* order, but conscience speaks to the person.' I shall use no other apology in this case. That this sin is a dreadful gulph, a quick-sand that hath sucked in, and destroyed thousands, is truly apparent both from scripture and experience. Solomon tells us, Prov. xxii. 14. that it is a " deep ditch, into which such as are abhorred of the Lord shall " fall." Oh ! the multitudes of dead that are there f and if so, I cannot in duty to God, or in love to you, be silent, where the danger is so great. It is both needless, and besides my intention here is to insist largely upon the explication of the particulars in which unclean- ness is distributed : the more ordinary and common sins of this kind are known by the names of adultery and fornication. The latter is when single persons come together out of the state of marriage. The former is, when at least one of the persons committing uncleanness is contracted in marriage. This now is the evil I shall warn you of. And, that thou mayest never fall into this pit, I shall endeavour to hedge and fence up the way to it by these ensuing arguments : and, oh ! that the light of every argument may be powerfully reflected upon your conscience ! Many men are wise in generals, but very vain £v bioCKoytefMoiit in the reasonings or imaginations, as the apostle calls them, Rom. i. 21. i. e. in iheix practical hiferences. They are good at speculation, but bunglers at application : but it is truth in the particulars, that, like an hot iron, pierces; and, oh ! that you may find these to be such in your soul ! To that end consider,
Arg. 1. The names and titles by which this sin is known in scrip- ture are very vile and base. The Spirit of God, doubtless, hath put such odious names upon it, on purpose to deter and affright men from it. In general it is called lust ; and so (as one notes) it beareth the name of its mother; it is uncleamiess in the abstract, Numb. v. 19. filthiness itself ; an abomination, Ezek. xxii. 11. And they that com- mit it are called abominable. Rev. xxi. 8. Varro saith, the word im- ports that which is not lawful to mention ; or rather, abominably
* Guber, Deif lib. 4, Sah.
SI 6 THE harlot's face IN THE SCRIPTURE-GLASS.
persons, such as are not fit for the society of men, such as should be hissed out of all men'*s company : they are rather to be reckoned to beasts than men. Yea, the scripture compares them to the filthiest of beasts, even to dogs. When Ishbosheth charged this sin upon Ab- ner, 2 Sam. iii. 8. " Am I a dog's head (saith he) that thou chargest *' me with a fault concerning this woman P"" And in Deut. xxiii. 18. the hire of a whore, and the " price of a dog,'' are put together. The expression of this lust in words or gesture, is called neighing^ Jer. V. 8. Even as fed horses do, that scatter their lust promiscu- ously. Or, if the scripture speaks of them as men, yet it allows them but the external shape of men, not the understanding of men. Among the Jews they were called fools in Israel, 2 Sam. xiii. 13. and so Prov. vi. 32. " Whoso committeth adultery with a woman, " lacketh understanding." And sinners, Luke vih 37. " And be- *' hold a woman that was a [sinner,]" that is, an eminent notorious sinner : by which term the scripture decyphers an unclean person, as if, among sinners, there were none of such a prodigious stature iu sin as they. And we find, that when the Spirit of God would set forth any sin by an odious name, he calls it adultery ; so idolatry is called adultery, Ezek. xvi. 32. And indeed this spiritual and cor- poreal adultery oftentimes are found in the same persons. They that give themselves up to the one, are, by the righteous hand of God given up to the other, as it is too manifestly and frequently ex- emplified in the world. So earthly-mindedness hath this name put upon it on purpose to affright men from it, James iv. 4. Now cer- tainly God would never borrow the name of this sin to set out the evil of other sins. If it were not most vile and abominable. It is called the sin of the Gentiles, or heathens, 1 Thess. iv. 5. And, oh! that we could say, it were only among them that know not God ? How then are you able to look these scriptures in the face, and not blush ? O what a sin is this ! Art thou willing to be ranked with fools, dogs, sinners, heathens, and take thy lot with them ? God hath planted that affection of shame in thy nature to be as a guard against such filthy lusts ; it is a sin that hath filthiness enough in it to defile the tongue that mentions it, Eph. v. 3.
Arg. 2. It is a sin that the God of heaven hath often prohibited and severely condemned in the word, which abundantly declares his abhorrence of it. You have prohibition upon prohibition, and threatening upon threatening in the word against it; Exod. xx. 14. *' Thou shalt not commit adulter)^" This was delivered upon mount Sinai with the greatest solemnity and terror by the mouth of God himself Turn to, and ponder the following scriptures among many others, Prov. v. 2, 3, 4. Acts v. 29. Rom. i. 24, 29. Rom. xiii. 13. 1 Cor. vi. 13,-18. 2 Cor. xii. 21. Gal. v. 29. Eph. v. 3. Col. iii. 5. 1 Thess. iv. 2, 3, 4, 5. Heb. xii. 16. Heb. xiii. 4. All tliese, with many others, are the true sayings of God : by them thou shalt be tried in the last day. Now, consider how terrible it will be
THE harlot's face IN THE SCRIfTURE-GLASS. 31 T
to have so many words of God, and such terrible ones too as most of those are, to be brought in and pleaded against thy soul in that day I Mountains and hills may depart, but these words shall not de- part : heaven and earth shall pass away, but not one tittle of the word shall pass away. Believe it, sinner, as sure as the heavens are over thy head, and the earth under thy feet, they shall one day take hold of thee, though we poor worms who plead them with thee, die and pe- rish -: Zech. i. 5, 6. The Lord tells us it shall not fall to the ground. Which is a borrowed speech from a dart that is flung with a weak hand ; it goes not home to the mark, but falls to the ground by the way. None of these words shall so fall to the ground.