WHO was the Composer of this Psalm, I shall not curiously or nicely search into, seeing 'tis universally believ'd to be a joy­ful and chearful Hymn made by Ezra, or some good Man, at the Jews return out of Captivity, who had been kept a long time in Bondage in a strange Country, a­mong Infidels and Idolaters. When the People saw so wonderful a Change all on a suddain wrought for them, and Liberty granted to return into their own Country, they were so amaz'd and transported with the Delive­rance, that they could scarce believe it to be true, and look'd upon it only as a Dream, which vanisheth and comes to nothing. v. 1. When the Lord turn'd again the Capti­vity of Sion, we were like them that dream. But awa­king, and seeing their Deliverance to be real, v. 2. their Mouth was fill'd with Laughter, and their Tongue with Singing, crying out with joy and triumph, The Lord hath done great Things for us already, whereof we rejoice.

I shall take the liberty, and that without any violence to the Words, to apply them to the happy Occasion of this Day. In which you may observe,

• First, A joyful Acknowledgment made to God, that he hath done great Things for us.
• Secondly, I will shew what some of these great Things are. [Page] [...] [Page 1] [...]
• [Page 2] Thirdly, What our Duty is in return to the Almighty, for doing so great Things for us.
• Lastly, What Improvement we are to make of the whole. And

First, A joyful Acknowledgment made to God, that he hath done great Things for us.

