z 68 Of a Confcience void of Offence. S r x M. in prayer to God, his having a confcience VII. void of offence, as the only fupport of his `""'"--3 foul in that extremity, Ifaiah xxxviii. 3. re- member, Lord, how I have walked bef ore thee, in truth, and with a perfect heart, and done that which is good in thy fight. It is worthy of our obfervation, that the apoffle, in this very brief fummary of his religion, exprefsly mentions two objects to- wards which his confcience was without offence, namely, God and man. But they are of different confideration, and confcience has to do with them in very different ways. It acknowledges God as its fovereign Lord ; its meafures of right and wrong are his laws, and its judgments have a reference to his iuperior unerring tribunal, for, fays St. Paul, z Cor. iv. 4. I know nothing by myself, yet am I not hereby jujted, but he that judgeth me is the Lord. Confcience owes no fuch refpe& to any man, no nor to all mankind ; nay, it maintains its fupremacy againft them all ; their joint acquitting verdidt cannot dif- charge its accufations, and it triumphs in i!s ielf approbation if they fhould all concur in condemning. But, the meaning is, that there being two principal objeâs without ourfelves, upon which our duty terminates, God
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