LIBRA^RY
Theological Seminary,
PRINCETON, N. J.
Case, ^r-r^-^^'r^..
Shelf, 3 / "^ I
v/. 2^
Book,
Section.
FAMILY SERMONS.
>i'^^li
^Y THE
REV. E. W. Wf^ITAKER,
LATE OF CHRIST CHURCH, OXFORD:
NOW RECTOR OF ST. MILDRED'S AND ALJ- SAINTS,
CANTERBUKY,
VOL. II.
f* FEED Mr SHEEP."
LONDON:
PRINTED BY BYE AND LAW;
AND SOLD By
r- AND C. RIVINGTON,
KO. 62, ST. PAUL'S CHURCH YARD. '
?79?.
«^
CONTENTS
0» The
Second volume.
SERMON I. Page
On ferving God only.
MATT. vi. 24.
No man can ferve two majiers ; for either he will
hate the onCy and love the other ^ or elfe he will hold
to the one, and defpife the other. Te cannot ferve
God and Mammon - - - r
SERMON II
On Idolatry.
i ST. JOHN V. 21.
Little children^ hep yourf elves from idols - a5
a 2 SER-
CONTENTS.
SERMON III. Page
On vifiting the Iniquities of the Fathers on the
Children.
EXOD. XX. 5.
For I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, vijltlng
the iniquity of the fathers upon the children^ unto
the third and fourth generation of them that hate
me \ and Jhew mercy unto thoufands in them that
love me J and keep my commandments - 51
SERMON IV.
On Perjury and profane Swearing.
MATT. V. 33, 34, 35, 36.
Jgain, ye have heard that it I. ath been faid by them
of old timey Thou fhalt not forjivear thyfef, but
Jhalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths. But I
fay unto you. Swear not at all ; neither by Heaven ;
for it is God's throne : nor by the earth ; for it is
His footjiool : neither by Jerufahm ; for it is the
city of the great King. Neither Jhalt thou fwear
by thy head, becaife thou canji not make one hair
zvhite or black - — - 73
SERMON V.
On the Sabbath.
EXOD. XXXV. 2.
Six days JJjall zvork be done, but on the f event h day
there ftjall be to you an holy dny, a fabbath of reft
to the Lord - - - lol
SER-
CONTENTS.
SERMON VI. Page
On the Behaviour becoming the Place and Hour
of Prayer.
PSALM XXIX. 2.
Give unto the Lord the glory due unto His name :
xvorjhip the Lord in the beauty of holinefi - 1 23
SERMON VII.
On the Liturgy.
I COR. XIV. 15.
/ will pray with the fpirity and I will pray with the
under/landing aljo : I will Jing with the fpirity
and I will Jing with the underjlanding alfo - 145
SERMON VIII.
On the Liturgy.
I COR. XIV. 15.
/ will pray with the fpirit, and I will pray with the
underjlanding alfo\ 1 will fing zvith the fpirity
and I will fing with the underjlanding alfo - 169
SERMON IX.
On the Caufes of our Prayers remaining oftea
unanfwered.
PHILIP. IV. 6.
Be careful for nothing : but in every thing by prayer
and fupplication with thankfgivingy let your re-
quejls be made known unto God - - 199
4 SER-
CONTENTS.
SERMON X. Pag<^
On the Employment of the remaining Hours of
the Sabbath.
ISAIAH XLVIII. 13, 14.
If thou turn away thy foot from the fabhath, front ■
doing thy pleofure on my htsly day ; and call the
Jabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable j
and foint honour Him, not doing thine own ways,
nor finding thine own pleafure, nor fpeaking thine
own words : Then fhalt thou delight thyjeif in the
Lord: and I will caufe thee to ride upon the high
places of the earthy and feed thee with the heritage
of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the Lord
hath fpohen it . - - 217
SERMON XI.
On the Love of God.
ST. MARK xri. 29, 30.
And Jefus anfwered him. The firfi of all the com-
mandments is, Hear, O Ifrael ; the Lord our God
is one Lord : And thou Jhalt love the Lord thy God '
with all thy heart, and with all thy foul, and with
all thy mind, and with all thy Jirength. This is
the firji comtnandment . . 2'?^
SER.
CONTENTS,
SERMON XII. Pagp
On the reciprocal Duties of Parents and
Children.
EPHES. VI. I, 2, 3, 4.
Children, obey your parents in the Lord : for this is
right. Honour thy father and mother ; which is '
the firji commandment zvith promife ; that it may
he well with thee, and thou mayejl live long on the
earth. And ye, fathers, provoke not your children
to wrath : but bring them up in the nurture and
fidmonition of the Lord - - 263
SERMON XIII.
On Family Religion.
ST. MATT. V. 6.
Let your light fo jhine before men^ that they may fee
your good works, and glorify your Father which
is in Heaven - - - 287
SERMON XIV.
On Meeknefs.
ST. MATT. V. 5.
Blcffed are the meek : for they Jhall inherit the earth 307
SERMON Xy.
On Mercy.
ST. MATT. V. 7^
Blfffed are the merciful i for they Jhall obtain mercy 323
3ER.
CONTENTS.
SERMON XVI. Page
On Anger and its EfFefls.
EPHES. IV. 26, 27.
Be ye angry y and fin not : let not the fun go down upon
your wrath : neither give place to the devil - 341
SERMON XVII.
On Adultery.
EPHES. V. 6,
Let no man deceive you with vain words : for hecaufe
of thefe things cometh the wrath of God upon the
(hildren of dif obedience - - 301
SERMON XVIII.
On Sedudlion,
ST. MATT. XVIII. 6.
^ut whofo fhalJ offend one of thefe little ones which
believe in me, it were better for him that a mill-
Jlone were hanged about his neckj and he were
drowned in the depth of the fea - - 3^5
SER>
SERMON L
ON SERVING GOD ONLY. ^^^^^^^^
Matt. vi. 24.
No man can fervc two majiers ; for either he
unll hate the one^ and love the other, or
elfe he will hold to the one, and defpife the
ather. Ye cannot ferve God and Mammon*
** T TOW long (faid the prophet Ehjah
to the people of Ifrael) will ye
halt between two opinions ? If the Lord be
God, follow Him; if Baal, follow him."
" How long (might the prefent minifters of
the Gofpel, with equal reafon, aik thofe
whom they addrefs) will ye halt between
two opinions ? If Chrifl be, indeed, your
Lord and Mafter; if He be the Son of
God, true and powerful to perform the
VOL.H. B pro-
i, On fervmg God only,
serM. promifes which He hath made to all who
I- are fincerely His difciples, apply yourfelves
at once, with manly firmnefs, to the prac-
tice of His commandments, and ftedfaftly
walk in the paths marked out by the lefTons
He hath left you : but if the good things
of this world be equal to the fatisfa6lion of
your defires ; if ye can with certainty ob-
tain them, and with fecurity enjoy them;
and if, wdiile they are nearer at hand, ye
think them as valuable in themfelves as any
treafures which Chrift can give you, why
ferve the world ; drudge on in the bondage
to which ye feem already more than half
inclined ; and follow wherever luft, ambi-
tion and avarice, may lead you. But at-
tempt not to mingle light with darknefs ;
think not to reconcile truth to falfehood ;
do not imagine, that while ye are intem-
perate in your pailions, and unreflrained in
your indulgences, while prefent gratifica-
tion alone is fought, and the didtates of
temporal interefl: implicitly obeyed, ye can
be difciples of the Gofpel, or that there is
any fellowfhip between Chrift and Belial."
Thus,
On ferving God only. 3
Thus, I fay, might the prefent minifters serm.
of Chrifl, ftricken with the inconfiftency i-
and irrefolution vifible in the condud: of
the greater part of thofe to whom they
preach, juftly addrefs them. Thus ob-
ferving how they one day repair to the
church, and, with upHfted hands and eyes,
petition heaven for pardon of their pall
offences, and for fpiritual affiftance in
future j and the next, return without re-
ludlance to the courfes they theirfelves have
condemned : how they one hour hften, with
apparent attention, to their admonitions, or
recur for inftrudlion to the laws of God ;
and the next, regulate their condu6l by the
maxims of the world : they might repre-
fent to them the utter abfurdity of fuch be-
haviour, and in proof of it urge the doc-
trine of the text, that ** no man can ferve
two mailers."
Such is the folly of attempting to make
a ftate of fin and falvation compatible with
each other; fo great is the abfurdity of
imagining, that while we fpend half our
B 2 time
4 On ferving God only.
SERM. time in vice, we can gain the favour of
J^ God, by dedicating the remainder to His
fervicej or, that while our zeal towards
Him is but lukewarm, and the obedience
we pay to His laws but partial, He will
accept us as good, and reward us as faith-
ful fervants, that nothing but the repeatedly
feeing men guilty of it, could juftify our
laying it to their charge. For if it be a
matter of f^ch difficulty as to be morally
(not to fay naturally) impoffible to ferve at
the fame time, and with equal fidelity, two
mafters, where the commands of one never
interfere with thofe of the other : becaufe
the fervant's inclination may be fwayed by
the mofl trifling difference of difpofition or
manners in his mafter's j or his behaviour
be influenced by his knowing, or even fan-
cying, that one has it in his power or will
to reward him more bountifully than the
other: how perfec^lly extravagant mufl: be
the endeavour to yield equal obedience to the
injundiions of fuch as are ever at variance be-
tween themfelvcs, whofe manners areoppo-
fite, and whofc interefls clafli ! Yet thus
extra^-
5
On ferving God only. S
extravagant, thus completely abfurd is the serm.
condudt of every man, who holding the truth ^2\.^
of religion, and being perfuaded that God
will, in another world, impart real happinefs,
and fubftantial bleffings, to thofe whofe be-
haviour He approves in this, thinks to ob-
tain a portion of fuch bleffings, although
he negle6l to forfake the pra6ticc of any par-
ticular vice, refufe to give up any favourite
indulgence, or to ceafe from the profecution
of any beloved temporal intereft.
For the fervice of fin is rebellion againft
God. Every indulgence of a depraved ap-
petite, every act of obedience to the i\.\gg^^-
tions of evil inclinations, is a contempt of
His law, and flying in the face of His
authority. He hath commanded us to keep
ourfelves from pollution, to free ourfelves
from fin : How then fhall we continue in
fin, and yet ferve Him ? Is it in our power
to change the nature of things ? to annihi-
late thofe eternal differences that fubfift be-
tween them ? Can we make good evil, or
evil good ? Can we alter the unchangeable
B 3 wiU
I.
6 On Je ruing God only,
SERM. will of God, and fay to the Almighty,
With this Thou fhalt be pleafed ? If we
cannot do thefe things, we cannot ferve
both Him and fin. We cannot, becaufe it
implies a contradicftion : we cannot, becaufe
God is not mocked : we cannot, becaufe He
will not receive a feigned or a partial obedi-
ence : we cannot, becaufe He will not ac-
cept a divided heart.
Which then, (for it is time to determine)
which fliall we ferve? to which fhall we
pay obedience? to the law of fin, which
we find in our bodies, or to the law of
God, which our teachers have endeavoured
to imprint on our minds ? Let us confider,
which is our natural mafler, which the
eafier fervice, and whence we may exped:
to receive the more precious rewards !
Now as we are indebted to God for our
exigence, He has, by right of creation, a
full and indefeaiible title to our fervice, and
is, from our very entrance into being, our
natural Mailer. While this tie to obedience
is
On fervitig God only. 7
is hourly ftrengthen'ed on us by the conti- serm.
nual acceffion of frefh benefits. But before ^*
we receive any thing from fin, we mufl
begin to labour in its fervice j we muft re-
nounce all our obligation to our firfl Bene-
fad:our, and become hirelings to a flranger.
To fay that there are no difficulties to be
borne, that there are but few tryals of pa-
tience or fortitude to be undergone in a life
of religion, and in keeping the command-
ments of God, would be to contradid the
declarations and experience of good men in
all ages, to rob the righteous of their
brighteft jewel, that perfevering faith which
carries them forward to the attainment of
the high prize of their calling, and to
queftion the wifdom of the infpired writers,
who are perpetually warning us to be pati-
ent and vigilant, to bear hardfhip as good
foldiers of Chrifl, and ever to bear in mind
how great are the pov/ers againfl; which we
wreftle. But ftill, if we fairly compare
this fervice with the labours we muft ne-
celTarily go through, and the anxiety and
B 4 un-
" On ferving God only,
SERM. imeafinefs we muft fufFer in that of fin, we
I' fliall find moil abundant realon to join with
our Lord, in faying, that His yoke is eafy,
and His burthen hght. To conquer the
inclinations which the temptations of the
world excite, to refift the powerful folici-
tations of irregular appetites, and to flem
the torrent of defire which allurements and
opportunity may raife,it doubtlefsly requires
a firm and rigorous felf-denial. To re-
jed; great prefent advantages rather than
tranfgrefs the laws of fair dealing ; and to
break off long-eftablifhed cuftoms, and be-
loved connexions, and to retire from mirth
and gaiety to folitude and grave refledtion,
rather than be a partaker in fin, are truly,
in many cafes, works of fevere mortifica-
tion. But if to thefe ye add the feelings
excited by the contemptuous fneer of the
infidel, and the feoffs of thofe who have
learned to make a mock at fin, ye will have
the chief of the real difficulties that attend
the fervice of God, except in times of per-
fecution : for the prad:ice of devotion, and
the difcharge of the focial duties which
religion
Oti ferving God only. a
Teliglon commands us to perform, will, serM,
even if we enter upon them relu6i:antly at ^•
firft, foon become eafy, and prove a perpe-
tually encreaiing fource of fatisfa6tion and
delight. While even the difficulty of thofe
harder tafks I have mentioned, will decreafe
by cuftom, and our refolution being con-
firmed by exercife, and our zeal ftrength-
ened by meditation, the habit of refraining
from evil will render all conftraint needlefs,
and we (hall find the fervice in which we
are engaged to be perfed: freedom.
View, on the other hand, the fervice of
fin ! and ye will find the uneafinefs and re-
pugnance which a man feels on firfl embark-
ing in vicious courfes are no more than an
earnefl of the folicitude and remorfe, of the
anxiety, vexations, and difappointments,
that attend his progrefs. At iirft, when
not yet lofl to fenfe of fhame, nor hardened
againfl the reproofs of confcience, he anxi-
oufly ftrives to conceal his mif-deeds from
others, and to palliate the guilt of them to
himfelf ; living in conftant dread of difco-
verjr
to On ferving God only,
very without, and at ceafelefs war within.
When farther advanced in iniquity, the evil
fo forely apprehended overtakes him; his
real character becomes known ; the good
defpife and avoid him j and he is no longer
favourably received but by fuch as either -
partake in or profit by his crimes.
Is he a voluptuous man, indulgence en-
ilames his appetites, they gain a compleat
afcendancy over him, and he becomes their
flavej dragged by them to the commiflion
of crimes, at the enormity of which he
would formerly have fhuddered, he lives
only to his lufts, and retains little of either
the principles or the reafon of a man. If
vanity, pride, ambition, or avarice, govern
him, thefe too gather ftrength by exercife,
and being unrefifted, obtain a predominancy
fo ab folate, as to make their Haves deaf to
either the calls of friendfliip, the fuggeflions
of reafon, the cries of the opprelTed, or the
fupplications of the diftreffed. So hard a
mailer is fin, that our mofl amiable affec-
tions mufl be renounced, our moil worthy
qualities
On ferving God only, 1 1
qualities parted with in its fervice. And serm.
for what? What are the bleffings obtained ^*
under a thraldom fo fevere ? What are the
good things for which fo many thus hardly
labour ?
Let the voluptuary rate his enjoyments
as high as he pleafes, from the nature of
them they can never be of long duration,
while they muft too be fubjecft to much
and vexatious interruption ; to many difap-
pointments the purfuit of them inevitably
leads ; they bring remorfe with them ; and
numerous are the evils confequent upon
them. Obferve a man grown old in in-
temperance ; confider him either as review-
ing his paft life, or looking forward to
future periods of his exiftence. Coniidered
in the firfl light, if he views the pleafures
in which he has indulged himfelf with
complacency, he ftill muft view them as
paft, and never to be renewed : and what
the degree of mortification flowing from
that muft be, I leave you to imagine. But
if he holds them in another view, he muft
deteft
I % On fercing God only,
SERM. detefl their remembrance ; lince they have
I- robbed him of all the comfort to be received
from the profpedl of future happinefs, and
left him nothing in return but debility, dif-
eafe, and the horrours of a wounded con-
fcience. And if we confider fuch a one as
looking forward into eternity, his dread of
the juft fentence to be pafTed on his innu-
merable offences mufh raife in his breafl
torments, which God forbid any of us
fhould be able to defcribe; fince nothing
but feeling them could give us an adequate
power of expreflion,
Anfwerable to thefe rewards beflowed on
the voluptuous are thofe which fin gives to
her fervants in other lines. If, after many
years fpent in toil and difficulties, after
paffing through numberlefs dangers, and
hours of anxiety, which no earthly glories
can repay, they do at length gain the end
of their wifhes ; they then find the empti-
nefs of thofe things after which they have
fo long been labouring ; they find that they
have their reward ; while the years in which
they
On fervlng God only, l ^
they can enjoy it draw faft towards an end, SfeJiM,
and no hope of future blelffing, no ground i.
for exped:ing happinefs hereafter remains ^■"''^'^'^
unto them. Such is the gain of the finner :
what he obtains with labour, he enjoys
with uncertainty ; when he dies, his plea-
fures ceafe, and his hopes die too.
What, on the other hand, does the fer-
vice of God produce ? the great reward it-
felf, indeed, is future, but the hopes of that
reward are ever prefent, ever certain ; they
are a fupport under all afflidlions, a fource
of courage and perfeverance under all diffi-
culties through life ; and when that draws
to a conclufion, the glory of the righteous
begins to blaze forth : with readinefs he
meets the change, at the approach of which
the finner trembles ; and departing hence
in triumph, receives from the hand of his
almighty Mafter, whom he loved and ferved,
bleffings becoming the power and the good-
nefs of the Giver ; fuch things as neither
eye hath feen, nor ear heard, neither hath
it
1 4 On ferving God only,
SERM. it entered into the heart of man to conceive
^* them.
The difference between the two fcrvices
and their very oppofite rewards being thus
confidered, the impoffibihty I before men-
tioned of following both, appears flill more
plainly. For if ye contract a love for the
indulgences of lin, ye muft confequently
diflike the law, which commands you to
refrain from them. If ye efleem the plea-
fures fin can give you worthy your atten-*-
tion, fince ye cannot obtain them but by the
lofs of the blefFings which God hath pro-
mifed to the righteous, by purfuing thofe,
ye mull manifeft a contempt for thefe.
The dodlrincs of religion ever prefs hard
on the 'condud: of the finner j to thefe,
therefore, he foon becomes hoftile ; and for
the ufe of the means of it he daily is lefs
difpofed ; till at length he generally attacks
the truth of the firfl, and moft openly de-
rides the laft.
Thefe
On fervmg God only, i£
Thefe obfervations conftant experience serm.
juftifies. Attend to the progrefs of the i*
abandoned hbertine : it has been gradual.
He firft tranfgrefTed with fear, with trem-
bling hands he carried to his lips the poifoned
cup of fin ; but having once tailed the in-
ebriating liquor, it foon overcame him; his
fcruples were lulled, his fhame was ba-
nifhed. He now laughs at what he for-
merly mofl reverenced; now hates thofe
paths from which he formerly refolved
never to deviate. Recoiled: the efFc6l of fin
on your own minds : Have ye never found
how foon the tendency to evil is encreafed ;
how very fhort an intermiflion of your due
devotions eflranges, as it were, your mind
from the payment of them; how much
the having yielded to one temptation dif-
arms you againfl the attack of the next;
how one tranfgreflion does often inevitably
involve you in another ; how crime is linked
to crime, and vice joined to vice ?
And is not then the voluntary venturing
on the commiflion of one fault, with the
3 thought
1 6 O/i Jerv/ng God only,
SERM. thought of flopping there, one, though of^
. ^' the moft common, yet of the maddeft ima-
ginations, that ever entered the human
brain ? Is not the being fatisfied with our
fpiritual flate, becaufe we have not quite
forgot God and rehgion, beyond all com-
parifon abfurd? Is not the hope of being
accepted as a difciple of Chrift, although
we renounce not the fervice of fin, moft
contradictory, mofl apparently extravagant ?
This utter impoflibility of ferving both
God and Mammon, I now fct before you,
as introductory to thofe difcourfes which,
Kaving finifhed my obfervations on the faith
and doftrines of the Gofpel, I mean to read
to you on its precepts. For in fpeaking to
thefe» I fhall follow the arrangement marked
by the two tables of the commandments ;
confidering, in their order, the duties therein
prefcribed, as explained and amplified by
the words of our blelTed Saviour. Who,
ye may remember, did, at the commence-
ment of His miniftry, point out to the dif-
ciples ibme particulars of condudt which
neither
On fcrvhig God only, I -7
neither they nor their countrymen feem to serm.
have fuppofed were contained under the i.
laws they had received. Thus *' Ye have
heard (faid He) that it was faid by them of
old time, Thou (halt not kill; and who-
foever fhall kill, fhall be in danger of the
judgement : But I fay unto you, that who-
foever is angry with his brother without a
caufe, fhall be in danger of the judge-
ment.'*
For the firfl commandment j ** Thou
(halt have none other Gods before me," is
no lefs tranfgreffed by joining the fervice of
any other with that of the true God, than
by entirely relinquifhing the worfhip of the
latter, and fetting up a flrange objed: of
devotion. Neither fhould this trefpafs be
confidered as confifting in the outvvard pay-
ment of homage only ; for when we give
to any other that fear, love, and reliance,
which are due to the Lord alone, we in
fad: make a transfer of our natural allegi-
ance, and fet up an idol in our hearts.
VOL. II, c On
I S 0.7 feriing God ojily.
On this ground it is that St. Paul calls
covctoufnefs idolatry : and, indeed, fo pal-
pable is the nature of our offence, when we
trufl: for full fecurity, or permanent happi-
nefs, in any being but the Lord, that the
rebuke of it is become proverbial ; and
when a man appears to be more attached to
any thing than he ought to be, we naturally
fay, it is his idol. . Some men facrifice unto
their net, and burn incenfc unto their drag,
makino: the obtainment of the g-oods of this
world the firft objedls of their anxiety; and
trufling to their own laborious exertions to
put them in a fituation which they efteem
replete with fecurity and peace. Others
fllew themfelves lovers of pleafures more
than lovers of God ; and by thcfe, as well
by the former, the offices of devotion, and
the duties of piety, are neglecfted as of in-
feriour conlideration, and, in lieu of their
ftriving to fecure the divine patronage, by
the only method in which we are exprefsly
warned that it is to be obtained, by feeking
the kingdom of God and His righteoufnefs
before all things, the hope of the firft is
aban-
On ferving God only. 19
abandoned to future contingencies; and it serm.
is well if the obtainment of the laft is not ^*
daily removed to a remoter diftance. In
like manner we too often fee the friendfhip
of the great or rich courted in a mode that
may juftly be called idolatrous ; when in
compliance with their corruptions, or in
fubmiffion to their fancies, the truth is
diifembled, the duties of religion are neg-
ledted, and the commandments of the Lord
tranfo-refTed.
'fc>*
Nor is it merely by the more immediately
lelfilh views of worldly intereft, that we
thus make to ourfelves other gods. An
inordinate fondnefs for any particular con-
necflion will betray us into the fame crime ;
and we may difcern in the world affed:ion
to particular objed:s carried to an excefs
which is incompatible with either juftice or
piety, and even with any real value in the
love profelfed. In fine, whenever we fuffer
our obfequioufnefs to any intereft, our com-
pliance with any attachment to derogate
from the obedience, or diminiih the trull
c % we
11,6 On fcrving God oniy.
SERM. we fhould manifeft toward the Lord, (whe-
I- tlier by cxercifing our worldly callings in
feafons hallowed to His worfliip at the in-
iligation of others, or from the fuggeftions
of our own avarice, or following them with
an intenfenefs inconfiftent with confidence
m His merciful providence, or by placing
our hope of fuccefs in the world, or in any
thing therein, or in feeking gratification at
the expence of obedience to His laws ;) we
ceafe to ferve Him alone j and lower our-
felves to the mean rank of idolators, by
becoming dependent on the creature inflead
of the Creatour alone for happinefs.
And to no more dire6b a transfer of our
allegiance than this were we of this part
of the earth a few years ago expofed to be
tempted. But now, alas ! by the inhabi-
tants of a country adjacent to our own, has
the worfhip of the God of heaven been
aboliflied to make way for that of a God>
whom their fathers knew not ; a Deity of
reafon and of liberty, which has been exhi-
bited to tlie adoration of a befottcd, blaf-
phemous^
On ferving God o?2ly. % i
pliemous, and abandoned people, in the serm.
I.
perfon of a fhamelefs proftitute. This laft
flep in apoitacy, although it may appear,
from its enormity, calculated to fhock the
human mind, and to raife itfelf enemies in
lieu of profelytes, yet, as it affords men an
example of laying afide at once all fliame,
and delivering themfelves without remorfe
to the dominion of vice, will, it is to be
feared, be followed by many whofe faith is
already undermined, and whofe principles
are already corrupted. Wherefore it is in-
cumbent on Chriil:ians to prepare themfelves
againft the affaults which may be expedied
from thefe enemies of the truth; whofe
beft hopes of fuccefs are placed in the eafe
with which men are drawn into fins of un-
cleannefs : as the daughters of Moab were
the inftruments by which the Ifraelites were
tempted to worfliip Baal Peor. And for
your fupport againfl which, I can only add
to what I have, in the former part of this
difcourfe flated, of the utter incompatibility
of the practice of fin with the real worfhip
of God, a moil earnefl exhortation, that ye
c 3 will
22 Oh ferving God only.
will now, before the inflamed ftate of your
appetites renders you blind to truth, deaf
to reafon, flrive to imprefs on your minds
the very bafe degradation which that man
fuffers, who quits the fervice of the Sove-
reign of the univerfe to become the votary
of any other being; who withdraws his
name from the houfe and family of the
living God, to enrol himfelf among the
flaves of corruption, the children of Satan,
the followers of thofe who cannot deliver
themfelves.
But this comparifon between our worfhip
and theirs leads to the recollediion of what
is virtually another infringement of the firft
commandment. For fince the worfhip we
render unto Chrifl: our Saviour would form
a breach of this precept, unlefs His unity
with the Father were made known unto us,
and all men were ordered to honour Him,
even as they honour the Father ; fo when
we are told, that He is the only Mediatour
between God and man, to pray to others as
mediatours is ftirely giving to them the
honour
On ferving God only. 23
honour due unto the Son of God alone, serm.
Yet what is the invocation of faints and i.
angels, but beyond all, the regular offices
of devotion performed by the papifts to the
Virgin Mary, but afcribing to them this
honour, and having other mediatours be-
Cdes Him ? Confider the affront thus offered
to Him, whofe name has been preached to
the world as the only One under heaven by
which men may be faved ; and ye will not
be furprized, that the Spirit of Chrill hath
been withdrawn from thofe who have thus
infulted Him : nor be at a lofs to account
for the atheiftical do(5trines of the prefent
day making the rnoft rapid and extensive
progrefs among thofe who had been pre-
pared for further apoftacy, by imbibing the
papal corruptions.
To conclude then, as we learn from the
text, that if we attempt to divide our fer-
vice God will not accept us, fo may we
learn from what paffes in the world, as well
as from the Holy Scriptures, that without
His protedion and fupport we (hall be
c 4 expofed
a 4 Of^ fervi/ig God only,
SERM. expofed to fink into the lowefl: debafements.
I- As the temptations to thefe therefore en-
creafe, let us bind ourfelves ftill clofer in de-
votion to the Lord ; and let the miferies we
now fee poured on thofe who forfake Him,
operate as a timely and effectual admonition
to us, that however loud their pretenfions,
however fair their promifes, the vanities of
the apoftate nations cannot profit ; but that
that people can alone be happy, yea, bleffed
alone can be that people who have the Lord
for their God.
SER.
SERMON II.
ON IDOLATRY.
I St. John v. 21.
Little children , keep yourfehcs from idols,
"l^THILE inveftigating the command- serm.
ments, to difcover every particular 11.
contained under each precept, we fhould ''^'^^^'^^^
pot overlook the wifdom that may be dif-
cerned in the arranoement of the feveral
laws of both tables. They both commence
with the duties which are refpeftively firft
in order ; the one with the worfliip of the
only true God, the other with the honour
due unto our parents. They both clofe
with a precept that tends to fecure the prac-
iwt of the previous commandments; the
%6 On Idolatry.
SERM. firft, by one that ordains a frequent com-
^^' memoration of the great work of creation,
and, confequently, a folemn periodical re-
colledlion of our relation and oblirations to
our Maker; the other, by a law which
commands us to eradicate from our minds
thofe inordinate defires which would lead
us to tranfgrefs the other commandments of
this fecond table. While the intermediate
precepts are arranged according to the im-
portance of their feveral fubjed:s. Thus
the firft commandment having prohibited
the worfhip of any other than the one true
God, the fecond proceeds to forbid the
worfhipping Him in a manner derogatory
from His glory, by prefuming to bow down
before any image as a reprefentation of
Him, or even to make any fimilitude which,
in the vanity of our imaginations, we might
fuppofe to convey any idea of Him.
Thus, in the fourth and fifth verfes of
the twentieth chapters of Exodus we read,
* ' Thou flialt not make unto thee any graven
image, or any likenefs of any thing that is
m
On Idolatry. 27
in heaven above, or that is in the earth be- serm.
neath, or that is in the water under the n.
earth : Thou (halt not bow down thyfelf to
them, nor fcrve them." And in the repe-
tition of the law, in the fourth chapter of
Deuteronomy, Hill more earneftly j " Take
ye therefore good heed unto yourfelves, (for
ye faw no manner of limiUtude on the day
that the Lord fpake unto you in Horeb,
out of the midft of the fire) left ye corrupt .
yourfelves, and make you a graven image,
the fimilitude of any figure, the likenefs of
male or female, the fimilitude of any beaft
that is on the earth, the likenefs of any
winged fowl that flieth in the air, the like-
nefs of any thing that creepeth on the
ground, the likenefs of any fifh that is in
the waters beneath the earth."
Now among the numerous proofs which
the Holy Scriptures yield, that He by whofe
infpiration they were penned knoweth what
is in man, may be reckoned the reprefen-
tations which thefe admonitions give us, of
the pronenefs of the human race to idolatry,.
a pro-
38 On Idolatry,
SERM. a propenfity which has manifefted itfelf
^^' among both the favage and civihzed part of
mankind during the times of ignorance, at
which it is written, that God winked, and
fince His Gofpel has been preached among
the nations. The books of the pfalms and
the prophets abound with cenfures of the
folfy, and reprehenfions of the guilt of this
pradice. " Confounded (faith the pfalmift)
be all they that ferve graven images, that
boafl: them.felves of idols." (Pfal. xcvii. 7.)
And *' the idols of the heathen are filver
and gold, the work of men's hands : they
have mouths, but they fpeak not ; eyes have
they, but they fee not j neither is there any
breath in their mouths. They that make
them are like unto them, fo is every one
that trufteth in them." (Pfal. cxxxv. 15,
i>6, 17, 18.) " They (faith Ifaiah, in his
forty-fourth chapter) that make a graven
image are all of them vanity, and their de-
ledable things fliall not profit : and they are
their own witneffes, they fee not, nor know,
that they may be afhamed." And in the
eighteenth verfe, '* They have, not known
nor
On Idolatry, 20
nor underftood : for He hath fhut their eyes SERM.
that they cannot fee, and their hearts that ii*
ihey cannot underftand j and none confider-
eth, neither is their knowledge nor under-
ftanding to fay, I have burnt part of it in
the fire, yea, alfo I have baked bread upon
coals thereof: I have roafted flefh, and eaten
it, and fhall I make the refidue thereof an
abomination ? Shall I fall down to the flock
of a tree ? He feedeth of afhes ; a de-
ceived heart hath turned him afide, that he
cannot deliver his foul, nor fay, Is there
not a lye in my right hand ?" He had be-
fore afked, in his fortieth chapter, '* To
whom, then, will ye liken God ? or what
likenefs will ye compare unto Him ? The
workman melteth a graven image, and the
goldfmith fpreadeth it over with gold, and
cafteth filver chains. He that is fo impo-
verifhed that he hath no oblation, choofeth
a tree that will not rot : he feeketh unto
him a cunning workman to prepare a graven
image that (hall not be moved. Have ye
not known ? Have ye not heard ? Hath it
not been told you from the beginning?
Have
30 On Idolatry.
SERM. Have ye not underftood from the foundations
II. of the earth ? It is He that fitteth upon the
^'"^'^'^ circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof
are as grafhoppers ; that ftf etcheth out the
heavens as a curtain, and fpreadeth them out
as a tent to dwell in \ that bringeth the
princes to nothing : He maketh the princes
of the earth as vanity ; yea, they fhall not be
planted ; yea, .they {hall not be fown ; yea,
their ftock fliall not take root in the earth:
and He iliall alfo blow upon them, and
they fliall wither j and the whirlwind fhall
take them away as iliubble. To whom then
will ye liken me, or fliall I be equal ? faith
the Holy One ?'*
The expofure of the folly and guilt of
idolatry w^hicli the prophets thus made to
their own countrymen, the preachers of the
Gofpel repeated to the nations, arguing,
that fmce we derive our own being from
God, we furely ought not to fuppofe the
Godhead like unto gold, or filver, or ftone,
graven by art and man's device, thus com-
paring what we can make to Him who
made
On Idolatry, 3^^
made us. Still, although they triumphed serm.
by their dodrine over idolatry, and brought "•
their converts back to the worfhip of their
Creatour, the fpirit of prophecy which
was in them teftified, that another relapfe
into the fame abfurd and impious practices
would take place j on which account, as
well as on that of the then prefent peril
arifing from being furroundcd with idola-
ters, the caution given by St. John in the
text was neceUary, ** Little children, keep
yourfelves from idols."
But fome man, perhaps, would afk*
What need of repeating it in the prefent
day ? Is there any danger of men becoming
idolaters when knowledge is fo much dif-
fufed, that almoft all ranks are taught, in
fome meafure, to reafon for themfelves ?
In return to this queflion, let it be remem-
bered, that the groiTeft worfhip of images,
and the moft abominable confequences of
fuch worfhip, prevailed in the ancient world^
at the time when the arts and fciences were
carried to the highefl perfedion, and know-
ledge
33 On Idolatry,
SERM. ledge \vus in its moil flourifliing flate, and
^^' it was the publication of the Gofpel only
that dehvered this part of the earth from
the general delufion. Whence it may moil
fairly and cogently be argued, that it is the
knowledge of this Gofpel fpecifically that
is our great prefervative againft a relapfe
into the former abominations. In propor-
tion, therefore, as the acquifition of this
knowledge is neglected, the danger of yield-
ing to temptations to idolatry encreafes.
That the cultivation of this knowledge is
negledied, needs unhappily no proof; the
thinnefs of crur publick congregations, and
the ignorance of the Scriptures too viiible
in, perhaps, the generality of thofe who
call themfelves Chrifbians, bear ample tefti-
mony of the defect. While the Roman
apoftacy ftill continues, and the minifters
of her who has been the mother of fpiritual
fornication as well as of the other, ftill
perfevere in feduloufly propagating her
tenets, and in ftriving to make profelytes
to her doctrines.
That
On Idolatry. 35
That thofe of her communion had really serm.
departed from their former preteniions, and
laid afide their ancient fpirit, was an ima-
gination too haftily taken up by fome in-
cautious perfons of this country, as has
been manifefted by late events ; and that
the charge of idolatry, folemnly brought
againft her by our own church, is with
juftice continued, the images before which
her members continue to bow down, her
invocations and prayers addreffed to angels
and faints, and her regular offices of devo-
tion to the Virgin Mary ; but, above all,
the unrepealed declarations of the council
of Trent in fupport of her abominations,
do, fpite of all the barefaced fophiilry her
partizans have employed in excufing them,
bear ample teftimony. For whither tends
the meagre plea that the veneration paid to
the images refts not in them as its final ob-
ject, but pafles to the beings whofe images
they are, but to prove, that thofe who bow
down to them worfliip others befide th^
Lord ? Or to what will ferve the forced
diftinftion thefe deceivers make between
VOL. II. D wor-
34 On Idolatry,
worfhipping and ferving ? As if when the
commandment fays, •' Thou fhalt worfhip
the Lord thy God, and Him only fhalt thou
ferve,'* it did not forbid the worfhipping
as well as the ferving any other but Him.
Nay, were we even to grant that it is not
forbidden to pay a certain meafure of re-»
fpcd; to the reprefentations of the favourites
of Heaven, would it be right to continue it
when it had once proved the occafion of
fuperjftitious veneration, of idolatrous wor-
fhip ? The great apoftle of the Gentiles
writes, *' All things are lawful for me, but
all things are not expedient ; all things are
lawful for me, but all things edify not.'*
How can thofe, then, who boafl: themfelves
his fuccefTors in teaching the world, think
themfelves blamelefs in fandlioning and
fupporting practices which have not merely
caufed weak brethren to offend, but opened
a door to the grolTefl: idolatry in thoufands
of her communion ? How is the work of
edification carried on by thofe who ftore
every city under their direction with images
lb addrefled by the multitude, as to bring
to
On Idolatry, 35
to the mind of the learned traveller the serm»
pra(ftices of the Pagan idolater : who afTu- ^^'
redly went no further than the corrupted
Chriftian, in fuppofing that that fpecifick
image of Apollo, or of Venus, before which
he offered his fupplications, would perform
them, but hoped that the fancied deity,
whofe reprefentation it was, would regard
his offering. Or, if the Papift will infift
that the Pagan went further, and worfliipped
the ffock or the ffone, as having power in
itfelf to help him, what fhall prevent the
ignorant Chriffian, who has followed his
example fo far, from imitating it to the
end ? That he has, indeed, fo done, a ftrong
fufpicion is provoked, by the preference
known to be given among the Romanifts
to fome images of the Virgin Mary above
others, and the more numerous miracles
faid to be wrought in favour of the votaries
of our Lady of Loretto, for inftance, than
of thofe of our Lady of any other place*
Or if the mighty works fuppofed to be
done at the fhrine of a particular image be
not to be afcribed to the power of the image
D 2 itfelf,
■3<5 On Idolatry.
SERM. it felf, they muft be attributed to the more
^^' efpecial favour fhewn by the Virgin to thofe
who offer up their fuppHcations to her be-
fore it : and what is this but afcribing to
her the perfection of being prefent in many
places (and if in many places, why not in
all places ?) at once, and giving her the
divine attribute of Omniprefence ?
The fame inference of impiety and ido-
latry neceffarily refults from the pradice of
putting different places and perfons under
• the patronage of the fame faint, fince this
dedication and devotion muff either be nu-
gatory, (which the Papift will by no means
allow) or the faint muft be able to know,
and to help the infirmities of feveral vota-
ries at once, and thus be likened unto Him
who alone filleth heaven and earth.
True it is, that with a boldnefs of fo-
phiffry which can be defcribed fo well by
no other terms as thofe of St. Paul, pro-
phetick of thefe very teachers, " fpeaking
lies in hypocrify j having their confciences
feared
On Idolatry. ^j
feared with a hot iron," the doctors of the serm.
Roman church have laid down as a juft n.
rule of reafoning, that although any parti- '^^^"^f'^-
cular dodrine ought to be received on due
authority, it by no means follow^s, that all
the necelTary inferences from it fliould alfa
be received ; whence they endeavour to
evade the abfurd and impious confequences
flowing from their own doctrine of the in-
vocation of faints ,- faying, it does not fol-
low becaufe their church allows of it, that
therefore fhe holds that they can hear the
prayers addreffed unto them. But is not
addreffing their petitions to thofe who can*
not hear, as well as to Him who can, di-
viding with others the honour due to Him
alone who hath declared, ** My glory will
I not give to another, neither my praife to
graven images ?" If. xlii. 8.
In fa(ft, fo well founded is the charge of
idolatry made by the church of England on
that of Rome, that after all the attempts
of thefe blind leaders of the blind to pal-
D 3 liate
3^ On Idolatry.
liate or colour their prad:iees, their oppo-
iition to the fecond commandment is fo
glaring, that they theirfelves have thought
it proper to omit this law in fome of their
books of devotion, and divide another into
two, to preferve the full number of ten
commandments delivered to Mofes, thus
verifying that prophetick chara(fteriftick of
the man of fin in which he is defcribed, as
he ** who oppofeth and exalteth himfelf
above all that is called God/* ^ ThelT. ii. 4,
But it may be further juflly afked, Whe-
ther the injuncftion of the apoftle, *' Little
children, keep yourfelves from idols," does
not extend beyond the mere worfhip of
images, even to the making any thing that
we may profanely fuppofe bears any fimi-
litude to the Deity ? From his admonition
being fo general, we may fairly conclude,
that he did not mean to recommend to
Chriftians lefs than the commandment itfelf
required; and that forbids not only the
Worfliip, but the formation of any imagq
On Idolatry. 39
as a reprefentation of God. ** Thou fhalt serm.
not make unto thee any graven image, or ^^'
any hkenefs of any thing that is in Heaven
above, or that is in the earth beneath, or
that is in the water under the earth." And
I have already ftated to you the indignant
queftions put by his prophet on this fub-
je6l : ** To whom will ye liken God? or
what likenefs will ye compare unto Him ?'*
Yet, alas ! this daring tranfgreffion is not
among Chriftians confined to the adherents
of the papacy. Neither pi(5lures, indeed,
of the invifible Father, nor paintings of the
Holy Trinity, are, in this country, exhibited
as in thofe of the Romanifts, but the inex-
plicable and incomprehenfible nature of God
is moil: profanely reprefented by a triangle,
not only in the coarfe fymbolical drawings
of fanatics, whofe low conceptions and grofs
ignorance make fuch prad:ices lefs fur-
prizing, but even in the altar-pieces of
churches, where they are conftantly under
the eye of the parochial clergy, and, at
times, expofed to the infpedion of an arch-
D 4 , deacon
40 On Idolatry »
SEKM. deacon or a bifhop*. Still all thefe minif-
i^* ters of the church have declared their affent
to thofe articles which alTert, that the fecond
book of Homilies contains a godly and
wholcfome doctrine ; and this book does, in
the moft pointed manner, condemn even the
making, and ftill more the fetting up any
image, either by painting or fculpture, in
churches.
Now as this dodrine of the reformers
feems to have fallen fo far into oblivion,
that thofe who have moil explicitly under-
taken to fupport it, contribute to prepare
the way for a return of idolatry among us,
by both conniving at, and affifting in intro-
ducing pivflures and painted fymbols into
* The authour has been an eye-witnefs of this ab-
furd and impious attempt to exprefs, by a pourtraiture
on a wall, the obje£l of chriftian worfhip in two
churches in the diocefe of London, and in one in that
of Winchefter ; and in the major part of thefe inftances
which have fallen under his own notice, leaft the in-
tention of the fimilitude fhould be miftaken, the name
•f God is infcribed therein.
our
On Idolatry, a\.
our places of worfhip, let me repeat to you serm.
fome paiTages from the learned, able, and n.
zealous Homily againft idolatry, which will
demonflrate what, at our feparation from
Rome, was holden by the church of Eng-
land on this point, though now apparently
forgotten by many of her minifters.
Having quoted the following palTage from
a primitive Chriftian writer on the very
words of the text, '* St. John deepely con-
lidering the matter fay th : My little chil-
dren, keepe yourfelves from images or idols.
Hee fayth not now, keepe yourfelves from
idolatrie, as it were from the fervice and
worfhipping of them : but from the images
or idols themfelves ; that is, from the very
fhape and likeneffe of them. For it were
an unworthy thing, that the image of the
living God fhould become the image of a
dead idoll.'* The Homily continues ; ** Doe
you not thinke thofe perfons which place
images and idols in churches and temples,
yea fhrine them even over the Lord's table,
even as it were of purpofe to the worfhipping
and
42 On Idolatry »
SERM. and honoring of them, take good heed to
i^- either of St. John's counfell, or TertulHan's ?
For fo to place images and idols, is it to
keepe themfelves from them, or elfe to re-
ceive and embrace them ?" Again, in the
third part of the fame fermon, ** This is
to be replied out of God's word — the images
of the trinitie, which we had in every
church, be by the Scriptures exprelTely
and dire(5tly forbidden, and condemned, as
appeareth by thefe places." After which,
at the head of other palTages of holy writ,
two of diofe I have already quoted in this
difcourfe, are cited, and a general inference
is drawn from the doctrine they contain, in
the following terms : " Wherefore they be
convi(ft of foolifhneffe and wickednefle in
making of images of God or the Trinitie :
for that no image of God ought, or can be
made, as by the Scriptures and good reafon
evidently appeareth," And a few pages
after with ftill o:reater earneftnefs : " But
images in churches and temples have beene,
and be, and (as afterwards fhall be prooved)
ever will bee offences and ftumbling blockes,
fpecially
On Idolatry. ^'y
fpecially to the wcake, fimple and blinde serm.
common people, deceiving their hearts ir.
by the cunning of the artificer, (as the ^^'^"^'^"^
Scripture exprefsly, in fundry places, doth
teftifie) and fo bringing them to idolatrie.
Therefore woe be to the ered:er, fetter up,
and maintayner of images in churches and
temples, for a greater penalty remayneth
for him then the death of the body.'*
Now when fuch are the declarations of a
work w^hich every prieft, deacon, and bene-
ficed miniller of the church acknowledges
to contain no other fentimcnts than he enter-
tains, fhould a member of any other re-
formed church reproach any fuch with
having departed from the former purity of
thofe of our communion, and with adiing
in contradid:ion to their own formal pro-
feffions, by permitting a fy mbolical paint-
ing of the Deity in his church, what plea
can they ufe, what anfwer can they return,
that will not convi6l them either of not
knowing what they do as members of the
church of England profefs, or of confenting
to
II.
44 On Idolatry,
SERM. to what theirfelves have condemned ? Happy-
are they who can fay, that thefe are
acts of particular congregations, to which
they have never affentedj thus clearing
themfelves from any fliare in the offences
paft, as well as from being implicated in
what may arife from the very important
advantage which papal emiffaries may draw
from reprefenting, that it is manifeft, from
practices being now allowed in the church
of England, which were moft feverely re-
probated, as tending to idolatry by our re-
formers, that thefe laft carried their accu-
fations of the church of Rome too far ; for
when they (hall feem to have once fairly
eftablifhed this point, they will, by the
accommodations and modifications at which
they are fo expert, eaiily prevail on perfons
of (hallow information, and weak minds,
to believe, that the ground of difference is
trifling, and prevailing on them to return
into the bolbm of what they will then per-
fuade them to think is the catholick church,
precipitate them again into the great apoftacy.
