Let not men harden themselves in the cafe, because it feems to fare as ill with faints as finners. For,

1. It is God's ordinary way in his proceedings a gainst a land, to begin with his own houfe and fami Iy, Ezek. ix. 6. For though they are not of, yet they are in the world, and contract infection, fo that with them also there are fins against the Lord. And because the Lord has a kindness for them, they get the brim of the cup, Zech. i. 11, 12.

2. But it is a fign for ill to the world lying in wickedness. And of a long time we have had that sign, of particular strokes directed against thofe that are the most serious, 1 Pet. iv. 17, 18. For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God; and if it firft begin at us, what fhall the end be of them that obey not the gofpel of God? And if the righteous scarcely be faved, where shall the ungodly and the finner appear? If God's own people drink of the cup of judgment, the world lying in wickedness fhall pledge them, and drink after, Jer. xxv. 28, 29. And the former getting the brim, the dregs will fall to the latter, Pfal. lxxv. 8. And thus God's own prophets have been figns to a people with whom God had a controverfy, Ezek. xxiv. Thus Ezekiel is unto you a fign; according to all that he hath done, shall ye do; and when this cometh, ye fhall know that I am the Lord God.

3. Lastly, Though in the outward courfe of provi dence all falls alike to all, yet the crofs of the faint is better than the crown of the finner, Ifa. liii. 10, 11. "Say ye to the righteous that it shall be well with them, for they fhall eat the fruit of their doings. Wo unto the wicked, it shall be ill with him; for the reward of his hands shall be given him." Rom. viii. 28. " And we know that all things work together for good, to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." Prov. i. 32. "The prosperity of fools fhall destroy them."

Thirdly, It

Thirdly, It is not strange to find men of the world lying in the habitual practice of fome abomination; for the whole world lieth in wickednefs. Men will carry themselves agreeable to their state of regeneracy or irregeneracy; and to find unregenerate men lying in this and the other wickedness, is no more ftrange than to find fish fvimming in the water, and birds flying in the air; it is their element.

1. Accordingly fome lie in open wickedness, declaring their fin as Sodom, Ifa. liii. 9. For where men cannot reftrain them, they are at liberty, because they have no fear of God before their eyes. Their luft is their law in these things, and they go as far in the road as their feet will carry them, doing evil as they may or can.

2. Some lie in fome fecret wickednefs, which they get kept fecret from the open view of the world, and for the eye of a jealous God that mars them not, Ezek. viii. 12. "Son of man, haft thou seen what the ancients of the house of Ifrael do in the dark, every man in the chambers of his imagery? for they fay,. The Lord feeth us not, the Lord hath forfaken the earth." This evil world has a loathfome afpect as it is, for all the covering of abominations in it; but were the fecret abominations in it brought out to men's knowledge, the fecret frauds and cheats, whoredoms, adulteries, and lascivioufnefs, murders, thefts, 3. fet in the light, how much more loathfome would the world appear? Eph. v. 12. For it is a fhame even to speak of those things which are done of them in fecret. But two things are certain,

(1.) Where the fountain of fin is not stopt by regenerating grace, it must needs have its main ftream running in the practice of fome one wickednefs or other, Rom, vi. 12. An unregenerate man's predominant fin may indeed be changed; but he fhall fooner cease to breathe, than to have fome one runaing flue or other. And that will always be his neckbreak

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neckbreak here, that will part betwixt Christ and him, Mark x. 21, 22.; and that will be the most terrible gnawing worm in the conscience hereafter.

(2.) Whether it be an open or fecret wickedness, it will be called at length before a tribunal, where there will be no shifting of compearance, defeating of probation, nor stopping execution, Acts xvii. 31. “He hath appointed a day in the which he will judge the world in righteousness, by that man whom he hath ordained." Rom. xiv. 10. "We fhall all ftand before the judgment-feat of Chrift." There the most secret pieces of wickednefs fhall be discovered before all the world, Eccl. xii.ult. "For God fhall bring every work into judgment, with every fecret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. Prov. xxvi. 26. "Whose hatred is covered by deceit, his wickednefs fhall be fhewed before the whole congregation." And the moft daring tranfgreffor fhall be made to ftand trembling, Eccl. xi. 9. "Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth, and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thy heart, and in the fight of thine eyes; but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment."

