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in the Father's bosom from all eternity, now laid in the bofom of the earth? O wonder at it, that he was willing to floop fo low, to ranføm our fouls that were funk as low as hell by fin! O! men and angels can never enough admire this love of Jefus! that he who wore the keys of hell and death at his girdle, fhould be content to be locked up in the prison of the grave, and to be arrefted there this whole day, for our debt by divine juftice.

Obferve how long Chrift the Lord of life continued death's prifoner, the grave's captive; how long death had power and dominion over him, even to the third day. O how did devils triumph this day! We have not only bruifed his heel, but his heart alfo, and behold he lieth in duft. How did wicked men rejoice! how did death domineer over him! Men have brought him into my territories, and there I hold him bound with my fetters. Now would his enemies fay, Is this the light of the world, that lies fo low in the land of darknefs? Is this the teacher of the way to heaven, that cannot now move his tongue, or speak a word? Is this he that raifed others from the dead, that lies himself among the dead? Well, but the triumph of these wicked ones was but fhort. Christ rose and put them all to

filence.

4. Obferve Chrift's love, that was content to let devils infult and triumph over him for a while, that they might not triumph over you, O believer, for ever. He was humbled to lie in the grave for a while, that you might not lodge in hell for ever.

5. Obferve, Chrift lay buried this day, that he might bury all the elect's fins for ever out of God's fight, that they might never rife against them in judgment. O what comfort is this, O believer, thy fins are buried, and fhall never appear against thee to thy condemna

tion.

6. Obferve, Chrift lay buried this day, that he might bury the Jewish feventh day Sabbath, with all the rest of their levitical types and ceremonies. Chrift has taken off that yoke from our necks, glory to his name.

7. Obferve

7. Obferve how Chrift lay buried this day, that he might fweeten the grave, warm and perfume that cold unpleafant bed for believers to lie in. The grave was once a part of the curse denounced against fallen mankind, and it is fo ftill to finners out of Chrift, Gen. ii: "Duft thou art, and to duft thou shalt return." The grave had the nature and use of a prifon, to keep the bodies of finners against the great affizes, and then to deliver them up to the hands of a great and terrible judge: But Chrift, by lying in it all this day, has turned it from a prison to a bed of reft, Ifa. lvii. 2." He fhall enter into peace; they fhall reft in their beds, each one walking in his righteoufnefs." Why? as Christ there did reft in hope, fo fhall believers be partakers of his hope. See Pfal. xvi. 10. My flesh shall reft in hope." So Proverbs xiv. 32. "The righteous hath hope in his death."

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Exhortation. As ye would partake of the virtue of Christ's lying in the grave, fee that ye get union with Chrift now by a true faith; death nor the grave will not loose this union, it is indiffolvable. O believer, the grave fhall be a sweet privileged place to you; fin nor guilt fhall not lie down there with you. Sin is a bad bedfellow, but a worfe grave-fellow. That is a terrible. word, Job xx. 11. " His bones are full of the fins of his youth, which fhall lie down with him in the duft." It fhall not be fo with you. No, Christ has freed you of guilt, and has made your bed to fleep in; it is like a foft bed in a quiet room, where the weary fhall be at reft. Chrift himself keeps the keys of the room, and watches by you while you lie fleeping there, and will be ready to open the door to let you out again. "I have the keys of death," Rev. i. 18. None can take them out of his hand.

VOL. IV.

PP.

MEDITATION

MEDITATION II.

On the Refurrection of JESUS CHRIST, from Theff. i. 10. "Whom God hath raised from the dead."

THE refurrection of Chrift from the dead is a fundamental article of our religion, and serves to support all the reft: For,

1. If Chrift rofe from the dead, then he was a perfon fent from God, to do that work in the world which he gave out; because the majefty of heaven would never have given an impoftor fuch glorious credentials as a refurrection from the dead; a work which nothing but omnipotency could accomplish.

2. If Chrift rofe from the dead, all the promises of the gospel, relating to the enjoyments and bleflings of a future life, will certainly be fulfilled to them; and whatever Chrift has faid, may be depended on, and trufted to, as certainly to come to pass.

