MEDITATION S.

December 19, 1686.

I. Upon the fcandalous Lives of many Minifters.

Have always look'd on fuch Men, who have

taken upon them this Sacred Function, and thereby not only oblig'd themselves to a good Life, but alfo taken upon themselves the Care of a Multitude of others Souls, of which they must give a strict Account at the great Day to be the most despicable and miferable of Mankind, when they do not only neglect the Care of those committed to them, but by their Excefs in Drinking, or their careless, loofe, and pleasureable Converfation, prove the greatest Temptation to all under their Charge and Conduct;

nay,

and to all others, that obferve them; and do more encourage them in their Sins by their ill Example, yea, perhaps by one fingle Inftance of Debauchery, than they can diffuade them from them by all thofe long Harangues and Difcourfes from the Word of God, which from the Pulpit they make unto them. for there is scarce any Man of fo dull Apprehenfion, but will reason thus: If this Man believed himself in what he preaches to us, if he really believed that there is fuch a great Reward for the Godly, and Punishment for the Wicked in another World; and that the Word of God requires fuch Strictnefs and conftant Carefulness in the keeping its Commands, to be fure he would be more temperate in Drink, and more exact and careful of his Conversation, and not live as the rest of the careless World do, who

fcarce

fcarce believe any Thing in earnest of a World to come: And then perhaps he thinks he has Reafon to conclude, that in reality he does not believe what he declares to them, but preaches only for a Livelihood, as other Perfons follow their Trades to get a Subsistance. Oh how fad will the Account be one Day for fuch Paftors, who inftead of being an Example to their Flocks, of Sobriety, Contempt of the Pleasures, Riches, and Honours of the World, Heavenly-mindednefs, Self-denial, and all other Christian Virtues, fhall be found to be one great Occafion of their eternal Ruin and Destruc tion! When even their very Tythes and Maintenance, which was appointed for the Ufe of Perfons to take care of the People's Souls, shall rife up in Judgment against fuch as received them, but ne ver took care to discharge that Duty which fuch plentiful Provifions requir'd at their Hands!

O Bleffed God, if thou pleaseft to lengthen out my Life, and to call me to ferve thee in the Miniftery, to which my Father has devoted me, I humbly beseech thee, to make me sensible of the Weight of the Charge I undertake, and careful and confcientious in the Discharge of the fame; and especially that I may by my good Example conftantly edify and inftruct my Flock, and do my utmoft diligence both to fave myself and them that hear me ; Through Jefus Chrift our Saviour. Amen.

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February 6, 1686.

II Of the Neglect of the Sabbath [or Lord's

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Day.]

Think 'tis a true Obfervation of fome, that 'tis

one of the first Fruits or Signs of a Perfon's Converfion, to be careful in a ftrict Obferva

tion of the Lord's-Day, or Chriftian Sabbath; and then, by the Rule of Contraries, it must be a Sign of a carelets and profane Temper to difregard and flight the fame: Which, alas! is too common even among the Learned themselves, who seem too much to have loft the Sense of their Duty as to the keeping Holy this Day; and is, methinks, one of the worst Presages and Forebodings of fome future Judgment impendent on this Land. The eminent Judge Hales obferves that he had long taken special Notice that, according to his Seriousness or Carelefnefs on the Sabbath, fo on the Week following his temporal Concerns did profper or not; God immediately rewarding his Care, of keeping Holy the Sabbath, by the profperous Succefs of his Affairs the Week following; as you may fee in his Directions to his Children about the Sabbath. And furely when we by Experience find the well spending of that Day to be fo beneficial to our Souls, too apt to be clogg'd and taken up by the Bufinefs, and Cares, and Pleasures, of this World; unless we fet apart fome Times on Purpose, wherein, withdrawing ourselves from the World, we may have Leifure and Opportunity to take Care of our Souls, and prepare for another World: And when we find God had ordain'd one Day in feven for his immediate Service, even

immedteialy

immediately after the Creation, which Command was never, I fuppofe, abrogated, but only changed, inafmuch as the Refurrection of our Saviour was fuch a fignal Mercy as made the Apostles think fit, (I suppose by the Direction of the Spirit of God,) to alter the Jewish Sabbath to the Chriftians Lord'sDay, that we might in particular remember the Refurrection of Christ, as they did the Creation of the World; I fay when we find it both a Duty and an exceeding Benefit, it may juftly feem a Wonder that it should be fo publickly and openly profan'd, even when the Laws of the Land are fo good and fevere as to the Obfervance of it: And, if not repented of, I much fear God will by fome Judgment (perhaps Fire) revenge himself on a finful and difobedient People. For certainly the Sanctification of this Day cannot confist with that carnal Eafe, Mirth, and Rejoicing, which on this Day is now grown too

common among us.

[N. B. When I wrote this, I was not appriz'd that the Sabbath was never changed: But was ever to be observed in a leffer Degree, as the Lord's-Day in a greater, by all Christians. ]

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March 6, 1686 7.

III. Of the Temptations of the Devil.

LTHO' there is no Question but wicked Men do oft, to excuse themselves, lay the Fault of their evil Deeds to the Charge of the Evil one; when it is the Naughtiness of their own Hearts, which love and practise Sin, that is the real Cause of fuch Actions; yet it cannot, I think, in reason

be denied, but the Devil has a great and fecret Hand, efpecially in fome Sort of Temptations, and often does fuggeft fuch fufpicious Objections, and oftentimes blafphemous, horrid, and strange Apprehenfions to the Mind, as are hardly fo accountable any other Way: For they are often, especially in melancholy Perfons, fo contrary to the conftant Sentiments and Belief of a Man's Mind, and fo contrary and abhorrent from the fettled Temper and Inclination of a Perfon, yea not feldom fo black and difmal, fo odious and ugly, and the Mind is fo fill'd with fad Terror and Amazement at the Confideration of them: That they feem to own their Original from nothing fo fitly, as from that roaring Lion that goes about seeking whom he may devour. To this Source and Fountain may well be referr'd those atheistical, unbelieving, diftrustful, defpairing Suggeftions, which too many by woful Experience have felt in themselves. Hither alfo may be referr'd many of those idle, vain, distracting and wandering Thoughts, which are fo often caft into the Soul, when it is about the great Duties of Religion, and come in without any other арраrent Caufe, directly contrary to the Defire and Purpofe of the Perfon, which it ought to be our great Care to avoid. Neither perhaps can we fo well refer the extreme Wickednefs, Debauchery, Profaneness, Perjury, and other the faddeft Inftances of the depraved Nature of Man, which appear so visibly fo in the World, contrary to all the Dictates of fober Reason, Counsel, and Intereft itself, to the Defilement and Pollution of human Nature (which yet is very great) as to the violent Temptations

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