The rich Man makes his Wealth his strong City, Joh. 31.24. He saith unto Gold, thou art my Hope, and unto the Wedge of Gold, thou art my Confidence, Pro. 11,28. but he that trusteth in his Riches shall fall. The worldly wise Man that thinks to save himself by his own policy, let him remember that God many times infatuates the Wisdom of the Wise, and brings their Counsels to nought; the mighty Man that trusteth in his Arm of Flesh, and puts his Confi­dence in the multitude of his Chariots and Horsemen, Isal. 31.1. That goes down into Egypt for help, and looks not unto the Holy One of Israel, and seeks not unto the Lord. Let him consider, v. 3. that the Egyptians are Men and not Gods, and their Horses Flesh, and not Spirit; and when the Lord shall stretch out his hand, both the Helper and he that is Holpen shall fall, and they shall altogether fail. It was the saying of One when he was falling into the Enemies hand, My Kingdom for an Horse, but Psal. 33.17. an Horse is counted but a vain thing to save a Man, neither shall he deliver any by his great strength. We know, that if we Isai. 30.2. v. 3. trust in the shadow of Egypt, and strengthen our selves with the strength of Pharoah, v. 3.the end of that Trust and Strength will be our Shame and Confusion. Jer. 17.5. Cursed be the Man that trusteth in Man, and maketh Flesh his Arm. Armies and Navies, Guards and Forts, Bombs and Cannon, Artil­lery and Ammunition are useless and unserviceable with­out God, and the Success in the day of Battle must be attributed principally to his Blessing. The divine Pro­vidence [Page 3]is our greatest safety and security both at Sea and Land; God must be consulted first about the event of things; his aid and help must be chiefly ask'd, and our confidence, when we go against our Enemies, must be wholly in him: This is to build our House with the wise Man upon a Rock, and therefore Matth. 7. when the Rain descends, the Floods come, and the Winds blow, and beat upon that House, it falls not, because it is founded upon a Rock. Unless God fights our Battles, Egypt and her Chariots and Horse­men are but sandy Foundations, and not to be trusted in. God has been pleased to do great Things for us; his gra­cious Providence never appear'd brighter in any Cause than in our Deliverances; we acknowledge them to be his handy Work, his gracious care over us; and whoever will give himself the trouble, seriously to look back and reflect upon the Administration of Affairs since our happy Revolution, must needs see, that the Providence of God has concern'd himself, interpos'd his Almighty Power and Wisdom, and had an hand in all our Successes and Advan­tages. They that will not believe this, I dare be bold to say, they believe no God, no Providence at all, or at least are angry at Heaven, because it will not smile upon their Cause, nor favour what they unreasonably would have uppermost. God has heard our Prayers, and answered them; we call'd upon him in the Day of trouble, and he has done far more exceeding abundantly than we could think; his Almighty Arm has saved us, the Lord himself has been on our side; he has been with our Forces in their passing through the Waters, and in walking through the Fire. The Victories we have got already are stand­ing Monuments of his truth, and of the Lord's goodness to us. Psal. 44.5,6,7,8. Through him have we overthrown our Enemies, and through his Name have we troden them under that rose up a­gainst[Page 2] [...] [Page 3] [...] [Page 4]us. We did not trust in our Bow, neither did our Sword save us; but the Lord saved us from our Enemies, and has put them to shame that hated us. In God we boast all the Day long, and praise his Name for ever. Psal. 33.16 There is no King sav'd by the multitude of his Host: a mighty Man is not delivered by much strength. Psal. 127.2 Except the Lord keep the City, the Watchman waketh but in vain. Eccles. 9.11. The Race is not to the swift, nor the Battle to the strong. 1 Sam. 2.9. In his own might shall no Man be strong. The Eyes of King Jehosaphat, and of all Judah, were in their great exigency and necessity, chiefly and principally upon God; for though his Army was great and numerous, yet when the Children of Mo­ab, Ammon and Mount Seir came against him, he proclai­med a Fast, and cried unto the Lord; 2 Chron. 20.12. O our God, we have no strength in us to stand before this great Multitude that cometh against us, neither do we know what to do, but our Eyes are upon Thee. Though Asa had an Army consist­ing of no less than Five Hundred and Fourscore Thou­sand Men, all of them Men of Valour, yet he look'd up­on them as no prop for Trust, as nothing without God, and therefore cry'd unto the Lord his God, and said: 2 Chron. 14.8.11. Lord it is nothing with Thee to help with many, or with no power; help us, O Lord our God, for we rest in Thee, and in thy Name are we come against this multitude: O Lord, thou art our God, let not Man prevail against Thee. When Da­vid was in the Wilderness of Ziph, Saul sought him every day, But what was the reason that he found him not? 1 Sam. 23.14. The Lord delivered him not into his hands, Nihil sine Deo, God is all in all; He is our Sun and Shield, our strong Rock, and Tower of Defence, and mighty Deliverer. Holy David ascribes all his Deliverances to the light of his Countenance, and the saving strength of his right hand. 'Tis He that gives Victory unto Kings. Prov. 21.1. The King's Heart, and his [Page 5]Breath, and all his ways are in his hand; Jud. 7. the Sword of the Lord and Gideon is spoken of as but one two-handed Sword. 'Tis Gideon that strikes, and 'tis the Lord that gives the Blessing. Psal. 118.8,9. It is better to trust in the Lord, than to put any Confidence in Man; it is better to trust in the Lord, than to put any confidence in Princes; Psal. 20.7. some put their trust in Chariots, and some in Horses, but we will remem­ber the Name of the Lord our God. When Doeg, the E­domite, regarded not God, nor sought to strengthen him­self by his favour, David prophesied his destruction. Psal. 52. God shall destroy them for ever, he shall take thee away, pluck thee out of thy dwelling-place, and root thee out of the Land of the Living: Loe, this is the Man that made not God his strength, but trusted in the abundance of his Riches, and strengthned himself in his Wickedness. When that proud King Nebuchadnezzar was shaking his Plumes, and triumphing in the great Babel of his own building, Dan. 4. Is not this Great Babel that I have built for the House of the Kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my Majesty? As he was thus vaunting and magnifying himself, God drove him from Men, and turn'd him to grass among the Beasts. When Sennacherib had encamped against Je­rusalem, and was attributing his Success to his own Strength and Wisdom, see how God dealt with him, 2 K. 19.28. He put a hook into his Nose, and a bridle into his lips, and turn'd him back the same way he came. And when Herod took that glory to himself which was due to God, Acts 2.23. The Angel of the Lord smote him, and he was eaten up of Worms. And 'tis to be hoped that God has put a stop to the bloody rage, and nip'd the proud, insolent and ambiti­ous Designs of the French King, who by treachery and policy had set great projects on foot to overthrow our Religion, and bring us under his slavish and tyrannical[Page 4] [...] [Page 5] [...] [Page 6]yoak. Exod. 13.21.It was not Moses but God that brought the Chil­dren of Israel out of the Land of Egypt; neither was it our own Arm and Strength that reduced the Town and Castle of Namur, but God's Arm; Power and Goodness going along with the Forces of his Majesty and his Al­lies that preserved our King, and gave us the Victory, for which we this day rejoyce, Psal. 62.8. Trust in Him at all times ye people, God is a refuge. But

