communication of the Holy Spirit, that the resurrection power of our Lord Jesus Christ was exemplified in the apostolic messengers or angels, who were conveying the faithful body (otherwise Lazarus) into the blissful repose of faith, as expressed in the parable by Abraham's bosom. The next particular we have to notice is, that of the rich man, who also died, and was buried; and in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments. The French author, Saurin, saith, that in some ancient manuscripts, as well as in the Saxon and Vulgate, the passage reads thus: the rich man died, and was buried in hell. Therefore our object will be scripturally to define the nature of this hell, and the flame which produced his torment; the both of which, I presume, is realized from a consciousness of guilt, arising from the departure of, or being separated from God, being disinherited from his former estate, and excluded from an inheritance in the new covenant, or book of life. Isaiah speaking wholly of a dispensation matter, in reference to the judgment of the gospel testimony, and which on the part of those who perish, was that of death unto death, saith, chap. xxx. 30, And the Lord shall cause the glory of his voice to be heard, and shall show the lighting down of his arm, with the indignation of his anger, and with the flame of a devouring fire, with scattering, and tempest, and hail-stones. Again, after speaking of the desolation of the first economy, and of God as rising up in judgment in the new dispensation, saith, chap. xxxiii. 10, Now will I rise, saith the Lord; now will I be exalted; now will I lift up myself. You shall conceive chaff, you shall bring forth stubble; your breath, as fire shall devour you; and the people shall be as the burnings of lime: as thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire. Hear ye that are far off, what I have done; (that is, the Gentiles) and ye that are near, (that is, the Jews) acknowledge my might. The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring flame? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings? Hence we see that on those to whom God manifests his anger, that to them he is a consuming

fire, and that his wrath is revealed as eternal in its manifestation; and that, too, as was manifested to Sodom and Gomorrah, who were condemned with an overthrow; and as such, became an example of eternal fire by the pain which they suffered; this reading, which is according to the Vulgate, shews that neither the cities nor the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah were not always suffering destruction and death by fire; which circumstance had once been a literal fact, but having been once accomplished, their example by what then occured, became an eternal monument, that the wrath of God so signally displayed, was ever manifested towards such abandoned characters.

The next scripture we notice, as having an entire reference to transgressors in a dispensation matter, and not as being in another state of creature existence, is that of Isaiah lxvi. 22, 23, 24, For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord; so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the Lord. And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcasses of the men who have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh. It will easily be shewn by a comparison of scripture, and which we intend to do in its proper place, that the new heaven and new earth referred to, metaphorically represent the new economy, the spiritual kingdom of God and of his Christ, when the old heavens and earth of the Jewish economy had passed away. We observe then in this scripture, that the new worshippers were engaged from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another; therefore it is evident that the solar system and the natural globe was still in existence; and also, that when these worshippers were to go forth and look upon the carcasses of the men (that is, those who were dead in covenant) that have transgressed against me, that during this period it is said, For their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto

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all flesh. Now upon the common theory of applying this phrase, their worm dieth not, neither shall their fire be quenched, to a supposed state of immortal or eternal suffering, I would ask how comes it to pass that these are to be an abhorring to all flesh, when all that appertains to flesh, must ere this event have ceased to exist? because the import of the phrase, their worm dieth not, and their fire is not quenched, is supposed by many to refer to the final and eternal destiny of the disobedient in a future state of existence. But if we apply its obvious meaning, as referring to the state of the rejected seed of Israel, who had become dead in reference to a covenant relationship with God; then it becomes intelligible, because as a disobedient, rebellious race, they became an abhorring to all flesh, while they existed in an animal state; and that, too, without any reference whatever to a second animal life. And if we apply it as a dispensation matter, relative to the obedient seed, we can easily understand how they could worship from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another; that is, as being every day worshippers, who were not occasionly so; as observers of particular times, but constitutionally the worshippers of God in spirit and in truth, irrespective of any personal condition that may succeed an earthly dissolution. And this brings us to notice another parallel passage in Mark ix. 44, where our Lord said, If thy hand or foot offend thee, cut it off: or if thy eye offend thee, pluck it out; for it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire, where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. Now in the connection of this subject, the 42nd verse shews, that the members of the body here referred unto, where the carnally diseased members of the Jewish body, who gave offence to the disciples of Christ, by opposing the profession of faith in his name; therefore however dear these fleshly relatives were, like a hand, or a foot, or an eye, their moral disease was such as to render an amputation necessary. And as the judgment testimony by which the faithful and disobedient seed were separated from the new economy, would necessarily reveal the wrath of

