Col i.5. Duties of Matters andServants. Chap.5. 31'5 he made toNaaman got him forne ithat, yet the Taft to his Maher Èlif4a brought a 2 Kings 5. 22? leprofy upanhim and his feed for ever. The. Prophet tel us, that GodwilideJlry all 25. them that (peak leafing. And thereforebewouldkeep nofervent in his hdufa that lhould Pfafm 5* 6* tell lies. 101.10. There are three other Oppolites,fromwhich the Apostles S. Paul and .3. Peter would have fervants free; r. Slothfulnefs, a. finwillingnefs, 3. Eye-fervice. I. And the firft of thefe is apart of the firll LUnfaithtulnefs ; ] for he that is idle, not faithful in clingall his hrength, and mifpendinghis time is a kind of Robber. And therefore it is, that S. Paulcounfels men, not rebe flnhful in bufinerr. The Hea- Rom, rl, rr. thenman would not have a fervant to begun, a dormoufei but accurate agere, to do theirwork accRizately, as the word in Hebrew imports : they mull fOP, ow f acobr ex- Gen. s I. 40, ample in his fervice. The peep departed fromhis eyes, hecould not fle cp for the care Prov 51. 18: he had to his Mallets bufinefs; as the careful Woman, that lets not her candlego out, Mauh. 25.20. that is, the fits up lateupon action todo her Mailers fervice. And therefore we know, that the Mailer called that"fervant evil and flothful, that ufed not his ta- lent well. To dofeup this , take the Wife-mans judgment upon both diligent and llothful : The band of the diligent fhallbear rule ; but the flothful fhall be under Pto " 12. 2 tribute. 2. The fecond thing that a Servant fhouldbe free from,is,anunwillingnefsto do his duty. For there are fomethat ferveindeed, but how ? they ferve withan ill will, and fo do their workby halves. And in fodoing they do very unwifely ; for feeing that ferve theymull, (it being not every mans cafe to be aMailer) they were better to do it cheerfully, than to bé forced to it,aid fo lofe their juft reward and commendation. Therefore it ought tobeµaT eLea`rae, with a cheerful will, and In aapd`iat, from the heart, as the Apoftle counfelleth , as if they ferved the Lord , not being refponfores, arnAdyorzet, anfwerers again, or replying, or giving word for word ; but be like Col. 3.23, the Centurions Servant, that when his Maher faid to him, do this, and he did it. Match. 8.9. 3. The Taft is é@3a5 soPetkeia, eye- fervice, or, a deceitfuldiligence,which mull be far from Servants. Not to do their work, but while their Mailer (lands over them, and no longer : affoon as their. Mailers back is turned,then togive over. This the Apoffle calls eye f rvice,.and condemns it, exhorting Servants toobey withfinglenefsofheart,as fearing God : and he gives diversreafons for it, as that they (hallby this means adorn r Tim. 6. r: theGofel ; and that they fhall receivefront the Lord according towisst theydo, whether ti phef 6. 8. they be bondorfree ; and laffly, that befides their reward by Covenant with their Mager, Col'-s 24. they !hall by theirhearty fervice receive the rewardofan Inheritance in heaven. Somuch oftheir Fidelity. Now to their Difcretion. .z. The Philofopher makes a diftineîion of two forts ofSetvants : one that can do nothing but what his Matter dilates him, can go no further thanhe is direaed; and the other that hats forecaft in himfelf, td know what is to be done, and canpre- vent his Mailers commandments. The fini are but as lippi oculi, blear-eyes, and but that they mull fee by them, their Mafters hadas good, be without fuch as have them. The other are filch is the Pfalmift fpeaks of, their eyes are upon their Mailers bands, pfala1.123. 3 theycan percetve to what their Mailers will endineth ; they know their Mailers Luke x2.47, will, and what he is bell pleafed with; and what his humour is moil enclined.to. And though he have this wit,yet if either with him that had the Talent,andknew Matth. 25.24. his Mailers humour he neglefketh to dóhis bufsnefs, or with the wicked Steward,he Luke r2. 47- employ his wit tohis own advantage, and not to his Mailers benefit, in either of thefecafes he breaks the rule ofObedience.They follownot the examples ofprudent Servants, filch as were .acob to Laban, andJofeph to Potiphar; they do not pruden- Genrar. 38. ter, with diferetion. It is faid ofjofeph, that all be didprofpered under his bands. The 39 2 Hebrew word isfignificant '51i+1,ì1 presdotter egit, or cum intelligentia, he did allwith prudence andwijdom, and fe allprofpered; for of Wifdom comes profpering: and therefore, the fame word lignifies both. Có1.4: t. 2. The 2d rule or Duty of theMailer is, not to govern afpere,feverey, or rigoroufly: Lerit.z5.4î but MI7ds d'bituor, icoznra,according tojuffice a equity. It was Gods command under the law toMafters,Thou(halt not ruleover thyfervants with rigourtand the Apofllead- vifeth to dealjugly andequally with them : and his reafon is, becaufe they are confervi, "Cot. 4. 1- fellowfervants.ofGod mitb their Mager, TheMailer bath a Lord too : and Gods Dent 5.15. reafon in the Lawwas, becaufe Mailers themfelves had been fervants in Egypt, Yy and
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