will be shortly yours and you may be to seek how to govern your sorrows as we are at present put to it to study and pray how we ought to rule and manage ours And for both you and us because it is a subject I have not read of and I suppose you seldom hear The Theme of moderating our sorrow for the dead is more usual and ordinary and an Vse of Consolation for the comforting of the Living at the Burial of their Dead is more frequent in Funeral Discourses And tho the Natural Affections of many need rather a Bridle to hold them in than a Spur to put them forwards yet it cannot be denied that some have so little sense and feeling of the death of near Relations that they are a shame to Humane Nature or if they do sorrow and mourn it is with a sinful passionate vexatious but not with a right and kindly sorrow Quest I. What are the Aggravations of defect or want of sorrow for our Dead In an Use of Reproof Quest II. When is our sorrowing for our Dead kindly and pleasing unto God and when turbulent Passion a meer vexation of Spirit and provoking to God In an Use of Examination of our selves concerning our sorrow Quest III. When is our sorrow Spiritually defective when it is naturally abundant Or when it is too little as we are Christians when it is never so much as we are Men In an Use of Caution VSE I. Tho some are to be blamed for sorrowing too much for the dead yet it cannot be denied but that there are those that are weary of their Relations while they live wish they were dead and rather please themselves because they are eased of them by death than sorrow because they are dead The death of a Child of a Wife of an Husband of a Father or Mother is an heavy stroke and as some lay it too much to heart and mourn as if they had no Grace to moderate their sorrow so some make so light of it as if they had no natural Affection to move them to mourn on such a mournful occasion O Lord are not thine Eyes upon the Truth thou hast stricken them but they have not grieved Jer. 5.3 These turn not to the Lord that smiteth them neither do they seek the Lord of Hosts Isa 9.13 But to prevent mistakes misinterpretations and misapplications I judge it necessary to premise these Conclusions 1. Sorrow for the Dead as such is no special Grace nor as such and in it self considered acceptable unto God because it hath been and may be in Heathens as much as in Christians 2. In this Discourse sorrow for the Dead is not to be separated from a sense of Gods afflicting Hand which should be in Christians more than in Heathens A Sparrow falls not to the ground nor a Body to the Grave without God's Hand which we should mind 3. Tho sorrow for the Dead as such be no Grace yet it becometh Christians and should be their care so to exercise their Grace in and about this sorrow that their sorrow might not be provoking but pleasing unto God Many Graces in our sorrow are to be drawn into Act as our Faith and Hope concerning their Resurrection to Eternal Glorious Life Patience under his Rod Love to God tho he doth afflict us Blessing God when he taketh from us as well as when he giveth to us and thankfulness to God for his Mercy and Grace to our departed Friends for their preparation for death and his assistance in inabling them to conquer the fears of death for the happy End that they did make and rejoicing in God for the receiving of their Souls to the Mansions in our Fathers House sorrow for the dead that is no Grace mixed with the Actings of these Graces and regulated by them is more becoming Christians than when it is alone and separated from them 4. Tho Loss of Relations befalls none but such as have sinned and thereby made a forfeiture of their Lives yet the death of Relations might not be inflicted for any Sin committed by the Survivors beyond the Case of others that have their Relations yet continued with them Job had seven Sons and three Daughters in one day removed by a strange and sudden Death and yet he had this Testimony from God himself that he was a perfect and an upright Man and one that feared God such a one that there was nor such another Job 1.8 18 19. Tho we have many Humane Infirmities come to our Thoughts after their Death which being bewailed for Christs sake shall be pardoned yet when no Sin above Saints in an imperfect state or no Conscience-wounding wasting Sin or but what is common to the good and is too often found in the best Men upon serious search under such a Loss hath been committed by them when joined in Life the Loss is more easily born than when some aggravated Sin remembred after they are parted by death and proves the sting of that Affliction Therefore be advised to live in Love with them discharging carefully and constantly all Relative Duties in Life that you may part with less stinging sorrow and more quieting comfort whoever in the Family be first taken from the rest by death It will be no small Comfort to the Surviving when the dying Relation shall give them thanks for all their Love to them while they lived with them and as great a Terrour to those whose Consciences are not past feeling if they leave a complaint behind them on a dying Bed My Husband to me hath been a bitter Husband or my Child to me hath been a disobedient Child and a grief unto my Heart or if they do not if an awakened reflecting accusing Conscience doth will cause sorrow at parting and when their Bodies are consuming in their Graves will be filling and loading your Hearts with griping grief 5. Persons might be filled with sorrow at the death of Relations when it is not for their death but for their own Self-interest in the World As when a Man had an Hundred Pound per Annum by the Life of his Wife and loved the Estate more than her doth sorrow for the loss of his Wife upon no other account but because by the loss of her he lost so much of the World Such selfish sorrow as this is base and might be in those that have no right sorrow for their dead 6. Sorrow for the Dead upon Spiritual Reasons because we are deprived of the Spiritual Good we might have got by their continued Life or are made more uncapable of doing good by their death tho it relate to our selves is to be cherished but the want of such sorrow is to be reproved 7. Whether we sorrow or not sorrow for our dead is easily known by our selves Such as do need not apply this reproof to themselves nor be offended at it Such as do not should take it to themselves for they are to be reproved tho they be offended
therefore Sorrow for your selves and not for us But Earth is a place for Sorrow which we must tast in handling the first Doctrine and after we have pleased our selves with it from love to them we will endeavour and seek for Comfort as to them in the second CHAP. II. The First Doctrine proved by Scripture Instances and Reasons Doct. I. THE Actings and Workings of Sorrow in the Living for the Dead are allowed and lawful and ought to be For he saith not Do not sorrow at all this defect or want of sorrow is so far from becoming Christians that it is unworthy of a Man as a Man How incongruous is it for a Man to sorrow for a dead Beast that lays not to Heart the Death of a Child or of some nearer and greater Relation There are too many Stoicks in practice in this point that are not so in Opinion At the Losses of the World sorrow fills their Hearts you may see their Tears you may hear their Groans and bitter Complaints I am undone this Loss is my Ruine And the sense of this and sorrow for it shall last long mâ—y â—hey will not stick â—o tell you they shall never get over it but it will break their Hearts But these that melt like Wax for a Worldly Loss are as hard and sensless as a Stone not regarding the Dâ—â—th of a Wife of their Bosom of a Child of their Loins or a Brother from the same Parents but have a secret gladness in their Hearts when their Children die because they have the fewer to maintain or a weak and sickly Wife by Death is taken away because the burden of the charge is thereby eased Lord what kind of Christians are these that have not so much value for an Humane Body nor an Immortal Soul as for the more ignoble things of this World without Life or Sense or Reason This horrid and unnatural Sin against the Lives of their Parents is in too many Children who expecting the Possession of their Goods and Estates at their Death think they live too long long for their Decease and though they may cloath themselves in Mourning to follow them to their Graves yet secretly please themselves that they are gone and their Riches come to them Neither may any please themselves with Stoical Apathy or want of grief and sorrow for the Death of Relations because they were wicked and ungodly lived and died in Sin which should rather increase than diminish their mourning for them for must not that Man have an Heart of Stone that is neither moved for the Death of the Body nor for the Damnation of the Soul of any so near in relation to him Is it nothing to such a Man that the Body is consumed in the Grave and the Soul tormented in Hell Is it nothing that the Body is meat for Worms and the Soul a prey to Devils As there is no greater alleviation of our sorrow for the dead than well-grounded hope that the Soul is lodged with God above so there can be no greater aggravation of sorrow for the death of the Impenitent than the Thoughts that the Soul is Damned before the Body can be Buried Who or what manner of Man is he that can forbear to grieve and sorrow for the death of a Wife or a Son because she was a froward graceless or a wicked Wife or because he was a disobedient Son yet was not the one a Wife and the other a Son and both had Immortal Souls And if you had no ground to hope at death they were received into Heaven must not you conclude they were then cast down to Hell And take on and say Ah my Son my Son how miserable for ever miserable art thou my Son my Son Did I beget thee to be a prey for Devils to be Fuel for the Flames of Hell The Son of my Loins a part of my self is for ever lost because he died in his Sin He sinned and never repented he went on in Sin to his dying day and never turned to the Lord and when he died was condemned Oh my Bowels my Bowels for thee my departed Son thy Death I could have better born if Damnation after death by dying in thy Sin had not been thy Portion What! gone from me to Devils What! from my House to Hell While thou in Hell and I on Earth I cannot but sorrow on Earth when I think thou art tormented in Hell I have lost thee and that is bad and thou hast lost God and that is worse infinitely worse because the God that thou hast lost is infinitely good If you cannot sorrow for the death of a Relation because he was bad that will be no proof that you your self are good And if you justifie your self though you sorrow not at all do you not condemn the practice of David in mourning so much for an Incestuous Murderous and Rebellious Son because he died in his Sin and unprepared for Death and a better state in another World 2 Sam. 18.33 And the king was much moved and went up to the chamber over the gate and wept and as he went thus he said O my son Absolom my son my son Absolom would God I had died for thee O Absalom my son my son This is the first thing in the Survivers Carriage for the dead sorrow is allowed The defect is both their Sin and Shame That we may and ought to give a lodging to sorrow in our Breasts even for those whose Souls are lodged with God above and whose Bodies being lodged in the Grave do there sleep in Jesus will be apparent and justified by these Arguments pleading for it First The approved Practice and commendable Examples of Holy Persons Recorded in Sacred Scripture mourning and sorrowing for their deceased Relations Instances we find in the several respective Relations in which they stood while they did live together that the Surviving did mourn for not only in habit but in heart when death had parted â—hâ—â—â—â—â—der 1. 〈◊〉 Death had dissolved the Conjugal Vâ—â—â—â— be wixt â—usband and Wife the Surviving Husband that waâ— laâ—â—ly sâ—â— mourned for his deceased Wife So Abraham for Sarah Gen. 23.2 And Sarah died in Kiriath-arba the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her Tears for a departed Wife are not unworthy of a Man nor unbecoming but he that hath not a Tear to shed upon such a sorrowful occasion was unworthy of a Wife Abraham wept for Sarah So Wives for their Husbands The Tidings that Vriah was dead were grievous to Bathsheba and caused her to mourn 2 Sam. 11.26 When the wife of Vriah heard that her husband Vriah was dead she mourned for her husband Powerful Death hath made many sorrowful Hearts because it hath power to do that which all the Created Powers in Heaven and Earth could not do that is to separate those that God by his Institution had joined together This Knot of unfeigned Lovers
removed from them Mary and Martha lamented the death of their Brother Lazarus John 11.19 Many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary to comfort them concerning their brother 31. The Jews which were with her in the house and comforted her when they saw Mary that she rose up hastily and went out followed her saying she goeth to the Grave to weep there 32. When Mary was come where Jesus was and saw him she fell down at his feet saying unto him Lord if thou hadst been here my brother had not died 33. Jesus saw her weeping Can Brethren and Sisters that descended from the same Parents that were bred in the same Womb sucked the same Breasts brought up together in the same Family see any of them carried to the Grave before them and not follow with weeping Eyes and sorrowful Hearts 4. Ministers heretofore have not died unlamented nor followed to their Graves without Weeping and Sorrow They that watched over the People while they lived were bewailed by the People when they fell asleep When Death did tye their Tongues and silence them when the Seers eyes have been closed and the feet of them that brought the glad tidings of Salvation to lost Sinners are fettered by the bands of Death that they can come and bring no more When they that brake the Bread of Life became meat for Worms and could pray with them and for them and preach to them no more when they had done their work then the Peoples sorrows did begin The children of Israel wept for Moses thirty days Deut. 34.8 And for Aaron Numb 20.29 When all the congregation saw that Aaron was dead they mourned for Aaron thirty days even all the house of Israel When Samuel died all the Israelites were gathered together and lamented him 1 Sam. 25.1 Stephen was not buried without much sorrow Acts 8.2 Devout men carried Stephen to his burial and made great lamentation over him But now Ministers Widows and Children might mourn when many others are not concerned for them living or dying 5. Tho now in our Iron Age some can scarce sorrow for departed Relations yet in former times they have greatly mourned for servants that have died out of their Families Deborah that was Rebecca's Nurse belonging to Isaac's house had her Funeral attended with Tears Gen. 53.8 Deborah Rebecca's nurse died and she was buried beneath Bethel under an oak and the name of it was called Allon Buchuth that is the oak of weeping because of the many Tears that were shed at her burial 6. The compassionate Bowels the troubled Heart the weeping Eyes of our Lord Jesus for a departed Believer are significant Indications of the Sorrow there should be upon such Dispensations of Divine Providence When Lazarus was dead Mary and Martha wept the Jews wept and when Jesus came after he was buried he wept also he was troubled with them that were troubled and wept with them that wept for their dead on which occasion he was troubled he groaned he wept John 11.33 35. If all these did thus sorrow fo their dead may not we for ours Dear Jesus when thou didst not rebuke Martha and Mary weeping for their deceased Brother but didst weep with them didst not shew thine Anger but thy Pity to them in their Sorrow for the removal of a Brother from them keep us that are concerned because afflicted from sinful Sorrow and shew thy Compassion to us whilest we do case our burthened Hearts by venting of our Sorrow and weeping out our Grief Since we have so many approved Examples of Holy Men and Women that in the like case have sorrowed in the like manner Secondly Defect of Sorrow where there is true cause of Sorrow is a falling short of the exercise of those Affections which God himself hath implanted in our Hearts Why hath God given us the Affection of Love but that it may be set upon objâ—cts of Love And the Affection of Delight and Joy but that we may rejoyce when God affords us matter of Joy And why the Affection of Grief and Sorrow but that we should duly grieve when his dealings with us call aloud and provoke us to it And if Losses are causes of and calls to Sorrow what greater loss in things below than the loss of such as should be dearer to us than all things here below Religion doth not destroy Nature but rectify it Grace doth not abolish natural Affections but directs them to their Objects and keeps them in their due Proportion that as they should not be excessive so not defective in their measure Thirdly Love to and delight in Relations while they live must needs constrain our Sorrow when by death removed from us What is that which you truly and duly love and delight in the enjoyment of that you can forbear to sorrow for the loss of Nay if it be unduly loved as a worldly Man doth his Riches when lost can sorrow be concealed And shall not we be allowed to love near Relations more than worldly Riches and so to sorrow more for the loss of the one than of the other I do know what it is to meet with losses of the World but I do not know that they did break my Sleep but I cannot deny but my late loss of one so near hath kept mine Eyes waking in the deep silence of the Nights How any should have due due degrees of Love to Husband Wife Parents or Children while they live and not have equal Sorrow for them when they dye is not easy for me to give a rational Account of For if the Goodness of the Object beget love to it the Absence of it excites desires after it the loss of it must fill us with Sorrow for it Want of Sorrow when they are taken from us doth argue want of Love while they were continued with us If you groan not at their Death there is room for this question Were not you burdened with their Life Did you look upon that Relation when alive as one of your Enjoyments when you do not look upon the Death of such a one as one of your Afflictions When Husband and Wife are known not to live in love every one hath a Tongue to say Such will not mourn for her Death How should he afflict his heart with Grief when separated by Death when it was empty of Love when joyned in Life David's different Carriage at the death of his Son Absalom and of his young Child doth not shew that when he had so much Sorrow for the one he had no Sorrow for the other but that he had something to moderate his sorrow for the one which he had not for the other when he had hopes that the one was saved and fears that the other was damned Fourthly The want of lamentation and mourning is a punishment that God inflicts upon Sinners at their Death Job 27.13 This is the portion of a wicked man with God and the heritage of oppressors which they shall receive of
