HERVEY's MEDITATIONS AMONG THE TOMBS.
In a LETTER to a LADY.

TRAVELLING lately into Cornwall, I happened to alight at a considerable Village, in that county: Where, finding myself under an unexpected necessity of staying a little, I took a walk to the Church. ^* The doors, like the heaven to which they lead, were wide open; and readily ad­mitted an unworthy stranger. Pleased with the op­portunity, I resolved to spend a few minutes under the sacred roof.

[Page 2]In a situation so retired and awful, I could not avoid falling into a train of meditations, serious and mournfully pleasing. Which, I trust, were in some degree profitable to me, while they possessed and warmed my thoughts; and, if they may administer any satisfaction to you, Madam, now they are recollected, and committed to writing, I shall receive a fresh pleasure from them.

It was an ancient pile; reared by hands, that, ages ago, were mouldered into dust.—Situate in the centre of a large burial ground; remote from all the noise and hurry of tumultuous life.—The body spacious; the structure lofty; the whole magnificently plain. A row of regular pillars extended themselves through the midst; supporting the roof with simplicity, and with dignity.— The light, that passed through the windows, seemed to shed a kind of luminous Obscurity; which gave every ob­ject a grave and venerable air.—The deep Silence, added to the gloomy aspect, and both heightened by the lone­liness of the place, greatly increased the solemnity of the scene.—A sort of religious Dread stole insensibly on my mind, while I advanced, all pensive and thought­ful, along the inmost aisle. Such a dread, as hushed every ruder passion, and dissipated all the gay images of an alluring world.

Having adored that Eternal Majesty, who, far from being confined to temples made with hands, has Heaven for his throne, and the Earth for his foot­stool—I took particular notice of a handsome Altar piece; presented, as I was afterwards informed, by the master builders of Stow ^*; out of gratitude, I presume, to that gracious GOD, who carried them through their work, and enabled them to ‘bring forth their topstone with joy.’

O! HOW amiable is Gratitude! especially when it has the supreme Benefactor for its object. I have al­ways [Page 3] looked upon gratitude as the most exalted princi­ple that can actuate the heart of man. It has some­thing noble, disinterested, and (if I may be allowed the Term) generously devout. Repentance indicates our nature fallen, and Prayer turns chiefly upon a regard to one's self. But the exercises of gratitude subsisted in paradise, when there was no fault to deplore; and will be perpetuated in Heaven, when ‘GOD shall be all in all.’

The language of this sweet temper is, ‘I am un­speakably obliged: What return shall I make?’ — And, surely, it is no improper expression of an unfeign­ed thankfulness, to decorate our Creator's courts, and beautify "the place where his honour dwelleth." Of old, the habitation of his feet was glorious: Let it not, now, be sordid or contemptible. It must grieve an in­genuous mind, and be a reproach to any people, to have their own houses wainscotted with cedar, and painted with vermillion; while the temple of the Lord of hosts is destitute of every decent ornament.

Here I recollected, and was charmed with Solomon's fine address to the almighty, at the dedication of his famous temple. With immense charge, and exquisite skill, he had erected the most rich and finished struc­ture, that the sun ever saw. Yet, upon a review of his work, and a reflection on the transcendent perfections of the Godhead, how he exalts the one and abases the other!—The building was too glorious, for the mightiest monarch to inhabit; too sacred for unhallowed feet even to enter; yet infinitely too mean, for the Deity to reside in. It was, and the royal worshipper acknow­ledged it to be, a most marvellous vouchsafement in un­created excellency, to "put his name there."—The whole passage breathes such a delicacy, and is animated with such a sublimity of sentiment, that I cannot per­suade myself to pass on, without repeating it. ^* But will [Page 4] GOD indeed dwell on earth? Behold! The Heaven, and Heaven of Heavens, cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded!—Incomparable saying! worthy the wisest of men. Who would not choose to possess such an elevated devotion, rather than to own all the glittering materials of that sumptuous edifice?

We are apt to be struck with admiration at the state­liness and grandeur of a masterly performance in archi­tecture. And, perhaps on a sight of the ancient Sanc­tuary, should have made the superficial observation of the disciples; ‘What manner of stones, and what build­ings are here!’ —But what a nobler turn of thought, and juster taste of things, does it discover; to join with Israel's king, in celebrating the condescension of the Di­vine Inhabitant! That the High and Lofty One, who fills immensity with his glory, should, in a peculiar manner, fix his abode there! Should there manifest an extraordinary degree of his benedictive presence; per­mit sinful mortals to approach his Majesty; and promise "to make them joyful in his house of prayer!— This should more sensibly affect our hearts, than the most cu­rious arrangement of stones can delight our eyes.

Nay, the everlasting GOD does not disdain to dwell in our souls by his holy spirit; and to make even our [Page 5] bodies his temple.—Tell me, ye that frame critical judg­ments, and balance nicely the distinction of things; "Is this most astonishing or most rejoicing?"—He hum­bleth himself, the scripture assures us, even to behold the things that are in Heaven ^*. 'Tis a most condescend­ing favour, if HE pleases to take the least approving no­tice of Angels and Archangels, when they bow down in homage from their celestial thrones. Will he then gra­ciously regard, will he be united, most intimately united to poor, polluted breathing dust?—Unparallelled honour! invaluable privilege! Be this my portion, and I shall not covet crowns, nor envy conquerors.

But let me remember, what a sanctity of disposition, and uprightness of conversation, so exalted a relation de­mands: Remember this, "and rejoice with trembling." —Durst I commit any iniquity, while I tread these hallow­ed courts? could the Jewish high priest allow himself in any known transgression, while he made that solemn yearly entrance ^† into the Holy of Holies, and stood before the immediate presence of JEHOVAH? No, truly. In such circumstances, a thinking person must shudder at the most remote solicitation, to any wilful of­fence. I should now be shocked at the least indecency of behaviour, and am apprehensive of every appearance of evil.—And why do we not carry this holy jealousy, into all our ordinary life? Why do we not, in every place, ^‡ reverence ourselves; as persons dedicated to the Divini­ty, as living temples of the Godhead? For, if we are real, and not merely nominal christians, the GOD of Glory, according to his own promise, ^‖ dwells in us, and walks in us.—O! that this one doctrine of our religion might operate with an abiding efficacy, upon our consciences! It would be instead of a thousand laws, to regulate our [Page 6] conduct, instead of a thousand motives, to quicken us in holiness. Under the influence of such a conviction, we should study to maintain a purity of intention; a dig­nity of action: and to walk worthy of that transcend­ently majestick Being, who admits us to a fellowship with himself, and with his son JESUS CHRIST.

The next thing, which engaged my attention, was the lettered floor. The pavement, somewhat like Ezekiel's roll, was written over from one end to the other. I soon perceived the comparison to hold good, in another re­spect; and the inscriptions to be matter of ‘Mourning, lamentation, and woe ^*.’ They seemed to court my observation; silently inviting me to read them. And what would these dumb monitors inform me of?— ‘That, beneath their little circumferences, were deposited such and such pieces of clay, which once lived, and moved, and talked: That they had received a charge to preserve their names, and were the remaining trus­tees of their memory.’

Ah! said I, is such my situation! The adorable Crea­tor around me, and the bones of my fellow creatures under me! Surely, then, I have great reason to cry out, with the revering patriarch, How dreadful is this place! ^† Seriousness and devotion become this house forever. May I never enter it lightly or irreverently; but with a profound awe, and godly fear!

O! that they were wife ^‡! said the inspired penman. It was his last wish for his dear people. He breathed it out, and gave up the ghost.—But what is wisdom! It consists not in refined Speculations; accurate researches into nature; or an universal acquaintance with history. The divine lawgiver settles this important point, in his next aspiration: O! that they understood this! That they had right apprehensions of their spiritual interests, and eternal concerns! That they had eyes to discern, and inclinations to pursue, the things which belong to their peace!—But how shall they attain this valuable know­ledge? I send them not, adds the illustrious teacher, to [Page 7] turn over all the volumes of literature: They may ac­quire, and much more expeditiously, this science of life, by considering their latter end. This spark of Heaven is often lost, under the glitter of pompous erudition; but shines clearly, in the gloomy mansions of the tomb. Drowned in this gentle whisper, amidst the noise of secular affairs: but speaks distinctly, in the re­tirements of serious contemplation.—Behold! how prov­identially I am brought to the school of Wisdom! ^* The grave, is the most faithful ^† master; and these in­stances of mortality, the most instructive lessons.—Come then, calm attention, and compose my thoughts: Come, thou celestial spirit, and enlighten my mind; that I may so peruse these awful pages, as to become ‘wise unto salvation.’

Examining the records of mortality, I found the memorials of a ^‡ promiscuous multitude. They were hud­dled, at least they rested together, without any re­gard to rank or seniority. None were ambitious of the uppermost rooms, or chief seats, in this house of mourn­ing. None entertained fond and eager expectations of being honourably greeted, in their darksome cells. The man of years and experience, reputed as an Oracle in his generation, was content to lie down at the feet of a babe. In this house appointed for all living, the ser­vant was equally accommodated, and lodged in the same story with his master. The poor indigent lay as softly, and slept as soundly, as the most opulent possessor. All the distinction that subsisted, was, a grassy hillock, bound with ofiers; or a sepulchral stone, ornamented with imagery.

Why then, said my working thoughts, O! why should we raise such a mighty stir, about superiority and [Page 8] precedence; when the next remove will reduce us all to a state of equal meanness? Why should we exalt our­selves, or debase others; since we must all, one day, be upon a common level, and blended together in the same undistinguished dust? O! that this consideration might humble my own, and others pride; and sink our imag­ination as low, as our habitation will shortly be!

Among these confused relicks of humanity, there are, without doubt, persons of contrary interests, and contra­dicting sentiments. But Death, like some able days­man, has laid his hand on the contending parties; and brought all their differences to an ^* amicable conclu­sion. Here enemies, sworn enemies, dwell together in unity. They drop every imbittered thought, and for­get that they once were foes. Perhaps, their crumbling bones mix as they moulder: and those who, while they lived, stood aloof in irreconcilable variance; here fall into mutual embraces, and even incorporate with each other in the grave. O! that we might learn from these friendly ashes, not to perpetuate the memory of injuries; not to foment the fever of resentment; nor cherish the turbulence of passion. That there may be as little ani­mosity and disagreement in the land of the living, as there is in the congregation of the dead!—But I suspend for a while such general observations, and address myself to a more particular inquiry.

Yonder white stone, emblem of the innocence it cov­ers, informs the beholder of one, who breathed out its tender soul, almost in the instant of receiving it.—There, the peaceful infant, without so much as knowing what labour and vexation mean, ‘ ^† lies still and is quiet; it sleeps and is at rest.’ Staying only to wash away its native impurity in the laver of regeneration, it bid a speedy adieu to time and terrestrial things.—What did the little hasty sojourner find, so forbiding and disgust­ful in our upper world, to occasion its precipitant exit? 'Tis written, indeed, of its suffering Saviour, that when he had tasted the vinegar mingled with gall, he would [Page 9] not drink. ^* And, did our new come stranger, begin to sip the cup of life: But, perceiving the bitterness, turn away its head and refuse the draught? Was this the cause, why the wary babe only opened its eyes; just looked on the light; and then withdrew, into the more inviting regions of undisturbed repose?

Happy voyager! No sooner launched, than arrived at the haven! ^†—But more eminently happy they, who have passed the waves, and weathered all the storms, of a troublesome and dangerous world! Who ‘through many tribulations, have entered into the kingdom of heaven;’ and thereby brought honour to their divine convoy, administered comfort to the companions of their toil, and left an instructive example to succeed­ing pilgrims.

Highly favoured probationer! accepted, without be­ing exercised!—It was thy peculiar privilege, not to feel the slightest of those evils, which oppress thy surviving kindred; which frequently fetch groans, from the most manly fortitude, or most elevated faith. The arrows of calamity, barbed with anguish, are often fixed deep in our choicest comforts. The fiery darts of temptation, shot from the hand of hell, are always flying in show­ers around our integrity. To thee, sweet babe, both these distresses and dangers were alike unknown.

Consider this, ye mourning parents, and dry up your tears. Why should you lament, that your little ones are crowned with victory, before the sword is drawn, or the conflict begun?—Perhaps, the Supreme Disposer of events, foresaw some inevitable snare of temptation forming, or some dreadful storm of adversity impending. And why should you be so dissatisfied, with that kind precaution; which housed your pleasant plant, and re­moved into shelter a tender flower, before the thunders roared: Before the lightnings flew: Before the tem­pest poured its rage?—O remember! they are not lost, but taken away from the evil to come. ^†

[Page 10]At the same time, let survivors, doomed to bear the heat and burden of the day, for their encouragement re­flect—That it is more honourable to have entered the lists, and to have fought the good fight, before they come off conquerors. They who have bore the cross, and submitted to afflictive providences, with a cheerful resignation; have girded up the loins of their mind, and performed their Master's will, with an honest and persevering fidelity:—These, having glorified their Redeemer on earth, will, probably, be as stars of the first magnitude in heaven. They will shine with bright­er beams, be replenished with stronger joys, in their LORD's everlasting kingdom.

Here lies the grief of a fond mother, and the blast­ed expectation of an indulgent father.—The youth grew up, like a well watered plant; he shot deep, rose high, and bid fair for manhood. But just as the cedar began to tower, and promised, ere long, to be the pride of the wood, and prince among the neighbouring trees—Be­hold! the ax is laid unto the root; the fatal blow struck; and all its branching honours tumbled to the dust.— And did he fall alone? No: The hopes of his father that begat him, and the pleasing prospects of her that bare him, fell, and were crushed together with him.

Doubtless, it would have pierced one's heart, to have beheld the tender parents, following the breathless youth, to his long home. Perhaps, drowned in tears, and all overwhelmed with sorrows, they stood, like weep­ing statues, on this very spot.—Methinks, I see the deeply distressed mourners attending the sad solemnity. How they wring their hands, and pour floods from their eyes!—Is it fancy? or do I really hear the passionate mother, in an agony of affliction taking her final leave of the darling of her soul? dumb she remained, while the awful obsequies were performing; dumb with grief, and leaning upon the partner of her woes. But now the inward anguish struggles for vent; it grows too big to be repressed. She advances to the brink of the grave▪ all her soul is in her eyes. She fastens one more look upon the dear doleful object, before the pit shuts its mouth upon him. And as she looks, she cries;—in broken ac­cents, [Page 11] interrupted by many a rising sob, she cries— ‘Fare­wel, my son! my son! my only beloved! Would to GOD I had died for thee!—Farewel, my child! and farewel all my earthly happiness!—I shall never more see good, in the land of the living.—Attempt not to comfort me, I will go mourning, all my days, till my grey hairs come down, with sorrow, to the grave.’

From this affecting representation, let parents be con­vinced, how highly it concerns them to cultivate the morals, and secure the immortal interests of their children. —If you really love the offspring of your own bodies; if your bowels yearn over those amiable pledges of conju­gal endearment; spare no pains; give all diligence, I intreat you, to ‘bring them up in the nurture and ad­monition of the LORD.’ Then, may you have joy in their life, or consolation in their death. If their span is prolonged; their unblamable and useful conduct, will be the staff of your age, and a balm for declining na­ture. Or, if the number of their years be cut off in the midst; you may commit their remains to the dust, with much the same comfortable expectations, as you send the survivors to places of genteel education. You may com­mit them to the dust, with cheering hopes of receiving them again to your arms, inexpressibly improved in every noble and endearing accomplishment.

'Tis certainly a severe trial; and much more afflictive, than I am able to imagine; to resign a lovely blooming creature, sprung from your own loins, to the gloomy recesses of corruption. Thus to resign him, after having been long dandled upon your knees; united to your affections by a thousand ties of tenderness; and now become, both the delight of your eyes, and the support of your family!—To have such a one torn from your bo­som, and thrown into darkness; doubtless, it must be like a dagger in your hearts.—But O! how much more cutting to you, and confounding to the child, to have the soul separated from GOD; and, for shameful ignorance, or early impiety, transmitted to places of eternal torment! How would it aggravate your distress, and add a distract­ing Emphasis to all your sighs, if you should follow the pale corpse with these bitter reflections!— ‘This dear creature though long ago capable of knowing good [Page 12] from evil, is gone out of the world before it had learned the great disign of coming into it. A short lived momentary existence, it received from me; but no good instructions, no holy admonitions, nothing to further its well being in that everlasting state, upon which it is now entered. The poor body is consigned to the coffin, and carried out to consume away, in the cold and silent grave. And what reason have I to sup­pose, that the precious soul is in a better condition? May I not justly fear, that, sentenced by the righteous judge, it is going, or gone away, into the pains of endless punishment?—Perhaps, while I am bewailing its untimely departure, it may be cursing, in outer darkness, that ever to be deplored, that most calami­tous day, when it was born of such a careless, ungodly parent, as I have been.’

Nothing, I think, but the gnawings of that worm which never dies, can equal the anguish of these self-condemning thoughts. The tortures of a rack must be an easy suffering, compared with the stings and hor­rour of such a remorse.—How earnestly do I wish, that as many as are intrusted with the management of children, would take timely care to prevent these scourges of con­science; by endeavouring to conduct their minds into an early knowledge of Christ, and a cordial love of his truth!

On this hand is lodged one, whose sepulchral stone tells a most pitiable tale indeed! Well may the little images, reclined over the sleeping ashes, hang down their heads with that pensive air! None can consider so mourn­ful a story, without feeling some touches of sympathiz­ing concern.—His age twenty eight; his death, sud­den; himself cut down in the prime of life, amidst all the vivacity and vigour of manhood; while ‘his breasts were full of milk, and his bones moistened with marrow.’ —Probably he entertained no appre­hensions of the evil hour. And indeed who could have suspected, that so bright a sun should go down at noon? To human appearance, his hill stood strong. Length of days seemed written in his sanguine countenance. He solaced himself with the prospect of a long, long series of earthly satisfactions.—When, lo! an unexpected stroke [Page 13] descends! descends from that mighty arm, which ‘over­turneth the mountains by their roots; and crushes the imaginary hero, ^* before the moth;’ as quickly, and more easily, than our fingers press such a feeble flutter­ing insect to death.

Perhaps, the nuptial joys were all he thought on.— Were not such the breathings of his enamoured soul? ‘Yet a very little while, and I shall possess the utmost of my wishes. I shall call my charmer mine; and, in her, enjoy whatever my heart can crave.’ —In the midst of such enchanting views, had some faithful friend but softly reminded him of an opening grave, and the end of all things; how unseasonable would he have reck­oned the admonition! Yet, though all warm with life, and rich in visionary bliss, he was even then tottering upon the brink of both.—Dreadful vicissitude! to have the bridal festivity turned into the funeral solemnity! ^† Deplorable misfortune; to be shipwrecked in the very haven! and to perish even in sight of happiness!— What a memorable proof is here of the frailty of man, in his best estate! Look, O! look on this monument, [Page 14] ye gay and careless! Attend to this date; and boast no more of tomorrow;

Who can tell, but the Bridemaids, girded with glad­ness, had prepared the marriage bed? Had decked it with the richest covers, and dressed it in pillows of down? When—Oh! trust not in youth, or strength, or in any thing mortal; for there is nothing certain, nothing to be depended on; beneath the unchangeable GOD—death, relentless death, is making him another kind of bed in the dust of the earth. Unto this he must be conveyed, not with a splendid procession of joyous attendants; but stretched in the gloomy hearse, and followed by a train of mourners. On this he must take up a lonely lodging, nor ever be released, "till the heavens are no more."— In vain does the consenting fair one put on her ornaments, and expect her spouse. Did she not, like Sisera's moth­er, look out of the lattice; chide the delays of her beloved; and wonder ‘why his chariot was so long in coming?’ Little thinking, that the intended bridegroom had forever done with transitory things; that now ever­lasting cares employ his mind, without one single re­membrance of his lovely Lucinda! Go, disappointed virgin! Go, mourn the uncertainty of all created bliss! Teach thy soul to aspire after a sure and immutable felic­ity! For the once gay and gallant Fidelio sleeps in other embraces; even in the icy arms of death! Forgetful, eternally forgetful, of the world—and thee.

Hitherto, one is tempted to exclaim against the king of terrours, and call him capriciously cruel. He seems, by beginning at the wrong end of the register, to have inverted the laws of nature. Passing over the couch of decrepit age, he has nipped infancy in its bud; blasted youth in its bloom; and torn up manhood in its full ma­turity.—Terrible indeed are these providences, yet not unsearchable the counsels: ‘For us they sicken, and for us they die. ^*’

Such strokes, must not only grieve the relatives, but surprise the whole neighbourhood. They sound a powerful alarm to heedless dreaming mortals, and are intended as a remedy for our carnal security. Such [Page 15] passing bells, inculcate loudly our LORD's admonition; ‘Take ye heed, watch and pray; for ye know not, when the time is.’ —We nod, like intoxicated crea­tures, upon the very verge of a most tremendous preci­pice. These astonishing dispensations, are the kind mes­sengers of Heaven; to rouse us from our supineness, and quicken us into timely circumspection. I need not, sure­ly, accommodate them with language, nor act as their in­terpreter. Let every one's conscience be awake, and this will appear their awful meaning— ‘O! ye sons of men, in the midst of life you are in death. No state, no cir­cumstances, can ascertain your preservation a single moment. So strong is the tyrant's arm, that nothing can resist its force; so true his aim, that nothing can elude the blow. Sudden as lightning, sometimes, is his arrow launched; and wounds, and kills, in the twinkling of an eye. Never promise yourselves safe­ty in any expedient, but constant preparation. The fatal shafts fly so promiscuously, that none can guess the next victim. Therefore, be ye always ready: For in such an hour as ye think not, the final summons cometh.’

Be ye always ready: For in such an hour as ye think not— Important admonition! methinks, it reverberates from sepulchre to sepulchre; and addresses me with line up­on line, precept upon precept.—The reiterated warn­ing, I acknowledge, is too needful; may cooperating grace, render it effectual! The momentous truth, though worthy to be engraved, on the tables of a most tenacious memory; is but shightly sketched, on the transient flow of passion. We see our neighbours fall; we turn pale at the shock: and feel, perhaps, a trembling dread. No sooner are they removed from our sight; but, driven in the whirl of business, or lulled in the languors of pleasure, we forget the providence, and neglect its errand. The impression made on our unstable minds, is like the trace of an arrow, through the penetrated air; or the path of a keel, in the furrowed wave.— Strange stupidity! To cure it, another monitor bespeaks me, from a neighbouring stone. It contains the narra­tive of an unhappy mortal, snatched from his friends, [Page 16] and hurried to the awful bar; without leisure, either to take a last farewel of the one, or to put up so much as a single prayer preparatory for the other: killed, accord­ing to the usual expression, by a sudden stroke of cas­ualty.

Was it then a random stroke? Doubtless, the blow came from an aiming though invisible hand. GOD presideth over the armies of heaven; GOD ruleth a­mong the inhabitants of the earth; and GOD conduct­eth what men call chance. Nothing, nothing comes to pass through a blind and undiscerning fatality. If acci­dents happen; they happen according to the exact fore­knowledge, and conformably to the determinate counsels, of eternal wisdom. The LORD, with whom are the issues of death, signs the warrant, and gives the high commission. The seemingly fortuitous disaster is only the agent, or the instrument, appointed to execute the supreme decree. When the king of Israel was mortally wounded, it seemed to be a casual shot. A certain man drew a bow at a venture ^*.— At a venture, as he thought. But his hand was strengthened, by an omnipotent aid; and the shaft levelled, by an unerring eye. So that, what we term casualty, is really providence; accomplishing delibe­rate designs, but concealing its own interposition.—How comforting this reflection! Admirably adapted, to sooth the throbbing anguish of the mourners, and compose their spirits into a quiet submission! Excellently suited, to dissipate the fears of godly survivors, and create a calm intrepidity even amidst innumerable perils!

How thin is the partition, between this world and another! How short the transition, from time to eter­nity! The partition, nothing more than the breath in our nostrils; and the transition may be made in the twink­ling of an eye. Poor Chremylus, I remember, arose from the diversion of a card table, and dropt into the dwellings of darkness. One night, Corinna was all gaiety in her spirits, all finery in her apparel, at a magnificent ball. The next night, she lay pale and stiff, an extended corpse, and ready to be mingled with the mouldering dead. Young Atticus lived to see his ample and commo­dious [Page 17] seat completed; but not to spend one joyous hour, under the stately roof. The sashes were hung, to ad­mit the day; but the master's eyes are closed in endless night. The apartments were furnished, to invite so­ciety, or administer repose; but their lord rests in the lower parts of the earth, in the solitary, silent chambers of the tomb. The gardens were planned, and a thou­sand elegant decoratious designed; but alas! their in­tended possessor, is gone down to "the place of skulls;" is gone down to the valley of the shadow of death.

While I am recollecting, many, I question not, are experiencing the same tragical vicissitude. The eyes of that sublime being—who sits upon the circle of the earth, and views all its inhabitants with one comprehensive glance—even now behold many tents in affliction. Such affliction as overwhelmed the Egyptians in that fatal night, when the destroying angel sheathed his ar­rows in all the pride of their strength.—Some, sinking to the floor from their easy chair; and deaf even amidst the piercing shrieks of their distracted relations.—Some giving up the ghost, as they sit retired, or lie reclined under the shady arbour, to taste the sweets of the flowery scene.—Some, as they sail, associated with a party of pleasure, along the dancing stream, and through the laughing meads. Nor is the grim intruder mollified, though wine and musick flow around. Some intercepted, as they are returning home; and some interrupted, as they enter upon an important negotiation.—Some ar­rested, with the gain of injustice in their hands; and some surprised in the very act of lewdness, or the attempt of cruelty.

Legions, legions of disasters, such as no prudence can foresee, and no care prevent, lie in wait to accom­plish our doom. A starting horse may throw his rider; may at once dash his body against the stones, and fling his soul into the invisible world. A st [...]ck of chimnies may tumble into the street, and crush the unwary pas­senger under the ruins. Even a single tile, dropping from the roof, may be as fatal as the fall of the whole structure.—So frail, so very attenuated is the thread of life, that it not only bursts before the storm, but breaks even at a breeze. The most common occurrences, those [Page 18] from which we suspect not the least harm, may prove the weapon of our destruction, a grape stone, a despi­cable fly, may be more mortal than Goliath, with all his formidable armour.—Nay, if GOD give command, our very comforts become killing. The air we breathe, is our bane; and the food we eat, the vehicle of death.— That last enemy has unnumbered avenues for his ap­proach. Yea; lies intrenched in our very bosom, and holds his fortress in the seat of our life. The crimson fluid, which distributes health, is impregnated with the seeds of death. Heat may inflame it, or toil oppress it; and make it destroy the parts, it was designed to cher­ish. Some unseen impediment may obstruct its passage, or some unknown violence may divert its course; in either of which cases, it acts the part of a poisonous draught, or a deadly stab.

Since then we are so liable to be dispossessed of this earthly tabernacle, let us look upon ourselves only as tenants at will; and hold ourselves in perpetual readi­ness, to depart at a moment's warning. Without such an habitual readiness, we are like wretches, that sleep on the top of a mast, while a horrid gulph yawns, or furious waves rage, below. And where can be the peace, what the satisfaction, of such a state?—Whereas, a pre­pared condition will inspire a cheerfulness of temper, not to be dismayed by any alarming accident; and create a firmness of mind, not to be overthrown by the most threatening dangers. When the city is fortified with walls, furnished with provision, guarded by able and res­olute troops; what have the inhabitants to fear? what may they not enjoy? So, just so, or rather by a much surer band, are connected the real taste of life, and the constant thought of death.

I said, our very comforts may become killing.—And see the truth inscribed by the hand, sealed with the [Page 19] signet of fate. The marble, which graces yonder pillar, informs me, that, near it, are deposited the re­mains of Sophronia; the much lamented Sophronia, who died in childbed.—How often does this calamity happen! The branch shoots; but the stem withers. The babe springs to light; but she that bare him, breathes her last. She gives life, but gives it (O pitiable considera­tion!) at the expense of her own; and becomes, at once, a mother, and a corpse.—Or else, perhaps, she expires in severe pangs, and is herself a tomb for her infant; while the melancholy complaint of a monarch's woe, is the epitaph for them both; the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth. ^*—Less to be lamented, in my opinion, this misfortune than the other. Better, for the tender stranger, to be stopped in the porch; than to enter, only to converse with afflic­tion. Better, to find a grave in the womb, than to be exposed on a hazardous world without the guardian of its infantile years, without the faithful guide of its youth.

This monument is distinguished by its finer mate­rials, and more delicate appendages. It seems to have taken its model from an affluent hand; directed by a generous heart; which thought it could never do enough for the deceased.—It seems, also, to exhibit an emble­matical picture of Sophronia's person and accomplishments. Is her beauty, or, what is more than beauty, her white­robed innocence, represented by the snowy colour? The surface, smoothly polished, like her amiable temper, and engaging manners. The whole adorned, in a well judg­ed medium between extravagant pomp, and sordid negli­gence; like her undissembled goodness, remote from the least ostentation, yet in all points exemplary.—But ah! how vain, were all these endearing charms! How vain, the lustre of thy sprightly eye! How vain, the bloom of thy bridal youth! How vain, the honours of thy su­periour birth! How unable to secure the lovely possessor, from the savage violence of death!—How ineffectual, the universal esteem of thy acquaintance; the fond­ness of thy transported husband; or even the spotless in­tegrity [Page 20] of thy character; to prolong thy span, or pro­cure thee a short reprieve!—The concurrence of all these circumstances reminds me of those beautiful and tender lines—

[Page 21]Yet, though unable to divert the stroke, christianity is sovereign to pluck out the sting, of death. Is not this the silent language of those lamps, which burn, and of that heart, which flames; of those palms, which flourish, [Page 22] and of that crown, which glitters, in the well imitated and gilded marble? Do they not, to the discerning eye, de­scribe the vigilance of her faith; the fervency of her devotion; her victory over the world; and the celestial diadem, which the LORD, the righteous Judge, shall give her at that day? ^*

How happy the husband, in such a sharer of his bed, and partner of his fortune! Their inclinations were nicely tuned unisons, and all their conversation was har­mony. How silken the yoke to such a pair, and what blessings were twisted with such bands! every joy was heightened, and every care alleviated. Nothing seemed wanting to consummate their bliss, but a hopeful progeny, rising around them.—That they might see themselves, multiplied in their little ones; see their mingled graces, transfused into their offspring; and feel the glow of their affection augmented, by being reflected from their chil­dren. ‘Grant us this gift, said their united prayers, and our satisfactions are crowned: We request no more.’

Alas! how blind are mortals to future events! How unable to discern, what is really good! ^† Give me chil­dren, said Rachel, or else I die. ^‡ An ardour of impa­tience, altogether unbecoming; and as mistaken, as it was unbecoming. She dies, not by the disappointment, but by the accomplishment, of her desire.—If children are, to parents, like a flowery chaplet, whose beauties blossom with ornament, and whose odours breathe de­light; death, or some fell misfortune, may find means to entwine themselves with the lovely wreath. When­ever our souls are poured out, with passionate importu­nity, after any inferiour acquisition; it may be truly said, in the words of our divine master, Ye know not what ye ask.—Does Providence withhold the thing that we long for? It denies in mercy; and only withholds the occa­sion of our misery, perhaps the instrument of our ruin. [Page 23] With a sickly appetite, we often lothe what is whole­some, and hanker after our bane. Where imagination dreams of unmingled sweets; there, experience fre­quently finds the bitterness of woe.

Therefore, may we covet immoderately, nei­ther this nor that form of earthly felicity; but refer the whole of our condition, to the choice of unerring wis­dom. May we learn to renounce our own will; and be ready to make a sacrifice of our warmest wishes, when­ever they run counter to the good pleasure of GOD. For, indeed, as to obey his laws, is to be perfectly free; so, to resign ourselves to his disposal, is to establish our own happiness, and to be secure from fear of evil.

Here, a small and plain stone is placed upon the ground. Purchased, one would imagine, from the lit­tle fund, and formed by the hand, of frugality itself. Nothing costly: Not one decoration added: Only a very short inscription; and that so effaced, as to be scarcely in­telligible.—Was the depository unfaithful to its trust? Or were the letters worn by the frequent resort of the surviving family; to mourn over the grave of a most valuable and beloved relative?—For I perceive, upon a closer inspection, that it covers the remains of a father. A religious father; snatched from his growing offspring, before they were settled in the world, or so much as their principles fixed by a thorough education.

This, sure, is the most complicated distress, that has hitherto come under our consideration, The solem­nities of such a dying chamber, are some of the most melting and melancholy scenes imaginable.—There lies the affectionate husband; the indulgent parent; the faithful friend; and the generous master. He lies in the last extremities, and on the very point of dissolution. Art has done its all. The raging discase mocks the power of medicine. It hastens, with resistless impetu­osity, to execute its dreadful errand; to rend asunder the silver cord of life, and the more delicate tie of so­cial attachment, and conjugal affection.

A servant or two, from a revering distance, cast many a wishful look, and condole their honoured master in the language of sighs. The condescending mildness of [Page 24] his commands, was wont to produce an alacrity of obe­dience, and render their service a pleasure. The re­membrance of both imbitters their grief, and makes it trickle plentifully down their honest cheeks.—His friends, who have so often shared his joys, and gladdened his mind with their enlivening converse, now are miserable com­forters. A sympathizing and mournful pity, is all the relief, they are able to contribute; unless it be aug­mented by their silent prayers for the divine succour, and a word of consolation suggested from the scriptures. ^* Those poor innocents, the children, crowd around the bed; drowned in tears, and almost frantick with grief, they sob out their little souls, and passionately cry; ‘Will he leave us? Leave us, in a helpless condition! Leave us, to an injurious world!’

These separate streams are all united in the distressed spouse, and overwhelm her breast with an impetuous tide of sorrows. In her, the lover weeps; the wife mourns; and all the mother yearns. To her, the loss is beyond measure aggravated, by months and years of delightful society, and exalted friendship.—Where, a­las! can she meet with such unsuspected fidelity, or re­pose such unreserved confidence? Where find so discreet a counsellor; so improving an example; and a guardian so sedulously attentive, to the interests of herself, and her children?—See! how she hangs over the languish­ing bed; most tenderly solicitous to prolong a life, important and desirable far beyond her own. Or, if that be impracticable, no less tenderly officious to sooth the last agonies of her dearer self.—Her hands, trembling under direful apprehensions, wipe the cold dews from the livid cheeks; and sometimes stay the sinking head on her gentle arms, and sometimes rest it on her compassionate bosom.—See! how she gazes, with a speechless ardour, on the pale countenance, and meagre features. Speechless [Page 25] her tongue; but she looks unutterable things. While all her soft passions throb with unavailing fondness, and her very soul bleeds with exquisite anguish.

The Sufferer, all patient and adoring, submits to the divine will; and, by submission, becomes superiour to his affliction. He is sensibly touched with the disconsolate state of his attendants; and pierced with an anxious concern, for his wife and his children. His wife, who will soon be a destitute widow; his children, who will soon be helpless orphans. ‘Yet, though cast down, not in despair.’ He is greatly refreshed by his trust in the everlasting covenant, and his hope of approaching glory. Religion gives a dignity to distress. At each interval of ease, he comforts his very comforters; and suffers with all the majesty of woe.

The soul, just going to abandon the tottering clay, collects all her force, and exerts her last efforts. The good man raises himself on his pillow; extends a kind hand to his servants, which is bathed in tears; takes an affecting farewel of his fri [...]ds; clasps his wife in a fee­ble embrace; kisses the dear pledges of their mutual love; and then pours all that remains of life and of strength, in the following words;— ‘I die, my dear children; but GOD, the everlasting GOD, will be with you.—Though you lose an earthly parent; you have a father in heaven, who lives for evermore.—Nothing, nothing but an unbelieving heart, and irreligious life, can ever separate you, from the regards of his prov­idence—from the endearments of his love.’

He could proceed no farther. His heart was full; but utterance failed. After a short pause, with difficulty, great difficulty, he added;— ‘You, the dear partner of my soul, you are now the only protector of our orphans.—I leave you under a weight of cares.—But GOD, who defendeth the cause of the widow—GOD, whose promise is faithfulness and truth—GOD hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. ^*—This revives my drooping spirits—let this support the wife of my bosom—and now, O father of compassions, into thy hands I commend my spirit—encouraged by thy promised goodness, I leave my fatherless—’

[Page 26]Here, he fainted; fell back upon the bed; and lay, for some minutes, bereft of his senses. As a taper, upon the very point of extinction, is sometimes suddenly re­kindled, and leaps into a quivering flame: So life, be­fore it totally expired, gave a parting struggle, and once more looked abroad from the opening eyelids.—He would fain have spoke; fain have uttered the sentence, he began. More than once he assayed; but the organs of speech were become like a broken vessel; and nothing but the obstructing phlegm, rattled in his throat. His as­pect, however spoke affection inexpressible. With all the father, all the husband still living in his looks; he takes one more view of those dear children, whom he had oft­en beheld with a parental triumph. He turns his dy­ing eyes on that beloved woman, whom he never beheld but with a glow of delight. Fixed in this posture, a­midst smiles of love, and under a gleam of heaven, they shine out their last.

Upon this, the silent sorrow bursts into loud laments. They weep, and refuse to be comforted. Till some length of time, had given vent to the excess of pas­sion; and the consolations of religion; had staunched their bleeding woes. Then, the afflicted family search for the sentence, which fell unfinished from those loved, those venerable, and pious lips. They find it recorded by the prophet Jeremiah, containing the direction of in­finite wisdom, and the promise of unbounded goodness; Leave thy fatherless children; I will preserve them alive; and let thy widows trust in me. ³⁰ This, now, is the com­fort of their life, and the joy of their heart. They treasure it up in their memories. It is the best of lega­cies, and an inexhaustible fund. A fund, which will sup­ply all their wants, by entailing the blessing of heaven, on all their honest labours.—They are rich, they are happy, in this sacred pledge of the divine favour. They fear no evil; they want no good; because GOD is their portion, and their guardian GOD.

No sooner turned from one memento of my own, and memorial of another's decease, but a second, a third, a long succession of these melancholy monitors, crowd [Page 27] upon my sight. ^*—That which has fixed my observation, is one of a more grave and fable aspect than the former. I suppose, it preserves the relicks of a more aged person. One would conjecture, that he made somewhat of a fig­ure▪ in his station among the living; as his monument does, among the funeral marbles. Let me draw near, and inquire of the stone; ‘ Who, or what, is beneath its surface?’—I am informed, he was once the own­er of a considerable estate; which was much improved, by his own application and management: That, he left the world in the busy period of life; advanced a little beyond the meridian.

Probably, replied my musing mind, one of those indefatigable drudges, who rise early; late take rest; and eat the bread of carefulness; not to secure the lov­ing kindness of the LORD; not to make provision for any reasonable necessity; but only to amass together ten thousand times more than they can possibly use.—Did he not lay schemes for enlarging his fortune, and aggran­dizing his family? Did he not purpose to join field to field, and add house to house; till his possessions were almost as vast, as his desires? That, then he would ^† sit down, and enjoy what he had acquired; breathe a while from his toilsome pursuit of things temporal, and, perhaps, think a little of things eternal.

But see the folly of worldly wisdom! How silly, how childish, is the sagacity of (what is called) manly and masterly prudence; when it contrives more solicitously for TIME, than it provides for ETERNITY! How strangely infatuated are those subtil heads, which weary themselves, in concerting measures for phantoms of a day; and scarce bestow a thought, on everlasting realities!—When every wheel moves on smoothly: when all the well disposed designs are ripening apace for execution; and the long expected crisis of enjoyment seems to approach; behold! GOD from on high laughs at the Babel builder. Death touches the bubble, and it breaks; it drops into nothing. The cobweb, most finely spun indeed, but more easily [Page 28] dislodged, is swept away in an instant; and all the abor­tive projects are buried, in the same grave with their pro­jector. So true is that verdict, which the wisdom from above passes, on these successful unfortunates: ‘They walk in a vain shadow, and disquiet themselves in vain. ^*’

Speak, ye that attended such a one in his last min­utes; ye that heard his expiring sentiments; did he not cry out, in the language of disappointed sensuality?— ‘O death! how terrible is thy approach to a man im­mersed in secular cares, and void of all concern for the never ending Hereafter! Where, alas! is the prof­it, where the comfort, of entering deep into the knowledge, and of being dexterous in the dispatch, of earthly affairs; since I have, all the while, neglect­ed the one thing needful! Destructive mistake! I have been attentive to every inferiour interest; I have laid myself out on the trifles of a moment; but have dis­regarded heaven; have forgot eternal ages! O! that my days’ —here, he was going on to breathe some fruitless wishes; or to form, I know not what, ineffectu­al resolutions. But a sudden convulsion shook his nerves; disabled his tongue; and, in less than an hour, dissolved his frame.

May the children of this world be warned, by the dying words of an unhappy brother; and gather ad­vantage, from his misfortune.—Why should they pant, with such impatient ardour, after white and yellow earth; as if the universe did not afford sufficient, for every one to take a little? Why should they lade themselves with thick clay; when they are to ‘ run for an incorruptible crown, and press towards the prize of their high call­ing?’ Why should they overload the vessel▪ in which their everlasting ALL is embarked; or fill their arms with superfluities, when they are to swim for their lives? —Yet, so preposterous is the conduct of those persons, who are all industry, to heap up an abundance of the wealth which perisheth; but are scarce so much as faintly desirous, of being rich towards GOD.

O! that we may walk, through all these glittering toys, at least with a wise indifference, if not with a superiour [Page 29] disdain! Having enough for the conveniences of life, let us only accommodate ourselves with things below, and lay up our treasures in the regions above.—Whereas, if we indulge an anxious concern, or lavish an inordinate care, on any transitory possessions, we shall rivet them to our affections with so firm an union, that the utmost se­verity of pain must attend the separating stroke. By such an eager attachment, to what will certainly be ravished from us; we shall only insure to ourselves accumulated an­guish, against the agonizing hour. We shall plant, afore­hand, our dying pillow with thorns. ^*

Some, I perceive, arrived at threescore years and ten, before they made their exit; nay, some few resigned not their breath till they had numbered fourscore revolving harvests. These, I would hope, ‘remembered their crea­tor in the days of their youth;’ before their strength became labour and sorrow:—Before that low ebb of languishing nature, when the keepers of the house tremble, and those that look out of the windows are darkened; ^† when even the lighting down of the grasshopper, is a burden on the bending shoulders; and desire itself fails in the list­less, lethargick soul.—Before those heavy hours come, and those tiresome moments draw nigh; in which, there is too much reason to say, ‘We have no pleasure in them; no improvement from them.’

If their lamps were unfurnished with oil; how unfit must they be in such decrepit circumstances, to go to the market, and buy! ^‡ For besides a variety of disorders, arising from the enfeebled constitution; their corrup­tions must be surprisingly strengthened, by such a long course of irreligion. Evil habits must have struck the [Page 30] deepest root; must have twisted themselves with every fi­bre of the heart; and be as thoroughly ingrained in the disposition, as the soot in the Ethiopian's complexion, or the spots in the leopard's skin. If such a one, un­der such disadvantages, surmounts all the difficulties, which lie in his way to glory; it must be a great and mighty salvation indeed. If such a one escapes destruc­tion, and is saved at the last; it must, without all perad­venture, be— so as by fire. ^*

This is the season, which stands in need of comfort; and is very improper to enter upon the conflict. The husbandman should now be putting in his sickle, or eat­ing the fruit of his labours; not beginning to break up the ground, or scatter the seed.—Nothing, it is true, is impossible with GOD; He said, Let there be light, and there was light: Instantaneous light, diffused, as quick as thought, through all the dismal dominion of prime­val darkness. At his command, a leprosy of the long­est continuance, and of the utmost inveteracy, departs in a moment. He can, in the greatness of his strength, quicken the wretch who has lain dead in trespasses and sins, not four days only, but fourscore years.—Yet trust not, O trust not, a point of such inexpressible im­portance, to so dreadful an uncertainty. GOD may sus­pend his power; may withdraw his help; may swear in his wrath, that such abusers of his longsuffering shall "never enter into his rest."

Ye therefore, that are vigorous in health, and blooming in years, improve the precious opportunity. Improve your golden hours, to the noblest of all purposes; such as may render you meet for the inheritance of saints in light; and ascertain your title to a state of immortal youth, to a crown of eternal glory. ^†—Stand not, all the prime of your day, idle; trifle no longer with the [Page 31] offers of this immense felicity; but make haste, and delay not the time, to keep GOD's commandments. While you are loitering in a gay insensibility, death may be bending his bow, and marking you out for speedy vic­tims.—Not long ago, I happened to spy a thoughtless Jay. The poor bird was idly busied in dressing his pret­ty plumes; or hopping carelessly from spray to spray. A sportsman coming by observes the feathered rover. Im­mediately he lift [...] the tube, and levels his blow. Swifter than whirlwind flies the leaden death; and in a mo­ment lays the silly creature, breathless on the ground.— Such, such may be the fate of the man, who has a fair occasion of obtaining grace today; and wantonly post­pones the improvement of it, till tomorrow. He may be cut off, in the midst of his folly; and ruined forever, while he is dreaming of being wise hereafter.

Some, no doubt, came to this their last retreat, full of piety, and full of days; ‘as a shock of corn, ripe with age, and laden with plenty, cometh in, in his season. ^*’ —These were children of light, and wise in their generation. Wise with that exalted wisdom, which cometh from above; and with that enduring wisdom, which lasts to eternity.— Rich also they were, more hon­ourably and permanently rich, than all the votaries of Mammon. The wealth of the one has made itself wings, and is irrecoverably gone. While the wretched acquirers are transmitted, to that place of penury and pain, where, not so much as one drop of water is allowed, to cool their scorched tongues. The stores of the other still abide with them; will never depart from them; but make them glad for ever and ever, in the city of their GOD. Their treasures, were such, as no created power could take away; such as none but infinite beneficence can bestow; and, comfortable to consider! such as I, and every in­digent longing sinner, may obtain; treasures of heavenly [Page 32] knowledge, and saving faith; treasures of atoning blood, and imputed righteousness.

Here ^* lie their bodies in ‘peaceable habitations, and quiet resting places.’ Here, they have thrown off every burden, and are escaped from every snare. The head aches no more; the eye forgets to weep; the flesh [Page 33] is no longer racked with acute, nor wasted with lingering distempers. Here, they receive a final release from pain, and an everlasting discharge from sorrow. Here, dan­ger never threatens them with her terrifying alarms; but tranquillity softens their couch, and safety guards their repose.—Rest then, ye precious relicks, within this hos­pitable gloom. Rest in gentle slumbers, till the last trumpet shall give the welcome signal; and sound aloud, through all your silent mansions, ‘Arise; shine; for your light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. ^*’

To these, how calm was the evening of life! In what a smiling serenity, did their sun go down! when their flesh and their heart failed, how reviving was the remembrance of an all sufficient redeemer; once dying for their sins, now risen again for their justifica­tion! How cheering the well grounded hope of pardon for their transgressions, and peace with GOD, through JESUS CHRIST our LORD! How did this asswage the agonies, and sweeten the bitterness of death?—Where now is wealth, with all her golden mountains? Where is honour, with her proud trophies of renown? Where are all the vain pomps of a deluded world? Can they [Page 34] inspire such comfort, can they administer any support, in this last extremity? Can they compose the affrighted thoughts? or buoy up the departing soul, amidst all the pangs of dissolution?—The followers of the Lamb seem pleased and triumphant, even at their last gasp. ‘GOD's everlasting arms are underneath ^*’ their fainting heads. His spirit whispers peace and consolation to their con­sciences. In the strength of these heavenly succours, they quit the field, not captives but conquerors; with "hopes full of immortality."

And now they are gone.—The struggles of reluctant nature are over. The body sleeps in death: The soul launches into the invisible state.—But, who can imagine the delightful surprise, when they find themselves sur­rounded by guardian angels, instead of weeping friends? How securely do they wing their way, and pass through unknown worlds, under the conduct of those celestial guides!—The vale of tears is quite lost. Farewel, for­ever, the realms of woe, and range of malignant be­ings! They arrive on the frontiers of inexpressible felic­ity. They "are come to the city of the living GOD:" while a voice sweeter than musick in her softest strains, sweet as the harmony of hymning seraphim, congratu­lates their arrival, and bespeaks their admission: Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors, that the heirs of glory may enter in.

Here, then, let us leave the spirits and souls of the righteous; escaped from an entangling wilderness, and re­ceived into a paradise of delights! Escaped from the ter­ritories of disquietude, and settled in regions of unmo­lested security! Here they sit down with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, in the kingdom of their father. Here, they mingle with an innumerable company of angels, and re­joice around the throne of the Lamb; rejoice in the frui­tion of present felicity, and in the assured expectation of an inconceivable addition to their bliss; when GOD shall call the heavens from above, and the earth, that he may judge his people. ^†

[Page 35]Fools accounted their life madness, and their end to be without honour; but, they are numbered among the children of GOD; and their lot, their distinguished and eternal lot, is among the saints! ^* However, therefore, an undis­cerning world may despise, and a profane world vilify, the truly religious; be this the supreme, the invariable desire of my heart? ‘Let me live the life, and die the death of the righteous. Oh! let my latter end, and future state, be like theirs!’

What figure is that, which strikes my eye, from an eminent part of the wall? It is not only placed in a more elevated situation, than the rest; but carries a more splendid and sumptuous air, than ordinary. Swords and spears; murdering engines, and instruments of slaughter, adorn the stone with a formidable magnifi­cence.—It proves to be the monument of a noble war­rior.

Is such respect, thought I, paid to the memory of this brave soldier, for sacrificing his life to the publick good? Then, what honours, what immortal honours, are due to the great captain of our salvation? Who, though Lord of the angelick legions! and supreme commander of all the heavenly hosts; willingly offered himself a bleeding propitiation for sinners!

The one died, being a mortal; and only yielded up a life, which was long before forfeited to divine justice; which must soon have been surrendered as a debt to na­ture, if it had not fallen as a prey to war.—But CHRIST took flesh, and gave up the ghost, though he was the great I AM; the fountain of existence; who calls hap­piness and immortality all his own. He, who thought it no robbery to be equal with God; he, whose outgoings were from everlasting; even he, was made in the likeness of man, and cut off out of the land of the living. Won­der, [Page 36] O heavens! be astonished, O earth; HE died the death, of whom it is witnessed, that he is ‘the true GOD, and eternal life. ⁴⁵’

The one exposed himself to peril, in the service of his sovereign and his country; which, though it was glo­rious to do, yet would have been ignominious, in such circumstances, to have declined.—But CHRIST took the field, though he was the blessed and only potentate; the KING of Kings, and LORD of Lords, CHRIST took the field, though he was sure to drop in the en­gagement; and put on the harness, though he knew beforehand, that it must reek with his blood. That prince of heaven resigned his royal person, not barely to the hazard, but to the inevitable stroke; to death, certain in its approach, and armed with all its hor­rours.—And for whom? Not for those who were in any degree deserving, but for his own disobedient creatures; for the pardon of condemned malefactors; for a band of rebels, a race of traitors, the most obnoxious and in­excusable of all criminals. Whom he might have left to perish in their iniquities, without the least impeach­ment of his goodness, and to the display of his avenging justice.

The one, 'tis probable, died expeditiously; was sud­denly wounded, and soon slain. A bullet, lodged in his heart; a sword, sheathed in his breast; or a battle axe, cleaving the brain; might put a speedy end to his mise­ry; dispatch him "as in a moment."—Whereas, the divine Redeemer expired in tedious and protracted tor­ments. His pangs were as lingering, as they we [...] exqui­site. Even in the prelude to his last suffering, what a load of sorrows overwhelmed his sacred humanity! Till the intolerable pressure wrung blood, instead of sweat, from every pore; till the crimson flood stained all his raiment, and tinged the very stones.— But, when the last scene of the tragedy commenced; when the execu­tioner's hammer, had nailed him to the cross; O! how many dismal hours, did that illustrious sufferer hang; a spectacle of woe to GOD, to angels, and to men! His temples mangled with the thorny crown! his hands and feet cleft with the rugged irons! his whole body [Page 37] covered with wounds and bruises! and his soul, his very soul, pierced with pangs of unutterable distress!

So long he hung, that nature, through all her domin­ions, was thrown into sympathizing commotions. The earth could no longer sustain such barbarous indignities, without trembling; nor the sun behold them, without horrour. Nay, so long did he hang in this extremity of agony and torture, that the alarm reached even the re­mote regions of the dead.—Never, O my soul, never forget the amazing truth. The Lamb of GOD was seized, was bound, was slaughtered with the utmost in­humanity, and endured death, in all its bitterness, for thee. His murderers, studiously cruel, so guided the fatal cup, that he tasted every drop of its gall, before he drank it off to the very dregs.

Once again; the warrior died like a hero, and fell gallantly in the field of battle.—But, died not CHRIST as a fool dieth? ^* Not on the bed of honour, with scar [...] of glory in his breast; but, like some execrable mis­creant, on a gibbet, with lashes of the vile scourge on his back. Yes, the blessed JESUS bowed his expiring head on the accursed tree; suspended between heaven and earth, as an outcast from both, and unworthy of either.

What suitable returns of inflamed and adoring devotion, can we make to the holy one of GOD; thus dying, that we might live; dying in ignominy and an­guish, that we might live forever in the heights of joy, and sit forever on thrones of glory.—Alas! it is not in us, impotent, insensible mortals, to be duly thankful. He only, who confers such inconceivably rich favours, can enkindle a proper warmth of grateful affection. Then build thyself a monument, most gracious IMMANUEL, build thyself an everlasting monument of gratitude in our souls. Inscribe the memory of thy matchless benef­icence, not with ink and pen, but with that precious blood which gushed from thy wounded veins. Engrave it, not with the hammer and chizel, but with that sharpened spear which pierced thy sacred side. Let it [Page 38] stand conspicuous and indelible, not on outward tables of stone, but on the very inmost tables of our hearts.

One thing more let me observe, before I bid adieu to this entombed warrior, and his garnished sepulchre. How mean are those o [...]tentatious methods, of bribing the vote of fame, and purchasing a little posthumous re­nown! What a poor substitute for a set of memorable actions, is polished alabaster, or the mimickry of sculp­tured marble! The real excellency of this ^* bleeding patriot, is written on the minds of his countrymen▪ It would be remembered with applause, so long as the na­tion subsists, without this artificial expedient to perpetu­ate it.—And such, such is the monument I would wish for myself. Let me leave a memorial in the breasts of my fellow creatures. Let surviving friends bear wit­ness, that I have not lived to myself alone, nor been al­together unserviceable in my generation. Oh! let an uninterrupted series of beneficent offices be the inscrip­tion, and the best interests of my acquaintance, the plat [...] that exhibits it.

Let the poor, as they pass by my grave, point at the little spot and thankfully acknowledge— ‘There lies the man whose unwearied kindness was the constant relief of my various distresses; who tenderly visited my languishing bed, and readily supplied my indigent circumstances. How often were his counsels, a guide to my perplexed thoughts, and a cordial to my de­jected spirit! 'Tis owing to GOD's blessing, on his [Page 39] seasonable charities, and prudent consolations, that I now live, and live in comfort.’ —Let a person, once ignorant and ungodly, lift up his eyes to heaven, and say within himself, as he walks over my bones— ‘Here are the last remains of that sincere friend who watched for my soul. I can never forget with what heedless gaiety, I was posting on in the paths of perdition; and I tremble to think, into what irretrievable ruin I might quickly have been plunged, had not his faithful ad­monitions arrested me in the wild career. I was un­acquainted with the gospel of peace, and had no concern for its unsearchable treasures; but now, enlightened by his instructive conversation, I see the all sufficiency of my Saviour; and, animated by his repeated exhortations, I count all things but loss, that I may win CHRIST. Methinks his discourses, sea­soned with religion, and set home by the divine spi­rit, still tingle in my ears; are still warm on my heart; and I trust, will be more and more operative, till we meet each other in the house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.’

The only infallible way of immortalizing our char­acters, a way equally open to the meanest and most ex­alted fortune, is, ‘To make our calling and elec­tion sure;’ to gain some sweet evidence that our names are written in heaven. Then, however they may be disregarded or forgotten among men, they will not fail to be had in everlasting remembrance, before the LORD.—This is of all distinctions, far the noblest. Ambition, be this thy object, and every page of Scrip­ture will sanctify thy passion; even grace itself will fan thy flame.—As to earthly memorials, yet a little while, and they are all obliterated. The tongue of those, whose happiness we have zealously promoted, must soon be silent in the coffin. Characters cut with a pen of iron, and committed to the solid rock, wilt ere long cease to be legible. ^* But as many as are enrolled ‘in the Lamb's book of life,’ he himself declares, shall never be blotted out from those annals of eternity. ^† When a flight of years has mouldered the triumphal [Page 40] column into dust: When the brazen statue perishes under the corroding hand of time, those honours still continue, still are blooming and incorruptible in the world of glory.

Yonder entrance leads, I suppose, to the Vault. Let me turn aside and take one view of the habita­tion, and its tenants.—The sullen door grates upon its hinges: Not used to receive many visitants, it admits me with reluctance and murmurs.—What meaneth this sudden trepidation, while I descend the steps, and a [...] visiting the pale nations of the dead?—Be composed, my spirits, there is nothing to fear in these quiet chambers. ‘Here, even the wicked cease from troub­ling.’

Good heavens! what a solemn scene!—How dismal the gloom! Here is perpetual darkness, and night even at noonday.—How doleful the solitude! Not one trace of cheerful society; but sorrow and terrour seem to have made this their dreaded abode.—Hark! how the hollow dome resounds at every tread. The echoes, that long have slept are awakened, and lament, and sigh, along the walls.

