Discourse Before the Vermont Legislature

SSP Smaye uk 2 Poel MLS PERKINS’ SERMON. Se eS RRR te ta RD aA DISCOURSE. PrvT. 1v. part6thv. “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.” Mosss, the Jewish Lawgiver, always appeared anxious to impress the minds of his people with a lasting sense of moral obligation; that they might be led “ diligently to keep the commandments of the Lord their God.?? For that purpose, a short time before his death, he solemnly called upon them to listen to a repetition of those commands. In the Book of Deuteronomy we have that repetition—the fourth chapter of which, contains earnest exhortations to obedience. It begins in the following striking manner: “ Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto’ the judgments, which I teach you to do them, that ye may go in and possess the land, which the Lord God of your fathers giveth you.” And then, in the 5th and 6th verses, he reminds them of the precepts he had already given, and urges obedience. —“ Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’?” From all this we can perceive, that Moses was fully convinced, that obedience to the divine commands was essentia) to the preservation of his nation’s greatness. preserved for a time and eventually lost that » and further, that this nation, like the Jewish, is grea how it may preserve and perpetuate its -greatnes object of the present discourse. | ae 1st. The Jewish nation was great.—To look r oll the extent of territory originally aceupied by the He iia no one could ever get. the impression that it was the of a great nation. That territory, inferior in dim some of our states, appears utterly insufficient to } tained a numerous and powerful people. But it musi membered, that in mildness of climate, and especiall fertility of its soil, it has neyer been excelled by ley, and vines, and fig-trees, and pomegranate olive oil Aang honeys whose stones are ¢ iron, and : taining, and actually did sustain, a nation gr at is, an unquestionable historical fact. Besides a fruitful land, it also possessed a c surpassing in excellence all others. The sin they were devised by infinite wisdom itself prove their superiority. . Under the operation o wisely administered, how could it be otherw the nation should become.great?, § But it was in religious privileges they princi led. Whilst surrounding nations dwelt in mor they enjoyed the:light of divine Revelation. y subjects, which most interest man.as an imm countable being, they were acquainted. Moses, their lawgiver, often reminded them o thei alied privileges. In the verse immediately following the yext, he thus spake: “For what nation is there so great, who hath God sonigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for?”? ‘The fact, that they were early separated from the rest of mankind, to be a chosen people unto the Lord,—that their government was once a theocracy, and that they enjoyed the instructions of inspired prophets and teachers, proves the exalted nature of their religious privileges.——They were great too in wealth and military power. What coffers were richer than Solomon’s ?~-what armies mightier than Israel’s? We need put this short glance at the history of the Jews, to be conyinced, that they were “a great nation.” But a question of some consequence now arises. How did they preserve fora time, and eventually lose their great-. ness? A similar glance at their history willshow. Under the righteous administration of Joshua, by whom they were Jed into the land of Canaan, they speedily subdued their enemies, and established themselves in that land; then they were never more obedient to. the statutes and judgments, which they had been but recently urged to obey. Under subsequent rulers, Samuel.and the Judges, they still prospered, but only in such measure as they were obedient. Under tbe government of a long succession of kings, they enjoyed much prosperity. At different times, howeyer, they groaned under severe judgments; all of which could be traced to a reckless spirit of indifference to their moral obligations, and frequent gross violations of the commands of God. It is not essential to our present purpose to dwell longer on this part of our subject, to shew the direct connexion, which existed between their obedience to their divinely constituted laws, and the prosperity and happiness of their nation.

Let any one, who feels sufficient interest in the subject, read attentively the history of the Hebrew nat have it in the Bible, and he will see for himse they neglected their religious duties, and fors § worship of the God of their fathers, every varie! edness prevailed throughout the land. age ment of the government became corrupt with acc ulation; the wrath of Heaven fell on them, and ‘ sold into the hands of their enemies,’—they ; bondsmen and slaves. But when religion and p ished through all ranks in the land, the pro: happy government shed the blessings of its w administration over a free, and virtuous, a ulation.” ite Then were the surrounding nations const 2 claim, in view of their prosperity, “ Surely this is a wise and understanding people.” = Let him who wants to see why the Jews lost the ness, and no longer exist as a nation, but are see abroad in all lands, a proverb and by-word ¢ : ple, read the Gospels of the New Testament, and will learn that the wrath of Heaven was not po on them to the uttermédst, until they had, with infid deliberately rejected the Lord from Heaven: “ W have this man to reign over us.” Ce 2d. We are now to shew, that this nation, ish, is great; and how it may preserve and greatness. No part of the American contin in fertility, the soil of Palestine in the days pa srael’s , ness. Yet it isa bountiful soil, and pays w : ture it receives. In extent of ata asia The valley of the Mississippi alone ae a population nearly equal to the present cr tion of Europe. The locality of our country mountains, lakes and rivers—-its health and re gil without a parallel.—-Its government, though in some respects not equal to the Jewish, yet in others it is superior. We have no monarchy. A Rehoboam and Manasseh cannot tyrannize here. Our country is free;—with a great price obtained we that freedom. We have a wise constitution, such as is possessed by no other country in the world. Our magistracy are appointed by ourselvyes.— “Their rights and duties are distinctly marked out, and the extent of their power clearly defined. They are the seryants of the public; and the conditions of their service are, that they promote the interests and happiness of the nation.”’