the Almighty 15. Those that remain of him shall be buried in death and his widows shall not weep That Husband was unkind while he lived or his Widow unnatural that cannot weep when he is dead Psalm 78.64 Their priests fell by the sword and their widows made no lamentation When God takes away his loving-kindness and Mercies from men for their great wickedness while they live as a token of his wrath he will not have them lamented when they die Jer. 16.3 Thus saith the Lord concerning the sons and concerning the daughters that are born in this place and concerning their mothers that bare them and concerning their fathers that begat them in this land 4. They shall die of grievous deaths they shall not be lamented neither shall they be buried but they shall be as dung upon the face of the earth and they shall be consumed by the sword and by the famine and their carcases shall be meat for the fowls of heaven and for the beasts of the earth 5. For thus saith the Lord Enter not into the house of mourning neither go to lament nor bemoan them for I have taken away my peace from this people saith the Lord even loving-kindness and mercies 6. Both the great and the small shall die in this land they shall not be buried neither shall men lament for them nor cut themselves nor make themselves bald for them 7. Neither shall men tear themselves for them in mourning to comfort them for the dead neither shall men give the cup of consolation to drink for their father or their mother Dying by Sword and Famine denial of burial the Flesh of the dead lying as Dung upon the Earth devoured by the Beasts consumed by the Fowls and no Sorrow no Lamentation for them are Judgments of God upon wicked Men And should those that dye in the Lord be no more lamented than those that dye in their Sin and for their Sin deserve no Lamentation Tho the Name and Carcase of the wicked rot in the Grave together yet should not the name of the righteous be had in remembrance And can we remember their Name without Sorrow that we have not their Presence and Company and opportunity of getting good by their Counsel and Example Forms usual in Mourning for the dead as Ah my Brother or ah my Sister My Wife Ah my Husband are foretold by God should not be used concerning Persons by Name as a Judgment upon them for the wickedness of their Lives As concerning Jehojakim Jer. 22.17 Thine eyes and thine heart are not but for thy covetousness and for to shed innocent blood and for oppression and for violence to do it 18. Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning Jehojakim the son of Josiah King of Judah They shall not lament for him saying Ah my brother or Ah my sister they shall not lament for him saying Ah Lord or Ah his glory or Majesty 19. He shall be buried with the burial of an ass drawn and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem Jehoram for his wickedness was punished by God in his Life his Person with an incurable disease in his Bowels pained therewith for the space of two years at the end of which time his Bowels fell out by reason of his Sickness at his Death in his Name and Reputation in that the People made no burning for him like the burning of his Father that is did not honour him at his burial by burning of precious and sweet-smelling Spices as they did for Asa 2 Chron. 16.14 But Jehoran departed without being desired 2 Chron. 21.18 19 20. And shall those that lived to the Lord and died in the Lord be no more sorrowed for than those that lived and died in their Sin Shall not leave be allowed that such that were desired in Life might be lamented at their Death Oh let not that saying be used of any that sell asleep in Jesus He or She lived undesired and died unlamented Fifthly Sorrowing and Lamentation for the death of others hath been appointed and commanded by God in Honour to them in whom real good and worth was found while they lived Jeroboam his Child being sick sends his Wife in a disguise to the Prophet to know what should become of the Child Who bid her return to her House and when her Feet entred into the the City said Her Child should die and that all Israel should mourn for him and bury him for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave because in him is found some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam The Child died and they buried him and all Israel mourned for him according to the Word of the Lord which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the Prophet 1 King 14.12 13 17 18. Josiah was buried and all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for him and Jeremiah lamented for Josiah and all the singing men and singing women spake of Josiah in their lamentations and made them an ordinance in Israel and behold they are written in the Lamentations 2 Chron. 35.24 25. True and real goodness the Image of God in meaner Persons is precious and honourable tho in Persons of higher Rank is more honoured and might make them more useful while they live and so the more lamented when they die yet as Angels convoy the Souls of poorest Believers to Heaven and shew their Love and Respect to them in conducting them thither so those that live should lament and sorrow for the death of their Bodies as remaining still united to Christ Sixthly It is complained of by God and condemned as an Evil that Righteous Persons should be taken away by Death and those that live do not lay it to heart Isa 57.1 And can it be laid to heart without any sorrow in the Heart Some may sorrow without Tears but most shew the sorrow abiding in their Hearts by the Tears running from their Eyes Shall a godly Man an holy Woman be removed by Death and lamented by none Not by those of the Family from whence they were taken Lord let not this complaint be made by thee nor this charge brought against any of the Family more immediately concerned in thy late afflicting Providence that did befall all of them CHAP. III. Want of Sorrow blameable Conclusions premised IT being made manifest that the Apostle alloweth and taketh it for granted that sorrow for those that are fallen asleep may be should be in those that do survive for two Reasons I will study Answers to these Three Questions in this case in so many Uses to be made 1. For my own sake and the sake of my Children that when we hear we may sorrow and Natural Affections spurs us on thereto we may take heed of sinning in our sorrow and may turn our Natural sorrow to our Spiritual advantage that in much sorrow we might not be defective in our sorrow nor sorrow with sorrows displeasing to God 2. For your sakes because our case
Doct. II. THat Christians ought so to bound their Sorrow for the Dead that it be not excessive and immoderate Am I the first amongst you whom God by his Providence hath called to regulate my Sorrow for the Death of a dear Relation Not by many Shall I be the last among you that shall be thus exercised Not by many Many of you have followed Husbands or Wives Parents or Children to their Grave and more of you shortly shall and afrer that others shall follow you to your long home and see you lodged in the Dust And where there was Love in living together there will be Sorrow at your last parting asunder I understand the Communication of two Religious and Tender Mothers in this place since I began this sorrowful Subject that had buried some of their Children The one said I fear I sorrowed too much for my Child and sinned by excess of Sorrow The other said I buried mine and I doubt I was not sorrowful enough and I fear I sinned in being short in my sorrow To have a due sense of the Death of Relations and of the hand of God in taking them from us and yet to keep our Sorrow in due Bounds is an hard Task that lieth upon us Two things I have prayed for in my Affliction of this kind That I might not be unsensible of God's hand nor excessive in my Sorrow for the outward Comfort of my life removed thereby And for the helping of my self in both my thoughts have been so long working on this Text which I might have kept secret in my Study and not have brought them unto you but the Consideration of the common Case of all being mortal that Death will enter into your Houses and take your Living from you and that there are in all Affections common to Human Nature which being corrupted tend to Sin in over-loving of them and over-joying in them while they live and in over-sorrowing for them when they dye hath moved me to communicate to you what I thought for my self that in the like case it might also be a Guide and Direction and support unto you In treating on this Subject of Sorrow that it might be moderate as becometh Christians that have hope and not like Heathens that have no hope of a joyful Resurrection of the dead omitting many things in so copious a Subject endeavouring to contract as much as I can I shall cast my Mattter into this Method 1. I shall lay down some Rules concerning the kind and degrees of Sorrow for the Dead 2. I shall give you an account when our Sorrow for the Dead is excessive and immoderate 3. I shall shew you the Cure or bring you some Remedy against excess of Sorrow CHAP. VIII Contains Eight Rules concerning the degrees of Sorrow for the Dead First THe Rules concerning the kinds and degrees of our Sorrow for the dead are such as these Rule 1. Our Sorrow is not so much for the Death of a Stranger as for the Death of a suitable and intimate Acquaintance At the hearing of the Death of one whom we had no Conversation with we might entertain some Sorrow as he was one partaker of the same Humane Nature with us as he was one that became liable to Death by the Sin of Adam the common Parent of us all as Death is a penal Evil upon Mankind as Adam's Off-spring and which God would not remit nor except us from when he called Adam to an Account for the Sin he had committed and as he had a Rational and Immortal Soul that is passed into Eternity tho we know not to what State in that Eternity Rule 2. Our sorrom is not usually so much for an intimate Acquaintance when he dies as for the death of Relations excepr there be some other Circumstances that might alter the Case For an intimate Friend that dieth the sweet Converse the Affableness of his Carriage the Comfort in his Company the Kindnesses he hath done might oblige me to mourn for an evil as death is that hath befallen him for if it would have been matter of sorrow to me to hear he was Sick or cast into Prison would not the same Principle and Love bind me to sorrow when he is lodged in the Grave But all these and such like enumerated Circumstances there might be in a Relation and besides these some nearer natural Obligation as partakers of the same Flesh and Blood in a more immediate sense than all Mankind in Adom were and this might add degrees of sorrow to what is the sorrow for an intimate Friend when he dieth For being nearer by Bonds of Nature to us the greater the sorrow when by death those Bonds are broke asunder Rule 3. The nearer the Relation is usually the greater is our sorrow for the breach thereof by death So sorrow for those that are near us by Consanguinity ordinarily exceeds the sorrow upon the account of meer Affinity So also the sorrow of Pâ—rents for the death of Children and of Chilâ—ren for the death of their Parents being nearer in Blood ariseth to greater degrees than that for others more remote But the Conjugal Relation being the nearest whereby two become one Flesh and breeds the strongest Affection the dissolving thereof by death begets and feeds and maintains the greater grief pierceth deeper and is more hardly born For death cannot deprive us of a nearer Mercy than a part of our selves As Children are by Multiplication Husband and Wife that walk suitably to thâ—ir relation by such an Vnion that cannot be dissolved but by death Therefore that Relation that calls for the strongest Love of all others while it holds the dissolving of it calls for the greatest sorrow when death doth cause it If a Man must forsake his most Loving Father and his most Tender Mother to dwell with his Wife because of greater Love he ought to have to her then he should have greater sorrow for the death of this Relation than for the death of Father or Mother For proportionable to the Love and Joy in the Object injoyed must be our sorrow when we are totally and finally deprived of it Rule 4. The more persons did answer the obligation of a Conjugal Relation in mutual real constant Love to and care of each others Temporal and Spiritual and Eternal Welfare the greater degree of sorrow as to the loss of the Survivor there may and ought to be Though these may part at death with greater Comfort because they filled up their Relation with Duty in time of Life The more Fear and Love to God the more Love and Care concerning their Relations the more Conscientious performance of Relative Duties the more meekness of Spirit the more kind Carriage and Sweetness of Temper and Disposition the most suitableness in all respect there was in both the more grievous the separation by death to the Survivor must be And who can forbear to sorrow for so great a Loss when he doth sit solitary and ponder
have none in that day tho others be condemned Do you think this Self-tormenting sorrow for the Damned proceeds from such Mercy in you to them in your imperfect state on Earth when you shall have no Mercy to them nor sorrow foâ— them in your perfect state in Heaven Q. 8. Should not your Zeal for Love to Desire after Delight in the Glory of God over-power and overcome all your passionate sorrow at the concernment of the Creature Is your own Salvation to be sought in subordination to the Gloâ—y of God And would you have the salvâ—tion of yours stand in competition with it or be prâ—ferred before it Would you have God lose his Glory in giving â—â—ing to your Relations If they did not anâ— indeed would not glorifie him by pâ—â—â—â—ent confâ—ssing of their Sin by serious tuâ—ning to him by thankful consenting to a Sâ—viour freeâ—y and frâ—quently offered to them but went on in Sin despised his Grace and slighted his Mercy and abused his Patience and finally refused the only Saviour and all this to his Dishonour in this World while they lived would you have God also to lose the Glory of his Justice Holiness Power and Truth in not punishing them for their Sin thus persistâ—d in when they died in the other World Should you so sorrow beyond all bounds when you mourn for their Death to mourn so much for their Damnation when God most righteously glorifieth himself in most just punishing them for their Sin who by their Sin did so wickedly dishonour him As for the Eternal state of Infants whom the sorrowful Religious Parents follow to the Grave and lodge them in the Dust I shall not now discourse it but think they are to hope well concerning them and tho they be their Parents not to take upon them to be their Judges and when they have passed a Sentence upon them according to their ungrounded fears next torment themselves and pierce themselves through with self-wracking Sorrows CHAP. X. The Ninth and Tenth Rule Five Reasons for great Sorrow for the Death of Ministers Rule 9. OVR sorrow for such as die full of Days and full of Grace and Hopes of Glory should not be so deep as for such that are holy but taken from us in the midst of their Days When an Holy Person Converted when Young hath led an Holy Conversation filled up his Duties in his General and Particular Calling been useful and serviceable in his respective Circumstances hath fought a good Fight hath kept the Faith and finished his Course when the Lease of Man's Life Seventy years is almost out is ripe for Heaven and Nature is worn parts of the Body decayed with Age and with such a Constitution in a Course of Nature could not live much longer but with grief and pains with aches and groans like ripe and mellow Fruit without violent shaking fall to the ground we have more cause to give thanks to God they lived so long served him so much were useful so many years and such a long-standing Comfort to Relations than to be bowed down with sorrow to be filled straitned and loaded with grief that they died at last Wherefore the Survivors of such should reckon up their Mercies take an account of their many Comforts and remember Blessings old and new had and received in the long Enjoyment of such a Relation in Life and then let thankfulness and sorrow joy and grief contend for Victory and strive which should exceed the other and when all is laid together and duly weighed by a Soul that is desirous that God should have the praise of his manifold Mercies in a Relative state almost for Forty years as well as himself have a sense of his loss if Nature prompt him to be sorrowful Grace would provoke him to be thankful but yet if the Contest remain as his Condition is mixt with Mercy and Affliction so let his frame of Heart be mixt with a Tincture of both and let them take their turns that one while he may be sorrowful for his loss another while be thankful for so many Mercies before that loss did befall him Rule 10. Our sorrow for the Death of Godly and Zealous Men that were in a Publick Station and Capacity admits of greater degrees than sorrow for our own Relations as private Persons Tho our sorrow for these may be more sensitive and passionate yet the sorrow for the other may exceed in degrees as more Judicious and Rational Sorrow for Godly Religious Zealous Magistrates for Able Holy and Laborious Ministers when taken away by Death should be more extensive and intensive than for others that did only live a private Life that is there should be more Mourners in number and all these should mourn with greater degrees at least of Rational sorrow for publick Persons than for private Thus all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah with a very great mourning 2 Chron. 35.24 25. When Samuel died all the Israelites were gathered together and lamented him 1 Sam. 25.1 The hearing that a Minister is Sick should fill many Hearts with much sorrow The hearing that he is recovered is matter of Joy Phil. 2.26 27 28. But the hearing that he is dead should multiply the sorrow of many And there are great Reasons of great sorrow for the death of such 1. The Death of such publick Persons is a publick loss And the more general the loss is the more general the sorrow should be When a private Person dieth that was godly as he was a Praying Christian many are losers by his death for he prayed for many while he lived yea for all Mankind in common and for the Church of God in special and therefore such a Man's death should be lamented by many but when a Publick Preacher dieth many do lose his Preaching Labours as well as the benefit of his fervent Prayers and all that are losers should be Mourners 2. The death of such is a Spiritual Loss Can we sorrow for the Temporal Losses that befall us by the death of private Persons and shall we not sorrow for our loss in Spirituals by the death of such that in their Life were helpers of our Souls in our way to Heaven Was he a Spiritual Father to many and might have been to more Is a Spiritual Birth a greater Mercy than our Natural Birth And shall our Natural Parents be lamented when they die and no sorrow for the other when they can Preach to us and Pray with us and for us no more How many Persons may one Minister instruct What a number might such a one at once and from day to day teach and direct in the way to Eternal Salvation And when such a one dieth what a loss would it be if God in Mâ—rcy did not raise up others when he falleth into his Grave 3. By the Life and Labours of such the Kingdom of Sin and Satan is battered and shaken and the Kingdom of Christ is encreased and carried on therefore all that are
