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begin to open, on the right hand side of which you will see a high hill, called Mount Calvary. On the top of this hill stands a Light-House, in the form of a cross; which, by night, is completely illuminated from top to bottom, and, by day, sends up a pillar of smoke, like a white cloud. It stands so high, that, unless you deviate from the course laid down in your chart, you will never lose sight of it in any succeeding part of your voyage. At the foot of this Light-House, you will find the Pilot I have so often mentioned, waiting for you. You must by all means receive him on board; for without Him, neither your own exertions, nor all the charts and pilots in the world can preserve you from fatal shipwreck.

As you enter the Bay of Faith, you will see, far ahead, like a white cloud in the horizon, the high lands of Hope, which lie hard by your port. These lands are so high, that, when the air is clear, you will have them constantly in sight during the remainder of your voyage; and while they are in sight, you may be sure of always finding good anchoring ground, and of safely riding out every storm.

I might proceed to describe the remainder of your course, but it is needless; for you will find it all in your chart, the Bible. With this chart, the Society which invited you here this evening, are ready to furnish every destitute seaman; and they do it on purpose that your voyage may be prosperous, and its termination happy. And now, shipmates, let me ask you one question more. Should a ship's crew, bound on a long and dangerous voyage, refuse to provide themselves with either quadrant, chart, or compass ;-or, being furnished by their owner with these articles, should stow them away in the hold, and never use them, never mind their helm, keep no look out, pay no regard to their pilot's directions, but spend their time in drinking and carousing; have you any doubt that they would be lost, before their voyage was half over? And when you heard that they were lost, would you not say, It is just as I expected; but they have no one to blame except themselves? Just so, my dear shipmates, if you refuse to receive the Bible, the book which your Maker and owner has given, to assist in shaping your course ;-or if you lay this book aside in

your chests, and never study it ;-or if you study it, and do not shape your course by it, nor pay any regard to the directions of Jesus Christ, your commander and pilot; but make it your only object, to live an easy, careless, merry life; be assured that you will make shipwreck of your souls, and founder in that gulf which has no bottom; and while you feel that you are lost, lost, lost for ever, you will also feel, that you have no one to blame for it but yourselves. You cannot blame God, your Creator and Owner; for he has kindly given you his only Son, to be your pilot, and his book to be your chart. You cannot blame your fellow-creatures; for, by the hands of this Society, they now offer you this book, "without money and without price." You cannot blame the speaker; for he has now told you what will be the consequence of neglecting this book. O, then, be persuaded to receive it, to study it, and to shape your course by it. Become yourselves members of this Bible Society, and persuade your comrades to do the same. Wherever you see the Bethel Flag hoisted, rally round it. As often as you have an opportunity, visit the house of God on the Sabbath, to hear what Jesus Christ has done for poor Seamen. If you see a brother sailor becalmed by the way, or steering another course, lend him a hand, and take him with you. Whenever you are keeping your evening watch on deck, look up, and see the God of whom you have now heard the God whose name, I fear, some of you “take in vain,” throned in awful silence, and darkness, and majesty, on the sky, crowned with a diadem of ten thousand stars, holding the winds and thunderbolts in his hand, and setting one foot on the sea, and the other on the land, while both land and sea obey his word, and tremble at his nod. This, shipmates, is the God, under whom we wish you to enlist, and to whom, we wish you to pray. This is the God, who now offers to be the poor sailor's friend; and who, in all your voyages, can carry you out in safety, and bring you home in peace. This too, is the God, whom we shall all one day see coming in the clouds of Heaven with power and great glory, to judge the world.-Then, at his command, the earth and the sea shall give up all, who had been buried in the former, or sunk in the latter, and they

shall stand together before God to be rewarded according to their works O then, seamen, landsmen, whoever you are that hear, prepare, prepare for this great day. Yes, prepare, ye accountable creatures, prepare to meet your God; for he has said, Behold I come, I come near to judgment! And hath he said it, and shall he not do it? Hath He spoken, and shall he not make it good? Yes, when His appointed hour shall arrive, a mighty angel will lift his hand to Heaven, and swear by Him who liveth for ever and ever, that there shall be time no longer. Then our world, impetuously driven by the last tempest, will strike, and be dashed in pieces on the shores of eternity. Hark! what a crash was there! One groan of unutterable anguish, one loud shriek of consternation and despair is heard, and all is still. Not a fragment of the wreck remains to which the struggling wretches might cling for support; but down, down, down they sink, whelmed deep beneath the billows of almighty wrath. But see something appears at a distance mounting above the waves, and nearing the shore. It is the Ark of salva tion! It is the Life Boat of Heaven! It has weathered the last storm; it enters the harbour triumphantly; Heaven resounds with the acclamations of its grateful, happy crew! Among them, may you all, shipmates, be found. May the members of this Society, believing and obeying, as well as distributing the Scriptures, save both themselves, and the objects of their care. And may every perishing immortal in this assembly, now, while the Ark is open, while the Life Boat waits, while the rope of mer cy is thrown within his grasp, seize it, and make eternal life his own.

GOD'S DOMINION OVER THE SEA.

God of the seas, thy thund'ring voice,
Makes all the roaring waves rejoice!
And one soft word of thy command
Can sink them silent in the sand.

If but a Moses wave his rod,
The sea divides, and owns its God;
The stormy floods their Maker knew,
And led his chosen armies through.

The scaly shoals amidst the sea
To thee, their Lord, a tribute pay;
The meanest fish that swims the flood,
Leaps up, and means a praise to God.

The larger monsters of the deep
On thy commands attendance keep;
By thy permission, sport and play,
And cleave along their foaming way.

If God his voice of tempest rears,
Leviathan lies still, and fears;
Anon he lifts his nostrils high,
And spouts the ocean to the sky.

How is thy glorious pow'r ador'd
Amidst these wat'ry nations, Lord!
Yet the bold men that trace the seas,
Bold men refuse their Maker's praise.

What scenes of miracles they see,
And never tune a song to thee !
While on the flood they safely ride,
They curse the hand that smooths the tide

Anon they plunge in wat'ry graves,
And some drink death among the waves ;
Yet the surviving crew blaspheme,
Nor own the God that rescu'd them.

Oh, for some signal of thine hand!
Shake all the seas, Lord, shake the land.
Great Judge! descend, lest men deny
That there's a God that rules the sky.

END.

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AND SOLD AT THEIR DEPOSITORY, NO. 144 NASSAU-STREET, NEAR THE CITY-HALL, NEW-YORK; AND BY AGENTS OF THE

SOCIETY, ITS BRANCHES, AND AUXILIARIES, IN

THE PRINCIPAL CITIES AND TOWNS

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