they Patronize by their own Sincerity and Fairness They must never teach us how to cozen or insnare others They must never lie in Quirks and evasive Senses which Deceitfulness of the Laws themselves will ungird and prostitute them and only teach People how to cheat in their Obedience It will cut off the Simplicity of Obedience and call Subjects only to the invention of Subtleties to out-wit Laws instead of observing them For Laws are not kept but cozen'd and abused by evasive Glosses 〈◊〉 that this Simplicity as it must be most in â—â—â—mises chiefly when backed by solemn Oaths 〈◊〉 more especially when these are made by 〈◊〉 or Magistrates who are Sacred Persons 〈◊〉 most especially when they are made also in â—â—â—dience to Laws and in Words prescribed by 〈◊〉 â—aws themselves 〈◊〉 now contrary to all these Ways and 〈◊〉 of Simplicity is the Way of Worldly 〈◊〉 It may sometimes be for taking things 〈◊〉 and by bare-faced Violence where it 〈◊〉 â—ower enough But it s ordinary Method is â—â—â—ctise more covertly and its great Instruâ—â—â—â— is Craft and Deceit When there is need 〈◊〉 it is not apt to stick at forging a 〈◊〉 Lye and unpalliable Falshood to bring its 〈◊〉 about But where it practises with more 〈◊〉 facedness it will deceive as effectually by 〈◊〉 but deceitful Truths which are only 〈◊〉 Truths but real Falshoods Sometimes 〈◊〉 the end it may be mistaken it will hide it self 〈◊〉 Mist of Words At others it will play upon 〈◊〉 Faith of Men by Ambiguities of Words and â—â—â—â—ences expecting they will bite at one meanâ—â—â—â— whilst it reserves another to it self Or if 〈◊〉 doth not fall upon them to deceive directly iâ— will lead them about craftily by a Circle of Words or Circumlocutions intermixing secretly 〈◊〉 and false and laying Snares till it has got them within the Compass of Deceit at last It will be open in so much as shall serve its turn and artificially conceal what makes against it It represents things not as they are in themselves but in such Dress as best suits its own purpose amplifying or detracting palliating or disguiâ—sing not so as sets off its own Thoughts but 〈◊〉 Convenience Or if it is so nice as to boggle at the Abuse of Words it will more easily swallow a like Juggle and Deceit in Actions It will give the outward Appearances without inward Realities seem to be what it is not and not to be what it is Do in all things like those that profess what it thinks not or that denies what it really believes The outward Shews of its Belief or Expectations Mind and Judgmentâ— of its Desires or Affections what pleases or dislikâ—â— it are not the true Draught of its inward Sentiments but only of its outward Interests It pretends what it gets by not what it really is or believes and seeks it self not what it shews in all its Pretences Its Appearances are Hypocrisie its secret end still self-design its Method not Truth but Delusion not harmlesness to others but preventing tho by any Loss of theirs all Harm Dissatisfaction or Disappointment to it self So that instead of being true and single plain and open innocent and undesigning a worldly wise Man is all Lyes and Falshood Trick and Deceit full of Turnings and Windings Shifts and Evasions Mists and false Colors meer Shews and Pretences pretending and appearing one thing but being and intending another and never true to what he seems further than that happens to run true to his own self-ends and carnal Convenience He is not fixt to any just and â—â—nest Principles but is for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for accommodating his manners to serve turns 〈◊〉 for being quick-sighted at serving his own Adâ—â—â—tage by Deceit as I noted from S. Basil. By 〈◊〉 which deceitful Shews and false Seemings 〈◊〉 the Injury to Truth he violates Charity 〈◊〉 Justice oftentimes drawing Men in thereby 〈◊〉 their Prejudice And abuses Confidence 〈◊〉 to an ingenuous Spirit should lay on one 〈◊〉 highest Obligation working their harm by 〈◊〉 very Faith and Trust they repose in him 〈◊〉 for the most part highly abuses good things 〈◊〉 and that virtuous forwardness well meaning 〈◊〉 have to promote them whilst under a false 〈◊〉 and Shew thereof he steals away their â—â—ncurrence to his own unlawful Purposes or 〈◊〉 Self-Designs CHAP VII Of not discharging Relative Duties for ends of Religion or of our own Ease THE other Instance which I mentioned of Doing ill to bring about some Good desired in throwing off Relative Duties And this is another Care of Spiritual Prudence viz. in the Second Place that in any Relations when 〈◊〉 grow burdensome to us for ends either of Religiâ—â—â— or of our own Ease it doth not admit of any Discharge of Relative Duties God both in Nature and Scripture has required us as to be just to all Men so to be