of divine vengeance, inflicted upon the profaners of the Lord's day, may contribute very much to confirm us in the belief of the divinc inftitution of this holy day; and likewife may ferve to warn all ranks and degrees of perfons, to guard against the contempt and violation of the Lord's day. The Lord indeed exerciseth great long-fuffering and patience towards many notorious Sabbath breakers, to fhew us that there is a judgment to come: But nevertheless he makes monuments of fome, to let us know, that "verily there is a God that judgeth in the earth."

Many more examples might be brought, if it were needful, from all corners of the land; but I truly believe, there are few ferious obfervers of providence, but might relate many fad inftances of the difcovery of God's difpleasure against the profanation of the Lord's day, from their own experience and obfervation.

After all, I hope, there is none that fears God, loves *Chrift, and believes the holy fcriptures, but will see these arguments which I have adduced, to be convincing demonftrations of the neceffity of fanctifying the Lord's day, and honouring it as God's Sabbath, to the end of the world.

Now, to fum up the whole, let us lay all these toge. ther: The folid ground for the morality of the fourth command, the weighty reasons of the change of the day, and the fpecial marks of honour that Chrift hath put upon this holy day; it being the day in which he firft made the light to fhine, the day wherein also the Sun of righteousnefs arofe, difpelling the clouds of guilt and fear; the day he subdued his enemies, manifested himself to his disciples, and taught them his will; the day he fent the Holy Ghoft to his apoftles; the day he hath called by his own name, and reserved for his own ufe, and upon which he holds special communion with his people, and vouchfafes them the marks of his royal favour; the day which God highly honours by his providential difpenfations. And will it not then be judged an high affront to Almighty God, to pour contempt on that day which he delights to honour? Surely it ought to be matter of grief to all true lovers

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of God, when they fee it done. We are told, that, when one of Darius's eunuchs faw Alexander setting his feet on a rich table of his master's he fell a weeping; and being asked the reason of it, he said, "It was to see the table his master fo highly esteemed, now made a footftool." And may we not weep to fee the day that God hath honoured and blessed, and for which he is fo highly concerned made a footftool, and trampled on by fo many profane perfons in our days? To be fure, God will not fit with fuch open affronts as he gets from fome in this matter.

Thus, I think I have demonftrated the morality of the fourth command, and the divine inftitution of the Lord's day for our Chriftian Sabbath; which, by neceffary confequence, proves the abolition of the Jewifh feventh day Sabbath. For though there were no other fcripture warrant for abolishing the old Sabbath, (which nevertheless there is, as I fhewed before) yet feeing it is evident that our Lord Jefus Chrift," the Lord of the Sabbath," hath by his refurrection, example and authority, for ever confecrated the first day of the week, for the folemn remembrance and celebration of the Lord's reft from the great work of redemption, and of that unparallelled deliverance wrought by him for a loft world, and thereby hath fet apart the first day for our Sabbath; then, of course, the old feventh day muft cede, and refign its fanctity to it, and be for ever abrogated. The Chriftian Sabbath muft neceffarily extinguifh the Jewish, feeing the two Sabbath days cannot stand in force together For, by virtue of the fourth command, there is but one day of feven to be obferved for the Sabbath, one day only after fix working days, and not two after five. And fince it is the ancient and unrepealed inftitution of God, that men should labour fix days of the week, and observe but one day for the Sabbath; then furely, if we fhould labour but five days of the week and keep two for the Sabbath, we would expressly violate the law. So that no Chriftians need to have the leaft fcruple about the abrogation of the Jewith Sabbath.

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But

But though the feventh day be now divefted of its fanctity, and hath no more claim to the Sabbath, havingrefigned all its dignity and privileges to the first day of the week, the New Teftament Sabbath; yet still it hath the honour of ushering it in, and of ferving as a preparation day for it. As the Jewish typical worship ufhered in the evangelical fpiritual worship; and the Jewish deliverances from Egypt and Babylon were preparatory to that more glorious and general one from hell and deftruction by Jefus Christ, which is this day commemorated. So the Jewish feventh day Sabbath ferves to usher in and prepare us for the glorious festival of the Chriftian Sabbath, which is to continue while Chrift hath a church upon earth, being the only day appointed to be kept in remembrance of him, and as ferving to usher in and prepare us for that far more glorious and celeftial Sabbath above, which shall never have an end.

