and if he repent, forgive him: And if he trespass against thee feven times in a day, and feven times in a day turn again to thee, faying, I repent, thou shalt forgive him." It is impoffible but offences will come in whatever station of life our lot fhall fall; and we may be, nay we cannot help being angry: The great caution to be observed is, that we fuffer not our paffion to get the maftery over our reafon, or to invalidate the precepts of our most holy Religion. There is no doubt but Parents may be lawfully angry with difobedient Children: Yet fhould they always remember that repeated admonition of the Apostle, " Fathers, provoke not your Children to wrath;" and the reafon is, left they be difcouraged. The good of the child is the only thing that can justify the anger of the parent. Such is the example of our common Father which is in Heaven, who chasteneth whom he loveth, and fcourgeth every

Son

Son whom he receiveth. In like manner is it no less juftifiable in Masters to be angry with unprofitable Servants: But unto them too is there an apoftolical direction to forbear threatening, that is, any violent exercise of their authority; and that," because they also have a Master in Heaven." In fhort, in all fuch cafes the best rule is to diftinguish aright betwixt the perfon and the offence, so as to be angry with the latter, though at the fame time to bear a brotherly difpofition toward the former. It is true the precept of Chrift is, that we "turn our left cheek to him who fmiteth us on the right;" that we "give our cloak to him who taketh away our coat ;" and that we

go two miles with him who compels us to go one:" In all which cafes he may be thought to discountenance every appearance of refentment. But we are to take notice he was then confronting the prejudices of the Jews, who (perhaps for

the

the hardness of their hearts) had been indulged the law of retaliation, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: A law fo inconfiftent with the genius of that Religion He was about to introduce into the world, that He commands his Disciples rather to expose themselves to farther violence, than refift evil by fuch acts of revenge. Not that we are under any obligation of humouring the wretch who robs us of our property, but that we had better even fubmit to this in fome inftances, than let the paffion of revenge transport us beyond the bounds of charity. Courts of Juftice indeed are open, and civil Magiftrates appointed to pass sentence according to the established laws of the Community; and both these are providentially ordained for a terror to evil doers, They fhould however be no encouragement for men to be hasty in fpirit, where matters may be otherwife reconciled with more privacy, and

lefs

lefs enmity, than is usual in fuch publick proceedings.

The anger I have hitherto been speaking of, regards only thofe obvious affronts, which may happen at any time to be offered to our own perfons; but there is another kind of it which is fo far from being a fin, that it is a generous and commendable grace; I mean that honeft indignation with which good men are moved upon any violation of truth and the honour of God. This is commonly distinguished by the name of Zeal, that is, a certain holy fervour arifing within pious breafts whenever the glory of God is eclipfed, his name dishonoured, his ordinances prophaned, his fanctuary polluted, or his fervants vilified. And the virtue of this fort of anger confifts in this, that it never aims at revenge, but only to mend the heart of the finner, and to turn him from the error of his

doings,

doings. Such it was that inflamed Mofes the fervant of God, when he saw the idolatries of alienated Ifrael; whofe anis faid to have waxed hot, infomuch ger that he brake the tables of the testimony. And fuch was the anger of the Blessed Jefus himself, when he exerted his miraculous authority to vindicate the honour of his Father's Houfe, in driving those that prophaned it out of the T'emple, and overthrowing the feats of merchandize. So likewife when the Jews by their hypocritical filence feemed to discountenance and difallow the curing of a man on the fabbath-day, it is written, Jefus looked round about upon them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts." But though true rational zeal be only the product of religious minds, and we have fuch fhining examples to follow in the exercife of it; yet is there a falfe and intem'perate fpecies of this alfo, which often