ham, Ifaac, and Jacob, Mofes, Jofhua, Gideon, and Manoah, all faw him; for he appeared to each of thefe, and many more. Some faw him as an angel of the Lord, very terrible. Some in a human form, as Joshua; and in the clouds, as Job. Some as a flame of fire, as Mofes. Some in fuffering circumstances, as Isaiah. Others in his prieftly habit, as Ezekiel and Daniel. Others in a war appearance, with garments dipped in blood, and upon a red horfe, as John and Zechariah. Sometimes as the Ancient of days and venerable Judge, with his bair like the pure wool. Some upon his judgmentfeat, as Daniel. And others upon his glorious throne as King of Zion, and above the cherubims, as Ezekiel. He was feen alfo of Paul; and fince that by Mr. Hart, and by me also, and by many others in the prefent day, who have feen him in his own light by the eye of faith, and, with the enlightened understanding, as man in fuffering circumftances upon the cross, and fhining, at the fame time, in the fountain of eternal light. O moft precious, most wonderful, and foul-transforming view! Others fee him in the light of the word. word is attended with light and life. The Spirit teftifies of Chrift to the foul; at which time the Sun of righteoufnefs arifes with healing in his wings; which vifion is promised to all them that fear his name, Mal. iv. 2; and it is a promise of gofpel times. And this is attended with joy unspeakable and full of glory.-Arife, fhine forth; for thy light is come,

3

The

and

and the glory of the Lord is rifen upon thee. And the Gentiles fhall come to thy light, and kings to the brightnefs of thy rifing. Ifa. lx. 1, 3. be fulfilled, and be found to be

Which promife will true, as long as there

is a chofen veffel among the Gentiles to be called. And, although we have many preachers who deny all vifion, and of courfe all fupernatural light, yet we know that fuch cannot be burning and fhining lights, because they deny the light; nor minifters of Chrift; for he makes bis minifters a flaming fire. Pfalm civ. 4. Nor are they children of light, nor of the day; but of the night and of darkness; for, if what they affert be true, there is nothing but damnation in all the country: for God says, Where there is no vifion, the people perish. Prov. xxix. 18. Such blind guides have nothing to guide them but the light of nature-They speak a vifion of their own beart. Jer. xxiii. 16. To deny all vifion is to deny God, who is light, and all knowledge of him. God promifes that all his children fhall know him ; but how? God gives us the light of the knowledge of the glory of himself in the face of Jefus. It is to deny all the fure word of prophecy; for this is a light fining in a dark place. Such deny the title of the faints, and all the good work within; for they are called the children of light, and children of the day. They deny the path of the juft, which shines more. and more. They deny the falvation of God; for that is a lamp that burneth. They deny the lamp and the oil of the wife virgins; yea, and of the

foolish too; for how could their lamps go out if they had no fort of light? They deny all joy to the righteous; for the light of the righteous rejoiceth. Such men deny the fcriptures of truth; for they are a light to our feet, and a lamp to our path. They deny all preaching the gofpel; for that is fowing light for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart. They deny the being of God in his church; for out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God bath fbined. It ftrips a real fervant of God of every name God gives him. How can he be a feer, a prophet, or a watchman, if he be ftone blind? How can he be a burning or a fhining light, a flame of fire, a candle on a candleftick, or a ftar in the Lord's right hand, if there be no light in him? They must be blind watchmen and dumb dogs; for what dogs will bark unless they see a stranger, or hear a noife? And just fuch blind watchmen are all preachers who deny vifion; for all fupernatural light, which is above and beyond the light of nature, is vifion; whether it fhine into the heart, as in Paul, or into the head, as in Balaam; whether it fhine in the word of God, or in the face of Jefus Chrift. Paul calls his the heavenly vifion. Such men deny the dexterity of Satan; for Paul fays that he is transformed into an angel of light. Yea, more; fuch preachers even deny their own deception, and the influence that they are under; for Paul tells us that even impoftors, or minifters

of

of Satan, are transformed as the minifters of righteouf nefs. 2 Cor. xi. 14, 15. In this account Satan aims to imitate an angel by his fhining; and his fervants to imitate the ministers of Chrift by walking in the light of their own fire, and in the sparks that they have kindled.

The image of God, which the Spirit impreffeth on the foul when it is fealed, ftands in light, knowledge, glory, love, righteousness, and true holinefs. And fuch fouls fhine as lights in the world, for they are converted; and real converfion is turning men from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God.

This fealing us is faid to be unto the day of redemption. Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are fealed unto the day of redemption. Eph. iv. 30. The day of redemption, here spoken of, appears to be the resurrection, which is the redemption of the body from the grave. As it is written, Ourselves alfo, which have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. Rom. viii. 23. Now our fealing is the pledge and earnest of this. In whom alfo, after that ye believed, ye were fealed with that Holy Spirit of promife, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchafed poffeffion. Eph. i. 13, 14. In these words the church of God is called a poffeffion, as it is the Lord's portion.-The

Lord's

Lord's portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of bis inheritance. This portion is called the purchafed poffeffion, because it is bought with a price-Feed the church of God, which he hath purchafed with his own blood. Acts xx. 28. The whole of this poffeffion was given by the Father to Chrift, and he laid down his life for it; and the price that he paid purchased the whole, body and foul: of all which he will lofe nothing; no, not fo much as a fingle hair-There fhall not an hair of your head perish. And this is the Father's will which bath fent me, that of all which he hath given me I fhould lofe nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that fent me, that every one which feeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and 1 will raise him up at the last day. John vi. 39, 40. This purchafed poffeffion is, at the present time, ftrangely scattered about. Many fouls, called the fpirits of just men made perfect, are now in heaven. Two of the bodies of the faints, as well as their fouls, are in heaven alfo, even Enoch and Elijah. The bodies of thousands of the faints are now in the duft, which their fouls in faith have left behind them to fleep in hope. Some part of the purchase is now in a militant ftate; another part lies in the ruins of the fall; fome in the wombs of women; fome in the loins of men; and fome in nonexistence. But, at the firft refurrection, they must

be