REpentance is a Doctrine which God preach­ed by the Mouth of all his Prophets. Noah to the old World, Lot to Sodom, Moses to Egypt, Prophets in their several Gene­rations to Israel and Judah, John the Baptist to prepare the way for Christ, with a Sermon of that Subject, and Christ himself and all his A­postles preach'd, that men should reform and amend their Lives. The subject they were en­joyn'd to preach on, was not of curious and nice matters, but of such only as were profita­ble for the good of souls. They went out and [Page 2]preach'd that men shu'd repent. That we at this time especially may be stirred up to so great and necessary a duty, I will

1. Shew, how joyful and well pleasing it is to God, that men should come to Repentance.

2ly, 'Tis acceptable to the Blessed An­gels.

3ly, 'Tis grateful to the Penitent himself.

4ly, Offer to your consideration what great danger and unreasonableness there is in impeni­tency, whether in particular Persons or in a pub­lick Nation.

5ly, Shew the great advantage, profit, and benefit which redound to both of these, by a timely and early Repentance.

Lastly, Shut up all, with an exhortation to that necessary Duty.

I begin with the first of these, how joyful and well pleasing it is to God that Men shu'd come to Repentance. And

1. Repentance is highly pleasing to God, be­cause it destroys sin, which of all things is most hateful to him. Sin makes a Separation between God and Man, puts a Division between the [Page 3]Creator and his Creature, blots out Gods Image, defaceth the beauty of the Creation, kindles a war between Heaven and Earth, grieves the Holy Spirit of God, and strengthens the King­dom of the Prince of Darkness. Now when the wicked man turns from his wickedness, and doth that which is lawful and right, when the sinner ceaseth to do evil, and learneth to do well, leading the Remainder of his life in all godliness and ho­nesty, sin in this penitent is then destroy'd, and his Conversion becomes highly pleasing to God. For hereby God is glorify'd, a Soul saved, and the Grand Adversary of Mankind the Devil, baf­fled and confounded.

2ly, Repentance is well pleasing to God, be­cause it turns away his anger, and makes way for mercy, in which, of all other things, he most delights. This is over all his works. This rejoyceth against judgment, and in that Proclamation which he told M os, He wou'd make all his goodness to pass before him, Exod. 34.6, 7. we find him thus delivering himself, the Lord, the Lord God merci­ful and gracious. This is the greatest Jewel in his Crown, and therefore when a sinner-comes to Re­pentance 'tis pleasing to God, and gives an oc­casion of Joy to him, in that his anger is turned away, and mercy is to take place, which of all his attributes he most delights in.

3ly, Repentance is well pleasing to God, be­cause it fills Heaven with happy Souls, and en­creaseth [Page 4]the number of just men made perfect. All such as die truly Penitent are blessed and happy; their Souls at the leaving of their bodies become as the Angels in Heaven, and are fellow partakers of those pleasures which are at Gods right hand for evermore.

4ly, Repentance is well pleasing to the whole blessed and glorious Trinity. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, do all rejoyce when men break off their sins by Repen­tance. And

1. Repentance is pleasing to God the Father. The Prodigal Son being mov [...]d with a true and serious Repentance, return'd home after a Life spent in luxury and profuseness. He arose and came to his Father, and said, Father I have sinned against Heaven and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy Son. And presently the Fa­ther saw him, had compassion on him, and ran, and fell on his Neck and kissed him, the badge of love and reconciliation. For tho the Sons con­dition was poor and miserable, his Crimes many, his Offences, of a deep die, and his Reception into his Father's favour unlikely, yet so prevalent and well pleasing was his Repentance, that even that brought him into his Fathers favour again, and he that scarce hoped to be admitted as a Servant, is once more owned as a dear Son, Luke 15.22, 23, 24. The Father said to his Servants, bring forth the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his [Page 5]hand, and shoes on his feet, and bring hither the fat­ted calf and kill it, and let us eat and be mer­ry, for this my son was dead and is alive again: He was lost and is found.

