ceive a fting into our foul, which shoots and pains us, whenever we reflect on what we have done. I appeal to that witness which every man carries in his breast, whether this be not true.

2dly, Men are naturally full of hopes and fears, according as they follow or go against thefe natural dictates. A good confcience is apt to fill men with confidence and good hopes. It does not only give eafe, but fecurity to the mind of man, againft the dread of invifible powers, and the fearful apprehenfions of a future judgement. Whereas guilt fills men with difmal apprehenfions of danger, and continual mifgivings concerning their own fafety. Thus it was with Cain after he had flain his brother: It shall come to pass that every one that findeth me fhall flay me. Nay, when a man hath done a fecret fault, which none can accufe him of, yet then is he haunted with the terrors of his own mind, and cannot be fecure in his own apprehenfions; which plainly fhews, that men are confcious to themfelves, when they do well, and when they do amifs; and that the fame natural inftin&t which prompts men to their duty, fills them with good hopes when they have done it, and with secret fears and apprehenfions of danger when they have done contrary to it.

2. God fhews men what is good, by natural reafon; and that two ways: by the convenience of things to our nature; and by their tendency to our happiness and interest.

ift, Reafon fhews us the convenience of things to our nature; and whatever is agreeable to the primitive defign and intention of nature, that we call good; whatever is contrary thereto, we call evil. For example, to honour and love God. It is natural to honour great power and perfection, and to love goodness where ever it is. So likewife gratitude is natural, to acknowledge benefits received, and to be ready to requite them; and the contrary is monftrous, and univerfally abhorred and there is no greater fign that any thing is contrary to nature, than if it be detefted by the whole kind. It is agreeable alfo

to

to nature to be juft, and to do to others as we would have them to do to us; for this is to make our own natural inclinations and defires the rule of our dealing with others and to be merciful; for no man that hath not divefted himfelf of humanity, can be cruel and hard-hearted to others, without feeling a pain in himself.

2dly, Reafon fhews us the tendency of these things to our happiness and intereft. And indeed the notion of good and evil does commonly refer to the confequences of things; and we call that good, which will bring fome benefit and advantage to us, and that evil, which is likely to produce fome mischief and inconvenience; and by this rule reafon difcovers to us that thefe duties are good.

To begin with piety towards God. Nothing can more evidently tend to our intereft, than to make him our friend, upon whofe favour our happiness depends. So likewife for gratitude; it is a virtue, to which if nature did not prompt us, our intereft would direct us; for every man is ready to place benefits there, where he may hope for a thankful return. Temperance does apparently conduce to our health, which, next to a good confcience, is the most pleasant and valuable thing in the world; whereas the intemperate man is an open enemy to himself, and conti nually making affaults upon his own life. Mercy and pity are not more welcome to others, than they are delightful and beneficial to ourselves; for we do not only gratify our own nature and bowels, by relieving those who are in mifery, but we provoke mankind by our example to the like tenderness, and do prudently befpeak the commiferation of others towards us, when it fhall be our turn to ftand in need of it. And if we be wife enough, our reafon will likewife direct us to be juft, as the fureft art of thriving in this world; it gives a man a reputation, which is a powerful advantage in all the affairs of this world; it is the fhorteft and eaficft way of difpatching bufinefs, the plaincft, and leaft intangled; and though it be not fo fudden a way of growing rich as fraud and oppreffion, yet it is much furer and more lafting, and

not liable to those terrible back-blows, and after-reckonings, to which eftates got by injuftice are.

And natural reafon does not only fhew us that these things are good, but that the Lord requires them of us, that is, that they have the force and obligation of laws. For there needs nothing more to make any thing a law, than a fufficient declaration, that it is the will of God; and this God hath fufficiently fignified to mankind by the very frame of our natures, and of thofe principles and faculties which he hath endued us withal; fo that whenever we act contrary to thefe, we plainly difobey the will of him that made. us, and violate thofe laws which he hath enacted in our natures, and written upon our hearts.