A beam or two, finds its way through the grates, and reflects a feeble glimmer, from the nails of the [Page 41] coffins. So many of those sad spectacles, half concealed in shades, half seen dimly by the baleful twilight, add a deeper horrour to these gloomy mansions.—I pore upon the inscriptions and am just able to pick out, that these are the remains of the rich and renowned. No vulgar dead are deposited here. The Most Illustrious, and Right Honourable have claimed this for their last retreat. And, indeed, they retain somewhat of a shadowy preeminence. They lie ranged in a mournful order, and in a sort of a silent pomp under the arches of an ample sepulchre: While meaner corpses, without much ceremony, ‘go down to the stones of the pit.’

My apprehensions recover from their surprise. I find here are no phantoms, but such as fear raises.— However, it still amazes me to observe the wonders of this nether world. Those who received vast revenues and called whole lordships their own, are here reduced to half a dozen feet of earth, or confined in a few sheets of lead. Rooms of state, and sumptuous furni­ture are resigned, for no other ornament than the shroud, for no other apartment than the darksome niche. —Where is the star, that blazed upon the breast; or coronet that glittered round the temples? The only remains of departed dignity are, the weatherbeaten hatchment and the tattered escutcheon. I see no splen­did retinue, surrounding this solitary dwelling. The lordly equipage hovers no longer about the lifeless mas­ter. He has no other attendant than a dusty statue, which, while the regardless world is as gay as ever, the sculptor's hand has taught to weep.

Those who gloried in high born ancestors, and noble pedigree, here drop their lofty pretensions. They acknowledge kindred with creeping things, and quarter arms with the meanest reptiles. They say to corruption, thou art my father; and to the worm, thou art my moth­er and my sister.—Or, should they still assume the stile of distinction, ah! how impotent were the claim! how apparent the ostentation! Is it said by their monument? HERE LIES THE GREAT. How easily is it replied by the spectator!

[Page 42] Mortifying truth! Sufficient, one would think, to wean the most sanguine appetite, from this transitory state of things; from its sickly satisfactions, its fading glories, its vanishing treasures.

What is all the world to these poor breathless be­ings?—What are their pleasures? A bubble broke.— What their honours? A dream that is forgotten.—What the sum total of their enjoyments below? Once, perhaps, it appeared to inexperienced and fond desire, something considerable. But, now death has measured it with his line, and weighed it in his scale, what is the upshot? Alas! it is shorter than a span, lighter than the dancing spark, and driven away like the dissolving smoke.

Indulge, my soul, a serious pause. Recollect all the gay things, that were wont to dazzle thy eyes and inveigle thy affections. Here examine those baits of sense. Here form an estimate of their real value. Sup­pose thyself first among the favourites of fortune, who revel in the lap of pleasure; who shine in the robes of honour; and swim in tides of inexhausted riches. Yet, how soon would the passing bell proclaim thy exit! And, when once that iron call has summoned thee to thy fu­ture reckoning; where would all these gratifications be? At that period, how will all the pageantry of the most affluent, splendid, or luxurious circumstances, vanish into empty air!—And is this a happiness so passionately, to be coveted?

I Thank you, ye relicks of sounding titles and magnificent names. Ye have taught me more of the littleness of the world than all the volumes of my library. Your nobility arrayed in a winding sheet; your grandeur mouldering in an urn; are the most in­disputable proofs of the nothingness of created things. Never, surely, did Providence write this important point in such legible characters, as in the ashes of my Lord, or on the corpse of his Grace. ^*—Let others, if they [Page 43] please, pay their obsequious court to your wealthy sons, and ignobly fawn, or anxiously sue for preferments. My thoughts shall often resort, in pensive contemplation, to the sepulchres of their sires, and learn from their sleeping dust—to moderate my expectations from mor­tals—to stand disengaged from every undue attachment to the little interests of time—to get above the delusive, amusements of honour; the gaudy tinsels of wealth; and all the empty shadows of a perishing world.

Hark! what sound is that!—In such a situation, every noise alarms.—Solemn and slow, it breaks again upon the silent air.—'Tis the striking of the clock, designed, one would imagine, to ratify all my serious meditations. Methinks it says Amen, and sets a seal to every improving hint. It tells me that another portion of my appointed time is elapsed. One calls it, "the knell of my departed hours." 'Tis the watch­word to vigilance and activity. It cries in the ear of reason, ‘Redeem the time. Catch the favour­able gales of opportunity: O! catch them, while they breathe; before they are irrecoverably lost. The span of life shortens continually. Thy minutes are all upon the wing, and hastening to be gone. Thou art a borderer upon eternity, and making incessant ad­vances to the state thou art contemplating.’ May the admonition sink deep into an attentive and obedi­ent mind! May it teach me that heavenly arithmetick, of ‘numbering my days, and applying my heart unto wisdom!’

I have often walked beneath the impending prom­ [...]ntory's craggy cliff; I have sometimes trod the vast spaces of the lonely desert, and penetrated the inmost recesses of the dreary cavern; but never, never beheld nature louring with so tremendous a form; never felt such impressions of awe, striking cold on my heart, as under these black browed arches, amidst these mouldy walls, and surrounded by such rueful objects. Where melancholy, deepest melancholy, forever spreads her raven wings.—Let me now emerge from the damp and dreadful obscurity.—Farewel, ye seats of desolation, [Page 44] and shades of death! Gladly I revisit the realms of day.

Having cast a superficial view, upon these recepta­cles of the dead; curiosity prompts my inquiry to a more intimate survey. Could we draw back the covering of the tomb; could we discern what those are now, who once were mortals—O! how would it surprise, and grieve us; surprise us, to behold the prodigious transforma­tion, which has taken place on every individual; grieve us, to observe the dishonour done to our nature in gen­eral, within these subterraneous lodgments!

Here, the sweet and winning aspect, that wore per­petually an attractive smile, grins horridly a naked, ghastly skull. The eye, that outshone the diamond's brilliancy, and glanced its lovely lightning into the most guarded heart: Alas! where is it? Where shall we find the rolling sparkler? How are all its sprightly beams eclipsed! totally eclipsed! The tongue, that once commanded all the power of eloquence, in this strange land has "forgot its cunning." Where are now those strains of harmony which ravished our ears? Where is that flow of persuasion which carried captive our judg­ments. The great master of language and of song, is become silent as the night that surrounds him. The pampered flesh, so lately clothed in purple and fine linen, how is it covered rudely with clods of clay! There was a time when the timorously nice creature would scarce ‘ ^* adventure to set a foot upon the ground, for delicateness and tenderness;’ but is now enwrap­ped in clammy earth, and sleeps on no softer a pillow than the ragged gravel stones. Here ‘the strong men bow themselves.’ The nervous arm is unstrung; the brawny sinews are relaxed; the limbs, not long ago the seats of vigour and activity, lie down motionless; and the bones, which were as bars of iron, are crum­bled into dust.

Here the man of business forgets all his favourite schemes, and discontinues the pursuit of gain. Here is a total stand to the circulation of merchandise, and [Page 45] the hurry of trade. In these solitary recesses, as in the building of Solomon's temple, is heard no sound of the hammer and axe. The winding sheet and the coffin, are the utmost bound of all earthly devices. ‘Hitherto may they go, but no farther.’ —Here the sons of Pleas­ure take a final farewel of their dear delights. No more is the sensualist; anointed with oil, or crowned with rose buds. He chants no more to the melody of the viol, nor revels any longer at the banquet of wine. Instead of sumptuous tables, and delicious treats, the poor vo­luptuary is himself a feast for fattened insects; the rep­tile riots in his flesh; ‘the worm feeds sweetly on him.’ ^*—Here also, beauty fails; bright Beauty drops her lustre here. O! how her roses fade, and her lilies languish, in this bleak soil! How does the grand level­ler pour contempt upon the charmer of our hearts! How turn to deformity what captivated the world before!

Could the lover have a sight of his once enchanting fair one, what a startling astonishment would seize him! — ‘Is this the object I not long ago so passionately ad­mired! I said she was divinely fair, and thought her somewhat more than mortal. Her form was sym­metry itself; every elegance breathed in her air; and all the graces waited on her motions.—'Twas musick when she spoke! but, when she spoke encouragement, 'twas little less than rapture. How my heart danced to those charming accents!—And can that, which, some weeks ago, was to admiration lovely, be now so insufferably loathsome?—Where are those blushing cheeks? Where the coral lips? Where that ivory neck, on which the curling jet in such glossy ringlets, flowed? With a thousand other beauties of person, and ten thousand delicacies of action? ^†—Amazing alteration! Delusory bliss!—Fondly I gazed upon the glittering meteor. It shone brightly, and I mis­took it for a star; for a permanent and substantial [Page 46] good. But how is it fallen! fallen from an orb, not its own! And all that I can trace on earth is but a putrid mass.’

Lie, poor Florella! lie deep, as thou dost, in obscure darkness. Let night, with her impenetrable shades, always conceal thee. May no prying eye be witness to thy disgrace; but let thy surviving sisters think upon thy state, when they contemplate the idol in the glass.— When the pleasing image rises gracefully to view, sur­rounded with a world of charms, and flushed with joy at the consciousness of them all—Then, in those minutes of temptation and danger, when vanity uses to steal into the thoughts—Then let them remember, what a veil of horrour is drawn over a face which was once beautiful and brilliant as theirs. Such a seasonable re­flection might regulate the labours of the toilet, and create a more earnest solicitude to polish the jewel than to varnish the casket. It might then become their highest ambition to have their mind decked with divine virtues, and dressed after the amiable pattern of their Redeemer's holiness.

And would this prejudice their persons, or depreciate their charms?—Quite the reverse. It would spread a sort of heavenly glory over the finest set of features, and heighten the loveliness of every other engaging accom­plishment.—What is yet a more inviting consideration, these flowers would not wither with nature, nor be tar­nished by time; but would open continually into richer beauties, and flourish even in the winter of age.—But, the most incomparable recommendation of these noble qualities, is, That, from their hallowed relicks, as from the fragrant ashes of the Phoenix, will ere long arise an illustrious [...]orm, bright as the wings of angels, lasting as the light of the new Jerusalem.

For my part, the remembrance of this sad revolution shall make me ashamed to pay my devotion to a shrine of perishing flesh; and afraid to expect all my happi­ness from so brittle a joy. It shall teach me not to think too highly of well proportioned clay, though formed in the most elegant mould, and animated with the sweetest soul. 'Tis heaven's last, best, and crown­ing gift;—to be received with gratitude, and cherished [Page 47] with love, as a most valuable blessing, not worshipped with the incense of flattery, and strains of fulsome ad­oration, as a goddess.—It will cure, I trust, the dot­age of my eyes, and incline me always to prefer the substantial "ornaments of a meek and virtuous spirit," before the transient decorations of white and red on the skin.

Here I called in my roving medi [...]tions from their long excursion on this tender subject. Fancy listened a while to the soliloquy of a lover. Now judgment re­sumes the reins and guides my thoughts to more near and self interesting inquiries.—However, upon a review of the whole scene, crowded with spectacles of mortality, and trophies of death, I could not forbear smiting my breast, and fetching a sigh, and lamenting over the no­blest of all visible beings, laid prostrate under the feet of "the pale horse, and his rider." ^* I could not for­bear repeating that pathetick exclamation—" Oh! thou ^† Adam, what hast thou done!" What desolation has thy disobedience wrought in the earth!—See the malig­nity, the ruinous malignity of sin! Sin has demolish­ed so many stately structures of flesh: Sin has made such havock among the most excellent ranks of GOD's lower creation: And sin (that deadly bane of our na­ture) would have plunged our better part into the exe­crable horrours of the nethermost hell, had not our merciful Mediator interposed, and given himself for our ransom. Therefore what grateful acknowledgments does the whole world of penitent sinners owe; what ardent returns of love will a whole heaven of glorified believers pay, to such a friend, benefactor, and deliv­erer!

Musing upon these melancholy objects, a faithful re­membrancer suggests from within— ‘Must this sad change succeed in me also? Am I to draw my last gasp; to become a breathless corpse; and be, what I deplore? ^‡ Is there a time approaching, when this [Page 48] body shall be carried out upon the bier, and consigned to its clay cold bed? While some kind acquaintance, perhaps, may drop one parting tear, and cry, alas! my brother!—Is the time approaching?’ Nothing is more certain. A decree much surer than the laws of the Medes and Persians, has irrevocably determined the doom.

Should one of these ghastly figures burst from his confinement, and start up, in frightful deformity, before me—should the haggard skeleton lift a clattering hand, and point it full in my view—should it open the stif­fened jaws, and, with a hoarse tremendous murmur, break this profound silence—should it accost me, as Samuel's apparition addressed the trembling king— ‘The LORD shall deliver thee also into the hands of Death, yet a little while, and thou shalt be with me.’ ^*—The solemn warning, delivered in so striking a manner, must strongly impress my imagination. A message in thun­der would scarce sink deeper. Yet, there is abun­dantly greater reason to be alarmed, by that express decla­ration of the LORD GOD Almighty, " Thou shalt sure­ly die."—Well then, since sentence is passed, since I am a condemned man; and know not when the dead warrant may arrive, let me die to sin, and die to the world, before I die beneath the stroke of a right­eous GOD. Let me employ the little uncertain interval of respite from execution, in preparing for a happier state, and a better life. That when the fatal moment comes, and I am commanded to shut my eyes upon all things [Page 49] here below, I may open them again, to see my Saviour in the mansions above.

Since this body, which is so fearfully and wonder­fully made, must fall to pieces in the grave; since I must soon resign all my bodily powers to darkness, inactivity, and corruption, let it be my constant care to use them well, while I possess them!—Let my hands be stretched forth to relieve the needy; and always be more ‘ready to give than to receive.’ —Let my knees bend in deep­est humiliation, before the throne of grace; while my eyes are cast down to the earth in penitential confusion, or devoutly looking up to heaven for pardoning mer­cy!—In every friendly interview, let the ‘law of kind­ness dwell on my lips;’ or rather, if the seriousness of my acquaintance permits, let the Gospel of peace flow from my tongue. O! that I might be enabled, in every publick concourse, to lift up my voice like a trum­pet, and pour abroad a more joyful sound than its most melodious accents, in proclaiming the glad tidings of free salvation!—But shut my ears, resolutely shut, a­gainst the malevolent whispers of slander, and the con­tagious breath of filthy talking. But be swift to hear the instructions of wisdom; be all attention when your Redeemer speaks; imbibe the precious truths, and con­vey them carefully to the heart.—Carry me, my feet, to the temple of the LORD, to the beds of the sick, and houses of the poor. May all my members, devoted en­tirely to my divine Master, be the willing instruments of promoting his glory!

Then, ye embalmers, you may spare your pains. These works of faith and labours of love; these shall be my spices and perfumes. Enwrapped in these, I would lay me gently down, and sleep sweetly in the blessed JE­SUS, hoping that GOD will ‘give commandment con­cerning my bones,’ and one day fetch them up from the dust, as silver from the furnace, purified, ‘I say not seven times, but seventy times seven.’

Here my contemplation took wing, and in an in­stant alighted in the garden adjoining to mount Cal­vary. Having viewed the abode of my deceased fellow creatures, methought I longed to see the place where [Page 50] our LORD lay.—And O! what a marvellous spectacle was once exhibited in this memorable sepulchre! He ‘who clothes himself with light as with a garment; and walks upon the wings of the wind;’ ^* HE was pleased to wear the habiliments of mortality, and dwelt among the prostrate dead.—Who can repeat the won­drous truth too often? Who can dwell upon the trans­porting theme too long? He who sits enthroned in glo­ry, and diffuses bliss among all the heavenly hosts; HE was once a pale and bloody corpse, and pressed this little spot.

O Death! how great was thy triumph in that hour! Never did thy gloomy realms contain such a prisoner be­fore.— Prisoner, did I say? No: He was more than a conqueror. He arose, far more mightily than Samson, from a transient slumber; broke down the gates, and demolished the strong holds of those dark dominions.— And this, O mortals, this is your only consolation and se­curity. JESUS has trod the dreadful path and smoothed it for your passage,—JESUS, sleeping in the chambers of the tomb, has brightened the dismal mansion, and left an inviting odour in those beds of dust. The dying JESUS! (Never let the comfortable truth depart from your minds! The dying JESUS) is your sure protection, your unquestionable passport, through the territories of [Page 51] the grave. Believe in him, and they shall prove ‘a highway to Sion;’ shall transmit you safe to paradise. Believe in him, and you shall be no losers, but unspeak­able gainers, by your dissolution. For, hear what the oracle of heaven says, upon this important point: Whoso believeth in me, shall never die. ^*—What sublime and emphatical language is this! Thus much, at least, it must import— ‘The nature of that last change, shall be surprisingly altered, for the better. It shall no longer be inflicted as a punishment; but rather be vouchsafed as a blessing. To such persons, it shall come attended with such a train of benefits, as will render it a kind of happy impropriety, to call it dying. Dying! No; 'tis then they truly begin to live. Their exit is the end of their frailty, and their entrance upon perfection. Their last groan, is the prelude to life and immortality.’

O ye timorous souls, that are terrified at the sound of the passing bell; that turn pale at the sight of an opened grave; and can scarce behold a coffin or a skull without a shuddering horrour: Ye that are in bondage to the grisly tyrant, and tremble at the shaking of his iron rod; cry mightily to the father of your spirits, for faith in his dear Son. Faith will free you from your slavery. ^† Faith will embolden you to tread on (this [Page 52] fiercest of) serpents. ^*—Old Simeon, clasping the child JESUS in the arms of his flesh, and the glorious medi­ator in the arms of his faith, departs with tranquillity and peace. That bitter persecutor Saul, having won CHRIST; being found in CHRIST; longs to be dismissed from cumbrous clay, and kindles into rapture at the prospect of dissolution. ^† Methinks, I see another of IM­MANUEL's followers, trusting in his Saviour; leaning on his beloved; go down to the silent shades, with compos­ure and alacrity. ^‡—In this powerful name, an innu­merable company of sinful creatures have set up their banners; and ‘overcome through the blood of the Lamb.’ Authorised by the captain of thy salvation, thou also mayest set thy feet, upon the neck of this king of terrours. Furnished with this antidote, thou also mayest play around the hole of the asp, and put thy un­daunted hand on this cockatrice den. ^‖ Thou mayest ^§ feel the viper fastening to thy mortal part, and fear no evil: Thou shalt one day shake it off by a joyful res­urrection, and suffer no harm.

Resurrection! That cheering word eases my mind of an anxious thought, and solves a most momentous question. I was going to ask; ‘Wherefore do all these corpses lie here in this abject condition? Is this their final state? Has death conquered! and will the tyrant hold captivity captive? How long wilt thou forget them, O LORD? Forever?’ —No, saith the voice from heaven, the word of divine revelation; the righteous are all " prisoners of hope." ^** There is an hour (an awful secret that, and known only to all fore­seeing wisdom) an appointed hour there is, when an act of grace will pass the great seal above, and give them an universal discharge; a general delivery from the a­bodes of corruption.—Then shall the Lord JESUS descend from heaven, with the shout of the archangel, and the trump of GOD. Destruction itself shall hear his call, and the obedient grave give up her dead. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, they shake off [Page 53] the sleep of ten thousand years; and spring forth, like the bounding roe, to "meet their LORD in the air."

And, O! with what cordial congratulations, what transporting endearments, do the soul and body, those affectionate companions reunite! But, with how much greater demonstrations of kindness, are they both re­ceived, by their compassionate Redeemer! The ancient of days, who comes in the clouds of heaven, is their friend, their father, their bridegroom. He comes with irresistible power and infinite glory; but they have noth­ing to fear from his majestick appearance. Those tre­mendous solemnities, which spread desolation and astonish­ment through the universe, serve only to inflame their love, and heighten their hopes. The judge, the awful judge, amidst all his magnificence and splendour, vouch­safes to confess their names; vouchsafes to commemorate their fidelity, before all the inhabitants of the skies, and the whole assembled world.

Hark! the thunders are hushed. See! the light­nings cease their rage. The angelick armies stand in silent suspense. The whole race of Adam, is wrapped up in pleasing, or anxious expectation.—And now, that adorable person, whose favour is better than life; whose acceptance is a crown of glory; lifts up the light of his countenance upon the righteous. He speaks, and what ravishing words proceed from his gracious lips! What ecstasies of delight they enkindle in the breasts of the faithful!— ‘I accept you, O my people! Ye are they, that believed in my name. Ye are they, that renounced yourselves, and are complete in me. I see no spot or blemish in you; for ye are washed in my blood, and clothed with my righteousness. Renew­ed by my spirit, ye have glorified me on earth, and have been faithful unto death. Come then, ye serv­ants of holiness, enter into the joy of your LORD. Come, ye children of light; ye blessed of my fa­ther; receive the kingdom, that shall never be remov­ed; wear the crown, which fadeth not away, and enjoy pleasures for evermore!’

Then, it will be one of the smallest privileges of the righteous, that they shall languish no more; that sick­ness [Page 54] will never again shew her pale countenance, in their dwellings. ^* Death itself will be ‘swallowed up in victory.’ That fatal javelin, which has drank the blood of monarchs, and finds its way to the hearts of all the sons of Adam, shall be utterly broken. That enormous scythe, which has struck empires from their root, and swept ages and generations into oblivion; shall lie by in perpetual uselessness. Sin also, which filled thy quiver, thou insatiate archer!—Sin, which strung thy arm with resistless vigour—which pointed all thy shafts with inevitable destruction—Sin, will then be done away. Whatever is frail or depraved, will be thrown off with our grave clothes. All to come is perfect ho­liness, and consummate happiness; the term of whose continuance is eternity.

O Eternity! Eternity! How are our boldest, our strongest thoughts, lost and overwhelmed in thee! Who can set landmarks, to limit thy dimensions, or find plummets, to fathom thy depths? Arithmeticians have fig­ures, to compute all the progressions of time. Astron­omers have instruments to calculate the distances of the planets. But what numbers can state, what lines can gauge, the lengths and breadths of eternity? ‘It is higher than heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what cast thou know? The measure thereof is longer than the earth, broader than the sea.’ ^†

Mysterious, mighty existence! A sum, not to be lessened by the largest deductions! An extent, not to be contracted by all possible diminutions! None can truly say after the most prodigious waste of ages; ‘So much of eternity is gone.’ For, when millions of centu­ries are elapsed, it is but just commencing; and, when millions more have run their ample round, it will be no nearer ending. Yea, when ages, numerous as the bloom of spring; increased by the herbage of summer; both [Page 55] augmented by the leaves of autumn; and all multiplied by the drops of rain which drown the winter—when these, and ten thousand times ten thousand more—more than can be represented by any similitude, or imagined by any conception—when all these are revolved and fin­ished; eternity, vast, boundless, amazing eternity, will only be beginning!

What a pleasing, yet awful thought is this! Full of delight, and full of dread. O! may it alarm our fears, quicken our hopes, and animate all our endeav­ours! Since we are soon to launch into this endless and inconceivable state; let us give all diligence, to secure our entrance into bliss.— Now, let us give all diligence, because there is no alteration in the scenes of futurity. The wheel never turns: All is stedfast and immoveable beyond the grave. Whether we are then seated on the throne, or stretched on the rack; a seal will be set to our condition, by the hand of everlasting mercy, or inflexible justice.—The saints always rejoice amidst the smiles of heaven; their harps are perpetually tuned; their triumphs admit of no interruption.—The ruin of the wicked is irremediable. The fatal sentence, once passed, is never to be repealed. No hope of exchanging their doleful habitations. But all things bear the same dismal aspect forever and ever.

The wicked—My mind recoils, ^* at the apprehen­sion of their misery. It has studiously waved the fearful subject, and seems unwilling to pursue it, even now.— But 'tis better to reflect upon it for a few minutes, than to endure it to eternal ages. Perhaps, the considera­tion of their aggravated misery, may be profitably terri­ble; may teach me more highly to prize the Saviour, who "delivers from going down into the bottomless pit;" may drive me like the avenger's sword, to this only city of refuge, for obnoxious sinners.

The wicked seem to lie here like malefactors, in a deep and strong dungeon, reserved against the day of trial.—" Their departure was without peace." Clouds of horrour sat louring upon their closing eyelids; most sadly foreboding the "blackness of darkness forever." When the last sickness seized their frame, and the in­evitable [Page 56] change advanced; when they saw the fatal ar­row, fitting to the strings; saw the deadly archer, aim­ing at their hearts; and felt the envenomed shaft, fastened in their vitals—Good GOD! what fearfulness came up­on them! What horrible dread overwhelmed them! How did they stand shuddering and aghast, upon the tremen­dous precipice! Excessively afraid to plunge into the abyss of eternity, yet utterly unable to maintain their standing on the verge of life.

O! what pale reviews, what startling prospects, conspire to augment their sorrows!—They look backward, and behold a most melancholy scene! Sins unrepented of; mercy slighted; and the day of grace ending!— They look forward, and nothing presents itself, but the righteous judge; the dreadful tribunal; and a most sol­emn reckoning.—They roll around their affrighted eyes, on attending friends. If accomplices in debauchery; it sharpens their anguish, to consider this farther aggra­vation of their guilt; that they have not sinned alone, but drawn others into the snare. If religious acquaint­ance; it strikes a fresh gash into their hearts, to think of never seeing them any more, but only at an unap­proachable distance, separated by the unpassable gulf.

At last, perhaps, they begin to pray. Finding no other possible way of relief, they are constrained to ap­ply unto the Almighty. With trembling lips, and a faltering tongue, they cry unto that sovereign Being, "who kills and makes alive."—But why have they de­ferred, so long deferred their addresses to GOD? Why have they despised all his counsels; and stood incorrigible under his incessant reproofs? How often have they been forewarned of these terrours; and most importunately intreated, to seek the LORD, while he might be found?— I wish, they may obtain mercy at the eleventh, at the last hour. I wish they may be snatched from the jaws, the opened, the gaping, the almost closing jaws of dam­nation But, alas! Who can tell, whether affronted majesty, will lend an ear to their complaint? Whether the holy One will work a miracle of grace, in behalf of such transgressors? He may, for aught any mortal knows, ‘laugh at their calamity, and mock when their fear cometh.’

[Page 57]Thus they lie, groaning out the poor remains of life; their limbs bathed in sweat; their heart strug­gling with convulsive throes; pains unsupportable throb­bing in every pulse; and innumerable darts of agony transfixing their consicience.

If this be the end of the ungodly, ‘My soul, come not thou into their secret! Unto their assembly, mine honour, be not thou united!’ —How awfully accomplished is that prediction of inspired wisdom! Sin, though seemingly sweet in the commission; yet at the last, it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.—Fly, therefore from the tents, O! fly from the ways of such wretched men.

Happy dissolution! were this the period of their woes. But, alas! all these tribulations, are only ‘ the beginning of sorrows;’ a small drop only from that ‘Cup of trembling,’ which is mingled for their future portion.— No sooner has the last pang dislodged their reluctant souls, but they are hurried into the presence of an injured angry GOD. Not under the conducting care of beneficent an­gels, but exposed to the insults of accursed spirits; who lately tempted them, now upbraid them, and will forever torment them.—Who can imagine their confusion and dis­tress, when they stand guilty and inexcusable before their [Page 58] incensed Creator? They are received with frowns. The GOD that made them, has no "mercy on them. ^*" The prince of peace rejects them with abhorrence. He con­signs them over to chains of darkness, and receptacles of despair; against the severer doom, and more publick infa­my of the great day.—Then, all the vials of wrath, will be emptied upon these wretched creatures. The law they have violated, and the gospel they have slighted; the power they have defied, and the goodness they have a­bused; will all get themselves honour in their exemplary destruction. Then GOD, the GOD to whom vengeance belongeth, will draw the arrow to the very head, and set them as the mark of his inexorable displeasure.

Resurection will be no privilege to them; but im­mortality itself, their everlasting curse.—Would they not bless the grave, ‘that land where all things are for­gotten;’ and wish to lie eternally hid, in its deepest gloom? But the dust refuses to conceal their persons; or to draw a veil over their practices. They also must awake; must arise; must appear at the bar; and meet the judge. A judge, before whom ‘the pillars of heav­en tremble, and the earth melts away.’ A Judge, once long suffering and very compassionate; but now un­alterably determined, to teach stubborn offenders—What it is to provoke the omnipotent Godhead; what it is to trample upon the blood of his son: And offer despite to all the gracious overtures of his spirit.

O! the perplexity! the distraction! that must seize the impenitent rebels, when they are summoned to the great tribunal!—What will they do, in this day of se­vere visitation? This day of final decision?—Where? How? Whence, can they find help?—To which of the saints will they turn? Whither betake themselves for shel­ter or for succour?—Alas! 'tis all in vain, 'tis all too late. —Friends and acquaintance know them no more. Men and angels abandon them to their approaching doom. Even the Mediator, the MEDIATOR himself, deserts them in this dreadful hour.—To fly will be impracti­cable; to justify themselves, still more impossible; and now, to make any supplications, utterly unavailable.

Behold! the books are opened. The secrets of all [Page 59] hearts are disclosed. The hidden things of darkness are brought to light. How empty, how ineffectual now, are all those refined artifices; with which hypocrites im­posed upon their fellow creatures, and preserved a char­acter in the sight of men!—The jealous GOD, who has been about their path, and about their bed, and espied out all their ways, sets before them the things that they have done. They cannot answer him one in a thousand, nor stand in the awful judgment. The heavens reveal their iniquities, and the earth rises up against them. ^* They are speechless with guilt, and stigmatized with infamy, before all the armies of the sky, and all the nations of the re­deemed.—What a favour would they esteem it; to hide their ashamed heads, in the bottom of the ocean; or even to be buried beneath the ruins of the tottering world!

If the contempt, poured upon them, be thus unsup­portable; how will their hearts endure, when the sword of infinite indignation is unsheathed; and fiercely waved, around their defenceless heads; or pointed directly at their naked breasts? How must the wretches scream with wild amazement, and rend the very heavens with their cries, when the right aiming thunderbolts go abroad! Go abroad, with a dreadful commission, to drive them from the kingdoms of glory; and plunge them—not into the sorrows of a moment, or the tortures of an hour—but into all the restless agonies, of unquenchable fire, and everlasting despair. ^†

Misery of miseries! too shocking for reflection to dwell upon. But, if so dismal to foresee, and that at a distance, together with some comfortable expectation of escaping it—O! how bitter, inconceivably bitter, to bear it without any intermission; or any mitigation; through hopeless and eternal ages!

Who has any bowels of pity?—Who has any senti­ments of compassion? Who has any tender concern for his fellow creatures? Who?—In GOD's name, and for CHRIST's sake, let him shew it; by warning every man, [Page 60] and beseeching every man, to seek the LORD while he may be found: To throw down the arms of rebellion, before the act of indemnity expires; submissively to adore the Lamb, while he holds out the golden sceptre. Here, let us act the friendly part to mankind. Here, let the whole force of our benevolence exert itself; in exhorting rela­tions, acquaintance, neighbours whomsoever we may probably influence, to take the wings of faith unfeign­ed; of repentance undelayed; and flee away from this wrath to come.

Upon the whole; what stupendous discoveries are these! Lay them up in a faithful remembrance, O my soul. Recollect them, with the most serious attention; when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. When thou walkest, receive them for thy companions; when thou talkest, listen to them as thy prompters; and whatever thou doest, consult them as thy directors.—Influenced by these considerations, thy views will greaten; thy affections be exalted; and thou thyself raised above the tantalizing power of perishing things. Duly mindful of these, it will be the sum of thy desires, and the scope of thy en­deavours, to gain the approbation of that sovereign be­ing, who will then fill the throne, and pronounce the decisive sentence. Thou wilt see nothing worth a wish, ^* in comparison of having his will for thy rule; his glory for thy aim; and his holy spirit for thy ever actuating principle.

Wonder, O man; be lost in admiration; at those prodigious events, which are coming upon the universe. Events, the greatness of which, nothing finite can meas­ure. Such, as will cause whatever is considerable or mo­mentous in the annals of all generations, to sink into littleness and nothing. Events (JESUS prepare us, for their approach; defend us, when they take place!) big with the everlasting fates, of all the livin [...] and all the dead.—I must see the graves cleaving; the sea teeming; and swarms unsuspected, crowds unnumbered, yea, mul­titudes [Page 61] of thronging nations, rising from both.—I must see the world in flames; must stand at the dissolution of all terrestrial things, and be an attendant on the burial of nature.—I must see the vast expanse of the sky wrapt up like a scroll; and the incarnate God, issuing forth from light inaccessible, with ten thousand times ten thousand angels, to judge both men and devils.—I must see the curtain of time drop; see all eternity disclosed to view; and enter upon a state of being that will never, never have an end.

And ought I not (let the vainest imagination deter­mine; ought I not) to try the sincerity of my faith, and take heed to my ways? Is there an inquiry, is there a care, of greater, of equal, of comparable importance?— Is not this an infinitely pressing call, to see that my loins are girded about, my lamp trimmed, and myself dressed for the bridegroom's appearance? That washed in the fountain opened in my Saviour's side, and clad with the marriage garment wove by his obedience, I may be found in peace, unblamable, and unreprovable.—Other­wise, how shall I stand with boldness, when the stars of heaven fall from their orbs? How shall I come forth erect and courageous, when the earth itself reels to and fro like a drunkard? ^* How shall I look up with joy, and see my salvation drawing nigh, when the hearts of mill­ions and millions fail for fear.

Now, Madam, lest my meditations set in a cloud; and leave any unpleasing gloom upon your mind, let me once more turn to the brightening prospects of the righteous. A view of them, and their delightful ex­pectations, may serve to exhilarate the thoughts▪ which have been musing upon melancholy subjects, and hover­ing about the edges of infernal darkness. Just as a spa­cious field, arrayed in cheerful green, relieves and rein­vigorates the eye, which has fatigued itself by poring upon some minute, or gazing upon some glaring object.

The righteous seem to lie by, in the bosom of the earth, as a wary pilot in some well sheltered creek, till all the storms which infest this lower world are blown over. Here they enjoy safe anchorage, are in no danger of [Page 62] foundering amidst the waves of prevailing iniquity, or of being shipwrecked on the rocks of any powerful temp­tation. But, ere long, we shall behold them hoisting the flag of hope, riding before a sweet gale of atoning merit and redeeming love, till they make, with all the fails of an assured faith, the blessed port of eternal life.

Then, may the honoured friend, to whom I am writ­ing, rich in good works, rich in heavenly tempers, but inexpressibly richer in her Saviour's righ [...]eousness—O! may she enter the harbour, like a gallant stately vessel, re­turned successful and victorious from some grand expe­dition, with acclamations, honour, and joy! While my little bark, attendant on the solemnity, and a partaker of the triumph, glides humbly after; and both rest together in the haven—the wish'd for blissful haven of perfect security, and everlasting repose.

REFLECTIONS ON A FLOWER GARDEN.
In a LETTER to a LADY.

SOME time ago, my meditations took a turn among the tombs. They vis­ited the awful and melancholy man­sions of the dead; ^* and you was pleased to favour them with your attention.—May I now beg the hon­our of your company, in a more in­viting and delightful excursion? In a beautiful Flower Garden, where I lately walked, and at once regaled the sense and indulged the fancy.

It was early in a summer morning. When the air was cool; the earth moist; the whole face of the creation [Page 64] fresh and gay. The noisy world was scarce awake. Busi­ness had not quite shook off his sound sleep; and riot had but just reclined his giddy head. All was serene: All was still: Every thing tended to inspire tranquillity of mind, and invite to serious thought.

Only the wakeful Lark had left her nest, and was mounting on high, to salute the opening day. Elevated in air, she seemed to call the laborious husbandman to his toil, and all her fellow songsters to their notes.— Earliest of birds, said I, companion of the dawn, may I always rise at thy voice! Rise, to offer the matin song; and adore that beneficent being, ‘who maketh the out­goings of the morning and evening to rejoice.’

How charming to rove abroad, at this sweet hour of prime! To enjoy the calm of nature; to tread the dewy lawns; and taste the unrifled freshness of the air!

What a pleasure do the sons of sloth lose? Little, ah! little is the sluggard sensible, how delicious an entertain­ment he foregoes, for the poorest of all animal gratifica­tions. ^*

The greyness of the dawn decays gradually. Abun­dance of ruddy streaks tinge the fleeces of the firma­ment. Till at length, the dappled aspect of the east is lost, in one ardent and boundless blush.—Is it the sur­mise of imagination, or do the skies really redden with shame; to see so many supinely stretched, on their drow­sy pillows?—Shall man be lost, in luxurious ease? Shall man waste these precious hours, in idle slumbers? While [Page 65] the vigorous sun is up, and going on his Maker's errand? While all the feathered choir are hymning the Creator, and paying their homage in harmony?—No. Let him heighten the melody of the tuneful tribes, by add­ing the rational strains of devotion. Let him improve the fragrant oblations of nature, by mingling, with the rising odours, the more refined breath of praise.

'Tis natural for man to look upward; to throw his first glance upon the objects that are above him.

Prodigious theatre! Where lightnings dart their fire, and thunders utter their voice. Where tempests spend their rage, and worlds unnumbered roll at large!— O the greatness of that mighty hand; which meteth out this amazing circumference with a span! O the immen­sity of that wonderful being; before whom this unmeasur­able extent, is no more than a point!—And O (thou pleasing thought!) the unsearchable riches of that mercy, which is greater than the heavens! ^* Is more enlarged and extensive, in its gracious exercise; than these illimitable tracts of air, and sea, and firmament! Which pardons crimes of the most enormous size, and the most horrid aggravations; pardons them in consideration of the Re­deemer's atonement, with perfect freeness, and the ut­most readiness! More readily, if it were possible, than this all surrounding expanse admits, within its circuit, a ridge of mountains, or even a grain of sand.

Come hither, then, ye awakened, trembling sinners, come, ^† weary and heavy laden with a sense of your ini­quities. Condemn yourselves. Renounce all reliance on any thing of your own. Let your trust be in the ten­der mercy of GOD, forever and ever.

[Page 66] In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun. ^*—Be­hold him coming forth from the chambers of the east. See! the clouds, like floating curtains, are thrown back at his approach. With what refulgent majesty does he walk abroad! How transcendently bright is his coun­tenance; shedding day, and inexhaustible light, through the universe!—Is there a scene, though finished by the most elaborate and costly refinements of art, ‘compar­able to these illustrious solemnities of opening sun­shine? Before these, all the studied pageantry of the theatre; the glittering economy of an assembly; or even the heightened ornaments of a royal palace; hide their diminished heads, and shrink into noth­ing.’ —I have read of a person, so struck with the splendours of this noble luminary; that he imagined him­self made on purpose to contemplate its glories. O! that christians would adopt his persuasion, and transfer it to the sun of righteousness! Thus applied, it would cease to be a chimerical notion, and become a most important truth. For sure I am, it is the supreme happiness of the eternal state; and therefore may well be the ruling con­cern of this present life; to know the only true GOD, and JESUS CHRIST, whom he hath sent.—Nor do I stand alone in this opinion. The very best judge of whatever is valuable in science, or perfective of our nature; a judge, who formed his taste on the maxims of paradise, and received the finishings of his education in the third heavens; this judge determines to know nothing but JE­SUS CHRIST, and him crucified. He possessed, in his [Page 67] own person, the finest, the most admired accomplishments; yet pronounces them no better than dung, in comparison of the ^* supereminent excellency of this saving knowl­edge.

Methinks, I discern a thousand admirable proper­ties in the sun. 'Tis certainly, the best material emblem of the Creator. There is more of GOD in its lustre, energy, and usefulness, than in any other visible being. To worship it as a deity, was the least inexcusable of all the heathen idolatries. One scarce can wonder, that fallen reason should mistake so fair a copy, for the adorable Original. No comparison, in the whole book of sa­cred wisdom, pleases me more; than that which resem­bles the blessed JESUS, to yonder regent of the day. ^* Who now advances on his azure road, to scatter light and dispense gladness through the nations.

What were all the realms of the world, but a dun­geon of darkness, without the beams of the sun? All their fine scenes, hid from our view; lost in obscuri­ty. —In vain, we roll around our eyes, in the midnight gloom. In vain, we strive to behold the features of ami­able nature. Turn whether we will, no form or come­liness appears. All seems a dreary waste; an undistin­guished chaos. Till the returning hours, have unbarred the gates of light, and let forth the morn.—Then, what a prospect opens! The heavens are paved with azure, and strewed with roses. A variety of the liveli­est verdures array the plains. The flowers put on a glow of the richest colours. The whole creation stands forth, dressed in all the charms of beauty. The ravished eye looks round, and wonders.

And what had been the condition of our intellectual nature, without the great redeemer, and his divine rev­elation? —Alas! what absurd and unworthy apprehen­sions, did the Pagan sages form of GOD! What idle dreams, what childish conjectures, were their doctrines of a future state!—How did the bulk, even of that fa­voured nation, the Jews, weary themselves in very van­ity, [Page 68] to obtain peace and reconciliation with their offend­ed JEHOVAH! Till JESUS arose upon our benighted minds and brought life and immortality to light; till HE arose, to enlighten the wretched Gentiles, and to be the glory of his people Israel.

Now we no longer cry out, with a restless impatience, where is GOD my maker? For we are allowed to con­template the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, in the face of JESUS CHRIST.— Now, we no longer inquire, with an unsatisfied solici­tude, "which is the way to bliss?" Because JESUS has marked the path, by his shining example; and left us an unerring clue, in his holy word.—Now we have no more reason to proceed with misgiving hearts, in our journey to eternity; or to ask anxiously, as we go; ‘who will roll away the stone and open the everlasting doors? Who will remove the flaming sword, and give us ad­mission into the delights of paradise?’ For it is done, all done, by the captain of our salvation. Sin he has ex­piated, by the unblemished sacrifice of himself. The law he has fulfilled, by his perfect obedience. The sinner he transforms, by his sanctifying SPIRIT.—In a word; he hath both presented us with a clear discovery of good things to come; and administered to us an abundant en­trance, into the final enjoyment of them.

Whenever, therefore, we bless GOD for the circling seasons, and revolving day; let us adore, thankfully adore him, for the more precious appearance of the sun of righteousness, and his glorious gospel. Without which, we should have been groping, even to this hour, in spir­itual darkness, and the shadow of death. Without which, we must have wandered in a maze of inextricable uncertainties; and have ‘stumbled upon the dark mountains’ of errour, till we fell into the bottomless pit of perdition.

Without that grand enlivening principle, what were this earth, but a lifeless mass? A rude lump of inactive matter? The trees could never break forth into leaves, nor the plants spring up into flowers. We should no more behold the meadows mantled over with green; nor the valleys, standing thick with corn. Or, to speak in [Page 69] the beautiful language of a prophet; ^* No longer would the fig tree blossom, nor fruit be in the vine: The labour of the olive would fail, and the fields could yield no meat: The flocks must be cut off from the fold, and there would be no herd in the stall.—The sun darts its beams among all the vegetable tribes; and paints the spring, and en­riches the autumn. This pierces to the roots of the vine­yard and the orchard; and sets afloat those fermenting juices, which at length burst into floods of wine, or bend the boughs with a mellow load.—Nor are its fa­vours confined to the upper regions; but distributed unto the deepest recesses of creation. It penetrates the beds of metal, and finds its way to the place of the sapphires. It tinctures the seeds of gold, that are ripening into ore; and throws a brilliancy into the water of the diamond, that is hardening on its rock.—In short; the beneficial agency of this magnificent luminary, is inexpressible. It beautifies and impregnates, universal nature. ‘There is nothing hid from the heat thereof.’

Just in the same manner, were the rational world dead in trespasses and sins, without the reviving energy of JESUS CHRIST. He is the "resurrection and the life:" The overflowing fountain of the one, and the all pow­erful cause of the other. The second Adam is a quicken­ing spirit, and all his saints live through him. He shines upon their affections; and they shoot forth into heavenly graces, and abound in the fruits of righteousness. Faith unfeigned, and love undissembled, those noblest pro­ductions of the renewed nature, are the effect of his operation on the mind. Not so much as one divine disposition could spread itself, not one christian habit unfold and flourish, without the kindly influences of his grace.

As there is no fruitfulness, so likewise no cheerful­ness, ^† without the sun.—When that auspicious sovereign of the day, diffuses the mildness of his morning splen­dour, he creates an universal festival. Millions of gl [...]er­ing [Page 70] insects awake into existence, and bask in his rays. The birds start from their slumbers, and pour their de­lighted souls in harmony. The flocks, with bleating ac­cents hail the welcome blessing. The herds in lowing mur­murs express their hoarser acclamations. The valleys ring with rural musick; the hills echo back the artless strains. All that is vocal, joins in the general choir; all that has breath exults in the cheering influence.—Whereas, was that radiant orb extinguished, a tremendous gloom would ensue, and horrour insupportable. Nay, let it only be eclipsed, for a few minutes, and all nature assumes an air of sadness. The heavens are wrapt in sables, and put on a kind of mourning. The most sprightly ani­mals hang down their dejected heads. The songsters of the grove are struck dumb. Howling beasts roam abroad for prey: Ominous birds come forth and screech: The heart of man fails, or a sudden pang seizes the forebod­ing mind.—So when CHRIST hides away his face; when faith loses sight of that consolation of Israel, how gloomy are the prospects of the soul! Our GOD seems to be a consuming fire, and our sins cry loudly for ven­geance. The thoughts bleed inwardly; the christian walks heavily. All without is irksome; all within is dis­consolate.—Lift up then, most gracious JESUS, thou no­bler dayspring from on high! O lift up the light of thy countenance, upon thy people! Reveal the fulness of thy mediatorial sufficiency; make clear our title to this great salvation; an [...] hereby impart

In one instance more, let me pursue the similitude. The sun, I observe, pours his lustre all around, to every distance, and in every direction. Profusely liberal of his gifts, he illuminates and cheers all the ends of the earth, and the whole compass of the skies. The east reddens with his rising radiance; and the western hills, are gild­ed with his streaming splendours. The chilly regions of the north, are cherished by his genial warmth; while the southern tracts, glow with his fire.—Thus, are the influences of the sun of righteousness, diffusive and un­confined. The generations of old felt them; and gene­rations [Page 71] yet unborn, will rejoice in them. The merits of his precious death extended to the first, and will be prop­agated to the last ages of mankind.—May they, ere long, visit the remotest climates, and darkest corners of the earth! Command thy gospel, blessed JESUS, thy everlasting gospel, to take the wings of the morning, and travel with yonder sun. Let it fly upon strong pin­ions among every people, nation, and language. That, where the heat scorches, and the cold freezes, thou mayest be known, confessed, and adored! That strangers to thy name, and enemies to thy doctrine, may be enlightened with the knowledge, and won to the love of thy truth! O! may that best of eras come; that wished for period advance, when All the ends of the world shall remember themselves, and be turned unto the LORD; and all the kin­dreds of the nations worship before him! ^*

From the heavens, we retire to the earth.—Here, the drops of dew, like so many liquid crystals, ^† sparkle upon the eye. How brilliant, and unsullied is their lus­tre! How little inferiour to the proud stone, which irradi­ates a monarch's crown! They want nothing but solid­ity and permanency, to equal them with the finest treas­ures of the jeweller's casket—Here, it must be confess­ed, they are greatly deficient; short lived ornaments; possessed of little more than a momentary radiance. The sun, that lights them up, will soon melt them into air, or exhale them into vapours. Within another hour, we may "look for their place, and they shall be away."—O! may every good resolution of mine, and of my flock's; may our united breathings after GOD, not be like these transient decorations of the morning; but like the substan­tial glory of the growing day! The one shines more and more, with augmented splendours; while the other, hav­ing glittered gaily for a few moments, disappear and are lost.

How sensibly has this dew refreshed the vegetable kingdoms! The fervent heat of yesterday's sun had al­most parched the face, and exhausted the sweets of na­ture. [Page 72] But what a sovereign restorative, are these cooling distillations of the night! How they gladden, and invig­orate the languishing herbs! Sprinkled with these re­viving drops, their verdure deepens; their bloom is new flushed; their fragrance, faint or intermitted, becomes potent and copious.—Thus does the ever blessed SPIRIT revive the drooping troubled conscience of a sinner. When that almighty comforter sheds his sweet influence on the soul; displays the all sufficient sacrifice of a di­vine Redeemer, and "witnesses with our spirit," that we are interested in the Saviour, and, by this means, are children of GOD; then, what a pleasing change ensues! Former anxieties are remembered no more. Every un­easy apprehension vanishes. Soothing hopes, and delight­ful expectations succeed. The countenance drops its dejected mein; the eyes brighten with a lively cheerful­ness; while the lips express the heart felt satisfaction, in the language of thanksgiving, and the voice of mel­ody.—In this sense, merciful GOD, be as the dew unto Israel! ‘Pour upon them the continual dew of thy bless­ing.’ And O! let not my fleece be dry, while heav­enly benediction descends upon all around.

Who can number these pearly drops? They hang on every hedge; they twinkle from every spray; and adorn the whole herbage of the field. Not a blade of grass, not a single leaf, but wears the watry pendants. So vast is the profusion, that it baffles the arithmetician's art.— Here, let the benevolent mind contemplate and admire that emphatical scripture; which, from this elegant si­militude, describes the increase of the Messiah's kingdom. The royal prophet, speaking of CHRIST, and foretell­ing the success of his religion, has this remarkable ex­pression; ^* The dew of thy birth is of the womb of the [Page 73] morning. (i. e.) As the morning is the mother of dews; produces them, as it were, from a prolifick womb; and scatters them, with the most lavish abundance, over all [Page 74] the surface of the earth: So shall thy seed be, O thou everlasting Father! By the preaching of thy word, shall such an innumerable race of regenerate children be born [Page 75] unto thee; and prove an ornament and a blessing to all ages, millions, millions of willing converts, from every nation under heaven, shall crowd into thy family, and replenish thy church. Till they become like the stars of the sky, or the sands of the sea for multitude; or even as numberless as these fine spangles, which now cover the face of nature.—Behold then, ye obstinately wick­ed, though you ‘are not gathered, yet will the Saviour be glorious.’ His design shall not miscarry, nor his labour prove abortive; though you render it of none effect, with regard to yourselves. Think not, that IMMANUEL will want believers, or heaven inhabitants, because you continue incorrigible. No; the Lamb that was slain, will "see of the travail of his soul, and be satisfied;" in a never failing series of faithful people below, and an immense choir of glorified saints above. Who shall form his retinue, and surround his throne, in shining and triumphant armies, such as no man can number.

Here, I was reminded of the various expedients which providence, unsearchably wise, uses, to fructify both the material and intellectual world.—Sometimes, you shall have impetuous and heavy showers, bursting from the an­gry clouds. They lash the plains, and make the rivers foam. A storm brings them, and a deluge follows them. —At other times, these gentle dews are formed, in the serene evening air. They steal down by slow degrees, and with insensible stillness. So subtle, that they deceive the nicest eye; so silent, that they escape the most deli­cate ear: And when fallen, so very light, that they nei­ther bruise the tenderest, nor oppress the weakest flower. —Very different operations! Yet each concurs in the same beneficial end, and both impart fertility to the lap of nature.

So, some persons have I known, reclaimed from the un­fruitful works of darkness, by violent and severe means. The Almighty addressed their stubborn hearts, as he ad­dressed the Israelites at Sinai, with lightning in his eyes, and thunder in his voice. The conscience, smitten with a sense of guilt, and apprehensive of eternal vengeance, trembled through all her powers; just as that strong mountain tottered to its centre. Pangs of remorse, and [Page 76] agonies of fear, preceded their new birth. They were reduced to the last extremities, almost overwhelmed with despair, before they found rest in JESUS CHRIST.— Others have been recovered from a vain conversation, by methods more mild and attractive. The Father of spirits applied himself to their teachable minds, in ‘a still and small voice.’ His grace came down, as the rain in­to a fleece of wool; or as these softening drops, which now water the earth. The kingdom of GOD took place in their souls, without noise or observation. They passed from death unto life, from a carnal to a regenerate state, by almost imperceptible advances. The transition re­sembled the growth of corn; was very visible, when effected; though scarce sensible, while accomplishing.— O thou author and finisher of our faith, recal us from our wanderings, and reunite us to thyself! Whether thou alarm us with thy terrours, or allure us with thy smiles; whether thou drive us with the scourge of con­viction, or draw us with the cords of love; let us, in any wise, return to thee. For thou art our supreme good; thou art our only happiness.

Before I proceed farther, let me ascend the terrace, and take one survey of the neighbouring country.—What a prospect rushes upon my sight! How vast; how vari­ous; how "full and plenteous with all manner of store!" Nature's whole wealth!—What a rich and inexhaustible magazine is here: Furnishing subsistence for every crea­ture! Methinks, I read, in the spacious volumes, a most lively comment, upon that noble celebration of the divine beneficence; He openeth his hand, and filleth all things living with plenteousness.

The fields are covered deep, and stand thick, with corn. They expand the milky grain to the sun; while the gales, now inclining, now raising each flexile stem, open all their ranks to the agency of his beams. Which will soon impart a firm consistence to the grain, and a glossy golden hue to the ear. That they may be quali­fied, [Page 77] to fill the barns of the husbandman with plenty, and his heart with gladness.

Yonder lie the meadows, smoothed into a perfect lev­el; decorated with an embroidery of the gayest flowers; and loaded with ^* spontaneous crops of herbage. Which, converted into hay, will prove a most commodious pro­vision for the barrenness of winter; will supply with fodder our serviceable animals, when all the verdure of the plain is killed by frosts, or buried in snows.—A wind­ing stream, glides along the flowery margin and receives the image of the bending skies, and waters the roots of many a branching willow. 'Tis stocked, no doubt, with variety of fish; which afford a solitary diversion to the angler, and nourish for his table a delicious treat. Nor is it the only merit of this liquid element, to maintain the finny nations; it also carries cleanliness, and dispenses fruitfulness, whereever it rolls the crystal current.

The pastures, with their verdant mounds, chequer the prospect; and prepare a standing repast for our cattle. There, ‘our oxen are made strong to labour; and our sheep bring forth thousands and ten thousands.’ There, the horse acquires vigour, for the dispatch of our business, and speed to expedite our journeys. From thence, the kine bring home their udders, distended with one of the richest, and healthiest liquors in the world.

On several spots, a grove of trees, like some grand colonnade, erects its tow'ring head. Every one projects a friendly shade, for the beasts; and creates an hospitable lodging for the birds. Every one stands ready, to fur­nish timber for a palace; masts for a navy; or, with a more condescending courtesy, fuel for our hearths.—One of them seems skirted with a wild uncultivated heath; which, like well disposed shades in painting, throws an additional lustre on the more ornamented parts of the landscape. Nor is its usefulness, like that of a foil, relative only, but real. There, several valuable creatures are produced, and accommodated; without any expense, or care of ours. There likewise, spring abundance of those herbs, which assuage the smart of our wounds, [Page 78] and allay the fiery tumults of the fever. Which impart floridity to our circulating fluids; add a more vigorous tone to our active solids; and thereby, repair the de­cays of our enfeebled constitutions.

Nearer the houses, we perceive an ample spread of branches; not so stately as the oaks, but more amiable for their annual services. A little while ago, I beheld them; and all was one beauteous, boundless waste of blossoms. The eye marvelled, at the lovely sight; and the heart rejoiced, in the prospect of autumnal plenty. But now, the blooming maid is resigned, for the useful matron. The flower is fallen, and the fruit swells out on every twig.—Breathe soft, ye winds! O, spare the tender fruitage, ye surly blasts! Let the pear tree suckle her juicy progeny, till they drop into our hands, and dis­solve in our mouths. Let the plum hang unmolested upon her boughs; till she fatten her delicious flesh, and cloud her polished skin with blue. And as for the apples, that staple commodity of our orchards, let no injurious shocks precipitate them immaturely to the ground; till revolv­ing suns, have tinged them with a ruddy complexion, and concocted them into an exquisite flavour. Then, what copious hoards, of what burnished rinds, and what delightful relishes, will replenish the store room! Some to present us with an early entertainment, and refresh our palates amidst the sultry heats. Some to borrow ripe­ness from the falling snows, and carry autumn into the depths of winter. Some, to adorn the salver, make a part of the dessert, and give an agreeable ^* close to our feasts. Others to fill our vats with a foaming flood; which, mellowed by age may sparkle in the glass, with a liveliness and delicacy, little inferiour to the blood of the grape.

