The history of Joshua applied to the case of King Charles II in a thanksgiving sermon / preached at St. Peters, Exon. on the 29th of May 1684, by Tho. Long, one of the prebendaries.

JOSHUA 3.7.

The Lord ſaid unto Joſhua, This day will I begin to magnifie thee in the ſight of all Iſrael, that they may know that as I was with Moſes, ſo I will be with thee.

WHen Moſes by the unſearchable judgment of God was denied an entrance to the promiſed Land, and brought under a ſentence of death, Numb. 27.12. that the hopes and happineſs of Iſrael might not die with him, he makes an earneſt Prayer to God for Joſhua, whom God had appointed to be his Succeſſor, v. 16, 17. That the congregation of the Lord might not be as ſheep without a ſhepherd: and v. 23. he gave him a charge and inſtruction how to go in and out before the people to conduct them to Canaan, and commended him to the Prayers and Counſel of Eleazar the Prieſt, who had been (after the death of Aaron) his own faithful Counſellor. And by theſe means God put the ſpirit of Moſes, and ſome of his honour upon Joſhua, that all the congregation of Iſrael might be obedient, v. 20. And indeed, there was not any ſo qualified for the Government of that people as Joſhua was. The Succeſſion to great Kingdoms and Governments (as old Brithwold ſaid of this of England) is Gods care; and he will provide for it: and in his will and pleaſure the people ought to acquieſce. But it was not ſo with thoſe with whom Joſhua had to do, of whom Moſes teſtified, Deut. 31.27. I know thy rebellion and thy ſtiff neck: while I am yet alive with you this day, ye have been rebellious againſt the Lord; and how much more after my death? They had by their murmurings and provocations and the golden Calves which they had ſet up, worried that good man to death.

And Joſhua was to encounter not onely with that ſtubborn people, but with many Nations that were confederate againſt him, ſtrong and fenced Cities, whereof every one was made the ſeat of a King: Reges vocantur ſingularum ferè Civitatum Domini; which are reckoned in number thirty one. And the death of Moſes in ſuch an extraordinary manner, had raiſed great prejudices in the hearts of the people both againſt Moſes and his Succeſſor, who hated him the more for his love and zeal for the true Worſhip of God; whereof they had ſuch experience: for Joſhua being with Moſes in the Mount when the Law was delivered, he firſt diſcovered the murmurings of the people, Exod. 32.17. When Joſhua heard the noiſe of the people as they ſhouted, (viz. at the ſetting up of their Calves) he ſaid unto Moſes, There is a noiſe of War in the Camp. He ſaw alſo how greatly the Lord was diſpleaſed at the Rebellion of Core, Dathan, and Abiram, againſt Moſes and Aaron; and when Eldad and Medad became Field-Chaplains, and propheſied in the Camp, he perſwaded Moſes to forbid them, Numb. 11.28. And that ſmall Party which adhered unto Joſhua, were tired out by their tedious journeying through the Wilderneſs, and were now brought to the like ſtraights as they had been at the Red-Sea: ſo that nothing but a Miracle could reclaim the people, and preſerve Joſhua from being ſwallowed up by them. The River Jordan, at whoſe brink they were brought, had at this time overſlowed its banks, as if it had conſpired to meet and joyn with the madneſs of the people to cut off Joſhua. But this extremity the God of Iſrael made his opportunity to deliver and exalt Joſhua: The Lord ſaid unto Joſhua, This day will I begin to magnifie thee in the ſight of all Iſrael, that they may know, &c.

This day (i. e.) from this day forward, as the Syriack renders it, I will give an 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 . Earneſt and Aſſurance that I will exalt thee; not onely draw thee out of all that contempt and diſtreſs to which thou art reduced, but I will begin now, and in due time perfect that Honour and Dignity which I have deſigned for thee, both in the ſight of all the Canaanites, whom I will caſt out before thee, and in the ſight of all Iſrael, who have been ſo rebellious againſt thee; that they may know, that as I was with Moſes, and gave the people a paſſage through the Red-Sea; So I will be with thee, and cauſe thee to paſs over this ſwelling Jordan, and ſubdue not onely thine own people, but all the Nations of Canaan under thy feet: And, Sicut fuit verbum meum in adjutorium Moſis; as I conducted Moſes by my word and counſel, ſo I will guide thee.

Having thus conſidered the Text, it ſeemed to repreſent the form of a Triumphant Arch conſiſting of two Pillars, like unto thoſe of Solomon's Porch, 1 King. 7.21. Jachin and Boaz: This ſignifying, In him (i. e. in God) is ſtrength; and the other, He will eſtabliſh: I the Almighty God will eſtabliſh thee the diſtreſſed King of Iſrael; Honour and majeſty will I lay on thee; thy glory ſhall be great in my ſalvation, Pſal. 21.5.

I know it will be very acceptable to all good men, eſpecially to ſuch as are ſo neerly concerned as our ſelves, to ſee the ancient Monuments of Gods miraculous favours to Kings and Governours, and ſuch as live in obedience to them, preſerved and revived. And they may ſerve as Pillars to ſupport our weak faith in Gods power, and our Loyalty to the King, when it begins to decline. I therefore deſire your patience while I read you, as well as my dull eyes will permit, thoſe Inſcriptions of Gods great power, and the Prerogative of his Magiſtrates, which are engraven on theſe two Pillars of the Text: the firſt of which ſhews us what great things God did for Joſhua; the ſecond, what good things Joſhua did for God, or rather God wrought by Joſhua, to magnifie him, &c. Over the firſt Pillar is written, Ego Deus tuus; on the ſecond, Te Regum meum: and the Key-ſtone that joyns theſe in due conſtruction, is a magnificabo; and the date is hodie, this day, and not this day onely, but this day I will begin it. And let us begin our ſurvey of this Arch where God himſelf began it, at that foundation-ſtone of the first Pillar which God laid in the Waters of Jordan, when he brought Joſhua to his promiſed Inheritance through thoſe ſwelling ſtreams; which is the proper work of this day: Hodie incipiam, this day will I begin to magnifie thee.

