SERM. out of his hands, and manage it ourselves, modelling the XXXVIII. world according to our conceits and defires. adverfus adverfus We do alfo, (fince we cannot but perceive the other atMultos in- tempt of difpoffeffing God to be frivolous and fruitlefs,) in veni æquos effect, charge God with mifdemeanour, with iniquity or homines, infirmity in his diftribution and difpofal of things; intiDeos nemi- mating, that in our opinion he doth not order them fo nem. Sen. justly or fo wifely as might be, (not fo well as we in our Ep. 93. wisdom and justice should order them;) for did we conceive them managed for the best, we could not but judge it moft unreasonable to be aggrieved, or to complain: fo heinously infolent and unjust are we in being discontent. In earnest, which is most equal, that God fhould have his will, or we? For fhame we fhall fay, God: why then do we not contentedly let him have it? It is indeed, if we confider it, the highest piece of injuftice that we can be guilty of, exceeding that which we commit in any other fort of disobedience. For as in any ftate feditious mutining is the greatest crime, as moft directly violating the majefty, and fubverting the authority of the prince; fo in the world, none may be fuppofed more to offend and wrong its fovereign Governor, than fuch malecontents, who diflike and blame his proceedings: even a Heathen could teach us, that it is our duty to fubject our mind to him that adminiftereth all things, as good citizens to the law of the commonwealthb; if we do not, we are rebellious and feditious, which is the highest pitch of injustice toward our moft gracious Sovereign. Again, there can be no greater injury or affront offered 1 John v.10. to God, than to give him the lie, by questioning his veracity or fidelity; this discontent plainly doth involve: for God hath exprefsly declared himself ready upon all Matt.vi. 25, occafions to do us good; he hath promifed to care for us, and never to forfake us, or leave us deftitute; which word of his if we did not diftruft, and take him to be unfaithful, we could not be discontent: as no man is dif 36. Heb. xiii. 5. * Τὴν αὐτοῦ γνώμην ὑποτάσσειν τῷ διοικοῦντι τὰ ὅλα, καθάπερ οἱ ἀγαθεί το λίται τῷ νόμῳ τῆς πόλεως. Αrr. i. 12. pleased with his condition, or fufpicious of want, who SERM. knoweth that he hath abundant supply of all he can need XXXVIII. in a fure place; that he hath a perfon most able, most willing, most faithful, engaged to fuccour him; fo, did we believe God to be true, who hath promised to help us, we could not be discontented for fear of any want. We must at least, in fo doing, suspect God to be deficient in goodness toward us, or unwilling to help us; or we must apprehend him impotent, and unable to perform what he would, and what he hath promifed for us, (like thofe infidels, who faid, Can God furnish a table in the Pf. Ixxviii. wilderness? Can he give bread alfo, can he provide flesh for 19. his people?) which conceits of God are alfo very unworthy, and injurious to him. 2. Gratitude requireth of us this duty: for we having no right or title to any thing; all that we have coming from God's pure bounty; he having upon us all (whatever our condition comparatively is, or may feem to us) freely conferred many great benefits, common to all men among us, (our being, life, reafon, capacity of eternal happinefs, manifold fpiritual bleffings, incomparably precious and excellent,) we in all reafon fhould be thankful for thefe, without craving more, or complaining for the want of other things. Whereas alfo all events, how cross soever to our fenfual conceits or appetites, are by God defigned and difpenfed for our good, gratitude requireth that we fhould thank God for them, and not murmur against them. Surely if, instead of rendering God thanks for all the excellent gifts which he moft liberally (without any previous obligation to us, or defert of ours) hath bestowed on us, and continueth to bestow, we fret, and quarrel, that he doth not in fmaller matters feem to cocker us, we are extremely ingrateful and difingenuous toward him. If any great perfon here fhould freely beftow on us gifts of • Iniquus eft qui muneris fui arbitrium danti non relinquit, avidus qui non lucri loco habet quod accepit, fed damni quod reddidit, &c. Sen, ad Polyb. 29. SER M. huge value, (high preferment or much wealth,) but with XXXVIII. good reafon, as we might prefume, fhould withhold from us fome trifle, that we fancy or dote on, should we not be very unworthy, if we fhould take it ill and be angry with him for that caufe? The cafe is plainly the fame : God hath in the frankest manner bestowed on us innumerable and inestimable goods, in comparison whereto any comfort or convenience of our ftate here is very trivial and despicable: are we not therefore very ingrateful, if we heinously resent the want of any fuch things; if, upon any fuch account, we difguft his Providence? Do we not deal, beyond all expreffion, unworthily with God, in fo much undervaluing the goods which he hath given us, or doth offer us, and hath put in our reach? He hath made us capable of the greatest goods imaginable, and faithfully upon eafy terms proffereth them to us; he even tendereth himfelf (himself, the immenfe and all comprehending good, the fountain of all joy and blifs) to be fully enjoyed by us his wifdom he offereth to inftruct and guide us; his power, to protect and guard us; his fulness, to fupply us; his goodness, to comfort us; he offereth his love and favour to us, in