2. Secondly, Seeing the same bodies shall rise again, therefore ice shoidd depose and lay them down u-ell at the day of death, to die in faith and repent- ance. We see if a man put ofi" his garment, and means to put it on again, he will not rend and tear it ofi" his back, but pull it off gently, brush and lay it up safe, that so it may do him service again, and grace him before his friends. So, seeing our bodies are as a garment for our souls, when we put them off, let us labour to depose and lay them down well at the day of death, that they may do us credit at the day of judgment. We read, 2 Peter i. 14, saith he, ' I think it meet, so long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up, by putting you in mind ; seeing I know that the time is at hand that I must lay down this my tabernacle, even as the Lord Jesus hath shewed me.' So Saint Paul, 2 Cor. v. 1 : ' For we know, that if the earthly house of this tabernacle be dissolved, we have a building given us of God,' &c. Thus is he careful of a better building, in pulling down of the old. There is great diflerence between a soldier destroying of an house, and one that only dissolves it. He that destroys a house pulls down the timber and stones, and flings everything he cares not where, because he doth not purpose to use them again ; but a man that dissolves a house, he will take it down piece by piece, laying up carefully every several parcel, because he intends to build with it again. Even so, because we know our
324 THE GENERAL RESURRECTION.
bodies shall rise again at the last day, we must not therefore destroy them, but labour to dispose of them, and lay them down well at the day of death.
3. Thirdly, Seeing the same bodies shall rise again, this should make us live with fear, so to laij them down irell at the chvj of death. Here this great question may be answered : whether we may know one another at the day of judgment ? But this needs be no question, seeing we shall rise again with the same bodies that we lay down here, therefore we shall know one another in heaven. The reasons are.
Reasons. 1. First, Because our knowledge shall at that time he more perfect than ever Adam's was in the time of innoccncy, in which state he did know his wife as soon as she was brought unto him, though he never saw her before ; therefore much more we shall then know one another, seeing our knowledge, rising with the same bodies, shall be perfecter.
2. Again, The disciples in the mount, at Christ's transfiguration, had but a glimpse or taste of tlie heavenly glory, and yet Peter knew Moses and Elias, though they were dead many hundred years before. Wherefore, if he, having but a taste of heavenly glory, knew them, he being unglorified, much more we shall know one another, when we have fulness of glory.
3. Because our happiness shall he greatly increased by the means of the mutual society one uith another ; as, Mat viii. 11, Christ says, * But I say unto you, that many shall come from the east, and from the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of God.' And therefore, seeing our happiness shall be greatly increased by mutual society, we^are not to think that we shall go to a strange people, where we shall know nobody ; but we shall go to all our godly friends and acquaintance, and to such as we know.
4. We shall hear the indictment of the nicked at the day of judgment ; when, if we hear the same, we shall know the persons indicted of wicked men, such as oppressed the people of God, Cain, Pharaoh, Judas, Nero, and the like. And as we shall know the wicked, so we shall know the godly too, when they shall be rewarded. This, methinks, may be a motive to quicken us in our care to live holily and christianly, seeing we go not to a strange country, or people, but to our friends and acquaintance, and to such as we know.
The third general point is, the time when we shall rise.
Point 3. At the day of judgment, then, and never till then, as John si. 23, Martha confesses, ' I know my brother shall rise again in the resurrec- tion at the last day.' So, 1 Cor. xv. 51, Saint Paul says, * We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet (for the trumpet shall blow), and the dead shall be raised up.' Of which there be four reasons.
Reasons. 1. First, Because there might be a loroportion betwixt Christ and his members ; for, when he died, he did not by and bye rise again, but he lay a while trampled and trodden under foot of death. So must we. Irenseus with this shuts up his book, saying, * Even as our heavenly master did not fly to heaven by and bye, but did remain under death and in the grave for a time, even so all his servants must be contented to lie in the gi'ave, and to be trampled under foot of death for a time before we go to heaven' (/i).