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piftle;) men, who notwithstanding they profeffed themselves Jews, lived like Heathens, diffolutely, without regarding any of the rules, or restraints of religion made the beft of this world, and had no hopes, no thoughts of another. Senfual wits. they were, who, 'tis probable, took pleasure in ridiculing the notion of a life to come, and faying fcornfully of it, that it was a dark invifible ftate, of which they knew nothing, and could not easily believe much, till they had fome more authentic accounts of it, than as yet had been given them. Might they indeed receive news from thence, by an hand that was to be relied on; would any of their old companions in vice, who had made the faid experiment, be fo kind as to return and cer, tify them of what he had learnt, they fhould readily give up their affent to fo commanding an evidence, and fuit their practices to that perfuafion: But till they faw fomewhat of this nature done, they defired to be excufed,

To confute thefe vain reafonings and pretences, our Saviour made ufe of that inftructive and affecting parable, which concludes with the words I have read to you. I need not lay before you the feveral circumftances of that parable: It is fufficient, if I put you in mind, how, towards the clofe of it, the rich man is reprefented, lifting up his eyes from the place of punishment allotted to him in the other world, difcerning branam afar off, and Lazarus together with him in glory; and making this request, among others, to the bleffed patriarch, that he would pleafe to fend Lazarus to his five brethren, now alive, in order. to testify unto them, left they also (fays he) come in.

to this place of torment. A requeft, very fitly addreffed to Abraham, the father of the Jew!/b nation, on the account both of his great familiarity and friendship with God, which might enable him, and his known character of compaffion and tenderness †, which would incline him to perform it. Nevertheless, thraham, instead of indulging the fupplicant in his defire of new evidence, refers him to that, which his brethren already had; They have Mofes and the prophets, let them hear them: They have Mofes and the Prophets, whom God, for my fake, and in virtue of the covenant made with me and my feed, fent to there forefathers, and by whom he revealed his own will, and their duty, in a more ample manner than it had been declared to any of my defcendants before them. This standing revelation, which they (and which none but they, and the rest of my feed) enjoy, was attefted in the moft folemn, authentic, and credible manner; and is fufficient to influence their faith and praEtice, if they do but attend to it; They have Mofes and the Prophets, let them hear them. Not fatisfied with this answer, the tormented perfon renews his interceffion, with the fame freedom that the patriarch himself had once used in behalf of the Sodomites; reprefenting further to zbraham, that the means of conviction, which his brethren enjoyed, though fufficient, yet not having prevailed, it would be great charity to try others; and that the expedient now propofed, could not fail of fuccefs: Nay, Father Abraham, but if one went

a Chron,xx. 7. I. xli. 8 Ja. ii. 23. Gen. xviii. 23, &c.

unto

unto them from the dead, they will repent. He thought fo, but Abraham knew otherwife; and therefore fhuts up the difcourfe with this full and and final refolution of the cafe, That, If they heard not Mofes and the prophets, neither would they be perfuaded, though one rofe from the dead. The meaning of which words, when caft into a general propofition, is, that "They, who are ་ not induced to believe and live as they ought "to do, by thofe difcoveries which God hath "made, and thofe commands which he had gi66 ven to them in fcripture; would stand out a"gainst any evidence, any application whatsoever; "even that of a meffenger, fent exprefs from the "other world, to inform and reclaim them."

This is, I confefs, a very furprizing truth, and not likely to be entertained readily, upon the first propofal. That I may, therefore, fet it in as clear a light as is poffible, I fhall endeavour, in what follows:

1. To ftate and limit the due extent of it.

II. To confirm the truth, so stated, by various arguments and reflections. After which, I fhall,

III. Deduce fome inferences from it.

As to the extent of this affertion, we may obferve,

I. First, That it is evidently to be understood of fuch perfons only, as are placed in the fame circumftances

circumstances with the five brethren in the parable; fuch, confequently, as have been born, where the true religion is profeffed and bred up in the belief of it; have had all the early prejudices of education on the fide of truth, and all manner of opportunities and advantages towards acquainting themfelves with the grounds of it; and yet, notwithstanding all thefe advantages, have thut their eyes againft it, and withftood its force. For, as to others, who have lived under the guidance of reafon alone, without the affiftance of fupernatural light, it is highly probable, that tho' Mofes and the prophets [the tenor of a divine revelation], when firft propofed to them, fhould not; yet miracles, or a meffage from the dead, would perfuade them; according to what is elfewhere laid down by our Saviour, that, If the mighty works, which were done in Chorizin and Bethfaida, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented in fackcloth and afbes, Matt.

xi. 21.

Secondly, Neither is the affertion to be rigoroufly extended to all thofe, who have been educated under the influence of a divine revelation, and yet lived in oppofition to the rules of it; For there is great reafon to believe, that there are many perfons, who, through the heat of their lufts and paffions, through the contagion of ill example, or too deep an immersion in the affairs of life, fwerve exceedingly from the rules of their holy faith; and yet would, upon fuch an extraor dinary warning as is mentioned in the text. be brought to comply with them. But this truth is pointed chiefly, if not folely, upon finners of the

first rate, who have caft off all regard for piety and goodness; have fet up for a life of fenfe, and are wicked by principle; for fuch likewise those five brethren were; they lived in the fame degree of luxury, and uncharitablenefs, as their dead brother had done; they heard not Mofes and the prophets, believed nothing of religion, of its threatenings or its promises; looked upon all revelation as a cheat, and all pretenders to it, as impoftors. Of fuch as these we may fuppofe the text to affirm, that even a meffage from the dead would not be fufficient to reclaim them. We may observe,

Thirdly, That even of thefe profligate creatures themselves it is not faid, That fo aftonifhing a fcene would make no manner of impreffion, would have no prefent influence upon them; but only, That it would not produce a lafting effect, nor work an entire converfion. It is certain, that they would be very much roufed and awakened by fuch a fight; but they would not, however, be convinced and reformed; un wedneovlar, fays the original; an expreffion of fome force, which our English tranflation doth not fully reach, and which plainly fignifies, that they would not be fo far wrought upon, as to change their whole mind and course of life, and become new creatures.

Regard being had to thefe feveral reftrictions, the doctrine of the text may, I hink, be more fully reprefented to you after this manner: "That where "men have been brought up in the firm belief of * à divine revelation, and have afterwards fha"ken it off, have reafoned themselves not only into a difbelief, but a contempt of it, and given "themfelyes up to commit iniquity with greedinef VOL. II.

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