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The circumstances of the cafes now mentioned seem to require and demand fuitable relief and affiftance from those who are capable of giving it. But tho it will be readily allowed, that there is a natural fitness and decency in the practice of mercy towards fuch as have never deferved ill of us; yet perhaps fome may be ready to object against the fitnefs thereof with respect to thofe, who have rendered themselves obnoxious to our refentment by an unkind and injurious treatment of us. Enemies, fay they, "ought to be treated as enemies; i. e.

profecuted with hatred and revenge: i they have no right to a mild and gen"tle ufage from us, who breathe no"thing but wrath and fury against us: "to put up affronts and forgive injuries, "is to act the part of a coward and not "of a man, to expofe one's felf to fresh

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infults, and greater injuries." This is the language of thofe who think that mercy ought not to be extended to enemies.

Now to take off the force of this objection, let it be confidered first, that in cafe of repentance it doth not feem at all unfit or unreasonable, that an enemy should be forgiven. On the contrary, it

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feems agreeable to reafon fo to do: for he who repents of an evil action, doth what in him lies towards the undoing of it, and therefore ought not any longer to be treated as having done it. Secondly, An enemy, even tho he perfift in his enmity, ought not to be confider'd only in that character. Whilst we remember that he is an enemy, we ought not to forget that he is a man. His par taking of the fame nature with ourselves, is an argument against cruelty and barbarity towards him. Tho his enmity against us may deferve refentment, yet it ought not to produce hatred: tho pru dence should reftrain us from taking him into our bofom, and converfing with him as a friend, yet humanity should teach us to pity him when in diftress, and afford him needful fuccour.

To put up affronts, and forgive injuries, is fo far from being a mark of cowardice, that it argues true greatnefs of mind. Not he who overcomes his paffions, but who is overcome by them, is a coward. The angry and revengeful man therefore deferves that name; who gives himself up to the conduct of violent and impetuous paffions; not the gentle and good-na

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tured perfon, who manfully fights against them, and labours to reprefs and fubdue them. Such an one fhews himself to be of a noble and heroick spirit, and deferves more honour than great potentates and fucceisful warriors. For in the opinion of the wifeft of men, he who is flow to anger is better than the mighty; and he who ruleth his Spirit, than he who taketh a city; Prov. XVI. 32.

And whereas it is faid that to forgive paft injuries is the ready way to expofe one's felf to more and greater: I anfwer, that tho this is a poffible cafe, and which doth fometimes happen, yet it is not a certain and neceffary confequence of the thing. So far from that, that it hath a tendency to produce the contrary effect, and frequently doth. There is fomething in mercy and goodness, which is apt to melt down the hardest temper. Who can perfift in enmity against that man, who endeavours to overcome evil with good; and who inftead of perfecuting his enemy with hatred and revenge, heaps benefits upon him? Bad as the world is, thefe are few to be found of fuch a ftubborn and implacable temper. But

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fuppofing the worst that can happen ; that a perfon is not to be won over by acts of kindness, but is obftinately bent upon requiting evil for good, and hatred for all our love: tho in that cafe it may not be expedient to continue our good offices, or confer any more favours upon him, yet it cannot be unfit that we fhould abstain from acts of cruelty and revenge. Nay, it is fit that we should abstain from them; becaufe, as members of fociety, we have given up all right to private revenge. By living in fociety, and partaking of the benefits and pri vileges of it, we do as it were confent to be governed by thofe laws by which the community is governed. Now, inafmuch as the laws of fociety have reftrained us from being our own avengers, and provided for the redrefs of grievances and the punishment of offenders, in a legal and publick way; it is quite wrong to offer any private violence to our ene mies, either in their body or cftates. We ought rather to put them into the hands of the civil power, and leave them to thofe punishments which the wisdom of the legiflature hath thought fit to inflict upon fuch cries as theirs. And with reS 2

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gard to fuch injuries as do not come under the cognizance of human laws; it: will be fufficient if we only decline fa-. miliar converfe with the authors of them, keep a watchful eye over their conduct, and take the most prudent measures that we can, as private perfons, either to affwage their malice, or prevent their doing any further mischief..

Thus I have done with the first argument; whereby I propofed to prove the righteousness of the practice of mercy, viz. the natural fitness and decency of it.

2. It is what we ourselves defire to receive from others when we stand in need of it: and therefore it is righteous and fitting that we ourselves should practise it. Should not we, if we were afflicted with bodily difeafes, or oppreffed with poverty, or perplexed with difficulties, or wounded in fpirit, defire to be pitied by our neighbours? Should we not with for the charitable relief and the wholefome advice of thofe, whofe affluence of this world's good enables them to feed the hungry, and clothe the naked, and whofe understanding and skill qualify them for giving counfel in diffi

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