which is conicious of all thefe different agen- cies, both of Matter and Spirit ? What fort of thing can I be, who feem to think and rea- fon in my head, and feel and am conicious of pain and eafe, not at my heart only, but at my toes and fingers too ? I conclude, then, I can be nothing elie but a Compound Creature, made up of thefe two diftind beings, Spirit and Matter ; or, as we ufually exprefs it, Soul and Body. It is very plain alfo to me, upon a fmall enquiry, that this body and this foul did not make themfelves, nor one another. I had no more hand in the union of thefe two princi- ples, or in the compotltion of myfelf^ than I had in the making of thofe two diftincl be- ings of which I am compounded. It was God only, that great God who created both parts of me 5 the Animal and the Mind, who alfo joined them together in fo ftrange an union. And if I were to enter into the myf- teries of this union, it would open a wide and various fcene of amazement at his unfearch- able wifdom i MISCEL. THOUGHTS, p. 19. THE PRAISE OF GOD. m WHAT is praife ? It is a part of that dj- %*ine worfhip which we owe to the Power that C £6 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. made us -, it is an acknowledgment of the per- fections of God, afcribing all excellencies to him, and conftffing all the works, of nature .and grace to proceed from him. Now, when we apply ourfelves to this work, a,nd drefsup our notions of a God in magnificence of lan- guage, — when we furnifli them out with :fhining figures, and pronounce them with iounding words — we fancy ourfelves to fay great things, and are even charmed with our own forms of praife : but, alas ! the higheft and beft of them, fet in a true light, are but the feeble voice of a creature, fpreading be- fore the Almighty Being that made him, fome of his own low and little ideas, and tell- ing him what he thinks of the Great God, and what God has done. When the holy Pialmifl would exprefs his honorable thoughts of his Maker, they amount only to this, 8 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS, vine wonder?. What endlefs armies of ani- mals is the hand of God moulding and fig- uring this very moment, throughout his bru- tal dominions ! What immenie flights of lit- tle birds are now fermenting in the egz, heaving and growing towards fhape and lite ! What vaft flocks of four-footed creatures, what droves of large cattle, are now framed in their early embrios, imprifoned in the dark cells of nature ! And others, perhaps, are .moving towards liberty, and juft preparing to fee the light. What unknown myriads of infects, in their various cradles and netting- places, are now working toward vitality and motion ! And ihoufands of them with their painted wings juft beginning to unfurl, and expand themfelves into fluttering and day- light ; while other families of them have for- faken their hivfky beds, and exult and glitter in the warm fun-beams ! An exquifite world of wonders is compli- cated even in the body of every little infect,, an ant, a gnat, a mite, that is fcarce vifible to the naked eye. Admirable engines ! which a whole academy of philofophers could never contrive ; which the nation of poets hath neither art nor colours to defcribe ; nor has a world of mechanics fkill enough to frame the plained: or coarfeft of them. Their nerves, their mufcels, and the minute atoms which compofe the fluids fit to run in the little channels of their veins, efcape the notice of, THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS, 3$P the mod fagacious mathematician, with afl? his aid of glailes. The active powers and cu- riofity of human nature are limited in their puriiiit, and mud be content to lie down, i#> ignorance. It is a fublime and conftant- triumph over all the intellectual powers of man, which the great God maintains every moment in theie inimitable works of nature, in thefe. impene- trable receifes and myfteries of divine art ! The flags and banners of Almighty wifdom are now difplayed round half the globe, and the other half waits the return of the fun to fpread the fame triumph over the fouthern world, The very fun- in the firmament is God's prime mimfter in this wondrous world of : beings, and he works with fovereign vigour on the furface of the earth, and fpreads his influences deep under the clods to every root and fibre, moulding them into their proper forms, by divine direction. There is not a. plant, nor a leaf, nor one little branching thread, above or beneath the ground, that efcapes the eye or influence of this benevolent flar : an illuftrious emblem of the Omnipo- tence and univerfal activity of the Creator. MISCEL. THOUGHTS, p. 31. DIRECTIONS CONCERNING OUR IDEAS. FURNISH yourfelves with a rich variety of ideas 5 acquaint yourfelves with things ar> € z- $D ■ THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. cient and modern ; things natural, civil, and religious ; things domcftic and national ; things of your native land, and of foreign countries 3 things prefent, pa ft, and future ; and, above all, be well acquainted with God and yourfelves ; learn animal nature, and the workings of your own fpirits. Such a gene- ral acquaintance with things will be of very great advantage. LOGIC, p. 71. SUPERFICIAL OBSERVERS. THERE are fome perfons that never ar- rive at any deep, lolid, or valuable knowl- edge, in any icience, or any bulinefs of life, becaufe they are perpetually fluttering over the furface of things, in a curious or wander- ing fearch of infinite variety -, ever hearing, reading, or afking after fornething new, but impatient of any labour to lay up and pre- ferve the ideas they have gained : their fouls may be compared to a looking-glafs, that wherefoever you turn it, it receives the im- ages cf all objects, but retains rone. LOGIC, p. 73. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. R E A V I N G. IF the books which you read arc your own, mark with a pen, or a pencil, the molt considerable things in them which you defire. to remember. Thus you may read that book. the fecond time over with half the trouble, by your eye running over the paragraphs which your pencil has noted. It is but a very weak, objection againft this practice*, to fay, I ft all fpoil my hook $ for I. perfuade myfelf, that you did not buy it as a book-feller, to fel! it again for gain, but as a fcholar, to improve your mind by it ; and if the mind be improved, your advantage is abundant, though your book yields leis money to your executors. This advice of writing, marking, and review- ing your remarks, refers chiefly to thofe oc- casional notions you meet with either in read* ing or in converiation : but when you are directly or profefiedly purfuing any fubject of knowledge in a good iyftem, in your younger years, the fyftem itfeif is your common-place book, and mud be entirely reviewed. The fame may be faid concerning any treatife which clofely, fuccinctly, and accurately han- dles any genicular theme> WiS, p. 75- 32' THE BEAUTIES Gi< DR. V/_ THE BOUNTY OF THE CREATOR. WHAT is more necefiary for the fupporr: of life, than food ? Behold, the earth is cov- ered with it all around ; grafs, herbs, and fruits, for beads and men, were ordained to overfpread all the furrace of the ground, fa- that an animal could fcaree wander any where, but his food was near him. Amazing pro- vifion for fuch an immenfe family ! — Whar are the fweeteft colours in nature, the mod delightful to the eye, and the moil fefrefhirig too ? Surely the green and blue claim this pre-eminence. Common experience, as well as philofophy, tells us, that bodies of green and blue colours fend us fuch rays of light to our eyes, as are leaf! hurtful or ofJenfive ; we can endure them longeft ; whereas the red and yellow, or orange colour, fend more un* eafy rays in abundance, and give greater con- fufion and pain to the eye ; they dazzle it fooner, and tire it quickly with a little intent gazing ; therefore the divine goodnefs dreffed all the heavens in blue, and the earth in green. Our habitation is over*hung with a canopy of mod beautiful azure, and a rich verdant pavement is ipread under our feet, that the eye mav be pleafed and eafy whereloever it turns itfelf, and that the mod univeriiil-ob--- THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 3£ jects it has to converfe with, might not im- pair the fpirits and make the fenfe weary. I. TVREN God the new-made world 'furvey'd, His word pronouncd the building geod: Sun- beams and light the heavens array 'd, And the whole earth was crown d with food* 31. Colours that charm and pleafe the eye, His pencil fpread all nature round : With pleafing bhie he arch'd the fiy, And a green carpet drefsd the ground. III. Let envious atheifis ne'er complain That nature wants, or fit 11 > or care : But tu>n their eyes all round in vain, T avoid their Maker's goodnefs there. M1SCE1. THOUGHTS, p. 36* WONDER. WHEN we perceive any objecl that is rare and uncommon., that is, new and ftrange, either for its kinds, or for its qualities -, or %vhen we meet with, fuch an occurrence or J4 ia£ BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. event as is unufual or unexpected ; or fuclY as is, at lead, unufual atfuch a particular time and place ; we are flruclc with admiration or wonder : and that without any confideration whether the object be valuable or worthlefs, whether it be good or evil. We wonder at a very great or a very little man, a dwarf or a giant ; at a very little horfe, at a huge fnake or toad, at an elephant, or a whaie, or a com- et, or at any rare performances of art, as mov- ing machines, fuch as- clocks, watches, with a variety of uncommon motions and opera- tions : we wonder at a piece of extraordina- ry wit, fkill, or learning ; even at artificial trifles, as a fl a kept alive in a chain ; at any uncommon appearances in nature discovered by a telefcope, a microfcope, &c. Admira- tion has no regard to the agreeablenefs or dif- agreeablenefs of the object, but only to the rarity of it. And for this reafbn wonder feems to be the firft of the panTons. DOCTRINE OF THE PASSIONS, p. lj: Let it be obferved, that this pafiion has properly no oppofite ; becaufe, if the objecx v be not rare or new, or if the appearance be not ludden or unexpected, but a mere com- mon or familiar thing, or an unexpected oc- currence, we receive it with great calmnefs,. and feel no fuch commotion or' nature about ii : we treat it with neglect, inllead oi wonder. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATT 5. 35 Now neglect is no paflion. The reft of the paffiofts, at leaft the moft of them, go in pairs* DOCTRINE CF THE PASSIONS, p. iS. BENEVOLENCE AND COMPLACENCY. BENiEVOLENCE is ibmetimes laid out upon. an object that has no fuch prefentg-od in it as we can defire or delight in, but only fotne foundation of future good, or fome ca- pacity to be made good or agreeable. A pi- ous man can never love wicked men with the love of complacency or delight ; but he may exercife theJove of benevolence towards them, to pity tl-em, and to wifh their recovery. So our Saviour couid not love the bloody city of Jeruiaiem with complacency, becaufe it killed the prophets, and bafphemed God and his San; but he loved it with benevo- lence, and wept over it fome tears of com- panion. DOCTRINE OF THE PASSIONS, p. 32. PASSIONS INFLUENCED BY DIFFERENT SITUATIONS IN LIFE, . DIFFERENT employments, and differ- ent conditions of life, beget in us a tendency fco our diiterent paAlons. Thofe who are ex- g* THE BEAUTIES OF I>R. WATTS. lilted above others in their daily ftaticns, and efpecially if they have to do with many per- ibns under them, and in many affairs, are too often tempted to the haughty, the morofe, the furly, and the more unfriendly ruffles and difturbances of nature, unlefs they watch a- gainft them with daily care. The command- ers in armies and navies, the governors of work-houies, the mafters of public fchools, or thole who have a great number of fervants under thera, and a multitude of cares and concerns in human life, mould continually let a guard upon themfelves, left they get a habit of affe6ted iuperiority, pride, and van- ity of mind, of fretfulnefs, impatience, and criminal anger. DOCTRINE OF THE PASSION?, p. ~,1. TO SUBDUE PRIDE, CONSIDER what you (hall be. Your flefh returns to corruption and common earth again ; nor (hall your duft be diilinguilhed from the meaneft beggar or flave ; no, nor from the duft of brutes and infects, or the mod contemptible of creatures. And as for your foul, that muft ftand before God, in the world of fpirits, on a level with the reft of anankind, and divefted of all your haughty THE. BEAUTIES OF PR. WATTS. 37 and flattering circumftahces. None of your vain diftinctrons in this life fliall attend. you. to the judgment-feat. Keep this tribunal in view, and pride will wither,, and hang do.wn its head. POCTRINf. OF THE PASSIONS, p. 99. G R A C E A T M'EALS. THE converfation turned upon the fub- je6t of faying grace before and after meat. When feveral of the company had given their thought^ Soeius acknowledged it was not neeeilary to offer a iblemn and particular pe- tition to heaven on the oce&fion of every bit ■ot bread -'that we rafted, or when we drink a glafs of wine with a friend*; nor was it ex- peeled we mould make a tbcial prayer when perfons, each for themselves, took a flight re- ipaft in a running manner,; either t)ie general morning devotion is luppofcd fufheient to re- commend fuch transient aci.ions ; and occur- rences to the diviue bieiTing, or a fuiuen fe- cret wifh, fent up to heaven in filence* might anfwer fuch a purpofe in the chriftian life : but when a whole family fits down together to make a regular and flated meal, it was his opinion, that the Great God mould be ibl-' D 38 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. emnly acknowledged as the giver of all the good things we enjoy.; and-the practice of our Saviour, and St. Paul, | had fet us an il- hiilrious example. MISCEL. THOUGHTS, p. 6$. THE CHURC H-Y A R D. WHAT a multitude of being?, noble .creatures, are here reduced to duit ! .God has broken his own bed work manfhip to pie- ces, and demolished by thousands the flneft earthly ftructures of his own building. Death has entered in, and reigned over this town for many fucccflive centuries ; it had its com- xniffion from God, and ic has devoured multitudes of men. MISCEL. THOUGHTS, p. I©7. Go to the church-yard, then, O finful ani though tlefs mortal ; go learn from every tomb-done, and every rifing hillock, that "-The wages of fin is death/' Learn in fi- lence, among the dead, that leiibn which in- finitely -concerns all the living ; nor let thy heart be ever at reft, till thou art acquainted with Jesus, who is the re fur r eftion '■ and the Misijfa,. THOUGHTS, Jp. XO%. BEAUTIES" 0~ DIT. WAT £9 A THOUGHT ON" D E A T H. DEATH, to a good man, is but patting trough a dirk entry, out of one little dufky room ot his father's houfe, into another that is fair and large, lightfome and- glorious, and divinely entertaining. O, may-the Fays and iplendors of my heavenly apartment moot far downward, and gild the dark entry with fuch a chearful gleam, as to bani-fh every fear when ] fhall be called to pais through !" MISCZL.T>:0TJGHT3, p. I20. HUMAN EXCELLENCIES AND DEFECTS. THERE is nothirg on earth excellent on all fides j there muft be ibmething wanting: in the beft of creatures, to fhewhow far they are from perfection. God has wifely ordained it, that excellencies and defects fhould be mingled amongft men ; advantage and dif- ad vantage are thrown into the. balance ; the one is let over-againft the other, that no man might be iupremely exalted, and none utter- ly contemptible. MISCEL. THOVGKTS, p. J47. y THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS*. S E L F - L O V E. YOUTH is wild and licentious. In thofe yeaip, we perfuade ourfelves that we are only making a juft ufe of liberty. In that fcepe of folly we are light and vain, and fet no bounds to the froiick humour ; yet we fancy. it is merely an innocent gaiety of heart, which belongs to the fprings of nature, and the blooming hours of life. In the age of man- hood, a rugged or a haughty temper is angry or quarrelibme.; t*he frettul and the peevifh in elder years, if not before, are ever kindling into paffion and refentment ; but they all a- gree to pronounce their furious or fretful con- duct a mere necefTiry reproof of the indigni- ties which were offered them by the world. Self-love is. fruitful of fine names for its own iniquities. Others are lordid and covetous to a ihameful degree, uncompaffionate and cruel to the miferable ; and yet they take this vile practice to be only a juft exercife of frugality, and a dutiful care of their own houf- ; '.olo\ Thus, every vice that belongs to us, is conftrued ink) a virtue ; and, if there are any fhadows or appearances of virtue upon us, theie poor appearances and ihadows are magnified and realized into the divine quali- ties of an angel. We, who pafs thefe jufl cenfures on the follies of our acquaintance.. THE BEAUTIES ©F DR. WATTS. 41 qerhaps approve the very fame things in our- ielves, by the influence of the fame native- principle of flattery and felf-fondnefs. MISCEL. THOUGHTS, p. I57, TRUST IN THE SON OF GOD. THEY that have trufted in the Son of God, begin to find peace in their own con- ferences 5 they can hope God is reconciled to them through the blood of Chrift, that their iniquities are atoned for, and that peace is made betwixt God and them. This belongs only to the* doctrine" 'of Chrift, and witneiles it to be divine $ for there is no religion that ever pretended -to lay -fuch a foundation of pardon and peace> as the religion of the Son of God does ; for he has made himfelf a pro- pitiation -, jefus the Righteous is become our reconciler, by becoming a facrifice: Rom.'m. 25. " Him that God let forth for a propi- if tiation, through faith in his blood, to de- clare his righteoulnefs for the remiffion of w ' fins that are paft 5 that he might be juft^ " and tbejufiifier of him that believes in Je- " lus : Therefore, being juftified by faith, we 4t have peace with God. Rom. v. if, Behold ^the Lamb of God, that takes away the fins D 2 42 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. " of the world !" was the language of John, « who was but the forerunner of our religion,, and took a profpecl of it at a little diftance : and much more of the particular glories and bleffings of this atonement is difplayed by the bleffed Apoftles, the followers of the Lamb. Other religions, that have been drawn from the remains of the light of nature, or that have been invented by the iunerftitious fears and fancies of men, and obtruded on mankind by the craft of their fellow -creatures, are at a lofs in this inflance, and cannot fpeak folid peace and pardon. SERMONS, VOl. I. p. II. CONTEMPT OF THE TRIFLES OF THIS. WORLD. IF we look upward to Heaven, we fliall behold there ail the inhabitants looking down With a facred contempt upon the trifles, amufe- merits, bufineffes and- cares of this prefent life, that engrofs our affections, awaken ourdefires, fill our hearts with pleaiure or pain, and our flelh with conftant labour. With what holy fcorn do you think thofe fouis, who are dif- miifed from flefh, look down mon the hurries and bu (ties of the prefent ftate in which we are engaged ? They dwell in the full fight of thofe glories which they hope for hereon earthy. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 4-T and their intimate acquaintance with the plea- fares of that upper world, and the divine fen- fations that are raifed in them there, make t!: em' contemn all the pleafures of this flate, and every thing below heaven. This is a part of eternal life; this belongs, in fome degree, to every believer : for he is not a believer that h not got above this world in a good meaf- ure ; he is not a chriftian, who is not wean- ed, in -fome degree, from this world : " For Ci this is our victory, whereby weovercorne " the world, even our faith." i John, v. 4. « He that is born of God, overcomes the Tarn weaned " from them, I am born for above." This Is the .language of that faith that overcomes. 44'- X H trr E E*A \j T t f E£ O F- D R . W A T T S . - the world , and faith, where it is wrought irc truth in the lout, hath, in lome meafure, this effed ; .and where it (nines in its brightnefs,. it hath, in a great degree, this iubiime grace, accompanying it ; or rather, (fhall 1 lay ?).* this piece of heavenly glory. Fain and fick- nefs., poverty and reproach, .for row and death it.felf, have been contemned by thoie that have believed in Chrift Jeius, with much more honour to Chriftianity than ever was brought to, other religions. SERMONS, V. I. p. 24. INIMITABLE PERFECTION OF THE GOSPEL. THE gofp?l of Chrift is like « feal or fig. net, of fuch divine graving, that no created power can counterfeit it j and when the fpir- it of God has (lamped this gofpel on the foul, there are fo-many holy and happy lines drawn or imprelTed thereby* \o many lac red figna- tures and divine features ftamped on the mind, that give certain evidence both of a heavenly fijguet and a heavenly Operator. ttHE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 4£ PROSPECT OF DEATH. *f HOW mould we rejoice in hope of that ^ hour that mall releafe us from the finful ft flefh ; and when we fhall ferve God in fpi- " rit without a clog,., without a tempter ■!"' O, with what a relifh of ("acred pleafure mould a faint read thofe words in 2 Cor. v. 8. " Abfent from, the body, and prefent with " the Lord ?" Abfent trorn- this traitor,, this vexing enemy, that we conftanily carry about with us ! Abfent from the clog and chain of this finful flefh, the prifon wherein we are kept in conftant darknefs, and are con- fined from God !' Abfent from thefe eyes, that have drawn our fouls afar from God by- various temptations ■'! And abfent from thefe ears, by which we have been allured totranf- grefhon and defiling iniquities ! Abfent from thefe lufts and pafiions, Irom that fear and that hope, that pleafure and that pain, that love,' that defire, and anger, which are ail car- nal,, and feated in the flefhy nature, and be- come the fpring and occaiion of fo much fin and mifchief to our fouls in this flate. %c Abfent from the body, and prefent with " the JLord." Methinks there is a heaven contained in the -firft part of thefe words,. " Abfent from the body r' and a double hap— pinefs in the laft, "-Prefent wkh the Lord f* 46 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS; prefent with him who hath faved our fpirits through all the days of our chriftian. conflict and hath-given us the fmal Victory : prefent with that God, who (hall eternally influence us to all holinefs, who fhall forever- {bine up- on us with his own- beams, and make us con- formable to his own holy image ;; prefent with that Lord and Saviour,, from whom it fliall not be in 'the; power of all creatures to divert or draw us afide. SIMMONS, V. J. p. 90. SUBSTANCE. OF NATURAL RELIGION. DOUBTLESS man mud know and be- Heve, in the fir ft place, that there is a God/ and that this God is but One ; for God is too. }ealous of his. honour and dignity, and too much concerned in this important point, to- kvifh out happrneis, and his heavenly favours, on any. per Ion who makes other gods to be- come his rivals ; or who exalts a creature, or a mere -chimera* into the throne of God. He, muft believe, alio, that, .God is a being of per- fect wifdom, power, and goodnels, and that he is the righteous Governor of the world. Man muft alio know, that he himfelf is a. creature of God, furnifhed with a faculty of> ^nderftanding to perceive the general differ- THE BEAUTIES- OF DR. WATTS. 47 ence between good and evil, in the moft im- portant inftances of it ^ and endowed with a will, which is a power to chufe or to refufe the evil or the good ; that he" is obliged to exert theie powers or faculties in a right man- ner, both towards God and Howards hi mfelf, as well as his neighbour. I do not infill up- on it, that he muft know thefe proportions explicitly, and in a. philosophical manner $ but- ue muft have fome fort of confcioufnefs of bis own natural powers, to know and dil- tingurfh, to chufe or to refufe good or evil, and mult be fenfibie of his obligations to ia- quire and practice what is good, andt® avoid what is evil. As for the duties that relate to God, : man is obi-ged to woffhip him -with reverence, to honour him in his heart and life, on account of his wiidom and power manifefted in the world ; to fear his Majeftv, to love him, and hope in his goodnefs, to give him thanks for what inftances of it he partakes of, to fek to_ him for what biefiings he wants, and to carry' it toward him as his Maker, his Lord, and his Governor. He muft know alfo, that finee God' is a u righteous Governor," if he does not make good men happy 'in this world, and the wick- ed miferabie, then there - mud be another world, wherein he will- appoint fome -happi-/- nefs for the good, and.rmiery for the wicked ; H • WATT diftribute rewards and punifhments to all per- ions,, according to their, behaviour : tor this, lias a very considerable influence into ail ho- Ijnefsoflife, and every part of morality, which will hardly be practiced without thefe motives. As for the duties which relate to other men, every man mud know and believe, that as he is placed here among a multitude of fellow- creatures o| his own fpecies or kipd, he is bound tq practice truth or veracity, juitjee a4id goodness towaid them,. according, to the -feveral relations in which thev may ftand, as a father, brother, fon, lufband, neighbour* fubject, matter, fervant, buyer, feller, &c. And with regard to hunlelf, he is bound toexercife fobiiefy and temperance, and .to maintain a due government over his appe* tites and paffions, that they run not into ex- cels and extravigance, And finally, fmce every man will frequent- ly find himfelt coming (hort of his duty to God and man, and betrayed into fin by the ftrength of his temptations, his appetites and paffions, in the various occurrences of life, he mult repent of his fins, be fincerely forry for what he has done amils, humbly afk forgive - nefs of God, and endeavour to ierve and pleafe him in all things for the time to come,, and ■ he muft exerafe a hope or truft.in the mercy of God, that-up^n re;, r.tau' e an 1 new obedience, God will ioig-.\e tinners, and take . them again into his favour. S,TA£NGTM AKO WEAKNESS OF *Vt4. REASON, p. X J. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 4$ THE MAN OFHUMIL-IT Y. . EUDOXUS is a gentleman of exalted virtue and unitained reputation, every foul that knows htm fpeaks well of him -, he is fo much honoured, and fo well b^ved in nS nation, that he mull flee his country, if he would avoid praifes, So fenilble is he of the fecret pride that has tainted human nature, that he holds himfelf in perpetual danger, and maintains an evcrlafuing watch. He be- haves now with the fame modeily as when he was unknown and-cbfcure.' He receives the acclamations of the world with fuch an humble mein'i and with fuch an indifference of Ipirit that is truly admirable and divine* It is a lovely pattern but the imitation is not eaiy. — I took the freedom one day to alk him, how he acquired this wondercus humi- lity, or whether he was born with no pride about him ? " Ah, no (laid he, with a facred " figh'3 I feel the working poilbii, but I keep C£ my antidote at hand ; when my friends CJ lell' me of many good qualities and ta- ct lents, I have learnt from St. Paul to fay, 4£ What have J that I have not received t My " own confcioulnefs of many follies an^i fins " conftrains me to add, What' have 1 that I ■" have not mifimp-oved ? And then reafon E JO THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. " and religion join together to fupprefs my t: vanity, and teach me the proper language " of a creature and a Tinner : Wf-uit then have ■" lto giory in ?' % MKCEi. THOUGHTS, p. 56. THE B2NEV0UENCE OF THE CREATOR. UPON the whole view .of things, I think, from fcripture and reaibn together, we may j^iftiy conclude, that where Chrift and the gofpel are not publifhed, all humble and fin- cere penitents, a/king pardon of God, and hoping in his mercy, (thougli they know no- thing of the particular way or method wherein it is, or hath been, or (hail be revealed) fhail jiot laii of pardon and acceptance with God at laft, nor mifs of lome tokens of his favour. This grace hath Jefus procured, and God will beftow it. STRENGTH AND WEAKNESS OF HUMAN REA60N. p. f,$. OF THE GOVERNMENT OF OUR THOUGHTS. THERE are fome thoughts that rife and intrude upon us while we Ihun them % there are others that fly from us, when we would TfiE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. Jl hold and fix them. — If the ideas which you would willingly make the matter of your pres- ent meditation are ready to fly from you, you muft be obftinate in the purfhit of them by an habit of fixed meditation ; you muft keep your foul to the work, when k is ready to ftart afide every moment,- unlets you will abandon yourfeif to be a Have to every wild imagina- tion. It is a common, but it is a very unhap- py and a fhamelul thing, thar every trifle that comes acrois the fenfes or fancy lliould divert us, that a buzzing My fhould teaze our fpirit~, and icatter our bell ideas : but we muft learn to be- deaf to and resardlefs of other things,, befides that which we make the prelent fub- jeclof our meditation ;- and in order to help a wandering and fickle humour, it is proper tb have a book or paper in our hands, which has fome proper hints of the tubjecl that we delign to puriue. We muft be refolute and laborious, and fometrmes conflict with our- felves, if we would be wife and learned. Yet I would not be too fevere in this rule. It muft be conferred, there are feafons when the mind, or rather the brain, is over-tired or jaded- with ftudy and thinking ; or upon fome other accounts animal nature may be languid or cloudy, and unfit to aflift the fpirit in meditation ; at lueh feafons (provided that they return not too often) it is better fome- times to yield to the preient indilpofitioa. Then you may think it proper to give your- £2 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. felf up to fome hours of leifure and lecreation, or ufcful idlenefs ; or if not, then turn your thoughts to fome other alluring fubject, and pore no longer upon the nrft, till fome bright- er or more favourable moments arife. A ftu- dent (hall do more in one hour, when all things concur to invite him to any fpeciai ftudy, than in four hours, at a dull and im- proper feaibn. LOGIC, p. 77. OF THE ARRANGEMENT OF OUR IDEAS. AS a trader who never places his goods in his (hop or warehouse in a regular order, nor keeps the accounts of his buying and idling, paying and receiving, in ajufl method, is in the utmofl danger of plunging all his affairs into confuiion and ruin ; lo a ftudcnt who is in feanhof truth, or. an author or teacher who communicates knowledge to others, will very much obitrucl: his defign, and confound his own mind, or the minds or Lis hearers, unlefs he range his ideas injure, order. If we would therefore become iuccefsful learners or teach- ers, we mud not. conceive things in a confufed heap, but difpofe our ideas in fome certain method, which may be mod eafy and ufeful both. for the underltanding and memory. LOGIC, p. 133. THE BEAUTIES" OF DIC. WATTS. $J ERRONEOUS J U D G M % N" T- WHERE there is wealth, equipage, and Splendor, we are ready to call that man hap- py ; but we lee not the vexing disquietudes of his foul : and when we fpy a perfon in rag- ged garments, we form- a deSpicable opinion of him too Suddenly ; we can hardly think him either happy or wife, our judgment is So- biaSed by outward and tenfible things. It was through the power of this prejudice that the Jews rejected our bkfiTed Saviour ; they could not Suffer themielves to believe that the. man who appeared as the Ton of a carpen- ter was.alfo the Son of God. And becaufe St. f?aul was of little ftature, a mean prefence, and his voice contemptible, Come of the Co- rinihi&is were tempted to doubt whether he was inlpired or no. This prejudice is cured by a longer acquaintance with the world, and a.juft observation that things are lometimes better and Sometimes worft than they appear ro be. We ought therefore to reftrain our exceffive ferwardnefs to form our opinion of perfonsor things before we have opportunity to iearch into them more perfectly. tOGic, p. igo»- E a. 54 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. There is fcarce any thing in the world of nature or art, in the world of morality or re- ligion, that is perfectly uniform. There is a mixture ofwifdomand folly, vice and virtue, good and evil both in men and things. We Ihould remember that fome perfons havegreat wit and little judgment -, others are judicious, but not witty. Some are good humoured without compliment ; others have a 1 the formality of complaifance, but no good hu- mour. We ought to know that one man may be vicious and learned, while another has vir- tue without learning ; that many a man thinks admirably well, who has a poor utterance ; while others have a charming manner offpeech, but their thoughts are trifling and imperti- nent. Some are good neighbours, and cour- teous and charitable towards men, who have no piety towards God ; others are truly reli- gious, but of morofe natural tempers. Some excellent fayings are found in very (illy books, and fome filly things appear in books of value. We mould neither praife nor difpraife by wholefale, but feparate the good from the e- vil, and judge of them apart : the accuracy of a good judgment confifts in making fuch difti net ions. looir, p. iqi-. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. $$ THE POWER CF ELOQUENCE. WHEN a man of eloquence fpeaks or writes upon any fubject, we are too ready to run into his fentiments, being fweetly and in- fenfibly drawn by the fmoothnefs of his ha- rangue, and the pathetic power of his lan- guage. Rhetoric will varnifh every error, fo that it fhall appear in the drefs of truth, and put fuch ornaments upon vice, as to make it look like virtue. It is an art of wondrous and extenfive influence; it, often conceals, ob- fcures, or overwhelms the truth, and places fome times a g-ofs falfehood in the mod al- luring light. The decency of action, the mu- fic of the voice, the harmony of the periods, the beauty of the fcile, and all the engaging airs of the fpeaker, have often charmed the hearers into error, and periuaded them to ap- prove whatibever is propofed in fo agreeable a manner. A large aflembly ftands expofed at once to the power of thefe prejudices, and imbibes them all. So Cicero and Demoflhenes made the Romans and the Athenians believe almoft whatfoever they pleafed. The Deft defence againft both thefe dangers, is to learn the fkill (as much as pofiible; of feparating our thoughts and ideas from words and phrafes, to judge of the things from their own natures, and in their natural or juft rela? 5$' THE BEAUTIES OF . DR, WATTS, tion to one another, abftracted from the ufo of language, and to maintain a fteady and obftinate refolution, to hearken to- nothing but truth, in whatfoever ftile or dreis it ap- pears. LOGICi p. I97. OBEDIENCE TO THE LAWS. THE correcTion or amendment of the par- ticular offender, is not the only end of pun- ifhment, but the vindication of the wiidonx andjultice of the lawgiver, and his law, which are like to be iniuTted, and the laws continu- ally broken afrefh, if offences were always paffed by with impunity, .and if the criminal were always pardoned upon repentance. It is neceflary for a governor lometimes to teach his fubje&s what an evil thing it is to tranf- grefs his law, by the proper punifhment of thofe who offend. The honour and author- ity of government muft be lometimes fup- ported and vindicated by fuchfeverities; and though it may pleafe a fdvereign fometimes. to pardon an offender, out of his great good- nefs, when he is truly penitent for his crime, yet no degrees of penitence can allure the of- fender that he (hall certainly and entirely be forgiven, or can claim forgivenefs at the hands THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS, 57 of the fovereign ; bccaufe repentance makes no recompence at ail for the d ; (honour done to the authority of rhe law, and of him that made it. His future obedience is all due, if he had never finned ; and therefore it cannot compenfate for paft neglects and tranlgref- fions. STRENGTH AND WEAKNESS OF HUMAN REASON, p. Sz, SALVATION PROCURED THROUGH THE MEDIA= TIQN OF JESUS CHRIST. I AM perfuaded, that God never. did or wi 11~ forgive the fins, of any man upon earth,, whether Jew, Heathen, or Chriftian, nor re- ceive any of our finful race into his favour, but upon the account of what Jefus C.hrift his (orr, the Mediator,. has done and fuiTered,. for the atonement and expiation of fin, and the recovery of man to the favour of God : (o that if Heathens are faved, I. think it is owing to the mejit of Chrift, and his death. <( There is falvation in no other, nor is " there any other name whereby man may " be laved." If any of thofe who never heard of Chrift might be faved with- out the influence of his atonement and me- diation, why might not they that have heard of him be faved without it alfp ? Thus there 5$ THE B'EAtTTIES OF DR* WATTS. would be no need of him to become a medi- ator, or to make atonement for the fins of one or the other, and thus Chrift would have lived and died to very little purpofe. STRENGTH AX2 WEAK. OF HUM. REASON, J!e, or to exceed : thus let your diligence be quickened by a generous and laudable emu- lation. IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND, TART I, F. 8. DOGMATISM CENSURED. MAINTAIN a conftant watch at al! times jagainfl a dogmatical lpirit : fix not your af- fcnt to any proportion in a firm and unaltera- THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 6j ble manner, till you have fome firm and un- alterable ground for it, and till you have ar- rived at lomt clear and fare evidence ; till you have turned the proportion on all fides, and fearched the matter through and through, fo that you cannot be miftaken. And even where you think you have full grounds of ailiirance, be not too early, nor too fre- quent, in expre fling this affurance in too peremptory and politive a manner, remem- bering that human nature is always liable to miitake in this corrupt and feeble (late. IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND, PART I, P. 1 8, A DOGMATICAL fpirit inclines a mab to be cenforious of his neighbours, kvery one of his opinions appears to him written as it were with funbeams, and he growa angry that his neighbour does riot fee it in die lame light. He is tempted to difdain his correi- pondents as men of low and- dark underftand- jngs, becaufe they do not believe what he does, IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND, PART I, P. 20. M E D I T A T I O K. MEDITATION or Study includes all thole exercifes of the mind whereby we render all the former methods ufeful for our 64 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. increafe in true knowledge and wifdom. 'Tis by meditation we come to confirm our mem- ory of things that pafs through our thoughts in the occurrences- of life, in our own expe- riences, and in the obfervationwe make ; 'tis by meditation that we draw various inferen- ces, and eftablifh in our minds general prin- ciples of knowledge : 'tis by meditation that we compare the various ideas which we derive from our fenfes, or from the operation of our fouls, and join them in proportions. It is by meditation that we fix in our memory what- foever we learn, and form our own judgment of the truth or falfhood, the flrength or weak- ness of what others fpeak or write. It is med- itation or ftudy that draws out long chains of argument, and fearches and finds deep and difficult truths which before lay concealed in darknefs. IMFP.OVKMFNT OF THE MIND, PART I, P. UBSI. R V A T I O N. IT is owing to observation that our mind isfurnifbed with the firft, iimple, and com- plex ideas. 'Tis this lays the ground-work and foundation of all knowledge, and makes us capable of ufing any of the other methods tor improving the mind: for. if we did not THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 6j attain a variety of fenfible and intellectual ideas, by the fenfation of outward objecls, by the contcioufnefs of our own appetites and paflions, pieaiures and pains, and by inward experience of the actings of our own fpirits it would be impoilible either for men or books to teach us any thing. It is obfervation that mud give us our firft ideas of things, as it in- cludes in it ienfe and confcioufnefk. All our knowledge derived from obferva- lion, whether ir be of tingle ideas or of pro- portions, is knowledge gotten at find hand; Hereby we fee and know things as they are, or as they appear to us ; we take the irnpref- ftoas of them-- on cur minds from the original objr-cts themfelves, which give a clearer and ftronger conception of things. Thefe ideas are more lively, and the proportions (at lead in many cafes) are much more evident. Whereas what knowledge we derive from lectures, reading, and converlation, is but the copy of other men's. ideas ; that is the pic- ture of a picture ; and 'tis one remove further from the original. Another advantage of observation is, that we may gain kno vledge ail the day long, and ' everv moment of our iives, and every moment-' of our cxiit'.rice we maybe adding fomet'iing to our intellectual treafures thereby, except only while we are aflceo ; and even then the lemembrance of ou.- dreamm^s will teach uj F 2- 66 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATT!; fome truths, and lay a foundation for a bet- ter acquaintance with human nature both in the powers and in the frailties ot it. -IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND, PART X, P. 34. ADVANTAGES OF READING. BY reading we acquaint oorfelves in a very extenfive manner with the affairs, ac- tions and thoughts of the living and the dead, in the molt remote nations, and in the. molt diftant ages ; and that with as much eafe as though they lived in our own age and nation. By reading of books we may learn fome thing from all parts of mankind ; where- as by obfervation we learn from ourfelves, and only what comers within our direct cog- nizance : by converfatien we can only enjoy the affiftance of a very few perfons, viz. thole who are near us, and live at the lame time that we do ; thit is, our neighbours and con- temporaries. But our knowledge is ftill much more narrowed than if we confine ourfelves merely to our ownlolitary reafonings without- much obfervation or reading : for then all our improvement mud aiife only from our *>wn inward powers and meditations. IMPROVEMENT OF THE. MlttD, F A.1T I, P. ■££►. the: beauties of dr. watts. 67 READING AND CONVERSATION CONTRASTED, BY reading we learn not only the actions and the fentiments of diftant nations and a- ges, but we transfer to ourfelves the knowl- edge and improvements of the mod learned men, and the wifcft and the befc of mankind 3 when or wherefoever they lived : for though many books have been written by weak and injudicious perfons, yet the moft of thofe books which have obtained great reputation in the world, are the products of great and wife men in their feveral ages and nations :. whereas we can obtain the converfation and inftruction of thofe only who are within the reach of our dwelling, or our acquaintance, •whether they are wife or unwife > and fome- times that narrow fphere fcarce affords any p.erfon of great ernkience in wifdom or learn- ing, unlefs our inftructer happen to have this character. And as for our own ftudies &; med- itations, even when we arrive at fome good degrees of learning, pur advantage for further improvement in knowledge by them is ftill far more contracted than what we may derive from reading. When we read good authors, we learn the beft, the molt laboured and moft refined fen- timents even of thofe wife and learned men ^ for they have ftudied hard,, and committed 6S THE BEAUTIES OF DTI. WATTS* to writing their matured thoughts, and the refult of their long ftudy and experience : whereas by converfation, and in fome lec- tures, we obtain many times only the prefent thoughts of our tutors or friends, which (though they may be bright and ufeful) yet, at firft perhaps, may be fudden and indigeft- ed, and are mere hints, which have rifen to no maturity. *Tis another advantage of reading that we may review what we have read ; we may confult the page again and again, and medi- tate on it, at fuccemVe featbns in our fereneft and retired hours, having the book always at hand : but what we obtain by converfation and in le&ures, is oftentimes loft again as foorr as the company breaks up, or zK leaft when: the day vaniihes ; unlets we happen to have the talent of a good memory, or quickly re- tire and mark down what remarkable* we have found in thofe diicourfes. And for the fame jeafon, and for want of retiring and writing,., many a learned man has loft feveral uleful- meditations of his own, and could never re- call them- again. XMFROVEMfNT OF THE MINP, PART I, P. 36. V E R B A L . I N S T R U CT I N. THERE is fomethrng more fprightly 3 . more delightful and entertaining- in. the living- TJTE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 69 difcourfe of a wife,' a learned, and well-quali- fied teacher, than there is in the lilent and fe- dentary practice of reading. The very turn of voice, the good pronunciation, and the po- lite and alluring manner which fome teachers have attained, will engage the attention, keep the foul fixed, and convey and inlinuate into the mind, the ideas of things in a more lively and forcible way, than the mere reading of books in the filence and retirement of the clofet. IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND, PART I, P. gS. CONVERSATION. WHEN we converfe familiarly with a learned friend, we have his own help at hand to explain to us every word and fentiment that feems obfcure inhis difcourfe, and to in- form us of his whole meaning, fo that we are in much lefs danger of miftaking his fenfe : whereas in books whatfoever is really obfcure, may alio abide always obfcure without reme- dy, fince the author is not at hand, that we may inquire his fenfe. If we miftake the meaning of our friend in converfation, we are quickly let right again ; but in reading we many times go on in the £ime miftake, and are not capable cf recov- JO THE BEAUTIES OF DR. W^TTS. ering ourfelves from ir. Thence it comes to pafs that we have fo many contefts in all ages .about the meaning of ancient authors, and cfpecially facred writers. Happy mould we be, could we but converfe with Mo/es, Ifaiab and St. Paul, and confult the prophets and apoftles, when we meet with a difficult text ! But that glorious converiation is referred for the ages of future bleffednefs. IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND, PART Ij P. 40. Converiation calls out into light what has been lodged in all the recefles and iecret chambers of the foul. By occafional hints and incidents it brings old ufeful notions into* remembrance ; it unfolds and difplays the hidden treafures of knowledge with which reading, obfervation and ftudy had before fur- nifhed the mind. By mutual difcourfe, the foul is awakened and allured to bring forth its hoards of knowledge, and it learns how to render them moft ufeful to mankind. A man of vail reading;; without converiation is like a mifer, who lives only to himielf. In free and friendly converfation our intel- lectual powers are more animated, and our fpirits aft with a faperior vigour in the queft and purfuit of unknown truths. There is a fharpnefs and fagacity of thought that attends converiation beyond what we find whilfl we are (hut up reading and mufing in our re- tirements. Our iouls may be ierene in fokV TKE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 7 I tude, but not fparkling, though perhaps we are employed in reading the works of the brighteft writers. Often has it happened in iree difcourfe, that new thoughts are ftrange- jy ftruck out, and the feeds of truth fparkle and blaze through the company, which in cairn and filent reading would never have been excited. By converiation, you will both give and receive this benefit ; as flints, when put into motion and finking againft each other, produce living fire on both fides, which would never have rilen from the fame hard materials in a flate of reft. In generous converfation amongft ingeni- ous and learned men we have a great advan- tage of proposing our own opinions, and of bringing our own lentiments to the teft, and learning in a more compendious way what the world will judge of them, how mankind will receive them, what objections may be railed againft them, what defects there are in our fcheme, and how to correct our own mil- takes ; which advantages are not fo eafy ob- tained by our own private meditations : for thepleaiure we take in our own notions, and the paffion of felf-love, as well as the narrow- nefs of our own views, tempts us to pais too favourable an opinion on our own fchemes ; whereas the variety of genius in our feveral afTociar.es, will give happy notices how our opinion will ftand in the view of mankind, 'Tis alio another confiderable advantage of 72 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. converfation, that it furnifhes the ftudent with the knowledge of men and the affairs of life, as reading furnifhes him with book-learning. A man who dwells all his days among books may have amaiTed together a vaft heap of no- tions, but he may be a mere fcholar, which is a contemptible fort of character in the world. A hermit who has been fhut up in his cell in a college, has contracted a fort of mould and ruft upon his foul, and all his airs ot behaviour have a certain aukwardnefs in them : but thefe aukward airs are worn off by degrees in company : the ruft and the mould are filed and bruihed off by polite converfation. The Scholar now becomes a citizen or a gentleman, a neighbour and a friend ; he learns how to drefs his fentiments in the faireft colours, as well as to let them in the faireit light. 7'hus he brings out his notions with honour, he makes fome ufe of them in the world, and improves the theory by practice. IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND, PART I, P, 42. HATRED REPROVED, AND LOVE OF OUR FELLOW- CREATURES RECOMMENDED. CONSIDER whether the perfons you hate are good or not. If they are good and .pious, your hatred has a double guilt in it. VHE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 73 fmce you are bound to love them both as men and chriftians. Will you hate thofe whom God loves ? Will you hate thofe who have the image of Chrift, and m whom the Spirit of God inhabits? If they have any blameable qualities in them, let your charity cover thofe faults and follies : let your thoughts rather dwell upon their virtues, and their lacred relation to God. This will have a happy influence to turn your hatred into love. Think of them as members of Chrift, and you cannot hate them if you arc of that bleffed body-. Jf they are perions who neglect religion* and have not the fear ot God, yet they may have fame good qualities in them, lome mo- ral or fpcial virtues, or feme natural excel- lencies, which may merit your efteem, and invite your love ; at leaft thefe agreeable qualities may diminifh your averiion, and a- bate your hatred. I confefs it is the nature of malice and envy, to overlook all that is good and amiable in a perfon, and to remark only what is evil and hateful \ but this is not the fpirit and temper of a Chriftian, nor of Jefus Chrift our maftef; There was a young man who loved his riches fo well, that he refufed to become a difciple ; yet our blef- fed Lord faw fome good qualities in him ; % he looked upon inm, and loved him," Mark x. 2i. G 74 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. But if the perfons whom you hate, have nothing good in them that you can find then they ought to be pitied rather than to be hated : they are not worthy of your en- vy, nor do they need thepuniihmentof your malice in this world, who expofe themfelves to the wrath and vengeance of God in the world to come. Will you fay, they are fo impious before God, and fo injurious to men, that they de- lerve to be hated ? But confider, if you were but punifhed in every refpect as you deferve, both for your offences againft God and man, what would become of you ? Pity them therefore as you hope for pity. Imitate the goodnefs of " your Heavenly Father, who ** makes his fun to mine, and his rain to fall n on the juft and on the unjuft." This is the rule of Chrift. DOCTRINE OIF THE PASSIONS, p . IO5. FEAR. FEAR is a powerful and ufeful paffion, to guard us from mifchief and mifery, to haften our avoidance of every 1 danger, to drive us to our refuge, and toTeftrain us from every thing which has a tendency to bring the £vil or mifchief upon us. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. ff The anger of God is the mod proper ob- ject of our fear, as we are finful creatures : nor can finners fear the anger of God too much, until they have complied with the appointed methods of his grace. There is alfo a reverence and holy fear due to the Majefty of God, even when we have obtain- ed the mod: folid hopes of his mercy : we inuft always fear to fin agai.nfl God, and keep up a holy jealoufy of all temptations to fin. All this is called religious fear. DCCTRi:'£ OF THE PASSIONS, ?. 