fpeak, old finners, What teftimonies of this fort have ye given againft fin? As many as ye have neglected, as many fins ye ftand guilty of before the Lord. (2.) Ye have seen many fins; how many tears have ye fhed? I fear there are here old men and old women, who never fighed, who never groned or cried, for all the abominations that they have feen committed in our land. It is our duty to mourn for the fins of others. There is a mark of prefervation ordered to be put upon the foreheads of them that mourn for the fins of the land wherein they live, Ezek. ix. 4. And the Lord faid unto the man that had the writer's inkhorn by his fide, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerufalem, and fet a mark upon the foreheads of the men that figh, and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midft thereof. And in the following ver. the deftroying angel is commanded to fpare neither old nor young fave only thofe who have that mark upon them. I fear there are few mourners here, among these who have feen many and monftrous fins. I shall not now speak of the national abominations which you have feen: but I am fure there are few of you come to age, who have not heard many horrid oaths fworn you have feen horrid villanies committed; many dreadful provocations. Now, dare ye fay with the Pfalmift in that 119 Pfal. verfe 53. Horror hath taken hold of me, becaufe tranfgreffors keep not thy law. It may be old hardened finners think little of this fin; yet God is brought in as it were wondering at it, Jer. xxxvi. 24. when the roll containing Jeremiah's prophecies was burnt, it is noted as a wonderful, a monftrous wickedness, that they were not concerned, that they did not mourn; Yet, H

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fays God, they were not afraid, nor rent their garments, neither the king nor any of his fervants that heard all these words. I fear, even these who speak against fins of others, are guilty of them by not mourning over them. (3.) You have feen many fins; and how many prayers have ye put up for the pardon of them? There is an express command to this purpose, John v. 16. If any man fee bis brother fin a fin, which is not unto death, be fhall afk, and he shall give him life for them that fin not unto death. It may be ye have condemned others, and cried out upon them for their fins, while in the mean time ye are partakers with them, becaufe of your not praying for them according to this command.

6. I fay to you, Ye are great finners, for ye have had many mercies, and I fear have abused mercies. If I fhould begin here to recount particular mercies, I might know where to begin, but fcarce where to make an end. I fhall only enquire at you, (1.) Do ye yet know the God of your mercies? Hof. ii. 8. I fear many of you dare not fay it. (2.) What improvement have ye made of them? Has the goodness of God led you to repentance, as it fhould do? Rom. ii. 4. (3.) Once more I ask you, Have ye returned to the Lord according to the mercies received? Put but these three queftions home to your own confciences, and I believe they will difcover many fins that ye never yet thought of

7. Old finners, ye have undergone many changes; ye are far decayed: then let me afk you, (1.) Are your fouls renewed, as your outward man perishes? I fear, I fear there are few among you who are bringing forth fruit in old age; who, when others fade, are fat and full of fap,

(2.) Has your love to fin decayed? If this change were to be obferved, it were a great bleffing; but I fear, that, however ftrength may be failed fo far that ye cannot fulfil your lufts as formerly, yet the old heart-love to them remains.

8. Old finners, ye have feen much of the world: and here I afk you, Are ye not guilty, (1.) By neglecting many difcoveries of its vanity, which might have been of great ufe to you, if duly ob. ferved? (2.) By retaining the fame love to it, after many discoveries of its uncertainty and emptinefs?

9. Once more, and I have done with you, Old finners, You have lived long, and death is at the door. God has given you much time to pro. vide for it; and I fear ye are guilty, extremely guilty, by not improving time and for difcovering your fin here, I fhall lay a few questions be fore you, and I plead that ye may lay them home to your own confciences. (1.) Are ye yet content to die? It is the indifpenfable duty of all, to be ever content to comply with the will of God in this matter; and upon a call, to be ready cheerfully to comply with the will of God as to death, the time and manner of it. Now, old finners, are ye content? It may be. fome of you will forwardly enough anfwer, That ye are content; but if ye fay fo, I afk you, (2.) Are ye ready to die? I fear fome are content to die, who are not ready; fome may in a fit of discontent at the world, upon the back of fome notable difappointment, be fo well content to die, that they will lay hands upon themselves, who yet are very far from being ready to die. If ye pretend that ye are; then for difcovering the truth of what ye fay, I enquire, (3.) Are your fins dying? A perfon whofe fins

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are lively, he is never ready to die. (4.) Are ye in Jefus Chrift? These who are out of him are never ready to die. It is only these who are ready to die in the Lord, Rev. xiv. 13. who are ready to die. (5.) Is your pardon fealed? Death will try you; and if your pardon be not fealed, ye will find that ye are fcarce ready to die. (6.) I put this one queftion more to you, Have you provided your lodgings? It is high time, when mens houfes are falling, to be looking out for new lodgings. This tabernacle is ready to be diffolved; have ye a building of God not made with hands fecured to yourselves? God has given you time and means for doing all this; and if ye have not done it, then ye have finned against the Lord, and against your own fouls.

Now, old finners, if ye lay not to heart this warning, and lay not yourselves in the duft before God for your fins, then this new warning will be a dreadful aggravation among many others of your guilt. Confider your cafe in time, before it be too late. Are there not many who were not born for many years after you; and who, it may be, are dead many years ago, and having wrought their work, have got a blessed immortality; yet, it may be to this day ye know not what fhall become of your fouls. Think, old finners, is it not a wonder that God has given you this warning after making light of fo many: and will it not be a cutting reflection, if ye fit a warning near to the twelfth hour?

Now, children, young men, and fathers, old and young, I have by an appeal to your own confciences made good my charge against you, and fixed a great many particular fins upon you. I fhall now proceed,

IV. In the next place, to fhew you what fatisfaction that fovereign King, at whofe inftance and in whofe name I have impleaded you, requires of all and every one of you. His juftice, at any rate, must be fatisfied. It is not congruous to reafon, it is not congruous to the holiness, justice and wisdom of the lawgiver, that fin fhould escape unpunished, and therefore, it is impoffible it fhould pass without fome fignal and fuitable mark of God's difpleafure. He has declared pófi tively in his word, he has confirmed it in his providences, that though hand join in hand the wicked Shall not be unpunished, Prov. xi. 21. If angels and men fhould lay their hands and heads together, unite their wit, and their power, they fhall not preserve one fin from the marks of God's dif pleasure. Some fignal and evident token of it will reach fin, wherever it is. There needs no proof of this, after what Chrift has met with. And ye muft lay your account with it, that this punishment will not be fome petty inconfiderable one. It must be in fome measure fuited to the crimes ye ftand impleaded of: it muft, on the one hand, hold fome proportion to the holiness and purity of that law you have broken, to the majefty and authority of that God whofe authority ye have trampled upon; yea, it must hold fome proportion to the feveral aggravations of your refpective fins. Lay your account with it, finners, efcape you cannot his hands who is every where. Whither will ye go from his fpirit? whither will ye flee from his prefence? If ye afcend up into heaven, he is there. If ye make your bed in hell, behold, he is there; if ye take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the fea, even there Shall his hand lead thee, and his right hand shall hold

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