Grateful to our Benefactors and Dutiful to our Superiors to honor obey and keep subject to our Parents our Princes and other Powers whom he has placed over us 1. And these Duties and Returns he calls for towards them whatever their Religion be whether true or false Be they Christians or Heathens Jews or Mahometans true Worshipers or Idolaters Children must honor and obey support and succor their Parents and Wives their Husbands and Servants their Masters and Subjects their Sovereigns These are among those things which Nature it self has writ in all Mens Hearts and wherein as S. Paul says they that 〈◊〉 not the written Law are a Law unto themselves their own Consciences bearing witness to them without the need of any further Revelation 〈◊〉 their thoughts accusing or excusing them according as they have kept or transgressed them Rom. â— 14 15. So that if the Relatives were all 〈◊〉 yet their natural Conscience without the 〈◊〉 of Scripture would teach one to call for at this Duty and another to shew and pay it 〈◊〉 accuse them if they did it not Accordingly when the Apostles went out to 〈◊〉 among Heathens and to proselyte those 〈◊〉 Relations were Worshipers of false Gods 〈◊〉 set up unclean Spirits or Devils for Gods 〈◊〉 do not in the least exempt them from any â—â—lative Duties towards such Idolaters but 〈◊〉 a greater Heartiness and Conscientiousness 〈◊〉 the due Discharge thereof Children obey your 〈◊〉 in all things as what is well-pleasing to the 〈◊〉 saith S. Paul Col. 3.20 And Servants 〈◊〉 in all things your Masters according to the Flesh 〈◊〉 all things in singleness of Heart as to the 〈◊〉 as serving therein the Lord Christ Vers. 22. 〈◊〉 Wives be in subjection to your own 〈◊〉 says S. Peter yea to those that obey not the Word but are to be won by the Wives good Conversation without the Word 1 Pet. 3.1 Honor the King says he again and submit your selves to every Ordinance of man for the Lord's sake whether to the King as supreme or unto Governors as sent by him c. 2.13 14 17. Ye
the third Commandment taught men to break the fifth not suffering a man to do any thing for his father and mother after once he had said It is Corban that is a gift by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me or I interdict what I have by the vow Corban from ever being helpful unto thee a Form among the Jews of forswearing to help others Which instead of being an approved way of keeping first Table-Duties our Lord charges as setting up the Commandments of men for Doctrines and making void God's Law through their Traditions Mat. 15.5 6 9. Mar. 7.11 We must not suffer our selves to be carried on to break the fifth sixth eighth ninth tenth Commandments i. e. to throw off Duty to our Parents Natural or Civil or any Obligation of Morality of Justice Truth or Gratitude towards men for the Honour and Glory of God or for either the new setting up and erection or the continuance and preservation of a more Orthodox pure and spiritual way of Worship and Devotion It is too common among the worldly wise to consent to several violations of Morality for the Preservation as they say of God's Church or Advancement of his Glory Meaning thereby the Glory and Preservation of a true and Orthodox Profession of Faith and of a pure and Gospel-Worship And the Glory sought thereby for these is to make them externally glorious to seat them in worldly Sway Power or Priviledge that men may own the Confessions and pay the Worship with external ease and encouragement to themselves or without Persecutions But is not God to be glorified and obeyed in his other Precepts as well as in these Confessions of Faith and pure Devotions And is it a way to glorifie him in one point by disgracing him in others Will he receive so much Glory and Service by the Orthodoxy as Disservice and Dishonour by the Immorality Is not God glorious in his Moral Attributes of Justice Faithfulness and the like as well as in the Unity and Spirituality of his Nature And is it not as necessary for those that would duly glorifie him to copy out and display his Glory in these Moral Excellencies as to own and declare it in the other Nay is he not particularly careful to call us to an imitation and Transcript of his Glory in these to be merciful as he is merciful Luc. 6.36 and holy as he who hath callâ—d us is holy and that in all manner of conversation 1 Pet. 1.15 16 And to tell us that to be created after his Image the new man must put away lying and other immoralities and be formed in Righteousness and true Holiness Eph. 4.24 25 c. And must not the Church be preserved in true ways of Justice and Moral Duties as well as of Worship and Confessions of Faith Ought it not to be as much concerned for good Practice as for good Prayers and will it not get