with; by taking a liberty with them in obfcene filthy fpeaking, making youthful lufts the subject of their mirth and fport; leading them in to drunkennefs, an inlet to all other vices; tempting them to the commiffion of the fin of uncleannefs with them, which will be bitterness in the end to the feducer and the feduced; encouraging them to acts of dishonesty, cheating and tealing from their parents or masters. These are factors for hell, who do what in them lies to deftroy fouls Chrift died for.

7. To those that are ready to hide and cloke the fcandalous fins of others, working that they may not be brought to light. How many poor fouls of the younger fort, whom Satan has got led afide into the ways of fin, might have been recovered out of the fnare of the devil, if it had not been the cruel kindness of fome, who beftirred themfelves to cover their fin? But thereby they have been hardened in their fin, and have gone from evil to worse, till at length they have been ruined for altogether. See what an awful threatening there is pronounced against fuch, Lev. v. 1. If a foul fin, and hear the voice of fwearing, and is a witness, whether he hath feen or known of it; if he do not utter it, then he fhall bear his iniquity.

8. laftly, To those who cannot fee themselves under any obligation to propagate religion, and concern themselves as little about it. They think that may be the business of minifters, and poffibly of fathers to their own children; but not theirs. As foon as the Spirit of God touches your hearts in earnest about your own falvation, ye will change your mind; ye will find a natural concern for the advancing of the kingdom of Chrift: John,

iv. 29. Come, fee a man which told me all things that ever I did is not this the Chrift? The love of God, and of your neighbour, planted in the heart, will create a concern this way and not daring to be against him, and scatter, ye will be for Chrift, and gather with him. The leaven will seek.

Ufe 2. of Exhortation. Make it the special bufinefs of your lives to propagate religion to the rifing generation.

Motive 1. There is the strongeft obligations on you for it. Ye are in that point under the tie of,

ift, Divine authority. God commands you to do it, requires it of you. It is commanded to all to edify one another, 1 Theff. v. 11; yea, all things must be done for that end, I Cor. xiv. 26. And the reason is plain, that God has placed men in fociety, and in Chriftian fociety for that end, Rom. xiv. 7. And the elder fort are made tutors and teachers to the younger for that end, Deut. iv. 10. and xi. 19.

2dly, Gratitude to God. Is not God your Creator, Preferver, and Sustainer? And what can ye do for him, for all the goodness bestowed on you, if ye do not propagate his name and praife, and ftrive to ftir up the love and fear of him in the rifing generation? If ye have any fhare in the redemption of Chrift, ye cannot but find yourselves under the strongest ties of gratitude for redeeming love, to labour that his name may be tranfmitted from generation to generation. Hence fays the Pfalmift, Pfal. Ixxii. 17. His name fhall endure for ever his name fhall be continued as long as the fun and men fhall be bleffed in him; all nations fhall call him bleffed.

3dly, Juftice to former generations, who have propagated

propagated religion to us. What cafe had we been in this day, if it had not been for the fufferings of confeffors, and the blood of martyrs, which they underwent, that religion might be tranfmitted to us, and by us to fucceeding generations? Had they given up with it, it had been loft as to us. Now, they have an intereft in fucceeding generations; and if we propagate it not to them, we betray our truft, and are unjust to them, and denude the fucceeding generation of the inheritance of their fathers. We fhould, like thofe fpoke of Pfal. lxxviii. 3.4. utter the things which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us; not hiding them from our children, fhewing to the generation to come, the praises of the Lord; and his ftrength, and his wonderful works that he hath done.

4thly, Our own intereft. That maxim, Prov. xi. 24. There is that fcattereth, and yet increafeth; and there is that with-holdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty, holds in this, as much as in any thing. Religion is a fire, which being smothered, goes out; but getting a vent, increaseth. It is like the widow's oil, that increased in the pouring out; and like the bread that increased in the breaking. Were men more fet on propagating religion to others, they would have more to themselves.

5thly, Charity to the rifing generation. Their eternal ftate, as to well or woe, depends on their embracing or continuing ftrangers to religion. They need your help: for the bias of their nature lies the wrong way; the devil and an evil world ceafe not to ply them to walk according to that bias; and if their fpiritual enemies gain their point, they are ruined.

Mot. 2. This is the chief part of your generation

work.

work. The work of our own falvation must be feen to, Philip. ii. 12.; but that is not all we have to do. We are to do that for ourselves: but then, for the honour of God and the good of our fellow-creatures, we are to ply our generation-work, Acts xiii. 36.; and that mainly lies here: Pfal. cxlv. 4. One generation fhall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts. Ye are all doing but what are ye doing for the honour of God, for the fervice of your generation? Ye have a room in this generation; and God who fet you in it, will call you to account how ye fill it up.

Mot. 3. As ye carry yourselves in this matter, your fin or your good works will be going on, after ye are dead and gone, in this world. The laft judgment we must undergo, is not without reafon delayed to the end of the world; for the fins of wicked men, and the good works of the godly, will then be hugely increased beyond what they are at their death. Good Abel is ufeful to this day: Heb. xi. 4.-He being dead, yet fpeaketh. Haman in his life fet a mischief a-going, which continued after he was gone, Efth. viii. 3. and the fin of Jeroboam the first king of Ifrael, continued till that kingdom was at an end, 2 Kings xvii. 22. 23. If ye propagate religion to the riling generation, that good work will furvive you; and if ye neglect it, your criminal omiffion may live and destroy fouls long after ye are gone, which will be laid to your charge at the great day.

Mot. 4. It is a noble and beneficial work. Hence fays the Apostle James, chap. v. 19. 20. Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; let him know, that he which converteth the

finner from the error of his way, fhall fave a foul from death, and shall hide a multitude of fins. To fave a foul from perifhing, is fuch noble work, that it is an honourable working to be aiming at it, and using means to compafs it.

Mot. 5. laftly, The doom of unprofitable fervants is dreadful: Matth. xxv. 30. Caft ye the unprofitable fervant into outer darkness: there fhall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. No man can profit God, but every man may and ought to profit others, job xxxv. 7. 8. laying out their taients for the good of others; and if they do it not, they will be caft into outer darkness, as those who would not work when they had the light.

Object. But they are froward, and will not receive inftruction, nor take advice. Anf. That is a part of their natural disease, Jub. xi. 12. Men take pains to break young beafts, till they make them tractable and fhall they not be at pains with those of their own kind? The waters wear the ftones; and what has often flipped off, may at length come to stick. And a word spoken to them for their good, may lie long under the clod, but fpring up at length. But our fuccefs is not the rule of our duty; we must do our part.

But more particularly, let heads of families be exhorted to propagate religion to their children and families.

Mot.. Confider ye have a charge of their fouls, from God who has committed them to you. Hence the fourth commandment, the bond of all religion, is directed to heads of families. And in Abraham's example their duty is laid before them: Gen. xviii. 19. I know him, (fays the Lord), that he will command his children, and his household after him,

and