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counfel of the wife man, what our hand findeth to do, let us do it with our might.

This counsel concerns all ages and perfons. I will apply it to the young, in the words of the wife preacher, Eccl. xii. 1. Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt fay, I have no pleafure in them. To them who are in the vigour of their age, in the words of the Prophet, Ifa. lv. 6. Seek the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near. And to them that are old, in the words of another Prophet, Jer. xiii. 16. Give glory to the Lord your God, before he caufeth darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and while look for light, he turn it into the Shadow of death, and make it grofs darkness. And let us every one of us, of what age or condition foever, apply it to ourselves, in the words of our bleffed Saviour here in the text, I must work the works of him that fent me, while it is day; the night cometh, when no man can work.

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Of the great duties of natural religion, with the ways and means of knowing them.

MICAH vi. 6. 7. 8.

Wherewith fhall I come before the Lord, and bow my felf before the high God? fhall I come before him with burnt-offerings, with calves of a year old? Will the Lord be pleafed with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? fhall I give my firft-born for my tranfgreffion, the fruit of my body for the fin of my foul?

He hath fhewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

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'N the beginning of this chapter, the prophet tells the people of Ifrael, that the Lord had a controverfy with them; and that he might direct them how to take up this quarrel, he brings in one making this inquiry in the name of the people: Wherewith fhall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the high God? that is, by what kind of worship or devo tion may I addrefs myself to him in the most accept. able manner? by what means may I hope to appeafe his difpleasure? To fatisfy this inquiry, he first inftanceth in the chief kinds of facrifices and expiations that were in ufe among the Jews and Heathens: Shall I come before him with burnt-offerings? the conftant facrifice that was offered to God by way of acknowledgment of his dominion over the creatures: With calves of a year old? which was the fin offering which the high priest offered for himself. Or will he rather accept of thofe great and coftly facrifices which were offered upon folemn and public occafions; fuch

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fuch as that was which Solomon offered at the dedication of the temple? Will the Lord be pleafed with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Or if none of these will do, fhall I try to atone him after the manner of the Heathen, by the dearest thing in the world, the firft-born of my children? Shall I give my firft-born for my tranfgreffion, the fruit of my body for the fin of my foul? If God was to be appeafed at all, furely they thought it must be by fome of these ways, for beyond these they could imagine nothing of greater value and efficacy.

But the prophet tells them, that they were. quite out of the way, in thinking to pacify God upon thefe terms; that there are other things which are much better and more pleafing to him than any of these fa crifices for fome of them were expreísly forbidden by God, as the offering up of our children; and for the reft, they were not good in themfelves, but merely by virtue of their inftitution, and because they were commanded.. But the things which he would recommend to them are fuch as are good in their own nature, and required of us by God upon that account. He hath fhewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

So that in these words you have,

1. An inquiry which is the best way to appeafe God when he is offended: Wherewith fhall I come before the Lord,, and bow myself before the high God?

2. The way that men are apt to take in this cafe; and that is by fome external piece of religion and devotion; fuch as facrifice was both among Jews and Heathens: Shall I come before him with burnt-offerings? &c. By which questions the prophet intimates, that men are very apt to pitch upon this courfe..

3. The courfe which God himfelf directs to, and which will effectually pacify him: He hath fhewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, &c.

The first being a mere queftion, there needs no

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more to be faid of it, only that it is a question of great importance; what is the most effectual way to appeafe God when we have offended him? For who can bear his indignation, and who can ftand before him, when once he is angry? Let us confider then,

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Second place, The way that men are apt to take to pacify God; and that is by fome external piece of religion and devotion, fuch as were facrifices among the Jews and Heathens: Shall I come before him with burnt-offerings? This is the way which men are moft apt to chufe. The Jews, you fee, pitched upon the external parts of their religion, thofe which were most pompous and folemn, the richest and most coftly facrifices; fo they might but keep their fins, they were well enough content to offer up any thing elfe to God; they thought nothing too good for him, provided he would not oblige them to become better.

And thus it is among ourselves, when we apprehend God is difpleafed with us, and his judgements are abroad in the earth, we are content to do any thing but to learn righteousness; we are willing to submit to any kind of external devotion and humiliation, to fast, and pray, to afflict ourselves, and to cry mightily unto God; things, fome of them good in themselves, but the least part of that which God requires of us.

And as for the church of Rome, in cafe of public judgements and calamities, they are the most inquifitive, and (as they pretend) the most skilful people in the world to pacify God; and they have a thoufand folemn devices to this purpose. I do not wrong them, by reprefenting them inquiring after this manner. "Shall I go before a crucifix, and bow myself to "it, as to the high God? And because the Lord is a great King, and it is perhaps too much boldness "and arrogancy to make immediate addresses always to him; to which of the faints or angels. "fhall I go to mediate for me, and intercede on my behalf? Will the Lord be pleased with thoufands of Pater-nofters, or with ten thousands of

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"Ave-Maries? Shall the hoft travel in proceffion, "or myself undertake a tedious pilgrimage? or fhall "I lift myself a foldier for the holy war, or for the extirpation of heretics? Shall I give half my eftate "to a convent for my tranfgreffion, or chaftife and "punish my body for the fin of my foul?" Thus men deceive themselves, and will fubmit to all the extravagant feverities that the petulancy and folly of men can devife and impose upon them. And indeed

it is not to be imagined, when men are once under the power of fuperftition, how ridiculous they may be, and yet think themselves religious; how prodigiously they may play the fool, and yet believe they pleafe God; what cruel and barbarous things they may do to themselves and others, and yet be verily perfuaded that they do God good fervice.

And what is the mystery of all this, but that men are loth to do that, without which nothing else that we do is acceptable to God? They hate to be reformed; and for this reafon, they will be content to do any thing, rather than be put to the trouble of mending themselves; every thing is eafy in comparison of this task, and God may have any terms of them, fo he will let them be quiet in their fins, and excufe them from the real virtues of a good life. And this brings me to the

Third thing which I principally intended to speak to, The courfe which God himself directs to, and which will effectually pacify him: He hath fhewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God? In the handling of which, I fhall,

1. Confider thofe feveral duties which God here requires of us, and upon the performance of which he will be pacified towards us.

2. By what ways and means God hath difcovered thefe duties to us, and the goodnefs of them: He hath fhewed thee, O man, what is good, &c.

I. We will briefly confider the feveral duties which God here requires of us, and upon the performance

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