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er hath eternal life. And Rom. viii, 7. it is faid, The carnal mind is enmity against God. So that the natural man in the state wherein he is born is a hater, an enemy of God; and therefore in God's account a murderer of God; for indeed he that hates one, forbears murdering only for want either of opportunity, or power, or fecrecy, or fome fuch like advantage. Now, every fin is the product of that natural enmity, the fruit which grows on the carnal mind; and therefore must partake of the nature of the root, must have enmity or hatred against God in it, and implies a judg ing him unworthy of a being. That principle of enmity that inclines and prompts man to fin, to tread upon God's law, would excite him to deftroy God, were it poffible; every fin aims at no lefs than the life of God. We fay not that every, or any finner doth intend the deftruction of God, but that it is the aim of every fin. A man in every fin aims at the advancement of his own will aove that of God's: and could the finner attain his end, God would be deftroyed; for God cannot furvive his will. He can as foon outlive his being as his glory, and he that aims at the one, aims at the other alfo; and this is the cafe of evefinner. Now I have made it good, That every fin has murder in it; and confequently that all who have finned, as ye all have done, have com. mitted murder, and that of the worst fort, felfmurder, foul-murder; nay, and God-murder: and if the blood of the body of another shall be required at the hand that sheds it, what do you think will be the cafe of fuch as have fhed the blood of a foul? And if it stand hard with fuch, what will become of the murderer of God? Sure, if fimple murder be avenged, then felf-murder, foul-murder.

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will be avenged seven times more; and if foulmurder be fo evil, and bring complicated deftruction upon the guilty, what, O finners, think ye will be the cafe of these who fhall be found confpirators against the life of God?

Now, can ye think the crime alleged against you fmall, after we have a little opened it to you? fure he who will, muft be totally deftitute of all fenfe of God, or of religion, nay, or reafon. What is grievous and heavy, if the charge of atheism, idolatry, blafphemy, robbery, rebellion and murder be not fo? And we have made it appear that our plea, or rather God's plea against you, amounts to no lefs. But this is far from being all that we have to fay in the juftification of God, and for your condemnation: thefe fins have,

Thirdly, Aggravations as dreadful and guiltenhancing as they themselves are great and monftrous. You have finned, and confequently are guilty of atheism, idolatry, blafphemy, robbery, rebellion and murder: but not fimply of these abominations, as in themselves; but as they are attended with a great many fearful and killing aggravations, which add extremely to the fcore of the provocations, bg as it were fo many cyphers put behind the figures, which though in themselves they be nothing, yet put behind they fwell the number to a prodigious greatnefs.

1. All these evils you have done, notwithstanding a great many notable helps you received againft fin. Not to speak of what you had in Adam, perfect ftrength, perfect will, and perfect happinefs; you have not only finned in him againft all thefe, but you who are here prefent, have finned against many notable means afforded you of God for your prefervation from fin. (1.) You

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(1.) You have finned in the face of all the dreadful threatenings of God's vengeance against it. You have finned under the very thunderings of mount Sinai. And when the flames of hell have out of the threatenings of God been ftaring you in the face, even then you have dared to provoke the moft high, flighting all these formidable evidences of his anger. (2.) You have finned against dreadful examples or inftances of the judgment of God against offenders. You have as it were feen your companions turned into hell, and yet you have perfifted in the crimes for which they were ferved fo. Say now, who of you in fome one remarkable inftance or other, has not feen the judgments of God against fin and finners? Sure our land has of late afforded remarkable inftances not a few. Have you not feen fome out of a fever of luft fall into ficknefs, and out of this drop into the bottomlefs abyss of the scorching wrath of God? and notwithstanding all this you have finned on, and have not guarded against fin. (3.) You have finned contrary to great and precious gofpel promifes; thefe great and precious promifes, that are breafts full of light, full of life, confolation and frength; full of spiritual fi plies for ftrengthening poor men against the affaults of fin. (4.) You have finned against the glorious gofpel ordinances, all of which are defigned for the deftruction and ruir of fin, and are the pipes through which the fupplies contained in the promises are convey. ed to the Lord's people. (5.) You have finned against all the strivings of the fpirit of God with you, in ordinances and providences; and confequently have refifted the holy Ghoft in your fins. (6.) You have finned against that fovereign ordinance of God, the antitype of the brazen ferpent Jefus

Jefus Chrift, who is lifted up for that very end, that he may fave his people from their fins, and bids all the ends of the earth look unto him for that end, Ifa. xlv. 22. Look unto me, and be ye fav ed all the ends of the earth. The God who has been holding him forth to you, who has provided you in all these great and notable advantages, is the God you have finned against, whom you have rebelled against, and treated unworthily in these horrid violations of his law, which we have enumerate to you above; but this is not the only aggravation of your fins, that you had helps against fin. But,

2. You have finned against the God of your mercies, the God who has loaded you with his favours. O fad requital you have given to God, for all the kindneffes he has done to you, fince the morning of your day. May he not justly, nay, may we not in his name, lay that to your charge, which we find him with wonderful folemnity charging upon his own people? Ifa. i. 2. Hear, O heaven, and give ear, O earth; for the Lord hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me. not you been nourished and brought up under the care and by the providence of God? and has he . not met with the fame entertainment at your hand? Now this is a dreadful aggravation of your guilt: For,

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(1.) It is not one mercy or two, but innumerable mercies, innumerable kindneffes. Reckon, O finners, what the mercies of God are, if ye can. Nay, if ye can count the ftars in the heaven, or the fand of the fea-fhore, you may. David fays in that lxxi Pfal. That he knows not the number of God's falvation; and who may not fay with him

in this? God every day preferves you from many thousands of inconveniencies that would deftroy you, and bestows upon you many thousands of mercies. He loads you with his benefits, and ye load yourselves with your fins against him. Ye turn the point of them all as it were against God, and make thefe very mercies he gives you weapons of unrighteousness to fight against him. As his favours, fo your fins are more than the hairs of your head. Look round you, whatever you fee, whatever you enjoy, clothes, food, or whatever contributes to the comfort, of life, that you have from him; and this is the God, O finners, against whom you have finned, who treats you thus, in whom ye live, move, and have your being, as the apostle obferves, Acts xvii. 28,

(2.) As the mercies are many against which ye have finned, fo they are great. If any can be called fo, thefe which you have at the hand of God may. What is great, if all that is needful for life and godlinefs be not? And no lefs does the provision that God has made amount unto, and no lefs has the Lord God given unto you. Has not his divine power given to you all things that pertain to life and godliness? 2 Pet. i. 3. Have not ye a gospel difpenfation, food and raiment? And what more is needful? And yet against these have finned. you When God has great mercies fed you to the full, Jethurun-like you have waxed. fat, and kicked against the God that has fed you all your life long, Deut. xxxii. 15.

(3.) Ye have finned notwithstanding of a long tract of thefe many and great undeferved kindneffes; and this extremely enhances your guilt. What, would he not be looked on as a very mon fter in nature, who would kill the man that was

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