And this is all the law that the greatest part of mankind were under, before the revelation of the gofpel. From Adam to Mofes, the world was almost folely governed by the natural law; which feems to be the meaning of that hard text, Rom. v. 13. For until the law fin was in the world; that is, before the law of Mofes was given, men were capable of offend ing against fome other law, for otherwife fin could not have been imputed to them; for fin is not imputed where there is no law. And then it follows, Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Mofes, even overthem that bad not finned after the fimilitude of Adam's tranfgreffion; that is, during that space, from Adam. to Mofes, men finned against the natural law, and were liable to death upon that account, though they had not offended against an express revelation from God, as Adam had done; for that the Apostle seems to mean, by finning after the fimilitude of Adam's tranfgreffion.

3. God hath fhewn us what is good by the general vote and confent of mankind. Not that all mankind do agree concerning virtue and vice; but that as to the greater duties of piety, juftice, mercy, and the like, the exceptions are but few in comparison, and not enough to infringe a general confent. And of this I fhall offer to you this threefold evidence.

ft, That thefe virtues are generally praised and

held

held in esteem by mankind, and the contrary vices generally reproved and evil fpoken of. Now, to praife any thing, is to give teftimony to the goodnefs of it, and to cenfure any thing, is to declare that we believe it to be evil. And if we confult the history of all ages, we fhall find that the things which are ge nerally praised in the lives of men, and recommended to the imitation of pofterity, are piety and devotion, gratitude and juftice, humanity and charity; and that the contrary to thefe are marked with igno miny and reproach; the former are commended even in enemies, and the latter are branded even by those who had a kindnefs for the perfons that were guilty of them. So conftant hath mankind always been in the commendation of virtue, and in the cenfure of vice. Nay, we find not only thofe who are virtuous themfelves, giving their teftimony and applaufe to virtue, but even thofe who are vicious; not out of love to goodness, but from the conviction of their own minds, and from a fecret reverence they bear to the com mon confent and opinion of mankind. And this is a great teftimony, because it is the teftimony of an enemy, extorted by the mere light and force of truth.

And, on the contrary, nothing is more ordinary than for vice to reprove fin, and to hear men condemn the like, or the fame things in others, which they allow in themselves. And this is a clear evidence, that vice is generally condemned by mankind, that many men condemn it in themfelves; and thofe who are fo kind as to fpare themselves, are very quickfighted to fpy a fault in any body elfe, and will cenfure a bad action done by another, with as much freedom and impartiality, as the most virtuous man in the world.

And to this confent of mankind about virtue and vice, the fcripture frequently appeals. As when it commands us to provide things honeft in the fight of all men; and by well doing to put to filence the ignrance of foolish men; intimating, that there are fome things fo confeffedly good, and owned to be fuch by

U. 3.

for

fo general a vote of mankind, that the worst of men have not the face to open their mouths against them.. And it is made the character of a virtuous action, if it be lovely and commendable, and of good report, Phil. iv. 8. What foever things are lovely, whatfoever things. are of good report; if there be any virtue, if there be any praife, make account of thefe things; intimating: to us, that mankind do generally concur in the praise and commendation of what is virtuous.

2dly, Men do generally glory and ftand upon their innocency, when they do virtuoufly; but are afha-med and out of countenance, when they do the contrary. Now glory and fhame are nothing elfe but an appeal to the judgement of others concerning the good or evil of our actions. There are indeed fome.. fuch monsters as are impudent in their impieties, but thefe are but few in comparison. Generally mankind is modeft; the greatest part of those who do evil' are apt to blufh at their own faults, and to confefs them in their countenance, which is an acknowledgement that they are not only guilty to themselves that they have done amifs, but that they are apprehenfive that others think fo. For guilt is a paffion refpecting ourfelves, but fhame regards others. Now it is a ign of fhame, that men love to conceal their faults from others, and commit them fecretly, in the dark, and without witneffes, and àre afraid even of a child or a fool or if they be discovered in them, they are folicitous to excuse and extenuate them, and ready to lay the fault upon any body elfe, or to transfer their guilt, or as much of it as they can, upon others. All which are certain tokens, that men are not only naturally guilty to themfelves, when they commit a fault; but that they are fenfible alfo what opinions others have of these things.

And, on the contrary, men are apt to ftand upon their juftification, and to glory when they have done well. The confcience of a man's own virtue and integrity, lifts up his head, and gives him confidence before others, because he is fatisfied they have a good opinion of his actions. What a good face does a

man