our Diligence and good Management, they may take effect.

Upon this Suppofition we may and ought to look upon all our good Succeffes, as the Blef fings of God to us, and particularly that which we are this Day met together to thank Him for; I mean, the wonderful Prefervation of His Majefty, from all the Dangers to which he hath fo often been expofed, and his fafe Re

turn to us.

Upon this Suppofition we may hope, that tho' all Things have not fucceeded according to our Wishes, yet in due Time they may, fince the King of the World hath, by the frequent and unexpected Deliverances he hath wrought for us, and the ftrange unufual Providences that have attended our King, given us fome Encouragement to believe (provided we do our Parts towards it) that He hath referv'd Us for better Times, and Him for the executing thofe Glorious Defigns, which Good Men hope will at last be accomplish'd in the World.

Laftly, Upon this Suppofition, every Honeft Man will find Reafon enough, both to bear contentedly whatever uneafy Circumftances he lies under, and to truft in God's Mercy for the Removal of them; and in the mean Time to poffefs his own Soul, in a chearful Dependance on God's Providence, and a hearty Thankfulness, for all the innumerable Bleffings he hath receiv'd, and doth daily receive from his Hands. And, therefore, fince the Lord is King, let the Earth be glad; yea, let the Multitude of the Ifles be glad thereof.

Bb 3

Now,

Now, That the Lord is really thus the King of the World, there are all the Arguments to perfuade us, that can be defir'd;

It is the Voice of Reason; it is the Voice of all Mankind; it is the Voice of GOD himself, both in His Works, and in His Word.

Give me leave to give you a Specimen in all these Ways of Arguing, and but a Specimen, because it would be rather the Work of a Book, than of a Sermon, to dilate upon thefe Matters.

First, I fay, Reafon tells us it must be thus: for admitting that the World did not make itself, but was made by God; it will follow, that the fame God that made it, must still govern it; for the fame Ends, and Designs, and Motives (whatever they were) that induced God to make the World at firft, will oblige him for Ever to take care of it, and look after it. Unless we fuppofe God to contrive and act as uncertainly and unfteadily, and with the fame inconftancy and levity of Mind, that fome of us Mortals here upon Earth do.

Secondly, It is the Voice of all Mankind; For otherwife, how comes it to pass, that among all Nations, and in all Ages, there has been fome Religion or other practifed.

I pray, what is the meaning of Worshiping God, of putting up Prayers and Supplications to Him for the Things we need; of returning Thanks for the Benefits we have received; of appointing Religious Rites and Methods for the expiation of Guilt, or the averting of impendent Calamities (all which Things have been practised in all Nations, from the beginning of the World to this Day?)

I fay, what is the meaning of all this, unless it was hereby meant to be fignified, That there is a God which doth concern himself in the Affairs of Mankind, and who doth difpenfe Good or Evil to them, as they well or ill behave themselves towards him?

The Truth is, To fay, that God doth not govern the World, is to fay, that all Religion is a Cheat; and, that all Mankind, except a few debauch'd Wits in the more polite Countries, and a few Brutes in the very barbarous ones, (who are of no Religion at all) have been, and are a Company of credulous Fools. For this is certain, whatever Argument, either Jew, or Turk, or Pagan, or Chriftian, can fuggeft to himself, for. the convincing him, that it is his Concernment, or his Duty, to worship God, or to be of any Religion at all, any Action nay, or to make any Confcience of he does; I fay, all these Arguments do not only prove, but fuppofe, that God both knows and orders the Affairs of the World.

Thirdly, It may likewise be as ftrongly proved from Effects; from the Tracks and Footfteps of a Divine over-ruling Providence, which are to be feen in the Events that happen in the World, which is what I call the Voice of God in his Works.

These are indeed fo many, and so visible, that whofoever hath either read Hiftory, or hath made Obfervations, must needs have taken notice of them.

If ever there were any extraordinary Deliverances vouchfafed to Kingdoms, or Cities, or particular Perfons; or ever any remarkable Bb 4

Fudg.

Judgments inflicted upon any of thefe, which fo carried the Marks and Signatures of God's Hand in them, that the One could not in Reason but be attributed to the Care that he had, that Religion and Innocence fhould not be oppreffed; and the Other muft in Reason be interpreted as a Divine Vengeance, that pur fued the Guilty for their Crimes.

If ever there were any Prophecies that did punctually foretell a Particular Event, that came not to pass till many Years after, and fuch an Event as was perfectly contingent, and depended upon the Wills of Men:

If ever there were any Notices given of Approaching Calamities, by Voices from Heaven, by ftrange Appearances in the Air, and fuch other like Prefages, not naturally to be accounted for:

If ever there were any Apparitions, any Witchcraft, any Effects of a Diabolical Power, by which it may appear, that there are a fort of Invisible Beings in the World, which do bear ill Will to Mankind, but yet are fo curbed, that they cannot do all the Mischief they would:

If ever there were any Miracles wrought either by Mofes and the Prophets, or by Jefus Chrift and his Apoftles, for the Confirmation of the Jewish or the Chriftian Religion:

Laftly, If ever any Good Man did ever receive any Bleffing, or avoid any Misfortune, which he might rationally look upon as an Anfwer to the Fervent Prayers that he had put up to God, or others had put up for him

;

I fay, If any of thefe Things that I have now named be true (as all Hiftories give us a World of Inftances of the Truth of all of them and as for fome of them, I do not doubt but they fall within the Compafs of our own Obfervation and Experience;) I fay, If any of thefe Things be true, then have we a convincing Proof, that there is a Power that doth interpofe in the Affairs of the World, fuperiour both to that of Nature, and to that of Mankind, and which moderates all Things, according as it feems good unto him.

But in Truth, we need not go to fupernatural Events, or to particular Providences for the Truth of this: For, in my Opinion, the daily Effects that every one of us fees and feels; the very Subfiftence of the World for fo many Ages, in that regular Frame that it was at first; and the fair Treatment and Encouragement (how unequally foever Things feem to be diftributed) which vertuous and religious Men have always found it, and do yet find, notwithstanding that far the greatest Number of Men are of another Stamp; I fay, these very Things feem an Argument beyond Exception, That there is a God that prefides over us, and takes Care of us.

But, Fourthly and Laftly, God has yet given us a further Proof of this, by his own many Authentick Declarations in the Holy Scriptures (which we call his Word.)

One of the main Bufineffes of which is, to affure us, That He rules in the Kingdoms of Dan. 4. Men, and disposeth of all their Affairs,

There

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