,transcribed from the #ahhi ,george ,routledge and ,sons 8,the ,tale of a ,tub and ,other ,works0 edition by ,stephen ,rice4 ,additional proofing by ,david ,price1 email ccx#jgdpglaf4org ,picture3 ,book cover ,,three ,,prayers ,,and ,,sermons ,,by ,,jonathan ,,swift ,,contents4 ,prayers used by the ,dean for ,stella #cgc ,on ,mutual ,subjection #cgg ,on ,sleeping in ,church #che ,on the ,wisdom of this ,world #cic ,,three ,,prayers ,,used ,,by ,,the ,,dean ,,for ,,stella ,,in ,,her ,,last ,,sickness1 #agbg4 ,i4 ,,almighty and most gracious ,lord ,god1 extend1 we beseech ,thee1 ,thy pity and compassion toward this ,thy languishing servant2 teach her to place her hope and confidence entirely in ,thee2 give her a true sense of the emptiness and vanity of all earthly things2 make her truly sensible of all the infirmities of her life past1 and grant to her such a true sincere repentance as is not to be repented of4 ,preserve her1 ,o ,lord1 in a sound mind and understanding during this ,thy visitation2 keep her from both the sad extremes of presumption and despair4 ,if ,thou shalt please to restore her to her former health1 give her grace to be ever mindful of that mercy1 and to keep those good resolutions she now makes in her sickness1 so that no length of time nor prosperity may entice her to forget them4 ,let no thought of her misfortunes distract her mind1 and prevent the means toward her recovery1 or disturb her in her preparations for a better life4 ,we beseech thee also1 ,o ,lord1 of ,thy infinite goodness1 to remember the good actions of this ,thy servant2 that the naked she hath clothed1 the hungry she hath fed1 the sick and the fatherless whom she hath relieved1 may be reckoned according to ,thy gracious promise1 as if they had been done unto ,thee4 ,hearken1 ,o ,lord1 to the prayers offered up by the friends of this ,thy servant in her behalf1 and especially those now made by us unto thee4 ,give ,thy blessing to those endeavours used for her recovery2 but take from her all violent desire either of life or death1 further than with resignation to ,thy holy will4 ,and now1 ,o ,lord1 we implore ,thy gracious favour toward us here met together4 ,grant that the sense of this ,thy servant's weakness may add strength to our faith2 that we1 considering the infirmities of our nature and the uncertainty of life1 may by this example be drawn to repentance before it shall please ,thee to visit us in like manner4 ,accept these prayers1 we beseech ,thee1 for the sake of ,thy dear ,son ,jesus ,christ1 our ,lord1 who1 with ,thee and the ,holy ,ghost1 liveth and reigneth1 ever one ,god1 world without end4 ,amen4 ,,ii4 ,,written ,,october #ag1 #agbg4 ,,most merciful ,father1 accept our humblest prayers in behalf of this ,thy languishing servant2 forgive the sins1 the frailties1 and infirmities of her life past4 ,accept the good deeds she hath done in such a manner that1 at whatever time ,thou shalt please to call her1 she may be received into everlasting habitations4 ,give her grace to continue sincerely thankful to ,thee for the many favours ,thou hast bestowed upon her1 the ability and inclination and practice to do good1 and those virtues which have procured the esteem and love of her friends and a most unspotted name in the world4 ,o ,god1 ,thou dispensest ,thy blessings and ,thy punishments as it becometh infinite justice and mercy2 and since it was ,thy pleasure to afflict her with a long1 constant1 weakly state of health1 make her truly sensible that it was for very wise ends1 and was largely made up to her in other blessings more valuable and less common4 ,continue to her1 ,o ,lord1 that firmness and constancy of mind wherewith ,thou hast most graciously endowed her1 together with that contempt of worldly things and vanities that she has shown in the whole conduct of her life4 ,o ,all-powerful ,being1 the least motion of whose will can create or destroy a world1 pity us1 the mournful friends of ,thy distressed servant1 who sink under the weight of her present condition1 and the fear of losing the most valuable of our friends4 ,restore her to us1 ,o ,lord1 if it be ,thy gracious will1 or inspire us with constancy and resignation to support ourselves under so heavy an affliction4 ,restore her1 ,o ,lord1 for the sake of those poor who1 by losing her1 will be desolate1 and those sick who will not only want her bounty1 but her care and tending2 or else1 in ,thy mercy1 raise up some other in her place with equal disposition and better abilities4 ,lessen1 ,o ,lord1 we beseech ,thee1 her bodily pains1 or give her a double strength of mind to support them4 ,and if ,thou wilt soon take her to ,thyself1 turn our thoughts rather upon that felicity which we hope she shall enjoy1 than upon that unspeakable loss we shall endure4 ,let her memory be ever dear unto us1 and the example of her many virtues1 as far as human infirmity will admit1 our constant imitation4 ,accept1 ,o ,lord1 these prayers1 poured from the very bottom of our hearts1 in ,thy mercy1 and for the merits of our blessed ,saviour4 ,amen4 ,,iii4 ,,written ,,november #f1 #agbg4 ,o ,,merciful ,father1 who never afflictest ,thy children but for their own good1 and with justice1 over which ,thy mercy always prevaileth1 either to turn them to repentance1 or to punish them in the present life in order to reward them in a better2 take pity1 we beseech ,thee1 upon this ,thy poor afflicted servant1 languishing so long and so grievously under the weight of ,thy hand4 ,give her strength1 ,o ,lord1 to support her weakness1 and patience to endure her pains without repining at ,thy correction4 ,forgive every rash and inconsiderate expression which her anguish may at any time force from her tongue1 while her heart continueth in an entire submission to ,thy will4 ,suppress in her1 ,o ,lord1 all eager desires of life1 and lessen her fears of death by inspiring into her an humble yet assured hope of ,thy mercy4 ,give her a sincere repentance for all her transgressions and omissions1 and a firm resolution to pass the remainder of her life in endeavouring to her utmost to observe all ,thy precepts4 ,we beseech ,thee likewise to compose her thoughts1 and preserve to her the use of her memory and reason during the course of her sickness4 ,give her a true conception of the vanity1 folly1 and insignificance of all human things1 and strengthen her so as to beget in her a sincere love of ,thee in the midst of her sufferings4 ,accept and impute all her good deeds1 and forgive her all those offences against ,thee which she hath sincerely repented of or through the frailty of memory hath forgot4 ,and now1 ,o ,lord1 we turn to ,thee in behalf of ourselves and the rest of her sorrowful friends4 ,let not our grief afflict her mind1 and thereby have an ill effect on her present distemper4 ,forgive the sorrow and weakness of those among us who sink under the grief and terror of losing so dear and useful a friend4 ,accept and pardon our most earnest prayers and wishes for her longer continuance in this evil world1 to do what ,thou art pleased to call ,thy service1 and is only her bounden duty1 that she may be still a comfort to us and to all others who will want the benefit of her conversation1 her advice1 her good offices1 or her charity4 ,and since ,thou hast promised that where two or three are gathered together in ,thy name ,thou wilt be in the midst of them to grant their request1 ,o gracious ,lord1 grant to us who are here met in ,thy name that those requests1 which in the utmost sincerity and earnestness of our hearts we have now made in behalf of this ,thy distressed servant and of ourselves1 may effectually be answered1 through the merits of ,jesus ,christ our ,lord4 ,amen4 ,,on ,,mutual ,,subjection4 #cgg 7,,first ,,printed ,,in #agdd47 8,yea1 all of you be subject one to another40--,i ,peter v4 #e ,,the ,apostle having1 in many parts of this ,epistle1 given directions to ,christians concerning the duty of subjection or obedience to superiors1 in the several instances of the subject to the prince1 the child to his parent1 the servant