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ed himself to be, of the honour of his holy name; and what terrible threatenings he hath denounced against the profaners of it, and what judgments he hath executed on them". "Ye shall not swear by my name falsely: neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the Lord P." And of the priests it is said, "They shall be holy unto their God, and not profane the name of their God "." "Therefore shall ye keep my commandments, and do them: I am the Lord: neither shall ye profane my holy name, but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel: I am the Lord which hallow you " "If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that thou mayst fear this glorious and fearful name, THE LORD THY GOD, then the Lord will make thy plagues wonderful, and the plagues of thy seed; great plagues and of long continuance; and sore sicknesses and of long continuance." Worshipping God and trusting in him is called, " A walking in his name; and calling upon his name." The place of his public worship is called, "The place where he putteth or recordeth his name." “They shall sanctify my name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel "" "For how should my name be polluted? and I will not give my glory to another." God telleth Moses, and Moses telleth Aaron when his two sons were slain, "I will be sanctified in them that come nigh unto me, and before all the people I will be glorified "." "A man that in striving with another blasphemed and cursed, was stoned to death "." And in the third commandment, it is terrible enough that God saith, "The Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.”·

10. Dost thou not use to say the Lord's prayer, and therein, "Hallowed be thy name?" And wilt thou profane that name which thou prayest may be hallowed? Is

• Psal. xxix. 2. lxvi. 2. lxviii. 4. xxxiv. 3. xcvi. 2. Isa. ix. 6. xii. 4. xli. 25. Jer. xxxiv. 16. Ezek. xxxvi. 22, 23. 1 Kings viii. 16. 18, 19. 29. ix. 3. 7. 2 Sam. vii. 13. Deut. xiv. 23. Psal. cxlv. 1, 2. Isa. xxvi. 8. 13. Psal. Ixxxvi. 9. 12. CXXXV. 13. Cant. i. 3. John xii. 28.

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it hallowing it, to swear by it, and use it unreverently and vainly in thy common talk? Or will God endure such hypocrisy as this? or regard such hypocritical prayers?

11. Thy customary swearing is an uncharitable accusation of the hearers, as if they were so incredulous, that they would not believe a man without an oath, and so profane, that they delight in the profanation of the name of God; which is the grief of every honest hearer.

12. Thou accusest thyself as a person suspected of lying, and not to be believed: for among honest men a word is credible without an oath. Therefore if thou were but taken for an honest man, thy bare word would be believed. And by swearing, thou tellest all that hear thee, that thou supposest thyself to be taken for a person whose word is not to be believed. And what need hast thou to tell this so openly to others if it be so?

13. And by swearing thou declarest the suspicion to be true, and that indeed thou art not to be believed: so far art thou from making thy sayings more credible by it. For he that hath so little conscience and fear of God, as to swear profanely, can hardly be thought a person that makes any conscience of a lie. For it is the same God that is offended by the one as by the other. A swearer warranteth suspect him for a liar.

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14. Both swearing and taking God's name in vain, are the greater sins, because you have no stronger a temptation to them. Commonly they bring no honour, but shame: they bring no sensual pleasure to the senses, as gluttony, and drunkenness, and uncleanness do: and usually they are committed without any profit to entice men to them. You get not the worth of a penny by your sin; so that it is hard to find what draweth you to it, or why you do it, unless it be to shew God that you fear him not, and unless you intend to bid defiance to him, and do that which you think will offend him, in mere despite. So that one would think a very little grace might serve to cure such a fruitless sin: and therefore it is a sign of gracelessness.

15. How terribly dost thou draw God's vengeance upon thyself? Cursing thyself is a begging for vengeance: profane swearing is a profane, contemptuous appeal to the judgment of God. And darest thou, even in thy sins, ap

peal to the judgment of God? Dost thou fear it no more? To this judgment then thou shalt go! But thou wilt quickly have enough of it, and find what it was for stubble to appeal to the "consuming fire "."

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Direct. 111. Remember God's presence, and keep his fear upon thy heart, and remember his judgment to which thou art hastening, and keep a tender conscience, and a watch upon thy tongue,' and then thou wilt easily escape such a sin as this. Darest thou abuse God's name before his face?

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Direct. IV. Write over thy doors or bed, where thou mayst often read it, the third commandment, or some of these terrible passages of Holy Scripture," I say unto you swear not at all: neither by heaven,-nor by the earth,— nor by thy head,-but let thy communication be yea, yea, nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these, cometh of evil.” "Above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by the heavens, neither by the earth, nor any other oath; but let your yea, be yea, and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation d;" (or hypocrisy, as Dr. Hammond thinks it should be read.) "Every one that sweareth shall be cut offe." "Because of swearing the land mourneth." Think well on such texts as these.

