ple on the fabbath, if it be a windy day or fo, to cut down their corns, which yet God has in a special manner provided againft, Exod. xxxiv. 21.; and that would have juftified the fellers of fish, whom Nehemiah difcharged, Neh. xiii. 16. 17. And therefore I cannot think that the making of cheese on the Lord's day can be accounted a work of neceffity lawful on that day for as much might be faid in the other cafes as can be in this, viz. that the corn may shake, the fifhes fpoil, &c. Befides, people fhould take heed that they bring not that neceffity on themfelves, by timeously providing to prevent it. And when works of real neceflity and mercy are to be done, they should be done not with a work day's, but fabbath-day's frame.

2. Who are to reft? The command is very particular. (1.) Men. 1.) The heads of the family, the heads of the ftate, mafter and miftrefs are to give example to others. 2.) The children, fon, daughter; they must not have their liberty to profane the fabbath by playing more than working. 3.) Servants, whofe toil all the week may tempt them to mifpend the Lord's day; they must not be bidden profane the fabbath; and if they be, they must obey God rather than inan. 4.) The ftranger muft not be allowed his liberty we must not compliment away the honour of the fabbath. (2.) Beafts; they muft reft; not that the law reaches them for themielves, but for their owners; either becaufe they require attendance at work, or put the cafe they did not, yet it is the work which must not be done. This lets us fee that where even their work may be carried on on the Lord's day without attendance on them, yet it is not to be done.

3. What makes the reft holy? Refpect to the command of God.

Secondly, The fabbath is to be fanctified by holy exercile.

1. Public exercifes of God's worship, If lxvi. 23. :

as hearing fermons, Luke iv. 16. prayer, Acts xvi. 13. 14. receiving of the facraments, where there is occafion, Acts xx. 7. finging of pfalms, Pfal. xcii. title.

2. Private exercises of worship, alone and in our families, Lev. xxiii. 3. Neither of these muft juftle out the other. God has joined them; let us not put

them asunder.

And these duties are to be done with a special elevation of heart on the fabbath-day; they ought to be performed with a frame fuiting the fabbath, If. lviii. 13.

ift, Grace muft be stirred up to exercife, otherwife the fabbath will be a burden. Grace will be at its height in heaven, and the fabbath is an emblem of heaven, Rev. i. 10.

2dly, The heart fhould be withdrawn from all earthly things, and intent upon the duty of the day. We muft leave the afs at the foot of the mount, that we may converse with God.

3dly, Love and admiration are fpecial ingredients here. The two great works of creation and redemption, which we are particularly called to mind on the Lord's day, are calculated to excite our love and admiration.

4thly, We fhould have a peculiar delight in the day and the duties of it, exchanging our lawful pleasures on other days with spiritual pleasures on this.

The reft without holy exercife is not fufficient.

1. The fabbath-reft resembles that of heaven, which is a reft without a reft, wherein the foul is moft bufy and active, ferving the Lord without weariness.

2. If it were enough, we were obliged to fanctify the fabbath no more than beafts, who only reft that day.

3. The reft enjoined is not commanded for itself, but for the holy exercises of the day.

Now, it is the whole day that is thus to be spent, i. e. the natural day. Not that people are bound to be in these exercises without intermiffion all the twenty-four

hours; for God has not made the fabbath to be a burden to man, but that we should continue God's work as we do our own on other days, where we are allowed neceffary reft and refreshment by fleep in the night. Ufe. Remember the fabbath-day to keep it holy. This note is put upon it,

1. Because of the great weight of the thing, the fabbath being the bond of all religion. It is God's dealday, wherein his people may expect furniture for all the week.

2. Because we are very apt to forget it, Ezek. xxii. 26. There is lefs light of nature for this than other commands. It reftrains our liberty in thofe, things that we do all the week. And Satan knowing the importance of it for our fouls, that it is a day of bleffing, fets on us to forget it. If ye would then fanctify the fabbath,

(1.) Remember it before it come; on the laft day of the week, on the Saturday's evening, laying by work timeously to prepare for it, Luke. xxiii. 54.

