mandment.

Thou shalt not cover thy Neighbour's Houle; thoux. Comshalt not cover the Neighbouz's Wife; nor his Man-fervant, noz his Paid-servant, noz his Dr, noz his Als, noz anp thing that is thy Neighbour's.

19.

THIS law is comprehenfive and recapitulatory, as it were, of the reft concerning our neighbour, prescribing universal justice toward him; (whence St. Mark, it seems, meaneth to render it in one word, by μǹ άñoστephons, de- Mark x. 19. prive not, or bereave not your neighbour of any thing ;) and this not only in outward deed and dealing, but in inward thought and defire, the spring whence they do iffue forth, (for, from the heart, as our Saviour teacheth, do proceed Matt. xv. evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, falsewitness, blafphemies ;) we are obliged to be so far from depriving our neighbour of any good thing belonging to him, that we are not fo much as to wish or defire it; not only to abstain from injurious action, but to reprefs covetous inclinations: wherein is also implied, that we should have a delight and complacence in our neighbour's good; not envying him any enjoyment; being in our minds content with the portion God pleaseth to vouchsafe us; and entirely trusting in him, that he will fupply us with what is needful or befitting to us, without the damage of our neighbour. Thus God's law is, as St. Paul observed, spi- Rom. vii. ritual; not only restraining exterior acts, but regulating our inmoft thoughts, quelling all inordinate appetites and affections of heart within us; the which may be extended fo as to respect not only matters of juftice toward our neighbour, but all objects whatever of our practice; fo as to import that which in the Chriftian law is fo frequently enjoined us, as the life of our religion, circum- Phil. iii. 3. cifing our hearts, crucifying the flesh with its paffions and Col. ii. 11. defires, mortifying our earthly members, putting to death Rom. vi. 6. by the Spirit the deeds of the body, putting off the old man, ii. 11. which is corrupted according to the deceitful lufts: Oux Éπ- Eph. iv. 22.

7, 14.

Rom. ii. 29.

Gal. v. 24.

Col. iii. 5.

Rom. viii.

Juμnoas, Thou shalt not unlawfully or irregularly defire, doth, according to the spiritual intent, import all this.

I have done; and shall only add, that the fum and end of these, and all other good laws, of all religion, and all our duty, is (as we often are taught in the New Tefta1 Tim. i. 5. ment) comprised in those two rules, of loving God with all our heart, and loving our neighbour as ourselves; feriously and honeftly attending unto which, we can hardly fail of knowing what in any cafe our duty is: it remains that we employ our best care and endeavour on the confcientious practice thereof; imploring therewith the affiftance of God's grace, and that good Spirit, which God hath moft graciously promised to those who duly ask it, by which alone we can be enabled to keep God's commandments: to him be all glory and praise. Amen.

THE

DOCTRINE

OF

THE SACRAMENTS.

It is a peculiar excellency of our religion, that it doth Cypr. Ep.

not much employ men's care, pains, and time, about matters of ceremonial observance; but doth chiefly (and in a manner wholly) exercise them in works of fubftantial duty, agreeable to reason, perfective of man's nature, productive of true glory to God, and folid benefit to men. Its defign is not to amuse our fancies with empty shows, nor to take up our endeavours in fruitless performances; but to render us truly good, and like unto God; first in interior difpofition of mind, then in exterior practice; full of hearty love and reverence to God, of tender charity and goodwill toward men; of moderation and purity in the enjoyment of these things; of all true piety and virtue; whereby we may become qualified for that life of blifs which it tendereth and promifeth; for conversation in that holy fociety above, to which it defigneth and calleth

us.

76.

upon vul

weaker

Yet because fancy is naturally a medium, and an It hath, effectual inftrument of action; and because fenfible ob- efpecially jects are apt strongly to affect our minds; it hath pleafed gar and the divine Wisdom to apply them, in fit measure, and to minds, a fanctify them to thofe good purposes, by appointing fome ftrong effifew folemn and fignificant rites to be obferved by us, being in their own nature proper and useful, and by God defigned to declare his mind and gracious intents to us; to confign and convey his grace into our fouls, to confirm

cacy.

our faith in him, to raise our devotion toward him, to quicken our refolutions of obeying his will; to enable and excite us to the practice of those great duties which he requireth of us; a Our Lord Jefus Chrift, faith St. Austin, hath subjected us to his gentle yoke and light burden; whence, with facraments most few in number, most eafy for obfervance, most excellent in fignification, he bound together the Society of new people: and, The mercy of God, faith he again, would have religion free, by the celebration of a moft few und moft clear facraments.

Of these there appear two (and St. Austin in the place cited could instance in no more) of general and principal ufe, inftituted by our Lord himself; which, because they represent to us fomewhat not fubject to fenfe, and have a fecret influence upon us; because what is intended by them is not immediately discernible by what is done, without fome explication, (their fignificancy being not wholly grounded in the nature, but depending upon arbitrary inftitution, as that of words, which is of kin to them; whence St. Austin calls a facrament, Verbum vifibile,) have usually been called mysteries, (that is, actions of a close and occult importance, of deeper meaning and defign than is obvious to ordinary perception ;) and thence are also called facraments, for no other reason, I conceive, than because the ancienteft translators of the Bible into Latin did usually render the word μushpiov by the word facramentum; whence every thing containing under it somewhat of abftruse meaning is by ancient writers termExod. xii. ed a facrament. (So Tertullian calls all Christianity the 26. facrament of Chriftian religion; and Elifha's ax he calls natura di- the facrament of wood; and St. Austin speaks of the faplane ex- crament of bread, of fish, of numbers, of the rock, &c. In primitur. fhort, he says of all figns, that when they belong to divine

Sacramenti

ferte et

a Dominus nofter leni jugo fuo nos fubdidit, et farcinæ levi; unde facramentis numero pauciffimis, obfervatione facillimis, fignificatione præftantisfimis focietatem novi populi colligavit: ficut eft baptifmus Trinitatis nomine confecratus, communicatio corporis et fanguinis ipfius; et fi quid aliud in Scripturis canonicis commendatur, &c. Ep. 118. Religionem pauciffimis et manifeftiffimis celebrationum facramentis mifericordia Dei liberam effe voluit. Id. Ep. 119.

things, they are called facraments b; which fhews to how small purpose the disputes are, yea, on what small grounds the decrees are, concerning the number, general nature, and efficacy of facraments: for where a name or form of a facrament is of so large, ambiguous, and indeterminate fignification, there can be nothing but confufion in the disputes about it.) But those which chiefly at least, and in way of eminency, have obtained this name, are those two inftituted by our Lord, Baptifm and the Lord's Supper; of which I fhall in order difcourfe; and fo of each, as very briefly to confider the occafion of their inftitution; the actions enjoined in them; the nature of them, or wherein their mystery doth confift; the ends for which they were intended; and the effects they produce; together with the difpofitions and duties (antecedent, concomitant, and confequent) required of us in the use and practice of them. And first,

b Nimis autem longum eft convenienter disputare de varietate fignorum, quæ, cum ad res divinas pertinent, facramenta appellantur. Aug. Ep. 5. In cun&tis Chrifti actionibus facramentorum myfteria corruscarunt. Leoi. Ep. 4.