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Saviour, who died, the just for the unjust. Sinners! remember the threatenings tained in this volume, which records God's vifitations on impenitent finners, on churches, on nations; and which, in the bitter fufferings of JESUS, demonstrates the guilt and ruin of the impenitent. They who are still in their fins, who hold them fast and will not let them go, provoke GOD to continue to vifit the earth with his judgments; and to lengthen out the alarms, calamities and defolations of war: these things are the beginnings of the marks of his difpleasure. It is true, fome of them the most wicked may not experience; but, fhould they escape the judgments that overtake the children of difobedience, in this world; remember there is

a certain fearful looking for of judgment "and fiery indignation," which shall devour the adversaries of GOD, and of his CHRIST, in the world to come.

To the purest and most pious, the exhortation is addressed: Mourn ye, and be in bitterness. We well know that the more holy you are, you fuffer, the more readily, the word of exhortation; you see more clearly

your

your finfulness; you are more humbled and contrite in heart. Your trefpaffes in thought, word and deed, your omiffions and fhort comings, your remiffness and languor, the fins of your holy things, fill you with grief, cover you with fhame and confufion of face. The forrow and mourning of a godly fort is excited and awakened, in the pious, by prevailing fins the pious exceedingly deplore the fins of the times, their tendencies, their effects, their aggravations: "Horror hath "taken hold upon me, because of the wicked "that forfake thy law. Rivers of waters "run down mine eyes, because they keep "not thy law :" but the most exquifite diftress arises in the godly, let it be felt and cherished by you on account of your own fins fearch and try yourselves, my friends! and see if there be any wicked thing in you: pray to God to fhew it unto you, and to lead you in the way everlasting.

WARS and rumours of wars occafion grief and distress, and ought to occafion grief and diftrefs for with them human wretchedness rifes before you: human guilt is discovered and proved by thefe vifitations of the Almighty.

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mighty. Nevertheless, fays our LORD, “ Ye "fhall hear of wars and rumours of wars: "fee that ye be not troubled." It is to this exhortation I turn your attention: what our LORD faid to his difciples, in the profpect of the dreadful calamities foretold by himself, he fays to his faithful followers in every age: in his name, we addrefs the exhortation to you, who now hear of wars and rumours of "See that ye be not troubled."

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ANXIETY and alarm must be guarded against degrees of defpondency and terror, and perturbation, are too frequently difcovered in days of calamity, even among those who are the fervants of GoD: the apoftles themselves needed the exhortation, are befought by their Mafter, "See that ye be not

"troubled."

BUT when is it, you may suppose the apoftles might fay, that trouble is unavoidable, if not when there are wars and rumours of wars? Perhaps it is your own rising thought at this moment, Is it poffible not to be troubled and alarmed, when we think what war is? The horrid image of war is eafily paint

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ed. Can we, unmoved, perufe the scenes of bloodshed and devaftation that history records? Can we with unconcern read or hearof the fatigues, the hardships, the exertions, the fufferings of foldiers and failors, of camps and marches, of campaigns and battles? War has raged.—And, judging of the prefent by the past, most ferioufly alarming, eventful and overwhelming may be its progress and effects to the nations; to this nation, to families, to foldiers, to failors, to us all!

WE readily allow that there are degrees of concern and apprehenfion, when there are wars and rumours of wars, that are natural and unavoidable: I fay more, they are amiable and pious. There is a trouble of heart, however, that must not be indulged. "See "that ye be not troubled."

And

WHAT that trouble is, we fhall fhow you' in the first place: fecondly, lead you to the fources of tranquillity and confolation, when there are wars and rumours of war. laftly, notice, for your direction, the character and duty of Chriftians in relation to the peace

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peace and compofure of feasons of alarm and danger, and fuffering.

PART I.

I. WHAT is the trouble of heart to be guarded against, in the times of war and alarm?

I HAVE faid there are degrees of concern natural and unavoidable, amiable and pious. Neither reason nor Scripture, the Old Testament nor the New, require or vindicate unconcern of heart refpecting our own dangers and fufferings; or refpecting those of our fellow creatures. The most amiable and excellent have mourned over human mifery, have lamented the defolations about to overwhelm the devoted cities and kingdoms of the earth. JESUS wept at the grave of Lazarus. JESUS beheld Jerufalem, and wept over it. He permits and directs the grief of the daughters of Jerufalem. "Now,” says he, my heart is troubled:-He was exceeding forrowful: he was in an agony."

OUR evident duty, our beft employment,