Proportion to its Greatnefs; and looked upon its Greatness as a Ground of its Safety as well as Happiness. It came not into their Hearts to think of their great Wickednefs, or of any Danger they were in from thence. But their grievous Sins came up before God, and when they thought they were in higheft Happiness, and Safety, and Glory, by their being great, their Wickednefs had brought them to the very Brink of Destruction.

2. We may obferve from the Cafe of this City of Nineveh, that great Wickedness and Diffolutenefs of Manners meets with, as it merits, the Difpleafure of God, and kindles the fierceft Anger in his Breaft.

So the King of this great City feems, with Reason, to speak in the Words of the Text. He no fooner heard of the great Anger of God, but he knew what must be the Caufe of it. Nor can it be otherwife; for Wickedness is not only the Reverse of his own Conduct, but of all hisDefigns and Orders for ours. And how can he be other than highly difpleafed, when his wife Views are difappointed by their Sin? It carries in it the highest Abufe of his Gifts, as all our Bleffings are, and argues an entire Contempt of his Favour, and of his Government, and even of his Being. And when this is general, open, and enormous in great Cities, or States, or Kingdoms, how can it be feen by an all-fecing God without Indignation? He fees this Corruption of Manners in every Step of its ProB 2 grefs,

grefs, from its first creeping in, to its most confirmed Growth; and tho' his Anger does not inftantly break forth, yet he fees it not as Men do, with Coolness or Indifference or without Concern. Sooner may the tendereft Parent upon Earth fee his own Children abuse and infult him, or the beft of Kings, who is the Father of his People, fee his Subjects rife up in Rebellion against him, as in our prefent Cafe, with perfect Indifference, than God can fee the Kingdoms of the Earth despise his Goodness, withdraw from his Government fo far as they are able, and fet his Power at Defiance. But what is the overgrown Wickednefs of great and populous Kingdoms less than this? What other than defpifing him when he has done for them the best, and daring him to do against them the worst he is able? Whatever it is in the Eyes of Men, how does it come up before him? How cry for Vengeance and Defiruction at his Hands? Now the Word of the Lord came unto Jonah the Son of Amittai, faying, Arife, go to Nineveh that great City, and cry against it, for their Wickedness is come up before me.

3. God, how great foever is his Displeasure, and how fierce foever is his Anger, can never want Means of executing it when, and upon whomfoever he pleases.

There is no City, no Kingdom, how*fecure foever in their own Apprehenfions, and in the Apprehenfions of others, can guard against the Defigns, and ward off the Blows of divine Providence.

Providence. He who could follow Jonab into the Sea, with a great Wind and a mighty Tempeft, can as easily extinguish a great City, or extirpate a Kingdom, and either arm the refiftless Elements for their Ruin, or employ the Wicked, who are referved by him to the Day as the Inftruments of his Wrath, when he is refolved to execute it.

Great Nations pride themselves in their Arms, their Arts, their Riches, their Numbers, their Conquefts, or even their very Vices; but a Nation not remarkable for any of thefe, which follows after Righteoufnefs, is greater and dearer in the Eye of God, than the vastest Empire which is wicked as it is great; and no Kingdom's Greatnefs can fecure it from Deftruction, whofe Wickedness expofes it to God's Displeasure.

Was not Nineveh a great City, of three Days Journey, that is 60 Miles Compass, 20 Miles being in ancient Times a Day's Journey in common Computation for a Foot Traveller? Does not God inform this Prophet Jonah, that there were in it above fixfcore thousand Perfons who could not difcern between their Right-hand and their Left? And do they not seem to have been without Apprehenfion or Appearance of Danger, till Jonah came to them, and told them their Destruction was but forty Days off? And would God have threatned, if he did not defign, or was not able to have inflicted it? Many fuch great Cities and Kingdoms have fucceffively rifen and fallen in the World one

after

after another, but fcarcely fhall we find any Inftances or Examples of their falling to Ruin, till they had first paved the Way for it themfelves by their crying Vices. And whatever have been the Inftruments, there has been as vifible an Appearance of divine Agency in the Overthrow of fuch great wicked Cities and Kingdoms as perhaps in any Part of the Hiftory of Mankind.

4. God often informs a People of their Deferts, and threatens their Deftruction, to alarm and awaken them out of Security and Sin, with a Defign rather of preventing than executing deferved Judgments, and that they may rather escape than fuffer them.

God's Anger does not come to its Fiercenefs at first, but he is flow to Anger, and of great Mercy and Justice is his ftrange Work, nor has he ordinarily exercifed it against great Cities or Kingdoms which have fallen by it, but as a laft Refort, and when all the Means of Gentleness and Patience have been tried before, and have failed of their Effect.

Witness the Destruction of his own City, the City of Jerufalem, which Chrift fo affectionately wept over, faying, How often would I have gathered thee as a Hen gathers her Chickens under ber Wings, but ye would not. It had been tried with an unparallelled Tendernefs and Patience by Almighty God, but at length it fuffered to the Extremity of what could be inflicted by Men, in its final Overthrow.

With

With this View God fent his Prophet to the City of Nineveh, and for their daring Vices threatned them with Deftruction. The Preaching which he was fent with, feems to have run in an abfolute Strain, without expressly putting the Decifion of their Fate upon their Repentance or Impenitence, as appears from the Uncertainty which the King of Nineveh expreffes in my Text. Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce Anger that we perish not.

And this appears alfo from the Anger which Jonah expreffes at their being fpared, which tho' he might have fallen into confiftently with his having suspected only, could not have taken Place, if their Deliverance, upon Repentance, had been exprefsly promised in the Meffage he delivered to them. Yet fuch a Condition was undoubtedly understood, tho' not expreffcd, as appears by the Event, and by Jonah's Manner of chiding God; Was not this my Saying when I was yet in my Country? for I knew that thou art a gracious God and merciful, and flow to Anger, and of great Kindness, and repenteft thee of the Evil. d. Tho' I told not them, nor thou me that, if the Ninevites repented at thy Threatning, thou wouldeft not execute it, yet I knew it as well as if thou hadft said it in fo many Words, fo merciful is thy Nature, and fo compaffionate ever has been thy Conduct in fuch Cafes.

q.

5. When God threatens great Kingdoms for their great Wickednefs with grievous Destruc

tion,