Tho maâ—y things might be had out of the whole Word of God which would much enlarge this Discourse yet I shall that I may Contract pick up the Apostles Arguments in the Text and following Verses of this Chapter as Alleviations of sorrow in this Case because therein he treats designedly upon this Subject Concerning which it is as if he had said Those that are ignorant of or do not believe the Resurrection of the Dâ—ad and a better Life hereafter have ever sorrowful Thoughts of those that are taken away by Death and mourn for them to excess But I would not have you to cherish and maintain such immoderate sorrows by Ignorance of their Case at present and hereafter The Helps against Immoderate Sorrow for our dead given in this Chapter might be reduced to these Four General Heads of Argument 1. The consideration of the state of the Bodies of departed Believers They are fallen asleep and if they sleep in Jesus as they do v. 14. they shall do well 2. The Knowledge and Belief of the state of the separated Soul Their Souls are with Christ Triumphant in Heaven while their Bodies are sleeping in the Grave and these Souls he will bring back with him when he comes 3. The certainty of the Resurrection of the Dead by the Re-union of the same Souls with the same Bodies and so Christ will bring the entire Man with him at the day of Judgment Thus the Hope in the Text is the Hope of the Resurrection of the Dead and confirmed by the next words 4. The Antecedent Concomitant and consequent Circumstances of the Resurrection That is what shall go before what shall accompany and what shall follow after the raising of the dead and all these are laid down in the following part of this Chapter which is a Spring and Fountain of Living Lively Comfort against excessive sorrow for the dead And methinks I feel it already to begin to work It warms my Heart it doth begin to burn within my Breast My Affections move and it seems to me that my sorrow is turning into joy and my heaviness into rejoicing and am put to a stand whether now I shall call my Tears for my dead Tears of Sorrow or of Joy Have we been sorrowing because she is dead Methinks I cannot but joy that she sleeps in Jesus Have we been mourning because the Body is in the Grave Oh how delightful is it to me to think upon such good grounds that the Precious and Immortal Soul is above in yonder glorious Heaven in the presence of the Father and Redeemer and Comforter and in the innumerable company of Angels and saved Souls perfectly Holy and Happy for ever Have we been so much troubled because the Body did fall at the parting stroke of death methinks my trouble is allayed when I am considering and certainly sure that it shall rise and fall no more Is it an aggravating sorrow to look back upon the Circumstances of the Funeral The Bearers carrying the Corps upon their Shoulders the Mourning Relations following and many sorrowful sympathizing Friends coming after to see the dead Body lodged in its long Home Methinks another Affection is ready to take its turn and to act its part even Delight and Joy when I look forward and foresee the Lord a coming and all his Holy Angels with him calling the dead to rise they hear and come forth from their sleeping places and after Judgment go with their Lord into the highest Heavens in Body and Soul not only to their long but last yea Everlasting Home to Live and Love and Joy in God to all Eternity Oh what difference is there between believing Thoughts of these great and glorious certain things and those that have been daily running to the Grave looking upon a consuming Body What wrong have I done my self in hastening to this part no more and coming to it no sooner Why have we been looking so long in the Grave in which as such we can see nothing but death and cry out as the Men to Elisha concerning their deadly Pottage O thou Man of God there is death in the Pot 2 Kings 4.40 So we there is death in the Grave But when Elisha said Then bring Meal and he cast it into the Pot and he said pour out for the people that they may eat and there was no harm in the Pot. So we should have looked upon the Grave as a place where Christ before had been laid and as a Bed for the Bodies of Believers to sleep in till the Lord shall come and we should have seen no such great harm in the Grave to fill us with excessive sorrow Concerning this representation of death by sleeping four things may be premised as to this manner of Scripture expression 1. Tho Beasts do die yet their death in Scripture that I know of is never called a Sleep for they die to live no more Death puts an end to their Life without a Resurrection to it any more They are only in this World and not to have Life in that World that Men are hastening too They are not capable here of Moral Government of Sin or Grace and so shall not be raised to undergo Eternal Punishments or to receive Eternal Rewards hereafter Tho they do sleep while they live yet their death is not a sleep because they shall die but never wake 2. The death of ungodly Men is sometimes in Scripture called a sleep tho more seldom The worst as well as the best all Mankind in general shall be raised at the last day As death is common to all so shall the Resurrection of the dead also be Tho as there is a difference in their death so shall there also be in their Resurrection but because they shall awake therefore to them death also is a sleep Tho they had better to sleep on than to awake and rise to be tormented Dan. 12.2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the Earth shall awake some to â—verlasting Life and some to Shame and Everlasting Contempt Expressed by Christ in these words John 5.28 All that are in their Graves shall hear his voice 29. And shall come forth they that have done good unto the Resurrection of Life and they that have done evil to the Resurrection of Damnation 3. It is most frequently used concerning the death of holy and believing persons that they may familiarize it to themselâ—es and get as great a willingness to die as to go to Bed and sleep So God said to Moses he should sleep with his Fathers Deut. 31.16 So of David 2 Sam. 7.12 So Mat. 9.24 When Christ said our Friend Lazarus sleepeth the Disciples thought he spake of his taking natural rest in sleep but after explained his meaning saying he is dead John 11.11 12 13. So Acts 13.36 4. The Expression of sleeping in Jesus is to be understood peculiarly of the death of true Believers that shall be awaked to live with him in Eternal
him may assuredly satisfie us that such shall also be raised Firmly believe the one and you cannot or need not doubt of the other 1 Cor. 15.12 Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead how say some among you that there is no Resurrection of the dead 13. But if there be no Resurrection of the dead then Christ is not risen 15. Whom he raised not up if so be the dead rise not 16. For if the dead rise not then is not Christ raised 1 Thes 4.14 For if we believe that Jesus dyed and rose again even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him Thirdly The gross Absurdities that unavoidably follow the denial of the Deads being raised may confirm us that they shall be raised They are such as these 1. Then Christ is not risen 1 Cor. 15.13 2. If Christ be not risen and so the Dead shall not be raised then Ministers preaching and Peoples believing is all in vain v. 14. 3. Then the Apostles were Liars and false for they affirmed both 1 Cor. 15.15 and in other Texts 4. Then those that are Dead in Christ are perished v. 18. 5. Then the best men are the most miserable v. 19. 6. Then a floodgate is opened to all wickedness v. 32. 7. Gods People then are weakened for doing or suffering v. 58. 8. Then Gods Covenant with his People is broke Mat. 22.39 c. Secondly Besides the certainty of the Resurrection of the Dead the consideration of the Properties Qualities and Endowments of their Bodies which shall arise administers more Comfort to us and consequently will be a further mitigation of our Sorrow God hath not only assured us that these dry Bones consumed Bodies shall live but also hath foretold us what manner of Bodies they then shall be far more noble and excellent than when they lived or died 1. They shall be raised Immortal and Incorruptible Bodies While they lived with us they were always mortal and did admiâ—ister matter of feâ—r unto us while we ofâ—en said 〈◊〉 thought What if my Husband should die or what iâ— my Father or Mother should die These were fretting fears and caused many distrâ—cting Cares or troubled us sitting at our Table or lying in our Beds because we knew they were always subject to Death and liâ—ble to its stroke and we knâ—w not how soon tho in Health they might be taken from us and so the feâ—rs of their dying abated our Comfort in th m while they were living because we looked upon thâ—m as dying Comforts and going from us whilst they were with us But when theâ— live again they shall die no more Death shâ—ll have no more dominion over them Then thâ—y shall be above the stroke of death and the fears thereof and it shall be no more a King of Terrors unto them But as Christ their Heâ—d hath said Rev. 1.18 I am he that liveth and was dead and behold I am alive for evermore Amen so all these his Members shall say We are they that live and were dead and behold we are alive for evermore Amen This is truth so it is When Death came in by Sin all mankind became subject unto Death When Sin was turned out by death and these Bodies shall be raised no more polluted with it they shall be as free from Death as they shall from Sin before they did die they were to die When they were dead and shall live again Death hath done its worst hath done its all and hath no more that it can do Death did conquer them and laid and kept them Prisoners in the Grave but when they shall be raised to Life and redeemed from the Grave they shâ—ll conquer Death and then this last Enemy shall be destroyed and in the morning of the Resurrection these revived Bodies united to their Souls shall sing that triumphant Song O Death where is thy sting O Grave where is thy victory Death and Grave did swallow us up but now the Destroyers are destroyed the Spoilers are spoiled and both are swallowed up in victory Thus the Bodies that were sown in corruption shall be raised in incorruption 1 Cor. 15.42.54 55. then Mortality shall be swallowed up of Life 2 Cor. 5.4 2. They shall be raised powerful and impassible Bodies While they lived here they were weak and suffering Bodies enduring hunger and cold and thirst crying out of Pains and Sickness or torments by Chollick Gout and Stone and Rheumatisms shaken by Agues and scorched by Feavors and swelling with Dropsie torn with Coughs overflowed with Catarrhs and liable to hundreds of Diseases insomuch that they died daily yea died many Deaths before they died and many Sicknesses put them to more and greater pains in time of Life than Death it self did put some of them to in the point of Death but when they shall live again as they shall die no mâ—re so they shall suffer no more nor be sick any more feel hunger and thirst no more and so shall grieve nor groan weep or sigh or sob no more for ever no more aking Heâ—ds no more pained Bowels no more Griefs of any sort whatsoever Indeed the Bodies of the Wicked shall be raised Immortal but subject to suffering they shall feel more pains and torments after they are raised than ever they did before they died and their Immortality shall be the aggravation of their misery for die again they would but cannot return to their Grave again where they felt nothing they would but must not because they must live for ever they must be tormented for ever Immortality of Bodies at the Resurrection to the Wicked is a Curse and Plague to the Godly it is a Blessing and a Favour conferred upon them for tho' they were sown in weakness they shall be raised in power 1 Cor. 15.43 3. They shall be raised Spiritual Bodies not turned into Spirits for then they would not be Bodies Spirits have not material Eyes with which Job said he should see his Redeemer at the last day with those he then had and not with others if it were not the same Bodies in substance it would not be a Resurrection but a new product on They shall then be Spiritual Bodies in this respect that their manner of Life shall be like the Life of Spirits having no need of Meat or Drink or Sleep or any such things whereby our Natural Bodies in this Life are supported and maintained In which respect Christ asserts that they shall be as the Angels Mat. 22.30 In the Resurrection they neither marry nor are given in Marriage but are as the Angels of God in Heaven This will be a great priviledge of Bodies raised from the dead at the last day for nâ—â— we spend a great part of our Life in Sleep for the refreshing of our Natural Bodies arâ— in that time we are not nor cannot be taken up with Admirations of God nor Contemplations of Divine things but after the Resurrection there shall be no
the Lords if I had not had it from him I could have told no such thing that we that are alive and remain unto the Coming of the Lord shall not prevent them that are asleep V. 16. The dead in Christ shall rise first The like Order and precedency he affirms 1 Cor. 15.52 The dead shall be raised Incorruptible and we those that shall be alive shall be changed We think that those that shall be found alive will have an advantage above those that are dead But they shall have this advantage above the then Living that they shall be first raised and be made immortal glorious and incorruptible Bodies sooner and before those that shall be alive As they put off the mortal and corruptible Body before them so they shall put on the Immortal and Incorruptibble Body sooner than they These died a Temporal Death which the other shall not but they shall live an Immortal Life sooner than those that are not to die a Temporal death The Living must wait for their Change till those that were changed from Life to Death shall be again changed from Death to Life Do you mourn because your holy Relations are dead and do not Live Rejoyce also that they shall Live and have the preeminence before those that shall not die but only be changed because God hath told you how mindfull and careful he will be of those that sleep in Jesus Forgotten by Men remembred by God IV. Is it nothing to moderate your sorrow that Christ and yours shall surely meet Death was a parting you and them and that parting day was a sorrowful day And you record the day of their Death and your parting and mention it with Grief and Tears Remember a meeting day will come not only when they and you shall meet but when they and Christ shall meet and let the Thoughts thereof cause you to rejoyce What tho you and they shall meet no more while you live yet Christ and they and you also if you believe shall meet and never part But where shall this Meeting be In the Air. But how shall they get up They shall be caught up by the Power of God or be such agile and nimble Bodies that they shall be as able to move upwards as now they are proue to fall downwards You follow them to the Grave and see them there let down and you are filled with Sorrow Think again as if you saw that Body raised again and mounting aloft as swiftly as any winged Bird into the Air to meet the Lord and let such a Foresight abate your present sorrow CHAP. XVII After their meeting with the Lord THEY shall be with HIM for EVER Comfort from all Recollected SHall not a believing Prospect that those that sleep in Jesus shall awake and live with the Lord for ever make some abatement of our sorrow or rather turn it into Joy in the hopes thereof This is the last and highest and most Soveraign Remedy the Apostle giveth in this place against Excessive Sorrow saying and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Short words but matter of lasting everlasting Joy Soon said but not so soon understood for indeed they contain more than we can conceive and none know so well as they that are with him Yet that we may have a relish of this Remedy and a taste of this Spiritual Comfort for the correcting of extravagant Sorrow let it be enquired 1. With whom it is that these must be with the Lord and what it is to be with him 2. Who they are here meant that shall be with the Lord We. 3. How long for ever Blessed shall they be whoever they be that thus shall be with the Lord for ever 1. It is the Lord himself with whom these shall be And to be with him is the summ of all our Hopes the end of all our Prayers and the top of all our Happiness The Misery of the Ungodly and Impenitent when raised judged and condemned is that they must depart from the Lord and be in flaming fire and then with Devils The Happiness of the Godly then acquitted and absolved will be to be called to come to the Lord and to go with him into Glory and there abide and remain with him Mat. 25.34 41 46. Then shall the King say to them on his right hand Come ye blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the World 41. Then shall he say also to them on the left hand Depart from me ye Cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels Some are called to come to him the others commanded to depart from him some to be with Him the rest to be with Devils therefore those are declared to be blessed the other accursed for 46. These shall go away into everlasting Punishment but the Righteous into Life Eternal Do we believe these things or do we not All these things are spoken of Men when raised from the Dead and judged and sentenced and the Sentence put into Execution and do not you by Faith see with whom they shall have their abode that now do sleep in Jesus enjoying the beatisick Vision living in the comfortable glorious and immediate Presence of God the Father of Christ the Redeemer and of the Eternal Spirit their Sanctifier Now your Thoughts run to the Grave look down into it and you see them with Worms and with Rottenness and therefore sorrow Let your Thoughts run as far as the day of Christs coming and then suppose you look for them in the Graves you will not find them The Voice will be They are not here for they are risen come see the places where they lay Where are they Look up they are gone to meet the Lord in the Air and whither are they next to go to be with the Lord And is there nothing in the belief of all these things not only to asswage Sorrow but also to beget great Joy but because we are of so little Faith therefore we are of so much Sorrow 2. Who are these that are to be with the Lord What we doth the Apostle mean whom doth he say this great thing of of all those that shall be caught up in the Clouds to meet the Lord in the Air. Who are they those that shall be alive and remain when the Lord shall come Together with them Who are they the Dead in Christ that did rise first before the Living were changed so then it comprehends those that slept in Jesus and shall be raised and those Believers that shall be found alive and changed and caught up together into the Air to meet Christ who will adjudge them to Everlasting Life and so after that shall be with Christ in Glory Are these the Dead we Mourn for and why because they are dead in their Grâ—ves and with the dead but have we no Fâ—ith in this Word of the Lord. If we havâ— let us set their Resurrection over against their Death
had you to do to keep his Own from him when he would have them with him 7 Q. Is not God Soveraign Lord and absolute Disposer of all in the World Are not Kingdoms and Nations Princes Lords and Nobles at his disposal And what are you above all others in the World that you and yours should be exempted from the disposing Hand of God 8 Q. Did your Happiness lie in the Enjoyment of the Creatures you have lost In them or in God If in them you are miserable if in God tho they are dead yet he doth Live Why then do you thus mourn so long as your Happiness remains 9 Q. Tho your Relations are cut down and withered like Grass yet doth not the Word of the Lord stand and continue for your Support Isa 40.6 7 8. And cannot you find as much Comfort in all the standing Promises of God as you did in a withering Creature Go and try by reading believing applying of them as your Case requires and by turning Promises into Prayers 10 Q. Did not your Relation live out the Time appointed by God Job 14.5 Or did he not die when God did foreknow he would die And do you thus take on because Gods Purpose is performed Would you have a Child tarry in the Womb beyond its appointed time or in the World beyond what God intended it should 11 Q. Did not you know your Relations were mortal or do you sorrow because they were so Is not that to sorrow because they were Men or Women or Children Would you have had them to have been here Immortal that they might not have been subject to Death Did you ever see any Men Women or Children that were not mortal 12 Q. If so did not you know a parting time would come Was there not some Intimation and mention of Deaths separating you in your conjugal Covenant And do you now mourn as if something had befallen you that you never knew or heard of Is it so intolerable to you to see a dying Creature dead 13 Q. When would you have been willing to have parted with them If God had continued your Child ten years longer would not you have been more unwilling and so more sorrowful than now you are After Forty years would you be willing 14 Q. Hath any thing befallen you that hath not been the common Case of all the Generations before you will shortly be of all this Age and of following except those that shall be found alive at the Coming of Christ And would you have your State to be singular Or if it be not will you be sullen 15 Q. Could your Relations Souls have gone to Heaven if their Bodies had not died Or would you have had them never lodged there except as Enoch and Elias without seeing Death If the Soul could not have been happy above except the Body dyed and took the Grave in its way to Glory are you excessively troubled for a dead Body which must be for the greater advantage of the Immortal Soul 16 Q. Would not you have been as loth to leave them behind you as now you are sorrowful they are gone before you And will you be pleased neither way Would you have died all together You are sorrowing now for Wise and Children because removed by Death and if God had laid you upon a dying Bed then your trouble would be for them if alive because you are like to be taken from them and say What will my small Children do if I die And what will their Mother dâ— when their Father leaves the one â— Widow and the other Fatherless I could have been glad if God would have spared my Life to have seen them well brought up It is hard for you to say which would be less trouble to you to leave them behind you or have them go before you But if you have that which you had rather have why do you so sorrow when you have that which is best for the rest of your Family 17 Q. Do not you know that all your Family have sinned and that therefore they have all deserved to die Why then do you sorrow so much for one captivated by Death when you should be admiring the Patience of God and praising him for his Mercy that so many are continued in Life 18 Q. Is not this Ingratitude to God that the loss of one should make you unsensible of the many Mercies of your own Life Is all gone in one Look about you and you will see the abundant goodness of God to you in your outward Accommodations in this World many spiritual Blessings as Pledges of Eternal Glory and will you bury your Thankfulness for these in the Grave of your dead 19 Q. Do not you provoke God hy your sinful excessive Sorrow to go on to make more Breaches by Death that you might have something more to sorrow for Do you sorrow thus for one Might not God say There is another Child Death lay it dead and bring it out and lodge it by the other There is an Husband or a Father yet left Death go and seize him and have him away and if they are delighted in such discontented Sorrow let them havâ— more to sorrow for 20 Q. Have not they lived a long life before they die they enter into Eternal glorious life when they die Do you sit and sorrow and say if he had not died so soon if he had not died so young How soon if he lived to be Converted to be sanctified and prepared for Heaven did he not live longer than a Man at Sixty and then dies in Sin and is Damned at last Do you reckon length of Life by multitude of years or ripeness and fitness for Heaven When you Sorrow he died so soon Bless God he lived so long as to be saved when he died 21 Q. Will you compare with God in point of Wisdom in governing and disposing of his Creatures with all the circumstances of Life and Death Are you wiser than he dare you entertain such a Thought would you not resist it with abhorrence why then do you think it would have been better for you that your Relation should have lived longer Is not this to set your Folly against Gods Wisdom Doth not he best know what is the most fitting time for any to be born how long to live and when to die If so why do you oversorrow for that which is done with highest Wisdom 22 Q. Why hath God implanted such Graces in your Heart as are suitable for a time of Affliction but that you should exercise them in their season As Faith and Patience and Submissiveness of will to his holy Will and Pleasure Are not Habits given for Act and when will you act your Patience and Submission but when Tryals are upon you but doth your excessive Sorrow look like Patience under or fretting against the hand of God 23 Q. Do you say you did exceedingly desire their Eternal Good in Gods accepted time and excessively
