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St. Chryfoftom, be contrary to each other, yet they both aim at the fame end, the Salvation of Mankind; the Joys of Heaven invite Men to it, and the Fear of Hell forces those to Heaven, who otherwife would be regardless of their own Happiness.

God has ufed the most proper and prevailing means to convince Sinners of their danger, and to perfuade them to escape it, and obtain Salvation. We have ever lafting Rewards, and everlasting Punishments, proposed to our choice; we are exhorted with the greateft earnestness, and mov'd and affifted with the continual influences and aids of Grace, to avoid the punishments, and are as earnestly invited, and as fufficiently enabled to obtain the Rewards. God hath no pleafure in the death of the wicked: but that the wicked turn from his way, and live, as he folemnly and with an Oath declares by his Prophet, Ezekiel xxxiii. IL It is his principal intention and defire, that all Men fhould be faved: He has proclaimed himself to be the Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longSuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity, and tranfgref fion, and fin; but then it is added, that he will by no means clear the guilty, that is, the obftinate and impenitent Sinner, Exod. xxxiy. 6, 7. He exhorts, he invites, he promises, he threatens; he promises eternal Happiness, and threatens eternal Mifery, to give all the difcouragement to Vice, and all the enducement to Religion and Vertue, which is poffible. Last of all, he has fent his Son to inftru&t us in our Duty, and to confirm all this to us, and to purchase our Redemption with his own Blood. When the Son of God himself fuffered Death, it was to redeem Men from no less than eternal Death and Damnation.

God deals with Men in the plainest and most condefcending manner; he lays their Duty before them,

Chryf ad Pop. Antioch. de Statuis. Hom. 7.

with the Rewards and Punishments annex'd, and both eternal, the better to fecure them in their obedience, and force them to be happy: and then he takes Men ́ at no advantage, but makes all reasonable allowances, in confideration of the frailty of humane Nature, and in condescension to their Infirmities; he exacts not abfolute Perfection, nor any impoffible Obedience, but requires, that, tho' we cannot live without Sin, yet we fhould not fin wilfully and obftinately; that we should not allow and indulge our felves in Sin, and fhould repent if we have done fo; he requires a faithful and fincere diligence in all the Parts of our Duty, which is no more than what every Father and Mafter expects from his Children and Servants. When Men have finned, God admits of their Repentance; and if, after Repentance, they fin again, yet ftill they fhall be accepted pon a renew'd Repentance: nay, after a long course of Sin, a fincere Repentance may reconcile them to God; and no Repentance can be too late, that is fincere. It is extreamly dangerous indeed, to defer our Repentance for one moment, because our Lives are. fo uncertain, and we may provoke God to that degree, that he will no longer afford us an opportunity to repent, nor bestow that Grace upon us, which is necessary to Repentance. But this is after repeated Provocations, and an obftinate rejecting of the Goodnefs of God, which leads Men to Repentance: And these are the Terms of the Gofpel, that when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doth that which is lawful and right, he fhall fave his Soul alive. There is great Joy in Heaven over one Sinner that repenteth, and the returning Prodigal is received with the greatest Favour and Tendernefs. If we will be obedient, we have the assistance of God's Grace; and if we have done amifs, yet his Grace is offered us to bring us to Repentance; and we may be pardoned, upon fincere Refolutions of Obedience for the future. But if Men either disbe

lieve or difregard all these things, if they neither care for God's Promifes, nor fear his Threatnings; if they trample under-foot the Blood of his Son, and grieve his bleffed Spirit; if all the Methods of his Mercy and Goodness be loft upon them, there remains no other Remedy, but Juftice must have its course. If when they are told fo long before-hand, what danger they are in, Men will continue obftinate in their Difobedience, after fo many invitations and encouragements to Repentance, and after fo great importunity and forbearance; they can have no reason to complain of the severity of that Sentence, which they have been so often threatned with, and have as often defpifed.

