THE Psalmist in our Text, with great Engagedness of Affection, excites and summoneth all around him to give to God the Glory of his Goodness, to praise and thank God for his wondrous endu­ring Mercy to his Church and People in Particular: That God's Mercy endureth forever is the Burden of this devout and affectionate Song of Praise, which being frequently re­peated, adds Beauty and Energy to it, as well as serves to in­form us of the thankful Notice we should take of every In­stance of divine Goodness, and to shew how much we should be fill'd with Wonder, and fir'd with Gratitude when we re­flect upon the long Continuance thereof, to us guilty worth­less Creatures. But in the mean Time, singular Instances of divine Mercy, loudly call for our most intense and grate­ful Acknowledgments, and this seems to be the Sense and Scope of the Words that I have now chosen to insist upon.

But to make them easier to be understood, and prepare them for Improvement, let us enquire.

• I. What are the Wonders of Mercy which Almighty God does sometimes work for his Church and People.
• II. When he works them generally.
• III. Why.
• IV. What that Thanksgiving is which we should offer to God upon such Occasions.
• [Page 4]V. Wherein appears the Reasonableness thereof.

But before I proceed to answer the Questions propos'd, I shall beg leave to premise these few Words, viz. That Mercy, as to its general Nature, is Kindness vouchsafed to the miserable, and that a Wonder of Mercy is some un­common Instance of Kindness; to Effect which the Al­mighty goes out of the ordinary Road of his providential Proceedings with Mankind: They are therefore call'd Won­ders, because being of an extraordinary Nature, they de­serve and are wont to excite Wonder or Admiration in those that behold or hear of them. But I proceed to answer the

1st. Enquiry, which is this, What are the Wonders of Mercy which Almighty God works for his Church and People? And here more generally let it be observ'd,

1st, That the Almighty hath disappointed great and deep Plots, artfully formed against his Church. Thus when Haman as cunningly as cruelly contriv'd the utter ruin of the Jewish Church and Nation, and that under the false Pretext of their not keeping the King's Laws, it pleased Jehovah to baffle his Devise effectually, and that by a small but surprising Incident, one Night the King could not rest till he had read in the Book of the Chronicles of Mordecai's Loyalty in discovering a treasonable Conspiracy against his Life ( Est. vi.) This effectually overset the whole Scheme, which issued in the Destruction of proud and invidious Haman, so that he was hang'd on the Gal­lows he had prepar'd for Mordecai, the mark of his Am­bitious Rage. ( Est. vii. 10)

Another Instance much like this we have in the Case of Daniel, the Nobles that wanted to ruin him, knowing that they could not find any Occasion against him, except­ing it were concerning the law of his God, they there­fore contriv'd to get a Law enacted which they knew he [Page 5] could not conscientiously comply with, in order to repre­sent him as a Rebel for Neglect: But how wonderfully did the blessed God overturn this Devise, and make it a mean of promoting the Ruin of its Contrivers: The Lord sent his Angel and shut the Lyons Mouths that they hurt not the Innocent, but they break the Bones of the Guil­ty. ( Dan. vi.)

The Deliverance of England from the Gun-Powder Plot deserves everlasting Remembrance. As cruel Nero wish'd that the whole City of Rome had but one Neck that he might cut it off at a Stroke. So the bloody Papist's de­signed to burn up at one dreadful Blast the Flowers and Strength of the English Nation, that so the Bulwark of the Protestant Zion being destroy'd, the whole might be­come an easy Prey to their Teeth: But how wonderful­ly was this Hell hatched sanguinary Scheme detected by a Letter sent to one of the Nobles, who was a Member of Parliament, diswading him from going to Parliament by this Argument, viz. That they should meet with a Blew and not see the Hand that gave it; which the King reading, apprehended that there was a Design to blow them up by Gun-Powder, and therefore wisely ordered the Cellars un­der and near the Parliament House to be searched, upon which the monstrous Traitor Faux, was found with the dark Lanthorn in his Hand, ready to kindle the dreadful burning Train. O amazing Mercy of God! O in [...]andous Cruelty of Papists!

2dly. God hath wrought wonderful Deliverances for his Church and People in the following Manner.

