rather to win Esteem by Modesty and Good Works, than to lay claim to it, by an anxious and unfeemly publishing of its own Qualifications and Deferts: Highly contented to become an Inftrument of God's Glory, and the Good of Men, even in the meaneft Capacity; and accounting it no Shame, to have Others thought better than One's felf.

Which leads me to a Third, and that the highest Inftance of the Baptift's Humility, exprefs'd in those Words, I baptize with Water, but there ftandVer. 26, 27. eth one among you, whom ye know not; He it is, who coming after me, is preferred before me, whofe fhoes latchet I am not worthy to unloofe. Emulation and Envy are infeparable Attendants upon Pride; And They who can be content with Equals, often find it hard to acknowledge, and harder yet to rejoice in, the Excellencies of Others, fuperior to their own. But here we find the Baptift, upon all Occafions, not only depreffing his own Worth, but induftriously extolling and declaring a mighty Satisfaction in, those more liberal Communications of the Holy Spirit to Jefus, which gave him incomparably the Preference above himself. And this is a noble pitch of Humility; when we, after his Example, can fee, and be just to, and fincerely congratulate, the Merits and distinguishing Abilities of our Brethren, without thinking our own at all difparaged, or taking lefs Comfort in them, by their being more Happy, and in more Efteem, than our felves. This is therefore described, as one of the Characters of Charity, that it does not only not vaunt it self, 1 Cor. xiii. 4 but not envy others. The eminent Perfon now before us hath left us a Pattern of Virtue, confpicuous in no one Inftance more, because perhaps in none more feldom imitated, than in those frank Confeffions to his own Disciples, who most unlike their Master in this Point, could fo ill brook a Rival of his Honour: He must increafe, but I must decrease. He that hath the

John iii. 29, 30,

31.

Bride, is the Bridegroom, but the Friend of the Bridegroom which standeth and heareth bim, rejoiceth greatly because of the Bridegroom's Voice. This my Foy therefore is fulfilled. He that cometh from above, is above all. And again, To fhew the Vaftnefs of the Distance, and how Impious it was, even to admit of any Comparison between them, (in the Words now under Confideration,) He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whofe fhoes latchet I am not worthy to unloofe. And this was a Qualification, very neceffary to be infifted upon. For, till we have fubdued this Spirit of Emulation, and brought our Minds to be content with being excelled by others, to be thankful for God's making them greater Inftruments of his Glory, and to do Right to their Abilities for this Purpose, to rejoice in the Honour They acquire, by them, and not to think Our Worth eclipfed by Their brighter Luftre; We do but flatter our felves with a diffembled Pride, and are not yet come up to that Pitch of true Humility, of which this Day's Gospel propofes the Baptift for our Pattern.

2. Secondly, Thefe Words of St. John, last infifted upon, deferve to be very seriously confidered, because they feem to contain a clear Intimation of our Bleffed Lord's Divine Nature and Excellencies. For, what Excellencies, lefs than Divine, could juftify that awful Distance they exprefs, between fo eminent a Perfon, and the Holy Jefus? They are not Words of Complement and Form, but of ftrict Truth and Equity. And yet it will be very hard to understand them fo, if the Comparifon be stated, only between One Prophet and Another, only between the Prince and fo venerable a Harbinger: In fhort, if we understand Them any otherwife, than Thus, that even He that was more than a Prophet, and than whom there had not rifen a greater ever born of Women, was notwithstanding, fo many Degrees inferior to Him, whose Way he

Mat. xi. 9, II.

came

came to prepare, because he was fo the Son of a Woman, as to be more than Man: The Son of God, and himself very God. And thus confidered, the Paffage now before us, is fo far from an affected Strain of depreffing himself, and magnifying his Mafter; that, could St. John have found any Terms yet more lowly, they were still all far less than were due to that Infinite Diftance, that Effential Greatness, between which, and the most exalted of all its Creatures, there is no Comparison, nay not any manner of Proportion, to found a Comparison upon.

3. But then the greater Obligation have we, Thirdly, to use all poffible Endeavours, for difpofing our Souls to the Virtue I have been enforcing. For, if a Person fo highly favoured, fo magnificently spoken of as the Baptift, were not worthy to ferve this Lord in the meaneft Capacity; how low an Opinion ought We to conceive of our felves, whofe Sanctity and Graces fall fo very much beneath this bright Example? How great is the Honour of being admitted to serve him? How mighty the Condefcenfion of accepting, and rewarding, thofe poor Expreffions of the Homage due to his Majefty, from weak and frail Mortals, and (which does moft of all depretiate our Services) from vile polluted Sinners? How feafonably is this Pattern of Humility recommended to our Thoughts and Imitation? How powerfully ought it to influence our Souls, Now efpecially, when the approaching Festival calls upon us, to commemorate an Inftance of it, fo much more aftonishing? If the Pattern fet us by John, fhould move, behold a greater than John is here. For God himself defcends from Heaven; He does not difdain the Womb of a Virgin, the Miferies, Infirmities, and Sufferings of Human Flesh; He exhibits himself to us in the Form of a gentle Babe, in the Circumstances of a Birth void of Worldly Pomp; not in Swadling Clothes only, but in a Manger too; With all the Marks of Poverty and Neglect; He vouchsafes not only to be

