( 49O ) SERMON XX . CHRISTIAN MORALITY, viz. COURAGE AND HONOUR; OR, VIRTUE AND PRAISE. PHILIP. iv. 8. If there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Ea rs ape7li xat E; t;c s7tzni ,, &c. VIRTUE is an honourable and extensive name : It is used by moral writers to include all the duties we owe to ourselves, or our fellow- creatures; such as sobriety, temperance, faithfulness, justice, prudence, goodness, and mercy ; and the sense of it is sometimes stretched so far, as to comprehend also the duties of religion which we owe to God. But let us take notice, that the first and original signification of the word both in the greek and latin tongues is much more limited, and it means only power or courage. Thegreek word ape-rn, used here by the apostle, is de- rived from ApEs, the name of Mars, or the heathen god of war : And doubtless the most ancient meaning of it amongst the greek writers was warlike valour, though in time the philosophers enlarged the sense of it to include every moral excellency. The several places in the New Testament where the word is used, have chief reference to some work of glo- rious power when it is applied to God, or courage when it refers to men. I wish I could stay here to explain them all, but I must mention one of them, viz. 2 Peter i. 5. Add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge temperance, &c. Virtue is to be added to faith, that is, next to your belief of the gospel, get cou- rage to profess what you believe: It is not to be sup- posed, that in this .place virtue can signify the whole of morality, because the particular virtues of temperance, patience, and charity are named also : And therefore this must signify some part of morality distinct from the rest, viz. a strength or fortitude of soul.
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