to his master1 the wife to her husband1 and the younger to the elder1 doth here1 in the words of my text1 sum up the whole by advancing a point of doctrine1 which at first may appear a little extraordinary4 8,yea1 all of you10 saith he1 8be subject one to another40 ,for it should seem that two persons cannot properly be said to be subject to each other1 and that subjection is only due from inferiors to those above them2 yet ,st4 ,paul hath several passages to the same purpose4 ,for he exhorts the ,romans 8in honour to prefer one another20 and the ,philippians1 8that in lowliness of mind they should each esteem other better than themselves20 and the ,ephesians1 8that they should submit themselves one to another in the fear of the ,lord40 ,here we find these two great ,apostles recommending to all ,christians this duty of mutual subjection4 ,for we may observe1 by ,st4 ,peter1 that having mentioned the several relations which men bear to each other1 as governor and subject1 master and servant1 and the rest which ,i have already repeated1 he makes no exception1 but sums up the whole with commanding 8all to be subject one to another40 ,whence we may conclude that this subjection due from all men to all men is something more than the compliment of course1 when our betters are pleased to tell us they are our humble servants1 but understand us to be their slaves4 ,i know very well that some of those who explain this text apply it to humility1 to the duties of charity1 to private exhortations1 and to bearing with each other's infirmities2 and it is probable the ,apostle may have had a regard to all these4 ,but1 however1 many learned men agree that there is something more understood1 and so the words in their plain natural meaning must import1 as you will observe yourselves if you read them with the beginning of the verse1 which is thus3 8,likewise1 ye younger1 submit yourselves unto the elder2 yea1 all of you be subject one to another40 ,so that1 upon the whole1 there must be some kind of subjection due from every man to every man1 which cannot be made void by any power1 pre-eminence1 or authority whatsoever4 ,now what sort of subjection this is1 and how it ought to be paid1 shall be the subject of my present discourse4 ,as ,god hath contrived all the works of ,nature to be useful1 and in some manner a support to each other1 by which the whole frame of the world1 under ,his providence1 is preserved and kept up1 so among mankind our particular stations are appointed to each of us by ,god ,almighty1 wherein we are obliged to act as far as our power reacheth toward the good of the whole community4 ,and he who doth not perform that part assigned him towards advancing the benefit of the whole1 in proportion to his opportunities and abilities1 is not only a useless1 but a very mischievous member of the public2 because he takes his share of the profit1 and yet leaves his share of the burden to be borne by others1 which is the true principal cause of most miseries and misfortunes in life4 ,for a wise man who does not assist with his counsels1 a great man with his protection1 a rich man with his bounty and charity1 and a poor man with his labour1 are perfect nuisances in a commonwealth4 ,neither is any condition of life more honourable in the sight of ,god than another2 otherwise ,he would be a respecter of persons1 which ,he assures us ,he is not2 for ,he hath proposed the same salvation to all men1 and hath only placed them in different ways or stations to work it out4 ,princes are born with no more advantages of strength or wisdom than other men1 and1 by an unhappy education1 are usually more defective in both than thousands of their subjects4 ,they depend for every necessary of life upon the meanest of their people2 besides1 obedience and subjection were never enjoined by ,god to humour the passions1 lusts1 and vanities of those who demand them from us2 but we are commanded to obey our governors1 because disobedience would breed seditions in the state4 ,thus servants are directed to obey their masters1 children their parents1 and wives their husbands1 not from any respect of persons in ,god1 but because otherwise there would be nothing but confusion in private families4 ,this matter will be clearly explained by considering the comparison which ,st4 ,paul makes between the ,church of ,christ and the body of man2 for the same resemblance will hold not only to families and kingdoms1 but to the whole corporation of mankind4 8,the eye10 saith he1 8cannot say unto the hand1 #8,i have no need of thee2' nor again the hand to the foot1 #8,i have no need of thee4' ,nay1 much more those members of the body which seem to be more feeble are necessary2 and whether one member suffer1 all the members suffer with it2 or one member be honoured1 all the members rejoice with it40 ,the case is directly the same among mankind4 ,the prince cannot say to the merchant1 8,i have no need of thee10 nor the merchant to the labourer1 8,i have no need of thee40 ,nay1 much more those members which seem to be more feeble are necessary2 for the poor are generally more necessary members of the commonwealth than the rich2 which clearly shows that ,god never intended such possessions for the sake and service of those to whom ,he lends them1 but because he hath assigned every man his particular station to be useful in life1 and this for the reason given by the ,apostle1 8that there may be no schism in the body40 ,from hence may partly be gathered the nature of that subjection which we all owe to one another4 ,god ,almighty hath been pleased to put us into an imperfect state1 where we have perpetual occasion of each other's assistance4 ,there is none so low as not to be in a capacity of assisting the highest1 nor so high as not to want the assistance of the lowest4 ,it plainly appears1 from what hath been said1 that no one human creature is more worthy than another in the sight of ,god1 further than according to the goodness or holiness of their lives2 and that power1 wealth1 and the like outward advantages1 are so far from being the marks of ,god's approving or preferring those on whom they are bestowed1 that1 on the contrary1 ,he is pleased to suffer them to be almost engrossed by those who have least title to ,his favour4 ,now1 according to this equality wherein ,god hath placed all mankind with relation to ,himself1 you will observe that in all the relations between man and man there is a mutual dependence1 whereby the one cannot subsist without the other4 ,thus no man can be a prince without subjects1 nor a master without servants1 nor a father without children4 ,and this both explains and confirms the doctrine of the text2 for where there is a mutual dependence there must be a mutual duty1 and consequently a mutual subjection4 ,for instance1 the subject must obey his prince1 because ,god commands it1 human laws require it1 and the safety of the public makes it necessary2 for the same reasons we must obey all that are in authority1 and submit ourselves not only to the good and gentle1 but also to the froward1 whether they rule according to our liking or not4 ,on the other side1 in those countries that pretend to freedom1 princes are subject to those laws which their people have chosen2 they are bound to protect their subjects in liberty1 property1 and religion1 to receive their petitions and redress their grievances1 so that the best prince is1 in the opinion of wise men1 only the greatest servant of the nation--not only a servant to the public in general1 but in some sort to every man in it4 ,in the like manner a servant owes obedience1 and diligence1 and faithfulness to his master1 from whom1 at the same time1 he hath a just demand for protection1 and maintenance1 and gentle treatment4 ,nay1 even the poor beggar hath a just demand of an alms from the rich man1 who is guilty of fraud1 injustice1 and oppression if he does not afford relief according to his abilities4 ,but this subjection we all owe one another is nowhere more necessary than in the common conversations of life1 for without it there