cometh those who believe themselves to be in the fpecial prefence of the fupreme Being of the world. For otherwife, whatsoever pretences you make to holiness, you may be confident you are not holy, as you are here commanded to be, holy in all manner of converfation; For you are not holy in your converfation towards God. and if you are not holy in this, be sure you are holy in nothing. And therefore above all things you must have a fpecial care of this, even to perform your devoirs to the most high God after an holy and folemn manner. 2dly, Your holinefs muft alfo fhew forth it felf in your converfation towards men. For altho all holiness be referred immediately unto God as its proper and adequat object, yet seeing our converfation towards men is to be regulated by the laws of God, and grounded upon obedience to him, that alfo both may and ought to be holy So that your juft and righteous actions towards men, ought likewife to be holy and pious actions towards God, as being fincerely performed out of love to his perfon, and obedience to his precepts. And verily, holiness being the rectitude or right difpofition of the whole man, wherefoever it is, it cannot but exert and put forth it felf in all the actions of a man's life, conforming all and every one of them to the laws and commands of God. Where by actions I mean whatsoever a man doth wherein his neighbour is concerned, inwardly in his thoughts and affections, affections, or outwardly in his words and actions, properly fo called, towards him. For he that would be truely holy, muft make Confcience of ordering every one of them according to the rules laid down in the holy fcriptures. 1. As for the thoughts: altho they fall not under the cognizance of men, unless they break forth into words or actions, yet he that is truly holy hath an especial care of them, to keep them all in their proper bounds and limits; fo that as he never thinks too highly of himself, so neither doth he think too lowly of his neighbours; he knowing himself better than others, and being thoroughly acquainted with his own failures and imperfections, cannot but look upon himself as worse than all others, 1 Tim. i. 15. and by confequence thinks all others better than himself Phil. ii. 3. And therefore he dares not judge or cenfure any man living but himself, as being always mindful of his Saviour's words, Mat. vii. 1, 2, 3, 4. This is the proper effect of holiness wherefoever it comes; thus to keep a man humble in his own eyes, and to make him think well of all men, ill of none; yea, tho he fees a man fall before his eyes, yet he doth not think him worse than himself, as ftill knowing more ill by himfelf than he doth by him. 2. His thoughts running thus regularly concerning his neighbour, his affections cannot but move accordingly. And therefore thinking well of all men, he cannot but love and honour all B men, men, 1 Peter. ii. 17. Yea, even his enemies, Matt. v. 44. Tho they be enemies unto him, he dares not be fo to them; fo that whatsoever evil he receives from them, he ftill endeavours to do them all the good he can, according to the command that is laid upon him, Rom. xii. 20, 21 This is a true faint indeed; when a man's affections are kept in that exceilent order and difcipline, that affronts and injuries themselves are not able to trouble or difcompofe them, but whatfoever others do or fpeak against him, his love is ftill the fame, his affections are unchangeable towards them. This is that which true holiness requires and acts, wherefoever it is. And therefore wherefoever you fee envy or malice, feuds or animofities, ftrife and contention allowed and practifed, you may conclude there is no fuch a thing as holiness there; for that is always accompanied with love and amity, with peace and concord, and with all other virtues whatfoever that fpring from the right difpofition of mens affections, wherein true holinefs doth confift; and therefore it can never be feparated from a meek and quiet a loving and peaceable fpirit, Heb. xii. 14. 3. THE thoughts and affections of a truly pious man towards others being thus rarely tempered, his words cannot but be framed fuitably unto them: For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh, Matth. xii. 34. That is, as a man's heart is, fo will his words be. If a man a man thinks not ill of his neighbour, he will much less speak ill of him; nay he cannot do it, for if he should his tongue would contradict his heart, he would speak what he doth not think; which be fure no man that is truly holy ever doth. And befides that, to fpeak evil of any man is exprefly contrary to the command of God, Tit. iii. 2. And therefore holinefs difpofing and modeling the whole man according to the word of God; if he that is holy fhould speak ill of any man, he would act contrary to his temper and difpofition Hence therefore, if you would manifest your felves to be faints indeed, as you muft not lie, nor fwear, nor curfe, nor blafpheme God, nor deride religion, and the like; fo neither muft you flander or backbite your neighbour, but as you ought to speak of other mens virtues only behind their backs, fo muft you speak of their vices only before their faces; and that too, not with rancour, malice or paffion, but with the fpirit of meeknefs and fobriety, that the calmness and gravity of your words may fhew forth the excellent difpofition which holineis hath reduced your hearts into. 4. As holiness thus refines a man's thoughts, regulates his actions, and bridles his tongue, fo doth it likewife rectify all his actions, as to thofe he converseth with; fo that he cannot, he dare not but fulfil all the relations, difcharge all the trufts, and perform all the duties that he ftands' any way obliged to do: to do: whatfoever company he he is in, whatsoever employment he is about, whatsoever he doth or doth not, he hath still a care of the main chance, even to keep his confcience void of offence both towards God and men, For holiness, wherefoever it is, as it is always fincere, fo it is univerfal too. It admits of no ifs and ands, no buts and exceptions, but carries a man with an even and fteady courfe thro the whole duty. It will not fuffer a man to fwear any more than to lie; nor yet to lie any more than to fwear. It makes a man as fraid to cheat privately in his fhop, as he is to rob publickly in the roads,; and as cautious to wrong none. as he is defirous none fhould wrong him. He dares nomore deal unjuftly or fraudulently with his neighbour, than he dares to neglect his daily prayers and praises to God. Infomuch that, as Zacharias prophefied; that in the latter days after the coming of Chrift, there should be holiness to the Lord written upon the very bells of the borfes, Zach. xiv. 20. fo is it with every true faint, holiness to the Lord may be written upon all his actions; yea, upon every. thing he fpeaks or doth. And verily it is fuch an univerfal holiness as this is, that will stand you in ftead another day; you had as good be holy in nothing as not in all things. A partial holiness never yet did, nor eyer will do any man good; but it hath occafioned the ruin and deftruction of many thoufands, who being more nice and fcrupulous in fome things than their neighbours are, |