Direct. v. Love God and honour him as God,' and thou canst not thus despise and abuse his name. Thou wilt reverence and honour the name of that person that thou lovest, and reverencest, and honourest. It is atheism and want of love to God, that makes thee so profane his name.

Direct. VI. Punish thyself after every such crime with such a voluntary mulct or penalty as may help to quicken thy observation and remembrance.' If none execute the law upon thee, (which is twelve pence an oath,) lay more on thyself, and give it to the poor. Though you are not bound to do justice on yourselves, you may medicinally help to cure yourselves, by that which hath a rational aptitude thereto.

6 Heb. xii. 29.
• Zech. v. 3.

Matt. v. 34-37.

f Jer. xxiii. 10. Hos. iv. 2.

d James v. 12.

Tit. 3. Special Directions against Lying and Dissembling.

That you may know what lying is, we must first know what truth is, and what is the use of speech. Truth is considerable, 1. As it is in the things known and spoken of. 2. As it is in the conception or knowledge of the mind. 3. As it is in the expressions of the tongue. 1. Truth in the things known is nothing but their reality; that indeed they are that which their names import, or the mind apprehendeth them to be: this is that which is called both physical and metaphysical truth. 2. Truth in the conception or knowledge of the mind, is nothing else but the agreement or conformity of the knowledge to the thing known to conceive of it truly, is to conceive of it as it is: mistake or error is contrary to this truth. 3. Truth as it is in the expressions is indeed a twofold relation. (1.) The primary relation is of our words or writings, to the matter expressed. And so truth of speech is nothing but the agreeableness of our words to the things expressed; when we speak of them as they are. (2.) The secondary relation of our words is to the mind of the speaker: for the natural use of the tongue is to express the mind as well as the matter: and thus truth of speech is nothing but the agreeableness of our words to our thoughts or judgments. Truth as it is the agreement of thoughts or words to the matter, may be called logical truth. And this is but the common matter of moral or ethical truth, which may be found partly in a clock, or watch, or weathercock, or a seaman's chart. The agreement of our words to our minds, is the more proper or special matter of moral truth: the form of it as a moral virtue is its agreement to the law of the God of truth. And as the 'terminus' entereth the definition of relations, so our words have respect to the mind of the hearer or reader, as their proper' terminus;' their use being to acquaint him, 1. With the matter expressed; 2. With our minds concerning it. Therefore it is necessary to the logical truth of speech, that it have an aptitude rightly to inform the hearer; and to the ethical truth, that it be intended by the speaker really to inform him, and not to deceive him. (Supposing that it is another that we speak to.)

* Vide Aquin. de Veritat.

You see then that to a moral truth all these things are necessary: 1. That it be an agreement of the words with the matter expressed, (as far as we are obliged to know the matter.) 2. That it be an agreement of the words, with the speaker's mind or judgment. 3. That the expressions have an aptitude to inform the hearer of both the former truths. 4. That we really intend them to inform him of the truth, so far as we speak it. 5. That it be agreeable to the law of God; which is the rule of duty, and discoverer of sin.

In some speeches the truth of our words as agreeing to the matter and to the mind is all one, viz. when our own conception or judgment of a thing is all that we assert. As when we say, ' I think, or I believe, or I judge that such a thing is so.' Here it is no whit necessary to the truth of my words, that the thing be so as I think it to be: (for I affirm it not to be so,) but that indeed I think as I say I think. But that our words and minds agree, is always and inseparably necessary to all moral truth.

We are not bound to make known all that is true, (for then no man must keep a secret,) much less to every man that asketh us. Therefore we are not bound to endeavour the cure of every man's error in every matter: for we are not bound to talk at all to every man. And if I be not bound to make known the truth at all, or my mind at all, I am not bound to make known all the truth, or all that is in my mind; no, not to all those to whom I am bound to make known part of both. If I find a man in an ignorance or error which I am not bound to cure, (nay, possibly it were my sin to cure it; as to open the secrets of the king's counsels or armies to his enemies, &c.) I may and must so fit my speech to that man, even about those matters, as not to make him know what he should not know either of the matter or of my mind: I may either be silent, or speak darkly, or speak words which he understandeth not,. (through his own imperfection,) or which I know his weakness will misunderstand: but I must speak no falsehood to him. Also there is a great difference between speaking so as not to cure the ignorance or error of the hearer, which I found him in; and so speaking as to lead him into some new error: I may do the former in many cases, in which I may not do the latter. And there is great difference between speaking

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