reach by the hand and tongueboth, but there are not many that can do fo, but there's no wicked man but can reach another by the tongue. Every wicked man hates those that are godly, and therefore will be ready to reach them by the tongue: So that it's impoffible for any to live godly, but he muft fuffer from the tongues of men, it is poffible for a man to live fo as to be delivered from the hands of wicked men, but never from their tongues, because every wicked man can reach them that way, and their hearts hate them, in Prov: 16. 27. An ungodly man diggerh up evill, and in his lips there is a burning fire: If he can fee no evill in thofe that are godly, he will digg for it, he will labour to find it out, nay he will frame it, and conceive it, if he cannot get any reall evill, he diggs for it. And in his lips there is a burning fire, in fpeaking evill, and provokingly. And the ungodly they look upon the wayes of God as irrationall wayes, they can fee no reason for them, and hence it is that they revile the Saints, They do not understand their principles in their wayes, and therefore they think they are but hypocrites, for indeed if a wicked man fhould do the fame thing that the Saints do, he would be an hypocrite, because he hath not principles to carry him through: Now they do not know their principles to carry them through, therefore they fay they are hypocrites, and falfe, and revile them with ill

names.

Yea they fee the godly in their wayes to condemn them, and that intages them: The godly challenge a more interest in God then they have, and that they cannot bare, therefore they will invent all the wayes in the world they can, to caft contempt upon them: For if they should not, their godlinetfe would make them honourable in the eyes of the world, and they do envy the honour that they have, because they are difhonour'd, and difgrac'd by it: You read of Sanballat and Tobia, that did labour to caft reproach upon them, and what was the reafon of it? This is the reafon that's given by Interpreters: This fame Sanballat and Tobia had their Temple at Samaria; There was a Temple built there in conteftation about the Temple in Jerufalem: Now when the Temple came to be E e.e e

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built at Jerufalem, they thought furely now our Temple at Samaria will be difgrac'd; Every body would be ready to go from them to the Temple at Jerufalem; When indeed the Temple of Jerufalem was down, then the Temple of Samaria they thought might he honoured, but if the Temple at Jerusalem were built, the Temple at Samaria would be accounted nothing, therefore they raise all the accufations that pollibly they can against Nehemiah,that fo the honour and the credit of their Temple might not goe downe: This is for all the world the guife and way of men that are in any way of wickednetle, that is not according to God; If any fhall come to fet up a way that hath any kind of feemiagneffe of more frictnelle in it, Othen their hearts are imbittered, and then they feek by calumnies and reproaches, and all the wayes they can, to beat down the esteem of thofe men; For fay they, if thofe goe up then ours goes down ; and thofe that are godly will goe to the Temple that is built there, for it doth feem to have the more appearance out of Scripture to be the better, and therefore it's time for them to be ftirring. This is the reafon of the reproaches that were caft upon Nehemiah by Sanballat and Tobia, ever fuch as are moft fo ward in wayes of reformation, muft expect reviling, we read in the third of Zech: 2. 3, He fhewed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the Lord, & Satan frauding at his right hand to refift him, &c. Now Joshua was cloathed with filthy garments, and stood before the Angell. Mark, Joshua here, was the great inftrument of good in the work of reformation; now Satan ftands at his right hard to hinder him in his work, by which means he doth feem to caft filth upon Joshua ; Joshua ftands cloathed with filthy garments, with reproachings, & revilings,and this was the way that Satan thought to hinder: And thofe that are forward in the worke of reformation Satan feeks to hinder by reproachings and revilings; And he feekes to do it, because that indeed there is nothing more grievous to an ingeneous fpirit then revifing and reproaching, It was very grievous to Chrift, Chrift cryed our when they nodded the head at him: And we never read of the Saints making their moans & complaints to God in a more

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amentable manner,then when reproaches were caft upon them: It is more grievous to a fpirit of ingenuity then imprisonment is, then lotle of goods, then paine in their bodyes, yea mmy times then death. Some men have been able to withstand imprifonment, lolfe of their eftates, danger of death, that have not been able to withstand reviling and reproaching. The Devill hath prevail'd by that way, when he could not prevaile by any other oppofition of the Saints. Now then the Devill feeing that this is fo grievous to an ingenuous Spirit, therefore he labours by this means, if he cannot prevaile with the other, he hopes he shall prevaile with this,and therefore the Saints must expect revilings and reproaches.

Yea God many times hath fome hand in it, in fuffering them to be reviled and reproached: God fometimes doth chaftife his people by the revilings of ungodly men, though it turnes to their bleffing at length: They are humbled by that means; But that we are not to fpeake of in this place; for we are to speak only of their reviling for the name of Christ; Wherefore then by way of Ufe.