Man,

Man, but to appear the last and lowest of Men: And He, whofe Shoes the pureft Spirit, and the Perfon exalted above the highest Prophets, was not worthy to unloofe, does, if I may fo fay, ftoop down to unloofe the Latchet of the meanest of his Servants. Lord, what is Man that thou shouldeft thus confider him, or the Son of Man that thou shouldest with such amazing Humility vifit him! But, Lord, what are We, if this myfterious Condefcenfion do not excite our Wonder, do not provoke our Imitation? And how abfurdly do we celebrate the ineftimable Bleffing of God manifested in the Flefh, if our Hearts be not prepared with that humble Difpofition, which is fo frequently inculcated in thy Gofpel, which was fo particularly confpicuous in thy Nativity, and to the inimitable Perfection whereof, we owe all the great things thou wert pleased to do, and all the bitter things thou were content to fuffer, for the Redemption of thy own wretched Creatures? O come then now into our Souls, as thou didft heretofore into our Flesh! Make us like Thee, as thou wert made like Us; like Thee in abafing our Selves here, that we may, like Thee, be highly exalted hereafter.

The Nativity of our Lord, or BirthDay of CHRIST, commonly called Christmas-Day.

A

The COLLECT.

Lmighty God, who haft given us thy only begotten Son to take our Nature upon him, and as at this time to be born of † a pure Virgin; Grant that we being regenerate, and made thy Children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by thy Holy Spirit, through the fame our Lord Jefus Chrift, who liveth and reigneth with thee, and the fame Spirit, ever one God, world without end Amen, L

PARAPHRASE.

1. God, who never fuffered Mankind to be left without all Knowledge of himself and his Will,

I.

G

The EPISTLE.

Hebr. Ch. i.

OD, who at fundry times, and in divers manners, fpake in time paft unto the Fathers by the Prophets,

hath yet diftributed that Knowledge, in fuch different Methods and Proportions as he faw fit. To the Jews particularly, and their Ancestors, he revealed his Will by Prophets; but this was done by Piecemeals and Parcels; and to them he difcovered himself in Vifions, Clouds, Dreams, Figures, and great Variety of Inspirations.

2. This was the Condition of former Ages, and of that imperfect Difpenfation; but the Gospel,

2. Hath in thefe laft days Spoken unto us by bis Son, whom he hath appointed beir of all things, by whom alfo be made the worlds.

which is the laft Men are to expect, gives us a full Declaration of his Will; and excels the reft infinitely, upon the account of that Hand which brings it to us. For this is no less a Person than his own Divine Son, to whom he hath given an univerfal Dominion over all his Creatures. Nor is it ftrange that they fhould all be fubjected to this God-man; fince He as God, was the Lord and Creator of them all; equal in Power to his Father.

13. Of the fame Divine Majefty and Subftance, a Beam of the fame Light, an exact Refemblance of his original Perfections. For whatever Excellencies are in the Father, the fame are in the Son, and by Him they are reflected down upon Mankind. As he did with the Father create, fo does he with him preferve and govern, all things by the fame Almighty Power. And therefore, when this Divine Perfon had condefcended to become Man, and expiate for our Offences by the Sacrifice of himself, God exalted his Human Nature to his Throne, and gave him an unlimited Dominion.

3. Who being the brightness of his glory, and the exprefs image of his perfon, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our fins, fat down on the right band of the Majefly on bigh..

4. Preferring him as far above the most glorious Spirits the Angels, as his Divine Original

4. Being made fo much better than the Angels, as be bath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.

had fet him above them before; as a Creator is above Creatures, a King above Subjects, a Son above Servants.

5. This is very manifeft, from the different Manner of Expreffion ufed in Scripture, with regard to Him and Them. For thofe Paffages, which concern'd Chrift, were never meant of any Angels. Nor does God call Them Sons begotten of him, or declare himself Their Father, in that ftrict Signification peculiar to this Son, who was begotten from all Eternity, and declared of the fame Divine Excellencies with the Father, by his Refurrection from the Dead.

5. For unto which of the Angels faid be at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and be fhall be to me a Son.