their condemnation. It was wealth and greatnefs which brought the rich man to beg in vain for a drop of water to cool his tongue.

Let them further learn from hence, that the virtuous poor are the objects of God's care, and therefore ought alfo to be the objects of theirs; who are no more than the ftewards of God's bleffings. It will therefore become them, in imitation of his benevolence, to be fathers to the fatherless, and protectors to the widows; to feed the hungry and cloath the naked; to fupport those who are finking into diftrefs, and to rescue those from temptation, who are already fallen into it; to contribute to the education of the young, and the instruction of the ignorant; in fhort, to relieve the wants of their fouls and bodies, by those several methods which every one will easily find, who is fincerely difpofed to promote the glory of God, and the happiness of man.

Laftly, Since all of us have our afflictions in life, let us all learn, from this example of Lazarus, to bear them with patience and refignation to the will of God. We cannot

appoint

appoint the part we are to act in life; but we should be prepared to act it properly. Let us, therefore, arm our fouls with patience against the various events we may encounter, and, amidst the changes and chances of this mortal life, look forwards to that better country, where no clouds of affliction are seen, where no ftorms of adversity are heard, where the wicked ceafe from troubling, and the weary are at reft with virtuous Lazarus in Abraham's bofom.

SERMON XXVII.

JOHN ix. 4.

I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.

TH

HERE cannot, perhaps, be a more awful idea conveyed to the mind of man, than that which is fuggested to us in thefe words. Yet, awful as it is, it feems but to make little impreffion on our minds and actions. We all of us well know that our night is coming: we have daily monitors around us to warn us of its certain approach: its black curtain fucceflively drops over our dearest friends, and dooms us to a long and painful feparation from them: yet neither precept nor warning are able to teach us to number our days, and apply our hearts to wisdom. We know that our night is coming, and that the journey of life must be

performed whilst it is yet day, yet we foolifhly linger by the way: we make idle excurfions into the fields of fancy or the regions of amusement; we waste our moments in cropping the rofe-buds of pleasure: we crown ourselves with the garlands of folly, and dance along the road of life, as thoughtless and unconcerned as the decorated lamb in the pagan facrifices of old, which knew not that his gaudy trappings only deftined him to the bloody knife of the flayer.

But let us awake to the fober voice of reafon, and liften to the dictates of heavenly wisdom. To many of us the day is far spent, and the night is at hand: to all of us the continuance of the light of life is a matter of the greatest uncertainty, and our fun may be fet in darkness, before to-morrow's light fhall gild the bright chambers of the morning.

This awful approach of night may be confidered as a warning to us, both with respect to the business of the present life, and the concerns of the next.

If we confider it as defigned to teach us wisdom with respect to the present life, it seems

to