But this publick eafe and quietnefs of the world turned into fin; and unless God did compel men to do themselves good, they would do themselves hurt. And then God broke in upon them with a flood; and deftroyed that generation, that he might begin the government of the world upon a new stock, and bind virtue upon men's fpirits by new obligations, endeared to them by new hopes and fears. Then God made new laws, and gave to princes the power of the fword, and men might be punished to death in certain cafes, and man's life was fhortened, and flavery was brought into the world. And then war began, and evils multiplied upon the face of the earth; in which it is naturally certain, that they who were most violent and injurious prevailed upon the weaker and more innocent; and every tyranny that began from Nimrod to this day, and every ufurper, was a peculiar argument to fhew, that God began to teach the world virtue by fuffering; and that therefore he suffered tyrannies and ufurpations to be in the world, and to be profperous, and the

rights of men to be fnatched away from their owners, that the world might be established in fettled governments, and the fufferers be taught all the paffive virtues of the foul. For fo God brings good out of evil, turning tyranny into the benefits of government, and violence into virtue, and fufferings into rewards. And this was the fecond change of the world: Perfonal miseries were brought in upon Adam and his pofterity, as a punishment of fin in the first period; and in the fecond, publick evils were brought in by tyrants and ufurpers, and God fuffered them as the first elements of virtue, men being juft newly put to fchool (as it were) to infant fufferings. But all this was not

much.

Chrift's line was not yet drawn forth; it began not to appear from what family the King of fufferings fhould defcend, till Abraham's time; and therefore till then, there were no greater fufferings than what I have now reckoned. But when Abraham's family was chofen from among the many nations, and began to belong to God

by a special right, and he was defigned to be the father of the Meffiah; then God found out a new way to try him, even with a found affliction, commanding him to offer his fon Ifaac; but this was not accepted, and being intended by Abraham, was not intended by God. For this was a type of Chrift, and therefore was also but a type of fufferings.

And excepting the sufferings of the old periods, and the fufferings of nature, and accidents, we fee no change made for a long time after; but God, having eftablished a law in Abraham's family, did build it upon promises of health, and peace, and victory, and plenty, and riches; and fo long as they did not prevaricate from the law of their God, fo long they were profperous. But God kept a remnant of Canaanites in the land, like a rod held over them, to vex or to chastise them into obedience; in which while they perfevered, nothing could hurt them. And that saying of David needs no other fenfe but the letter of its own expreffion, I have been young, and now am old, and yet I

faw never the righteous forfaken, nor his feed begging their bread. The godly generally were profperous, and a good caufe feldom had an ill end, and a good man never died an ill death, till the law had spent a great part of its time, and it defcended towards its declenfion and period.

But that the great Prince of fufferings might not appear upon his ftage of tragedies, without fome forerunners of forrow; God was pleafed to chufe out some good men, and honour them, by making them to become little images of suffering. Such as were Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Zachariah; Shadrac, Meshec, and Abednego. And as the time drew nearer that Chrift should be manifeft, fo the fufferings grew bigger and more numerous.

And that was the third period, in which the changed method of God's providence was perfected. For Christ was to do his great work by fufferings; and by fufferings was to enter into bleffedness. By his fuffering, he was made prince of the univerfal church: and as our head was, fo muft the members be. God made the fame covenant with us, that he did with

his most holy Son; and Christ obtained no better conditions for us than for himself; that was not to be expected: The Servant must not be above his mafter; it is well, if be be as his master: If the world perfecuted him, they will also perfecute us. For though the old law was established in the promises of temporal profperity, yet the gofpel is founded in temporal adverfity. It is a covenant of fufferings and forrows: For Now the time is come, that judgement must begin at the house of God. That is the fenfe and defign of my text; and it is intended as an antidote to the common perfuafions of carnal and vicious men, who reckon nothing good but what is profperous. For though that propofition had many degrees of truth in the beginning of the law, yet the cafe is now altered, and God hath established its contrary; and now every good man must look upon himself as liable to perfecution, and every good caufe muft expect to thrive by the fufferings and patience of holy perfons; and as men do well, and fuffer evil, fo they are dear to God; and whom he loves moft, he afflicts moft, and doth this