excluded from a participation in the bliss of heaven. To David asking, " Lord! who shall dwell in thy tabernacle?" the Holy Spirit answers, " He that speaketh truth in his heart, who hath not used deceit in his tongue." [1] Lying is also attended with this very great evil; it is an almost incurable disease. The guilt of the calumniator cannot be pardoned, unless satisfaction be made to the calumniated person, a difficult duty to those who, as we have already observed, are deterred from its performance by false shame, and a foolish idea of dignity; and hence, he who perseveres in this crime, perseveres in a course which must ultimately lead to everlasting perdition. Let no one indulge the delusive hope of obtaining the pardon of his calumnies or detractions, until he has repaired the injury which they have inflicted, be it offered in a court of justice, or in private and familiar conversation.
But the evil consequences of lying are not confined to individuals: they extend to society at large. By duplicity and lying good faith and truth, which form the closest links of human society, are dissolved; confusion ensues; and men seem to differ in nothing from demons.
The pastor will also teach, that loquacity is to be avoided. By avoiding loquacity the other evils of the tongue will be obviated, and a preventive opposed to lying, from which loquacious persons can scarcely abstain.
Finally, there are those who would seek to justify their duplicity, and defend their violations of truth, on a principle of prudence, alleging that they lie in season. To this erroneous pretext the pastor will apply the divine truth; " The wisdom of the flesh is death;" [2] he will exhort his people in all their difficulties and dangers to trust in God, not in the artifice of lying; and will tell them that, in dangers and difficulties, to have recourse to subterfuge is to declare, that they trust more to their own prudence than to the providence of God. Those who charge others with being the cause of their speaking false hood, by having first deceived them, are to be taught the unlawfulness of avenging their own wrongs; that evil is not to be rendered for evil, but rather that evil is to be overcome by good. [3] Were it even lawful, it would not be our interest, to make such a return: the man who seeks revenge by uttering falsehood inflicts very serious injury on himself. Those who plead human frailty are to be taught, that it is a duty of religion to implore the Divine assistance, and not to yield to human infirmity.
Those who, in excuse of their guilt, allege habit, are to be admonished to endeavour to acquire the contrary habit of speaking the truth; particularly as evil habit, far from extenuating, is an aggravation of guilt. There are some who adduce in their own justification the example of others, who, they con tend, constantly indulge in falsehood and perjury: such persons are to be reminded that bad men are not to be imitated, but
