unregenerate state, as sure as the heavens are over thy head, and the earth under thy feet, thou shalt be shut out of the rest of the saints, and receive thy portion in everlasting fire. I expect thou wilt turn upon me and say, When did God show you the book of life, or tell you who they are that shall be saved, and who shut out? I answer, I do not name thee, nor any other; I only conclude it of the unregenerate in general, and of thee, if thou be such a one. Nor do

go about to determine who shall repent, and who shall not; much less, that thou shalt never repent. I had rather show thee what hopes thou hast before thee, if thou wilt not sit still, and lose them. I would far rather persuade thee to hearken in time, before the door be shut against thee, than tell thee there is no hope of thy repenting and returning. But if the foregoing description of the people of God does not agree with the state of thy soul, is it then a hard question, whether thou shalt ever be saved? Need I ascend up into heaven to know, that without holiness no man shall see the Lord; or, that only the pure in heart shall see God; or, that except a man be born again he cannot enter into the kingdom of God? Need I go up to heaven, to inquire that of Christ, which he came down to earth to tell us, and sent his Spirit in his apostles to tell us; and which he and they have left upon record to all the world?—And though I know not the secrets of thy heart, and therefore cannot tell thee thy name, whether it be thy state, or not; yet if thou art but willing, and diligent, thou mayest know thyself, whether thou art an heir of heaven or not. 'Tis the main thing I desire, that if thou art yet miserable, thou mayest discern and escape it. But how canst thou escape, if thou neglect Christ and salvation? 'Tis as impossible, as for the devils themselves to be saved. Nay, God has more plainly and frequently spoke it in scripture of such sinners as thou art, than he has of the devils. Methinks a sight of thy case would strike thee with amazement and horror. When Belshazzar saw the fingers of u man's hand that wrote upon the wall, his countenance was

changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote onė against another.(w) What trembling then should seize on thee, who hast the hand of God himself against thee, not in a sentence or two, but in the very scope of the scriptures, threatening the loss of an everlasting kingdom! Because I would fain have thee lay it to heart, I will show thee-the nature of thy loss of heaven-together with its aggravations.

§ 2. (I.) In their loss of heaven the ungodly losethe saint's personal perfection,-God himself,—all delightful affections towards God,—and the blessed society of angels and saints.

3. (1) The glorious personal perfection which the saints enjoy in heaven, is the great loss of the ungodly. They lose that shining lustre of the body, surpassing the brightness of the sun at noon-day. Though the bodies of the wicked will be raised more spiritual than they were upon earth, yet that will only make them capable of the more exquisite torments. They would be glad then, if every member were a dead member, that it might not feel the punishment inflicted on it; and if the whole body were a rotten carcase, or might lie down again in dust. Much more do they want that moral perfection which the blessed partake of: those holy dispositions of mind; that cheerful readiness to do the will of God; that perfect rectitude of all their actions. Instead of these, they have that perverseness of will, that loathing of good, that love to evil, that violence of passion, which they had on earth. "Tis true, their understandings will be much cleared by the ceasing of former temptation, and experiencing the falsehood of former delusions. But they have the same dispositions still; and fain would they commit the same sins, if they could: they want but opportunity. There will be a greater difference between these wretches, and the glorified Christians, than there is betwixt a toad and the sun in the firmament. The rich man's purple and fine 5, 6.

(a) Dan. v.
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linen and sumptuous fare, did not so exalt him above Lazarus, while at his gate full of sores.

