Direl/.z. Verba pfop– cerel infiilU· U funt, !lOO ut per ea fc inVICf lll bo– minrsfl~Jgn: fed ut cis TJ,e Ct•re of Lying. The Evil of it. ca~fe the wiU !hould have prevented it and did not ; though yet there was no purpofe to J,. ctn;e. ~· '7· You fee then that there are two degrees of Lying. r. The groffell is the ffit3kjng of a /;.•own faljhood. with apurpo[e to deceive. · >· The other is the JPtal(jllg f•!Jly through culpable igno· ranct, trrour or tnc,mfideratenefi. · 9· 18. Direct.'· Be weU i;,formed of the tvil of the fin of Lying : For the common caufe of ·t is, t~a.t men th~nk that there is no great. harm in it, unlc:fs t~me one be grearly wronged by it\ But 1t JS not forb1dden by God only becmfe It wrongeth otherr, but 1t hathall thisevil in ir. §. 19. r.LJ·ing i1 the ptrvcrling of mans. nob~e facultiet, and tHrning them cltan contrary to thtir natttral ufl. God gave man a tougut to cxprcfs lm rnmd, and rc:veal the Truth; and Lying doth monfiroufl rurn ir to the hindtring ot the mindand truth, yea to the venting ofthe contrary to both. And as it i~ the evil of Dnmk,pmefi to bt a voluntary mt~dntJi. or corruption of fo noble a facufcy as Reafon fo it is the fau~t of Lying, t.o be the corrttpting, ptrverttng and deforming boch of the mind an~ tongue'; and by confuhon a dci\roymgof Gods workand creature as toics proper u{e. ·quifque i1! ~heriu~ notitiam cogiutioncs fuai proferat. Verbis ~rgo uti ad fdbciam, non ad quod fu11t inflituta, peccltum dt AIIZ,. E.<tcbMd. , §. 20. 2. Lying i! t~t enemy and de~rqytr of'[ruth : And 1rmh is a thing Divine, ofunfpeakahle excdlency and uf<. It JS God_s mfirument by wh1ch hemaketh man wife and good and happy. There– fore 1f he !hould not make fin a Laws for the prefervat1on of fa excellent a thing ., Truth, he lhould not fecure the happinefs of the worJd. As to the fecuring of me1u livu it is not enough to make a Law that yo:• jhaUnot.kJU men without jujl eaufe, (though that be all that the Lawinttndtth ro attain): fur th~n everyman bung le~t to JUdge, wou!d thmk th~re were l".f! cau/t whenever hisp.1Jfion or intere{t told h1m fo: But the Law ts, Yu"fh•Unot l;!Y at •U wuhottt the Judgemtnt of the Magijirate. So if the Law again!\ L)•ing did intend no more than the {ecuring men from the injurie~ of crrour ~nd deceir, yet would it not have b~en a fufficient means, to have faid only, Tou jh.#U n~t injure men by Lying : for then men would have judged of the injury by tht:ir own intertfls and paffirmJ : Bnt mucfl more is it needful to have a firid:cr ~w, when 1ruth it felf is the thing that God intcl_dcth to fe– cure, as well as the intt:rdl: of meo/oln the eyes of Chrifliaus, and Heathens and all rfiinkind that have not unmand thcmfelvcs, there appeareth a fingular beauty and c_xcel\ency in· Truth. Ari/lotl~ could fay, th~t the Nature .of man Um,dt f r Truth. Cice~o could ~ay that ~~Hl verum, .fimplcx, fin– crrumq; cjt. uJ n~Slur.e hommu acc:Jmmodatrffimum rfl. Vtrztyand VzriHe wen: t:vcr taken as tbe infcpa... rable perfections of man. Pyth.tgor.lf couJ4 ~ay,. that"' to Love 1'ruth ~nddo Go()d, were tbe tff!o tbi 11 gs that mademan lil<!fi to God, and tlurefore Jr:ocre bu tJJ'Omojf exceUwt gifts. Pl11ta could fay, that Trutb wanbc bcft rbetoriclt .Jlld the fwceujt otation. Epinetlil could fay, that 1ruth H a thing immort~t, eternal, of aU tbin;,s mrft precinll4 ; bemr th$11 friendjhip IH lltill}{ ltfl oh11oxious to blind a.Jferti(!m. Jambliclms could fay, that M Light natw.