2ly, Repentance has the same effect in God the Son. 'Tis a great satisfaction to him to see so good effect of his passion, that his blood was not shed in vain, that he was born, liv'd, and dy [...]d to a good purpose, and all that he did and suf­fer'd for such and such Souls turn to a good ac­count. The Repentance of every sinner is an­swering of Christs prayers, the satisfaction of his desires, and the reward of his sufferings. And therefore Repentance is pleasing to God the Son, inasmmch as that precious blood which he shed on the Cross, was not shed in vain.

3ly, Repentance is well pleasing to God the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost in Scripture is sometimes call'd Spirit, and all those o­perations whereby we please God, are term'd fruits of the earth, Gal. 5.22. Now Repentance embraceth all the good motions and inspirations of that Holy Spirit, by which means the instru­ments of sin are chang'd into his sanctify'd Mem­bers, and his Holy Temples. By repentance a pe­nitent sinner is made the Temple of God, in that the Spirit of God dwelleth in him holy unto God, an ha­bitation of God thro the Spirit. He is joyned to the Lord, one Spirit with him, a new Creature in Christ, and conformed to him. He lives in the Spirit and [Page 6]walks in the Spirit. Thus the Spirit of God find­ing itself cherished and kindly used, and all its good motions and inspirations gratefully receiv'd, 'tis matter of joy and pleasure to him. Thus Fa­ther, Son, and Holy Ghost are all hugely pleased when men repent and amend their lives. Who would not therefore forsake his sins, renounce a wicked life, and stedfastly propose to become a new man, to occasion delight and pleasure in the ever blessed Trinity. If there was no other Ar­gument to stir us up to the duty of repentance, this, one would think, should move us to it. And there­fore let us take care to behave our selves after such a manner, that we commit nothing that shall be displeasing to him, but always be doing that which shall be well pleasing in his sight. The best of us may blush to think how often we have done that which has occasioned grief in the Court of Heaven. What odious scents arise thither daily from bloody murthers, beastly uncleannesses, and cruel oppressions, which, like the blood of Abel, cry aloud to Heaven for vengeance? Even sins that grieve the Holy Spirit of God, and cause a sadness in the blessed Trinity. For so sure as Re­pentance pleaseth God and causeth joy in Hea­ven, so certain it is that sin continued in, and not repented of, gives occasion of grief and sadness to him.

2ly, Repentance is well pleasing to the Bles­sed Angels. Luke 15.10. There is joy in the presence of the Angels of God over one sinner that repenteth. [Page 7]Those tears which run down the cheeks of a true penitent, are the Angels heavenly banquet. There shall be more joy in heaven over one sinner that repents, than over ninety nine just persons that need no repen­tance. But tho repentance be well pleasing to the Blessed Angels, tho they are ministring spirits for our good, rejoyce at the conversion of a sinner, do many good offices for the godly on earth, and be a communion between them, yet we are not to think that they interpose their Merits for us, and therefore we are to perform Religious Wor­ship to them. This is a fond conceit of the Pa­pists, the invention of mans brain, and wants warrant from the word of God. See thou do it not, Rev. 22.9. are express words in Holy Scripture.

3ly, Repentance is matter of joy to the peni­tent himself. O what joy and tranquility of con­science has that man, whose eyes are opened, and in whose heart by Gods Grace a change is wrought. And no wonder that he is so pleased with himself; for being sensible that he is with­drawn from sin, and brought back again to God, that he who once was a servant of sin, and run­ning headlong to perdition, is now a child of God, and making Provision for his immortal soul; these thoughts speak comfortable things to him, and leaves upon his soul a a sweet taste, a plea­sant relish. St. Austin, after his conversion, when he had repented and began a new life, made this sad complaint, I have loved thee too late, O God, O thou beautiful Being, I have [...] too [Page 8]late. He repented he had not served God soon­er, that his conversion was so long delay'd, and that he was so long a beginning to be acquainted with God. How sweet and delightful, O Lord, was it made to me presently to want those pleasures of the world, which before I doted upon? Thou, O Lord, didst cast them out of my heart, and didst thy self enter in their place, which I find now to be more sweet than all pleasures and sweetness it self. Lib. 9. Cons. ch. 1.

