The Excellency of Lllifdorn. 3 3 Fin i, I will confider the excellence of S E R M. the doftrines and injunctions of wif- II. dom, abfolutely and in themfelves, and under that head explain their reäitude and truth. Secondly, I (hall, after the example of this, and other facred writers, compare them with other things which are moft valued by men, and Phew their fupe- rior worth. Firil, let us confider the excellence of the doctrines and injunéions of wifdom, ab- folutely and in themfelves. And here it would feem reafonable, firft of all, that we íhould fix an idea of excellence, making it the ftandard whereby to try every thing which pretendeth to that character : But, as far as I can fee, the facred writers fatisfy themfelves, with refped to this matter, by appealing to the common fenfe of mankind, and fuppofe a neceffary approbation and efteem which mull be the ftandard, at leaft the charaäeriftic, of excellency to us. Their manner of fpeaking feems to be altogether unintelligible, unlefs there be fome common and plain rule wherein all men are agreed, and which muff have fo deep a foundation VOL. III. D ira
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