and to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices: and when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, thou art not far from the kingdom of God.' Mark xii. 32-34.

IV. The condemning of spiritual pride and ostentation.

'Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them; otherwise ye shall have no reward of your Father which is in heaven: therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do, in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men; verily I say unto you they have their reward.

But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right doeth, that thine alms may be in secret; and thy Father, which seeth in secret, himself shall reward thee openly. And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are, for they love to pray, standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men; verily I say unto you they have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. Moreover when ye fast, be not as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance; for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast; verily I say unto you, they have their reward: but thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head and wash thy face, that thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.' Matt. vi. 1—6. 16—18.

'All their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, and love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets, and to be called of men Rabbi, Rabbi.' Matt. xxiii. 5-7.

'And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others. Two men went up into the temple to pray, the one a Pharisee and the other a publican; the Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican; I fast twice in the week, I give tythes of all that I possess. And

the publican standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you this man went down to his house, justified rather than the other; for every one that exalteth himself, shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself, shall be exalted.' Luke xviii. 9-14.

V. Restraining the licentiousness of divorces.

"The Pharisees came unto him tempting him, and saying unto him, is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? And he answered and said unto them, have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning, made them male and female; and said, for this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they twain shall be one flesh? wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let no man put asunder. They say unto him, why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away? He saith unto them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives, but from the beginning it was not so; and I say unto you, whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery; and whoso marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery.' Matt. xix. 39.

N. B. These last four articles were in direct opposition to the established practice and opinions of our Saviour's own country.

VI. The separation of civil authority from religious mat

ters.

'Then saith he unto them, render unto Casar the things which are Cæsar's, and unto God the things that are God's.' Matt. xxii. 21.

'And one of the company said unto him, master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me. And he said unto him, man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?' Luke xii. 13, 14.

He said unto the woman (caught in adultery) Where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee? (i. e. judicially; for the woman's answer was not true in any other sense). She said, no man, Lord: and Jesus said unto her, neither do I condemn thee,' (i. e. in the same sense, or as a judge). John viii. 10, 11.

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VII. Purity and simplicity of Divine worship.

'When ye pray, use not vain repetitions as the heathen do; for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them; for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before you ask him: after this manner therefore pray ye, Our Father,' &c. Matt. vi. 7—9.

The hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a spirit, and they that worship him, must worship him in spirit and in truth.' John iv. 23, 24.

VIII. Estimating of actions by the intent and not the effect. • And Jesus sat over against the treasury (i. e. for pious uses), and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury; and many that were rich cast in much; and there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing; and he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, verily I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast more in than all they which have cast into the treasury, for all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.' Mark xii. 41–44. IX. Extending of morality to the regulation of the thoughts. 'I that whosoever looketh on a woman to lust say unto you, after her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.' Matt. v. 28.

'Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, &c.—these are the things which defile a man.' Matt. xv. 19, 20.

X. The demand of duty from mankind proportioned to their ability and opportunities.

That servant which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes; but he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes; for unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required; and (i. e. as) to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.' Luke xii. 47, 48.

XI. The invitations to repentance.

Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him; and the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, this man receiveth sinners and eateth with them; and he spake this parable unto them, saying, what man of you having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety

and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost till he find it? and when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders rejoicing; and when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons which need no repentance.' Luke xv. 1-7.

:

'And he said (i. e. upon the same occasion), A certain man had two sons; and the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me; and he divided unto them his living and not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living; and when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land, and he began to be in want; and he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine, and he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat, and no man gave unto him; and when he came unto himself, he said, how many hired servants of my father have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger? I will arise and go to my father, and I will say unto him, father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son, make me as one of thy hired servants. And he arose and came to his father, but when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him ; and the son said unto him, father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son: but the father said to his servants, bring forth the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet; and bring hither the fatted calf and kill it; and let us eat and be merry, for this my son was dead, and is alive again, he was lost, and is found.' Luke xv. 11-24.

THE Gospel maxims of loving our neighbour as ourselves, and doing as we would be done by, are much superiour rules of life to the Topov of the Greek, or the honestum of the Latin moralists, in forming ideas of which, people put in or left out just what they pleased; and better than the utile, or general

expediency of the modern, which few can estimate.—As motives likewise, or principles of action, they are much safer than either the love of our country, which has oftentimes been destructive to the rest of the world; or friendship, the almost constant source of partiality and injustice.

His manner also of teaching, was infinitely more affecting than theirs; as may be known by comparing what we feel, when we rise up from reading the parables of the good Samaritan, of the Pharisee and publican, the servant who when he was forgiven by his master, would not forgive his fellow-servant, the prodigal son, the rich man who laid up stores, Luke xii. 16-21-by comparing, I say, these with any thing excited in us, on reading Tully's Offices, Aristotle's Ethics, or Seneca's Moral Dissertations.

No heathen moralist ever opposed himself, as Christ did, to the prevailing vices and corruptions of his own time and country. Matt. v. vi. vii. xxiii. Luke xi. 39-44.-The sports of the gladiators, unnatural lust, the licentiousness of divorce, the exposing of infants and slaves, procuring abortions, public establishment of stews, all subsisted at Rome, and not one of them condemned or hinted at in Tully's Offices.-The most indecent revelling, drunkenness and lewdness, practised at the feasts of Bacchus, Ceres, and Cybele, and their greatest philosophers never remonstrated against it.

The heathen philosophers, though they have advanced fine sayings and sublime precepts in some points of morality, have grossly failed in others; such as the toleration or encouragement of revenge, slavery, unnatural lust, fornication, suicide, &c. e. g.

Plato expressly allowed of excessive drinking at the Festival of Bacchus.

Maximus Tyrius forbade to pray.

Socrates directs his hearers to consider the Greeks as brethren, but barbarians as natural enemies.

Aristotle maintained that nature intended Barbarians to be slaves.

The Stoics held that all crimes were equal.

Plato,

Cicero,

Epictetus,

All allow and advise men to continue the idol

atry of their ancestors.

Aristotle, Both speak of the forgiveness of injuries as

Cicero,

meanness and pusillanimity.