And at whofe hands then will thefe loft
fouls be required ?
Signal
On Idolatry. 4j;
Signal are tKe judgements which the God serm.
of Heaven hath poured on the kingdom of u-
Anti-Chrift, and no lefs accurately do they
correfpond with the prophecies that went
before concerning them, than the abomina-
tions introduced, countenanced, and obfti--
nately fupported by the papal power, do
with the defcriptions which the prophets
and apoftles have left us of them : Shall
they not, then, be to us a warning againft
becoming partakers in her fins ? The notion
that we are in no danger of a relapfe is as
contrary to experience as to reafon : a people
depraved in their morals are eafily corrupted
in their ideas of the Deity, and become as
grofs in their conceptions of heavenly things
as they are m their enjoyment of earthly.
While, furely, the preaching of the apof{:les,
and the inftrudlion and li2:ht with which
the firft converts to chriflianity were blefled,.
afforded them and their fuccellbrs full as
much fecurity againfl falling away to ido-
latry again as we can on any ground now
boafl of polTelling. Yet the text itfelf de-
monflrates, that St. John was not without
appre-
4^ On Idolatry,
SERM. apprehenfion of fuch apoftacy : And how
II- did it commence? by the introduction of
pictures and images into places of worfhip,
with, however, exprefs caution againll wor-
fhipping them : which caution was gradu-
ally lefs and lefs attended to, until the con-
fequent idolatry was fancStioned and fup-
ported even by bifhops and councils ; and
that which was the Chriflian world became
funk in apoftacy, and overrun with thofe
impurities which ever follow the defertion
of the true for any falfe obje6l of worfhip.
And what is to prevent the fame effedls
following from the fame caufes ? Or, if
men break the commandment in one point,
and infult the divine Majeily, by pretending
to give a reprefentation of God's nature by
pourtraiture, can they expedt the aid of
His Holy Spirit to prevent their being led
into further tranffrrefiion ? Or havino" been
o o
once delivered from the more than Egyptian
bondage, under which our forefathers fuf-
fered. If we willingly turn towards it again,
can we hope not to be entrapped in the
works
On Idolatry. ^n
works of our own hands? or wonder, if serm.
our table be made a fnare unto us 3 and if n*
that which (hould have been for our welfare
become a trap. If the hofpitality we have
(hewn to fo many perfecuted priefts of the
Roman communion, lead to the filent pre-
valence of their tenets among us ; and the
companion we glory in fhewing to thofe
who have taken refuge in our land, prove
the occafion of their dodlrlnes obtaining an
influence among us. However blind fome
may be to the danger of thefe things, we
ought in wifdom never to forget the dif-
graceful ftate of degradation in which the
inhabitants of this ifland did once, and
thofe of fome countries of Europe do ftill
lie, through their fubjedion to idolatry.
When the wrath of departed faints was
made an inftrument of terrour to compel
their votaries to obey the didates of an
avaricious, a luftful, or an ambitious monk;
when means were craftily ufed to give mo-
tion to the eyes and limbs of images, and
thus gain credit to the lying miracles of
which their priefts boalled j and when the
fuppofed
4^ On Idolatry,
SERM. fuppofed fuperabundant merits of holy, or
^^' reputed holy, perlons, were fold out in por-
tions, under the abfurd notion of fupplying
the deficiency of others ; and thus became
a moil: produ(5tive fource of revenue to the
minifters of a corrupted church, and as
deftrudtive a fnare to the fouls of thofe who
trufled to the bifliop of Rome^s blafphemous
indulgences for falvation.
Think not lightly then of the fubjed; of
my prefent addrefs unto you : many wife,
many mighty men, haye been drawn afide
by the deluiions of idolatry. Neither the
abfurdity of the pracftice, nor its injuri-
oufnefs to the divine Majefty, have been
fufficient to Hop the contagion of it. And,
in the more ftriking inflances of its pro-
grefs, its fuccefs appears to have been par-
ticularly owing to female imbecility and
female influence : let thofe of that fex,
therefore, be more efpecially cautious how
they lill:en to the words of any who lie in
wait to deceive, and imagine they can ob-
tain rcmiflion for their own fins by making
I a pro-
On Idolatry. ^o
a profelyte, who, with all the ardour of a serm.
new convert, (hall become two- fold more a li*
child of hell than their felves. And let us
all arm ourfelves againft the attacks of this
kind which we may exped:, by gaining the
jufteft notions of the glory of Him " whom
no one hath feen, or can fee ; and to Whom
therefore nothing vifiblc can be made like ;
Who made the earth, and created man upon
it j Whofe hands ftretched out the heavens,
and Who commanded all their hofts ; Who
formeth light, and creates darknefs ; Who
maketh peace, and creates evil — the Lord
Who doeth all thefe things. Behold, the
nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are
counted as the fmall dufl of the balance :
Behold, He taketh up the ifles as a very
little thing ; and Lebanon is not fufficient
to burn, nor the beafts thereof fufficient for
a burnt-offering. All nations before Him
are as nothing; and they are counted to
Him lefs than nothing, and vanity ; but
Who is too a jealous God, not giving His
glory to another, but vifiting the iniquity
(and more particularly the idolatry) of the
VOL. II. E . lathers
5^ On Idolatry,
^ERM. fathers upon the children, unto the third
^i» and fourth generation of them that hate
Him, and (hewing mercy unto thoufands in
them that love Him, and keep His com-
mandments."
SER-
SERMON III.
ON VISITING THE INIQUITIES OF THE
FATHERS ON THE CHILDREN.
ExoD. XX. 5.
For I the Lord thy God am a jealous Gody
vijiting the iniquity of the fathers upon
the children y unto the third and fourth
generation of them that hate me -y and
Jhewing mercy unto thoufands in them that
love me, and keep my commandments.
CINGULAR is the treatment which the serm,
commandment whence thefe words are ^^^'
taken has received in the world. Since,
while fome corrupt Chriftians, (as ye have
already been apprized) fenfible of the per-
petual teftimony it bears againft their prac-
tices, have endeavoured to obliterate it from
E 2 the
52 On vijiting the Iniquities of the
the table ; thofe without the church urge
againft the portion of it which I have now
read to you, the charge of palpable injuftice,
as threatening to infli6t on the innocent the
punifhment due to the crimes of others.
This charge hath been met by the fervants
of the Gofpel in different manners j moft
of which, it muft be acknowledged, are
calculated to afford but little fatisfadion ;
and the one which, indeed, obviates every
objedion againfl revelation that can be
drawn from its containing fuch a menace,
by proving that natural religion is attended
with the fame difficulty, feems to do little
more than change the fliouider which bears
the burthen.
As no paiTage through which an inroad
can be made on our faith ought to be
negledied ; and although the Lord give not
account of any His doings, yet if we can
prevent His name being blafphemed through
ignorance, or which is but the fame
thing, prevent others from charging Him
foolilhly to their own condemnation, it
9 furely
Fathers on the Children. SZ
furely becomes us both in piety and charity serm.
io to do; I fliall employ this difcourfe in •^^^*
reviewing before you the chief of thoCe
interpretations of the paflage of the text,
by which it has been imagined, the objec-
tions brought againll it might be removed ;
and pointing out in each that in which it
appears deficient, lay before you what I
conceive to be a fufficient anfwer to the
charge of injuftice, and ftate what on an at-
tentive perufal of the circumftances of the
declaration made in this law, and repeated on
another occafion, ieems to be the only true
ground of it.
Previous to this, however, it may pro-
perly be recommended to your attention,
that the very dod:rine now fo ftrongly ob-
je(fled to was currently believed through
all antiquity : the noblefl: compofitions of
Greece and Rome advert to it as univerfally
acknowledged ; the eaftern tales and the
weftern fragments contain it; and it was
left to the penetration of more modern In-
fidels to except againfl revelation, for fup-
E 3 pofing
54 On vijiting the Iniquities of the
SERM. pofing the exigence of a particular of the
^i,J^* divine government, which has continued
vifible to everj obferver, from the days of
Adam to our own.
This premifed ; among thofe who have
repHed to the cavils raifed againft this doc-
trine, fome of great name have fuppofed,
that the vifitation threatened is to be re-
trained in its intention to the punifhment
of national offences ; and the divine admi-
niftration with regard to the peculiar people
of God, hath been thought to favour this
interpretation. The fa(5t that God does thus
vifit national departures from righteoufnefs
on fucceeding generations, cannot jufl-ly be
difputed. But is this ground for arguing,
that He does not vifit thofe of individuals
in like manner ? Neither does there appear
lefs injuftice in punifhing one body of men
for the iniquity committed by another body,
than in vifitins; on one individual the crimes
of another ; and the hiflory of the chofen
people affordeth, perhaps, as many, poffibly
more inftances of the latter than of the
former.
Fathers on the Children. £$
former. The trefpafTes of Solomon were serm.
vifitcd on his fucceirour; and thofe of Ahab ^^^'
on all his poftcrity. While fa(fls, which
are every day feen in the world, coniift not
with this hypothefis : iince we fee children
fufFering in the little regard they receive, in
penury, in difeafe of body, and even in
weaknefs of intelledt, the confequences of
their father*s vices and ill condudl. Neither
on fiich only as follow the bad example fet
them by their parents, and evidently merit,
by walking in the fame evil ways, the
chaflifements they undergo, do thefe evils
fall : others of upright charadiers may be
feen ftruggling with difficulties and fuffer-
ings, arifing from the mifbehaviour of their
ancellours ; a truth which is equally deci-
five againft another interpretation of the
menace; that which would confine it only
to the wicked defcendants of wicked men.
Inftead, therefore, of flriving to devife
limits for what is in the commandment de-
nounced generally and without limitation,
let us confider what will be the neceffary
E 4 con"
5 6 On viftting the hii qui ties of the
SERM. confequences of allowing the fadt which
^^'^' feems in the law itfelf to be fuppofed, and
is by experience fufficiently eftablifhed j that
in the courre ot the divine government, the
vilitations of God for fin reach even to the
defcendants of finners. In reply to every
thing which the advocates for what they
ckll natural religion can f-iy, on fuch a doc-
trine being maintained by revelation, what
I before obferved, that the difficulty afFeds
the caufe they pretend to efpoufe, no Icfs
than it docs ours, is a fufficient anfwer;
and therefore, whether a fatisfadory account
of fuch a mode of proceeding can be by us
rendered or not, as in aiferting it's reality
revelation hath only ftated a fad: difcernible
by every obferver, no good objedion can,
on this ground, be raifed againft the divine
origin of the Scriptures. Which point
being fecured, together with the following,
that although through the fmall extent of
our knowledge, particular parts of the divine
adminiftration may feem inconfiftent with
the principles of righteoufnefs which muft
pervade it, yet fince the perfedion of the
great
Fathers on the Children. ^j
great Governour is an infinite pledge that serm.
this can be appearance only, we may ven- ^^^'
ture to affign what we think may tend to
elucidate the point in queftion ; lince, if we
fucceed not, there is ilill no mifchief done^
Under this confi deration, then, I will call
your attention more particularly to the cafe
of thofe who fafFer under evils confequcnt
on the mifcondud: of their parents, con-
ceiving it may be (hewn, that they have no
juft caule to murmur at this appointment
of Providence.
Firft, however, let it be obferved, that
nothing having been declared as to the
dire<flion of the infliction, but the Lord
having left it entirely undecided, whether
the vifitation fhall overtake an immediate,
or a diflant defcendant of the finner ; whe-
ther it Iliall fall on one branch, or on all
his pofterity ; thefe circumftances remain
open to be determined according to the
various charaders of the defcendants them-
felves. Thus the good condu6l of fome
may prevail to caufe the execution of the
fentenc€
On vijiting the Iniquities of the
fentence to be deferred for a time j as the
humiliation of the Ifraelitifli monarch Ahab
obtained from the divine mercy, that the
evil fhoLild not be brought on in his days ;
and the forefeen great flagitioufnefs of
others mark theirs for the years of accumu-
lated vengeance ; as it fared with that gene-
ration of whom our blelTed Lord declared,
the blood of all the prophets fhed from the
foundation of the world fhould be required.
As to the cafe of thofe on whom, under
the general appointment, the curfe on the
tranfgrefhons of their fathers may fall ; if
their own characfters be vicious, thefe evils
form that courfe of correction for which
their condud: itfelf calls ; and whether they
be ignorant or fenfible of their origin, afford
them admonitions which may be turned to
their higheft benefit. For in the former
cafe, not being confcious of any other
fource, they may confider them as the juft
recompence of their own vices, by which
they are warned to repentance ; and in the
latter, feeling the extenfive mifcries confe-
quent
Fathers on the Children, 59
quent on fin, they thence receive an earneft serm.
call to turn into the right way, Icaft by m*
flighting the wrath already gene forth, by
contemning the proofs they have already
received of the weight of God's judge-
ments, they, by the hardnefs of their hearts,
encreafe it, and caufe to be heaped on them-
felves complete deflrudlion. And if they
be of virtuous difpofitions, there is, in the
vifitation of their father's iniquity, only
prepared for them that flate of trial, out of
which they fhall come like gold from the
furnace, purified, and fit for the mafter's ufe.
Whether, too, thefe laft difcern or overlook
the real origin of the fufFerings they under-
go, they will yet tend to confirm their fouls
in the work of righteoufnefs. Under the
former fuppofition, their perception of the
dreadful evils of fin clinging even to the
defcendants of the offenders, will make them
look on the ways of vice with flill greater
horrour and averfion ; and under the latter,
confidering themfelves as under the proba-
tion of their all-wife and merciful Creatour,
that He may do them good at their latter
epd,
6o On vijidtig the h^iquities of the
SERM. end, they will acquire from the contempla-
^11- tion of the courfe in which they are en-
gaged, and of the crown of glory and of
happinefs which they may gain by con-
quering, frcfli ardour, and an encreafe of
^ refokition to fight the good fight. So that,
in truth, this one vifible meafure of the
divine government of vifiting the iniquity
of the fathers upon the children, is the
ground of much of that correction for the
amendment of tranfgreflburs, and of that
difcipline for the improving of the virtuous
with which this life abounds.
And what if I were to fay, that it is too
the caufe of the whole human race being
in that ftate in which they appear ? If any
man be otherwife minded, let him difclofe
whence are derived the general evils of this
ftate, but from the curfe pronounced on
our firfl: father's tranfgreffion; the effects
of which endure even yet : for by that we
were delivered into the bondage of corrup-
tion under v/hich we groan and travail in
pain together until now. And He, by
whofe
Fathers on the Children, 6 1
whofe fentence we were fubjecfled unto it, sERM.
hath, m the commandment before us, de- m*
clared Himfelf to thofe who are acquainted
with the hiilory of Adam's fall, to be the
fame Being who ftill vifiteth on the genera-
tions of the earth, the trefpafs of its firfl
inhabitant.
Herein, then, behold the very light in
which this declaration of the Lord's vifit-
ing the iniquity of the fathers upon the
children is to be viewed ; as expreiling a
chara(5tcr which eminently diftinguifhes the
living and true God from all pretended
deities ! Becaufe, in the firft place, none but
a permanent Being is equal to this work ;
none but One whofe counfels length of
time, or changes in the world, cannot ren-
der null : and, fecondly, fince the fad:s
their felves are vilible and ftrong, in proof
that, under whofe government foever the -
world be, this is done, the declaration thus
made by the God- of Abraham, Ifaac, and
Jacob, is a claim to His own fignature as
the moral Governour of the world, whofe
judge-
6z On vifitiJig the Iniquities of the
SERM. judgements are all in the earth, and whofe
^i^* hand is upon all the inhabitants thereof.
Moreover, that fuch is the intention of
it, may be concluded from the declaration
being placed in this commandment, where
the oppolition between Jehovah and idols is
expreifed, and its being repeated on another
fingular and mofl remarkable occafion, when
the Lord pafTed by before Mofes, and pro-
claimed the name of the Lord. — ** The
Lord, The Lord God, merciful and graci-
ous, long-fuffering, and abundant in good-
nefs and truth, keeping mercy for thou-
fands, forgiving iniquity, and tranfgreilion,
and fin, and that will by no means clear
the guilty : vifiting the iniquity of the
fathers upon the children, and upon the
children*s children, unto thethird and fourth
generation.'*
Behold, then, this charafteriftick noticed
in the very proclamation of the name of
The Lord ! Its merely being there would
of itfelf be nearly a fufficient proof that it
is
Fathers on the Children. ()7
is repeated with the intention I have fug- serm.
gefted : while, if it be compared with the m.
divine judgements which we fee in the
world, we fhall be convinced, that it be-
longeth unto Him ; and that there is a
peculiar degree of propriety in the very
paiTage of this law, againfl which many
opponents of revelation have fo wifely
pointed their objecftions. For, look to
that nation to which this law was parti-
cularly given, and in His dealings with it,
ye will fee this charadler particularly exem-
plified. " But it fhall come to pafs," faid
Mofes, ** if thou wilt not hearken unto the
voice of the Lord thy God, that as the
Lord rejoiced over you to do you good, and
to multiply you ; fo the Lord will rejoice
over you to deflroy, and to bring you to
nought : and ye fhall be plucked off from
the land whither thou goefl to pollefs it :
and the Lord fhall fcatter thee amonp; all
people from the one end of the earth unto
the other; and among thefe nations (halt
thou find no eafe, neither (hall the fole of
thy foot have reft,'*
That
64 O^ vifiting the Iniquities of the
That the poflerity of thefe people are
now in the fituation thus predicted, we our-
felves are eye witnelles 5 and we fee them
lliil fuitering under that vilitation of God
and His Chrifl: which their forefathers de-
fied, when they denied the Holy One and
Juft : Him to whom Mofes had given them
a charge in the name of the Lord, that they
fliould liflen on pain of its being required
of them, and cried, " His blood be on us,
and on our children.** Or extend your ob-
fervation to the fituation of mankind in
general, national or private; ye will ftill
perceive the judicial infli(5lions from the
Governour of the v/orld reaching unto the
third and fourth generation of them that
hate Him.
This ordinance is fo deeply imprinted on
His works, that in feveral cafes the confti-
tution of the world muft be altered to pre-
vent its being executed. Yet it is io exe-
cuted, that there is no room afforded for
the taunting proverb once ufed by the people
of Ifrael, " The fathers have eaten four
grapes.
Fathers o?i the Children, 65
grapes, and the children's teeth are fet on serm.
edge." For all fouls being the Lord's, ^^'*
whatever temporary evils any man may
meet in the fituation in which he is placed
under the general adminiflration of Provi-
dence, the contending with them is but the
duty of his appointed poll ; and according
to his performance of that duty (hall be his
final lot. We may be able, perhaps, to
difcover what may be called the natural
origin of the fufferings which a wicked
man at prefent undergoes in his father's
mifcondud ; but the unhappinefs which he
feels from them is due to his own iln, of
which, if it prevail on him to repent, and
to do that which is lawful and right, in his
righteoufnefs which he hath done, he fhall
live. In like manner, as I before obferved,
although the evil efFedls of a wicked an-
ceftour's tranfgreffion may yield the parti-
culars of a righteous defcendant's probation,
yet they operate to a purpofe very different
from his defirucflion j for although his an-
ceflour died in his iniquity, he in his
jighteoufnefs fhall furely live, Still the
VOL. II. ? inenace
66 On vifiting the Iniquities of the
SERM. menace of the law is executed, and the
^^^' hand which ruleth over us appears in the
fa6l of vifiting the iniquity of the fathers
upon the children, unto the third and fourth
generation j yielding, although not a fingu-^
lar, j^\ 2l ftrong inftance of the unfpeakable
fuperiority which revelation manifefts in
the truth of its ftatements over the pretended
fagacity of ftich as are forward to carp at
thofe parts of it, the juftnefs of which they
cannot immediately defcry from their own
deficiency in obfervation, in reafoning, and
in information, by proving that had not
this, of which they complain as an hard
faying, been attributed unto God, one par-
ticular of the government of the God of
nature would have been omitted to be
afcribed unto Jehovah in the Scriptures;
and fuggefting to every man who may, at
any time, find himfelf inclined to become
an objed;or, to make ufe of time, confidera-
tion and caution, ere he doth fo, leaft it
turn only to his own confufion.
For
Fathers an the Children. ^^
For oiirfelves the contemplation of the serm.
threatning, and of the perpetual execution ^^^'
of it on thofe who have not entertained an
effedlual dread of it, is well calculated to
deter us from trefpaffing againfl the Lord
our God.
We none of us would wifh to be o^iven
over to a reprobate mind, and inftead of
receiving correction for our offences here,
have our punifhment referved to another
flate, where, if we fuffer at all, we muft
fufFer everlaflingly. Yet, if our iniquities
be vilited while we are on earth, in what
one method can we be punifhed without our
neareft and deareft connections participating
in our fufferings ? Bodily fuffer ings, and
mental vexation, are the afflicStions the moil
confined to our own perfons, yet in how
great meafure are men's families involved
in the confequences of thefe ! Even with-
out fuppofing that the uneafinefs of a man*s
mind has the effed:. of fouring his temper,
and thereby interrupting the peace, and de-
ftroying the comfort of all who dwell with
F 3 him,
68 On vijtting the htiquities of the
him, though this, ye are fenfible, be no
uncommon cafe ; the vifible diftrefs of a
parent will naturally affedt, in fome degree
or other, the happinefs of his children;
and in nearly all cafes this diftrefs muft
arife from fomething in which they are in-
terefted, and then they partake ftill further
in the vifitation of his iniquities. In thofe
inftanccs in which men fuffer for their
tranfgreflions in their bodily health, their
families do, in like manner, feel a part of
their afflictions, not only where they draw
their fupport from their parent's labour,
but where ftill continuing plentifully fup-
plied while he is confined by ficknefs,
they yet experience much trouble and
anxiety, neceilarily occafioned by the help-
Icfs ftate in which the head of the family
lies. This, however, is confidering the
efFeds of the vifitation as confined within
the narrowefi: hmits. Look abroad into the
world, and mark but fome of the daily in-
ftances which occur, of families plunged into
diftrefs by the tranfgreflions of the heads of
them, of wretchednefs entailed on them by
thci^
Fathers o?j the Children. 69
their intemperance and iniquities. If, from serm.
the profligacy of a father, the education of ^^^'
a child be negledled, fo that he is unable
to obtain a provifion for himfelf, but is
obliged, having no patrimony to inherit, to
pafs his days in penury and dependence,
does he not fuffer through his father's
offences ? If, through the dilTolutenefs of a
parent's life, debility of conftitution, or
chronical difeafes, be entailed on his defcen*-
dants, from whofe trefpalTes flow all the
miferies which they fuffer from pain and
ficknefs but their parents ?
No longer, therefore, let us imagine, that
our breach of any of the divine laws con-
cerns no one but ourfelves j but remember,
that when ye difobey the commandments of
the Lord, ye are inflidiing a wound upon
the hearts of thofe whom, in the hours of
cool confideration, ye would pronounce to
be beyond all others dear to you. When
temptation arifes, turn your thoughts from
the plcafure that folicits your indulgence to
the evils that may arife from it in the fuf-
F 3 ferings
70 On vifiting the Iniquities of the
SERM. ferings of thofe whofe prefent innocence,
III- and whofe dependence on yourfelves plead
for your regard, and cry aloud for your
forbearance. And efpecially as to the crime
forbidden by this commandment, let the
ceafelefs earneftnefs with which the votaries
of idolatry flrive to extend its dominion,
meet, on your part, that vigilance with
which ye fliould, in wifdom, avoid the in-
dignation of an Almighty Being, Who pro-
feffes Himfelf jealous of His own honour.
Let the recollection of the charge which all
men have received, to honour the Son even
as they honour the Father, teach you not
to give the glory of Chrifi: to another, by
feeking the mediation of any fuch with
God, any more than that of the Father by
worfliipping another. Neither, on the other
iide, omit to recolledl the encouragement
holden out in the words of the text, to love
the Lord, and keep His commandments, in
the afllirance, that in His fliithful fervants
He flieweth mercy unto thoufands. An
inflance of this moft tranfcendently glorious
hath He given in providing a Saviour for
the
Pat hers on the Children, 'Jt
the whole hiimaa race, in the family of serm.
faithful Abraham : by following whofe ^ J_J^
example, and feparating ourfelves from the
corruptions prevailing around us, we may
draw down the divine blelling on our de-
fcendants and conned:ions, and caufe our-
felves, in fome meafure, to be conformed to
the image of our Mafter, in Whom all the
families of the earth arc bleffed.
f 4 SER-
SERMON IV.
ON PERJURY AND PROFANE SWEARING.
Matt. v. 22, 34, 35, ^6.
^gain, ye have heard that It hath been /aid
by them of old time^ Thou Jhalt not for-
fwear thyfelf but JJoalt perfonn unto the
Lord thine oaths. But I fay unto you^
Swear not at all ; neither by Heaven ; for
Jt IS God's thro7ie : nor by the earth ; for
it is His footfool : tjeither by ferufale7n ;
for it is the city of the great King. Nei-
ther fjalt thou fwear by thy head, becaufe
thou ca?]ji not make one hair white or
black,
pREQUENTLY do we hear much dif- serm.
approbation and regret exprelTed at the ^^*
multitude of oaths which the laws of our
country now require to be taken, and the
encreafe
74 O// Perjury and prof a?je Swearing,
SERM. encreafe annually added to that multitude^
iv- as well as at the irreverend manner in which
they are adniiniftered : and juft is the cen-
fure thus exprefled, and important the rea-
fons againft rendering thus common what
ought to produce the deepeft impreffion.
But fuch cenfure can come with little grace,
fuch reafons can have but little weight
from the mouth of any one who refrains
not to appeal to Heaven on every trifling
occafion, and challenge the divine vengeance
on himfelf if he perform not ad ions the
moft trivial. Here may we ufe the apoftle's
mode of reafoning : Thou who fayeft the
folemnity of an oath ought not to be pro-
phaned, dofl thou fwear commonly ? Thou
who teacheft that men ought, with reve-
rence, to appeal to the judgement of God,
dofl thou call for the exercife of it at every
turn in converfation ? True it is, that the
danger of perjury is greatly encreafed by
the multiplication of oaths, and the dread
of the juftice of God much leffened by
fuch repeated appeals unto it as are now
made not only in every court of juftice, but
in
On Perjury and prof ane Swearing. *j-^
in every office of the revenue. But is there SERM,
lefs danger of your committing this fin iv.
when your whole difcourfe is replete with
oaths, or does not your calling for the
curfes of God on yourfelf, and all around
you, demonftrate, that the jufl avv^e of them
is already rooted out of your mind ?
The confideration of thefe queflions will
difclofe to us the ground of that amplifica-
tion of the third commandment, which our
Lord gave in the w^ords of the text. He
knew how much men are difpofed to re-
ftrain the meaning of a law within th-c
narroweft compafs, and take a proportionate
latitude in their practice j perfuading them-
felves, that by the breach of a formal oath
alone can they be implicated in the guilt of
taking the Lord's name in vain ; and He
hath given us a lelTon which will meet all
thofe futile pleas by which men endeavour
to evade the charge of criminality, when
cenfured for the profane introduction of
any kind of oath on common or trifling
occafions. It is the application of this
5 leflbn
76 On Perjury and profane Swearings
SERM. lefTon to pradlices moil fhamefully difgrace-'
IV- ful to thofe who call Chrift their Mailer,
that I mean to make the bulinefs of the
prefent difcourfe.
Now the guilt of the crime before us, in
all its various degrees, from deliberate per-
jury to wanton fwearing, arifes from the
nature of an oath; the taking of which is,
in reality , an a6l of religion, being an ap-
peal to God, as to Him before whom all
hearts are open, and Who, through His
almighty power, is able, and by His effen-
tial juftice is inclined, to punifli deceit and
falfehood : part, or the whole of which
perfe61:ions, are impliedly, and blafphem-
oufly denied by any one, who calls Him to
witnefs a promife or an affertion which is
falfe. Confider, therefore, the extreme pre-,
fumption of a creature, who dares to deny
the perfe(fl:ion of the Creatour of all ! Is
this, indeed, any thing lefs than mocking
at His powTr, than challenging Him to
manifeft His juftice ? Do but once infix
in your minds this true notion of perjury,
and
On Perjury and profane Swearing, 77
and it will be eafy to conceive the enormity serm;.
of thofe commiffions of it, which are fo iv.
common that we ceafe to fhudder at them,
and are more than half difpofed to allow '
the juftice of the pleas fet up m their de-
fence.
I have not, indeed, heard that any one
has yet been fufficiently hardy to offer any
general defence for thofe wretches who
willingly forfwear themfelves in a court of
juftice : the j unification of this crime is,
perhaps, never undertaken but before the
companions of it. But is it the fame with
thofe oaths which are taken in the courfe
of trade, or to qualify thofe who take them
for an office ? Yet is the Almighty called
on as the Avenger of thofe who fwear
falfely in thefe cafes at all lefs than He is in
the former ? Or is He to be mocked and
impofed on by a quibble ? Is not coming
before Him otherwife than in finglenefs of
heart, than in purity of purpofe, an abomi-
nation, an infiJt ? and will this diminifh
the guilt of perjury ? When the fraudulent
merchant.
7^ On Perjury and prof ane Swearing,
SERM. merchant, to evade the cuftom due, fvvears
^^' to the truth of a falfe entry, or feigned
tranfport of his goods. What idea can he
entertain of that Being whofe name he thus
takes in vain, if he imagine He will hold
him guiltlefs ? Muft he not, in the lan-
guage of holy writ, think Him even fuch
an one as His felf ? For if he conceive that
He has wifdom to penetrate his duplicity,
^d juftice to punifh it; if he apprehend
that God will reprove him, and fet before
him the things which he hath done ; Is he
not rufhing, with his eyes open, into mifery
with which he muft dearly pay for the
fmall pittance he faves, by pledging his
falvation for a lie ? Or will the miferable
fubterfuge of employing another, ignorant
of the truth, to take the oath at which his
felf trembles, avail to conceal his iniquity
from the eye of Heaven ? Is not the facred
name of the Lord ftill ufed to give credit
to a falfity; and advantage taken of the
folemnity of an appeal to God to carry on,
undifcovered, a fraud upon thofe who be-»
lieve in Him ?
But
On Perjury and profane Swearing, ^9
But the words of the text have refpe6^ SERM.
not only to oaths concerning things aheady iv.
done, but to vows and promifes of deeds
ytt future. Thcfe, it was faid, even to
thofe of old time, that they muft keep;
and how may fuch among them who did '
fo, rife up in judgement againft thofe who,
under a purer difpenfation, with more
knowledge, and againft ftronger fandiions,
make light of the engagements which they
have called upon the Lord to witnefs !
Every man who is fworn into an ofHce,
formally appeals to his Creatour for the
fidelity with which he will difcharge the
duties of it J and every one who takes an
oath of allegiance to his fovereign docs the
fame as to the fincerity with which he per-
forms that obligation. Yet how little do
we think of the folemnity of thefe engage-
ments when the day of entering into them
is over ! This forgetfulnefs is not confined
to thofe who, with no other purpofe than
that of reaping the emoluments flowing
from it, intrude themfelves into any pub-
lick
8o On Perjury and profane Swearing,
lick employment they can, and then care
not how the duties are neglected, provided
they continue to enjoy the honours, or re-
ceive the profits of it; thefe deferve not
the warning : but there are who would
refled: with horrour on the commiffion of
perjury, yet appear to live in total infenfibi-
lity of that perpetual breach of their vows,
of which they are guilty in not conforming
to the engagements into which they entered
when their offices were conferred on them.
Hence, in no fmall meafure, are derived
that relaxation of vigilance often complained
of in publick offices ; the corruption of
difcipline in our army and navy, which
has once brought the nation to the brink of
ruin ; and the dilatorinefs of procedure,
which the fuitors in our courts of law find,
protracfts their caufes to an immoderate
length ; and what is more to be lamented
than all, hence fp rings that inattention to
the manner in which they perform their
facred duties, too often obfervable in the
parochial clergy, by which, in lieu of pro-
curing a full attendance at their churches,
they
On Perjury and prof erne Swearing, S^i
they do, by their uninterefting difcourfes,
the iinfkilfuhiefs of their reading, or their
own irregularity of attendance, and appa-
rent want of devotion, caufe, in their
parifhioners, a backwardnefs to refort to
airembhes where they meet with fo much
to difpleafe, until they entirely lofe the habit
of repairing to the congregation, and thus
either become a prey to fedaries and fana-
ticks, or gradually lofe all fenfe of religion,
and link both theirfelves and their families
from (what, had they been duely attended
to in the miniftration of religious inftruc-
tion, they perhaps might have continued
through life) fober chriftians, into little
better than pefts of fociety. Let it not,
however, be thought that the incumbent or
curates of the church are the only officers
of a parifh to whom fuch forgetfulnefs of
their engagements may be objected. Mofl
flagrant are what (might in many cafes be
called) the annual perjuries of church-
wardens, who being.yearly officers, have not
even to plead the poor excufe, that the obli-
gations they entered into are, through length
VOL. II, G of
Si On Perjury and profane Swear i?ig.
SERM. of time, obliterated from their memories;
^^' yet not unfrequently fet an example of the
very negled: it is one duty of their office to
Cenfure ; that of attending the alTemblies of
the church. Does it not then behove thefe,
and all others, who enter on their employ-
ments with a folemn appeal to God, to viiit
their unfaithfulnefs in the dilll^.arge of
them, to recoiled: in how deep guilt they
are implicated, when they thus caft behind
them the remembrance of their oaths ? Nor
is this point leafl deferving of the aicention
of thofe who are liable to be called to deter-
mine on the guilt or innocence of others in.
the capacity of jurors, fince experience
proves that it is poffiDle for men Handing
in thefe chara6ters, entirely to forget the
oath they have taken but a few hours be-
fore, and (hut their eyes to truths that every
bye-ftander can defcry.
As to the other cafe I mentioned, in
which tnen think fo little of the folemnity
of the engagement into which they have
entered, when they have fworne to pay true
allegiance,
On Perjury and profane Swearing, ^"^
allegiance to their fovereign, furely the serm.
guilt of the perjuries thus committed is not ^v.
forgotten in the terrifick judgements we
fee poured on the nations, who have re-
belled againft thofe whofe authority they
had promifed on their oaths X.0 refped:.
How many thoufands in the neighbouring
countries of France and Ireland have been
fent to their account with this crime upon
their heads ! and what do they not fufFer
who yet continue on earth involved in guilt
.nd mifery ! Should not, then, thefe things
be an admonition to all in this country who
have begun to lin after their example ? For
were they all (from thofe who are fully
engaged in the confpiracy, to deflroy every
valuable in the country, to thofe who from
vanity, ignorance, folly, or private pique,
promote by their influence, or converfation,
the caufe of fedition,) to reflect that they
are abfolutely breaking the vows they have
made before the Lord, and trampling under
feet the oath by which they have bound
themfelves to behave as faithful fubjeds,
(which fidelity mufl: at leafl include, obedi-
G a encc,
8 4 On Perjury and profane Swearing.
SERM. ence, attachment, and refpedl,) Could they,
ly* (unlefs their hearts are hardened by judicial
infatuation) without felf reproach, and all
the rniferies of minds felf-condemned, and
expecfling the reward of their iniquities,
continue to difregard the folemn engage-
ments into which they have entered, and
impioufly dare His vengeance. Who will
not hold them guiltlefs that take His holy
name in vain ?
It is not, however, even an equal portion
of mankind who are expofed to temptation,
to break oaths taken in the courfe of trade,
or thofe of office ; yet no fmall number of
the others are ch.argeable with the crime of
tranfgrefling the commandment referred to
in the tcyX. For what is calling God to
witnefs, what are vows made in terms as
ftrong as language can fupply, which are
not followed by a performance of the things
promifed, but taking the name of the Lord
in vain ? Neither are the excufes commonly
made for thcfe profane exclamations of any
worth : " I did not mean any harm," it is
faid,
9
On Perjury and profane Swearing, 85
faid, or " I was only in jeft." Can the serm.
name of the Sovereign of the univerie be ^^•
trifled with without harm ? Or is God to
b e died on to witnefs a jeft ? Let not,
therefore, the phrafes, ** I declare to God,
I vow to God," and the like, have any
place in your common difcourfe : but re-
membering, that by your words ye are to
be juftified, and by your words ye are to be
condemned, keep yourfelves innocent from
offences which, however trifling they may
appear to a corrupted world, will be re-
quired at the day of judgement.
But if thefe inadvertent afl^everations be
thus criminal, what, ye will fay, is to be
thought of the fl:ill more, much more
fhocking pradiice of common fwearing ?
To this it mufl be replied, that fince, ac-
cording to the obfervation of Solomon,
** in the multitude of words there wanteth
not fin," in the multitude of oaths there
mufl: be a fl:ill greater abundance thereof.
For as falfehood is that of which there is
the moft imminent danger in many words,
G -^ fo
IV.
86 On Perjury and profane Swearing,
SERM. fo in many oaths the danger of lying is at
once changed into that of perjury. For
^his laft is the crime fpecifically committed
when God is appealed to for the confirma^
tion of any thing which is not true.
Neither is it folely when His holy name
is mentioned that the Lx^rd is appealed to,
our blefled Saviour has taught us that
fwearing by any thing facred to Him is, in
fa61:, fwearing by Him. ** Whofo, there-
fore, fhall fwear by the altar, fweareth by
it, and by all things thereon \ and whofo
fliall fwear by the temple, fweareth by it,
and by Him that dwelleth therein. And
he that fhall fwear by heaven, fweareth by
the throne of God, and by Him that fitteth
thereon." Ingenious, indeed, do fome men
fhew themfelves in devifing oaths, hoping
thereby to efcape the guilt of perjury, be-
caufe what they fwear by is a thing of
nought. But fwearing being an adt of re-
ligion, to perform it before any other than
the true God, is giving the honour due unto
Him to another j and that too, in an in-
ftancc
On Perjury and pro feme Swearing, 87
ilance efpecially noticed by the prophets, serm.
Thus Ifaiah ftates it to be a purpofe of God's iv.
corredion of the people of Judah, *' that ^'^^'^^
he who blefleth himfelf in the earth, fhall
blefs himfelf by the God of truth ; and he
that fweareth in the earth, fhall fwear by
the God of truth." And Amos threatened
thofe who fwore by idols thus : ** They
that fwear by the fin of Samaria, and fay.
Thy God, O Dan, liveth ; and the manner
of Beerfheba liveth; even they fhall fall,
and never rife up again.*' And by Zepha-
niah the Lord threatened ** to cut off them
that fwore by the Lord, and that fwore by
Malchom." Futile, therefore, is the plea
ufed in thefe cafes, that the name of God
is not taken in vain; and well does the
authour of the book of Wifdom argue
in the parallel inflance of thofe who fwear
wittingly by idols. *' For," faith he, '* in-
fomuch as their trufl is in idols, which
have no life, though they fwear falfely, yet
they look not to be hurt. Howbeit, for
both caufes fhall they be juflly punifhed :
both becaufe they thought not well of God,
Q 4 giving
"^ On 'Perjury and profane Swear ifig,
SERM. giving heed unto idols, and alfo unjiiftly
fwore in deceit, defpiling holinefs. For it
is not the power of them by whom they
fwear, but it is the juft vengeance of fin-
ners, that punifheth always the offence of
the ungodly/* (Wifd. xiv. 29, 30, 31.)
Now if this be the cafe, as it mofi: furely
is. What may they dread who expofe them-
felves to this venpfeance in the moft darina:
manner, fandlioning the moft trifling things
they utter by an oath ! Or, if when men
fwear falfely by a thing of nought, they
fliall be puniflied even for the falfity of their
oaths, how much more fliall they ib when
they fwear by Him to w^hom this power of
punifliment belongs ? Yet are there multi-
tudes who fwear fo much, that *' their
talk maketh the hair ftand upright, and
their brawls make one flop his ears." Nor
is the crime confined to either age or de-
gree : children who can fcarcely lifp their
own names, are taught by the fad example
of their parents to profane that of their
Maker : and not Dnly thofe whofe deplorable
Ignorance
On Perjury and prof cme Sweari?jg, 89
Jgnorance might lead a favourable inter-
preter of their conduct to think, that they
know not what they do, but even many
who have information enough to make them
fenlible of all the guilt of what they utter,
fcarcely go through a fingle fentence with-
out mocking at the Majefty of Him before
whofe throne the moft glorious beings in
Heaven fall proftrate, and at whofe name
every knee fhould bow. Nay, fo widely
hath this tranfgreffion fpread, that fome of
thofe who are entrufted with the adminif-
tration of the human laws that exifl: againfl
it, are, to their fliame, guilty of the com-
miffion ; and thus what fhould be repreffed
by authority, is countenanced by thofe who
bear that authority.
Yet what is the teniptation to this great
ojRPence ? Can there be pleafure in fhocking
the ears of the fober, or corrupting the
converfation of the innocent ? Is alarming
the fears of the religious for your future
doom a mark of courage ? or not knowing
that there is a judgement to come, a proof
of
90 On Perjury and profane Swearing,
SERM. of learning ? Is endeavouring to emulate
. ^^* the loweft of mankind in a vicious prac-
tice to which the coarfenefs of their uncor-
red:ed manners particularly difpofes them,
a fign of liberal education, or an evidence
of polite breeding ? Or is difgufting the
ferious, and drawing on yourfelves the con-
tempt of the well-informed, and really
poliihed members of fociety, a teflimony
pf good fenfe ?
Thofe who are guilty of this mofl un-
reafonable and impious prad:ice, are wont
to urge in their defence, fometimes natural
warmth of temper, fometimes an uncon-
querable force of habit : of the £rfl: of
which pleas it may juftly be faid, that it is
invalid j of the other, that the thing ad-
vanced in defence is, in fad, an aggravation
of the crime. For if your heat of temper
continue fo uncorrected that you are not at
times fufficiently mafter of yourfelf to re-
train your tongue from wickednefs, to
whofe charge is this fault to be laid but to
your own, who have not yet acquired that
felf.
On Perjury and profane Swearing, 9 1
felf-reftraint which it is your duty to pofTefs ? s erm.
And if it be from habit that you fin, with iv.
what obftinacy mull: you have continued in
the repetition of this offence to be infenfible
of your own commiffion of it ! Shall,
then, the effedt of this obftinacy be ad-
mi ted as a plea for the pardon of it ? Or
in what page of the Gofpel do you find it
written, that a man may be forgiven, and
yet retain the offence ? Be not deceived %
God is not thus mocked ! If you be fin-
cerely defirous of breaking through a prac-
tice you are confcious is offenfive to Him,
your regret at finding yourfelf unable fo to
do, will urge you immediately to fuppli-
cate, with mofl humble earneflnefs, the
afliftance of Him who alone can give you
the power you want ; and fuch fincere fup-
plication His mercy will never rejecffc. And
confequently, on the purity of your own in-
tentions, on the integrity with which you
yourfelves behave, depends your deliver-
ance from the bondage of this fin. Let,
therefore, this honefly of intention, this
fairnefs of mind, be manifeffed in your
efforts
^Z On Perjury and profane Swearhig.
SERM. efforts for deliverance from habits of pro-.
^v* fane fpeech, whatever may be the phrafes
you are accuftomed to ufe.
I have now faid whatever be the phrafes,
becaufe fome of the mofl fliocking that can
be employed, are fometimes heard from the
mouths of perfons who appear ignorant of
their meanins:. Such are thofe in which the
blood and wounds of the divine Saviour of
the world are fworne by in an abridged
term for God's blood ; God's wounds ;
and God's life : for what can be more dif-
guflino- to the ears of a Chriftian, who
looks to his Saviour with love and reverence,
what more adverfe to the piety and grati-
tude he feels, than that the blood by which
he is cleanfed, the wounds by which he is
healed, or the life which was laid down
for him, fliould be lightly mentioned to
iignify the furprize, or exprefs the pailion
raifed by objeds common or unclean ! A
iimilar obfervation may be made on the
very reprehenfible pradice of pledging the
faith of a Chriftian on occafions the moft
trivial ;
On Perjury and profane Swearing, 93
trivial: for, in reality, what do we more serm.
than this when we fwear in the moft Iblemn ^^*
manner, and, with the Holy Gofpel in our
hands, atteil the truth of what we utter ?
In fine, to preferve ourfelves innocent in
all the points before us, it is abfblutely ne-
ceffiiry that we comply with the precept of
our Lord in the text, and ** Swear not at
all." Indeed, to do fo in any manner, im-
plies a confeffion of what is highly dif-
honourable to ourfelves, fince he who can-
not gain credit to his affertions but under
the fan d: ion of an oath, muft have given
flrong proofs of his want of general adhe-
rence to the truth : and until a man has,
by his conduct, taught others to difbelieve
him, he will be under no temptation to
tranforefs the commandment of his Saviour
but may let his Yea be Yea, and his Nay,
Nay.
Before I finifh, it is proper to obferve,
that no fmall part of the profane fpeeches
of the common fwearer confifts of curfes
rather
^4 ^^^ Perjury and prof ane Swearing,
SERM. rather than of oaths, and betrays not only
IV. irreverence towards God, but mahce and
bitternefs towards men : this interpretation,
indeed, the guilty often proteft againft ; but
can the tendernefs of his mind remain un-
bkinted who can utter execrations without
being fenfible of their meaning ? Thefe im-
precations, you would further fay, are as
often dired:ed againft the utterer himfelf as
againft another. True : but do not thofe
who accuflom themfelves to call for the
vengeance of God on themfelves, or thofe
they converfe with, grow lefs fenfible of
the terrours of that vengeance, and more
bold in daring the dani2:er of it ? And after
all the feeble attempts of the weak or the
wicked to defend this pra61ice. Can the
heart that fuggefls curfes be pure, or the
toneue that utters them be innocent ? As
this confideration fhould be impreffed on
every mind, fo fliould it to fome be flrength-
ened by an admonition, that with that ten-
dernefs of heart, and delicacy of fentiment,
which we more efpecially expedl in one
fex, the ufe of curfes in any fnape, or under
any
On Perjury and prof ane Swearing, or
any form of words, is totally inconfiftentj serm.
and that boldnefs in guilt, which fhocks us iv.
in a man, does, in a female, appear doubly ^^^^^"^^^^
difgufling.
Let not, however, what I have now faid
of the indelicacy of a woman's curiing and
fwearing weaken your recolledion of what
has been before repeated concerning the cri-
minality of the pradtice. Ye have feen
that it leads to the enormous crime of per-
jury, that it contains an infult to the Sove-
reign of the univerfe, however ye may en-
deavour to evade or modify the guilt of it.
Confider laftly, then, by whom are thefe
daring fpeeches uttered, thefe great words
I) fed ? This is a queftion fuggeiled to us
by the laft words of the text : " Neither
fhalt thou fwear by thy head, becaufe thou
canft not make one hair white or black/*
The experience we have of our own impo-
tence fhould, in all reafon, produce in us
humility and caution ; but we abandon both
when we take all reflraint from our tongues,
and.
ip6 On Perjury and profane Swearing.
