always paid, and this sort of alms is called dukatorum, 'righteousness' or justice; but the alms which Christians ought to give is xápis, and it is ȧyán, it is 'grace,' and it is 'love,' and it is abundance;' and so the old rabbins told, Justitia proprie dicitur in iis quæ jure facimus, benignitas in iis quæ præter jus. It is more than righteousness, it is bounty and benignity, for that is the christian measure. And so it is in the other parts and instances of the righteousness evangelical. And therefore it is remarkable that the saints in the Old testament were called eveîs, 'right men,' and the book of Genesis, as we find it twice attested by S. Hieromex, was called by the ancient hellenists Βίβλος εὐθέων, ‘the book of right or just men,' the book of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: but the word for Christians is xpnoToì, good men, harmless, and profitable; men that are good, and men that do good. In pursuance of which it is further observed by learned men, that the word aperǹ, or virtue,' is not in the four gospels; for the actions of Christ's disciples should not be in gradu virtutis only, virtuous and laudable, such as these Aristotle presses in his Magna moralia; they must pass on to a further excellency than so, the same which he calls páέes Tŵv nрówv they must be sometimes, and as often as we can, in gradu heroico, or, that I may use the christian style, they must be actions of perfection. 'Righteousness' was the ovvvvpov for alms in the Old testament, and reλetórηs, or 'perfection' was the word for alms in the New; as appears by comparing the fifth of S. Matthew and the sixth of S. Luke together; and that is the full state of this difference in the enquiries of the righteousness pharisaical and evangelical.

I have many more things to say, but ye cannot hear them now, because the time is past. One thing indeed were fit to be spoken of, if I had any time left; but I can only name it, and desire your consideration to make it up. This great rule that Christ gives us, does also, and that principally too, concern churches and commonwealths, as well as every single Christian. Christian parliaments must exceed the religion and government of the Sanhedrim. Your laws must be more holy, the condition of the subjects be made more tolerable, the laws of Christ must be strictly enforced, you must not suffer your great Master to be dishonoured, nor His religion dismembered by sects, or disgraced by impiety: you must give no impunity to vicious persons, and you must take care that no great example be greatly corrupted; you must make better provisions for your poor than they did, and take more care even of the external advantages of Christ's religion and His ministers, than they did of the priests and Levites; that is, in all things you must be more zealous to promote the kingdom of Christ, than they were for the ministeries of Moses.

The sum of all is this; the righteousness evangelical is the same Comment. in xii. Esai. [lege, in et lib. vi. in Ezek. xviii. [tom. iii. col. Esai. xliv. qui est lib. xii. comment.] 328, 819.] [lib. ii. cap. 5.]

with that which the ancients called ἀποστολικὴν διάγειν πολίτειαν, 'to live an apostolical life.' That was the measure of Christians, the οἱ ἐναρέτως καὶ θεαρέστως βιοῦντες, men that desired to please God; that is, as Apostoliusz most admirably describes it, men who are curious of their very eyes, temperate in their tongue, of a mortified body and a humble spirit, pure in their intentions, masters of their passions: men who when they are injured return honourable words; when they are lessened in their estates, increase in their charity; when they are abused, they yet are courteous and give entreaties; when they are hated, they pay love: men that are dull in contentions, and quick in loving-kindnesses, swift as the feet of Asahel, and ready as the chariots of Amminadiba. True Christians are such as are crucified with Christ, and dead unto all sin; and finally place their whole love on God, and for His sake upon all mankind. This is the description of a Christian, and the true state of the righteousness evangelical; so that it was well said of Athenagoras", οὐδεὶς χριστιανὸς πονηρὸς, εἰ μὴ ὑποκρίνεται τὸν λόγον, 'mo Christian is a wicked man, unless his life be a continual lie,' unless he be false to God and his religion. For the righteousness of the gospel is, in short, nothing else but a transcript of the life of Christ. De Matthana Nakaliel, de Nahaliel Bamothe, said R. Joshua; Christ is the image of God, and every Christian is the image of Christ; whose example is imitable, but it is the best; and His laws are the most perfect, but the most easy; and the promises by which He invites our greater services are most excellent, but most true; and the rewards shall be hereafter, but they shall abide for ever; and (that I may take notice of the last words of my text) the threatenings to them that fall short of this righteousness are most terrible, but most certainly shall come to pass, they shall never enter into the kingdom of heaven ;' that is, their portion shall be shame and an eternal prison, aopaλTodes peûμa, a flood of brimstone,' and a cohabitation with devils to eternal ages and if this consideration will not prevail, there is no place left for persuasion, and there is no use of reason; and the greatest hopes and the greatest fears can be no argument or sanction of laws; and the greatest good in the world is not considerable, and the greatest evil is not formidable; but if they be, there is no more to be said; if you would have your portion with Christ, you must be righteous by His measures; and these are they that I have told you of.

