at nought, and mock him; yet the Crime for which he was more immediately punished, and that inftantaneously, directly, and fignally, by the Hand of Heaven itself, to a fuperficial Reader, and one who does not maturely and deliberately confider and weigh every Circumftance, will appear but very flight, and what the Generality of Papifts would fcarcely reckon even a venial Sin.

In effect, what Account does the Scripture give us thereof, Acts xii. 21, 22, 23 ? "And upon a "fet Day, Herod, arrayed in Royal Apparel, fat 66 upon his Throne, and made an Oration unto "them. And the People gave a Shout, faying it "is the Voice of a God, and not of a Man. And "immediately the Angel of the LORD fmote him, "because he gave not God the Glory; and he was eaten of Worms, and gave up the Ghoft."

Now, what is there in these Verses, that feems fo unpardonable a Crime in Herod, as to call down the immediate Judgment of Heaven upon him? He makes a Speech, probably a very elegant one; his Courtiers highly pleafed therewith (or at least pretending to be fo) exaggerate the Merits thereof, as the Manner of all Courtiers is, and breaking into loud Acclamations, wherein the People join them, cry out, It is the Voice of a God, and not of a Man. Would not any one, at first View, imagine all the Guilt, or at least the greatest Part thereof, in this Tranfaction, was chargeable on the Multitude, and not on the King? They flatter him extravagantly, and deify him; he only is not difpleafed, and acquiefces therewith.

In effect, from all that appears in Scripture, without the Gift of Revelation, the Guilt on both Sides feems to be pretty equal; the People, afcribe to him Honours, which were no ways due to him, or any created Being, and he accepts them, without tettifying

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teftifying his Diflike, and perhaps with an inward Complacency. But there are many Circumftances, which are only known to the great Searcher of Hearts, which might greatly inhance, and aggrayate the Guilt of the King, and extenuate and alleviate that of the People: On one fide, it might be only a high-trained Compliment, and a thoughtlefs Expreffion of their Praife; on the other, it might not only be accepted with Complacency, and fwallowed down with Pleafure, but might puff up Herod fo much, and might fo far intoxicate him with a Conceit of his own Merit, that he might inwardly give Way to a Belief, that he really was fomewhat more than an ordinary Mortal.

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Or, exclufive of all thefe Circumftances, he might have fo far aggravated his former Guilt, which undoubtedly was before very great, by his murdering the Apostle James; by his Defign to do the fame by Peter; by his putting to Death the innocent Keepers, on the Efcape of that Apoftle; and above all by his prophane Mockery of his great Creator; he might have fo far aggravated his former heinous Guilt, we fay, by this additional Crime, that he thereby filled up the Meafure of his Iniquity, and became the immediate Object of the Divine Vengeance. But however that be, of this we may be well affured, that the Almighty Judge of Quick and Dead, to whom the Secrets of all Hearts are open, and who is both infinitely just and infinitely merciful, and long-fuffering, faw a wide Difference between the Guilt of the one, and the others, or elfe he would equally have made them all alike Examples of his Juftice. We have now feen in the before-recited Inftances of Pharaoh, Sennacherib, Nebuchadnezzar, Holofernes, Belbazzar, Antiochus, and Herod, the dreadiul and fatal Confequences of violating this first great Precept of the Meral Law, commonly called the Ten Commandments, Thou shalt have none other Gods but me.

We

We

may likewife have obferved at the fame Time, the blefled and happy Effects of paying a due Regard thereto, in the Perfons of Mofes, Hezekiah, Shadrach, Mefback, and Abednego, Daniel, Judith, Judas Maccabeus, and his Brethren; who were under the immediate Protection of the Divine Power, and against whom all their Enemies in vain combined and confpired. We fhall, therefore, leave it to the Reflection of every confiderate Perfon, which State is the most eligible, to have the Almighty for our Friend, or Enemy, and which any one of commen Senfe would chufe.

CHAP... II..

