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If, In the Truth and Sincerity of it: for: God loveth Truth in the inner parts; he looketh not as Man looketh, to the outward Appearance, but beholds the Heart, and receives or rejects us by the Truth or Falfhood of that.

2dly, In the Extent and Integrity of it: it must reach to all God's Commandments, not picking and chufing as the Pharifees did, who made the keeping of one Law to compound for the breach of another, but we muft pay an uniform and univerfal Obedience to all God's Precepts, being all ftamp'd with the fame Authority, and having the fame Equity and Reward: and then shall we not be ashamed, when we have respect to all his Commandments.

3dly, Our Righteoufnefs muft exceed theirs in the Lowlinefs and Humility of it; difclaiming all its Worth, and arrogating nothing as due to it. The Pharisees trufted to their own Righteoufnefs, and claim'd the Reward from the Merit of their own Works; but we are to account ours as filthy Rags, and to defire to be found only in the Robes of Chrift's Righteoufnefs: when we have done all, we are to reckon our felves but unprofitable Servants, and truft only to Chrift's Merits for our Juftification. Again, the Pharifees boafted of their own Righteousness, that they were better than other Men, looking upon themfelves as the only Favourites of Heaven, and defpifing others as only Men of the Earth: whereas we are to be lowly in Heart and Mind, efteeming others better than our felves; and then fhall we rife highest in God's Opinion, when we are lowest in our own.

Laftly, Our Righteousness must exceed theirs in the Purity of its End and Intention: they only courted the Honour and Applause of Men in all that they did, and so had all their Reward from them; but we are to direct all our Aims and Intentions to the Glory of God, and that will beft tend to and promote our own.

Thus we fee wherein we are to exceed the Righteoufnefs of the Scribes and Pharifees, together with the Penalty of falling fhort of it. Now to help us herein, our Saviour detects their Corruption of feveral Laws by their Traditions, and directs to the true Meaning and juft Extent of them.

The third Commandment they perverted by two falfe Gloffes: the one, that the forbidding of taking God's Name in vain, prohibited only the fwearing by the awful Name of God, but permitted them in leffer matters to fwear by his Creatures, as by the Heavens, by the Earth,

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by Jerufalem, by the Altar, the Temple, their Head, and the like; all which they taught had no Guilt in them, and fignify'd nothing: the other was, that the Law against Swearing prohibited only Forfwearing or falfe Swearing, and that too in matters of great moment, but extended not to things of leffer confequence, and fo let them loose to all vain and idle Swearing: both which our Saviour condemn'd, by faying, Swear not at all, ver. 33, 34.

The fifth Commandment they evacuated by a Gift call'd Corban, of which they gave a double Interpretation; the one fignifying an Oath against relieving of Parents, which they that had taken were (as they taught) excus'd thereby from relieving them; the other was interpreting Corban of a Gift confecrated unto God, fignifying, that if they had confecrated their Substance unto God, or to his Temple, they were excus'd from relieving their Parents out of it, being already devoted to God's Service, and fo may be more profitable to them than otherwife: both thele ways they made the Law of God of no effect by their Traditions, Mat. 15.

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Next, our Saviour vindicates the fixth Commandment from the wrong Interpretations of the Scribes and Pharifees, in the following words of this Day's Gofpel: Te have heard (faith he) that it was faid by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill, and whosoever all kill, shall be in danger of the FudgWhere by them of old time we are to understand Mofes and the Prophets, as we read, Exod. 20. & Deur. 5. where this Precept against killing is extant. This the Scribes and Pharifees reftrain'd only to actual Murder, or fhedding of Blood, and fo Maiming, Wounding, and other Acts of Violence that came fhort of Murder, with all the Occafions leading thereunto, went free: and the Danger of the Fudgment, or Punishments annex'd to it, they taught were incur'd by none, but fuch as actually took away the Life of another, and imbru'd his Hands in his Blood.

But I fay unto you (faith Chrift) that whosoever is angry with his Brother without a caufe, shall be in danger of the Judgment: and whosoever shall fay unto his Brother, Racha, Shall be in danger of the Council; but whosoever shall fay, Thou Fool, fhall be in danger of Hellfire. Where he enlarges the Sense of this Law, and the.ws it to extend to all rafh Anger, Hatred, and reproachful Speeches, which lead to Murder, and often occalion Saughter and Bloodshed.

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Now here we may obferve the three different Degrees of the Sins leading to Murder, together with the three different Degrees of the Punifhments affign'd to them. The three Degrees of the Sins, or Occafions of Murder, are caufelefs Anger, opprobrious Words, by calling Men Racha, and Thou Fool. The three Degrees of the Punishments affign'd to them, are the Danger of the Fudgment, the Danger of the Council, and the Danger of Hell-fire. All which will require a little Explication.

(1.) As for caufelefs Anger, that is, when Men are mov'd to Paffion for no caufe at all, or on a very flight occafion, which is as good as none; this often happens to fiery and hafty Spirits, which are inflam'd for Trifles, and break out into Rage upon little or no Provocation. A fudden Difguft, a jealous Surmife, a hafty Word fhall make fome Perfons fly out into an abfurd, violent, and unaccountable Paffion, and catch fire at fuch fmall fparks, as are better quench'd than kindled; that is, at fuch light matters, as a wife Man would rather pafs by than refent.

Again, Anger is caufeless, when tho there may be fome caufe, yet the Paflion runs higher than the Caufe can warrant; when it grows immoderate, and tranfports beyond the Bounds of Reafon and Religion. Certainly all Anges that exceeds the Merits of the Caufe, is fo far to be juftly reckon'd caufelefs; in which cafe, as the Paflion offers fome violence to Nature, fo does it often occafion fome external Violence and Mischief, as may be seen in the Converfation of furious Perfons.

