! THE PREFACE. A * MONG many other largeffes and rich endowments, beftowed by the Creator's bounty upon the foul of man, the fentiments and impreffions of the world to come, and the ability of reflexion and felf-intuition, are peculiar, invaluable, and heavenly gifts. By the former, we have a very great evidence of our own immortality, and defignation for nobler employments and enjoyments than this embodied ftate admits. And by the latter we may difcern the agreeablenefs of our hearts, and therein the validity of our title to that expected bleffedness. But these heavenly gifts are neglected and abufed all the world over. Degenerate fouls are every where fallen into fo deep an oblivion of their excellent original, fpiritual and immortal nature, and alliance to the Father of fpirits; that (to ufe the upbraiding expreffion of a great + philofopher) "they feem to be buried in "their bodies, as fo many filly worms that lurk in their holes, and "are loth to peep forth, and look abroad." So powerfully do the cares and pleasures of this world charm all, (except a small remnant of regenerate fouls) that nothing but fome smart stroke of calamity, or terrible meffengers of death can ftartle them; (and even thofe are not always able to do it,) and when they do, all the effect is but a tranfient glance at another, and an unwilling fhrug to leave this world, and fo to fleep again. And thus the impreffions and fentiments of the world to come (which are the natural growth and offspring of the foul) are either ftifled and fuppreft, as in Atheifts; or borne down by impetuous mafterly lufts, as in Senfualifts. And for its felf-reflecting and confidering power, it seems in many to be a power received in vain. It is with moft fouls as it is with the eye, which fees not itself, though it fees all other objects. There be those that have almost finished the courfe of a long life, (wherein a great part of their time hath lain upon their hands, as We have demonftrated from the common confent of all nations and people fince the creation of the world, especially from the confent of the good and learned, that the human foul is incorruptible and immortal; and that therefore it furvives the corrupted body, that it may be for ever either rewarded for good actions, or punished for bad actions. Zanch. on the immortality of the foul. * Η δι δειλη ψυχη κατορωρυγμένη εν σωματι ως ερείον νηθεί εις φωλεον, Φίλες 'Qwλtov, &c. Max. Tyr. Diff. 41. a cheap and useless commodity, which they knew not what to do with) who never yet spent one folemn entire hour in discourse with their own fouls. What ferious heart doth not melt into compaffion over the deluded multitude, who are mocked with dreams, and perpetually bufied about' trifles? Who are, (after fo many fruftrated attempts, both of their own, and all paft ages) eagerly pursuing the fleeting fhadows, who torture and rack their brains to find out the natures and qualities of birds, beafts, and plants; indeed any thing rather than their own fouls, which are certainly the most excellent creatures that inhabit this world. They know the true value and worth of other things, but are not able to eftimate the dignity of that high-born fpirit that is within them. A fpirit which (without the addition of any more natural faculties or powers, if those it hath be but fanctified and devoted to God) is capable of the highest perfections and fruitions, even complete conformity to God, and the fatisfying visions of God throughout eternity. They herd themselves with beafts, who are capable of an equality with angels. O what compaffionate tears must fuch a confideration as this draw from the eyes of all that understand the worth of fouls! As for me it hath been my fin, and is now the matter of my forrow, that whilft myriads of fouls, (of no higher original than mine) are fome of them beholding the higheft Majefty in heaven, and others giving all diligence to make fure their falvation on earth, I was carried away fo many years in the course of this world, (like a drop with the current of the tide) wholly forgetting my best self, my invaluable foul; whilft I prodigally wafted the ftores of my time and thoughts upon vanities, that long fince paffed away as the waters which are remembered no moret. It fhall be no fhame to me to confefs this folly, fince the matter of my confeffion fhall go to the glory of my God. I ftudied to know many other things, but I knew not myself. It was with me as with a fervant to whom the mafter committed two things, viz. the child, and the child's