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an atter End of the Place thereof, and Darkness fhall purfue bis Enemies. What do ye imagine against the LORD? He will make an utter End: Affliction fhall not rife up the fecond Time. For while they be folden together as Thorns, and while they are drunken as Drunkards, they fhall be devoured as Stubble fully dry, Nahum i. 7, 8, 9, 10.

In Ifa. v. 11-14. it is faid, Wo unto them that rife up early in the Morning, that they may followi Strong Drink, that continue until Night till Wine inflame them. And the Harp, and the Viol, the Tabret,' and the Pipe, and Wine, are in their Feafts: But they regard not the Work of the LORD, neither confider the Operation of his Hands. Therefore my People are gone into Captivity, because they have no Knowledge, and their honourable Men are famished, and their Multitudes dried up with Thirst. Therefore Hell bath enlarged herself, and opened her Mouth without Measure: And their Glory, and their Multitude, and their Pomp, and he that rejoiceth fhall defcend into it. In Verse 22. it is added, Wo unto them that are mighty to drink Wine, and Men of strength to mingle Strong Drink, i. e. if they abuse their Strength by drinking to Excefs, and that is Excefs, which is more than needful to the healthful Nourishment, and Chearfulness of the Body.

The Prophet further adds, in Verse 25. Therefore is the Anger of the LORD kindled against his People, and be bath ftretched forth his Hands against them, and bath fmitten them: And the Hills did tremble, and their Carcaffes were torn in the midst of the Streets: For all this his Anger is not turned away, but bis Hand is ftretched out ftill.

These, and fuch like Declarations do plainly fhew, that they who indulge their Appetites with Exceffes in Meats and Drinks, and they who perfuade, and tempt others to do fo, have Reafon to fear the Judgments

D

Judgments of the Holy God, when he is vifiting for Sin.

But how much foever they may fuffer by common Calamities in this World, these Sufferings will be to them only the Beginnings of Sorrows, unless they repent, and amend their Ways. For Drunkards fhall not inherit the Kingdom of God, See 1 Cor.

vi. 10.

I

It is our bleffed Redeemer, who faid, Take heed to yourselves, left at any time, your Hearts be overcharged with Surfeiting and Drunkenness, and the Cares of this Life, and fo that Day come upon you unawares. For as a Snare fhall it come on all them that dwell on the Face of the whole Earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to efcape all thefe (terrible) Things that fhall come to pass, and to Stand before the Son of Man, Luke xxi. 34, 35, 36.

The Things which Chrift refers to, and which he in that Chapter foretold fhould come to pass, were that Jerufalem fhould be compaffed with Armies, and Defolation, Verse 20. He foretold its Days of Vengeance, Verfe 22. and that there fhould be great Diftrefs in the Land, and Wrath upon the People, Verfe 23. And that they should fall by the Edge of the Sword, Verfe 24. That upon the Earth fhould be Diftrefs of Nations with Perplexity, Verfe 25. Men's Hearts failing them for Fear, and for looking after thofe Things, which are coming on the Earth, Verfe 26.

And thus it happened to the Jews, when the juft God brought upon them the Day of his Wrath, the Day of his Vifiting them for their Iniquities. And in like manner it will happen to other Nations, when the Almighty fhall come forth in Judgment against them, and make a finful incorrigible People to fee, and feel the Miseries of the Days of his Vengeance.

Therefore,

Therefore, Let us walk honestly, as in the Day; not in Rioting and Drunkenness, not in Chambering and Wantonness, not in Strife and Envying. But put ye on the Lord Jefus Christ, and make not Provision for the Flesh, to fulfil the Lufts thereof. Rom. xiii. 13, 14.

XII. UNCLEAN PERSONS, Whoremongers and Adulterers, are another Sort, on whom God has denounced destroying Judgments.

These are Tranfgreffors of the feventh Command

ment.

Whoremongers and Adulterers God will judge, &c. It is declared, Heb. xiii. 4. and in Galat. v. 19, 21. it is faid, Now the Works of the Flesh are manifeft, which are thefe, Adultery, Fornication, Uncleanness, Lafcivioufnefs; and it is added, That they who do Such Things fhall not inherit the Kingdom of God.

