abfent from the Lord; but when they are abfent from the Body, they shall be prefent with the Lord: That is, when they die, when they go out of thefe Bodies, they fhall go to Chrift, 2 Cor. 5. 6, 8. and this made it fo difficult a Choice to St. Paul, whether he fhould defire to live or die; by living he might do great Service to the Church; and therefore he was very well contented to live; but if he departed, he fhould be with Chrift, which is beft of all: For I am in a ftrait between two, having a defire to depart, and to be with Chrift; which is far better: Nevertheless, to abide in the Flesh is more needful for you, 1 Phil. 23, 24. And it is univerfally pronounced, Bleffed are the Dead which die in the Lord, from henceforth: Tea, faith the Spirit, that they may reft from their Labours, and their Works follow them, 14. Rev. 13. This evidently proves, that Good Men fhall be Happy as foon as they die; and befides the express Authority of our Saviour in the Parable of Dives and Lazarus, the Reafon of the thing proves, that Bad Men must be Miferable; that as the Happiness of Good Men commences with their Death, fo muft the Miseries of the Wicked.

Bad Men indeed many times live very happily in this World, for this is the time of God's Patience, while he waits to be gracious, not being willing any Should Perish, but that all fhould come to Repentance: But the Day of Grace ends with this Life; the next World is for Retributions; we muft there receive according to our Works: And therefore though we should suppose that the perfect Rewards of Good Men, and the perfect Miseries of the Wicked, should

be

be deferred till the Day of Judgment, when the Final Sentence fhall be pronounced, which fhall beftow Heaven upon Good Men, and Condemn the Wicked to Hell; yet the Punishment of Bad Men muft begin when they leave this World, becaufe God's Patience is then at an end; and the Rewards of Good Men muft begin too, because their Work and Lábour is at an end. And this has been the Univerfal Belief of Mankind, who have believed a Future State; though they knew nothing of a General Judgment, when all Mankind fhould be fummoned before God's Tribunal, yet they all believed, that when Bad Men died, they immediately went to a place of Punishment, and Good Men to Elyfium, a place of Rest and Happiness: For if we fhall be Rewarded and Punished in the next World, for what we have done in this, it is natural and reafonable to think, that our Rewards and Punishments fhall begin as foon as we go into the next World.

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2. And yet we read of no other Formal Judgment, but that Great and General Judgment, when the Son of Man fhall defcend from Heaven with a glorious Retinue of Angels to judge the World: If we examine all thofe exprefs Declarations of Chrift and his Apostles concerning Judgment; or those Parables of our Saviour which relate to it, we fhall plainly find, that they concern the Laft and General Judgment: It is in that Day, which relates to a certain determined Day of Judgment, that many fhall fay unto him, Lord, Lord, have we not Prophefied in thy Nome? 7. Matth. 22.

It is at the end of the World, when the Angels fhall feparate between the Wheat and the Tares, between the good and bad Fifh which were taken in the fame Net, 13. Matth. It is when the Son of Man fhall come in the Glory of his Father, with his Angels, that he shall reward every Man according to his Works, 16. Matth. 27. that is, as St. Paul fpeaks, when the Lord Jefus fhall be revealed from Heaven, with his Mighty Angels in flaming Fire, taking Vengeance on them that know not God, and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jefus Chrift; 2. Thef. 8. 9. God has given him Authority to execute Judgments because he is the Son of Man. And when he muft do this, he tells us, The Hour is coming, in the which all that are in the Graves fhall bear bis Voice, and fhall come forth, they that have done Good, to the Refurrection of Life; and they that have done Evil to the Refurrection of Damnation, 5. John 27, 28, 29. And in his Account of his judging the World, he tells us, When the Son of Man Shall come in his Glory, and all his Holy Angels with him, then fhall be fit upon the Throne of his Glory. And before him shall be gathered all Nations; and he fhall feparate them one from another,

as

a Shepherd Separateth the Sheep from the Goats, 25. Matth. 31, 32. Then it is, when the Man who Travelled into a far Countrey returns, and calls his Servants to an Account how they have improved their Talents, verfe 14, &c.

Chrift is the only Judge of the World, for all Judgment is committed to the Son; and he does not judge the World till his second Appearance, till he returns in the Glory of his Father,

with his Angels. The Apoftle to the Hebrews indeed tells us, It is appointed unto men once to die, and after Death the Judgment; which might feem to intimate a particular Judgment of all men as foon as they die; but he adds when this Judgment fhall be, in the next Verfe, So Chrift was once offered to bear the Sins of many; he died once for us, because we muft once die; and unto them that look for bim, shall be appear the fecond time, without Sin unto Salvation: That is, he fhall appear the second time to judge the World which fhews that this Judgment after Death, is the General Judgment, 9. Heb. 27, 28.

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And the truth is, if all men have final Sentence pafs'd on them, as soon as they go into the other World, it is very unaccountable why Christ at the laft Day fhall come with fuch a terrible Pomp and Solemnnity to Judge and Condemn those who are judged, judged, and condemned, and executed already, as much as ever they can be.

And therefore in the Parable of Dives and Lazarus, we have no mention of their being judged; but Lazarus was carried by an Angel into Abraham's Bofom; the Angels being minifring Spirits, fent forth to minifter for them who fhall be heirs of Salvation, 1.Heb.14. Thus they minifter to good men in this World, and do a great many kind Offices for us, which we know not of; and thus they minifter to us when we go out of this World, and conduct us to a place of

Eafe

,

Eafe and Reft; carry us fafe through the Crowds of evil Spirits which fill these lower Regions, into Abraham's bofom: but the rich man was dead and buried, and lift up his eyes in Hell, or Hades, (not Gehennah) which fignifies the State of Separate Souls, and it seems of wicked Souls, and was in Torment; but how he came thither, it is not faid: There is no notice given us of any Judgment which fat on him or who carried him thither ; and therefore if we may guess by the Analogy of the Parable, as Lazarus was carried by an Angel into Abraham's Bofom, fo Dives having no good Angel to guard him, fell into the hands of wicked Spirits; for the Devil is the Prince of the Power of the Air, the great Tempter of men while they live, and their Tormentor when they die; whoever is fo far rejected by God, as to be delivered up to the Power of wicked Spirits, without any restraint in their Malice and Gruelty, as wicked men are, when they die, need no other Punishment till the Day of Judgment, when they together with the Devil and his Angels fhall be caft into utter Darkness, where there is weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of Teeth for evermore. We know what cruel Tyranny the Devil exercised upon the Pagan World who fo Devoutly worshipped him; and what then muft the Cafe be of thofe wretched Souls who are delivered to him by God as their Jaylor and Tormentor, till the Day of Judgment? I will not fay this is the cafe though it feems no improbable Account of

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