of the Jews. And the limitation put upon God's mercy and goodness may be found perhaps to be as prefumptuous, and as injurious to the honour and majefty of God in one cafe, as in the other. What then must we say to fuch inquirers as these? The answer in the text is given them both for their inftruction and their rebuke; Strive to enter in at the trait gate: for many, I fay unto you, will feek to enter in, and shall not be able. As if our Lord had faid, You feem, by your curiofity in inquiring after the ftate of others, to be fecure and at ease about your own. But turn your thoughts from others to yourself: as great as your advantages and privileges are, your way is ftill ftrait and narrow ftrive therefore and labour to fecure your own entrance into life; for many of those who have equal privileges with you, and profess to feek the kingdom of God, fhall not enter into it.

As the opinions hitherto mentioned confine the mercy of God within a narrow compafs, and leave the greater part of mankind under, defperate circumstances; so there is another which goes into the contrary extreme, and fets the doors of heaven open to all comers, with little or no regard to the different qualifications of men. They who can make no title to the kingdom of God under the terms of the Gospel, or by the rules of virtue and morality, not willing to give themselves up to deftruction, have perfuaded themselves and others, that it is impoffible that God fhould finally doom to mifery fo many of his creatures, as muft neceffarily fuffer if they are to be judged by the ftrict

rules of morality, or the no less strict rules of the Gospel. And having no hope, but in the mercy of God, no excufe but in the infirmities and weakneffes of human nature, neceffity makes them eloquent upon this fubject; and the finest things are faid to difplay the goodness of God, and fet it forth in the liveliest colours; and to represent the distress of nature, and the utter inability of man to do good in this fallen degenerate ftate. Thus concluding all men under fin, they hope to escape in the crowd: it would be inexorable cruelty, they think, to make all, or moft men miferable; and therefore, let God be good, and all men be finners, and they are safe.

To fuch inquirers as thefe, we say, that they miftake in all their reckoning: for, if it be juft to punish finners, no reason can be given why twenty fhould not be punished as well as ten, or an hun→ dred as well as twenty. There were finners enough in the world to have faved the world at the general deluge, if numbers would have done. When Sodom was deftroyed, ten righteous men would have faved the city; but the number of the wicked was never pleaded in bar of juftice. Neither does the race of men make fo confiderable a figure in the system of the universe, as to endanger the whole, if they mifcarry. Let men be finners, yet God will not want thofe who will ferve and obey him: or, if he should, let him fpeak the word, and millions will arise at his command: Think not therefore to fay within yourfelves, We have Abraham to our Father; for God is able of thefe ftones to raise up children unto Abraham. If all men fhould forfake him, he can, when he pleases, repair the lofs: he is not fo weak, or in such

want of the service of men, as to be guided by fuch politic reasons as oftentimes, reasonably enough, prevail with temporal princes to spare an offending multitude. Leave therefore the reft, of the world to the judgment and mercy of God, and mind you the law that is set before you as the condition of life, and ftrive to enter in at the ftrait gate.

You fee by this account, that our Saviour did not think fit to answer the curiofity of this inquirer: and, fince he declined the question, who alone was able to refolve it, it is abfurd to ask the question of any body else; and it is great presumption in any body elfe to pretend to answer it. From natural religion we may learn much, of the equity and juftice of God, and of the terms of obedience upon which we may hope to partake of his mercy: but how many, or how few, will act by the laws of reafon, and qualify themselves for the mercy of God, natural reason and religion can never fhew. Nor is there any reason to expect a refolution of this doubt in the books of Scripture; for had it been a piece of knowledge proper to be communicated to us, why was it not declared by our Lord, when the queftion was so fairly stated to him? or why does he give fuch an answer here, as is plainly calculated not to fatisfy the curiofity of mankind in this great point, but to restrain and to rebuke it? The queftion is, Are there few that be faved? The answer is in effect, What is that to you? mind your own bufinefs, and frive to enter in at the ftrait gate.

Two things there are, in which every man has a right to require fatisfaction, and without which he can upon no reasonable grounds pretend to reli

gion: one relates to the method of God's dealing with mankind, and comes to this point, Whether all men are capable; and, if not all, who are capable of falvation? The other relates to our own conduct and behaviour, and refolves itself into this inquiry, Upon what terms we may expect falvation? Now, as to these two neceffary inquiries, our Saviour is fo far from avoiding them, that he has expressly and clearly determined them. As to the first, he has told us, that salvation belongs to all men, of every country and nation; and that the kingdom of heaven is open to receive those who come from the eaft and weft, from the north and fouth. As to the second, he declares, that all the workers of iniquity will be excluded from the prefence of God; and therefore exhorts us to ftrive to enter in at the Strait gate: and, to quicken our diligence, and to raise in us a concern equal to the intereft we have at ftake, he informs us farther, that many who will Seek to enter, fhall not be able. Being thus far inftructed, what farther demand have you upon your teachers? Would you know before-hand what your lot will be? and whether you shall be in the number of those who fhall feek and find, or among those who would enter in, but shall not be able? What has a teacher of religion to do in this matter? Is it ever expected of a lawgiver, that he fhould tell who will obey and be happy, and who will tranfgrefs the law and be punished? Nay, what has a learner in religion to do with this point? Do you want to be made either careless or defperate? Is either state a defirable one to a man difpofed to be feriously religious? But you may think perhaps

that it would have another effect upon you; that it will give great ease and fatisfaction to your mind, to be fecure as to your future condition, and enable you with great cheerfulness to bear all the hardships and difcouragements to which virtue ftands expofed. I am indeed perfuaded that this effect would often follow; that many righteous would be refolutely righteous, and act with views above this world, and as citizens of another country, upon certain affurance given them of future glory. But confider, the terms upon which we are to be happy in another world must be such as are confiftent with our state and condition in this. It is impoffible to imagine it to be reasonable for God to place us in this world, and then to give fuch hopes of another, as should render us unfit to sup port the feveral characters impofed on us here. And it is much to be doubted whether the best men would not be rendered useless to this world by fuch security given for their own future happiness as fome seem to defire. They would probably be loft in the prospect of their own future happiness, and grow ftupid to the world, and act as if they did, in the literal fenfe, hate father and mother, brother and fifter: whereas now the fense of religion under which they live, the neceffity they know themselves to be under to work out their own falvation, obliges them to discharge all the offices and duties of life regularly and honourably; fince there is no way of fecuring our happiness in another world, but by doing all the good we can in this.

And if this fort of knowledge would probably