and junctures of coherent notions, trace up effects to their causes, and sift the remotest consequents to their natural principles: that can cast abroad its sharpsighted thoughts over the whole extent of beings, and, like the sun with its outstretched rays, reach the remotest objects: that can in the twinkling of an eye expatiate through all the universe, and keep correspondence with both worlds; can prick out the paths of the heavenly bodies, and measure the circles of their motion; span the whole sur◄ face of the earth, and dive into its capacious womb, and there discover the numerous offsprings with which it is continually teeming: that can sail into the world of spirits by the never varying compass of its reason, and discover those invisible regions of happiness and misery, which are altogether out of our sight whilst we stand upon this hither shore: in a word, that can ascend from cause to cause, to God, who is the cause of all, and with its eagle-eyes can gaze upon that glorious sun, and dive into the infinite abyss of his divine perfections. What an excellent being therefore is that soul, that is endowed with such a vast capacity of understanding, and with its piercing eye can reach such an immense compass of beings, and travel through so vast an horizon of truth! Doubtless, if human souls had no other capacity to value themselves by, but only this, this were enough to give them preeminence over all inferior beings, and render them the most glorious part of all this sublunary world. 2. The soul of man is of vast worth, in respect of its capacity of moral perfection. For by the exercise of those human virtues which are proper to it, in this state of conjunction with the body, it is capable of raising itself to the perfection of those angelical natures, which, of all creatures, do most nearly approach and resemble the great Creator and Fountain of all perfection. For by keeping a due restraint upon its bodily appetites, and thereby gradually weaning itself from the pleasures of the body, it may by degrees be educated and trained up to lead the life and relish the joys of naked and immortal spirits; it may be contempered to an incorporeal state, so as to be able to enjoy itself without eating and drinking, and live most happily upon the fare of angels, upon wisdom, and holiness, and love, and contemplation. And then, by governing its own willand affections by the laws of reason and religion, it may by degrees improve itself so far in all these moral endowments, which are the proper graces of every reasonable nature, as to be at last as perfectly wise and reasonable in its own choices and refusals, in its love and hatred, in its desires and delights, as the angels themselves are. For though it cannot be expected that, in this imperfect state, a soul should arrive to such a pitch as this, yet even now it may be growing up and aspiring to it; which, if it doth, as I shall shew you by and by, when this is expired, it hath another life to live; which being antecedently prepared for by those spiritual improvements it hath made here, will furnish it with opportunities of improving infinitely faster than here it did, or possibly could. For in that life it shall not only be freed from those many encumbrances which do here retard it in its spiritual progress; nor shall it only be associated with a world of pure and blessed spirits, whose holy example and wise converse will doubtless wonderfully edify and improve it; but be also admitted into a more intimate acquaintance with God, who is the author and pattern of all perfection; the sight of whose ravishing beauty will inflame it with a most ardent love to him, and excite it to a most vigorous imitation of him: all which considered, it is not to be imagined how much the state of heaven will immediately improve those happy souls that are prepared and disposed for it. But then, considering that moral perfection is as infinite as the nature of God, in which there is an infinity of holiness, and justice, and goodness, within this boundless subject there will be room enough for souls to make farther and farther improvements in, even to eternity. And then, when they shall still be growing on so fast, and yet be still for ever improving, to what a transcendent height of glory and perfection will they at last arrive! for though no finite soul can ever arrive to an infinite perfection, yet still it may be growing on to it, because there will still be possible degrees of it beyond its present attainments; and when it is arrived to the farthest imaginable degree, yet still it will be capable of farther, and so farther and farther, to all eternity. And if so, O blessed God! of what a capacious nature hast thou made these souls of ours, which, though they will doubtless improve in goodness as fast in the other life as is possible for them, with all the advantages of a heavenly state, yet will never attain to an utmost period, but still be growing perfecter and perfecter for ever! 3. The soul of man is of vast worth, in respect of its immense capacities of pleasure and delight. For its capacity of pleasure must necessarily be as large and extensive as its capacity of understanding and of moral perfection; because the proper pleasure of a soul results from its own knowledge and goodness, from its farther discoveries of truth, and farther proficiency in inward rectitude and virtue; and, consequently, as it improves farther and farther in understanding and in moral perfection, it must still gather more and more fuel to feed and increase its own joy and pleasure. For the pleasure of every being consists in the vigorous exercise of its faculties about convenient and agreeable objects; but the faculties of a soul are understanding and will, to which the only agreeable objects are truth and goodness; and therefore the more truth there is in the mind, and the more goodness there is in the will, the more vigorously will they employ and exercise themselves about them, and consequently the more they will be pleased and ravished. Since therefore every new discovery of truth, and every new degree of goodness, gives new life to our minds and wills, and renders both more sprightly and vigorous, it hence necessarily follows, that our souls are capable of as much pleasure as they are of truth and goodness; and how vastly capable they are of both these, I have already shewed you. So that it is not to be imagined by us, who have here so little experience, what heavens of joy a soul is capable of; only at present we find by experience, that the more we improve in knowledge and goodness, the more pleasant and cheerful we find and feel ourselves; and that our faculties still grow more active and lightsome, the more we disburden them of that ignorance and sin that clogs and encumbers them: and upon great proficiencies in knowledge and virtue, we find a strange alacrity within ourselves; we are, as it were, in heaven upon earth, and do feel a paradise springing up within us, the fragrance of whose joys grows many times so strong, that our frail mortality can hardly bear them. When therefore such souls do cast off this mortality, which now doth only fetter and entangle them, and have made their entrance into the invisible regions of blessedness, how sprightly and active, how lightsome and cheerful will they feel themselves! For in the first moment of their admission, all that mist of erroneous prejudice which now interrupts their prospect of truth, and all those remains of irregular affection that check and distract them in their choice of goodness, will be for ever chased from their minds and wills by the clear light of the heavenly state; and their faculties having disburdened themselves, and shaken off every clog, with what unspeakable vigour will they move and act, especially in the presence of such suitable objects as the heavenly state will present before them! When infinite truth and infinite goodness shall be always present to their free minds and undistracted wills, and nothing shall interpose to hinder them, either in seeing the one or in choosing the other, here will be work enough for both to all eternity: and both being freed from all encumbrance, the one will be discovering every moment farther and farther into that infinite truth which it loves and admires, and the other will be improving every moment more and more in that infinite goodness which it chooses and adores. And then every new discovery and new improvement will spring new heavens of joy in the soul; and by reason of those new acquests of truth and goodness, which we shall every moment make, we shall every moment be entertained with new pleasures, and so before we have spent one joy, an |