could be no society among men4 ,if the learned would not sometimes submit to the ignorant1 the wise to the simple1 the gentle to the froward1 the old to the weaknesses of the young1 there would be nothing but everlasting variance in the world4 ,this our ,saviour ,himself confirmed by ,his own example2 for ,he appeared in the form of a servant and washed ,his disciples' feet1 adding those memorable words1 8,ye call me ,lord and ,master1 and ye say well1 for so ,i am4 ,if ,i then1 your ,lord and ,master1 wash your feet1 how much more ought ye to wash one another's feet80 ,under which expression of washing the feet is included all that subjection1 assistance1 love1 and duty1 which every good ,christian ought to pay his brother1 in whatever station ,god hath placed him4 ,for the greatest prince and the meanest slave are not1 by infinite degrees1 so distant as our ,saviour and those disciples1 whose feet ,he vouchsafed to wash4 ,and although this doctrine of subjecting ourselves to one another may seem to grate upon the pride and vanity of mankind1 and may therefore be hard to be digested by those who value themselves upon their greatness or their wealth1 yet it is really no more than what most men practise upon other occasions4 ,for if our neighbour1 who is our inferior1 comes to see us1 we rise to receive him2 we place him above us1 and respect him as if he were better than ourselves2 and this is thought both decent and necessary1 and is usually called good manners4 ,now the duty required by the ,apostle is only that we should enlarge our minds1 and that what we thus practise in the common course of life we should imitate in all our actions and proceedings whatsoever2 since our ,saviour tells us that every man is our neighbour1 and since we are so ready1 in point of civility1 to yield to others in our own houses1 where only we have any title to govern4 ,having thus shown you what sort of subjection it is which all men owe one another1 and in what manner it ought to be paid1 ,i shall now draw some observations from what hath been said4 ,and first1 a thorough practice of this duty of subjecting ourselves to the wants and infirmities of each other would utterly extinguish in us the vice of pride4 ,for if ,god has pleased to intrust me with a talent1 not for my own sake1 but for the service of others1 and at the same time hath left me full of wants and necessities which others must supply1 ,i can then have no cause to set any extraordinary value upon myself1 or to despise my brother because he hath not the same talents which were lent to me4 ,his being may probably be as useful to the public as mine2 and therefore1 by the rules of right reason1 ,i am in no sort preferable to him4 ,secondly1 ,it is very manifest1 from what has been said1 that no man ought to look upon the advantages of life1 such as riches1 honour1 power1 and the like1 as his property1 but merely as a trust which ,god hath deposited with him to be employed for the use of his brethren1 and ,god will certainly punish the breach of that trust1 though the laws of man will not1 or rather indeed cannot2 because the trust was conferred only by ,god1 who has not left it to any power on earth to decide infallibly whether a man makes a good use of his talents or not1 or to punish him where he fails4 ,and therefore ,god seems to have more particularly taken this matter into ,his own hands1 and will most certainly reward or punish us in proportion to our good or ill performance in it4 ,now1 although the advantages which one possesseth more than another may1 in some sense1 be called his property with respect to other men1 yet with respect to ,god they are1 as ,i said1 only a trust1 which will plainly appear from hence3 if a man does not use those advantages to the good of the public or the benefit of his neighbour1 it is certain he doth not deserve them1 and consequently that ,god never intended them for a blessing to him2 and on the other side1 whoever does employ his talents as he ought will find1 by his own experience1 that they were chiefly lent him for the service of others1 for to the service of others he will certainly employ them4 ,thirdly1 ,if we could all be brought to practise this duty of subjecting ourselves to each other1 it would very much contribute to the general happiness of mankind1 for this would root out envy and malice from the heart of man2 because you cannot envy your neighbour's strength if he make use of it to defend your life or carry your burden2 you cannot envy his wisdom if he gives you good counsel2 nor his riches if he supplies your wants2 nor his greatness if he employs it to your protection4 ,the miseries of life are not properly owing to the unequal distribution of things1 but ,god ,almighty1 the great ,king of heaven1 is treated like the kings of the earth1 who1 although perhaps intending well themselves1 have often most abominable ministers and stewards1 and those generally the vilest to whom they intrust the most talents4 ,but here is the difference1 that the princes of this world see by other men's eyes1 but ,god sees all things2 and therefore1 whenever ,he permits ,his blessings to be dealt among those who are unworthy1 we may certainly conclude that ,he intends them only as a punishment to an evil world1 as well as to the owners4 ,it were well if those would consider this1 whose riches serve them only as a spur to avarice or as an instrument of their lusts2 whose wisdom is only of this world1 to put false colours upon things1 to call good evil and evil good against the conviction of their own consciences2 and lastly1 who employ their power and favour in acts of oppression or injustice1 in misrepresenting persons and things1 or in countenancing the wicked to the ruin of the innocent4 ,fourthly1 ,the practice of this duty of being subject to one another would make us rest contented in the several stations of life wherein ,god hath thought fit to place us1 because it would1 in the best and easiest manner1 bring us back1 as it were1 to that early state of the ,gospel when ,christians had all things in common4 ,for if the poor found the rich disposed to supply their want1 if the ignorant found the wise ready to instruct and direct them1 or if the weak might always find protection from the mighty1 they could none of them1 with the least pretence of justice1 lament their own condition4 ,from all that hath been hitherto said it appears that great abilities of any sort1 when they are employed as ,god directs1 do but make the owners of them greater and more painful servants to their neighbour and the public4 ,however1 we are by no means to conclude from hence that they are not really blessings1 when they are in the hands of good men4 ,for1 first1 what can be a greater honour than to be chosen one of the stewards and dispensers of ,god's bounty to mankind8 ,what is there that can give a generous spirit more pleasure and complacency of mind than to consider that he is an instrument of doing much good2 that great numbers owe to him1 under ,god1 their subsistence1 their safety1 their health1 and the good conduct of their lives8 ,the wickedest man upon earth takes a pleasure in doing good to those he loves2 and therefore surely a good ,christian1 who obeys our ,saviour's commands of loving all men1 cannot but take delight in doing good even to his enemies4 ,god1 who gives all things to all men1 can receive nothing from any2 and those among men who do the most good and receive the fewest returns do most resemble the ,creator2 for which reason ,st4 ,paul delivers it as a saying of our ,saviour1 that 8it is more blessed to give than receive40 ,by this rule1 what must become of those things which the world values as the greatest blessings--riches1 power1 and the like--when our ,saviour plainly determines that the best way to make them blessings is to part with them8 ,therefore1 although the advantages which one man hath over another may be called blessings1 yet they are by no means so in the sense the world usually understands4 ,thus1 for example1 great riches are no blessings in themselves1 