For this is the inheritance of the servants of the Lord, Isa. liv. 14, 15, 17.

To the prosperity of a nation two things are required:-(1st.) That they be freed from oppression, injustice, cruelty, disorder, confusion, in themselves, from their rulers, or others; (2dly.) That they be protected from the sword and violence of them that seek their ruin from without. And both these do a people receive by receiving the gospel. (1st.) For the first, they have the promise of God that they shall have "judges as at the first," Isa. i. 26,—such in justice and judgment shall bear rule over them and among them, as the first judges whom he stirred up and gave to his ancient people; their officers shall be peace, and their exactors righteousness, Isa. lx. 17. Even the very gospel which they do receive is only able to instruct them to be just, ruling in the fear of the Lord; for that only effectually teacheth the sons of men to live righteously, soberly, and godly in this present world, Tit. ii. 12.

(2dly.) And for the second, innumerable are the promises that are given to such a people; whence the psalmist concludes, upon the consideration of the mercies they do and shall enjoy, "Happy is the people whose God is the LORD," Ps. cxliv. 15. The glorious LORD will be to them a place of broad rivers and waters, in which no galley with oars, nor gallant ship shall pass by; the LORD will be their redeemer, lawgiver, king, and saviour, Isa. xxxiii. 21. It will interest any people in all the promises that are made for the using of the church to thrash, break, destroy, burden, fire, consume, and slay the enemies thereof;-so far shall a people be from suffering under the hands of oppressors, that the Lord will use them for the breaking and destruction of the Nimrods of the earth: and this blessing of the nations do they receive by the faith of Abraham.

3dly. The rejection of the gospel by any people or nation to whom it is tendered, is always attended with the certain and inevitable destruction of that people or nation; which, sooner or later, shall, without any help or deliverance, be brought upon them by the revenging hand of Christ.

When the word of grace was rejected and despised by the Jews, the messengers of it professedly turning to the Gentiles, Acts xiii. 46, xxviii. 28,—God removing it from them, unto a nation that would bring forth fruit, Matt. xxi. 43, as it did in all the world, or among all nations, for a season, Col. i. 6,-with what a fearful and tremendous desolation he quickly wasted that people, is known to all;—he quickly slew and destroyed those husbandmen that spoiled his vineyard, and let it forth unto others, that might bring him his fruit in due season. Hence, when Christ is tendered in the gospel, the judges and rulers of the nations are exhorted to obedience to him, upon pain of being

destroyed upon the refusal thereof, Ps. ii. 12. And we have the experience of all ages, ever since the day that the gospel began to be propagated in the world. The quarrel of it was revenged on the Jews by the Romans,-upon the Romans by the Goths, Vandals, and innumerable barbarous nations; and the vengeance due to the antichristian world is at hand, even at the door. The Lord will certainly make good his promise to the utmost, that the kingdom and nations which will not serve the church, even that kingdom and those nations shall utterly perish, Isa. lx. 12.

4thly. That it is the duty of magistrates to seek the good, peace, and prosperity of the people committed to their charge, and to prevent, obviate, remove, take away every thing that will bring confusion, destruction, desolation upon them; as Mordecai procured good things for his people, and prosperity to his kindred, Esther x. 3. And David describes himself with all earnestness pursuing the same design, Ps. ci. Magistrates are the ministers of God for the good, universal good, of them to whom they are given, Rom. xiii. 1-4; and they are to watch and apply themselves to this very thing, verse 6. And the reason the apostle gives to stir up the saints of God to pray, amongst all sorts of men, in special for kings and those that are in authority,-to wit, that they may, in general, come to the knowledge of the faith, and be saved; and, in particular, discharge the duty and trust committed to them (for on that account are they to pray for them as kings and men in authority),-is, "that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life, in all godliness and honesty," 1 Tim. ii. 1-4. It being incumbent on them to act even as kings and men in authority, that we may so do; they are to feed the people committed to their charge with all their might, unto universal peace and welfare.

Now, the things that are opposite to the good of any nation or people are of two sorts:-(1st.) Such as are really, directly, and immediately opposed to that state and condition wherein they close together, and find prosperity. In general, seditions, tumults, disorders; in particular, violent or fradulent breakings in upon the respective designed bounds, privileges, and enjoyments of singular persons, without any consideration of Him who ruleth all things, are of this kind. If nations and rulers might be supposed to be Atheists, yet such evils as these, tending to their dissolution and not-being, they would, with all their strength, labour to prevent, either by watching against their commission, or inflicting vengeance on them that commit them, that others may hear, and fear, and do so no more. (2dly.) Such as are morally and meritoriously opposed to their good and welfare; in that they will certainly pluck down the judgments and wrath of God upon that nation or people where they are practised and allowed. There

are sins for which the wrath of God will be assuredly revealed from heaven against the children of disobedience. Sodom and Gomorrah are set forth as examples of his righteous judgment in this kind. And shall he be thought a magistrate, to bear out the name, authority, and presence of God to men, that so he and his people have present peace, [who,] like a herd of swine, cares not though such things as will certainly first eat and devour their strength, and then utterly consume them, do pass for current? Seeing that they that rule over men must be just, ruling in the fear of the Lord, the sole reason why they sheathe the sword of justice in the bowels of thieves, murderers, adulterers, is, not because their outward peace is actually disturbed by them, and therefore they must give example of terror to others, who being like minded, are not yet actually given up to the practice of the like abomination,—but also, yea, principally, because He in whose stead they stand and minister to the world is provoked by such wickedness to destroy both the one and the other. And if there be the same reason to be evidenced concerning other things, they also call for the same procedure.

