SERM. when God's patience hath been tried to the utmost, and his LXVII. goodness tired with bearing such a load of abominations, he Jer. v. 29. will be forced to cry out, Shall I not vifit for these things? Ifa. i. 24. fhall not my foul be avenged on fuch a nation as this?

lix. 17.

Stulta cali- 10. Another principle of difpenfing with confcience in ditas, per- public duties and converfation before men, is a kind of perverfe wisdom, or fubtle craft, affecting the name of difcretion.

verse imi

tata pru

dentiam. Cic. de Off. iii. p. 143.

Men fee there are divers inconveniences attending the profeffion of refpect to God and confcience in all their doings; that the world may diflike and difefteem them, that divers perfons will hate, malign, reproach, and perfecute them for it; that they may chance to be crossed in their defigns, and lofe profits or preferments thereby; therefore they deem it advisable to decline it in open view, making up the defect by adoring and serving God in private.

Thus they think to falve all, by maintaining a neutrality, and compounding the business, yielding an open conformity to the world, and reserving a secret regard to God; finning publicly, and privately repenting; retaining their credit, quiet, ease, pleasure, with their conscience and peace of mind; affecting fome piety, but avoiding the Gal. v. 11. fcandal of it.

16, 17.

They would hold fair with both fides; so that neither the world should perfecute them for croffing its humour, nor God punish them for tranfgreffing his will.

They drive a fubtle trade, hoping to gain on all hands, both the benefits of the other, and the advantages of this world; to fave their foul, and serve their worldly interests together:

This they would believe a point of special wisdom, Ecclef. vii. prescribed by Solomon: Be not righteous overmuch, neither make thyfelf overwife; for why shouldeft thou destroy thyfelf? Be not overmuch wicked, neither be thou foolish: why Shouldeft thou die before the time?

But this rooking trick, to hedge thus and save stakes, to play fast and loose, to dodge and shuffle with God, God doth not like, nor will suffer himself to be gulled with it.

He will not be fatisfied with fuch a mongrel, partial, SERM. and halting service.

LXVII.

He will not allow us to withhold that half of his fervice 1 Kings xviii. 21. (the external, visible part thereof) which is most honourable to him, and most beneficial to our neighbour.

He cannot endure a double heart, or a double face; one looking upward to heaven, another downward to the earthe.

He exacteth from us an integrity of heart and perfection of obedience; that we fhould love him with our whole heart, that we fhould be perfect with him, that we should walk uprightly, not deflecting to the right hand or left from our duty.

1 John ii.

He will not endure that we should hold amity or correfpondence with his enemies; particularly with the world, the friendship whereof he hath declared inconsistent with his favour; and that it is a spiritual adultery to impart any of our affections to it; according to that of St. James; Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friend- Jam. iv. iii. Ship of the world is enmity with God? fo that whofoever 15. will be a friend of the world becometh the enemy of God. We may shift as well as we can in the world, provided 19. xvii. that we hold innocence, and do not confpire with it against God, by violation of our duty to himf: Be wife xxxviii. as ferpents, innocent as doves. Matt. x. 16. (as lambs, Phil. ii. 5. Luke x. 3.)

They reproach good men as fuperftitious; who are afraid of invisible powers; who let go things in hand (present interests and pleasures) for a reverfion and hope.

As if God's word were not fufficient security; as if we may not as well rely upon things confpicuous to reason, as those which are obvious to fenfe.

Καθίςαται. (John xv.

14.)

Pf. xxxvii.

O. Tr.

2 Theff. iii.

If Christianity be plainly falfe, they fay well; but if it"Arro be true, very abfurdly; yea if probable, very imprudently; 2. yea if poffible, not wifely.

e Pfal. xii. 2. Jam. i. 8. iv. 8. 2 Chron. xii. 33. 1 Tim. iii. 8. A'yλwos. Pfal. xxxviii. 37. Their heart was not whole with him. (O. Tr.) Deut. xviii. 13. Job i. 8. Pfal. xliv. 18. cxix. 51. 2 Chron. xxxiv. 2. Job xxiii. 11. Matt. vi. 24. Luke xvi. 13. Avoì xupiois.

f Rom. xvi. 19.

Σοφὲς εἰς τὸ ἀγαθὸν, ἀκεραίως δὲ εἰς τὸ κακόν.

SERM. They charge confcientious men with timorousness, LXVII. faintheartedness.

It is timorousness or blameable fear to dread things without reafon, things nowife formidable, which cannot hurt us; fuch a timorous man is he, that out of fear of men, (of difpleafing them, of fuffering by them, of their reproach,) &c. tranfgreffeth his duty.

But to fear God is wisdom, foberness, duty, virtue; it is handsome and honourable, becoming our nature, our condition; the paffion of fear was chiefly put in us for this purpose, as its best use.

