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exercifed in fabbath's work, but the heart goes not along with it.

2. Carnally in an earthly frame of fpirit, the heart nothing favouring of heaven, but ftill of the world. Hence are fo many diftracting thoughts about worldly things, that the heart cannot be intent on the duty of the day, Amos viii. 5.

2. Heartlessly and coldly. The fabbath fhould be called a delight; a fpecial vigour and alacrity is required to fabbath-duties. But O how flat, heartless, dead, and dull are we for the most part! fo that many are quite out of their element on the Lord's day, and never come to themselves or any alacrity of spirit till the fabbath be over, and they return to their business.

4. To perform them with a weariness of them or in them, Mal. i. 13. Alas! is not the fabbath the moft wearifome day of all the week to many? The reft of the fabbath is more burdenfome than the toil of other days. How will fuch take with heaven, where there is an eternal reft, an everlasting fabbath? This is a contempt of God and of his day.

Thirdly, The fabbath is profaned by idleness. God has made the fabbath a reft, but not a mere reft. He never allows idleness; on the week days we must not be idle, or we mifpend our own time. On the Lord's day we muft not be idle, or we mifpend and profane God's time. Thus the fabbath is idled away and profaned,

1. By unneceffary unfeafonable fleeping on that day; lying long in the fabbath morning, going foon to bed that night, to cut God's day as fhort as may be; and much more fleeping in any other time of the day, to put off the time,

2. By vain gadding abroad on the Lord's day, thro' the fields, or gathering together about the doors, to idle away the time in company. It is very neceffary that people keep within doors on the Lord's day as much as may be; and if neceffity or conveniency call them forth, that they carry their fabbath's work with them.

3. By vain and idle difcourfe or thoughts. We must give an account of every idle word spoken on any day, far more for thofe fpoken on the Lord's day, which are doubly finful.

Fourthly, The fabbath is profaned by doing that which is in itself finful. To do those things on the Lord's day that ought not to be done any day, is a fin highly aggravated. Thus the fabbath is profaned by people's difcouraging others from attending ordinances, inftead of attending them themselves; fwearing or curfing on that day, inftead of praifing God. The better the day, the worfe is the deed. How fearful muft their doom be who wait that time for their wicked pranks, as fome difhoneft fervants and other naughty perfons who chufe the time that others 'are at church, for their hidden works of dishonefty; because then they get moft fecrecy? And indeed the devil is very bufy that way, and has brought fome on to commit fuch things on the fabbath-day as have brought them to an ill end.

Lastly, By unneceffary thoughts, words, or works about worldly employments or recreations. The fabbath is profaned,

1. By carnal recreations, nowife neceffary nor fuit. able to the work of the fabbath; fuch as all carnal pleasures, fports, plays, and paftimes, If. lviii. 13.

2, By following of worldly employments on that day, working or going about ordinary business, except in cafes of neceflity and mercy, Matth. xxiv. 20. Though where real neceffity or mercy is, it is an abuse of that day to forbear fuch things, as fometimes, the Jews did, who being attacked on the Lord's day would not defend themfelves.

3. By unneceffary thoughts or difcourfe about them; for that day is a day of reft from them every way; and we should neither think of nor talk about them.

O let us be deeply humbled before the Lord under the fenfe of our profanations of the fabbath: for who can plead innocent here? We are all guilty in fome

fhape or other, and had need to flee to the atoning blood of Jefus for the expiation of this and all our

other fins.

V. I come now to confider the reafons annexed to the fourth commandment. And thefe, according to the catechifm, are," God's allowing us fix days of the week for our own employments; his challenging a fpecial propriety in the feventh; his own "example; and his bleffing the fabbath-day." This command God has enforced by four reafons. 1. The first reafon is taken from the equity of this command. God has allowed us fix days of feven for our own bufinefs, and referved but one for himself. Ia dividing our time betwixt himfelf and us, he has made our share great, fix for one. Confider the force of this reafon.

ift, We have time enough to ferve ourfelves in the fix days, and fhall we not ferve God on the seventh! They that will not be fatisfied with fix, would as lit tle be fatisfied with fixteen. But carnal hearts are like a fand-bed to devour that which is holy. Nay,

2dly, We have time enough to tire ourselves on the fix days in our own employments; it is a kindness that we are obliged to reft on the Lord's day. Our intereft is our duty, and our duty is our intereft. It is a kindness to our bodies and fouls too. And fhall we not be engaged by it to fanctify the fabbath?

