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introduce Love and Concord in their Place: SER M. that our holy Religion be not blafphemed thro' xxI. us; and that our Lord may be glorified in the univerfal Practice of that Love, which He came down from Heaven to plant in the World.

Which God grant, &c.

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SER

454

SERMON XXII.

Preached at St. Peter's Poor, on the publick
Faft-day, 1711-12.

SERM.

XXII.

DEUTERON. xxxii. 29.

O that They were wife, that They understood this, that They would confider their latter End!

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HE Words, I have now read to you, are the pathetical and moving With of God himself, about the People of Ifrael. O that They were wife, that They underfood this, that They would confider their latter End! Some Interpreters, indeed, understand them to refer to the Enemies of Ifrael, who were spoken of, in the Verfe before. But it feems to me much more probable, that these, and the following Words alfo, belong to the Children of Ifrael; and exprefs, (agreeably to

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the main Design of this whole Song, of which SERM. they are a Part,) the great Defire that Al- xxII. mighty God had, to make them an happy and glorious Nation; and likewise, what it was that He expected from Them themselves, in order to this. That they refer to the Interest of a whole Nation, is certain: and therefore, tho' the Death of particular Perfons may be called their latter End, and often expreffed, in the common way of Speaking, by that Phrase; and, tho' this Text may be applied to That, confidered by itself, and feparated from the rest of this Chapter yet, it is plain that it has no Relation, as it ftands here, to the Death of par ticular Perfons, but refers wholly to the latter End of Nations, or the final Ruine of whole Societies. Almighty God therefore doth, in this Verse (after the most pathetical Manner, amongst Men, of expreffing the Defires of their Hearts) wish that the People of Ifrael were wife, i, e. That they had such a Wisdom, as would direct and move them to Every thing proper and neceffary, in order to their own Prefervation and Happiness. He wishes that they understood this; which feems to mean the Method in which he deals with Nations ; and, in other Words, that they would confider their latter End, or, how certain their End will be, if They will not behave themselves as

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SERM. great Governour of the World expects; XXII. and that they would So confider this, as to be

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moved, by this Confideration, to the Performance of all thofe Conditions which are neceffary, on their own Part, to the preventing their Ruine, and establishing their Prosperity. And then it follows, (Verse 30.) How Should One chafe a Thousand, and Two put Ten thouJand to flight, except their Rock had fold them, and the Lord had shut them up ; i. e. What a glorious Current of Success should they have, in all their lawful Enterprizes against their Enemies, unless God should put a stop to it himfelf; and fell them into their Enemies Hands, and into a base Captivity, for the sake of their foolish and wicked Behaviour, and their ungrateful Returns for all those extraordinary Favours beftowed upon them by Him, and by his peculiar Providence ?..

Thefe Words, thus explained, you see, direct every Man, who is a Member of any Nation, or Society, to confider himself as fuch: not always to regard only his own private and perfonal Concerns; but often to have in his Thoughts the Relation he bears to others around him, and what is required of him, as he is a Part of that Whole, in the Welfare of which, He himself, and all his own Pofterity, and that of all around Him, are nearly concerned.

This, I fay, it becomes us all frequently to SER M. confider, and especially upon fuch Occafions, xxII. as That which has now called us together. And to this End, the Words before us are very proper, as they naturally lead us to the following Obfervations:

I. That God doth truly defire the Profperity and Happiness of Nations and Societies of

Men.

II. That his Defire of their Profperity doth not induce Him to make them happy, without their own joint Affiftance; but that He expects their own Wisdom, and their best Endeavours, to concur with Him. And,

III. That the Confideration of that latter End, and Diffolution, which Nations must expect, if they go on to difplease God; and of thofe Rules by which he acts, in his Dealings with Societies, ought to be of great Force to engage Us to confult our own Security and Profperity, in those Methods which He has laid before Us; particularly, by forfaking those Vices, which otherwise must be our Ruine.,

I. Let us obferve, for our own great Satisfaction, that Almighty God is truly concerned for the Welfare of all public Societies and Nations. Far be it from us to fuppofe, that He

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