dom-from guilt to pardon-from death to life. Once they were dead in fin; under condemnation; exposed to the wrath of God; infenfible of danger; going on in their trefpaffes; accumulating guilt; and liable every moment to be loft in hopeless mifery. Now their fins are pardoned and their fouls renewed; they are under the care of God's grace, and the fecurity of his promife; they have a title to heaven; and the divine Spirit, dwelling in them, will preserve them unto falvation. Happy change: they may review, with admiration, the grace of God, which has redeemed them from fin, and prepared them unto glory. They may adopt the language of Paul; " I thank Chrift Jefus my Lord, that I have obtained mercy-The grace of my Lord is exceedingly abun

dant."

The angels above join in the general song of praife for the redemption. "The heavens fing, for the Lord hath done it." When the Saviour was born, a multitude of the heavenly host prais ed God, and faid, "Glory to God in the higheft; peace on earth; good will to men." There is new joy in their prefence, when a finner repents. Every conversion among guilty men; every acceffion to the church of Chrift becomes the theme of a new fong among those benevolent beings. When there is a general revival of pure religion, a large extenfion and increase of Chrift's church, they fhout forth their joy in loftier and louder strains: then the whole hierarchy join in the praise: "All the angels fall before God's throne on their faces, and worship him, faying, Amen. Bleffing, and glory, and wifdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power and might, be unto our God forever and ever.'

Angels rejoice in the redemption as a bleffing

to mankind. Their benevolence interefts them in the happiness of our race. They rejoice, when they fee finners redeemed from guilt, and brought to participate with them in the felicity of the world above.

They rejoice in the benefits which refult to themselves from the redemption. Though, having never fallen, they are not fubjects of this redemp tion, yet they derive unfpeakable advantages from it. Their knowledge of God's character and works, their admiration of his wisdom and grace, their love to him, and benevolence to his creatures, and confequently their real happiness, are increased by this difpenfation. Hence the apoftle fays, "He was fent to preach the unfearchable riches of Chrift, not only that men might fee what is the fellowship of the mystery, which had been hidden in the purpose of God; but also to the intent, that now unto principalities and pow. ers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wifdom of God, according to his eternal purpose in Chrift Jefus." Hence they join with the faints above in this new fong unto Chrift, "Thou art worthy to receive honour and power, for thou waft flain, and haft redeemed us to God by thy blood, and haft made us kings and priests unto him."

To the words of our text John alludes, when speaking of the redemption, he fays, "Every creature in heaven, and in earth, and under the earth heard I faying, Bleffing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that fitteth on the throne, and to the Lamb forever and ever.”

How glorious is this redemption, which awakens the praises of all holy intelligences? Great muft be the work, which thus interefts the be nevolence, excites the joy, and tunes the fongs

of angels, as well as faints. The joy, which it infpires in heaven, demonftrates, how important it is to our fallen race. Let guilty mortals repair to the mercy of that God, who hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Ifrael.

How awful is the demerit of fin, which could not be expiated without fo coftly a facrifice? How awfully is this demerit augmented in thofe, who reject the benefit of fuch a facrifice? If difobedience to God's law could not be pardoned without the atonement of Chrift's blood; what atonement will be found for those who trample this blood under foot? Their fin will remain; it will cleave more closely to their fouls; for them there is no more facrifice; wrath will come on them to the uttermoft.

How happy is the fecurity of true believers? "They are made accepted in the beloved." They are redeemed, not with corruptible things, but with the precious blood of Chrift. Their redemption is fure. A competent price has been paid. Through grace they have complied with the terms of their acceptance. Nothing fhall feparate them. from the love of God in Chrift. Rejoice in that which God has done for your fouls, and is doing in them-done to procure falvation for you, and to prepare you for falvation, and is doing to pre ferve you to it, and to qualify you more and more for it. Rejoice in all opportunities to celebrate his works of grace.

Come, my brethren, to this table of the Lord, with a thankful recollection of the mercies difplay. ed in your redemption; and here learn the fongs, cultivate the tempers, and feek the bleffings of those who are redeemed from the earth. Sing, for the Lord hath done it. Break forth into finging-fhout, for the Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Ifrael.

SERMON XVIII.

The Wheels of Providence.

A Faft Sermon, April 1806.

EZEKIEL i. 16.

Their appearance and their work was as it were a wheel in the middle

THE

of a wheel.

HE prophet Ezekiel was carried to Babylon among fome of the firft of the captive Jews. Before his captivity he faw many changes; and afterward by a spirit of prophecy he forefaw many more, which are recorded in this book.

The great events in providence, which awaited his own, and fome other countries, are represented to him in an emblematic vifion. He faw "a whirlwind rising out of the north," or out of Babylon, which lay northward of Judea. This betokened new calamities coming on his country from that quarter. "There was a great cloud and fire infolding itfelf;" or rolling in wreaths of fmoke, as when clouds are blown by a whirlwind. This denoted the terrible majesty and irresistible power of God's judgments executed on a guilty land. From the midft of the fiery cloud

" he saw four living creatures come forth," reprefenting the angels of God, who were the minif ters of his providence and the executioners of his wrath on guilty nations. Thefe living creatures, in all their movements, were under the direction of one governing Spirit. All the angels are "minifters of God, hearkening to his voice, obeying his commands, and doing his pleasure." They "had each four wings," with two of which they covered their bodies in token of their profound reverence, and with two they flew to perform the divine behefts. "Their wings were stretched out, and the wings of one touched those of another," to fignify that they moved in concert. "Whither the Spirit was to go they went, and they turned not, when they went ;" but proceeded with fteadiness in their work, till it was accomplished. To express the alacrity and rapidity of their motions, the prophet fays, "Their appearance was as a flash of lightening.'

In defcribing the fcenery of the vifion, Ezekiel further adds, that "by each of the living creatures there was a wheel." As there were four living creatures, fo there were four wheels. "And their appearance and their work were as the colour of Beryl, and they four had one likeness, and there was, as it were, a wheel in the middle of a wheel." This description is defigned to reprefent the mysterious, but regular manner, in which God guides and orders events in relation to the nations of the earth.

To illuftrate and improve this figurative representation of God's providence, is what we now defign.

I. The providence of God is represented by a wheel, to fignify, that it is always in motion-always operating, to effectuate its various defigns.