A Complete Body of Divinity

SERMON XXVI.

(2.) GOD's Goodness is also considerable, as it discovers itself to fallen Men in •• ti •• r. We have heard, That though' all taste of his Goodness, yet some more than others; and there are some peculiar remarks to be made of it in relation to the Children of Men; and this Goodness is twofold, either that which is common to all, or that which is special & peculiar to some.

First, THERE is a Goodness of God which is common to all sorts of Men, and is therefore called common, because it is dispensed to good and bad, to friends & enemies: and yet it hath a specialty in it, respecting them, from the general Goodness in which the whole Creation is interested, and hath a peculiar Consideration on it, as it hath fallen on sinful Man for it's subject; and is therefore in a more restrained sense called the Mercy of God: Mercy sometimes in Scripture comprehends both of these, but elsewhere it intends the former, viz The benignity of God, which all fallen Men are sharers in: The proper head to which this belongs is Efficiency, where it discovers itself, and belongs there to the Day of Punishment, referring to the Moderation which God at present useth in the execution of it: but being one branch of his Goodness, may here be discoursed, and may thus be described:

GOD's Mercy or common Goodness, is God willing to succor sinful Men in their Misery.

THAT there is such an Attribute in God, the Scripture is full for; that it is common to sinful Men will appear, if you compare, Matth. 3.3 • , 25, 26. But I say unto you, Love your exemus, 〈…〉 that curse you, do 〈…〉 them that bate you & pray for 〈◊〉 wi ••• despitefully use you, ex • persecute you: 〈◊〉 ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven; for be maketh his s • n is rise on the evil & in the good, and sendeth rain on the just & on the unjust. Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect with, Luk. 6.35.36. But have your enemies, and do good, and lend, b •• ing for nothing again: and your reward shell be great, and ye stall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful, and is the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.

WE may here consider something in general concerning this Attribute; and 〈◊〉 observe the particular discoveries or displays as •• t.

[1.] IN general, in the Description consider these things,

• 1. THE subject in which this Attribute exalts its declarative glory, viz. sinful Men, and that universally. Sin is the common disease of Mankind, the whole race is fallen into it; ( Rom. 5.12) there is not so much as one exempted; Rom. 3.12. They are all gone out of the 〈◊〉 —.And this is the Emphasis and Eminency of this Attribute, that it 〈◊〉 chosen such a subject to be its foil in which to make itself known: and there are these considerations that make it admirable,

  1. BY Sin they had forfeited 〈…〉 to any Goodness, and could expect nothing at God's hands, but that his revenging Justice should fall upon them, and out them off; they were under the Curse of Death, which contains in it a loss of all good, and a suffering of every evil, and it belonged to them, Dax. 9.8.

  2. BY Sin they had provoked God to do execution upon them; they had made themselves his enemies; and such is the state of Men by Nature described to be, Rom. 5.10.— When we were enemies —.And therefore had all reason to expect the utmost of his Wrath to fall upon them; for if a Man find his Enemy, will he not stay him?

  3. BY Sin they had made themselves unprofitable, and could therefore have no ground in themselves to expect such a favor; Rom. 3 12.— They are altogether become unprofitable —.They had wholly lost their strength of serving God, or doing anything to his Glory, become vain and useless, as to active Obedience; and why should God trouble himself with such an useless burden? and all this bespeaks that it is mere Mercy that any favor at all is shewn to these Creatures.

• 2. THE particular thing which this Attribute employs itself upon, in this subject, viz. their Misery. God looks upon their miserable condition, and he moves his own bowels in compassion to them: Misery is the proper foil of Mercy, it can have no other Object. This Virtue was eminently in God from Eternity, but it could make 〈◊〉 discoveries of itself to the Creation, till the Creatures infelicity provided it a subject to work upon: all Creatures may partake in God's general Goodness, but this particular expression of it in Mercy, always supposeth the Creature to be unhappy, in distress, laboring under some oppression; and Sin had reduced all Mankind unto this Condition: Death was fallen upon them, and that contained all conceivable Miseries in it. Man had no sooner finned, but he knew what it was to be undone, and now he stands in need of Mercy: this is that which Mercy looks upon with a commiserating eye; Judge. 10.16.— His soul was grieved for the misery of Israel.
• 3. THAT wherein this Attribute exerts itself is, it succors them in this Misery. We conceive it as a Divine Virtue in God, to be an inclination & readiness thus to do; this we discern by the effect when we see that he so doth: all the relief that he affords them in this forlorn estate of theirs, belongs to his Mercy. Would we then take a scantling of this Mercy of God, we must lay those two things together, viz. What belongs to their Misery, and what abatements of it they enjoy: to the former belongs the consideration of what was their due demerit by the Rule of Justice; to the latter the observation of the degrees to which it is at present restrained or moderated in the execution: would we thoroughly understand the former, we must unbowel the Curse, and that will give us an admirable discovery of the latter, by laying it by the Providence under which they are; and this leads us to Enquire,

[2.] WHAT are the particular discoveries or displays of this Mercy of God towards Sinners?

