the direction of that Providence which can

bring harmony out of discord, good out of evil.

It was upon this principle he reasoned when he said to his brethren, "Ye thought "evil against me, but God meant it unto "good." A generosity like this, it is much easier to admire than to imitate; nor can it be wished that an opportunity should present itself in the course of any man's life, to shew such an extent of mercy in consequence of the ill treatment of his brethren; for domestic quarrels are fraught with evils innumerable, and strike at the very root of christian forgiveness; they usually begin with the violation of some ties of gratitude or friendship, are always carried on with the bitterest vehemence, and end in the most implacable hatred. The slightest blow inflicted by the hand of a friend or brother strikes deeper to the heart than the sharpest

wound of an avowed enemy;-and what mercy can a stranger expect from those who are severe to exact vengeance from their nearest connections.

To lay this spirit of discord, so fatal to all ranks of men, and to reconcile us to each other, let us weigh our conduct with respect to the offences we may receive from our fellow-creatures with the conduct of the Father of all mercies to our trespasses;—we cannot bear the least attack, the slightest injury offered to us; but God bears with the insolence of all mankind. Let us but view the first causes of our weak dissentions, and consider how falsely we shew our sensibility. What are the great offences that rouse our resentment! Per haps a word misunderstood, a raillery mis taken, a meer difference in opinion; or what the world calls a point of honour. These are the trifles that often beget the most violent enmities, even among those

who are most proud of being thought wise and sensible. What are these compared with the provocations God receives from us-impiety, blasphemies, profanations of his holy name, his sabbath, and his most sacred mysteries. Shall we hope to obtain mercy from Heaven for these our manifold iniquities, and be cruel to the failings of our fellow-creatures?-rather let us endeavour to appease the anger of the Lord, and turn aside his indignation from our sins, by forgiving one another our trespasses. It is only by a frequent and liberal exercise of this virtue of charity and forbearance that we can feel ourselves entitled to the reward promised by our Saviour in the words of the text:"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall "obtain mercy." May the God of all mercies pardon our offences, through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour.

SERMON XIII.

UPON DEATH,

NUMBERS, CHAP. xxiii. VERSE 10. Let me die the death of the Righteous, and let my last End be like his,

THIS prayer of the prophet Balaam is perhaps the only one in which all mankind feel themselves immediately concerned; for, however they may have run the race of iniquity, and led the life of the wicked, it must be the wish of every man to die the death of the righteous. But to accomplish this desirable event falls to the lot of those only who have prepared their

minds for that awful period by early meditations on their latter end, having lived in expectation of death; and such an expectation has nothing in it of terror—it is the result of cautious prudence; nor is it at all incompatible with the enjoyment of one innocent pleasure in life-it is not to live under the perpetual fear of dying, but to live as a wise steward, who knows that he may be called upon to give up his account at a moment's warning.

The man of pleasure may ridicule the gravity of him who would break in upon the gaieties of life with his reflections upon death; but, without interrupting the course of our worldly pleasures, there are certain hours of retirement proper to be devoted to meditation, when such serious thoughts are seasonable and necessary; and the oftener our time is employed on this subject, the more we shall be reconciled to the approach of that enemy, who comes