near an eternity of happiness, or an eternity of misery. See, his fate for eternity depends upon his last breath, after which his soul will be for ever happy, or for ever lost.
O the end of life! the last breath! that last moment, on which an eternity depends — an eternity of glory or of pain; of happiness or of misery; of joy or despair; an eternity of every good, or an eternity of every evil; an eternity in heaven, or an eternity in hell! For, if in that last moment you are saved, you will have nothing more to suffer, you will be for ever happy and blessed; but if you die in sin, and are damned, you will be wretched, and in despair, so long as God is God. In death, you will see what mean those words: Heaven, hell, sin, an offended God, contempt of the divine law, sins hidden in confession, goods of others not restored. “O miserable being that I am,” the dying man will exclaim, “ I must now, in a few moments, appear in the presence of God! Who knows what judgment will meet me there? Whither am I going, to heaven or to hell? Shall I rejoice for ever with the angels, or shall I burn eternally with the damned? Shall I be a child of God, or a slave of the devil? Alas! soon, too soon, I shall know, and where I find myself that first moment, there shall I remain through eternity. Ah ! what will become of me in a few hours, in a few moments? What will become of me when I can no longer repair that scandal? When I cannot restore those ill-gotten goods? when I cannot pardon my enemies from my heart? when I cannot any longer make good that confession?” [Examine yourself us to your principal sin.] Then will you curse a thousand times that day in which you sinned; you will curse that pleasure, that revenge which you have taken, but