What ſurer teſtimony could the God of Heaven give an afflicted Prince, that had a howling Wilderneſs behind him, and raging Flouds before him, than to divide and dry up thoſe ſwelling Surges, and make thoſe Flouds that had lifted their voices threatning deſtruction, to ſtand as a guard about him, while he paſſed through as on dry land? For no ſooner did Joſhua appear, and ſet the Prieſts bearing the Ark of God before the people (which formerly was obſcured, and even lost in the midſt of the confuſed multitude;) but, as the Pſalmiſt records it, Pſal. 114.3. The waters ſaw thee, O God, and fled; Jordan was driven back. A Miracle like that of our Jeſus, Mat. 8.24. of whom Joſhua was a Type, who when his Diſciples were covered with the waves of the Sea, and cried out, Lord, ſave us, we periſh; He aroſe and rebuked the waves and the ſea, and there was a great calm.

Thus at the preſence of Joſhua, the ſtreams of Jordan that deſcended from the Mountains, were ſtopped over againſt Jericho, and the waters beneath it flowed into the Sea, and made a plain path for Joſhua and his people to paſs thorough. There is no way inacceſſible to the divine power: Thy way, O God, is in the Sea, and thy path in the great waters: thy foot-ſteps are not known, Pſal. 77.19. Pervia Virtuti est omnis via. Now Signes and Wonders are not wrought but on ſpecial occaſions; not onely to confirm thoſe that do believe, but to convince unbelievers. They are Gods Broad Seals to confirm the Commiſſion of ſuch perſons as he ſends into the world for extraordinary ends; and if their authority be doubted of, this teſtimony of God is ſufficient to evince their authority to be derived from him: for by ſuch evidences God confirmed all the Rulers and Judges of Iſrael from Moſes unto Saul; and all the Doctrine of his Prophets and of Christ and his Apoſtles; and this was the firſt work of God, to magnifie Joſhua in the ſight of all his people. Now as a well-made Arch ſtands the firmer when a great weight is laid on it, ſo when we have a promiſe and a precept from God, and our obedience like the Key-ſtone unites theſe two, we cannot lay more ſtreſs upon it than that will bear.

The ſecond inſcription on this Pillar is the Memorial of Joſhua's taking the great city Jericho, whoſe Walls ſeemed as inacceſſable as the Waves of Jordan, and the rage and madneſs of that people againſt Joſhua more invincible than either: yet in the taking of Jericho, Joſhua was not aſſiſted by any arm of fleſh, or humane polity; he appears before it onely with the ſound of ſuch Trumpets as were wont to begin the Jubilee, when every perſon was to be reſtored to his Inheritance, all Captives and Priſoners to be releaſed, all Debts and Bonds to be cancelled; Et redit ad Dominum quod fuit ante ſuum: and at ſuch an approach of Joſhua the Walls of Jericho fell to the ground, the Gates flie open, and the hearts of his Enemies are in their heels, and ſcarce inable them to flee before him. And ſo totally did God deſtroy the enmity that was bred within thoſe Walls againſt Joſhua and his people, that he denounced a Curſe againſt any that ſhould repair it; which Curſe was inflicted on Hiel the Bethelite, who laid the foundation thereof in Abiram his firſt-born, and ſet up the gates thereof in his youngest ſon Segub, according to the word of the Lord which he ſpake by Joſhua, 1 King. 16.34. Joſh. 6.26.

This City, the ſtrength and Metropolis of the Canaanites, being ſubdued, all the little Cities run out at their gates, and leave them open to be poſſeſſed by Joſhua and his Subjects, ch. 12. 7. One and thirty Kings had cantoned out the Land, and fixed themſelves in walled Towns, where they had great ſtrength, and Chariots of iron, ch. 17. 18. But (ch. 5. 1.) their bloud and ſpirits failed them, and were dried up as the waters of Jordan; they had neither courage to fight, nor wit to flee, but were many of them taken, and hanged up, Joſh. 8.29. & 10.26. Yet was not the Land at reſt, but the Canaanites, Madianites and Jebuſites were ſtill in the land, ch. 15. 63. and they vexed Joſhua with their Wiles, and with their Confederacies and Aſſociations: for Adoni-Bèzek a great Lord, or Lord of Thunder (as his name imports) the greateſt Tyrant in the Nation, who had diſmembred threeſcore and ten other Lords, and brought them to gather meat under his table (Judg. 1.7.) conſpired with other Lords of the Amorites to fight againſt Joſhua at Gibeon, ch. 10. but here God magnified Joſhua by working another great Miracle, fighting againſt them with Hailſtones from Heaven, which ſlew more than the Sword of Joſhua, though that made a very great ſlaughter. And leſt the day ſhould fail him to compleat his Victory, we may read it ingraven on this Triumphant Arch, how at the word of Joſhua, the Sun ſtood ſtill in Gibeon, and the Moon in the Valley of Ajalon, ch. 10. 12. till the people had avenged themſelves upon their enemies. And many a time did their enemies aſſault them, being mixed among all the Tribes of Iſrael, as you may read, Judg. 1.18, &c. but Joſhua made them tributary, and God preſerved him, and made him to proſper, following him where-ever he went, with Miracles of mercy and loving kindneſs all the days of his life At the top of this Pillar you may ſee how Balaam alſo that falſe Prophet, who was hired to curſe the Iſrael of God, was taken and ſtain with the ſword, ch. 13. 22. And the land had reſt from war, ch. 11. 23.

