shall declare the opinion of the most learned upon this rich and excellent subject. Afterwards I shall add my own, which I submit, as the rest of this treatise, to the judgment of the wiser and more learned persons, who are better acquainted than I am with the spiritual and heavenly enjoyments.

Some believe, that in paradise there shall be every where the same glory and happiness, equal and uniform in every, person that shall enjoy it. Their principal reasons are, First, That we can have no glory nor happiness, but that which hath been purchased for us by the death and passion of our Lord; and that as this glorious Saviour hath purchased this gloryand happiness for all the elect equally, they shall all enjoy it in the highest degree and perfection. Secondly, That the holiness of all the blessed shall be perfect; therefore, as they shall be all perfectly holy, they shall be all likewise perfectly happy in the sanie degree. Thirdly, That our Saviour saith expressly, without any exception, "That the saints shall shine as the sun in the kingdom of their Father," Matt.xxiii. Now the sun is the king of the stars, and the brightest of all the heavenly bodies. Fourthly, That the elect are represented in heaven as so many kings, having upon their heads crowns of gold, Rev. i. 4, 5. Now there is no inequality between kings; for each of them is in possession of sovereignty, and an independent and supreme authority. Fifthly, That Jesus Christ represents to us the last transactions of the world, by the parable of a father of a family, who at the end of the day bestows the same salary upon every one that hath laboured in his vineyard, Matt. xx. Sixthly, That it is said in general terms, "That we shall see God face to face; and that we shall see him as he is," 1 Cor. xiii. 1 John iii. And that in this blessed vision shall consist the chief happiness of man. Lastly, That after the resurrection, "God shall be unto us all in all;" which expression declares the highest and most complete happiness and glory.

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Others

Others think the contrary, that in heaven there shall be an inequality of glory, and several degrees of happiness. This their opinion they strengthen chiefly with two passages of holy scripture; the one in John xiv. where Christ saith to his apostles, "In my Father's house there are many mansions." The other is in 1 Cor. xv. where St. Paul, discoursing at large of the happiness of the saints after the resurrection, saith, "There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differeth from another star in glory: so also is the resurrection of the dead."

There are some that are not content to believe an inequa lity of glory and happiness, but undertake farther to discourse of this matter, with as much confidence, as if God had admitted them to the knowledge of his eternal secrets, as if he had discovered to them all the wonders of the heavenly Jeru salem, more plainly than to his beloved disciple. They tell us, that there shall be not only divers degrees of glory and happiness; but they affirm who they are that shall obtain such and such degrees. They determine absolutely, and prescribe what glory shall belong to virgins, what shall be that of confessors, and what shall be that of martyrs. In a word, some are so puffed up with an high conceit of themselves, and of their meritorious acts, that they make an open profession of being of the number of such as shall obtain the highest degrees of glory and happiness.

But my opinion is, that the truth is to be found between these two extremes. I shall not prescribe a law to the con sciences of any, in a matter whereof the decision is not abso lutely necessary to salvation. Yet we may say, that in heaven there shall be divers degrees of glory and happiness ; but we dare not describe them, nor venture to apply them to any person, or to tell who of us shall possess such and such degrees. This were a bold presumption against heaven, and

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an attempt upon the forbidden fruit. Instead of being serviceable to others, we should wilfully lose ourselves. For such as are so audacious to search into the Divine Majesty, shall be swallowed up in his glory, Prov. xxv.

