Reason is too often called away from a due attention to a present necessary idea, by sensible objects: but Paffion serves to fix the Attention. Reason is too flow, and too weak, tơ excite a fudden and vigorous activity in many cafes; but Paffion is fudden and ftrong for this purpose.

The general uses of the Paffions may be comprehended in these five Remarks.

I. Since the Paffions are certain Principles in human Na ture, which include in them fome commotions of flesh and blood, as well as fome operations of the mind, we may reafonably suppose, that the design of our Creator in working them into our original conftitution, was for the fervice both of our Minds and Bodies: though it must be confeft, in our fallen and degenerate ftate, they often prove our fnares and

our torments.

1. They were defigned for the Service of the Body, be cause they awaken not only all the animal Powers, but the Thoughts of the Mind, to escape whatsoever is hurtful to the body, and to procure what is pleasant and useful for its fupport or safety.

While our Body is in such a feeble ftate, furrounded with dangers, and liable to fo many troublesome accidents, God has not only furnished us with the Senfations of Pleasure and Pain, to give us speedy notice of what hurts or relieves the body, and with Appetites for the supply of our natural wants, but he has also given us the Paffions of Joy and Sorrow, of Defire and Averfion, to affift in this work, that the body may be better provided with what is neceffary to its health and life, and may be better guarded against the danger of wounds and bruifes, diftempers and death. Mere Reason would not awaken us to avoid danger fo speedily as the paffion of Fear, nor would it rouze us to felf-defence with fuch fudden and vigorous efforts as Anger does.

2. The Paffions may be of confiderable fervice to the Mind, while it dwells in this embodied ftate: for though

they

they do not inform us what is good for the foul, and what is evil; yet when Reason has judged what is evil and what is good, the Paffions lend their vigorous affiflance. They are as the wings of the foul to pursue our true happiness, and to escape mifery and it is of vaft importance to have these wings directed aright. They keep the natural Spirits and the Thoughts ftrongly intent upon thofe objects which excite them, and awaken all the powers of nature, to act agreeably to them. If the object has any thing in it rare and wonderful, Admiration fixes the mind to confider it with ftrong attention. If it appear to be goood, Love determines the mind to pursue it with vigour; if evil, Hatred excites us to use our utmost skill and force to avoid it; and this not only in things which relate to this bodily life, but in things fpiritual and eternal.

II. The painful Paffions have their use in human life as well as the pleasant ones. Indeed Paffions fixt on wrong objects or in wrong degrees, may be properly called vicious; and these are of no ufe, but ought to be.rooted out; as Malice, Envy, Revenge: thefe could never belong to man in a flate of innocence. There are other Paffions, fuch as Fear, Shame, Sorrow, and Anger, which are painful: and how far these might be found among innocent men I will not now enquire. Yet while we dwell in this fallen flate, befet with so many evils, dangers, enemies, and temptations, these painful Affections will be found neceffary to our welfare in this life, and to our preparation for a better.

While we live amongst numerous dangers, Fear is a neceffary principle to keep us always upon our guard; while we abide in a world where there are so many of our fellowcreatures ready to opprefs or injure us, the great Author of our beings faw it proper to mix Anger and Refentment with our conftitution, that we might be awakened to defend ourfelves against injury, and make oppreffors fear to affault us. While we are ready to expofe ourselves to many diftreifes by

our

our own folly, God has ordained Sorrow to attend all these diftreffes, and Shame to attend fome of them; partly that we might be awakened to renounce thofe follies, and partly that under every affliction we might be excited with more earneftnefs to feek to God and man for relief.

Sorrow may abase our Pride and Vanity, tame the wildness of our Spirits, bring us to think and reflect, foften the heart, and make it impreffible, and ready to receive inftruction.

And while we are in a state of probation for eternity, and heaven and hell are fet before us, Fear is neceffary as well as Hope, to keep us from finful practices. While we have the feeds of fin dwelling in us, and are so often guilty of the commiffion of it, Sorrow, and Shame, are proper means towards our recovery of the divine favour, and renewed holinefs and it is reasonable that we should be angry with our felves when we have yielded to fin, as well as with others' who have tempted us to it; that so our trespasses may be made bitter and grievous to us, and to those who feduced us: and that thereby we may be better fecured from the repetition of fin, and the influence of new temptations.

