going up to the mount as well as they? Had they said, that their LORD was transfigured, people would not have believed them; they would have thought, that Peter, James, and John were only enthufiafts; but if they kept it till after his refurrection, and he had broken the gates of death, for them then to fay, that they faw him upon the mount transfigured, would corroborate the evidence.

I have thus paraphrafed the words for your better underftanding the account the Evangelift gives of our blessed LORD's transfiguration; but I have not yet done; I have been fpeaking to your heads; the practical part is yet to come. O that God may reach your hearts! And though, according to order, I ought to begin with the practical inferences that might be drawn from the first part; yet, I think it beft to fhow you, who are the people of GOD, especially you young converts, that have honefty, but not much prudence, what inftructions our LORD would here have you to learn.

"When the voice was paft, JESUS was found alone, and they kept it close, and told no man in those days any of those things which they had feen." There is nothing more common, when God vouchfafes communications to a poor foul, than for the person that enjoys them, to go and tell all that he has feen and felt, and often at improper seasons and to improper perfons. I remember that Mr. Henry obferves, " "Jofeph had more honefty than he had policy, or elfe he would never have told his brethren of his dreams." Young chriftians are too apt to blunder thus: I am fure it is a fault of which I have been exceedingly guilty, fpeaking of things which, perhaps, had better been concealed; which is a fault GOD's people are too apt to fall into. Though it is good for those that have feen CHRIST, and that have felt his love, to tell others what God hath done for their fouls; yet, however you may think of it now, when you come down from the mount, and know yourselves a little, ye will find reafon often to hold your tongue. Young chriftians are like children, to whom if you give a little money in their pocket, they cannot be quiet till they have fpent it upon fomething or other young chriftians, when they get a little of GOD, are ready to talk too much of it. They fhould therefore beware, and know when to speak, and when to be filent.

But

But, my dear friends, did our LORD JESUS CHRIST take Peter, James, and John into a mountain to pray? Are any of you fathers, mothers, mafters and miftreffes of families? Learn then from hence to take your children, your fervants, and those that belong to you, from the world, at certain times, and not only pray for them, but pray with them. If CHRIST did thus, who had few wants of his own to be fupplied, and nothing to confefs and lament over; if CHRIST Was fuch a lover of prayer, furely, you and I, who have fo many wants to be supplied, fo many corruptions to mourn over; you and I should spend much time in prayer. I do not say that you are to lock yourselves up in your clofets, and not mind your shops or farms, or worldly bufinefs; I only fay, that you fhould take care to hufband all your time and if you are God's children, you will frequently retire from the world, and feek a vifit from your GOD.

Was the LORD JESUS transformed or transfigured, while he was praying? Learn hence, to be much in fpiritual prayer. The way to have the foul transformed, changed into, and made like unto God, is frequently to converfe with God. We fay, a man is as his company. Perfons by converfing together, frequently catch each others tempers: and if you have a mind to imbibe the divine temper, pray much. And as CHRIST's garments became white and gliftering, fo fhall your fouls get a little of GOD's light to fhine upon them.

Did Mofes and Elias appear in glory? Are there any old. faints here? I doubt not but there are a confiderable number.

And are any of you afraid of death? Do any of, you carry about with you a body that weighs down your immortal foul? I am fure a poor creature is preaching to you, that every day drags a crazy load along. But come, believers, come, ye children of GoD, come, ye aged decrepid faints, come and trample upon that monfter death. As thou goeft over yonder church-yard, do as I know an old excellent chriftian in Maryland did; go, fit upon the grave, and meditate on thine own diffolution. Thou mayeft, perhaps, have a natural fear of dying: the body and the foul do not care to part without a little fympathy and a groan; but O look yonder, look up to heaven, fee there thy JESUS, thy Redeemer, and learn, that thy body is to be fashioned here

after like unto CHRIST's most glorious body; that poor body which is now fubject to gout and gravel, and that thou canst fcarce drag along; that poor body, which hinders thee fo much in the spiritual life, will ere long hinder thee no more: it fhall be put into the grave; but though it be sown in corruption, it shall be raised in incorruption; though it is fown in dishonour, it shall be raised again in glory. This confideration made bleffed Paul to cry out, "O death, where is thy fting! O grave, where is thy victory!" Thy foul and body fhall be united together again, and thou shalt be "for ever with the LORD." Thofe knees of thine, which perhaps are hard by kneeling in prayer; that tongne of thine, which hath fung hymns to CHRIST; those hands of thine, which have wrought for GOD; thofe feet, which have ran to CHRIST's ordinances; fhall all, in the twinkling of an eye, be changed; and thou shalt be able to ftand under an exceeding and an eternal weight of glory. Come then, ye believers in CHRIST, look beyond the grave; come, ye dear children of GOD, and however weak and fickly ye are now, say, Blessed be God, I fhall foon have a body ftrong, full of vigour and of glory.