because the poor man1 with the common necessaries of life1 enjoys more health and has fewer cares without them4 ,how then do they become blessings8 ,no otherwise than by being employed in feeding the hungry1 clothing the naked1 rewarding worthy men1 and1 in short1 doing acts of charity and generosity4 ,thus1 likewise1 power is no blessing in itself1 because private men bear less envy1 and trouble1 and anguish without it4 ,but when it is employed to protect the innocent1 to relieve the oppressed1 and to punish the oppressor1 then it becomes a great blessing4 ,and so1 lastly1 even great wisdom is1 in the opinion of ,solomon1 not a blessing in itself2 for 8in much wisdom is much sorrow20 and men of common understanding1 if they serve ,god and mind their callings1 make fewer mistakes in the conduct of life than those who have better heads4 ,and yet wisdom is a mighty blessing when it is applied to good purposes1 to instruct the ignorant1 to be a faithful counsellor either in public or private1 to be a director to youth1 and to many other ends needless here to mention4 ,to conclude3 ,god sent us into the world to obey ,his commands1 by doing as much good as our abilities will reach1 and as little evil as our many infirmities will permit4 ,some ,he hath only trusted with one talent1 some with five1 and some with ten4 ,no man is without his talent2 and he that is faithful or negligent in a little shall be rewarded or punished1 as well as he that hath been so in a great deal4 ,consider what hath been said1 c4 ,,on ,,sleeping ,,in ,,church4 8,and there sat in the window a certain young man named ,eutychus1 being fallen into a deep sleep2 and while ,paul was long preaching1 he sunk down with sleep1 and fell down from the third loft1 and was taken up dead40--,acts xx4 #i4 ,i ,,have chosen these words with design1 if possible1 to disturb some part in this audience of half an hour's sleep1 for the convenience and exercise whereof this place1 at this season of the day1 is very much celebrated4 ,there is indeed one mortal disadvantage to which all preaching is subject1 that those who1 by the wickedness of their lives1 stand in greatest need1 have usually the smallest share2 for either they are absent upon the account of idleness1 or spleen1 or hatred to religion1 or in order to doze away the intemperance of the week2 or1 if they do come1 they are sure to employ their minds rather any other way than regarding or attending to the business of the place4 ,the accident which happened to this young man in the text hath not been sufficient to discourage his successors2 but because the preachers now in the world1 however they may exceed ,st4 ,paul in the art of setting men to sleep1 do extremely fall short of him in the working of miracles1 therefore men are become so cautious as1 to choose more safe and convenient stations and postures for taking their repose without hazard of their persons1 and upon the whole matter choose rather to trust their destruction to a miracle than their safety4 ,however1 this being not the only way by which the lukewarm ,christians and scorners of the age discover their neglect and contempt of preaching1 ,i shall enter expressly into consideration of this matter1 and order my discourse in the following method3-- ,first1 ,i shall produce several instances to show the great neglect of preaching now among us4 ,secondly1 ,i shall reckon up some of the usual quarrels men have against preaching4 ,thirdly1 ,i shall get forth the great evil of this neglect and contempt of preaching1 and discover the real causes whence it proceedeth4 ,lastly1 ,i shall offer some remedies against this great and spreading evil4 ,first1 ,i shall produce certain instances to show the great neglect of preaching now among us4 ,these may be reduced under two heads4 ,first1 men's absence from the service of the church2 and secondly1 their misbehaviour when they are here4 ,the first instance of men's neglect is in their frequent absence from the church4 ,there is no excuse so trivial that will not pass upon some men's consciences to excuse their attendance at the public worship of ,god4 ,some are so unfortunate as to be always indisposed on the ,lord's day1 and think nothing so unwholesome as the air of a church4 ,others have their affairs so oddly contrived as to be always unluckily prevented by business4 ,with some it is a great mark of wit and deep understanding to stay at home on ,sundays4 ,others again discover strange fits of laziness1 that seize them particularly on that day1 and confine them to their beds4 ,others are absent out of mere contempt of religion4 ,and lastly1 there are not a few who look upon it as a day of rest1 and therefore claim the privilege of their cattle1 to keep the ,sabbath by eating1 drinking1 and sleeping1 after the toil and labour of the week4 ,now in all this1 the worst circumstance is that these persons are such whose company is most required1 and who stand most in need of a physician4 ,secondly1 ,men's great neglect and contempt of preaching appear by their misbehaviour when at church4 ,if the audience were to be ranked under several heads1 according to their behaviour when the ,word of ,god is delivered1 how small a number would appear of those who receive it as they ought6 ,how much of the seed then sown would be found to fall by the wayside1 upon stony ground1 or among thorns6 and how little good ground would there be to take it6 ,a preacher cannot look round from the pulpit without observing that some are in a perpetual whisper1 and by their air and gesture give occasion to suspect that they are in those very minutes defaming their neighbour4 ,others have their eyes and imagination constantly engaged in such a circle of objects1 perhaps to gratify the most unwarrantable desires1 that they never once attend to the business of the place2 the sound of the preacher's words do not so much as once interrupt them4 ,some have their minds wandering among idle1 worldly1 or vicious thoughts2 some lie at catch to ridicule whatever they hear1 and with much wit and humour1 provide a stock of laughter by furnishing themselves from the pulpit4 ,but of all misbehaviour1 none is comparable to that of those who come here to sleep4 ,opium is not so stupefying to many persons as an afternoon sermon4 ,perpetual custom hath so brought it about that the words of whatever preacher become only a sort of uniform sound at a distance1 than which nothing is more effectual to lull the senses4 ,for that it is the very sound of the sermon which bindeth up their faculties is manifest from hence1 because they all awake so very regularly as soon as it ceaseth1 and with much devotion receive the blessing1 dozed and besotted with indecencies ,i am ashamed to repeat4 99 99 99 99 99 ,i proceed1 secondly1 to reckon up some of the usual quarrels men have against preaching1 and to show the unreasonableness of them4 ,such unwarrantable behaviour as ,i have described among ,christians in the house of ,god in a solemn assembly1 while their faith and duty are explained and delivered1 have put those who are guilty upon inventing some excuses to extenuate their fault2 this they do by turning the blame either upon the particular preacher or upon preaching in general4 ,first1 they object against the particular preacher3 his manner1 his delivery1 his voice1 are disagreeable2 his style and expression are flat and slow1 sometimes improper and absurd2 the matter is heavy1 trivial1 and insipid1 sometimes despicable and perfectly ridiculous2 or else1 on the other side1 he runs up into unintelligible speculation1 empty notions1 and abstracted flights1 all clad in words above usual understandings4 ,secondly1 ,they object against preaching in general4 ,it is a perfect road of talk2 they know already whatever can be said2 they have heard the same a hundred times over4 ,they quarrel that preachers do not relieve an old beaten subject with wit and invention1 and that now the art is lost of moving men's passions1 so common among the ancient orators of ,greece and ,rome4 ,these and the like objections are