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fequences that will attend the Company of fuch Reprobates, will in a real Senfe be an everlasting immaterial Fire. And the fame may juftly be faid of all the other fuch like Expreffions recorded in the New Testament.

I would have no Man therefore through Dread and Fear of future material Punishment lay hold of the Terms of Salvation, but let him freely and voluntarily upon the Principle and hearty Defire of obtaining to that State of Perfection and Felicity from whence he fell, purfue the

Paths

defigned only by the 'Almighty Decree, as Chaftifements for Sin; to bring the Difobedient to the Knowledge of the Means of Salvation, and to punish them for their Iniquity: Which Ends cannot be answered by infinite Eternal Punishments.

The Doctor undertakes to prove, from this Text, that the State of the Wicked is final, p. 6. I agree with him, that it is final, but by the Word Final, I' understand that their Punishment will be ending, or have an End: for the Word Final does not fignify Eternal, Everlasting, from Time to infinite Time, but of or appertaining to the End. He fays, p. 9. that it is "impoffible for thofe who fhall be condemned to a State of "Punishment for their Sins, fhould ever be numbred among "the Righteous, and partake with them in the Joys of Hea

ven." A bold Affertion this. The Doctor's Argument proceeds upon this Opinion, viz. that the fame numerical Body will be raifed in the Refurrection at the last Day, and that this very Body and its Soul, of Date no longer than its Birth, (a few Years paft) will for Sin be doomed to eternal infinite Punishments, in Hell, in the material Fire that never fhall be

quenched, where they shall drink the Wine of the Wrath of "God, which is poured out without Mixture into the Cup "of his Indignation, and fhall be tormented with Fire and

Brimstone in the Prefence of the Lamb, and the Smoke of "their Torment afcendeth up for ever and ever." Hence, p. 7. he concludes the Eternity of Hell-Torments, and, p. 10. being driven to his last facerdotal Shift, fays, that "though a "Man cannot clearly comprehend how thefe ftrange Things

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fhould be, yet he ought ftedfaftly to believe it upon this "Principle, that though it may be impoffible with Man, it is poffible with God." And backs it with this [Talmudical] Story: "We have not more Reafon to believe that the three "Children

Paths of Redemption, efchew all evil Apprehenfions of God, and imbibe thofe that are worthy of Him.

I haften to make a few Remarks upon what has already been faid under this General Head. 1. St. Paul fpeaks of himself as one of thefe Rebellious Angels, We are dead, fays he, in Eph. ii. 2, Trefpaffes and Sins, according to the Prince of the &c. Power of the Air, the Children of Disobedience, among whom we all had our Converfation in times past,

Children furvived the Flames of the fiery Furnace, withou "being in the least injured or affected by them, than that the "Wicked Thall endure the moft exquifite Torments of Un

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quenchable Fire in the World to come." Well faid Doctor. According to this Divinity, let no Man be afraid of future material Punishments, though Soul and Body be in Hell punished with the Tortures of Fire and Brimftone, yet his Body, our Author fays, will be fo naturalized to it, that it will remain for ever, and not be hurt by it; for he argues, that the three Children furvived Nebuchadnezzar's fiery Furnace, certainly while they were in the Flames it was all one to them as though they were not there. So when a Man is in Hell it will be the fame Thing as though he was not in Hell, because his Body will be rendered capable of and natural to fuch a fiery fulphureous Temperature.

As to the Refurrection of the fame Numerical Body in the Day of Judgment, I have in my Oration denied the Refurrection of any Body. What I have to fay in Support of so reafonable a Doctrine would take up too much Room at this Time: But I have made feveral Remarks upon the Sermons lately publifhed by Dr. Felton, concerning the Refurrection of the fame identical numerical Body in the Judgment at the last Day, which may hereafter be printed. In the mean time, I only fay, that I think it is a barbarous Act, a Man's Body should be tormented by Devils, in Fire and Brimftone for ever and ever in God's Comprehenfion, for the Sins and Tranfgreffions of about Twenty or Thirty Years.

I will now paraphrafe the Places cited by Dr. Lupton to fupport his Argument, according to the Doctrine of his Sermon, and after that according to the Hypothefis contained in my Oration.

