I. The Persons here concern'd are Saul and David, the King of Israel and his Servant, the Father and the Son-in-law; and the State in which the Text shews us these two, was that of Enmity; it was the second time that Saul, with a premeditated form'd Design had hunted after David to destroy him; and 'twas the second time that God had put the for­mer in the latter's Power, and given his Life into his Hands, which he was tender of the second time, and spar'd it with his old and usual good Expression, God forbid that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lord's anointed; a noble Instance this, if 'twere alone, of a most excellent forgiving Nature, of firm and solid Virtue, of steady and unshaken Loyalty; but when consider'd with its Circumstances that attended it, the Provocations Saul had given, and the Advantages that David had, it will appear an Act so brave and generous, that it would be flat­tering up our selves in vain, to hope to see it ever parallel'd throughout.

Consider therefore first, the Prince that was his Captive now, and at his Mercy had somewhile since descended so below himself, as to become the Envier and Detractor from his Praise, was poorly jealous of the Honours he had purchased, and tried to blast the Laurels he had gather'd, at the expence of so much painful Toil and Hazard; and 'tis no [Page 7] little share of Grace and Goodness, that can restrain a young aspiring Hero, from taking Vengeance on the Maligners of his Praise, and from removing all Impediments in his pursuit of Fame and Glory.

Consider, Secondly, This was the Prince that had attempted twice to murther him himself, had thrown his Javelin twice to fix him to the Wall, and chose to make himself the Executioner of his own Choler and Revenge, hearkening ungratefully to the Suggestions of that Evil Spirit, which the good Youth was at the present labouring with his Musick to appease and charm; and when Mens Lives are so apparently sought after, they usually lay all Respects aside, and listen to the Dictates of unruly Nature.

Thirdly, He was a false perfidious Prince, under pretence of honouring and advancing him, he had remov'd him from himself, and made him Captain over a Thousand; and still to make the Matter less suspicious, said unto him, Behold my elder Daugh­ter Merab, her will I give to thee for Wife, only be valiant for me, and fight the Lord's Battels. But what follows? For Saul said, let not mine hand be on him, but let the hand of the Philistines. No­thing affects a generous Mind so sensibly, as being cheated under shew of Friendship; and Treachery is never viler, than when 'tis covered with the Mask of Godliness.

But, after all, it came to pass, at the time when Me­rab, Saul' s Daughter, should have been given to David, that she was given to Adriel the Meholathite to Wife; an affront in its own Nature very great undoubted­ly; but such as, according to the Maxims of our [Page 8] modern Gallantry were never to be pardoned. But worser yet; When Michal's voluntary Love had amply satisfied the disappointment he had had in Merab, the unrighteous Father, harden'd in his Cruelty, would make his Daughter instrumental in the murthering of his Son-in-law, would have the Left-hand cut the Right one off, the Wife conspire against her Lord and Husband, and betray the Life she lov'd and priz'd above her own. And when a Man has thus apparently attempted to debauch the Loyalty, and break the Union of the Marriage-Bed, to dissolve those Sacred Bands, to interrupt the sweetest Commerce of Man's Life, and violate all the ties of Nature, Reason, and Religion, by a practice of such horrid and unnatural Wickedness, there is hardly any excess of Fury so exorbitant, but seems at first excusable, in a thus injured and abused Husband. But God forbid, said David, not­withstanding all this, that I should stretch my hand against the Lord's anointed. The Villany of this Attempt, the Wickedness of Saul, and David's Ver­tue, might yet be raised, by considering what were the effects of this his Rage and Disappointment; he was so cruel that he took the Princess from her Husband, broke off the comfort of her Life, and sent her to a Strangers loath'd unhallow'd Bed; and even when Jonathan himself, his noblest best beloved Son, the prop and comfort of his Age, the light and joy of Israel, the glory of his House, and the support of his Kingdom, came but to intercede in his Friend's behalf, and to excuse his Absence, Saul's Anger was so enkindled at him, that he cast a Javelin at him, to have nail'd him to the Wall; [Page 9] a piece of Rage and brutal Violence that Nature wants a name for, but a sure Indication, that such a settled Wrath was never to be appeased, and there­fore never to be ventured more, and therefore now secur'd for ever.

