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putrifying Sores: They have not been clos'd, neither bound up, neither mollify'd with Ointment. Then to defcribe the Hypocrifie which in thofe Days Reign'd among the Inhabitants of these Nations, when a Repetition of folemn Fafts, and Thanksgivings, long Prayers, and much Preaching, was made a Cover for fuch grofs Abominations, as Rebellion, and Murder; nothing certainly could be more proper, than fuch a Reprehenfion as this. To what purpofe is the multitude of your Sacrifices unto me, faith the Lord? I am full of Burnt Offerings, of Rams, and the Fat of fed Beafts; and I delight not in the Blood of Bullocks, or of Lambs, or of He-Goats. When ye come to appear before me, who hath requir'd this at your Hands to tread my Courts? i. e. To Tread them thus, in fuch a manner, with fuch profane Hearts, and hypocritical Intentions. Bring no more vain Oblations, Incenfe is an Abomination unto me: The New Moons and the Sabbaths, the Calling of Aflemblies I cannot away with: It is Iniquity, even the Solemn Meeting. Your New Moons, and your appointed Feafts my Soul hateth: They are a Trouble unto me, I am weary to bear them. And when ye fpread forth your Hands, I will hide mine Eyes from you, when ye make many Pjapers I will not hear: Your Hands are full of Blood. But then after having promis'd Forgiveness, upon their Repentance and Reformation, He proceeds thus. And I will turn my Hand upon thee; and purely purge away the Drofs, and take away all thy Tin: And I will restore thy Judges as at the first, and thy Counsellors as at the Beginning; afterward Thou shalt be called the City of Righteousness, the faithful City.

From what is either exprefs'd or imply'd in the Words of my Text, naturally arife thefe Three following Obfervations.

I. First," That to a Nation which has a well tem"per'd Conftitution of Government establish'd in it, "nothing can be a greater Mifery, or Affliction, than to have that Conftitution overturn'd; and confe"quently, nothing can be a greater Bleffing, than to

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"have it reftor'd, after it has been fubverted. This is the very Foundation of what is here promis'd and foretold; and all that is contain'd in the Text, turns upon this Supposition.

II. Secondly, "That to bring about fuch a Reftora"tion, is, to the laft degree, difficult, and requires the "immediate Interpofition of God's Power, and Provi"dence. " I will restore thy fudges, &c. God takes upon Himself fo great a Work, as to effect fo extraordinary a Deliverance.

III. Thirdly, "That a Nation fo fignally deliver'd, "is oblig'd, both in Intereft and Gratitude, to be, for "the future, entirely obedient to God's Commands; "and especially to abftain from those Principles, and "Practices, which before provok'd Him fo feverely "to Punish them." Afterward thou shalt be called the City of Righteoufnefs, the faithful City.

I do not lay down Thefe, as Points of Divinity to be Stated, or Proved: They are fufficiently plain of Themselves. But then they naturally flow from the Words of the Text: And the Ufe I make of them, is, not to prove them, (that they are true, being taken for granted) but only to illuftrate, enforce, and apply them to our own particular Circumstances. And this I am afraid, will appear, before I have done, to have been no less than Neceffary. For tho' in this Polite Age, Men abound with Wit, and Knowledge; yet as 'tis obferv'd, that Wit is commonly attended with a bad Memory, it appears in nothing more than in the prefent Inftance. It is therefore extreamly requifiteto remind them of many Things, in which they do not want to be inftructed.

The first Obfervable is this:

"That to a Nation which has a well temper'd "Conftitution of Government establish'd in it, no"thing can be a greater Mifery or Affliction, than to "have that Conftitution overturn'd; and confequent

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"ly, Nothing can be a greater Bleffing, than to have "it reftor'd, after it has been once fubverted.

This, one would think, fhould need no Proof: And yet, by the Maxims, and Behaviour of fome among us, it feems to be as contestable a Point as any whatfoever. By their love of Change, by their restlefs and unquiet Temper, they feem to be of Opinion, that scarce any thing is more agreeable than that confus'd Variety, which arifes from frequent Alterations in Government. But leaving Them to be rather Chain'd as Madman, than Argu'd with as rational Creatures, I shall not go about to prove this Propofition, but shall only, as I faid, illuftrate and apply it

Any total Change in the Conftitution of a Government, even a Change from a Bad to a Good one, cannot but be extreamly Difficult and Hazardous. As the whole Mass of Blood cannot, even to remove a Distemper, be on a fuddain put into an Agitation, fo as to be entirely alter'd, without endangering the Life of the Patient. But this holds much stronger, when the Change in Government is of a contrary Nature, from a Good to a Bad one, or to none at all: As it is perfect Madness in a Man to take Pains and Phyfick to make himself Sick, when he was before in a State of Health and Vigour.

