led by fuch writers as Voltaire and others, (who have fmoothed over the enormities of the heathen worship) I recite as many particulars as may be neceffary to give you an idea of the general character of the fyftem, which they represent as perfectly innocent, and not at all unfavourable to purity of morals, their festivals, as Voltaire fays, being only seasons of rejoicing, which could not be prejudicial to mankind. This would be true if their festivals had been nothing more than seasons of rejoicing. But judge for yourfelves, whether they were not fomething more.

That lewdness was a part of the ancient heathen worship, is evident from the account that Mofes gives of that of Baal-Peor, to which the Ifraelites were inticed by the Moabites and Midianites. For during that festival, Phinehas afferted the honour of his religion by killing a man and a woman in the very act of fornication; which, from the narrative, appears to have been committed without any concealment. For we read, Numb, xxv. 6, And bebold one of the children of Ifrael came, and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman, in the fight of Mofes, and in the fight of all the congregation of the children of Ifrael,

who

who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation; and when Phinehas the fon of Eleazar the fon of Aaron the priest faw it, be rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand, and he went after the man of Ifrael into the tent, and thruft both of them through, the man of Ifrael and the woman, through her belly. Now the name of the Ifraelite who was flain was Zimri the son of Salu, a prince of the chief houfe among the Simeonites, and the name of the Midianitifh woman that was flain was Cozbi the daughter of Zur, who was head over a people, and of a chief houfe in Midian.

This worship of Baal-Peor, if we may credit several ancient writers, confifted in fuch obfcene practices, or poftures at least, as are not fit to be mentioned; fo that it is not easy to say whether they were more ridiculous, or impure. Hofea fays of this worship, ch. xi. 10, They went unto Baal-Peor, and Separated themselves unto their fhame; and their abominations were according as they loved, or as the Bishop of Waterford renders it, and became abominable as the objects of their love, or worship.

The farther we go back into antiquity, or fo much

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much nearer to the time of Mofes, the more undisguised were these shameful practices. It appears from Herodotus, the oldest Greek hiftorian, that the temples of the heathen gods had been univerfally places of prostitution. For he fays the Egyptians were the first who forbad it in their temples. He fays that all other nations, except the Greeks (who borrowed much of their religion from the Egyptians), fcrupled not to perform those actions in the temples. Nor did the Greeks wholly abstain from them. For when Antiochus Epiphanes converted the temple at Jerufalem, into a temple of Jupiter Olympius, we read, 2 Mac. vi. 4, The temple was filled with riot and revelling by the Gentiles, who dallied with harlots, and had to do with women, within the circuit of the holy places.

Julius Firmicus fays that, after the feason of mourning, with which the principal festival of the oriental nations commenced, the rest of the time was spent with every expreffion of mirth and jollity, to which they added the most abominable debauchery, adultery, and inceft. These were conftantly practised in their groves and temples*.

"In what temple," fays Juvenal, a Roman heathen

poet,

Surely, then, we may fay, with the apostle in my text, that, as a punishment for men's apoftacy from his worship, God gave up the heathen world to vile affections; and that there was infinite wifdom and goodnefs in the Jewish and Christian difpenfations, in which we are taught a mode of worship worthy of a pure and holy God, a religion the great object of which is the pureft morality, and in which all the abomination of the heathen worship are treated with just abhorrence. For our unfpeakable happiness in being favoured with thefe revelations, we cannot be too thankful. But I must defer the farther confideration of these, and other enormities of the heathen worship, with which the generality of Chriftians are little acquainted, but which you must be fenfible it is highly useful for them to know, though disgusting to contemplate, to another difcourfe, with which I fhall conclude this part of my subject.

poet, "are are not women debauched?" Quo non proftat femina templeo.

SAT. ix. 24.

DISCOURSE

DISCOURSE IV.

A View of Heathen Worship.

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness. Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them, for God hath fhewed it unto them. For the invifible things of him, from the creation of the world, are clearly feen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and godhead, fo that they are without excufe. Because that when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful, but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Profeffing themselves to be wife, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God, into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds and four-footed beafts, and creeping things. Wherefore also God gave up to uncleanness, through the lufts of their own hearts, to dishonour their

them

own