neceffary or convenient, what is within the bounds of moderation, and what not, muft in a great measure be left to the judgment of every particular chriftian, upon an honest and confcientious regard to these true ends of drinking, as well as eating. God hath planted in every man a natural defire of life; and eating and drinking are the only refreshments he has given to support it: but, when we speak of the refreshments which nature defires and calls for, we must carefully distinguish between the defires of nature, before a habit of intemperance, and after it. Nature, not vitiated with custom or habit, is eafy and content with a reasonable and moderate refreihment; but the cravings of nature under the dominion of habit (if we may then call it nature) are unlimited and endlefs: the more they are indulged, the more cager they are; and never ceafe, till the fenfes and understanding are drowned. They are as much a disease as thirft in a fever; and are no more to be gratified than that is; nay (if the matter be rightly confidered) much lefs; as that is, at moft, attended only with temporal death, whereas the certain effect of this is death eternal. Therefore it is very finful in itself, and very ungrateful and unreasonable in us, to fuffer an inordinate appetite to turn thofe very bleffings to the deftruction of life, which God has graciously given us for the prefervation of it. Not as if men were bound to live by weight and measure, or were presently finful if they go beyond the proportions which will barely support life: for the great guard and caution which God requires at our hands is not fo much to keep to the nice proportions that will barely preferve life, as 'to keep from that which will weaken and deftroy it: and between the proportions that will barely fupport nature, and those that will overcharge it, there is a compafs and latitude, within which we may innocently enjoy the bleffings of Heaven. God has provided drinks, as well as meats, in the nature of remedies, to revive and refresh the drooping fpirits, and to give new life and vigour to the whole frame: but then we must remember to use them as God intended them: not fo as to lay afide or fuperfede our natural strength and vigour, but only to affift nature, when we find her faint and drooping. We must not apply these remedies till nature calls for them; being either in a state of hunger and

Bb 3

thirst,

[Sund. 15. thirst, or else tired and overcome with thought and labour: nor, when nature does call, muft we apply them in larger proportions than fhe requires, or larger than will fairly anfwer her needs. And as you have read, that the end of drinking, as well as eating, is to fit and prepare us for the bufinefs of the flation wherein God's providence hath placed us; it follows, that one great rule and measure in the enjoyment of those bleflings is to ufe and apply them in fuch a manner, as may make them moft fubfervient to the daily business of our calling and profeffion. And this we do, when in our ordinary course we make the feafons of drinking, as well as eating, what they ought to be, only short retreats from businefs, and not the bufinefs of life; when we take care in convenient time to return to the duties and offices of our calling, and to carry with us fufficient understanding and abilities to pursue it; and when what we call the unbendings of our mind, which may be fometimes neceffary, are rare, and without any mixture of riot or excefs; for whatever is beyond thefe is an irregular and finful use of God's creatures.

rance.

III. By attending to what has been faid you will be able to The danger judge, not only what are the proper bounds of foof intempe briety and temperance, and when it is that you exceed thofe bounds; but alfo how great and heinous the guilt of that excefs is, and its wretched abufe of the bleffings of God, not only in forgetting their proper ends, but in perverting them to ends directly contrary; in turning that to the deftruction of life, which God gave for the prefervation of it; in making that the means of ftupefying the spirits which he defigned to raise and refresh them; in transforming ourselves into the state of brutes, by the very helps that he bestows for a more vigorous discharge of the duties and offices of a rational creature; and, finally, in making that the occafion of indifpofing ourselves for the business of life, which God graciously gives to fupport us under it. Yet, From the common and loathfome practice of drinking till

The falfe

ends of drinking.

men are drunk, it is manifelt that they have adopted other ends of drinking, than those above recited and warrantable by the law of God. Therefore I

fhall treat of them in order.

Firft,

Firft, A drunkard pretends that he falls into that excefs by good fellowship, or keeping another company in that Good felwicked practice. It would be well for fuch a one to lowship. confider, that he may, by fuch a height of complaifance, not only bring himself into a bad state of health (and what is worse, it poisons the foul of man, always deprives him of reason, distracts his brain, and makes him worse than a beast here, and endangers the lofs of his foul hereafter) but, as many examples prove, he may be cut off in the midft of a drunken fit.

Secondly, Some excuse the fin under the fpecious pretence of preferving friendship. But give me leave to fay Preferving this is a mere drunken excufe; for who in his fen- friendship. ses can think that he ferves his friend by helping him to ruin his eftate, his credit, his life and his foul? befides, what is more apt to breed quarrels, which are too often attended with blows, and wounds, and murders? för, as Solomon faith, Wine when it is drank to excefs maketh bitterness of mind, and caufeth brawling and ftrife.