Answ. HERE first take this general Rule, That whatsoever Sinners enjoy that is not of Merit, is of Mercy. And that will make way for another, viz. That everything in the Sinners condition, which is better than Hell, is hither to be assigned, Lam. 3.22. It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.

THE state of the Sinner in point of merit, doth here come under a double consideration, 1. What he doth deserve, and that is Death; Rom. 6.23. For the wages of sin is death —.And that contains in it all the miseries of this life, but the height of it is in the Eternal state of the damned: hence every mitigation of this, in what degrees so ever, is Mercy. 2. What he doth not deserve, and that is any favor at all. If that good Man could make that ingenious confession, Gen. 32.10. I am not worthy of the least of all the ••• th which thou hast shown unto thy servant —.M •• t not every Sinner do so? Where all is wholly forfeited, there can be nothing deserved; and hence every good thing which a Sinner enjoys, is part of this Mercy.

UPON these considerations, the Mercy of God contains in it two Attributes, in and by which it makes itself known to Mankind, viz. Clemency and Benignity; and in opening of these two, we shall make a particular discovery of it.

1. THE Clemency of God, is God inclined to spare Sinners a while, that deserved presently to die. Man is no sooner a Sinner, but he is a Child of Death: as soon as ever sin is committed, God hath an advantage put into his hands, which he might immediately lay hold of, and make the Creature know his fury; but in Justice he remembers Mercy, Clemency holds his hands, so as that he doth not strike the Sinner down dead upon the place; and this is a fruit of Mercy, Lam. 3.22.2 Chron. 36.15: Psal. 78.38. But he being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed there not; yea, many a time turned be his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath. Now there are two other Attributes, in which this Clemency of God shines out, which are, as we may say, the degrees of its discovery, viz. his Patience and his Long-suffering, in both of which God makes to appear how willing he is to spare the Sinner. These may be severally spoken to

(1.) THE Patience of God, is God willing for the present to bear those injuries that are offered him by Sinners. Whilst the wretched Creature is offering all affronts and abuses to his sacred Majesty, God keeps silence, Psal. 50.21. He bears with all these indignities quietly. He is not put into a chase by them, as we are wont to be, when we think ourselves to be affronted; he is calm and composed under all. Sin is contrary to the holy nature of God, and therefore he might j • stly break forth in fury, upon the least Sin committed, clothe himself with indignation, and show no pity; but Patience moderates his Anger, so that he withholds the deserved punishment, and for this reason it is that the Sinner dies not upon the spot: and this very Patience is a glorious Attribute, and will appear to be wonderful, if we lay it by the consideration of the lives and conversations of Sinners, their daily carriages towards him; and remember, that God looks on, and sees all this, and that they are not cut off and destroyed: let us then a little commorate here, and observe how admirably Patient God is.

1. HE sees, for he cannot but see That the Sinner pays him not the homage or tribute of Obedience which he owes to him. Man owes to God the whole strength of Body and Soul, to be continually improved for his Glory; to be always lifting of his Name on high, in all his thoughts, words, and actions; but the Sinner doth nothing less, God is not in all his thoughts, Psal. 10.4.

2. HE sees the Sinner daily going on into more and more Sins; running himself into further and more provocation, increasing of Iniquity, adding of Sin to Sin, Isa. 30.1. Instead of reforming former ways, and returning from them, he is multiplying of transgressions: Sinful Man is every day throwing in one more stick to his pile, running further and deeper on the score; every new Action hath a new exorbitancy accompan • ing of it, and still the more he acts, the more he Sins; all this God sees.

3. HE sees how the Sinner grow • •• rse and worse every day, instead of growing better. How he is daily provoking him, not only by iterated acts of the same Sin, but aggravated degrees of sinning, and finding out new Sins, and new ways of sinning against him: how they grow holder and bolder in transgressing his holy Laws.

4. HE knows, for he keeps an exact register, of all the individual sins, secret and open, which they have committed. They are written in his Book, and laid up among his treasures; his eye follows them to all their vain Companies, lewd Practices, all that they do in the dark, stands in the light of his countenance; he counts all their vain thoughts, and idle words, and obscene actions, and how many thousand of these hath the Sinner been guilty of, and God hath forgotten none, and can set them all in order before him.

5. HE sees what entertainment Sinners give to all his Warnings & Counsels, which he sends to them. All that scorn and contempt which they offer unto them: all their secret uprisings of heart against them: all their secret uprisings of heart against them; all the resolves they make not to hear them; all the mocks and flouts at God, and Godliness; hears when they say as, Job 21.15. What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? and what profit should we have, if we pray unto him? Jer. 44. • 6. As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee.

