a demurer shew and face of religion than their neighbours, are really counterfeits, and mean nothing at the bottom, but their own intereft; and therefore wifely refolves upon this thatall religion is, like, theirs, a convenient trick and pretence only invented by cunning men, to keep filly people in awe, to make princes reign fafely, and the priesthood live easily. But, as for himself, he knows better things than to fall in with the herd, and to give up to be ridden by the tribe of Levi; the poorest and most contemptible tribe of the twelve, which had no lot, no inheritance among their brethren, but lived upon the cheat of facrifices and offerings, and upon driving a gainful traffick for the good things of this world, here paid down to them, by promifing and preaching up to thofe they dealt with a recompence in the world to come. Then he sets up openly for profelytes, and a party; runs down all religion, and laughs piety and virtue out of countenance: fo that a good and honeft man is fure to be his mark wherefoever he finds him; and he is ever shooting arrows against him, even bitter words. When fuch perfons cannot apprehend the usefulness of any part of the creation; when any thing happens that seems confufed and difordered; when their wisdom cannot difcern the end, benefit, and defign of every thing that falls out; presently they charge God with folly and ill contrivance, or banish him out of the world, and impute all to blind chance, or unavoidable fate. Indeed to be cautious, and upon our guard, in receiving doctrines, and not eafily to give up our affent to every tale that is told us, is a point of great prudence, and very requifite, in fuch a multiplicity of opinions as there is in the world, to preferve us from error. But then we may carry this point too far; we may be fo fcrupulous and circumfpect in admitting the teftimonies of men, as to reject fome good witneffes among feveral bad ones; and to deceive ourselves oftentimes, for very fear of being deceived by others. A general undiftinguishing sufpicion is altogether as apt to miflead a man as a too eafy and unwary credulity. And to this excess a proud fcorner is naturally inclined: he is fo poffeffed with the notion of priestcraft and pious frauds, as to apply it indifferently to all religions, and to every thing in religion: he is fo afraid of hav

ing his understanding impofed upon in matters of faith, that he stands equally aloof from all propofitions of that kind, whether true or false: which is, as if a man should, refuse to receive any money at all, because there is a great deal goes about that is false and counterfeit ; or refolve not to make a friendship or acquaintance with any man, because many men are not to be trufted. Certainly this is a very great inftance of folly; and, in what breaft foever it har bours, cannot but indispose a man extremely for the study and attainment of religious wisdom. An extremity of sufpicion in an inquirer after truth is like a raging jealousy in an husband, or a friend: it leads a man to turn all his thoughts towards the ill-natured fide, and to put the worst conftruction upon every thing; and, in confequence of that, for once that he is really in the right, in his gueffes and cenfures, to be very often and very much in the wrong. Thus

Debates proceed from pride; whilft men too highly value their own private judgments in things doubt- And draws ful and indifferent; think meanly of the deter- us into other minations of their fuperiors; and will rather fa- fins. crifice peace and charity, than give up any trifling opinion they happen to efpoufe. And there will be no end of them, till we can be brought to think that governors may be wifer and know better than we what is fit and decent for the publick good. Therefore no-body ought to make himself the standard of wifdom, nor expect that every one should yield to his humours, and deny their own inclinations, that they may gratify his. On the contrary, what is more graceful and lovely, and more charming, than humility and modefty, a mean estimation of ourselves, and a willingness to yield and condefcend? Does it not render us both acceptable to God and men? Does it not carry a fingular agreeableness in itself? And though humility may feem to expose a man to fome contempt, yet it is truly the readieft way to honour; as, on the contrary, pride is the most improper and abfurd means for the accomplishing the end at which it aims. There are no other vices but do in fome measure attain their end; covetoufnefs does ufually raise an eftate, and ambitious endeavours do often advance men to high places: but pride

and infolence and contempt of others, do certainly defeat their own projects. When the proud man aims at respect and esteem, he never attains it; for all mankind do naturally hate and flight him. Again, a proud and conceited temper of mind is very likely to run into mistakes, because pride and fulness of a man's felf do keep out knowledge, and Itop all the paffages by which wisdom and inftruction should enter into men; besides that, it provokes God to be their Betraying enemy, to abandon men to their own follies and sto punish mistakes, and to pursue them with extraordinary punishments in this or the next world: for pride goeth before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall; and again, every one that is proud in heart fhall not be unpunished; for God refifteth the proud, but the meek will he guide in judgment, and will give more grace and wifdom to the humble. Therefore

