and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced, committeth adultery. Fornication is unlawful connection between unmarried people. This crime, when committed by married persons, is adultery, not fornication. The fin for the which fuch a woman might be divorced, appears to have been committed previous to her marriage. The hufband finding her not a virgin, and finding himself deceived and imposed on by a vitiated perfon; in fuch a cafe, the marriage seems to be void, according to Deut. Chap. xxii. And, indeed, fuch a woman, in the fight of God, is the wife of him who first humbled her, Deut. xxii. 29. though perhaps the Saviour, by fornication here, includes adultery alfo. However, if she had been guilty of fornication with one man, and afterwards marries another, the marriage is null and void, for fhe is the wife of the first man; and if fhe commits adultery afterwards, fhe breaks the marriagebond herself. In such cases, and only such, might fhe be put away. The Lord goes on-Thou shalt not swear-Refift not evil-Love your enemies, &c. &c. In all which he explains what he means by breaking one of thefe least commandments. He that is angry with his brother without cause; he that calls him vain, empty fellow; he that calls him a wicked reprobate; he that has eyes full of adultery, &c. &c. He that breaketh the leaft of these commandments

And teacheth men fo. What, then, shall we say of them, who hate the minifters that Christ hath D 4 fent!

fent! and in whofe hearts envy has refted for years together! and who call them Antinomians, bad fpirits, devils, bubbles of the day, and blackg -ds, without any juft charge either of error or immorality! Is not this breaking the commandments, and teaching men fo?-Did I ever tell you, in the course of my ministry, that you should have more Gods than one? that you should make images, take the Lord's name in vain, prophane his day of reft, ridicule parents, kill, fteal, commit adultery, bear falfe witnefs, and covet your neighbour's goods? Did you ever fee any thing of this in my practice, or did you ever hear any thing of it from my mouth? I trow not. I have enforced regeneration by the Spirit, as the only way to make men holy; and I have preached up a divorce from the Law, and union with Chrift, as the only way to make men fruitful. I have infifted on a walk in the Spirit, as the only way for men to efcape fulfilling the lufts of the flesh. And I have urged a life under the influence of Grace, as the only way to get disentangled from the reign of fin: and that fin fhall have dominion only over them that are under the Law; it fhall not have dominion over them that are under Grace. But can this be called "breaking the command"ments, and teaching men fo?" What, does the grace of God of God encourage fin? Or is the Law against the promises of God? Or does this doctrine make void the Law? Nay, it is established this way, and

no

no other. Again, do you find the advocates for Free Grace, who are found in their principles, and experimental in their fouls, loofe livers? Do you fee those who are in the clofeft connection with me, breakers of God's commandments, and, by example, teachers of the fame? Nay, fo far from it, that if you would find an ignorant, uninformed people; if a dead, fleepy congregation; if a light, vain, frothy community, who are envious in their minds, empty in heart, and fcandalous in life-you must look for them among those who have little or nothing but the Law of Mofes fet before them. The Law worketh wrath, the Law makes nothing perfect, but the better Hope does do it. The Hagarenes shall never beat the children of Zion at good ·. works, for root and branch are both wanting. Then what is all this defperate outcry againft me for?Why, for this one voice that I cried among them, "The Law of Mofes is not the Saint's Rule of "Life." For this word I am made an offender; and they that make it fuch an offence, cannot bring one text in God's Book against it. Yea, farther ; the best commentators now extant, who have advanced the Law as the Saint's Rule of Life from one text, have themselves contradicted it from another, as plainly as calling light darknefs, and darkness light: and though all commentators have followed one another in that track, not one, that ever I have feen, has proved it from God's Book. The Mafter's commanding

commanding Will is the Bond-feryant's Rule; it is the Creditor's Hand-writing, and the Debtor's Account-book-but the Good-will of the Father is the Son's Rule. These are the two Covenants. And what the Law requires, the Gospel gives; and what Chrift commands, he works in his faints by his Spirit to obey, and their obedience is the obedience of Faith. Neither justification, fanctification, salvation, hope or help, life or love, come from the Law, or by the Law. Minifters of the Spirit, and thofe evangelical fervants who ferve God in the newnefs of the Spirit, and not in the oldnefs of the Letter, are not breakers of God's commandments: they are delivered from the Law, and wedded to Chrift, that they might bring forth fruit unto God. He that breaks the leaft of thefe commands

And teaches men fo, fhall be called the leeft in the kingdom of heaven. He that is angry at a brother without caufe; he that calls him vain fellow; he that calls him a wicked reprobate; he that has eyes full of adultery; he that fwears; he that refifts evil with evil; he that finites the juft; he that, to gratify his malice, fues him at the law for coat or cloak, &c. &c.-thefe things are breaking the commandments, and by speech and example they teach others to do the fame. The names Antinomian, and bad Spirit, that have been caft at me, are in the mouths of thousands of poor ignorant fouls, who know no more what they mean by fuch names than the image

of

of Jupiter that fell from the moon.

And their

hearts are filled with malice against me, and their mouths with reproach, who never heard me, but having learnt it from the pulpit. And woe be to him, and to them, through whom the offence or Scandal cometh; for they that live in fuch fins, and teach men so,

Shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven. By the Kingdom of Heaven, here, is meant the Church, or Church State. And who is this leaft perfon in the church? Not the most humble soul, who is like a little child; for he is neither a breaker of the commandments, nor a teacher of men fo. The least perfon here, in Chrift's fenfe of the words, is not a hypocritical profeffor, but a hypocritical, falfe teacher: and he is leaft efteemed by Chrift; a man of the least value in the church, and one of the leaft and laft in God's account. This is the man: he is an impoftor, a hypocrite, and a finner; and, as he TEACHES men fo, he must be a teacher, and a wicked teacher too. And he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven; and fo he is to them to whom God discovers him, and that have light to fee through him.

The Saviour, in his application, clearly fhews, that his disciples are the brethren that are hated without a caufe; and who are called empty fellows, fools, and reprobates. And counfels them how to behave under fuch reproach: Whofoever shall fmite

thee