A Celestial Looking-Glass to Behold the Beauty of Heaven, Part 4 – To the reader
Fourthly, Heauen is deſcribed by the Eternity.
As this Kingdome is full of ioyes vnſpeakeable, ſo the ioyes thereof are alſo eternall:Pſal. 145, Thy Kingdome is an euerlaſting kingdome, and thy Dominion indures throughout all generatiōs.
Dani. 2.3. Mat. 19.29, 2. Cor. 4 17 Ioh. 16.22.The God of heauen ſhal ſet vp a Kingdome which ſhal neuer be deſtroyed: this kingdom is life euerlaſting, this glory is eternall, theſe ioyes are permanent,1. Pet. 5.4. 1 Pet. 1.4. the Crowne neuer fadeth, the Saluation is perdurable, the Inheritance immortal, and the Habitation perpetuall.
The Author to the Hebrewes ſaith,Heb. 12.18. We receiue a kingdome which cannot be ſhaken. Saint Iohn heard in Pathmos great voyces from heauen, ſaying,Reu. 11. The Kingdomes of this world are our Lords, and his Chriſts, and he ſhall reigne for euermore.
Thus God will beſtow vponupon his Saints a glorious, ample, ioyfull, and a perpetuall kingdom, where they ſhall be ioyfull in an euerlaſting ioy. The ioyes of heauen are exquiſite, the felicity permanent, and the glory eternall: where faith hath her perfect worke in charity, Hope her deſired happineſſe, and louelove a large ſcope in euerlaſting Vnity.
They that hauehave receiued here ſmal things for a time, ſhall receiue there great things for euer: they that hauehave beene faithfull here ouer a few things, ſhall bee made there rulers ouer many things: they that hauehave ſuffered ſorrow heere for a ſhort time, ſhall enter into ioy there for euer, which is called the ioy of the Lord: They that hauehave beleeued in God, ſhal reioice in his preſence for euer: they yt hauehave liued in his feare, ſhall liue without feare of any enemy for euer: they that hauehave kept holy the Lords Sabboths here, ſhall there kéepe holy day for euer: they that hauehave honored their Parēts, Miniſters, Maſters & Magiſtrates, ſhall be honoured of God and Angels for euer: they that hauehave chaſtiſed their bodyes and ſuffered with Chriſt Ieſus, ſhall bee indued with the light of euerlaſting immortality, and reigne with him for euer: they that hauehave loued their neighbours ſhall be beloued of God for euer: they that hauehave mourned & ſorrowed, and truly lamented for their ſinne, ſhall receiue Crownes of glory for euer: they that hauehave watched & praied in the night, & faſted in the Bridegroomes abſence, ſhall now reſt in the day that hath no night, and be richly feaſted in the Kingdome of God for euer: They that hauehave labored in the Lords Vineyard, ſhall there receiue the penny of eternall bliſſe for euer: they that hauehave ouercome the World, the Fleſh, and the Deuill, ſhall triumph in eternall glory with Chriſt, and his holy Angels for euer: and they that hauehave here wrung their hands for ſorrow, ſhal there clap their hands for ioy, for euer more.
This ſhall be the bleſſed eſtate of all Gods Saints, that ſhall dwell in the kingdome of God for euer.
Theſe cōſiderations cauſed the Patriarches, Prophets, and the Saints of the olde world to long for, & deſire that eternall, ſwéet, & moſt ioyfull inheritance of Gods heauenly Kingdome. Toby, Iob, 2. King. 19.and Elias, wiſhed thēſelues in that Kingdome: Paule deſired to bee diſſolued,Phil. 3. and bee with Chriſt. Salomon counted all the glory of his Kingdome but vanity, and the continuance thereof but as a wéede. Dauid lamenteth yt hee is ſo long kept away frō this glorious & eternall Kingdome: Woe is mee, (ſaith hee) that I am conſtrained to dwell with Meſech, and to hauehave my habitation among the tents of Kedar. And againe, Like as the Hart deſireth the water brooks, ſo longeth my ſoule after thée, O God, my ſoule is athirſt for God; yea, euen for the liuing God: O when ſhall I come to appeare before the preſence of God? And againe he ſaith that he ſhould vtterly hauehave fainted, but that he did reſt in hope of a better Kingdome, and beleeued verily in ſhort time, to ſee the goodneſſe of the Lord in the land of the Liuing.
