full of them: they shall not be ashamed, when they speak with their enemies in the gate*. But then, as ever we hope to fee either our public or our private happiness continue, we must be careful to remember, III. That both depend on the divine benediction. Except the Lord build the house, their labour is but loft that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.—Children, and the fruit of the womb, are an heritage and gift that cometh of the Lordt. These are the exprefs declarations of holy writ: and both reafon and experience humbly fubfcribe to them. It is not indeed poffible for us in many cafes to difcern particularly in what manner the providence of God conducts things: but we may plainly discern in general, that as the whole courfe of nature is nothing elfe than the free appointment, which he hath been pleased to make; as the motions of the inanimate world proceed from those which he originally impreffed upon it; and all the thoughts and actions of intelligent beings are doubtless abfolutely fubject to the influence of their Maker; fince we fee they are greatly subject, and often when they perceive it not, to that of their fellow-creatures;) it must be in his power by various ways, perhaps the more effectual for being unknown, to dispose of every thing fo, as may best answer his wife purposes of mercy or correction. And as he evidently can do this, it is likewise evidently worthy of him to do it; for the higheft of his titles is that of the moral governor of the universe; and therefore, we may firmly believe the fcripture affuring us, that he doth it in fact; that he makes all things work together for good to them that love him‡ and curses the very blessings of those who love him not. Whenever then we find our affairs going on to our content, our families flourishing, our healths conftant, our hearts full of exultation, and dictating language to us like that of David, in my profperity I faid, I shall never be removed; let us be fure alfo like him to add, thou, Lord, of thy goodness baft made my bill fo ftrong. In the hand of God it is, whether we shall have the things that we wish for ; whether, when we have them, they shall prove comforts or afflictions, the joy or the grief of our fouls; whether laftly, if they are ever fo dear to us, they shall Pf. cxxvii. 5, 6. + Pf. cxxvii. 1, 2, 4. Rom. viii, 28. | Pf. xxx. 6. fhall remain with us, or be fnatched from us: and therefore, it unfpeakably concerns us all to intereft providence in our be half. They whom God favours moft, are by no means exempt from fufferings: but he not only will always make religious perfons fall amends hereafter, but ordinar ily grant them deli verance and confolation here. Thus the Pfalmift, immediate y after his above-mentioned triumph, had caufe to fubjoin, thes didft turn thy face from me, and I was troubled". lows, then cried I unto thee, and gat me to my Lord right bumbly. Thou turneft my beaviness into joy: thou baft pat off my fackcloth, and girded me with gladness‡. But it f Perfecutions indeed, more or lefs, the apoftle bath told rs all fball fuffer, that will live godly in Chrifts and partly that very account. But in thefe, they fhall be enabled to tait pleafure, even when they are the heaviest and ufually they are very light, compared with the calamities, which the wicked bring on their own heads. The natural tendency of chriftia virtues is to happiness; of fin, to mifery: God hath appointed this tendency, and he will make it effectual. If nations, in the midt of their wealth and tranquillity, will not flew they are fenfible, that he beftows them, he will juftly prove it ty taking them away. And if thofe perfons, whom he hah raifed to fuperior honours, and favoured with marks of di tinguished goodness, will-ungratefully forget, by whofe power and for whofe fervice they were thus exalted and blessed, he can eafily make them know by unexpected judgements, that the MA High ruleth in the kingdom of men¶, and doth according to Eu will in the armies of heaven, and among ft the inhabitants of it earth. But princes and their people, joining together in thankful obedience to the laws of their great benefactor, will be happy in themselves and each other, will fine as lights in the world**; and, to fpeak in the language of the prophet, upon al their glory there fhall be a defencel†. For God will fave Swa, and build the citi.s of Judah.- The poflerity aifo of his fervarts Jhall inherit it; and they, that love his name, fhall dweil therein. Their children shall continue, and their feed be eftablijwed lefore bim§§. Ver. 7. 12 Cor. xii. to #PC. Ixix. 6, 37 Ver. 12. † Ver. 8. § 2 Tim. iii. 12. Phil ii. 15. tt IC iv. 3. SER SERMON LXXXVII. THE RATIONAL IDEA OF A CHRISTIAN FAST. MATTH. vi. 16. Moreover, when ye faft, be not as the hypocrites. THE practice of fafting from a principle of religion has been thought of by different perfons in fo very different a manner; fome placing it amongst the highest duties, whilft others account it mere fuperftition: and a great part of those, who obferve it the moft rigidly, are fo little improved by it in true goodness: that, I hope, difcourfing on this fubject may be useful in general, as well as particularly feafonable at prefent, to direct your judgement and behaviour in relation to it. And therefore, I have chofen to treat of it from words of the greatest authority; thofe of our bleffed Saviour: which contain, I. A fuppofition, that