§.8.This Thanksgiving hath three Parts. The Analysis of the fecond Thanksgiving. CI: A feffion, in we humbly acknowledg 1. The Perfon to before thee, most mer whom. 2. The ¿ things, there is where con tain of it is made. Cciful Father, That all the Punish1.Our de-ments, which are threatferved Pu-ned in the law might nifhment. /justly have fallen upon us, 2. Our grievous Sins. By reafon of our' ma= nifold Tranfgreffions, and hardness of heart! 1. Prin-Yet feeing it hath plea= tives to princi. fed thee of thy tender mercy, Upon our weak and Zunworthy humiliation, cipally. mo 2. Lefs it. pally. Remo-Co affwage the conta⇒ ving the gious Sickness, where= 2. The Evil. with we lately have been memoration of our deliverance, intima 2: Reftoring the good. i. An A& 3. A Thanksgi-of of 2. The reafon thereof. fo foze afflicted, and to refloze the voice of joy and health into our Dwellings, We offer unto thy divine Majesty the Sacrifice of pzaile aud thanksgiving lauding and magnifying the glorious ame, Foz fuch the Preferva= tion and Providence_o= ber us, through Jefus Chzift our Lozd, Amen, A Practical Difcourfe upon this Thanksgiving. S.IX. mott bumbly acknowledg before thee, merciful Father, that all the punishments, which are threatned in the Law, might jufklę hate fallen upon us by reafon of our manifold tranfgreffions,and hardness of heart.] There are many dreadful things threatned in Holy Scripture against the tranfgreffors of God's law: and among the reft, there are two fad Catalogues of judgments in that part of Scripture properly called the Law, wherein contagious and mortal diseases are threatned to difobedience. And if ye shall defpife my Statutes -faith God I will even appoint over you terror, confumption, and the burning ague, &c. Levit. xxvi. 14. 15,16. and again, The Lord Shali Smite thee with a confumption, with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, Deut. xxviii.22. and ver.59. The Lord will make thy Plagues wonderful even fore Sickneffes and of long continuance, v.60. Moreover he will bring upon thee all the Di. feafes of Egyptv.61. alfo every Sickness, and every Difeafe, which is not written in this Book of the Law, them will the Lord bring upon thee until thou be destroyed. To which, with the reft of the Punishments there recited, the Church hath respect in this place, teaching us to acknowledg,that as our Sins have been many, of divers kinds,and of long continuance,fo might our punishments juftly have been alfo, but our God hath fhewed himself a most merciful Father, in that he hath not dealt with us according to our defervings. It is the proper (h) Fenam, fi tutò poterit, donare, fin minds temperare. Sen.dc Clem. ty of (b) Mercy either wholly to pardon, or to punish gently, (i) Jul. Capitol. in vita. ( 1 ) Ῥωμαίας Eves un artiDivat ἀντιθέναι τι μωραίας ισοῤῥόπος τοῖς πλημμελήμα or Justin.ad Hun. gently: and it is faid of M. Autoninus, that his penalties were always below the Law (i), which Justinian faith was the Cuftom of all his Succeffors (k); but we are fure, it is the manner of Almighty God inftead of many Punishments to inflict but one, and when the greateft are deferved to choose the leaft, and yet to take that off also as foon as there is any hopes of amendment: He might have scourged us with Famine and War, Plague and Epidemical Difeafes all together; but now he hath only used the last,and the leaft, which if it seem grievous in it felf, yet is ve ry moderate with refpect to our evil defervings: So that we are so far from having any reafon to complain, that we have all poffible caufe to admire our heavenly Father's mercy, who threatneth fevere things to keep us from finning, hoping his words may warn us to avoid the ftroke of his anger, but threatneth only to prevent our Suffering of them (1); and yet when the warning takes no place,but we do fin for all that,then he abates of the rigour of his Sentence,chaftifing us gently, and foon giving over: So that there is mercy in his threatnings, and mercy in his executions; and it is a proper Introduction to the divine praife, to look upon the Clemency, which (Triflia minatur, ne in nos triftia invehat. Theod, in Jon. 3. ATH TOKIS iva μnxits Thè àHans His Ep you eviyun Chryf. in Gen.bom.20. he fhews, even in the feverest parts of his dealing with us. L12 S.X. S.X. Et leeing it hath pleased thee, of thy fenter mercy,apon car weak and unworthy hamilistion, to allwage the contagious Bicknels, wherewith we lately have been fo foze afflicted, and to reLove the voice of joy and health into our dwellings.] This one Judgment of the late raging Sickness, though it were less than we deferved, yet if God had made it continue, or caufed it to fpread, might have almolt confumed us: So that we have Caufe to reckon it as an act of his tender Mercy, that he was pleafed to affwage it. 'Tis true, we did express a great Dumiliation under it, and prayed earneftly for the removal thereof: But we muft not be fo vain as to think our br miliation could merit our deliverance, fince it is faid, that when God in anger fends his Judgments upon a Nation, Though Noah Daniel and Job were in it, they hould only deliver their own Souls, Ezek. xiv. 14. And doubtless our Piety and Devotion is far fhort of theirs: and we here do juftly confefs, it was but weak and unwozthy; our forrow went not fo deep, nor were our Prayers fo fervent,or our Repentance fo ferious, as fo great an occafion did require: fo that we may note, that this Mercy of health was granted [apon] our humiliation, but not for the merit thereof: The grant proceeded merely of his tender mercy; only he was pleafed with our imperfect humiliation, and took that occation to fend us relief. And now how are we bound to blefs his infinite pity! that beheld fome of us dead, and others dying, many fmitten with this Difeafe, and all of us full of grief and fear, and then remembring our Sins no longer, he commands the Angel to put. his Sword, the mournful knels are ceafed, and .. no more complaining in our streets, no more ! en in our dwellings: But the voice of Joy ant which God promifeth to fend into the dwellings of ent righteous, Pfal.cxviii.15. is now to be heard in par houfes alfo. While Sickness was there,all joy was banifhed from our houses and our hearts alfo, nothing the but Mourning and Woe, fighs and groans, complaints and doleful accents dwelt there: but now health and joy are returned together, now we are able and fit, as well as obliged, to fing praise to God and I with we may mt make use of this chearfulness of our temper, and this fpritelinefs of mind, which health hath reftored 15 he unto, to praise God more chearfully and more tev= ere a ly; for doubtlefs Health is the greate: bieling, which orth God can beftow upon us in this world. Ariftotle and thin Plato reckon it the first of all outward good things and Incl our own experience thews us that riches, honours and me pleasures are nothing if we want health to now thapas fo that when God reflores this, he gives is a nowey tg xit: enjoy all other earthly comforts: Let hole therefors crt: give thanks to the name of the Lord, who have wholly efcaped this Dileale, because they had their sila without interruption; and thole who are celaverad from this Sickness, because they have rafted the vil of wanting health, and o can better append the mercy of its retlauration: All of us indest are com to joy in this neceffary act of Praife. |