ing it. What harm the excefs thereof brought to the church, perhaps was not found by experience till the days of Conftantine; who out of his zeal thinking he could be never too liberally a nurfing father of the church, might be not unfitly faid to have either overlaid it or choked it in the nurfing. Which was foretold, as is recorded in ecclefiaftical traditions, by a voice heard from Heaven, on the very day that thofe great donations and church-revenues were given, crying aloud, "This day is poifon poured into the church." Which the event foon after verified, as appears by another no lefs ancient obfervation, "That religion brought forth wealth, and the daughter devoured the mother." But long ere wealth came into the church, fo foon as any gain appeared in religion, hirelings were apparent; drawn in long before by the very fcent thereof. Judas therefore, the firft hireling, for want of prefent hire anfwerable to his coveting, from the fmall number or the meauness of fuch as then were the religious, fold the religion itself with the founder thereof, his mafter. Simon Magus the next, in hope only that preaching and the gifts of the Holy Ghoft would prove gainful, offered beforehand a fum of money to obtain them. Not long after, as the apoftle foretold, hirelings like wolves came in by herds; Acts xx, 29, "For I know this, that after my departing fhall grievous wolves enter in among you, not fparing the flock." Tit. 1, 11, "Teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's fake." 2 Pet. ii, 3, " And through covetoufiefs fhall they with feigned words make merchandise of you. Yet they taught not falfe doctrine only, but feeming piety; 1 Tim. vi, 5, Suppofing that gain is godlinefs." Neither came they in of themfelves only, but invited ofttimes by a corrupt audience : 2 Tim. iv, 3, "For the time will come, when they will not endure found doctrine, but after their own lufts they will heap to themfelves teachers, having itching ears" and they on the other fide, as faft heaping to themselves difciples, Acts xx, 30, doubtlefs had as itching palms: 2 Pet. ii, 15, Following the way of Balaam, the fon of Bofor, who loved the wages of unrighteoufnefs." Jude 11, "They ran greedily after the errour VOL. III.

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of Balaam for reward." Thus we fee, that not only the excess of hire in wealthieft times, but also the undue and vicious taking or giving it, though but small or mean, as in the primitive times, gave to hirelings occafion, though not intended, yet fufficient to creep at firft into the church. Which argues alfo the difficulty, or rather the impoffibility, to remove them quite, unless every minifter were, as St. Paul, contented to teach gratis; but few fuch are to be found. As therefore we cannot juftly take away all hire in the church, becaufe we cannot otherwife quite remove all hirelings, fo are we not for the impoffibility of removing them all, to use therefore no endeavour that feweft may come in; but rather, in regard the evil, do what we can, will always be incumbent and unavoidable, to ufe our utmoft diligence how it may be leaft dangerous: which will be likeliett effected, if we confider, firft, what recompenfe God hath ordained fhould be given to minifters of the church; (for that a recompenfe ought to be given them, and may by them juftly be received, our Saviour himself from the very light of reafon and of equity hath declared, Luke x, 7," The labourer is worthy of his hire;") next, by whom; and lastly, in what manner.

What recompenfe ought to be given to church-minifters, God hath anfwerably ordained according to that difference, which he hath manifeftly put between thofe his two great difpenfations, the law and the gofpel. Under the law he gave them tithes; under the gospel, having left all things in his church to charity and chriftian freedom, he hath given them only what is juftly given them. That, as well under the gospel, as under the law, fay our English divines, and they only of all proteftants, is tithes; and they fay true, if any man be fo minded to give them of his own the tenth or twentieth; but that the law therefore of tithes is in force under the gospel, all other proteftant divines, though equally concerned, yet conftantly deny. For although hire to the labourer be of moral and perpetual right, yet that fpecial kind of hire, the tenth, can be of no right or neceffity, but to that fpecial labour for which God ordained it. That special labour was the levitical and ceremonial

