aim short, and prohibit him all irregular and exorbitant actions: since they are so contrary to human nature and such a disturbance in God's government: and fince there is nothing in inferior nature, but what is regular and conftant, from the first moment of its creation, to this hour. There is turpitude in every act of fin; yet fins differ for there are feveral degrees of fin; for fins are aggravated or abated by the difpofition, capacities, and principles of the agent that commits them. As

1. If there be clear light, and fulness of liberty; then it is fin with a high hand.

2. If fin be committed in doubtfulness and uncer tainty, then it weakens and disables confcience. Great regard is to be had to the innocence and tenderness of our own mind. The wife man in Ecclefiafticus faith, thou hast no friend in all the world. so near to thee as the reason of thy own mind, therefore never treat the reason of thy mind unhandsomely. Treat kindly thy home reprover; there is no friend truer to thee, nor can do thee better fervice; therefore hear it's voice, and give it fatisfaction.

3. If men fin through confusion of thoughts, then it may be faid we were not ourselves. One may fay we were but half ourselves, when we did it.

4: If we fin by misapprehenfion or mistake; then we did not intend that, but another thing, when we

did it.

5. If we did it by an affault, or fudden suprifal, then it was as well another's fault as ours.

6. If upon provocation, heat of paffion, and we revoke it as foon as we return to ourselves; by this

we

we make it morally void and null: for you do revoke and morally undo, that which you repent of.

7. If men fin by some carelessness, negligence, and indiligence; if we recompence it by after care, and diligence upon this costly experience; this alfo helps to excufe.

I conclude with two words of admonition to two forts of perfons.

First, To the atheistical, and profane, I earnestly recommend to them the re-examining of things; and if they do not pretend to infallibility, I beg of them to confider their former thoughts and refolutions. Think again, whether the great things of religion may not be realities, viz. the being of a God, the immortality of the soul, the essential difference of good and evil; and future rewards and punishments. At least do not practise against the sense of these things; but return, and use thy reason, which if not vitiated and prepossest, will fatisfy the native fenfe of the mind. To fay nothing now of scripture (which speaks enough of affurance of what it declares; fo that they which read it will not easily shut their hands of it, ifthey intend to be wicked;) reason hath fo much to say for these great things, that the obstinate are put upon it, to blind and blot out those reasons and arguments, which they know not what to say to, nor how to answer; which stick as so many goads in their fides. No man but he, who is habitually evil, and hath dethroned his reason, and confederated with the enemy of his mind, can fatisfy himself, that there is no reason to fatisfy him to fear these great things, viz. the being of a God, the immortality and eternity of the foul, and future punishments. If then these things be real, have not finners run a wild course? I will only tell them,

1. That many, who have as madly refolved, have before their deaths found cause to alter their judgments in these matters, and thought it their safeft way to deprecate their offence.

1

2. However they make shift to stifle the voice of confcience at present, and go on to fin; some others, who have sometime done the like, have never had any true enjoyment of themselves after such wounds made in their confcience, and breach of their peace; but either fell into confufion of thought and perplexity of mind, or distraction, and have been sometimes their own executioners, and have made an end of themselves; rather then endure the reproofs of their confciences, have rid themselves out of the world.

3. Those that are of raised intellectuals, of refined morals, of fober reason, would not have upon them the guilt of fome mens fins (however they may escape judgment in this world) for all the titles, powers and revenues which fuch men enjoy in the world. It will only give fuch, reafon to know, that notwithstanding their own incompetent judgment concerning themselves, that is true even of them, which is faid by Samuel concerning the wicked fons of Eli; they have made themselves vile, and contemptible. So are these profane and atheistical persons; they are base in the fight of God, and in the fight of wife men: for wickedness doth difrobe any man

of

of his excellency, and makes him vile and contemptible.

Secondly, To perfons engaged in ways of religion. If these be real and fincere in their profession, they are in a state of reconciliation with God; and if in a state of reconciliation with him, then let them be true to the terms of friendship, and not do acts of enemies in the state of friendship. Let them that name the name of Christ, depart from iniquity. Where God Speaks peace to his people, let them not return again to folly, Pfal. Ixxxv. 8. To the fear of God, in scripture, is always adjoined the eschewing of evil; and this is the character God gives of an upright man, Job i. 8. It is efssential to religion, to walk according to the difference of good and evil. There are other things which have the use and confideration of the means in religion, which I call the instrumental part of religion : but religion itself, doth issue in holiness, uprightness, integrity, and feparation from iniquity.

VOL. L

K

DIS

DISCOURSE IX.

The DANGER OF UNFAITHFULNESS to GOD.

НЕВ. ііі. 12.

Take heed, brethren, left there be in any of you, an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

R

ELIGION is

highly concerned in two

things; the judgment of truth, and the conscience of right and he doth substantially fail upon account of religion, that is wanting in either of these.

I shall now confider the reasons of this caution in the text, Take heed, brethren, &c. We are highly concerned to be cautious and wary, upon a fourfold

account.

1. From those things that are within us. 2. From things that are about us.

3. From the great confequence and importance that truth and goodness hath unto our fouls.

4. From not a poffibility only, but a probability of failing, and miscarrying, if care be not taken; and the greatness of the evil, if we do fall short.

I. We had need to be wary, because of those things that are within us: for if once we consent to iniquity, and acquaint ourselves with evil, we put ourselves out of an indifferency to good and e