AND upon THIS DAY, What Remarkable, What Admirable Occaſions, has our Glorious GOD given us to Repeat this Proverb of Iſrael!

AS there never was any Man on the Face of the Earth, whoſe Name has been ſo univerſally known among the Children of Men, as the Patriarch Abrabam, to whom a Great Name had been Promiſed by our GOD, ſo there is nothing more known about this Renowned Patriarch, than this, By Faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Iſaac; and be that had received the Promiſes, offered up his only begotten Son; Accounting that GOD was able to Raiſe him up even from the Dead. This Memorable Friend of GOD, after many previous Trials, at laſt had his Faith tried unto the uttermoſt, with an Order from the Sovereign Lord of Life, making His uſual Deſcent in the Shechinah unto him; an order whereof every Word was a Thunderbolt; It was, Take now thy Son, thine only Son, Iſaac, whom thou loveſt, and get thee into a Land, forty miles off, and offer him for a Burnt offering upon a Mountain there. The Obedience which our Father paid unto this aſtoniſhing Order, has been celebrated in all Succeeding Ages, and with very many Nations. The Ancients, who have employ'd their Pens in the celebration, have alſo told us, that the Story was rarely beheld in a Picture, without Weeping Eyes among them. The Pagans had their famous Traditions of the Matter; Eſpecially That of Saturn Sacrificing of his Jeoud. The Jews tell us, That the Two Sons of Sennacherth had like to have been a Sacrifue to the Tradition of Abraham's. I am not ſure, That Satan took Advantage from hence, to draw the poor Pagans into Humane Sacrifices, particularly of their Children unto Moloch. But I find philo, notably cenſuring and confuting the Envious Detractions of thoſe who would go to compare them with the Piety of our Incomparable Abraham.

The Action you know. The Action of Binding Iſaac on the Altar, on the Account whereof the whole Buſineſs is by the Jews called, Gnakidah Jitzchah, Or, The Binding of Iſaac. The brave Young Man, tho' above Twenty Years of Age, readily Submitted unto this Action of his Father. Doubtleſs the ſame Eaith which was in his Excellent Father, filled and acted the Soul of this wonderful Youth! But what was the Iſſue of the Action?

Our Glorious GOD would ſee the Triumph of the Faith, with which He had Enriched the Soul of the Patriarch; and at the ſame time give in his Iſaac a Lively, and Lovely Type of what was afterwards to be done unto our SAVIOUR. Abraham does as firmly Believe, that GOD would Raiſe his Iſaac from the Dead, yea, out of his Aſhes, as if he had ſeen it with his Eyes. Iſaac is laid on the Altar. Every thing is ready for the Mortal Stroke. The Father gives his Laſt Kiſs to the Reſigning Victim. The Knife is in his hand. His hand is lifted up. One Second of a Minute more, and the deadly Stab reaches the Heart that lay expos'd unto to it; Iſaac is a Dead Man without any more ado. But behold, GOD by an Angel from Heaven, Steps in at the very Moment: The Voice of GOD by an Angel, calls to him, Stop, Stay, Lay not thy hand upon the Sacrifice!— O moſt Seaſonable Interpoſition! What a Deliverance, in what an Extremity! Abraham could not but ſettle a Memorial of this Miraculous Deliverance, in the Name of, JEHOVAH-JIREH, on the Place where he received it. GOD will provide; This was the Engliſh of it. You know, That the Mountain was alſo called, Moriah, which is of the like Importance. And you know, what was afterwards done upon that Exalted Mountain of the Houſe of the Lord. And now, Don't wonder, that we now hear of a Proverb, which from this amazing Occurrence obtained among the People of GOD, in the Succeeding Ages. A Proverb, which has been called, Proverbium Tribulatorum: A Sentence fitted for the People of GOD, in every Extremity of Adverſity: A ſaying with which the People of GOD ſhould animate their Expectation of Help to come from Heaven, when any Adverſity comes to an Extremity upon them. The Proverb is, In the Mount of the Lord it ſhall be ſeen. O People of GOD, When a Perplexity comes upon you to an Extremity like what Abraham and Iſaac ſaw in the Mount Which the Lord led them to, then it ſhall be ſeen, what GOD will do for you; it ſhall be ſeen, how GOD will appear for your Deliverance. Sooner ſhall the Mountain of Moriah depart, and the Hill of GOD be removed, than this Proverb grow into a Deſuetude.

Behold, The Entertainment that is now provided for you. A Relation of Seaſonable Interpoſitions from Heave, for the Relieſ of the Diſtreſſed, is what is now to Entertain you.

A Seaſonable Interpoſition of the Divine Providence to prevent the Deſtruction of ſuch as are upon the very Point of being Deſtroyed; This is a Diſpenſation, much to be wondred at, and ſtill to be looked for.

'Tis no Rare Thing for the Glorious GOD, Seaſonably to Step in, and prevent the Sacrifice, which we are upon the Point of being brought unto. 'Tis no Rare Thing, for the Glorious GOD Seaſonably to Step in, and put by a Deadly Blow, which is upon the very Point of being Struck at our deareſt Intereſts.

