Abrahams bofome, the rich man alfo dyed, and was buried.

And in Hell he lift up his eyes being in torments, and feeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bofome.

us in h

And he cryed, and faid, Father Abraham have mercy on me, and fend Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue, for I am

tormented in

But Abraham faid, Son, remember that thou in thy life-time receivedft thy good things, and likewife Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and thou art tormented.

phat

And befides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, fo that they which would pafs from hence to you,cannot, neither can they pass to us, would come from thence cung nut Then be faid, I pray thee therefore father, that thou wouldeft fend him to myl fathers houfe :

For 1 have five brethren, that he may teftifie unto them, left they alfo come into this place of tormentata

Abraham faith unto him, They have Mofes and the Prophets, ter them hear them,

And he faid, Nay,father Abraham ( but if one went unto them from the dead they will repent.

And he faid unto him If they hear not Mofes and the Prophets, neither will they be perfwaded though one rofe from the dead.

T

Hele words beloved in our Lozd and Saviour Jelus contain the

Chzitt

Parable, of rather the Hifozy (as I humbly conceive)of the rich Glutton and poo? Lazarus. In the wo2ds, we have firft in general the life and death both of the rich man and the begger, with the condition of them both in the life to come: But moze particu larly in the three firlk verles we find rez cozded for our inftrudion, the lives art of the rich Glutton, and then of poor Lazarus. In the following verses, we have the death first of the Begger, and fecondly of the rich Glutton, with the different condition of them both after death.

To begin with the firk, the life of the rich man, and this we find reco¿ded A 4

in

in the 19. verfe, There was a certain rich man which was clothed in purple and fine linnen, and fared fumptuously every day. In the life of the rich man we have three particulars very confide, rable.

Firat he is here described by his riches: There was a certain rich man. The Spirit of God here takes no maze notice of the rich mans name, neither of the place where he lives; from whence we may take notice, that Bod regards not those whom the world posibly may greatly honour · many men perhaps might honour this mans name, by affiring unto it the empty title of Wozhipful, oz Honourable; but those that defpife God fhall be lightly efteem'd, faith Solomon in that ercellent Book called the Proverbs. God can blot out the names of wicked men as well out of the Book of this life, as of the life to come: yea, many times he maketh both the names and estates of wicked men to rot and stink in this world, well then may he punich their fouls in the world to coire. The memory of the juft (faith Solon on) is

bleed,

bleffed, but the name of the wicked fhall rot. God will not have the name of wicked men to be mentioned but with . Chame and disgrace to them, as foz example Jeroboam, and this charader followeth, who made Ifrael to fin; but the righteous fhall be had in everlasting remembrance, and the defire of the wicked fhall perish, Pfalm. 112.6. It is the great delire (I know) of the wicked that their names should continue fo ever, and for this purpose, they call their houfes and Lands by their own names, but the very_defire of these wen hall perish. But I proceed.

In the second place, where the rich man is described by his apparel, and that is faid to be purple and fine line nen, which ügnifies not only the greatnels of his riches, but the eminen

of his person and place in the world, namely,that he was fome Kuler among the Jews. Purple clothing you know is the ornament of kings and great ones of the wold, and they that wear fine linnen are in Kings houses; that is, they are either Kings themselves, 02 elle great Deicers under Kings:

from

from whence we may oblerve, That Greatness and Honour, riches and gorgeous apparel; commend us not to God, it is not-all' the riches in the world that can save a foul, it is only grace that commends us to God: Gad can see a pure heart and a gracious foul though they be cloathed in rags; foz God judgeth not as man judgeth, according to outward appearance, no he feeth many a rotten graceless foul under fcarlet gowns and purple robes. Among all the Kings of Ifrael there was not one gracious, and among the Kings of Judah, only one god· Jofiah that walked befoze the Lozd with a perfed heart. It is true, there was Afa, and Amaziah, and Hezekiah, that the Text describes as imperfed in fome things; but of Jofiah it is laid of him, He did that which was right in the fight of the Lord, and walked in all the wayes of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left. That of the Apostle, 1 Cor. 1. 26. doth fully confirm this truth; Not many wife men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called.

Thirdly,