Thirdly, It is alfo argued by drunkards, that they only drink to chear their fpirits, or to make themselves Chearing merry. Yet what is the laughter of fuch, but, as the spirits. Solomon remarks, madness? They part freely with their reafon, health, goods, and reputation in this world, and must render a fad account for fuch extravagancies in the world to

come.

Fourthly, They who pretend that they drink to put away cares, plead for the greatest of all follies, because Putting afuch a practice cannot keep any confiderable cares way cares. long out of their mind. Was it ever known that any one that was pursued by public juftice, ever fought to conceal himfelf by getting drunk? And is it not an infinitely greater folly and madness, by furfeiting, drunkenness, and riotous living, to endeavour to stifle the checks of confcience, which purfue the finner to the judgment-feat of Chrift, than by repentance to feek for pardon and forgiveness? And fhould the cares be only of worldly concern, and fuch as are fit to be avoided and put away; has not God in fuch cafes provided and invited us to caftall our cares upon him; and that he will care for us? And fhall we prefer drinking to God's affiftance? Therefore, whoever would not be accounted to have quite caft off B b 4

all

all religion and reason, must never have recourse to drunkennefs in fuch cafes; because it at once rejects the commandment and providence of God, and loads the confcience with a new crime; which, in fober intervals, redoubles all fuch cares with greater force.

way time.

Fifthly, Idle people too frequently alledge that drinking is a Paffing a- recreation, and ferves them to pass away time; which, if true, is a caveat againft idleness, which is the pretended cause of fo great a fin. But, if we furvey the drunken part of mankind, it will be found to be a very idle excufe; for God's providence has fo ftationed every man, that nobody need be idle but through choice; he may always be employed, for the benefit of his own or neighbour's good. And whoever is most at leifure from worldly employment should be more diligent to refift temptations, and to improve the graces and virtues which God has bestowed upon him, for the edification of his neighbour, and the good of his own foul.

Sixthly, Some fo far betray their reafon, as to pretend that Preventing they get drunk to avoid reproach from their drunkreproach. en companions. Certainly fuch people forget that drunkenness is a breach of God's commandments: and confequently to be reproached for keeping his commands is fo far from being hurtful, that it brings a bleffing upon them: for, as our Saviour declares, Bleffed are ye when men shall revile you, and fay all manner of evil against you, for my fake; therefore, fays St. Peter, if ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye. On the contrary, they who chufe to obey man rather than God, by breaking the vow at their baptifm to renounce the world, not only run into many evils in this life, but incur God's difpleasure, and the danger of everlafting deftruction. And again, is it not a degree of madness to yield to the reproaches of the foolish and worft of men, and to be deaf to the well-grounded reproaches of the wife and good? But the greateft confideration of all, to deter men from this falfe way of arguing, is that dreadful fentence which Chrift has pronounced on all them that disobey him through fear of the reproach of men: Whofoever therefore shall be afhamed of me, and of my words, in this adulterous and finful generation, of him alfo fhall the Son of man be ashamed,

when

in

and infirmities, which they are intailing upon their innocent offspring; efpecially, when the temptations lie fo much every one's way; and when the appetite is gratified, and the brain intoxicated, at so easy an expence; and when by a little indulgence the cure becomes fo very difficult. Such confiderations, one would hope, fhould of themselves, and without any other inforcements, be effectual warnings to all parents and mafters, to use the utmost watchfulness over those who are under their care, that none of them be enfnared by these temptations, into the beginning of a diftemper which, when begun, is fo hard to be cured. Confequently,

Having anfwered all the common excufes made for this fin of drunkennefs, it will be neceffary in the next Degrees of place to fhew what are the degrees of it. And here this fin. they deceive themfelves, who think that a man is only to be accounted a drunkard, when he is fo drunk as not to be able to go, stand, or speak; for every lower degree of drinking, that makes aman very dull, ridiculous, or unfit for employment, or full of rage and fury, or makes any change in the man, and which exceeds the natural end of drinking and moderate refreshment, is the fin of drunkennefs: which ought to be well confidered by thofe, who spend great part of their time in alehoufes or taverns, at a friend's, or in their own houses, in drinking: for though their conftitution be so strong, as to preferve their wits longer than another; yet their crime is not the lefs, if they drink as eagerly, and employ the fame time in the work, as hath made another drunk. Do not reckon that your enjoyments are therefore innocent, because you are able to go away with a tolerable fhare of reafon and understanding, which in many cafes is owing only to cuftom or an uncommon ftrength of nature; but rest affured, that all indulgences of this kind, more than what nature fairly requires, and more than what are a real refreshment to body and mind, without prejudice to health or business, are very finful in the eyes of God, and lay men under the fame condemnation in kind, though not in degree, as drunkenness itself does. Therefore whatever we find hurtful to our health, or that is found commonly to make our bodies heavy, is to be avoided.

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