God against all who were opposed to it; and in perpetual manifestation, would extend to the uttermost to the Jewish body, 1 Thess. ii. 16, So that their worm of conscience would not die, and against whom the fire of wrath would not be quenched; therefore it became indispensable for the obedient seed (like righteous Lot, who on account of his fleshly relatives, might be said to be scarcely saved) to be separated from a people and state which were doomed to everlasting destruction. Hence it follows, from the consideration of these scriptures, that the revelation of the perpetuity of the wrath of God, as manifested against all unrighteousness, by no means implies the perpetuity of the creature's existence who is the object of it. Immortality is not an inherent property of human nature, but a special and sovereign gift of God. In this respect, God's hell and man's hell are two distinct things. God's hell is a state of revealed wrath, by a separation or a rejection of the disobedient from the covenant or book of life, and has no reference whatever to the fancied immortality of the natural man. The Psalmist saith, xlix. 20, Man that is in honour and understandeth not, is like the beast that perish. And the apostle, in reply to some enquiries relative to the state of some believers who had died in the faith of the glorious appearing of Jesus Christ, saith, Thess. iv. 13, That he would not have them to sorrow as those who have no hope; for if we believe that Jesus died and rose again: even so them that sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. We find then from this statement, that there were those, who in this respect had no hope; nor as perishing creatures, could they have any ground of hope. No doubt but the common mistake on this point, arises from attaching an animal or natural resurrection to the natural man; the true nature of which, as connected with his mortality, we shall consider in its proper place. Now in reference to man's hell, the common theory of professing christendom proposes, that the ungodly or faithless seed, inherit by creation, an immortal or never dying soul, (as they term it) which by a resurrection of the natural body, will be re-united to that immortal, never dying soul, by which the individual as an

entire person, will eternally exist in a state of eternal suffering, termed hell. But to this we object, and propose, that it consists of a consciousness of guilt, arising from a conviction of being rejected or separated from God, as a transgressor, irrespective of any condition beyond that of a state of mortality.

We further proceed to notice in the narrative, that in this place of suffering, termed hell, the rich man saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. Indeed, at this period of the prophetic parable, the subjects of the ministration of righteousness were far off from the subjects of the ministration of death. The prophet Isaiah in detailing the mighty change of circumstances, by a change of economy, saith, chap. lxv. 13, Therefore thus saith the Lord God, behold my servants shall eat, but you shall be hungry: behold my servants shall drink, but you shall be thirsty behold my servants shall rejoice, but you shall be ashamed: behold my servants shall sing for joy of heart, but you shall cry for sorrow of heart, and shall howl for vexation of spirit, and you shall leave your name for a curse unto my chosen; for the Lord God shall slay thee, and call his servants by another name. In this important prophecy, the character and spirit of the subjects of Mount Zion, and that of Mount Sinai, are vividly described and distinguished from each other; the one as having the bread and water of life, the other as being the subject of hunger and thirst; the one joyous and exalted, the other sorrowful and debased. Like Lazarus and the rich man, their condition was now reversed; the former having obtained joy and gladness in a dispensation where sorrow and sighing had fled away!

Again we notice in the narrative, that the rich man uses the relative term of father Abraham, by which he solicits favour through a claim of fleshly relationship, by entreating him to send Lazarus to assist him in alleviating his sufferings from the torturing flame. We notice in this particular that it was for Lazarus to come to him, and not for him to come to Lazarus, the flesh will always attempt to proselyte the spirit for its own accommodation, but the reply given