I observe several small inclosures, which seem to be apprehensive of some hostile visit from the north; and, therefore, are defended, on that quarter, by a thick wood, or a lofty wall. At the same time they culti­vate an uninterrupted correspondence with the south; and throw open their whole dimensions to its friend­ly warmth. One, in particular, lies within the reach [Page 79] of a distinguishing view; and proves to be a kitchen garden. It looks, methinks, like a plain and frugal republick. Whatever may resemble the pomp of courts, or the ensigns of royalty, is banished from this humble community. None of the productions of the olitory affect finery; but all are habited with the very perfection of decency. Here, those celebrated qualities are emi­nently united, the utmost simplicity wi [...] the exactest neatness. ^*—A skilful hand has parcelled out the whole ground, into narrow beds, and intervening alleys. The same discreet management has assigned to each verdant family, a peculiar and distinct abode. So that there is no confusion, amidst the greatest multiplicity; because every individual knows its proper home, and all the tribes are ranged with perfect regularity.—If it be pleasing to behold their orderly situation and their modest beauties; how much more delightful to consider the advantages, they yield! What a fund of choice accommodations is here! What a source of wholesome dainties! And all, for the enjoyment of man. Why does the parsley, with her frizzled locks, shag the border; or why the celery, with her whitening arms, perforate the mold; but to render his soops savoury? The asparagus shoots its tapering stems, to offer him the first fruits of the season; and the artichoke spreads its turgid top, to give him a treat of vegetable marrow. The tendrils of the ^† cucumber creep into the sun; and though basking in its hottest rays, they secrete for their master, and barrel up for his use, the most cooling juices of the soil. The beans stand firm, like files of embattled troops! the peas rest upon their props, like so many companies of inva­lids; while both replenish their pods with the fatness of [Page 80] the earth, on purpose to pour it on their owner's table. —Not one species, among all this variety of herbs, is a cumberer of the ground. Not a single plant, but is good for food, or some way salutary. With so benefi­cent an economy, are the several periods of their minis­tration settled; that no portion of the year is left desti­tute of nourishing esculents. What is still more oblig­ing, every portion of the year affords such esculents, as are best suited to the temperature of the air, and the state of our bodies.—Why then should the possessor of so valuable a spot, envy the condition of kings? ^* Since he may daily walk amidst rows of peaceable and obse­quious, though mute subjects. Every one of which ten­ders him some agreeable present, and pays him a willing tribute. Such as is most happily adapted, both to sup­ply his wants, and to regale his taste; to furnish him, at once, with plenty and with pleasure.

At a distance, one descries the mighty hills. They heave their huge ridges among the clouds; and look like the barriers of kingdoms, or the boundaries of na­ture. Bare and deformed as their surface may appear, their bowels are fraught with inward treasures! Treas­ures, lodged fast in the quarries, or sunk deep in the mines. From thence, industry may draw her implements, to plow the soil; to reap the grain; and procure every necessary convenience. From thence, art may fetch her materials, to rear the dome▪ to swell the organ; and form the noblest ornaments of politer life.

On another side, the great deep terminates the view. There go the ships: There is that leviathan: And there, in that world of waters, an inconceivable number of animals have their habitation.—This is the capacious cistern of the universe; which admits, as into a recep­tacle; and distributes, as from a reservoir, whatever waters the whole globe. There's not a fountain, that gushes in the unfrequented desert; nor a rivulet, that flows in the remotest continent; nor a cloud, that swims [Page 81] in the highest regions of the firmament; but is fed by this all replenishing source. The ocean is the grand vehicle of trade, and the uniter of distant nations. To us it is peculiarly kind, not only as it wasts into our ports, the harvest of every climate, and renders our island the centre of trassick; but also as it secures us from foreign invasions, by a sort of impregnable entrenchment. ^*

Methinks, the view of this profuse munificence inspires a secret delight, and kindles a disinterested good will.—While the "little hills clap their hands," and the luxuriant "valleys laugh and sing;" who can for­bear catching the general joy? Who is not touched with lively sensations of pleasure?—While the everlasting Fa­ther is scattering blessings through his whole family, and crowning the year with his goodness; who does not feel his breast overflowing, with a diffusive benevolence?— My heart, I must confess, beats high with satisfaction; and breathes out congratulatory wishes, upon all the ten­ants of these rural abodes: ‘Peace be within your walls, as well as plenteousness around your dwell­ings.’ Live, ye highly favoured; live sensible of your benefits, and thankful to your benefactor. Look round upon these prodigiously large incomes of the fruit­ful soil, and call them (for you have free leave) all your own.—Only let me remind you of one very important truth. Let me suggest, and may you never forget, that you are obliged to CHRIST JESUS, for every one of these [Page 82] accommodations, which sprung from the teaming earth, and the smiling skies.

1. CHRIST ^* made them, when they were not.— He fetched them up from utter darkness; and gave them both their being, and their beauty. He created the ma­terials, of which they are composed; and moulded them into this endless multiplicity, of amiable forms, and useful substances. He arrayed the heavens, with a ves­ture of the mildest blue; and clothed the earth in a livery of the gayest green. His pencil streaked, and his breath perfumed, whatever is beautiful or fragrant in the universe. His strength set fast the mountains; his goodness garnished the vales; and the same touch which healed the leper, wrought the whole visible system into this complete perfection.

2. CHRIST recovered them, when they were forfeit­ed.—By Adam's sin, we lost our right to the comforts of life, and fruits of the ground. His disobedience was the most impious and horrid treason, against the KING of kings. Consequently, his whole patrimony became confiscated; as well the portion of temporal good [Page 83] things, settled upon the human race during their minor­ity; as that everlasting heritage reserved for their en­joyment, when they should come to full age. But the "Seed of the woman," instantly interposing, took off the attainder, and redeemed the alienated inheritance. The first Adam being disinherited, the second Adam ^* was appointed heir of all things, visible as well as invisi­ble. And we hold our possession of the former; we ex­pect an instatement in the latter; purely by virtue of [...]r alliance to him, and our union with him.

3. CHRIST upholds them, which would otherwise tumble into ruin.— By him, says the oracle of inspira­tion, all things consist. ^† His finger rolls the seasons round, and presides over all the celestial revolutions. His finger winds up the wheels, and impels every spring, of vegetative nature. In a word, the whole weight of the creation, rests upon his mighty arm; and receives the whole harmony of its motion, from his unerring eye.—This habitable globe, with all its rich appendages, and fine machinery, could no more con­tinue, [Page 84] than they could create themselves. Start they would into instant confusion; or drop into their primitive nothing; did not his power support, and his wisdom reg­ulate them, every moment. In conformity to his will, they subsist stedfast and invariable in their orders; and wait only for his sovereign nod, to ‘fall away like wa­ter, that runneth apace.’

4. CHRIST ^* actuates them, which would otherwise be lifeless and insignificant.—Pensioners they are, constant pensioners on his bounty; and borrow their all from his fulness. He only has life; and whatever operates, operates by an emanation from his all sufficiency. Does the grape refresh you with its enlivening juices? It is by a warrant received, and virtue derived, from the Redeemer. Does bread strengthen your heart, and prove the staff of your life? Remember, that it is by the Saviour's appoint­ment, and through the efficacy of his operation. You are charmed with his melody, when the ‘Time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the night­ingale is heard in your land.’ You taste his good­ness in the luscious fig, the melting peach, and the musky flavour of the apricot. You smell his sweetness in the opening honeysuckle, and every odoriferous shrub.

Could these creatures speak for themselves, they would, doubtless, disclaim all sufficiency of their own, and ascribe the whole honour to their Maker.—"We are servants," would they say, ‘of HIM, who died for you. Cisterns on­ly, dry cisterns in ourselves, we transmit to mortals no more, than the uncreated fountain transfuses into us. Think not, that, from any ability of our own, we fur­nish you with assistance, or administer to your com­fort. 'Tis the divine energy, the divine energy a­lone, that works in us, and does you good.—We serve you, O ye sons of men, that you may love him, who placed us in these stations. O! love the LORD, there­fore, [Page 85] all ye who are supported by our ministry; or else we shall ^* groan, with indignation and regret, at your abuse of our services.—Use us, and welcome; for we are yours, if ye are CHRIST's. Crop our choicest beauties; rifle all our treasures; accommodate your­selves with our most valuable qualities; only let us be incentives to your gratitude, and motives to your obe­dience.’

Having surveyed the spacious sky, and sent a glance round the inferiour creation, it is time to descend from this eminence, and confine my attention to the beautiful spot below—Here nature, always pleasing, every where lovely, appears with peculiar attractions. Yonder, she seems dressed in her dishabille; grand, but irregular. Here, she calls in her hand maid art; and shines in all the delicate ornaments, which the nicest cultivation is able to convey. Those, are her common apartments, where she lodges her ordinary guests; This, is her cabi­net of curiosities, where she entertains her intimate ac­quaintance.—My eye shall often expatiate over those scenes of universal fertility: My feet shall sometimes brush through the thicket, or traverse the lawn, or stroll along the forest glade: But to this delightful retreat, shall be my chief resort. Thither, will I make excur­sions; but here, will I dwell.

If, from my low procedure, I may form an allusion to the most exalted practices; I would observe upon this occasion, that the celebrated Erasmus, and our judicious Locke, having trod the circle of the sciences, and ranged through the whole extent of human literature, at length betook themselves solely to the Bible. Leaving the sages of antiquity, they sat incessantly at the feet of JESUS. Wisely they withdrew, from that immense multiplicity of learning; from those endless tracts of amusing erudi­tion, where noxious weeds are mixed with wholesome herbs; where, is generally a much larger growth of prickly shrubs, than of fruitful boughs. They spent their most mature hours, in those hallowed gardens, which GOD's own wisdom planted; which GOD's own spirit watereth; and in which GOD's own son is continually [Page 86] walking. Where, he meeteth those that seek him; and revealeth to them the glories of his person, and the riches or his goodness.

Thus would I finish the remainder of my days! Having just tasted (what they call) the politer studies; I would now devote my whole application to the lively ora­cles. From other pursuits, I might glean, perhaps, a few scattered fragments of low, of lean, of unsatisfactory instruction. From this, I trust to reap a harvest of the sublimest truths▪ the noblest improvements; and the purest joys. ^*—Wast me then, O! wast my mind to Sion's consecrated bowers. Let my thoughts perpetually rove through the awfully pleasing walks of inspiration. Here grow those heaven born plants, the trees of life and knowledge; whose ambrosial fruits we now may ‘take and eat, and live forever.’ Here, flow those prec­ious streams of grace and righteousness; whose living wa­ters "whosoever drinks, shall thirst no more." And what can the fables of Grecian song, or the finest pages of Roman eloquence—what can they exhibit, in any de­gree comparable to these matchless prerogatives of reve­lation?—Therefore, though I should not dislike to pay a visit now and then to my heathen masters, I would live with the prophets and apostles. With those, I would carry on some occasional correspondence; but these should be my bosom friends; my inseparable companions; "my delight, and my counsellors."

What sweets are these, which so agreeably salute my nostrils? They are the breath of the flowers; the in­cense of the garden.—How liberally does the jessamine dispense her odoriserous riches? How deliciously has the woodbine embalmed this morning walk? The air is all perfume.—And is not this, another most engaging ar­gument, to forsake the bed of sloth? Who would lie dis­solved in senseless slumbers; while so many breathing sweets, invite him to a feast of fragrancy? Especially considering, that the advancing day will exhale the vol­atile dainties. A fugitive treat they are, prepared only for the wakeful and industrious. Whereas, when the [Page 87] sluggard lists his heavy eyes, the flowers will droop; their fine scents be dissipated; and, instead of this re­freshing humidity, the air will become a kind of liquid fire.

With this very motive, heightened by a representa­tion of the most charming pieces of morning scenery, the parent of mankind awakes his lovely consort. There is such a delicacy in the choice, and so much life in the description of these rural images, that I cannot excuse myself, without repeating the whole passage.—Whisper it, some friendly genius in the ear of every one, who is now sunk in sleep, and lost to all these refined gratifi­cations!

How delightful is the fragrance! It is distributed in the nicest proportion; neither so strong, as to oppress the organs; nor so faint, as to elude them. We are soon cloyed at a sumptuous banquet, but this pleasure never loses its poignancy, never palls the appetite.—Here, luxu­ry itself is innocent; or rather, in this case, indulgence is incapable of excess.—This balmy entertainment, not only regales the sense, but ^† cheers the very soul; and, instead of clogging, elates its powers.—It puts me in mind of that ever memorable sacrifice, which was once made in behalf of offending mortals, I mean the sacri­fice of the blessed JESUS; when he offered up himself to GOD, "for a sweet smelling favour." Such the Holy Spirit styles that wonderful oblation; as if no image, in the whole sensible creation, was so proper to give us an idea of the ineffable satisfaction, which the Father of Mercies conceived, from that unparalleled atonement; as the pleasing sensations, which such rich perfumes are capable of raising. ‘Thousands of rams, and ten [Page 88] thousands of rivers of oil,’ from an apostate world; the most submissive acknowledgments, added to the most costly offerings, from men of defiled hands, and unclean lips; what could they have effected? A prophet repre­sents the ‘High and lofty One, that inhabiteth eter­nity,’ turning himself away from such filthy rags; turning himself away, with a disdainful abhorrence, ^* as from the noisome streams of a dunghill.—But in CHRIST's immaculate holiness; in CHRIST's consum­mate obedience; in CHRIST's most precious bloodshed­ding; with what unimaginable complacency, does justice rest satisfied, and vengeance acquiesce!—All thy works, O thou surety for ruined sinners! all thy sufferings, O thou slaughtered Lamb of GOD! as well as all thy gar­ments, O thou bridegroom of thy church! smell of myrrh, aloes, and cassia! ^† They are infinitely more grateful to the eternal Godhead, than the choicest exhalations of the garden, than all the odours of the spicy east, can be to the human nostrils.

As the altar of old sanctified the gift; so this is the great propitiation, which recommends the obnoxious per­sons, and unprofitable services of the believing world. In this, may my soul be interested! By this, may it be re­conciled to the Father!—There is such a leprous deprav­ity cleaving to my nature, as pollutes whatever I per­form. My most profound adorations, and sincerest acts of religion, must not presume to challenge a reward, but humbly implore forgiveness. ^‡ Renouncing, therefore, myself in every instance of duty; disclaiming all shad­ow of confidence ^‖ in any deeds of my own; may I now, and evermore, be accepted through the beloved!

[Page 89]What colours, what charming colours, are here! These, so nobly bold; and those, so delicately languid. What a glow is enkindled in some! what a gloss shines upon others! In one, methinks, I see the ruby with her bleeding radiance; in another, the sapphire with her sky-tinctured blue; in all, such an exquisite richness of dyes, as no other set of paintings in the universe can boast. ^*— With what a masterly skill, is every one of the varying tints disposed! Here they seem to be thrown on with an easy dash of security and freedom; there, they are ad­justed by the nicest touches of art and accuracy. Those which form the ground, are always so judiciously chosen as to heighten the lustre of the superadded figures; while the verdure of the impalement, or the shadings of the foliage, impart new liveliness to the whole. Indeed; whether they are blended, or arranged; softened, or con­trasted; they are manifestly under the conduct of a taste, that never mistakes; a felicity, that never falls short of the very perfection of elegance.—Fine, inimitably fine, is the texture of the web; on which these shining treas­ures are displayed. What are the labours of the Persian looms, or the boasted commodities of Brussels, compared with these curious manufactures of nature? Compared with these, the most admired chintzes lose their reputa­tion; even superfine cambricks, appear coarse as canvass in their presence.

[Page 90]What a cheering argument does our Saviour derive from hence, to strengthen our affiance in GOD! He di­rects us to learn a lesson of heaven depending faith, from every bird that wings the air; and from every flower, that blossoms in the field. If providence, with unremit­ted care supports those inferiour creatures, and arrays these insensible beings with so much splendour; surely, he will in no wise withhold from his elect children, "Bread to eat, and raiment to put on."—Ye faithful followers of the Lamb, dismiss every low anxiety, relat­ing to the needful sustenance of life. He that feeds the ravens, from an inexhaustible magazine; he that paints the plants, with such surpassing elegance; in short, he that provides so liberally, both for the animal and vege­table parts of his creation; will not, cannot neglect his own people.— Fear not little flock, ye peculiar objects of almighty love! it is your Father's good pleasure to give you a kingdom. ¹¹⁰ And if he freely gives you an ever­lasting kingdom hereafter, is it possible to suppose▪ that he will deny you any necessary conveniences here?

One cannot forbear reflecting in this place, on the too prevailing humour, of being fond and ostentatious of dress. ^† What an abject and mistaken ambition is this! How unworthy the dignity of immortal, and the wisdom [Page 91] of rational beings! Especially, since these little produc­tions of the earth, have indisputably the preeminence in such outward embellishments.—Go, clothe thyself with purple, and fine linen; trick thyself up in all the gay attire, which the shuttle or the needle can furnish. Yet know, to the mortification of thy vanity, that the native elegance of a common daisy, ^* eclipses all this elab­orate finery.—Nay, wert thou decked like some illustrious princess, on her coronation day, in all the splendour of royal apparel; couldest thou equal even Solomon, in the height of his magnificence and glory; yet, would the meanest among the flowery populace outshine thee. Every discerning eye, would give the preference, to these beau­ties of the ^† ground.—Scorn then to borrow thy recom­mendations from a neat disposition of threads, and a curious arrangement of colours. Assume a becoming greatness of temper. Let thy endowments be of the immortal kind. Study to be all glorious within. Be cloth­ed [Page 92] with humility. Wear the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit. ^* To say all in a word; Put on the LORD JESUS CHRIST: ^† Let his blood be sprinkled upon thy conscience, and it shall be whiter than the virgin snows. Let his righteousness, like a spotless robe, adorn thy inner man, and thou shalt be amiable, even in the most dis­tinguishing eye of GOD. Let his blessed spirit dwell in thy heart; and, under his sanctifying operations, thou shalt be made partaker of a divine nature.

These are the real excellencies; truly noble accomplish­ments these. In this manner be arrayed, be beautified; and thou wilt not find a rival in the feathers of a pea­cock, or the foliation of a tulip. These will exalt thee, far above the low pretensions of lace and embroidery. These will prepare thee to stand in the beatifick presence, and to take thy seat among the angels of light.

What an enchanting situation is this! One can scarce be melancholy within the atmosphere of flowers. Such lively hues, and delicious odours, not only address them­selves agreeably to the senses, but touch, with a surpris­ing delicacy, the sweetest movements of the mind.

[Page 93]How often have I felt them dissipate the gloom of thought, and transfuse a sudden gaiety through the deject­ed spirit! I cannot wonder, that kings descend from their thrones to walk amidst blooming ivory and gold; or re­tire from the most sumptuous feast, to be recreated with the more refined sweets of the garden. I cannot wonder, that queens forego, for a while, the compliments of a nation, to receive the tribute of the parterre; or with­draw from all the glitter of a court, to be attended with the more splendid equipage of a bed of flowers.—But, if this be so pleasing, what transported pleasure must arise, from the fruition of uncreated excellency! O! what un­known delight, to enter into thine immediate presence, most blessed LORD GOD! To see thee, ^* thou King of Heaven, and LORD of glory, no longer ‘through a glass darkly, but face to face!’ To have all thy goodness, all thy greatness, shine before us; and be made glad forever with the brightest discovery of thy perfec­tions, with the ineffable joy of thy countenance!

This we cannot bear, in our present imperfect state. The effulgence of unveiled divinity, would dazzle a mor­tal sight. Our feeble faculties, would be overwhelmed with such a fulness of superabundant bliss; and must lie oppressed, under such an exceeding great, eternal weight of glory.—But, when this corruptible hath put on in­corruption, the powers of the soul will be greatly invig­orated; and these earthly tabernacles, will be transform­ed into the likeness of CHRIST's glorious body. Then, though ‘the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed,’ ^† when the LORD of hosts is revealed from Heaven; yet, shall his faithful people be enabled to see him as he is. ^‡

[Page 94]Here then, my wishes, here be fixed. Be this your determined and invariable aim.—Here, my affections, here give a loose to your whole ardour. Cry out, in the language of inspiration, This one thing have I desired of the LORD, which, with incessant earnestness, I will re­quire; that I may dwell in the celestial house of the LORD, all the days of my future life, to behold the fair beauty of the LORD, ^* and to contemplate, with wonder and ado­ration—with unspeakable and everlasting rapture—all the attributes of the incomprehensible Godhead.

Solomon, a most penetrating judge of human na­ture, knowing how highly mankind is charmed, with the fine qualities of flowers, has figured out the blessed JE­SUS, that "fairest among ten thousand," by these lovely representatives. He styles him ^† The rose of Sharon, and The lilly of the valleys; ^‡ like the first, full of delights and communicable graces; like the last, exalted in maj­esty, and complete in beauty.—In that sacred pastoral, he ranges the creation; borrows its most finished forms, and dips his pencil in its choicest dyes, to present us with a sketch of the amiableness of his person. His amiable­ness, who is the light of the world; the glory of his church; the only hope, the sovereign consolation of sin­ners; and exalted, infinitely exalted, not only above the sublimest comparison, but even ‘above all blessing and praise.’ —May I also make the same heavenly use of all su [...]lunary enjoyments! Whatever is pleasurable, or charming below, let it raise my desire to those delectable objects, which are above. Which will yield, not partial, [Page 95] but perfect felicity; not transient, but never ending sat­isfaction and joy.—Yes, my soul, let these beauties in miniature, always remind thee of that glorious person, in whom "dwells all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." Let these little emanations teach thee to thirst after the eternal fountain. O! may the creatures be thy constant clue to the Creator! For this is a certain truth, and de­serves thy frequent recollection, demands thy most at­tentive consideration, that the whole compass of finite perfection is only a faint ray, ^* shot from that immense source—is only a small drop, derived from that inexhaust­ible ocean—of all good.

What a surprising variety is observable, among the flowery tribes! How has the bountiful hand of Provi­dence, diversified these nicest pieces of his workmanship! added the charms of an endless novelty to all their other perfections!—A constant uniformity would soon render the entertainment tiresome or insipid; therefore, every species is formed on a separate plan, and exhibits some­thing entirely new. The fashion spreads not from fami­ly to family; but every one has a mode of its own, which is truly original. The most cursory glance, per­ceives an apparent difference, as well as a peculiar deli­cacy, in the airs and habits, the attitude and lineaments, of every distinct class.

Some rear their heads, with a majestick mien, and over­look, like sovereigns or nobles, the whole paterre. Others seem more moderate in their aims, and advance only to the middle stations; a genius turned for heraldry, might term them, the gentry of the border. While others, free from all aspiring views, creep unambitiously on the ground, and look like the commonalty of the kind.— Some are intersected with elegant stripes, o [...] studded with radiant spots. Some affect to be genteely powdered, o [...] neatly fringed; while others are plain in their aspect, un­affected in their dress, and content to please with a naked [Page 96] simplicity. Some assume the monarch's purple; some look most becoming in the virgin's white; but black, doleful black, has no admittance into the wardrobe of spring. The weeds of mourning would be a manifest indecorum, when nature holds an universal festival. She would now inspire none but delightful ideas; and therefore always makes her appearance in some ^* amiable suit.—Here, stands a warrior, clad with crimson; there fits a magis­trate, robed in scarlet; and yonder, struts a pretty fel­low, that seems to have dipped his plumes in the rain­bow, and glitters in all the gay colours of that resplend­ent arch. Some rise into a curious cup, or fall into a set of beautiful bells. Some spread themselves in a swell­ing tuft, or crowd into a delicious cluster.—In some, the predominant stain, softens by the gentlest diminutions; till it has even stole away from itself. The eye is amused at the agreeable delusion; and we wonder to find our selves insensibly decoyed into a quite different lustre. In others, you would think the fine tinges were emulous of pre­eminence. Disdaining to mingle, they confront one an­other with the resolution of rivals, determined to dispute the prize of beauty; while each is improved, by the op­position, into the highest vivacity of complexion.

How manifold are thy works ^† O LORD! Multiplied even to a prodigy. Yet in wisdom, consummate wisdom, hast thou made them all.—How I admire the vastness of the contrivance, and the exactness of the execution! Man, feeble man, with difficulty accomplishes a single work. Hardly, and after many efforts, does he arrive at a tol­erable imitation of some one production of nature. But, the almighty artist spoke millions of substances into instantaneous being; the whole collection wonderfully various, and each individual completely perfect.—Re­peated experiments generally, I might say always, discov­er errours, or defects, in our happiest inventions. Nay, what wins our approbation, at the present hour, or in this particular place, is very probably, in some remote period or some distant clime, treated with contempt. Whereas, these fine structures have pleased every taste, in every [Page 97] country, for almost six thousand years. Nor has any ^* fault been detected in the original plan, nor any room left for the least improvement upon the first model.—All our performances, the more minutely they are scanned, the more imperfect they appear. With regard to these delicate objects, the more we search into their properties, the more we are ravished with their graces. They are sure to dis­close fresh strokes of the most masterly skill; in propor­tion to the attention, with which they are examined.

Nor is the simplicity of the operation less astonishing, than the accuracy of the workmanship, or the infinitude of the effects. Should you ask, ‘Where, and what are the materials, which beautify the blooming world? What rich tints; what splendid dyes; what stores of shining crayons; stand by the Heavenly Limner▪ when he paints the robe of nature?’ It is answered, his powerful pencil needs no such costly apparatus. A sin­gle principle, under his conducting hand, branches out into an immensity of the most varied, and most finished forms. The moisture of the earth, and of the circum­ambient air, passed through proper strainers, and dispos­ed in a range of pellucid tubes: This performs all the wonders, and produces all the beauties of vegetation. This creeps along the fibres of the low spread moss; and climbs to the very tops of the lofty waving cedars. This, attracted by the root, and circulating through invisible canals; this bursts into gems, expands itself into leaves, and clothes the forest, with all its verdant honours.— This one, ^† plain and simple cause gives birth to all the charms, which deck the youth and maturity of the year. This blushes, in the early hepatica; and flames in the late advancing poppy. This reddens into blood, in the veins of the mulberry; and attenuates itself into leafen gold, to create a covering for the quince. This [Page 98] breathes, in all the fragrant gales of our gardens; and weeps odorous gum in the groves of Arabia.—So ^* wonderful is our creator in counsel, and so excellent in working!

In a grove of tulips, or a knot of pinks, one per­ceives a difference in almost every individual. Scarce any two, are turned and tinctured exactly alike. Each allows himself a little particularity in his dress, though all be­long to one family; so that they are various, and yet the same.—A pretty emblem this, of the smaller differences between protestant christians. There are modes in re­ligion, which admit of variation, without prejudice to sound faith, or real holiness. Just as the drapery, on these pictures of the spring, may be formed after a va­riety of patterns, without blemishing their beauty, or al­tering their nature.—Be it so then, that, in some points of inconsiderable consequence, several of our brethren dissent; yet, let us all live amicably and sociably togeth­er; for we harmonize in principles, though we vary in punctilios. Let us join in conversation, and intermingle interests; discover no estrangement of behaviour, and cherish no alienation of affection. If any strife subsists, let it be to follow our Divine Master most closely, in hu­mility of heart, and unblameableness of life. Let it be to serve one another most readily, in all the kind offices of a cordial friendship. Thus shall we be united, though distinguished; united in the same grand fundamentals, though distinguished by some small circumstantials; unit­ed in one important bond of brotherly love, though dis­tinguished by some slighter peculiarities of sentiment.

Between christians, whose judgments disagree only about a form of prayer, or manner of worship, I appre­hend there is no more essential difference, than between flowers which bloom from the same kind of seed, but happen to be somewhat diversified in the mixture of their colours. Whereas, if one denies the divinity of our LORD JESUS CHRIST, and degrades the incarnate GOD to the meanness of a mere creature; if another cries up the worthiness of human works, and depreciates the alone meritorious righteousness of the glorious Mediator; if a third addresses the incommunicable honours to a finite be­ing, [Page 99] and bows to the image, or prays to the saint—These are errours, extremely derogatory to the REDEEMER's dignity, and not a little prejudicial to the comfort of his people: Against these to remonstate; against these to urge every argument, and use every dissuasive, bespeaks not the censorious bigot, but the friend of truth, and the lover of mankind. Whereas, to stand neuter and silent, while such principles are propagated, would be an instance of criminal remissness, rather than of christian modera­tion. For the persons, we will not fail to maintain a ten­der compassion; we will not cease to put up earnest in­tercessions; we will also acknowledge and love, whatever is excellent and amiable in their character. Yet, we dare not subscribe their creed; we must not secrete our strong reasons; we cannot remit our assiduous, but kind endeav­ours, if by any means we may reconcile them to a more scriptural belief, and a purer worship. ^*

Another circumstance, recommending and endear­ing the flowery creation, is their regular succession. They make not their appearance all at once, but in an orderly rotation. While a proper number of these obliging re­tainers are in waiting, the others abscond; but hold them­selves in a posture of service, ready to take their turn, and fill each his respective station, the instant it becomes vacant. The snowdrop, foremost of the lovely train, breaks her way through the frozen soil, in order to pre­sent her early compliments to her Lord. Dressed in the robe of innocency, she steps forth, fearless of danger; long before the trees have ventured to unfold their leaves, even while the icicles are pendent on our houses. Next, peeps out the crocus; but cautiously, and with an air of timidity. She hears the howling blasts, and skulks close to her low situation. Afraid she seems, to make large [Page 100] excursions from her root; while so many ruffian winds are abroad, and scouring along the aether. Nor is the violet last, in this shining embassy of the year, which, with all the embellishments, that would grace a royal garden, condescends to line our hedges, and grow at the feet of briars. Freely, and without any solicitation, she distributes the bounty of her emissive sweets; while herself, with an exemplary humility, retires from sight; seeking rather to administer pleasure, than to win admi­ration. ^* Emblem, expressive emblem, of those modest vir­tues, which delight to bloom in obscurity; which extend a cheering influence to multitudes, who are scarce ac­quainted with the source of their comforts! Motive, en­gaging motive, to that ever active beneficence; which stays not for the importunity of the distressed, but antic­ipates their suit, and prevents them with the blessings of its goodness! The poor polyanthus, that lately adorn­ed the border with her sparkling beauties, and, trans­planted into our windows, gave us a fresh entertainment; is now no more. I saw her complexion fade; I perceived her breath decay, till at length she expired, and dropt in­to her grave.—Scarce have we sustained this loss, but in comes the auricula, and more than retrieves it. Ar­rayed she comes, in a splendid variety of amiable forms; with an eye of crystal, and garments of the most glossy sattin; exhaling perfume, and powdered with silver. A very distinguished procession this! The favourite care of the florist! Scarce one among them, but is dignified with a character of renown; or has the honour to represent some celebrated toast. But these also, notwithstanding their illustrious titles, have exhausted their whole stock of fra­grance, and are mingled with the meanest dust.—Who could forbear grieving at their departure, did not the tu­lips begin to raise themselves on their fine wands, or state­ly stalks? They flush the paterre with one of the gayest dresses that blooming nature wears. Did ever beau or belle make so gaudy an appearance, in a birth night suit? Here, one may behold the innocent wantonness of beauty. Here, she indulges a thousand freaks, and sports herself in the most charming diversity of colours. Yet, I should wrong [Page 101] her, were I to call her a coquet; because, she plays her lovely changes, not to enkindle dissolute affections, but to display her Creator's glory.—Soon arises the anemone; encircled at the bottom, with a spreading robe; and rounded at the top, into a beautiful dome. In its loose­ly flowing mantle, you may observe a noble negligence; in its gently bending tufts, the nicest symmetry. I would term it, the fine gentleman of the garden; because, it seems to have learned the singular address, of uniting simplic­ity with refinement, of reconciling art and ease.— The same month has the merit of producing the ranun­culus. All bold and graceful, it expands the riches of its foliage; and acquires, by degrees, the lovliest enamel in the world. As persons of intrinsick worth, disdain the superficial arts of recommendation, practised by fops; so, this lordly flower scorns to borrow any of its excel­lence, from powders and essences. It needs no such at­tractives, to render it the darling of the curious; being sufficiently engaging from the elegance of its figure, the radiant variety of its tinges, and a certain superiour dignity of aspect.—Methinks, nature improves in her operations. Her latest strokes are most masterly. To crown the collection, she introduces the carnation. Which captivates every eye, with a noble spread of graces; and charms another sense, with a profusion of exquisite o­dours. This single flower has centered in itself, the per­fections of all the preceding. The moment it appears, it so commands our attention, that we scarce regret the ab­sence of the rest.—The gilly flower, like a real friend, at­tends you through all the vicissitudes and alterations of the season. While others make a transient visit only, this is rather an inhabitant, than a guest in your gar­dens; adds fidelity to complaisance.

It is in vain to attempt a catalogue of these amiable gifts. There is an endless multiplicity, in their charac­ters; yet an invariable order, in their approaches. Every month, almost every week, has its peculiar ornaments; not servilely copying the works of its predecessor, but forming, still forming, and still executing some new de­sign. So lavish is the fancy, yet so exact is the process, of nature!

[Page 102]Here, let me stand a while, to contemplate this dis­tribution of flowers, through the several periods of the year.—Were they all to blossom together, there would be at once a promiscuous throng, and at once a total pri­vation. We should scarce have an opportunity, of advert­ing to the dainty qualities of half; and must soon lose the agreeable company of them all. But now, since every species has a separate post to occupy; and a distinct interval for appearing; we can take a leisurely and mi­nute survey of each succ [...]eding set. We can view and review their forms; enter into a more intimate acquain­tance with their charming accomplishments; and receive all those pleasing services, which they are commissioned to yield.—This remarkable piece of economy, is pro­ductive of another very valuable effect. It not only places, in the most advantageous light, every particular commu­nity; but is also a sure provisionary resource against the frailty of the whole nation. Or, to speak more truly, it renders the flowery tribes a sort of ^* immortal corps. For, though some are continually dropping, yet, by this expedient, others are as continually rising, to beautify our borders, and prolong the entertainment.

What goodness is this, to provide such a series of gratifications for mankind! Both to diversify, and per­petuate, the fine collation! To take care, that our paths should be, in a manner, incessantly strewed with flow­ers!—And what wisdom, to bid every one of these insen­sible beings, know the precise juncture for their coming forth! Insomuch that no actor on a stage, can be more exact in performing his part; can make a more regular entry, or a more punctual exit.

Who emboldens the daffodil, to venture abroad in Feb­ruary; and to trust her flowering gold, with inclement and treacherous skies? Who informs the various tribes of fruit bearing blossoms, that vernal suns, and a more genial warmth, are fittest for their delicate texture? Who teaches the clove to stay, till hotter beams are pre­pared, [Page 103] to infuse a spicy richness into her odours, and tincture her complexion with the deepest crimson?— Who disposes these beautiful troops, into such orderly bodies; retarding some, and accelerating others? Who has instructed them to file off, with such perfect regularity; as soon as the duty of their respective station is over? And, when one detachment retires, who gives the sig­nal for another immediately to advance? Who, but that unerring providence, which, from the highest thrones of angels, to the very lowest degrees of existence, orders all things in "number, weight, and measure!"

These, O my soul, are the regulations of that most adorable, that most beneficent being, who bowed the Heavens; came down to dwell on earth; and united the frailty of thy mortal nature, to all the glories of his God­head. All the honour of this admirable establishment, belongs to thy ransom, thy surety, thy Saviour. To Him it belongs, who sustained the vengeance, which thou hadst deserved, and wast doomed to suffer; who fulfilled the obedience, which thou wast obliged, but unable, to perform; and who humbled himself (stupendous, ineffa­ble loving kindness!) humbled himself to death, even the death of the cross.—He formed this vast machine, and adjusted its nice dependencies. The pillars, that sup­port it; the embellishments, that adorn it; and the laws, that govern it; are the result of his unsearchable coun­sels. O! the heights of his majesty, and the depths of his abasement!

Which shall we admire most, his essential greatness, or his free grace? He created the exalted seraph, that sings in glory; and every the minutest insect, that flutters in air, or crawls in dust. He marks out a path, for all those globes of light, which travel the circuit of the skies; and disdains not to rear the violet from its lowly bed, or to plait the daisy which dresses our plains. So grand are his operations; yet so condescending his re­gards!—If summer, like a sparkling bride, is brilliant and glorious in her apparel; what is this, but a feeble re­flection of his uncreated effulgence? If autumn, like a mu­nificent host, opens her stores, and gives us all things richly to enjoy; what is this but a little taste of his in­exhaustible liberality? If thunders roar, you hear the [Page 104] sound of his trumpet: If lightnings glare, you see the launching of his glittering spear; If ‘the perpetual hills be scattered, and the everlasting mountains bow­ed,’ you behold a display—No, says the prophet, you have rather ^* The hiding of his power. So immense is his power; so uncontrollable and inconceivable; that all these mighty works are but a sketch, in which more is concealed than discovered.

Thus, I think, we should always view the visible system; with an evangelical telescope (if I may be al­lowed the expression) and with an evangelical micro­scope. Regarding CHRIST JESUS, as the great pro­jector and architect; who planned, and executed, the amazing scheme. Whatever is magnificent or valuable tremendous or amiable; should ever be ascribed to the redeemer. This, is the christian's natural philosophy. [Page 105] With regard to this method of considering the things that are seen; we have an inspired apostle for our pre­ceptor and precedent. Speaking of CHRIST, he says; ‘Thou, LORD, in the beginning, hast laid the foun­dation of the earth; and the heavens are the work of thy hands.’ —Did we carefully attend to this leading principle, in all our examinations of nature; it would, doubtless, be a most powerful means of enkindling our love, and ^* strengthening our faith. When I look round upon millions of noble substances, and carry with me this transporting reflection, ‘The maker of them all, ex­pired on a cross for me;’ how can I remain any longer indifferent? Must not the coldest heart, begin to glow with gratitude?—When I survey an immensity of the finest productions imaginable; and remember, that the author of them all, is my ‘righteousness and my re­demption;’ [Page 106] how can I choose but repose the most cheer­ful confidence, in such a Mediator?

Let me add one more remark, upon the admirable ad­justment of every particular, relating to these fine colo­nies planted in the paterre.—With such accuracy and correctness is their structure finished, that any the least conceivable alteration, would very much impair their per­fection. Should you see, for instance, the nice disposi­tion of the tulip's attire fly abroad, disorderly and irreg­ular, like the flaunting woodbine: Should the jessamine rear her diminutive head on those grand columns which supports the hollihock: Should the erect and manly aspect of the piony, hang down with a pensive air, like the flex­ile bells of the hyacinth: Should that noble plainness, which distinguishes the lily, be exchanged for the glitter­ing fringes which edge the pink, or the gaudy stains which bedrop the iris: Should those tapering pillars, which arise in the middle of its vase, and, tipt with golden pen­dants, give such a lustre to the surrounding pannels of ala­baster—Should those sink and disappear, like the chives which cover the heart of the anemone:—In many of these cases, would not the transposition be fantastical and aukward? In all, to the apparent prejudice of every indi­vidual?

Again; with regard to the time of their appearing; this circumstance is settled, by a remarkable foresight and precaution. What would become of the sailor, if in very stormy weather, he should raise a lofty mast, and crowd it with all his canvas! Such would be the ill effect; if the most stately species of flowers, should presume to come abroad in the blustering months. Ah! how would they rue the imprudent boldness! Therefore, those only that shoot the [...]test stems, and display the smallest spread of leaves, or (if you please) carry the least sail, are launched amidst the blowing seasons. How injudiciously would the perf [...]mer act, if he should unseal his finest essences, and expose them to the northern winds, or wintry rains! Our blooming artists of the aromatick profession, at least the most delicate among them, seem perfectly aware of the consequences of such a procedure. Accordingly, they post­pone the opening of their odoriferous treasures, till a [Page 107] serener air, and more ^* unclouded skies, grant a pro­tection to their amiable traffick; till they are under no more apprehensions, of having their spicy cells rifled by rude blasts, or drowned in incessant showers.

What a striking argument is here for resignation: un­feigned resignation, to all the disposals of providence! Too often are our dissatisfied thoughts apt to find fault with divine dispensations. We tacitly arraign our Ma­ker's conduct, or question his kindness with regard to ourselves. We fancy our lot, not so commodiously situ­ated; or our condition, not so happily circumstanced; as if we had been placed in some other station of life.— But, let us behold this exquisitely nice regulation of the minutest plants, and be ashamed of our repining folly. Could any fibre in their composition, be altered; or one line in their features, be transposed; without clouding some of their beauties? Could any fold in their vest­ments be varied, or any link in their orderly succes­sion be broken, without injuring some delicate property? And does not that all seeing eye, which preserves so ex­act a harmony, among these pretty toys; maintain as watchful a care, over his rational creatures? Does he [Page 108] choose the properest season, for the cowslip to arise, and drink the dews? And can he neglect the concerns, or misjudge the conveniences of his sons and daughters? He, who has so completely disposed, whatever pertains to the vegetable economy; that the least diminution or ad­dition, would certainly hurt the finished scheme; does, without all peradventure, preside, with equal attention, over the interests of his own people.

Be still, then, thou uneasy mortal; ^* know, that GOD is unerringly wise; and be assured, that, amidst the greatest multiplicity of beings, he does not overlook thee. Thy Saviour has given me authority to assert, that thou art of far superiour value, in the estimate of omnipotence, than all the herbage of the field.—If his sacred will ordains sickness for thy portion, never dare to imagine that uninterrupted health would be more advantageous. If he pleases to withhold, or take away, children; nev­er presume to conclude, that thy happiness is blasted, because thy hopes of an increasing family are disappoint­ed. He, that marshals all the starry host, and to accu­rately arranges every the meanest species of herbs; HE orders all the peculiarities, all the changes of thy state, with a vigilance that nothing can elude; with a good­ness that endureth forever.—Bow thy head, therefore, [Page 109] in humble acquiescence. Rest satisfied, that whatever is, by the appointment of heaven, ^* is right, is best.

Among all the productions of the third creating day, this of flowers seems to be peculiarly designed for man. Man has the monopoly of this favour; it is conferred on him by a sort of exclusive charter. See the imperial crown, splendid and beautifully grand! See the tuberose, delicate and languishingly fair! See all the pomp and glory of the parterre, where paint and perfume do wonders. Yet the inferiour animals are neither smit with their beau­ties, nor regaled with their odours. The horse never stands still to gaze upon their charms; nor does the ox turn aside to browse upon their sweets. Senses they have, to discern these curious objects in the gross, but no taste, to distinguish or relish their fine accomplishments.—Just so▪ carnal and unenlightened men may understand the literal meaning of scripture, may comprehend the evi­dences of its divine inspiration; yet, have no relish of the heavenly truths it teaches, no ardent longing for the spiritual blessings it offers; and see ‘no form or comeliness’ in the Saviour it describes, so as to render him the supreme desire of their souls.

[Page 110]The chief end of these beautiful appearances, philos­ophers say, is to enfold and cherish the embryo seed; or to swathe the tender body during its infant state.— But, whatever is the chief end of nature, it is certain, she never departs from the design of administering delight to mankind. ^* This is inseparably connected with her other views.—Were it only to secure a reproductive prin­ciple, what need of such elegant complications? Why so much art employed, and so many decorations added? Why should vestments be prepared richer than brocades, more delicate than lawns, and of a finer glow than the most admired velvets?—If the great mother had no other aim, than barely to accommodate her little offspring, warm flannel, or homely sustian would have served her turn. Served it full as well as the most sumptuous tissues, or all the furniture of the mercer's shop.

Evident then it is, that flowers were endued with such enchanting graces for the pleasure of man. In pur­suance of this original intention, they have always paid their court to the human race; they still seem particu­larly solicitous of recommending themselves to our re­gard. The finest of each species crowd about our habi­tations, and are rarely to be seen at a distance from our abodes. They thrive under our cultivating hand, and observing eye; but degenerate, and pine away, if un­regarded by their lord.—To win his attention, and deck his retreats, they hide their deformities under ground; and display nothing but the most graceful forms, and en­gaging colours, to his sight.—To merit a farther degree of his esteem, the generality of them dispense a delight­ful perfume. What is still more obliging, they ^† reserve their richest exhalations, to embalm his morning and [Page 111] evening walks. ^* Because he usually chooses those cool hours, to recreate himself among their blooming ranks; therefore, at those hours, they are most lavish of their fragrance, and breathe out their choicest spirits.

O man, greatly beloved by thy Creator! The dar­ling of Providence! Thou art distinguished by his good­ness; distinguish thyself also by thy gratitude. Be it thy one undivided aim to glorify him, who has been at so much expense to gratify thee!—While all these inferiour creatures, in silent eloquence, declare the glory of GOD, do thou lend them thy tongue. Be thou the high priest of the mute creation. Let their praises become vocal in thy songs.—Adore the Supreme Benefactor for the bles­sings he showers down upon every order of beings. A­dore him for numberless mercies, which are appropriated to thyself. But, above all, adore him for that noble gift of a rational and immortal soul.—This constitutes us masters of the globe, and gives us the real enjoyment of its riches. This discovers ten thousand beauties, which otherwise had been lost, and renders them both a source of delights, and a nursery of devotion.—By vir­tue of this exalted principle, we are qualified to admire our Maker's works, and capable of bearing his illustrious image; bearing his illustrious image, not only when these ornaments of the ground have resigned their honours, but, when the great origin of day is extinguished in the skies, and all the flaming orbs on high are put out in obscure darkness.— Then to survive, to survive the ruins of one world, and to enjoy GOD—to resemble GOD—to be "filled with all the fulness of GOD," in another—What a happiness, what an inestimable happi­ness is this! Yet, this is thy privilege (barter it not for trifles of an hour!) this thy glorious prerogative, O man!

O! the goodness, the exuberant goodness, of our GOD! I cannot forbear celebrating it once more, before I pass to another consideration.—How much should we think our­selves [Page 112] obliged to a generous friend, who should build a stately edifice, ^* purely for our abode! But, how greatly would the obligation be increased, if the hand that built should also furnish it! And not only furnish it with all [Page 113] that is commodious and comfortable, but ornament it also with whatever is splendid and delightful! This, has our most indulgent Creator done, in a manner infinitely sur­passing all we could wish, or imagine.

The earth is assigned us for a dwelling.—The skies are stretched over us, like a magnificent canopy dyed in the purest azure, and beautified, now with pictures of floating silver, now with colourings of reflecting crim­son.—The grass is spread under us, as a spacious carpet wove with silken threads of green, and damasked with flowers of every hue.—The sun, like a golden lamp, is hung out in the ethereal vault, and pours his efful­gence all the day, to lighten our paths.—When night approaches, the moon takes up the friendly office; and the stars are kindled in twinkling myriads, to cheer the darkness with their milder lustre, not disturb our repose by too intense a glare.—The clouds, besides the rich paintings they hang around the heavens, act the part of a shifting screen, and defend us, by their seasonable inter­position [Page 114] from the scorching beams of summer. May we not also regard them, as the great watering pots of the globe, which, wasted on the wings of the wind, dispense their moisture ^* evenly through the universal garden, and [...]ructify with their showers whatever our hands plant.— The fields are our exhaustless granary.—The ocean is our vast reservoir.—The animals spend their strength, to dis­patch our business; resign their clothing, to replenish our wardrobe; and surrender their very lives, to provide for our tables.—In short, every element is a storehouse of conveniences; every season brings us the choicest product­tions; all nature is our caterer; and, which is a most en­dearing recommendation of these favours, they are all as lovely, as they are useful. You observe nothing mean or inelegant. All is clad in beauty's fairest robe, ^† and regu­lated by proportion's nicest rule. The whole scene exhib­its a fund of pleasures to the imagination, at the same time that it more than supplies all our wants. ^‡

[Page 115]Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man! whosoever thou art, that rebellest against thy maker. He surrounds thee with unnumbered benefits, and follows thee with an effusion of the richest, noblest gifts. He courts thy affections, he solicits thy gratitude, by liberalities which are never intermitted, by a bounty which knows no limits.—Most blessed LORD, let this thy goodness, thy unwearied goodness, lead us to repentance. Win us to thyself, thou Fountain of Felicity, by these sweet inducements. Draw us to our duty, thou GOD of our salvation, by these "cords of love."

What a lively picture is here, of the beneficial ef­fects of industry! By industry and cultivation this neat spot is an image of Eden. Here is all that can enter­tain the eye, or ^* regale the smell. Whereas, without cultivation, this sweet garden had been a desolate wil­derness. Vile thistles had made it lothsome, and tang­ling briers inaccessible. Without cultivation, it might have been a nest for serpents, and the horrid haunt of venomous creatures. But, the spade and pruning knife, in the hand of industry, have improved it into a sort of terrestrial paradise.

How naturally does this lead our contemplation to the advantages which flow from a virtuous education; and the miseries which ensue from the ^† neglect of it!—The mind, without early instruction, will, in all probability, become like the "vineyard of the sluggard." If left to the propensities of its own depraved will, what can we expect, but the most luxuriant growth of unruly appe­tites, which, in time, will break forth into all manner of scandalous irregularities? What?—but that Anger, like a prickly thorn, arm the temper with an untractable moroseness; Peevishness, like a stinging nettle, render the conversation irksome and forbidding; Avarice, like some choking weed, teach the fingers to gripe, and the hands to oppress; Revenge, like some poisonous plant, replete with baneful juices, rankle in the breast, and me­ditate mischief to its neighbour: While unbridled lusts, like swarms of noisome insects, taint each rising thought; [Page 116] and render ‘every imagination of the heart, only evil continually.’ —Such are the usual products of savage nature! Such, the furniture of the uncultivated soul!

Whereas, let the mind be put under the ‘nurture and admonition of the LORD;’ let holy discipline clear the soil; let sacred instructtion sow it with the best seed; let skill and vigilance dress the rising shoots; direct the young ideas how to spread; the wayward pas­sions, how to move.—Then, what a different state of the inner man will quickly take place! Charity will breathe her sweets, and Hope expand her blossoms; the personal virtues display their graces, and the social ones their fruits; ^* the sentiments become generous; the carriage endearing; the life honourable and useful. ^†

O! that governours of families, and masters of schools, would watch, with a conscientious solicitude, over the morals of their tender charge! What pity it is, that the advancing generation should lose these invaluable endowments, through any supineness in their instructors! —See! with what assiduity the curious florist attends his little nursery! He visits them early and late; furnishes them with the properest mould; supplies them with season­able moisture; guards them from the ravages of insects; screens them from the injuries of the weather; marks their springing buds; observes them attentively, through their whole progress; and never intermits his anxiety, till he beholds them blown into full perfection.—And shall a range of painted leaves, which flourish today, and [Page 117] tomorrow fall to the ground—Shall these be tended with more zealous application, than the exalted faculties of an immortal soul!

Yet trust not in cultivation alone. It is the blessing of the Almighty Husbandman which imparts success to such labours of love. If GOD ‘seal up the bottles of heaven,’ and command the clouds to withhold their fatness, the best manured plot becomes a barren desert. And if HE restrain the dew of his heavenly benedic­tion, all human endeavours miscarry; the rational plan­tation languishes; our most pregnant hopes, from youths of the most promising genius, prove abortive. Their root will be as rottenness, and their blossom will go up as dust. ^*—Therefore, let parents plant; let tutors water; but, let both look up to the Father of spirits, for the de­sired increase.

On every side, I espy several budding flowers. As yet, they are like bales of cloth from the packer's ware­house. Each is wrapt within a strong enclosure, and its contents are tied together by the firmest bandages. So that all their beauties lie concealed, and all their sweets are locked up.—Just such is the niggardly wretch, whose aims are all turned inward, and meanly terminated upon himself; who makes his own private interests, or person­al pleasures, the sole centre of his designs, and the scanty circumference of his actions.

Ere long the searching beams will open these silken folds, and draw them into a graceful expansion. Then, what a lovely blush will glow in their cheeks, and what a balmy odour exhale from their bosoms!—So, when divine grace shines upon the mind, even the churl be­comes bountiful. The heart of stone is taken away, and a heart of flesh, a heart susceptible of the softest, most compassionate emotions, is introduced in its stead. O! how sweetly do the social affections dilate themselves, under so benign an influence! Just like these disclosing gems, under the powerful eye of day. The tender regards are no longer confined to a single object, but extend themselves into a generous concern for man­kind, [Page 118] and shed liberal refreshments on all within their reach. ^*

Arise then, thou son of righteousness, arise, with healing under thy wings, and transfuse thy gentle, but penetrating ray, through all our intellectual powers. En­large every narrow disposition, and fill us with a diffusive benevolence. Make room in our breasts for the whole human race, and teach us to love all our fellow crea­tures, for their amiable Creator's sake. May we be pleas­ed with their excellencies, and rejoice in their happi­ness; but feel their miseries as our own, and with a brother's sympathy, hasten to relieve them!

Disposed at proper distances, I observe a range of strong and stately stalks. They stand like towers along the walls of a fortified city; or rise, like lofty spires amidst the group of houses. They part, at the top, into several pens [...]le spiky pods; from each of which we shall soon see a fine figure displaying itself, rounded into a form which constitutes a perfect circle; spread wide open, into the most frank and communicative air; and tinged with the colour which is so peculiarly captivat­ing to the miser's eye.

But the property I chiefly admire, is its passionate fondness for the sun. When the evening shades take place, the poor flower droops and folds up its leaves. It mourns all the long night, and pines amidst the gloom, like some forlorn lover, banished from the object of his affections. No sooner does Providence open ‘the eye­lids [Page 119] of the morning,’ but it meets ^* and welcomes the returning light; courts and caresses it all the day; nor ever loses sight of the refulgent charmer, so long as he continues above the horizon!—In the morning you may perceive it, presenting a golden bosom to the east; at noon, it points upward to the middle sky; in the evening, follows the same attractive influence to the west.

Surely nature is a book, and every page rich with sacred hints. To an attentive mind the garden turns preacher, and its blooming tenants are so many lively Sermons. What an engaging pattern, and what an ex­cellent lesson, have we here!— So, let the redeemed of the LORD look unto JESUS, ^† and be conformed to their beloved. Let us all be heliotropes (if I may use the ex­pression) to the Son of Righteousness. Let our passions rise and fall, take this course or that, as his word deter­mines, as his holy example guides. Let us be so accom­modated, both to his commanding and providential will, as the wax is turned to the imprinted seal; or, as the aspect of this enamoured flower, to the splendid star which creates our day.

In every enjoyment, O thou watchful christian, look unto JESUS; receive it as proceeding from his love, and purchased by his agonies. ^‡—In every tribulation look unto JESUS; mark his gracious hand managing the scourge, or mingling the bitter cup; attempering it to a proper degree of severity; adjusting the time of its continuance; and ready to make these seeming disasters productive of real good.—In every infirmity and fail­ing look unto JESUS, thy merciful high priest, plead­ing his atoning blood, and making intercession for trans­gressors.—In every prayer look unto JESUS, thy prevail­ing advocate, recommending thy devotions, and ‘bear­ing the iniquity of thy holy things. ^‖’ —In every temp­tation look unto JESUS, the author of thy strength, [Page 120] and captain of thy salvation, who alone is able to lift up the hands which hang down, to invigorate the enfee­bled knees, and make thee more than conqueror over all thy enemies.—But especially, when the hour of thy de­parture approaches; when "thy flesh and thy heart fail;" when all the springs of life are irreparably breaking, then look unto JESUS with a believing eye. ^* Like ex­piring Stephen, behold him standing at the right hand of GOD, on purpose to succour his people, in this their last extremity. Yes, my christian friend, when thy journey through life is finished, and thou art arrived on the very verge of mortality; when thou art just launch­ing out into the invisible world, and all before thee is vast eternity; then, O then, be sure to look stedfastly unto JESUS! "See by faith the LORD's CHRIST." View him as the only way ^† to the everlasting man­sions, as the only door ^‡ to the abodes of bliss.

Yonder tree, which faces the south, has something too remarkable to pass without observation.—Like the fruitful though feeble vine, she brings forth a large family of branches; but, unable to support them herself, commits them to the tuition of a sunny wall. As yet the tender twigs have scarce gemmed their future blos­soms. However, I may anticipate the well known pro­ductions, and picture to myself the passion flower; which will, in due time, with a long and copious succession, adorn the boughs.

I have read, in a Latin author, of flowers inscrib­ed with the names of kings; ^‖ but here is one emblaz­oned with the marks of the bleeding Prince of life. I read, in the inspired writings, of apostolick men, who bore about in their bodies the dying of the LORD JESUS: ^§ But, here is a blooming religioso, that carries apparent memorials of the same tremendous and fatal catastrophe.—Who would have expected to find such a tragedy of woe exhibited in a collection of the most [Page 121] delicate delights?—Or to see Calvary's horrid scene, pourtrayed on the softest ornaments of the garden?—Is nature then actuated by the noble ambition of paying commemorative honours to her agonizing sovereign? Is she kindly officious to remind forgetful mortals of that miracle of mercy, which it is their duty to contemplate, and their happiness to believe?—Or, is a sportive imag­ination my interpreter; and all the supposed resem­blance no more than the precarious gloss of fancy? Be it so; yet even fancy has her merit, when she sets forth, in such pleasing imagery, the crucified JESUS. Nor shall I refuse a willing regard to imagination her­self, when she employs her creative powers, to revive the sense of such unparalleled love, and prompt my gratitude to so divine a friend.

That spiral tendril, arising from the bottom of the stalk, is it a representation of the scourge, which lashed the Redeemer's unspotted flesh, and inflicted those stripes by which our souls are healed? Or, is it twisted for the cord, which bound his hands in painful and ignomini­ous confinement; those beneficent hands, which were incessantly stretched out to unloose the heavy burdens, and to impart blessings of every choice kind?—Behold the nails, which were drenched in his sacred veins, and riveted his feet to the accursed tree; those beautiful ^* feet, which always went about doing good; and travel­led far and near, to spread the glad tidings of everlast­ing salvation.—See the hammer, ponderous and massy, which drove the rugged irons through the shivering nerves, and forced a passage for those dreadful wedges, between the dislocated bones.—View the thorns, which encircled our Royal Master's brow, and shot their keen afflictive points into his blessed head. O the smart! the racking smart! when instead of the triumphal laurel, or the odoriferous garland, that pungent and ragged wreath, was planted on the meek Messiah's forehead! When violent and barbarous blows of the strong eastern cane, ^† struck the prickly crown, and fixed every thorn [Page 122] deep in his throbbing temples! ^*—There stand the dis­ciples, ranged in the green impalement, and forming a circle round the instruments of their great Commander's death. They appear like so many faithful adherents, who breathe a gallant resolution, either of defending their LORD to the last extremity, or of dropping honourably by his side. But did they give such proofs of zeal and fidelity in their conduct, as their steady posture and determined aspect seem to promise? Alas! what is all human firmness, when destitute of succours from above, but an expiring vapour? What is every saint, if unsup­ported by powerful grace, but an abandoned traitor?— Observe the glory, delineated in double rays, grand with imperial purple, and rich with ethereal blue. But ah! how incapable are threads, though spun by summer's finest hand, though dyed in snows, or dipped in Heav­en, to display the immaculate excellency of his human, or the ineffable majesty of his divine nature! Compared with these sublime perfections, the most vivid assemblage of colours fades into an unmeaning flatness, the most charming effects of light and shade, are not only mere daubings, but an absolute blank.

