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laft Occafion, I fhall not infift upon it now, go on to the fecond Thing I obferved from this Precept, namely,

II. That it is our Duty to use a Simplicity in Speech, by plain Affirmation or Negation, But let your Communication be yea, yea; nay, nay. This Simplicity is defigned to prevent the Fraudulent ufe of Speech; and particularly I take it to be a Prohibition of these four Abufes of Speech. 1. A Multiplicity of Words. 2. A defigned Doubleness or Equivocation in them. 3. Vain Complements and Flattery. 4. Oaths and Imprecations. And on the contrary, an Injunction that our Words be Few, Plain, Sincere, and Modeft.

(1.) This Expreffion, let your Speech be yea, yea; nay, nay; fignifies, that we should not use many Words, or rather that we fhould be at a Word. Solomon obferves Prov. x. 19. That in the multitude of Words, there wants not Sin; but he that refraineth his Lips is Wife. And Eccl. v. 3. That a Fool's Voice is known by multitude of Words. And St James advises us to be fwift to hear, but flow to peak. And fo our Saviour here seems to aim at the fame Thing, that we should quickly come to the Point, to an Affent, or Diffent; an Affirmation, or Negation; a yea, or a nay. And indeed there may be very good Reasons against a multiplicity of Words: For, 1. It presently involves us in that Rafhnefs, which is the Mother of Lies and Oaths, and Calumnies, and Blabbing of Secrets, and every other thing that is bad in Difcourfe; for the Tongue is fuch a nimble Mover, that it wants a Bridle, rather than a Spur, and like an Hogfhead down Hill, will run too

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[SERM. fast of its own accord, if it is not strongly curbed and restrained. 2. This Multiplicity of Discourse, and Volubility of Tongue, is a great Enemy to ferious thinking; it is a mighty Obstruction of both Judgment and Memory, which ought to guide the Tongue in all its Motions: For as a Clock, or Watch, if you take off the Pendulum or Balance, runs prefently into a precipitate noify Motion of the Wheels, but is of no manner of fervice for measuring of Time, which is the proper use of it; fo the Tongue, if we do not make use of our Judgment and Memory, only rattles off Foolish, Vain, Impertinent, Falfe, Profane, and injurious Words; and if they meet not with a ready Reception and Belief, most commonly backs them with rafh Oaths and Imprecations. 3. I need not tell the dreadful Confequences of this unguarded Talkativeness in Atheistical, Profane, Obfcene, Calumniating, Malicious, detracting Discourses, enflaming Men's Paffions, and fetting whole Neighbourhoods by the Ears; for I might as well attempt to tell all the mischief that Fire would make, if it were not reftrained within Bounds, as to Enumerate the dreadful Confequences of an ungoverned Tongue. But for Remedying of this, our Saviour's enjoining a bare Affirmation and Negation, is a very useful Precept; not literally that we are to use the Word yea, or nay, to every Thing; but that we are quickly to come to the Point, to speak to the Merits, without endeavouring to impose upon one another by Oaths, or falfe Flourishes of Rhetorick.

(2.) Our Saviour's Precept of yea and nay, may fignify the plainnefs we are to ufe in our Speech,

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as that is oppofite to all equivocal Senfes, double Meanings, and enfnaring Obfcurity. Our Saviour forbids here all fallacious, dark, tricking, and defigning ways of Expreffion, by which Men endeavour to outwit and over-reach one another. A Plainnefs and Ingenuity in the manner of our Expreffions, joined with a Sincerity and Honefty, of which I fhall fay fomething by and by, is the best way to induce Trust and Belief, without Oaths in our ordinary Converfation one with another: Whereas dark and equivocal ways of Expreffion occafion Miftruft and Jealoufy, as a Remedy of which, recourfe is commonly had to Oaths; and too often falfe Oaths are fwallowed to help out with the Fraud, where Equivocations, and dark Expreflions will not do. There is no Virtue in Speech, perhaps, more commendable than this of Plainnefs, in fo far as it avoids all Trickiness and finifter Defigns. Nor is it always neceffary that this Plainnefs be accompanyed with a rough Bluntnefs; it may very be joined with true Friendship and Civility, without feeding our Neighbour with falfe Hopes, by Words of dark and doubtful Meaning; a Practice that borders upon Knavery and Dishonesty, and is therefore very unbecoming this Chriftian Simplicity.

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(3.) A third Thing which I take to be prohibited in this Precept about Chriftian Simplicity, is, the Practice of vain Complements and Flattery, which, because they are very often doubted, or disbelieved, occafion Swearing to confirm them. This Vice might perhaps better be referved for the laft Obfervation I made from this Precept concerning the material Truth and Sincerity of

Speech,

Speech, that our yea should be yea; and our nay, nay; that is, that we be ftanch Men of our Words; and not brought in here among the forms and manners of Speaking. But because Compliments and Flattery are the moft directly contrary to that Simplicity of Speech which is here recommended, and are Errors against the Form, the Decency, and Simplicity of Speech, they juftly fall in here to be reprehended. I fhall not at prefent enter into thofe odious Characters, of which Flattery is commonly composed, Falfhood, Servility, Treachery, Contempt of the Perfons Understanding whom we thus think to Bubble, Trickinefs, and Self-love; because these belong more to the Matter of the Vice, than to its formal Inconfiftency with Simplicity, which now I am upon; And therefore all I fhall urge on this Head, fhall be, that this way of Compliment and Flattery, doth exceedingly deviate from the Original and native Ufe of Speech, which is fincerely and frankly to Communicate the Sentiments of our Minds to one another; and the more we depart from this Sincerity, fo much the more do we pervert the true Ufe of Speech. Not that Christianity is against an handfome, neat, proper way of expreffing our felves, no more than againft Cloathing our felves in a decent Garb, and keeping our felves clean and fweet; but this way of Compliment and Flattery, is like difguifing our natural Complexion, and Painting with Artificial Colours on purpose to deceive; than which nothing can be more contrary to the genuine Simplicity required here by our Saviour, in our Communication one with another.

(4.) The

(4.) The laft Thing which I take to be prohibited by this Chriftian Simplicity, is the deep Aggravation of Speech by high Affeverations and Oaths. For the Tendency of all these, is, that we should not be wrought upon by the unbyaffed Confideration of the truth of the Things propofed; but that we should have them crammed down our Throats by mere Force and Exaggerations of Expreffion. This diverts our Confideration from the Merits of the cause, to the way of Anticipating our Judgment in favour of the Perfon, who pawns his Faith, and Soul, and Confcience, for the Truth of it. This very Aim has occafioned more rash and falfe Swearing than any other thing whatsoever: For when Men have once laid afide Modesty to that degree, as to fwear to Uncertainties, they will not long ftick out at any piece of Impudence in Speech, by which they think to carry their Point: So that, by degrees, thefe rash Oaths, instead of being any Proofs or Marks of Truth, are only Signs of Impudence and Profaneness, and of a Mind fteeled against all Confiderations of God and Religion. And to be fure, when Men are gone thus far, there is no depending either on their Honour or Honefty. Their Oaths then are only Significations of Profaneness in themselves, and Traps to enfnare others. To reclaim Men from this wicked Practice, our Saviour here banishes all Oaths out of our ordinary Difcourfe, and calls us back to the Modefty, as well as Sincerity of Speech, that there may be nothing to byafs our Understanding in its Confideration of the Truth, or Falfhood, Reasonableness, or Unreasonableness, of the Things propofed, and that therefore all high Affeverations, Oaths,

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