And though we verily believe degrees of glory, yet we may say, without offence to any person, that this belief is not to be established upon the forementioned passages, from whence we cannot make any such conclusion; for in St. John xiv. our Saviour saith not, that there are divers degrees of divine mansions, whereof some are richer and more glorious than others, but only, that in his Father's house there are many mansions. The meaning of our divine Saviour is clear as the day; he had an intent to raise up the drooping courage of his holy apostles, and to comfort them in his absence; for that pur pose he assures them, that he was going to lodge in an house, where there was not only room for himself, but also for them, and for all that shall believe in him through their teaching. He expounds his words plainly in the xviith chapter of the same Gospel, where he speaks to God in this manner, “I will, that they also whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me." For the other text in 1 Cor. xv. I beseech you, devout souls, read over the apostle's words; and consider, with a religious observation, what goes before, and what follows after. You shall find, that the apostle designs not to compare the saints the one with the other, but only to discover the difference which is between our bodies as they are in this corruptible and mortal life, and as they shall be when they shall have put on incorruption and immortality. Therefore, when he hath said, "There is one glory of the sun, another of the moon, another of the stars, for one star differeth from another star in glory;" he doth not add likewise, So shall be the glory of one blessed person differing from another; but he saith, "So shall be the resurrection from the dead;

the

"the body is sown in corruption, it shall be raised in incorruption; it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural budy, it is raised a spiritual body.

What is it therefore that may incline us to believe these divers degrees of glory and happiness?-I answer, First, The divers and different pains and punishments of the damned. For as in hell there shall be divers degrees of torments; likewise it is very probable, that in heaven there shall be divers degrees of happiness, and several degrees of glory. Secondly, God, to declare his divine wisdom, which is various in all things, bestows at present all his blessings and riches with a wonderful variety, and admirable order. Thus you may see in nature, that God hath scattered up and down the world divers gifts and excellencies. For example, the smell and beauty of the rose is different from that of the lily; the brightness of the diamond is not like that of the ruby; the light of the sun differs from that of the moon and stars. It is very probable, that above all the heavens, there shall be divers degrees of light and glory. Among the holy angels, there are distinctions of honour, and some dignities are named, Archangels, Thrones, Dominions, Principalities, and Powers. As therefore amongst the angels there are divers degrees of glory, it is also very probable, that the same order shall be observed amongst the glorified in heaven. Besides, as in the church militant the graces of God differ very much, so the souls of the faithful are not the same in all respects; they have dif ferent qualities and excellencies; there are in them divers degrees of light, of knowledge, of faith, hope, charity, and holiness. Likewise, according to the analogy of faith, there shall be also, in the church glorified, divers degrees of glory and happiness; and the rather, because glory is nothing else but the completion and perfection of grace. The reason is so much the stronger, because of the parable of the talents. Jesus Christ bestows upon his servants a glory proportionable

to the former riches of his grace. None can imagine, that the words relate to God's favours distributed to his children on earth; for our Lord speaks of that which he intends to do for them, when he shall come down from heaven to judge the world. The words relate to the time when he shall say to such as have well employed the talents of his mercy, "Well done, good and faithful servant; enter into the joy of thy Lord." They relate also to the time when he shall cause the unprofitable servant "to be cast into utter darkness, where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." I ought not to forget what we read on this subject,2 Cor. ix. "He which soweth sparingly, shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully, shall reap also bountifully." They are St. Paul's words, which expressly declare an inequality of glory and happiness to be expected amongst the rewards in heaven. It may be also worthy of our observation, that the felicities of heaven are represented to us by a feast, where all partake of the same meats, but some are advanced to a more honourable room than others. This, as I conceive, may be gathered from our Saviour's words, "Many shall come from the east, and from the west, and shall sit at table in the kingdom of heaven, with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." It may also he understood from that other passage, where Lazarus is carried by the holy angels into Abraham's bosom. Lastly, I ground my opinion upon the xiith chapter of Daniel, where this blessed prophet, when he had spoken in general terms of the future happiness of the faithful, who shall rise to eternal life, he offers to mention some, on whom God hath bestowed more light upon earth, and whose ministry he hath made use of, to bring many souls to salvation; among these he seems to put divers degrees of glory: "They that are wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that bring many to righteousness, as the stars for ever." From this text one may apparently conclude, that as the light of the firmament differs much from that of the bright stars; and

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