Among all the beauties which shine in sunny robes, and sip the silver dews, this, I think, has the noblest im­port, if not the finest presence. Were they all to pass in review, and expect the award of superiority from my [Page 123] decision, I should not hesitate a moment. Be the prize assigned to this amiable candidate, which has so emi­nently distinguished, and so highly dignified herself, by bearing such a remarkable resemblance to ‘the righ­teous branch, the plant of renown. ^*’ While others appoint it a place in the parterre, I would transplant the passion flower, or rather transfer its sacred significancy to my heart. There let it bloom, both in summer and in winter; bloom, in the most impressive characters, and with an undecaying lustre. That I also may wear—wear on my very soul, the traces of IMMANUEL, pierced for my sins, and bruised for my transgressions. That I also may be crucified with CHRIST, ^† at least in peni­tential remorse, and affectionate sympathy. That I may know the fellowship of his sufferings, ^‡ and feel all my evil affections wounded by his agonies, mortified by his death.

There is another subject of the verdant kingdom, which, on account of its very uncommon qualities, de­mands my particular notice: One so extremely diffident in her disposition, and delicate in her constitution, that she dares not venture herself abroad in the open air, but is nursed up in the warmth of a hot bed, and lives clois­tered in the cells of a green house; but the most curi­ous peculiarity is, that, of all her kindred species, she alone partakes of perceptive life, at least advances near­est to this more exalted state of being, and may be look­ed upon as the link which connects the animal and the vegetable world. A stranger, observing her motions, would almost be induced to suspect, that she is endued with some inferiour degrees of consciousness and cau­tion. For, if you offer to handle this sensitive plant, she immediately takes an alarm, hastily contracts her fibres, and, like a person under apprehensions of vio­lence, withdraws from your finger, in a kind of precip­itate disorder. Perhaps the beauty of her aspect might be fullied, or the niceness of her texture discomposed, by the human touch. Therefore, like a coy virgin, she [Page 124] recedes from all unbecoming familiarities, and will admit no such improper, if not pernicious, freedoms.

Whatever be the cause of this unusual effect, it suggests an instructive admonition to the christian. Such should be our apprehensive timorous care, with regard to sin, and all, even the most distant approaches of vice. So should we avoid the very appearance of evil, and stand aloof from every occasion of falling.—If sin­ners entice, if forbidden pleasures tempt, or if oppor­tunity beckon, with the gain of injustice in her hand, O! turn from the gilded snare, touch not the beauteous bane; but fly, fly with haste, fly without any delay, from the bewitching ruin.—Does anger draw near with her lighted torch, to kindle the flame of resentment in our breasts? Does flattery ply our ears, with her enchant­ing and intoxicating whispers? Would discontent lay her leaden hand upon our temper, and mould into our minds her sour leaven, in order to make us a burden to ourselves, and unamiable to others? Instantly let us di­vert our attention from the dangerous objects, and not so much endeavour to antidote, as to shun the moral con­tagion. Let us revolve in our meditations, that wonder­ful meekness of our distressed master, which, amidst the most abusive and provoking insults, maintained an uni­form tenour of unshaken serenity. Let us contemplate that prodigious humiliation, which brought him from an infinite height above all worlds, to make his bed in the dust of death. Let us soothe our jarring, our uneasy passions, with the remembrance of that cheerfulness and resignation, which rendered him, in the deepest poverty, unfeignedly thankful; and, under the heaviest tribula­tions, most submissively patient.

Harbour not, on any consideration, the betrayer of your virtue. Always maintain a holy sensibility of soul. Be deaf, inflexibly deaf, to every beguil­ing solicitation. If it obtrude into the unguarded heart, give it entertainment, no, not for a moment. To par­ley with the enemy, is to open a door for destruction. Our safety consists in flight; and, in this case suspic­ion is the truest prudence; fear, the greatest bravery.— Play not on the brink of the precipice. Flutter not round [...]e edges of the flame. Dally not with the stings of [Page 125] death. But reject, with a becoming mixture of solici­tude and abhorrence, the very first insinuations of ini­quity, as cautiously as the smarting sore shrinks even from the softest hand, as constantly as this jealous plant recoils at the approaching touch. ^*

Not long ago, these curious productions of the spring were coarse and misshapen roots. Had we opened the earth and beheld them in their seed, how uncouth and contemptible had their appearance been!—But now they are the boast of nature, the delight of the son [...] of m [...] finished patterns for enamelling and embroidery, o [...] shining even the happiest strokes of the pencil. Th [...] are taught to bloom, but with a very inferiour lustre, [...] in the richest tapestries, and most magnificent silks▪ Art never attempts to equal their incomparable elegan­cies, but places all her merit, in copying after these deli­cate originals. Even those, who glitter in silver, or whose clothing is of wrought gold, are desirous to bor­row additional ornaments from a sprig of jessamine, or a little assemblage of pinks.

[Page 126]What a fine idea may we form from hence, of the resurrection of the just, and the state of their reanimated bodies! As the roots even of our choicest flowers, when deposited in the ground, are rude and ungraceful, but, when they spring up into blooming life, are most elegant and splendid; so the flesh of a saint, when committed to the dust, alas! what is it? A heap of corruption; a mass of putrefying clay. But, when it obeys the great Archangel's call, and starts into a new existence, what an astonishing change ensues! What a most ennobling improvement takes place!—That which was sown in weakness, is raised in all the vivacity of power. That which was sown in deformity, is raised in the bloom of celestial beauty. Exalted, refined, and glorified, it will shine "as the brightness of the firmament," when it darts the inimitable blue, through the fleeces—the snowy fleeces of some cleaving cloud.

Fear not then, thou faithful christian; fear not, at the appointed time, to descend into the tomb. Thy soul thou mayest trust with thy omnipotent Redeemer, who is LORD of the unseen world; ‘Who has the keys of hell and of death.’ Most safely mayest thou trust thy better part in those beneficent hands, which were pierced with nails, and fastened to the ignominious tree, for thy salvation.—With regard to thy earthly tabernacle, be not dismayed. It is taken down, only to be rebuilt upon a diviner plan, and in a more heavenly form. If it retires into the shadow of death, and lies immured in the gloom of the grave, it is only to return from a short confinement, to endless liberty. If it falls into dissolution, it is in order to rise more illustrious from its ruins, and wear an infinitely brighter face of perfec­tion and of glory.

Having now made my panegyrick, let me next take up a lamentation, for these loveliest productions of the vegetable world.—For I foresee their approaching doom. Yet a little while, and all these pleasing scenes vanish. Yet a little while, and all the sweets of the breathing, all the beauties of the blooming spring, are no more. Every one of these amiable forms must be shrivelled to deformity, and trodden to the earth.—Significant re­semblance [Page 127] this of all created beauty. All flesh is grass; like the green herbage, liable and prone to fade. Nay, all the goodliness thereof, its finest accomplishments, and what the world universally admires, is as the flower of the field; ^* which loses its gloss, decays and perishes, more speedily than the grass itself.—Behold, then, ye brightest among the daughters of Eve; behold yourselves in this glass. See the charms of your person eclipsed by the lustre of these little flowers; and the frailty of your state represented ^† by their transient glories. A fever [Page 128] may scorch those polished veins; a consumption may emaciate the dimpling cheeks; and a load of unexpected sorrows, depress those lively spirits. Or should these disasters, in pity, spare the tender frame; yet age, in­exorable age and wrinkles, will assuredly come at last; will wither all the fine features, and blast every sprightly grace.

Then, ye fair, when those sparkling eyes are dark­ened, and sink in their orbs; when they are rolling in agonies, or swimming in death; how will you sustain the affliction? How will you repair the loss?—Apply your thoughts to religion. Attend to the one thing needful. Believe in, and imitate the blessed JESUS. Then shall your souls mount up to the realms of happiness, when the well proportioned clay is mingling with its mean original. The light of GOD's countenance will irra­diate, with matchless and consummate perfection, all their exalted faculties. Cleansed entirely from every dreg of corruption, like some unsullied mirror, they will reflect the complete image of their Creator's holiness.—O! that you would thus dress your minds, and prepare for the im­mortal state! Then, from shining among your fellow creatures on earth, you shall be translated, to shine around the throne of GOD. Then, from being the sweeteners of our life, and the delight of our eyes here below, you shall pass, by an easy transition, into angels of light; and become ‘an everlasting excellency, the joy of all generations.’

Yes, ye flowery nations, ye must all decay.—Yonder lily, that looks like the queen of the gay creation—see, how gracefully it erects its majestick head! What an air of dignity and grandeur ennobles its aspect! For ele­vated mien, as well as for incomparable lustre, justly may it be preferred to the magnificent monarch of the east. ^* But, all stately and charming as it is, it will hardly sur­vive a few more days. That unspotted whiteness must quickly be tarnished, and the snowy form defiled in the dust.

As the lily pleases, with the noble simplicity of its appearance; the tulip is admired for the gaiety and [Page 129] multiplicity of its colours. Never was cup either paint­ed, or enamelled, with such a profusion of dyes. Its tinges are so glowing, its contrasts so strong, and the arrangement of them both, so elegant and artful!—It was lately the pride of the border, and the reigning beauty of the delightful season. As exquisitely fine as the rain­bow, and almost as extremely transient. It spread, for a little moment its glittering plumage; but has now laid all its variegated and superiour honours down. Those radiant stripes are blended, alas! rudely blended with common mould.

To a graceful shape, and blooming complexion, the rose adds the most agreeable perfume. Our nostrils make it repeated visits, and are never weary of drinking in its sweets. A fragrance, so peculiarly rich and reviving, transpires from its opening tufts, that every one covets its acquaintance. How have I seen even the accomplish­ed Charissa, for whom so many votaries languish, fondly caressing this little flower! That lovely bosom, which is the s [...]at of innocence and virtue; whose least excellen­cy it is, to rival the delicacy of the purest snows; among a thousand charms of its own, thinks it possible to adopt another from the damask rose bud.—Yet, even this uni­versal favourite must fail. Its native balm cannot pre­serve it from putrefaction. Soon, soon must it resign all those endearing qualities, and hang neglected on its stem, or drop despised to the ground.

One could wish, methinks, these most amiable of the inanimate race a longer existence; but, in vain. They fade, almost as soon as they flourish. Within less than a month, their glories are extinct. Let the sun take a few more journies through the sky; then visit this inchant­ing walk, and you will find nothing but a wretched wilderness of ragged or naked stalks.—But (my soul exults in the thought) the garment of celestial glory, which shall ere long array the reanimated body, will nev­er wax old. The illustrious robes of a Saviour's consum­mate righteousness, which even now adorn the justified spirit, are incorruptible and immortal. No moth can corrode their texture; no number of ages sully their brightness. The light of day may be quenched, and all the stars sink in obscurity; but the honours of ‘just [Page 130] men made perfect,’ are subject to no diminution. Inextinguishable and unfading is the lustre of their crown.

Yes, ye flowery nations, ye must all decay.—Winter, like some enraged and irresistible conqueror, that carries fire and sword whereever he advances, that demolishes towns, depopulates countries, spreads slaughter and desolation on every side;—so, just so, will winter, with his savage and unrelenting blasts, invade this beautiful prospect. The storms are gathering, and the tempests mus­tering their rage, to fall upon the vegetable kingdoms. They will ravage through the dominions of nature, and plunder her riches, and lay waste her charms.— Then, ye trees, must ye stand stript of your verdant ap­parel; and, ye fields, be spoiled of your waving trea­sures. Then, the earth, disrobed of all her gay attire, must sit in sables, like a disconsolate widow. The sun too, who now rides in triumph round the world, and scatters gaiety from his radiant eye, will then look faint­ly from the windows of the south; and, casting a short glance▪ on our dejected world, will leave us to the un­comfortable gloom of tedious nights.—Then, these pret­ty choristers of the air, will chant no more to the gentle ga [...]es. The lark, the linnet, and all the feathered songsters, abandon their notes, and indulge their woes. The harmony of the woods is at an end; and silence, (unless it be interrupted by howling winds) a sullen si­lence, sits brooding upon the boughs; which are now made vocal by a thousand warbling throats.

But, sweet recollection! ravishing expectation! the songs of saints in light, never admit a pause for sadness. All Heaven will resound with the melody of their grati­tude, and all eternity echo to their triumphant acclama­tions. The hallelujahs of that world, and the harmo­nious joy of its inhabitants, will be as lasting as the divine perfections they celebrate.—Come then, holy love, and tune my heart; descend, celestial fire, and touch my tongue; that I may stand ready to strike up, and bear my part, in that great hosanna, that everlasting hymn.

[Page 131] Yes, yes, ye flowery nations, ye must all decay.— And, indeed, could you add the strength of an oak, or the stability of a pyramid, ^* to all the delicacy of your texture; yet short, exceeding short, even then would your duration be. For I see, that all things come to an end. The pillars of nature are tottering. The foun­dations of the round world are falling away. ‘The Heavens themselves wax old like a garment.’—But, amidst these views of general ruin, here is our refuge; this is our consolation; We know that our Redeemer liv­eth. Thy years, blessed JESUS, shall not fail. From everlasting to everlasting thou art still the same; the same most excellent and adorable person; the same om­nipotent and faithful friend; the same all sufficient and inestimable portion. O! may we but partake of thy merits, be sanctified by thy grace, and received into thy glory!—Then perish, if ye will, all inferiour delights. Let all that is splendid in the skies expire; and all that is amiable in nature be expunged. Let the whole ex­tent of creation be turned again into one undistin­guishable void, one universal blank.—Yet, if GOD be ours, we shall have enough. If GOD be ours, we shall have all, and abound. ^† All that our circum­stances can want, or our wishes crave, to make us incon­ceivably blessed and happy. Blessed and happy, not [Page 132] only through this little interval of time, but through the unmeasurable revolutions of eternity.

The sun is now come forth in his strength, and beats fiercely upon my throbbing pulse.—Let me retire to yonder inviting arbour. There, the woodbines retain the lucid drop; there the jessamines, which line the verdant alcove, are still impearled, and deliciously wet with dews.—Welcome, ye refreshing shades! I feel, I feel, your cheering influence. My languid spirits re­vive; the slackened sinews are new strung; and life bounds brisker through all her crimson channels.

Reclined on this mossy couch, and surrounded by this fragrant coldness, let me renew my aspirations to the ever present deity. Here let me remember, and imi­tate the pious Augustine, and his mother Monica. Who, being engaged in discourse on the beauties of the visible creation, rose, by these ladders, to the glories of the invisible state, till they were inspired with the most af­fecting sense of their supereminent excellency, and ac­tuated with the most ardent breathings after their full enjoyment; insomuch that they were almost wrapt up into the bliss they contemplated; and scarce ‘knew, whether they were in the body, or out of the body.’

When tempests toss the ocean; when plaintive sig­nals of distress are heard from the bellowing deep; and melancholy tokens of shipwreck come floating on the foaming surge; then how delightful to stand safe on shore, and hug one's self in conscious security. ^*—When a glut of waters bursts from some mighty torrent; rushes headlong over all the neigbouring plains; sweeps away the helpless cattle, and drives the affrighted shep­herd from his hut; then, from the top of a distant emi­nence, to descry the danger, we need not fear; how pleas­ing!—Such methinks is my present situation. For now, [Page 133] the sun blazes from on high: The air glows with his fire: The fields are rent with chinks: The roads are scorched to dust: The woods seem to contract a sickly aspect, and a russet hue: The traveller, broiled as he rides, hastens to his inn, and intermits his journey: The labourer, bathed in sweat, drops the scythe, and desists from his work: The cattle flee to some shady covert, or else pant and toss under the burning noon. Even the stub­born rock, smit with the piercing beams, is ready to cleave. All things languish beneath the dazzling del­uge—while I shall enjoy a cool hour, and calm reflec­tion, amidst the gloom of this bowery recess, which scarce admits one speck of sunshine.

Thus, may both the flock, and their shepherd, dwell beneath the defence of the Most High, and abide under the shadow of the Almighty. ^* Then, though ^† the pestilence walketh in darkness, and the sickness destroyeth at noon­day; though thousands fall beside us, and ten thou­sands at our right hand; we need fear no evil. Either the destroying angel shall pass over our houses; or else he shall dispense the corrections of a friend, not the scourges of an enemy; which, instead of hurting us, shall work for our good.—Then, though profaneness and infi­delity, far more malignant evils, breathe deadly conta­gion, and taint the morals of multitudes around us; yet, if the great Father of Spirits ‘hide us in the hollow of his hand,’ we shall hold fast our integrity, and be faithful unto death.

Let then, dearest LORD, O! let thy servant, and the people committed to his care, be received into thy protection. Let us take sanctuary under that tree of life, erected in thy ignominious cross. Let us fly for safety to that city of refuge, opened in thy bleeding wounds. These shall be a sacred hiding place, not to be pierced by the flames of divine wrath, or the fiery darts of temp­tation. Thy dying merits, and perfect obedience, shall be to our souls, as rivers of water in a dry place, or as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. ^‡

[Page 134]But most of all, in that last tremendous day, when the Heavens are rent asunder, and wrapped up like a scroll; when thy Almighty arm shall arrest the sun in his ca­reer, and dash to pieces the structure of the universe; when the dead, both small and great, shall be gathered before the throne of thy glory; and the fates of all mankind hang on the very point of a final irreversible decision:—Then, blessed JESUS, let us be owned by thee, and we shall not be ashamed; defended by thee, and we shall not be afraid. O! may we, at that awful, that unutterably important juncture, be covered with the wings of thy redeeming love, and we shall behold all the horrible convulsions of expiring nature, with com­posure, with comfort! We shall even welcome the dis­solution of all things, as the times of refreshing from the presence of the LORD. ^*

There are, I perceive, who still attend the flowers; and, in defiance of the sun, ply their work on every expanded blossom. The bees I mean; that nation of chymists, to whom nature has communicated the rare and valuable secret, of enriching themselves, without im­poverishing others; who extract the most delicious syr­up from every fragrant herb, without wounding its substance, or diminishing its odours.—I take the more notice of these ingenious operators, because I would will­ingly make them my pattern. ^† While the gay butterfly flutters her painted wings, and sips a little fantastick de­light, only for the present moment; while the gloomy spider, worse than idly busied, is preparing his insidious nets for destruction, or sucking venom even from the most wholesome plants; this frugal community are wisely employed in providing for futury, and collecting a copious stock of the most balmy treasures.—And O! might these meditations sink into my soul! Would the GOD, who suggested each heavenly thought, vouchsafe to convert it into an established principle, to determine all my inclinations, and regulate my whole conduct! I should, then, gather advantages from the same blooming [Page 135] objects, more precious than your golden stores, ye in­dustrious artists. I also should go home [...]den with the richest sweets, and the noblest spoils; though I crop not a leaf, nor call a single flower my own.

Here I behold, assembled in one view, almost all the various beauties which have been severally entertaining my imagination. The vistas, struck through an ancient wood, or formed by rows of venerable elms; conduct­ing the spectator's observation to some remarkable ob­ject; or leading the traveller's footsteps to this delight­ful seat:—The walls, enriched with fruit trees, and faced with a covering of their leafy extensions; I should rather have said, hung with different pieces of nature's noblest tapestry:—The walks, neatly shorn, and lined with verdure; or finely smoothed, and coated with grav­el:—The alleys, arched with shades, to embower our noontide repose; or thrown open for the free acces­sion of air, to invite us to our evening recreation:— The decent edgings of box, which inclose, like a plain selvage, each beautiful compartment, and its splendid figures:—The shapely evergreens, and flowery shrubs, which strike the eye, and appear with peculiar dignity, in this distant situation:—The bason, with its chrystal fount, floating in the centre; and diffusing an agreea­ble freshness through the whole:—The waters, falling from a remote cascade, and gently murmuring, as they flow along the pebbles:— These, added to the rest, and all so disposed, that each recommends and endea [...] each, render the whole a most sweet ravishing scene, of order and variety, of elegance and magnificence.

From so many lovely prospects, clustering upon the sight, it is impossible not to be reminded of Heaven, that world of bliss, those regions of light, where the Lamb that was slain manifests his beatifick presence, and his saints live for evermore.—But O! what pencil can sketch out a draught of that goodly land! What col­ours, or what style, can express the splendours of IMMAN­UEL's kingdom! Would some celestial hand draw aside the veil, but for one moment, and permit us to throw a single glance on those divine abodes; how would all fublunary possessions become tarnished in our [Page 136] eyes, and grow flat upon our taste! A glimpse, a tran­sient glimpse of those unutterable beatitudes, would cap­tivate our souls, and engross all their faculties. Eden it­self, after such a vision, would appear a cheerless desert; and all earthly charms intolerable deformity.

Very excellent things are spoken of thee, thou city of GOD. ^* Volumes have been written, and those by in­spired men, to display the wonders of thy perfections. All that is rich and resplendent in the visible creation, has been called in to aid our conceptions, and elevate our ideas. But, indeed, no tongue can utter, no pen can describe, no fancy can imagine, what GOD, of his unbounded munificence, has prepared for them that love him.—Seeing then, that all terrestrial things must come to a speedy end; and there remaineth a rest, a blissful and everlasting rest, for the people of GOD; let me never be too fondly attached to any present satisfac­tions. Weaned from whatever is temporal, may I main­tain a superiour indifference, for such transitory enjoy­ments; but long, long earnestly, for the mansions that are above; the paradise ‘which the LORD hath planted, and not man.’ Thither, may I transmit the chief of my conversation; and from thence expect the whole of my happiness. Be that the sacred, powerful magnet, which ever influences my heart, ever attracts my affec­tions. There are such transcendent glories, as eye has not seen; there are such transporting pleasures, as ear has not heard; there is such a fulness of joys, as the thought of man cannot conceive.

Into that consummate felicity, those eternal frui­tions, permit me, Madam, to wish you, in due time, an abundant entrance; and to assure you, that this wish is breathed, with the same sincerity and ardour, for my honoured correspondent, as it is, MADAM, for

A DESCANT UPON CREATION.

IF the reader pleases to look back on page 105, he will find me engaged, by a promissory note, to subjoin a DESCANT upon CREATION.

To know the love of CHRIST; to have such a deep apprehension of his unspeakable kindness, as may pro­duce in our hearts an adoring gratitude, and an unfeigned faith: This, according to St. Paul's estimate, is the highest and happiest attainment in the sacred science of Chris­tianity. ^* What follows, is an attempt to assist the atten­tive mind, in learning a line or two of that best and greatest lesson. It introduces the most conspicuous parts of the visible system, as so many prompters to our dull af­fections; each suggesting a hint, adapted to the important occasion, and suited to its respective character.

Can there be a more powerful incentive to devout gratitude, than to consider the magnificent and delicate scenes of the universe, with a particular reference to CHRIST, as the Creator?—Every object, viewed in this light, will surely administer incessant recruits to [Page 138] the languishing lamp of divine love. Every produc­tion in nature will strike a spark into the soul; and the whole creation concur to raise the smoaking fla [...] in­to a flame.

Can any thing impart a stronger joy to the believer, or more effectually confirm his faith in the crucified JE­SUS, than to behold the Heavens declaring his glory, and the firmament shewing his handy work?—Surely, it must be matter of inexpressible consolation to the poor sinner, to observe the honours of his Redeemer, written with sun beams, over all the face of the world.

We delight to read an account of our incarnate JE­HOVAH, as he is revealed in the books of Moses and the prophets, as he is displayed in the writings of the evangelists and apostles. Let us also endeavour to see a sketch of his perfections, as they stand delineated in that stately volume, where every leaf is a spacious plain— every line, a flowing brook—every period, a lofty moun­tain.

Should any of my readers be unexercised in such speculations, I beg leave (in pursuance of my promise) to present them with a specimen; or to offer a clue, which may possibly lead their minds into this most improving and delightful train of thinking.

Should any be inclined to suspect the solidity of the following observations, or to condemn them, as the voice of rant, and the lawless flight of fancy; I must intreat such persons to recollect, that the grand doc­trine, the hinge on which they all turn, is warranted and established by the unanimous testimony of the inspired penmen, who frequently celebrate IMMANUEL, or CHRIST JESUS, as the great Almighty cause of all; assuring us, that all things were created by him, and for him; and that in him all things consist. ^*

On such a subject, what is wonderful, is far from be­ing extravagant. To be wonderful, is the inseparable characteristick of GOD and his works; especially, of that most distinguished and glorious even of the divine works, REDEMPTION; so glorious, that ‘all [Page 139] the miracles in Egypt, and the marvellous acts in the field of Zoan;’ all that the Jewish annals have re­corded, or the human ear has heard; all dwindle into trivial events, are scarce worthy to be remembered, ^* in comparison of this infinitely grand and infinitely gracious transaction.—Kindled, therefore, into pleasing astonish­ment, by such a survey, let me give full scope to my meditations. Let me pour out my whole soul on the boundless subject; not much regarding the limits, which cold criticism, or colder unbelief, might prescribe.

O ye angels, that surround the throne; ye princes of Heaven, "that excel in strength," and are clothed with transcendent brightness; he, who placed you in those stations of exalted honour, and dignified your na­ture with such illustrious endowments; he, whom you all obey, and all adore; he took not on him the an­gelick form, but was made flesh, and found in fashion as a man. Like us, wretched mortals, he was subject to weariness, pain, and every infirmity, sin only excepted; —that we might, one day, be raised to your sublime abodes; be adopted into your blissful society; and join with your transported choir, in giving glory to HIM that sitteth upon the throne, and to the LAMB forever and ever. ^†

O ye Heavens, whose azure arches rise immensely high, and stretch unmeasurably wide; stupendous am­phitheatre! amidst whose vast expansive circuit, orbs of the most dreadful grandeur are perpetually running their amazing races. Unfathomable depths of aether! where worlds unnumbered float; and to our limited sight, worlds unnumbered are lost:—He, who adjusted your dimensions with his span, and formed the magnificent structure with his word; he was once wrapt in swad­ling clothes, and laid in a manger:—That the benefits accruing to his people, through his most meritorious hu­miliation, might have no other measure of their value, than immensity; might run parallel, in their duration, with eternity.

Ye stars, that beam with inextinguishable brilliancy, through the midnight sky; oceans of flame, and cen­tres of worlds, though seemingly little points of light! [Page 140] —He, who shone, with essential effulgence, innumera­ble ages, before your twinkling tapers were kindled; and will shine with everlasting majesty and beauty, when your places in the firmament shall be known no more: He was involved, for many years, in the deepest ob­scurity; lay concealed in the contemptible city Naza­reth; lay disguised under the mean habit of a carpen­ter's son;—that he might plant the Heavens, ^* as it were, with new constellations; and array these clods of earth, these houses of clay, with a radiancy far su­periour to yours; a radiancy, which will adorn the very Heaven of Heavens, when you shall vanish away like smoke; ^† or expire, as momentary sparks from the smitten steel.

Comets, that sometimes shoot into the illimitable tracts of aether, farther than the discernment of our eye is able to follow; sometimes return from the long, long excursion, and sweep our affrighted hemisphere with your enormous fiery train; that sometimes make near ap­proaches to the sun, and burn almost in his immediate beams; sometimes retire to the remotest distance, and freeze, for ages, in the excessive rigours of winter:— He, who at his sovereign pleasure withdraws the blazing wonder; or leads forth the portentous stranger, to shake terrour over guilty kingdoms; he was overwhelmed with the most shocking amazement, and plunged into the deepest anxiety; was chilled with apprehensions of fear, and scorched by the flames of avenging wrath:— That I, and other depraved rebellious creatures, might not be eternally agitated with the extremes of jarring passions; opposite, yet, on either side, tormenting; far more tormenting to the soul, than the severest degrees of your heat and cold to the human sense.

[Page 141]Ye planets, that, winged with unimaginable speed, traverse the regions of the sky; sometimes climbing millions and millions of miles above, sometimes descend­ing as far below, the great axle of your motions: Ye, that are so minutely faithful to the vicissitudes of day and night; so exactly punctual, in bringing on the changes of your respective seasons:—He, who launched you, at first, from his mighty arm; who continually impels you, with such wonderful rapidity, and guides you, with such perfect regularity; who fixes ‘the hab­itation of his holiness and his glory,’ infinite heights above your scanty rounds: HE once became a helpless infant, sojourned in our inferiour world, fled from the persecutor's sword, and wandered as a vaga­bond in a foreign land:—That he might lead our feet into the way or peace; that he might bring us aliens near to GOD, bring us exiles home to Heaven.

Thou sun, inexhausted source of light, and heat, and comfort! Without whose presence an universal gloom would ensue, and horrour unsupportable; who, without the assistance of any other fire, sheddest day through a thousand realms; and, not confining thy munificence to realms only, extendest thy enlightening influences to sur­rounding worlds: Prime cheerer of the animal, and great enlivener of the vegetable tribes! So beautiful in thyself, so beneficial in thy effects, that erring Heathens addressed thee with adorations, and mistook thee for their maker! —He who filled thy orb with a profusion of lustre; lustre, in its direct emanations, unsufferably bright, but, rebated by thy reflection, delightfully mild:—He, before whom thy meridian splendours are but a shade; whose love, trans­fused into thy heart, is infinitely more exhilarating, than even the sweet and clear shining after the rain:—HE di­vested himself of his all transcending distinctions, and drew a veil over the effulgence of his divinity; that, by speaking to us, face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend, he might dispel our intellectual darkness. His ‘visage was marred ^*,’ and he became the scorn of men, the outcast of the people; that, by this manifestation of his unutterably tender regard for our welfare, he might diffuse many a gleam of joy through our dejected minds: [Page 142] That, in another state of things, he might clothe even our fallen nature, with the honours of that magnificent luminary; and give all the righteous to shine forth as the sun, in the kingdom of their Father.

Thou moon, that walkest among the host of stars, and, in thy lucid appearance, art superiour to them all: Fair ruler of the night! Sometimes, half restoring the day, with thy waxing brightness; sometimes, waning into dimness, and scarcely scattering the nocturnal gloom; sometimes, covered with sackcloth, and alarming the gazing nations!—He, who dresses thy opake globe, in beaming, but borrowed silver; he, whose dignity is unchangeable, underived, and all his own; he vouch­safed to wear a body of clay: He was content to ap­pear as in a bloody eclipse, shorn of his resplendent beams, and surrounded with a night of horrour, which knew not one reviving ray.—Thus, has he impowered his church, and all believers, to tread the moon under their feet. ^* Hence, inspired with the hope of brighter glory, and of more enduring bliss, are they enabled to triumph over all the vain anxieties, and vainer amuse­ments, of this sublunary, precarious, mutable world.

Ye thunders, that, awfully grumbling in the distant clouds, seem to meditate indignation, and form the first essays of a far more frightful peal; or, suddenly bursting over our heads, rend the vault above, and shake the ground below, with the hideous, horrid crack: Ye, that send your tremendous vollies from pole to pole, startling the savage herds, ^† and astonishing the human race:—He, who permits terrour to found her trumpet, in your deep, prolonged, enlarging, aggravated roar: He uttered a feeble infantile cry in the stable, and strong expiring groans on the accursed tree:—That he might, in the gentlest accents, whisper peace to our souls; and, at length, tune our voices to the melody of Heaven.

O ye lightnings, that brood and lie couchant, in the sulphureous vapours; that glance, with forked fury, from the angry gloom, swifter and fiercer than the lion rushes from his den; or open into vast expansive sheets of flame, sublimely waved over the prostrate world, and [Page 143] fearfully lingering in the frighted skies: Ye, that for­merly laid in ashes the licentious abodes of lust and violence; that will, ere long, set on fire the elements, and cooperate in the conflagration of the globe: He, who kindles your flash, and directs you when to sally, and where to strike: He, who commissions your whirl­ing bolts, whom to kill, and whom to spare: HE re­signed his sacred person to the most barbarous indignities; submitted his beneficent hands to the ponderous ham­mer, and the piercing nail; yea, withheld not his heart, his very heart, from the stab of the executioner's spear; and, instead of flashing confusion on his out­rageous tormentors▪ instead of striking them dead to the earth, or plunging them to the depths of Hell, with his frown; he cried—in his last moments, and with his agonizing lips, he cried—FATHER, FORGIVE THEM; FOR THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO!—O! what a pat­tern of patience for his saints! What an object of admi­ration for angels! What a constellation of every mild, amiable, and benign virtue; shining, in this hour of dark­ness, with ineffable splendour and beauty! ^*—Hence, hence it is, that we are not trembling under the light­nings [Page 144] of mount Sinai; that we are not blasted by the flames of divine vengeance; or doomed to dwell with everlasting burnings.

Ye frowning wintry clouds; oceans pendent in the air, and burdening the winds: He, in whose hand you are an overflowing scourge; or, by whose appoint­ment, an arsenal ^* of warlike stores: He, who opens your sluices, and a flood gushes forth, to destroy the fruits of the earth, and drown the husbandman's hopes: Who moulds you into frozen balls, and you are shot, linked with death, ^† on the troops of his enemies. HE, [Page 145] instead of discharging the furiousness of his wrath upon this guilty head, poured out his prayers, poured out his sighs, poured out his very soul, for me and my fellow transgressors.—That, by virtue of his inestimable propi­tiation, the overflowings of divine good will might be extended to sinful men, that the skies might pour down righteousness, and peace on her downy wings, peace with her balmy blessings, descend to dwell on earth.

Ye vernal clouds, furls of finer air, folds of softer moisture; he who draws you in copious exhalations from the briny deep, bids you leave every distasteful quality behind, and become floating fountains of sweet­est waters; he who dissolves you into gentle rain, and dismisses you in fruitful showers, who kindly com­missions you to drop down fatness as you fall, and to scatter flowers over the field.—HE, in the unutterable bitterness of his spirit, was without any comforting sense of his Almighty Father's presence: He, when his bones were burnt up like a firebrand, had not one drop of that sacred consolation, which, on many of his afflicted ser­vants has been distilled as the evening dews, and has "given songs in the night" of distress.—That, from this unallayed and inconsolable anguish of our all gra­cious master, we, as from a well of salvation, might derive large draughts of spiritual refreshment.

Thou grand ethereal bow, whose beauties flush the firmament, and charm every spectator. He, who paints thee on the fluid skirts of the sky, who decks thee with all the pride of colours, and bends thee into that grace­ful and majestick figure; at whose command thy vivid streaks sweetly rise, or swiftly fade:—HE, through all his life, was arrayed in the humble garb of poverty; and, at his exit wore the gorgeous garment of con­tempt. Insomuch, that even his own familiar friends, ashamed or afraid to own him, ‘hid as it were their faces from him. ^*’—To teach us a becoming dis­dain, for the unsubstantial and transitory glitter of all [Page 145] worldly vanities: To introduce us, in robes brighter than the tinges of thy resplendent arch, even in the robes of his own immaculate righteousness, to introduce us before that august and venerable throne, which the peaceful rainbow surounds; surrounds, as a pledge of inviolable fidelity, and infinite mercy.

Ye storms and tempests, which vex the continent, and toss the seas; which dash navies on the rocks, and drive forests from their roots: He whose breath rouses you into such resistless fury, and whose nod controls you in your wildest career: He, who holds the rapid and raging hurricane in streightened reins, and walks dreadfully serene on the very wings of the wind; he went, all meek and gentle like a lamb to the slaughter for us; and as a sheep before her shearer [...] is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.—Thus, are we instructed to bear, with decent magnanimity, the various assaults of adversity, and to pass, with a becoming tranquillity of temper, through all the rude blasts of injurious treatment. Thus, are we delivered from the unutterably fiercer storms of incensed and inexorable justice; from the ‘fire, the brimstone, and the horrible tempest, which will be the final portion of the ungodly.’

Thou pestilence, that scatterest ten thousand poisons from thy baleful wings, tainting the air, and infecting the nations; under whose malignant influence, joy is blasted, and nature sickens; mighty regions are depopu­lated, and once crouded cities are left without inhab­itants: He, who arms thee with inevitable destruction, and bids thee march before ^* his angry countenance, to spread desolation among the tents of the wicked, and be the forerunner of far more fearful indignation: HE, in his holy humanity, was arraigned as a criminal; and, though innocence itself yea, the very pattern of perfection, was condemned to die, like the most execrable miscreant. As a nuisance to society, and the very bane of the publick happiness, he was hurried away to execution, and ham­mered to the gibbet:—That by his blood, he might pre­pare a sovereign medicine, to cure us of a more fatal dis­temper, than the pestilence which walketh in darkness, [Page 147] or the sickness which destroyeth at noon day: That he might himself say to our last enemy, ‘O death, I will be thy plague; O grave, I will be thy destruction ^*.’

Heat, whose burning influence parches the Libyan wilds; tans into soot the Ethiopian's complexion; and makes every species of life pant, and droop, and lan­guish. Cold, whose icy breath glazes yearly the Ruffian seas; often glues the frozen sailor to the cordage; and stiffens the traveller into a statue of rigid flesh:—HE, who sometimes blends you both, and produces the most agreeable temperature; sometimes, suffers you to act separately, and rage with intolerable severity: That king of Heaven, and controler of universal nature, when dwelling in a tabernacle of clay, was exposed to chilling damps, and smitten by sultry beams: The stars, in their midnight watches, heard him pray; and the sun, in his meridian fervours, saw him toil.—Hence are our frozen hearts dissolved, into a mingled flow of wonder, love, and joy; being conscious of a deliverance from those in­sufferable flames, which, kindled by divine indignation, burn to the lowest hell.

Thou ocean, vast world of waters! He, who sunk that capacious bed for thy reception, and poured the li­quid element into unfathomable channels; before whom all thy foaming billows, and floating mountains, are as the small drop of a bucket: who, by the least intima­tion of his will, swell's thy fluid kingdoms in wild con­fusion, to mingle with the clouds; or reduces them, in calm composure, to slumber on the shores: He, who once gave thee a warrant to overwhelm the whole earth, and bury all its degenerate inhabitants in a watry grave; but has now laid an everlasting embargo on thy bois­terous waves; and bound thee, all fierce and madding as thou art, in chains stronger than adamant, yet formed of despicable sand:—All the waves of vengeance and wrath, of tribulation and anguish, passed over HIS crucified body, and HIS agonizing soul; that we might emerge from those depths of misery, from that abyss of guilt, into which we were plunged by Adam's fall, and more irretrievably sunk by our own trans­gressions; [Page 148] that, at the last, we might be restored to that happy world, which is represented in the vision of GOD, as having "no sea; ^*" to denote its perpetual stability, and undisturbed serenity.

Ye mountains, that overlook the clouds, and project a shade into distant provinces: Everlasting pyramids of nature, not to be shaken by conflicting elements; not to be shattered by the bolts of thunder; nor impaired even by the ravages of time:—He, who bid your ridges rise so high, and your foundations stand so fast: He, in whose scale you are lighter than dust; in whose eye, you are less than nothing:—HE sunk, beneath a load of woes; woes insupportable, but not his own; when he took our iniquities upon himself, and heaved the more than mountainous burden from a guilty world.

Ye verdant woods, that crown our hil's, and are crown­ed yourselves with leafy honours: Ye humble shrubs, adorned in spring with opening blossoms; and fanned in summer by gentle gales: Ye, that in distant climes, or in cultivated gardens, breathe out spicy odours, and embalm the air with delightful perfumes: Your all glorious and ever blessed Creator's head was incircled with the thorny wreath; his face was defiled with con­tumelious spitting; and his body bathed in a bloody sweat: That we might wear the crown, the crown of glory, which fadeth not away; and live for evermore, surrounded with delights, as much surpassing yours, as yours exceed the rugged desolations of winter.

Thou mantling vine, he who hangs on thy slender shoots, the rich, transparent, weighty cluster; who, under thy unornamented foliage, and amidst the pores of thy otherwise worthless bough, prepares the liquor, the refined and exalted liquor, which cheers the nations, and fills the cup of joy. Trees, whose branches are ele­vated and waving in air; or diffused, in easy confine­ment, along a sunny wall: He, who bends you with a lovely burden of delicious fruits; whose genial warmth beautifies their rind, and mellows their taste:—HE, when voluntarily subject to our wants, instead of being [Page 149] refreshed with your generous juices, or regaled with your luscious pulp; had a lothsome portion of vinegar, ming­led with gall, addressed to his lips:—That we might sit under the shadow of his merits, with great tranquillity, and the utmost complacency: That, ere long, being admitted into the paradise of GOD, we might eat of the tree of life; ^* and drink new wine with him, in his father's kingdom.

Ye luxuriant meadows, he who, without the seed­man's industry, replenishes your irriguous lap, with never failing crops of herbage; and enamels their cheer­ful green with flowers of every hue:—Ye fertile fields, he, who blesses the labours of the husbandman, en­riches your well tilled plains with waving harvests, and calls forth the staff of life from your furrows: He, who causes both meadows and fields to laugh and sing for the abundance of plenty:—HE was no stranger to cor­roding hunger, and parching thirst: He, alas! eat the bitter bread of woe, and had ‘plenteousness of tears to drink:’—That we might partake of richer dainties, than those which are produced by the dew of Heaven, and proceed from the fatness of the earth: That we might feed on "the hidden manna," and eat the bread which giveth life, eternal life, unto the world.

Ye mines, rich in yellow ore, or bright with veins of silver; that distribute your shining treasures, as far as winds can waft the vessel of commerce; that bestow your alms on monarchs, and have princes for your pen­sioners: —Ye beds of gems, toyshops of nature! which form, in dark retirement, the glittering stone: Diamonds, that sparkle with a brilliant water: Rubies, that glow with a crimson flame: Emeralds, dipped in the freshest verdure of spring: Sapphires, decked with the fairest drapery of the sky: Topaz, emblazed with a golden gleam: Amethyst, impurpled with the blushes of the morning:—He, who tinctures the metallick dust, and con­solidates the lucid drop: HE, when sojourning on earth, had no riches, but the riches of disinterested benevo­lence; had no ornament, but the ornament of unspotted purity: Poor he was in his circumstances, and mean in [Page 150] all his accommodations: That WE might be rich in grace, and "obtain salvation with eternal glory:" That we might inhabit the new Jerusalem; that splendid city! whose streets are paved with gold; whose gates are formed of pearl; and the walls garnished with all manner of precious stones. ^*

Ye gushing fountains, that trickle potable silver through the matted grass. Ye fine transparent streams, that glide in chrystal waves along your fringed banks: Ye deep and stately rivers, that wind and wander in your course, to spread your favours wider; that gladden kingdoms in your progress, and augment the sea with your tribute: —He, who supplies all your currents from his own everflowing and inexhaustible liberality: HE, when his nerves were racked with exquisite pain, and his blood inflamed by a raging fever, cried, I THIRST; and was denied (unparalleled hardship!) in this his great ex­tremity, was denied the poor refreshment of a single drop of water:—That we, having all sufficiency in all things, might abound to every good work; might be filled with the fulness of spiritual blessings here, and hereafter be satisfied with that fulness of joy, which is at GOD's right hand for evermore.

Ye birds, cheerful tenants of the bough, gaily dressed in glossy plumage; who wake the morn, and solace the groves, with your artless lays: Inimitable architects! who, without rule or line, build your pensile struc­tures, with all the nicety of proportion: You have each a commodious nest, roofed with shades, and lined with warmth, to protect and cherish the callow brood —But he, who tuned your throats to harmony and taught you that curious skill; HE was a man of sorrows, and had not where to lay his head; had not where to lay his head, till he felt the pangs of dissolution, and was laid in the silent grave:—That we, dwelling under the wings of Omnipotence, and resting in the [...]osom of in­finite love, might spend an harmonious eternity, in "singing the song of Moses and of the LAMB."

Bees, industrious workmen! that sweep, with busy wing, the flowery garden; and search the blooming [Page 151] heath; and sip the mellifluous dews: Strangers to idle­ness! That ply, with incessant assiduity, your pleasing task; and suffer no opening blossom to pass unexplored, no sunny gleam to slip away unimproved: Most inge­nious artificers! That cling to the fragrant buds; drain them of their treasured sweets; and extract (if I may so speak) even the odoriferous souls of herbs, and plants, and flowers:—You, when you have completed your work; have collected, refined, and securely lodged the ambrosial stores; when you might reasonably expect the peaceful fruition of your acquisitions; you, alas! are barbarously destroyed, and leave your hearded delicacies to others; leave them to be enjoyed by your very mur­derers: I cannot but pity your hard destiny!—How then should my bowels melt with sympathy, and my eyes flow with tears▪ ^* when I remember, that thus, thus it fared with your and our incarnate Maker! After a life of the most exemplary and exalted piety; a life filled with offices of beneficence, and labours of love; HE was, by wicked hands, crucified and slain: He left the honey of his toil, the balm of his blood, and the riches of his obedience, to be shared among others; to be shared even among those, who too often crucify him afresh, and put him to open shame.

Shall I mention the animal, ^† which spins her soft, her shining, exquisitely fine silken thread? Whose [Page 152] matchless manufactures lend an ornament to grandeu [...], and make royalty itself more magnificent.—Shall I take notice of the cell, in which, when the gaiety and busi­ness of life are over, the little recluse immures herself, and spends the remainder of her days in retirement?— Shall I rather observe the sepulchre, which, when cloyed with pleasure and weary of the world, she prepares for her own interment? Or how, when a stated period is elapsed, she wakes from a death like inactivity; breaks the inclosure of her tomb; throws off the dusky shroud; assumes a new form; puts on a more sumptuous array; and, from an insect creeping on the ground, becomes a winged inhabitant of the air?—No: This is a poor rep­tile; and therefore unworthy to serve as an illustration, when any character of the son of GOD comes under consideration. But let me correct myself. Was not CHRIST (to use the language of his own blessed Spirit) a worm, and no man? ^* In appearance such, and treated as such. Did he not also bequeath the fine linen of his own most perfect righteousness, to compose the marriage gar­ment ^† for our disarrayed and defiled souls! Did he not, [Page 153] before his flesh saw corruption, emerge triumphant from the grave; and not only mount the lower firmament, but ascend the heaven of heavens; taking possession of those sublime abodes, in our name, and as our forerunner?

Ye cattle, that rest in your inclosed pastures: Ye beasts, that range the unlimited forest: Ye fish, that rove through trackless paths of the sea: Sheep, clad in garments, which, when left by you, are wore by kings: Kine, who feed on verdure, which, transmuted in your bodies, and strained from your udders, furnishes a repast for queens: Lions, roaring after your prey; Leviathan, taking your pastime in [Page 154] the great deep; with all that wing the firmament, or tread the soil, or swim the wave:—He, who spreads his ever hospitable board; who admits you all to be his con­tinual guests; and suffers you to want no manner of thing that is good: HE was destitute, afflicted, tor­mented: He endured all that was miserable and reproach­ful, in order to exalt a degenerate race, who had debased themselves to a level with the beasts that perish, unto seats of distinguished and immortal honour; in order to introduce the slaves of sin, and heirs of hell, into man­sions of consummate and everlasting bliss.

Surely, the contemplation of such a subject, and the distant anticipation of such a hope, may almost turn earth into heaven, and make even inanimate nature vo­cal with praise. Let it then break forth from every creature. Let the meanest feel the inspiring impulse; let the greatest acknowledge themselves unable, worthily to express the stupendous goodness.

Praise HIM, ye insects that crawl on the ground; who, though high above all height, humbled himself to dwell in dust. Birds of the air, waft on your wings, and warble in your notes, HIS praise; who, though LORD of the celestial abodes, while sojourning on earth, wanted a shelter commodious as your nests.—Ye rougher world of brutes, join with the gentle songsters of the shade, and howl to HIM your hoarse applause; who breaks the jaw bones of the infernal lion; who softens into mildness the savage disposition; and bids the wolf lie down, in amicable agreement, with the lamb. Bleat out, ye hills; let broader lows be responsive from the vales; ye forests catch, and ye rocks retain, the inartic­ulate hymn: Because MESSIAH the prince feeds his flock, like a shepherd. He gathers the lambs with his arm; he carries them in his bosom; and gently leads those that are with young ²⁰¹.—Wave, ye stately cedars, in sign of worship, wave your branching heads to HIM, who meekly bowed his own, on the accursed tree. Pleasing prospects, scenes of beauty, where nicest art conspires with lavish nature, to form a paradise below; lay forth all your charms, and in all your charms confess your­selves [Page 155] a mere blank, compared with his amiableness, who is ‘fairest among ten thousand, and altogether lovely.’—Drop down, ye showers; and testify, as you fall; testify of HIS grace, which descends more copi­ously than the rain, distils more sweetly than the dew. Let sighing gales breathe, and murmuring rivulets flow; breathe and flow, in harmonious consonance to HIM; whose spirit is far more reviving, than the cooling breeze; who is himself the fountain of living waters.

Ye lightnings, blaze to his honour; ye thunders, sound HIS praise; while reverberating clouds return the roar, and bellowing oceans propagate the tremendous anthem. [...]utest of creatures, add your silent oratory, and dis­play the triumphs of HIS meekness; who, though he maketh the clouds his chariot, and treadeth upon the waves of the sea; though the thunder is his voice, and the lightning his sword of justice; yet, amidst the most abusive and cruel injuries, was submissive and lifted not his hand; was "dumb and opened not his mouth."— Great source of day, address thy radiant homage to a far sublimer sun; write, in all thy ample round, with every lucid beam, O! write a testimony to HIM, who is the brightness of his father's glory; who is the sun of righteousness to a sinful world; and is risen, never to go down; is risen, to be our everlasting light.—Shine clear, ye skies; look gay, thou earth; let the floods clap their hands, and let every creature wear a smile: For he cometh, the CREATOR himself cometh, to be manifested in the flesh; and with him comes pardon, peace, and joy; every virtue and all felicity comes in his train.— Angels and archangels, let your songs be of JESUS, and teach the very Heavens to echo with his adored and majestick name: Ye beheld him, with greater transports of admiration, when you attended his agony in the gar­den, and saw him prostrate on the ground, than when you beheld universal nature rising at his call, and saw the wonders of his creating might. Tune to loftiest notes your golden harps, and waken raptures, unknown before even in heavenly breasts; while all that has breath, swells the concert of harmony; and all that has being, unites in the tribute of praise.

[Page 156]Chiefly, let man exalt his voice; let man, with distinguished hosannas, hail the REDEEMER. For man, he was stretched on the racking cross; for man, he was consigned to the gloomy sepulchre; for man, he pro­cured grace unmeasurable, and bliss inconceivable.— However different, therefore, in your age, or more dif­ferent in your circumstances, be unanimous, O men, in magnifying a Saviour, who is no respecter of persons, who gave himself a ransom for all.—Bend, ye kings, from your thrones of ivory and gold; in your robes of imperial purple, fall prostrate at HIS feet; who forsook a nobler throne, and laid aside more illustrious ensigns of majesty, that you might reign with GOD forever and ever.— Children of poverty, meanest of mortals (if any can be called poor, who are thus enriched; if any can be accounted mean, who are thus ennobled) rejoice, greatly rejoice, in GOD your Saviour; who chose to be indigent, was willing to be contemned, that you might be intitled to the treasures, and be numbered with the princes of Heaven.— Sons of affliction, though harassed with pain, and inured to anguish, O! change your groans into songs of gratitude. Let no complaining voice, no jarring string be heard, in the universal sym­phony; but glorify the LAMB even in the fires; ²⁰² who himself bore greater torment, than you feel; and has promised you a share in the joy, which he inherits; who has made your sufferings short, and will make your rest eternal.— Men of hoary locks, bending beneath a weight of years, and tottering on the brink of the grave; let CHRIST be your support, under all infirmities; lean upon Christ, as the rock of your salvation; let his name, his precious name, form the last accents, which quiver on your pale expiring lips.—And let this be the first, that lisps on your tongues, ye tender infants. Re­member your REDEEMER, in your earliest moments. De­vote the choice of your hours, to the learning of his will, and the chief of your strength, to the glorifying of HIS name; who, in the perfection of health, and the very prime of manhood, was content to become a mo­tionless and ghastly corpse, that you might be girt with the vigour, and clothed with the bloom, of eternal youth.

[Page 157]Ye spirits of just men made perfect, who are released from the burden of the flesh, and freed from all the vex­atious solicitations of corruption in yourselves, delivered from all the injurious effects of iniquity in others: Who sojourn no longer in the tents of strife, or the territo­ries of disorder; but are received into that pure, harmo­nious, holy society, where every one acts up to his ami­able and exalted character; where GOD himself is pleas­ed graciously and immediately to preside:—You find, not without pleasing astonishment, your hopes improved into actual enjoyment, and your faith superseded by the beatifick vision: You feel all your former shyness of be­haviour happily lost in the overflowings of unbounded love, and all your little differences of opinion entirely borne down by tides of invariable truth. Bless, there­fore, with all your inlarged powers, bless his infinitely larger goodness; who, when he had overcome the sharp­ness of death, opened the gates of paradise, opened the kingdom of heaven to all generations, and to every denomination of the faithful.

Ye men of holy conversation, and humble tempers, think of HIM who loved you, and washed you from your sins in his own blood: Think of him, on your silent couch; talk of him, in every social interview; glory in his excellencies; make your boast of his obe­dience; and add, still continue to add, the incense of a dutiful life, to all the oblations of a grateful tongue▪ — Weakest of believers, who go mourning under a sense of guilt, and conflicting with the ceaseless assaults of temptation; put off your sackcloth, and be girded with gladness; because JESUS is as merciful to hear, as he is mighty to help; because he is touched with the tenderest sympathizing concern for all your distresses; and he lives, ever lives, to be your advocate with the FATHER: Why then should uneasy doubts sadden your countenances? Why should desponding fears op­press your souls? Turn, turn those disconsolate sighs into cheerful hymns; since you have his powerful inter­cession and his inestimable merits to be your anchor in all tribulations, to be your passport into eternal blessed­ness.

[Page 158]Most of all, ye ministers of the sanctuary, heralds commissioned from above; lift, every one his voice like a trumpet, and loudly proclaim the REDEEMER. Get ye up, ye ambassadours of peace, get ye up into the high mountains; and spread far and wide the honours of the LAMB "that was slain, but is alive for evermore." Teach every sacred roof to resound with his fame; and every human heart to glow with his love: Declare, as far as the force of words will go, declare the inexhausti­ble fulness of that great atonement, whose merits are commensurate with the glories of the DIVINITY. ^* Tell the sinful wretch, what pity yearns in IMMANU­EL's bowels; what blood he has spilt, what agonies he has endured, what wonders he has wrought, for the sal­vation of his enemies. Invite the indigent to become rich; entreat the guilty to accept of pardon; because, with the crucified JESUS is plenteous redemption, and all sufficiency to save—While you, placed in conspicu­ous stations, pour the joyful sound; may I, as I steal through the vale of humble life, catch the pleasing ac­cents! For me, the author of all blessings became a curse; for me, his bones were dislocated, and his flesh was torn; he hung, with streaming veins, and an agonizing soul, on the cross for me. O! may I, in my little sphere, [Page 159] and amidst the scanty circle of my acquaintance, at least whisper these glad transporting tidings; whisper them from my own heart, that they may surely reach, and sweetly penetrate theirs.

But, when men and angels raise the grand hymn; when all worlds, and all beings, add their collective ac­clamations; this full, fervent, and universal chorus, will be so inferiour to the riches of the REDEEMER's grace; so disproportionate to the magnificence of his glory, that it will seem but to debase the unutterable subject it at­tempts to exalt. The loud hallelujah will die away, in the solemn mental eloquence of prostrate, rapturous, silent adoration.

HERVEY's CONTEMPLATIONS ON THE NIGHT.

THE business of the day dispatched, and the sultry heats abated, invited me to the recreation of a walk. A walk, in one of the finest recesses of the country; and in one of the most pleasant evenings, which the summer season produced.

The limes and elms, uniting their branches over my head, formed a verdant canopy, and cast a most refreshing shade. Under my feet lay a carpet of nature's velvet; grass intermingled with moss, and embroidered with flowers. Jessamines, in conjunction with woodbines, twined around the trees; displaying their artless beau­ties to the eye, and diffusing their delicious sweets through the air. On either side, the boughs, rounded into a set of regular arches, opened a view into the dis­tant fields, and presented me with a prospect of the bend­ing skies. The little birds, all joyous and grateful for the favours of the light, were paying their acknowledg­ments in a tribute of harmony, and soothing themselves to rest with songs▪ while a French horn, from a neighbouring seat, sent its melodious accents, softened by the length of their passage, to complete the concert of the grove.

[Page 18]Roving in this agreeable manner, my thoughts were exercised on a subject still more agreeable than the sea­son, or the scene. I mean, our late signal victory over the united forces of intestine treason, and foreign in­vasion. A victory, which pours joy through the present age, and will transmit its influence to generations yet unborn.—Are not all the blessings, which can endear so­ciety, or render life itself desirable, centred in our pres­ent happy constitution, and auspicious government? Were they not all struck at, by that impious and horrid blow, meditated at Rome; levelled by France; and sec­onded by factious spirits at home? Who then can be sufficiently thankful, for the gracious interposition of Providence; which has not only averted the impending ruin, but turned it, with aggravated confusion, on the authors of our troubles?