Since the Rewards are eternal on the one hand, and the Punishments on the other, the Rewards being proportionable to the Punishments, the Terms are on both fides equal; and fince it is in our power, by the help of the Divine Grace, to avoid the Punishments, and obtain the Rewards, the condition is fuch, as that any wife Man would be thankful for it, and would be glad that fuch a Prize is put into his hands; fo far would he be from complaining, that the terrors of Punishments are join'd to the encouragement of Rewards; that all Motives concur to make him happy, and that God has used all means both inward by his Grace, and outward by his Promifes and Threatnings, to bring us to Salvation.

I repeat it again, for God himself often repeats it in the Holy Scriptures; God hath no pleasure in thể death of the wicked, but hath used all means to prevent it; he hath provided Heaven for us, and threatned Hell, if we will not be perfuaded to go to Hea ven. If Men will neglect the Means of their Salvation; and will not repent and turn to him, notwithstanding all his moft loving and compaffionate Exhortations and the Death of his own Son for them; if neither Heaven can invite, nor Hell frighten them from their

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Sins, they must thank themselves only for that Deftruction, which they bring upon themselves. The Appeal which God fo long ago made to the House of Ifrael, may at the last Day be alledg'd to Sinners. Ye have faid, that the way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O ye Sinners, Is not my way equal? have not your ways been unequal? And the ways of God fhall then appear fo equal, and the ways of wicked Men fo unreasonable and perverfe, that their own Confciences fhall bear witness against them; and he that died to fave them, will pronounce the Sentence of eternal Damnation upon them.

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Here is nothing which vulgar Minds are more furprised and offended at, nor at which Men of Understanding and Experience are lefs enclin'd to wonder or take offence, than the feveral Laws and Customs of divers Nations in the different Ages and Climates of the World The Habit, the Language, the Letters, and manner of Writing; the Food, the Complexion, the Features of the Body, and Disposition of the Mind, are various in different Countries and Ages. And therefore it is no wonder that the Political and Ceremonial Part of the Jewish Law, which was given fo many Ages ago, and in a Country, which is at this Day very different in its Customs from ours, fhould be as different from the Customs in ufe amongst us, as the Age and Climate. For when God doth appoint Laws for Men, he must be fuppofed to appoint fuch as are fuitable to the neceffities and occafions of those for whom they are made. And fome who have travelled into the Eastern Countries, which are not fo variable

variable in their fashions and way of Living, as the Western Nations are, have found great advantages both from the nature of the Inhabitants, and of the Climates, and from the Cuftoms and Manners of those Parts of the World, for the explication of divers places of Scripture, which depend upon the knowledge of thofe Countries.

Now the whole Jewish Law may be divided into the Moral, the Political or Judicial, and the Ceremonial Law. The Moral Part of Mofes's Law, which is contain'd in the Ten Commandments, and enjoins our Duty towards God and towards our Neighbour, is juft and holy beyond all Controverfie or Exception. And the Political or Judicial Part, with the Ceremonial, was adapted to the Circumstances and Neceffities of thofe Ages, and that Nation. And if the Moral Part be abfolutely most divine and holy, and the pofitive Institutions, both Political and Ritual, were the most fit and proper for that Time and Government; that is, if they were the beft that could be, for thofe Ages and that People; then the whole Body of the Mofaick Law is without all juft Exception. And that this is fo, it will be evident, if we obferve the Reasons upon which the pofitive Laws amongst the Jews were inftituted.

I. The Judicial Laws, relating to the Adminiftration of Juftice in the Jewish Government, are fo reafonable, that they have been tranfcrib'd into the Laws of the wifeft Heathen Nations, as hath been particularly fhewn by Learned Men. There are but few of the Judicial Laws which have been objected against and thefe have been often and effectually vindicated. The Law which feems moft harfh and rigorous, is that of Retaliation; which yet was the most ancient way of punishment in moft Nations, and was not unjust for the Laws to inflict, tho' it was finful in the Perfons injured to require it out of a defire of Revenge, and with a delight to gratifié themfelves in their Enc

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