to appear to pafs without reproof or correction, this helps by degrees to breed in children an abhorrence of it. Labour in a special manner to beget in them frightful impreffions of the fins of fwearing, and profaning the name of God, the fin of difobedience to parents, the fin of Sabbath-breaking, of lying, obfcene words, ftealing, pride, paffion, revenge, neglect of prayer and reading, &c. Study to perfuade them to godliness" with the most endearing language, and prevailing arguments, according to Prov. xxxi. 1. 2. 3. that so you may convince them that in all your admonitions and reproofs, you have an earnest defire for their welfare, and that you and they may dwell in heaven together through all eternity. It is fometimes needful folemnly to obteft and charge them to mind their duty; as Mr Bolton, a godly man, faid to his children on his deathbed, "I charge you, O my children, not to meet me at Christ's tribunal in a Christless and graceless condi

tion."

7. Join fervent prayers this day with your endeavours; for prayerlefs inftructions will not profit. Parents may plant, minifters may water, "but God only can give the increase." You ought to take fome time this day to pity, mourn and pray for your children, fervants and relations, that are in the darkness of a natural state, and under the flavery of fatan. If any of them were taken by the Turks, and laid in dark dungeons, treated as flaves, fcourged every day, and barbarously used; would not your bowels yearn, and your hearts bleed for them? Or, if any of your near relations were dead, would you not mourn for them? And are you not more concerned to mourn and pray for them that are fatan's flaves, juftice's prifoners, fpiritually dead, and fentenced to everlasting death? Have you any love to your children, and will you not carry them this day in the arms of faith and prayer to the bleffed Jefus, befeeching him "to put his hands of mercy on them, and bless them ?" as in Mat. xix. 13. yea, not only pray for them, but take them alongst with you, and let them be the eye and ear witneffes of your prayers, fighs and tears, for the conversion and salvation

of

of their fouls; and who knows but this might work upon their hearts? Let them hear you fay to God, as Jacob, Gen. xxxiii 5. "Lord, thou haft graciously given me thefe children, but, Oh! (you may add) Lord, I have given them fin, that is their portion from me. Lord, though I cannot give them Chrift and grace, yet thou canst do both; they are born to me once, O that they may be born to thee a fecond time! Say as Abraham, Gen. xvii. "O that my Ishmael may live before thee!" And Deut. xxxiii. "Let my Reuben live, and not die." Let these who are pieces of my bowels, and are now dead in trefpaffes and fin, live in thy fight; thou art the Lord of life, breathe on them, and they fhall live. Lord, let not thefe who are fo dear to me fry in the flames for ever; one house holds us now, let one heaven hold us hereafter. Cry, as those in the gofpel, Mat xvii. "Lord, have mercy on my fon; my daughter is grievoufly vexed:" Lord, come and heal them, and let me fee my children to be the work of thy hands in the midft of thy houfe; then fhall not my face wax pale, nor be afhamed, but I will fanctify the holy One of Ifrael," Ifa. xxix. 22. 23.

But, in midst of these fecret and family duties, neceffary on the evening of the Lord's day, it is needful that our frail bodies be refreshed with meat and drink; and, the work of the day being near over, you are at the more freedom to eat plentifully; yet still with holy fear and caution, and a defire fpiritually to improve the time of eating, and to make God's glory your end, in eating and drinking, 1 Cor. x. 31.

If you be to have company or ftrangers with you, then look to God for wifdom to behave yourfelves in all your words and deportment, that you may neither do them harm, nor get harm from them. Say, "O that my lips this night were like thofe of the righteous which feed many!"

When you are called to fit down to fupper this night, think or fay, "How happy were I, if I were now called to fit down and fup with Abraham, Ifaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven, at that higher table that fhall never be drawn, where they enjoy an everlasting Sabbath,

Sabbath, that hath no night nor darkness to follow upon it, as this hath !"

When you fee the table covered for you, O blefs the Author of it and say, " When God remembers me, let me not forget him: Oh let not my table turn a fnare to me; let me never make a god of my belly, nor employ my chief care for the meat that perifheth."

When the meat is brought, let us, according to our Saviour's example, look up to heaven, and pray for a bleffing on our food, and for the fanctified ufe of God's creatures, that we may tafte covenant-love in common. mercies, and enjoy the Creator while using the creature. Then think, "O how fweet would these mercies be, if they come dipt in the blood of Chrift, and through the channel of the everlasting covenant to me! If I could enjoy them, not as a creature, but as an heir, " and a joint heir with Chrift," who is the " heir of all things," and hath been pleafed to adopt believers in his right! O how sweet, if every morfel did come from my Father's hand, and fent from his table, as an earnest of greater and better things laid up for me above! Lord, I am not worthy of the leaft crumb that falls from the table of thy providence, and yet thou covereft a full table to worthless me; "what fhall I render to the Lord ?"

