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ment of the world. If men have yet fuch bold. nefs to fin, notwithstanding the feverity of these punishments, what would they have done, if there had been only fome light temporary punishment to be inflicted? This confideration would lead me too far from the fubject in hand; therefore I but name it, and proceed to the

VI. And last general, which I proposed for the improvement of this doctrine. I have unfolded, at fome length, the crime charged upon you: I have proved, both in general and in particular, that ye have all finned, and thereby come fhort of the glory of God. I have fhewed what the fatisfaction is which juftice requires: I have likewife made appear, and have given you fome account, how reasonable it is that juftice fhould carry its demands fo high. It remains now, that we fhortly reprefent your mifery from the whole. But here indeed I am at a lofs how to begin; and if once I begin, fhall find myfelf at no lefs a ftrait where to end. Sinners I have proved you; and miferable I fhall now endeavour to reprefent you upon this account.

1. If a vast lofs can make you miferable, then indeed ye fhall be fo. Your lofs can be imagined by none, but these who enjoy the advantages you lofe, or thefe who are already in the place of torment, and have their eyes opened to fee their own condition. It is fuch a lofs, that you cannot from one place have a full profpect of it, I mean, of that little portion of it which may be known without feeling: and therefore we thall give you fome different views of it, as it were from diftin&t places, at each of which ye may fee fome, and but fome fmall part of it.

(1.) I fay your lofs (hall be great, for ye shall lofe the world with all its delights, comforts and

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fatisfactions. Are ye now poffeft of a competent estate, a flourishing family, health of body, content of mind, and a fair ftock of reputation? ye shall lose all these things: and will not this be a vaft lofs to you? Are not these the things that bound your defires, and terminate all your wifhes and enquiries? I fear they are fo to most of you. They who have their portion only in this life, feek no more but these things. All the question with fuch is, Who will fhew us any good, any worldly good? And if they lofe these things, then indeed they lofe all. They may fay their gods are taken away, and what have they more? Whatever is defirable to the eyes, or pleasant to any of your fenfes, ye fhall at once for ever and eternally be deprived of. And is not this a vast lofs? Since it must be so, in many of your eyes, ye fhall lofe that which ye valued above heaven and Chrift. It may be fome of you cleave so fast to a prefent world, that neither the promises, nor the threats of the gofpel can induce you to quite your hold; yet notwithstanding of all your endeavour to keep them, ye fhall lofe them all. Death will part you and them: and, O how great will this lofs be to you who have no more!

(2.) When God punishes you, ye will sustain the lofs of the gofpel which now you enjoy and this will appear to be a vaft lofs then. The gofpel has in it treasures for the poor, eyes for the blind, feet for the lame, understanding for the fimple, peace for rebels, pardons for condemned malefactors, a title to heaven for the heirs of hell, life for the dead, happiness for the miferable: and to lofe all thefe, what lofs can be comparable to this? This lofs, when it is now fpoken of, may appear finall to you: but the day is coming, when

ye

ye will learn to put a high value upon it, after ye have loft it.

:

(3.) Ye will fuftain a vaft lofs; for infallibly ye lose heaven, if ye continue in your fins and who can tell what a loss that is? Who can found the depth of these rivers of pleasure that are at God's right band for evermore? Who can weigh that far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory? Who can take the dimenfions of that vaft inheritance of the faints in light? Who can declare the fweetness of the fruits of that paradife of plea-' fure? What eye can difcern, or let in juft apprehenfions of that blifs-giving fight which the faints enjoy above, where there are no clouds to obfcure the face of their fky? Well, what ever there is of these things, all thefe ye lofe. O immenfe lofs indeed!

We only name thefe things, defigning now to haften to another fubject. Would ye know how great a lofs ye fuftain in the firft inftance mention, ed? We may fend you to those who are wallowing in the delights of the fons of men, and who are glutting themselves with a prefent world. They will tell you ftrange things of your lofs by the removal of worldly comforts. If ye would underftand how great your lofs is, by the removal of the gofpel; go to thefe who have got a heart to embrace it, and they will give you a furprifing account of their enjoyments by it: but who can tell what heaven is? they only who have been there; and even scarce they, for furely they feel, they enjoy more than can be expreft. Now all these things ye lofe: but need I fay more? Ye lofe God, ye lofe your own fouls; and if ye lofe your own fouls, and gain a world, what profit have ye? yea, ye fuflain a vaft lofs; what must then your

lofs

lofs be, when ye not only lofe your own fouls, but lofe with it all that is in this world, all that is good and comfortable in that which is to come?

2. As ye fuftain a great lofs, fo ye muft fuffer a vaft torment. The former particular, viz. the punishment of lofs, I did only touch at, because I had occafion in the doctrinal part to discourse a little of it but here, when I come to fpeak of the punishment of fenfe, I fhall be a little more large, yet fo as not to exceed the bounds of this day's difcourfe. O finners, miferable are ye, if huge, vaft and intolerable torment can make you fo, A view of your mifery upon this account, I fhall give you in a very few particulars.

1. If ye would understand what your cafe is eternally to be, ye muft confider what of you it is that is to be eternally tormented: our Lord tells us of both foul and body's being deftroyed in hell. Matth. x. 28. Fear not them that kill the body, but are not able to kill the foul; but rather fear him who is able to destroy both foul and body in hell. And this gives us to understand what is to be the fubject of thefe torments finners are to fuftain. It is not a finger or a toe; it is not a tooth or a joint; no, but it is the whole man, foul and body, that are to be tormented. And how will ye be able to endure this? If a drop of fcalding water fall upon your hand, ye are ready to cry out of intolerable pain: but how will ye then bear it, when a full shower of brimstone, a deluge of burning wrath, will fall upon the whole man? Ye are not now able to hold your finger to the fire; how will ye then endure, when foul and body fhall be caft alive into devouring fire and everlasting burnings? If now the trouble of one part of the body occafion fo terrible diforder, what will

your

1

your cafe be, when every faculty of your fouls, every member, every joint, finew and artery of your body, fhall be brim-full of wrath?

(2.) Confider, Who is the contriver of thefe torments. There have been fome very exquifite torments contrived by the wit of men, the nanaing of which, if ye understood their nature, were enough to fill your hearts with horror; but all thefe fall as far thort of the torments ye are to elldure, as the wifdom of man falls short of that of God, who is wife, and will bring evil, Ifa. xxxi. 2. Infinite wisdom has contrived that evil, these torments which are to be the eternal portion of all impenítent finness. If man can find out a rack, a gridiron, a furnace heated feven times, for tormenting fuch as he has a mind to punish; what fhall we conceive to be the inventions of infinite wisdom, when it is fet on work to contrive a pu-* nishment for finners? Wifdom, infinite wifdom, well knows the frame, both of foul and body; it knows what faculty of the one or the other, are of moft exquifite fenfe, and what torments can work upon them. God fhews himfelf wife, notonly in bringing evil upon finners, but in contriving it, fo that it shall surpass what creatures can inflict.

3. Confider, Who is the inflictor of thefe torments, and this will give us a ftrange profpect of the mifery of those who fall under them. It is God, by his own immediate hand. And from this the apoftle reprefents the mifery of fuch who fhall fall under this punishment, For we know him that hath faid, Vengeance belangeth unto me, and I will recompenfe, faith the Lord and again, the Lord Shall judge his people. It is a fearful thing ta. fall into the hands of the living God, Heb. x. 30,

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