of the fecond temple. And thus was accomplished that prediction, Micah vii. 12. 13. In that day alfo he fball come even to thee from Affyria, and from the fortified cities, and from the fortrefs even to the river, and from fea to fea, and from mountain to mountain. Notwithstanding the land shall be defolate, because of them that dwell therein, for the fruit of their doings.

II. I fhall fhew what are those rods the Lord caufeth such a people to pass under. The Lord has many rods for this purpose, and can make use of any or many of them together as he fees meet. I will name four of them.

1. A blafting curfe upon the fubftance of a land, Hag. i. 9. Ye looked for much, and lo it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. God brings fometimes a generation of his anger into fuch a cafe, that nothing thrives with them which they take in hand, 2 Chron. xv. 5. 6. In thofe times there was no peace to him that went out, nor to him that came in, but great vexations were upon all the inhabitants of the countries. And nation was destroyed of nation, and city of city: for God did vex them with all adverfity. This rod God is causing these lands to pafs under at this day, whereby trade and credit are disturbed, and many ruined; and even wife men smart: for God can make the wife as well as fools pafs under his rod, eafier than a fhepherd can run his sheep, when he has a mind. Alas! there is little to be had by plaiftering over a tottering house ready to fall. The black bargain the nations have made between themfelves, for which the bond of the covenant behoved to be broke afunder, and the horrible perjury and wickedness used among fome trading men, may be plainly read in the prefent circumftances of the nations.

2. The fword, Lev. xxvi. 25. I will bring a fword upon you, that shall avenge the quarrel of my covenant. Many a time God has been threatening thefe perfidious nations with paffing under this rod, and he

has

has given them of late feveral earnefts of it: but it is to be feared, that what has happened of that kind is: but an earneft of the bloody fword for these nations, that shall avenge the quarrel of the covenant. The Lord will not want inftruments when he has a mind. He can hils for the bee of Affyria out of the remotest parts, and ere he want, will fet Manaffeh against Ephraim, and Ephraim against Manaffeh, and pull out the men of his anger, be they great or small, like theep, and cause them pass under the rod.

3. Famine, Ezek. v 16. I will fend upon them the evil arrows of famine. This is a native confequent of the sword, and would foon be at the heels of it among us. See a terrible defcription of it, Lam. iv. 7. and downwards. Saul's murdering of the Gibeonites contrary to a covenant with them, brought three years famine on Ifrael, 2 Sam. xxi. 1. What may a nation expect then for murdering of men for their adherence to the nation's covenant with God himself? which is a crime that God has to lay to the charge of Scotland. We had an earneft of this too fome years after the revolution, which made many a pale face, and laid many in the duft: but whatever is added to the controverfy fince, one may eafily fee the quarrel is not yet removed.

4. The peftilence, which has a frequent connection with the other two, Lev. xxvi. 25. I will fend the peftilence among you. And when I have broken the staff of your bread, &c. Ezek. v. 16. 17. I will fend upon them the evil arrows of famine, and peftilence. That is a defolating rod. It fwept off at once among the Ifraelites fourteen thoufand feven hundred men, Numb. xvi. 49. For David's numbering the people feventy thousand fell by it in one day. God is now avenging the dragooning in France, and their other cruelties upon the poor Proteftants, by that dreadful vifitation. And these nations have ground to fear it is coming that way to them, confidering it has cafk

the

the abominable copy in much wickedness, which these lands have followed.

These are the rods which will be deftructive to many, and trying to all who are caused to pass under them.

III. I fhall fhew how by fuch means a people are brought back into the bond of the covenant.

1. Such a paffing under the rod, makes people apt to receive convictions of their unfaithfulness in the covenant. Hence fays the Lord, Hof. v. ult. I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and feek my face: in their affliction they will feek me early. It is hard to convince men of their profperous wickednefs. In the time of God's patience, men will draw fair covers over their foul actions, eat, and wipe their mouths, and fay, they have not finned. But if God were rifen up out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquities, the heavy rod will extort confeffions of guilt which one would not let light before. Every one is ready to blame another now, and lay the guilt off themselves: but fuch a day in Scotland would not leave a clean face among us all. Hence is that promife, Ezek. vii. 16. They that escape of them, shall efcape, and fhall be on the mountains like doves of the valleys, all of them mourning, every one for his iniquity.

