have had of God, and his love, in your fincere and secret ad dreffes to him, and converfes with him. What a holy forgetfulaefs of all things in this world hath it wrought! How infipid and tastelefs hath it rendered the fweetelt creature-enjoyments! What willingness to be diffolved for a more full fruition of it! God this way brings heaven nigh to your fouls, out of design to overcome your reluctancies at death, through which you must pass to the enjoyment of it. And after all those fights and tastes, both of the truth and goodness of that state, shall we still reluctate, and hang back, as if we had never tafted how good the Lord is! O you may juftly queftion, whether you ever had a real taste of Jesus Christ, if that taste do not kindle coals of fire in your bofoms, I mean, ardent longings to be with him, and to be fatiated with his love.

If you have been privileged with a taste of that hidden Manna, with the fight of things invisible, with joys unspeakable, and full of glory, and yet are loath to be gone to the fountain whence all this flows; certainly you herein both cross the design of the Spirit in giving them, and cast a vile difgrace and reproach upon the bleffed God, as thinking there is more bitterness in death, than there is fweetnefs in his prefence. Yea, it argues the ftrength of that unbelief which ftill remains in your hearts, that after fo many taftes and trials as you have had, you still remain doubtful and helitating about the certainty and reality of things invifible.

O what ado hath God with his froward and peevish children! If he had only revealed the future ftate to us in his word, as the pure object of faith, and required us to die upon the mere credit of his promise, without fuck pawns, pledges, and earnests as these are; Were there not reason enough for it? But after fuch, and fo many wonderful and amazing condefcenfions, wherein he doth as it were fay, Soul, if yet thou doubteft, I will bring heaven to thee, thou fhalt have it in thy hand, thy eyes fhall fee it, thy hands fhall handle it, thy mouth fhall tasted it; How inexcufable is our reluctancy?

Argum. 6. It should greatly fortify the people of God, against the fears of diffolution, to confider that death can neither deftroy the being of their fouls by annihilation, nor the hopes and expectations they have of blessedness, by difsappointment and frustration, Prov. xiv. 32. The righteous hath hope in his death."

Though all earthly things fail at death (upon which account dying is expreffed by failing, Luke xvi. 19.) yet neither the foul, nor the well-grounded hopes can fail. The anchor of a believ er's hope is firm, and fure, Heb. vi. 18. It will come home

in the greatest storm that can beat upon the foul. For, (1.)
God hath foreknown and chofen them to falvation before the
world was, Pet. i. 2. "And this foundation of God ftandeth
fure, having this feal, The Lord knoweth who are his,"
2 Tim. ii. 19.
His decrees are as firm as mountains of brass,
Zech. vi. 1. (2.) God hath justified their perfons, and there.
în destroyed the power of death over them, I Cor. xv. 55, 56,
57. "O death where is thy fting? O grave where is thy victory?
"The fting of death is fin, the ftrength of fin is the law." If
all the hurtful power of death lies in fin, and all the deflructive
power of fin rises from the law; then neither death, nor fin,
have any power to deftroy the believer, in whom the righteouf-
nefs of the law is fulfilled, Rom. viii. 4 namely, by the impu
tation of the righteousness of Chrift to them, in respect of which
they are as righteous, as if in their own persons they had perfect-
ly obeyed all its commands, or fuffered all its penalties. Thus
death lofeth its fting, its curfe and killing power over the
fouls of all that are in Chrift. (3.) God hath fanctified their
natures, which fanctification is not only a fure evidence of their
election and juftification, 2 Theff. i. 5, 6. Rom. viii. 1. but a
fure pledge of their glorification alfo, 2 Cor. v. 4, 5. Yea, (4.)
He hath made a fure, and an everlafting covenant with believ
ers; and among other gracious privileges thereby conferred up-
on them, death is found in the inventory, 1 Cor. xiii. 21.
Death is yours; to die is gain to them: It deftroys their ene
mies, and the diftance that is betwixt Chrift and them. (5.)
He hath fealed them to his glory by the holy Spirit, Eph. iv. 30.
So that their hopes are too firmly built to be destroyed by death;
and if it cannot deftroy their fouls, nor overthrow their hopes,
they need not fear all that it can do befides.

