shame and sorrow for them, and with vigorous resolutions against them: to " pour out our hearts in prayer, to labour fervently in it," as the expression is, Col. iv. 12. with the fervent or inworking prayer of a righteous man; this is to be zealous in religion. To desire the sincere milk of the word, that we may grow thereby; to come to all the means of grace with an aim to receive advantage by them, with a concern to exercise every proper holy affection in them, and to obtain the acceptance of them: this is true fervour in devotion.

We are also to be "zealous of good works," Tit. ii. 14. Every thing that is praise-worthy and commendable, all that may contribute to the honour of God, or the good of mankind., To be zealous of them, is to be very forward to engage in them, cheerful in performing them, solicitous to do our utmost in them, that they may be more for quantity, and better for quality, than hitherto; this is to do "whatever our hand finds to do, with our might," Eccl. ix. 10.; to "do it heartily," Col. iii. 23.; to "abound in every good work," 1 Cor. xv. 58.; to be "rich in good works," 1 Tim. vi. 18.; which are so many expressions describing holy zeal.

Zeal is to be shewn in endeavouring to outstrip others in every grace and virtue. This is a noble emulation. We find the word zeal once translated emulations in a criminal sense, and ranked among "the works of the flesh," Gal. v. 20. v By emulation or zeal there, the apostle seems to mean envying our neighbour, either for his greater share of wordly enjoyments or of useful gifts. Envy is always bad; and the word zeal is often so translated in the New Testament, Rom. xiii. 13. "Let us walk-not in strife and envying," or zeal. 1 Cor. ii. 3. "Whereas there is among you zeal, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal ?" And we are told, 1 Cor. xii. Charity envieth not ;" in the Greek, "is not zealous.” We are neither to envy the wealth, nor reputation, nor gifts, nor graces of others. But it is a laudable zeal to aspire to the highest attainments in goodness, and to be excited to the greater ardour by all that we see excellent in them; that we may become such examples ourselves, that our zeal may provoke very many; as the apostle tells the Corinthians that their zeal in acts of charity did, 2 Cor. ix. 2.

4. "

Thus our zeal should be first employed about ourselves; here we should be warmest, in concern and endeavour, that

we ourselves may daily become wiser and better, that we may pull out every beam or mote out of our own eyes. And if people were thus in earnest zealous at home, a great deal of irregular zeal to others would be prevented. But then,

5. Christian zeal is not to be confined at home, to our own personal goodness; but has still a wider scope. If it be employed abroad, while our own vineyard is not kept, it is a false pretence, and justly offensive to God and man. But the due exercise of it for our own conduct being presupposed, there is a large field for its exercise still behind.

We find many instances of zeal in relation to other men recommended in scripture. Phinehas is praised, that he was zealous for his God, and shewed it by executing judgment upon an Israelite and a Moabitish woman for notorious debauch

ery, Numb. xxv. 7, 8-11, 12. So St Paul's "spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city of Athens wholly given to idolatry," Acts xvii. 16. We are commanded "to contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the saints," when it is opposed by men of corrupt minds, Jude 3. Error and sin, wherever we see them, call for the exercise of our zeal agaist them. Christ gives it as a singular commendation of the church of Ephesus, that they "could not bear them that were evil," Rev. ii. 2.

It may be proper to shew more particularly the due regulations and expressions of our zeal upon account of what we may see amiss in others. And,

1. What would be irregular in the exercise of our zeal?

(1.) While we express Christian zeal, we should take heed of uncharitableness; that we pass not rash or too severe censures upon men's characters, even when we cannot but judge some of their opinions erroneous, or some of their actions faulty. There has been a great deal of this false fire in the Christian world: Christians have often been hereticating and anathematising one another for matters of doubtful disputation, or mere human decisions, as if all religion lay at stake; when the mistake on either hand may consist with their being good Christians. Or, if a man has been guilty of an irregular action, it is too common to condemn him hastily for a bad man, and overlook all that is commendable in him, upon that account, when this is but a single and occasional act, and contrary to

his habitual character. On the other hand, while we heartily condemn sin and error according to the best of our light, we must not take upon us to cast men out of the Christian pale, where we have not good warrant from the word of God to exclude them.

(2.) In our zeal against what is amiss in others, we should be careful" that we become not transgressors ourselves." ▾ So we shall be, if we suffer ourselves to be transported into passion, and join not meekness with our zeal. When the people of Israel sinfully murmured against God and Moses, for want of water in the wilderness, Moses was too far transported with anger, and spake unadvisedly with his lips: "Hear now," says he, "ye rebels, must we fetch you water out of this rock?" Numb. xx. 10. For this, as a mark of displeasure, God denied Moses an entrance into Canaan; And we shall be much more transgressors, if our zeal against men's supposed or real errors, or sins, degenerate into hatred and ill-will to their persons. We are 66 not

ver. 12.

to hate them," though "we are not to suffer sin to lie upon them," Lev. xix. 17. This is that bitter zeal spoken of by St James, chap. iii. 14. of which he says, ver. 15. that it "descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish."

