Lect. VIII. Pious + Father has very well obferv'd, and which is the beft Computation we can make, Then may this great Day of Fudgment be faid to come to any Man, when that Day comes wherein be shall depart hence in the fame Stare and Condition as he shall be Fudged in the great Day: And therefore it concerns us to be as well prepar'd for the Day of our Death, as if it were the general Day of our Fudgments For as the Tree falls, fo it lies, and as Death, leaves us, fo will Judgment find us. We ought therefore to be frequently calling our felves to an Ac count before hand, and to Judge our felves here, that we may not be Condemned hereafter.

III. Let us confider who it is that is to be our Judge, and that is even our Lord and Saviour Fefus Chrift, for it is [He] that shall come to Judge the Quick and the Dead, of whom we have been fpeaking in most of the foregoing Articles. And this is evident from his own Account of the laft Judgment, Mar. 25. And from what he told the Jews, That the Father Fudgeth no Man, but hath committed all Judgment to the Son, John 5. 22. And St. Pazitells us, That he has appointed a Day in which he will Judge the World in Righteousness, by that Mancoban be bar ordained whereof be has given affu rance unto all Men in that he has raised him from the Dead, Acts 17.31.0

Now this again will afford a great deal of Comfort to thofe that truly believe in Chrift, when they confider that he who was their Saviour is to be their Fudge. How chearfully may they come to this great Tribunal (before which the proudeft Tyrants of the Earth will crouch and tremble) when they know that the Judge himfelf is their Friend, whom they have faithfully ferv'd and o bey'd, and lov'd, and waited for all their Lives, and is now come to deliver them from this present evi

†Tunc cuique veniet dies ille, cum venerit ei dies, ut talis hune exeat, qualis judicatus erit in illo die.

World

World, as it is called, Gal. 1. 4. And to take them to himself, that where he is they may be alfo. And therefore they may well be faid to love his appearing, as it is, 2 Tim. 4.8. And by our Saviour himself they are encourag❜d to rejoyce at the approach of any Signs of his. coming, Luke 21. 28. When thefe things begin to come to pass, then look up and lift up your Heads, for your Redemption draweth nigh.

1

IV. Let us confider who they are that are to be Fudg. ed, even all Mankind that ever have been, are at prefent, or ever fhall be in this World: For all these are .comprehended in the Phrafe here used of [the quick and the dead. And thus St. Peter tells us, Ads 10. 42. That he was ordain'd of God to be the Fudge of Quick and Dead: And 1 Eph. 4. 5. That we must give an account to him that is ready to fudge the Quick and the Dead. In which places (as well as in our Creed) we muft understand by the [Dead, all that are departed this Life, or fhall hereafter die before the Day of Judgment; and by the [quick] all that are now living, or fhall then remain alive at Chrift's coming; and this takes in all Mankind.

Now if Chrift fhall come to judge both the quick and.. the dead, there is then no hopes for any to escape, but all must appear before this great Tribunal, to give an ac count of what they have done, and be rewarded according to their Works. In this World fome are too loo and mean, and not worth the taking notice of, and thers are too great and powerful to be called to account. Some are fo cunning as to evade the Law, and others even kill themselves to avoid the Rigor of it; as Tibe.rius faid of one, Carnufius me evafit, He has efcap'd nie, when he heard he had made himself away to avoid Torture. But there is no way to efcape from him who fh all Judge both the Quick and the Dead, whatever means may be attempted, Rev. 6. 15.-17, The Kings of the Earth, and the great Men, and the rich Men, and the chief Captains, and the mighty Men, and every Bondman, and e very Freeman, hid themfelves in the Dens, and in the

Roc s

t

Lect. VIII. Rocks of the Mountains, and faid to the Mountains and Rocks, fall on us, and bide us from the Face of him that fitteth on the Thrones and from the Wrath of the Lamb : for the great Day of bis Wrath is come, and who shall be able to ftand!

V. Laftly, Let us confider the Dreadfulness of this great Day of Judgment to thofe that are unprepar'd for it. And that will appear in feveral Particulars.

1. In refpect of the Signs of Chrift's coming, of which we have an account, Luke 21. 25, 26. There shall be Signs in the Sun and the Moon, and in the Stars,and upon the Earth diftrefs of Nations, with perplexity, the Sea and the Waves roaring; Mens Hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after the things that are cont ing on the Earth; for the Powers of Heaven fhall be sha

ken.

