The Whole Duty of Man Epitomized, Part 13
PARTITION XIII.
Of falſe Reports; falſe Witneſs; Publick Slanders, Wiſperings; of Scoffing, Calamities, Sins, &c. Of Poſitive Juſtice, Truth, …ying, of Envy and Detraction, of Gratitude, &c.
THE Credit of His Credit. our Neighbour is another Part of Negative Juſtice, which ſhould be as dear to us as his Poſſeſſions, and ſhould in no reſpect be impair'd either by falſe Reports or malicious Surmizes and Conjectures, from both which our Reputation, the deareſt thing we have, next our Souls, is liable to great Injury.
Falſe Reports may Falſe Witneſs.be ſpread divers ways, both Publick and Private, the Publick way is ordinarily, by bearing falſe Witneſs either with regard to our Lives or Eſtates; this is a moſt grievous Wound indeed to our Credit, a ſort of outragious Injuſtice to our Neighbour, that we are hardly ever able to make him amends for.
The ſecond open way of ſpreading theſe Reports is by Publick Slander, Publick Slander.and herein our Reputation is alſo liable to a great deal of Injury. Reproaches, Lying, Scandal and Railing make up the baſe Compoſition, which as the Apoſtle long ago obſerv'd were amongſt other Works of the Fleſh, fit only to ſhut Men out of the Church here, and the Kingdom of Heaven hereafter.
The Private way of ſpreading ſuch Reports is Whiſpering, this is a way as Whiſpering.dangerous if not worſt then the former, and is by St. Paul mention'd in the Catalogue of great Crimes, which are the effect of a Reprobate Mind; this is a kind of Slander that like ſecret Poyſo… deſtroys us inſenſibly; 'tis Solomon… Obſervation; that the Wiſperer ſeparates chief Friends, than which nothing can argue louder for the ſuppreſſing of it.
The ſeveral Steps Several Steps toward this Sin.of this Vice are to be carefully avoided, as Firſt, We ſhould be ſo far from encouraging it, that we ſhould rather reject the very firſt approaches of the Tale-bearer: Secondly, We ſhould be very Cautious how we believe falſe Reports, or rather we ſhould never give any Credit at all to them: And Thirdly, We ſhould be ſure never to report any thing we here from ſuch kind of People, but look upon 'em no leſs Enemies to us, then to thoſe of whom they are ſpeaking.
Beſides, this open way of impairing our Neighbours Credit, there is▪ yet another, which though it may ſeem to be a little more plauſible, is yet in all reſpects as bad as the former; I mean Scoffing and Reviling, Scoffing and Reviling.which indeed is not only an Injury to our Neighbour, but even to God himſelf.
The three Things for which Men are For Infirmities, Calamities, and Sins.commonly revil'd, are either for their Infirmities, their Calamities or their Sins; and why ſhould Men be deſpis'd for that which they cannot help, this is calling God's Providence to an Account, eſpecially with reſpect to the two former; indeed for our Sins they have more of our Wills, 'tis true, but then conſidering they make us the moſt miſerable of any thing elſe, without doubt they require a great deal of our Pity and Compaſſion.
We owe likewiſe a Negative Juſtice to Deſtroying the Credit, a great Injury, and irreparable.the Credit and Reputation of our Neighbour; his Credit is the moſt valuable thing he has, and therefore to Rob him of that, is the higheſt Injury we can do him 'tis the higheſt, becauſe his Damage is irreparable; the utmoſt we can do, can never make him amends, and yet Every guilty Perſon to do all he can in Order to it.we muſt do our beſt, becauſe without it we can never expect God's Pardon for the Sin.
Thus I have paſt through the four Branches of Negative Juſtice to our Neighbour, and yet muſt further obſerve, that this Juſtice binds our Juſtice in the Thoughts.Thoughts as well as our Words and Actions; nay, it confines even our Wiſhes and Affections. Our whole Hearts ſhould be intent upon his Good, and our Minds conſtantly taken up, which way we may beſt promote the Happineſs both of his Soul and Body.