Hence then when any of you enter upon the profeffion of Religion at first, make account of this before hand; make account that your dearest friends will be ready to revile you, make account in the family to have those that will revile you, and if you meet with revilings in the wayes of God, doe not account it a ftrange thing prefently, upon your profeffion of Religion you mult expect reproaches and contempt to be caft upon you: Lay in for that you young profetfors that begin in the wayes of godlineffe that you may not be turn'd out of the way, whenfoever you meete with them.

Secondly,Let the Saints labour to walk more exactly because of this, Bleffed are you if you be reviled for my fake falfely. You fee the world is fet upon reviling, take heed that you give no occafion to revile you, but if they do revile you,that they revile you for nothing but for Chrifts fake: O that's an excellent thing when Chriftians can fo walk, as when their enemyes feek to find out any thing, yet they have no reproach to caft upon them, but meerly their forwardneffe in the wayes

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of God; And if they will revile them for any thing else, it must be either by hear-fay from others,or from devices of their own; doe not fuffer like fooles, O let nor Chriftians fuffer as evill-doers, why they are like to fuffer for Chrifts fake..

Thirdly, Muft the Saints expect revilings from wicked men, O then let not Saints revile Saints; It's enough that the Saints are revid'd by the ungodly, let not thofe that are profetfors of Religion add to them: Donot you bind me, as Sampfon faid, fo ler not fuch as are reputed godly revile me, O let not the godly make the lives of other godly men to be grievous unto them any way, though Chrift will turne it to a bleifing, yet it is very hard for the Saints to indure revilings, elpecially from thole that are godly too: David faith in one of the Pfalms, That he was revil'd by his neighbours; It was he that eat bread with me at my Table, it was my friend and intimate acquaintance and in that, David was a type of Chrift that was betrayed by Judas, that was his intimate friend: You that are the people of God, you should be very carefull of one anothers names, for certainly the devill laughs much at it, there is no greater matter of joy in hell,then when one godly man reviles another, O you make fport even for the Devills themselves, and certainly there was never the like of that, as within these. few years. Those that are the people of God should not revile. the vile wicked ones, much leffe the Saints, I remember I have read of Darius his Generall, one Memnon, that having fouldiers in his prefence which did revile Alexander against whom he fought, fmote him with his lance on the head and faid, Sirrah, I pay thee thy wages to fight against Allexander, and not to revile& mifcall him. O where you fee any work of grace,take heed of reviling.

We might bring now that queftion in here, Why may we not fpeak evill of men that are evill? It will either belong to this place, or when we come in way of Application to the fecond, That thofe are bleffed that are reviled: Wherein we should fhew how the Saints fhould behave themselves, that though they be reviled thould not revile againe. Thofe that fuffer re

viling are bleffed, they are bleffed many wayes. Not to name the many Scriptures which we might: 2 Cor. 12. 10, & Heb. 11. 26. But to fhew wherein they are bleffed when they fuffer reviling.

Firft,hereby they fee a great difference that God hath made between them and others,they may think thus with themfelvs, I might have been among the number of revilers, but behold Í am revil'd for Chrifts fake.O what a bleffed thing is that, I that have as wretched a heart as any, I that might have been left to my felfe to have been among the rout of revilers of the Saints, yet that I fhould rather be reviled, then be among the revilers, the difference is great.

But fecondly, Bleffed are they that are reviled, for by this means they come to increase in grace, rather then any way to hindered; It's faid of Luther that he was fed with reproaches that wicked men caft upon him; And indeed God doth fuffer he revitings of wicked men, to make the Saints more fruitful, as the cafting of dung upon the earth maketh it more fruitfull. Bleffed are they therefore, they never grow more then when they are most reviled.

Thirdly, But then further, Bleffed are they, for all the reproaches that are caft upon them, Chrift doth own, I account them as mine faith Chrift,and Chrift takes care of their names, and Chrift will honour them, Chrift will reward them for every reproach; for every nick name that is caft upon them they fhall have a great reward in Heaven: Therefore they are blefled.

Now then if it be fo, Though there be divers particulars for Application, yet this is the maine thing that I shall now infift upon; That if it be a bleffed thing to be reviled for Chrift; Then thofe that are reviled fhould not feek to help themselves by reviling again,why wilt thou in a rage revile back again? Why I am revil'd, who can bare it? Why what hurt canft thou get by it? Chrift faith thou art bleffed in it, therefore. thou mayeft be the better pa ient under it: Yea the more patient thou art in it, the more will Chrift own thee, 38 Pfal.12. & 15. David he had been revild and reproacht, They allo

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