But farther, he was Perjur'd, He had but lately taken a solemn Oath before the Lord and Jonathan, David should not be Slain; when behold, upon the first awakening of his Evil Spirit, even whilst his Vows were warm upon his Lips, he threw himself the second Javelin at his Heart, and threw away all Faith and Honour with it. And when a Prince hath thus abandon'd common Honesty, broken the sacred Cords that knit Societies, and keep up Go­vernments and mutual Correspondences, together with Relations Natural and Civil, and by his Per­juries, provok'd the Vengeance of God, and is de­livered into the Hands of those whose Innocence and good Credulity he had impos'd on, and abus'd almost to their Destruction, Oh! what a mighty measure of God's Grace must fill the Heart of him, that then could say, The Lord forbid that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lord's anointed.

There are some things besides our Lives and Per­sons, in which if we are touch'd, we think our selves extreamly Injur'd; and they are specially our Friends, our Fortunes and Religion; and David was in every one of these affected more or less by Saul's implacable pursuit, and hunting after him. He was constrain'd to change his Habitation, carry his Fa­ther and his Mother, and his whole Family, into a strange Country, aged and feeble, as they needs must be. To be forc'd, when one is growing old, [Page 10] and stooping with Infirmities, to forsake ones Na­tive Place, the Dwelling of ones Ancestors, the Comforts of good Neighbourhood, the usual Pro­spects and familiar Objects of ones Sight, with all the old Conveniencies of Life, in the way one is in, for a strange Country, barbarous Neighbours, new Laws and Usages, and Tongue unknown, must needs be hard and troublesome to humane Nature, and an Oppression scarce to be endur'd: Yet this was David's Case, who felt these Evils in himself, but much more sensibly in the Distresses of his Parents, who, by the fury of the King, were driven to Mis­peh, of the King of Moab.

And then for his Estate, it could not otherwise be but he must suffer much in that respect, it was impossible to remove his whole Effects: King's have long Hands, and piercing Eyes, and by their Offi­cers can reach and see at mighty distance: And Saul had Harpies in his Court undoubtedly, as well as other Kings, ready to beg and seize upon the E­states of such as by their Crimes or their Misfor­tunes, were obnoxious to the King's Displeasure.

Lastly, for his Religion, Although he suffer'd no­thing for or by it, yet much he suffer'd for the want of it; to be driven away into wicked and ido­latrous Country, and be debarr'd the exercise of his Religion, to be hurried from God's Temple, and the communicating in the appointed daily Service of that Holy Place, was little less than painful Mar­tyrdom to one so zealously and so devoutly bent, as David was.

Let any Man recount the Evils I have mention'd, summ up the Persecutions and the Provocations of King Saul, and set before his Eyes, himself, or any one in David's Case, wrong'd in his Honour, di­vorc'd from his Nuptial-Bed against his Will, de­spoil'd of his Estate and Property, wounded in the Distresses and Afflictions of his Parents, attempted privately to be destroy'd, pursued in Publick as an Enemy, and hunted like a Partridge on the Moun­tains, and forc'd to wander like a Fugitive, and seek his Bread out in desolate Places, and in a manner Ex­communicated, by being barr'd the use and exercise of his Religion. Let any Man, I say, but put himself in these bad Circumstances, and find himself in a capa­city of delivering himself from out of them, as David was, and think with himself what he would do. No,—'tis not that I would advise him to,—Let him rather think what David here did,— The Lord forbid, that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lord's anointed.

There's hardly any one of all these single Passages that happens to our selves, or our Acquaintance, but puts us to extremity, and provokes us beyond all Patience, we call it an intollerable Oppression, and weary Heaven and Earth with our Complaints, and think our selves undone, till we have found our Satisfaction or Revenge. How restless are we in contriving Snares, how quick in catching Oppor­tunities, and how malicious in improving them to our ill-natur'd purposes! Much otherwise was it with Righteous David here, who call'd not to his Mind his past Wrongs, nor cast his Dangers and Oppressions up, to make a terrible Account; who [Page 12] consulted not with Flesh and Blood, nor debated the Matter with those ill Advisers within, his Cho­ler and Revenge, who cure one Evil by a hundred worse: Yet He, as he had most Reason, so had he most Opportunities, and most Advantages, to carve out whatever Satisfaction he might judge sufficient: Which is what for his Honour, and our Instruction I must Secondly insist on.