1 14. UNREASONABLE FEAR. BUT the fear which I fpeak of in this place is. an unjuft and unreaibnable fear of any creature whatfoever, or of any occurrences in life : it is a timorous fpirit, which fubjects the whole nature to the power and tyranny si the paffion of fear, beyond all reafonable grounds : as for inftance, a fear of being a- lone, or in the dark ; a perpetual fear of'e- vil accidents by fire or water, or wicked men ; a difquieting fear of ghofts and apparitions 3 of little inconfiderable animals, fuch as fpid- ers, frogs, or worms ; unreafor.ab e and anx- ious fears of the lofs of eftate or friends ; ; fear of poverty or calamity of any kind* £0 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. whereby we are too often reftrained from our prefent duty, and our lives are made very un- comfortable. All manner of fear becomes irregular when it rifes to an exceflive de- gree, and is fuperior to the danger. DOCTRINE OF THE PASSIONS, P. Il6. AGAINST HASTY DETERMINATION. A HASTY determination of feme uni- verfal principles without a due furvey of all the particular cafes which may be included in them, is the way to Lay a trap for our own imderitandings in the purfuit of any iubject,. and we (hall often be taken captives into mif- tak.e and falihood. IMFR.GV. OP THE MIND, PART Ij P. 5S. PROFITABLE METHOD OF READING RECOM- MENDED. BOOKS of importance of any kind, and efpecially compleat treatifts on any fubjeel:,, fhould be firfh read in a more general and cur- fory manner, to learn a little what the treatife promifes, and what yon may expect from the THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 77 writer's manner and fkiil. And for this end I would advife always, that the preface be read, and a furvey taken of the table of" con- tents, if there be one, before this firft furvey of the book. By this means you will not on- ly be better fitted to give the book the firft reading, but you will be much affifted in your fecond perufal of it, which fhould be done with greater attention and deli beration,and you will learn with more eafe and readinefs what the author pretends to teach. In your read- ing, mark, what is new of unknown to you before, and review thofe chapters, pages or paragraphs, Unlefs a reader has an uncom- mon and moil retentive memory, I may ven- ture to affirm, th-ar 'there is-fcarce any book or chapter worth- reading that is not worthy a fecond '. perufal. - Atlea-ft take a careful re- view of all the lines or paragraphs which you marked, and make a recolleclion of the lec- tions which you thought truly valuable. There is another reafon alfo why I would chufe to take a fuperficial and curlory furvey of a book, before 1 fit down to read it, and dwell upon it with ftudious attention ; and that is, that there may be feveral difficulties in it which we cannot eafily underftand and conquer at the firft reading, for want of a fuller comprehenfion of the author's whole fcherne, And therefore in fuch treat ifes we fhould not nay till we mailer every difficulty j G 2 73 TH£ BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. at the firft perufal ; for perhaps many of thefo would appear to be folved when we have proceeded farther in that book, or would vaniih of themfelves upon a fecond reading. What we cannot reach and penetrate at firft may be noted down as a matter of after coniideration and enquiry, if the pages thac follow do not happen to flrike a- compleat light upon thole which went before. JAIPROV. 05" THE MJND, PART J, T. 6o. BENEFIT OF CONVERSING WITH MEN OF VA- PJOUS COUNTRIES, AND OF DIFFERENT PARi TIES, OPINIONS, AND PRACTICES. CONFINE not you rfelves always to one fort of company, or to pei fons of the fame party or opinion, either in matters of learn- ing, religion, or the civil life, left if you fhould happen to be nurfed up or educated in early miftake* you fhould be confirmed and eftablifhed in the fame miftake, by con- verfing only with perfons of the fame fenti- ments, A free and general con.verla.tion . with men ©f various countries, and of different parties, opinions and praclices (fo far as may be- done-fafely) is of excellent ule to undeceive us in many wrong judgments-. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. f§ which we may have framed, and to lead us intojufler thoughts. It is faid, when the king of Siam, near China, firft converfed •with f'ome European merchants, who (ought the favour of trading on his coaft, he en- quired of them fome of the common ap- pearances of iummer and winter in their coun- try ; and when they told him of water grow- ing fo hard in their rivers, that men and horfes, and laden carriages paifed over it, and that rain fometimes fell down as white and light as feathers, and fometimes almoft as hard as ftones, he could not believe a fylable he faid, for ice, fnow and hail,. were names and things utterly unknown to him, and to his fubjectsin that hot climate : he therefore renounced all traffic with iuch fhameful liars,and would not fuffer them to trade with his people. See here the natural effects of grofs ignorance. Converfation with foreigners on various occafions has a happy influence to enlarge our minds and to fet them free from many errors and gro^s prejudices we are ready to imbibe concerning them. JMPROV. OF THE MJND, PART I, p. J2$, TO RENDER CONVERSATION INSTRUCTIVE. TO make Converfation more valuable and ukfulj whether k,be in a deligned cr 3o the beauties of dr. watts. accidental vifit, among perfons of the fame or different fexes, after .the neceffary faluta- tions are finifhed, and the ftream of com- mon talk begins to hefitate, or runs flat and low, let fome one perfon take a book which may be agreeable to the whole company, and by common confent let him read in it ten lines, or a paragraph or two, or a few pages, , till fome word or fentence gives occafion for any of the company to offer a thought or two relating to that fubjed : interruption of the reader mould be no blame, for coaverfa- tion is the bufinefs ; whether it be to con- firm what the author fays, or to improve it, to enlarge upon it, or to correct it, to object againft it, or to afk any queflion that is a-kin to it ; and let every one that pleaie add their opinion, and promote the converlation. When the difcourfe links again or diverts to trifles, let him that reads purfue the page, and read on further paragraphs or pages, till fome occafion. is. given by a word or a Sen- tence for a new difcourie to be darted, and that with the utmoft eafe and freedom. Such a method as this- would prevent the hours of a vifit from running all to wafte ; and by this .means even among fcholars they will fel- dom find occafion lor that too j-uft and bitter * reflection, " 1 have loft my time in the com- " pany of the learned. ".' By fuch practice as this is, young ladies may very honourably and agreeably improve THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. %l their hours, while one applies herfelf to read- ing, the others employ their attention, even among the various artifices of the needle ; but let all of them make their occafional re- marks or enquiries. This will guard a good deal of that precious time from modifh trifling impertinence or fcandal,. which might otherwife afford matter for painful repent- ance. Obferve this rule in general ; whenfoever it lies in your power to lead the converfation, let it be directed to feme profitable point of knowledge or p rati ice, fo far as may be done with dectrncy ; and let not the difcourie and the hours be fufTered to run loofe without aim or defign ; and when a fubject is frarted, pafs not haftily to another, before you have brought the prefent theme of difcourfe to fome tolerable iflue, or a joint content to drop it. IMPROVEMENT 07 THE MIND, PAST I, P. 12$, EXH03.TAT10N AGAINST EXCESSIVE SORROW. LET not your thoughts dwell continual- ly upon your diftrefles and afflictions. Suf- fer not the chamber of your fouls to be ev- er hung round with dark and difmal ideas i chew not always the worm-wood and. the 82 .THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. gall ; but remember the many temporal mercies you enjoy, and the rich treafures of grace in the gofpel. Survey the immoral bleflings of pardon of fin, and eternal life ; the love of God, and the hope of heaven. Look fometimes on thefe brighter fcenes ; fuffer not your forrow to bury all your paft and prefent comforts in darknefs and obli- vion. Thankfulnefs is one way to joy. Remember, if you are a Chriftian indeed, the fprings of your grief cannot flow long ; the hour of death will dry them all up. The lair moment of this mortal life is a cer- tain and final period of forrow. Converfe much among the manfions and joys of the invifible world, and your hope which is laid up there : the very gieamings of that glory will brighten the darkefl providences, and relieve the foul under its fharpen 1 pains. Compare your miferies with your fins, and then you will think them lighter.- You will learn then to bear your burdens with a more ferene and peaceful mind, and turn your for- rows into repentance for fin. But, alas !' .we aggrevate our fufferings, and extenuate and excufe our fins : whereas, fuiferings would appear lighter, if we did but confider how much heavier evils we have deferved from the hands of a holy and offended God. DOCTRINE OF THE PASSIONS, P. IiO.' THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. $$ DISPUTATION. GREAT care muft be taken left your debates break in upon your paffions, and a- waken them to take part in the controverfy. When the opponent puflies hard, and gives juft and mortal wounds to our own opinion, our paffions are very apt to feel ta& ftrokes, and to rife in refentment and defence. Self is (o mingled with the fentiments which we have chofen, and has iuch a tender feeling of all the oppofnion which is made to them, that perlbnal brawls are very ready to come in as feconds to fucceed and finifh the dif- pute of opinions. Then noife and clamour and folly appear in all their mapes, and chace reafon and truth out of fight. IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND, P. l66. ACADEMICAL DISPUTATIONS. IT muft be confefTed there are forne ad- vantages to be attained by academical' dif- putation.. It gives vigour and br.ifk.nefs to the mind thus • exercifed, .and relieves the &4 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS* 'languor of p, ivate ftudy and meditation. It ih trpens tru wit and ali the inventive powers. It makes the thoughts active, and fends them on all fides to find arguments and anfwers both for oppofition and defence. It gives opportunity of viewing the fubject of dif- coui -!e on all fides, and of learning what in- conven nces, difficulties and objections at- tend part;' ular opinions. It furniilies the foul with various occafions of darting fuch thoughts as other wife would never have come into the mind. It makes a ftudent more expert in attacking and refuting an error, as well as in vindicating a truth. It inftru&s a fcholar in the various methods of warding off the force of objections, and of difcovering and repelling the Subtil tricks of fophifters. It procures alio a freedom and readinefs of fpeech, and rakes the modeft and diffident genius to a due degree of courage. But there are fome very grievous inconvo niencies that may fometimes overbalance ali thefe advantages. For many young ftudents by a conftant habit of difputing, grow im- pudent and audacious, proud and difdainful, talkative and impertinent, and render them- felves intolerable by an obftmate humour of maintaining whatfoever they have ailerted, as well as by a fpirit of contradiction, oppof- ing almoft every thing almofl every thing they Jhear. The difputation itfelf often a- wakens the paflions of ambition, emulation, THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. $5 and anger ; it carries away the mind from that calm and fedate temper which is fo ne- ceflary to contemplate truth. IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND-, PAR^T J, P. 184, OF FIXING THE ATTENTION, A STUDENT mould labour by all prop- er methods to acquire a fteady fixation of thought. Attention is a very neceffary thing' in order to improve our minds. The evi- dence of truth does not always appear imme- diately, nor firike the foul at rirfl fight. 'Tis by long attention and mfpection that we ar- rive at evidence, and it is for want of it we judge falfly of many things. We make hafte to judge and determine upon a flight and Rid- den view, we confirm our gueiles which arife from a glance, we pafs a judgment while we have but a confufed or obfcure perception, and thus plunge ourfelves into miftakes. This is like a man, who walking in a mifl, or being at a great diftance from any vifible object, (fuppofe a tree, a man, a horfe, or a church) judges much amifs of the figure and fituation and colours of it, and fometimes takes one for the other ; whereas if he would but withhold his judgment till he come nearer to it, or ftay H £6 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. till clearer light comes, and then would fix his eyes longer upon it, he would fecure him- jfelf from thofe miftakes. IMPROVEMENT OF THE MIND, PART I, P. 211. Mathematical ftudies have a flrange influ- ence towards fixing the attention of the mind, and giving a fleadinefs to a wandering difpo- fition, becaufe they deal much in lines, figures and numbers, which affect, and pleafe the fenie and imagination. Hiftories have a flrong tendency the fame way ; for they en- gage the foul by a variety of ienfible occur- rences \ when it hath begun, it knows not how to leave off; it longs to kn6w the final event through a natural curiofity that belongs to mankind. Voyages and travels and ac- counts of flrange countries and flrange ap- pearances will a (lift in this work. This fort of fludy detains the mind by the perpetual occurrence and expectation of fomething new, and that which may gratefully ftrike the im- agination. IMPROVEMENT Of THE MIND, PART I, ?. 212. OF SCIENCE. THE befl way to learn any fcience is to begin with a regular fyftem, or a fhort and plain fcheme of that fcience, well drawn up TIiE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATT J. S/ into a narrow compafs, omitting the deep or more abftrufe parts of it, and that alto under the conduct, and inftrudion of fome fkilful teacher. Syftems are neceffary to give an en- tire and comprehenfive view of the feveral parts of any fcience, which may have a mutu- al influence toward the explication- or proof of each other : whereas if a man deals always and only in effays, and difcourfes on particu- lar parts of a fcience, he will never obtain a dif- tincl and juft idea of the whole, and may per- haps omit fome important part of it, after feven years reading of fuch occafional dif- courfes. For this reafon, young ftudents mould apply tht-mfelves to their fyflems much more than pamphlets, That man is never fit to judge of particular fubjecls relating to any fcience, who has never taken a furvey^of the whole. 'Tis the remark of an ingenious writer, mould a barbarous Indian, who had never feen a palace or a lTiip, view their feparate and disjointed parts, and obferve the pillars, doors, windows, cornices and turrets of the one, or the prow and flern, the ribs and mails, the ropes and fhrowds, the fails and tackle of the other, he would be able to form but a very- lame and dark, idea of either of thofe excel- lent and ufeful inventions. Tn like manner, thole who contemplate only the fragments ov pieces broken off from any fcience, difperfed m fhort unconnected difcourfes, and do not S£ THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. difcern their relation to each other, and how they may be adapted, and by their union pro- cure the delightful fymmetry of a regular icheme, can never furvey an entire body of truth, but muft always view it as deformed and diftempered ; while their ideas, which muft be ever indiftincl and often repugnant, will lie in the brain unforted, and thrown to- gether without order or coherence i fuch is the knowledge of thofe men who live upon the icraps of icience. 1MPROVZMXKT OT THE MIND, PART I, P. 316. REASON A PRINCIPAL SOURCE OF RELIGION. HUMAN reafon is the fir ft ground and fpring of all human religion. Man is obliged to religion becaufe he is a reafcnable creature. Realon directs and obliges us not only to fearch out and practice the will of Ged. as far as natural confcience will lead us, but alio to examine, receive, and obey, all the revela- tions which come from God, where we are placed within the reach of their proper evi- dences. Wherein foever revelation gives us plain and certain rules for our conduct, reafon rtfelf obliges us to fubmit and follow them. Where the rules of duty are more obfcure, wc are to ufe our reafon to find them out, as THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATT9, 89 far as we can, by comparing one part of reve- lation with another, and making juft and rea- sonable inferences from the various circum- ftances and connections of things. In thofe parts or circumftances of religion where rev- elation is filent, there we are called to betake ourlelves to reaibn again as our bed guide and conductor. IATIOX.U FOUND. OF A CHRIST. CHURCH, P. 5. PUBLIC ADORATION OF THE ALMIGHTY, THE feveral acts of worfhip which the light of nature directs us to pay to the great God, are fuch as thefe : To adore him with all humility, on *he account of his glorious perfections, and his wonderful works of pow- er and wifdom ; to join together in prayer to God for fuch bleffings as we ftand in need of, to confefs our fins, and afk the forgivenefs of them, to acknowledge his mercies, and give thanks to his goodneis ; and to fing with the voice to his honour and praife. The light of nature directs us alio to feek continually a further acquaintance with the nature and will of that God whom we worlh- ip, in order to practice our duty the better,, and pieafe our Creator, and to provide ibma H 2 90 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. way for the further inftruclion of thoie who are ignorant of that religion, and to come in- to their afTemblies to be inftructed : and for the exhortation of rhe people to fulfil their duty to God and their neighbours. And if there are any fpecial rites or ceremonies, fuch as belong to focial worhYrp, the light of na- ture tells us, that here they ought to be per- formed. And does not the New Teftament let alt thefe matters before us fo plainly and fre- quently, with regard to ehriftiahity, that f need not ftand to cite chapter and verfe, where thefe things are praclifed by the apoi- ties, and the primitive chriftians, in their afTemblies ? Here adoration, prayer, and thankfgivings, are offered up to God, but in the name of Jefus, as their only Mediator : here their addreffes are made to God, with one mind, and with one mouth, to the glory of Qod, who is the God and Father of our Lord Jeius Chrift : here pfalms, and hymns, and fpiritual fongs, are fung to the honour of the Creator and Redeemer : here the word of God is preached for the inftruclion of the ignorant or unbelievers, who come into the chriftian afiemblies, that fmners or infidels may be converted, and chriftians edified, and exhorted to perfift in the faith, and improve in holinefs, i Cor. xiv. 23. Here the great ordinance of chriftian communion, the Lord's fupper, is celebrated^ by diftributing and re- THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 9! ceiving bread and wine, and eating and drink- ing id remembrance of their common Saviour > and his death, 1 Cor. xi. 20, &c. As for the other ordinance, viz. Baptifm, it being not fo properly an act of public or focial religion, I do not find it is any where required to be done in public ; and though it might be ren- dered more extenfively ufeful by that means for fome purpoies, yet it may be performed m private houfes, or in retired places, as it was in the primitive ages. RATIONAL FOUND. OF A CHRIST. CHURCH P. 2J. THAT PROVISION SHOULD BE MADE FOR THE SUP- PORT OF THE MINISTERS OF THE GOSPEL, THOUGH chriftian minifters fhould be fupported in temporal things, that they may not labour under perpetual cares, and daily anxieties, how to get bread and raiment for themfelves and their families, and that they may maintain their properauthority in preach- ing, reproving and exhorting, and live above the fear or fhame that may arife from pover- ty and diihonourable dependences, yet there is no rule nor example in fcripture that fhould raiie them to far above the people in riches or grandeur, as to become the lords of God's heritage, or tempt them to afTume fovereign dominion over the confeience, faith or practife. RATION Ai FOUND. OF A CflJBST. CHVRCH P. 49. 0.2, THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. THE DUTY OF CHRISTIAN MINISTERS, THE rule and government which is com- mitted to ordinary minifters in the church, fo far as I can underftand it, feems to confift in theie things following : viz. In going be- fore the people, and leading the feveral parts of their worihip, and becoming their exam- ple in every duty ; in teaching them the prin- ciples and rules of their religion ; the knowl- edge, profefTion, and practice of thofe doc- trines and duties, that worihip and order,, which reafon and natural religion dictate, and. that which Chrilt hi mfelf has revealed, fuper- added, and eftabliilied in his word : it con- fifts in exhorting, perfuading, and charging the hearers with lblemnity in the name and authority of Chrift, to comply therewith : in inftrucYing the people how to apply thefe gen- eral principles and rules to particular cafes and occurrences, and giving them their bed advice ; in prefiding in their affemblies, and- particularly as to the admiffionand exclufion of members : it confifts in watching over the flock ; in guarding them againft errors and dangers j in ad moni filings and warning, and reproving, with all gravity and authority, thole who neglect or oppofe the rules of Chrift. But I cannot find where our blefTed Lord has given them any power, or pretence THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 9J of power to impofe on confeience any fuch advices of their own, which neither reaibn nor revelation impofe -, much leis to impofe any of their own inventions of new doctrines, or duties ; or fo much as their own peculiar explications of the words of Chrift s by their own authority. When our Saviour gave commiffion to his difciples, or his apofiles., to " preach the gofpel to all nations," it was in this manner : " Go teach them to obferve" (not whatlbever you ("hall command, but) •/ whatfoeverl have commanded you," Matt, xxviii. RATIONAL FOUND. OF A CHRIST. CHURCH P, 6$. RELIGIOUS LIBERTY, A CHRISTIAN church allows all its members the moft perfect liberty of men and chriflians. It is inconftftent with perfecution for confeience fake : for it leayes all civil re- wards and punifnments to kingdoms, and dates, and the governors of this world. It pretends to no power over confeience, to com- pel men to obedience , no prifons, no axes, fire, nor fword. It gives its minifters power and authority to command nothing but what is found in the bible. RATIONAL FOUND, OF .A CHRIST. CHURCH, T, 92. 94 THE EEAUTTE3 OF DR. WATTS. If any perfon fins fo groflly again ft the plain rules of the gofpel, or the laws of God or Chrift, as to appear to renounce the charac- ters of a chriftian, the church hath power on- ly to renounce fiich a perfon, and difclaim all chriftian fellowfhip with him, and to turn him into the world, which is the kingdom of Satan, till he repent : but they have no au- thority to hurt his life or limbs ; to touch a hair of his head, nor a penny of his money, by way of punifhment. RATIONAL FOUNDATION OF A CHRISTIAN CHURCH, P. 93. A profeflbr of every religion has a right-to be protected by the government as long as he maintains his allegiance to the governors, and does no injury to the ftate. But if govern- ors will not protect, him, but will give him up to the fury of perfecutors, he has certainly a civil right to defend himfelf and his friends againft all alTaults and injuries. RATIONAL FOUNDATION OF A CHRISTIAN CHURCH, P. 95. THE PREJUDICE OF CREDULITY, AND A SPIRIT OF CONTRADICTION, CONTRASTED. THE credulous man is ready to receive every thing for truth, that has but the (hadow of evidence i every new book that he reads, THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 95 and every ingenious man with whom he con- verfes, has power enough to draw him into the fentiments of the fpeaker or writer. He has To much complaifance in him, or weak- nefs of foul, that he is ready to refign his own opinion to the firft objection which he hears, and to receive any fentiments of another that are aliened with a poiitive air and much af- furance. Thus he is under a kind of necef- fity, through the indulgence of this credulous humour, either to be often changing his opin- ions, or to believe inconfiftences. The man of contradict on is of a very con- trary humour - 3 for he (lands ready to oppofe every thing that is (aid : he gives but a flight attention to the reafons of other men, from an inward fcornful prefumption that they have no ftrength in them. When he reads or hears a difcourfe different from his own fentiments, he does not give himfelf leave to confider, whether that dilcourfe may be true ; but employs all his powers immediately to confute it. Your great difputers, and your men of controverfy, are in continual danger of this fort of prejudice : they contend often for victory, and will maintain whatfbever they have afTerted, while truth is loft in the noife and tumult of reciprocal contradictions ; and it frequently happens, that a debate about opinions is turned into a mutual reproach of perfons. LOGIC, P. 20S. 96 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. RULIS FOR CORRECTING CREDULOUS AND CON- TRADICTORY DISPOSITIONS. The prejudice of credulity may in fome meafure be cured, by learning to let a high value upon truth, and by taking more pains to attain it 5 remembering that truth often lies dark and deep, and requires us to dig for it as hid treaiiire ; and that faifhood often puts on a fair difguife, and therefore we Ihould not yield up our judgment to every plaufible ap- pearance. It is no part of civility or good breeding to part with truth, but to maintain it with decency and candour. A fpirit of contradiction is fo pedantic and hateful, that a man fhouid take much pains with himfelf to watch againft every inftance of it : he mould learn fo much good-humour, at leaft v as never to oppofe any thing without juft and tolid reafon for it : he mould abate fome degrees of pride and morofenefs, which are never-failing ingredients in this fort of temper, and fhouid feek alter fo much hon- efty and confcience, as never to contend for conqueft or triumph ; but to review his own reafons, and to read the arguments of his op- ponents (if poffiblej with an equal indiffer- ency, be glad to fpy a truth, and to fubmit to it, though it appear on the oppofite fide. tOGIC, P. Z08. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 97 THE INFLUENCE OF CUSTOM. SUPPOSE we have freed ourfelves from the younger prejudices of our education, yet we are in danger of having our mind turned afide from truth by the influence of general cuftom. Our opinion of meats and drinks, of garments and forms of falutation, are in- fluenced more by cuftom, than by the eye, the ear, or the tafte. Cuftom prevails even over fenfe itfelf, and therefore no wonder if it prevail over reafon too. What is it but cuf- tom that renders many of the mixtures. of food and fauces elegant in Britain, which would be aukward and naufeous to the in- habitants of China, and indeed were naufeous to us when we firft tafted them ? What but ' cuftom could make thole falutations polite in Mufcovy, which arc ridiculous in France and England ? We call ourfelves indeed the po- liter nations, but is it we who judge thus ot ourfelves ; and that fancied politenefs is of- tentimes more owing to cuftom than reafon. Why are the forms of our prefent garments counted beautiful, and thofe faihions of our anceftors the matter of fcofFand contempt, which in their days were all decent and gen- teel ? It is cuftom that forms our opinion of drefs, and reconciles us by degrees to thofe $3 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. habits which at firft feemed very odd and monftrous. It muft be granted, there are fome garments and habits which have a nat- ural congmity or incongruity, modefty or im- modefty, gaudery or gravity $ though for the mod part there is but little reafon in thefe affairs ; but what little there is of reafon, or natural decency, cuftom triumphs over it all. It is almoft impoflible to perfuade a young lady that any thing can be decent which is out of fafhion. The methods of our education are govern- ed by cuftorn. It is cuftom, and not reafon, that fends every boy to learn the Roman po- ets, and begin a little acquaintance with Greek, before he is bound apprentice to a Jbap-boiler or a leather-feller. It is cuftom alone that teaches us Latin by the rules of a Latin Grammar ; a tedious and abfurd meth- od 1 And what is it but cuftom that has for paft centuries confined the brighteft geniufes, even of the higheft rank in the femate world, to the bufineis of the needle only, and feclud- ed them mod unmercifully from the pleal- ures of knowledge, and the divine improve- ments of reafon. But we begin to break all thefe chains, and reafon begins to dictate the education of youth. tocic, r. ii7« THE BEAUTIES OF BR. WATTS. 99 ABSURDITY OF HEREDITARY PREJUDICES EXPOSED, SOME perfons believe every thing that their kindred, their parents, and their tutors believe. The veneration and the love which they have for their anceftors, incline them to fwallow down all their opinions at once, with- out examining what truth or falfhood there is in them. Men take their principles by in- heritence, and defend them as they would their eftates, becaufe they are born heirs to them. I freely grant, that parents are ap- pointed by God and nature to teach us all the fentiments and practifes of our younger years ; and happy are thofe whofe parents lead them into the paths of wifdom and truth. I grant further, that when perfons come to years of difcretion, and judge for themlelyes, they ought to examine the opinions of their parents, with the greateft modefly, and with an humble deference to their fuperior charac- ter ; they ought, in matters perfectly dubious, to give the preference to their parents advice, and always to pay them the firfl refpect, nor ever depart from their opinions and practifes, till reafon and confcience make -it necefTary. But after all, it is poflible that parents may be miflaken, and therefore reafon and fcrip- ture ought to be our final rules of determin- ation in matters that relate to this world, and that which is to come. tOGIC, P. HP XOQ THE BEAUTIES OF DR.WATT5, " O S I T 2 DUTIES. WHERE two duties feem to (land in op- position to each other, and we cannot prac- tice both, the lefs mud give way to the great- er, and the omiffion of the let's is not finful. So ceremonial laws give way to moral : Go a little infecl:, or 104 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. atom of being, be concerned about the fmiles or frowns of my fellow-infects, my equal at- oms } Can all their applaufes, or their re- proaches, weigh a grain in the divine balance, that facred and tremendous balance of juf- tice, in which all my actions and my foul it- felf mud be weighed ? Let all the creatures above and below frown and fcowl upon me ; if my Creator (mile, I am happy ; nor can all their frownings diminifh my complete joy. Forgive, gracious God, forgive the pad follies and wanderings of a ftnfulworm, from thee the higheft and the beft of Beings. I am even amazed at my own ftupidity, that I could live fo much abfent from thee, when my eternal all depends upon thee. And how much more inexcufable is my forgetfulnefs of my God, fince he has fent his own fon, his iaireft image into flefh and blood, to put me in mind of my Maker, and to teach me what my God is ? " He that r< has {cen me, fays he, has feen the Father, " I and the Father are One." We happen to be born indeed too late for the fight of his face, but we have the tranfcript of his heart, the true copy of his life, and the very- features of his foul, conveyed down to us in his ever-living gofpels. There we may read Jejus y there we may learn the Father, O may the little remnant ot my days be fpent in the pref- ence of my God ; and when I am conftrain- ed to converfe with creatures, let me ever re- THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. IO5 member that I have infinitely more to do with my Creator, and thus fhorten my talk and train" ck with them, that I may have leif- ure to converfe the longer with thee. Let me fee thee in every thing ; let me read thy name every where ; founds, fliapes> colours, motions, and all vifible things, let them all teach me an invifible God. Let creatures be nothing to me, but as the books which thou haft lent me to inftrucl me in the leflbns of thy power, wifdom £nd love ; above all, let me derive this fcicnce by converfe with the bleffed Je[us y and may I be fo wife a profici- ent in this divine fchool, as to learn fome new lefibn daily. Train me up among the vifible works and thy word, O my heavenly Father, by the condefcending methods of thy grace and providence, till I am loofened and wean- ed from all things below God ; and then give me a glorious difmifiion into that intellectual and blifsful world, where in a more immedi- ate manner I fhall fee God, and where. God himfelf. is the fenfible acknowledged life of fouls. MJSCEL. THOUGHTS, P. 159. ACADEMICAL DISPUTES APT TO PREJUDIGE THE MINDS OF STUDENTS. IT is exceeding hard to difputc without gaining fome invifible prejudice and good 106 THE BfiAUTIES OF DR. WATTS, liking to the opinion we defend. So devoted are we to ourielves, in this dark and degene- rate date, that felf-love too eafily engages our favour to the caufe we have efpoufed, and for no other reafon than becaufe we ef- poufed it. Though we had no kindnefs be- fore for an opinion that we maintain for dif- puting-fake, yet if a plaufible and fmiling ar- gument for it occurs in our hafty thoughts, how prone are we to hug the creature of our brain, and be almoft in love with the opinion for the fake of the argument ? I confefs there ure no fuch formal reafonings in our mind as thefe ; yet we are infenfibly captivated to efteem any thing that proceeds from our- felves : our paflion firft thinks it pity that fuch a happy argument of our own invention -fhould be on the faile fide, and by fecret in- finuation perfuades the judgment to vote it true. How often have I experienced thefe fallacies working within me in verbal difpu- tations before my tutor ! And, for this reafon, I have no great efteem of the method of our academical difputes, where the young fophif- ters are obliged to oppofe the truth by the beft arguments they can find, and the tutor defends it and afiifts the refpondent. There is a certain wantonnefs of wit in youth, and a pleafing ambition of victory, which works in a young warm fpirit, much ftronger than a defire of truth. There is a ftrange delight in baffling the refpondent, and it grows bigger THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 107 fenfibly, if we can put the prefident to a puz- zle or a ftand. The argument which is {0 fuccefsful, relifhes better on the lips of the young opponent, and he begins to think that it js (olid and unanfwerable ; " Surely my tu- " tor's opinion can hardly be true ; and though " J thought I was put on the defence of a falfe * f doctrine, yet fince I have found fo good an M argument for it, I can hardly believe it " falfe." Then his invention works on to ftrrngthen his fufpicion, and at laft he firmly believes the opinion he fought for. Often have I been in danger of fuch delufions as thefe, and feel myfelf too ready to fubmit to them now. Even a ciofet, and retirement, and our cooled meditations, are liable to thefc fecret fophiflries. Upon the firft fight of an objeclion againft our arguments, our thoughts are ftrangely hurried away to ranfac the brain for a reply, and we torture our invention to make our fide have the laft word, before we call in cool judgment calmly to decide the difference ; and thus from a hot defence of our own reafonings, we unimaginably flide into a cordial defence of the caufe. MIlCEi. THOUGHTS, P. lyO. I08 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS, CHRISTIAN REVELATION SUPERIOR TO HUMAN REASON. THE Chriftian revelation has a vaft pre- ference above the mere principle of human reafon, in that its motives are more nume- rous and powerful beyond all companion. And if the motives to religion, which our reaioning powers can propofe, may be called fuffkient to equal, or rather to exceed, all temptations to vice and impiety, becaule in the balance of reafon they appear more weighty, than the principles and motives of Chriftianity muft be more abundantly fuffi- cient, becaufe, with an infinite fuperabun- dance, they out-weigh all the temptations of flelh and lin, when put into the fame ba- lance of reafon. And on the other hand, if the motives of the gofpel, numerous and powerful as they are, prove ineffectual to many thouiands that hear them, furely the motives of mere rea- fon, which are much fewer and feebler, are very inefficient in comparifon with thofe of revelation. 6TA2.NGTM AN» WEAKNESS OF HUM. RIASON, *. 272* THE EEATIES OE DR. WATTS. 190 SEASON ALONE NOT SUFFICIENT TO PROCURE TO MANKIND WISDOM AND BLESSEDNESS. IF reafon has only fuch a remote and fpe- culative iufficiency, to guide and conduct mankind to happinefs in a way of religion, if there are fo very few (if any) who were never ■guided and conducted by it alone to happi- nefs, then there is a moft evident neceflky of brighter light, clear difcoveries of duty, flronger motives and affiftances, fuperior to what reafon can furnilli us with, to make mankind truly wife and blefled : and this light, and thefe motives, and afiiflances, are eminently to be found in the religion of Chrift. STRENGTH AND V.'EAKNE6S OF HUM. REASON, P. I42, DECENCY. THAT Is decent, which is agreeable to our flate, condition or circumflances, whe- ther it be in behaviour, difcourfe, or action. LOGIC, P. 263. K r.IO THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. GRADUAL PROGRESS OF THE GOSPEL. THIS gofpel was not revealed at once in its full glory to mankind. There have been -feveral editions of it, or gradual difcoveries of this grace in all the former ages of the world. As foon as ever Adam had finned, and ruined himlelf and his pofterity too, by lay- ing the foundation of their fin and mifery, it pleafed God to publifh this gofpel by the promife ot a Saviour, when he told our mo- ther Eve, that " her ieed mould bruife the * c head of the ferpent" that had deceived her. Gen. iii. 15. This, by our divines, is generally called the firft gofpel ; for in the modern language of the New Teftament it iignifies, that " Jefus Chritl mould come in- ct to this world to deftroy the works of the " devil." John iii. 8. Doubtlefs Noah, the fecond father of man- kind, had fome farther difcoveries made to him, when the rainbow was appointed as the feal of a gracious covenant betwixt God and man : for the very promife of the continuance 'of the comfortable feafons of the year, being given to man in a way of mercy, do imply' that God would not be irreconcileable to his fallen creatures,, Nor can we reafonably but that Adam and Noah, and all fuppofe THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS". I'lf ihofe moll ancient Patriarchs, had larger ex- ^plications and comments of the firft promife given them than Mofes has recorded. The gofpel was renewed by revelations made to Abraham, when the Meffiah, the Saviour, was promifed to fpring out of his family: u In 4< thy feed (hall all nations of the earth be blefled." Which promife is expreisly called the gofpel. Gal. in- 8. There was alfo a type or pattern of our jufticfiation by faith in the way of the gofpel, when ' f Abraham believed " God" in his promiles, &:c. " it was impu- M tetl to him for righteoufnefs." Ro?n. v. 3. Mofes had a much larger difcovery or the grace and mercy of God toward finful mar> made to him, ar:d to the Jews by him, than all the patriarchs put together : and this was sot only done in the types, and figures, and ceremonies, not only in altars, facrifkes, walk- ings, fprinklings, purifications, and in their redemption from Egypt, their miraculous falvations in the wildernefs, and their fafe con- dud: to Canaan, the land of promifed reft : but he had many literal and exprefs revela- tions of pardoning and fanctifying grace, which are fcattered up and down in the five bjoks which he wrote, and which he gave to the children of Ifrael to direct their religion. This is alfo called the gofpel, Hek iv. 2. " To c * them was the gofpel preached as well as " unto us," as thofe words ougkt to be trans- lated . This fame gofpel was afterwards con- 112 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTSv firmed, illuftrated and enlarged by fucceeding prophets in the feveral ages, of the Jewifli church. But w God, who at fundry times, and in ? divers manners fpoke" this gofpel c; to our "fathers by the prophets, has in thefe latter " days" publifhed the fame to us in a bright- er manner, " by his Son Jems," the promot- ed Saviour. Heb. i. i. And fince the death and refurrccYion of Chrift, the apoftles being fent by their exalted Lord, have given yet plainer and fuller declarations of this gofpel to the children of men. And upon this account it is- feveral times called the gofpel of Chrift - , not only becaufe the offices and grace of Chrift run through the whole of it, but alfo becaufe the cleared discoveries of it arc made to the world by Chrift, and by his meftengers the apoftles. Now from this la ft and fulled revelation of it in the New Teftament, we may derive a fuller and more perfect knowledge of the gof- pel than all the former ages could attain. Hereby we learn that the gofpel is a " prom- * ife of falvation from fin and hell, by the " death, righteoufnefs, and grace of our Lord n JeJus Chrift, to every one that is fincerely- u willing to accept ot it by coming to Chrift, * c or trufting in him ;" and it includes alfo * the promifed aid of the Holy Spirit to thofe M who feek it, to enable them to receive this w falvation, and to fit them for the final pof- THE BEAUTIES OF PR. WATTS, I IJ *' felTion of the promifed glory." It includes alio the " revelation of the future refurrec- " tion, and laft judgment, and eternal life.' 5 To this end did the tC Son of God come into " the world, that whoibever believes on him i( fhould not peril!), but have ever lading "life." John uu 16. orthodoxy and Christianity, p. 2. THE GREAT DESIGN 6f OUR SAVIOUR'S MINISTRY. THE great deilgn of our Saviour in his- public appearance and mini £hy upon earth, , was to prove himielt to- wear the true charac- ters of the Meffiah, to deliver the Jews from many falfe expofitions and glofles which- the Scribes and Pharifees of that day had given to feveral parts of icripture, to lead the world to a conviction- of their fins, andthereby pre- pare them to receive the doctrine 1 of falvation with more zeal and defire ; whereas the falva- iion itfelf, and the manner whereby it was: accomplifhed, was but briefly mentioned in- fome few texts, and the reft. was left to be ex- plained by his apoftles; ORTHODOXY AND CHRISTIANITY; P> £#> 114 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS, ADVICE WITH RESPECT TO PREACHING THL GOSPEL. Some may think it the duty and bufinefs of the day to temporize, and by preaching the gofpel a little more conformably to natu- ral religion, in a mere rational or legal form,, to bring it down as near as may be to their fcheme, that we may gain them to hear and approve it, or at leaft that we may not offend them. But I am rather of opinion, that we fhould in fuch a day ftand up for the defence of the gofpel in the full glory of its moft im- portant doctrines, and in the full freedom of its grace ; that we fhould preach it in its di- vinefl and moft evangelical form, that the crofs of Chrift, by the promifed power of the Spirit, may vaaquifh the vain reafonings of men, and that this defpifed doctrine, triumph- ing in the conversion of fouls, may confound the wife and the mighty, and filence the dif- puters of this world. This was the bold and glorious method St. Paul took at Corinth, where learning and reafon and philofophy flourifhed in pride ; but they yielded feveral trophies of victory to the preaching of the crofs. Paul could ufe the " wifdom of words' * whenever he had occafion for it, and had the i: excellency of Speech" at command when he pleafed : this appears in feveral parts of THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. I I £ liis writings ; yet in his ferrnons at Corinth,, he difclaimed it all, and " determined to know " nothing among them but Chrift, and him * s crucified. " i Cor. ii. 2. ORTHODOXY AND CHRISTIANITY, P. 97> QRTHGDOX AND CHRISTIANITY. LET our converfation be fuch, as becomes the gofpel in every form of it, whether abso- lute or conditional. Let our clofe walking with God be exemplary and inftru&ive, that men may fee our religion as well as hear it, and all may confefs that while we preach the gofpel, we are zealous obfervers of the law. Let us maintain upon our own hearts a tweet- and honourable fenfe of the riches of free grace in Chrift, together with a tender fenfe of the evil of fin, and a lively delight in holi- nefs, that the daily experience of our own fouls, and our inward chriftianity which is taught us, and wrought in us, by the fpirit of God, may inftruft us how to preach to ©th- us,. SRTHCDOXY AND CHRISTIANITY, P, 93, 3l6 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS* * EHE EXPEDIENCY OF ENGAGING THE AFFECTIONS OF THE LOWER CLASSES OF MANKIND. GOD defigned us to dwell here infuch a wretched world, and I grant it is no fmall part of our ftate of trial : but to alleviate our ua- happinefs, he has mingled in the mafs of man- kind fome finer veins, fome more intellectual and unprejudiced fpirits, in whofe converfa-- tion wc may find fuitable delight, atid pleaf- ures worthy of the rational nature. Why mould not we fuppofe there are many other minds as happily turned as our own,. and of fuperior fize, and more divine temper ? All- men have not been blefTed with our advanta- ges, yet their native felicity of thought may tranfcend ours. And as for the reft, God hasr ordained it our duty to aflbciatc with them for valuable ends and purpofes in his provi- dence, which regard both them and us. It is* our bufinefs to endeavour to perfuade them to lay afide their miftaken notions, to remove all the bialTes of error from their judgment, to quench their indignation againft men of different opinions, and to enlarge their narrow fouls, though we find it a difficult work. I have often feen what you complain of, and have been ready to conclude that when we have to do with vulgar fouls, we fhould not* kvifh away our labour to convince them of" THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. I If innocent miftakes in matters of (mail impor- tance, but only lay out our thoughts to rec- tify their notions in things that regard their prefent or future welfare. And when we re- flect, how very impotent and low are the ca- pacities of fome ignorant creatures that we have to do with, how fhort their reaionings, how few their advantages to improve their minds, how uncapable their judgments are of growing up to a iolid and mature ftate by our utmoft cultivation, and how unable their minds are in many cafes to difcern and diflin- guifh truth ; I have been tempted to perfuade my felf, it is not difhoneft policy to engage their affections a little. I know well, that the pafiions were never made to judge of truth ; but if we find perfons who will never judge by any other rule, I would make en- quiry whether we might not in fome caies honeflly make ufe of this. If we find that affection is the great gate of entrance into the judgments of the multitude, and reafon is but like the back-door, or fome meaner avenue, and feldom opened to let in a doctrine ; may we not thence infer, that the fofter arts of winning upon men, are to be fludied by us as well as hard arguments. WH.&CTJt. THOUGHT^ 9i 195. X 1 3 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS* LIBERTY OF PRAYER. INDEED in the uie of forms, there is no need of binding ourfelves to a whole page together, as it ftands in the book. In the name of God, let us (land fad in our chriftian liberty, and maintain a juft freedom of foul- in our addrefles to heaven ; let us change,, enlarge, or contract, let us add or omit, ac- cording to our peculiar fentiments, or our prefent frame of fpirit. Mr. Jenks, a pious divine of the Church of England, has written an excellent treatife on the liberty of Prayer, which I dare recommend to every fort of read- er. Butwhen wefind thetempcr,thewantsand the willies of our hearts fo happily expreifed in the words of the compofer, as that we know not how to frame other words fo fuitable and fo expreflive of our own prefent ftate and cafe, why fhould we not adcirefs our God and our Saviour in this borrowed language ? I confefs indeed, when long cu (lorn has induced a fort of flatnefs into thefe founds, how hap- pily foever the words might be at firft chofen, then perhaps we (hall want fomething /new and various to keep nature awake to the de- votion. Or if we flill confine ourfelves en- tirely to the forms we read, and forbid our fpirits to exert their own pious fentiments, we turn thefe engines of holy elevation into THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS'. II£ clogs and fetters. But when chriftians make a prudent ufe of them, they iiave frequently experienced unknown advantage and delight. A dull and heavy hour in the clofet has been relieved by the ufe of fuch devout compof- ures of mingled meditation and prayer ; and many a dry and barren heart has been enabled to offer up the firft fruits of a lweet facrifice to God in the words of another man. The fire of devotion has been kindled by the help of fome ferious and pathetic forms, and the ipirit of the worfhipper, which has been ftrait- ened and bound up in itfe if, has found ablef- fed releafe by the pen of fome pious writer. The wings of the foul have been flrft expand- ed toward God and heaven by fome happy turn of fervent and holy language ; fhe has been lifted up by this affiftance above the earth and mortality ; then fhe has given her- felf a more unconfined and various flight in the upper regions, fhe has traverfed the heav- enly world, Ihe has felt herfelf within the cir- cle of divine attraction, and has dwelt an hour with God. M1SCIL. THOUGHTS, P. 207. RULE FOR TKE IMPROVEMENT OF THE REASONING FACULTIES. ACCUSTOM yourfelves to clear anddif- tind ideas, to evident proportions, to ftrong 120 THE BEAUTIES OF BR. WATTS. and convincing arguments. Converfe much with thofe men, and thole books, and thole parts of learning, where you meet with the greateft clearneis of thought, and force of reafoning. The mathematical fciences, and particularly arithmetic, geometry, and me- chanics, abound with thefe advantages : and if there were nothing valuable in them for the ufes of human life, yet the very fpeculativc parts of this fort of learning are well worth our ftudy ; for by perpetual examples they teach us to conceive with dearnefs, to connect our ideas and proportions in a train of depend- ence, to reafon with ftrength and demonftra- tion, and to diftinguifh between truth and falfhood. Something of thefe Iciences (hould be fludied by every man who pretends to learning, and that, as Mr. Locke exprefles it, " not fo much as to make us mathematicians, " as to make us reafonable creatures. " We mould gain fuch a familiarity with ev- idence of perception and force of reafoning, and get fuch a habit of difcerning clear truths, that the mind may be foon offended withob- icurity and confufion : then we fhall, as it were, naturally and with eafe reflrain our minds from rath judgment, before we attain juft evidence of the proportion which is of- fered to us ; and we fhall with the fame eafe, and, as it were, naturally feize and embrace every truth that is propofed with juft * dence. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 321 This habit of conceiving clearly, of judg- ing juftly, and of reafoning well, is not t® be attained merely by the happinefsof conftitu- tion, the brightneis of genius, die beft natu- ral parts, or the beft collection of logical pre- cepts : it is cuftom and practice that muft form this habit. We muft apply ourfelves to it till we perform all this readily, and with- out reflecting on rules. A coherent thinker, and a ftrict reafoner, is not to be made at once by a fet of rules, any more than a good painter or mufician may be formed extempore by an excellent lecture on mufic or painting. It is of infinite importance therefore in our younger years to be taught both the value and the praitice-of conceiving clearly and reafoning right : for when we are grown up to the middle of life, or pad it, it is no won- der we fliould not learn good reafoning, any- more than that an ignorant clown mould not be able to learn fine language, dancing, or courtly behaviour, when his ruftic airs have grown up with him till the age of forty. For want of this care, fome perfons of rank and education dwell all their days among ob- fcure ideas ; they conceive and judge always in confufion, they take weak arguments for demunftration, they are led away with the difguiies and iliadows of truth. Now if fuch perfons happen to have a bright imagination* a volubility of fpeech, and copioulhefs of La 122 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. language, they not only impofe many errors upon their own underflandings, but they ftamp the image of their own miftakes upon their neighbours alio, and fpread their er- rors abroad. LOGIC, P. '21. ADVICE ON THE SUBJECT OF ARGUMENT. BE not fo folicitous about the number as the weight of your arguments, especially in proving any propofition that admits of natu- ral certainty, or of complete demonftration. Many times we do injury to a caufe by dwel- ling upon trifling arguments. We amufe our hearers with uncertainties, by- multiplying the number of feeble reafonings, before we mention thofe which are more fubftantial, conclufive and convincing. And too often we yield up our own aflent to mere proba- ble arguments, where certain proofs may be obtained, iogic, p. 33&. Labour in all your arguings to enlighten the understanding, as well as to conquer and captivate the judgment. Argue in fuch a manner as may give a natural, diftinct and folid knowledge of things to your hear- THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 1 pj ers, as well as to force their affent by a mere proof of the quell ion. EXCELLENT USE OF SIMILITUDES.