]5ERM. and, as far as in our power, ufe the Lord's
i^' Heaven for thunder.
The inftanccs we have repeatedly heard
of men's fuddenly dying while uttering
padionate expreffions, fupply a fearful ad-
monition not to rifque ourfelves in a fituation
of mind fo little fitted to a departure from
the world; and, confequently, to ftrive
without delay to fubdue any warmth of
temper, to the attacks of which we are
confcious of being fubje(5t, and to check,
betimes, any empailioned expreffions of
which we have moft unadvifedly obtained
the habit. For this purpofe both the enor-
mity of the tranfgreffion, and the difficulty
of abftaining from it, when we are once
accuftomed to it, fliould be ferioully pon-
dered on : and more particularly the lefTons
on this point, given by the wife fon of
Sirach and St. James the apoille, will, by
their effed: on any mind not hardened pall
recovery, fully recompenfe frequent recol-
le6lion and earnell attention.
The
On Perjury and profane Swearing. §7
The former of thefe writers gives his SERM*
readers, in the 23d chapter of his ^ollec- ^J^^^^
tion, this admirable caution—** Hear, O
ye children, the difcipline of the mouth t
he that keepeth it fliall never be taken in
his lips : the finner fliall be left in his fool-
ifhnefs : both the evil I'peaker and the 'proud
fliall fall thereby. Accuflom not thy mouth
to fvvearing ; neither ufe thyftlf to the
naming of the Holy One. For as a fervant
that is continually beaten (hall not be without
a blue mark; fo he that fweareth, and
nameth God continually, fliall not be fault-
lefs. A man that ufeth much fvvearing
fliall be filled w^ith iniquity j and the plague
fliall never depart from his houfe i if he
fliall offend, his fin fhall be upon him : and
if he acknowledge not his fin, he maketh
a double offence : and if he fwear in vain,
he fhall not be innocent, but his houfe fhall
be full of calamities. There is a word that
is clothed about with death : God grant
that it be not found in the heritage of
Jacob : for all fuch things fhall be far from
the godly, and they fhall not wallow in
VOL. II. H their
9[? On Perjury and profane Swearing,
SERM. their fins. Ufe not thy mouth to intern*-
IV* perate fwearing, for therein is the word ot
fin. The man that is accuflomcd to oppro-
brious words, will never be reformed all
the days of his life." And St. James, in
the third chapter of his epiftle, writes thus :
** Behold, we put bits in the horfc*s mouths
that they may obey us ; and we turn about
their whole body. Behold alfo the fhips,
which though they be fo great, and are
driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned
about with a very fmall helm, whither-
foever the governor lijfteth ; even fo the
tongue is a little member, and boafteth great
things. Behold, how great a matter a little
fire kindleth ! and the tongue is a fire, a
world of iniquity : fo is the tongue among
our members, that it defileth the whole
body, and fetteth on fire the courfe of na-
ture, ^nd it is fet on fire of hell. For every
kind of beafts, and birds, and of ferpents,
and of things in the fea, is tamed, and hath
been tamed of mankind ; but the tongue
can no man tame : it is an unruly evil, full
of deadly poifon. Therewith blefs we God,
even
On Perjury and profane Swearing, 99
even the Father ; and therewith curfe we serm.
men, which are made after the fimihtude ^"^*
of God. Out of the fame mouth pro-
ceedeth blefling and curfing. My brethren,
thefe things ought not fo to be !"
H 2 SER.
SERMON V.
ON THE SABBATH.
ExOD. XXXV. 2.
Six days Jhall work be done, but on thefeventb
day there Jloall be to you an holy day, a
fabbath of rejl to the Lord.
T
HESE are the words of Mofes to the serm.
Ifraelites, enioinino- the obfervance of '^*
the Sabbath : not that the Sabbath was of
Mofes, but of the fathers. From the crea-
tion of the world was the feventh day hal-
lowed ; and the reafon given to the hoiife
of Jacob for keeping it holy, that it might
be a fign between God and themfelves, that
they might know that He was the Lord
their God, extends itfelf to other nations,
AS the knowledge of God is gradually dif-
H 3 fufed
•102 On the Sahbatb,
fufcd over the earth. Were the children of
Ifrael commanded to fandify the feventh
day, becaufe on it God refted from all His
work that He had created and made ? Are
we lefs inter efled in what was thus finifhed?
Do we tafte lefs of the bleflings of creation,
or receive lefs benefit from the feveral parts
of the world then ordered into being ?
Were they directed to hallow the Sabbath,
as a lign of their being feparated from the
reft of the nations, to the fervice of God ?
All who are baptized into Chrift, are alfo
of the Lord's peculiar people : or, laftly.
Was it eftablifhed as a preventive of apof-
tacy, to preferve them from forgetting Him
their Protecftor and Patron, and becomino-
partakers in the abominations of the people
that furrounded them ? We, too, have
need of being frequently reminded, that
here we are but on our way to another,
even an heavenly country ; our inheritance
in which we may lofe by entangling our-
felves with the affairs of this lif?. So that
every one of thefe reafons for dedicating
the feventh day to the duties of devotion,
applies
On the Sabbath, 103
applies to ourfelves with no lefs force than serm.
to the defcendants of Jacob : while the ^*
Utter forgetfulnefs of this which at prefent
prevails among multitudes, who lie under
the moft urgent obligations effectually to
remember it, and the mifchievous confe-
quences of their contagious example, call
for the moft fcrious admonitions againfl
negle6ling that obfervance, which forms a
diftinguifliing mark between thofe who have
renounced, and thofe who yet retain the
bdief of a God.
Let me not, therefore, call in vain for
your attention while I point out the fources
from whence are derived our obligations
religioufly to obferve the returns of this
day; and (hew how the feveral relations
which we bear to the Lord God, as His
creatures, as the redeemed of His Son, and
as the heirs of His promifed kingdom of
happiaefs, confpire to cncreafe the guilt of
negle6ling a fervice founded on thefe rela-
tions.
H 4
On
^^4 0,? the Sabbath,
On the firft of thefe points, then, the
obfervance of this day in acknowledgement
that ourfelves and the world around us re-
ceived our being from the omnipotent hand
of the Lord, it may be fairly aiked, Whe-,
ther, if we had even no further alTurance
than that of a flight tradition handed down
from our forefathers, that God had, at the
beginning, commanded mankind thus to
commemorate their creation, we could,
without bafe ingratitude, flight the fuggef-
tion ? For are the benefits which have been
thus conferred on us fo trivial, that we may
juftly infifl: on the mpfl exprefs proof of
an acknowledgement being required ere we
render it ? Or, on the other hand, is the
acknowledgement thus called for in itfelf
fo great, as to juflify our withholding it
but under abfolute demonflration of it's
having been authoritatively demanded ? Let
us invefliigate thefe quefl:ions in their order !
Here, theri, mufl: be taken into the ac^
count all the good which God hath done for
lis : not only the happinefs we have expe-
rienced.
On the Sabbath, 105
rienced, and all we do enjoy, but our capa- serm.
cities for future good, iince all thefe are v.
founded on the firft gift of exiftence, which
was previoufly neceffary to the reft.
Have ye not, then, repeatedly felt the
bleffings of life fufficiently to caufe your
hearts to exult in the enjoyment of it J
Have not your minds, on particular occa-
fions, been fo affected with the blifs ye
liave tafted, as to pour forth unpremeditated
acknowledgements of the goodnefs of that
Being who hath made provilion of fuch
happinefs for His creatures ? Have your
thoughts never expatiated on the faculties
with which ye are endowed, fo admirably
adapted to your well being, on the capacity
ye have of both recalling the paft, and an-
ticipating the future, lo as to make them
fubjedts of prefent pleafure, and draw from
them the moft beneficial lefTons of condud:?
Gifted with fpeech, and having all the
fofcial affecftions implanted in your breafts.
Have ye not from fociety, for which ye
are thus peculiarly formed, derived manifold
joys.
io6 On the Sabbath.
joys, and received ineftimabJe advantages ?
and in return for all thefe bleilings, What
expreffions of gratitude fhall we think too
great to be rendered unto Him, who firfk
breathed into the human noftril the breath
of life, and made man a living foul ?
Or, turn your eyes from yourfelves to
that portion of the creation with which ye
are furrounded j obferve the order, the
beauty, and the benefits refulting to your-
felves from the various parts of the material
world. Confider the wifdom and power
manifefted in adapting the lize, the relative
fituation, and the well-adjufted motions of
the earth, and the furrounding bodies, to
the produd:ion of thofe periodical changes
which are conftant without raifing difguft,
and varied without caufing confuiion. View
the innumerable obje(fls of wonder and de-
light prefented to our fight on the furface
of the earth, and in the boundlefs expanfe
of the firmament, and recoiled: that all the
necelTaries for our fupport, all the conveni-
ences for our cafe and comfort, are ulti-
mately
On the Sabbath. 107
mately derived from thefe works of our SERM.
great Creatour. — Then afk yourfelves, v.
Whether it becomes us to treat with fullen
inattention an appointment, which, we are
told, was at the firft made by Him, in
commemoration of the completion of thofe
very works in w^hich we fo largely partici-
pate ? Or, fince in acknowledgement of
that appointment, places of worfhip are
regularly opened, and numbers aflemble in
them on this day. Whether we can, with-
out the bafefl: ingratitude, negle6t to join
in the public facrificc of praife and thankf-
giving then offered to our firft, our greateil,
our conftant Benefa6lor ? There may be,,
indeed, though fuch are fcarcely prefent
here, men who feel no gratitude to God
for all they enjoy, to whom expreffions of
what His faithful fervants experience with
fo much joy and exultation in our Creatour,
are unintelligible : but though there be thus,
in every great houfe, vejGTels to difhonour as
well as veffels to honour, they are not wont
to be ranged in the fame apartment ; and it
therefore behoves all who woidd avoid the
difgraceful
loS- On the Sabbath.
SERM. difgraceful let of the former, to purge them-
^' felves from ingratitude and difobedience,
that being fandlified, and meet for the
Mafter's ufc, they may be prepared unto
every good work. Yet how can this be
done, unlefs fome feafons be fet apart for
rehgioiis meditation and inquiry ? Can the
impreflions which the world and its allure-
ments make on our minds be effaced, or
thofe which the leffons of religion already
received have made, be preferved by cafually
only turning our thoughts to points of feri-
oufnefs ? Will the reflection of a few mi-
nutes recover the fobriety of mind loft by
difTipation, or reflore the difpaflionate judge-
ment impaired by the heat of particular
purfuits ? Or to preferve a proper remem-
brance of the divine laws, and an effed:ual
fenfe of their fandions, is it fufficient to
recal them to our recoiled: ion at difrant in-
tervals only ? The daily experience of men
proves the contrary of all this ; while it
manifefts, too, that there may be an excefs
on the contrary part, and that a too frequent
j-ccurrence of religious obfervances, befides
being
On the Sabbath. 109
being incompatible with thofe labours whidi serm.
V.
the fentence of His heavenly Lawgiver has ^*
jnade neceflary to fallen man, kfiens the
iblemnity, and, confequently, diminiflies
the beneficial effects thereof; turning im-
prefTive rites, that properly regulated would
conduce to edification, into familiar and
empty ceremonies, yielding a covert to
hypocrify. Between thefe extremes, there-
fore, a mean muft be pitched on ; and who
can fay, there can be found a nearer point
to that than what the inltitution of the
Sabbath affords ? Who can fay, that as
there are now perpetually coming to our
knowledge new difcoveries in confirmation
of the wondrous truths of revelation, it
may not foon be difcovered, that one day
of refl in feven is mofl adapted to the na-
ture both of the animals man ufes in his
kbour, and of his own body, and beft cal-
culated to preferve, by its religious life,
that temperate warmth of piety in his
breaft, that neither burlls out into the fiames
of enthufiafm, nor dies away into the cold-
nefs of vainly-affeded philofophy ?
All
no On thi Sabbath,
SERM. All thefe queftions might be put, had
V- we nothing but a traditionary report for the
precept to hallow the feventh day ; but, \t\.
fad:, we have more, much more : for it
having been written by Mofes, ** that God
blelTed the feventh day, and fandified it ;
becaufe that in it He had relied from all
His works, which God created and made/*
All the miraculous evidence of the law and
the Gofpel becomes teftimony in proof of
the divine origin of this obfei'vance ; and
we know that the wifdom of the Creatour
Himfelf hath affigned to the human race
this fabbatical period for reft and reflcdion.
How then fhall we appreciate the prefump-
tion of thofe who flight, and much more
that of thofe who have altered this period?
For however infatuated wretches may pre-
tend not to believe; (and mere pretence it
is in moft of thofe who are not involved
in the utter darknefs of French ignorance,
their hearts fliuddering at the vengeance
which their tongues defy, and therefore f
fay) however they may, in the height o^
their abfurdity, pretend not to believe the
faered
On the Sabbath, 1 1 1
facred writings, as they have no pofitive serm.
evidence to oppofe to the ancient affertion v.
of this inftitution being divine, they muft,
by wilfully venturing on the chance of
counteracting an injunction of their Crea-
tour on a fubjed: {o particular, at beil con-
trad: the jriiilt of inoratitude for His firft
gift of life, for all the bleffings fince re-
ceived, all their capacities of improvement,
and their means of happinefs. Nay, they
mufl, by virtually denying the obligations
of creatures, in reality deny the exiftence
of their Creatour, and through their con-
dud affert, what their predecelTors in folly
faid in their hearts, " There is no God !**
Hitherto I have confidered the feventh
day as fandified only in remembrance of
the world being created by God : but as, in
addition to this, the Ifraclites were com-
manded to keep it holy as a fign between
the Lord and them, that they might know
He was the Lord who fandified them, fo
by us Chriftians it is further to be con-
fidered, as what it is called by the great
apoftle
112 On the Sabbath,
SERM. apoflle St. John, the Lord's Day. That
^* the firfl: difciples of our bleiTed Saviour
(hould be guided by the wifdom which
they received from above, to fix not on the
annual, not on the monthly, but on the
weekly return of that day on which their
divine Mailer triumphed over Death, to be
obferved in commemoration of the olorious
event, is a circumftance which, though
little noticed, furnifhes a flrong inflance of
the uniformity of the divine difpenfations.
For fimply by this appointment the pri-
maeval inflitution of the Sabbath was not
only in its fub fiance retained, and a feventh
day's reft given to men and to cattle, but as
at the Exodus the day of obfervance had
been removed to the fixth day of the week,
the patriarchal fabbath was now again re-
flored, all fubjugation to the Jewifh ritual
law w^as avoided, and no further burthen
was laid on the Gentiles than to commemo-
rate thofe bleffings in which they partake
equally with the lineal defcendants of Jacob,
creation and redemption. And can there
be any who acknowledge they have re-
ceived
On the Sabbath. 1 1 3
ceived thefe, yet are backward to exprefs serm.
their gratitude for them ? Can there be any ^•
who think abftaining from the profecution
of amufement, or of gain, during one day
in feven, too great a facrifice to be offered
in acknowledgement of that love by which
we may, if we will, be refcued from the
dominion of fin, and be redeemed from the
curfe of death ?
Many there are, it muft be acknowledged*
whofe condu6l fpeaks this language; whofe
more than carelefs inattention, their pre-
fumptuous negled: of the duties of this day
apparently declares, that they efleem the
mercies of God, the mediation of Chrift,
and the profped: of everlafting life of little
worth. Yet I think it may be afferted, that
the behaviour of no fmall portion of thefe
limple ones, however indefeniible in itfelf,
proceeds from being mifled either by an ill
conducted education, a weak imitation of
what is commonly called the fadiionable
world, that is, the profligate part of the
great, or by fome other caufe, from ever
VOL. II. I ferioufly
114 ^^^ ^^^ Sabbath,
fcrioufly confidering on the one hand, how
abfokitely inconfiftent with chriftianity the
not attending the alTembhes of the church
is, and on the other, of how httle avail can
be the mere form of attendance that is not
followed by a fuitable behaviour, which
behaviour would preclude every employ-
ment unbecoming the folemnity of the fea-
fon. Where fuch is the real caufe of
negle(ft, as I fhould hope in many instances
fuch it is, the minds of the guilty could
hardly remain unaffected on hearing the
fentiments which the great apoftle of the
Gentiles has exprefled in his epiftle to the
Hebrews on the fubjed:. Far from deem-
ing it a point of flight importance, he ap-
pears to confider negled: of the church as
but immediately preceding abfolute apoftacy
from chriftianity. Hear his own words :
*' Let us hold fafi: the profeifion of our
faith without wavering ; (for He is faithful
that promifed) and let us confider one ano-
ther to provoke unto love and to good,
works : 72ot forfak'mg the ajfembling our-
f elves together i as the manner of fame is;
hut
S
On the Sabbath » il^
hut exhorting one another, and fo much the serm.
more as yc fee the day approaching. For if v.
we fin wilfully after that we have received ^"""^^^^^
the knowledge of the truth* there remaineth
no more facrifice for fin.'* Here, ye fee,
the apoftle not only recommends the affem-
bling ourfelves together as a preventive of
declining from the faith, but flrongly inti-
mates, that the neglect of it is, in itfelf,
indicative of approaching apoflacy; and
what in its own nature is it lefs ? To ac-
knowledge and to confirm our faith in
God and Chrift, are purpofes for which we
meet in the church ; and do not thofe who
will not refort thither neglecl both thefe as
of little moment ? And how far is this re-
moved from treadins: under foot the Son of
God, counting the blood of the covenant,
wherewith they were fandtified an unholy
thing, and doing defpite to the Spirit of
Grace ? It is plain, from the words of St.
Paul, that he confidered Chriflians, in their
folemn afTemblies, as not only commemo-
rating pail bleflings, but anticipating that
fcene of glory which fhall burft on the
I 2 faithful
Ii6 On the Sabbath.
SERM. faithful followers of Chrift at the appear-
V' ance of their Lord, and as mutually drawing;
encouragement from them to obey the com-
mand they had received from the very per-
fonage they exped:, and be like unto fer-
vants waiting for their mafter. What,
then, is wilful abfence from fuch aflemblies
but a declaration of indifference as to that
bleffed hope, and the appearance of the
great God and our Saviour Jefus Chrifl ; a
breach of the charge of our Mafter, a re-
nunciation of the profped: of Chriflians ?
If any mian conceive, that the rew^ards of
the Gofpel are not worth his feeking, that
the remuneration promifed to the true dif-
ciples of Jefus is not equal to what he
Ihould in this world forfeit by behaving as
a member of the church, let him take his
portion where he has chofen . it : but let it
not be imagined, that any who have not
been careful to adl as followers of Chriil
in this world, fhall be crowned as fuch in
the next ; that any who have been back-
ward to profefs themfelves members of His
church in its deipifed ilate on earth, can in
juftice
On the Sabbath. i ry
juftice be acknowledged members of it in serm.
its triumphant flate in the Heavens. Judge v.
of this yourfelves : Is the offer of everlaft- ^'^'^^^
ing life in the Holy Scriptures made to us
on terms fo humble as to leave men at
liberty to trifle with it and yet fecure it?
Or can the infolent coldnefs of the neo-li-
gent, and the humble zeal of the devout,
be in eq^uity recompenfed with equal appro-
bation ? If not, the publick and pious pro-
feflion of chriflianity is by no means matter
of indifference; and a regular attendance
on the alTemblies of the church being one
of the flrongeffc as well as of the moil
proper modes of making this profeilion, to
give fuch attendance becomes the indifpen-
fable duty of every believer. And if this
duty be difcharged with ferioufnefs and
fincerity, the impreflion thereby made on
the minds of the worfliippers will hardly
fuffer them to be betrayed during the hours
of the Sabbath which are not employed in
the church, into any behaviour unbecoming
the day of folemn alTembly. For this, in
common with the other charaderiflics of a
I 3 Chriflian
Il8 On the Sabbath.
SERM. Chriftlan poffelTes the advantage of be-
^* coming more diftindt and more honourable,
the more faith and piety are diminifhed
from amono; men — more diftindt. becaufe
the fewer there are who bear it, the more
remarkable muft be the diftincftion — more
honourable, becaufe in proportion to the en-
creafe of gainfayers, the iincerity and the
fortitude of the believer muft undergo
feverer trials. Herein, then, behold both
a reafon for the admonition I am giving
you, and a motive for you to receive it.
How flagrantly the aflemblies of the church
are neglected, how fhamelefsly the folemnity
of this day is profaned, I need not ftate to
you. Thefe fads fpeak but too plainly
for themfelves, and declare that the religious
belief of the nation is affefted. This cir-
cumftance, indeed, is, to our adverfaries,
matter of glorying, while with their wonted
falfchood and effrontery, they attribute it to
the additional light the prefent age has
gained. But if that were the cafe, the en-
creafe of knowledge fliould have produced
fomething to oppofe to the fads on which
our
On the Sabbath, 1 1 9
our faith is grounded ; inflead of wliich, serm.
by the enquiries of late made in the eaftern v.
part of the globe, the ancient hillory of
revelation is moft admirably confirmed, and
by the whole courfe of events throughout
the earth, thofe prophecies which were
given us to be as a light lliining in a dark
place, and proofs of the divine commiilion
of thofe who penned them, have hitherto
regularly met their completion, and, by the
prefent extent of it, announce the near ap-
proach of that grand confummation to
which they all point. The evidence of re-
ligion, therefore, is encreafed inftead of
lefTened, and the growth of unbelief mufl be
traced to another fource, even that affigned
to it by an apoftle in a former cafe, when
he fpake of fome who, having put away a
good confcience, concerning faith had made
Ihipv/reck. When men are confcious to
themfelves that they live contrary to the
laws of God, they necelTarily diilike to
come where thofe laws are repeated, and
the punifliments due to tranfgrelTors are fet
before them. Hence the church becomes
I 4 unpleafant
1 20 On the Sabbath,
SERM. unpleafant to thofe who do not like to for-
,^ "^ fake pra^ftices inconfiftent with the precepts
of the Gofpel ; and when a man once be-
gins to defert it, he foon proceeds to juflify
that defertion by attacking the truths on
which refort is made to it. And when fuch
defertion and fuch attacks become common,
the danger of an evil of which we have
even by our Lord Himfelf been warned,
that through the abounding of iniquity the
love of many will wax cold, calls on all
who yet continue in the faith to look to
themfelves, to recoiled; the reafons of the
belief that is in them, and coniider the re-
wards that await thofe who remain ftedfaft'
to the end. Let not, therefore, the ftate-
ment I have this day laid before you of our
obligations as creatures of God, to hallow
the Sabbath, as the redeemed of Chrift, to
obferve the Lord's Day, and, as heirs of
everlafting life, to affemble ourfelves toge-
ther for edification againft the awful hour
which is faft approaching, pafs without its
due effe(ft. Remember, that in calling you
to flruggle faithfully againfl the torrent of
vice
On the Sabbath. 121
vice and infidelity that threatens now more serm.
than at any former period to overwhelm v.
the land, I do no more than repeat the ^^^^"^"^^^^
apoftle's exhortation, to bear hardihip like
the good foldiers of Chriil ; and if ye find
this a talk of trouble, it is no more than
that of which your Lord hath forewarned
His difciples, *' in the world ye fhall have
tribulation;" while, whatever ye thus un-
dergo, will naturally and of neceffity tend
to augment the enjoyment of that everlajling
Sabbath which remaineth for the people of
God I
The more proudly your adverfaries here
triumph over you, the more they afFed: to
defpife you for trufting in that holy name,
the more feoffs ye receive, the greater re-
proach ye bear for Chrift's fake, the more
complete will be your praife, the higher
your honour, the brighter your glory, w4ien
that Sovereign, whofe throne no treafon
fhakes, whofe power no rebellion can afted:,
fhall appear to reward His fervants accord-
ing to their works.
SER.
SERMON VI.
ON THE BEHAVIOUR BECOMING THE PLACE
AND HOUR OF PRAYER.
Psalm xxix. 2.
Give unto the Lord the glory due imto His
?2ame : worJJjip the Lord in the beauty of
holinefs,
A/TY laft addrefs to you being chiefly serm.
employed in endeavouring to imprefs vi.
on your minds the duty of hallowing the
Sabbath, and that of a regular attendance
on the aflemblies of the church, \ could in
it no more than tranfiently touch on that
particular mode of pafling a day which is
confident with- fandlifying it, or on the be-
haviour becoming thofe who appear in the
con-
T 24 On the Behaviour becoming the
SERM. congregation of the Lord: the confideration
VI. of thefe points I fhall therefore now refume,
and viewing the exhortations of the text as
apphcable to them, enquire before you.
How the hours of this holy day may be
fpent fo as to render to the Lord the glory
due unto His name ? And how we may join
in devotion with the brethren, fo as to
worfliip Him in the beauty of hohnefs ?
The portions into which we may firffc
confider this day as divided, are that which
is paffed in the church, and that which is
other wife confum^ed ; I fliall firft fpeak of
the former of thefe.
Has it not then been too haftily obje<5ted,
that the attendance required on our publick
worfliip is unrcafonably long ? For out of
the twelve hours of the day, how many
are really employed in rendering this juft
homage to our Crcatour ? May it not
truely be rephed, At the utmoft, four?
thefe too include all that are paiTed in prayer
and praifc, in hearing the Holy Scriptures
publickly
'Place and Hour of Grayer, 12 c
publickly read, and in liflening to the words serm.
of exhortation, grounded thereon : and are, vi.
moreover, divided into the morninp- and ^'^^"^^
evening fervices. Now what great warmth
of devotion, what zealous attachment to
a<5ts of piety does it require to preferve the
mind from diftradion or fatigue during the
portions into which this whole period is
divided ? Or can any one, who entertains
jufl: fentiments of the Being to whom he is
then rendering pubKck homage, fuffer him-
felf to fall into that unbecoming laffitude
which befpeaks a forgetfulnefs of where he
is, and wherefore he is come there ? That
fuch a forgetfulnefs does not fcldom betray
itfelf, I need fcarcely remind you; yc
would much more willingly hear by what
means ye can preferve yourfelves againft it,
and keep the flame of your devotion from
dying away ere the fervice in which ye are
met to join is concluded. As conducive to
this end, then, let me recommend to you to
ftrive by reflection on the greatnefs, the
majefty, and the perfedion of Him before
Whom ye aflemble, to raife iii your minds
thofe
1 26 On the Behaviour becoming the
SERM. thofe fentiments which are fuitable to the
^T^' place and hour of prayer ; and by attending
to the meaning of, and connecStion between
the feveral parts of our church fervice, en-
deavour fo to intereft yourfelves in what is
doing through every part of it, that ye may
not think its duration tedious.
To contribute what in me lies to each of
the particulars I have thus recommended, 1
(hall, in this and fome fubfequent difcourfes,
after ftating to you fuch obfervations as I
would hope might raife in your breafl: fome
portion of thofe affe6tions with which we
ought to approach the throne of Heaven,
lay before you fome remarks on the feveral
parts of our morning and evening prayers.
But when wifliing to raife mine own as
well as your minds to the contemplation of
our great Creatour, Where fhall I begin ?
Surrounded with proofs of His power, en-
compafTed with eniigns of His Majefty,
beholding numbcrlefs teftimonies of His
goodnefs, and exifting only by His mercy,
to
Place and Hour of Prayer, \ %n
to what particular fliall I firfl call your at- serm.
tention? All the various parts of nature vi.
are but inftruments in the hand of the ^^'^"^^
the Lord, formed for the accomplifhment
of His plcafure : to borrow the language
of holy writ, they are His minifters ful-
filling His word ; and as the ftrength and
number of their armies will afford us fome
notion of the power of earthly kings, fo
from the contemplation of the irrefiftible
force of thefe His hofts, we may arrive at
the heft judgement we can form (for a com-
plete one we never can make) of the mighti-
nefs of His power, whofe kingdom ruleth
over all.
It is the force of the thunder which is
chiefly dwelt on in the pfalm from whence
the words on which I am fpeaking are
chofen. Nor does that part of the creation
which is within the reach of human eye,
afford a more aweful teftimony of the divine
fupremacy. View the majefty with which
a florm arifeth : confider its effeds when it
rageth : adopt, for a moment, the Hebrew
phrafe-
128 On the Behaviour becoming the
SERM. phrafeology : Liften to the thunder as to
VI. the voice of the Lord j regard the hghtning
as His arrows, and your hearts will tremble
at them. — " Hear attentively the noife of
His voice, and the found that goeth out of
His mouth. He dire(5leth it under the
whole Heaven, and His lightning unto the
ends of the earth. After it a voice roareth :
He thundereth with the voice of His excel-
lency : God thundereth marvelloully with
His voice." (Job xxxvii. 2 — 5.) ** The
voice of the Lord is upon the waters : the
God of glory thundereth : the Lord is upon
many waters : the voice of the Lord is
powerful : the voice of the Lord is full of
majefty. The voice of the Lord breaketh
the cedars : yea, the Lord breaketh the
cedars of Lebanon. The voice of the Lord
divideth the flames of fire : the voice of the
Lord (haketh the wildernefs : the voice of
the Lord maketh the hinds to calve." (Pf,
xxix. 3 — 8.) Recollecft the fearful fud-
dennefs with which the lightning ftriketh.
Philofophy may boaft of her attainments,
but when His terrours are abroad, the little
fecurity
Place and Hour of Prayer, i ^q
fecurity fhe can afFord will only verify His serm.
prophet*s words, that *' He confoundeth v'l. *
the wifdom of the wife, and maketh the "^-""^^"^
diviners mad." And when ye have called
to mind the tremendous fcenes often exhi-
bited by thefe, apply your hearts to confidcr
the greatnefs of that Being, by whofe word
they were created, and to whofe nod they
are obedient.
From this portion of His Majefty, ittn
when He maketh the clouds His chariot,
and rideth upon the wings of the wind,
go on and furvey that more extended fcene
of grandeur which prefents itfelf in the
firmament, glittering with unnumbered
ftars : view thefe, though from their dif-
tance appearing fo fmall to us, as being m
themfelves large as the fun, and, in all pro-
bability, being really other funs, affording
light to numberlefs other worlds not hence
difcernible through fo vaft a fpace. Re-
fled:, morever, that had we power to vifit
the fartheft removed of thefe, we might
thence, perhaps, defcry as many others
VOL. II. K rifinP-
J 3^ On the Behaviour becoming the
SERM. riUng on our fight, and whichever way we
^^' purfiied our fearch, find ftill beyond the
remotefl point we could reach worlds yet
vmvifited, the habitations of beings formed
by the power, and fupported by the provi-
dence of the fame Lord our God.
And when ye have thus endeavoured to
gain jufter and more exalted ideas of His
greatnefs, when ye have confidered how far
beyond all imagination excellent and won-
derful muft be that almighty Sovereign,
who made, upholds, and governs all thefe
things, afk yourfelves what homage is due
unto Him ? with what fentiments His
creatures ought to come before Him ?
Minds employed in refledlions like to thefe
I have fuggefted, could fcarcely, I conceive,
on contemplating the immeafurable diftance
between their Creatour and themfelves, fail
to exclaim in terms fimilar to thofe of the
pfalmifl:, '* Lord, what is man, that Thou
art mindful of Him ! or the fon of man,
that Thou vifiteft him!'*
9
Indeed,
Place and Hour of Prayer. i ? i
Indeed, fome fuperficial reafoners, over- serm.
looking the moil: evident fads, and afcribing v^-
to the Deity the impotence of man, have,
from the fame premifTes, argued, that One
fo high muft be indifferent to the condu6l
of beings who are as nothing in refped: of
Him ; and iince this generation is not yet
extinct, it may fitly be obferved, that our
very exiftence proves that God did not deem
it derogatory from His dignity to create us ;
and wherefore conclude, that He would
make creatures capable of being governed,
whom yet it was below Him to govern ?
Such a conclufion would be nearly as abfurd
in itfelf as it is contradidory to what hourly
palTes in the world, where the juftice and
righteoufnefs of God are perpetually mani-
ferted in the manner in which the various
courfes of vice bring punifliment on thofe
who are guilty of them.
Yet much to be condemned as fuch rea-
foners are, reproofs no lefs fevere are due
to thofe who, acknowledging that God ob-
ferves our ways, retain not on their minds
K a that
132 On the Behaviour becoming the
that juft awe of Him, which alone will
enfure our worfliipping Him with humility,
and rejoicing before Him with reverence.
Such is the infenfibility to the difference
between things facred and common that has
pervaded the breafts of many Chriftians,
that the appearance of religion among us is
deformed by it ; and our negligent and un-
becoming- behaviour feems to declare, that
we imagine the lefs veneration we manifeil
toward God, the greater love we fhew for
Him. Yet our blefled Saviour's words,
that •* God is a fpirit, and they that wor-
fliip Him mull w^orfliip in fpirit and in
truth," will teach us the proper mode of
reafoning on this point. For thus may we
argue; *' God is holy, and holy therefore
fhould be the fervice paid to Him.** The
rites and ceremonies ot the Mofaic law
were but the lliadow of things to come,
from whence it has been concluded, that
real religion has little concern with external
fervice. But as there can be no fhadow
without a fubllance, the ablutions, various
purifications, and the great attention enjoined
therein,
6
Place and Hour of Prayer. 1 2,'^
therein, left a man fhoiild appear before the serm.
Lord under any uncleanncfs, form to us ^^•
leffons of demeaning ourfelves with as much
reverence toward Him outwardly, as we
have fincere devotion for Him in our hearts.
The primary fignification of holy is that
of being removed, or feparate from all con-
tamination; and therefore, in Scripture,
holy and common are put in contradiftinc-
tion to each other ; and that part of the
temple into which none were to enter but
the high prieft, and even he but once in a
year, was called the holy of holies. Now
if we retain this general fenfe of the term,
it will neceffarily follow, that the perform-
ance of divine worfhip, and whatfoever re-
latethtoit, fhould be kept diftincft, and a
feparation made between them, and all other
things ; and though the deduction may h-ut
ill accord with the corruptions and practices
of the age, yet if ye look into the w^ord of
truth, and endeavour, by a little calm and
juft reafoning, to inveftigate the fubjecSt, ye
will foon perceive how reprehenfible is the
K 3 manner
1-34 ^^^ ^^^^ Behaviour becoming the
SERM. manner in which the places confecrated to
VI. the fervice of God are, in this country,
treated, the Httle reverence with which they
are approached, and the very unfeemly beha-
viour of many who enter the congregation.
It is true, our minds are ever open unto
God, and he knoweth our thoughts long
before ; but as no man of common under-
ilanding would affert, that it therefore does
not behove us to keep them from difcradlion,
or our imaginations from roving when w^e
addrefs ourfelves to Him in prayer ; fo,
though the Almighty bfe every where pre-
fent, though through His Spirit He dwelleth
with the good, no one can reafonably affirm,
that places particularly appointed for His
worfhip can be properly approached but
with minds poffefTed by fuitable affediions.
And what afFed:ions can we juftly efteem
fuch ? Surely thofe alone which may be
raifed by adding to the contemplation I have
already recommended of the greatnefs of
God, the recollection of His condefcenlion
to and care of man, and the confideration
that
Place and Hour of Prayer. i35
that to Him, fupreme of all beings as He serm.
is, we are more immediately approaching. ^^*
For I am perfuaded, that if Chrillians
would endeavour to imprefs thefe points on
their minds, they would feel fuch a con-
fidence in the goodnefs of God to hear, and
in His power to perform their petitions,
fuch gratitude for the benefits already heaped
on them, tempered with an awe of His
holinefs and majefty, as would occafion a
great alteration in their behaviour, and caufe
our churches to be indeed houfes of prayer.
Mod; folemn in their purpofe are the
meetings we there hold, moft folemn, there-
fore, Ihould be the manner in which they
are attended. In nations where the object
of worfhip is falfe, or among a people to
whom fuperftition hath did:ated the form,
it is not matter of furprize that little real
devotion, and much behaviour unbecoming
the fituation of men addreffing themfelves
to God, is vifible in the worfhippers.
Where the imagination alone is captivated,
pot the underflanding convinced, prayer can
K 4 fcarcely
136 On the Behaviour becoming the
fcarcely confift in aught elfe than irregular
and uncertain effufions, fometimes joined
in with ardour, at others attended with
manifeft neglecft, or even difguft. But
among us, to whom all the additional in-
formation we are happy enough to obtain,
brings new evidence of the exiflence and
perfediion of the Being we worfhip, of
whofe fole Godhead every part of the uni-
verfe in which our fouls can expatiate,
yields the mofl cogent teftimony ; among
us who have a word of revelation which
fpeaks the fame language with His works,
points out to us other indications of His
perpetually overruling providence and go-
vernment of the moral world, and receiving
weight to its leffons from this internal and
demonftrative teftimony of its own truth,
inftrud:eth us to offer unto Him our praifes
and fupplications with lincere and humble
hearts, as having received from Him every
bleffing, and on Him depending for a con-
tinuance of them ; and with faithful minds,
pot having our hope of favourable accept-
ance deftroyed by the co^fcioufnefs of our
owa
Place and Hour of Prayer. i-^^
own unworthinefs, becaufe He has appointed serm.
a Mediatour, who hath promifed ever to be vi.
in the midft of thofe who, through His ^^^^^^"^
interceffion, feek the mercy of God, a dif-
ferent fcene might be expelled : and Chrif-
tians, Proteftant Chriftians at leafl, Avithout
being rigoroufly treated, might be called on
not to difgrace their particular church, by
appearing to entertain mean and difhonour-
able fentiments of the majefty of God, and
of the glory due unto His name, to have
little acquaintance with the Holy Scriptures,
which breathe, throughout every page, a
fpirit of fervent devotion, and aweful vene-
ration of Him, or not to have received any
inftrucStion concerning: the nature and due
performance of religious worfliip.
For, in truth, difgraceful to our church
is the demeanour of no fmall portion of her
members in the publick worfhip ; and if it
be fo to her, to them who are guilty it
mull be more fo : and, indeed, it is j being
a reproach both to their hearts and to their
underflandings. For what muft be the
heart -
13S On the Behaviour bcco^niiig the
SERM. heart of that man who can come into an
^^' aiTembly where the mind is called to recoi-
led the perfed:ions of our Creatoiir, where
we are reminded of our ineflimable obliga-
tions to Him, where His wonders of old
time are enumerated, where we are exhorted
to offer Him the homage due unto Him as
the mofV Higheft, the thanks and praifes
we owe Him as our greateil Benefa61our,
as the Prefer ver and conftant Bleffer of all,
and to join in confe fling before Him the
unworthy returns we make for all His
goodnefs, in perpetually tranfgreffing His
comm.andments, and to deprecate His wrath,
and fupplicate Him for a continuance of
His mercy, to (in the words of our facred
office) *' humbly acknowledge our fins be-
fore God, to render thanks for the great
benefits that we have received at His hands,
to fet forth His moft worthy praife, to hear
His moft holy word, and to alk thofe things
which are requifite and neceffary as well
for the body as the foul ;" yet feel fo little
fhare in the fervice in which thefe things,
are performing, that from his improper
poftui;e^
Place and Hour of Prayer. 139
pojflure, his wandering looks, or his un- serm.
feafonable filence, it is manifefl that he vi.
does not perceive himfelf interefted in what ^■^'''^''"'*^
is palling ? If ye can acquit fuch a man
of a moil vicious infcnfibihty of heart, open
to no pious thoughts, capable of no devout
affedtions, ye muft charge the fault on his
underftanding ; a charge which, perhaps,
the pride of the guilty will more eagerly
refent than the other. Unlefs, however,
the inattention be owing (as in fome it pro-
bably may) to that utter degree of mere
ignorance, that they underfiand not the
meaning of the words, know not the ten-
dency of the expreffioas which they hear;
fuch gradual inflrudiion alone can help :
and if there be any fuch here, and their
minds be but willing to receive it, I fhould
hope, what I fliall hereafter ftate in expla-
nation of the different parts of the fervice,
would both afford them part of the infor-
mation they fo much need, and tend alfo to
corred: that ab fence of thought, which even
devout perfons are fometimes heard to com-
plain, furprizes them in the church, when
they
i
140 On the Behaviour becoming the
SERM. they would willingly be invariably atten-
s^^y^Ji..^ five. At prefent it is on our general beha-
viour in the congregation that I would re-
mark, and convince you, if 1 could, of the
abfurd and criminal inconfiftency of negli-
gent carriage therein.
The prayers, in which we at leaft go
there to join, are replete with the mofl
earneft expreffions of humility, with pro-
teflations of the moft unfeigned forrow for
our pafi: ill condudl, and fupplications that
God would imprint on our hearts His com-
mandments, and give us grace henceforth
to keep them. Now is it not mere mockery
'for any to pretend to join in fuch fupplica-
'tions, who, infteadof having their thoughts
employed on their own particular tranfgref-
fions, and their breafts filled with ferious
purpofes of amendment, are gazing around
them to fee who of their acquaintance are
prefent, bowing or curtcfying to thofe whofe
eyes they can catch, or obferving how thofe
near them are attired : who, inftead of
liftening to the leflbns read from thofe Scrip-
tures
Place and Hour of Prayer, 141
tures which contain the laws they have serm.
afked for grace to keep, are drowned in ^^•
ileep, or employing themfelves in whifper-
ing to another ? Does this behaviour per-
fed: the beauty of holinefs, or forward the
work of edification ? Or does it not, on the
contrary, give an unfeemly appearance to
our religious affemblies, difturb the devo-
tion of many who would otherwife be at-
tentive, and afford a fad exam^ple to the
younger part of the congregation ? While
of many of thefe, indeed, it may be faid,
that they ftand not in need of fuch to make
them guilty of the moft reprehenfible mif-
behaviour ; thofe who ought to look after
them, and infl:ru6l them at home how they
ought to behave in the church, not playing
or talking, but attending, with ferioufnefs
and reverence, to the prayers and the fervice,
often moft fhamefully neglecting this duty,
nay, frequently, by omitting to cenfure the
mifcondud: of which they are either wit-
ncfTes theirfelves, or informed by other 57
abfolutely countenancing their children in
pro-
142 On the Behaviour becoming the
SERM. profaning the church, and offering an infult
VI. to Hini who is therein worfhipped.
Difficult would it be to particularize
every diilincft fpecies of mifbehaviour ob-
fervable in our congregations j but to thofe
who wifh to render an acceptable facrifice
to their Maker, thefe general remarks will
be fufficient to put them on their guard
againfl: any evil habits they have though t-
Lfsly acquired', or running into the ablur-
dities they fee others prad:ile. Let it there-
fore fuffice to fay, that the religious affem-
blies of Chriftians are not holden for pur-
pofes of amufement or parade; that they
do not meet in them to converfe, or exhibit
the beauty of their perfons, or the orna-
ments of their drefs ; but that it behoves
everv one who vvoiild not make it incum-
bent on him to fay, ere he leaves the church,
" Lord, lay not this lin to my charge!'*
to obferve the inllrudlions which the facred
writers give us for addreffing ourfelves to
the Lord—'* That we iliould keep our feec
ivhen
Place and Hour of Prayer, \ 1 43
when we go to the houfe of prayer; that serm.
we fhould bow down, and kneel before ^^'
Him ; and let not our fiipplications proceed
out of feigned lips. That we fhould ling
praifes with underftanding : that we fhould
be more ready to hear than to offer the
facrifice of fools ; remembering, that He
for whofe worfhip we aflemble is in Hea-
ven, and we on earth;" and that if we
juftly eftimated things, inflead of being
liftlefs and negligent, we fhould deem it a
moft precious privilege to be permitted to
do homage unto Him, before whom the
moft exalted of created beings do in ecftafy
fall proftrate, and exclaim, ** Holy, Holy,
Holy, is the Lord of Hofts. The whole
earth is full of His glory." To Him,
therefore, let us be ever ready to afcribe
both with our lips and our hearts, blefling,
and glory, and wifdom, and thankfgiving,
and honour, and power, and might, for
ever and ever. Amen.
SER-
SERMON VII.
ON THE LITURGY.
I Cor. XIV. 15.
I will pray with the Spirit, a?id I will pray
with the underjiandi?7g alfo: I will Jing
with the Spirit y and I will Jing with the
under flan ding alfo,
TTAVING, in a former dilcourfe, pro- serm^
pofed to lay before you fome obferva- vii.
tions on the Liturgy of our church, in ^^''^'"^^
hope that an explanation of the ground,
tendency, and conned: ion of the feveral parts
of it, may contribute to intereft your minds,
and keep alive your attention, whenever ye
prefent yourfelves in the congregation, I
cannot introduce the fubjed better than by
the words I have read to you j which were
VOL. II. L ufed
146 On the Liturgy.
SERM. ufed by the apoftle in the courfe of a rebuke
^"* he thought it necellary to give to fome
members of the church of Corinth, xvho,
vain of the miraculous gifts they had re-
ceived, were forward to fpeak in an un-
known tongue before the alTembly : the
fmall degree in which this could contribute
to the edification of the generality of be-
lievers, he fets before them by various
arguments j among which is one drawn
from the abfurdity of uttering prayers or
praifes in a language not underftood by fuch
as are prefent : for how fhall thefe join in
them? They may, indeed, with their
tongues, fay Amen, but their under ftanding
has no fhare in the alTent. Whereas not
only the will, but the underftanding alfo,
fhould accompany our fupplicationSj and
join in our thankfgiving.
This cenfure forms one of the pafTages!
which contain thofe admirable teflimonies
that are fcattered in different parts of the
apoftolick writings, againft the corruptions
of the great apoflacy that hath iince takei>
place
On the Liturgy, 1 4^
place in the church, and may juftly encreafe serm.
our furprize at the bhndnefs which the vii.
adherents of the papacy betray in obftiaately
retaining a practice fo fpecifically con-
demned, as that of praying in an unknown
tongue is in the chapter of the text : while
we ought to be thankful unto God, that it is
no longer in the ilrideli: fenfe ftili merited
by usj although if taken in a more lax
figniiication, as condemning in general all
prayer which is not offered with the under-
ilanding, it is due to many among us \ to
all thole, I mean, who, while they prefent
them.felves in the church as worfhippers,
through want of the fcrious attention which
becomes the place and the employment, are
fcarcely fenfible of the tendency or meaning
of any portion of the fervice, reciting what
they do repeat as a form of words, the
mere getting through which is a full dif-
charge of their duty ; whence it is fcarcely
poffible that their refort to the church can
produce any falutary effect on their mind,
or that they fliou.ld return home juftified by
the petitions they have put up.
L 2 ^r^
hS 0;z the Liturgy,
\\\ cxpoftulating this cafe with fuch aS
are concerned in it, they fhould be reminded
how truely the blame refts on themfelves
alone, fince the apoftle*s rule, that all things
be done to edifying has, by the compilers
of our Liturgy, been efpecially obferved :
the difpofition of its parts being fuch as is
calculated to engage and preferve the atten-
tion, and the appointment of a perfon,
audibly to repeat thofe refponfes in which
the congregation are to join, being an aflift-
ance feafonably afforded to thofe who their-
felves have never learnt to read, and cannot,
therefore, by the prayer, be inftrudted what
•they are to anfwer.
