1. Never choose such texts as have not a complete sense; and even the complete sense of the writer; for it is his language, and they are his sentiments which you explain.

2. When the complete sense of the sacred writer is taken, you may stop; for there are few texts in scripture, which do not afford matter sufficient for a sermon; and it is equally inconvenient to take too much text, or too little; both extremes must be avoided.

When too little text is taken, you must digress from the subject, in order to find something to say. When too much text is taken, either many important considerations which belong to the passage must be left out, or a tedious prolixity must follow.

3. Regard must be paid to circumstances, and texts. must be chosen relative to them.

1st. In regard to times: which are of two sorts, ordinary, which every year return at the same seasons; or extraordinary, which fall out by providential occasions.

Of the first kind are Lord's supper days; or days which are solemnized amongst us, as Christmas-day, Easter, Whitsuntide, &c. On these days particular texts should be chosen, which suit the service of the day; for it would discover great negligence to take texts on such days which have no relation to them. It is not to be questioned but on these days peculiar efforts ought to be made, because then the hearers come with ra sed expectations, which, if not satisfied, turn into contempt and a kind of indignation against the preacher.

Of the second kind, particular days not fixed but occasional, are fast days, ordination days, &c. on which particular texts must be expressly chosen for the purpose. But on other extraordinary occasions, as most texts may be used to comfort, exhort, or censure, exhis example, Acts xviii. 4. the primitive fathers theirs, and the custom prevails over all the Christian world at this day. ROBINSON.

.

This practice, however, was interrupted in the dark times of popery, and the Ethics of Aristotle were read in many churches on Sundays, instead of the Holy Scriptures, as Melancthon and others testify. See BAYLE, in Aristot, Note U.

cept the subject in hand be extremely important, the safest way is not to change the usual text.*

2dly. I add one word touching sermons in strange places. Do not choose a text which appears odd, or the choice of which vanity may be supposed to dictate; nor a text of censure; for a stranger has no business to censure a congregation which he does not inspect, unless he have a particular call to it. In such a case, the censure must be conducted with wisdom, and tempered with sweetness. Nor choose a text leading to curious knotty questions; then it would be said, The man meant to preach himself. But choose a text of ordinary doctrine, in discussing which, doctrine and morality may be mixed; and rather let moral things be said by way of exhortation and consolation, than by way of censure. Not that the vicious should not be censured; for reproof is essential to preaching: but it must be given soberly, and in general terms, when we are not with our own flocks.f

2. As to GENERAL RULES of sermons, although the following are well known, they are too little practised; they ought, however, to be constantly regarded.

1. A sermon should clearly explain a text, make the sense easy to be comprehended, and place things before the people's eyes, so that they may be understood without difficulty. It ought to be remembered, that the greatest part of the hearers are simple people, whose profit, however, must be aimed at in preaching; but it is impossible to edify them, unless you be very

* Such a text, probably, our author means by the phrase, texte accoutumé, as would come in course in a precomposed set of serROB.

mons.

Mr. CLAUDE does not mention funeral sermons, which, with us, are sometimes just occasion of offence; but which might be well improved to the advantage of the living, if properly managed. It was the opinion of Vossius, that praying to saints owed its origin partly to the injudicious use of figurative language in funeral orations; to the apostrophes, and prosopopeias of the panegyrists. These abuses have driven some good men to lay aside all funeral services whatever; but with much more reason may we re tain and improve them to the benefit of the living. ROD.

clear. As to learned hearers, it is certain, they will always prefer a clear before an obscure sermon. Besides, they will consider the simple; nor will their benevolence be content, if the illiterate be not edified.*

2. A sermon must give the entire sense of the whole text, in order to which it must be considered in every view. This rule condemns dry and barren explications, wherein the preacher discovers neither study nor invention, and leaves unsaid a great number of beautiful things, with which his text would have furnished him. Discourses of this kind are extremely disgusting. I do not mean that a preacher should always use his utmost efforts, nor that he should always preach alike well, for that neither can nor ought to be. There are extraordinary occasions, for which all his vigour must be reserved. But I mean, that, in ordinary and usual sermons, a kind of plenitude should satisfy and content the hearers. The preacher must not always labour to carry the people beyond themselves, nor to ravish them into ecstacies; but he must always satisfy them, and maintain in them an esteem and an eagerness for practical piety.t

* Every discourse which wants an interpreter is a very bad one. The supreme perfection of a preacher's style should be to please the unlearned, as well as the learned, by exhibiting an abundance of beauties for the latter, and being very perspicuous to the former. ROLLIN's Bell. Lett.

A preacher is to fancy himself in the room of the most unlearned man in the whole parish, and must therefore put such parts of his discourses, as he would have all understand, in so plain a form of words, that it may not be beyond the meanest of them. BUR. NET'S Past. Care.

Μαλιςα σαφη χρη την λέξιν είναι. DEMET. PHAL. De Eloc. Oratio cujus summa virtus est perspicuitas, quam sit vitiosa si egeat interprete? QUINT. Instit. lib. i. cap. 4.

