Vol. II. their paft Life and Future State, whether they will or no? I appeal in a word to the Obfervation of all Mankind, whether in the Hour of Calamity and Death, all Men do not condemn Sin as fhameful and unreasonable, how much foever they doated on it before, or were har den'd in it.

And how can it be otherwise? Can any Man in his Wits affirm that Sin is more lovely than Virtue, Falfefhood than Truth, Fraud than Juftice, Drunkenness than Temperance and fo on? That it would be more for the Honour of God, and Good of the World, that Mankind fhould be a crew of Villains, Murtherers, Cheats, Sots, Lyars, Whoremongers, than that they should be Juft, Charitable, Modeft, Temperate and Continent. Alas! Men cannot have the impudence to talk at this rate; and therefore 'tis notorious that Sinners either disguise or conceal their Sins; either they will not own their Excefs to be Drunkenness, their Wantonnefs to be Fornication or Adultery, their sharpnefs and fubtilty to be Fraud and the like; or elfe they do all they can to keep fuch Actions as thefe from being difcover'd; for they know very well they are not able to endure the teft, and never break

out

VIL

19,20,21

But on the other fide, who ever repented of having been virtuous? or who ever was afham'd of his good Actions, when they have come unexpectedly to the Light? Hence that Obfervation of Our Lord, And this is the Condemnation, John that Light is come into the World, and Men Lov'd Darkness rather than Light, because their Deeds were evil. For every one that doeth Evil hateth the Light, neither cometh to the Light, left his Deeds should be reproud. But he that doeth Truth cometh to the Light, that his Deeds may be made manifeft, that they are wrought in God. This is a plain Proof of the Thing afferted, namely, That Sin is a Cheat, because Men are not induced to commit it by Reafon, but are entic'd, deceiv'd, and betray'd into it by Fancy, Luft, or Paffion.

2. Whatever Sin promifes us, whatever it flatters us with, there's no fōlid or lafting Good that we can ever reap from it.

For Proof of this confider, that it does not fo much as pretend to future and eternal Things. No Man can ever pretend to please God by being earthly, fenfual, devilish. No Man can ever pro

Vol. II. mife himself Immortality and a Crown for following his Lufts and Inclinations; the utmost fuch a one can hope for is, that there fhould be no Hell as well as no Heaven, no GOD, no Judgment to come, that his Soul fhould be as mortal as his Body, and that when he has liv'd like a Fool or a Beast he should die like

one too.

Sin then pretends to nothing but Temporal Good, and then confider, I beseech you, how empty, uncertain, mix'd and allay'd this is; fo that all Things are full Ecclef. i. of Labour, Man cannot utter it; the Eye is not fatisfied with feeing, nor the Ear filled with hearing.

But if there be any thing in this, the virtuous Man has at leaft as good a Title to the Things of this World as the Sinner; and what is more, he can enjoy 'em without Remonftrance or Check of Confcience, and can reflect on his Enjoyments without Remorfe or guilty Fears; and 'tis certainly no fmall Addition to his Satisfaction, that he looks upon the good Things of this Life as the Gifts of God, as Marks of his Favour, and Earnefts and Pledges of his future Happiness; that the wife and moderate Ufe of Temporal Bleffings does not only produce Peace within, but adds a Luftre

and

and Beauty to our Fortune, and gives us Serm. all the reasonable Security in it that the VII. Mind of Man can defire, whether we regard the Nature of Things or the Providence of God.

Laftly, I beg you to confider, that Sin does embitter and embroil even this prefent Life. Some rare Inftances there are of good Men perishing in their Righteousness, Ecclef. vi. but I'm confident that you will readily 15. grant, that in general the Evils and Calamities of Life do not proceed from Truth, Juftice, Charity, Generosity, Temperance, Continence, or in a word, from every Man's doing his Duty in his Station, but from the quite contrary. What destroys the Health, dilapidates the Eftate, beggars Families, and blasts the Reputation? What ftains the Beauty, disturbs the Peace, and confounds the Órder of Human Life? Is it Virtue and Religion? No Man will have the Affurance to say so.

Sin then is a wretched Cheat, for it cuts off all Hopes of a Heaven hereafter, and inftead of a Paradife upon Earth, is fo far from procuring us any thing more than what Virtue would, that generally fpeaking, it embitters the Sweet, and defaces the Beauty of this prefent Life, and produces nothing but Trouble, Mischief,

and

Vol. II. and Disorder. And yet this is not all

10.

for,

;

3. Sin draws down the Wrath of God upon the Sinner. Nothing is more fully, more clearly reveal'd than this in Scrip 2 Cor. v. ture, that we must all appear before the Judgment-Seat of Christ, that every one may receive the Things done in his Body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or Matth bad. That then the Wicked shall go away xxv. 46. into everlasting Punishment, but the Righ Rom. i. teous into Life Eternal. The Wrath of God

18.

Rom. ii, 5, 7, 8

is reveal'd from Heaven against all Ungod linefs and Unrighteousness of Men, who hold the Truth in Unrighteousness. And again, as Glory, and Honour, and Immortality, is made the Portion of all those who continue patient in well-doing; fo is Indignation and Wrath, Tribulation and Anguish, made the Portion of every Soul of Man that doeth Evil. This is the Doctrine deliver'd in a Thousand Texts of Scripture.

And can it seem ftrange to any one that a holy God should hate Sin? that he who is himself all Love fhould hate Strife and Contention? that he who is a meer Spirit fhould deteft our brutish Lufts? that he who is a boundless and univerfal Benefactor fhould abhor the Selfish and an undoubted Truth then, That Sin is the Object of Almighty

the Covetous? It i

and