THis Alarum-Bell, I have ſent to be rung in the ears of all true Chriſtians, whereby it may arowſe them from the dead ſleep of ſin & ſecurity: & to beware of Gods Iudgments, which he threatens againſt all obſtinate, preſumptuous, & ſtiff-necked people: behold friends, I would not have you thinke, that I will take upon me to Propheſie or Prognoſticate any thing in this Booke, but what is warranted me by the Scriptures. That little Talent that the Lord hath lent me, I would not hide it, but willingly ſo lay it out, that ye uſe may redound to the glory of God, & the good of all thoſe that fear him: my deſire is, that this my ſmall Book, cald Englands Alarum-Bell, may be as powerfull in your eares, & work ſo much for your ſouls, to ſtop Gods wrath by Prayer and Repentance, as the Preaching of Jonah to the Ninivites, as the Lord commanded him; who at the hearing of Jonah, when he ſaid, Yet forty dayes & Niniveh ſhall be overthrown: they faſted and mayed with ſuch earneſtnes & ſincerity to ye Lord, that God repented him of ye evill that he ſaid he would doe, & did it not: as you may read in the 3 of Jonah; You have heard lately, & do hear by the Iudgemēts & Prognoſtications of many mē now lately, of many ſad things that are like to befall, not onely this Nation, but all Chriſtendome beſides; whether they will prove true or falſe, none but ye Lord knows: the ſtars & planets I muſt confes are ye Meſſengers of God, & are ſent as fore runners of many things, which they do dive much into, yet faile in their judgements many times: & many times I am perſwaded that the Lord doth call back ye terrour of thoſe ſignes and tokens that he ſends, to make them know, that they are but men.

There is many I am perſwaded, ye did look to ſée the 29 of March laſt, to be a terrible day, as all writers did prognoſticate. I muſt confes the Eclipſe was true, both of the Moon the 15 day, & the Sun the 29, according as they had written; the Moon indéed a very ſad one, & great winds roſe upon her eclipſe, according as M. Culpepper writ in his Almanack; For the Sun, 't was eclipſed ſo much, as ye appearance of it was like a new Moon; 9 parts of 12 of her were darkned, or more, but ye ſplendor of that that did appear of it, was ſo bright and glorious, & ſo clear the aire was, that the day was not ſo terrible to behold: But the power of the Lord was admirable in this Eclipſe: I would deſire all you yt have ſéen this Eclipſe, to conſider this thing ye power of God over man was this, (that I may with Reverence ſay) He cauſed light out of darkneſſe: for the ſplendor of ye part of the Sun that was not eclipſed was ſo glorious, that it gave a luſter on earth frō the dark heavens; which if the Lord had ſuffered the clouds to have covered ye part of the Sun that was not eclipſed, wt ſuch clouds & darkneſſe that was in the morning before ſhe was eclipſed, it would have bin then (I think) a diſmall day to look on indéed; & then perhaps more glory would have bin given to ſome men on earth, then to God above, and afterwards would have bin ſo extolled for their prognoſtications by ſo many ſilly people in theſe times, yt they would have took their Almanacks for Scripture, & have looked more in them, thē in ye Bible. They writ very largely of the effects that will follow; what the effects will be the Lord knows: & if they do know by ye ſtars & planets, that the Lord doth intend thoſe things that they writ on; yet let this my Alarum-Bell ſound ſo much cō fort in ye ears of all true Chriſtians, that if we wil but truly & with a ſincere heart repent us of our ſins, & leave them, ye Lord will repent him of the evill that hée pretended, & leave puniſhing: you ſhall find in the 13 of Hoſea the 9 & 10 ver. the comfortable words of ye Lord which he ſpare to his people after he had aflicted thē; ſaith he, O Iſrael, thou haſt deſtroyed thy ſelfe, but in me is thy help; I will be thy King, where is any other that may ſave thee in all thy Cities? by this you may ſée the Lord hath no delight to the deſtruction of a nation or people. I deſire you likewiſe, yt the brightnes of the Lords mercy in this eclipſe of the Sun, may not be a means to harden your hearts, as I am afraid it doth too many in this Land, that makes a laughing at it, & thinks, becauſe it was not ſo diſmal a day as it was ſpoke of by ye Aſtrologers, yt God ſent thoſe ſigns & tokens in vain: I deſire you to be carefull what you do, & ſcoffe not at the wonders of the Lord, for though he lightened the glory of the Sun, in the eclipſe; without repentance, he will darken the glory of this Nation, & we may féele ye effects. Remēber what the Lord ſaith by the mouth of his Prophet, Iſaiah, cap. 5.12 They regard not the workes of the Lord, neither conſider the oppreſſion of his hands; therfore my people are gone to Captivity, becauſe they have no knowledge. I look upon this eclipſe in my opinion in two ſeveral ways, that it is a fore-runner both of Mercy & Iudgement. Firſt, I take it as the Lords mercy, that he ſhews theſe ſigns in heavē to forewarn us on earth of his judgments to come, & that all his people may prepare to méet him by repentance, before the day of his wrath comes upon us. Next, I looke upon it as his judgments, which he threatens by it; for the Lord may ſay by us as he did by ye Children of Iſrael, Amos 3.2. You onely have I knowne, of all the families of the earth, therefore I will puniſh you for your iniquities": For truly I think, no Nation under the Sun hath the Lord done more thē for us, & yet no nation hath provoked him as we have done. Look again in the 4. of Amos, 9, 10, 11. verſes I have ſent amongſt you the Peſtilence, after the māner of Egypt; your young men have I ſlaine with the Sword, and have taken away your Horſes; and I have made the ſtink of your Corps to come up in your noſtrills; ye: have you not returned unto me, ſaith the Lord. I have overthrowne ſome of you, as I overthrew Sodome and Gomorrah, & you were as fire-brands pluckt out of the burning, yet have you 〈◊〉 returned unto me, ſaith the Lord: therefore thus will I doe with thee, O Iſrael; and becauſe I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God, O Iſrael.

