Brotherly Admonition. 6. Sixth/y, If thou wou!dfl have thy Repr"[> effeCiual, efpecially beware thar ;:''111~{ r.o{ thou thy felf art nor gu ilt_y of thofe Sins which thou reproveft in another. le were /hez;;n~1 ;e indeed aTemper to be wifh'd and pray'dfor,thacwe could-only refped: how ri'ghrerW/J1JtiJ- ous the Rtproofwere, and not how righteous the Perfon is whogives it. For there rhmfor. is no more reafon eo reject found Admonition, becaufe it comes from an unfound Heart, than there is ro fiop our Ears againfi ~ood CounfCI,becaufe it is de... livered perhaps by an unfavouryBreach. Yerfoitis, rhatwhenMenofdefiled Confciences. and Converfations reprove otheE, they are apt to jufiifie rhemfelves by recriminating, or elfe eo think they do bur fport and jeft with them: Or thirdly,to hare them for grofs Hypocrites and Diffemblcrs; or lafily ,to think they do but envy them their Sins, and that they would ingrofS all to rhell}felves. It was a true Obfervation of Pliny in his Epijlles, Lib. 8. Epift. 22. That there arc fome, $2_ui fie aliarum '1Jitiis irn{cumur, 1urifi invit!tr.nt : who are fo angry at other Mens Vices, as if they envied them. l.t cannot be hoped that the Reproof of fUch fhould ever take place. Dut when a Man of a clear and unfpocted Name lhall rtpr·ove the Sins and Vices of others,his Rehukescarry Authority with them ; and if they cannot reform, yet at leaft mufi they needs daunt and filcnce the Offenders, that they fball have have nothing to reply, no Subterfugcs nor Evarions, but they muft (leeds be convinced that their Sins are as evil, as he reprefems them by his own Care and Caution to be avoided. $. Fifth&', The only Thing that remainsi5 to propound to you fome Morivesthat MOFi"J~sfor may quicken you to the confcicntious difcharge of this much negled:ed Duty. rtp~ll't!~':!r And I fhall but name fome few, and leave them to your coniiderarion to be faro~tr n · ther preftupon you. And here next tO the exprefs Comrn::~nd of Almighty God, whofe Authority alone ought to preTail againfi all the Difficulties that we either find or fancy in the way of Obedience thereunto : Bmtfo ofi Confider, Fsrft, the great benefit that may redound both to rheRcprcver, and reprwmg Rep_ro'Ved. . . . . otbm. Fi•ft, Thou fhalt hereby provtde thy Ielf a Fnend that may take the fame Itberry to rtp,rove thee,when it fhall be necdful,and for thy great good. And it may · very weU be thought that the Apojl-leupon this Account requires us eo Reftore out Gal. 6. J , faUen Brother, with meek Reproof;, confidering our {elveJ)lefl we alfo be tempted. That is, that here~y we may purchafe a tru~ }Iriend, who will be as faithful to u~, as we have been to him. Howeve~, certainly it is the befi and moft generous way of procuring to our felves true Love and Refpe& from chofe whom we Prov. 9· 8. have ,rhus reformed. l So fays Solomon, R,ebuke a ?Pi/e Man, and he wilt /(Y!Je the~ ~rov. z8. And in another place, fays he, He that rehuketh a Man, afterward; jhall find mort .21· favour than he that flatteruh with his TOngue. ) Seconelly_, 'Fhou wilt hereby imide thy felf to that great and precious Promife, Duuz. 3· That the) that be wife, Jl.udl jhin.e tu the brightnefs of tbe Firmament; atJd they that turn many to Righteo~tfntji, n; the StaTI fo,· t'Ver <1nd ''fler. And to that other of Prov. 14 . the wife Man_, To them that rebuke the wickM, fhall he Delight, and a good Blejfi11g lf. jhatl c~mt ttptm them. . , : ThirdlJ, Thou fhalt mcreafe thy own GPaGes and Comforts more rhan. poffibly thou cou!defl do by feparating •h)' felf 'frem them. Thy Graces will he more confirmed, becaufe reprO'Uing o'f others wit! engage thee to a greater Warchfulnefs over thy le! f. Thy Comforts al\o will be encreafed, becaule a confcicnr:ious difcharge of thiSDuty, will be to thee a greatet Evidence of the Jnregrity and Sincerity of t!1Y Heart. Firff1, rrhe pradi\ZC qrrhis Duty Wil11bc greatly profitable unto him that is reproved. How ·k.n6Weft· thou but it m:ay be a· meaHs to turn him fi·om his lniJa~ 5.z·o. quiry, and fo thou ~Jnlt pfevent a ~ultitttde of Sins, and,{t<'Ve a Soul f;·om D~ath ~ · And hereby likewi(C we /hall fl'uf~rate one of the great Defigns an4 A~nfices of the DeVil, which is, to allure Me·n: tO Sin by the·Examples of thole Wlckedneffes rhat ·pafs uncheck'd and uncontrou-l'd in the World. Tit. 3 . 3 , Secondly, Confider that we our felves alfo were difobedient and foolifh,ferving divers Lufts and Plea(ures; but were wrought upon either by publick or private Reproof. And why then Jhould not we ufe the fame Charity towards others, which God hath been p1eafed to make effectual towards us. . Thirdly, Confider that the Ttxt makes ir au apparent fign of hating our Dro~ 1 John 3· cher, if we forbear juRiy to reprove him. Tbot1 j1111lr 11ot N11t t rb_~ B,·other in 'thJ 15. fle•rt :
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