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wonderful in its nature, and which fo much deserves our -particular attention, as man; who fills up the middle fpace between the animal and the intellectual nature, the vifible and the invisible world; and who is that link in the chain of beings, which forms the connection between both. So that he who, in one respect, is affociated with angels and archangels, and may look upon a being of infinite perfection as his father, and the highest order of fpirits as his brethren, may, in another respect, fay to corruption, thou art my father, and to the worm, thou art my mother and my. fifter."

SECTION XXI.

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HAMMADDISON

TRUST IN THE CARE OF PROVIDENCE RECOMMENDED.

MAN, confidered in himself, is a very helpless, and a very wretched being. He is fubject every moment to the greatest calamities and misfortunes. He is befet with dangers on all fides; and may become unhappy by numberlefs cafualities, which he could not forefec, nor have prevented had he foreseen them.

It is our comfort, while we are obnoxious to so many accidents, that we are under the care of one who directs contingencies, and has in his hands the management of every thing that is capable of annoying or offending us; who knows the affiftance we ftand in need of, and is always ready to beftow it on those who afk it of him.

The natural homage, which fuch a creature owes to fo infinitely wife and good a Being, is a firm reliance on him for the bleffings and conveniences of life; and an habitual trust in him, for deliverance out of all fuch dangers and difficulties as may befall us.

The man who always lives in this difpofition of mind, has not the fame dark and melancholy views of human nature, as he who conficers himself abftractedly from this relation of the Supreme Being. At the fame time that he reflects upon his own weakness, and imperfection, he comforts himfelf with the contemplation of thofe divine attributes, which are en ployed for his fafety, and his welfare. He finds his want of forefight made up, by the omniscience of him who is his fupport. He is not fenfible of his own want of strength, when he knows that his helper ¿s almighty. In fhort, the perfon who has a firm trust on

the Supreme Being is powerful in his power, wife by his wifdom, happy by his happiness. He reaps the benefit of every divine attribute; and lofes his own infufficiency in the fulness of infinite perfection. To make our lives more eafy to us, we are commanded to put our trust in him, who is thus able to relieve and fuccour us; the Divine Goodnefs having made fuch a reliance a duty, notwithstanding we should have been miferable, had it been forgiven us.

Among feveral motives, which might be made ufe of to recommend this duty to us, I fhall only take notice of thofe that follow

The first and strongeft is, that we are promised, he will not fail those who put their trust in him.

But without confidering the fupernatural bleffing, which accompanies this duty, we may obferve, that it has a nat ural tendency to its own reward; or, in other words, that this firm trust and confidence in the great difpofer of all things, contributés very much to the getting clear of any affliction, or to the bearing of it manfully. A perfon who believes he has his fuccour at hand, and that he acts in the fight of his friend, often exerts himself beyond his abilities; and does wonders, that are not to be matched by one who is not animated with fuch a confidence of fuccefs. Truft in the affistance of an Almighty Being, naturally produces patience, hope, cheerfulness, and all other difpofitions of mind, which alleviate thofe calamities that we are not able to remove.

The practice of this virtue administers great comfort to the mind of man, in times of poverty and affliction; but most of all, in the hour of death. When the foul is hovering, in the last moments of its feparation; when it is juft entering on another state of existence, to converse with fcenes, and objects, and companions, that are altogether new; what can fupport her under fuch tremblings of thought, fuch fear, fuch anxiety, fuch apprehenfions, but the cafting of all her cares upon HIM, who first gave her being; who has conducted her through one stage of it; and who will be always prefent, to guide and comfort her in her progress through eternity?

ADDISON,

SECTION XXII

PIETY AND GRATITUDE ENLIVEN PROSPERITY..

PIETY, and gratitude to God, contribute, in a high de-.. gree, to enliven profperity. Gratitude is a pleafing emotion. The fenfe of being distinguished by the kindness of another, gladdens the heart, warms it with reciprocal affec...... tion, and gives to any poffeffion which, is agreeable in it-felf, a double relifh, from its being the gift of a friend. Favours conferred by men, I acknowledge, may prove burdenfome. For human virtue is never perfect.; and sometimes unreasonable expectations on the one fide, fometimes a mortifying fenfe of dependence on the other, corrole in fecret the pleasure of benefits, and convert the obligations of friendship into grounds of jealoufy. But nothing of this kind can affect the intercourfe of gratitude with Heaven. Its favours are wholly difinterested; and with a gratitude the most cordial and unfufpicious, a good man looks up to that Almighty Benefactor, who aims at no end but the happiness of those whom he bleffes, and who defires no return from them, but a devout and thankful heart. While others can trace their profperity to nohigher fource than a concurrence of worldly caufes ; and, often, of mean or triffing incidents, which occafionally favoured their defigns; with what fuperior fatisfaction does the fervant of God remark the hand of that gracious power, which hath raifed him up, which hath happily conducted him through the various fteps of life, and crowned him with the most favourable distinction beyond his equals?