as much by good Life as by being Orthodox Nay can immoral men be saved in any Religion or will a good Worship recommend any to God in evil-doing or shall they enter into the Kingdom of Heaven that call Christ Lord Lord but do not obey him There is no way of glorifying God but by being intire in our Duty and performing all that he prescribes us Nor of advancing his Church but by advancing the Practice of all those Duties which are to recommend to save and signalize his Church We may confess the true Faith and Practise a pure and spiritual Worship in keeping all the other Commandments and without the breach of any yea and that in Persecutions if we please and dare run hazards And so may all other persons if they have the heart to do like us And 't is not for us to transgress any of them only as a way to remove hard Tryals from them or from our selves Which is not to glorifie God or our Duty or advance his Church but to discredit and disserve both for our own carnal ease and advantage 2. Secondly That a true Christian be ready to suffer for any point of Morality and Justice as well as for any point of Orthodoxy in Faith or Purity in Divine Worship For upon which soever of these they suffer the cause is Religious and they are alike Confessors The Duties of the first Table indeed have God not only for their Author but likewise for their Object and so are more particularly stiled Piety or Duties towards God on that account As are likewise some Duties injoined in the second Table viz. those of the fifth Commandment towards Parents and Magistrates who are in God's place and on that Account are sometimes in Scripture call'd Gods Thou shalt not revile the Gods saith the Law meaning thereby the Rulers Exod. 22.28 And thus St. Paul calls it shewing piety at home when Children relieve and requite their Parents 1 Tim. 5.4 And the undutiful are stiled â—ons of Belial and impious and Disloyalty impiety or Secundum Sacrilegium a Second Sacriledge as Tertullian's Phrase is But all other Duties are injoined by God and performed for his sake and are as truly Parts of Religion and he accordingly stands upon them as those which are more immediately referr'd to God himself For Religion lies in keeping of the Laws of God at large or in all the Duties of Justice and Morality as well as in the Duties and Acts of Piety The Grace of God which bringeth Salvation that is the Christian Religion consists in living soberly and righteously no less than in living godly in this present world according to St. Paul's distribution of Duties Tit. 2.11 12. And pure and undefiled Religion St. James describes by the moral Acts of visiting the fatherless and widows in their affliction and keeping ones self unspotted from the world Jam. 1.27 And the Kingdom of God or the Religion of Christ the Apostle makes to consist in Righteousness and Peace those second-Table and moral Duties as well as in joy in the Holy Ghost Rom. 14.17 So that to suffer for any second Table-Duties is to suffer for God's sake since God injoins them And to suffer for Religion since Religion implies them Tho they do not so immediately respect God yet are they as much required by Religion and as truly parts thereof as those that do Now it is suffering for Religion that makes men Confessors and Martyrs And this they do who suffer for the moral parts thereof What the Gospel declares blessed is being persecuted for Righteousness sake Blessed are they which are persecuted for Righteousness sake Mat. 5.10 And if ye suffer for Righteousness sake happy are ye 1 Pet. 3.14 And there is as true and acceptable Righteousness in moral Duties as in any Confessions of Orthodoxy or Purity of Worship and Devotions The Confession which Christ requires of us is to confess him and his words Luk. 9.26 And the Martyrs in the Revelations are expressed by suffering for the Testimony of Jesus and for the word of
wicked have laid a snare for me 〈◊〉 I erred not from thy Precepts Psal. 119.109 110◠They had almost consumed me upon Earth but I forsook not thy Precepts v. 87. When there is no way to escape the Cross but a Sin Religion is for taking up the Cross not for escaping it Tho we may Love our Selves and Love our Friends and seek what is pleasing both to them and us ye◠must that be under God not against him and we must prefer our Duty and pleasing him before both If any man love Father or Mother or any thing else yea his own Life above me says our Saviour he is not worthy of me Mat. 10.37 Luk. 14.26 And when St. Peter in this way of Selfish Expedience out of pure humane Love and Friendship fell to dissuade Christ from that last and hardest part of Obedience in his Sufferings Get thee behind me Satan says he to him Mat. 16.22 23. Such Counsels never come from God