good men mix their errors in reproof and reprehenfion, and in one and the other, they difcern it not? 2. Surprife and inadvertency is another thing that renders fin venial. The multitude of affairs and temptations, the fuddennefs and unexpectedness of fome unufual temptation, or fomething of this kind, may betray a good man into fome flips or errors, in word or deed. This I take to be the cafe of Sarah, when fhe faid, I laughed not: of Jonah, when he replied upon God, I do well to be angry, Jon. iii. Of David, when he pronounced rafhly, do thou and Zibah divide the land, 2 Sam. xvi. 4. Of Saul and Barnabas, when they broke out into heat and anger. But that which was a fin of infirmity in the beginning, became, I doubt, a deliberate one in the end, when they parted from one another. Some extend this circumftance of furprize to excufe fins, which imply notorious wickedness, and are of very ill confequence; but, I think, very erroneoufly. 'Tis true, thefe fins of furprize, whatever the matter of them be, are generally conceived to be much extenuated through want of opportunity to fummon our strength, and to make use of mature and fober deliberation; especially where the temptation is not only fudden but violent too. For in this cafe, the fol dier dier of Chrift, taken, as it were, in an ambush, or blown up with a mine, feems to be loft and defeated before he difcerns his danger: I do not doubt then, but this fuddenness of a temptation does very much diminish the guilt of a fin. But we ought to remember too, that there are many things that do abate and take off from this excufe: as first, it is not easy to conceive how any thing, that is a direct wickedness, that is a fin of a deeper dye than ordinary, on the account of its mifchievous confequences, fhould make its approach fo filently, and fo fuddenly, that we fhould fall into it indifcernibly. Secondly, The Christian is bound to fhun not only every evil, but every appearance of it; and 'tis hard to imagine, that a fincere man, who does indeed ftrain at a gnat, fhould fwallow a camel. He that preferves the tenderness of confcience, as he will have an averfion for fmall fins; fo will he have an borror for great ones. Thirdly, The mind of a Chriftian ought to be poffeffed and awed by the fear of God; and that not a flight and tranfient, but a deep and lafting one. The Pfalmift was not content to fay, I am afraid of thy judgments; but, to exprefs how thoroughly this fear had feized him, he adds, my flesh trembleth for fear of thee, Ffal. cxix. And certainly, this fear is a fort of impenetra ble ble armour, which extinguishes all the fiery darts of the devil. In vain is the fuddenness, or the briskness of a temptation, unless we firft lay afide this fhield. Fourthly, We are bound to be always on our watch and guard; and therefore, if we relax our discipline, if we live fecure and careless, if we rafhly caft our felves upon dangers, our fin then will be but the confequence of our folly; and therefore one error cannot be an excufe, or an apology, for another. I think therefore, the apology of furprize fhould be confined and limited to flight offences; it cannot properly have room in great ones, or if it have, it may be urged in mitigation of our punishment; but never, I doubt, for total impunity. 3. Laftly, Venial fin has its rife from the defects and imperfections of our nature, and the disadvantagious circumftances of our state. Here come in the failures and defects in the measures and degrees of duty; if thefe can be properly reckoned for fins: I fay, if they can; for I do not fee that this is a good argument : we are bound to the highest degree of love by that law. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart; therefore whatsoever falls fhort of the highest and most abfolute degree of love, is a fin: for at this rate, whatever were short of Per Perfection, would be fin. We must love, nothing better than God, nothing equal to him this will conftitute us in a ftate of fincerity. What is farther required is, that we are bound to aim at, and pursue after the highest and most perfect degrees of love; but we are not bound under pain of damnation to attain them. But on the other hand, I readily grant, that our falling short in the degrees of faith, love, hope, and the like, may be properly reckoned amongst fins, when they fpring from the defects of vigilance and induftry: and if these defects be fuch as can confift with fincerity, then are the imperfections or the abatements of our virtues, pardonable; and then only. Here again fall in omiffions, wandring thoughts, dulnefs and heaviness in duty, the fhort titillations of fome irregular fancies, forgetfulnefs, flight and short fits of envy, difcontent, anger, ambition, gaiety of mind. Thus we find the difciples falling afleep when they fhould have prayed, Mat. xxvi. and David praying quicken thou me, Pfal. cxix. Thus his foul too was often caft down, and difquieted within him, Pfal. xlii. 2 Chron. xxx. 18, 19. Job curfed the day of his birth. In fhort, our natures are human, not angelical; and our ftate is fo full of variety of accidents, that they are too apt to discompose the mind, and divert it from its great end. The ebbs and flows of blood and fpirits, and an unlucky conftitution, or a diftemper; the multitude or confusion of affairs; the violence or the length of trials; the ease and flattery of profperity; the weariness of the body, or of the mind the incommodioufnefs of fortune, roughnefs of converfation; these, and a thousand other things, are apt to produce defects. and failures in our obedience, short disorders in our affections; and fuch emotions and eruptions as abundantly prove the best to be but men; and the highest Perfection, if it be but human, to be wanting and defective. I think I have now omitted nothing neceflary to form a true notion of the fin of infirmity. My next business there fore is, to confider, §. 3. How far the liberty of the perfect man, in respect of venial fin, ought to be extended. There is great affinity between venial and original fin; and therefore the perfect man's liberty, as it relates to the one and the other, confifts in much the fame degrees, and is to be attained by the fame method; fo that I might well enough difmifs this fubject, and pass on to mortal fin. But reflecting on the nature of man, how prone we are to fin, and yet how apt we are to think well of our felves, I judge it neceffary to guard the doctrine of venial fin by fome few rules, which may at once ferve |