Methinks, every thing valuable, which I possess; every thing charming, which I behold; conspire to en­hance this ever memorable event. To this it is owing, that I can ramble unmolested along the vale of private life, and taste all the innocent satisfactions of a contem­plative retirement.—Had rebellion ^* succeeded in her detestable designs, instead of walking with security and complacence in these flowery paths, I might have met the assassin with his dagger; or have been obliged to abandon my habitation, and ‘embrace the rock for a shelter.’—Farewel then, ye fragrant shades; seats of meditation, and calm repose! I should have been driven from your loved retreats, to make way for some barba­rous, some insulting victor.—Farewel then, ye pleasing toils, and wholesome amusements of my rural hours! I should no more have reared the tender flower to the sun; no more have taught the espalier to expand her boughs; nor have fetched, any longer, from my kitchen garden, the purest supplies of health.

Had rebellion succeeded in her detestable designs, instead of being regaled with the musick of the woods, I might have been alarmed with the sound of the trumpet, [Page 19] and all the thunder of war. Instead of being entertained with this beautiful landscape, I might have beheld our houses ransacked, and our villages plundered; I might have beheld our fenced cities encompassed with armies, and our fruitful fields "clothed with desolation;" or have been shocked with the more frightful images, of "garments rolled in blood," and of a ruffian's blade reeking from a brother's heart. Instead of peace, with her cheering olives, sheltering our abodes; instead of justice, with her impartial scale, securing our goods; persecution had brandished her sword, and slavery clanked her chains.

Nor are these miseries imaginary only, or the crea­tures of a groundless panick. There are, in a neighbour­ing kingdom, who very lately experienced them in all their rigour. ^* And, if the malignant spirit of popery had forced itself into our church; if an abjured pretender had cut his way to our throne; we could have no rea­son to expect a mitigation of their severity, on our be­half.—But, supposing the tender mercies of a bigotted usurper to have been somewhat less cruel; where, alas! would have been the encouragement, to cultivate our little portion; or what pleasure could arise, from an im­proved spot; if both the one and the other lay, every moment, at the mercy of lawless power? This imbit­tering circumstance would spoil their relish; and by ren­dering them a precarious, would render them a joyless ac­quisition.—In vain might the vine spread her purple clusters; in vain be lavish of her generous juices; if tyranny, like a ravenous harpy, should be always hover­ing over the bowl, and ready to snatch it from the lip of industry, or to wrest it from the hand of liberty.

Liberty, that dearest of names; and property, that best of charters; give an additional, an inexpressible charm to every delightful object—See, how the declining sun has beautified the western clouds; has ar­rayed them in crimson, and skirted them with gold. Such a refinement of our domestick bliss, is property; [Page 20] such an improvement of our publick privileges, is liberty. —When the lamp of day shall withdraw his beams, there will still remain the same collection of floating va­pours; but O! how changed, how gloomy! The car­nation streaks are faded; the golden edgings are worn away; and all the lovely tinges are lost, in a leade [...] coloured louring sadness. Such would be the aspect of all these scenes of beauty, and all these abodes of pleas­ure, if exposed continually to the caprice of arbitrary sway, or held in a state of abject and cringing depend­ence.

The sun has almost finished his daily race, and hastens to the goal. He descends lower and lower, till his char­iot wheels seem to hover on the utmost verge of the sky. What is somewhat remarkable, the orb of light, upon the point of setting, grows considerably broader. The shadows of objects, just before they become blended in undistinguishable darkness, are exceedingly lengthened. ^* —Like blessings, little prized, while possessed, but highly esteemed, the very instant they are preparing for their flight, bitterly regretted when once they are gone, and to be seen no more.

The radiant globe is, now, half immersed beneath the dusky earth; or, as the ancient poets speak, is shooting into the ocean, and sinks in the western sea:— And could I view the sea, at this juncture, it would yield a most amusing and curious spectacle. The rays, striking horizontally on the liquid element, give it the appearance of floating glass; or, reflected in many a different direction, form a beautiful multiplicity of col­ours.—A stranger, as he walks along the sandy beach, and, lost in pensive attention, listens to the murmurings of the restless flood, is agreeably alarmed by the gay dec­orations of the surface: With entertainment, and with wonder he sees the curling waves, here glistering with white, there glowing with purple; in one place, wear­ing an azure tincture; in another, glancing a cast of undulating green; in the whole, exhibiting a piece of fluid scenery, that may vie with yonder pensile tapestries, though wrought in the loom, and tinged with the dyes of Heaven.

[Page 21]While I am transported by fancy to the shores of the ocean, the great luminary is sunk beneath the hori­zon and totally disappears. The whole face of the ground is overspread with shades, or with what one of the finest painters of nature calls a dun obscurity. Only a few very superiour eminences are tipt with streaming silver. The tops of groves and lofty towers catch the last smiles of day, ^* are still irradiated by the depart­ing beams.—But, O! how transient is the distinction! how momentary the gift! Like all the blessings which mortals enjoy below, it is gone almost as soon as granted. See! how languishingly it trembles on the leafy spire, and glimmers, with a dying faintness, on the mountain's brow. The little vivacity that remains, decays every moment: It can no longer hold its station: While I speak it expires, and resigns the world to the gradual approaches of night.

Every object, a little while ago, glared with light; but now all appears under a more qualified lustre. The animals harmonize with the insensible creation; and what was gay in those, as well as glittering in this, gives place to an universal gravity. In the meadows all was jocund and sportive; but now the gamesome lambs are grown weary of their frolicks, and the tired shepherd has imposed silence on his pipe. In the branches all was sprightliness and song; but now the lively green is wrapt in the descending glooms, and no tuneful airs are heard, only the plaintive stockdove cooing mourn­fully through the grove.—Should I now be vain and trifling, the heavens and the earth would rebuke my unseasonable levity. Therefore, be these moments de­voted to thoughts sedate as the closing day, solemn as the face of things. And, indeed, however my social hours are enlivened with innocent pleasantry, let every e­vening, [Page 22] in her sable habit, toll the bell to serious con­sideration. Nothing can be more proper for a person who walks on the borders of eternity, and is hasting continually to his final audit; nothing more proper than daily to slip away from the circle of amusements, and frequently to relinquish the hurry of business, in order to consider and adjust ‘the things that belong to his peace.’

Since the sun is departed, from whence can it pro­ceed that I am not involved in pitchy darkness? Whence these remainders of diminished brightness, which, though scarcely forming a refulgence, soften and soothe the hor­rours of night? I see not the shining ruler, yet am cheer­ed with a real, though faint communication of his splen­dour.—Does he remember us in his progress through other climes? Does he send a detachment of his rays to escort us during his personal absence, or to cover (if I may use the military term) our retreat from the scene of action? Has he bequeathed us a dividend of his beams, sufficient to render our circumstances easy, and our situation agreeable, till sleep pours its soft oppres­sion on the organs of sense; till sleep suspends all the operations of our hands, and entirely supersedes any far­ther occasion for the light?

No: It is ill judged and unreasonable to ascribe this beneficent conduct to the sun. Not unto him, not un­to him, but unto his Almighty Maker we are obliged for this pleasing attendant, this valuable legacy. The gracious Author of our being has so disposed the collec­tion of circumambient air, as to make it productive of this fine and wonderful effect. The sunbeams, falling on the higher pa [...]ts of the aërial fluid, instead of passing on in straight lines, are bent inwards and conducted to our sight. Their natural course is overruled, and they are bidden to wheel about, on purpose to favour us with a welcome and salutary visit: By which means, the blessing of light and the season of business are consider­ably prolonged: And, what is a very endearing circum­stance, prolonged most considerably, when the vehe­ment heats of summer incline the student to postpone his walk till the temperate evening prevails; when the im­portant [Page 23] labours of the harvest call the husbandman abroad, before the day is fully risen.

After all the ardours of the sultry day, how reviving is this coolness!—This gives new verdure to the fading plants, new vivacity to the withering flowers, and a more exquisite fragrance to their mingled scents.—By this the air also receives a new force, and is qualified to exert itself with greater activity; qualified to brace our limbs, to heave our lungs, and cooperate, with a brisker impulse, in perpetuating the circulation of our blood.— This I might call the grand alembick of nature, which distils her most sovereign cordial, the refreshing dews. Incessant heat would rob us of their beneficial agency, and oblige them to evaporate in imperceptible exhala­tions. Turbulent winds, or even the gentler motions of Aurora's fan, would dissipate the rising vapours, and not suffer them to form a coalition: But, favoured by the stillness, and condensed by the coolness of the night, they unite in pearly drops, and create that finely tempered humidity which cheers the vegetable world, as sleep ex­hilarates the animal.

Not unlike to these are the advantages of solitude. The world is a troubled ocean; and who can erect sta­ble purposes on its fluctuating waves? The world is a school of wrong; and who does not feel himself warp­ing to its pernicious influences? ^* On this sea of glass, ^† how insensibly we slide from our own stedfastness! Some sacred truth, which was struck in lively characters on our souls, is obscured if not obliterated. Some worthy reso­lution, which Heaven had wrought in our breasts, is shaken if not overthrown. Some inticing vanity, which we had solemnly renounced, again practises its wiles, and again captivates our affections. How often has an un­wary glance kindled a fever of irregular desire in our hearts? How often has a word of applause dropt lus­cious poison into our ears; or some disrespectful ex­pression raised a gust of passion in our bosoms? Our [Page 24] innocence is of so tender a constitution, that it suffers in the promiscuous crowd. Our purity is of so delicate a complexion, that it scarce touches on the world without contracting a stain. We see, we hear, with peril.

But here safety dwells. Every meddling and intru­sive avocation is secluded. Silence holds the door a­gainst the strife of tongues, and all the impertinences of idle conversation. The busy swarm of vain images, and cajoling temptations which beset us, with a buzzing im­portunity, amidst the gaieties of life, are chased by these thickening shades.—Here I may, without disturbance, commune with my own heart, and learn that best of sciences, to know myself. Here the soul may rally her dissipated powers, and grace recover its native energy. This is the opportunity to rectify every evil impression, to expel the poison, and guard against the contagion of corrupting examples. This is the place where I may, with advantage, apply myself to subdue the rebel within, and be master, not of a sceptre, but of myself.—Throng then, ye ambitious, the levees of the powerful; I will be punctual in my assignations with solitude. To a mind intent upon its own improvement, solitude has charms incomparably more engaging than the entertain­ments presented in the theatre, or the [...]onours conferred in the drawing room.

I said, solitude.—Am I then alone?—'Tis true my acquaintance are at a distance. I have stole away from company, and am remote from all human observation. But that is an alarming thought,

Perhaps there may be numbers of those invisible be­ings patrolling this same retreat, and joining with me in contemplating the Creator's works. Perhaps those ministering spirits, who rejoice at the conversion of a sinner, and hold up the goings of the righteous, may fol­low us to the lonely recess, and, even in our most soli­tary moments, be our constant attendants.—What a pleas­ing awe is awakened by such a reflection! How vene­rable [Page 25] it renders my retired walks! I am struck with reverence as under the roof of some sacred edifice, or in the presence chamber of some mighty monarch. O! may I never bring any pride of imagination, nor indulge the least dissolute affection, where such refined and exalted intelligences exercise their watch!

'Tis possible that I am encompassed with such a cloud of witnesses; but it is certain that GOD, the infinite eter­nal GOD, is now and ever with me. The great JEHO­VAH, before whom all the angelick armies bow their heads and veil their faces, surrounds me, supports me, pervades me. ‘In HIM I live, move, and have my being.’—The whole world is his august temple, and, in the most sequestered corner, I appear before his a­dorable majesty, no less than when I worship in his house, or kneel at his altar. In every place, therefore, let me pay him the homage of a heart cleansed from idols, and devoted to his service. In every circumstance, let me feel no ambition but to please him, nor covet any happiness but to enjoy him.

How sublime is the description, and how striking the sentiment in that noble passage of the psalms! Whither shall I go from thy spirit, or whither shall flee from thy pres­ence? If I climb up into the heights of heaven, thou art there enthroned in light. If I go down to the depths of the grave, thou art there also in thy pavilion of darkness. If I retire to the remotest eastern climes, where the morn­ing first takes wing; if, swifter than the darting ray, I pass to the opposite regions of the west, and remain in the ut­termost parts of the sea; ^* shall I, in that distant situa­tion, be beyond thy reach; or, by this sudden transi­tion, escape thy notice! So far from it, that could I, with one glance of thought, transport myself beyond all the bounds of creation, I should still be encircled with the in [...]nsity of thy essence; or rather, still be inclosed in the hollow of thy hand.—Awful, yet delight­ful truth! Let it be interwoven with every thought! [Page 26] and become one with the very consciousness of my ex­istence! that I may continually walk with GOD; and conduct myself, in every step of my behaviour, "as [...]e [...] ­ing HIM that is invisible."

They are the happy persons; felicity, true felicity, is all their own, who live under an habitual sense of GOD's omnipresence, and a sweet persuasion of his spe­cial love. If dangers threaten, their impregnable de­fence is at hand. Nothing can be so near to terrify, as their Almighty Guardian to secure them.—To these the hours can never be tedious, and it is impossible for them to be alone. Do they step aside from the occupations of animal life, a more exalted set of employments engage their attention. They address themselves, in all the va­rious acts of devotion, to their heavenly Father; who now sees in secret, and will hereafter reward them openly. They spread all their wants before his indulgent eye, and disburden all their sorrows into his compassionate bo­som. Do they withdraw from human society, they find themselves under the more immediate regards of their Maker. If they resign the satisfaction of social in­tercourse, it is to cultivate a correspondence with the condescending DEITY, and taste the pleasures of divine friendship.—What is such a state but the very suburbs of Heaven? What is such a conduct, but an antepast of eternal blessedness?

Now, my soul, the day is ended: The hours are all fled: They are fled to the supreme Judge, and have given in their evidence; an evidence registered in Heav­en! and to be produced at the great audit. Happy they! whose improvement has kept pace with the fleeting minutes; who have seized the important fugitives, and engaged them in the pursuit of wisdom, or devoted them to the service of virtue.

Fugitives indeed they are. Our moments slip away silently and insensibly. The thief steals not more un­perceived from the pillaged house.—And will the run­agates never stop? No: Where [...]er we are, however employed, Time pursues his inc [...]ant course. Though we are listless and dilatory, the great measurer of our days presses on; still presses on, in his unwearied ca­reer, [Page 27] ^* and whirls our weeks, and months, and years away.—Is it not then surprisingly strange, to hear people complain of the tediousness of their time, and how heavy it hangs upon their hands? To see them con­trive a variety of amusing artifices, to accelerate its [...]light and get rid of its burden?—Ah! thoughtless mortals! why need you urge the headlong torrent? Your days are swifter than a post, which, carrying dis­patches of the last importance, with unremitted speed scours the road. They pass away like the nimble ships, which have the wind in their wings, and skim along the watery plain. They hasten to their destined period with the rapidity of an eagle, which leaves the stormy blast behind her, while she cleaves the air, and darts up­on her prey. ^†

Now the day is gone, how short it appears! When my fond eye beheld it in perspective, it seemed a very considerable space: Minutes crowded upon minutes, and hours ranged behind hours, exhibited an extensive draught, and flattered me with a long progression of pleasures. But upon a retrospective view, how wonder­fully is the scene altered! The landscape, large and spa­cious, which a warm fancy drew, brought to the test of cool experience, shrinks into a span; just as the shores vanish, and mountains dwindle to a spot, when the sail­or, surrounded by skies and ocean, throws his last look on his native land.—How clearly do I now discover the cheat! May it never impose upon my unwary imagina­tion again! I find there is nothing abiding on this side eternity. A long duration, in a state of finite existence, is mere illusion.

Perhaps the healthy and the gay may not readily credit the serious truth; especially from a young pen, and [Page 28] new to its employ. Let us then refer ourselves to the decision of the ancient. Ask some venerable old person, who is just marching off the mortal stage— How many have been the days of the years of thy life? ^* It was a monarch's question, and therefore can want no rec­ommendation to the fashionable world.—Observe how he shakes his hoary locks, and from a deep felt convic­tion replies— ‘ Fourscore years have finished their rounds, to furrow these cheeks, and clothe this head in snow. Such a term may seem long and large to inconsiderate youth: But O! how short, how scanty, to one that has made the experiment! Short as a gleam of tran­sient sunshine; scanty at the shadow that departeth. Methinks, it was but yesterday that I exchanged my childish sports for manly exercises; and now I am resigning them both for the sleep of death. As soon as we are born we begin to draw to our end; and how small is the interval between the cradle and the tomb.’—O! may we believe this testimony of ma­ture age! May every evening bring it, with clearer ev­idence, to our minds! And may we form such an esti­mate of the little pittance, while it is upon the advanc­ing hand, as we shall certainly make when the sands are all run down!

Let me add one reflection on the work to be done, while this shuttle is flying through the loom. ^† A work of no small difficulty, yet of the utmost consequence! —Hast thou not seen, hast thou not known, the excel­lent of the earth, who were living images of their Mak­er? His divine likeness was transfused into their hearts, and beamed forth in all their conduct: Beamed forth in meekness of wisdom, and purity of affection, in all the tender offices of love, and all the noble efforts of zeal. To be stamped with the same beautiful signature, and to be followers of them, as they were of CHRIST; this, this is thy business: On the accomplishment of this thy eternal all depends. And, will an affair of such unspeakable weight admit of a moment's delay, or consist with the least remissness?—Especially, since much of thy appointed [...]time is already elapsed, and the [Page 29] remainder is all uncertainty, save only that it is in the very act to fly.—Or suppose thou hadst made a cove­nant with the grave, and wast assured of reaching the age of Methuselah, how soon would even such a lease expire! Extend it, if you please, still farther; and let it be coexistent with nature itself: How inconsiderable is the addition! For, yet a very little while, and the commissioned archangel lifts up his hand to Heaven, and swears by the Almighty Name, that time shall be no longer. ^* Then, abused opportunities will never re­turn; [Page 30] and new opportunities will never more be offered. Then, should negligent mortals wish—wish ever so pas­sionately—for a few hours—a few moments only—to be thrown back from the opening eternity, thousands of worlds would not be able to procure the grant.

Shall I now be industrious to shorten what is no longer than a span; or to quicken the pace of what is ever on the wing? Shall I squander away what is unutter­ably important while it lasts; and when once departed, is altogether irrevocable! O! my soul, forbear the folly; for­bear the desperate extravagance. Wilt thou chide as a loi­terer, the arrow that boundeth from the string; or sweep away diamonds, as the refuse of thy house?—Throw time away! Astonishing, ruinous, irreparable profuseness! Throw empires away, and be blameless. But O! be parsimonious of thy days; husband thy precious hours. They go connected, indissolubly connected, with heaven or hell: ^* Improved, they are a sure pledge of everlasting glory; wasted, they are a sad preface to never ending confusion and anguish.

What a profound silence has composed the world! So profound is the silence, that my very breath seems a noise; the ticking of my watch is distinctly heard; if I do but stir, it creates a disturbance.—There is now none of that confused din from the tumultuous city: No voice of jovial rusticks, from the neighbouring mead­ow: No chirping melody from the shady thicket.— Every lip is sealed. Not the least whisper invades the air; nor the least motion rustles among the boughs. Echo herself sleeps unmolested. The expanded ear, [Page 31] though all attention, catches no sound, but the liquid lapse of a distant murmuring stream.

If, in the midst of this deep and universal compo­sure, ten thousand bellowing thunders should burst over my head, and rend the skies with their united vollies; how should I bear so unexpected a shock? It would stun my senses, and confound my thoughts: I should shudder in every limb; perhaps sink to the earth with terrour.—Consider then, O mortals! consider the much more prodigious and amazing call, which will, ere long, alarm your sleeping bones. When the tenants of the tomb have slumbered in the most undisturbed re­pose, for a multitude of ages, what an inconceivable consternation must the shout of the archangel, and the trump of GOD occasion! Will it not wound the ear of the ungodly, and affright, even to distraction, the im­penitent sinner? The stupendous peal will sound through the vast of heaven; will shake the foundations of na­ture; and pierce, even the deepest recesses of the grave: And how—O! how will the prisoners of Divine Justice, be able to endure that tremendous summons, to a far more tremendous tribunal?—Do thou, my soul, listen to the still voice of the Gospel: Attend, in this thy day, to the gracious invitations of thy Saviour. Then shall that great midnight cry lose its horrour, and be musick in thy ears. It shall be welcome to thy reviving clay, as the tidings of liberty to the dungeon captive; as the year of jubilee to the harassed slave. This, this shall be its charming import— ‘Awake, and sing, ye that dwell in dust.’ ^*

What a general cessation of affairs has this dusky hour introduced! A little while ago, all was hurry, hurry. Life and activity exerted themselves in a thousand busy forms: The city swarmed with passing and repassing multitudes: All the country was sweat and dust: The air floated in perpetual agitation, by the flitting birds, and humming bees. Art sat prying with her piercing eyes; while industry plied her restless hands.—But see, [Page 32] how all this fervent and impetuous bustle is fled with the setting sun. The beasts are slunk to their grassy couch; and the winged people are retired to their downy nests. The hammer has resigned its sounding task, and the file ceases to repeat its flying touches. Shut is the well frequented shop, and its threshold no longer worn by the feet of numerous customers. The village swain lies drowned in slumbers, and even his trusty dog, who, for a considerable time stood centry at the door, is extended at his ease, and snores with his master.—In every place toil reclines her head, and ap­plication folds her arms. All interests seem to be forgot; all pursuits are suspended; all employment is sunk away▪ sunk away with those fluttering myriads, which lately sported in the sun's departing rays.—It is like the Sab­bath of universal nature; or as though the pulse of life stood still.

Thus will it be with our infinitely momentous con­cerns, when once the shadows of the evening (that long evening which follows the footsteps of death!) are stretched over us. The dead cannot seek unto GOD; the living, the living alone, are possessed of this inesti­mable opportunity. ^* ‘There is no work or device, no repentance or amendment, in the grave, ^† whith­er we are all hastening.’ When once that closing scene [Page 33] is advanced, we shall have no other part to act on this earthly theatre. Then the sluggard, who has slumbered away life in a criminal inactivity, must lie down in hope­less distress and everlasting sorrow. Then that awful doom will take place, ‘He that is holy, l [...] him be holy still; and he that is filthy, let him be filthy forever.’

Is it so, my soul? Is this the only, only time allotted for obtaining the great reward, and making thy salva­tion sure? And art thou lulled in a vain security, or dreaming in a supine inadvertency? Start, O! start from thy trance. Gird up the loins of thy mind, and work while it is day. Improve the present seed time, that eternity may yield a joyful harvest.—We especially, who are watchmen in Israel, and ministers of the glori­ous Gospel, may we be awakened, by this consideration, to all assiduity in our holy office. Some or other of our people are ever and anon departing into the invisible state; all our friends are making incessant approaches to their long home; and we ourselves shall very shortly be transmitted to the confinement of the tomb. This is the favourable juncture wherein alone we can contribute to their endless welfare. This is the crisis, the all im­portant crisis of their final felicity. Instantly, therefore, let us pour in our wholesome instructions; instantly let us ply them with our earnest exhortations. A mo­ment's delay may be an irreparable loss; may be irre­trievable ruin. While we procrastinate, a fatal stroke may intervene, and place us beyond the power of ad­ministering, or place them beyond all possibility of re­ceiving any spiritual good. ^*

[Page 34]How frequently is the face of nature changed! and, by changing, made more agreeable!—The long continu­ed glitter of the day renders the soothing shades of the evening doubly welcome: Nor does the morn ever purple the east with so engaging a lustre, as after the gloom of a dark and dismal night.—At present a calm of tranquillity is spread through the universe. The weary winds have forgot to blow. The gentle gales have fan­ned themselves asleep. Not so much as a single leaf nods. Even the quivering aspin rests. And not one breath curls o'er the stream.—Sometimes, on the contrary, the tempest summons all the forces of the air, and pours itself, with resistless fury, from the angry north. The whole atmosphere is tossed into tumultuous confusion, and the watery world is heaved to the clouds. The as­tonished mariner and his straining vessel, now scale the rolling mountain, and hang dreadfully visible on the broken surge; now shoot, with headlong impetuosity, into the yawning gulf, and neither hulk nor mast is seen. The storm sweeps over the continent; raves along the city streets; struggles through the forest boughs; and terrifies the savage nations with a howl more wildly hor­rid than their own. The knotty oaks bend before the blast; their iron trunks groan, and their stubborn limbs are dashed to the ground. The lofty dome rocks, and even the solid tower totters on its basis.

Such variations are kindly contrived, and with an evident condescension to the fickleness of our taste. Because a perpetual repetition of the same objects would create satie [...]y and disgust; therefore, the indulgent Fa­ther of our race has diversified the universal scene, and bid every appearance bring with it the charm of novel­ty.—This circumstance is beneficial as well as entertaining. Providence, ever gracious to mortals, ever intent upon promoting our felicity, has taken care to mingle, in the constitution of things, what is pleasing to our imagina­tion, with what is serviceable to our interests. The piercing winds and rugged aspect of winter, render the balmy gales and flowery scenes of spring peculiarly de­lightful. At the same time, the keen frosts mellow the [Page 35] soil, and prepare it for the hand of industry. The rush­ing rains impregnate the glebe, and fit it to become a magazine of plenty. The earth is a great laboratory, and December's cold collects the gross materials, which are sublimated by the refined warmth of May. The air is a pure elastic fluid; and were it always to remain in this motionless serenity, it would lose much of its active spring; was it never agitated by those wholesome con­cussions, it would contract a noisome, perhaps a pesti­lential taint. In which cases our respiration, instead of purifying, would corrupt the vital juices; instead of supplying us with refreshment, would be a source of dis­eases; or every gasp we draw, might be unavoidable death. ^*—How then should we admire, how should we adore, that happy union of benignity and wisdom, which, from a variety of dispensations, produces an uniformity of good! Produces a perpetual succession of delights, and an uninterrupted series of advantages!

The darkness is now at its height; and I cannot but admire the obliging manner of its taking place. It comes, not with a blunt and abrupt incivility, but makes gentle and respectful advances. A precipitate transition; from the splendours of day to all the horrours of midnight, would be inconvenient and frightful. It would be­wilder the traveller in his journey; it would strike the creation with amazement; and, perhaps, be pernicious to the organs of sight. Therefore the gloom rushes not upon us instantaneously, but increases by slow degrees; [Page 36] and, sending twilight before as its harbinger, decently advertises us of its approach. By this means, we are neither alarmed nor incommoded by the change, but are able to take all suitable and timely measures for its re­ception.—Thus graciously has Providence regulated, not only the grand vicissitudes of the seasons, but also the com­mon interchanges of light and darkness, with an apparent reference to our comfort.

Now the fierce inhabitants of the forest forsake their dens: A thousand grim forms, a thousand growling monsters, pace the desert. Death is in their jaws, while stung with hunger, and athirst for blood, they roam their nightly rounds.—Unfortunate the traveller who is over­taken by the night in those dismal wilds! How must he stand aghast at the mingled yell of ravenous throats, and lions roaring after their prey! Defend him, propi­tious Heaven! or else he must see his endearing spouse, and hail his native home, no more!—Now the prowl­ing wolf, like a murderous ruffian, dogs the shepherd's footsteps, and besets his bleating charge. The fox, like a crafty felon, steals to the thatched cottage, and carries off the feathered booty.

Happy for the world, were these the only destroyers that walk in darkness: But, alas! there are savages in human shape, who, muffled in shades, infest the abodes of civilized life. The sons of violence make choice of this season ^* to perpetrate the most outrageous acts of wrong and robbery. The adulterer waiteth for the twi­light, and, baser than the villain on the highway, betrays the honour of his bosom friend. Now faction forms her close cabals, and whispers her traiterous insinuations. Now rebellion plans her accursed plots, and prepares the train to blow a nation into ruin. Now crimes, which hide their odious heads in the day, haunt the seats of society, and stalk through the gloom with audacious front. Now the vermin of the stews crawl from their lurking holes, to wallow in sin, and spread contagion through the night; each soothing himself with the fond notion, that all is safe, that no eye sees.

[Page 37]Are they then concealed? Preposterous madmen! to draw the curtain between their infamous practices and a little set of mortals, but lay them open to all these chaste and wakeful eyes of Heaven! ^* As though the moon and stars were made to light men to their revels, and not to GOD.—Are they then concealed? No, tru­ly. Was every one of these vigilant luminaries closed, an eye keener than the lightning's flash, an eye brighter than ten thousand suns, beholds their every motion. Their thickest shades are beaming day ^† to the jealous Inspector and supreme Judge of human actions.—De­luded creatures! have ye not heard, have ye not read, ‘That clouds and darkness are HIS majestick resi­dence?’ ^‡ In that very gloom to which you fly for cov­ert, he erects his throne: What you reckon your screen, is the bar of his tribunal. O! remember this! Stand in awe, and sin not. Remember that the great and ter­rible GOD is about your path, ^§ when you take your mid­night range; is about your bed, when you indulge the loose desire; and spies out all your ways, be they ever so secretly conducted or artfully disguised.

Some minutes ago a passenger crossed along the road: His horse's foot struck the ground and fetched fire from a flint. My eye, though at a distance, catched the view, and saw, with great clearness, the transient sparkles; of which, had I been ever so near, I should not have dis­cerned the least glimpse, under the blaze of Day.— [Page 38] So, ^* when sickness has drawn a veil over the gaiety of our hearts; when misfortunes have eclipsed the splen­dour of our outward circumstances, how many important convictions present themselves, with the brightest evi­dence! Under the sunshine of prosperity, they lay un­discovered; but, when some intervening cloud has dark­ened the scene, they emerge from their obscurity, and even glitter upon our minds. Then, the world, that delusive cheat, confesses her emptiness; but JESUS, the bright and morning star, beams forth with inimitable lustre. Then, vice loses all her fallacious allurements; that painted strumpet is horrible as the hags of hell; but virtue, despised virtue, gains loveliness from a lour­ing providence, and treads the shades with more than mortal charms.—May this reconcile me, and all the sons of sorrow, to our appointed share of suffering! If trib­ulation tend to dissipate the inward darkness, and pour heavenly day upon our minds, welcome distress, wel­come disappointment, welcome whatever our froward flesh, or peevish passions would miscal calamities. These light afflictions, which are but for a moment, shall sit easy upon our spirits, since they befriend our knowl­edge, promote our faith, and so ‘ work out for us, a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.’ ^†

[Page 39]How has this darkness snatched every splendid and graceful object from my sight! It has dashed the sponge over the pictures of spring, and destroyed all the delicate distinctions of things. Where are now the fine tinges which so lately charmed me from the glowing parterre? The blush is struck out from the cheeks of the rose, and the snowy hue is dropt from the lily. I cast my eyes towards a magnificent seat; but the aspiring col­umns, and fair expanded front, are mingled in rude confusion. Without the sun, all the elegance of the blooming world, is a mere blank; all the symmetry of architecture, is a shapeless heap.

Is not this an expressive emblem of the loveliness which the sun of righteousness transfuses into all that is amiable? Was it not for JESUS, and his merits, I should sigh with anguish of spirit, even while I rove through ranks of the most beautiful flowers, or breathe amidst a wilderness of sweets. Was it not for JESUS, and his merits, I should roam like some disconsolate spec­tr [...], even through the smiles of creation, and the ca­resses of fortune. My conversation in this world, though dressed in the most engaging forms of external pleasure, would be like the passage of a condemned malefactor, through enamelled meadows, and bowers of bliss, to be broke upon the wheel, or to expire on the rack. But a daily reflection on the LAMB's atoning blood; a com­fortable trust, that my soul is reconciled through this divine expiation; this is the ray, the golden ray, which irradiates the face of the universe. This is the oil of beauty, which makes all things wear a cheerful aspect; and the oil of gladness, which disposes the spectator to behold them with delight. ^* This, this is the secret [Page 40] charm which teacheth nature, in all her prospects and all her productions, so-exquisitely to please.

‘Man goeth forth to his work, and to his labour, till the evening.’ But then his strength fails, his spirits flag, and he stands in need, not only of some respite from toil, but of some kindly and sovereign re­freshments.—What an admirable provision for this pur­pose is sleep! Sleep introduces a most welcome vacation, both for the soul and the body. The exercises of the brain, and the labours of the hand, are at once discontinued. So that the weary limbs repair their exhausted vigour, while the pensive thoughts drop their load of sorrows, and the busy ones rest from their fatigue of application.—Most reviving cordial! Equally beneficial to our animal and intellectual powers. It supples the fleshy machine, and keeps all its nice movements in a proper posture for easy play. It animates the thinking faculties with fresh alac­rity, and rekindles their ardour for the studies of the dawn. Without these enlivening recruits, how soon would the most robust constitution be wasted into a walking skeleton, and the most learned sage degenerate into a hoary idiot!—Some time ago, I beheld with sur­prise poor Florio. His air was wild, his countenance meagre, his thoughts roving, and speech disconcerted. Inquiring the cause of this strange alteration, I was in­formed, that for several nights, he had not closed his eyes in sleep. For want of which noble restorative, that sprightly youth (who was once the life of the discourse, and the darling of the company) is become a spectacle of misery and horrour.

How many of my fellow creatures are, at this very instant, confined to the bed of languishing, and com­plaining, with that illustrious sufferer of old, Wearisome [Page 41] nights are appointed to me! ^* Instead of indulging soft re­pose, they are counting the tedious hours, telling every striking clock, or measuring the very moments by their throbbing pulse. How many, harassed with pain, most passionately long to make some little truce with their ag­onies, in peaceful slumbers! How many, sick with dis­quietude, and restless, even on their downy pillows, would purchase this transient oblivion of their woes, almost at any rate!—That which wealth cannot procure, which multitudes sigh for in vain, thy GOD has bestowed on thee, times out of number. The welcome visitant, punc­tual at the needed hour, has entered thy chamber, and poured his poppies round thy couch! has gently closed thy eyelids, and shed his slumberous dews over all thy senses.

Since sleep is so absolutely necessary, so inestimably valuable, observe, what a fine apparatus Almighty Good­ness has made, to accommodate us with the balmy bless­ing. With how kind a precaution he removes what­ever might obstruct its access, or impede its influence! He draws around us the curtain of darkness, which in­clines us to a drowsy indolence, and conceals every ob­ject that might too strongly agitate the sense. He con­veys peace into our apartments, and imposes silence on the whole creation. Every animal is bidden to tread softly, or rather to cease from its motion, when man is retiring to his repose.—May we not discern, in this gra­cious disposition of things, the tender care of a nurs­ing mother, who hushes every noise, and secludes every disturbance, when she has laid the child of her love to rest? So, by such soothing circumstances, and gently working opiates, HE giveth, to his beloved, sleep. ^†

Another signal instance of a Providence intent upon our welfare, is, that we are preserved safe in the hours of slumber. How are we then lost to all apprehension of danger; even though the murderer be at our bed side, or his naked sword at our breast! Destitute of all con­cern for ourselves, we are unable to think of, much more to provide for, our own security. At these moments, therefore, we lie open to innumerable perils; perils, from the resistless rage of flames; perils, from the insidious [Page 42] artifices of thieves, or the outrageous violence of rob­bers; perils, from the irregular workings ^* of our own thoughts, and especially from the incursions of our spir­itual enemy.

What dreadful mischief might that restless, that im­placable adversary of mankind work, was there not an invisible hand to control his rage, and protect poor mortals! What scenes of horrour might he represent to our imaginations, and ‘scare us with dreams, or ter­rify us with visions!’ ^† But the Keeper of Israel, who never slumbers nor sleeps, interposes in our behalf, at [Page 43] once to cherish us under his wings, and to defend us as with a shield.—It is said of Solomon, ‘that threescore valiant men were about his bed, all expert in war; every one with his sword upon his thigh, because of fear in the night.’ ^* But one greater than Solomon, one mightier than myriads of armed hosts, even the great JEHOVAH, in whom is everlasting strength, he vouchsafes to encamp about our houses, to watch over our sleeping minutes, and to stop all the avenues of ill.— O! the unwearied and condescending goodness of our Creator! who lulls us to our rest, by bringing on the silent shades, and plants his own ever watchful eye as our centinel, while we enjoy the needful repose.

Reason now resigns her sedate office, and fancy, extravagant fancy, leads the mind through a maze of vanity. The head is crowded with false images, and tantalized with the most ridiculous misapprehensions of things. Some are expatiating amidst fairy fields, and gathering garlands of visionary bliss, while their bodies are stretched on a wisp of straw, and sheltered by the cobwebs of a barn. Others, quite insensible of their rooms of state, are mourning in a doleful dungeon, or struggling with the raging billows: Perhaps, with hasty steps, they climb the craggy cliff; and, with real anxiety, fly from the imaginary danger: Or else, be­numbed with sudden fear, and finding themselves unable to escape, they give up at once their hopes and their efforts; and, though reclined on a couch of ivory, are sinking, all helpless and distressed, in the furious whirl­pool. So unaccountable are the vagaries of the brain, while sleep maintains its dominion over the limbs!

But is this the only season when absurd and incoherent irregularities play their magick on our minds? Are there not those who dream, even in their waking moments?— Some pride themselves in a notion of superiour excellen­cy, because the royal favour has annexed a few splendid titles to their names; or because the dying silkworm has bequeathed her finest threads to cover their naked­ness.—Others congratulate their own signal happiness, because loads of golden lumber are amassed together in [Page 44] their coffers; or promise themselves a most superlative felicity indeed, when some thousands more are added to the useless heap.—Nor are there wanting others, who gape after substantial satisfaction from airy applause; and flatter themselves with, I know not what immortal­ity, in the momentary buz of renown.—Are any of these a whit more reasonable in their opinions, than the poor ragged wretch in his reveries; who, while snoring under a hedge, exults in the possession of his stately palace, and sumptuous furniture?—If persons, who are very vassals to their own domineering passions, and led captive by num­berless temptations; if these persons pique themselves with a conceit of their liberty, and fancy themselves the generous and gallant spirits of the age; where is the dif­ference between theirs and the madman's frenzy; who, though chained to the floor, is throned in thought, and wielding an imaginary sceptre?—In a word, as many as borrow their dignity from a plume of feathers, or the gaudy trappings of fortune; as many as send their souls to seek for bliss in the blandishments of sense, or in any thing short of the divine favour, and well grounded hope of the incorruptible inheritance; ^* what are they, but dreamers with their eyes open; delirious, though in health?

Would you see their picture drawn to the very life, and the success of their schemes calculated with the ut­most exactness, cast your eye upon that fine representa­tion exhibited by the prophet: It shall be even as when a hungry man dreameth, and behold, he eateth; but he awak­eth, and his soul is empty: Or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite. ^† Such is the race, and such the prize, of all those candidates for honour and joy, who run wide from the mark of the high calling of GOD in CHRIST JESUS. They live in vanity, and die in woe.—Awaken us, merciful LORD, from these noontide trances!—Awaken us, while conviction may turn to our advantage, and not serve only to increase our torment. O! let our ‘eyes be [Page 45] enlightened, to discern the things that are excellent;’ and no longer be imposed upon by fantastick appearances, which, however pompous they may seem, will prove more empty than the visions of the night, more transient than the dream that is forgotten.

Having mentioned sleep and dreams, let me once again consider those remarkable incidents of our frame; so very remarkable, that I may venture to call them a kind of experimental mystery, and little less than a stand­ing miracle.—Behold the most vigorous constitution, when stretched on the bed of ease, and totally resigned to the slumbers of the night. Its activity is oppressed with fetters of indolence; its strength is consigned over to a temporary annihilation; the nerves are like a bow un­strung, and the whole animal system is like a motionless log.—Behold a person of the most delicate sensations, and amiable dispositions. His eyes, though thrown wide open, admit not the visual ray; at least, distinguish not ob­jects. His ears, with the organs unimpaired, and artic­ulate accents beating upon the drum, perceive not the sound; at least, apprehend not the meaning. The senses, and their exquisitely fine feelings, are overwhelmed with an unaccountable stupefaction. You call him a social creature; but where are his social affections? He knows not the father that begat him, and takes no notice of the friend that is as his own soul. The wife of his bosom may expire by his side, and he lie more uncon­cerned than a barbarian. The children of his body, may be tortured with the severest pangs, and he, even in the same chamber, remain untouched with the least commiseration.—Behold the most ingenious scholar, whose judgment is piercing, and able to trace the most intricate difficulties of science; his taste refined, and quick to relish all the beauties of sentiment and composition: Yet, at this juncture, the thinking faculties are unhing­ed, and the intellectual economy quite disconcerted. In­stead of close connected reasonings, nothing but a dis­jointed huddle of absurd ideas; instead of well digested principles, nothing but a disorderly jumble of crude con­ceptions. The most palpable delusions impose upon his imagination. The whole night passes, and he fre­quently [Page 46] mistakes it for a single minute; is not sensible of the transition, hardly sensible of any duration.

Yet, no sooner does the morning dawn, and day­light enter the room, but this strange enchantment van­ishes. The man awakes, and finds himself possessed of all the valuable endowments, which, for several hours, were suspended, or lost. His sinews are braced, and fit for action. His senses are alert and keen. The roman­tick visionary brightens into the master of reason. The frozen or benumbed affections, melt with tenderness, and glow with benevolence. And, what is beyond meas­ure surprising, the intoxicated mind works itself sober, not by slow degrees; but, in the twinkling of an eye, recovers from its perturbation.—Why does not the stu­por, which deadens all the nice operations of the animal powers, hold fast its possession? When the thoughts are once disadjusted, why are they not always in confusion? How is it, that they are rallied in a moment, and, from the wildest irregularity, reduced to the most orderly ar­ray?—From an inactivity, resembling death, how is the body so suddenly restored to vigour and agility? From extravagances bordering upon madness, how is the understanding instantaneously reestablished in sedateness and harmony?—Surely, ‘this is the LORD's doing, and it should be marvellous in our eyes;’ should awaken our gratitude, and inspirit our praise.

This is the time in which ghosts are supposed to make their appearance. Now the timorous imagination teems with phantoms, and creates numberless terrours to itself. Now dreary forms, in sullen state, stalk along the gloom; or, swifter than lightning, glide across the shades. Now voices more than mortal ^* are heard from the echoing vaults, and groans issue from the hollow tombs. Now melancholy spectres visit the ruins of ancient monasteries, and frequent the solitary dwellings of the dead. They pass and repass, in unsubstantial images, along the forsaken galleries; or take their de­termined stand over some lamented grave.—How often [Page 47] has the school boy fetched a long circuit, and trudged many a needless step, in order to avoid the haunted church yard? Or, if necessity, sad necessity, has obliged him to cross the spot, where human skulls are lodged be­low, and the bal [...]l yews shed supernumerary horrours above, a thousand hideous stories rush into his memory. Fear adds wings to his feet: he scarce touches the ground; dares not once look behind him; and blesses his good fortune, if no frightful sound purred at his heels, if no ghastly shape bolted upon his sight.

'Tis strange, to observe the excessive timidity which possesses many people's minds, on this fanciful occasion; while they are void of all concern, on others of the most tremendous import. Those who are startled, in any dark and lonely walk, at the very apprehension of a single spectre, are nevertheless unimpressed at the sure prospect of entering into a whole world of disembodied beings. Nay, are without any emotions of awe, though they know themselves to be hastening into the presence of the Great, Infinite, and Eternal Spirit.—Should some pale messenger from the regions of the dead, draw back our curtains at the hour of midnight, and, appointing some particular place, say, as the horrid apparition to Brutus, I'll meet thee there; ^* I believe the boldest heart would feel something like a panick; would seriously think upon the adventure, and be in pain for the event. But, when a voice from heaven cries, in the awakening language of the prophet, Prepare to meet thy GOD, O Israel; ^† how little is the warning regarded! how soon is it for­got! Preposterous stupidity! to be utterly unconcerned, where it is the truest wisdom to take the alarm; and to be all trepidation, where there is nothing really terrible! —Do thou, my soul, remember thy Saviour's admoni­tion; ‘ I will forewarn you, whom you shall fear. Fear not these imaginary horrours of the night: But fear that awful Being, whose revelation of himself, [Page 48] though with expressions of peculiar mercy, made Mo­ses, his favourite servant, tremble exceedingly. Whose manifestation, when he appears with purposes of in­exorable vengeance, will make mighty conquerors, who were familiar with dangers, and estranged to dismay, call upon the mountains to fall on them, and the rocks to cover them. The menace of whose majestick eye, when he comes attended with thousand thousands of his immortal hosts, will make the very heavens cleave asunder, and the earth flee away.—O! dread HIS displeasure; secure HIS favour; and then thou mayest commit all thy other anxieties to the wind: Thou mayest laugh at every other fear.’

This brings to my mind a memorable and amazing occurrence, recorded in the book of Job; ^* which is, I think, no inconsiderable proof of the real existence of apparitions, ^† on some very extraordinary emergences; while it discountenances those legions of idle tales, which superstition has raised, and credulity received. Since it teaches us, that if, at any time, those visitants from the unknown world, render themselves perceivable by mortals, it is not upon any errand of frivolous conse­quence; [Page 49] but, to convey intelligences of the utmost moment, or to work impressions of the highest advantage.

'Twas in the dead of night. All nature lay shrouded in darkness. Every creature was buried in sleep. The most profound silence reigned through the universe. In these solemn moments, Eliphaz alone, all wakeful and solitary, was musing upon sublime and heavenly subjects. —When, lo! an awful being from the invisible realms, burst into his apartment. ^* A spirit passed before his face. Astonishment seized the beholder. His bones shivered within him; his flesh trembled all over him▪ and the hair of his head stood erect with horrour.—Sud­den and unexpected was the appearance of the phan­tom; not such its departure. It stood still, to present itself more fully to his view. It made a solemn pause, to prepare his mind for some momentous message.—Af­ter which a voice was heard; a voice, for the import­ance of its meaning, worthy to be had in everlasting re­membrance; for the solemnity of its delivery, enough to alarm a heart of stone. It spoke; and this was the purport of its words— ‘ Shall man, frail man, be just before the mighty GOD? Shall even the most ac­complished of mortals be pure in the sight of his Maker? ^† [Page 50] Behold, and consider it attentively. He put no such trust in his most exalted servants, as should bespeak them incapable of defect: And his very angels he charged with folly; as sinking, even in the highest perfection of their holiness, infinitely beneath his transcendent glories; as falling, even in all the fidel­ity of their obedience, inexpressibly short of the hom­age due to his adorable Majesty. If angelick natures must not presume to justify, either themselves or their services, before uncreated purity, how much more ab­surd is such a notion, how much more impious such an attempt, in them that dwell in houses of clay, whose original is from the dust, and whose state is all imper­fection!’

I would observe from hence, the very singular neces­sity of that poverty of spirit which entirely renounces its own attainments, and most thankfully submits to the righteousness of the incarnate GOD.—To inculcate this lesson, the Son of the Blessed came down from Heaven, and pressed no other principle, with so repeated ^* an im­portunity, on his hearers. To instil the same doctrine, the HOLY GHOST touched the lips of the apostles with sacred eloquence, and made it an eminent part of their commission, "to demolish every high imagination." That no expedient might be wanting to give it a deep and lasting efficacy on the human mind, a phantom arises from the valley of the shadow of death, or a teacher descends from the habitation of spirits.—What­ever then we neglect, let us not neglect to cultivate this grace, which has been so variously taught, so powerfully enforced.

Hark! a doleful voice—With sudden starts and hid­eous screams, it disturbs the silence of the peaceful night. 'Tis the scre [...]ch owl, sometimes in frantick, some­times [Page 51] in disconsolate accents, uttering her woes. ^* She flies the vocal grove, and shuns the society of all the feathered choir. The blooming gardens and flowery meads have no charms for her. Obscene shades, rag­ged ruins, and walls overgrown with ivy, are her fa­vourite haunts. Above, the mouldering precipice nods, and threatens a fall; below, the toad crawls, or the poi­sonous adder hisses. The sprightly morning, which awakens other animals into joy, administers no [...]easure to this gloomy recluse. Even the smiling face o [...] day is her aversion, and all its lovely scenes create nothing but uneasiness.

So, just so, would it fare with the ungodly, were it possible to suppose their admission into the chaste and bright abodes of endless felicity. They would find noth­ing but disappointment and shame, even at the fountain head of happiness and honour. For how could the tongue habituated to profaneness, taste any delight in the harmonious adorations of Heaven? How could the lips cankered with slander, relish the raptures of everlasting praise? Where would be the satisfaction of the vain beauty, or the supercilious grandee; since, in the temple of the skies, no incense of flattery would be addressed to the former, nor any obsequious homage paid to the lat­ter?—The spotless and inconceivable purity of the bless­ed GOD would flash confusion on the lascivious eye. The envious mind must be on a rack of self tormenting passions, to observe millions of happy beings, shining in all the perfections of glory, and solacing themselves in the fulness of joy.—In short, the unsanctified soul, amidst holy and triumphant spirits, even in the refined regions of bliss and immortality, would be like this melancholy bird, dislodged from her darksome retirement, and im­prisoned under the beams of day. ^†

[Page 52]The voice of this creature screaming at our windows, or of the raven croaking over our houses, is, they say; a token of approaching death. There are persons, who would regard such an incident with no small degree of solicitude: Trivial as it is, it would damp their spirits, perhaps break their rest.—One cannot but wonder that people should suffer themselves to be affrighted at such fantastical, and yet be quite unaffected with real, presages of their dissolution. Real presages of this awful event address us from every quarter. What are these incum­bent glooms which overwhelm the world, but a kind of [...]all provided for nature, and an image of that long night which will quickly cover the inhabitants of the whole earth? What an affinity has the sleep, ^* which will very soon weigh down my drowsy eyelids, with that state of entire cessation, in which all my senses must be laid aside! The silent chamber, and the bed of slum­ber, are a very significant representation of the land where all things are hushed, all things are forgotten.— What meant that deep death bell note, which, the other evening, saddened the air? Laden with heaviest accents, it struck our ears, and seemed to knock at the door of our hearts. Surely it brought a message to surviving mor­tals, and thus the tidings ran— ‘Mortals, the destroyer of your race is on his way! The last enemy has begun the pursuit, and is gaining ground upon you every moment. His paths are strewed with heaps of slain. Even now his javelin has laid one of your neighbours in the dust; and will soon, very soon, aim the inevita­ble blow at each of your lives.’

[Page 53]We need not go down to the charnel house, nor car­ry our search into the repositories of the dead, in order to find memorials of our impending doom: A multitude of these remembrancers are planted in all our paths, and point the heedless passengers to their long home. I can hardly enter a considerable town, but I meet the funeral procession, or the mourners going about the streets. The hatchment suspended on the wall, or the crape streaming in the air, are silent intimations, that both rich and poor have been emptying their houses, and replenishing their sepulchres. I can scarce join in any conversation, but mention is made of some that are given over by the phy­sician, and hovering on the confines of eternity; of oth­ers that have just dropt their clay amidst weeping friends, and are gone to appear before the Judge of all the earth. There is not a newspaper comes to my hand, but, amidst all its entertaining narrations, reads several serious lectures of mortality. What else are the repeated accounts, of age worn out by slow consuming sicknesses—of youth dashed to pieces by some sudden stroke of casualty—of patriots exchanging their seats in the senate for a lodging in the tomb—of misers resigning their breath, and (O re­lentless destiny!) leaving their very riches for others?— Even the vehicles of our amusement are registers of the deceased; and the voice of fame seldom sounds, but in concert with a knell.

These monitors crowd every place; not so much as the scenes of our diversion excepted. What are the decorations of our publick buildings, and the most ele­gant furniture of our parlours, but the imagery of death, and trophies of the tomb? That marble bust, and those gilded pictures, how solemnly they recognize the fate of others, and speakingly remind us of our own!—I see, I hear, and O! I feel this great truth: It is interwoven with my constitution. The frequent decays of the struc­ture foretel its final ruin. What are all the pains that have been darted through my limbs, what every dis­ease that has assaulted my health, but the advanced guards of the foe? What are the languors and weariness that attend the labours of each revolving day, but the more secret practices of the adversary, slowly undermining the earthly tabernacle?

[Page 54]Amidst so many notices, shall we go on thoughtless and unconcerned? Can none of these prognosticks, which are sure as oracles, awaken our attention, and engage our circumspection? Noah, 'tis written, being warned of GOD, prepared an ark. Imitate, my soul, imi­tate this excellent example: Admonished by such a cloud of witnesses, be continually putting thyself in a readiness for the last change. Let not that day, of which thou hast so many infallible signs, come upon thee una­wares.—Get the ivy untwined, and thy affections disen­tangled from this enchanting world, that thou mayest be able to quit it without reluctance. Get the dreadful handwriting cancelled, and all thy sins blotted out, that thou mayest depart in peace, and have nothing to fear at the decisive tribunal. Get, O! get thyself interested in the Redeemer's merits, and transformed into his sa­cred image; then shalt thou be meet for the inheritance of saints in light, and mayest even desire to be dissolved and to be with CHRIST.

Sometimes, in my evening walk, I have heard

How different the airs of this charming songster from those harsh and boding outcries! The little creature ran through all the variations of musick, and shewed herself mistress of every grace which constitutes or embellishes harmony.—Sometimes she swells a manly throat, and her song kindles into ardour: The tone is so bold, and strikes with such energy, you would imagine the spright­ly serenader in the very next thicket. Anon the strain languishes, and the mournful warbler melts into tender­ness: The melancholy notes just steal upon the shades and faintly touch your ear; or, in soft and sadly pleasing accents, they seem to die along the distant vale. Silence is pleased, and night listens to the trilling tale.

What an invitation is this, to slip away from the thronged city! This coy and modest ministrel, entertains only the lovers of retirement. Those who are carousing [Page 55] over their bowls, or ranting at the riotous club, lose this feast of harmony.—In like manner, the pleasures of re­ligion, and the joy of reconciliation with GOD; the satisfactions arising from an established interest in CHRIST, and from the prospect of a blissful immorality; these are all lost to the mind that is ever in the crowd, and dares not, or delights not, to retire into itself.—Are we charmed with the nightingale's song? Do we wish to have it nearer, and hear it oftener? Let us seek a renewed heart, and a resigned will; a conscience that whispers peace, and passions that are tuned by grace. Then shall we never want a melody in our own breasts, far more musically pleasing than sweet Philomela's sweetest strains.

As different as the voices of these birds, are the cir­cumstances of those few persons who continue awake.— Some are squandering, pearls shall I say, or kingdoms? No; but what is unspeakably more precious, time: Squandering this inestimable talent with the most sense­less and wanton prodigality. Not content with allowing a few spare minutes for the purpose of necessary recre­ation, they lavish many hours, devote whole nights, to that idle diversion of shuffling, ranging, and detaching a set of painted pasteboards.—Others, instead of this busy trifling, act the part of their own tormentors. They even piquet themselves, ^* and call it amusement; they are torn by wild horses, yet term it a sport. What else is the gamester's practice? His mind is stretched on the tenter hooks of anxious suspense, and agitated by the fiercest extremes of hope and fear. While the dice are rattling, his heart is throbbing, his fortune is totter­ing, and possibly, at the very next throw, the one sinks in the gulf of ruin, the other is hurried into the rage of distraction.

Some, snatched from the bloom of health, and the lap of plenty, are confined to the chamber of sickness; where they are constrained, either to plunge into the ev­erlasting world, in an unprepared condition, or else (sad alternative!) to think over all the follies of a heedless life, and all the bitterness of approaching death. The [Page 56] disease rages, it baffles the force of medicine, and urges the reluctant wretch to the brink of the precipice; while furies rouse the conscience, and point at the bot­tomless pit below.—Perhaps, his drooping mother, depriv­ed long ago of the husband of her bosom, and berest of all her other offspring, is, even now, receiving the blow which consummates her calamities. ^* In vain she tries to asswage the sorrows of a beloved son; in vain she attempts, with her tender offices, to prolong a life dear­er than her own. He faints in her arms—he bows his head—he sinks in death. Fatal, doubly fatal, that last expiring pang! While it dislodges the unwilling soul, it rends an only child from the yearning embraces of a parent, and te [...]rs away the support of her age, from a disconsolate widow.

While those long for a reprieve, others invite the stroke. Quite weary of the world, with a restless im­patience they sigh for dissolution. Some, pining away under the tedious decays of an incurable consumption; or gasping for breath, and almost suffocated, by an inun­dation of dropsical waters. On some, a relentless cancer has fastened its envenomed teeth, and is gnawing them, though in the midst of bodily vigour, in the midst of pitying friends, gradually to death. Others are on a rack of agonies, by convulsive fits of the stone: O! how the pain writhes their limbs; how the sweat be­dews [Page 57] their flesh; and their eyeballs wildly roll! Me­thinks, the night condoles with these her distressed chil­dren, and sheds dewy tears over their sorrowful abodes. —But of all mortals, they are the most exquisitely mis­erable, who groan beneath the pressure of a melancholy mind, or smart under the lashes of a resentful conscience: Though robed in ermine, or covered with jewels, the state of a [...]ave chained to the galleys, or of an exile con­demned to the mines, is a perfect paradise compared with theirs.

O! that the votaries of mirth, whose life is a continued round of merriment and whim, would bestow one seri­ous reflection on this variety of human woes! It might teach them to be less enamoured with the few languid sweets, that are thinly scattered through this vale of tears, and environed with such a multitude of ragged thorns. It might teach them no longer to dance away their years with a giddy rambling impulse, but to aspire, with a determined aim, after those happy regions, where delights, abundant and unembittered, flow.

