T Hou haft here presented to thy view, A glimpse of glory from the heavenly Zion, so bright and lively, as nothing of human compofure, yet extant, can equal. A ray of fuch heavenly fire, as being received into an heart affected with eternal objects, may prove a bleffed mean to inflame it into a divine rapture of holy longing, to fee and enjoy thefe unfeen things, which are here in fo bright colours reprefented. Whofoever will in fincerity, and with attention, perufe this fmall treatife, will be led into fuch a delightful contemplation of divine and heavenly things, as may, in a manner, tranfport his very foul into that heavenly paradife; carry. him along the beautiful banks of that pure, river of the water of life; and reprefent to the eyes of his mind, that noble and glorious company, that ftands about the Lamb, on mount Zion, in white robes, with palms in their hands, finging a new fong of praise to JEHOVAH and the Lamb. Here fhall he find the incomparable beauties of that upper paradife, and royal palace of the King of kings, defcribed fo brightly, in fuch high and lofty expreffions, as well fuit thefe fublime and fupernatural objects; and yet withal so easy to be under, stood, that the meaneft capacity, exercifed in fpiritual things, may apprehend the true fenfe and meaning of them. The holy heart of the author A 2 has been fo much in heaven, that from the end of the Prelude, to the conclufion, he talks altogether like one in heaven already, and as a poffeffor of the glory he defcribes: which is to be attentively noticed, for the better understanding of the fcope and intent of the difcourfe. Befides the defcription of heaven, and the glory, which the faints fhall enjoy there; (which is the profeffed fubject of the book); there are not a few other excellent fubjects interfperfed, and pretty largely handled. How fweetly doth he.expatiate upon the praises of Chrift, the everbleffed Redeemer? How lively doth he describe him, in his humbled late; his humble, laborious, forrowful, yet holy life; his painful, fhameful, and accurfed death; his infinite love to his chofen, that put him upon all that voluntary humiliation and fuffering? With 'what ravishment doth he admire the difference of these two, fo diftant eftates? In what fweet, lively and bright expreffions dcth he declare the mutual intercourfe betwixt this glorious Redeemer, and his chofen, efpecially in the upper houfe? It is also another great aim of the author, to difplay the attributes of God, to his glory: his grace and mercy towards the elect; his fovereignty, in his works of creation, providence, and especially election; his truth and faithfulness, in making good all his promises; his unchangeableness, in his purposes of love and grace to his own; his.fpotlefs holinefs and juftice, in punifhing the wicked. How lofty is he in defcribing the fovereignty of God over his creatures; either to create, or not create, elect, or pafs by, as he pleafed? How fweet, large and ravishing is he, ia holding forth the freedom and riches of redeeming grace! and how doth he exult and glory in the unchangeableness of of God, which fecures the fame to all eternity? His wonderful wifdom, in contriving the faints way to the kingdom, through a life of fufferings, afflictions, poverty, labours, watchings, forrows, &c. is pleafantly cleared up; and many mysterious providences, relating thereunto, judiciously unfolded; which may ferve much for confirmation and confolation to many poor drooping believers. In defcribing the holiness and juftice of God, in the eternal punishment of the damned, he takes occafion, largely to delineate the miserable eftate of the ungodly: nor is this improper for his fubject; for contraries fet befide other, ferve to enlighten one another. He fets forth their extreme mifery from the greatnefs of their torments; the great and inconceivable lofs, they undergo, in their eternal banishment from the prefence of God and the Lamb; the eternity, yet juftice of their punishment: which juftice he founds not on an arbitrary conftitution, but on the infinite holinefs, juftice, and fovereignty of God, against whom fin is 38 infinite offence, за as ftriking against his very being and glory; and therefore deferving an infinity of punishment. The blafphemies they continually belch forth against their Creator, for his punishing them, tho' at the fame time their confciences approve him juft; and their horrid inclination to fulfil their lufts, though they cannot all which he reckons their punishment, as well as their fin; for he was at no lofs to believe, That there is finning in hel!. And finally, here is fet forth the holy triumph of the. righteous over the wicked, devils and men, once. their mortal enemies; now laid low under the foles of their feet, and for ever banished their holy and happy fociety. All which the author defcribes in fach a moving and pathetic manner, as A 3 migh might caufe an adamantine heart, to relent and tremble, and to inquire, What must I do to be faved? How fhall I efcape the wrath to come? And indeed, to bring fouls to fuch a serious inquiry, and draw hearts from this bafe, empty earth, to an inqueft after heaven and falvation, is the great aim of the author through all this book. And hence, how pathetic and vigorous is he, in his inviting, perfuading, and reafoning with the unconverted, (whom he commonly files worldlings, because yet entangled in the lufts of the world), to awaken them, to a due concern about heavenly things, and wean their hearts from earthly vanities; and, by leffening their efteem of them, to draw their affections from them? And that fuch as are perfuaded, seriously to mind, and apply themselves to this noble and neceffary ftudy, may not want an help at hand, to difcover to them the goodnefs, or badness of their eftate; he hath added in the conclufion of the work a confiderable number of excellent marks, or notes, where, a Chriftian may difcern his being in Chrift, and whether he be in an heavenly frame, or not; alfo by them a formal hypocrite may be detected. If there be any flights of lofty and fublime thought, here and there, that may offend the cenforious, it is defired, that before they cenfure, they would first compare them with the fimilitudes and expreffions of holy fcripture, and next with the fentiments of found divines, giving fome grains of allowance, on confideration of the fublime and rapturous way of writing, here used; and, it is confidently prefumed, they will find nothing but what is moft agreeable to truth, in this whole tractate. There is a fentence, page 140, where he fcems |