416 Death.in. Dirthi . or4 foever they die, that is nothing: die they muff fooner or later, ofthis infirmity, or that,itisnomatter which,whenit pleated, God; Let a man make what Ihewhe can with all his glorious adornations. Let him haverich apparel,and difguifed linnen and fearcloth,and balm,and fpices,let himbe inwrapped in lead, and let ftone immure himwhen he is dead, yet the earthhis original Motherwill againownhim forher natural Child¡ and triumph over himwith thefe, or the like infultings, he is inmy bowels, returned to his earth. This body returns not iminediatly to heaven, hut to the earth ; nor to the earth neither as a ffranger, and altogether unknown to him, but to his earth, appropriate to him ashis own,his familiar friend,andold acquaintance. To conclude,we are fin ful, and therefore we muff die, we are full ofevil, and therefore we mutt go to the grave : we have fins enough to bringus allthither. God grant theybenot fovio.. lent,and full ofominous precipitations that they portend our fudden ruin portend it theydo,but O Hallam ft in omnia,&c.I am loath tobe tedious. He fl ould notbe tedious that reads a lefture ofmortality. Howmany in the worldftnce this Sermon firft began, have made anexperiment, andproofof this truth, ofthis fcntence, that man is mortal ; and thofe fpeftacles are but examples of this truth ; they come to their period,beforemy fpeech.My fpcech,my felf,and all that hear me,all that breath in thisair muff follow." It path been Paid we live todie ; give me leavea little to invert it, let us live to live, live the life ofgrace, that we may live the life ofglory, and then though we do die, let us never fear it, we shall rifefrom thedead again, and live with our God out ofthereach of thedead, for ever, and ever. So much for the Textat thistime. Todeclare unto you the.caufe ofthis prefent affembly would be altogether fuper. fluous, the dumb oratory ofthatfjlentobjeft, clothgive you to underftandinalan- guage fufficiently intelligible, that weare nowmet to perform the laft rites and du- ty that we owe to the memoryof our dear filter here beforeus. And Chriftian cha- rityhathbeen fopowerful in all ages, that it hath been retained as a pious,and lau- dable cuftom at Funeral folemnitiesto adorn thedead, with the defervedpraifes of their life : not for any pompor vainglorious oftentation, but thatGods gloryhcre may be for ever magnified, by whole grace they have beenenabled tofight a good fight :.and that the furviving may be encouraged to run thefame conrfe, whenthey behold them difchargedof thistedious combat, and crowned with a crown of glory, and.iminortality. This Sifter of ours was born in this parifh, and bathlived in it force thirty four years, or there-about ; eighteenyears a fingle woman, and fixteenyears a married Wife ofwhom though uponmy ownknowledge I can fpeak butlittle, yet having credible informationfrom others, withwhom the had long, andprivate intimacy of madyyearsacquaintance," I mutt, ; and will fpeak. : That which I told you was recordedofRachel, that thewas fruitful inprocreati- on ofChildren, may in great meafurebefpoken ofher: for iftheScriptureaccount bearing but of two childrenfruit : certainly it will make an extraordinary fruit in bearingof twelve, which she did. It is a certain tokenofa true, and faithful fer- vant ofGod,to frequent his houfe,to pray unto him,to praifehim inhis Churchear. heftly; to labour to be inftruéted inhis will out ofhis Word, then,and there, read ssd preached to them: all whichevidencesofa goodChrifhianwere foundhi thisour Sifter. For her cdnftant comingtoChurch,l myfelt cannow fpeak upon my own knowledge, I have ferioufly,.andrriftlyexamined my felf,and I profefs ingenioufly before God that khow'smyheart, and you that here me (peak, that I cannot call to mitsd;that ever the milt coming to Church twice a Sabbath day finte Icame,which I-would be heartily glad I couldfpeak as well ofothers of this Parith as of her. For force ofthemhave got %eh a,fisking trick up anddown, to go to other Churches,as if.therewere no celilhable food at their own, that I fear at the laft they will come to none at all, I pray God theyamend this fault. It was a verme in hex that de- ferved commendation, and it is a vice in themthat delervesreprehenfion. When n ltewas in Gods boufe,lhe didnot as too toomany do,imploy her time in flecping, t* force fuchill courfe : but l ever obferved her to liften very diligently, and
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