But as this fpeaks comfort to faints, it speaks terror to finners, to all persons that live and die out of CHRIST. It is the opinion of Archbishop Usher, that as the bodies of the faints shall be glorified, so the bodies of the damned shall be deformed. And if this be true, alas! what a poor figure will the fine ladies cut, who die without a CHRIST! What a poor figure will the fine gentleman cut in the morning of the refurrection, that now dresses up his body, and at the fame time neglects to secure an intereft in CHRIST and eternal happiness! It is the opinion, likewise, of Archbishop Usher, that damned fouls will lofe all the good tempers they had here; so that though GOD gave unregenerate people a conftitutional meeknefs, good nature, and courage, for the benefit of the commonwealth; yet, the use of these things being over, and they having died without CHRIST, and it being impoffible there will be an appearance of good in hell, their good tempers will be for ever loft. If this be fo, it is an awful confideration; and I think perfons who love their bodies, fhould also hence take care to secure the welfare of their fouls.

Did Peter know which was Mofes and which Elias? Then I think, and God be praised for it, it is plain from this and other paffages of fcripture, that we fhall know one another when we come to heaven. Dives knew Lazarus: "Facher Abraham, fend Lazarus." And we are told," he faw Lazarus fitting in Abraham's bofom." Adam knew his wife Eve; though caft into a deep fleep when GOD made her out of his rib, yet, by a kind of intuition, he fays, "This is bone of my bone, and flesh of my flesh." And it is on this account, that the Apostle, speaking to the Philippians, fays, "Ye are my joy and crown of rejoicing, in the day of the LORD." What comfort will this be to a fpiritual father! Says one, Here is the man, O LORD JESUS, that brought my foul to tafte of thy love; fays another, This is the man, that at such a time, and with fuch words, ftruck my heart: thou, O LORD, knoweft it. Then the fpiritual father will rejoice over his children. You that have met and have prayed together, fighed and fympathized together, and told your temptations to one another, fhall be for ever with the LORD and with each other. There we fhall fee Abraham, Ifaac, and Jacob fitting, with all the redeemed company; and we shall know the names of every one mentioned in the book of GOD. O blessed profpect! O bleffed time! Who that thinks of this, of feeing the Lamb fitting upon the throne, with all GOD's people about him, but muft defire to go to heaven, and be for ever, for ever with the LORD. And if there is fuch comfort for believers to know one another in heaven, with what comfort may any of you, that have lost fathers, mothers, or friends, think of them: we are parted for a little while, but we fhall fee them again. My father died in CHRIST, my mother died in the LORD, my husband, my wife, was a follower of JESUS; I fhall fee them, though not I fhall go to them, but they fhall not return to me! This may keep you from forrowing as perfons without hope; and keep you from being fo cruel, as to wish them to come down to this evil world,

now;

But what a dreadful confideration is this for damned fouls! I believe, that as glorified fpirits will know one another, fo will damned fouls know one another too. And as the company of the bleffed increases the happiness of heaven, so

the company of the damned will increafe their torments. What made Dives to put up that petition? "I have five brethren ; fend fomebody to my father's houfe to teftify unto them, left they alfo come into this place of torment.' One would. imagine at first reading, that hell had made Dives charitable, and that though he was ill natured on earth, yet he had acquired fome good nature in hell. No, no, there is not a fpark of good nature in the place of torment. But Dives knew, if his five brethren came there, they might fay, We may thank you, next to an evil heart, for coming hither; you made us drink healths, till we were drunk; you taught us to game, to curfe, to fwear, &c. He knew very well, that

his five brethren being brought to hell by his example, hell would be heated five times hotter to torment his foul. One will cry out, Curfed be the day that ever I was companion

with fuch an one in fin; curfed be the day that ever we hearkened to one another's advice, and were allured by each others example to fin against GOD.

But did a cloud overfhadow Peter, James, and John? were heavenly and divine vifits here but short? Then wonder not, ye people of GOD, if ye are upon the mount one hour, and down in the valley of the fhadow of death the next. There is nothing in the world more common, after you have been in a good frame, than for a cloud to overshadow you. We generally fay, "It is good to be here," and often make a CHRIST of our graces; and therefore the LORD fends a cloud to overfhadow us. But never fear; GOD shall speak to you out of the cloud; GOD will reveal himself to you; this cloud fhall foon be gone; ere long we fhall be in heaven, and in that glory where no cloud can poffibly reach us.

I can now only mention one thing more, and that is, Did the Father fay," This is my beloved Son, hear him?” then let every one of our hearts echo to this teftimony given of CHRIST," This is my beloved Saviour." Did GOD fo love the world, as to fend his only begotten Son, his well beloved Son to preach to us? then, my dear friends, HEAR HIM. What GOD faid feventeen hundred years ago, immediately by a voice from heaven, concerning his Son upon the mount, that fame thing GOD fays to you immediately by his word, ** Hear him.” If ye never heard him before, hear him now.

Hear