This furely is the highest pleasure, I had almost said pride, of a great mind.

In vain therefore do we dream of happiness in any thing without us. Happiness must be within us; the foundation of it must be laid in the inward frame and difpofition of our fpirits: and the very fame caufes and ingredients which make up the happiness of God must be found in us, though in a much inferior degree; or we cannot be happy. They understand not the nature of happinefs who hope for it upon any other terms. He who is the author and fountain of happinefs cannot convey it to us by any other way, than by planting in us fuch difpofitions of mind as are in truth a kind of participation of the divine nature, and by enduing us with fuch qualities as are the neceffary materials of happiness; and a man may as foon be well without health as happy without goodness.

If a wicked man were taken up into heaven, yet if he still continue the fame bad man that he was before, cælum non animum mutavit: he may have changed the climate, and be gone into a far country; but because he carries himself still along with him, he will still be miferable from himself; because the man's mind is not changed all the while, which would fignify a thoufand times more to his happiness, than change of place, or of any outward circumftances whatsoever: for a bad man hath a fiend in his own breast, and the fuel of hell in his guilty confcience.

There is a certain kind of temper and difpofition which is neceffary and effential to happinefs; and that is, holiness and goodness, which is the very nature of God: and fo far as any man departs from this temper, fo far he removes himself, and runs away from happiness. And here the foundation of hell is laid, in the evil difpofition of a man's own mind, which is naturally a torment to itself and till this be cured, it is as impoffible for him to be happy, as for a limb that is out of joint to be at cafe; because the man's fpirit is out of order, and off the hinges, and as it were toffed from its centre; and till that be fet right, and restored to its proper and natural ftate, the man will be perpetually unquiet, and can have no reft and peace within himfelf.

L13

The

The wicked (faith the Prophet) is like the troubled fea, when it cannot reft. There is no peace, faith my God, to the wicked: no peace with God, no peace with his own mind; for a bad man is at perpetual difcord and wars within himself. And hence (as St. James tells us) come wars and fightings without us, even from our lufts which war in our members.

And now that I have mentioned wars and fightings without us, this cannot but bring to mind the great and glorious occafion of this day; which gives us manifold caufe of praife and thankfgiving to almighty God, for feveral wonderful mercies and deliverances; and more particularly, for a moft glorious victory at fea, vouchfafed to their Majefties fleet in this last summer's expedition.

For feveral great mercies and deliverances; for a wonderful deliverance indeed, from a fudden invafion defigned upon us by the inveterate and implacable enemies of our peace and religion; which, by the merciful providence of God, was happily and ftrangely prevented, when it was juft upon the point of execution.

Next, for the prefervation of our gracious fovereign from that horrid and most barbarous attempt defigned upon his facred perfon; and from thofe great and manifold dangers to which he was expofed in his late tedious expedition; and for his fafe and most welcome return

to us.

And, laftly, for a most glorious victory at fea; the greatest and the cheapest that ever the fun faw from his firft fetting out to run his course. The opportunity indeed of this victory was through the rafhnefs and confidence of our enemies, by the wife providence of God, put into our hands: but the improvement of this opportunity into fo great and happy a victory, we owe, under God, to the matchlefs conduct and courage of the brave Admiral, and to the invincible refolution and valour of the Captains and feamen.

This great deliverance from the defigned invafion, and this glorious victory, God vouchfafed to us at home, whilft his facred Majefty was fo freely hazarding his Royal perfon abroad in the publick caufe of the rights and liberties of almost all Europe.

And now what may God justly expect from us, as a

meet

meet return for his goodness to us? What, but that we fhould glorify him; first, by offering praife and thankf giving; and then, by ordering our converfation aright, that he may ftill delight to fhew us his falvation.

God might have stood aloof from us in the day of our diftrefs; and have said to us, as he once did to the people of Ifrael, So often have I delivered you from the hands of your enemies, but ye have still provoked me more and more; wherefore I will deliver you no more, Judg. x. 13. He might have faid of us, as he did of the fame people, I will hide my face from them, I will fee what their end fhall be: for they are a very froward generation, children in whom is no faith, Deut. xxxii. 20. Our refolutions and promises of better obedience are not to be trusted; all our repentance and righteousness are but as the morning cloud, and like the early dew which paffeth away. Nay, methinks God feems now to fay to us, as he did of old to Jerufalem, Jer. vi. 8. Be thou inftructed, O Jerufalem, left my foul depart from thee; left I make thee defolate, a land not inhabited.

