-happiness ?—not only fo, but,—astonishing ! "heirs of God;" Rom. viii. 17. of all that he hath; nay, of all that he is.

How vaft, then,-how immenfely vaft and unmeasurable the territories of this kingdom! How infinite the extent of this promifed, this purchafed, inheritance!-What Paul, quoting from the prophet, faid of New Teftament privileges in general, will eminently hold of this confummate bleffing, "Eye hath not feen, nor ear heard, neither have "entered into the heart of man the things which "God hath prepared for them that love him," 1 Cor. ii. 9.

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*

That the "argument for endeavouring to propagate Chriftian knowlege among the Gentiles," may be the more interefting, this paffage not only informs us, that there is such a state as "the king"dom of heaven," but affures us, that Gentile finners, from "the east and weft," fball fit down there. As the word ufed by our Lord properly fignifies, a lying down on fophas or couches, which was, and, according to modern accounts, continues to be the ufual pofture at banquets, and even ordinary meals, among the caftern nations ;-we apprehend, that this is expreffive of the holy ease and reft which true converts hall enjoy in Emmanuel's land.

They fhall, accordingly, "reft from their labours," Rev. xiv. 3. from all that pained and toiled their bo dies, tried and diftracted their minds; from all fin in heart and life, and from all fufferings of an outward or inward, a perfonal or relational nature.

Nor is this reft merely expreffive of negative, but chiefly of pofitive happiness. "It is a righte"ous thing with God (faid the apoftle to the be"lieving Theffalonians) to recompence tribulation

* Anaclithefontai.

"to

"to them that trouble you; and to you, who are "troubled, rest with us," 2 Theff. i. 6, 7.—Where, you cannot but fee that reft is the antithefis to tribulation; confequently, that muft no less include pofitive happiness, than this does pofitive mifery.

As one branch of positive falvation, their fitting, or lying down, conveys the chearing and delightful idea of being at home. While on earth, the heirs of glory are pilgrims, ftrangers, fojourners, and way-faring men, i. e. they are not at home, are not in a reclining and refting, but in a moving and striving posture: Whereas, in the kingdom of God, they will be where all their prefent defires and endeavours tend;-at the point wherein all. their ambition terminates; nay, beyond which it does not, would not, cannot poffibly go. There they fhall find "the work of righteoufnefs" to have been "peace, and the effect of righteoufnefs, "quietnefs and affurance for ever."-There they "shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in fure "dwelling, and in quiet refting-places," If. xxxii. 17, 18.

Their fitting down in the kingdom of heaven, according to the fpirited import of this phrafe, is particularly expreffive of the repaft or entertainment to which they will there be admitted. There fhall be a table covered for all the heirs of promise, at which they will be perpetually regaled with the richeft produce of Emmanuel's land.

One end our Lord has in view, by the conveyance of this inheritance, is, "that they may eat "and drink at his table, in his kingdom," Luke xxii. 30. It is his table; and, therefore, the banquet itfelf will be fuited to the ftate of such a king. All the blifs which the hidden manna, Rev. ii. 17. -the tree of life, Rev. ii. 7.-the rivers of pleafures, Pfal. xvi. 11.-and the wine of the king

dom,

dom, Matth. xxvi, 29.-can yield, will there be copioufly enjoyed.

And, what cannot fail of giving a distinguishing relif to the whole, the ranfomed guests will have the prefence and hearty welcome of the King of Glory himself, who, as the munificent entertainer, fhall occupy a chief room, and cut a most distinguifhing figure at his own table above :-for "the

Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall "feed them, and lead them unto living fountains "of waters," Rev. vii. 17.

When all these various circumftances are taken into the account, who can fay how glorious the reft,-how inconceiveable the privilege, and how rich the entertainment will be?It is reprefented indeed by material imagery, to fuit the weakness of our prefent capacities;-but will be found infinitely to out-do all the richness, beauty, and excellence, to which it is compared.