In Ephef. v. 3, 4, 5, 6. But Fornication and all Uncleanness, let it not be once named amongst you, as becometh Saints. Neither Filthiness nor foolish Talking, nor Jefting which are not convenient; But rather giving of Thanks. For this you know that no Whoremonger nor unclean Perfon - bath any Inheritance in the Kingdom of Chrift, and of God -for because of thefe Things cometh the Wrath of God upon the Children of Disobedience.

What the Holy God has faid concerning the Jews, in Jer. v. 7, 8, 9. fhews evidently that this Sort of Sinners are appointed to fuffer in the Day of his Vifitation. The LORD faid, When I fed them to the full they committed Adultery, and assembled themfelves by Troops in the Harlots Houfes. They were as fed Horfes in the Morning: Every one neighed after bis Neighbour's Wife: Shall I not vifit for thefe Things? faith the LORD, shall not my Soul be avenged on fuch a Nation as this?

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The Prophet Ezekiel alfo, reckoning up feveral Sorts of Tranfgreffors of the divine Law in Jerufalem, fays, One hath committed Abomination with his Neighbour's Wife, and another bas lewdly defiled bis Daughter-in-Law, and another in thee hath bumbled his Sifter, his Father's Daughter, Ezek. xxii.

It must be observed, that Self-Pollution, the Sin for which the Holy God flew Oman, Gen. xxxviii. 9, 10. is a Sort of Uncleannefs very heinous in its Nature. And likewise that the unnatural Lufts of the Sodomites, Gen. xix. 5. for which the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah, Brimstone and Fire from the Lord out of Heaven, and overthrew their Cities, and all the Plain, and all the Inhabitants of the Cities, and that which grew upon the Ground, Gen. xix. 24, 25. I fay, thofe unnatural Lufts are Kinds of Filthinefs which cry loudly for divine Vengeance to be inflicted on the Guilty: And it is Matter of great Lamentation, that notwithstanding the fearful, and utter Deftruction of those Cities for the Crimes of their Inhabitants, there have been in the fucceeding Ages, Perfons guilty of the fame monftrous and filthy Practices.

St. Paul fpeaketh of fuch in Rom. i. 26, 27. faying, For this Caufe God gave them up unto vile Affections: For even their Women did change their natural Ufe unto that which is against Nature: And likewife alfo the Men, leaving the natural Ufe of Women, burned in their Luft, one toward another, Men with Men, working that which is unfeemly, and receiving in themselves that Recompence of their Error which was meet.

The Sins of thefe monftrous Tranfgreffors, indeed, are fecret, they are Deeds of Darknefs, but the righteous God may openly take Vengeance on them, in the Day of his Vifitation for Sin. Such have no Reafon to hope they fhall efcape the de troying Wrath of the Almighty God.

And

And as the Inhabitants of Jerufalem were incorrigible, and did not repent of their Iniquities, the Holy God according to his Threatnings, inflicted on them destroying Judgments. See Jer. v. 31. where he fays, Therefore have I poured out mine Indignation upon them, I have confumed them with the Fire of my Wrath: Their own Way have I recompenfed upon their Heads, faith the LORD GOD.

I may add, that Perfons under the like Guilt, have Reason to expect like Punishment; and therefore have Caufe to be afraid of God's proceeding in the Way of his Judgments.

And happy for them will it be, if the Whoremongers and Adulterers; happy will it be, if all the filthy, the unchafte, the unclean Perfons of both Sexes, fhall confider the Evil of their Ways, and the Declarations of the Holy God againit them; if they fhall repent of their Sins, and feek the Forgiveness of them, and Peace with God through Christ Jefus, before the Viols of his Wrath be poured out upon them.

XIII. UNJUST Perfons, are another Sort against whom destroying Judgments are denounced in the Word of God.

UNJUST Perfons are all they, who either by Force, or Fraud, take, or with-hold to their own Ufe any Thing that is the Property of another.

These all are Tranfgreffors of the eighth Com mandment.

This Clafs includes not only Thieves of every Denomination, but also Extortioners, and fraudulent Dealers with unjust Weights and Measures.

EXTORTIONERS are thofe Perfons who take Advantage from the Neceffities, or Ignorance of others, to constrain them to give more Money for the Things they buy, than is the Market-price, or to

perform

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