SERMON ΧΙΙ.

JOB xxviii. 28.

And unto Man He said; the Fear of the Lord, that is Wisdom ; and to depart from Evil, is Understanding.

ISDOM and Understand

W

ing are to the Soul what Meat and Drink are to the

Body; and Man's Appetites for the former, are na

turally as universal and intense, as for the latter. Accordingly we find with what Closeness of Thought, and Application of Industry, Mankind in general pursues Knowledge; and in what Efteem

those Persons are held in the World, who have been at all fuccefsful in their Pursuits; those, for Instance, who have made a more narrow Scrutiny, and produced more enlarged Discoveries of natural Things and Causes in the material World; or those, who have funk deeper than ordinary in the abstracted Niceties of those Scienes, which relate to the Spiritual and Moral World; or those again, who by History and Conversation and Business have improved in Political Knowledge, and with some Exactness understand what we call Men and Manners.

Bur among these various Pursuits after Wisdom; amidst the many Searches and Researches, wherein the Men of Speculation and Business have been ever labouring, but continue ever dissatisfied and bewilder'd, they may with great Fairnefs and Reafon put this Question of Holy Job to themselves; Where shall Wisdom be found, and where is the Place of Understanding? The Answer to which we are likewise furnish'd with from the fame facred Writer; The Fear of the Lord

Lord, that is Wisdom; and to depart from Evil, is Understanding.

It is usual in Holy Writ to express the Whole of Religion by some eminent Part of it. Both these Terms, viz. the Fear of God, and departing from Evil, are intended, tho' Branches only, to declare the Whole of our Duty; and Religion is here call'd the true, the only true Wisdom of Man: For indeed the Knowledge and Practice of that alone, doth denominate a Man truly wife; but without it, all other Sciences are mere Vanity and Emptiness, all other Knowledge but foolish Amusements and pompous Ignorance.

In order therefore to establish what is here afferted, I shall endeavour,

1. To enforce the Belief of the Proposition itself from these Words, Unto Man He said.

And,

II. To prove the Truth of the Propofition more directly, by shewing in what Respects, Religion is justly stiled true Wisdom.

Ist, THEN, 1st, THEN let us endeavour to enforce the Belief of the Proposition itself from these Words, Unto Man He faid.

RELIGION is Human Wisdom; it is that which belongs to a Man, as a Man; it is that which the All-wife and good God, who gave us these strong Appetites for Knowledge and Understanding, proposeth to us for the correspondent Object and compleat Satisfaction of those Appetites. God, who knoweth perfectly what is in Man, and weigheth all things in the exactest Balance of Justice and Harmony, hath made Religion Man's entire Business, qualifies him for attaining a sufficient Knowledge of it, and enables him to act conformably to such Knowledge.

Bur this will appear more evidently, from confidering that Religion lies level to every Man's Capacity. All other Parts of Learning require a peculiar Genius for their Attainment; and a tolerable Advance in any Sort of worldly Wisdom, is confequent only upon such great natural Abilities, as very few Persons are enrich'd with: And after all the flow and tedious Deductions, the great Pains and Fatigues, the many irksome Watchings, the laborious, and most of them useless, Searches, whereby even a slender Stock of worldly Learning is attain'd by Men of the best Parts : There ever remain great Dissatisfactions and Perplexities upon the Mind : Confused Guesses and bare Probabilities make up by far the greatest Part of what they know : And as small as the Sum is, of what they can be supposed to understand, it is beset with wonderful Difficulties and Uncertainties. So true are the Observations of the wisest and most learned of the Sons of Men upon this Subject : To know Wifdom, i. e. worldly Wisdom, is to know Madness and Folly ; this is likewise Vanity and Vexation of Spirt. In much.Study is much Weariness; and he that encreaseth Knowledge, encreaseth Sorrow. But Religious Knowledge, as it is what every one ought to be informed of, so it is what every one may be inform'd of: Here are no vast Qualifications previously necessary, to prepare the Soul for Divine Truths. Some Tempers indeed, it must VOL. I.

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