~l)s amJ. conjlantly llCCompanycth the Sun,[o 7'rnth accumpanyeth God andall that follow him. Epaminond.H is pra1fcd for that he would xot LJ•e, no n~t in jeaft. Pom· Evf'f' /yt iJ ponim Atticus was fo great a h'attr of a IJ·e, that aU his fritnds n~cre dtfir 1UJ to 1'mft him TPith thci;· tvi/andtobt b 11 fimfs, andufehim M tluir Coun[tllor. He knowcth not what u{e ~am undcrftanding or his tongJtt tn•oidtd, f:tuh were made for, that knoweth nO[ the excellency of T1uth. Let a p,Jatt only ask as a £iranger JJ?b~Zt A'ifiot. Etbic. ;; truth? ]oh. 18. 38. as Pharaoh asked, who ;, tbt Lord l For thi< md Chrift himfelf eamt iJtto the 1· 4 ( 1 rrorld t9 bear 1r1itnc[s to the 1ruth, and ever)' one tb.Jt U of the1ruthwill he.1r him, )oh. 18. 37· He g ~;;v:/,·,~;;: the1rttth,Joh. 14. 6. and fuUof Grace and TrHth, Joh. I· I "f.• Grace and 1ruth came byhim 3 )oh. 1 , 17 • & 1:.. u. His fpirit is givm to guide hH fervants i.ntoth! Truth, Joh. 16. I 3• and to fimUifie them hy the truth, & r9. !, 9• ]oh. '7· '9· that J,.nowing the truth, lt m1ght malls tbtm fm , ]oh. 8. 32. The fruit of the ffiirit : 2 r. 18 · f1 in aU truth, Ephef. 5· 9· His Minifiers can do nothi11g againfl tiJc truth, but fir the truth, &e;~:.!~~?· 2 Cor. 13• 8. Truth is the.girdle that mu~ gird our loins, Eph.rf6. I,. The Church js the J,.,h. s. 44• pillar and groundof 1ruth, 1 Tui?. 3 ·I 5· Jhe fauhful ~re tbty that lnlzcve and ~~ow.'he Truth, 1 Tim. Coi-l· 9· 4 . 3· Speal(jng tht tmtb iJt Love, l5 the way of the Churches growth a11d edJhcauon, EpbtJ. 4· , 5 • Ktpentance is given men, to the acl{nowlcdging of the Truth, tbt they may t{cape out ~f tbe por~?tr of the Dtvil, 2 Tim. 2· 25, 26. The dullards are !hey that arc mver able to c~me.to the k,.nowledge of th~ truth, 2 Tirn. 3· 7· 1hty are men of perv~rfemindJ that rt[Jjf the 'irutb, ::2 T1m.). 8. 1bty th.Jt rtcriv~ not the Truth in the Love of it cannot be [avid, 2 Thf. 2• IC· All th<y are d.JmHid thllt believe 11ot the Truth 2 Thef. 2. 12 I3· You fee what 'trutb is in the judg'm'nt of God and all the fober world. Thtr~forc a Lye th;t is contrary to 1rutiJ as dark,.ncfi to Li7-ht, mull be (qually odious as truth is amia.. ble : No wonder therefore if it be abfolutdy forbidden o! God. ~· 21· 3· You may the eafilyer perceive i:his by confidering, that otbtr faultr of the tongHr, as tdle talk,., [wearing and fuch like, are forbidden, not only bcca~le they are a ~urt .to otbeu, but for the intrit1fical evil in rhe thing it fetf; Great reafon therefore t~~t It Chould be fo m th!s. 9· 22· 'r• Lying is a vice which makerh us mofl unlike to God. for he ts c.lled the G,d of truth, P{il. 31. 5• Dear. 32· 4· All his w.-rys are mercy and truth, Pfal. 2 5· 1 o. Hi.s judgtmf!11 Uaccord– N1:mb,11.r9. iHg to trmh, Rom.2. 2• It is impoffiblt for God to lye, Hcb. 6. 18. Tit. I· 2· H1s word 15 the word ,s,m.J!.>9>ot truth,Pfai.It9·43• Col. r.s. 2Tim.2.15· J•m.t·l5· zCor.6·7· And who !hall Jwellinhit J Juh. f.Jo. 'Iabern,cle, but tho[t that ffieal{ the truth in their heaftJ, Pfah 15· 2. The dif,onforrmry ~t t~e foul to God then, being its greatetl deformity, in things wherein it is made to. be conform to h1m, 1t may hence appear that Lying is an odious fin, And this may the eafilyer appear, if you confi~er, what a cJft
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