Argum. 7. It may greatly encourage and embolden the people of God to die, confidering that though at death they take the laft fight and view of all that is dear to them on earth; yet then they are admitted to the firft immediate fight and bleed vifion of God, which will be their happiness to all eternity.

When Hezekiah was upon his fuppofed death-bed, he complained, Ifa. xxxviii. 11." I shall fee man no more, with the *inhabitants of the world." We fhall fee thenceforth thefe corporeal people no more. We fhall fee our habitations and dwelling-places no more, Job vii. 9. 10, 11. We fhall see our children and dear relations no more. Job xiv. 21. His fons come * to honour, and he knoweth it not." Thefe things make death terrible to men; but that which cures all this trouble is, that

we shall neither need, nor defire them, being thenceforth admitto the beatifical vifion of the bleffed God himself.

It is the expectation and hope of this, which comforteth the fouls of the righteous here, Pfal. xvii. 15. " When I awake, I "shall behold thy face in righteousness." Those weak and dim representations made by faith, at a distance, are the very joy and rejoicing of a believer's foul now, 1 Pet. i. 7, 8, but how fweet and transporting foever these visions of faith be, they are not worthy to be named in comparifon with the immediate and beatifical vifion, 1 Cor. xiii. 12. This is the very fum of a believer's bieffednefs: And what it is we cannot comprehend in this imperfect ftate; only, in general, we may gather these conclufions about it, from the account given of it in the fcrip

tures.

1. That it will not be fuch a fight of God as we now have by the mediation of faith, but a direct, immediate, and intuitive vision of God; (* 1 John iii. 2. “We fhall fee him as he is." 1 Cor. xiii. 12. "Then face to face,") which far tranfcends the vifion of faith, in clearness and in comfort. This seems to import no less than the very fight of the divine Effence, that which Mofes defired on earth to fee, but could not, Exod. xxxiii. 20. nor can be feen by any man dwelling in a body, 1 Tim. vi. 16, nor by unbodied fouls comprehensively fo God only fees himfelf. Our eyes fee the fun which they cannot comprehend, yet truly apprehend. God will then be known in his effence, and in the glory of all his attributes. The fight of the attributes of God gives the occafion and matter of those afcriptions of praise and glory to him, which is the proper employment of glorified fouls, Rev. iv. 11. and ver. 12, 13, which is the proper employment of angels, Ifa. vi. 3. Oh how different is this from what we now have through faith, duties, and ordinances! See the difference betwixt knowledge by reports, and immediate fight, in that example of the queen of the fouth, 1 Kings x. 10. the former only excited her defires, the latter tranfported and overcame her very foul.

Some may think fuch a vifion of God to exceed the abilities of nature, and capacities of any creature. But as a learned t man rightly obferves, if the Divine Nature be capable of union with a creature, as it is evident in the person of Christ, it is also

*The light of glory is an actual illumination, i. e. a fupernatural Influx of God. elevating he understanding to a fight of the divine effence, Smiling Tracter. 2. Dif. 6. N. 33

Norton's Orthodox, Evang. p. 327.

capable of being the object of vifion to the creature. Befide, we must know the light of glory hath the fame respect to this blessed vision, that affifting grace hath to the acts of faith and obedience performed here on earth. It is a comforting, foulftrengthening light, not to dazzle and overpower, but to comfort, ftrengthen, and clear the eye of the creature's underftanding. Rev. ii. 28. "I will give him the morning-star," lumen confortans; and Ifa. xxxvi. 9. "In thy light we shall see light.”

