malice, and bear envy and ill-will. Thofe that are arrogant and proud, create to themfelves a world of difficulty, befides much ill-will and displeasure : whereas modefty, gentleness, loving-kindness, quietnefs, is according to the nature of man, and creates no trouble or difficulty to a man. But to return to the matter in hand. There is much difference between these two; between our leaving of fin, and its leaving of us; when we do not act from our own principle; but the bitterness of fin appears by its fufferings, and by this, we are made to defift; in these cafes a man cannot be faid to return from his wickedness. But then affirmatively, in three particulars.

ift. When we leave fin out of fenfe and judg ment of its vileness, and impurity. For all fin is fuch in its own nature; and therefore we read, that the fons of Eli made themselves vile by their wickedness, I Sam. iii. 13. and Fer. ii. 19. we read that it is an evil, and a bitter thing to forfake the Lord our God. For in morals you must know that the ground, motive and reafon of the action, doth fpecificate the action, rather than the matter of it., For two perfons may do one and the fame action; the fame thing materially may be done; and yet the action may be very different, because of the ground,' principle and motive, upon which it was done.. This for certain you must know, that it is not a virtuous action, if be not done because the thing is good, and avoided because it is evil. That is the firft, when we leave fin, out of fenfe and judgment of its vileness, badness and iniquity.

2. When

2. When we leave fin out of respect to God, in obedience unto his laws, and love to him. This was the temper found in Jofeph; who when fin was prefented to him, faid, how can I do this wickednefs, and fin against God, Gen. xxxix. 9. When it is more to us, to give God an offence, than to expofe our own lives and liberties. When a man wilk not deftroy the caufe of God, to fave his own life, Now if it be fuggefted, that this is a notion not practicable because God is at fo great a diftance, I anfwer, it is done out of respect to God, when we do a thing because it is juft, fit and right, because it is good and ought to be. And this is intelligible; for every man knows what is the ground and reafon of his action; he knows whether he doth it out of a fenfe of the goodness of the thing itself; or out of any other reason. For man, as a moral agent, is only confiderable, as to his end and principle. For God is best known to us, by being good, as being the first and chiefeft goodness. To do a thing therefore because it is good, is to do it out of love to God, and to avoid a thing because it is evil, is the fame as not to do it, because it will give God an offence. And this is an explication of doing a thing out of love to God, and out of respect to him. And I have found this among the philofophers, that never had the advantage of a bible, who tell us, "That if a"ny thing be without refpect to God, it is not an

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action of virtue, 1 Cor. x. 31, 32. There is no~: thing in the world better known to us, if we finks not down by fenfuality into brutifhnefs, or by ma→ lice into devilifhnefs, than that there is a God, and

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These we are

a difference between good and evil. all made to know, and herein we may not fail. Whofoever doth not know thefe things, it is matter of his fhame, and a fign that he hath greatly neglected himself. For who doth not know that it is better for a man to live in love and good-will than to live in malice, envy, hatred, &c. Who doth not know, it is better for a man to be fober, juft and temperate, than to be wanton and lafcivious? For a man to govern himself according to nature and reafon, than for to abuse himself? Who doth not know, that it is better to honour God, and to give him thanks, than to blafpheme him? That is the fecond, when we leave fin out of judgment and fense of its filthiness and bafeness, when we do our duty out of respect to God, and in obedience to his laws, and love to him.

3. A man cannot be faid to return from his wickedness, unless he doth conceive displeasure at it and refolve never to have to do with it again. Thus when a man leaves fin, with displacency and abhorrence; he may be said to turn away from it, otherwife it is but forbearance for a while, upon fome reason, and as a matter of prudence, like that of Felix, Acts xxiv. 25. God fpeaks peace unto his people, but let them not return again to folly, as the Pfalmift hath it, Pfal. lxxxv. 8. If a man do not continue in a good course, it cannot be faid that he is turned from his wickedness, nor that it proceeded from the change of his nature, but was rather a fufpenfion, than a diflike of his former ways. They that love the Lord, and do fincerely turn to him, hate evil,

Pfal.

Pfal. xcvii. 10. We must not only depart from e vil, and do good, but we must hate evil, as the apoftle directs, Rom. xii. 9. We must abbor evil, and cleave unto that which is good. This is the third particular, when men leave their fins out of difplacency, and take offence at them; otherwise it may be forbearance upon fome prudential account, but doth not amount to turning away from their wickedness. So that you fee this alteration is by the motion of the mind and understanding; and is made by the choice of the will; the mind is changed, and other judgment is made, fo that this man differs from himself. As a man differs that was in a deadly dif eafe, and is restored; fo doth a man differ from himself, after he leaves fin, and doth return to his duty. And fo much for the third thing, when a man may be faid to return from his wickedness.

IV. In the next place, I am to give you an account of lawful and right. When the wicked man turns away from his wickedness, and doth that which is lawful and right. Here are two words for one and the fame thing; and the one is explicatory of the other Now, this is that which we all ought to do; and there is no pretence of power and privilege to the contrary. And if every body did confine himself to that which is right, just and fit, we should have a new world; and there would be nothing of wrong or hard measure found among us; we should then be the better one for another. But here is the mifchief, fome go beyond their bounds and do not confine themselves to that which is lawful and right; which are but two words for the fame thing.

Right gives rule to the law, and the law doth declare what is right; and it is not a law, if it be unrighteous and unjust. This must be true of all human laws; for I am fure it is true of all the laws of God. The pfalmift faith, Pfal. cxix. 142. That thy law is truth; that is, it is as it fhould be; for right is the boundary of power and priviledge; for it is not power, if it be not in conjunction with right and truth; for God declares that his throne is eftablished in righteousness, Pro. xxv. 5. It is not power to be able to do that which ought not to be done; for ungoverned appetite is not power but weakness. It is not power to do evil, but impotency, weakness and deformity. Free-will, which we so much contend for, and brag fo much of, it is no abfolute perfection, and we need not be fo proud of it. For free-will, as it includes a power to do wrong, as well as right, is not to be found in God himself ; and therefore it is no perfection in us. For this is true of God, that all his ways are ways of righteousness, goodness and truth; and there is not in him a power to do otherwife than is juft and right, And if we were God-like, as we should be, the fruit of the fpirit in us would be in allrighteousness, goodnels and truth, Eph. v. 9. If this were the religion of the world, where would be revenge, malice, spite, and and doing wrong one to another? And as God doth that in all cafes, which is juft, fit, right and good, fo doth he require of us, nothing but what is juft, right, fit and good and this he doth require of us,under the promise of a reward, tho' it is our duty fo to do, and our righteoufnefs to be found in

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