1st. By small Means, thus the Stars in their Courses fought against Sisera; the Enemies of Joshua were slain by Hail, and the Meabites with the Sun shining on Water: And did not the Almighty break to Pieces the Spanish Armado, which they vainly call'd Invincible, after all their proud [Page 6] Boasts of bringing us into a State of Slavery. Was not Deborah, tho' of the weaker Sex, raised up by the Almigh­ty for the Deliverance of the Jewish Church and Nation from a State of Bondage? As King Asa justly observ'd, It is nothing to the Almighty to save by many or by few. As the Mariner Turns a great Ship by a small Helm, so does the Almighty sometimes perform great Works by in­considerable Instruments. How surprising, was the Victory which Gideon gain'd over the vast Host of Midian, by a few Hundreds of Men lighting of Lamps and breaking of Pitchers? Surely the Race is not to the Swift, nor the Battle to the Strong. He that girds on his Harness should not boast as he that puts it off! All Events are under the di­vine Controle.

2dly. Sometimes God delivers his Church and People without Means, and this is still more amazing: Behold when there is no Intercessor, then doth his right Arm bring Salva­tion! The very Night after Rabshakeh's Blasphemous Boasts, an Angel slew one hundred and fourscore and five Thousand of the Assyrian Army, (2 Kings xix. 35.) After Julian the Apostate had made a Vow to sacrifice all the Christians in the Empire upon his return from the Persian War, it pleased God to give him a mortal Wound, which made him acknowledge that the Galilean had overcome him.

3dly. Sometimes God compasses the Deliverance and Benefit of his Church by contrary Means, out of the Eater comes forth Meat, and out of the Strong Sweetness, which is an amazing Instance of his Almightiness. Thus the Is­raelites Oppression in Egypt was a Mean of their Increase in it, and Deliverance from it, the more they were afflicted the more they grew. ( Exo. i. 12) It is an old and a true Proverb, That the Blood of the Martyrs, is the Seed of the Church. Julian was well aware of this, and therefore he left off Persecuting the Church, not out of Mercy, but [Page 7] Envy, least she should be thereby increased! But

3dly. The Almighty doth sometimes restrain the Malice of Men against his Church, that it shall not go that Length they would have it. Ps. lxxvi. 10. Surely the Wrath of Man shall praise thee, and the Remainder of Wrath shalt thou restrain. The Almighty bounds the Envy of Men and De­vils, as he does the proud Surges of the angry Ocean, thus far they may come and no farther. The Almighty put a Hook in the Jaws of Senacherib, and a Bridle in his Lips, so that he was obliged to return by the Way he came ashamed, after all the blasphemous Boasts of his insulting Minister Rabshakeh, (2 King. xix.)

4thly. Another Wonder of divine Mercy to the People of God is this, that the Almighty sometimes stills the Rage of Wicked Men against them, Psal. lxv. 7. Which stilleth the Noise of the Seas, the Noise of their Waves, and the Tumult of the People. And hence it is said elsewhere, that When a Man's Ways please the Lord, he will make even his Enemies to be at Peace with him. Thus it was with Jacob, when Esau came forth with an angry Intention a­gainst him, the Almighty soon smooth'd his surly Brow, that instead of killing him, he kissed him; and therefore we are told that Jacob saw the Face of Esau as the Face of God. i. e. He saw the gracious Hand of God in that suddain Alteration in his Brothers Aspect.

5thly. The Almighty sometimes repays into the Bosoom of his Church's Enemies, the Evils they design'd and en­deavour'd to do to her: Some Instances of this Kind have been already given, to which let these be added, Pharoah thought to have destroy'd Israel by pursuing them into the Red Sea, but instead of this, he and his Host were drowned in the mighty Waters! Abithophel's Plot against David, prov'd his own ruin. The cruel Emperor Maximinus, who endeavour'd to destroy the Christians entirely, was consum'd [Page 8] with Lice. Time would fail to enumerate the particular Wonders of Mercy that have been shew'd to the People of God, and that both as to Soul and Body.

What else is the Conversion of every Sinner to God, but a wonder of Mercy; and especially of such as are of the grossest Kind? Hereby Brands are pluck'd out of the Burning and made Monuments of pure and glorious Grace.

And is not the Preservation of every one, or their Perseve­rance in a State of Grace, a Wonder of divine Mercy! ‘Grace in the Heart, says Bishop Hopkins, is like a Spark of Fire in the Ocean expos'd to the Violence of the Winds and Waves.’

Yea Wonders of divine Mercy have appear'd in the Pre­servation of the Lives of Gods People. Famous Du Moulin in the Time of the Massacre at Paris, was preserv'd by a Spiders weaving her Web across the Mouth of the Oven where he lay hid. And the Protestants who were besieg'd in Beziers in France, were deliver'd by a drunken Drummer, who going to his Quarters at Midnight rang the Alarm Bell. But I proceed to the

2d. Propos'd, which was to shew when God generally works Wonders of Mercy. And that is

1st. When a Spirit of Prayer is given to the People of God Psal. cii. 13, 17. Thou shalt arise and have Mercy upon Zion, the set Time to favour her is come (why) thy Servants favour the Dust thereof, thou shalt regard the Prayer of the destitute and not despise their Prayer. Before God confers Mercies, he gives a Spirit of Prayer to ask them, but when this is re­mov'd it is an awful Sign of approaching Judgments.

