4. All this will fill him with a fulness of joy, which will excite him to praise and bless God: "This salvation," saith the instructor, "I shall inherit, and that to praise God for ever therein." He will unite himself with all the blessed men and angels, that he may with them shout forth the glory of God, until the heaven resounds, as the angels proclaimed the glory and holiness of God with such mighty voices, that they made "the posts of the door" shake, Isaiah vi. 3. How then will "the voices of that great multitude," proclaim one to another, "as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of many thunderings, Hallelujah; for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him," Rev. xix. 6, 7. When believing souls enjoy the lovingkindness of God here on earth, the one excites the other, saying, " Magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together," Psalm xxxii. 4. O how will the blessed then, seeing what they have been, what they are now, and how they have been brought into this blessed state according to the unsearchable wisdom, power, and love of God, by the blood of his Son, cry mightily, day and night without ceasing, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and who is, and who is to come!" They will fall down before him, and cast their crowns before the throne and say with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb which was slain, to receive power and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing," Rev. iv. 8-11. v. 9-14.

(c) Moreover this blessedness will be greatly increased by the circumstances, 1 of society, 2 of place, and 3 of time.

1. A godly person can enjoy a wonderful delight in his holy, lonely life of communion with God; society often disturbs his repose in God but in that everlasting life he will be in the society of those, who will not lead him from, but up to his full satisfaction. For he will be with all those eminent saints, "Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who will sit down with him in the kingdom of heaven," Matt. viii. 11. "He will walk" with the angels who stand before the face of God, Zech. iii. 7. There never was a time of so much bliss. ful glory on earth, as when "a multitude of the heavenly host," came down to the shepherds, to praise God to the utmost, and to congratulate men upon the recent birth of the Saviour, Luke ii. 13, 14. But how glorious will it be, when the blessed people will be associated with the many thousands of angels, and unite with them! But can happy men and holy angels, who are mere creatures, satisfy the heart of man, while he is estranged from God? No, but he will not be without God for "the tabernacle of God will be with men, and he

will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them, and be their God," Rev. xxi. 3. "The Lamb himself will be in the midst of the throne," Rev. vii. 17. "And round about the throne there will be four and twenty seats, and upon the seats four and twenty elders, sitting, clothed in white raiment, and having on their heads crowns of gold," Rev. iv. 4. The church militant is described as so near him, and round about him; what then will be the condition of them, who will be admitted to the enjoyment of perfect salvation!

2. There is no place so strait, so dark and mean, but that God will condescend to reveal himself in it to his favourites; nevertheless a spacious and lightsome place will elevate a spiritual heart: but the place where this glory will be enjoyed, is the high, the spacious and sumptuous heaven, where light, yea, where God himself dwelleth, as in his palace: for "the Lord is in his holy temple, the Lord's throne is in heaven,," Psalm xi. 4. Look only with David at the outside of heaven, and with him ye will wonder at its splendour, Psalm viii. 4, how then will the inmost rooms transport the soul! No man, while he is yet in this mortal body, can conceive the glory of heaven, and therefore it is exhibited to him only imperfectly, under the figure of whatever is esteemed precious on earth. See Rev. xxi. 9-27. That on which God hath exercised his skill must be fair and glorious indeed, but "heaven is a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God, Heb. xi. 10.

3. If there be aught that is disagreeable to the people of God at present, it is that God's gracious intercourse with them is usually of 'such a short continuance: but in heaven it will be everlasting without end. It will be an everlasting life: "At God's right hand there are pleasures for evermore," Psalm xvi. 11. "We shall be for ever with the Lord," 1 Thess. iv. 17. Although the Lord loves the believing soul always, and until the end, there are nevertheless many intermissions in the displays of his love; but it will not be so in glory the blessed soul will be continually and incessantly laden with the lovingkindness of God, so that she will praise him continually, and "will have no rest day nor night," Rev. iv. 8. Think not, ye prisoners of hope, that ye will be weary of it, as Israel was of the manna, or that ye will not be able to sustain that allsufficient good; for ye will always have something new: "Jesus will drink new wine with you in the kingdom of his Father," Matt. xxvi. 29. Ye will also have more enlarged capacities, and be more able to receive the supreme revelation and influences of the Almighty. Ye cannot now sustain his extraordinary embraces, and the extraordinary influ

ence of his grace a long time, but it would dissolve you, as the most : brittle substance: but "ye who are sown in weakness, will be raised in power, incorruptible and immortal," I Cor. xv. 43, 53.

Though all the blessed will be completely filled with the glory of God, there will nevertheless be degrees of glory, and one will enjoy more than another; "For there is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differeth from another star in glory: so also is the resurrection of the dead." Thus speaks Paul, 1 Cor. xv. 41, 42. For there will be degrees of punishment, as we are taught, Matt. xi. 20-24. Luke xiv. 47, 48, as there are also degrees of sin and sanctification, John xix. 11. 1 Cor. xv. 10.

It is proper to inquire here whether the blessed will know in heaven their friends, whom they know best in this life. We cannot decide this question positively; we only know that the relation, which subsists here between parents and children, husband and wife, rulers and subjects, will not have place in heaven; for "the Lord Jesus will put down all rule, and all authority and power," 1 Cur. xv. 24. We know also that all the blessed will, as blessed, know each other with the sweetest and with a familiar love, on account of the work of grace, as soon as it appears, because "they have one heart, and one way to fear the Lord," Jer. xxxiii 39. It appears also clearly, that the blessed rulers of the church will be known in heaven; for they will excel others in glory, Dan. xiii. 3. The Lord promiseth that we shall "sit down with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob," Matt. viii. 11. We shall not be able to know whether this promise be fulfilled, unless we know those great saints: this matter appears still more probable, since the apostle knew the glorified Moses and Elias, Matt. xvii, 3, 4.

