of God, and good Men, if the Hoftages are not themselves acceffary to the violating of what was ftipulated.

Ninthly, The Cafe of Martyrs, who chufe rather to part with their Life, than to renounce or abandon the true Religion, or trefpafs against a known Duty; is fo far from incuring the Guilt of criminal Suicide; that it is the most glorious Inftance of human Virtue, when joined with the fincere Love of God and our Neighbour: And great is its Reward. Yet the indifcreet Zeal of thofe, cannot be vindicated, who from an ambitious Defire of this Glory, or Hope of the Reward, do without neceffity, and uncalled by the Divine Providence, expofe themselves and throw away their Life.

And finally, many Cafes may be stated, may happen, and have occurred, to the cutting of the Life; in which the Agent is to be confidered as bent upon the Action by which the Lofs of his own Life is incurred; and yet as having no Defire nor Design to be thereby rid of Life. And it is obvious that it may be thus, in any Action of extreme Danger. Altho' it must be allowed, that in fuch Actions of extreme Danger, the adventuring may often, be ve

ry

ry culpable, as well as very rafh and foolifh; because the human Life, that is entrufted to our Care, is of fuch Value and Importance, that it ought not wantonly to be played away at Hazard, nor exposed to Dangers that are out of the Way of lawful Bufinefs, and Duty. But where there is not a Defire and Defign to be rid of Life; however faulty and cenfurable it may be, in other Refpects, as is allowed; yet it is not properly the Suicide, which the Reader is to confider as the Subject of our present Question.

For the Reasons affigned, all the nine mentioned Cafes, are to be feperated from the Suicide or Self-flaying, that is chiefly the Subject of Debate, upon the first propofed Queftion, viz. Whether Sucide is Lawful, or Unlawful? And if there are yet, any other Cafes, that fall under the fame Parity of Reafon for their Exemption; this first Queftion is to be confidered, as ftript from them all.

The precife State of the Question in Debate, concerning Suicide.

From what is already reprefented, it is manifeft, that the Suicide or Self-flaying that

is to be confidered as the Subject of the first propofed Question, is of two different Kinds,

viz.

Firft a Suicide wilfully, intentionally acted, by a Perfon having the Exercife of Reafon, with a Defire and Defign to be rid of Life, And this, I affirm, is not only Criminal; but a moft hainous and atrocious Guiltinefs.

The fecond is: When the Self-flayer, having the Exercife of Reason, wilfully and intentionally, adventures upon an Action, attended with an Extremity of Danger, and out of the Way of his lawful Bufinefs and Duty; by which his Life perisheth; altho' he has neither a Defire nor Design to be rid of Life. And this, I affirm, is alfo highly criminal; tho' it is far from being of the hainous Naof the above mentioned confummate, and most atrocious Sin of Suicide.

ture,

As the first of these, includes all the Degrees of the most atrocious Self-flaying, fo it is manifeftly and perfectly adapted to the dreadful Cafe of that abounding Self-murder, which is the Difgrace of this corrupted Age; and has become, in a more eminent Degree, the Reproach and Scandal of our Country. The licentious Writings of our modern Deifts, in Defence of this unnatural, odious Practice, that are induftriously dif

perfed;

perfed; do fhrewdly threaten the contagious Encreafe of it; not only among those of a melancholick Conftitution; but also Multitudes of thofe of an opulent Nation, whose Blood and Spirits are inflamed by an habitual Luxury and Excefs, which raises their Paffions into a boiling Ferment, disordering their Minds, and naturally difpofing them to outragious Practices. It is therefore the Duty of every Man in his Station, to contribute his Endeavour to give a Check to this growing Evil: And more especially a Christian Duty, to reprefent and inculcate, the hainous and atrocious Guiltinefs of it.

It is therefore, of this moft atrocious Suicide, that I am here chiefly to treat. And thereafter, that other Self-flaying which is alfo highly criminal, tho' less atrocious, may likewife fall in our way to be mentioned. I fhall first, briefly point to the most manifeft and convincing Proofs of the flagitious Sinfulness of that wilful intentional Self-slaying, with a Defire and Defign to be rid of Life. And next, I shall examine whatever has been pleaded in Defence of it.

The Proofs of its flagitious Sinfulness, that all who regard the Divine Revelation, may in these Times of its frequent and odious Example, have a juft Horror of Self-murder from

the

the due Conviction of its atrocious Guil tinefs;

The firft Proof I fhall mention, is: That it is a manifeft Violation of the fixth Commandment, Thou shalt not Kill. He who kills himself, is as much a Murderer, as if he killed another Man. The Reason affigned by God himself against Murder (Gen. ix. 6.) is this. For in the Image of God made be Man. And he who kills himself, deftroys God's Image, as much as he who kills another. The Reason that renders the Crime Piacular, is the fame in both Cafes. And altho' the Self-flayer prevents the Executing the temporal Sentence of Punishment mentioned in that fixth Verfe, by Man fhall his Blood be fhed: Yet he cannot thereby escape the future Punishment which is intimated in the foregoing fifth Verfe, in these Words, At the Hand of every Man will I require it. This is first mentioned, and then it follows, at the Hands of every Man's Brother. Which manifeftly includes the Man himself, and every other Man by whom his Life may be deftroyed. God will require it at the Hand of Man. No lefs, at leaft at the Hand of the Man

himself, than

at the Hand of any other. Nay further;

Man is even in this Life, defigned to be the

Temple