The fervice itfelf opens mofl judicioufly
with fome paffages fele6ted from the facred
Writings, which contain encouragement to
the penitent, and calls to the confeffion of
our lins, thus forming a moft appofite in-
troduction to the fucceeding folemn exhor-
tation to acknowledges our offences, that we
mav obtain forgivenefs of them, and to join
in the general confeffion with a pure heart
and
Oh the Liturgy, 1 49
and humble voice. Shall fuch an addrefs, serm.
then, furniflied with every circumftance of vii.
truth, juftice, and propriety, to give it''^^^^''^^
weight, be unable to make its way to our
hearts ? When the purpofe for which we
are come together is thus called to our re-
colledion, and the ground of addrefling
ourfelves to God, (our obligations to, and
dependence on Him) is thus exprefsly flated
to us, can we fail to feel thofe pious emo-
tions which will make us readily comply
with the direftions then given to kneel be-
fore the throne of grace, and, in a fub-
millive voice, repeat our petitions ? But
wherefore fhould I aflc, If we can ? When
the beauty of our publick worfhip is, in
this part of it, fo generally deformed on
the one hand by thofe who prefumptuouHy
negledt to kneel when praying to the Lord
for mercy, and, on the other, by fuch as,
in direct contradiction to the exhortation
juft given, do, with a very loud and quick
voice, repeat their petitions. Were thefe
two points corre^fted, were the whole aflem-
t)ly to be feen in one fuppjicating pofture,
L 3 and
1 _^o On the Liturgy.
SERM. and were all the congregation, in making the
"^^^* refponfes, to wait until the clerk had begun
them, and then regularly follow him, there
would feem to be one mind and one voice
in our churches j and they would then ap-
pear to be, indeed, places appointed for the
folemn txercife of devotion : and were a
llranger to enter them, he would be ftricken
with the fcene, and would fall down and
worfhip,
The exhortation is immediately followed
by the general confeffion : of the terms of
which it may be truely obferved, that they
are fuch as well become finners appearing
before God ; pretending to no merit, offer-
ing no pleas of excufe, but fueing for par-
don through Chrift, and for righteous dif-
politions by the Grace of God. In the
opening of it, the encourageriient holden
out to the returning finner, in our bleffed
Saviour's beautiful parable of the prodigal
fon, is plainly alluded to; and the mercy
of our Father, which is in Heaven, is
made the ground of hope that we fhall be
accepted.
On the Liturgy. \ ^\
accepted, when we confefs that we have serm,
erred and ftrayed Hke loft flieep, and (hewn ^'^^'
more comphance with the dellres of our
own hearts than attention to the divine
commandments. During his repetition of
the different fentences of this confeffion,
each individual fliould apply them to his
own cafe, and calling to remembrance thofe
parts of his duty which he hath omitted »
and thofe particulars in which he has tranf-
grefled the precepts of the Lord, fincerely
lament his guilt in them, and dired: his
petitions to the forgivenefs of them. Other-
wife how can he join in the prayer with
which it is clofed, that we may hereafter
live a godly, righteous, and fober life ? Or
how alfent to the words of the abfolution,
by which we are exhorted to pray that our
lives may henceforth be pure and holy,
confonant with the profeflions of forrow for
our paft lins, and the declarations of peni-
tence which we have juft made : for fuch,
I conceive, to be the intended meaning of
the word " hereafter," ufed in the latter
p^rt of the abfolution, and not as it is, per-
j. 4 haps,
1^1 On tbe Liturgy.
SERM. haps, often mifunderftood, ** that the reft
vii. of our hfe may henceforth be pure and
holy," which would be a mere piece of
tautology : and fuch are the petitions offered
in the fubfequent prayer of our Lord, when
wc a(k for our daily bread, fpiritual as well
as material, and beg we may not be led into
temptation, but be delivered from the fnares
and power of the evil one. . By this prayer,
too, we complete this portion of our fervice,
and endeavour to render our own imperfe6t
petitions acceptable, by concluding them
with the fummary of Chrift : a mode of
fan(ftifying our fupplications, which is pur-
fued throughout our Liturgy, and occafions
this incomparable form to be placed in every
part of it.
Having thus clofed that which makes the
moft proper introdu(5lion to a religious fer-
vice, the humble acknowledgment of our
crimes and unworthinefs, and fervent appli-
cation for remiffion and future affiftance,
we next proceed ** to render thanks to God
for the great benefits that we have received
at
On the Liturgy, 153
at His hands, by fetting forth His mod serm.
worthy praife ;" befeeching Him ** to open ^^^*
our hps, that our mouth may fhew forth
His praife;" and that He ^* would fpeedily
fave and help us."
At this period of the facred office, we are
diredted by the rubrick to rife from the
humble pofture of fupplicants into one joy,
and break forth into that ancient doxology,
wherein we give glory to thofe three divine
perfons, into covenant with whom we were
initiated, and whofe names were called over
us in baptifm. Of which doxology it may
be remarked, that the phrafe, ** as it was
in the beginning," feems to have been in-
tended principally of the beginning of the
Gofpel, when the Son and Holy Ghoft were
fo glorified with the Father, by the mira^
cles wrought in the name of the one, and
the divine gifts flied forth by the other.
Although it may alfo be underftood of that
beginning in which God created all things
by His word, and His Spirit moved over
the face of the waters. It ihould here, too,
be
154 ^^^ ^^^ Liturgy.
SERM. be obferved, that there is fcarcely any period
VII. at which greater inattention is betrayed to
thofe accurate diredlions which our book of
common prayer contains, for joining pro-
perly in every part of the fervice, than is
generally fliewn at this, where, inftead of
endeavouring to outftrip each other in eager-
nefs to leave our former attitude, we fhould
folemnly rife in a body, when the laft re-
fponfe, previous to the doxology, is con-
cluded.
The prieil having iirfb called on them to
praife the Lord, and the people having re-
plied to this exhortation, *' The Lord's name
be praifed," a pfalm is next repeated, being
one feled;ed as peculiarly proper to be faid be-
fore thofe of the day : nor could a more judi-
cious choice have been made; the ninety-
fifth pfalm being excellently calculated to
precede the various fubfequent parts of the
fervice, lince in it we are exhorted not only
to " come before the Lord with thankf-
giving, and fhew ourfelves glad in Him with
pfalms j but to bow and kneel before Him,"
as
On the Liturgy. x ^ ^
as we do in the colledls and the litany; and serm.
" to hear His words," as we do in the vii.
different paflages read from the Scriptures ^'"^'^^^'^^
for the lelTons and epiftle and gofpel, as
well as in the commandments, without
hardnefs of heart. The reafons alfo for
thefe different exhortations are feverally
ailigned ; for our praife, His greatnefs as
the Creatour and Preferver of the world,
** For the Lord is a great God, and a great
King above all gods. In His hand are all
the corners of the earth : and the flrength
of the hills is His alfo. The fea is His,
and He made it ,• and His hands prepared
the dry land" — for our worfhip and homage.
His being our God, who preferveth and
proted:eth us J ** for He is the Lord our
God, and we are the people of His pafture,
and the flieep of His hand" — and that we
be not difobedient to His word, becaufe
thofe who were fo in the wildernefs were
cut off from entering into His refl.
Of the pfalrhs, (a portion of which fol-
lows next) it may be fuggejded, that if
viewed
156 On the Liturgy.
SERM. viewed merely as fpiritual fongs, they are
^'^^' fo truely excellent in their kind, that all
attempts to imitate them mull ever fall fliort
of the original. The fervent devotion, the
fenfe of God's glory, the confcioufnefs of
His providence which they breathe, are
fuch as prove the writers of them to have
felt themfelves employed in praifing the
only true God ; and if we confider them as
dictated by the Holy Spirit, the adoption
of them into our form of worlliip, is like
lighting our facrifice with fire that has
fallen from Heaven.
The proper fubjedts for praife to God arc
either the general courfe of His govern-
ment, in which righteoufnefs and mercy
fhine forth fo refplendently, or pall adts of
His power and goodnefs, or His alTuranccs
pf future blelTings. Qf each of thefe the
pfalmill repeatedly fmgs in the fublimefl
ftrains. *' The Lord looked dow^n from
Heaven, and beheld all the children of men:
from the habitation of HJs dwelling He
conljdereth all them that dwell on the earth :
the
0?i the Liturgy. n-n
the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, serm.
and His ears are open to their prayers : the vii.
countenance of the Lord is againft them
that do evil, to root out the remembrance
of them from the earth. — Great are the
troubles of the righteous, but the Lord de-
livereth him out of all. Before I was
troubled, I went wrong : but now have I
kept thy word. An unwife man doth not
well coniider this, and a fool doth not un-
derftand it : when the ungodly are green
as the grafs, and when all the workers of
wickednefs do flour ifli, then fhall they be
deftroyed for ever. — Foolifhmen are plagued
for their offence, and becaufe of their wick-
ednefs : their foul abhorred all manner of
meat ; and they were even hard at deaths
door. So when they cried unto the Lord
in their trouble. He delivered them out of
their diftrefs. He fent His word, and
healed themj and they were faved from
their deftrucflion. Oh that men would
therefore praife the Lord for His goodnefs ;
and declare the wonders that He doeth for
the children of men! That they would
offer
158 On the Liturgy,
SERM. offer unto Him the facrifice of thankfgiving j
VII. and tell out His works with gladnefs !"
^•V'V>
Such are the terms in which God*s go-
vernment of us His creatures is fet forth,
His abundant goodnefs to the righteous and
the penitent j and His certain and equitable
judgements on the wicked j that while, by
repeating thefe, we join in telling out His
works, we gain information for ourfelves,
and become inftrudied under all circum-
ftances to truft in His providence, not to be
alarmed at mere appearances, or fret our-
felves becaufe of the ungodly, but to com-
mit our ways unto the Lord, abide patiently
on Him, and He fhall bring it to pafs.
The paft a6ls of God's power and great-^
nefs are touched on in thofe pfalms which
fpeak of the creation of the world, and the
wonders He aforetime wrought for the chil-
dren of Ifrael. ** By the word of the
Lord were the heavens made, and all the
hdfis of them by the breath of His mouth.
For He fpake, and it was done ; He com--
manded,
On the Liturgy. 1 59
manded, and it flood faft. Whatfoever the serm.
Lord pleafed, that did He in Heaven and ^^^*
in earth. He fmote the firft-born of Egypt,
both man and bealL He fmote divers na-
tions, and flew mighty kings, and gave
their land to be an heritage ; even an heri-
tage unto Ifrael His people." And affu-
rances of future bleflings to all who will
keep His covenant, are difperfed in various
places throughout the whole book of pfalms.
It is in the language of triumph that thefc
are delivered ; and with rapture do the
writers look forward to that time, when
** the Lord fhall come with righteoufnefs
to judge the world, and the people with
His truth : when the Lord fhall build up
Sion, and when His glory fliall appear."
In the mofl exalted terms is the happinefs
of the Meffiah's reign defcribed. — " He
fhall judge thy people according to right, *
and defend the poor. In His time fhall
the righteous flourifh j yea, and abundance
of peace, fo long as the moon endureth.
There fhall be an heap of corn in the earthy
I hi^h
1 6o On the Liturgy,
SERM. high upon the hills. His name fhall re-
"^11 • main under the fun among the pofteritics,
which fhall be bleffed through Him, and
all the heathen fhall praife Him. BlefTed
be the Lord God, even the God of Ifrael;
which alone doeth wondrous things; and
bleffed be the name of His Majefly for
ever ; and all the earth fhall be filled with
His Majefly. Amen. Amen."
Scarcely can I conceive that thefe and the
like pafTages are ever repeated without ex-
citing, in the breafls of all prefent, the
correfpondent emotions of earneflnefs and
anxiety to have an inheritance in the happy
Hate fet forth in them. The pfalmifl*s con-
vi(5lion of the truth of his own predid:ion
was evidently fo complete as to caufe him
to burfl forth into the benedidlion with
which this hymn clofes; and he fpeaks
with as much confidence of what he fore-
told, and manifefls as grateful feelings for
it, as if it was already come to pafs. What
then ought we to feel when the appearance
of this happy fcene is much nearer in this
our
On the hiturgy . , l6i
6iir day than it was at the time when thefe serm.
Were penned -, and the certainty of its arrival '^'^^•
has been further allured to us in the accom-
plifhment of other predi(5tions contained alfo
in the pfalms ? as in thofe foretelling the per-
fonal indignities and fufFerings which our
bleffed Lord underwent, w^hen He was
** betrayed by His own familiar friend:
when the counfel of the wicked laid liege
againfl Him : when they pierced His haads
and His feet, parted His garments among
them, caft lots upon His vefture, and ftood
flaring and looking upon Him." And in
thofe wherein is foretold the fuccefs of His
apoftles preaching, fpite of all the oppofi-
tion they fhould meet from the great ones
of the earth ; as in the well-known fecond
pfalm and others ; and in thofe too which
fuggcft, that neverthelefs the real worlliip-
pers and true fervants of God would con-^
tinue but in a poor and perfecuted Hate,
until fome future period, when He would
vifibly interpofe for their deliverance : *' Sit
Thou on my right hand, until I make thine
enemies thy footftool."
VOL. II. M Neither
1 6% Oft the^Hiturgy.
^^ithcl' can I pafs without notice the
feveral penitential pfalms which are fcattered
throughout the book ; and in which indi-
viduals will frequently meet with pafTages
•well fuited to their own cafes. The deep
fenfe which the penitent expreffes of the
wretchednefs of a {inner*s ftate, the ardour
with which he fupplicates for pardon, for
fpiritual afTiftance, and for reftoration to the
divine favour, may teach us how to lament
our offences, and to fue for mercy on our
own tranfgreflions ; and if we could but
transfer the fentiments into our hearts, as
well as utter the fame language with our
tongues, ineftimable would be the benefit
we (hould derive from the repetition of this
part of our church fervice.
Having thus fet forth the Lord's moft
worthy praife, we proceed according to the
method mentioned in the exhortation to hear
His moft holy word ; and that firft in a leffon
read from the Old Teftament, which with
that afterwards read from the New, is ap-
pointed with the intent of affording to thofe
Chriftians
On the Liturgy i. l5j
Chriflians who have not the means oFserm.
ftudying the Holy Scriptures at home, an vii.
opportunity of gradually being made ac-
quainted with their contents in the church.
Neither can any one who is conftant in his
refort thither, and pays due attention while
thefe portions of Scriptures are reading,
well fail of becoming in time inftrudted in
the various parts of holy writ. If, there-
fore, any one wilfully neglecft fuch oppor-
tunities of gaining that learning which is
able to make him wife unto falvation, what
does he but harden his heart againft hearing
the voice of the Lord ?
In the books of the Old Teftament are
exhibited to us thofe leflbns which God
gave to His people the Ifraelites, either by
the mouth of His prophets, or by the man-
ner in which He fent on the whole nation,
or on fome individuals of it. His corrections
or His bleflings. His promifes of perpetual
patronage to all who would obey His laws,
and His threats of punifliment to thofe who
would not : by lillening to thefe, therefore.
Ma we
164 On the Liturgy.
SERM. we may learn to be cautious of offending
^2^^* Him, who can punifh with fuch power and
certainty, and alfo defi/ous of gaining His
favour, who will fo affuredly and greatly
reward.
On the clofe of this leffon there is, in
the morning fervice, appointed to be repeated
an hymn, which, from the words with
which it begins in the language in which
it w^as originally compofed, is called the
Te Deum, and after thofe portions of the
infpired writings that are introduced in the
various offices, may be efteemed the fub-
limefl: compoiition contained in our book of
common prayer. In this, after having heard
repeated, in the preceding lelfon, fome great
work of the Lord, or fome judgement of
His mouth, by which He did in time paft
manifeft His rightcoufnefs or His fupre-
macy, we, like the Ifraelites, when they
faw Him anfwcr the prayer of Elijah by
fire from Heaven, burft forth into a confef-
fion of His fole Godhead — '* We praife
Thee, O God : We acknowledge Thee to
be
On the Liturgy. 165
he the Lord. All the earth doth worihip serm.
Thee, the Father everlafting." And pro- '^^^•
ceeding to acknowledge, in the unity of
the divine Majefty, the glory of the eternal
Trinity, we afterwards addrefs oiirfelves
efpecially to Chrift, fupplicating Him as
our incarnate Saviour, Redeemer, and our
Judge, to have mercy upon us, and make
•us to be numbered with His faints in glory
everlafting. This hymn has now, as is
generally received, been in poffeffion of the
church upwards of thirteen centuries, and
remains a plain teftimony of the faith of
the fourth century in which it was com-
pofed.
There is a Canticle bearing, on the like
2:round as the former, the title of Benedicite,
o
which m.ay be repeated inftead of the Te
Deum j but it is fo feldom ufed, that I will
not detain you with any remarks upon it.
In the evening fervice there is fubftituted at
this period either the fong of the bleiTed
Virgin Mary, or the ninety-eighth pfalm.
How juftly applied the iirft of thefe is,
M 3 littk
t^^ On the Liturgy.
SERM. little need be faid to prove, fince it is plain,
VII. that after being reminded of what God
hath formerly wrought in favour of His
fervants, the magnifying and rejoicing in
Him is made more earneft by the reflection,
that ** His mercy is on them that fear Him
throughout all generauons :*' by which we
are led to feel ouri'elves interefted in that
pow^r and goodnefs, pail exertions of which
have juft been related to us; and for the
laft, the ninety-eighth pfalm in that we
fing *• the marvellous things which the
Lord hath done; the falvation and righte-.
oufnefs which He hath fhewed in the fight
of the Heathen, and the performance of the
mercies He promifed to the houfeof Ifrael,'*
in a ftrain of triumph, and with a fublimity
of praife, which leave far, very far below
therp, the loftiefl: compofitions that any
other nation on earth but the chofen of God
can boaft,
I have now proceeded in the propofed
review of our Liturgy as far as the limits
pf Q^e difcourfe will permit ^ the obferva-
tiQi^s
On the hrtttrgy-, i6'/
tlons to be made on the remainder of it serm.
muft therefore be deferred. At prefent I vii.
fliall only fubjoin, that having entered on
it from a defire of rendering you more feri-
oufly attentive to the various parts of the
fervice, by imprefling on your minds the
iignification and tendency of each, I befeech
you, do not fuffer my pains to prove mif-
placed ; but endeavour to add to the httle I
have fuggefted by your own refledtions ;
and I doubt not, ye will difcern propriety
that has efcaped me, beauties that I have
not pointed out. And if ye can by thefe,
or any other means, excite in yourfelves a
fpirit of that real devotion which is felt, I
am afraid but by few, ye will, as having
gained an additional faculty, find it a fource
of new pleafure, even of that ecftafy which
thofe, and thofe only can experience, who
truely rejoice in the Lord, and glory in the
God of their falvation.
M4
SER*
SERMON VIII.
ON THE LITURGY.
I Cor. XIV. 15.
/ will pray with the fpit'it, and I will pray
with the under/landing alfo ', I will Jing
with the fpirit^ and I will Jing with the
linderjianding alfo,
TN my lafl difcourfe on thefe words, I serm,
purfued the review of the Liturgy then viii.
entered on as far as the clofe of the hymns
after the firfl lelTon; in which, having tef-
tified the fentiments that were excited in
our breafls by what we had heard from the
Old Teflament, we return to our feats while
one from the New is read j and we thus
hear Chriil and His apoftles inftrudting us
in
I "JO On the Liturgy,
SERM. in the faith, or giving us dired:ions for our
"^^J^- condud:. To this the fincere Chriilian will
liflen as to the words of eternal life j and
finding many of thofe things which he had
heard from the law and the prophets ex-
plained by what is hence delivered; and
the general lelTons which are recorded to
have been given by our blefled Lord in the
gofpels, more particularly applied by His
apoftles in their epiflles, he will learn the
benefit of comparing fpiritual things with
fpiritual, and gradually arrive at the know-
ledge of truths which by the natural man,
unpra6tifed in the words of divine revela-
tion, cannot be difcerned, acquire an inti-
mate acquaintance with the rules of life
laid down by thofe teachers from whom the
firft Chriftians received the Gofpel, and be
able to determine, by the infallible decifions
of the plain word of Scripture, what he
ought to do, and what he ought to avoid.
The fentiments excited by the recollection
of the bleiling we enjoy in being thus taught
of God, are next expreffed by the fong of
Zacharias,
On the Liturgy, 171
Zacharias, in which we " blefs the Lord serm,
for having vifited and redeemed His people, ^"^*
and for His tender mercy, whereby the day
fpring from on high hath vifited us; to
give Hght to them that fit in darknefs, and
in the fhadow ; and to guide our feet in the
way of peace," Or by the hundredth
pfalm, in which we extol the everlafting
mercy and permanent truth of the Lord,
and call on all nations to rejoice in Him,
and reft aflured, that He is their Creatour,
their Preferver, and their God. In the
evening fervice the correfpondent lelTon is
followed by the fong of Simeon, in which
we acknowledge to have ** feen the falva-
tion of God," and glory in that ** hght
which, according to the very words of this
prophetick hymn, hath been raifed to lighten
us Gentiles :" or, in lieu thereof, may be
repeated the iixty-feventh pfalm, in which
the progrefs of the Gofpel is prayed for and
foretoldt
Having proceeded thus far in our thankf-
giving for the ineftimable mercies of revela^
tion,
17^ ^f^ i^^^ Liturgy.
SERM. tion, we are next direded to conclude them
^^^^^."^ by an open profeffion of the Chriftian faith,
in the repetition of the articles of it com-
prized in that fymbol which is called the
Apoftle's Creed ; and which fhould, there-
fore, not be hurried over, or only whif-
pered, but faid with a flow and audible
voice : for otherwife, how is it to be known
that we really join therein? Our lips, in-
deed, may be feen to move, but what it is
we repeat muft be unknown to the brethren.
And can this be called confefling God and
Chrifl before the congregation ? Or can
thofe, who thus fmother the acknowledge-
ment of their faith, have a due portion of
that grateful zeal which is ever to be found
in the breafts of fincere difciples of the
Gofpel ? Enthufiaftick behaviour betrays a
weak head, yet it may be accompanied with
a warm and honefi: heart; but the cold, in-
animated, lifelefs demeanour, obfervable in
fome, can proceed only from breafls in
which every fpark of real devotion is
extindl.
As
On the Liturgy, i -73
As to this Creed itfelf, it is not called serm.
that of the apoftle's to fignify that it was ^^^^*
compiled by thofe infpired preachers, but
as containing the dodtrine taught by them.
The firft Creeds ufed in the church con-
fined, probably, in little more than the
baptifmal confeilion, ** I believe in the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghoft :" but
as the ceafelefs curioiity of men canvafled
every particular of revelation, and thence
broached new errours, to counterad: thefe,
additional articles of the truth were put
into the fummary of faith, until it grew to
the fize which it nov/ has, but which, after
all, does not exceed a few lines.
Thus far, then, are we advanced in the-
fervice in which, by the exhortation, we
were called to join : we have acknowledged
our fins in the confeilion, we have fet forth
God's moft worthy praife in the pfalms,
wc have heard His moil: holy word in the
leiTons, and having, by the Creed, declared
our fledfail belief in His revelation, it
now^ comes moll properly in order to offer
up
l-i^ ^^ ^^^ Liturgy*
SERM. up to Him, in whofe power and goodnefs
VIII. ^^Q confide, oiir petitions for thofe things
which are requifite and neceflary as well
for the body as the foul; and this our church
proceeds to do in the collects and the litany,
all to be repeated in the becoming poflure
of devoutly kneeling.
Neither is the tranfltion, in this, or any
other part of our Liturgy, fudden or abrupt,
but aptly and folemnly made : the minifter
firft wifhing that to the people which will
affuredly ever give effedt to their prayers,
that the Lord may be in the midft of them;
** The Lord be with you :" and the people
returning a wifh that his miniftry may be
rendered acceptable by that which alone can
duely fandtify it, ** the Lord's being with
^ His Spirit : " he addrefles them in that an-
cient form, ** Let us pray !" When hav-
ing befought the Father, the Son, and the
Holy Ghofl for mercy, that our fupplica-
tions may be favourably received by the
mediation and fandlification of which they
io much ftand in need, we are all inflrud:ed
to
On the Liturgy, in^
to fay the Lord's prayer with a loud voice; serm.
prefacing with this general fummary the ^^^^'
particular petitions in which we afterwards
do according to the apoftle's direction, ** in
all things make known our requefl unto
God."
Before the commencement of the colleds,
however, there are interpofed feveral fen-
tences and refponfes, the former to be re-
peated by the minifter (landing, the latter
to be returned by the people kneeling : of
which it has been obferved, that they an-
fwer as fo many compendiums to introduce
the feveral coUecSls afterwards read. Thus,
•* O Lord, Ihew thy mercy upon us ;" and
its refponfe, anfwer generally as a petition
for mercy and falvation to the colled: for
the day. ** O Lord, fave the king;" and
its anfwer to the colledis for the king, and
in him to thofe for the royal family.
** Endue thy minifters withrighteoufnefs;"
and, " O Lord, fave thy people ;" to that
for the clergy and people. " Give peace
in our time, O Lord;" and, ** O God,
m^ke
4
1*76 On the Liturgy,
SERM. make clean our hearts within usj" with
VIII. their refponfes, anfwer refpecftively to the
perpetual morning and evening colleft for
peace and grace.
Thus is the attention of the congregation
befpoken, as well by the folemn introduc-
tion to this part of the fervice before no-
ticed, as by thefe fentences to the fubfe-
quent prayers : and if thus apprized of their
matter, if thus called on to join in them
with becoming devotion, they afterward
betray diflrad:ion of thought, a wandering
mind, or a languid indifference to what is
doing, on themfelves the fault refts j for to
excite proper fentiments, and lead them to a
fuitable behaviour, the church has done her
part : and that, indeed, not only in what
precedes, but in the colled: s themfelves like-
wife ; in the compilation of which, weari^
nefs of mind is guarded againft both by
their brevity and their contents. For they
commonly begin with an addrefs to God
under thofe epithets which exprefs the at-
tributes that we, in the body of the prayer,
befeech
On the Liturgy. inq
befeech Him to exercife in our behalf. As serm.
when we pray that He would defend us ^^^^*
from all affaults of our enemies, we call on
Him as ** the Author of peace." When
we befeech Him to preferve us from fin,
and order our doings, we addrefs Him as
our heavenly Father. When we pray for
our fovereign, we invoke our God as
** King of kings, and Lord of lords :" and
when for all forts and conditions of men,
as the Creatour and Preferver of all man-
kind.
Now as the repetition of thefe attributes
is calculated to excite devotion in the foul,
fo the bleffings for which we fupplicate in
the prayers which we daily repeat, are fuch
as we are liable to be daily interrupted in
the enjoyment of, unlefs the Almighty
continue to us His protection; and thefe
our perpetual petitions are offered as was
the daily facrifice in the temple, which was
ever the fame, for perpetual blelTings : for
peace, for grace, for aid againfl perils, for
kings, and all that are put in authority,
VOL. II. N that
^7^ On the Liturgy,
SERM. that we may lead a quiet life; for the bre-
VI 11- thren, and for all men : and fo accurately
are thefe prayers formed after the precepts
of Scripture, that a man can fcarcely negle6l
to join in any one of them without omitting
to requefl fomething for which we are
therein particularly inftructed to pray :
while they are all concluded in His name.
Who hath afTured us, that whatever we afk
in it faithfully He will perform.
But to be fomewhat more particular in
our confideration of the feveral collects in
their order : the colleds for the week are
generally collected from the matter of the
epiflles and gofpels to which they are pre-
fixed, we praying for grace to obey fome
precept, or follow fome example delivered
in thofe extracts from holy writ ; and they
are, moreover, adapted to the feveral feafons
in which the church obferves her different
ieflivals, containing fupplications for God's
ailiflance to us to obferve the condu(5t be-
coming men who have received the bleffings
we on that occaiion commemorate.
The
0?i the Liturgy^ 179
The fubjeds of the flationary colleds I serm.
have already enumerated : here it may be ^iii.
added, that the two firfl: include general
petitions for what is requifite and neceflary
as well for the body as the foul, external
fecurity, and religious difpofition of mind.
While thofe which follow are prayers for
what, in all human probability, will befl
tend to promote the acquifition, and perpe-
tuate the pofTeflion of thefe, the bleffing of
God, firif, on our civil governours, by
whofe virtuous condud and fuccefs our
tranquillity as citizens will be guarded ; and
then, on the minifters of religion, and all
congregations committed to their charge,
throuo-h which there would ever be fet be-
fore us the true road to falvation, and we
fhould have fenfe and piety to follow it.
There now fucceeds a prayer for God*s
mercy on the human race in general, and
particularly on thofe with whom we are
conneded in the unity of the catholick
faith : in which are occafionally introduced
the efpecial petitions of our church tor any
N 2 C-f
i'Bo On the Liturgy.
SERM. of her members who defire the prayers of
^JI^J^ the congregation for their dehverance from
any afflidtion with which it hath pleafed
God to viiit them : a charitable office ftrongly
recommended by the facred writers, and of
the good efFe(5ls of which in behalf of thofe
who faithfully requeft the performance of
it, there fliould no doubt be entertained.
Having now proceeded in my obferva-
tions as far as the end of thofe prayers, in
lieu of which the Litany is, at fet times,
appointed to be faid, before I go further I
muft fpeak alfo to that. This fublime
office, then, directed to be faid by both
priefts and people kneeling, commences
with a moft folemn invocation of the Father,
the Son, and the Holy Ghoft, in which we
acknowledge the divine nature of each as
revealed to us in the Scripture, and then
confefs what we are no lefs plainly taught
by the fame infallible oracles, the unity of
the Godhead. To this invocation fucceed
feveral lliort petitions addrelTed to Chrift,
in which we deprecate thofe punifhments,
either
On tlo^ Liturgy, l8i
vither fpiritual or external, which we have sermp
by our tranfgreffions merited; the prieft viii.
naming the evils, and the people, in the
mofl eameft terms, fupplicating that they
may be averted, *' Good Lord, deliver us J"
And fuch are the particulars of thefe peti-
tions, that the very repetition of them, with
an attentive mind, will tend to make us
better men : fince to pray in the moft earneft
terms, that we may be delivered from every
kina of fin, and yet not ftrive ourfelves to
avoid ojflTending, would be a prefumptuous
inconfiftency with which the dullefl could
not but be flricken. The topics too which
we ufe to conjure, as it were, the Lord to
help us, are calculated to foften our hearts,
and raife in us the affedlions of piety and
gratitude.
The fupplications of the Litany extend
to all the points that the collefts, in lieu lif
which it is appointed to be faid, compre-
hend, and being urged throughout in the
ftrongeft manner, are at lafl: clofed in a
moft folenin ftyle by an addrefs to Cluifl",
N 3 as
^^2 On the Liturgy.
?ERM. as the Son of God, and as the Lamb by
J™* which the fins of the world are taken away,
by the Lord's prayer, and the ejaculations
which precede it : to which being fubjoined
two fhort fentences declarative of our con-
fcioufnefs of our own unworthinefs, the
accuftomed invitation is given to pray ; and
the comfort we have now received in thus
performing our devotions is expreifed by a
fupplication, that no perfecutions may ever
prevent our giving thanks to God in His
holy church, through Jefus Chrift our
Lord : Vv hen there follows a feries of praifes
and ejaculations, powerfully exprelTive of
that overflowing fulnefs of heart which
ever fprings from the minds having rifen
to the fummit of devotion. Neither is the
prayer that then fucceeds lefs fuited to the
turn which the foul, at fuch a feafon, na-
turally takes in recolleding her own infir-
rnities, the chaflifement Ihe in juilicip,^. de-.
ferves, and how much fhe flands in need of
that only fure fupport under a fenfe of
guilt, and the attacks of adverfity, a firm
trufl and confidence in the m.ercy of our
God.
At
On the Liturgy, 183
At this period are introduced applications serm.
to the throne of Grace on any particular viii.
fubjeds, in refpedl of which we more efpe-
cially ftand in need of relief: after which
our church proceeds to compleat her obedi-
ence to the apoftolick precept, and accom-
pany her requefts for future with thankf-
giving for the blefhngs already received, by
a prayer mofl: excellent in its kind ; in which
the invocation of the Father of mercies, the
enumeration of benefits, the preference given
to that by which all the reft are crowned,
our redemption, the fupplication that we
may unfeignedly manifeft our gratitude, by
giving up ourfelvcs to the fervice of God,
and the afcribing of all honour and glory
unto Him, combine to render this form of
returning thanks juft and beautiful; and,
I would hope, never are repeated without
every heart's freely joining in the offering.
There is too herein provided, a claufe for
thofe individuals who delire to praife God
before the congregation, for His peculiar
mercies to them; and which, it is to be
wifhed, was more frequently read at the
N 4 rcqueft
^ ^4 On the Liturgy.
SERM. requcftof thofe who have before folicited
Z!!i* . ^^^ prayers of the church, and had the re-
covery they fought vouchfafed unto them.
The next colled:, that of Chryfcftom, is
addreffed to our great High Prieil:, who
fitteth at the right hand of the Majelly on
high, to perfe6l our prayers by His inter-
ceilion ; and is fuch an humble fubmiifion
of all our petitions to His wifdom and
goodnefs, as becomes creatures ignorant and
fhort-fightcd as we are. And this part of
our fervice clofes by the prieft's uttering,
in the pofture of a fupplicant, the wifh of
St. Paul, in which the favour of the Son,
the love of the Father, and the conftant
affiftance of the Holy Spirit, being afked
for us all, may make a ftrong impreffion
on our minds, and caufe us to rife from
prayer with difpofitions befitting thofe who
are candidates for fuch great bleffings.
The primitive pradice of the church to
celebrate the Lord's fupper on every return
of His day, was the caufe of the office of
the
On the Liturgy, 1 8 r
the communion being on Sundays and holy- serm.
days fuperadded to the iifual morning viii.
prayer : and when, from the decreafe of
Chriftian piety, the cuftom of fo frequently
communicating, was laid aiide, part of the
office was ftill retained in conftant ufe, as a
teftimony that though the devotion of her
children be grown cold, the church ftill
acknowledges her duty perpetually to com-
memorate her Saviour's death.
The opening of this fervice is moft fo-
lemn, and calculated to excite that reverence
of mind which every one prefent fhould, at
fuch a feafon, feel. The prieft having ad-
vanced to the table while the congregation
are finging a pfalm ; (at which time, in
lieu of the confufed fcene of a few land-
ing, and others fitting, as if they had no-
thing to do with what is going forward, all
(hould be attentive, and prefent themfelves
in the proper pofture of praife). That
concluded, they are directed to fall on their
knees, when the " celebration of this facra-
ment, which Chrifl ordained, is begun by
the
i86 On the Liturgy.
SERM. the prayer which He alfo taught, fucceeded
VIII. by a colled, in which we particularly pray
for that which, on fuch an occafion, is par-
ticularly requifite, that God would pleafe
to purify our hearts by His Holy Spirit ;
that our love of Him may be perfed;, which
would make us, on hearing His command-
ments feverally repeated, fincerely lament
thofe our tranfgreflions of them which we
may call to mind ; and our homage worthily
offered, that our fupplications for will,
henceforth to obey His law'S, may be un-
feigned : for fuch is the meaning of the
fentences which are uttered by the congre-
gation after each commandment has been
read by the prieft; ** Lord, have mercy
upon US, and incline our hearts to keep this
law." By thefe means we do, in a manner,
renew our covenant with God, befeeching
to accept our repentance of what is part,
and promifing henceforth to obferve all that
the Lord hath fpoken. And here, if expe-
rience did not prove the contrary, one might
imagine, that there could be no need of
fuggefting, that Chriflians ought to attend
3 this
On the Liturgy, 1 8*7
this fervice with the moft profound awe ; serm.
and that the jufl humility of voice with '^"'^'
which they join in the fupplications fhould
(hew, that they ** pray with fpirit, and
with the underflanding alfo."
The precept, ** Honour the king," being
in Scripture conned:ed with that of " Fear
God," there is next interpofed a colled: for
our fovereign, that he may feek the glory
of God in trying to preferve his people as
in wealth and peace, fo in godlinefs; and
that his fubjedls may render him a confci-
entious obedience, as ferving the Lord, and
not man : and wifely are thefe requefls con-
joined, fince that monarch, who does not
iincerely endeavour to promote among his
people the honour of the^ King of kings,
cannot exped: that his lower authority will
be reverenced by thofe whom he encourages
to fliew contempt for an higher.
To the colle(fl for the day I have already
fpoken : but of the epillle and gofpel which
are attached to it, it may be remarked, that
as
iS8 On the Liturgy.
SERM. as in the commandments delivered by Mofes
VIII, ^^g ]-^g^j. ^^^2i\. was faid to thofe of old time,
fo in thefe extrads from the New Tefta-
ment wt hear what our Lord hath further
enjoined. The reading of the gofpel is,
too, directed to be attended with particular
refpedl, that of the whole congregation
Handing ; and there is a cuflom likewife of
the people, on its being announced, anfwer-
ing, ** Glory be to Thee, O' Lord !'* a
prad:ice very ancient, and, though no longer
fo, yet once commanded in our rubrick.
The Nicene Creed follows the gofpel ; and
it feems to be placed here that no one who
does not hold the Chriftian faith fhould
partake in the facrament now about to be
communicated.
Although it be ufual in churches where
there is but one to minifler, to difmifs the
congregation with a bleffing immediately on
the conclufion of the fermon, yet it is or-
dained, that even when there is no commu-
nion, the fentences of the offertory, the
prayer for the church militant, and a con-
cluding
On the Liturgy. 189
eluding collecH:, fhould be read, whereby our serm.
fervice would, when thus finiQied, conclude ^^^^•
with the charitable offices of both praying
for the brethren, and contributing to the
afliftance of thole who are in neceffity among
us : for the compilers of our Liturgy for-
get not the example of the apoftolick age,
but di reded that the firft day of the week
there fhould always be a collecflion made for
the poor : the prefent negle6l of which di-
recflion is much to be lamented, while its
confequences are heavily felt : providing for
the indigent is, in many who contribute to
it now, no longer an aft of charity, but of
compuliion, the diftrelTed their felves are
obliged to fhare their fcanty pittance with
others not fo diftrelTed as theirfelves ; 'po-
verty is made a trade; and the profligate
are often fupported in their vices by forced
contributions of the pariOi.
But when the Lord's fupper is to be
celebrated, after the prayer for the whole
ftate of Chrift's church, the prieft addreiTes
the congregation, in a folemn exhortation,
to
1 90 On the Liturgy.
SERM. to examine and judge themfelves that they
^^^^' may not be judged of the Lord, but be
meet partakers of thofe holy myfteries ;
recalling to their recolled:ion the judgements
which St. Paul reprefents the Corinthians
to have fufFered for treating this facrament
with irreverence, and not diftinguifhing the
Lord's body from common food; which
were various difeafes and fundry kinds of
death : the mercy of the Lord punifhing
their offences in this world, that they might
not be condemned when He cometh to judge-
ment. A very different mode of vilitation
from that which the weak and uninflrucSed
frequently imagine is herein threatened, and
the dread of incurring which, deters them
from participating in the communion of
that body and blood, without which we can
have no life remaining in us. To this
exhortation is added another, to join in an
humble confeflion to Almighty God : the
terms of which confeflion are flill more
earnefl:, the expreilions of our own ill de-
ferts and urgent need of the divine mercy,
ftill more warm than thofe in that of the
com-
On the Liturgy, loi
commencement of the morning prayer: and serm.
it is followed by a form of abfolution ftill viii.
more folemn than what is there ufed, and
by extradis from the Scriptures, replete with
comfort and encouragement for the humble
penitent, whofe fenfe of his unworthinefs
might otherwife deter him from approach-
ing to that table, where he can alone become
partaker of that facrifice by which we ob-
tain remiffion of our fins, and hopes of
everlafting falvation.
The mixture of humility and faith this
previous fervice is calculated to produce, are
neceffary preparatives for that holy feaft
which the prieft, after another moft appro-
priate prayer, begins by breaking the bread,
and pouring out the wine, which he con-
fecrates by prayer, and having received of
them his felf, diftributes among the congre-
gation, as he points out to each the end of
the inftitution, and prays that he may be
preferved to everlafting life, by the body
and blood of our Lord Jefus Chrift, who
died for him.
Lea ft.
192 On the Liturgy.
Leaft, however, the humble pofture of
kneeling, in which we are, by the rubrick,
commanded to receive the elements of bread
and wine, (hould, through weaknefs or
malice, be mifconftrued, there is a fpecifick
declaration in our prayer book fubjoined to
this fervice, declaring the church's abhor-
rence of any idolatrous veneration of them.
The remaining portion of this fervice,
(confifting of that of the Lord, and another
prayer, in which we dedicate ourfelves anew
to the fervice of God, of an anthem to be
faid or fung, and the bleffing pronounced
by the prieft) yields neither impropriety,
fublimity, or power of imprelTion to any
other part. Why then to a fervice fo plain,
and yet fo full, flionld there be added a load
of prayers, ejaculations, meditations, and I
know not what, from other devotional
books, which may diftradt the mind, may
lower it into defpondency, or raife it to en-
thufiafm, may teach Chriftians to mingle
with their offerings what the Lord has for-
bidden to be put to any facrifice to Him,
leaven
On the Liturgy, 1 93
leaven or honey; but for the diredion of serm.
the fober Chriftian, for the fupport of un- ^m-
affeded piety, will, we may venture to fay,
never be found to furpafs that form of our
common prayer-book, in which the feveral
particulars of the inftitution, as defcribed
by our great apoftle, or the evangelifts, are
accurately retained, and the whole of the
fervice is well calculated to fill the mind
with that due reverence, that holy confi-
dence, that gratitude towards God, and the
Lamb who was flain and liveth for ever,
and that fenfe of the indifpenfable neceflity
of good will towards men, and future holi-
nefs of life, which will beft render us
worthy partakers of thofe holy myfteries.
But yet more earneflly may it be aiked,
Why any who profefs themfelves believers
in Chrift, will not repair to a fervice fo
rational, to a rite fo ftridly enjoined, and
the benefits of which are fo ineftimable ?
Our church catechifm truely teaclieth us,
that this facrament, as well as that of bap-
tifm, is generally necelTary to falvation ;
VOL. II. o that
194 ^^2 ike Liturgy.
SERM. that is, necefTary to all who have it in their
vm- power to repair unto it. That this necellity
is not too f!:rong]y ftated, ye may, perhaps,
be convinced, if ye recoiled:, that as the
true believers in Chrift are, in the New
Teflament, faid to be made by Him, priefts
unto God, one particular in the confecration
of the priefts under the law deferves atten-
tion ; which is, that it was not complete
without their eating of the flefh of the
viftim of confecration. Go, then, and learn
what this meaneth, when compared with
the words of our Lord, " Verily, Verily,
I fay unto you, Except ye eat the flefh of
the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye
have no life in you."
And, for thofe who dare not approach
the holy table, from a confcioufnefs of their
own finful condudf , it moft highly behoves
"fuch to reflect, while they have power fo to
do, lince they find that they cannot, at the
fame time, ferve Chrifl: and Belial, whofe
fervice they fiiould in wifdom, and in fafety,
choofe. Chrift hath commanded you to
com-
On the hiturgw i o^
commemorate His death; this, ye fay, the serm.
impurity of your hvcs renders you un- viir.
worthy of doing. But Clnifl hath ah'b
commanded you to repent, and cleanfe your-
felves from fin. Can your difobedience to
this commandment ferve as a plea for your
negle(5l of the other ? Or does not your un-
worthinefs, by being voluntary, become
criminal alfo ? St. Peter did once, on the
plea of unvvorthinefs, helitate to comply
with His Lord's will, and that in a cafe,
too, in w^hich fuch hefitation muft, if ever
it could be fo, have been pardonable : But
what was our Saviour's judgement of it ?
** If I walli not thee, thou haft no part v/ith
me." He w^ho inllituted the feafl:, is the
bell judge of the qualifications of thofe
who come to it ; and the only one He re-
quires in us is, that we be His difciples,
and continue in His words. If we become
iincerely fuch ; if we thus live in the true
pradtice of what He hath enjoined, the
fhewing His death by this holy communion,
will prove to us a fource of comfort inex-
preffible; for we (hall then look for the
o 1 day
19^' ^^^ i^^ Liturgy.
day of His coming, as for that of the
arrival of the beloved and gracious Mafter
of the family of which we arc members,
in whom are placed our hopes of deliver-
ance from whatever evils we may at pre-
fent feel, and our expedtations of peace,
fecurity, and perfed: happinefs. But if our
love of this world, if our unwillinenefs to
part with enjoyments that are forbidden, or
to pradtife that felf-denial which religion,
in fome cafes, requires, induce us to reject
the call, and defpife the invitation which
the Lord hath given us, What will be our
confufion of face, when He appears ? Think
Low we fhall then meet Him, with whofe
requefl: fo affeftionately made, and accom-
panied with every circumftance to give it
effed: we have thus obfbinately refufed to
comply ! What fentence can we then expedt
Irom Him ? What but the condemnation of
thole who are lovers of pleafure more than
lovers ot God, everlafting banifhment from
the prefence ot Him whofe mercies we have
thus contemned ; and all the miferies con-
fequcDt on the wrath oi God and of the
Lamb ?
Of
0)1 the Liturgy. i 0*7
Of the power to avoid thefe we are yet serm.
pofTelTed : how long we may continue fo , God v 1 1 r .
alone knows j but if we have any gratitude
for the benefits we have already received,
any knowledge of the terrours of the Lord,
any care of our own falvation, let us no
longer delay to make ufe of it ; but repent,
and cleanfe ourfelves from fin, that we may
ever be ready to receive the cup of falva-
tion, and to call on the name of the Lord.
o 3 SER-
SERMON IX.
ON THE CAUSES OF OUR PRAYERS REMAIN-
ING OFTEN UNANSWERED.
PhILIPP. IV. 6.
Be careful for nothing :' but in every thing
by prayer and fupplication with tha?ikf-
givifig, let your requejis be made blown
unto God,
A MONG the various fubjecfts on which serm.
the reafonings of men are employed, ix.
religious queftions are thofe wherein we
muft expedl to find partiality the moft pre-
valent. For religion being every man's
concern, every man feels himfelf interefted
in the determinations relating to it, and
confequently becomes inclined, as in his
own caufe, to favour one party rather than
o 4 the
200 On the Caufes of our Prayers
SERM. the other. And hence, perhaps, chiefly it
^^' hath come to pafs, that more difputes have
arifen, more miftakes have been made, more
fophiftry hath been employed, and greater
obftinacy and perverfenefs difplayed on this
fubjed:, than on any other whatever. Men
who either feem to themfelves to have ob-
tained by their paft behaviour, or are earn-
cjftly refolved to hve fo in future as to ob-
tain a claim to the bleffings which religion
promifes, are often too hafly in forming
their ideas of them, and not content to wait
for the coming of that kingdom in which
their treafure is laid up, figure to them-
felves fuch fuccefs and felicity even in this
life, as neither are contained in the promifes
of God, nor can be granted confiftently
with the good order of his government.