Dead that shall so surely live and be with him Doth not some other Frame and Temper more become thee Dost thou believe the future happy State of their Bodies whose present death thou dost bewail yet canst thou not abate thy sorrow nor turn it yet into the actings of some other Affections nor into the exercises of some Grace which if thou dost will it not more tend to the Glory of God to thine own Comfort and to the Encouragement of thine own Relations which yet do live with thee and to the setting off the Power of the Christian Religion when thou shalt believe the Promises and Principles thereof and behave thy self as one that is endued with such Faith and hast such firm Foundation for thy Faith Blessed Lord by thine assistance now I can and by thy helping Spirit now I will endeavour that I might no longer sorrow as if I had no hope when the sincere dying Christian hath hope in his Death and after he or she is dead the Living have such grounds of hope that the Dead by Christ shall conquer Death and that the day will come when if they be looked for in the Grave there they shall not be found but may be said they are not here but are risen come see the place where they did lye but are not here but gone to meet the Lord and to be for ever with him in the highest Heavens Then Lord I will no longer droop but hope Awake my Hope and let my Sorrow give place to thee Hope Oh how sweet is this how pleasant and delightful If my Sorrow was as bitter as Gall this Hope is as sweet as Honey And this I do begin to feel the more lively is my Hope of their joyful glorious Resurrection the more my Sorrow doth abate tho now for the present they be the captives of Death Indeed had it not been that I had got this Hope my Heart would break with Grief but through Grace I have obtained this good hope and by it my Spirit is revived my Sorrow is more moderate And having this Hope my Sorrow is turned into desire and longing for the Day and Coming of my Lord that all that sleep in Jesus might awake and their Immortal Souls be cloathed with Immortal glorious Bodies Oh how much better do I find it to groan with desires that they might live and come up out of their Graves than to groan thro grief that they are dead and cast into them O Time make haste and flye with greater speed that this day of the Coming of the Lord and rising of the Dead may come It is approaching it is approaching it is nearer by every Day by every Night by every Hour that comes and passeth away As time doth wear away so let my Sorrow as to its excess wear off and that by my desiring instead of sorrowing Yet thou must wait patiently O my Soul tho thou dost so earnestly desire it and tho this Morning might not dawn before the night of Death doth overtake thy Body yet wait while thy Life doth last and leave thy Body in hope that thine and theirs that be already dead shall surely live again in a Glorious Blessed and Eternal Life For doth the Husbandman cast his Seed into the Ground and know that it shall rot yet patiently wait till it rise out of the Ground and grow untill the Harvest when it shall be gathered in with great advantage and canst not thou O my Soul be patient and wait for the Redemption of those Bodies that are rotting in the Grave till the Harvest-day shall come and they be gathered with so great Advantage into the Kingdom of their God And while thou dost desire and wait thou mightest also O my Soul rejoyce and be exceeding glad because that what thou waitest for and dost desire thou hast such well-grounded Hopes that it will surely be And tho the Object of Desire and Hope is good as absent and the Object of Joy is good as present and enjoyed yet let thy Faith make that as present which is yet to come that thou mayest rejoyce therein as if it were already present O Lord notwithstanding all my Sorrow while my Faith and Hope were sleeping yet now by thy good Spirit of Grace they are awake my Sorrow is turned into Joy thou hast put off my Sackcloth thou hast turned my Weeping into Hoping Desiring and Rejoycing in the firm Belief that my Dead shall rise to Glorious Life and being not ignorant of this Lord pardon my Sin that hath been in my Sorrow and let me sorrow no more as one that hath no hope FINIS Books printed for and sold by Thomas Cockeril at the Three Leggs in the Poultrey over against the Stocks-Market London 1. THE Morning Exercise at Cripplegate or several Cases of Conscience Resolved by sundry Ministers In Quarto 2. The Supplement to the Morning Exercise at Cripplegate being sundry more practical Cases of Conscience Resolved Quarto 3. Speculum Theologiae in Christo Or a View of some Divine Truths which are either practically Exemplified in Jesus Christ set forth in the Gospel or may be reasonably deduced from thence Quarto 4. Christus in Corde Or the Mystical Union between Christ and Believers Octavo 5. Precious Faith considered in its Nature Workings and Growth In Octavo These three last by Edward Polhill of Burwash in Sâ—ssex Esquire 6. A Discourse of Regeneration Faith and Repentance Octavo 7. A Discourse of Christian Religion in sundry Points Octavo 8. The Incomprehensibleness of Imputed Righteousness for Justification by Humane Reason till enlightned by the Spirit of God Twelves These three last by Thomas Cole Minister of the Gospel in London 9. A succinct and seasonable Discourse of the Occasions Causes Nature Rise Growth and Remedies of Mental Errors Whereunto is added 1. Vindiciarum Vindex Being an Answer to Mr. Cary about Infant Baptism 2. A Synopsis of Antinomian Errors 3. A Sermon about Unity In Octavo 10. The Reasonableness of Personal Reformation and the Necessity of Conversion 12o. 11. The Remains of Mr. John Flavel being Two Sermons one on the Day of Coronation of their Majesties K. William and Q. Mary the other at a Meeting of Minisâ—ers With some Account of his Life Octavo 12. An Exposition of the Assembly's Catechism with Practical Inferences from each Qâ—estion Octavo These four last by Mr. John Flavel late Minister of the Gospel at Dartmoutâ— Devon 13. A Practical Discourse of Gods Soverâ—ignty In Octavo 14. Instructions about Heart-work By Mr. Richard Allein Octavo 15. The Evidence of things not seen A Scriptural and Philosophical Discourse conceâ—ning the State of Good men after Death Oâ—tavo 16. A Discourse of Closet or Secret Prayer Twelves 17. Poems in Two Parts Twelves Both by Samuel Slaâ—er 18. Love to Christ Necessary for all By Thâ— Doolittle M. A. In Octavo 19. The Righteous Mâ—n's Hope at Death By Samuel Doolittle
am Alas Lord forgive your unprofitable Servant tho studious as I can of your Spiritual and Eternal Good Thomas Doolittle The CONTENTS THE Mourners Complaint his Warning to others the Explication of the Text. pag. 1. to 9. Doct. I. The actings and workings of Sonrow in the Living for their Dead are allowed and lawâ—ull and ought to be The want of the workings of natural Affections in many upon this occasion calls for the handling of this doctrine 10 11 12 Proved by approved Examples and by Reasons p. 13 to 29 Use I. Of Reproof Where Eight Conclusions concerning Sorrow for the dead p. 31 I. This question What are the aggravations of want of Sorrow and sense of Gods hand in this Case answered in 10 particulars p. 35 to 46 Use II. Of Examination of the Kind of our Sorrow II. Quest When is our Sorrow for our dead Kindly and pleasing to God and when a turbulent Passion a Vexation of Spirit and provoking to God Ten Answers p 46 to 66 Use III. Of Caution p. 66 67 III. Quest When is our Sorrow for our dead spiritually defective thô it be naturally abundant Or when is it too little as we are Christians be it never so much as we are Men Eight Answers p. 69 to 83 Doct. II. Christians ought so to bound their sorrow for their dead that it be not Excessive and Immoderate p. 84 Ten Rules concerning the Kinds and Degrees of sorrow for the dead p. 87 c. Eight Questions propounded to such as sorrow with distracting sorrow for the death of Impenitent Relations for the composing of their minds p 101 c. Q. When is our sorrow for our dead excessive and Immoderate Twelve Answers 116 to 137 4 Remedies against excessive sorrow for our dead p. 137 c. I. Rem The consideration of the state of the Bodies of departed Believers that they sleep in Jesus 4 Notes of this Scripture expression of death as a sleep 142 c. 10 Meditations of Death as a sleep moderating our sorrow for them that sleep in Jesus 145 to 152 II Rem The knowledge and Belief of the glorious state of their separated Souls while their Bodies sleep in the Grave 152 to 158. Proved and Improved for the asswaging of our Sorrow III. Rem The Resurrection of those dead we mourn for to glorious Eternal Life Proved as a ground of great Comfort in our sorrow 158 to 165 Seven Properties or Endowments of their Bodies when raised as so many alleviations of our Sorrow 166 c. IV. Rem The Antecedents Concomitants Consequents Of their Resurrection 174 1. The Lord HIMSELF will come from Heaven and call them out of their Graves Our sorrow abated by the Certainty Nearness Publickness Of Christs coming for them 175 to 183. 2. The Shout and sounding Trumpet what it will be The Ministration of Angels about the dead in Christ 183 c. 3. The Priviledge of those that sleep in Jesus or their Preheminence before those that shall then be found alive 190 4. Our dead shall then meet the Lord in the Air. 191 5. They shall be with the Lord for Ever 192 Opened With whom they shall be With the Lord. Who shall be with him The dead in Christ whom we now sorrow for all Believers sound alive How long To all Eternity 193 c. Use Of Comfort 200 201 24 Questions added to the former grounds of Comfort for the quieting of our Minds and moderating our sorrow for our dear Relations now dead 201 to 211. The Mourners Soliloquy or Reasoning with himself about hâ— sorrow for his Dead that it might be kept within the bound of Moderntion 215 c THE Mourners Directory 1 THESS IV. 13. But I would not have you to be ignorant brethren concerning them which are asleep that ye sorrow not even as others which have no hope CHAP. I. The Introduction and Explication of the Text. THe Survivor according to his Circumstances by sympathizing Persons will be allowed to unload his burthened heart by pouring out his Complaints in some such manner Hath God afflicted me Hath he chastised my Children both me and them with such a smarting Rod as Death bereaving me of the choicest outward Comfort of my Life and removing out of the World from them a tender Mother that brought them into it and thereby caused us all to drink deeply of the Waters of Marah and filled our Eyes with overflowing Tears and our Hearts with over-whelming Sorrow and is it not time to cast about what Remedy Scripture doth yield which Nature cannot afford Do I stand before you this day in such Circumstances as in Preaching for the space of almost forty years I never did and may I not borrow from you some hours in your hearing to speak to my self and them deprived of so great a Mercy Paul was in a great strait whether he should chuse to live or dye and I am in a strait how I should without sin Sorrow for my dead For if defect of Sense and Sorrow in this case be a Sin I will strive to Sorrow that through stupidity I might not Sin If regular Sorrow be my duty I will study and pray that it might be so regulated that whilest I Sorrow and not Sin I might please and delight my self in this Sorrow and take some comfort from my Sorrow If excess be my weakness without Divine Assistance I cannot remove it therefore bent my mind to muse upon these words I would not have you to be ignorant concerning them which are asleep that ye sorrow not even as others which have no hope But may not that which is my Sorrow to day be some of yours to morrow Or within a little time will it not must it not be done to you and yours which at the present is done to me and mine Are not your Relations mortal as well as ours was And if you have not sinned so much as we yet have not you so much Sin as might call Death into your Houses Will not Death shortly knock at your doors and enquire who lives here upon this design that there they may die Will it not break through your strongest Gates scale your highest Walls climbe up to your Windows enter into your Chambers come into your very Beds and take the Wife out of your Bosome and the sucking Child from the Mothers Brest Will it not in a few Days and Nights more tear and rend from you the desire of your Eyes tho you would hold them fast in your Arms Shall not the shriekings be heard in your Houses as lately were in mine and the doleful cry go round while one Child begins saying My Mother alas my dear Mother is dead and another shall eccho to the voice of the former with weeping Eyes with wringing of Hands and bitterness of Soul shall say What shall I do what shall I do My tender loving Mother is dead my Mother is dead I could never say so before and the first time it is said
it is a sorrowful saying May Sin invite Death into your Families saying Come in thou Messenger of the Lord come in here is one deserves to dye and there is another seize him and hale him out apprehend him and take him away he lives not as he should let him die as he ought May it shortly be said by you my Wife is dead my Husband is dead and is Grace and Nature in you so equally poized and have you such a just temperament and mixture of both as not to sorrow less or more than you ought that now your Relations are round about your Tables and no ones place is empty you might not at present hear for time so shortly to come what might be said concerning Sorrow for the dead and cure your ignorance concerning them which are asleep that you sorrow not as others which have no hope or tho they dye yet you sorrow not as such do not that have neither Faith nor Hope nor natural Affection Nature and Religion binding me to promote the temporal and spiritual Good of so near a Relation all a long pressed more hard upon me to give my utmost diligence to assist her in her last Sickness by Night and Day by Prayer and Discourse that she might and God through his rich Grace and Mercy in Christ to her Soul did enable her with abiding comfort and setled hope of Heaven look Death in the face overcome this King of Terrors and conquer the Fears thereof when Death by its stroke without a Sting did conquer her This Portion of Scripture from the Text to the end of this Chapter was the last I read and urged before she left her own to go to her Father's house which I do make the first to explain and apply in this place for my own and your sake Wherein are three generals 1. A Doctrinal Conclusion concerning Sorrow for such as sleep in Jesus or dye in the Lord v. 13. 2. The Confirmation of it by many argumentative Reasons and are helps against sinful Sorrow by excess from ver 14. to the 18. 3. The Application of this Doctrine so confirmed or the use of Comfort to be made of it against such Sorrows V. 18. Wherefore comfort one another with these words The Doctrinal Conclusion laid down in the Text consists of these particulars 1. A familiar Representation of Death that the thoughts of it might be more easy to our minds to dye sounds more harsh to sleep is a softer expression of Death Death and Grave you would every day avoid Sleep and Bed you every night desire yet Death is but as a Sleep and the Grave is but as a Bed and both so called in the Scripture 2. The Deportment and Behaviour of the Survivers in reference to such as sleep the sleep of Death which relates unto their Sorrow upon this occasion And in this these two things are couched in the Text. 1. A Sorrow supposed granted and allowed to the living for their dead For should the living be as senseless as the dead when Death hath taken away Life and Breath and Motion from them shall Sin take away all workings of natural Affections from us Shall Death snatch them out of our Bosoms force them out of our Arms and tear one piece of our selves from our selves take the one half away and leave the other behind and we stand and look on without a Tear in our Eyes without Sorrow in our Hearts as if we had neither sense of Gods heavy Hand nor love to them nor feeling of the stroke that thereby is laid upon our selves Sorrow we may tho not as others 2. Excess of Sorrow is corrected Lay not the Reins loose upon your Affections lest they carry you to Sin in your Sorrow Lavish not those Tears in washing your dead which should be kept for lamenting of your Sins Let there be a difference betwixt your Sorrow and the Sorrow of others as there should 〈◊〉 betwixt those that have hope and those that have no hope of a joyful Resurrection to Eternal Glorious Life The Heathens have no such hope for they are without Christ the cause of hope without the Church the place of hope without the Covenant the ground and reason of hope While you are allowed to mourn as Men do not exceed the bounds and limits becoming Christian Men. The Heathens mourn for their dead beyond all bounds of Moderation while they lament them as such that shall live no more But let Christians limit their Sorrow as for such that tho they be dead shall live again and after that shall die no more 3. In the Text is the Cause of excessive Sorrow for the dead that is Ignorance concerning the State of the Dead now and hereafter at the present and for ever both as to Body and to Soul 4. The cure of excessive Sorrow Knowledg Meditation and firm belief of the present and future State of those that dye in the Lord. I would not have you to be ignorant others are and therefore mourn to excess but I would not have you so to be that you may not sorrow as they do Did ye know think and believe that their Death is but a Sleep out of which they shall certainly awake their Graves their Beds out of which when the morning of the Resurrection shall come they shall arise and that their Souls in the mean time are with God and Christ and the Eternal Spirit admitted into that glorious Society of Angels and Saints above perfectly Loving constantly delighting perpetually Praising and Triumphing in that God that did chuse them in that Jesus that did redeem them with his Blood in that Holy Spirit that made them meet to be partakers of that Inheritance of yonder Saints in Light and Life and Love would you groan while they rejoyce Would you mourn while they sing Songs of Praise Are you grieved because they are exalted Do you take on as if they were for ever lost when by saving Mercy they are now for ever found in the glorious Presence of their Lord and Father and Redeemer Could you hear them speak to you they would say you are in daily Trouble we in everlasting Rest and Peace and Triumph you are in the Field we have got the Victory you are in danger of Sin and Satan we are freed from them for ever your love unto our Lord and yours is imperfect love while ours wanteth no degree you know not what we do know of God and Christ and Glory you see not what we do see nor enjoy so much as we enjoy therefore spend your Tears upon your selves and not for us weep for your selves and not for us lament your selves being yet in a sinful World and not us that are lodged in a pure spotless Place and Kingdom You pray and wait and hope to be where we are but we have no desire to be where you be We have a better House than you live in better Company and better Work and sweeter Imployment
