say, What doth a man of this robe meddle with placing or displacing magistrates, with executions of judgments to death, bonds, banishment? But rather, as congratulating this power to sacred hands, gladly present unto him all their grievances. Truly religious

hearts cannot grudge any honour to their spiritual guides.

This holy commissioner is soon welcomed with a sad bill of complaint, from some good peers of Israel: wherein they charge divers of the priests, Levites, people, not to have separated themselves from the idolatrous inhabitants of the lands, nor therefore from their abominations, even from Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, and the rest of those branded nations; that they have taken of their daughters for themselves, and for their sons, so that the holy seed have mingled themselves with those forbidden people; and, which made the matter so much more heinous, less remediable, that the "hand of the princes and rulers hath been chief in this trespass."

O hypocritical Jews, did ye refuse to suffer your Samaritan neighbours to join with you in building a lifeless house unto God, and do ye now join affinity with a more accursed generation for the building of living houses unto posterity, for the pulling down of the lively house of God?

How could Ezra hear this with his clothes, his hair, his beard untorn? What grief, what astonishment must this news needs bring to a zealous heart! And, were it not that the conscience of his sincere respect of God's glory relieved him, how could Ezra choose but repent him of his journey, and say, Am I come from Babylon to find paganism in Judah? Did I leave Persians, to meet with Canaanites? What do I hear, if Jerusalem be removed? How much better were a clear captivity, than an idolatrous freedom! Woe is me, that having left many Jewish hearts in Babylon, I now am forced to find heathen blood in Jerusalem! As a man distracted with sorrow, Ezra sits down upon

the earth with his garments rent, with the hair of his head and beard plucked off, wringing his hands, knocking his breast, not moving from his place until the evening sacrifice. It is hard to be too much affected with the public sins of God's people. Those who find themselves in the ship of God's church, cannot but be much troubled with every dangerous leak that it takes. Common cases are not more neglected by the careless, than taken to heart by the wise and godly.

There, and thus, Ezra sits astonished until the evening sacrifice: others resorted to him the while, even all that trembled at the words of the God of Israel; but to help on his sorrow, not to relieve; neither doth any man wish a mitigation of his own or other's grief. At last he rises up from his heaviness, and casts himself upon his knees, and spreads out his hands unto the Lord his God. Wherefore was all that pensiveness, fasting, silence, tearing of hair and clothes, but to serve as a meet preface to his prayers? wherein he so freely pours out his heart, as if it had been all dissolved into devotion, professing his shame to lift up his face towards the throne of God, confessing theiniquities of his people, which were increased over their heads, and grown up unto heaven, fetching their trespass far and charging them deep, feelingly acknowledging the just hand that followed them in all their judgments, and the just confusion wherein they now stand before the face of their God.

Tears, and sighs, and grovellings accompanied his prayers: the example and noise whereof drew Israel into a participation of this public mourning; "for the people wept very sore." How can they choose but think, If he thus lament for us, how should we grieve for ourselves?.

All Judah went away merrily with their sin, till this check of Ezra; now they are afflicted. Had not the hands of the peers been in this trespass, the people had not been guilty; had not the cheeks of Ezra

been first drenched with tears, the people had not been penitent. It cannot be spoken what power there is in a great example, whether to evil or good.

Prayers and tears are nothing without endeavours. Shechaniah, the son of Jehiel, puts the first life into this business. Having seconded the complaint of Ezra, he now adds, "Yet there is hope in Israel concerning this thing; now therefore let us make a covenant with our God to put away all the wives, and such as are born of them: arise, for this matter belongeth to thee, we also will be with thee; be of good courage, and do it."

When mischief is once done, the chief care is how to redress it. The best way of redress is the deliberate undoing of that which we have rashly committed. The surest obligation to the undoing of an evil act, is an oath or covenant made with God, for the performance.

