XXI. ing about other men and their concernments, in way of SERM.; paffing characters on them, or defcanting upon their proceedings for want of other discourse: this is the common refuge of idleness, and the practice of fiddling goffips,. who, because they will do nothing themfelves, muft be reflecting upon the doings of others; and that they may not fay nothing, will talk impertinently: húapo y Teglepyo, St. Paul well coupleth together, that is, frivolous tattlers and bufy-bodies; and withal, faith he of fuch goffiping women, 1 Tim. v. 13. they learn to be idle, wandering. about from house to houfe; and not only idle, but tattlers alfo, and bufy-bodies, Speaking things which they ought not. To affect talking about others is indeed a great temptation to fpeaking things which we ought not to speak, Vid. Chryf. words of unjust and uncharitable obloquy. in Heb. xxxi. 3. 12. Further; we should not be inquifitive into the de- Orat. 21. figns of men; for this, beside the vain curiofity and impertinency of fo doing, is to affail their modefty, and an adventure to vex both them and ourselves: thy neighbour perhaps, as moft advised men are, is defirous to keep his Percontatopurpose close to himself; then by inquiry, thou either rem fugito. forceft him unwillingly to disclose what he would not, or to give thee a repulfe, which he liketh not to do; and which whenever he doth, he is displeased: what is pumped out comes up against nature, and bringeth regret with it; and if we cannot get any thing out, we yet caufe disturb- Tv våroκρύψει. ance within; and ourselves are not well fatisfied in the disappointment. neque tu 13. We should not prefs into the retirements of men; to do fo is not only immodeft and rude, but unjuft: it is immodest to defire to know from any man what he is afhamed or unwilling to fhew: it is rude to difturb any. man in the enjoyment of his lawful freedom, to interrupt Arcanum him in his converfation with himself, to obftruct his pri- fcrutaberis vate fatisfactions: it is unjust to bereave a man of that ullius unleisure and opportunity which he poffeffeth, of doing that commifwhich he best liketh, and perhaps is greatly concerned in; fumque of enjoying his own thoughts, of meditating upon his vino tortus concerns, of examining his ways, of compofing his paf- et ira. quam, teges, et SERM. fions, of studying truth, of devotion and intercourse with XXI. his God, of contriving and carrying on in any wife the welfare of his own foul. Why doth he retire, but to shun diverfion, or that he may be mafter of his time and thoughts? Why then are we fo unkind, or fo unjuft, as to deprive him of those contents and advantages? 14. We should not pry or peep into men's fecrets; it is a practice upon many accounts blameable. It is commonly impertinent curiofity; for men hide things, because they do not think others concerned to know them; the concealment argueth their opinion to be fuch, and consequently that he is fondly curious who would fearch into them: Why, faid he well to one, who, feeing him carry a basket covered, did ask what was in it, dost thou feek to know, when thou seeft it covered, that thou mayeft not know d? It is foully difcourteous, because offenfively depriving men of the fatisfaction they take in concealing their matters; encroaching upon the innocent freedoms which they would enjoy, without rendering account to any; trespaffing upon their bashfulness, or fruftrating their difcretion; for therefore men choose to keep things clofe, because they like not, or judge it not expedient, to declare them. Ecclef. vii. Také no heed unto all words that are Spoken, left thou hear thy fervant curfe thee. 21. It is also grofsly injurious to deal thus; for it is a robbery of what is most dear to men; which they with more care referve and guard, than they do their gold or their jewels: fo that to break open the closet of a man's breast, to ranfack his mind, to pilfer away his thoughts, his affections, his purposes, may well be deemed a worse sort of burglary or theft, than to break open doors, to rifle trunks, or to pick pockets. It is a practice in the common opinion of men worthily efteemed very difhoneft and treacherous; for men generally do fuppofe each other to be under a tacit, but well « Τὸ τοῦ Αἰγυπτία χάριεν πρὸς τὸν ἐρωτῶντα τὶ φέρει συγκεκαλυμμένον, διὰ τοῦτο συγκεκάλυπται. Plut. περὶ πολυπρ. understood compact, obliged