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X.

SER M. tainty; but moft men are fo negligent and ftupid, as not to regard it fufficiently, not to employ this knowledge to any good purpofe.) This interpretation I choose, being in itself plausible enough, and countenanced by fo good authority; yet the former might well enough (by good confequence, if not fo immediately) ferve my defign; or be a ground able to fupport the difcourfe I intend to build upon the words; the fubject whereof briefly will be this, that the confideration of our lives' certain and neceffary brevity and frailty, is a mean proper and apt to difpofe us toward the wife conduct of cur remaining life; to which purpofe fuch a confideration feems alike available, as the knowledge of its punctual or definite measure; or more than it, upon the fame, or greater reafons.

As for the latter clause, that we may apply our hearts to wifdom; it is according to the Hebrew, and we Shall bring the heart to wisdom; implying, the application of our hearts to wifdom to be confequent upon the skill and practice (beftowed by God) of thus computing our days. As for wifdom, that may denote either fapience, a habit of knowing what is true; or prudence, a difpofition of choofing what is good: we may here understand both, efpecially the De Fin. ii. latter; for, as Tully faith of philofophy, Omnis fumma philofophiæ ad beate vivendum refertur, the sum or whole of philofophy refers to living happily; fo all divine wifdom doth refpect good practice. The word alfo comprehends all the confequences and adjuncts of fuch wifdom; b (for fo commonly fuch words are wont by way of metonymy to denote, together with the things primarily fignified, all that naturally flow from, or that ufually are conjoined with them :) in brief, (to cease from more explaining that which is in itself confpicuous enough,) I fo understand the

P. 95.

b Natura dedit ufuram vitæ, tanquam pecuniæ, nulla præftituta die. Tufc. Quæft. i. p. 326. ̧

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text, as if the Prophet had thus expreffed himself: SER M. Since, O Lord, all things are in thy hand and fovereign difpofal; fince it appears that man's life is fo fhort and frail, fo vexatious and miferable, fo expofed to the juft effects of thy displeasure; we humbly beseech thee, fo to inftruct us by thy wifdom, fo to difpofe us by thy grace, that we may effectually know, that we may seriously confider the brevity and uncertainty of our lives' durance; whence we may be induced to understand, regard, and choose those things which good reafon dictates beft for us; which, according to true wifdom, it moft concerns us to know and perform. From which fenfe of the words we might infer many useful documents, and draw matter of much wholefome difcourfe; but paffing over all the reft, I fhall only infift upon that one point, which I before intimated, viz. that the serious confideration of the fhortnefs and frailty of our life, is a proper inftrument conducible to the bringing our hearts to wisdom, to the making us to difcern, attend unto, embrace, and profecute fuch things as are truly beft for us; that it is available to the prudent conduct and management of our life; the truth of which propofition is grounded upon the divine Prophet's opinion: he apprehended fuch a knowledge or confideration to be a profitable means of inducing his heart to wifdom: wherefore he prays God to grant it him in order to that end; fuppofing that effect would proceed from this caufe. And that it is fo in way of reasonable influence, I fhall endeavour to fhew by fome following reasons.

15, 17.

for-the

I. The ferious confideration of our lives' frailty 1 John ii. and shortnefs, will confer to our right valuation (or Love not the efteem) of things, and confequently to our well world; placing, and our duly moderating our cares, affec-world taltions, and endeavours about them. For as we value eth away, things, fo are we used to affect them, to spend our fire thereof. thoughts upon them, to be earnest in purluance or avoiding of them. There be two forts of things we

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SER M. Converse about, good and bad; the former, according to the degree of their appearance fo to us, (that is, according to our eftimation of them,) we naturally love, delight in, defire, and purfue; the other likewife, in proportion to our opinion concerning them, we do more or lefs loath and fhun. Our actions therefore being all thus directed and grounded, to esteem things aright both in kind and degree, (ἑκάσῳ ἀποδιδόναι Thy aiav, to affign every thing its due price, as Epictetus fpeaks; quanti quidque fit judicare, to judge what each thing is worth, as Seneca,) is in order the firft, in degree a main part of wisdom; and as fo is frequently by wife men commended. Now among qualities that commend or vilify things unto us, duration and certainty have a chief place; they often alone fuffice to render things valuable or contemptible. Why is gold more precious than glass or crystal? Why prefer we a ruby before a rofe, or a gilliflower? It is not because those are more ferviceable, more beautiful, more grateful to our fenfes, than thefe, (it is plainly otherwife;) but because these are brittle and fading, thofe folid and permanent: these we cannot hope to retain the use or pleasure of long; thofe we may promife ourselves to enjoy fo long as we please. Whence on the other fide is it, that we little fear or fhun any thing, how painful, how offenfive foever, being affured of its foon paffing over, the biting of a flea, or the prick in letting blood? The reason is evident; and that in general nothing can on either hand be confiderable (either to value or difesteem) which is of a fhort continuance. Upon this ground, therefore, let us tax the things concerning us, whether good or bad, relating to this life, or to our future ftate; and firft the good things relating to this life; thence we

