IV.

TWO SIDES OF A QUESTION, OR RIGHTEOUS OVERMUCH, AND OVER-MUCH WICKED.

"All things have I seen in the days of my vanity: there is a just man that perisheth in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his wickedness. Be not righteous over-much; neither make thyself over-wise: why shouldest thou destroy thyself? Be not over-much wicked, neither be thou foolish: why shouldest thou die before thy time? It is good that thou shouldest take hold of this; yea, also from this withdraw not thine hand: for he that feareth God shall come forth of them all."-ECCL. vii. 15-18.

A

It is a circumstance inseparable from a probationary state like the present, that the degree of outward prosperity which falls to a man's lot does not bear any thing like an exact and invariable correspondence to his character. time is coming when every one shall receive according to his deeds; but the exact apportionment of recompense, whether it be of glory on the one hand or of shame on the other, is reserved for a future life. future life. Here, for many reasons, to exercise faith, to teach patience, to subdue corruptions, to wean the heart from sensible things, and to attract it to those which are invisible, the righteous are often permitted to lie under a load of affliction, while the wicked are allowed to prosper. It could not well be otherwise, in a world where persons of all characters are mixed together, left free agents, and placed under laws which,

while calculated to prove beneficial to the utmost extent upon the whole, could not, without disturbing the frame of human society, be altered to meet particular cases.,

Not only do the righteous often suffer, while the wicked prosper, but the very righteousness of the former may be the cause of their suffering, and the wickedness of the latter may be the cause of their prospering. This would be a moral anomaly, admitting of no explanation, on the infidel theory that limits the term of man's existence to the present life, and teaches that God governs the human race only by attaching to their actions the consequences which follow them here. May not true piety involve its possessor in losses, subject him to pain, occasion his death? May not impiety ride triumphant over the arena of time, carrying its head unbent to the last? An element is no doubt present in the case of the good man, and wanting in the case of the bad man, which external fortune cannot affect; I mean, the witness of a good conscience. Still I think that all who will speak candidly must admit that even the throwing of this weighty element into the scale, does not in every case produce the exact apportionment that justice requires, of happiness to the righteous and misery to the wicked; but leaves much, for the adjustment of which we must look to a state of being beyond the tomb.

The fact that righteousness may be the cause of outward ills which wickedness would avert, operates powerfully in drawing individuals into sin; and is often used, by those who would seduce their companions from the path of rectitude, as the fulcrum on which the lever of their persuasion rests. A certain course of conduct may be right, but it has obvious present disadvantages connected with it. We say to ourselves therefore, or, if we wish to play the part of tempters, we say to others,-" Why be so strict in adhering to what is right, and bring these disadvan

tages upon our heads? Let us not be too precise, but consult our pleasure a little, though our wheels should deviate somewhat from the established tracks of rectitude."

While, however, the administration of God's moral government is unquestionably such as to allow room for the existence of such an inducement to iniquity, it is an inducement founded upon a very partial and shortsighted view of things. If religion have its temporal disadvantages, in how much more awful and certain a sense is this true of irreligion ! Is it not matter of daily proof that irreligious courses, free from inconvenience and strewn with pleasures as they may seem at the commencement, lose this character insensibly as they proceed? The flowers soon wither. The sunshine that made every thing seem so gay, changes into gloom and coldness. The soul feels, if it do not give utterance to the melancholy verdict, that "all is vanity and vexation of spirit ;" and sorrows upon sorrows, sorrows uncombined with any thing that can mitigate them or give support under them, are discovered,but alas! too late,-to be the result of a mode of life that once was full of enticement.

Then, with this we must join another idea, namely, that though strict adherence to righteousness may involve us in outward ills, the general tendency of things being otherwise, the good man may, under all his misfortunes, warrantably cherish the hope of a favourable issue to them. There is infinitely more likelihood that his boat, when thrown over among the storms of life and covered with the waters, will right itself again, than there is that such a result will happen in the case of the ungodly man. How often, when iniquity has seemed to triumph for a time, while true religion was trampled in the dust, have the tables (if I may so speak) been in God's providence turned! And even if this should never take place decidedly in this

life, the good man can look forward to that which we have already mentioned as the day of adjustment; the day when the righteous Judge, banishing the ungodly into eternal exclusion from his presence, will say to his people, "Well done, good and faithful servants, enter ye into the joy of your Lord."

This very important course of thought is that over which the Preacher takes us in the verses read for exposition this morning and, having given you in my own words an outline of what is involved in the passage, I now proceed to explain the verses in their order,—a task that will be easier if you have followed me in the remarks that have been made, and observed the bearings and the mutual connection of the ideas brought forward.

I. Ver. 15,-" All things have I seen in the days of my vanity;" that is, the following is the result of the observations which I have made during my sojourn in this vain world: "There is a just man that perisheth in his righteousness." The word "perisheth" must be taken in its widest sense, as embracing both great and small calamities; and the meaning is, that a righteous man often suffers loss and hurt, in different degrees, from his adherence to what is right. "And there is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his wickedness" lives prosperously, and by his very iniquities secures worldly advantage and gratification.

This is what Solomon had observed. It always has been the state of things in time past, and is so as much now as ever. It is not necessary to prove this to any one who has opened his eyes upon the world; but a few illustrations of what the Preacher affirms may serve to place it more vividly before your minds.

My first illustration shall be drawn from the book of Scottish Church History. Think of the time when Scotland groaned under the iron heel of her prelatical persecutors.

The faithful and pious ministers whom the people loved were driven from their pulpits, into which ungodly hirelings were intruded. They were forbidden to preach the Gospel in public buildings, or in the fields, or in private houses; and it was made a crime to wait upon their ministry,—a crime the commission of which was punished in various districts with relentless severity. How many of the holiest inhabitants of the land were ruined by fines, or immured in dungeons !-how many banished from their native shores, their kindred, and all that is commonly held dear!—how many hunted like partridges on the mountains, and compelled to make their homes in caves and concealed places! -how many had their flesh torn, and their limbs racked, by boot and thumbscrew-how many stained the purple heather with their blood, or gave dignity to the gallowstree! All these were examples of "a just man perishing in his righteousness." For they might have escaped by an easy step,—a denial of what they believed to be truth, an acquiescence in the prelatical worship established in the land but conscience would not permit this, and they suffered, "not accepting deliverance." On the other hand, the converse statement, "There is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his wickedness," did not want exemplifications in that eventful era; for not a few procured, not only exemption from suffering, but wealth even, and ease, and high station, and worldly honours, by betraying what was, and what they believed to be, the cause of God.

But let us take another illustration from our own times, and from what is daily occurring in business around us. Two merchants, A and B, start in life with equal capital, equal talents, and prospects of success every way alike. We shall suppose A to be a righteous, God-fearing man, and B to be the reverse. Pursue them in their career. B, uninfluenced by religious principles, adopts every species of deceit and fraud to further his ends, only taking