and righteoufnefs among the young generation.In Luxury, which ever demands the pillars of oppreffion and fraud to fupport it; for, by how much men pay a fuperlative regard to the gratification of their own appetites, by fo much must they either rob, or deceive their neighbour to obtain it. Their de fires could not be fatisfied in the ufe of lawful means. Their dissipation gave them inclination, and their gigantic ftature gave them ability to opprefs. The Spirit of God exprefs ly declares, That "the earth was filled with violence;" but the particular fpecies of it is not afcertained. The term is of fuch extenfive import as may exprefs both rapine on the property, and cruelty on the perfons of men. For this latter fpecies of wickednefs, these finners had the pattern of Cain's murder of Abel; and Lamech, the polygamift, Cain's greatgrandfon, probably took the lead among them in the arts of luxury and diffipation.In one word, this corruption burst forth in all manner of wickedness: "God looked down upon the earth, and behold it was corrupt: for all flesh had corrupted its way upon the earth." Every one of them, except Noah, had gone aftray, cach to his own particular luft. The difeafe was inveterate, the contagion univerfal! Now it was time to put a stop to this awful current by covenant renovation.

2. THE Occafions of this covenant were fuch as originated from the circumstances of the ancient covenanters. The reformation which obtained in the days of Enos was much decayed, by reafon of the death of thofe covenanters, on the one hand; and the almost univerfal depravity of the young generation on the other. Long as the lives of antedilu vian patriarchs were, no one of them lived quite a thousand years; and the foederal tranf action which obtained in the days of Enos was a thousand years, at least, prior to this covenant with Noah. This covenant-renovation was requifite at this time then, as a means of raifing up a fucceffion of feed to fill up the place of thofe eminent, but departed reformers, as well as to confirm fuch as were already raifed up.

3. SUCH as took rife from the peculiar cir cumstances of Noah and his family, the prefent covenanters. He had extremely arduous work put into his hand; therefore, he much needed fpecial affiftance in it, and peculiar comfort under all the oppofition which might be expected from fuch a wicked generation on account of it. He was bound to CONDEMN THE WORLD lying in wickedness: Now, no one, who has counted the cost of fuch a work, can fuppofe he will be able to finifh his teftimony, and ftill retain the favour of the world. friendship of the world is enmity with God,

The

as

as the friendship of God inevitably draws along with it the enmity of the world. Noah's cir cumstances, then, required an affurance of an intereft in God, as a covenanted God, to fortify him against all the malice, mockery, and perfecution of finners. "Methinks (fays Bishop Hall) I fee thofe monftrous fons of Lamech coming to Noah, and afking him, What he meant by that ftrange work? To whom, when he reports God's purpofe and his, they go away, laughing at his idlenefs, and tell one another, in fport, That too much holiness had made him mad: Yet cannot they all flout Noah out of his faith; he preaches, and builds, and finishes!" This covenant was Noah's fupport under heavy perfecutions, as well as in the profpect of awful judgments.

FIFTHLY, I fhall now make a few REFLECTIONS on the whole.

1. THIS fubject difcovers the Sovereignty of God, in the various methods he takes to preferve his Church. At one time, he cafts corrupt members out of the Church, as in the cafe of Cain; at another time, he feparates her from the world, and takes her into covenant with himself, as in the days of Enos. Sometimes he preferves his Church among her enemies, as in the hundred and twenty years in which the ark was a-building; at other times, he draws fuch a partition wall between her

and her enemies, that they are not allowed to exift together on the fame world; as in the days of Noah, at and after the flood. He put a period to the exercife of his patience refpecting his enemies, and fwept them off the ftage of this world to make room for his Church, and to give her peace.

2. THE paucity of covenanters is no just argument against the performance of the duty of Covenanting. How finall was their number on this occafion, compared with the vaft multitude which defpifed the divine warning.Eight perfons ftand forth against a whole world.

3. TIMES of univerfal apoftacy and impiety, as alfo of approaching judgments, are fit feafons for folemn Covenanting. Such were the times of Noah; and fuch are our times. If the argument, or rather the excufe, which is in the mouth of many, be valid now; namely, That the times are bad, and, therefore, not a fit feafon for this duty; it would also have been valid in the days of Noah. But God makes no account of this at all; he rather makes the fin and danger of the time an argument for the practice of this duty.

4. GOD ufually gives timeous warning to finners, before he inflicts his moft awful judg The flood was a most dreadful calanity; but that generation get an hundred and

ments.

twenty

twenty years to make ready for its approach. Such timeous warning, where it is taken, makes perfons enter into the ark of God's providing for the falvation of their fouls: Where it is not taken, as was the cafe with the greateft part of the old world, finners are left abfolutely inexcufeable. Jerufalem had more than forty years warning of its final deftruction; and the prophets, particularly Ifaiah and Jeremiah, gave timeous warning of its destruction by the Chaldeans: But, as to the greater part, the warning was contemned in both cafes. We have fuch standing warnings in the word as fuperfede all new warnings from heaven: And all that is incumbent upon those watchmen who are fet upon Zion's walls is, to apply thefe warnings, by the direction of the Spirit, unto particular circumftances: "Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Ifrael: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me. When I fay unto the wicked, Thou shalt fure ly die and thou givet him not warning, nor peakeft to warn the wicked from his wicked way to fave his life; the fame wicked man fhall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he fhall die in his iniquity: but thou haft delivered thy foul. Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his righteoufiiefs, and cominit iniquity, and I

lay