But you are to remark, that these words are the words of faith; and that they do not speak of men according to what they appear to be. For, as I have already observed, no one would imagine such to be the ungodly. The prophet speaks in the spirit; and, in spirit, that is ungodly which the world considers to be the most godly; because, it is devoid of faith; as it is written in Eccles. viii. I saw the wicked buried, who, while they lived, had come and gone from the place of the holy, and were praised in the city as the doers of righteous works.' And again, Psalm xxxvii. 35. I have seen the wicked exalted as a cedar in Lebanon.' These are awful things. Who could have thought to find ungodliness here, and that so deep?

But listen! This Psalm does not only strike at the ungodly and sinners, (for every man out of Christ is an ungodly man, and a sinner,) but chiefly at those who are twofold sinners,-who, though they are ungodly, do not acknowledge it, but all the while form to themselves a "counsel "counsel" to walk therein, and to follow after ungodliness. For David does not say, Blessed is the. -man who does not walk an ungodly man, or, who does not stand a sinner; but "in the counsel of the ungodly," and "in the way of sinners;" for such are not contented with being ungodly, but wish to be accounted righteous and saints; thus adding to their ungodliness the outside show of godliness.

And at whom, think ye, he strikes in this our day? I will dare not to mention by name any particular persons, lest I should split upon the implacable rock of some religious ones, priests or bishops. For such has ever been the nature of ungodly men, that they will the least endure the Word of God, but fill the world with martyrs; and for no other reason, than because they imagine that they thereby yield obedience unto God; and thus, while they seem to contend for godliness, they are all the while most bitterly accusing the truly godly of ungodliness.

But know thou, and be well assured, that those are here pointed at, who shine in ceremonies, rites, and other pompous shows of godliness, and who measure

their godliness by their garments, meats, times, and places, or, more especially, by their workings and prayings; and more particularly, those who, on account of their observances, privileges, dignities, powers, and rights, divide themselves into implacable discords, and are ready to do and suffer any thing rather than humble themselves and yield to each other in mutual charity. And that these are the ungodly pointed at, you may conclude from this.-Such are secure and confident in their lives, and there is no fear of God before their eyes.

And take this for an universal and infallible criterion, and, (as they say) for a certain touchstone,—that the peculiar marks of the ungodly, are, not to fear God to be secure of his mercy-and to presume in all things! But on the contrary of the godly-to be afraid of all their works-to have no trust in their own righteousness and to account all their holiness as dung! And therefore, the latter cannot contend for these things, nor justify nor vindicate themselves, but consider themselves deserving the hatred and vengeance of all. Hence, as I said, we must have the eyes and ears of faith to hear these words of the Spirit, and to understand their meaning: for man of himself cannot understand them.

Think not, however, that I condemn all holy ceremonies and good works. It is the false opinion, confidence, and devotedness that I call the pestilences; for it is through these things, as we see, that men rush forth into sects, strifes, backbitings, and infinite enormities of sin; all which by the veil of their counsel, and the show of their doctrines, they cover over with the name of godliness; whereas, if all their works were done in humility, they would certainly be good.

After they have violated faith by ungodliness, what can remain but that their works are evil, and sins? But now thou wilt say, Can the works of Jews, of heretics, and of the proud, be evil, when they fast, pray, do good, and work all the rest of those things which no man dares to call evil?—I have said that faith is wanting! Therefore, all those works are by so much the worse, because they confirm their ungodliness, and cause them

to stand and perseverse in this way of sin: and they are sins, because they proceed from the ungodliness of their hearts. And, as saith the wise man, What truth will be spoken by a liar, or what godliness will be done by the ungodly?

Christ however has in these points given us excellent instruction, when he has taught us, that they are to be known by their fruits. And they have two sorts of works; some which he calls sheep's clothing; which are not their proper fruits, but feigned according to their counsel and ways. But, when you touch them and oppose them, then, behold, their proper fruits burst forth; wrath, clamour, pride, backbiting, evil-speaking, self-excusing, envy, blasphemy, and the like enormities: nor can you ever gather other fruits from these thorns, than these most sharp thorns. And such, as you may see, are our ceremonial work-mongers.

