SERM. And no wonder we are deceived, fince X. we fuffer ourfelves to be governed more by our Senfes than our Reason, and make Happiness, which is founded only in Virtue, fubfift entirely in Opinion. Hence it is, that every thing in its Turn, how vain and trifling foever, puts in its Claim to be the chief Good of Man, tho' it continues only for the prefent Moment, and leaves us to feek it fomewhere else. Thus do we make Happinefs precarious and uncertain, by placing it in Things, which in their Natures are fo. And if we are mistaken in the End, no wonder we are mistaken in the Means of obtaining it. While we place Happiness in the Gratification of our Paffions, we shall certainly look out for fuch Means, as we imagine moft proper for our Defigns.

In the first fix Chapters of this Book we find the Wife Man had been feeking after Happiness, and made an Experiment of every worldly Enjoyment, in order to find it, but all in vain, for he was as far from it then as he was before. But

the following Chapters he rectifies the Mif

X.

Miftake, thews what the Nature of true SERM. Happiness is, that it has no Foundation but in Virtue and Religion; and lays down many good Inftructions in order to obviate fome falfe Opinions which hinder'd People from finding it out. One of which he endeavours to obviate in the Words of the Text, by fhewing the Folly of thofe, who are of a murmuring complaining Temper, and are always uneafy at the prefent Times, as if the former were better; which he fhews is occafioned by a Want of a wife Confideration and Enquiry into this Matter: Say not thou, What is the Cause that the former Days were better than these? For thou dost not enquire wifely concerning this. In difcourfing upon the Words of the Text I fhall,

Firft, Enquire into the Ground of this Complaint, and fhew, that to fay the former Days were better than thefe, which is implied in the afking the Caufe of it, is generally falfe, and proceeds from a want of confidering wifely concerning this Matter.

X.

SERM. Secondly, I fhall fhew the Sin and Folly of murmuring against the present Difpenfations of God's Providence, even upon Suppofition that it was true. Thirdly, I fhall lay down fome Rules in order to acquire a happier Frame and Temper of Mind.

First then I am to enquire into the Ground of this Complaint, and shew, that to say the former Days were better than these, which is implied in the asking the Cause of it, is generally falfe; and proceeds from a want of confidering wifely concerning this Matter.

However wife and bountiful the Dif penfations of Providence are, there will never be wanting fome to murmur and complain, as they have hitherto done in all the Ages of the World. As they fay of Alphonfus, that he found fault with the Creation, and arraigned the Wisdom of God in the Natural World, fo there are too many others, who take the fame Freedom, and accufe the Divine Providence in the Moral World, and both for

the

the fame Reason, viz. for want of en- SERM. X. quiring wifely concerning this.

Complaints upon the Times are not more unjust than they are common; but to build them upon a Suppofition that the former Times were all good, and the prefent nothing but Evil, is to fuppofe what is not true; 'tis to take that for granted, which is the Matter in difpute, and to argue from a Suppofition, which is falfe in Fact, and wants to be proved. If the former Days were so very good in Comparison of these, it must appear by fome Account of Perfons, who lived in those Days. But how does that appear? Where have we any fuch Account? On the contrary, there were the fame Complaints in former Times as there are now; and tho' this may not be allow'd by a wife Man, as an Argument of the Badness of thofe Times, yet it is at leaft an Argument, that the Complainers in those Days thought them fo; and therefore must be allow'd to hold good against the Murmurers of thefe Days, even upon their own Principles. For if Dd2 they

X.

SERM. they are willing to hear their own Complaints pafs for certain Tokens of the Badness of the Times, they must by the fame Rule, and upon the fame Principles, think the fame of former Ages, and allow the Complaints of the People in those Times to have the fame Weight.

Now it is well known, that the Poets

hundred Years ago feigned the many World to be divided into three different Ages, the Golden, the Silver, and the Iron Age; the two former of these they imagined to be in a different Degree, very happy and profperous, but the laft they looked upon as very unhappy and miferable; yet they always took Care to place their own Times under the laft, as if all before were Golden Days, and their's were the only unhappy and troublesome Ones; and the fame Humour has prevailed ever fince, and will continue to do fo as long as we neglect to confider wifely concerning this. We find likewise from the Text, that there were the fame Complaints as far back as Solomon's Days, and no doubt of it in all Ages of the World.

Now