6. HE observes how all his Mercy & Patience, bardens them in Sin, and embo •• ens them to persist in it. Psal. 50.21. These things hast thou done, and I kept silence: thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself—. How they despise his Goodness and forbearance, and make those very things which should lead them to Repentance, their encouragements in impenitence, and so bring a world of vanity upon the Creature. And,

7. HE sees how they are always quarrelling, and finding fault with him; charging him with injustice, and finding flaws in his Providence, murmuring at everything, and full of discontents: angry if they have not their wills in everything; enraged if he cross them; Psal. 73.9. They set their mouth against the heavens—. All these things God knows right well, and the time is coming when he will make them understand that he so doth: but he suffers their manners for the present. And for all that God knows all this by them, they are not cut off, but have a room allowed them in God's World, and he for the present puts up all these wrongs; and is not only silent, but pitiful, and helpful to such Creatures; he suffers all this indignity with abundance of gentleness: This is the Patience of God.

(2.) THE Long-suffering of God, is God willing to defer the Sinners execution, till there be no remedy. Sentence is past upon the Sinner as soon as he is one. In civil Courts, it useth not to be long between Sentence, and Execution. On some God shows his severity in cutting them off speedily, and this is just; for they are under the Sentence, and stand at the Judges discretion; but to others he deals otherwise; and though they go up and down the world, under a Sentence of condemnation, yet are they forborne, and sometimes a very great while. Now the Long-suffering of God appears more especially in the gradation, or those many and slow steps which he takes in executing of his anger upon Sinners; he might do the work at once, but that he doth not, but proceeds gradually, speaks him a longsuffering God. Here then, observe these steps

1. HE waits, and is not speedy in coming out against the Sinner. Eccl. 8.11. — Sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily—. He did not fall upon Adam immediately, but tarried till the cool of the day. Some he delays Ten, Twenty, Forty, an Hundred Years before he brings them to the Hell where they deserved to be the first moment of their being: Gen. 6.3. We read of a Sinner of an Hundred Years old.

2. GOD often first debates the case with Sinners before be destroys them. He falls not upon them, till he hath reasoned it out, and offered them matter of Conviction; he reasons with them, Isa. 1.18. Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord—. Gives them leave if they can, to find any fault with him, or bring anything to justify their own Courses; Jer 2.5. Thus saith the Lord, What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?

3. AFTER Conviction he waits again, to see if they will hearken unto him. Whether there may be any sense or remorse in them, that if Conviction would do, he might proceed no farther against them; and as long as there is any hope, he continues debating: thus he did by his Prophets of old with a degenerate People, Jer 8.6. I hearkened and heard, but they spake not aright: no man repented of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? everyone turned to his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle.

4. IF pleading will do no good, he proceeds to threatening. He slays them by his Prophets, before he slays them by his Sword: He sends his Servants to denounce Judgments, to see if this will make them walk softly, with Ahab; and Fast with Ninev • h; these blow the Trumpet, and tell Men of the wrath that is impending.

5. HE continues this dispensation some while. He threatons not once or twice, but many times. He sends one Prophet after another; 2 Chron. 36.16. But they marked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arise against his people tilt there was no remedy. Waiting to see if they thus may be persuaded, if some warning or other will not fasten, and awaken them to bethink themselves, and repent.

6. WHEN he begins to execute, he doth it gradually, and not all at once; but by steps, first by lighter plagues, and after that by heavier: tries first what rods will do, to see if they will prevent scorpions, Psal. 78.38. And he hath many steps in the way, before he comes to the top, Lev. 26.27, 28. And if ye t •• ll not for all this hearken unto me, but walk contrary unto me: Then I will walk contrary unto you also in fury; and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins.

7. HE makes a pause between one Judgment, and another. He doth not bring them in an heap; but stops between, to give them opportunity, and that to see if there be no fruit of the caster, which may obviate the heavier, and therefore they are said to come, if so be the former will not check them; Lev. 26. Sinners have many respites.

8. IN the midst of his Judgments, he looks carefully to see if there be none to stand in the gap, and make up the hedge. Would fain have somebody to hold his hands, and prevent further and sorer Judgments; see Ezek. 22.30, 31. And I sought for a man among them that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I sound none—. Or whether they themselves will return: hence that complaint, Amos 4.

9. HE wilts till there be no remedy: till all other ways fail, before he makes a full end of them, or proceeds to the utmost, 2 Chron. 36.16.

10. AND there is one amazing step more, and that is, when there is no remedy, all means fail, all courses have no Effect, but they continue obstinate, he is now at a stand, and doth not know how to do this strange work, yea oftentimes takes up a resolution, that he will not do it, Hos. 11.8, 9. How shall I give thee up Ephraim? how shall I deliver thee Israel? how shall I make thee as Almah? how shall I set thee as Zeb • im? mine heart is turned within me, my repentings are kindled together. I will not execute the fierceness of mine anger, I will not return to destroy Ephraim; for I am God and not man, the holy One in the midst of thee, and I will not enter into the city. ( Isa. 57.19.)