2dly. When Gods People are brought low, and all hu­man Helps fail, Deut. xxxii. 36. The Lord shall judge his People, and repent himself concerning his Servants, when he seeth that their Power is gone, and that there is none shut up [Page 9] or left, in the Mount of Extremity the Lord is seen; witness Israels Deliverance out of Egypt, and at the Red-Sea; after the Bricks were doubled Moses came for their Relief, and when Israel were every way encompassed at the Red-Sea, they saw the Salvation of God!

3dly. When God's Truth and Glory are much concern­ed, then he will exert his Almightiness, least his Name should be prophan'd, and his Honour insulted. Ezek. xxxvi. 22. Not for your sakes do I do this, but for my Holy Names Sake.

4thly, When a compleat Deliverance can be effected, an Instance of this we have in the Story of Pharaoh, they were suffered to go into the great Deeps, that there they might be buried in a watry Grave!

Again another Time is when the Enemies of God's People breath forth the greatest Rage against the Church of God. When Saul was going on in this Plight to Damascus, he was struck down at once to the Ground.

I may add that another Season is, when God can get most Honour upon his Enemies, and most Honour from his Friends. Had Hamans Plot been crush'd in the Begin­ning of it, the Church would have been protected, but God's Glory would not have been so much made manifest. And therefore the Lord suffers his Enemies to go on sometimes a great Way, and bring their cruel Councils to ripeness for Execution, before he blasts and breaks them!

And when the People of God are much distress'd before they get Deliverance, their Sense of the Mercy is heightned, and their Praises for it enlarg'd! The

3d. General Head comes now to be discours'd upon, which was to shew, Why God does sometimes work Wonders of Mercy for his Church and People. And

1st. One Reason is, that not only those to whom the Mercies are vouchsaf'd may praise him; but also that the Generations [Page 10] to come may trust in him and obey him. This was the happy Issue of Israels Deliverance at the Red-Sea, They fear­ed and believed the Lord, Ex. xiv. 31. David improv'd his memorable Deliverance from the Jaws of the Lyon, and from the Paw of the Bear, to strengthen his Expectation of future Mercies, and Deliverance from future Dangers; and the Apostle us'd the same Method, 2 Cor. i. 10. He hath de­livered us from so great a Death, and doth deliver, in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us. And did not the Jewish Church tread in the same Path? Ps. xxii 4, 5. Our Fa­thers trusted in thee, and thou didst deliver them. And from this blessed Topick she elsewhere pleads for Deliverance. Isa. li. 9, 10. Awake, awake, put on Strength, awake as in the Antient Days, art thou not he that wounded the Dragon, who dried up the Sea, and made the Deeps a Way for the ransom­ed to pass over?

2dly. To make his Glory illustrious, Deut. xxxii. 27. I said I would scatter them into Corners and make the Remember­ance of them cease among Men, were it not that I feared the Wrath of the Enemy, lest they should behave themselves strangely, and say our high Hand and not the Lord hath done all this. Thus vainly vaunted railing Rabshakeh! 2 Kings xviii. Where are the Gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah, of Hamath and Arpad? Have they deliver'd Samaria out of my Hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem! This Argument Moses urg'd to prevent the threatn'd Destruction of Israel. Num. xiv. If thou kill this People, the Nations will charge thee with Weakness. Jehovah doth great Things be­cause he is a great God, his Name and Nature are wonder­ful, and therefore his Works are so! Every one does, or should do, Works suited to their Quality and Character. Magnos magna decent. When Alexander met with a great Difficulty he thus encounter'd it, jam periculum par animo Alexandri. Here is Danger equal to Alexander's Bravery. [Page 11] And wondrous Works do not only suit a God, but make his Name glorious among the Nations, thus it was in respect of the Judgments inflicted upon Pharaoh. —