Primum eft, ut quanti quidque fit judices; fecundum, ut impetum ad illa capias ordinatum temperatumque; tertium, ut inter impetum tuum, actionemque conveniat, ut in omnibus iftis tibi ipfi confentias. Sen. Epift. 89.

fhall

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fhall be difpofed to judge truly concerning them, S ER M. what their juft price is, how much of affection, care, and endeavour they deferve to have expended on them. In general, and in the lump concerning them all, St. Paul tells us, that rò xãμα To xóσμs Tαpays, 1 Cor. vii. the fhape or fashion (all that is apparent or fenfible) 31. in this prefent world doth flit, and foon gives us the goby: we gaze a while upon these things, as in tranfitu, or intra confpectum, as they pafs by us, and keep a while in fight; but they are prefently gone from us, or we from them. They are but like objects represented in a glass; which having viewed a while, we muft shortly turn our backs, or fhut our eyes upon them, then all vanifhes, and difappears unto us. Whence he well infers an indifferency of affection toward them; a flacknefs in the enjoyment of them to be required of us; a using this world, as if we used it not; a buying, as if we were not to poffefs; aweeping, as if we wept not; and a rejoicing, as if we rejoiced not; a kind of negligence and unconcernedness about these things. The world, faith St. John, paffeth away, 1 John ii. and the defire thereof; whatever feemeth most lovely and desirable in the world is very flitting; however «UT. our defire and our enjoyment thereof muft fuddenly cease. Imagine a man therefore poffeffed of all worldly goods, armed with power, flourishing in credit, flowing with plenty, fwimming in all delight, (fuch as were fometime Priamus, Polycrates, Crofus. Pompey;) yet fince he is withal fuppofed a man and mortal, fubject both to fortune and death, none of those things can he reasonably confide, or much fatisfy himself in; they may be violently divorced from him by fortune, they muft naturally be loofed from him by death; the closest union here cannot last longer than till death us depart wherefore no man upon fuch account can truly call or (if he confider well)

d

- πάντα παρέρχεται ἡμᾶς,

Εἰ δὲ μὴ, ἀλλ ̓ αὐτοὶ πάντα παρερχόμεθα. Gr. Εpig. Anthol.

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17.

X.

Eccl. i. 3,

&c.

SER M. heartily esteem himself happy; a man cannot hence (as the most able judge and trufty voucher of the commodities doth pronounce) receive profit or content from any labour he taketh (upon these transitory things) under the fun. Why then, let me inquire, do we fo cumber our heads with care, fo rack our hearts with paffion, so waste our fpirits with inceffant toil about thefe tranfitory things? Why do we fo highly value, fo ardently defire, fo eagerly purfue, fo fondly delight in, fo impatiently want, or lofe, fo paffionately contend for and emulate one another in regard to these bubbles; forfeiting and foregoing our homebred moft precious goods, tranquillity and repofe, either of mind or body, for them? Why erect we fuch mighty fabrics of expectation and confidence upon fuch unfteady fands? Why drefs we up these our inns, as if they were our homes, and are as careful about a few nights lodging here, as if we defigned an everlasting abode? (we that are but fojourners and pilgrims here, and have no fixed habitation upon earth; who come forth like xxix. 15. a flower, and are foon cut down ; flee like a fhadow, and Job xiv. 2. continue not; are winds paffing away, and coming not Pl. lxxviii. again; who fade all like a leaf, whofe life is a vapour Jan iv. 14. appearing for a little time, and then vanishing away; Pfal. cii. 3. whofe days are a hand-breadth, and age is nothing; xc. 5, 9. whofe days are confumed like fmoke, and years are spent as a tale; who wither like the grafs, upon which we feed, and crumble as the duft, of which we are comIfa. xl. 6. pacted; for thus the Scripture by appofite comparifons represents our condition;) yet we build (like the men of Agrigentum) as if we were to dwell here for ever; and hoard up, as if we were to enjoy after many ages; and inquire, as if we would never have done knowing. The citizens of Croton, a town in Italy, had a manner, it is faid, of inviting to feafts a year before the time, that the guests in appetite and

1 Pet. ii.

II.

1 Chron.

39.

Jam.

ciii. 15. xxxix. 5. cxliv. 4. cxix. 19.

d Commorandi natura nobis diverforium dedit, non habitandi locum. Cic. de Sen.

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