prune thy Vineyard, and gather in the Fruit "thereof. But in the feventh Year fhall be a "Sabbath of Reft unto the Land, a Sabbath

for the Lord; thou shalt neither fow thy Field, nor prune thy Vineyard."-This Reft of the Land was a Sabbath for the Lord that is, an Acknowledgment of his being the Proprietor, in Right of his being the Conqueror of the Land; for, as the Pfalmift fays, It was not their own Sword, neither was it their own Arm, that got them the Victory over the Canaanites, but it was the omnipotent Hand of God. Accordingly, God directed to what Uses the Products of this Year fhould be applied; not to the particular Ufe of the Owners of the Land, but to common Uses; for all the People, not excepting the Servants, or, even, the Beafts for all in common, as he fed them with Manna in the Wilderness-But, you will afk, perhaps, How there could be proper and fufficient Food for all the People, and for all the Beafts, when neither the Land was fowed, nor the Trees prun'd? The 5th Verse tells us how., The Fruits of the Earth, That Year, grew of themselves, without any Cultivation; as Commentators fuppofe, either from the Seed which cafually fell the Year before, or from the old Root which sprouted. out again. But to my Apprehenfion, this is a very unfatisfactory Account, as it is, contrary to all Experience of the ordinary Courfe of Things. Is it not more rational to fuppofe that, as God forbad them the Use of

thofe

14 The Scripture History of the Sabbath. shofe Means which are, ordinarily, neceffary to make the Fields and the Trees produce their Fruits, if they trufted in his Providence, he would blefs That Year, which was fanctified to His Honour, with an extraordinary Fertility. A's the Obfervance of this fabbatical Year of Reft to the Land was a Sign, or Token; so, likewise, was it a Covenant, whereby they might be affured of his miraculous Bleffing, if, in Obedience to his Command, they did not plow, or fow, or prune.

As I had occafion to mention this fabbatical Year, I was willing to give you an Account of it; but, the Reafon of my mentioning of it was, its carrying on the Thread of the Scripture Hiftory of the Sabbath.-Left the People' fhould imagine that this being a Year of Reft from all the Labour of Cultivation, they were, during that Time, exempted from the Obfervation of the Seventh Day, and might do any Work on That Day which they were allowed to do on any other Day of the Week; for this Reason, I fay, immediately after the Appointment of the fabbatical Year, a Repetition of the fabbatical Day is fubjoined, Ver. 12. Six Days thou fhalt do thy Work, and on the feventh Day thou shalt reft, that thine Ox and thine Afs may reft, &c."

We find the fame Caution used on another Occafion, and That was, the Building of the Tabernacle. When God had told Mofes that he had appointed proper Perfons for the Work, and had given them particular Inftructions how

to

Sabbath. i to make it, then the Lord fpake unto him the following moft folemn Words, which command your moft awful Attention.

Speak thou alfo unto the Children of Ifrael faying, Verily my Sabbaths ye fhall keep for it is a Sign between me and you, throughout your Generations; that ye may "know that I am the Lord, that doth fanctify

you. Ye fhall keep the Sabbath, therefore "for it is holy unto you.-Every one that de"fileth it fhall furely be put to Death: for, who"foever doth any Work therein, That Soul "fhall be cut off from among his People-Six

Days may Work be done, but in the fe

venth is the Sabbath of Reft, holy to the "Lord whofoever doeth any Work in the "Sabbath-day, he fall furely be put to Death."Wherefore the Children of Ifrael fhall keep "the Sabbath, to obferve the Sabbath through❝out their Generations, for a perpetual Cove"nant.It is a Sign between me and the "Children of Ifrael for ever.-For in fix Days "(mind the Reason which God gives for this

Obfervation) the Lord made Heaven and "Earth, and on the Seventh Day he refed." Chap. xxxi. ver. 13, 17.-And in the xxxvth Chap. This Command is repeated again, and fome particular Works are fpecified. Now, the Reafon of fo folemn a Charge on this Occafion is very plain.-As the Tabernacle was for holy Ufes, the People might naturally have thought that any Work on That Day was law

ful,

ful, if it were done in God's immediate Service. But, God lets them know, that Obedience is better than Sacrifice; and would not permit them fo much as to light a Fire on That Day, for the Ufe of the Building. So great a Strefs does God lay upon the Obfervance of pofitive Inftitutions, though Man is apt to make fuch Trifles of them.

At the xxiiid of Lev. their feveral Feafts are enumerated; and, the Sabbath being a Festival, for fear the People should think themselves at Liberty to do fuch Works on the Sabbath-Day, as were allowable on fome other Feftivals, here is a Caveat entered against doing any Work on That Day."

Thus I have given you a fhort, but full, Scripture Hiftory of the Sabbath, as it is contained in the Books of Moses. In which Ac count you have seen that it was first instituted immediately after the Creation, in Memory of it; that it was, afterwards, upon the Delivery of the Jews from Egypt, appointed That People with additional Circumftances relative to their particular Condition; that, at the folemn Publication of the Ten Commandments from Mount Sinai, the general Inftitution was confirm'd; that, upon feveral Occafions, this Command was repeated; at the Appointment of the fabbatical Year, the Building of the Tabernacle, and the Enumeration of their Feafts. -And from thiş Hiftory you may obferve two Things well worth Notice,

ift, The

If, The frequent Repetitions of this Command. And,

2dly, The Sanction of it.

Befides the preceding Repetitions, both the Command and the Sanction are feveral times. repeated, in the Compafs of five Verses, in That Quotation which I made from the xxxift of Exod.-Now God would not have guarded This Inftitution with such extraordinary Care, if the Obfervance of it had not been of the utmost Importance, and highly acceptable to Him; nor have annexed fo fevere a Penalty to the Breach of it, had it not been highly difpleafing to Him.-He shall furely be put to death. That Soul fhall be cut off from among his People Whofoever was guilty of a publick Violation of it, was to be stoned to death. If he did it so fecretly that he could not be detected by fufficient Evidence, it was the generally received Opinion of the Jews, that God took the Matter into his own Hand, and inflicted fome heavy Judgement upon him, in the Courfe of His Providence.-And pray obferve, that this fevere Sanction was not annexed to the particular Inftitution, given to the Jews, in Memory of their Deliverance from their Servitude in Egypt, but to the general Inftitution, appointed at the Creation, confirmed from Mount Sinai, often repeated afterwards, and in Terms, and for a Reafon, refpecting the whole World.

We are now come to give an Account of our Chriftian Sabbath, when the Day was changed

B