And hath not sat in the seat of pestilence.

Yet this the Jews do, departing from Christ: under whose lips is the incurable poison of asps, and their vine is the gall of dragons: for they must of necessity teach contrary to Christ. These other heretics follow, under another name and person indeed, but with the same pestilence of ungodliness.

And, to come to our own times, they sit in the seat of pestilence, who fill the church with the opinions of philosophers, with the traditions of men, and with the counsels of their own brain, and oppress miserable consciences, setting aside, all the while, the Word of God, by which alone the soul is fed, lives, and is preserved. Whence it comes to pass, that men are ignorant of every other righteousness but that which is obtained by works; whereas this is ungodliness and sin in the sight of God. For it is impossible that you can teach the works of any laws whatever without peril, unless, by the better doctrine and the better labour, you first teach faith in Christ. In the fifth to the Galatians Paul teaches faith; and in the sixth, life and conversation: and he does the same in his other Epistles. And Christ in the Gospel requires faith only.

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VERSE 2.

But his will is in the law of the Lord, and in his law will he meditate day and night.

THE GRAMMATICAL AND THEOLOGICAL EXPOSITION OF THIS PASSAGE.

See that thou_distinguish (to tell thee once for all) the law of the Lord" as widely and as differently as possible from all laws of men; and take heed with all thy care, that by confusing all in one chaos, (as the teachers of pestilence do,) they do not miserably destroy thee; while they attempt to make the traditions of men the law of God, and the law of God the traditions of men. Let me give thee an example or two of this.-The law of God is, "Honour thy father and thy mother." Out of this law the pharisees have made this tradition : 'The gift which is brought to the altar is better than that which is given to the parents;' as you read Matt. xv. Again: despising God in the true commandment, they honour him according to another commandment out of their own law, thus establishing a law for God. For the elders had said, 'Wash thine hands when thou eatest:' and not to hear the elders is the same as not hearing God. Therefore saith Christ in the same chapter, "Ye hypocrites! well did Esaias prophecy concerning you, saying, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. But in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.'

Thus at this day matters are come to such a pass, that they daringly affirm, that the voice of the Popes and of the Roman council alone are to be heard with fear and trembling. When all the commands of God are at the same time laughed at, yea held in contempt: and not more so by any set of men than by those very characters who boast of the to-be-feared voice of the great council. In a word, they have carried these most impious superstitions to that extremity, that mass-priests

are every-where to be found, who imagine that they have sinned the sin unto death if they have celebrated mass without their stole or maniple, or any external that is attended to. Or, if they have made any like mistake or omission in the canonical form of celebrating mass, it is considered a most awful sin. But I am ashamed to proceed any farther in the enumeration of those ridiculous trifles with which the mass-priests and other religious ones of the same kind terrify their consciences. Whereas, all the while, if they have been lying under the sins of lust, wrath, envy, covetousness, and pride, and that for the space of many years together, and have despised God, they feel nothing of it whatever.

The term "will" here, does not imply any power in man nor does it signify that inert habit which our modern theologians have dragged into their divinity out of Aristotle, to the subversion of a man's true understanding of the scriptures: nor, again, does it signify that act which they say is allured forth out of that power or habit. No human being under heaven has such a "will" as is here signified: it must be given him from above. For since the nature of man is intent on, and prone to evil, as the divine authority asserts (Gen. vi. 5;) and since the law of God is "holy and just, and good, Rom. vii. 12; it follows, that the will of man is against the law, hates the law, and flees from the law. And even if at any time from the fear of punishment, or from a want to get at what is promised, it pretends a love for the law, yet, the natural hatred of the law still remains within; nor can such a will love the law freely; for it does not love it because it is good, but because it seems to promise some advantage.

The "will," therefore, here signified, is that delight of heart, and that certain pleasure, in the law, which does not look at what the law promises, nor at what it threatens, but at this only,--that "the law is holy and just, and good." Hence it is not only a love of the law, but that loving delight in the law, which no prosperity nor adversity, nor the world, nor the prince of it, can either take away or destroy: for it victoriously bursts