The difappointments with which thefc men
meet, although no one be to blame for them
but theirfelves, do not only weaken their
own ardour in running the race that is fet
before them, but do alfo greatly ftrengthen
the conceits of the oppofite party, who,
confcious that theirfelves have nothing to
hope
remaining often unanfwered. 20 1
hope from tKe promifes, but much to fear serm.
from the threats of religion, are as ready-
to obferve, and as eager and unreafonable
in improving every appearance that tends to
lefTen their credit, as the others are extra-
vagant in their exped:ations of immediate
profit.
The evils which arife immediately, or by
confequence, from thefe abfurdities, are fo
manifeft, that every good man muft be de-
firous of corre(5ting both in himfelf and in
his friends, a partiality fo frequently deftruc-
tive of peace and falvation, and of obviating
the various miftakes it gives birth to.
Now fome of thefe relate particularly to
the dodtrine of the text, and have greatly
contributed to render men fo inexcufably
remifs and negligent in the duty there en-
joined as they are at prefent. Great effedls
are, in the Gofpel, promifed to our prayers
to God through Chrift ; and we are directed
to make application to Him in all our
wants and diftreffes, and encouraged to
exped:
2^2 0/2 the Caufcs of our Prayers
SEEM, cxped; relief and affiiiance from Him. — •
IX. it Every one that alketh," we are affured,
" receiveth;" and our Lord hath promifed,
that " whatfoever we afk in His name,
fliall be given unto us.'* But, neverthelefs,
if on the ground cf thefe general promifes,
any man Ihould hope that ail the prayers
he may think proper to put up w^ill be
granted, the experience of others may con-
vince him, that he will be miferably dif-
appointed ?
What (hall we fay then ? Are the pro-
mifes of God ill Chrifl become vain ? and
are the impious and unbelieving at length
^juiliified in thinking that the devout peti-
tioners of Heaven offer only the facrifice of
fools ? God forbid ! He is yet true, and
juft, and merciful, nor is one particle of
His covenant fallen to the ground. All
our difappointments are to be afcribed to
our own vanity and haftinefs, which will
not permit us to recoiled, that none of the
promifes of the Gofpel are unconditional :
](ince, if this were duely refieded on, it
would
remaining often unanfwered. 2,03
would be found, that we have no caufe to serm.
complain, and our adverfaries as Httle to ^^'
triumph. For be it acknowledged that the
prayers of Chriflians are often, nay, oftener
rejec1:ed than granted; yet if the terms on
which alone we are affured they (hall be
heard are, on our part, as often negled:ed,
Where does the fault lie but on ourfelves ?
and that thefe are fo, any man of common
fenfe and moderate experience may be certi-
fied by the following review of themi.
I. The firft thing infifled on in Scrip-
ture, as needful to the efficacy of our prayers,
is faith : " Let him afk," faith St. James,
" in faith, nothing wavering/* that is,
poiTefTed ot a firm reliance on the truth,
power, and goodnefs of Him to whom we
addrcfs our prayers, and a juft confidence
ill the mediation of Him, in whofe name
we offer them. As far as we are deficient
in either of thefe, (o far is our praying a
mere mockery. To beg the exertion of
attributes, the very exiflence of which we
doubt, differs but little from throwing a
farcalm
204 ^^^ ^^^ Caufes of our Prayers
SEiJM. farcafm on the imagined want of them;
i^ ; ^"^ ^^ ^"^^^ whether God will liften to our
prayer , when made according to the direc-
tions He hath given, What is it, in fadt,
but to miflruft His mofl: plain and repeated
promifes, and make the God of truth a
liar ? And can a man, who is guilty of
this, think that He fhall receive any thino-
of the Lord? Or can the rejedion of
prayers, thus marred with infidelity, be
made a fubjed of complaint ? If not, all
fuch petitions may return empty into the
bofom of the offerers, and the general pro-
mifes of the Gofpel flill remain unim-
peached .
Perhaps, however, you think this condi-
tion has not been wanting to your prayers.
You are confcious that you have never
petitioned Heaven but with full affurance
of the power, and goodnefs, and truth of
God, and of the reality and prevalence of
Chrift^s mediation ; yet have your expecta-
tions of fuccefs, though raifed on thefe
good grounds, proved vain. But have not,
then.
remcihiing often nnanfwered. 205
then, halte and impatience accompanied serm.
thefe your expedations ? Have you not, ix-
inftead of waiting with refignation the
Lord's good timt, begun to murmur, be-
caufe your prayers were not immediately
anfwered ; and without refle6ling how many
confequences the granting of your petition
might draw wdth it, partly given up your
confidence in God, and faith in His pro-
mifes, becaufe His favours kept not pace
with your wiflies ; thus becoming deficient
in thofe very qualities which the Gofpel
requires in all who would obtain the
patronage of Heaven j and dired:ly neglect-
ing the dod:rine of our Lord Himfelf, Who
hath charged us, *' that we fhould pray,
and faint not." Indeed, we may of our-
felves often difcover good reafons why par-
ticular petitions fhould not be immediately
anfwered ; and fince the divine wifdom may,
doubtlefsly, fee many m.ore, to deny the
exiftence of all fuch, and attack at once the
goodnefs or truth of God for the feeming '
mifcarriage of our prayers, is fuch impious
temerity, as may well deprive the man who
is
20 6 On the Caufes of our Prayers
SERM. is guilty of it, of all future benefit from
^^ his applications to the Being, whom he hath
thus infuked !
The two conditions already mentioned
will account for the ill fuccefs that has at-
tended many petitions; but there is another
no lefs plainly ftipulated, and equally rea-
fonable, which has, I am afraid, rendered
ineffeftual many more. St. John informs
us, that our Lord faid to his difciples, " If
ye abide in my words, and my words abide
in you, ye fhall afk what ye wilL and it
fhall be done unto you." Here, then, let
all who conceive that they have any ground
to complain of the inattention of Heaven
to their prayers, examine themfelves anew,
and recoiled:, if it is not \S\€\x fins that have
feparated between themfelves and their God.
A fcrutiny into every part of their condu6l,
efpecially into thofe parts of which they
are leaf!: fufpicious, will probably manifeft
to them many faults they had before over-
looked, and fliew their own ftate to be fuch,
that until it is amended by repentance, their
prayer
remamiug often uminfwered. 207
prayer muft be an abomination, and their serm.
hope preiumption. Neither ought liich ix.
enquiries to be confined merely to their ^^^^^^""^
condud;, pall or prefent ; but they ihould
be extended to their views and deiigns in
regard to the fubjedls ot their petitions ;
fince the diiappointments met with do too
frequently arife from the caufe afligned by
an apoftle in thefe memorable words : ** Ye
alk and receive not, becaufe ye afk amifs ;
that ye may, confume it on your lufts.'*
When the end of our addreffes to Heaven
is the obtainment of things which in lieu
of purpoiing to ufe for the honour of God,
and the good of his creatures, we only in-
tend to make the inflruments of felfifli fatis-
fad:ion, and the gratification of our own
depraved appetite ; ought we in any manner
to wonder or repine at our prayers being
rejected ? Can we call God unjulf for not
enabling us to break his laws with eafe and
pleafure ? Or can we accufe Him of want
of goodnefs, becaufe He will not make the
path to deftruc^ion more eafy and inviting
to us ?
But
2o8 On the Caufes of our Prayers
But yet there may be others whofe cafes
none of the conditions hitherto mentioned
can reach. Doubtlefsly there are Chriftians,
who with a fincere and honeft heart, truely
confiding in the promifes of God, and
walking ftedfaftly in the way of righteouf-
nefs, have befought Him w^ith fervour and
devotion for favours which they purpofed
to ufe agreeably to his will -, and yet have
not received that return to their prayers
which they hoped for, and thought they
had good reafon to exped:. And what fhall
we think of thefe difappointments ? Shall
we attribute them to a want of goodnefs, or
truth or power in God ; or rather to the
ignorance or want of judgement of the
men, who efteemed and alked for as bleffings
thofe things, which, if granted, would, in
realfty, have proved curfes ? Surely it is
moll reafonabic to conclude the laft; and
if fo, " What man is there of you, who,
if his fon afk for bread, will give him a
ftone ; or, if he afic for a fifli, will give
him a ferpent ? If ye then, being evil,
knovv^ how to gi\'e good gifts unto your
children.
remaining often tinanfwered. 209
children, How much more (hall our hea- serm.
IX.
venly Father give only what is beneficial ^^'
unto thofe who alk Him ? Enough, I con-
ceive, has now been faid to ifhew, not only
that it is with juflice and reafon that many
petitions are rejected, but likewife that the
difappointments of thofe who offer them,
afford no ground for doubting the truth of
any of the Gofpel promifes ; fince the con-
ditions OH which thofe promifes are exprefsly
made, experience will teach us, are, in
numberlefs inflances, left unobferved.
There ftill remains, however, another to
be added, which is that of the text ; that
our requefts for future bleflings fhould be
accompanied with expreflions of acknow-
ledgement and gratitude for thofe we have
already been favoured with. The propriety
of this I need not go about to prove, fince
the heart of every man who is not entirely
lofl to all fenfe of virtue and moral obliga-
tion, will immediately reprefent the bafenefs
of negligence in this point — and I would !
I could add, that I need not dwell on it,
VOL. ir. p becaufe
^10 On the Caufes of our Prayers
becaufe the inftances of fuch negled: are (o
rare ! But, in truth, they are the contrary,
and the forgetfulnefs of the benefits con-
ferred on us by God is, if poffible, more
common than that of thofe we receive from
men. Wherefore Chriftians fhould be often
called on to refledl, that as one end of God's
moral government of us his creatures is
our improvement, in order to our happi-
nefs, it would be acting inconfiflent with
that end, was He to encourage ingratitude
by conferring additional favours on thofe
who are unthankful for pafl: ones j and thence
learn, how little hope there can be of the
reception of thofe requefts which proceed
from men, who have failed to exprefs their
thanks for the attention that has been already
vouchfafed them.
While I have been making the above ob-
fervations, it hath probably occurred to you,
that fome of the conditions mentioned are
fo clofely related among themfelves, that in
lieu of being feparated they might properly
have been confidered unitedly. But there
is
remaining often unanfwe'redi i\V
is an advantage ariling from viewing them serM,
thus feverally. It may be fuggefted by the ^^*
perverfe and impious wit of fome of our
gainfayers, ** that thefe conditions are craf-
tily inferted in the Gofpel, that when the
great promifes there made of Heaven*s
liftening to the prayers of Chriftians are^
by experience, found to fail, its miniflers
may ftill be furnifhed with an excufe, and
a plea whereby to defend the credit of their
religion, by throwing the blame of the rriif-
carriage on the petitioners themfelves.'*
Now by the different conditions being ftated
iingly, the objection of the promifes being
clogged therewith, is placed in its ftrongeft
light, which is that in which I could wifh
to have all objections urged againfl the
Gofpel put, before a refutation is attempted j
becaufe if they are once '(hewn to be in-
valid, even when viewed thus advantageoufly
to themfelves, there can remain no ground
for any man of the leaft candour to caVii
further. With regard to that before us, the
weaknefs of it will appear by the anfwer
your own reafons will fuggefl: to the follow-
p 2 ing
^12 On the Caufes of our Prayers
SERM. ing queftion : Are not the conditions before
IX. us fuch, that, even if they had not been
expreffed, we ftill could not, confidently
with a juil idea of the divine attributes,
have expedled the petitions of thofe, who
did not obferve them, to be granted ? For
to this you muft anfwer in the affirmative ;
unlefs you can entertain the blafphemous
thought that God will encourao^e wicked-
nefs by favouring finners ; or no lefs impi-
oujfly and abfurdly imagine, that He will
take advantage of the ignorance of men,
who fimply afk for they know not what,
to curfe them by complying with their
prayers. The obje(5lion which may be
drawn from the number of the conditions
fpecified being thus overthrown, and quef-
tions which might arife in the breafts of
fpeculative men being already anfwered by
a' review of the conditions themfelves, it
now remains only to coniider the reafonable-
nefs of the apoftle's advice in the text, and
which, indeed, it requires very little atten-
tion to difcover, fince, if God will vouch-
fafe to liflen to our prayers, when we aflc
what
remai fling often unanfwered. li"^
what is profitable for us, and corredl them serm.
when unadvifedly offered, we may well i^-
call: away all anxiety and folicitude ; alTured
that whatever evils he may permit to vejt
us for a time, will, in the end, work toge-
ther for our good ; and thus confcious of
living under his mighty patronage and pro-
tection, be alway rejoicing.
Such was the fituation of the firft Chrif-
tians, who prefer ved a conftant intercourfc
w^ith their great Creatour by their prayers.
Through the fuccefs of thefe they were
enabled to attain to that height of charity,
as to be w^illing even to lay down their lives
for the brethren; by thefe they gained
flrength to vanquifli the greateft tempta-
tions j by thefe they acquired that patience
and religious fortitude, as to meet with
calmnefs all the tortures which the cruelty
and mifplaced zeal of their moil furious ad-
verfaries could fuggefl : and if, in thefe
our days, the love of many is grown cold;
if we feem not to be a(ftuated by the fame
fpirit that dwelt in the earlieft of our pre-
p 3 decelTors
^ H On the Caufes of our Prayers
SERM. deceflbrs in the profeffion of the Gofpel i
l^' if we behave not as members of the fame
communion, nor as fcrvants of the fame
Lordj if the warmth of our devotion is
fcarcely fo great as might be exped:ed even
from the embers of a fire which once burnt
fo bright ; i/jefe things are, in good part,
to be afcribed to our own limple neghgence
and impious perverfenefs in not ufing the
fame rrieans of obtaining from the Father of
fpirits, thofe fpiritual fupplies, from which
our forefatliers reaped fo great benefits,
and of which we fland in fo much need ;
whence, by a ftrange and unreafonable in-
verfement of things, the kingdom of Heaven
and its righteoufnefs, inflead of being made
the firft obje(fts of our purfuit, are the lall
thought on ; temporal enjoyments are pre-
ferred to everlafling fehcity ; and the world
and its good things have taken fuch an en-
tire polTeflion of our hearts, that ferious and
religious thoughts are deemed difagreeable
intruders into the breaftj and whatever
feems likely to give rife to them, is dif-
countenanccd and banifhed. Where t/jis
will
remaining often iina?ifwered. % i e
will end, God alone knows ; but fuch is serm.
the profpedt among mankind at prefent, as ix.
would at leall render it excufable, to put a ^"^"^'^'^^
very extenfive conftrudtion, on that declara-
tion of our Lord, " that on the Son of
man*s coming, He (hould not find faith
upon the earth."
p 4 SER-
SERMON X.
ON THE EMPLOYMENT OF THE REMAINING
HOURS OF THE SABBATH.
^p*-
Isaiah lviii. 13, 14.
If thou turn away thy foot from thefabbath,
from doi?7g thy pleafure on my holy day ;
and call the fabbath a delight ^ the holy of
the Lordy honourable ; and Jhalt honour
Him, not doing thine own ways, nor find-
ing thine own pleafure, nor fpeaki?2g thine
own words : Then Jhalt thou delight thy f elf
in the Lord: and I will caufe thee to ride
upon the high places of the earth, and feed
thee with the heritage offacob thy father :
for the mouth of the Lord hath fpoken it,
T^TE learn from various paffages in the serm.
books of the prophets, that their ^•
profanation of the fabbath had no fmall
fliare
X.
2 1 8 On the Employment of the
SERJM. fhare in biinglng clown on the Jews the
heavy punifhment of their feventy year!*
captivity ; and, indeed, fo fcnfible were
they of this, that after the wonderful deli-
verance which God wrought for them in
bringing them back to their own land, from
the fear of again offending in this rclpcdt
they ran into the oppofitc extreme, and be-
came fuperftitious and unrcafonablc in their
mode of obfcrving it. This fadt, however,
affords us a very flrong tcftimony that they
had fuffercd mofl fcvercly for their former
difbbcdicncc, and fliould, in all rcafon,
make us circumfpcd: as to any fimilar
offences. That this day is to be kept holy
by us, I have already demonflrated to you,
and ftated at large the grounds on which
the duty of hallowing it is founded. I
have fpoken, too, of the obligations incum-
bent on us to appear this day in the afTcm-
blics of Chriflians holdcn for the publick
worfhip of God, as well as to the behaviour
becoming all who prefent themfelves there-
in : it now remains to fpeak of the employ-
ment of thofc hours of it which are not
pafTed
remaining Hours of the Sabbath. 219
pafTed in the church ; and the text happily serm.
fupplies us with exprefs and ample direc- ^*
tion as to this point. ** \i thou turn away
thy foot (faid the Lx)rd) from the fabbath
from doing thy pleafure on my holy day ;
and call the fabbath a delight, the holy of
the Lord, honourable ; and fhalt honour
Him, not doing thine own ways, nor find-
ing thine own pleafure, nor fpeaking thine
own words.*' For thefe words aptly ex-
prefs thofe ways by which men, though
they reft from their fervile works on a fab-
bath, yet employ it in a manner by no means
confiftent with hallowing it. It is not meant
to prefs on Chriftians the rigorous obfer-
vances of the Jewifh laws : from thefe
(thanks to the divine mercy) we are free ;
but the command to keep the feventh day
holy being, as ye are apprized, not of Mofes
only, but from the beginning, it extends
as widely as the defcendants of Adam, to
whom it was given ; and on all his fons
therefore, it is incumbent to confidcr how
they can moft perfedly comply with it.
Firft,
2%0 On the Employtnent of the
Firfl, then, it fhould be remembered, that
it is the whole day, not a few hours of it
only, that we are enjoined to hallow, and,
confequently, no part of it fhould be fpent
inconfiftently with this purpofe for which
it is fet apart, but as much as may be of it
in making ourfelves better acquainted with
the will and teftimonies of that almighty
Being, who has appointed it to us His crea-
tures as a perpetual memorial of His hav-
ing, on the feventh day, refted from all
His work that God created and made. In-
deed, this is, in fome meafure, abfolutely
neceffary, to prevent our very attendance in
the church being in part nugatory. The
difcourfes which are there delivered to us
are not fuch as will, of themfelves, furnifli
the hearers with full information on either
the doctrines or the pracftice of religion :
both from their nature, and the time allowed
for them, they mufl contain merely the out-
lines of a comprehenfive fubject, or be con-
lined to the dilcuffion of a particular point;
in either of which cafes, ye muft be fenfible,
that the labours of the preachers can have
I but
remaining Hours of the Sabbath. 22i
but little fruit, unlefs they be forwarded serm.
and improved by enquiries and meditations x*
carried on by ourfelves at home. What is
faid from the pulpit muft be often unintel-
ligible, the truth of the remarks made, not
difcernible, the juftice of the remonftranccs,
and the propriety of the exhortations given,
remain unfeen, . unlefs thofe who attend
have already acquired fome knowledge of
the Holy Scriptures, and have a general ac-
quaintance with the hiftory therein related,
and the great truths therein declared. Now
when is fuch knowledge to be obtained?
When are thefe books to be fludied? If
they are not on this day, little probability,
I conceive, will remain of their being fo on
any other. If, after attendance on the di-
vine worfhip, and liflening to the word of
exhortation, w^hile the ideas raifed by them
are frefh and powerful, our minds difrelifli
what is grave and ferious, Can it be expe<fLcd
that they will eafily be turned to fuch fub-
jed:s from amid the hurry of bufinefs, or
the tumult of diverfions ?
Here,
On the 'Employment of the
Here, then, is employment for fome of
the time that is not fpent in the congrega-
tion ; and another portion of the fame is
requifite for giving that rehgious inftru6tion
to our houfeholds, which it is the duty of
every head of a family to impart, as far as
he is able to do. Neither fhould the too
general negled: of this induce us to think
it a matter of but little importance ; fince
no duty can become lefs a duty merely be-
caufe we forget, or wilfully omit to per-
form it ; while the benefits refulting to fo-
ciety from the general practice of this would
be fuch as amply to recompenfe, even in
this world, every individual for all the
trouble he would take in thus inftrudling
the ignorant, and filling the hungry foul
with goodnefs.
All the hours of this day, during which
the mind can, without fatigue, keep up a
ferious attention, being thus difpofed of,
either in attendance on the publick worfhip,
or in reading for ourfelves, or in giving or
receiving inftruc^ion; we are next to con-
fider
remaining Hours of the Sabbath, 1^%
fider of the reft not fo much how they serm.
ought to be employed, as how they ought ^*
not to be fpent ? for common fenfe itfelf
will didate to us the propriety of refrain-
ing, during the remainder of this day, from
every thing that is inconfiftcnt with the
homage we have paid, or that may counter-
ad: the effc6l of the lefibns we have re-
ceived. Yet, furely, fuch inconfiftency may
juftly be charged on thofe, who pretend
worthily to commemorate the bleflings of
creation with minds diftraded with bufinefs,
or roving on pleafure : or who, at the time
they call to remembrance the common origin
of all, forget the duties of compaftion,
kindnefs, and charity, which the recollef-
tion of that is fo fitted to inculcate; whofe
celebration of that day on which, by the
rcfurred:ion of their Saviour, life and im-
mortality were brought to light, and a
future judgement of all men allured unto
us, is accompanied with an eager purfuit of
vvhat is moft capable of banifhjng all ferious
reflexion, with employments little calcu-
lated to enable us to appear with hope be-
fore
224 0?t the Employment of the
fore His tribunal. To the follies of fuch,
indeed, fome bounds are happily fet by the
laws of our country : flill there remains
fufficient fpace within them, to give many
an opportunity of declaring, by the avidity
with which they feize it, that not religious
principle, but human laws, reftrain them,
and of enhancing their guilt, by offering
the infult more particularly to Heaven, in
" turning their feet from the fabbath, and
doing their own ways, finding their own
pleafure, and fpeaking their own words
thereon.*'
Thus our laws have wifely and pioufly
p/ohibited the exhibition of fpedacles, the-
atrical entertainments, and publick affem-
blies for amufement on this day, yet there
are who ftrive on it to fupply the place of
thefe, by turning their own houfes into
places of publick refort for diverfions little
fuited to the holinefs of the fabbath, and
endeavour to defend their praftices by thofe
of the countries that are ftill overrun with
the errours of Rome. Is it then already
forgotten.
remainhig Hours of the Sabbath. 2>25
forgotten, that we left that communion on serm.
account of the corruptions it had contra(^ted ? ^'
Or are the members of a reformed church
hkely to improve, or become more vicious,
by imitating the pracftices of the mother of
apoftacy ? Or, laflly, Do the confequences
of their paft condud: encourage you to enter
on the fame that her adherents have pur-
fued ? Has the general depravity of Italy
and France produced fuch efFed:s as^o ren-
der us delirous of experiencing the fame ?
Or, rather, Have not their tranfgreffions of
the law of the Lord been vifited with a
feverity fufficient to make us tremble at the
thought of bringing down fimilar judge-
ments on ourfelves ?
When I fay that there are thofe who turn
their houfes into places of publick refort
for diverfion on the Lord's day, I allude
not only to fuch as, with a bolder ftep in
profanation, and, confequently, with more
exceeding folly, fpread their card tables for
the amufement, or the profit of that con-
temptible generation, who cannot find in
VOL. II. Q their
ii26 On the Employment of the
SERM. their hearts to obferve one day in feven as
^- the holy of the Lord, and honourable, nor
bring their debilitated minds to reft content
without recurring to their accuftomed mode
of wafting that which all the wife and the
good deem fo precious ; but to all who,
under the pretence of facred mufick, or any
other excufe, coiled: large companies, by
whom the indulgences of. vanity, the parade
of dreFs, and the mere diftipation of thought
and avoidance of reflexion, in the language
of the text, the finding their own pleafure,
and the fpeaking their own words, are
fought. For, let the fuppofed purpofe of
i^hefe meetings be what it may, the queftion
to be conlidered by the promoters of them
is. What they do in reality prove ? and if
they are perverted to places of intrigue, or
even made merely fcenes of diftipation, the
fabbath is broken by them, the holy day
of the Lord profaned, and one of the earlieft
of the divine commandments trampled un-
der foot. But if the epithet of facred be
employed only to blind the eyes of men, to
evade the laws, or elude the vigilance of
the
remai7iing Hours of the Sabbath. a 27
the magiflrate; Are thefe deceivers weak serm*
enough to forget, that the Lord feareheth ^•
the reins and the heart ? Can they fuppolc
that He who hath declared, that *' He will
bring every work into judgement, whether
it be good or bad, that there is nothing hid
that Ihall not be known, and that what is
fpoken in the chambers fhall be proclaimed
upon the houfe tops," is to be mocked by
their hypocritical ailumption of a name to
cover their difregard of His will ?
Let all, then, who make a publick day
of the fabbath, refied:, with a fair and
honeil heart, to which defcription of men
the pradiifers of this may moft juftly be
faid to belong, to tliofe who call it a de-
light, the holy of the Lord, honourable,
and honour Him ; or to thofe who do their
own xvays, and find their own pleafure in
it ? and according to the anfwer which truth
and common fenfe fhall didate to this quef- 1
tion, let them (hape their future condudt.
Q a Neither
228 On the Employment of the
SERM. Neither is this admonition called for by
^* the behaviour of the higher ranks only,
many of the middle and the lower feem no
longer to think that that of the fabbath is a
religious inftitution, but ufe it as a day ot
diverfion and voluptuous indulgence. Can
any man, then, think this a proper ufe of
our Chriflian liberty, to employ the holy
of the Lord in the tranfgreflion of His
laws ? I am not ignorant that in excufe of
fuch there is urged, the w^ant of recreation
after fix days application, and the like :
But to what amount thefe pleas when we
are particularly admonifhed that fuch is not
the ufe of the day ? Reft is the proper
remedy for fatigue both of body and mind ;
and this is what we are, on this day, com-
manded to take : and fo far are the duties
of it from interfering with it, that, I think,
I may venture, without danger of jufl con-
tradidiion, to alTert, that thofe who fpend
the Sunday properly will be much more
ready to return to their accuftomed occupa-
tions on the next day with fpirit, diligence,
and.
remaining Hours of the Sabbath. 229
and effed:, than aiiy who have confumcd it SE^M.
either in mere idlcncfs, or in riot, or in. ^'_
forbidden indulgences. If men willi to
travel for the fatisfadtion of vifiting their
friends, or any other purpofe, furely a little
extraordinary exertion will enable them to
do this at proper intervals on fome other
day : But is not dedicating the fabbath to
thefe purpofes, like taking of the burnt-
offering of the Lord to make merry with
one's friends ?
Neither, indeed, can we go to any dillance
from our homes without obliging our cattle
to labour on this day, which, under the
commandment of our common Creatour, to
let them reft, is as manifeil an inflancc of
iinjuflifiable tyranny as the world exhibits.
Yet how are our publick roads crouded on
the fabbath with people feeking their own
pleafures, and forcing on the poor animals,
over whom they have obtained a temporary
command, a double talk; and thus. How
is the worfliip of God deferted in fome
places, to m.ock at His commandments in
Q 3 others !
z],0 Cm ike Employinent of the
sEjiM. Others ! Indeed, for Ibme years pall:, thof^
^- who have hved at all within reach of one
of the royal refidences, have had fet before
them a particular temptation to leave their
parifli churches during the fummer feafon,
that they may, in the evening, be prefent
at a fplendid allemblage with rnufick : and
although we cannot juflify, we may well
pity thofe who yield to fu-ch allurements ;
while we mull lament that want of counfel,
which permits a pracflice not only diredly
contrary to the principle of repeated pro-
clamations, which the piety of our fovereign
has caufed to be ilTued, but fubverfive of
the l^ibbath, and, confequently, moll: furely
dellrudiive of the morality of the people.
This lall particular, the corruption I
mean, of thofe about us, although made the
objed of the fevereft menaces of the Gofpel,
as, *' It is impolTible but that offences will
come : but woe unto him, through whom
they come ! It -vj/ere better for him that a
millftone were hanged about his neck, and
he caft into the fea, than that he fliould
offend
remajnuig Hours of the Sabbath, 23 1
ofFcnd one of thefe little ones.'* (Luke xvii. serm.
2, 3-) is, alas ! by many, fcarcely con- ^'
fidered as a thing of which they mufl give
account; Otherwife would the Lord's day
be chofen by them for a day of banquet and
parade ? by which their domefticks are de-
prived of the opportunity of repairing to
the church, and of inftrudtion in the law
of their God; and having the little they
ever did learn, gradually obliterated from
their minds, they are left to an unequal
Uruggle with the world, the flefh, and the
devil, without knowing where to apply for
fpiritual alfiftance, and even without being
confcious how much they ftand in need of
it. That heads of families, who having
theirfelves made fhipwreck of faith, *' are
taken captive by the devil at his will,"
fliould exad: from their fervants all their
labours on the fabbath, is no matter of fur-
prize ; but that any who yet continue to
affemble with the church, fhould imagine
that the facrifice of prayer and praife which
they offer can be accepted, while, by their
jmpious demands, others, who have their
Q 4 lalvation
232 On the Employment of the
SERM. falvatlon to work out, are deprived of the
x« benefit of refer ting to the congregation, ok
obh'o^ed to foreo:o the reft which God hath
commanded, affords, upon reflecftion, httle
Icfs wonder than regret.
But while we warn thofe who have others
under their command, not to bring down
on themfelves the woes with w^hich all are
menaced, who caufe any of the believers in
Chrift to offend ; let not their confcioufnefs
of being guiitlefs in this particular, en-
courage others to continue in tranfgreffion
under that partial confolation, that they hurt
nobody but themfelves. For is not this
plea made ufe of by thofe who do bufinefs
in their own perfons on the Lord's day,
without requiring the affiftance of their
fervants ? Or if, for their perverfe difobe-
dience, fuch perfons be caff out from the
kingdom of Heaven, will the refled:ion that
they hurt nobody but themfelves, recom-
penfe the lofs they have incurred ? Many
there are, I fear, who want to have thijj
. imprefled on their minds ; and, perhaps,
ilill
remaining Hours of the Sabbath, 233
ftill more, who have taken up an imagina- serm.
tion, that no bufinefs but that of manual ■^'
labour amounts to a breach of the fabbath,
ought to have their attention called to the
words of the text, *' not doing thine own
ways, nor fpeaking thine own words :" for
what can more ftrongly e::prefs the purfuit
of any temporal intereft, or more earneftly
prohibit buying, felling, making of bargains,
or, indeed, treating of any worldly affairs,
that do not necelTarily require immediate
attention. True it is, that this very excep-
tion leaves men a very confiderable fpace m
which they may exercife their own difcre-
tion ; but then it is theirs to remember, that
they are in this, as well as in every other
inlfance, acting under the eye of Omnif-
cience, and deciding how f:ir they fliall \Q.t
a prefent advantage leffen the refped: they
flicw to that Being, Who has declared, that
** they that honour Him, He will honour,
and they that defpife Him, fhall be flightly
cfteemcd."
To
234 ^^^ ^^^ Employment of the
To imagine that it can finally turn out
to the advantage of either a nation or an
individual to flight the divine command-
ments, is one of the m.oft abfurd concep-
tions that ever entered the human brain ;
equally contrary to the dicHiates of common
fenfe, and the do6i:rine of the Gofpel. That
real fuccefs in life can be procured by in-
fulting the Lord of life, or the wrath of
God avoided by betraying a want of that
quality which He requires as ncceilary be-
fore all others, implicit faith in His perfec-
tion, are fancies of which even a child
would difcern the folly. Yet are not fuch
fancies adled on ivhen the obfervation of
the iabbath is made to give way to councils
of ftate and political conferences ; or, among
individuals, to the fettlement of accompts,
or the forming plans of trade ?
We feem lately to have found, that even
our comparative degree of faith, piety, and
religious obedience, fmall as it in fubftance
is, hath profited us much ; fince the divine
mercy hath turned from us the full ftream
of
remaining Hours of the Sabbath. 235
of that torrent of calamities that has de- serm.
X.
luged fo many countries around us : even ^*
the meafure in which we are reformed from
the fins of Rome, fcems, through the won-
derful forbearance of Him Who feeketh
occafion to fhew mercy, to have faved us
from partaking in many of her plagues.
What benefits, then, fhould we not reap,
were we to make a proper ufe of this for-
bearance, and by turning wholly to our
God, and ftriving, in finglenefs of heart,
to learn and to obey His commandments,
were to obtain not only (as we may well
fear at prefent) an adjournment, but a re-
leafe from our fentence !
This national and efFedlual reformation,
how^ever, can never take place as long as the
young and the ignorant are taught, by the
example of thofe above them, to be lovers
pf pleafure more than lovers of God. Nay,
io long as they are encouraged to flight the
ordinance of the fabbath, they will become
lefs fleady in their faith, lefs fcrupulous ia
jheir pra<ftice. The impreilions of religion
pn
236 On the Employment of the
on our minds are naturally diminillied by
converfation with the world, the awe of
God naturally lelTened by attention to things
vifible, and, conlequently, they would be
quite effaced, if we did not occaiionally take
meafures to renew thefe impreffions. Re-
collect the confeffion made in their laft mo-
ments, by numbers who have fallen vi6tims
to their country's juftice, that their abiife
of the leifure of this day hath been the iirfb
caufe of their difmal fate j and ye will eafily
believe, that no fmall portion of that dif-
honcfly, profligacy, and brutality, which
render many of the lower ranks the pefts
of fociety, is, in truth, owing to the en-
creafed neglecfl of this holy day. Or mark
thofe of higher order, who prefume to do
their own ways thereon ; and will ye not
rind their lives flained with debauchery, or
their hearts tinged with infidelity ? Even
to ftem, thereiorc, the progrcfs of vice, and
prevent our country from becoming a fcenc
of fuch licentioiifnefs as muft call down the
vengeance of Heaven on it, treat the fab-
bath henceforth as the holy of the Lord,
and
rcmahiing Hours of the Sabbath . 237
and honourable, x^nd when wifliing to find serm.
voiir own pleafure, or fpeak your own ^'
words thereon, try the vakie of the excufes
that may prelent themfelves to your mind,
by comparing the conduct they would lead
you to with the firft and great command-
ment, and aik, whether e^'ading or quibbling
on the will of your Creatour, or even ven-
turing on what you may doubt is acceptable
before Him, be, in truth, coniiftent with
loving Him with all your heart, w^th all
your foul, with all your mind, and with all
your ftrength ?"
SER-
SERMON XI.
ON THE LOVE OF GOD.
St. Mark xii. 29, 30.
And ycfus anfwered him^ The Jirjt of all the
command7neuts is^ Hear, O Ifrael ; the
Lord our God is o?ie Lord: Ami thou fi alt
love the Lord thy Qod with all thy heart,
and with all thy foul, and with all thy
7nind, and with all thy frength. This is
the firji co?}miandment.
nPHE very dirproportionate attention paid serm.
to this commandment, in comparifon xi.
with the impreflive terms in which it is ^"^^^^^"^
dehvered, may, in part, be attributed, it
fhould feem, to the very little pains which
Chriftians take to make themfelves ac-
c[uainted
240 On the Love of God.
SERM. quainted with the Holy Scriptures. For,
^i* could men who had ever frefh in their re-
coUediion thofe words of the Lord which
I have juft read to you, ** The Jirji of all
the commandments is" — and ** This is the
fr/i commandment," be eafily brought to
think themlelves in a flate of falvation,
while they negled: the practice of this firil
precept, provided they keep the fecond ?
This flrange imagination does, however,
daily betray itfelf in a thoufand inftances :
we fee men who appear eftranged from
every office of devotion, wdio fcruple not
to make light of many of the leiTons of
the Gofpel, committing thofe things to
which they threaten the leverefl: punifli-
mcnts, and w^ho even do not hefitate to
profane the name of the Lord, perfectly at
cafe as to their fpiritual ftate; and this,
becaufe they have, as they fay, (but very
falfely, I conceive) done no evil to their
neighbour : and yet were ye, before thefe
men, to plead for the pardon of a murderer,
becaufe he had not committed adultery, they
would ridicule the abfurdity, and juftly
cenfure
On the Love of God, 241
cenfure the impudence of the defence ; serm.
though, in fa6l, parallel to what they them- xi.
felves fet up; when in excufe of their
tranfgreffion of the firfl:, they urge their
attention to the fecond great commandment.
The terms, too, under which fuch charac-
ters are often fpoken of, are no lefs ob-
je6lionable than their defence ; they are fre-
quently called (fhame to fuch abufe of lan-
guage) good moral vcitn, while, in truth, they
are living in conftant breach of the higheft
poflible moral obligation. For confider,
(what thoufands who ufe the words probably
never adverted to) What is a moral obliga-
tion, but that which arifes from the nature
we polTefs, and the relation we bear to any
being ? Is not, then, the relation we bear
to our Maker, neceffarily prior, in all re-
fpedls, to every other ? And muft not, con-
fequently, the obligation arifing from it, be
likewife fuperior to every other obligation ?
Here let thofe who affedt to profefs, that
though they will not fubmit to what thofe
v/hom they call enthufiafl:s, or devotees,
confider as the duties of religion, they will
VOL. II, R ' fcrupu-
242 On the Love of God.
SERM. fcrup iloufly avoid every departure from
^^- morality, learn, that not to render to God
the homage and univerfal obedience due
unto Him, is a departure from morality.
For by not accepting this lefTon, they will
demonftratively prove againft themfelves,
that all their former reafoning was grounded
on hypocrify ; and that, in reality, they are
willing to difcharge thofe parts of their
duty alone, the practice of which is not
unpleafing to themfelves. But is God to
be thus mocked ? And after He has fo won*
derfully and fo mercifully diffipated, by the
light of the glorious Gofpel of Chrift, that
cloud of ignorance and fuperftition in which
the nations were enveloped, and by making
the feveral parts of our duty the fubjed; of
His exprefs commands, placed them fo be-
fore our eyes that we cannot, but through
linful negligence, miftake them. Will He
fuffer the perverfe difobedience of men to
efcape His juflice, under the covert of their
fhallow fophiftry ? If ye cannot think thus
unworthily of the divine perfecStion, let your
attention now be fixed for a while on this
firfl
9
On the Love of God. 2a1
firfl and great commandment, while I en- serm.
deavour to lay before you that condu(5t by ^^•
which alone we can comply with it, and
alone perform our duty toward Him in * an
acceptable manner.*
** Thou (halt love the Lord thy God with
all thy heart, and with all thy foul, and
with all thy mind, and with all thy
flrength." Such are the words of the law !
In the inveftigation of which, the firft par-
ticular that demands our confideration is,
that it is not delivered in the general terms,
*' Thou fhalt love God," but with parti-
cular mention of the name of Him who is
God alone, " the Lord thy God j" that is,
in the original tongue, Jehovah : and it
feems to be thus limited both on account of
the imaginary deities, againfl the worfhip
of which the people of Ifrael were fo
ftrongly cautioned, and that when it fhould,
in due fealon, be preached among the Gen-
tiles, it might not leave them, through the
vaguenefs of the notion it conveyed, to
worfhip, as our Lord charged the Samari-
R % tans,
^44 ^^' ^^'^ ^^'^^ 9f God.
SERM. tans, they knew not what. In truth,
XI. thofe felf- deceivers who affume to them-
''■^^^^^'^^ felves the name of cleifts, by refilling to
Acquaint themfelves with God through His
revelation of Himfelf, referve no fmall H-
berty in forming their notions concerning
tiis will ; and, confequently, find no diffi-
culty in affirming, that they love God, and
ad confiftently with that love, while they
are, in reality, trampling on His laws.
But the Holy Scriptures, on the contrary,
call on us to love the Deity, under the fpe-
cifick character of Jehovah, the God of
Ifrael, and the Father of our Lord Jefus
Chrift, and take away all ground for feigned
pretences, and falfe profeffions of that love,
by refolving the proof of it into the fingle
queftion, " Whether we keep His com-
mandments ?" and thus is there opened
unto us a more immediate communication
with Heaven, and we have only to read, or
- hear, and pradife, and we fhall be afTured
that our lives are pafled in the fervice of
our Creatour, becaufe ** we know what we
worfhip :** and having a more difiind ob-
jea
On the hove of God, 245
jc(ft propofed for our attachment, \v>e can, serm.
with greater confidence, contemplate not ^i-
only His works, but all the wondrous ad:s ^"^^
of His mercy and righteoufnefs, made
known to us in the words of His revela-
tion; and thus render the degree of love
required by the text, not fo much the pro-
duce of confcientious obedience, as the na-
tural fruit of our own feeling-s.
f
But can love, perhaps ye would here afk,
be properly a fubjed. of command ? Pof-
iibly not, if its effecfts are to be confined
only to the mind ; but if they are to be
manifefted by outward acts, it clearly may :
and fuch is the meaning of the text, that
we employ all the faculties therein men-
tioned in the works of the love of God.
How this may, and muft be done, if we
would avoid the penalties of difobedience,
let us next confider ! Firft for our heart,
that being the feat of the aftedtions, to
pracftife the love of God with that, we muft
endeavour to fix our inclinations on what
He points out as the proper objcds of our
R 3 attach-
7,^6 On the Love of God.
attachment. Nor is this fo difficult to be
done as fome may at firft imagine : for
iince the profped: of happinefs naturally
excites defire, if we will but permit either
pur thoughts to be turned, by the hourly
inflances of mortality before us, to that
fcene of everlafting felicity beyond the
grave, which the facred writings defcribe
to us under images fo flrong. and fo various :
or our minds to be inftrudied by what paffes
in the world, in the fuperior peace, fecurity
and comfort enjoyed by thofe who live in
the faith and fear of God, or confider the
amiable charadler and efteem which they
polTefs, who in iinglenefs of heart, walk
according to the laws He hath fet before
us, our inclinations cannot but be raifed in
favour of thefe feveral particulars which
He has commanded us to feek. And the
eternal things which are not feen, the life,
the happinefs, the glory promifed in another
world, the unfliaken confidence in the pro-
vidence of God, enjoined to every difciple
of the Gofpel, and the undefiled hands, and
pure intentions, required in the Chriftian
charadter,
On the Love of God, 247
character, will infallibly intereft our hearts serm.
in favour of what fo naturally and fo plainly xi.
defer ve regard.
True it is, that to produce this attach-
ment in the breafts of moft men, a very
great change muft be wrought in them,
fince it fcarcely comes into all their thoughts.
What is in their eyes mod worthy of pur-
fuit, may, with fufficient certainty, be col-
lected from what they feek w^ith moft earn-
eftnefs themfelves, and what they point out
to their children as calling for their principal
attention. Without doing any injuftice to the
generality of thofe who now call themfelves
Chriftians, 1 conceive I may alTert, that the
good things of this world are much more
earneftly ibught after by themfelves, and
the attainment of them more attended to in
the education, and fetting forth of their
children in life, than the reward of righte-
oufnefs promifed in that which is to come.
Of many it may, I am afraid, be with
truth affirmed, that until they think them-
felves certainly about to leave the prefent
R 4 fcene,
X
34^ On the Love of God,
SERM. fccne, they never ferioufly apply their
thoughts to what is to be expected in the
next. Though hvin^ now, and dependent
for what fhall be hereafter, on the bounty
of Him Who is Lord of this w^orld, and
of that which is to come. Does not the
eagernefs with which they purfue the plea-
fures, or the honours, or the riches of the
prefent ftate, declare, that it is not He, but
thefe, that they love with all their hearts ?
How then are fuch men obedient to this firft
and great commandment ? If two objecfts
of attachment be fet before us, one of which
we love with all our hearts, (and but one,
it is plain, we can love in this degree)
furely our affecflion for this one will imme-
diately fo manifeft itfelf as to leave no
doubt which it is we prefer. By this rule,
then, let us judge ourfelves ; affured, that
as long as our {tn{& of duty, and our incli-
nations, can maintain an oppofition to each
other, we love not God with all our hearts.
For thus will a check be provided for that
unreafonable ardour with which we purfue
thofe phantoms of pleafure that beguile us
into
On the Lovf of God. 249
into forgetfulnefs of the heavenly country to serm.
which we are at prefent on our way. Could xi .
the felf-devoted vid:ims of diflipation once ^•''"^'^"^**-^
be brought to afk thcmfelves, in the midft
of their career. Whether the eagernefs with
which they feek after amufement be com-
patible with loving Him with all their
hea; Cft . whofe commandment it is that they
Ihould live foberly, and walk circumfpedly
in this world ? Surely the anfwer which
• even the meafure of wifdom and of con-
science they poflefs would return to this
queftion, would manifefl to them the la-
mentable errour of their ways, by convict-
ing them, from their ovvn mouths, of dif-
obedience to the chief precept of His law.
Indeed, (for a repetition may be excufed on
a fubje61: that ought to be moft deeply im-
prelfed) the very exiftence of the queftion
includes the anfwer to it j for did we love
the Lord with all our hearts, our attach-
ment to His fervice would admit of no
comparifon with our affedtion for any other
objedt : but we Ihould, with His apoftle,
count
7,^0 On the Love of God.
SERM. count all things but lofs for the excellency
'^'^ of the knowledge of Chrift Jefus our Lord.
I mean not to fay, that this attachment
can, in a degree to render it worthy the
name of real, be fuddenly gained, but it
may and muft be formed during the courfe
of the life of every real Chriftian ; and
when once it is fo, and, like every other
ruling pailion, fwallow^s up the reft, think
what it muft be to have your hearts fixed
not on any thing changeable, not on any
thing perilliable, but on the fummit of per-
fe6lion, from which ye can never be fepa-
rated, wdth which ye can never be cloyed !
