Gospel-love, heart-purity, and the flourishing of the righteous being the last sermon of the…

'Tis indeed a vain thing▪ to go about to purify the hand, or Tongue, or life, if the heart be Impure. 'Twere a vain thing for any one to go and cleanse a stream, while he know's that there is a Fountain above that sends forth filthy, and unclean, and poisonous water. 'Tis just so in this case; till the heart be made pure, nothing can be pure.

'Tis indeed a vain thing▪ to go about to purify the hand, or Tongue, or life, if the heart be Impure. 'Twere a vain thing for any one to go and cleanse a stream, while he know's that there is a Fountain above that sends forth filthy, and unclean, and poysonous water. 'Tis just so in this case; till the heart be made pure, nothing can be pure.

And the great esteem which God hath of us, is with respect to this purity of heart. He is a friend indeed to those who have a pure heart, he hath a great respect for them. There is an expression, in Prov. 22. 11. He that loveth pureness of heart, for the grace of his lips ⟨p. 74⟩the King shall be his friend, mark there; the pureness of heart, and grace of lips. By grace of lips, he means, not only graceful speech, but gracious speech. Now grace in the lips you see hath its dependence upon the pureness of the heart, and saith he, he that hath such a pureness of heart, as that from it he hath a• graceful lip, the King shall be his friend. Doubtless Solomon spake this with reference to himself, showing what a friend he would be to those that appeared before him in pureness of heart, and this graciousness of their lips. But this is much more true in reference to the King of Heaven. He that loveth pureness of heart, for the grace of of his lips, the King of Heaven shall be his friend, he shall be accepted of God. And what grace soever that is, gracefulness of speech any one hath, if there be not pureness of heart, he shall have no favour with