friendly commerce with one of a suitable spirit. But as there is no friendship like the divine, so there are no delights like those of divine friendship. When I retire my self with him on purpose, "My meditation of him shall be sweet," saith the Psalmist, Psal. civ. 34. He forecasts thus with himself. "How precious are thy thoughts to me, O God! I can be with God, as soon as I can think a thought; and how delightful is it, when he is pleased to mingle thoughts with me, to inject thoughts!" That is the way of spirits conversing with one another; and most of all of the paternal Spirit, the Father of spirits, that knoweth how most immediately and inwardly to influence his own offspring.

4. There is the fullest expression of sincerity in secret and closet religion. It is in opposition to the practice of hypocrites, that our Saviour gives that injunction which I mentioned in Matt. vi. 5, 6. "When ye pray, be not as the hypocrites; they would fain appear to men to pray; they love to pray in the synagogues, and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men." All their religion is street religion, synagogue religion; they know no other. "But do thou enter into thy closet, and shut the door," &c. There is nothing of design in this, but to meet with God, to pay him the homage I owe to him, and to seek from him the vital communications which I need. Here is nothing of pomp, nothing of ostentation. When our Saviour saith, hypocrites do so and so; you may easily by other places in the Gospel know whom he means by that character, namely, the scribes and Pharisees, mentioned in the foregoing chapter and elsewhere. They are often mentioned in conjunction with that other title, in Matt. xxiii." Wo unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites." Of all religions in the world, I would never make a Pharisee the measure of my religion; to have but a pharisaical religion, a religion with others or in the sight of others, but none to myself. How many please themselves, if they think they have a more excellent gift in this kind, to make ostentation of it to others; but towards God alone they are dumb and silent! They seem to be all religion with others; but alone they are nothing in it, their hearts are all earth and stone.

Secondly, If there ought to be family religion set up and kept up by governors of families; then-they in families, who are under government, are obliged to comply thereunto. Any duty, that is incumbent upon one relative as such, doth manifestly imply the duty of the correlative or of the correlate. If governors of families must set up and keep up religion in their families; then they that are under government must comply. The same authority, that binds the one, binds the other too. So that they, who refuse to comply, are not only rebels against the governors of the family; but rebels against the Lord of heaven and earth, with whose authority such governors are invested: for there is no power but from him.

And though it be true indeed, that a human governor can see no further than to an external conformity; he from whom the obligation principally comes, seeth further, seeth into the heart and soul with the strictest and most prying inspection. And therefore with reference to him, such as are under government in families are obliged to concur in heart and spirit, and not to afford an external and bodily presence only. For your business lies with the God of the spirits of all flesh; who takes notice, whether you come with an inclined heart or a disinclined, with aversion or with desire; or whether you attend upon such duties with complacency or without delight. There is no deceiving of him. The same law, that obliges you to pray, obliges you to "pray in the Holy Ghost;" and implieth, that if you desire his communications and assisting influences, as "a Spirit of grace and supplication," they will ordinarily be afforded; and that you will not be destitute of those assistances but by slighting them, by despising and resisting and vexing that Spirit, who is ready to assist you, and to engage your hearts and to do them good by such a duty.

And let me tell you, that as it is a eulogy, a character of praise and commendation, in any one to be good in a bad family; so it must proportionably be a horrid brand upon any one to be bad in a good family. It was thought fit to be put upon record concerning Abijah the son of

Jeroboam, (1 Kings xiv. 13.) that "there was some good thing found in him towards the Lord his God, even in the house of Jeroboam;" good desires, good inclinations, even in so wicked a family as Jeroboam's was. It is proportionably a horrid mark upon that person, who continueth ungodly in a godly family; that is, a prayerless wretch in a praying family; whose heart at least never prayeth, hath no desires after God; no contrition, no sense in the confession of sin ; no love, no gratitude in the acknowledgment of mercy. For one to continue ungodly in a godly family, or to go out ungodly from a godly family, what a horrid thing will this be! How much of terror and amazement will it carry in it at last, when the case comes to open itself to view, and to be looked upon and considered in its proper and native aspect! And even as it now is; to think with oneself, "That such or such children or fellow-servants in a family, where I may have lived a considerable time, may have had their hearts melted in hearing the word read and opened and applied, but mine was always hard: they have had their souls humbled in the acknowledgment of sin, but mine was unhumbled: they have had desires enlarged in seeking for mercy, but I had no desire after spiritual good."-To live so in a good family, and to go out such from a good family; oh, the horror of this case, and the reflections it will cause in the close of time! or, if not so, in an eternity of misery, that will never end! Thirdly, We may further collect hence, that if family governors are to resolve, for their families as well as themselves, upon serving the Lord; then-they have a power and a trust over their families, and about their families, in reference hereto.-Otherwise Joshua had said he knew not what, or why, when he said, "I and my house will serve the Lord." But this I have evinced already by several considerations; as was necessary in reference to a discourse of this nature. It is plain, such a power God doth invest every governor of a family with.

