Trees; whilft the Piety and Honesty of others, retard and hinder their Advancement to high Places. y, many times, truly Religious Men, have been reduced to Poverty and Mifery, only for being Religious, whilft thofe who have plundered and barbaroufly treated them, have had fuch abundance of the good Things. of this World, as if they were rewarded for their Cruelties, Now Juftice being an Attribute effentially belonging to the Divific Nature, and it belonging as essentially to diftributive Juftice, to render to. every one according to his Deeds; 'tis plain, that fince God's proceedings with Men here are quite otherwife, there must be a Judgment to come, when Rewards and Punishments, fhall be properly, and fuitably diftributed; when a Difference fhall be made, between him that ferveth God, and him that ferveth him not.

If to weaken the Force of this Argument, it be objected, that wicked Men are punished for their bad Actions, in that Remorse and Anguifli of Soul which follows them; and that good Men are rewarded for their virtuous Actions, in that inward Pleasure and Delight wherewith they are accompanied.

It may be replied; that we may reason

ably.

ably fuppofe fuch inward Remorfe to have its Sting from the Fear of Punishment and fuch inward Pleasure to receive its' Strength from the Hope of Reward, in another World. And if there was no Punifhment to be feared in another World, upon Account of a bad Life; and no Reward to be expected in another World, upon Account of a virtuous Life; Men would not feel any Remorfe or Pleasure of Mind at all, confequent upon their Be haviour; or at leaft, not any strong enough to restrain them at all Times from Vice, and to encourage them to a conftant Perfeverance in Goodness. Men by their Wickedness, frequently procure fuch Honours, Riches, and Pleasures, as would quickly ftifle any Remorfe of Soul, fo weak as it must needs be, if there was no future Punishment to be feared; and therefore fuch Remorfe is not a fufficient Punishment of Vice. And by a fteady Adherence to Goodness, Men frequently draw upon themselves fuch a Flood of Troubles, and Perfecutions, as would foon drown and extinguish any complacency of Mind, so faint as it muft needs be, if there was no future Reward to be expected; and therefore fuch complacency is not a fufficient Reward of Virtue.

Where

Wherefore, fince the Juftice of God will most certainly inflict fufficient Punishments upon bad Men, and beftow fufficient Rewards upon thofe that are Good; fince he does not always perform this in the prefent Difpenfations of his Providence; we must conclude, that there will be a most manifeft Revelation of his exact Righteousness, in a Judgment hereafter; when thofe that have done Evil fhall continually groan under the Strokes of his Anger, whereof that Remorfe of Soul they at prefent feel, is a bitter Earnest: And thofe that have done Good, fhall for ever rejoyce in the Communications of his Mercy, of which that inward Tran quility they now enjoy, is a delightful Fore-runner.

Thus you may fee, how strongly the Doctrine of a Judgment to come, may be proved with Arguments drawn from na tural Reafon: And these are moreover most irrefragably confirmed by the incon teftable Authority of Divine Revelation. You fee how plainly St. Paul lays it down in the Text; He hath appointed a Day, in the which he will judge the World in Righteousness. Hear alfo what the fame St. Paul fays in the 2 Cor. v. 10. We must all appear before the Judgment

Seat

Seat of CHRIST, that every one may receive the Things done in his Body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. There are abundance of Paffages both in the Old and New Testament, which might be brought to prove the Doctrine we are difcourfing of; but thefe already cited are fo very plain and full, that we need not here quote any more: I fhall therefore forbear doing it, and proceed to the

·Second Thing propofed, namely to fhew who is appointed to execute this Judg ment. Now he that is appointed to execute this Judgment, is CHRIST JESUS, the fecond Perfon in the ever Blessed Trinity. For though every Perfon in the Trinity by being God, hath the fame original Supreme judiciary Power; yet there is a judiciary Power delegated, derived, and given by Commiffion, which is proper and peculiar to CHRIST, as Man; whereby he fhall put in Execution that judiciary Power, which he, as God, enjoys together with the Father and the Holy Ghost: So that the Perfon who is to judge, is the Man CHRIST JESUS; the Power or Principal by which he Judges, is the whole fullness of the God-head, infeparably united to his human Nature. The

Father

Father therefore, and the Holy Ghoft, fhall actually judge the World no otherwife but by CHRIST. According to this, St. Paul in the Place laft quoted, fays that we must all appear before the Judg ment Seat of CHRIST. And Jo. v. 22. CHRIST faith, that the Father judgeth no Man, but hath committed all Judgment to the Son; at the 27th of the fame Chapter, he faith, that Authority is given him to execute Fudgment, because he is the Son of Man: that is, as a learned Expofitor interprets it, because of the three Perfons which are God, he only is also the Son of Man: Because he only divefted himfelf of his Glory; because he only condefcended to take our Nature upon him; to be touched with the feeling of our Infir mities; and at last, to be judged and condemned, at an earthly Tribunal; therefore the Father, and the Holy Ghost who are only God, and never took upon them the Nature either of Men or Angels, have thus bigbly exalted him, and commiffioned him to execute Judgment. In those Places of Scripture, where 'tis faid the Saints fhall judge the World, or the like; may be meant that when they have been acquainted themselves, they fhall fic

It

d

Bishop Pearfon on the Creed, Art, VII.

as