may contract guilt in injuring our neighbour, over the belly of this command, several ways.

First, In our hearts; for all the commands of God reach to the heart as well as the outward man. We are injurious in our hearts to our neighbour's good name, by,

1. Unjuft fufpicions of him, 1 Tim. vi. 4. Thus Potiphar injured Jofeph, fufpecting him of that villany which he was far from. Chrift bids us beware of men, and fo not to be credulous. But there is a medium betwixt vain credulity and evil groundless fufpicion, which fills men's heads with a forefight of what others will do when they have fuch and fuch temptations, from no light but that of their own uncharitable fpirits.

2. Uncharitable judging and condemning of others in our hearts, Matth. vii. 1. The prevailing of the cenforious humour amongst us, is a speaking evidence of this wafpifh difpofition, which is a compound of pride, rafhness, harshness, lightness, and emptiness, directly oppofite to the love and charity that we owe to our neighbours, which "beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things," 1 Cor. xiii. 7. I grant, that to call an evil action an evil thing, and an habitual grofsly profane life a mark of a profane heart, is no breach of charity, Gal. v. 19. But to lash men in our hearts, beyond what the habitual frame of their lives gives ground for, is that uncharitable judging.

It is the product of pride and self-conceit; for the man makes himself the rule, fo all that is beyond him, or does not reach his length, muft fall under his condemnatory fentence; he invades the throne of God, fetting up one for himself in his neighbour's heart, not confining himself to his outward actions, Rom. xiv. 10. It is rafhnefs, flowing from want of confideration; it is harshness, carrying their judgment farther than the matter will bear; it is lightness and emptiness, for they are confident of that which really they do not know. How confident were the barbarians, upon feeing the viper faften on Paul's hand, that he was a murderer! &c. Acts xxviii. 4. Thus men condemn the actions of others, merely from their own rafhness, as Eli did Hannah; and, which is worst of all, they will judge their state before God from things utterly unable to bear the weight of their prefumptuous fentence, as Job's friends did; and thruft in them. felves to the fecrets of their hearts, as thofe mentioned, Rom,

xiv. 4. "Who art thou that judgeft another man's fervant?" judging their confciences: the like whereto was the horrible judgment fome have expreffed touching those that took the oath of abjuration, that they had gone over the belly of their confcience, and in other cafes too. If you think that I am fpeaking for it, ye are uncharitable: but I would not for the world judge other men's confciences at that rate. It is fufficient for me to condemn men's evil actions which I fee, not to judge their consciences, which I neither see nor can fee. Were the impreffions of the tremendous tribunal of God more on men's fpirits, they would not be so hasty to judge before the time.

3. Mifconftructing of others, their intentions, words, and actions. No innocence can be a fafeguard against that temper, which is always ready to give the worst turn to the intentions, words, and actions of their neighbour, which they are capable to bear. It is like the corrupted ftomach, that corrupts whatever is put into it. See Neh. vi. 6. Rom. iii. 8. Pfal. lxix. 10.

4. Contempt of others in our hearts, undervaluing and thinking bafely of them; when men stop their eyes from beholding whatever is praife-worthy in their neighbour, and gather together what makes against them, and fit brooding on that. This is evil in all cafes, but efpecially where men contemn others for what is good in them, 2 Sam. vi. 16. We are even in our hearts to give every one their due; and fo far as we with-hold it, we are guilty, Luke xviii. 9, 10,

11.

5. Envying and grieving at the juft and deferved credit or reputation of any. This is a moft unchristian and truly Pharifaical temper, Matth. xxi. 15. It is the nature of envy to torment a man with the good of his neighbour. What refreshes the charitable spirit, vexes and frets theirs. They are like the moon that turns pale and wan whenfoever the fun begins to fhine above the horizon. But if men loved their neighbour as themselves, and their God more than themselves, they would rejoice at their neighbour's reputation, though it should outfhine their own, Numb. xi. 29.

6. Rejoicing in the difgrace and infamy of others, Jer. xlviii. 27. This is a devil-like fin, for duft is the ferpent's meat. Whatever mischief befals men is the devil's delight; and so there are many, that if a black cloud be thrown over

the reputation of others, it tickles their hearts, they have a fecret fatisfaction in it; their hearts fay within them, Aha! so we would have it. And many vent their fatisfaction in outward rejoicing at it.

7. Lastly, Fond admiration of men, Jude 16. As the former are fins in defect, fo this is a fin in excefs. And indeed we become guilty by thinking too highly and above what is meet of any man, as well as thinking too meanly of them, 1 Cor. iv. 6. This is both a fin and a fnare: for those whom we fondly admire, we are apt to imitate in evil as well as good, and fo to follow them to the prejudice of truth. It is a fad evidence of the corruption of man's heart, that he is ready either to idolize or else to despise others.

Secondly, In our lives and actions. Men may injure the good name of others without fpeaking a word against them.

1. Men may be guilty of the breach of this command, to the prejudice of their neighbour's good name, by bare gefture of the body, Prov. vi. 13. "He winketh with his eyes, he fpeaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers." A man may with a wink, a nod, a grave look, a figh, &c. ftab another's reputation, filling others by these means with fufpicions of him unjustly; or when one is flandered in our prefence, making fuch figns which import our confent thereto.

