he must be defective; for if he is unjuft in SERM. permitting Afflictions to befal good Men III. (for fuch the Argument intends them) he is either for want of knowing who these good Men are, or else for want of Goodness to give them their Due; upon both which Accounts his Wisdom alfo will be very liable to be fufpected and call'd in Queftion. But now God is infinite every Way, not only in Power, Duration, Extenfion, &c. but in every thing elfe; for he is either Nothing, or the Sum of all Things. The Idea of God includes in it every thing that is great and excellent, and that in an infinite Degree, according to the Son of Syrach's fublime Description of him. By his Word all Things confift; we may speak much, and yet come bort, wherefore in Sum he is all. How fhall we be able to magnify him, for he is great above all his Works? The Lord is terrible, and very great, and marvellous in his Power. When you glorify the Lord, exalt him as much as you can, for even yet will be far exceed; and when you exalt him, put forth all your Strength, and be not weary, for you can never go far enough. Who hath feen him, that he might tell us? and who can magnify him as he is? There are yet hid greater Things than F 2 SERM. than these be, for we have feen but a ferè III. of his Works. He therefore must be juft no and righteous, and that in a most eminent Manner, for this is a Part of those glorious Perfections which make him be what he is: And if fo, there must be a fufficient Reason for every thing he does, whether we are able to find out that Reason, or no. Now, because the making those Afflictions we fuffer in this Life an Argument against the Juftice of God implies that Man is innocent, and therefore more just than God, becaufe a righteous Man will not punish another without a juft Caufe, this Suppofition alfo proceeds from an Ignorance of ourfelves as well as of God. Whatever Light a vain Fancy, and a bloated Imagination, may have plac'd us in, and how innocent and righteous foever we may appear in our own Glafs, yet if we will look into ourselves with an exact Scrutiny, and diligently view this Body of Sin which we in habit; if we will but trace our natural Depravity to its Spring-Head, till we find that we were born in Sin, and shapen in Iniquity, and be at the Pains to obferve the difial Effects of it breaking out into rebellious Paffions, perverfe Humours, and every evil Work, we fhall foon find the Miftake; Miftake; an impartial Eye will difcover all SERM, thofe Deformities, which a too good Opinion of III. ourselves has always plac'd in a wrong Light The Scripture and our own Confciences have concluded all under Sin. Who, fays the wife Man, can fay, I have made my Heart clean, I am free from my Sin? And this is the Cafe not only of Sinners, but of good Men too; and when Men are truly fenfible of this, it is a fign that they are good. What is Man, fays Eliphaz, that he should be clean, and he which is born of a Woman, that he should be righteous? Behold, he putteth no Truft in his Saints, yea the Heavens are not clean in his Sight; how much more abominable and filthy is Man, who drinketh Iniquity like Water! And, fays Bildad, Behold even to the Moon and it fbineth not, yea, the Stars are not pure in his Sight; how much lefs Man, that is a Worm, and the Son of Man, which is a Worm! So that had we right Notions of God, and of ourselves, we fhould not make the Afflictions which happen to us in this Life an Argument against the Juftice of God; for then we fhould be convinc'd, that as God is infinite in every Refpect, in Wisdom and Juftice, as well as in every thing else, and is therefore a Being of all poffible SERM. poffible Perfections, there must be a fuffiIII. cient Reafon for thefe Things; and a true Knowledge of ourselves would give us the Reason, a Reafon fufficient to juftify God in his Proceedings, and convince us, that whatever we undergo in this Life is no more than we might expect as the Confequence of our Guilt: Why then Should a living Man complain, as the Prophet says, a Man for the Punifoment of his Sins? Or, why fhall the righteous Lord be accounted unjuft for punishing us according to our Deferts ? or mortal Man be more just than God for deferving it? Tho' we can't trace out the Footsteps of the Divine Providence, and when we labour under any Afflictions, after our utmoft Care and Endeavour to preferve our Integrity, may, with Job, want to know the Caufe of fuch Proceedings, yet 'tis enough that we are guilty; 'tis fufficient to answer all Objections against the Juftice of God, that we have deferv'd them, tho' perhaps they are not fent as the immediate Confequence of Sin, but as Trials to exercise our Patience and Humility, or for fome other Reason which we are not able to dif For if Afflictions were always the Confequence of Sin, wicked Men could then cover. expect expect but little Content and Satisfaction, SERM. their Life would then be one continued Scene III. of Trouble; whereas the contrary to this is very Graves. |