He was, first, the King's Son-in-law, one of the greatest Honours in the Kingdom, and an Advance­ment that must needs draw after it, a great many Friends and Favourites, and make him strong Al­liances at Court; and tho' those Friendships com­monly live but like Flies, while the benign and quickening Influences of the Sun continue, and dye upon the Frowns and Lowrings of their Prince; yet 'twere too hard a reflection on the lightness of those places, to think such solid Vertue, and unquestion'd Merit, as eminently shone in David, had not ac­quir'd him a considerable Party, and a well-grounded Interest at Court.

But, Secondly, he was a mighty Man of Valour, he fought the Lord's Battels; he was the Sword and Shield, the Horsemen and the Chariots of Israel. He was the Scourge of the Philistines, and indeed of all the Idolatrous Nations round; the great De­fender of the Jewish Faith, and the Supporter of God's Worship. And 'tis hard to think a Man thus qualified, should fail of bearing sway amongst the Soldiery, and being gracious in the Camp; and all Men know, how far that tends to the promoting and securing any great Designs.

Thirdly, This David was belov'd of all the Peo­ple, the Favourite of his Country, the very Idol of the Crowd. His Youth, his Beauty, his attractive Grace, and popular Deportment, together with his Virtue and his Valour, had stol'n the Peoples Hearts, and charm'd them so to Love and Admiration, that he became the Theme of their perpetual Talk, their Songs and Dances were compos'd in honour of his great Archievments, and all their Instruments of Joy and Musick, were tun'd to his invidious Praises. How harsh and rude must those Expressions of their Pleasure be, how unmannerly and ill-natur'd a Tri­umph, to have the Women come to meet the King himself, and grate him with the burthen of their Song, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands. I do not wonder much, when I con­sider humane Nature, that Saul, (as it follows in the next Verse) was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and then upon a repetition of that Sentence, 'twas very natural to inferr, What can he have more but the Kingdom? 'Tis fatal to a Prince to lose him­self, or suffer any else to get the Affections of his People. A King may be as wroth as Ahasuerus was, and may decree terrible things, and Priests may preach up Patience and Obedience long enough; but 'twill not do, unless the Affections of the Sub­ject go along therewith. He that hath never got­ten these, or lost them once, may find to his cost, when e'er he comes to try, that the ties of Duty are not half so strong as the bands of Love; nor the Service of the Body comparable to the Affecti­ons of the Mind. Whereas he that hath gain'd the Heart, will certainly be Master of the Hand and [Page 14] Service on Occasion. And this was it that Saul foresaw and dreaded so; and this was it that David was already in possession of. But notwithstanding all this, great as he was in Court, great as he was in Camp, and greater yet in favour of the People, he would not venture on the impious Fact, still it was, The Lord forbid that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lord's anointed.

The Lord forbid;—yet David knew it was this very Lord, that had rejected Saul from being King, that rent the Kingdom from him, and that repented he had ever made him King at all. Nay, David knew himself the Man design'd by God to be his Succes­sor, and had accordingly been anointed King by Samuel, at the Town of Bethlehem.

'Tis surely with Ambition, as with other Passions, the fantastick and imaginary Joys are greater than the experienc'd and substantial ones: The Hopes and Expectations far exceed the pleasures of Pos­session. Whatever Cares belong to Crowns, they lye conceal'd within their Circles, and are more seldom seen than felt; and therefore more engage in their pursuits, than are contented when they get them. But this Temptation found no place with David, young, and gay, and vigorous as he was, and even so near the Crown, that by conniving at Abishai's Blow, he might have been in full and sure possession of it; yet he suffered not himself to be transported beyond the Bounds of rigid Honesty and Loyalty; and still cries out, The Lord forbid.—

