ftill went better from him than they came unto him, if they came out of a good end. By him, as himself said, the Blind received their fight, and the Lame walked, the Lepers were cleanfed, and the Deaf heard, the Dead were raifed up, and the Poor had the Gospel preached unto them, Matth. xi. 5. Yea, it is obfervable, that we never read of any Perfon whatsoever that came unto him, defiring any real Kindness or Favour of him, but he ftill received it, and that whether he was Friend or Foe. For indeed though he had many inveterate and implacable Enemies in the World, yet he bare no Grudge or Malice against them, but expreffed as much Love and Favour to them as to his greateft Friends. Infomuch that when they had gotten him upon the Crofs, and faftened his hands and feet unto it, in the midft of all that Pain and Torment which they put him to, he ftill prayed for them, Luc. xxiii. 34.

OH! how happy, how bleffed a People fhould we be, could we but follow our bleffed Saviour in this Particular! How well would it be with us, could we but be thus good and loving to one another, as Chrift was to all, even his moft bitter Enemies! We inay affure our felves it is. not only our Mifery, but our Sin too, unlefs we be fo. And our Sin will be the greater,

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greater now we know our Master's Pleafure, unless we do it. And therefore let all fuch amongst us, as defire to carry our felves as Chrift himself did, and as beco-meth his Difciples in the World, begin here.

BE fubmiffive and obedient both to our Parents and Governors, humble in our own fight, defpife none, but be charitable, loving, and good to all. By this fhall all Men know that we are Chrift's Difciples indeed.

HAVING thus feen our Saviour's Carriage towards Men, we fhall now confider his Piety and Devotion towards God, not as if it was poffible for me to exprefs the Excellency and Perfection of thofe religious Acts which he performed continually within his Soul to God, every one of his Faculties being as entire in it felf, and as perfect in its Acts, as it was firft made or defigned to be. There was no darkness, nor fo much as gloominefs in his Mind, no error or mistake in his Judgment, no bribery or corruption in his Confcience, no obftinacy or perverfenefs in his Will, no irregularity nor diforder in his Affections, no fpot, no blot, no blemish, not the least imperfection or infirmity in his whole Soul. And therefore even whilft his body was on Earth, his head and heart were still in Heaven. For he never troubled his head,

nor

nor fo much as concerned himself about any thing here below, any farther than to do all the Good he could, his thoughts being wholly taken up with confidering how to advance God's Glory and Man's eternal Happiness. And as for his heart, that was the Altar on which the facred fire of divine love was always burning, the flames whereof continually afcended up to Heaven, being accompanyed with the. moft ardent and fervent Defires of, and Delight in, the chiefeft Good.

BUT it must not be expected that I fhould give an exact Defcription of that, eminent and most perfect Holinefs which our bleffed Saviour was inwardly adorned with, and continually employed in; which I am as unable to exprefs, as defirous to imitate. But howfoever, I fhall endeavour to mind the Reader in general of such Acts. of his Piety and Devotion, which are particularly recorded, on purpofe for our Imitation.

FIRST therefore, it is obferved of our Saviour, that from a Child he increased in Wisdom, as he did in Stature, Luc. ii. 52. Where by Wisdom we are to understand the Knowledge of God, and of divine things. For our Saviour having taken our Nature into his Perfon, with all its Frailties and Infirmities, as it is a created Being, he did R 4

not

not in that nature presently know all things which were to be known. It is true, as God, he then knew all things as well as he had from all Eternity. But we are now fpeaking of him, as a Man, like one of us in all things except Sin. But we continue fome confiderable time after we are born before we know any thing, or come to the use of our Reafons; the rational Soul not being able to exert or manifeft itfelf, until the natural Phlegm and radical Moisture of the Body, which in Infants is predominant, be fo digefted, that the Body be rightly qualified, and its Organs fitted for the Soul to work upon and to make use of. And though our Saviour queftionless came to the ufe of his Reason, as Man, far fooner than we are wont to do, yet we muft not think that he knew all things as foon as he was born; for that the Nature he affumed was not capable of; neither could he then be faid, as he is, to encrease in Wisdom, for where there is Perfection there can be no Encrease.

BUT here before we proceed farther,it will be neceffary to answer an Objection which fome may make against this. For if our Saviour as Man knew not all things, then he was not perfect, nor abfolutely free from Sin, Ignorance it felf being a Sin.

To

To this I have these things to answer, fifft, It is no Sin for a Creature to be ignorant of fome things, because it is impoffible for a Creature to know all things; for to be omnifcient is God's Prerogative, neither is a Creature capable of it, because he is but finite, whereas the knowledge of all things, or Omnifcience, is it felf an infinite Act, and therefore to be performed only by an infinite Being. Hence it is that no Creature in the World ever was or ever could be made Omnifcient, but there are many things which Adam in his Integrity, and the very Angels themselves are ignorant of; as our Saviour fpeaking of the Day of Judgment, faith, Of that day and bour knoweth no man, no not the Angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father, Mark xiii. 32. But the Angels are never the less perfect because they know not this. Nay, it is obfervable, that the Son himself as Man knew it not, neither faith he, the Son, but the Father; and if he knew it not, then much lefs was it neceffary for him to know it when a Child.

SECONDLY, As to be ignorant of fome things is no Sin, fo neither is any Ignorance at all fin, but that whereby a Man is ignorant of what he is bound to know, For all fin is the tranfgreffion of a law. And therefore if there be no Law obliging me

to