2. That great fins have ufually a proportionable punifhment: After all that is come upon us, there is the greatnefs of our punishment; for our evil deeds, and for our great trefpafs, there is the greatness of our fin. But, when I fay that great fins have a proportionable punishment, I do not mean that any temporal punishments are proportionable to the great evil of fin; but that God doth ufually obferve a proportion in the temporal punifhments of fin; fo that although no temporal punishment be proportionable to fin, yet the temporal punishment of one fin holds a proportion to the punishment of another, and confequently leffer and greater fins have proportionably a leffer and greater punishment.

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3. That all the punishments which God inflicts in this life, do fall fhort of the demerit of our fins: And Seeing that our God has punished us less than our iniquities deferve. In the Hebrew it is, and haft kept down our iniquities; that is, that they fhould not rife up against The LXX expreffeth it very emphatically, Thou haft eafed us of our fins; that is, Thou haft not let the whole weight of them fall upon us. Were it not for the reftraints which God puts upon his anger, and the merciful mitigations of it, the finner would not be able to bear it, but muft fink under it. Indeed it is only faid in the text, that the punishment which God inflicted upon the Jews, though it was a long captivity, was beneath the defert of their fins: but yet it is univerfally true, and Ezra perhaps might intend to infinuate fo much, that all temporal punishments, though never fo fevere, are always lefs than our iniquities deferve.

4. That God many times works very great deliverances for thofe who are very unworthy of them: And haft given us fuch a deliverance as this, notwithstanding our evil deeds, and notwithstanding our great trefpafs.

5. That we are but too apt, even after great judgments, and after great mercies, to relapfe into our former fins: Should we again break thy commandments. Ezra infinuates, that there was great reafon to fear this, efpecially confidering the ftrange temper of that people; who, when God multiplied his bleffings upon them, fo apt to wax fat, and kick against him and though he had caft them feveral times into the furnace of affli

were

ction, though they were melted for the prefent; yet they were many times but the harder for it afterwards.

6. That it is good to take notice of those particular fins which have brought the judgments of God upon So Ezra does here: After all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and for our great trefpafs; and, Should we again join in affinity with the people of these abomina

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tions.

Secondly, Here is a sentence and determination in the cafe: Wouldst thou not be angry with us till thou hadst confumed us, fo that there should be no remnant nor escaping? Which question, as I faid before, doth imply a ftrong and peremptory affirmative; as if he had faid, After fuch a provocation there is great reafon to conclude, that God would be angry with us till he had confumed

us.

From whence the obfervation contained in this part of the text will be this, That it is a fearful aggravation of fin, and a fad presage of ruin to a people, after great judgments and great deliverances, to return to fin, and especially to the fame fins again. Hear how paffionately Ezra expreffes himself in this cafe, y 6. I am afhamed, O my God, and blush to lift up mine eyes to thee, my God. Why? what was the caufe of this great shame and confufion of face? He tells us, y 9. For we were bond-men, yet our God hath not forfaken us in our bondage, but hath extended his mercy to us, to give us a reviving, to Set up the houfe of our God, and to repair the defolations thereof, and to give us a wall in Judah, and in Jerufalem; that is, to restore to them the free and fafe exercise of their religion. Here was great mercy, and a mighty deliverance indeed and yet, after this, they prefently relapfed into a very great fin, y 10. And now, O our God, what fhall we fay after this? for we have for faken thy commandments.

In the handling of this obfervation, I fhall do thefe two things.

1. I fhall endeavour to fhew, that this is a very heavy aggravation of fin. And,

2. That it is a fatal prefage of ruin to a people. I. It is a heavy aggravation of fin, after great judg ments, and after fignal mercies and deliverances, to re

turn

turn to fin, and especially to the fame fins again. Here áre three things to be distinctly spoken to.

1. That it is a great aggravation of fin, to return to it after great judgments.

2. To do this after great mercies and deliverances. 3. After both, to return to the fame fins again.

1. It is a great aggravation of fin, after great judgments have been upon us, to return to an evil courfe; because this is an argument of great obftinacy in evil. The longer Pharaoh refifted the judgments of God, the more was his wicked heart hardened, till at last he arrived at a monstrous degree of hardness; having been, as the text tells us, hardened under ten plagues. And we find, that after God had threatened the people of Ifrael with feveral judgments, he tells them, Lev. xxvi. 23. that if they will not be reformed by all these things, he will punish them feven times more for their fins. And if the juft God will in fuch a cafe punish feven times more, we may conclude, that the fin is feven times greater.

