fame dishonesty and unfoundnefs of heart difcovers itself in these another way. In all common ordinary cafes we see intuitively at first view what is our duty, what is the honeft part. This is the ground of the observation, that the first thought is often the best. In these cafes doubt and deliberation is itself difhonesty; as it was in Balaam upon the second meffage. That which is called confidering what is our duty in a particular cafe, is very often nothing but endeavouring to explain it away. Thus thofe courfes, which, if men would fairly attend to the dictates of their own confciences, they would fee to be corruption, excefs, oppreffion, uncharitableness; these are refined upon-things were so and fo circumftantiated-great difficulties are raised about fixing bounds and degrees: and thus every moral obligation whatever may be evaded. Here is scope, I say, for an unfair mind to explain away every moral obligation to itself. Whether men reflect again upon this internal management and artifice, and how explicit they are with themselves, is another question. There are many operations of the mind, many things pafs within, which we never reflect upon again; which a by-ftander, from having frequent opportunities of observing us and our conduct, may make fhrewd gueffes at.

That great numbers are in this way of deceiving

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ceiving themselves is certain. There is scarce a man in the world, who has entirely got over all regards, hopes, and fears, concerning God and a future ftate; and these apprehenfions in the generality, bad as we are, prevail in confiderable degrees: yet men will and can be wicked, with calmnefs and thought; we fee they are. There must therefore be fome method of making it fit a little easy upon their minds; which, in the superftitious, is those indulgences and atonements before mentioned, and this self-deceit of another kind in perfons of another character. And both these proceed from a certain unfairness of mind, a peculiar inward dishonesty; the direct contrary to that fimplicity which our Saviour recommends, under the notion of becoming little children, as a neceffary qualification for our entering into the kingdom of heaven.

But to conclude: How much foever men differ in the course of life they prefer, and in their ways of palliating and excufing their vices to themselves; yet all agree in the one thing, defiring to die the death of the righteous. This is furely remarkable. The obfervation may be extended further, and put thus: Even without determining what that is which we call guilt or innocence, there is no man but would choose, after having had the pleasure or advantage of a vicious action, to be free of the

guilt of it, to be in the state of an innocent man. This fhows at least the disturbance and implicit diffatisfaction in vice. If we inquire into the grounds of it, we shall find it proceeds partly from an immediate fenfe of having done evil, and partly from an apprehenfion, that this inward fenfe fhall one time or another be feconded by an higher judgment, upon which our whole being depends. Now to suspend and drown this fenfe, and these apprehenfions, be it by the hurry of business or of pleasure, or by fuperftition, or moral equivocations, this is in a manner one and the fame, and makes no alteration at all in the nature of our cafe. Things and actions are what they are, and the confequences of them will be what they will be: why then should we desire to be deceived? As we are reasonable creatures, and have any regard to ourselves, we ought to lay these things plainly and honestly before our mind, and upon this, act as you please, as you think most fit; make that choice, and prefer that course of life, which you can justify to yourfelves, and which fits most eafy upon your own mind. It will immediately appear, that vice cannot be the happiness, but muft upon the whole be the misery, of fuch a creature as man; a moral, an accountable agent. Superftitious obfervances, felf-deceit though of a more refined fort, will not in reality at all

mend matters with us. And the refult of the whole can be nothing else, but that with fimplicity and fairness we keep innocency, and take heed unto the thing that is right; for this alone Shall bring a man peace at the laft,

SERMON

SERMON VIII.

UPON RESENTMENT.

MATTH. V. 43, 44.

Ye bave heard that it hath been faid, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy: but I fay unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curfe you, do good to them that and pray for them which defpitefully ufe you and

bate you, perfecute you.

SINCE perfect goodness in the Deity is the principle from whence the universe was brought into being, and by which it is preserved; and fince general benevolence is the great law of the whole moral creation: it is a question which immediately occurs, Why had man implanted in him a principle, which appears the direct contrary to benevolence? Now the foot upon which inquiries of this kind should be treated is this: to take human nature as it is, and the circumstances in which it is placed as they are; and then confider the correspondence between that nature and thofe circumftances, or what courfe of action and beha