Quesnel: Moral Reflections on the Gospels Vol 1

112 ST. MATTHEW.
" 4. And Jesus saith unto hira, See thou tell no
man ; but go thy way, show thyself to the priest,
and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a tes-
timony unto them."
Observe here the conduct of a good director (of
the conscience) :— 1. Not to suffer the good which
God is pleased to do by his ministry to be divulged,
but to shun the reputation of good works. 2. To
observe the order of the hierarchy. 3. To be un-
concerned for his own interest, and zealous for that
of God. 4. To prevent all occasion of scandal and
jealousy.—Priests ought not to treat sinners as
cured of the leprosy of sin, until they are assured of
it by sufficient proofs : as the priests of the law
could not accept the offering of a leper, nor allow
him to partake of the sacrifice, until they had re-
ceived convincing tokens of his cleanness.
Sect. II. The Centurion,
" 5. 5f And when Jesus was entered into Caper-
naum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching
him, 6. And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at
home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented."
God very often grants more than is desired. The
eloquence of prayer consists in representing our
wants to God in a plain manner. The centurion
is the pattern of a true Christian master's charity
towards his servants, who retains those who are the
most incapable of doing him any more service, and
is to them instead of a fiUher. The inability to do
good without the grace of Clirist, is the palsy of the
soul. Whence comes it to pass, that men are not
near so much concerned at this spiritual palsy, as at