3dly. Another Reason is the Relation that God bears to his People, together with the Promises he has made to pro­mote their Benefit and their Dependance on him. He is their Father and will he not have Compassion on his Chil­dren; surely Property excites Care, he has promised to pro­tect them, And that no Weapon form'd against them shall pros­per. The Munition of Rocks shall be their Defence, he that dwells in the Secret of the most High, shall be under the Sha­dow of the Almighty. He has promis'd to support them, and to make their Bread and Waters sure. He has promised to deliver them out of Trouble, Psal. l. 15. Call upon me in the Day of Trouble, and I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.—Isa. xliii. 3, 4. I gave Egypt for thy Ransom, E­thiopia and Seba for thee, I have sav'd thee, therefore will I give Men for thee, and People for thy Life. Jehovah will ra­ther sink many Nations in Ruins, than suffer his poor Peo­ple to perish! Moreover they trust in God, and there­fore shall not be confounded, for Trust engages Jehovah's Care. I proceed to the

4th. Propos'd, which was to show what Thankfullness for God's Mercies includes, And

1st. It includes high and honourable Thoughts of them in our Minds,—frequent reflecting upon them, and grateful Sensations for them. —

2dly. It includes our extolling God with our Lips, and giving him the whole Glory of his Works of Mercy, with­out sacrificing to our own Net, but on the contrary acknow­ledging our utter Unworthiness of them in the least Degree.

3dly. It includes our living the Praises of God, & hoping in his Word, for future Mercies. The

[Page 12]5th. Propos'd comes next to be consider'd, which was to shew, wherein appears the Reasonableness of Thanksgiving for every Mercy, and more especially for signal Instan­ces thereof? And

1st. There is some Disposition deeply engraven in the Human Nature to express Gratitude for Benefits receiv'd. Do not the Publicans so, said our Lord? Lycurgus observ'd, that it is a prodigious Thing not to repay a Benefit! Yea even some of the Brute Creation express a kind of Gratitude, the Ox knoweth its Owner, and the Ass his Masters Crib; and therefore we shall be worse than Publicans, Pagans and Beasts if we neglect it!

2dly. It is most just and equal. He unjustly asks a Bene­fit, who is not inclin'd to requite it. The least Mercy de­serves Acknowledgment, and how much more Wonders of Mercy. Seeing that our Being and all our Benefits are de­riv'd from God, it is but reasonable that we should return a Tribute of Praise for them.

3dly It is a delightful Duty, Ps. cxxxv. 3. Praise the Lord for it is good, sing Praises to his Name for it is Pleasant. Indeed it is the sweetest Duty on this side Heaven, and the nearest Resemblance of the continued Employment of the glorious Inhabitants of that blessed Place.

4thly. It is profitable, and hence the Lord Jehovah says, that he that offereth Praise glorifieth him, and that to him who ordereth his Conversation aright, will be shewn the Sal­vation of God. I proceed to the Improvement of this Sub­ject, which shall be only in a use of Exhortation.

O give Thanks to the Lord of Lords, to him that is above all Princes and Potentates, and earthly Nobles, for his Mer­cy endureth ever. To him alone who doeth great Wonders, for his Mercy endureth for ever. Let God alone be the supream Object and Center of our Praise, for he it is that over rules all Events. Let us reflect upon the past Mer­cies [Page 13] of God to the Protestant Churches in general, and to the British Zion in Particular: Blessed be the Lord that he has brought us out of the mystical Egypt of Popery, and that he has delivered us from the Armies of Sihon King of Heshbon, and Og King of Bashan! All Glory be to God the Father, Son and Holy-Ghost, for delivering England from the Spanish Armado, and the Gun-Powder Plot, that infernal Device! And for ever Blessed be the Lord for delivering the Nations from Popery and Slavery, by the coming of the Prince of Orange, afterwards King WILLIAM, of glorious Memory! O what a Blessed Dis­play of marvelous Mercy was that! And let us my dear Brethren, thank God with all our Hearts for the esta­blishment of the illustrious House of Hanover, upon the British Throne! What unspeakeable and precious Privi­ledges, dear Sirs! do we enjoy under the mild and auspi­cious Reign of our present gracious Sovereign King GEORGE? And therefore what Malignity and Madness must possess those Spirits who want to revolt from such a Government, which is temper'd with Lenity and Gen­tleness, and equally Protects the civil and religious Liber­ties of all! Neither should the late memorable Victory at Dettingen, which it pleased a gracious God to give to the British Arms over the Forces of France, be passed over with Silence and Negligence. O the unspeakable Kind­ness of Heaven in covering the Head of our indulgent So­vereign in the Field of Battle, when with intrepid Brave­ry he expos'd his naked Bosom to the design'd malignant Gallick Shot! What passionate Gratitude do we owe to the King of Kings for preserving so important a Life, in so perilous a Juncture! But that which has especially in­duced me to speak upon this Subject at this Time, is the News we have of a Victory obtain'd in the Mediterranean, [Page 14] by brave Admiral MATTHEWS, over the united Fleets of France and Spain before the Port of Toulon! And the seasonable Discovery and Defeat of an Attempt to invade England by a Popish Pretender, thro' the Assistance of the Arms of France! Blessed be the glorious God! that he has made the Winds and Waves to fight for us against our bloody Papal Enemies; as against the Egyptians of Old, and as the Stars fought against Sisera! Blessed be God that he has baffled the hellish Councils of the Romish Ahitho­phels, who want to rob us of our Religion, our Liberties, and our Lives! It is God! it is God alone! my Brethren, that has wrought this wondrous Mercy for us, and to him be all the Glory! O give Thanks to the Lord, for his Mercy endureth forever! Considering our great abuse of Mercies both Spiritual and Temporal, it is a Wonder that God has not given us up as a Prey to the Teeth of our Enemies! O let us exalt Jehovah with all our Hearts, and not forget his precious Benefits! Let us Thank him after the Psal­mist's Example, and pray to God that he would be pleased to perfect this begun Deliverance! Let us avoid Presump­sion on the one Hand, and sinful Diffidence on the other; and hoping pray, that he who has and does deliver, will yet deliver us from Popery and Slavery: And let us live agree­able to these wondrous and important Mercies of God, which may God grant for CHRIST'S sake!