§ 4. (2) They shall have no comfortable relation to God, nor communion with him. As they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, but said unto him, Depart from us, for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways; so God will abhor to retain them in his household. He will never admit them to the inheritance of his saints, nor endure them to stand in his presence, but will profess unto them, "I never knew you; depart from me, ye that work iniquity." They are ready now to lay as confident claim to Christ and heaven, as if they were sincere believing saints. The swearer, the drunkard, the whoremaster, the worldling, can say, Is not God our Father as well as yours? But when Christ separates his followers from his foes, and his faithful friends from his deceived flatterers, where then will be their presumptuous claim! Then they shall find that God is not their Father; because they would not be his people. As they would not consent that God by his Spirit should dwell in them, so the tabernacle of wickedness shall have no fellowship with him, nor the wicked inhabit the city of God. Only they that walked with God here, shall live and be happy with him in heaven. Little does the world know what a loss that soul hath, who loses God! What a dungeon would earth be, if it had lost the sun! what a loathsome carrion the body, if it had lost the soul! yet all these are nothing to the loss of God. As the enjoyment of God is the heaven of the saints, so the loss of God is the hell of the ungodly. And as the enjoying of God is the enjoying of all, so the loss of God is the loss of all.

§ 5. (3) They also lose all delightful affections towards God:-that transporting knowledge; those delightful views of his glorious face; the inconceivable pleasure of loving him; the apprehensions of his infinite love to us; the constant joys of his saints; and the rivers of consolation with which he satisfies them.

Is it nothing to lose all this? The employment of a king in ruling a kingdom, does not so far exceed that of the vilest slave, as this heavenly employment exceeds that of an earthly king. God suits men's employments to their natures. Your hearts, sinners, were never set upon God in your lives, never warmed with his love, never longed after the enjoyment of him; you had no delight in speaking or hearing of him; you would rather have continued on earth, if you had known how, then be interested in the glorious praises of God. Is it meet then that you should be members of the celestial choir?

6. (4) They shall be deprived of the blessed society of angels and glorified saints. Instead of being companions of those happy spirits, and numbered with those triumphant kings, they must be members of the corporation of hell, where they shall have companions of a far different nature and quality. Scorning and abusing the saints, hating them, and rejoicing in their calamities, was not the way to obtain their blessedness. Now you are shut out of that company, from which you first shut out yourselves; and are separated from them, with whom you would not be joined. You could not endure them in your houses, nor towns, nor scarce in the kingdom. You took them, as Ahab did Elijah, for the troublers of the land, and as the apostles were taken for men that turned the world upside down. If any thing fell out amiss, you thought all was owing to them. When they were dead or banished, you were glad they were gone, and thought the country well rid of them. They molested you by faithfully reproving your sins. Their holy conversation troubled your consciences, to see them so far excel you. It was a vexation to you to hear them pray, or sing praises in their families. And is it any wonder if you be separated from them hereafter? The day is near when they wil trouble you no more. Betwixt them and you will be a great gulph fixed. Even in this life, while the saints were mocked, destitute, afflicted, tormented, and while they had their personal imperfections; yet,

in the judgment of the Holy Ghost, they were such of whom the world was not worthy.(x) Much more unworthy will the world be of their fellowship in glory.

§ 7. (II.) I know many will be ready to think they could spare these things in this world well enough; and why may they not be without them in the world to come? Therefore to show them that this loss of heaven will then be most tormenting, let them now consider, their understandings will be cleared to know their loss,--and have more enlarged apprehensions concerning it; their consciences will make a closer application of it to themselves;-their affections' will no longer be stupified,-nor their memories be treacherous.

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§ 8. (1) The understanding of the ungodly will then be cleared to know the worth of that which they have lost. Now they lament not their loss of God, because they never knew his excellence; nor the loss of that holy employment and society, for they were never sensible what they were worth. A man that has lost a jewel, and took it but for a common stone, is never troubled at his loss; but when he comes to know what he lost, then he laments it. Though the understanding of the damned will not be sanctified, yet they will be cleared from a multitude of errors. They now think that their honours, estates, pleasures, health, and life, are better worth their la bour than the things of another world; but when these things have left them in misery, when they experience the things which before they did but read and hear of, they will be of another mind. They would not believe that water would drown, till they were in the sea; nor the fire burn, till they were cast into it: but when they feel, they will easily believe. All that error of mind which made them set light by God, and abhor his worship, and vilify his people, will then be confuted and removed by experience. Their knowledge shall be increased, that their sorrows may be increased. Poor souls! they would be

(x) Heb. xi. 36, 38.