"for fear, for the powers of heaven fhall be fhaken.” And yet, which is wonderful, fuch fhall be the frange defection that fall fall upon the generality of mankind, that they fhall not fo much as fufpect the coming of our Lord, till they fee him in the clouds. "For as a fnare "fhall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the "earth," Luke xxi. 35. II. The concomitants of the resurrection. First, The appearance of Christ perfonally in the air, with infinite glory and majetty, Matth. xxiv. 30. Luke: xxi. 27. Mark xiii. 26. All the angels of heaven attending upon him, Matth. xxv. 31. And as their and our Lord fhall vifibly appear in the greatest glory that can be conceived, fo doubtlefs the angels, his royal attendants, shall Fut on their best dress of glory, confpicuous unto the very fenfe; and the sense of the beholders thall be so advanced, as once Elifha's fervants were, 2 Kings vi. 17. That they fhall behold the glory of those pure and incorporeal creatures attending the throne of our Saviour in the clouds. ་་ Secondly, A majeltical and loud fummons, by the voice of an arch-angel, at the command of Christ, fammoning all that ever were to their refurrection. And at this pow-erful fummons, the graves fhall yield up their dead, Matth. xxiv. 31. "He fhall fend his angels with the great found "of a trumpet, and they fhall gather together his elect " from the four winds," I Cor. xv. 52. "For the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorrup-tible, and we fhall be changed," 2 Theff. iv. 16. "For "the Lord himself thall defcend from heaven with a fhout, "with the voice of an arch-angel, with the trump of "God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first.” And thus, as when God almighty appear'd from heaven at the giving of the law, to augment the terribleness, majelty, and folemnity of that day, there was not only a visible discovery of the prefence of God in that great and terrible fire unto the midst of heaven, Deut. iv. 12. But there was the terrible found of a trumpet, that founded long, "and waxed louder and louder," Exod xix. 19. "That "fhook the very mountain,” Exod xix 18. "And amaz"ed and terrified the hearers," Heb. xii. 19. So in that great day, to add to the majesty and terribleness thereof, there fhall be not only objects of glory and amazement unto anto the eye, but a powerful voice that fhall be heard from one end of heaven to the other, fummoning all to judgment. Thirdly, A miffion of the holy angels, to receive the elect from the womb of the grave, and to conduct them unto the presence of Chrift their Redeemer. Matth. xxiv. 31. They fhall gather together the elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven unto the other." Thus the pure and glorious angels glory in this office, to be miniftring fpirits for them who fhall be heirs of falva"tion." Hab. i. 14. Miniftring for them in their infancy, when they are not able to help themfelves. Matth. 'xviii. 10. "Their angels behold the face of my Father." Miniftring for them in their fufferings, as they did to Peter and Paul. Miniftering for them in their death, and watching the expiring of their fouls, to conduct them to a place of reft, as they did for Lazarus, Luke xvi. 22. And miniftring for them in their refurrection, to conduct them to the prefence of their Saviour. Fourthly, An immediate change of all the perfons that fhall be then living upon the face of the earth, equivalent to a resurrection; in an instant feparating from them all thofe corruptible qualities that attend our houses of clay. 1 Cor. xv. 52. "The dead fhall be raised, and we fhall "be changed." And it fhould feem by the apostle, that the refurrection fhall go before that change, at least in fome small distance, or portion of time, 2 Theff. iv. 16, 17. "And the dead in Chrift fhall rife first, then we which are alive and remain, fhall be caught up toge "ther with them." III. The confequents of the refurrection are principally these; 1. A diffolution of the present frame of the world, at least in respect of the present constitution of it. 2 Pet. iii. 10. "The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, wherein the heavens fhall pass away with a great "noife: the elements fhall melt with fervent heat: the "earth, alfo, and the works that are therein, shall be up." 2. The laft judgment: and this takes in the third general confideration of the state of the foul and body in the laft aft judgment. And therefore we shall confider it diftinct ly: First, The Judge. Secondly, The perfons to be judged. Thirdly, The rule by which they fhall be judged. Fifthly, The execution of the judgment. First, Touching the Judge; it fhall be Chrift Jefus, our Mediator, God and man in one perfon, Matth. xxiv. 31. "When the Son of man thall come in his glory, and "all the holy angels with him, then fhall he fit upon the "throne of his glory: and before him fhall be gathered "all nations." 