USE 1. LET no bold & daring Sinners take encouragement from hence to persist in sinning. Know it, God can be patient and longsuffering too, and yet come soon enough to your cost, to fall upon you and destroy you forever, and he will too, if you repent not; and then abused Patience, and neglected Long-sufferance, will rise up against you, and make your woes the more intolerable. Think not God is reconciled, forbearance is no payment; Psal. 50.21, 22. These things hast thou done, and I kept silence: thou thoughtest that I was altogether such a one as thyself: but I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes. Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver.

USE. 2. LET it call upon Sinners to bless God for a Day of forbearance, and to make the right use of it. There is not the least Child, but hath occasion to take notice of it, but for which you had been now as long roaring in Hell as you have been; and Oh consider what unspeakable Mercy there is in it! The damned are gone to their own place, and there is no Redemption; these are the Attributes that give a space and opportunity to repert in, and encouragement to repent. And Oh! think with yourselves, it God be thus loath to destroy me a wretched, unprofitable, provoking Sinner, how ready then will he be to receive me a repenting, mourning, returning Sinner, betaking myself to JESUS CHRIST. And let this quicken and encourage you to fly speedily unto his Everlasting Arms of Mercy.

SERMON XXVII.

2. THE Benignity of God, is God willing bountifully to best to the good things of this life upon Sinners, contrary to their deserts. In the former he restrained their deserve: execution; in this he pours out his undeserved bounty upon them. For the illustration of this precious Attribute, let us observe,

• (1.) THE subject of it, Sinners. It is true, this bounty is universal, the whole Creation are shearers in it, Psa. 37.5. & 1459. all Mankind in particular, good & and bad partake of it, ( Matth. 5.45.) but it is more peculiarly observable that Sinners, God's Enemies, Rebels that are up in Arms against him, have such deep draughts of it: He hath better things for his Children, (as we shall hear afterwards;) but he is willing that for the present, the worst of Men should be made to know by their own experience that he is Good.
• (2.) THE matter of it, the good things of this life. Or all those things which are suitable for the maintenance, and comfort of their outward Man: whatsoever affords them present benefit or relief belong to this head, of which we may take a brief general survey; hitherto then do these things belong,

  1. THE Care which God hath of the Sinner in his Conception and Birth. He is made out of the corrupt mass, he is conceived in Iniquity; he is a Sinner in the womb; and yet the hand of God's Providence extends kindness to him; he keeps him in his Mother's belly, preserves him from all those Casualties which might prevent him from ever seeing the light of the Sun; makes the knees to prevent him: puts into him a reasonable Soul, with all its faculties & powers; gives him an understanding, will & affections; making him a Cause by counsel, and giving him ability to exercise them, that he is not born a natural; gives him also the true shape and bodily perfection belonging to his kind, writes down all his Members in his Books, that there is none of them wanting, none superfluous, and everyone in their right shape and place, and they are fitted for their several uses to which they were designed; he gives them a seeing eye, and an hearing ear; it might have been otherwise, and God sometimes orders it so to be, to let sinful Man know how much he is indebted to Divine Goodness for such favors; Psal. 139.14, &c.

  2. THE Sustentation & Preservation of all the faculties & powers in Sinners. This also is of his benignity, that God keeps him alive, who deserves to die as soon as he is born; that he not only shores up his life, by putting under the hand of his power, but he looks after all, that none of them suffer or are destroyed; that those Casualties he is liable to every moment, are kept off, which would impair the powers either of Soul or Body; there are innumerable of them and unseen: the Sinner could not avoid them, if God did not watch over him, and guard him with his watchful Providential eye. He is defended from outward violence, and inward infections. Every step might be a trip, and every trip a fall, every fall might break his bones. Every indisposition might prove a sickness, and every sickness his Death; everyone he meets might be his Enemy and slay him; that these things are not, is God's Goodness. David saw much in this; Psal. 35.10. All my hones shall say, Lord, who is like unto thee, which deliverest the poor from him that is too strong for him, yea, the poor and needy, from him that spoileth him.

  3. THE comfortable place which God hath provided for the Sinner to live in, and his making it so to him. This lower World was adapted for an habitation for Man, and made every way convenient and comfortable for him; and though' Man's fall hath greatly impaired the excellency of it, and brought many inconveniences into it, yet it is still a place of much delight to poor Man: and that God gives Sinners a room in his World, a place on this Earth, and liberty to breath in this Air, is a great favor. Hell is another manner of place where he deserved to be, and God doth many things here to preserve the conveniency of it; that he hath firm footing here to walk up and down, and the earth doth not cleave under his feet, and swallow him up, as it did Corah and his Complotters; that he keeps the Air pure and salubrious, and doth not poison it with those infectious vapors, which should make him to suck in his breath and bane at once, is Mercy; that the waters do not return and drown him; that the Sun, that great eye of the World, keeps its circuit to give him light; and the Moon and Stars lend him their benign influences, and do not fight against him.