The Succour which our GOD has for us in our Diſtreſſes, is often deferr'd until we even Deſpair of a Deliverance. But when Things are come to an Extremity, Then 'tis then He Steps in to Succour us.

We read of our GOD and SAVIOUR, Heb. IV. 16. That from Him, we obtain Mercy and find Fevour, to Help in a Time of Need. But the Time of Need, wherein the Only Wiſe GOD chuſes to help us, is, when our Neceſſity comes to an Extremity. And then He takes as we ſay, the very Nick of Time, to ſend in His Help unto us.

We may give this LOCTRINE of Seaſonable Interpoſitions, in the Terms of an Old ſaying very common among the People of GOD, Mans Extremity is GODs Opportunity. Is there not ſuch a Promiſe as That, Zech. XIV. 7. At Evening it ſhall be light. At Evening! Who would have Expected a breaking forth of Light in the Evening? A Morning of Salvations in an Evening of Diſtreſſes! But GOD will Perform what He does Promiſe. And the Upright ſhall in their Darkneſs have Light ariſing to them.

We will Declare, firſt, THAT it has been ſo.

Let us for a few Minutes walk about the Field of Hiſtory, and gather here and there a Roſe of Sharon; Make a brief Collection of Inſtances, wherein GOD has with Seaſonable Interpoſitions, come in for the Relief of the Faithful, when Extreme Dangers of Ruine have ſorely terrified them.

And here, Oh! Let it not be forgotten,— indeed, I cannot go on with my Collection, till I firſt make this Introduction to it!— It muſt be Remembred, That Mankind upon our Firſt Fall, was juſt upon the very Point, of being made a Sacrifice, unto the Infinite Juſtice of GOD: The out-ſtretched Arm of Infinite Juſtice was ready to give the Stroke. The Powers of Heaven ſhook; None of them could ſee how it could be diverted. But GOD then did Provide a Sacrifice. The Son of GOD with a moſt Seaſonable Interpoſition did then Step in; and ſay, I will be the Sacrifice. Chriſtians, Behold your SAVIOUR Sacrificed on Mount Calvary; [Yea, ſome look on Mount Calvary as an Appendage to Mount Moriah!] and then cry out, The Lord ſeen in the Mount! The Lord ſeen in the Mount! The World has never ſeen any thing equal to this Diſpenſation. The Son of GOD, Saw, and there was no Man, and wondred that there was no Interceſſor. Therefore His Arm did bring Salvation; HE Step'd in, and Saved at this Exremity! It has been indeed for the ſake of this Appearance of the Great GOD our SAVIOUR, that we have been made able to go on unto the Inſtances which we now proceed unto.

Firſt. The People of GOD in Aſſociated Bodies; Theſe have all along ſeen the Seaſonable Interpoſitions of His Providence, when Diſtreſſes have grown Extream upon them. Let us Conſider the Days of old, and the Years of Ancient Generations: The condition of, The Buſh all on a Light Fire, but yet net conſumed. When was it, that our Compaſſionnate GOD Look'd on the Affliction of His People in Egypt? Things were come to an Extremity; and it is ſaid unto this day, Cum duplic • ntur Lateres, venit Moſes. The Tasks are Doubled, the Pains are Doubled: Then comes the Deliverer! Anon, the People are brought unto a Pi-habireth; A Mouth of Perils; Where they cannot eſcape, Except they Eat up a vaſt Army behind them, or Drink up the Reedy Sea before them: Well, Fear not; Stand ſtill; See the Saivation of the Lord! How Seaſonably and Remarkably the Bleſſed GOD appeared on that Memorable Day! and Opened a Way in the Sea, and Made a Peth in the Mighty Waters!— In the Difficulties of the Wilderneſs, When the People were come to the Laſt Pinch; were on the very Point of Starving: how ſtrangely does the Mighty GOD of Jacob, cauſe the Angels to drop down Bread from Heaven upon them, and the very Rock to yield Rivers of Waters unto them? And be of a Good Heart, O NEW-ENGLISH Iſrael; Neither will thy GOD ſuffer thee to be Starved in thy Wilderneſs! In the Book of Judges, how often does our GOD Raiſe up a Deliverer for His People, when Iſrael is ſorely Diſtreſſed, and has no Proſpect of any Deliverance? What was the Diſtreſs of Aſia, and his People, when a Million of Rapacious Arabians Invade him? What was the Diſtreſs of Jehoſhaphat, and his People, when united Moabites and Ammonites, and Edomites, Invade him? There was another time, When the Lord ſaw the Affliction of Iſrael, that it was very bitter; for there was not any ſhut up, nor any Left, nor any Help for Iſrael; But, Then! GOD found, I will rather ſay, GOD made an Hand, by which He ſaved them. Oh! the Diſtreſs of the People, in the Days of Hezekiah, when the Aſſyrian Invaſion was carrying all before it! The Capital City inveſted, and all on the very Point of Periſhing by a Blaſt of the Terrible Ones! But Now, GOD ſends down His Angel from Heaven; Judgment was heard from Heaven; GOD ſhewed Himſelf Glorious and Excellent on the Mountains of Prey: A Thunder-ſtorm is raiſed, in which the Stout-hearted are ſpoiled. Oh! The Joy of the Deliverance! When was a Deliverance wrought for the Church under the Babylonian Captivity? It was, when the People found themſelves in the very Grave. Their Har • s were hung on the Willows; They were in as diſperate Circumſtances as the Dry Bones of the Dead; their Cry was, Ezek. XXXVII. 11. Our Hope is gone. After This, what a Deſign was there formed, for the Utter Extinction of all the People which our GOD then had in the World; When Haman had obtained a Bloody Decree to cut oft every Mothers Child of 'em; all in one day; and the Lucky Day fixed for the Execution! Was Iſanc ever in ſuch a Mount before? But,—Between the Cup and the Lap! O the Wonder-working Providence of our Glotious GOD! And what became of Haman, and his Ten Sons? Antichrist and his Ten Sons, have cauſe to think of That! Unto what a Low Ebb was Chriſtianity reduced, when ſuch incredible Numbers of Chriſtians had been Martyred by Diocleſian and imagining that he had burnt all the bibles as well as kill d all the Chriſtians in the World, he ſet up his Triumphal Pillars, with that Inſcription upon them, Chriſtiana Superſtitione deleta,—There's an End of Chriſtianity, thought he. No, Sir, You're miſtaken! The Next News is, A Chriſtian Emperour on the Throne; and a greater Number of Chriſtians appearing, than had ever been in the World before! In what a forlorn Condition was the Church, on the very Point of giving up the Ghoſt, when the hidden Remains of the Taborites, diſpatched Four Men to travel into all Parts, upon Diſcovery, and they returned with ſorrowful Tidings, that the Church was Loſt in hideous Idolatries; only they were told, that there was a few Remains of the Piemonteſe, which were Scattered & Conceled; no body knew where they were. But this Darkeſt Time of the Night, was juſt before Break of Day! Preſently, a certain Monk, who had until then made none of the greateſt Figure, fell out with a Knave about the price of his Indul gences; and this brought on the Reformation, wherein Half Europe embraced the Religion, which had been juſt on the very Point of being baniſhed out of the World.

