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SERM.

XXVI,,

TEMPERANCE,

&C.

439

are

mighty to

drink

wine, have

a severe

censure cast

upon them,

and

a

curse

in the

book

of God

;

Is.

v.

1

L

not

only woe

to them,

that.rise up early

in

the morning,

that

they

may find

strong

drink, and continue

till night,

tiff

wine inflame

them;

but

woe

to them

that are

mighty

to

drink

wine,

even

though

they are

not

utterly over-

come

by

it,

to the

disorder

and disgrace

of

their under-

standings, verse

2.2.

The

reason

is,

because

nature

will

not

bear

such

a

quantity of

wine

or strong

liquors

at

first;

and

it

is

presumed

men have

forced

nature

beyond

its

original

capacity, and thus have grown up,

by

degrees

of

sin,,

to such a

strength

.in

drinking.

These are

they

that

call evil good,

and

good

evil,

and that

glory

in-their

shame.

Hearken

to thy

father's

advice, O

youth, and despise

not

thy mother's

counsel; hear thou,

my

son,

and be

wise,

and guide thine

heart

in the

way

of

temperance.

Be

not

amongst

wine

-

bibbers, amongst

riotous eaters

of

flesh,

Prow.

xxiii.

19,

20.

Youth

is

greedy

of

pleasure,

and

in

danger

of

being

corrupted

by

it

;

therefore

avoid the

so-

ciety

of

drunkards and

gluttons.

You

see

they are

join-

ed

together

in

the

prohibition and threatening of

the

word

of God,

"for

the glutton and the

drunkard

shall

both

come to

poverty." A wanton indulgence

of

the

taste

will

tempt

men to

revelling and riot, thence

follows

.

a neglect

of

all business

;

and many

a

prodigal,

who

had

a fair estate,

is

by

this

means become a beggar

or

a

pri-

soner..

Let

us

be

watchful therefore

when

we

sit

down

at

a

plentiful table,

and put

a knife, as

it

were, to

our

throat,

if

we

feel

the

danger

of

a

sharp

an,'

wanton

ap-

petite

:

let

the guard

of our,virtue

be as

sharp and active

as

our

thirst

or hunger.

Let

us

not

be desirous

of

feast-

ing

ourselves with dainties, for they too often prove

de-

ceitful

meat:

And though they

are

never

so

tempting tò

the

palate, yet they may disturb the health

of

the

body,

or indispose the mind

for

the

service

of

virtue. But this

leads

me

to

the

next general

head, and

that

is,

To consider

how

the light

of nature

condemns

this

vice,

this

sort

of

impurity.

If

it

were my

business

to

make a

flourish.

with

learned

citations,

it

were

an

easy

matter

to

bring the

Greeks and

Romans

hither

to pass

sentence upon the glutton and the

drunkard, and

all

the luxury

of

the

taste;

for

it

is

too

F

4