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he fucks in; he depends, every inftant of his exiftence, on the aid of every element. Let the quantity or the qualities of any one of them be ever fo little changed, .and that moment he becomes miferable. One rainy or droughty feafon makes whole nations to languish; the froft of a night deftroys the hope of a year; and a fingle blaft of wind fends mighty navies to the bottom. There is no need of a miracle to plague those whom God means to punish. All nature is at war with his adverfaries: the ftars, in their courses, fight against those who fight with God. O may we never be fo mad as to provoke that Power by which we are continually fupported, and from which we cannot flee!

After a chastisement fo awful, who could have imagined that Pharaoh was able ftill to ftand out? But the human heart exhibits a mystery of iniquity, which nothing but multiplied experience could render credible. The next fummons has a threatening annexed it; and the moment of refufal is to be the moment of execution. The plague threatened, being particularly specified beforehand, was likely to excite the greater alarm, and thereby to drive the offender to the means of prevention: but, it would appear, Pharaoh defpifed it. What, terrified at a fwarm of frogs! vermin, loathfome indeed, but defpicably harmless. How ignorantly do men eftimate the judg ments of GOD, when they confider only the inftrument which he employs. Men effect little with large and abundant means; God performs wonders with things mean and contemptible. Is a haughty tryant to be fubdued? There is no need of more than twelve legions of angels; an army of frogs, in the hand of GOD, is fufficient for the purpose. Again the magicians are weak enough to aflift the plague; at least, they affect to lend their aid; and rather than not be thought mighty, will feek to themfelves a name by doing mifchief. Again the river, which miniftered fo much to their pride, is made the minifter of avenging

Heaven to punish them. As its waters were lately all blood, to poison the fishes which it contained, and to taint the air, fo now they are all putrefaction, to give dreadful life to an innumerable race of odious vermin, for humbling the proud. Every creature is, and does, juft that which God would have it to be, and to do-it becomes either a bleffing, or a curse, at his command! And, were we wise enough, to assist our weak, or to correct our erroneous vifion, by the optics of the fanctuary, we should behold, under many a fair and flattering form, much loathsomeness and deformity.

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Pharaoh defpifed this plague, while it was only threatened, but feels it to be no flight one, when it falls upon him: and he is, in this respect, the image of many a thoughtlefs finner, who trifle with the judgments denounced in the word of God, till bitter experience teaches them, that every arrow from the quiver of the Almighty is both penetrating and poifonous. The proud heart which refused to bend, at length begins to break; and a flow, lingering, partial, reluctant confent is given to the demand of Heaven; and permiffion is granted to the people, to go, "that they may do facrifice unto the Lord." The conceffion, flight as it is, procures a refpite. Mercy, ever on the wing, flies to fuccour the miferable.

We have seen Mofes and Aaron executing the judgments of avenging Heaven, by the agency of a rod. Christ himself is the powerful word, by which Gov made and sustains worlds; the all-potent inftrument to fave, and to deftroy. "With righteoufnefs fhall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity, for the meek of the earth; and he fhall fmite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked." Mofes acted by a delegated power: Jefus has all power in himself. "Mo

fes verily was faithful in all his house as a fervant: but Chrift as a fon over his own houfe." The fame Mofes was the deliverer of Ifrael, and the fcourge of

Egypt:

Egypt: the fame Jefus, who is the author of eterna falvation to them that believe," fhall be revealed from heaven, with his mighty angels, in flaming fire: tak ing vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gofpel of our Lord Jefus Chrift." "Al judgment is committed to the Son." "He fhall reign. till he hath put all his enemies under his feet." "The laft enemy that shall be deftroyed is death."

"O death where is thy fting? O grave, where is thy victory? Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jefus Chrift."

Amen.

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And Pharaoh's fervants faid unto him, How long shall this man be a fnare unto us? Let the men go, that they may ferve the Lord their God: knowest thou not yet, that Egypt is deftroyed?

How very different an appearance do objects wear, according as they are beautified and exalted by the favour of Heaven, or blasted and disfigured by the curfe of an offended GoD! Eden, before man's apoftacy; Eden, fresh planted, by the fovereign hand of the Creator, contained every tree that is pleasant to the fight and good for food, and in the midst of it was the tree of life; but, O fad reverse, the fatal effect of tranfgreffion!" Curfed is the ground for thy fake; thorns and thistles fhall it bring forth to thee;" and the tree of life is removed to happier regions, or guarded from guilty man's approach, by the flaming fwords of the cherubim. The plain of Jordan, well-watered every where, and beautiful as the garden of the Lord, delighted the eyes, and allured the heart of Lot, when he feparated himself from his uncle Abraham. But O how awfully changed that once delicious fpot! The day when Lot went out of it, "Abraham looked towards Sodom and Gomorrah, and towards all the land of the plain, and beheld, and lo, the fmoak of the country went up, as the fmoak of a furnace." What a charming profpect did Egypt prefent in the

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days of her glory? Her fertile furface, covered with the filver flux of her stately, overflowing river, except where thousands of populous cities lifted up their proud heads to the fkies; or, when the river retreated, her golden, luxuriant harvests waving with the fragrant wind. How changed the fcene, when the Nile ran, not water, but blood; after the murrain had deftroyed all their cattle; after the lightning and the hail had blafted every tree, had devoured every herb, and the "locufts had confumed what the hail had left!" What makes earth refemble heaven; and men like angels? The prefence, the bleffing, and the image of GOD! What once covered the earth with water, and shall at length deftroy it by fire? What finks men to the level of diabolical, damned fpirits, and adds tenfold horror to gloomy hell? The wrath of the Almighty, and the deprivation of his glorious fimilitude. Nature finks under the defcription and the denunciation of the divine difpleasure. What must it be to endure its dreadful effects, without intermiffion, and without end!

Instead of going into a particular detail of the fubfequent plagues wherewith GoD afflicted Egypt, we fhall fuggeft a few historical and practical remarks upon the fubject in general, ferving to unfold the windings and the workings of the human heart, to illuftrate and vindicate the ways of Providence, to expofe the madness of striving against GOD, and to dif play the wisdom, the fafety and the happiness of fubmitting readily, cheerfully and univerfally to the divine authority.

And, first. We observe, that as GOD has many inconceivable methods of doing good to men; so his power of punishing is unlimited, and the treasures of his wrath are far beyond what fear itfelf, which magnifies every object, can fancy. Of his glorious capacity and difpofition to blefs mankind, who has not enjoyed the fweeteft, and frequently repeated experience? Whofe life is fo fhort, as not to contain a hif

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