Secondly; The People of GOD in Particular Perſons; Theſe alſo have all along ſeen the Seaſonable Interpoſitions of His Providence, when Diſtreſſes have grown Extreme upon them. Call now, if there be any that will not anſwer thee, and will not ſay, I was brought Low, and then my GOD helped me! Unto which of the Saints wilt thou turn, and not find them ſtill ſaying, When I was brought very Low, then the Tender Mercies of my GOD ſpeedily prevented me! All the Caſes of the Hundred and Seventh PSALM, are ſtill renewed with Believers; in every Generation. Who is there to be found among the People of GOD, but what may have the Report of the Hundred and Seventh PSALM given of them; Their Soul ſainted in them; They fell down and there was none to help; They drew near to the Gates of Death; Their Soul was melted be auſe of Trouble, and they were at their Wits End. But THEN! They Cry unto the Lord in their Trouble; and He brings them out of their Diſtreſſes. How frequent a Spectacle This! A Tragedy carried on to an Extremity; And then, GOD on a ſudden, makes a Deſcent from the Machin of Heaven, and all goes off more comfortably than any one could have dreamed of! Our Father Noah, in the Darkneſs, & the vaſt Labour and Fatigue of the Ark; Doubtleſs he was even ſpent, with waiting for on Outgate. Anon, GOD Remembers him, and fetches him out of his Melancholy Coffin. Was not Sarah, thrown into the Jaws of a Wild-beaſt, who was juſt ready to bring an Endleſs confuſion upon her? GOD then ſteps in and ſays to the Raptor, Thou art a Dead Man, if thy prey be not preſently delivered up! Jacob, can ſee nothing elſe, but his Brother Eſau juſt upon the very Point of doing upon him, all that the Hound can do; to the Deer that he comes up withal. But THEN,—Lo, GOD ſteps in, to change the Heart of the Beaſt, and bring him to Fawning on him, inſtead of Biting of him. No doubt Joſeph reckoned himſelf ſhut up in a Perpetual Priſon, when an Ungrateful and Forgetful Butler, left him there, and his Feet were hurt with Feſters. But NOW is the Time, that the Word of the Lord Purges him; The Revelation which GOD made unto him, Vindicates him, Advances him, and he becomes the Ruler of a Mighty Nation. The Reſcues of David, how often were theſe, When the poor Partridge on the Mountains, was juſt upon the very Point of being Siezed by the Talons of the Vulture! But GOD was ever ſeen in thoſe Mountains! At laſt, he crys out, I ſhall one day periſh. Ziklag is burn't, and all he had is carried away, and his very Friends talk of Stoning him. Here is what we may with Good Senſe call, The Laſt Extremity! Well, O David, Now Encourage thy ſelf in the Lord thy GOD: Thou ſhalt be upon the Throne immediately! When has the Poor Widow, her Supplies brought in unto her? Truly, When She is come to the Laſt Handful of Meal in the Barrel, the Laſt Spoonful of Oyl in the Cruſe. The Three Worthies are thrown into the tremendous Furnace. How Seaſonably does the SON of GOD ſtep down to cover them? Daniel is thrown down to the hungry Lions. How Seaſonably does the Meſſenger of GOD ſtep down to Muzzle them? Is it poſſible for peter to be delivered! Why He is to Dy the Next Day; Heavy Fetters are upon him; cruel Keepers are about him; A ſtrong Priſon holds him in the ſtraiteſt Cuſtody. But GOD ſends down from Heaven; and Peter is on the Next Day Preaching to the People of GOD. Who would have imagined it? How often is Paul juſt upon the very Point of being offered up? Once he ſays, Act. XXVII. 20. All hope that we ſhould be ſaved, was then taken away. But ſtill, Paul when thus Dying Daily, yet, Behold, He Lives! Doubtleſs, Many of thoſe who felt the Healing Miracles of our SAVIOUR, were Healed, with very Unexpected Cures. A Learned Phyſician, has written an Eſſay of much Erudition, to prove, That they were all Incurable by any other Hand, but our SAVIOURS, Ask among the People of GOD: How many will you find, who have had the Mercy of GOD coming unto them, when like Epaphroditus, they have been juſt Nigh unto Death? How many have been brought into the comfort of a Calm, when the Tempeſt cauſed 'em to cry, with the Diſciples in theirs, Lord, Save us; or we periſh in a Moment! How many brought out of Perplexity, when the Extremity has been ſuch as to throw them into an uncommon Agony? Of our GOD and SAVIOUR we may ſay, Theſe are part of His ways; But how little a portion is heard of them!