Now, to conclude, and to compleat this Cha­racter, add, Lastly, to these great Advantages, of being Son-in-law, a mighty Man of Valour, and [Page 15] accepted in the sight of all the People, of knowing Saul rejected, and himself design'd for Successor, the greatest yet of all Advantages, and that is Op­portunity; that without which all others signifie but little; and that with which alone Men serve their turns, and make up the defects of all the rest; that Pandar to all Sin, and fatal Snare of Virtue! That that has ruin'd many thousand Souls, and betray'd them into most detestable Commissions; sometimes against the best Convictions of their Understanding; nay, and sometimes against their Vows and Resolu­tions; Opportunity, that few have Virtue, few have Strength sufficient to withstand! and of all Oppor­tunities, none are so strong, and work so power­fully upon the Minds of Men, as those that look like Providential ones, and seem to come from God. Yet this was David's Opportunity, and yet with­stood. Behold, said the Men of David to him, Chap. 24. and ver. 4. Behold the day, of which the Lord said unto thee, Behold I will deliver thine Ene­my into thine hand, that thou may'st do unto him as shall seem good unto thee. And again, in the Chap. of the Text, and ver. 8. Then said Abishai to David, God hath delivered thine Enemy into thine hand this day; now therefore let me smite him, I pray, with the Spear unto the Earth, at once, and I will not smite him the second time. As if he had said, Look round you, noble Youth, and see how Heaven and Earth conspire in your Advancement; mark how the Providence of God hath ordered every thing in your behalf, contriving every Circumstance to concurr in setting the Crown upon your Head. How many Psalms have you compos'd, how ma­ny [Page 16] Vows, how many earnest Prayers have you put up, that God would visit your Afflictions, confound your Enemies, and redeem you from Distress? Behold then, in this Opportunity, your Prayers are answer'd, and your Vows returned. This is the Day, this is the Time, of which the Lord said, I will deliver thine Enemy into thy hand. Is it not he, and he alone, hath wrought this great Salvation for thee? with his own Right-hand, and with his holy Arm, hath he bestow'd on thee this Victory; what could our few and feeble Troops have done against a Royal Army, had not the Finger of God been visible in all this Action? Had not his gracious Providence dispos'd of all Events in favour of your Claim? It is the Lord's doing, and marvellous in all our Eyes; improve it therefore to his Honour, and the advancing his Designs, in setting you over his chosen People. Will you withstand the Purposes of God, or will you not concurr with his good Providence? God hath deliver'd Saul into your hands, and do not tempt the Lord, by slighting or neglecting of his Times and Seasons; 'twere Madness and Impiety to let him 'scape: You must not think the Lord will work out such Deliverances every Day; to Day you are a Conqueror and a King, if you but please; to Morrow you may be a Rebel and undone, and who shall pity you? You shall not need to imbrue your own Hands in his Blood; you shall not need to incurr the Odium of Com­manding such a thing to any else; I'll spare your Fame, the Guilt of both; permit me only, by my self, to be the Minister of Providence, the Execu­tioner [Page 17] of God's Designs. This was the sense and purport of Abishai's Speech, and carried so much force and worldly Reason with it, that none but one that had the fear of God continually before his Eyes, could possibly withstand it, or say with David, The Lord forbid that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lord's anointed.

And now having done what right I could to the particular State and Circumstances of Saul and Da­vid, King and Subject, and shew'd such Provocati­ons on the one hand, and such Temptations and Advantages on the other, as it may be never did before, or never will again hereafter happen

I am to proceed, and consider, Secondly, the Reason David gave for his refusal of Abishai's, and the Sol­diers Proffer, It is the Lord's anointed.

By the Lords anointed is here meant, the Man that was by God's designation and appointment, a­nointed King or Captain over all the People, which was done by the Ceremony of pouring a Vial of Oyl upon his Head, and kissing him: So that the anointed of the Lord, signifies no more than an or­dinary King with us. David therefore would not stretch forth his Hand against Saul, because he was his King: He would fly from before him, though he was his King, as he did from Keilah; and he would gather up 600 Men to guard him from the Violence of (I will not say the King, but) his ille­gal and blood-thirsty Servants that pursued him: But he would not touch the King's Life; and be­cause he has express'd no other reason, than that he was the Lord's anointed, that is, a King, we must [Page 18] either conclude, that the Laws of God, or the fun­damental Constitutions of the Nation had guarded the Persons of their Kings from any Violence; or else that David abstained, out of a principle of Ten­derness; or from the unreasonableness of the thing it self; or from the Infamy that always waited on that wicked Practice. The Laws of God, did cer­tainly secure the Lives of Kings as well as other Mens, if it did no more. And it appears, by the very name of Treason, that the Civil Constitution had preserv'd the Royal Person sacred and inviola­ble; and if we take our Measures from the absolute and arbitrary Sway of all the Eastern Monarchs, we cannot but conclude the Customs of Judaea, a­mongst the rest, must have conciliated a mighty Awe and Reverence to their Princes.—And for the unreasonableness of such Attempts, it is plain, that a Government can't possibly subsist for any time, where any kind of Violence is allowed against the Magistrate. We see what wicked work is made in some unhappy States, where private Executions of Revenge, betwixt Particulars, are indulg'd, or fre­quently conniv'd at. But Government is at an end, where Rulers are expos'd to popular Assaults, or private Assassinations. Besides, there is a great in­decency in the nature of the thing, to see the Lord and Master of a Nation reduc'd to wretched Villany; to see the Man, whom all the Kingdom honour'd and ador'd, despis'd and trampl'd on; but most of all, to find a Sovereign Arbiter and Disposer of his Subjects Lives, to be despoil'd of his own: But, Lastly, 'tis, and has always been, and always will, I hope, be infamous, to shed their Blood.