3dly, There is time enough to raise the appetite for the fabbath. It comes fo feldom, though fo fweet to the exercifed foul, that we may long for it, and rejoice at the return of it. It is fad if fix days interval cannot make us find our ftomach.

4thly, God might have allowed us but one day, and taken fix to himfelf. Who could have quarrelled the Lord of time? Has he referved but one for fix, and fhall we grudge it him? The fentence of David in the parable against the rich man that took away the poor man's one ewe-lamb, is applicable here, The man

that hath done this thing fhall furely die; and he shall reftore the lamb fourfold, &c. 2 Sam. xii.

2. The fecond reafon is taken from God's challenging a fpecial propriety in the fabbath day: But the Seventh day is the fabbath of the Lord thy God. All days are his; but this is his in a peculiar manner, Rev. i. 10. He has fet a mark on it for himself, to be referved for himself. Confider the force of this reafon.

ift, If we have a God, it is reasonable that God fhould have a time fet apart for his fervice, the fabbath of the Lord thy God. The Heathens had days fet apart for the honour of their idols; though the dumb idols could not demand them, yet they gave them. Papifts have days fet apart for faints, who are to them a fort of gods, though fome of them, as Paul, has forbidden it. And wilt thou not keep holy the fabbath of the Lord thy God?

2dly, It is facrilege, the worst of theft, to profane the fabbath-day. It is a robbing of God, a ftealing of time from him that is confecrated to him, and that is dangerous, Prov. xx. 25. We justly blame the churches of Rome and England, for robbing people of a great many days which God has given us: but how may we blame ourselves for robbing God of the day he has kept from us, and taken to himielf? Alas! our zeal for God is far below our zeal for ourfelves. They flick to their faints days, but how weary are we of our God's days? Mal. iii. 8.

3. The third reafon is taken from God's example, who though he could have perfected the world in a mo ment, yet spent fix days in it, and but fix days, refiing the feventh, taking a complacency in the work of his own hand; and this as an example to be imitated by us. Confider the force of this reafon.

ift, God's example propofed for imitation is a most binding rule, Eph. v. 1. Be ye followers of God. What God does is beft done, and we mut labour to write after his copy.

2dly, The profaning of the fabbath is a moft eminent and fignal contempt of God and of his works. Did God reft on the fabbath, taking a complacency in the fix days works? Our not doing fo is an undervaluing of what God fo highly efteemed, flighting of what he fo much prized, and confequently a contempt of himfelf and his works too.

4. The fourth reafon is taken from his bleffing the fabbath-day. His bleffing of that day is his bleffing it as a mean of bleffing us in the keeping of it. It imports,

ift, The Lord's putting a peculiar honour on it beyond all other days. It is the holy of the Lord and honourable. The King of heaven has made it the queen of days. Therefore it fhould be our question, What fhall be done to that day the King delighteth to honour? Let us beware of levelling that with common things which God has fo far advanced above them.

2dly, That the Lord has fet it apart for a fpiritual bleffing to his people, fo that in the fanctification of that day we may look for a bleffing, If. lvi. 6. 7. nay that the Lord will multiply his bleffings on that day more on his people than any other days wherein they feek it. So that as the Lord requires more on that day than on any other days, he alfo gives more.

3dly, That the Lord will make it even a fpring of temporal bleflings. He will not let the day of bleffings be a curfe to people in their temporal affairs. They fhall be at no lofs in their worldly things by the fabbath-reft, Lev. xxv. 20. 22. Confcientious keepers of the fabbath will be found to thrive as well otherwife as thofe who are not. The force of this reafon is,

(1.) God's honour by keeping of that day, that we may get his bleffings on it fhowered down upon us. So that the profanation of the fabbath is like profane Efau's rejecting the bleffing.

(2.) Our own intereft. Is it a fpecial day for bleffing, and fhall we not obferve it? It is an unworthy mistake to look on the fabbath as fo much loft time.

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