thing that I see with my eyes; at least it is so at times. But I have often, since that first conviction, had quite another kind of sense of God's sovereignty than I had then. I have often since had not only a conviction, but a delightful conviction. The doctrine. The doctrine has very often appeared exceeding pleasant, bright, and sweet. Absolute sovereignty is what I love to ascribe 10 to me, and I used to be much in readto God. But my first conviction was

the woods, and solitary places, for meditation, soliloquy, and prayer, and converse with God; and it was always my manner at such times, to sing forth my contemplations. I was almost constantly in ejaculatory prayer, wherever I was. Prayer seemed to be natural to me, as the breath by which the inward burnings of my heart had vent.

every thing. God's excellency, his wis-
dom, his purity and love, seemed to
appear in every thing; in the sun, and
moon, and stars; in the clouds and
blue sky; in the grass, flowers, trees;
in the water, and all nature; which used
greatly to fix my mind. I often used
to sit and view the moon for continu-
ance; and in the day spent much time.
in viewing the clouds and sky, to be- 10 The delights which I now felt in the

hold the sweet glory of God in these
things; in the mean time, singing forth,
with a low voice, my contemplations of
the Creator and Redeemer. And scarce
any thing, among all the works of
nature, was so sweet to me as thunder
and lightning; formerly, nothing had
been so terrible to me. Before, I used
to be uncommonly terrified with thun-
der, and to be struck with terror when 20
I saw a thunder storm rising; but now,
on the contrary, it rejoiced me. I felt
God, so to speak, at the first appear-
ance of a thunder storm; and used to
take the opportunity, at such times,
to fix myself in order to view the clouds
and see the lightnings play, and hear
the majestic and awful voice of God's
thunder, which oftentimes was exceed-
ingly entertaining, leading me to sweet 30
contemplations of my great and glori-
ous God. While thus engaged, it always
seemed natural to me to sing, or chant
forth my meditations; or, to speak my
thoughts in soliloquies with a singing
voice.

I felt then great satisfaction, as to my good state; but that did not content me. I had vehement longings of soul after God and Christ, and after 40 more holiness, wherewith my heart. seemed to be full, and ready to break; which often brought to my mind the words of the Psalmist, Psal. cxix. 28, My soul breaketh for the longing it hath. I often felt a mourning and lamenting in my heart, that I had not turned to God sooner, that I might have had more time to grow in grace. My mind was greatly fixed on divine 50 things; almost perpetually in the contemplation of them. I spent most of my time in thinking of divine things, year after year; often walking alone in

things of religion, were of an exceeding different kind from those before mentioned, that I had when a boy; and what I had then no more notion of, than one born blind has of pleasant and beautiful colors. They were of a more inward, pure, soul-animating and refreshing nature. Those former delights never reached the heart; and did not arise from any sight of the divine excellency of the things of God; or any taste of the soul-satisfying, and lifegiving good there is in them.

My sense. of divine things seemed gradually to increase, until I went to preach at New-York, which was about a year and a half after they began; and while I was there I felt them, very sensibly, in a much higher degree than I had done before. My longings after God and holiness were much increased. Pure and humble, holy and heavenly, Christianity appeared exceedingly amiable to me. I felt a burning desire to be in every thing a complete Christian; and conformed to the blessed image of Christ; and that I might live, in all things, according to the pure, sweet, and blessed rules of the gospel. I had an eager thirsting after progress in these things; which put me upon pursuing and pressing after them. It was my continual strife day and night, and constant inquiry, how I should be more holy, and live more holily, and more becoming a child of God, and a disciple of Christ.

.. The heaven I desired was a heaven of holiness; to be with God, and to spend my eternity in divine love, and holy communion with Christ. My mind was very much taken up with contemplations on heaven, and the enjoyments there; and living there in

perfect holiness, humility, and love; and
it used at that time to appear a great
part of the happiness of heaven, that
there the saints could express their love
to Christ. It appeared to me a great
clog and burden, that what I felt
within, I could not express as I de-
sired. The inward ardor of my soul
seemed to be hindered and pent up,
and could not freely flame out as it 10
would. I used often to think how in
heaven this principle should freely and
fully vent and express itself. Heaven
appeared exceedingly delightful, as a
world of love; and that all happiness
consisted in living in pure, humble,
heavenly, divine, love.

