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ed by them as honourable and advantageous, which he must condemn in his Reafon and difapprove in his Experience, but nevertheless is drawn in to practise himself and recommend unto others, barely upon account of the Praises that are annex'd to them, and the Disapprobation that must attend a contrary Behaviour.

If the World ftill lies in Wickednefs, if the Manners of Men are generally irregular and pernicious, if there is a kind of Combination or Confederacy to honour those Manners, and discountenance and speak evil of those who run not with us to the fame Excess of Riot; and lastly, if we are under thofe powerful Inducements to feek the Praifes of Men at all Adventures, and receive Honour one of another, as was before fet forth; then the extreme Difficulty which must arife from hence of Believing in Christ, and entering upon

a regular Behaviour, which must be a Part or Concomitant of that Belief is very apparent.

6

Shew me the Man that dares enter upon a Behaviour which, he before knows, will involve him in general Difgrace, or walk in a way which is every where spoken against that can encounter forbidding Looks and contemptuous Words on every Hand, that can bear up under Scoffings and Shame, and will not be guilty of almost any Compliance to avoid Mockery and Infult.

We may imagine perhaps, that the Testimony of a good Confcience may be Armour to us on the right Hand and on the left, that it may carry us thro' Honour and Dishonour, thro' good Report and evil Report.

It must be acknowledged indeed, that this is the first and most necessary Ingredient of Happiness, and were we folitary Creatures, might fuffice us.

But

But as we have focial Faculties and Inclinations, we must exert and indulge thefe as well as the reft; 'tis neither poffible nor reasonable for us to fufpend or obliterate one Half of our Powers. The Fire neither can nor ought to be pent up in our in our own Breafts, it endeavours by its own natural Force to emit its Rays, and must Shine as well as burn. If our Conscience condemns us for thofe very Things, for which others admire and applaud us, we can extract but little Comfort from thence, our Praises are our Reproach. And if we can acquit ourselves when we are condemned by the World, this must be rather a State of fevere Trial and Exercise, than of Freedom and Happiness, vastly remov'd from that Enlargement we enjoy when our single and filent Testimony is echoed and multiplied by the Approbation, and feal'd to us by the joint Consent of the Society a

round

round us; when every Man's Heart fpeaks the fame things in our behalf with our own, and stands as open to our Converse, to our Intimacy and Familiarity, as our own doth.

From what has been faid it must appear with fufficient Evidence, that the Honours and Friendships of the World, as wicked as it is, or can be, have so powerful an Afcendant over us, are fo adapted to our Inclinations, that it is impoffible, in the nature of things, but we must seek and delight in them, 'till some fuperior Motive be exhibited to us, I mean fome Motive which is better accommodated to our Affections, and brings with it a greater Recompence of Reward.

Now the Honour which comes from God only, is propos'd, and will cafily appear to be fuch.

By the Honour which comes from God only, we are principally to understand the Honour which will fuc

VOL. I.

F

ceed

ceed in our future State of Existence, the Glory that fhall follow.

Of all the Circumstances of our future State reveal'd in the Scriptures, the Glory, Honour, and Immortality of it are most frequently infifted upon as the best suited to our Natures, to our Love of Being and Perfec

tion.

If the Things of this Life do work upon our Affections, and excite our Endeavours by a neceffary Caufality, the Things of the next will be found more efficacious by every one who confiders them, and applies them to his Affections.

An immortal and incorruptible State must be preferable to a mortal and corruptible; a State of Perfection and complete Happiness, to one diseased, imperfect, and mixt with Good and Evil; the Society of Angels and the Spirits of juft Men made perfect, to the Converfation of Men very frail

and

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