There is no man so wise, but he may make use of good counsel; there is no man so forward, but he may abide incitation. It is no small encouragement, to see a hearty assistance in an envious and difficult service. "Then arose Ezra, and made the chief priests, the Levites, and all Israel, to swear that they should do according to this word."

It is half done that is thus assured. There was need of a strong power to dissolve a matrimonial, though inordinate love. Doubtless, these men had married out of affection; their hearts were no less set upon these wives, though heathenish, than if they had been of their own tribes; neither were their children thus begotten, less dear unto them, than if they had lain in Jewish wombs. Nothing less than an oath of God therefore could quiet these passions; that is both required and taken.

Now begins Ezra to conceive some hope of present redress; the comfort whereof yet cannot turn off his sorrow for the offence past. He neither eats bread nor drinks water, willingly punishing himself, because Israel had sinned. Now shall his countrymen easily

read in his face their own penance, and just humiliation, and say, This man takes no joy in our sufferings; he would not smart thus for us, if he did not descry more danger towards us than we can apprehend.

Proclamation is made through Judah and Jerusalem, under pain of forfeiture of substance, and excommunication from God's people, that all the children of the captivity should gather themselves together unto Jerusalem. They are met accordingly; the courts of God's house are thronged with penitents, and now, as if the heaven would teach them what to do, the clouds rain down abundance of tears. What with those sad showers, what with their inward remorse, the people sit trembling in the open courts, and humbly wait for the reproof, for the sentence of Ezra. He rises up, and with a severe countenance, lays before them their sin, their amends; the sin of their strange wives, the amends of their confession, of their separation; not sparing to search their wound, not neglecting the meet plaster for their cure.

The people, as willing to be healed, yield themselves patiently to that rough hand, not shrinking at the pain, nor favouring the sore; "As thou hast said, so must we do:" only craving a fit proportion of time, and a due assistance for the despatch of so long and important a work. Ezra gladly hearkens to this, not so much request, as counsel of Israel. The charge is divided to men and days; for two months' space the commissioners sit close, and within that compass finish this business, not more thankless than necessary. Doubtless much variety of passion met with them in this busy service. Here you should have seen an affectionate husband bitterly weeping at the dismission of a loving wife, and drowning his last farewell in sobs. There you might have seen a passionate wife, hanging upon the arms of her beloved husband; and on her knees conjuring him by his former vows, and the dear pledges of their loves, and proffering, with many tears, to redeem the loss of her husband

with the change of her religion. Here you might have seen the kindred and parents of the dismissed, shutting up their denied suits with rage and threats; there the abandoned children kneeling to their seemingly cruel father, beseeching him not to cast off the fruit of his own loins, and expostulating what they have offended in being his. The resolved Israelites must be deaf, or blind to these moving objects, and so far forget nature, as to put off part of themselves. Personal inconveniences have risen to yield to public mischiefs long entertainment makes that sin hard to be ejected, whose first motions might have been repelled with ease.

Had not the prohibition of these marriages been express, and their danger and mischief palpable, the care of their separation had not bred so much tumult in Israel. He that ordained matrimony, had upon fearful curses forbidden an unequal yoke with infidels. Besides the marring of the church by the mixture of an unholy seed, religion suffered for the present, and all good hearts with it. Many tears, many sacrifices, need to expiate so foul an offence, and to set Israel straight again.

All this while even these mesline Jews were yet forward to build the temple. The worst sinners may yield an outward conformity to actions of piety. Ezra hath done more service in pulling down, than the Jews in building; without this act, the temple might have stood, religion must needs have fallen: Babel had been translated to Jerusalem, Jews had turned Gentiles. Oh happy endeavours of devout and holy Ezra, that hath at once restored Judah to God and to itself!

CONTEMPLATION II.

NEHEMIAH BUILDING THE WALLS OF JERUSALEM.

THIRTEEN years were now passed since Ezra's going up to Jerusalem, when Nehemiah, the religious courtier