2. Having seen thus wherein everlasting life consists, it behooves us to know also how it is communicated. But of this we shall not speak at present, because we have shown on the eleventh Lord's day that the Lord Jesus, having purchased salvation by his sufferings and obedience, applies and communicates it also, both in this life by all the blessings and benefits of the covenant of grace, and after this life, first in the death of believers, and afterwards in their blessed resurrection.

The children of God ought to believe and be assured, and present it as it were before their eyes, that such an everlasting life is to be expected, like " Moses, who had a respect to the recompence of the reward by faith," Heb. xi. 26. Great and many are the grounds, on which believers may establish their hopes. All the arguments

which prove the resurrection, may also assure them of everlasting life; but they may be certain of it more especially, "because they now feel in their hearts the beginning of eternal joy," as the instructor speaks. The beginnings of eternal joy are, (a) that clear and heavenly discovery, which the Lord God makes of himself, of his Son, and of his mysterics to the soul, whereby she sees the efficacy of each word and of each matter, and is influenced to wonder, joy and praise on account of it: "The king leads her into his chambers," Song i. 4, and thus Jesus reveals himself in his love to them who love him, John xiv. 21. (b) An actual enjoyment of the heavenly benefits, which proceed from the throne of God, so that the believer "eats of the hidden manna," Rev. ii. 17. He fincs a table spread within him, and "he eats with Jesus, and Jesus with him," Rev. iii. 20. And he is wonderfully entertained, satisfied, and, as it were, made drunk with his heavenly viands, Song v. 1. Jer. xxxi. 12, 13, 14, and Jesus bestows on him abundantly the kisses of his love, his caresses, and the embraces of his everlasting arms, Song i. 2. ii. 3-6. The soul seems to herself hereby to be already elevated before the throne of God, and above this mortal scene. (c) Further these first beginnings consist in the assurance which believers obtain of their blessed hope; either the Spirit of God discovereth to them the work of grace in their souls, "showing them the things, which are freely given them of God," and thus "bearing witness with their spirits, that they are the children of God," according to Rom. viii. 15; or the Lord effects in a gentle manner a tranquil peace and calmness in the heart, and so "the peace of God surpasseth all their understanding," Philip. iv. 7, or he influences them in a more exalted and more affecting manner, or in a more rational and less affecting manner by exercises of faith, which sometimes excite in them a joy unspeakable, and full of glory, į Peter i. 8.

Since now believers feel these beginnings in their hearts, they may be assured, that they will possess such an eternal life. Because (a) these beginnings are, as it were, the first fruits, which sanctify the harvest of eternal life, as the real property of believers. To this the apostle hath respect, Rom. viii. 23. (b) These beginnings are "those better things, which accompany salvation," as Paul speaks, Heb. vi 9. (c) They are also the evidences of the love of God and Christ; for thus "the love of God is shed abroad in the hearts" of those whom he loves, and so "their hope" of everlasting life "cannot make them ashamed," Rom. v. 5.

APPLICATION.

That now the resurrection to eternal life may be profitable to us, it will be useful, that each of us should impress upon his mind, that there will also be a resurrection to eternal damnation: and not only this, but that the smallest number will rise to salvation, and the greatest number to damnation, as we have shown on the seventh Lord's day. And therefore it will be necessary, that each one should also inquire concerning himself, what will become of him at the last day. We should show here who will, and who will not be raised up to salvation; but as we have done this largely enough on the seventh and eighth Lord's days, we should forbear at present; yet since the instructor founds his hope upon a feeling of the beginning of eternal joy, and temporary believers also are after their manner "enlightened, taste of the heavenly gift, are made partakers of the Holy Ghost, taste the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come," Heb. vi. 4, 5, and since this greatly weakens the expectation of true believers, and confirms temporary believers exceedingly in their imaginations, we will therefore exhibit the difference between true and temporary believers in this respect.

1. The true believer, feeling the beginning of eternal joy in his heart, becomes humble and lowly, abases himself, and sinks into nothing in his own estimation; he wonders and is amazed, that God will even look at such a base and vile wretch, as he sees himself with shame to be: he saith with Jacob, Gen. xxxii. 10. "I am not worthy of the least of all these mercies, and of all this truth ;" and with David, 2 Sam. vii. 18. "Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that thou hast brought me hitherto?" But the temporary believer becomes proud and haughty in consequence of his exercises, and thinks that he must be some great one; he speaks therefore loftily, is too wise for every one, he behaves himself imperiously, and requires that every one should esteem him an exceedingly spiritual and advanced Christian. Such a puffer Caiaphas showed himself to be, when "he prophesied that Jesus should die for the people," John xi. 49, 50, 51.

2. The true believer feels this beginning of eternal joy in his heart, that is the seat of his work of grace and joy, and from that do all his good motions proceed to the praise of the Lord; yea, on this account he endeavours to converse with his heart, that he may abide in the love of God: "The peace of God which passeth all understanding, keeps his heart and mind," Philip, iv. 7, yea, "it rules