I thinke if we rightly underſtand theſe words, the Lord may ſay as much to England as he did to Iſrael, & we may apply it to our ſelves: therefore I conclude this matter concerning the Eclipſes; & deſire you to take notice of this, that when God ſhews wonders in the heavens above, and ſigns in ye earth below, 'tis high time to look about us, & not to be as they were in the time of Noah, for, They were eating & drinking, & marrying, & giving in marriage, til the flood came upō thē all. But if you wil take my advice, look upon thē as they are men; & though God hath endued them with more knowledge then other men; Yet all the wiſdome of this world is but fooliſhnes, in regard of the knowledge & wiſdome of God above. Now give me leave to ring this my Alarum-Bell once more to this ſinfull Nation, & to ſhew you in this Booke, by the help of God & the Scriptures, the reaſon & cauſe yt the Lord hath to enter into a controverſie with us; & truly I think there is none that hears or reads this Book, that hath ye fear of God before their eyes, but will acknowledg this Alarum-Bell hath iuſt cauſe to be rung lou • in the ears of all this Nation, to tel England of her ſins, yt by prayer we may ſtand in the gap, to kéepe out the Iudgements of God which is like to bée poured out upon this Land.

I refer the conſideration of this Book to any Chriſtian, that hath any féeling of the grace of God in them. Was ſin ever at a greater height then it is now at this time in our Land? and the more God ſtrives to humble us by his judgments & afflictions, ye more do we preſume in ſin: what ſins is there in ye Scriptures to be pronounc'd againſt, but we are guilty of? what Nation under ye ſun doth more abound in iniquity thē we do, & eſpecially now of late times? and briefly, theſe foure ſins which I ſhall name, are like four Load-ſtones, to draw down ye heavy wrath of God upon us; that is, Pride, Coveteouſnes, Blaſphemy, and Drūkēnes; & indéed Pride & Coveteouſnes are ring-leaders of moſt ſins under ye ſun: Pride was one of the chief ſins of Sodom. Look in Ezek. 16.49. what ye Lord ſaith to Samaria. Behold, this was the iniquity of thy ſiſter Sodom; Pride, fulnes of Bread, & abundance of idleneſſe was in her, & in her daughters, neither did ſhe ſtrengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And at verſ. 50. And they were haughty, & cōmitted abomination before me; therefore I took thē away as I ſaw good. May not the Lord ſay ſo to our Nation? did you ever ſée or hear, that pride was ever grown to ye height in Town & City, as 'tis now? nay, there are ſome that are ſo puſt up with the pride of heart, that they will pine the'r Carkaſſe inwardly. What faſhiō • is there invented every day, to fulfil ye pride of this nation? & we do as 'twere almoſt tell God to his face, that ye more he ſéeks to humble us by his judgmēts which he hath ſent amongſt us, the more we preſūptuouſly ſéek to exalt our ſelves, by our pride & ambition: but remember what the Lord ſaith, He wil pull down the proud and lofty, and exalt the humble and meeke.

