former governors that bad been before me, were chargeable unto the people, and had taken of them bread and wine, besides forty shekels of silver ; yea, even their servants did bear rule over the people : but so did not I, because of the fear of God. Yea, also I continued in the work of this wall, neither bought we any land : and all my servants were gathered thither unto the work. Moreover, there were at my table an hundred and fifty of the Jews and rulers, besides those that came in to us from among the heathen. And yet for all this,' saith he, * I required not the bread of the governor, because the bondage was heavy upon the people.' Oh, here was a brave spirit indeed ; he was far from enriching himself by others' ruins, from emptying others' purses to fill his own. But he is dead, and it seems this brave spirit is buried with him. There are few of his name, and fewer of his spirit, if any in this world, and therefore well might he pray, ' Think upon me, my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people.' And accordingly God did think upon him for good, and made him very famous and glorious in his generation.^ And that is a remarkable passage concerning Moses : Num. xiv. 12-21, 'I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a great nation, and mightier than they,' saith God to Moses. ' Therefore let me alone to destroy them and cut them off, for they are a rebellious genera- tion. And I will make thee a mightier nation for honour, riches, and power, than they. Nay,' saith Moses, ' this may not be. Lord.' Oh, the people must be spared, the people must be pardoned, and the people must have thy presence with them, and rather than it should be other- wise, let my name. Lord, be blotted out of the book of life. Lord ! I care not how ill it goes with my particular, so they may live. Can the self-seekers of our age think seriously of this and not blush ?
So Mordecai was a man of a brave public spirit : Esther x. 3, ' Mor- decai the Jew was next unto King Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews, and accepted of the multitude of his brethren, seeking the wealth of his people.' Or as the Hebrew hath it, ' Seeking good for his peo- ple ;' that is, he made it his business to seek their good. Christ also was full of grace, and had a brave public spirit ; he laid out himself and laid down himself for a public good ; and so did Paul, &c. Few in our days are of his opinion and mind, who was rather willing to beautify Italy than his own house.^ ' That pilot dies nobly,' saith Seneca, ' who perisheth in the storm with the helm in his hand.' Such that seek themselves more than the public good must be served as ^sop did his fellow-servant ; he gave him warm water to drink, by which means he vomited up the stolen figs. Friends, it is not a little grace that will make a man prefer the public good, above his own particular good, but much grace will ; therefore labour to be rich in grace.^
(5.) Fifthly, It is your principle, that you are to do the duties that God requires of you, and quietly leave the issues and events of all to the ivise dispose of God.
^ It is a base and unworthy spnit for a man to make himself the centre of all his actions. The very heathen man could say, A man's country and his friends, and others, challenge a great part of him.
* Lorenzo the Magnificent.— G.
' Christ healed others, but was hurt himself; he fed and filled others, but was hungry himself, &c.
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But pray tell me, will a little grace enable a man to live up to this principle, to do his duty, and to leave issues and events to him to whom they belong? Surely no. Eccles. ix. 10, ' Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might, for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave whither thou goest. Mark, he doth not say, what thy head finds to do, for that may find a thousand things ; nor what thy heart finds to do, for that may find ten thousand things ; but what thy hand finds to do ; that is, look what work God cuts out to thy hand to do, that do with all thy might, for there is no work- ing in the grave. We are to do much good in a little time ; we are made here, and set to be a-doing something that may do us good a thousand years hence, yea, that may stand us in stead to eternity. Our time is short, our task is great, the devil knows that his time is but short, and that is the reason why he is so active and stirring, why he does outwork the children of light, in a quick despatch of the deeds of darkness. Christians, do not deceive yourselves ; it is not shows of grace, nor little measures of grace, that will enable a man to live up to this principle, but great measures of grace will, as you may see in the three children, 'We are not careful to answer thee, O king, in this matter; if it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hands, 0 king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.' We know our duty, and that we will keep to, whatever the issue and event be. So those worthies, Ps. xliv. 19, 'Though thou hast sore broken us in the place of dragons, and covered us with the shadow of death, yet have we not forgotten thee, neither have we dealt falsely in thy covenant.' Here was much of Christ and grace within. So in Acts xxi., when Paul was to go up to Jerusalem to suffer, his friends, by many tears and arguments, laboured to dissuade him, for fear of some sad issue and event that would follow. But Paul, rich in grace, answered, 'What mean ye to weep, and break my heart, for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem, for the name of the Lord Jesus.' I will go up to Jerusalem, and I am willing to go up, though I die for it. Ay, here is a soul that lives up to his principle. Ay, but now souls that are weak in grace, as we have had large experience of it in our times, they are more taken up and busied about the events and issues of things, than they are with their own duties.' When they should be a-praying, a-believing,a-waiting, and acting for God, they have been a-questioning and fearing what the issue and event of this, and that, and the other thing would be. And indeed they have been high and low, as secondary causes have wrought, which hath made many of their lives a very hell. But now those that are rich in grace, they say as once he did, 'Let us be of good courage, and let us play the men for our people, and for the cities of our God, and the Lord do that which seemeth him good,' 2 Sam. x. 10-12. Let us do our duties, and let the Lord do as pleaseth him, &c.
(6.) Sixthly, It is your principle, that men are to be prepared, and to sldtid fast against all sadden assaults and invasions that may he mode vpon them.