dowments, to which he added an indefatigable industry, and GOD gave a plentiful benediction. What Melanc thon was used to say, 'That himself was a logician, Pomeranus a grammarian, Justin Jonas an orator, but Luther was all;' might be alfo applied to this perfon we are speaking of. There are few kinds of literature but he was a mafter in them. His fkill in the Greek tongue got him his fellowship in Merton-college, Oxford, in Sir Henry Saville's time. Moreover, he was a great divine, and, in his time, a moft celebrated preacher. For his divinity, I need only to fay, he was true continuer of the name of Reynolds, in the church of England; and for his fermons, they have run the gauntlet through the universities, inns of court, and city. They have met with the approbation both of the prince and his people, fcholars, gentlemen, and citizens-all ranks of men have given their honorable teftimony to them. In fum, I may reckon him among those happy men Caius Plinius fpeaks of (Quibus Deorum munere datum eft aut facere fcribenda aut fcribere legenda.) That either do things worthy of writing, or write things worthy of reading, for he has done both: He was a man of GOD, thoroughly furnished to every good word and work.

'As he was an extraordinary perfon in his life, he was no lefs fo in his death. GOD was pleafed to do him herein an extraordinary kindness, and make that which ufed to be to others a part of the punishment of their fin, to be to him a part of his excellent reward. The great Auguftus's with was his enjoyment, and sʊdavacia ‘a civil and well natured death.' The laft fand in the hour-glafs falls not with lefs difficulty than he expired with. There were no noises, groans, convulfions, cramps, diftortion of the looks, ftaring with eyes, gnashing with the teeth, in the laft fcene of his life. His paffive fortitude had been abundantly tried before, and his active graces demonftrated, and therefore the lefs need of either now. His meek foul glided from him in an imperceptible vehicle, and he died much in the fame way that the rabbins speak concerning Mofes, ofculo oris Dei, as it were with the kifs of GOD's mouth. In fum, the description of old Enoch's life and death fits him well, he walked with GOD, and he was not; for GOD took him. I shall befeech you laftly to confider, this was the man that bore the heat of the day for us; this was the man that came to us in our gore and rubbish; this was he that entered our Augaan stable in its filth, and reduced it to that degree of cleanliness in which Iii2

you

you now find it; this was he that carried us through the wilderness and has brought us to the brink of Jordan; Norwich was his Nebo, to this mount he came, and here he died.' Thus far Mr. Riveley. To this we add, that this bleffed change happened on the twenty eighth day of July, 1676, and he was buried at the upper end of the chapel (built by himself in 1662) joining to the bishop's palace in Norwich. Over his grave, foon after his death, was faftened to the wall a marble table, on which his epitaph in Latin was engraven.

His WORKS. "The Vanity of the Creature, on Ecclef. i. 14. Sinfulness of Sin, on Rom. vii. 9. and on vi. 12. Ufe of the Law, on Rom. vii. 13. Life of Christ, on 1 ohn v. 12. An Explication of the cx Pfalm. Meditations on the Holy Sacrament of the Lord's laft Supper. Explication of the 14 Chapter of Hofea, in Seven Humiliation Sermons. A Treatife of the Paffions and Faculties of the Soul of Man." All or moft of which having been printed feveral times in 4to. were all printed in one large folio at London in 1658, with the Author's picture before them, and went by the name of "Bishop Reynolds's Works." They were much bought up, read and recommended by Men of feveral Perfuafions; and one (Mr. Wilde) wrote two fhort poems in commendation of them. "Thirty Sermons preached on several folemn Occafions. -They were preached between the year 1634, and that of his death; fome of them had been printed feveral times. At length they were reprinted in the fecond impreffion of his Works, at London 1679, folio. Among them is his Latin Sermon preached at Oxon. 1649, entitled Animalis Homo, on 1 Cor. ii. 14. He also wrote the Affembly of Divines' Annotations,' which are on Ecclefiaftes, which being admirably done, it was wifhed by many learned men of the Prefbyterian perfuafion, that the reft had been all wrote pari filo, & eruditione. He also was the author of the Epiftolary Preface to William Barlee's Correptory Correction, &c. of fome Notes of Thomas Pierce concerning GOD's Decrees, efpecially of Reprobation :' Which book of Barlee with the faid Epiftolary Preface,' a fecond of Thomas Whitfield, and a third of Daniel Cawdrey fometime of Cambridge, were printed at London, 1656, 4to." He is also faid to be the author of "The humble Propofals of fundry learned, pious Divines within this Kingdom, concerning the Engagement intended to be impofed on them for their Subfcriptions. London, 1650, 410. One fheet was published in December, 1649. John Ducy publifhed

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published an Answer entitled Juft Re-proposals to humble Propofals: or, an impartial Confideration of, &c. London, 1650, 4to. four Sheets. And it is probable that he wrote several other things befides thofe above-mentioned; particularly his "Meditations on the Fall of Peter," a fhort twelves, never inferted in any of the folio editions.