The interest which we have in what is spoken, alone, can ren. der us attentive. All the truths which the speaker declares, if we cannot personally apply them, are only heard with disgustfulwea. riness; and we sigh for the close of a discourse wherein we have no concern, and which is not even addressed to us.-Editor of MASSILON'S Sermons.

Perhaps this is the sole reason of that almost universal dissatisfaction under sermons which appears in so many places. Whatever is not suited to my condition has a coldness and poverty, in regard to me.

3. The preacher must be wise, sober, chaste. I say wise, in opposition to those impertinent people, who utter jests, comical comparisons, quirks and extravagancies.*

I say sober, in opposition to those rash spirits, who would penetrate all, and curiously dive into mysteries beyond the bounds of modesty. Such are those, who make no difficulty of delivering in the pulpit all the speculations of the schools; who fill their sermons with the different interpretations of a term, or the different opinions of interpreters on any passage of scripture; who load their hearers with tedious recitals of ancient history; or an account of the divers heresies which have troubled the church in any matter; all these are contrary to the sobriety of which we speak, and which is one of the most excellent pulpit virtues.

I say farther, chaste, in opposition to those bold and impudent geniuses, who are not ashamed of saying many things which produce unclean ideas in the mind. Chastity should weigh the expressions, and make a judicious choice, in order to keep the hearers' minds at the greatest distance from all sorts of carnal and terrestrial ideas.

The likeliest way of succeeding in these cases is to beware of pressing metaphorical terms too far; to adhere to general considerations; and, if possible, to explain the metaphorical terms in few words; and, afterwards, to cleave entirely to the thing itself. †

Such things have a very bad effect, as they destroy the gravity of sacred things in the same proportion in which they sanctify the levity of profane ones: yet, let us not imagine that every kind of smartness in preaching is to be avoided. See QUINT. lib. vi. De Risu.

Μπλε γέλωτα προπετη φερνε, μήτε λόγον μετα θρασος αποδέχε το μεν γαρ ανοήτον, το δε μανικον. Neque petulantem risum ama, neque audacem orationem proba, nam alterum stultitiæ est, alte, rum insaniæ. ISOCRAT. Orat. ad De mon.

Let us exemplify this observation from Mr. SAURIN. The subject is regeneration, the text John iii. 1-5. He observes, that the term is a trope, and must, First, be restrained; because it is impossible to understand a metaphor if we do not divest it of every thing foreign from the subject in question. Secondly, it must

4. A preacher must be simple and grave. Simple, speaking things full of good natural sense, without metaphysical speculations; for none are

more im

pertinent than they who deliver in the pulpit abstract speculations, definitions in form, and scholastic questions, which they pretend to derive from their texts.

To simple I add grave, because all sorts of mean thoughts and expressions, all sorts of vulgar and pro-. verbial sayings, ought to be avoided. The pulpit is the seat of good natural sense; and the good sense of good men. On the one hand then you are not to philosophize too much, and refine your subject out of sight; nor, on the other, to abase yourself to the language and thoughts of the dregs of the people.*

qua

be justified; for the change spoken of under the emblem of a new birth, though expressed in figurative language, is yet a real change. Thirdly, the idea that a new birth gives of this change is so perfect, that it might terrify timorous christians; it must therefore be lified. Fourthly, the qualifications of which the subject is capable, are apt to lull some into security, who, under pretence of infirmities, inseparable from the best of men, allow themselves in vices incompatible with a state of grace: this expression therefore must be guarded. SAURIN. Serm. Tom. vii.

* Rejice degènerem turbam nil lucis habentem, Indecoresque notas, ne sit non digna suppellex..

VIDA Ars Poet. Lib. iii. 183.

Yet, in compassion to the dregs of the people,' who with all their ignorance have souls, it ought to be remembered, that their minds are accessible only by their own way of thinking and speaking; and theirs is a different language, and a different habit of thinking from others in more cultivated life.

ROB.

Hence Aristotle wisely says: Το δε πρεπον εξει η λέξις εαν η παθητική, τε και ηθική, και τοις υποκειμένοις πραγμασιν ανάλογον.

Ηθικη δε αυτη η εκ των σημείων δείξις, ότι ακολυθεί η αρμοδίεσα εκάςω γενει και εξει.—Εξεις δε, καθ' ας ποιος τις τω βίω.-Ον γαρ ταυία, ουθ' ωσαύλως αγροίκος αν και πεπαιδευμενος ειπείς πα ARISTOT. Rhet. Lib. iii. cap. 7.

Optimi ad vulgus hi sunt concionatores, qui pueriliter, populariter, et simplissime docent. Mart. Luth. MELCH. ADAM, in Vita Lutheri.

Mr. Adams inserts some of Luther's homely country rhymes, for which perhaps the author may receive a greater reward at the last day than he would for whole shelves of Greek and Latin folios.

ROB