so many crying abominations to be found, notwithstanding all that God has been pleased to do for us. Let us be humbled before him, not only for the sins of our princes, and nobles, and priests, and people; but more especially under a sense of our own guilt, and of what we have added to the divine displeasure, by offences, if not in their kind peculiarly enormous, yet at least in their circumstances most highly aggravated. Let us borrow the expressions of humble contrition, which were used by God's ancient people, and each of us say with Ezra, O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee, my God; for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our trespass is grown up unto the heavens: Since the days of our fathers have we been in a great trespass unto this day;—and behold, we are now before thee in our trespasses; for we cannot stand before thee, because of this *. Let us say with Jeremiah, We lie dozen in our shame, and our confusion covereth us; for we have sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even to this day, and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God †. Let us say with Daniel, when he Set his face unto the Lord God, to seek him by prayer, and supplications, with fasting and sackcloth, and ashes, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, we have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and haze rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and thy judgments :-O Lord, righteousness belongs unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day,--to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee;neither have we obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets-Nevertheless, O Lord hear, O Lord forgive, O Lord hearken and do, defer not for thine own sake, O my God; for thy people are called by thy name‡. Nor let this be words alone, but the deep-felt sentiments of our hearts. Let us call to remembrance our manifold engagements to God, on the one hand, and our transgressions against him, on the other; and acknowledge in the abasement and bitterness of our souls before him, that it would be a righteous thing in him, to bring destruction upon us in its most painful and dreadful forms, to infatuate all our counsels, to blast all our undertakings, to sink our navies in the midst of the sca, to cause our own hearts to melt, and our hands to fail, while those of our enemies were strengthened for our ruin! Let us humbly acknowledge, that he would be just in all that came upon us, † Jer. iii. 25. Dan. ix. 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 19. * Ezra ix. 6, 7, 15. if this pleasant land, in which we have enjoyed so great plenty and prosperity, should become a desart; or if we should see those possessions, for which we ourselves have laboured, or which have been transmitted to us from our forefathers, plundered by strangers, or even inherited by enemies. And while we are confessing this, let us endeavour by earnest and importunate prayers to avert these deserved judgments, and wrestle with God Not to destroy his people *; but to Give us that help from trouble, without which we shall find, that vain is the help of man t. Let these thoughts, which I hope are impressing our minds. in the solemnities of this day, be carried along with us into our secret retirements; let us spread them before God in our family devotion, and let them have a becoming share in our private worship. And if we desire that these supplications and prayers may not be an abomination to a holy God, let us 2. Be very solicitous to exert ourselves to the utmost, to promote a work of general reformation, according to the various stations in which providence has placed us. Our care in this respect, if it be earnest and sincere, will begin with ourselves; and we should now particularly consider ourselves, as solemnly called by God to Search and try our ways, that we may turn again to the Lord. In obedience to that command, let us, as it were, call a court in our own consciences, and impartially judge ourselves, as those that are shortly to be judged of the Lord. Whatever is criminal, whatever is even suspicious in our temper and conduct, let us endeavour to regulate it by the certain rules of religion, and bring all our sentiments and actions to its unerring standard. Let us not only Cease to do evil, but learn to do well§; labouring to the very utmost, to prevent any reproach to our profession, and to reflect a glory upon it. Could every one be engaged to this, all would be well; nay, should it grow the prevailing temper, we might reasonably hope, that The innocent would deliver the island; yea, that it should be preserved by the pureness of their hands. And this will naturally engage us to a proper care of those committed to our immediate charge. It will, no doubt, have an happy influence upon heads of families, to stir them up to Walk within their houses in a perfect way ¶; and so to govern, as well *Deut. ix. 26. § Isa. i. 16, 17. VOL. HI. Psal. cviii. 12. F Lam. iii. 40. as instruct their domestics, that none under their roof and care, may Make themselves vile, without being restrained by proper discipline. This would, under God, who very seldom denies a blessing to such pious endeavours, have a happy tendency to secure to our country a race of virtuous and pious youth, whose behaviour might wipe off the stain, which the sins of their fathers have thrown upon it; out of regard to whom God might deal so much the more graciously with us, while they were growing for public service, and might say of our nation, as in another case, Destroy it not, for a blessing is in it. And, to conclude all, up 3. Let us, from what we have now been hearing, be excited earnestly to pray for those, who, by reason of their more public stations in life, may be capable of doing more than ourselves, to promote the work of national reformation. And here our magistrates justly claim the first share in our remembrance. Let us earnestly pray, that divine grace may possess their hearts with a sense of the importance of their respective offices, and of the strict account they must another day render for the manner in which they have discharged them.Let us especially pray for our gracious sovereign, who is calling us to these prayers, and joining with his people in