Serro. 24.. do not exceedinglypromote Religion ? you mt4 wait a fir feafon, not vow on every occafion. Who is ready to vow on every occafion, will break h s Vow on every occafion. It is a neceffary Rule, That we be as .Baring in making our Vowes, as may be ; there being many great inconveniencias attending fre_ quent and tnu?tiplyed Vowes. It is very obfe.rvable, that the Scripture m:ntioneth very few examples of Vowes, compared with the many Inftances of very great and wonderfull providences ; 1f it would give us ôme In/lances that we might knew what we have to do, and yet would give ms but few that we might i;uow we are net to do it often. You read /acob lived fevenfcore;and feven years, Gen. 47. 28. but you read (I think) but of one Vow that he made : Our extraor- dinary exigences are not many, and I fay our Vowes íhould not be more. Let this then be the lidi necefl'ary ingredient of a well-or- dered vow. Let it be no oftener made , than the prefling great- nefs of an evil to be removed, or the alluring excellency of a blefíìng extraordinary to be obtained , will well warrant. 7epthab's Vow was fo far right ; he had juft occafion ; there was a great and pref- fing danger to be removed ; there was an excellent bleffing to be obtained ; the danger was left Ifrael fhould be enflaved ; the blef fing was victory over their enemies : This warranted his Vow, though his rafhnefs marred it. It was in David's troubles that .David (ware, and vowed a Vow to the molt High, pfd. 13 2 r, 2, And Yacob torbare to vow, untill his more than ordinary cafe bade him vow, and warranted him in fo doing, Gen.28.2o.Let us do as he did, fpare to vow, untill fuch cafe puts us on it. Secondly, When the extraordinary cafe warrants thee to this 2. Ir mutt be extraordinary obliging thy felf, then be fare to proceed deliberately, deliberate. and with advice. Confider what thou dolt ; every one condemns rafh Vowes, and I am lure inconfiderate Vowes are rafh ones, Ad vatum tri* Here 7ephth ,4h failed ; he did not confider, and pon.ier with him_ ra; felt*, what he was about to do when he vowed : Aquinas reckons d liberratïo,.8ce this among the three things nec fíary to a Vow. And fince this was scc.sa.2a.q.88. wanting in 7ephthab, the Scripture makes a narration of his faEt, but are. r. no where giveth commendation to it. This is one of the conditions scri0txrajhoc Btdcan prefcrib s, That we throughly Weigh : But we have a rater eur fa tier than fl uinas, or the other two, here u q , Be not tall with thy mouth, RndJed non lattdat. let not thine heart be baffy to utter any thing before God, Eccl. 5.2. Per. Mart. ¡oc, Which rule he Both in the Context extend to this cafe of Vowes `om.cl.3. c.6. crf, 4,5,6, Be not hafly, but deliberate thefe "'our 3 ,fhin l; in th'Vtmaturi, der, Vow y beremHS. lot. cam, devotie. Aaaa i Firfl,
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