Thus having shewn how joyful and well plea­sing it is to Father, Son and Holy Ghost, that men shu'd repent, how acceptable to the blessed Angels, and how grateful to the Penitent himself, I come

4thly, To offer to your consideration what great Danger and Unreasonableness there is in impenitency, whether in particular persons, or in a publick Nation. And

1. As to particular persons. John the Baptist in his first Sermon exhorted his Auditors to bring forth fruits meet for Repentance. And except ye re­pent ye shall likewise perish, was the Doctrine Christ preached to his Disciples. Now the longer men delay their Repentance, the more they are har­dened in their corruptions, and confirmed in their sins, and consequently more indispos'd every day for that great and necessary work. The longer men live in sin, the more strongly they [Page 9]are inclin'd to continue in it. Sin being once rooted in the Soul, the labour will be great in plucking it out. The young man in his Youth and Strength is apt to say that it is not yet time to busie himself about Reformation and amend­ment of life, and that it will be soon enough to repent of his sins when he comes to be old, and then, and not before, he'll become peni­tent and serious. But how know'st thou, O young man, that thou shalt live till old Age? Death is a tribute we all owe to Nature, and Experience teacheth us, that the young man is as suddenly taken away as the grey head. The strongest man can call no time his own but the present. He cannot prolong his days as he pleaseth. All his futurity is in the hands of God, and how he will dispose of him, whether for life or death, he cannot tell. And yet, alas! how securely do such men live? How eagerly do they run through all the stages of their youth in a re­bellious obstinate course, and commit sin as if they were not flesh and blood, subject to a dying stroak. Certainly nothing hath made more am­ple Harvest for the Devil than the deserring of Repentance upon such a vain consideration as this. For how often have many men lain down in their strength at night, and that night has clos'd their Eyes, and sent their Souls into ano­ther World, to answer for what they have done in this?

[Page 10]But suppose God, out of his unconceivable Mercy, doth not cut off a sinner in the strength of his years; suppose he lets him alone to live as he lists, to walk in the ways of his heart, and in the sight of his eyes, and therefore is resolved to sin on till old age overtakes him, yet I have three Arguments to lay down before him, which, if rightly considered, wou'd make him think, and bring him to a right understanding of himself.

First, Repentance requires the strength and vigour of our minds, and therefore 'tis a sad de­sign to lay all the sins of our youth upon feeble old age. Our bodies are then decay'd, our limbs feeble, our understandings shatter'd, all the parts distemper'd, and our infirmities so ma­ny, that we are altogether incapable of every thing but dying. In the midst of so many Di­stempers as old age brings along with it, 'twill be a difficult matter to go through with Repen­tance. For then pains are apt in an high mea­sure to seize upon us, which will so disturb our minds, and deprive us of the use of Reason, that we cannot pray to God with that fervency, or spread our fins before him with that hearty sorrow that is requisite to procure an absolute pardon. Old Age is an unfit time to have the great work of Repentance to do; and there­fore my second Argument, to shew the Danger and Unreasonableness of putting it off till that time, is this.

[Page 11]Secondly, The little hopes they can have that God shu'd be pleas'd with those men who ne­ver drew nigh to him by Repentance, till they themselves were drawing near to the grave. Mankind must needs think the Almighty a tame Being, an easie God, if they perswade them­selves that every sin is as soon expiated as con­fess'd. Let men have a care how they flatter themselves with such vain hopes as these. God, that searcheth the heart, who knows all things, and understands the greatness of our crimes, expects that our sorrow for their commission shu'd be greater than the delight and pleasure we took in them. If a bare Acknowledgment and Confession of sin were enough to put it away, Judas might have as good a plea for him­self as any Saint in Heaven, and might justly be plac'd in the Catalogue of Penitents. 'Tis very unreasonable to believe that God shu'd be pleas'd with that mans Repentance, who never forsakes his sins, till he had no more time left him to sin in. There can be little of godly sorrow in such a Repentance, and as little hopes that it will be acceptable to God. I know there are two passages in Holy Scripture much read and remembred, and to which some men fly, as a refuge for a Death-bed Repentance. The first is that of the Labourers that came into the Vine­yard at the Eleventh hour, Mat. 20. and yet receiv'd Equal Wages with those that had born the heat and burden of the day. But alas! this Example is mis­us'd [Page 12]and misunderstood, for these Labourers came in assoon as they were call'd; and the reason why they stood so long idle was, be­cause no man had hired them. Had work been offered them sooner, they wu'd not have refus'd it Thay came in assoon as the Lord of the Vineyard commanded them, and therefore were not faulty. Besides, that Para­ble of our Saviour's, relating to the Labourers, is rather a representation of a Heathen man, that never heard of Christ till a little before his Death, whose late Conversion shall not render him unworthy of a full Reward. But this is a quite different case from Christians, who made a Covenant with Christ in Baptism, and enter'd into vows and promises to serve him, to keep his holy will and commandments, and walk in the same all the days of their life. Who, notwith­standing that Covenant, neglect to perform it all their life long, and do then only repent when they have no time left to repent in. He that came in at the Eleventh hour wronght one hour, but he who comes not in till the twelfth, the time of working then is past, and no re­ward in justice is to be expected where no service is done.

