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ng a clause in a decreet, fentence or writ, more favourable
to one, and prejudicial to another, than was intended. (3.) By
the witneffes, who either conceal truth, or express it ambi-
guoufly, or refufe to teftify, or affert what is not true. (4.)
By the advocate, by undertaking to defend, or pursue what
righteoufly he cannot; or by hiding from his client that which
he knoweth will prejudge his caufe, or by denying it when
he is asked about it; or by not bringing the best defences he
hath. And as to the first point here about advocates, it is to
be regreted (as a great divine in our neighbour-church hath
moft pathetically, according to his manner, lately done) as
a fad matter, that any known unrighteous caufe fhould have
a profeffed chriftian, in the face of a chriftian judicatory, to
defend it; but incomparably more fad, that almost every
unjuft cause should find a patron; and that no contentious, ma-
licious perfon fhould be more ready to do wrong, than fome
ławiers to defend him for a (dear-bought) fee! I fpeak not
here of innocent mistakes in cafes of great difficulty; nor yet
of excufing a caufe, bad in, the main, from unjuft aggrava-
tions: But (fays that great man) when money will hire men
to plead for injuftice, and to use their wits to defraud the
righteous, and to fpoil his caufe, and vex him with delays,
for the advantage of their unrighteous clients; I would not
have the confcience of fuch for all their gains, nor their ac-
count to make for all the world. God is the great patron of
innocence, and the pleader of every righteous caufe; and he
that will be fo bold as to plead against him, had need of a
large fee to fave him harmless. (5.) By the accufer or pursuer,
when unjustly he feeketh what doth not belong unto him, or
chargeth another with what he fhould not, or juftly cannot.
(6.) By the defender, when he denieth what he knoweth, or
minceth it, &c. And by all of them, when business is de-
layed and protracted thro' their refpective acceffion to it, as
well as when juftice is more manifeftly wronged: This is
the end of Jethro's advice to Mofes, Exod. 18. 23. that the
people may return home, being quickly, and with all con-
venient diligence, dispatched; which, to their great lofs and
prejudice many ways, the unneceffary lengthning of procef-
fes obftructeth, and maketh law and lawiers, appointed for
the ease and relief of the people, to be a grievous and vexa-
tious burden to them: for which men in thefe ftations and
capacities will have much to answer to God, the righteous
Judge

Judge of all the earth, when they shall be arraigned before his terrible tribunal, where there will be no need of leading witneffes to prove the guilt, fince every man's conscience will be in place of a thousand witneffes; neither will the nimblest wit, the eloquenteft tongue, the finest and smootheft pen of the moft able lawier, judge, advocate, notary or litigant, that fhall be found guilty there, be able to fetch himself fair off. O then all the fig-leaves of their fairest and most flourishing (but really frivolous) pretences wherewith they palliate themfelves, will be inftantly blown away by the breath of that Judge's mouth, and to be utterly unable to cover the shame. of their nakednefs in the manifold breaches of this command; then the greateft ftretches of wit, and higheft ftrains of eloquence, made ufe of to the prejudice of truth and juftice, will be found and pronounced to be poor,filly and childish wiles, yea, very foolries and bablings; after which they will not fpeak again, but, laying their hands on their mouths, eternally keep filence: It will therefore be the wisdom and advantage of the guilty in time to take with it, and refolve to do fo no more; to betake themselves, for the pardon of it, to that Advocate with the Father, even Jefus the righteous, who throughly pleadeth, and, without all peradventure or poffibility of lofing it, doth always carry the cause he undertaketh to plead.

In fum, that which in this command in its pofitive part is levelled at, as the fcope thereof, is the preferving and promoting of truth, honeft fimplicity and ingenuity amongst men; a fincerely and cordially loving regard to the repute and good name of one another; and a fweet inward contentation, joyful fatisfaction and complacency of heart therein; with a fuitable love to, and care for our own good name.

The TENTH COMMANDMENT. Exod. xx. 17. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not cover thy neighbour's wife, no his man-servant, no his maid-Cervant, no his or, not his als, noz any thing that is thy neighbour's.

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Nto all the other commands the Lord hath fubjoined this, for man's humbling and deep abasement in his fight; and it reacheth further in than all of them, being (as the words bear) not about any new object, for it is concerning wife, boufe, &c. but about a new way of acting in reference to that object, and condemning directly a fin, not so condemned in any other of the foregoing five commandments: fo that it alfo feems to be added to the other, as a full and more clear explication of that spiritual obedience that is required in all the reft.

In it we have to confider, 1. The act, 2. The object. The act is not to covet: the apoftle expreffeth it, Rom. 7. 7. Thou shalt not luft; which implieth an inordinateness in the heart, as being diffatisfied with what it hath; and fo the pofitive part is contentment and satisfaction with a man's own lot, Heb. 13. 5. Let your converfation be without covetousness, and be content with fuch things as ye have. So that whatfoever motion is inconfiftent with contentment, and inordinately defireth or tendeth to a change of our condition, falleth in as condemned here.

