stowed on you any favours, thank your benefactor, and keep them to your felf: and, if neceffity obliges you to disclose them, do it with modefty and moderation.

Fifthly, Defpife no body but your felf; tho' your neighbour be guilty of a thoufand villanies, rather pity his misfortune than infult it; and remember, that, if you are not guilty of the fame diforders, you owe your innocence to God's affiftance, not to your own force, and, if he abandons you, you would fink into the most horrible abominations.

Sixthly, Receive injuries with patience, and affronts with unconcern. You have injured God by your offences; you have affronted him by your infolence; fo that you deferve ill treatment and difregard, altho' they do ill who offer it.

Seventhly, Excufe all faults, but your own; speak ill of no body, but your felf, nor even this without great caution; for there is a certain pride in humiliation, and a vanity in feeming to covet contempt; and, if we affect to declaim upon our own imperfections, it is a fign we defire not to be believed, and that we expect the hearer's esteem for difefteeming our felves.

O my foul, let me humble my felf, that God may raise me; let me caft my felf under the feet of all men, not to be caft under thofe of the devil hereafter. My virtues preach humility, no lefs than my vices. These are the teftimonies of my ingratitude, and those the witnesses of my Maker's goodness. His liberality alone gave me the power to do well, and his bounty the will. Without his affiftance, I am nothing; nay, (what is more) an impotent, a rebellious, a wicked nothing. Why then doft thou fwell, O duft and afhes! why doft thou not abafe thy felf below thy original earth,

and

and defire to be trampled on for God's fake, who was pleased to be trod upon for thine? I value neither the esteem nor contempt of men: the one makes me no better, nor the other worse: if thou, O God, judgeft me worthy of thy favour, I am content; and on this condition I shall deem my self more happy on a gibbet, than on a throne.

SEVEN

SEVEN REFLECTIONS

ΟΝ ΤΗΕ

Paffion of our Bleffed Saviour.

REFLECTION I.

GOSPEL of St. Matthew, Chap. xxvi. Verse

36. Then cometh Jefus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and faith unto his difciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.

37. And he took with him Peter, and the two fons of Zebedee, and began to be forrowful, and very beavy.

38. Then faith be unto them, My foul is exceeding forrowful even unto death: tarry ye here and watch with me.

39. And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, faying, O my Father, if it be poffible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt.

The

The MORAL REFLECTION.

HE confideration of our Saviour's Paffion, and those torments he fuffered for our fins, is a fubject, which ought to raife in us a fincere deteftation of them, and at the fame time a tender affection for him, who has loved us to fuch an excefs, as to reconcile us to his heavenly Father at the expence of his precious blood.

Man

Give me leave therefore to prefent a tragedy, that once split rocks, aftonish'd heaven, furpris'd hell, and drew compaffion from all nature. alone fat unconcern'd, for whom and by whom the innocent fell-a victim of love on the one fide, a facrifice of fury on the other. It is the death of God made. man, I intend to propofe to your confideration. You fhall behold him, first wounded in his reputation with calumnies, then torn with whips, pierced with thorns, and in the end nailed to a crofs, and expiring between thieves; as if the most infamous of deaths was too mild a punishment, unless fuffered in the company of the moft ignominions malefactors. All these torments he underwent for our fins, and, what is more ftupendous, by our cruelty. Never was there feen more rage, never more love: That was extreme, This infinite, and both without example. The Creator was put to death; the creatures play'd the executioners. These practis'd cruelties to murder him, and he made ufe of their very crime to fave them.

The raifing of Lazarus from death to life kindled the Pharifees rage against our bleffed Saviour, and his glorious entry into Jerufalem blew it into a flame. Perceive ye, how ye prevail no

thing? (faid they) behold the whole world is gone after him, John xii. 19. The miracles he rought drew fome, the fanctity of his doctrine others; all are charmed with his fweetness, and all refpect, to adoration, his perfon. They enter therefore into confult, not to debate upon his doctrine, not to queftion his miracles; for that was without reproach, and these manifeft beyond difpute; but to contrive his death, and to put in execution out of hand their refolutions.

But why all these confultations to apprehend him? Was he not daily in the temple? furrounded with a multitude that either flock'd to learn, or to cenfure? Could they not bribe an affaffin to difpatch him? No question, but many would have undertaken this bloody execution, either to court their leaders, or to better their fortunes. But this would not appease the priests rage: they knew, a fecret murther would plead them guilty, and him innocent; that his fanctity and miracles would fpeak more loudly for him, than all their calumnies against him; that he would live in the esteem of thofe, who had been witneffes of his prodigies, and bleft with his converfation.

They refolved therefore to ftab his reputation, before they butchered his body, and to draw the whole nation into the crime, that no body might compaffionate him, or condemn the actors. And no method seem'd more compendious than to bring him to an open trial; for the vulgar easily believe thofe guilty, who are condemned by authority; and that they die juftly, who fall by the hand of juftice.

But why did they decoy an apoftle? First, to juftify their rage, and to enforce their own accufations; for what was more natural than to fuppofe, that a man, fo favoured by our Saviour, betray'd