ready to be accounted fools for CHRIST's fake; and then we shall meet never to part again in the kingdom of our Father which is in heaven.

To you, my companions and familiar friends, who came over with me to sojourn in a strange land, do I in the next place address myself. For you I especially fear, as well as for myself; because as we take sweet counsel together oftner than others, and as you are let into a more intimate friendship with me in private life, the eyes of all men will be upon you to note even the minutest miscarriage; and, therefore, it highly concerns you to "walk circumspectly towards those that are without," I hope, that nothing but a single eye to God's glory and the salvation of your own fouls, brought you from your hative country. Remember then the end of your coming hither, and you can never do amiss. Be patterns of industry, as well as of piety, to those who shall be around you; and above all things let us have such fervent charity amongst ourfelves, that it may be faid of us, as of the primitive christians, "See how the christians love one another."

And now I have been speaking to others particularly, I have one general request to make to all, and that with reference to myself.

You have heard, my dear friends, how I have been exhorting every one of you to shew forth your thankfulness for the divine goodness, not only with your lips, but in your lives: But " physician heal thyself," may justly be retorted on me. For (without any false pretences to humility) I find my own heart so little inclined to this duty of thanksgiving for the benefits I have received, that I had need fear sharing Hezekiah's fate, who because he was lifted up by, and not thankful enough for, the great things God had done for him, was given up a prey to the pride of his own heart.

I need, therefore, and beg your most importunate petitions at the throne of grace, that no such evil may befal me; that the more God exalts me, the more I may debase myself; and that after I have preached to others, I myself may not be cast away.

3

And now, brethren, into God's hands I commend your spirits, who, I truft, through his infinite mercies in CHRIST JESUS, JESUS, will preferve you blameless, till his second coming to judge the world.

Excuse my detaining you so long; perhaps it is the last time I shall speak to you: my heart is full, and out of the abundance of it, I could continue my discourse until midnight. But I must away to your new world; may God give you new hearts, and enable you to put in practice what you have heard from time to time, to be your duty, and I need not wish you any thing better. For then God will so bless you, that " you will build you cities to dwell in; then will you fow your lands and plant vineyards, which will yield you fruits of increafe," Pfal. cvii. 36, 37. "Then your oxen shall be strong to labour, there shall be no leading into captivity, and no complaining in your streets; then shall your fons grow up as the young plants, and your daughters be as the polished corners of the temple: then shall your garners be full and plenteous with all manner of store, and your sheep bring forth thousands, and ten thousands in your streets," Pfal. cxliv. In short, then shall the Lord be your God; and as surelý as he has now brought us to this haven, where we would be, so furely, after we have past through the storms and tempests of this troublesome world, will he bring us to the haven of eternal rest, where we shall have nothing to do, but to praise him for ever for his goodness, and declare, in never-ceasing fongs of praise, the wonders he has done for us, and all the other fons of men.

"To which blessed reft, God of his infinite mercy bring " us all, through JESUS CHRIST our LORD! to whom " with the Father and Holy Ghost be all honour and "glory, might, majesty, and dominion, now, henceforth, " and for evermore, Amen, Amen."

SERMON

SERMON VIII.

The Neceffity and Benefits of Religious Society.

ECCLES. iv. 9, 10, 11, 12.

Two are better than One, because they have a good Reward for their Labour.

For if they fall, the One will lift up bis Fellow: But woe be to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.

Again, if Two lie together, then they have heat; but how can One be warm alone?

And if One prevail against him, Two shall withstand him; and a threefold Cord is not quickly broken.

A

MONG the many reasons affignable for the sad decay of true christianity, perhaps the neglecting to afssemble ourselves together, in religious societies, may not be one of the leaft. That I may therefore do my endeavour towards promoting so excellent a means of piety, I have selected a paffage of scripture drawn from the experience of the wisest of men, which being a little enlarged on and illustrated, will fully answer my prefent design; being to shew, in the best manner I can, the neceffity and benefits of society in general, and of religious fociety in particular.

"Two are better than one, &c."

From which words I shall take occafion to prove,

First, The truth of the wife man's assertion, "Two are better than one," and that in reference to society in general, and religious society in particular.

Secondly,

Secondly, To afsign some reasons why two are better than one, especially as to the last particular. I. Because men can raise up one another when they chance to flip : " For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow." 2. Because they can impart heat to each other: "Again, if two lie together, then they have heat; but how can one be warm alone?" 3. Because they can fecure each other from those that do oppofe them: "And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken." From hence,

Thirdly, I shall take occasion to shew the duty incumbent on every member of a religious fociety.

And Fourthly, I shall draw an inference or two from what may be faid; and then conclude with a word or two of exhortation.

First, I am to prove the truth of the wife man's affertion, that "two are better than one," and that in reference to society in general, and religious societies in particular.

And how can this be done better, than by shewing that it is absolutely necessary for the welfare both of the bodies and fouls of men? Indeed, if we look upon man as he came out of the hands of his Maker, we imagine him to be perfect, entire, lacking nothing. But GOD, whose thoughts are not as our thoughts, faw fomething still wanting to make Adam happy. And what was that? Why, an help meet for him. For thus speaketh the fcripture: "And the LORD GOD faid, It is not good that the man should be alone, I will make an help meet for him."

Observe, God said, "It is not good," thereby implying that the creation would have been imperfect, in fome fort, unless an help was found out mect for Adam. And if this was the case of man before the fall; if an help was meet for him in a state of perfection; furely fince the fall, when we come naked and helpless out of our mother's womb, when our wants increase with our years, and we can scarcely fubfift a day without the mutual assistance of each other, well may we fay, " It is not good for man to be alone."

Society then, we see, is absolutely necessary in respect to our bodily and personal wants. If we carry our view farther,

and

and confider mankind as divided into different cities, countries, and nations, the neceffity of it will appear yet more evident. For how can communities be kept up, or commerce carried on, without fociety? Certainly not at all, since providence feems wifely to have affigned a particular product to almost each particular country, on purpose, as it were, to oblige us to be social; and hath so admirably mingled the parts of the whole body of mankind together, " that the eye cannot fay to the hand, I have no need of thee; nor again, the hand to the foot, I have no need of thee."

Many other instances might be given of the neceffity of fociety, in reference to our bodily, personal, and national wants. But what are all these when weighed in the balance of the sanctuary, in comparison of the infinite greater need of it, with respect to the soul? It was chiefly in regard to this better part, no doubt, that God faid, " It is not good for the man to be alone." For, let us suppose Adam to be as happy as may be, placed as the Lord of the creation in the paradife of GOD, and spending all his hours in adoring and praising the blessed Author of his being; yet as his foul was the very copy of the divine nature, whose peculiar property it is to be communicative, without the divine all-fufficiency he could not be compleatly happy, because he was alone and incommunicative, nor even content in paradise, for want of a partner in his joys. God knew this, and therefore said, "It is not good that the man shall be alone, I will make a help meet for him." And though this proved a fatal means of his falling; yet that was not owing to any natural consequence of society; but partly to that cursed apostate, who craftily lies in wait to deceive; partly to Adam's own folly, in rather chusing to be miferable with one he loved, than trust in God to raise him up another spoufe.

If we reflcct indeed on that familiar intercourse, our first parent could carry on with heaven, in a state of innocence, we shall be apt to think he had as little need of society, as to his foul, as before we supposed him to have, in respect to his body. But yet, as God and the holy angels were so far above him on the one hand, and the beasts so far beneath him on the other, there was nothing like having one to converse with, who was bone of his bone, and flesh of his flesh."

:

Man,