́having no remedy, no hope of ever seeing them, or enjoying their company any more. The death of a faint is a loss to the church, to friends and relations, and even to a neighbourhood, where he dwelt, being the falt of the earth, Matth. v. 13; and it is impoffible to fee them depart without grief and forrow. Devout men carried Stephen to his funeral, and made great lamentation over him but God has fweetened the believer's forrow with the comforts of hope.

For we believe that Jefus died and rose again: fo all them that fleep in Jefus will God bring with him. The fpirits of juft men made perfect fhall defcend with Chrift from the third heaven, and their bodies fhall afcend out of the earth, when a re-union fhall take place.

For those faints, whoever they may be, who will be found alive, and who will remain to the coming of Chrift, shall not prevent them which are afleep; thefe living faints, who are found alive at the last day, who are to be changed, shall not hinder their refurrection who fleep. Nay, they that fleep shall be raised, before the living ones fhail be changed. See 1 Cor. xv. 52.

For the Lord himfel fhall defcend from heaven with a fhout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise firft. This day will exhibit the moft magnificent fcene that ever was displayed

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in this world. In handling these words, I will offer you my own private thoughts of them under the following heads:

I. The Lord's defcent, and of those things which fhall attend it.

II. The fhout-the Lord fhall defcend with a fhout.

III. The voice of the archangel.

IV. The trump of God.

V. The dead in Chrift; and

VI. Of their rifing firft.

The Lord defcended on Mount Sinai, and came with ten thousand of faints, at the giving of the law. He rent the heavens and came down, and the fkies poured down righteousness at his incarnation, when the inhabitants of the upper world defcended to fing his praises upon the earth; "Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, good-will towards men." And thefe heavenly folks told the apofiles at the afcenfion of Chrift, that "this fame Jefus, which is taken up into heaven, fhall fo come, in like manner, as he went up into heaven," Acts i. 11.

We are told that there will be an univerfal drowsiness among all forts of profeffors toward the clofe of time; they, all the virgins, both wife and foolish, flumbered and flept. It seems that carnal fecurity and infenfibility will be as univerfal in the world at large at this time, as it

was in the days of Noah, and of Lot; fo fhall it be, fays the Saviour. There will be buying and felling, planting and building, espousing and wedding; crying peace and fafety, as the old world, and the inhabitants of Sodom did, till the flood and the flame roused them all.

2. It appears that there will be a fecret alarm fpread abroad among the faints, which will be given out by the Holy Ghoft; for it is peculiarly his work to lead into truth, and to fhew the faints things to come. It is called the midnight cry, which will awaken profeffors of all defcriptions, but not the world at large. This cry will be attended with a-behold! the bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet him. But this is a language peculiar to Zion; for the world knows little of this bridegroom, and much lefs of his coming, nor will they be defirous of meeting him.

3. The Scriptures reprefent the belching forth of most tremendous flames of fire, which will attend our Lord's defcent from heaven; as the lightning rifes in the east, and shineth unto the west, so shall the coming of the Son of man be. So fays the great apoftle: the Lord fhall be revealed from heaven in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gofpel of our Lord Jefus Chrift.

4. Befides this moft awful fire, there will be fuch a storm and tempeft furrounding the Judge,

as this world never beheld before. Seven thunders will utter their voices at once, and roar from every quarter. Our God fhall come, and shall not keep filence; a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempeftuous round about him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people, Pfalm 1. 3, 4. This tempeft is to appear furrounding the Judge; it is to be very tempestuous round about him.

5. From hence it should seem that the Lord will defcend and make his appearance on pillars of clouds. It was a cloud that received him out of fight at his afcenfion, and he is to come again in like manner, which is more fully confirmed by John: Behold he cometh with clouds, and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him; and all kindreds of the earth fhall wail because of him, Rev. i. 17. This wailing is to be among the kindreds of the earth; who are in the flesh, in Adam the first, in their first birth, or firft-born ftate, and who, of course, have no relations, or kindred in heaven, which every foul born from above has; for God is his father, the heavenly Jerufalem his mother, Chrift his elder brother, and all believers are children of God alike.

6. These clouds will not only pour forth dif mal peals of thunder, but the Scriptures speak of their discharging, or raining torrents of fire:

upon the wicked he fhall rain fnares, fire, and brimftone, and an horrible tempeft; this shall be the portion of their cup, Pfalm xi. 6. This is the great and terrible day of the Lord, and the finner's evil day, which he labours so hard to put far away from him. But it will most affuredly overtake all the enemies of Chrift Jefus; for, as the fire burneth a wood, and as the flame fetteth the mountains on fire, so perfecute them with thy tempeft, and make them afraid with thy ftorm, Pfalm lxxxiii. 14, 15. When this great and terrible day comes, the believer shall know what a hiding place from the ftorm, and a covert from the tempeft, means.

7. We may speak a little of the Lord's retinue, which fhall attend at the appearing of the Saviour, to set off the wonderful splendour of that day, and to minifter to the Judge. A fiery ftream iffued and came forth from before him; thousand thousands miniftered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him, Dan. vii. 10. This retinue of domeftics will confift of faints and angels. Hence we read, that whosoever shall be ashamed of me, and of my word, of him shall the Son of man be afhamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, and of the holy angels, Luke ix. 26. The other part of these attendants are the elect of mankind; for, when he appears, they fhall appear with him in glory; this was clearly feen under the Old