object of his journey, which Saul had no right to know for by his wickedness he had forfeited his throne. The prophet Jeremiah had been thrown into a dungeon by the order of king Zedekiah, and by the malicious influence of the princes of Judah. He is afterward admitted to a private conference with the king, in which he instructs the king what ought to be doner in the present critical state of the nation. The king well knew that if the princes should discover the subject of his conversation with the prophet, his own person would be in danger. At parting, therefore, he charges Jeremiah to conceal it from them; and, if ex amined, to say, "I presented my supplication before the king, that he would not cause me to return to the house of Jonathan to die there."-" And when the princes came, he told them according to these words, and the matter was not perceived." This, doubtless, * was a part of the conversation; the rest it was danger. ous to reveal, and the princes had no right to demand it; the prophet, therefore, did well to withhold it.

Farther: There are certain figures, common to all languages, which express things differently from the literal truth, but yet are innocent, because, being well understood, they convey no wrong ideas. We often. use a certain number for an uncertain. Jacob says of Laban," He hath changed my wages ten times. By an hyperbole, we sometimes exceed the literal truth. David says, I make my bed to swim with tears.” ́ There is also an ironical way of speaking, in which the contrary is intended to that which is literally express ed. Elijah says to the prophets of Baal, "Cry aloud, for he is a god?i. e. ye call him a god, though we know him to be vanity and a lie. The prophet Micaiah says to king Ahab, "Go up against Ramoth Gilead." and prosper, for the Lord will deliver it into thing hands; "though he well knew that the king would there be defeated and slain. But here was no deception. The king understood him perfectly. His plain,

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obvious meaning was this, "You depend on the lying, predictions of your false prophets, who promise you success in this favorite expedition: It is vain for me to contradict them; for you will not believe me. Go,. and try the issue: See whether God will prosper you 2° or not.

But though such figures are innocent, when they are introduced with propriety, yet care should be taken, that they are never used in such a time or manner, as to be the occasions of deception. In stating this matter, let it be again observed,

A man may, in some cases, be guilty of lying, though he speaks no more than what is strictly and literally true. If, for instance, he expresses the truth with an air of irony, so that the hearers will naturally suppose he means the contrary; or if he divulges a truth, which he was previously bound to conceal; or if he affirms that, which he really thinks to be false, though it should ultimately be verified in fact; in such cases he is manifestly chargeable with a criminal prevarication. Having stated the nature of lying, we proceed,

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2. To mention some particular cases, in which men are guilty of it,

Now the grossest kind of lying is perjury, or speaking a known falsehood under the awful solemnity of an oath. This is a degree of wickedness, to which few "will venture, until they have been accustomed to the lower kinds of profanity and falsehood. The crime is greater in proportion to the magnitude and importance of the case in which it is admitted. Perjury in itself. is a horrible crime, as it is a contempt of God's power and justice, and a trampling on the sacredness of truth; but when it is so used as to endanger the property liberty, reputation, or life of a fellow citizen, its criminality is horribly augmented. It is then a shocking complication of falsehood, impiety, unrighteousness and cruelty.

Men violate truth, when they affix to words an arbitrary meaning, or make, in their own minds, certain - secret reservations, with a design to disguise facts, and deceive the hearers. It is custom only that gives words and signs their currency. They have just so much value, as the authority of common usage has stamped upon them. And he who attempts to deceive another by departing from the usual signification of words, is just as guilty, as if he had used any other words with the same deceitful intention.

When we express doubtful matters in terms, and with an air of assurance, we may materially injure as well as grossly deceive our neighbor. We never ought to report for certain the things which we have received only from vulgar fame-from a strangerfrom. men of doubtful veracity from those, who, though, otherwise of good character, yet, in that case, are known to be under a violent prejudice. Of matters, thus circumstanced we should speak doubtfully, or state our authority, or, which is usually better than either, say nothing at all.

Men are guilty of wanton and malicious falsehood, ..when they repeat, with romantic additions,, and fictitious embellishments, the stories which they have J. heard of a neighbor, that thus they may excite against him the severer ridicule, or cast on his character a darker stain, or turn to merriment his godly actions, or his innocent peculiarities. If no more than the gratification of a vein of humor is intended, the fiction, is far less criminal. But even here there is guilt and danger; there is a departure from that, simplicity, which ought to guide our conversation; and mischief may ensue, of which we are not aware; an innocent neighbor may be materially injured; and a habit acquired in - smaller matters may lead to grosser violations of truth. A Men may utter a falsehood by the tone of their voice,

while their words are literally true. Language is imperfect; we have not a distinct word for every

You think, much by our emphasis and air.

though; we express muc

perhaps, you keep near enough to truth, if you repeat the words, which you heard from another; but you may as effectually belie him by a different manner of speaking, as by different sentences. There are those who make, as well as speak a lie.oa ni Having mentioned some of the ways, in which men violate truth, we will, 3. Consider several distinct cases, in which we are oddng privig of bound to speak truth with our neighbor. of doods We must preserve truth in our common and famil iar conversation. This is chiefly intended in the text. Precepts similar to this often occur in the sacred writings 56 "Lie not one to another, seeing ye have put off the old man with his deeds."" Whatsoever things are true, think on these things."-"He who shall enter into God's holy hill, is one who speaketh the truth in his heart." When friends and neighbors sit in the social circle, the conversation will often turn apon matters which seem to be of little consequences of But whatever may be the subject, their speech should o be with grace, seasoned with salt; their conversation should be with simplicity and sincerity: However inw different the subject may be, a habit of trifling with truth cannot be indifferent. Things which appear I small in themselves, may be great in their effects. Trivial misrepresentations, jocular falsehoods and fiction tious new bat painfully disquiet honest minds, and incurably break the peace of neighborhoods. We must speak truth in our commerce with one on Лед boog another. The Apostle says, "Let no man go beyond,da or defraud his brother in any matter." The prophet mentions this as an evidence of the prodigious corrup-d tion of, the Jewish nation, that they bent their b tongues, like their bows, for lies"-that "every broth-109 er would utterly supplant, and they would deceive every one his neighbor"" that they had taught their tongues to speak lies, and wearied themselves to come

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mit iniquity; and when one spake peaceably to his neighbor, he, in his heart, laid wait for him." So much deception was practised among them, that the prophet says, "Take heed every man of his neighbor, and trust ye not in any brother." Falsehood in deal ing soon destroys mutual confidence; and when con fidence is lost, society must disband.

In giving public testimony, we must be careful, as on the one hand, to say nothing but the truth, so, on the other, to conceal no part of the truth, which relates to the matter under examination. A partial and a false representation of facts may equally operate to the perversion of justice. And if, through our prevarication, wrong judgment proceeds, we are answerable for the

consequences.

We must adhere to truth, when we speak of men's actions or characters. Speak evil of no man," says the Apostle. This precept, however, must be understood with some limitation. We may have occasion to speak the evil, which we know of another, either in our own vindication, or for the security of our friends. But when no good end is to be obtained, the evil which we know, ought not to be disclosed. Private expostulation and admonition are all that duty demands. If occasion calls us to speak, we must say no more than truth will justify, and the occasion requires. We are not to speak evil of another, on doubtful evidence, or uncertain hearsay. It is one part of the description of a good man, that "he backbiteth not with his tongue, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbor." We should consider, that the ill report may come from his enemy, or from a prejudiced person-that there may be some mistake in the story, or some circumstance added or omitted, which gives the whole affair a false complexion. If we give a new spring to the rumor, we know not how far it will run, nor what a form it may assume, in passing from one to another. When once it is gone from us, it immediately flies out of our