his law and example. Bleffed is the man who judgeth rightly: bleffed is he who is contented with his prefent condition: and blessed is he, who giveth ear to that immortal principle, in the government of his life.'-An whole volume of these excellent things hath he written. No wonder a man of his doctrine and life, escaped not the cruelty of brutifh Nero, under whom he fuffered death; as alfo did the apostle Paul, with whom, it is faid, Seneca had converfed. When Nero's meffenger brought him the news, that he was to die; with a compofed and undaunted countenance he received the errand, and presently called for pen, ink, and paper, to write his laft will and teftament: which the captain refufing, he turned towards his friends, and took his leave thus: my loving friends, I cannot bequeath you any other thing in acknowledgment of what I owe you, I leave you at least the richest and best portion I have, that is, the image of my manners and life, which doing, you will obtain true happiness. His friends fhewing great. trouble for the lofs of him; "Where,' faith he, Since, are those memorable precepts of philosophy A And what is become of those provisions, which for fo many years together we have laid up against the brunts and afflictions of Providence? Was Nero's cruelty unknown to us? What could we expect better at his hands, that killed his brother, and murthered his mother, but that he would put alfo his tutor and governor to death?? Then turning to his wife Pompeia Paulina, a Roman lady, young and noble, be fought, for the love fhe bore him and his philofophy, to fuffer patiently his affliction; For,' faith he, my hour is come, wherein I must shew, not only by discourse but by death, the fruit I have reaped by my meditations; I embrace it without grief, wherefore do not. dishonour it with thy tears. Affuage thy forrow, and comfort thyfelf in the knowledge thou haft had of me, and of my actions; and lead the rest of thy life with that honeft industry thou haft addicted thyself unto.' dedicating his life to God, he expired. And §. XXIX. Epictetus, contemporary with Seneca, and an excellent man, thought no man worthy of the profeffion of philofophy, that was not purified from the errors of his nature. His morals were very excellent, which he comprized under thefe two words, fuftaining, and abftaining; or bearing, and forbearing; to avoid evil, and patiently to fuffer afflictions; which do certainly comprize the Chriftian doctrine and life, and is the perfection of the best philofophy that was at any time taught by Egyptians, Greeks, or Romans, when it fignified virtue, felf-denial, and a life of religious folitude and contemplation. How little the Chriftians of the times are true philofophers, and how much more these philofophers were Chriftians than they, let the righteous principle in every confcience judge. But is it not then intolerable, that they fhould be esteemed Chriftians, who are yet to learn to be good Heathens? That prate of grace and nature, and know neither? Who will prefume to determine what is become of Heathens, and know not where they are themselves, nor mind what may become of them? That can run readily over a tedious list of famous perfonages, and calumniate fuch as will not, with them, celebrate their memories with extravagant and fuperfluous praises, whilft they make it laudable: to act the contrary: and none fo ready a way to become vile, as not to be vicious? A ftrange paradox, but too true; fo blind, fo ftupified, fo befotted, are the foolish fenfualifts of the world, under their great pretences to religion, faith,. and worship. Ah! did they but know the peace, the joy, the unspeakable ravishments of foul, that infeparably attend the innocent,. harmless, ftill, and retired life of Jefus? Did they but weigh within themselves, the authors of their vain delights and paftimes, the nature and difpofition they are fo grateful to, the dangerous confequence of exercising the mind and its affections below, and arrefting and taking them up from their due attendance and obedience to the most holy voice crying in their confciences, "Repent, return, all is vanity, and vexation of fpirit:" were but these things reflected upon; were the inceffant wooings of Jefus, and his importunate knocks and entreaties, by his light and grace, at the door of their hearts, but kindly answered, and he admitted to take up his abode there and lastly, were fuch refolved to give up to the instructions and holy guidance of his eternal Spirit, in all the humble, heavenly, and righteous converfation it requires, and of which he is become our captain and example; then, O then, both root and branch of vanity, the nature that invented and that which delights herself therein, with all the follies themselves, would be confumed and vanish. But they, alas! cheat themfelves by mifconftrued Scriptures, and daub with the untempered mortar of mifapplied promifes. They will be faints whilst they are finners; and in Chrift; whilst in the spirit of the world, walking after the flesh, and not after the Spirit, by which the true children of God are led. My friends, mind the just witness and holy principle in yourselves, that you may experimentally know more of the Divine life, in which, and not in a multitude of vain repetitions, true and folid felicity eternally confists. IV. Nor is this reputation, wisdom, and virtue, only to be attributed to men: there were women alfo in the Greek and Roman ages, that bonoured their fex by great examples of meekness, prudence, and chastity; and which I do the rather mention, that the honour story yields to their virtuous conduct, may raise an allowable emulation in thofe of their own fex, at least, to equal the noble character given them by antiquity,. viz. §. 1. Penelope. §. 2. Theoxena. 3. Pandora and Protogenia. §. 4. Hipparchia. §. 5. Lucretia. f. 6. Cornelia. f. 7. Arria. §. 8. Pompeia Plautina. §. 9. Plotina. §. 10. Pompeia Paulina. §. 11. A reproof to voluptuous women of the times. §. I. PENELOPE, wife to Ulyffes, a woman eminent for her beauty and quality, but more for her fingular chastity. Her husband was abfent from her twenty years, partly in the fervice of his country, and partly in exile; and being believed to be dead, fhe was earnestly fought by divers lovers, and preffed by her parents to change her condition; but all the importunities of the one, or perfuafions of the other, not prevailing, her lovers feemed to ufe a kind of violence, that where they could not entice, they would compel: to which fhe yielded, upon this condition, that they would not prefs her to marry, till fhe had ended the work fhe had in hand: which they granting, • fhe undid by night what the wrought by day; and with that honeft device fhe delayed their defire, till her worthy husband returned, whom the received, though in beggar's clothes, with an heart full of love and truth. A conftancy that reproaches too many of the women of the times, who, without the excufe of fuch an abfence, can violate their husband's beds. work fhews the industry and employment, even of the women of great quality in thofe times; whilst those of the prefent age defpife fuch honeft labour as mean and mechanical Her §. II. Theoxena, a woman of great virtue, being in a place encompaffed by the armies of the king of Macedonia, finding she could not escape their hands, rather than fall under the power of his foldiers to be defiled, chose to die; and therefore, flying into the fea, delivered her life up in the waters; thereby chufing |