To apply this therefore to the Cafe of the Jews in former Times, and of our selves in the prefent. The Conftitution both in Church and State, under which that People liv'd, was undoubtedly excellent, because it was Divine; God Himself being their King for many Years; first giving them their Laws, and afterwards their Plan of Government. For that was allow'd to be a Privilege in thofe Days, though it may be none in the Opinion of fome Men now, who will not recognize the abfolute Dominion and Authority even of the God that made them. There was then no Notion of the Horeb-Treaty, nor of the Original Contract made there: That Discovery was referv'd for the Free-Thinkers of the Times we live in. Then

Then for the Miferies which the Jewish Nation un derwent, after the Glory was departed from Ifrael, and their excellent Conftitution overthrown; No body that reads the Holy Scriptures can be ignorant of the Historical Account,and melancholy Defcription, which is given them, in those Sacred Writings; particularly in the Mournings of the Prophets, and the infpir'd Complaints utter'd by them; especially by Jeremiah in that pathetical Book of his Lamentations. To inftance only in the Beginning of it: What can be more moving than those bemoaning Expreffions: How doth the City fit folitary that was full of People? How is fhe become as a Widow? She that was great among the Nations, and Princess among the Provinces, how is fhe become tributary? She weepeth fore in the night, and her Tears are on her cheeks. Among all her Lovers fhe hath none to comfort her? all her Friends have dealt treacherously with her; They are become ber Enemies. Judah is gone into Captivity. The ways of Zion do mourn, because none come to the folemn Feafts; AI her Gates are defolate; Her Priests figh, her Virgins are afflicted, and fhe is in bitterness. Her Adverfaries are chief, and her Enemies profper; For the Lord hath afflicted her, for the multitude of her Tranfgreffions her Children are gone into Captive before the Enemy.

As to our own Case, the Ordinary Providence of God never bleft any Nation of the World with fo perfect a Conftitution, as That of thefe Kingdoms: In which the Authority of the Prince, the Liberty of the Subject, and the Happiness of Both are equally provided for. The Schemes of Lycurgus, Solon, Plato, or Machiavel, were not fo exquifite in Speculation, as our's is in Fact; and what they could not fo much as contrive, we actually enjoy. A Conftitution it is, made up like the Univerfe, of Four Elements; and tho' the Sovereign and the three Eftates feem to be, in their Nature, like them, jarring and difagreeing Principles,yet like them too, they are fo mutually temper'd, and blended, that inftead of destroying, they strengthen and support the

Whole.

Whole. And as This Scheme refembles That of the World in its Compofition, foit may do in its Duration; if fo great a Blessing be not prevented by our own Folly and Wickedness.

Nor do we lefs excel all other Nations in the Model of our Church, than in that of our Civil State. For its pure uncorrupted Doctrines and Difcipline; for its proper, decent, and Edifying Ceremonies; for its excellent Liturgy, Cannons, and Articles: In fhort, for its being every way truly Primitive, truly Apoftolical, and truly Chriftian. We have fufficiently prov'd it to be, and it is by all unprejudic'd Perfons acknowledg'd to be, the most perfect, the most unexceptionable, the moft glorious Church this day in the Christian World. Other Churches have indeed quitted the Errors of the Romish Religion; but then they have quitted fomething more than its Errors: They have loft the Epifcopacy inftituted by the Apostles, as well as the Corruptions introduc'd by the Papifts. Like thofe, who recover indeed out of one dangerous Diftemper, but not without throwing themselves into another; or not without lofing a Limb, or an Eye, in the ftruggle between the Disease, and the Conftitution. Whereas our excellent Church, recover'd clearly and entirely from the Disease of Popery; throughly purg'd away all its ill Humors, and without being maim'd in any Part whatfoever, was perfectly reftor'd to primitive Strength, and Beauty.

Upon the whole therefore, We are the happiest People in the World, both in our Civil and Ecclefiaftical Establishment, if we can but prevail upon our felves to be fenfible that we are fo; and thofe Words of Mofes to the Children of Ifrael, are now moft properly true of us; What Nations is there fo great, that hath Statutes and Judgments fo righteous? And I pray God we may for the future keep and do them; this being our Wisdom and our Understanding, in the fight of the Nations, which shall here thefe Statutes; and will then fay,

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