Of the good and bad Confequences of the Obfervance, or Non-Obfervance of the 3 Second Commandment,

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THE Words of this Commandment are as follow: Thou shalt not make to thyself any Graven Image, nor the Likeness of any Thing that is in Heaven above, or in the Earth beneath, or in the Waters under the Earth. Thou shalt not bow down to them, nor worship them: For I the Lörd thy God am a jealous God, and vifit the Sins of the Fathers upon the Children, unto the Third and Fourth Ge neration of them that hate me, and fhew Mercy unto Thoufands of them that love me, and keep my Commandments. Now, the Thing here exprefly forbidden, is neither more nor less than the Worship of Images or Idols, that is, in other Words, Idolatry. And if, by thefe Expreffions, no more were meant than what is ge..

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nerally.

nerally understood by moft People, namely, the actual bowing down to Pictures or Images, and paying them religious Worship, all Proteftant's might fafely hug themselves (as we fear too many do without any good Grounds) with the Thought that they never were guilty of this heinous Sin. Nay, in one Senfe of the Word, namely the wor. fhipping of falfe Gods under the Shape of Idols, the Papifts themselves may please themfelves with the fame Fancy, and plead their Innocence, and confequently none but the Heathens will be found Offenders against this Law.

But, as has been before observed, the Divine Commandments are exceeding broad, and reach even to the Thoughts of the Heart; it will be well therefore, if, after a due Examination into every Branch of the Duties required, and Sins forbidden by this Law, we can any of us clear ourselves of having been actual, and frequent Offenders against it. We do not indeed imagine, that any of us Proteftants have worshipped the true God under any grofs corporeal Reprefentation, or have fet up the Images or Pictures of any Saints, or falfe Gods to adore them: But have we never come into the Place where the Divine Being is worshipped, and to be fuppofed more immediately prefent, with as little Awe, Reverence, and Refpect, as if it were only the Temple of an Idol ?

Now, what is this, but an heinous Violation of this Commandment? Do thofe fine Ladies and Gentlemen, that bow and curtly to each other across the Church, or hand about their SnuffBoxes, or ftare about them, or fall afleep, or perhaps giggle and laugh, confider this? Do they confider, that this Behaviour, which would hardly fuit a Playhouse, is far more unbecoming the Houfe of God? Can they poffibly be fo befotted as to think that is a Place to go to only to fee Fashions,

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and obferve the Drefs of their Neighbours? And yet, it is much to be feared, this is far from being the greateft Enormity committed there; it is much to be feared many go there only to ger, or fee their Sweet-hearts; to ogle and caft about their wanton Glances, lay Snares for each other, and make Conquefts.

Nay, which is yet worfe, and more criminal, if any Thing more criminal can be, it is much to be feared, many have proftituted the Houfe of GoD to the vileft Ufes, and made it a Place of Appointment and Rendezvous; if fome have not gone even farther yet, and made it a Place of Refort, where to pick up Wenches and Gallants? An Attempt, a Moral Heathen would have trembled at! It is much to be feared, the Cathedral of St. Paul's, and Weftminster-Abbey, have been but too often proftituted to fuch Ufes; whereby the audacious Offenders have literally made the Living GOD ferve with their Sins, as he emphatically complains, Isaiah xliii. 24. Are not all these Practices proclaiming that we look upon the Houfe of GoD as no more than the Temple of an Idol? Undoubtedly they are, and confequently every one who is guilty of them, is guilty of the higheft Profanation, and the groffeft Breach of this Commandment.

We know indeed, that amongst the Roman Ca tholicks, and especially in Spain, Portugal, and Italy, fuch Practices are very frequent, and in a manner openly avowed; for we can hardly read a Novel, written by their own Authors, where the Scene of Action is laid in those Countries, but we meet with Affignations and Appointments made at their Churches: But where is the Wonder fuch Things fhould be admitted amongst them, when it is notoriously known, they are daily guilty of actual Idolatry in the fame Place, and confequently of a literal and express Violation of this Commandment?

And