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SERMON II.

"The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God." PSALM xiv. 1.

you will turn over some few leaves, as far as the fifty-third Psalm, you shall not only find my text, but this whole Psalm, without any alteration, save only in the fifth verse, and that not at all in the sense neither. What shall we say? Took the Holy Spirit of God such especial particular notice of the sayings and deeds of a fool, that one expression of them would not serve the turn? Or, does the babbling and madness of a fool so much concern us, as we need to have them urged upon us once and again, and a third time in the third of the Romans? Surely not any one of us present here is this fool. Nay, if any one of us could but tell where to find such a fool as this, that would offer to say, though in his heart, "There is no God," he should not rest in quiet, he should soon perceive we were not of his faction.

2. We that are able to tell David an article or two of faith, more than ever he was acquainted with! nay, more; can we with any imaginable ground of reason be supposed liable to any suspicion of atheism, that are able to read David a lecture out of his own Psalms, and explain the meaning of his own prophecies, much clearer than himself, which held the pen to the Holy Spirit of God? Though we cannot deny, but that in other things there may be found some spice of folly, and imperfection in us: but it cannot be imagined,

that we, who are almost cloyed with the heavenly manna of God's word, that can instruct our teachers, and are able to maintain opinions and tenets, the scruples whereof not both the universities of this land, nor the whole clergy, are able to resolve; that it should be possible for us ever to come to that perfection and excellency of folly and madness, as to entertain a thought that there is no God: nay, we are not so uncharitable as to charge a Turk, or an infidel, with such a horrible imputation as this.

3. Beloved Christians, be not wise in your own conceits; if you will seriously examine the third of the Romans (which I mentioned before) you shall find, that St. Paul, out of this Psalm, and the like words of Isaiah, doth conclude the whole posterity of Adam (Christ only excepted) under sin, and the curse of God: which influence of his were weak and inconcluding, unless every man of his own nature were such an one as the prophet here describes, and the same apostle, in another place, expresses, "Even altogether without God in the world;" i. e. not maintaining it as an opinion, which they would undertake by force of argument to confirm, that "there is no God;" for we read not of above three or four among the heathens, that were of any fashion, which went thus far; but such as, though in their discourse and serious thoughts they do not question a Deity, but would abhor any man, that would not liberally allow unto God all his glorious attributes, yet in their hearts and affections they deny him; they live as if there was no God, having no respect at all to him in all their projects; and therefore, indeed, and in God's esteem, become formally, and in strict propriety of speech, very atheists.

4. That this is most true, and that therefore many, who, because they are orthodox in opinion, have thereupon a great conceit of their faith towards God; yet, being strictly examined, shall be found to have built such glorious buildings in shew upon sand; or, which is worse, to have made hay and stubble (matter fit only for the fire). Foundations of many golden hopes, and glorious presumptions, must be shewed at large hereafter.

5. The words now read are a secret confession, which the fool whispers to his own heart: he neither can nor dare profess this openly; and when he calls his reason to counsel about this business, the question, is far otherwise stated. The words do not run thus: The fool being convicted by evidence of reason and demonstration, hath concluded, "there is no God:" no, this is no heathenish philosophical fool; he is quite of another temper: this is a worldly, proud, malicious, projecting, wise fool; a fool that knows it is for his advantage to put God out of his thoughts; and therefore doth forcibly captivate, and wilfully hoodwink, his understanding; and thinks he hath obtained a great victory, if he can contrive any course to bring himself to that pass, that no cold melancholy thoughts of God or hell may interrupt or restrain him from freely wallowing in the lusts and uncleanness of his heart, without any re-. morse, without any reluctance or griping, within him. It is for his heart's sake, the love that he bears to the lust thereof, that makes him an atheist if it could stand with that course and trade of life that he is resolved upon, to entertain contrary thoughts, he would as soon work his judgment and thoughts another way. And, therefore,

in his open profession, it sometimes falls out, that even when he wishes there were no God, yet he is a very forward zealous acknowledger in general of God, and his glorious attributes: so that the same desire of a quiet and uninterrupted enjoying the scope and freedom of the lusts and affections of his heart, makes him both a resolute secret atheist, and withal wise enough to keep his folly to himself, and to make none else acquainted with his curious art and method of such woeful self-deceiving, but his dearly beloved heart: "The fool," &c.

6. The discussion of these words does not engage me to a dividing or discanting upon the whole Psalm. Let it suffice, that we may most probably conceive, that David, in this Psalm, intends the description of the woeful estate of that king dom, after God had taken away his good Spirit from Saul; wherein the secret enemies of God did greedily lay hold on that occasion to vex and despite, and, as much as was in their power, to lay waste the heritage of God.

7. "The fool" (who is the person that through the whole Psalm works all the mischief), in the original is Nabal, which hath the signification of fading, dying, or falling away, as doth a leaf or flower, (Isa. xl. 8.) and is a title given to the foolish man, as having lost the juice and sap of wisdom, reason, honesty, and godliness; being fallen from grace, ungrateful, and without the life of God: as a dead carcass (which of this word is called Nebalah, Lev. xi. 40.) and therefore ignoble and of vile esteem, opposed to the noble man. (Isa xxxii. 5.) The apostle, in Greek, termeth it imprudent, or without understanding. (Rom. x. 19; from Deut. xxxii. 21.)

8. "Hath said in his heart, There," &c. i. e. not

so much persuadeth himself in secret, that "there is no God;" but rather expresseth so in his life, or in his affections, which are called the heart, in the phrase of God; proportionable to the same expression of David: (Psal. x. 4.) "The wicked through the pride of his countenance will not seek after God: God is not in all his crafty purposes." If you would have the full sense of my text more largely expressed, turn to Tit. i. 16; where persons of the same mould, that the prophet here complains of, are thus described: "They profess that they know God, but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and to every good work void of judgment,"

9. Where are observable, First, The cause of this practical atheism, in these last words of the verse; "They were to every good work, adókyo," and that was ignorance, or rather imprudence, inconsider ance; implying not a bare want of knowledge, but an abusing thereof, in not reducing it to prac tice, in hiding the light which was in them under a bushel. Secondly, Then we have the manner of the expression of this atheism, viz. not in words, or in opinion, to deny God; but, which is worse, in the carriage and course of our life; to allow him his attributes, and yet not to fear him, not to stand in awe of his power, which he acknowledgeth to be infinite, to distrust his providence, to slight his promises, neglect his threatenings, which is in effect, as much as in him lieth, to tear and ravish from him all his glorious attri butes, by living, as if God himself were less powerful, less wise than himself, improvident, not deserving so much fear of his power, or respect to his command, as he would perform to a wretched