III. As Fear, and Anger, and Sorrow, and other troublefome Paffions are defigned to fecure us from evil; fo the more pleafing Affections, fuch as Hope, and Love, and Joy, may be usefully indulged; for they not only make us active and vigorous in the pursuit of what appears good, but render our life more comfortable, make the troubles of it more tolerable, they cheer our drooping fpirits, and fupport nature from finking. They have alfo a happy tendency to make many of the duties of civil Life and of Religion easy and delightful. So that both the pleafant and the painful Paffions may be happily engaged in the interefts of God and Religion.

IV. The Paffions are defigned not only to fubferve our own welfare both of foul and body, but the great Author of Nature intended them also for the benefit of our fellow

creatures.

creatures. Man muft not be confidered merely as a fingle Creature fitted with powers to feek his own fafety and happinefs; but he is defigned by his Maker for a fociable Creature, and muft do good to his Fellows.

With this view there are fome Affections wrought in the mature of man which plainly refer to the welfare of his neighbour. There is a natural principle of Benevolence in man; where it is not overpowered by vicious principles or habits, there is fuch a principle as Compaffion to those that are miferable, or Sympathy with those that suffer: there are the natural Affections as of Hufband, Wife, Father, Mother, Son, Daughter, Brother, and Sifter. Now the very defign of these Affections is to do good to our fellow creatures: and moft or all these focial principles in mankind have their proper Defires and Averfions, Hopes and Fears, Joys and Sorrows, and Refentments attending them, as well as the Paffions which feek only our own good.

And indeed as mankind are brought into the world they become focial creatures from their very birth. They are born and grow up into numerous unions and relations, both natural, civil and religious, and have perpetual need of each others affiflance, and naturally feek it. It was there fore wifely ordered by the God of Nature, that there fhould be principles in us of the affectionate kind, in order to make our mutual fervices eafy and delightful, and to awaken us to the vigorous and unwearied practice of thofe duties towards our fellow-creatures, for which perhaps Reafon and Confcience might have too feeble influence.

V. Though the Affections have much to do in the active parts of human Life, yet they have very little to do in matters of Judgment. Since it is the very nature of our Paffions to fix all our natural powers with the strongest attention to 'the object of them; and particularly to thofe properties that raised them, they generally increase the firft apprehenfion we had of the object, whether it be true or falfe. It is evi

dent

dent that Fear, Anger, Hatred, Sorrow, all tend to imprefs our minds more powerfully with a fenfe of the evil contained in the object, and to represent it in its worft colours; and in the fame manner, Hope, Love, Defire, and Joy, perfuade us powerfully that the object of them is good, and add new excellencies to it. Even the paffion of Admiration fometimes makes us think the object of it to be more confiderable than it is and all the Paffions derived from Love or Hatred tend to represent the good or evil of the object to be greater than really it is; I mean chiefly in temporal things.

Hence it follows, that the Paffions are not fit to be our Guides in determining Truth and Falfehood; they were not given us to fearch out the true nature of things, or to judge concerning their qualities, or the degree of them. For in order to judge right, we must confider all the properties and circumftances of any object, and attend to all the reasonings that belong to it, both on one fide and on the other; whereas every Paffion confines our Thoughts to one fide of the quef tion. It is the nature of Paffion to fix our minds to those properties and circumftances that firft raifed it. And indeed it fuffers us not to attend with impartiality to any thing else. Paffion generally tends to make us blind and deaf to all reafonings, but thofe which confirm itself.

Here we find how it comes to pass, that those who follow the dictates of their Paffions, fcarce ever judge right, or reason well; for they put themselves under the biass of these powerful commotions of Nature, which lean all to one fide, and thereby fall into perpetual mistakes.

Upon the whole, the Paffions are of admirable use in the life of a Man, and a Chriftian: for though they were not given to tell us what is good, and what is evil, yet when our Reason, upon a calm furvey, has passed a just judgment concerning things, whether they are good or evil, the Paffions animate us to pursue the good, and avoid the evil; and that with vaftly greater speed and diligence than the

mere