429 / 514
BERM.
XXV.]
CHRISTTAL:
MORALITY, VIZ. JUSTICE,
&C.
421
L Covetousness
is
a
great
spring
of
injustice.
This
consists
in an
immoderate
desire
of
possessing: And
we
are
told
by
the apostle,
that
the
love
of
money
is
the
root
of
all
evil,
which while some have
coveted after, they
have
not
only
erred from
the
faith,
but
they have ven-
tured
upon many
sins, as well
as
pierced themselves
through
with many
sorrows.
For
they
that
will
be
rick,
fall
into
temptation,
and a snare, and into
many.foolish
and
hurtful
lusts,
which drown
men
in
destruction
and
perdition
1
Tim.
vi.
9,
lb.
Solomon
is
of
the same
mind
;
Prov.
xxviii. 20, 22.
He
that
tnaketh haste to
be rich, shall
not
be
innocent, for
he
hath an
evil
eye
upon the
possessions
of
his
neighbour.
It
is
from
this
cursed
root of
covetousness
that
a mul-
titude of bitter
fruits proceed.
It
is
by
this vicious
prin-
ciple working within
us,
that
we
are tempted
to
take what
is
not
our
due,
either
by
craft or
by
violence.
;
Hence
it
is
that
men
cheat each other
in
their
daily commerce,
they
defraud and
over
-reach their neighbour
if
they can
in every bargain they make, and try
all
the
arts
of
subtle
knavery,
in
order
to
enrich
themselves.
They
divest
their
souls
of
truth and
virtue, and
put
off
conscience
and shame
to
load themselves with thick
clay.
It
is
covetousness
that
teaches
the
sons
of
men-
to
prac-
tise
upon their dealers
with a false
balance and
a
'deceit-
ful
beam.
They shorten
their
measures, and lessen
their
weights by
'which
they
sell
their
goods
:.
But when the
case alters, and they buy any thing for
themselves,
they
will,
if
possible,
take
another sort of
weight,
or
use a
diffe-
rent
measure;
all which
are
an
abomination
to the
Lord.
It
is
the
same evil
and
Unrighteous
principle
that per-
suades the seller
to
put
off
corrupt
and damaged
wares
for good
and
sound,
and
to cozen
his
neighbour
with
merchandize
that
is by
no means such as
he
reasonably
expects.
It
is
this
principle
that
persuades the buyer
also to
cheat
his
neighbour
with
corrupt
and
false
money,
which he knows to be unlawful coin.
For corrupt
mer-
chandize and
corrupt
money,
false
balances, light
weights,
and scanty measure,
seem
all
to stand
in
the
same
rank
of
deceit: These
are
all weapons
of craft
and knavery to
give
a secret
wound
to
their
neighbour's
estate, they all
belong to the
armory
of
fraud,
grid
the
magazine
of
un-
righteousness.
It
is
this covetous
humour
that
tempts the tongues
-of
111111Nor