mutually (as they tender SERM greatly the retaining their own fecrets, fo) to abftain from XXI. attempting to difcover the fecrets of others; to do other wife is therefore taken for an act of perfidious enmity, and a violation of mutual confidence. In fine, to peep into chinks, to liften at doors or windows, to mind whispers, to dive into letters and papers, and the like practices, are the practices of infidious evesdroppers, fpies, and fycophants, which common humanity will not endure. Yea, if the knowledge of what our neighbour would conceal doth cafually arrive to us, it is advisable to fmother it, it is inhumanity to reveal it to his prejudice. To reveal fecrets, is a practice condemned in Scripture as odious and base. "He that goeth about as a tale-bearer, Prov. xx. revealeth fecrets. A tale-bearer revealeth fecrets; but he Prov.xi. 13. that is of a faithful Spirit concealeth the matter. 19. δευτερώσης λόγου γον, συναπο Not to take up, or scatter reports prejudicial. Ecclus. Maers xix. 7, 10. A wife man would not willingly anywife know the fe-Axxos crets of others, but gladly would fhun them, although Sarira N. offering themselves to his knowledge; that he may be freed from the burden of keeping them, and the danger of venting them, to the diftafte, wrong, or prejudice of others: and he is commended for his difcretion, who, to a prince asking him, What of his he should impart to him ? replied, Whatever you pleafe, except your fecrets". Them he well thought unsafe to keep, and dangerous to utter. How foolish then is it voluntarily to intrude, or carefully to fearch into them! 15. We should not lie in wait to furprise or catch any man at advantage, to overthrow him when he trips, to infult upon his mistake or his disaster; to do thus is always ill manners, it is sometimes barbarous inhumanity. Goodnefs in fuch cases would dispose a man to support, relieve, and comfort another, if he demandeth, or his cafe needeth fuch meddling. • Philippides apud Plut. in Apoph. ad Lyfimach. Twos ao, tv, tāv iμāv μεταδῶ ; κακεῖνος, οὗ βάλει πλὴν τῶν ἀποῤῥήτων. SERM. 16. Laftly; we should never, at least with much earnestXXI. nefs, meddle with affairs more properly belonging to others, and which we do not, or may not handsomely pretend to understand so well as others: fuch are affairs befide our profeffion, which if we understand not, it is a folly, in a peremptory manner, to treat of them; if we do understand them, it is yet undecent to conteft or dictate about them, in the presence at least of those who profess them thus fhould private men beware, at least in that magisterial or eager way, to meddle with political affairs, illiterate men with fcholaftical, laymen with theological, unexperienced men with any fuch matters, the compre henfion whereof dependeth upon skill and exercise::. no man fhould be forward to meddle with things extraneous to his way and calling: doing fo is wont to create much, offence, it hath usually much immodefly and much folly in it; often it containeth much injuftice. : These are some more general rules concerning the matter in hand: I should now, if time did permit, infist upon fome particular kinds of meddling, advice, reproof, interpofing in contefts; but, in regard to your patience, I fhall proceed no farther at present. } And that ye ftudy to be quiet, and to do your own business. IN a former difcourfe upon these words, I have already SERM. fhewed, I. In what cafes it is allowable or commendable to meddle with the affairs of others. II. Next, I propounded fome general rules concerning this matter, according to which we may discern in what cafes meddling with the affairs of others is commonly blameable. Thus far I have proceeded. III. I shall now give some directions concerning particular kinds of meddling. And because they are many, I fhall at present only infift upon three; (referring others to other occafions :) they are, advice, reproof, interpofing in contefts, and contentions. I. As to meddling in advice, we may do well to obferve these directions. 1. Advise not (except upon call) a fuperior, or one more eminent than thyself in authority, in dignity, or in age: for he that offereth to advise, doth thereby claim to himself a kind of fuperiority, or excellence, above another; and it is not well confiftent with the reverence and respect due to our betters to feem to do fo. They should XXII. |