It is with all our fouly that we are next
commanded to love the Lord our God. By
which precept our moral faculties are re-
quired to be dedicated to His fervice j the
neceflity of which injunction is moft clearly
fliewn by the behaviour of that generation
whom I before mentioned as making a dif-
tin61ion between morality and religion. For
the
On the Love of God, 251
the moral faculties of thefe men, their tern- serm,
perance, their benevolence, and even their xi.
piety, are employed not in the fervice of
the Lord our God, Who hath commanded
all men, as they honour Him to honour
His Son alfo, but in a mad attempt to
prove, that men can rife as near to perfe6lion
without attending to the dire(fhions He has
been pleafed to give them by revelation, as
they can by living according to His exprefs
command. Yet if fuch commandment has
been given. How can they love God with
all their fouls, whofe fouls are not employed
in the works of that commandment ? To
have our fouls thus employed, all things
muft be done to His glory, and our fclf-re-
ftraint is not to be limited by the care of
health, or worldly prudence, but by the
words of His will. Our benevolence muft
not be merely the refult of the feelings of
compaffion, in blindly following which we
may as often minifter to vice as fupport the
caufe of righteoufnefs, but the natural fruit
of a fettled purpofe to ufe His gifts in the
jinanner moil: acceptable in His light, moft
con^
252 On the Love of God.
conducive to His glory : neither mufl: our
piety be the mere efFed: of cuftom, or what
is ftill worfe, the work of oftentation ; but
the produce of our confcioufnefs of His
greatnefs, and our utter dependence on His
power and goodnefs. By fome, indeed, it
may be thought, that if men are brought
to pradl:ife thefe virtues from any motive
whatever, a great point is gained. And
true it is, that if we eftimate the generaUty
of the world as they really are, to prevail
on. them to live foberly, righteoufly, and
godly, feems a thing more to be wi(hed
than hoped for, w'' de great would be the
benefit thence accrueing to fociety, if they
were to do fo, even on lower motives. But
the divine power is not limited by our con-
ception, nor is it folely the prefent good of
human fociety that is fought by the Gofpel,
but the future falvation of every individual,
his improvement, his exaltation, which mufl
depend upon the height, and the purity of
his principles. Now the pureft, the noblefl
of all principles, is, without controverfy,
the love of the fummit of perfedion, which
not
.On the Lovs of God, 253
not only cafleth out fear, but, like the fire serm.
which fell from Heaven on the facrifice of ^^*
Elijah, and confumed even the water, the
ftones and the duft, purifies the foul from
every ignoble affection, and fancftifies it to
the fervice of the one everliving God.
The commandment proceeds, — *' And
with all thy mind :" a phrafe which points,
I conceive, to our mental faculties, and can
be obeyed only by employing them in the
works of our divine Mafter. That they are
not fo employed by that portion, that great
portion, alas ! of the human race, whofe
whole care it is to gain, or to encreafe their
worldly fubftance, is but too plain. Let
me not, however, be here underflood as
fuggefting, that this law is tranfgreffed by
men who ufe due exertions to fupport them-
felves, and provide for their families, ac-
cording to the line of life in which they
are placed. Thefe are employments ailigned
us by Heaven itfelf, and fuch, too, as are
made the fubjefts of other divine precepts :
for we are told, that he who provides not
for
^£^ On the hove of God,
for thofe of his own houfe, is worfe than
an Heathen ; and are exhorted to labour at
the thing that is honeft, not only to preferve
us from any temptation to fteal from others,
but fo far as to have wherewithal to give to
him that needeth. But thofe love not God
with all their minds, whofe endeavours are
not regulated by His laws. Whether, for-
getting that man liveth not by bread alone,
they pafs their days in fordid anxiety,
planning and purfuing fchemes to augment
their ftore. Or whether with lefs folicitude,
but at leall equal difregard to the divine
will, they gain their fubfiftence by means
contrary to the pure precepts of the Gofpel,
And how much farther from this muft
•they be, who,^ enlifting themfelves under
the banners of Antichrift, with determined
impiety, employ what abilities they have in
J'preading the darknefs of infidelity around
them, and with crafty mifreprefentation,
and malicious fophiftry, impofe upon the
ignorant, miflead the weak, and encourage
the vicious in tranfgrellion ! Thefe enemies
of all righteoufnefs, while calling them-
felves
On the Love of God, 25^
felves lovers of wifdom, are inceffantly s E R m.
labouring to ferve the caufe of folly; while xi.
ftiling themfelves friends of truth, are moll ^"^"^'^^^
anxioufly promoting falfehood; and while
boafting of themfelves as the enlighteners
of mankind, are enticing them to wander
into the dreary (hades of utter darknefs ;
and therefore when the light His felf (hall
appear, thefe will be found haters inftead
of lovers of God.
But let it not be fo with you : let, on the
contrary, your recolledlion of the rank of
being in which your Creatour has vouch-
fafed to place you, giving you a fuperiority
over fo many of His creatures, and endow-
ing you with faculties capable of unlimited
improvement, let gratitude for thefe great
gifts, I fay, produce in you fu(ficient love
of God to induce to ufe your abilities not-
as the diflipated, in difgracing the fpecies
to w^hich ye belong, by putting on the
appearance of being incapable of receiving
gratification from any thing but trifles or
licentioufnefs j neither in w^hat will fub-
jedt
2^6 On the hove of God.
SERM. jed: you to a ftill heavier condemnation, in
XI. deviling mifchief againft your neighbour,
in wreaking your mahce on thole with
whom ye are offended, or in corrupting the
innocent, or feducing the unwary from the
paths of righteoufnefs ; nor, lallly, fhould
your ftation in hfe enable you to become a
bleffing or a curfe on a larger fcale, in
exciting civil diflentions, promoting wars,
or forwarding the deftrudtion of mankind,
but in learning rightly to divide the word
of truth, and rendering yourfelves wife
unto falvation. The heart and the mind
mutually affecfl each other ; when, therefore,
men become corrupted in their affedlions,
their underftandings grow gradually dif-
torted, the foundnefs of their judgement
fails, and their power of diftinguifhing
truth from falfehood is impaired ; to avoid
this melancholy ftate of mental imbecility,
under which fuch multitudes, unconfcious
of their own miferable fate, adlually labour,
the faculties of the mind fhould be early
fecured on the fide of righteoufnefs, by
being emploved in the fearch and the fupport
of
On the Love of God. 2 C7
of truth. But this point more properly be- serm.
longs to the next head, that portion of the xi.
commandment which enjoins us to love the
Lord ** with all our flrength."
A remark made early in this difcourfe,
that by being commanded to love God with
thefe feveral faculties, we are enjoined to
employ them in the works of His love,
will explain what is intended by loving
Him with all our ftrength. Since to em-
ploy this in His fervice, we muft prad:ife
His laws while we are yet in the vigour of
our age, in the prime of our lives. And a
very little obfervation of the condudt of
mankind is fufficient to evince, how nccef-
fary it is to remind them of this part of
their duty. For is it not, in truth, a very
confiderable proportion of men, who never
think of fubmitting to the reftraints of re-
ligion till their bodily ftrength begins to
decay ? And can this be called loving God
with all our ftrength ? Or are the reliques,
inflead of the firft fruits of His own gifts,
all that ye can bring yourfelves to offer
VOL. II. s Him ?
'258 On the Love of God.
SERM. Him? " Offer fuch now to thy Gover-
x^* nour; Will he be pleafed with thee, or
accept thy perfon ?'*
Thefe are queftions which merit the moft
ferious confideration of both young and old :
of the old, that if confcious to themfelves
of having neglected this commandment,
they may, if place for repentance can yet
be found, prove their remorfe for their paft
negligence fincere, by exerting, with re-
doubled earneflnefs, the portion of ftrength
they have left, in the caufe of piety, righte-
oufnefs, and charity. Of the young, that
they may not be deluded to wafte in folly
and the fervice of vice that ftrength which
has been given them no lefs for the glory
of their Maker than for their own accom-
modation, and thus lay up for themfelves
the fad inheritance of anguifh and remorfe,
when the days in which they muft die
drawing near, they can no longer avoid the
reflection, that they are about to be called
to render account of the ufe they have made
of the faculties, which their Lord committed
to
On the hove of God. 259
t«3 their care. Moft pitiable is the fi<>ht serm.
often exhibited by thole who having mif- ^^i^
fpent the years of their youth, can draw
little from the recoiled ion of what is pall,
but anxiety and dread af the future : and a
comparifon of the wretched ftate of thefe
with that of thofe who from their youth
have ferved the Lord, joined to the recol-
ledion of how few do in fa6l attain to re-
pentance in old age, would tend to prevent
the young from being deluded v into tranf-
greffion, under the diftant hope of recover-
ing themfelvcs by future repentance ; or
from being tempted to part with their inno-
cence by any of thofe pleas which the w^orld
is fo ready to find for all that will comply
with her corruptions, but which are little
better than mere impertinences, unlefs they
can deliver the youthful finncr from the
charge of having broken this fir ft and great
commandment, in not •* loving God vvitk
all his fi:reno;th."
Having thus generally Rated the objects
of this commandment, little more remains
s 2 for
26o On the Love of God,
SERM. for me than to obferve to you, that there
^^' cannot be either more or flronger motives
for complying with it than we already
polTefs. It is for perfection itfelf that our
love is demanded : the perfonal obligations
received by every individual among us from
the fame great Being, are not only incom-
parably beyond any deferts we could have,
but continued under perpetual provocations
to withdraw them. While there is holden
out to us the proffer of ftill greater benefits,
if we will but render ourfelves fit to receive
them — What makes our returns, then, fo
inadequate to all thefe calls? Why are the
beggarly elements of the world, the obje6ls
of luft, pride, avarice, embraced with ceafe-
lefs ardour, while our Creatour, Redeemer,
Preferver, and conftant Benefactor, fure re-
ward, and everlafting recompence, is fo
coldly regarded ? Various, poilibly, are the
excufes that fuggefl: themfelves to you for
this condud ; and ye think them fuch as
ye may fafcly rely on. Yet confider ; Are
they, indeed, fuch as ye fhall dare to plead
before the throne of Chrifl ? If not, they
can
On the hove of God. 261
can avail no further than to lull you into a serm.
falfe fecurity for a few years longer, on ^i*
being awakened from which ye will be
ftricken with tenfold horrour at findrng-
yourfelves irrecoverably loft ! For it after
being commanded to love the Father w ith
all our heart, our foul, our mind, and our
ftrength, it fhall appear to the all-piercing
eye of our Judge, that our heart, foul, mind,
and ftrength, were otherwife engaged. Will
it be the fentence of good or that wicked
fervants which muft proceed from His un-
erring lips upon us ? Weigh well, I be-
feech you, this queftion, ere it be too late;
and having confidered it, let your future
condu6t prove, that the love of God dwclleth
in your hearts !
% 3 SERi
SERMON XII.
ON THE RECIPROCAL DUTIES OF PARENTS
AND CHILDREN.
EPHES. VI. I, 2, 3, 4.
Children^ obey your parents in the Lord: for
this is right. Honour thy father and
mother ; which is the fir'Ji comtitandment
with promife ', that it may be well with
thee, and thou mayeji live long on the earth.
And ye, fathers, provoke not your children
to wrath : but bring them up in the niir^
ture and ad?nonition of the Lord,
AMONG the prefumptiious abfurdities serm.
which modern fophifts have uttered, J^^
there is none more direclly contrary to the
precepts of the wifeft men of antiquity,
mid even to thofe of the infpired penmen,
s 4 th^n
264 On the ree-iprocal Duties
SERM. than the (hallow conceit which one wretched
^^^* pretender to depth of thought has ventured
to bring forward, in advifing parents to re-
frain from putting their children under re-
ftraint during the firfl: years of their lives :
and, indeed, there needs but a little obfer-
vation added to a moderate degree of com-
mon fenfe, to difcern, that the habits of the
nurfery, and the difpolition there acquired,
will fometimes attend a man through life ;
while no doubt can reafonably be entertained,
but that the influence of them continues, in
many inftances, where it is not obferved.
But without infifting upon the -probability
of this continuance ; a child that is left
unreftrained during its earlier years, muft
either continue (o until it comes to years of
maturity, when it would be impollible to
bring under controul paihons fo long accuf-
tomed to indulgence j or mufi: be earlier re-
duced to difcipline, when the feverity ne-
ceilary for this purpofe would caufe a
parent, who had, until then, fliewn nothing
but lenity, to appear altered in his regard
toward the child whom he began to treat fo
differently :
of Parents and Children. 265
differently : and would not this apparent serm.
change in the affedions of the parent natu- ^^^•
rally occaiion a real one in thofe of the
child, and thus dcltroy, at the root, that
honour, which it would have been the hap-
pinefs of the one to pay, and of the other to
receive, had not the dicStates of philofophy
(falfely fo called) contributed to interrupt
the peace of both ? And thus it will be
found, by any one who really inveftigates
the point, that the duties of parents and chil-
dren are fo trucly, what the apoftle does in
the text coniider them to be, reciprocal, that
attention or negledt of them, on the one
fide, tends to produce the fame on the other.
While what are the habits of filial obedi-
ence and domeftick order, but the founda-
tion of loyalty to our fovereign, and regu-
larity of publick conducft. So truely fuch,
indeed, that I think I may venture to fay,
that he who is not a good fon, will fcarcely
ever prove a good fubjecft ; nor he who has
been accuftomed to diflurb the tranquillity
of a family at home, ever promote the peace
of a community. The houfehold of our
parents
266 On the reciprocal Duties
SERM. parents is the firfl: fociety in which we ap-
XII. pear : herein, then, miifl be formed the
rudiments of our behaviour in thofe more
enlarged ones, of which we may afterward
become members ; which particular mani-
fefts the accurate propriety with which the
commandment, mentioned in the text, is
placed at the head of thofe that relate to
our duty toward our neighbours.
To the conlideration of this command-
ment, as more exteniively viewed by St.
Paul, in the words before us, I fhall firfh
call your attention ; meaning, afterwards,
to fpeak of the behaviour which he directs
parents to obferve toward their children,
To honour, then, fignifying, in its pri-
mary and moil: limple fignification, to hold
any thing in eftimation, fince we cannot do
this without having our affecftions attached
to it according to its nature, the precept to
honour them nccefiarily includes that of
loving our parents ; the reality of which
Jove will manifefl itfelf by the conduct]:
fuitc4
of Parents and Children. 267
fuited to the period of life in which we serm.
may be : for the fond endearments which ^"*
are fo plealing, and appear fo amiable in an
infant, would not only fcem ridiculous, but
be really difgufting and abfurd in one of
maturer years. Still there are teftimonies
of affecftion which we can fliew in very
early years, and of which we need not be
afhamed when we are advanced in age.
Such is the tear of giving uneafinefs to a
parent, which may often be difcerned in
very young minds, and if not deftroyed
by a CO J lie of indulgence, which makes
nothing appear to give uneafinefs, or'
by morofenefs, wh ch difcou rages all at-
tempts to pleafe, or eradicated by vice,
which blunts all the finer afFeftions, will
make regard to the feelings of a parent a
principle of adion through life, lervmg as
a falutary check to folly and ni temperance,
and, from the force of habit, retaining its
power even when its objed: is no longer on
earth.
On
a68 On the reciprocal Duties
SREM. On the other hand, what degree of real
^^^' affection can there be in the breaft of a
child who manifefts not this fymptom of
it ? When we fee (as we too often do) the
cautions of a parent difregarded, his appre-
henfions laughed at ; when a mother's ex-
preffion of her fears has no other cffed: on
a fhamelefs child, than to make him con-
tinue the very actions of which fhe dreads
the confequence, What love can dwell in
the heart of fuch a child ? Or when he
goes forth into the world, will the fon, who
has been accuftomed to defpife the words
of thofe whom he was the moft ftridily
bound to honour, fhew more refpedl to
others, than he was wont to do to his
parents ? Will he ftiddenly acquire new
habits of attention and compliance? Or
can he exped:, that his pafl: difobedience
to the law of God will be rev/arded by
additional grace to preferve himfelf frorn
what will bring on him difgrace and en-
mity from men? Much, it is true, may
be pleaded in favour of the weaknefs and
the, inexperience of childhood, but there
of Parents and Children. 269
is nothing required of children to which serm.
the years at which it is required are not xii.
equal, and therefore their want of compli-
ance cannot be acquitted of guilt; nor
parents of cruel negligence, who fuffer fuch
guilt to become habitual : for we have the
authority of Solomon himfelf for faying,
that though *' foolifhnefs is bound in the
heart of a child, the rod of corredtion (hall
drive it far from him.'*
Neither fhould I omit to mention the
extent to which the caution arifiiig from
this fear of offending reaches, embracing
all that which may be termed the negative
honour due to parents, that is, all thofe
teftimonies of efleem and refped:, the omif-
fion of which would be a difhonour to
them. Becaufe we are no longer under the
immediate command of our parents, are we
to confider ourfelves as no more connected
with them than with the reft of mankind ?
Are we to alter our plans without advifing
with them ? Or change our fituation in life
without even imparting our intention to
them ? The having particulars of this kind
4 with-
270 On the reciprocal 'Duties
SERM. withholden from their knowledge, cantiot
^^^^.^^^ but be very grating to parents, fince it be-
trays either a contempt of their opinion, or
a doubt of their affection. When we read
that a " foolifh fon is a grief to his father,
and bitternefs to her that bare him,^' we
are but reminded of what daily palTes in
the world through the behaviour of the
extravagant, the idle, the diffipated, and the
profligate. How many eyes are, at this
moment, weeping over the follies or debau-
cheries of a dilfolute fon ! How many
cheeks are now bedewed with tears for the
confequences of a daughter's obftinacy and
inattention to parental caution ! And fhall
they be faid to love father and mother, who
thus embitter their lalt years by cafting be-
hind them their inftrudiions ; and by for-
faking the paths of prudence and of virtue
they had fo earneftly endeavoured to mark
out to them, contribute to bring their grey
hairs with forrow to the grave ?
True it is, I fay, that the condemnation
in which fuch are involved, is often, if not
generally, derived from an habit of difobe-
dience.
of Parents and Children. zji
dience, early acquired, through the injudi- serm.
cious lenity and unkind indulgence of their ^^-i*
parents : but as parents are fo eafily pre-
vailed on to yield fuch indulgence, children
who are capable of underflanding the cau-
tion, fhould be warned of the fearful con-
fequences of not accuftoming themfelves to
pay a fincere and ready deference to the or-
ders and admonitions of their parents : for
correfpondent to the promife on compliance
with the precept, are the effedis naturally
refulting from the negled: of it; and we
may frequently trace mifcarriages in life,
poverty, difeafe, and even immature death,
to difobedience to the leflbns of a father, or
to contempt of a mother's inftrud:ions. Let
the dread of thefe confequences , therefore,
the dread of their growing worfe and w^orfe,
of their being left by the juft fentence of
God for tranfgreiling His commandment to
become more eftranged from their duty,
more hardened in evil, operate as a timely
warning on young people to obey their
parents in all things ; ever remembering that
the pra6lice of this obedience, in their early
years,
ZJZ On the reciprocal Duties
SERM. years, will be the beft preparative, the fureft
^^i* of pledge of their giving to their parents
that honour which will afterwards be re-
quired of them.
And what is this ? Our blelTed Saviour's
rebuke to the Scribes and Pharifees, that
they made the commandment of God of
none effed:, by faying, that if a man de-
clared what he might have given to his
father or mother, dedicated to religious
ufes, he was free from the obligation of
this law, fufficiently evinces, that this tri-
bute of honour principally conlifts in minif-
tering of our fubftance to their neceflities.
And how vifibly equitable is this ordinance,
by which we are directed to return fome
portion of that expence, care, and attention,
which were bellowed on ourfelves when we
were even infenfible of our own wants ! If
men would but recolle<5t for what a courfe
of years they were the objecfls of their
parents moft anxious care, during which
not only their neceffities, but their very
amufements, were eagerly fupplied, when
their
t}f Parents a?id Children, 273
their frowardnefs too, added to the burthen serm.
of their helplefTnefs, they could fcarcely re- ^^^'
frain from repeating to themfelves the quef-
tion of the fon of Sirach : * * How canft
thou recompenfe them the things that they
have done for thee ?" (Ecclef. vii. 28.) Or
fail to anfvver, that when their parents are
finking into an age in feveral refpects iimilar
to that during which theirfelves experienced
all the benefits of their tenderefl folicitude,
it is but a debt of gratitude to give them
every affiftance of which they may Hand in
need, whether that be pecuniary, or of any
other kind. The former, indeed, neither a
greater nor even an equal number of men,
have an opportunity of adminiftering, as
their parents fland not in need of it j but to
many, the opulence of whofe parents frees
them from any calls of this kind, it may
properly be fuggefted, that if we are bound
to ailift thofe who do want, we certainly
are no lefs fo to abftain from reducing to
difficulties, by our extravagance, thofe who
had plenty. For how many do, in their
later years, fuffer from the riotous living
VOL, II. T of
274 On the reciprocal Duties
SERM. of a fpendthrift fon, and fee the hardly-
^^^' earned produce of their youthful labours
diffipated by the cruel folly of a ftubborn
child ! And is this a due return for all the
facrifices of time, money, and eafe, that
they have made for you ? Or is it honouring
old age to plunge it into the hardfhips with
which even youth finds it difficult to
flruggle ?
To thofe, indeed, whofe fenfibility is not
entirely deftroyed by commerce with the
world, it is an heart-piercing fight to fee a
parent fuller, in any way, from the mif-
doings of a child: but. how much more if
it proceed, as (Ihocking to relate) it fome-
times does, from perfonal ill treatment ! the
unceremonious behaviour to which what is
falfely called the good breeding of the pre-
fent age is calculated to give rile, is fuffici-
ently deficient in refpedt to be fcarcely tole-
rable j but when a greater degree of irre-
verence is fliewn, every one acquainted with
the Scriptures mufl be fenfible, that a heavy
fentence is incurred; heavy, indeed, in pro-
portion
of Parents and Children. 475
portion to the advance made to that exceed- serm.
ing degree of guilt on which Mofes was ^^^'
commanded to infli6i: the punifhment of
death : " he that curfeth his father or his
mother fhall furely be put to death." (Exod.
xxi. 17.) In which guilt it is manifefl,
from His own words, that our Lord deems
thofe to participate, who, though they do
not acHiuaJly make ufe of words of execra-
tion, treat their parents as not entitled to the
honour commanded : and ftrong are the
terms of horrour in which the wifefl: of
men have fpoken of tranfgreilions of this
kind. ** The eye (faith Solomon) that
mocketh at his father, and defpifeth to
obey his mother, the ravens of the valley
(hall pick it out, and the young eagles fhall
eat it." And the fon of Sirach; *' he that
forfaketh his father is as a blafphemer, and
he that angereth his mother is curfed of
God."
Still although we do in mod interruptions
of that conftant exchange of affection and
good offices which ought to be preferved
T % between
XII.
-7^ ^''2 t^^(^ reciprocal Duties
SERM. between parents and children, naturally, as
it were, from the known ftrength of paren-
tal attachment, at iirfl: prefume, that the
latter are in fault ; reflection and experience
will convince us, that in no fmall number
of cafes the former are to blame, as having
neglected to bring their children up in that
admonition which would have produced the
fruits of efteem and regard, befides other
cafes in which they have provoked them
unto wrath.
It is the nurture and admonition of the
Lord in which the apoftle requires parents
to bring up their children ; and if, in con-
fequence of the negle^fl of this precept, the
latter do, by their behaviour, embitter the
declining years of their parents, thefe do
but fuffer the natural penalty of not in-
fl:ru6i:ing their children in the fear of their
heavenly Father ; without which that of an
earthly one will, by no means, prove fuffi-
cient to keep them in a confciencious dif-
charge of their duty. And well would it
be for fuch parents, if this were the worf«
con-
of Parents and Children, i"]^
confequence of their cruel negled:, and the serm.
ruinous efFedis of it did not extend beyond ^^i*
the producftion of temporal evils to the final
deftru^tion of their fouls. But knowing
this, as well as the anxious earneftnefs with
which men naturally deiire the happinel's
of their offspring, we might well be led at
iirft to attribute the total omillion of reli-
gious inftrucSlion, or the very little employ-
ment of it in the education of children, to
an evil heart of unbelief; which confiders
the leffons of the Gofpel concerning Heaven
and Hell, and the certain roads to each, as
mere fables. But although this may be the
cafe in inftances where we fee the parents
themfelves living without God in the world,
as we not feldom do both in the higheft
and loweft ranks of fociety, it cannot be fo,
where they fincerely hold the Chriftian faith,
and endeavour, in all points but that before
us, to regulate their condu(5t accordingly.
To what, then, is this mifcondu(5l to be
afcribed ? In other cafes the greatnefs of
an evil is reafonably thought to make any
the leaft rifque of it unjuftifiable. But
T 3 what
^7^ On the reciprocal Duties
SERM. what evil is equal to that of which the
^^"J* danger is here incurred? For *' what is
a man profited, if he fliall gain the whole
world, and lofe his own foul ? Or what
fhall a man give in exchange for his foul ?"
Is, then, the advantage of better tuition in
the claffical writers of Greece and Rome, is
the hope of forming fome noble connec-
tion, or even that of obtaining a comfort-
able eftablifhment in this life, to be put in
the balance againfl: the everlafling deftiny
of a child ? and much lefs the indulgence
of a parent's prejudice, or the gratification
of his vanity : and yet one or more of thefe
motives generally, I believe, fways thofe
who fend their children to fchools, where
it is known they are almofl regularly initi-
ated into vice ; and the urging of fuch mo-
tive is deemed a fufiicient anfwer to the
fuggeftion, that there is imminent danger
of their morals being there corrupted. But
when this corruption does adlually take
place. Can the parent who wilfully expofed
his fon to it, juftify himfelf from the charge
of being the primary caufe of his offend-
ing .^
of Parents and Children. 279
ing ? Among fuch as his felf, perhaps, serm.
the flimfy plea of Giiftom, and the hke, or xir.
the carelefs man's laft excul'e, ** I never
fuppofed it would happen/' may be allowed
as fufficient ; but when before the throne of
Chrift, inquifition is made for the loft foul,
what earthly maxims will avail againft the
exprefs leflbns of that Gofpel, by the words
of which, He has told us, we (hall be
judged?
So ineftimably precious is the hope of
again meeting our children in a ftate of
happinefs never to be feparated from them
more, that one would think no parent, to
whom it had once occurred, could look
without fome degree of horrour upon any
thing which was likely to interfere with it ;
How much lefs, then, could any fuch but
be ftricken with terrour at the leait danger
of paflTing the fame endlefs ages in mifery,
aggravated by the cutting refled:ion, that
his dearefl connections are brought into the
fame place of torment, through his own
too lightly regarding tiie one thing needful 1
T 4 Yet
28o On the reciprocal Duties
SERM. Yet our divine Judge has declared, that
XII. «f Whofoever fhall offend one of the httle
ones that beheve in Him, it is better for
him that a mili-ftone were hanged about
his neck, and he were caft into the fea."
And what human ingenuity can devife an
argument to prove, that they are not guilty
of caufing their children to offend, who,
after being warned of the dreadful confe-
quences, fend them where their innocence
will be expofed to the fevereft attacks, and
the feeblefc affiftance only be given them for
its prefer vat ion ?
I am not ignorant that in anfvver to what
is thus mofl: juftly faid againft fending chil-
dren to thofe feminaries, whofe corruption
is little lefs publick than their names, it is
replied, that they may learn vice alfo in
more private ones. Neither do I mean to
difpute this affertion : but it is a parent's
duty to entruft his fon in thofe hands only
where he has jufl: reafon to think, that this
will be mofl: honeflly guarded againll ; and
when he has thus far performed his part,
fhould
of Pare?%ts and Children. i^i
ftiOLild any evil happen, he not oiily will serm.
fland acquitted to himfelf, but wiii find, ^ii*
that if his fon do fall into offence, he will
be fenfible that he has finned, and afhamed
that he has done fo, whence chance of re-
pentance, and hope of amendment; whereas,
in the other cafe, the multitude of compa-
nions hardens the culprit, and he is taught
to make a mock of fin, and even to plead
for the harmleffnefs of tranfgrefling fome
of the plainefl and moft exprefs precepts of
the Gofpel ; and that becaufe a wondprful
and horrible thing is done in our land; the
profligate principles of the fenfualift are in-
troduced into the retreats of education : and
thus the growth of vice is encouraged, and
the feeds of infidelity fown in eccleliaftical
foundations.
Neither, I am afraid, is the danger of
corruption confined to fchools where boys
are fent: there is reafon to think, from their
fruits, that many of thofe of the other fex
are fo conducted as to be little better than
feminaries of vice; and How fhall the
parent
282 On the reciprocal Duties
SERM. parent be excufed, who ventures the inno-
^^-- cence of his daughter in fuch ? It is to be
hoped, indeed, that very few are the inftances
of what yet is known to have happened, the
felhng of beauty from fuch places j but can
he Vv'ho fends his child for the formation of
her mind, where the infufion of religious
principle is poftponed to the acquirement of
perfonal accomplilTiments, not to fay mere-
tricious arts, plead, that he has attended to
the words of the apoftle, and brought her
up in the nurture and admonition of the
Lord?
I have fo far fpoken only to the very im-
portant obligations we lie under to ufe all
poflible circumfpedtion in feledting thofe to
whom we confide our children for inftruc-
tion : of the care to be taken of their nur-
ture when at home, I fhall have occafion to
fpeak in another difcourfe ; in the prefent,
it remains to notice the other caution of the
apoftle; *• And ye, fathers, provoke not
your children unto wrath :" of which cau-
tion the condud of too many parents proves
the
of Parents and Children. 283
the neceffity, and the confequences of that serm.
condu6l the wifdor' For is it not fome- ^^^'
times feen, that even the tempers of young
children are fpoiled, a'^d . their affections
ahenated, by the unreafoiiable rigour, the
pailionate corredlions, or the ceafelefsly
teazing rebukes of a parent ? being perpe-
tually remonftrated with for trifles, they
grow inured to reproof,' accuftomed to be
harfhly treated, feverity lofes its effed: on
them, and as they gradually difcover the
little ground there w^as for many of the
cenfures they have received, they gain pro-
portionate efteem for the wifdom and equity
of thofe who inflicted them. And on thofe
of maturer age alfo. Do we not fee the
cffedls of the unreafonable demands, the
furious anger, and the cruel obduracy of
parents ? By thefe, children who were fin-
cerely inclined to pay every juft attention,
are fometimes impelled, as it were, to with-
draw it, and keep at a diftance from thofe
who cannot diflinguifh between what rna)r
be required from infants, and what exped:ed
from thofe who have knowledge to guide
them-
284 On the reciprocal Duties
SERM. themfelves, and bufincfs of their own to
xi^- do. By thefe, children who have been once
drawn to offend, are thrown into fuch ter-
rour, that they dare not even ailc forgive-
nefs, but will caft themfelves on the wide
world, rather than encounter the indignation
of a parent whofe wrath is fo fierce; and
by thefe are they abandoned to that world,
to pine away on its commiferation, or perifh
by its injurioufnefs, through want of the
natural refuge of a parent's houfe. Does
not, then, in thefe cafes, as well as the
former, fin lie at the parent's door, if not
for originally caufing his child to offend,
yet for (hutting the door of repentance
againft her ? For is this the conduct of a
fervant of that Mafler who came to feek,
and fave that which was loft ?
Finally, then, as that degree of indul-
gence is deftrudtive, which banifhes difci-
pline, and prevents correction where it is
really called for, fo it fhould be remem-
bered, that the ground of all our duties is
love, and that confeqiiently when this ceafes
to
of Parents a?id Children. 285
to be the motive from which we a6t, we serm.
are, in truth, tranfgreffing ; whereas, wxre xir
all parties to be fincerely influenced by this
principle, the mutual exchange of good
offices would call down the bleffing of Him,
who maketh men to be of one mind in an
houfe j and thus the hearts of the children
being turned toward the father, and thofe
of the fathers towards the children, there
would be neither an ill ufe of kindnefs or
inftrudtion on the one fide, nor a neglect of
imparting it on the other : and what a dif-
ference would then manifeft itfelf between
the next generation and the prefent ! For
the commandment on which I have been
fpeaking being generally obeyed, there not
only would come forward into the world a
numerous hoft pradlifed in good habits, but
the promife attached to the precept would
be performed ; and in lieu of fears of being
difturbed in the poileffion of our land, we
fhould have the moft certain grounds of
confidence, that our days would be long-
therein, by the abundant goodnefs of Him
who has given it unto us.
SER-
SERMON XIII.
ON FAMILY RELIGION.
Matt. v. i6.
Let your light fo Jhiiie before merty that they
may fee your good works ^ and glorify your
Father which is in Heaven.
A LT HOUGH there be, perhaps, no serm.
precept in the Scriptures, which, on ^m-
repetition, more generally affe6ls the hearers
than this, yet, to our (hame, it mull: be con-
fefled, that its influence on the behaviour of
the generality of thofe who call themfelves
Chriilians is fcarcely perceptible. To en-
deavour, by our conducft, to contribute to
the glory of our Creatour, fecms no more
than a natural effe(5t of gratitude for the
being
288 On Family Religion.
SERM. being He hath given us, and the faculties
XIII. and powers with which His bounty hath
endowed us ; but to be commanded by His
Son to do this, and be told, that to perform
it is a duty efpecially affigned to us, is to
be called to the poft of honour, and invefted
with a charadler, not like the trifling dif-
tindlions of this world, known in one
country, and unheard-of in another, but
honourable throughout the univerfe, that of
fervants and minifters of its almighty Sove-
reign. Mark the expreilive terms in which
our Lord admonifhes His difciples, that it
is theirs to fupport this charad:er, *' Ye
are the fait of the earth;** — *' Ye are the
light of the world." Then turn to your-
felves, and afk. How far ye have attended
to this admonition ? How faithfully ye have
difcharged the talk thus laid upon you ? If
ye have hitherto been deficient in your atten-
tion to it, or if, which is poffibly the more
common cafe of the two, ye have never
conlidered it as at all incumbent on you, to
ilrive, by your lives, to adorn the do(5lrine of
God our Saviour in all things, advert, before
it
On Family Religion, 289
it be too late, to the determination pro- serm.
noLinced by our divine Judge, " that when x^^^*
the fait has loft its favour, there remains
nothing with which that can be feafoned,
but it is thenceforth fit for nought but to
be caft out, and to be trodden under foot :'*
and let your delire to avoid fuch a condem-
nation induce you to give ferious attention
to my difcourfe, while I more amply ftate
to you the dod:rine of the text ; endeavour
to corred: any miftakes ye may hitherto
have entertained concerning it, and ftrive to
prevail on you henceforth to pay a conflant
regard to the prad:ice of the duties it incul-
cates.
That unpremeditated praife which the
hearts of men fpontaneoully render on dif-
covering the peculiar fitnefs of any work of
Heaven to its place, will give us the beft
general notion of the means by which we
may, through our con dud:, caufe men to
glorify our heavenly Father. When they
fee us properly fill the ftations in which we
are placed, make a due ufe of the faculties
VOL. II. u and
290 On Family Religion.
SERM. and powers with which we are entriiftcd,
^'iii. and iincerely perform the duties arillng from
the feveral relations in which we ftand, they
will naturally confefs, that the endowments
with which we are gifted are well beftowed,
and thus do homage to the hand which
hath fo conferred them. On the contrary,
there is nothing, ye know, more common
than to hear men repine when they fee
others regled: or mifufe the gifts of Heaven.
If a wealthy man be ungenerous, if a man
of abilities wafte them in idlenefs, or ufe-
lefs purfuits, or any one who has the means
of doing fervice to individuals or fociety,
mifpend his time or his powers, the cenfure
caufcd by the indignation which fuch mif-
behaviour excites, is frequently not retrained
to the offender, but pafTes on even to glance
at that Being, who fuffers His gifts to be
ib abufed. What a pity fuch a man fhould
have riches ! Men who will not make the
proper life of them ought not to be blefh
with fuch powers and opportunities ! Thefe,
or the like, are the reflexions caft on the
providence of our heavenly Father, when
thofe
Oti Family Religion. 20 1
thofe who partake of His bounty manifeftly serm,
negled: or betray the truft repofed in them; xiii.
and from the confideration of what a dif- ^-"'"^''^^
ferent behaviour thus produces, we may,
perhaps, more accurately difcover what is
required of us in the command we have
received, to " let our light fo ihine before:
men, that they may fee our good works^
and glorify our Father which is in Heaven."
In the firft place, it is clear, that the pre-
cept of the ity± is not to be retrained to*
any particular kind of good Vv^orks, but to
be extended to the difcharge of all thofti
duties, and the practice of all thofe virtues,
of which the negle(51 might defervedly draw
on us the cenfure of not making a becoming
life of the powers and fituation with which,
it hath pleafed our Creatour to honour us :
much lefs is it to be expounded according
to the notion, perhaps unhappily encouraged
in fome by this paffage being placed by our
church at the beginning of the offertory,
of almfgiving exclulively; fince, in the!
f)erformance of this fpecies of good works>
u a we
igz ' On Family Religion,
SERM. we are warned to be fo peculiarly fecret, as
XIII. not to let even the left hand know what the
right hand doth : while an oftentatious dif-
play of any good pra(fl:ice whatever is very
far from tending to make men glorify our
heavenly Father; fince pride, vain glory,
and a love of the praife of men, arc known
not to come from above.
But there is a manner of life, a mode of
converfation, becoming all who have the
knowledge of God, and the inftruClions of
the Gofpel to direcfl them ; and fince it is
incumbent on the creature to glorify the
Creator, in proportion to the faculties with
which the latter hath been pleafed to endow
hJrn, it is the indifpenfable duty of Chrif-
tians in particular, to walk according to
the light which they have as men who are
informed by divine authority, that a day is
appointed in which they will be judged
before the throne of God Himfelf, by thofe
very laws which have been already delivered
to them for their direcftion, and whofe ever-
lalling (ituation will then be irrcverfibly
deter-
On Family Religion. 293
determined by the fincerity of the attention serm.
they fhall be found to have paid to what xiii.
they knew, or, but for their own criminal
neghgence, might have known, was the
will of their Creatour — as beings who, in
addition to the common obligations con-
ferred on all creatures by the bleflings of
creation and fupport, have received the in-
expreifible mercy of redemption through
the Son of God, who has been made to
them not only a facrifice for fin, but alfo
an enfample of a righteous life. Laflly, as
beings likewife, who have the promife of
the divine afliflance to help their infirmities,
and who therefore are deprived even of the
excufe of weaknefs in failure of duty, fince
that weaknefs might always be remedied
by proper application for the guidance and
fupport of their heavenly Comforter.
Such is the fituation in which the ferious
reflediion, that it in wifdom behoves us to
make on our own ftate, will convince us
we really ftand. And can ye think, that
our own bhndnefs, or our wilful ignorance,
u 3 can
294 On Family Religion.
SERM. can releafe us from the oblip:ations arifinp:
XIII. fj-QjY^ jt p \Yjjj ^ nian's not feeing his danger
extricate him from it ? Or if approaching a
precipice, will {hutting his eyes, without
flopping or changing his courfe, fecure
him from falling ? Neither, then, will our
keeping at a diftance the thoughts of the
accompt to which we fliall hereafter be
called, prevent our being fummoned to ren^.
der it ; nor our putting off the day of re.-
flediion defer, for a mon^ent, the day of
judgenr^ent,
Little as one would fuppofe men would
be deficient in eftimating the extent of th?
powers, and the importance of the talents
cntruffed to their care, they do, in fa(ft,
very often fail to conlider how much influ-
ence their own conduct has, or might have,
on the comfort and the welfare of others.
As the rebellion of one city would, in fome
meafure, affed: the tranquillity of a whole
kingdom, fo will the riotous ftate of one
houfe that of a neighbourhood, and the
ciifordcrly behaviour of one member of it
diflurb
On Family Religion^ 295
diflurb that of a family; whence it fol- serm.
lows, to preferve univerfal fubordi nation ^^^^'
and perfed: peace in a community, each
family fliould cultivate the principles of
thefe things within itfelf, and in perform-
ing this according to their feveral llations,
is the firll method by which individuals
can glorify their Father which is in Heaven.
Having, in my lafl: addrefs, fpoken to
feveral points of the reciprocal duties of
parents and children, and the compafs of
one difcourfe not permitting me to notice
all the particulars that ought to be obferved
on even in a fuinmary view of thefe, I fliall
take the prefent opportunity of mentioning
fome that were then omitted ; and fince the
mutual offices of mafters and fervants, if
conducted, as they ought to be, with real
charity, bear a ftrong likenefs to the former,
on thefe alfo I ffiall make fuch obfervations
as refpedl the giving and accepting religious
inftrud;ion, duties which properly fall under
the fubjed: before us, referving what relates
u 4 tO'
296 On Family Religion.
SERM. to Other points of their condud: to be noticed
^i^i- under their proper heads.
We read, that it was a recommendation
of Abraham .to the patronage of the Al-
mighty, that '* God knew he would com-
mand his children and his houfehold after
him, and they fhoiild keep the way of the
Lord, to do juftice and judgement." Now
although, through the overflowing bounty
of God, this difpofition drew down on the
Father of the faithful the blcffing of the
eveilalling covenant, that in his feed all the
nations of the earth fhould be blelfed ; yet
the pra(5tice for which he was fo amply re-
warded, was no more than a jftrid: duty, by
the neglect of which any man would fail
to fulfil his flation, and would omit, in
particular, the fervice which the text calls
on us to perform, by negledling one of the
moft efFedual means of glorifying God on
earth.
The firfl (hoots of real righteoufnefs
among men mufl be fought for in the pri-
vate
On Family Religion. 297
vate and domeftick virtues j in piety, fo- serm.
briety, diligence, and afFedion ; and by the xiii.
extenfion of thefe are produced good quali- ^^^''"^^
ties, which are more puWick and fplendidly
fakitary ; but without thefe all fhow of the
others is mere iimulation. If, then, we are
ambitious of becoming inftruments of hap-
pinefs on a larger fcale ; if we would be
the minifters of God for good, on a more
extended fcene j if we wi(h to lead thou-
fands to glorify our Father which is in
Heaven, we mufl begin with the cultivation
of thefe more confined, and lefs obferved
virtues. For even thus, too, the kingdom
of Heaven is like a grain of muftard feed,
which, though fo fmall when fown, pro-
duces a plant under which the fowls of the
air may rooft. Beyond all eftimate or con-
jecture is the good of which we may be the
adtual inftruments, by early inftilling the
principles of faith, piety, and charity, into
the minds of our children, who are natu-
rally devout, and having no prejudices
arifing from a confcioufnefs of guilt, or the
love of vice, will, if they be delivered with
ferioufnefs,
2 9^ ^n Fajmly Religion,
SERM. ferioiifnefs, mildnefs, and fuch plainnefs of
^m* expreffion, as they can comprehend, readily
receive the things pertaining to the king-
dom of Heaven ; and by imparting to our
fervants thofe lefTons of the fame of which
they ftand in need; and by exhibiting to
both the prevaiHng argument of our own
example for the practice of them. Not
only the perfonal efcape from mifery of any
one of thefe our immediate pupils, in con-
fequence of what they learn from us, and
their obtainment of future happinefs, (which
is in itfelf infinite) are to be taken into the
accompt, but the benefits done to all thofe
ovhom they may hereafter teach, or influ-
ence to enter on the paths of righteoufnefs ;
and even to thofe to whom this fecond, or
any fucceeding generation may prove ufeful
inftrudiors, whatever glory be derived to
God, w^hatever good be done to men by all
thefe, our exertions will participate in the
producSlion of it : while that lofs of oppor-
tunity of thus contributing to an endlefs
line of happinefs, which is owing to our
own negligence, muft, in the guilt of it, in
fome
On Family Religion. 2Q0
fome meafure, be proportionate to the good serm.
we might have done, had we thus per- xiii.
formed our duty. ^^-''V^^
How great criminaHty, then, may juftly
be laid to the charge of parents, who fail
to prepare their children early for the race
of life, by teaching them in what their true
intereft confifts, and directing their chief
attention to that objed: which alone deferves
it, an happy fituation in the world that
ihall endure for ever: who, inftead of
making them acquainted with the words of
eternal life, and accuftoming them to read
the holy Scriptures as alone containing them,
inftead of fetting them an example of faith
in, and devotion to God, by the regular ufe
of family prayer, and by calling for His
blefling on their food, by folemn thankf-
giving at their meals, do, by living them-
felves without God in the world, (obferving,
I mean, no degree of that humble behaviour
and reverend demeanour towards Him,
which a juft fenfe of being conflantly under
the eye of fo great, fo pure, {q righteous a
Beins:
300 On Family Religion.
SERM. Being, mufl: naturally produce) teach them
XIII. to make" hght of His commandments, to
defpife His menaces, and to negled: the
rites, and break through all the reflraints of
religion. Conlider, too, whether they par-
take not in the fame guilt who having as
fervants in their houfes the ignorant and
uninftrucled, do not ftrive to put them into
the right way, either by admonition or
example. The difficulties which fome may
imagine would attend the difcharge of this
duty, would, on a tryal, chiefly vanifh, the
moft ignorant father of a family might re-
peat the Lord's prayer with his houfehold,
both at riling and going to reft : and all
who are not too abandoned even to be re-
tained in a Chriftian's fervice, would yield
to the repeated exhortations, and conftant
example of a mafter, to pay a regular at-
tendance in the church on the Lord's day,
and to do nothing in the other hours of it
unfuited to the holinefs cf the feafon. But
iince men naturally, as it were, catch the
manners of thofe with whom they are moft
converfant, and fince fervants confider their
maftcrs
On Family Religion. 301
mafters as generally better informed than serm.
theirfelves, when the mafter (as in too many ^^^^*
inftances is vifibly the cafe) feldom or never
enters the church to render the worfliip he
owes to his Creatour and Redeemer, is it
wonderful that the fervant too manifefts a
difregard for God and His laws ? Or, when
at home, he difcerns no fymptom of piety,
but inftead of a religious demeanour, is a
witnefs to ccnverfation dire6lly contrary to
that prefcribed by the divine commandments,
Can we be furprized, that he lays afide all
attention to laws, which he fees thofe imme-
diately above him fo conftantly negled:, or
defpifes reftridlions which they fo daringly
break through ? Whereas w^ould men, on
the contrary, obey the precept of the text
in the particulars I am now urging, and
ftrive to be lights to thofe arpund them, to
dired: them to glorify God, their children
accuftomed, from their infancy, to regularity
of life, inllrud:ed in the principles of reli-
gion, taught to walk in the fear of God,
and to look up to Him for protedion, and
introduced in due time to the table of their
Saviour,
302 On Family Religion.
SERM. Saviour, (a point of ineftimable importance)
^J^"^ would be prepared to fet forth in life as
believers in Chrift, and members of His
church, and not be eaiily drawn to defert,
or difgrace the faith, or to barter their hopes
of glory and happinefs in the future flate,
for any gratifications offered them in this :
and their fervants be freed, partly by what
they would be taught at home, partly by
what they would learn in the church, from
that deep and lamentable ignorance, which is
now, in no fmall meafure, the caufe of their
Irregularities, their vices, and their ingra-
titude. And thus would they juftify before
men the goodnefs of God to themfelves, in
placing them in lituations where they have
power and influence over others, they would
caufe Him to be glorified by thofe to whom
He would thus have occafion to (hew His
farther bounty, becaufe they would not dif-
grace the hand that blefl them ; while they,
likewife, in their turn, might influence
others to walk in the paths of falvation,
whence flill more inflruments of His glory
would be raifed up, fince He fheweth mercy
unto
On Family Ketigion. 303
unto thoiifands in them that love Him, and serm.
keep His commandment. And we having ^"^*
thus caufed Him to be glorified on earth,
fhould in Heaven reap the reward of our
labours, not only in the fight of that hap-
pinefs to which we had led others, but in
the declared approbation and ineftimable
bleffing of our Father which is in Heaven.
