always mean to move them to grant our requests. And in order to prevail, it is common to make use of various modes of supplication or pleading. This is the method, which a penitent child would take, to obtain the forfeited favor of his father. He would

acknowledge the rectitude of his father's government; he would confess the injury he had done to his father's character; he would thank him for his past favors; and pathetically plead for his forgiving love. He would naturally employ all these modes of address, in order to move his father to pardon his faults. So when we praise God for his perfections, thank him for his mercies, confess our trespasses against him, and present our petitions to him, we do all this with an ultimate aim to move his heart, and obtain the blessings we implore. Indeed, we never supplicate any being without an ultimate intention of prevailing upon him, to do or grant what we desire. And any address, which does not express or imply a design of moving the person addressed, cannot deserve the name of petition or prayer. So far, therefore, as prayer signifies "the offering up of our desires to God for things agreeable to his will," just so far it necessarily implies our design and desire of moving God to bestow the favors we request. There are no two words in our language more nearly synonymous, than praying and pleading. And since praying always implies pleading, it must necessarily imply a desire and design of moving God to shew mercy.

2. It appears from the prayers of good men, which are recorded in Scripture, that they meant to move God to grant their petitions. Abraham's intercession for Sodom carries this idea. He earnestly desired and prayed, that God would graciously spare that degenerate city. And he was so fervent and importufor his importunity. "Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak." And he continued to apologize, until he made his last and smallest request. "Oh, let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak but this once." Such great importunity in prayer plainly supposes, that Abraham meant to move the Supreme Being to spare those guilty creatures, for whom he intreated. Jacob wrestled all night with God in prayer, and humbly, though confidently, said, "I will not let thee go, except thou bless me." We must conclude from this, that he meant to move God to grant him a blessing. Job had the same design in praying to God. Oh! said he, that I knew where I might find him! that I might come even to his seat! I would order my speech before him, and fill my mouth with arguments." And what a variety of arguments did Daniel use, to prevail upon God to grant pardon and deliverance to his covenant people? He prayed in this fervent and importunate strain: "Now, therefore, O my God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord's sake: O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies. O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken, and do; defer not, for thy name sake, O my God; for thy city and thy people are called by thy name." Why should Daniel use so many arguments with God; and plead with so much fervor and importunity, unless he desired and intended to move his compassion towards his people, and incline him to work their deliverance? No men ever understood the nature and design of prayer,

and importunate supplications, to move God to shew mercy, we may justly conclude this to be a proper end to be proposed in praying. Indeed, it is much to be doubted, whether any good men ever did call upon God with freedom and fervency, without an ardent desire of moving God to grant their requests. This is so essential to prayer, that no pious person, perhaps, would know how to order his speech before God, if this were to be excluded from his petitions. And though some good men may think, that they ought not to indulge a desire of moving God to shew mercy; yet, we believe, if they would examine their own feelings, they would find, that they never have been able to pray in sincerity, without indulging and expressing such a reasonable desire.

3. The friends of God are urged to pray, with fervency and importunity, in order to move the divine compassion. This seems to be the spirit of the Prophet's exhortation to the saints in his day. "Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence: and give him no rest till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth." God is pleased to represent himself as greatly influenced, by the prayers of good men. To them he says, "Concerning my sons, and concerning my daughters, command ye me." Again he says, "Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be towards this people." And he conveys the same idea in stronger terms still. "Though Noah, Daniel, and Job were in the land, they should deliver neither sons nor daughters, but only themselves." These modes of expression clearly and forcibly express the prevailing influence of prayer upon the heart of the Deity. Christ likewise illustrates and inculcates the energy of prayer, by the parable of the unjust judge and importunate widow. "And he spake a parable unto this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint; saying, There was in a city a judge which feared not God, neither regarded man: And there was a certain widow in that city; and she came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adversary. And he would not for a while: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. And the Lord said, hear what the unjust judge saith. And shall not God avenge his own elect, which ery day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you he will avenge them speedily." The plain and obvious design of this parable is, to represent the powerful influence of pious and persevering prayer, to move God to pity and relieve his friends in distress. And agreeably to this, the Apostle James expressly declares, that, "the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." Indeed, the whole tenor of Scripture encourages saints to call upon God, with desires and hopes of moving his compassion. It is still further to be observed,

4. That the prayers of good men have actually prevailed upon God to grant great and signal favors. When the children of Israel had made a molten image, God was highly displeased, and felt disposed to destroy them. But Moses prayed and his prayers prevailed upon God to spare the idolaters. This appears from the account, which Moses gives of that memorable event. "And the Lord said unto me, Arise, get thee down quickly from hence: for thy people which thou hast brought forth out of Egypt have corrupted themselves: they are quickly turned aside out unto me, saying, I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people: Let me alone, that I may destroy them from under heaven: and I will make of thee a nation mightier and greater than they. So I turned and came down from the mount-And I fell down before the Lord: as at the first, forty days and forty nights: I did neither eat bread nor drink water, because of all your sins which ye sinned, in doing wickedly in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger. For I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure wherewith the Lord was wroth against you to destroy you. But the Lord hearkened unto me at that time also." It is here plainly intimated, that the prayers of Moses once and again moved God to bestow great and undeserved favors. The prayer of Joshua moved God, to stop the course of nature and cause the sun and moon to stand still, while he completed his victory over the enemies of Israel. The prayers of Job moved God to forgive the folly and presumption of his three friends, who had reproached both him and his Maker. David prevailed upon God, by his humble and fervent prayer, to countermand the angel, who stood with a drawn sword over Jerusalem, to destroy it. Samuel often interceded and prevailed with God, to spare and bless his rebellious people. Though Elijah was an imperfectly righteous man, yet his effectual fervent prayers availed much, to bring and to remove, divine judgments. The Apostle gives this account of the man, and of his prayers. "Elias was a man of like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth