Sunday proyed, it often comes to fuch a Habit, that XV. Reproofs will do no good. And then how fhall that Perfon be able to answer it either to God or himself, that has by his Silence betrayed his Friend to this greatest Mischief? 'Tis the Expreffion of God himfelf, fpeaking of a Friend, Thy Friend, which is as thine own Soul, Deut. xiii, 6. And fure, we fhould in this refpect account our Friends as our own Souls, by having the fame jealous Tendernefs and Watchfulness over their Souls, which we ought to have of our own. It will therefore be very fit for all that have entred any ftrict Friendship, to make this one fpecial Article in the Argument, That they fhall mutually admonish and reprove each other; by which means it will become fuch an avowed Part of their Friendship, that it can never be mistaken by the reproved Party for Cenforioufnefs or Unkindness.

Prayer.

23. Fourthly, To thefe feveral Parts of Kindnefs must be added that of Prayer: We must not only affift our Friends, ourselves, in what we can, but we must call in the Almighty's Aid to them, recommending them earneftly to God, for all his Bleffings both Temporal and Spiritual. Conftancy. 24. Laftly, We must be conftant in our Friendships, and not out of a lightness of Humour grow weary of a Friend, only because we have had him long: This is great Injuftice to him, who, if he have behaved him

felf

felf well, ought the more to be valued, by Sunday how much the longer he has continued to do XV. fo: And it is great Folly in ourselves; for it is the cafting away the greatest Treasure of Human Life; for fuch certainly is a tried Friend. The wifest of Men gives warning of it, Prov, xxvii. 10. Thine own Friend, and thy Father's Friend forfake not. Nay, further, tis not every light Offence of a Friend, that fhould make thee renounce his Friendship; there must be fome Allowance made to the Infirmities of Men,' and if thou haft Occafion to pardon him fomewhat to Day, perhaps thou mayeft give him Opportunity to requite thee to Morrow; therefore nothing but Unfaithfulness, or incorrigible Vice, fhould break this Band.

owe to

dience.

25. The laft Relation, is, that between Ma-Servants fters and Servants, both which owe Duty to their Maeach other. That of the Servant is, first, Obe- fters Obedience to all lawful Commands; this is exprefly required by the Apostle, Ephef. vi. 6. Servants obey in all things your Masters, &c. And this Obedience muft not be a grumbling and unwilling one, but ready and chearful, as he there proceeds to exhort, ver. 7. With good Will doing Service: and to help them herein, they are to confider, that it is to the Lord, and not unto Men. God has commanded Servants thus to obey their Masters; and therefore the Obedience they pay is to God, which may well make them do it chearfully,

B

how

Sunday how harth or unworthy foever the Master be, XV. efpecially if what the Apostle further urgeth, ver. 8. be confider'd, That there is a Reward to be expected from God for it.

26. The fecond Duty of the Servant, is Faithfulness, and that may be of two Sorts; one, as opposed to Eye-fervice; the other, to Purloining or Defrauding. The first Part of Faithfulness, is the doing of all Service to his Master, not only when his Eye is over him, and he expects Punishment for the Omiffion, but at all Times, even when his Master is not like to difcern his Failing: and that Servant that doth not make Confcience of this, is far from being a faithful Ser vant, this Eye-fervice being by the Apostle fet opposite to that Singleness of Heart which he requires of Servants, Ephef. vi. 6. The fecond fort of Faithfulness, confifts in, the honeft Managery of all Things intrusted to him by his Mafter, the not wafting his Goods, (as the unjuft Steward was accused to have done, Luke xvi.) whether by careless Embezelling of them, or by converting any of them to his own Ufe, without the Allowance of his Mafter. This latter is that Purloining of which the Apoftle warns Servants, Tit. ii. 10. and is indeed no better than arrant Theft; of this kind, are all those Ways that the Servant hath, of gaining to himself, by the Lofs and Damage of his Master, as the being bribed to make ill Bargains for him, and many the like:

Nay,

1

Nay, indeed, this fort of Unfaithfulness is Sunday worfe than common Theft, by how much XV. there is a greater Truft repofed, the Betraying whereof adds to the Crime. As to the other fort of Unfaithfulness, that of Wafting, tho without Gain to themfelves, it differs not much in effect from this, the Mafter may lofe as much by the one as the others and then, what odds is it to him, whether he be robb'd by the Covetoufnefs or Negligence of his Servant? And it is ftill the fame Breach of Trust with the former; for every Mafter is supposed to intruft his Affairs, as well to the Care as the Honesty of his Servant; for 'twould be little Advantage to the Mafter to be fecured that his Servant would not himfelf cheat him, whilft in the mean Time he would by his Carelessness give Opportunity to others to do it; therefore he that does not carefully look, to his Master's Profit, deceives his Truft as well as he that unjuftly provides for his own.

fion to Re

buke.

27. A Third Duty of a Servant, is Patience Submif and Meeknefs, under the Reproofs of his Mafter, not answering again, as the Apoftle exhorts, Tit. ii. 9. that is, not making fuch furly and rude Replies as may encrease the Master's Displeasure, a Thing too frequent among Servants, even in the jufteft Reprehenfions; whereas St. Peter directs them patiently to fuffer even the most undeserved Correction, even when they do well, and fuffer for it, Pet. ii. 20. But the patient Suffering

Z

of

Sunday of Rebuke, is not all that is required of Ser.XV. vants in this matter; they muft alfo mend the

Fault they are rebuked for, and not think they have done enough, when they have (tho never fo dutifully) given the Mafter the Hearing. Diligence. 28. A Fourth Duty of a Servant, is Diligence; he must conftantly attend to all thofe Things which are the Duties of his Place, and not give himself to Idlenefs and Sloth, nor yet to Company-keeping, Gaming, or any other diforderly Courfe which may take him off from his Mafter's Bufinefs. All these are neceflary Duties of a Servant, which they are carefully and confcionably to perform, not fo much to escape the Mafter's Anger, as God's, who will certainly call every one of them to an Account, how they have behaved themfelves towards their earthly Masters.

Maflers

awe to

29. Now, on the other fide, there are fome their Ser- Things alfo owing from the Mafters to their vants fu-Servants: As Firft, The Master is bound to ftice.

Admoni

tion.

be Juft to them, in performing thofe Conditions on which they were Hired; fuch are commonly, the giving them Food and Wages; and that Mafter that with-holds thefe, is an Oppreffor.

30. Secondly, The Mafter is to admonish and reprove the Servant, in case of Fault; and that not only in Faults against them, wherein few Masters are backward, but also and more efpecially in Faults against God, whereat