were a fruitless labour, which had no relation at all thereto. Whereas it is certain the truth lies between them both. It is not all; nor yet is it nothing. It is not the end, but it is a precious mean thereto; a mean which God himself has ordained; and in which therefore, when it is duly used, he will surely give us his blessing.

In order to set this in the clearest light, I shall endeavour to shew, First, What is the nature of Fasting, and what the several sorts and degrees thereof: Secondly, What are the reasons, grounds, and ends of it: Thirdly, How we may answer the most plausible objections against it: and, Fourthly, In what manner it should be performed.

I. 1. I shall endeavour to shew, First, What is the nature of Fasting, and what the several sorts and degrees thereof. As to the nature of it, all the inspired Writers, both in the Old Testament and the New, take the word, to fast, in one single sense, for not to eat, to abstain from food. This is so clear, that it would be labour lost, to quote the words of David, Nehemiah, Isaiah, and the Prophets that followed, or of our Lord and his Apostles; all agreeing in this, that, to fast, is not to eat for a time prescribed.

2. To this, other circumstances were usually joined by them of old, which had no necessary connexion with it. Such were the neglect of their apparel, the laying aside those ornaments which they were accustomed to wear: the putting on mourning, the strewing ashes upon their head, or wearing sackcloth next their skin. But we find little mention made in the New Testament, of any of these indifferent circumstances. Nor does it appear, that any stress was laid upon them, by the Christians of the purer ages; however some penitents might voluntarily use them, as outward signs of inward humiliation. Much less did the Apostles, or the Christians cotemporary with them, beat or tear their own flesh. Such discipline as this, was not unbecom ing the Priests or worshippers of Baal. The gods of the Heathens were but devils; and it was, doubtless acceptable to their devil-god, when his Priests, (1 Kings xviii. 28;) "cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner, till

the blood gushed out upon them:", but it cannot be pleasing to Him, nor become his followers, who "came not to destroy men's lives, but to save them."

3. As to the degrees or measures of fasting, we have instances of some who have fasted several days: together. So Moses, Elijah, and our blessed Lord, being endued with supernatural strength for that purpose, are recorded to have fasted without intermission, "forty days and forty nights." But the time of fasting more frequently mentioned in Scripture, is one day, from morning till evening. And this was the fast commonly observed among the ancient Christians. But beside these, they had also their half fasts, (Semijejunia, as Tertullian stiles them) on the fourth and sixth days of the week (Wednesday and Friday) throughout the year; on which they took no sustenance till three in the afternoon, the time when they returned from the public service.

4. Nearly related to this, is what our Church seems peculiarly to mean by the term Abstinence: which may be used when we cannot fast entirely, by reason of sickness or bodily weakness. This is the eating little; the abstaining in part; the taking a smaller quantity of food than usual. I do not remember any scriptural instance of this. But neither can I condemn it. For the Scripture does not: it may have its use, and receive a blessing from God.

5. The lowest kind of fasting, if it can be called by that name, is the abstaining from pleasant food. Of this, we have several instances in Scripture, besides that of Daniel and his brethren, who from a peculiar consideration, namely, that they might "not defile themselves with the portions of the King's meat, nor with the wine which he drank," (a daily provision of which the King had appointed for them) requested and obtained of the Prince of the Eunuchs, pulse to eat and water to drink, Dan. iv. 5, &c. Perhaps from a mistaken imitation of this, might spring the very ancient custom, of abstaining from flesh and wine, during such times as were set apart for fasting and abstinence. If it did not rather arise from a supposition, that these were

the most pleasant food, and a belief, that it was proper to use what was least pleasing, at those times of solemn ap. proach to God.

6. In the Jewish Church, there were some stated fasts. Such was the fast of the seventh month, appointed by God himself to be observed by all Israel, under the severest penalty. "The Lord spake unto Moses, saying, On the tenth day of the seventh month, there shall be a day of atonement; and ye shall afflict your souls to make an atonement for you before the Lord your God. For, whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people," Lev. xxiii. 26, &c. In after ages, several other stated fasts were added to these. So mention is made by the Prophet Zechariah, of the fast, not only of the seventh, but also of the fourth, of the fifth, and of the tenth month," chap. viii. 19.