Altho' Mankind has generally a relish of Liberty, and has for every Age receiv'd the mention of its brave Asserters, with Reverence and Esteem; yet, I know not how, where-ever it has been vindicated by the Blood of Kings, (tho' they were truly very bad) it gives some kind of Shock to human Na­ture, and blemishes the glory of the Action.

Never, perhaps, was any Man more sitted for the vindicating the ancient Liberties of Rome, than M. Brutus was, a Sober, Vertuous, Honest, and Disin­terested Man, freed from all imputation of Revenge or Malice, by his Enemies, and one that had no other prospect in the World, than the redeeming of his Country from its Slavery; and yet, because he could not compass his Intent, but by the death of its brave Ravisher, his Vertues and most noble Qualities have all been lost under the Infamy of Parricide and Traytor; so natural an abhorrence have all Men for shedding of Princes Blood, and taking away their Lives.

But what then, is the World provided for no bet­ter than so? Hath God indeed subjected all Man­kind to the tyrannick, impotent, and arbitrary Sway of some few Men, who have sometimes less Wisdom, and frequently less Vertue than their Neighbours? it fares but ill, it seems, with us, when our Estates and Properties, our Lives and Persons, Wives and Daugh­ters, our Liberties and our Religion too, are put into the hands of some weak, wicked, or perverse, yet uncontrollable Humour; will not this Impunity breed greater Licentiousness in Princes, and augment the slavery of the Subjects to such degree, as it can go no lower; and so the sacredness of one Man [Page 20] shall be the ruine of many Thousands? In answer to this, we must acknowledge, that according to Nature and good Reason, there seems to be a great deal of Iniquity and Partiality in these Cases; but we must say withal, that Religion is neither charge­able with these Hardships, nor answerable for them; God hath declar'd himself in favour of no one sort of Government, with respect to all the World, nor laid it, by Command on all People: Our Saviour said, His Kingdom was not of this World, and did indeed concern himself with nothing of it. St. Peter and St. Paul did press Obedience and Subjection on the Christians, as they found occasion; but then it was Obedience and Subjection to the Laws and dif­ferent Constitutions of the different Governments they liv'd under, and did not thereby change, or think of changing them.

