From lips like those, what precept fail'd to move?
Yet still how faint by precept is express'd The living image in the painter's breast!
Due respect should be shown to the office of teacher, and by example and precept every teacher should be worthy of respect.
It is a Precept several times inculcated by Horace, that we should not entertain an Hope of any thing in Life which lies at a great Distance from us.
And laid down thatPrecept which a late excellent Author has delivered as his own, 'That we should have many Well-wishers, but few 'Friends.
In the second place I would recommend to every one that admirable Precept which Pythagoras [3] is said to have given to his Disciples, and which that Philosopher must have drawn from the Observation I have enlarged upon.
The greatest Modern Criticks have laid it down as a Rule, that an Heroick Poem should be founded upon some important Precept of Morality, adapted to the Constitution of the Country in which the Poet writes.
Several of them lay it down as a Maxim, That whatever Dramatick Performance has a long Run, must of Necessity be good for nothing; as though the first Precept in Poetry were not to please.
It is frequently sanctioned in the Old Testament, both by precept and example, while it is nowhere condemned by the Book, either in the Old or New Testament.
Render to no man evil for evil," is a positive precept without any limitation, and which admits of no evasion; and it must plainly rescind the law of shedding man's blood because he had shed the blood of man.
It deserves to be distinctly considered that the gospel contains little or nothing directly by way of precept against slavery; but slavery is inconsistent with its general requirements and inculcations and is therefore wrong.
But if the act of war does violate this express precept of Christ, then it must be exceedingly criminal to engage in it.
Hence this precept not only authorizes taking away the life of a murderer, but authorizes nations to repel by war nations that wage war against them.
The precept originally was given while the disciples were in the midst of tyrannical governments.
Let us for one moment compare this precept with defensive war and see if it can consistently be put into practice.
If not, both violated this expressprecept of Christ.
He, indeed, merits all commendation in seeking first the kingdom of heaven, according to the precept of our Saviour, but it would be well that he descend sometimes to worldly topics.
On learning of these resolutions Beckford summoned a Common Hall to meet on the 12th April to consider what course to take, but his precept was ignored by the recalcitrant companies.
Thus Pindar, while suiting his praises to the persons celebrated, always interweaves an appropriate preceptof morality.
The work of the artistic poet is more instructive and offers more matter for profitable analysis, for precept and example, than that of the divinely inspired enthusiast.
While terror and pity are stirred by the pervading sense of human helplessness, scope is still left for the exercise of the moral judgment; nor is the poet precluded from teaching his audience by precept and example.
He was even beginning to understand how it might be possible for him to follow where she led--as she, unconsciously, was a follower of a precept given to lead the world through eternities.
Querida was clever enough to know that; and he had been stupid enough to ignore it--even disbelieve it, contemptuous of precept and proverb and wise saw, buoyed above apprehension by consciousness and faith in his own inexhaustible energy.
In the day-school it must be reiterated morning, noon, and night in various applications, line upon line and precept upon precept.
Why this paradoxical relation of precept to practice?
What book of religious instruction and precept have you, or have you ever had, corresponding to the volume of the Christians, called their gospels?
I can conceive of a reception of Christian precept and of the Christian spirit being but little more perfect and complete, than I have found it among the humbler sort of the Christians of Rome.
It hardly needs to be stated that it is not necessary to be able to sing in order to observe this preceptof St. James.
It is quite possible to keep Christ's precept without ever surrendering the second garment at all; and indeed we ought not to surrender it.
And it is quite possible to keep His brother's precept without ever writing "D.
Before concluding, let us return to the moral precept contained in the verse which we have been considering: "Above all things, my brethren, swear not.
The precept will hold good with equal truth if we transpose the two conclusions: "Is any among you suffering?
D'Alembert's precept is good and very good, provided you do not abuse it.
There was no need for precept and example: my passion for animals and plants made progress of itself.
And how, my dear girl, can any precept of religion be tortured into a restriction on the freedom of your choice?
Heaven forbids the sacrilege, for I cannot suppose that when man was forbidden to degrade himself by a union with vileness, the precept was meant to exclude the sex whose feebler passions afford less plea for yielding to their power.
Is not the precept under hand naturally subversive of every system and every form of slavery?
Whatever they forbid, no other preceptcan require; and whatever they require, no other precept can forbid.
No precept in the Bible, enforcing our mutual obligations, can be more or less than the application of these injunctions to specific relations or particular occasions and conditions.
On this ground also these traits have a better chance of survival among the body of the people than would be the case if it were not for the preceptand example of the leisure class.
But as I have seen and read enough to believe firmly that Christianity is a divine religion, my reason teaches me that it contains no precept such as we speak of.
My elder brother, thinking example a more powerful kind of precept than words, no sooner was assured of the death of his father, than he too opened his veins, and perished.
