SERM. cretion of him by whom they are bestowed. I. And to affert the contrary, converts what

is pure bounty into a debt; into a neceffary act of justice: It leaves indeed no room at all for the exercise of goodness, nor for any obligation of the creature to its creator. But yet, in none of thefe inftances, can it with the leaft face of reafon be imagined, that the natural and fovereign proprietor of all things acts arbitrarily, or from an undue respect of perfons; but folely for the more compleat and extenfive difplay of his wifdom and benignity. Being not obliged, in ftrict equity, to make all his creatures of the fame rank, nor confequently to allot to all precifely the fame advantages; and, "for the fame reafon, being not bound to make every individual, in

rr

any diftinct species of created being, exactly equal with refpect to moral excellence, and capacities for knowledge and happiness" He has in fact expreffed his goodness to all, but at the fame time, ordained and fixed a beautiful and moft admirable diverfity; which, as it was a confideration of wisdom only, he must be at full liberty to do.

I.

IGNORANCE and fuperficial conceptions SERM. have generally this effect, to make men captious and impertinently inquifitive, as well as prefumptuous and rash in their cenfures, We are apt to condemn not only what we plainly fee to be wrong, but every method of conduct which we cannot thoroughly and distinctly explain. And this is grounded on a principle that the pride of human nature feems to be extreamly fond of, tho' it be too abfurd to be openly, avowed and defended, and that is, that every design and operation of divine providence, that is in itself fit and reasonable; must appear to us to be fit and reasonable; or, in other words, that all the Springs, and causes, and uses of it, must be particularly known and perceived by us: And if we cannot affign the just and proper reafons for it, we reflect no further, but draw this conclufion all at once----that there is neither reafon, nor wisdom, in it. Whereas our own little experience of what paffes among ourselves, and the fcanty tract of obfervation to which we are at present confined, may juftly be expected to teach us greater modesty. For as the fchemes

and

SERM. and defigns of fome men are quite impeneI. trable by others, we may fairly suppose, judging by the rule of analogy, which in this cafe can hardly deceive us, that the defigns of fome superior beings, tho' perfectly right and well-conducted, may be equally impenetrable by the wifeft of mankind : And if we carry this neceffary analogy, and correspondence of things in the course of nature, ftill higher, it will follow, that the vaft defigns of an infinite mind in various inftances, not only may, but muft, be ei ther abfolutely infcrutable, or but imperfectly comprehended, by the most exalted created understanding. The end proposed may be at too great a distance, to be clearly difcerned--- or the means too complicated, to be rightly and accurately distinguished--- and their connections with each other, and with the end itself, too minute and nice, to be traced in their proper order and influence--- and yet unerring knowledge may direct every step, and harmony and good be the refult of all. However, fhallow and perplexed as our apprehenfions are, a thoughtful and curious enquirer will cafily discover fuch appearances of wisdom

in

in all the more remarkable events of pro- SERM. vidence, as are fufficient both to raife ad- I. miration, and inspire reverence and humility: fufficient to filence atheistical objections, and satisfy the mind in general, till either the fcene is more perfectly difclofed, as it frequently happens in the present world; or that more improved and inlarged ftate, which reafon itself strongly prompts us to expect hereafter, presents us with brighter views, and enables us, by means of superior capacities, to form more adequate and just ideas of the wonderful works and government of the almighty.--In the mean time let us fix on this bafis, that as long as we can trace evident footSteps of wisdom, tho' we are unable to unravel the whole fcheme, there can be no ground, in the nature of things, on which to suppose, that the difpofals and allotments of providence fpring in any degree from capriciousness, or an arbitrary partiality. For to be partial is to act without a reason, from mere fancy and pleasure ; and therefore to imagine this, while we fee, at the fame time, evident marks of a rational and wife defign, is fuppofing (merely

for

SERM. for the fake of fuppofing) that contradicti

1.

15.

ons are united, and exift together in the Jame fubject.

I HAVE infifted fo long on these things, because, as was hinted before, the reasoning here purfued will help us to settle very confiderable difficulties, which are chiefly indeed levelled against revelation, but must, in their confequences, overturn all religion. It is now proper to obferve, that the phrase, refpect of perfons, has principally, if not always in fcripture, a judicial meaning. Thus Levit.xix. it is used, Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: Thou shalt not refpect the person of the poor, nor honour the perfon of the Deut. i. mighty. Again, Ye shall not respect perfons in judgment; which is thus explained, Ye shall hear the small as well as the great, ye fhall not be afraid of the face of man: And this is exprefly faid in the 16th verfe, to be a charge given to the judges of the land. In another place respect of perfons, ftill confined to a judicial fenfe, ftands to denote corruption and taking bribes, which, as it is there faid with great eloquence, blind the eyes of the wife, and pervert the words of the righteous. And this likewife

17.

Deut. xvi. 19.

is