From what has been flated, however, of
the duties of parents and mailers, it is not
to be prefumed, that children and fervants
have no part to zSi in caufing men to glorify
God. If they receive not with readinefs
the inftrudlion offered, either by the word
of mouth, or by example, they fail to give
others that opportunity of glorifying their
father which is in Heaven, that they would
yield were they to prove to men, that the
means of improvement they have, were
given to fuch as were not too bad to make
a grateful ufe of them. And even in cafes
where their parents or mafters negledt them,
it is flill their duty to ufe every other
mean that may offer, of gaining neceffary
know-
304 On Family Religion,
SERM. knowledge, and every care not to leave any
xm* thing undone, which they may even fufped:
to be their duty, and not to do any thing
that they may doubt to be right. For Are
we not taught, that while all who know
God's will, and do it not, fhall be beaten
with many ftripes, even thofe who know it
not, fhall be beaten with few ftripes, if they
do things worthy of them ?
Let the condemnation, then, which thus
awaits the lefs guilty, have its juft efFe61:
on all parties ; and as we dread fuffering
ourfelves under any portion of the divine
wrath, either for being the caufe of others
fuffering, or for crimes which reft only on
ourfelves, let us confider the necellity of
• immediately entering on the pradtice in-
cluded under the injun(flion of the text:
the higher the character in which that places
us, the greater will be our difgrace, the
heavier our puniftiment, the more Jlcute our
mifery, when in another ftate it becomes
manifeft what honours we have forfeited,
what favours vve have rejected, what hap-
pinefs
On Family Religion i 3^5
pinefs we have loft j when we find that to serm.
that to which we might have contributed ,^^i^i!.
by our happinefs, but would not, we are
yet forced to contribute by our mifery, fince
the Lord hath made all things for Himfelf,
even the wicked for the day of evil*
The favage who hath exerted himfelf
according to his knowledge, and hath, with
fimplicity and diligence, employed his time
and his powers in the tafl^: his fituation
impofed on him, may in that day rife up in
judgement againft thofe who have heard
the Gofpel, yet negled:ed to lead others by
that fobriety, righteoufnefs and godlinefs,
which it recommends, to glorify the eternal
Father of all. Think, therefore, what it
will then be to fee many who enjoyed
much lefs knowledge, much fewer means
of improvement than ourfelves, come from
the eaft, and from the weft, from the north,
and from the fouth, and fit down in the
kingdom of Heaven, while we ourfelves
are caft out. And let the confideration of
this prevail on us, while we have time fo
VOL, II. X t*
^o6 On Family Religion,
SERM. to do, not only to ceafe from works of
xi^ij^- darknefs, but to walk as children of light,
that caufing men, by our good works, to
glorify our Father which is in Heaven, wc
may hereafter be admitted into that heavenly
city, which ** the glory of God doth
lighten, and the Lamb is the light thereof—
where His fervants (hall reign for ever and
ever ! "
SER.
SERMON XIV.
ON MEEKNESS.
St. Matt. v. 5.
hkjfcd are the meek : for they fiall inherit
the earth.
T>EHOLD the appointed heirs of that serm.
"^ inheritance, for different portions of,^^
which, oceans of human blood have been
fhed ! Behold the end of thofe fcenes of
carnage which have been exhibited on the
earth ! How have ftatefmen toiled, hov/
Jiave heroes fought, to gain the kingdom of
men; how hath military prowefs been en-
couraged, how have maxims of policy been
ftudied ! yet behold the Moft High, Vv^ho
doeth according to His will in the army of
Heaven, and among the inhabitants of the
X % earth.
308 On Mceknefs.
SERM. earth, refer ving the inheritance of it, not
•^^^* for the fearlefs, not for the ambitious, not
for thofe who grafp at the polTeffion of
others, or for thofe who ftand foremoft in
the chronicles of the world for the qualities
they chiefly celebrate, but for thofe who
are pradtifed in a virtue to many unknown,
by fome defpifed : * * Bleffed are the meek ;
for they fhall inherit the earth." Go to
now, ye great men, might we fay ; weep
and howl, ye conquerours, for your politics
are come to nought, your laurels are faded,
your triumphs are vaniflied : God will
number your conquefts, and finifli them;
ye are weighed in the balances, and found
wanting; what ye have laboured after is
divided among others, and a generation,
whom ye contemned, are preferred before
you. ** What then, ye would here, per-
haps, 2Sky Are we to receive this declaration
literally ? Shall the time ever be feen on
this globe when the meek fhall flourifli ?
Moft affuredly ; for fo it is written in the
Scripture of truth. In that day, when all
other kingdoms fliall be fwallowed up by
that
On Mecknefs. 309
that kingdom of righteoufnefs which the serm.
Lord will eftablilih, then *• with righte- xiv.
oufnefs (hall He judge the poor, and re-
prove with equity for the meek of the
earth;** then " will He beautify the meek
with falvation, and they fhall delight them-
felves in the abundance of peace." But
who fhall live when God doeth this wq
know not : yet we are certain, that on the
new earth which fliall be revealed after all
the counfels of its great Creatour are ac*
complifhed on the prefent, all thofe whofe
meeknefs hath preferved them in the fear
and obedience to God, fhall receive an in-
heritance which fhall never be taken from
them. That our lot may at the end of the
days be in this everlafting kingdom, let us
inveftigate the nature of the virtue for which
fo great and precious a reward is thus pro-
mifed j each of us, as we proceed, com-
paring his own pafl behaviour with what
we (hall, by this mean, difcover, it ought
to have been, whence, thofe who have in
this point ad:ed right, (hall have rejoicing
in themfelves, and thofe who have been
X 3 w^ong,
310 On Meehiefs.
SEi^M. wrong, may learn to corrc(fl: their errqur,
XIV. A meek difpofition hath two characfteriftics,
forbearance and concciTion, the exercife of
both of which is pecuharly adapted to the
nature and flate, and requiiite for the peace
of man. By the firil, I mean, an unwil-
lingnefs to be provoked at the affronts oy
injuries, which proceed from the ignorance,
thoughtlelTnefs, errours, or even tjie mahce
pf others, and an inchnation to overlook
and bury them in oblivion, rather than to
refent or take vengeance for them. At the
recommendation ot fuch a temper, that evil
pride w-hich fo often takes pofTeffion of the
human heart, may, indeed, revolt, and the
haughty creature, man, proud of his own
pothingnefs, would, perhaps, infifl that he
muil always ad with becoming fpirit: and
here, however, unexpectedly, I would rea-
dily join with thofe who have fuch imagi-
nations, and acknowledge, that it is with
■ the fpirit which their powers warrant,
which their fituation calls for, that I would
exhort them to behave, adding only a cau-
tion to cftimate their fituation and their
powers
On Meeknefs. 311
powers rightly; for if this be juftly done, serm.
the loftieft countenance will fall, and many xiv.
things which before might have gone under
the hard name of difgraceful fiibmiffions,
be admitted as fitting, and the feemly dic-
tates of truth and reafon. Let us, there-
fore, firft coniider, how many of thofe
things which are conftrued as affronts, and
made the caijes of quarrel and lafling dif-
fention, may, in reality, at firft, arife from
the ignorance of thofe who offend thereby.
What we may hold to be matter of im-
portance, others may think trifling ; what
we may feel ourfelves highly interefled in,
others may fuppofe concerns us not : and
how different will the nature of their acftions
appear if they be conlidered as done under
the circumftance of their ignorance, from
what it will if they be viewed as performed
with the fame degree of information which
ourfelves have ! Weigh well, I befeech
you, this cafe, and ye will fee the neceflity
of forbearance for the prevention of many
evils, and the avoidance of much guilt.
What proportion, think ye, of the animor
X 4 fities,
3^^ On Meekncfs.
fities, which, to the difgrace of Chriftians,
now fiibiift among them, have arifeii merely
from the parties not having, at firll, had
temper fairly to enquire into the motives of
each other's condud ? Were thefe explained,
it might be found, that where a premedi-
tated injury is fuppofed, even no danger of
damage was forefeen ; or where a ftudied
neglect has been prefumed j the concern
and interefl of the party offended lay en-
tirely unknown. Would men recoiled thefe
things, and enter on the examination of the
differences in which they are engaged, fug-
gefted thereby, many who are now unjuftly
eflecmed enemies, and purfued with invec-
tive, would appear innocent of what is laid
to their charge, and a flop be put to the
continuation of both the injury done to them
and of their accufer's guilt, in being caufe-
\tk\y adverfe unto them. Concern and at^
tention to the eafe and interefts of others
being our duty, let its proper fliare of
criminality be charged on inadvertency in
thefe points; but kt us be careful of
confounding ignorance therewith; and let
us
On Meehrefs, oi>
US remember, too, that we ourfelves are serm.
by no mean fecure from the offences we are ^iv.
ready to condemn. I think I might venture
to prefume, that there is fcarcely a man
prefent who has not, at one time or other,
met with the difagreeable circumftance of
having his actions mi {interpreted, or his
intentions mifconftrued ; and fhould not
our experience of the eafe with which others
miftake, or are mifled in thefe refpefts, in
all reafon, teach us to miftruft onr own con-
fl"ru(5lions of the purpofes and behaviour of
others ? And the abfolute faults which we
are confcious ourfelves of committing, and
the juft caufe of offence, which, through
haftinefs and inattention, we fometimes give
to others, fhould not the knowledge of thefe
induce us to exercife that forbearance of
which we ourfelves do often ftand in need ;
if we fhew it not. Can we expe(ft that it
(hould be Ihewed unto us ? And if neither
we nor others fhew it, What will be the
end thereof? Were every man to revenge
all the real or imaginary wrongs he receives,
as the retaliation would fcarcely ever be
4 J^^pt
314 ^^ Meeknefs.
SERM. kept within its jull: bounds, vengeance
XIV. ■ would beget vengeance, till each heart being
{ct on bloody couifcs, mutual flaughter
would enfue, and the rude fcene end only
in one general deftrudlion. Meeknefs, then,
as far as it confifteth in forbearance, well
becometh our fituation in fociety, wherein
we are conne6i:ed with thofe who, from
their various degrees of ignorance, are per-
petually liable unwillingly to offend; the
meafure too, in which our own weaknefs
and criminality caufe us to need it, affords
a powerful reafon for our exercife of it ;
while a general neglcd: of it, (and if one
may juftly discard this virtue, another may)
would introduce general confufion, and open
the way to carnage and defolation. And if
to thefe confiderations, we add, that there
is a generation who fleep not, unlefs they
have done mifchief, whofe employment is
talebearing, whofe delight is by mifrepre-
fentation and falfehood, to encreafe diffen-
jion, and foment quarrels, the neceility of
being flow to anger, backward to refent, if
we would avoid caufelefs and ceafelefs ani-
mofitieSj
On Meeknefs. '^i^
mofities, and the danger of venting our in- serm.
dignation on thofe who deferve it not, will xiv.
be fufficiently apparent to have, I hope, its ^^'^"^^'^^
due efFed: on your minds. The fegond
charaderiftic of thofe whom our Lord hath,
in the text, pronounced *' bleffed," is con-
ceilion; by which I do not mean the re^
ceding from the pradice of our duty, or
the confeflion or fupport of truth, for this
may not be done ; no, not for a moment :
but the parting with what, of ftrid right,
belongs to ourfelves, rather than enter into
contention for it, and the compliance with
requefts earneftly urged, though it may be
irkfome unto us : nor mean I to recommend
thefe things unlimitedly, for the unreafon-
ablenefs of the bad would then foon defpoil
the good of every thing, to fupport them-
felves in their vices. But many are the
things which are not worth tenacioufly re-
taining, their value being not to be com-
pared with that of peace and good neigh-
bourhood : oftimes may it happen, that the
polTeffion of fomething we have, would
gfford much greater fatisfadion to another
than
3 1 "6 On Meeknefs.
SERM. than it can to ourfelves; a retreat, too, is
XIV. fometimes the fureft road to vid:ory ; and he
who conquers with the leaft bloodfhed will
ever be the beft commander. Our Lord's
leffon, that we refift not evil, but if a man
will fue you at the law for thy coat, let him
have thy cloak alfo, plainly infl:ru6ls us
patiently to fuffer fome wrongs rather than
enter into hoflilities even of a legal kind.
Great are the evils which many Chriftians
would have avoided, had they obeyed this
precept of their divine Mafter ; and there
is one in particular which merits attention,
that a man feldom comes out of a difpute
fo innocent as he went into it ; circum-
fiances naturally occur in the courfe of it,
which tend to embitter the mind, and give
rife to the evil paflions of anger and malice,
and thofe incite men to adlions of the vilefl
kind. Ought not, then, that objecft to be
great, which induces a man to run the
rifque of being tempted to the commiffion
of great crimes ? Or if Chriftians, through
their meeknefs, avoid the guilt of fuch,
Can wc think innocence is preferved at too
dear
On Mceknefs, 31*^
dear a rate ? I doubt not but that mofl of serm.
you have been witnefles to contefts pro- ^^^'
longed, and animofities carried to a great
height, in cafes where a Httle conceflion on
either fide would have produced harmony,
and ftrongly cemented a friendfhip, which,
for want of that, was broken off, perhaps,
never to be renewed ; and when men thus
bitterly contend for other things, to the
deftrudiion of mutual regard and charity,
and the forfeiture of all the good that flows
therefrom, May we not juflly fay, that
they lofe the fubflance by catching at a
fliadow ? If, by per fevering in contention,
ye gain a victory, the joy thence refulting,
far from tending to meliorate your hearts,
will be felfifh, and more likely to engender
infolence and a narrow pride, than to give
rife to any virtue; but if, by concefTion,
ye gratify another, the pleafure ye will
thence derive will contribute to enlarge your
minds, and the principle of meeknefs being
thus ftrengthened in your breafts, ye will
not only become more ready to yield happi-
nefs to others, but be better armed againfl
any
31 8 On Meebiefs.
SERMi any who may have power to trefpafs on
^^^^)^yoii, fince the ability they pofTefs of hurt- •
ing you will be leffencd by all the eafe with
which ye can recede from your rights ;
and thus were ye even fubje6l to the moft
abfolute tyranny, your readinefs at concef-
fion would place your happinefs beyond its
reach, and the utmoft force of human power
would be in vain exerted againft thofe who
were thus encompaffed with heavenly ar-
mour. And fhould fuch condudl (as it
will where the minds of your adverfaries
are not very depraved) foften their hearts,
and convince them that it is againfl the
caufe of virtue they are fighting; ye at
once become conquerors, and bringing to
their fenfes thofe who have erred, and
faving, it may be, a foul from deftrudion,
ye gain a glory more brilliant, more lafting,
than ye could have reaped from the boldeft
and mofl fuccefsful oppofition. Let the
heroes of the world glory in the ftrengtli
of their arms ; leave them to recount the
battles they have fought, the armies they
Jiave overthrown, the numbers they have
forced
On Meeknefs. ^IQ
forced to fue for their lives; the muhitude serm.
of the unoffending which they have pil- xiv.
laged, the numbers of the innocent which
they have caufed to be butchered, fliallblaft
all their fame, and turn their boafling into
confufion. Leave the duellift to tell how
oft he hath revenged his honour, and how
cautious all are of affronting him ; and that
neither the ties of friendfhip, the laws of
his country, nor the divine prerogative,
** Vengeance is mine; I will repay, faith
the Lord," hath reftrained him from feeking
the blood of thofe who have dared to offend
him. Let the litigious man report the fuits
in which he hath been engaged, the families
he hath diftreffed, and all the evils fuffered
by thofe he hath delivered to the judge !
Thefe goodly triumphs become not the fol-
dier of Chrift; the warfare in which he
is engaged requires other means of con-
queft; peaceable, forgiving, and compaf-
iionate, he feeks not the deftrudtion, but
the amendment and recovery of his ene-
mies, thereto inftruded by the perfed:
example of His bleffed Mafter, Who, though
He
3^0 On Meehie/s,
SERM. He could have commanded all the armies of
XIV. Heaven to affifl: Him, and have cruflied
^^'^^ His perfecutors at a word, on the contrary'
pitied them in their guilt, and prayed for
their pardon. Gome, then, ** to the Shep-
herd and Bifhop of your fouls, Who hath
left us an example that ye fhould follow
His fteps ; Who, when He was reviled,
reviled not again ; when He fuffered, threat-
ened not ; but committed Himfelf to Him
Who judgeth righteouily. Learn of Him
to be meek and lowly in heart, fo fhall ye
find reft to your fouls." That thefe quali-
ties have a natural tendency to contribute to
the happinefs of all with whom thofe who
have gained them are conneded, is fuffici-
ently manifeft, and that they will affuredly
promote that of the perfons in whom they
are found, we know, becaufe to fuch is
promifed the bleffing of God. . Indeed, the
laft of thefe points feems to be but a con-
fequence of the other, iince, if the meek
be fit inftruments to make each other happy,
no wonder that God fhould choofe them as
fuch, or that He fhould regard, with a
favour-
On Meeknefs. 321
favourable eye, thofe who, like Him, de-
light in the excrcife of mercy and for-
bearance. And though through thefe, the
Lord hath hitherto withholden his arm
from the deftroying the wicked from the
earth, too fmall muft we deem the fliare
which the righteous have in His providence,
if we do not believe that He will, at lafb,
arife, and deliver them from the wdcked,
and redeem them from the fury of the op-
prelTour; or that judgement will not be efta-
blifhed on the earth, and the falvation of
God come forth before all nations ; or that
though He hath permitted vice and its ad-
herents to triumph for a time in this part
of His creation. He will not at length vin-
dicate His dominion, and take unto Him-
felf His great power, and reign. What
happincfs the meek will experience when
their almighty Protedour and Patron Ihall
thus vifibly interpofe, to give them an ever-
lafting inheritance, where they fhall no more
be expofed to fevcre tryals of their virtues,
bat employed only in the grateful exercife
of them, where the righteoufnefs after
VOL. II. Y which
pt On Meeknefs.
SERM. which they hungred and thirfted (hall
"^^^' floiirilli, and where the peace in which they
dehght fhall abound, where all they meet
fliall be as benevolently inclined to them as
they to all they meet, and where endlefs
ages fhall proceed in the mutual exchange
of that which fhall never fail, charity, and
the all-glorious prefence of God fhall ever
give fulnefs of joy, far exceeds all defcrip-
tion, and can be but in a very fmall portion
of it conceived, that ineffable tranquillity
which is derived from the fincere pradtice
of this virtue, may to the meek themfelves
afford fome foretafte of what is referved for
them, but far removed mufl any portion of
it be from the conception of others ; flill
ye have but to become meek, and then ye
Ihall not partly only, but altogether receive
thefe bleffmgs : for the Lord will teach you
His ways ; He will increafe your joy, and
beautify you with falvation; and ye fhall
be called the bleffed of the Lord !
SER-
SERMON XV.
ON THE DUTY OF MERCY.
St. Matt. v. 7.
Bkjfed are the inerciful ', for they Jhall obtain
mercy.
'TPHE evil fervice into whfch the doc- serm,
trine, that charity will cover a multi- ^^'
tude of fins, hath been preft, to the creation
of hopes, that a crowd of vices againft
which the wrath of God is denounced
throughout the Gofpel, (hall efcape the
punilhment due unto them, becaufe they
are found in company with one virtue, ren-
ders it necefTary to caution Chriftians againft
permitting the promife of the text, that
*' the merciful fhall obtain mercy," to en-
courage them to negled the other parts of
Y 2 their
324 On the Duty of Mercy.
SERM. their duty, under the conceit that the per-
'^^' formance of this will atone for the omiflion
of the refl, and to remind them of thofe
other words of our Lord — '* Whenyefhall
have done all thofe things which are com-
manded you, fay. We are unprofitable fer-
vants ; we have done that which was our
duty to do." God knows that the moft
vigilant and careful of us fland in need of
pardon for offences enow, and have little
caufe to add to the number of our fins, that,
there may be matter for Him to exercife
that mercy on, which we have fhewn to
others. Coniider but the numerous offences
into which the befc men fall, accompanied
only with the aggravations which, in truth,
attend them, and ye will fee that if thefe
alone be remitted, great will be the mercy
obtained j and if they be retained, as on
every one who is not his felf merciful they
lliall, their weight will be fufficient fo keep
the foul loaded with them from ever rilinp-
out of the depths of mifery.
But
On the Duty of Mercy, yic^
But while we thus endeavour to prevent serm.
an ill ufe heing made ot the pafTagc before -^^*
us, by its receiving an interpretation more
fuited to the defires of men than to the
truth and purity of religion, we muft ftrive
rightly to divide the word of truth, and not
weaken that encouragement to penitents
which it contains, or obfcure the inftrudiion
which, in common with other pafTages of
Holy Scripture, it gives to thofe who, re-
penting of their crimes, wifh to obtain the
divine forgivenefs, to go and fhow^ compaf-
fion tow-ard their fellow-fervants : for that
this (hall have o:reat effed: in forward ins:
their own pardon, our bleifed Saviour hath
alfo intruded us by laying, for '' If ye
forgive men their trefpaffcs, your heavenly
Father will alfo forgive you,'* Since, then,
our being merciful is made the condition of
our receiving mercy, and on that receipt
only our hopes are founded, let us confidcr
in what the exercife of this virtue confifts,
and what pradice may entitle a man to the
denomination of merciful.
Y3 The
2^2,6 On the Duty of Mercy.
SERM. The fubjecfl of mercy is diftrefs, and the
^^* end of it either to prevent or to relieve the
fufFerings of others : hence the modes in
which it may be exerted are as various as
the methods in which rehef may be admi-
niftered j and by forgivenefs, by inter cef-
fion, by affifcance, may we prove ourfelves
merciful ; the frequent opportunities of
doing which may, and will, if they be all
nesiledted, render us inexcufable : the rich
and the powerful are thofe to whom dif-
courfes on the amiablenefs and excellence of
this quality are mofl commonly addrelTed ;
but though when dwelling in the breafts of
fuch it becomes the fource of more exten-
iive good, it is not without its beneficial
effed:s in the poorefl: and the weakeft ; and
the praife of it is not derived from the
greatnefs of the means which men have to
manifell it, but from the fincerity of their
inclination to make ufe of whatever means
they have. It is not from fuddcn fits of
good-nature, occafioned by the impreflion
which particular circumfbances may make
on a man's mind ; it is not from one or two
detached
On the Duty of Mercy. 327
detached ad:s of generoiity, that a man can serm.
iuftly be called merciful, but from a con- ^^'
ftant temper and difpolition of heart, to
alleviate the evils under which he fees others
labouring : it is in the practice of this at-
tribute of God that we are peculiarly admo-
niflied to look to the divine pattern, which
is in the courfe of His providence fet be-
fore us, and in whatever way the exercife
of it be required, we may therein behold
the plaineft, the moft perfuafive, and in-
citing lelTons for our condud:.
Has any one, by trefpalTlng agalnft you>
incurred your refentment, and is it in your
power to make him feel the weight of your
indignation, withhold your uplifted arm, and
ere you reject his petition for forgivenefs,
refleol how readily God receives the {inner*s
fupplication for pardon ; and if His ven-
geance were not thereby ftayed, What muft
be your own fate! But the injuries you
have received are, perhaps, aggravated by
peculiar circumftances ; they were utterly
unprovoked, and you have been a friend to
Y 4 the
323 On the Duty of Mercy.
SERM. the man who offered them; thefe are points
^^^ which certainly encreafe his guilt, and you
may juftly complain of the ingratitude you
experience : but recoiled:, at the fame time,
what you have ever received from Heaven
but benefits, and whether the obligations
conferred on you liave produced that grate-
ful return of love, obedience, and affiance,
which they ought to have fecured : go to
your own heart; Alk that whether you
have not added fin to fin; whether the
judgements which you have at tim.es dreaded
being averted, has had its due effed: on you,
or whether being releafed from the terrour
of an evil menaced for your correftion, and
withholden on your contrition, you have
not renewed your offences, and augmented
both the number ^nd the greatnefs of your
provocations ? Effimate the difproportion
theje is between the guilt contracted by
finning againff: God, and that of fuming
againft man ; and as you would avoid the
being called to account for a debt of ten
thoufand talents, forbear to rigoroufly exad:
one of an hundred pence. Let the picas
which
On the Duty of Mercy. 329
which you urge in your own favour, when serm.
applying to Heaven for pardon, not be ^'^*
overlooked when others alk you for forgive-
nefs, the ignorance, the wcaknefs you have
pleaded, belong alfo to them; neither
fhould the patience for which you have
petitioned for yourfelf, be denied to them.
Ever rcftrain yourfelf from executing the
firft dictates of refentment. Was the divine
wrath to burft forth on every offence which
merits it, all flefh would foon fail before
it. Look to the long-fuffering, and the
goodnefs of God : obferve how He bears
with the rebellious, and how foon ihov/s
His mercy on thofe who turn unto Him ;
and learn of His apoftle to be angry and
fin not, to let not the fun go down on your
wrath !
Among thofe particulars in wliich the
Lord did, by the prophet Ifaiah, exhort his
people of Ifracl to ceafe to do evil, and
learn to do well, is that of pleading for the
widow: whereby is fuggefted to us the duty
of exercifing another branch of mercy, tliat
of
330 On the Duty of Mercy.
SERM. of interceflionj by the ufe of which wc
XV. enlarge our fphere of doing good, and, ia
another point, imitate the divine example
fet before us. It is by no mean an uncom-
mon cafe for the cries of the diflreft not
to reach the ears of thofe who have the
power of affording them relief; the appear-
ance of poverty and wretchednefs is per-
mitted to preclude all accefs to the prefence
of the rich and the great ; and the petitions
of thofe who labour under them muft gene-
rally go through the hands of mercenaries,
who are little inclined to the caufes of fuch
as are not able to reward them. Nor is this
evil confined to applications made to perfons
in the higher ranks of fociety : there are
who for that employment which furnifhes
them with their daily bread, or for portions
of a benevolence which preferves them froni
mifery, or for other comforts of which it
is hard to be deprived, depend on men not
many degrees above them, but who are un-
defervedly neglefted, have their wants over-
looked, and are left to pine away in penury,
becaufe none will intercede for them. A
mif-
On the Duty of Mercy. 331
mifreprefentation, perhaps, of their beha- serm.
viour, given by an interefted perfon, has ^^*
eflranged one, who was formerly their pa-
tron, from them ; or their own unadvifed
conduct may have caufed what was the
t^tci of ignorance or folly, to be efteemed
the fruit of infolence or dilhonefty. Now
in every fuch inftance, will not the dictate
of mercy be, take up the caufe of the
friendlefs, and plead for him that hath no
helper; bring the cafe of the afflicfted to
thofe who can deliver them, and put a ftop
to the oppreffions of the petty tyrant. If
you want incitement to obey this di(ftate,
look to the bright pattern given you in the
cafe of all mankind, when the fin of man
had feparated between his God and Him,
and He lay under the power of fatan ; when
there was no one to help, none to uphold,
the Son of God became our intercelTour ;
and by His all-prevailing mediation, gained
us pardon and reconciliation with His Fa-
ther. Here was pity fliewn even to offen-
ders ; here was intercefTion made for thofe
who were yet finners, by One too who is
infinitely
^S'^' On the Duty of Mercy.
SERM. infinitely above them. Follow, then, only
^^- at an immenfe diflance, the example herein
given you ; copy, in the fainteft traces, the
mercy thus exhibited ; and by interpofing,
where your interpofition can fuccour, ftrive
to fecure to yourfelf the protection of that
arm, which alone is able to bring perfed:
falvation.
The third grand particular in which
mercy manifefts itfelf, is that of yielding
affiflance to thofe who need iXi whether
fupplying their neceflities by alms, or re-
lieving their wants by any other mode. To
one who fpeaks on this point, the diredion
given by our Saviour to His apoftles in ano-
ther matter, may well ferve as a topic;
** Freely ye have received," faid our blelTed
Lord, *' freely give !** If we rightly con-
ceived of our fituation, we fliould efteem
ourfelves, in all we poffefs, as the ftewards
of Heaven, to whom various goods have
been entrufted, various powers delegated,
that by dealing out the former, and exerting
the latter, in favour of fuch as ftand in
need
On the Duty of Mercy. 23Z
need of either, we may fupply the indi- serm.
gence of the one, and remedy the weaknefs xv.
of the other. And how can we fo certainly
fecure to ourfelves a conflant and plentiful
fupply of each, as by employing them in a
manner which thus tends to the glory of
the Giver, and to the happinefs of His
creatures. It is then that any being appears
in the moft glorious light, in the moft eli-
gible ftation, when he is employed as the
willing and honoured inftrument of the
bounty and mercies of Him who is the
Head of all beings. As the vefTels in which
men prepare poifons (though the poifons
theirfelves, perhaps, are, in the end, in-
tended for a medicinal purpofe) are, when
the difguftful procefs is perfedt, deilroyed ;
fo is it with thofe vefTels of wrath whom
God ufeth for the accomplifhment of His
judgements, and whom having endured with
much long-fuffering, He at length con-
fi^neth to deftruftion : but as we deal with
thofe inftruments by which we obtain what
is wholefome and precious, preferving them
with care, ftriving to make them ever more
compleat
334 Oti the Duty of Mercy.
SERM. compleat for our purpofe; fo with thofe
^^' men who being defirous of becoming in the
hands of their Creatour, vefTels unto honour,
prepare themfelves unto every good work
the divine goodnefs itfelf co-operates ; fup-
plyeth funds for their beneficence, and pro-
motes their progreflion to glory. Thofe
who, with a niggardly hand, deal out their
alms, and when they give, do it grudg-
ingly, and as of neceflity, who when part-
ing with a trifle, are anxioufly thinking
how they (hall replace it, fearful left their
charity fliould bring them to diftrefs, are
equally deficient in generofity towards men,
and in truth and gratitude towards God :
they may be a provident, they may be a
careful, but they are neither a merciful nor
a faithful generation.
But it is not always by beftowing on them
part of our poiTellions that we can aflift
others, health and ftrength afford means of
alleviating the evils under which the iick
and the infirm labour : by condolence and
converfation may thofe who are oppreffed
with
On the Duty of Mercy. 33^
with forrow be comforted, the dilheartened serm.
may be encouraged, and, by numberlefs xv.
offices of friendfliip, may various diftrefles
with which hfe abounds, have their poig_
nancy abated. Neither is there any of thefe
good works in which the poor cannot bear
a part, they are hable to injuries, and have
often occafions of quarrel; opportunities,
then, of exercifing forgivenefs, they cannot
want ; there are others level with them to
whom their mediation may be of ufe, in
which cafe their readinefs at interceffion
may be manifefted; and as long as health
and ftrength remain even from the duty of
almfgiving, they are not exempt ; fince the
the apoftle teaches them to labour with their
hands at the things which are good, that
they may have to give to him that needeth ;
and for all the other modes in which mercy
may be exerted, their families, their rela-
tions, their connexions, will fuppiy con-
tinual calls on them therein to pradlice this
virtue: fo extenfive is the ground of claim
to it, fo ample is the field in which it may
be exercifed, that occafions on which it may
be
336 On the Duty of Mercy.
be fhewn will feldom fail to prefent them-
felves ; for objedis of diftrefs are fcarcely
ever wanting ; and as the merely being
fuch conllitittes the plea for mercy, other
accidental circumftances of their being of
our country, our own fe6l, or even of their
being clear of all offence towards us, cannot
be requiiite to entitle them to it. The
Gofpel does not teach us to confider, ere we
affifl: one in afflidlion, whether he be our
neighbour or not j but commands us to go,
and prove ourfelves neighbours to all that
are fo. The condudl. of the Samaritans was
prefumptuoully contradictory to the law, in-
deed, given from Heaven \ they worfliipped
they knew not what, and falvation was of
the Jews ; but the former were not, there-
fore, to be denied the common offices of
humanity ; nor would any one of the latter
have been to be juftified, had. they, when
feeins: even a Samaritan w^ounded, and half
dead, pall: by on the other fide. Far, far
from the fpirit of chriftianity, is that
wretched narrownefs of heart, which clofes
the ears of fome againft the cries of all who
are
On the Duty of Mercy. 337
arc not connected with them, and which serm.
changes what ought to be one of the moft '^'^'
powerful motives to companion, the cir-
cumflance of being a ftranger, into ground
of difreeard. The creation is the unbounded
theatre on which the divine goodnefs is dif-
played, the juft and unjuft tafte of it : the
fun fhineth, the rain droppeth from Heaven
on both ; ** Be ye merciful, therefore, as
your Father which is in Heaven is merci-
ful !'* If ye do good to thofe only who do
good to you, wherein do ye excel even thofe
who are proverbially bad? But " love
your enemies, blefs them that curfe you, do
good to them that hate you, that ye may
be the children of the Highefl : for He is
kind both to the unthankful and to the evil."
** Are not," faid our blefled Saviour, *' five
fparrows fold for two farthings ? and not
one of them is forgotten before God." His
benevolence extendeth to all : Where, then,
fhould our mercy ftop ? There are who
feem to think, that the brute creation ace
entitled to none, and that being given into
the hand of man, they cannot be treated tco
VOL. II. z ' harfhly :
;38 On the Duty of Mercy.
harflily: but let the fullen pride of man re-
colled:, that the meanell: of the brutes, nay,
the lowefl of the inanimate creation, fland
in the relation of fellow-creatures unto him j
and though he be, by their common Crea-
tour, placed in an higher rank, be endowed
with greater powers, and hath a larger extent
of dominion given unto him, let him not
think the unneceffary fufferings he inflicts
on thofe over which he hath authority, are
forgotten before God It is written, ** A
righteous man regardeth the life of his
beafl: : but the tender mercies of the wicked
are cruel.'* A palTage that would almoft
induce one to think, that the inhabitants of
Judah were, in the days of Solomon, firfl
as barbarous in ill ufing animals, and then
as ingenious in tormenting them under pre-
tence of medicinal applications, as they are
now in our own country. The extreme in-
humanity here commonly fhown, in over-
working, beating, and ftarving creatures,
the moft ufeful and moft faithful to us, is a
difgrace not only to our profeffion as Chrif-
-tians, but to our fpecies as men; and as
the
On the Duty of Mercy. 339
the abfoiute power we polTefs over the in- SERm.
feriour animals, does more nearly than any ^J^^li
other we have, refemble that which God
hath over us, if in the ufe of it we neglecft
to be merciful, How fhall we who offend
fo much more heinoufly than we can be
offended, hope to obtain mercy ? Or if we
protradt our own cruelty, by bringing up
our children in the practice of the like,
permitting them to torment domeftick ani-
mals and infecSts for their amufement, and
cxercife their ingenuity in eradicating from
their bofoms that tendemefs of heart, with-
out which they will become an hateful
generation, that pleafe not God, and are
contrary to men. How can we look up to
the common Father of all for forbearance,
where we have merited punifhment } Let,
then, the fentence of the text be fixed in
your minds j reftrain not the mercy enjoined
in it within the narrow limits which ani-
mofity, felfifhnefs, prejudice, or ignorancej
w^ould prefcribe : the command given you
is explicit, the example which ye are
z % bidden
3^0 On the Duty of Mercy.
SERM, bidden to follow, fufficiently vifible; yc
XV. have only then to remember, that the former
'^^""'''^^ cannot be difobeyed, nor the latter over-
looked, but at your own peril.
SER-
SERMON XVI.
ON ANGER AND ITS EFFECTS,
Ephes. IV. 26, 27.
Be ye angry ^ and Jtft not: let not the fun go
down on your wrath : neither give place to
the devil.
/^NE confequence of the ancient world serm.
^•^^ being left fo long to its own teachers, ^^^*
was, that human wifdom had fufficient time
to try how far it could advance by its own
ilrength in defining the duties of men, and
by that mean afcertaining the road to per-
fed:ion and happinefs. What the event of
this trial was, the multitude of fe(5ls which
arofe, each charging the others with having
miflaken the way, and the remarkable cir-
z 3 cumftancG
XVI.
342 On Anger and its Effe6ls,
SERM. cumftance that after all, many found every-
one fo defedtive, that they endeavoured to
form a new fy ftem, by fekdling fomething
from each, completely manifefl. The
preaching of the Gofpel yielded a remedy
for all thefe deficiencies ; and the lefTons of
that ftand clear of the charges of either
leaving men in doubt as to the confequences
of their condu6t, of giving them licence to
indulge their paffions, or of requiring a
total and unattainable freedom from the
affections incident to our nature : but rightly
dividing the word of truth, command us,
as in the text, fo to govern our feelings,
that they may not tranfport us beyond the
bounds of reafon and of juflice; *' Be ye
angry, and fin not.**
Our blefled Lord hath apprized us, that
the perfe(5l work of this paflion is the fub-
jed: of the fixth commandment; and that
when anger hath conceived, it bringeth
forth hatred, and that when hatred is com-
plete, it bringeth forth murder : and, in-
deed^ this tendency of it may be deduced
from
On Anger and its EffeEls. 343
from the words of thofe who are under the serm.
dominion of it, whom we often hear making ^^i.
declarations hke thefe, concerning the objec'l
of their refentment, *' I could kill him!
I wifli he wxre dead ! *' or uttering curfes
whofe effedts would extend even beyond the
grave.
To preferve us from becoming flaves to
a paflion fo pernicious in its progrefs, and
which holds a dominion fo uncontroulable
over thofe who once fubmit to its power,
let us now confider the particulars in which
it manifeils itfelf, and their effecHis ; that
we may both be aware of the fleps by which
it acquires its power, and earneft to prevent
confequences fo replete with mifchief and
difgrace.
That involuntary indignation which we
feel at an unworthy action, as long as it
exceeds not its province of keeping us alive
to a fenfe of injury, and making us eager
to take the part of the opprelTed, is the
offspring of natural juftice, the dignified
z 4 prefcnt-
344 O^ Anger and its Effe5ls.
SERM. prcfentment of the claims of equity and
^^^' truth : but when, inftead of being confined
to fair expoftulation, and cahn endeavours
to execute judgement, it burfts forth into
the bitternefs of inved:ive, or the violence
of affault, it places us at once in the fituation
of offenders ; and v/e become expofed to the
cenfures of unrighteoufnefs we would have
paiTed on others. The ancient fage who
would not chaftife his fervant becaufe he
felt himfelf under the impulfe of pa{Iion,
did not confult only the fafety of his flave,
but confidered his own character, and the
future feelings of his own mind. Would
fome Chriftians do the fame, they would
not difgrace themfelves, nor tranfgrefs the
precepts of their divine Mafter, by per-
mitting circumflances of even trifling mo-
ment to deprive them of all patience^ and
inflame their anger to fuch a degree, that
one unaGCufl:omed to witnefs fuch gufls of
pafljon, would imagine, they had received
fome irreparable and inefliimable injury;
when the whole harm done exceeds not that
of
On Anger and its EffeBs. 345
of a book miflaid, a difli ill drefl, or a serm.
broken glafs. xvi.
Now the mifchievous confeqiiences of
fuch abfurdities are not confined to the con-
tempt raifed in the breafts of thofe in whofe
fight they are committed, and who, how-
ever uninftrudled they may be, can yet dif-
cern the unreafonablenefs of fuch condu6t,
nor to the diflike excited by the harfh re-
bukes and violent treatment they fuffer by
it : but they extend to loading with guilt
the perfons who allow themfelves to become
thus the flaves of pafTion. For fhall thofe
who are charged not even to return railing
for railing be guiltlefs, when, with little or
no provocation, they pour forth the mofl
unjufl inve6lives on thofe who have, per-
haps, unwittingly offended them ? or thofe
who are commanded to blefs even their
enemies, remain innocent, when they heap
curfes on thofe who are entitled to their
protection, or have the beft-founded claim
to their love ? A man under the impulfe
pf paffion can, where a fault has been com-
mitted ,
34^ ^^ Anger and its Effects,
SERM. mitted, hardly reftrain his cenfure within
XVI. |.j^g bounds of iuft retribution; but the mul-
titude of injuries which are committed by
going beyond this, are not to be numbered,
and hardly to be conceived ; men are falfely
accufed, unjuftly punifhed ; dumb animals
are beaten, and Heaven itfelf infulted ; and
thefe things are perpetrated without the
fury of the guilty raging beyond their own
houfes ; when only, as the wife man ex-
prelTes it, they are as lions among their
fervants.
In cafes where the indulgence of anger
is not thus retrained, (and it generally,
perhaps, is fo from craft more than from
virtue) its further courfe feems to be deter-
mined by the degree of animal courage with
which thofe fubjedt to it are endowed. In
men of bold fpirit, it dilturbs fociety by
violent quarrels and furious difputesj by
diflentions which, among the lower ranks,
often end in blows and bloody flrife ; and
among thofe who think themfelves men of
better breeding, "in the impious and mur-
derous
On Anger and its Effe^is, 347
derous ad of duelling. Of the inconliflency serm.
of this nefarious pradice, (permitted by xvi.
the fovereigns of Europe to the bringing
down on themfelves and their kingdoms the
divine judgements for blood guiltinefs) of
its inconfiilency, I fay, with the Gofpel
precepts of meeknefs, I have before taken
notice of; here it demands it more efpecially
as a dired: breach of the precept of the
text, *' Let not the fun go down on your
wrath.'* For what can be more contrary
to this than for a man to fofter in his breaft
the intention of meeting his brother in
mortal combat ? coolly to put in order the
inftruments of deftrucftion, and feek out
another to be fpedator of his murtherous
attempt ?
Endeavours I know have been made to
excufe, if not to juftify, this moft un-
chriflian practice ; and the words of the
Gofpel have been wiredrawn to make them
fpeak a language lefs repugnant to it than
they really do. But what if it do keep
fome infolent fpirits in order. Is the pro-
du(5lion
348 On Anger and its Effecls.
SERM. dudton of this benefit, (though the prac-t
^^^' tice were unaccompanied bv any evil to
counteract this partial good) an objed:
to be fought at the expence of the divine
favour ? Or, Are the comforts of unanimity
and peace to be obtained by any other mean
io certainly, as by the bleffing of that God
who can order the unruly wills and affec^
tions of finful m^n ? On the other hand»
How many inoffenfive and confcientious
men have, through the permiflion of thefe
attempts at murther, been infulted by
wretches, who finding themfelves pofTelTed
of mechanical courage enough to appear in
the field of combat, and void of all fear of
God to retrain them, have taken advantage
of thefe things to affront and perfecute the
peaceable ? How much human blood has
been fpilled, how many cut off in the prime
of their lives, who might othcrwife have
lived to be of effential fervice to their coun-
try, how many widows and orphans been
made by it ? And are thefe no evils ? or are
they fuch as will not counterbalance the
l>enefit which is rather imagined than proved
to
On Anger and its Effcth. -^49
to flow from the unwarrantable countenance serm.
given to this fanguinary practice ? xvi.
Imagined, I fay, for how did focietv
fubfift in all the ancient world without it ?
How does it in three- fourths of the modern ?
and particularly in the moft populous em-
pire on earth, confifting of the moft cere-
monious people, who by no mean find it
necelTary to fupport their ceremonial, ftrid:
as it is, by the point of the fword, and the
adoption of this offspring of barbaroutj
fuperftition ? Or does the example of that
people among whom it is molf prevalent,
plead for its being retained ? How far arc
their manners foftencd particularly by this?
Are they lefs fuddcn or quick in quarrel
than others, or more cautious of giving
offence ? Hath not, on the contrary, cuftom
fo hardened their hearts, that they fcek a
brother's blood with lefs remorfe than they
would put a favourite dog to death; and
proceed to attempt his murther with the
fame gaiety of heart with which they wouid
go to a place of amufement ? In this cafe
fads
350 On Anger and its EffeBs,
SERM. fadls theirfelves fliew the futility of the
^^y^ plea, and demonftrate that the permifTion of
appeals to the fvvord is not an adequate re-
medy for the impertinence of the thought-
lefs, or the rudenefs of the infolent.
And for the attempts made to reconcile
the precepts of the meek and holy Jefus to
fuch a practice; this is fo unpromifing a
tafk, that fcarcely any man would venture
to purfue it, were he not encouraged in it
by the comments of men, who in their at-
tempts to explain, do, in fad:, modify the
precepts of our Lord -, and of whom, (com-
mentators I mean in general) though fome
do, for their learned and pious labours,
merit the fincereft thanks of the church, of
others of them the fame may be juftly faid
which a celebrated Roman writer has alTerted
of the philofophers j that there is nothing
fo abfurd but fome or other of them have
maintained. The words of our blelTed
Saviour are beft interpreted by his apoflles,
to whom He gave the Holy Spirit, not only
to bring to their remembrance whatfoever
He
On Anger and its EffeBs. 351
He had faid unto them, but to lead them serm.
into the true meaning of it. How then are ^^^'
His precepts of forbearance and forgivenefs
explained by them ? Are they limited by
the ciiftoms of the world ? or retrained by
the fear of encouraging aggreffion ? So far
from it, that His example is urged in eluci-
dation of His words : and we are told by
St. Peter, that " Even hereunto were we
called — that we Ihould follow His fleps :
Who, when He was reviled, reviled not
again : when He fuffered, He threatened
not : but committed Himfclf to Him Who
judgeth righteoully." Go now, ye who
think that nothing but the blood of t'ne
offender can wafh out the difgrace of re-
ceiving a coarfe contradidion, and reconcile
your maxims with the example of your
divine Mafter, who endured fuch contra-
dicflion of finners againft Himfelf ! Recon-
cile them, if ye can, with this leffon of
His apoftle ; ** Put on, therefore, as the
cledl of God, holy and beloved, bowels of
mercies, kindnefs, humblencfs of mind,
meeknefs, long fuffering, forbearing one
another,
s
35* On Anger and its Effects,
SERM. another, and forgiving one another, if any
XVI. man have a quarrel againft any : even as
^^""^"^"^^ Chrift forgave you, fo alfo do ye.** Make
your demand of vengeance confiflent with
the following admonition of the fame in-
spired teacher: ** Dearly beloved, avenge
not yourfelves, but rather give place unto
wrath : for it is written. Vengeance is
mine ; I will repay, faith the Lord.*' Make
it confiflent with the blefTed Jefus* words to
Peter, when he appealed to the fword in
defence of his Mafter, and even through a
miftake of His directions, ** Put up again
thy fword into its place : for all they that
take the fword fliall perifh with the fword."
