An essay to revive the necessity of the ancient charity and piety wherein God's right in our estates and our obligations to maintain his service, religion, and charity is demonstrated and defended against the pretences of covetousness and appropriation : in two discourses written to a person of honour and vertue / by George Burghope.

§. XI. Obj. 3. That God hath not defin'd the Quota of Charity, answer'd.

3. Lastly, it is said, That if Libe∣rality must have a share of our E∣states, over and above what the Law obliges us to, it shall yet have little enough. For God nor Man hath defin'd the Quota of this re∣dundant Charity. I may give what I please, and where. And I know my own Wants, and do not those of others, and therefore I think it best to administer to mine own Necessities, (which ought to be first serv'd) and then to those of o∣thers (if I have ought to spare) and not otherwise: For if God hath not appointed what Part of my Estate I shou'd bestow upon Works of Charity, then 'tis left to my self; and if so, Self must be first satisfied, and then there will be

but little left: So that this is the way to constitute a partial Judge, who will shrink up the Portion of Charity to a very small quantity. To which I answer:

1. 'Tis confessed, That neither the particular Modes, nor the pro∣portion of doing Good, are (or indeed can be) defin'd, prescrib'd, and enforc'd under a Penalty; be∣cause they depend upon future Contingencies, and God deals with Man as with an ingenuous Crea∣ture. He loves a free-will Offer∣ing, and therefore has left us a La∣titude. He has not set the Bounds and Limits, because we might ad∣vance it according as we find op∣portunity. But then if any Man from thence takes occasion to shrink it up to that minuteness that it is next to nothing; let him know, that he doth but cheat himself of his Reward, as well as God and his Neighbour of their Due. For the general Rules of loving (viz. ef∣fectively, and to all the purposes of

Good) our Neighbour as our selves, will oblige us to imploy a propor∣tional Part of our Estates in that Duty. The Rule of doing Good to all Men will oblige us to act as far as we are able; and how far that is, God knows better than we do our selves, nor can we think to deceive him. He sees the true ex∣tents of Self-preservation, and what that doth require, what we may spare, together with the Thoughts of our Hearts and the Sincerity or Hypocrisie of our Intentions, and will reward us accordingly.

2. Tho' God hath not defin'd what Proportion he expects for the Uses of Piety and Charity, yet we may well take an estimate of that by what he appointed to the Jews, his old People; for the hardness of whose Hearts he thought it best to prescribe particulars. And that was, every third Years second Tythe, which was the thirtieth Part yearly; The gleanings, the restoring of the pledge, and borrowing with∣out

use, &c. This was the settled Proportion of Charity, and it was a Jews Righteousness, (Deut. 24. 13.) That Duty which he was bound to do in Righteousness or Justice; and without the doing of which he cou'd not be accounted a just or righteous Person. For this was the Poors due, which they might demand by Law, and which it was Injustice to deny them. But besides this, there was a higher De∣gree of Charity; which was, to as∣sist them on all Occasions, and do∣ing all manner of acts of Kindness to them over and above what the Law prescrib'd. And this was the natural Effects of loving their Neighbours as their selves. The assisting and providing for a woun∣ded Man on the Way, as the Sama∣ritan did for the Jew he found be∣twixt Jerusalem and Jericho, Luke 10. The extraordinary and occa∣sional Acts of Pity were called Mercy or Goodness, and the Man that us'd them was call'd a good

Man. Thus a righteous Man and a good Man seem'd to be distin∣guish'd. The latter of more de∣sert than the former. Scarcely for a righteous Man (one that is just and gives every Man his legal due and no more) will one die; tho' perad∣venture for a good Man (the chari∣table Person, who obliges Mankind by all manner of extraordinary Kindness) some would even dare to die. Possibly there may be found some Person that out of Gratitude, and the desire of continuing such a common Blessing to Mankind, wou'd lay down his Life for to redeem his. Thus in Micah 6. 8. God re∣quires us first (as the lowest Duty) to do justly; and then, secondly, (as a higher Perfection) to love Mercy; and then, thirdly, (as the highest) to walk humbly with our God. And Nebu∣chadnezzar is exhorted by Daniel to break off his Sins (of Justice, Pride, &c.) by righteousness, (by doing justly, and making restituti∣on, &c.) and his iniquities, (of Cru∣elty

and Tyranny) by showing Mer∣cy to the Poor, &c. This being set last, as a higher Perfection than the first. Finally, where we read ελεη∣μοσύνη, Alms, in our Saviour's Ser∣mon on the Mount, some ancient Copies have it δικαιοσύνη, Righteous∣ness. And so the Vulgar Latin at this Day reads it; Attendite ne ju∣stitiam vestram faciatis coram homi∣nibus; See that ye do not your Ju∣stice or Righteousness before Men. So that a Jewish Righteousness (which was the paying of the settled Main∣tenance to the Poor) was, as to Degrees descending, limitted; be∣low which they might not sink: But the Jewish Mercy or Charity ex∣ceeded that, and was not limitted as to Degrees ascending. It was something above Righteousness, and exceeding it; but how much, was left to Zeal joyn'd with Pru∣dence to determine. Now all this is only to give Light to the Place of our Saviour, Matth. 5. 20. Ex∣cept your righteousness exceed the

righteousness of the Scribes and Pha∣risees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of God. Which thus understood teaches us, That Christ expects, that we shou'd at least ex∣cell the Scribes and Pharisees in our Liberality to the Poor, and that our Works of Mercy ought to exceed theirs; that God expects a higher Quota from the Christian than he did from the Jew, in proportion to the greater Grace and Encourage∣ments that he hath received under the Gospel. This being laid down for a Principle, the rest is left to e∣very Man's Circumstances, and to the Rules of Prudence, only with the Apostle's Caution, 2 Cor. 9. 6. He that soweth sparingly shall reap spa∣ringly.

Notes

• Rom. 5. 7.
• Matth. 6. 1.