nor are accepted with him but always have Satan and Selfish Natures at the Bottom and are pleasing to them alone Thus upon no Pretence of Good to come may we ever break a Commandment or venture on an evil Action Expediency or Serviceableness tho to the best Purposes will never hallow an unholy or justifie an unlawful Thing When we are proposing any Good we must take a good way to it Good Ends must be compassed by good Means and Methods To make a good Action we must not only do what is good but do it with a good Design For Bonum as the Rule says est ex integra Causa taking in the Goodness both of the Act and of the Intention But to render what we do an ill Action 't is enough if we either do an ill thing tho with the best Design or a good thing if we do it with an ill one For Malum as the Rule of Morals says est ex quolibet Defectu and will come in either by the illness of the thing or by the illness of the intention An ill thing is still an ill thing tho men do it with the best intention and the Actors are punishable in Religion for the illness of the Action not justifiable for the Goodness of the intention Some indeed once laid this to St. Paul's Charge as if he taught them to do ill with a good intention or to do evil that good may come Rom. 3.8 But this says the Apostle was a slanderous Report and the Doctrine was a Doctrine for loose Libertines not for holy Christians such as he did by no means own but abhor and throw out with indignation Some slanderously report that we say let us do evil that good may come whose Damnation is just Rom. 3.8 〈◊〉 God hath commanded no man to do wickedly So be the Pretence what it will neither hath he as the wise Son of Sirach says given any man licence to sin Ecclus. 15.20 CHAP. V. Of the Plea of Necessity Providence or Prophecies for Doing ill HAving said thus much to shew in general how inviolable a Rule of Christian Wisdom this is not to do evil that good may come I shal◠from hence observe the vanity of some Palliations whereby men fruitlesly endeavour to blanch over the Deformity of this Practice such as the Plea of Necessity Providence or Prophecies And after that to tax and set off some of the most considerable instances of doing ill wherein tha◠Fleshly-wise are wont to think they may bes◠take Liberty in pursuit of any good Ends. First Spiritual Prudence will never allow us to set aside any Duty on Pretence of Necessity It will never yield that we offend against God or Man that in any thing we be false undutiful or unjust that we dishonour our Parents break our Oaths Promises and Ingagements covet other mens Goods take what is not right or with-hold what is or break any one or more of God's Commandments on the Plea of Necessity or saying it was necessary for us so to do This God knows is too much set up in the World And when unjustifiable ways are taken and things practised which the very Actors are ready to own as otherwise ill done yet is this thought a sufficient Reason why they should be done because they were necessary and they could not do without them But what were they necessary for To please God or to fulfil any Rule of his or Precept of Religion No sure they are not necessary to these Ends but necessarily overthrow them But they were unnecessary for saving the things of this World to keep what is ill got or maintain what is ill done But now these are not Religious but Self-Ends not for the other World but for this And these ways of supplying its Necessities are not Spiritual but Carnal not Religious but Worldly Prudence And if we give way to break God's Precepts for worldly Necessities this is not to shew Religion but Self-Love not to set up God but our Selves We are not to commit any Sin as I have shewn when that seems the most necessary to procure the best and most desirable Goods either to God the Publick or our Selves And if we might sin rather than suffer and take Liberty to set aside any Religious Duties to supply the Call of worldly Necessities what work would this make with the Commandments And how are any of them a Duty longer than they stand with our Convenience What becomes of Patience which is for dutifully bearing Hardships not for removing them by Undutifulness What becomes of the Religion of taking up the Cross and of Suffering for Righteousness We may bear the Cross as I formerly observed when we cannot help it but then properly we take it up when a Sin might avoid it And it may be our misfortune sometimes to suffer for Righteousness as having no way in righteous more than in unrighteous Courses always to avoid Sufferings But it cannot be our Duty to suffer for Righteousness if without Breach of Duty we may leave off to be righteous to save Sufferings At this rate of forsaking the Commandment to