vid's being called, the Man after God's own Heart, and prefume to call fuch an Appellation an impious Profanation of the Divine Majefty. Was this their zeal for God real and unfeigned it would indeed be laudable; but as their own Actions teftify how little Regard they have for the Honour of God, it fhould rather appear that they envied David for his Piety and Goodness, and would have taken a Pleasure in beholding the Royal Patriarch fall a Sacrifice to his unlawful Defires, than any real Concern they were under for the wrong Application of that truly valuable Title. For if Men would confider, that this Title was given to David by God himself, at a Time, when we may be fure he knew he was truly deferving of it; therefore when upon the fincere and unfeigned Repentance of the Royal Patriarch, the fame Divine Being was pleafed by his Prophet to declare, he had taken away his Sin, and that he should not die, he then became again entitled to the fame Appellation, fince what was offenfive to the Almighty in David was by his Tears of Contrition and Remorfe washed away; and being thereby cleanfed from the Stain and Pollution of Guilt, he became again acceptable in his Sight, and is now to be ranked in the Number of his faithful Servants. Befides by the Phrase, that he should not not die, the Almighty was pleased to comfort his afflicted Servant with the Affurance that not only his Life fhould not be forfeited here, but that likewife he fhould not lofe eternal Happiness in the next World, in cafe he did not for the future offend; for the Meaning of those Words in the oriental Tongue import fo much. Now the Happiness of the Bleffed, we know, confift in the Fruition of God, and in endeavouring to refemble him in all Purity and Goodness. Of this Happinefs, a wicked immoral Man is incapable; it being impoffible in the Nature of Things for fuch a one to take any Enjoyment in thofe Things of which his Happiness is to confift: For a wicked Man living and delighting himself in his Wickedness, would be miferable even in Heaven itself, fuppofing it poffible nevertheless for him to arrive there. That this Promife of the Almighty's to David was upon the Demife of that Patriarch fulfilled, St. Paul, by the Spirit of God, has affured us. For in the Catalogue of thofe Worthies whom he informs his Hebrew Converts, through Faith wrought Righteoufnefs, and obtained a good Report, he mentions the Patriarch David, Now that these are made Partakers of a bleffed Immortality is certain. For when our bleffed Lord would give us an Idea of the highest Felicity in Heaven, he describes it by by being in Abraham's Bofom; confequently that Patriarch must be happy now in this his feparate State; from whence we may fafely conclude, that he will not be lefs happy after the general Resurrection. Now we cannot fuppofe that St. Paul, in exhorting his Hebrew Converts to hold faft the Profeffion of their Faith without wavering from the Defcription of the Advantages that attended it, and the Immutability of him that promifed them, would in the Number of those whom he affured them by having fuch a Faith had obtained thofe Advantages in Part, and were certain of obtaining at the general Day of Account, a full and perfect Completion of them, have placed one, whom he was certain was not deferving of, and confequently was incapable of ever obtaining, what ftill he affured them he had. Therefore fince from hence, I think, that it is evident, that David by his future Conduct had so far atoned for the Sin he had been guilty of with regard to the Affair of Uriah the Hittite, as upon his Death to be efteemed worthy by his God to be tranflated to that bleffed Abode, where he, with the other faithful Servants. of God now enjoys uninterrupted, Happinefs in the Fruition of the Almighty, which no one is capable of without Purity and Holiness, thofe being the only Perfections of our Creator we are able to resemble Ka 4 ble him in. Thefe Things then being allowed, he may without the leaft Impropriety, and without the laft Shock to the moft zealous of God's Servants, be pronounced worthy of that very honourable Title, of being the Man after God's own Heart. But before I proceed to that fecond Particular of David's Conduct, under the afflicting Hand of God, which I intend fpeaking to, I beg Leave to make a practical Obfervation upon that Part of the Royal Patriarch's Speech, whereby he comforts himfelf for the Lofs of his Child, and juftifies his Behaviour on that important Occafion, as it may be of ufe to others under the like Affliction. But now he is dead, fays pious David, wherefore fhould 1 faft? Can I bring him back again? I fhall go to him, but he shall not return to me. We fee here, David comforted himfelf with the Profpect of his Child's Happinefs, and with a full Trust from the Promise of God, that he himself, when he came to die, fhould likewife be tranflated to the fame happy Abode. This was his Relief in this his dejected State; And a moft powerful Relief would it likewife be to us in the fame Circumstances, would we thoroughly weigh and reflect upon the Reasonablenefs of it. For though indeed upon the Lofs of any near Relation, or valuable Friend, whom, as Jonathan did David, David, we love as our own Souls, our natural Affection will abate for the prefent the Force of our Reafon, and hinder it then from fully exerting itself, though whilft the Stream of Sorrow runs high, Reafon will not immediately be hearkened to; yet when the firft Sallies of Paffion are over, and we begin to come a little to ourselves, and Reafon again exerts itself, and begins to re-affume its Place, we fhall find fo many Things in that one Confideration to adminifter Comfort to us, that we shall find ourfelves by reflecting on them as eafy, and as capable for the future of enjoying Life, as David did in the likę Circumftances. When any Friend of ours is going a long Journey, and is perhaps to be abfent from us a confiderable Length of Time; though the Thought of fo long an Abfence makes it very irkfome to us for the prefent to take our Leave of him, yet we find ourselves quickly relieved from that Uneafiness from the Hopes we have of feeing him again, though it may be after a long Time, and enjoy Life in his Abfence with as much Pleasure, as if he was with us. When our Friends take their final Farewel of us, as to this Life, the like reflection will have the fame Effect: Nay, there are fome Rea-1 fons to make us much more easy in the one Cafe, than in the other. When our Friend is gone from us into a far Country, there |