fuch means as would have brought Tyre and Sidon, Sodom and Gomorrah, to repentance, till they had defpifed the doctrine of life and falvation, delivered to them by the Son of God, and confirmed from heaven, by the cleareft and greateft miracles, and by wicked hands had crucified and flain the Son of God, and the Saviour of the world. Nay, even after this greatest of fins that ever was committed, God waited for their repentance forty years, to fee if in that time they would be brought to a fenfe of their fins, and to know the things which belonged to their peace. And no wonder, if, after fuch provocations, and fo much patience, and fo obftinate, an impenitency, the goodnefs of God at laft gave way to his juftice, and wrath came upon them to the utmost.

So that all these inftances, rightly confidered, are rather commendations of the divine goodness, than just and reasonable objections againft it; and notwithstanding the feverity of them, it is evident that God is good, from the primary inclinations of his nature, and fevere only upon neceffity, and in cafe of juft provocation. And, to be otherwife, not to punish infolent impiety, and incorrigible wickedness in a fevere and remarkable manner, would not be goodness, but a fond indulgence, not patience, but ftupidity; not mercy to mankind, but cruelty, because it would be an encourage-, ment to them to do more mifchief, and to bring greater. mifery upon themfelves.

So that, if we fuppofe God to be holy and juft, as, well as good, there is nothing in any of thefe inftances, but what is very confiftent with all that goodness which we can fuppofe to be in a holy, and wife, and juft governor, who is a declared enemy to fin, and is refolved to, give all fitting difcountenance to the breach and violation of his laws. It is neceffary, in kindness and compaffion to the rest of mankind, that fome fhould be made remarkable inftances of God's feverity; that, the punish-.. ment of a few may be a warning to all, that they may hear and fear, and, by avoiding the like fins, may prevent the like feverity upon themselves.

And now I have, as briefly as I could, explained and vindicated the goodnefs of God; the confideration where

of

of is fruitful of many excellent and useful inferences, in relation both to our comfort and our duty: but thefe I fhall refer to another opportunity.

SERMON

CXLVI.

The goodness of God.

PSAL. ¿xlv. 9.

The Lord is good to all, and his tender mercies are over

all his works.

The fourth fermon on this text.

Have made feveral difcourfes upon this argument, of the goodness of God; fhewing what it is; on what accounts we afcribe it to God; what are the effects and large extent of it to the whole creation, and more particularly to mankind; and, in the laft place, confidered the feveral objections which feem to lie against it. I proceed now to the application of this excellent argument, the confideration whereof is fo fruitful of ufeful inferences, in relation both to our comfort and duty. And,

I. This fhews us the prodigious folly and unreafonableness of Atheism. Most of the Atheism that is in the world, doth not fo much confift in a firm perfuafion that there is no God, as in vain wifhes and defires that there were none. Bad men think it would be a happiness to them, and that they fhould be in a much better condition, if there were no God, than if there be oné. Nemo Deum non effe credit, nifi cui Deum non effe expedit; "No man is apt to disbelieve a God, but he whofe in" tereft it is that there fhould be none." And if we could fee into the hearts of wicked men, we fhould find this lying at the bottom, that if there be a God, he is juft, and will punifh fin; that he is infinite in power, and

not to be refifted; and therefore kills them with his ter ror fo often as they think of him: hence they apprehend it their intereft that there fhould be no God, and wish there were none, and thence are apt to cherish in their minds a vain hope that there is none, and at last endeavour to impofe upon themselves by vain reasonings, and to fupprefs the belief a God, and to ftifle their natural apprehenfions and fears of him. So that it is not Primus in orbe deos fecit timor, "Fear that first made gods;" but the fear which bad men have of divine power and juftice, that firft tempted them to the difbelief of him.

But were not these men as foolish as they are wicked, they would wish with all their hearts there were a God, and be glad to believe fo: and the Pfalmift gives them their true character, who can entertain any fuch thoughts or wifhes; Pfal. xiv. 1. The fool hath faid in his heart, there is no God: for they are fools who do not underftand nor confult their true intereft. And if this be true which I have faid concerning the goodness of God; if this be his nature, to defire and procure the happiness of his creatures; whoever understands the true nature of God, and his own true intereft, cannot but wish there were a God, and be glad of any argument to prove it, and rejoice to find it true; as children are glad of a kind and tender father, and as fubjects rejoice in a wife and good prince.

