That the saints do not remain insensible, while their bodies are in the dull, but become angels, * see and serve God and bear his messages, and minister to the heirs of salvation, hath been argued from several considerations, in the preceding discourse; but we chiefly depend on revelation. The text and several other scriptures, we conceive to be our purpose, and sufficient to establish our theory, and that the same is illustrated and confirmed by sacred history, both of the Old and New Testament. One instance of a departed saint, sent as a messenger from heaven to earth, hath been adduced from the Old Testament: We now advert to the New. * The term angel signifies a messenger. If glorified saints are used to carry God's messages, or sent to do his business, they are made angels, in the proper sense of the word. Such appear to have been the angelic band, who united in praising God, when the Lamb prevailed to open the book of his decrees and reveal them to the apostle--"And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy--for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made us unto our God, kings and priests: _And we shall reign on the earth_." * Surely these must have been of our race. * REVELATION v. 9, 10. Here our proof in explicit. We can conceive of no evasion. Two of our race _who had long before been removed from earth to heaven_, were certainly sent to visit the Savior, just before this sufferings --Moses and Elias, who attended him on the mount, whither he retired with three of his disciples, and conversed with him in their presence. St. Luke hath described their appearance, and told the subject of their conversation--"Who appeared, in glory and spake of his decease, which he should accomplish at Jerusalem." * * Luke ix. 29. Moses had then been dead more than fourteen centuries. Elias had not tasted death, but he had been changed. That change had passed upon him which will pass on the saints who shall be alive at Christ's coming. The change must have been great, or he could not have ascended to heaven in a chariot of fire, or lived above the region of air which surrounds this globe. These two saints, seem, on this occasion, to have been assimilated to each other--"They both appeared in glory"--were company for each other, and sent together to testify for Christ, before chosen witnesses. Our Savior's resurrection was also attended by witnesses who had been for time in the world of spirits--"And the graves were opened, and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many." * * Matthew xxvii. 52, 53.