Fourthly, If there be such a power lodged in family governors, then-this power ought to have its exercise. There is no power in nature, that is frustraneous, and never to be reduced into act. Such an incongruity as that is never to be found in the whole volume of nature. And it is as little to be found in matters that are of a moral and spiritual consideration. If there be then such a power, it ought to be reduced into act. That is, masters of families, by the use and exercise of this power, must oblige those that live under their government to comport becomingly with the duties and exercises of religion in their families. There ought to be a paternal, a despotical use of this power in reference to this case.

If you ask, Wherein? we must speak with distinction, because the subordinate relatives in a family are not all of one order, but there is great diversity among them.

If where there is a godly praying husband, there is an ungodly wife, who cannot endure to comport with such exercises of religion in the family; here is indeed, in reference to what is past, matter of deep shame and humiliation, that no wiser and better a choice was made. Persons in their choice ought mutually to have reference to this as the first and main thing, to match minds and spirits, rather than fancies and fortunes. And it should be matter of deep humiliation, if it have not been so. what is future, there can be no more done in this case, than to exhort with authority, and so to reprove as may be most suitable to the end, and most likely to attain it.

But as to

If it be the case as to the husband in reference to the wife, that he discovers an aversion to every thing of religion, and especially to any family exercises of it; here is no authority to be used; (the woman hath none over the man;) but in that relation there must be all the prudent and gentle persuasions that can be, and a resolution to engage as many of the family as she can to bear a part with her in the exercises of family religion; as you heard of Esther and her maids. For she is to obey but "in the Lord;" and not so to obey, as to abandon religion upon his account, and to throw it out of the family. And she is kind to him herein, and puts the greatest obligation upon him, (which he may come to understand in time,) in that she labours to keep off a curse from coming upon the family; as Abigail did once keep off from Nabal a vengeance that was just coming upon him.

But as to children; where there are godly parents that hare ungodly children, discovering early a disinclination to religion; (as indeed for the most part it is too early discoverable;) where this is discoverable, there ought to be so much the more serious, earnest endeavour used to cultivate this wilderness of nature, and to correct it betimes. There ought to be early insinuations and endeavours to instil principles of religion, to be instrumental towards the possessing of souls with a reverence of that Majesty, whom they themselves reverence. As no doubt it was from what Jacob had long observed concerning his father Isaac, that, swearing by God, he swore by him under the name of "the fear of his father Isaac;" (Gen. xxxi. 53.) him, whom he had long observed his father to have a great reverence for.

But when any are grown up with this aversion, (which it may be through great negligence was not animadverted upon betimes, as it should have been,) and do now discover open enmity against the religion of their father and of their family; wise and holy parents have ways yet to make use of their paternal authority in that case, at least in the disposal of what is theirs. They may let it be understood and known, that by how much the less they show themselves lovers of God, they the parents shall show themselves so much the less lovers of them, and the more sparingly provide for them. And they ought not only to say so, but to do so. There is not a greater fault to be animadverted upon among persons professing religion, who are governors of families, than that they let a fond and foolish affection to their children prevail against that dutiful and loyal love which they owe to God; that is, that without distinction they labour to put all that they can into the hands of an ungodly son: which is indeed to arm him against God's interest in the world, and against religion. They should take care, that such shall live; but that they shall have all the advantages that they can give them, wherewith to maintain and keep up a war against heaven, this is what good parents can never give an account for, that when they are only intrusted as stewards of the manifold grace of God, they should dispose of it so. These are the gifts of his grace, taken in a larger sense, of his bounty and goodness. And if they shall employ them, in order so much the more effectually to keep up and maintain a war against the universal Ruler of the world; this is a most undutiful and disloyal affection.