The goodness of God gives us a lovely character of him, makes him so good a Father, fo gracious a Governor of men, that if there were no fuch being in the world, it were infinitely defirable to mankind that there fhould be: He is fuch an one, Qualem omnes cuperent, fi deeffet; "As, if he were wanting, all men ought to "wish for." The being of God is fo comfortable, fo convenient, fo neceffary to the felicity of mankind, that, as Tully admirably fays, Dii immortales ad ufum hominum fabricati penè videantur; " If God were not a neceffary being of himself, he might almost seem to "be made on purpose for the use and benefit of men :" fo that Atheism is not only an inftance of the most horrible impiety, but of the greatest ftupidity; and, for men to glory in their disbelief of a God, is like the re

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joicing

joicing and triumph of a furious and befotted multitude, in the murder of a wife and good prince, the greatest calamity and confusion that could poffibly have befallen them.

If the evidence of God's being were not fo clear as it is, yet the confideration of his goodnefs ought to check all inclination to Atheism and Infidelity; for, if he be as good as he is reprefented to us, both by natural light, and divine revelation, (and he is fo, as fure as he is) if he tender our welfare, and defire our happiness, as much as we ourselves can do, and use all wife ways and proper means to bring it about; then it is plainly every man's intereft, even thine, O finner! to whom, after all thy provocations, he is willing to be reconciled, that there should be fuch a being as God is; and when'ever thou comeft to thyfelf, thou wilt be fenfible of thy want of him, and thy foul will thirft for God, even the living God, and pant after him, as the hart pants after the water-brooks; in the day of thy affliction and calamity, when diftrefs and anguish cometh upon thee, thou wilt flee to God for refuge, and fhelter thyfelf under his protection, and wouldeft not, for all the world, but there were fuch a being in it to help and deliver thee. Deo's nemo fanus timet, fays Seneca, furor eft metuere faluta ria; "No man in his wits is afraid there is a God: it "is a madness to fear that which is fo much for our be"nefit and advantage." Human nature is conscious to itself of its own weakness and infufficiency, and of its neceffary dependence upon fomething without itfelf, for its happiness; and therefore, in great extremity and diftrefs, the Atheist himself hath naturally recourfe to him; and he who denied and rejected him in his profperity, clings to him in adverfity, as his only support and prefent help in time of trouble. And this is a furé indication, that these men, after all their endeavours to impofe upon themfelves, have not been able wholly to extinguith in their minds the belief of God, and his goodnefs; nay, it is a fign, that at the bottoin of their hearts, they have a firm perfuafion of his goodness, when, after all their infolent defiance of him, they have the confidence to apply themselves to him for mercy and help, in time of need: and therefore our hearts ought to

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rife

rife with indignation against thofe who go about to perfuade the belief of a thing fo prejudicial to our interest, to take away the light of our eyes, and the breath of our noftrils, and to rob us of all the comfort and fupport, which the belief of an infinite power, conducted by infinite wisdom and goodness, is apt to afford to mankind.

II. We should take great care of perverting and abufing this great goodness, by vain confidence and prefumption. This is a provocation of an high nature, which the fcripture calls turning the grace of God into wantonness; making that an encouragement to fin, which is one of the strongest arguments in the world against it. God is infinitely good and merciful: but we must not therefore think that he is fond and indulgent to our faults; but, on the contrary, because he is good, he cannot but hate evil. So the fcripture every where tells us, that he is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity; that the face of the Lord is against them that do evil: He is not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness, neither shall evil dwell with him: The foolish fhall not stand in his fight he hateth all the workers of iniquity. He is ready to fhew mercy to thofe who are qualified for it by repentance, and refolution of a better courfe: but, as long as we continue impenitent, God is implacable, and will deal with us according to the tenor of his laws, and the defert of our doings. Defpair is a great fin, but prefumption is a greater, defpair doubts of the goodnefs of God, but prefumption abufeth it; defpair dif believes, but prefumption perverts the best thing in the world to a quite contrary purpose from what it was intended.

III. The confideration of God's goodnefs is a mighty comfort and relief to our minds, under all our fears and troubles. Great are the fears and jealoufies of many devout minds concerning God's love to them, and their everlasting condition; which are commonly founded in one of these two caufes, a melancholy temper, or mistaken notions and apprehenfions of God; and very often these two meet together, and hinder the cure and removal of one another.

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