And thus we have briefly viewed the Inſcriptions of the firſt Pillar of this Triumphant Arch, ſhewing you what God did for Joſhua: to which I cannot adde the top-ſtone, and ſhew how much theſe things contributed to the magnifying of Joſhua, till I have raiſed the other Pillar to ſome proportionable hèight, and conſidered what Joſhua did for God, and for his Worſhip and People, which tended more to his honour than all the Miracles that God wrought for him.

The foundation of this Pillar is laid in Shiloh, where Joſhua ſetled the Ark, the Symbol of Gods preſence, by vertue whereof he was enabled to do ſuch wonderful things againſt his enemies. Ch. 18. 1. The children of Iſrael aſſembled together at Shiloh, and ſet up the Tabernacle of the congregation there. Then he reſtored the Prieſts and Levites to their inheritance, ch. 18. 2. by the conſent of the whole congregation of the children of Iſrael, who came together at Shiloh, and ſet up the Tabernacle of the Congregation there: for the Levites had no part among the people, but the Prieſthood of the Lord was their inheritance, ch. 18. 7. for the Lord had commanded by Moſes to give them cities to dwell in, with the ſuburbs thereof: And the children of Iſrael gave to the Levites out of their inheritance at the commandment of the Lord, ch. 21. 2, 3. See Numb. 35.2. And all the cities which the Levites had were forty and eight with their ſuburbs, ch. 21. 41.

And here, to the immortal renown of Joſhua, we ſhall obſerve his and Gods great diſpleaſure againſt ſuch as withheld any of thoſe things that were devoted to the Lord: for, ch. 6. 24. the ſilver and the gold, and other ornaments, were to be put into the treaſury of the houſe of the Lord. But Achan a ſacrilegious perſon, ſeeing among the ſpoils a goodly Babyloniſh garment, and two hundred ſhekels of ſilver, and a wedge of gold of fifty ſhekels weight, he coveted them and took them, and hid them in his tent: but they proved to be as ſo many coals from the Altar, which were by the wrath of God kindled into ſuch a flame, as conſumed all that he had: for, all Iſrael ſtoned them with ſtones, and burned them with fire, ch. 7. 25.

This ſin of Achan was ſeconded by another ſacrilegious ſin of the Reubenites and Gadites that dwelt on the other ſide of Jordan: for they raiſed another Altar or place of meeting, beſides that which Joſhua erected at Shiloh; and this is called a rebellion againſt the Lord, ch. 22. 16. for ſeparation from the true Worſhip of God, and ſetting up a diverſe Altar, is the worſt ſort of Sacriledge. Achan with-held onely ſome Ornaments, theſe withdrew the Souls of Gods people from his ſervice. And in this caſe the children of Iſrael declared themſelves enemies to the Reubenites, whom they apprehended to ſeparate from the eſtabliſhed Worſhip at Shiloh: for they had made not onely a very great Altar, but made it after the faſhion of the Altar of the Lord, v. 28. and not after the faſhion of an Altar of memorial, ch. 22. 10. And the reaſons of their building of it were, leſt their Land ſhould be thought unclean, v. 19. and lest the children of Iſrael ſhould ſay to their children, Ye have no part in the Lord. For which cauſe the children of Iſrael gathered themſelves at Shiloh to make war againſt them, ch. 22. 12. but they firſt ſent Commiſſioners to treat with them, ch. 22. 13. Phinees the ſon of Eleazar the Prieſt, and ten others with him, who argued them out of their ſeparation; and deſiſted not until the Reubenites declared, That it was not intended as an Altar for ſacrifice diſtinct from that at Shiloh, but onely as a memorial that the Lord was their God: and therefore they called the name of it Ed, i. e. a Witneſs of Gods wonderful works and mercies to them.

You ſee here what apprehenſions the people of God had of the great ſin and miſchief of ſeparation. They accounted it first a Rebellion againſt God: for, God being one, ought to have a uniform Worſhip: Multiplicity of forms in Gods publick Worſhip, would bring a contempt of all; and from many, the people would relapſe to none. Of which both Iſrael and England have had ſad experience. And this ſeparation from the true, and toleration of falſe Worſhip, brought the Iſraelites to down-right Idolatry, againſt which Joſhua ſo earneſtly exhorted the Iſraelites in the four laſt Chapters.

Secondly, Different Modes in Religious Worſhip, breed differences in affection; and ſeparation from the eſtabliſhed Communion in the Church, is followed with Sedition in the State, againſt the Governours by whom that Worſhip is eſtabliſhed: and therefore the Children of Iſrael declared, that the ſetting up of another Altar by the Reubenites, was not onely rebellion againſt the Lord, but againſt them, v. 19. and a likely means to perpetuate diviſion and diſcord between their ſucceeding Generations: for their children would ſay to one another, Ye have no part in the Lord. And by this Religious care for the uniform Worſhip of God, God magnified Joſhua in the ſight of all the people.

