worldlings, fwearers, unclean, perfecutors, mockers, hypocrites, &c. And the more means of reformation any had, and the greater height of impiety they went to under these means, the more miferable will their cafe be there, Luke xii. 47, 48. Matth. xxiv. ult. 6. Their mifery will be eternal there, and they will know that it will be fo, Matth. xxv. 41. Depart from me, ye curfed, into everlasting fire." Prov. xiv. 32. "The wicked is driven away in his wickedness." It will be everlasting, without intermiffion, Rev. xiv. II. "The fmoke of their torment afcendeth up for ever and ever; and they have no reft day nor night." No breathing time will be allowed there, but the floods of wrath will be inceffantly flowing in upon them. There will be no clearning of the storm that blows there, for ever fo fhort a while. It will be eternal, without ending, Rev. xx. 10. " They fhall be tormented day and night, for ever and ever. "There is no end to be for ever expected of the easeless torments here. And the damned knowing this, will be cut for ever with defpair, and rage, like wild bulls in a net. Laftly, And thus God will be glorified paffively, in those who now will not actively glorify him, Prov. xvi. 4. "The Lord hath made all things for himself; yea, even the wicked for the day of evil." God made man for his glory, capable of enjoying him for ever; he cannot fall fhort of his end, and therefore he will be glorified upon those who now refuse to answer the end of their creation. Inf. 1. Sin is a moft dreadful evil. Here is a looking-glafs wherein you may fee it fo. How great must the filthinefs of it be, that provokes a gracious holy God, to bury the finner in such a horrible pit out of his fight! How deep must the guilt be, that cannot be washed out with fuch fearful punishment, so as to have an end! 2. God is a God of terrible justice, a fevere avenger of fin. O correct your mistakes of God by this, Pfal. 1. 21. He gave a demonftration of his juftice, R in in the burning of Sodom; here he gives an eternal demonftration of it. Laftly, There is nothing that poffibly can make the life of an impenitent finner in this world defirable which has fuch a miserable end. The Doctrine of the other World applied. And now, after having viewed this present world, we have given you some description of the other world, to let you into a neceflary view of it; it remains to fhut up that weighty fubject with fome application of the whole. FIRST, Believe the report from the word concerning the other world firmly; and let it have deep impreffion on your fouls. Confider of it timely with all earnestness, stretch your views beyond this prefent world, look into the world to come, with the prospect of the word which has been cleared in fome measure unto you. There are two things very prevalent in this world, with reference to the other world. Firft, Thoughtleffaefs about it. Men spend their days as in a dream, going through this world with the other world feldom coming into their view, never entering into any suitable thoughtfulness about it. The reasons hereof are, 1. The reigning vanity of the minds of men, Eph. iv. 17, 18. The light and frothy mind cannot find entertainment in any thing that is not like itself, light and vain. Therefore thoughts of the other world are fhunned, as a bird delighting to fkip from bush to bush, would fhun the tying of a stone to its foot. But alas! what avails that, fince going into that world cannot be fhunned that way? 2. Throng of the cares of this life, Matth. xiii. 23. Mens hearts are fo ftuffed and perplexed with these, that the concerns of another world cannot get entrance into their hearts; cumbered about many things, the one thing needful is forgot. Hence death furprises many many in fuch a throng, and hurries them away into another, when they were not at all thinking on it, Pfal. cxlvi. 4. Luke xii. 20. 3. An averfeness of heart to the other world. The hearts of moft men are so wedded to this world, that for as great a hell as it is, they would defire no better heaven than what they could make here. They are in no cafe content to leave it, and go into another world. And their averfion to it makes them thoughtlefs about it, that they really fhun the thoughts of it as much as they can, fince they can have no pleasure in them. 4. A fond conceit of coming in time enough after to think of the concerns of the other world, when they come near the borders of it; though alas! they know not how near they are to it, and their foot may flip, and they pafs into it ere ever they are aware. Laftly, Satan has a great hand in it, who endeavours to hoodwink finners, and to be continually buzing into their ears other things, that may keep them from ferions thoughts about it; and all to compass their ruin. Secondly, Unbelief of it. Men are not only thoughtlefs about it, not turning their thoughts that way; but when the report of it is brought to them, they do not believe it. There is a root of Atheism and infidelity in the minds of men, as to things not feen, fo that they hear these things as idle tales. The evidences of this are, 1. The little impreffion these things make on the minds of men, when they hear them. How many do hear the report of the other world with as little concern as they could hear an idle ftory, which they had no manner of concern about? The account of the joys of heaven does not move them, and that of the terrors of hell makes no fuitable impreffion. The fupine negligence and carelessness about our part in the other world. If in the time of hearing R 2 men men are somewhat moved, yet they are like the fieve taken out of the water when they go away, they lose all. They are not effectually stirred up to take fome courfe whereby they may flee from the wrath to come, and may become heirs of heaven. If it were but a cot house they had, in cafe they were to remove out of it, they would be careful to fecure another for themselves. But they know they muft die, yet they are quite careless as to where they are to lodge next. Laftly, The unaccountable mifpending of time, either trifling or doing evil; doing nothing or what is worse than nothing. Did men believe, that now they are sowing for eternity, that what they now do in this world, they are to eat the fruit of in the other world; would they be fo barren in good works, and fo lavish in finful courfes and actions? Wherefore I beseech you confider seriously of the world to come, and believe the report about it. 1. About the being of it. O to believe firmly, that there is another world, a heaven and a hell; a receptacle of joy for the departed fouls of the godly, whereinto their bodies alfo are to be received after the refurrection; and a receptacle of horror for the fouls and bodies of the wicked. 2. About the state of men in it, as held forth in the word; how that there they arrive either at the highest pinnacle of happiness or misery; and to continue unchangeable for ever and ever. To inforce the exhortation I offer the following motives. 1. Confider ye have by the providence of God heard much of it from the word of God. The Lord of the other world has appointed his meffengers to speak of it to us in this world, that we may make ready for it in time. When the Lord has been founding the alarm, let us not be deaf to his call, but know and believe that we are to march into the other world. It will be an aggravated guilt to be thoughtless about it, after hearing fo much of it, or to entertain the report as idle tales. 2. The 2. The world we have been hearing of, we will all fee at length; and fee it not afar off, but being in it. We might be the lefs concerned about it, if we were never to go there; but thither we must all go. And it may well apologize for our infisting so much on it, that we are to be inhabitants there, eternal inhabitants there. It must be infatuation to be thoughtlefs or unbelieving about it. 3. It will not be long ere we will be there. We have but a hand-breadth of days to pass, and then we are there; our age, which is as nothing before the Lord, being once run through, we pass into that other world. Our life here is but a short preface to a long eternity; a skip from the womb to the grave, and we have made confiderable progress in it already. And we are not far from the entrance of the paffage into the other world, and in a little we will be in one of the parts of it, join the inhabitants thereof, and be fettled in the state of it.. 4. We know not how foon we may be there. The journey to the other world is not alike long to all. It is but a fhort journey the longest of it, but God brings fome there by a fhort cut, and they are at the end when they think there is a great part of the way before them. Laftly, A happy part there will never be reached without ferious thoughts about it, and a firm faith ofit. SECONDLY, Improve the believed report of the other world fuitably. If there is really another world, a world to come, and fuch as from the Lord's word it has been reported of to you; without controverfy it is a matter of the greatest concern to us, and ought to influence our whole life. And it is not a true faith of it, that does not influence our conduct accordingly. Now if we would improve it fuitably, Firft, Improve it to a speedy choice of the way to the happy part of it, and entering upon it without delay. We are all going to the other world; but as R 3 there |