So What Scandal u, and u not. !t~!!!t!i!!!!!!!!!!~~!!!!=!!!!~!!!!!~!!ii~i~~ ' CHAP. X[!. f>ireE1iq1ls againft Scandal as given. ,, •· S Candal being a murdering of fouls, is a violation of the general Law ofCharity, and of •he fixth Commandment m puttcular. In handling this fubjcct, I fhall ,, Shew you what IS trttt fcand~Jl given to another: 2· What thing~ go under the Name of Scan· dal, which arc not it, but arc falily fa named. 3· What are the particular wayes and fortr of fcandal. 4· The greatnefs ofthis fin. 5· Dlle6tions to av01d 1t. Scandol what 1· 2· . I. I fhall not need to fiand upon the Etymologic of the word [ ScandJI] ; \'(hether it come it is~ from v.>;i{QI claudico, as Era{miH thought, or. from n.d.p.(J~v curvum, &c-. Martinitu, Sttphanllf, Ly· ferU<,&c· have futlicicntly done it, whither 1 refeu you: As for the fcnfe ol the word it is pall doubt, that the ordinary ufe of it in ~cripturc is for a Ou~bling bloc~, for a mar{ to faUupm, or a trap to enfnarc: a man : And in the Old Tefiament it is oft ufcd for a fiurnbling fionc, on which a man may faH into any corporal calamity, or a fnare to hurt ~r tuine a man 111 the world: (As Exod. 10·9• ISam.IS.2J, 6'25· 31• Pfai.JI9,165. Ezek·7•'9•Sept.) BatintheNcwTella– m(nr, ( which fpeaketh more of fpiritual huriS) it is taken fc:>r a flumbling Dlock or temptation, by which a man is in danger of falling inco fin, or fpirituallofs, or IL~ine, o~ difiike ofGodlincfi:, or any way tobe turned from God, or lundered in a Religious holy way : ( And if fometimes it be taken fOr Grieving or 7'rowbling, it is as it hereby thus hinderetb or c:nfnareth): So that to {candalite, is, fometirnes taken for the doing of a blamelcfs action, from which another unjufity taketh occa~ fion to faU, or fin, or be ptrv<ritd: But when it fignifieth a fin ( as we take it in this place) t/lcn to [etmdatize is, "By [omethi11g unlawful of it [elf, or at leafl unneceffary, which may occ11[ion the "jpiriwal hurt or ruim of anotber: •· The matter is either fomething that is fimply finful (and then it is a double fin ) or fomething Intliffmnt or unnmffary; and then it is fimJlY the fin olftan– dal. 2. It mufi be that which may [ occafion J anothcrs faU : I fay [ occafio•· J For no man can forcibly caufe another- man to fin, but only occafion it, or tempt him to it> as a Moral Caufe. What ~' not ~· 3• I I. By thi' you may fee, 1. That to[c&ndalize, is not meerly to di[pleafe, or grieve ano.. ~c~dal, .. th:u ther: For many a man is di{plea[td through his folly and vice, by that which tendeth to his good: fo !oJkd7 and many a man is 1tmp1ed ( that is,Jcandaliztd) by that which pltajith him : When Chri!t faith, [If thy right !J' or hand offtnd, ( or fcandalize thee ) plucJ;. it out, or c11t i1 off, J &c. Mar; 5· he doth not by Loffmding J moan [ difi?leafir.g J or [£rieving J : For by fo offtnding it may profit us : But he J.>iainly ~taneth [ It it draw thet: to fin ]: or eH"e he had never added, tbat it is bctrc:r ro cmer maimed imo life:, than having two eyes or hands to be: caft into Hell ! That is, in a word, [ Thy darnnadon is a greater hurt than the lofs of hand or eye, and therefOre if there were no orher way to avoid it, this would be a very cheap way J. So pedem offendero in lapidem is ro ftum~ hie upon a fionc:. The moll cenforlous and humorous fort of rtlen, have gbt a nO[ ion, that what ever offcndcth or difplcafcth them is fcandalous ! And they think that no man mufi do any thing which grievcth or difpleafeth them, l<ll he be guilty of fcaudal : And by this trick who ever can purchafc impatiency and pic:viOmefs enollgh, to be a1waycs difplc:.Jc:d with the aetions of others, (Jlall rule the world. But the: truth is, the ordinary way of fcandalizing thcfe men, is by pleafing them. y. 4· 1 will give you one inllance of fc,ndJI in Scrip:urr, which may help this fort of people, better to underfiand ir. Gal. 2. 10. to 16. Peter there giveth true fcandal w tht: Jews and Gentiles : He walked not uprightly according to the truth of the Gofpel, but laid a tlumbling block before the Jews and Gentiles: And this was not by di{plea[rng the Jews, but by pleafing them: The Jews thought it a fin to cat wit~ t~e Gentiles, aud to have communiotJ with uncircumcifed men: Prter knew the contrary, but for fear orthea1 vf (he circumcifion, Iell they Chould be offended at him as a finner, he [ withdrrw and feparated himfilf]. This fcandal tended to harden the Jews in their finful [rpa– rarion, and to feduce the Gentiles into a conceit of the nccclllty of circumcit1on ; and B.1TJJabM was carryed away with the diffimu1ation. Here you may [ee, thar if any think it a fin in us to have communion in fuch or fuch Congregations, with fwch pcrfons, in fuch worfhip, which God allowc:th us not to feparatc: from, it is a tin of fcandal in us to feparate to avoid thefe mens offence. We fcandalize them and others, even by pleafing them, and by avoiding that which they falfly cal– led fcamlaloU<. And if we would not fcandalizc them, we mufi do that which is jufi, and not by our pra6tice hide the found doctrine which is contrary to their fep.uating error. ~· 5· 2· And it is as apparent that to fcandalize another, is not ( as is vulgarly imagined by t~e ig· norant),to do that which is commonly reputed finful, or which hath the appearomceofa fin, or which will make a man tvil tboogln of, or fpoken of by others: Yet commonly when men fay, [ 1hi< i<afc••– da/,tu
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