The other instance which some men lay hold of to shew the validity of a Death bed Repen­tance, St Luke 23 is that of the good Thief, who was sav'd even at the last hour, and was in Paradice the same Day with Christ. This is brought as a [Page 13]binding Argument by such who put off their Repentance till the last hour. The Case is plainly thus: Christ was then at the point of Death, and therefore to manifest his power and glory, and to convince the World of his God­head, when even the Apostles themselves either doubted, or did not believe it, did upon the Thiefs confessing it, and saying, Lord remember me when thou comest into thy Kingdom, make this Answer, Verily I say unto thee, to day thou shalt be with me in Paradice. This was a particular Act of Christ, and the whole of it miraculous, and ought not to be made a general rule; nor do we find in all the Bible the like promise made to any man. Because Christ received the Thief into favour at the last hour, upon such a wonderful Repentance and Faith as his was, therefore we may hope for the same, is a Dangerous Conclusion, and whoever doth it endangers the loss of his Soul. It is not a bare sorrow for sin that brings us to Heaven, but a walking in newness of life, which inclines God to pass by our former misdoings. The Thief upon the Cross had this purpose, which surely he would have put in execution, if Death had not prevented him Tho he was accepted be­cause he ador'd Christ when he saw him dying, there is no reason for other men to presume for the like favour at the last hour, who have de­spis'd him now he is reigning in Heaven. If men will presume to live profanely, because they think 'tis possible they may dye as happily as [Page 14]that Thief did, then he may murder more souls by his Repentance, than ever he did bodies in all the Robberies that ever he committed. See­ing then there is great hazard and danger in late Repentance, it is our wisest way to make it an early business, and so to live, that when we come to die, our Souls may be receiv'd into Heaven, that where Christ is, there they may be also.

Thirdly, The danger and unreasonableness of im­penitency will appear in this. Some there are, when sickness and pain seize them, then they resolve against their sins, and purpose to be ho­ly and good men, if God will be so merciful as to restore them to their former health, and set them upon their Legs again. Purpose and Reso­lution are indeed very necessary towards Re­pentance, but are most lame and imperfect, and signify nothing without performance and consum­mation. He that resolves against his sins when he is sick, and after God has restor'd him to health, sins as much as before, is a vain man, but no true penitent. To resolve to repent, and not to re­pent, is to break our resolution and faith, to mock God, and to play at fast and loose with the Almighty. To see a man in his sickness smiting on his breast, and complaining of the wickedness of his heart, and seeming so sorry for it, that one who sees or hears him wu'd think his heart is broke within him, and yet as­soon as he is well again to take no care to lead [Page 15]the residue of his life either in the fear, or to the glory of God. Such a mock Devotion, such a pang of Piety will be so far from appeasing the Almighty, or disposing the man for pardon, that it even justifies the sentence of Condemna­tion out of his own mouth. The promises we make to God of Amendment of life are due debt. The promise one man makes to another may be made good either one time or other, either in his life time by himself, or after his Death by one that he shall appoint: But if we make a promise to God of Amendment and Reformation, we ought to do it ourselves. This is a concern that cannot be left to the care of an Executor to perform for us when we are dead and gone. He who says I do repent, but turns to his sins again, repents of his Repentance, and makes his latter end worse than his beginning. For a man to be truly penitent he must lament his sins, in lamenting he must punish them, in punishing he must hate them; and that this severity may not be counterfeit, it must last as long as he lives. A forsaking our sins with a perseverance in all that is good must be the certain proof of the truth of our Repentance. From the danger there is in impenitency as to particular persons, let us pass to that of a pub­lick Nation.