We will Enquire, Secondly; WHY it muſt be ſo?

'Tis with Scoſonable Interpoſitions, that out GOD will Step in to Relieve the Faithful, when things are gone ſo far that they can ſee none but Extreme Dangers of Ruine before them.

It muſt be ſo; Becauſe a Glorious GOD will give a Manifeſtation of His Perfections, and will be greatly Glorified in ſuch Diſpenſations. An Extremity of Diſtreſs, brings Men to that ſtrain; 2 Chron. XX. 12. O our GOD, we know not what to, but our Eyes are upon Thee. Our GOD will have All other Help to fail us; Then will He ſtep in for our Help: 'Tis to manifeſt the Greatneſs of His Excellencies. NOW, Help me, O Lord my GOD, That it may be known that this is thy Hand, and that thou, Lord, art the Doer of it! It compels us to ſay, The Finger of GOD is here. We are compell'd now to ſay, If it had not been the Lord that was on our ſide, our Souls muſt have gone to dwell in the Place of Silence! Why will GOD our SAVIOUR do ſuch Things? 'Tis, That Men may ſee, and know, and conſider, and underſtand, that the Hand of the Lord has done theſe things. We are told, In the Mount it ſhall be ſeen. What ſhall be ſeen? It ſhall be ſeen, that our GOD is a Powerful, Merciful, Faithful GOD. Yea, It ſhall be ſeen, That our GOD has Angels at His Command. For 'tis uſually in their Inſtrumentality that He Commands theſe Deliverances. NOW the Saved of the Lord, will cry out, O Lord, I know, that thou canſt do every thing! Now they cannot but cry out, O give Thanks unto the Lord, who Remembers us in our Low Eſtate, becauſe His Mercy endureth for ever! They will go to Mahanaim, and add, There is no Number of His Armies.

But then, It muſt be ſo, Becauſe the Prayers, and the Frames, and the Steps, of the Diſtreſſed Ones in their Extremities, are often ſuch as prepare them to See the Salvation of GOD. Our GOD brings us into Extreme Dangers; 'Tis to bring us down upon our Knees. In ſuch Exegencies our Prayers will be Cries: The Voice of the Prayers will pierce the Clouds, will reach the Heavens. It may be ſaid, as in Pſal. XXXIV. 6. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard! GOD will be ſo Acknowledged, and all Dependencies on Creatures will be ſo renounced in theſe Cries, that now our SAVIOUR ſays, 'Tis now Seaſonable for me to ſtep in, & ſave them! Oh! Nothing like the Prayer of the Afflicted, when he is overwhelmed!—The Importunity of it, gives thoſe Knocks at the Gates of Mercy, which they cannot continue any longer ſhut upon.

And why may it not be ſaid, It muſt be ſo, Becauſe our SAVIOUR will in this way keep Alive, our Faith for the Reſurrection of the Dead. Seldom is a Good Thing beſtowed upon us, till we firſt have had a Sentence of Death written upon it. Extreme Dangers muſt bring us to That, 2 Cor. XII. 9. We have the Sentence of Death in our ſelves, that we may Truſt in GOD who Raiſes the Dead. The Faith of a Reſurrection for the Dead, is the Life of our Souls. Our GOD keeps Killing of us, and cauſing us to have nothing but a black Death in our view; but then He gives us to ſee, all Alive again. We Live, and ſay, The Lord has done things for us, which we looked not for! 'Tis to Illuſtrate, yea, to Demonſtrate this thing unto us. The SAVIOUR who does theſe things, will one day Shew Wonders to the Dead.

