God. We should now be very importunate in our Prayers to God, that for the Merits and Interceffion of Chrift, he would freely pardon all the Sins, and Frailties, and Errors of our paft Life; and give us fuch a comfortable Hope and Senfe of his Love to us, as may fupport us in the Hour of Death, and fweeten the Terrors and Agonies of it. We should meditate on the great Love of God in fending Chrift into the World to fave Sinners and contemplate the Heighth and Depth, and Length and Breadth of that Love of God, which paffeth all human Understanding. We fhould reprefent to ourselves the wonderful Condefcenfion of the Son of God in becoming Man; his amazing Goodness in dying for Sinners, the Juft for the Unjuft, to reconcile us to God. And when we have warmed our Souls with fuch Thoughts as thefe, we should break forth into Raptures and Extafies of Devotion, in the Praife of our Maker and Redeemer: Worthy is the Lamb that was flain, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and frength, and honour, and glory, and bleffing. Bleffing, and honour, and glory, and power be unto him that fitteth on the throne, and to the Lamb for ever and ever. Rev. v. 12, 13.

And befides. other Reafons, which make this a very proper Preparation for Death, this accuftoms us to the Work and Employment of the next World: For Heaven is a Life of Devotion and Praife; there we shall fee God,

and

and admire and adore him, and fing eternal Hallelujahs to him. And therefore nothing can fo difpofe and prepare us for Heaven, as to have our Hearts ready turned to the Praises of God, ravished with Love, tranfported with his Glory and Perfections, and swallowed up in the most profound and humble Adorations of him.

3. Thus when we are going into another World, it becomes us most to have our Thoughts there; to confider what a blessed Place that is, where we fhall be delivered from all the Fears, and Sorrows, and Temptations of this World; where we fhall fee God and the bleffed Jefus, and converse with Angels and glorified Spirits, and live an endlefs Life without fear of dying: Where there is nothing but perfect Love and Peace; no crofs Interefts and Factions to contend with; no Storms to ruffle or difcompose our Joy and Reft to Eternity: Where there is no Pain, no Sickness, no Labour; no Care to refresh the Wearinefs, or to repair the Decays of a mortal Body; not fo much as the Image of Death to interrupt our conftant Enjoyments. Where there is a perpetual Day, and an eternal Calm, where our Souls fhall attain their utmost Perfection of Knowledge and Virtue. Where we shall ferve God, not with dull, and fleepy, and unaffecting Devotions, but with piercing Thoughts, with Life and Vigour, with Ravishment and Tranfport. In a Word, where

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where there are fuch things, as neither eye bath feen nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive.

These are proper Thoughts for à Man who is to compofe himself for Death: Not to think of the pale and ghaftly Looks of Death, when he fhall be wrapp'd up in his Winding

Sheet: Not to think of the dark and melancholy Retirements of the Grave, where his Body must rot and putrify, till it be raised up again immortal and glorious: But to lift up his Eyes to Heaven to view that lightfome and happy Country; with Mofes to afcend up into the Mount, to take a Profpect of the heavenly Canaan, whither he is going. This will conquer even the natural Averfions to Death, and make us, with St Paul, defirous to be diffolved, and to be with Chrift, which is best of all; make it as eafy to us to leave this World for Heaven, as it is to remove into a more pleasant and wholesome Air, or into a more convenient and beautiful House. So eafy, fo pleasant will it be to die with fuch Thoughts as these about us.

This indeed ought to be the conftant Exercife of the Chriftian Life: It is fit for all Times and for all Perfons; and without fome Degree of it, it is impoffible to conquer the Temptations of the World, or to live in the Practice of divine and heavenly Virtues. But this ought to be the conftant Bufinefs, or Entertainment rather of those happy Men who

who have lived long enough in the World, to take a fair Leave of it; who have run through all the Scenes and Stages of human Life, and have now Death and another World in View and Profpect.

And it is this makes a Retirement from the World fo neceffary, or very useful; not merely to eafe our bodily Labours, and to get a little Rest from Business, or diffolve in Sloth and Idleness, or to wander about to seek a Companion, or to hear News, or to talk Politicks, or to find out fome way to spend Time, which now lies upon our Hands, and is more eafy and troublesome to us than Business was. This is a more dangerous State, and does more indifpofe us for a happy Death, than all the Cares and Troubles of an active Life But we must retire from this World, to have more Leifure and greater Opportunities to prepare for the next; to adorn and cultivate our Minds, and drefs our Souls like a Bride, who is adorned to meet her Bridegroom.

When Men converfe much in this World, and are distracted with the Cares and Bufinefs of it: When they live in a Crowd of Cuftomers or Clients, and are hurried from their Shops to the Exchange or Cuftom-Houfe, or from their Chambers to the Bar; and when they have discharged one Obligation, preffed hard by another, that at Night they have hardly Spirits left to fay their Prayers, K 2

are

nor

nor any Time for them in the Morning; and the Lord's Day itself is thought more proper for Reft and Refreshment than Devotion: I fay, what dull, cold Apprehensions must fuch Men have of another World? And after all the Care we can take, how will this World infinuate itself into our Affections, when it employs our Time and Thoughts; when our whole Business is buying and felling, and driving good Bargains, and making Conveyances and Settlements of Eftates? How will this disorder our Paffions, occafion Feuds and Quarrels, give us a Tincture of Pride, Ambition, Covetoufnefs? That there is Work enough after a bufy Life, even for very good Men to wash out these Stains and Pollutions, and to get the Taste and Relish of this World out of their Mouths, and to revive and quicken the Senfe of God, and of another World.

This is a fufficient Reason for fuch Men, as I obferv'd before, to think when it is Time to leave off, and if not wholly to withdraw from the World, yet to contract their Business, and to have the Command of it, that they may have more Leisure to take care of their Souls, before they have so near a Call and Summons to Death; but much more neceffary is it, when Death is even at the Door, and by the Course of Nature we know that it is fo.