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Exhortation, with which I began this Difcourfe, That fince, as you have feen, Godliness is fo exceedingly profitable to all the Purposes of this Life, as well as the other; fince, as you have feen, Length of Days is in her Right-Hand, and in her Left-Hand Riches and Honour; and all her Ways, are Ways of Pleasantness, and all her Paths are Peace; You would also be perfuaded seriously to apply yourselves to the Exercife of it.

Which that you may do, God of his, &c.

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SERMON III.

Preached at

BOW-CHURCH,

On the Seventeenth of February, 1680.

ECCLES. iii. 12.

I know that there is no Good in them, but for a Man to rejoyce and to do good in his Life.

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HIS Book of Ecclefiaftes gives us an Account of the feveral Experiments that Solomon had made, in order to the finding out, wherein the Happinefs of Man in this World doth confift: And thefe Words are one of the Conclufions he drew from thofe Experiments.

No Man had ever greater Opportunities of Trying all the Ways wherein Men generally feek for Contentment, than he had; and no Man did ever more induftriously apply himfelf to, or took a greater Liberty in enjoying thofe good Things that are commonly most admired, than he did: And yet, after all his

Labours,

Labours, and all his Enjoyments, he found nothing but Emptiness and Diffatisfaction.

He thought to become happy by Philofophy; giving his Heart, as he tells us, to seek and fearch out all the Things that come to pass Eccl.1.13. under the Sun: Yet, upon Trial, he found all this to be Vanity, and Vexation of Spirit.

He apply'd his Mind to Political Wisdom, and other Sorts of Knowledge; and his Attainments in that Kind, were greater than of any that were before him: Yet he experienced at laft, that in Wisdom was much Grief; and he Ver. 18. that increaseth Knowledge, increafeth Sorrow.

Ver. 1, 3.

He proved his Heart (as he tells us) with Chap. 2. Mirth and Wine, and all Sorts of fenfual Pleafures, to find if those were good for the Sons of Men: and yet fo far was he from his defir'd Satisfaction in these Things, that he was forced to fay of Laughter, that it was mad; Ver. 2. and of Mirth, What good doth it?

He turned himself to works of Pomp and Magnificence: He built him ftately Houses, and made him Gardens, and Vineyards, and Ver. 4Orchards, and Fountains. He increased his Poffeffions, and gathered Silver and Gold, and Ver. 8. the precious Treafures of the Kings, and of the Provinces. He got him a vaft Retinue, and kept him the moft fplendid Court that ever any Prince of that Country did: Yet (as he tells us) when he came to look upon all the Works Ver. 11. that his Hands had wrought, and on the Labour that he had laboured to do, behold all was Vanity, and Vexation of Spirit, and there was no Profit under the Sun.

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But wherein then is there any Profit, if not in these Things? What is that Good that the Sons of Men are to apply themselves to, in order to their living as comfortably as the State of Things here will allow ? This Question (after an Intimation of the Uncertainty and Perplexedness of all Human Events; but withal, of the Exactnefs of the Providence of God, who hath made every Thing beautiful in its Seafon) he thus refolves in the Words of the Text, I know (faith he) that there is no Good in them, but for a Man to rejoyce and do good in his Life. That is to fay,

I have found by long Experience, that all the Happiness that is to be had in the good Things of this Life, doth arife from these Two Things, Rejoycing in the Enjoyment of them, and doing Good to others, with them, while we live. Take away thefe Two Ufes, and there is no good in them.

Or, if you please, we may interpret the First Part of his Propofition, not of Things but of Men, thus; I know there is no Good in them; i. e. I am convinced that there is nothing fo good for the Sons of Men; or, nothing that more contributes to their Happiness in this World, than that every Man fhould rejoice and do good in his Life. And to this Purpofe the Words are render'd by feveral Interpreters: But it is no matter which of the Senfes we pitch upon, fince in effect they come both to One Thing.

Two Things, then, Solomon here recommends to every one that would live comfortably in this World; Rejoying, and doing good:

And

And I do not know what can be more proper and feasonable to be recommended and infifted on to you at this Time, and on this Occafion, than thefe Two Things; for the putting them in Practice, makes up the whole Design of this Meeting.

We are here fo many Brethren met together to Rejoyce, and to do Good: To Rejoyce together in the Sense and Acknowledgement of God's Mercies and Bleffings to us, and in the Enjoyment of Society one with another: And to do Good, not only by increafing our Friendship and mutual Correfpondence, but by joining together in a chearful Contribution to thofe our Country-men that need our Charity. To entertain you therefore upon thefe Two Points, feems to be my proper Business.

But in treating of them, I fhall make bold to invert the Order in which they are put in the Text, and fhall firft fpeak of doing Good, though it be last named; and shall afterwards treat of Rejoycing. The Truth is, doing Good, in the Order of Nature, goes before Rejoycing; for it is the Foundation of it. There can be no true Joy in the Poffeffion or Use of any Worldly Bleffings, unless we can fatisfy ourselves we have done fome Good with them. It is the doing Good that fanctifies our other Enjoyments, and makes them Matter of Rejoicing.

Now in treating of this Argument, I shall briefly endeavour thefe Three Things.

First, I fhall earneftly recommend to you the Practice of doing Good, upon feveral

Confiderations.

Secondly,

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