Covetouſneſſe is a ſin that is linkt with Pride, for neither of them both hath any Charity in them: ye poore may lie & ſtarve in ye ſtréets, rather thē pride or covetouſnes wil either cloth their nakednes, or fill their bellies: no, no, they will rather eat up the poore (as ye Lord ſaith) rather thē féed them. But look to it, thou that haſt corn, & wine, & riches; you are but ſtewards for ye poor, & where ye Lord gives much, much he requires, either tēporal or ſpiritula: thou muſt give an account one day, how yu haſt ſpent that talent that God hath lent thée; without you uſe it the beteer, he will ſay, Depart, I know you not; I was a hungry, and you gave me no meat; I was thirſtie, and you gave me no drinke; I was a ſtranger, and you took me not in; naked, & you cloathed me not; ſick, and in Priſon, and you viſited me not: Mat. 25.42, 43. I think you underſtand, he meant his poore Members on earth; how many poore ſouls in theſe times are ready to ſtarve, & where is the pity or charity yt is ſhew'd unto them? Did not Job ſay, The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh, bleſſed be his Name. And knowſt thou, O man, what ere thou be, how ſoone the Lord may take thy wealth from thée, or thée from it? doe not be fed with ye fancies of theſe times; that it is a relique of Popery to give alms or be charitable; no, if thou haſt faith & no good works, it is a dead faith: all thy gold & riches cannot buy thée one dram of Repentance, nor procure one blaſt of breath, more then ye Lord (out of his mercy) doth beſtow upon thée: thou mayſt covet riches here on earth, but thou canſt not covet life; thou mayſt covet, but it is in vaine.

The Scriptures are fulfilled in theſe our times, & indéed looke in Mat. 24. & read it, & you ſhall find all things fulfilled, only ye calling of the Jews, & we know not how ſoon that may be. Our Saviour ſaith, And becauſe iniquity ſhall abound, the love of many ſhall grow cold: & indéed ſo it doth now, for there is little Love or Charity to be found amongſt us; look what ye Lord ſaith by the mouth of his Prophet Hoſea, Chap. 4.1, 2. Hear ye the word of the Lord, ye Children of Iſrael; for the Lord hath a Controverfie with the Inhabitants of the Land, becauſe there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the Land. By ſwearing, & lying, killing, & ſtealing, & committing adultery, they break out, & blood toucheth blood: there fore ſhal the Land mourn, & every one that dwelleth therein ſhall languiſh. We may apply this to our ſelves, if we conſider Propheſie: if ye Lord will not hold him guiltle; that taketh his Name in vaine; How will he hold him guiltleſſe, yt takes a glory in ſwearing, as many do in theſe times, who boaſt in their oaths, & ſcarce ever think of God but whē they ſwear by his name, whether it be falſe or true? look in Zechariah 5.3, 4. you ſhall ſée what the Lord ſent againſt yt Théefe & the Swearer, for the Lord joyn & them both together; for the Swearer robs God of his honour: & he ſent out a Curſe to deſtroy them, & it ſhall remaine in the midſt of their houſe, till it had deſtroyed both them & it. I deſire you yt are addicted to that ſin beware, for it is ſuch a ſin that you can make no excuſe for it; it brings you neither pleaſure nor profit, unleſſe it be the wrath of God, which he threatens againſt preſūptuous ſins: it is ſuch a ſin in this Nation (the Lord be mercifull to us) that you ſhall ſcarce walk the ſtréets but you ſhal hear little Children, ye ſcarce knows the right hand from the left, yet they can learn to ſwear, & their parents ſcarce correct them for it. The Lord may well viſit the ſins of the father upon ye Children, when you ſuffer your Children to take his moſt ſacred Name in vaine.

The laſt ſin which I have to name: for indéed 'tis not for me to number, nor to reckon all the ſeverall ſins of this Nation, for I think we exceed Sodom & Gomorrah in our wickednes; only I have toucht theſe four ſins, as namely, Pride, Covetouſnes, Blaſphemy, & Drunkennes, which is the foure crying ſins of this Nation: my Alarum-Bell rings loud in the ears of all thoſe that loves ye ſin of Drunkenneſſe: ſée what ye Lord ſaith by the mouth of his Prophet Joel, 1.5. Awake ye Drunkards, and weep, & howle all ye drinkers of wine, becauſe of the new wine; for it is out off from your mouth. Read ye Chapter, & you ſhall find what the Lord did doe for abuſing thoſe creatures; for in time of plenty, they made a waſt: therefore ye Lord brought a Famine & ſcarcity, becauſe of their Drunkennes & Gluttony.