effect of the fear of men, which many times works fo much upon the mind, that it carries men to bafe and unworthy compliances.

But true Humility is a virtue and temper of mind of another nature, and arifing from better principles. It is a lowly frame and habit of spirit arifing from the due fenfe of the glorious excellency of the Almighty God, and our own frailty and infirmities, and our infinite dependence upon his bounty, goodnefs, mercy, whereby we are under a conftant, firm and found conviction, that all that is in us, or that is enjoyed, or can be expected by us, is from the free undeferved liberality of that glorious God.

So that although, poffibly, the help of complexion, and conftitution, and education, may be contributory to the more eafy acqueft 1 and exercise of this virtue, yet it is in itfelf the effect of a mind truly and foundly principled. The fpirit of a found mind.' And this Humility of the mind is not barely in the external habit or counterfeited deportment; many times a cynical, intollerable pride is cloathed with the mantle of humility but principally it is rooted in the very mind itfelf, and for the moit evidenceth its being there by these enfuing particulars.

1. A moft awful and fincere reverence of the great and glorious God; an habitual proftration of our fouls always before him, as the great and glorious Sovereign of heaven and earth, in whofe prefence we always are, and to whom we owe an infinite fubjection and dependence.

2. A moft high and conftant gratitude and thankfulness of heart and foul to him, for all the good we have in us, or that is or can be enjoyed by us; recognizing him, as the giver of our being, of our faculties, our abilities, and ftrength of mind and body, our wealth, our honour, our comforts, our hopes and expectations; that he is not only the giver

'acquisition. 22 Tim. i. 7.

of

of them, but the Sovereign Lord of them, and may resume them when he pleaseth.

3. And confequently upon this, that we owe to that great and Sovereign Lord a due employment of all, that he hath thus given us, to his glory and fervice; and that we must therefore be accountable for them, to him who is our great Lord, Proprietor, and Master.

4. A conftant vigilance and attention of mind upon all our thoughts, words and actions; but efpecially left we forget that habitude of mind that we thus owe to Almighty God, and left pride, arrogancy, vanity, vain-glory fteal in upon us; checking and plucking up the first ebullitions and rifings, the first buds and motions thereof.

5. Which is but the confequence of the former, a fober opinion concerning ourselves, and all we do, and fay; not thinking of ourfelves above what we ought to think and fince felf-love fo naturally adheres to us, to be very jealous of ourselves; especially in those actions that are good, or that meet with fome applause in the world; left we either value them too high, or overvalue ourselves by reafon of them; or left we are fhort in giving to Almighty God that honour that is due to him, and to him only, for them.

6. A diligent, and impartial, and frequent confideration and examination, and animadverfion of, and upon our defects and failings; for thefe, and thefe only are truly and properly our own. There are a fort of artificial pictures, that if a man look upon them one way, they represent fome beautiful comely perfon; but if we look upon them another way, they reprefent fome deformed or mifhapen monfter; our own partiality to ourselves prompts us to look upon the picture of our lives and actions, in tnat pofition or pofture that renders nothing but beautiful and virtuous; and we have feldom the patience to look upon it, in that pofition that may render our deformities and vices: and thereupon we give ourselves the denomination accordingly of good and virtuous, and either do not obferve,

or do not confider our own failings and defects. If we did as well confider our fins which we commit, as the duties which we perform and if in the confideration of our duties, we did but confider how much more of our duties, we omit than we perform; and in the dutics we perform, if we did confider how much deadness, formality, hypocrify, vain-glory, felf-seeking, and other unhandfome ingredients were mingled with them; and fhould lay our fins, our omiflions, our defects in one scale, and that which were really and truly duty and good, and worthy in another fcale, the best of mankind would foon find that which was truly good, in the whole courfe of his life, were a pitiful, flender fcantlet, and would be infinitely outweighed by his fins, omiffions and defects; and the due comparifon and profpect of this, would quickly give him a lecture of humility; the good we do, would indeed make us thankful, but the good we omit, the evil we commit, and the deficiencies of our duties, would make us humble.

