for a little will not serve them at present, and we are not bound to leave them beggars.' To which I answer, 1. There are few texts of Scripture more abused than that of the apostle, "He that provideth not for his own, and especially those of his family, hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel." This is made a pretence for gathering up portions, and providing a full estate for posterity, when the apostle speaketh only against them that cast their poor kindred and family on the church to be maintained out of the common stock, when they were able to do it themselves. As if one that hath a widow in his house, that is his mother or daughter, and would have her to be kept on the parish, when he hath enough himself. His following words shew that it is present provision, and not future portions that the apostle speaketh of, when he bids "them that have widows administer to them, or give them what is sufficient." 2. You may educate your children as other persons do, that they may be able to get their own livings, in some honest trade or employment, without other great provisions. I know that your charity and care must begin at home, but it must not end there. You are bound to do the best you can to educate your children, so as they may be capable of being most serviceable to God, but not to leave them rich, or a full estate; nor to forbear other necessary works of charity, merely for a larger provision for them. There must be some proportion kept between our provision for our families, and for the church and poor. A truly charitable, self-denying heart, that hath devoted itself, and all that he hath to God, would be the best judge of the due proportions, and would see which way of expence is likely to do God the greatest service, and that way he would take. 3. I confess I would not have men to lie too long under endangering strong temptations to incontinence, lest they wound themselves, and their profession by their falls: but yet, methinks, it is hard that men can do no more to mortify the concupiscence of the flesh, that they may live in a single, freer condition, and have none of these temptations from wife and children, to hinder them from furthering their Ministerial ends by charitable works. If he that marrieth not doth better than he that doth, surely ministers should labour to do that which is best; and if he that can receive this saying, must receive it, we should en

deavour after it. This is one of the highest points of the Romish policy, which they pretend to be a duty of common necessity, that all the Bishops, Priests, and other Religious orders, must not marry, by which means they have no posterity to drain the Church's revenues, nor to take up their care: But they make their public cause to be their interest, and they lay out themselves for it while they live, and leave all that they have to it when they die : so that their Church's wealth doth daily increase, as every Bishop, Abbot, Jesuit, or other person doth gather more in their lifetime, and usually add it to their common stock. It is a pity that for a better cause we can no more imitate them in wisdom and selfdenial, where it might be done. 4. But they that must marry, should take such as can maintain themselves and their children, or maintain them at the rate as their temporal means will afford, and devote as much of the church means to the church's service as they can.

I would put no man upon extremes; but in this case flesh and blood doth make even good men so partial, that they take their duties, and duties of very great worth and weight, to be extremes. If worldly vanities did not blind us, we might see when public, or other greater good did call us to deny ourselves and our families. Why should we not live more sparingly and poor in the world, rather than leave those works undone, which may be of greater use than our plentiful provisions? But, in matters of duty, we consult with flesh and blood; and what counsel it will give us, we may easily know. It will tell us we must have a competency; and many pious men's competency, is but little below the rich man's rates. If they be not clothed with the best, and fare not deliciously every day, they have not a competency. A man that preacheth an immortal crown of glory, must not seek much after transitory vanity; and he that preacheth the contempt of riches, must himself contemn them, and shew it by his life; and he that preacheth self-denial and mortification; must practise these in the eyes of them that he preacheth to, if ever he would have his doctrine prosper. All Christians are sanctified, and, therefore, themselves and all that they have are consecrated, and dedicated to their Master's use; but ministers are doubly sanctified; they are devoted to God, both as Christians and Ministers, and there

fore they are doubly obliged to honour him with what they have.

O, brethren, what abundance of good works are before us, and how few of them do we put our hands to! I know the world expecteth more from us than we have: but if we cannot answer the expectations of the unreasonable, let us do what we can to answer the expectations of God, and conscience, and all just men. It is the will of God that with well-doing we should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men. Especially those ministers that have larger maintenance, must be larger in doing good.

