practice of the world, it be fomewhat fingular for men truly and thoroughly to live up to the principles of their religion; yet fingularity in this matter is so far from being a reflection upon any man's prudence, that it is a fingular commendation of it. In two cafes fingularity is very commendable.

ift, When there is a neceffity of it in order to a man's greatest interest and happiness. I think it to be a rea fonable account for any man to give, why he does not live as the greatest part of the world do, that he has no mind to die as they do, and to perifh with them; he is not difpofed to be a fool, and to be miferable for company; he has no inclination to have his laft end like theirs who know not God, and obey not the gospel of his Son, and fhall be punished with everlasting deftruction from the prefence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power.

2dly, It is very commendable to be fingular in any excellency; and I have fhewn, that religion is the greateft excellency. To be fingular in any thing that is wife, and worthy, and excellent, is not a difparagement, but a praise. Every man would chufe to be thus fingular.

III. The third imputation is, That religion is a foolifh bargain; because they who are religious hazard the parting with a prefent and certain happiness, for that which is future and uncertain.

To this I answer,

1. Let it be granted, that the affurance which we have of future rewards falls fhort of the evidence of fenfe. For I doubt not but that faying of our Saviour, Bleed is he who hath believed, and not feen, and those expreffions of the apostle, We walk by faith, and not by fight, and, Faith is the evidence of things not feen, are intended by way of abatement and diminution to the evidence of faith; and do fignify, that the report and teftimony of others is not fo great evidence as that of our own fenfes. And though we have fufficient afsurance of another state, yet no man can think we have fo great. evidence, as if we ourselves had been in the other world, and feen how all things are there.

2. We have fufficient affurance of these things, and fuch as may beget in us a well-grounded confidence, and free us from all doubts of the contrary, and per

fuade

fuade a reasonable man to venture his greatest interests in this world upon the fecurity he hath of another. For,

ift, We have as much affurance of these things as things future and at a distance are capable of; and he is a very unreasonable man that would defire more. Future and invisible things are not capable of the evidence of fenfe but we have the greatest rational evidence for them; and in this every reasonable man ought to rest fatisfied.

2dly, We have as much as is abundantly fufficient to juftify every man's difcretion, who, for the great and eternal things of another world, hazards or parts with the poor and tranfitory things of this life. And, for the clearing of this, it will be worth our confidering, that the greatest affairs of this world, and the most im. portant concernments of this life, are all conducted only by moral demonftrations. Men every day venture their lives and estates only upon moral assurance. For instance: Men who were never at the Eaft or Weft Indies, or in Turky or Spain, yet do venture their whole eftate in traffic thither, though they have no mathematical demonstration, but only moral affurance, that there are fuch places. Nay, which is more, men every day eat and drink, though I think no man can demonstrate, out of Euclid, or Apollonius, that his baker, or brewer, or cook, have not conveyed poifon into his meat or drink. And that man that would be fo wife and cautious as not to eat or drink till he could demonstrate this to himself, I know no other remedy for him, but that, in great gravity and wisdom, he muft die for fear of death. And for any man to urge, that though men in temporal affairs proceed upon moral affurance, yet there is greater affurance required to make men feek heaven and avoid hell, feems to me to be highly unreasonable. For fuch an affurance of things as will make men circumfpect, and careful to avoid a leffer danger, ought in all reafon to awaken men much more to the avoiding of a greater: fuch an affurance as will fharpen mens defires and quicken their endeavours for the obtaining of a lesfer good, ought in all reafon to animate men more powerfully, and to infpire them with a greater vigour and industry in the pursuit of that which is infinitely

greater.

greater. For why the fame affurance fhould not operate, as well in a great danger as in a lefs, in a great good as in a small and inconfiderable one, I can fee no reafon; unless men will fay, that the greatness of an evil and danger is an encouragement to men to run upon it; and that the greatnefs of any good and happinefs ought in reason to dishearten men from the pursuit of it.

And now I think I may with reafon intreat fuch as are Atheistically inclined, to confider these things seriously and impartially; and if there be weight in these confiderations which I have offered to them to fway with reafonable men, I would beg of fuch, that they would not fuffer themselves to be biaffed by prejudice or paffion, or the interest of any luft, or worldly advantage, to a contrary perfuafion."