As for servants; they are no such inseparable parts of a family, but that, if they be found finally inflexible, and discover an enmity against God and religion that cannot be overcome and got out of their hearts, they may be got out of the house. And they must be so. As the Psalmist speaks concerning telling a lie, (Psalm ci.) when he had expressed in the beginning of the Psalm his resolution concerning family order, that "he would walk" or converse in a perfect way and with an upright heart in his house," perform and do the duties of a family governor with integrity and uprightness; (that must be meant by walking there;) so in what follows he tells you, what the characters should be of one that should stay or should not stay in his house. He speaks to this purpose, both negatively and positively. Negatively; The work of them that turn aside, should not cleave to him, ver. 3. That is, of them that decline and are opposite to religion; so it must principally be understood." "A froward heart shall depart from me; I will not know a wicked person,' ver. 4. He had spoken before of the rule he would observe in reference to his house and family; and to this, those following expressions must be understood to have a direct reference. And for the expression of froward, and that other of turning aside; they are used in divers places of Scripture to signify disinclination to religion, an averse, disaffected heart towards God. As in Psalm liii. 2, 3. one of these words is there used; When "God looked down from heaven, to see if any did understand and seek God;" (it is said,) "every one of them is gone back; they are in an averse, disaffected posture, all hanging off from God and disaffected to him." So one of those words is used in Psalm lviii. 3. "The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray as soon as they be born." This reference the expressions must be understood to have here, to signify disaffection to religion. Now such a one, saith

he, "shall depart from me, and I will not know him." And afterwards, ver. 7. "He that worketh deceit, shall not dwell within my house; he that telleth lies, shall not tarry in my sight;" one, in whom this conjunction is actually found, (which is always to be expected,) disaffection to God and falsehood to oneself. A thing, that a heathen took notice of long ago; Qui Deum non timent, fallent homines: They that fear not God, have no truth towards men.

But the Psalmist tells us who shall stay in his house, ver. 6. "Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me; and he that walketh in a | perfect way, or uprightly, he shall serve me." "I will have mine eyes every where; and if there be an honest, upright-hearted person to be found, I will choose such a one for my servant."

This ought to be a measure to all of us. A godly, faithful servant is, I am afraid, a too little valued thing with many among us; they are more indifferent, how their servants stand affected towards religion; whether they have any love of God or godliness, yea or no. But in such can be found, saith the Psalmist, they shal. serve me, ive with me; I will labour to furnish my house, as far as in me is, with such as will labour to comply and fall in with me in the great business of religion. You have heard concerning this same Psalmist David, (2 Sam. vi. 20.) how, after that great solemnity was over of placing the ark, "he returned to bless his household." It is obvious enough to collect, that this was a stated practice with him, from which that great solemnity should not divert him, when the time and season was come of going to perform the ordinary exercises of religion in his house; and unto that therefore in its proper time he applieth himself.

It will therefore be the care of good family masters, to have such for members of their families, as may contribute to the drawing down of a blessing upon their house; that they may not counteract themselves; and, as the daily exercise of religion is the blessing of a family, that they may not, by connivance and indulgence to wickedness and disaffection to religion, undo their work and pull down a curse, more effectually than they can hope in a half and divided way to gain or draw down a blessing.

These several ways there ought to be an exercise of the power, that God hath invested each master of a family with. And it ought to be considered, that wherever there is a power, there is a trust. There can be no power but from God; and where he lodgeth this power, he doth also commit a trust into such hands; and the weight of this ought to lie, and will lie, upon every one that is conscientious. And therefore,

II. I shall shut up all the discourse upon this subject with a few words of exhortation.

1. Wheresoever family religion hath been set on foot, let it be continued, and labour to improve it; that is, to be more and more serious and lively and spiritual; both they that are to manage the duty, and they that are to concur and join. Let there be an endeavour to grow more quick and lively herein. When I spoke about the circumstances of such exercises, I said nothing how much time was to be spent in them. Indeed there is no particular rule to be set for that; as I have told you the matter stands upon other accounts. In such cases prudence is to be exercised in matters of religion, as well as in other matters. "A good man will order his affairs with discretion," as hath been said again and again. Every man is to take his rule and measure for that from discretion; but by no means from indiscretion. It ought to be considered with prudence and judiciousness, what is most likely to serve the end of religion, in such exercises of it as we have been speaking of. I reckon, that one quarter of an hour spent with spirit and life, is a great deal better than hours together spent in nauseous flatting repetitions, (which was the pharisaical way,) in such a tedious and fulsome way, as tends to make religion a burden and grievance. I think that is applicable to the purposes of religion, which hath been applied to meaner, much meaner purposes; that it is good to come from a meal with an appetite; that it is good to come so too from an exercise of religion, with those pleasant lively relishes left upon one's spirit as may make him wish for the return of such a season;

"When

will the time for prayer and solemn attendances upon God come again?" But this, beyond all things, should be endeavoured, that there may be an improvement in life and vigour and spirituality in the performance of these things, both in them that manage them, and in those that are to concur and join; where such a thing as family religion is set up and hath been kept up.