There were, no question, in the Apostles Days, very different Forms of Government in the World, some Absolute, and some Limited, some made their Will the Law, and others govern'd according to known and settled Laws; some succeeded by way of Inheritance, and others were elected to the Rule: Now, if when St. Peter and St. Paul press the Christians they wrote to, to Submission and Obedience, they only mean, that those particular Christians should obey the par­cular Governments they liv'd under; then there a­rises no Obligation to any other Christians to obey their Governours, by Virtue of any thing said by these Apostles. But if all Christians are hereby understood to be exhorted to Obedience to their Governours (as most undoubtedly they are) then are all Christians exhorted to pay such Obedience to their Governours, as the particular Constitution [Page 21] of the Government they liv'd under call'd for and requir'd. And then the Christians who liv'd under an absolute Monarch were to pay such Obedience as that Government requir'd; and the Christians who liv'd under a limited and mixed Monarchy, were to obey as that Government requir'd; and so of all the rest, they were all to submit themselves to the several Governments they liv'd under; for 'tis not to be presum'd, that St. Peter and St. Paul by their pressing and commanding Christians to sub­mit to and obey their Governours, chang'd the se­veral Forms and Constitutions of Government, and requir'd the Christians of a limited and mixed Mo­narchy, to obey their Superiors, in the same man­ner, measure, and degree, as those of an Absolute one did theirs; but Christianity requir'd such Obe­dience as the Laws and Customs of the Country call'd for, and exacted at their hands: And truly, it would be strange to imagine, that Christianity should press Men to obey, in Instances where the Laws of the Country require no Obedience, since every Country is presum'd to understand, and con­sult its own Interest best, and to secure such Obe­dience from the Subjects, as would best procure and continue such their Interest. And therefore if one Country had liked and approved of such a Form and Constitution of Government, and found it best and fittest for it, with respect to its Situation, and its Neighbourhood, and to the Temper and the Ge­nius of its People and Inhabitants; if it had pitch'd upon such Laws, as it found by Experience most convenient for it, if such and such were the Powers and Prerogatives of the Superiours, and such and such the Privileges and Immunities of the Subjects, [Page 22] Christianity did not intend to alter this, and say, that the Superiors shall have more Power and a fuller Authority over the People, and the People shall have less and fewer Privileges than what are already agreed to on both hands. Neither did it come to set the People higher, and the Princes lower than they were. Christianity did not meddle with these Matters, nor say any thing on either side; but coming to settle Peace and Quiet, Truth, and Honesty, Justice and Religion, in the Hearts of all Men, and to make the whole World easie and happy; it commanded Governours to exercise their Power with Justice and Uprightness, with Cle­mency and Prudence, and all Subjects to obey with Reverence and Submission, with Patience and Con­tentedness; but it came not to alter Constitutions, nor to give either Governours or People more Power and Authority than they had before: For if it had, it had brought a Sword along with it, it had come to set the Princes of the World at variance with the People, and the People with their Princes, to pre­judice Mens Civil Rights and Liberties, and put them in a worse Condition, as to this World, than they were in before, by overthrowing settled Laws, by undoing Compacts and Agreements, the only Preservatives of Civil Society. In a word, there would be no end of the Mischiefs that would ensue upon understanding Christianity, to oblige all Peo­ple of the World alike to Obedience and Submission to their Rulers, without respect to the different Laws and Constitutions of different Kingdoms and Governments; and it would be a very bad Account and Character of that Religion. Whereas, if Chri­stianity [Page 23] came to urge Obedience to the Laws of every Country (not Barbarous, Obscene, nor Im­pious, nor any ways execrable) it came to secure that Country in the way and manner it thought the best and fittest for its Interest and Happiness, and brought a Blessing with it, and shewed both to Prince and People, what was the Measure and the Rule of the ones Power, and of the others Obedi­ence; a thing most necessary to be known, where the Event is of so great Importance, both in this World, and that to come. Since therefore Christi­anity came not to make the Laws that Subjects must obey, but to urge the Subjects to obey the Laws made by the Legislative Power, where-ever that resides; there is no reason why it should be charg'd with any of the Mischiefs or the Inconveniencies of a Government too absolute, or too much limited▪ And therefore, (to bring the Matter home) the un­limited extent of Power, placed in the Princes hands, or the sacredness of his Person, or his being unac­countable to any one for his Proceedings; are things that depend entirely on the Civil-Constitution, and we must know them from the Laws, and the con­tinued Usages and Customs of the Country, imme­morial, or agreed upon.

No doubt but Kings may take up Crowns on pit­tiful and wretched Terms, as well as Subjects wil­lingly submit their Liberties to the Will of Princes; and each of them must stand to the Conditions, tho' very inconvenient ones, till they can honestly ob­tain better. I know no better, and no other cer­tain Rule, for all the World to consider, than this, Look to the Constitution, look to the Laws and Customs [Page 24] of a Country, if you would know the Prince's Power or Peoples Privilege. It is not to the Men of great Reason, and much Reading, the finest Speculators and Essayers, one should be refer'd to, upon these Occasions, but to the Histories and Re­cords, the Laws and Statutes, Customs and Usages, that are accepted in a Nation; and therefore, where, by these, we find the Lives and Liberties of Princes are held Sacred and Inviolable; 'tis to no purpose to object the Inconveniencies, both real and ima­ginary, that may arise from such Impunity. Look to the Laws and Constitution. I see, in such a Case, no way is left, but to say with David, in the Text, —The Lord shall smite him, or his day shall come to dye, or he shall perish in the Battel, but God forbid, that I should stretch forth my hand against the Lords anointed.

The Lord shall smite him, or his day shall come, or he shall perish in the Battel, that is, I leave him to God's disposal; let God, the Judge of all the Earth, do with him as he pleases. And tho' we think the leaving wicked Kings to God, is the lightest and the kindest Expression of nothing in the World that can be; yet we would quickly alter our Opi­nions, and be of David's Mind, if we would give our selves leave to consider,

First, That he hates Injustice more.