First, I would intreat them seriously and diligently to' confider these things, because they are of fo great moment and concernment to every man. If any thing in the world deferve our ferious ftudy and confideration, these principles of religion do. For what can import us more to be satisfied in, than whether there be a God, or not? whether our fouls fhall perifh with our bodies, or be immortal, and fhall continue for ever? and if so, whether in that eternal ftate which remains for men after this life, they shall not be happy or miserable for ever, according as they have demeaned themselves in this world? If these things be fo, they are of infinite confequence to us; and therefore it highly concerns us, to inquire diligently about them, and to fatisfy our minds concerning them one way or other. For these are not matters to be flightly and fuperficially thought upon much lefs, as the way of Atheistical men is, to be played and jested withal. There is no greater argument of a light and inconfiderate perfon, than profanely to fcoff at religion. It is a fign that that man hath no regard to himself, and that he is not touched with a sense of his own intereft, who loves to be jefting with edged tools, and to play with life and death. This is the very madman that Solomon speaks of, who cafteth firebrands, arrows, and death; and faith, Am I not in fport? Prov. xxvi. 18. To examine feverely and debate feriously the principles of religion, is a thing worthy of a wife

man:

man but if any man fhall turn religion into raillery, and think to confute it by two or three bold jefts, this man doth not render religion, but himfelf, ridiculous, in the opinion of all confiderate men; because he sports with his own life. If the principles of religion were doubtful and uncertain, yet they concern us to nearly, that we ought to be ferious in the examination of them. And though they were never fo clear and evident, yet they may be made ridiculous by vain and frothy men; as the graveft and wifeft perfon in the world may be abufed, by being put into a fool's coat, and the most noble and excellent poem may be debafed, and made vile, by being turned into burlefque. But of this I fhall have occafion to speak more largely in my next difcourse.

So that it concerns every man, that would not trife away his foul, and fool hinfelf into irrecoverable mifery, with the greatest seriousness to inquire into these matters, whether they be fo or not, and patiently to confider the arguments which are brought for them. For many have miscarried about thefe things, not because there is not reafon and evidence enough for them, but because they have not had patience enough to confider them.

Secondly, Confider these things impartially. All wicked men are of a party against religion. Some luft or intereft engageth them against it. Hence it comes to pafs, that they are apt to flight the ftrongest arguments that can be brought for it, and to cry up very weak ones against it. Men do generally, and without difficulty, aflent to mathematical truths, because it is no body's intereft to deny them: but men are flow to believe moral and divine truths, because by their lufts and interefts they are prejudiced against them. And therefore you may obferve, that the more virtuously any man lives, and the lefs he is inflaved to any luft, the more ready he is to entertain the principles of religion,

Therefore, when you are examining thefe matters, do not take into confideration any fenfual or worldly intereft, but deal clearly and impartially with yourselves. Let not temporal and little advantages fway you against a greater and more durable intereft. Think thus with yourselves: That you have not the making of things true or falfe; but that the truth and existence of things VOL. I.

E

is already fixed and fettled; and that the principles of religion are already either determinately true or falfe before you think of them: either there is a God, or there is not; either your fouls are immortal, or they are not; one of thefe is certain and neceffary, and is not now to be altered. The truth of things will not comply with our conceits, and bend itfelf to our inte refts. Therefore do not think what you would have to be; but confider impartially what is, and, if it be, will be, whether you will or no. Do not reason thus: I would fain be wicked; and therefore it is my interest that there fhould be no God, nor no life after this; and therefore I will endeavour to prove, that there is no fuch thing, and will fhew all the favour I can to that fide of the queftion: I will bend my understanding and wit to ftrengthen the negative, and will ftudy to make it as true as I can. This is fond, because it is the way to cheat thy felf; and that we may do as often as we pleafe but the nature of things will not be impofed upon. If then thou be as wife as thou oughtest to be, thou wilt reafon thus with thyfelf: My highest interest is, not to be deceived about thefe matters; therefore, fetting afide all other confiderations, I will endeavour to know the truth, and yield to that.

And now it is time to draw towards a conclufion of this long difcourfe. And that which I have all this while been endeavouring to convince men of, and to perfuade them to, is no other than what God himself doth particularly recommend to us as proper for human confideration: Unto man he faid, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wifdem; and to depart from evil, is understanding. Whoever pretends to reafon, and calls himfelf a man, is obliged to acknowledge God, and to demean himself religioufly towards him: for God is to the understanding of man, as the light of the fun is to our eyes; the firit, and the plaineft, and the moft glorious object of it. He fills heaven and earth; and every thing in them doth reprefent him to us. Which way Joever we turn ourfelves, we are encountered with clear evidences and fenfible demonftrations of a Deity: for (as the Apoftle reafons) the invifible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly feen, being under