2. I must desire you to suffer the exhortation too, where family religion hath not hitherto been begun. Oh, make haste and begin it, keep it off no longer. Defer no longer to God so indisputable a right; or to make use of so great an advantage for yourselves, and for yours that you are concerned for. I hinted to you in what was said to an objection, that it may be a great difficulty with some how to begin. They are ashamed to be taken notice of, as having received a conviction of this matter, and so to own a fault by applying to a contrary practice. But we all profess ourselves Christians; and as we are men, we are under the government of the Supreme Ruler, and must be accountable to him. It becomes us on both accounts, to earn to be ashamed of our sin, and not to be ashamed of our duty. And if what hath been said shall obtain to be considered and laid to heart; I cannot but hope, that they who are ashamed to begin, will rather be ashamed not to Degin, to defer and neglect so great and important and blessed a work as this is.

O think, how shame will be estimated one day in "the general assembly;" when all the world, the whole creation of intelligent creatures, angels and men, shall be convened before the judgment-seat. Think how shame and reputation will be estimated in the great day. You are told that the resurrection of ungodly ones will be a resurrection and awakening to shame and everlasting reproach. (Dan. xii. 2.) Many of them that sleep in the dust of the carth, shall awake some to shame and everlasting reproach. Oh! for a man to be hurried away from the bright, glorious presence of the blessed God, under the notion of one that would not call upon him; severed from all "the spirits of just men made perfect," and from that innumerable company of glorious and blessed angels, to be made an associate and companion of devils to all eternity, for this very reason! Why is he driven into darkness, and cast out into those regions, where there is weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth? Why, he would never call upon God; he had a family, but there was no religion in it; he never cared to keep up God's interest in his earthly station. This is therefore his portion and punishment. Think, whether this will not be a greater shame, than to begin a holy religious course, that hath been neglected hitherto. I shall briefly shut up all with the following considerations, that may through God's blessing help to enforce all upon us. 1. Consider, How come you to have a family, and your family to have a place and habitation in this world? Do you not know, that the Lord is the Ruler of all this world, and that he sets the solitary in families, and appoints to all the bounds of their habitation? And for what? That they might seek the Lord: (as is signified, Acts xvii. 26, 27, 28.) if so be they may feel and find him out, who is not far from any one of us, since in him we all live and move and have our being. Will you defeat the design, for which God made such a world of creatures, and hath disposed them into societies and convenient stations here upon this earth? Was this done merely to gratify and please these creatures? That is to suppose a creature designed by God to be its own end, and that he had resigned the prerogative of his Deity to the work of his own hands now in rebellion against him.

2. Do not you know, that you need a constant preserver in your several dwellings? Except the Lord build the house they labour in vain that build it; except the Lord keep the city, the watchmen waketh but in vain, Psalm cxxvii. 1. A city you know is made up of so many houses inhabited; but every such house is kept in vain, if God be not the keeper. And what! is he not worth the taking notice of, that watcheth over you night after night and day after day?

3. How can you expect to live comfortably in your dwellings without God? What good will your enjoyments do you? Can a blessing for a soul spring out of the earth, a good suitable to an immortal mind? It is an amazing

thing, as Job represents it, (chap. xxi. 7, &c.) that men should outwardly flourish in their external circumstances, "live, become old, and mighty in power, have their seed established in their sight, and their offspring before their eyes and their houses safe from fear;" they dwell securely in them, they are safe from fear, though not from danger; and yet take no notice, who it is that makes them dwell in that safety; and thereupon say unto God, notwithstanding all this, that they live under his wing and upon his bounty, "Depart from us, for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways," ver. 14. "Our houses shall be as much strangers to religion, as they are to fear: they are free from fear, and they shall be as free from piety too." This they are pleased with as their greatest privilege, to be without God. And yet, as it follows ver. 16. "Their good is not in their own hand: the counsel of the wicked is far from me." Let it be far from me! I would not have my soul bound up with such a one's soul! O my soul, enter not into the secret of those horrid creatures, those monsters of ingratitude, undutifulness, and disaffection, towards a kind, gracious, and benign Lord! They have not their good in their own hand, but it is all in his, to whom they yet say, " Depart from us!" And they may seem to prosper in this course awhile; but see what comes of it at length, ver. 17, &c. "How often is the candle of the wicked put out!" their prosperity reversed, their light extinguished! and how often cometh their destruction upon them! Ver. 19. "God layeth up his iniquity for his children;" (this cometh of it at last ;)" he rewardeth him, and he shall know it." Many times he takes care, that he shall know it in such ways as are there expressed, ver. 20. "His own eyes shall see his own destruction, and he shall drink of the wrath of the Almighty. For what pleasure hath he in his house after him, when the number of his months is cut off in the midst ?" He hath children springing up, it may be, and furnished by his foolish and fond care and concern with great things in this world; such a son is married into such a family, and such a daughter into another, where they are richly and opulently provided for. But his children come to destruction in his very sight. It is often so; he seeth all wasting and melting away, even as a heap of snow before the sun. This is often the heritage of wicked men from the Lord in this world; and if it be not so in this world, worse and more dismal things ensue afterwards. In the mean time, what comfort can there be, with all the enjoyments and affluence that a man can have in his house, be it ever so pleasing a habitation, while God is a stranger, dwells not there; is not worshipped, and so