In the mean time, Oh! How Happy, How Happy, they that are in Good Terms with the Glorious GOD! What an Happineſs to have ſuch a Friend always ready to ſtep in, with Seaſonable Interpoſitions, when we have any Extreme Diſtreſs upon us! My Friend, Embrace and Obey thy SAVIOUR, and make ſure of ſuch an Happineſs.

And now, What ſhall we ſay to theſe things?

There will e're long arrive a Day, wherein that word will be fulfilled; Rev. XX. 12. The Books were opened. No doubt, ſome of the Things to be found in thoſe Glorious Books, will be the Scaſonable Appearances of our Good GOD, for the Help of His People, when Diſtreſſes have been growing into an Extemity upon them. And among the reſt, no doubt, the Divine Appearances, which have now been given you, will be found in thoſe Books of Remembrance, with a much more ample Record of them, in all their Beautiful and Engaging Circumſtances.

But I am oblig'd at this time to proceed no further in the Mention of thoſe Things, whereof I muſt uſe the Expreſſion of the Apoſtle, upon the Things that occur'd in the Lives of the Ancient Hero's, The Time would fail me to mention them.

Hitherto the Things wherewith I have Entertained you, muſt have this Title upon them, Theſe are Ancient Things. But what remains for me, is, to make ſome Remarks, upon more Modern Occurrenoes, wherein the Divine Appearances, for our Nation in general, and for this Province in Particular, have been ſuch Seaſonable Interpoſition. to Relieve in an Extremity, as we have hither to obſerved in the more 〈◊〉 Operations of GOD.

I am to put you in Mind, of ſome Things done in Later Times, wherein, Thou haſt Awoke, O Arm of the Lord, Awoke as in the 'Ancient Days, as in the Generations of Old! Strange Things done for our Nation, in the Critical Moments wherein we had been all Undone, if They had not been Done juſt when they were, and if the Mercies of our GOD had not Speedily flown down unto us. Chriſtians, Whoſo is wiſe and will obſerve theſe things, even they ſhall underſtand the Loving-kindneſs of the Lord.

You are all ſenſible, That our Nation does on THIS DAY, make an Anniverſary Commemoration of a National Deliverance from a PLOT, jast Ripe for Execution, which cannot be Realized, and Conſidered, without a Shuddering Horror at the Thought,—That ever any Thing in Humane Shape could become guilty of ſo Matchleſs a Villany! The wiſh of the Infamous Emperour, to ſee the Romans United all ſo together, that One Blow at the Neck, might behead them all at Once, was now very mear obtained by a crue of horrid Romans. Incredible! Impoſſible! One of the moſt famous among our New-Engliſh Divines, who was born on that very Signalized Fifth of November, his Father call'd him Thomas; For, ſaid he, It will hardly be believed, and this Child will have much ado to Believe it, that ever ſuch a Thing ſhould be found among the Children of Men. But what is it, that Popery cannot be guilty of? How Abominable, How Execrable, muſt Popery become unto all that will not utterly diveſt themſelves of all Humanity? Certainly, When the Days of Intoxication, continuing to this Day upon, as it is judged, about Fourſcore Millions of People, abandoned by the Unſearcheable Judgments of GOD unto it, are over, it will be ſo!

There having been, by a Probable & Moderate Computation, at leaſt a Million of Sermons Preached on this Day, ſince the Firſt Act of Parliament for the Anniverſary Commemoration, I may be Excuſed, from any Amplifications upon it. But, tho' we come not into a Religious Obſervation of Stated Days, not appointed of GOD, yet I am not willing to let THIS DAY paſs, without making at leaſt this One Remark upon it; That the Bloody Deſtruction intended by the more Immediate Plotters to be brought at once upon the King, Lords and Commons of our Nation, was all to bring in a Popiſh Pretender. And how any can think to Set a Popiſh Pretender on the Britiſh Throne, without Shedding of more Blood, yea, and this with the more open Exploſions of Gunpowder too, than the Fifth of November would have ſhed, if it had gone on, an hundred and fourteen Years ago,—it appears an Unintelligible Myſtery!

