who are very indifferent about hearing them. To conclude, my Lords, I can affure you, that I do not envy you your Temporal Emoluments; for I think that you buy them dear enough, at the expence of Truth and Confcience. I am fure I am not fingular in my opinion; thousands of your own disciples declare as much.-When you confider that there is no warrant in the Scripture for fuch a practice of Decimation, you cannot help concluding in your own mind, that you eat the bread of violence, unrighteousness, and oppreffion.--But I fhall now part with you for this time, and conclude my Difcourfe.. For God will bring every work into judgement, with every fecret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. THIS 8 HIS is a very ferious affair. There will, on this folemn occafion, be none to laugh at another. Every perfon will have enough to do with his own affairs. When the Searcher of hearts fhall lay open all the fprings of actions that have ever been fince the beginning of the world, there will be many works which have been determined good, M 2 2 that that will appear in very different colours. This is an affize where all men will be tried by an impartial Judge, who will determine of actions according to their principles, and not according to the varnish of appearances, by which they have been coloured by the art and craft of defigning and interested men. The truth of characters will, at this folemn period, be fully and fairly expofed, and none will be able to conceal the motives of actions from this Almighty Judge. Every work fhall be brought into judgement,-the most hidden and most secret works of darkness. Good and bad deeds fhall be made manifeft; this fhall be the conclufion of the whole matter. Whilft the great Drama of this Universe is acting, many thing's are concealed behind the fcenes, which, when all the feveral Acts are finished, fhall be laid open to the view of all, and fuch as have acted their part well, fhall be 4 be approved, while others, who have behaved unworthily, fhall meet with a Judgement according to their deferving. It will be a fad furprize to those who have dexterously covered over scenes of wickedness, and under colour of the fairest pretenfions, concealed the worst of deeds; to fee all their works expofed to those from whom they were at the greatest pains to hide them. Were thoughts as easily understood as the meaning of words, there are few perfons who would not blufh to look one another in the face; and, could our hearts be rendered as vifible to each other as our faces, it would fpoil a great degree of that confidence with which we appear in company. If the covetous man were perfuaded that his love of the mammon of unrighteousness was as vifible to all others, as it is manifeft to himself, instead of appearing in publick, he would fhut himself up in his closet, and feast M 3 his |