they are not angry repetitions, but only neceffary cautions for your future ordering of your life.

The business of these papers is principally to commend unto you two general remembrances, and certain refults and collections that arife from them; they are all feasonable for your prefent condition, and will be of fingular use and benefit to you in the whole enfuing courfe of your life.

First. I would have you, as long as you live, remember your late fickness in all its circumstances, and these plain and profitable inferences and advices that arife from it.

i Secondly. I would have you remember, as long as you live, your great deliverance, and the feveral circumftances of it, and thofe neceffary duties that are incumbent upon you in relation thereunto.

It is evident to daily experience, that while afflictions are upon us, and while deliverances are fresh, they commonly have fome good effect upon us; but as the iron is no fooner out of the fire, but it quickly returns to its old coldness and hardness, fo when the affliction or deliverance is past, we ufually forget them, count them common things, attribute them to means and fecond caufes: and fo the good that mankind fhould gather from them vanifhes, and men, grow quickly to be but what they were before they came; their fick-bed promifes are forgot when the fickness is over.

And therefore I fhall give you an account of your fickness and of your recovery; and let them, never be forgotten by you, As often as thofe fpots and marks in your face are reflected to your view from the glafs, as often as this paper comes in your fight; nay, as often as you open your eyes from fleep, which were once clofed, and likely never to open again, fo often, and more often, remember your fickness and your recovery, and the admonitions that this paper lends you from the confideration of both.

First, therefore, touching your late fickness, I would have you remember these particulars: 1. The disease itself, in its own nature, is now become ordinarily very mortal, especially to thofe of your age. Look upon even the last year's general bill of mortality, you will find near two thoufand dead of that disease the last year; and had not God been very merciful to you, you might have been one of that number, with as great likelihood as any of them that died of that dif ease. 2. It was a contagious disease that secluded the accefs of your nearest relations. 3. Your fickness furprized you upon a fudden, when you feemed to be in your full ftrength. 4. Your fickness rendered you noisome to yourself, and all that were about you; and a fpectacle full of deformity, by the excels of your disease beyond most that are fick thereof. 5. It was a fierce and violent fickness; it did not only take away the common fupplies of nature, as digeftion, fleep, ftrength, but it took away your memory, your understanding, and the very fenfe of your own condition, or of what might be conducible to your good. All that you could do, was only to make your condition more defperate, in case they that were about you had not prevented it, and taken more care for you you did or could for yourself. 6. Your fickness was defperate, infomuch that your symptoms, and the violence of your distemper, were without example; and you were in the very next degree to abfolute rottennefs, putrefaction, and death itself.

than

Look upon the foregoing description, and remember that fuch was your condition; you were as fad a picture of mortality and corruption, as any thing but death itself could make: remember it; and remember also these enfuing inftructions, that may make that remembrance profitable and useful to you.

First. Remember, that affliction cometh not forth ⚫ of the duft, nor doth trouble fpring out of the ground1;"

! Job v. 6.

but

but this terrible vifitation was fent to you from the wife over-ruling providence of God: it is he that bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up again. It is true that this disease may feem common; but you may and must know that there was more than the common hand of God in fending it upon you in fuch a manner, and fuch a meafure, and at fuch a feason, when you were grown up to a competent age and de gree of understanding to make a due ufe of it, that you might fee his juftice in afflicting you, and his good. nefs in delivering you from fuch a danger.

Secondly. Remember that Almighty God is of moft infinite wisdom, justice, and mercy; he hath excellent ends in all his difpenfations of his providence; he never sends an affliction, but it brings a meffage with it; his rod has a voice, a voice commanding us to fearch and try our ways, and to examine ourselves whether there hath not been fome great fin against him, or neglect of duty to him; a voice commanding us to repent of what is amifs, to humble ourselves un der his mighty hand, to turn to him that striketh us, to feek to him by prayer for deliverance, to depend upon him by faith; in his mercy and power to amend what is amifs, to be more watchful, circumfpect, and obedient to him in the future courfe of our lives, to fear to offend him. And if a man hear this voice, God hath his end of mercy and goodnefs, and man hath the fruit, benefit, and advantage of his affliction, and commonly a comfortable iffue of it. Read often and attentively the 33d chapter of Job, from the be ginning to the end.

