Jesus Christ bless the foolishness of preaching to help you up again. O, say you, I am giddy, I shall fall; here, I will give you a rope, so God lets down a promise: climb, climb, then, till you have got higher into a better climate, and God shall put his hand out by and by when you get to the top of the ladder to receive you to himself. Blessed be the living God, I hope and believe I shall meet many of you by and by.

And now, my brethren, it is time for me to preach my own funeral sermon; and I would humbly hope that, as a poor sinner, I may put in my claim for what God promised Jacob; and do put in, with full assurance of faith that God will be with me. I am now going, for the thirteenth time, to cross the Atlantic: when I came from America last, I took my leave of all the continent, from the one end of the provinces to the other, except some places which we had not then taken; I took my leave for life, without the least design of returning there again, my health was so bad; and the prospect of getting the orphan-house into other hands made me say when I first came over, I have no other river to go over than the river Jordan. I thought then of retiring, for I did not chuse to appear when my nerves were so relaxed that I could not serve God as I could wish to do; but as it hath pleased God to restore my health much, and has so ordered it by his providence, that I intend to give up the orphan-house, and all the land adjoining, for a public college. I wished to have had a public sanction, but his grace the late archbishop of Canterbury put a stop to it; they would give me a charter, which was all I desired, but they insisted upon, at least his grace and another did, that I

should confine it totally to the church of England, and that no extempore prayer should be used in a public way in that house, though Dissenters, and all sorts of people, had contributed to it: I would sooner cut my head off than betray my trust, by confining it to a narrow bottom; I always meant it should be kept upon a broad bottom, for people of all denominations, that their children might be brought up in the fear of God; by this means the orphan-house reverted into my hands; I have once more, as my health was restored, determined to pursue the plan I had fixed on; and through the tender mercies of God, Georgia, (which about thirty-two years ago was a total desolate place; and when the land, as it was given me by the House of Commons, would have been totally deserted, and the colony have quite ceased, had it not been for the money I have laid out for the orphan-house, to keep the poor people together) that colony is arising to an amazing height, by the schemes now going on, public buildings are erecting. I had news last week of the great prosperity of the negroes; and I hope by the twenty fifth of March, which is the day, the aniversary day, I laid the first brick, in the year 1739; I say, I hope by that time, all things will be finished, and a blessed provision will be made for orphans and poor students that will be brought up there; it will be a blessed source of provision for the children of God in another part of the world. This is the grand design I am going upon; this is my visible cause; but I never yet went to them, but God has been pleased to bless my ministration among them; and therefore after I have finished the orphan house affair, I intend to go all along the conti

nent by land, (which will keep me all the winter and spring) and when I come to the end of it, which will be Canada and New-England, then I hope to return again to this place; for let people say what they will, I have not so much as a single thought of settling abroad on this side eternity; and I am going in no public capacity, I shall set out like a poor pilgrim, at my own expence, trusting upon God to take care of me, and to bear my charges; and I call God to witness, and I must be a cursed devil and hypocrite, to stand here in the pulpit and provoke God to strike me dead for lying, I never had the love of the world, nor never felt it one quarter of an hour in my heart, since I was twenty years old. I might have been rich: but though the Chapel is built, and I have a comfortable room to lie in, I assure you I built it at my own expence, it cost nobody but myself any thing. I have a watchcoat made me, and in that I shall lie every night on the ground, and may Jacob's God bless me. I will not say much of myself, but when I have been preaching, I have read and thought of those words with pleasure, Surely this is the house of God. And I will bring thee again to this land. Whether that will be my experience or not, blessed be God, I have a better land in view; and, my dear brethren, I do not look upon myself at home till I land in my Father's kingdom; and if I am to die in the way, if I am to die in the ship, it comforts me that I know I am as clear as the sun, that I go by the will of God; and though people may say, will you leave the world? will you leave the Chapel? O, I am astonished that we cannot leave every thing for Christ; my greatest trial is, to part with those who are as dear to

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me as my own soul; and however others may forget me, as thousands have, and do forget me, yet I cannot forget them: and now may Jacob's God be with you: O keep close to God, my dear London friends; I do not bid you keep close to Chapel, you have done so always: I shall endeavour to keep up the word of God among you in my absence; I shall have the same persons that managed for me when I was out last, and they sent me word again and again, by letter, that it was remarkable, that the Tottenham-court people were always present when ordinances were there.

You see I went upon a fair bottom; I might have had a thousand a year out of this place if I had chose it; when I am gone to heaven you will see what I have got on earth*; I do not like to speak now, because it may be thought boasting; but I am sure there are numbers of people here, if they knew what I have, would love me as much as they now hate me. When we come before the great judge of quick and dead, while I stand bẹfore him, God grant you may not part with me then, it will be a dreadful parting then, it will be worse then to go into the fire, to be among the devil and his angels; God forbid it! God forbid it! God forbid it! O remember that my last words were, come, come to Christ; the Lord help you to come to Christ; come to Christ, come to Jacob's God; God give you faith like Jacob's faith.

You that have been kind to me, that have helped me when I was sick, some of whom are here

*The greatest part of the substance this man of God left behind him, which was not much, was bequeathed to him by deceased friends.

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that have been very kind to me; may God reward you, my friends, and God forgive my enemies ; God, of his infinite mercy, bless you all; you will be amply provided for, I believe, here: may God spread the gospel every where; and my God never leave you, nor forsake you. Even so, Lord Jesus. Amen and Amen.

SERMON XVIII.

THE GOOD SHEPHERD.

A FAREWELL Sermon.

JOHN X. ver. 27, 28.

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 'And I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand.

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T is a common, and, I believe, generally speaking, my dear hearers, a true saying, that bad manners beget good laws. Whether this will hold good in every particular, in respect to the affairs of this world, I am persuaded the observation is very pertinent in respect to the things of another; I mean bad manners, bad treatment', bad words, have been over-ruled by the sovereign grace of God, to produce and to be the cause of the best sermons that were ever delivered from the mouth of the God-man, Christ Jesus.