Brotberly Admonition. 359 Fi 'ft Towards them : When you thus endeavour to fhame rh~m out of their .i • . Wi~kednefs, by difcountenancing them in it. So fays ~he "'!Foflle, If an7 Man 2 ~he(. ~;be 710t our Word, note that Man, .and ba'T.Ie no Company w_~th h1m! , that .he ma1 be 1· 4- .jh~mtJ. And indeed, if a Man be ~at altol'ether profligate,_ If lw be not utter! loft to Modefty, it muft needs make him reflect ':pan himfelf With Shame anl Blufhing, chat certainly he is grow:n a ftrange vtle Wretch, a. loathfome and odious Monfter, when all good and fober Men do thus carefully lhun and avoid him. Now Shame is a good ftep to Amendment: And a Blulh the tirft coloUr that Virtue cakes. Secondly, Towards your felves: You are ohl!ged to aband~n them, ~s ~ore- f. ~laim them, fo tO fecure xour felves : For Vice IS very contagw~s, and It JS un.. fafe to converfe with chafe, who have fuch Plague·Sores runmng upon them, left you be alfo infed:ed. · . • . Thus you fee what th!s Du~y of Brotherly R~proof IS, and how tn the gen.eral it is eo be performed, etthec tn Words or ACbons. And ro thefe, Two Things are neceffarily previous and an~e~edent. . , . . Firjl. Inftrud:ion and Convt~hon. We .ought. ro bnng. them to fee th.etr Con~1:a;m. Fault before we rebuke them forte; otherwtfe while we. chtde. and do not m~ of tht form them, it will rather fee~ a proud delig? of quarrelling Wtth them,, th~n a F•ult. confciencious defign of bettenng them. And therefore we find how arufictally Nathan infinuares imo Dttvid the Heinoufnefs. and Inhumanity of his Sin, and ' works in him a Hatred and Detefiation of Ehlu Perfon who was fo cruel and devoid of Compaffion, before he comes to d'eal downr.ighr with him, Thou art tht M an. And could we but skilfully convince ourBroth~r,by thusreprefentiog rhd Odioufnefs of fuch and fuch Sins,to which we know he is addicted, poffibly we might fpare our felves in chat which is che moft ungrateful and difplealing part of this Work, I mean perfonal RefleCtion, and leave it to his o~n Confcience to reprove himfelf, and eo apply it home, wich, Thou art the Mar~. And, Secondly, le is neccffary chat we watch over our Brother, not fo as eo be infi- 2, dious Spies upon him, officioufly eo pry into his ACiions, and bufily concern Wt ~IZ' our felvcs in all he doth. This pragmatical Temper is jufHy hareful. And thofe ~~;",:,. ~ho rhus arrogate to themfelves to be publick Cenfors, and to infpect the BrD&hv. Lives and .Manners of others, making it their whole ImpJoyment to obferve what others fay or do, that they may have Matter either to reprove or reproach them, are a Company of intolerable bulie Bodies. Bur yet, · J,:. Firjf, We ought fo to watch over our Brother as to give him timely Caution , ; - . if we fee him in any Danger through Temptation or Paffion, and to admonifh BJCtJutlots· him to ftand upon his guard, to recalled: himfelf, and .beware he be not furprized or injured by fuch an approaching. Sin. . . And Secondly, If we have ohferved any Mifcarriages in him, we are to wiltclt 2. _ _, the befi Seafons, and all the fitteft Gircumftances in which to remind him of it T1, ~tfl '' thar. fo our Reproof may be well accepted, and become efled:ual. For he tha~ s,.f.., wlll "emure rafhly to reprove without this Circumfpection, may do more Mifchief to his Brother by rebuking him, than he had done to himfelfby offending: ~xafperating and ImDirtering his Heart againft Piery, for the Impertinencies 'at le'afi the Indifcretions, of thofe who profefs it, anCl provoking him to fin th;·. more out of meer Oppolition and Contradiction. And I am verily perfwaded .and have in fome Cafes obferved it, that very many.Sin.s owe themfelves tO· th~ Imprudenoe of thofe who have taken upon themfelves to he Reprovers and Would never have been committed, if they had notindifcreetly gainfajr'd it. Thus we fee what this Duty of reproving is, and what is neCeffarily required there.. unto. But indeed, which is the Second Thing, lt is not fo hard a Matter to know . 2. w. hat it is, as it is difficult confcienrioufiy and faithfully to praCHfe it. How few J,f ;h: ,tl• are therein the World, I will nocfayskilful enough to do it well but zealous R;::;. ., afl:d co~fciemious enough to d? ic ac all? Do we not every day' fee God fear- · \ fully d!lhonoured, obferve his. Name blafphemed, his Laws violated his W?rfhip denied? Do you not daily fee multitUde~ of wretched Creatures, ,.!..hofe Cnmes nor only defie and outrage God, but fl:ab 3nd munher their own Souls .. and yet wh~ is there that bath that. Zeal for ~od·, or that Charity for hi; Brother, astomterpofe, and by a fenous and fittmgR.eproof, vindi'"te the one .. ~~
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