Wbiit u and u not Idle talk. 431 Tit. 4· Special :DireBions againft Idle talk, and !Bablinl §." Ilirett. ,, uNderfl•ndmU whatitidlet•li(_: F.or m~ny take that to be v•in which is not, DirelJ•.r. and many take not that to be vam whJCh JS, I !hall therefore apm thJS before 1 go any further. . . . . . . '· _ 1· 2 • The judgement of mfidfls and 1mp10us men here are of httlc regard : I· Same of them ":hat ,no, think prayer to be but vain ~ords, b~caU{e God ~noweth ou~ w~nts ~nd hearts, Job. 22· 2, 3· anool our JdLc calh-. fervice is not ptofitable to h1m: As 1f he had b1d us fie~ h1m m vam, Ifa. 45· 19· Th& I have clfc- I b r. where confuted• . ~.._ Others think frequent preaching vain, and ray as thelnti'dels.ofPaul, Act. I'7·t8. ~11.t 1. :::~ lhw wiU thi< Babler[ay: and·as Pharaoh, Exad. 5· 9• Ltt thttn n." regard vain words: But Gad· faith Deut. 3 2 • 4 6, +7• Set y~ttr IJeartllo aU the wordJ wh1ch I tcjlifie among Y~!'" ---.J!r it i1 not_a vain thing for ·you, bec.tnfc it ijyour life ---3· Some car~al ~retches thmk all varn m Gods fer... vice, which is fpiritual, and which th-ey underfian'd not, or wh1ch IS abov.e th_e reach of afldhly mind: 4 . An~ fame think all vain in Prt~ch~ng, Conference, Writingor Pray~r, whtcl~ JS lo~g· But ~hrill fpa~e Job. 34 9 , no vam words whc:n he pra)'td aUn'ght, l.uk. 6. 12· Nor are we b1d pray m vam, whtn we are b 1 d H~b. , 3. 1 s~ pray continuaUy, i~tjlantly a~d impo;tunately. r The[.~· 17·. Att. 6. ~· L~k. J8. r, 2. Nor did PJul {peak idly ·when he preacht ull mzdmgbt, Ac1. 20· Godlmcfs ts not vamwhzch 11 profitable to dlJ t/Ji.ng1, 1 Tiro. 4 •8. Indeed as to their own falva_t!ot'l the wic~ed m~y make o~r pr-eaching v.fin: but the word of Gadreturnethnatempty. Theoblattonrofthed1fobedocnt arevam, I[J. 1·13· and the prayer of the wicll!d •bominable to the Lord, b'ut the prayer of the upright if hi< delight, Prov. 15. 8. '4· Same think all preaching vain of that which they ~row alre11dy, whereas they have rnofi need to hear of that, Jell tkey condemn themfelves by finning again!\ their knowledge. 2 Pel. 1. 12, 13. Rom-. '4· 22, 6. Same think it vain if the fame things be often preached on, or repeated; (fee p!Jii, 3• r·. } tl\ough yet they never rec~ived an·d obeye~ them: .Or if .~he fame word1 be of~ repeated in vrayer, though it be not from ernptmefs or affe&atlon but fervenciC: MJrl(_ 14• 3·9· P[alm r36. & 1r9. 7· U11bdie.. . vers think our boafiing in Goci is vain, 2 King. 18. 20· g., And fame rnalitious a·dverfa'ries charge it lfa.49 •h 1. on Minif\:ers as Preacbing.irt vaih, whenever _the hcuers arc not converted·: See Heb. 4· 2. 6.;/, 5· 2. & 3· 4· & 4· ••· Ifa. 53· l• ' . y. 3 • On the other tide many that are godly mil\ake in thinking, J· Th1ta!l talk is· vain wh'lch is . .. not of abfolute neceffity to fome great ufe -and end. •·2· • And that all mndr and pleafant di.fcomfe r K!ng.. 1 ~ 2 7• is vain. Whereas th·e Holy Gho!