Secondly, I proceed to shew what some of those Great Things are, which the Lord hath done for us already, and I hope they will pass for Great Things, whether some Men will or no. And

First, The Lord hath done great Things for us, in raising us up a Deliverer in the day of our distress; God has given us a King who has delivered us from Popery and Slavery, who secures our Rights and Liberties, who has protected us from bloody and barbarous Enemies, and makes choice of fit, able and faithful Governours both for Church and State: The divine Providence in raising him up, raised up One that has defended our Religion, brought back our ancient Laws and Liberties, and given a check to the Arms of that once potent and formidable Prince, the French King: A Deliverer, that has neither spared his Person or his Pains to do us good; who has made our Cause his own, even when we were falling as a prey into our Enemies teeth. We would do well to call to mind the woful state we were in before his Ma­jesty landed, and then we may discern what Great Things God has done for us, in sending him to us. He that considers the tottering Condition both Church and State were in; how the Government we liv'd under was growing to be Arbitrary, and a superstitious way of Worship ready to be set up and Established among us;[Page 7]He that considers these things cannot, without a won­derful infatuation, but must see God has done Great Things for us, in raising us up a Deliverer, who has protected our holy Religion, and stood in the gap to hinder the way of the Destroyer, who had pluck'd down our Hedge and Fence. But