How the Old Plotters came to think of Gunpowder, as the moſt agreeable Tool for them to work withal, Some have wondred, who forgot the Fate of him who had been a Father to the King then deſigned for a Sacrifice. This however may be ſaid upon it: It is very Surpriſing, that a Spaniſh Writer, whoſe Name was Del Rio, Publiſhing a Book of Magical Diſquiſitions, and the Powers of Evil Spirits, Two or Three Years before our Celebrated Fifth of November, puts there the very Caſe of the Gun-Powder-Plot, and his Deciſion of the Caſe, is That a Father-Confeſſor made Privy to ſuch a Plot in a Confeſſion, ought by no means to diſcover it. And now, whatever Hidden works of Darkneſs relating to that Helliſh Plot may remain Undiſcovered, until the Day of our SAVIOURS Revelation, we may without any Scruple ſay, The Evil Spirits which Del Rio treated of, uſed their Inſtigation to puſh on the Conſpirators to their infandous Enterprize. Could my Sermon reach to any of thoſe, who are at this Day hoping to Blow up, whole Kingdoms, and more than Three Nations, that ſo they may ſee what their Fathers, Garnet and Company, miſs'd of, I would Entreat theſe New Plotters, to Examine ſeriouſly, Whoſe Inſtigation it is, that they are Moved withal, when they have ſo little Fear of GOD before their Eyes; And they ſhould hear me ſaying, Surely, Thou wilt ſlay the wicked, O GOD; and therefore, ye Bloody men, Depart from me! I would Expoſtulate with ſuch Unhappy People. When the Juſt and Neceſſary Oathes, are by the Beſt of Governours, from a Tender Concern for the Publick Safety propoſed unto you, with what loud Vociferations do you Complain & Exclaim, That your Conſcience is impoſed upon? May Conſcience then be hearken'd to. To Swallow Oathes, againſt a Diſſatisfyed Conſcience is what no Good Man would adviſe you to. But, That you impartially Labour for a Better Conſcience, a Wiſer Conſcience, One more Ealightened; This is the Beſt Advice that we can give you. 'Tis nothing but a due Regard unto the Publick Safety, that makes theſe Oathes to be required of you: the Publick Safety, for the Diſturbance whereof, no Plea of a pretended Conſcience is to be admitted of. And, Sirs, Can your Conſcience tell you, That Three Nations lying in Blood, and the Britiſh Iſlands in Deſolations which would require the Pen of another Gildas to deſcribe them, would be a Deſireable Spectacle? Can your Conſcience tell you, That every Proteſtant in the World, ought to have his Throat Cut, or be Condemned unto Louiſian Dungeons and Galleys? Can your Conſcience tell you, That the Religion which your Bible has taught you, ſhould be Extirpated by Fire and Sword, and the Romiſh Idolatries eſtabliſhed with the moſt Barbarous and Inhumane Cruelties? Are you Aware, that you Really are in a Plot, for the Accompliſhment of ſuch Horrible Things, while you abet the cauſe of a Popiſh Pretender, who muſt needs go to do them all: Certainly, 'Tis a fearful Judgment of GOD, for any Man to be abandoned unto ſuch a Conſcience. Or, Can your Conſcience tell you, That if a Man be an Idoot or Lunatick, the People are not worſe than ſo, who do not provide (as not long ago, they did in Fortugal,) that ſuch an one ſhall not Sit & Act on the Throne of the Kingdom? Whereas, a Roman Catholick, bound by Principle to Betray and Ruine his Kingdom, is a thouſand times more Diſqualified, (as being more Unreſtrainable) than ſuch an One! Does your Conſcience tell you a Story of Hereditary Right? But, you cannot but know, That Hereditary Right, has been many times diſclamed, many times diverted, often Superſeded in the Succeſſion of the Britiſh Monarchy. If an Act of Parliament may not Limit and Alter, the Succeſſion of the Crown, Thoſe from and thro' whom you derive the Right of your Pretender, had no Right at all; and ſo by conſequence He has no Right at all. The Hereditary Right which you inſiſt upon, (the Line whereof has been ſo often Interrupted!) vaniſhes into Nothing. You cannot in any Conſcience inſiſt upon it. Thus may they be argued with! But theſe are a ſort of People, that NEW-ENGLAND is very much a Stranger to! Our Soyl don't agree with People that have that Venome in them.

And now, was what our Nation ſaw in the Seaſonable Deliverance, which cauſes our Anceſtors to make this Day like the Days of Purim, the only Inſtance wherein GOD our SAVIOUR, has after an aſtoniſhing manner Step'd in, to reſcue us, when we were on the very Precipice of a Perdition to be trembled at? No; There was a Marvellous Deliverance wrought for the Nation, Forty Seven Years before, by a ſwift change upon the Publick Affairs; A CHANGE which if it had been delay'd a few Months longer, England might have been a Province to Spain; And ſomething like the Spaniſh Inquiſition had been Eſtabliſhed in it; But the PROTESTANT RELIGION,—Whither muſt thou have made thy Flight, O thou Daughter of GOD!

But I will not inſiſt on a Fifth of November, that ſhone Fifteen Years before this Country was born. I will rather Stir up your Minds to the Remembrance, of what has been done in Our Days, yea, in the very Year that is now paſſing over us.

And I pray, How much does the Fifth of November, in the Days of King James the firſt, outſhine the Fifth of November, in the Days of King James the ſecond; on which Twice-memorable Day, there Landed on the Engliſh Shore, that Illuſtrious PRINCE, whom GOD rais'd and ſent for the Deliverance of our Nation, from a Return of Popery and Slavery, the Two Grand Plagues of a woful World, and of Europe from the Chains that France was laying upon it. How Near, how very Near!—was the whole PROTESTANT Intereſt in the World, unto an Apparent Ruine?—Verily, It lay bound on the Altar, and the Knife was juſt Ready to Strike, when a Great King was for that purpoſe United with France, and had a Standing Army at his command, and there only remained the Experiment of ſome New Creations in the Houſe of Lords, and bold Returns for an Houſe of Commons; to introduce at Once the Horrible Stroke!

