still as liable to be questioned For all the sour Intimations given and hard Words spoken of an indelible Blot cast on our Profession such Reproach need not break our hearts 'T is easie to put an ill Name upon any thing and than run away scar'd with the Mormo of our own Creating The proof is yet to come that the things excepted against are what some make bold to call them 'T is at the worst but a moot Point But that somewhat else was highly unlawful is no controverted Case at all And to be sorry that we are discharged from that Yoke is a strein above Primitive Christianity it self which never restrain'd its Votaries from being glad and thankful so to be rid of their Persecutors In the day when the Lord delivered David from the hand of all his Enemies and from the hand of Saul he said I will love thee O Lord my strength Psal 18.1 Blessed be my Rock and let the God of my Salvation be exalted ver 46. And does not such high thankfulness become us alike singularly obliged Not only the living Monuments but the Mighty Wonders of the most Signal Goodness When got out of the gloomy Shades of Babylon to possess the Land which again we may call our own We have the fairest invitation to lift up our Voices with our Hearts and sing the Songs of Zion And in our high Estate may we not forget him who remembred us in our lowest May not our Hearts be shut to him whose Hand has been so open to us O what so Charming Rhetorick as to beseech by the Mercies of God And being under a sweet Constellation of such Mercies O that we may feel their benign influence to transport us all into a cheerful Celebration of his Praises And not be worse than the dull Earth itself which reflects the Rays sent down upon it nor stifle the Memory of his Benefits who has done the greatest things for us As to which now we may say with the Psalmist here ver 2. The humble shall hear thereof and be glad Indeed we want only to be humble to make us thankful No such bar to gratitude as a supercilious pride The proud thinking all due to their Merits or below them they are asham'd to give thanks especially for such things as others have done to their hands but not just to their minds Only to the humble God gives more grace and such Souls will he still fill with his good things Let us then be humbly sensible of that we may be cordially thankful for his Mercy And as nothing will so secure the Blessings of Heaven to us so nothing will strike such confusion and dread into the Enemies of our Peace Like as when of old they began to Sing and Praise the Lord the Enemies of Judah were all Defeated before them 2 Chron. 20.22 Such blessed effects might we see of our sweet accord and uniting all to Magnifie the Lord and Exalt his Name They that have long hop'd to reap their Harvest out of the Seeds themselves have sown to breed our Dissentions would then Hear and Fear and no longer live in expectation to set up their Dagon again But be ready to throw their helpless Idols to the Moles and the Bats and go hide in Holes for fear of the Lord and for the Glory of his Majesty when he arises to shake terribly the Earth And then may we Bless God not only for the Deliverance begun but also for our hopes of the Perfecting all that concerns us If we will not reluctate against the Hand that is saving us but be only contented to be Happy and willing to see Glory dwell in our Land We may find the God of all Grace delighting yet further to oblige the Objects of his former Bounty and doing still more for us because he has done much already In the experience we have had of his Mercy lying all the best confidence we have of our security that he will go on to shew Mercy even for his Mercy 's sake making it a Motive to itself Circulating by its own Spring in a Perpetual Motion and to compleat the History of his own kindness because so long he has been Favourable to our Land watch over us still to do us good To him as we are most bounden for the Mercy of this Day and for those innumerable Mercies showr'd down upon us every day to fill even our whole Lives let us with the greatest Sincerity and Cheerfulness concur to Ascribe all Glory Thanks and Praise now and for ever Amen FINIS
that Honor to be taken up in the work of Angels How much for our own praise to praise him that has given us both matter and hearts for it 'T is no diminution at all but the preservation of honor and addition to it for the highest on Earth to stoop lowly to the Supreme Majesty of the World who has promised to honor them that honor him And tho this Duty seems to have nothing of self in it as giving all unto God yet is it indeed as all the Duties of Religion much for our profit every way for that it not only secures the blessings of God to us but increases them still upon us he thinking them well bestowed where they are so well resented And Praise provoking us also to an imitation of him whom we extol thus it has a tendency to assimilate us to the Divine Perfections and consequently to prepare us for the everlasting Glory to bear a part with all Angels and Saints in the Admiration Love and Eternal Praise and Fruition of God in his Heavenly Kingdom Thus as we are capable of magnifying the Lord and obliged to it so even in point of our own best Interest we â—â—nnot but be sensible what reason we have for it And now suitable to the design of this day consider we the publick expression of it and its discharge in conjunction with others according to the invitation here given O magnifie the Lord with me and let us exalt his Name together He that was taken up even wholly in the Praises of God himself could not be contented to enjoy so much sweetness alone but as true goodness is ever diffusive of itself and indeed does but still add to its own dimensions by such