Solemn advice to young men not to walk in the wayes of their heart, and in the sight of their eyes, but to remember the day of judgment / by Increase Mather ...

Proposition. II.

Sin is a most Odious thing. Iniquity is hatefull: Men ought to hate every Sin. They have Infinite reason so to do. For,

1. Sin is Contrary to the Holy Nature and perfect Will of God. They that have any Love to God, cannot but hate sin. Psal. 97. 10. Ye that Love the Lord hate evil. There is no sin whatsoever, but it is an evil com∣mitted against God: and is indeed a greater wrong to God than any one else. A man

by sin may wrong himself and his neigh∣•…•… very much, but he is most injurious to the bl••••••ed God. David had grievously sinned against Uriah and Bathsheba, and a∣gainst his own Body and Soul; yet he said to God, against thee, thee only have I sinned, Psal. 51.4. Sin is High Treason a∣gainst the Eternal Majesty. God is Holi∣ness it self, Amos 4.2. The Lord God h••s Sworn by his Holiness: He never Swears by any thing less then Himself. But sin is Unholiness, sinners are called the Unholy: So then sin is contrary to the nature of God. He cannot sin: It is impossible that he should, Heb. 6.18. He can no more sin, then He can cease to be God: Nor can He be the Approver or the Author of sin, Hab. 1.13. Thou art of purer eyes then to behold evil, and canst not lo••k on iniquity. He cannot look on ini••••uity with approbation or without detestation of it. Hence James speaks as in the first Chapter and thirteen Verse of his Epistle, Let no man say when he is tempted I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempt∣ed with evil, neither tempteth he any man. Neither is there any sin, but it is contrary to the preceptive will of God. Every sin is a Transgression of His Law. 1 Joh. 3.4. There is not the least sinfull Word or

Thought but the Divine Law Condemns it. A sinner and a transgressor of the Law are the same. A sinner does practically declare that the Law of God is no good Law: He trampleth it under foot, he casts it behind his back. Sin is therefore an hate∣full and a horrible thing. Jer. 5.30. An hor∣rible thing ha's been Committed in the land. Did men know what an evil sin is, the thoughts of it, would strike them with horror and dread.

2. Sin makes those that love and live in it to become Odious. Therefore it must needs be the hatefullest evil that can be thought of. It ha's caused some of the most Ex∣cellent Creatures that ever were made, to become hatefull and abhorred. This is true concerning the Angels that sinned: They were once among the Sons of God, the morning Stars shouting for joy. Job 38.7. The morning Star is a lovely Creature. Sin ha's turned Angels of light into Devils of darkness; morning Stars into the Darkness of Hell. It may be said of Hell, as the Scripture speaks of Rome, Rev. 18.2. It is become the habitation of Devils, the hold of e∣very fowl Spirit, and a Cage of every Unclean and hatefull bird. The Devils who are com∣pared unto fowls in the Air, are hatefull birds.

Sin ha's made them to be the most hate∣full Creatures in the World; and next un∣to sin we ought to hate the Devil, and to have no communion with him. But how Odious an evil is sin then! It makes men also to become the objects of hatred, Tit. 3.3. We were sometimes hatefull, that is wor∣thy to be hated of God and man. Hence sinners are said to be filthy, Psal. 14.3. They are altogether become filthy. And to be loath∣some, Prov. 13.5. A wicked man is loathsome and comes to shame. And to be abominable, Tit. 1.15. Being abominable and disobedient and to every good work Reprobate. Sin makes men Odious in the eyes of God, Psal. 5.5. Thou hatest all workers of iniquity. The Lord abominates them, Deut. 25.16. All that do Unrighteously are an abomination to the Lord thy God. Yea, sinners do by wickedness make themselves Odious unto good men, Prov. 29.27. An unjust man is an abomination to the just. An holy man does not delight in the Conversation of ungod∣ly ones: They speak such words, and do such works as are grievous and abominable to his Soul. It is said concerning Lot, That he was vexed with the filthy Conversation of the wicked, that righteous man dwelling ••r••ong•• them, seeing and hearing vexed his righteous

Soul from day to day with their unlawfull deeds, 2. Pet. 2.7, 8. Ungodly wretches out of whose mouths proceed corrupt Commu∣nications, that delight in filthy obscene dis∣course, that will revile the Saints of God, Scoff at Religion, Curse and Swear, and Profane the blessed Name of God, a good man hates to be in their Company. Psal. 139.20, 21. Thine enemies take thy Name in Vain: do not I hate them O Lord that hate thee, and am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee; I hate them with perfect ha∣tred, I count them mine Enemies? If sin does make those that live in it thus hatefull to God and good men, it must needs be a most Odious thing.

3. Sin makes men Miserable. And it is therefore an hatefull thing. Men hate to be miserable, but then let them hate sin the procuring cause of all their Miseries. Jer. 2.17, 19. Hast thou not procured this unto thy self—Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee, know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter that thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord God of hosts. All Temporal Judgments are the bitter fruit of sin. There are Publick Calamities, which cause Lamentation gene∣rally

throughout a whole Land which suffers under the weight of them; such as Wars, Famines, Pestilential and wasting diseases which leave great desolations behind them. These are procured by sin, Mic. 1.8. For the transgression of Jacob is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel. There are Judgments which fall upon particular Fa∣milies; sometimes a great Family is brought to ruin: Thus it was with the house of Jeroboam, Ahab and others whom we read of in Scripture; and it was sin that pro∣voked the Lord to destroy them all. As for the man that shall do very wickedly, the Lord saith, I will set my face against that man, and against his Family and will cut him off, Lev. 20.5. Nay, which is awfull to con∣sider, if a Godly man shall through the power of Temptation become guilty of a Scandalous sin, it may be God to testify his holy displeasure at the sin of that good man will destroy all his Family: What came on Gideons numerous Family after he was dead and his Soul in Heaven? because of their Fathers sin, threescore and ten per∣sons of them were Murthered in one day. Gideon made an Ephod, and that became a ruining snare to his house. We have a∣nother sad instance for this in Eli: A good

