150 REFORMATION OF MANNERS. bitterness, and the tree vice, every branchthat isnot cut off will increase and multiply hi fruits of poison and death ; for a corrupt tree cannot bring forthgoodfruit, if we believe the words of,our Saviour, Lnke vi. 43, And St. Paul affirms; that evil men wax worse and worse; 2 Tim. iii, 13. Conceived in sin, and shapen in iniquity, is our original character ; Ps. li. 5, And infants go astray from the womb, as soon as they be born, speaking lies; Ps. lviii, 3, Sin enlargesitself withthe stature, and gets strength with age; andwhere there are no methods of check or restraint,. the children of Adam grow up to giants in wickedness, Our daily observation confirms the divine remark ofSolomon ; Ec. viii. 11, because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the'heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil: The late discourseon these wads demands my review, and I think it may deserve yours, Besides, while man is unregenerate and under the full dominion of sin, he takes occasion from the blessings of heaven to increase in wantonness. Peace and plenty are abused to ex,. cite luxury and lust ; and the mercies of God are turned into weapons of rebellion to fight against him, It is the nature of some serpents -to túrn the sweetest food they eat into venom ; and where distempered humours reign in the body,, the richest provisions nourish the disease, and advance the mischief. Such was the sin of Sodom ; I mourn that in our ,nation we'have any reason to say our sister Sodom, - Let us read Back. xvi. 48, 49, 50, with fear and trembling. The Lord swears concerning a city that hadas many outward characters of holiness upon itas London can pretend to, that she had rivalled and exceeded that lewd. and infamous people, a As I live, saith the LordGod, Sodom thy .sister hatli not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters. Behold this was the iniquity of thy. sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, . and abundance of idleness was in her, and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy : And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me; therefore I took litern away, as I saw good." O thatthe provinces of Great Britain may never follow the vile example! That London had never known her sins, or may root them out speedily, lest shebe partaker of the same fiery vengeance. II. Consider the abounding of iniquity before you beginthis work of reformation, and this will convince you that it will abound again, if the work cease, 'Though perhaps some parti- cular sins were not só much talked of before, yet sinners pf vari- ous kinds were much more numerous, more public, and more shameless: The streets rung with oaths and blasphemy ; the taverns were nightly witnesses of last omit drunkenness; open
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=