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SERMON IX.

ON THE CHASTENING

OF

THE ALMIGHTY.

SERMON IX.

JOB, V. 17.

Behold! happy is the man whom God correcteth, therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty.

IT is written in this instructive book of Job, that man is born to sorrow, as the sparks fly upward; that is, it is as natural, and as much to be expected, that man should be a sufferer, as that the sparks of the kindling fire should mount aloft into the air: and as we are almost daily spectators of the one, so are we of the other; and whoever imagines he shall be able entirely to escape from the tribulations, wherewith the children of men are afflicted, will e'er long find himself greatly mistaken. It is satisfactory, however, to reflect, that there is a divine Providence, which ruleth over all things; and every Christian, who reads his Bible with attention, will easily be convinced that God's mercies are over all his works, and that nothing can happen independently of the will of the Most High; and though God cannot be the

cause of sin, yet it may be said, even the evil, which he permits, will be eventually productive of some advantage; for "all things," however distressing they may be for a season, shall "work together for good to them that love God."* As the entertainment of this idea is truly worthy of the disciple of Jesus Christ, who seized every opportunity of inculcating it upon the minds of his followers, and is well calculated to support us under the various sorrows and calamities to which all are subject in this mortal life, I shall make it my business to prove

I. That the providential care of God extends to all his creatures;

II. That that, which men call evil, is the operation of his hand;

III. That all the sufferings, which any persons endure, are designed for their good; and from thence,

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IV. I shall take occasion to exhort you to endure the chastening of the Lord, and to esteem yourselves happy under his correction.

1st. I am to prove, that the providential care of God is extended to all his creatures; and for this purpose I desire you will attend, first, to the words which are written in the 6th Chapter of Saint Matthew, where, in order to prevent

*Rom, viii. 28.

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