Secondly, That he is much more ready. And,

Thirdly, Much more able to punish it than we can be.

First, He hates it more: He hates it purely for the malice of its Nature, and its intrinsick Evil. We only for our own, and Interests sake, because we either feel or dread its Mischiefs. He hates Op­pression, Tyranny, and Cruelty, because they are the Contradictions of his own Divine, and the Corruptions of our Humane Nature: They are directly opposite to his most glorious Attribute of Justice, to his most gracious ones of Mercy and Compassion. He looks with Indignation on those haughty Sons of Violence and Injustice, that abuse the Power that God entrusted them, and the great Titles that he honoured them withal, for the use and benefit, to the destruction and confusion of the World, only to satisfie their cruel Rage or vain Ambition. There's not a Groan nor Murmur of the poor oppress'd, but makes its way to Heaven, and finds accession to the Throne of Grace; He num­bers all our Sighs, and counts our Tears, and notes down our Afflictions in his Book, and treasures them in Wrath, against the Day of Wrath. And if we would be strong and patient for a while, and tarry but the Lord's leisure, we should certainly see, he is a God that hates▪ and punishes Iniquity.

Secondly, He is much more willing to punish wick­ed Governors than we can be. Not that the Good­ness of God is so ready to afflict or grieve the Sons of Men, as they are to deserve it, or that the human Fury does not sometimes anticipate the divine Vengeance, but that it is more present to his Na­ture, and more immediately his Will, to punish Sin, than it can possibly be with us. The love of Ju­stice, [Page 26] and the hate of Sin is so essentially united to his Being, that one may sooner fancy no Divinity at all, than that it is not willing to reward the proud Oppressors after their deservings.

Men may be brib'd by Passions, Interest and Affe­ctions, some from persuing, others from administring the Justice due to great Offenders. The fears and threatnings of Displeasure, the hopes of Favour and Advancement, the charm of soft Words, and the natural pity of Mankind, have oftentimes di­verted the most Resolv'd, and laid the fury of the most Enrag'd. But God, as he sees not with Mens Eyes, so neither is he mov'd with human Motives; but is inflexible in his Decrees, which are to punish great Delinquents with great Wrath; and has de­clar'd, that nothing but sincere Repentance can prevent his Judgments.

And, Lastly, He is much more able. He is able to punish them in this Life, and in the next: He can punish them in this Life, by defeating all their Enterprises, and blasting all their Purposes; by in­fatuating their Counsellors, and turning the Wis­dom of Achitophel to Folly and Destruction; by suffering the Enemy to sow Dissentions, Strife, and Discord in their Nations; by alienating the Affe­ctions of the People; by scattering the Spirit of Fear and of Distrust throughout their Armies, and causing them to turn their Backs upon their Ene­mies; and by reducing them themselves to Misery and great Distress; and sometimes suffering them to perish by the Sword, or some more ignominious Death, as well as common Men. But if this be [Page 27] not enough, let them know, that he is able, after he has destroyed the Body, to cast both Soul and Body into Hell Fire. Tophet, saith Isaiah, the 30th and the 33d, is prepar'd for the King, he hath made it deep and large; the Pile thereof is Fire, and much Wood; the breath of the Lord, like a stream of Brim­stone doth kindle it. Hear therefore, O ye Kings, (in the 6th of the Wisdom of Solomon) and under­stand; learn ye that be Judges of the ends of the Earth; give ear you that Rule the People, and glory in the multitude of Nations; for Power is given you of the Lord, and Sovereignty from the Highest, who shall try your Words, and search out your Counsels; because being Ministers of his Kingdom, you have not judg'd aright, nor kept the Law, nor walked after the Counsel of God; horribly and speedily shall he come upon you; for a sharp judgment shall be to them that be in high places; for Mercy will soon pardon the meanest, but mighty Men shall be mightily tormented.

And is it not a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God, thus sharpen'd and pre­par'd to execute full Vengeance on ungodly Go­vernors? it is not therefore so unreasonable and trifling a thing, as is commonly reputed, to say, that wicked Princes must be left to God; it is say­ing, they are left to one that hates them with a perfect Hatred; to one that will and can pour out the Vials of such Wrath upon their Heads, as nei­ther Eye can see, nor Tongue express, nor Heart of Man conceive, and that to all Eternity.

