History of the War with Indian Savages, Part 10 – Publishers advertisement
X. In the WAR that hath been upon us, Whoſo is Wiſe, may Obſerve thoſe Loud Calls to a Reformation of our Miſcarriages, which 'tis a Dangerous and a Deſperate thing to neglect any longer. It was the Voice of the Bleſſed God, in Pſal. 81.13, 14. O That my People had hearkened unto me, and Iſrael had walked in my wayes! I ſhould ſoon have Subdued their Enemies, and turned my Hand againſt their Adverſaries. Ah, New-England; Thy God hath not ſoon Subdued thine Enemies, nor ſoon turned His Hand againſt thine Adverſaries: but let 'em Vex thee for Ten years together. Surely, Thou haſt not hearkened unto Him, nor Walked in His Wayes! In that which was called, The Holy War, the Embaſſadors of a Saracen Prince, demanded of a Famous Chriſtian General, How he came to have, Manus tam Doctas ad Praeliandum, Hands that were ſo Able to Fight? The Chriſtian General replied, Quia Manus Semper habui puras, Becauſe I never defiled my Hands, with any Notorious Wickedneſs. Alas, our Hands have made but poor work at Fighting. 'Tis Time for us, then to Reform all the Notorious Wickedneſs in our Hands! Do we Dream that the Almighty hath ſpent all His Arrows? No, after, all that for Ten years together have been ſpent upon, us there are yet more Arrows, and Judgments left in the Quiver of God: And Except we Turn unto Him, who can ſay, What Arrows He may next ordain againſt us? The Roman Emperour Upbraided his General Terentius, for Looſing a Battel; but the General, having too much occaſion to ſay ſo much, replyed, Sir, I muſt tell you, that it is you that Lost the Day for us, by your open Fighting against the God of Heaven as you do. If it be asked, How 'tis come to paſs, that we have Sped ſo Ill in many a Battel, ſince this War began? Some will blame one, and ſome will blame another: but I will take Leave to tell all them that Lead an Ungodly Life, Syrs, 'Tis to you, that we owe all our Ill Succeſs! I need not quote one of the Ancients, namely, Ambroſe, for that Obſervation, Graviores Inimici ſunt mores pravi, quam Hoſtes Infenſi: We have had enough in our own Experiments to convince us, That our worſt Enemies are our Vices, which provoke Heaven to Chastiſe us with all our other Enemies: And indeed, If our Wayes did pleaſe the Lord, our Enemies would be at peace with us. Obſerve wiſely, and you cannot but Obſerve, the Language of Heaven, in the Circumſtances thro' which we have paſſed for a whole Decad of years together, to be That, in Lev. 26.23, 24. If ye will not be Reformed by me, by theſe things, but will walk contrary unto me, Then will I alſo walk contrary unto you, and I will puniſh you yet ſeven Times for your Sins. And that the Demand of REFORMATION may be Loud enough, it arrives to us now with a more than Ordinary Accent of Authority upon it. We have ſeen, and, Bleſſed be God, that we have ſeen, the Greateſt Monarch that ever Sat upon the Britiſh Throne, Iſſuing Out His Royal Proclamation, upon the Pious Addreſs of the Commons of England, aſſemble in Parliament; a Proclamation, wherein that Illuſtrious Prince declares His Royal Reſolution to Diſcountenance all Vice whatſoever, and requires all Officers whatſoever to be vigilant, in the Diſcovery, Proſecution, and Puniſhment thereof. We have ſeen a moſt Excellent GOVERNOUR, who is the Greateſt Perſon that ever ſet Foot on the Engliſh Continent of America, beginning His Government, with proclaiming for the Suppreſſion of all Vice in One of His Provinces: That Noble Perſon has therein done, Like a Vicegerent of GOD! His very Honourable Lieutenant, hath worthily done His