Our God hath disappointed the deep Plot of the Courts and Conclaves of France and Spain, so artfully form'd, and so closely conceal'd in order to destroy at one fatal Stroke our civil and religious Liberties!

Jehovah hath brought the Wind out of his Treasures, and scattered the Squadrons of our Enemies; some he hath buried in the mighty Waters, like their Egyptian Predeces­sors, who were pursuing [...] Design against God's [Page 15] Israel, of Cruelty, Oppression, and Blood! And some he hath drove back with Dishonour to their Native Shore! Our God hath sought for us, and we will praise him! He hath delivered us as a Bird out of the Snare of the Fowler, and we will exalt him!

That mighty God who bounds the turbulent Ocean with­in its proper Limits by a girdle of Sand, has graciously gi­ven Check to the Romish Rage by the Winds, and put a Hook in the Jaws of those haughty and sanguinary Sena­cheribs, that they should return by the Way they came, a­shamed, without Success!

Our God hath repaid, in some Measure, into the Bo­soms of his Churchs Enemies, the Evils they devised a­gainst her, as in the Cases of Pharaoh, Haman, Ahithophel, Senacherib, Julian, and Domitian!

The Wind, that with auspicious Gales, gently wafted great WILLIAM, the procurer of our Liberties, and the Patron of our Laws, to the longing British Shore, hath, with adverse Gust, mercifully blown Back the Son of Rome, of Tyranny, and Blood, to the Gallick Coast!

O Brethren! we shall be some of the most ungrateful Mortals that ever the Creation bore, if we do not thank God for these Wonders of his Mercy! Let us speak then in the Psalmist's strains, Bless God O my Soul, and all that is within me bless his holy Name! O give Thanks to the Lord of Lords, for his Mercy endureth forever! Who overthrew Pharaoh and his Host, for his Mercy endureth forever! See v. 15. Let us take up the Song of magnanimous Deborah and say, Praise ye the Lord for the avenging of Israel: Lord when thou wentest out of Seir, when thou marchedst out of the Field of Edom, the Earth trembled, the Heavens dropped, the Clouds also dropped Water, awake, awake Deborah, awake, awake, utter a Song, arise Barak and lead captivity Captive, [Page 16] thou Son of Abinoam. ( See Judge v.) O Let us with Ardour, Alacrity and all Humility, express the Song of Moses after Israel's Deliverance at the Red Sea! Ex. xv. Then Sang Moses and the Children of Israel this Song, unto the Lord, and spake saying, I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath tri­umphed gloriously, the Horse and his rider hath he thrown into Sea; the Lord is my Stength and Song, he is also become my Salvation: He is my God, and I will prepare him an Habi­tation, my Fathers God and I will exalt him. The Lord is a Man of War, the Lord is his Name! Pharaoh 's Chariots and his Host he hath cast into the Sea.—The Depths have covered them, they sunk into the Bottom as a Stone, thy right Hand O Lord is become glorious in Power, thy Right Hand O Lord hath dash'd in Pieces the Enemy, and in the Greatness of thine Excellency, thou hast overthrown them that rise up a­gainst thee: The Enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the Spoil, my Lust shall be satisfied upon them. Thou didst blow with thy Wind, the Sea covered them, they sunk as Lead in the mighty Waters, who is like unto thee O Lord amongst the Gods, who is like unto thee, glorious in Ho­liness, fearful in Praises, doing Wonders?