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themselves of all the Affronts and Injuries that have been offered them by all the most railing Rabfbakebs. And therefore it is a Part of Wifdom, to reftrain that Wantonnefs of Wit or Malice, which inclines us to play with Mens Names and Reputations, either in the Way of Calumny, Satire, or Ridicule; for befides the Sin of it, it is much fafer and more prudent for our own Intereft, to put the best and most candid and charitable Conftructions on all our Neighbour's Acti-, ons, affuring our felves, that whenever we do otherwise, we are only laying Snares, which fome time or other will entrap our felves. But this is not the worst of it: For,

(2.) The terrible Retribution which shall be made to this Sin in the future Judgment, is a much greater and more terrible Confideration to fcare all People from the Commiffion of it. And this is what I think, is principally meant by this Threatning in my Text: With what Judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what Meafure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again; 4. d. if ye are fo fevere and uncharitable to others, ye fhall meet with the fame Judgment without Mercy, at the Hands of Almighty God; according to that Obfervation of the Pfalmift, Pfal. xviii. 25. With the Merciful, thou wilt fhew thy felf merciful; with an upright Man, thou wilt fhew thy felf upright; with the pure, thou wilt fhew thy felf pure; and with the Froward thou wilt fhew thy felf froward. Meaning, that God will repay Men in their own Coin; either in this World, or in the World to come. And therefore as mapy of this, and all fort of Sinners, as die impenitent, without being punished in this Life, we

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may be fure fuch shall not escape unpunished in in the World to come.

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But becaufe fome may be apt to think that this Sin of rash judging is fo common and trivial, that it is not probable it is of the mortal Kind; I fhall therefore here confider fome of the chief Aggravations of it, which, if they were more duly reflected on, Men would change their Opinion of the innocent Nature of this Sin, and count it one of those that is threatned with Damnation.

1. Firft then, Let us confider, that by this rafh judging and condemning of our Neighbour, we invade God's Prerogative. This fort of Judgment belongs properly to Him, and his Vicegerents, the Ecclefiaftical and Civil Judges and Magiftrates. And to them it belongs only, when the Things judged come to be Overt-acts, well attefted and proved, and they are regularly fitting in Judgment upon them, and give the Defendant a full Hearing; which has no Relation to these rafh Judgments condemned in my Text. These are Things commonly for which they are anfwerable only at God's Tribunal; being usually of fuch Things, as either human Laws have taken no notice; or if they have, that there is "not fufficient Proof to make them answerable át their Tribunals; or perhaps, the rafh Judgment relates to the Thoughts and Intents of the Heart, which are immediately under God's Infpection. And therefore the Apostle's Queftion, Rom. xiv. 4. Who art thou that judgeft another Man's Servant? is a very proper Reprimand. And as he is only answerable to God, fo the Perfon guilty of this Sin doth rafhly likewife anticipate the Time of that anfwering; God is pleased to wait

the

the proper Time; doth not take Advantage of us upon the first Trip, but gives us time to confider and repent. And certainly this is another Aggravation of this Sin, that we treat our Neighbour more feverely than God thinks fit to do. He commands us to judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, 1 Cor. iv. 5. And there is a great deal of Reason why this Haftiness to judge fhould be avoided. That which we may think a grievous Fall, may be nothing else but fome ftumbling or ftaggering; and God is able to make him stand for all that; and will do it too, if he is not wanting to himself in begging and making use of the Grace of God. This the Apostle teaches in that forecited Place, Rom. xiv. 4. To his own Mafter, fays he, he ftandeth or falleth; yea, he shall be holden up, for God is able to make him ftand. Then there are fome Things which God has exprefsly left to himself, as knowing our Infufficiency for fuch Judgments, and that if we attempted them, we should do a great deal more Harm than Good; as in the Parable of the Tares, Mat. xiii. 29. The Servants are forbid to gather them up, for a very good Reason, Leaft while ye gather up the Tares, ye root up alfo the Wheat with them. Let both grow together until the Harvest and in the time of Harveft I will fay to the Reapers, Gather ye together first the Tares, and bind them in Bundles to burn them, but gather the Wheat into my Barn. But we being much more forward for this Work of judging and condemning than God, though fo ill qualified for it, are for paffing our rafh Judgments and Cenfures at prefent, and by fo doing, as our Saviour foretold, through our Rafhnefs and Un

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fkilfulness, do a great deal of Prejudice to the good Corn it felf.

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2. Let us confider, That by this rafh judging and cenfuring, we are guilty both of Injuftice and Uncharitableness towards our Neighbour.

亨 It is unjust to ufurp a Jurifdiction over others, without lawful Authority. It is unjust to determine in fuch Caufes, the Equity or Iniquity of which depends upon an Inspection into the Heart and Thoughts; a Thing of which we are not capable. It is unjust to make fo light of one's Reputation and good Name, which is a Thing that all good and wife Men fet a great Value upon; and which commonly has a principal Influence in the making or marring one's Fortune in the World.

And as this Practice of rafh judging is highly unjuft, it is no lefs uncharitable. The better half of Charity, I think we may fafely fay, confifts in thinking and speaking well of our Neighbour; for the other, of relieving him in his Wants and Neceffity, is much more limited both by the Object, the Neceffitous being but a fmall Part of the Whole; and by the Subject, the Narrownefs of our own Circumftances. But this other Charity, in thinking and speaking well of our Neighbour, is altogether boundless and unconfined; for as to the Object, it takes in all Men and Women, of whom we have any occafion to think or fpeak; they are all fome how or other Objects capable of this fort of Charity; and then for the Subject, it is altogether inexhaustible. Let us beftow ever fo much of it on fome Objects, we are never the

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but have ftill as much left for others. this cenforious judging, and rafh condemning of our Neighbour, is inconfiftent with that grand Duty of loving our Neighbour as our felves, there cannot be the leaft doubt. For Charity difpofes us to be gentle, meek, patient, kind, and merciful in all our Dealings with our Neighbour; it inclines us to hide and smother, to leffen or excufe, to pass by and pardon our Neighbour's Faults and Failings. Charity feeketh no Mischief; it covereth all Things; it beareth all Things. It regardeth our Neighbour's Credit, Intereft, Convenience, and Satisfaction, and all his other Advantages; and therefore will inflict no Cenfure, will imprefs no black Character, more than Duty and Neceffity do abfolutely require. But now the cenforious Perfon in my Text, makes it his Bufinefs to do all the Hurt he can to his Neighbour's Reputation and other Interests himfelf; and to ftir up as many others as he can to be of the fame Spirit and Temper; and fo is in an high Degree anfwerable for all the bad Effects of Malice and Hatred in them, as well as in himself. And this laft is a terrible Aggravation; for fuppofe he should repent himself, he may endeavour to do Juftice to the Perfon he has injured, by undeceiving those who have been led into Error and Uncharitableness through his means; but how much further the Mischief may have spread through their means, that he misinformed and feduced; and their means that they have feduced; and fo on in infinitum, is a most difmal Confideration.

3. Let us confider that in respect of our felves, we betray a great many bad Qualities, when we

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