stick to the World or when a worldly Necessity drives him to it contrary to what our Blessed Lord and his Apostles taught a man may serve both God and Mammon Mat. 6.24 be a Friend of the World and not an Enemy of God Jam. 4.4 They that are in the Flesh this way may please God And if the Carnal mind cannot become subject to the Law of God as St. Paul says it cannot the Law of God will by this Rule become Subject to it Rom. 8.7 8. In Summ there would be no Necessity of being transformed from this World as St. Paul requires but a Liberty of being conformed unto it which he forbids Rom. 12.2 Nor any need of Denying our Selves as Christ urges if we would be his Disciples Luk. 9.23 So that this Plea of worldly Necessity setting aside our Duty in any Case is a Principle purely of this World but not at
must needs be subject yea every Soul not only for wrath but Conscience sake says S. Paul Rom. 13.1 5. Whenas at this time as is notorious Kings and Sovereiâ—â— Powers were Heathens Thus careful were they not to seem in the least to set Men free from any Relative Duties and Obligations towards their Heathen and Idolatrous Relations And this with the more exactness to cut off from the Heathen World who knew well enough the Dueness and Necessity of these things and the Guilt of the contrary without the Preaching of the Apostles all color for aspersing Christianity as overthrowing Justiâ—â— and Morality as pulling up Foundations of Nature and setting persons loose from the Obligations of their several Relations Which would have been the greatest Scandal that could haâ—â— been fixed upon Religion and have made it to turn the Moral and Natural Obligation as well as the Heathen Superstition of the World upside down Teach Wives to be obedient to their own Husbands and to take care of their Children that the Word of God be not blasphemed And Servants to be obedient shewing all good Fidelity that they may adorn the Doctrine of God our Saviour in alâ— things says S. Paul Tit. 2.4 5 9 10. Submit 〈◊〉 every Ordinance of Man says S. Peter for so is the will of God that with well doing ye may put to silence the Ignorance of foolish Men. 1 Pet. 2.13 15. Again 2. He calls for these Relative Duties and Performances towards Men of all Religions whatever their Performance on their Part be towards us We must be dutiful Children to hard improvident or careless Parents and faithful Servants to 〈◊〉 and unequal Masters and obedient 〈◊〉 to bad Husbands and good and true 〈◊〉 to ill administring and unrighteous 〈◊〉 â—â—â—vants be subject with all fear not only to the 〈◊〉 and Gentle but also to the froward saith S. Peâ—â—â— not only whilst you receive Right but when 〈◊〉 good Conscience towards God you suffer wrongâ—â— at their hands 1 Pet. 2.18 19. 〈◊〉 Pontius Pilate was far from discharging the 〈◊〉 of a good Governor to our Blessed Saviour 〈◊〉 his Blood only to satisfie the Peoples Claâ—â—s against the Conviction of his own Conscience 〈◊〉 yet our Lord took care to approve himself a 〈◊〉 Subject towards him as he had done beâ—â—â— towards the Chief Priests forbidding his Serâ—â—â—â— to use the Sword against them in his own 〈◊〉 owning even at that time his Power 〈◊〉 from above Jo. 19.11 Ananias the High Priest did not sure perform 〈◊〉 his part when sitting to judge Paul by Law commanded him to be smitten contrary to the Law 〈◊〉 23.2 3. But yet even under this Grievance 〈◊〉 â—aul confesses he ought him all the same Duty 〈◊〉 he should have owed to a more just Judge â—â—d begs pardon for having forgot himself and not spoken so reverently towards him upon that occasion as the Law required towards the Ruler of the People Vers. 5. Saul unquestionably was guilty of Male-administration in an high degree and far from discharging towards David his Duty of Protection yea moreover he was reprobated by God or rejected from being King 1 Sam. 15.23 But yet for all that David was still bound in Conscience to perform his Duty of Subjection towards this unrighteous Sovereign As he did when he had the highest Temptation and the most Providential opportunities to rid himself of him owning him even then for the Lordâ— Anointed and saying Who can lift up a hand against him and be guiltless 1 Sam. 24.5 6. Ch. 26.9 Lastly No man will say the Emperors and Rulers in the Apostles Days performed the Part of Good Governors Persecuting the true Religion instead of Protecting it preying upon the Remains of Roman Liberties instead of preserving them and Ruling by Blood Injustice and Oppression instead of just and regular Administration But yet towards these Non-Performers and Notorious Violaters of Princes Duties the Apostles injoyn all the Subjects of the Empire most punctually and Conscientiously to discharge their Duties putting them in