Light in the way to Paradise with other occasionals / by Dvdley the 2d late Ld. North.

CHAP. XXI. Of Death.

BEING at the Rock of Faith we are near to our Journies end, which is Paradise, but we cannot come thither without passing a great Gulf, the common passage of all flesh, and yet giving such apprehensions as it is termed 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, the terrible of terri∣bles. This is the gulf of Death, which must be passed by all creatures that have life, a Gulf which is the first of Solomon's four insa∣tiables, and specified by the name of the Grave, Prov. 30.16. and the most greedy of them. This is a body of black liquid matter, covered with a continual dark mist, to such an height, as neither its own extent, nor any thing beyond it can be discerned but from the Rock of Faith. Death who is Prince of this

gulf, though he be assured that all shall come to him at last, hath yet some Substitutes or Proveditors abroad, who hasten the approach of all creatures to him, and the chief of all these are War and Sickness. I must not omit Time, which is the surest but the slowest of them; and I may here insert that Paradox, which hath always been held by me. It is this, That Time scarcely bringeth any to their end, for I conceive that very few live so long (if any do) as they might by nature, since none of any great age pass their days without some disorder in Diet, or otherwise, to shorten their life. But if it were possible for any person to escape such dangers, Time bringeth him in at last. Siracides in many words affirmeth Death to be most unwelcome to a person who hath prosperity in all his businesses, but most welcome to the man who is aged and unhappy, Ecclus. 41.1. But it is found some∣times far otherwise in both kinds, for with us persons aged (and miserable enough in their condition) are observed seldom to embrace Death as a friend; and among the Romans on the other side, many have chosen death rather than life, without being urged to it by unhap∣piness. But the strangest example is of Coc∣ceius Nerva, a person (as Tacitus recordeth) learned, continually conversant with Tiberius the Emperour, of plentifull fortunes, and in perfect health of body, who unexpectedly took a resolution to dye, which being made

known to his Prince, he gave him a visit, and among many other arguments, used his, That it would be dishonourable to him, the Em∣perour, that a known friend of his should refuse to live, but all this prevailed not with him. The truth is, that daily experience sheweth a general abhorrence of death, whereof the cause is not very easie to be found. It can hardly be the fear of pain accompanying it, for Death, which is a Cessation of the facul∣ties belonging to sense and motion, cometh in a moment that admits no extremity. Can it be the circumstance of Sickness preceding it? I am perswaded that many (if not most) persons in the way of nature, would willingly embrace them, so as death might not follow, as may appear by what hath been said of per∣sons aged. Those things which are very fre∣quent and visible to us, are for the most part little feared; and so it is with death in active Armies and Cities which have been long in∣fected with Pestilence, where those who ex∣press great apprehension of death, are com∣monly laughed at, even to scorn. This per∣haps causeth some to think it strange, that a thing so common and certain should give so much fear; and I confess my self of opinion, that it might be so obvious, as to destroy very far the terror of it, but I conceive it not to be so familiar with us; for though death be ever devouring in the World, yet it co∣meth not often nor fiercely into Families and

Neighbourhoods, and when it doth come, the lamentation of Friends for the persons depar∣ted, as if they were utterly lost, and with∣out any being, doth much increase unto us the horror of it, which is also too far confir∣med by a property in death not admitting any account concerning the deceased; where∣as upon all other departures, some account either is, or may be made. The approach of this annihilation, or loss of being, is very terrible to a natural man, as it was with that part of the Heathen which believed not the immortality of the Soul; and I verily think that even here, where Christianity is professed, the number of those who believe a Subsistence after death, is very small, and especially among the vulgar. But the comfort of us Christians is, that all these doubts and difficulties are clearly over∣come by Faith; for can any man, who hath faith as a grain of Mustard-seed, doubt a be∣ing after death, when the thing hath been pro∣ved by our Saviour in his person, and when the very foundation of all good arising to us personally by Religion, is grounded upon it? Nay, can any man, who hath but so much of Religion as to believe Divine Providence, doubt of it, when he daily seeth wicked per∣sons prosper and wallow themselves in all kind of plenty, while the Religious are in much poverty, and afflicted even to the very period of their lives? There must therefore be reward and punishment after death, or there can be

no Divine Justice, or Providence. Now let us return to the consideration of our fatal gulf, which is of that nature, as it greedily swal∣lows all things that fall into it; and as for men or women, who come thither poor in faith or altogether without it, and laden with Sin unrepented of, they are presently born down to the bottom, and from thence by a convey∣ance, unhappily for them provided, they fall into the lake which burneth with fire and brim∣stone, mentioned Rev. 21.6. But contrari∣wise, the Faithfull having received in the Temple of Holiness from the Angel presiding there, a very extraordinary purification and spirituality for their Souls, no sooner come to be plunged into the liquor of, that gulf, but their Souls immediately emerge, and rea∣dily finishing their Pilgrimage to Paradise, they are there received and welcomed with all joy and chearfulness by the Saints, who are al∣ready possessed of their Mansion there.