Sin his Child did die and yet after the Childs death we do nor read he sorrowed for the Child that died for his Sin with such sorrow that he did for Absalom that died in his own Sin But is your Case and David's alike He sorrowed for his Sin and humbled himself for his Sin and fasted and prayed with weeping Tears to God but did you do so He obtained the pardon of his Sin but have you also Is it not to be questioned when you have no sorrow for Sin nor God's displeasure nor the dead when your Case which is not the case of all was such that one did cause the other 4. Want of Sorrow for the dead taken from them from want of sense of God's hand upon them and against them argues That they are spiritually Blind and cannot see spiritually Deaf and cannot hear spiritually Benummed and cannot feel When your living fall down dead God's hand is lifted up and you do not see You see them fall into the Grave under your feâ—t but you do not see the hand of God lifted up over your head Isa 26.11 Lord when thy hand is lifted up they will not see When your living Relations do dye there is Gods rod upon you and it hath a Voice a loud a shâ—ill and doleful crying Voice but you do not hâ—ar did I say a Rod Nay God hath been in your House with his Ax hewing down your Living lopping off the Children as so many Branches cutting off the Father or the Mother or both and plucking up the Family by the Roots and yet you do not hear the sound of the Rod nor of the Ax nor consider who it is that did appoint both When your Relations dye it is a stroke of God upon your selves he kills them and smitteth you and yet you have no feeling of his blow What! are the living dead while they do live Are the living become like unto their dead Having eyes but do not see and ears but do not hear and flesh but cannot feel You stand before them but they do not see you you call to them but they do not hear you you strip them and put on them their Grave-clothes and remove them down your Stairs and carry them from your House to their Lodging-dust and let them down into the pit and all this while they do not feel you So are you towards God as they towards you God a displeased God is come into your House into your Chamber but you do not see him nor his anger He calls to you by your Dead that lies bâ—fore you but you do not hear his Voice He is punishing correcting of you but you do not feel the smart of his stroke Behold the dead burying their dead men spiritually dead burying their naturally dead The Lifeless corps do not sorrow that they are let down into the Grave and the Liseless-living living a Life of Nature but not a Life of Grace not having the Sense of Christians nor of Men of the death of their dead nor of Sin nor of God's displeasure do not mourn to see thâ—m lodged thâ—re 5. Want of Sorrow in this case from want of sense of God's hand that brought you into it argues That you wanted love to them and a prizing and a valuing of them Love your Money and do not sorrow when you lose it Love your Health and Ease and do not grieve when you want it in sickness and in pain Will you say you cannot How did you love your Child when living if you cannot sorrow for its Death How did you love and prize and value the Com◠〈…〉 â—f Father or Mother Husband or 〈…〉 live without Sor◠〈…〉 them If Sor◠〈…〉 of what was be◠〈…〉 bear some 〈…〉 of Lovâ— then how 〈◊〉 was the love to them when living when thâ—re is no sorrow for them when dead The sâ—ying of a poor Man seeing a rich Man burying his Child told me was this 'T is the priviledge of the rich to bury their Children when the poor must keep theirs Are not Children Husbands Wives Fathers Mothers a burden to such that look upon it as a Priviledge that they may dye that they may be buried What hearts have they that do not sorrow for their dead when want of Sorrow argues they wanted love and yet the thoughts of their want of formâ—r love to them doth not fill them with present Sorrow But something to this hath been said before 6. Want of Sorrow in this Case argues A contemning and a despising of the afflicting hand of God When God gave you a good Husband or Wife or Parents or Childrâ—n and you did not prize them when you had them this was a despising of Gods merciful and good Hand unto you when God took them from you by death you laid it not to heart this is a despising of the chastening Hand of God upon you When living you were not thankful when dead you were not sorrowful in the one you despised his love in the other you despised his anger As if you should say Let God do what he will you will despise all his doings God's command to Man is this Heb. 12.5 Despise not the chastening of the Lord nor faint when thou art rebuked of him One man despiseth that rebuke from God which another is ready to sink under One bears it without feeling of it when another faints at the smarting of it When it is a small Affliction a man despiseth it this is a light thing and easily born When it is a great Affliction man fainteth because of it saying No man's Affliction like to mine no man's Sorrow like to mine my Flesh faileth my Strength faileth my Heart and Spirit fail for this is grievous to be born but behold the Man we are speaking of is under a great Affliction for such is the loss of a near and good Relation and yet being not sensible despiseth that which another finds heavy to bear 7. Want of Sorrow in this case argues a man to be predâ—minâ—ntly a selfish man To have love to or care of none but himself What if a Child dye so long as he himself doth live What if a Father or Mother dye while he himself doth live And yet which is more what if a Wife be laid under ground among the dead so he himself hath Life and Strength to walk above ground amoâ—g the living He can set the comfort of his own Life aâ—â—â—nst all Sorrow tho he see all in his Faâ—â—ly removed by Death and tho he be lâ—fâ— aâ—â— alone it is all one to him for himseâ—â— alone is all to him It was fitter for such a man to have lived alone in some Cavâ—rn of the Earth than to have been troubled with Wife or Children whom he can part with without any trouble to himself 8. This wâ—nt of Sorrow in the â—xplâ—â—â—ed Sense is a provâ—cation to God to afflict 〈◊〉 more and more till he is sensible of the Assâ—◠〈◊〉 and of the hand that laid
it on God â—eâ—◠〈◊〉 one Child by Death and you â—ave â—o sens os the breach made in your Housâ— nor sorroâ— for it you do not feel the smarting 〈◊〉 God removes a second and yâ—t yâ—u do not fâ—â—l it God proceeds from a Child to a Wife and yet you do not feel it nâ—xt he comes unto your sels and then you feel and lays you dead also and makes you as to your Body till the Resurrection to be past feeling 9. Want of Sorrow in this Case makes you worse than many Heathens They sorrow too much and you too little They are excessive the Man called Christian is defective in his Sorrow They act more like men the Christian so called worse than the Bruits who shew their Sense and Sorrow when deprived of their young 10. Want of Sorrow in this Case fills Funerals with Dissemblers and they follow the Corps acting the Hypocrite openly in the Streets he walks with Mourning on his Head and Back and Hands without mourning in his Heart Others think he sorrows but he knows he doth not and yet he pretends he doth if People knew him as he knows himself would say either get a mourning Heart or put off your mourning Robes If I have said in your Judgment too much upon the want of Sorrow bear with me for I have said it out of a detestation in my heart of such more than brutish Temper in many towards their deceased Relations worthy to be lamented when yet the better they were by some are sorrowed for the less If you think there are none guilty in this Case it is a sign you are not much acquainted with People in the World CHAP. V. Resolves this Question When is our Sorrow for our Dead kindly and pleasing unto God and when a turbulent Passion and vexation of Spirit and provoking to God USE II. IF your hearts be filled with Sorrow for your Dead and with a Sense of God's hand upon you examine your Sorrow what manner of Sorrow it is For Sorrow meerly as Sorrow I have not been pleading for nor reproving the want of under such a smarting Dispensation of Divine Providence which may be the better managed by resolving the second Question propounded which is this When is our Sorrow for the Dead kindly and pleasing unto God And when a turbulent Passion a vâ—xation of Spirit and provoking to God Ans 1. Kindly Sorrow for our Dead and pleasing unto God is joyned with lively Prayer What is all our weeping for them in the Grave without praying to God in Heaven What is all our Lamentation for them without Supplication to God And the more kindly your Sorrow is the more your Heart will relent and melt and the more servent your Spirit in Prayer will be While they were in their Health with you it may be you tendered up Sick prayers to God when they did live your Prayers were dead and dull and slothful Prayers when they were waking with you you prayed with them in a drowsy sleepy manner when God roused you by their Death you prayed after with more Life when they fell asleep God awaked you to more earnest and importunate Pleadings with him at the Throne of Grace If fear lest Mother and Children should be put to death by Esau moved Jacob to mix his fearing and sorrowing with Prayer and Wrestling should not feeling of the stroke of Death upon a Mother a Wife a Child put us on to the like praying to and pleading with God If he when his case only was it may be they must die now should not we when we must say He or she is already dead If he did it to preserve life may not we for the loss of their Life He for the good of Preservation we under the sense of our Afâ—l ction Gen. 32.9 10 11 24 25 26. Hos 12.4 He wept and made supplication to him Job lost ten Children in one day to express his Sorrow he rent his mantle and shaved his head and fell down upon the ground all which he did not under all his former losses till the sad tidings of the Deatâ— of his Children were brought unto him And in all this great Sorrow what did he do He worshipped he bowed down before God and gave Divine Worship unto him by Prayer and Praise Job 1.19 20 21. in all this he pleased God for in all this he sinned not ver 22. What if we weep night and day but pray not neither night nor day What if we pour out our Tears but do not pour out a Prayer Could we weep our selves blind kill our selves with Sorrow or rent our Garments and wring our Hands and tear our Hair and never Worship all this is exorbitant Sorrow turbulent Passion neither profitable to our selves nor pleasing to God nor advantagiâ—us to the Dead Some Persons when one lieth dead in the House tho on a Lord's day will stay at home and weep but not go out and worship God in Holy Duties but when you have any dead it is better drop your Tears into God's Bottle than with them wash your own Faces or wet your Hankerchief from such turbulent Sorrow Ans 2. Kindly Sorrow in this Case will usher in Sorrow for our Sin especially such Sins as at such a time come to our Thoughts relating to the Persons wâ—ose Death we mourn for as neglect of our Duty to them unjust and ungrounded grieving of them or any sinful and unsutable Carriage towards them when they lived with us As do I mourn for the dead Corps I will shed my Tears for omission of my Duty for the good of the living Soul That I did not instruct them nor did I pray with them nor for them did not teach them how to live nor help them to prepare to die When Nathan came to David his Child died when David was convinced of his Sin for which his Child did dye David turns his Sorrow for his dead Child into Sorrow for his Sin and laments and weeps and wails for the one much more than for the other Psalm 51. Title and Psalm compared So you Shall I lament my dead child and not my dead heart shall I shed tears because it is under the power of natural Death and have not I one tear to drop because my Soul is under the power of spiritual Death Do I look upon its pale Face and feel its cold Flesh and thereby pierce my self through with many and bitter Sorrows And do I feel my own cold Affections to God and Christ and all that is good Do I see the deformity of my Soul by reason of Sin and am I more loathsome in the sight of a pure and holy God by reason of my sin and shall I be grieved more for the lesser than the greater evil Is it not sin that hath captivated my Soul worse than Death that hath taken my Wife or Husband my Father and Mother and carry them Prisoners to the Grave O my Soul correct thy Sorrow and
God hath a right to mine because he had redeemed them with his Blood and sanctified them by his Grace and Spirit and thereby set the Mark and Character of his own upon them and what had I to do to desire to keep his own with me when he had a purpose to call them and take them home unto himself If I had forfâ—ited the Mercy of their staying with me God retained his right to dispose of them at his pleasure therefore tho I have much to say against my self I have nothing to say against God or his proceedings with me in what he hath done unto me or taken from me But when our sorrow comes to be turbulent Passion we muâ—mur and think we do well we â—epâ—â—e and justifie our evil Act and Sorrow and think we do well to sorrow on till it break over all Banks and Bounds of Modâ—ration like Jonah when God himself did ask him Dost thou well to be angry Answered yes I do well to be angry even to the death Jon. 4.9 In this case such a one being asked do you well to sorrow thus when you see God hath done his holy Will And all your sorrow is unprofitable to the dead and hurtful to your self in Excess of passionate sorrow doth reply Yes I do well to sorrow even unto death God hath afflicted me and I am afflicted and I am sorrowful and will be so Will you But pray you take heâ—d what thoughts you have of God the mean while for in turbulent sorrow its hard not to have hard and unworthy Thoughts of God and to justifie him in the midst of vexing sorrows Ans 7. In kindly sorrow for our dead our Eyes are more clear to see our Mercies in our Affliction and what God continueth to us as well as what he taketh away from us So when Children thus mourn for their dead Mother they can see Mercy in a Living Father or for a Father taken from them by death can read tho with Tears in their Eyes God's sparing Mercy in continuing their Mother Parents mourning for the death of one Child can take notice of the goodness of God in preserving the rest from the Jaws of Death and say Where God hath taken away one he might have taken two where two he might have taken all he hath taken away some and therefore we sorrow under his heavy hand but yet he hath pleased to leave more with us than he hath removed from us and therefore in our Affliction come upon us we can see God's Mercy to us or if he hath taken more than he hath left yet we have one still and in our sorrow for our dead we can see much Mercy in one Child that doth Live But when our sorrow for our dead comes to be turbulent and the Actings of corrupt Affections the sense of the Less of one Relation takes away all thankfulness for and content in all the râ—st Parents setting their Hearts upon one Child more than all the râ—st and the Love they had to that one did equal the Love to all the othâ—r they loving that most and too much God singles that out first for a Prisoner of Death and then the remaining can scarce be called Mâ—rcies if moved to mitigate their sorrow for the one that is dead by the sight of those that live say What tell you us of these when the other is gone What are these tho with us when the other is taken away from us Thus Jacob coulâ— tâ—ke no comfort from all his Sons and Daâ—ghters wheâ— he supposed his Son Joseph was dâ—ad Gen. 37.33 34 35. But correct your turbulent â—orroâ— which hinders the sigâ—t of â—â—â—d'â— Mercy in thâ—m thaâ— live lâ—st he by death remove them also and make you groan and sigh and sâ—b fâ—r them when dead which yoâ— could see no Mercy in because one did die before Ans 8. In kindly sorrow for our dead we can better sympathize with others exercised with the like dealings of God Many can sorrow for their own dead that are not affected with the death of the Relations of others especially such as are turbulently sorrowful for their own Vexing Passion in our selves is joined with least compassion to others as we narrow our Love too much to our selves and where Self-love is too much Love to others is the less or none so the sorrow for the Evils that befall our selves when vexatious and corroding is less or none for the Afflictions that come upon others Tâ—ey think their Tears are few enough to express their own sorrows or too precious to be wasted for the sorrows of others These are more hard-hearted than Jews who wept with Mary and Martha for their dâ—ceased Brother Ans 9. In kindly sorrow for our dead we shall be more mindful of our own Death and stirred up to greater Care to make Holy Preparations for it As soon as David did hear his Child was deâ—d hâ— said I must go down to it When you sorrow rightly following your dead to their Gâ—â—ve you will have serious thoughts of your own My Wife is gone and I shall shortly follow My Husband is dead and so must I be too Our Mother is loâ—ged in the Dust and after a while we must be carried to lye by her therefore we will so mourn that we may reserve some Tears of Repentance for our Sin that as our Bodies must go to her Body in the Grave so our Souls may go to her Soul in the highest Heaven But turbulent sorrow for the dead is as if they again should never live and hinders their thoughts of their own Mortality as if they should never die While they are thinking in how many days they shall Bury their dead they are hoping how many years yet they shall live What turbulent discomposing besotting sorrow is this that when these Mourners stand and see the Corps they mourn over let down into the Grave cannot see where e're long they themselves shall be lodged Ans 10. In kindly sorrow for our dead we shall be moved to perform our Relative Duties with more Tenderness and Kindness with more Care and Love to those Relations that yet are with us When the Mother is dead the Father must shew more Care than he did before or did need to do because their Mother did much ease him of it So when the Father is dead the more the Mother should take Care accordding to her Capacity When Father or Mother or both are dead the natural kindly sorrow for them will dispose their Children as Brothers and Sisters to discharge their Relative Duties and live in greater Love than ever When Jacob was dead Joseph mourned all his Brethren mourned all went up to Bury their Father and at his Burial mourned greatly After this Joseph and his Brethren returned into Egypt they remembâ—ing how cruel they had been to Joseph said Now our Father is dead our Brother will certainly requite us for all the Evil we did to him but Josâ—ph was but