2 Cor. v. 10. "For we muft all appear "before the judgment-feat of Chrift, that every one may "receive the things done in his body," &c. 2 Theff. i. 7. "When our Lord Jefus fhall be revealed from heaven, "with his mighty angels in flaming fire." True it is, that the authoritative judgment is the Father's, but he hath committed the exccution, or adminiftration of this great tribunal to the Son. Hence our Saviour faith, John V. 22, 27. "The Father hath committed all judgment to "the Son." Acts xvii. 31. "He hath appointed a day "in the which he will judge the world by the Man whom " he hath ordained." And hence it seems to be, that Dan. vii. 9, 13. "The ancient of days did fit, and his"throne was like the fiery flame, and thousand thousands "miniftred unto him. And the judgment was set, and "the books were opened." In the 13th verfe, "One "like the Son of man came to the ancient of days, and "there was given him dominion, and glory, and a "kingdom." The former importing the original, or foundation of the authority, or the preparation of the throne in the heavens: the latter, the delegation and actual administration of the judgment. For it is plain that the actual and visible exercise of that power fhall be in our Saviour. Matth. xxv. 34. "Then fhall the King "fay, Come ye bleffed of my Father." Matth. xix. 28. "When the Son of man fhall fit in the throne of glory." And certainly the appearance of this day, fhall be an appearance of unspeakable glory and majesty. Christ, the fecond perfon in the bleffed Trinity, cloathed with all the majefty and glory that becomes the greatnefs of his per fon fon, and the folemnity of the business, fet on a throne of glory, eminently confpicuous to all the perfons that ever were, or fhall be; and from whence they fhall receive their doom; accompanied with all the angels in heaven, as the minifters and meffengers of his will; accompanied with all the blessed faints that ever were, or fhall be, to whom he gives the honour, not only to be beholders, but as it were affeffors in his judgment, though not in the power of his authority, yet in the fuffrage and applause of his juftice, Matth. xix. 28. " Ye alfo fhall fit on twelve "thrones, judging the twelve tribes." 1 Cor. vi. 2. "Know ye not that the faints fhall judge the world?” Thus he shall be glorified in his faints, and adinired in all them that believe. Not only admired by them, but admired in them, for that impreffion of glory and majesty that he fhall then put upon them. "The Secondly, The perfons judged: all the whole race of Adam, not a perfon excepted, John xxviii. 29. "hour is coming, in which all that are in the graves "fhall hear his voice, and fhall come forth: they that "have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and "they that have done evil, to the refurrection of damna"tion," 2 Cor. v. "We must all appear before the "judgment-feat of Christ." And though the multitude will be exceeding great, yet it fhall not confound the fentence of the Judge, he will with most exquifite and infallible judgment divide the one from the other: and every perfon fhall have fo diftinct and clear a reprefentation of his fentence unto himfelf, and fo convincing a fatisfaction therein, and of the evidence, clearness and juftice thereof, as if he were the only perfon to be judged. Thirdly, As the perfons, fo the fubject matter touching which the judgment fhall be is confiderable. And the fubject matter upon which the judgment fhall be, are the works of men, Ecclef. xii. 14. "God fhall bring every "work unto judgment." Whatfoever cometh under the command, or prohibition of the law of God, fhall come under the judgment of God: and these are of three kinds; 1. The works. 2. The words. 3. The thoughts and purpofes. For all thefe, as they are the the acts of a rational creature, come under the law of God. 1. For the works of men: these are the last and compleat acts of the rational creature, and are the final productions of the mind formed into external actions: and all thefe fhall God bring into judgment. Matth. xvi. 27. "The Son of man fhall come in the glory of the Father, " and fhall reward every man according to his works." Some works there are, which, in the external administration of justice among men, do efcape their reward of human diftributive juftice, whether they be good or evil: fome, in respect of injuftice of thofe that are in power; other, in refpect of the impotence of thofe that fhould reward, or punish. And thus many offences pafs unpunished, becaufe they are committed by perfons above the reach of human juftice: others, in respect of the fecresy of the fact, that they avoid the detection and confequently the execution of justice. But it fhall not be fo in that day: as all perfons are under the authority, fo all perfons are under the power of this Judge. Rev. xviii. 8. " Strong is the Lord "that judgeth." And as the power of the offender shall not exempt the offence from judgment; fo neither shall the fecrefy of the work efcape the judgment; " For he "fhall bring unto judgment every work, with every fecret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil," Ecclef. xii. 14. "In that day God fhall judge the fecrets " of men by Jefus Christ," Rom. ii. 16. For there is "nothing covered that shall not be revealed, and hid, that "fhall not be made known," Matth. x. 26. There is not a good action in all thy life, though never fo fecretly done, but then it fhall be proclaimed before men and angels: not a prayer that thou haft made in thy closet, when no ear heard thee but the Almighty: not a tear fhed for thy fins, when no eye saw thee, but his that made thee: not an alms given fo privately, that the party relieved knew not his benefactor: not a cup of cold water given in the name of a disciple, though he knew not from whence it came: not an acting in fincerity for the glory of thy Maker, though hid and veiled from the eyes of all men living; but fhall then be made as manifeft as the fun, and attended with an open reward. Matth. vi. 26.‘‹ The "Father that feeth in fecret, fhall reward thee openly." Again, if thy villanies be hatched in darkness, and none |