But beſides theſe Stirs on the other ſide of the Water, Joſhua was perplexed with the Strivings and Diviſions of his People at home, who being mingled with the heathen, learned their ways, and forſook the Worſhip of God at Shiloh. There were ſome Princes of the Congregation who were ſurpriſed by the wiles and fair pretences of the Gibeonites, to enter into a Covenant with them, ch. 9. v. 18. for they had ſent their Elders who pretended they came from far, their Garments were old, their Bread mouldy, and every thing about them ſmelt like a Good Old Cauſe. They made Lyes their refuge: for they came in zeal (as they pretended) for the Name of the Lord God of Iſrael, v. 9. and v. 8. we are your Majeſties Loyal Servants. But theſe men were ſtill as great ſtrangers to the God of Iſrael, as great enemies to his people, as any of the Amorites or Jebuſites: and though they pretended to have come from far, yet upon enquiry it was found that they were not three days journey diſtant from them; their place and original diſcovered them to be Canaanites, and their Elders to be new Impoſtors, who having by their ſubtilty and importunity obtained a Toleration, were intolerably troubleſome to the Government. And therefore the Princes of Iſrael are blamed for their fond credulity and indulgence to ſuch a people: for they took of their Victuals, and perhaps ſome Preſents, and raſhly comprehend them in a League. But as the Text notes, They asked not counſel at the mouth of the Lord, v. 14 But Gods Oracle plainly commanded that ſuch Separatiſts ſhould be rooted out. The Hypocriſie of theſe Elders being known to Joſhua, though he granted them their lives, which were forfeited to the Sword, yet he denied them their liberty of Conſcience, v. 15. and made them hewers of wood and drawers of water for the ſervice of the Altar of God, v. 27.

Next to theſe Gibeonites, there were Jebuſites alſo, that had gotten ſuch ſtrong holds in the Land, that they could not be caſt out until the days of David: for they had ſuch confidence in their Teleſms, the Spels and Conjurations which they had made, the blinde and the lame Images which they ſet up on the walls of Sion, that they told David peremptorily, Except he took them away (which they thought he could never do) he could not come in, 2 Sam. 5.6, 7. As if thoſe Idols had been ſo many Guardian-Angels to protect them, though they could neither ſee, hear, or move.

All theſe Parties were (as Joſhua told the people, ch. 23. 13.) ſnares and traps unto them, ſcourges to their ſides, and thorns in their eyes, until they had utterly demoliſhed and thrown down their Altars. But all theſe difficulties notwithſtanding, God had begun and ſtill went on to magniſie Joſhua in the ſight of all the people: for God having given reſt unto Joſhua after many victories and deliverances, he appoints a ſolemn Thankſgiving. And having built an Altar to the Lord God of Iſrael, ch. 8. 30. he aſſembles all Iſrael, their Elders and Officers, their Judges, with their women, little ones, and ſtrangers, and read unto them all the words of the Law, v. 34. the Bleſſings that ſhould be granted them on their obedience, and the Curſes that would befal them on their diſobedience; together with thoſe Forms of Thankſgiving: All which Moſes had written, and cauſed to be recorded as in a publick Liturgie for the uſe of the ſucceeding Generations, Deut. 31.27, &c. and they bleſſed God, ſinging the Song of Moſes, and ſacrificing Peace-Offerings with the Forms preſcribed by Moſes: for there was not a word of all that Moſes commanded, which Joſhua read not before all the Congregation of Iſrael, v. 35.

And particularly, Joſhua's next care was to revive thoſe two great Ordinances of the Lord, Circumciſion, and the Paſſover; the one being the Seal of the Covenant which he made with Abraham, to be his God and the God of his ſeed, and to own them for his people; the other as a Memorial of his wonderful deliverances of them from their bondage under Pharoah in Egypt. To which our Sacraments of Baptiſm and the Holy Euchariſt do ſucceed. Theſe, by the long omiſſion and neglect of them while they were in the Wilderneſs, were fallen into contempt: but by Gods ſpecial command to Joſhua, were to be renewed, ch. 5. 2. And none of thoſe that obſerved not theſe Ordinances were to have any inheritance in the Land; as neither we, unleſs we duely partake of the Sacraments of our Jeſus, ſhall be admitted into Heaven, whereof Canaan was a Type. When theſe Ordinances were duely adminiſtred, God appeared to Joſhua, v. 9. and ſaid, This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt; and then alſo God ſent his Angel to go before them as Captains of the Hoſt of the Lord, v. 14. to fight their Battels.

And to compleat the magnificence of Joſhua, he appoints Cities of refuge for thoſe who had been ignorantly and unawares betrayed to kill their brethren, that they fell not by the revenging Sword, but might live quietly among their Brethren.

Thus the Lord continued to magnifie Joſhua, caſting out before him many Nations greater and mightier than he; crowning him with Victories, Peace, and Plenty; and having ſerved God fully, and governed his people faithfully, being an hundred and ten years old, he was gathered to his Fathers; having ſetled the People, and eſtabliſhed the true Worſhip of God in the Land of Canaan: And gave the Iſraelites a land for which they did not labour, and cities which they built not, vineyards and oliveyards which they planted not, Joſh. 24.13. Thus did God perfect that great work by which he begun this day to magnifie Joſhua in the ſight of all the People.

And now I doubt not but you will give me leave to lead you through this Triumphant Arch, and by way of Application ſhew you on the Reverſe, the Memorials of thoſe wonderful works whereby God hath begun to magnifie our Joſhua in the ſight of all his people. And that we may begin at the foundation of this Fabrick, let us firſt conſider to what a low ebb the affairs of our Joſhua were reduced, and how the wrath and rage of his enemies overflowed all bounds when he came to the brink of this Jordan.

