or a house in that place which in a few days he must leave. Reflect, yet, says the saint, that in this world thou art a passenger; do not place thy affections on what thou seest; behold and pass on, and procure a good home where you will have to dwell for ever.
If thou art saved, happy art thou. Oh, what a beautiful home is heaven! All the palaces, so exceedingly rich, of monarchs are hovels when compared with the city of heaven, which can alone be called "the perfection of beauty." (Lam. ii. 15.) In that place, you will not have anything left to desire; remaining in the company of the saints and of Jesus Christ, without further fear of harm. In short, you will live in an ocean of delights, and in perpetual joy which will never end: " Everlasting joy upon their heads." (Isa. xxxv. 10.) This joy will be so great, that through all eternity, at every moment, it will appear to be ever new. But if thou art lost; unhappy thou. Thou wilt be confined in a lake of fire, abandoned by all, and without God. And for what time? Perchance, when a hundred thousand years shall have passed by, your punishment will be ended? What end! A hundred thousand million years, and ages will pass by, and your hell will be ever at its beginning. For what are a thousand years in comparison with eternity? Less than a day that has passed, " A thousand years in Thy sight are but as yesterday, seeing that it is past as a watch in the night." (Ps. xc. 4.) Do you wish to know what will be your home, which will receive you in eternity? It will be exactly that which you deserved, and which you chose by your own actions.
Affections and Prayers.
Behold, then, O Lord, the home which I have deserved by my life; alas, hell! where, from the first sin which I committed, I ought to remain, abandoned by Thee, deprived of the hope of being able to love Thee more. Let Thy mercy for ever be blessed, which, having waited for me, also gives me time to atone for my sin. Let the Blood of Jesus Christ be blessed, which has obtained this mercy for me. No, my God, I do not desire further to abuse Thy patience. I repent, above every other sin, having grieved Thee, not so much on account of
