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in this odious work. There will always be offenders and malefactors enough to be the executioners to inflict this punishment upou one another. Therefore let no man presume upon impunity on the one hand and on the other, let no man despair but that this business will be sufficiently done one way or other. I am very much mistaken if we may not safely trust an ill-natured world that there will be no failure of justice in this kind.

And here, if I durst, I would have said a word or two concerning that more public sort of obloquy, by lampoons and libels, so much in fashion in this witty ago. But I have no mind to provoke a very terrible sort of men. Yet thus much I hope may be said without offence, that how much soever men are pleased to see others abused in this kind, yet it is always grievous when it comes to their own turn: however, I cannot but hope that every man that impartially considers must own it to be a fault of a very high nature to revile those whom God hath placed in authority over us, and to slauder the footsteps of the Lord's anointed: especially since it is so expressly written, “Thou shalt not speak evil of the rulers of thy people."

Having represented the great evil of this vice, it might not now be improper to say something to those who suffer by it. Are we guilty of the evil said of us; let us reform, and cut off all occasions for the future, and so turn the malice of our enemies to our own advantage, and defeat their ill intentions by making so good an use of it: and then it will be well for us to be evil spoken of.

Are we innocent? we may so much the better bear it patiently: imitating herein the pattern of our blessed Saviour, “who, when Ho was reviled, reviled not again, but committed Himself to Him that judgeth righteously."

We may consider. likewise, that though it be a misfortune to be evil spoken of, it is their fault that do it, and not ours, and therefore should not put us into passion: because another man's being injurious to ine is no good reason why I should be uneasy to myself. We should not revenge the injuries done to us, no, not upon them that do them, much less upon ourselves. Let no man's provocation make thee to lose thy patience. Be not such a fool as to part with any one virtue because some men are so malicious as to endeavour to rob thee of the reputation of all the rest. When men speak ill of thee, do as Plato said he would do in that case," Live so, as that nobody may believe them."

All that now remains is to reflect upon what hath been said, and to urge you and myself to do accordingly. For all is nothing, if we do not practise what we so plainly see to be our duty. Many are so taken up with the deep points and mysteries of religion, that they never think of the common duties and offices of human life. But faith and a good life are so far from clashing with one another, that the Christian religion hath made them inseparable. True faith is necessary in order to a good life, and a good life is the genuine product of a right belief; and therefore the one never ought to be pressed to the prejudice of the other.

I foresee what will be said, because I have heard it so often said in

the like case, that there is "not one word of Jesus Christ in all this." No more is there in the text. And yet I hope that Jesus Christ is truly preached, whenever His will and laws, and the duties enjoined by the Christian religion, are inculcated upon us.

But some men are pleased to say, that this is mere morality: I answer, that this is Scripture morality, and Christian morality, and who hath anything to say against that? Nay, I shall go yet farther, that no man ought to pretend to believe the Christian religion, who lives in neglect of so plain a duty; and in the practice of a sin so clearly condemned by it, as this of evil-speaking is.

But because the Word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than a two-edged sword, yea, sharper than any calumny itself; and pierceth the very hearts and consciences of men, laying us open to ourselves, and convincing us of our more secret as well as of our more visible faults; I shall therefore at one view represent to you what is dispersedly said concerning this sin in the holy Word of God.

And I have purposely reserved this to the last, because it is more persuasive and penetrating than any human discourse. And to this end be pleased to consider in what company the Holy Ghost doth usually mention this sin. There is scarce any black catalogue of sins in the Bible but we find this among them; in the company of the Matt. xv. 9. very worst actions and most irregular passions of men. "Out of the heart (says our Saviour) proceed evil murders, adulteries, fornications, false-witness, evilspeakings." And the apostle ranks backbiters with fornicators and murderers, and haters of God; and with those, of whom it is expressly said, that they shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

thoughts, Rom. i. 29,

30.

1 Cor. vi. 10.

2, 3.