Fourthly, The world must be an infectious fociety; it must be a peftilential air that is breathed in it, and wickednefs in it must be of a growing and fpreading nature. For the whole world lieth in wickedness. Hence,

1. Unregenerate men, if they get not a cast of saving grace to change their nature, will undoubtedly grow worse and worse, 2 Tim. iii. 13. As that which lies in the dunghill, rots the more the longer it lies fo men lying in irregeneracy, in wickedness, the longer they live their cafe is the more hopeless. How evidently is this feen, in there being fome hope of some while they are yet young, yet not being converted then, they grow at length to a pitch that there is no dealing with them?

2. Unregenerate men are fnares and neckbreaks

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●ne to another, ferving to advance the growth of wickednefs in one another, Matth. xviii. 7. As in a dunghill one part ferves to rot another, fo is it in the world lying in wickednefs. The ill example of fome encourages others, and fo the elder corrupt the younger, especially when they go about to train them up in the ways of wickedness.

3. They are fnares even to the godly. It is hard to come near a mire or dunghill, and not be defiled. There was a fuffocating vapour arofe from the high priest's hall, that made Peter to fall a denying his Mafter. This made the Pfalmift fay, "Wo is me, that I fojourn in Mefech, that I dwell in the tents of Kedar," Pfal. cxx. 5.

Hence we may learn,.

(1.) They have a hard task in hand, whose business it is to deal with the world lying in wickednefs, in order to their reformation; for the longer they lie in their wickedness, they are the more strengthened in it, their hearts are the more hardened, their confciences more feared, and the bands of wickedness grow ftronger. And then one helps another in an ill course, they unite and combine to ftrengthen one another in wickedness. So that it is a heavy task.

(2.) The danger of ill company, 1 Cor. xv. 32. "Evil communications corrupt good manners." The wicked world is a dangerous fociety, and has been. ruining to many. How many have been ruined, by their being educated and living amongst those of the world lying in wickedness, never having an opportunity of good company, where they might fee or get good? How many have been ruined by their falling into ill company, after hopeful beginnings? The ftream of our nature runs the wrong way, fo the world dying in wickedness rows with the ftream, and fo is fuccefsful in working finners ruin, Prov. xiii. 20. "He that walketh with wife men, fhall be wife; but a companion of fools fhall be destroyed." F 3 Fifthly, This

Fifthly, This accounts for the uneafy life that the ferious godly have in the world. The whole world lieth in wickednefs. Our Lord Jefus had an uneafy life in it, and fo will all his followers have to the end. The church in the world is like a lily among thorns; however the world may carefs its own, the feriousgodly will not get leave to forget that they are from home while in it, ftrangers and pilgrims; that they are in a wilderness. How can their life in it miss to be uneafy? For unto them,

1. It is a loathfome world, where their eyes muft behold abominations that they cannot help, Hab. i. 3. “Why doft thou fhew me iniquity, and caufe me to behold grievance? for fpoiling and violence are before me; and there are that raise up ftrife and contention.” However the fwine of this world may delight to wallow in their own mire, and to lie in their own dunghill; yet to heaven-born fouls, the stench arifing from that dunghill must needs be noifome. Hence fays the prophet, Jer. ix. 2. "Oh, that I had in the wilderhefs a lodging-place of way-faring men, that I might leave my people, and go from them; for they be all adulterers, an affembly of treacherous men."

2. It is a vexatious world; the temper of the parties is fo different, so opposite, that they can never hit it, but must needs be heavy one to another. As the way of the godly is uneafy to the world, fo the way of the world is uneafy to them, makes them many a forrowful day and heavy heart, and draws many figh and groan from them, as in Lot's cafe, 2 Pet. ii. 7, 8. And the uneafinefs arifing from that quarter makes heaven more defirable, as to burdened men groaning.

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3. It is an enfnaring world, wherein fnares of all forts are going, and they are many times catched in the trap ere they are aware, 2 Tim. iii. 1, 2. This know alfo, that in the last days perilous times fhall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blafphemers, difobedient to

parents,