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come to extremity, and God arifes to Judg 'ment against a People, works of Mercy and 'Charity are most likely to prevail for a Bleffing; either to the turning away the rublick Scourge, or faving particular Perfons from the general Calamity. And are not works of Mercy at fuch times particularly ⚫ reasonable? For what fignifies keeping of Superfluities when we know not how long we fhall live to use them? Or if we live, is it not better to give them now to thofe that need them, than to keep them to be taken away by fuch as will only Destroy them. Tho' Mr. Bonnell bore his own fhare of the Calamities of that time with a very calm and ferene Mind, yet there was one thing that gave him no fmall Disturbance, and that was, our Troubles not producing that Reformation among Proteftants which might have been expected while the Rod was upon them, tho' no doubt a great many were very much bettered by it. What his fenfe of these things were will fufficiently appear by the ensuing Meditation compos'd on Whit-Sunday 1689.

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To have a heart full of concern for the Glory of God and the Souls of Men, to fee < the World lye in Wickedness and Ignorance of God, and not be able to remedy it, is it not an uncomfortable State? But · to be fill'd with a Divine Power and Abili

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ty to work upon the Hearts of Men, to con"vince them and bring them off from this Sin and Ignorance, as the Apoftles were by the coming down of the Holy Ghost, can any

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thing be a greater Comfort? To force C the World to believe the Truth of what they witnessed, and acquit them from being Deceivers, is it not an exceeding comfort? But how is this comfort fulfill'd to us? We feea World, in which we are, lying in 'Wickedness; the Judgments of iod gone out against it, and yet the Inhabitants of it do not learn Righteousness; God seems refolved to Reform or Cut us off, and yet lit'tle Reformation appears. And what can thofe now do who fee this ftate of our Age, 'who fee it, and fee themselves without Power to help it? Who see the Wickedness of the World and cannot fnatch Men out of the Fire? Where is the Lord God of Elijah? Where is the Promife of the Comforter, fo plentifully fulfilled to the Blefled Apoftles of our Lord? Where is this double Portion of his Spirit that defcended on them? Is not the Promif, He shall remain with you always? Lord God, thefe are thy Flock now, as much as they were of Old, thy People and the Sheep of thy Pafture, tho' they have gone aftray, tho' they refuse to be reclaim'd. O comfort thy Servants with Power to call home these wanderers from Thee, and bring them into thy Fold: To Convert the unrepenting World, to turn many to Righteousness, and cover a Multitude of Sins. Amen.

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When in the Progrefs of the War, the Proteftants in Dublin were deny'd the exercise of their Religion; their Churches turn'd in

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to Prisons, and their Minifters confin'd: Mr. Bonnell deeply lamented those Sins which brought down that which he accounted the fevereft of God's Judgments; and endeavour'd to fupply the want of the Churches publick Prayers, by the greater Constancy and Fervors of his Private Devotions. Thus June the 25th 1640, a few Days before the Victory of the Bon, he exprefs'd the Sorrows and Devotion of his Soul, in the following Medi tation.

Juftly, O Lord, for our negligence in thy • Worship and Service, doft Thou fhu: us • out from the liberty of meeting together to

Celebrate it. Yet even this I truft will turn to good, to those that Fear Thee, in making them more zealous and fervent in Praying to Thee in Private; And afterwards that Thou wilt give them Grace to redeem the • Faults they have been guilty of, by greater 'Fervency in Publick, when Thou shalt graciously restore to us the liberty of it. But, Lord, we are not better than Thy Servants, who are totally depriv'd of these means. (Ah! That it is not to be said how far we may be worse than they ;)Why then fhould it be prefum'd that Thou wilt deal with Us fo much more graciously, than Thou haft 'thought fit to do with Them. We are in Thy hands, and have deserved no good from Thee. Juftly may'ft thou deprive us of the liberty and exercife of our Religion. But then let not the extraordinary fupplies of Thy Grace be wanting to us; for Thou

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can'ft work without means, as well as with them; and even this fevere difpenfation of Thy Providence, will be turn'd to a merey to all of us, if it puts us upon Repentance for all our abufes of that great freedom of Thy Holy Ordinances, which Thou haft fo long indulg'd to us; for our irreverent, careless, undevout Behaviour in Thy Worfhip; for our pleasing our felves in other things, in our coming into Thy House of Prayer, befides meeting and ferving Thee our God. If it help us to repent of these abufes of Thy Houfe here, before Thou take us to Thy Houfe in the Heavens; and if it fills us with hungrings, and thirstings,and 'longings after thofe opportunities of ferv'ing Thee, which we have too flightly valu'd hitherto; Thou may'ft make even a total deprivement, turn to a greater Bleffing, to us, as I trust thou wilt do, if thou shalt think fit io to deal with us than the freeft enjoy'ment. Thou knowest how to conduct thy Ser vants to thy Self; for this is the end of all their Travels; Olet this Aim fill our Souls, and we shall unconcernedly leave to Thee the ordering of the things of this World, which we have done with.

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But these Calamities were foon over, fucceeded by all that Joy which long wish'd for Liberty, Safety and Peace cou'd give. One general Release discharg'd all our Prifoners; and our Churches again return'd to their true Ufe, and became Houfes of Prayer. And as Mr. Bonnel had always exprefs'd his Sorrow

The Day of Dublin's Deliverance.

in Penitential Complaints and Fervent Prayers to God, so now his Joy turn'd all to Praifes.

But how different were his Reflexions upon that furprizing Turn of Affairs, from those of most others, who fhar'd in the deliverance it gave! As different it is to be fear'd as his Behaviour had been before. The mutual Caresses of the Proteftants, after their new-gain'd Freedom, he improv'd to the nobleft purposes, thence to raise his Mind to Heaven, and contemplate those endearments, that Seraphic Love and Joy which shall fill the Souls of the faithful, at their meeting in that happy place.

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"How did we fee (fays he) the Protestants on the great day of our Revolution, Thurfday the Third of July, (a Day ever to be remembred by us with all thankfulness; O ' had it been begun with visiting our Churches and presenting our felves there to God ' our deliverer,) Congratulate and Embrace ' one another as they met, like Persons alive from the Dead! Like Brothers and Sisters meeting after a long Abfence, and going a'bout from Houfe to Houfe, to give each o'ther Joy of God's great Mercy; Enquiring

of one another how they paft the late days ⚫ of Distress and Terror! What apprehen. fions they had; what fears or dangers they were under, thofe that were Prisoners, ' how they got their Liberty, how they were treated, and what from time to time they thought of things!

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