2. In refpect of the ftria Account that must then be made, when every idle word that Men fhall Speak, they muft give account thereof in the Day of Judgment, Mat. 12. 36. And Solomon tells us, That God will bring eve ry Work into Judgment, with every fecret thing, wherher it be good, or whether it be evil, Ecclef. 12. 14.

3. In refpect of the many and great Accufers who will tlhen appear against 'em. As first, Satan, who drew them into Sin, yet will be the first to accuse them of it. Then all whofoever they have wrong'd or injur'd, fhall put in their Plea againft 'em and be heard,tho' they could ha ve no Redress nor Relief here on Earth. Then all the go od Creatures of God which they have fo often abused, will cry out against 'em; and above all their own Confciences will be as a thousand Witneffes to convince and cor idemn them. And, i

4. In refpect of the dreadful Punishment to which they fhall then be adjudg'd, even to drink of the Wine of the Wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the Cup of his Indignation; and to be tormented with Fire and Brimftone,-where they shall have no reft Day

nor

nor Night, but the Smoak of their Torment shall afcend up for ever and ever, Rev. 14. 10, 11.

Now 'tis a common thing for Men to repeat the Creed, and among the reft this Article, wherein they profess to believe that Chrift fhall come to Judge the Quick and the Dead; but if they did indeed believe it, or ferioully confider what they fay, one would think they should no longer continue in those Sins, the remembrance of which will be fo terrible to them in that dreadful Day of Fudgment. Let us not therefore put that evil Day far from us, but rather with St. Hierome, think that we always hear that Voice in our Ears, Arife ye Dead, and come to Judgment. And let us follow the Counfel and Advice of Chrift himfelf, who is to be our Judge, as it is recorded upon this occafion, Luke 21. 34,36. Take beed to your felves, left at any time your Hearts be overcharged with Surfeiting, and Drunkenness, and Cares of this Life, and fo that Day come upon you unawares: For as a Snare Shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole Earth. Watch ye therefore and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to ftand before the Son of Man.

LECTURE IX.

I believe in the Holy Ghofl: the Holy Catholick Church, the Communion of Saints, the Forgiveness of Sins, the Resurrection of the Body, and the Life Eberlafting. Amen.

WE. are now come to the Third General Part of

the Creed, which is concerning God the Holy Ghoft, and his Sanctification of the Church in order to Glory. Wherein Ifhall treat.

Of the Holy Ghost, his Perfon and Offices. And, 2. Of the Church, and the Priviledges communicated to it by the Holy Spirit. M

I. Ihall begin with thefe words [I believe in the Holy Ghoft.Now the word Ghoft is an old word, fignifying Spirit, and hereafter in this Catechifm we read of Ghaftly Dangers, and Ghoftly Enemies, that is fuch as are Spiritual. And in Scripture the Third Perfon in the Bleffed Trinity is promifcuoufly called the Holy Ghoft, or the Holy Spirit. For tho' the Bleffed Angels and Pious Souls departed be Spirits, and Holy Spirits too, yet they are feldom fo denominated, that being a Title pe. culiar to the Holy Ghoft. Concerning whom I fhall fay fomething,

1. Of his Perfon. 2. Of his Offices.

And,

(1.) As to his Perfon, we are to believe not only that he is God, but also that he is Co-eternal and Co-equal with the Father and the Son, tho' another Perfon, diftinct from them both. For the Proof of which I need not repeat what has been faid on the firft Article, concerning the Bleffed Trinity. I fhall only add one confiderable Teftimony, not there mention'd, 1 John 5. 7. There are Three that bear Record in Heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghoft and these three are One. I know Monfieur Le Clerc excepts against this Paffage, as not Authentick, being not to be found (as he fays) in any of the ancient Greek or Latin Manufcripts. And he fuppofes, with Father Simon, that this was at first only a Marginal Note by way of Explanation of the 8th Verfe, and afterwards by others put into the Text. For he will not affirm (tho' he plainly infinuates) that it was fuppofititioufly inferted by the Orthodox, whereas it is more likely, according to St. Jerome, that it had been ftruck out by the Fraud of the Arians. For the latter Verfe concerning the Three that bear witness in Earth, has a plain reference to the former, concerning the Three that bear Record in Heaven.But then again he would