2 [Cent. iii. prov. 89; e Suida in voc. ATоσTоAIK, post S. Basil., hom. in s. baptism., § 7.-tom. ii. p. 120 C.]-EOT δὲ αὐτὴ ὀφθαλμῶν ἀκρίβεια, γλώσσης ἐγκράτεια, σώματος δουλαγωγία, φρόνημα ταπεινὸν, ἐννοίας καθαρότης, ὀργῆς ἀφα νισμὸς ἀγγαρευόμενος προτίθει [al. προστίθει], ἀποστερούμενος μὴ δικάζου, μισού μενος ἀγάπα, βιαζόμενος ἀνέχου, βλασφημούμενος παρακάλει, νεκρώθητι τῇ ἁμαρτίᾳ, συσταυρώθητι [al. σταυρώθητι τῷ Χριστῷ, ὅλην τὴν ἀγάπην μετάθες ἐπὶ τὸν Κύριον. [Cant. vi. 12.]

с

Legat. pro christianis. [c. ii. p. 14.] [Numb. xxi. 19, a passage often allegorized by the Talmudists; and by later writers. Matthana enim hebr. idem est quod donum descendens, scilicet a patre luminum: ex quo primo ascendunt in Nahaliel, id est in hæreditatem, vel possessionem Dei, per activæ vitæ virtutem: deinde in Bamoth, id est in excelsa, scilicet contemplativæ vitæ.'-Rupert. See Corn. a Lapide, and Dorscheus (Biblia numerata) in loc. Compare p. 258 above.]

SERMON II.

THE CHRISTIAN'S CONQUEST OVER THE BODY OF SIN.

ROM. vii. 19.

For the good that I would, I do not; but the evil which I
would not, that I do.

WHAT the eunuch said to Philip', when he read the book of the prophet Isaiah, "Of whom speaketh the prophet this, of himself, or some other man?" the same question I am to ask concerning the words of my text; does S. Paul mean this of himself, or of some other? It is hoped that he speaks it of himself; and means that though his understanding is convinced that he ought to serve God, and that he hath some imperfect desires to do so, yet the law of God without is opposed by a law of sin within. We have a corrupted nature, and a body of infirmity, and our reason dwells in the dark, and we must go out of the world before we leave our sin. For besides that some sins are esteemed brave and honourable, and he is a baffled person that dares not kill his brother like a gentleman; our very tables are made a snare, and our civilities are direct treasons to the soul. You cannot entertain your friend but excess is the measure; and that you may be very kind to your guest, you step aside and lay away the christian; your love cannot be expressed unless you do him an ill turn, and civilly invite him to a fever. Justice is too often taught to bow to great interests, and men cannot live without flattery; and there are some trades that minister to sin, so that without a sin we cannot maintain our families; and if you mean to live, you must do as others do. Now so long as men see they are like to be undone by innocence, and that they can no way live but by compliance with the evil customs of the world, men conclude practically, 'Because they must live they must sin; they must live handsomely, and therefore must do some things unhandsomely, and so upon the whole matter sin is unavoidable. Fain they would, but cannot tell how to help it. But since it is no better, it is well it is no worse. For it is S. Paul's case, no worse man; he would and he would not, he did and he did not; he was willing, but he was not able; and therefore the case is clear, that if a man strives against sin, and falls unwillingly, it shall not be imputed to him; he b [Acts viii. 34.] ['unperfect' B.]

may be a regenerate man for all that. A man must indeed wrangle against sin when it comes, and like a peevish lover resist and consent at the same time, and then all is well; for this not only consists with, but is a sign of the state of regeneration.'

If this be true, God will be very ill served. If it be not true, most men will have but small hopes of being saved, because this is the condition of most men. What then is to be done? Truth can do us no hurt, and therefore be willing to let this matter pass under examination; for if it trouble us now, it will bring comfort hereafter. And therefore before I enter into the main enquiry, I shall by describing the state of the man of whom S. Paul speaks here, tell you plainly who it is that is in this state of sad things, and then do ye. inake your resolutions according as you shall find it necessary for the saving of your souls; which I am sure ought to be the end of all preaching.

