altogether intoxicates us worms of the earth, and makes us forget that we are men*^.]
But God brought him down in a most awful manner —
[In one single night was his power hroken by the sword of a destroying angel, who slew 185,000 of his troops: and, not very long after, was he himself assassinated by two of his sons, whilst worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god^. And thus it is that God has often humbled his proud blaspheming creatures '^t yea, and more such instances of vengeance yet Iremain to be accomplished s.]
This subject, so interesting of itself, is yet far more interesting,
II. As illustrated at this time^ —
The resemblance between Sennacherib, and that powerful enemy with whom we have been contending now so many years, is very striking. We will point it out in a few particulars :
1. His unconscious agency —
[The great object of Sennacherib's ambition was, to subdue as many nations as he could, and bring them under subjection to himself. This was his object in warring against Judah. But God had another object in view. God raised him up to punish his offending people the Jews, and thereby to bring them to repentance. No such thought as this entered into the mind of Sennacherib. He went on with a view to his own aggran- dizement ; but God made use of him as " the rod of his anger, and the staff of his indignation'."
Thus it has been with him who has for so long a period desolated every part of Europe ^. He has been instigated only by his own ambition, and a desire after universal empire : but God has been using him to punish the nations, who, though *' naming the name of Christ, had scarcely any thing of Christ- ianity except the name ! " As God's instrument he has effected a very great change in Europe : he has given a death-blow to Popery, and has liberated the minds of men from those shackles with which they were held in a worse than Egyptian bondage. He has also, though quite unintentionally on his part, rooted out those principles of infidelity towards God, and of insubor- dination towards man, which were the means of placing him on his high eminence, and which he himself laboured as much as
d Ezek. xxviii. 2. and 2 Thess. ii. 3, 4. « 2 Kings xix. 35 — 37.
f Ezek, xxviii. 3 — 10. g 2 Thess. ii. 8.
^ Thanksgiving-day, Jan. 13, 1814. ' ver. 5 — 7. ^ Bonaparte, Jan. 13, 1814.