37. Furthermore: The more exact your own Lives, and the more exalted your own Virtue is; fo much the more charitable, fo much the lefs fevere and cenforious let your Judgment of others be. Be not forward to accufe or condemn your Brethren; but interpret candidly, and forgive easily; and God will be the lefs fevere in paffing Judgment upon you. 38. Be kind to all Men, and ready to affift them in all their Needs, with Chearfulness, Liberality and Bounty; and God will return the Bleffing upon you abundantly and with great Increase: For in what Measure foever ye deal with others, in the fame Proportion will the Divine Juftice deal with you. 39. Laftly, be fure to remember carefully, and to practife diligently all these my Inftructions; fo fhall ye your felves become worthy, and prepared to inftruct and direct others. For if ye practise conftantly and fincerely thefe things your felves, you will have both Skill and Authority to teach others likewife: But if ye neglect them, or practife them not your felves, you will be like the fuperftitious and hypocritical Pharifees, blind and erroneous Directors of others; and then, both he that teaches, and he that is taught, muft needs perifh together. 40. And do not think, that these Precepts I have given you, are fevere and difficult; or that it is too hard a thing to bear the Hatred and Perfecution, which the fincere Obfervation of them will bring upon you Compare from wicked and perverfe Men. John xiii. The Difciple is not above his Maf16. & xv. ter; nor he that is fent, greater Mat.x.24. 20. fame measure that ye mete withal, it fhall be measured to you again. 39 And he fpake a parable unto them, Can the blind lead the blind? fhall they not both fall into the ditch? 40 The difciple is not above his mafter: but every one that is perfect fhall be as his master. 41 And 41 And why beholdeft thou the mote that is in thy brothers eye, but perceiveft not the beam that is in thine own eye? than he that fent him. If I have gi- this account, fuffer great indignities and 41. Only remember always in teaching others, to be ftrictly careful that your own Lives be innocent and unblamable firft. For, What can be more unreasonable, than, like the hypocritical Pharifees, to condemn with great Cenforioufnefs the Offences of others; if at the fame time, ye be guilof the like, or worfe Crimes, your ty 42 Either how can't thou fay to thy 42. With what Confidence can ye me pull out the mote attempt to reprove others for their that is in thine eye, fmaller Faults, if ye be confcious of when thou thy felf committing greater Crimes your your beholdeft not the felves? Or, with what Skill can ye dibeam that is in thine rect others to correct and amend their own eye? Thou hy- Faults, if ye have not Wisdom or Inpocrite, caft out firit tegrity enough to be fenfible of the beam out of thine own eye, own? Above all things therefore, be and fure to avoid this bafe Hypocrify. In clearly to pull out the firft place, effectually amend and the mote that is in reform your own Lives, and then you may with Judgment direct, and with then fhalt thou fee thy brothers eye. VOL. II. E 2 Authority Authority exhort and urge others to Reformation. 43. And do not imagine, that Teaching others their Duty, and inftructing or exhorting them to correct their Faults, is fufficient to make you approved either in the Sight of God or Men; unless your own Lives and Practice be fuitable to your Doctrine. For 'tis the Fruit of a good Life only, that denominates a Man truly Good. And without this, no Pretence whatsoever can any more really make any Perfon a good Man, than a Tree which has fair Leaves, and yet bears no Fruit, can be justly efteemed a good Tree. 44. As every Tree is known by its Fruit, fo every Man is known by his Works. And a Man whofe Life and Actions are bad, can no more justly, upon any other account, be efteemed a good Man; than a Thorn can truly be called a Vine, or a Bramble a Fig tree. 45. Every Man whofe Heart is fincere and good, will as certainly evidence that Sincerity by a good Life, as a sweat Fountain will fend forth fweet Streams, or a found Tree bring forth good Fruit. And a bad Life, is as certain an Indication of an unfincere Heart, as bad Waters are of a bad Fountain, or evil Fruit of a corrupt Tree. 46. So that unless you actually obey my Commandments in your Lives and Converfations, 'tis to no purpose at all to make Profeffion of my Religion your felves, or to preach it to o thers. 47. Wherefore, to conclude; I will 45 A good man out of the good treafure of his heart, bringeth forth that which is good and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart, bringeth forth that which is evil for of the abundance of the heart his mouth fpeaketh. 46 And why call ye me Lord, Lord and do not the thing which I fay? 47 Whofoever com fhow you, by a plain Similitude, the eth to me, and hear et difference between one that receives my Doctrine, and fincerely obeys it; and one who receives it likewise, yet obeys it not. 48. He that hears my Doctrine, and obeys it in his Life; is like a Man that builds his Houfe with a firm Foundation upon the folid Rock. For as fuch a Houfe ftands firm and un-fhaken, against all the Affaults of Wind and Weather: So the Man that receives my Inftructions, and fincerely obeys them; will ftrongly refift all the Temptations of the Devil, and all the Storms of Perfecution; and perfevering in his Integrity to the End, fhall be able to appear with Comfort before God in Judgment, and receive the Reward of Eternal Life. 49. But he that hears my Doctrine, and obeys it not; is like a Man that builds his Houfe without any Foundation, upon the loofe Sand. For as fuch a Houfe is prefently overturned by the firft Storm and Flood that affaults it: So the Man that receives my Inftructions, and obeys them not; can never abide the Tryals of Temptation and Perfecution; but difcovering his Hypocrify, will fall away with Shame in this prefent World, and perifh for ever in that which is to come. *See Note on ch. iv. 38. CHAP. VII. Jefus heals the Centurion's Servant, ver. 2. Raifes the Widow's Son at Naim, ver. 11. Bids John's Meflengers judge of him by his Works and Doctrine, ver. 19. Gives an Account of John the Baptift, ver. 24. Shews the Perverfenefs of the Jews in rejecting John, who came in a fevere Way, and Jefus who came in a freer Way, ver. 31. Shews by the Similitude of a forgiven Debtor, that repenting Sinners often exceed ather Men in Zeal and Piety, ver. 41. T. WHEN Fofus had finished NOW when he this Difcourfe in the hearing of his Difciples, and of much other People; he went down towards Caper naum. 2 & 3. And * as he was entring into the City, there met him feveral of the Elders of the Jews, and principal Men of the Town, to defire him to heal an eminent Centurion's Servant, then very dangerously ill. For the Centurion had heard the Fame of Jefus's Miracles; and the Servant who was fick, was one that he greatly valued; Wherefore he fent Men of the beft Repute to entreat Jefus for him. 45. When therefore thefe Menmet Jefus, they earnestly preffed him, faying That the Centurion who defired this Favour, was a very worthy Perfon; and though he was indeed a Roman and a Soldier, yet that he was + The a very pious and devout Man, a lover word of the Nation and Religion of the Jews, To in this a Worshipper of the One True God; 5th verfe and that he had † at his own Charge is very em- built them a Synagogue, phatical. had ended all his fayings in the audience of the people, he entred into Capernaum. 2 And a certain centurions fervant, who was dear unto him, was fick and ready to die. 3 And when he heard of Jefus, he fent unto him the elders of the Jews, beseeching him that he would come and heal his fervant. 4 And when they came to Jefus, they befought him in he is worthy for ftantly, faying, That whom he fhould do |