2 8 (brill his fecondAdvent, or, r. In Chills coming. Rev. i. a. The lodg- ment it felt, Two Iudge. mento. t. Particular B.; General. darkned, the Moon (hall lofe her light ; thy Stars fhall fall front heaven, the very powers ofheaven fhall be.fhaken, thefoundations ofthe heavens fhalltremble. Alas, what (hall the little (bruin in the Wildernefs do, when the tall Cedars of heaven (hall be fhaken ? what Ilaall poor fnful man do, when the Angels (hall be a- fraid ? The laft fign (hall be in Chrifts coming to judgement, Mat. 24. Z. it is called, the fignofthe Sonof man ; Thenfhall appear theftgn.of the Sox ofman ; andthen all the tribes of the earthfhall mourn. What this fign of the Son of. man is, Divines do vary. Some hold it is the fign of the Crofs, which all eyes thall behold, even they that piercedhim, as7ohn faith, kev. ;. Some others ( which I rather affcnt unto ) take it to be the glorious beams of ChriftsMajefty,immediately before his perfonal appearance to enlighten the world, beingdarkned,by reafon of the want of thelight of the Sun and Moon. So you fee what hefe figns fhall be. The fignsthat prognofticate Chrifts coming. Thofe that (hall be fulfilled long before, they are all effe4ed, but one, as you heard. Therefore it Rands us all upon, as wife Virgins, to prepare oyl in our lamps, that ,whenour Bride groomChrift (hall cotne,we may be ready to enter into eternal joy.. So we come from thefign that prognofticate the judgement,to the judgement it (elf. Concerning thejudgementit felf ; you muft know that after death there are two judgements; . There isaparticular,andZludgement. there is a general Theparticularjudgement is immediately,as foon as ever the breath is goneonto[' the body. As foon as ever the foul is goneout ofthe body, it isconduEtcdj ythe Angels before the Tribunal feat of God, and there receives the particular fentencet either of joy or torment, according as it lived inthe body in this life. Weneed not fpeak of this ; we have example for theproofof it in Scripture, of Divesand haz.a- rats, the one whereof being dead, was prefently carried to joy, the other prefentey to torment. Theother is a general judgement ; facalled, becaufe it (hall be ofall men in ge, neral that ever lived, and breathed upon the face ortbe earth, men, women, and children ; all Ihall be prefented before the Tribunal feat ofChrift ; all mutt hold up their hands at the Bar of his judgement ; ail inuft give an account of all their words,thoughtsand a&ions: all muff receive the lcntence either of, Comeye bleed, or, go ye curfed. After which fentence once pronounced, there lhall never queftion be made of the endof the joyof the one, or the cafe of the torments of the other. . uefl. But herearifeth a queftion ; you know theworldconlîffs but of two forteof per.. fons, believers andunbelievers. For the believer it is evident and plain, 3oh.s.zj.. He is paled already fromdeath to life ; he bath everlafting life already ; he (hail not come into judgement. And for the unbeliever it is as plain, 3oh.3. r8. that he is already condemned , even already : both are judged already , both the believer and unbeliever ; the believer is Paved already the unbeliever is damned already, what need therefore a general, a fecondJudgement ? To this I anfwer,thatthereis averygreat need of ir,both in refpedt of thejuftice, and ofthe mercy of God, whole property it is alway to reward the godly, and to punifh the wicked, which feting he doth lotto the full in thislife,it snuft needs be that a daywill come thathe will fully do it. Youknow the courte of the Lord, as David fpeaks ; good men have bands in their death, and wickedmen are lofty andftrong; goodmen are in evil condition; and wickedmen in profperity. Diogenes the Cinnick, fetingHarpalus a thief long in profperity; he was bold to fay, that wicked vfarpalus his livinglong in profpe- rity, it was an argumentto Diogenes, that Godhad caft offhis care ofthe world, that he refile&ed not mens affairs. And indeed the profperity of the wicked, bath brought the Saints ofGod to a fraud. David; foot flipped almoft in feeingtbe pro fperlty lob. 5.24. Ioh, ;. ta. enfw: Necellùy of a day of lodge- ment.
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