therefore is not to be imagined to have been long before this world, much lefs from everlasting, Exod. XX. 11. No; but it was created the first day, and was abfolutely the first thing that was created, Gen. i. 1. Accordingly the inhabitants thereof, the angels, created with it, are said to have shouted at laying the foundation of the earth, Job xxxviii. 4, 7. Agreeable to all which it is faid to have been "prepared from the foundation of the world," Mat. xxv. 34.

SECONDLY, Where it is. As to this point, the fituation thereof the scripture is plain in two things.

1. That it is upward from us who are in this vifible world. For it is the dwelling of God, and where the man Christ hath his feat, and that is on high, Pfal. cxiii. 5. “Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high?" Heb. i. 3. "When he had by himself purged our fins, fat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high." Col. iii. 1." If ye then be rifen with Chrift, feek thofe things which are above, where Chrift fitteth on the right hand of God." Chrift coming thence into our world at firft, is faid to come down from it, John iii. 13.; and at his fe cond coming, he will defcend from it, and be met by the faints in the air, 1 Theff. iv. 16, 17. So when he went to it after his refurrection, he is faid to have been carried up into it, Luke xxiv. 41. taken up, gone up, a cloud receiving him out of the difciples fight, Acts i. 9, 10.

2. That it is above all the visible heavens, fun, moon, and stars. For the heaven which is the feat of the bleffed, is the fame heaven where the man Chrift is, John xvii. 24. & xiv. 3. therefore they are faid to be with Chrift, Phil. i. 23. with the Lord, I Theff. iv. 17. But the place where Chrift is, is above and far above all the vifible heavens, Epb. iv. ro. Therefore it is above them all. Hence the fcripture calls it the third heaven, 2 Cor. xii. 2. It fpeaks of a three-fold heaven. (1.) The airy heaven, wherein

the

the clouds are, Gen. vii. 11. and the fouls fly, Gen. i. 20. hence called the clouds of heaven, and the fowls of heaven. (2.) The ftarry heaven, where are the fun, moon, and ftars, Gen. i. 14, 16. called therefore the host of heaven, Deut. xvii. 3. (3.) The third heaven above all thefe, which is that of the bleffed.

THIRDLY, What fort of a place it is, as to the qualities thereof. A particular defcription thereof is beyond the reach of mortals, 1 Cor. ii. 9. It is obfervable, that Mofes does no more but mention it, Gen. i. and then proceeds to the description of the earth and visible heavens, their parts, and how they were created; thus drawing a vail over the highest heavens, not to be removed till we come there. Only fome general notices of it appear through the vail, in the light of the world, which we shall obferve. It is,

1. A holy place, Pfal. xv. 1. the holy of holies, or the holiest of all, Heb. ix. 8. in allufion to the place, in the tabernacle and temple fo called. This lower world is the open court as it were, the starry heaven the holy place; but the third heaven the holy of holies, into which Chrift at his afcenfion as our High Priest is entered, Heb. ix. 12. and has opened the entry into it for us alfo, chap. x. 19.

Here this world lies in wickednefs, there the other world fhines in holiness. Here is no clean thing, there is no unclean thing, Rev. xxi. 27. It is the holy Jerufalem, ver. ro. There is nothing there but what is holy, perfectly holy; even the fpirits of just men must be made perfect, ere they enter there; and for others, they can never breathe the air of that holy land, but are kept without, chap. xxii. 15.

2. A moft lightsome place. It is all light, Col. i. 12. The fun in his brightness makes this world pleasant; but then all looks awful and gloomy again in the night, and there is always night in fome place of it. But there is no night, no darkness there, Rev. xxi. 5. The feat of the bleffed enjoys an eternal day;

for

for the light thereof is not made by fun and moon circling about it, as here; they would be as needless there, as the lighting of a twopenny candle in the brightest funshine here. And fuch light it is, as mortal eyes cannot behold, 1 Tim. vi. 16.

3. A most glorious place, Pfal. lxxiii. 25. How glorious would a king's palace on earth, with all its rich furniture, appear to us? But should all the glory of all the palaces on earth be brought together into one, how much more would that appear glorious? and we are allowed that thought to help us to conceive of heaven, Rev. xxi. 24. "The kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it." For it is the palace of the King of kings, Pfal. xlv. 15. where he keeps his court. Nay, it is his throne, Ifa. lxvi. I. "Thus faith the Lord, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footftool." How glorious must that throne be, that has fuch a footstool? So glorious that it would abfolutely confound us mortals with its dazzling glory and splendor, Job xxvi. 9.