In the ancient Christian Church there were likewise stated fasts, and those both annual and weekly. Of the former sort was that before Easter; observed by some for eight and forty hours; by others, for an entire week; by many, for two weeks, taking no sustenance till the evening of each day. Of the latter, those of the fourth and sixth days of the week, observed, (as Epiphanius writes, remarking it as an undeniable fact,) εv on an axeuern in the whole habitable earth, at least, in every place where any Christians made their abode. The annual fasts in our Church are, "The forty days of Lent, the Ember days at the four seasons, the Rogation days, and the Vigils or Eves of several solemn festivals: the weekly, all Fridays in the year, except Christmasday."

But, beside those which were fixed, in every nation fearing God, there have always been occasional fasts, appointed from time to time, as the particular circumstances and occasions of each required. So, when "the children of Moab, and the children of Ammon, came against Jehoshaphat to battle; Jehoshaphat set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah," 2 Chron. xx. 1—3. And so," in the fifth year of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah,

in the ninth month," when they were afraid of the King of Babylon, the Princes of "Judah proclaimed a fast before the Lord, to all the people of Jerusalem," Jer. xxxvi. 9.

And, in like manner, particular persons, who take heed unto their ways, and desire to walk humbly and closely with God, will find frequent occasion for private seasons of thus afflicting their souls, before their Father who is in secret. And it is to this kind of fasting, that the directions here given, do chiefly and primarily refer.

II. 1. I proceed to shew, in the second place, What are the grounds, the reasons, and ends of Fasting.

And, first, men who are under strong emotions of mind, who are affected with any vehement passion, such as sorrow or fear, are often swallowed up therein, and even forget to eat their bread. At such seasons they have little regard for food, not even what is needful to sustain nature; much less for any delicacy or variety, being taken up with quite different thoughts. Thus, when Saul said, "I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me;" it is recorded, "He had eaten no bread, all the day, nor all the night," 1 Sam. xxviii. 15-20. Thus those who were in the ship with St. Paul, "when no small tempest lay upon them, and all hope that they should be saved was taken away, continued fasting, having taken nothing," Acts xxvii. 33; no regular meal, for fourteen days together. And thus "David, and all the men that were with him, [when they heard that,] the people were fled from the battle, and that many of the people were fallen and dead, and Saul and Jonathan his son were dead also; mourned, and wept, and fasted until even, for Saul and Jonathan, and for the house of Israel," 2 Sam. i. 12.

Nay, many times they, whose minds are deeply engaged, are impatient of any interruption, and even loathe their needful food, as diverting their thoughts from what they desire should engross their whole attention. Even as Saul, when on the occasion mentioned before, he had "fallen all along upon the earth, and there was no strength in him, yet said,

I will not eat, till his servants, together with the women, compelled him."

2. Here then is the natural ground of fasting. One, who is under deep affliction, overwhelmed with sorrow for sin, and a strong apprehension of the wrath of God, would, without any rule, without knowing or considering, whether it were a command of God or not, "forget to eat his bread," abstain, not only from pleasant, but even from needful food. Like St. Paul, who, after he was "led into Damascus, was three days without sight, and did neither eat nor drink," Acts ix. 9.

Yea, when the storm rose high, when "a horrible dread overwhelmed" one who had long been without God in the world; his soul would "loathe all manner of meat;" it would be unpleasing and irksome to him. He would be impatient of any thing that should interrupt his ceaseless cry, "Lord, saye! or I perish!"

How strongly is this expressed by our Church in the first part of the Homily on Fasting:

"When men feel in themselves the heavy burthen of sin, see damnation to be the reward of it, and behold, with the eye of their mind, the horror of hell; they tremble, they quake, and are inwardly touched with sorrowfulness of heart, and cannot but accuse themselves, and open their grief unto Almighty God, and call unto him for mercy. This being done seriously, their mind is so occupied [taken up] partly with sorrow and heaviness, partly with an earnest desire to be delivered from this danger of hell and damnation, that all desire of meat and drink is laid apart, and loathsomeness [or loathing] of all worldly things and pleasure, cometh in place. So that nothing then liketh them more than to weep, to lament, to mourn, and both with words and behaviour of body to shew themselves weary of life."

3. Another reason or ground of fasting is this: many of those who now fear God, are deeply sensible how often they have sinned against him, by the abuse of these lawful things. They know how much they have sinned by excess of food; how long they have transgressed the holy law of