mercy of God to penitent finners, and his feverity towards the impenitent; both which are fo fully and clearly revealed in the gofpel. The gospel is the power of God to falvation, to every one that believeth, because therein the righteoufness of God is revealed; that is, his great grace and mercy in the juftification and pardon of finners by Jefus Chrift, which I have already fhewn to be meant by the righteoufness of God, by comparing this with the explication which is given of the righteoufnefs of God, chap iii. 22.

The other reafon which he gives of the gofpel's being the power of God to falvation, is the plain declaration of the feverity of God toward impenitent fin-` ners, because therein also the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteoufnefs of men. The force of which argument will appear, if we confider thefe following particulars.

1. That the declarations of the gofpel in this matter are so plain and exprefs.

2. That they are very dreadful and terrible.

3. That there is no fafety or hope of impunity for men that go on and continue in their fins.

4. That this argument will take hold of the most defperate and profligate finners, and ftill retain its force upon the minds of men, when all other confiderations fail, and are of little or no efficacy. And,

5. That no religion in the world can urge this argument with that force and advantage that Chriftianity does.

1. That the declarations of the gofpel in this maté ter are most plain and exprefs; and that not only against fin and wickednefs in general, but against par ticular fins and vices; fo that no man that lives in any evil and vitious courfe, can be ignorant of his danger. Our Lord hath told us in general, what fhall be the doom of the workers of iniquity, yea, though they may have owned him, and made profeffion of his name, Matth. vii. 21. Not every one that faith unto me, Lord, Lord, hall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will fay unto me in that

day

day, Lord, Lord, &c. then will I profefs unto them, I never knew you. Depart from me ye that work iniquity. Matth. xiii. 49. 50. So fhall it be at the end of the world: the angels hall come forth, and fever the wicked from among the juft; and shall caft them into the furnace of fire: there fhall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Matth. xxv. 46. The wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life eternal. John v. 28. 29. The hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves fhall hear his voice, and hall come forth; they that have done good, unto the refurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the refurrection of damnation. Rom. ii. 6. St Paul tells us that there is a day of wrath, and of the revelation of the righteous judgement of God, who will render to every man according to his deeds; to them who obey not the truth, but obey unrighteoufnefs, indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every foul of man that doth evil. 2 Theff. i. 7. 8. 9. that the Lord Jefus fhall be revealed from heaven, with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jefus Chrift: who shall be punished with everlasting deftruction from the prefence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power. Nothing can be more plain and exprefs than thefe general declarations of the wrath of God againft finners; that there is a day of judgement appointed, and a judge conftituted to take cognifance of the actions of men, to pafs a fevere fentence, and to inflict a terrible punifiiment upon the workers of iniquity.

More particularly our Lord and his Apoftles have denounced the wrath of God against particular fins and vices. In feveral places of the New Teftament, there are catalogues given of particular fins, the practice whereof will certainly fhut men out of the kingdom of heaven, and expofe them to the wrath and vengeance of God: 1 Cor. vi. 9. 10. Know ye not, that the unrighteous fhall not inherit the kingdom of God? be not deceived, neither fornicators nor idolaters,

:

laters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abufers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, fhall inherit the kingdom of God. So likewife, Gal. v. 19. 20. 21. The works of the flesh are manifeft, which are thefe, adultery, fornication, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, ftrife, feditions, herefies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and fuch like of the which I tell you before, as I have alfo told you in time paft, that they that do fuch things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Col. iii. 5. 6. Mortify therefore your members upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupifcence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: for which things fake the wrath of God cometh on the children of difobedience. Rev. xxi. 8. The fearful and unbelieving, (that is, those who rejected the Christian religion, notwithstanding the clear evidence that was offered for it, and thofe who out of fear fhould apostatize from it), the fearful and unbelieving, and the abominable, that is, those who are guilty of unnatural lufts, not fit to be named), and murderers, and whoremongers, and forcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, (that is, all forts of falfe and deceitful and perfidious perfons), hall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimStone which is the fecond death.

