Inferiours; And many of the moft Neceffary Offices in Human Society must be Neglected, through want of proper Perfons to Sustain and Discharge Them.

Indeed, as Riches ftand purely Opposed to Want, and fignify only fuch a Plenty, as is Suitable to every Man's Particular Station; And as Honour is Strictly Opposed to Difgrace, and fignifies only fuch a Fair Esteem and Reputation, as is Suitable to every Man's Rank and Order; As Riches and Honour are taken in This Sense, and it seems to be a proper sense of them, in the Promise of them annex'd to Religion, They are without Doubt, Generally beftowed upon Good men, when they are not Inconfiftent with any Condition neceffarily Implied in That Promise. In like manner, the Promise of Long Life must needs be Interpreted, under the Implicit condition of it's consistency with men's Natural Frame and State, whereby one Man is Disposed to a much Earlier Diffolution than Another; Infomuch that Nothing Less than a Miracle can bring

the

the Lives of all Good men to one and the fame Measure of Duration.

There may indeed be Inftances, as will be obferved below, of God's prolonging a Good man's Life, in an Extraordinary manner. But the promise of Long Life to Good Men, confider'd in General, cannot well be understood to fignifie any more than This, that their Lives fhall, Ordinarily, be carried on, by Divine Providence to their Natural Period, and not be Judicially cut off, as Other men's Lives may be, before They have filled up the Bounds, which Nature hath Affigned to Them., And yet, 'tis here to be obferved, that it is fometimes matter of Divine Favour to Good men, that they are taken away, before the Term of their Natural Lives is expired. For thus the Holy Spirit hath taught us, and 'tis a Leffon fufficient to prevent our Judging Rafhly and Cenforioufly of Events, which we know not the Reasons of; The Righteous perifbeth, and no man layeth it to heart; and merciful men are taken away, none confi

confidering, that the Righteous is taken away from the evil to come.

*

2dly, The Truth of the Propofition before us appears from Hence, that the Spiritual and Eternal Welfare of fome Good Men might be very much Obftructed, if not Finally Prevented by Temporal Profperity. Everlasting Life is the Grand Bleffing, to which Good men are Intitled by the promise of God; And all Other Promises, which he hath made them, do Prefuppofe and Imply their Confistency with That. Whenfoever therefore, their Tempers and Difpofitions are fuch, that their full enjoyment of Earthly Bleffings would interfere with their Attainment of Celeftial Blifs; the Divine Providence Graciously witholds thofe Advantages from them, which would prove Destructive to them.

Indeed Men Obftinately Wicked are oftentimes Indulged, by Providence, in a ftate of Affluence, in the Enjoyment of all Temporal Advantages; which they

* Ifa. lvii. 1,

do

do Abuse, and, by That Abuse, render the Inftruments of their own Ruin; For the Profperity of Fools fhall deftroy them*. And the Reasons of this Providential Permiffion are many and plain, but unneceffary to be offer'd in this Discourse, because they are far Removed from the Subject, as well as the Occafion of it. However, the Mention of this Permiffion feems to magnifie God's Tender Regard to his Chofen Servants, whom he will not Indulge in any the most Agreeable Circumstances, whereby they may Forfeit, or Hazard their Salvati

on.

Such is the Knowledge of God, that he Throughly understands every Man's Qualifications and Difpofitions; and fuch his Goodness, that he will not Truft Good men with a Larger Portion of Profperity, than they are able to Manage, left they should fink under the Weight of it. Where either Ballaft, or a Skilful Pilot is wanting, there the more Full and Swelling the Sails, the Greater is the danger of Shipwreck.

* Prov. i.

32.

3dly, And

3dly, And more Particularly, As fome Good men's Tempers and Difpofitions would render them Unfafe in a Courfe of Profperity, fo are they better Qualified to exercise those Virtues, which are Needful in a Depressed, than those which

are the Duties and the Ornaments of an Exalted State. Different Plants do require Different kinds of Soyl to Thrive in: Patience and Refignation may Flourish and grow up to the Highest perfection in a Soul, wherein Condefcenfion, Liberality and Generofity would either take no Root, or, not rife to Maturity, but Pine and Wither, Droop and Die. Our Wife and Merciful Creatour gives his Several fervants proper Occafions of exercising those several Virtues which he hath planted in Them, and which are moft Likely to be Fruitful of the Highest Degrees of Godliness upon Earth, and of Glory in

Heaven.

But, after All, the Difficulties which Good men are reduced to, are not always laid upon them, purely on account of Themselves, or, because fuch Circumftances will Beft accord with their X

Spiri

.