Part 2

PUT the case, that the main secret when revealed to them should displease them; yet after a considerable progress in unlawful courses, it will be very difficult for them to retreat. The shame of acknowledging themselves to have been in the wrong, the apprehension of being reproached for deserting their companions, and the fear of suffering punishment for having accompanied them so far, will be strong temptations to them to proceed farther against the bent of their own inclinations, and the convictions of their consciences.

Should they, notwithstanding these temptations to the contrary, resolve to be no longer directed by those who misled them; yet what they have already done, may have consequences fatal to the publick. By their assistance, the enemies of the government, may be grown strong enough to compass their ends, not only without their farther concurrence, but in spite of all the opposition they can make. And it will then be a mortifying consideration to reflect, that they have been accessory to villanies which they abhor, of which, however they must be content to bear the blame. The criminal assistance which they gave to men worse than themselves, will entitle them to a share in their guilt; and they will be in some measure answerable for the unforeseen consesequences of their unlawful practices.

AND yet the best and honestest thing, which persons thus entangl'd can do, is to get rid of their bad company as soon as possible, to be sorry for what mischief they have already done, and to endeavour, by their future conduct, to make reparation for it. And the design of what has been now said, was not to discourage any from forbearing to meddle any longer with them that are given to change, but to persuade all who are as yet innocent, never to meddle with them at all, but industriously to avoid them; not to pass by their path, but to _turn from them and pass away[F]. For they sleep not, except they have done mischief, and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall._ Wherefore they cannot be too diligently guarded against, by those who would preserve themselves not only from guilt, but from trouble and perplexity and ignominy, and from that calamity and ruin, which (as we are informed by the verse following my text) _shall come suddenly upon them that are given to change, and upon those who meddle with them_.

[F] _Prov._ iv. 14, 15.

THE unparallel'd treason committed on this day, and all the confusions and miseries preceding it, and consequent upon it, may justly be ascribed to the neglect of this most necessary caution. Indeed it can hardly be doubted, but that from the beginning of those unhappy troubles, or very soon after, there was a party of desperate men, who had in view the utter subversion of the establish'd government, and were resolved to stick at no villany that might conduce to the accomplishing their end. But their numbers in those early days, were much too small to bring about the change they aim'd at, or even to protect them from the just vengeance which the nation would certainly have taken upon them, had they then dar'd to own their intentions. Wherefore they found it necessary to cover their real designs, under the specious pretences of remeding abuses, and securing the liberties of the people, and rectifying what was amiss both in church and state.

BY this artifice, multitudes of undiscerning and unwary people, were drawn into their assistance, and to a criminal union with them, and when these instruments of theirs had for a considerable time been accustomed to traduce the King and his ministers, exceedingly to aggravate the errors they had committed, and to charge them with odious designs, which they knew nothing of, to brand all who honestly adher'd to the King and the ancient constitution, with names and characters of reproach, and to terrify them not only by threatnings, but by outrages and tumults; when they had broken forth into open rebellion against their soveraign, and in contradiction to the lawful oaths, which they were under to him, had bound themselves by unlawful covenants and associations, not to rest till they had compelled him to comply with such alterations as they judged expedient; when they had laid wast their country, and shed much christian blood in their unjust quarrel, and had several times rejected the gracious overtures of peace made to them by the King, when by these means the breach between him and them was so widen'd, that it was hardly possible to compose it upon conditions safe and honourable to them both; when by long familiarity, with disloyalty and treason, the consciences of great numbers of men, were harden'd, and grown perfectly insensible; and when the enemies of the King had got into their hands the whole power of the nation, and his friends could no longer make head against them; then was it a proper time for the contrivers and directors of all this mischief, to discover to those who had been subservient to them their true designs against the person and government of the King. And doubtless there were many concurring and assisting to the monstrous wickedness, the punishment of which, we do this day deprecate, who, had it been propos'd to them some years before, would have been struck with horror at the mention of it, and who could no otherwise have been made capable of committing it, than by being artfully trailed on, step by step, from the meddling with them that are given to change, to the becoming such themselves, from one perjury to another perjury, and from less treasons to greater.