dwells not there?

4. Consider, how amiable a thing a religious family is, where the fear of God governeth and flourisheth. Do but read to that purpose the 128th Psalm, which might fruitfully be run over.

5. Do not you desire, that the world should mend? that you may see better times, and to see your city flourish? If trade languish, every one is sensible: methinks we should not be insensible, if religion languish. But how shall it live, if not in families? There is the great failure. And any place, that hath been long the seat of religion, when it comes to decay in that respect, will decay in other respects too. "Be instructed, O Jerusalem, lest my soul depart from thee: and I leave thee desolate without inhabitant," Jer. vi. 8. If that, which is the very soul of any people's good estate, even of the political body; if that retire, all moulders: as, if the soul of a man retires, is gone and withdrawn, the body crumbles and turns to dust. How desirable a thing is it to a Londoner, to see London in a prosperous, flourishing condition! But never expect to see it so, if religion shall be in a languishing decaying condition gradually from day to day. That will be a dreadful foretoken.

6. Consider, that all family masters are stewards, and all stewards must be accountable. O consider within how little a time we are every one of us to be called to an account: "What did you do in your station as governor or governed in such a family ?" Prepare that you may be capable of rendering a good account, an account comfortable to yourselves.

7. Consider, that there cannot be a better omen of a good state of things coming than if we could see that

take effect, which hath been designed and endeavoured by so many servants of God at this time, upon the subject of family religion. There could not be a more promising token to us. God hath touched the minds of those who are associated in the work of the Gospel among us, all at once by a kind of celeusma, to cry up family religion. If this should have its good effect, (and why should we not hope it will?) we cannot have a better token for good. The cry of wickedness is loud. If the cry of prayer, when it shall come to be so united a cry, shall prevail and be louder, this will draw down blessings. The cry of wickedness is calling for wrath and vengeance, for the vials to be poured out upon us: but if so many houses, as there are in London, wherein religion is professed, should really become so many oratories, houses of prayer: it is to be hoped there will be so many louder cries, ascending up to heaven for mercy. If there had been fifty, forty, thirty, twenty, nay, ten righteous persons in Sodom; that would have prevailed for mercy upon that city. If so many as profess religion in London, would but practice it, and this part of it in particular, to set prayer on work with importunity and fervour in their several families; in this respect vox populi will be vox Dei: the voice of a praying people will be as the voice of God blessing us from above; and telling us that you have prevailed, the course of wrath is stopped, the decree reversed, prayer is heard, and that you shall see

London, the city of your solemnities, a quiet habitation This is said by way of answer to the people, who are brought in at the beginning of Isa. xxxiii. 2. praying, “O Lord be gracious unto us, let thine arm be awakened for us every morning." Here was daily prayer ascending and going up. It follows in ver. 20. "Look upon Zion the city of our solemnities, thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down, not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken." And so many prayers ascending out of so many several families of London, will be harbingers to those, from whom those prayers proceeded, and in whose souls they were formed and inwrought. Such praying souls shall ascend at length and follow their prayers. And if we who are now here assembled have not this hope, what are we here for? Why do we worship; if this be not our hope, that our souls shall follow our adoration? We know we are to be here but a little while. We send up prayers, desires, and praises here in our assembly, in the hope and expectation, that we shall follow the prayers and praises which ascend out of our assembly ere it be long. Worship God with the same hope and expectation in your families, that you yourselves shall ere .ong follow your prayers and praises ascending from thence also.