- SIMILITUDES and allufions have often- times a very happy influence to explain fome difficult tiuth, and to render the idea of it familiar and eafy. Where the refemblance is juft and accurate, the influence of a fimiie may proceed ib far as to {hew the poffibility ot die thing in queftion : but fimilitudes mud: not be taken as a folid proof of the truth of exiflence of thofe things to which they have a refemblance. A too great de- ference paid to iimiiitudes, or an utter rejec- tion of them, feetn to be two extremes, and ought -to be avoided. The late ingenious Mr. Locke, even in his enquiries after truth, makes a great ufe of fimilies for frequent il- lustration, and is very happy in the invention of them, though he warns us alfo left we miftake them for conclufive arguments. Yet let it be noted here, that a parable, or a fimilitude ufed by any author, may give a fufficient proof of the true fenfe and meaning of that author, provided that he draw not his fimilitude beyond the fcope and defigrx 124 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. for which it was brought ; as when our Sa- viour affirms, Rev. iii. 3. " I will come unto " thee as a thief ;" this will plainly prove that he defcribes the unexpeftednefs of his ap- pearance, though it is by no means to be drawn tofignify any injujlice in his deilgn. 10GIC, P. 33 £. ENTRANCE UPON THE WORLD. CURINO was a young man brought up to a reputable trade ; the term of his appren- ticefhip was almoft expired, and he was con- triving how he might venture into the world with iafety, and purfue bufinefs with inno- cence and fuccefe. Among his near kindred, *erenus was one, a gentleman of considerable character in the facred profeffion ; and after he had confulted with his father, who was a merchant of great efteem and experience, he alfo thought fit to feek a word of advice from the divine. Seremts had fuch a refpect for his young kinfman, that he fet his thought at work on this fuhject, and with feme tender exprefiions, which melted the youth into tears, he put into his hand a paper of his befl coun- fels. Curino entered upon bufinefs, purfued his employment with uncommon advantage, and under the blefling of heaven advanced THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 12$ himfelf to a confiderable eftate. He lived with honour in the world, and gave a luftre to the religion which he profefTed ; and after a long life of piety and ufefulnefs, he died with a facred compofure of foul, under the influ- ences of the chriftian hope. Some of his neighbours wondered at his felicity in this world, joined with fo much innocence, and fueh fevere virtue. But after his death this paper was found in his clofet, which was drawn up by his kinfman in holy orders, and was fuppofed to have a large mare in procuring his happinefs, ADVICES TO A YOUNG MAN** c % KINSMAN, Iprefume you defire to be happy here, and hereafter -, you know there are a thouiand difficulties which attend this purfuit ; fome of them perhaps you forefee, but there are multitudes which you could never think of. Never truft therefore to your own underftanding in the things of this world, where you can have the advice of a wife and faithful friend ; nor dare venture the more important concerns of your foul, and your eternal interefts in the world to come, upon the mere light of nature, and the dictates of L a 126 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. your own reafon ; fince the word of God, and the advice of heaven, lies in your liands. Vain and thoughtlei's indeed are thote children of pride, who choole to turn Heath- ens in the mid ft of Great-Britain ; who live upon die mere religion of nature and their own ftock, when they have been trained up among all the fuperior advantages of chrif- tianity, and the bleffings of divine revelation and grace. II. Whatfoever your circumftances may be in this world, ftiil value your bible as your beft treafure ; and whatfoever be your em- ployment here, (till look upon religion as your beft bufinefs. Your bible contains eternal life in it, and all the riches of the upper world ; and religion is the only way to be- come a pofleflbr of them. III. To direct your carriage towards God, con verfe particularly with the book of Pfalms j David was a man of fincere and eminent de- votion. To behave aright among meR, ac- quaint yourfelf with the whole book of Prov- erbs : Solomon was a man of large experience and wifdom. And to perfect, your directions in both thefe, read the Gofpels and the Epif- tles ; you will find the beft of rules and the- beft of examples there, and thofe more im- mediately fuited to the chriftian life. IV. As a man, maintain ft ri 61 temperance and fobriety, by a wife government of your appetites and pailions ; as a neighbour, i nil u- THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS* I27 ence and engage all around you to be your friends, by a temper and carnage made up of prudence and goodnefs ; and let the poor have a certain (hare in all your yearly profits. As a trader, keep that golden fentence of our Saviour's ever before you, " Whatlbever you " would that men mould do unto you, do cc you alfo unto them." V. While you make the precepts of fcrip- ture the conftant rule of your duty, you may witir courage reft upon the promifes of fcrip- ture as. the fprings of your encouragement. All divine affiftances and divine reeompences are contained in them. The fpirit of light and grace is prom i fed to aflift them that aik it. Heaven and glory are promifed to reward the faithful and the obedient. V.I. In every affair of life, begin with God* Confult him in every thing that concerns you. View him as the author of all your feleffings, and all your hopes, as your bed friend, and your eternal portion, Meditate on him in this view, with a continual renewal of your truft in him, and a daily furrender of yourfelf to him* till you feel that you love him mod entirely, that you ferve him with fincere de° light, and that you cannot live a day without God in the world. VII. You know yourfelf to be a man, an indigent creature and a finner, and you profefs to be a Chriftian, a difciple of the bleffed Jefus ; but never think you know 128 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. Chrift nor yourfelf as you ought, till you find a daily need of him for righteoufnefs and ftrength, for pardon and fatisfa&ion ; and let him be your conftant introducer to the great God,, though he fits upon a throne of grace. Remember his own words, John xiv. 6. " No man cometh to the Father but by me." VIII. Make prayer a plcafure and not a tafk, and then you will not forget nor omit it. If ever you have lived in a praying fa- mily, never let it be your fault if you do not live in one always. Believe that day, that hour, or thoie minutes, to be all wailed and Ioft,which any worldly pretences would tempt you to fave out of the public worfhip of the church, the certain and conftant duties of the clofet, or any neceilary fervices for God and godlinefs. Beware left a blaftattend it, and not a blefllng. If God had not referved one day in feven to himfelf, I fear religion would have been loft: out of the world ; and every day of the week is expofed to a cuffe which has no morning religion. IX. See that you watch and labour, as well as pray. Diligence and dependence muft be united in the practice of every Chriftian. It is the fame wife man- acquaints- us, that the hand of the diligent, and the blefling of the Lord, join together to make us rich, Prov. x. 4, 22, rich in the treafures of body or mind, of time or eternity. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. H9 It is your duty indeed, under a fenfe of 3 r our own weaknefs, to pray daily againft fin ; but if you would effectually avoid it, you muft alfo avoid temptation, and every dangerous opportunity. Set a double guard wherefoever you feel or fufpect an enemy at hand. The world without, and the heart within, have fo much flattery and deceit in them, that we muft keep a fharp eye upon both, left we are trapt into mifchief between them. X. Honour, profit, and pleafure, have been fometimes called the world's Trinity, they are its three chief idols ; each of them is fufficient to draw a foul off from God, and ruin it for ever. Beware of them there- fore and of all their fubtle infmuations, if you would be innocent or happy. Remember that the honour which comes from God, the approbation of heaven, and of your own corifcience, are infinitely more valuable than all the efteem or applaufe of men. Dare not venture one (rep out of the road of heaven, for fear of being laughed at for walking ftrictly in it. It is a poor reli- gion that cannot ftand againft a jeft. Sell not your hopes of heavenly treafures, nor any thing that belongs to your eternal in- tereft, for any of the advantages of the pre- fent life : " What (hall it profit a man " to gain the whole world, and lofe his own « foul r 130 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. Remember alfo the words of the wiie mah, *' He that loveth pleafure (hall be a poor " man ;" he that' indulges himfelf in c< wine " and oil," that is drinking, in feallin2;, and in fenfual gratifications, " (hall not be rich*'* It is one of Paul's characters of a mod degene- rate age, when "men become lovers of plea* " (ure more than lovers of God." And that " flemly lulls war againft the foul," is St. Pe- ter's caveat to the Chriftians of his time. XI. Preferve your confeience always foft and fenfible. If but one fin force its way into that tender part of the foul, and dwell ealy there, the road is paved for a thoufand iniquities. And take heed that under any fcruple, doubt or temptation whatfoever, you never let any reafonings fatisfy your conlcience, which will not be a fufBcient anfweror apol- ogy to the great Judge at the lafb day. XII. Keep this thought ever in your mind. It is a world of vanity and vexation in which you live ; the flatteries and promifes of it vain and deceitful ; prepare therefore to meet difappointments. Many of its occur- rences are teizing and vexatious. In every ruffling ftorm without, poiieis your fpirit in patience, and let all the calm and ferene within. Clouds and tempefts are only found in the lower fkies ; the heavens above are ever bright and clear. Let your heart and hope dwell much in thefe ferene regions > live THE EEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 1 3 I as a ftranger here on earth, but as a citizen of heaven, if you will maintain a foul at eafe. Xllf. Since in many things we offend all, and there is not a day paries which is per- fectly free from fin, let " repentance towards " God, and faith in our Lord Jefus thrift," be your daily work. A frequent renewal of theie exercifes which make a Chriftlan at firft, will be a conftant evidence of your fin- cere Chrillianity, and give you peace in life, and hope in death. XIV. Ever carry about with you fuch a fenfe of the uncertainty of every -thing in this life, and of life itielf, as to put nothing off till to-morrow, which you can convenient- ly do to-day. Dilatory perfonsare frequent- ly oppo'ed to furprife and hurry in every thing that belongs to them : the time is come and -they are unprepared. Let the concerns of ) T our foul and your (hop, your tra^ie and your religion, lie always in fuch or- der, as far as poffible, that death, at a lliort warning, may be no occafion of a difquiet- ing tumult in your fpirit, and that you may cfcape the anguifh of a bitter repentance in a dying hour. Farewel. Phronimus, a ccnfiderable Eaft-land mer- chant, happened upon a copy of thefe ad- vices about the time when he permitted his fon to commence a partnerfhip with him in his trade ; he tranfcribed them with his own 132 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. hand, and made a prefent of them to the youth, together with the articles of partner- fhip. Here, young man, faid he, is a paper of more worth than thefe articles. Read it over once a month, 'till it is wrought in your very foul and temper. Walk by thefe rules, and I can truft my eftate in your hands. Copy out thefe counfels in your life, and you will make me and yourfelf eafy and happy. MISCJEL. THOUGHTS, P. 232. AGAINST INDULGING THE ANGRY PASSIONS, TAKE care of giving up the reins entirely t© an angry pafiion, though it pretend fin for its object, left it run to an ungovernable ex- cefs. It is St. Pant's counfel, " fee angry, " and fin not." Ephef. iv. 26. fo hard it is to be angry upon any account without finning. It was a happy companion (whofoever firtt invented it) that the paffions of our Saviour were like pure water in a clear glafs ; make it never fo much, and it is pure (till ; there was no defilement in his holy foul by the warmed agitation of all thofe powers of his animal nature ; but ours are like water with mud at the bottom, and we can fcarce fhake the glafs with the gentled motion, but the tnud arifes, and diffufes itfelf abroad, pollut- THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 133 ing both the water and the vefTel. Our iras- cible paffions can fcarce be indulged a mo- ment, but they are ready to defile the whole man. MIICEl. THOUGHTS, P, l6l. Where the mere appearance of an angry paflion will attain the fame end, I would not choofe to give myfelfthe trouble and inquie- tude of feeling a real one. Why mould I iuffer my blood and fpirits to riie into difor- der,.if the picture of anger in my counte- nance, and the found of it imitated in my voice, will effectually difcourage and reprove the vice I would forbid ? If I am but wife enough toraite the appearance of refentment 5 I need not be at the pains to throw my lei f into this uneafy ferment. Is it not better for me, as a man and a chrifthn, to maintain a calm, fedate averiion to fin, and exprefs my difl'ke of it, fometimes at leaft, rather by a counterfeit than real anger. If hypocrify be lawful any where, furely it may be allowed in this cife to difTemble. MISCEL. THOUGHTS, T. 2$%, M 34 THE BEAUTIES'OF DR. WATTS, THE REASON OF OUR SAVIOUR SPEAKING IN PAR- ABLES. SINCE thefe expreflionsof our-Saviour con- cerning ct eating his flefh and drinking his u blood," found very harfh andabfurd in the///- tera/lenfe of them, we mud then leek out the plained and trueft figurative fenfe f now this is very near at hand, and might be obvious to thofe among them who had read the Jew- ilh prophets with care. When he tells them that the " living bread is his flefh, which he u gives for the life of the world," John vi. 51. it gives an intimation that his flefli or body was to be broken or die as a proper facrifice of atonement for our guilt, which deferved death ; which was not proper to be fpoken too publicly and plainly in his life time : and further that his blood was to be ihed for the remiflion of our fins, and to procure life for us : and that we mull not only receive his doctrine, but we muft trull in him for our remiflion, and feed upon this facrifice by faith, as the Jews eat part of their facrifices ; and that we mud live upon it by trulVmg therein. And fince the Mefliah was foretold to be made an offering for fin by the prophets, and fince feeding upon fin-offerings was common to the Jewifh religion, Lev. vi. 25, 26. the thoughtlels fitters might arrive at lomething THE BEAUTIES OP DR. WATTS. 135 cf the fenfe and meaning of our Saviour's meaning in this figurative language. But iuppofe the Jews when he frit fpake it could not well underftand him, conlider they had abuled his perfon, and derided his doctrine, and having lo far rejected the light, they deierved to be left in darkne's, amidfl figures and parables, t as Chrift himfelf de- clares, Mark iv. 12. I add yet further, there are feveral things which Chrift in his life-time lpake in pro- phetic ( or parabolical language, for this reafon, as 1 before hinted, that they were not fit and proper to be ipoken too plainly at that iea- ibn ; but he left the expreftions to be ex- plained by the events. The death of Chrift, which was not far oft', and the miniftry of the apoftles quickly afterward reprefenting his death as a propitiation for our fins, gave us a plain clew to lead us into the fenfe of Chrift in theie figurative and prophetic fpeeches, all which are fo happily accommodable to thefe ideas and doctrines of ChrifVs atonement for fin, and our faith therein, as gives much iat- isfaction to the thinking reader, that they were deiigtied and intended hereby. REDEEMER AKO SANCTIFIER, P. JJ. 1*6 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 0.: THE SACRIFICE OF OUR BLESSED REDEEMER. TO me it is evident as the fun-beams, that while the NewTefbament reftores natural re- ligion to us in the brighteit and faireft light, and lays the ftrongefl obligations on us to perform all the duties of it ; yet it frill fup- pofes the impoflibihty of our falvation there- by, through our own incapacity to perform theie duties perfectly ; and therefore it fets forth to our view the blefled facrilice of the Son of God, which is the only true and prop- er facrifice for our fins. Nor dees it fet this atonement in the room of our endeavours af- ter inward religion and real virtue, but in the room of all other facrifices whatfoever, wheth- er Jewifh or gentile. As for all the Jewifh offerings, they were but appointed types of the facrifice of Chrift, and could never really atone for the fins of mankind againit God as ruler of the world. And the facrifices of the Gentiles, what were they, but fubflitutions and offerings of beads or men upon their al- tars, fuch as God never appointed, and there- fore would never accept, either as real atone- ments, or as figures of the true propitiation and Atonement. This is the mod evident fenfe of St. Pauly in Rom. viii. 13. " There is no " condemnation of them who are in Chrift " Jefus," i. e. who truft in him as the medium THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 137 of their pardon, and " who walk not after the Ci flefli, but after the Spirit," i. e. who live holy lives : " what the law could not do in " that it was weak," and unable to juftify us through cc the ftefn," /'. e. through our ina- bility to perform it, God has done this by " fending Ins own Son in the likenefs of fin- " fui flefh, and a facrifice for fin, (as 'tis in " the Greek) has condemned in the flefh,'* but in oar ftead, to b?ar the purjihmc::t of our iniquity. JVtitby ci* Hcb, v. ?> 140 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS, ings of the Son of God, in the room and (lead of finful men, there is an honourable amends made to the Governor of the world for the violation of his law, and a glorious way made for the exercife of mercy in the pardon ot the finner ; and that without any imputation of reflection upon the hoJinefs of God's nature and conduct, or any fufpicion of the juftice of his government, as if he would connive at fin ; fince he dilcovers and declares, that in his palling by all the fins of his people in for- mer ages, and in pardoning and "juftifying" finners now but he mould confider what is his chief defign, what is the end he hath in view, and then to make every part of his difcourfe fubferve that de- fign. If he keep his great end always in his eye, he will pafs haftily over thofe parts or appendages ot his fubject which have no evi- dent connection with his defign, or he will entirely omit them, and haften continually towards his intended mark ; employing his time, his ftudy and his labour, chiefly on that part of his fubject which is moft neceflary to attain his prefent and proper end. POSTHUMOUS WORKS, P. 87. When an author defires a friend to revife his work, it is too frequent a practice to dif- allow almoft every correction which a judi- cious friend would make ; he apologizes for this word, and the other expreflion ; he vin- dicates this fentence, and gives his reafons for another paragraph, and fcarce ever fub- mits to correction ; and this utterly difcour- ages the freedom that a true friend would THE BEAUTIES OF DR. ^CVATTS. I47 take, in pointing out our miftakes. Such writers who are io full of themfelves, may go on to admire their own uncorrect perform- ances, and expofe their works and their follies to the world without pity. POSTHUMOUS WORKS, P. 89, If you have not the advantage of friends to furvey your writings, then read them over yourfelf, and ail the way confider what will be the fentence and judgment of aii the vari- ous characters of mankind upon them : think what one of your own party would fay, or what would be the ienle of an adveriary : imagine what a curious or a malicious man, what a captious or an envious critic, what a vulgar or a learned reader would object, eith- er to the matter, the manner, or the flile : and be fare and think with yourfelf, what you yourfelf could fay againft your own writing r if you were of a different opinion, or a Gran- ger to the writer : and by thefe means you will obtain fome hints, whereby to correcl and improve your own work, and to guard it better againft the cenfures of the public, as well as to render it more ufeful to that part of mankind for whom you chiefly deflgn it. P0STHUM9US WORKS, P. 9^- I48 THE BEAUTIES OP DR. WATTS. METHOD OF STRENGTHENING THE MEMORY OF CHILDREN. I HAVE known children, who from their early years have been conttantly trained up and tiught to remember a few icntences of a fermon befides the text, and by this means have grown up by degrees to know ail the diftmcl parts and branches of a difcourle, and in time to write down halt the fermon after they came home, to their own confoiation, and the improvement of their friends : where- as thole who have been never taught to ufe their memories in their younger parts of life, lofe every thing from their thoughts when it is pad off from their ears, and come home from noble and edifying difcourfes, pleated (it may be) with the traniient found, and commending the preacher, but uninliructed, unimproved, without any growth in knowl- edge or piety. POSTHUMOUS WORKS, P. 1 14. RELIGIOUS AND MORAL DUTY TO BE ENCOURA- GED IN CHILDREN. CONSCIENCE is another natural power of the foul, wherein the principles of virtue THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 149- and rules of duty' to God and man are to be laid up : it is fomething within us that calls us to account for our faults, and by which we pafs a judgment concerning ourfeives and' our actions. Children have a confcience within thenv and it mould be awakened early to its duty. They mould be taught to reflect and look back upon their own behaviour, to call them. felves often to account, to compare their deeds with thofe good rules and principles laid up in their minds, and to fee how far they have complied, with them, and how far they have neglected them. Parents fhould teach their children to pay a religious reipect to the inward dictates of virtue within them,, to examine their actions continually by the light of their own confidences, and to rejoice v/hen they can approve themfelves.to their own minds, that they have acted well accord- ing to the beft of their knowledge : they ought a Ifo to attend to- the inward reproofs of conscience, and mourn, and be afhamed, and repent vvhen they have finned againft their light. It is of admirable ufe toward all the practices of religion and every virtue, to have confcience well flored .with good principles,. and to be always kept tender and watchful ; it is proper that children mould learn to rev- erence and obey this inward monitor betimes, that every wilful fin may give their confciences I^O THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. a fenfible pain and uneafinefs, and that they may be diipoied to facrifice every thing elie to confederations of confcience, and to endure any extremities rather than act contrary to it. JOiTHUMOUb WORKS, P. 117, ILL CONSEQUENCES OE TERRIFYING YOUNG MINDS BY DISMAL NARRATIVES. LET not any perfons that are near them terrify their tender minds with difmal ltories of witches and ghofts, of devils and evil fpir- its, of fairies and. bug bears in the dark. This hath had a mod mifchievous effect, on fome children, and hath fixed in their conftitutions iuch a rooted ilavery and fear, that they have fcarce dared to be left alone all their lives, efpecially in the night. Thefe ftories have made fuch a deep and frightful impreffion on their tender fancies, that it hath enervated their fouls, it hath broken their fpirits early, it hath grown up with them, and m ingled with their religion, it hath laid a wretched foundation for melancholy and diffracting ibrrows. Let thefe fort of informations be referved for their firmer years, and let them not be told in their hearing till they can bet- ter judge what truth or reality there is in them, and be made fenfible how much is ©wing to romance and fiction* t THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. I£l Nor let their little hearts be frighted at three or four years old with (hocking and bloody hiftories, with mafiacres and martyr- doms, with cuttings and burnings, with the images of horrible and barbarous murders, with racks and red hot pincers, with engines, of torment and cruelty, with mangled limbs, and carcafes drenched in gore. It i* time enough, when their fpirits are grown a little firmer, to acquaint them with theie madnefTes and miferies of human nature. There is no need that the hiftory of the holy confeffors and martyrs mould be fet before their thoughts fo early in all their moft ghaftly fhapes and colours. Thefe things, when they are older, may be of excellent uie to diicover to them the wicked and bloody principles cf perfecu- tion, both among the Heathens and Papifts ; and to teach them the power of the grace of Chrift, in iupporting thefe poor fufTerers un- der all the torments which they fuftained for the love of God and truth. POSTHUMOUS WORKS, P. Il6, PARTICULAR PARTS OF THE BIBLE NOT TO BE . READ BY CHILDREN. THERE mould be a wife conduct in Clewing children what parts of the Bible they 1^2 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. ffiould read : for though the word of God exprefTeth all things with due decency, yet- there are Come things which have been found fiecerTary to be fpoken of in fcripture, both in the laws of Mofes, and in the reprefenta- tion of the wickednefs of the Gentiles in the New Teftament, in which adult perfons have been concerned, which there is no necefTity for children to read and hear, and they may be pafTed over, or omitted among them. The Jews were wont to withhold Solomon's fong from their children till they were thirty years old : and the late pious and prudent bifhop Tillotfcn (in a manufcript which I have ken) wilhes that thofe par's of .the Bible wherein are fome of the affairs of mankind expreifed "too naturally" (as lie calls it) were omitted in the public leffbns of the church : I think they may as well be excepted alio out of the common leflbns of children, and out of the daily courfe of reading in family worlhip. POSTHUMOUS WORKS, P. 169. RULES FOR MODERATING OUR ANGER. OUR natures are fo perverfe and corrupt,, that it is very hard for us to give a loofe to any angry paflion againft men, without running into fome fentiments of malice or revenge, THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 253 and thereby finning againft God. Our anger is very apt to kindle about trifles, or upon mere fufpicion, without juft caufe ; or fome- times riles too high where the caufe may be juft ; or it continues too long, and turns in- to hatred : and in either of thefe three cafes it becomes finful. It is therefore with the utmofl caution that this paffion fhould ever be fuffered to arife ; and unlefs we quickly fuppreis it again, we fhall be in great danger of bringing guilt up- on our fouls. The blefled apoftle therefore connects the permifiion, the caution, and reftraint together, Eph, iv. 26. " Be angry, throw away what is not their own, and to> rifque the fubftance, as well as the difplea- fure of their parents, or of their matter, at all the uncertain hazards of a dice-box. POSTHUMOUS WORKS, T. I90. THE BEAUTIES OF OR. WATTS, 165 ON PUBLIC DANCING ASSEMBLIES IT is acknowledged to be proper and needful that young people mould be indulg- ed in ibme recreations, agreeable to their age, and fui table to the condition in which providence has placed them. But I would afk whether the great and onty valuable end of recreation is to be expected from thefe midnight-afiemblies, namely, " to relieve us " from the fatigues of life, and to exhilarate " the fpirits, fo as thereby to fit us for the " duties of life and religion ?" Now are thefe the proper means to fit us for the du- ties of either kind ? Perhaps it will be-faid that dancing, which is pracYifed in thofe af- iemblies, is an exercife conducive to health, and therefore a means of fitting us for the duties of life. But may not the unfeafona- blenefs of the midnight-hour prevent and over-balance the benefit, that might other- wife be fuppofed to arife from the exercife ? Is it likely that natural health mould be pro- moted, or preferved, by changing the fea- fons and order of nature, and by allotting thofe hours to exercife, which God and na- ture have ordained to reft ? Is the returning home after five or fix hours dancing, through the cold and clamp of the midnight-air, a. l£6 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. W.4TTS. proper means of preferving health ? or ra~ ther, is it not more likely to impair and de- ftroy it ? Have not thefe fatal effects been to® often felt ? Have they not been facrifi- ces of human life offered to this midnight idol ? Have there been no fair young mar- tyrs to this unfeafonable folly ? Are there not fome of its flaves who are become feeble, labouring under fore difeales, and fome of them fallen afleep in death ? Have not their mufic and their 'dancing, inftead of natural reft in their beds, brought them down to a long filence in the grave, and an untimely reft in a bed of duft ? Thofe amiable pie- ces of human nature, who were lately the joy and hope of their too indulgent parents, are now the b'tternefs of their hearts ; and thofe very exercifes from whence they hoped the continuance of their joy, as the fup- pofed means of confirming their children's health, arc become an everlafting ipring of their mourning. \ And as thofe midnight recreations are bad- ly fuited to fit us for the duties of the civil life, fo they are worfe fuited to fit us for, or rather, they are more apparently oppofite to, the duties of religion. The religion of the clofet is neglecled, the beautiful regularity and order of the family is broken ; and when t'ie night has been turned into day, a good part of the next day is turned into night, while the duties of the morning, both to. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. l6j God and man, are unperformed. Thofe who have frequented thefe afTemblies know all this, and are my witnefles to the truth of it. Nay the very practice itfelf, at thofe unfea- fonable hours, tells all the world how much -they prefer thefe dangerous amufements to the worfhip of God in the evening and in the morning, and to all the conveniencies and decorum of family government. Befides, if I fpeak to Chriftians, have you not found that the indulgence to this fort of diveriions, which are ufually practifed in thofe unieafon- abSe aflemblies, leads the mind away infenfi- bly from God and religion, gives a vanity to the (pirit, and greatly abates the fpiritual and heavenly temper which fhould belong to Chriftians ? Hath it not taken away the fa- vour of godlinefs and tincture of piety from fome younger minds ? And do elder Chrifti- ans never furTer by it ? Let it be further con- fidered, what fort of company you mingle with in thole midnight aifemblies. Are they mod frequented by the wife and pious, or by the more vain and vicious part of mankind ? Do they tend to fill your mind with the moft improving notions, and your ears and your lips with the moft proper converfation ? Do you that frequent them never find your pie- ty in danger there ? Does ftrict religion and prayer relifh fo well with you after thole gawdy nights of mirth and folly ? And do you then, when you join in thofe allemblies, l68 THI BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. practife the commands of God, to abftain from all appearance of evil, and to fhun the paths of temptation ? Can you pray for a blefiing on your attendance on thtfe midnight meetings ? Or can you hope to run into the mid ft of thofe fparks and living coals and yet not be burned, nor fo much as have your garments figned ? Are not parents yery gen- erally ienfible that there are dangerous mares to youth in thofe gay diverfions ? and there- fore the mother will herfelf go along with her young offspring to take care ot them, and to watch over them ; and perhaps there is fcarcely any place or time which more wants the watchful eye of a fuperior. But here let me aik, is this all the reafon why the mother attends thofe fcenes of vanity ? Has fhe no reiifh for them herfelf? Has fhe no gay hu- mours of her own to be gratified, which lhe difguiies and covers with the pretence of a parental folicitude for the virtue and honour of her offspring ? are there no mothers who freely lead their children into thofe perilous places, where foul and body are in danger, and are really, their tempters, under a colour of being their guardians ? You will plead, perhaps, that fome of thefe things are proper for the improvement of young people in good breeding and politenefs. They mud be brought into company, to fee the wcrld, and to learn how to behave with becoming decency. Well, fuppofe thele THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. I 69 atiemblies to be academies of politenefs, and that young people attend there upon lec- tures of good breeding, Is there no other time fo fit as midnight, to polifh the youth of both (exes, and to breed them well ? May not an hour or two be appointed at more proper fcafons, by felecl: companies, for mu- tual con variation, and innocent delight ? Can there be no genteel recreations enjoyed, no leffbns of behaviour taught by day light ? Can no method of improvement in good breeding be contrived and appointed which mall be more fecure from temptations and inconveniencies ? Are there none wlvch are more harmlels, more innocent, of better re- putation among perfons of flrict piety, and which make lefs inroad on the duties of life, both folitary and fo'cial, civil and religious. POSTHUMOUS WORKS, P. I94. Tt is the duty of parents who would give their children a good education, to fee to it that children, in their younger years, do not indulge iuch' recreations as may fpoil all the good effects of the pious inftrudr,ions, the prayers,- and cares of their parents. Other- wile, if you encourage them in fuch recrea- tions, you are building up thofe vanities of mind, and thofe vicious inclinations with one hand which you labour to prevent or deftroy with the other. rofT«w« wowi, ? m P iyo TR~E EEAVTIES OF DK. WaTTS. OF SECRET AND SOCIAL PRAYER. WHILE I am difcouragi Chrif- tians from that affectation or' long prayer, which arffes from an oftentat-ion of their parts, from a luperflitious hope of pleafing God better by laying many words, cr from a trifling frame of fpirit j I would not have my readers imagine that the fhorteft prayers are always the belt. Our finful natures are too ready to put off God in fecret or in the family, with a few minutes of worfhip, from .mere iloth and wearinefs of holy things ; which is equally to be blamed : for hereby we omit a great part of the neceflary work of prayer in confeflions, petitions, pleadings for mercy, or thankfgivings. Nor do I think that prayer in public ailemblies fhould be ihort, as though the only defign of it were a mere preface before the fermon, or a bene- diction after it. Whereas focial prayer h •one confiderable part (if not the chief duty)] ; of public worfhip ; and we ought generally to continue io long in it, as to run through the mod neceflary and important purpoles of a focial addrefs to the throne of Grace. Chriftian prudence will teach us to determine the length of our prayers agreeablyio the oc- cafion and prefent circumftances, and accord-: ing to the meafure of our own ability for .this W'TK. cu:i to PXATtftj r. Si THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 171 ©F THE TONE OF THE VOICE IS PRAYER. THOUGH the beauty of our expref- iions, and the tuneablenefs of our voice, can never render ourworiliip more acceptable to G > J, the infinite Spirit •, yet our natures being compofed offlelh and ipirit,may be ailiiled in worfhip by the harmony of the voice of him* that (peaks. Should the matter, method, and exprefiions, be never fo well chofen in prayer yet it is impofiible for the voice to fpoii the pleafure, and injure the devotion of our felhw-worfliippers. When fpeeches of the bed compoiure and warmed language, are recited in a coid y harfh, or ungrateful way, the beauty ot them is almoft loft. Some perions, by nature, have a very fvveet and tun etui voice, that whatfoever they (peak appears pleating. Others mud take much more pains, and attend with diligence to rules and directions, that their voice may be formed to an agreeable pronunciation : for we find by lad experience, that all the ad- vantages that nature can obtain or apply to aiiilt our devotions, are all little enough to keep our hearts from wandering, and to maintain delight : at leaf] it is a necetfary duty to know and avoid thole disagreeable IJ2 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. ways of pronunciation, that may rather dif- guft than edify fuch as may join with us. I confels, in iecret prayer there is no ne- ceifxty of a voice, for God hears a whifper as well as a figh and a groan. Yet iome Chrif- tians cannot pray with any advantage to themfelves without the ufe of a voice in lbme degree ; nor can I judge it at all im- proper, but rather preferable, fo that you have a convenient place for fecrecy : for hereby you will not only excite your own af- fections the more, but by practice in fecret, if you take due care of your voice there, you may learn alio to fpeak in public the better. The great and general rule I would lay down for managing the voice in prayer is this : " Let us ufe the lame voice with " which we ufually fpeak in grave and le- " rious converfation, efpecially upon pathe- 11 tica) and affecting iubjects." This is the bed direction that I know, to regulate the found as well as the words. Our own na- tive and common voice appears mod natu- ral, and may be managed with the greateft eale. And iome perfons have taken occafion to ridicule our worihip, and to cenfure us as hvpocrites, when we tondly leek any new and different iort of founds or voices in our prayers. CVII»E TO PRAYER, P. Ic£ THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. T 73 THAT IT IS SINFUL TO COMPLAIN OF THE DIS- PENSATIONS OF PROVIDENCE. AN African has no right to complain, that he was not born a Briton ; nor a porter that he was not born a prince 3 nor Saphronius and I, that we were not made prophets and apof- tjes. If God has furnifhed all men with inch natural pollers, as being improved in the bed manner, would lead them to virtue, religion, and happinefs, furely his creatures may give -him leave to make io much diftinction be- tween them, as to fet fome of them in a plainer and eafier road to happineis than he has others : and it is ihameful ingratitude for us, in chriltian countries, to complain of our bountiful Creator, who has afforded us inch peculiar favours, and made our way to heaven plained of all. STRENGTH AND WEAKNESS OF HUM. REASON, .» 210. CHARITABLE JUDGMENT OF OUR FELLOW- CREATURES RECOMMENDED; LET us take a furvey of the world, and fee what a mixture there is of amiable and P i 174 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WAT la. hateful qualities among the children of men. There is beauty and comelineis ; there is vigour and vivacity ; there is good humour and compaflion ; there is wit, and judgment, and induftry, even among thofe that are pro- fligate and abandoned to many vices. There is (obriety, and Icve, and honefty, and jnftice, and decency amongft men that M know not ** God, and believe not the goipel of our " Lord Jefus." There are very few of the ions and daughters of Adam, but are poflei- fed of fomething good and agreeable, either by nature or acquirement ; therefore when there is a necefTary occafion to mention the vices of any man, I fhould not fpeak evil of him in the grots, nor heap reproaches on him by wholefale. It is very difingenuous to talk fcandal in fupenatives, as though every man who was a (inner, was a perfect villain, the very worft of men, all over hateful and abo- minable. How fharply fhould our own thoughts re- prove us, when we give our pride and malice a loofe to ravage over all the characters of our neighbours, and deny all that is good concerning them, becaufe they have fome- thing in them that is criminal and worthy of blame! Thus our judgment is abufed by our paflions ; and fometimes this folly reigns in us to fuch a degTee, that we can hardly allow a man to be wile or ingenuous, to have a grain of good fenfe, or good humour, that is THE BEACTIES OF DR. WATTS. 17^ not of our profefiion, or our party, in mat- ters or church or (late. Let us look back upon our conduct, and blufh to think that we fliould indulge iuch prejudices, fuch fin- ful partiality. SERMONS, VOL. l r P. 141. I will not therefore fay within myfelf con- cerning any man, " I hate him utterly, and " abhor him in all refpects, becaufe lie has " not true hoJinefs." But [ will look upon him, and coniider whether there may not be fome accompli fhment in him, fome moral virtue, fome valuable talent, fome natural or acquired excellency ; and I will not neglect to pay due efleem to every deierving quality, wherefoever I find it. It is a piece of ho- nour due to God our Creator, to obferve the various hgnatures of his wifdom that he has imprelTed upon his creatures, and the over- flowing treafures of his goodnefs, which he has didributed among the works of his hands. Thus I may very juflly love a man, for whom, in the vulgar fenfe, I have no chanty, that is, luch a one as I believe to be in a ftate of fin and death, and have no prefent hope of his falvation. How could holy pa- rents fulfil their duties of afTeelion to their wicked children ? Or pious children pay due refpect to finful parents ? How could a be- liever fulfil the law of love to an unbelieving 176 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. brother, or a dearer relative, if" we ought to admit of no Jove to perfons that are in a date of enmity to God ? vor.. t, p. 145. ANCIENT AND MODERN EDU- CATION CONTRASTED. SO weak and unhappy is human nature, that it is ever ready to run into extremes ; and when we would recover onrfelves from an excefs on the right hand, we know not where to (top till we are got to an excels on the left. Inftances of this kind are innume- rable in all the affairs of human life ; but it is hardly more remarkable in any thing, than in the flrict. and fevere education of our fa- thers a century ago, and in the moft profufe and unlimited liberty that is indulged to children in our age- In thofe days the fons were bred up to learning by terrible difcipline r every Greek and.Latin author they converted with, was attended with one, or many new fcourges, to drive them into acquaintance with him ; and not the lead mifdemeanor in life could efrape the lafli : as though, the father would prove his daily c< love to his fori"' by never THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. I 7/ " fparing his rod," Prov. xiii. 24. Nowa- days young mailer muft be treated with a foolifh fondleis, till he is grown to the fize of man ; and let his faults be never fo heinous, and his obftinacy never fo great, yet the pre- ceptor muft not let him hear the name of the rod, left the child mould be frighted or hurt - 9 the advice pt the wifeft of men is ut- terly forgotten, when he tells us, that due " correction (hall drive out the tolly that is " bound up in the heart of a child," Prov. xxii. 15. Orelfe they boldly reverfe his divine counfel, Prov. xiii. 24. as though they would make the rule ot their practice a di- rect contradiction to the words of Solomon, namely, that " he that fpareth the rod loveth u his fbn, but he that hateth him, chaftens " him betimes." In that day many children were kept in a mod fervile fubjecYion, and not fuftered to fit down, or to fpeak in the prcfence of their father, till they were come to the age of one and twenty. The leaft degree of freedom was efteemed a bold prefumption, and incur- red a fharp reproof. Now they are made familiar companions to their parents, almoft from the very nurfery ; and therefore they will hardly bear a check or rebuke at their hand. In the beginning of the laft century, and fo onward to the middle of it, the children were ulually obliged to believe what their 178 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. parents and mailers taught them, whether they were principles or fcience, or articles of faith and practice j they were tied down to al- moft every punctilio, as though it were necef- iary to ialvation ; they were not fufFered to examine or enquire whether their teachers were in the right, and fcarce knew upon what grounds they were to alien t to the things that were taught them ; for it was a maxim of all teachers, that the learner mud believe : Bifcenlm opertc eredere. Then an ipje dixit, or Ariftotle laid fo, was a fuilicient proof of any proportion in the colleges ; and for a man of five and twenty to be a Chriftian and a proteftanr, a dllTenter or a church-man, it was aimed reafon enough to fay his father was (b. But in this century, when the doc- trine of a juft and rcafonable liberty is bet- ter known, too many of the prefent youth break all the bonds of nature and duty, and to the wildeft degrees of Joofends, both in belief and practice. They flight the religion which their parents have taught them, that they may appear to have chofen a religion for themfelves : and when they have made a creed or belief of their own, or rather bor- rowed fome fcraps of infidelity from their vain companions and equals, they rind pre- tences enough to call off all "other creeds at once, as well as the counfels and cuftoms of their religious predeceflbrs. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. I 79 " The practices .of our fathers (fay th?y) * c were preciie and fodlilh, and fhall be no " rule for our conduct ; the articles of their y faith were abiurd and myfterious, but we " will believe nothing of myftery, left our tc faith mould be as ridiculous as theirs/' In their young years, and before their reafon is half grown, they pretend to examine the iub- blimeft doctrines of Chriftianity ; and a raw and half-witted boy fhall commence an in- fidel, becaufe he cannot comprehend lome of the glorious truths of the gofpel, and laughs at his elders and anceftors, for believ- ing what they could not comprehend. The child now-a-day forgets that his pa- rent is obliged by all the laws of God and nature, to train him up in his own religion, till he is come to the proper age of difcre- tion to judge for himfelf; he forgets or he will not know, that the parent is intruded -with the care of the fouls of his young off- ipring by the very laws of nature, as well as by the revealed covenants of innocency and of grace. The fbn now-a-days forgets the obligations he is under to. honour and obev the perfons that gave him birth - y he pays no regard to the doctrines which led on his an- ceftors to the love of God and man ; whereas doctrines that have.fuch influence, claim at leaft iome degrees of attention, and ipecially from a ion who has been trained up in them, and beheld the effect of them in the piety of iSo THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. his parents ; nor will the very light of na- ture furTer him to depart from them, but up- on the cleared judgment of his own mature reafon, a thorough and impartial fearch into the fubje&, the loud inward dictates of his confcience, and the full evidence of his pa- rents miftake. So wanton and licentious a fpirit has pof- lefled fome of the youth of the nation, that they never think they have freed themfelves from the prejudices of their education, till they have thrown off alrnoft all the yokes of reftraint that are laid upon them by God or man. Some take a petulent pride in laying afide the holy fcriptures, for the fame reafon that Timothy was adviled to u continue in " them,'* and that is, becaule "they have ct learned and known them from their verv •'childhood," 2 Tim. iii. i ;. And fome, perhaps, have been laughed out of their Chridianity, left it (hould be faid, their mo- thers and their nuries had made them Chrii- tians. Heretofore the fons were fcarce fuffered to be abfent from home an hour, without ex- prefs leave, till they were arrived at the age of man, nor daughters till they were married; nov^both lexes take an unbounded licence of roving where they pleafe, and from a do- zen years oid, they forget to afk leave to wander or to vifit where their fancies lead them i at firft the parent gives a loofe and THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 1 S I winks at it, and then the child claims it as 'his due for ever. In fhort, thelaft age taught mankind to believe that they were mere children, and treated them as fuch, till they were near thirty years old ; but the prefent gives them leave to fancy themfelves complete men and women at twelve and fifteen ; and they accordingly judge and manage for themfelves entirely, and too often defpife all advice of their elders. Now though it be fufnciently evident that both thefe are extremes of liberty or reftraint, yet if we judge by the reafon of things, or by experience and luccefs, furely the ancient education is to be preferred before the prefent, and of the two mould rather be chofen. POSTHUMOUS WORKS, P. 200. EXTREMES OF LIBERTY AND RESTRAINT TO BE AVOIDED IN THE EDUCATION OF YOUTH. BUT after all, is there no medium be- tween thele two extremes,, excefs of con- finement, and excefs of liberty ? May not young understandings be allowed to moot and Ipread themfelves a little, without grow- VZ% THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. ing rank and rampant ? May not children be kept in due and gentle fubjection to their parents, without putting yokes of bondage upon them ? Is there no reaionable re drain t pi the wild opinions, and violent inclinations of youth, without making chains for theun- derftanding, and throwing fet:ers on the foul ? May not the young gentleman begin to act like a man, without forgetting that he h a jfon ? and maintain the full liberty of his own judgment without infolence and con- tempt of the opinions of his elders ? May not he who is bred up a proteflant and a Chriftian judge freely for himfelf without the prejudices of his education, and yet continue a Chriftian and a Proteflant dill ? Is it not poflible for the parent to indulge, and the child to enjoy a juft liberty, and yet neither encourage nor praclife a wild licentioumefs ? Yes iurely ; and there have been happy inftances in the laft age, and there are fome in this, both of parents and children, that have learned to tread this middle path, and found wifclom and virtue init,pietyandpeace. Agathus has bred his fon up under fuch dif- cipline, as renders them both proper exam- ples to the world. ?0?T HUMOUS WORKS, P. 2o6. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. I S3' THE END OF TIME. REV. x. 5, 6. " And the angel which I " (aw ftand upon the Tea, and upon the earth, " lifted up his hand to heaven, and fvvare " by him that liveth for ever and ever, that " there (hall be time no longer." This is the oath and folemn fentence of a mighty angel who came. down from heaven, and by the deicription of him in the firft verfe, he ieems to be the t; Angel of God's prefence,- cc in whom is the name of God," even our Lord Jefus Chrir! himfelf, who pronounced and fware that Ci Time mould be no long* " er ;" for all feafons and times are now put into his hand, together with the book of his Father's decrees, Rev. v. 7, 9. What fpe- cial age or period of time in this world the prophecy refers to, may not be fo eafy to deter- mine ; but this is certain, that it may be hap- pily applied to the period of every man's life j for whenfoever the term of our conti- nuance in this world is finimed, " our time" in the prefent circumflances and fcenesthat at- tend it " fhall be no more :" we mail be fwept off the ftage of this vifible ftate into an unfeen and eternal world : eternity comes upon us at once, and all that we enjoy, all that we do, and all that we fuffer in " time, (hall be no fl more/' WORLB TO COME, P. IoS> 184 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. The moment is haftening upon us when this mighty angel who manages the affairs of the kingdom of providence, fhall fwear concerning every unbelieving and impenitent /inner, that the « time of offered mercy fhall " be no longer, the time of pardon and " grace and reconciliation fhall be no more :" the found of this mercy reaches not the re- gions of the dead ; thofe who die before they are reconciled, they die under the load of all their fins, and mull, periih for ever, without tdc lead hope or glimpfe of reconciling or forgiving grace. W0RlD T0 C0ME> P . lia . THE INESTIMABLE VALUE OF TIME. EVERY hour you live is an hour given you to prepare for dying, and to five a foul. If you^were but apprized of the worth of your own foul?, yen would better know the worth of days and hours, and of every puffing mo- ment, for they are given to fecure your immortal intereft, and fave a foul from everlafUng mi ferry. And you would be zea-~ lous and importunate in the prayer of Moles, the man of God, upon a meditation of the the fhortnefs of life, Pfal. xc. 12. w So " teach us to number our days as to apply u our hearts to wifdom," i. c. So teach us to THE BEAUTIES OF PR. V.'ATTS. 10^ confide!