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SERMON XXVII.

MATT. V. 38.

Ye have heard that it hath been faid, an Eye for an Eye, and a Tooth for a Tooth.

Ver. 39. But I fay unto you, that ye refift not Evil; but whofoever shall fmite thee on thy right Cheek, turn to him the other alfo.

Ver. 40. And if any Man will fue thee at Law, and take away thy Coat, let him have thy Cloak alfo.

Ver. 41. And whosoever shall compel thee to go a Mile, go with him twain.

Ver. 42. Give to him that afketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee, turn not thou away.

I

The First Sermon on this Text.

N thefe Words our Saviour goes on to another Branch of Duty, wherein our Righteousness is to exceed that of the Scribes and Pharifees; and taking occafion from the Law of Retaliation, which, in fome Cafes, was permitted to private Perfons by the Law of Mofes, and in many more by their corrupt Interpretation, teaches his Difciples much higher Degrees of Charity, both in forgiving of Injuries, and in giving and lending B b 2

to

to our Adverfaries in Diftrefs, than these Doctors taught. It is only the first of these, namely, the Forgiveness of Injuries, or the foregoing the Privilege of Retaliation, which I fhall now treat of, leaving the other of Giving and Lending, to another Opportunity.

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The Doctrine of Forgivenefs, or foregoing the Privilege of Retaliation, is defcribed here in the firft four Verfes which I have read, the Sense of which I take to be, as if our Saviour had faid, Ye have heard of the Law of Retaliation, and of the Sense which is put upon it by the Scribes and Pharifees; but notwithstanding that Doctrine, which was partly indulged you for the Hardness of your Hearts, and which has been extended by thefe Doctors, much farther than was intended in the Law of Mofes, I forbid you all private Revenge. The publick Magiftrate is the Officer pointed by God for that Purpofe, who is to do Juftice, and give Reparation of Injuries between Man and Man, without Malice or Enmity to the Party offending: But it is not for every light Affront or Offence, ye are to trouble the Magiftrate, or to feek Reparation of your Neighbour offending; It is an higher Degree of Charity I require of you my Difciples, namely, that ye be readier to pardon, than to avenge Injuries, though in a lawful way. Ye may perhaps fancy, that by pardoning one Injury, ye fhall invite another; but if it is fo, rather venture that, than give way to a revengeful Temper; for Perfecution is like to be your Lot, Judges and Magiftrates are like to be your Perfecutors themfelves, and therefore ftudy Patience more than Reparation of Injuries.

From

From the Words thus paraphrafed, there are these three Things I fhall briefly handle.

I. I fhall enquire wherein the Doctrine of the Scribes and Pharifees was defective in this Mat

ter.

II. I shall endeavour to explain what higher Degrees of Duty our Saviour requires of us Chriftians, in the Point of Retaliation of Injuries.

III. I fhall folve fome Doubts and Objections which have been raised against this Doctrine, and conclude with a fhort Application.

I. To begin with the Doctrine of the Scribes and Pharifees, as to Retaliation of Injuries; it is true, it took its Rife from fomething in the Law of Mofes: There feems to have been a Permiffion to the Avenger of Blood, being one near of kin to the Perfon killed by Manflaughter, while his Heart was hot with Indignation, if he could overtake the Manflayer before he got to a City of Refuge, or if he catched him afterwards without the Bounds and Privileges of the City of Refuge, to avenge himself of him, and to kill him. And there were Directions for Punishments too, established by the Law, an Eye for an Eye, and a Tooth for a Tooth, but by the Jewish Doctors grofly perverted in the following Particulars. 1. Though Mofes is very exprefs in it, that it was the Judges and Magiftrates who were to inflict this Punishment of Retaliation, they allowed the injured Parties, either to avenge themselves, or to fell off the Punishment, by accepting of a pecuniary Mulet, or fome other Reward and Compensation, to the great Difcouragement of publick Juftice. 2. They allowed of Retaliation for every the fmalleft Injury, leaving

no room for the Virtue of Patience. 3. They took no care to teach with what Spirit this Reparation was to be fought, not diftinguishing between a just Defence or Reparation, and a Spirit of Revenge. In oppofition to which Doctrines,

II. Our Saviour teaches thefe Three Things. 1. That we are to abftain from all private Revenge, let the Affront and Injury be ever fo great; there are publick Perfons whofe Office it is to be the Avengers of Wrong, and these are to be applied to, if we will needs right our felves. 2. But, Secondly, our Saviour goes on, and teaches his Disciples a better way how to demean themselves under the many Provocations and Injuries he forefaw they should meet with from the World, in the way of their Profeffion and Practice, and that is, the way of Patience and Forgiveness. 3. Thirdly, he obviates an Objection, which is very natural to be started, namely, that this way of Patience will expofe us to be abused and affronted still more and more, when Men know they can do it unpunifhed. To this Objection our Saviour answers, that of the two, returning of Injury for Injury, or hazarding the being farther injured, we should chufe rather to venture the being farther injured, as being liable to much fewer Inconveniencies than the other; at least, that in all lighter, more tolerable Injuries, this is the Course we ought to take, rather than to profecute our Right at Law, and by that means involve our Neighbour and our felves in much greater Trouble.

This is the fhort of our Saviour's Doctrine concerning Retaliation of Injuries, in oppofition to the Doctrine of the Scribes and Pharifees on that Subject. But it will be neceffary to explain it

more

more diftinctly, partly, because it is not obvious to every one that this is his Meaning, and partly because if it is, it will require fome Pains to reconcile it to the Reafons and Opinions of the, World.

The first Thing I afferted of our Saviour's Doctrine concerning the Retaliation of Injuries, is, that we are to abftain from all private Revenge, let the Affront or Injury be ever fo great. This is the least that can be meant by thee Words, But I fay unto you, that ye refift not Evil; or rather, as it is in the (a) Original, that ye refift not the Evil or injurious Man; which is well explained by St Paul, by not (b) rendering Evil for Evil, not repaying one Injury with another. For Understanding the Meaning of this Precept, as oppofed to the Doctrine of the Scribes and Pharifees in this Particular, it will be requifite to acquaint you, that though by the Law of Mofes, thefe Retalia tions were not to be made, but by the Sentence of the Judge, as is plain from Deut. xix. 18, and 21. compared together; yet the Scribes and Pharifees, for their By-ends, allowed of private Revenges, particularly under Pretence of compounding and making up of Injuries, had found ways to exact great pecuniary Mulets from the injuring Perfon, in lieu of this Eye for an Eye, and Tooth for a Tooth; nay, in fome Cafes, as I told you, the Law itself allowed of private Revenge, as in Cafe of Manflaughter, if the Manflayer could be overtaken before he made his Escape to one of the Cities of Refuge. But now our Saviour pro

(α) Μὴ αντιςῆναι τῷ πονηρά. B b 4

(b) Rom, xii. 17.

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