But the Rebuilder of the Romiſh Jericho, found the Curſe of our Glorious JESUS, to Blaſt the Enterprize. That unhappy King, had no ſooner boaſted in a Proclamation, That there was nothing left now to diſturb the future Tranquillity of his Reign, but a ſudden REVOLUTION chaſed him from his Throne; An Eighty Eight brought unto the Nation a Deliverance not inferiour to that of the Eighty Eight in the Century that went before it; and a Change came on, whereof he muſt be very Inſenſible, who does not make that Acclamation, The Lords doing, and Marvellous in our Eyes!

That Fifth of November, is the more to be kept in thy Remembrance, O NEW-ENGLAND, Becauſe among the Things afterwards brought into the Light, it was found, That the Eſtabliſhment of Popery in theſe Colonies, was an Article that had been very particularly provided for.

Thus was our GOD ſeen in the Mount! And it ſhall no more be ſaid, The Lord Liveth, who Saved the Parliament-Houſe, and all that was in it, from a Deſolation in a Moment, and an Utter Conſumption with Terrible Things: But it ſhall be ſaid, The Lord Liveth, who Step'd in, at the Moment, when all that is dear to us, was on the very Point of going from us, and by an Happy REVOLUTION Enabled us to ſing, Our Soul is Eſcaped as a Bird out of the Snare of the Fowlers; The Snare is broken, and we are Eſcaped.

The Memory of the Never-to-be-forgotten King WILLIAM, will be for ever precious to all True Protestants, but none more than the New Engliſh ones, on a Thouſand Accounts; But very particularly for the Influence which he had on that Act of Parliament, by which the Succeſſion of the Britiſh Crown has been Settled on the Illuſtrious Houſe of Hanover, and we ſee therein, what is moſt Valuable to a Chriſtian and an Engliſh-man ſecur'd unto us.

Behold, What a New Field of Wonders we are brought unto! And what wonderful Interpoſitions of GOD our SAVIOUR, to make Things Turn well for us, when we have been upon the very Point of being made a Sacrifice, we are invited now to take into our contemplation!

Every body now knows, That there was a Deſign with a Strong Hand carried on, to put by that Succeſſion to the Crown, which all the Good Men in the Nations wiſh'd well unto. One cannot look back on the Story, without being ever now and then in pain for the Next Event! Without being Surprized & Amazed at the Strange Things which fell out One after another, to diſappoint the Deſign which the Men that betray'd the Nations to France, had brought ſo near, ſo very near!—to an Execution!

Our Lawful & Rightful King GEORGF, being Peaceably and Wondrouſly Settled on the Throne of Great BRITAIN, to the Joy of all the Good Men in the World, it was not long before the Popiſh Pretender made an Invaſion upon the Britiſh Nations, and an Infaruated Party of Self-deſtroyers made Violent Efforts to bring him in. A Seaſonable Death gave a Mortal Wound unto the Undertaking; very much Diſpirited the Undertakers, Diſconcerted all their Meaſures! The Leviathen at Verſailles, being Smitten of GOD, Putrified into a moſt loth ſome Carcaſe, and left off to Make the World a Wilderneſs, and to deſtroy the Cities thereof. The Tree that ſheltered and cheriſhed the Birds of Prey was moſt Scaſonably hewn down by the Order of GOD. And the GOD of Beltel, in One day, gave a Double Defeat unto the Inſurrections of the workers of Iniquity. In One Day did the Lord of Hoſts powerfully defeat them, and both Dunblain and Preſton ſaw the Treading down of all their Strength. But He Step'd in, how Opportunely, how much at the very Nick of Time, which Diſpenſations to be for ever wondred at!

The Laſt Winter the Men who are Like the troubled Sea, prepared for another Invaſion. A Seaſonable Death again gave a Mortal Wound unto the Undertaking; and withdrew the Aſſiſtences which the Undertakers mightily relied upon. A Monatch who had cauſed Terror in the Land of the Living, was moſt Seaſonably taken off; And thereby, as the Oppreſſed Swedes have had their Gothick Liberties Miraculouſly Reſtor'd unto them, ſo there was a Thing of Great Conſequence done towards the Priſerving of ours. The Embarcation from Spain indeed went on. But, when there was above an hundred and thirty Years ago, a Deſcent from Spain upon our Fore-fathers, within Navy that called it ſelf, Invincible, GOD fought againſt it, and by the Stormy Wind fulfilling His Word, confounded that Expedition. And now another Deſcent from Spain was making upon us, GOD who holds the Wind in His Hand, by His own Irreſiſtible Hand, brought all the coſtly Expedition to Nothing. But He Step'd in, how Opportunely, how much at the very Nick of Time, with Diſpenſations to be for ever wondred at!

O the Triumphs of Soveraign Grace, in theſe Divine Appearances, for our moſt Unworthy Nations! I will ſing unto our moſt Gracious GOD. for He has triumphed gloriouſly!

NEW-ENGLAND is Thankfully ſenſible of the ſhare which it has in the Seaſonable Salvations wherewith our Nation had been thus highly favoured of the Lord.