clothes; the fervant is very careful of the clothes, brushes and washes, ftarches and irons them, and keeps them fafe and clean, but the child is forgotten and loft. My body which is but the garment of my foul, I kept and nourished with exceffive care, but my foul was long forgotten, and had been loft for ever, as others * Ita eft ifta vita mortalis, ubi homo vanitati fimilis factus eft ; et dies ejus velut umbra preterunt. Aug. de Civ. lib. 21. c. 24. + Saints after their hearts are renewed by repentance, are not ashamed to acknowledge their ignominious faults, to the glory of God. For nothing is loft to us that redounds to his praife, who, pardoning our fins, transfers us from mifery to happiness. Brightinan on Caut. p. 12. daily are, had not God rouzed it, by the convictions of his Spirit, out of that deep oblivion and deadly flumber. When the God that formed it, out of free grace to the work of his own hands, had thus recovered it to a fenfe of its own worth and danger, my next work was to get it united with Chrift, and thereby fecured from the wrath to come; which I found to be a work difficult to effect, (if it be yet effected) and a work of time to clear, though but to the degree of good hope through grace. And fince the hopes and evidences of falvation began to spring up in my foul, and fettle the state thereof, I found thefe three great words, viz. Chrift, foul, and eternity, to have a far different and more awful found in my ear, than ever they used to have. I looked on them from that time, as things of the greateft certainty and moft awful folemnity. Thefe things have laid fome weight upon my thoughts, and I felt, at certain feasons, a strong inclination to fequefter myself from all other ftudies, and spend my laft days, and moft fixed meditations upon these three great and weighty fubjects. I know the fubject matter of my ftudies and enquiries (be it never fo weighty) doth not therefore make my meditations and difcourse upon it great and weighty: nor am I fuch a vain opinionator, as to imagine my difcourfes every way fuitable to the dignity of fuch fubjects; no, no, the more I think and ftudy about them, the more I difcern the indiftinctness, darkness, crudity, and confufion of my own conceptions, and expreffion of fuch great and tranfcendent things as thofe; but In magnis voluiffe fat eft, I refolved to do what I could; and accordingly, fome years paft I finished and published, in two parts, the Doctrine of Chrift; and by the acceptation and fuccefs the Lord gave that, he hath encouraged me to go on in this fecond part of my work, how unequal foever my fhoulders are to the burden of it. The nature, original, immortality, and capacity of mine own foul, for the prefent lodged in and related to this vile body, deftined to corruption; together with its existence, employment, perfection, converfe with God, and other fpirits, both of its own, and of a superior rank and order; when it thall (as I know it fhortly muft) put off this its tabernacle, these things have a long time been the matters of my limited defires to understand, fo far as I could fee the pillar of fire (God in his word) enlightening my way to the knowledge of them. Yea, fuch is the value I have for them, that I have given them the next place in my esteem, to the knowledge of Jefus Chrift, and my interest in him. God hath formed me, as he hath other men, a prospecting crea ture. and fatisfaction to which my foul, in its natural and spiritual capacity, hath a defignation. I find that I am in a continual motion towards my everlafting abode, and the expence of my time; and many infirmities tell me that I am not far from it: by all which I am ftrongly prompted to look forward, and acquaint myself as much as I can, with my next place and employment. I look with a greedy and inquifitive eye that way. Yet would I not be guilty of an unwarrantable curiofity in fearching into revealed things; how willing foever I am to put my head by faith into the world above, and to know the things which Jefus Chrift hath purchased and prepared for me, and all the reft that are waiting for his appearance and kingdom, I feel my curiofity checked and repreffed by that elegant paronomafia, Rom. xii. 3. Μη υπερφρονειν πα, ο δει φρονείν, αλλά φρονείν εις το σωφρονειν, In all things I would be wife unto fobriety. I groan under the effects of Adam's itching ambition to know, and would not by repeating his fin, increase my own mifery; nor yet would I be feared, by his example, into the contrary evil of neglecting the means, God