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fubfift upon these terms. For the very injoining of fraud and rapine, and perjury, and breach of truft, doth apparently deftroy the greateft end of governrent; which is, to preferve men in their rights, against the encroachments of fraud and violence And this. end being destroyed, human focieties would presently fly in pieces, and men would neceffarily fall into a state of war. Which plainly fhews, that virtue and vice are not arbitrary things, but that there is a natural, and immutable, and eternal reafon, for that which we call goodness and virtue, and against that which we call vice and wickednefs.

Thus I have endeavoured to evidence and vindicate: this truth. I fhall only draw an inference or two from. this difcourfe, and fo conclude.

1. If this difcourse be true, then thofe who are in places of power and authority are peculiarly concerned to maintain the honour of religion.

2. It concerns every one to live in the practice of it.. 1, Magiftrates are concerned to maintain the honour of religion, which doth not only tend to every man's. future happiness, but is the beft inftrument of civil government, and of the temporal profperity of a nation. For the whole defign of it is, to procure the private and public happiness of mankind, and to reftrain men from all thofe things which would make them miferable and guilty to themfelves, unpeaceable, and troublesome to the world. Religion hath fo great an influence upon the felicity of men, that it ought to be upheld, and the veneration of it maintained, not only out of a juft dread of the divine vengeance in another world, but out of regard to the temporal peace and profperity of men. It will requite all the kindness and honour we can do it, by the advantages it will bring to civil government, and by the bleffings it will draw down upon it. God hath promifed, that thofe that honour him, he will ho nour, and in the common courfe of his providence he ufually makes this good: fo that the civil authority ought to be very tender of the honour of God and religion, if for no other reafon, yet out of reafon of state..

It were to be wifhed, that all men were fo piously difpofed, that religion, by its own. authority, and the reasonable

reafonable force of it, might be fufficient to establish its empire in the minds of men. But the corruptions of men will always make a ftrong oppofition against it. And therefore, at the first planting of the Christian religion in the world, God was pleafed to accompany it with a miraculous power: but, after it was planted, this extraordinary power ceased; and God hath now left it to be maintained and fupported by more ordinary and human ways, by the countenance of authority, and affiftance of laws; which were never more neceflary than in this degenerate age, which is prodigioufly funk into Atheism and profaneness, and is running headlong into an humour of fcoffing at God and religion, and every thing that is facred. For fome ages before the refor mation, Atheism was confined to Italy, and had its chief refidence at Rome. All the mention that is of it in the hiftory of thofe times, the Papifts themselves give us in the lives of their own Popes and Cardinals, excepting two or three fmall philofophers that were retainers to that court. So that this Atheistical humour among Chriftians was the fpawn of the grofs fuperftitions and corrupt manners of the Romish church and court. And indeed nothing is more natural than for extremes in religion to beget one another, like the vibrations of a pendulum, which the more violently you fwing it one way, the farther it will return the other. But, in the laft age, Atheism travelled over the Alps, and infected France; and now of late, it hath croffed the feas, and invaded our nation, and hath prevailed to amazement: for I do not think that there are any people in the world that are generally more indifpofed to it, and can worfe brook it; ferioufnefs and zeal in religion being almoft the natural temper of the English. So that nothing is to me matter of greater wonder, than that in a grave and fober nation profanenefs fhould ever come to gain fo much ground, and the beft and the wifeft religion in the world to be made the fcorn of fools. For, befides the profane. and Atheistical difcourfes about God and religion, and the bold and fenfelefs abuses of his facred book, the great inftrument of our falvation, which are fo frequent in the public places of refort; I fay, befides thefe, I fpeak it knowingly, a man can hardly pafs the streets without

without having his ears grated and pierced with fuch horrid and blafphemous oaths and curfes, as are enough, if we were guilty of no other fin, to fink a nation. And this not only from the tribe that wear liveries, but from thofe that go before them, and should give better example. Is it not then high time that the laws fhould provide, by the most prudent and effectual means, to curb thefe bold and infolent defiers of heaven, who take a pride in being monfters, and boaft themselves in the follies and deformities of human nature? The Heathens. would never fuffer their gods to be reviled, which yet were no gods and fhall it, among the profeffors of the true religion, be allowed to any man to make a mock of him that made heaven and earth, and to breathe out blafphemies against him who gives us life, and breath, and all things? I doubt not but hypocrify is a great wickedness, and very odious to God; but by no means of fo pernicious example as open profanenefs. Hypocrify is a more modelt way of finning; it fhews fome reverence to religion, and does fo far own the worth and excellency of it, as to acknowledge that it deferves to be counterfeited: whereas profanenefs declares openly against it, and endeavours to make a party to drive it out of the world.