But then, How many Peculiar Salvations hath NEW-ENGLAND ſeen, wherein our Glorious LORD has muſt Seaſonably Interpoſed for us, in our Extremities. Thoſe Magnalia CHRISTI. ever the Seaſonable interpoſitions of GOD out SAVIOUR, to deliver us, when Extreme Hazards of Ruine look'd very dark upon, us; Theſe are Things which the Hiſtory of NEW-ENGLAND is filled withal. Many a Time, let NEW-ENGLAND now ſay, Many a Time, in Affliction, from my Youth, had the Deſtroyers prevailed againſt me, if my Glorious Lord had not Seaſonably Step'd in to reſcue me. Verily, NEW-ENGLAND continues to this Day, having obtained Help from GOD, in ſuch Seaſonable Diſpenſations!

One Time above the reſt, cannot but be Remembred by many that remain to this Day. Some who did then Jeopard their Lives in the High Places of the Field, are now in this very Auditory. There was a Time Three and Forty Years ago, when the fierce Indian Salvages, having Spred the Flame of a Dubious War, from One End of the Country to the Other, Every One thought, the Summer then coming on, would be fill'd with Deſolations, that would very near have broke Up the Colonics. But Behold, when Things were come to that Extremity, GOD Step'd in, and made bare His Almighty Arm for our Deliverance. The Enemy diſtracted like Beaſts that are Stung with Hornets, fell an eaſy Prey, to the People Inhabiting the Wilderneſs. Yea, Sword and Sickneſs in a few Months conſumed whole Nations of them!

This has indeed been the way of GOD our SAVIOUR all along Appearing for us.

What a Seaſonable Proviſion did our GOD make for us, by a Friend on the Spot, appearing at the Court for us, at the Revolution, that we might be delivered from a Total and Final Deprivation of all the Privileges, which diſtinguiſhed us, from the reſt of the Plantations!

How often have we been upon the very Print, of being made the Prey of the Terrible? Thoſe which are called, The wild-beaſts of the Earth, have been juſt coming upon us! But the Great GOVERNOUR of the World, Seaſonably Stepping in, has very Unexpectedly more than Twice done the Things, which have enabled us to ſay, Bleſſed be the Lord, who has not given us as a prey to their Teeth!

How often have our Churches been upon the very Point of doing Things which would have been attended with an Unknown Train of Diſturbances? But their Glorious HEAD Seaſonably Stepping in, has put a Stop unto them, and the feared Storms have all blown over.

But, Who can Utter the mighty Acts of the Lord? Who can ſhew forth all His Praiſe? How long a work would it be to Recapitulate the Seaſonable Interpoſitions, wherewith He has reſcued us from Grievous Things, when we have been upon the very Point. of being overwhelmed with them! Lo, GOD hath ſent from above; He hath drawn us out of many Waters.

The Improvement, which we are to make of this Experience, muſt be to Encourage our Prayers and our Hopes for the continuance of it. Sirs, Let us Improve our Experience, unto that Argument; 2 Cor. 1.10. GOD, who raiſes the Dead, has Delivered us from ſo great a Death, and He doth Deliver; and 〈…〉 truſt in Him, that He will ſtill deliver us. The Syllogiſm, I confeſs, is not of any ſuch form as our common Logick allows of; But Faith Legitimates this way of Arguing, and can Remove Mountains with it!

You will allow me to uſe the Language of the Day; and ſay, There may be Things which may threaten to Blow up the Country, and Blow up the Churches, which have the Beauty and the Safety of the Country in them. Let thy Watchmen ſet upon thy Walls, O NEW-ENGLAND, give thee yet more faithful & more ſolemn Warnings of them, and may their Viſions prevent thy Periſhing!

But now, Why may we not Hope, That before the Diſtreſſes which the Exportation of our Coin thro' the Extravagancy of our Living has brought upon us, be brought unto much greater Extremity, the Methods which the Men of Thought have to offer for the Stopping of that Hemorrhage, will be yet more thoroughly Digeſted, will be hearkened unto, will be complied withal: And all fooliſh Animoſities that may hinder this Felicity, be entirely Extirpated?

Why may we not Hope, That the Intentions of thoſe, who may be willing to ſee us a Miſerable People, yea, of thoſe Treacherous Men from among our ſelves, who, to recommend themſelves unto preferments, propoſe and purſue things that would make our Miſeries Unſupportable; may by the Hand of our GOD Seaſonably Interpoſing for us, and with them that help us, have their Chariot-Wheels taken off, ſo that they ſhall drive heavily, and anon be all Abortive?

Why may be we not Hope, That if any Raſh Doings may be likely to Diſcompoſe our Churches, our Strong Redeemer Seaſonably Interpoſing, may cauſe thoſe things to fall out, that will put an End unto Days of Temptation, an give them to Walk on in the Right Ways of the Lord, and in our Good Old Ways, in the Fear of GOD, and in the comforts of the Holy Spirit, and be Multiplied?

O Thou Hope of NEW-ENGLAND, and thou SAVIOUR thereof in the Times of Trouble, with Encouraged Hopes will we keep Looking up unto thee!