Once more, Anger is caufelefs, when it lafts longer than the caufe continues, when it refufes to be appeas'd or reconcil'd, and retains fecret Grudges and Animofities; which frequently turns to Hatred, Malice, and Defires of Revenge. For which reafon the Wife-man tells us, that Anger refteth in the Bofom of Fools, where it is apt to boil up, and break out in malicious and murderous Designs: and therefore the Apoftle wills us not to fin in our Anger, by keeping it too long, nor to fuffer the Sun to go down upon our Wrath; for that is to give place to the De oil, who is ever ready to carry fuch paffionate Men into all manner of mifchief: for this reafon it is, that our Saviour here condemns all caufelefs Anger, as an Occafion of Killing and Murder.

Now the Punishment here affign'd to it, is to be in danger of the Judgment: Ifay unto you, he that is angry with

his Brother without a caufe, fhall be in danger of the Judgment; that is, not only of future Judgment, but of a prefent Judgment here in this World: which in this place is meant of incurring the Cenfure and Sentence of the Sanhedrim, of which there were two Courts among the Jews, call'd the leffer and the greater Sanhedrim, the one confisting of 23 Judges, the other of 71; and both had the cognizance of criminal Caufes, and could pafs Sentence on Malefactors, tho not equally and alike, there lying an Appeal from the one to the other. And the Judgment here threatned to caufelefs Anger, is that of the firft and inferiour Court, of whofe Sentence it was in danger.

(2.) Another Sin forbidden here as an Occafion of Murder, is contumelious and reviling Language and this is an Effect or Confequent of the former; for where rafh Anger is kindled and flames in the Breaft, there it breaks out in the Tongue by Contumelies and Reproaches, and vents it felf in violent and virulent Speeches: two of which are here mention'd.

1. The calling his Brother Racha, which is an Hebrew or Syriack Word, and fignifies a vain, witlefs, and worthless Fellow; a Term of great Derifion and Reproach, and is indeed a fetting at nought our Brother: which naturally incenfes and creates thofe Feuds and Quarrels, that often end in Slaughter and Bloodshed. Now this being a farther itep to Murder, has a higher degree of Punishment affign'd to it; and that is, to be in danger of the Council: which was to be fummon'd before the higher Court of Sanhedrim, who had a power of inflicting greater Punishments on fuch capital Offenders. Not that every calling our Brother Racha, from a juft Rebuke of fome Misunderstanding or Miscarriage, fell under their heavy Sentence; for St. James thus call'd his Brother Racha, Chap. 2. 20. Wilt thou know, O vain Man, in the Hebrew Racha, that Faith without Works is dead? But 'tis only the calling him fo out of an evil and malicious Intention, with a defign to undervalue and affront him, that incurs this Penalty:

2. The faying to our Brother, Thou Fool, is yet a higher Provocation, and not eafily borne; for 'tis the greatest Reflection upon Mens Understanding and Credit, of both which Men generally are and ought to be very tender: Tis the calling him not only a witlefs, but a wicked Fellow; which deeply wounds his Reputation, and arraigns his whole Life and this occafions very great Refentments,

which frequently lead Men to Outrage and Violence. And therefore a greater Punishment is annex'd to this, than any of the former; and that is, to be in danger of Hell-fire: which fignifies not only the incurring of the temporal Punishments of this Life, but the eternal Torments hereafter in Hell, reprefented by the Fire of Tophet in the Val ley of Hinnom. But here we may note again, that 'tis not every calling another Fool, that brings Men into this danger for Solomon calls the wicked Man Fool throughout the whole Book of Proverbs; and St. Paul faid to him that doubted of the Refurrection, Thou Fool, that which thou foweft is not quicken'd except it die, 1 Cor. 15. 36. And he elfewhere rebuk'd the Galatians, faying, O foolish Galatians, asking, who had bewitch'd them, that they should not obey the Truth? Gal. 3. 1. But the faying Thou Fool here, is with a defire or defign of vilifying, deriding, or fcoffing at another; which moves to Vindication and Revenge, and is many times an Occafion of Murder: for which reason our Saviour interprets it as forbidden in this fixth Commandment, that fays, Thou shalt not kill.

And therefore our bleffed Saviour, to prevent all these Dangers and mischievous Confequents, exhorts Chriftians to confider and remove all thefe Occafions, especially before they enter upon the facred Acts and Duties of Religion; faying in the next words, Therefore if thou bring thy Gift to the Altar, and there remembreft that thy Brother bath ought against thee, leave there thy Gift before the Altar, and go thy way, first be reconcil'd to thy Brother, and then come and offer thy Gift. Where the bringing the Gift to the Altar, relates to all the Offerings and Sacrifices under the Law, which were requir'd to be offer'd on the Altar, either for the Atonement of Sin, or the Commemoration of Mercies receiv'd: fuch were the Sin-Offering, the Peace-Offering, the Freewill-Offering, together with the daily and yearly Sa crifices; all which tho requir'd as Duties, yet were call'd and accepted as Gifts. Such likewife are the Christian Sacrifices and Oblations requir'd now under the Gofpel, as Prayers, Praifes, Faftings, Thanksgivings, hearing the Word, and efpecially receiving the holy Sacrament; all which when we offer up in the Church, or at the holy Table, we are faid to bring our Gift to the Altar.

And when we do fo, and there call to mind, that our Brother hath ought against us, that is, that we have been angry with him without a caufe, or that we have abus'd or

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