SERMON XXX. Christian Morality, viz Courage and Honour ; or Virtue and Praise. POILIP. iv, 8, If there be any virtue,and if there be any praise, think on these things. ru apeln ear is ru 1xaaS,, &C. VIRTUE isan honourableand extensive name í It is used by moral writers to include all the duties we owe to ourselves, or our fellow-creatures; suchas 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 whichwe 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 cou- rage. The Greek wordapern, used here by the apostle, is de- rived from Apeç, the name of Mars, or the heathengod of war And doubtless the most ancient meaning of it among the Greek writers was warlike valour, though in time the philosophers en- largedthe 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 or glorious power when it is applied to God, or courage when it refers tomen. I wish I could stay here to explain them all, but I must mention one of them, viz. 2 Peter i. 5. Add toyour faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge temperance, &c. Virtue is to be added, to faith, that is, nextto your belief of the gospel, get courage to profess what you believe : Is it not tobe supposed, that in this place virtue can signify the whole of morality, because the parti- cular virtuesof temperance, patience, and charity arenamed also And therefore this must signify some part of morality distinct from the rest, viz. a strength or fortitude of soul. And for the same reason the word virtue in my text cannot signify the whole system of moral duties because St. Paulin the same verse had been recommending truth, justice, and purity or temperance, which are so many pieces of morality ; and it is not reasonable to imagine that he brings in a general name that coin
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