Twenty sermons preached at Oxford before His Majesty, and elsewhere

Then 'tis called superfluity of naughtiness; But what, is there any naughtiness to be born with? And what exceeds that, it is superfluity? No, that's not the meaning of the place. By superfluity, is meant the excrements of sin. Excrements are the refuse of meat, when the good nourishment is taken away from it. And 'tis as if he had said, Lay aside filthy, nasty, or excrementitious sin. The word was used in the Ceremonies of the Jews, and thereby we may see what was taught concerning sin, Deut. 23.12, 13. Thou shalt have a place without the camp whither thou shall go, &c. Though the comparison be homely, yet it shows the filthiness of the sin, that it is a very excrement. Thou shalt have a paddle, and it shall be that when thou wilt ease thy self, thou shalt dig therewith, &c. And thou shalt cover that which cometh from thee. But what, did God care for these things? No, it was to teach them a higher matter: As the reason following implies. For the Lord thy God walketh in the midst of the Camp. God would thereby show them, that those things at which every man stoppeth his nose, are not so filthy to man, as a sin is unto God. So that you see how the case stands with a sinful man: Sin defiles him, it pollutes him.

Then 'tis called superfluity of naughtiness; But what, is there any naughtiness to be born with? And what exceeds that, it is superfluity? No, that's not the meaning of the place. By superfluity, is meant the excrements of sin. Excrements are the refuse of meat, when the good nourishment is taken away from it. And 'tis as if he had said, Lay aside filthy, nasty, or excrementitious sin. The word was used in the Ceremonies of the Jews, and thereby we may see what was taught concerning sin, Deut. 23.12, 13. Thou shalt have a place without the camp whither thou shall goe, &c. Though the comparison be homely, yet it shews the filthiness of the sin, that it is a very excrement. Thou shalt have a paddle, and it shall be that when thou wilt ease thy self, thou shalt dig therewith, &c. And thou shalt cover that which cometh from thee. But what, did God care for these things? No, it was to teach them a higher matter: As the reason following implies. For the Lord thy God walketh in the midst of the Camp. God would thereby shew them, that those things at which every man stoppeth his nose, are not so filthy to man, as a sin is unto God. So that you see how the case stands with a sinful man: Sin defiles him, it pollutes him.