  4. THE suitable Provision that God makes for him in this place. A Faculty without an Object is miserable, and it will be a great part of the infelicity of the damned, that their Faculties shall be destitute of all convenient Objects for them to act upon. But here in this life God gives to Sinners such Objects as their outward man is delighted in, and they take much content in the enjoyment and use of them: he gives them food to live upon, and such as their Palats relish, and in due season; he affords them raiment to wear, to cover their nakedness, and defend them from the injuries of every season; he is their great provider, the whole World is his Family, and what he gives, they have; Psal. 104.27, 28. He spreads their Table, sills their Cup, gives them Houses to live in Estates to live upon, makes every Creature to pay them its service; they have their Wives and Children and Friends to solace themselves withal; gives them Callings to attend, and pr • spe •• these Callings; keeps their Houses and Ships and Warehouses from burning; their Ships from miscarrying, &c.

  5. THE Fruition which they have of the good and comfort of all these good things: That their Faculties meet with their Objects, and take satisfaction in them; that they can suck out the sweetness of them, and take pleasure in them. God could either shut up the virtue of these things in them, that they should not exert it; (there is bread, and there is the staff of bread;) or he could impede the Faculty, that it should not act upon its Object with delight. Give Meat and no stomach, and digestment or nutriment; Cloaths and no warmth; give Men abundance, and deny them a heart to make use of it, making themselves miserable in the midst of plenty. That he gives them both the things to rejoice in, and enables them to joy and delight in them, is his great Benignity, Psal. 65.8 Eccl. 2.24. There is nothing better for a man, than that be should eat & drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labor. This also I saw, that it was from the band of God.

• (3.) THE manner of God's bestowing these good things upon Sinners: He doth it bountifully. God's Essential Goodness appears in his communicative bounty. He had been Good in himself, yea Goodness itself, if he had never willed any of his good things to the Creature; but we had not known him to be so, had he not in his Efficiency revealed himself to us in his Benignity. He doth not keep these treasures locked up with himself; but he opens them and distributes them as the Sun diffuseth its beams, and innate warmth; as the Fountain sends abroad its waters in springs, and refreshes with its streams the thirsty lands. God unlocks his Store-houses, and supplys his indigent Creatures; Deut. 28.12. The Lord shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow. And that which commends it is, that he doth it liberally, or bounteously; and there are two things implied in this,

  [1.] THEY are Riches of Goodness which God bestows upon Sinners Rom. 2.4. Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness—. There are a world of Mercies that they are made to participate in, in this World: God is heroically liberal, magnificently bountiful to them: He is not sparing, near and close of his treasures; but they are poured out as a mighty Fountain vents itself, not in small springs; but great Rivers: And there are four things in which this appears,

  1. HIS Bounty is manifold. It doth not consist in someone good turn which he doth to the Sinner; but in an uncountable variety: He supplieth every sort of want; he answers all his outward needs, gives him conveniences every way, answers them in all; Acts 17.25.— He giveth to all life, and breath, and all things. Gives them a World to live in, Air to breath in, an harth to walk upon, Light to see by, Fire to warm them, Houses to dwell in, Meat, Drink and Raiment; and these varieties, not for bare necessity, but delight to 〈◊〉 All the Sinner •• oh, 〈◊〉 can speak of 〈◊〉 out of this Fountain or Treasury.

  2. HE bestowed all these things plentifully upon Sinners. He gives them great Store in every kind which they enjoy. Their Furrows are richly watered; Grass grows plentifully, and Corn enough and to spare; Psal. 65.9, &c. Thou visitest the earth, and waterest it: thou greatly enrichest it with the river of God which is full of water: thou preparest them corn, when thou hast so provided for it—. God is no niggardly Housekeeper, but maintains his Family in the World, so as the Beasts eat not all the Grass, nor is all the Provision spent, neither need they to allowance themselves. He might, as in Justice 〈◊〉 sometimes doth, make them eat their Bread by weight, and drink their Water by measure; but he doth not ordinarily do so, but they may out & drink their fill.

  3. HE showers down so much Goodness upon Sinners, that their hearts or desires are filled with joy & gladness. They have even as much as they could wish for; Acts 14.17. Nevertheless, be bath not left himself without witness, in that be did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness. (Psal. 145.11.) They have even what they will, all things at pleasure. God doth not cross them in their wills, nor diminish them, but everything goes on prosperously and merrily with them; Job. 21.7, &c. Wherefore do the wicked live, become old, yea, are mighty in power? — That which the World declares to be Man's happiness, they have it; Psal. 144.12, &c. Yea, so as they can pronounce themselves blessed in their enjoyments and sing a Requiem to their Souls in the midst of it; ( Luk. 12.19.)