newly come out of the House of Mâ—urning and he said Fear not I will nourish you and your little ones and he comforted them and spake kindly to them Gen. 50.15 21. Our mourning for the dead should end in the mending of our Carriage and the regulating of our Affections towards the Living When we are mouâ—ning for the loss of one we should be seeking the Temporal and Spirituâ—l good of the rest that yet are found with us When God hath made a Breach in our Family for whiâ—h we sorrow we must be mâ—king up the Breaches of our Duties by filling up what before was wanting Death hath made a brâ—ach in our Houses a wide bâ—each which cannot be repaired for our Dead shall never be restored to us and Sin hath made a breach in our Comforts by the breach it made in our Duties the mourning for the breach by death in those taken from us should issue in repairing the breaches in our Duties to those that are continued to us Do we sorrow much for them that are dead whom we loved too much while they did live Let the greatness of our sorrow for the one moderate our Love unto the other Do we sorrow for our dead because we did not Love them with as great a Love as we should while they were with us let this sorrow produce due greater Love to them that do remain If sorrow for our dead do not mend our faults towards the Living it is a dead and fruitless ineffectual sorrow The Living should find some advantage by our sorrow for the dead Were you froward in your Family before and shall not your sorrow meeken your Spirit for time to come Did not you take care for the Religious Education of a Child that is dead and shall not your sorrow for him and the neglect of your Duty to him move you to make up to the Living what was wanting to the Dead Did not Children obey their Father before he died If they mourn kindly for a dead Father will they not yield better Obedience to their Living Mother And say Dear and Sorrowful Mother we were wanting in our Duty to our Father when he was with us for which we are sâ—rry now he is taken from us but be not grieved over-much and we will supply the want of our Duty to him by making up the more to you as long as God shall lend yon unto us We were a grief to him but we will be a comfort unto you We will indeavour to be as good to you as we were bad to him On his Dying Bed he did complain of us for our stubborn Carriage towards him but Mother since you have lost a Loving Husband and we a tender Father for whom you and we do now sorrow we will carry our selves towards you with that reverence obedience and honour to you that you shall not complain of us on your Dying Bed as our Father did on his CHAP. VI. Resolves this Question When is our Sorrow for our dead spiritually defective tho it be naturally abundant Or when is it too little as we are Christians be it never so much as we are Men VSE III. A Caution to the Mourners for their Dead is necessary because sorrow as sorrow or sorrow as great sorrow is not all in this case to be minded but how it ought to be regulated not only as we are Men but also as we are Christians If we sorrow not at all we are unworthy of the name of men because without the workings of those natural Affections in the Principle common to all men If we sorrow with turbulent Passion vexatious fretting Grief we sorrow as sinful men we may sin in our sorrow as well as in the want of it Which is worst let the offending judge If we sorrow as the meer fruit of Natural Affection with a kindly sorrow and not turbulent we sorrow but as men because we do no more than the Human Nature prompts and puts us on to do But a greater Task lyeth upon us as Christians and to an higher step it becomes us to ascend in our sorrow as we have a Principle of Grace higher than all Principles of Nature and the Scripture a more perfect Rule to govern our sorrow by to purifie and refine it than the Light of Nature is In the first Vse we spake to such as for want of sorrow under the Loss of near Relations and of sense of God's Afflicting Hand that took them from us seem not to be men while we see them to be men but below the Rank of men in the shape of men In the second Vse we pointed at them that sorrowed as men with a kindly sorrow distinguishing them from those that sorrow as sinful men with a turbulent sorrow vitiated with the Actings of corrupt Nature In this third Vse we shall speak of sorrow in our present case not meerly as Humane but as Christian and distinguish the one from the other Do not think me over-tedious on this Sorrowful Subject for herein I do not only consult the helping of my self to bear the Hand of God upon me and the searching of my own sorrow of what kind it is but the common good of mortal men whose case in one House or other one House or other In many Houses in this great City wherein many Hundreds die every Week this must be the common case of many every day When I sit in my Study and hear the sound of that which you call the Passing-bell in the next Parish to us Cripplegate Lord think I how many art thou calling to mourn as well as me and mine And tho you speak of a Passing-bell in common course of Speech and have not your Hâ—arts affected with tâ—e hearing of your Ears yet to me it makes a doleful sound while I think it is a Passing-bell for whither are they passing their Bodies from their Houses to their Graves from the Company of their Friends and Relations to be Companions of Worms and their Souls into Eternity of Joy or Torment to God and Christ and Holy Angels or to the Devil and his Angels for ever and so pass from us as no more to return unto us out of one World into another and so pass from this to that as to find no passage from that to this any more for ever Those that have past from us to the World of Immortal Spirits out of Time into Eternity have left us behind as Mourners not for their Gain which is cause of Joy but for our own Loss which to us is cause of sorrow and our Duty is to enquire further into the Nature of it which because you must die may be useful to your sorrowful Relations or your Relations must die and leave you to mourn for them and many every day have cause of sorrow by the death of some or other the Case being a common Case but the Question not a common Question I shall propound it and endeavour to resolve it When is
deeply how great it is Rule 5. A Wicked Husband that is a constant Curse and a daily Cross unto his whole Family whose Wife is in a worse condition for Body and Soul than if she were a Widow and whose Children by reason of his want of Affection to them and Care for them are more exposed to Ruine than if they were Fatherless leaves little reason behind him why they should grieve and sorrow for his Death upon their own accounts For who can sorrow for a deliverance from a daily Cross Who can grieve for being eased of a Burden under which they so long did groan Who can sorrow upon their own account that one is gone that did rather Hate than Love them and filled their Hearts with daily sorrow their Eyes with flowing Tears and their Mouths with Heart-piercing Complaints And why should any dissemble sorrow for such by whose Wickedness and Sin against God and the Family God was dishonoured and the Family ruined when by death he is taken off from doing so upon Earth any more Do you ask who ever taught this Doctrine before Job did Job 27.13 This is the portion of a wicked Man with God and the Heritage of Oppressors which they shall receive of the Almighty 15. Those that remain of him shall be buried in death and his Widows shall not weep Were there â—ver any such Widows Yes Psal 78.64 Their Priests fell by the Sword and their Widows made no Lamentation Rule 6. In mourning for such Relations that neither did their Duty to God nor to their Family but lived to God's dishonour and their daily grief and died without Repentance for both our sorrow must be for their sakes and not our own For the ungodly and unnatural as dying impenitently in their Sins and for the Loss of their Souls and Misery in the other World as David did for Absolom for tho our grief for them cannot mitigate their Torments nor our Tears quench their Fire yet it cannot but be a grief to us that our Relations should live and die in their Rebellion against God and neglect of their Duties towards us but did dishonour God whom they should have glorified and overthrew the Family by their Sin and Wicked Lives which they should have built up and maintained And as for their Sin while they lived so dying impenitent for their Misery after death The death of some puts an end to those Troubles and Disquiet and Crosses which they caused in their Families while they lived that for their own sakes the Living cannot find a reason why they should mourn because they are dead But when they consider their death was the beginning of their Intolerable and Eternal Misery for their sakes they cannot but give place to sorrow â—or while these Thoughts are working my Husband is dead and his Soul is Damned it will be hard to keep sorrow from the Heart And tho such sorrow doth not profit the Damned Soul yet unaccountable sorrow is not easily cast off Nor can we always cease to sorrow when we cannot give a reason of any good that is the fruit of our sorrow But yet a reason will be here suggested it was my Husband or Wife or Son or Daughter that lived wickedly and died impenitently and the Soul of one so near is lost is for ever lost And Religion teaching us that the Souls of such are miserable Nature will be working in us to lament their Misery and this is sorrow for their sakes Rule 7. In mourning for those that lived holily towards God and Conscientiously in their Relative Duties towards us our sorrow is for our own sakes more than for theirs The common saying our Loss is their Gain teacheth that the sorrow is for the Loser and not for the Gainer And indeed if we search to the bottom of our sorrow to find the reason of our sorrow for those that lived to the Lord and died in the Lord and after death do live gloriously and happily with the Lord it will appear we are sorrowing more for our selves than for them We call it mourning for the dead when it is indeed mourning for our selves yet living for let us enquire 1. Do we mourn because their Souls are perfectly Holy and Happy with God and Christ above No this is matter of our Comfort Delight and Joy Did not we earnestly pray for them sick and well that when they left Earth they might be received up to Heaven And do we sorrow that God heard our Prayers and hath saved their Souls Do we thus take on for this Are our Tears shed because God hath Crowned their Grace with Glory Are we grieving on Earth because they are rejoicing in Heaven Are we groaning here because they are triumphing there For shame we cannot say this is the reason and ground of our sorrow and that in this respect it is plain we do not sorrow for their sakes 2. Do we mourn because they are fallen asleep in Jesus Because they are gone to rest in their Beds Because their Bodies in that state in which they are remain united to Christ Are these grounds of sorrow Should we weep and waste our Tears because these things are said of them Or is it not matter of Comfort and Joy unto us that it is so well with their very Bodies as these things declared by God himself do import unto us Is it not better to die in Christ than to live in Sin Is it not better to sleep in Jesus than to be naturally awake and spiritually asleep in Sin Is it not better for the Body to lye still and rest free from Actings of Sin than to be able to walk in a constant course of wickedness Is it not more matter of Comfort to have the Bodies of our Friends united to Christ in the Grave than to have our Relations above ground separated from Christ and not united to him If it be let us cease over-sorrowing for them with whom it is better tho in the Grave and begin to sorrow for those with whom it is worse tho they live with us Which is matter of greater sorrow a departed Saint or a living Sinner And shall we drop more Tears for one departed Saint than for twenty living wicked Relations Why so When all these wicked ones are in danger of Hell but the departed Saint is past that danger The ungodly that do live are in danger of Eternal Torments both as to Body and Soul The departed Saint is past the danger thereof both as to Body and Soul For when the Soul is once safe in Heaven the Body is for ever past all danger of Hell Is this it that we sorrow for No verily we do give thanks to God that the Body is in these Circumstances though in the Grave But you say you mourn because they are dead and taken from us Dead But are not we spâ—â—king to Believers that live concerning departâ—â—â—â—lievâ—rs And should not we beliâ—vâ— what God saith concerning them And think and
you kill another and so bring in Death upon Death into your Family and invite and call it in to make Freach upon Breach Do you complain of Deaths doings and will you do as Death hath done do you grieve and sorrow for the death of another and by your grief and sorrow will you be your own death and yet not yield your sorrow is too much do you sorrow because yours are lodged in the Grave and do you thus hasten to go to them though God hath put an end to their lives yet hath not he bound you by all lawful means to preserve your own and to avoid whatsoever hath so great a tendency to cut it short or do not you know that excessive grief often is the cause of death Did you never read in the Bills of Mortality that some that many have died with grief and killed themselves with sorrow or did you never mind the difference given by the Apostle betwixt godly sorrow and sorrow of the World for worldly Losses and is not your sorrow such in thâ—s case 2 Cor. 7.10 for godly sorrow worketh râ—pentance to salvation not to be repented of but the sorrow of the world worketh death That sorrow that is for worldly losses and crosses proceeding from the over-much love of these Creature-Comforts doth huâ—â— the Body and hasten death temporal and doth wrong the Soul because sinful and doth deserve death eternal for the wages of every sin is death temporal and eternal Rom. 6.23 and will you so sorrow for another dead body as thereby to deserve the damnation of your own Soul and yet not say it is too much When your Spirit is broken your heart is broken how can you live and what will break it Prov. 15.13 By sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken Prov. 17.22 A broken spirit drieth the bones Psal 6.7 My eye is consumed because of grief Immoderate sorrow drieth the Bones breaks the Heart preys upon the Spirits consumeth the Vital Parts and by all hastens death and therefore not to be cherished but avoided Q. 2. Is not that sorrow that must be sorrowed for excâ—ssive sorrow See the strait you bring your self into You sorrow too much and because you do so you must sorrow more and so add sorrow to sorrow ' when it is and because it is too much already you have more than you ought and yet you have not so much as you should you must have sorrow for your sorrow and yet you want sorrow for your sorrow Your eyes run down with tears for your dead more than they should and when you should weep for your excessive sorrow you haâ—e not a tear to shed Why do you waste your tears for what and more than you should and then want tears for what you ought to shed them for Excessive sorrow is a sin because it is excessive and sinful sorrow must be sorrowed for and repented of or how will you else get the pardon of that known Sin What do you mean then by sorrow to draw on sorrow and so to weep that you must weep over your weeping and to shed tears over again for the tears that you have shed if you cannot bear this sorrow that you are filled with already why by this sorrow do you make way for more and fo depth of sorrow calling for depth of sorrow you at last must swim in tears where you cannot wade through Q 3. Is not that sorrow too much that doth hurt and no good is sorrow good in it self as sorrow Then all sorrow would be good Whereas much sorrow is often evil and too much is always evil because as such it doth hurt and not good Whom doth your sorrow do good unto not to your dead be it never so much not to your Relations that live for you grieve them by over grieving and makes your company a burthen and unprofitable to them not to your self neither to Body oâ— to Soul for it is prejudicial unto both as before was made manifest Q. 4. Is not that sorrow too much for your dead which would be too much for your sin Many are defective in sorrowing for sin few sorrow too much for sin yet men may be and some are excessive in their sorrow for sin insomuch that their sorrow for sin is turned into sinful sorrow as when they are so overwhelmed with sorrow for sin as unsits them for other Gospel Duties and drives them from Christ and sinks them into despair which sorrow is excessive and God gives caution and charge against such sorrow sor our sin 2 Cor 2.7 So that cantrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him and comfort him lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with ovâ—rmuch sorrow When sorrow for sin doth more hurt than good it is over-much and so is our sorrow for our dead Q. 5. Is not that sorrow too much for your dead which is more than you have for your sin Is not sorrow upon the account of some present evil that is upon us as joy is for some present good and should not the degree of our sorrow bear some proportion to the greatness of the evil that is the cause and reason of our sorrow Is not sin against God a greater evil than any besides sin doth fall upon us Is not your own dead heart and cold affections towards God a greater evil than the dead Corps and cold Flesh in the Grave which is the cause of all this sorrow Now when your sorrow is more for the lesser evil than it is for the greater judge if your sorrow for the greater is not too small and your sorrow for the lesserâ— over-much and excessive Q. 6. Is not that sorrow over-much which carries our thoughts down into the Grave to think of their Dead Corps but hinders them from ascending into Heaven to meditate upon the the Eternal Ever-living God What a shame and reproach is it to us that a dead Wife or a dead Child or a dead Father or Mother should have more of our Thoughts than God and Christ and things above and that the Bodies of our departed Relations consuming in their Graves should have more of our thoughts than their Souls triumphing in Heaven have that it is so our excessive sorrow doth testifie to our faces for we cannot say nor do pretend to sorrow for the Soul in Heaven is it not then for the Body in the Grave And why should not the Joy the Immortal part is filled with abate our Sorrow for the Corruptible part though it be consuming if our thoughts were as much with the Soul in Heaven as they are with the Body in the Grave Let these Excessive Mourners ingenuously confess if they have not twenty thoughts of the Dead Body for one serious heart affecting Thought they have of God and Christ and the living triumphant Soul above for would not the one cause Joy as others do Sorrow and so our Joy mitigate be equal to or exceed our Sorrow if it be
