and imaginations; and abhors and abandons an unclean, wicked, or rebellious heart. To Him all the pomp of religion and splendour of outward performances is without it detestable. Isa. i. II. The soul is the seat of religion; as for the parts and members of our bodies, they are entirely at the command of the mind. The understanding and will

are their despotic rulers. And as the heart and the thoughts are disposed, so is the practice and conversation; and therefore, them the Almighty principally regards. As a Man can never testify the truth of his love to God, or evidence the sincerity of his soul, without having a special regard to the wellgoverning of his thoughts; so without it, damnation may justly be his portion, though the plague break not out in the botches and ulcers of a profligate conversation, though the pollution be concealed and hidden. Indeed if we are

so profane as to think of God as a man, and esteem Him to be such an one as ourselves; if His Eye could not penetrate any deeper than ours, but were fallible and weak; if He could not see into our breasts, and discover the secrets of our hearts; then there might be some reason for us to imagine that He did not regard our thoughts, so our visible behaviour were smooth and untainted. But since He is an All-seeing and an All-knowing God, and professedly declares Himself such in the Sacred Scriptures, Psa. cxxxix., the reason of man cannot submit to such an idle fancy as this, viz. that He hath no respect to a man's thoughts; but on the contrary, must believe, that He hath an especial eye to them, and will assuredly call us to an account for them at the Day of Judgment.

Sa

For though our viour's discourse, Matt. xxii. 36, extends only to every idle word, yet in

the very verse before He shews that the heart is principally regarded, and therefore to be observed by ourselves. And more fully and clearly in His divine Sermon on the Mount, Matt. v. 20. For I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: but I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And ver. 27. Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, thou shalt not commit adultery; but I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her, hath committed adultery already with her in his heart. From all which it plainly appears, that if a man could indulge himself in

all manner of licentious thoughts without any further danger, yet that, God knows, is evil sufficient, because the thoughts of the heart are principally regarded by Almighty God.2 But indeed it is 2 We should remember that "the thought of foolishness is sin" briefly detain the reader. Juvenal, (Prov. xxiv. 9). And here I would

Satire xiii. 210, says,"Nam scelus intrà se tacitum qui cogitat ullum,

Facti crimen habet--" Gifford's version

"For, in the eye of heaven, a wicked deed

Devised, is done--" Mr. Gifford has an interesting note.

He thinks that the doctrines delivered by Juvenal in the passage immediately preceding, are of so pure and sublime a morality, that they are such as the light of nature alone was incapable of dis

covering; and which the author undoubtedly derived from that "true light" which now began to glimmer through the Roman world, and by which many sincere lovers of truth and virtue already began to direct their ways, while they were yet unconscious of the medium through which they received the illumination. With respect to this special passage, it is not heathenism. It is not to be found in the precepts of their gravest teachers and elevated as the mo

rality of Juvenal confessedly is, it is difficult to imagine it could soar so far above the ethics of his time without the above-mentioned as

gine how any person that is careless of his heart, should be otherwise of his life; or how he that is vain, filthy, or any way vicious in his imaginations, can be pure and holy, sober and religious, in his conversation and practice. Upon both which accounts we see the vast advantage that we shall infallibly reap by being diligent and careful in the well-governing of our thoughts. But,

Thirdly, That which will serve to make us further sensible of the great

sistance. What is more, this was the peculiar boast of Christianity. It was the vantage ground on which its first professors stood, and proclaimed aloud the superiority of their faith. "Vos" (says Minucius Felix), i.e. Ethnici, "scelera admissa punitis; apud nos et cogitare peccare est: vos conscios timetis; nos etiam conscientiam,"

&c. The passage from Minucius Felix is in cap. xxxv. Davies (ed. Cantab. 1712) quotes Seneca, who, however, might have been subject to the same influence as Juvenal; he also refers us to Cujacius for a proof that under the Roman laws

non facti solum sed et voluntatis pæna luebatur." I think, however, Mr. Gifford has raised an interesting question.

ing our thoughts, is this, viz. That we shall ever be in a preparation for the best and most weighty duties by this means. We shall not only be able to resist and repel the fury of temptations, but be ready for the performance of every duty. Those men that have not inured themselves to a habit of thought, and constantly exercised a strict regimen over the motions of their own hearts, will require a great deal of time to recollect and order their thoughts, and reduce them into a proper frame and posture. Those that carelessly give their minds a loose, as soon as any solemn and weighty duty is over, and suffer their thoughts to return to the old subject of the world, or any other of their vanities, the same difficulty will attend them to bring their thoughts into a due frame again which did at first. So that they will thereby be mightily hindered in their advances in religion. Their progress

in holiness will be much retarded; they labour in a circle; or at best they will move but slowly on, in the way to heaven, in comparison of those that keep a constant and strict government over their thoughts.

These latter

will be able always to say with the Psalmist, O God my heart is ready, my heart is ready, Psa. cviii. 1. And what an happy and desirable temper of soul is this! What spiritual comforts and benefits do these enjoy, which others for want of a due care and watchfulness deprive themselves of! These only want an opportunity of serving God and performing holy duties; others want a due temper and disposition when they have an opportunity. While the thoughts of others are just fluttering above the ground theirs are in the third heaven. While they are tuning their souls and putting them in frame, these are joining in hallelujahs with the angels. In a word, these who have

our

Fourthly, The advantage of this great duty of well-governing thoughts is great upon this account also, viz. Because nothing so much conduceth to quiet the thoughts, and compose the mind, as this doth. The greatest part of our trouble and perturbation proceeds from want of a due care of, and watchfulness over our thoughts. Andmany times our troubles are so great that they convince us of the absolute necessity of this duty; because then we find that nothing else can give us ease under them, or quiet our spirits. Now peace and tranquillity of mind is a very con