mind to be subject to Principalities and to obey Magistrates Tit. 3.1 not only for Wrath but Conscience Rom. 13.5 as the Will of God and for the Lord's sake 1 Pet. 2.13 15. All which God strictly exacted and Good Men in all times most Conscientiously performed not daring to shake off Subjection and rise up against God's Vice-gerents when they proved the most unjust Invaders of Religion and Rights as they who list may see proved at large In all these Relations each side must look to what concerns themselves Their Duties are Mutual but not Conditional so that we may not break with them tho they break with us The breach of their Part is ill in them And therefore since what is ill in one cannot be good in another the Breach of ours must needs be answerably ill in us too So that not to go along with them in an ill thing or be condemned for Company we must every one take care 〈◊〉 discharge our own Duty whether our Relatives make due Return of Duty and discharge theirs towards us or no. Indeed all the Laws of the Second Table or the Duties of Justice are absolute in Obligation without regard either to the Religion or to the Good Performances and Moral Qualities of Men. We must speak Truth and keep Faith and Promises especially when confirm'd by solemn Oaths and deal justly and where we have received Favours remember them gratefully especially in their need and return them as we can even towards the worst Persons to men of the worst Carriage and of the worst Religions Hereticks or Infidels The Jews â—ere for streightning the Exercise of Justice Gratitude and Kindness not extending it to men of an opposite and hated Religion but confining the Neighbour mention'd in the Law to a Fellow Jew or one of their own Nation and Religion But to cure this our Lord instructs them in the Parable of the man falling among Thieves that the Jews must be Neighbours even to the Samaritans bidding him that asked Who is my Neighbour after he had related how Neighbourly the Samaritan dealt by the Jew in Distress Go and do thou likewise Luk. 10.29 30 37. Honour thy Father and Mother thou shalt not kill thou shalt not commit Adultery thou shalt not steal thou shalt not covet thou shalt not bear false Witness are Commandments that oblige equally towards all Persons We are no more at Liberty to break any of them towards a Pagan than towards a Christian a Papist than a Proetstant an ill and unjust than towards a Good and Righteous Man More particularly kind we ought to be to the Houshold of Faith and those of our own way But just and true and grateful is what in common we are bound to be to all All this is plainly owned and implied in that Maxim which is confessed by all sober Persons and expresly denied by none but some wild Enthusiasts viz. That worldly Dominion
and Enjoyment of this Life For it costs us abundance more Labour and Vexatious Thought to Revenge an Injury than it need do to put it up To Forgive it is only to bear the Disquietude that is past but to Revenge it is to throw away a great deal more of our Quiet after it and to add to our former Sore by a New and in probability much Greater Heap of fresh Toil and Danger What Rules are so Wise for the Enjoyment of our selves of Health of Body and Ease of Mind in this Life as Sobriety and Temperance and Chast and Due Regulation of Fleshly Pleasures and Moderation in all things As bringing our Minds in every thing to our Conditions noâ— affecting still to have what suits our Fleshly Likings but to like what God is pleased to send us As Mortification and due Subjection of Bodily Appetites instead of pampering of them as sitting loose to this World instead of being Worldly minded and fond thereof As Living upon Providence and trusting to God more than to our selves or to any humane Provisions and being resigned to his Will or Contented and Desirous rather that he should Do his own Will as we profess in our Daily Prayers than that he should Do ours Than all which what can better prepare us to receive all the Vicissitudes of this Life to give us least Trouble from the ill or afford us most Comfort Contentment Unwearying and true Enjoyment from the Good Things thereof What Rules lastly could Conduce so much to Settle Happiness as in Neighbourhoods so in Families greater Societies and all Relations as the due Discharge of all those Duties which Religion Prescribes in those Relations By Parents being careful to Educate their Children well and to Provide for them keeping them under an wholesom Government but kind and without â—nnecessary Provocation and by Childrens being full of Respect in all things and obedient to them again By Wives being subject in all things innocent to their Husbands and Husbands being Kind and Condescensive to their Wives as