1. The man S. Paul speaks of is one that is dead,' v. 9; one that was deceived' and 'slain,' v. 11; one in whom sin was exceeding sinful,' v. 13, that is, highly imputed, greatly malicious, infinitely destructive: he is one who is 'carnal,' and 'sold under sin,' v. 14; he is one that sins against his 'conscience' and his 'reason,' v. 16; he is one in whom sin dwells,' but the Spirit of God does not dwell, for no good thing dwells in him,' v. 18; he is one who is brought into captivity to the law of sin; he is a servant of uncleanness, with his flesh and members serving the law of sin,' v. 25. Now if this be a state of regeneration, I wonder what is, or can be a state of reprobation? For though this be the state of nature, yet it cannot be the state of one redeemed by the Spirit of Christ; and therefore flatter not yourselves any more that it is enough for you to have good desires and bad performances: never think that any sin can reign in you, and yet you be servants of God: that sin can dwell you, and at the same time the Spirit of God can dwell in you too; or that life and death can abide together. The sum of affairs is this, "If ye live after the flesh ye shall die; but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live," but not else upon any terms whatsoever.

in

My text is one of the hard places of S. Paul; which, as S. Peter says, "the ignorant and the unstable wrest to their own damnation." But because in this case the danger is so imminent, and the deception would be so intolerable, S. Paul immediately after this chapter (in which under his own person, as was usual with him to do, he describes the state of a natural man advanced no further than Moses' law, and not redeemed by the blood of Christ, or enlightened by the Spirit of God, and taught by the wiser lessons and sermons of the gospel) immediately spends the next chapter in opposing the evangelical state to the legal, the spiritual to the carnal, the christian to the natural; and tells us plainly, he that is redeemed by the blood of d [Rom. viii. 13.] e [2 Pet. iii. 16.]

Christ, is redeemed from the power of sin: he that is Christ's freedman is not a slave of sin, not captive to the devil at his will: 'he that is in the flesh cannot please God,' but every servant of Christ is freed from sin, and is a servant of righteousness, and redeemed from all his vain conversation: for this is the end of Christ's coming, and cannot be in vain unless we make it so. He came to bless us by turning every one of us from our iniquities.' Now concerning this, besides the evidence of the thing itself, that S. Paul does not speak these words of himself, but, by a μетаσxпμатiσμòs, under his own borrowed person he describes the state of a carnal, unredeemed, unregenerate person, is expressly affirmed by S. Irenæus and Origen, by Tertullian and S. Basil, by Theodoret and S. Chrysostom, by S. Hierome, and sometimes by S. Austin, by S. Ambrose and S. Cyril, by Macarius and Theophylact; and is indeed that true sense and meaning of these words of S. Paul, which words none can abuse or misunderstand, but to the great prejudice of a holy life, and the patronage of all iniquity.

But for the stating of this great case of conscience, I shall First, in short describe to you what are the proper causes which place men, and keep them in this state of a necessity of sinning; and

Secondly, I shall prove the absolute necessity of coming out of this condition, and quitting all our sin;

Thirdly, in what degree this is to be effected;

Fourthly, by what instruments this is to be done; and all these being practical, will of themselves be sufficient use to the doctrines, and need no other applicatory but a plain exhortation.

I. What are the causes of this evil, by which we are first placed, and so long kept in a necessity of sinning, so that we cannot do what good we would, nor avoid the evil that we hate?

1. The first is the evil state of our nature. And indeed he that considers the daily experiment of his own weak nature, the ignorance and inconstancy of his soul, being like a sick man's legs, or the knees of infants, reeling and unstable by disease or by infirmity, and the perpetual leaven and germinations, the thrustings forth and swelling of his senses, running out like new wine into vapours and intoxicating activities, will readily confess, that though even in nature there may be many good inclinations to many instances of the divine commandments; yet it can go no further than this 'velleity,' this desiring to do good, but is not able. And it is upon this account that Lactantius brings in the pagan or natural man complaining, Volo equidem non peccare, sed vincor, indutus enim sum carne fragili et imbecilla. This is very true; and I add only this caution. There is not in the corruption of our nature so much as will save us harmless, or make [See for the following references vol. vii. p. 355.] [Inst. div., lib. iv. cap. 24.]