Can there be circumstances which a man of wisdom would more earnestly deprecate, than these several in­stances of grievous tribulation? There are; and, what is very astonishing, they are frequently the desire and the choice of those who fancy themselves the sole heirs of happiness. Those, I mean, who are launching out into the depths of extravagance, and running excessive lengths of riot; who are prostituting their reputation, and sacrificing their peace, to the gratification of their lusts; sapping the foundation of their health, in de­baucheries; or shipwrecking the interests of their fami­lies, in their bowls; and, what is worse, are forfeiting the joys of an eternal heaven, for the sordid satisfactions of the beast; for the transitory sensations of an hour.— Ye slaves of appetite, how far am I from envying your gross sensualities and voluptuous revels! Little, ah! little are you sensible, that, while indulgence showers her roses, and luxury diffuses her odours, they scatter poisons also, and shed unheeded bane; ^* evils, incom­parably [Page 58] more malignant than the wormwood and gall of the sharpest affliction.—Since death is in the drunk­ard's cup, and worse than poinards in the harlot's em­brace, may it ever be the privilege of the man whom I love, to go without his share of these pestilent sweets! ^*

Abundance of living sparks glitter in the lanes, and twinkle under the hedges. I suppose they are the glow worms, which have lighted their little lamps, and obtained leave, through the absence of the sun, to play a feeble beam. A faint glimmer just serves to render them perceivable, without tending at all to dissipate the shades, or making any amends for the departed day, —Should some weather beaten traveller, dropping with wet, and shivering with cold, hover round this mimickry of fire, in order to dry his garments, and warm his be­numbed limbs: Should some bewildered traveller, groping for his way, in a starless night and trackless desert, take one of these languid tapers, as a light to his feet and a lantern to his paths; how certainly would both the one and the other be frustrated of their ex­pectation!—And are they more likely to succeed, who, neglecting that sovereign balm which distilled from the cross, apply any carnal diversion to heal the anxiety of the mind? Who, deaf to the infallible decisions of revelation, resign themselves over to the erroneous con­jectures of reason, in order to find the way that leadeth unto life? Or lastly, who have recourse to the froth of this vain world for a satisfactory portion, and a substan­tial happiness? Their conduct is in no degree wiser; their disappointment equally sure; and their miscarriage infinitely more disastrous. To speak in the delicate lan­guage of a sacred writer, ‘they sow the wind, and will reap the whirlwind.’ ^†

To speak more plainly; the pleasures of the world▪ which we are all so prone to dote upon; and the powers [Page 59] of fallen reason, which some are so apt to idolize, ^* are not only vain, but treacherous; not only a painted flame, like these sparkling animals, but much like those unc­tuous exhalations which arise from the marshy ground, and often dance before the eyes of the benighted way­faring man. Kindled into a sort of fire, they personate a guide, and seem to offer their service; but, blazing with delusive light, mislead their follower into hidden pits, headlong precipices, and unfathomable gulfs; where, far from his beloved friends, far from all hopes of suc­cour, the unhappy wanderer is swallowed up, and lost.

Not long ago, we observed a very surprising appear­ance in the western sky. A prodigious star took its flaming route through those coasts, and trailed, as it passed, a tremendous length of fire, almost over half the heavens. Some, I imagine, viewed the portentous stranger with much the same anxious amazement, as Belshazzar beheld the hand writing upon the wall. Some looked upon it as a bloody ^† flag, hung out by di­vine resentment, over a guilty world. Some read, in its glaring visage, the fate of nations, and the fall of [Page 60] kingdoms. ^* To others, it shook, or seemed to shake, pestilence and war from its horrid hair.—For my part, I am not so superstitious as to regard what every astrol­oger has to prognosticate upon the accession of a comet, or the projection of its huge vapoury train. Nothing can be more precarious and unjustifiable, than to draw such conclusions from such events; since they neither are preternatural effects, nor do they throw the frame of things into any disorder. I would rather adore that omnipotent Being, who rolled those stupendous orbs from his creating hand, and leads them, by his providen­tial eye, through unmeasurable tracts of other. Who bids them now approach the sun, and glow with unsuf­ferable ardours; ^† now retreat to the utmost bounds of our planetary system, and make their entry among oth­er worlds.

They are harmless visitants. I acquit them from the charge of causing, or being accessary to, desolating plagues. Would to GOD there were no other more formidable indications of approaching judgments, or im­pending ruin! But, alas! when vice becomes predomin­ant, and irreligion almost epidemical; when the Sab­baths of a jealous GOD, are notoriously profaned, and that "name, which is great, wonderful and holy," is prostituted to the meanest, or abused to the most execra­ble purposes; when the worship of our great Creator and Preserver is banished from many of the most conspic­uous families, and it is deemed a piece of rude imperti­nence, so much as to mention the gracious Redeemer in our genteel interviews; when it passes for an elegant free­dom of behaviour, to ridicule the mysteries of christian­ity; and a species of refined conversation, to taint the air with lascivious hints; when those who sit in the scorner's chair, sin with a high hand; and many of those who [Page 61] wear the professor's garb, are destitute of the power, and content themselves with the mere form of godliness; when such is the state of a community, there is reason, too apparent reason, to be horribly afraid. Such phoe­nomena, abounding in the moral world, are not fanciful, but real omens. Will not an injured GOD ‘be avenged on such a nation as this?’ Will he not be provoked, to "sweep it with the besom of destruction?" ^*

O! that the inhabitants of Greatbritain would lay these alarming considerations to heart! The LORD of hosts has commanded the sword of civil discord to re­turn into its sheath: But have we returned, every one from his evil ways? Are we become a renewed people; devoted to a dying Saviour, and zealous of good works? —What mean those peals of sobs, which burst from the expiring cattle? What mean those melancholy moans, where the lusty droves were wont to low? ^† What mean those arrows of untimely death, discharged on our inno­cent and useful animals?

No wantonness or sloth, has vitiated the blood of these laborious, temperate creatures. They have con­tracted no disease from unseasonable indulgencies, and inordinate revellings. The pure stream is their drink; the simple herb their repast. Neither care disturbs their sleep, nor passion inflames their breast. Whence then are they visited with such terrible disorders, as no pru­dence can prevent, nor any medicines heal?—Surely, these calamities are the weapons of divine displeas­ure, and manifest chastisements of an evil generation. ^‡ [Page 62] Surely GOD, the "GOD to whom vengeance belongeth," has still a controversy with our sinful land. And who can tell, where the visitation will end? What a storm may follow these prelusive drops?—O! that we may "hear the rod, and who hath appointed it!" Taught by these penal effects of our disobedience, may we re­move the accursed thing ^* from our tents, our practices, our hearts! May we turn from all ungodliness, before wrath come upon us to the uttermost; before iniquity prove our ruin!

Sometimes, at this hour, another most remarkable sight amuses the curious, and alarms the vulgar. A blaze of lambent meteors is kindled, or some very ex­traordinary lights are refracted, in the quarters of the north.—The streams of radiance, like legions rushing to the engagement, meet and mingle, insomuch that the air seems to be all conflicting fire. Within a while they start from one another; and, like legions in precip­itate flight, sweep, each a separate way, through the firmament. Now they are quiescent; anon they are thrown into a quivering motion; presently the whole horizon is illuminated with the glancing flames. Some­times, with an aspect awfully ludicrous, they represent extravagant and antick vagaries. At other times, you would suspect that some invisible hand was playing off the dumb artillery of the skies, and, by a strange expe­dient, giving us the flash, without the roar.

The villagers gaze at the spectacle, first with won­der, then with horrour. A general panick seizes the coun­try. Every heart throbs, and every face is pale. The crowds that flock together, instead of diminishing, in­crease the dread. They catch contagion from each other's looks and words; while fear is in every eye, and every tongue speaks the language of terrour. Some see hideous shapes; armies mixed in fierce encounter, or fields swimming with blood. Some foresee direful events; states overthrown, or mighty monarchs totter­ing on their thrones. Others, scared with still more frightful apprehensions, think of nothing but the day of doo [...]. ‘Sure, says one, the unalterable hour is struck, [Page 63] and the end of all things come. See, replies anoth­er, how the blasted stars look wan [...]! Are not these the signs of the Son of Man, coming in the clouds of Heaven? JESUS prepare us (cries a third, and lifts his eyes in devotion) for the archangel's trump, and the great tribunal!’

If this waving brightness, which plays innocently over our heads, be so amazing to multitudes; what inexpress­ible consternation must overwhelm unthinking mortals, when the general conflagration commences! The day, the dreadful day, is approaching, ‘In the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, ^* and the elements shall melt with fervent heat; the earth also, and all the works that are therein, shall be burnt up.’ That mighty hand, which once opened the windows from on high, and broke up the fountains of the great deep, will then unlock all the magazines of fire, and pour a second deluge upon the earth. The vengeful flames, kindled by the breath to the Almighty, spread themselves from the centre to the circumference. Noth­ing can withstand their impetuosity; nothing can escape their rage. Universal desolation attends their progress. Magnificent palaces, and solemn temples, are laid in ashes. Spacious cities, and impregnable towers, are mingled in one smoking mass. Not only the productions of human art, but the works of Almighty power, are [Page 64] fuel for the devouring element. The everlasting moun­tains melt, like the snows which cover their summit. Even vast oceans serve only to augment the inconceiva­ble rapidity and fury of the blaze.—O! how shall I, or others, stand undismayed amidst the glare of a b [...]rning world, unless the LORD JEHOVAH be our defence? How shall we be upheld in security, when the globe it­self is sinking in the fiery ruin, unless the Rock of ages be our support?

Behold! a new spectacle of wonder! The moon is making her entry on the eastern sky. See her rising in clouded majesty! opening, as it were, and asserting her original commission, to rule over the night. All grand and stately, but somewhat sullied in her aspect. How­ever, she brightens as she advances; and grows clearer, as she climbs higher: Till, at length, her silver loses all its dross; she unveils her peerless light; and be­comes "the beauty of Heaven, the glory of the stars;" ^* delighting every eye, and cheering the whole world, with the brightness of her appearance, and the softness of her splendours.—O! thou queen of the shades! may it be my ambition, to follow this thy instructive exam­ple! While others are fond to transcribe the fashions of little courts, and to mimick personages of inferiour states; be it mine to imitate thy improving purity! May my conduct become more unblemished, and my temper more refined, as I proceed farther and farther, in my proba­tionary course! May every sordid desire wear away, and every irregular appetite be gradually lost, as I make nearer approaches to the celestial mansions!—Will not this be a comfortable evidence, that I too shall shine in my adored Redeemer's kingdom? Shine with a richer lustre, than that which radiates from thy resplendent orb; shine, with an unfading lustre, when every ray that beams from thy beauteous sphere, is totally extin­guished?

The day afforded us a variety of entertaining sights. These were all withdrawn, at the accession of darkness. The stars, kindly off [...]cious, immediately lent us their aid. [Page 65] This served to alleviate the frown of night, rather than to recover the objects from their obscurity. A faint ray, scarcely reflected, and not from the entire surface of things, gave the straining eye a very imperfect glimpse: such as rather mocked, than satisfied vision.—Now the moon is risen, and has collected all her beams, the veil is taken off from the countenance of nature. I see the recumbent flocks; I see the green hedg [...]rows, though without the feathered choristers hopping from spray to spray. In short, I see once again the world's great pic­ture; not indeed in its late lively colours, but more del­icately shaded, and arrayed in softer charms. ^*

What a majestick scene is here! incomparably grand, and exquisitely fine!—The moon, like an immense crystal lamp, pendent in the magnificent ceiling of the heav­ens. The stars, like so many thousands of golden ta­pers, fixed in their azure sockets. All pouring their lustre on spacious cities, and lofty mountains; glitter­ing on the ocean; gleaming on the forest; and opening a prospect, wide as the eye can glance, more various than fancy can paint. ^†—We are forward to admire the performances of human art. A landscape, elegantly designed, and executed with a masterly hand; a piece of statuary, which seems, amidst all the recommendations of exact proportion, and graceful attitude, to soften into flesh, and almost breathe with life; these little imita­tions [Page 66] of nature, we behold with a pleasing surprise. And shall we be less affected, less delighted, with the inex­pressibly noble and completely finished original!—The ample dimensions of Ranelaugh's dome; the gay illumi­nations of Vauxhall grove; I should scorn to mention on such an occasion, were they not the objects of gen­eral admiration. Shall we be charmed with those puny essays of finite ingenuity, and touched with no trans­port at this stupendous display of omnipotent skill? at the august grandeur, and shining stateliness of the firmament? which forms an al [...]ove for ten thousand worlds, and is ornamented with myriads of everlasting luminaries.—Surely, this must betray, not only a total want of religion, but the most abject littleness of mind, and the utmost poverty of genius.

The moon is not barely ‘an ornament in the high places of the LORD;’ ^* but of signal service to the inhabitants of the earth.—How uncomfortable is deep, pitchy, total darkness! especially, in the long absence of the winter's sun. Welcome therefore, thrice welcome, this auspicious gift of Providence, to enliven the noc­turnal gloom, and line with silver the raven coloured mantle of night!—How desirable to have our summer evenings illuminated! that we may be able to [...]read the dewy meads, and breathe the delicious fragrance of our gardens; especially, when the sultry heats render it irk­some and fatiguing, to walk abroad by day.—How cheering to the shepherd, the use of this universal lantern; as he tends his fleecy charge, or late consigns them to their hurdled cots! How comfortable and how [...]dvan­tageous to the mariner, as he ploughs the midnight main, to adjust the tackling, to explore his way, and, under the influence of this beaming sconce, to avoid the fatal rock! —For these, and other beneficial purposes, the hand of the ALMIGHTY has hung the stately branch on high; and filled it with a splendour, not confined to a single edifice, or commensurate to a particular square, but dif­fusive as the whole extent of the hemisphere.

The most faithful of our inferiour servants are some­times tardy in their office; sometimes negligent of their [Page 67] duty. But this celestial attendant is most exactly punc­tual, at all the stated periods of her ministration. If we choose to prolong our journey, after the sun is gone down; the moon, during her whole increase, is always ready to act in the capacity of a guide. If we are in­clined to set out very early in the morning; the moon, in her decrease prevents the dawn, on purpose, to offer her assistance. And, because it is so pleasant a thing, for the eyes to behold the light, the moon at her full, by a course of unintermitted waiting, gives us, as it were, a double day.—How apparently has the divine wisdom interested itself, in providing even for the pleas­urable accommodation of man! How desirous, that he should want no piece of commodious furniture; no kind of delightful convenience! And, in prosecution of these benevolent intentions, has annexed so valuable an ap­pendage to the terrestrial globe.—Justly, therefore, does the psalmist celebrate that admirable constitution, which ordained the moon and the stars to govern the night, as an instance of rich goodness and of a mercy which endureth forever. ^*

The moon, it is confessed, is no luminous body. All the brightness, which beautifies her countenance, is orig­inally in the sun, and no more than transmissively in her. That glorious orb is the parent of day, and the palace of light. From thence, the morning star gilds her horn; ^† from thence the planetary circles are crowned with lustre; and from thence, the moon derives all her silver radiance.—It is pleasing to reflect, that such is the case with the all sufficient Redeemer, and his dependent peo­ple. We are replenished from his fulness. What do we possess, which we have not received; and what can we desire, which we may not expect, from that never fail­ing source of all good? He is the author of our faith, and the former of our graces. In his unspotted life, we see [Page 68] the path; in his meritorious death, the price; and in his triumphant resurrection, the proof of bliss and im­mortality. If we offend, and fall seven times a day; he is the LORD our peace. ^* If we are depraved, and our best deeds very unworthy; he is the LORD our righteousness ^†. If we are blind, and even brutish, in heavenly knowledge; he is the LORD our wisdom: ^‡ His word dispels the shades; his spirit scatters the intel­lectual gloom; his eye looks our darkness into day. In short, we are nothing, and "CHRIST is all. Worse than defective in ourselves, "we are complete in him." So that if we shine, it is with delegated rays, and with borrowed light. We act by a strength, and glory in merits, not our own.—O! may we be thoroughly sensi­ble of our dependence on the Saviour! may we constant­ly imbibe his propitious beams; and never, by indulging unbelief, or backsliding into folly, withdraw our souls from his benign influences; lest we lose our comfort, and our holiness; as the fair ruler of the night loses her splendour, when her urn is turned from its foun­tain, ^‖ and receives no more communications of solar effulgence.

The moon is incessantly varying, either in her as­pect, or her stages. Sometimes she looks full upon us, and her visage is all lustre. Sometimes she appears in profile, and shews us only half her enlightened face. A­non a radiant crescent but just adorns her brow. Soon it dwindles into a slender streak. Till, at length, all her beauty vanishes, and she becomes a beamless orb.— Sometimes she rises with the descending day, and be­gins her procession amidst admiring multitudes. Ere long she defers her progress till the midnight watches, and steals unobserved upon the sleeping world.—Some­times she just enters the edges of the western horizon, and drops us a ceremonious visit. Within awhile she sets out on her nightly tour, from the opposite regions [Page 69] of the east; traverses the whole hemisphere; and never offers to withdraw, till the more refulgent partner of her sway renders her presence unnecessary.—In a word, she is, while conversant among us, still waxing or waning, and "never continueth in one stay."

Such is the moon, and such are all sublunary things; exposed to perpetual vicissitudes.—How often, and how soon, have the faint echoes of renown slept in silence, or been converted into the clamours of oblo­quy! The same lips, almost with the same breath, cry hosanna and crucify.—Have not riches confessed their notorious treachery, a thousand and a thousand times? Either melting away, like snow in our hands, by insensible degrees, or escaping, like a winged prisoner from its cage, with a precipitate flight.—Have we not known the bridegroom's closet, an antechamber to the tomb; and heard the voice, which so lately pronounced the sparkling pair husband and wife, proclaim an everlast­ing divorce, and seal the decree with that solemn as­severation, "ashes to ashes, dust to dust?"—Our friends, though the medicine of life; our health, though the balm of nature; are a most precarious possession. How soon may the first become a corpse in our arms; and how easily is the last destroyed in its vigour!—You have seen, no doubt, a set of pretty painted birds, perch­ing on your trees, or sporting in your meadows. You was pleased with the lovely visitants that brought beauty on their wings, and melody in their throats. But could you insure the continuance of this agreeable entertain­ment? No, truly. At the least disturbing noise, at the least terrifying appearance, they start from their seats; they mount the skies; and are gone in an instant, are gone forever. Would you choose to have a happiness which bears date with their arrival, and expires at their departure? If you could not be content with a portion, enjoyable only through such a fortuitous term, not of years, but of moments, O! take up with nothing earth­ly; set your affections on things above; there alone is "no variableness or shadow of turning."

Job is not a more illustrious pattern of patience, than an eminent exemplification of this remark.—View him in his private estate. He heaps up silver as the [Page 70] dust; he washes his steps in butter, and the rock pours him out rivers of oil.—View him in his publick charac­ter. Princes revere his dignity; the aged listen to his wisdom; every eye beholds him with delight; every tongue loads him with blessings.—View him in his do­mestick circumstances. On one hand, he is defended by a troop of sons; on the other, adorned with a train of daughters; and on all sides, surrounded by ‘a very great household.’ —Never was human felicity so con­summate; never was disastrous revolution so sudden. The lightning which consumed his cattle, was not more terrible, and scarce more instantaneous. The joyful parent is bereft of his offspring, and his ‘children are buried in death.’ The man of affluence is stripped of his abundance; and he who was clothed in scarlet em­braces the dunghill. The venerable patriarch is the derision of scoundrels; and the late darling of an in­dulgent Providence, is become ‘a brother to dragons, a companion of owls.’ —Nor need we go back to former ages for proofs of this afflicting truth. In our times, in all times, the wheel continues the same in­cessant whirl. And frequently those who are triumph­ing today in the highest elevations of joy, tomor­row are bemoaning the instability of mortal affairs, in the very depths of misery. ^*—Amidst so much fluctua­tion and uncertainty, how wretched is the condition, which has no anchor of the soul, sure and stedfast! May [Page 71] thy loving kindness, O GOD, be our present treasure; and thy future glory, our reversionary inheritance! Then shall our happiness not be like the full orbed moon, which is ‘a light that decreaseth in its perfec­tion;’ but like the sun, when he goeth forth in his strength, and knoweth no other change, but that of shining more and more unto the perfect day.

Methinks, in this ever varying sphere, I see a representation, not only of our temporal advantages, but also of our spiritual accomplishments. Such, I am sure, is what the kind partiality of a friend would call my righteousness: And such, I am apt to suspect, ^* is the righteousness of every man living. Now we exercise it, in some few instances, in some little degrees. Anon sin revives, and leads our souls into a transient, though unwilling captivity. Now we are meek; but soon a ruf­fling accident intervenes, and turns our composure into a fretful disquietude. Now we are humble; soon we reflect upon some inconsiderable or imaginary superiority over others, and a sudden elatement swells our minds. Now, perhaps we possess a clean heart, and are warm with holy love. But O! how easily is the purity of our affections sullied; how soon the fervour of our gratitude cooled! And is their not something amiss, even in our [Page 72] best moments? Something to be ashamed of, in all we are; something to be repented of, in all we do?

With what gladness, therefore, and adoring thank­fulness, should we ‘submit to the righteousness of our incarnate GOD;’ and receive, as a divine gift, what cannot be acquired by human works! ^* A writer of the first distinction, and nicest discernment, styles the obedience of our glorious surety, an everlasting right­eousness; ^† such as was subject to no interruption, nor obscured by the least blemish; but proceeded always i [...] the same uniform tenour of the most spotless perfec­tion.—This righteousness, in another sense, answers the prophet's exalted description, as its beneficial and sove­reign efficacy knows no end; but lasts through all our life; lasts in the trying hour of death; lasts at the de­cisive day of judgment; lasts through every generation; and will last to all eternity.

Sometimes I have seen that resplendent globe stripped of her radiance; or, according to the emphatical language of scripture, "turned into blood." The earth, interposing with its opake body, intercepted the solar rays, and cast its own gloomy shadow on the moon. The malignant influence gained upon her sickening orb; extinguished, more and more, the feeble remainders of light; till at length, like one in a deep swoon, no come­liness was left in her countenance; she was totally over­spread with darkness.—At this juncture, what a multi­tude of eyes were gazing upon the rueful spectacle! Even of those eyes, which disregarded the empress of the night, or beheld her with indifference, when, robed in glory, and riding in her triumphal chariot, she shed a softer day through the nations. But now, under these circumstances of disgrace, they watch her motions with the most prying attention. In every place, her misfor­tune is the object of general observation; and the pre­vailing topick of discourse, in every company.

Is it not thus with regard to persons of eminence, in their respective spheres? Kings, at the head of their subjects; nobles, surrounded with their dependents; and (after names of so much grandeur, may I be allowed [Page 73] to add?) ministers labouring among their people, ^* are each in a conspicuous station. Their conduct in its minutest step, especially in any miscarriage, will be nar­rowly surveyed, and critically scanned. Can their be a louder call to ponder the paths of their feet, and to be particularly jealous over all their ways?—Those who move in inferiour life, may grossly offend, and little alarm be given, perhaps no notice taken. But it is not to be expected, that the least slip in their carriage, the least flaw in their character, will pass undiscovered. Malice, with her eagle eyes, will be sure to discern them; while censure, with her shrill trumpet, will be as far from concealing them, as calumny, with her treacher­ous whispers, from extenuating them. A planet may sink below the horizon; or a star, for several months, withdraw its shining; and scarce one in ten thousand perceive the loss. But, if the moon suffers a transient eclipse, almost half the world are spectators of her dishonour.

Very different was the case, when, at this late hour, I have taken a solitary walk on the western cliffs. At the foot of the steep mountain, the sea, all clear and smooth, spread itself into an immense plain, and held a watery mirror to the skies. Infinite heights above, the firmament stretched its azure expanse, bespangled with unnumbered stars, and adorned with the moon, ‘walk­ing in brightness. ^†’ She seemed to contemplate her­self, with a peculiar pleasure; while the transparent sur­face, both received and returned her silver image. Here, instead of being covered with sackcloth, she shone with double lustre; or rather, with a lustre multiplied in proportion to the number of beholders, and their various situations.

Such, methinks, is the effect of an exemplary be­haviour, in persons of exalted rank. Their course, as it is nobly distinguished, so it will be happily influen­tial. Others will catch the diffusive ray; and be ambi­tious to resemble a pattern so attracting, so commanding. Their amiable qualities will not terminate in them­selves; [Page 74] but we shall see them reflected from their families, their acquaintance, their retainers: Just as we may now behold another moon, trembling ^* in the stream, glittering in the canal, and displaying its lovely im­press, on every collection of waters.

The moon, philosophy says, is a sort of sovereign over the great deep. Her orb, like a royal sceptre, sways the ocean, and actuates the fluid realms. It swells the tides, and perpetuates the reciprocal returns of ebb and flow. By which means, the liquid element purges off its filth, and is preserved from being putre­fied itself, and from poisoning the world.—Is the moon thus operative on the vast abyss? And shall not the faith of eternal and infinite delights to come, be equally effi­cacious on this soul of mine?—Far above her argent fields, are treasures of happiness, unseen by mortal eye, by mortal ear unheard, and unconceived by any human imagination. In that desira [...]le world, the most dis­tinguished and exalted hono [...] also are conferred; in comparison with which, the thrones and diadems of earthly monarchs, are empty pageants, and childish toys.—Yonder arch of sapphire, with all its spangles of gold, is but the floor of those divine abodes. What then are the apartments; what is the palace? How bright with glories; how rich with bliss?

O! ye mansions of blessedness; ye beauties of my Father's kingdom; which far outshine these lamps of the visible heaven; transmit your sweet and winning in­vitations to my heart. Attract and refine all my affec­tions. Withdraw them from stagnating on the sordid shores of flesh; never suffer them to settle upon the impure lees of sense; but impress them with emotions of restless desire after sublime and celestial joys:—Joys that will proceed, still proceed in a copious and everlast­ing flow, when seas shall cease to roll:—Joys, that will charm every faculty with unimaginable pleasure, when the moon, with her waxing splendours, shall cheer our sight no more.

Enough for the present evening. My thoughts have been sufficiently exercised, and my steps begin to [Page 75] be attended with weariness. Let me obey the admoni­tion of nature, and give respite to my meditations, slumber to my eyes.—But stay.—Shall I retire to the bed of sleep, with as little ceremony, and with as much in­attention as the brutes to their sordid lairs? Are no ac­knowledgments due to that Divine Being, who is the sup­port of my life, and the length of my days? Have I no farther need of his protecting care; no more occa­sion for the blessings of his goodness?— Lepidus, per­haps, may laugh at the bended knee, and have a thou­sand darts of raillery ready to discharge on the practice of devotion. The wits, I know, are unmercifully se­vere on what they call the drudgery of prayer, and the fantastical rant of praise. These they leave to the illit­erate labourer, and the mean machanick; or treat them, with a contemptuous sneer, as the parson's ignoble trade.

Is it then an instance of surperstitious blindness, to dis­tinguish; or of whimsical zeal, to celebrate, the most supereminent excellency and merit? Is it an ungraceful business, or does it argue a grovelling disposition, to magnify goodness transcendently rich and diffusive?— What can be so truly becoming a dependent state, as to pay our adoring homage to the Author of all perfection, and profess our devoted allegiance to the Supreme Almighty Governour of the universe?—Can any thing more significantly bespeak an ingenuous temper, or adminis­ter a more real satisfaction to its finest feelings, than the exercises of penitential devotion: By which we give vent to an honest anguish, or melt into filial sorrows, for our insensibility to the best of friends, for our dis­obedience to the best of parents?—In a word, can there be a more sublime pleasure, than to dwell, in fixed con­templation, on the beauties of the Eternal Mind; the ami­able Original of all that is fair, grand, and harmonious; the beneficent Giver of all that is convenient, comforta­ble, and useful?—Can there be a more advantageous em­ploy, than to present our requests to the Father of mercies; opening our minds to the irradiation of his wisdom, and all the faculties of our souls to the communications of his grace?—It is strange, unaccountably strange, that the notion of dignity in sentiment, and the pursuit of [Page 76] refined enjoyment, should ever be disunited from devo­tion: That persons who make pretensions to an im­proved taste, and exalted genius, should neglect this most ennobling intercourse with the wisest and best of beings, the inexhaustible source of honour and joy.

Shall I be deterred from approaching this source of the purest delight? Deterred from pursuing this highest improvement of my nature? Deterred from all by a formidable banter, or confuted by one irrefragable smile?—No: Let the moon, in her resplendent sphere; and yonder pole, with all its starry train; witness, if I be silent even or morn; if I refrain to kindle in my heart and breathe from my lips, the reasonable incense of praise. Praise to that great and glorious GOD, who formed the earth, and built the skies; who poured from his hand the watery world, and shed the all surround­ing air abroad.— ‘Thou also madest the night, Maker omnipotent! and thou, the day! which I, though less than the least of all thy mercies, have passed in safety, tranquillity, and comfort.—When I was lost in the extravagance of dreams, or lay immersed in the insensibility of sleep, thy hand recovered me from the temporary lethargy: Thy hand set a new, a delicately fine edge, on all my blunted senses; and strung my sinews with recruited vigour. When my thoughts were benumbed and stupefied, thy quickening influence roused them into activity; when they were disconcerted and wild, thy regulating influence re­duced them into order: Refitted me at once to rel­ish the innocent entertainments of an animal, and to enjoy the sublime gratifications of a rational capaci­ty: When darkness covered the creation, at thy command, the sun arose; painted the flowers, and distinguished every object; gave light to my feet, and gave nature, with all her beautiful scenes, to my eye.—To thee, O thou GOD of my strength, I owe the continuance of my being, and the vivacity of my constitution. By thy sacred order, without any consciousness of mine, the wheels of life move, and the crimson fountain plays. Overruled by thy exquisite skill, it transforms itself, by the nicest opera­tions of an inexplicable kind of chymistry, into a [Page 77] variety of the finest secretions; which glide into the muscles, and swell them for action; or pour them­selves into the fluids, and repair the incessant decays; which cause cheerfulness to sparkle in the eye, and health to bloom in the cheek.’

‘ Disastrous accidents, injurious to the peace of my mind, or fatal to the welfare of my body, beset my paths. But thy faithfulness and truth, like an im­penetrable shield, guarded me all around. Under this divine protection, I walked secure, amidst legions of apparant perils; and passed unhurt through a far greater multiplicity of unseen evils. Not one of my bones was broken; not a single shaft grazed upon my ease; even when the eye that watched over me, saw, in its wide survey, thousands falling beside me, in ir­recoverable ruin; and ten thousands deeply wounded, on my right hand.—If sickness has, at any time, sad­dened my chamber, or pain harrowed my flesh, it was a wholesome discipline, and a gracious severity. The chastisement proved a sovereign medicine, to cure me of an immoderate fondness, for this imper­fect troublesome state; and to quicken my desires, after the unembittered enjoyments of my eternal home. —Has not thy munificence, unwearied and unbound­ed, spread my table; and furnished it with the finest wheat; replenished it with marrow and fatness? While temperance sweetened the bowl; appetite sea­soned the dish; contentment and gratitude crowned the repast.—Has not thy kindness, O GOD of the families of Israel! preserved my affectionate relations; who study, by their tender offices, to soften every care, and heighten every joy? Has not thy kindness given me valuable friends; whose presence is a cordial to cheer me in a dejected hour; and whose conversa­tion mingles improvement with delight?’

‘When sin lay disguised amidst flowery scenes of pleasure; enlightened by thy wisdom, I discerned the latent mischief; made resolute by thy grace, I shunned the luscious bane. If, through the impulse of sensuali­ty, or the violence of passion, I have been hurried into the snare, and stung by the serpent, thy faithful admonitions have recalled the foolish wanderer; [Page 78] while the blood of thy Son has healed his deadly wounds.—Some, no doubt, have been cut off in the midst of their iniquities, and transmitted from the thrillings of polluted joy, to the agonies of eternal despair. Whereas I have been distinguished by long-suffering mercy; and, instead of lifting up my eyes in torments, to behold a heaven irrecoverably lost, I may lift them up under the pleasing views of being admitted, ere long, into those abodes of endless felic­ity.—In the mean time, thou hast vouchsafed me the revelation of thy will; the influences of thy spirit; and abundance of the most effectual aids, for advanc­ing in knowledge, and growing in godliness; for becoming more conformable to thy image, and more meet for thy presence; for tasting the pleasures of re­ligion, and securing the riches of eternity.’

‘How various is thy benificence, O thou Lover of souls! It has unsealed a thousand sources of good; opened a thousand avenues of delight; and heap­ed blessings upon me, with a ceaseless liberality. If I should attempt to declare them, they would be more than the starry host, which glitter in this unclouded sky; more than the dewy gems, which will adorn the face of the morning.’

‘And shall I forget the GOD of my salvation, the Author of all my mercies? Rather let my pulse for­get to beat!—Shall I render Him no expressions of thankfulness? Then might all nature reproach my ingratitude.—Shall I rest satisfied with the bare ac­knowledgment of my lips? No: Let my life be vocal, and speak his praise, in that only genuine, that most emphatical language—the language of devout obe­dience. Let the bill be drawn upon my very heart; let all my affections acknowledge the draught; and let the whole tenour of my actions, in time and through eternity, be continually paying the debt—the ever pleasing, ever growing debt of duty, veneration, and love.’

‘And can I, O thou Guide of my goings, and Guard­ian of all my interests—can I distrust such signal, such experienced goodness? Thou hast been my helper, through all the busy scenes of day, therefore, under the [Page 79] shadow of thy wings will I repose myself, during the darkness, the danger, and deathlike inactivity of the night. Whatever defilement I have contracted, wash it thoroughly away, in redeeming blood; and let neither the sinful stain, nor the sinful inclination, ac­company me to my couch!—Then shall I lay me down in peace, and take my rest; cheerfully referring it to thy allwise determination, whether I shall open my eyes in this world, or awake in the unknown regions of another.’

HERVEY's CONTEMPLATIONS ON THE STARRY HEAVENS.

THIS evening, I exchange the nice re­treats of art for the noble theatre of na­ture: Instead of measuring my steps under the covert of an arbour, let me range along the summit of this gently rising hill.—There is no need of the leafy shade, since the sun has quitted the horizon, and withdrawn his scorching beams. But see, how advantages and inconveniences are usually linked, and chequer our affairs below! If the annoying heat ceases, the landscape, and its pleasing scenes, are also removed.—The majestick castle, and the lowly cottage, are vanished together. I have lost the aspiring moun­tain, and its russet brow; I look round, but to no pur­pose, for the humble vale, and its flowery lap. The plains whitened with flocks, and the heath yellow with furze, disappear. The advancing night has wrapt in darkness the long extended forest, and drawn her mantle over the windings of the silver stream. I no longer be­hold that luxuriant fertility in the fields; that wild mag­nificence of prospect, and endless variety of images; which have so often touched me with delight, and struck me with awe, from this commanding eminence.

[Page 82]The loss, however, is scarcely to be regretted, since it is amply compensated by the opening beauties of the sky. Here I enjoy a free view of the whole hemisphere; without any obstacle from below, to confine the explor­ing eye; or any cloud from above, to overcast the spa­cious concave. 'Tis true, the lively vermilion which so lately streaked the chambers of the west, is all faded. But the planets, one after another, light up their lamps; the stars advance in their glittering train; a thousand and a thousand luminaries, shine forth in successive splendours; and the wole firmament is kindled into the most beautiful glow. The blueness of the ether, height­ened by the season of the year, and still more enlivened by the absence of the moon, gives those gems of heaven the strongest lustre.

One pleasure more, the invading gloom has not been able to snatch from my sense. The night rather im­proves, than destroys, the fragrance which exhales from the blooming beans. With these, the sides of this sloping declivity are lined; and with these, the balmy zephyrs perfume their wings. Does Arabia, from all her spicy groves, breathe a more liberal, or a more charming gale of sweets? And, what is a peculiar recommenda­tion of the rural entertainments, presented in our happy land, they are alloyed by no apprehensions of danger. No poisonous serpent lurks under the blossom; nor any ravenous beast lies ready to start from the thicket.— But, I wander from a far more exalted subject. My thoughts, like my affections, are too easily diverted from the heavens, and detained by inferiour objects. Away, my attention, from these little blandishments of the earth; since all the glories of the sky invite thy regard.

We have taken a turn among the tombs, and viewed the solemn memorials of the dead, in order to learn the vanity of mortal things, and to break their soft en­chantment.—We have surveyed the ornaments of the gar­den; not that the heart might be planted in the parterre, or take root among the flowery race; but that these del­icacies of a day might teach us to aspire after a better paradise, where beauty never fades, and delight is ever in the bloom.—A third time we lighted the candle of [Page 83] meditation, and sought for wisdom, not in the crowded city, or wrangling schools, but in the silent and lonely walks of ancient night. ^*—Let us once more indulge the contemplative vein, and raise our speculations to those sublimer works of the great Creator, which the regions of the sky contain, and this dusky hour unveils. ^†

If we have discerned the touches of his pencil, glow­ing in the colours of spring; if we have seen a sample of his beneficence, exhibited in the stores of nature; and a ray of his brightness, beaming in the blaze of day; what an infinitely richer field for the display of his perfections, are the heavens! The heavens, in the most emphatical manner, declare the glory of GOD. The heavens are nobly eloquent of the Deity, and the most magnificent heralds of their Maker's praise. They speak to the whole universe; for there is neither speech so barbarous, but their language is understood; nor na­tion so distant, but their voices are heard among them. ^‡ —Let me then, in this solemn season, formed for thought, and a calm intercourse with heaven; let me listen to their silent lectures. Perhaps, I may receive such impressive manifestations of "the eternal Power and Godhead," as may shed religion on my soul, while I walk the soli­tary shades; and may be a tutelary friend to my virtue, when the call of business, and the return of light, ex­pose me again to the inroads of temptation.

The Israelites, instigated by frenzy rather than devo­tion, worshipped the host of heaven. And the pre­tenders to judicial astrology talk of, I know not what, mysterious efficacy, in the different aspect of the stars, or the various conjunction and opposition of the planets. —Let those who are unacquainted with the sure word of revelation, give ear to these sons of delusion, and dealers in deceit. For my part, it is a question of in­difference to me, whether the constellations shone with [Page 84] smiles, or loured in frowns, on the hour of my nativ­ity. Let CHRIST be my guard; and, secure in such a protection, I would laugh at their impotent menaces. Let CHRIST be my guide; and I shall scorn to ask, as well as despair of receiving, any predictory information from such senseless masses.—What! shall ‘the living seek to the dead?’ ^* Can these bodies advertise me of future events, which are unconscious of their own existence? Shall I have recourse to dull unintelligent matter, when I may apply to that all wise Being, who, with one comprehensive glance, distinctly views what­ever is lodged in the bosom of immensity, or forming in the womb of futurity?—Never, never will I search for any intimations of my fate; but often trace my Creator's footsteps, ^† in yonder starry plains. In the former case, they would be teachers of lies; in the latter, they are oracles of truth. In this therefore, this sense only, I profess myself the pupil of the stars.

The vulgar are apprehensive of nothing more than a multitude of bright spangles, dropt over the ethereal blue. They have no higher notion of these fine ap­pearances, than that they are so many golden studs, with which the empyrean arch is decorated.—But studious minds, that carry a more accurate and strict inquiry [Page 85] among the celestial bodies, bring back advices of a most astonishing import. Let me just recollect the most material of those stupendous discoveries, in order to furnish out proper subjects for contemplation. And let the un­learned remember, that the scene I am going to display, is the workmanship of that incomprehensible GOD, who is "perfect in knowledge, and mighty in power:" Whose name, whose nature, and all whose operations, are "great and marvellous:" Who summons into being, with equal ease, a single grain, or ten thousand worlds.—To this if we continually advert, the assertions, though they will certainly excite our admiration, need not transcend our belief.

The earth is, in fact, a round body; however it may seem, in some parts, to be sunk into vales, and raised into hills; ^* in other parts, to be spread into a spacious plain, extending to the confines of the heav­ens, or terminated by the waters of the ocean:—We may fancy that it has deep foundations, and rests upon some prodigiously solid basis. But it is pendent in the wide transpicuous ether, without any visible cause, to uphold it from above, or support it from beneath.—It may seem to be sedentary in its attitude, and motionless in its situation. But it is continually sailing ^† through the depths of the sky; and in the space of twelve months, finishes the mighty voyage. Which periodical rotation produces the seasons, and completes the year. [Page 86] —As it proceeds in the annual circuit, it spins upon its own centre; and turns its sides alternately to the foun­tain of light. By which means, the day dawns in one hemisphere, while the night succeeds in the other. Without this expedient, one part of its regions would, during half the great revolution, be scorched with ex­cessive heat, or languish under an unintermitted glare; while the other, exposed to the contrary extremes, would be frozen to ice, and buried under a long oppression of dismal and destructive darkness.

I cannot forbear taking notice, that, in this com­pound motion of the earth, the one never interferes with the other, but both are perfectly compatible. Is it not thus with the precepts of religion, and the needful af­fairs of the present life; not excepting even the innocent gratifications of our appetites?—Some, I believe, are apt to imagine, that they must renounce society, if they devote themselves to CHRIST; and abandon all the satisfactions of this world, if they once become zealous candidates for the felicity of another.—But this is a very mistaken notion, or else a very injurious representation, of the doctrine which is according to godliness. It was never intended to drive men into deserts; but to lead them, through the peaceful and pleasant paths of wis­dom, into the blissful regions of life eternal. It was never intended to strike off the wheels of business, or cut in sunder the sinews of industry; but rather, to make men industrious from a principle of conscience, not from the instigations of avarice; that so they may promote their immortal happiness, even while they provide for their temporal maintenance. It has no design to extirp­ate our passions, but only to restrain their irregularities; neither would it extinguish the delights of sense, but prevent them from evaporating into vanity, and subsiding into gall.—A person may be cheerful among his friends, and yet joyful in GOD. He may taste the sweets of his earthly estate; and, at the same time, cherish his hopes of a nobler inheritance in Heaven. The trader may pros­ecute the demands of commerce, without neglecting to negotiate the affairs of his salvation. The warrior may wear his sword; may draw, in a just cause, that murder­ous weapon; yet be a good soldier of JESUS CHRIST, [Page 87] and obtain the crown that fadeth not away. The pa­rent may lay up a competent portion for his children, and not forfeit his title to the treasures, either of grace or of glory.—So far is christianity from obstructing any valuable interest, or withholding any real pleasure; that it improves the one, and advances the other. Just as the diurnal and annual motions are so far from clashing, that they entirely accord; and instead of being destructive of each other, by mutually blending their effects, they give proportion and harmony to time, fertility and in­numerable benefits to nature.

To us who dwell on its surface, the earth is by far the most extensive orb that our eyes can any where be­hold. It is also clothed with verdure; distinguished by trees; and adorned with a variety of beautiful decora­tions. Whereas, to a spectator placed on one of the planets, it wears an uniform aspect; looks all luminous, and no larger than a spot. To beings who dwell at still greater distances, it entirely disappears.—That which we call alternately, the morning and the evening star; as in one part of her orbit, she rides foremost in the pro­cession of night; in the other, ushers in and anticipates the dawn; is a planetary world: Which, with the four others, that so wonderfully vary their my stick dance, are in themselves dark bodies, and shine only by reflection; have fields, and seas, and skies of their own: Are fur­nished with all accommodations for animal subsistence, and are supposed to be the abodes of intellectual life. All which, together with this our earthly habitation, are de­pendent on that grand dispenser of divine munificence, the sun; receive their light from the distribution of his rays, and derive their comforts from his benign agency.

The sun, which seems to perform its daily stages through the sky, is, in this respect, ^* fixed and im­moveable. 'Tis the great axle of heaven, about which the globe we inhabit, and other more spacious orbs, wheel their stated courses.—The sun, though seemingly smaller than the dial it illuminates, is abundantly [Page 88] larger ^* than this whole earth; on which so many lofty mountains rise, and such vast oceans roll. A line ex­tending from side to side, through the centre of that resplendent orb, would measure more than eight hundred thousand miles: A girdle, formed to go round its cir­cumference, would require a length of millions; were its solid contents to be estimated, the account would overwhelm our understanding, and be almost beyond the power of language to express. ^†—Are we startled at these reports of philosophy? Are we ready to cry out in a transport of surprise? How mighty is the Being, who kindled such a prodigious fire, and keeps alive, from age to age, such an enormous mass of flame! Let us attend our philosophick guides, and we shall be brought acquainted with speculations more enlarged and more amazing.

This sun, with all its attendant planets, is but a very little part of the grand machine of the universe. Every star, though, in appearance, no bigger than the diamond that glitters upon a lady's ring, is really a vast globe, like the sun in size and in glory, no less spacious, no less luminous, than the radiant source of our day. So that every star is not barely a world, but the centre of a magnificent system; has a retinue of worlds, irradi­ated by its beams, and revolving round its attractive in­fluence: All which are lost to our sight, in unmeasura­ble wilds of ether.—That the stars appear like so many diminutive, and scarce distinguishable points, is owing to their immense and inconceivable distance. Immense and inconceivable indeed it is; since a ball shot from the loaded cannon, and flying with unabated rapidity, must travel, at this impetuous rate, almost seven hun­dred [Page 89] thuosand years, ^* before it could reach the nearest of those twinkling luminaries.

Can any thing be more wonderful than these obser­vations? Yes: There are truths far more stupendous; there are scenes far more extensive. As there is no end of the Almighty Maker's greatness; so no imagination can set limits to his creating hand.—Could you soar be­yond the moon, and pass through all the planetary choir; could you wing your way to the highest apparent star, and take your stand on one of those lofty pinnacles of heaven; you would there see other skies expanded; another sun distributing his inexhaustible beams by day; other stars, that gild the horrours of the alternate night; and other, ^† perhaps nobler systems, established; estab­lished, in unknown profusion, through the boundless dimensions of space.—Nor does the dominion of the universal Sovereign terminate there. Even at the end of this vast tour, you would find yourself advanced no farther than the suburbs of creation; arrived only at the frontiers of the great JEHOVAH's kingdom. ^‡

And do they tell me, that the sun, the moon, and all the planets are but a little part of HIS works? How great, then, are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders! ^‖—And if so, what is the CREATOR him­self! [Page 90] How far exalted above all praise! Who is so high, that he looks down on the highest of these dazzling spheres, and sees even the summit of creation in a vale; so great, that this prodigious extent of space, is but a point in his presence; and all this confluence of worlds, as the lightest atom that fluctuates in air, and sports in the meridian ray. ^*

Thou most sublime and incomprehensibly glorious GOD, how am I overwhelmed with awe! how sunk into the lowest prostration of mind! when I consider thy " exccellent greatness," and my own utter insignificancy! —And have I, excessively mean as I am, have I enter­tained any conceited apprehensions of myself? Have I felt the least elatement of thought, in the presence of so majestick and adorable a Being? How should this wound me with sorrow, and cover me with confusion!—O my GOD, was I possessed of all the high perfections, which accomplish and adorn the angels or light; amidst all these noble endowments, I would fall down in the deepest abasement at thy feet. Lost in the infinitely superiour blaze of thy uncreated glories, I would confess myself to be nothing; to be less than nothing and vanity.— How much more ought I to maintain the most unfeigned humiliation, before thy divine majesty; who am not [Page 91] only dust and ashes, but a compound of ignorance, im­perfection and depravity!

While beholding this vast expanse, I learn my own extreme meanness, I would also discover the abject lit­tleness of all terrestrial things.—What is the earth, with all her ostentatious scenes, compared with this astonish­ingly grand furniture of the skies? What but a dim speck, hardly perceivable in the map of the universe? It is observed, by a very judicious writer, ^* that if the sun himself, which enlightens this part of the creation, was extinguished; and all the host of planetary worlds, which move about him, were annihilated; they would not be missed, by an eye that can take in the whole com­pass of nature, any more than a grain of sand upon the sea shore. The bulk of which they consist, and the space which they occupy, is so exceedingly little incom­parison of the whole, that their loss would scarce leave a blank in the immensity of GOD's works.—If then, not our globe only, but this whole system, be so very diminutive; what is a kingdom or a county? What are a few lordships, or the so much admired patrimonies of those who are stiled wealthy? ^† When I measure them with my own little pittance, they swell into proud and bloated dimensions. But, when I take the universe for my standard, how scanty is their size, how contempt­ible their figure! They shrink into pompous nothings. ^‡

When the keen eyed eagle soars above all the feath­ered race, and leaves their very sight below; when she wings her way with direct ascent, up the steep of heaven; and steadily gazing on the meridian sun, ac­counts its beaming splendours all her own: Does she then regard, with any solicitude, the mote that is flying in the air, or the dust which she shook from her feet? And shall this eternal mind, which is capable of contemplat­ing its Creator's glory; which is intended to enjoy the visions of his countenance; shall this eternal mind, en­dued with such great capacities, and made for such ex­alted ends, be so ignobly ambitious, as to sigh for the tin­sels [Page 92] of state; or so poorly covetous, as to grasp after ample territories on a needle's point?—No: Under the influ­ence of such considerations, I feel my sentiments expand, and my wishes acquire a turn of sublimity. My throb­bing desires after worldly grandeur die away; and I find myself, if not possessed of power, yet superiour to its charms.—Too long, must I own, have my affections been pinioned by vanity, and immured in this earthly clod. But these thoughts break the shackles: ^* These objects open the door of liberty. My soul, fired by such noble prospects, weighs anchor from this little nook, and coasts no longer about its contracted shores; dotes no longer on its painted shells. The immensity of things is her range; and an infinity of bliss is her aim.

Behold this immense expanse, and admire the con­descension of thy GOD.—In this manner an inspired and princely astronomer, improved his survey of the noctur­nal heavens: When I consider thy heavens, even the works of thy fingers, the moon and the stars which thou hast or­dained, I am smitten with wonder at thy glory, and cry out in a transport of gratitude, LORD what is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him? ^† ‘How amazing, how charming, is that Divine Benignity which is pleased to bow down its sacred regards, to so foolish and worthless a creature! Yea, disdains not, from the height of infinite exalta­tion, to extend its kind providential care, to our most minute concerns!—This is amazing. But that the everlasting sovereign should give his son, to be made flesh, and become our Saviour! shall I call it a mira­cle of condescending goodness? Rather, what are all miracles, what are all mysteries, to this ineffable gift!’

[Page 93]Had the brightest archangel been commissioned to come down, with the olive branch of peace in his hand, sig­nifying his eternal Maker's readiness to be reconciled; on our bended knees, with tears of joy, and a torrent of thankfulness, we ought to have received the transport­ing news. But when, instead of such an angelick en­voy, he sends his only begotten Son; his Son beyond all thought illustrious, to make us the gracious overture:— Sends him from the ‘habitation of his holiness and glory,’ to put on the infirmities of mortality, and dwell in a tabernacle of clay:—Sends him, not barely to make us a transient visit, but to abide many years in our inferiour and miserable world:—Sends him, not to exercise dominion over monarchs, but to wear out his life in the ignoble form of a servant; and, at last, to make his exit under the infamous character of a male­factor! Was ever love like this? Did ever grace stoop so low? ^*—Should the sun be shorn of all his radiant honours, and degraded into a clod of the valleys; should all the dignitaries of Heaven be deposed from their [Page 94] thrones, and degenerates into insects of a day; great, great would be the abasement. But nothing to thine, most blessed JESUS; nothing to thine, thou Prince of peace; when, for us men, and for our salvation, thou didst not abhor the coarse accommodations of the man­ger; thou didst not decline even the gloomy horrours of the grave.

'Tis well, the sacred oracles have given this doctrine the most explicit confirmation, and evidence quite in­contestable. Otherwise, a favour so undeserved, so un­expected, and rich beyond all imagination, might stag­ger our belief.—Could HE who launches all these plan­etary globes, through the illimitable void, and leads them on, from age to age, in their extensive career; could HE resign his hands to be confined by the gird­ing cord, and his back to be ploughed by the bloody scourge?—Could HE who crowns all the stars with in­extinguishable brightness, be himself defiled with spit­ting, and disfigured with the thorny scar? It is the great­est of wonders, and yet the surest of truths.

O! ye mighty orbs, that roll along the spaces of the sky; I wondered, a little while ago, at your vast di­mensions, and ample circuits. But now my amazement ceases; or rather, is entirely swallowed up by a much more stupendous subject. Methinks your enormous bulk is shrivelled to an atom; your prodigious revolutions are contracted to a span; while I muse upon the far more elevated heights, and unfathomable depths; the infinite­ly more extended lengths, and unlimited breadths, of this love of GOD in CHRIST JESUS. ^*

Contemplating this stately expanse, I see a mir­ror which represents, in the most awful colours, the heinousness of human guilt.—Ten thousand volumes, wrote on purpose to display the aggravations of my va­rious acts of disobedience, could not so effectually con­vince me of their inconceivable enormity, as the consid­eration of that all glorious Person, ^† who, to make an atonement for them, spilt the last drop of his blood.— [Page 95] I have sinned, may every child of Adam say; and what shall I do unto Thee. O thou Observer of men? ^* Shall I give my first born for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? Vain commutation! and such as would be rejected by the blessed GOD, with the utmost abhorrence.—Will all the potentates, that sway the sceptre in a thousand kingdoms, devote their royal and honoured lives, to rescue an obnoxious creature from the stroke of vengeance? Alas! it must cost more, in­comparably more, to expiate the malignity of sin, and save a guilty wretch from Hell.—Will all the principali­ties of Heaven be content to assume my nature, and re­sign themselves to death for my pardon? ^† Even this [Page 96] would be too mean a satisfaction for inexorable justice; too scanty a reparation of GOD's injured honour. So flagrant is human guilt, that nothing but a victim of infinite dignity could constitute an adequate propitiation. — He who said, ‘let there be light, and there was light;’ let there be a firmament, and immediately the blue curtains floated in the sky; He must take flesh; HE must feel the fierce torments of crucifixion; and pour out his soul in agonies, if ever such transgressors are pardoned.

How vast is that debt, which all the wealth of both the Indies cannot discharge! How vitiated that habit of body, which all the drugs produced by nature herself, cannot rectify! But how much more ruined was thy con­dition, O my soul! how much more heinous were thy crimes! Since nothing less than the sufferings and death of Messiah, the Son of GOD, and radiant image of his glory, could effect thy recovery, or cancel thy iniquity. —Though perhaps thou art not sunk so very deep in pollution as some of the most abandoned profligates, yet remember the inestimable ransom paid to redeem thee from everlasting destruction. Remember this, and "never open thy mouth any more," ^* either to murmur at the divine chastisement, or to glory in thy own at­tainments. Remember this; and even ‘ loath thyself, ^† for the multitude of thy provocations,’ and thy great baseness.

Once more: Let me view this beautiful, this mag­nificent expanse; and conceive some juster apprehen­sions of the unknown richness of my Saviour's atonement. —I am informed, by a writer who cannot mistake, that the High Priest of my profession, who was also the sacri­fice for my sins, is higher than the heavens: ^‡ more exalted in dignity, more bright with glory, than all the heavenly mansions, and all their illustrious inhabitants. If my heart was humbled at the consideration of its excessive guilt; how do all my drooping powers revive at this delightful thought? The poor criminal, that seemed to [Page 97] be tottering on the very brink of the infernal pit, is rais­ed, by such a belief, even to the portals of paradise. My self abasement, I trust, will always continue; but my fears, under the influence of such a conviction, are quite gone. ^* I do not, I cannot, doubt the efficacy of this propitiation. While I see a glimpse of its matchless ex­cellency, and verily believe myself interested in its mer­its, I know not what it is to feel any misgiving suspi­cions; but am stedfast in faith, and joyful through hope.

Be my iniquities like debts of millions of talents, here is more than full payment for all that prodigious sum. Let the enemy of mankind, and accuser of the brethren, load me with invectives; this one plea— A di­vine Redeemer died, most thoroughly quashes every indict­ment. For, though there be much turpitude, and man­ifold transgressions, ‘there is no condemnation to those that are in CHRIST JESUS.’ —Nay, were I chargeable with all the vilest deeds which have been c [...]mmitted in every age of the world, by every nation of men; even in this most deplorable case, I need not sink into despair. Even such guilt, though grievous beyond all expression, is not to be compared with that abundance of grace and righteousness, which dwell in the incarnate Divinity.—How great, how transcendently glo­rious [Page 98] are the perfections of the adored JEHOVAH! So great, so superlatively precious, is the expiation of the dying JESUS. 'Tis impossible for the human mind to exalt this atonement ^* too highly: 'Tis impossible for the humble penitent to confide in it too steadily. The scriptures, the scriptures of eternal truth have said it, (exult, my soul, in the belief of it!) that the blood on which we rely, is GOD's own blood; ^† and therefore all sufficient to expiate, omnipotent to save.

David, that egregious sinner, but more exemplary saint, seems to have been well acquainted with this com­fortable truth. What else can be the import of that very remarkable, but most devout declaration? Thou shalt purge ^‡ me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: Thou shal [...] wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.— ‘I have been guilty, I must confess, of the most complicated and shocking crimes: Crimes, inflamed by every aggra­vating circumstance, with regard to myself, my neigh­bour, and my GOD. Myself, who have been blessed above men, and the distinguished favourite of Provi­dence; my neighbour, who, in the most dear and ten­der interests, has been irreparably injured; my GOD, who might justly expect the most grateful returns of duty, instead of such enormous violations of his law. Yet, all horrid and execrable as my offence is, it is nothing to the superabundant merit of that great Re­deemer, [Page 99] who was promised from the foundations of the world; in whom all my fathers trusted; who is the hope of all the ends of the earth. Though my con­science be more loathsome, with adulterous impurity, than the dunghill; though treachery and murder have rendered it even black as the gloom of Hell; yet, washed in the 'fountain opened for sin and for un­cleanness,' ^* I shall be—I say, not pure only; this were a disparagement to the efficacy of my Saviour's death; but I shall be fair as the lily, and white as the snow. Nay, let me not derogate from the glorious ob­ject of my confidence; cleansed by this sovereign sanctifying stream, I shall be fairer than the full blown lily, whiter than the new fallen snows.’

