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honour. Owe no man any thing, but to love one another; for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. The night is far spent, the day is at hand; let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. Be sober, and watch unto prayer. Have fervent charity among yourselves. Use hospitality one to another. Honour all men : love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.

Were it necessary, I might multiply quotations of this nature to a much greater extent; but these are abundantly sufficient to give the reader a general idea of the nature, variety, and excellency of the moral precepts which the Bible contains, and the universal holiness which it inculcates.

I observe further, that the Scriptures are not satisfied with the mere act of external obedience to the duties here enumerated: love to God is denominated the first and great commandment; and from this, as the internal principle and spring of action, all these duties are required to be performed. The Bible requires internal purity of heart; and although men may be exceedingly strict in their attention to morals, and correct in all their external deportment, yet if unholy and improper dispositions are allowed to reign within, they will be rejected by Him who searcheth the heart, and trieth the reins of the children of men, and who requireth truth in the inward parts. The following passages point out the attention to this important part of vital religion, which the Bible universally enjoins.

Exod. xx. 17. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.

Prov. iv. 23. Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

Eph. iv. 31. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another.

Psalm li. 6. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.

Matt. v. 21. It was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: but I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment; and whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

1 John ili. 15. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

Matt. v. 27. It was said by them of old time, Thou shalt

not commit adultery: but I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

The passages here quoted principally, as may easily be seen, (if they are duly attended to,) refer to that internal purity of heart which the Bible requires of all men to cultivate. Such indeed is the high standard of purity it erects, that it will not allow of a vain worldly licentious thought or impure desire of any kind. A strict and uniform attention to all the moral duties before enumerated is required, but they must all be accompanied by this inward principle of holiness-must all spring from the most exalted purity of motive-otherwise they are of no estimation, and will not be accepted in the sight of God.

But I proceed to observe, that in addition to the constant attention to these duties which is required, and the performance of them from pure motives, accompanied by inward sanctification of heart, it is also required that they be performed without any reference to personal fame or human applause. A vain-glorious desire of that honour which cometh from men, must never enter into the thoughts, or influence the actions of him, who in the performance of these relative and social duties desires to please God: this is sufficiently evident from the following passages.

Matt. vi. 1. Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth; that thine alms may be in secret : and thy Father, which seeth in secret, himself shall reward thee openly. And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. Moreover, when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; that thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret : and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.

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The desire of human applause, which is the disposition of heart forbidden in these passages, is exceedingly prevalent amongst the Hindoos. Their religious devotees submit, it is true, to a variety of austerities; but is it, I ask, with a sincere desire to please God, that they thus put their bodies to pain? It may be so in a few solitary instances; but they who are acquainted with their character must know, that the majority of them are influenced only by pride, and the desire of being reputed for their sanctity amongst men. This was one of the prevailing sins of the scribes and Pharisees in the days of Christ: all their works, he declared, they did for to be seen of men ; and on this account he pronounced them a set of worthless hypocrites, who could not possibly escape the damnation of hell. The uniform obedience, therefore, which the Bible requires to the various important duties previously enumerated, the positive manner in which it condemns every desire of human applause, and the decision with which it inculcates, in the due discharge of these duties, a disposition so contrary to the depraved feelings of the human heart, may well be enumerated amongst the many other strong presumptive evidences of its divine authority.

But in addition to what has already been brought forward on this subject, the Bible, I proceed to observe, is distinguished by two peculiar principles, i. e. by two principles peculiar to itself, which are not to be found in any book whatsoever of mere human authority; and these two principles, being opposed as they are to all the commonly received and prevailing opinions of men, will, if duly considered, be looked upon by every candid enquirer as á still stronger proof of its having God for its author.

1. Scarcely a book (which is not drawn from the Bible) will be found in the world, in which false honour*, valour,

* I allude to that mistaken idea which leads men, in defence of their supposed honour, to resent every imaginary affront; and which attaches more honour to the wicked act of taking away a neighbour's life by duelling, than to patiently bearing an injury, in the spirit of Christian forbearance.

heroism, &c. &c. are not applauded in the highest terms, and the possession of these considered as a virtue to be praised and universally aspired after: but not a word in commendation of these imaginary virtues is to be found in the Bible. Since, therefore, it entirely withholds its applause from these commonly commended characters, it is in this respect peculiarly distinguished from all the writings of men.

The second peculiar distinguishing principle of the Bible, is its commanding men to love and pray for the welfare of their enemies-not to resist or revenge injurious treatment to love their neighbours, and seek their happiness and welfare equally with their own.

Matt. xxii. 39. Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

Matt. v. 38. Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: but I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy: but I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.

Rom. xii. 17. Recompense to no man evil for evil. Avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

1 Peter ii. 19. This is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffetted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? But if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.

Now let us for a moment imagine the effects which, as far as we can judge, would result from the universal prevalence of either of these two opposite principles of

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