uncertainty of the time is a reafon for immediate preparation. The event is too important to be neglected finally. It may be too near to be neglected at all. The leaft delay is prefumption, for none knows, but it may be fatal.

Floods teach us to make firm those works, which may be exposed to their violence. And they remind us of the wisdom of laying well the foundation of our religion, that it may stand safe against the most trying ftorms.

In erecting works on ftreams we calculate for floods, not merely for calm waters. In the works of religion we are to take fimilar precautions. We muft expect in our Chriftian course some rough and tempeftuous weather; not continual ferenity and funshine. We must look to confequences; count the coft; lay out for croffes and trials, and form our refolutions accordingly. A hafty, fuperficial religion, like other flender and careless works, will yield to winds and floods.

If the neceffary works, which we construct on ftreams, are injured, or borne away by floods, we do not abandon them as untenable, or unworthy the hazard. We endeavor to profit by experience. We enquire, where was the defect, and in a new conftruction rectify the error, and guard against the danger, which before was unthought of. And if we meet with difficulties in our religious work, we must not renounce it as impracticable, but proceed with more watchful prudence, and more firm refolution. We muft grow wifer by conviction of past follies, and ftronger by experience of former weakness.

Our religion must be built on the foundation of God's word; it must be united to the foundation by love of the truth; it must be ftrengthened and fupported by faith in God's promise and grace;

it must be kept in good repair by the fteady practice of the various duties, of which it confifts. Thus it will abide in the day of trial. This is the instruction given by our Saviour. "Not every one that faith unto me, Lord, Lord, fhall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doth the will of my Father, who is in heaven. Whofoever heareth thefe fayings of mine, and doeth them, him will I liken unto a wise man, who built his house on a rock; and the rain defcended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that houfe, and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth my fayings, and doeth them not, fhall be likened unto a foolish man, who built his house upon the fand; and the rain defcended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that houfe, and it fell, and great was the fall of it." Take heed therefore how you build; for every man's work will be tried, of what fort it is. Not only lay well the foundation, but rear the ftructure with firm materials, well compacted together, that they may.refift the flood, and weather the form. If your building perifh, you will fuffer lofs; if it abide you will receive a rich reward.

SERMON XXI.

The Impiety of alledging God's Promife, as a reason for the neglect of Duty.

MATTHEW iv. 5, 6, 7.

Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and fetteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, and faith unto him, If thou be the son of God, caft thyself down; for it is written, He fhall give his angels charge concerning thee, and in their hands they fhall bear thee up, left at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jefus faid unto him, It is written, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

THE devil from the beginning of the world, has been an enemy to mankind. On our firft parents he brought death by feducing them from their obedience to God. The defign of our redemption he endeavored to defeat by tempting the Redeemer to destroy himself. In both cafes he used the same artifice, a perversion of the word of God. In the former cafe he perverted the divine threatening; in the latter, the divine promife. He told our first parents, that though they should eat of the forbidden fruit, they would not furely die he told our Redeemer, that though he should caft himself down from a pinnacle of the temple, he would furely live. The tree of knowledge God had guarded by a threatening of death. Satan

alledged, that this threatening did not really intend what it seemed to import. God had promised the Redeemer, that, during the time of his miniftry, he should be under the protection of angels, who would keep him in all his ways. Satan interpreted this promife, as containing more than was really intended; and in proof of his interpretation, he urged, that if Jefus fhould caft himfelf down from the temple, no hurt would enfue.

The promise, which he adduced, is in the 91ft Pfalm. "There fhall no evil befall thee-for he fhall give his angels charge over thee to keep thee in all thy ways; they fhall bear thee up in their hands, left thou dash thy foot against a stone." That this promise had a refpect, as to good men in general, fo to the Son of God in particular, is evident from the words, which follow; "Thou fhalt tread upon the lion and the adder; the young lion and the dragon fhalt thou trample under feet." The devil, in his temptation of Eve, prefented himself in the form of a ferpent. Hence, both in the Old Teftament and the New, he is called by the name of a ferpent, an adder, and a dragon. The conqueft of the feed of the woman over fatan the tempter, is expreffed by his bruifing the ferpent's head. In this paffage quoted from the gift Pfalm, there is an evident allufion to the fentence on the ferpent. Hence it is natural to conclude, that the whole promise had a peculiar respect to him, who was to tread fatan under his feet; and enfured to him the special protection of divine providence, until this work should be accomplished. The devil juftly applies this promise to Chrift; but he wickedly leaves out a part of it, and perverts the meaning of the whole. He infinuates, that as Jefus was under a promise of divine protection, he had no occafion to take care of

himfelf; and whatever he might do, the promise would fecure him. "If thou be the Son of God;" If thou be the promised feed of the woman, who was to be born without the intervention of man, and therefore eminently to be called the Son of God; if thou be that perfon, as, by a voice from heaven thou waft juft now declared to be, then, to make it manifeft to the multitude affembled below, "caft thyself down from this pinnacle; for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee, and in their hands fhall they bear thee up, left thou dash thy foot against a stone."

The devil here leaves out a material claufe. The promife was, that the Meffiah should be kept, in all his ways. The devil, omitting these last words, infinuates, that Jefus, if he was the Son of God, would be kept, even though he went out of his way, and caft himself down from the pinnacle. Thus the emiffaries of fatan often mutilate the fcripture, when they pretend to quote it. To prove that religion confifts, not at all in piety to God, but wholly in the focial virtues, juftice and mercy, the authority of the prophet has been adduced ; "What doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to do justly and to love mercy ?"-The words immediately following," and to walk humbly with thy God" are omitted, because these injoin piety. This is quoting scripture, as the devil quoted the paffage in the Pfalms.

And as fatan mutilates, fo he perverts the paffage. He argues from it, on this false principle, that where God has promised an event; there is no occafion for human means that the event promised will take place, let men do what they can, or omit what they will. Christ answers, “ It is written, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." His words import, That to plead God's

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