anent

Means of

The way to avoid pride, and to attain to humility, is to remember that all the advantages we enjoy, either bumility. of body or mind, above others, are not the effect of our merit, but of God's bounty: that thofe, whom we are apt to contemn, are valuable in the fight of God, the only fountain of true honour: that by having confented to fin we have committed the most shameful action imaginable, the most contrary to juftice and right reason, and to all forts of decency; and that, as long as we are cloathed with flesh and blood, we are still liable to the fame offences against the najesty of Heaven. We muft fupprefs all proud and vain thoughts when they first arise in our minds, and especially never fuffer them to take poffeffion of our imagination; and keep a constant watch over our words and actions, that we may check the first inclinations to pride and vain-glory. And whoever does not thus watch over his own heart will be in And when danger of falling into this fin; because, if God is fruftrated. fo good to bear with him for a while in his folly, he never thinks of repentance; but, mistaking his forbearance, has the vanity to efteem himself a favourite of God; and when at last he is corrected by any manner of punishment from God or man, he is fo far from confidering its justice, neceffity, and his own juft deferts, that he murmurs against

God,

t

God, and breathes out his blafphemous hatred against his divine justice? and confequently becomes much more reproachful to his neighbour, who shall attempt by any means to draw him to a true knowledge of himself. Whereas he, that is of a calm and meek temper, is always ready to receive the truth, and holds the balance of his judgment even; but paffion fways and inclines it one way, and that commonly against reafon and truth. So that pride is a great hindrance to knowledge, and the very worst quality that a learner can have it makes men refuse inftruction, out of a conceit that they have no need thereof: the fufficiency of their knowledge has hindered many from what they might have known.

The folly of which fin appears, in that we value ourselves, very frequently, upon things that add no true worth The folly of to us; that neither make us better nor wifer; that 'pride. are in their own nature perishable, and of which we are not owners, but stewards. Or, if the things be valuable in themfelves, they are God's immediate work in us; and to be proud of them is the fureft way to lose them. The folly of pride appears by confidering the three things whereof men are apt to be proud, the goods of nature, of fortune, and of

grace.

The goods of nature are beauty, ftrength, wit, &c. Now the folly of being proud of any of these appears; In refpect of because, if we really have them, which we are apt the goods of often to mistake, they are poffeffed, moft of them, nature. by other creatures in a greater degree. For is not the white and red of the moft celebrated beauty's face far furpast by the whiteness of the lilly and redness of the rose; and is not the greatest strength and swiftness of man greatly exceeded by the strength and swiftness of many other creatures? Neither are they at all durable; for a phrenfy, sickness, or oldage, certainly destroys them. And whatever they are, we give them not to ourselves; but receive them from the hands of God.

As for the goods of fortune, which are wealth, honour, &c. we have no reafon to be proud of them; because The goods of they add no true worth to a man, and are in their fortune. nature perishable: befides, we have them but as stewards and they are not owing to ourfelves: for if they are lawfully Z

got,

got, 'tis God's bleffing; if unlawfully, we have them on such terms, that we have no reason to boast of them. Are we proud of riches? riches cannot alter the nature of things; they cannot make a man worthy, that is worthless in himself: the value of the estate may be very great; but that of the man is not at all greater, if he does not employ his eftate as the great engine to procure moral pleasures, and to do benevolent offices. The judicious should confider things intrinfically, and think him the greatest, who ftrives, as much as in him lies, to make others happy by his benevolence, good by his example, and wife by his inftructions. Laftly, As to the goods of grace, which are those virtues The goods men are endowed with; it is a great folly to be of grace. proud of them; because, though they are things in themselves truly valuable, yet they are God's immediate gifts to us; and to be proud of them is the fureft way to lose them, and the confequence of fuch a lofs is no less than eternal punishment.

IV. Another oppofite to humility is the fin of VAINOf vain- GLORY, which is an eager defire of the applaufe glory. of men: a fin that prevents the admiffion of Chrift into the heart; and confequently fets us in the utmost danger; fince all our fafety and hope of falvation depends upon our being one with Christ and Chrift in us. Befides, this fin is the high road to many more: because he, that is The fin of it. refolved to court the praife of men at all adventures will never fcruple to commit the greatest fins, when they are in fashion, or are fuppofed in any wife to contribute to gratify his vain-glory. Yet this little air, which is no more than a blast or the breath of men, yields no real advantage : for it is no proof of my wifdom and goodnefs, beDanger. caufe another tells me I am wife and good: with which if he tells it to my face, I must be an arrant fool to be pleased; because it is too often flattery: and there is as much folly to be pleafed, when applauded behind my back; because it neither brings me pleasure nor profit. Again, he that fo eagerly pursues praife as to reject the dictates of reafon and conscience, and only takes care to do what may raise his esteem among men, yields himself a

Folly.

flave