part, with the Advice of His Council, in another of His Provinces. If theſe things prove but meer Formalities, among a people, Hating to be Reformed after all, what will they be, but more Terrible Prognoſticks of Tremendous and Amazing Deſolations at hand, than ſo many Blazing Stars on Fire, in Heaven over us. It is to be hoped, the Ministers of the Goſpel, will do what belongs to Them, for the Aſſiſtence of all Holy Eſſayes about Reformation; and their Churches, if call'd upon, will join with them, in the Methods of Covenant, and of Diſcipline, for the promoting of it. Yea, It is to be Hoped, That we ſhall all Zealouſly in our ſeveral Stations, do all that we can, for the pleaſing of God, and for the Correction, and Suppreſſion, and Reformation of the Sin that may be diſpleaſing to Him. It is a Thing very notorious unto us, That Idleneſs, Drunkenneſs, Uncleanneſs, Cheating, Lying, Profane Swearing, and above all, that which is the Root of all, the Profanation of the Lords-Day, gains ground upon us. Let all that have any Power in their Hands, unto the utmoſt of their power, Endeavour to keep under thoſe Enormities. But Laſt of all, Nay, I ſhould rather ſay, Firſt of all, O let every man ſet upon Self-Reformation, with all his might! I Remember, that paſſage, in Prov. 18.17. He that is firſt in his own Cauſe, ſeemeth right, is tranſlated by the Vulgar Latin, ſo as to carry a further, and an uſeful Admonition in it; Juſtus primus est Accuſator ſui, A Juſt man, before he meddles with the Reproof of others, will firſt Accuſe himſelf, and ſearch the State of his own Soul, and Life, and faithfully Reform it. Oh! That very much of This might be done among us! How doth an Army of Thrice Ten Thouſand men, preſently Turn from Eaſt to Weſt, becauſe Every One Turns One? Syrs, We have Wiſely Obſerved the Things that have in our Afflicted years befallen us, and we have now to good purpoſe heard a Sermon of Obſervations upon thoſe things, if we will now Retire, and ponder ſeriouſly with our ſelves, What is there amiſs, in my own Heart, and in my own Life, and in my own Family and by what Reformation of my ſelf may I beſt anſwer the Expectation of the God, who has Chaſtiſed us all?
We have been under the Lamentable Puniſhments of our Sins, for two Luſtres of years together; 'Tis time for every man, and for all of us, as one man, to ſay, as in Lam. 3.40. Let us Search and Try our Wayes, and Turn again unto the Lord.
FINIS.
ERRATA.
REader, Carthagena was of the mind, that unto thoſe Three Things, which the Ancients held Impoſſible, there ſhould be added this Fourth; To find a Book Printed without Errata's. It ſeems the Hands of Briareus, and the Eyes of Argus will not prevent them. I take Notice of a few in this Book; and thoſe few are Scarce worth having any Notice taken of them. e. g.
Pag. 45. l. 4. f. muſt, r. moſt. p. 60. l. 9. f. Il. r. El. p. 68. l. 18. f. left. r. loſt. p. 83. l. 7. f. Newberry. r. Rowley. p. 128. l. 12. r. Idaea's. p. 146. l. 4. f. him. r. them. p. 167. l. 1. f. Faſt. r. Fact. p. 184 l. 6. f. by. r. in. p. 198. l. 22. f. where. r. were. p. 200. l. 17. f. he. r. be.
Advertiſement.
THere will ſpeedily he Publiſhed, a Little Book, much deſired and Expected; whereof the Title is, A Family well-ordered. Or, A brief Eſſay, to render Parents and Children, Happy in one another. Being two Sermons Preached, at Boſton-Lecture, by Mr. Cotton Mather.
Printed for and Sold by Michael Perry, at his Shop over againſt the Town Houſe, and Benjamin Eliot, at his Shop under the Weſt-End of the Town-Houſe. 1699.
End of the text · Cotton Mather, History of the War with Indian Savages (1699)