I remember the thoughts I used then
to have of holiness; and said some-
times to myself, "I do certainly know 20
that I love holiness, such as the Gospel
prescribes." It appeared to me that
there was nothing in it but what was
ravishingly lovely; the highest beauty
and amiableness-a divine beauty; far
purer than anything here upon earth;
and that everything else was like mire
and defilement, in comparison of it.

Holiness, as I then wrote down some of my contemplations on it, appeared 30 to me to be of a sweet, pleasant, charming, serene, calm nature; which brought an inexpressible purity, brightness, peacefulness, and ravishment to the soul. In other words, that it made the soul like a field or garden of God, with all manner of pleasant flowers; enjoying a sweet calm, and the gentle vivifying beams of the sun. The soul of a true Christian, as I then wrote my 40 meditations, appeared like such a little. white flower as we see in the spring of the year; low, and humble on the ground, opening its bosom to receive the pleasant beams of the sun's glory, rejoicing as it were in a calm rapture; diffusing around a sweet fragrancy; standing peacefully and lovingly, in the midst of other flowers round about; all in like manner opening their bosoms to 50 drink in the light of the sun. There was no part of creature holiness that I had so great a sense of its loveliness as humility, brokenness of heart, and pov

erty of spirit; and there was nothing that I so earnestly longed for. My heart panted after this, to lie low before God, as in the dust; that I might be nothing, and that God might be all, that I might become as a little child....

From

THE FUTURE PUNISHMENT OF
THE WICKED UNAVOIDABLE
AND INTOLERABLE

Ezekiel xxii. 14.-Can thine heart endure, or can thine hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with thee? I the Lord have spoken it, and will do it.

DOCTRINE

Since God hath undertaken to deal with impenitent sinners, they shall neither shun the threatened misery, nor deliver themselves out of it, nor can they bear it.

In handling this doctrine, I shall, 1. Show what is implied in God's undertaking to deal with impenitent sinners. 2. That therefore they cannot avoid punishment. 3. That they cannot in any measure deliver themselves from it, or do anything for their own relief under it. 4. That they cannot bear it. 5. I shall answer an inquiry, and then proceed to the use.

I come now,

...

III. To show that as impenitent sinners cannot shun the threatened punishment, so neither can they do any thing to deliver themselves from it, or to relieve themselves under it. This is implied in those words of the text, Can thine hands be strong? It is with our hands that we make and accomplish things for ourselves. But the wicked in hell will have no strength of hand to accomplish any thing at all for themselves, or to bring to pass any deliverance, or any degree of relief.

1. They will not be able in that conflict to overcome their enemy, and so to deliver themselves. God, who will then undertake to deal with them, and will gird himself with might to execute. wrath, will be their enemy, and will

will never find any resting place there, any place of respite, any secret corner, which will be cooler than the rest, where they may have a little respite, a small abatement of the extremity of their torment. They never will be able to find any cooling stream or fountain, in any part of that world of torment; no, nor so much as a drop of water to

act the part of an enemy with a witness; and they will have no strength to oppose him. Those who live negligent of their souls under the light of the gospel, act as if they supposed that they should be able hereafter to make their part good with God. I Cor. x. 22. Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he?-But they will have no power, no might to resist 10 cool their tongues. They will find no that omnipotence, which will be engaged against them.

2. They will have no strength in their hands to do any thing to appease God, or in the least to abate the fierceness of his wrath. They will not be able to offer any satisfaction; they will not be able to procure God's pity. Though they cry, God will not hear them. They will find no price to offer to God, in order to purchase any favor, or to pay any part of their debt.

20

3. They will not be able to find any to befriend them, and intercede with God for them. They had the offer of a mediator often made them in this world; but they will have no offers of such a nature in hell. None will befriend them. They will have no friend in hell; all there will be their enemies. 30 They will have no friend in heaven: none of the saints or angels will befriend them; or if they should, it would be to no purpose. There will be no creature that will have any power to deliver them, nor will any ever pity them.

4. Nor will they ever be able to make their escape. They will find no means to break prison and flee. In hell they 40 will be reserved in chains of darkness forever and ever. Malefactors have often found means to break prison, and escape the hand of civil justice. But none ever escaped out of the prison of hell, which is God's prison. It is a strong prison; it is beyond any finite power, or the united strength of all wicked men and devils, to unlock, or break open the door of that prison. 50 Christ hath the key of hell; "he shuts and no man opens.'