I come now to ſpeak Poſitive Juſtice.of Poſitive Juſtice, by which is intended the giving to every Man his proper dues, whether General, or Particular; as Firſt, The ſpeaking Truth in general Speaking Truth, a due to all Men.of all Mankind; this is a common debt we owe to every one, and indeed we are bound to th… ſtrict performance of it, by many ſtrong and weighty Obligations, but the greateſt of all is, becauſe Lying is a Vice ſo ſcandalous and odious in it ſelf, and ſo ſolemnly condemn'd in many parts of Holy Scripture; Lying forbid in Scripture.but then whats very ſtrange, notwithſtanding 'tis the moſt Lying a common and fooliſh Sin.fooliſh and ridiculous, 'tis become ſo common, that 'tis a great Rariety (to uſe the Words of the Royal Prophet) to find a Man that ſpeaks the Truth from his Heart.
Next to this we owe to all, Humanity… Courteſie due to all, yet unpaid by the Proud.and a courteous and affable Behaviour, a Vertue which a Proud Man can never arrive to; he is ſo buſie in admiring himſelf, that he overlooks all the Perfections of others.
Meekneſs is likewiſe Meekneſs, a due to all Men.a Debt we owe to every Body, and indeed a very great accompliſhment, and highly neceſſary for the Preſervation of the Peace of the World; whilſt on the contrary, all ſorts of Brawlings and Contentions, Brawlingvery unſufferable, and leads to the Sin of Curſing.tend to Diſorder and Confuſion, nay, what's worſe, they tend to a great many Sins too, but eſpecially to that moſt provoking Sin, Curſing and Execration.
Having thus far Particular Dues.ſpoken of Dues in General, I come now to the Particular, which Men are ordinarily entitl'd to upon ſome ſpecial Qualification, the three chief are, that of Excellency, that of Want, and that of Relation.
And firſt a Man is entitl'd to our Reſpect A reſpect due to Men of extraordinary Gifts.upon the Account of his Excellency. I mean for his extraordinary Gifts and Endowments, ſuch as are Wiſdom, Learning, Grace, and the like; and ſuch a Perſon we are in no reſpect either to Envy or Revile, or to grudge at God's We are not to Envy them, nor detract from them.Bleſſings and Kindneſs to him; we ſhould not attempt to detract from his Worth, or to cloud or darken his Merits, but rather do our beſt to make 'em as conſpicuous as we can, and this we ſhould do not only as it is a Debt which we owe to him, but becauſe the contrary is an Act The Folly of both theſe.of extream folly, as well as ill Nature and Injuſtice.
Beſide the Excellencies of the Mind, we owe a regard to the Quality and outward Advantages. God for the due governing of the World, A reſpect due to Men in regard of their Ranks and Qualities.…as decreed ſeveral Orders and Claſſes of Men, to each of which in Proportion to their reſpective Dignity we are to pay a due Reſpect.
We are alſo Debtors Dues to thoſe that are in any ſort of Want, to the Poor.to Perſons under any kind of Want, whether Spiritual or Temporal, but more eſpecially to the Poor, who by Gods particular Appointment, have a ſolemn Right to our ſuperfluities; and then it can be nothing elſe but an arrant Robbery to beſtow that upon our Luſt or Vanity, which is aſſign'd for their Portion. In the Caſe of the Poor we are Gods Stewards, and 'tis the ſame unjuſtice and fraud for us to embezle that which he has entruſted with us, as it is for any Steward to miſemploy that which was intended for the uſe of his Maſters Family, and commonly too meets with the God withdraws thoſe Abilities, that are not thus employ'd.Doom of the unjuſt Steward in the Goſpel, to cauſe us to he put out of our Stewardſhip, and have thoſe Abilities taken away, that have been ſo unfaithfully employ'd.
The third Qualification is that of Relation, Duties in reſpect to Relation.and of this there are divers ſorts, as Firſt, that of a Debtor to a Creditor, and of an oblig'd Perſon to his Benefactor, and in both theſe Particulars we are bound by the ſtricteſt ties of Juſtice and Gratitude Not to pay our juſt Gratitude to Benefactors, the contrary too common.Debts when we are able, is a Vice almoſt unpardonable, and … be ungrateful to a Benefactor, however common it may be in this unthankful Age, is an Act the moſt ſordidly baſe and diſingenieus.