N29704:154
Meditations on the glory of the heavenly world. I. On the happiness of the…
Meditations on the glory of the heavenly world. I. On the happiness of the soul of believers, at the instant of their separation from their bodies. II. On the glory of the bodies of God's children, in the resurrection world, when they shall be as the angels of heaven. III. On the glory of both soul and body in the heaven of heavens, after the Day of Judgment, to all eternity. / By Increase Mather, D.D. ; [Six lines of quotations]
Boston in N.E. printed: : Sold by Timothy Green in Middle Street., 1711
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
1. The Children of GOD shall in that World, in diverse respects attain unto Angelical Perfection. The Text before us says, They shall be Equal to the Angels: Which another Evangelist Expresseth by saying, They shall be as the Angels of GOD in Heaven: i. e. Very like unto them. Which is not to be so understood, as if they should in all respects be as the Angels are. We may not suppose, that the Humane Nature shall be turned into the Angelical Nature. Men and Angels are of different Natures. It is said of our Saviour Christ, that since the Children of GOD are partakers of Flesh & Blood, He also himself likewise took part of the same, Heb. 2.14. Angels have not Flesh and ⟨p. 130⟩Blood. Nor did Christ take on him the Angelical Nature, verse 16. Angels have not bodies as Christ had, and still has, and ever will have, a body which (as formerly was said) may be seen with bodily eyes. Mark 14.62. You shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of Power, and coming in the Clouds of Heaven. Then the Eyes of every man in the World shall see him. Rev. 1.7. Behold, he cometh with Clouds, and every eye shall see him, and they also that pierced him. But the Angelical Nature is invisible to bodily eyes. And therefore when tis said, That the Children of the Resurrection shall be as the Angels, we may not think that they will loose their Humane Nature, and be turned into Angels. Angels are in respect of their Nature, Spirits: Psal. 104.4. He has made his Angels Spirits: but men shall not b• made Spirits. It is true, That the Resurrection body will be a Spiritual body. S• says the Scripture, as anon we shall show Tis not said that the Body shall then be […] Spirit, only that it shall be Spiritual. Between a Spirit & a Body there is an essential ⟨p. 131⟩difference. If it is a Spirit it is not a Body; if it is a Body it is not a Spirit. When therefore Christ appeared to his Disciples, after his Resurrection; and they were terrified supposing they had seen a Spirit; to convince them of their Error he said to them, A Spirit has not Flesh and Bones as you see me have,