And recoiled:, that after all your efforts to
evade the commandments of your Saviour,
and hide from yourfelves the difference,
which, in truth, exifts between His direc-
tions and your condu6t, the caufe mufl be
again argued before the throne of Him
whofe prerogative ye have invaded, and the
validity of your worldly pleas be deter-
mined by the perfecfl wifdom, and juflice
of Him, from whofe fentence there can be
no appeal I
But
On Anger and its Effects . 2>iZ
Bat while the cxcefs of anger does, in serm.
men of bold fpirit, thus lead to open vio- ^^i.
knee and daring murthers, it operates in a
no lefs pernicious way in thofe who, not
having courage to take an immediate re-
venge on any who have incurred their re-
fentment, watch, with malicious craft and
opportunity, to gratify their defire of ven-
geance. The dilTembled hatred of thefe
characters is more cruel, becaufe more deli-
berate than the fierce animofity of the others *
and their obduracy againfl all the interme-
diate circumftances which arifc to awaken
their remorfe, is a fad fymptom of hearts
in great meafure defer ted by the divine
Spirit of grace. The flighted effecfts of
vjxdith. which has taken this courfe, appear
in fpiteful tricks and unlooked-for evil
turns ; when the enraged party often boafts
of his malicious memory, and tells his ad-
verfary, " I fancy you thought I had forgot
your behaviour to me, but you fee now I
can remember 1" But ftill more hateful are
its fruits, when the vengeance is diredtcd
againft the peace or the property of men ;
VOL. II. A a when
354 ^^' Anger and its EffeBs,
when endeavours are privately made to alafm
their fears, and fchemes purfued to injure
their reputation : when, through the malice
of an enraged fervant, a valuable piece of
furniture is deftroyed, or an ufeful animal
fpoiled. This avenging on poor brutes the
imaginary or real injuries received from
their owners, is a prad:ice particularly dia-
bolical, and carried to a moil deftrudive
height in that neighbouring ifland, where,
under the nurture of papal fuperftition, al-
moft every enormity attains to its fullell
growth. Among ourfelves it but too often
makes its appearance together with other
modes of fatiating: a rancorous thirfl: for
low revenge ; all of which are fo truely the
works of the devil, as to leave but little
hope, that thofe who are guilty of them,
will not be carried captive by him at his
will ; and confidered as the fruits of anger,
they leave us no longer at a lofs for the
reafon of our Lord's uttering menaces fo
fevere againfl various degrees of a paffion,
of which the progrefs is marked with crimes
fo heinous.
In
On Anger and its UffeBs^ 35^'
in the text itfelf, indeed, the permitting serai.
ourfelves to be any time under the influence xvi.
of anger, is confidered as affording occafion
to x\\ti great adverfary of our falvation,
** Let not the fun go down on your wrath :
neither give place to the deviL" And the
depth of guilt into which fome are plunged^
the atrocities which w^re at firll not only
unintended, but even not apprehended by
themfelves, into which they are at length
precipitated, while under the influence of
this paflion, indicate flrongly the impulfe
of him who was a murtherer from the be-
ginning. The criminality of murther it-
felf, may, indeed, be heightened by circum-
ftances either of cruelty or treachery, yet
being the lafl: adt of hatred of which its
objedt is fenfible, and that which puts it
for ever out of the power of the perpetrator
to render due recompence to the perfon he
has injured, it forms the full clofe to the
progrefs of anger, the dreadful end toward
which every one is advancing while he fol-
lows the didates of. his wrath.
A a 2 But
55 6 On Anger and its EffeBs.
But this fubjed: is not to be difmiffed
without noticing another fpecies of murther,
which, although frequently the effed of the
madnefs of fear, is fometimes produced by
the furioufnefs of anger ; when a man fuf-
fering his mind to become irritated by ad-
verfe circumftances, lays violent hands on
himfelf. This unnatural deed is plainly
forbidden by the general law, ** Thou fhalt
do no murther : " flill the contradid:ious
perverfenefs of men of reprobate minds has
difcovered pleas by which others of fhallow
thought, and little information, are at times
almoft perfuaded, that in fome cafes it might
be juftified. To give a fhort but decifive
anfwer to all thefe, let it be remembered,
that thofe wife men of antiquity who ad-
mitted, that there might be circumftances
under which it was right, ftill limited them
to a fituation tliat was defperate, acknow-
ledging that that man was guilty of a cow-
ardly defertion of the poll afTimed him by
Heaven, who deprived himfelf of life be-
fore his fituation in it w^as become hopelefs.
Now the light of the Gofpel has fliewn us,
that
On Anger and its EffeBs. 357
that this is a fituation, which to thofe from serm.
whom the divine protediion is not finally ^^^*
withdrawn, can never happen j for with
whatever difficulties we are furrounded,
however hard it may be to make us a way to
efcape, is any thing too hard for God ?
What fliall make His ear heavy, that it can-
not hear? Or, when will His hand be
(hortened, that it cannot fave ? But until
one of thefe things do come to pafs, even
by the confeffion of the ablell patrons of
fuicide, thofe guilty of it are countera(fting
the difpenfations of their Creatour, and
trampling under foot His appointment.
And are not thefe hopeful recommendations
to the mercy of Him before whofe throne
they are going to appear ? Or even if a
man, from the confcioufnefs of enormous
guilt, conceive, that he has thrown himfelf
entirely out of the divine mercy, is it not
better to flay on earth, where the fulnefs of
God's wrath is not poured forth, than to
plunge himfelf into the bottomlefs pit ^t
pnce ? Is it not better to try the poffibility
pf humble refignation prevailing to the di^
A a 3 ^pinutiQn
358 Oh Anger and its Efftclu
SERM. minution of the divine refentment, than to
XVI. deprive himfelf of all opportunity of laying
hold on mercy that might be proffered ?
Thefe are qiieflions which a child might
anfwer, and, by his determination, decide
on the futility of every thing urged in de-
fence of this laft effort of the imbecility of
human paffion, and prove, that unlefs where
infanity had diftuilbed the underflanding,
the wilful commiflion of this daringly im-
pious a6t, could be perpetrated only by
thofe in whom the God of this world hath
blinded the minds of them which believe
not.
Having thus traced the growth of anger
through its two chief branches, and fhewn
that the fir ft indulgences of this paffion
contain the feeds of the moft dreadful
effed:s, foon producing hatred, and ** who-
foever hateth his brother is a murtherer,"
your own thoughts muff have anticipated
the exhortation with which this difcourfe
fhould be clofed, by reprefenting to you how
I much
On Anger'aiid its EffeHs. 359
much it behoves us to reftrain the flrft serm.
falhes of wrath. Refledlion on their own ^^^'
experience will, to the minds of any who
have hitherto fuffered themfelves to be
hurried away by gufts of palTion, bring the
remembrance of great hazards they have
run in the moments of their rage, hazards
of doing what would have infixed deep and
lafting wounds in their hearts : and the
fight of the abfurdities, as well as the crimes
into which they run, who are under the in-
fluence of violent anger, might ferve as an
admonition to thofe whofe heat of temper
is not yet become habitual, to ufe their ut-
mofl vigilance to reprefs every tendency
thereto: and efpecially (hould it move all
who have the care of young people, to at-
tend to the earliell fymptoms of this paf-
fion, and ufe every mean (and particularly
the powerful one of example) to curb it. Let
us, therefore, henceforth recoiled:, that what-
ever may be the caufe of our indignation,
the wrath of man w^orketh not the righte-
oufnefs of God; that either in debate or
action, coolnefs and patience, have an im-
A a /j. meafurable
3^o On Anger and its 'EffeBs..
seRm. meafurable fuperiority over hafle and paf-
XVI. iionj and that if, inftead of following the
^^"^"^^^'^^^ divine example of our Saviour, we give
place to the devil, we fhall foon refemble
him in our works, and finally partake with
him in his fate.
SER-
SERMON XVII.
ON ADULTERY.
Ephes. V. 6.
Let no man deceive you with vain words:
for becaufe of thefe things cometh the
wrath of God upon the children of dif
obedience.
IV/r OSES, when recounting to the people serm.
of Ifrael the blefling and the curfe xvii.
which he fet before them, told them, that
when all nations, feeing the evils which
their iniquities would bring upon their land,
fhould a{k, " Wherefore hath the Lord
done thus unto this land ? What meaneth
the heat of tliis great anger ? men would
fay, becaufe they have forfaken the covenant
of the Lord God of their fathers ; and that
there-
362 On Adultery,
therefore the anger of the Lord was kindled
againft the land, to bring upon it all the
curfes written in the book of the law."
And might not a qiieftion and anfwer fimi-
lar to thefe be properly put and returned on
the prefent ftate of chriftendom ? Where-
fore (it might furely be afked) hath the
providence of God permitted fo many na-
tions to become a prey to anarchy and con-
fufion ? Why fuffercd the moft cruel ravages
of war to fprcad themfelvcs fo far and fo
wide? Why allowed the ftill more perni-
cious exteniion of the molt falfe and impi-
ous principles, of the moft deftrudiive and
diabolical corruptions ? Becaufe (it might
too as furely be anfwered) the inhabitants
of thefe countries have forfaken the Gofpel
preached unto their fathers, have taken unto
themfelves other rules of condu(5t, and thus
provoked the Lx)rd to treat them, in His
wrath, as children of difobedience.
There are, I am feniible, many who, for
thefe our fufferings, would look no farther
than the immediate caules of them, and
tracing
On Adultery. 363
tracing back the courfe of events through serm.
their chain of connedion, imagine they xvii.
had fufficiently accounted for all that has ^'^^^^'^^^
befallen us, by ftating the meafures which
one nation had purfued, and the policy
which another had adopted ; but all who,
by thus leaving the divine providence out of
the account, do, in fadt, deny the univerfa-
lity of its operation, do really deny alfo the
perfe6tion of God, (and that, indeed, is His
exiftence as God) no lefs efFe(ftually, than-
did thofe blafphemous wretches, who, in
the courfe of the rapid revolutions which
have lately taken place among them, did at
one feafon govern the French nation. Moll
ancient is the maxim, that ** afflidlion
Cometh not forth of the duft, neither doth
trouble fpring out of the ground." And
the queftion is put by a prophet, *' Shall
there be evil in a city, and the Lord hath
not done it ?** Whenever, therefore, we
find adverfity overtake us, under whatever
Ihape it comes, it is our duty, and will be
our wifdom to enc^uire. Whether our ini-
quities have not called for the chaftifemcnt ?
looking
3^4 On Adultery.
SERM. looking upon the reafonings of thofe who
'^^^^' would perfuade us, that. God never, or even
feldom vifits for human offences, as the vain
words of ignorant men, tending only to de*.
ceive. In confirmation of which, apply
your attention to fad:s ; mark unrighteouf-
nefs of every kind attended of natural and
inevitable confequence, by fufferings ; and
thefe fufferings, ye may obferve, men as
naturally afcribe to the wrath of Heaven.
Turn, then, to the book of the Holy Scrip-
tures, and that as containing an account not
only of the will, but alfo of the govern-
ment of God, explains the fads obferved,
declares them to be the vifitations of the
Governour of the univerfe; and that ye
may not doubt of this declaration being
made on His authority, fixes on a particular
people in whofe hiflory this courfe of retri-?
bution fhall be fingularly vifible and fleady \
and whofe fufferings, in confequence of
their tranfgreffions, being long before de-
fcribed, do, on their arrival, infallibly de-
monflrate the infl idler. And thus, by pub-
lifliing the hiflory of that people among
the
On Aiuitery. 36^^
the nations was light fpread over the earth; serm.
and, together with the renewed precepts of ^vii.
righteoufnefs given in the Gofpel, there was
fet before the world an admonitory lefTon,
that their difobedience to the divine laws
would be vifited in proportion to the in-
fl:ru6lion in the will of God with which
they are favoured.
This is a point particularly inlifted on by
the great apoftle of the Gentiles, throughout
his epiftles, that to the Hebrews efpecially
is manifeftly written with a view to cflablifh
it, while in the text the fame principle is
acknowledged, and a caution given us not
to permit the fpecious reafonings of deceit-
ful or deceived men, to perfuade us, that
we can difobey the commandments of God,
and yet efcape the penalties threatened in
the breach of them. ** Let no man deceive
you with vain words j for becaufe of thefe
things Cometh the wrath of God upon the
children of difobedience.'*
Th&
XVII.
366 On Adultery.
SERM. The vices to which St. Paul here mcire
particularly refers, are fornication, and all
manner of uncleannefs in word or deed,
and covetoufnefs, and the topics from
whence are drawn thofe wretched reafon-
ings, which are too often urged for the im-
punity of fuch crimes, and which he has
denominated vain words ^ are fufficiently
known; neither (liould they at all be re-
called to your remembrance from this place,
but with the hope of arming you againfl
them. And even for this purpofe, if ye be
true to yourfelves, little need be faid, fince
all thefe pleas of the vicious, (thofe excepted
which go to the denial of the divine autho-
rity of revelation, and are therefore to be
confidered only as the defperate effufions of
men who love darknefs rather than light,
becaiife their deeds are evil) fince all other
pleas on this head, I fay, may be refolved
into the two general ones, of human infir-
mity, and the mercy of God, both of which
muft, in their extent, be beyond all com-
parifon better known to our heavenly Father
than
On Adultery, 367
than they can be to us, and yet hath it feemed serm.
good to Him to lay on us the commands He ^v^^"
has, and to denounce the fevere penalties we
dread on the breach of them ; from which
facft alone \t is plain, that thefe reafoners
mofl grofsly deceive themfelves in the
ground on which they argue.
The truth indeed is, that were there no
politive penalties annexed to thefe vices, yet
from the nature of moral and intelligent
beings they neceffarily do, what St. Peter
moil juftly terms icv//* agaijiji the foul.
Since by leiTening men's powers of felf-
reftraint, and inflaming their evil affecftions,
they render them incapable of being even
harmlefs members of fociety, and unable to
derive enjoyment from any refources of their
own minds. Whence they become totally
iiniit for admilTion to the afTembly of the
blefled above, and as incapable of eafe or
happinefs wherever they might exift.
It is not my prefent purpofe to enter on
the proof of thefe confequcnccs in refped:
to
368 On Adultery i
SERM. to the fevcral evil courfes to which the
^^^^' apoftle in the text refers, it is to the enor-
mity and punifhment of one particular crime
which ftalks barefaced through the land, in
the commiffion of which the prince and the
peafant are equally fliamelefs, and which,'
though moft ruinous to the peace, and moft
deftrud:ive to the firfl principles of fociety^
is, (ftrangeto confider,) unreftrained by any
penal laws, that I mean now to confine my
difcourfe, and ye cannot be at a lofs to dif-
cern that adultery is the crime to which I
allude j a crime of which the frequency
lefTens our horrour at it, and prevents out
confidering the various aggravations with
which it is always accompanied. Other-
wife would it be poffible that men who
confider miftruft of their promifes as one of
the worft afperfions that can be caft on their
characters, fliould look upon a breach of
one of the moft folemn engagements that
can be made as a thing of no difgrace !
Becaufe the facred volume is not kifled, is
it to be thought no oath is taken when God
is called to witnefs the truth of a covenant
entered-
On Adultery. ^^
entered into before the altar? Mark here serm.
the horrible, yet contemptible hypocrify of ^vii.
the human heart ! There are who will con-
lider the forfeiture of a word pafled at a
gaming-table as a reproach to be avoided at
every rifque, and yet mock at the breach of
a promife attended with every circumftance
to mark it as facred. The man who is
guilty of the former, they will (and not
unjuftly fo far) deem a villain, but the
other, who has acfled far more iniquitoufly,
they have — what fhall I fay ? Language
furnifhes not a term fufficiently ftrong to
exprefs the unprincipled abfurdity of this
conducft, they have — the wifdom and the
modefty to call an honeft man.
So then, he who with feigned afFedlion
induces a woman to confide all her hopes of
happinefs in this world in his hands; who
vows before God and the church that he
will keep himfelf only unto her as long as
they both (hall live; yet at one and the fame
time torments her with the keeneft mortifi-
cation by leaving her bed for that of another,
VOL. II, B b and
370 On Adultery,
SERM. and tramples under foot the moft folemn
■^TL^* proteftations, is an honcft man ! And he
who enters the houfe of an iinfufpe<5ting ac-
quaintance, perhaps of an intimate friend,
and feduccs his wife from her conjugal duty
and attachment, is an honell man ! While
thofe who by force plunder us of our money,
or by ftealth carry off our goods, are juftly
reprefented as robbers, thieves, nuifances to
fociety, unfit to live. Yet compare thefe
crimes either by the breach of obligation
they contain, by the fufferings they occa-
lion to individuals, or by the mifchief they
produce in fociety, and ye will find that the
thief (who Hill deferves the fate he meets
with from the executioner's hand) is the
lefs atrocious criminal.
It is true, that he who is guilty of theft
franfgreiies the commandment of his Cre-
atour; but doth the adulterer lefs? or hath
not He who hath faid, ** Thou (halt not
ftcal," faid alfo, ** Thou flialt not commit
adultery?" While he who does the lall"
breaks not an implied only, but an exprefs
Gompa<5t,
On Adultery, 3-71
Compad:, if he fin againft his own partner, serm.
And if it be with his neighbour's wife, he ^vii.
partakes in the fin of her breach of cove-
nant, or perhaps as the tempter, has the
heavier fhare of the guilt. The thief com-
mits no breach of hofpitality, betrays no
confidence, burfls no bonds of friendfhip.
But how often do all thefe aggravating cir-
cumftances accompany the adulterer's crime !
How much more atrocious, therefore, are
the pracSlifers of this in breaking through
the obligations incumbent on them, than
thofe whom the general voice of mankind
condemns as fit objed:s of publick juilice !
And what are the fufTerings occafioned to
individuals by the one tribe of criminals in
comparifon with thofe which are fuffered
from the others ! Afk the hufband with
whofe loved partner the arts of the feducer
have fucceeded, of which he had moil wil-
lingly have been bereft, his property or his
wife? Afk the father whofe daughter being
drawn afide from the path of conjugal fide-
lity is configned to infamy, what pecuniary
E b 2 lofs
372 On Adultery,
SERM. lofs could have pierced his heart with half
^^y"* the pangs he has fuffered from the delufion
of his child? No difgrace attaches, no hard
refled;ions are to be borne by the family
whofe habitation has been robbed. But the
children of the adulterefs will hardly efcape
bitter remembrances of their mother's crime,
even if her example prevail not to miflead
her daughters into the fame condemnation.
Thus are afflictions heaped on all the neareft
conne<5lions of the degraded female, while
fhe herfelf, driven from the circle of reput-
able fociety, is left a prey to Ihame, remorfe,
and folitude.
This indeed it may be faid is not univer-
fally the cafe; vice, on the other hand, it
is to be lamented, fometimes meets with
countenance; but then it is from fuch as the
criminal herfelf is confcious either are guilty
of the fame offence, or have fome fecret
motive for their condu<5t honourable to
neither party. So that by thefe means the
temporal fufferings of the individual alone/
are alleviated, andthofebut partially; while
the
0?i Adultery, 3*73
tlie mifchief occafioned to fociety is increafed serm.
. inflead of diminifhcd; which publick evil xvik
was the lafl point on which I fuggefted a
comparifon between the enormity of thofe
tranfgreflions, the deep criminality of which
no one difputes, and that of adultery.
The abfurd perverfenefs of vice and infi-
delity hath indeed contefted the mifchievous
cfFecfts of theft and robbery on the public
welfare; but I do not recoiled:, that even
the prefumption of thefe enemies of righte-
oufnefs hath endeavoured to fet adultery on
the fame footing. It is too manifeft, that
by this crime the firfl link in the chain of
fociety is broken, and the bond of affection
between hufband and wife being burft, dif-
order is introduced into their families, and
an evil example (which men are at lead as
prone to follow as a good one) afforded to
the neighbourhood: whence if we even fup-
pofe this to be the firfl inftance of fuch a
tranfgreffion, what was before an unheard
of crime becomes no longer fuch ; and the
repetition of it being confequently lefs
B b J dreaded,
374 On Adultery.
SERM. dreaded, an high road is gradually formed
J^y^^ for profligacy, and all the amiable afFedions
of nature are at length fwept away by a
deluge of licentioufnefs. If an illicit com-
merce be carried on without the privity of
the party with whom the matrimonial con-
trad: is broken by it, much falfehood and
treachery muft necelTarily be committed;
but if with fuch privity, there then is formed
a bafenefs of character which will infecft all
the other tranfadlions of fuch depraved
wretches ; and if thefe be numerous, (which
they muft be in every country where adul-
tery is prevalent,) the national chara6ler
itfelf becomes foiled with it; and judicial
inflidtions of the Governour of the univerfe
in courfe follow.
If ye think that this is not a juft ftate-
ment of the fad:, turn over the records of
the world, and difcover, if ye can, a natioq
where this crime hath been common and ycf
unaccompanied with other fymptoms of ge-
neral corruption, or where it hath prevailed
and yet efcaped the vifitations of the divine
judge-
On Adultery. SIS
judgements. In Judah it was prevalent to- serm.
gether with impiety, idolatry, oppreflion, xvii.
robbery, and drunkennefs. In Rome it was
not known till thofe times of depravity
which reduced the miftrefs of the world
herfelf to a ftate of flavery, and in a neigh-
bouring nation, which has of late been
punifhed after fo exemplary a manner, it
exilled but in company with other moil ne-
farious practices, which cryed aloud to
Heaven for vengeance on that polluted
people. And laftly, of our own country
what (hall we fay ? Can we plead, That
though it be indeed defiled with this, it is
not infed:ed with other crimes; that the
profligacy of the nation does not branch
itfelf out into any other particulars ; for
that impiety, drunkennefs, theft, fraud,
lying, perjury, extortion, and treachery,
are not heard of among us ? Or on the
contrary, mufl we not acknowledge, that
the fame corruption of morals ^ the iamc
lofs of all virtuous principle which leads
one part of the difTolute among us to com-
n^it, and with fhamclefs front defend this
B b 4 Crime,
37^ ^n Adultery.
SERM. crime, induces both them and others tq
J^^^J^ pradife without remorfe the reft of the
enormous tranfgreffions for which our land
groaneth under the juft inflictions of the
univerfal Judge ?
And for the other queftion, Whether the
people among whom adultery has become
prevalent have ever efcaped the judgements
of Heaven ? It ought to be again obferved,
that the atheiftical reafonings I noticed in
the beginning of this difcourfe, by which
the evils that befall nations are afcribed to
any thing rather than the indignation of
God at their vices, are obviated (and pur-
pofely fo it (hould feem) by the Lord*s
having chofen a particular people avowedly
to fhew forth his glory j and exprefsly
punifhed them for the very crimes on ac^
count of which we are in the text affured
the wrath of God cometh on the children
of difobedience. Whence there is afforded
unto us ample ground to conclude, or rather
a leffon inftrudting us, that when other na-
tions, guilty of the fame crimes, fuffer
undcT
On Adultery. v^-^
under fimilar afflidions, they are in fad serm,
piinifhed by the fame hand. Give ear then ^^^^*
to the forcible terms in which the Lord dicj
by His prophet menace Jerufalem for the
crime of idolatry and that of adultery,
.** How fhall I pardon you for this ? Thy
children have forfaken me and fworn by
them that are no gods : when I had fed
them to the full they then committed adul-
tery, and affembled themfelves by troops
in the harlot's houfes. Shall I not vifit for
thefe things, faith the Lord, and (hall not
my foul be avenged on fuch a nation as this ?
Go ye up upon her walls and deftroy; take
away her battlements, for they are jiot the
Lord*s.^* Neither is this the only Scripture
in which we find it numbered with the
blackeft crimes, in Leviticus the law faith,
'* And the man that committeth adultery
with another man's wife, even he that com-
mitteth adultery with his neighbour's wife,
the adulterer and the adulterefs Ihall furely
be put to death," and in the prophecy of
Hofea it clofeth a catalogue of offences for
which compleat defolation is threatened,
♦* Hear
3*78 On Adultery.
SERM. " Hear the word of the Lord ye children
XVII. of Ifrael: for the Lord hath a controverfy
with the inhabitants of the land, becaufe
there is'no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge
of God in the land. By f wearing, and
lying, and killing, and ftealing, and com-
mitting adultery, they break out, and blood
toucheth blood. Therefore fhall the land
mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein
fhall languifh with the bealls of the field,
and with the fowls of Heaven. Yea the
iiflies of the fea alfo fhall be taken away."
And now confider, I befeech you, Is the
Lord the God of the Jews only ? Is He not
the God of the Gentiles alfo ? and (hall not
confequently His judgements extend through
all the earth ? For this refled;ion will teach
you whither to refer the afflidions of youf
own country, and not to think that He who
vifited thefe crimes fo feverely on His own
people, would leave them altogether unpu-
nifhed in us. But the rigour of the law,
ibmc of you would here probably reply,
extendeth not to the Gentiles; and perhaps
ye
On Adultery, 3^9
ye would add the pafllige of the Gofpel, fo serm.
perverfely ufed by the fenfuaHft, (who can, xvii.
as well as the tempter, quote Scripture for
his own purpofes,) I mean our blelTed Sa-
viour*s words lo the woman taken in adul-
tery, ** Neither do I condemn thee, go, and
fin no more." But a folitary inftance of
pardon is no repeal of a law; were it fo,
this woman would never have been brought
before our Lord, fince the authority of Da-
vid's cafe would at once have cleared her.
In fa6t, with what (he might have to urge
in extenuation of her guilt, as want of in-
ilrucflion, badnefs of example, the arts of
a feducer, or the confent perhaps (for there
have been fome inftances of fuch nefarious
bafenefs) of a hufband, we are totally un-
acquainted. We know, however, that her
accufers had other views than the mere ex-
ecution of juftice in alking our Lord's de-
cifion ; they fought eitl^r to embroil Him
with the government of the country, fhould
he venture to pronounce a capital fentence,
or to deftroy his credit with the people if
he gave a determination contrary to the words
of
380 On Adultery.
SERM. of Mofes; in both which purpofes they
XVII. were totally difappointed by His making
the cleamefs of their own confciences the
condition of their executing the law, and
for His not proceeding to it Himfelf, though
without fin, His own words referring per-
^Aaps to this occafion, as delivered almoft
immediately after it, yield a fufEcient reafon,
** I judge no man,*' and again in another
difcourfe, ** I came not to judge the world,
but to fave the world." The day indeed is
faft approaching, when together with the
reft of the human race, this woman will
iland before His tribunal to receive, in His
irrevocable fentence, the recompence due to
her works. But His firft coming being to
redeem, and bring to repentance thofe whom
He is hereafter to judge, had He then inter-
fered in the execution of the laws of His
country, except in the fingle inftance of
cleanling His father's houfe from profana-
tion, fliould we not ere this have been afked,
** Where was the dignity of our mafter?'*
But
On Adultery. 381
But to overthrow at once all the vain serm.
xvn,
reafonings founded on this tranfadtion,
What was the determination which our
Lord in fadl delivered but " Neither do
I condemn thee; go, and fin no more ?" A
decifion of which ye may, and of which I
am now calling on you to take the benefit. 1
have not laid, I have, I thank God, no
ground from His word to fay, That if we
iincerely repent of our mifdoings and amend
our conduift, the judgements under which
we iuffer will not be withdrawn ; but the
do(ftrine I would imprefs on your hearts, is,
that they are inflided for the tranfgrclTions
which continue to be pradifed among us ;
and if thefe be not broken off by repentance,
the vilitations of the divine juflice will gra-
dually encreafe, and end only in our deRruc-
tion. Great as our prefent fufferings are,
they are only corrections which are given hi
mercy, and by forming a completion of thofe
words of revelation in which the fins pre-
valent among us are threatened with chal-
tifement here, become a pledge, too, that
thofe menaces will likewife be fulfilled,
5 which
382 On Aduitery,
SERM. which alTure us, that the fame crimes, if
XVII. not timely repented of, will meet with ever-
lading vengeance hereafter. Thus, then,
is the Chriftian provided with a complete
anfwer to all the vain words by which the
foolifh or the profligate would perfuade him,
he may indulge his evil affed:ions and yet
efcape puniftiment. The wrath of God,
he may fay, we fee frorh the moft manifeft
fad:s, does, as it is denounced it fhould*
overtake the children of difobedience in this
world ; have we not, therefore, the befl
pledge, the firmeft aflurance, that the me-
naces which the fame teachers have uttered
in His name, as to the next ftate, will
likewife be fulfilled? ** Go to, now, may
he proceed, ye adulterers and ye adul-
tereifes, be not deceived with the counte-
nance ye receive from the world ! Know ye
not tliat the friendfliip of the world is en-
mity with God ? Submit yourfelves there-
fore unto Him. Refift the devil and he will
flee from you. Draw nigh to God and He
will draw nigh to you. Cleanfe your hands,
yc finners, and purify your hearts ye double-
2 minded
On Adultery. 383
minded. Be affli(fted, and moum, and serm.
weep : let your laughter be turned to mourn- ^viir.
ing, and your joy to heavinefs. Humble
yourfelves in the fight of the Lord, and He
(hall lift you up.*' For your fins, arc
they that have feparated between Him and
you, and for want of repentance alone, doth
His wrath reft upon the children of difo-
bedience |
SER-
SERMON XVIII.
ON SEDUCTION,
St. Matt, xviii. 6.
But whofo Jkall offend one of thefe little o?ies
which believe in me^ it were better for hitn
that a mill-jiojie were hanged about his
necky and he were drow?ied in the depth of
the fea.
T^HE fignification in which the term serm,
offend is here employed being feme- xviii.
what different from the common ufe of it,
it is proper to flate, that its meaning in
thefe words of our bleffed Saviour is, to
caufe to fn^ as in the eighth verfe of the
fame chapter, where He fays, *' If thy
hand or thy foot offend thee cut them off,
and caff them from thee;'* fo that in the
VOL. II. c c paffage
3^6 On SeduBion,
^ERM. pafTage at prefent before us, \\. is declared,
,^^^^^ ^hat whofoever fhall terrify or feduce one of
the difciples of Chrift from obedience to His
commandments, or make him deny the
faith, (hall fuffer under a fentence worfe
than that of death. Neither is it difficult
to difcern fufficient jreafons for the feverity
of the penalty here menaced ; the lofs. in-
curred by thofe who deny the faith, or keep
not the words of the Lord, is not limited to
this life, but includes in it everlafting ba-
nilhment from the prefence of God, to the
place of torment appointed for the devil and
his angels. What then do they in juftice
deferve, who, to gratify their own paffions,
bring a fellow-creature under fuch condem-
nation ? Unlefs we prefume, (which wt
cannot do without denying His adorable
perfection,) that the Lord looks with un-
concern on the fate of His moral creatures,
we muft fuppofe, that He will require
every ruined foul at the hands of him who
brought it to deflru(ftion : but this fuppofi-
tion is advanced into a certainty, by the con-
fideration of the very great intereft He hath
3. Ihewn
• On Sedu^ion. 3 87
lliewn He takes in human falvation, by serm.
the ineftimable price paid for the redemption xviii.
of mankind: and the hcinoufnefs of the
crime of caufing one of thefe little ones to
offend can never be duly eftimated, iinlefs
■Vve take into the accompt, that it is dellruc-
tion of him for whom Chrift died.
Various are the means by which this fear-
ful degree of gnilt is contracfted ; but it is
with the defign of fpcaking to one only of
the moft atrocious of them, that of female
fedudlion, that I have fele6led the ^\•ords
read to you for the text. This offence which
no language can duly paint in all its Iior-
rours, is unhappily one of thofe to which
the legiflature ot our country has paid a very
inadequate attention ; leaving fome of the
moft defcncelefs of its fubjedls an unvindi-
cated prey to the luftful barbarity of the
mofl reprobate portion of our fpecies ; and
the fum of the miferies confequently heaped
on the numerous victims of thefe deteftable
wretches exceeds all calculation, and defies
all human retaliation.
c c :2 To
XVIII.
3^S On SeduBion^
SERM. To heighten the enormity of this nefari-
ous pradice, there is fcarcely a circumftance
of bafenefs that is thought to encreafe the
guilt of any other fpecies of wickednefs
with which it is not attended. In the firft
place it is neceffarily accompanied in its
courfe with the vileft falfhood, and the
grofleft hypocrify. Under the femblance
of one of the tenderefl: attachments of which
the human breafl is capable, under pretence
of the warmeft love is the affecftion of the
intended victim fought ; and in many cafes
through a conliderable fpace of time is every
appearance of the fincerelf regard, which the
moft marked attention and repeated and fo^
lemn proteftations can afford, preferved.
And againft whom is it that the vile difl'em-
bler thus exerts his art ? Who is it that he
thus befets with a fixed "purpofe of ruining
her, concealed by alfeverations of the moil
unfhaken conftancy ? An unfufpe(f ting in-
nocent, who, from the fair purpofes and
honefl feelings of her own heart, judges
favourably of his ; who, unacquainted with
the deceptions of mankind, and unpradifed
in
On SediSiofU 389
in difguifing her fentiments, pours into the serm.
bofom that (he imagines faithful, confeffions xviii.
of her love for the villain, who, with the
unrelenting cruelty of Satan, is coolly plan-
ning means to humble and defert her.
To attack the unprepared and unfiifpe(5t-
ing is deemed cowardly, and to betray a
friend is juftly accounted treacherous j but
both the cowardice and treachery exifting in
thefe cafes are heavily aggravated in that
before us, by firft making every effort to
obtain the confidence of an harmlefs and
unfufpicious female, and when her attach-
ment is fo fecured, that (he is ready to for fake
father and mother, brother and fifter, nay,
to follow her feducer wherever his fate (hall
carry him, and dare with him to encounter
all the hardlhips of the world, and flruggle
with all the difficulties of poverty, when
having renounced all others flie looks to him
as her only protecftor, her moft affe6lionate
friend, then impofing on her credulity and
her love, to degrade her from the rank to
which chaflity and purity entitled her, to
c c 3 that
39^ Ofi Scduclion.
SERM. that of an outcafl from fociety, a proftitutc
XVIII. £q^ \\\x(^^ is a tranfaiftion fo bafcly perfidious,
fo atrocioufly ungrateful, and manifefts the
obdurate cruelty of an heart fo hardened by
vice, that thofe guilty of it, although in
their own eftimation often men of liberal
mind, above any thing diflioneft or unfair,
do in truth ad: the part of fome of the
moft contemptible and hateful wretches with
which the earth is burthened.
There have been inflances of the fecuders'
murthering the women they betrayed, to
prevent either the burthen or the (hame that
threatened them ; and I fliould conceive, that
there are very few who could coolly refled:
on the fcene of a young female's fupplicating
f6r mercy from him againft whom her only
offences are having loved him undefervedly,
and trufted him too far, while he, recrard-
Icfs of her endearing pleas, and the earneft
entreaties flie utters in all the ano-uifli of
her loul, flands ready to defliroy the life
that was devoted to himfelf, without being
affec1:ed with companion for the poor fuf-
fering
On Sedn6lion, 391
fering objed:, and with indignation at the serm.
diabolical cruelty of her murtherer. Yet ^^^^^*
how docs this cruelty furpafs that of thofe
who confign the helplefs creature they have
deluded to the adual wretchednefs, and
confequent mifery, of a life of proftitution ?
Hitherto, perhaps, under the foftering hand
of a tender parent, fhe has known little but
indulgence, been kept at a diflance from
difficulties, preferved a ftranger to want;
taught to look forward to a life of eafe and
domeftick comfort, and encouraged in this
profpecft by the fuggeftions of the very
wretch who finally deprived her of it : and
now on a fudden, her feducer's luftful views
accompliflied, he drops the mafk, and lets
her know, that fhe has forfeited the favour
of her parents, left her father's houfc and
withdrawn herfelf from every friend, to
glut the inordinate defires of one, who,
worfe than the beafts that perifh, foon
cloyed with enjoyment, becomes an enemy
to his mate, and compels her to feek a fup-
port by means not lefs criminal than difguil*
ing. Immediately, to all the plealing
c c 4 profpe6ts
392 On SeduBion.
IfeRM. profpedls (he had fo vainly formed, fucceed^
XVIII. tJ^e woeful fcene of a precarious fubiiftence
among the mofl: profligate of mankind, ex-
pofed to the fcorn of the fober, and the
brutal infults of the debauched. If finking
under thefe afflidtions (he quickly find an
early grave, has not her feducer been her
murthcrer alfo, and made, too, her death
more miferable by torments ?
But, if when thus thrown into the haunts
of vice in fcarch of bread, fhe yield to the
torrent of depravity, and becoming deaf tq
the rebukes of confcience, infenfible to the
flings of remorfe, freely joins in the enor-
mities of her companions, in all the guilt
in which (he thus plunges, who caufes her
to offend ? For the miferies of her encreaf-^
ing degradation, when fhe finks from the
fafhionable courtezan to the common ftreet-
walker, and at laft, fubdued by poverty
and difeafe, perifhes in a garret or a cellar,
whom has fhe to thank but her feducer ?
That I do not too ftrongly paint the calami-
ties to which thefe poor deluded creatures
are
On Sedu^ion. 3(j^
are expofed, the ftreets and almoft every serm.
place of publick refort bear witnefs. And xvjii.
yet thefe are but the beginning of forrows;
for what mufl: be the feelings of a foul
laden with the guilt of innumerable impuri-
ties, perhaps of blafphemics, accuftomed
only to fcenes of vice, and incapable of
aught but fenfual enjoyments, on finding
itfelf feparated from the body? Convinced
now by experience of the reality of another
ftate, with what horrour muft it look for-
ward to all the confequences which it was
when in the body warned, await the finner
in that flate ! Thefe, indeed, are agonies of
which we cannot form an adequate concep-
tion, yet they can hardly be equal to thofe
which muft fucceed them when fummoned
to judgement, and having all its dread fore-
bodings realized in a fentcnce of condem-
nation, the condemned fpirit is driven from
the prefence of the Lord to dwell for ever
in thofe regions of torment which (hall re-
found with weeping and gnafliing of teeth.
And what (hall the wretch who was the firft
caufe of a being that was capable of hap- '
pincfs
394 ^'^ SeduBion,
5ERM. pinefs as great as the mifery to which it
XVIII. is thus configned, falHng into the laft, ex-
pe(^ as his reward?
That fuch will hereafter meet with the
recompence they deferve we know, but is
our knowledge of this a reafon why we
fhould not exert ourfelves to prevent their
ravages among the young and innocent ? Is
it a reafon why we fhould not difcountenanc€
men of fuch charaders ? Yet are they com-
monly received without any mark of difap-
probation; nay, fomctimes treated even with
partiality by individuals of that fex to which
their pradtices ought to be objed;s of horrour
and deteilation. And is not this giving en-
couragement to tranfgreflion ? Or will thofe
who do it be cleared from the charge of
partaking in other men's fins by the iniquit-
ous plea, that it was only a maid-fervant or
a woman of low degree that the feducer
ruined ? Are then the fouls of the poor lefs
precious in the fight of our common Creatour
than thofe of the rich and the great ? Did
not Chrift die for all ? Or have not the poor
the Gofpel preached unto them ? Be fhe then
the
On Sedation . 30^
the meaneft of womankind that has been serm.
feduced from the paths of innocence, al- xviii.
though in defcribing the confequent tem-
poral fufFerings of her conned: ions, or even
of herfelf, fome circumftances muft in truth
be omitted that fliould be noticed in the
cafe of one of higher degree and better edu-
cation, yet as to that point in comparifon
with which all the reft are as nothing,
her lofs and her feducer's guilt, and confe-
quently that of all who make themfelves
any way acceffary to it, are as great as they
could be if (he "yvere the daughter of a mo-
narch.
But this particular of being acceflary to
a crime fo nefarious, and replete with con-
fequences fo miferable, deferves more accu-
rate coniideration. To one ignorant of the
exceeding degree of wickednefs praclifed ia
the world, it would appear incredible, that
there fliould be women fo hardened in ini4 ^
quity, fo paft all fenfe of fhame, fo com-
pletely given over to a reprobate mind, as
to affifl in feducing one of their own fex
from
^^6 On SeiiiBion.
SERM. from the paths of virtue, and help a man
XVIII. -y^ forwarding the purpofes of his kifl: yet
are there no means fo atrocious ufed for de-
filing the pure, and debafing the innocent,
but that wretches of this defcription, who
have not even the impulfe of appetite to
plead in mitigation of their crime, but are
inftigated only by avarice, or the diabolical
wifli of degrading others from that rank
among God's moral creatures which they
have loft theirfelves, have not afTifted,
Befides that portion of them, which, to
the difgrace of our country, are permitted
to gain a fubfiftence little lefs than profefTedly
by this horrid employment, in various fhapes
do thefe engines of Satan crawl on the earth;
fometimes they appear as nurfcs, and fome-
times even as teachers j often as domcfticks,
and oftener than all, perhaps, as occafional
afliftants in the work of an houfe. By thefe
are the cars of the young, and yet innocent,
affailed, and their minds tainted with lafci-
vious difcourfe; by thefe are their imagi-
nations heated with defcriptions of pleafure
to
On SediiLlion, 397
to be found in the paths of revehy and vice; serm.
by thefe are mefTages carried from the fe- xviii.
ducer to his intended vicflim; by thefe are
interviews brought about, and tlie means of
efcape, if necelTary, from the houfe of a
parent, or that of a miftrefs, contrived. If
then we be furrounded in hfe by thofe who
are fo delperately wicked, is it not moft
highly incumbent on parents and heads of
famihes to watch with unremitting vigilance
over all under their care? Or if through
want of fuch attention the unexperienced
and unwary are deluded to their deftrucflion,
can they fland quite clear of having con-
tributed to their ruin, or cauiing them,
through want of warning or inftrucflion, to
offend ?
Thefe, indeed, are queftions which de-
mand the mod ferious confideration of the
charaders to whom they are addrelTcd.
Cruel is the behaviour of thofe parents,
who, feeking their own eafe or pleafure,
leave their children at the moft critical time
of life, when they are moft eaiily deter-
mined
598 On Sediidiion.
SERM. mined to feek pleafure or the rewards of
XVIII, virtue, to the care and converfation of do-
mefticks, or others of low education, from
whom they can gain little defirable inflruc-
tion, but may, from various poffible mo-
tives, be milled into iituations not only at^
tended with danger or ruin in this world,
but ending in everlafting mifery in the next.
Moft unreafonable and abfurd is furely the
condudl of thofe, who, introducing their
children to the walks of diffipation, or per-
mitting them to wafte their hours in reading
books which have a tendency to little elfe
than weakening the mJnd and inflaming the
the paffions, blame others only, when the
principles they theirfelves have inflilled,
begin to operate, and their daughters embark
in thofe courfes of which they (hewed them
the favourable lide. And impioufly do thofe
parents ad:, who, negleding their moft im-
portant duty of pointing out to their chil-
dren the path to life and immortality, leave
them unprovided with the maxims of truth,
and the precepts of religion, to an unequal
ib-uggle
On SeduBion. 599
ilruggle with the world, the flefli and the serm.
devil. XVIII.
As to thofe who fland in the relation of
miftrefTcs only to any of their own fex, fuch
need hardly be told, that all under their roof
have a claim to their care, their counfel, and
protediion ; through the withholding of
which fhould they be loft, the miftrefles
cannot remain blamelefs : while the good of
which they may be the inftruments, by
teaching their fervants the true principles of
a(ftion, and forming in them habits of fober
induftry, neatnefs, and oeconomy, is fo ex-
tenlive, as muft make every good man who
refledis on it, eameflly lament that change
in the manners of our country which has
drawn the wives of thofe of rank and pro-
perty among us from the care of their fa-
milies, to plunge them into fcenes of li-
centioufnefs and riot : whence the cottages
unfupplied with houfewives inftru6led in the
domeftick duties, exhibit a fcene as unlike
thofe of their ancefbrs as difgraceful to the
land,
400 On Sedu^iofU
SERM. land, and as ruinous to fociety as the palaces
XVIII. q£ tSx^ii fuperiours.
While, however, we both juftly and cha^
ritably warn the feveral charadters aheady
mentioned of their portion of guilt in this
heavily menaced crime of making a difciple
of Chrift to offend, it is not to be denied,
neither ought it to be palled by unnoticed,
that the vid;ims theirfelves, though feldom
without great fault, are fometimcs ftill more
particularly to blame. True it is, that the
ingenuous dilpolition, and eafy pliant temper
of youth, are by no mean an equal match
for the craft of age ; nor the inexperience
of thofe unacquainted with the world, for
the fair ihows and deceitful allurements
holden forth by thofe who are pradifed in
its arts; efpecially when the feducer poffeffes
the advantage of frequent and unfufpefted
accefs to the object of his purfuit, under
the covert of any relation, a fliocking ag-
gravation of a crime fufficiently heinous
even in a ftranger, yet not unheard of among
men.
On Sedu&io?i. 46 1
men. But when thofe, among wliofe serm*
XVIII.
greateft ornaments are to be reckoned timi- xviii.
dity and a referved behaviour, eagerly feek
promifcuous admiration, and ftrive to attradt
general attention, when their wanton looks and
forward carriag^e encourao^e the debauched to
■hope for an ealy prey, however the folly of
a vitiated l^e may term the confidence of an
harlot the eafe of a well-bred woman, the
ruined female contributes to her own de-
ftrudionj and is in truth a corrupter herfelf
before (he becomes corrupted. Thefe truths
fhould be deeply imprelTed on thofe of every
rank, fince fhe who throws herfelf into
temptation, has, if (he fall, nothing to plead
in extenuation of her crime; as fhe loved
danger fhe can have no right to complain
if fhe perifh in it; nor can a woman who
wilfully commits a fin threatened with ever-
lafling damnation, have caufe to murmur if
for it fhe be banifhed for -ever from the king-
dom of Heaven. '
But the greater the mifery thus awaiting
the guilty, the more earnefl is the call on
VOL. II- D d all
402 On SeduBion.
SERM. all not to be partakers in their fins, by contri-
^''^^^' buting in any meafiire to them. Yet from
this how can they be dear who take from
the horrour and leflen the difgrace of fuch
offences in the eyes of the young, by coun-
tenancing old offenders; who diftinguifh
trefpaifes not by their intrinlick heinoufnefs^
but by the fuccefs of the guilty; ♦nd from
whofe eyes the profperity of an abandoned
woman is permitted to conceal the enormity
of her tranfgreflions ? The Lord, we kncTw/,
would not that any fhould perifli, but that
all fhould come to eternal life; and wonder-
ful are the means He hath employed to
bring them thereto. In what light then are
thofe of His creatures to be viewed, who
counteract this gracibus purpofe? Confider,
if while God call outwardly by the m'iniflry
of His word, and inwardly by the admo-
nitions of His Spirit, to a Mq of fuch holi-
nefs and purity as may render us meet to be
partakers of the glory ready to be revealed,
what are they doing v/ho induce others to
defile themfelves, but oppofing the difpen-
fations of His mercy, and a^ing as the
enemies
4
On SeduSlion, 403
enemies of righteoufnefs ? And when men serm.
and aoffels are convened before the throne xviii.
of their Creatour, that his ways may be
juftified, by afligning to every one a recom-
pence according to his works, can there,
think ye, proceed againft fuch a fentence
lefs heavy than one that will make it better
for them that a mill-flone were handed
o
about their necks, and they were drowned
in the depth of the fea?
END OF VOL. II.
Date Due
i