9. Evil juftifies itself by prefcription and general practice; fo it was formerly, and fo it is ftill. And this is taken for a juftification. This was the practice of those Ifraelites that were not carried away captive, who diffembled with the prophet and with God himself; who, tho' they enquired what they should do, yet were refolved to do as their fathers did before them; because then, they said, it was well with them, when they offered incenfe to the queen of heaven, and therefore they would do fo aagain. Things that are in ufe and cuftom, men think they may do; and what have been done before them. What, will they fay, fhall I be wifer than my forefathers? This is the answer of many Papifts among us, who will hear nothing that is faid to them, because they will not damn thofe that went before them, nor pretend to be wifer than their anceftors; others fay, what! fhall we call into queftion common practice? do not those that are wifer and more learned than I, do the fame things? nay, do not men of place and power do the same things? This is just like Ahab to Micaiah, 1 Kings xxii. Do not all the prophets speak so and so? let thy word be like unto theirs. Not a word of what God fhould fay unto him, or what was true and right; but let thy word be like unto the rest of the prophets. So it is with many men, they follow other mens practice, without confidering what is right and fit to be done.

10. I fhall obferve in the laft place,that which is moft dangerous of all others, and that is this; when the first motion towards repentance and converfion

is lookt upon as if it were the fovereign remedy of repentance itself. As if forrow for fin, were the whole product of repentance; whereas indeed, that which is true repentance, must be accompanied with the forfaking of fin and bringing forth the fruitsofrighteoufnefs. By which St. John means the reformation and amendment of our lives.

And that I may the better fatisfy you in this, I defire you to confider, that the first motions of repentance have been, where nothing that was good followed upon it. We read that Judas was forry for his fin, in betraying our Saviour; but what followed upon it? nothing but defperation and felf-murder. Cain was fenfible of the murder of his brother, and affected with the consequence that he thought would follow upon it; for, faith he, every one that meets me will kill me though this fear feemed very unreasonable at that time. We read in the 2 Pet. ii. 18. of fome that were clean escaped from the pollutions of the world, that were again entangled, whose last end was worse than their beginning. And that it is better not to have known the way of righteousness, than afterward to depart from the holy commandment. My caution therefore is, that if you look towards God, and your minds ferve you to make any application to him; that you pursue that good motion till you bring it into a fettled ftate; for otherwise the firft motion towards repentance may prove an aggravation of your fin, and heavier condemnation.

Thus I have given you ten instances of the deceit fulness of fin. And, as I told you at firft, it will trouble

trouble us lefs to be over-born and forced, than to be cheated. For the former we may not be able to help; but we cannot be deceived, if we be but as wife as we should, and ought to be. That one man is ftronger and richer than another may not be in our power to help; but if a man be not as wife and virtuous as another, it may be much his own fault. For this depends upon his own due care, and the improvement of those faculties that God hath given him. And I am of opinion, that we should all be wife enough one for another, if we were but equally honeft. The truth is, if any one be dishonest, he may deceive a good man: for such a man is given to charity, and apt to think of others as he finds himself, and fo to have a good opinion. But if I am cheated a second time, I am a fool. We read of persons that lay under worldly disadvantages that yet arrived to great wisdom and understanding. The poor man by his wisdom saved the city, Ecclef. ix. 15. And we read of a wife woman that faved her husband, and a great many people. And poor Lazarus was wife for eternity. Therefore, as I faid, we may be over-born by power without any great difparagement; but we cannot be cheated, but it must have an ill reflexion upon ourselves. For no man makes a bargain unless he please, and he need not unless he will. If he want experience, why hath he not taken advice? So that, if he be cheated, it is owing to his weakness, willfulness, or rashness; for he might have prevented it. No man is afhamed that another is preferred before him in wealth and ability: but the meanest creature will

be

be impatient to be thought to want wit, or to be accounted a fool.

Having thus given an account of the deceitfulness of fin; I will,

II. Shew you in fome particulars, how great reafon we have, according to the advice of the apoftle to take heed that we are not deceived.

1. Because in this ftate we run all manner of ba zards and dangers, to which God that hath a care of his creatures, doth yet fuffer us to be expofed ; and that grace he affords us is not only for ornament, but for conflict. Some use the grace of God more, and fome lefs; and others wholly neglect it. God did account, that we fhould use and employ the faculties which he gave us ; and 'tis unaccountable to God, if any man comes into human nature and doth not so use mind and understanding (that is capable of God, and receptive from God, and fit to make acknowledgments to him) I say, if he doth not use it for these purposes. For here we are to fight the good fight of faith, 1 Tim. vii. 12. To run a race, 1 Cor. ix. 24, 26. and obtain a prize.

In the work of religion, much is here to be done, many temptations to be refifted, many conflicts to be made.

2. Our feveral faculties have different inclinations, and fome of them are not at all capable of reason, therefore not to be governed by any moral confiderations, which make it a very hard province that we are to act in. Many of our faculties are governed only by reftraint, and are not held or drawn by the cords of a man: as for example, ap

petite;

petite; for which reafon, Solomon faith, Put a knife to thy throat, if thou beest a man given unto it. For, reafon will not fatisfy an exorbitant appetite; and this creates to us great difficulty. This is the rule in all things, that a man act according to reafm, which is the candle of the Lord fet up in him; and by this he should be directed, and fee his way be. fore him. For even the grace of God doth adjoin itself only to our higher principles. For this end it is given to guide and direct them; but for our lower faculties, they are otherwife to be dealt with: we must offer violence to them, if they be exorbi

tant.

3. Things without us, and round about us, prefented with their feveral advantages, do many times provoke and allure us; and are hardly to be denied. And a man hath nothing to withhold him, but the virtue of his mind, and refpect to God. And abundance in the world are so profane, as to decry these principles, as things of fancy and imagination• Therefore it is neceffary that we fhould be fettled in a state of virtue, or we shall never, like Joseph, be able to refift evil, and to say, How can I do this wickedness, and fin against God? Therefore faith Solomon, Prov. ii. 11. Let understanding guide thee; let difcretion keep thee.

4. That which fhould be for our fecurity, viz. company and converse this oftentimes becomes a fnare to us: though (as Solomon faith) two is better than one, because if one fall, the other shall lift him up. And this was the design of God in making a fecond to be an help unto the first; that fo, that VOL. I.

N

which