IT is true too, that many who had been active, both in kindling and prosecuting the war, were startl'd at the unprecedented proceedings against the person of the King, and publickly express'd their dislike of them. But fruitless protestations were but pitiful compensations for the successful services they had done to his murtherers, whom they had continued to assist and strengthen, till it was to no purpose to make opposition to them. It was then out of their power to undo the mischiefs which they had been the authors of, or to hinder others from making a farther use of them, than they themselves had intended. Thus were they unawares made instrumental to the shedding the innocent and sacred blood of their soveraign; the guilt of which horrible deed must be imputed not only to those who were immediately concerned in it, and consenting to it, but in a lower degree to those also, who made way for it, by the unwarrantable practices, which have been already mentioned.

THE greater reason have we, brethren, to be exceeding careful not to tread in their steps, lest we also fall in like manner as they fell. Their miscarriages are our admonitions, and we shall be more inexcusable than they, if instead of taking warning by them, we follow their example.

I AM sensible it will be said, That we do imitate them, at the same time that we blame them; that the prayers which we have now offered for the averting the divine wrath due to the sin of this day, and for the safety and prosperity of our present gracious soveraign, are a contradiction to one another; and that the late revolution was a return to the principles of those who were concerned in the great rebellion. And there are two sorts of men, who, tho' opposite enough to each other, will be apt to concur in making this objection: the one with a design to justify the murther of the Royal Martyr, or at least the measures which prepared the way for it; the other with an intention to condemn the happy revolution, upon which our present settlement is founded.

NOW, to what hath been already observed, with a view to this objection, I need only to add, That these two cases, which some would fain have us believe to be nearly alike, are widely different.

IT is well known, That the rebellion against King _Charles_ the first was begun, when all grievances (which in his reign were far from amounting to a total subversion of the constitution) had been fully redressed and repaired. And it was the declared resolution of those who engaged in it, not to defend, but to change the laws and settled form of government, and to encroach upon the just rights of their soveraign; who laboured indefatigably to maintain the established laws and government; who by the laws, to which he had without compulsion consented, had given sufficient proof, that he was as willing to secure his peoples rights as his own; and who was so far from affecting power, that did not belong to him, that his greatest weakness was, that he did not hold fast the rains of government in his hands, but parted with his authority too easily, and made too large concessions to those who were not disposed to make him suitable returns. When the rebels had got the mastery, they then actually compleated a far greater change, than they had at first professed to desire. A high court of justice was erected for the judging and condemning the King himself as a criminal; the whole royal family were excluded from succeeding to the crown; and kingly government itself was declared against and abolished, and several illegal forms of government were one after another set up in the room of it.

BUT in the reign of the late King _James_, no redress of grievances, no opportunity of redressing them in a parliamentary way, could be obtained. Instead of being removed they were justified by pretending, that the King had a power to dispense with the laws at pleasure. And it was very visible that the King and his ministers governed by this pernicious and tyrannical maxim. Now this was plainly a subversion of the constitution, by changing the government from limited to absolute, from legal to arbitrary. When the power of the people prevailed, they made it very evident, that the motive to the measures they had then taken was necessity, and not the being given to change. No remedy was so much as sought for against the person of the King. No prejudice was manifested against the illustrious family, which had long swayed the scepter of these kingdoms: but all possible regard was shewn to it. The King himself had render'd the setting of the crown upon a person who now pretends to it impracticable; tho' the nation had been ever so well satisfied concerning his birth. But it was immediately settled upon the King's undoubted issue then in the kingdom, and upon a grandson of the Royal Martyr; and afterwards, in default of the issue from them, upon the next branch of the royal family professing the Protestant Religion; with whom alone our constitution could with any prospect of security be entrusted. Nor was there any invasion of the royal prerogative; but the same government in church and state was chearfully submitted to by the people; as on the other hand the liberties of the people were faithfully defended by the crown. In short, of two changes, one of which was at that time unavoidable, the nation preferred the less to the greater, and that which was safe and advantageous to that which would have been very disadvantageous and destructive.

