have no power to defend themselves, extravagant and unmerited commendation has been often lavished on the worthless and the wicked. I will cheerfully engage not to violate the ashes of the dead by unjust cenfure, nor even by merited invective; but I must not be forced, on the other hand, to commemorate virtues that were never practifed; to bring to light worth that never existed, except in the tropes of a funeral oration; to reprefent as right, what God, and truth, and reafon pronounce to be wrong. My tongue fhall be filent as the grave over the memory of the proudeft, most selfish, hard-hearted, unkind, uncomplying wretch that ever lived; but I must not be called in to prostitute my confcience by celebrating his humility, generofity, compaffion, or sweetness of temper. I would correct the common adage a little, and then give it all the currency in my power. Instead of rendering it," of the dead fay that only which is good," I would tranflate it, "of the dead fay that only which is true."

Indeed, the best thing that can befal most men, when they die, is to be forgotten as foon as poffible. Few, very few characters are fuch as not to fuffer by handling; and there is great danger of roufing and provoking flumbering refentments against our departed friends, by an officious zeal to trumpet their praise, and difplay their good qualities. The praise bestowed on the dead is generally contemptible adulation to the living; adulation, vilely bestowing the rewards of piety and goodness on mere greatnefs or affluence, and thereby ftrengthening the hands of vice, by lulling the confcience to reft, and deceiving men into the belief, that a good name may be purchased without poffeffing a spark of virtue.

The liturgy of our established church, in how many other refpects foever useful and excellent, is here faulty, and certainly does mifchief. The funeral fervice, one of the nobleft, because one of the moft fcriptural parts of it, with indiscriminating charity difpenfes

the

the kingdom of heaven to the evil and the good, to "him that fweareth as to him who feareth an oath." The wretch whofe whole life has been a notorious violation of every law human and divine, who grew old in hatred and contempt of the gofpel, falls afleep in the "fure and certain hope of a refurrection to eternal life." What is this but to encourage men to continue in fin, that grace may abound; to live profligates, and yet hope to die in peace ?

Happily, the character we are this evening to bring under your review will ftand the teft of the ftrictest examination, will shine with fuperior luftre from being touched and retouched, will difcover new excellencies on every investigation, will furnish to the humble, the penitent, and the believing, perpetual ground of inftruction and confolation. After a course of more than fourfcore Lectures on the life, character, and writings of Mofes, it may perhaps be thought fuperfluous, to employ the whole of another difcourfe in attempting to elucidate his character, to recommend his example, to embalm his memory. But it is this very circumstance which determined me to attempt a delineation of this wonderful man's portrait, to requeft that you would join me in meditating a few mo ments over one who has been honoured of God, to do more, in order to please and inftruct mankind, than any mere man that ever exifted. To fay truth, I confider the perfon of Mofes as a pledge of affection between you and myself. He brought us together at firft, and he has kept us together a confiderable part of these three years paft; to part with him and his writings feems a kind of prefentiment of our final diffolution likewife; and, in lofing him, I feel as if I were losing a thousand friends at a stroke. But let us speak and think of Mofes, not of ourselves.

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It is impoffible to think of Mofes without firft thinking of his Father and our Father, of his God and our God." To be a chofen inftrument in the hand of Heaven to carry on the plans of Providence, to

promote

promote the wisdom and the happiness of mankind, is man's highest glory; as it is his trueft felicity to do this voluntarily and from the heart, as an obedient, zealous, and cheerful fellow-worker with God. Now, Mofes poffeffed this diftinction and felicity in a very eminent degree. God raised up Pharaoh "in very deed for this caufe, to fhew in him his power, that his great name might be declared throughout all the earth;" and Pharaoh, unhappily for himself, accomplished the designs of Heaven, by his pride, obftinacy and rebellion. God called "Cyrus his anointed, by name, and furnamed him who had not known him, for Jacob his fervant's fake, and Ifrael his elect." Nebuchadnezzar he employed as the rod of his anger to chastise a difobedient and gainfaying people, and then broke it in pieces and dafhed it to the ground. Thefe, and many others, ftand upon record, as executing the will of the Eternal without their own consciousness or intention, nay, totally against it; but Moses had the rare felicity of engaging in one of the moft generous purposes which can animate a human breast, knowing it to be, at the fame time, the leading, commanding purpose of God himself. Every step he moved was fupported by the enlivening reflection, that every ftep he moved was executing the decrees of the Almighty, and promoting the relief and falvation of his wretched countrymen. How delightful the progrefs, when duty and inclination go hand

in hand!