To gather up, now, what hath been spoken:-considering the gospel's right and title to be propagated, with all its concernments, in every nation under heaven; the blessing, peace, prosperity, and protection wherewith it is attended when and where received; and the certain destruction and desolation which accompanies the rejection and contempt thereof;-considering the duty that, by God's appointment, is incumbent on them that rule over men,-that in the fear of the Lord they ought to seek the good, peace, and welfare and prosperity of them committed to their charge; to prevent, obviate, remove, revenge, that which tends to their hurt, perturbation, dissolution, destruction, immediate from heaven, or from the hand of men; and in the whole administration to take care that the worshippers of God in Christ may lead a quiet and peaceable life, in all godliness and honesty; let any one, who hath the least sense upon his spirit, of the account which he must one day make to the great King and Judge of all the world, of the authority and power wherewith he was intrusted, determine whether it be not incumbent on him-by all the protection he can afford, by all the privileges he can indulge, the supportment that he can grant, by all that encouragement which, upon the highest account imaginable, he is required or allowed to give to any person whatsoever to further the propagation of the gospel; which upon the matter the matter is the only thing of concernment, as well unto this life as that which is to come. And if any thing be allowed in a nation, which in God's esteem may amount to a contempt and despising thereof, men may be taught by sad experience what will be the issue of such allowance.

5thly. I shall only propose one thing more to your consideration. Although the institutions and examples of the Old Testament, of the duty of magistrates in the things and about the worship of God, are not, in their whole latitude and extent, to be drawn into rules that should be obligatory to all magistrates now, under the administration of the gospel,--and that because the magistrate then was "custos, vindex, et administrator legis judicialis, et politiæ Mosaicæ,” from which, as most think, we are freed;-yet, doubtless, there is something moral in those institutions, which, being unclothed of their Judaical form, is still binding to all in the like kind, as to some analogy and proportion. Subduct from those administrations what was proper to, and lies upon the account of, the church and nation of the Jews, and what remains upon the general notion of a church and nation must be everlastingly binding. And this amounts thus far, at least, that judges, rulers, and magistrates, which are promised under the New Testament to be given in mercy, and to be of singular usefulness, as the judges were under the Old, are to take care that the gospel church may, in its concernment as such, be supported and promoted, and the truth propagated wherewith they are intrusted; as the others took care that it might be well with the Judaical church as such. And on these, and such like principles as these are, may you safely bottom yourselves in that undertaking wherein you seek for direction from God this day.

[3] For the rules which I intimated, I shall but name them, having some years since delivered my thoughts to the world at large on this subject; and I see no cause as yet to recede from any thing then so delivered. Take, then, only, for the present, these brief directions following:

1st. Labour to be fully persuaded in your own minds, that you be not carried up and down with every wind of doctrine, and be tempted to hearken after every spirit, as though you had received no truth as it is in Jesus. It is a sad condition, when men have no zeal for truth, nor against that which is opposite to it, whatever they seem to profess; because, indeed, having not taken in any truth in the power and principle of it, they are upon sad thoughts, wholly at a loss whether there be any truth or no. This is an unhappy frame indeed;-the proper condition of them whom God will spue out of his mouth.

2dly. Know that error and falsehood have no right or title, either from God or man, unto any privilege, protection, advantage, liberty, or any good thing you are intrusted withal. To dispose that unto a lie, which is the right of and due to truth, is to deal treacherously with Him by whom you are employed. All the tenderness and forbearance unto such persons as are infected with such abominations is

1 Discourse on Toleration.

solely upon a civil account, and that plea which they have for tranquillity whilst neither directly nor morally they are a disturbance unto others.

3dly. Know that in things of practice, so of persuasion, that are impious and wicked, either in themselves or in their natural and unconstrained consequences, the plea of conscience is an aggravation of the crime. If men's consciences are seared, and themselves given up to a reprobate mind, to do those things that are not convenient, there is no doubt but they ought to suffer such things as to such practices are assigned and appointed.

Should I now descend unto particulars in all the things mentioned, and insist on them, time would wholly fail me,-neither is it a work for a single sermon; and, therefore, in one word I shall wind up the whole matter, and end.

Know them, then, that are faithful and quiet in the land; regard the truth of the gospel; remember the days of old,-what hath done you good, quieted your heart in distress, crowned your undertakings with sweetness; lose not your first love; draw not out your own thoughts for the counsel of God; seek not great things for yourselves; be not moved at the lusts of men; keep peace what in you lieth with all that fear the Lord; let the glory of Christ be the end of all

undertakings, etc.

your