THOMAS MANTON,

THIS

D. D.

HIS laborious and zealous divine was born in the year 1620, at Laurence-Lydiard, in the county of Somerfet. His father, and both his grandfathers, were minifters. He was educated at Tiverton free-fchool in Devonshire, and, at the age of fifteen, was entered at Wadham-college, Oxford. Here, after preparatory studies, he applied himself to divinity, which was the work his heart was chiefly fet upon, and which he defigned to make the business of his life. By a courfe of unwearied diligence, joined with great intellectual endowments, he was early qualified for the work of the miniftry; and took orders much fooner than was ufual, and than he himself approved, upon maturer thoughts, and after he had more experience." I have been in the miniftry, fays he, these ten years, and yet not fully completed the thirtieth year of my age: The Lord forgive my rafh intrufion." But the excellent Jofeph Hall bishop of Exeter, afterwards of Norwich, who ordained him, having taken particular notice of his gifts and qualifications, did not think him too young, but expreffed his apprehenfions, That he would prove an extraordinary perfon.'

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The times, when he first entered into the miniftry, were full of trouble, the king and parliament being at variance, and hoftilities breaking out on both fides. He was confined to Exeter when it was befieged by the king's forces. After its furrender he went to Lime. He preached his first fermon at Sowton near Exeter, from those words, Judge not, that ye be not be not judged. He entered first upon his minifterial labors at Culliton in Devonshire, where he preached a weekly lecture, and was much attended and refpected. At his coming to London he was foon taken notice of, as a young man of excellent parts and growing hopes. Here he neither wanted work, nor will to per

form

form it; but applied himself with great diligence and pleasure, for which he was remarkable all his life. About this time, he married. He had not been above three years in the ministry before his first fettlement, which was at Stoke-Newington near London. He was prefented to this cure by colonel Popham, in whom he had a moft worthy and kind patron, and was highly efteemed by his pious lady. It was here he began and finished his excellent expofition of the epistle of St. James. An expofition that has been thought by good judges, to be one of the beft models of expounding fcripture; in which the Author has joined together, with the greatest judgement, the critical explication, and practical obfervations upon the feveral parts. Some time after, he went through the epiftle of Jude: This, though excellent in its kind, is not strictly expofitory, but more in the fermon way; which he fays, was more in compliance with the defires of others, than with his own judgement. He continued feven years at Newington, and poffeffed the general respect of his parishioners; though there were many perfons of different fentiments from himself. He was often invited to preach in London on the week-days: And other weighty affairs fometimes called for his attendance there. The cuftom of preaching to the fons of the clergy began in his time; doctor Hall, fon of the famous bishop Hall of Norwich, preached the firft fermon to them, as Mr. Manton did the fecond, from Pfalm cii. 28. He was fe veral times, though not so often as fome others, called to preach before the parliament, and received their order, in courfe, for printing his fermons; in all which his wisdom and judgement, in the fuitableness of the subject to the circumftances of the times, and the prudent management of it to the beft advantage, are very vifible. Particularly after he had given his teftimony, among the London minifters, against the death of the king, he was appointed to preach before the parliament; his text was Deut. xxxiii. 4, 5. Mofes commanded us a law, even the inheritance of the congregation of Jacob; and he was a king in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people, and the tribes of Ifrael were gathered together. When they were highly offended at this fermon, some of his friends advised him to withdraw; for fome in the house talked of fending him to the tower; but he never flinched, and their heat abated. His generous conftancy of mind in refifting the current of popular humour, declared his loyalty to his inafter.

Mr.

Mr. Obadiah Sedgewick of St. Paul's, Covent-Garden, being grown old, feveral worthy perfons were proposed to fucceed him, yet could he not be prevailed with to refign, till Mr. Manton was mentioned; and to that he readily yielded. The then earl, afterwards duke, of Bedford, was Mr. Manton's patron, who greatly esteemed him to his dying day. Here he preached to a numerous congregation of perfons of great note and rank, with great fuccefs; of which number was oftentimes the great archbishop Ufher, who used to say of him, That he was one of the best preachers in England-and that he was a voluminous preacher;' not that he was tedious for length, but he had the art of reducing the fubftance of volumes of divinity into a narrow compafs. Mr. Charnock used to fay of him, that he was the best collecter of sense of the age. About this_time the Doctor was made one of the chaplains to the Protector, and appointed one of the committee to examine persons who were to be admitted to the miniftry, or inducted into livings; as he was afterwards appointed one in 1659, by an act of that parliament, in which the fecluded members were restored. And though this proved troublesome to him, confidering his conftant employment in preaching; yet he has been heard to fay, "That he very feldom abfented himself from that fervice, that he might, according to his power, keep matters from running into extremes;" for there were many in those days, as well as in thefe, who were forward to run into the miniftry, and had more zeal than knowledge; and perhaps fometimes men of worth were liable to be difcouraged. An inftance of this kind happened respecting a grave and fober man, who appeared before them (cap in hand, no doubt) and was little taken notice of but by himself: He feeing him ftand, called for a chair, in respect to his age and appearance; at which fome of the commiffioners were displeased. This perfon appeared to be of a christian and ingenuous temper; for, after the restoration, he was preferred to an Irish bifhopric, perhaps an archbishopric; for he used to charge bishop Worth, whofe bufinefs often called him over to England, that on his first coming to London he fhould vifit doctor Manton, and give his fervice to him, and let him know, That if he was molefted in his preaching in England, he should be welcome in Ireland, and have liberty to preach in any part of his diocese undisturbed.'

He was in great reputation at the time of the restoration, and was very forward in the year 1660, to promote

the