1. In private cases. A man shall meet with offences in the world. All men have not faith; some are absurd and injurious. What a comfort would a man have in his spirit when he can pity their blind- ness and pardon their malice. They took away the life of Christ, and
SERMON UPON LUKE XXIII, 34, 21
yet he saith, ' Father, forgive them ; ' he was slain by them, and yet he prayeth for them. Certainly it is not comely for us to retaliate, to hate, curse, revile, and pursue injury with injury. They that revenge take an example from their enemies, and do them this honour to make them their own pattern ; and what comfort can any have to make a wicked man his precedent ! Besides, to revenge is to rush into God's tribunal, and to take his work out of his hands: Prov. xxiv. 29, ' Say not, I will do to him as he hath to me ; I will render to the man according to his work.' Solomon putteth it into such words as are proper to God, that we may be sensible of the pride and usurpation that is in revenge: and, Rom. xii. 19, 'Dearly beloved, avenge hot yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath ; for it is written, Vengeance is mine ; I will repay, saith the Lord.' We take upon us to be rewarders when at least we should leave the case to God. You may put it into the hands of the righteous judge: 1 Peter ii. 23, 'When he was reviled, he reviled not again ; when he suffered, he threatened not, but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously.' Besides, it will much interrupt your prayers. Our revengeful dispositions must needs weaken our confidence, for we muse of others as we use ourselves. How can you say, ' Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us,' when we are like vessels broken as soon as touched, and are furious and raging upon every wrong, and the least offence done to us ? Alas ! their offences to us are nothing like ours to God, either for number or weight. Not for number ; no man can wrong us so much as we daily trespass against God. How many neglects and affronts doth mercy put up at our hands every day ! Luke xvii. 4, ' If he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.' Seventy times seven is a number too little for the transgressions and offences of one day, and yet we grow peevish and passionate upon every slight fault or wrong done to us. So for the weight ; the naughty servant would not forgive a hundred pence when his master forgave him ten thousand talents, Mat. xviii. 24, compared with the 28th verse. There is a great difference between pence and talents ; the Roman penny was sevenpence halfpenny, and their talent was one hundred and eighty-seven pounds ten shillings. Their offences cannot be so heinous as ours, because of our great obligations to God, and the dignity of his essence ; theirs are against dust and ashes, their guilty fellow-creatures ; ours are against the great God. It is proper to christians, that know such an infinite pardoning mercy, to do something above heathens and publicans : Mat. v. 46, ' If ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans so?' Christianity should raise the affections to a greater self-denial, so that we are to love our very enemies. Besides all this, consider the benefit of a meek patience. Revenge is sweet, but you will find more pleasure in meekness. All vexations disturb the peace and quiet of the soul, and I cannot do my enemy a greater pleasure than to let him take away my contentment, and, when I am wronged by others, to wrong myself. Will you hurt yourself by passion and sin because others hurt you by slanders and persecutions? He that will not forgive hurts himself more than he that doeth the wrong ; for the injury offered reacheth but to the name,
22 SERMON UPON LUKE XXIII. 34.
body, or goods, but the desire of revenge wounds tbe conscience, and provokes God to wrath, and shuts the gate of his mercy against us. The great motive that excites the devil to molest and disturb us by his instruments is not to hurt your bodies, but to tempt your souls to impatience and revenge, and to draw you to other sins ; and therefore you do not conquer it as a temptation till you avoid the sin. Job was robbed and plundered, but in all this Job sinned not ; to come off v/ith a wounded conscience, this is to be foiled indeed. Besides, conscience will take hold of all revengeful acts. David's heart smote him when he cut off the lap of Saul's garment. Besides, consider the gain of others. Sarfl wept when he saw David's tenderness: 1 Sam. xxiv. 16, 'And it came to pass, when David had made an end of speaking these words unto Saul, that Saul said, Is this thy voice, my son David ? And Saul lift up his voice and wept.' Tenderness is expressed by heaping up coals upon your enemy's head : Prov. xxv. 21, 22, ' If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat ; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink ; for thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head.' You may make him pliable to your purpose, as lead or wax melted by fire. Such charity doth often procure servants to God and friends to ourselves. It is indeed said there, ' and the Lord shall reward thee.' There are indeed some sour and crabbed pieces that will never be smoother, but if distorted and depraved natin-es are not won, God will reward thee. Endeavours of reconciliation are not lost with God ; though you get nothing but scorn and contempt, you may comfort yourselves with your sincerity, and God will not be wanting. Besides all this, consider the honour of being above an injury : Prov. xix. 11, ' The discretion of a man deferreth his anger, and it is his glory to pass over a transgression.' As it is the glory of God to pardon sin ; we think it a disgiace ; but the Holy Ghost tells us it is the glory of a man. It is the devil's design to suffer the world to miscall grace ; meekness is sheepish ness, .and patience is a kind of weakness and servility ; an argument ignavi ■ingenii, of a slow dull temper, that hath no sense of things ; as astro- nomers call glorious stars dogs and bears and dragons' tails. Oh, consider this is an height proper to Christianity ! nature could not reach it ; there is no greater servility than to be a slave to one's passions : Ezek. xvi. 30, ' How weak is thy heart, saith the Lord, since thou doest all these things, the work of an imperious whorish woman ? ' There are no spirits so feeble as those that are swayed by the rufHe of their own passions.