frequently in the mouths of men who despise the foolishness of preaching4 ,but let us examine the reasonableness of them4 ,the doctrine delivered by all preachers is the same3 8,so we preach1 and so ye believe40 ,but the manner of delivering is suited to the skill and abilities of each1 which differ in preachers just as in the rest of mankind4 ,however1 in personal dislikes of a particular preacher1 are these men sure they are always in the right8 ,do they consider how mixed a thing is every audience1 whose taste and judgment differ1 perhaps1 every day1 not only from each other1 but themselves8 ,and how to calculate a discourse that shall exactly suit them all1 is beyond the force and reach of human reason1 knowledge1 or invention4 ,wit and eloquence are shining qualities that ,god hath imparted in great degrees to very few1 nor any more to be expected in the generality of any rank among men than riches and honour4 ,but further1 if preaching in general be all old and beaten1 and that they are already so well acquainted with it1 more shame and guilt to them who so little edify by it6 ,but these men1 whose ears are so delicate as not to endure a plain discourse of religion1 who expect a constant supply of wit and eloquence on a subject handled so many thousand times1 what will they say when we turn the objection upon themselves1 who1 with all the rude and profane liberty of discourse they take upon so many thousand subjects1 are so dull as to furnish nothing but tedious repetitions1 and little paltry1 nauseous commonplaces1 so vulgar1 so worn1 or so obvious1 as1 upon any other occasion but that of advancing vice1 would be hooted off the stage8 ,nor1 lastly1 are preachers justly blamed for neglecting human oratory to move the passions1 which is not the business of a ,christian orator1 whose office it is only to work upon faith and reason4 ,all other eloquence hath been a perfect cheat1 to stir up men's passions against truth and justice for the service of a faction1 to put false colours upon things1 and1 by an amusement of agreeable words1 make the worst reason appear to be the better4 ,this is certainly not to be allowed in ,christian eloquence1 and therefore ,st4 ,paul took quite the other course4 ,he 8came not with the excellency of words1 or enticing speech of men's wisdom1 but in plain evidence of the ,spirit and power40 ,and perhaps it was for that reason the young man ,eutychus1 used to the ,grecian eloquence1 grew tired and fell so fast asleep4 99 99 99 99 99 ,i go on1 thirdly1 to set forth the great evil of this neglect and scorn of preaching1 and to discover the real causes whence it proceedeth4 ,i think it is obvious that this neglect of preaching hath very much occasioned the great decay of religion among us4 ,to this may be imputed no small part of that contempt some men bestow on the clergy1 for whoever talketh without being regarded is sure to be despised4 ,to this we owe in a great measure the spreading of atheism and infidelity among us1 for religion1 like all other things1 is soonest put out of countenance by being ridiculed4 ,the scorn of preaching might perhaps have been at first introduced by men of nice ears and refined taste1 but it is now become a spreading evil through all degrees and both sexes2 for1 since sleeping1 talking1 and laughing are qualities sufficient to furnish out a critic1 the meanest and most ignorant have set up a title1 and succeeded in it as well as their betters4 ,thus are the last efforts of reforming mankind rendered wholly useless4 8,how shall they hear10 saith the ,apostle1 8without a preacher80 ,but if they have a preacher1 and make it a point of wit or breeding not to hear him1 what remedy is left8 ,to this neglect of preaching we may also entirely impute that gross ignorance among us in the very principles of religion1 which it is amazing to find in persons who very much value their own knowledge and understanding in other things2 yet it is a visible1 inexcusable ignorance1 even in the meanest among us1 considering the many advantages they have of learning their duty4 ,and it hath been the great encouragement to all manner of vice2 for in vain we preach down sin to a people 8whose hearts are waxed gross1 whose ears are dull of hearing and whose eyes are closed40 ,therefore ,christ ,himself in ,his discourses frequently rouseth up the attention of the multitude1 and of ,his disciples themselves1 with this expression1 8,he that hath ears to hear let him hear40 ,but among all neglects of preaching1 none is so fatal as that of sleeping in the house of ,god4 ,a scorner may listen to truth and reason1 and in time grow serious2 an unbeliever may feel the pangs of a guilty conscience2 one whose thoughts or eyes wander among other objects may1 by a lucky word1 be called back to attention2 but the sleeper shuts up all avenues to his soul2 he is 8like the deaf adder1 that hearkeneth not to the voice of the charmer1 charm he never so wisely20 and we may preach with as good success to the grave that is under his feet4 ,but the great evil of this neglect will further yet appear from considering the real causes whence it proceedeth1 whereof the first ,i take to be an evil conscience4 ,many men come to church to save or gain a reputation1 or because they will not be singular1 but comply with an established custom1 yet all the while they are loaded with the guilt of old rooted sins4 ,these men can expect to hear of nothing but terrors and threatenings1 their sins laid open in true colours1 and eternal misery the reward of them2 therefore1 no wonder they stop their care and divert their thoughts1 and seek any amusement rather than stir the hell within them4 ,another cause of this neglect is a heart set upon worldly things4 ,men whose minds are much enslaved to earthly affairs all the week cannot disengage or break the chain of their thoughts so suddenly as to apply to a discourse that is wholly foreign to what they have most at heart4 ,tell a usurer of charity1 and mercy1 and restitution--you talk to the deaf2 his heart and soul1 with all his senses1 are got among his bags1 or he is gravely asleep and dreaming of a mortgage4 ,tell a man of business1 that the cares of the world choke the good seed2 that we must not encumber ourselves with much serving2 that the salvation of his soul is the one thing necessary2 you see1 indeed1 the shape of a man before you1 but his faculties are all gone off among clients and papers1 thinking how to defend a bad cause or find flaws in a good one2 or he weareth out the time in drowsy nods4 ,a third cause of the great neglect and scorn of preaching ariseth from the practice of men who set up to decry and disparage religion2 these1 being zealous to promote infidelity and vice1 learn a rote of buffoonery that serveth all occasions1 and refutes the strongest arguments for piety and good manners4 ,these have a set of ridicule calculated for all sermons and all preachers1 and can be extremely witty as often as they please upon the same fund4 ,let me now1 in the last place1 offer some remedies against this great evil4 ,it will be one remedy against the contempt of preaching rightly to consider the end for which it was designed4 ,there are many who place abundance of merit in going to church1 although it be with no other prospect but that of being well entertained1 wherein if they happen to fail1 they return wholly disappointed4 ,hence it is become an impertinent vein among people of all sorts to hunt after what they call a good sermon1 as if it were a matter of pastime and diversion4 ,our business1 alas6 is quite another thing2 either to learn1 or at least be reminded of1 our duty2 to apply the doctrines delivered1 compare the rules we hear with our lives and actions1 and find wherein we have transgressed4 ,these are the dispositions men should bring into the house of ,god1 and then they will be little concerned about the preacher's wit or eloquence1 nor be curious to inquire out his faults and infirmities1 but consider how to correct their own4 ,another remedy against the contempt of preaching is