3. 'Tis true indeed, the Chriftian religion is fo framed, as in all respects to be admirably ferviceable to the ends and purposes of a temporal felicity; for the devout and awful regard to God, and a future life, and those principles of generous love and charity, which it tends to infpire mankind with, contribute highly to the good order and peace of the world. If pride and envy, if covetoufnefs and ambition, if malice and revenge, if falfehood and deceit; if fuch paffions as thefe are the true causes of all those calamities and misfortunes which men groan under, then the gospel, which strikes fo directly at all thefe, even in men's tempers and hearts, as well as in their outward converfation, doth lay the fureft foundations poffible for a quiet and comfortable life in the prefent world

Yea, the gofpel of Chrift ftrengthens the obligations of the law of nature; it furnishes men with far nobler motives to perform all the duties of that law, and threa tens feverer puifhments for the breach of it; and thus

it

it highly conduceth to the welfare of society and govern

ment..

4. The true foundation and origin of atheism or deism is a man's coming under a stated refolution to endure no curb or restraint in the profecution of his defign of being happy in this world, by the enjoyment of its pleafures; and therefore the fcripture or the gofpel, which pretend to abridge men of this liberty, and would oblige them to a ftrictly abftemious and felf-denying life, and a ready fubmiffion to all fufferings which the power and malice of the world may at any time inflict for the profeffion of it, muft of course be rejected as any divine revelation, and made the mere invention of a set of crafty designing men, who were fond to be the heads of a new religion, and of bringing the world to submit to their im pofitions.

5. As for the religion of Mahomet, he was a man of a vicious profligate life; and he framed it to ferve a carnal worldly intereft; it was planted in the world by force and violence, and never offered any other arguments to perfuade men of the truth of it, but the fword and heavy' taxes and exactions. But, with refpect to the Chriftian religion, nothing of this kind can be pretended.

5. The law of nature is a divine impreffion on the reafonable nature of man, by which he is informed what is good and evil, and directed how to behave himself, as a rational creature ought to do. Now, the gofpel adopts and enforces this law with the ftrongeft arguments and confiderations.

7. Many who are baptized into the name of Jefus Chrift, do treat him in such a manner, as Mahometans, who are his profeffed enemies, would abhor to do. The Mahometans do honour him with the venerable titles of the Word and Power of God. And though they will not allow him to be fo great a prophet as Mahomet, yet their prophet has taught them fo much refpect, and fo high an esteem for ours, that, fhould they be witnes fes to the affronts fome offer him here, they would be ready to revenge them upon them.

8. Some matters of fact may be fo convincingly made out by the testimony of others, as to bring men to a per

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fect

fect affurance of the truth of them, fo as there can be no room left to fufpect any fraud or deceit therein. For if we must not thus believe the teftimony of others, there could be no administration of justice in the world; for legiflators and governors cannot be in every place to obferve what is done by every perfon, but mult depend on the teftimony of others in difpenfing rewards and punithments to good and bad, according to their feveral merits. Again, all our civil interefts and privileges depend on this kind of teftimony; for how can we justify our claim to houses, lands, goods, or effects, which we come to poffefs by virtue of birth or parentage, will or teftament, difpofition or fale, but by the teftimony of others? Again the refusal of this teftimony would cut off all kind of history, geography, or chronology, as ufelefs, or as mere fable and romance. We fhould not believe there was ever any fuch thing as the Roman empire, or Roman emperors; we should not believe there is any kingdom or city in the world, but such as we have feen with our eyes.

9. All fects and parties of men fince Chrift's days have granted, that there was fuch a perfon as Jefus Chrift, who was born at Bethlehem in Judea, in the reign of Augüftus Cæfar, and crucified at Jerufalem in the reign of Tiberius, Pontius Pilate being then the Roman governor in Judea. The Mahometans acknow. ledge all this frankly except the last part, out of an excefs of refpect to Jefus Chrift; they will by no means allow of his infamous erucifixion and death, but affirm, that he was taken up into heaven, and fome image of him only left upon the cross in his room, by which the Jews, as well as his own followers, who pretended to be witneffes of the fact, were impofed on, and made to believe that he fuffered, when in reality he did not. this is a groundless fiction, contrary to all fenfe and reafon, like many others in their Alcoran. But however, they all own that there was fuch an excellent person, who lived fuch a life, taught such doctrine, and wrought fuch miracles as Chriftians give out. \

But,

10. The Jews freely own there was fuch a person who died fuch a death at Jerufalem: And hence they bestow

the

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