* how few and uncertain our days are, that we may be truly wife in preparing for the end of them. It is a matter of vafl importance to be ever ready for the end of time, ready to hear this awful fentence confirmed with the oath of the glorious a^gel, that " time mail " be no longer/' The terrors or the com- forts of a dying bed depend upon it i the folemn and deciiive voice of judgment 'de- pends upon it : the joys and the forrows of a long eternity depend upon it : go now, care- lefs tinner, and in the view of fuch thmgs as theie, go and trifle away t : me as you have done before ; time, that invaluable treafure : go and venture the loft oi your fouls, and the hopes of heaven and your eternal hap- pinefs, in wafting a.vay the remnant of hours or moments of life : but remember the aw- ful voice of the angel is haftening towards tou, and the found isjufl breaking upon you^ that " time fhall be no longer." W03iD TO COMIj V. 12 C, T HE C H U R C H - Y A RD, WHAT a number of hillocks^ of C^ih cDoear all round us ! What are the k 150 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS, ftones, but memorials of the inhabitants of that town, to inform us of the period of all their lives, and to point out the day when it was faid to each of them, " Your time (hall " be no longer." O, may I readily learn this important lerTon, that my turn is harden- ing to ; fuch a little hillock mail fhorliy a- rile for me in fome unknown fpot of ground, it (hall cover this fie ih and thefe bones of mine in darknefs-, and (hall hide them from the light of the fun, and from the fight of man till the heavens be no more. Perhaps fbme kind furviving friend may engrave my name, with the number* of my days, upon a plain funeral (tone, without or- nament, and below envy : there fhall my* tomb ftand among the reft as a frefTi monu- ment of the frailty of nature and the end of time. It is pofiible fome friendly toot may now and then vifit the place of my repofc, and fome tender eye may bedew the cold memorial with a tear : one or another of my old acquaintance may poflibly attend there to learn the filcnt lecture of mortality from my grave-ftone, which my lips are now preaching aloud to the world : and if love and forrows fhould reach fo far, perhaps while his foul is melting in his eye-lids, and his voice fcarce finds an utterance, he will point with his finger, and mew his compa- nion the month and the day of my difeafe. O, that fokmn, that awful day, which (hall h THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WA.TTS. 187 my appointed time on earrb, and put a final period to all the defigns of my heart, and all the labours of my tongue and pen ! Think, O my foul, that while friends or flrangers are engaged on that fpot, and read- ing the date of my departure hence, thou wilt be fixed under a decifive and unchan- geable fen tence, rejoicing in the rewards of time well-improved, or fufFering the longer forrows which (hall attend the abufe of it, in an unknown world of happinefs or mifery. WORLD TO tOME, P. I2£. GUILT AND INNOCENCE, DANGER of guilt Hands near the ex- treme limits of innocence. WORLD TO GOME, ?. I 77, THE DANGER OF LATE REPENTANCE, IT is a wife and juft obfervation among Chriftians, though it is a very common one, that the fcriptures give us one in [ranee of a penitent faved in his dying hour, and that is the thief upon the crofs, that fo none aright 1 88 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. utterly defpair ; but there is but one fuch in- ftance given, that none might preiume. The work of repentance is too difficult, and too important a thing, to be left to the lan- guors of a dying bed, and the tumults and flutterings of thought which attend fuch a late conviction. There can be hardly an'/ effectual proofs given of the fincerity of fuch repentings : and 1 am verily perfuaded there are few of them (incere ; for we have often found thefe violent emotions ot confeiencs vanifri aga'.n, if the hnner has happened to recover his health : they feem to be merely the wild perplexities and druggies of nature, averfe to mifery, rather than averfe to fin : their renouncing their former lufts on the bor- ders of hell and deftruction, is more like- the vehement efforts of a drowning creature, conftrained to let go a moft beloved objecl,. and taking eager hold of any plank for fafe- ty, rather than the calm and reasonable,, and voluntary defigns of a mariner, .who for- fakes his early joys, ventures himfelf in a ihip that is offered him, and fets fail for the hea- venly country. I never will pronounce fuch efforts and endeavours defperate, left I limit the grace * of God, which is unbounded;. But 1 can give very little- encouragement lor hope to an houror two, of this vehement' and tumultuous penitence, on the very brink of damnation. " Judas repented," but his agonies of- foul hurried him to haflen his own THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 189 death, " that he might go to his own place :" and there is abundance ot iuch kind of re- penting in every corner of hell ; that is a deep and dreadful pit, whence there is no redemption, though there are millions of fuch fort of penitents ; it is a ftrong and dark prifon, where no beam of comfort ever fhines, where bitter anguifh. and mourning for fins pari, is no evangelical repentance, but everlafting and hopelefs forrow. WJRL» TO COM!, P. 1$$. VANITY INSCRIBED ON ALL THINGS, TIME, like a long flowing dream, makes hafte into eternity, and is forever loft and fwallowed up there ; and while it is harden- ing to its period, it fweeps away all things with it which are not immortal. There is a limit appointed by Providence, to the du- ration of all the pleafant and deferable (cenes of life, 10 all the works of the hands of men, with all the glories and excellencies of ani- mal nature, and all that is made of flefh and blood. Let us not doat upon any thing here below, for heaven hath infcribed vanity up- on it. The moment is haftening when the decree of heaven fhall be uttered, and Pro- I90 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. vidence (hall pronounce upon every glory of the earth, c< It's time (hall be ho longer." What is that (lately building, that princely palace, which now entertains and amufes our light with ranks of marble columns, and wide fpreading arches, that gay edifice which enriches our imagination with a thoufand roy- al ornaments, and a profufion of coftly and glittering furniture ? Time and all its circling hours, with afwift wing are brufhing it away, decay deals upon it infenfibly, and a few years hence it (hall lie in mouldering ruin and defolation. Unhappy poiTeiTor, if he has no better inheritance I What are thofe fine and elegant gardens, thofe delightful walks, thofe gentle afcents, and foft declining Hopes, which raife and fink the eye by turns to a thoufand .vegetable pleafures ? How lovely are thofe fweet bor- ders, and thofe growing varieties of bloom and fruit, which recal loft: paradife to mind ? Thofe living parterres which regale the fenfe with vital fragrancy, and make glad the fight by their refrefliing verdure and intermingled flowery beauties ? The fey the of time is paffing over them all : they wither, they die away, they drop and vanifh into duft ; their duration is (hort ; a few months deface all their yearly glories, and within a few years, perhaps all thefe riling terras -walks, thefe gentle verging declivities, fhall lofe all order and elegance, and become a rugged heap of THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. I9I ruins : thofe well-diflinguifhed borders and parterres. (hall be levelled in confufion, and thrown into corrmon earth again, for the ox and afs to graze upon them. Unhappy man, who pofTeffes this agreeable {pot of ground, if he has no paradife more durable than this ! And no wonder that thefe labours of the hands of men mould periih, when even the works of God are perilhable. What are thefe villble heavens, thefe low- er fkies, and this globe of earth ! they are indeed the glorious workmanihip of the Al- mighty. But they are waxing old, and wait- ing- their period too, when the angel fhall pronounce upon them that " time fhall be " no more." The heavens " fhall be fold- xc ed up as a vefture, the elements of the •' lower world fh all melt with fervent heat, €t and the earth and all the works thereof, " mall be burnt with fire." May the un- ruinable world be but my portion, and the heaven of heavens my inheritance, which is built for an eternal manfion for the fons of God : thefe buildings (hall out-live time and nature, and exift through unknown ages of felicity I What have we mortals to be proud of in our prefent (late, when every human glory is fo fugitive and fading ? Let the brighter! and the be-ft of us fay to ourfeives, that we are but duf! and vanity. 1^2 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. Is my body formed upon a graceful mo- del ? Are my limbs well turned, and my complexion better coloured than my neigh- bours ? Beauty even in perfection is of fhort- cft date ; a few years will inform me that its bloom vaniihes, its flower withers, its luftre grows dim, its duration fhall be no longer ; and if life be prolonged, yet the pride and glory of it is for ever loft in age and wrinkles : or perhaps our vanity meets a fpeedier fate. Death and the grave with a fovereign and irreftible command, fumm::n the brightefl as well as the coarfeft pieces of human nature, to lie down early in their cold embraces ; and at laft they muft all mix to- gether among worms and corruption. JEfop the deformed, and Helena the fair, are loll and undtftinguifhed in common earth. Na- ture in its gayeft bloom, is but a painted vanity. Are my nerves well ftrung and vigorous r Is my activity and ftrength far fuperior to my neighbours in the day of youth : But youth hath its appointed limit : age fteals upon it, unftrings the nerves, and makes the force of them languifh into infirmity and fee- blenefs. Sampfon and Goliah would have loft boafted advantages of ftature and their brawny limbs, in the courfe of half a century, though the one had efcaped, the fling of Da- vid, and the other the vengeance of his own THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. I 93 hands in the ruin of Dagon's temple. Man in his bed eftate is a flying ihadow and van- ity. 1 Even thofe nobler powers of human lifei which feem to have fomethiog angelical in them, I mean the powers of wit and fancy, gay imagination and capacious memory, they are all fubject to the fame laws of decay and death. What though they can raife and an- imate beautiful fcenes in a moment, and in imitation of creating power, can ipread bright appearances and new worlds before the fenfes and the fouls of their friends ? What though they carr entertain 'the better part of man- kind, the refined and polite world with high delight and rapture ? Thefe fcenes of rap- turous delight, grow flat and old by a fre- quent review, and the very powers that raifed them grow feeble apace. What though they can give immortal applaufe and fame to their porTefTors ! It is but the immortality of an empty name, a mere fucceflion of the breath of men ; and it is a fhort fort of immortali- ty too, which mud die and perifh when this world perifnes. A poor fhadow of duration indeed, while the real period of thefe powers is haftening every day ; they languifh and die as faft as animal nature, which has a large ihare in them, makes hafte to its decay $ and the time of their exercife fhall fliortly be no more. R 1^4 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. In vain the aged poet or the painter, would call up the mufe and genius of their youth, and fummon all the arts of their imagination, to fpread and drefs out fome vifionary fcene : In vain the elegant orator would recal the bold and mafterly figures, and all thofe flow- ery images which gave ardour, grace and dig- nity to his younger compofures, and charmed jevery ear : they are gone, they are fled be- yond the reach of their owner's call : their time is paft, they are vanifhed and loft be- yond all hope of recovery. The God of nature has pronounced an un- paffable period, upon all the powers and pleaf- ures and glories of this mortal ftate. let us then be afraid to make any of them our boafl or our happinefs ; but point our affections to thofe diviner objects whofe nature is ever- lafling ; let us feek thofe religious attain- ments, and thofe new-created powers of a fan&ifled mind, concerning which it fhall never be pronounced that their " time (hall " be no longer." O may every one of us be humbly con- tent, at the call of heaven, to part with all that is pleating or magnificent here on earth ; let us refign even thefe agreeable talents when the God of nature demands ; and when the hour arrives, . that mail clofe our eyes to all vifible things, and lay our flefhly ftru&ure in the duft ; let us yield up our whole felves to the hands of our creator, who fhall referve THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS, I95 our fpirits with himfelf ; and while we cheer- fully give up all that was mortal to the grave y we may lie down full of the joyful hope of a rifing immortality. New and unknown pow- ers and glories, brighter flames of imagina- tion, richer fcenes of wit and fancy, and di- viner talents are preparing for us when we fhall awake from the duft ; and the mind it- felf (hall have all its faculties in a fublime flate of improvement. Thefe fhall make us equal, if not fuperior, to angels, for we are nearer a kin to the Son of God than they are, and therefore we Avail be made more like him. POSTHUMOUS WORKS, P. 124, OF PRAYER. PRAYER is a fecret and appointed means 7 to obtain all the blefiings that we want, wheth- er they relate to this life, or the life to come ; and fhall we not know, how to ufe the means God hath appointed for our happinefs ? Shall ib glorious a privilege lie unimproved through our own neglect ? Were the bufinefs of prayer nothing elfe but to come and beg mercy of God, it would be the duty of every man to know how to draw up fuch petitions : but prayer is a work 196 THE BEAtfTIES OF DR. WATTS. of much larger extent. When a holy foul comes before God, he hath much more to fay than merely to beg. He tells his God what a ienie he hath of the divine attributes, and what high efteem he pays to his Majefty, his wifdom, his power, and his mercy. He talks with him about the works of creation, and ftands wrapt up in wonder. He talks about the grace and myflery of redemption, and is yet more filled with admiration and joy. He talks ef all the affairs, of nature, grace, and glory ; he fpeaks of his works of providence, of love, and vengeance, in this and the future world. Infinite and glorious are the fubjects of this holy communion be- tween God and his faints : and fhall we con- tent ourselves with fighs and groans, and a few fhort wifhes, and deprive our fouls of {o rich, fo divine, fo glorious a pleafure, for want of knowing how to furniih out fuch meditations, and to fpeak this blefled lan- guage. How excellent and valuable is this (kill of prayer, in comparifon of the many meaner arts and accomplishments of human nature that we labour night and day to obtain ? What toil do men daily undergo for kven years together, to acquire the knowledge of a trade and bufinefs in thispreient life. Now created part of the bufinefs between us and heaven is traniacted in the way of prayer : with how much more diligence fliouid we THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. I97 leek the knowledge of this heavenly com- merce, than any thing that concerns us mere- ly on earth ? How many years of our fhort life are fpent to learn the Greek, the Latin, and the French tongues, that we may hold correfpondence abroad among the living na- tions, and converfe with the writings of the dead i And (hall not the language wherein we converfe with heaven and the living God, be thought worth equal pains ? How nicely do fome perfons ftudy the art of converfation, that they may be accepted in all companies, and mare in the favour of men ? Is not the fame care due, to feek all methods of accept- ance with God, that we may approve our- felves in his prefence I What a high value is fet upon human oratory, or the art of per- fuafion, whereby we are fitted to difcourfe and prevail with our fellow creatures ? And is this art of divine oratory of no e'fteem with us, which teaches us to utter our inward breathings of the foul, and plead and prevail with our Creator, through the afliftance of the Holy Spirit, and the mediation of our Lord Jefus ? O, let the excellency and high value of this gift of prayer engage ourearneftnefs and endeavours in proportion to its fuperior dig- nity : let us '• covet the bed of gifts" with the warmer! defire, and pray for them with, ardent fupplication, i Cor. xii. 18. R % I98 THE BEAUTIES 0F DR. WATTS. Another argument may be borrowed from our very character and profeffion as chridians ; fome meafure of the gift ef prayer is of great neceffity and univerlal u(e to all that are call- ed by the name. Shall we profefs to be followers of Chrift, and not know how to fpcak to the Father ? Are we commanded ro pray always, and up- on all occafions, to be conn 1 ant and fervent in it, and fhall we be contented with ignorance and incapacity to obey this command ? Are we invited by the warmed exhortations, and encouraged by the highed hopes to draw near to God with all our wants and forrows, and fhall we not learn to exprefs thofe wants, and pour out thofe forrows before the Lord ? Is there a way made for our accefs to the throne by the blood and interceffion of Jkfus Chrid, and mall we not know how to form a prayer to be fent to heaven, and fpread before the throne by his glorious interceffion ? Is his holy Spirit promifed to teach us to pray, and fhall a chridian be carelefs or unwilling to receive fuch divine teachings ? There is not any faculty in the whole chridian life that is called out into fo frequent exercife as this ; and it is a mod unhappy thing to be always at a lofs to perform the work which daily necemty requires, and daily duty demands. Will a perfon profrfs to be a fcholarj that cannot read ? Shall any man pret$.id to be a miniftof, that cannot preach I THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 1^9 And it is but a poor pretence we make to chriftianity, if we are not able, at lead in ie- cret, to iupply ourielves with a few medita- tions or expreffions, to continue a little in this work of prayer. o GUIDE TO PRAYER, P. I99, DEGENERACY OF HUMAN NATURE. LET us further fuppofe, what is fuffici- ently evident to our daily obfervation and experience, that all mankind are now a de» generate, feeble, and unhappy race of beings, that we are become linners in the fight of God, and expofed to his anger : it is mani- fed enough, that thisjwhole world is a fallen, finful and rebellious province of God's Jo- minion, and under the actual diipkaiure of its righteous Creator and Governor. The over-ipreading deluge of folly and error, ini- quity and miiery, that covers the face of the earth, gives abundant ground foriuch a lup- pofition. The experience of every man on earth affords a ftrong and melanchoy proof, that our reafoning powers are eafi!y led away into miftake and faimood, wretchedly bribed and bialfed by prejudices, and daily overpow- ered by fome corrupt appetites or pallions, and our wills led aftray to chooie evil inltead aOO THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. of good. The beft of us fometimes break the laws of our Maker, by contradicting the rules of piety and virtue which our own rea- fon and consciences fugged to us u There is " none righteous" perfectly ; " no not one." Nor is there one perfon upon earth free from troubles and difficulties, and pains and for- rows, fuch as teftify fome refentment of our Maker. Even from our infancy, our difeafes, pains and forrows begin, and it is very remarkably evident in fome families, that thefe pains and difeafes are propagated to the offspring, as they were contracted by the vices of the par- ents : and particular vicious inclinations, as well as particular diftempers,. are conveyed from parents to children fometimes through feveral generations. The bed of us are not free from irregular properties and parlions even in the younger parts of life, and as our years advance, our fins break out, and con* tinue more or lefs through all our lives. Our whole race then is plainly degenerate, finful and guilty before God, and are under fome tokens of his anger. STRENGTH AND WEAKNESS OJT HUM. REASON, P 257. VARIOUS DEGREES OF GUILT AND PUNISHMENT. AS there is infinite variety of degrees cf guilt in particular perfons, and their conduct THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 201 in this world, there (hall be the fame variety of the degrees of puniihment in the world to come. Every man mall be judged according to the advantages he enjoyed. More is re- quired from thofe whole advantages were greater, and their guilt is more heinous in abufing or neglecting them. God, the all- knowing and the righteous, will weigh every circumftance, both of his favours and of our ufe or abule of them, in the niceft balance, and his fentence (hall bear an exact propor- tion to the demerits of every (inner. " He u that knew not his mailer's will, (hall be y. Yet ftay a little there, tempting image, let me once more furvey thee : ftay a little mo- ment, and let me take one Lift glance, one lolemn farewell. Is there not (bmething in •he refemblance of her too lovely (till to have it quite baniihed from my heart ? Can I fet my foul at work to try to forget her ? Can I deal i'o unkindly with one who would never have forgotten me ? Can my foul live with- out her image on it ? Is it not ftampt there too deep ever to be effaced ? Methinks I feel all my heart-firings wrapt THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 209 arcund her, and grow fa fail to that dear picture in my fancy, they feem to be rooted there. .To be divided from it is to die. Why ihould I then piuiue io vain and fruitleis an attempt ? What ? forget myielf ? torget my Jife ? No ; it cannot be - y nor can I bear to think of fiach a rude and cruel tFe itment of an image fo much deferving and lo miich be- loved. Neither pafiion nor reaici: perinits me to forget her, nor is it within my power. She is preient almoft to all my thoughts : me is with me in all my motions ; grief has arrows with her name upon fchero, that Hick as faft and as de&p as thofe of love; they^* cleave to my vitals wherefover 1 go, bat witii a quicker lenfatic-n and a keener pain'. Alas it is love and ffrief together that have fnot ail their arrows into my heart, and filled every Vein with acute anguifh and long diif re's. Whether then- ihall I fly to find (biace and eafe h I cannot depart' from myfelf : Tcan- not abandon thefe tender and imarting Tenia - tions. Shall I quit the houfe and aU the apartments of it which renew her dear me- mory ? Shall f rove in thefe open fields which lie near my "dwelling, and fp read wide their pieafing verdure ? Shall I give my foul p.- loofi: to all nature that 1 miles around me, or fhall I confine my daily walk to this fhady and delightful garden ? Oh, no : neither of thefe will relieve my anguifh. Serena has > too often blefled me with her company botb* S % 2 10 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. in this garden and in thefe fields. Her very name feems written on every tree : I (hail think of hzr and fancy I iee her in every ftep I take. Here ihe prefr the grafs with her feet, here lhe gathered violets and rofes and refrefhing h. rbsand gave the lovely collection of fweetnefs. into my hand. But alas, the fweeteft violet and the faireft rofe is fallen, is withered, and is no more. Farewell then,, ye fields and gardens, with all vour varieties of green and flowery joys ! Ye are all a de- iert, a barren wiklernefs, fince Serena has for ever left you and will be feen there no more. * ; But can friends -do nothing to comfort a mourner? Come, my wife friends, furround me and divert my cares with vour agreeable converfation. ( Can books afford no relief ? Come, my books, ye volumes of knowledge, ye labours of the learned dead ; come, fill: up my hours with fome loothing amuie- . xiient. I call my better friends about me, I iiy to the heroes and£he philolophers of an- cient ages to employ 'my foul among tliera. But alas ! neither learning nor books amufe me, .nor green and imiling profpe&s of nature delight me, nor converfation with my wifeft: and beft friends can entertain me- in thefe' dark and melancholy hours.. Solitude, foli- tude in lome unfeen . corner, fome lonely; g.rotto, overgrovvn with mattes; this is my/ deareft choice 3 let me dwell in my beloved.* THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS* 21 I folitude where none (hail come near me - r midnight and folitude are the mod pleafing things to a man who is weary of day-light and of all the fcenes of this vifible and bufy world. I would eat and drink and dwell a- lone, though this lonefome humour fooths and gratifies the painful paffions, and gives me up to the tyranny of my fharpeft forrows* Strange mixture that h am made of ! I mourn and grieve even to death, and yet F ieem fond of nothing but grief and mourn- ing. Woe is me ! Is tiiere nothing on earth can divert, nothing relieve me? Then let my thoughts afcend lo paradife and heaven* there I {hall find her better'part, and grief mufl not enter there.. From this hour take anew turn, O my foul s and never think of Serena but as mining, and rejoicing among the fpirits of. the blenV and in the prefence of her God. Rife often in holy meditation to the celeftial worlds and betake thyfelfto more intenfe piety. Devotion has wings that will bear thee high above the tumults and paffions of lower life i. devotion will direct and fpeed thy flight to a country of brighter feenes. Shaice off this earth line fs of mind, this duft of mortality that hangs about thee ; rife up- ward often in an hour, and dwell much in thofe regions whether thy devout partner i$' gone ; thy better half is fafeiy arrived there^ 212 THE E'EAUTIES-OP DR. WATTS. and that world knows nothing but joy and love. She is gone ; the prophets and the apof- tles and the beft of departed fouls have marked out her way to heaven ; bare witnefs yc apoftles and holy profilers, ye beft of de- parted fouls bear wttri'els, that I am feekiug to follow her in the appointed moment. Let the wheds of nature and time roll on apace in their defined way. Let funs and moons- nrife and let apace, and light a lonefome tra- veller onward to his home. BlefTed Jefus 1 be thou my living leader ! Virtue, and the track oS Serena's reet.be my daily and delight- ful path. The track leads upward to the re- gions of bve and joy*. How can I dare to wander from the path of virtue left I loofe that beloved track ? Remember, O my foul, her footfteps are found in no other road. If my lovo to virtue fhould ever fail me, the fteps of my Serena would mark out the way, and help to fecure me from wandering, O may the kind influences of heaven del- cend from above and eftablifh and guard my pious reiolutions 1 May the divine powers of religion be my continual ftrength, and the hope of eternal things my never-failing (up- port, till lam difmifTed from this priion of the flefh and caHed to afcend to the ipirits of the juft made perfect, till I bid adieu to ail that is not immortal, and go dwell with my God and my adored Saviour - 9 there ihall 1 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 2IJ- £nd my loft Serena, again, and fhare with her the unutterable joys of paradife. Here Lucius threw himfelf on the couch and lay filent in profound meditation. When Florino had heard all this mourn- ful rhapfody, he retired and ftole away in fe- cret, for he was now utterly afhamed of his firft barbarous defign : He felt a fort of firange fympathy of forrow, fuch as he never knew before, and with it fome fparks of vir- tue began to kindle in his boforn. As he mufed, the fire burnt within, and at lafl it made its way to his lips and vented itfelf. " Well, faid he, I have learnt two excellent: " lefTons to-day, and I hope 1 fhail never for- " get them. There muft be fome vaft and * unknown pleafure in a virtuous love be- " yond all the madnefs of wild snd transient " amours ; otherwife the lofs of the cbje<5c *■' could never have wrought iuch deep and w unfeigned woe in a foul. io firm and man- •' ly as that of Lucius. I begin new to be- " iieve what Milton lung, though I always ** read the lines before as mere poefy and * fable." Hail wedded love, myfJerious law, trv.e feurce- Qf human offspring, fole propriety In Pasadi/e, of all things common elfe : By thee adulterous luft was drivn from men. Among the beftial herds to range : by thee. Founded in reafon y loyal, iu/l, and fare 214 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. Relations dear, and ail the charities Of father, fon and brother, fir ft zvere knozvn : . Perpetual fountain of dome/lie fweets. Here love his golden /hafts employs, here lights His confiani lamp, and waves his purple wings r Reigns here and revels : not in the bought [mil's Of harlots, lovelefs, joylefs, unindecr V, Cafual amours, mixt dance, or wanton majk Or midnight ball, &c: " BlefTed poet, that could fo happily unite " love and virtue, and draw fo beautiful a lt fcene of real felicity, which till this day I '* always thought was merdy romantic and " vifionary ! Lucius has taught me tojun- " derftand thefe lines, for he has felt them ; ** and methinks while I repeat them now I " feel a ftrange new fenfation. I am con- iK vinced the blind poet faw deeper into na- u ture and truth than I could have imag- •* ined. There is, there is fuch thing as a u union of virtuous fouls, where happinefs is "only found. I find fome glimmerings of '* facred light rifing upon me, fome unknown ■* pantings within after fuch a- partner and " fuch a life/' " Nor is the other lefTon which I have " learnt at all inferior to this, but in truth it of all grace, dwells in regions of light and ho- linefs inacceiliblej too far off for us to con- verfe with hirn or receive fupplies from him in an immediate way ; but he has lent the Son to dwell in human nature, and conftitut- ed him treafurer of all his bleflings, that we might derive perpetual fupplies from, his hand : he has intruded him with all the rich- es of grace and glory - t he has laid up infinite ilores of love, wifdom, (trength, pardon, peace and confolation in the hands of his Son for this very purpofe, to be drawn out thence as fait as the necefTities of his faints require. " It pleafed the Father that in him fhould all " fulnefs dwell. He has received gifts for " men." Col. i. 19. Pfal. lxviii. j8. Now all the promifes in the Bible, are fo many bills of exchange drawn by God the Father in heaven, upon his Son Jefus Chrifr, and payable to every pious bearer ; that is, to every one that comes to the mercy-feat and •offers the promife for acceptance, and pleads it in a way of obedient faith and prayer. Je- fus the high-treaiurer of heaven, knows every letter of his Father's hand-writing, and can never be impofed upon by a forged note ; he will ever put due honour upon his Father's bills ; he accepts them all, for K ail the prorn- f* ifes in him are yea, and in him amen." In him they are all fure " to the glory of the Father, 2 Cor. i. 20. It is for the Father's THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 2fJ honour that his bills never fail of acceptance and payment. If you apply to the bletTed Jefus and offer him a bill of the largeft fum, a promife of the biggeft blefTings, he will never fay, " I have " not fo mugh of my Father's treafure in my " hand. For he has received all things." o John iii. 35. " The Father loveth the Son * c and hath given all things into his hand :" and may I not venture to fay, this whole treafure is made oyer to the faints, ft All tc things are yours," 1 Cor. iii. 22. And they are parcelled out into bills of prornife... and notes under the Father's hand. So the v. hole treafure of a nation conhlls in credit and in prcmirlbry notes^ more than in prefent fums of gold and filver. Some of the fe divine bills are payable at fgh:, and we receive the fum as loon as we oiler the bill \ (viz,) thole 1 that mu-lfhppiy in our prefent wanrs \ inch as " call upon " me in the day of trouble, and Iwill'deYiv- ,6; er thee, and thou fhak glorify me/' PjaL 1. 15. and there have been manv examples of fuch fpeedy payment. PfuL cviii. 3. "In " the day when! cried thou anfw-rredeft rne ; " and ftrengthenedeft me with drench m "« my foul." Some are only payable in general at a dif- tant time, and that is left to vke difcrction of Chrift the treasurer, (viz.) " As thy day is, T -21 3 THE E-EAUTIES OF DR. WATTST * fo thy ftrength (hall be." Deut. xxxiii. 25. and we need never fear trufting him long, for this bank in the hands of Chrift can nev- *r fail ; " for in him dwelleth all the fulnefs " of the Godhead bodily.'' Col. ii. 9. and Eph. iii. 8. we are told of " the unfearcha- f* ble riches of Chad." Sometimes Chrift may put us off with a general Xind anfwer, or give ois a note under his hand, payable at demand, in feveral par- cels iuftead of a full payment all at once : thus he dealt with his dear friend and fervant Paul, in 2 Cor. xii. -9. Doubtlefs Paul in his feeking the Lord thrice, for the removal of his thorn in the flefh, had pleaded feveral large promifes of God, had offered thofe di- vine bills to Chrift for acceptance and pay- ment ; but inftead of this our Lord gives Wm a note under his own hand which ran in this language, " My grace is fufficient for " thee." And if we had but the faith which thatblefled apoftle had, we might live upon this hope ; this would be as good as prefent payment : for if he delay to give the full iym, it is only becaufe he fees we have not need of it at prefent : he knows our necefli- ties better than we ourlelves ; he will not truft us with too much at once in our hands ; but he pays us thofe bills when he lees the ntteft time, and we have often found it fo f J conieffed his faithfulnefs. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 2lO At other times he pays us, but not in the fame kind of mercy which is mentioned in the promife, yet in fomething more ufeful and valuable. If the promife mentions a temporal blefTing, he may give us a ipiritual one ; if it exprefs eafe, he may give patience r and thus his Father's bills are always honour- ed, and we have no reai'ori to complain. So the banker may dif charge a bill of a hundred pound not with money, but with fuch goods and merchandize as may yield us two hun- dred, and we gladly confefs the bill is well paid. Some of" thefe promvfes, thefe bills of heav- enly treafure, are not made payable till the hour of our death, as> " Blefied are thofe f.r- Ci vants whom when the Lord comes he fliall " find watching," &c. Luke xii. 37. " Fie c< that endureth to the end the fame fliall be " faved." Mutt. xxiv. 13. " Be thou fai:h- " ful to the death, and I will give thee a crown "of life." Rev, ii. 10. Others are not due till the day of the ref- urreclion ; as, *« Them who fleep in Jefus " will God bring with him.'' 1 Theft, iv. 14. ? I will redeem them from death." Hof. xiii. 14. Col. iii. 4, « When Chrift who is our " life fliall. appear, then fliall ye alfo appear " with him in glory." Phil, iii. 20, 21. H He fliall change our vile body, that it may " be fafhioned like unto his glorious body."' 1 PeJ. v. 1,4. " And when the chief Shcp- 220 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. " herd (hall appear, ye fhall receive a crown '« of g'Oiy -thatfadcth not away.'* Now when the great day fhall corne, in which our Lord Jefus Chrift fhall give up his mediatorial kingdom to the Father, and render an account of all his ftewardlhip, how fair will his books appear ! How juft a bal- ance will ftand at the foot of all his accounts ! Then {hall he fhew in what manner he has fulfilled the promifes to the faints, and pre- fent to the Father all the bills that he has re- ceived and difcharged ; while all the faints fhall with one voice atteft it, to the honour of the high treafurer of heaven, that he has not failed in payment even to the fmalleft farthing. POSTHUMOUS WORKS, B, Z^l.. THE BEAITTIES OF DR. WATTS. 221 p o e t r y: D'lVINE JUDGM EN T & . i:- NBT from the duft my forrows fpring, Nor drop my comforts from the lower flues 5 Let all the baneful planets flied Their mingled curies on my head. How vain their curfes, if th? Eternal King Look thro' the cloud3 and blefs me with his eyes. Creatures with all their boafled fway Are but his flaves, and mttft obey- 5 • They wait their orders from above, And execute hiswordi the vengeance, or the love* - II. 'Tis by a warrant from his hand The gentler gales are bound to fleep : The North wind blufters, and aflumes command ■ Over the defert and the deep ; Old Boreas with his freezing pow'rs Turns the earth iron, makes the ocean glafs* = Arrefts the dancing riv'lets as they pafs, And chains them moveleft to their fhores i "■ The grazing ox lows to the gelid fkies, Walks o'er the marble meads with withering eyes, Walks o'er the folid lakes, fnuffs up the wind, and ik% 222 THE BEAUTIES OF PR. WATTS, IN. Fly to the po'ar world, my fong, And mourn the pilgrims there, (a wretched throng [ Seized and bound in rigid chains, A troop of fhtues on the Rufiian plains, And life ftands frozen in the pi.rple veins. Atheift, forbear ; no more blafpheme J Cod has a thoufand terrors in his name, A thoufand armies at command, Waiting the fignal of his hand, And magazines of froft, and magazines of flame. Drefs thee i/i fteel to meet his wrath j His {harp art'llerv from the .North Shall pierce ther to 'he foci, and ttake thy mortal .frame. Sublime on Winter's rugged wings T > rides in arms along the flcy, And fcatrers fate on fwainsand kings ; And rtoeks and herd", and nations die J ""'hile impious lips, nrofanelv bold, Crow pale ; and, quivering at his dreadful cold, Give their own blafpherries the lie. IV. The mifchiefs that ipfeft the earth, When the hot. dog-ftar fires the realms on high* Drought and difaf •, and criel dearth. Are but the fla.fhes of a wrathful eye From the incens'd divinity. In vain our parching palates thirft, For vital food in vain we cry, . And pant for vital breath 5 The verdant fields are burnt to dud, The fun has drunk the channels dry, And all the air is death. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATT3. 22* Ye fcourge^ of our Maker's rod, 'Tis at his dread command, at his iirperial nod You deal your various pla -ues abroad, V. Hail, whirlwinds, hurricanes and floods Thar all the leafy standards ftrip, And bear down with a nighty fweep Thorich 3 s of the fields, and honours of the woods ■ j_- Storms, that ravage o'er the deep, And bury millions in the waves ; Earthquakes, that in midright flesp Turn cities inti heaps, and make our Weds our graves J. Wh'le you difpenfe vour mortal harms, Tis the Creator's voice that founds your loud alarms> When guilt with louder cries provokes a God to arms* VI, for a mefiage from above • To bear my fpirits up ! Some pledge of my Creator's love To calm my terrors and fupport my hope! Let waves and thunders mix and roar, Be thou my God, and the whole world is mine % While thou art Sovereign, I'm fecure 5 1 ffiall be rich till thou ar~ poor j For* all J fear, and all I wiih, heav'iij earth and hell are thine*- 024 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. THE UNIVERSAL HALLELUJAH. PSALM CXLVIII PARAPHRAS'd. I. PRAISE ye the Lord with joyful tongue^ , Ye pow'rs that guard his throne J Jefus the man mall lead the fong, The God infpire the tune. II. Gabriel, and all the immortal choir That fill the realms above, Sing ; for he form'd you of his fire, And feeds you with his love. III. Shine to his praife, ye chryftal fkies, ■ The floor of his abode, Oi veil your little twinkling eyes, Before a brighter God. IV. Thou reftlefs globe of golden light, . Whofe beams create our days, Join with the filver queen of night 3 . To own your borrowed rays. V. Blufh and refund the honours paid To your inferior names : Tell the blind world vour orbs are fa3 - By his o'erflowing'' flames— THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 2^5 VI. Winds, ye mall bear his name aloud Thro' the ethereal blue, For when his chariot is a cloud, He makes his wheels of you. VII. Thunder and hail, and fires and ftorms, The troops of his command, Appear in all your dreadful forms And fpeak his awful hand. • Shout to the Lord, ye furging feas, In your eternal roar j Let wave to wave refound his praife, And fhore reply to more. IX. While mongers fporting on the flood, In fcaly filver mine, Speak terribly their maker God, And la(h the foaming brine. . x. But gentler things mall tune his name, To fofter notes than thefe, Young zephyrs breathing o'er the ftrearn, Or whifpering thro' the trees. XI. Wave your tall heads, ye lofty pines, To him that bid ye grow, Sweet clufters bend the fruitful vines, On every thankful bough. XII. Let the fhrill birds his honour raife, And climb the morning iky, 226 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTSv While groveling beads attempt his praife In hoarfer harmony. xui. Thus while the meaner creatures fing,- Ye mortals take the found, Echo the glories of your king Thro* all the nations round. XIV. Th' Eternal name muft fly abroad From Britain to Japan j And the whole race fhall bow to God,, That owns the name of man. THE DAY OF JUDGMENT. AN ODE. ATTEMPTED IN ENGLISH SAPPHIC. I. WHEN the fierce North wind with his airy forces Rears up the Baltic to a foaming fury j And the red light'ning, with a florm of hail comes Rufhing amain down,. II. How the poor failors ftand amaz'd and tremble ! ' While the hoarfe thunder, like a bloody trumpet, Roars a loud onfet to. the gaping waters Quick to devour them. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 227 III. Such {hall the nolfe be, and the wild diforder, (If things eternal may be like thefe earthly) Such the dire terror when the great archangel Shakes the Creation ; IV. Tears the ftrong pillars of the vault of heaven, Breaks up old marble, the repofe of princes ; "See the graves open and the bones arifing, Flarrres all around 'em. V. Hark, the flirill outcries of the guilty wretches ! Lively bright horror, and amazing anguifhf .Stare thro' their eye-lids, while the living worm lies Gnawing within them. VL Thought, like old vultures, prey upon their heart-ftrings, And the fmart twinges, when the eye beholds the Lofty Judge frowning, and a flood- of vengeance Rolling before him. VII. Hopelefs immortals ! how they fcream .and fliiver, While devils pufh them to the pit wide-yawning Hideous and gloomy to receive them headlong Down to the center. VilL Stop here, my fancy : (all away, ye horrid Doleful ideas,) come arife.to Jefus How he fits God-like J and the faints around him Thron'd, yet adoring ! 22$ THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS* IX. O may I fit there when he comes triumphant, Dooming the nations ! then afcend to glory, While our hofannas all along the paiTage Shout the Redeemer. 0FIRE, AIR, EARTH AND SEA, PRAISE YE THE LORD. I. EARTH, thou great footfbol of our God , Who reigns on high ; thou fruitful fource Of all our raiment life and food } Our hoafe, our parent, and our nurfe j Mighty ftage of mortal fcenes, Dreft with ftrong and gay machines, Hung with goldsn lamps around 5 (And flow'ry carpets fpread the ground) Thou bulky globe, prodigious mafs, That hangs unpillarM in an empty fpace ! While thy unweilisd weight refts on the feeble air, •JBlefc that Almighty word that fix'd and holds thee there. II. Fire, thou fwift herald of bis face, Whofe glorious rage, at his command, Levels a palace with the fand, Blending the lofty fpircs in ruin with the bafe ) Ye heav'nly fhmts, that finge the air, Artillery of a jealous God, THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 2,2$ bright arrows that founding quivers bear To fcattet deaths abroad j Light'nings, adore the fovereign arm that flings His vengeance, and your fires, upon the head of Kings, m. Thou vital element, the air, Whofe boundlefs magazines of breath Our fainting flame of life repair, Andfave the bubble man from the cold arms of deata : And ye, whofe vital rnoifture yields Life's purple ftream a fre(h fupply ; Sweet waters wand'ring thro'' the flow'ry fields, Or dropping from the flcy ; Confefsthe pow'r whofe all-fufficient name Itfortteeds your aid to build, or to fupport our frame* IV. ?wow the rude air, with noify force, Beats up and fwells the angry fea, They join to make our lives a prey. And fweep the failor's hopes away. "Vain hopes, to reach their kindred on the fliores 1 Lo, the wild feas and furging waves Gape hideous in a thoufand graves : Be ftill, ye floods, and know your bounds ©f fond, Ye ftorms, adore your Matter's hand j The winds are in his fift, the waves at his command, V. From the eternal emptinefs His fruitful word by fecret fpringa Drew the whole harmony of things That form this noble univerfe : Old nothing knew his powerful hand, 'Scarce had he fpoke his full commandj u 2JO THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS, Eire, air, and earth, and fea, heard the creating call, And leap'd from empty nothing to this beauteous all j And ftill they dance, and llill obey The orders they receiv'd the great creation-day. LAUNCHING INTO ETERNITY. JT was a brave attempt ! adventurous he, Who in the firfl; fhip broke the unknown fea : And leaving his dear native fhores behind, Trufted his life to the licentious wind. I fee the furging brine : the tempeft raves : He on a pine-plank rides acrofs the waves, Exulting on the edge of thoufand gaping graves.; He fteers the winged boat, and lhifts the (ails, Conquers the flood, and manages the gales. Such is the foul that leaves this mortal land Fearlefs when the great Matter gives command. Peath is the ftorm : me fmiles to hear it roar, And bids the tempeft waft her from the more .s Then with a fkilful helm me fweeps the feas., And manages tfie raging ftorm with eafe } {" Her faith can govern death") (he fpreads her wings Wide to the wind, and as fhe fails me fings, And lofes by degrees the fight of. mortal things. As the fhores lefTen, fo her joys arife, The waves roll gentler, and the tempeft dies, Now vaft eternity fills all her fight, She floats on the broad deep with infinite delight, The fcas forever calm, the ikies for ever bright. 1 1 } THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. BREATHING TOWARD THE HEAVENLY COUNTRY CASIMIRE, BOOK I. OB. I9. IMITATED. Uric me Patrla Decor, ©V. THE beauty of my native land Immortal love infpires ; I burn, I burn with ftrong defires, And figh, and wait the high command. There glides the moon her mining way And (hoots my heart thro' with a filver ray. Upward my heart afpires : A thoufand lamps of golden light Hung high in vaulted azure charm my fight, And wink and beckon with their amorous fires/ O ye fair glories of my hcav'nly home, Bright centinels who guard my Father's court,' Where all the happy minds rcfort, When will my Father's chariot come ? Muit, ye for ever walk the ethereal round, For ever fee the mourner lie .- An exile of the fky, A prifoner of the ground ? Defcend fome mining fervant from on higtv Build me a hafty tomb j A grafiy turf will raife my head j The neighbouring lillies drefs my bed,, And fhed a fweet perfume. .Here I put oft" the chains of death My.feul too long has worn : 2J2 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. Friends, I forbid one groaning breath, Or tear to wet my urn ; Raphael, behold me all undreft, Here gently lay this flefh to reft : Then mount and lead the path unknown, Swift I purfue thee, flaming guide, on pinions of my own. CONVERSE WITH CHRIST. I. I'M tir'd with vifits, modes, and forms, And fhttYies made to fellow-worms j, Their convcrfation cloys : Their vain amours and empty fluff : But lean ne'er enjoy enough Of thy beft company, my Lord, thou life of all my joys- II. When he begins to tell his love,. Thro' cv%ry vein my paflions move, The captives of his tongue : In midnight fhades, on frofty ground, I could attend the plcafing found, Nor fhould I feel December cold, nor thjnk the darknefs lonf - III. There while I hear my Saviour- God Count o'er the fins (a heavy load !) He bore upon the tree, Inward I blufli with fecret fhame, And weep, and love, and blefs the name Thai knew nor guilt nor grief his own, but bare it aM for me.. HE 2EAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 233 IV. Next he defcribes the thorns he woffi- And talks his bloody patfion o'er, 'Till I am drown' d in tears : Yet with the fympathetic fmart There's a Grange joy beats round my hear; ■ The curfcd tree has bIeiMng3 in't, my fweetefi balm it bcar^ V. I hear the glorious fufferer tell How on his crofs he vanquhh'd hell| And all the powers beneath : Tranfported and bfpir'd, my tongue Attempts his triumphs in a fong ; [de2th ?" 96 How has the ferpent left his fting, and where's thy -vrftoryi vr. But when he {hews his hands and heart, With thofe dear prints of dying fmar?, He frs my foul on fire *. Not the beloved John could reft With more delight upon that brearr, Kcr Thomas pry into thofe wounds with more interne defire. VII. Kindly he oi>e'ns me his ear, And bids me pour my forrows there, And tell him all my pains : Thus while I eafe my burden' d heart, ' In every woe he bears a part, His arms embrace me, and his hand my drooping head fuftalns, VJII. Fly from my thoughts, all human things, And fporting fwains, and fighting kings. And tales of wanton love : u 2 2.34 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. My foul difdainsthat little dure The tangles of Amira's hair i [move. Thine arms, my God, are fwceter bands, nor can my heart re- FALSE GREATNESS. I. MYLO, forbear to call him bleft. That only boafts a large eftate, Should all the treafures of the Weft Meet, and confpire to make him great. I know thy better thoughts, I know Thy reafon can't defcend fo low. Let a broad ftream with golden fands Thro' all his meadows roll, He's but a wretch, with all his lands* That wears a narrow foul. II. He f wells amidft his wealthy ftore, And proudly poizing what he weighs In his own fcale he fondly lavs Hugh heaps of fhining ore. He fpreads the balance wide to hold" His manors and his farms, And cheats the beam wit'.i loads of gold He hugs between his arms. So might the plough-boy climb a trce> When Croefus mounts his throne, And both (Vand up, and fmile to (a How loag their (hadow's grown* Alas ! how vain their fancies be To think their (h»?q their own f THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS* 235 III. Thus mingled ftill with wealth and ftate, Crcefus himfelf can never know j His true dimensions and his weight Are far inferior to their fhow. Were I fo tall to reach the pole, Or grafp the ocean with my fpan, I muft be meafur'd by my foul : The mini's the ftandard of the man. TRUE MONARCHY. 170$, THE riling year beheld th' imperious Gaul Stretch his dominion, while a hundred towns Crouch'd to the viclor : but a fteady.foul Stands firm on its own bafe, and reigns as wide, As abfolute ; and fways ten thoufand Caves, Lufts and wild fancies with a fovereign hand. We are a little kingdom ,- but the man That chains his rebel- will to reafon's throne^ Forms it a large one,, whilft his royal mind Makes heaven its council, from the rolls above Draws his own ilatutes, and with joy obeys. . *Tis not a troop of well-appointed guards Greate a monarch, not a purple robe Dy'd in the peoples blood, not all the crowas Or dazling tiars that bend about the head, 'Tho* gilt with fun-beams and fct ro\t#i with liar:. 236 THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS, A monarch he that conquers all hlr fears, And treads upon them ; when he ftands alo.ie, Makes his own camp, four guardian virtues wait His nightly /lumbers, and fecure his dreams. Now dawns the light ; he ranges all his thoughts In fquare battalions, bold to meet th' attacks Of time and chance, himfelfa num'rous hoft, All eye, all ear, all wakeful as the day, Firm as a rock, and movelefs as the centen In vain the harlot pleafure, fpreads her charms, - To 1 ill his thoughts in luxury's fair lap, To fenfaal eafe, (the bane of little kings, Monarchs whofe waxen images of fouls Are moulded into foftnefs) ftjil his mind Wears its own Si*??, nor can the«heave:ily forqj Stoop to be modePd by the wild decrees Of the mad vulgar, that unthinking herd. He lives above the croud, nor hears the noiie Of wars and triumphs, nor regards the fhouts Of popular applaufe that empty found ; Nor feels the tying arrows of reproach, Or fpite or envy. In himfelf fecure, Wifdom his tower, and conscience is his (hieht, His peace al! inward, and his joys his own. Now my ambition fwells, my wiflies foar, This be my kingdom : fit above the globe My rifing foul, and drefs thyfelf around And thine in virtue's armour, climb the height ' Of wlfJom's lofty caftle, there refide Safe from the fmiling and the frowning world. Yet once a day drop down a gentle look On the gTeat mole-hill, and with pitying eye : THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 2?^ Z'/ Survey the bufy emmets round the heap, Crouding and buttling in a thoufand forms Of ftrife and toil to purchafe wealth and fame, A bubble or a duft : then call thy thoughts Up to thyfelf to feed on joys unknown, Rich without gold, and great without renown. FEW HAPPY MATCHES. Augujl) 1 70 1, I. SAY, mighty love, and teach my fong, To whom thy fweeteft joys belong, And who the happy pairs Whofe yielding hearts, and joining hands, Find bleflings twifted with their bands, To foften all their cares. II. Not the wild herd of nymphs and fwains That thoughtlefs fly into the chains, As cuftom leads the way : If there be blifs without defign, Ivies and oaks may grow and twine> And be as bleft as they. III. Not fordid fouls of earthly mold Who drawn by kindred charms of gold To dull embraces move ; THE BEAUTTES OF DR. WATT3. So two rich mountains of Peru May rufh to wealthy marriage too, And make a world of love. IV. Not the mad tribe that hell infpires With wanton flames ; thofe raging fires The purer Mifs deftroy : On ^Etna's top let furies wed, And meets of light'ning drefr the bed T' improve the burning joy. V. Not the dull pairs whofe marble forms None of the melting paflions warms, Can mingle hearts and hands : Logs of green wood that quench the coals And marry'd juft like Stoic fouls, With ofiers for their bands. VI. Net minds of melancholy ftrain, Still filent, or that ftill complain, Can the dear bondage blefs : As well may heavenly concerts fpring From too old loots with ne'er a firing, Or none befide the bafs. VII. Nor can the foft enchantments hold Two jarring fouls of angry mold, The rugged and the keen : Sarop&n's young foxes might as well In bands of cheerful wedlock dwell, With firebrands ty'd between. THE BEAUTIES OF DR. WATTS. 235 VIII. Nor let the cruel fetters bind A gentle to a favage mindj For love abhors the fight : Loofe the fierce tyger from the deer, For native rage and native fear Rife and forbid delight. IX. Two kind eft fouls alone muft meet, 'Tis friendfhip makes the bondage fwect, And feeds their mutual loves : Bright Venus on her rolling throne Is drawn by gentleft birds alone And Cupids yoke the doves.* * Tbefe poems are jele&ed from Horae Lyrica i or Poems chiefs ibt Lyric kind. THE EN©,