SERMON IV. ISAIAH, V. 20. Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" THE prophet is bewailing, in this chapter, the general corruption of his nation, and the judgments which that corruption was fast bringing on it; "Therefore are my people gone into captivity because they have no knowledge:" and then, turning from the general doom of all, he pronounces a more emphatic censure upon those who had seduced them from their God; "Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart-rope! Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" The direct force, then, of this woe, is pointed against those who, by their prin ciples or conduct, lower the moral and religious standard around them. There are many features of society peculiar to this place, which make this a most appropriate warning, and call, therefore, for your most serious attention to its meaning. The subject which it opens is two-fold, leading us, first, to note especially the guilt of thus inflicting injury on others; and then the self-accomplishment of this great woe upon those who act as the corruptors of their brethren. Now a very little reflection may convince us how sore an evil is such conduct, and how great a condemnation it entails. For, first, the current conventional standard of society around them, is, alas! even in this Christian land, the main principle by which the great mass of the better sort of people regulate their conduct. For one who refers truly to the law of God, hundreds may be found who act upon the common maxims of society. In each profession, and in every rank of life, this is the common law of conduct. To obey this, no self-denial is too |