'tis a plain Argument of Hypocrify for a Man to study and contrive how to be talk'd of for his Devotion, and to order Things on purpofe that it may be observ'd; for this is that which our Saviour charges upon the Hypocrites, that they lov'd to pray to be seen of Men. 2. He tells them, this is Hypocrify; that is, tho' they pretended Confcience of their Duty to God, yet the true Spring of their pretended Devotion is Vain-glory, and a Defire of the Praife of Men. 3. He forewarns them against this, by fhewing them what they will lofe by it; Verily, I say unto you, they have their Reward; that is, they will lofe God's Rewards, their Prayers fhall obtain for them what they aim at, which is the Applause of Men, but God will not regard them, because in Truth they are not meant in Devotion to him. 4. He directs them what to do in this Cafe, for the avoiding of all Temptations to Vain-glory: Thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy Clofet, and when thou hast shut thy Door, pray to thy Father which is in fecret; that is, retire thy felf as privately as thou canft, and let none but God be a Witness of thy Devotions: And the reason of the Advice is plain, for if a Man prays heartily and fervently then, he may conclude his Devotion to spring from a Senfe of Piety; for here no Vain-glory can creep in to mix with his Ends; here 'tis not Compliance with Cuftom, and with the Examples of others to gain their good Thoughts, that brings him upon his Knees; tho' he might poffibly have fufpected those Reafons to have had some Influence upon him in his joining with the Prayers of religious Affemblies, yet when he has retir'd into his Clofet, and fhut himself from the Eye of all the World, and is under the Eye of God only, he may reasonably conclude that his Defires and Affections are moved only by Reverence to God, and the true Principles of Religion; and hence we may not unreasonably infer that other Conclufion, that he is carried by the fame Motives, and led by the fame Ends, even when he joins in publick Prayer, where there is Danger of mixing good and bad Ends toge ther; therefore, fays our Saviour, Enter into thy Closet, and when thou hast shut thy Door, pray to thy Father which is in fecret, and he that feeth in fecret fhall reward thee openly; by this thou mayft gather good Confidence that thy Prayers are rewardable Prayer s and fuch as God approves of, because thou art fure these are offered in Duty to him, and with Regard to him only. And this Rule of our Saviour therefore may ferve to solve a pretended Difficulty, viz. why a Man thatprays in Company with others can with a little Pains, and in a little Time, grow to fuch fuch Warmth of Affection and Fluency of Expreffion, when the fame Man in his Clofet can hardly find any Defires ftrong in him, any Matter ready, or any Words to fay. Whatever pretty Reafons may be given for this, I doubt the Reafon the Text affords is the true one, that is, that a fort of Men who find this Difference are indeed no better than Hypocrites, and that they love the Praife of Men more than the Praife of God: there is the Applaufe of the Company with which they pray, and the Belief of their being admired, and that Teftimony to the Powerfulnefs of their Gifts, which the Groanings perhaps of their Brethren bring to their Ears 3 there are thefe Things to raife and to influence their Spirits, and to quicken their Invention, and to excite their Paffions too to the Height; but when there is nothing of this Warmth and Heat, nothing of this Life, and Zeal, and Quicknefs, as foon as ever they come into their Closets to pray unto God in fecret, it feems too plain that the Affectation of the Praife of Men, and the Delight of be ing admired by them, can do greater Things with them, and work them into more Zeal and Concern, than the Senfe of God's Prefence, and the Reverence of his Majesty, than the Weightiness of thofe Things that we ask of God, than any truly religious Affection; for these operate equally whether we are in the Church or in the Closet; and there fore fore this is one Reason why we should be very careful to perform our private Devoti ons, and careful to keep them private too, that we may be able to make a true Judg ment of our selves, that we are indeed mo ved by a Senfe of GOD and true religious Defire, and by the Faith alfo of that Prefence which our Saviour here minds us of; and thy Father which feeth in fecret fhall re ward thee openly. Having caution'd his Difciples against the Hypocrify of fhewing Devotion where there is Company to take notice of it, but having none left for God, our Lord proceeds to another Caution, which is exprefs'd in these Words: But when ye pray, use not vain Repetitions, as the Heathen do for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what Things ye have need of before ye ask him. In the first place this Caution belongs to publick Prayers as well as private, the Reafon holding both to the one and to the other ; and fome do observe, that the Number being chang'd here implies this; before it was, But thou, when thou frayeft, the Phrafe implying the Prayer of a fingle Perfon; but here it is, But when ye pray, be not like unto the Heathen: I lay no great Strefs upon this, it is fufficient that the Reafon holds equally aC gainft gainst vain Repetitions in publick and private Prayer for your Father knoweth what Things ye have need of before ye ask him. And here first let us confider the Meaning and the Extent of the Caution, and of the Reason whereby it is enforc'd. As to the Caution. 1. I obferve, that they are not barely. Repetitions, but vain Repetitions, which our Saviour forbids. That all Repetitions, whether of the fame Matter or of the fame Words, are not vain, is plain from the Scripture, and particularly from David's Pfalms,, where we find Repetitions, ufed in Forms of Prayer and Thanksgiving more than once; and front the Example of our Saviour, who in his Prayer in the Garden thrice us'd the very fame Words, Repetitions of the fame Petition may be natural Expreffions of a fervent and vehement Defire, and when they are wifely and judiciously put into a Form of Prayer or Thanksgiving, they may ferve to raife the Affections of an honeft Mind, and to excite greater Degrees of Zeal and Earneftnefs; but when they are brought in for nothing but to fill up room, for want of new or better Matter, or when they are thrust in without Choice and true Judgment, they are very naufeous and unfavory, and no way becoming our Addreffes to the infinite Majesty of God. Therefore, |