Sleep teacheth us that it is no trouble to them that are in their Graves that they do not know when they shall awake Is this any trouble to a living Man fast asleep in his Bed that he knows not when the day will dawn and the Morning-light appear and he awake he sleeps on and concerns himself with no such Thoughts We that are alive think when shall our Dead arise how long must they sleep there That which troubles us is no trouble unto them 8. Death it self as a Sleep châ—cks our Immoderate Sorrow for those that are fallen asleep They sleep and you take on as if you had no hope that they would ever wake What saith the Text they are fallen asleep do not ye sorrow as those that have no hope When did you mourn because your Relation in due season went to sleep If they have been Sick and could not sleep it grieve your Heart and so it also would if your nearest Friends lay sick and full of pain tormented day and night with sighs and groans piercing your Ears and Hearts should they long lie thus and could not recover nor yet dye it would grieve you that they could not dye insomuch that by such sights and hearings of the Sick and pained whom they loved with entire Love some have gone to their knees and begg'd of God to give them a release by Death and were better satisfied when they were fallen asleep and thereby delivered 9. Death as a Sleep thô it be a long sleep teacheth us that it seems not long to them that sleep A Mâ—n that is fast asleep and sleepeth long he doth not tell the Clock nor number the Hours nor thinks it long that he doth sleep and when he wakes he thinks the time was not long but quickly gone when to one that watcheth while he sleepeth it seems to be a tedious time When they that live and wake while others in their Graves do sleep reckon the days then the weeks next the months at last the years that our Father or Mother Husband or Wife or Child hath been dead and say so long so many years they have been sleeping in their Graves It is long to you but not to them they know no Nights or Days no Weeks or Months or Years to reckon by a thousand years is no longer to them than an hour seems to you Adams Body hath been sleeping some thousands of years already and yet all those years and what are yet to come till he shall awake but like one hour unto him Why should we discompose our Minds with the thoughts of their long Sleep when they themselves are not concerned at it nor to them doth it seem long 10. Death as a Sleep because it is a sleep that is Death brings us these tydings of Comfort that they are sleeping their last Sleep and when they awake shall sleep no more For when they live again they shall dye no more therefore now let us moderate our Sorrow for those that are asleep in Jesus for they are at rest from pains and cares God can easily awaken them and he will after their Sleep they shall be refreshed tho it be a long Sleep it seems not so to them it is indeed their last but not an everlasting sleep they sleep quietly let not us sorrow excessively but every Night when we put off our Cloaths think we must put off this Body and lie down in our Graves as we do in our Beds and shall our selves sleep in the Dust with them that are gone to sleep before us CHAP. XIII The Second Remedy against excessive Sorrow is the Glorified State of the Soul immediately after its separation proved The Souls Triumph in its first entrance into Heaven The Meditation thereof The Survivors Comfort THE Second Remedy against Excessive Sorrow for the Death of those that dyed in the Lord is the knowledge and belief of the Glorious State of the separated Soul while the Body lies sleeping in the Grave The Body is the more ignoble part the Grave a more formidable place yet from thence there is something of Support when both are considered according to what is sâ—id of both in the Scripture as to such as were truly holy when they lived But if we call off our Thoughts from the Body and the Grave that they may ascend and follow the Soul the more precious part into the highest Heavens the most Glorious place what cause of Joy what matter of Rejoycing what reâ—son of changing our Mourning into Garments of Praise and our Spirit of heaviness into gladness and lively thankfulness to God that those that are gone from us are received by him That whom we have lost he hath found and those whom we must enjoy on Earth no more are enjoying God in yonder glorious highest Heavens for evermore Controversies are not profitable at this season nor suitable to the present temper of our Spirits in the Circumstances now we are under nor consistent with that brevity that I labour for therefore two things only I shall now endeavour First To select some Texts of Scripture that do assure us what state of Joy and Happiness the separated Soul of a Child of God doth pass into Secondly What ground of Comfort against our Sorrow this is to us that yet are left behind 1. What clearer Evidence what surer Arguments what better Proof what greater satisfaction can we have in this Point than what Scripture doth afford For cannot God that is the Father of Spirits and the Disposer of Souls after their Dissolution and being separated from the Body best tell what doth become of them And will he that is faithful and Essential Truth deceive us Or need he that is absolute Lord and Soveraign perfectly happy in himself to flatter us or to gain our Obedience to him by promises of Eternal Rewards and everlasting Joys and Glory if there were not such a Ssate prepared for us Where God speaketh let us believe and his Veracity is reason why we should Then let us hear Luke 16.22 It came to pass that the Beggar dyed and was carried by the Angels into Abrahams bosom Luke 23.43 Verily I say unto thee This day shalt thou be with me in Paradise Act. 7.29 And they stoned Stephen calling upâ—n God and saying Lord Jesus receive my Spirit 2 Cor. 5.1 For we know that if our earthly house of this Tabernâ—cle were dissolved we have a Building of God an house not made with hands eternal in the Heavens 2. For in this we groan earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from Heaven 4 For we in this Tabernacle do groan being burthened not for that we should be unclothed but clothed upon that mortality might be swallowed up of life 6. Therefore we are always confident knowing that whilst we are at home in the Body we are absent from the Lord. 8. We are confident I say and willing rather to be absent from the Body and to be present with
and Heaven over against their Grâ—vâ—s and their being with the Lord hereafter over against their present being with the Dead and try if a firm and lively acting Faith will not bring to us greater Joy than Sense now fills us with disquieting Sorrow Or shall we walk by Sense and not by Faith Sense tells us they are in the Grave there our Eyes saw them laid and doth not God tell us they shall be with him and have not we Faith to believe him and if we have cannot we rejoyce in the Hope thereof but sorâ—ow on as if we had no such Hope Do we sit and ponder upon the loathsomness and darkness of the Grave and weep while we ponder that our Dead are there and cannot we sit and meditate upon the holiness happiness and the shining Glory of Heaven and rejoyce that our dead shall live and dwell in that glorious Place hereafter especially when we consider they then shall be with the Lord so as before they never were Admit their Souls are now with Christ yet their Bodies are not It is but one part of them that now is Glorified but the Day is coming and it hasteneth that all Believers and all of every one the Body as well as the Soul shall be with the Lord. Did Paul judge it far better to depart that his Soul may be with Christ tho he left his Body to the Grave and was it the matter of his Desire Phil. 1.23 And shall not we judge it to be best that we and ours shall be with Christ both in Body and Soul and since it shall be so make it matter of our Joy tho for the present it is not so for tho it be to come and so is the Object of Desire and Hope yet Faith should look upon it as sure as if it were present and so make it the ground of our Joy As sure as their Bodies are now in the Grave so sure they shall be with the Lord in Heaven What ails us we cannot rejoyce in the one as sorrow for the other especially when the one is a greater Good than the other is an Evil 3. The Eternity of their abode with the Lord in Body and Soul from the Second Coming of Christ should asswage our Sorrow for the short space of time their Bodies are to remain in the Grave While Children Live we think how long is it since they were born When Persons in a Conjugal Relation continue together sometimes they reckon how many years since they were Married and these are pleasant Thoughts But alas Death comes and makes a Change and snatcheth away the Children and breaks the bond of Marriage and then after a while the Enquiry is How long hath my Child or Husband or Wife been dead and these are sorrowful Thoughts But is there no Remedy no relief against them What if you ask when our Dead that sleep in Jesus shall be raised how long shall they be with the Lord How long inconceivably longer than they shall be in the Grave How long shall they be in the Grave not for ever Blessed be God they shall not be there for ever How long shall they be with the Lord for Ever Eternal thanks unto our God they shall be with him for ever But we sit and think it will be a long a long a very long time that they shall be in their Graves and no man knows how long and for this Sorrow fills our Hearts Doth it think again when they shall be raised How long shall they be with the Lord a long a long a very long not time but Eternity and no Man can conceive how long it will be And when you have thought of as many years as you may imagine they may be in their Graves all of them will not amount to so much as one hour if compared with that Eternity in which they shall be with the Lord. Concerning their being in the Grave you may see an end for an end of their being there will be Concerning their being with the Lord you can conceive no end for there is no end to be conceived for they are to be with him for ever in the Grave for a time and after that with the Lord of Glory in a State of Glory for ever For ever O blessed word shall they come forth of their Graves after a while and be with the Lord for ever O happy happy for ever happy are their saved Souls above that shall live in the presence of their Lord for ever Blessed are the Dead that die in the Lord for when they shall live again which shâ—ll surely be in their Bodies united to their Souls they shall be with the Lord for ever This will be the Joy of their Joy that they shall enjoy their Lord for ever This will be the Life of their Life that with their Lord they shall have everlasting Life This shall be the Crown of their Crown that it shall be Incorruptible as they then shall be both in Body and Soul It will be the Hell of Hell that the Damned must be there for ever It will be the Heaven of Heaven that their being with the Lord therein shall be for ever without this their Joy would not be pure Joy but mixt with fears of losing of it without this their Joy would not be full for the Thoughts it would not always last would diminish their Joy and if diminished it could not be full without this their Joy would not be constant Joy but there would be stops and gaps and intermissions in their Joy and they would have their fits of Sorrow and turns of Grief Now they would rejoyce because they are with the Lord and anon they would grieve because they are not to be with him for ever and so they would be miserably happy and sorrowfully joyfull which is not the happiness and Joy of Heaven which for degrees is full for duration everlasting full because they are with the Lord everlasting because they shall be with the Lord for ever Methinks I hear their triumphant Songs their Holy Admirations O what is the difference betwixt these Bodies now and what once they were Behold the Glory of this Place how far different it is from those Graves where we did lye and are now delivered from We were in our Graves for a time that time is out its past and gone and we are with the Lord for ever we are with the Lord for ever O this is it that is she Crown of all we are with the Lord for ever In this Eternity there is no Nights and Days no Weeks and Months and Years here is no Death and Graves and end for we shall be with the Lord for ever VSE What is the Use of all what should it be but what the Apostle makes of it v. 18. Wherefore comfort one another with these words What words Review them and Recollect what hath been said upon them 1. As sure as Jesus Christ is risen from the dead
so surâ—ly our dead shall rise Comfort your selves and one anoth r with these words 2. Those that shall be found alive shall not prevâ—nt them that are asleep but the Dead shall be raised before the Living shall be changed they in their Graves shall have the precedency and preheminence before the Living and tho the one are dead and the other living yet the Dead shall be made Immortal and Incorruptible before the Living Comfort your selves and one another with these words 3. Rather than the Dead shall lye in their Graves for ever Christ as soon as the appointed time is come will Himself in his own Person come and with a shout with the Voice of the Archangel and sounding Trumpet call them out of their Graves and they shall hear and shall come forth Comfort your selves and one another with these words 4. When the Dead in Christ shall be raised and the Living changed they shall all be caught up together in the Clouds to meet the Lord in the Air and shall there be acquitted and absolved and adjudged to everlasting Life therefore comfort your selves and one another with these words 5. After this they shall go into the highest Heavens in Body and Soul to be with the Lord for ever wherefore comfort your selves and one another with these words Now upon the survey of the whole matter what have you most cause for your Sorrow or your Joy What if yours do not live with you is it not better that they died in the Lord than to live as such with you what if they are in the Grave for a while and after that shall be with the Lord for ever Cease Excessive Sorrowing and encourage and comfort your selves and one another as the Death of any requires with the lively Belief the joyful Hopes and often mention of this most Blessed Time and State CHAP. XVIII Additional Questions propounded to Mourners for the Moderating of Excessive Sorrow BUT if your Sorrow be Excessive after all these Remedies alleadged made known to us by Divine Revelation doth it not argue Want or Weakness of Faith and slowness of Heart to Believe If you do not believe will you reason the Case with your self that we may bring it to this Issue that your Immoderate Sorrow is irrational contrary both to Faith and Reason Which will appear by that time you consider the Matter well and give in a deliberate Answer to these following Questions briefly offered to you 1 Quest If a particular Resurrection now could be as formerly hath been would you desire that your Relations that died in the Lord might now be raised from the dead to live and dwell with you in your House upon Earth again If it were possible would you have your holy Father or Mother Husband or Wife raised as Jairus his Daughter Lazarus Tabitha and others were and come and sit at your Table and live with you in the same Circumstances as they did before If you would not how unreasonable is all your excessive Sorrow because they are dead and yet would not have them live with you again thô you may What! will nothing content you Is their restoration to Life now no matter of your desire and yet is their death such matter of so great abundant Sorrow Will you be pleased neither way concerning them dead or alive again If you would desire this do you consider what it is you do desire and how injurious you would be to them that you may have your will and as you say the comfort that before you had in them Tell me 1. Would you indeed have them from the glorious presence of God and Christ and the eternal Spirit to live with you Could they have that Delight and Joy in your Company as now they are filled with in the presence of their glorious God and Redeemer 2. Would you have them leave the Society of Angels and saved Souls above to come and dwell among sinfull men again 3. Would you indeed have them return from Rest to Trouble from Joy to Sorrow from Praising to Mourning 4. Now they have got out of the reach of Satans Temptations would you have them live here again to be buffeted again and tempted and assaulted by that roaring Lion And after they have got the Victory and won and wore the Crown would you have them to come into the Field again and conflict with the Powers of Darkness again 5. Were you grieved for them on their dying Beds to see what they endured and what cold Sweats the Pangs of Death did put them to and yet would you have them live again that they may die again Do you sorrow that they have died once and will you sorrow on except you could have them live again that they may die twice would you have them have two deaths for one Is this your Love to them 6. Is once mourning for them so grievous and would you have them live again and so die again and you Mourn again for their Second dying if you should out live them or leave them behind you for them to Mourn for you whereas where they are now they have done Mourning and are strangers to it 7. Would not you be more Kind to your self and them to prepare and desire to go to them than to have them return to you if such a thing could be Do not you know which to choose and yet sorrow in this manner 2 Q. If you would have them Live again can your sorrow multiplyed ten times more help you to your Will May you not by this sorrow bring your self to the Grave sooner than fetch them out Say what good this excessive sorrow doth or else moderate it 3 Q. Who hath done this that you mourn so much for Was it not by the Providence of God And will you quarrel with him or call him to an account why he hath done so Or should not his Hand quiet your Heart Read Job 33.13 1 Sam. 3.18 Psal 39.9 4 Q. Do not you hereby contradict your Prayers Do not you pray his Will might be done and submitted to when it 's done Do not you see it was his Will to have your Relation from you and is this your submission to it Is it so done in Heaven as you do it upon Earth 5 Q. Hath God herein taken any from you but what he first gave unto you Who gave you your Children or Husband or Wife were they not the Gifts of God Did not this quiet Job Chap. 1.21 6 Q. Whose was He or She that is dead that you so Immoderately do Mourn for Do you say it was my Child my Father or my Mother my Husband or my Wife If it had not been mine I should not thus have mourned But were they not Gods own more than your own When God gave them you did he give away his own right Might not God do what he will with his own but you must take on as if he had taken something he had no right unto What
sorrow for their Death and can you reconcile those Desires with this Sorrow If you did desire it when God should please to bestow it why do you so sorrow now by death the way of all Believers to it they have obtained what you did desire when without the one they were not to have the other 24 Q. Are not you your self being made men for Heaven near unto that Place and State where you shall sorrow no more neither for any thing concerning your self nor any other while you mourn and say This Husband or Wife Father or Mother that was mine now is no longer mine Seriously meditate and deeply consider and say Yet God is mine and Christ is mine and the Spirit is mine the Promises and Priviledges are mine and Heaven is mine and there I shall shortly be with God and Christ and the Eternal Spirit with Angels and saved Souls above where I shall love God with perfect Love and praise him and my Redeemer and Sanctifier with Eternal Praises and see and know and delight in the Company of those that are gone before for whom I am mourning upon Earth and joy and joyn with them in holy Hallelujahs and triumphant Songs of Praise where all sorrow shall be taken from my Heart and all tears wiped from mine Eyes and I and they shall know sorrow and grief and groans and sighs no no more I stand at the door of Eternity every day waiting looking hoping for Eternal Joys Therefore blessed Lord to all these reasonings of thy Ministers add the effectual working of thy Spirit that I might not sorrow as those that have no Hope Amen THE MOURNERS SOLILOQUY Concerning his Moderating His Sorrow For His DEAD THE Mourners Soliloquy CHAP. XIX Containing the Mourners Soliloquy or Reasoning with himself concerning his Sorrow for his Dead for the moderating of it DEad Alas wo is me my Father Mother dead my Wife or Husband or Child dead can I with Comfort live are not my comfortable days past and gone when he or she is dead and gone Gone no more to return to live with me on Earth Let me look upon the Body in the Coffin before it be lodged in the Grave for after that I shall look upon it no more mine Eyes shall see it no more Look behold it s pale Face its closed Eyes its Jaws tyed and muffled up these Eyes did see me but now Death bath shut them that they cannot This Tongue did use to talk with me to my great delight but now Death hath tied it and my Ears shall hear the sound thereof no more These Feet did often walk with me yea we went to the Ordinances of God together but now Death hath fettered them that they can move no more and must I follow it to the Grave and see it covered with Earth and there leave it and when returned home look for it at my Table but it is not there or in my Chamber but it is not there The Cloaths the Body was often dressed with are there but the Body is not there Now it is so many Weeks since it was buried she is gone but my Sorrow doth remain Remain it comes more and more and doth increase My Soul is grieved my Heart is loaded and my Spirit fails within me the more I muse the more I Mourn the more I think of mine thus captivated by Death and buried out of my sight the more my Sorrow is renewed Alas I can contradict that Old Proverb Out of Sight out of Mind for he or she hath been so long out of my sight but hath not been a a Day or Night out of my mind and the more and longer I remember the more and longer I do sorrow Sayest thou thus O my Soul is it God or a Creature the loss of whom thou mournest for If of God weep on and Sorrow and seek him till thou findest him for he is a living and Gracious God and may be found But if of a Creature forbear thy Tears and moderate thy Sorrow for if thou shouldest weep thy self blind and break thine heart with grief being dead and gone cannot be any more found wherever upon Earth thou seekest for it Wilt thou then examine thy Sorrow whether it be pleasing unto God or whether it be turbulent Passion and meer fruitless Self-vexation whether thou Mournest like a Christian or an Heathen whether thy sorrow be not sinful and excessive and therefore sinful because excessive Dost not thou know hast not thou read and learned that thou shouldst not sorrow as those do that have no Hope are thy tears more boundless than the Ocean for that hath bounds and shall thy Tears have none The Waves thereof go so far and then are stay'd and shall thy Tears continually drop and have no limits set unto them or wilt thou suffer them to run waste and shed enough to wash thy Dead when thou shouldst keep them to pour out before God upon thy bended Knees that by the Blood of Christ thy Sins might be wash'd away Have thy Tears so blear'd thine Eyes or thy Sorrow so disturb'd thy Reason that thou canst not see thy Sorrow to be Excessive Sorrow and thy Grief to pass all bounds of Christian Moderation Measure it by Reason and Religion And then tell me O my Soul if that Sorrow be not Excessive for thy Dead whereby thou hastenest the death of thy own Body and invitest Death to lay it dead Tho God by Death hath taken away the Life of thy Relation yet hath he not commanded thee to use all means lawful and to abstain from all those things amongst which Immoderate grief is one that doth endanger thine own Life and wilt thou thereby become guilty of thy own Death Besides is not that Sorrow too much that must be sorrowed for and those Tears too many that must be wept for and more follow them because they are so many Hast thou Sorrow too much already and must thou still have more because thou hast too much Dost thou not see what straits thou bringest thy self into that while thou dost abound in Sorrow thou wantest Sorrow because as yet thou hast not sorrowed for this too much abundant Sorrow For give me an answer O my Soul if that be not too much abundant Sorrow that doth more hurt than good and would be too much if it were for thy Sin which for Sin tho the greatest Evil would be too much when it doth more hurt than good and doth it not do so when it driveth to despair keeps off the Soul from Christ and from hoping in his Merits or God's Mercy and is it not too much when it is more for thy Dead than for thy Sin for when thy Sorrow should bear its proportion to the Evil thou sorrowest for and Sin is a greater Evil than the Death of thy nearest Relation be thou thy self the Judge if sorrow for the lesser evil be not too much when it is more than that which thou hast for the greatest Evil