Communication So was he for calling in partners to share with him in so sweet an entertainment After he had led the Chorus as Prefect of this Musick he declares for a Consort in it and gives not a cheap exhortation without his own example Nor is he for going in so good a way without company but to make the Communion of Saints a point of practice as well as an Article of Faith he was for joyning all the sparks to blow them up into a mighty Flame And his Apostrophe is not only to the Children of Sion but 't is All ye Lands make a joyful noise to the Lord. Psal 100.1 117.1 Praise the Lord all ye Nations Praise him all ye People And that none might be slack and backward he not only calls on them but upon God himself to quicken them Psal 77.3 5. Let the People praise thee O God Yea let all the People praise thee He was not only for giving thanks apart in private recesses but for going into the House of God where Praise waiteth for him in Sion Psal 65.1 I will give thee thanks in the great Congregation I will praise thee among much People Psal 35.18 To whisper thanks in corners is but a tacit kind of denying received Benefits Sen. de Benef. He car'd not how many Witnesses he had of his thanksgiving not for ostentation of himself but to excite an Universal compliance of the Church A good Man would lose much of the pleasure of Heaven's Way to move solitary in it But here he gives the most charitable instance of his sociable Nature to draw all that ever he can along with him Indeed this is a kind invitation to Festivity as well as Duty and here to devout Souls a hint is enough though to dull Brutes a spur is too little But to none can we offer a greater courtesie than to importune their Society in so delightful a Path to their own Happiness And such as stand off here are the most absurd of all Dissenters and nothing fit to taste of that good for which they are too stiff to give thanks Nor did this eminent Servant of God think himself too high to assist with his Inferiors in the Divine Worship that Spiritual Ordinary which levels all before him with whom is no respect of Persons So great a Prince was not asham'd to own whence he received all yea among the rest he calls on the Mighty to give unto the Lord Glory Psal 29.1 For Princes and Grandees of the World that have most temptations to forget God and exalt themselves must lay aside the consideration of their greatness when they fall down and worship before the Lord their Maker No height in the World but must humble itself to him who is higher than the Highest and compar'd with whose Omnipotence all greatness else dwindles even to nothing The Noblest Worthies in Heaven themselves do cast their Crowns down before the Throne of God Rev. 4.10 and that does but faster secure them on their Heads But Oh! how much are they out in their sense of honor as well as defective in their conscience of this duty who offer to set up their own credit on the ruins of God's Glory Indulging to the Popish humour of assuming to self and Idolizing Creatures in derogation from the God of our Lives and of all our Mercies Truly Atheistical is it so to live without God in the World afraid to own him but ascribing all to a lucky hit this or that did the Work and no mention of Him that worketh all in all When Men would be reputed great for being Ungodly and like wild Horses in the carreer of their Impiety cast dirt at their Owner as if they were neither in debt to him nor in danger of him As if it were below them to own subjection to him that made them Servile not to be above Duty and a Diminution of their own Excellency to Magnifie Him. And if Conscience extorts from them any acknowledgments of God they are in care that none but himself may observe it who sees indeed that they are asham'd of him before Men and so he will be of them one day before all the World Thus such as use to glory in their Shame are asham'd of their Glory too And tho all a fire at any disgraceful reflection on themselves counting every thing less than flattery an affront yet this gives a notorious instance of their Bastardy which is the foulest Infamy that they can so easie brook a contempt of the Heavenly Father thinking it fine to hear his Name Blasphem'd and his Word Burlesqued and never stirring to assert his Honour as they would to vindicate the good Name of a Friend Well may they dread the Fate of Herod to perish wretchedly for not giving God the Glory Or to be sent with Nebuchadnezzar to School to the Brutes to learn to know their Owner When they can live all upon his good things and yet scarce afford him a good Word Right Brethren in Iniquity to Cabal for Mischief and run eagerly to excess of Riot to eat and drink and enflame Lust and contribute every one to heighten the Debauch but none can find a Heart or Tongue to recognize the blessed Founder of all their Comforts Or no
sooner is any thing to his Praise set a foot amongst them but 't is frown'd upon droll'd away and hist out Not so much as his Name must be mentioned unless in Oaths for fear of spoiling all good Company But besides this Profane Generation that instead of joining to Magnifie the Lord do nothing but vilifie and would if they could even nullifie God Instead of exalting his Name acting as 't were in perfect spight and defiance of him who has told us he will not hold them guiltless that profane it Tossing that tremendous Name in their unhallowed Mouths as a thing of nought and their Blessing and Praising is even nothing but Cursing and Damning There are others a new sort of Nonconformists who peradventure will find that they have not done well to be so angry to stand off from contributing to make up this Harmony to Magnifie the Lord with the rest and exalt his Name together When 't is so