After the never-enough-lamented death of the Royal Martyr, his Royal Majeſty had a great part of a howling Wilderneſs to paſs through: he was hunted from Mountain to Mountain, and from one Kingdom to another people; deſtitute of all comforts, and forſaken of all but his God onely; and in him, as David in the like condition at Ziglag, he encouraged himſelf. For as long as he retained the Ark of God, and reſolved with Joſhua, though all Iſrael ſhould corrupt themſelves, yet he and his houſe would ſerve the Lord, he could not doubt but God would reſtore him, and bleſs him, as he did Obed-edom and all his houſe: the ſame promiſe being applied to all true Iſraelites which was made to Joſhua, Heb. 13.5. I will not leave thee, nor forſake thee.

And indeed, there was no viſible power ſufficient to preſerve and reſtore him, like to that of his care for the Ark of God, the true Religion, and ſolemn Worſhip which had been baniſhed with him: He had not Treaſure from the Pope, and Conduct from the Emperour, the Courage and Conſtancy of ſome within the walls, the united Strength and Counſels of others in the Field: he did not truſt in his Sword or Bow, in Chariots or Horſemen; all theſe were rather combined againſt him: The Chriſtianiſſimus was an enemy to him abroad, as well as the Antichriſtianiſſimus at home; but he was ſtill Defender of that Faith which God promiſed to defend againſt all the gates of Hell: None except old Caleb, whom God ſupported againſt otherwiſe-inſupportable difficulties, appeared for him. And God alone it was who ſent ſuch a Spirit of Giddineſs and Diviſion among his enemies, and ſo exhauſted and dried up their ſpirits and courage, that the dividing the waters of Jordan, and drying up thoſe mighty ſtreams, was not more wonderful. The Prophet David accounts it an argument of greater power, to reſtrain the madneſs of the people, than the raging of the Sea, Pſal. 65. And all this was done, at the approach of the Ark of God, by his Majeſties gracious Declaration concerning Eccleſiaſtical affairs; which ſo bowed the hearts of his people as the heart of one man, that they ſent back this Loyal Invitation, Return thou and all thy houſhold.

I do not plead for Miracles as a ground of Faith and Obedience now; I leave that to the Church of Rome, which if ever it wrought a true Miracle in theſe later Ages, it is this, That they ſhould ſo captivate the underſtandings of ſo many, and ſome otherwiſe-wiſe men, as to make them believe their falſe ones, after ſo many Impoſtures have been diſcovered.

When the Iſraelites were ſetled in Canaan, and did eat of the Corn growing in the Country, the miraculous Manna ceaſed, Joſh. 5.12. And we who live in a Country where the Bread of Life is ſo plentifully diſpenſed unto us, which was confirmed by ſo many undoubted Miracles, may not expect any new Miracles or Revelations: we have a more ſure word of propheſie, (2 Pet. 1.19.) whereon to ground our Faith, and direct our Obedience: And if we believe not the Doctrines and Promiſes of Christ and his Apoſtles, neither will we believe if one aroſe from the dead, Luke 16.31.

Yet as God ſhews equal wiſdom, power, and goodneſs, in upholding the Earth, and in his dayly governing of and providing for all his Creatures, as in the firſt creation: ſo he doth ſtill manifeſt as much of his infinite wiſdom, power, and goodneſs, in over-ruling the perverſe wills and contrary diſpoſitions of men, bringing Good out of Evil, and Peace and Order out of all the Confuſions which are intended and acted by them, as in any miraculous work. And if any thing in this late Age comes near to the nature of a Miracle, that Series and Succeſſion of unparallel'd Wonders for twenty years together granted to our King, may be ſo called.

If therefore it were a Wonder in Nature to ſee Jor and Dan forſake their courſe and ſtand on an heap while Joſhua paſſed over, it was no leſs to ſee multitudes and ſtreams of people in an about Thames and Iſis forſake their wonted Channel, andAmniſ que cucurrit qua non pronus erat. flow back to their Head and Fountain, from whom they had ran ſo long over ſo many Precipices. To ſee thoſe great men that thought themſelves as immovable as the Mountains, skipping like Rams, and the little hills like young ſheep, at the preſence of Joſhua and the Ark of God, Pſal. 114.4. To ſee that Prince who had been ſo long and often near to be ſhipwrack'd on dry land, to be owned and guarded as Soveraign Lord and Commander of the Seas; and thoſe Ships which as ſo many Tygers and Vultures roved up and down to make him a Prey, as ſo many Doves flying to him as to their Ark, with Olive-branches in their mouths, to aſſure him that the Deluge was over, was very ſtrange: but much more wonderful it was, that thoſe ſlouds of people that had lift up their voice, threatning preſent death at his firſt approach, and that if he paſs'd the Seas he ſhould wade through a Sea of Bloud; ſhould in an inſtant of time change their note, and welcome him, as with the voice of many waters, clapping their hands, ſhouting for joy, and crying, Hallelujah; ſo as nothing elſe could be heard but God ſave the King: This is the lords doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes: This is the day which the Lord hath made, let us be glad and rejoyce in it. For from this day did God begin to magnifie our Joſhua in the ſight of all his people.