thy holy Word that if Christ be raised then those that slâ—ep in Jesus shall also rise and if these shall not then Christ is not risen and if Christ be not risen we are all in our sins and all Preaching Praying Believing and all Religion is in vain which being absurd and false the other must be certain and sure And by the belief of this thanks be to my God I find I feel my Sorrow is turned into lively Hope earnest Desire and comforting Joy Besides this O my Soul be further satisfied and quieted within me forasmuch as thy Lord hath not only said that those that sleep in Jesus shall rise again but hath also foretold what Bodies they shall then be tho the same for substance yet their Properties Qualities and Endowments far more excellent than when they lived or died Dost thou sorrow because her Body was Mortal and did die why dost thou not rejoyce because it shall be raised Immortal and then shall die no more Art thou grieved at the remembrance of its weakness sickness and pains why art thou not comforted at the believing Foresight that it shall be raised a Powerful and Impassible Body and shall be sick and pained no more for ever Or art thou cast down because that Natural Body by Food and Physick could no longer be supported nor maintained in Life Why doth not this raise thy Comfort that it shall be raised a Spiritual Body and need Food and Physick and Sleep no more than the Angels in Heaven Is it matter of thy trouble to coâ—sider how vile and loathsom Death hath made it why doth it not delight thee to believe it shall be raised in such Glory that it shall shine as a glittering Star yea as the Sun in the Kingdom of God and that Beauty shall be its Cloathing all over Why doth soâ—row daily fill thy Heart because the Soul is gone and left the Body a lifeless piece of Earth a mass of breathless Mould and dost not rejoyce that the Soul already is made like to Christs Glorious Soul and the day is coming and it hastens when the Body shall be fashioned like to Christs glorious Body Like to Christs Glorious Body Lord who that doth believe these words of thine may not cease to sorrow in excess because now the Body is so like the dust in which it lodgeth and begin to joy that in thine appointed time it shall be like the Glorious Body of an exalted Jesus Holy Lord how great is the difference betwixt the same Man as if he were not the same when he looks upon his Dead with an Eye of Sense and Carnal Reason and when with an Eye of Faith according to thy Word For when I sit and muse and say Methinks I see how the Body of my dead lyeth in the Grave and how it mouldreth and consumeth I am a sad and sorrowful Man and my Heart is grieved within me but when I sit and consider and believe and say Methinks I see it Redeemed from the Grave methinks I see it raised an Immortal Powerful Spiritual Beautiful Glorious Body shining as the Sun and like to Christs Glorious Body I am a chearful joyful Man and Comfort flows abundantly into my Soul Moreover O my Soul thy Sorrow might be turned into Joy when thou dost believingly consider that rather than the Dead should always be captivated by Death and ever held by the bonds thereof the Lord HIMSELF will come down from Heaven and fetch them forth Rejoyce and be exceeding glad that when the appointed day is come the Lord Jesus will not stay nor rest in Heaven till he hath opened their Graves and delivered them from the Power of death Blessed Jesus Help me to rejoyce in thy Mighty Power and abundant Love in that because the raising of the Dead is a work too great for all the Angels in Heaven thou wilt come thy self and cause them to live again Methinks I hear thy Voice Ye Dead arise Methinks I hear the mighty Shout and the Trumpet sounding methinks I see the Lord in his Glory coming down from Heaven and calling to the Dead and methinks I see them in great numbers coming up out of their Graves He calls they tho dead do hear and tho dead at his Command do Live Lord at thy pleasure they fell into the Grave and at thy Voice they do come forth O powerful Voice Oh joyful glorious sight Oh the difference betwixt a Funeral and the Resurrection day the one was a sorrowful the other will be a joyful day Especially O my Soul when the day of Death was a parting day the day of the Resurrection will be a meeting day Thou and thine at Death did part and that did fill thy Heart with sorrow but then thou and thine shall meet again and never part Thou and thine that 's not all thou and thine shall meet the Lord in the Air. Wondâ—rful Bodiâ—s but now in the bottom of the Grave anon the same mounting up into the Air there to be owned acknowledged and openly acquitted and from thence to go along with their Lord Redeemer into the highest Heavens to be for ever with the Lord. Once in the Grave and after that with the Lord A long time in the Grave and after that long time is out and over be with the Lord for ever which never will be out and over O blessed Day O desirable Day Lord when shall it be When shall it come Dear Jesus gather in the chosen of the Father effectually all the number that is ordained to be with thee for ever and then come yea come quickly that those of thine that are sleeping in their Graves may awake and meet thee and be with the Lord for ever Thus O my Soul hast thou followed thy Dead unto the Grave and dost know and believe that this Body shall rise again and be an happy and glorious Body prepare to follow cease excessively to sorrow rejoyce in Hope that the Lord will come when his shall be with him for ever Be with with him for ever Are they now dead amongst the Dead and shall live with him for ever that doth live for ever Is not this it that Christ did bleed and sweat and suffer and die for Is not this it that Christ did rise from the dead for that those that sleep in him might also rise Is not this it for which he ascended to Heaven to prepare a place for them Is not this it for which he intercedes that all those that the Father hath given him might be where he is that they may behold his Glory Is not this it for which he will come again and take the Quick and Dead in him all of them unto himself that where he is there they might be also Lord hast thou said it and shall I not believe it Lord I believe help thou my Unbelief And dost thou indeed believe these sayings of thy Lord O my Soul and yet sit sorrowing with excessive sorrow for thy
presentiate them unto us tho yet they are future that it may be the substance or subsistence or as it were the ready presence of such things hoped for and the evidence or convincing demonstration of things not yet seen as if we did now behold them with our Eyes which is the nature power and working of a lively Faith Heb. 11.1 then should we now wipe tears from our Eyes in the fore-believing views thereof as God will do then when we shall actually behold them then our Sorrow would now be turned into Joy and our Heaviness into Rejoycing now we know and say they are dead and therefore Sorrow filleth our Hearts but let us believe what is revealed concerning them that they shall be raised and what great and glorious things shall then be done to them and for them and let the Faith of the one make us as joyfull as the Knowledge of the other at present makes us sorrowfull These Remedies for the asswaging of our sorrow may be reduced to these five general Heads But remember it is not the bare Notion of them nor cursory talking of them nor superficial thinking of them but our serious pondering and powerful practical Believing of them and the Spirits effectual applying and laying them warm to our Hearts that must he the Cure to those that are deeply sorrowfull for their Dead 1. The Lord Himself will descend from Heaven to fetch them out of their Graves v. 16. 2. The Solemnity of his Coming and his Attendants waiting upon him and the Call that shall then be given to them to awake arise and come forth out of their Graves For he shall come with a shout with the Voice of the Archangel and of others and with the Trump of God v. 16. 3. The Prerogative of those that sleep in Jesus above those that then shall be found alive the Dead shall have the precedency of the Living that the Dead shall be raised before the then Living shall be changed V. 15. For this we say unto you by the Word of the Lord that we which are alive and remain unto the Coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep V. 16. the Dead in Christ shall rise first 4. The Dead in Christ being raised first and after that the Living changed both shall be caught up together in the Clouds to meet the Lord in the Air. v. 17. Are our Hearts almost dead with sorrow Where is our Faith Here is the Word of the liâ—ing faithful God declaring Wonders that shall be done for the Dead in Christ but where is our Faith Here is our sorrow but where is our Faith Behold the Lord comes down from Heaven behold the Dead come up out of their Graves behold they that long lodged and slept under ground are caught up and carried from off this Earth into the Air where their Lord and they do meet O happy joyful meeting not only Bodies and Souls do now meet after so long a parting but which is more their Lord and they do meet after so long sleeping Lord here is our Faith and our sorrow is abated 5. The eternal Enjoyment of God and Christ in the highest Heavens V. 17. and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Now we see where they that are Lodged in the Grave sleeping in Jesus shall at last be Lodged rejoycing in Jesus and therefore now let us be the less sorrowfull And that our Faith concerning these may be encreased and thereby our sorrow may be diminished let us take them up and view them again I. Is it nothing for the asswaging of our sorrow that our Lord will come himself from Heaven to raise them up out of their Graves If you say Who can cause these dry Bones to live and cloath them with flesh and cover them both with skin and bring them out of these deep and dark sleeping places the Answer is ready the Lord can He can but the Question is whether he will he hath declared and promised that he will He will While he was on Earth he raised some but now he is gone to Heaven and there he doth abide and except he come from Heaven the Dead must abide in their Graves Say you so weep not for he HIMSELF will come and he will surely have them forth Did he at his first coming die for their Bodies as well as for their Souls and will he be content to have their Souls only with him in the Heavens and their Bodies to lie always in the Grave Did he purchase their Bodies as well as their Souls with the price of his own most precious Blood and will he for ever lose such a part of his purchase Are not the Bodies as well as the Souls of Believers Christs own by right of Redemption 1 Cor. 6.20 and will he lose his own so dearly bought for want of looking after them Hath he redeemed them from Sin and Hell and will not he redeem them from the Grave And is not the deliverance out of the Grave called the Redemption of the Body and do his People and Redeemed ones while they live wait believe and hope and like a Woman in Travel groan for Deliverance and long for the Blessed Inheritance and full possession of the Blessed State above both in Body and Soul at the Resurrection and will he suffer them to be disappointed Are they Adopted hereunto as well in their Bodies as in their Souls and did they here receive the Spirit of God as the Pledge and Earnest and First-fruits of Glory and shall he let them be for ever without it Rom. 8.23 Were they Sanctified in their Bodies as well as in their Souls and Spirits 1 Thes 5.23 and shall not their sanctified Bodies be glorified Bodies at the coming of Christ Did their Bodies partake with their Souls in the serving of their God in Hearing Praying and Religious Fasting and shall not they partake with the Souls in the heavenly and Eternal Reward thro' the Riches of his Grace Did they present their Bodies when alive a Living Sacrifice holy and acceptable unto God giving up their Bodies wholly to him to do and suffer what he did call them to tho' it were to Death Rom. 12.1 and will he suffer them to remain for ever as Prisoners of Death and not call them from thence to be partakers of Eternal Life Did both parts serve and yield Obedience to him and shall one only be saved and rewarded by him He was the Redeemer and Sanctifier of both and he will be the Saviour of both And if Angels sent from Heaven cannot deliver them out of their Graves he will come HIMSELF and bring them out When he would redeem Israel from the Bondage of Egypt he sent Moses but to Ransom Redeem and set the Bodies of those that died in him from the bonds of Death with which they are tyed hand and foot it being a Work too great for any meer Creature he will come himself and break these bonds that tho'
they be dead yet they shall live Christ will not stay abide nor rest in Heaven when the appointed Day is come till he hath opened their Graves and brought them forth To the moderating of our Sorrow these things concerning his Coming when the Dead shall be raised are the Ingredients whereof this Cordial is compounded 1. The Certainty of his Coming Do you say if we were sure Christ would come for this amongst other ends it would be some allay unto our Sorrow why do you doubt Is this any new Doctrine was it not prophesied by Enoch the seventh from Adam Jude v. 14. Behold the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his Saints Have not the best of Men believed it why else do the Generation of the Righteous look for it Phil. 3.20 21. Tit. 2.13 and wait for it 1 Cor. 1.7 and pray for it Rev. 22.20 and is made the Character of a Christian to Love and Long for it 2 Tim. 4.8 Will you believe the Testimony of Angels from Heaven you have it Act. 1.11 Will you believe it if it were spoken with his own Mouth then read Joh. 14.2 I do go to prepare a place for you 3. And if I go to prepare a place for you I will come again and take you to my self that where I am there ye might be also The Souls of Believers being with Christ immediately after their separation from the Body this Promise of Christs coming and then taking them to himself must be understood of the Consummation of the Happiness both of Body and Soul and in the Consummation of the whole Church in one Body that when he comes again all his shall be with him and all of every one both Body and Soul Why then do you sorrow so much as if you had no Hope when it is so sure and certain ground of good Hope 2. The Nearness of his Coming You say and therefore sorrow on he will come but who knows when How long must the Dead lie there before the day of his Coming and their Rising Small Comfort to tell us of their living after so many years and how many is unknown to Angels or Men as we find Mark 13.32 Say you so when it may be sooner than you or any Man or Angels might think of However tho it may not be in our days and we are like to be among the Dead aâ—d not the Living at his Coming yet he will quickly come and will not tarry long before he comes Heb. 10.37 For yet a little while and he that shall come will come and will not tarry Tho' to Unbelief and Impatience it might seem long yet it is but a very little time till Christ will come and raise the Dead and fulfill our Hopes and he will not delay nor tarry at all not one day nor hour beyond the due appointed time We must not measure God's time by the measures of Men as days months and years for one day with the Lord is as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day 2 Pet. 3.8 and it is not tediously long to the Soul in Heaven nor to the Body in the Grave only it seems so to us but is not really so to God nor estimatively so to them It is the last Promise in all the Scripture and turned into a Prayer Rev. 22.20 He that testifieth these things faith surely I come quickly Amen Even so come Lord Jesus Believe then in Gods Account that Christ will quickly come and the Dead in Christ shall be quickly made to Live again and do not sorrow as if you had no hope that this quickly will be done and all our sorrow quickly will be over 3. The Publickness of his Coming When his Coming shall he seen by all it shall be denied by none Is the Lord come then shall be no Questiâ—n no Doubt for all the World shall be Spectators of it Rev. 1.7 He was seen by some upon the Tree but he shall be seen by all upon his Throne Mat. 26.64 If Faith were now in the stead of that sight then as that sight will fill us with Joy so this Faith would moderate our Sorrow CHAP. XVI The Shout the Voice of the Arch-angel the sounding of the Trumpet The ministration of Angels The Dead shall be raised before the then Living shall be changed Both shall meet the Lord in the Air. IS it nothing to asswage our Sorrow believingly to consider the Shout the Summons and Call that shall be given to the Dead to awake arise and come forth of their Graves and the Attendance and Ministration of the Glorious Angels in reference to the Dead then raised 1 Thes 4.16 The Lord himself shall descend from Heaven with a Shout with the voice of the Archangel and with the Trump of God 1 Cor. 15.52 In a moment in the twinkling of an Eye at the last Trump for the Trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised incorruptible What a potent Call what a mighty Sound what Almighty Power shall that be which shall quicken all the Dead in a moment in the twinkling of an Eye What is shorter than a moment what is sooner done than the twinkling of the Eye and yet with such quick dispatch the Dead shall be made to live they are sleeping in their Graves as before Christ comes the Trumpet sounds the Lord calls the Dead arise they all start up they all come forth and look up and see the Lord is come and who it was that made them Live Concerning this Trumpet of God this hath been said of old Tuba â—irum spargens sonum Pâ—r Sepulchra Râ—gionum Coget omnes ante Thronum At the last Trumpets sound The Dead tho' under ground Shall rise his Throne surround What this Shout this Voice of the Archangel and Trumpet of God shall be is diversly interpreted 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 properly signifieth such Voices and Cries that Mariners use one to another as a sign when all should put sorth their Oars to row together or of men heaving at some weighty burden do use as a sign when all should heave together and joyn their strength together to lift it up And then it is spoken after the manner of Men for tho' the raising of all the Dead be a great Work yet God will do it easily and needs not the help and assistance of Angels thereunto or else to express the Joy that the Dead in Christ shall rise and to increase the Terrour of the Ungodly at that Day The Trumpet at the Last Day that shall be sounded in order to the raising of the dead is three ways judged of 1. Some apprehend it shall be a proper real and material Trumpet sounded by Angels Mat. 24.31 And he shall send his Angels with a great sound of a Trumpet As when God came down to give the Law there was Thunderings and Lightnings and the Trumpet sounding Exod. 19.16 18 19. So when the Lord shall come down to raise the Dead and to