SERMON VI.

MATT. VI. 7.

But when ye pray, ufe not vain Repetitions, as the Heathen do for they think that they shall be beard for their much speaking.

Ver. 8. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what Things ye have need of, before ye afk him.

S to the Connexion; the general Subject our Saviour was now upon, was the cautioning his Difciples against some Blemishes in the Righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees. Some of these Blemishes proceeded from their wrong Interpretations of the Law, of which we had feveral Inftances in the 5th Chapter of this Gofpel. And fome other of them were without any pretence or colour of Law; only through their Pride, Covetoufness, and Cenforioufnefs, mixed with other commendable Duties, which quite marred the Grace and Beauty of them. Their Pride ran through all their Duties; but was more notoriously confpicuous in three very eminent ones, Alms-giving, Prayer, and Fafting. The Pride of their Alms-giving we had an Account

and a serious Caution against it in the

[SERM. first four Verfes of this Chapter. The fame as to their Prayers, at least one Branch of it, their Affectation to be seen of Men in their Devotions, our Saviour cautioned against at the 5th and 6th Verfes, being the Words immediately preceding the Text. And now in these two Verfes which I have read, another Part of the Pride adhering to their Devotions is guarded againft; namely, the great Length of them. But this is mentioned with another Aggravation; namely, as an Heathenish Vice, and proceeding from their Ignorance of the Nature of God, and the Nature of true Devotion. But when ye pray, use not vain Repetitions as the Heathen do, &c.

From the Words I fhall endeavour to do these two Things.

I. To give a Defcription of this Blemish of Devotion, called here The ufing of vain Repetitions.

II. To explain the Aggravations of this Sin, as they may be gathered from the Text and Con

text.

But before I begin, that we may not think our Saviour is wandring from his Subject, by bringing in the Faults of the Heathen, in the midst of his treating of thofe of the Scribes and Pharifees: Not to infift on it that fome Copies, instead of the Word Heathen, have here the Word Hypocrites; we are to confider that even this of long Prayers, as well as hypocritical ones, was one of the Vices of the Scribes and Pharifees. This fame Evangelift, Chap. xxiii. 14. gives us an Account of a Woe denounced against them by our Saviour on this Account, that for a Pretence they made long Prayer, in the mean time devour

ing Widows Houfes. Wo unto you Scribes and Pharifees, Hypocrites, for ye devour Widows Houfes, and for a Pretence make long Prayer; therefore ye fhall receive the greater Damnation. And both (a) St Mark and (b) St Luke give us an Account of his cautioning his Difciples against that Part of their Character. And therefore though to aggravate the Odiousness of it, it is added here, that it is an heathenifh Cuftom, yet being likewife a Custom of the Scribes and Pharifees, it was very pertinent to bring it in, in this Place; where he is cautioning his Difciples against the Blemishes of the Righteousness of the Scribes and Pharifees.

1. But now to come to the Fault itself, it is called here, Ufing vain Repetitions, and much Speaking in Prayer. It is no eafy Matter to give either a right Description of the Fault, or of the Reasons why it became fo faulty. The chief Fault of it, it feems, lay in turning Devotion from the affectionate Work of the Heart, to the Work of the Invention, Memory or Tongue: Or to an idle Repetition of the fame Thing over and over again. Some of the Jewish Writers tell us of the Pharifees, that they would make Prayers three Hours long; and we read of the Priests of Baal that (c) they cried to their God from Morning to Noon, faying, O Baal bear us. there were feveral Reafons for which they made thefe long Prayers. The Pharifees we are exprefly told, did it for a Shew or Pretence, Luk. xx. 47. that is, that they might gain to themselves a Character of devout and religious People; a Character

Now

(a) Mar. xii. 40. (b) Luk. xx. 47. (c) 1 Kings xviii. 26.

which turned mightily to Account for their covetous and ambitious Designs. And this fhews us how properly it comes in here, under this Head of their Pride. The Heathens had really no better Notions of their Gods; but thought they might be harangued and perfuaded, like Men, by human Eloquence; or even wearied out by Dunning and Importunity.

2. And this leads me to the fecond Thing I was to explain; namely, wherein the Faultiness of this Practice doth confift.

There is great Probability the Fault of these Devotions did not lie only in the Length of them. For if a true Spirit of Devotion is kept up all the time, we cannot well exceed either in the Frequency or the Continuance of our Addreffes to God; or even in an holy Importunity at the Throne of Grace. Nor is it unlawful to make Repetition of the fame Words and Petitions in Prayer, fo it be done from a Spirit of Devotion. We have feveral Examples in the Holy Scriptures of both these Practices. What a long, yet excellent Prayer did Solomon pronounce at the Dedication of the Temple? And David makes frequent Repetitions of the fame devout Prayers andThanks-givings in the Book of the Pfalms. It is written of our Saviour too, that three several times he prayed in the Garden, that the Cup of Sufferings might pass from him; and that in thefe three Prayers he made ufe of the fame Words. And as to the lengthening of his Devotions, in Luke vi. 12. we are told that He went out to a Mountain to pray; and continued all Night in Prayer to God. It is true, the Words are by fome otherwife tranflated, that he continued all Night in God's House of Prayer,

or

or in a Synagogue dedicated to God for that purpofe; for the Greek Word wore fignifies both Prayer, and an Houfe of Prayer. But granting this, it is most probable that that Night was spent in Devotion, for else why should he stay all Night in an House of Prayer? From all which it would feem that it is not the bare Length of Devotions, nor the ufing Repetitions in them, that is fimply condemned.

To fatisfie our felves then more pofitively in this Blemish of both Pharifaical and Heathenish Devotion, which is here condemned, let us a little more narrowly confider the Text and Context. From whence we may gather the following Observations, which will give us great Light into this Matter.

1. That Oftentation, and other worldly Aims and Defigns from long Prayers are here condemned.

2. That unworthy Conceptions of God, as if he either knew not our Wants, or were unwilling to relieve them, till informed and moved by our Perfuafions or Importunities; are here likewise condemned.

3. That the Prescribing to God in a great many worldly and indifferent Things, which lengthens out Prayers, is likewife here cenfured.

4. That our wrong Conceptions concerning the nature of Prayer, turning it from the Heart to a mere external laborious Service, are here rectified.

5. From the whole, that all Things confidered, few Words in Prayer are best, and fittest for the generality of Mankind.

All