Thefe, he tells us, fhould proceed to that height of impiety, as to fcoff at the principles of religion, and to deride the expectations of a future judgment: In the laft days fhall come fcoffers, walking after their own lufts, and faying, Where is the promife of his coming?

In fpeaking to these words, I fhall do these three things.

1. Confider the nature of the fin here mentioned; which is, fcoffing at religion.

2. The character of the perfons that are charged with the guilt of this fin. They are said to walk after their own lufts.

3. I fhall represent to you the heinousness and the aggravations of this vice.

I. We will confider the nature of the fin here mentioned; which is, fcoffing at religion: There fhall come fcoffers. Thefe, it feems, were a fort of people that derided our Saviour's prediction of his coming to judge the world. So the Apostle tells us in the next words; that they faid, Where is the promife of his coming?

In thofe times there was a common perfuafion among Chriftians, that the day of the Lord was at hand, as the Apostle elsewhere tells us, 2 Theff. ii. 2. Now this, it is probable, these fcoffers twitted the Chriftians withal; and becaufe Chrift did not come when fome looked for him, they concluded he would not come at all. Upon this they derided the Christians, as enduring perfecution in a vain expectation of that which was never likely to happen. They faw all things continue as they were from the beginning of the world, notwithstanding the apprehenfions of Chriftians concerning the approaching end of it: For fince the fathers fell asleep all things continue as they were,. from the beginning of the world. Since the fathers fell aBeep, do's, which may either be rendered from the time; or ele, which feems more agreeable to the Atheistical difcourfe of thefe men, faving (or except) that the father's are fallen asleep, all things continue as they were; saving that men die, and one generation fucceeds another, they faw no change or alteration. They looked upon all things as going on in a constant courfe: one generation of men paffed away, and another came in the room of it; but the world remained still as it was. And thus, for ought

So

ought they knew, things might hold on for ever. that the principles of these men feem to be much the fame with thofe of the Epicureans, who denied the providence of God, and the immortality of mens fouls; and confequently a future judgment which fhould fentence men to rewards and punishments in another world. Thefe great and fundamental principles of all religion they derided as the fancies and dreams of a company of melancholy men, who were weary of the world, and pleafed themselves with vain conceits of happiness and eafe in another life. But as for them, they believed none of those things; and therefore gave all manner of licence and indulgence to their lufts.

But this belongs to the second thing I propounded to fpeak to, namely,

II. The character which is here given of these scoffers. They are faid to walk after their own lufts. And no wonder if, when they denied a future judgment, they gave up themselves to all manner of fenfuality.

St. Jude, in his epiftle, gives much the fame character of them that St. Peter here does, y 18. 19. There shall come in the last days mockers, walking after their own ungodly lufts, fenfual, not having the Spirit. So that we fee what kind of perfons they are who profanely scoff at religion; men of sensual spirits, and of licentious lives. For this character which the Apostle here gives of the fcoffers of that age, was not an accidental thing which happened to thofe perfons; but is the constant character of them who deride religion, and flows from the very temper and difpofition of those who are guilty of this impiety; it is both the ufual preparation to it, and the natural confequent of it.

To deride God and religion, is the highest kind of impiety. And men do not ufually arrive to this degree of wickedness at first, but they come to it by several steps. The Pfalmift very elegantly expreffeth to us the several gradations by which men at last come to this horrid degree of impiety: Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counfel of the ungodly, nor ftandeth in the way of finners, nor fitteth in the feat of the fcornful, Pfal. i. 1. Men are usually first corrupted by bad counfel and com pany, which is called walking in the counsel of the ungodly;

next they habituate themselves to their vitious practices, which is ftanding in the way of finners; and then at last they take up and fettle in a contempt of all religion, which is called fitting in the feat of the fcornful.

For when men once indulge themselves in wicked courses, the vitious inclinations of their minds fway their understandings, and make them apt to difbelieve those truths which contradict their lufts. Every inordinate luft and paffion is a falfe bias upon mens understandings, which naturally draws toward Atheism: and when mens judgments are once biaffed, they do not believe according to the evidence of things, but according to their humour and their intereft. For when men live as if there were no God, it becomes expedient for them that there should be none; and then they endeavour to perfuade themselves fo, and will be glad to find arguments to fortify themselves in this perfuafion. Men of diffolute lives cry down religion, because they would not be under the restraints of it; they are loth to be tied up by the ftrict laws and rules of it: it is their intereft, more than any reafon they have against it, which makes them defpife it; they hate it, because they are reproved by it. So our Saviour tells us, that men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil. For every one that doth evil, hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, left his deeds fhould be reproved, John iii. 19. 20.