I will give but one instance at this time, which I mentioned before. There are some Ministers that have 1507. or 2007. or 3007. per annum of Church means; and have so great Parishes that they are not able to do a quarter of the Ministerial work, nor once in a year to deal personally with half their people for their instruction, and yet they will content themselves with public preaching, as if that were all that were necessary, and leave almost all the rest undone, to the everlasting danger or damnation of multitudes, rather than they will maintain one or two diligent men to assist them. Or, if they have an assistant, it is but some young man to ease them about Baptizings, or Burials, or such work, and not one that will faithfully and diligently watch over the flock, and afford them that Personal instruction which is so necessary. If this be not a serving ourselves of God, and not a serving God, and a selling men's souls for our fuller maintenance in the world, what is? Methinks such men should fear, lest while they are accounted excellent preachers and godly ministers by men, they should be accounted cruel soul-murderers by Christ; and lest the cries of those souls whom they have betrayed to damnation should ring in their ears for ever. Will preaching a good sermon serve the turn, while you never look more after them, but deny them that closer help that you find to be necessary, and alienate that maintenance to your own flesh, which should provide relief for so many souls? How can you open your mouths against oppressors, when yourselves are so great oppressors, not only of men's bodies, but their souls? How can you preach against unmercifulness, while you are so unmerciful? And how can you talk against unfaithful ministers, while you are so unfaithful yourselves? The sin is not therefore small,

because it is unobserved, and not become odious in the eyes of men; nor because the charity which you withhold is such as the people blame you not for withholding. Satan himself, their greatest enemy, hath their consent all along in the work of their perdition. It is no extenuation therefore of your sin that you have their consent; for that you may sooner have for their hurt than for their good.

I shall proceed no further in these confessions and discoveries, but beseech you to take what is said into consideration; and see whether this be not the great and lamentable sin of the Ministers of the Gospel, that they are not fully devoted to God, and give not up themselves, and all they have to the carrying on of the blessed work which they have undertaken? And whether flesh-pleasing and self-seeking interests distinct from that of Christ, do not make us neglect much of our duty, and walk too unfaithfully in so great a trust, and reservedly serve God in the cheapest and most applauded part of his work, and withdraw from that which would put us upon cost and sufferings; and whether this do not shew that too many are earthly that seem to be heavenly, and mind the things below while they preach for the things above, and idolize the world, while they call men to contemn it. And as Salvian saith, li. 4. ad Eccles. Cath. p. 454. “Nullus salutem plus negligit quam qui Deo aliquid anteponit." Despisers of God will prove despisers of their own salvation.

And now, brethren, what remaineth, but that we all cry guilty, of too much of these forementioned sins, and humble our souls in the lamentation of our miscarriages before the Lord! Is this taking heed to ourselves, and to all the flock? Is this like the pattern that is given us in the text? If we should now prove stout-hearted and unhumbled men, and disregard these confessions, as tending to our disgrace, how sad a symptom would it be to ourselves and to the Church! The Ministry hath been often threatened here, and is still maligned by many sorts of adversaries; though all this may shew their impious malice, yet may it also intimate to us God's just indignation. Believe it, brethren, the Ministry of England is not the least, or last in the sin of the land. They have encouraged the common profaneness; they have led the people into divisions, and are now backward to bring them out; and as sin hath been found in them, so

judgments have been found and laid upon them. It is time therefore for us to take our part of that humiliation which we have been calling our people to so long. If we have our wits about us, we may perceive that God hath been offended with us, and that the voice that called this Nation to repentance, did speak to us as well as others. He therefore that hath ears let him hear the voice of railing enemies of all sorts, the voice of them that cry, 'Down with us, even to the ground;' all calling to us to try our ways, and to reform. He that hath eyes to see, let him see the precepts of repentance written in so many admirable deliverances and preservations, and written in so many lines of blood. By fire and sword hath God been calling even us to humiliation; and as judgment hath begun at the House of God, so, if humiliation begin not there too, it will be a sad prognostic to us, and to the land. What! shall we deny, or excuse, or extenuate our sins, while we call our people to such free confessions? Is it nor better to give glory to God by a full and humble confession, than in tenderness of our own glory to seek for fig-leaves to cover our nakedness; and to put God to it, to build his glory which we denied him, upon the ruins of our own, which we preferred before him; and to distrain for that by a yet sorer judgment, which we denied voluntarily to surrender to him? Alas! if you put God to get his honour as he can, he can get it to your greater sorrow and dishonour. If any of our hearers in a day of humiliation, when sin is fully confessed and lamented, should be offended at the confession, and stand up against it, and say, 'You wrong me; I am not so bad! You should have told me of this in private, and not have disgraced me before the congregation.' What could we think of such a man but that he was a hardened, impenitent wretch, and as he would have no part in the confession, so he should have none in the remission. And shall we do that which we scarcely ever see the most hardened sinner do! Shall we say, This should not have been spoken of us in the ears of the people, but we should have been honoured before them! Certainly sins openly committed are more dishonourable to us when we hide them, than when we confess them. It is the sin, and not the confession that is our dishonour. And we have committed them before the sun, so that they cannot be hid. Attempts to cloak them, do increase the guilt