Canaan, though he had brought the people out of Egypt. And men, even in those very things wherein they are influenced by a truly pious principle, may, through error and want of due consideration, be very rash with their zeal. It was a truly good spirit which animated that excellent generation of Israel in Joshua's time; (Josh. xxii.) and yet they were rash and heady with their zeal, to gather all Israel together, to go so furiously to war with their brethren of the two tribes and half, about their building the altar Ed, without first inquiring into the matter, or so much as sending a messenger to be informed. So the Christians of the circumcision, with warmth and contention, condemned Peter for receiving Cornelius. This their heat and censure was unjust, and Peter was wronged in it; but there is every appearance in the story, that they acted from a real zeal and concern for the will and honour of God. So the primitive Christians, from their zeal for, and against unclean meats, censured and condemned one another. This was a bad effect, and yet the Apostle bears them witness, or at least expresses his charity towards them, that both sides acted from a good principle, and true respect to the Lord, (Rom. xiv. 6.) The zeal of the Corinthians with respect to the incestuous man, though the Apostle highly commends it, yet at the same time saw that they needed a caution, lest they should carry it too far, to an undue severity, so as to fail of Christian meekness and forgiveness, (2 Cor. ii. and vii.)-Luther, that great reformer, had a great deal of bitterness with his zeal.

It surely cannot be wondered at by considerate

persons, when multitudes all over the land have their affections greatly moved, that great numbers should run into many errors and mistakes with respect to their duty, and consequently, into many practices that are imprudent and irregular. I question whether there be a man in New England, of the strongest reason and greatest learning, but what would be put to it to keep master of himself, thoroughly to weigh his words, and to consider all the consequences of his behaviour, so as to conduct himself in all respects prudently, if he were so strongly impressed with a sense of divine and eternal things, and his affections so exceedingly moved, as has been frequent of late among the common people. How little do they consider human nature, who think it so insuperable a stumbling-block, when such multitudes of all kinds of capacities, natural tempers, educations, customs, and manners of life, are so greatly and variously affected, that imprudences and irregularities of conduct should abound; especially in a state of things so uncommon, and when the degree, extent, swiftness, and power of the operation is so very extraordinary, and so new, that there has not been time and experience enough to give birth to rules for people's conduct, and the writings of divines do not afford rules to direct us in such a state of things!

A great deal of confusion and uproar, darkness mixed with light, and evil with good, is always to be expected in the beginning of something very glorious in the state of things in human society, or the church of God. After nature has long been shut up in a cold dead state, when the sun returns in the spring, there is, together with the increase of the light and heat of the sun, very tempestuous weather, before all is settled, calm, and serene, and all nature rejoices in its bloom and beauty. It is in the new creation as it was in the old; the Spirit of God first moved upon the face of the waters, which was an occasion of great uproar and tumult. Things were then gradually brought to a settled state, till at length all stood forth in that beautiful, peaceful order, when the heavens and the earth were finished, and God saw every thing that he had made, and behold it was very good. When God is about to bring to pass something great and glorious in the world, nature is in a ferment and struggle, and the world, as it were, in travail. When God was about to introduce the Messiah into the world, and a new, glorious dispen-. sation, "he shook the heavens and the earth," and he "shook all nations." There is nothing that the church of God is in Scripture more frequently represented by than vegetables; as a tree, a vine, corn, &c. which gradually bring forth their fruit, and are first green before they are ripe. A great revival of religion is expressly compared to this gradual production of vegetables: "As the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth; so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations." The church is in a special manner compared to a palm-tree, of which it is observed, that the fruit of it, though very sweet and good when ripe, has, while unripe, a mixture of poison.

The weakness of human nature has always appeared in times of great revival of religion, by a disposition to run to extremes, and get into confu

sion; and especially in these three things, enthusiasm, superstition, and intemperate zeal. So it appeared in the time of the Reformation very remarkably, and even in the days of the apostles. Many were exceedingly disposed to lay weight on those things that were very chimerical, giving heed to fables-(1 Tim. i. 4. and iv. 7. and Tit. i. 14. and iii. 9.) Many, as ecclesiastical history informs us, fell into the most wild enthusiasm, and extravagant notions of spirituality, and extraordinary illuminations from heaven, beyond others; and many were prone to superstition, will-worship, and a voluntary humility, giving heed to the commandments of men, being fond of an unprofitable bodily exercise, as appears by many passages in the Apostle's writings. And what a proneness then appeared among professors to swerve from the path of duty, and the spirit of the gospel, in the exercises of a rash indiscreet zeal, censuring and condemning ministers and people: one saying, "I am of Paul; another, I am of Apollos; another, I am of Cephas." They judged one another for differences of opinion about smaller matters, unclean meats, holy days, and holy places, and their different opinions and practices respecting civil intercourse and communication with their heathen neighbours. And how much did vain jangling, disputing, and confusion prevail, through undue heat of spirit, under the name of a religious zeal! (1 Tim. vi. 4, 5. 2 Tim. ii. 16. and Tit. iii. 9.) And what a task had the apostles to keep them within bounds, and maintain

good order in the churches? mention their irregularities?

How often do they

The prevailing of such like disorders, seems to have been the special occasion of writing many of their Epistles. The church, in that great effusion of the Spirit, and under strong impressions, had the care of infallible guides, that watched over them day and night; but yet, so prone were they, through the weakness and corruption of human nature, to get out of the way, that irregularity and confusion rose in some churches, where there was an extraordinary outpouring of the Spirit, even in the apostles' lifetime, and under their eye. And though some of the apostles lived long to settle the state of things, yet, presently after their death, the Christian church ran into many superstitions, and childish notions, and practices, and, in some respects, into a great severity in their zeal. And let any wise person, that has not, in the midst of the disputes of the present day, got beyond the calmness of consideration, impartially consider, to what lengths we may reasonably suppose many of the primitive Christians, in their heat of zeal, and under their extraordinary impressions, would soon have gone, if they had not had inspired guides. Is it not probable, that the church of Corinth in particular, by an increase of their irregularities and contentions, would in a little time have been broken to pieces, and dissolved in a state of the utmost confusion? And yet this would have been no evidence that there had not been a most glorious and remarkable outpouring of the Spirit in that city. But as for us, we have no infallible apostle to guide and direct us, to rectify disorders, and reclaim us when we are wandering; but every one does what is right in his own eyes; and they