affirmeth that which he knoweth to be falfe; (for he de- SERM. ceiveth the hearers, begetting in them an opinion that he XVII. is affured of what he affirms :) especially in dealing with the concernments of others, whofe right and repute juftice doth oblige us to beware of infringing, charity should difpofe us to regard and tender as our own. It is not every poffibility, every feeming, every faint shew or glimmering appearance, which fufficeth to ground bad opinion or reproachful difcourfe concerning our brother: the matter should be clear, notorious, and palpable, before we admit a disadvantageous conceit into our head, a diftafteful refentment into our heart, a harsh word into our mouth about him. Men may fancy themselves fagacious and fhrewd, (persons of deep judgment and fine wit they may be taken for,) when they can dive into others hearts, and found their intentions; when through thick mists or at remote distances they can descry faults in them; when they collect ill of them by long trains, and subtle fetches of difcourfe: but in truth they do thereby rather bewray in themselves fmall love of truth, care of juftice, or fenfe of charity, together with little wisdom and discretion: for truth is only feen in a clear light; juftice requireth strict proof: charity thinketh no evil, and believeth all things 1 Cor. xiii, for the best; wifdom is not forward to pronounce before 5, 7. full evidence. (He, faith the Wife Man, that anfwereth a Prov. xviii. matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him.) In fine, they who proceed thus, as it is usual that they speak falfely, as it is casual that they ever speak truly, as they affect to speak ill, true or false; so worthily they are to be reckoned among flanderers.

6. Another like way of flandering is, impetuous or negligent sputtering out of words, without minding what truth or confequence there is in them, how they may touch or hurt our neighbour. To avoid this fin, we muft not only be free from intending mischief, but wary of effecting it; not only careful of not wronging one distinct perfon, but of harming any promifcuously; not only abstinent from aiming directly, but provident not to hit cafually any person with obloquy. For as he that dis

13.

SERM. chargeth fhot into a crowd, or fo as not to look about reXVII. garding who may stand in the way, is no lefs guilty of

doing mifchief, and bound to make fatisfaction to them he woundeth, than if he had aimed at fome one person : fo if we fling our bad words at random, which may light unluckily, and defame fomebody, we become flanderers unawares, and before we think on it. This practice hath not ever all the malice of the worst flander, but it worketh often the effects thereof, and therefore doth incur its guilt and its punishment; especially it being commonly derived from ill temper, or from bad habit, which we are bound to watch over, to curb, and to correct. The tongue is a fharp and parlous weapon, which we are bound to keep up in the sheath, or never to draw forth but advisedly, and upon juft occafion; it must ever be wielded with caution and care: to brandish it wantonly, to lay about with it blindly and furiously, to flash and fmite therewith any that happeth to come in our way, doth argue malice or madness.

7. It is an ordinary way of proceeding to calumniate, for men, reflecting upon fome bad difpofition in themselves, (although resulting from their own particular temper, from their bad principles, or from their ill custom,) to charge it presently upon others; prefuming others to be like themselves: like the wicked perfon in the Pfalm, Pfal. 1. 21. Thou thoughteft that I was altogether fuch an one as thyfelf. This is to slander mankind first in the grofs; then in retail, as occafion ferveth, to afperfe any man: this is the way of half-witted Machiavelians, and of defperate reprobates in wickednefs, who, having prostituted their confciences to vice, for their own defence and folace, would fhrowd themselves from blame under the fhelter of common pravity and infirmity; accufing all men of that whereof they know themfelves guilty. But furely there can be no greater iniquity than this, that one man should undergo blame for the ill confcience of another.

Remedium pœnæ fuæ arbitrantur, fi nemo fit fanctus, fi omnibus detrahatur, fi turba fit pereuntium, &c. Hier, ad Afellam, Ep. xcix.

These feem to be the chief kinds of flander, and moft SERM. common ways of practifing it. In which defcription the XVII. folly thereof doth, I suppose, so clearly shine, that no man can look thereon without loathing and defpifing it, as not only a very ugly, but a moft foolish practice. No man furely can be wife, who will fuffer himself to be defiled therewith. But to render its folly more apparent, we shall display it; declaring it to be extremely foolish upon feveral accounts. But the doing this, in regard to your patience, we shall forbear at present.

SERMON XVIII.

THE FOLLY OF SLANDER.

PROV. X. 18.

He that uttereth flander is a fool.

SERM. I HAVE formerly in this place, difcourfing upon this

XVIII.

text, explained the nature of the fin here condemned, with its feveral kinds and ways of practifing.

II. I shall now proceed to declare the folly of it; and to make good by divers reasons the affertion of the Wise Man, that He who uttereth flander is a fool.

1. Slandering is foolish, as finful and wicked.

All fin is foolish upon many accounts; as proceeding from ignorance, error, inconfiderateness, vanity; as implying weak judgment and irrational choice; as thwarting the dictates of reafon and beft rules of wisdom; as producing very mischievous effects to ourselves, bereaving us of the chief goods, and expofing us to the worst evils. What can be more egregiously absurd, than to diffent in our opinion and difcord in our choice from infinite wifdom; to provoke by our actions sovereign juftice and immutable severity; to oppose almighty power, and offend immenfe goodness; to render ourselves unlike, and contrary in our doings, our difpofition, our state, to absolute perfection and felicity? What can be more defperately wild, than to disoblige our beft friend, to forfeit his love and favour, to render him our enemy, who is our Lord

and our Judge, upon whose mere will and disposal all our SERM. fubfistence, all our welfare does abfolutely depend? What XVIII. greater madness can be conceived, than to deprive our minds of all true content here, and to separate our fouls from eternal bliss hereafter; to gall our confciences now with fore remorfe, and to engage ourselves for ever in remediless miferies? Such folly doth all fin include: whence in Scripture ftyle worthily goodness and wisdom are terms equivalent; fin and folly do fignify the fame thing.

If thence this practice be proved extremely finful, it will thence sufficiently be demonstrated no less foolish. And that it is extremely finful, may eafily be fhewed. It is the character of the fuperlatively wicked man; Thou Pf. 1. 19, 20. givest thy mouth to evil, and thy tongue frameth deceit : thou fittest and speakest against thy brother; thou flanderest thine own mother's fon. It is indeed plainly the blackest and most hellish fin that can be; that which giveth the grand fiend his names, and moft expreffeth his nature. He is i Aáboλos, the flanderer; fatan, the fpiteful adverfary; the old fnake, or dragon, hiffing out lies, and fpitting forth venom of calumnious accufation; the ac- Apoc. xii. cufer of the brethren, a murderous, envious, malicious calumniator; the father of lies; the grand defamer of God to man, of man to God, of one man to another. And highly wicked furely must that practice be, whereby we grow namefakes to him, conspire in proceeding with him, resemble his difpofition and nature. It is a complication, a comprifal, a collection and fum of all wickednefs; oppofite to all the principal virtues, (to veracity and fincerity, to charity and juftice,) tranfgreffing all the great commandments, violating immediately and directly all the duties concerning our neighbour.

10.

Joh. viii.44.

1 Pet. ii. 1.

To lie fimply is a great fault, being a deviation from Eph. iv. 25. that good rule which prefcribeth truth in all our words; Pf. xxxi. 5. rendering us unlike and disagreeable to God, who is the xxv. 10. God of truth; (who loveth truth, and practiseth it in all ixxxix. 14. his doings, who abominateth all falsehood;) including a cxlvi. 6. treacherous breach of faith toward mankind; (we being 22. vi. 17.

lxxxvi. 15.

Prov. xii.