4 and "Maketh the storm a calm." Lo! He holdeth always the mighty waters in the hollow of his hand. He shutteth up the sea with doors, and saith hitherto shalt thou go but no further, and here shall thy proud waves be stayed*. Likewise he maintains an equal sway over the tempestuous winds; he holds them in his fist; verily, he has such an unbounded controul over them, that they "Fulfil his word." At his supreme command they rise, and like obedient servants, they go forth" According to His circuits," and execute faithfully his divine orders, whether of mercy, or of judgment! The remarkable instances of their ready obedience, recorded in the sacred scriptures, abundantly confirm the sovereign dominion of Christ over them. At His bidding, the water of the Red-Sea divided, and stood on either hand like walls of brasst. Also, by His order, an overwhelming tempest pursued and arrested Jonah, the fugitive prophet. And even in the days of his humiliation, HE walked upon the liquid waves as upon solid pavement§; and hushed the outrageous storm, with "Peace; be still!" Therefore, let SAILORS regard stormy winds and seas as the awful messengers of Christ, dispatched by him to warn them against sin, and to remind them of duty; often, their tremendous voices roaring in your ears, have so alarmed your guilty mind, that you have trembled upon the deck, like Felix upon the bench; and cried out in deep distress like the sinking disciples, "Lord save us we perish." Now, "Awake to righteousness and sin not," lest the NEXT storm should be made the * Job, chap. xxviii, yer, 8, 11. † Exod. chap. xiv. ver. 21, 22. Jonah, chap. i. ver. 4. Matt. chap. xiv. ver. 25. Mark, chap. xiv. ver. 39. ¶ Matt, chap. viii. ver, 25%. minister of his vengeance, to punish your disobedience. And, DELIVERANCES. 3dly, Seamen, experience the most marvellous We have already remarked, that the terrible storms you witness are truly amazing. But the LONG preservation of your ships and lives, amidst the united violence of boisterous winds and outrageous seas, surpasses all; it is a wonder of wonders! Look back upon the years of your maritime life; see, how replete with signal preservations; you have often been delivered, when, upon the very brink of ruin, and favoured with a safe arrival in port, even after you had given up all,as lost! This has also mercifully realized the patient expectation of the merchant; and changed into enjoyment the longing hope of your dearest relations. But while upon this subject, I feel it my duty to remind you of the truly perilous situation, and the surprising deliverance, which some present, experienced in the late tremendous gale. Vessels in the utmost distress, and floating wreck, appeared on every side, sad presages of your own impending fate at length, she struck; how dreadful was the shock! When, the overwhelming seas breaking impetuously over her riven side, appeared to doom every soul to instant ruin. Thus forced from the rending wreck, you took refuge in the boat,(the last retreat from death) in which you remained many hours upon the hideous deep, buried beneath the dismal shades of night, and exposed to all the perils of a dangerous sea; then terrified in broken water: whilst the roaring surge bursting upon the adjacent shore, forbids your approach upon pain of death. Thus bereft of hope, you expected every moment to become a prey to the waves of destruc B tion. But, blessed be God! In this eventful moment the day broke, and the prayed-for light returned, to mitigate your distresses, and direct your passage through. And lo! after having been almost killed with terror and fatigue, you again set your foot upon the welcome shore, without the loss of a single life. Oh! the power and goodness of God! May you always remember what you felt when you stepped from the ship's side into the boat; and when you exchanged the boat for the land. Then you will gratefully sing, My strong deliv'rer and iny God; Again, there are others in this assembly, who shared a similar fate. The sea, first carried away your boats, then driven a-ground, you were obliged to climb the shrouds, and lash yourselves fast to the rigging, for the preservation of your lives. In which hopeless state you continued for several hours, drenched by seas, and perishing with cold. Whilst the heavy surge thundering upon the shore, defied the sorrowful spectators of your extreme danger and distress, coming off to your At ref the last she went to pieces; when some part floating wreck, conveyed you safe to shore. Thus, while hundreds perished in the dreadful deep, (and perhaps some of your shipmates too) you were miraculously snatched from death, and this night you are here a living monument of Divine Mercy!* 1 * The storm alluded to, happened about four weeks before the delivery of this discourse. It was sudden, violent, and of long continuance; and coming from the East, made it rather singular, as gales from that quarter, are seldom so hard as those which blow commonly from the West. The Lincolnshire coast presented a scene of the greatest calamity. Behold, therefore, the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but towards thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness; otherwise, thou also, shalt be cut off*. SAILORS, you are bound by reason and revelation, to regard your numerous deliverances, as the wonderful WORKS of God. Who, but a Being of infinite intelligence and power, could preserve you in the manner you are? Sometimes your ship and lives have been saved by the sudden change, or hushing of the wind; at other times, the return of day has amazed your minds by the discovery of that ruin, which you so narrowly escaped in the night. And when leaky, water-logged, or just perishing through want of provisions, some vessel, contrary to all probability, has appeared in sight; by whose seasonable coming up, your lives were preserved! These are remarkable instances of the PROVIDENTIAL goodness of God; and demand your most grateful acknowledgements. Therefore, to attribute them to CHANCE, or to mere SKILL in navigation, is the most enormous infidelity, and the very vilest ingratitude. But, we go on Thirdly, To draw some inferences from the subject. Seamen, we have already premised, that your calling necessarily exposes you to uncommon and imminent dangers. It is conclusive therefore, Ist, That you should be men, who possess a suitable share of PIETY AND DEVOTION TO GOD. The grace of Christ should reign victoriously in your hearts, whilst its sacred influence, adorns your life with all the fruits of christian holiness. What is so reasonable as this, should not your Romans, chap. xi. ver. 22. preparation for death, be equal to that peculiar jeopardy in which your lives so incessantly hang? Moreover in consequence of those numerous perils which ever attend you, the kind Providence of God, interposes more in the behalf of you, than it does for any beside; which is a very forcible reason, why you should be truly pious and devoted to him. Always regarding your divine Preserver with a solemn reverencé, loving him with a supreme affection, and delighting in him as your eternal good. Therefore seek earnestly to enjoy EVANGELICAL religion; get that repentance, which reforms the life thoroughly from the degrading practice of sin; that faith, that justifies the mind fully from its fearful guilt; that hope, which purifies the nature wholly from its contaminating influence; and that celestial love, by whose sweet constraining power, universal obedience becomes easy and delightful. This would banish every guilty fear, produce peace and divine consolation, and inspire you with christian fortitude, in the prospect of peril and death. When light'nings flash, and thunders roll, In midnight shades, tremendous squall; The crazy ship on liquid mountains reel, Then rushes headlong from the gale; The pious soul a calm shall feel, And hear a whisper, Peace, be still! But there is one part of christian duty, to which I would particularly direct the attention of seamen, and that is PRAYER. This is appointed by the Lord; and truly expressive of your dependance upon him for salvation. Also the numerous dangers which threaten you, is another weighty reason why YOU in particular should be men of prayer. What ! "In perils often," and in prayer never? A shameful impiety. And especially when we consider that you are favoured with every stimulation, that |