WHICH things considered, no man should offer to draw a parallel betwixt the late Revolution and the great rebellion, till he is able to demonstrate, That there is no difference between the doing no manner of hurt to the person of the King, and the executing him publickly as a malefactor; between the settling the crown upon his undoubted issue, and excluding the whole royal family from it without any other necessity than what arose from the guilt of those who excluded them; between the peoples asserting their own undoubted rights, and their invading the undoubted rights of their soveraign; between insisting upon the regular observation and execution of the established laws, and fighting for an alteration of them; between preserving the ancient constitution and utterly overthrowing it from the foundations; or in other words, between just and unjust; between right and wrong.

WHEREFORE, Brethren, let us stop our ears against those, whose doctrines open a door to disobedience and rebellion against lawful authority; and no less against those also who would insinuate that our present governours have no claim to the submission, which they acknowledge to be due to lawful magistrates. The powers which now are, are ordained of God; and ordained in mercy to us, for the security of our lives and properties and liberties, and of what we ought to value above all the rest, our most holy Religion. And heavy will be the condemnation of those, who shall refuse to submit to him who is the minister of God to them for good.

LET us therefore, laying aside all pride and contentions, all jealousies and discontents, set our selves to perform what we know to be our duty to him who is vested with the authority of God: not with eye-service as men-pleasers, not with murmurings as of necessity, but in singleness of heart and with a ready mind, as in the sight of God, as having his fear before our eyes, and remembring that he will bring us to a strict account not only for the sins committed immediately against himself, but for every offence against his substitute, who by him reigns and decrees justice.

IF we dread not the penalties of human laws; yet let us revere the ordinance of God. Let us consider by whom we have sworn; and let destruction from him be a terror to us. If there be any who dare bid defiance to that; let us mark such and turn away from them. Let us not be so weak as to imagine that they can have any real concern for religion, or the interest of their country, who can prevail with themselves, or would prevail with others, to violate the oath of God. We cannot surely be at a loss to conclude, what kind of spirits have taken possession of those men, who are not to be bound, no not with chains; who break in sunder the strongest bonds of government, and cast away its cords from them.

LET our behaviour be suitable to our professions on this solemn day of humiliation. If we do indeed detest the crimes of those cruel and unreasonable men who gave occasion for the observance of it; if we would not for the world be the authors of such dreadful calamities as they by a long train of wickedness brought upon their nation; if we are sincere in imploring the mercy of God, that he would not visit their guilt upon us or our posterity: let us take heed that we do not fill up the measure of their iniquities by a repetition of them: let us not cherish the seeds which are apt to produce such bitter and deadly fruits: let us not enter upon courses, which, for ought we know, may end in the crimes we detest.

TO conclude, let us not separate what God hath joyned together, religion and loyalty, the fear of God and of the King. Let us esteem loyalty as a necessary part of Religion, and assure ourselves that we are doing God acceptable service while we are serving his representative. Let loyalty to the King mingle itself with our most solemn acts of divine worship. In our thanksgivings let us devoutly acknowledge the many blessings we enjoy under his Government: and in return let us by our prayers draw down the choicest blessings of heaven upon him; most earnestly beseeching the Almighty to enrich him plenteously with grace here, and crown him with everlasting glory hereafter; to prolong his life in health and wealth, and to perpetuate his seed as the days of heaven; to guide him with his spirit of councel, and to strengthen him with his mighty arm, for the establishment of truth, and the maintenance of justice, both at home and abroad; to hide him in time of danger under the covert of his wings, and to shield him with his strong salvation; that the conspiracies formed against him may not prosper, and the devices of wicked men may be turned backwards and light upon their own heads; that all the people may hear and fear to do wickedly, and the crown may flourish upon the head of the Lord's Anointed.

_FINIS._