their sins. Humble thyself then, London, humble thyself before the Lord; lick the dust of his feet, put off thy ornaments, and gird thee with sackcloth, clothe thyself with humility, God hath spit in thy face; wilt thou be proud of thy beauty again? he hath burnt the city with fire, wilt thou be proud of thy buildings and stately edifices any more? he hath consumed much of the fuel of thy pride, and he expects that thy pride should be abated, and that thou shouldest abase thyself, and humble thyself be fore him.

6. God doth expect that London should accept of the punishment of their iniquity. Levit. xxvi. 40-42. "If my people shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, and be humbled, and accept the punishment of their iniquity, then will I remember my covenant, and remember the land." God expects that London should justify him in the severest judgments which he hath inflicted upon them; as they should acknowledge their sins, so they should acknowledge their demerit, and that the Lord hath punished them no more, yea, that he hath punished them less than their iniquities have deserved: as they should bring a bill of indictment against themselves, so they should bring a bill of acquittance of God; God expects that they should say, as Neh. ix. 33. “Thou art just in all that is brought upon us; for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly." Or as Dan. ix. 7, 8. "O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, because we have sinned against thee."

Let not London murmur or repine, let not Lon don find fault and complain of God, because of his judgments, Lam. iii. 39. "Why doth the living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sin?" God hath opened his mouth, and spoken terribly; but let London shut her mouth, because God hath spoken righteously; God hath spoken with a loud voice, let London be in deep silence; "I was dumb, I opened not my mouth, saith David, because thou didst it," Psal. xxxix. 9. When Nadab and Abihu, the two sons of Aaron, were consumed with fire from heaven, for offering strange fire before the Lord, it is said, that Aaron held his peace, Lev. x. 1-3. So when God hath consumed the city of London with fire, for the sins of the inhabitants, let them hold their peace, because they... have deserved it. Let London be still, and know that God is righteous; let London lay her hand upon her mouth, and her mouth in the dust; let London close up her lips, and seal them up with silence; or if she open them, let her mouth be filled with confessions, not with complaints; or, if she complain, let her complain to God, but let her not complain of him; if she complain, let her complain against herself, but let her not complain against God; let her complain of her own sin and wickedness, but not of God's judgments so righteous. Let London wonder it is no worse with her, when both her sin and her danger was so great; let her wonder, when God was so angry, that he should put any restraint upon it; that when wrath was come forth, that it proceeded no farther; let her wonder that the

plague did not quite depopulate her, let her wonder it is so well with her, that she is not made a desolation, and say, "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed,” Lam. iii. 22. 7. God doth expect that London should mourn for her sins. We read, Jer. iii. 21, "A voice was heard upon the high places, weeping and supplications of the house of Israel." When the terrible voice of God's judgments hath been heard in London, God doth hearken for the voice of weeping and supplications; this God's voice doth call for: when breaches were made in the city of David, Isa. xxii. 9. "Then did the Lord of Hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth," ver. 11. And when instead hereof there was "joy and gladness, eating flesh, and drinking wine," the Lord is so angry, that he threateneth, "surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you till you die," ver. 13, 14. See also what the Lord calls for to the daughter of Zion under her judgments, Lam. ii. 18, 19, "Let tears run down like a river day and night; give thyself no rest, let not the apple of thine eye cease: arise, cry in the night; in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the Lord." God doth not only expect that " his ministers and priests should weep between the porch and the altar," when sore judgments are upon land, as Joel ii. 17; but also that the people should weep too, "that the bridegroom should go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet," as ver. 16; that people should be " afflicted, mourn and weep, that their laughter should be

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turned into mourning, and their joy into heavis ness, James iv. 9. He expects that those which escape his judgments "should be like doves upon the mountains, every one mourning for his iniquities," as Ezek. vi. 16. London may mourn for her judgments which have been so dreadful, but God expects they should mourn more for his displeasure, which hath been the cause of these judgments; and most of all for their sins, which have been the cause of his displeasure.

Weep London, weep for thy sins, which have been so many and provoking; let thine eye affect thine heart; when thou lookest into thy burying places, and thinkest how many of thy people have lately there taken up their habitation; it should draw tears from thine eyes to think of thy sins, which opened the doors of those lodgings unto them: methinks, when thou passest through thy ruinous habitations, and seest the heaps of stones at the top of thy streets, when thou viewest thy half-churches, and bare steeples, and ragged walls, and open vaults; and the dismal solitude in those places, which not long ago were full of people, it should fill thine heart with sorrow for thy sins, which have kindled such anger in the breast of God, as to send the late dreadful fire, which hath made such desolations.

Mourn, London, mourn, put on sackcloth; thou seest in part what an evil and bitter thing it is to offend a holy and jealous God: the effects of sin here are fearful sometimes, what evil is there in sin, then, which is the cause of thy ruins. God looks now that the sinners of London should become mourners: we read of a mark which was

set upon the foreheads of them at Jerusalem, which did mourn and cry out for the abominations> that were done in the midst thereof, and they were separated from temporal destruction, which was brought upon the rest, Ezek. ix. 4, 6. God doth set a mark upon them that mourn in London for the sins of London; and, however, he may deal with them, in regard of temporal calamities, be sure he will separate them, and preserve them from eternal destruction....

Methinks the fall of London calls for a mourning like the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddo, where Joseph fell in battle, Zech. xii. 11. And there should not only be public mourning, but also private mourning, and secret mourning; families apart, and persons apart; it becomes Christians now, after such strokes of God's wrath, to keep secret fasts, to bewail London's ruins, especially to bewail London's sins; their eyes should weep in secret places, for the abominations committed in the city, and bedew God's feet with their tears, that, if possible, they might turn away his displeasure. t8 God doth expect that London should labour to pacify his anger. When God threatened to send the sword, and to cut off from " Israel the head and the tail, the branch and the rush in one day;" and to send the famine so sore, that they should eat every man the flesh of his own arm" yet it is said, "For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still," Isa. ix. 14, 17, 20, 21. And now God hath executed his judgments of plague and fire in London, have not we reason to fear that his

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