[Page 16] Jerusalem wu'd not know her day. Christ gave the Jewish Nation many years time for Repentance, yet such a strange and incorrigible a people they were, that neither mercies nor judgments cu'd work upon them, to amend and alter their course of living. The very Pro­phets that call'd upon them to repent, they kill'd and ston'd. Nay, so obstinate a people they were that tho God sent his Son to preach Repen­tance to them, and warn'd them from continu­ing in their wickedness, yet they still ad­ded iniquity to iniquity, and at last put to death the Lord of Life. Not long after God destroy'd them for their sins, and laid the Axe of his Judgments at the root of their Tree, and hew'd them down from ever being a Nation more. Thus the Jewish Nation fell by impeni­tency, and 'tis too much to be feared that ours is much in the same posture now as theirs was, when God came upon them with a total de­struction.

The Jews were a divided people, and had se­veral factions both in Church and State. Pro­faneness on the one hand, and Hypocrisie on the other, did act and command in a furious manner among them. In this state was the Jew­ish Nation, when God sent down his Judg­ments upon them. And now let us cast an Eye home. Are not we as divided a people as the Jews were? Are not we as factious as they? [Page 17]Are not we as factious as they? And do not Vice, Prophaneness and Hypocrisie, reign as much among us, as that they did among the Jews? Your preachers have cry'd aloud, and told you the danger of living in your sins, but you have not hearkned unto them. God sent the Pestilence, but we repented not. He kindled a fire, which burnt our great City, and turn'd it into Ashes, but we fear'd not his Judgments. We have been embroyl'd in several Wars, but none of them have better'd, chang'd, or re­form'd us. And therefore what can any man imagin shu'd follow such despised signs as God has sent to warn us from our sins but wrath and indignation from Heaven? Without a mi­raculous mercy, what can we look for, but that God shu'd utterly destroy us, throw us away in his anger, and trouble himself no more with us. And therefore to prevent the Judgments of God, which may justly fall upon us for our sins, whe­ther in particular persons, or in a publick Nati­on, I come

Fifthly, To shew the great advantage, pro­fit, and benefit that redound to both by Reforma­tion and Amendment.