Thirdly. Remember how uncertain and frail a creature man is, even in his feeming ftrongeft age and conftitution of health; even then a peftilential air, fome evil humour in his blood, fome obftruction, it may be, of a little vein or artery, a little meat ill digefted, and a thousand small occurrences may, upon a fudden, without any confiderable warning, plunge a man into a desperate and mortal fickness, and bring a

man, to the grave. Remember this terrible fickness feized upon you fuddenly, pulled down your ftrength quickly, and brought you to the very brink of the grave. And though God hath recovered you, you know not how foon you may be brought into the like condition.

Fourthly.. Remember, therefore, that you make and keep your peace with God, and walk in his fear in the days of health, efpecially after fo great a deliverance, and that for very many reafons: 1. You know not whether you may not be overtaken with fudden death, and then it will be impoffible for you to begin that work. 2. If you have ficknefs to give you warning of the approach of death, yet you know not whether that ficknels may not fuddenly take away your fenfes, memory, or understanding, whereby you may be dif abled to make your peace with God, or to exercise any ferious thoughts concerning it. 3. But if that ficknefs give you, fair warning, and take not away your understanding, yet your own experience cannot choofe but let you know that pain, and weakness, and diftraction of mind, and impatience, and unquietnefs, are the common attendants of a fick-bed, and render that feafon, at least very difficult then to begin that greateft, and folemneft, and moft important bufinefs of a man's life. 4. But if your ficknefs be not fo fharp but that it leaves you patience and attention of mind for that great bufinefs, how do you know whether your heart fhall be inclined to it? Repentance and converfion to God is his gift, though it must be our endeavour, And though the merciful God never refufeth a repenting returning offender, yet how can a man that all the time of his health hath neglected Almighty, God, refufed his invitations, and ferved his lufts and, his fin, expect reafonably that God, in the time of ficknefs, when the man can ferve his fins no longer, will give him the grace of repentance?

Whatever you do, therefore, be fure you make your peace with God, and keep it in the days of your health,

especially

efpecially after fo great a deliverance from so desperate a ficknefs.

: Fifthly. Remember that your condition is never fo low but that God hath power; to deliver you, and therefore trust in him; but remember withal, that your condition is never fafe and fecure, but you are within the reach of his power to bring you down. You are now, by the mercy of God, recovered from a terrible ficknefs, think not with yourself that your turn is now ferved, and that you fhail have no more need of him, and therefore that you may live as you lift, and never regard your duty to him; deceive not yourfelt herein, remember that this fickness within two or three days brought you upon your knees, even from a feeming ftate of health. The cafe is the fame ftill, nay much worse, if this affliction make you not better. Almighty God called you to love, and ferve, and obey him, by the ftill voice of his word, by the perfuafion of your friends, by the advices and reproofs of your father; and, when, these were not fo effectual (as I know you now wish they had been), he fent a meffenger that fpake louder, that would be heard, even this, terrible fickness; and moft certainly, if you have heard the voice of this rod (as I am hopeful you have), and thereupon, entirely turn to your duty to God in all fincerity and obedience, it is the happiest providence that ever befell you; and you will, upon found conviction, conclude with the Prophet, 'It was good for me that I was afflicted.' But, on the other fide, if, notwithstanding this voice of the rod, you fhall, after your recovery, turn again to folly, and vanity, and excels, and harden yourself against this meffenger, know for certain you are within the reach of the Divine Justice and Power: And if you walk contrary to him, he ' will walk contrary to you, and punish you yet feven times for your fins . I therefore give you that counfel that our Lord gave to him that he had healed: Behold thou art made whole, go thy way and in no