that men would consider whether it be not reasonable to give more allowance for the different abilities of preachers than they usually do4 ,refinements of style and flights of wit1 as they are not properly the business of any preacher1 so they cannot possibly be the talents of all4 ,in most other discourses1 men are satisfied with sober sense and plain reason2 and1 as understandings usually go1 even that is not over-frequent4 ,then why they should be so over-nice in expectation of eloquence1 where it is neither necessary nor convenient1 is hard to imagine4 ,lastly1 ,the scorners of preaching would do well to consider that this talent of ridicule they value so much is a perfection very easily acquired1 and applied to all things whatsoever2 neither is anything at all the worse because it is capable of being perverted to burlesque2 perhaps it may be the more perfect upon that score1 since we know the most celebrated pieces have been thus treated with greatest success4 ,it is in any man's power to suppose a fool's-cap on the wisest head1 and then laugh at his own supposition4 ,i think there are not many things cheaper than supposing and laughing2 and if the uniting these two talents can bring a thing into contempt1 it is hard to know where it may end4 ,to conclude3 ,these considerations may perhaps have some effect while men are awake2 but what arguments shall we use to the sleeper8 ,what methods shall we take to hold open his eyes8 ,will he be moved by considerations of common civility8 ,we know it is reckoned a point of very bad manners to sleep in private company1 when1 perhaps1 the tedious impertinence of many talkers would render it at least as excusable as the dullest sermon4 ,do they think it a small thing to watch four hours at a play1 where all virtue and religion are openly reviled2 and can they not watch one half hour to hear them defended8 ,is this to deal like a judge 7,i mean like a good judge71 to listen on one side of the cause and sleep on the other8 ,i shall add but one word more4 ,that this indecent sloth is very much owing to that luxury and excess men usually practise upon this day1 by which half the service thereof is turned to sin2 men dividing their time between ,god and their bellies1 when1 after a gluttonous meal1 their senses dozed and stupefied1 they retire to ,god's house to sleep out the afternoon4 ,surely1 brethren1 these things ought not so to be4 8,he that hath ears to hear let him hear40 ,and ,god give us all1 grace to hear and receive ,his ,holy ,word to the salvation of our own souls4 ,,on ,,the ,,wisdom ,,of ,,this ,,world4 8,the wisdom of this world is foolishness with ,god40--,i ,cor4 iii4 #ai4 ,,it is remarkable that about the time of our ,saviour's coming into the world all kinds of learning flourished to a very great degree1 insomuch that nothing is more frequent in the mouths of many men1 even such who pretend to read and to know1 than an extravagant praise and opinion of the wisdom and virtue of the ,gentile sages of those days1 and likewise of those ancient philosophers who went before them1 whose doctrines are left upon record1 either by themselves or other writers4 ,as far as this may be taken for granted1 it may be said that the providence of ,god brought this about for several very wise ends and purposes2 for it is certain that these philosophers had been a long time before searching out where to fix the true happiness of man2 and not being able to agree upon any certainty about it1 they could not possibly but conclude1 if they judged impartially1 that all their inquiries were in the end but vain and fruitless1 the consequence of which must be not only an acknowledgment of the weakness of all human wisdom1 but likewise an open passage hereby made for letting in those beams of light which the glorious sunshine of the ,gospel then brought into the world1 by revealing those hidden truths which they had so long before been labouring to discover1 and fixing the general happiness of mankind beyond all controversy and dispute4 ,and therefore the providence of ,god wisely suffered men of deep genius and learning then to arise1 who should search into the truth of the ,gospel now made known1 and canvass its doctrines with all the subtilty and knowledge they were masters of1 and in the end freely acknowledge that to be the true wisdom only 8which cometh from above40 ,however1 to make a further inquiry into the truth of this observation1 ,i doubt not but there is reason to think that a great many of those encomiums given to ancient philosophers are taken upon trust1 and by a sort of men who are not very likely to be at the pains of an inquiry that would employ so much time and thinking4 ,for the usual ends why men affect this kind of discourse appear generally to be either out of ostentation1 that they may pass upon the world for persons of great knowledge and observation1 or1 what is worse1 there are some who highly exalt the wisdom of those ,gentile sages1 thereby obliquely to glance at and traduce ,divine revelation1 and more especially that of the ,gospel2 for the consequence they would have us draw is this3 that since those ancient philosophers rose to a greater pitch of wisdom and virtue than was ever known among ,christians1 and all this purely upon the strength of their own reason and liberty of thinking2 therefore it must follow that either all revelation is false1 or1 what is worse1 that it has depraved the nature of man1 and left him worse than it found him4 ,but this high opinion of heathen wisdom is not very ancient in the world1 nor at all countenanced from primitive times4 ,our ,saviour had but a low esteem of it1 as appears by ,his treatment of the ,pharisees and ,sadducees1 who followed the doctrines of ,plato and ,epicurus4 ,st4 ,paul likewise1 who was well versed in all the ,grecian literature1 seems very much to despise their philosophy1 as we find in his writings1 cautioning the ,colossians to 8beware lest any man spoil them through philosophy and vain deceit20 and in another place he advises ,timothy to 8avoid profane and vain babblings1 and oppositions of science falsely so called20 that is1 not to introduce into the ,christian doctrine the janglings of those vain philosophers1 which they would pass upon the world for science4 ,and the reasons he gives are1 first1 that those who professed them did err concerning the faith2 secondly1 because the knowledge of them did increase ungodliness1 vain babblings being otherwise expounded vanities or empty sounds2 that is1 tedious disputes about words1 which the philosophers were always so full of1 and which were the natural product of disputes and dissensions between several sects4 ,neither had the primitive fathers any great or good opinion of the heathen philosophy1 as is manifest from several passages in their writings2 so that this vein of affecting to raise the reputation of those sages so high ,is a mode and a vice but of yesterday1 assumed chiefly1 as ,i have said1 to disparage revealed knowledge and the consequences of it among us4 ,now1 because this is a prejudice which may prevail with some persons so far as to lessen the influence of the ,gospel1 and whereas1 therefore1 this is an opinion which men of education are likely to be encountered with when they have produced themselves into the world1 ,i shall endeavour to show that their preference of heathen wisdom and virtue before that of the ,christian is every way unjust1 and grounded upon ignorance or mistake2 in order to which ,i shall consider four things3-- ,first1 ,i shall produce certain points wherein the wisdom and virtue of all unrevealed philosophy in general fell short and was very imperfect4 ,secondly1 ,i shall show1 in several instances1 where some of the most renowned philosophers have been grossly defective in their lessons of morality4 ,thirdly1 ,i shall prove the perfection of ,christian wisdom from the proper characters and marks of it4 ,lastly1 ,i shall show that the great examples of wisdom and virtue among the heathen wise men were produced by personal merit1 and not influenced