may

inconfiftent inclination, and deny whatever SERM. hinder their attaining it. The greatest X. difficulties we have to overcome, in order to our acquiring this bleffed quality, and all its happy fruits, arife from ourselves; we have.fo many selfish affections and paffions, which being indulged grow to an exorbitant height of power, and the tendency of them is contrary to virtue, that it will require the ftricteft and most conftant attention to be preferved from their corrupting influence. I have lately explained felf-government, or, as Solomon expreffeth it, having a rule over our own fpirits; that is, observing a strict discipline in our minds, keeping a careful univerfal watch over our own fenfes, imagination, appetites, and paffions, fo far as they are under the direction of the understanding and confcience; and I fhewed you the neceffity and usefulness of this, in order to our attaining to, and making proficiency in, religion.

I propofe, in difcourfing from this text, to confider particularly the character and difpofition of the Scorner, and the obstruction which arifeth from it to men's becoming wife, which you fee Solomon reprefenteth as fo great, that in will defeat all means, and disappoint all the diligence men can use; VOL. III.

R

for

SERM. for it is fuppofed that the scorner may feek X. wifdom, and be at pains for it, and yet ne

ver find it. Not that he difcerneth wisdom to confist in true religion and virtue, and feeketh after thefe; for in a diligent pursuit of this kind his labour fhould not be loft: But he feeketh after wisdom, that is, knowledge and fkill to make the beft of life; in which he either doth not include religion at all, or it is of fuch a kind as will by no means answer the end: For as to true religion, his temper, as we fhall afterwards fee, disqualifieth him as much for feeking as finding it.

Let us, firft, confider the character. We meet with it often in the writings of Solomon, and in other parts of fcripture, by attending to which we shall find the following ingredients in it: Firft, pride, which fignifieth an undue defire of honour, or an overvaluing one's felf, and a joy and triumph of heart on account of fome apprehended excellence or advantage, with a contempt of others fuppofed inferior. To have a juft notion of this evil, against which the facred writers inveigh with fo great feverity, reprefenting it as what rendereth men obnoxious to the divine difpleasure, and precipitateth them into the most fatal mifcon

duct,

duct, and indeed into deftruction; we may SERM. observe, that it is a perverfion or mifappli

cation of an original defire in the human
nature, that is, the defire of honour, which
God hath planted in us for excellent pur-
pofes; for it is of great ufe to our happiness,
and a fecurity to virtue. But when the de-
fire terminateth ultimately, not on the things
which are praife-worthy, but upon praise
and respect separated from worth, and is
founded, not on any real excellency, but
thofe things to which the weakness and folly
of men have annexed esteem, it is then a faul-
ty ambition; and the overvaluing ourfelves
upon fuch things, while we defpife others,
or, in general, upon the apprehended right
to, or poffeffion of any good esteemed above
its real nature and use, is finful pride. Thus,
for example, the goods of fortune, as they
are commonly called, riches and power, be-
ing the foundations of diftinction among
men to which the opinion of the world hath
affixed the idea of grandeur and magnifi-
cence; the natural perfections of the body,
as ftrength and beauty; the accomplish-
ments of the mind, whether natural or ac-
quired, fuch as wit and knowledge. In fine,
whatever is reputable in the eyes
of man-
kind, and particularly thofe we converse
with;

R 2

X.

SERM. with; these are the subjects of a secret triX. umph and self-applause in the thoughts of the proud, and the foundations upon which they claim a distinguishing respect, despifing in their hearts, and carrying it haughtily and fuperciliously towards those whom they apprehend to be inferior to them.

To explain this fubject more fully, it must be observed, that the overvaluing one's felf, which is meant by pride, hath a relation to fome other beings, and includeth a comparifon. And as the fcripture reprefenteth pride under the notion of impiety, and the fource of an undutiful behaviour towards God, Pfal. x. 4. The wicked through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God; this fin doth import too great an elation of the mind, too high an esteem of one's felf, even upon a comparison with the Deity. Not that any of mankind, or any intelligent creatures who acknowledge the being of God, do avowedly fet themfelves above him, for that would be too manifeft an absurdity; but they entertain fuch fond thoughts of their own perfection, merit, and fufficiency, as are really inconfiftent with their profeffed acknowledgment of his fupremacy and their dependence, as derogate from his infinite unparallelled excellency,

1

cellency, and are unbecoming the relation SERM.
which creatures bear to him. To speak X.
and to act as if our lips were our own, and
our powers to be employed wholly for our-
felves, and by the direction of our own
wills, without fubordination or any regard
to his; as if we lived independently on him,
and poffeffed any thing which we did not
receive from his bounty; as if we had no
need to have recourse to his liberality for
the supply of our wants; as if we had a so-
vereign right to difpofe of ourselves, and
our own interefts and affairs; or as if we
were not accountable to him for all our
actions: This is proudly to exalt ourselves
against God, and to forget that we are and
muft neceffarily be in the condition of frail
depending creatures. Like this was the pride
of the angels, who, as St. Jude telleth us,
kept not their first estate, but left their own
habitation; and the apostle Paul reprefent-
eth it as the cause of the devil's condemna-
tion, 1 Tim. iii. 6. Not that it is to be ima-
gined he ever thought himself greater than
the Almighty in power and perfection, and
would on that account attempt to dethrone
him by superior force; but in the pride of
his heart, the high conceit of his fufficiency to
conduct

R 3