ons that proceed from Malice, Falfhood or Unfaithfulness. Now All these are properly God's Caufe; For they were the Matters of His Law before they were of Man's, and Humane Laws in Respect of those are only the Tranfcripts of that which is Divine and Eternal: And that is the Reason why the Juft Determination of all fuch Cafes (which is the Executing of True and Righteous Judgment) is faid in the Holy Scripture to be the Direct and Proper Service of God, and is required of Magiftrates under that Notion. And this is the Reason why the Heathens, though they knew not the True God, were yet interpreted to honour and serve the True God by the Offices of Juftice and Judgment: For fo the Fathers doubt not to affert that God profpered even Idolatrous Nations for this Reason; and particularly that the Romans extended their Empire to that height of glory by God's Bleifing upon their Eminent Justice. For as the Author

of

of the Book of Wisdom argues (on the other hand) concerning Perjury in those Idolaters; that when they wore falfly, though it were by Falfe Gods, yet they were punished by the True, because the fin was against Him: (Meaning that every Deviation from the Natural Law, or the Dictates of our Consciences, is a fin against that God that planted thefe Dictates in us, in order to this that they should be our Law :) So likewise (on the contrary) fo long as those Idolaters did ob. ferve these Natural Dictates, and affert and maintain them in their Publick Judg. ments, they pleafed and ferved the True God (tho' to them Unknown) and were accordingly profper'd and blefs'd by him for it.

It is no Doubt but that in Cafes where the Matter under Determination appertains to Natural Right, the Cause is Gods, and an Equitable Determination of them is His proper Service: But we must allow that there are many Cafes of JudicialCog. nifance, whose Matters are not of Natu

ral,

ral, but only of Positive Right; which happens as often as Laws are enacted about things that are in their own Nature Indifferent. Now it is certain, these Matters do not directly belong to God's Cause; and yet they do Confequentially; Because Indifferent things do generally carry in them the Advantages and Encouragements of Neceflary Things; And, whether they do or no, God will have our Obedience approved in Indifferent Things as well as Necessary. We conclude therefore that Moral Things (which are most commonly the Matter of Human Laws) are God's Cause by Antecedent Relation; and that Indifferent things when they once are made Matter of Human Laws, do then become God's Caufe by Efpoufal: And therefore it is that Both are charged upon the Confciences of Men by the Apoftle; and both are to be obferved for the fake of God; Or in Cafe they are not observed, the Animadversion upon those that do not observe them,

them, is no less than a Judgment executed in God's Behalf.

III. The Issue of Judgment is God's End. The Political End of Judgment is the Maintenance of the Laws, the fecuring of Rights, the encouragement of Industry, and the establishing of Peace; in which confifts that Political Happines that Every Government aims at: But God has a Greater End in it than All this, and that is the making of Men Internally Good and Virtuous, and laying in them the Foundation of a Future Happiness, a Happiness that will laft when all the Polities of the World are paft off the Stage and expired.

So that we ought to look upon Judg. ment as a Part of God's Providence, whereby he governs the World to his most holy Purposes. For as we all acknowledge that God has a Providence whereby he does govern the World; fo if we enquire into the Nature and End of that Providence, we shall find it to be no other than a feries

a feries of feveral Methods to make Men Good; to which End this of Humane Judgment is conducing in the most EFor no doubt but

minent manner.

Judgment is the greatest possible External Bond of Humane Virtue; and the most effectual Check of diforderly Paffions: It guards men from doing Ill by a Wholfome Fear; and those that have done Ill, it brings to Repentance by Suffering: Infomuch that in the Scriptuïe it is recommended as the great Difpofition to Christianity, and the great Preparatory to the falvation of God: For the Prophet Isaiah speaking of the Coming of our Saviour, and explaining as it were that future Meffage of John the Baptift; Prepare ye the way of the Lord, he does it in these Words, Ifa. 56. 1. thus faith the Lord, keep ye judgment and do justice, for my falvation is near to come, and my righteou/nefs to be revealed. And to the same sense is that Paffage Pfalm 97. where after it has been faid (verse 1.) The Lord reigneth, 0 3

the