And now our Joſhua ſtands on his own terra firma, and might truly ſay as Caeſar did, Veni, vidi, vici; where-ever he came, and whatſoever he ſaw, he overcame: for with no other preparation than that of the joyful ſound of Trumpets, he approached the Royal City, the Fortreſs and Metropolis of the Nation; or rather, the great City came forth to meet him. That City which had ſent forth many Meſſages after him with a Nolumus hunc regnare, We will not have this man to reign over us; and had ſpent vaſt Treaſures, and hazarded the lives and ſouls of many thouſands to take away his life, now caſt themſelves at his feet, imploring his Pardon, offering their Lives and Eſtates in defence of his; and ſet open their hearts wider than their gates to entertain him. And thoſe who with Shimei had curſed their King moſt bitterly, were ſome of the firſt that came with Acclamations to welcome him home. The Example of this City (as it uſually had done) influenced all the leſſer Cities, which like thoſe of Canaan, ſpued out thoſe independent Arbitrary Tyrants that held them in ſubjection, to make room for his peaceable Officers, who under God reſtored their Judges as at the firſt, and their Counſellors as at the beginning.

And now (his Majeſties own houſe being not yet ſetled) he makes it his firſt care to fix the Ark of God among us, reſtoring the Prieſts and Levites to their Offices and Inheritance; and to recover the Spoils of the Church and conſecrated things from thoſe ſacrilegious Achans that had purloined them, and hid them in their own Tents. And though he deſtroyed not the ſacrilegious perſons, yet he hath wellnigh deſtroyed Sacriledge it ſelf. And this is another act whereby God magnified our Joſhua: for, by giving unto God the things that are Gods, God hath given unto Caeſar the things that are Caeſars.

The next memorable act ingraven on our ſide of this Royal Arch, is the baniſhing of thoſe falſe Prophets, and depriving them of thoſe wages of Iniquity which were given them as a reward for curſing the King, and deceiving the People; among whom there being none like to our Engliſh Balaam, the very Blunderbuſs of that Age, that had leſs Religion and as little Reaſon as the Aſs he rode on, was deſervedly executed by the Sword of Juſtice.

With theſe there fell in a great meaſure thoſe ſeveral Sects, Parties, and Factions of Jebuſites and Madianites, Hittites, and Periſites which they had raiſed, who though they were irreconcilably divided from each other, yet they unanimouſly conſpired againſt the Iſrael of God. Onely it will ſtand recorded as a defect not ſo much in the Government of Joſhua, as on the inconſtancy and importunity of ſome of the Elders and Princes of the Congregation, that the Land was not wholly cleanſed from them in his days; but by their wiles and ſubtilties, their clothing of new Errours in the habit of old Traditions, and their decking of old Errours and Hereſies in new forms of Godlineſs, they extorted an Indulgence and Toleration, to the inſnaring of ſuch as were unſtable, and the grieving of thoſe that were ſtedfaſt; to whom they were as ſo many Briers and Thorns, to vex and diſquiet them. The Acts of Oblivion and all Indulgences, under which, as in the Cities of refuge, even bloud-guilty men might have lived ſecurely, have been ſo far from ſuppreſſing their enmity, and cauſing them to live peaceably with their Brethren, that they have rather taken encouragement from them, as to turn the grace of God into wantonneſs, ſo to return the Kings Clemency into new Affronts and Confederacies againſt him.

But theſe miſchiefs notwithſtanding, thoſe two Sacraments of Baptiſm and the Supper of our Lord, by which we have an entrance into, and an inheritance in the Kingdom of Heaven aſſigned to us, are duly adminiſtred to all that will rightly receive them. And as by the Law of Moſes, the uncircumciſed and ſuch as partook not of the Paſchal Lamb, had no inheritance among their Brethren in the Kingdom of Iſrael; ſo we are taught that they can have no inheritance in the Kingdom of Heaven, who will have no Communion with the Church of God in the uſe of theſe Sacraments.

There was a time when the Kingdom of Heaven ſuffered violence, and the violent took it by force; but now, when the Kingdom of Heaven ſeems to offer violence, and to take us into it by force; though our Jeſus hath by his own bloud provided for us a Laver of Regeneration, and in great love prepared a Feaſt of fat things, even his own fleſh and bloud, to preſerve our Bodies and Souls to eternal life; the Doctrine of Reſiſtance to the Commands and Inſtitutions of the King of Heaven, is as boldly put in practice, as that of reſiſting the Supreme Power on Earth is preached in our Conventicles. For what a ſcandal and contradiction is it, that they ſhould paſs for true Proteſtants among us, that were never Chriſtians! and boaſt themſelves the chiefeſt Miniſters of Chriſt the Head, that cut themſelves off from all Communion with the Body of Chriſt his Church, and make their Children paſs through the fire to Moloch, rather than through the Baptiſmal water to Chriſt! That would rather confederate in a Covenant for Bloud with ſome Sons of Belial, than partake of the Bloud of that Covenant of Peace which the Son of God invites us to! Certainly the Bloud both of their King and of their Saviour, muſt ſeem very vile to thoſe that can thus trample them under their feet. And notwithſtanding the Cry of Perſecution, I think it our bounden duty, and an act of Chriſtian Charity, to practiſe our Saviours Preſcript upon theſe diſtracted people, and compel them to come in to his Houſe, and to his great Supper; that, as St. John Baptiſt ſays, they may be preſerved from the wrath to come, Mat. 3.7. for otherwiſe God can as well raiſe up Children to Abraham out of thoſe ſtones (as St. John ſays, pointing, as ſome learned men think, at thoſe very ſtones which Joſhua ſet up in the midſt of Jordan) as make them Children of his Kingdom, which nothing can do but a Miracle of Mercy; whereof they can have little hope, that deſpiſe the eaſie and ordinary means of their Salvation.