We are here met together this day, to pay our folemn acknowledgments to the God of our falvation; who hath fhewed ftrength with his arm, and hath Scattered the proud in the imagination of their heart; even to him that exercifeth loving-kindness, and judgment, and righteoufness in the earth: in him will we glory as our fure refuge and defence, as our mighty deliverer, and the rock of our falvation.

And now I have only to intreat your patience a little longer, whilft I apply what hath been difcourfed upon this text a little more clofely to the occafion of this day. I may be tedious; but I will not be long.

And bleffed be God for this happy occafion; the greatest England ever had, and, in the true confequences of it, perhaps the greatest that Europe ever had, of praise and thanksgiving.

You have heard.two forts of perfons described in the text, by very different characters; the one that glory in their wisdom, and might, and riches; the other, that glory in this, that they understand and know God to be the Lord, which exercifeth loving-kindness, and judgment, and righteoufnefs in the earth.

And

We

And we have seen these two characters exemplified, or rather drawn to the life, in this present age. who live in this western part of Christendom have seen a mighty prince, by the juft permiffion of God, raifed up to be a terror and fcourge to all his neighbours; a prince who had in perfection all the advantages mentioned in the former part of the text; and who, in the opinion of many who had been long dazzled with his fplendor and greatness, hath paffed for many years, for the most politick, and powerful, and richest monarch that hath appeared in thefe parts of the world for many ages:

Who hath governed his affairs by the deepest and fteddieft counfels, and the most refined wifdom of this world. A prince mighty and powerful in his preparations for war; formidable for his vaft and well difciplined armies, and for his great naval force; and who had brought the art of war almoft to that perfection, as to be able to conquer and do his business without fighting; a mystery hardly known to former ages and generations; and all this fkill and Itrength united under one abfolute will, not hampered or bound up by any restraints of law or confcience:

A prince that commands the estates of all his fubjects, and of all his conquefts; which hath furnished him with an almost inexhaustible treasure and revenue: and one who, if the world doth not greatly mistake him, hath fufficiently gloried in all these advantages, and even beyond the rate of a mortal man.

But not knowing God to be the Lord, which exercifes loving-kindness, and judgment, and righteousness in the earth; how hath the pride of all his glory been ftained, by tyranny and oppreffion, by injuftice and cruelty; by enlarging his dominions without right, and by making war upon his neighbours without reafon, or even colour of provocation:" and this in a more barbarous manner than the most barbarous nations ever did; carrying fire and defolation wherefoever he went, and laying wafte many and great cities, without neceffity, and without pity?

And now behold what a terrible rebuke the providence of God hath given to this mighty monarch, in the full career of his fortune and fury. The confideration whereof brings to my thoughts thofe paffages in the Prophet

concerning

concerning old Babylon, that ftanding and perpetual type of the great oppreffors and perfecutors of God's true church and religion, If. xiv. 4. 6. 7. 9. 10. 12. 13. How bath the oppreffor ceafed! the exactor of gold ceafed! He who fmote the people in wrath with a continual firoke; he that ruled the nations in anger, is himself perfecuted, and none hindereth. The whole earth is at reft, and is quiet: they break forth into finging. The grave from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming: it firreth up the dead for thee, even all the captains of the earth; it hath raifed up from their thrones all the kings of the nations. All they shall peak and fay unto thee, Art thou also become weak as we are? art thou become like unto us? How art thou fallen from heaven, O lucifer, fon of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didft weaken the nations! For thou haft faid in thine heart, 1 will afcend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the fars of God; I will fit alfo upon the mount of the congregation, in the fides of the north; that is, upon mount Zion: for just so the Pfalmift defcribes it, Pfal. xlviii. 2. Beautiful for fituation, the joy of the whole earth is mount Zion, in the fides of the north. Here the King of Babylon threatens to take Jerufalem, and to demolish the temple, where the congregation of Ifrael met for the worship of the true God: I will alfo fit upon the mount of the congregation, in the fides of the north: much in the fame ftyle with the threatenings of modern Babylon, "I will destroy the reformati66 on, I will extirpate the Northern herefy."

And then he goes on, I will afcend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Moft High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to the grave, to the fides of the pit. They that fee thee, fhall narrowly look upon thee, and confider thee, faying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did Jhake kingdoms; that made the world as a wildernefs, and deftroyed the cities thereof, that opened not the boufe of bis prifoners?

God feems already to have begun this work, in the late glorious victory at fea; and I hope he will cut it short in righteoufnefs. I have fometimes heretofore wondered, why, at the deftruction of modern and mystical Babylon, the fcripture fhould make fo exprefs mention of great wailing and lamentation for the lofs of her ships and sea

men