2. It will be a fatisfying fight, Pfal. xvii. 15. fo perfectly quieting, and giving reft to the foul in all its powers, that they neither can proceed, nor defire to proceed any farther. The understanding can know no more, the will can will no more; the affections of joy, delight, and love are at full reft and quiet in their proper centre For all good is in the chiefeft good eminently; as all the light of the candles in the world is in the fun, and all the rivers in the world in the fea. That which makes the understanding, will, and affections move farther, as being reftlefs, and unfatisfied in all difcoveries and enjoyments here, is the limited and imperfect nature of things we now converse with; as if you bring a great ship that draws much water, into a narrow, and fhallow river, the can neither fail nor fwim, but is presently aground: But let that fhip have fea-room enough, then the can turn and fail before the wind, because there is depth of water, and room enough. So it is here; all that delighted, but could never fatisfy you in the creature, is eminently in God; and what was imperfectly in them, is perfectly to be enjoyed in him, 1 Cor. xv. 28." God shall be all "in all;" the comforts you had here were but drop by drop, inflaming, not fatisfying the appetite of the foul: But then "the Lamb, which is in the midft of the throne, fhall feed "them, and lead them unto fountains of living water," Rev. vii. 17. The object fills the faculties.

3. It will be an appropriating vifion of God; you fhall fee him as your own God, and proper portion; elfe it could never be a fatisfying vifion, Job xix. 27. "Whom I fhall fee for my"felf!" Not look on him as another's God, but as my God and portion for ever. Balaam faw Chrift by a fpirit of prophecy; but he had no comfort, because no interest in him, Numb. xxiv. 17. The wicked fhall fee him, but without joy, yea, with weeping eyes, and gnashing of teeth, because they cannot fee him as their Lord, Luke xiii. 28. 'Tis but a poor comfort to ftarving beggars to ftand quivering and familhing in the freets in a cold dark night, and fee the lights in the bridegroom's

houfe, the noble dishes ferved in, and to hear the mufic and

mirth of the guests that feast within.

Here it will be as clear
Affurance is that which

that he is our God, as that he is God. many fouls have desired, prayed, and panted for, but cannot attain. There be many rubs and ftumbling-blocks in the way to that sweet enjoyment; but here we find what we have been fo long feeking: There be no doubts, fcruples, objections, puzzling cafes, to exercife your own, or others thoughts. But as thefe did arife from one of these grounds, viz. the working of corruption, the efficacy of temptation, or divine withdrawments, and the hidings of God's face: So all these being removed perfectly and for ever in that state, the heavens muft needs be clear, and not a cloud of doubt or fear to be seen for

ever.

4. It will be a deeply affecting fight; your eyes will now fo affect your hearts, as they were never affected before. The first view of God will fnatch away your hearts to him, as a greater flame doth the leís. Love will not now distil from the heart, as waters from a cold fill, but gush out as from a fluice or floodgate pulled up. The foul will not move after God fo deadly and flowly as it doth now, but be as the chariots of Aminadab, Cant. vi. 12. We may fay of the frames of our hearts there, compared with what they are here, as it is faid, Deut. xii. 8, 9. "You shall not love, or delight in, God, as you "do this day." If the perfection of that ftate would admit fname or forrow, how should we blush and mourn in heaven, to think how cold our love, and how low our delights in God were on earth! 1 John iv. 16. "God is love; and he that

dwelleth in love, dwelleth in God." Look, as iron put into the fire becomes all fiery, fo the foul dwelling in the God of Jove, becomes all love, all delight, all joy. Oh what transports muft that foul feel, that abides under the line of love! feels the perpendicular beams of electing, creating, redeeming, preserving love, beating powerfully upon it, and melting it into love! See fome of their tranfports, Rev. v. 13, 14.

I

5. It will be an everlasting vision of God, 1 Theff. v. 17. "So fhall we be ever with the Lord," [ever with the Lord.] Who can find words to open the deep sense of these few words! Vacabimus et videbimus, videbimus et amabimus, amabimus et laudabimus in fine fine fine, faith blessed Austin. This is the everlasting fabbath, which hath no night, Rev. xxii. 4, 5. The eternal happiness purchased for the faints by the invaluable blood of Christ. If one hour's enjoyment of God, in the way