And not only thefe grofs and notorious fins, which are fuch plain violations of the law and light of nature; but thofe wherein mankind have been apt to take more liberty, as if they were not fufficiently convinced of the evil of them; as the refifting of civil authority, which the Apostle tells us, they that are guilty of, fhall receive to themselves damnation, Rom. xiii. 2. Profane fwearing in common converfation, which St James tells us brings men under the danger of damnation, chap. v. 12. Above all things, my brethren, fwear not, left ye fall under condemnation. Nay, our Saviour hath told us plainly, that not only for wicked actions, but for every evil and finful word, men are obnoxious to the judgement of God. So our Lord affures us, Matth. xii. 36. 37. I say unto you,

that

For

that every idle word that men fhall speak, they shall give an account thereof in the day of judgement. by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned. He had fpoken before of that great and unpardonable fin of blafpheming the Holy Ghoft; and becaufe this might be thought great feverity for evil words, he declares the reafon more fully, because words fhew the mind and temper of the man ver. 34. For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. "The character of the man is fhewn by his words," faith Menander. Profert enim mores plerumque oratio, (faith Quinctilian), et animi fecreta detegit; "A man's fpeech difcovers his manners, and the fecrets of his heart. Ut vivit etiam quemque dicere; "Men commonly fpeak as they live:" and therefore our Saviour adds, A good man out of the good treafure of his heart bringeth forth good things; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth evil things: But I fay unto you, that every idle word, xã phua åpyòv; by which I do not think our Saviour means, that men fhall be called to a folemn account at the day of judgement, for every trifling, and impertinent, and unprofitable word, but every wicked and finful word of any kind: As if he had faid, Do you think this fevere, to make words an unpardonable fault? I fay unto you, that men fhall not only be condemned for their malicious and blafphemous fpeeches against the Holy Ghoft, but they fhall likewife give a ftrict account for all other wicked and finful fpeeches in any kind, though much inferior to this. And this is not only moft agreeable to the scope of our Saviour, but is confirmed by fome Greek copies, in which it is πᾶν ῥῆμα πονηρόν, every wicked word which men fall Speak, they shall be accountable for it at the day of judgement. But this by the by..

Our Saviour likewife tells us, that men fhall not only be proceeded against for fins of commiffion, but for the bare omiflion and neglect of their duty, espe cially in works of mercy and charity for not feeding the hungry, and the like, as we fee, Matth. xxv.; and that for the omiffion of thefe, he will pass that terVOL. V.

I i

;

rible

rible sentence, Depart ye curfed, &c. So that it nearly concerns us to be careful of our whole life, of all our words and actions, fince the gospel hath fo plainly and exprefsly declared, that for all these things God will bring us into judgement. And if the threatenings of the gofpel be true, what manner of perfons ought we to be, in all holy converfation and godliness?

2. As the threatenings of the gofpel are very plain and exprefs, fo are they likewife very dreadful and terrible. I want words to exprefs the leaft part of the terror of them; and yet the expreffions of fcripture concerning the mifery, and punishment of finners in another world, are fuch as may juftly raise amazement and horror in thofe that hear them. Sometimes it is expreffed by a departing from God, and a perpetual banifhment, from his prefence, who is the fountain of all comfort and joy, and happinefs fometimes by the lofs of our fouls, or ourfelves: What hall it profit a man to gain the whole world, and lofe his own faul? or, (as it is in another evangelift), to lofe himself? Not that our being fhall be destroyed; that would be a happy lofs indeed to him that is fentenced to be for ever miferable; but, the man fhall still remain, and his body and foul continue to be the foundation of his mifery, and a scene of perpetual woe and difcontent, which our Saviour calls the deftroying of body and foul in hell, or going into everlasting punishment, where there fhall be wail ing and gnashing of teeth; where the worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched. Could I represent to you the horror of that dismal prifon, into which wicked and impure fouls are to be thruft, and the misery they must there endure, without the leaft spark of comfort, or glimmering of hope, how they wail and groan under the intolerable wrath of God, the infolent fcorn and cruelty of devils, the fevere lashes and ftings, the raging anguifh and horrible defpair, of their own minds, without intermiffion, without pity, and without hope of ever feeing an end of that mifery, which yet is infupportable for one moment; Could I reprefent these things to you according to

the