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faction and peace are made always to belong SERMON to it; and general esteem and honour for the most part to attend it. On the other hand, the wicked, in no situation of life, are allowed to be truly happy. Their vices and their passions are made to trouble their prosperity; and their punishment to grow out of their crimes. Let any one atten tively recollect the material incidents of his life; and he will, for the most part, be able to trace the chief misfortunes which have befallen him to some guilt he has contracted, or some folly he has committed *. Such is the profound wisdom with which Providence conducts its counsels, that although it does not appear to interpose, men are made to reap from their actions, the fruits which they had deserved ; their iniquities to correct them, and their backslidings to reprove them; and while they suffer, they are forced to acknowledge the justice of their punishment.-These are not matters of rare or occasional observation ; but deeply interwoven with the texture of human affairs. They discover a

See Serm. XIII. Vol. iv.

VOL. IV.

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regular

SERMON regular plan, a formed system, according XX. to which the whole train of Providence

proceeds; and which manifests to every serious observer the consummate wisdom of its Author.-As thus, in the constitution of human nature and in the moral government of the world, Divine wisdom so remarkably appears, I must observe,

In the third place, That in the redemption of the world, and in the economy of grace, it shines no less conspicuously. The subject which opens to us here is too extensive to be fully illustrated at present; but the great lines of it are obvious *.In carrying on a plan, by which forgiveness was to be dispensed to an offending race, wisdom required that the authority of the legislator should be fully preserved, and no such relaxation be introduced into government, as might give licence or encouragement to offenders. Accordingly, the most admirable provision was made for these important purposes by the interposition of the Son of God suffering

*See Serm. V. Vol. i.-Serm, V. Vol. ii.-Serm. XV. Vol. ii.Serm. V. Vol. iv,

and

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and dying for sinners. The sovereign SERMON awe of justice is maintained, while jus tice is tempered with mercy. Men are bound to righteousness, under the highest sanctions; and ample security and consolation are, at the same time, afforded to the penitent. By the instructions, and example, of their Saviour, they are instructed in their duty; and through a Mediator and Intercessor, they are encouraged to offer their worship and prayers to the Almighty. They are assured that, in whatever is too arduous for human nature to perform, they shall be assisted by a Divine Spirit; and under all trials and difficulties, they are supported by the express promise of that eternal life which is brought to light by the gospel.—It is not possible for the understanding to conceive any method of salvation, planned with more goodness and executed with more wisdom, than what is shewn in the gospel of Christ. The consideration of this constitution alone, gives us full reason to join in that exclamation of the Apostle : O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God! How unsearchable

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SERMON searchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out ! *

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FROM this short survey which we have taken of Divine wisdom, as discovering itself, in the whole complex frame of the moral world; in the constitution of human nature; nature; in the government of human affairs; and in the redemption of the human race; we cannot but perceive how much reason we have to prostrate ourselves before God, and with all humility to worship and adore.-When we view that immense structure of the universe in which we dwell, when we think of Him, whose wisdom has planned the whole system of being; whose mind comprehends, whose counsels direct, the whole course of events, from the beginning to the end of time; by whom nothing is so inconsiderable as to be overlooked, or so transient as to be forgotton; who attends to the concerns of the poor man in his cottage, while he is steering the sun and the moon in their course through the heavens into what astonishment

;

and

*Rom. xi. 33.

self

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self-annihilation do we fall! Before him SERMON all our boasted knowledge is ignorance and our wisdom is folly. Wherever we cast our eyes on his works and ways, we find all things adjusted in number, weight, and measure; and after all that we can survey, Lo! these are but a part of his ways; and how small a portion is heard of bim!

It is the power of God, which produces among the multitude of men any impressions of religion. When thunder roars in the heavens, or an earthquake shakes the ground, they are struck with awe, and disposed to worship an invisible power. But such impressions of Deity are occasional and transitory. The lasting reverence of a Supreme Being arises, in a wellinformed mind, from the display of that infinite wisdom which all the universe presents. Its operations are constantly, though silently, going on on around We may view it in the peaceful and sedate state of the universe, as well as in its greatest commotions; we behold it in every insect that moves on the ground, at the same time that we admire it in the revo

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us.