The great Evil and Da~get of Little Sins.' 391 Tithings with various Gifts and .Offerings; thefe were their ~rent Commandmenti ; but for i~ward Concupifcence, for unmortified Lufis, for vatn Thoughts and finful Defires, rhefe, they, as a Generation, co.rrupt in them~elves, and Corrupters of others caught as the Papift.tnow do, etcher to he no Stpsat all, or armoft, but venial, i~ long ~s they ~id n?t break forth in~o ad; arl'd .truly the greater part of rhis Chapter ts fpent m fettmg forth the evtl of thofe Sms that .the Jews accounted eo be light and fmall; as to beangrywithour Brother, to call hu:b Racha, Mar.s.~i .'T or thou Fool, verfe 22. to harbour inward_Motions of Co~cupifcence, 'Vtr. 28. 18, ag. to ufe DVuorce, ver. 29. Common S1vearmg, ver. 14- Pnvate Rwenge, ver. 39· Now fays our Saviour, I am fo far from deftroymg the La1v and the Prcpheti, either by my DoC<rine, or by my Pradice, as thefe Men falfiy accufe and calumniate me ; that contrariwife I teach that the violation of thofe Commands which your Doflors, the Scribes and Phari[tes account fmall and little, will bring with them an heavy guilt, and fore condemnation ; for Whofoever breaks rhofe Commandments that are commonly vilify'd and called leatl, ]hall be the leaft in the Kingdom of Heaven. - · Swmdly Thofe Commandments which are great in refped: of the Law-giver may 'yet be the leaft in comparifonwith other Commands of the fame Law which are indeed .thought greateft. No~v this compar~tive inequality in th~ Commandments, IS taken from the equality of the ObJects aboUt whtch they are converfant; fame of them concern our Duty to God, others concern our Duty to Man: Nowbecaufe Man is infinitely lefs than God, therefore thole Commands that relate to our Duty cowards Man, may be called Jefs than thofe Commands that relate to our Duty towards God. Hence, when the Lawyer put a Mat. ::t~. Cafe to our StWiour,Mat. 22. ~6. Mafter which is the ,treat Commandment in the L1l'Ju ~3f. Our Lord anfwers him, Thoufhalt love the Lord thy God with all thy Heart,and with 11/l thy Soul, and with all thy Mind; This, fays he, is the Jirft and great Command-." ment. Sometimes this inequality rifeth from the Latitude that every Command hathin it: Now this Latitude relateth to our Thoughts, to our Words, and to our Actions. Now becaufe a Thought may be faid to be lefs than a Word and a Word may be faid to be lefs than an A<lion, therefore that part of the Commandment that requires Holinefs in our Thoughts, may be faid to belefs than thar which requires HolinefS in our Speech ; and that part of the Commandment which requires Holinefsinour Speech, than that which requires HoIinefs in our Lives and ACl:ions. Now, fays ourSaviour,he that fins againft Man, as well as he that fins againft Go_d; he that fins in a Thought, in a Word, as well as hethatfinsin hisAdionsandConvetfation: He that breaksthefe lenfl Commandments jhall be lean in theKingdom of Heaven. And in this Senfe I take the Words. And rh~us you fee what is meant by the tun Commandmmt. The SeconJthing we are to enquire imo, is what we are ro underftand by beitig . leaft in the Kingdom of Heavm. By the King4om of Heaven may be meant,eirher the wfJit ~l Kingdom of Grace ~et up in the Church on Earth; and thus the Word isfofre- z;:n:lt•fl quemly made ufe of m Scripture; I need not turn you to any Places. Or elfe by int't,KJ·11 ~ the Kingdom of Heaven may be meant the Kingdom of Glory ellabli~ed in the a~m· ~f highefi Heavens. If we take the Kingdom of Heaven here in ~he Text for the fltnnr. Kingdom ofGrace, that is, for the Church and People ofGod here on Earth,then the Senferuns thus; He that breaketh the leaf! Comma'?dmenr,antl teacheth Men[o,fhaU . be no true Member of the Church of Chnft. But tf we take the Kingdom of Hea.. -uen here fpoken of, to be the Kingdom.of Glory ; then the meaning is,He that breaks the lenft Commandment fludl be leaft in the Kingdom of Heaven ; that is,he fhall not enter into Heaven at all. Minimus 'Vocabitur in Regno Ctelorum, & fottaffi ;.. Jeo non erit in Regno Ct2lorum, ubi ni(! magni effe non pof!unt, as St. Augu{line fpeaks. He !hall be the lenft in Henven ; that is, he fhall not be there at an, becaufe in Heaven there are none but great and glorious ones. You fee then what a heavy and moll dreadful Doom Chritlnath pafs'd upon chafe things that rhe World call little and trivial Sins; they exclude out of Heaven,and will,without Repentance and a Pardon imerpofe, fink the Soul down to the loweft Hell irrecoverably. Now becaufe the generality ofthe World; yea, and ofProfeff'ors alfo, do too commonly allow and indulge themfelves in little Sins, I have therefore ~pade choice of this Subject, on purpofe to convince you:,if it may be,of the great evil th;tt
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