The object is inftanced in fome particulars generally fet down, fuch as our neighbour's boufe, bis wife, then bis fervant, &c. under which (as the general following cleareth) are comprehended all that concern him, his place and credit, or any thing that relateth to any of the former commands. Thou shalt not grieve that he is well, nor aim at his hurt, nor be difcontent that thy own lot feemeth not fo good. And, as for the reafon why this command is added, its fcope holdeth it forth, which feemeth to be this; I not only require you (as if the Lord had said) not to fteal from him, and not to let your mind run loose in coveting what is his, as in the eighth command; not only to abstain from adultery or determined luft in the heart, as in the feventh command; and not only the abftaining from wronging of his life, as in the fixth command; and of his name that way fpoken of in the ninth command; or wronging of them that are in place and power by fuch heart-lufts in us as are forbidden in the fifth command: But I require fuch holiness, that there be not any inordinate luft or motion entertained, nor having a being in the heart, altho' it never get confent; but, on the contrary, that in reference to all thefe

thefe commands, in your carriage towards your neighbour, there be in you a full contentation with the lot that God hath carved out to you, without the leaft inordinate motion or inclination to the contrary, which may either be inconfiftent with love to him, or with contentment and a right compofure of fpirit in yourselves.

From this we may fee, that this command is unreasonably and unjustly divided by Papifts into two commands, the one relating to the neighbour's house, the other to his wife, and what followeth: For, 1. This concupifcence or luft looketh not only to the feventh and eighth, but to the fifth and fixth and ninth commands, there being an inordinate affection towards thy neighbour's life and honour, or estimation alfo ; and it is inftanced in these two, because they are more difcernible and common. This then fheweth, that God taketh in this inordinatenefs of the heart, under one command, in reference to whatsoever object it be; otherwife we behoved to fay, that either the commands are defective, or that there is no fuch inordinafenefs to other objects of other commands (which is abfurd) or by the fame reafon we muft multiply commands for them alfe, which yet the adverfaries themselves do not. 2. The apostle, Rom. 7. 7. comprehendeth all inordinateness of heart towards whatfoever object it be, in that command, Thou shalt not luft; which is, as, Thou shalt not defire his wife, fo nothing else what is thy neighbour's. 3. The inverting the order which is here, in Deut. 5. 21. where the wife is put firft, not the house, fheweth that the command is one; otherwife what is ninth in the one would be the tenth in the other, and contrarily; and fo the order of these ten words (as they are called by the Lord) would be confounded. But the great thing, we are mainly to enquire into, is the meaning of this command, in which Papifts being loth to acknowledge corrupt nature's cafe to be fo defperate as it is, and defigning to maintain perfection of inherent righteoufnefs and juftification by works, do make this fin of luft, forbidden in this command, a very general thing; and all of us ordinarily are apt to think light of this fim.

We would therefore fay, 1ft, That we are to diftinguish concupifcence, and confider it as it is, 1. Spiritual in a renewed man; for there are motions and ftirrings, called luftings of the fpirit against the fief, Gal. 5. 17. 2. As it is partly natural to man to have luch ftirrings in him, as flow from the na

tural

Com. 10 tural faculty and power of defiring; fo Chrift, as man, defired meat and drink: and this, being natural, was certainly in Adam before the fall; and, as the will and understanding are not evil in themselves, fo is not this. It is neither of these that this command speaketh of. 2. There is a finful concu pifcence, called evil concupifcence, Col. 3. 5. and the lufting of the fleb against the fpirit; it is this that is here spoken of, the inordinatenefs of that luft, or concupifciblenefs, or concupif cible power, turning afide out of its natural line to that which is evil: It is this which God forbiddeth in this com mand, and fetteth bounds to the defiring or concupifcible faculty.

2dly, We fay, There is a twofold confideration of this finful concupifcence; 1. As it is in the fenfual part only, and the inferior faculties of the foul, as to meat, drink, uncleannefs, &c. Or, 2. We may confider it as it reacheth further, and rifeth higher, having its feat in the heart and will, and running through the whole affections, yea, even the whole man, who in this refpect is called flef in the fcripture, Gal. 5. 17. and there is herefy and other evils attributed unto it, v. 19, 20, 21. which will not agree to the former: fo, Rom. 7. 23, 24. it is called the law of the members, and the body of death, and hath a wisdom, Rom. 8. 7. that is enmity against God, corrupting all, and inclining and biaffing wrong in every thing; fo that a man, because of it, hath not the right ufe of any faculty within him. This concupifcence, which is feated, not only in the fenfible, but in the rational part of the foul, is that which is intended here, which is the fountain and head-fpring of all other evils; for from the heart proceed evil thoughts, &c. Matth. 15. 19. it is the evil treasure of the heart, Matth. 22. 25.

3dly, We may confider this luft, 1. As it is habitual, and is even in young ones, and in men when they are fleeping; whereby there is not only an indifpofition to good, but an inclination to evil: it lufteth against the Spirit, Gal. 5. 17. and is enmity to the law of God, Rom. 8. 7. and lufteth to envy, James 4. 5. and conceiveth fin, Jam. 1. 15. This is the fad fruit and confequent in all men by nature of Adam's firft fin, and hath a difconformity to the law of God,and fo is called the feb, Rom. 7. 5. and the law of fin and death, Rom. S. 2. In the first refpect, this fin is a body, and a perfon, as it were, an man, Rom. 6. 6. and, in the other, it hath members in par

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