What fad complaints doth the Prophet make of the people of Ifrael growing worfe for judgments? Ah! finful nation, a people laden with iniquity, children that have been corrupters, a feed of evil doers, If. i. 4. He can hardly find words enough to exprefs how great finners they were and he adds the reafon in the next verse, Why Should they be fmitten any more? they will revolt more and more, y 5. They were but the worfe for judgments. This renders them a finful nation, a people laden with iniquity. And again, If. ix. 12. 13. The people turneth not to him that fmiteth them, neither do they feek the Lord of hofts: therefore his anger is not turned away, but his hand is ftretched out ftill. And, If. xxvi. 11. the fame Prophet further complains to the fame purpofe, When thy hand is lifted up, they will not fee. There is a particu lar brand fet upon King Ahaz, because affliction made him worse, 2 Chron. xxviii. 22. This is that king Ahaz; that is, that grievous and notorious finner. And what was it that rendered him fo? In the time of his diftress he finned yet more against the Lord. This is that King Ahaz, who is faid to have provoked the Lord above all the Kings of Ifrael which were before him.

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2. It is likewise a fore aggravation of fin, when it is committed after great mercies and deliverances vouchsafed to us; because this is an argument of great ingratitude. And this we find recorded as a heavy charge upon the people of Ifrael, that they remembered not the Lord their God, who had delivered them out of the hand of all their enemies on every fide: neither fhewed they kindness to the houfe of Ferubbaal, namely, Gideon, who had been their deliverer, according to all the goodness which he had Shewed to Ifrael, Judg. viii. 34. 35. God, we fee, takes very ill at our hands, when we are ungrateful to the inftruments of our deliverance; but much more, when we are unthankful to him the author of it. And how feverely doth Nathan the Prophet reproach David upon this account? Thus faith the Lord God of Ifrael, I anointed thee king over Ifrael, and delivered thee out of the hand of Saul, &c. and if this had been too little, I would moreover have done fuch and fuch things. Wherefore haft thou defpifed the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in his fight? God here reckons up his manifold mercies and deliverances, and aggravates David's fin upon this account. And he was very angry likewife with Solomon for the fame reafon, because he had turned from the Lord God of Ifrael, who had appeared to him twice, 1 Kings xi. 9. However we may flight the mercies of God, he keeps a punctual and ftrict account of them. It is particularly noted, as a great blot upon Hezekiah, that he returned not again, according unto the benefits done unto him, 2 Chron. xxxii. 25. God takes very fevere notice of all the unkind and unworthy returns that are made to him for his goodness.

Ingratitude to God is fo unnatural and monftrous, that we find him appealing against us for it to the inanimate creatures, If. i. 2. Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the Lord hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, but they have rebelled against me. And then he goes on and upbraids them with the brute creatures, as being more grateful to men, than men are to God: The ox knoweth his owner, and the afs his mafter's crib but Ifrael deth not know, my people doth not confider, y 3. And in the fame Prophet there is the like complaint, If. xxvi. 10. 11. Let favour be fhewed to the

wicked,

wicked, yet will be not learn righteoufnefs: in the land of uprightness will he deal unjustly, and will not behold the majefty of the Lord. Lord, when thy hand is lifted up, they will not fee: but they shall fee, and be ashamed. They that will not acknowledge the mercies of God's providence, fhall feel the strokes of his juftice.

There is no greater evidence in the world of an intractable difpofition, than not to be wrought upon by kindness, not to be melted by mercies, not to be obliged by benefits, not to be tamed by gentle ufage. Nay, God expects that his mercies should lay fo great an obligation upon us, that even a miracle fhould not tempt us to be unthankful: If there arife among you a prophet, (fays Mofes to the people of Ifrael, Deut. xiii. 1.2. 3.), or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a fign or a wonder, and the fign or the wonder cometh to pass, whereof he Spake to thee, faying, Let us go after other gods, and ferve them; thou shalt not hearken to the words of that prophet. And he gives the reason, y 5. Because he hath Spoken to turn you away from the Lord God of Ifrael, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and delivered you out of the houfe of bondage.

3. It is a greater aggravation yet, after great mercies and judgments, to return to the fame fins: because this can hardly be without our finning againft knowledge, and after we are convinced how evil and bitter the fin is which we were guilty of, and have been fo forely punifhed for before. This is an argument of a very perverfe and incorrigible temper; and that which made the fin of the people of Ifrael fo above measure finful, that after fo many fignal deliverances, and fo many terrible judgments, they fell into the fame fin of murmuring ten times; murmuring against God the author, and against Mofes the glorious inftrument of their deliverance out of Egypt; which was one of the two great types of the Old Teftament, both of temporal and spiritual oppreffion and tyranny. Hear with what refentment God fpeaks of the ill returns which they made to him for that great mercy and deliverance: Numb. xiv. 22. 23. Because all thofe men which have feen my glory, and my miracles which I did in Egypt, and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now thefe ten times, and have not hearkened unto my voice; furely they