Secondly, The Lord hath done great Things for us, in vouchfafing a particular protection unto this Deliverer in the day of danger. Run over his life, and see the miraculous Trains of Providence interposing for him; He has been the Darling of Heaven, and the special Ob­ject of Almighty God's singular care, insomuch that no Prince in the World hath had such signal Testimonies of the Kindnesses of Heaven; when some fell at his right hand and some at his left, the Divine Providence covered his head, and the Almighty hid him under the sha­dow of his wings. In his safety we are safe; his Health and Wealth is our Concern; his Preservation is of uni­versal Concernment to Religion and the Laws, to Church and State, and 'tis a happy Blessing to all the Nation at once; and therefore we had need pray heartily to God to save him, who doth defend us all. Well might the people tell King David, 2 Sam. 18.3. Thou art worth Ten Thousand of us, because in his peace they should have peace: The safety of a good King is a publick Blessing; the happi­ness of a Kingdom is twisted with the Welfare of such a Prince, the Kingdom, as it were, living and breathing in him. [...]King Josiah's fall proved the utter Destruction and Downfall of the people themselves; whilst he liv'd, he was the fountain of their Liberty and Security, inso­much that they promised to themselves a lasting securi­ty in his life, of whom we said, [...] 20. Under the shadow of his Wings we shall live among the Heathen. But how close[Page 6] [...] [Page 7] [...] [Page 8]did their Ruine and Destruction follow the loss of that exemplary and pious Prince? When the noble Epa­minondas the The­ban fell, Thebes it self fell with him. What Great Things then has God done for us, in watching over our King night and day, in preserving him at his Up-rising and Down­lying, and compassing his paths. God has suffered no Policy, no Secresy to circumvent him, no Treachery to take him off, no Snares to catch him, not to fall into that Pit that was digg'd for him, nor no Weapon form'd a­gainst him to prosper; he has stood by him in the day of Danger, given his Angels charge over him and brought him off with Victory and good success. As to the in­strumental Cause of that Victory we this day celebrate, much may be ascrib'd to the wise conduct of our Lord the King; He has done Great Things for us. Such Great things, as may challenge any Prince in the world to shew the like, wrought for any People or Nation: 'Tis true indeed, the Author of all our Victories and Delive­rances we must own and acknowledge to be God; to him principally we must give the Glory and Honour, and praise him; but when it will be found among the Files of Records, that next under God, our King did these Great things for us, how will his Memory be had in Everlasting Remembrance? How will the Ages to come tell of him? How bravely big will his Name look in Story? And how will his famous and noble Atchieve­ments be commended by admiring Posterity? These will intitle him a Isai. 49.23. Nursing Father of the Church, a Defender of the Faith, and a Restorer of our Religion, Laws, and Liberties. Jud. 8.22. Come thou and rule over us, said the people, to Gideon, for thou hast delivered us from the hands of our Enemies. 1 K. 1.25. God save the King, was an usual Form of Prayer in Adonijah's time. And when Joash was made King, They clapt their hands, used the same form of Salutation,[Page 9] 2 K. 11.12 God save the King. 1 Tim. 2.1.2. I exhort you, saith St. Paul, to make prayers for Kings, That we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. And in the succeeding Ages of Christianity, I find the Christians were highly sollicitous about the safety of their Princes. Nor was this the temper of a Christian Spirit onely, but of Hea­thens and Infidels, for it was a Decree made by Darius King of Persia, Ezra 6.10. that all the Elders of the Jews shu'd be furnish'd with young Bullocks, or Rams, or Lambs, Wheat, Salt, Wine and Oil, that they may have to offer sweet Odours unto the God of Heaven, and pray for the King's Life. The fall of a King shakes the whole Kingdom; there is a Sympathy between the Head and the Members, when the Breath of our Nostrils is taken from us, needs must the Body faint and languish, & expire in gasping Agonies when the Royal Oak is cut down, we are bereav'd of all the benefits of its shelter; and the birds of Prey will soon snatch away the Chickens, when there is no Hen to gather them under her wings. Wherefore if we love our Country, if we have any regard to the Welfare of our selves, if we tender the interest of the Protestant Religion, of our Temporal Rights and the Common Good, we must from the bottom of our hearts pray for our King's prosperity, wish him long life and health, and earnestly desire his welfare and safety, because in his peace we shall have peace. Dan. 3.9. O King live for ever.

Thirdly, The Lord hath done Great Things for us, as to the preservation of our selves, what might have been be­fallen us we know not; the fate of things look'd once very black upon us; those Barbarities, Massacres, Pro­secutions with Fire and Faggot, and shedding of Blood that is proper to Popery, and those inflicted upon Pro­testants, for refusing to comply with Superstition and[Page 8] [...] [Page 9] [...] [Page 10]Idolatry, may open our Eyes, and let us see what we might have expected from the Romish Faction. Our own Nation knows it by sad experience, that in the Reign of Queen Mary, many pious and good people were burnt at a Stake, for their denying to subscribe, to their wick­ed and false Doctrines. Surely our Malecontents and Murmurers do not know the Principles, or Spirit of Popery; they must be ignorant in the Case of Henry the third of France, who was stabb'd, and the bloody Art applauded by the Pope himself, for not purging his Country from the Corruption of Heresy, being admonished so to do. The Church of Rome is guilty in this respect, in looking upon us Protestants as so many Hereticks, and what work her Sons had 'ere this Day been employ'd in, if our late Revolution had not hapned, we may very well guess. Thanks be to God for That, and all his other Mercies to us; and let it ever be recorded for the praise of his present Majesty, who next under God, deliver'd us from Tyranny, and Popish Cruelty.