Power, saith the scripture, belongeth unto GOD. ^†— And in what majestick lines is this attribute of JEHO­VAH written, throughout the whole volume of the creation? Especially, through those magnificent pages, unfolded in yonder starry regions: Which are therefore styled, by the sweet and seraphick singer of Israel, ‘The firmament of his power;’ ^‡ because the grand ex­ploits of omnipotence are there displayed with the utmost pomp, and recorded in the most legible characters.

Who, that looks upward to the midnight sky, and, with an eye of reason, beholds its rolling wonders; who can forbear inquiring—Of what were those mighty orbs formed?—Amazing to relate! They were produced without materials. They sprung from emptiness itself. The stately fabrick of universal nature emerged out of nothing.—What instruments were used by the Supreme Architect, to fashion the parts with such [...]xquisite nice­ness, and give so beautiful a polish to th [...] whole. How was all connected into one finely p [...]oportioned, and nobly finished structure?—A bare fiat accomplished all. Let them be, said GOD: He added no more; and im­mediately the marvellous edifice arose, adorned with every beauty; displaying innumerable perfections; and declaring, amidst enraptured seraphs, its great Creator's praise. ‘By the word of the LORD were the heavens made, and all the hosts of them by the breath of his [Page 100] mouth.’ ^*—What forceful machinery fixed some of those ponderous globes on an immoveable basis? What irresistible impulse bowled others through the circuit of the heavens? What coercive energy confined their im­petuous courses within limits, astonishingly large, yet most minutely true?—Nothing but his sovereign will. For all things were at first constituted, and all to this day abide, "according to his ordinance."

Without any toilsome assiduity or laborious process, to raise—to touch—to speak such a multitude of im­mense bodies into being—to launch them through the spaces of the sky, as an arrow from the hand of a gi­ant—to impress on such unwieldy masses, a motion far outstripping the swiftness of the winged creation; ^† and to continue them in the same rapid whirl, for thousands and thousands of years!—What an amazing instance of infinite might is this!—Can any thing be impossible to the LORD, the LORD GOD; the Creator and Controller of all the ends of the earth, all the regions of the universe? [Page 101] Rather, is not all that we count difficult, perfect ease to that glorious Being, who only spake, and the world was made? ^* Who only gave command, and the stupendous axle was lodged fast, the lofty wheels moved complete? —What a sure defence, O my soul, is this everlasting strength of thy GOD! Be this thy continual refuge, in the article of danger; this thy never failing resource, in every time of need.

What cannot this uncontrollable power of the great JEHOVAH effect for his people? Be their mis­eries ever so galling, cannot this GOD relieve them? Be their wants ever so numerous, cannot this GOD sup­ply them? Be their corruptions within, ever so invet­erate; or their temptations without, ever so importunate; cannot this mighty, mighty GOD subdue the former, and fortify them against the latter?—Should trials, with an incessant vehemence, sift thee as wheat; should tribulation, with a weight of woes, almost grind thee to powder; should pleasure, with her bewitching smiles, solicit thee to delicious ruin; yet "hold thee fast by GOD," and lay thy help upon him that is omnipotent. ^† Thou canst [Page 102] not be involved in such calamitous circumstances, or ex­posed to such imminent peril, but thy GOD, whom thou servest, is able to deliver thee from the one, and to sup­port thee under the other.—To support! to deliver! Let me not dishonour the unlimited greatness of his power. He is able to exalt thee, from the deepest distress, to the most triumphant joy; and to make even a complication of evils work together for thy everlasting good. He is able, not only to accomplish what I have been speaking, but to do exceeding abundantly above all that we can ask or think. ^*

O! the wretched condition of the wicked, who have this LORD of all power for their enemy! O! the des­perate madness of the ungodly, who provoke the Al­mighty to jealousy!—Besotted creatures! are you able to contend with your Maker, and enter the lists against incensed Omnipotence? Can you bear the fierceness of [Page 103] his wrath, or sustain the vengeance of his lifted arm? At his presence, though awfully serene, the hills melt like wax, and the ‘mountains skip like frighted lambs.’ At the least intimation of his displeasure, the foundations of nature rock, and the ‘pillars of heaven tremble.’ How then can a withered leaf endure, when ‘his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire?’ —Or can any thing screen a guilty worm, when the great and terrible GOD shall whet his glittering sword, and his hand take hold on inexorable judgment? When that hand, which shoots the planets, masses of excessive bulk, ^* with such surprising rapidity, through the sky; that hand, which darts the comets to such unmeasurable distances, beyond the orbit of our remotest planet, beyond the pursuit of the strong­est eye: When THAT HAND is stretched out to punish, can the munition of rocks, the intervention of seas, or e­ven interposing worlds, divert the blow?—Consider this, ambition; and bow thy haughty crest. Consider this, disobedience; and bend thy iron sinew. O! consider this, all ye that forget, or affront the tremendous JEHO­VAH. He can, by a single act of his will, lay the uni­verse in utter ruin: And can he want power to bring you, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, to the dust of death, or to the flames of Hell? He has—I say not, ten thousand lightnings to scorch you to ashes; ten thousand thunders to crush you into atoms; but, what is unspeakably more dreadful—He has an army of terrours, even in the look of his angry countenance. His very frown is worse than destruction.

I cannot dismiss this subject, without admiring the patience of the blessed GOD. Who, though so strong and powerful, yet "is provoked every day."— Surely, as is his majesty, so is his mercy; his pity alto­gether [Page 104] commensurate to his power. If I vilify but the name of an earthly monarch, I lose my liberty, and am confined to the dungeon. If I appear in arms, and draw the sword against my national sovereign, my life is forfeited, and my very blood will scarce atone for the crime. But thee I have dishonoured, O! thou King im­mortal and invisible! Against thee my breast has fo­mented secret disaffection; my behaviour has risen up in open rebellion; and yet I am spared, yet I am preserved. Instead of being banished from thy presence, I sit at thy table, and am fed from thy hand. Instead of pursuing me with thunder bolts of vengeance, thy favours sur­round me on every side. That arm, that injured arm, which might justly fall with irretrievable ruin, on a traitor's head, is most graciously stretched out, to caress him with the tenderest endearments; to cherish him with every instance of parental kindness—O! thou mightiest, thou best of beings, how am I pained at my very soul, for such shameful and odious disingenuity! Let me always abominate myself, as the basest of crea­tures; but adore that unwearied long suffering of thine, which refuses to be irritated; love that unremitted good­ness, which no acts of ingratitude could stop, or so much as check, in its gracious current. O! let this stubborn heart, which duty could not bind, which threatenings could not awe, be the captive, the willing captive, of such triumphant beneficence.

I have often been struck with wonder at that al­mighty skill, which weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance; which proportioned the waters in the hollow of its hand, and adjusted the dust of the earth ^* by a measure. But how much more marvellous [Page 105] is that magnificent economy, which poised the stars with inexpressible nicety, and meted out the heavens with a span! Where all is prodigiously vast; immensely vari­ous; and yet more than mathematically exact. Surely the wisdom of GOD manifests itself in the skies, and shines in those lucid orbs: Shines on the contemplative mind, with a lustre incomparably brighter than that which their united splendours transmit to the eye.

Behold yonder countless multitude of globes; con­sider their amazing magnitude; regard them as the sovereigns of so many systems, each accompanied with his planetary equipage. Upon this supposition, what a multiplicity of mighty spheres must be perpetually run­ning their rounds, in the upper regions! Yet none mistake their way, or wander from the goal, though they pass through trackless and unbounded fields. None fly off from their orbits, into extravagant excursions; none press in upon their centre with too near an ap­proach. None interfere with each other in their peren­nial passage, or intercept the kindly communications of another's influence. ^* But all their rotations proceed in eternal harmony; keeping such time, and observing such laws, as are most exquisitely adapted to the perfec­tion of the whole.

While I contemplate this ‘excellent wisdom, which made the heavens,’ and attunes all their motions, how am I abashed at that mixture of arrogance and folly, which has, at any time, inclined me to murmur at thy dispensations, O LORD! What is this, but a sort of implicit treason against thy supremacy, and a tacit [Page 106] denial of thy infinite understanding?—Hast thou so regularly placed such a wonderful diversity of systems, through the spaces of the universe?—Didst thou, with­out any probationary essays, without any improving re­touches, speak them into the most consummate perfec­tion?—Dost thou continually superintend all their cir­cumstances, with a sagacity that never mistakes the mi­nutest title of propriety? And shall I be so unaccount­ably stupid, as to question the justness of thy discernment, in ‘choosing my inheritance, and fixing the bounds of my habitation!’ —Not a single erratum in model­ling the structure; determining the distance, ^* and conducting the career of unnumbered worlds! And shall my peevish humour presume to censure thy interposition, with regard to the affairs of one inconsiderable creature; whose stature, in such a comparative view, is less than a span, and his present duration little more than a moment?

O! thou GOD, ‘in whose hand my breath is, and whose are all my ways,’ let such sentiments as now possess my thoughts, be always lively on my heart! These shall compose my mind into a cheerful acquies­cence, and a thankful submission, even when afflictions gall the sense, or disappointments break my schemes. Then shall I, like the grateful patriarch, ^† in all the changes of my condition, and even in the depths of distress, erect an altar of adoring resignation, and in­scribe it with the Apostle's motto—To GOD ONLY WISE. Then, shouldst thou give me leave to be the carver of my own fortunes, I would humbly desire to relinquish the grant, and recommit the disposal of my­self to thy unerring beneficence. Fully persuaded that [Page 107] thy counsels, though contrary to my froward inclinations, or even afflictive to my flesh, are incomparably more eligible, than the blind impulse of my own will, how­ever soothing to animal nature.

On a careless inspection, you perceive no accuracy or uniformity in the position of the heavenly bodies. They appear like an illustrious chaos; a promiscuous heap of shining globes; neither ranked in order, nor moving by line.—But what seems confusion, is all regularity. What carries a show of negligence, is really the result of the most masterly contrivance. You think, perhaps, they rove in their aëreal flight; but they rove by the nicest rule, and without the least errour. Their circuits, though seemingly devious; their mazes, though intricate to our apprehensions, ^* are marked out, not indeed with golden compasses, but by the infinitely more exact de­terminations of the all wise Spirit.

So, what wears the appearance of calamity, in the allotments appointed for the godly, has really the na­ture of a blessing. It issues from fatherly love, and will terminate in the richest good. If Joseph is snatched from the embraces of an indulgent parent, and abandon­ed to slavery in a foreign land, it is in order to save the holy family from perishing by famine; and to preserve ‘the seed in whom all the nations of the earth should be blessed.’ If he falls into the deepest disgrace, it is on purpose that he may rise to the highest honours. Even the confinement of the prison, by the unsearchable workings of Providence, opens his way to the right hand of the throne itself.—Let the most afflicted servant of JESUS, wait the final upshot of things. He will then discover the apparent expediency of all those tribula­tions, which now, perhaps, he can hardly admit without reluctance, or suffer without some struggles of dissatis­faction. Then the gushing tear, and the heaving sigh, will be turned into tides of gratitude, and hymns of holy wonder.

[Page 108]In the mean time, let no audacious railer presump­tuously impeach the divine procedure; but, adoring where we cannot comprehend, let us expect the evolu­tion of the mysterious plan. Then shall every eye per­ceive, that the seeming labyrinths of Providence, were the most direct and compendious way to effect his general purposes of grace, and to bring about each one's partic­ular happiness. ^*—Then also, shall it be clearly shewn, in the presence of applauding worlds, why virtue pined in want, while vice rioted in affluence: Why amiable innocence so often dragged the dungeon chain, while horrid guilt trailed the robe of state.—That day of uni­versal audit, that day of everlasting retribution, will not only vindicate, but magnify the whole management of Heaven. The august sessions shall close with this unanimous, this glorious acknowledgment: ‘Though clouds and darkness, impenetrable by any human scru­tiny, were sometimes round about the supreme Conduc­tor of things, yet righteousness and judgment were the constant habitation of his seat; ^† the invariable standard of all his administrations.’—Thus (if I may illustrate the grandest truths by inferiour occurrences) while we view the arras, on the side of least distinction, it is void of any elegant fancy; without any nice strokes of art; nothing but a confused jumble of incoherent threads. No sooner is the piece beheld in its proper aspect, but the suspected rudeness vanishes, and the most curious arrangement takes place. We are charmed with designs of the finest taste, and figures of the most grace­ful form. All is shaped with symmetry; all is clad in beauty.

The goodness of GOD is most eminently displayed in the skies.—Could we take an understanding survey of whatever is formed by the divine Architect, through­out the whole extent of material things, our minds [Page 109] would be transported with their excellencies, and our tongues echo back that great encomium, they are "good, very good▪" ^* Most beautiful ^{† †} in themselves; contrived by unerring wisdom, and executed with inim­itable skill. Most useful ^{† †} in their functions; exactly [...]itting the places they fill, and completely answering the purposes for which they were intended.—All the parts of the inanimate creation proclaim, both by their intrin­sick and relative excellencies, the all diffusive beneficence of their Maker.

How much more wonderful are the displays of di­vine indulgence, in the worlds of life! Because dead matter is incapable of delight, therefore the gracious Creator has raised innumerable ranks of perceptive ex­istence: Such as are qualified to taste his bounty, and enjoy each a happiness suited to its peculiar state. With this view, he furnished the regions of inferiour nature with an order and a series of sensitive beings: The waters teem with shoals of finny inhabitants: The dry land swarms with animals of every order: The dwell­ings of the firmament are occupied by multitudes of winged people: Not so much as a green leaf, philoso­phers say, but lodges and accommodates its puny ani­malcule tenants. ^‡—And wherefore this diversity, this [Page 110] profusion of living creatures, flying the air, treading the ground, and gliding through the paths of the sea? For this most glorious reason—that the eternal sovereign may exercise his surperabundant goodness; that his table may be furnished with millions and millions of guests; that he may fill, every hour, every moment, their mouths with food, or their hearts with gladness.

But what a small theatre are three or four elements for the operations of JEHOVAH's bounty! His magnif­icent liberality scorns such scanty limits. If you ask, wherefore has he created all worlds, and replenished them with an unknown multiplicity of beings, rising, one above another, in an endless gradation of still richer endowment, and still nobler capacities? the answer is—For the manifestation of his own glory, and espec­ially for the communication of his inexhaustible benefi­cence. ^*—The great Creator could propose no advan­tage to himself. His bliss is incapable of any addition. ‘Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever the earth and the world were made,’ he was supremely happy in his own independent and all sufficient self. [Page 111] His grand design therefore, in erecting so many stately fabricks, and peopling them with so many tribes of in­habitants, was to transfuse his exuberant kindness, and impart felicity in all its forms. Ten thousand worlds, stocked with ten thousand times ten thousand ranks of sensitive and intelligent existence, are so many spacious gardens, which, with rivers of communicated joy, this ever flowing fountain waters continually.

Boundless ^** and (which raises our idea of this divine principle, to the very highest degree of perfection) disinterested ^** muni [...]icence! How inexpressibly amiable is the blessed GOD, considered in this charming light! Is it possible to conceive any excellence so adorable and lovely, as infinite benevolence, guided by unerring wisdom, and exerting almighty power, on purpose to make a whole universe happy?—O my soul, what an irresistible attractive is here! What a most worthy object for thy most fervent affection! Shall now every glitter­ing toy become a rival to this transcendently benefi­cent Being, and rob him of thy heart?—No. Let his all creating arm teach thee, to trust in the fulness of his sufficiency:—Let his all superintending eye incline thee to acquiesce in the dispensations of his providence:— And let his bounty, so freely vouchsafed, so amply dif­fused, induce thee to love him, with all the ardour of a grateful and admiring soul; induce thee to serve him, not with a joyless awe, or slavish dread, but with un­feigned alacrity, and a delightful complacency.

If the goodness of GOD is so admirably seen, in the works of nature, and the favours of Providence; with what a noble superiority does it even triumph in the mystery of redemption! ^† Redemption, is the brightest [Page 112] mirror, in which to contemplate this most lovely attri­bute of the Deity. Other gifts are only as mites from the divine treasury; but redemption opens, I had al­most said exhausts, all the stores of indulgence and grace. Herein "GOD commendeth his love; ^*" not only man­ifests, but sets it off, as it were, with every bright and grand embellishment; manifests it in so stupendous a manner, that it is beyond parallel; beyond thought; "above all blessing and praise."—Was he not thy Son, everlasting GOD, thy only Son; the Son of thy bosom from eternal ages; the highest object of thy complacen­tial delight? Was not thy love to this adorable Son, in­comparably greater than the tenderest affection of any, or the united affections of all, mortal parents? Was not the blessed JESUS more illustrious in excellency, than all angels; more exalted in dignity, than all Heavens? Yet didst thou resign HIM, for poor mortals; for vile sinners!—Couldst thou see him descend from his royal throne, and take up his abode in the sordid stable? See him forego the homage of the seraphim, and stand exposed to the reproachful indignities of an insolent rab­ble? See him arraigned at the bar, and sentenced to death; numbered with malefactors, and nailed to the gibbet; bathed in his own innocent blood, and pouring out his soul in agonies of sorrow?—Could the Father, the Father himself, with unknown philanthropy, ^† say— ‘It shall, it shall be so! My pity to rebellious man, pleads, and prevails. Awake, therefore, O sword, ^‡ edged with divine wrath: Awake, and be sheathed in that immaculate breast; pierce that dearly beloved heart. I am content that my son endure the sharp­ness [Page 113] of death, rather than sinful mortals perish forev­er.’—Incomprehensible love! May it henceforward be the favourite subject of my meditation; more delight­ful to my musing mind, than applause to the ambitious ear! May it be the darling theme of my discourse; sweeter to my tongue, than the droppings of the honey­comb to my taste! May it be my choicest comfort, through all the changes of life; and my reviving cor­dial, even in the last extremities of dissolution itself.

A prophet contemplating, with a distant survey, this unexampled instance of almighty love, is wrapt into a transport of devotion. At a loss for proper acknowl­edgments, he calls upon the whole universe to aid his labouring breast, and supply his lack of praise. Sing melodiously, ye vaulted heavens; exult, and even leap for gladness, thou cumberous earth; ye mountains, break your long silence, and burst into peals of loudest acclama­tions; ^* for the LORD, by this precious gift, and this great salvation, hath comforted his people.—A sacred his­torian hath left it upon record, that, at the first exhi­bition of this ravishing scene, there was with the angel who brought the blessed tidings, a multitude of the heav­enly host, praising GOD, and making the concave of the skies resound with their hallelujahs. At the dawn of the Sun of righteousness, when he was beginning to rise with healing in his wings, the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of GOD shouted for joy.— And shall man, whom this gracious dispensation prin­cipally respects; shall man, who is the centre of all these [Page 114] gladdening rays; shall he have no heart to adore, no an­them to celebrate, this

How pure is the state of the sky, and how clear its aspect! clearer than the limpid stream; purer than the transparent chrystal; and more curiously fine than the polished mirror. That stately ceiling; fretted with gold, and stretched to an extent of many millions of leagues, is not disfigured with a single flaw. That azure canopy, embroidered with stars, and spacious enough to form a covering for unnumbered worlds, is without the least spot or wrinkle.—Yet this, even this, will scarcely yield us so much as a faint representation of the divine purity. GOD, is a GOD of matchless and transcendent excel­lency. His ways are uprightness itself. His coun­sels and words are the very sanctity of wisdom and of truth. The laws which he has given to universal nature, are exquisitely contrived, and beyond all possi­bility of improvement. The precepts which he has ap­pointed for the human race, are a complete summary of all that is honourable in itself, and perfective of the rational mind.—Not the least oversight in planning a series of events for all futurity. Not the least malad­ministration, in managing the affairs of every age since time began; and of every nation under the whole heavens.—Pardon these disparaging expressions. A neg­ative perfection is far, far beneath thy dignity, O thou Most Highest. ^* In all these instances; in all thy acts, and all thy attributes, thou art not only holy, but " glorious in holiness."

[Page 115]So inconceivably holy is the LORD GOD of hosts, that he sees defilement even in the brightness of the fir­mament. The living sapphire of the heavens, before his majesty, loses its lustre. Yea, the stars (though the most pure and resplendent part of the heavens) are not pure in his sight. How much less man, who, in his fallen and depraved state, is but as a worm, that crawls in the corrupted carcass; and the son of man, who, by reason of his manifold actual impurities, is, too justly compared to an insect, that wallows amidst stench and pu­trefaction? ^*—Is there not then abundant cause, for the [Page 116] most irreproachable and eminent of mankind, to renounce all arrogant pretensions; to lay aside every assuming air; to take nothing but shame and confusion to themselves? A holy prophet, and a holy prince, felt such humbling impressions, from a glimpse of the uncreated Purity. I abhor myself in dust and ashes, ^* was the declaration of the one: I am a man of unclean lips, ^† the confession of the other.—Should not this teach us all to adore the divine mercies, for that precious purifying fountain, ^‡ which was foretold from the foundation of the world, but was opened at that awful juncture when knotty whips tore the flesh; when ragged thorns mangled the temples; when sharpened nails cut fresh sluices for the crimson current; when the gash of the spear complet­ed the dreadful work, and forthwith flowed there, from the wounded heart, blood and water?

Especially, since GOD himself saw no blemish in his dear son. He looketh to the moon, and it shineth not: Yet his all penetrating and jealous eye, discerned nothing amiss, nothing defective, in our glorious Redeemer. Nothing amiss? He bore this most illustrious testimony, concerning his holy child JESUS: ‘In him I am well pleased; I acquiesce, with entire complacency, and with the highest delight, in his person; his undertaking, and the whole execution of his office.’—How should this thought enliven our hopes, while the other mortifies our pride? Should not our hearts spring within us, and even leap for joy, at the repeated assurances given us by revelation, that such a divinely excellent person is our Mediator? What apparent reason has every believer, to adopt the blessed virgin's exclamation! ‘ My soul doth magnify the LORD, for his transcendent mercy; and my spirit rejoices, not in wide extended harvests, waving over my fertile glebe; ^{‖ ‖} not in armies vanquished, and leaving the peculiar treasure of nations for my spoil; ^{‖ ‖} [Page 117] but an infinitely richer, nobler blessing, even in GOD my Saviour.’—That a person so sublime and perfect, has vouchsafed to become my surety; to give himself for my ransom in the world below, and act as my advocate in the royal presence above; yea, to make my recovery the reward of his sufferings; my final felic­ity the honour of his mediatorial kingdom!

When an innumerable multitude ^* of bodies, many of them more than a hundred thousand miles in diame­ter, ^† are all set in motion:—When the orbits, in which they perform their periodical revolutions, are extended at the rate of several hundreds of millions:—When each has a distinct and separate sphere for finishing his vast cir­cuit:—When no one knows what it is to be cramped; but each most freely expatiates in his unbounded career:—When every one is placed at such an immense remove from each other, that they appear to their respective in­habitants only as so many spots of light:—How astonish­ing must be the expanse, which yields room for all those mighty globes, and their widely diffused operations! To what prodigious lengths did the Almighty Builder stretch his line, when he marked out the stupendous platform!—I wonder at such an immeasurable extent. My very thoughts are lost in this abyss of space. But, be it known to mortals, be it never forgot by sinners, that in all its most surprising amplitude, it is small, it is scanty, compared with the bounty and the mercy of its Maker.

His bounty is absolutely without limits, ^‡ and with­out end. The most lavish generosity cannot exhaust, [Page 118] or even diminish his munificence. O! all ye tribes of men, or rather, all ye classes of intelligent crea­tures, ye are not straitened in the liberality of your ever blessed Creator; be not straitened in your own expectations. ‘Open your mouth wide, and he shall fill it,’ with copious and continual draughts from the cup of joy. Your GOD, on whom is your whole de­pendence, is more than able, is more than willing, to ‘supply all your need, according to his riches in glory.’—When the LORD JEHOVAH is the giv­er, and his grace ^* the gift, let your wishes be un­bounded, and your cravings insatiable. All that creat­ed beings can possibly covet, is but a very small pittance of that unknown happiness, which the everlasting Ben­efactor is ready to bestow. Suppose every charitable dis­position which warms the hearts of the human race, added to those more enlarged affections which glow in heavenly bosoms; what were they all, even in their highest exercise, compared with the benignity of the Di­vine Nature?—Bless me then, thou eternal Source of love; bless all that reverence thy holy name, according to thy own most profuse goodness; whose great pre­rogative it is to disdain all measure. O! bless us, in proportion to that grace, the richness of which (unutter­able by the tongues of men, and of angels) was once spoken in the groans, and written in the wounds of thy expiring Son!

Spacious indeed are these heavens! Where do they begin? Where do they end? What is their extent? Can angels answer my question? Have angels travelled the [Page 119] vast circuit? Can angels measure the bounds of space? No; 'tis boundless, 'tis unknown, 'tis amazing all.—How charming then to reflect, that the mercy of GOD is "greater than the heavens;" is more extensive than the dimensions of the sky. Transporting reflection! let me indulge thee once more. ^* Let me think over the delightful displays of this lovely attribute; and, while I admire the trophies of forgiving goodness, add one to the number.—With what amiable and affecting colours, is this represented in the parable of the prodigal! What could induce that foolish youth to forsake his fa­ther's house? Had he not been tenderly cherished by the good parent, and loaded with benefits from his in­dulgent hand? Were not the restraints of parental gov­ernment an easy yoke; or rather a preservative from ruin? Notwithstanding every endearing obligation, he revolts from his duty, and launches into such scandalous irregularities, as were dishonourable to his family, and destructive to himself.—When necessity, not choice, but sharp necessity drove him to a submissive return, does the injured father stand aloof, or shut his doors? Quite the reverse. He espies him, while he is yet a great way off; and the moment he beholds the profligate youth, he has compassion on him. His bowels yearn; they "sound like an harp," touched with notes divinely soft. He never once thinks of his ungracious departure, and infamous debaucheries. Pity, parental pity, passes an act of oblivion; and, in one instant, cancels a series of long continued provocations.—So strong are the work­ings of fatherly affection, that he is almost impatient to embrace the naked and destitute wretch. The son's pace is slow, he arose and came; the father's is swift, [Page 120] he sprung forth (aged as he was) and ran. And is there a single frown in his brow, or one upbraiding word on his tongue?—Instead of loathing the sordid creature, or reproaching him for his odious excesses, he falls on his neck, clasps him in his arms, and hugs him to his bosom. Instead of disowning the riotous spendthrift, or rejecting him for his undutiful behaviour, he receives and welcomes him with kisses of delight. He rejoices at his return from extravagance and vice, as he form­erly rejoiced on the day of his nativity.—When this companion of harlots opens his mouth, before he speaks, the father hears. He interrupts him in the midst of his intended speech. The overflowings of his compassion­ate heart can brook no delay. He seems to be uneasy himself, till he has made the afflicted penitent glad with the assurance of his acceptance, and the choicest of his favours.—While the poor abashed offender seeks noth­ing more than not to be abhorred, he is thoroughly rec­onciled, and honoured before the whole family. While he requests no other indulgence, than only to be treated as the meanest servant, he is clothed with the best robe; he is feasted with the fatted calf; he is caressed as the dearest of children.—Was there ever so bright and win­ning a picture of the tenderest mercy, most freely vouch­safed, even to the most unworthy of creatures? Yet thus, my soul, and thus, my fellow sinner, will the LORD GOD of everlasting compassions receive us, if, sensible of our misery, and thirsting for salvation, we turn to him through JESUS CHRIST.

Where sin has abounded, says the proclamation from the court of Heaven, grace doth much more abound.—Manasseh was a monster of barbarity; for he caused his own children to pass through the fire, and filled Je­rusalem with innocent blood. Manasseh was an adept in iniquity; for he not only multiplied, and to an extrava­gant degree, his own sacrilegious impieties, but he poisoned the principles, and perverted the manners of his subjects, making them to do worse than the most detestable of the heathen idolaters. ^* Yet, through this super-abundant grace, he is humbled; he is reformed; and [Page 121] becomes a child of forgiving love, an heir of immortal glory.—Behold that bitter and bloody persecutor Saul, when breathing out threatenings, ^* and bent upon slaughter, he worried the Lamb, and put to death the disciples of JESUS. Who, upon the principles of hu­man judgment, would not have pronounced him a vessel of wrath, destined to unavoidable damnation? Nay, would not have been ready to conclude, that if there were heavier chains, and a deeper dungeon in the world of woe, they must surely be reserved for such an impla­cable enemy of true godliness? Yet (admire and adore the inexhaustible treasures of grace!) this Saul is ad­mitted into the the goodly fellowship of the prophets; is numbered with the noble army of martyrs; and makes a distinguished figure among the glorious company of the apostles.—The Corinthians were flagitious, even to a proverb. Some of them wallowed in such abominable vices, and habituated themselves to such outrageous acts of injustice, as were a reproach to human nature. Yet, even these sons of violence, and slaves of sensuality, "were washed; were sanctified; were justified:" ^† Washed in the precious blood of a dying Redeemer; sanctified by the powerful operations of the Blessed Spi­rit; justified through the infinitely tender mercies of a [Page 122] gracious GOD. Those who were once the burden of the earth, are now the joy of Heaven, and the delight of angels.

There is another instance in scripture, which most loudly publishes that sweetest of the divine names, The LORD, the LORD GOD, merciful and gracious long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth; keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin. ^* An instance this, which exceeds all the former; which exceeds whatever can be imagined; which if I was to forget, the very stones might cry out, and sound it in my ears: I mean the case of those sinners, who mur­dered the Prince of Peace, and LORD of glory.—These men could scarce have the shadow of an excuse for their crime; hardly a circumstance to extenuate their guilt. They were well acquainted with his exemplary conversa­tion; they had often heard his heavenly doctrines; they were almost daily spectators of his unequalled miracles. They therefore had all possible reason to honour him, as the most illustrious of beings; and to receive his Gospel, as the most inestimable of blessings. Yet, notwithstand­ing all these engaging motives to love him, even above their own lives, they seize his person; asperse his char­acter; drag him before a heathen tribunal; and extort a sentence of death against innocence and holiness it­self. Never was the vilest slave so contumeliously abus­ed; nor the most execrable mal [...]factor so barbarouly ex­ecuted. The sun was confounded at the shocking scene; and one cannot but wonder, how the avenging light­nings could withhold their flashes. The earth trembled at the horrid deed; and why, why did it not cleave asun­der, and open a passage for such bloodthirsty miscreants into the nethermost Hell? Shall these ever hope to obtain forgiveness from the righteous Judge? Shall not these be consigned over to inexorable wrath, and the severest torments?—O the miraculous effects of divine grace! O the triumphant goodness of GOD our Saviour! Many, even of these impious wretches, at the descent of the Holy Ghost, were convinced of their miserable state; were wounded with penitential remorse; fled to the [Page 123] sanctuary of the cross; had their pardon ratified by the baptismal seal; and, continuing in the apostles' doctrine, were made partakers of the kingdom of Heaven: Where they now shine, as so many everlasting monu­ments of most distinguished mercy; and receive beatitude past utterance, from that very Redeemer, who once "with wicked hands they crucified and slew."

Well might the prophet cry out, with a pleasing a­mazement, ‘Who is a GOD like unto thee, that par­doneth iniquity, and passeth by transgression!’ ^*— Let all flesh know assuredly; let all flesh rejoice greatly; that with the LORD there is such mercy, and with his CHRIST such plentiful redemption—And O! for the voice of an archangel, to circulate the glad tidings through the universe; that the American savage, as well as the European sage, may learn the exceeding riches of grace in Christ: Through whose infinite satisfying propitiation, all manner of sin, barbarity and blasphemy, are freely forgiven unto men.

What a grand and majestick dome is the sky! Where are the pillars which support the stately concave? What art, most exactly true, balanced the pressure? What props of insuperable strength sustain the weight? How is that immeasurable arch upheld, unshaken and unimpaired, while so many generations of busy mor­tals have sunk, and disappeared, as bubbles upon the stream?—If those stars are of such an amazing bulk, how are they also fastened in their lofty situation? By what miracle in mechanicks, are so many thousands of ponderous orbs kept from falling upon our heads! kept from dashing, both the world to pieces, and its inhabitants to death? Are they hung in golden or ada­mantine chains? Rest they their enormous▪ load on rocks of marble, or columns of brass?—No; they are pendulous in fluid ether; yet are more immoveably fixed, than if the everlasting mountains lent their forests for an axletree, or their ridges for a basis. The Al­mighty Architect stretches out the north, and its whole starry train, over the empty place. He hangs the earth, and all the etherial globes, upon nothing. ^† Yet are their [Page 124] foundations laid so sure, that they can "never be moved at any time."

No unfit representation, to the sincere christian, of his final perseverance; ^* such as points out the cause [Page 125] which effects it, and constitutes the pledge which ascer­tains it.—His nature is all enfeebled. He is not able, of himself, to think a good thought. He has no visible safeguard, nor any sufficiency of his own. And yet whole legions of formidable enemies are in a confede­racy to compass his ruin. The world lays unnumbered snares for his feet: The devil is incessantly urging the siege, by a multitude of fiery darts, or wily tempta­tions: The flesh, like a perfidious inmate, under colour of friendship, and a specious pretence of pleasure, is al­ways forward to betray his integrity.—But, amidst all these threatening circumstances, of personal weakness, and imminent danger, an invisible aid is his defence. " I will uphold thee," says the blessed GOD, ‘with the right hand of my righteousness.’ ^* Comfortable truth! the arm, which fixes the stars in their order, and guides the planets in their course, is stretched out to preserve the heirs of salvation. "— My sheep," adds the great Redeemer, ‘are mine; and they shall never perish; neither shall any pluck them out of my hand.’ ^† What words are these! and did they come from HIM, who hath all power in Heaven, and on earth! and were they spoke to the weakest of the flock; to every unfeigned follower of the great Shepherd? Then omnipotence itself must be vanquished, before they can be destroyed, either by the seductions of fraud, or the assaults of vio­lence.

If you ask therefore, what security we have of en­during to the end, and continuing faithful unto death? —The very same that establishes the heavens, and settles the ordinances of the universe. Can these be thrown into confusion? ^‡ Then may the true believer draw back unto perdition. Can the sun be dislodged from his sphere, and rush lawlessly through the sky? Then, and then only, can the faith of GOD's elect ^‖ be finally [Page 126] overthrown.—Be of good courage then, my soul; rely on those divine succours which are so solemnly stipu­lated, so faithfully promised. Though thy grace be lan­guid as the glimmering spark; though the overflow­ings of corruption threaten it with total extinction; yet, since the great JEHOVAH has undertaken to cher­ish the dim principle, ‘many waters cannot quench it, nor all floods drown it.’ Nay, though it were feeble as the smoking flax, ^* goodness and faithfulness stand en­gaged to augment the heat; to raise the fire, and feed the flame; till it beam forth, a lamp of immortal glory, in the heavens.

As to the faithfulness of a covenanting GOD, this may be emblematically seen, in the stability of the heav­enly bodies, and the perpetuity of their motions. ^†— Those that are fixed or stationary, continue unalterable in their grand elevations. No injurious shocks, no vio­lence of conflicting elements, are able to displace those everlasting hinges, on which dependent worlds revolve. Through the whole flight of time, they recede not, so much as a hair's breadth, from the precise central point of their respective systems.—While the erratick, or plan­etary, perform their prodigious stages, without any in­termission, [Page 127] or the least embarrassment. How soon, and how easily is the most finished piece of human machine­ry disconcerted! But all the celestial movements are so nicely adjusted; all their operations so critically pro­portioned; and their mutual dependencies so strongly connected, that they prolong their beneficial courses, throughout all ages.—While mighty cities are overwhelm­ed with ruin, and their very names lost in oblivion: While vast empires are swept from their foundations, and leave not so much as a shadowy trace of their ancient magnificence: While all terrestrial things are subject to vicissitude, and fluctuating in uncertainty: These are permanent in their duration: These are invariable in their functions: "Not one faileth."—Who doubts the constant succession of day and night, or the regular returns of summer and winter? And why, O! why shall we doubt the veracity of GOD, or distrust the ac­complishment of his holy word? Can the ordinances of Heaven depart? Then only can GOD forget to be gra­cious, or neglect the performance of his promise.—Nay, our LORD gives us yet firmer ground of affiance. He affords us a surer bottom for our faith, than the funda­mental laws of the universe. Heaven and earth, he says, shall pass away; but my words shall not, in a single in­stance, or in one tittle of their import, pass away. No; his sacred word, whatever may obstruct it, whoever may oppose it, shall be fulfilled to the very uttermost.

O powerful word! How astonishing is its efficacy! When this word was issued forth, a thousand worlds emerged out of nothing. Should the mighty orders be repeated, a thousand more would spring into existence. By this word, the vast system of created things is up­held, in constant and immutable perfection. Should it give command, or cease to exert its energy, the uni­versal frame would be dissolved, and all nature revert to her original chaos. And this very word is pledged for the safety, the comfort, the happiness of the godly. This inviolable, this almighty word, speaks in all the promises of the Gospel.—How strangely infatuated are our souls, that we should value it so little! What infi­dels are we in fact, that we should depend upon it no more! Did it create whatever has a being; and shall it [Page 128] not work faith in our breasts? Do unnumbered worlds owe their support to this word; and shall it not be suf­ficient to buoy up our souls in troubles, or establish them in trials? Is it the life of the universe, and shall it be a dead letter to mankind?

If I wish to be heard when I implore heavenly bless­ings, is not this privilege most clearly made over to my enjoyment in that well known text, ‘Ask, and it shall be given you?’ ^*—If I long for the eternal Comforter to dwell in my heart, and sanctify my na­ture, have I not an apparent title to this high prerogative, conferred in that sweet assertive interrogation, ‘How much more shall your heavenly Father give the holy Spirit to those that ask him?’ ^†—If I earnestly covet the inestimable treasures that are comprised in the great IMMANUEL's mediation, can I have a firmer claim to the noble portion, than is granted in that most precious scripture; ‘Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out?’ ^‡—What an assurance of being interested in these unspeakable mercies would I desire? What form of conveyance, what deed of settlement, were it left to my own option, should I choose? Here is the word of a King; the King immortal and invisible; all whose declarations ^‖ are truth itself.—If a monarch be­stow immunities on a body of men, and confirm them by an authentick charter, no one controverts, no one questions, their [...]ight to the royal favours. And why should we suspect the validity of those glorious grants, which are made by the everlasting Sovereign of Nature; which he has also ratified by an oath, and sealed with the blood of his Son?—Corporations may be disfranchised, and charters revoked. Even mountains may be remov­ed, and stars drop from their spheres: But a tenure founded on the divine promise, is unalienably secure; is lasting as eternity itself.

We have endeavoured to spell a syllable of the Eternal Name, in the ancient manuscript of the sky. We have [Page 129] catched a glimpse of the Almighty's glory, from the lustre of innumerable stars. But would we behold all his excellencies portrayed in full perfection, and drawn to the very life, let us attentively consider the REDEEMER.—I observe there are some parts of the firmament, in which the stars seem, as it were, to cluster. They are sown thicker, they lie closer than usual, and strike the eye with redoubled splendour. Like the jew­els on a crown, they mingle their beams, and reflect an increase of brilliancy on each other.—Is there not such an assemblage, such a constellation of the divine honours, most amiably effulgent in the blessed JESUS?

Does not infinite wisdom ^* shine, with surpassing brigthness, in CHRIST? To the making of a world, there was no obstacle; but to the saving of man, there seemed to be unsurmountable bars. If the rebel is suf­fered to escape, where is the inflexible justice which de­nounces "death as the wages of sin?" If the offender is thoroughly pardoned, where is the inviolable veracity which has solemnly declared, ‘the soul that sinneth, shall die?’ These awful attributes are set in terrible array, and, like an impenetrable battalion, oppose the salvation of apostate mankind. Who can suggest a method to absolve the traiterous race; yet vindicate the honours of almighty sovereignty? This is an intricacy, which the most exalted of finite intelligences are un­able to clear.—But behold the unsearchable secret re­vealed! revealed in the wonderful redemption, accom­plished by a dying Saviour! So plainly revealed, that "he who runs may read;" and even babes understand what minds of the deepest penetration could not con­trive.—The Son of GOD, taking our nature, obeys the law, and undergoes death in our stead. By this means, the threatened curse is executed in all its rigour, and free grace is exercised in all its riches. Justice maintains her rights, and, with a steady hand, administers im­partial vengeance; while mercy dispenses her pardons, and welcomes the repentant criminal into the tenderest embraces. Hereby the seemingly thwarting attributes are reconciled. The sinner is saved, not only in full [Page 130] consistence with the honour of the supreme perfections, but to the most illustrious manifestation of them all.

Where does the divine power ^* so signally exert it­self, as in the cross of CHRIST, and in the conquest of grace?—Our LORD, in his lowest state of humili­ation, gained a more glorious victory, than when, through the dividing sea, and the waste howling wil­derness, ‘he rode upon his chariots and horses of salvation.’ When his hands were riveted with irons to the bloody tree, he disarmed death of its sting, and plucked the prey from the jaws of Hell. Then, even then, while he was crucified in weakness, he van­quished the strong man, and subdued our most formida­ble enemies. Even then, he spoiled principalities, tri­umphed over the powers of darkness, and led captivity captive.—Now he is exalted to his heavenly throne, with what a prevailing efficacy does his grace go forth, "conquering, and to conquer!"—By this, the slaves of sin are rescued from their bondage, and restored to the liberty of righteousness. By this, depraved wretches, whose appetites were sensual, and their dispositions dev­ilish, are not only renewed, but renewed after the image of GOD, and made partakers of a divine nature. Mill­ions, millions of lost creatures are snatched, by the in­terposition of grace, like brands from the burning, and translated into everlasting mansions, shine brighter than the stars, shine bright as the sun, in the kingdom of their Father.

Would you then see an incomparably more bright display of the divine excellence, than the unspotted firmament, the spangles of heaven, of the golden fountain of day exhibit, contemplate JESUS of Naz­areth. He is the brightness of his Father's glory, and the express image of his person. In his immaculate nature, in his heavenly temper, in his most holy life, the moral perfections of the Deity are represented [Page 131] to the highest advantage. ^*—Hark! how mercy, with her charming voice, speaks in all he utters. See! how benevolence pours her choicest stores in all he does. Did ever compassion look so amiably soft, as in those pitying tears which swelled his eyes, and trickled down his che [...]ks, to bedew the rancour of his inveterate enemies? —Was it possible for patience to assume a form so love­ly, as that sweetly winning conduct, which bore the con­tradiction of sinners? Which entreated the obstinate to be reconciled; besought the guilty not to die?—In other things, we may find some scattered rays of JEHOVAH's glory; but in CHRIST they are all collected and united. In CHRIST they beam forth with the strongest radiance, with the most delightful effulgence. Out of Sion, and in Sion's great Redeemer, hath GOD appeared in perfect beauty.

Search then, my soul, above all other pursuits, search the records of redeeming love. Let these be the principal objects of thy study. Here employ thyself with the most unwearied assiduity.— In these are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. ^† Such wisdom, as charms and astonishes the very angels; engages their closest attention, and fills them with the deepest adora­tion. ^‡ Such knowledge, as qualifies the possessor, if not for offices of dignity on earth, yet for the most honour­able [Page 132] advancements in the kingdom of Heaven. Dis­united from which knowledge, all application is but elaborate impertinence; and all science, no better than pompous ignorance.—These records contain the faultless model of duty, and the noblest motives to obedience. Nothing so powerful to work a lively faith, and a joyful hope, as an attentive consideration of our LORD's unut­terable merits. Nothing so sovereign to antidote the pestilential influence of the world, and deliver our affec­tions from a slavery to ignoble objects, as an habitual remembrance of his extreme agonies. The genuine, the ever fruitful source of all morality, is the unfeigned love of CHRIST; and the cross, the cross is the ap­pointed ^* altar, from which we may fetch a coal, ^† to enkindle this sacred fire.

Behold, therefore, the man; the matchless and stu­pendous man; whose practice was a pattern of the most exalted virtue, and his person the mirror of every divine perfection. Examine the memoirs of his heav­enly temper, and exemplary conversation. Contemplate that choir of graces which were associated in his mind, and shed the highest lustre on all his actions. Familiar­ize to thy thoughts his instructive discourses, and enter into the very spirit of his refined doctrines; that the graces may be transfused into thy breast, and the doc­trines transcribed in thy life.—Follow him to Calvary's horrid eminence; to Calvary's fatal catastrophe; where innocence, dignity, and merit, were made perfect through [Page 133] sufferings; each shining, with all possible splendour, through the tragical scene; somewhat like his own radiant bow, then glowing with the greatest beauty, when appearing on the darkest cloud.—Be thy most con­stant attention fixed on that lovely and sorrowful spec­tacle. Behold the spotless victim nailed to the tree, and stabbed to the heart. Hear him pouring out prayers for his murderers, before he poured out his soul for transgressors. See the wounds that stream with for­giveness, and bleed balm for a distempered world. O! see the justice of the Almighty and his goodness; his mercy and his vengeance; every tremendous and gracious attribute manifested, manifested with inexpressible glory, in that most ignominious, yet grandest of transactions.

Since God is so inconceivably great, as these his mar­vellous works declare:

how can we forbear hastening with Moses, bowing our­selves to the earth, and worshipping?

O! what an honourable, as well as advantageous em­ploy, is prayer!— Advantageous. By prayer, we culti­vate that improving correspondence with JEHOVAH; we carry on that gladdening intercourse with his SPIR­IT, which must begin here, in order to be completed in eternity.— Honourable. By prayer we have access to that mighty Potentate, whose sceptre sways universal [Page 134] nature, and whose rich regalia fill the skies with lus­tre. Prayer places us in his presence chamber; while "the blood of sprinkling" procures us a gracious au­dience.

Shall I then blush to be found prostrate before the throne of grace? Shall I be ashamed to have it known, that I offer up social supplications in the family, or am conscientious in observing my private retirements? Rather let me glory in this unspeakable privilege. Let me reckon it the noblest posture, to fall low on my knees before his footstool; and the highest honour, to enjoy communion with his most exalted Majesty.—Incompa­rably more noble, than to sit in person, on the triumphal chariot, or to stand in effigy, amidst the temple of worthies.

Most inestimable, in such a view, is that promise, which so often occurs in the prophetick writings, and is the crowning benefit of the new covenant, I will be thy God. ^*—Will this Supremely excellent, and Almighty Being vouchsafe to be my portion? to settle upon a poor sinner, not the heritage of a country, not the possession of the whole earth, but his own ever blessed self? May I then, through his free condescending grace, and the unknown merits of his Son, look upon all these infinitely noble attributes as my treasure? May I regard the wisdom, which superintends such a multitude of worlds, as my guide; the power which produced, and preserves them in existence, as my guard; the goodness which, by an endless communication of favours, ren­ders them all so many habitations of happiness, as my exceeding great reward?—What a fund of felicity is included in such a blessing! How often does the Israel­itish prince exult in the assurance, that this unutterable and boundless good is his own? Interested in this, he bids defiance to every evil that can be dreaded, and rests in certain expectation of every blessing that can be desired. The LORD is my light, and my salvation; whom then shall I fear? The LORD (with an air of exultation, he repeats both his affiance, and his challenge) is the strength of my life; of whom then shall [Page 135] I be afraid? ^* Nothing so effectual as this appropriating faith, to inspire a dignity of mind superiour to transi­tory trifles; or to create a calmness of temper, un­alarmed by vulgar fears, unappalled by death itself.— The LORD is my shepherd, says the same truly gallant and heroick personage; therefore shall I lack nothing. ^† How is it possible he should suffer want, who has the allsufficient fulness for his supply? So long as unerring wisdom is capable of contriving the means; so long as uncontrollable power is able to execute them; such a one cannot fail of being safe and happy; whether he continue amidst the vicissitudes of time, or depart into the unchangeable eternity.

Here let us stand a moment, and humbly contem­plate this great GOD, together with ourselves, in a rela­tive view.—If we reflect on the works of material na­ture, their number incomprehensible, and their extent unmeasurable; each of them apart, so admirably fram­ed; the connexions of the whole so exquisitely regu­lated, and all derived from one and the same glorious Agent.—If we recollect the far more noble accomplish­ments of elegant taste, and discerning judgment; of re­fined affections, and exalted sentiments, which are to be found among the several orders of intelligent exist­ence; and all of them flowing in rich emanations from the one sole Fountain of intellectual light:—If we far­ther consider this Author of material beauty, and moral excellency, as a guardian, a governour, and benefactor to all his creatures; supporting the whole system, and protecting each individual, by an ever watchful provi­dence; presiding over the minutest affairs, and causing all events to terminate in the most extensive good; heap­ing, with unremitted liberality, his benefits upon every capable object, and making the circuit of the universe a seminary of happiness:—Is it possible for the human heart, under such captivating views, to be indifferent to­wards this most benign, most bountiful Original of be­ing and of bliss? Can any be so immersed in stupidity, as to say unto the Almighty—in the language of an irrelig­ious temper, and licentious life, to say, ‘Depart from [Page 136] us; we implore not thy favour, nor desire the knowl­edge of thy ways?’—Wonder, O heavens! be amazed, O earth! and let the inhabitants of both express their astonishment at this unparalleled complication of disin­genuous, ungrateful, destructive perverseness!

If we consider our fallen and imperfect state; frail in our bodies, enfeebled in our minds, in every part of our constitution, and in all the occurrences of life, "like a tottering wall, or a broken hedge."—If we survey our indigent and infirm state, without holiness, without spiritual strength; our possession of present con­veniences, entirely dependent on GOD's sovereign pleas­ure; yea, forfeited, justly forfeited, with every future hope, by a thousand aggravated iniquities.—If we add the various disasters of our condition; agitated as we are by tumultuous passions; oppressed with dispiriting fears; held in suspense by a variety of perplexing ^* cares; liable to pains, and exposed to troubles; troub­les from every quarter; troubles of every kind:—Can we, amidst so many wants, under such deplorable infirm­ities, and subject to such disastrous accidents—can we be unconcerned, whether GOD's omnipotent, irresistible, all conducting hand be against us, or for us? Imagina­tion itself shudders at the thought!—Can we rest satis­fied, without a well grounded persuasion, that we are reconciled to this supreme LORD, and the object of his unchangeable goodness?—If there be an abandoned [Page 137] wretch, whose apprehensions are so fatally blinded; who is so utterly lost to all sense of his duty and of his in­terest; let me bewail his misery, while I abhor his im­piety. Bewail his misery; though popularity, with her choicest laurels, adorn his brow; though affluence, with her richest delicacies, load his table; though half a nation, or half a world, conspire to call him happy.

May I, by a believing application, solace myself in this everlasting source of love, perfection, and joy! Grant me this request, and I ask no more.—Only that I may expect, not with a reluctant anxiety, but with a ready cheerfulness, the arrival of that important hour, when this veil of flesh shall drop, and the shadows of mortality flee away. When I shall no longer complain of obscure knowledge, languid affections, and imperfect fruition—but shall see the uncreated and immortal Maj­esty. See him, not in this distant and unaffecting meth­od of reasoning from his works; but with the most clear and direct intuition of the mind.—When I shall love him, not with a cold and contracted spirit; but with the most lively and enlarged emotions of gratitude. —When I shall incessantly enjoy the light of his coun­tenance; and be united, inseparably united to his all glorious GODHEAD.—Take, ye ambitious, unenvied and unopposed, take to yourselves the toys of state. May I be enabled to rejoice in this blessed hope; and to tri­umph in that amiable, that adorable, that delightful name, the LORD MY GOD! And I shall scarce be­stow a thought, on the splendid pageantry of the world, unless it be to despise its empty pomp, and to pity its de­luded admirers.

All these bodies, though immense in their size, and almost infinite in their multitude, are obedient to the di­vine command. The GOD of wisdom ‘telleth their numbers,’ and is intimately acquainted with their va­rious properties. The GOD of power ‘calleth them all by their names,’ and assigns them whatsoever office he pleases.—He marshals all the starry legions with infinitely greater ease, and nicer order, than the most expert general arranges his disciplined troops. He appoints their posts; he marks their route; he fixes [Page 138] the time for their return. The posts which he appoints, they occupy without fail. In the route which he set­tles, they persevere, without the least deviation. And to the instant ^* which he fixes for their return, they are precisely punctual.—He has given them a law, which, through a long revolution of ages, shall not be broken, unless his sovereign will interposes for its repeal. Then indeed the motion of the celestial orbs is controlled; their action remains suspended; or their influence re­ceives a new direction.—The sun, at his creation, issued forth with a command to travel perpetually through the heavens. Since which, he has never neglected to per­form the great circuit, rejoicing as a giant to ‘run his race.’ But, when it is requisite to accomplish the purposes of divine love, the orders are counter­manded; the flaming courier remits his career; stands still in Gibeon; ^† and, for the conveniency of the chosen people, holds back the falling day.—The moon was dispatched, with a charge never to intermit her revolv­ing course, till day and night come to an end. But when the children of Providence are to be favoured with an uncommon continuance of light, she halts in her march; makes a solemn pause in the valley of Ajalon; ^‡ and delays to bring on her attendant train of shadows. —When the enemies of the LORD are to be discomfited, the stars are levied into the service; the stars are armed [Page 139] and take the field; the stars, in their courses, fought a­gainst Sisera. ^*

So dutiful is material nature! So obsequious, in all her forms, to her Creator's pleasure!—The bellowing thunders listen to his voice; and the vollied lightnings observe the direction of his eye. The flying storm, and impetuous whirlwind, wear his yoke. The raging waves revere his nod; they shake the earth; they dash the skies; yet never offer to pass the limits which he has prescribed.—Even the planetary spheres, though vastly larger than this wide extended earth, are in his hand, as clay in the hands of a potter. Though, swifter than the northern blast, they sweep the long tracts of ether; yet are they guided by his reins, and execute whatever he enjoins.—All those enormous globes of central fire, which beam through the boundless azure, in comparison of which, an army of planets, were like a swarm of summer insects; those, even those, are con­formable to his will, as the melting wax to the impressed seal.—Since all, ALL is obedient, throughout the whole ascent of things, shall man be the only rebel against the Almighty Maker? Shall these unruly appetites, reject his government, and refuse their allegiance? Shall these headstrong passions, break loose from divine restraint, and run wild, in exorbitant sallies, after their own im­aginations?

O my soul, be stung with remorse, and overwhelm­ed with confusion, at the thought! Is it not a right­eous [Page 140] thing, that the blessed GOD should sway the scep­tre, with the most absolute authority, over all the crea­tures which his power has formed? especially over those creatures, whom his distinguishing favour has endued with the noble principle of reason, and made capable of a blissful immortality? Sure, if all the ranks of in­animate existence conform to their Maker's decree, by the necessity of their nature, this more excellent race of beings, should pay their equal homage, by the willing compliance of their affections. ^*—Come then, all ye faculties of my mind; come all ye powers of my body; give up yourselves, without a moment's delay, without the least reserve, to his governance. Stand, like dutiful servants, at his footstool; in an everlasting readiness, to do whatsoever he requires; to be whatsoever he ap­points; to further, with united efforts, the purposes of his glory in this earthly scene; or else to separate, without reluctance, at his summons; the one, to sleep in the silent dust; the other, to advance his honour, in some remoter colony of his kingdom.—Thus may I join with all the works of the LORD, in all places of his dominion, to recognize his unversal supremacy; and proclaim him Sovereign of souls, as well as Ruler of worlds.

[Page 141]At my first coming abroad, all these luminaries were eclipsed by the overpowering lustre of the sun. They were all placed in the very same stations, and played the same sprightly beams, yet not one of them was seen. As the daylight wore away, and the sober shades advanced, Hesperus, who leads the starry train, disclosed his radi­ant forehead, and catched my eye. While I stood gaz­ing on his bright and beautiful aspect, several of his at­tendants peeped through the blue curtains. Scarce had I turned to observe these fresh emanations of splendour, but others dropt the veil; others stole into view. When lo! faster and more numerous, multitudes sprung from obscurity; they poured in shining troops, and in sweet confusion, over all the empyrean plain; till the firma­ment seemed like one vast constellation, and ‘a flood of glory burst from all the skies.’

Is not such the rise, and such the progress of a true conversion, in the prejudiced infidel, or inattentive sin­ner? During the period of his vainer years, a thousand interesting truths lay utterly undiscovered; a thousand momentous concerns were entirely disregarded. But when divine grace dissipates the delusive glitter which dazzled his understanding, and beguiled his affections; then he begins to discern, dimly to discern the things which belong unto his peace. Some admonition of scripture darts conviction into his soul, as the glim­mering of a star pierces the gloom of night.—Then, perhaps, another awful, or cheering text, impresses ter­rour, or diffuses comfort. A threatening alarms his fears, or a promise awakens his hopes. This, possibly, is suc­ceeded by some afflictive dispensation of Providence, and improved by some edifying and instructive conversa­tion: All which is established as to its continuance, and enlarged as to its influence, by a diligent study of the sacred word.—By this means, new truths con­tinually pour their evidence. Scenes of refined and ex­alted, but hitherto unknown delight, address him with their attractives: New desires take wing; new pur­suits are set on foot: A new turn of mind forms his temper; a new habit of conversation regulates his life. In a word, old things are passed away, and all things become new. He who was sometimes darkness, is now light, and life, and joy in the LORD.

