All we know

Of what the blessed do above,
Is, that they fing and that they love.

I queftion not but we all hope to come to the general assembly and church of the first born who are written in heaven, to an innumerable company of angels, and the fpirits of just men made perfect. If fo; then let us beforehand inure ourselves to the exercises of this bleffed fociety. Here let us tune our voices to the praises of God, before we join the heavenly choir.

4. I will exhort you to praife and thanksgiving, from the confideration of the usefulness of it. It is useful, because it fixes the idea of God upon our minds it engages us in the contemplation of his attributes and perfections; and the more we meditate upon them, the more holy and religious fhall we be. The pfalmift giving the character of a wicked man fays, that God is not in all his thoughts: by which he infinuates, that thoughtlefnefs about God. is the foundation of a vicious practice; and undoubtedly fo it is. Did men seriously confider that there is a fupreme being, who knows all the actions of their

lives, and the very fecrets of their hearts, who is armed with almighty power, who hates fin with a perfect hatred, and will one day feverely punish it; they could not be fo wicked and fenfual as they are. The thoughts of God and of his attributes naturally tend to fupprefs finful inclinations, and difpofe to all virtue and goodness: and we cannot take a more effectual method to cherish these thoughts, and to keep alive a fenfe of God upon our fpirits, than to employ ourselves in this work of praife; for hereby we exprefs a firm belief and perfuafion of his existence and perfections.

Thanksgiving is profitable to us, as it enflames our love to God, which is the principle of all holy obedience. It makes us regard him as the fource of our happiness, and the author of all our mercies: and this will be an inducement to us to yield ourselves to his fervice, and practife those things which are pleafing in his fight; for nothing is more natural than to ftrive to please our bent factors.

Thanksgiving is profitable, as it begets in us a chearfulness of spirit, which is very requifite to the right performance of our duty. A melancholy difpofition is by

no

no means friendly to virtue. Then are we moft fit to do the will of God, when our spirits are most lively and vigorous but there is nothing that tends more to quicken and enliven them, than praise and thanksgiving.

Finally, thanksgiving is profitable, as it tends to make God more favourable and propitious to us. If we are thankful to him for paft mercies, he will, very probably, bestow upon us more, and greater; but if we are infenfible of former benefits, we have no ground to expect any future favours. On the contrary, we have reason to be afraid that his judgments will overtake us; for nothing is more provoking to him than ingratitude. The children of Ifrael are feverely threaten'd for this crime, in the XXXIId chapter of Deuteronomy. From the 7th to the 14th verfe, there is a recital of the mercies of God towards them: and then at the 15th verse their carriage towards him is reprefented. But Jeshurun waxed fat, "and kicked; be forfook God who made him, and lightly esteemed the rock of his falvation. And verse 18. Of the rock that begat thee thou art unmindful, and haft forgotten God that formed thee. The

anger

anger of God against them for this unthankful carriage fufficiently appears from what follows. And when the Lord faw it, he abhorred them: and he said, I will hide my face from them; I will fee what their end shall be; a fire is kindled in mine anger, and fhall burn unto the lowest bell, and fhall confume the earth with her increafe, and fet on fire the foundations of the mountains; I will heap mischiefs upon them, I will spend mine arrows upon them. Hezekiah was in the main a good and virtuous prince; yet when God had healed his disease, and he rendred not again according to the benefit done him, it is faid that the wrath of God was upon him, 2 Chron. XXXII. 24, 25. Therefore, if it is profitable for us to escape God's wrath, and to fecure his favour, it is profitable for us to be thankful to him for the mercies which we receive from him.

5.

I will exhort you to the practice of thanksgiving, from the examples of pious and good men.

Mofes compofed a fong of praise upon occafion of the miraculous deliverance of the children of Ifrael from the Egyptians at the RedSea. This fong is recorded in the

XVth chapter of Exodus. David was never weary of this delightful exercise. He met with many remarkable deliverances: and there is fcarce any one of them but he hath writ a pfalm, or fong, in commemoration of it. And he did not only praise God after he had received fome fignal favour, and upon extraordinary occafions, but it was his common and ordinary practice. Seven times a-day do I praife thee, because of thy righteous judgments; Pfalm CXIX. 164. Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever; Pfalm CXLV. 2. While I live, I will praife the Lord; I will fing praifes unto my God while I have any being; Pfalm CXLVI. 2. Daniel is another example of this virtue of thankfulness. When king Nebuchadnezzar had, in a great fury, commanded the Chaldean magicians and aftrologers to bé flain becaufe they could not find out his dream, and Daniel and his companions were like to be involved in the deftruction; he went in to the king, and desired of him to give him time, and he would fhew him the interpretation. And when the fecret was revealed to him, we read that then Daniel blessed the God of heaven ;

Dan.