leprofy. Naaman was informed of her expreffions and fpeedily commencing his jour ney to Samaria, conveyed with him for the prophet a prefent of immenfe value; and a letter from the king of Syria to the king of Ifrael defiring, in authoritative language, that Naaman might be healed. The king of Ifrael perused the letter with aftonishment and alarm. He rent his clothes, and faid, Am I God, to kill and to make alive; that this man doth fend unto me to recover a man of his leprofy? And he concluded that the purpose of the Syrian monarch was to feek a pretence for quarrelling and entering into war with him. When Elisha heard the news, he reproved the king of Ifrael for yielding to fear, inftead of humbly confiding in God, who was ready to protect all that put their trust in him; and had even then raised up a prophet in Samaria able to cure the leper. Let Naaman, he added, come unto me: and he shall know that there is a prophet in Ifrael. Naaman accordingly proceeded with his chariot and attendants to the door of Elifha: and there received a meffage from the prophet, directing him to go and wash himself seven times in the river Jordan, and affuring him that his leprofy fhould thus be immediately removed. The haughtiness of Naaman burst

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into open fury, when he heard the message. He inftantly departed. He confidered the river Jordan as utterly contemptible in comparison with the rivers of his own country. Heexpected too that the prophet fhould inftantly have appeared before him with ceremonious deference: and that he should have performed the cure publicly in the fight of the people, and in a manner calculated to render the highest ho nour to fo great a man as the captain of the hoft of the king of Syria. Naaman was" wroth, and went away, and faid; Behold I' thought, he will furely come out to me, and fand, and call on the name of the Lord bis God, and frike his hand over the place, and re cover the leper. Are not Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damafcus, better than all the waters" of Ifrael? May I not wash in them, and be clean? So he turned, and went away in a rage." Happy was it for him that he had fome attendants of a spirit different from his own. They came near, and faid unto him; My father, if the prophet had bid thee do fome great thing wouldeft thou not have done it? How much rather then, when he faith; Wafh and be clean? Here was the language of reafon and kindnefs. The language of reafon unaccompanied by kindnefs will often fail of making an impreffion. It has no ef

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fect on the understanding, because it touches not the heart. The language of kindness unaffociated with reafon will frequently be unable to perfuade: because though it may gain upon the affections, it wants that which is neceffary to convince the judgement. But let reafon and kindness be united in your difcourfe; and feldom will even pride or prejudice find it easy to refift. Thus it was with Naaman. His pride and prejudices, yielded at once, He went forward to the river Jordan; dipped himself seven times; and afcended out of the water perfectly healed of his disease. He haftened back to the prophet in the fervor of gratitude and piety. He was eager to load Elisha with coftly gifts: But Elisha fought not by healing Naaman to enrich himself. His object was to promote the glory of God. Urged again and again with the most importunate earnestness, he fteadily refused to receive a reward. Naaman avowed his conviction that the God of Ifrael, was the God of all the earth and folemnly protefted that from that moment he renounced the worship of idols, and would adore the true God alone. He returned into Syria completely changed not in outward appearance merely, but in heart.

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II. I proceed to explain in fome of its branches the inftruction to be deduced from the hiftory of Naaman.

1. The power of the Deity is confpicuoufly exalted, when he accomplishes his gracious purposes by means which are undervalued or defpifed. Naaman for a time would not bear the idea that a river in the land of Ifrael, a land which he beheld with fcorn, a land which he probably had trampled down at the head of his victorious hoft, could be the inftrument by which God would remove his leprofy. Does the New Teftament supply no parallel? When Chrift appeared on earth to fave mankind by his atoning death and by his fanctifying doctrine; all the world took offence at him. To the Jews, he was a tumbling-block; to the Greeks, foolishness. The Jews expected their Redeemer to manifeft himself in worldly magnificence and grandeur; to place himself in triumph on the throne of David in Jerufalem; and to render the people of Ifrael the glory and the dread of the whole earth. A Saviour who was found in the humbleft rank of life; who disclaimed all human dignity and power; who fubmitted to be treated as a malefactor, to be put to death upon the cross; they were too proud and too ignorant to acknowledge.

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Is not this the Carpenter, the son of Mary? Can any good thing come out of Nazareth (a)? The Greeks had fixed their hearts on the oftentatious fubtleties which they denominated wifdom. They defpifed all doctrines which were not diftinguished by intricate, refined, and difputatious learning, and decorated with a parade of eloquence. The fimple, pure, and holy gospel of Chrift they regarded as unworthy of the notice of informed and cultivated minds. Are humility and difcernment univerfal among ourfelves? Even in our own days, the divine authority of our crucified Lord is by many perfons fcornfully decried: and the righteous inftructions and commandments which he delivered are reprefented by blind and prefumptuous finners as poffeffing no particular merit, and as in fome refpects hard, unreafonable, and pernicious. To fuch fcoffers what fhall be our reply? We reply to them in the words addreffed by Chrift to the unbelieving Jews: Wisdom is juftified of all her shildren (b). They who understand the Chriftian plan of falvation, they perceive it to be power of God and the wifdom of God. 2. Obferve, fecondly, that if there be any bleffing which you are defirous of obtaining

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(a) Mark, vi. 3. John, i. 46. (6) Luke, vii. 35.