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proved themselves, as the Minifters of Chrift, and his faithful Followers, in Honour and Dishonour, by evil Report and good Report, as Deceivers, and yet true: When we have the Example of his Church, in the best Ages, who, as Justin Martyr tells the Jews, prayed for them, and all others, that were unjuftly their Enemies, that, repenting of their Wickedness, and ceafing to blafpheme Chrift Jefus, they might, together with Chriftians, be faved by him, at his fecond glorious Coming: When we have his gracious Promife of a Recompence to be made us, for all that we fuffer upon this Score; for bleffed are ye, when Men fhall revile you, and perfecute you, and fay all Manner of Evil against you falfly for my Sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad; for great is your Reward in Heaven: And laftly, when we have his severe Comminations, that, without forgiving our Enemies, we can have no Remiffion of our own Tranfgreffions; for, if he that is but Flesh (as the Son of Syrach obferves) nourisheth Hatred, who fhall intreat for Pardon of his Sins? And therefore he concludeth, Remember thy End, and let Enmity ceafe: Remember Corruption and Death, and abide in the Commandments: Remember the Commandments, and bear no Malice to thy Neighbour: Remember the Covenant of the most High, and wink at Ignorance,

J

SECT. I.

Of Justice in general,

USTICE is that Virtue, which is concerned in the Obfervance of thofe Laws, whether buman or divine, which refpect the feveral Rights of Men, whether natural or acquired.

1. The

1. The natural Rights of Men are those, which appertain to them, as rational Creatures, dwelling in mortal Bodies, joined together in mutual Relations, and united in one common Society. These are Rights inherent in them, antecedently to all human Conflitutions, and what they may juftly claim of one another, as eternal Dues, which no Laws can cancel, no Custom diffolve, no CircumStances make void or abrogate. To do justly then, with refpect to this kind of Rights, is to render to every Man what we are indebted to him by the Obligation of Nature; as he is a rational Creature, to treat him equitably, and to do him all the good we can juftly defire he should do to us, if we were in his Circumftances; quietly to permit him to judge for himself, without endeavouring to tyrannife over his Conscience, by perfecuting, cenfureing, and reviling him, because he is not of our Opinion; freely to fuffer him to comply with the Dictates of right Reason, and not to put him, by any kind of Violence or Neceffity, upon any wicked or difhonourable Act; and, in a Word, to pay him all those fair Respects, and Inftances of Courtesy, that are due to the Dignity of human Nature. These are Debts, which every rational Creature owes to his own Kind, and which we cannot withhold from one another, without manifest Injustice to human Nature: But then, as we are rational Creatures, inhabiting these mortal Bodies, we are obliged in Justice not to maim, or destroy, or captivate another Man's Body, unless it be in the neceffary Defence of our own Lives, Eftates, or Liberties; not to deprive him of his neceffary Livelihood and Subfiftence, but out of our Abundance (if he be rich, and we poor) to fupply his Neceffities. And fo again, as we are rational Creatures, joined together by natural Relations, we are obliged to pay each other all thofe Refpects and Duties,

which the Nature of our Rélation calls for; as we are Parents, to love, and inftruct, and make fuitable Provifion for our Children; and, as we are Children, to love, and reverence, to fuccour, and obey our Parents; and fo in all other Relations. Once again, as we are rational Creatures, united in one common Society, we owe Love and Peace, Truth and Credit, Protection and Participation of Profit to our Fellow-members; and when, instead of thefe, we hate and malign, we vex and disturb one another; when we lye, and equivocate, and violaté our Promises and Oaths; when we are negligent and prodigal of each other's Lives, Eftates, and Reputations, and ufurp to ourfelves all the Profit of our mutual Intercourfe, we then destroy the natural Rights of human Society, and demean ourselves as open Enemies to Mankind.

2. The acquired Rights of Men are fuch, as arife from their facred and civil Relations, from their legal Poffeffions, their perfonal Accomplishments, their outward Rank and Quality, and the like; of which we intend to difcourfe fomewhat more diftinctly, after we have confidered, 1. Our Obligation to Justice in general; and, 2. The Rule and Motives, that may engage our Practice of it.