(2.) Remember when it is come; rife early on the fabbath-morning, Pfal. xcii. 2. The morning hath enough ado: worship God fecretly and privately: prepare yourselves for ordinances, wrestle with God for his prefence thereto, that he may gracioufly affift the minster in preaching and you in hearing, and may blefs the word to you. Remember it while it is going on, that it is God's day, a day of bleffing, and ply diligently the work of the day, not only in time of the public work, but after, till the day be finished.

(3) Remember it when it is over, to fee what good you have got by it; to bless him for any fimiles of his face or manifeftations of his grace; and to mourn-over your failures, and apply to the blood of Christ for pardon and clean fing.

IV. I proceed to fhew what is forbidden in the fourth commandment. We are told in the catechifm, that it forbiddeth the omiffion or carclefs perform4 C

VOL. II.

"ance of the duties required, and the profaning the "day by idlenefs, or doing that which is in itself fin"ful, or by unneceffary thoughts, words, or works, "about worldly employments or recreations."

There are five ways how this commandment is bro

ken.

First, By omiffion of the duties required on this day, whether in whole or in part. Many of the fabbath-duties are the duties of every day; but the omif fion of them, which is always criminal, is more fo on this day, because on it we are specially called to them. We fin against this command then, when we neglect the public or private exercifes of God's worship.

1. Not remembering the fabbath, before it come, to prepare for it; entertaining a carnal worldly frame of fpirit on the night before, not laying afide work betimes, and composing our hearts for the approaching fabbath; far more when people continue at their work later that night than ordinary, getting as near the borders of the fabbath as they can.

2. Neglecting the duties of the fabbath-morning; particularly,

(1) The duty of meditation. Those that are in the Spirit on the Lord's day, their fpirits will be bufy, elevated to heavenly things, and converfing with hea ven. The two great works of creation and redemp tirn require our thoughts particularly on that day, Pfal. xcii. 5.; and we muft needs be guilty, when while God has fet thefe great marks before us, we do not aim to hit them. Has not God made it a day of bleffing? fhould not we then confider our wants, miferies, and needs, and fharpen our appetites after that food that is fet before us in ordinances on that day?

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(2) Secret prayer. The fabbath-morning is a fpecial time for wrestling with God, confefling, petitioning, and giving thanks. Then fhould there be wreftling for the bleffing on the day of bleffing. And the neglect of it is a very bad beginning for that good day. When will they come to God's door that will rot come then? Pfal. xcii. 1. 2.

(3.) Family-exercife. This command has a fpecial refpect to family religion. As God will have the family to mind and fee to their own work on the fix days, fo he calls them to mind his together on the fabbath. Every family is to be a church, especially on the Lord's day. And if people came with their hearts warmed from family-duties to the public, they would speed.

3. Neglect of the public exercifes of God's worhip, Heb. x. 25. By this neglect the fabbath is profaned. The public ordinances on the Lord's day, whatever they do elfe, they keep up a ftandard for Chrift in the world; and to flight them is the way to fill the world with Atheifm and profanenefs. As it would be the fin of minifters not to adminifter them, fo it is the fin of people not to attend on them. But O how does this profanation abound, by unneceffary abfenting from public ordinances! It is not enough to fpend the time in private. God requires both; and the one must not jufle out the other. Nothing fhould be admitted as an excufe in this but what will bear weight when the confcience is fifted before God.

4. Neglecting the duties of the day when the public work is over. The fabbath is not over when the public work is over. When we go home to our houfes, we must keep the fabbath there too, Lev, xxiii, 3. It ought not to be an idle time. Ye ought to retire by yourselves, and meditate on what ye have heard, on your behaviour at the public ordinances, and be humbled for your failings; confer together about the word, renew your calling on God in fecret, and in your families, and with variety of holy exercifes fpend what remains of the day.

Secondly, The fabbath is profaned by a careless performance of the duties required. Though we perform the duties themfelves, we may profane the fabbath by the way of managing them. Now, it is a careless performance to performr them,

1. Hypocritically, Matth. xv. 7. while the body is