7. Charitable opinions of the perfons of others, as far as poffibly may be. It is true, that neither religion, nor charity, commands, or allows any man to fay or think that that which is in itself a fin, is not fo; as that drunkenness, or whoredom, or pride, or vain-glory, are not fins; the law of God, and the law of nature tell us they are fins. But an humble man sensible of his own fins and failings, will not prefently be over cenforious of perfons, or pronounce them reprobates, or men wholly deftitute of the hope of falvation; but will pity their failings and backflidings; but yet not exterminate them from heaven: And therein there must be duly confidered the difference between a private perfon and a public perfon, whether minifter or magiftrate; the former, namely, a private perfon, humility must teach him compaflion, charitablenefs, gentleness; but the latter, being intrufted in a public miniftration or office, doth alterius vices agere, his perfonal humi

'transact the business of another.

lity, as a private perfon, must teach him to be charita ble, but yet not to be remifs or unfaithful in the exercife of his office.

The farther confideration of the principles and companions of Humility will appear in the confideration of the fruits, and advantages and benefits of true Humility.

And these I fhall reduce to thefe three relations; 1. In relation to Almighty God; 2. In relation to the humble perfon himself; 3. In relation to others. It is true that all virtues, if they be true and real, have a connexion one with another; they are never fingle; for the fame principle that begetteth one, begetteth all the reft, and habituates, and influenceth the foul in all its motions; but especially this virtue of humility, when it is genuine and true, is ever accompanied with all thofe excellent habits and graces, that perfect the foul; as the fear and love of God; obedience to him; dependence on him; beneficence and charity to mankind, and the like. But yet in the purfuit of the fruits and advantages of humility, I fhall apply myself to fuch as do most naturally, and with a kind of fpecial reafon and approbation belong to, or flow from this virtue as fuch, and as do especially belong to its nature in a kind of abstract confideration.

I. Therefore, in relation to Almighty God, the humble man hath in a fpecial manner thefe two great advantages. 1. He receives grace, or favour, or honour from God. 2. He receives direction, guidance and counsel from God. Both which are fingularly promifed, and by a kind of fuitablenefs and congruity, conferred by Almighty God upon an humble foul.

First, favour, bonour, and grace from God, is a special portion of the humble man. The wife man tells us here, 'He gives grace to the humble.' And although grace is a comprehenfive word, and includes in itself, not only favour and acceptance with God; but alfo those other acceffions of the gifts of his bounty and goodness, which come from this great giver of every perfect gift, as wisdom, peace, righteouf

K 3

nefs,

&

nefs, purity of heart, and the like, which are all alfo
the portion of a truly humble man; yet I think the for-
mer is that which is fpecially intended here; namely,
favour, honour, and acceptance with God, so often ex-
preffed in the Old and New Teftament, by the phrase
of finding grace in the fight of God. • Behold
now I have found grace in thy fight '.'
in thy fight .' 'He that
bade thee, fhall fay unto thee, friend, come thou
up hither, then thou fhalt have worfhip or grace in
'the presence of them that fit at meat with thee: for
he that exalteth himfelf fhall be abafed, and he that
'abaseth himself shall be exalted 2.' So that by grace
is principally intended favour, acceptance, honour and
esteem, with the great and glorious God of Heaven
and earth. And certainly were there no other reward
of humility, the acceptance and favour with the great
Sovereign of the world, it were reward enough. We
fee daily what pains and charge, and expence, and
fervitude men undergo to attain the favour of a prince
or great man, though he be but a poor mortal worm;
and how men please themselves, when they have ob-
tained fome little unprofitable respect from a great
But what is that in comparifon of being in grace
and favour with the King of Kings, the Lord of Hea-
ven? efpecially, when we confider that the favour or
acceptance of the glorious God is not a bare unpro-
fitable efteem or grace, fuch as many times the great
favourites of princes obtain from them: But the favour
and acceptance of God is always accompanied with
bounty and beneficence; as he is the fovereign ocean
of all good, fo we may be fure, he will be communi-
cative and liberal of it, to fuch as he favours. He,
whofe benignity is hourly extended to the meanest of
his creatures, nay, to the very worft of men, cannot be
parfimonious or ftrait-handed to thofe whom he ac-
cepts, and esteems, and honours. So that the hum-
ble man finds grace in the fight of the glorious God,
and, as an effect of that grace, the bountiful com-

man.

1 Gen. xix. 18.

2 Luke xiv. 9, 10, 11.

munication