That this gofpel-argument "for endeavouring "to propagate Chriftian knowlege," may be the more conclufive, there is yet another part of the happiness promifed to Gentile finners in our text, which merits particular attention,-namely, their fitting down in the kingdom of heaven, with Abraham, Ifaac, Jacob, and all the prophets.

Man is a focial creature, and much of his happinefs depends upon the quality of thofe with whom he is connected: that nothing, therefore, may be awanting to render the heavenly ftate a rational, it is reprefented as a focia! happiness; while the whole members of that fociety are of fuch a quality, as fhall render them bleffings unto, and bleffed in one another *. For illuftrating this part of the argument, it may be obferved,

That

*This and the former circumftance in future hap

pinefs,

That, though none but the patriarchs and prophets are mentioned, other faints under the Old Teftament difpenfation are by no means excluded. Than fpeaking of the whole by a part, there is no figure in fpeech more familiar to the holy writers. All the faints, therefore, from Abel, who first fat down in the kingdom of God, until the day when our Lord uttered the words of this text, whether in the antedeluvian world,-the patriarchal ages, or days of the prophets; -all the Old Teftament faints,-whether male or female, more or lefs remarkable,-recorded, or unnoticed, in fcripturehiftory; all of them are included in the blifsful fociety with whom ranfomed finners, under the New Teftament difpenfation, fhall spend an eterni ty in the kingdom of heaven.

Their fitting down with thefe venerable tribes, feems farther to intimate, that they fhall be introduced to their particular acquaintance, though they never faw one another on earth. The fweetnefs of focial life depending fo much upon this, it is scarce

to

pinefs, entered into the theology of the ancient Hea thens: "Neque vero, (aiebat Cicero) cos folum con" venire aveo, quos ipfe cognovi; fed illos etiam de "quibus audivi, et legi, et ipfe confcripfi.-Nec me "vixiffe poenitet: quoniam ita vixi, ut non frustra "me natum exiftimem; et ex hac vita ita difcedo, tan

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quam ex hofpitio, non tanquam ex domo : commo"randi enim natura diverforium nobis, non habitandi, "dedit. O præclarum diem, cum ad illud divinum a"nimorum concilium, coetumque, proficifcar; cumque "ex hac turba et culluvione difcedam !-Proficifcar "enim, non ad eos folum viros, de quibus ante dixi, "fed etiam ad Catonem meum,quo, nemo vir me "lior natus eft, nemo pietate præftantior," &c. Cic. De fenect. cap. 23.

to be imagined, that the redeemed tribes will fit down with those they know nothing of.

The knowlege, indeed, and enjoyment of "the "only true God, and Jelus Chrift whom he hath "fent," will be a happiness fo complete, lo glorious, and finished in itfelf, that nothing will be needed to crown the jubilee. or perfect the falvation: John xvii 3 But, if our Lord had no confidered the fociety of faints, as, at least, contributing toward the perfection of that blifs, it is not eafy to fee why he would have made fuch particu lar mention of their partners in the glory to be revealed.

Befides, there are different notices in the facred records, by which this hypothesis will be more directly fupported. Hath Jefus Chrift, for inflance, promised to confefs his people, not only before his Father which is in heaven, Matth. x. 32. but before the angels of God, Luke xii. 8 who are not fo much as of the fame order in the fcale of being with themselves? and can it be thought, that he will leave them unacquainted with their dear brethren and fellow-heirs?

Of Peter. James, and John, we are told, that they knew Mofes and Elias upon the mount, and diftinguished them by their names, though they had never feen thefe illuftrious perfonages, or either of them, in the flesh, Matth xvii. 3, 4. But is it to be imagined that, in fuch paifing excurfions, glorified faints fhould be known by men on earth, and yet unknown by the fame very persons when they meet with them to part no more, in the heavenly world?

And if in a certain parable, Luke xvi. 23, 24. it is infinuated, that from the farther fide of the impaffable gulph, the heirs of glory may both be defcried and diftinguished,-can any thing be more

ab.urd,