\ failh, Prov;'l7· 22. A hzerry heart dntb g()od liR.! a mttJicine, but a l?rov. 19· 9• brokJn ffiirit dryetb tht boneJ: Pr~v. 15· 13. A merry IJtart m.Jketb a cbce1f:d countella'nce ; but b)r'-{atrow of the heart rht JPirit it· brof<!n. Gw. 26. S. King A~i1mlech faw Ija>Dit,. fporting with Reb~k,h his wife: Laughing ( •s the- Hebrew is) or playing (as the Ch'aldee, and Suhuiran, and S<pr;) or jlafti 11 g (as tl1e Syriack Arabick and Xulgar Latine.) Y· 4· Obferve thefe qualifications and your mirth and fparting r.lk will not be idle. r. Let it be fuch and fo much as is ufeful to maintain that cheerfulntfs of mind a·nd alacrit·y of fpirits, wliich i;. profitable to your health and dmy: For if bodily rccrtation1be lawful, then torlf("t-rtcrtatiomue ltw.. ful when they are accommodate to their end. 2. Let your ~pecch be favoury, foafoned wicli fai1t, a'nd not corrupt and rott.en communication : Jcafi not with hlthinefs or fin. 3· Let it be haimlefs td others: Make not your felvc:s merry with the fins or roiferies of other men. Jeall-not to their wrong. 4 . Let it be feafonable, a'nd not when another frame of mind is more conVenient, nor when graver or weightier difcourfe £hould take place. 5· Let it be m~Jderate and not exceflive, either wafting time in vain, or tending to li.abituate thC mind of the fpeakers or hearers to levity, or to ctl:rangc thcm1from things that (hould. be preferred, 6. Sec_rhat all your mirth and fpeech be fantiih'ed by a hJ!y em/; that your intent mall be tv whet your fp!Ilts, and cheer up and tit your fdves for the fervice of God as you do ih eatiog and drinking and all other things. 7· And m1x ( \Yith cautelous reverence) fome ferious things, t~-at the end and ufe be nOt forgotten, and your mirth may nor be a1tot;c:tht:r as empty and fruit·lefs as that of the unf:rnClitied is. Sporting, ple-afant, and recre-ating tdlk is ntJf v~ht l>ur lawful upon thefe conditions. 8. Still remembring that the mall holy and protira51e d&ouife mufi be mofi plc:afant tous, and we mufi not through a Wearinefs of it, divert ro c11rn~t mirth as 1cn. ~· 'J· rs m~~ defirable , but only Ufe 11.1tural bom:ft mirtb aS a neceff"ary' concomi(c\nt to t~hileratc )the ~';{ ~~~?t:g fpmts. . Pfa!ms. ~. 5· Idle or vain words then, are luch as are Unprofitable and tthd not to do t,ood. I here forbear to Wh1t u idle fpeak of thofc Idle tvUTdt which are alfo worfe than !vain, as•mentioned before among the Uns- of rhe ta'k? . tongue. IdlewordJ are, t.Eithtr flmply fuch which tend to ffO goodat all. 2· Or compJrativtry[uch ~which l,h~ ~o:-u oftt: are about fornt {m11U or inconfiderablc good, when you !hould IJe fpeaking of greater things·: The for- bu~ir~mqt:od mer fort are alway1 idlt and therefore alrv.J)J jiH[ttl: The latter fort are fom~rimes lawful iri them.:. ju!h necd1i'! felves, that is, ~h·en greater matters arc not to be talked of: In it• feafon it is bwfUI t6 fpeak about uri.s.' .aut!"'" !he fa~ing ?f a penny, bra poinr, or a pin! But out of feafon, when greater matters are in h~nd, thi~ ~~7~~:~~·~ ~~~ ~. ts bur 1dle hnful talk. . . , Gngot. Mcral; §. 6. Al(othe.re is a great deal of d1fference between nbw and then an Idle word,and a ba~ling p .. tiitg cufipm, by wh1ch tt becorneth the da~ly prachce of fame loofe-tongued perfons (o thlt 1he greate< part of rhc words of all their lives are mcerly vain. , . ~. 7• The particular kinds of Idle tallr,. a<e .fcarce to be numbred; Same of them arc thofe. . • · Kkk t ;wh<n
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