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ly in his Prefence, to be Partaker of his Glories, to be ravished with his Love, to be acquainted with his Counfels, to know and be known by Angels, Arch-Angels, and Seraphims; to enjoy a Converfation with Prophets, Apoftles, and Martyrs, and all the Raised and Glorified Spirits of brave Men; and with all these to spend a happy and a rapturous Eternity, in Adoring, in Loving, in Praising God for the Infiniteness of his Wisdom, and the Miracles of his Mercy and Goodness to all his Creatures. Can there be any Pleasure like this? Can any thing in the World put you into fuch an Ecstafie of Joy, as the very Thought of thefe Things? With what a mighty Scorn and Contempt, will you in the Sense of them look down upon all the little Gauderies, and fickly Satisfactions, that the Men of this World keep fuch a ftir about? How empty and evanid, how flat and unfavoury will the best Pleasures on Earth appear to you, in comparison of thefe Divine Contentments? You will perpetually rejoice, you will fing Praises to your Saviour, you will blefs the Day, that ever you became acquainted with him; you will confefs him to be the only Mafter of Pleasure in the World, and that you never knew what it was to be an Epicure indeed, 'till you became a Christian.

Thus have I gone through all those Heads which I at first proposed to infift on. What

now

now remains, but that I refume the Apostle's Exhortation, with which I began this Difcourfe, That fince, as you have seen, Godlinefs is fo exceedingly profitable to all the Purpofes 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 Pleafantnefs, and all her Paths are Peace; You would alfo be perfuaded seriously to Apply yourselves to the Exercise of it.

Which that you may do, God of his, &ç,

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SERMON III.

PREACHED AT

BOW CHURCH,

On the 17th 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.

T

HIS Book of Ecclefiaftes gives us an Account of the feveral Experiments that Solomon had made, in order to the finding out, wherein the Happiness 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 induftrioufly apply himfelf to, or took a greater Liberty in enjoying thofe Good Things that are commonly moft 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 un- Eccl 1.13. der 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 last, that in Wisdom was much Grief; and he Ver. 18. that increaseth Knowledge, increaseth Sorrow.

He proved his Heart (as he tells us) with Chap. 2. Mirth and Wine, and all Sorts of Senfual Plea- Ver. 1, 3. fures, to find if thofe 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; and Ver. 2. of Mirth, What Good doth it?

He turned himself to Works of Pomp and Magnificence: He built him Stately Houses, and made him Gardens, and Vineyards, and Ver. 4. Orchards, and Fountains. He increased his Poffeffions, and gathered Silver and Gold, and Ver. 8. the precious Treasures of Kings, and of the Provinces. He got him a vaft Retinue, and kept him the molt 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

und er the Sun.

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 Imitation of the Uncertainty and Perplexednefs of all Humane Events; but withal, of the Exactness 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 Rejoice 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 arise from these Two Things, Rejoicing in the Enjoyment of them, and Doing Good to others, with them, while we live. Take away these 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 Should Rejoice and do Good in his Life. And to this purpose 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; Rejoicing, and Doing Good;

And

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