having which we virtually and in effect have all things; becoming thereby, in the highest degree, rich and honourable and happy: and is it not then outrageous unworthiness to prize any other thing (any petty accommodation of this tranfitory life, any pitiful toy here) fo much, as to be difpleafed for the want thereof; as if all this were not enough to fatisfy our needs, or fatiate our defires; as if, notwithstanding all these immenfe effufions (yea as it were profufions) of bounty upon us, we Job ii. 10. could be indigent or unhappy? Shall we, to use that holy and most ingenuous confideration of Job, receive fo much good from the bountiful hand of God, and shall we not contentedly receive or bear fo fmall evils from him? Evils indeed in name and to grofs fenfe, but not so in reality, not fo in effect, at least not so in God's defignd; • Εὐχαριστῶ σοι πάτερ, ὦ ποιητὰ τῶν σῶν ἀνθρώπων—ὅτι ἄκοντας ἡμᾶς εἶ raus, &c. faid Philagrius in a grievous disease. Naz. Ep. 66. but rather things very convenient and profitable for us; SERM. which is another aggravation of our ingratitude; for, XXXVIII. Are we not also very ingrateful in misapprehending and disliking that, which God doeth out of very gracious intentions toward us; in loathing his fatherly and friendly difpenfations; the fatherly chastisements and friendly difciplines, which he unwillingly is forced (is, I fay, forced by his own great love and by our preffing needs) to inflict or impose upon use? Surely our ill opinion of, or de- Prov. iii. 11. Spifing, as the Wife Man calleth it, these unpleasant bleffings is no fmall fault; neither will our not difcerning (out of affected dulness and stupid pravity not discerning) the wisdom of God's methods, and the wholesomeness of the means he useth to better us, excufe us from foul ingratitude. -૬ ૪; z ὡς τὸς θεὸς Socr. quam fibi. 3. Again, upon many accounts, reafon farther dictateth Exres in respect to God, that we should be content: because it is rayamost reasonable to acquiefce in God's choice of our flate, he didva, being infinitely more wife than we, and infinitely better un-derstanding what is good for us than we can do; because he deras a ἀγαθά ἐσι. is well affected to us, and more truly loveth us than we do Xenoph. de ourfelves; because he hath a juft right, and irrefiftible power Charior eft to difpofe of us, the which (whatever we can do, however illis homo we refent it) he will effectually make ufe of; whence it is extremely foolish to be discontent: foolish it is to be diffatisfied with the refults of his wifdom, adhering to our vain apprehenfions; foolish to diftruft his goodness in compliance with our fond felf-love; foolish to contest his unquestionable right and uncontrollable power, having nothing but mere impotency to oppose against them; no less than downright madness it is to fret and fume at that 'Ewhich we can nowife help, to bark at that which lodgeth in heaven fo far high above us, to folicit deaf neceffity Philem. with our ineffectual wailings; for if we think that our displeasure will affect God, that our complaints will incline him to alter our condition or comply with our wifhes, we do conceit vainly, and without any ground; - Επειδὰν τὸ μὴ πάσχειν οὐκ ἔχω, τοῦτό γε τῷ πάσχειν παρακερδαίνω, τὸ φέρειν, καὶ τὸ εὐχαριστεῖν. Νaz. de fe. Ερ. 63. πορεύεται. XXXVIII. Où yag Οὐ γάρ τις λεται κρυστ SERM. fooner may we, by our imagination, stop the tides of the fea, or turn the streams of rivers backward; fooner, by our cries, may we stay the fun, and change all the courfes of the stars, than by our paffionate refentments or moanful clamours we can check the current of affairs, or alter that ftate of things, which is by God's high decree establifhed: difcontented behaviour will rather faften our condition, or remove it into a worse place; as it highly doth offend God, and increaseth our guilt, fo it moveth God to continue, and to augment our evils. Thus lifting up our eyes to heaven, and confidering the reference our difpofition and demeanour hath to God, will induce us to bear our cafe contentedly. avy, θεοῖσι μὴ μάχη. Eurip. Lam. iii. 39. II. Again, reflecting upon ourselves, we may observe much reason to be content with our ftate; in whatever capacity we look upon ourfelves, it in reafon becometh us, we in duty are obliged to be so. As men and creatures, we naturally are indigent and impotent; we have no just claim to any thing, nor any poffeffion maintainable by our power; all that we have, or can have, cometh from moft pure courtesy and bounty; wherefore how little foever is allowed us, we have no wrong done us, nor can we juftly complain thereat: fuch beggars as we are must not pretend to be choofers; if any thing be given us, we may be glad, we should be thankful. It is for those who have a right and a power to maintain it, to refent and expoftulate, if their due be withheld but for us, that never had any thing, which we could call our own; that have no power to get or keep any thing; for us, that came into the world naked and defenceless, that live here in continual, abfolute, and arbitrary dependence for all our livelihood and fubfiftence, to contest with him that maintaineth us, or to complain of his dealing, is ridiculously abfurd and vain. Upon a moral account we have less reason to challenge ought, or to complain of any thing; for we deserve nothing but evil: if we rightly esteem and value ourselves, any thing will feem good enough for us, any condition will appear better than we deferve: duly examining the |