by the doctrine of any sect2 whereas1 in ,christianity1 it is quite the contrary4 ,first1 ,i shall produce certain points wherein the wisdom and virtue of all unrevealed philosophy in general fell short and was very imperfect4 ,my design is to persuade men that ,christian philosophy is in all things preferable to heathen wisdom2 from which1 or its professors1 ,i shall1 however1 have no occasion to detract4 ,they were as wise and as good as it was possible for them to be under such disadvantages1 and would have probably been infinitely more so with such aids as we enjoy2 but our lessons are certainly much better1 however our practices may fall short4 ,the first point ,i shall mention is that universal defect which was in all their schemes1 that they could not agree about their chief good1 or wherein to place the happiness of mankind2 nor had any of them a tolerable answer upon this difficulty to satisfy a reasonable person4 ,for to say1 as the most plausible of them did1 8,that happiness consisted in virtue10 was but vain babbling1 and a mere sound of words to amuse others and themselves2 because they were not agreed what this virtue was or wherein it did consist2 and likewise1 because several among the best of them taught quite different things1 placing happiness in health or good fortune1 in riches or in honour1 where all were agreed that virtue was not1 as ,i shall have occasion to show when ,i speak of their particular tenets4 ,the second great defect in the ,gentile philosophy was that it wanted some suitable reward proportioned to the better part of man--his mind1 as an encouragement for his progress in virtue4 ,the difficulties they met with upon the score of this default were great1 and not to be accounted for2 bodily goods1 being only suitable to bodily wants1 are no rest at all for the mind2 and if they were1 yet are they not the proper fruits of wisdom and virtue1 being equally attainable by the ignorant and wicked4 ,now human nature is so constituted that we can never pursue anything heartily but upon hopes of a reward4 ,if we run a race1 it is in expectation of a prize2 and the greater the prize the faster we run2 for an incorruptible crown1 if we understand it and believe it to be such1 more than a corruptible one4 ,but some of the philosophers gave all this quite another turn1 and pretended to refine so far as to call virtue its own reward1 and worthy to be followed only for itself2 whereas1 if there be anything in this more than the sound of the words1 it is at least too abstracted to become a universal influencing principle in the world1 and therefore could not be of general use4 ,it was the want of assigning some happiness proportioned to the soul of man that caused many of them1 either on the one hand1 to be sour and morose1 supercilious and untreatable1 or1 on the other1 to fall into the vulgar pursuits of common men1 to hunt after greatness and riches1 to make their court and to serve occasions1 as ,plato did to the younger ,dionysius1 and ,aristotle to ,alexander the ,great4 ,so impossible it is for a man who looks no further than the present world to fix himself long in a contemplation where the present world has no part2 he has no sure hold1 no firm footing2 he can never expect to remove the earth he rests upon while he has no support besides for his feet1 but wants1 like ,archimedes1 some other place whereon to stand4 ,to talk of bearing pain and grief without any sort of present or future hope cannot be purely greatness of spirit2 there must be a mixture in it of affectation and an alloy of pride1 or perhaps is wholly counterfeit4 ,it is true there has been all along in the world a notion of rewards and punishments in another life1 but it seems to have rather served as an entertainment to poets or as a terror of children than a settled principle by which men pretended to govern any of their actions4 ,the last celebrated words of ,socrates1 a little before his death1 do not seem to reckon or build much upon any such opinion2 and ,csar made no scruple to disown it and ridicule it in open senate4 ,thirdly1 the greatest and wisest of all their philosophers were never able to give any satisfaction to others and themselves in their notions of a deity4 ,they were often extremely gross and absurd in their conceptions1 and those who made the fairest conjectures are such as were generally allowed by the learned to have seen the system of ,moses1 if ,i may so call it1 who was in great reputation at that time in the heathen world1 as we find by ,diodorus1 ,justin1 ,longinus1 and other authors2 for the rest1 the wisest among them laid aside all notions after a deity as a disquisition vain and fruitless1 which indeed it was upon unrevealed principles2 and those who ventured to engage too far fell into incoherence and confusion4 ,fourthly1 ,those among them who had the justest conceptions of a ,divine power1 and did also admit a providence1 had no notion at all of entirely relying and depending upon either2 they trusted in themselves for all things1 but as for a trust or dependence upon ,god1 they would not have understood the phrase2 it made no part of the profane style4 ,therefore it was that1 in all issues and events which they could not reconcile to their own sentiments of reason and justice1 they were quite disconcerted2 they had no retreat1 but upon every blow of adverse fortune1 either affected to be indifferent1 or grew sullen and severe1 or else yielded and sunk like other men4 99 99 99 99 99 ,having now produced certain points wherein the wisdom and virtue of all unrevealed philosophy fell short and was very imperfect1 ,i go on1 in the second place1 to show1 in several instances1 where some of the most renowned philosophers have been grossly defective in their lessons of morality4 ,thales1 the founder of the ,ionic sect1 so celebrated for morality1 being asked how a man might bear ill-fortune with greatest ease1 answered1 8,by seeing his enemies in a worse condition40 ,an answer truly barbarous1 unworthy of human nature1 and which included such consequences as must destroy all society from the world4 ,solon lamenting the death of a son1 one told him1 8,you lament in vain40 8,therefore10 said he1 8,i lament1 because it is in vain40 ,this was a plain confession how imperfect all his philosophy was1 and that something was still wanting4 ,he owned that all his wisdom and morals were useless1 and this upon one of the most frequent accidents in life4 ,how much better could he have learned to support himself even from ,david1 by his entire dependence upon ,god1 and that before our ,saviour had advanced the notions of religion to the height and perfection wherewith ,he hath instructed ,his disciples6 ,plato himself1 with all his refinements1 placed happiness in wisdom1 health1 good fortune1 honour1 and riches1 and held that they who enjoyed all these were perfectly happy2 which opinion was indeed unworthy its owner1 leaving the wise and good man wholly at the mercy of uncertain chance1 and to be miserable without resource4 ,his scholar ,aristotle fell more grossly into the same notion1 and plainly affirmed1 8,that virtue1 without the goods of fortune1 was not sufficient for happiness1 but that a wise man must be miserable in poverty and sickness40 ,nay1 ,diogenes himself1 from whose pride and singularity one would have looked for other notions1 delivered it as his opinion1 8,that a poor old man was the most miserable thing in life40 ,zeno also and his followers fell into many absurdities1 among which nothing could be greater than that of maintaining all crimes to be equal2 which1 instead of making vice hateful1 rendered it as a thing indifferent and familiar to all men4 ,lastly1 ,epicurus had no notion of justice but as it was profitable2 and his placing happiness in pleasure1 with all the advantages he could expound it by1 was liable to very great exception2 for although he taught that pleasure did consist in virtue1 yet he did not any way fix or ascertain the boundaries of virtue1 as he ought to have done2 by which means he misled his followers