humiliation before the King of kings, and Lord of lords. Let us pray, that The Lord may hear him in the day of trouble, that the name of the God of Jacob may defend him; that he may send him help from his sanctuary, and strengthen him out of Zion! That The king may joy in the strength of the Lord, and in his salvation may greatly rejoice! That as he is thus publicly declaring his Trust in the Lord, through the mercy of the Most High he may not be moved; but that God's hand may find out all his enemies, and his right hand may find out those that hate him! That His glory may be great in God's salvation, and increasing honour and majesty may be laid upon him ¶! I am persuaded, there is not a heart that does not answer, amen! May the father of our country hear, that his enemies are humbled abroad! May he see his people united, and reformed at home! Yea, may God Make him most blessed for ever**; that in the future, and infinitely most important world, they that have been here protected by him in war, and cherished in peace, may see him as much distinguished by celestial glories, as he now is by earthly dignities!-May all our counsellors be wise; and all our judges *1 Sam. iii, 15. Ver. 7, 8. + Isa. Ixv. 8. Psal, xx. 1, 2. ** Ver. 6. Psal. xxi. 1. faithful! May our legislators enact good laws; and inferior magistrates vigorously execute them! And may all our rulers, from the highest to the lowest, be themselves examples of universal goodness! May they Scatter away all evil with their eyes*, and make it ashamed by their presence! May they resolutely reform the people, who generally of all others need it most, their own domestics and dependants! And may they have that inward veneration from all about them, which nothing but a character for real religion can give, even to the greatest and wisest of mankind. Let us pray likewise for our military, as well as our civil officers; that they may exert themselves, with a bravery so well becoming their character, to drive out wickedness, that most dangerous enemy, from our camps and navies, which it has so boldly invaded; yea, where it has by so long a custom claimed a kind of right to pitch its tent, and to set up its banners. This will indeed be a very hard conquest, considering the circumstances in which persons generally enter on such a life, and the great and dangerous leisure which it gives them, in a time of long peace, of corrupting themselves, and each other, Yet the extensive power, which is annexed to superior officers in every regiment, and company, may give them great advantages for serving their country, by regulating the external behaviour of those under their command; and human authority can pretend to regulate nothing more. They may, for instance, be restrained from the open violation of the sabbath, and called to an attendance upon public worship, under one form of it or an other; and a great check may be given to that lewdness, debauchery, and profaneness, in which not a few of them vie with each other, as if they were the distinguishing honours of their order. I look upon it as a great ornament, honour, and blessing to our land, that many of our officers are very amiable examples of virtue and piety, and know how deficient even the character of a gentleman is, when notoriously wanting in either. And we in these parts have had many opportunities of observing, how good an influence the inspection of such persons has upon the inferior soldiery, to secure the regularity and decency of their behaviour. Let us earnestly pray, that The Lord of hosts, whom we are intreating to cover the heads of our warriors in the day of battle+, may more generally inspire the hearts of those that lead them forth with his fear, and excite them, however it may +Psak cxl. *Prov. xx, &, be censured by the abandoned and profane, to exert themselves to the utmost, to form their troops to the discipline of virtue, as well as of war. It is what the credit of their profession, and I will add, the safety of the public requires. And I must take the liberty particularly to say, that when my ears are at any time wounded with those detestable imprecations, which are in many places so common among our soldiery, and which are, I think, an infallible proof of a character thoroughly bad, I am ready to tremble with the sad apprehension, lest their guilt should turn back their weapons of war; and lest God should suddenly send them, from the points of their enemies' swords, or the mouths of their guns, that damnation which they have so wantonly invoked on themselves, and each other. We are under yet more apparent obligation, to pray for those, that preside in religious assemblies of all denominations; that God would Clothe his priests with salvation, as what will have a most important influence to make his people joyful and happy *. May their hearts and hands be united in that good work which is committed to them! May God deliver them from the shame and folly of employing the solemn seasons of public worship, in reproaching their brethren, and animating the hearts of professing christians against each other! An enormity, which, I think, is in our day generally driven out with a just contempt; unless perhaps, it be yet sheltered among a very few, whom great ignorance, or greater wickedness, has reduced to this wretched expedient, as a kind of forlorn-hope. May a better temper universally succeed; and however christian assemblies may differ in some of their forms of worship, yet as they agree in the essentials of it, may their ministers agree in pursuing the same great end; and as they all have one errand, may their language, in the main, be one! May they all speak with plainness, with seriousness, and I will add, with that authority too, which nothing but conscious integrity and goodness can give! Not even amusing, and much less firing the minds of men, with matters of doubtful disputations; but rather exerting themselves to the utmost for that one plain, but glorious purpose, of reforming men's tempers and lives upon the christian plan! For promoting the efficacy of such labours as these, we should earnestly pray, that all who are employed in them, may be examples of distinguishing piety; and that God would be Like a refiner's fire, to purify the sons of Levit. For while Psal. cxxxii. 16. + Mal. iii. 2, 3, |