  4. THE Goodness of God doth superabound too 〈◊〉 them: They have not only enough and to spare, not only to the utmost of their desires, but beyond them; Psal. 73.7. — They have more than heart can wish. The word is, that which passeth the thought of their heart. Had they contrived to themselves a worldly condition, and set out in their thought what they would have, and what would give them most pleasure and delight, they could never have laid it out to so much advantage, and so little of incumberance. They could not so much as in a dream have fancied for themselves such a plentiful supply of every good thing, and so much ease as they are possessed of. Their Cup is not only full, but it runs over, and they have so much that they cannot tell what to do with it, or how to make use of it; they surfeit upon earthly delights, and have a great deal; ( Psal. 17.14.) and all this is of God's Benignity.

  [2.] GOD bestows all this Goodness upon Sinners freely 〈◊〉 the cost and charge which God is at, in holding up their Being, maintaining their Life, supplying them with all that necessity, convenience, or delight can possibly call for, and more than so, is all upon free cost. The Sinner pays him nothing for all this 〈◊〉 ••• vok •• and 〈…〉 •• rongs him, notwith sta •••• g 〈◊〉 . • here 〈…〉 service do •• so God, he is paying him • o homage, makes him no returns; nay, he is not so much as thankful. Rom. 1.21. — Neither were thankful. And doth not so much as know whence it comes, or who is the owner of it; Hos. 2.78. Though he doth no good, but is an unprofitable burden upon the Earth, is a fruitless tree, that cumbers the ground, and therefore lays God under no obligation at all to him; yet he doth it for him, merely to discover his own bountiful Nature.

• (4) THAT which farther anhanceth the wonderment of this Attribute, is, that God doth all for him contrary to his deserts. The Sinner, who is the Subject of all this Benignity, and swims in these Pleasures and Delights, that hath all things at His Command, and is laden with God's Favors; if he had his own, and no more but his proper due, should have had nothing at all, not a World to live in, or Air to breath in? much less a Table richly spread, an overflowing Cup, a soft Bed, a ricaly furnished House, a lovely Wife, and desirable Children; all manner of Recreations, Mirth, Music and Jollity, His proper place was to be all this while in Hell, naked and destitute of all that is Good, dwelling with the devouring fire, and everlasting burnings, combating with the Wrath of God; and instead of laughter and pleasure, filled with wailing and gnashing of teeth. And whilst God hath been doing all this kindness for him, he hath been daring him to this, by his bold transgressions. God hath nourished a Viper. fed a Rebel; bestowed his good things upon an Enemy, one that hath armed them all against him, and misimprov'd them to his great dishonor. And what Orient Colours doth this consideration put upon the Benignity of God.

USE 1. HENCE common Mercy is no evidence of God's special Love. Eccl. 9.1.— No man knoweth either love or barred, by all that is before them.

USE 2. THE consideration of God's common Goodness. may serve to convince the Sinner of his horrible Ingratitude to God, in that he returns him nothing for all his Mercy, but Sin. Do you thus requite the Lord, Oh foolish and unwise! Think, vile Sinner, where thou hadst been long eve this, had unmixed Justice taken place on thee, as soon as it had an advantage against thee; not where thou art; but in the bottomless Pit, there dwelling with Devils and damned Spirits, if Mercy had not stepped in, and stopped the Execution. And hath God instead of pouring out his Wrath upon you, exalted his Mercy towards you? Hath his Clemency spared, you? hath he born with Patience all your inj •• cious dealings with him? and drawn out his forbearance unto longsuffering towards you, using all means to reclaim you? and not only kept you out of Hell, but strewed your paths with satness, and filled your bellies with the hidden treasures of his Goodness; and do you still go on in your Sins, dishonoring & provoking God? is this the pay you make him for all his Cost and Love to you? and can you still depend for more, and ask it at his hands? How brutish and unreasonable is this; the Ox and the Ass will rise up in Judgment against you one Day. Ask your own reason, would you nourish a Viper which would gnaw out your Bowels? Is not this consideration enough to put a stop to your Career in Sin, and make you ashamed of your ways and doings.

USE 3. LET this Consideration of God's common Goodness or Mercy, invite and encourage Sinners to Repentance. This is the rational tendency of it, and the thing which God looks that it should work in the hearts of Sinners; Rom. 2.4. Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness, and forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? • Pet. 3.9. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, (as some men count slackness) but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. And the thing itself speaks a great deal of quickening and encouragement. It speaks aloud.

1 THAT God deserves all the service of the Sinner. He that gives you your lives for a prey, that keeps you out of the Pit, that sustains and maintains you with such liberality; if he be not loved and served by you, who should? certainly, these are the Cords of a Man, and would bind you in affection to another, and why not to God? is God to be despised for that which you would think Men can be never enough acknowledged for?