into the greatest vices1 making their names to become odious and scandalous even in the heathen world4 ,i have produced these few instances from a great many others to show the imperfection of heathen philosophy1 wherein ,i have confined myself wholly to their morality4 ,and surely we may pronounce upon it1 in the words of ,st4 ,james1 that 8,this wisdom descended not from above1 but was earthly and sensual40 ,what if ,i had produced their absurd notions about ,god and the soul8 ,it would then have completed the character given it by that ,apostle1 and appeared to have been devilish too4 ,but it is easy to observe from the nature of these few particulars that their defects in morals were purely the flagging and fainting of the mind for want of a support by revelation from ,god4 99 99 99 99 99 ,i proceed1 therefore1 in the third place1 to show the perfection of ,christian wisdom from above2 and ,i shall endeavour to make it appear from those proper characters and marks of it by the ,apostle before mentioned1 in the third chapter1 and #aeth1 #afth1 and #agth verses4 ,the words run thus-- 8,this wisdom descendeth not from above1 but is earthly1 sensual1 devilish4 8,for where envying and strife is1 there is confusion and every evil work4 8,but the wisdom that is from above is first pure1 then peaceable1 gentle1 and easy to be entreated1 full of mercy and good fruits1 without partiality and without hypocrisy40 8,the wisdom from above is first pure40 ,this purity of the mind and spirit is peculiar to the ,gospel4 ,our ,saviour says1 8,blessed are the pure in heart1 for they shall see ,god40 ,a mind free from all pollution of lusts shall have a daily vision of ,god1 whereof unrevealed religion can form no notion4 ,this is it that keeps us unspotted from the world1 and hereby many have been prevailed upon to live in the practice of all purity1 holiness1 and righteousness1 far beyond the examples of the most celebrated philosophers4 ,it is 8peaceable1 gentle1 and easy to be entreated40 ,the ,christian doctrine teacheth us all those dispositions that make us affable and courteous1 gentle and kind1 without any morose leaven of pride or vanity1 which entered into the composition of most heathen schemes3 so we are taught to be meek and lowly4 ,our ,saviour's last legacy was peace1 and ,he commands us to forgive our offending brother unto seventy times seven4 ,christian wisdom is full of mercy and good works1 teaching the height of all moral virtues1 of which the heathens fell infinitely short4 ,plato indeed 7and it is worth observing7 has somewhere a dialogue1 or part of one1 about forgiving our enemies1 which was perhaps the highest strain ever reached by man without ,divine assistance2 yet how little is that to what our ,saviour commands us1 8,to love them that hate us1 to bless them that curse us1 and to do good to them that despitefully use us40 ,christian wisdom is 8without partiality20 it is not calculated for this or that nation of people1 but the whole race of mankind4 ,not so the philosophical schemes1 which were narrow and confined1 adapted to their peculiar towns1 governments1 or sects2 but 8in every nation1 he that feareth ,god and worketh righteousness is accepted with ,him40 ,lastly1 ,it is 8without hypocrisy20 it appears to be what it really is2 it is all of a piece4 ,by the doctrines of the ,gospel we are so far from being allowed to publish to the world those virtues we have not1 that we are commanded to hide even from ourselves those we really have1 and not to let our right hand know what our left hand does1 unlike several branches of the heathen wisdom1 which pretended to teach insensibility and indifference1 magnanimity and contempt of life1 while at the same time1 in other parts1 it belied its own doctrines4 ,i come now1 in the last place1 to show that the great examples of wisdom and virtue among the ,grecian sages were produced by personal merit2 and not influenced by the doctrine of any particular sect1 whereas in ,christianity it is quite the contrary4 ,the two virtues most celebrated by ancient moralists were fortitude and temperance1 as relating to the government of man in his private capacity1 to which their schemes were generally addressed and confined1 and the two instances wherein those virtues arrived at the greatest height were ,socrates and ,cato4 ,but neither these1 nor any other virtues possessed by these two1 were at all owing to any lessons or doctrines of a sect4 ,for ,socrates himself was of none at all2 and although ,cato was called a ,stoic1 it was more from a resemblance of manners in his worst qualities1 than that he avowed himself one of their disciples4 ,the same may be affirmed of many other great men of antiquity4 ,whence ,i infer that those who were renowned for virtue among them were more obliged to the good natural dispositions of their own minds than to the doctrines of any sect they pretended to follow4 ,on the other side1 as the examples of fortitude and patience among the primitive ,christians have been infinitely greater1 and more numerous1 so they were altogether the product of their principles and doctrine1 and were such as the same persons1 without those aids1 would never have arrived to4 ,of this truth most of the ,apostles1 with many thousand martyrs1 are a cloud of witnesses beyond exception4 ,having1 therefore1 spoken so largely upon the former heads1 ,i shall dwell no longer upon this4 ,and if it should here be objected1 ,why does not ,christianity still produce the same effects8 it is easy to answer1 first1 that1 although the number of pretended ,christians be great1 yet that of true believers1 in proportion to the other1 was never so small2 and it is a true lively faith alone that1 by the assistance of ,god's grace1 can influence our practice4 ,secondly1 ,we may answer that ,christianity itself has very much suffered by being blended up with ,gentile philosophy4 ,the ,platonic system1 first taken into religion1 was thought to have given matter for some early heresies in the ,church4 ,when disputes began to arise1 the ,peripatetic forms were introduced by ,scotus as best fitted for controversy4 ,and however this may now have become necessary1 it was surely the author of a litigious vein1 which has since occasioned very pernicious consequences1 stopped the progress of ,christianity1 and been a great promoter of vice2 verifying that sentence given by ,st4 ,james1 and mentioned before1 8,where envying and strife is1 there is confusion and every evil work40 ,this was the fatal stop to the ,grecians in their progress both of arts and arms2 their wise men were divided under several sects1 and their governments under several commonwealths1 all in opposition to each other1 which engaged them in eternal quarrels among themselves1 while they should have been armed against the common enemy4 ,and ,i wish we had no other examples1 from the like causes1 less foreign or ancient than that4 ,diogenes said ,socrates was a madman2 the disciples of ,zeno and ,epicurus1 nay1 of ,plato and ,aristotle1 were engaged in fierce disputes about the most insignificant trifles4 ,and if this be the present language and practice among us ,christians no wonder that ,christianity does not still produce the same effects which it did at first1 when it was received and embraced in its utmost purity and perfection2 for such wisdom as this cannot 8descend from above10 but must be 8earthly1 sensual1 devilish1 full of confusion and every evil work10 whereas1 8the wisdom from above is first pure1 then peaceable1 gentle1 and easy to be entreated1 full of mercy and good fruits1 without partiality1 and without hypocrisy40 ,this is the true heavenly wisdom1 which ,christianity only can boast of1 and which the greatest of the heathen wise men could never arrive at4 ,now to ,god the ,father1 c4 ,,footnotes4 #cgg ,a clearer style1 or a discourse more properly adapted to a public audience1 can scarce be framed4 ,every paragraph is simple1 nervous1 and intelligible4 ,the threads of each argument are closely connected and logically pursued4--,orrery4