[Page 142]The more attentively I view the crystal concave, the more fully I discern the richness of its decorations. Abundance of minuter lights, which lay concealed from a superficial notice, are visible on a closer examination; especially in those tracts of the sky, which are called the galaxy, and are distinguishable by a sort of milky path. There the stars are crowded, rather than dissem­inated. The region seems to be all on a blaze, with their blended rays.—Besides this vast profusion which, in my present situation, the eye discovers; was I to make my survey from any other part of the globe, lying nearer the southern pole, I should behold a new choir of starry bodies, which have never appeared within our horizon.—Was I (which is still more wonderful) either here or there, to view the firmament with the virtuoso's glass, I should find a prodigious multitude of flaming orbs, which, immersed in depths of ether, escape the keenest unassisted sight. ^*—Yet in these various situ­ations, even with the aid of the telescopick tube, I should not be able to descry the half, perhaps not a thou­sandth part, of those majestick luminaries which the vast expansive heavens contain. ^†—So, the more diligently I pursue my search into those oracles of eternal truth, the scriptures, I perceive a wider, a deeper, an ever in­creasing fund of spiritual treasures. I perceive the brighter strokes of wisdom, and the richer displays of goodness; a more transcendent excellency in the illus­trious Messiah, and a more deplorable vileness in fallen [Page 143] man; a more immaculate purity in GOD's law, and more precious privileges in his Gospel. Yet, after a course of study ever so assiduous, ever so prolonged, I should have reason to own myself a mere babe in heav­enly knowledge; or, at most, but a puerile proficient, in the school of CHRIST.

After all my most accurate inspection, those starry orbs appear but as glittering points. Even the planets, though so much nearer our earthly mansion, seem only like burning bullets. If then, we have such imperfect apprehensions of visible and material things, how much more scanty and inadequate must be our notions of in­visible and immortal objects!—We behold the stars. Though every one is incomparably bigger than the globe we inhabit, yet they dwindle, upon our survey, into the most diminutive forms. Thus, we see by faith the glories of the blessed JESUS, the atoning efficacy of his death, the justifying merit of his righteousness, and the joys which are reserved for his followers. But alas! even our most exalted ideas are vastly below the truth: As much below the truth, as the report which our eyes make of those celestial edifices, is inferiour to their real grandeur.—Should we take in all the magnify­ing assistances which art has contrived, those luminous bodies would elude our skill, and appear as small as ever. Should an inhabitant of earth travel towards the cope of Heaven, and be carried forwards in his aërial journey, more than a hundred and sixty millions of miles; ^* even in that advanced situation, those oceans of flame would look no larger than radiant specks.— In like manner, conceive ever so magnificently of the Redeemer's honours, and of the bliss which he has purchased for his people, yet you will fall short. Raise your imagination higher; stretch your invention wider; give them all the scope which a soaring and excursive fancy can take; still your conceptions will be extreme­ly [Page 144] disproportionate to their genuine perfections.—Vast are the bodies which roll in the expanse of heaven: Vaster far are those fields of ether, through which they run their endless round: But the excellency of JESUS, and the happiness laid up for his servants, are greater than either—than both—than all. An inspired writer calls the former, "the unsearchable riches of CHRIST;" and styles the latter, ‘an exceeding great and eternal weight of glory.’

If those stars are so many inexhaustible magazines of fire, and immense reservoirs of light, there is no reason to doubt, but they have some very grand uses, suitable to the magnificence of their nature. To specify, or ex­plain the particular purposes they answer, is altogether impossible in our present state of distance and igno­rance. This, however, we may clearly discern; they are disposed in that very manner, which is most pleasing and most serviceable to mankind.—They are not placed at an infinite remove, so as to lie beyond our sight; neither are they brought so near our abode, as to annoy us with their beams. We see them shine on every side. The deep azure, which serves them as a ground, height­ens their splendour. At the same time, their influence is gentle, and their rays are destitute of heat. So that we are surrounded with a multitude of fiery globes, which beautify and illuminate the firmament, without any risque, either to the coolness of our night, or the quiet of our repose.—Who can sufficiently admire that wonderous benignity, which, on our account, strews the earth with blessings of every kind, and vouchsafes to make the very heavens subservient to our delight?

It is not solely to adorn the roof of our palace with costly gildings, that GOD commands the celestial lu­minaries to glitter through the gloom. We also reap considerable benefits from their ministry.—They divide our time, and fix its solemn periods. They settle the order of our works, and are, according to the destina­tion mentioned in sacred writ, ‘for signs, and for sea­sons: for days, and for years.’ The returns of heat and cold alone, would have been too precarious a rule. But these radiant bodies, by the variation, and [Page 145] also by the regularity of their motions, afford a method of calculating, absolutely certain, and sufficiently obvious. By this the farmer is instructed when to commit his grain to the [...]urrows, and how to conduct the operations of husbandry. By this the sailor knows when to pro­ceed on his voyage with least peril, and how to carry on the business of navigation with most success.

Why should not the christian, the probationer for eternity, learn from the same monitors, to number—for nobler purposes, to number his days; and duly to transact the grand, grand affairs of his everlasting salvation? Since GOD has appointed so many bright measures of our time, to determine its larger periods, and to min­ute down its ordinary stages, sure, this most strongly inculcates its value, and should powerfully prompt us to improve it.—Behold! the supreme LORD marks the prog­ress of our life, in that most conspicuous calendar a­bove. Does not such an ordination tell us, and in the most emphatical language, that our life is given for use, not for waste? That no portion of it is delivered, but under a strict account; that all of it is entered as it passes, in the divine register; and, therefore, that the stewards of such a talent, are to expect a future reck­oning?—Behold! the very heavens are bidden to be the accomptants of our years, and months, and days. O! may this induce us to manage them with a vigilant frugality; to part with them as misers with their hoarded treasure, warily and circumspectly; and, if possible, as merchants with their rich commodities, not without an equivalent, either in personal improvement, or social usefulness!

How bright the starry diamonds shine? The ambition of eastern monarchs could imagine no distinction more noble and sublime, than that of being likened to those beaming orbs. ^*—They form night's richest dress, and sparkle upon her sable robe, like jewels of the finest lustre. Like jewels! I wrong their character. The lucid stone has no brilliancy; quenched is the flame even of the golden topaz, compared with those glowing decorations of Heaven.—How widely are their radiant [Page 146] honours diffused! No nation so remote, but sees their beauty, and rejoices in their usefulness. They have been admired by all preceding generations; and every rising age will gaze on their charms, with renewed delight. —How animating then, is that promise, made to the faithful ministers of the Gospel! ‘They that turn many to righteousness, shall shine as the stars forever and ever.’ ^* Is not this a most winning encouragement "to spend and be spent," in the service of souls? Me­thinks the stars beckon as they twinkle. Methinks they shew me their splendours, on purpose to inspire me with alacrity, in the race set before me; on purpose to enliven my activity, in the work that is given me to do. —Yes; ye majestick monitors, I understand your mean­ing. If honour has any charms; if true glory, the glory which cometh from GOD, is any attractive; you display the most powerful incitements to exercise all as­siduity in my holy vocation. I will, henceforth, observe your intimation, and, when zeal becomes languid, have recourse to your heavenly lamps. If so be I may re­kindle its ardour at those inextinguishable fires.

Of the polar star, it is observable, that while other luminaries alter their situation, this seems invariably fix­ed. ^† While other luminaries, now mount the battle­ments of Heaven, and appear upon duty; now retire beneath the horizon, and resign to a fresh set, the watch­es of the night: this never departs from its station; this, in every season, maintains an uniform position; and is always to be found, in the same tract of the northern sky.—How often has this beamed bright in­telligence on the sailor, and conducted the keel to its desired haven! In early ages, those who went down to the sea in ships, and occupied their business in great waters, had scarce any other sure guide for their wan­dering vessel. This therefore they viewed, with the most solicitous attention. By this they formed their ob­servations, and regulated their voyage. When this was [Page 147] obscured by clouds, or inveloped in mists, the trembling mariner was bewildered on the watery waste. His thoughts fluctuated, as much as the floating surge; and he knew not where he was advanced, or whither he should steer. But, when this auspicious star broke through the gloom, it dissipated the anxiety of his mind, and cleared up his dubious passage. He reassum­ed, with alacrity, the management of the helm, and was able to shape his course, with some tolerable de­gree of satisfaction and certainty.

Such, only much clearer in its light, and much sur­er in its direction, is the holy wo [...]d of GOD, to those myriads of intellectual beings, who are bound for the eternal shores; who, embarked in a vessel of feeble flesh, are to pass the waves of this tempestuous and per­ilous world. In all difficulties, those sacred pages shed an encouraging ray; in all uncertainties, they suggest the right determination, and point out the proper pro­cedure. What is still a more inestimable advantage, they, like the star which conducted the eastern sages, make plain the way of access to a Redeemer. They dis­play his unspeakable merits; they discover the method of being interested in his great atonement; and lead the weary soul, tossed by troubles, and shattered by tempt­ations, to that only harbour of peaceful repose.—Let us, therefore, attend to this unerring directory, with the same constancy of regard, as the seafaring man observes his compass. Let us become as thoroughly acquainted with this sacred chart, as the pilot is with every trusty mark, that gives notice of a lurking rock; and with every open road, that yields a safe passage into the port. Above all, let us commit ourselves to this infallible guidance with the same implicit resignation; let us con­form our conduct to its exalted precepts, with the same sedulous care, as the children of Israel, when sojourning in the trackless desert, followed the pillar of fire, and the motions of the miraculous cloud.—So will it introduce us, not into an earthly Canaan, flowing with milk and honey, but into an immortal paradise, where is the fulness of joy, and where are pleasures for evermore. It will introduce us into those happy, happy regions, where our sun shall no more go down, nor our moon with­draw [Page 148] itself; for the LORD shall be our everlasting light, and the days of our mourning, together with the fatigues of our pilgrimage, shall be ended. ^*

I perceive a great variety in the size and splendour of those gems of heaven. Some are of the first magni­tude; others of an inferiour order. Some glow with intense flame; others glimmer with fainter beams. Yet all are beautiful; all have their peculiar lustre, and dis­tinct use; all tend, in their different degrees, to enamel the cope of heaven, and embroider the robe of night— This circumstance is remarked by an author, whose sentiments are a source of wisdom, and the very stand­ard of truth. ‘One star, says the apostle of the Gentiles, differeth from another star in glory: So also is the res­urrection of the dead.’

In the world above, are various degrees of happiness, various seats of honour. Some will rise to more illus­trious distinctions, and richer joys. ^† Some, like vessels of ample capacity, will admit more copious accessions of light and excellence. Yet there will be no want, no deficiency, in any; but a fulness, both of divine sat­isfactions, and personal perfections. Each will enjoy all the good, and be adorned with all the glory, that his heart can wish, or his condition receive.—None will know what it is to envy. Not the least malevolence, nor the least selfishness, but everlasting friendship pre­vails, and a mutual complacency in each other's delight. Love, cordial love, will give every particular saint a participation of all the fruitions, ^‡ which are diffused through the whole assembly of the blessed.—No one eclipses, but each reflects light upon his brother. A sweet interchange of rays subsists; all enlightened by the great fountain, and all enlightening one another. By which reciprocal communication of pleasure and amity, each will be continually receiving from, each incessantly adding to, the general felicity.

[Page 149]Happy, supremely happy they, who are admitted into the celestial mansions. Better to be a door keeper in those "ivory palaces," ^* than to fill the most gorgeous throne on earth. The very lowest place at GOD's right hand, is distinguished honour, and consummate bliss.—O! that we may, in some measure, anticipate that beatifick state, while we remain in our banishment below! May we, by rejoicing in the superiour prosperity of another, make it our own! And, provided the general result is harmony, be content, be pleased with whatso­ever part is assigned to our share, in the universal choir of affairs.

While I am considering the heavenly bodies, I must not entirely forget those fundamental laws of our mod­ern astronomy, projection and attraction. One of which is the all combining cement, the other is the ever ope­rative spring of the mighty frame.—In the beginning, the allcreating FIAT impressed a proper degree of mo­tion on each of those whirling orbs; which, if not controlled, would have carried them on, in strait lines, and to endless lengths, till they were even lost in the abyss of space. But, the gravitating property, being added to the projectile force, determined their courses to a circular ^† form, and obliged the reluctant rovers to perform their destined rounds.—Were either of those causes to suspend their action, all the harmoniously mov­ing spheres would be disconcerted—would degenerate into sluggish inactive masses; and, falling into the central [Page 150] fire, be burnt to ashes: Or else would exorbitate into wild confusion; and each, by the rapidity of its whirl, be dissipated into atoms. But, the impulsive and attrac­tive energy, being most nicely attempered to each other, and, under the immediate operation of the Almighty, exerting themselves in perpetual concert, the various globes run their radiant races, without the least inter­ruption or the least deviation; so as to create the alter­nate changes of day and night, and distribute the use­ful vicissitudes of succeeding seasons; so as to answer all the great ends of a gracious Providence, and procure every comfortable convenience for universal nature.

Does not this constitution of the material, very nat­urally lead the thoughts to those grand principles of the moral and devotional world, faith and love?— These are often celebrated by the inspired apostle, as a comprehensive summary of the Gospel. ^* These inspirit the breast, and regulate the progress of each private christian. These unite the whole congregation of the faithful to GOD, and one another. To GOD, the great centre, in the bonds of gratitude and devotion; to one another, by a reciprocal intercourse of brotherly affec­tions, and friendly offices.—If you ask, Why is it im­possible for the true believer to live at all adventures? to stagnate in sloth, or habitually to deviate from duty? —We answer, It is owing to ‘his faith, working by love.’ ^† He assuredly trusts, that CHRIST has sustained the infamy, and endured the torment due to his sins. He firmly relies on that divine propitiation, for the pardon of all his guilt; and humbly expects ever­lasting salvation, as the purchase of his Saviour's merits. This produces such a spirit of gratitude, as refines his inclinations, and animates his whole behaviour. He cannot, he cannot run to excess of riot; because love to his adorable Redeemer, like a strong, but silken curb, sweetly restrains him. He cannot, he cannot lie lulled in a lethargick indolence; because love to the same infi­nite Benefactor, like a pungent, but endearing spur, pleasingly excites him.—In a word, faith supplies the powerful impulse, while love gives the determining bias, [Page 151] and leads the willing feet through the whole circle of GOD's commandments. By the united efficacy of these heavenly graces, the christian conduct is preserved in the uniformity and beauty of holiness; as by the blendid power of those Newtonian principles, the solar system re­volves in a steady and magnificent regularity.

How admirable, how extensive, how diversified is the force of this single principle, attraction! ^*—This penetrates the very essence of all bodies, and diffuses it­self to the remotest limits of the mundane system.—By this, the worlds, impressed with motion, hang self bal­anced on their centres; ^† and, though orbs of immense magnitude, require nothing but this amazing property, for their support.—To this we ascribe a phenomenon, of a very different kind, the pressure of the atmos­phere; which, though a yielding and expansive fluid, yet, constipated by an attractive energy, surrounds the whole globe, and incloses every creature, as it were, with a tight bandage. An expedient this, abso­lutely necessary to preserve the texture of our bodies; and indeed, to maintain every species of animal exist­ence.—Attraction! Urged by this wonderful impetus, the rivers circulate, copious and unintermitted, among all the nations of the earth: Sweeping with rapidity down the steeps, or softly ebbing through the plains. Impelled by the same mysterious force, the nutritious juices are detached from the soil; and, ascending the trees, find their way through millions of the finest meanders, in order to transfuse vegetative life into all the branches. —This confines the ocean within proper bounds. Though the waves thereof roar; though they toss themselves with all the madness of indignant rage; yet, checked by this potent, this inevitable curb, they are unable to pass even the slight barrier of sand. To this the moun­tains owe that unshaken firmness, which laughs at the shock of careering winds, and bids the tempest, with all its mingled horrours, impotently rave.—By virtue of this invisible mechanism; without the aid of crane or pulley, or any instrument of human device, many [Page 152] thousand tons of water are raised, every moment, into the regions of the firmament. By this, they continue suspended in thin air, without any capacious cistern to contain their substance, or any massy pillars to sustain their weight. By this same variously acting power, they return to the place of their native residence; distilled in gentle falls of dew, or precipitated in impetuous show­ers of rain. They slide into the fields in fleecy flights of snow, or are darted upon the houses in clattering storms of hail.—This occasions the strong cohesion of solid bodies. Without which, our large machines could exert themselves with no vigour; and the nicer utensils of life, would elude our expectations of service. This affords a foundation for all those delicate or noble me­chanick arts, which furnish mankind with numberless conveniences, both of ornament and delight.—In short, this is the prodigious ballast, which composes the equilibrium, and constitutes the stability of things: This, the great chain which forms the connexions of universal nature; and the mighty engine which prompts, facilitates, and, in good measure, accomplishes all her operations.—What complicated effects, from a single cause! ^* What profusion, amidst frugality! An un­known profusion of benefits, with the utmost frugality of expense!

And what is this attraction? Is it a quality, in its existence, inseparable from matter▪ and, in its acting, independent on the DEITY!—Quite the reverse. It is the very singer of GOD: The constant impression of divine power: A principle, neither innate in matter, nor intelligible by mortals.—Does it not, however, bear a considerable analogy to the agency of the HOLY GHOST, in the christian economy? Are not the gracious operations of the blessed Spirit, thus extensive, thus admirable, thus various?—That Almighty Being transmits his gifts through every age, and communi­cates his graces to every adherent on the Redeemer. All, either of illustrious memory, or of beneficial ten­dency; in a word, ‘all the good that is done upon [Page 153] earth, he doth it himself.’ Strong in his aid, and in the power of his might, the saints of all times, have trod vice under their feet; have triumphed over this abject world; and conversed in Heaven, while they dwelt on earth. Not I, but the grace of GOD which was with me, ^* is the unanimous acknowledgment of them all.—By the same kindly succours, the whole church is still en­lightened, quickened, and governed. Through his be­nign influences, the scales of ignorance fall from the un­derstanding; the leprosy of evil concupiscence is purged from the will; and the fetters, the more than adaman­tine fetters of habitual iniquity, drop off from the con­versation. He breathes even upon dry bones, ^† and they live; They are animated with faith; they pant with ar­dent and heavenly desire; they exercise themselves in all the duties of godliness.—His real, though secret in­spiration, dissolves the flint in the impenitent breast, and binds up the sorrows of the broken heart; or raises the thoughts high in the elevations of holy hope; yet lays them low, in the humiliations of inward abase­ment; steels the soul with impenetrable resolution, and persevering fortitude; at the same time, softens it into a dovelike meekness, and melts it in penitential sorrow.

When I contemplate those ample and magnificent structures, erected over all the etherial plains:—When I look upon them as so many splendid repositories of light, or fruitful abodes of life:—When I remember that there may be other orbs, vastly more remote than those which appear to our unaided sight; orbs, whose effulgence, though travelling ever since the creation, is not yet arrived upon our coasts: ^‡—When I stretch my [Page 154] thoughts to the innumerable orders of being which in­habit all those spacious systems, from the loftiest seraph to the lowest reptile; from the armies of angels which surround the throne of JEHOVAH, to the puny nations which tinge with blue the surface of the plum, ^* or man­tle the standing pool with green:—How various appear the links in this immense chain! How vast the grada­tions in this universal scale of existence! Yet all these, though ever so vast and various, are the works of GOD's hand, and are full of his presence.

He rounded in his palm those dreadful large globes, which are pendulous in the vault of heaven. He kindled those astonishing bright fires, which fill the firmament with a flood of glory. By him they are suspended in fluid ether, and cannot be shaken: By him they dis­pense a perpetual tide of beams, and are never exhausted. —He formed, with inexpressible nicety, that delicately fine collection of tubes; that unknown multiplicity of subtle springs, whch organize, and actuate the frame of the minutest insect. He bids the crimson current roll; the vital movements play; and associates a world of wonders, even in an animated point. ^†—In all [Page 155] these is a signal exhibition of creating power; to all these are extended the special regards of preserving goodness. From hence let me learn to rely on the providence, and to revere the presence of the Supreme Majesty.

To rely on his providence.—For, amidst that incon­ceivable number and variety of beings which swarm through the regions of creation, not one is overlooked, not one is neglected by the great Omnipotent Cause of all. However in considerable in its character, or dimin­utive in its size, it is still the production of the univer­sal Maker, and belongs to the family of the Almighty Father.—What though enthroned archangels enjoy the smiles of his countenance! yet the low inhabitants of earth, the most despicable worms of the ground, are not excluded from his providential care. Though the manifestation of his perfections is vouchsafed to holy and intellectual essences; his ear is open to the cries of the young raven; his eye is attentive to the wants, and to the welfare of the very meanest births of na­ture. —How much less then are his own people disre­garded? Those for whom he has delivered his beloved Son to death, and for whom he has prepared habitations of eternal joy. They disregarded! No: THEY are "kept as the apple of an eye." The very hairs of their head are all numbered. The fondest mother may forget her infant, that is "dandled upon her knees," and sucks at her breast, ^* much sooner than the Father [Page 156] of everlasting compassion can discontinue, or remit, his watchful tenderness to his people—his children—his heirs.

Let this teach me also a more lively sense of the di­vine presence.—All the rolling worlds above, all the liv­ing atoms below, together with all the beings that in­tervene betwixt these wide extremes, are vouchers for an ever present Deity. ‘GOD has not left himself without witness.’ The marks of his footsteps are evident in every place, and the touches of his finger distinguishable in every creature. ‘ Thy name is nigh, O thou allsupporting, allinforming LORD! and that do thy wonderous works declare. ^* Thy goodness warms in the morning sun, and refreshes in the evening [Page 157] breeze. Thy glory shines in the lamps of midnight, and smiles in the blossoms of spring. We see a trace of thy incomprehensible grandeur in the boundless extent of things, and a sketch of thy exquisite skill in those almost evanescent sparks of life, the insect race.’ —How stupid is this heart of mine, that, amidst such a multitude of remembrancers, thronging on every side, I should forget thee a single moment! Grant me, thou great I AM! thou source and support of universal existence!—O grant me an enlightened eye, to discern thee in every object; and a devout heart, to adore thee on every occasion. Instead of living without GOD in the world, may I be ever with him, and see all things full of him!

If the beautiful spangles which a clear night pours on the beholder's eye; if those other fires, which beam in re­moter skies, and are discoverable only by that revelation to the sight, the telescope; if all those bright millions are so many fountains of day, enriched with native and inde­pendent lustre, illuminating planets, and enlivening sys­tems of their own: ^* What pomp, how majestick and splendid, is disclosed in the midnight scene! What riches are disseminated through all those numberless provinces of the great JEHOVAH's empire!—Grandeur beyond ex­pression!—Yet there is not the meanest slave, but carries [Page 158] greater wealth in his own bosom, possesses superiour dig­nity in his own person. The soul that informs his clay; —the soul that teaches him to think, and enables him to choose; that qualifies him to relish rational pleasure, and to breathe sublime desire; ^*—the soul that is endowed with such noble faculties, and, above all, is distinguished with the dreadful, the glorious capacity, of being pained or blessed forever;—this soul surpasses in worth, what­ever the eye can see; whatever of material the fancy can imagine. Before one such intellectual being, all tho treasure, and all the magnificence of unintelligent crea­tion, becomes poor and contemptible. ^† For this soul, Omnipotence itself has waked, and worked through ev­ery age. To convince this soul, the fundamental laws of nature have been controlled, and the most amazing mir­acles▪ have alarmed all the ends of the earth. To instruct this soul, the wisdom of Heaven has been transfused into the sacred page; and missionaries have been sent from the Great King, who resides in light unapproachable. To sanctify this soul, the Almighty Comforter takes the wings of a dove, and, with a sweet transforming in­fluence, broods on the human heart. And O! to redeem this soul from guilt; to rescue it from Hell, the Heaven of heavens was bowed, and GOD himself came down to dwell in dust.

Let me pause, a while, upon this important subject. —What are the schemes which engage the attention of eminent statesmen and mighty monarchs, compared with the grand interests of an immortal soul? The sup­port of commerce, and the success of armies, though extremely weighty affairs, yet, if laid in the balance [Page 159] against the salvation of a soul, are lighter than the downy feather, poised against talents of gold. To save a navy from shipwreck, or a kingdom from slavery, are deliverances of the most momentous nature, which the transactions of mortality can admit. But O! how they shrink into an inconsiderable trifle, if (their aspect up­on immortality forgot) they are set in competition with the delivery of a single soul, from the anguish and hor­rours of a distressed eternity! ^*

Is such the importance of the soul! What vigilance then can be too much; or rather, what holy solicitude can be sufficient for the overseers of the Saviour's flock, and the guardians of this great, this venerable, this invalua­ble charge?—Since such is the importance of the soul, wilt thou not, O man, be watchful for the preservation of thy own? Shall every casual incident awaken thy concern—every transitory toy command thy regard; and shall the welfare of thy soul, a work of continual occurrence—a work of endless consequence, sue in vain for thy serious care?—Thy soul, thy soul is thy all. If this be secured, thou art greatly rich, and wilt be un­speakably happy: If this be lost, a whole world acquir­ed, will leave thee in poverty; and all its delights en­joyed, will abandon thee to misery.

I have often been charmed and awed at the sight of the nocturnal heavens, even before I knew how to con­sider them in their proper circumstances of majesty and beauty. Something like magick has struck my mind, on a transient and unthinking survey of the ethereal vault, tinged throughout with the purest azure, and decorated with innumerable starry lamps. I have felt, I know not what, powerful and aggrandizing impulse, which seemed to snatch me from the low entanglements of vanity, and prompted an ardent sigh for sublimer ob­jects. Methought I heard, even from the silent spheres, a commanding call, to spurn the abject earth, and pant after unseen delights.—Henceforward I hope to imbibe [Page 160] more copiously, this moral emanation of the skies; when, in some such manner as the preceding, they are rationally seen, and the sight is duly improved. The stars, I trust, will teach as well as shine; and help to dispel both na­ture's gloom, and my intellectual darkness. To some people they discharge no better a service, than that of holding a flambeau to their feet, and softening the hor­rours of their night. To me and my friends, may they act as ministers of a superiour order; as counsellors of wisdom, and guides to happiness! Nor will they fail to execute this nobler office, if they gently light our way into the knowledge of their adored Maker; if they point out, with their silver rays, our path to his beatifick presence.

I gaze, I ponder; I ponder, I gaze; and think inef­fable things. I roll an eye of awe and admiration. Again and again I repeat my ravished views, and can never satiate either my curiosity or my inquiry. I spring my thoughts into this immense field, till even fancy tires upon her wing. I find wonders ever new; won­ders more and more amazing;—yet, after all my present inquiries, what a mere nothing do I know—by all my future searches, how little shall I be able to learn—of those vastly distant suns, and their circling retinue of worlds! Could I pry with Newton's piercing sagacity, or launch into his extensive surveys, even then my appre­hensions would be little better than those dim and scanty images, which the mole, just emerged from her cavern, receives on her seeble optick.—This, sure, should repress all impatient or immoderate ardour to pry into the secrets of the starry structures, and make me more particularly careful to cultivate my heart. To fathom the depths of the divine essence, or to scan universal nature with a critical exactness, is an attempt which sets the acutest philosopher very nearly on a level with the idiot; since it is almost, if not altogether, as impracticable by the former, as by the latter.

Be it then my chief study, not to pursue what is absolutely unattainable, but rather to seek what is ob­vious to find, easy to be acquired, and of inestimable advantage when possessed. O! let me seek that charity [Page 161] which edifieth, ^* that faith which purifieth. Love, humble love, not conceited science, keeps the door of Heaven:—Faith, a childlike faith in JESUS, not the haughty self sufficient spirit, which scorns to be ignorant of any thing, presents a key ^† to those abodes of bliss.— This present state is the scene destined to the exercise of devotion; the invisible world is the place appoint­ed for the enjoyment of knowledge. There the dawn of our infantile minds, will be advanced to the ma­turity of perfect day; or rather, there our midnight shades will be brightened into all the lustre of noon. There, the souls which come from the school of faith, and bring with them the principles of love, will dwell in light itself; will be obscured with no darkness at all; will know even as they are known. ^‡—Such an ac­quaintance, therefore, do I desire to form, and to carry on such a correspondence with the heavenly bodies, as may shed a benign influence on the seeds of grace im­planted in my breast. Let the exalted tracts of the fir­mament, sink my soul into deep humiliation: Let those eternal fires kindle in my heart, an adoring gratitude to their Almighty Sovereign: Let yonder ponderous and enormous globes, which rest on his supporting arm, teach me an unshaken affiance in their incarnate Maker:— Then shall I be—if not wise as the astronomical adept, yet wise unto salvation.

[Page 162]Having now walked and worshipped in this univer­sal temple, that is arched with skies, emblazed with stars, and extended even to immensity—having cast an eye like the enraptured patriarch; ^* an eye of reason and devotion, through the magnificent scene:—With the former, having discovered an infinitude of worlds; and with the latter, having met the Deity in every view— having beheld, as Moses in the flaming bush, a glimpse of JEHOVAH's excellencies, reflected from the several planets, and streaming from myriads of celestial lumina­ries—having read various lessons in that stupendous book of wisdom, ^† where unmeasurable sheets of azure compose the page, and orbs of radiance write, in ever­lasting characters, a comment on our creed—what re­mains but that I close the midnight solemnity, as our LORD concluded his grand sacramental institution, with a song of praise?—And behold a hymn suited to the sub­lime occasion, indited by ^‡ inspiration itself; transferred into our language, by ^‖ one of the happiest efforts of hu­man ingenuity.

A WINTER PIECE.

IT is true, in the delightful seasons, HIS tenderness and HIS love are most eminently displayed.—In the vernal months, all is beauty to the eye, and musick to the ear. The clouds drop fatness; the air softens into balm; and flowers, in rich abundance, spring whereever we tread, bloom whereever we look.—Amidst the burning heats of summer, He expands the leaves, and thickens the shades. He spreads the cooling arbour to receive us, and awakes the gentle breeze to fan us. The moss swells into a couch, for the repose of our bodies: while the rivulet softly rolls, and sweetly murmurs, to soothe our imagination.—In autumn, HIS bounty covers the fields with a profusion of nutrimental treasure, and bends the boughs with loads of delicious fruit. He furnishes his hospitable board with present plenty, and prepares a copious magazine for future wants.—But, is it only in these smiling periods of the year, that GOD, the all gracious GOD, is seen? Has winter, stern winter, no tokens of his presence? Yes: All things are eloquent of his praise. "His way is in the whirlwind." Storms and tempests fulfil his word, and extol his power. Even piercing frosts bear witness to his goodness, while they bid the shivering nations tremble at his wrath.—Be [Page 166] winter then, for a while, our theme. ^* Perhaps those barren scenes may be fruitful of intellectual improvement. Perhaps that rigorous cold, which binds the earth in icy chains, may serve to enlarge our hearts, and warm them with holy love.

See! how the day is shortened!—The sun, detained in fairer climes, or engaged in more agreeable services, rises, like an unwilling visitant, with tardy and reluctant steps. He walks, with a shy indifference, along the edges of the southern sky; casting an oblique glance, he just looks upon our dejected world, and scarcely scat­ters light through the thick air. Dim is his appear­ance, languid are his gleams, while he continues. Or, if he chance to wear a brighter aspect, and a cloudless brow; yet, like the young and gay in the house of mourning, he seems uneasy, till he is gone; is in haste to depart.—And let him depart. Why should we wish for his longer stay, since he can shew us nothing but the creation in distress? The slowery families lie dead, and the tuneful tribes are struck dumb. The trees, stript of their verdure, and lashed by storms, spread their naked arms to the enraged and relentless heavens. Fragrance no longer floats in the air; but chilling damps hover, or cutting gales blow. Nature, divested of all her beautiful robes, sits, like a forlorn disconsolate widow, in her weeds. While winds, in doleful accents howl; and rains, in repeated showers, weep.

We regret not, therefore, the speedy departure of the day. When the room is hung with funeral black, and dismal objects are all around, who could desire to have the glimmering taper kept alive, which can only [Page 167] discover spectacles of sorrow; can only make the hor­rour visible?—And, since this mortal life is little better than a continual conflict with sin, or an unremitted struggle with misery, is it not a gracious ordination, which has reduced our age to a span? Fourscore years of trial, for the virtuous, are sufficiently long; and more than such a term, allowed to the wicked, would render them beyond all measure vile. Our way to the kingdom of Heaven lies through tribulations. Shall we then accuse, shall we not rather bless the providence which has made the passage short? Soon, soon we cross the vale of tears, [...]nd then arrive on the happy hills, where light forever shines, where joy forever smiles.

Sometimes the day is rendered shorter still; is almost blotted out from the year. ^* The vapours gather; they thicken into an impenetrable gloom, and obscure the face of the sky. At length the rains descend: The sluices of the firmament are opened, and the low hung clouds pour their congregated stores: Copious and unintermitted, still they pour, and still are unex­hausted. The waters drop incessantly from the eaves, and rush in rapid streams from the spouts: They roar along the channelled pavements, and stand in foul shal­lows amidst the village streets. Now, if the inatten­tive eye, or negligent hand, has left the roof but scanti­ly covered, the insinuating element finds its way into every flaw, and oozing through the ceiling, at once upbraids and chastises the careless inhabitant. The ploughman, soaked to the skin, leaves his half tilled acre. The poor poultry, dripping with wet, crowd into shel­ter. The tenants of the bough fold up their wings, afraid to launch into the streaming air. The beasts, joyless and dispirited, ruminate under their shades. The roads swim, and the brooks swell.—The river, amidst all this watery ferment, long contained itself within its appointed bounds: But, swollen by innumerable cur­rents, and roused at last into uncontrollable rage, bursts over its banks, shoots into the plain, bears down all op­position, [Page 168] spreads itself far and wide, and buries the meadow under a brown, sluggish, soaking deluge.

How happy for man, that this inundation comes, when there are no flowery crops in the valley, to be overwhelmed; no fields standing thick with corn, to be laid waste! At such a juncture, it would have been ruin to the husbandman and his family: But, thus timed, it yields manure for his ground, and promises him riches in reversion.—How often, and how long, has the Di­vine Majesty bore with the most injurious affronts from sinners! His goodness triumphed over their perverse­ness, and graciously refused to be exasperated. But, O presumptuous creatures! multiply no longer your provo­cations: Urge not, by repeated iniquities, the Almighty arm to strike; lest his long suffering cease, and his fierce anger break forth; break forth like a flood of waters, ^* and sweep you away into irrecoverable and everlasting perdition.

How mighty! how majestick! and O how mysteri­ous are thy works, thou GOD of Heaven, and LORD of Nature! When the air is calm, where sleep the stormy winds? In what chambers are they reposed, or in what dungeons confined, till thou art pleased to awak­en their rage, and throw open their prison doors? Then, with irresistible impetuosity, they fly forth, scattering dread, and menacing destruction.

The atmosphere is hurled into the most tumultuous confusion. The aërial torrent bursts its way over mountains, seas, and continents. All things feel the dreadful shock. All things tremble before the furious blast. The forest, vexed and tore, groans under the scourge. Her sturdy sons are strained to the very roof, and almost sweep the soil they were wont to shade. The stubborn oak, that disdains to bend, is dashed headlong to the ground; and, with shattered arms, with prostrate trunk, blocks the road.—While the flexile reed, that springs up in the marsh, yielding to the gust (as the meek and [...]pliant temper to injuries, or the resigned and patient spirit to misfortunes), eludes the force [Page 169] of the storm, and survives amidst the wide spread havock.

For a moment, the turbulent and outrageous sky seems to be asswaged; but it intermits its wrath, only to increase its strength. Soon the sounding squadrons of the air return to the attack, and renew their ravages with redoubled fury. The stately dome rocks amidst the wheeling clouds. The impregnable tower totters on its basis, and threatens to overwhelm whom it was in­tended to protect. The ragged rock is rent in pieces; ^* and even the hills, the perpetual hills, on their deep foundations, are scarcely secure.—Where now is the place of safety? When the city reels, and houses be­come heaps! Sleep affrighted flies. Diversion is turned into horrour. All is uproar in the elements; all is con­sternation among mortals; and nothing but one wide scene of rueful devastation through the land.—Yet, this is only an inferiour minister of divine displeasure; the executioner of milder indignation. How then, O! how will the lofty looks of man be humbled, and the haughtiness of men be bowed down, ^† when the LORD GOD Omnipotent shall meditate terrour—when he shall set all his terrours in array—when he arises to judge the nations, and to shake terribly the earth!

The ocean swells with tremendous commotions. The ponderous waves are heaved from their capacious bed, and almost lay bare the unfathomable deep. Flung into the most rapid agitation, they sweep over the rocks; they lash the lofty cliffs, and toss themselves into the [Page 170] clouds. Navies are rent from their anchors; and, with all their enormous load, are whirled, swift as the arrow, wild as the winds, along the vast abyss.—Now they climb the rolling mountain; they plough the frightful ridge; and seem to skim the skies. Anon they plunge into the opening gulf; they lose the sight of day; and are lost themselves to every eye. How vain is the pilot's art! how impotent the mariner's strength! They reel to and fro, and stagger in the jarring hold; or cling to the cordage, while bursting seas foam over the deck. Despair is in every face, and death sits threatening on every surge.—But why, O ye astonished mariners, why should you abandon yourselves to despair? Is the LORD's hand shortened, because the waves of the sea rage horribly? Is his ear deafened by the roaring thun­ders, and the bellowing tempest? Cry, cry unto HIM, who ‘holdeth the winds in his fist, and the waters in the hollow of his hand.’ HE is all gracious to hear, and almighty to save. If HE command, the storm shall be hushed to silence; the billows shall subside into a calm; the lightnings shall lay their fiery bolts aside; and, instead of sinking into a watery grave, you shall find yourselves brought to the desired haven.

Sometimes, after a joyless day, a more dismal night succeeds.—The lazy, louring vapours had wove so thick a veil, as the meridian sun could scarcely penetrate. What gloom then must overwhelm the nocturnal hours! The moon withdraws her shining. Not a single star is able to struggle through the deep arrangement of shades. All is pitchy darkness, without one enlivening ray. How solemn! how awful! It is like the shroud of nature, or the return of chaos. I do not wonder, that it is the parent of terrours, and so apt to engender melancholy.—Lately, the tempest marked its rapid way with mischief; now the night dresses her silent pa­vilion with horrour.

I have sometimes left the beaming tapers, withdrawn from the ruddy fire, and plunged into the thickest of those sooty shades, without regretting the change, rather exulting in it as a welcome deliverance. The very gloom was pleasing, was exhilarating, compared [Page 171] with the conversation I quitted. The speech of my companions (how does it grieve me, that I should even once have occasion to call them by that name!) was the language of darkness—was horrour to the soul, and torture to the ear. Their teeth were spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword, to stab and assassinate their neighbour's character: Their throat was an open sepulchre, gaping to devour the reputation of the inno­cent, or tainting the air with their virulent and polluted breath. Sometimes their licentious and ungovernable discourse, shot arrows of profaneness against Heaven it­self; and, in proud defiance, challenged the resent­ment of Omnipotence. Sometimes, as if it was the glory of human nature to cherish the grossest appetites of the brute, or the mark of a gentleman to have served an apprenticeship in a brothel, the filthiest jests of the stews (if low obscenity can be a jest) were nau­seously obtruded on the company. All the modest part were offended and grieved, while the other besotted creatures laughed aloud, though the leprosy of un­cleanness appeared on their lips.—Are not these persons prisoners of darkness, though blazing sconces pour arti­ficial day through their rooms? Are not their souls im­mured in the most baleful shades, though the noon tide sun is brightened by flaming on their gilded chariots?— They discern not that great and adorable Being, who fills the universe with his infinite and glorious presence; who is all eye to observe their actions▪ all ear to exam­ine their words: They know not the all sufficient Re­deemer, nor the unspeakable blessedness of his heavenly kingdom: They are groping for the prize of happiness, but will certainly grasp the thorn of anxiety: They are wantonly sporting on the brink of a precipice, and are every moment in danger of falling headlong into irretrievable ruin, and endless despair.

They have forced me out, and are, perhaps, deriding me in my absence; are charging my reverence for the ever present GOD, and my concern for the dignity of our rational nature, to the account of humour and singularity; to narrowness of thought, or sourness [Page 172] of temper. Be it so. I will indulge no indignation against them: If any thing like it should arise, I will convert it into prayer.— ‘Pity them, O thou Father of mercies! Shew them the madness of their pro­faneness! Shew them the baseness of their vile rib­aldry!—Let their dissolute rant be turned into silent sorrow and confusion, till they open their lips to adore thine insulted majesty, and to implore thy gracious pardon. Till they devote to thy service, those social hours, and those superiour faculties, which they are now abusing, to the dishonour of thy name—to the contamination of their own souls—and (unless timely repentance intervene) to their everlasting in­famy and perdition.’

I ride home amidst the gloomy void. All darkling and solitary, I can scarce discern my horse's head, and only guess out my blind road. No companion but danger; or, perhaps "destruction ready at my side." ^* But, why do I fancy myself solitary? Is not the Father of lights; the GOD of my life; the great and everlast­ing friend; always at my right hand? Because the day is excluded, is his omnipresence vacated? Though I have no earthly acquaintance near, to assist in case of a misfortune, or to beguile the time, and divert un­easy suspicions, by entertaining conferences, may I not lay my help upon the Almighty, and converse with GOD by humble supplication? For this exercise, no place is improper, no hour unseasonable, and no imposture in­commodious. This is society, the best of society, even in solitude;—this is a fund of delights, easily porta­ble, and quite inexhaustible;—a treasure this of un­known value; liable to no hazard from wrong or rob­bery; but perfectly secure to the lonely wanderer, in the most darksome paths.

And why should I distress myself with apprehensions at peril? This access to GOD, is not only an indefeasi­ble privilege, but a kind of ambulatory garrison. Those who make known their requests unto GOD, and rely upon his protecting care, he gives his angels charge over their welfare. His angels are commissioned to [Page 173] escort them in their travelling, and to hold up their goings, that they dash not their foot against a stone. ^* Nay, he himself condescends to be their guardian, and ‘keeps all their bones, so that not one of them is broken.’—Between these persons, and the most mis­chievous objects, a treaty of peace is concluded: The articles of this grand alliance, are recorded in the book of revelation; and will, when it is for the real benefit of believers, assuredly be made good in the administra­tions of providence. In that day, saith the LORD, will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven, and with the creeping things of the ground; and they shall be in league with the stones of the field. ^† Though they fall headlong on the flints; even the flints, fitted to fracture the skull, shall receive them as into the arms of friendship, and not offer to hurt whom the LORD is pleased to preserve.

May I then enjoy the presence of this gracious GOD, and darkness and light shall be both alike. Let HIM whisper peace to my conscience, and this dread silence shall be more charming than the voice of eloquence, or the strains of musick. Let HIM reveal his ravishing perfections in my soul, and I shall not want the saffron beauties of the morn, the golden glories of noon, or the impurpled evening sky. —I shall sigh only for those most desirable and distinguished realms, where the light of HIS countenance perpetually shines, and consequent­ly—"there is no night there." ^‡

How surprising are the alterations of nature! I left her the preceding evening, plain and unadorned; but now a thick rime has shed its hoary honours over all. It has shagged the fleeces of the sheep, and crisped the traveller's locks. The hedges are richly fringed, and all the ground is profusely powdered. The downward branches are tasseled with silver, and the upright are feathered with the plumy wave.

The fine are not always the valuable.—The air, amidst all these gaudy decorations, is charged with chill­ing [Page 174] and unwholesome damps:—The raw hazy influence spreads wide, sits deep, hangs heavy and oppressive on the springs of life. A listless languor clogs the ani­mal functions, and the purple stream glides but faintly through its channels. In vain the ruler of the day exerts his beaming powers: In vain he attempts to dis­perse this insurrection of vapours: The sullen, malignant cloud refuses to depart: It envelopes the world, and in­tercepts the prospect. I look abroad for the neighbouring village; I send my eye in quest of the rising turret, but am scarce able to discern the very next house.—Where are the blue arches of Heaven? Where is the radiant countenance of the sun? Where the boundless scenes of creation?—Lost, lost are their beauties; quenched their glories. The thronged theatre of the universe, seems an empty void, and all its elegant pictures, an undis­tinguished blank.—Thus would it have been with our intellectual views, if the Gospel had not come in to our relief. We should have known neither our true good, nor real evil: We had been a riddle to ourselves; the present state all confusion, and the future impenetrable darkness.—But, the Sun of righteousness, arising with potent and triumphant beams, has dissipated the inter­posing cloud; has opened a prospect more beautiful than the blossoms of spring; more cheering than the treasures of autumn; and far more enlarged than the extent of the visible system;—which, having led the eye of the mind through fields of grace, over rivers of righteousness, and hills crowned with knowledge, ter­minates at length in the heavens; sweetly losing itself in regions of infinite bliss, and endless glory.

As I walk along the fog, it seems, at some little dis­tance, to be almost solid gloom; such as would shut out every glimpse of light, and totally imprison me in ob­scurity. But, when I approach and enter it, I find myself agreeably mistaken, and the mist much thinner than it appeared.—Such is the case with regard to the sufferings of the present life; they are not, when ex­perienced, so dreadful as a timorous imagination sur­mised. Such also, is the case with reference to the grat­ifications of sense; they prove not, when enjoyed, so substantial as a sanguine expectation represented. In [Page 175] both instances we are graciously disappointed. The keen edge of the calamity is blunted, that it may not wound us with incurable anguish; the exquisite relish of the prosperity is palled, that it may not captivate our affections, and enslave them to inferiour delights.

Sometimes the face of things wears a more pleasing form; the very reverse of the foregoing. The sober evening advances to close the shortlived day: The firmament, clear and unsullied, puts on its brightest blue: The stars, in thronging multitudes, and with a peculiar brilliancy, glitter through the fair expanse; while the frost pours its subtle and penetrating influence all around. Sharp and intensely severe, all the long night, the rigid [...]ther continues its operations.—When, late and slow, the morning opens her pale eye, in what a curious and amusing disguise is nature dressed! The icicles, jagged and uneven, are pendent on the houses: A whitish film incrusts the windows, where mimick landscapes rise, and fancied figures swell. The fruitful fields are hardened to iron; the moistened meadows are congealed to marble; and both resound (an effect un­known before) with the peasant's hasty tread. The stream is arrested in its career, and its ever flowing surface chained to the banks: The fluid paths become a solid road; where the finny shoals were wont to rove, the sportive youth slide, or the rattling chariots roll. ^* And (what would seem to an inhabitant of the southern world, as unaccountable as the deepest mysteries of our religion) that very same breath of Heaven which cements the lakes into a chrystal pavement, cleaves the oaks, as it were, with invisible wedges; ‘ breaks in picces the northern iron and the steel;’ even while it builds a bridge of icy rock over the seas. ^†

[Page 176]The air is all serenity;—refined by the nitrous par­ticles, it affords the most distinct views, and extensive prospects. The seeds of infection are killed, and the pestilence destroyed, even in embryo: So the cold of affliction tends to mortify our corruptions, and subdue our vicious habits. The crowding atmosphere con­stringes our bodies, and braces our nerves: The spirits are buoyant, and sally briskly on the execution of their office. In the summer months, such an unclouded sky, and so bright a sun, would have melted us with heat, and softened us into supineness: We should have been ready to throw our limbs under the spreading beach, and to lie at ease by the murmuring brook. But now, none loiters in his path; none is seen with folded arms: All is in motion; all is activity: Choice, prompted by the weather, supplies the spur of necessity. Thus the rug­ged school of misfortune, often trains up the mind to a vigorous exertion of its faculties. The bleak climate of adversity, often inspirits us with a manly resolution; when a soft and downy affluence, perhaps, would have relaxed all the generous spring of the soul, and have left it enervated with pleasure, or dissolved in indolence.

" Cold cometh out of the north." ^* The winds, hav­ing swept those deserts of snow, arm themselves with millions of frozen particles, and make a fierce descent upon our isle. Under black and scouling clouds, they drive, dreadfully whizzing, through the darkened air: They growl around our houses, assault our doors, and, eager for entrance, fasten on our windows. Walls can scarce restrain them; bars are unable to exclude them; through every cranny they force their way. Ice is on their wings; they scatter agues through the land; and winter, all winter, rages as they go. Their breath is as a sear­ing ^† iron to the little verdure left in the plains: Vastly more pernicious to the tender plants, than the sharpest [Page 177] knife, they kill their branches, and wound the very root. Let not the corn venture to peep too freely from the en­trenchment of the furrow; let not the fruit bearing blos­soms dare to come abroad from their lodgment in the bark, lest these murderous blasts intercept and seize the unwary strangers, and destroy the hopes of the advancing year.

O, 'tis severely cold! Who is so hardy, as not to shrink at this excessively pinching weather? See! every face is pale. Even the blooming cheeks contract a gelid hue, and the teeth hardly forbear chattering.—Ye that sit easy and joyous, amidst your commodious apartments, solacing yourselves in the diffusive warmth of your fire, be mindful of your brethren, in the cheerless tenement of poverty. Their shattered panes are open to the piercing winds; a tattered garment scarcely covers their shivering flesh; while a few faint and dying em­bers on the squalid hearth, rather mock their wishes, than warm their limbs.—While the generous juices of Oporto sparkle in your glasses; or the streams, beauti­fully tinged and deliciously flavoured with the Chinese leaf, smoke in the elegant porcelain; O remember, that many of your fellow creatures, amidst all the rigour of these inclement skies, are emaciated with sickness, be­numbed with age, and pining with hunger. Let ‘their loins bless you,’ for comfortable clothing. Restore them with medicine; regale them with food; and baffle the raging year. So may you never know any of their distresses, but only by the hearing of the ear, the see­ing of the eye, or the feeling of a tender commisera­tion!—Methinks the bitter blustering winds plead for the poor indigents. May they breathe pity into your breasts, while they blow hardships into their huts!— Observe those blue flames, and ruddy coals, in your chimney: Quickened by the cold, they look more lively, and glow more strongly. Silent, but seasonable admo­nition to the gay circle, that chat and smile around them! Thus, may your hearts, at such a juncture of need, kin­dle into a peculiar benevolence! Detain not your super­fluous piles of wood. Let them hasten to the relief of the starving family. Bid them expire in many a willing blaze, to mitigate the severity of the season, and cheer the bleak abodes of want. So shall they ascend, mingled [Page 178] with thanksgivings to GOD, and ardent prayers for your welfare—ascend, more grateful to Heaven, than columns of the most costly incense.

Now the winds cease. Having brought their load, they are dismissed from service. They have wasted an immense cargo of clouds, which empty themselves in snow. At first, a few scattered shreds come wandering down the saddened sky. This slight skirmish is succeed­ed by a general onset. The flakes, large and numerous, and thick wavering, descend. They dim the air, and hasten the approach of night. Through all the night, in softest silence, and with a continual flow, this fleecy shower falls. In the morning, when we awake, what a surprising change appears!—Is this the same world? Here is no diversity of colour! I can hardly distinguish the trees, from the hills on which they grow. Which are the meadows, and which the plains? Where are the green pastures, and where the fallow lands? All things lie blendid in bright confusion. So bright, that it heightens the splendour of day, and even dazzles the or­gans of sight.—The lawn is not so fair, as this snowy mantle which invests the fields; and even the lily, was the lily to appear, would look tarnished in its pres­ence. I can think of but one thing, which excels or equals the glittering robe of winter. Is any person de­sirous to know my meaning? He may find it explained in that admirable hymn, ^* composed by the royal peni­tent. Is any desirous to possess this matchless ornament? He will find it offered to his acceptance in every page of the Gospel.

See! (for the eye cannot satisfy itself, without view­ing again and again the curious, the delicate scene) see! how the hedges are habited, like spotless vestals! The houses are roofed with uniformity and lustre. The meadows are covered with a carpet of the finest ermine. ^† The groves bow beneath the lovely burden, and all, [Page 179] all below, is one wide, immense shining waste of white· —By deep snows, and heavy rains, GOD sealeth up the hand of every man. And for this purpose, adds our sa­cred philosopher, that all men may know his work. ^* He confines them within their doors, and puts a stop to their secular business, that they may consider the things which belong to their spiritual welfare. That, having a vaca­tion from their ordinary employ, they may observe the works of his power, and become acquainted with the mysteries of his grace.

And worthy, worthy of all observation, are the works of the great Creator. They are prodigiously various, and perfectly amazing. How pliant and ductile is na­ture under his forming hand! At his command, the self same substance assumes the most different shapes, and is transformed into an endless multiplicity of figures. If HE ordains, the water is moulded into hail, and dis­charged upon the earth like a volley of shot; or it is consolidated into ice, and defends the rivers, ‘as it were with a breast plate.’ At the bare intimation of his will, the very same element is scattered in hoar frost, like a sprinkling of the most attenuated ashes; or is spread over the surface of the ground, in these couches of swelling and flaky down.

The snow, however it may carry the appearance of cold, affords a warm garment for the corn; screens it from nipping frosts, and cherishes its infant growth. It will abide for a while, to exert a protecting care, and exercise a fostering influence. Then, touched by the sun, or thawed by a softening gale, the furry vesture melts into genial moisture; sinks deep into the soil, and saturates its pores with the dissolving nitre; replenish­ing the glebe with those principles of vegetative life, which will open into the bloom of spring, and ripen into the fruits of autumn.—Beautiful emblem this, and com­fortable representation of the divine word, both in the successful and advantageous issue of its operation! As the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and re­turneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it [Page 180] bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be, that goeth forth out of my mouth: It shall not return unto me void, but shall ac­complish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereunto I sent it. ^*

Nature, at length, puts off her lucid veil. She drops it in a trickling thaw. The loosened snow rolls in sheets from the houses. Various openings spot the hills; which, even while we look, become larger, and more numerous. The trees rid themselves, by degrees, of the hoary incumbrance.—Shook from the springing boughs, part falls heavy to the ground, part flies abroad in shining atoms. Our fields and gardens, lately bur­ied beneath the drifted heaps, rise plain and distinct to view.—Since we see nature once again, has she no verdant traces, no beautiful features left? They are, like real friends, very rare; and therefore the more par­ticularly to be regarded, the more highly to be valued. —Here and there, the holly hangs out her glowing ber­ries; the laurustinus spreads her graceful tufts; and both under a covert of unfading foliage.—The plain, but hardy ivy clothes the decrepid, crazy wall; nor shrinks from the friendly office, though the skies frown, and the storm roars.—The laurel, firm, erect, and bold, expands its leaf of vivid green. In spite of the united, the repeated attacks of wind, and rain, and frost, it preserves an undismayed lively look; and maintains its post, while withering millions fall around. Worthy, by vanquishing the rugged force of winter, worthy to adorn the triumphant conqueror's brow.—Nor must I forget the baytree, which scorns to be a mean pensioner on a few transient sunny gleams; or, with a servile obsequi­ousness, to vary its appearance, in conformity to the changing seasons. By such indications of sterling worth, and staunch resolution, reading a lecture to the poet's genius, while it weaves the chaplet for his temples. —These, and a few other plants, clad with native ver­dure, retain their comely aspect, in the bleakest climes, and in the coldest months.

[Page 181]Such, and so durable are the accomplishments of a refined understanding, and an amiable temper. The tawdry ornaments of dress, which catch the unthinking vulgar, soon become insipid and despicable. The rubied lip and the rosy cheek fade. Even the sparkling wit, ^* as well as the sparkling eye, please but for a moment;— but the virtuous mind has charms which survive the decay of every inferiour embellishment—charms which add to the fragrancy of the flower, the permanency of the evergreen.

Such likewise, is the happiness of the sincerely re­ligious; like a tree, says the inspired moralist, ‘whose leaf shall not fall.’ He borrows not his peace from external circumstances; but has a fund within, and is "satisfied from himself." ^† Even though impoverished by calamitous accidents, he is rich in the possession of grace, and richer in the hope of glory. His joys are in­finitely superiour to, as well as nobly independent on, the [Page 182] transitory glow of sensual delight, or the capricious sa­vours of what the world calls fortune.

If the snow composes the light armed troops of the sky, methinks the hail constitutes its heavy artillery. ^* When driven by a vehement wind, with what dreadful impetuosity does that stony shower fall! How it rebounds from the frozen ground, and rattles on the resounding dome! It attenuates the rivers into smoke, or scourges them into foam. It crushes the infant flowers, cuts in pieces the gardener's early plants, and batters the feeble fortification of his glasses into shivers. It darts into the traveller's face;—he turns with haste from the stroke, or feels on his cheek for the gushing blood. If he would retreat into the house, it follows him even thither; and, like a determined enemy, that pushes the pursuit, dashes through the crackling panes. But the fierce attack is quickly over. The clouds have soon spent their shafts—soon unstrung their bow. Happy for the inhabitants of the earth, that a sally so dreadfully furious, should be so remarkably short! What, else, could endure the shock, or escape destruction?

But, behold a bow, of no hostile intention! A bow, painted in variegated colours, on the disburdened cloud▪ How vast is the extent, how delicate the texture of that flowery arch! It compasseth the Heavens with a glori­ous circle, and teaches us to forget the horrours of the storm. Elegant its form, and rich its tincture; but more delightful its sacred significancy. While the vio­let and the rose blush in its beautiful aspect, the olive branch smiles in its gracious import. It writes, in radiant dyes, what the angels sung in harmonious strains; "peace on earth, and good will towards men." It is the stamp of insurance, for the continuance of [Page 183] seed time and harvest—for the preservation and security of the visible world. ^* It is the comfortable token ^† of a better state and a happier kingdom—a kingdom where sin shall cease, and misery be abolished; where storms shall beat and winter pierce no more—but holiness, happiness, and joy, like one unbounded spring, for ever, ever bloom.