Brotherly Admonition. from Diihonour, or refcue the other from Perdition? There ai'e enow rh will make up a fad Mouth, and whifper thofe rhings abroad it may be our af very ill Ends and Defigns: But where almoft is the l'erfon' that wili dttre ~ maintain the Honour of Godro the Face of rhofe who boldly affront him . tha~ wil1 dare to open their Mouths before thofe that will dare eo open them aS:ainft Heaven? Certainly ~e ca!leafily produce.much more Reafonforour Reproofs, than they can for rhetr Wtckedne!S; and tt were very ftrange, if we fhould not be able to ~eat them off from .t~etr Confidence, .when we have God and our own Confctences, nay, and thetrs alfo, to fide wnh us. Yet fo it is ·char we are generally apt to fneak and fiink away from fo rroublefome a Ta;k and to let Iniquity pafsuncontroul'd, yea, triumphant. We are well come~c ·to lee ot?ers fin quietly:, ~o that we m_ay live quiedy, ~ichout rr.oubling our felves ~1th fo hard and difficult a Semce. And that wh1ch makes tt feem fo difficul t, .. , Firf/, A finful Fear ; and, Secondly, A finful Shame, that feizeth on the Spirits of Men, and takes off the Edge of holy Courage and Confidence, that are fo abfolutely neceffary to the performing of this Duty. t. . .Firfl, M~ny are afraid to reprov~ Sin, .Ieaft they lho~ld incur Difpleafure, 'i'"ofJif~ weaken theu fecular lntereft, rum rhetr Dependencies, and bring feme ~~~t Mifchief upon themfelves, by exafpera:i?g the Offenders againft them. Bur hinder-re- thefe -are poor, low, carnal Confiderauons. Where Matter of Duty is in tr_MJingfor queftion, it is very neceffary for every Chriftian to be of an undaunted Courage su,. and Refolution, not to fear the Faces of Men, nor robe fi·ighted wich a: grim Look, or a proud Huff. If he will ferioufiy perform this Ducy, he mull remember, thathe is pleading for God, that he is Caving a Soul from Hell and therefore ought not to value their Anger, nor his.own Damage ; but td Heel himfelf againft all fuch mean and fordid Confiderations. Indeed it lhews a moft pitiful Spirit in us, that we fhould be more afraid of offending them than they ate of olf~nding God. S~all they be bo~d to fin, and we ~ot bold e~ough to tell them oftt? And yet fuch ts the Cowardt.ce of che Ge~erahcy of C.hrifi.ians, that they dare not appear for God, o~ for P1et:¥ and Hohnefs, w~e.n they lee them wronged by the Impudence of boifterous Smners; but thofe pmful, little, bafe,carnalRefped:s of what they maylofe, or what they may fuffer by it, inPfal. ]I. tervene, and make them fit mopifh, and over-aw'd, like Men in who{e Mourhs are 14- · no Ref!Dof~<; whilft thefe wicked Wretches, who have all the R~fon in the · World to be timerousand fearful, glory in thus outbraving and baffling them. :a. SecondlJ, Others again are alhamed to reprove Sin. And whereas many vile Slllme and profligate \V retches glory in theirShame, thefe,on thecomrary,are afhamed. IJ::/t":{ of that which would be their Glory. Either they doubt they lhall be thought but pruhtz/.; troublefomeand hypo~ritica.l lntermeddlers; or el_fe poffibly,~eing conk_i~us to s;,. themfelves of many Mtfcarnages, chey fufpett their Rep-roofs w1ll be upbra1dm_gly retorted upon theiDfelves; and fo by reproving che Faulrs of orhers, they fhall but give an Occafion to ha~e their own ri~t up_ and expofed : And fo th_ey think it the fafer way to fay nothtng, left by rakmg mto other Mens Dunghtl!s, cher :fhould 'hut furnifh them wich Dire enough to fling back in thei r own Faces. An Cl thus between thefe Two·carnal Principles ofjinfid Frar,andjinful Sh,1me, which are fo·deefly rooted in our corrupc Natures,Reproof is commonly negleCl:ed ; and it is one o the hardeftthings in the World, toperfwade Men to be t!'ue roGod, to their. own Souls, and to the Souls of their Brethern, in a faithful difcharge of that Dury which is ufually attended with fuch Difadvancages and Difficulties. But though ic be thus difficult; yec, . . .l' Thirdl], It is a moft neceff~ry Duty. The !freate~ G?o.d you can do m the Rrp.rarf {. Wor:ld is to P.luckup thefe Bnars and Thorns w1rh wh1ch 1t ts over·grown.Con· j:J;z~e; fider bu~howinfolent Vice and. Wickednefs is apt to be w_heren~ne ~o a~pear to check and controul· it. If 1t can bur once filence V1rrue, u Will quickly banilh, it. If it can but put it to the blulh, it will quickly put ir w flight. And when it hach once made us either afraid or afhamed ro lay a Rebuke 1n trS · way, what elfe can we expeCt but that ir lhould overipreadt he face. of the whole Earth and like a general Deluge drown all Mankmd, firfi m Sm, and then in Pe;ditiotJ:. There is no other way ro prevent this great and fad Ruin, but for every
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