Actions be they never fo unchriftian, if they can but with the Jews cry aloud, The Tem- Jer. 7.4. ple of the Lord, &c. I fay, confidering these things, is there not Reason enough to be apprehenfive of God's Judgments? and to fear, left he should decree upon us what he once faid by his Prophet, Shall I Jer. 5. 9. not be avenged of fuch a Nation as this? At leaft is there not Reafon enough for us all on this Day to proftrate our felves in the greatest Humility before God, heartily bewailing our own Sins and the Sins of our Country? and carneftly begging of God, with devout Prayers and Tears, that he would be merciful unto us; that he would not deal with us according to our Deferts; but that he would fpare our Nation, and neither give us up to be ruined by our own inteftine Divisions, nor deliver us over as a Prey to our Enemies?

2. And that leads me to the second thing which is required to the due Performance of a folemn Faft and Humiliation, viz. Fervent and importunate Application to the Throne of Grace for the averting those Judgments we have Reafon to fear, and bestowing those Bleffings upon us we stand in need of. Indeed if we be fo truly fenfible of our Sins and of our Danger as we ought to be, it will neceffarily put us upon earneft Prayers and Supplications to God Almighty That he would be pleased to VOL, VI. K pardon

pardon thofe Sins for which we humble our felves before him, and stop those Punishments we are confcious they have deferved. This was one Article of the Proclamation that was made in Nineveh for the publick c. 3. v.8. Faft, viz. That every one fhould cry mightily unto the Lord. And great Reason there is for fo doing; for hereby we do moft properly acknowledge God to be the Lord and Governor of the World; and that he is the Difpofer of all Events that happen to us, and that we do not truft in our felves, nor in our own Powers, nor in the Strength of our Allies, nor in any Arm of Flesh, but that we wholly depend upon him for all the Good we hope for.

Let us all therefore, on this Day, devoutly throw our felves at the Footstool of God, and moft earnestly fupplicate his Divine Majefty, that he would be merciful to us, and our Country; that he would pardon our Sins, and turn his Anger from us. Let every one of us this Day take up the Prieft's Office, and fay the Words of the Joel 2. 17. Prophet Spare thy People, O Lord, and give not thine Heritage to Reproach, that the Heathen fhould rule over them: Wherefore fhould they fay among the Heathen, Where is their God? Let us pray heartily that God Luke 19. 'would, in this our Day, give us a true Underftanding of the things that belong to our Peace: That he would incline the Heart of

42.

every one in this Kingdom to love and hold
faft the true Religion, and to live accord-
ing to it: That he would heal all our
Breaches, and
put a stop to our unaccoun-
table Divifions which above all other things
do threaten the publick Peace and Safety:
That he would blefs and preferve the
Queen, and direct all her Counfels, and
infpire all who under her have the Manage-
ment of the publick Affairs, with fuch true
Wisdom, and Piety, and Zeal, for the
common Good, that, laying afide all private
Interefts and Applications, all their Aims
may be directed to the promoting the Glory
of God, and the Peace and Tranquillity of
the Kingdom. That he would command
the Winds and the Seas that they do us no
further Mischief. That he would give a
Bleffing to the Undertakings of Her Ma-
jefty's Forces, and those of her Allies. And
laftly, that he would grant us a happy.
Peace, that we being delivered from the
Hands of our Enemies, may ferve him without
Fear, in Holiness and Righteoufnefs before
him all the Days of our Life.

All these things we may and we ought to pray for, and to pray for them heartily, and earnestly, and importunately. And tho' we cannot pofitively affure our felves that every Particular of them fhall be grant→ ed upon our Prayers, because perhaps God fees that we of this Nation are not quali K 2

fied

Luke t

74,75

fied for all thefe Bleffings; the greater Number of us putting a Stop to the Efficacy of the publick Prayers for those things, by their obftinate Refolution to continue in their wicked Practices, and Affronts to God Almighty; and because perhaps God fees that it is better for us to be exercised with Difficulties at Home, and with Dangers from Abroad, for the Trial of all Sorts of Men among us; yet this we may depend upon, that our hearty Prayers to God for thofe things will not be in vain: They will have fuch Succefs, if they be affectionate and hearty, as that the Nation will be much the better for them; but to be fure they who put them up, will find their Account in them. And no doubt but we shall have the good Effect of our Prayers, if

3. In the third and laft Place, they be accompanied with ferious Refolutions to reform our Lives, and to turn from our evil Ways. This is the third thing required to the due Performance of publick Fasting and Prayer. And indeed it is the main thing of all. This was that which God efpecially took notice of in the Faft of the Ninevites, and for which he reverfed his Sentence of deftroying their City. The c. 3. v.10. Text tells us that God faw that they turned from their evil Way, and therefore be repented of the Evil that he faid he would do unto them; and he did it not.

Their turn

ing from their evil Way here mentioned, is, I conceive, to be understood of their folemn Refolutions and Purposes to turn from them; of the Reality of which they might at that time give fome Inftances and Expreffions. But of the Fruits of those Refolutions and Purpofes, and how they afterwards practifed, Jonah the Prophet ftayed not long enough to be a Witness of: And for that Reason it is that I fay here, that our folemn Fafting and Prayer ought to be accompanied with a ferious Refolution to forfake our Sins, without mentioning the actual forfaking of them. Indeed, I take it, that this is fufficient to obtain God's Acceptance of our Fafting and Prayers. And truly more than this we cannot do at any fingle time, and yet less than this, it will be an Affront to God to offer to him. All our Fafting and Prayers will fignify nothing without a real Intention to forfake the Sins we faft for, and to live fuch a Life as to make us worthy of the Bleffings we pray for. If I in-Pl. 66. 18. cline to Wickedness in my Heart, fays the Pfalmift, the Lord will not hear me. We John 9.3. know, faith the Man in the Gospel, that God heareth not Sinners. Nay, God doth not only not hear Sinners, but their Prayers are an Abomination to him. The Sacrifice of the Wicked, fays Solomon, are an Abomina- Prov.15 3. tion to the Lord.