Is it courage, and not rather madness to provoke, to refift, to challenge, to cope with the Almighty? is it courage to throw one's felf down a precipice, to leap into the infernal lake? is it gallantry to dare tranfgrefs all reason and sobriety? is it brave to be wild and fenfeless, &c.?

It is true courage to refift and repel fin affaulting a man with whatever advantages; to dare to do well, although vain men deride, and spiteful men hate us for it.

It is a kind of martyrdom to be ill used by the world for adhering to his duty; and he hath a fhare in that, Bleffed are they, who suffer for righteousness.

Matt. x. 39. In fine, it is a vain prudence to be thus politic with Ὁ εὑρὼν τὴν Yuxa God; whereby we shall lofe the whole, or that part which r, droires is invaluable, out of prefumption to fave a fmall inconfiderable. part.

αὐτήν.

Gal. v. 11.

Matt. x.38. xvi. 24. Phil. iii. 8.

If this be prudence, then, as St. Paul faith, is the offence of the cross ceased.

Then our Lord prescribed a foolish condition.

Then were the Apostles very imprudent, who deserted all, and fuffered fo much for their confcience; being content to fecure their spiritual intereft, and to obtain the Luke x. 42. eternal rewards of piety; choosing the better part, which could not be taken from them.

Jam. iii. 13.

What the true wisdom is in such cases St. James hath told us: Who is a wife man, and endued with knowledge among you? let him fhew out of a good converfation his works with meekness of wisdom.

SERMON LXVIII.

OF THE GOODNESS OF GOD.

PSALM cxlv. 9.

The Lord is good to all, and his tender mercies are over all his works.

THE goodness of God is a frequented theme; to many SERM. perhaps it may feem vulgar and trite; fo that difcourfe LXVIII. thereon, like a ftory often told, may be naufeous to their ears but in truth neither can we speak too much upon this most excellent fubject, nor ought we ever to be weary in hearing about it; for it is a fign that the palate of our mind is diftempered, if we do not with delight and affection relish any mention of divine goodness. Yea, the obfervation of men's common practice would induce us to think, that either this point is not fo well known, or but little believed, or at least not well confidered and applied. For how could we be fo void of love to God, of gratitude toward him, of faith and hope in him, were we thoroughly perfuaded, did we seriously confider, that he is fo exceedingly good toward us? How can we be for infenfible of the benefits we enjoy, so distrustful of finding fuccours and supplies in our need, fo diffatisfied and difcontented with what befalls us, if we conceive and weigh, that all things do proceed from, are guided and governed by immenfe goodness? How also, if men have fuch an opinion of God impreffed on their minds, comes it to pass, that they are fo little careful to resemble and imitate him

LXVIII.

SERM. in kindness, bounty, and mercy to one another? How is it, in fine, that the most powerful argument to all manner of good practice, and the mightiest aggravation of fin, if well known and pondered, hath so little force and efficacy upon us? From experience therefore this argument may seem scarce fufficiently inculcated. We may add, that discourse upon this attributea (which above all other attributes doth render God peculiarly admirable and amiable) hath this fpecial advantage beyond other discourses, that it doth, if our hearts confpire therewith, approach moft nearly to the formal exercise of the moft high and heavenly parts of devotion, praise and thanksgiving; that it more immediately conduces to the breeding, the nourishing, the augmenting in us the best and nobleft of pious affections, love and reverence to God; truft and hope in him; willing resolutions to please and serve him; whence it is confequent, that we cannot too much employ our thoughts, our words, or our attention upon this point. Befides fo much reason, we have also good example to countenance us in fo doing: we have the precedent of the holy Pfalmift resolving to make it his constant and Pf. lxxxix. continual employment: I will fing, faith he, of the mercies of the Lord; with my mouth will I make known thy Pfal. cxlv. faithfulness to all generations. And, Every day will I

1.

2.

1, 2.

bless thee, and I will praife thy name for ever and ever; (that bleffing and praifing God, the context fhews to have confifted especially in the declaration of God's great goodPfal. xcii. nefs :) and, It is a good thing, faith he again, to give thanks unto the Lord, and to fing praifes unto thy name, O thou moft High: to fhew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night. Such were his intentions, and fuch his judgment about this practice; and we find him in effect true and answerable to them; every fong of his, every meditation, every exercise of devotion chiefly harping upon this ftring; and he earnestly wishes that others would confent and confort with him

—Θεὸς, οὗ πολλῶν ὄντων, ἐφ ̓ οἷς θαυμάζεται, ἐδὲν ὕτως ὡς τὸ πάντας εὐεργέτειν ἰδιωτατόν. Naz. Orat. 26.