to their own Flesh. By Masters Governing with Equity and forbearing Threatning and Servants not answering again but shewing heartiness in what Service they perform and Doing it with Diligence and all Fidelity By Princes being Wise and watchful for the Publick Good and Ruling all in the fear of God with Clemency and Justice And Subjects on the other hand ever honouring their Rulers as the Ministers and Vicegerents of God obeying their Commands where Conscionably they may and keeping in their Subjection not throwing it off and forcibly resisting where they cannot obey Such as these are the Rules of Religion both towards our selves and towards others And better cannot be given for attaining the wise Ends of Life and for ordering our selves as the best studied Prudence would have us in Conversation or Business by our selves or with others and in all Relations So that every Religious Good Man whilst he keeps to the ways of Duty and Religion follows the wisest Courses and the best Rules of Prudence for this Life Yea though he should not be among those that pass for the Wise but the Weak and Simple Understandings though he should not see their Conduciveness for these Ends nor follow them for the Worldly Wisdom but only for the Religion of them Though he has not the skill and apprehension to see and judge of Secular Prudence yet whilst he keeps to the Rule of his Duty he has always this which is the best Proof of Prudence ever to be found in the most Prudent and Secular wise ways Having the Grace of being Good and Honest he cannot miss of Doing what the best Understandings must needs say is most Prudent and Discreet The Wisdom of God guides him where if left to himself he could not like better Understandings shew much Wisdom of his own And following what God has prescribed he is sure to act wisely though he is not able to say much to others to shew them the Wisdom and Conduciveness of his own Actings The Ways of Duty wherein he walks are chosen of God and are the Ways of Gods Prudence for serving the wise Ends of Life And the most Prudent Persons had better follow him than their own Understandings they can never find such another Director nor make any other choice of ways so Wise and Prudent for themselves But besides these ways of Duty for compassing the Ends of Life which are ways of God's chusing Worldly Wisdom has a great many more of its own which God has left Free and whereof he has said nothing The worldly Ends of Life themselves are rather our Liberty than Duty more God's Permission than Injunction And in pursuing them besides the Duties of Religion whereby we set them on whilst we are serving him there are multitudes of other ways wherein Worldly Wisdom has its latitude and that a very wide compass And in this Field of Worldly Prudence when it proposes its Ends and Pursues them by its own Methods this is 2. Secondly The other thing I would note of Spiritual Prudence That when worldly Wisdom sets up Ends or thinks to serve it self by ways Prejudicial to Godliness it over-rules it in all such motions Sometimes Worldly Prudence is for setting up ill things for Ends. It proposes how to serve Vices or Vanities how to compass Ends of Ambition or Covetousness Lust or Revenge Vain-Glory or Intemperance It aims at the accomplishing or serving of a Sin which is no End of Life of God's Making nor any part of his Creation but begot between Satan and our selves and meerly of his and our Production And Spiritual Wisdom quite throws out such ends which being the Stain and Reproach the Misery and Destruction of Life must never be turned into the aim thereof As it doth also all setting up the Real Advantages and useful things of this world for last and main Ends. Not seeking at all to serve God or shew forth any Virtue thereby which is to turn them into an opportunity and matter of Religion but only to satisfie our Fleshly Appetites and enjoy our Selves therein Again in seeking the Good things of this Life Worldly Prudence is apt to transgress in Means and Methods And the Prudence of Religion is as to prevent its setting up Undue Ends so to keep out any thing Ill or Vndue in the way or course it takes over-ruling it in these not as agrees most with Worldly Minds but as best becomes Christians Particularly I shall observe 1. First In Pursuing any Worldly Ends it keeps it from serving it self by Doing any Forbidden and Vnlawful Things And besides all that has been hitherto Discoursed to this Purpose with a more especial Eye to Ends of Duty and Religion I shall here set this off briefly in some most obvious Instances in the course of Secular Affairs In Competition the Way of Worldly Wisdom is for Doing any thing that will overcome It will use any Means and take all as lawful that seems