And now, to convince theſe men, behold another Wonder, That notwithſtanding all theſe impotent Commotions, thoſe two great Luminaries and Ordinances of Heaven, the light of the Goſpel, and the comfortable influences of Government, do ſtand ſtill over our Land, as the Sun did over Gibeon, and the Moon in the Valley of Ajalon: neither the bluſtring of the Northern Winds, nor the interpoſition of infernal Miſts conſiſting of groſs darkneſs and new lights together, have been able to hinder the diſpenſation of thoſe heavenly bleſſings, to the comfort of all humble and faithful Souls, and as well to the admiration as to the regret and confuſion of our enemies. And may they ever ſo ſtand, till all the enemies of the eſtabliſhed Religion and Government be ſo deſtroyed, that there be not one of them left. And now I dare for once to appeal to the people, as Joſhua did, ch. 23. 14. Ye know in all your hearts, and in all your ſouls, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the Lord our God promiſed to his Church in theſe later days. The Sun of Righteouſneſs was promiſed (Malachy 4.2.) to ariſe, with healing in his wings: and it was foretold, Iſai. 49.23. that God would ſend Kings to be nurſing fathers to his Church; and nothing hath failed of all the good things which the Lord our God promiſed us: he hath in a good meaſure healed our Diviſions, removed our Prejudices and Enmities, and eſtabliſhed the Ʋniformity of his Worſhip among us, and rolled away the Reproach that lay upon us.

But if with Jeſſurun we ſhall grow wanton, and kick againſt God, and bite and devour one another, he hath threatned to bring upon us all the evil that is written in his Law, till he have deſtroyed us from off the good land which he hath given us, Joſh. 23.15. He can (as he hath done once already) turn the Sun, i. e. the Goſpel, into darkneſs; and the Moon, i. e. our Government, into bloud: he can remove the Ark of his preſence and Worſhip, and roll back the reproach of Egypt upon us, and write Ichabod upon the whole Land.

Wherefore, as we have heard and ſeen the great works of God for the magnifying of our King; ſo let us conſider the duties which we owe to God and the King, that we may rightly celebrate the joyful Solemnity of this day. And firſt, let us ſing our Te Deum; let us aſcribe unto the Lord the praiſes due unto his Name for all thoſe Acts of Grace whereby he hath magnified the King: for with his own right hand, and with his holy arm, hath he gotten himſelf the victory; and therefore not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but to thy Name be the honour and glory of all thoſe great things which thou haſt done for our King, and for us whom thou haſt committed to his charge. It is he that giveth victory unto Kings, and hath delivered David his ſervant from the peril of the ſword: Let us therefore that are all partakers of his mercies, joyn together in ſinging our Magnificat with one heart and one mouth; My ſoul doth magnifie the Lord, and my ſpirit hath rejoyced in God my Saviour: for he hath regarded the low eſtate of his ſervants; he that is mighty hath magnified us, and holy is his Name: He hath ſhewed ſtrength with his arm, and hath ſcattered the proud in the imaginations of their hearts: he hath put down the mighty from their ſeat, and hath exalted the humble and meek: he hath filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he hath ſent empty away. He remembring his mercy, hath holpen his ſervant Iſrael, as he promiſed to our forefathers Abraham and his ſeed for ever.

Secondly, Let us beware how we do ſo much as in our thoughts deſpiſe or undervalue, much leſs ſeek to cast him down whom God hath ſo wonderfully exalted. It is hard fighting againſt God; and our murmurings against ſo good a Governour, are not againſt him onely, but againſt the Lord. Haman being asked what ſhould be done to the man whom the King delighted to honour, Heſt. 6.6. anſwered, Let the royal apparel be brought which the King uſeth to wear, and the horſe which the King rideth upon, and the Crown royal be ſet upon his head. But what ſhall be done to the King whom God delighteth to honour! that King whom God prevented with bleſſings of goodneſs, and gave him his hearts deſire; that King on whoſe head he hath ſet a Crown of pure Gold, and crowned that Crown with ineſtimable mercies and loving kindneſſes; that King that truſteth in the Lord, that hath been born upon Eagles wings, and fixed on the Rock that is higher than himſelf; againſt whom though the people did rage, and their Rulers took counſel together, yet with a Non Obſtante he hath ſet his King upon his holy hill of Sion: He hath laught his enemies to ſcorn, and vexed them in his ſore diſpleaſure: What ſhall be done to ſuch a King! What? why there are ſome (who are of a far worſe mind than Haman was) that would deal with him as the Jews did with Chriſt their King; they have platted a Crown of Thorns, and would ſet it on his head, and put a Reed in his hands inſtead of the Royal Scepter; and inſtead of the Royal Robe, clothe him with Curſes, railings, and mockings, as with a Garment, and nail him to the Croſs, and pierce his royal ſides with their Tongues, ſharper than ſwords or ſpears; that thirſt for his heart-bloud, and cry as they did, His bloud be upon us and our children: not conſidering how heavy ſuch Royal Bloud hath lain on them and their children already, and ſtill cries aloud for more vengeance; which would certainly fall on them, did not the bloud of Chriſt ſpeak better things than the bloud of Abel.