2. It would make men blithe to plead the privi leges of the covenant, If. lxiii. 15. 16. Look down from heaven, and behold from the habitation of thy holiness and of thy glory: where is thy zeal and thy ftrength, the founding of thy bowels, and of thy mercies towards me? are they reftrained? Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Ifrael acknowledge us not: thou, O Lord, art our father, our redeemer, thy name is from everlasting. They that undervalue God's covenant now, being caused to pass under the rod, the weight of it would make

them

them change their note; as it did to Ifrael, Pfal. lxxviii. 34. 35. When he flew them, then they fought him and they returned and inquired early after God. And they remembered that God was their rack, and the high God their redeemer. The covenant with hell and death being rent afunder by the anger of God, and not being able to afford them any more fecurity, they would be glad to catch hold. of God's covenant, which they trod on before.

3. It would remove many a dead weight from off the covenant, both perfons and things. For thus fpeaks the Lord to Ifrael, Ezek. xx. 38. I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that tranf grefs against me: I will bring them forth out of the country where they fojourn, and they shall not enter into the land of Ifrael. Micah vii. 10. 11. forecited. Many a dead weight is lying at this day on the work of God in thefe nations, which there is no appear. ance of the removing of, till the Lord put to his own hand. But he can turn them off with a touch of his hand for thus he addreffes Ifrael, Ezek. xxxvii. 12. Behold, a my people, I will open your graves, and caufe you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Ifrael. Making the generation pafs under the rod, he will either remove them out of the way, or render them inefficacious, that they shall not be able to stop a good work.

4. It would put an edge, by the bleffing of the Lord, upon the fpirits of the remnant, to take hold of the covenant, and prefs them on to it, as their neceffary courfe in a day of distress: Jer. 1. 5. They shall afk the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to the Lord, in a perpetual covenant that ball not be forgotten. Compare Neh. ix. 36. 37. 38. Behold, fay the Ifraelites, after their return from the Babylonish captivity, we are fervants this day, and for the land that thou gaveft unto our fathers, to eat the fruit thereof, and the good thereof, behold, we are fervants in it. And it yieldeth

pieldeth much increase unto the kings whom thou haft fet over us, because of our fins: alfo they have dominion over our bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleafure, and we are in great diftrefs. And because of all this, we make a fure covenant, and write it; and our princes, Levites, and priests feal unto it Ay, fuch a day would make men step over many impediments without ceremony, which they cannot get over in a day of cafe. Neceffity has no law, and need makes the naked run.

IV. I shall give the reasons of this difpenfation. I only offer these three.

1. God takes this method, that he may thereby lay by many, whofe eyes he will not let fee the great things which he minds to do for his people and church, Ezek. xx. 38. forecited. The generation in the wilderness provoked him fo, that he caufed their carcafes fall therein, before he brought the people into Canaan. There may be fome whom God has a fpecial controverfy with, that he will have out of the way, before he make his glorious work appear, Amos ix. 10. All the finners of my people fhall die by the fword, which fay, The evil fhall not overtake nor pre

vent us.

2. That he may thereby purge away the dross of those whom he will make fharers of the glorious day, If. i. 25. 26. formerly cited. Like the three children, they must be caft into the fire, that their bonds may be burnt off them. They must feel the coriofives, before they get the cordial.

3. That he may awaken the generation to fome fense of religion, and particularly bring in fome elect ones yet walking in darkness, whom he will neither fweep away with the multitude, nor yet make' witneffes of the glorious days in that cafe, Hof. ii. 6. 7. Therefore behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths. And fhe fball follow after her lovers, but she shall not over

take