veal to us all thofe matters of faith, are the infpiration and the word of God, though there are abundant arguments that put it beyond all difpute; but I will fhew you in a few words, the ground we have in general to rely upon what the holy Scriptures teach us, and how far meeknefs is concern'd in that belief, and for brevity we will confider only the cafe of the New Teftament: in order to believe the hiftorical part, that there really was fuch a perfon as Chrift, born miraculously of a pure virgin, teftify'd to be the Son of God by an audible voice from heaven two feveral times, that he wrought many miracles beyond the power of art or nature, and fuch as appear from the circumftances of them to admit of no collufion or fraud; that he liv'd an innocent and divine life, that he fuffer'd upon the cross, and that he rofe again the third day from the grave, we have need only of the fame meekness that is requifite in believing any civil history in the world, viz. that we should not obftinately reject the uncontrouled teftimony of that age wherein he lived, and of fo many ages fince, and of perfons who for ought appears, are at leaft as credible (if not, through the particular marks of integrity we may perceive in them, much more fo) as any other hiftorians, or any other perfons in the age we live in. If any ftory fhould be publifh'd in our age, by difcreet, fober writers, and not contradicted by the prefent times, it were an injury to us, an affront to common faith and credit, if pofterity fhould not believe it; and thofe who fo refuse it, are not mafters of that ingenuity and modesty which becomes them. Submitting then upon this ground to believe the hiftorical part, the doctrinal will force its way; for if I believe the particulars before mention'd, the paffages of his life related by the four Evangelifts, it will appear that Chrift was an extraordinary perfon, a Prophet fent E 4 from from God, and infpir'd by God; and if so, meekness and reason will both tell us we ought to believe without difficulty, whatever he affirms of the nature of God, of himself, of the neceffity and defign of his fufferings, of his coming again to judge the world, &c. though our reafon cannot comprehend them all, because it will be certain that he knew the truth of these things, and that being fent from God to inftruct us, God would not have owned him in fo extraordinary a manner, if he had not faithfully discharg'd his office, or if in any thing he had impos'd upon us, and deceiv'd us. But though we have this reafon to believe him, it is a reafon from meekness, which fubmits our understanding to the teftimony of Chrift, and infifts not upon those objections to the doctrine which the noify pertnefs of our fancies, our fhallow and conceited notions, might pretend to raife. (2.) As to that other part of the revelation of the will of God, which concerns our practice; there is great need alfo of this fame grace of meekness in complying with it for by a ftrange perversenefs in mens tempers, fome are as apt to defpife the precepts of virtue and holiness deliver'd to us in the holy Scriptures, because they are plain and intelligible, and ftoop to ordinary capacities, as others are to reject matters of faith, because their reafon cannot comprehend them. But even withal they have more or less this disadvantage, that fin has gain'd the firft poffeffion of our hearts, and pride particularly has ufurp'd the dominion in us; we are apt to be felf-will'd and humourfome, to have a good opinion of all we do, and not to care for any precepts which restrain our appetites and paffions, and teach us to deny our felves, or reproach us for having done amifs. "Tis eafy therefore to perceive what work there is for meekness meekness here. And first, we are highly to honour thofe precepts of an holy life, as the dictates of God, who is perfect and unerring Wisdom, the Sovereign Lord of all things, the Author of our falvation, and who accordingly has the fole right of prescribing how he will be ferved, and upon what conditions we shall be bleffed and faved. Solomon tells us, that * where the word of a king is there is power; and if the power and word of a king is not to be defpifed, furely much lefs is that of him who is the King of kings. Let us therefore, when we read or reflect upon any particular precept, any command of God in holy Scripture, do it with all that refpect and reverence, at least, with which we would receive the commands of our prince, or our parents, or any other whom we highly value for their wifdom, or their faithfulness. Secondly, we must obediently and carefully observe and practise all we are commanded by him. We must be willing to be governed, fetting afide our own pride, and prejudices, our lufts and paffions, + cafting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth it felf against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Chrift. And all this cannot be done, but by the fpirit of meekness, which appears hereby to have fo great an influence with respect to our duty to God, that it reaches to the fame extent with our obedience, and is the beft foundation for it, as pride and prefumption are usually at the root of every fin. THE fecond exercife of meekness towards God, regards the methods of his Providence, with relation either to our felves or others. Most men are of that tender and delicate compofition, that querulous and complaining temper, that they can * Ecclef. viii, 4. † 2 Cor. x. 5. bear bear nothing; fo fond of themselves, fo poffeffed with a good opinion of their own merit, and fo devoted to the enjoyments of honour, wealth and pleasure, that they look upon every light affliction as an hardship, and every great one as intolerable; and this makes them fretful and impatient, murmuring against God, and bemoaning themselves with a filly and indecent, as well as finful paffion. Or when they look abroad, and fee how many evils and fufferings happen to mankind, which fall not out fo exactly and regularly as to be always called the punishment of fuch a fin upon fuch a perfon, but on the contrary, many wicked men profper in the world, and many good and virtuous are preffed hard with fufferings, they are apt to reflect upon God as a hard mafter, or to think he wholly neglects the world, and cares not either what we do or fuffer. But meekness would bring us to a better notion, and teach us to confider God, FIRST, As a Sovereign Lord, under whofe dominion all his creatures are, his government abfolute, and without all conditions or limitations, but what he is pleafed to impofe upon himself, and what he receives from himself by the benign influences of his love and mercy; and therefore as we are all the work of his hands, created to ferve his glory, he may furely difpofe of us all at his own will and pleasure, and to his own ends: for which reafon the truly meek Chriftian will patiently fubmit to whatever fuffering God fhall lay upon him, and be willing that God should be glorified in him, *whether it be by life, or by death. SECONDLY, We are to confider God as a lawgiver, annexing penalties to the breach of his laws, and these penalties iffuing from an exact and * Phil. i. 20. pure pure juftice, in which there is no mixture of oppreffion or cruelty, but very much of favour and mercy, and this pleads very highly for the practice of meekness under afflictions, fince we are all (even the best of us) guilty before God, and deferve much worse than even the most unhappy of us can fuffer in this world. As to the cafe of other men, the fufferings of the good and virtuous may be ac counted for the fame way; and as to the flourishing estate of the wicked, whom God feems at prefent not to punifh or take notice of, why fhould our eye be evil, because he is good? Shall not the Fudge of all the earth do right? This meekness would fuggeft, and we should hearken to: for if God, who is immediately concerned in the provocations, thinks fit (in mercy to the finners, to give them farther time for repentance) to bear with them, what have we to do to call fire from heaven upon them? BUT thirdly, We are to confider God as a Father, for fo he is represented to us in the holy Scriptures, and the obedient are his fons, whom nevertheless he many times exercises with great tryals and fufferings in the world, but it is their duty to distinguish and obferve the defign of thefe, and by a juft confideration of that, to fatisfy themfelves with the proceeding, and make that pious use of it, for which the affliction was ordained. * We have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence, fhall we not much rather be in fubjection to the Father of Spirits and live? For whom the Lord loveth he chafteneth, and Scourgeth every fon whom he receiveth. alfo is the language of meeknefs, which I have now fhewn to be neceffary in all our deportment towards God. It follows, in the next place, that I fhould confider this grace, This |