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And when he enumerates the sins of the last times," Men 2 Tim. ii. (says he) shall be lovers of themselves, covetous, boasters, evil-speakers, without natural affection, perfidious, false-accusers," etc. And which is the strangest of all, ' they who are said to be guilty of these great vices and enormities are noted by the apostle to be great pretenders to religion; for so it follows in the next words, Having a form of godli ness, but denying the power thereof." So that it is no new thing for men to make a more than ordinary profession of Christianity, and yet at the same time to live in a most palpable contradiction to the precepts of that holy religion as if any pretence to mystery, and I know not what extraordinary attainments in the knowledge of Christ, could exempt men from obedience to His laws, and set them above the virtues of a good life.

And now, after all this, do we hardly think that to be a sin, which is in Scripture so frequently ranked with murder and adultery, and the blackest crimes; such as are inconsistent with the life and power of religion, and will certainly shut men out of the kingdom of God? Do we believe the Bible to be the Word of God! and can we allow ourselves in the common practice of a sin, than which there is hardly any fault of men's lives more frequently mentioned, more severely reproved, and more odiously branded in that holy book?

Consider seriously these texts: "Who shall abide in Thy tabernacle, who shall dwell in Thy holy hill? Ho Psal. xv. 1. that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor taketh up

reproach against his neighbour." Have ye never heard what our Saviour says; that of every idle word we must give an account in the day of judgment; that "by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned?" What can be more severe than that of St. James? "If any man among you seemeth to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, that man's religion is vain."

(To conclude): The sin, which I have now warned men against, is plainly condemned by the Word of God: and the duty, which I have now been persuading you to, is easy for every man to understand, not hard for any man, that can but resolve to keep a good guard for himself for some time, by the grace of God to practise; and most reasonable for all men, but especially for all Christians, to observe. It is as easy as a resolute silence upon just occasion, as reasonable as prudence and justice and charity, and the preservation of peace and goodwill among men, can make it; and of as necessary and indispensable an obligation, as the authority of God can render anything.

Upon all which considerations let every one of us be persuaded to take up David's deliberate resolution: "I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I offend not with my Psal. xxxix. tongue." And I do verily believe, that would we 1. but heartily endeavour to amend this one fault, we should

soon be better men in our whole lives: I mean, that the correcting of this vice, together with those that are nearly allied to it, and may at the same time, and almost with the same resolution and care, be corrected, would make us owners of a great many considerable virtues, and carry us on a good way towards perfection; it being hardly to be imagined, that a man that makes conscience of his words should not take an equal or a greater care of his actions. And this I take to be both the true meaning and the true reason of that saying of St. James, and with which I shall conclude: "If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man.”

Now the God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ, the great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good word and work, to do His will; working in you always that which is well-pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever. Amen.

CONCERNING THE DIVINITY OF OUR

BLESSED SAVIOUR.*

(Preached in the Church of St. Lawrence-Jewry, Dec. 30, 1679.) The Word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us; and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.-JOHN i. 14.

THESE words contain in them three great points concerning our blessed Saviour, the author and founder of our faith and religion.

(First), His incarnation, "The Word was made," or became, "flesh."

(Secondly), His life and conversation here among us, "and dwelt amongst us "; dokývwoev iv uiv, He pitched His tabernacle amongst us; He lived here below in this world, and for a time made His residence and abode with us.

(Thirdly), That in this state of His humiliation He gave great and clear evidence of His Divinity; whilst He appeared as a man and lived amongst us, there were great and glorious testi

• The four following sermons refer to the Divinity of Christ, and the argument is very well put. The whole may be regarded as a brief treatise on this important subject. All that can be said on this doctrine is here condensed by Tillotson into a readable space. The sermons are logical and scriptural. Every objection is dealt with fully and fairly with great clearness and erudition. They are well worth the most careful perusal. They were originally preached in order to vindicate the Archbishop from the charge of Socinianism-a charge without the least foundation. Crellius, who was himself a Socinian, and often had private arguments quite in a friendly way with Tillotson, said of him, that "he was the best reasoner, and bad more to say for himself of any adversary he had ever encountered."