Thirdly, I proceed to shew what our duty is in return to the Almighty, for doing so great things for us; for if the fore part of the Text belongs to God, the latter I am sure belongs to us: If the Lord hath done Great things for us, then we are to rejoyce, and this Day is set apart for it. Now that our rejoycing this day may be pleasing to God, it must first begin at the Church; there it must first shew it self, be first seen and heard there, thither we must go in, and in the Congregation give thanks unto the Lord, for the Great things he hath done for us; we must first be joyful in the House of Prayer, and our joy must exert it self first after a Godly manner. Hos. [...]We read of some who kept their King's Day with flagons of Wine, and by drinking to that excess, till they were sick: They made[Page 11]the King glad with their wickedness. v. 3. Such Riot and Ex­cess was used upon that festivall Day, that as the Prophet Malachy speaks of some others; There came nothing of their feasts but dung: All they did was, they sat down to eat, and drink, and rose up to play; but with none of these was God pleased: Religion must this day be first observ'd: It is not enough that in our Feasts this day we drink the King's Health, clap our hands, and cry, God save the King, but we must first regard the work of the Lord, and consider the Operation of his hands: It is not Enough, that with the Harp and the Violl, the Timbrel and the Pipe, we give Thanks out of Custom, but we must first go into the House of the Lord, and there pour out our souls in Thankfulness to God, in a thankful Remembrance; and then after we have done here, we may lawfully go and rejoyce in our houses, so long as Temperance is observ'd, and all manner of Riot and Excess laid aside. It was God's command under the Law, that upon their rejoy­cing for his removal of any Plague, the Trumpets shu'd blow; And shall we, whom God by this happy day, calleth us to rejoycing by a great Victory, and the pre­servation of his Majesty's Person, shall we whom God hath called to joy, hang down our heads like a Bull-rush, droop, and slight the Office of the Day? When the Graecians were set at Liberty by Flaminius, Plutarch tels us, they cry'd out, [...], [...], Saviour, Saviour, with such a Sound, that the Birds in the Air which flew over their heads fell astonish'd to the ground. And shall we be so little affected with our good Success, and Deliverances? No, let our Ears be chearfully open to the ringing of Bells, and to the noise of Musical Instruments: Our Hosannah's this day shall be heard in the highest, for [Page 10] [...] [Page 11] [...] [Page 12] This is a Day which the Lord hath made, we will rejoyce and be glad in it. What Nehemiah said unto the People upon hearing the law read, I say unto you. Neh. 8.10. Go, and Eat of the Fat, and drink the Sweet, and send Portions un­to them for whom none is prepared, for this is a joyfull Day indeed, be yee not sorry therefore, for the Joy of the Lord is your strength. I come

Lastly, To consider what Improvement we are to make of the whole. And

First, If we would strengthen that which God hath al­ready wrought for us, and carry on, and perfect his mar­vellous Works towards us, we must be followers of that which is good, and live so, that God may take delight in us, bless us with the continuance of his Blessings, and may have no occasion given him to repent him of the Mercies shewn to us. Whilst we are under such a gra­cious and benign iufluence of Heaven; we must take care that we do not by our Sins, make such a separation between it and us, as may provoke God to throw off his care of us, and withdraw his helping hand from us. What's to be done then, to procure a continuance of those Great Things he hath done for us already? Even this, to come to Repentance, and that's the way to carry them on to perfection: O let his mercy and goodness lead us all to Repentance: May his wonderful Delive­rances oblige us all to love and fear him; and may his many and great preservations of our King endear our Righteousness, and excite our Obedience to him, and then the Deliverances we have had will be a pledge of more. This would heap Palms and Laurels upon our Cause, and bring us off Conquerors, for the Eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him: He takes pleasure in[Page 13]such, and it shall go well with them. Evil-doers and Transgressors shall be cut off, and rooted out, but those who trust in the Lord and do good, shall by so doing, dwell in the Land, and verily they shall be fed. Jer. 7.23. Obey my voice, said God to the Jews, and I will be your God, and yee shall be my People; and walk yee in all the Ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you: And he tells the Israelites, that Exod. 19.5. if they would obey his Voice in­deed, and keep his Covenant, that then they should be a peculiar Treasure unto him above all People. Even an Hea­then Poet made this Observation to the Romans,

That their Success was owing to their piety, and their Obedience to the Gods, made them Rulers and Commanders: And therefore may we all be so wise, as to say as the people did to Joshua, Jos. 24.24. The Lord our God will we serve, and his Voice will we Obey.

