out, is an airy notion, which will easily assume any shape to serve any purpose, that they please; or vanish at command, when it can serve none. It should be added, that as superstition is a much wickeder thing, for corrupting religion under pretence of highly respecting it; so is false honour, for corrupting morals under the colour of refining and exalting them. And the latter corruptions are the less excusable of the two, as they can hardly in so great a degree proceed from mistake: since the duties, that we owe one to another must be considerably more obvious to our apprehensions, than such as flow from the relations in which we stand to our heavenly Father, his Son and holy Spirit.

Upon the whole, I hope it is evident, that these two characters are in many particulars directly alike: that where they are opposite, they have this likeness still, that one is as far removed from truth as the other: but that in the point before us they perpetually agree: that is, in being specious forms and appearances of the two most valuable things in the world, without having the power and substance of either; in obscuring by this fallacious resemblance that knowledge of their duty, which by reason and revelation God hath given to men, and making the light that is in them darkness*.

Yet, notwithstanding all that hath been said, I must beg you to observe, that both superstition may be so spoken against as to depreciate piety; and honour so as to depreciate virtue. What many delight to repeat, as a maxim without exception, that superstition is worse than having no religion at all, may be true in some cases: just as it may in others, that false honour is worse than having no rule of conduct. But

*Matt. vi. 23.

since either of these may prevail in a very small and nearly harmless degree, or in a great and pernicious one; to conclude the highest and the lowest under the same condemnation; and make him who doth no worse than load the foundation of truth with a few ungraceful superstructures, equally guilty with such as would overturn it, is either the grossest unfairness, or the most pitiable want of judgment. Religion and virtue naturally produce the happiest effects. Erroneous notions in either tend, always to weaken those effects, often to produce the contrary: and therefore it should be the constant business of wise and good men to weed them out of human minds; but with the utmost caution; lest while the tares are gathered, the wheat also be rooted up with them*. And they, who manifest no feeling of this danger, have either a worse intention than they own, or a zeal guided by very little prudence.

Therefore the use to be made of this discourse is, not that the enormities of superstitious men should bring piety into disgrace, or those of the votaries of false honour make true honour be deemed a phantom; not that either of these defective and faulty characters should keep themselves in countenance by inveighing against the defects and faults of the other; but that both labour seriously to supply and correct their own, and so become such in deed, as they are now only in imagination. For if our Maker demand any obedience from his rational creatures, it must be paid to his whole will, however made known: and if we are under any ties of social behaviour of self-government, weare bound to whatever is just and fit. All genuine religion leads to virtue: all genuine virtue to religion: What therefore God hath joined together, let no man

Matth. xiii. 29.

put asunder*: but let all unite in the practice of both, as prescribed in the Gospel. For there and there only they will find, (what strongly demonstrates its heavenly origin) a blameless and perfect institution of duty, without any mixture of what is wrong, or any omission of what is right. Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.

* Matth. xix. 6. Mark x. 9.

† 2 Cor. ix. 15.

SERMON XXV.

GAL. iv. 4.

When the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth

his Son.

THE redemption of mankind from sin and misery by the incarnation and death of Christ was, on God's part, entirely a matter of mere grace and favour. It depended wholly on his free choice, whether he would send a Saviour into the world at all: much more at what time he would do it. We have therefore no claim, but what is founded on his voluntary promises. These indeed, when they were given, he was bound to make good. And as some of them not only assured the world of such a person's coming, but fixed the time of it; so accordingly he came at the time fixed. It hath been foretold in scripture, that he should appear under the fourth of the great empires of the world*; whilst the second house, or temple of the Jews, was in being†; when the sceptre was departing from Judah ; at the end of so many weeks after their return from the captivity §, each consisting not of seven days, but of seven years. And in fact, just when all these marks were visibly united, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching and saying, The time is fulfilled; and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel ||.

Gen. xlix. 10.

Dan. ii. 44.

† Hag. ii. 9.

§ Dan. ix. 25, 26.

Mark i. 14, 15.

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The fulness of time therefore, mentioned by the Apostle in the text, which he calls the appointed time of the Father two verses before, is plainly that which the scripture prophecies point out and determine. And this being kept to, as it was, with great exactness; reasonable and considerate men, if the world were made up of such only, would have little farther left to do in the matter, than to acknowledge, with due admiration, that known unto God are all his works from the beginning. Still, modest inquiries may undoubtedly be made, why a blessing of so great importance was delayed so long. If reasons can be found, pious minds will rejoice in them: if not, they will easily be satisfied, that God can see better and farther, than his creatures.

+ But the captious and the arrogant, they who must either understand every thing, or will believe nothing, have, it seems, insuperable difficulties on this head and the one point of our Saviour's coming no sooner, is enough with them to destroy his whole claim without looking farther into it. For they say, if either his instructions or his death, were of such consequence, as Christians imagine, why was not the world blessed with them immediately? Where was the goodness, where was the wisdom, of deferring till 1700 years ago, what, if it was necesActs xv. 18.

+ Cels. in Orig. 1. 6. §. 78. objects: Why so late? Why into such a corner? He should have animated many bodies and been sent into different parts of the world. Origen answers, that he entered before his incarnation into all that lived well: that he must appear in a nation owning one God, and having prophecies of his coming, and at a time when his doctrine could spread: that one Christ, as one Sun, was enough for the world; and if not, all Christians are members of his body.

* On which point also he insists, 1. 2. §. 30. showing the advantage of bis appearing when the world was in peace, under one great empire.