our SAVIOUR, fit not down in the highest room, left a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him; and he that bad thee and him, come and fay to thee,Give this man place: and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room.

But thou, when thou art bidden, go and fit down in the lowest room-hard lecture -- In the lowest room?--What,-do I owe nothing to myself? Muft I forget my ftation, my character in life? Refign the precedence which my birth, my fortune, my talents, have already placed me in poffeffion of?--give all up and fuffer inferiors to take my honour? Yes;--for that, fays our SAVIOUR, is the road to it: For

when he that bad thee cometh, he will fay to thee, Friend, go up higher; then fbalt thou have worship in the prefence of them who fit at meat with thee:for whofoever exalteth himself, shall be abafed; and be that humbleth himself, Shall be exalted.

To make good the truth of which declaration, it is not neceffary we should look beyond this life, and fay, That in that day of retribution, wherein every high thing shall be brought low, and every irregular paffion dealt with as it deferves;--that Pride, amongst the rest, (confidered as a vicious character) fhall meet with its proper punishment of being abafed, and lying down for ever in fhame and difhonour. It is not neceffary we

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thould look fo far forwards for the accomplishment of this: the words feem not so much to imply the threat of a distant punishment, the execution of which was to be refpited to that day;

as the declaration of a plain truth depending upon the natural course of things, and evidently verified in every hour's commerce of the world; from whence, as well as from our reafoning upon the point, it is found, That Pride lays us open to so many mortifying encounters, which Humility in its own nature refts fecure from,that verily, each of them, in this world, have their reward faithfully dealt out by the natural workings of men's paffions; which, tho' very bad executioners in general, yet are so far

just ones in this, that they feldom fuffer the exultations of an infolent temper to escape the abafement, or the deportment of a humble one to fail of the honour, which each of their characters do deferve.

In other vicious exceffes which a man commits, the world (tho' it is not much to its credit) feems to ftand pretty neuter if you are extravagant or intemperate, you are looked upon as the greatest enemy to yourself, or if an enemy to the public,at leaft, you are fo remote a one to each individual, that no one feels himself. immediately concerned in your punishment: but in the inftances of Pride, the attack is perfonal: for as this paffion can only take its rife from a fecret compari

fon, which the party has been making

of himself to my difadvantage, every intimation he gives me of what he thinks of the matter, is fo far a direct injury, either as it withholds the refpect which is my due,or perhaps denies me to have any; or elfe, which preffes equally hard, as it puts me in mind of the defects which I really have, and of which I am truly conscious, and confequently think myself the lefs deferving of an admonition: in every one of which cafes, the proud man, in whatever language he speaks> it,if it is expreffive of this fuperiority over me, either in the gifts of fortune, the advantages of birth or improvements, as it has proceeded from a mean estimation, and poffibly