The circumstances in which God raised up Mofes mark him peculiarly as his own. Every thing concurred to prove, that here" the arm of the Lord was revealed." Another king had arifen, "who knew not Jofeph," the hope of Ifrael feemed to be perishing; Egypt was alarmed with expectation, or rather apprehenfion, of the appearance of this wonderful child; Ifrael was awakened to expectation, but abandoned it in defpair. To reach the life of one, ten thousand innocents perifh by the fword. But, as if in

defiance

defiance of the precautions of human wifdom, Mofes is born in the very rage of that perfecution which threatened his life. The daughter of Pharaoh becomes his protector, and Egyptian Magi vie with each other in rearing that genius, whofe afcendant threatened the downfall of their country; and Mofes is become great, before the world apprehends that it is he by whofe hand God would deliver his people from bondage.

This brings us forward to the period when his perfonal character began plainly to unfold itself; and it discovers to us a mind fuperior to every mean, every felfish gratification. Men love to adopt the cause that prevails; and the cause of Ifrael was at that time low indeed. At a certain period of life paffion bears un limited fway. At forty, the calls of ambition and pride are loudeft; and they who are themselves at ease are little difpofed to embark in the miferies of others. But in Mofes behold a man, not funk into poverty violently obtruded upon him, but poverty deliberately chofen; a man of forty relinquifhing, without reluctance or regret, the pleafures, riches and honours of a court, and exchanging them for the labour and oppreffion of an Ifraelitish flave, and glorying in the reproachful name of Hebrew, much more than in that of the fon of Pharaoh's daughter. Behold the manly indignation of a noble spirit haftening to avenge wretchedness and depreffion of infolence and cruelty, and in the punishment of one oppreffor exhibiting an anticipated view of that great deliverance which, in procefs of time, God was by him to work in behalf of a whole people.

The fame fpirit which beheld Egyptian oppreffion with juft refentment, beheld difcord among brethren with godly forrow and regret. He boldly expofed his life to repel the one; in the fpirit of meeknefs he tried to heal the other; and he very early experienced the ungracious, and ungrateful, and difcouraging requital of fervices the moft kindly intended; the fad

prefage

prefage of that life of mortification unparalleled, and most unmerited, which he was afterwards called to endure. The infolent retort of an unkind brother awakened prudence, and put him for a feafon to flight; for valour, as the cafe then stood, valour against fuch fearful odds, could not have deferved the name of courage, but of rashness.

Providence ftill directs his path, and conducts him at once to usefulness and happiness. It seems as if the all-wife Jehovah meant to display in Moses an example of the great and of the petty virtues, the virtues of the man, of the citizen, and of the believer united; and in none of his future exploits, perhaps, is he more amiable and more estimable than in protecting the virgin daughters of Jethro from the violence of their rough and furly neighbours. Here we behold again on what delicate hinges the great God turns round the affairs of men. This piece of natural, honest, commendable gallantry, introduces Mofes to the acquaintance of a prince, lays the foundation of an important alliance for life, and influences all his future fortunes, and feelings, as a man.

ence.

Hence we are conducted to the delicious, the calm, the contemplative period of our hero's mortal exiftWe behold a fimple fhepherd tending a flock not his own, but enjoying tranquillity and contentment; fecluded from the fociety of men, but blessed with the vifions of the Almighty; lofing himself in fweet oblivion of a bufy, bustling world, awake only to the innocent joys of domestic life, and the sublimer pleasures of religion. It was in all probability in this delightful retreat, during this bleffed interval of retirement from and unconnectedness with what paffed on the great theatre, that, divinely taught, he fung "how the heavens and earth rofe out of chaos." It was then and there that the Divine Spirit disclosed to his aftonished, his enraptured eye, the years beyond the flood, the fpring-feafon of nature, the first man whom God created upon the earth, the amiableness of VOL. V.

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pure