good and pleasant for Brethren to dwell together in Unity and best and pleasantest of all to unite in the Praises of him who obliges and blesses us all No Good Fellowship in the World comparable to this when we can as readily concur to celebrate as to participate the Blessings that the Church may go up with general Shouts and Acclamations and the noise of Axes and Hammers in the Temple may not drown the voice of Rejoycing and Salvation That what is as Life from the dead to some may not be as the shadow of Death to others And O that in this sense the Church would once cease to be Militant and learn at last to accord in beginning the Eternal Triumph with one Mind and one Mouth to glorifie God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ O that Hearts and Tongues and Pens might all agree here that some may not be snagling as Saws when others are running as oiled Wheels with enlarged Hearts That we would not postpone the Publick Good to private Piques nor shew our selves so mighty sollicitous for our own little concerns as for the Glorification of the Power Wisdom Mercy and Faithfulness of God in appearing as he has done for his Church But O what a Soil is that wherein the most auspitious Influences of Heaven produce nothing but Briars and Thorns How contrary is this to him that brings good out of evil when we are only for fetching evil out of good and so full of Discontent and Contradiction that there 's no room at all in us for the Praises of God Some may think it a great matter to be quiet that the Government is much beholden to them as extremely obliging when they say nothing but vouchsafe only to hold their Tongues and not load every one with Complaints when the truth is they have all the reason in the World to give Thanks instead of making a Hubbub as if sorely pinch'd and wrong'd But when every Malecontent must set up for a Pope to make a whole Kingdom answer it at their infallible Bar and damn all the Country that are not for driving just the same way as themselves The same Pride that has mislead some will hardly suffer them to own that they have erred And then in what disposition are they to admire the Goodness and gratefully commemorate the Blessings of God when they are All-a-mort and even continually cruciating themselves with the matters to them cross and offensive Here they sit down restive and averse to all Thankfulness poring and hatching on their Grievances till they overlook all that the gracious Lord has done for them and grow not only rude and surly with Men but sour and sullen even to God himself Instead of that cheerful Spirit of Thankfulness which makes Society easie and delightful and sheds abroad the sweet Satisfaction which is like Oil and Wine to facilitate and exhilarate our motions they hang the head and tragically exaggerate the matters they take to be ill and dolefully forebode worse to cast a damp on their own Spirits and exasperate or deject all whom they can influence And here every little busie-body fansies himself no less than an Atlas to bear up the Pillars of the Earth and support a sinking Kingdom betraying nothing so much as Pride and Ill-humor Envy and Vengeance a canker'd Breast and a raw sore Mind unacquainted with the way of Peace To lie barking at the Sun and Moon which God in our doleful distress has raised up to illuminate and refresh our Land. Thus Usurping Judges make bold to shoot their Bolts and dogmatize after some of their own preconceiv'd Measures not allowing a step out of the common Road to unravel what others had so wofully perplext Like idle Spectators on the Shore stand censuring Mariners toiling in a Storm for not observing every Punctilio in Mood and Figure They think Physick may be administred to a wretchedly distemper'd Body without any disturbance When indeed considering into what Exigencies a Jesuitical Conduct had cast us well may we wonder and bless the God who watches for good over us that we are so well as we are that all is not desperate and that any hopes of a better Regulation than those of late are yet before us No marvel if Papists hold themselves agrieved but murmuring Protestants look now somewhat monstrous compos'd of such Contradictions as need an Oedipus to unriddle them when they would have their Religion Regnant and yet they keep a Coil at the Extirpation of that which struggled so hard to ruin it How long shall the Lord bear with such as despise all the Riches of his Goodness and huff and pish at Mercies too good for their betters because every thing is not exactly tasteful to their particular Appetites and hardly forbear to snap at the Hand that brings them all the Tokens of his Love May not he expostulate with them as Num. 14.11 How long will this people provoke me and how long will it be ere they will believe me for all the signs which I have shewed among them When still we are as Incredulous and Misdeeming as if nothing at all had been done for us nothing conferr'd upon us And may we not thus tempt God to bring us yet lower when we are so out of sorts that we are got no higher O when will Dust and Ashes know it self and leave off such Arrogance and daring the free dispencer of every Mercy to turn us out of all To contribute somewhat if it be possible to help us out of this ill Humor to get that foul Jaundice out of our Eyes which discolors the fairest Blessings and makes them mistaken for Grievances and Calamities That the Tares of our Divisions may not still prevail to choak the sweet Fruits of our Thanks and Praise that the strings out of Tune may at last cease their jarring and vain jangling and be wound up into an harmonious Agreement with the rest and change the Cynick Tone into the more becoming Accents of Praise and Thanksgiving to God rejoicing in