4. A most rich place. We know the riches of far countries, by the rich things brought out of them to our country: now every valuable thing comes from thence, Jam. 1. 17. "Every good gift, and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights." Every inhabitant there is a king, with a crown on his head, a fceptre in his hand, and royal treasures to fupport his dignity; for heaven is a crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traffickers are the honourable of the earth, to allude to Ifa. xxiii. 8. There the "gates are of pearl, and the ftreet of pure gold," Rev. xxi. 21. It is rich in its affording all things within itself, ver. 7.“ He that overcometh fhall inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he fhall be my fon."

5. A most pleasant place. How can it be otherwife, confidering the light, glory and riches, that muft needs make it a moft beautiful and lovely place?

therefore

therefore it is called paradise, 2 Cor. xii. 4. There a river of pleasures runs, enough to fatisfy all the inhabitants, Pfal. xxxvi. 8.; but no furfeiting, for there are no dreggy pleasures there. Thefe we mortals can have no diftinct notions of; the best guess to be made of them is, by the foretaftes of heaven in the joy of the Holy Ghoft, fometimes afforded believers. "In my

6. A moft fpacious place, John xiv. 2. Father's house are many mansions." It is fhewn us not only under the notion of a large house, but of a country, yea a kingdom. If the airy heaven is more fpacious than our earth, which it furrounds, and the ftarry heaven than the airy heaven, what can we think of the third heaven that is above them all? Being a real place, it cannot be immenfe indeed, it is measurable, but we find it is measured by an angel, not by a man, Rev. xxi. 9, 15. And how can it be otherwise than of a vaft space, that is to be the happy abode of all the faints with the angels, containing the bodies of all faints that have been, or fhall be to the end of the world?

T

Laftly, A place liable to no fhock or change. The apostle intimates to us, that it is a continuing city, Heb. xiii. 14. that will stand when all this world is laid in ashes; a city that hath foundations, chap. xi. 10. viz. which fhall never be overturned; a kingdom that cannot be moved, Heb. xii. 28. even when the vifible heavens and earth fhall be fhaken, fo as to be fhaken all asunder. Therefore it is eternal, 2 Cor. v. I.

Inf. 1. Let God's people be put to suffer for him what they will, they can never be lofers at his hand, Heb. xi. 16. "God is not ashamed to be called their God; for he hath prepared for them a city." Suppose they be turned out of houfe and hold, pinched with cold, hunger, thirst, and nakednefs, loaded with reproach, fuffer the most exquifite torments unto death; they are not lofers at his hand; he may well put them to all these, and yet maintain and fhew his

N

fpecial

special love to them, having fuch a place provided for them in the other world, where all will be abundantly made up. And they had need of much here, that are like to have no part there; for have what they will, it is impoffible it can make up their lofs.

2. Lift your eyes, O finners, from off all worldly glory, and fay your purfuit of it; there is a glory of heaven, in the view of which it would all difappear, like as the stars do at the rifing of the fun. Alas! the glory that takes with most of us, is that which Laban's fons fo highly esteemed, Gen. xxxi. 1. a great ftock, riches, and wealth; they fee no glory so attractive as that. But if ye are the children of God, the glory of the city above will darken it in your eyes. O fet your eyes and hearts on that glorious city, Heb. xi. 10. The earth in its most beautiful spots is the work of God's hands, but the visible heavens of his fingers, Pfal. viii. 3. but of the feat of the bleffed he is the artist, Heb. xi. 10. Gr. as if the Omnipotent had ufed a peculiar art in making of that.

3. See the neceffity of holinefs, Heb. xi. 14. "Without holiness no man fhall fee the Lord." Pfal. xv. 1. "Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who fhall dwell in thy holy hill?" The unholy may get room in this world, and the chief rooms; but there is no room for them in the other world, but without the gates of heaven in outer darknefs. If there be no holinefs here, there will be no happiness hereafter; the dogs and fwine come not into that holy place.

4. How inexpreffibly happy fhall they be that get thither to enjoy the light there, behold the glory, poffefs the riches, drink of the refined pleasures, walk at liberty in that fpacious place, and enter into happiness there where there is no change? The faith of this could not mifs, if lively, to caufe them fing the triumph before the victory.

Laftly, What an unfpeakable lofs must the lofs of heaven be? If there were no more for hell, it might

be