I know it is a hard thing to perſwade ſome men that there hath been a Plot and Confederacy to take away the life of the King: and it is the intereſt of ſome infidels not to believe it till they ſee it executed, as in the caſe of the Royal Martyr. And to others that have Chriſtian and charitable principles, it is ſo great a wonder that there ſhould be any ſuch Ruffians and Deſperado's among us, that ſhould ſeek to take away his life in whom all their lives are bound up, that it is no wonder if they could not believe it. But their own tongues have teſtified it againſt them, and made them to fall; and the hand of God hath ſo fully diſcovered and defeated them, that all the world (except thoſe whom the God of this world hath blinded) do ſee it, and are aſhamed. And all theſe endeavours to deſtroy the King, God hath in great mercy converted to the magnifying of him.

When Joſhua had paſſed over Jordan, the uſe of that Miracle was to endear him to the people, and to aſſure the people that the living God was with him, Joſh. 3.10. and that all the people of the earth might ſee, the mighty hand of God, ch. 4. 24. But though the mighty hand of the living God hath lifted up the King; though God appeared unto him not once or twice, as unto Solomon, giving him great wiſdom, and laſting proſperity: yet, as Iſaiah complains, ch. 26. 11. Lord, when thy hand is lifted up, they will not ſee, how wonderfully God hath ordained peace for us, and wrought all our works in us: But they ſhall ſee, and be aſhamed of their envy to the people.

We have ſeen all the things that God did for Joſhua, but we have not yet ſeen all the great things that God will do for our King. How God hath begun to magnifie him we have ſeen, by many ſignes and wonders: He honoured him with a ſigne in the Heavens, a Star appearing at noon when he was baptized: He honoured him with many wonderful deliverances at home and abroad when he was in his low condition: He honoured him with many Graces, preſerving him in the true Faith and fear of his Name, againſt the manifold temptations to which he was expoſed in his baniſhment: He honoured him with many ſpecial endowments that qualified him for Government, above all his neighbouring Princes: He honoured him by turning the hearts and affections of his People, which had been long alienated from him: He honoured him by the wonderful reſtoration of him to his Fathers Throne without the leaſt oppoſition: He honoured him by diſcovering and defeating the many ſecret Conſpiracies of implacable and bloud-thirſty men; and doubtleſs as he hath defeated theſe which are diſcovered, ſo he hath many more which are not yet diſcovered: He hath honoured him, by making him beloved at home, and feared abroad, and putting the Balance of Chriſtendom into his hands: He hath honoured him by giving us, for more than twenty years together, the bleſſings of Peace and Plenty, when the Nations round about us wallow in Bloud and Confuſion; yea, Mercy and Truth are met together, and Righteouſneſs and Peace do kiſs each other: He hath honoured him with the Gift of Healing that loathſome Diſeaſe of the Kings Evil, which otherwiſe would have deſtroyed the bodies of many thouſands of his Subjects, and in a good meaſure healing by a touch of his righteous and merciful government, the Souls of many more of the like Evils in their hearts, which might have deſtroyed Souls and Bodies eternally.

And it doth not yet appear how much farther God will go on to perfect that great work by which he hath begun to magnifie him: but what hath been already done may ſerve to raiſe the confidence of all his Subjects in their Loyalty towards him, and to ſtrike a terrour into the hearts of all that hate him; and are otherwiſe to mind them of the diſhonourable end of Haman, that would not honour him whom the God of Heaven hath delighted to honour.

Joſhua himſelf was never ſo magnified as our King hath been. Miracles were common in his days; he and his people did eat, and drink, and were clothed by Miracles: but ſuch Wonders as we have ſeen, cannot be parallel'd in any Age for a thouſand years together. They were ſo many, and done in ſuch an extraordinary and unexpected manner, by the immediate hand of God, that all that ſee it will ſay, This hath God done: for they may perceive that it is his work. Joſhua had a particular promiſe, and immediate aſſiſtances from God; our King onely a general promiſe and providence to depend upon: Onely he was very couragious, to believe and to do all that God required of him; and many a time against hope he hoped in him, and was holpen. Joſhua was to take the land of other Nations into poſſeſſion; our King regained his own Inheritance. Joſhua conquered by the Sword, and ruled with a Rod of iron; Charles, by the Grace of God. Joſhua ſhed much bloud; King Charles dryed that bloudy Iſſue which had ſo long defiled and exhauſted the Nation.

Let not our Adverſaries boaſt any more of their Succeſſes as arguments that God owned their Good old Cauſe; which was conceived by Perjury and Hypocriſie, and nouriſhed with Bloud and Cruelty, Rapine and Sacriledge, for many years; but was deſtroyed by the hand of God in one day, this Joyful day which we now celebrate. And now I ſee nothing wanting but quiet and peaceable hearts, Thankfulneſs, and Obedience to the Law of God and the King, to make us a happy people: Onely the guilt and just fears of ſome men, haunt and provoke them ſtill to act over all thoſe Tragical Scenes which for almoſt twenty years together made the three Nations ſo many Stages of Bloud and Confuſion.

As for us, let us now added to our Praiſes for the Mercies past, and for the perpetuating of the Joys of this day, our hearty Prayers to God, that as he hath already equalled the Bleſſings and Succeſſes of our King, to thoſe of Joſhua; ſo he would renew them to him every day; that he may arrive to the age of Joſhua; and his care to magnifie God, and eſtabliſh his Worſhip, and perpetuate it to ſucceeding Generations, may increaſe with his years; and that in his own due time God would exchange the Crown and Glories which he enjoyeth here, for thoſe which are prepared and reſerved for him in Heaven hereafter.

FINIS.