2dly, It concerns every one to live in the practice of religion and virtue; because the public happiness and profperity depends upon it. It is most apparent, that of late years religion is very fenfibly declined among us, The manners of men have almost been univerfally cor rupted by a civil war. We should therefore all jointly endeavour to retrieve the ancient virtue of the nation, and bring into fashion again that folid and fubftantial, that plain and unaffected piety, free from the extremes. both of fuperftition and enthufiafm, which flourished in the age of our immediate forefathers: which did not confift in idle talk, but in real effects, in a fincere love of God and of our neighbour, in a pious devotion, and reverence towards the divine Majefty, and in the vir tuous actions of a good life, in the denial of ungodliness and worldly lufts, and in living foberly, and righteously, and godly, in this prefent world. This were the true way to reconcile God to us, to ftop the courfe of his. judgements, and to bring down the bleflings of heaven

upon

upon us. God hath now been pleased to settle us again in peace both at home and abroad, and he hath put us once more into the hands of our own counfel. Life and death, bleffing and curfing, profperity and deftruction, are before us. We may chufe our own fortune; and, if we be not wanting to ourselves, we may, under the influences of God's grace and affistance, which are never wanting to our fincere endeavours, become a happy and a profperous people.

The good God make us all wife to know and to do the things that belong to the temporal peace and profperity of the nation, and to the eternal happiness and falvation of every one of our fouls. Which we humbly beg for the fake of Jefus Chrift. To whom, &c.

SER M

MON

IV.

The advantages of religion to particular perfons.

PSAL. xix. II.

And in keeping of them there is great reward.

N this pfalm David celebrates the glory of God from

I

the confideration of the greatnefs of his works, and

the perfection of his laws. From the greatness of his works, ver. 1. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament fheweth his bandy-work, &c. From the perfection of his laws, ver. 7. The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the foul, &c. And, among many other excellencies of the divine laws, he mentions, in the laft place, the benefits and advantages which come from the obfervance of them, ver. 11. And in keeping of them there is great reward. Labas.

I have already fhewn how much religion tends to the public welfare of mankind; to the fupport of governs

ment,

-ment, and to the peace and happiness of human focieties. My work at this time fhall be, to fhew, that religion, and obedience to the laws of God, do likewife conduce to the happiness of particular perfons, both in refpect of this world and the other. For though there be but little express mention made in the Old Testament of the immortality of the foul, and the rewards of another life; yet all religion does fuppofe these principles, and is built upon them.

.

And, Firft, I fhall endeavour to fhew how religion conduceth to the happiness of this life; and that both in refpect of the inward and outward man.

I. As to the mind. To be pious and religious, brings a double advantage to the mind of man. 1. It tends to the improvement of our understandings. 2. It brings peace and pleasure to our minds.

ift, It tends to the improvement of our underftandings. I do not mean only, that it inftructs us in the knowledge of divine and fpiritual things, and makes us to understand the great intereft of our fouls and the concernments of eternity better; but that, in general, it does raife and enlarge the minds of men, and make them more capable of true knowledge. And in this fenfe I understand the following texts. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes, Pfal, xix. 8. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all they that keep his commandments, Pfal. cxi. 10. Thou, through thy commandments, haft made me wifer than mine enemies; which plainly refers to political prudence. I have more understanding than all my teachers for thy teftimonies are my meditation, Pfal. cxix. 98. 99. I understand more than the ancients because I keep thy precepts, ver. 100. Through thy precepts I get understanding, ver. 104. The entrance of thy word giveth light: it giveth understanding to the Simple, ver. 130.

Now, religion doth improve the understandings of men, by fubduing their lufts, and moderating their paf fions. The lufts and paffions of men do fully and darken their minds, even by a natural influence. Intempe rance and infenfuality, and fleshly lufts, do debase mens minds, and clog their fpirits; make them grofs and foul, liftlefs and unactive; they fink us down into fenfe, and glew

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