(3.) We should not in our zeal use any methods to advance even God's truth and interest, or to suppress errors and disorders, "for which our Master gives us no warrant. Zeal for truth will not justify the use of the civil sword to punish men for a mistaken conscience; when this is not the way to enlighten men's minds, or change their judgments; when Christ and his apostles have intimated no other method for propagating the truth, but fair reasoning and argument; when Christ discountenances even such a zeal, as calls for fire from heaven against his worst enemies, Luke ix. 54, 55. Certainly imprisonments and banishments, fire and faggot, are none of his ways to suppress error.

(1.) Regular zeal will not lead men to bear testimony against the sins of men in any way which is not warrantable in their stations. How fit and necessary soever it is that open vice should receive punishment, as the bane of society, yet it would be an irregular zeal in private persons to take the magistrate's work out of his hand, and pretend to do this

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themselves. If any should imagine themselves countenanced in such zeal by the case of Phinehas, when he executed judg ment upon Zimri and Cozbi, a little consideration will shew them the vanity of such a plea. Phinehas himself was a ruler or judge as we are told, 1 Chron. ix. 20. And an order had been delivered for such an execution by Moses, the chief magistrate, Numb. xxv. 5. "Moses said to the judges of Israel, Slay ye every one his man." The crime was capital law, the fact was notorious, and Phinehas had a commission from Moses to inflict the legal punishment. Nothing, therefore, can give less countenance to wild and extravagant zeal in private persons, than this instance, wherein a magistrate was performing the duty of his place, and his proceedings were regular and orderly: but that which made his zeal so commendable, was, that he ventured to execute this judgment in the face of the whole congregation of Israel, when the infection was become general, and the number of offenders made it dangerous to do justice.

(5.) Right zeal should not burn with equal fervour in all cases. Public and open offenders are much more intolerable, than those who keep within the bounds of privacy: such as declare their sins as Sodom, and have been long accustomed to do evil, more than young offenders, who are drawn in by others, and are still willing to hearken to better counsel, Jude 22, 23. "Of some have compassion, making a difference and others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire." A partial respect of persons, is unworthy of holy zeal; but a prudent distinction of persons, according to the degrees of guilt and obstinacy, is very well consistent with it.

2. I would shew what zeal for God in reference to other people's conduct becomes a Christian.

(1.) We should be affected with proportionable concern at what we judge amiss in others. Zeal will not allow us to say, Am I my brother's keeper ?" as long as we apprehend any thing in him that greatly dishonours God, or endangers his own soul; but will awaken concern and sorrow upon such an occasion. Such was the temper of the psalmist, Psal. cxix, 136. "Rivers of water run down mine eyes, because men keep not thy law." Ver. 158. "I beheld the transgressors, and was grieved." And of Lot, who was "vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked," 2 Peter ii. 8. And of

Paul, when his spirit was stirred at the sight of the Athenian idolatry.

(2.) We should express our dislike and disapprobation, when the evils of others come in our way. Zeal will induce to reprove sin, where we can have no hope to reclaim the sinner, or to stop the progress of sin, or to prevent the infection of others thereby; or if we have reason to apprehend, that silence will be interpreted for connivance and approbation: "Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but reprove them rather," Eph. v. 11. Indeed, if we should be east among known and impudent scorners, possibly silence itself may be one of the best ways of reproving them.

(3.) We should cheerfully and vigorously use the best means in our power for the good of others. Zeal for God, and for the welfare of others, will inspire every man in his private capacity to endeavour to prevent the infection of those under his care and charge, or to recover them, if possible, by faithful instruction and admonition. It will engage ministers to fervour in their preaching, and diligence in their stations to convert sinners, to convince gainsayers, to defend the truth, to recover the fallen, and to stir up all to love and to good works. It will spirit magistrates to put the laws of their country in execution against notorious transgressors: "Knowing this, that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawless and the disobedient," 1 Tim. i. 9, 10. It was not enough in Eli, as a parent, to admonish his sons of their notorious crimes though they were now grown up, yet he was a magistrate, and in that capacity should have punished them, as well as others, for their enormous crimes. God so highly resented his neglect herein, that he calls it despising him, and brought vengeance on him and his house for it. The same principle of zeal should dispose private persons to assist the magistrate in endeavours for reformation of manners, by bringing open offenders within his cognizance; without which his hand cannot reach them, and law must be an useless thing. Both a partner with a thief, and he that heareth cursing and betrayeth it not, wrong their own souls, Prov. xxix. 24.

(4.) We should not choose to make ill companions, farther than necessity requires. and indeed for the safety of our own souls,

men our chosen Zeal against sin, will carry us not