Thirdly, We have had Great things done for us, and therefore in order to have God still on our side, it is a Duty incumbent upon us to be thankful for them: There are some Men of so unhappy a Temper, as to forfeit the Advantages of them, if God would have taken it at their hands; that with the ungrateful Israelites are in love with the flesh-pots of Egypt, and would return back into that Land. Strange perverseness and blindness! That the Israelites would not know when they were well used, but instead of shewing their gratitude, under-valued the vouchfafements of Heaven's favour, as if the very reason of their quarrelling, Gods goodness, was none other but this, that it infinitely surpassed all their deservings. I[Page 12] [...] [Page 13] [...] [Page 14]wish some among us did not too near resemble these un­grateful Israelites; but I shall not blow the coals; a just amazement to see those Miracles of Mercy flung up, and that some men should go about to make those blessings God has bestow'd upon us for our good, an occasion of falling, fills me with dread & horrour of the judgments of God, which may well fall upon the Land. For if Mer­cies cannot prevail with us, what can we expect but the next scent should be Judgments? If Men will kick and spurn against Heaven, and throw themselves back into that, or a worse condition then they have yet been in, 'tis not to be expected that God will work new miracles every day for them. If Rev. 22.11. He that is filthy will be filthy still, he must expect Ephraim's doom, Hos. 4.17. Ephraim is joyned unto Idols, let him alone, let him follow the Counsels of his own heart, and be filled with his own Devises. Jer. 51.9. We would have healed Babilon, and she would not be healed, forsake her; We would have healed Babilon, There is Mercy and Goodness on Gods part, but she would not be healed, there is a Despising of his goodness on her part, and then follows desertion on God's part, forsake her. Psal. 81.11,12. My people would not hearken to my voice and Israel would none of me, so I gave them up unto their own Hearts lusts, and they walked in their own Counsels. v. 13,14. Oh, that my People had harkned unto me, and Israel had walked in my Ways; I would soon have humbled their Enemies, and turned my hand against their Adversaries. 2 Thess. 2.10.11. Because they received not the Love of the Truth that they might be saved, for this cause God shall send them strong Delusions to believe a Lie. For how just is it with God, to lift up his hand against a people, and overthrow them, as he did the unthank­full Israelites, for not keeping in mind the Deliverances [Page 15]he had granted them? We are an happy people, if we did but know it: Sufficiently happy, if some were not so foolishly industrious to make themselves unhappy. We are not involv'd in Blood and Confusion, as our Neigh­bouring Countries are. We live in peace and plen­ty, whilst in the mean time other Nations are fright­ed with the sound of Trumpets, the Beating of Drums, the neighing of Horses, the roaring of Cannon, the howling of Women, and the schrikeing of Chil­dren exposed to the rage and fury of merciless Souldi­ers. We build and plant, beautifie and adorn our Hou­ses and Habitations, whilst others are burnt down, bat­tered about their Ears, and lie in ruine and desolation. We have plenty, whilst others are in want. We sowe in Peace, and reap in peace, whilst other Men's la­bours are enjoyed by Strangers and Enemies. Such Blessings as these, cry aloud to us to be thankful to Heaven. O that we were wise, that we would consider this, and praise the Lord for his Goodness, and declare the Wonder that he hath done for us.

Thirdly, The Lord hath done Great Things for us, in raising up our King to be the happy Instrument of our Deliverance, and therefore next being thankful to God, we are under an high Obligation to be Loyal and O­bedient to his Majesty, and to study the things that make for his Honour and Glory, as he has done those that make for our Peace and Safety: And for this no Charges ought to be spar'd, no Power from France fea­red, otherwise this opportunity of making our selves under him happy, will one day rise up in Judgment, and condemn us.

[Page 16]May it please a gracious God, who hath done Great Things for us already, to continue his Mercies to us: And may we, considering the Dangers we have been in, quicken our Zeal, shew Vigour in the Cause of our Religion and the present Government: And may it please God to move the hearts of such as are in Autho­rity, to be active and diligent in their Duty, that so those Deliverances may be strengthned which God hath wrought for us. Crown our King, O Lord, with Ho­nour and Success here, and with an everlasting Crown of Glory in Heaven hereafter. Amen.