Cap.43. cut off his members, fays he, I have received thefe from Heaven, and now I do give them unto the God of Heaven, and I hope I fhall have them again: Let us be willing to put our bodies to pain; if our bodies fuffer hunger, or thirst,or nakedness,or be tyred, or fuffer Imprifonment, or any violence be offered to our bodies in the caufe of God, What great matcaro iu fua perditione, ter is it? we fhall receive our bodies in another Hel vinca maner. The overcoming of the flesh is the deftrutur in gletion of it, but the overcoming the flesh, is the glory of it.

Nevinett

rium.

When we speak of the happiness of our fouls, we are not fo capable of it; but when we speak of the happiness of our bodies, we are fenfible of that. Now certainly, there shall be much more for our bodies, here is a way to provide for your bodies: Lay up provifion for your flesh, is fpoken as an argument of a carnal heart, in Rom. 13. 14. the Apoftle exhorts them, not to make provifion for the flesh, to fulfil the lufts thereof: but there is a way of laying up provifion for the flesh that is lawful, and that this day I exhort you too. If you love your bodies, be godly: if you did believe these things were fo, would not these make you love godliness? if I fhould come unto you, and fhew you how you might get fome good for your bodies, then I fhould prevail with you: give fome credit to that we fay now, if you will not believe these things, I may fay unto you as the Prophet said unto the Noble man that would not believe there could be great plenty, fays he, Thou shalt fee the great plenty with thine eyes, but thou shalt not eat of it; fo if you will not believe the great things that the Minifters of God fpeak of in his name to you,

your

your eyes shall one day fee those despicable, contem- Cap.43. ptible bodies of the Saints in this glory,though you hall not be partakers of any of it.

2.

plendor a

Nimirum

habebit lux

orporum?

Now for the perfection of the foul: As the foul is of a far larger extent then the body, fo it is more capable of happiness then the body is; and that being the proper feat of godliness, fo it fhall be the more rewarded: What fplendor fhall the foul have Qualis crit (fays Bernard) when the body shall shine gloriously as the Sun? All that we can fay for the foul for the pre- um folis fent, because we understand fo little of the foul, is,plendorem That the foul fhall not depend upon the body, as it does now for its operation. And the foul fhall no way be hindred by the body, as now it is hindred here. And all the faculties of the foul fhall be extended to the utmost: Now if an infinite power can extend the leaft degree of power to fuch an heighth in the members of the body; much more can an infinite power extend the faculties of an immortal foul, that is capable of a great deal more power then the body is. Befides, as the faculties are extended, fo all the graces of Gods Spirit, that the Saints of God have here, fhall be extended to the heighth, and they are capable of a higher extention then any thing that is natural; for the more fpiritual a thing is, the more capable it is of extention. As the plant is more capable to be drawn out to an higher excellency then a stone, and the sensitive creature to an higher excellency then the plant; and the rational creature to an higher excellency then the fenfitive,and grace,which is fupernatural,can be extended to an higher excellency then the natu ral: Befides, what increated excellency we might imagine

Cap.43. imagine could poffibly be put upon it fball be; who could have thought that the humane nature should have had an hypoftatical union with the body of Chrift and as God hath done for the bodies of men,more then all the Angels could have invented: fo there is to be communicated to the foul more then can be invented.

Thirdly, the perfection of body and foul, does confift in the majesty of the perfon being united together: you know when Chrift was here in the flesh, in the eftate of his humility, when he did let out but one beam of his majesty, those who came to apprehend him were not able to stand,but fell backward; if Chrift by letting out fome small beams of his majefty, could make men fall backward, how glorious muft he needs be, when those full beams of his majefty fhall be let out? the majesty of the Saints fhall have fome proportion with his, and that very great,which muft needs follow from that which hath been faid. We read of Stephen, that when he stood before the Councel arraigned as a malefactor, it is faid, They looked upon his countenance, and it was as the face of an Angel: O what majefty will appear in the countenances of the Saints hereafter! And as in Adam in the estate of Innocency, there was fuch majefty in his countenance, that all the beafts were afraid of him, what will be the majefty of God in his Saints then, as they shall be hereafter? It is faid of Bafil, when he was fent for to be taken by his Perfecutors, being in holy exercises, there appeared fuch a majefty in his countenance, that those that came to take him, were not able to stand before him. There is a majesty in the

523

the countenance of Gods people, when they walk Cap.44. close with God; but how much more will there be majesty in their countenances hereafter: So that you fee Gods people fhall not onely be glorious within, as the Kings daughter is glorious within ; but Pfal.42. they fhall be glorious outwardly. And fo much for the first thing, The perfection of the natures of the Saints.

CHAP. XLIV.

The glory that fhall be put upon the Saints at the Great
Day.

S

Econdly, the glory that shall be put upon them
at the day of Judgement.

First, the glory of the day it felf fhall be their glory; for it fhall be nothing else, but the folemnity of the marriage of the Lamb: Here there is a contract between the Lamb and his Bride, but the folemnity of the marriage is referved to that great day, and all the glory of the day fhall be to fet out the folemnity of it, and God himself shall appear in his glory to make the day glorious. As the Parents upon the marriage day, appear in as much glory as they can, that they may honor the day; fo God shall appear in his glory in the folemnizing of the marriage between Chrift and his Spoufe: And as the Bridegroom comes forth in his glory, fo Christ will come in his glory, with all his Angels in their glory. As all the fervants of the Bridegroom put on their beft array upon the marriage day, fo all the Angels fhall

appear

Cap.41. appear in their luftre and beauty; and this sets out the wonderful glory of the Saints that shall be at that day, notwithstanding all the glory of the Fa ther, and Christ, and the Angels that shall be then, yet they fhall not lofe their glory. The Stars lofe their fhining luftre when the Sun rifes, because their light is nothing in comparison of the great light, but the luftre of the Saints fhall be bright fhining and glorious, even in the prefence of the glory of the Father, and of Jesus Christ, and of all the bleffed Angels.

Great things will be done that day; there will be the Great Supper that God will make for the folemnizing of the Marriage, and the great meeting of the Saints with Chrift: O what falutations can you imagine will there be between Christ and his members! and being met, the sentence of AbSolution fhall be pronounced before men and Angels: Chrift fhall honor the Saints before all the world, and fay, Thefe are they, these are the men for whom the eternal counfels of my Father did work to make them glorious; these are they for whom I came into the world, and shed my blood, and laid down my life, these are they in whom I am to be glorified for ever. Again, the glory of the day fhall be in fetting of the Saints with Chrift upon thrones, in judgement, to judge the whole world, the Monarchs and great ones of the earth; and fo to be honored in the eyes of those that were their enemies, and contemned, and reproached them, and vilified them before,and likewife their glory fhall be in this,to rejoyce in the execution of the fentence that is pronounced upon those that are condemned. Lastly, their glory fhall