Let us farther confider, that not only gratitude for the past, but a cheering sense of divine favour at the prefent, enters into the pious emotion. They are only the virtu ous, who in their profperous days hear this voice addreffed to them, "Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a cheerful heart; for God now accepteth thy works." He who is the author of their profperity, gives them a title to enjoy, with complacency, his own gift. While bad men fnatch the pleafures of the world as by ftealth, without countenance from the great proprietor of the world, the righteous fit openly down to the feast of Life, under the fmile of approving heaven. No guilty

fears damp their joys. The blefling of God refts upon allthat they poffefs; his protection furrounds them; and hence," in the habitations of the righteous is found the voice of rojoicing and falvation." A luftre unknown to others, invests, in their fight,the whole face of nature. Their piety reflects a funfhine from heaven upon the profperity of the world; unites in one point of view, the smiling aspect, both of the powers above, and of the objects below. Not on-ly have they as full a relish as others, of the innocent pleafures of life, but, moreover, in thefe they hold communion with their divine benefactor. In all that is good or fair, they trace his hand. From the beauties of nature, from the improvements of art, from the enjoyments of focial life," they raise their affection to the fource of all the happiness' which furrounds them; and thus widen the sphere of their pleafures, by adding intellectual, and spiritual, to earthly joys.

For illuftration of what I have said on this head, remark that cheerful enjoyment of a profperous state, which king David had when he wrote the twentythird pfalm; and compare the highest pleasures of the riotous finner, with the happy and fatisfied fpirit which breathes throughout that pfalm. In the midft of the fplendor of royalty, with what amiable fimplicity of gratitude does he look up to the Lord as "his Shepherd;" happier in afcribing all his fuccefs to Divine favour, than to the policy of his councils, or to the force of his arms? How many inftances of divine goodness arofe before him in pleafing remembrance, when with fuch relifh he fpake of "green paftures and still waters," beside which God had led him; of his cup which he had made to overflow; and of the table which he had prepared for him in the prefence of his enemies! With what perfect tranquillity does he look forward to the time of his paffing through "the valley of the fhadow of death;" unappalled: by that spectre, whofe most distant appearance blasts the profperity of finners! He fears no evil, as long as " the rod and the staff" of his Divine Shepherd are with him; and through all the unknown periods of this and of future exiftence, commits himself to his guidance with fecure and triumphant hope: "Surely goodness and mercy will follow. me all the days of my life; and I fhall dwell in the houfe of the Lord forever." What a purified, fentimental enjoy.

ment of profperity is here exhibited! How different from that grofs relifh of worldy pleasures, which belongs to those who behold only the terreftrial fide of things; who raife their views to no higher objects than the fucceffion of hu man contingencies, and the weak efforts of human ability;: who have no protector or patron in the heavens, to enliven their prosperity, or to warin their hearts with gratitude and truft!

SECTION XXIII.

BLAIR.

of distress.

VIRTUE, WHEN DEEPLY ROOTED, IS NOT SUBJECT TO THE INFLUENCE OF

FORTUNE:

THE City of Sidon having furrendered to Alexander, he ordered Hephestion to bestow the crown on him whom the Sidonians should think most worthy of that honour. Hephestion being at that time refident with two young men of diftinction, offered them the kingdom; but they refused it, telling him that it was contrary to the laws of their country to admit any one to that honour, who was not of the royal family. He then having expreffed his admiration of their difinterested fpirit, defired them to name one of the royal race, who might remember that he received the crown through their hands. Overlooking many, who would have been ambitious of this high honour, they made choice of Abdolonymus, whofe fingular merit had rendered him confpicuous, even in the vale of obfcurity. Though remotely related to the royal family, a feries of misfortunes had reduced him to the neceffity of cultivating a garden, for at fmall ftipend, in the fuburbs of the city.

While Abdolonymus was bufily employed in weeding his garden, the two friends of Hepheftion, bearing in their hands the enfigns of royalty, approached him, and faluted him king. They informed him that Alexander had ap pointed him to that office; and required him immediately to exchange his ruftic garb, and utenfils of hufbandry, for the regal robe and fceptre. At the fame time they admonished him, when he should be feated on the throne,and have a nation in his power, not to forget the humble condition from which he had been raifed.

All this, at the first, appeared to Abdolonymus as an illusion of the fancy, or an infult offered to his poverty. He requested them not to trouble him farther with their

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