And having thus gone through my Text, I should in the last place, apply my self to the sad Occa­sion of this Days assembling; but having been so free in handling the first Parts, I shall scarce be allow'd to do right at full to this; and there is, I hope, the less occasion for it, because the sad Hi­story is so well known, and so sufficiently regreted and deplored by honest Men; and the design espe­cially of this Anniversary, being more for the Use, Instruction, and Advantage of the living Subject, than for the Praise and Honour of the dead King, the Discourse I have rais'd from the Text, will, if attended to, answer the greater and the better end; and there is little need to meddle with the second and the less.

That Princes Praises speak themselves aloud; and tho' Misfortunes add great lustre to Mens Virtues, and set them off to great Advantage (as Tears shew some fair Faces yet more beautiful,) yet Charles the First might well have past for one of our most excellent Kings, altho' he had not had the exercise of such Afflictions as he met withal, but had been always Fortunate. But having had the advantage of those Tryals, and thereby practis'd many other Vir­tues rare and unseen in Kings, I know not now whom to prefer before him; and God forbid I should be thought to put him under the disadvan­tage of representing Saul in the Comparison. He was (and that is as much as I can say) no more like Saul, than any of his Murtherers, was like David. If there was some Misgovernment, and some unhappy Male-administration in his Reign (as who can be so [Page 29] ignorant and partial to deny it) we must, if we will be just to the Truth, discharge his Person, in great measure of it, and lay it where it ought to lye, much of it on some of his indiscreet and zea­lous Servants, who were unquestionably Men of better Meaning than Abilities, and who appear (at­least at so much distance) not to have understood sufficiently the Ground they stood upon, the Times they liv'd in, and the Men they had to deal withal: And some what on the Passions of Her, who (tho' she could intend no ill to him, yet) through her fondness for her Party (that constant mischief to this Nation) embroil'd him first with his distem­per'd People. But having taken this liberty, I ought to add, that never were Miscarriages improv'd to such a height, nor aggravated with more Malice. Their Adversaries got some Truths, and us'd them, as the Devil does the Scriptures, always perversely, and to bad Purposes; they mingled them with odi­ous Calumnies and Slanders, and treacherous Insinu­ations; and made them help to make the stronger Poyson, and to disperse it more effectually into the Peoples Veins.

As to the Personal Virtues of this Prince, Envy it self hath never yet found any thing to say against them. Sober and Temperate to a wonder, Chaste to his Queen, and faithful to his first Vows; of so pure Innocence, and such unspotted Sanctity in that behalf, that Calumny hath never fixt so much as a Suspicion on his Reputation. And for his Zeal to God, and his Devotion to his Service, his con­stant Attendance, and good Behaviour in his Prayers, [Page 30] his firm Adhesion to the Church, not out of Pre­judice or pertinacious Obstinacy in what he had been educated, but true and solid understanding of her Constitution, with his great Care and Love to all her Ministers, as they were made his Crimes and Accusation by his Enemies, so by his Friends they have been made an Objection to God's Provi­dence, in suffering such a Righteous Prince to fall into the hands of such abominable People; and such an Objection as must stay (they think) to be solv'd by that great Day, when all such Argu­ments will certainly be fully answered, and all such Clamours silenced, and all the World shall see and feel that God is Just, and no Unrighteous­ness dwells with him.

And yet we cannot strictly say, this Days Of­fence hath hitherto been unaccounted for, and unavenged. No Man (I think) can assign any one Head, to which we may so properly ascribe the continual Troubles and Alarms that have for many Years disturb'd this Nation, the vast Calami­ties and most amazing Distresses it has labour'd un­der, as to the atrocious and most execrable Action of this Day, and its most cursed Consequences, the debaunching both the Morals and Religion of our Princes and great Men. Had not our Sins increas'd with our Afflictions, I should have hoped, this Days Offence had now been fully expiated, by that long train of Mischiefs that has followed by way of Consequence, if not Retaliation. But if there yet remain any dregs of Wrath for us to drink, I know of nothing that can possibly pre­vent [Page 31] them, or support us under them, but true sincere Repentance, which through the Merits of the Blood of Christ, will wash away all past Offences, reconcile us again to God, and fit us for what future Favours we shall want, either as private People, or a Nation, and he in his abun­dant Wisdom and Goodness shall see expedient for us.