Is thy provifion but fmall? Then ftudy to be content therewith: Confider how cheerfully Chrift the Heir of all things did thank God for coarse and mean fare, John vi. when he had but a few barley loaves and small fishes. for himself and his whole family. How much better provided are we, than Chrift and his numerous family was? And fhall we not be eafy and thankful?

Have you a full table? Then fear left these outward things infnare your heart; and, for preventing of it, think, "O what a poor portion would these things be, if I get no better! O how miferable will I be, if, when God gives me bread to the full, he fhould fend leanness to my foul !" Therefore remember Luther's folemn protest to God, when a bountiful prefent was fent him, he protested, "That he would not be put off with com

mon mercies."

But,

But, if you have any clearness concerning your intereft in Chrift, the fight of God's goodness to you in a full table, fhould cause you rejoice in him, and fay, "All this and heaven too! O what a good Master do we ferve!"

When you have eaten, and are full, fee that ye forget not God your Maker and Benefactor, but with heart and mouth, in a folemn manner, give thanks to him. O believers, you have four things particularly to give thanks for; 1. That God gives mercies to furnish your table. 2. Health to use them. 3. Peace to meet together. 4. That ye have a right to them; I mean not a common, but a covenant-right, a right by virtue of Christ's purchase.

It were very agreeable to conclude all by singing a pfalm of praise.

I do not offer to ftint any Chriftian family to any precife particular method of performing dutes on the Sabbath evening, but must leave that to be determined by the prudence of masters of families, according to the circumstances of their families. Some may find it convenient to catechise their children and servants, and repeat the fermons before fupper, fome after; fo fome may perform family-worship before, fome after; others both before and after. Let every man be fully perfuaded in his own mind; only labour that no duty incum bent be omitted.

I do not say that all the forenamed duties, in all their fo mnity are indifpenfably neceffary every Lord's day; for time and circumftances may fo ftraiten us, that we cannot get them performed fo fully as before directed, efpecially as to the inftruction of children, and examination of ourselves; but what cannot be overtaken in one Sabbath let it be done in another. I have chosen to be pretty full in this directory, because it may be ufeful also for other days in the week.

Concerning Secret Duties at the clofe of the Day:

WHEN family duties and fupper are over, and the condition of our weak and weary bodies begins to call

for

for fleep and reft, let us endeavour to close this holy day in a due and fuitable manner. Take thefe few direc tions;

I. When you find, fleep beginning to affault you, think, "O how foon are we tired of doing good! O that we could fay, Though we may be fomewhat weary with our work, yet we are not weary of our work! And it is our regret, that we fhould be laid under a neceflity of lofing fo much of our time in fleeping, and fhould lie fo long, incapable of ferving either God or man, Let this make us long to be there, where there fhall be no need of fleep, but we fhall be like the angels of God, who never fleep nor reft from ferving and beholding God.

II. Think how terrible is it for a Chriftless unconverted finner to lie down this night with fo many millions of unpardoned fins on his back, to fleep fecurely within the flood mark of God's vengeance, and within a ftep of hell! O unconverted man, confider your continual hazard; you never lay down with affurance to rife again; you never flept one Sabbath night, with affurance you would fee another Sabbath, or hear another fermon; and how can you live at peace in fuch a condition? Death and hell are ever before you: it is a wonder you do not think on them by day, and dream of them by night, lie down in fear, rife in fear, and live in fear, left death come before you be converted; it is a wonder you can get any fleep in this condition. If your body want but meat, drink or clothing, yea, if you have but an aching tooth, it hinders you to fleep; and yet wilt thou fleep, O finner, when both foul and body are on the brink of hell, and the devil gaping and roaring for you? O then refolve you" will not give fleep to your eyes, nor flumber to your eye-lids," till your foul be in a better condition; at least, till you pour out your heart, confefs your fins, lay down your weapons of rebellion, and bemoan your cafe before the Lord, and look up to Chrift for pity and pardon. We fhould not willingly venture to fleep in that cafe we would not venture to die in. How many have been hurried into eternity in a moment! O think with yorfelf." Death

may