Why did Abraham forſake his own natural countrey, and his fathers houſe, and to goe out he knew not whither? Why did Moſes forſake Egypt, Heb. 11.and refuſed to bee called the ſon of Pharaohs Daughter? Why did ſo many Saints, and holy men & women, leaue their ancient houſes and riches, and wander vp and downe in wilderneſſes & in mountaines, and in dens & caues of the earth? Surely for this cauſe: they had reſpect vntounto the recompence of the reward, that was Regnum Dei, the Kingdome of God: they counted their Countrey but baniſhment, and a curſed vale of miſery; their worldly glory but vanity; their dwelling and abode here but a Iayle, a priſō, or a dark dungeon; their pleaſures but ſorrow, mourning and teares: and all their doings were to this end, that they might enioy a better Inheritance, that is, this glorious kingdome of Almighty God.
This is the Inheritance whereof the Apoſtle ſpeaketh,Heb. 12. Propoſito ſibi gaudio ſuſtinuit crucem, He ſuffered affliction for the ioy that was ſet before him.
This is that pretious pearle and treaſure, which the Merchant found in the field,Mat. 13. and ſold all that hee had, and bought it. This is that Inheritance,Phil. 3. in reſpect whereof S. Paul eſtéemeth all the world as dung. The ſame Inheritāce for which Ignatius, that godly Martyr, biddeth this price; Fire, gallowes,Hieron. in catalogo. 3. beaſts, breaking of bones, quartering of my members, cruſhing of my body, al the torments of the Deuill together, let them come vponupon mee, ſo I may enioy the treaſure of Heauen.
Thus you ſee, that our Summum bonum, our chiefe good thing; our Vltimus finis, our laſt farewell; our Terminus ad qu…m, the end whereunto all our actions, endeauours, hopes and deſires doe tend, and bend, is that we may liue for euer.
And ſo the end of all our preaching, the ſcope of all our hearing, the fruit of all our beleeuing, the effect of all our knowledge, and the maine point of all our profeſſion, is, to liue, that wee may enioy this euerlaſting Kingdome.
To conclude, and briefly end, (though Gods kingdome of glory, and the glory of Gods kingdome hath no end:) The Lord in his mercy correct our preſent ſinfulneſſe, erect our further weakneſſe, and direct our future frailty; that we may earneſtly deſire, aduiſedly ſearch, truly know, and perfectly fulfil al things that may pleaſe him, wherby we may walke vprightly in his wayes, and liue truly in his LoueLove, to our comfort and his glory; that in the end we may obtaine that long deſired and beautifull Diadem, wherewith he crowneth his Elect; and reigne with him in his euerlaſting Kingdome, to behold the delightful countenance of his moſt glorious Maieſty, & to be filled with the excéeding ſwéetnes of his moſt bleſſed preſence, which is life for euer.
The Author to the Reader.
If Logicks Art could heauenly ioyes define,
or Geometry Coeleſtiall wayes but meaſure,
here mortall man might ſhew thoſe works diuine
Now in the heauens where Saints do reigne with pleaſure.
arithmetitians ne're can number right,
Nor yet the tongues of Rhetoricians rare,
deſcribe that bliſſe which Saints hauehave in Gods ſight,
Reioycing ſtill with Chriſt our Sauiour there.
eſteeme you this Coeleſt…all Looking-glaſſe,
Which I hauehave penn'd, Heauens beauty to behold;
each day and night pray God may bring to paſſe
Such ioyes vntounto our ſoules for to vnfold.
Nonne Deus eras via?
FINIS.
End of the text · John Andrewes, A Celestial Looking-Glass to Behold the Beauty of Heaven (1621)