religious fafting would be used amongst his followers: When ye fafl. 11. A caution against using it amifs: Be not as the hypocrites. I. A fuppofition, that religious fafting would be used amongst his followers: which indeed he must suppose of course, unless he forbad it; because the custom had very long been, and was then, univerfal in the world. Not only the people of the great city and empire of Nineveh, as we read in fcripture, but the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, almoft all nations, of whofe religion we have any particular accounts, appear to have been led, either by nature or ancient tradition, to abstain From their food, on certain occafions, as an exercise of piety. The Jewish law could not be the original of an observance, VOL. 11. Xxx that that had spread fo wide: especially, as that law appoints but one fingle day in the whole year to be kept as a public fast, and gives no orders for private fafting at all. Yet we find, from the early times of their common-wealth downwards, many other public fafts obferved by them, as exigencies required: we find the prophets approving and enjoining them, and directing how they are to be folemnized: we find the moft exemplary in goodness amongst them, taking this way of hum bling themselves before God in fecret, not only on perfonal and domeftic, but national accounts, and graciously accepted in fo doing. ་ The fame ufage continued to our Saviour's days. For we read in St. Luke*, of Anna the prophetess, that she served God with faflings and prayers night and day. Indeed by this time, over and above several yearly fafts appointed by authority. the ftricter fort obferved two every week voluntarily. And not only the Pharifees, but John's difciples alfo, fasted ofteng. Nor doth our bleffed Lord condemn any part of these things: but, leaving the frequency of fafting to public and private prudence, regulates only the manner of it; and by fo doing, plainly treats it as a practice, intended for perpetual ufe. It is true, he doth not, in fo many words, command his difciples to faft: he only faith, when ye faft. But fo he had said just before, when thou doft thine alms, when thou prayeft¶. And had he not defigned, that fafting fhould be confidered in fome degree as a duty alfo; he would never have promised a reward to the right performance of it, as he doth in the next verfe but one, after the text. And befides, he not only fafted himself, in a manner quite beyond our imitation, but declared, that though then his difciples did not faft, yet after he was taken from them, they fhould**: which they verified accordingly. Cornelius indeed was not yet a chriftian, when he fasted to the ninth hourt: but that was amongst the means of his becoming one. We read in the following chapters of the As, that congregations, under the guidance of prophets and apoftles, fafted on more occafions than one‡‡. St. Paul enjoins private perfons Luke ii. 37. I Verse 2. Zach viii. 19. Luke xviii. 12. # Ads xiii. 2, 3, xiv. 23. 5 Matth. ix. 14. tt Acts x. 30. perfons to give themselves at times to fasting and prayer*. The whole chriftian church, from the beginning, hath bh elteemed and practised it not a little and to this day both the ecclefiaftical and civil powers continue to prefcribe it. But for yet fuller fatisfaction, and indeed for our direction also, let us inquire more particularly, what its meaning and uses are. One very useful meaning is, to express our forrow for having offended God, and our fenfe of not deferving the leaf of his favours. By fome it hath been thought, that our first parents introduced it, as a penitential memorial of their eating the forbidden fruit: which indeed it might very properly exprefs. But without infifting on this, for which we have no warrant, abítaining for fome time from our daily food fignifies, most naturally, that we are unworthy of it; and can take no comfort in it, whilst we are under the divine difpleasure. And as an ciently, every thing of importance was denoted, especially in the eastern countries, by actions as well as words; this was probably the original purpose, for which men ufed fafting. And it was then fometimes extended to children and cattle; in token, that the parents and owners of them had forfeited the dearest bleffings, and most valuable conveniences of lifet. It is true, a proper confeffion in words would have expreffed the same thing, that this ceremony doth, and somewhat more clearly, unless it were explained in words. But in all likelihood it usually was: or if not, the difficulty of understanding it cannot be accounted great. And where it is appointed by authority, or prevails by cuftom, as the established method of fignifying humiliation, we are as much bound to comply with it, as with any other appointment or cuftom; and thould be as justly thought difobedient or unfociable, if we refufed: even though it had no peculiar advantages to compenfate for its being of less obvious meaning: whereas indeed it hath confiderable ones. For words alone are far from carrying with them that energy and influence upon the mind, which the fuperad ded folemnity of such an abftinence muft, even in private cafes ; and much more, when whole affemblies, and cities, and countries, join in it. But above all, when either perfons or nations have been remarkably wicked, fuch moving and afflicting acknowledgements X x x 2 * 1 Cor. vii. 6. ↑ Joel ii, 16. Jonah iii. 7, 8. Judith iv. 19. |