ceremonial fervice of the tabernacle, Numb. xviii, 21, 31, which is now abolished: the right therefore of that fpecial hire muft needs be withal abolished, as being alfo ceremonial. That tithes were ceremonial, is plain, not being given to the Levites till they had been first offered a heave offering to the Lord, ver. 24, 28. He then who by that law brings tithes into the gospel, of neceffity brings in withal a facrifice, and an altar; without which tithes by that law were unfanctified and polluted, ver. 32, and therefore never thought on in the firft chriftian times, till ceremonics, altars, and oblations, by an ancienter corruption were brought back long before. And yet the Jews, ever fince their temple was deftroyed, though they have rabbies and teachers of their law, yet pay no tithes, as having no Levites to whom, no temple where to pay them, no altar whercon to hallow them : which argues that the Jews themselves never thought tithes moral, but ceremonial only. That chriftians therefore fhould take them up, when Jews have laid them down, muft needs be very abfurd and prepofterous. Next, it is as clear in the fame chapter, that the priests and Levites had not tithes for their labour only in the tabernacle, but in regard they were to have no other part nor inheritance in the land, ver. 20, 24, and by that means for a tenth, loft a twelfth. But our Levites undergoing no fuch law of deprivement, can have no right to any fuch compenfation: nay, if by this law they will have tithes, can have no inheritance of land, but forfeit what they have. Besides this, tithes were of two forts, thofe of every year, and those of every third year: of the former, every one that brought his tithes, was to eat his fhare: Deut. xiv, 23, "Thou fhalt eat before the Lord thy God, in the place which he fhall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, &c." Nay, though he could not bring his tithe in kind, by reafon of his diftant dwelling from the tabernacle or temple, but was thereby forced to turn it into money, he was to bestow that money on whatsoever pleafed him, oxen, fheep, wine, or ftrong drink; and to eat and drink thereof there before the Lord, both he and his houfhold, ver. 24, 25, 26. As for the tithes of

every third year, they were not given only to the Levite, but to the ftranger, the fatherless, and the widow, ver. 28, 29, and Chap. xxvi, 12, 13. So that ours, if they will have tithes, muft admit of thefe fharers with them. Nay, thefe tithes were not paid in at all to the Levite, but the Levite himself was to come with thole his fellow-guefts, and eat his fhare of them only at his houfe who provided them; and this not in regard of his minifterial office, but because he had no part nor inheritance in the land. Laftly, the Priefts and Levites, a tribe, were of a far different conftitution from this of our minifters under the gofpel: in them were orders and degrees both by family, dignity and office, mainly diftinguished; the high prieft, his brethren and his fons, to whom the Levites themfelves paid tithes, and of the beft, were eminently fuperiour, Numb. xviii, 28, 29. No proteftant, I fuppofe, will liken one of our minifters to a high priest, but rather to a common Levite. Unless then, to keep their tithes, they mean to bring back again bithops, archbishops, and the whole gang of prelatry, to whom will they themselves pay tithes, as by that law it was a fin to them if they did not? ver. 32. Certainly this muft needs put them to a deep demur, while the defire of holding faft their tithes without fin may tempt them to bring back again bishops, as the likeness of that hierarchy that should receive tithes from them; and the defire to pay none, may advise them to keep out of the church all orders above them. But if we have to do at prefent, as I fuppofe we have, with true reformed proteftants, not with papifts or prelates, it will not be denied that in the gofpel there be but two minifterial degrees, prefbyters and deacons : which if they contend to have any fucceffion, reference or conformity with thofe two degrees under the law, priefts and Levites, it muft needs be fuch whereby our prefbyters or minifters may be anfwerable to priefts, and our deacons to Levites; by which rule of proportion it will follow that we must pay our tithes to the deacons only, and they only to the minifters. But if it be truer yet, that the priesthood of Aaron typified a better reality, 1 Pet. ii, 5, fignifying the chriftian true and "holy priefthood to offer up fpi

ritual facrifice;" it follows hence, that we are now juftly exempt from paying tithes to any who claim from Aaron, fince that priesthood is in us now real, which in him was but a fhadow. Seeing then by all this which has been fhown, that the law of tithes is partly ceremonial, as the work was for which they were given, partly judicial, not of common, but of particular right to the tribe of Levi, nor to them alone, but to the owner alfo and his houfhold, at the time of their offering, and every three years to the ftranger, the fatherlefs, and the widow, their appointed fharers, and that they were a tribe of priefts and deacons improperly compared to the conftitution of our miniftry; and the tithes given by that people to thofe deacons only; it follows that our minifters at this day, being neither priefts nor Levites, nor fitly anfwering to either of them, can have no juft title or pretence to tithes, by any confequence drawn from the law of Mofes. But they think they have yet a better plea in the example of Melchifedec, who took tithes of Abraham ere the law was given; whence they would infer tithes to be of moral right. But they ought to know, or to remember, that not examples, but exprefs commands oblige our obedience to God or man: next, that whatfoever was done in religion before the law written, is not prefently to be counted moral, when as fo many things were then done both ceremonial and judaically judicial, that we need not doubt to conclude

all times before Chrift more or lefs under the ceremonial law. To what end ferved elfe thofe altars and facrifices, that diftinction of clean and unclean entering into the ark, circumcifion, and the railing up of feed to the elder brother? Gen. xxxviii, 8. If these things be not moral, though before the law, how are tithes, though in the example of Abraham and Melchifedec? But this inftance is fo far from being the juft ground of a law, that after all circumftances duly weighed both from Gen. xiv, and Heb. vii, it will not be allowed them fo much as an example. Melchifedec, befides his prieftly benediction, brought with him bread and wine fufficient to refreth Abraham and his whole army; incited to do fo, first, by the fecret providence of God, intending him for a type

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