hath afforded me, to know all that I can of his revealed will. * The helps philofophy affords in fome parts of this difcourse are too great to be defpifed, and too fmall to be admired. I confefs I read the definitions of the foul given by the antient philofophers with a compaflionate fmile. When Thales. calls it a nature without repofe; Afclepiades, an exercitation of fenfe; Hefiod, a thing compofed of earth and water; Parmenides, a thing compofed of earth and fire; Galen faith it is heat; Hippocrates, a fpirit diffused through the body; Plato, a felf-moving fubflance; Ariftotle calls it Entelechia, that by which the body is moved: If my opinion fhould be asked which of all thefe definitions I like beft, I fhould give the fame anfwer which Theocritus gave an ill poct, repeating many of his verfes, and afked which he liked beft; Thefe (faid he) which you have omitted. Or if they must have the garland as the prize they have fhot for, let them have it upon the fame reafon that was once given to him that always fhot wide.-Difficilius eft toties non attingere,-Because it was the greateft difficulty to aim fo often at the mark, and never come near it. One word of God gives me more light than a thousand fuch laborious trifles. As Cæfar was beft able to write his own commentaries, to God only can give the best account of his own creature, on which he hath imprefied his own image. Modern philofophers, aflifted by the divine oracles, muft needs come closer to the mark, and give us a far better account of the For to whom is the truth known with certainty without God? or God with- ! out Chrift? or Chrift explorated without the Spirit? or the Spirit vouchfafed without faith?--Tertullian on the foul. nature of the foul. Yet I have endeavoured not to cloud this fub ject with their controverfies, or abftrufe notions; remembering what a fmart, but deferved check, Tertullian gives thofe, Qui Platonicum et Ariftotelicum Chriftianifmum producunt Chriftianis. Words are but the fervants of matter, I value them as merchants do their fhips, not by the gilded head and ftern, the neatnefs of their mould, or curious flags and ftreamers, but by the foundness of their bottom, largeness of their capacity, and richnefs of their cargo and loading. The quality of this fubject neceffitates, in many places, the ufe of fcholaftic terms, which will be obfcure to the vulgar reader: but apt and proper words must not be rejected for their obfcurity, except plainer words could be found that fit the fubject as well, and are as fully expreffive of the matter. The unneceffary I have avoided, and the reft explained as I could. The principal fruits I especially aim at, both to my own and the `reader's foul, are, That whilft we contemplate the freedom, pleafure, and fatisfaction of that fpiritual, incorporeal people, who dwell in the region of light and joy, and are hereby forming to ourselves a true fcriptural idea of the bleffed state of those disembodied fpirits, with whom we are to ferve and converse in the temple-worship in heaven; and come more explicitly and distinctly to understand the constitution, order, and delightful employments of those our everlasting affociates; we may anfwerably feel the found and inordinate love of this animal life sub-acted and wrought down; the frightful vizard of death drop off, and a more pleafing afpect appear; that no upright foul that shall read thefe difcourfes may henceforth be convulfed at the name of death, but cheerfully afpire, and with a pleasant expectation wait for the bleffed feafon of its transportation to that bleffed affembly. It is certainly our ignorance of the life of heaven, that makes us dote as we do upon the prefent life. There is a gloom, a thick mift overfpreading the next life, and hiding, even from the eyes of believers, the glory that is there. We fend forth our thoughts to penetrate this cloud, but they return to us without the defired fuccefs. We reinforce them with a fally of new and more vigorous thoughts, but ftill they come back in confufion and difappointment, as to any perfect account they can bring us from thence; though the oftner and closer we think, ftill the more we grow up into acquaintance with these excellent things. Another benefit I pray for, and expect from these labours, is, that by defcribing the horrid eftate of thofe fouls which go the other way, and fhewing to the living the dismal condition of fouls departed in their unregenerate state; fome may be awakened to a feafonable and effectual confideration of their wretched condi |