APPENDIX TO SERMONS XX, XXI, AND XNII. S77 cancels this divine rule, and substitutes another in the room of it, viz. Whatsoever men do unto you, do ye also that unto them; which is as widely different from the sacred rule of Christ, as light is from darkness, or 4heaven from hell. By this new rule we are no longer bound to practise that truth, that justice, that goodness, to others,, .which we think reasonable they should prac- tise towards us ; but we have leave to practise that false- hood and knavery, that fraud, and injustice, and mischief to others, which they do actually practise towards us, or which we suspect they design to practise. Hone half of acity or a nation were fallen into knavish practices, through the great degeneracy of the age, or werebecome thievish pilferers, the other half would, by this rule, practise knavery with licence toward them, and deal out falsehoods to them by divine permission. And then the charge iyould quickly be just and universal, There is no truth in the land, as Hos. iv. 1, There, is indeed scarceany censure, of a degenerate and corrupt age under the Old Testament, but fraud and de- ceit, lies and falsehood make a considerable part of the accusation or complaint; and surely God would never allow any principles or practices that have so pernicious a tendency. Hear how the prophets Isaiah and Jere- miah lament their multiplied transgressions in conceiv- ing and .uttering from the heart words of falsehood: Truth is fallen in the . street, yea truth faileth, and equity cannot enter,, Is. lix. This is a nation that obey- eth not the voice of the Lord. Truth is perished, and is cut off from their mouth. They deceive every pne his neighbour, andwill not speak the truth ; they bend their tongues like their bow for lies, Jer vii. and ix. Now if this licentious principle were allowed, neither God nor his prophets wouldever want matter of complaint. By this, means also it will come to pass, that if a man happen once to get the name and character of a thief or a cheat, all his neigbours will think themselves autho- rised to have no regard to truth or honesty in, all their dealings and discourse with him ; for. this rule affirms that he has no right to truth. And when any person fancies that he has seen reason to suspect or disbelieve his neighbour's honesty, he will think himself absolved from all obligations to speak truth to him. But what a
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