wicked thoughts of many carnal men that when a man is dead, he is well! then all his fins die with him, he is forgotten, and his fius are not fpoken of. But St. John faith here, that even the dead must come to Judgment, even their old fins must come to light, and they muft anfwer for them. It is perhaps Six Thousand Years fince Cain flew his Brother, yet his fin shall not be forgotten; tho' Cain be dead long fince, yet his fins are not dead: No,no,Cain fhall one day come to account for his fin. Judas who betray'd his Mafter many hundred years ago, at this day fhall be called to account.

So in these our days many men think when they die,their fins fhall never be brought to light.

The Ufurer that by wicked means getteth wealth: when he dies perhaps he thinks he fhall never hear of his fin again. So the Drunkard, Swearer, Prophaner of the Sabbath, &c. they think that death will end all their Mifery, and that they fhall never come to Judgment, but they are deceived; and to prove the fame, Chrift faid to his Difciples, be of good chear tho' the World hate and revile you for my fake: yet he told them, for thofe jufferings here on earth, that they should fit upon twelve Thrones, and judge the twelve Tribes of Ifrael, a fhadow whereof we have in these our earthly Judgments, where you fee the Juftices and men of account fit with the Judge, which is a Token of Honour and Dignity in the fight of the People: not that they have to do with pronouncing Sentence, or with the Judgment: according to which we

read

read, Luke 13. 28. That there fhall be weeping and gnashing of teeth; when the ungodly which used no Confcience while they lived, nor once thought of their giving account, fhall fee Abraham, Ifaac and Jacob; meaning thereby all the godly and faithful, and all the Prophets in the Kingdom of Heaven; and themselves thruft out, and Heaven Gates fhut against them; being in that cafe Dives was, who in Hell be held Lazarus in Abraham's bofom, himself crying out for one drop of Water to cool that unquenchable heat which he fuffered, and could not obtain it. Then fhall thefe wicked worldlings which fet their hearts only on their riches, pleasures and preferments, when they fhall behold the righteous stand in great boldness and chearfulnefs, be grievously terrified with horri ble fear, and amazement.

And then fhall their Confciences accufe them, and their minds change within them, and figh with inward grief, and fay within themselves, These are they whom fometimes we had in derision, these are they whom we wronged in their Eftates, and whom we fo much oppreffed and fcorned; as indeed who are more derided in the World, than they that are well difpofed, and live in the fear of God? Thefe are they whom we had in derision, and faid unto our felves, We Fools thought their lives madness, and their ends without Honour: But now how is it that they are counted amongst the Children of God, and that their portion is a mong the Saints, and that they are so highly in

God's

God's favour? Therefore we have erred from the way of Truth, and the light of Righteousney's bath not shined unto us: And the Sun of understanding rofe not upon us: We have wearied our felves in the way of wickedness and destruction: And we have gone thro' dangerous ways, but we have not known the way of the Lord, nor lived in his fear, nor have we diligently walked with upright Confciences before God and Man. Ah (poor Souls) it were well with them indeed if Death might end their woful mifery: But alas, alas, Death is even as a wide Gate, to give them a paffage to endlefs woe and mifery. For when they are dead and buried, their fins dye not with them, their mifery is not then ended: O no, then begins their mifery and torment. Oh it were good they might no more have a being after Death; it had been good for fuch men if they had never been born; or being born, that they had been rather Toads or Serpents, for in death these have an end; but it is not fo with the wicked and ungodly finner; for when he is dead and buried, even then begins his greatest woe and mifery; for the finner that is dead many thoufand years, muft for all this come to Judgment. And therefore thou that liveft in Adultery, or any other fin whatfoever, Remember that tho thou die, yet thy fins die not with thee. No, no, both thou and thy fins muft one day come to Judgment. Solomon faith, Remember O young man that for all this thou must come to judgment: Thy old fins and those which thou haft committed in fecret, they must now come to light.

Seeing that the dead must come to Judgment that have lain fo many hundred years in the Grave, and that their old and fecret fins muft come to light; Oh let us then watch over our lives, and have this still in our minds; well tho' I die, an rot in the Grave, yet my fins shall not die, my evil ways cannot be forgotten, they muft come to light, fo that we may never dare to fin, thinking, as many do, that when they are once dead they must never come to an account for their fins. But St. John faith here, That the dead were judged, even those whom we forget, and whole fius we would think would never be called to account,even they must come to a reckoning: For God will bring every work to Fudg. ment, with every fecret thing, whether it be good or evil, Eccl. 12, 14. Which will be a terror to the wicked But the Saints of God are not afraid of the Tribunal, or Judgment-Seat; but in the quiet of a good Confcience they comfort themselves in Jefus Chrift. God Punisheth all our fins in strictness of Right, but hath Mercy in Transferring the Punishment uponJesus Christ,

In the next place St. John tells us how men fhall be tryed, and according to what evidence Sentence fhall be awarded; namely, according to thofe things written in their Books. Here is the Evidence, here is no witness to be produced; for a man's Confcience fhall be even as a thousand 'witnesses. Now what is here meant by the Books you have heard already; namely, the particular Confcience of every man and woman. Saith the Samaritan woman behold,

come

come and fee a man which hath told me all things which I have done. Just fo will our Confciences witness against us; thy Confcience is the Book that is the Evidence: Again, the things that are written in the Book, I told you they are all our evil thoughts, words and works; not only our grofs fins, as Murther, Adultery, Drunkennefs, &c. But in our Books is recorded, even our idle and vain words, every idle and filthy thought, our clofe and fecret fins, nay, our whispering and covert fins, fuch fins will then be brought to light, which now we have almost forgotten. While we lived, we fowed our words and idle thoughts as a Husbandman doth This feed, which will one day rife up again which we long ago thought had been forgotten and intombed. Mans Confcience is Gods Regifter, as one day will appear plainly and evidently to our forrow, we fhall hear again of every light. tranfgreflion, and idle word that we do but whisper against our neighbour, and by this fentence must proceed, and according to our deferts muft Judgment be awarded.

Now then, thofe which have good and holy thoughts, written in their Book, they are bleffed and happy, for they fhall not be ashamed; Dy, they fhall be glad to have their Books laid open, that their Obedience, Repentance, Faith, Love, Zeal, Patience, &c. may be known and come to light: But woe then to all filthy Adulterers, &c. For the reward of thefe fins is death, the wrath and curse of God for ever.

But when our caufe cometh to be tryed be

fore