Repentance, of all things in the world, makes the greatest change. It changeth profligate and vicious persons into sober and virtuous. It changeth the licentious into strict and regular [Page 18]livers. It changeth the whole man from sin to grace, and from wicked habits to pious and godly customes. Nay, so great is the Efficacy of Repentance, and so much doth it redound to the profit and advantage of every penitent, that God himself is pleas'd, by descending to our weak understandings, to say that he chang­eth also upon mans Repentance. This moves him to alter his Decrees, to revoke his Sen­tence, to cancel his bills of Accusation, and to put a stop to Divine Vengeance. A particular person by Repentance may remove a particu­lar Judgment from himself. Ahab's humbling himself turned away the anger of God, and made the Divine Vengeance walk as softly as he did, 1 Kings 21.27. This is the only thing that is wanting both in private and publick, and wu'd set both at rights. Hath God a con­troversie with a Nation, Repentance will tye up his hands from striking? At what instant I shall speak concerning a Nation and concerning a Kingdom, Jer. 18.7, 8. to pluck up and to pull down, and to destroy it. If that Nation against whom I have pronounc'd turn from their Evil, I will repent▪ of the Evil that I thought to do unto them. So likewise God dealt with Niniveh, Jon. 3. for though he had resolved to destroy that great City, yet they repenting in Sackcloath and Ashes, stopt the pro­ceedings of God Justice against them, and by their amendment prevented that punishment he design'd to have brought upon them. And [Page 19]'tis the Prophet Hosea's exhortation to the peo­ple whom God had visited with several judg­ments, Come, and let us return unto the Lord, Hos. 6.1. for he hath spoiled us, and he will heal us, he hath wounded us, and he will bind us up again. What's to be done then to prolong Gods Mercy, and keep off his Judgments? Even this, that all of us from the highest to the lowest wn'd a­mend our lives and become new men. For then, and not till then, must we expect Gods bles­sing upon us. 'Tis a common complaint the times are bad, and 'tis a great wonder they are not worse, for unless men mend, the times will not. 'Tis bad men which make bad times. The times are just as men are, for they grow good or bad as men do. What an Age of Virtue shu'd we see, if men of dignity and honour, birth and fortune, wu'd be as good as they are great. Men of lower rank wu'd be asham'd and afraid to sin, if men of high Titles and long Pe­digree wu'd give good Examples, and offer themselves to the World for Patterns of life and conversation. He that is in Honour, and understands not, is like the beasts that perish, Psal. 49.20. The Temple of Honour and the Temple of Vir­tue were so plac'd at Rome, that no man cu'd enter the Temple of Honour, unless he pass'd through the Temple of Virtue; which was a signification to the Romans that the way to Honour was only by virtue. But alas! High and Low, Rich and Poor, have sinn'd against [Page 20]God, and he has reason enough to be angry with all Orders and Degrees of men. Those fearful Oaths, those grievous Blasphemies, and other Debaucheries with which our Nation is defil'd, I now tell you with an afflicted Soul, that these sins cry aloud to Heaven for Venge­ance. When men begin to resemble Sodom in her sins, what must we look for but Sodom's punishment. God rain'd down fire and brim­stone from Heaven upon Sodom and Gomor­rha. An Ʋnnatural Judgment for fire to de­scend downward, but we read before of their Ʋnnatural Sin, they burn'd inwardly with the fire of an Ʋnnatural Lust. If the same sins be committed now which procur'd those dismal Judgments, we are then liable to the same, and if Repentance step not in, may expect the like punishment. Uncleanness was one of the sins of Sodom, and I wou'd to God I cu'd say it was not one of the sins of England too. We are too like Sodom in her sins, I pray God keep us from Sodom's punishment. For the Sin of Unclean­ness three and twenty thousand of Israel were cut off in one day, 1 Cor. 10.8. For this sin David was plagu'd with the violation of his Wives, the murder of his Children, and the Rebellion of his Subjects. This sin has pull'd down many flourishing Kingdoms, destroy'd the Bodies, dis­grac'd the Names, and overthrown the Estates of many men. I wu'd to God I cu'd perswade that sort of offenders throughly to judge them­selves [Page 21]here, that they may prevent the dread­ful Judgment of God hereafter God will judge all men. All sinners as well as they must come to judgment, but the sin of Uncleanness, as St. Paul, Heb. 13.4. seems to intimate, he will more particularly judge, and be a sure avenger of all such wickedness. If any man defile the Temple of God, him shall God destroy. 1 Cor. 3.17. We are the Temples of the Holy Ghost, to violate which, is to cast the Holy Ghost out of them, and to make our Bodies which are Christ's Members, the Members of an Har­lot. 1 Cor. 6. Heaven is a place of Purity, wherein no impure thing can enter, and there­fore they who go out of this world with the sin of uncleanness about them unrepented of, will be fit Company only for Satan and his An­gels, where their flames of Lust shall meet with flames of Fire.

To conclude. Repent, and the whole Court of Heaven will be glad and rejoyce at your Conversion. God the Father with Arms of Mercy will meet the [...]eturning Prodigal and receive him with kisses. God the Son that dy'd for him, will at his death welcome him into E­verlasting Habitations. God the Holy Chost shall present him wiping off his Tears. The Holy, Blessed, and Glorious Trinity, in the pre­sence of Saints and Angels with loud acclama­tions, will receive him, and bid him welcome, [Page 23]with a Well done thou good and faithful Servant. Almighty everlasting God, who hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost forgive the sins of all them that are penitent, create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we worthily lamenting our sins, and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of the God of all Mercy, perfect remssion and forgive­ness through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom with the Father and the Holy Ghost, be all Honour and Glory.

Amen.