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penfations of his Providence in this World, and by his final Judgment in the World to come. For with what Judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged and with what Meafure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

This is the firft Confideration fuggefted by our Saviour, and a very terrible one it is, that this rafh Judgment we pafs on our Neighbour exposes us to fevere Judgments on our felves. This Threatning is couched in fuch general Terms, that I must believe our Saviour meant it in the largest Senfe; which accordingly I fhall endeavour to explain and enforce; and to fhew the Influence it ought to have on our Life and Practice.

I. As to the Senfe of the Threatning, I shall comprehend it in these two Particulars.

1. That as to Mens Judgment and Cenfure, it is commonly fevereft on them, who are harsh and fevere to others.

2. That God, in the Difpenfations of his Providence in this World, and likewise in his final Retributions in the World to come, doth order Things fo, that they who are forward to judge and condemn others unjustly, meet with Judgments fuitable to their Sins.

1. One Thing meant by this Threatning is, that as to Mens Judgment and Cenfure, it is commonly fevereft on them, who are harsh and severe to others. It is a certain true Obfervation, that the keeping of a good Tongue gains many Friends, whereas the allowing our felves the Liberty to be sharp in cenfuring of others, doth at

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the long run draw down a great Shower of Odium upon our felves, and fo makes our lives very uneafy. What Man is he that defireth Life, fays the Pfalmift, Pfal. xxxiv. 12, 13. and loveth many Days, that he may fee good? keep thy Tongue from evil, and thy Lips from Speaking Guile. It is very natural for the cenforious Man to meet with this Fate threatned in my Text, that is, of being as much cenfured and condemned himself, as he is apt to cenfure and condemn others. For, firft, if we confider the Perfons who are cenfured, we cannot believe but that it is a very high Provocation to them; and that they will endeavour to justify and defend themselves; and fuch a Juftification is moft eafily made by detecting the Falfhood of the Slander; and the very doing of that leaves an horrid Imputation on the Slanderer. And to meddle fo far as this defenfive Part comes to, even the best of Men think, and think justly, they may concern themselves, in wiping off an unjust Reproach: But the common Sort of Men go a great deal further than this; for they think they do not fufficiently justify themselves, unless they recriminate, and fo endeavour to take away all Credit from the Slanderer, by fhewing him in his own black Colours. I am far from justifying of this Practice; for this effectually shuts the Door to Reconciliation, and drives every fecret Slander to an open Breach; nay, carries on Differences not by a fair War, but in an unfair pyratical Way. Yet I muft fay, the first Aggreffor in Slanders has of all Men the leaft Reason to complain of this; for it is but fighting him at his own Weapon. If he will begin and fhoot poifoned

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foned Bullets, he has no Reason to complain that others follow, and do the fame by him.

But it is not only the Perfon immediately injured by rafh Judgments and Cenfures, who thinks himfelf concerned in this bad Ufage. The cenforious Slanderer is generally reckoned an Enemy to Mankind. Every Man is quickly fenfible, how foon it may be his own Cafe; and how liable he is to be abused, in a Way against which there is no Guard or Defence. And therefore the Slanderer is very inconfiderate and short-fighted, if he thinks his Injury will only reach the Perfon against whom it is immediately intended; it reaches all Men in general; and it will certainly reach himself at laft, and be paid Home with Intereft into his own Bofom. As if a dishonest Trader fhould not make an univerfal Practice of cheating every Body, but only here and there one, against whom he has the fairest Opportunity; the Effect of this would not terminate in the unjuft Benefit he would make of those few the juft Odium he would incur from them: but he would quickly find, by the Decay of his Trade, that he has got the general bad Character of an unfair Man in his Dealing, and that all People are upon their Guard against him; and would fufpect him, even when he uses them well. It is no hard Matter to apply this that I have faid of the unfair Dealer, to the Slanderer; how he will quickly lofe himfelf, and be reckoned a common Enemy of Mankind, and his falfe Characters will lofe all their Venom; for in a little Time no Body will believe them; nor his true ones neither. He will find at last that Mankind are agreed in nothing more about him,

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than to believe nothing that he says; and that in Juftification of this, finding he is a Man of a prostitute Reputation in many Things, they will fufpect him to be fo in every Thing; and thenhe will find by Experience, that there was fome Truth and good Senfe in the Threatning of my Text; Judge not, that ye be not judged: for with what Judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with what Meafure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

2. Another Thing meant by this Threatning in my Text is, that God, both in the Difpenfations of his Providence in this World, and in his final Retributions in the next, will fo order Matters, that they who in their Judgments and Cenfures are harsh and uncharitable to others, fhall meet with Judgments fuitable to their Sins; that is, such as have a greater Mixture of Severity than Mercy.

(1.) I begin with the Difpenfations of Providence in this World. It is true, God does not always punish Sinners vifibly in this Life; but the Wicked often profper in this World; for if all had their vifible Punishment here, there would be little Occafion for a folemn Day of Judgment hereafter; yet God thinks fit often, for the Vindication of his own Honour, to make Examples of Sinners in this World; and fuch Examples, that their Sin is legible in their Punishment. And particularly in this Sin of rafh judging or condemning, all Hiftories are full of Inftances of this fort of Sinners exemplarily punished in their own Way. This Adonibezek confeffed, when he came to have his Thumbs and great Toes cut off in his Captivity, Judg. i. 6. Three

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[SERM. Score and ten Kings, having their Thumbs and great Toes cut off, gathered their Meat under my Table: as I have done, fo God hath requited me. Haman had mifreprefented and flandered the Jews to King Abafuerus, to that degree, that he had obtain'd a cruel Edict to murder them, and particularly he had prepared an high Gallows for Mordecai; but it pleafed God to reverse all thefe wicked Defigns, and to bring them upon his own Head. He was forced to do Honour to Mordecai; and the Jews had the Slaughter of their Enemies; and he himself was hanged on the Gallows he had prepared. But it is needless to multiply Examples. This was fo common an Obfervation, that it is frequently used as a Proverb in the Jewish Writings, that With what Measure we mete, it shall be measured to us again. And, He that digs a Pit to catch another, commonly falls into it himself. The Lord is known by the Judgment which he executeth, fays the Pfalmift, Pfal. ix. 16. The Wicked is fnared in the Work of his own Hands. It is very rare, I believe, that the cenforious Detractor and Slanderer efcapes fevere Punishment in this World; for I know not any thing whatsoever that makes more Enemies, or ftirs up more lafting Refentments, or is followed with more fatal Confequences. And it is often obferved, that if an Enemy is ever so despicable at prefent, Providence fo orders Matters, that fome time or other it is in his Power to retaliate and make his Friendship valuable. The World is fo full of Changes and Revolutions, that there is no Man or Party ever fo much depreffed, but that the Face of Affairs has its Changes, and it is in the Power of the fame Perfons to revenge them

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