O then endeavour by all means to get and keep up a high esteem of the Lord's day, that day which God hath exalted above all the days of the week, and above all the Jewish Sabbaths and feftivals whatfomever. Of them in comparifon of the Lord's day, we may fay in allufion to that word, Heb. i. 1. 12. "They perifh, but thou remaineft; and they all wax old like a gar ment, and as a vesture thou haft folded them up, and they are changed; but thou fhalt (maugre all the malice of men and devils) continue the fame, and thy years fhall not fail." Thefe were but as morning ftars, to ufher in the fun. Other feftivals, in all their royalty, are not arrayed like thee. All the graces triumph in thee; all the ordinances confpire to adorn thee; the facred Trinity do delight in thee: the Father ruleth thee, the Son rofe upon thee, and the Spirit hath overshadowed thee. Thus is it done to the day which the King of heaven delighteth to honour; And what fhall be done to the man that delighteth to difhonour and put contempt upon thee?

Surely, as "God will not hold him guiltlefs" that breaks the third command, "by taking his name in vain; fo he will not hold him guiltlefs that breaks the fourth commandment, by fpending his day in vain. And though

the

the breakers of this commandment may escape punishment from men, or may even efcape outward judgments from God in this world; yet there is a day coming, when he will call them to account for it. Oh finners! the day of the Lord is like to be a dreadful day to you that defpife the Lord's day.

Quest. VI. What is that proportion of time which is to be fequeftrated and allowed for the Sabbath day? and when doth it begin and end ?

Anf. The fourth command requires one day in every feven; by which we are not to understand only the artificial day from fun-rifing to fun-fetting, or from the break of day until the darkness of the night come on, and think then the Sabbath is over, and that we are no longer bound to abftain from our own works; and far lefs are we to think that the Sabbath is no longer than the time of public worship doth laft, and that we are at freedom from the work and duties of the Sabbath when that is over: This fome fay in words, and many more in their practice.

But, confider what abfurdities would follow hereupon: For, if no more time be allowed for the Sabbath, but the time of public worship; then it would follow, that God requires no private or fecret duties from us on that day, fince thefe will need fome more time: But that cannot be; for, if private and fecret duties be required of us on week days, then much more on the Sabbath day.

Again, it would follow, that fome must keep longer Sabbaths, and others fhorter; nay, the Sabbath of many shall not be above an hour or two of the day; for there are ministers and people who are scarce fo long at public worship: But the whole day is the Lord's, and not a part only. You will have your fervants to work the whole fix week days for you, from morning to night, and not be contented with their working an hour or two only of these days: So neither fhould you yield lefs to God than you require for yourfelves. Nay, if attendance on the public worship were all that is requifite this day, by virtue of the command, it would follow, that a man would be loofed from the obligation

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of the command, if he were in a place of the world where God is not publicly worshipped.

But all these things being abfurd, I do upon folid ground, affert, that the whole natural day, confifting of twenty-four hours, is to be fet apart for the Sabbath day; and that we ought to measure this day, and begin and end it, as we do other days, that is, from midnight to midnight; during which time we are to abftain from our own works, and fanctify the Lord's Sabbath: For the fourth command binds us to confecrate the feventh part of every week to the Lord, who challengeth a fpecial property in one of seven, and afferts his juft title thereto, faying, "The feventh day is the Lord's:" And alfo Ifa. Ivii. 13. he exprefsly calls it," My holy day." It is all holy; and therefore no part must be profaned or applied to common uses. It is all the Lord's; and fo it is unlawful for us to rob him of any part of it, and alienate it to our private use. Object. But who is able to spend the whole twenty four hours in religious duties?

Anf. I do not fay that this is to be done without any intermiffion; for we do not this in following our employments on other days: A due proportion of every day is to be referved for the natural fupport of our bodies, and particularly for moderate eating and fleeping, which are works of neceflity, and must be allowed on the Sabbath, as well as other days; with this difference only, that, whereas they are done on other days to enable us for labour, they are to be done on the Sabbath to ftrengthen us for holy duties; and fo cannot properly be called our own works: Neither can the doing thereof be called a taking of God's time to our own ufe, fince this contributes to our better spending of God's time, and is truly neceffary for God's fervice on the Sabbath. But, befides the time requifite for the works of neceffity and mercy, the whole natural day, as above defcribed, is holy unto the Lord, and ought to be employed in religious duties; and not a part of the day only: Both Sabbath morning and Sabbath night, fhould be fpent in prayer and praifes, as is plain from the 92d Pfalm, which is intituled, “A

pfalm