1. According

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past, and were by Nature Children of Wrath. But God who is rich in Mercy bath quickned us together, and will raife us up together, that we may fit together in heavenly Places. The Apoftle thus fenfible of the Pre-existence of his Soul, in his Epiftle to the Corinthians, fays, As we have born the Image of the Earthy, we shall also bear the Image of the Heavenly. As though he had faid: We who rebelled againft God and was ejected Heaven, for our Punishment, Probation and Trial, do bear an Image of Earth, but through Obe

dience

1. According to the Doctor's Hypothesis.

Matth. xxv. 41. "Depart from me ye "curfed, into Everlafting "Fire prepared for the "Devil and his Angels.

Ver. 46. "Thefe fhall go away "into Everlasting Punifh"ment, but the Righte"ous into Life Eternal."

Paraphrafe.

Go ye from my Prefence, who have neglected to hear the Gospel preached, who have turned your Backs on my Embaffadors, who have received the Marks of my Favour, whilft I have doomed the rebellious Angels to eternal infinite Punishment in everlasting Perdition, ye Curfed, go Soul and Body, although your Neglect of my Laws, and your Difobedience to my Commands are but of to Day, and you have lived in Sin but as it were a Moment, into everlasting infinite material Fire, in which now the Devil and his Angels wallow.

I fay, That ye fhall go immediately Soul and Body for thefe your Sins, into Fire and Brimftone to eternal infinite Ages, but those who have received my Commands and obeyed my Voice, fhall go into the heavenly eternal infinite Life.

Mark

dience to the Will of God, we now have Hopes of bearing the Image, i. e. of attaining to that State of Perfection from whence we are fallen. And then he triumphs, O Death where is thy Sting? O Grave where is thy Victory? We are now come to thofe heavenly Manfiors, those Principalities we left, O Death, where is thy Power, where is thy Torture, where is the Fear, where is the Anguifh we fo often felt during our Apoftacy, and thou, O Grave, where is the Influence thou hadft over us. David counted him

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Mark ix. 43· "The Fire that never "fhall be quenched, where "the Worm dieth not "and the Fire fhall not "be quenched."

Rev. xiv. 10, II. "The fame fhall drink "of the Wine of the "Wrath of God, which "is poured out without "Mixture, into the Cup " of his Indignation; and "he fhall be tormented "with Fire and Brim"ftone, in the Prefence "of the holy Angels, and " in the Prefence of the "Lamb.

"And the Smoke of "their Torment afcend"eth up for ever and e"ver, and they have no "Reft Day nor Night,

"who

Paraphrafe.

Moreover; I affure you, that this Fire and Brimftone which I have rendered eternal and immortal on Purpose to punish your Bodies, which I will alfo make immortal and incorruptible, I myfelf will never extinguish. And in this Fire the Worm or Life of the Fire dieth not, cannot be annihilated by its continual Burning. Nay, as I live, and am what I am this Fire fhall not be quenched.

Thefe very Perfons fhall drink of a Liquid, which I will prepare out of the Wrath of my Deity, and I will pour it out without any Mixture, into the Veffel or Cup of my Fury; and they shall be tortured, fuffocated, choaked, ftrangled, &c. with Flames of Fire, and Shoals of Brimftone, in the Presence of the holy Angels, and before the Face of the Lamb as he fets upon the Throne, who will behold their Torture, and be a Witness of their Affliction.

The Smoke of the Fire and Brimftone fhall for ever and ever afcend up to Heaven, and fill the Regions

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felf a Pilgrim in the Flefh, I am a Stranger, fays he, and a Sojourner with thee, as all my Fathers were, and fo did the Antidiluvians, and the Patriarchs after the Flood. They were in a more efpecial Manner fenfible of this their Apoftacy. David fays, O that I might pass free from the great Offence, Cleanfe tbou me from my fecret Fault. All which Expreffions relate to that Period of Time wherein they offended God in Company with Lucifer, before the Creation of the World.

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2. According to the Hypothefis contained in the
ORATION.

Matth. xxv. 41. "Depart from me ye "curfed, into Everlafting "Fire prepared for the "Devil and his Angels.

Paraphrafe.

Go ye from my Prefence, ye Rebellious and Obftinate, ye, who rebelled against me, under Lucifer, and notwithstanding the Overtures of Salvation which I offered unto ye, remain hardened in your Sin; how often would I have had you returned to the Stations and Principalities you left, and you would not: But now your Day is pat, your time of Return is over, ye shall be shut out of Heaven for an Age, there fhall ye be fubject to Luc fer, as ye were of Old, when the World was a Chaos, before I afforded ye a Means of Restoration, in the Place I preared for ye Apoftates.

Ver.

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