Tenthly, I obferve from the Parable, that there is fomething like Charity and Good-will, even in Hell; and therefore ought to be much more of it here on Earth than there is.

When the rich Man's Petitions to Father Abraham, on behalf of himself, were all frustrated and rejected, we find him turning his former Requests for himself into Entreaties for his five Brethren; that one might be fent from the other World to them in this, to convince 'em of a future State, left they alfo come into that place of Torments. It fhould feem by this Paffage, that Good-will to others, especially natural Affection to Kindred and Relations, is not wholly extinguished even in Hell...

But there any Charity in Hell? Are there any there that with well to Souls on Earth? Or ra ther are not the damned Spirits, like Perfons in fected with the Plague, defirous that other might be made as miferable as themselves? A very Learned and Judicious Author fays on the Point, that Dives makes this Requeft to Father Abraham not fo much out of Kindness to his Brethren as to himself, that he might not be made the more miferable by his Brethrens practifing after his evil Example fet them; and fo be both the Occafion of their Damnation, and alfo aggravate his own by the Increase of their Guilt, through the Contagion of his impious Pattern, and by confequence that he might not bear a fhare in his Brethrens Guilt and Punishment, as well as the whole Burthen of his own: Which if it be a true Obfervation, as I know not but it may be; for if they who turn others to Righteoufnefs, Shall Shine as the Stars in the Firmament of Heaven, fhall be

made

made happy with redoubled Rays of Blifs and Glory; then by a Parity of Reafon, and by the Rule of Contraries, thofe who turn others out of the right way of Piety and Holinefs by a bad Exemplar, and lead 'em into Sin, fhall be punished with a redoubled and aggravated Torment; which if fo, it mightily imports our Debauchees of the Age to confider, what an evil Influence their bad Lives may have upon others, as well as on themfelves; and how they may be punished in the other World for other Mens Sins, to which they have been contributary, as well as for their own: Which will greatly aggravate and enhance their future Punishment and therefore ought to be a Determent to 'em in this Life, how they lead others into Sin by their wicked Examples, left it fadly comes home to themselves in the Conclufion of things.

And oh have not fuch Perfons, have we not all Sins enough of our own to answer for, but must we make other Mens Sins our own alfo, by promoting them through our evil Pattern of PraEtice? Is not the Weight of each Man's fingle perfonal Guilt fufficient to fink him into Hell, were not God infinitely merciful;) but muft People accumulate Weight upon Weight, by being acceffary to other Mens Wickedness? Would not Hell be hot enough for them, as heated by their own perfonal Impieties, but muft the Agents and Factors for the Devil, heat that infernal fiery Furnace feven times hotter, by propagating Sin through an infectious bad Example? Wicked Dives in Hell thought otherwife, tho' he thought it much too late to do him any good; and was for his five Brethrens not coming to that place of Torments

Torments, left the Aggravation of his Sin, by being the Occafion of their Guilt and Damnation, might add yet farther Degrees of Torment to his own Sufferings.

Eleventhly, From the Parable, we learn, That Thould God indeed vouchfafe to work a Miracle, or fend one from the Dead for the Conviction of an obftinate Unbeliever or vicious Perfon; yet would he not Believe and Reform: But the fame Love to his Lufts and Vices, which made him Proof against the Sacred Scriptures, those standing Motives and Arguments for Conviction and Reformation, would also render him unconvinced and unwrought on unto Amendment, by the Motive of a Miracle, or an Apparation from the other World.

No doubt if one of our Friends fhould come from the Dead, and give us a terrifying Relation of the fatal Confequence of Sin and Impenitence in the other World; how all vicious Practices and Debaucheries end in unfupportable Anguifh and Pain, in the Gnawings of a Worm that never dies, and in the intolerable Burnings of the Fire that is never quenched; and that this fhall certainly be our Portion as well as his, who is come from that difimal place of Torments, if we amend not our Lives, and prevent it by a speedy Repen tance and Reformation: This difmaying Scene and Representation of Hell beneath, would certainly at firft ftartle an Infidel into Amazement and ferious Confideration, and into good Purpofes alfo of Amendment; but then an Habit and Course of Sinning, to which fuppofe the Perfon thus vifited from the other World has been long engiged and addicted in this, and his Loathness to leave

his dear habitual Lufts and Vices, as dear to him as his right Hand or Eye, would prompt him to the finding out colourable Excufes and Evafions, why he should not be convinced by the miraculous Apparition into a Reformation; which his Soul fo much hated, and which his prefent vicious Interefts were fo much againft.

'Tis true, he would grant he had feen fomething like an Apparition of one from the Dead, but how does he know but it may be his own Fear, or melancholy Fancy and Imagination that impofed upon him? A Brain difordered and overheated does many times make People believe they fee Representations of things, which they really do not, and Darkness of the Night and folitary. Loneliness raife Fears, and thofe Fears oft-times ftrange Apprehenfions of beholding Gholts and Spectres, which yet are the Creatures only of our Fancy. Befides, how knows he whether the Apparition he faw, was the Ghoft of his departed Friend, or fome knavish Perfon, who defigning to put a Trick upon him, and deceive him into Serioufnefs, Repentance, and Amentment, might drefs himself in the exact Refemblance of his deceafed Acquaintance, and fo pretend to come to him from the other World? Such pious Frauds have I been, and what has been, may be, and why not in this present Cafe?

But fuppofing the Apparition to be no Counterfeit, but a real Ghoft or Spirit from the other World; yet who knows whether it be the Ghoft of his dead Friend, or the delufory Appearance of fome fportive Devil, who may love to pur a Cheat upon him he appears unto, to difturb his Reft and Quiet, and to fill his Head with unrea

fonable

fonable Fears and Scruples, and thereby draw him to all manner of Superftition.

Nay, the very Extraordinarinefs of the Apparition, instead of awakening the Infidel Perfon into Conviction and Converfion, whom he appears to; would, on the contrary, rather render him diftruftful of the Truth and Reality of the Vifion: For if there were de facto fuch things as Appearances from the Dead, (might he fay) why are not others, my Neighbours, as well allarmed and haunted with them, as my felf? Am I the only uncon vinced Perfon in the World? Or is this Means of Conviction, one coming from the Dead, peculiar ly proper to me, and to no other Perfon? Or if proper for others alfo, why are not they vouchfafed it, as well as my felf? And if vouchfafed it frequently in repeated Inftances, would not then the Commonnefs of an Apparition from the other World take away the convincing Power and Efficacy thereof? And if fo, what greater Prevalency would one coming from the State of the Dead have upon Perfons unconvinced at present, than the standing Motives and Arguments of the infpired Scriptures, have already had upon them? For if thefe Apparitions from another World were not frequently repeated, their Singularity and Scarcity would make Men fufpect their Reality; and if often repeated, then the Ufualness of the thing would (as I faid) leffen its convincing Force and Energy So that take it which way you will, the Sight of one rifen from the Dead would become unconvincing to thofe Perfons, who remain unconvinced under the ftanding Means of Conviction afforded 'em in the Holy Scriptures.

For