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For the wisdom of this world, and of the princes of this world, cometh to nought.

There is a way that seemeth right unto a man; but the ends thereof are the ways of death.

• The foolishness of man perverteth his way; and his heart fretteth against the Lord.

Where shall wisdom be found ? and where is the place of understanding? Man knoweth not the price thereof; neither is it found in the land of the living.

THE WEAKNESS AND INSUFFICIENCY OF MAN.

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We are not sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God.

* We have no might, neither know we what to do, but our eyes are upon thee, O Lord. We could have no power at all, except it were given us from above. And we cannot go beyond the commandment or permission of the Lord, to do good or bad, less or more, of our own mind.

It is God that worketh in us both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Thou, Lord, hast wrought all our good works in us. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. Neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth, but God that giveth the increase

? Which of us by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature ? or can make one hair white or black ?

2 Prov. xix. 3.

3 Job xxviii. 12, 13. I 2 Chron. xx. 12. John xix. 11. Numb.

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There is no king saved by the multitude of an host: and a mighty man is not delivered by much strength.

Through God we shall do valiantly, but vain is the help of man in trouble. For what is our strength, that we should hope?

* The wicked imagine mischievous devices, which they are not able to perform. Let them take counsel together, and it shall come to nought; let them speak the word, and it shall not stand. For God is with us.

THE SINFULNESS OF MAN.

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By one man sin entered into the world ; his disobedience many were made sinners.

s God made man upright; but they have sought ont many inventions.

Our first father hath sinned, and our teachers have transgressed against the Lord; and all flesh bath corrupted his way upon the earth.

What is man, that he should be clean? And he which is born of a woman, that he should be righteous ?

Behold he was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did his mother conceive him; and the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth.

We are a seed of evil-doers, who are risen in our fathers' stead; an increase of sinful men, to augment the fierce anger of the Lord.

We have sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even unto this

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day; and we are all of us by nature the children of wrath.

1 The children of men are corrupt; they have done abominable works: there is none that doeth good they are all gone aside, they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no not

one.

2 All we, like sheep, have gone astray, we have turned every one to his own way: all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; and the whole world lieth in wickedness.

3 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us: for there is none upright among men; there is no man that sinneth not; but in many things we offend all; and it is impossible but that offences will come. Who then can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin; when there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not?

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The Scripture hath concluded all men, both Jews and Gentiles, under sin: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the law, to do them; therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in the sight of God. And now, for a long season, a great part of the Gentile world hath been without the true God, and without a teaching priest, and without a law; and these have had their conversation

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in the lusts of the flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and walking according to the course of this world.

| How abominable and filthy is man, who drinketh iniquity like water.

· The heart of man is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it ?

Men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil.

* Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily; therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.

* The way of man is froward and strange ; and the way of peace have they not known.

The heart of the sons of men is full of evil : and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead.

In us, that is, in our flesh, dwelleth no good thing; for to will is present with us, but how to perform that which is good we find not. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak : and though we delight in the law of God after the inward man, yet there is another law in our members, which is continually warring against the law of our mind, in order to bring it into captivity to the law of sin which is in our members ; so that oftentimes what we would, that we do not; but what we hate, that do we: for the flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary the one to the other: so that we cannot always do the things that we would : for the good that

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we would, we do not; but the evil which we would not, that we do.

1 Our goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away.

We are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.

When we shall have done all those things which are commanded us, we are still unprofitable servants; and we are not worthy of the least of all the mercies which God hath shewed unto us.

* If thou, Lord, shouldst mark iniquities, who shall stand ? In thy sight, O Lord, shall no man living be justified.

$ Every way of man is right and clean in his own eyes; but the Lord who pondereth the hearts, and weigheth the spirits, knoweth his foolishness; and his sins are not hid from him.

* Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God; for God tempteth not any man;

but

every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lusts and enticed : then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

Thou wilt say then, Since we cannot by nature do the things contained in the law of God, why doth he yet find fault? Nay, but O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus ?

* To the Lord our God belong mercies and for

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