I remember it is the faying of one, who hath done more by his writings to debauch the age with Atheistical principles, than any man that lives in it, "That when "reafon is against a man, then a man will be against "reafon." I am fure this is the true account of fuch mens enmity to religion. Religion is against them, and therefore they fet themselves against religion. The principles of religion, and the doctrines of the holy fcriptures, are terrible enemies to wicked men; they are continually flying in their faces, and galling their confciences: and this is that which makes them kick against religion, and fpurn at the doctrines of that holy book. And this may probably be one reafon why many men, who are observed to be fufficiently dull in other matters, yet can talk profanely, and fpeak against religion, with fome kind of falt and smartnefs; becaufe religion is the thing that

frets

frets them and as in other things, fo in this, vexatio dat intellectum; the inward trouble and vexation of their minds gives them some kind of wit and sharpness in rallying upon religion. Their confciences are galled by it, and this makes them winch and fling as if they had fome mettle. For, let men pretend what they will, there is no ease and comfort of mind to be had from Atheistical principles. It is found by experience, that none are more apprehenfive of danger, or more fearful of death, than this fort of men: even when they are in profperity, they ever and anon feel many inward stings and lashes ; but when any great affliction or calamity overtakes them, they are the most poor-fpirited creatures in the whole world.

The fum is: The true reason why any man is an Atheist is, because he is a wicked man. Religion would curb him in his lusts, and therefore he cafts it off, and puts all the fcorn upon it he can. Befides, that men think it fome kind of apology for their vices, that they do not act contrary to any principle they profefs: their practice is agreeable to what they pretend to believe; and so they think to vindicate themselves, and their own practices, by laughing at thofe for fools who believe any thing to the contrary.

III. The third thing I propounded was, to reprefent to you the heinousness and the aggravations of this vice. And to make this out, we will make these three fuppofitions, which are as many as the thing will bear.

1. Suppofe there were no God, and that the principles of religion were false.

2. Suppose the matter were doubtful, and the argu ments equal on both sides.

3. Suppofe it certain that there is a God, and that the principles of religion are true. Put the cafe how we will, I fhall fhew that the humour is intolerable.

Ift, Suppose there were no God, and that the principles of religion were false. Not that there is any reason for fuch a fuppofition, but only to fhew the unreafonableness of this humour. Put the cafe that these men were in the right, in denying the principles of religion, and that all that they pretend were true; yet fo long as the generality of mankind believes the contrary, it is

certainly

certainly a great rudeness, or incivility at leaft, to deride and fcoff at these things. Indeed, upon this fuppofition, there could be no fuch thing as fin; but yet it would be a great offence against the laws of civil converfation. Suppofe then the Atheist were wifer than all the world, and that he did, upon good grounds, know that all mankind, bcfides himself and two or three more, were mistaken about the matters of religion; yet, if he were either fo wife or fo civil as he fhould be, he would keep all this to himself, and not affront other men about these things.

I remember that that law which God gave to the people of Ifrael, Thou shalt not speak evil of the rulers of thy people, is rendered by Jofephus in a very different fenfe, What other nations account gods, let no man blafpheme. And this is not fo different from the Hebrew, as at first fight one would imagine; for the fame Hebrew word fignifies both gods and rulers. But whether this be the meaning of that law or not, there is a great deal of reafon in the thing. For though every man have a right to difpute against a falfe religion, and to urge it with all its abfurd and ridiculous confequences, as the ancient fathers did in their difputes with the Heathen; yet it is a barbarous incivility for any man fcurriloufly to make fport with that which others account religion, not with any defign to convince their reason, but only to provoke their rage.

But now the Atheist can pretend no obligation of confcience why he should fo much as difpute against the principles of religion, much less deride them. He that pretends to any religion, may pretend confcience for oppofing a contrary religion; but he that denies all religion, can pretend no confcience for any thing. A man may be obliged indeed in reafon and common humanity to free his neighbour from a hurtful error; but fuppofing there were no God, this notion of a Deity and the principles of religion have taken fuch deep root in the mind of man, that either they are not to be extinguished; or if they be, it would be no kindness to any man to endeavour it for him, because it is not to be done, but with fo much trouble and violence, that the remedy would be worse than the disease.

For