2. THAT your sinning against him hath been highly unreasonable. Thus Daniel convinced that Heathen Emperor, Dan. 5.23. — The God in whose h •• d thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified. May not God well expostulate with you and say, I have done you good, and not hurt all your days: I have bestowed uncountable Favors upon you, ever since you had a Being; for which of all these is it that you thus dishonor me, hate me, and take up Arms of Rebellion against me? so he pleads with them; Jer. 2.5. Thus saith the Lord, What iniquity have your fathers sound in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity and are become vain? And what rational Answer can you return to this demand?

3. THAT God doth not take delight in the Sinners destruction. Every living Sinner here present hath the conviction of it in himself: Justice might long ago have triumphed over you, if God had not been compassionate; if your ruin had been a pleasure to him, he had advantage enough to have given himself satisfaction in it: no day passeth without one.

4. THAT God is willing the Sinner should live. All his Patience and Bounty say, that he is a Merciful God, and that he is reconcilable to Sinners: He gives them thus a space, and motive to Repent; neither of which are offered to those whose day of Mercy is spent. And how loudly doth this cry to every Sinner, Oh repent, return, why will you dy? And there is not the youngest Sinner here present, but is under innumerable of these Obligations. Accept then of Mercy's Call, and harden not your hearts into impenitency, least you turn treasures of Goodness into treasures of Wrath: and know it, common Goodness is an Attribute which hath chosen to express itself to you in time; its duration •• s arbitrary; its time will shortly be over, and it will give place to unquenchible Fury. Be afraid 〈◊〉 of 〈◊〉 • unning its season, but repent today 〈◊〉 it is called today; and let this be an in ••••• e further to it, to think, if God can bestow so much upon me an Enemy; what glorious treasures of special 〈◊〉 , hath he to happily all th ••• withal, that accept of offered Mercy, and are reconciled to him through the Blood of CHRIST.

SERMON XXVIII.

WE have been considering of God's Goodness, as it doth in particular discover itself to fallen Man, in those displays of it which are common to all, both good and bad; under the title of Mercy. It follows to look on it,

Secondly, AS it is special to some. Though all have more than they deserve, yet all are not alike favored by God: nor is this difference only in the degree, but also in the kind of the Dispensation. Common Mercy is not in like proportions distributed to Sinners; but there is another Attribute of Goodness whose effects are essentially diverse from those, even the highest of them; which there are but some, and those comparatively but a few do taste of, and that is Grace, in which the highest manifestations of Divine Goodness are made; and we may observe something of it in the opening of this Description;

GRACE is God willing to exalt a residue of fallen Men to a stare of Eternal Life & Glory, for his own name sake. Here we may observe,

