But, to be short, we find the Spirit of God in scripture comparing the tongue to a tree, Prov. xv. 4. " A wholesome tongue is a tree of *' life.'"* And words are the fruit of the tree, Isa. Ivii. 12. " I create " the fruit of the lips."" Some of these trees bear precious fruits, and it is a lovely sight to behold them laden with them in their sea- sons, Prov. XXV. 11. " A word fitly spoken, is like apples of gold in ^' pictures of silver."*' Such a tongue is a tree of life. Others of these trees bear evil fruit, grapes of Sodom, and clusters of Gomorrah. I shall only insist upon two sorts of these fruits, viz. (1.) Withered, sapless fruit ; I mean idle and unprofitable words. (2.) Rotten and corrupt fruit; I mean, profane oaths, and profanations of the sacred name of God. No fruit in the world so apt to corrupt and taint as the fruit of the lips. When it is so, the scripture calls it aaT^og Koyos, corrupt or rotten communication, Eph. iv. ^9. To prevent this the
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Spirit of God prescribes an excellent way to season our words, and keep them sweet and sound, that they may neither wither nor become idle and sapless, or putrify and become rotten, as profane words are, Col. iv. 6. " Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with <' salt, that you may know how to answer every man." Oh t if the salt of grace were once cast into the fountain, the heart-streams must needs become more savoury and pleasant, as the waters of Marah when they were healed. My present work is to attempt the cure of this double evil of idle words and profane oaths, whereof thousands among you are deeply guilty. I shall begin with the first, viz.
I. IDLE WORDS. That is, useless chat, unprofitable talk, that is not referred any way to the glory of God. This is a com- mon evil, and little regarded by most men ; but yet a sin of severer aggravations than the most imagine : light words weigh heavy in God's balance.
Arg. 1. For, first. The evil of them is exceedingly aggravated by this : they abuse and pervert the tongue, that noble member, from that employment and use which God by the law of creation designed it to. God gave not to man the organs and power of speech, (which is his excellency above the beasts) to serve a passion or vain humour, to vent the froth and vanity of his spirit ; but to extol the Creator, and render him the praise of all his admirable and glorious works. For though the creation be a curious well-tuned instrument, yet man is the musician that must touch it, and make the melody. This was the end of God in forming those instruments and organs : but now hereby they are subject to Satan and lust, and employed to the dis- honour of God who made them. God is pleased to suspend the power of speech (as we see in children) until reason begins to bud in them : they have not the liberty of one, until they have the use of the other ; which plainly shews, that God is not willing to have our words run waste.
Arg. 2. It is a sinful wasting of our precious time ; and that puts a further aggravation upon it. Consider, sirs, the time of life is but a little spot betwixt two eternities. The long-suffering God wheels about those glorious celestial bodies over your heads in a constant revolution to beget time for you ; and the preciousness of every minute thereof results from its use and end : it is intended and afforded as a space to you to repent in. Rev. ii. 21. And therefore great things depend upon it : no less than your eternal happiness or misery hangs upon those precious opportunities. Every minute of it hath an influence into eternity. How would the damned value one hour of it if they might enjoy it ! The business you have to do in it is of unspeakable weight and concernment: this great work, this soul-work, and eternity- work, lies upon your hands ; you are cast into straits of time about it : and, if so, O what an evil is it in you to waste it away thus to no purpose f Vol. V. U
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Arg. S. It is a sin that few are sensible of as they are of other sins, and therefore the more dangerous. It is commonly committed, and that without checks of conscience. Other sins, as murder and aduL tery, though they be horrid sins, yet are but seldom committed, and when they are, conscience is startled at the horridness of them ; few, except they be prodigious wretches indeed, dare make light of them. But now for idle and vain words, there are innumerable swarms of these every day, and few regard them. The intercourse betwixt the heart and tongue is quick ; they are quickly committed, and as easily forgotten.
Arg, 4. And then, 4thly, They have mischievous effects upon others. How long doth an idle word, or foolish jest, stick in men's minds, and become an occasion of much sin to them ? The froth and vanity of thy spirit, which thy tongue so freely ^'ents among th}^ vain companions, may be working in their minds when thou art in the dust, and so be transmitted from one to another; for unto that no more is requisite than an ohjective existence of those vain words in their memories. And thus mayest thou be sinning in the persons of thy companions, when thou art turned into dust. And this is one reason that Suarez gives for a general judgment, after men liave pass- ed their particular judgment immediately after their death, ' Because ' (saith he) after this, multitudes of sins by their means will be com- ' mitted in the world, for which they must yet be judged to a fuller ' measure of wrath."* So that look as many of the precious servants of God, now in glory, have left many weighty and holy sayings be- hind them, by which many thousands of souls have been benefited, and God glorified on earth, after they had left it: so thou leavest that vanity upon the minds of others behind thee, by which he may be dishonoured to many s^enerations. And then,
II. For PROFANE OATHS, the corrupt fruit of a graceless heart ; oh ! how common are these among you ? Yea, the habit of swearing is so strengthened in some, that they have lost all sense and conscience of the sin. Now, oh ! that I might prevail with you to repent of this wickedness, and break the force of this customary evil among you ! will you but give me the reading of a few pages more, and weigh with the reason of men, what you read? If you will not hearken to counsel, it is a fatal sign, 2 Cor. ii. 15, 16. and you shal mourn for this obstinacy hereafter, Prov. v. 12, 13. Desperate is that evil that scorns the remedy. And if you have patience to read it, the Lord give you an heart to consider what you read, and obey the counsels of God ; or else it were better thine eyes had never seen these lines. Well, then, I beseech you consider,