I. That there is a fecret Inclination, or Impreffion upon the Minds of Men, whereby they are naturally carried to approve fome Things, as good and fit, and to diflike other Things, as having a native Evil and Deformity in them; and that, by these natural Inclinations and Impreffions, the great Lines of our Duty may be traced out, a Man needs but confult the Oracle of his own Breaft to be fatisfied. That to be just in our Dealings, true in our Trufts, faithful in our Promifes, and in all Things to do to others, as we would they fhould do unto us, are Actions eternally good, and fitted to the genuine Propenfions of our Nature; as, on

the

the contrary, to be falfe and perfidious in our Words or Deeds, to injure the Innocent, or opprefs the Impotent, or defraud the Ignorant, are Actions eternally evil, and abhorrent to our natural and undepraved Notions, is vifible from the. Glory and Appearance, which is known to attend the one, and the Shame and Confufion which usually accompanies the other; for Glory and Shame are nothing else, but an Appeal to the Judgment of others, concerning the Good or Evil of our Ac

tions.

And, as by our natural Propenfions we are called upon to the Practice of all Manner of Justice, fo are we no less obliged to perform it, in Conformity to the Nature, in Submiffion to the Providence, and in Obedience to the Will of our great Creator. As God, by the infinite Self-fufficiency of his Nature, is fecured from all Temptation to Injustice, fo, by the infinite Goodness of it, he ftands invariably bent and inclined to deal juftly and righteously by his Creatures, never to with-hold from them any Right, never to afflict them beyond their Demerit; and therefore the Royal Pfalmift makes his Acknowledgment; Righteous art thou, O Lord, and upright are thy Judgments; even as the feven Angels, in the Song of the Lamb, declare, Great and marvellous are thy Works, Lord God Almighty, juft and true are thy Ways, thou King of Saints. Since then the Nature of God is the great Exemplar and Pattern of all reasonable Natures, as being in itself the most perfectly reasonable, whatever is imitable in it, that we are obliged to transcribe into our own; and, confequently, fince he is eternally juft, we are obliged to be just likewise. For indeed, confidering that God, as the fupreme Lord and Proprietor of all Things, has an eternal Right to fhare his own Goods amongst his own Creatures, as he pleases, to deprive another Man of what his Providence

Providence has allotted him, befides the Injury done the Perfon, is a direct Oppofition to the Divine Ordination and Appointment; a fetting ourfelves up to carve for ourselves out of thofe Allowances, that he has diftributed to others, and living in open Rebellion to his wife Government. Well therefore might the Word of God teach and admonifh us, that, denying Ungodliness and worldly Lufts, we should live foberly, righteously, and godly in this prefent World; that, in all our Dealings, we fhould maintain a Confcience void of Offence, not going beyond, or defrauding one another; but, in every Thing, dealing with other Men, as we would they should deal with us: For he hath fhewed thee, O Man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love Mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God? What doth the Lord require of thee? All thy other Works, and Performances, thy coming before him with Burnt-Offerings, with Calves of a Year old; thy bringing to his Altar Thousands of Rams, and ten Thousand Rivers of Oil; nay, thy giving thy First-Born for thy Tranfgreffon, the Fruit of thy Body for the Sin of thy Soul, will avail thee nothing: So long as thou art a Tranfgreffor of the eternal Rules of Righteousness, whatever thy Worship, whatever thy Form of Religion be, it will never recommend thee to the Favour of that God, who loves Justice more than Sacrifice, and the Integrity of thy Dealings, more than all the Solemnity of thy other Services. And so we proceed,

II. To state the Measure and inforce the Motives of this Duty. It is reported of Alexander Severus, the Roman Emperor, that he had fo great an Efteem for our bleffed Saviour, upon Account of his being the Author of this one Sentence, All Things whatsoever ye would that Men fhould do unto you, do you even fo to them, that he was once minded to

have

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