5 s2 Book VI. JLooutug unto jlefus. Chap. 1. ~ea. 3. ----------~----~·~--------~----~ -;Cor.-;;. 42, q~alities; They """ [.wn in corrhftion, lJtt th£y .re r11i{id in ir.c.rr 11 pi'n; they 43, .44- were fowen in dijhonour, but raifcd "'. gl.,·y; they were fov;n in rrrAk?itfs, but raijid in powtr; thl) were fowcn ,natJtral bod!Cs. liut raifcd fpmtnal bodies. Tte Sun in its lhinings,, doth but /hadow fonh the glory of their bodies; ar.d this will in fome meafure torment Reprobate>, to fee the differer.ce Of their bodies and tte bodies of the Saints. 0 (.will they fay) yond are they, whom we ilefpifed, ard now are tl;ey honoured. See a world of Suns riling at cnce out of all pans Qf the Earth· fometimcs we li~ed on Earth, and we nevrr faw bin one Sun 1iiing in the £ail: bur Jo millions of Suns on Eaft, and Weft , and 1'\onh, ar.d South . 0 tl,ofc are the glorious Saints of Heaven; fee with what fwift and agil bodies 'they ore pre– paring to fly into the Air, to meet their Lord and Saviour tlHre; V.hileft in the mean time we rife with fuch (;cavy, dull, and defo1 med bcdies, that u ecannot moum, 0 what will become of us? why this is the day of refutreCtion. Tl e Aligefs l;ave been here to unfeal our graves, to roll away thdlones, and at d:eir {] out, and four.d of the Trumpet, our fcattered dufts have met together: and lo r.ow "c !land upon the Eanb. 4· No fooner the Saints raifed, and their fouls and bodies re-united with excellent Majdly, but then !hall all the e!ea of God, from firft to !aft be gat~errd together: if you ask whence? a~d whither? I anfwer --- · I. To the queflion whmce? from the fo11r winds, from one end of Heaven to ~nother. ( i.·r.) From all parts of the World from Eaft, and Weft, and No>th, 'ar.d South, from one end of Heaven to ano1her; a Vulgar term, in regard of cur light; for in it felf Heaven is round, and bath no end; the rnearing is, that not one Saint in all the world from A dam to the !aft m.an llJall be concealed, or lye hid; from the moll hi~den, inward , fecret bofom of the Earth all llJaJI be gathered; howfce1er thetr dufts may be fcamred into a thoufand thoufand pans, yet tbe power of Chrifi /hall reftore all d:ofe dufts, and bring them together imo their fe1eral compaCted bodies, 2. To the quefiion whether they !hall be gathered? Some fay to the Valley of Jod 3· 12. Jcho[haphat, from that Text, Let the Heathen be wakened, and c.me up to the Valley of 'fch•Jh•;hat, for thtre will I fit to j~tdge the Hrnthm round abcm; but I believe this Text bath rderence 10 a particular judgment of God upon Jfraels enemies which dwell round about Jerufalem, and nor to rl'e general day of judgment. ACts 1•11, 12• Othe>s fay to Mo>mt.Olivtt from that Text, This fame Jeflu rrhich i•. tak!n upfrom 'jlOU into Henvut, flut!l fo cor¥e m ltk.f manntr tU ye h~ve fun hnn go znto Heat'tn; then rewrned they ltnto Jerujalem from the Mount called Olivu. But I believe this Text fpeaks onely of the manner how Chrifi lhall come, and not of the !'lace ro which he !hail come. Indeed "tis not probable that either the Valley of {chojha– phat, or the Momlt of 0/ivet can be fuflicient place5 10 contain all tlJe men that ever were, are, and /];all be; and therefore if fuch a thing can be determined, I 1 Thef. 4 • 1;. !l10u Id rather appeal to that f cxr, Then IVe rrhich are alive and rm:ain, jha/1 be c.ught up together rrith them (that are rai(ed) in the clouds, to meet 1he Lord in the air. When Chrifi was askt this very <;ueflion, where Lord? whithn· /lJall the Saints Luke 1 7-3 7 • be gathered? where /];all the general judgment be? he anfwers, ;rhere(oever the bo7 is, thithrr will the Eagles be ·gathered togethtr. By the body, Clui!t meant himfelf, and by the Eagles Chrill meant his eleCt, oecaufe their yourh is renewed as the Eagles; now rhe ekCt mull: refon to Chrifl wberefoever he is, and the Apoflle is exprefs, that Chrifl is in 1he air, and in t!.e clouds: and therefore thither mufi the eleCt be gather– ·ed ; they lhall be caught up by the holy Angels into the clouds, to meet the Lord il:Z the air. vfe. 0 my brethren, wbt iights are thefe ! wlm changes, wonders, lhange face of things will b~ this day? how is it that we are not as frequent in the meditation of this Cumnion>as yero>he wa<, who. as he thoughr, heard d~ily tlm found , An{e ye det~d •nd come to :ud·'ment ? medunks afad and fenous conhderauon of rhefe paifages might-keep us dofe t~ Chrift; come try a Iinle, if in the hurryings of tbe day we are fo diltrael.ed that we cannot reach the fpiritual paq of ameditation, yer in the evening or 4nornil1g when all is ll:lll, or in the night-feafon when all is quiet, then ·labou~ '" pn!vem <Le day of doom ; (o realize it as if then we faw Chrifl ia the clouds, fending lris t\ng<>ls on this ernnd, away, and bring hither all the men, and women in the wcrld; and in the fir!I place gather my Saints together unto me, Ad.tnr, and Abraham, , thofe
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