old man, but very sinfully indulgent to his Children: The Lord said concerning him, Behold I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the Ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle: In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house, 1 Sam. 3.12. This was fullfilled in the days of Saul, unto whose bloody Malice David (as I told you but now) seems to allude in the Text and Context before us. Doeg being Commissioned by Saul, Fell upon the Priests, and slew in that day fourscore and five persons that did wear a linen Ephod: And Nob the City of the Priests smote he with the Edge of the Sword, both men and women, chil∣dren and suckling, 1 Sam. 22.18, 19. Thus did God perform against Eli the thing which He had spoken concerning his Fa∣mily: And doubtless when this was first done, it made the Ears of them that heard of it to tingle. Again, there are personal Judgments, which sin is wont to bring with it. Men are exposed unto sufferings in Bodies, Names, Estates, none of which would ever have been, if they had not sin∣ned. Isa. 42.24. Who gave Jacob for a spoil, and Israel to the robbers, did not the Lord, He against whom we have sinned. Though Afflictions are sent for other causes, and

not for sin only, as we see in that instance of the man that was born blind, Joh. 9.3. Nevertheless, it is certain, that Sin is the Parent of all Sorrow: If men had never sinned, they would never have known Sor∣row: Nor did ever any man in the World suffer any thing, but either his own or o∣ther mens sins were the procuring cause of it. Temporal death is also the bitter fruit of sin. Rom. 5.12. By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. Sin ha's opened the door to let in death upon all the World Men hate Death, but they have more reason to hate Sin. There are more∣over Spiritual Iudgments, which Sin is the wofull cause of; Judgments that light immediately on the Souls of men, and which are indeed the most fearfull; though sinners themselves are for the present the least sensible of them: A blind mind is a dreadfull Judgment. Joh. 9.39. Jesus said, for Judgment am I come into this world, that they which see might be made blind. Natural blindness is a sore Calamity, but Spiritual blindness is incomparably a greater evil. As sight is a great mercy, but Spiritual eye sight a far greater blessing. One of the Martyrs said to a pious blind Youth, that

was cast into Prison for the Gospel sake Alas! poor child, God ha's taken from thee thy bodily eye sight, Himself knoweth best why He ha's done it, but He ha's given thee a far bet∣ter sight, He ha's given thee an eye of Faith to behold the Lord Jesus Christ. So Spiritual blindness is a thousand times worse than that which is of the body onely. Yet this misery ha's sin brought upon us: Every man in his natural estate, ha's a Soul within him as dark as Hell, 2 Pet. 1.9. He is blind and cannot see a far off. Adams sin ha's brought that misery of Spiritual blindness upon all his Children: And they do by actual sins of their own provoke God to smite them with yet greater blindness: Their foolish heart is darkned, and God ha's given them over to a reprobate mind. Hardness of heart is a Spiritual Judgment: No greater Judgment can befall a poor Creature out of Hell, than to be given up to sin without remorse for it. The more men sin, the more are they hardned and emboldned in sin, untill they have filled up the measure of their iniquity. This is a dismal effect of sin, and of the forest wrath of God for it. Well therefore might the Apostle give that Solemn Caution, Take heed, lest any of you be hardned through the deceitfullness of sin.

Heb. 3.12, 13. Especially, if men sin against the clear light of their own Consciences, they provoke the Lord to smite them with Judicial blindness of mind and hardness of heart. There was a man who fighting a Duel killed his Adversary, for which Mur∣der he was in great horror of Conscience; after that he killed another man, then was his trouble less; after that he did in the same way Murder a third man, untill he had killed seven or eight, and then he had no remorse at all for his bloody crimes. I could tell you of another who having made himself drunk, was in grievous horror of Conscience for his sin, but when in dispite of these Convictions he did commit the same sin again, he was never after that troubled for what he had done, but lived and dyed a Drunken sott. Here now was the fearfull wrath of God, punishing a sin∣ner with everlasting hardness of heart. And thus Sin unrepented of brings the sinner to Eternal ruin. Have not men cause to hate that which will not only hurt them, but ruin them, and that for ever? This Sin without Repentance and Faith in Jesus Christ will certainly do. Nay, one sin will do it. Therefore God ha's said, Repent and Turn your selves from all your transgressions, so

iniquity shall not be your ruin, Ezek. 18.30. One sin not turned from will prove the Eternal ruin of a mans Soul: Will not then his iniquity be found to be hatefull?

4. Sin ha's brought a Curse on the whole Earth, and upon all the Creatures which are in it. It was said to Adam presently after he had sinned, Cursed be the ground for thy sake, Gen. 3.17. Every Creature which men have to do with, ha's a Curse attending it because of sin, so as that they are liable to destruction thereby. The Earth, the Wa∣ter, the Air, or any Creature therein may cause a mans death. This Curse ha's sin brought: Yea, and all the living Creatures in this Visible World are become miserable by reason of the sins of men, which mise∣ry they sigh under and long to be deliver∣ed from. We know that the whole Creation groaneth and travelleth in pain, because it is made subject to vanity, and to the bondage of Corruption. The sin of man ha's pro∣cured all this. Rom. 8.21, 22. By these things we see that sin is a most hatefull evil.