"unfeemly, feeketh not, her own, is not eafily pro"voked, thinketh no evil, rejoiceth not in iniquity, "but rejoiceth in the truth: beareth all things, believ"eth all things, hopeth all things, endureth_all "things. Charity never fails." Men are too often the worse for their wit, for their learning, aye for their religion too, if charity does not humble and fanctify them. "Ye know not of what spirit ye are," faid the bleffed Saviour of the world, to fome of his overzealous difciples. There is a falfe, as well as a true zeal, and by their fruits we fhall know them. True zeal is against fin, and shown best upon a man's felf, his own life and conduct: it is tempered with wisdom, and will not outfhoot the mark, efpecially towards others. But falfe zeal is nothing but paffion in the name of religion. It is impatient, froward, angry, and revengeful. It can flander, quarrel, beat, plunder, and kill too, and all for God's fake! alas! their zeal is the excufe of their choler; and, for the most part, thofe that are captivated with it, are worse livers than those they so evilly treat; and, at beft, fhew most bufy and concerned about the outfide of religion. David was zealous, but not after this fort; for though he tells us that his "Zeal for God's house had eaten "him up," yet he never faid it had eaten up his neighbours. That furious zeal is ftrictly forbidden by Chrift, the great Lord of the Chriftian religion.

It will therefore do us no hurt, if we try our own fpirits, and fee with what spirits we profefs religion, and act for it. They that act not from religion, can never act rightly for religion; their spirits must be wrong; let their zeal fwell as big as mountains, their faith can never remove one: they build upon the fand, and the fall of their building will be, at laft, as terrible to themselves, as their ignorant zeal made it formerly burdenfome to others.

Well then, where fhall we pitch the nature and bufinefs of religion, under the various notions and shapes we find it wears among men, and that plainly and

intelli

intelligibly? And with our answer to this, let us conclude this preface.

Religion, in the judgment of this author, is Living up to what a man knows of the mind of God; and attending diligently upon that light in himself, which gives him that knowledge of his duty.'

This is the gift of God by Chrift, that "enlightens every man that comes into the world." This is the talent that men are inftructed with, to improve to the faving of their fouls. And the apoftle tells us, that "whatsoever may be known of God, is manifest in "them, by this light," because "whatever makes "manifeft is light." Perufe John i. 9. chap. iii. 21. Rom. i. 19. Ephef. v. 13, 14. He that knows and acquaints himself with this holy light in himself, that comes by Chrift, the great light of the world, and brings his deeds and thoughts to it, and fquares his defires and will according to the manifeftations and directions of it, will approve himself a disciple of Christ, a lover of religion, and therefore a religious man indeed the nature and end of religion being our conformity to the will of God, which the apoftle expounds to be our "fanctification;" and that cannot be, till we receive this holy leaven in ourselves, by which the whole lump of man comes to be leavened; man, in body, foul, and spirit; man, throughout; man to be a new man: for fo the apoftolical doctrine instructs us, "that as we have long borne the image of "the earthly, fo we may come to bear the image of "the heavenly man, the Lord from heaven;" and, like him, to be heavenly-minded. And truly, that is the man I would choose to affociate myself with, and the church, fociety, or people, whofe communion I would prefer, that are followers and children of this light of Jefus; who, deftitute of pompous worship, and of tedious and difficult creeds, refolve all into an humble and daily watch and obedience to this light of Christ in the confcience, both as to their worship to God, and converfation among men, whatever the unjuft unthinking world is pleafed to judge of them.

I fhall

I shall detain the reader no longer from the book itself. He will find virtue and charity the great tendency of it. And though it may be objected by fome, that much of the service of it is over, because the ⚫ current of perfecution is stopped;' they are under a great mistake: the fervice of it is not over; would it were for debauchery of all forts was never more impudent and epidemical; and as great uncharitableness ftill appears among people. Their hands are in fome measure ftopped or diverted, but their tongues are not, for they were never more on fire against one another; and we know, "out of the abundance of the "heart the mouth fpeaks." They do not only whifper, but rail and threaten one another; and, to be fure, religion must be much of the enfign of their animofity: therefore till vice be fuppreffed, and education be better provided for, and prefumption and violence extinguished, that so virtue, humility, and charity may prevail among us, this treatise will be ferviceable: however, we are not to measure our duty by success: but if it fhall please Almighty God to favour the honest purpose of the author with his bleffing, that it may have thofe defirable effects where it comes, the author will exceedingly rejoice, and God fhall have the glory of this, as of all other the fervices of his people; who is worthy for ever!

THE

(xi)

THE

AUTHOR'S PREMONITION.

READER,

G

REAT books feldom find readers; and it may be the times may render this fuch for the motion of affairs is fo fwift, that action treads hard upon the heels of writing, and there is little time left to read: befides, people had rather converfe with the living than the dead; and fuch all books are to men in bufinefs. This reflection at first daunted me, the tract being grown thus under my hand: but believing what I have writ to be both true and useful to our yet fo much needed civil and ecclefiaftical reformation, and taking encouragement by the kind reception of fome former effays and addreffes I made, I refolved to let it go; but with this care, that by prefixing contents, thou mayeft readily turn to that part which may more immediately concern thee, or beft fuit and answer thy inquiry.

THE

THE

CONTENT S

$. 1.

"T

PART I.

HE introduction. Five great and crying evils of the times, under the correction of the civil magiftrates.

$. 2. Of the fin of drunkenness.

§. 3. Of the fin of whoredom and fornication. §. 4. Of the evil of luxury, and excefs in apparel, in living, in furniture.

§. 5. Of the evil of gaming.

§. 6. Of the horrid fin of oaths, curfing and blafphemy.

§. 7. Of the fin of profaneness.

§. 8. An addrefs to the magiftrates for redrefs of those evils.

The first motive to this addrefs, viz. the prefervation of the government: examples of kingdoms, nations and people exalted by the practice of virtue, and overthrown by vice.

§. 9. The fecond motive to this addrefs, viz. the benefit of pofterity.

§. 10. The third and last motive to this address, viz. the glory of God.

§. 1.

F

PART II.

IVE capital evils that relate to the ecclefiaftical state of these kingdoms.

§. 2. Of the first capital evil, viz. Opinions paffing for faith.