2. Drawing others into things that are ill or evil-like, and of bad report. Thus many ruin one another's reputation, till they are made as rotten things laid one upon another, which corrupt each other, till both fend forth a stinking fmell, Matth. xviii. 7. They that lay the ftumbling-block, and they that fall over it, are both ruined together, though double vengeance abides them who ruin others together with themselves.

3. By not hindering what we can in others those things that procure an ill name. The evil that befals others which we might have prevented, will justly be laid at our door. This brought the judgments of God on good Eli and his house too, fo that they went all to ruin together, 1 Sam. iii. 13. The Spirit of God records, for the juftification of poor Tamor, the care fhe had of preventing the ill name of herself and of Amnon, 2 Sam. xiii. 12, 13. So that neither by terror nor allurements fhe could be drawn into the villany, though she was forced, which was her mifery, but not her' fin.

Thirdly, In our lips. The tongue is the principal mifchiev ous inftrument whereby people ruin or wound the good name of others. And here come in the fins of the tongue against our neighbour in a special manner. Thus men injurè

their neighbour,

1. By filence, when they forbear to speak what they ought and can for the credit of their neighbour. Thus men may wrong others by their filence in their neighbour's caufe while he is afperfed, Prov. xxxi. 8. for in that cafe filence is confent. As alfo when their neighbour is justly commended, the entertaining thereof with filent looks, as if they knew fomething that may juftly mar his reputation. If that be not the fense of it, it reflects on the filent perfon as grudging the reputation of the perfon commended.

2. Our neighbour may be injured by finful speaking; and this command may be broken many ways.

(1.) By unneceffary discovering of the faults and infirmities of others. O how much guilt is contracted this way, by people's going in the way of curfed Ham, Gen. ix. 22. unavailing instead of vailing the weakneffes of others, without any neceffity, but to the leffening of their reputation.

(2.) By aggravating of their leffer faults, Matth. vii. 3, 4, 5. Men fee motes like beams in the eyes of others, while beams are as motes in their own. It is a mifchievous tongué that, counting the faults of others, for fifty fets down a hundred, and still looks to them through a magnifying glafs.. Had we the dexterity of aggravating our own as we have of aggravating the faults of others, we would be happy, becaufé very humble people.

(3.) By reviving the memory of our neighbour's crimes which were worn out of mind, efpecially being repented of. Thus many vent their malice against others by cafting up their former faults to them, as Shimei did to David. Truth it may be, but it is uncharitably and maliciously spoken, for which the speaker must give an account to God.

(4.) By betraying of fecrets committed to us. It is true, if the honour of God and the good of our neighbour require the discovering of a fecret, in that cafe, as we ought not to promife, fo we ought not to conceal it. But when we have lawfully promised to keep it, either exprefsly or tacitly, we fin against truth, juftice, and friendship, to betray it. And though there be no promife in the cafe, yet when the reveal

ing of it tends to the detriment of our neighbour, it is finful, Prov. xvii. 9. 2 Tim. iii. 4.

(5.) By detracting, or endeavouring any manner of way to impair the deferved credit of our neighbour, Ezek. iv. 12, 13. This is the native result of envy and ill-will at our neighbour: for those who cannot endure others to fit on high, where they are deservedly placed, will go about one way or other to undermine them.

(6.) By evil reports to the prejudicing of our neighbour unjustly. In these many are involved in guilt. [1] The raifer of it, Exod. xxiii. 1. Satan has the mouths of many at command for a forge of ill reports, who strike that hellish coin with their stamp, that it may pass for current. [2.] The receivers and fpreaders of it, who are guilty here as well as the raiser; for they are to the raiser as the receiver to the thief: Report, fay they, and we will report. If others will gather filth, they will throw it on their neighbours faces, and yet are not innocent, though they can give their authors, Neh. vi. 6. See Pfal. xv. 3.

(7.) By flandering, which is an ill report without all ground, Pfal. 1. 20. This the venom This the venom of a wretched tongue, made use of to kill and bury alive the innocent. It has been the trial of the people of God in general, and feldom if ever do any of them escape without it. Satan loves by his agents to vomit out against them reproaches and flanders, wherewith their good name may be blasted, and especially if religion and the cause of God can be wounded through their fides. The fcourge of the tongue is a fharp fcourge.

(8.) By backbiting and whispering, Rom. i. 29, 30. Both agree in that they speak evil behind men's back, accufing them, and loading them with reproach when they are not prefent to answer for themselves. The backbiter does it openly, and the whisperer does it fecretly.

(9.) By tale-bearing, Lev. xix. 16. This is a fort of pedlar-trade for the devil, driven by many whose work it is to carry tales out of the house or company where they happen to be; and these are the wares they have to vent in other houfes or companies, where they will be ready to take up new clashes and tales to where they go next. These are the plagues of fociety, like Satan fowing difcord among brethren. Hence fecret grudges against one another, and none VOL. III. No. 24. R