tance, for every Sin truly repented of, is blotted out of our Acccount, and put on the Account of Chrift, who hath fatisfied for it. And Laftly, Let us every Night e're we fleep, examine how all Things ftand on our Account, and be fure to fet all ftreight. The darkness of the Night, and the fleep we are going to take, reprefent unto us Death in its Image; and thereby fhould mind us to go to Bed, as we would go into the Grave; and to have our Accounts ready as we are concern'd to have them when we die; because we know not whether or no we fhall ever awake aagain: This therefore is one of God's calls, and let us hearken unto it as we love our Souls; and fee that we fleep not in Impenitence. Whenever we break off our Sins by Repentance, and with the Sincerity of Refolution return to our Obedience unto God, our Accounts are made up, and we are fure they will be allow'd of for the fake of our bleffed Saviour JESUS Chrift.

Verse

Verle 3. and 4.

And the Steward faid within himfelf, What fhall I do? For my Lord taketh away from me the Stewardship: I cannot dig, to beg I am afhamed.

I am refolved what to do, that when I am put out of the Stewwardship, they may receive me into their Houses.

TE have been taught in the first two Verfes

WE

of this Parable, what our present Condition in this World is, and how we all ftand related to God, who made us, and placed us here, as Stewards, to whom he, as the great and univerfal LORD, and Mafter of all the World, which is his great Family, hath commited some Portion, more or lefs, as it feems good to him, of his Goods to manage, and improve to his glory,

and

and our own advantage; and farther, that we are all great Mafters of thefe Goods, and that this is not unknown to God, but he obferves us how we behave our felves, and will certainly call us to an Account for our Misbehaviour, that the end of this Life is the end of our Stewardship, and that it greatly concerns us to confider in what state we stand, and what Account we are able to make; and laftly, That is not wanting to us in putting us in remembrance to prepare our Accounts, that they may be ready whenever he fhall call for them. All this our bleffed JESUS hath taught us by an obvious and eafy fimilitude of a rich Man, who hearing that his Steward had wafted his Goods, calleth him, and lets him know, that he is refolved to turn him out of his Office, and bids him bring in his Accounts, that he may examine them, and use him afterwards, as he fhall fee Caufe for it.

Now in the next five Verfes which follow, he tells us, what Effect this had upon that unjuft Steward, and what courfe he took to provide for himself. Not defigning thereby to teach us to imitate him in his wicked Craft and policy; but by fhewing us the Difpofition of fuch Men, and how fhifty and cunning they are for the things of this World, to make us afham'd, if by honest and wife Courfes, fuch as we may eafily take, and God allows, we do not as carefully provide for the Things of a better, and eternal Life.

Let us to this end take notice of the shift which this unjuft Man invented to Live by after his Stewardship was taken from him, and of his X

whole

whole Behaviour, after his Mafter had call'd him to give an Account. His Mafter had told him plainly, That he might be no longer Steward, and had commanded him to give an Account of his Stewardship for the time he had been in it. And now we may obferve what Effect this had upon him.

on.

1. It awaken'd him into a ferious ConfideratiHe Said within himself.

2. It put him into fome perplexity and trouble of mind, he said, What shall I do?

3. Upon what Account he was thus troubled, and it was two fold.

1. His lofs of the Stewardship whereby he had liv'd at his eafe, and enjoy'd his pleasure.

2. The difficulty of finding any other way of Living fo for the future. First, faith he, My Lord taketh away from me the Stewardship: And then Secondly he adds, I cannot dig, to beg, I am afham'd.

4. His Refolution upon this Confideration, I am refolv'd what to do, that when I am put out of the Stewardship they may receive me into their Houfes. What that was we are told in the next three Verses.

I pretend not, that all the Particulars of this Relation of the unjuft Steward's Behaviour are to be accommodated to the main End of the Parable: Yet may we learn fomething from each of them,

which may be useful to us, and therefore I fhall fay fomething of them briefly in that Order as they here stand.

But

1. The Master's threatening this unjuft Steward to caft himoff, had this Effect on him, that it brought him into a ferious Confideration; it made him think and contrive what might be fitteft for him to do. He had gone on long in his way of Profufenefs and wafte, like an unthinking Fool, as fuch wicked Men generally are. then when his Mafter had told him he must be no longer Steward, and he faw there was no Remedy, but he must give up an Account, fuch as he could: Then he faid within himself, that is, he began to think, or confider. What fhould he trouble his Head with, or what needed he to confider, who had all that he had a mind to, enough to use, and enough to waste, and all without any coft or trouble to him? He had not his Mafter's Eye always over him, nor did he fear that any Body would give himself the trouble to inform against him, and therefore he took his pleafure, and made what wafte he pleas'd.

We fee here the Temper of Wicked Men, and efpecially of fuch of them, as are bewitch'd with Pleafures and carnal Delights; they regard nothing but the prefent Gratification of their Lufts; they are not apt to confider what will come after, or in what all their Pleasures are like to end. Solittle are fuch Men apt to think of preparing their Accounts, that they have hardly their Minds fo much at Liberty, as to remember that there is a ny fuch thing as an Account of their Lives and Actions to be given, or that God takes any noX 2

tice