5. Nor will they ever be able to find any thing to relieve them in hell. They

company to give them any comfort, or to do them the least good. They will find no place where they can remain and rest, and take breath for one minute; for they will be tormented with fire and brimstone; and will have no rest day nor night forever and ever.

Thus impenitent sinners will be able neither to shun the punishment threatened, nor to deliver themselves from it, nor to find any relief under it.

I come now,

IV. To show, that neither will they be able to bear it. Neither will their hands be strong to deliver themselves from it, nor will their hearts be able to endure it. It is common with men, when they meet with calamities in this world, in the first place to endeavor to shun them. But if they find that they cannot shun them, then after they are come they endeavor to deliver themselves from them as soon as they can; or at least, to order things so as to deliver themselves in some degree. But if they find that they can by no means deliver themselves, and see that the case is so that they must bear them, then they set themselves to bear them. They fortify their spirits, and take up a resolution that they will support themselves under them as well as they can. They clothe themselves with all the resolution and courage they are masters of, to keep their spirits from sinking under their calamities.

But it will be utterly in vain for impenitent sinners to think to do thus with respect to the torments of hell. They will not be able to endure them, or at all to support themselves under them; the torment will be immensely beyond their strength. What will it signify for a worm, which is about to

ment, nor deliver themselves from it, nor bear it, then what will become of them?

ANSWER. They will wholly sink down into eternal death. There will be that sinking of heart, of which we now cannot conceive. We see how it is with the body when in extreme pain. The nature of the body will support

be pressed under the weight of some great rock, to be let fall with its whole weight upon it, to collect its strength, to set itself to bear up the weight of the rock, and to preserve itself from being crushed by it? Much more in vain will it be for a poor damned soul to endeavor to support itself under the weight of the wrath of Almighty God. What is the strength of man, who is 10 itself for a considerable time under but a worm, to support himself against the power of Jehovah, and against the fierceness of his wrath? What is man's strength, when set to bear up against the exertions of infinite power? Matt. xxi. 44, Whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.

When sinners hear of hell torments, 20 they sometimes think with themselves, well, if it shall come to that, that I must go to hell, I will bear it as well as I can; as if by clothing themselves with resolution and firmness of mind, they would be able to support themselves in some measure; when, alas! they will have no resolution, no courage at all. However they shall have prepared themselves and collected 30 their strength, yet as soon as they shall begin to feel that wrath, their hearts will melt and be as water. However before they may seem to harden their hearts, in order to prepare themselves. to bear, yet the first moment they feel it, their hearts will become like wax before the furnace. Their courage and resolution will all be gone in an instant; it will vanish away like a shadow in the twinkling of an eye. The stoutest and most sturdy will have no more courage than the feeblest infant; let a man be an infant or a giant, it will all be one. They will not be able to keep alive any courage, any strength, any comfort, any hope at all.

I come now as was proposed,

very great pain, so as to keep from wholly sinking. There will be great struggles, lamentable groans and panting, and it may be convulsions. These are the strugglings of nature to support itself under the extremity of pain. There is, as it were, a great lothness in nature to yield to it; it cannot bear wholly to sink.

But yet sometimes pain of body is so very extreme and exquisite, that the nature of the body cannot support itself under it; however loth it may be to sink, yet it cannot bear the pain; there are a few struggles, and throes, and pantings, and it may be a shriek or two, and then nature yields to the violence of the torments, sinks down; and the body dies. This is the death of the body. So it will be with the soul in hell; it will have no strength or power to deliver itself; and its torment and horror will be so great, so mighty, So vastly disproportioned to its strength, that having no strength in the least to support itself, although it be infinitely contrary to the nature and inclination of the soul utterly to sink, yet it will sink, it will utterly and 40 totally sink, without the least degree of remaining comfort, or strength, or courage, or hope. And though it will never be annihilated, its being and perception will never be abolished; yet such will be the infinite depth of gloominess that it will sink into, that it will be in a state of death, eternal death.

V. To answer an inquiry which may naturally be raised concerning these 50 things.

INQUIRY. Some may be ready to say, If this be the case, if impenitent sinners can neither shun future punish

The nature of man desires happiness; it is the nature of the soul to crave and thirst after well-being; and if it be under misery, it eagerly pants after relief; and the greater the misery is, the more eagerly doth it struggle