• 1. THE word Grace signifies something that is Free. It is sometimes applied to a Pr • son, and then it deciphers a disposition in him to bestow undeserved kindness upon another; sometimes to a Thing, and is as much as a free-gift: and in this sense, all the common Mercy that Sinners enjoy, may be called Grace, because God bestows it liberally, without their Merit, for Grace and Merit are opposed. But the Gospel also is pleased to use the word in a restrained sense, and then the Grace of God, is specifically distinguished from his Mercy; the principal differences between which are contained, and may be taken notice of in the remaining particulars of the Description.
• 2. THE Subject upon whom this Attribute falls, a residue of fallen Men. It is Man for whom this Perfection of God is displayed, no other Creatures except Angels are capable of it; and Devils are denied it; and it is fallen Men, for all are so; the Apostasy hath included in at the whole race; but that which makes it peculiar is that it is, only a residue. Special Grace hath singled out but some of many to glorify itself upon; who these are, belongs to an after Consideration. Here only take notice, that there are but a few saved, Luk. 13.25. a remnant, Rom. 9.27. and all that are so, are saved by this Attribute; Eph. 2.8. By grace are ye saved —. The Subjects of Anastasy or Restitution, and the Subjects of Grace are the same; and this is one difference between Mercy and Grace, all partake in that, and but some in this.
• 3. THE Act of this Grace, or that wherein it displays itself: It exalts or raiseth up this Residue. The Sin of Man had brought him into a low Condition, cast him into a dungeon of distress, a pit of misery, he was laid by the Curse as low as Hell itself; but now this Grace comes, and with a mighty Power draws him out of this Pit, delivers him from the lowest Hell; it therefore runs through the whole work of Restitution: that is it which knocks off his Chains, unlocks his Prison doors, and brings him out of it; it releaseth him from all his misery, restores him again to God's favor which he had lost, and puts him among those nobles that are admitted to stand in his presence; in one word, it saves him, Eph. 2.8. And this is an Act of transcendently more favor than common Mercy affords unto any: that indeed visits the poor Captives of Justice in their restraint, it makes their Prison more easy to them, mends their fare in it, and carries itself very generously towards those unhappy Creatures, who deserved to have felt utmost severity; but it releaseth none of them, it gives them a temporary reprieve, but it affords them no release; the Sentence of Condemnation abides, and their day of Execution is coming: but Grace gives them a full acquittance, and perfectly sets them at liberty from Sin & Misery.
• 4. ONE great and singular Benefit which this Act of Grace bestows upon the Subject, viz. It exalts them to a State of Eternal Life & Glory. The term from which is Sin & Misery, the term to which is Holiness and Happiness: it frees them from greatest evils, and brings them to the enjoyment of the greatest Good that a Creature is capable of. We have it excellently expressed, 1 Sam. 2.8. He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, and lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set them among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory —. And that makes a mighty difference between common Mercy, and Grace: the things of the one do incomparably surpass the things of the other: Mercy only bestows upon them some Crumbs that fall from the Table, and can be allowed to Dogs; whereas Grace sets them at God's Table as Children, and provides Children's Bread for them: though great in themselves, yet compared with the other, they are little things which Mercy hath to bestow, the transitory and temporary things of this life; but they are the great and Eternal things, Crowns, Kingdoms, durable Riches, and Everlasting Pleasures which Grace hath prepared; they are beyond Conception; 1 Cor. 2.9. But as it is written, Eye hath n • t seen, nor ear heard, neither • ave 〈…〉 the heart of man, the things 〈…〉 prepared for them that love him. M ••• y is managed in Wisdom's left hand, Gra • e 〈◊〉 •• r right hand, Prov. 3.16.
• 5. THE Fountain or Original from which all this proceeds, and that is a special love which he bears to them, arising from himself. He doth it for his own name sake: it is because he loves them, that he doth all this for them, and he therefore loves them, because it was his holy pleasure so to do: it is not for anything in them for they have nothing, but he pleaseth himself in it, Ezek. 36.21, 22. Eph. 1.9. Hav •• made known unto us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he hath purposed in himself. He hath set his heart upon them and he will herein confirm his Everlasting Love to them: And here also, though' Mercy and Grace are both undeserved and free, yet there is a v ••• Difference. The highest demonstrations of common Mercy, are well enough consistent with God's Hatred: While God was feeding Israel, and their meat was yet in their mouths, The wrath of God came upon them, and slew the fa • test of them —. Psal. 78.30, 31 But Grace is the expression of a fixed Love which for his own sake he hath placed unmovably upon them; and every Act of Grace is hither to be referred; as well as that in, • er. 31.3. — I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with loving kindness have I dre •• thee. Now because that which peculiarly recommends this Attribute to us, and puts a Luster upon it, is that all this which is done for these Persons is of Grace, it is free: We may a little commorate here, by reflecting upon several weighty Considerations, which greatly declare it to be so; I shall reduce all under these three Hea •• .

[1.] THE Riches of this Grace appear in the Great Things which it doth for the Subject. A free Favor is enhaunced by the Magnificence of it. It must be Heroic Grace which doth such wondrous things for Men. We may dilate on this by Meditating on all that is done in the work of Restitution, both in Redemption and Application, to which the Doctrine of this Attribute properly refers. Here only take a Specimen in these two particulars which compriseth much.

1. THE great Evils which it restores or delivers them from. When Grace comes to apply itself to them, it finds them as miserable as Sin and the Curse of the Law could make them: Innumerable great and destroying Evils are upon them; Hell was open ready to receive them, and the Wrath of God was ready to fall in fury upon them, his Hand was up, and the fatal blow ready to be struck; they were just falling over into an Ocean of unquenchable Fire; and Grace stepped in and said, Deliver them, I have found a Ransom. Paul tells his Ephesians what they were when Grace came to them, Eph. 2.3, 4. Among whom also we all had our conversation in times pass, in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. B •• God who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us.

2. THE great Good that it restores him unto. It raiseth him up as high as Sin hath made him 〈◊〉 . It brings him from Death to Life, from Hell to Heaven, from a Dungeon to a Palace; makes him of a Beggar a Prince, of an Outcast an Heir: it gives him Grace and Glory, and all that is good: and it must needs be rich Grace that doth all this; Especially if we consider,

[2.] THE Subject of this great Favor, for whom all this is • one; this will put Orient Colours upon it.

(1.) CONSIDER the Subject by himself positively, what an one he is; and we shall find,

1. THAT he is altogether undeserving of any of this. He is wholly without the least Merit of it: He did not deserve the least common M •• ry, Gen. 32.10. I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth which thou hast shown unto thy servant —. much less then such Grace: might say as he, 2 Sam. 19.28. For all my fathers house were but dead men before my lord the king: yet didst thou set thy servant among them that eat at thy own table —. They had no Merit of Condignity, had nothing to show that could lay Claim of Title to this Inheritance; it must be given them, Rom. 6. ult. For the •• ges of sin is death: but the gift of God is eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Nay they had not so much as any Merit of Congruity, if that may be called Merit; were neither in a Posture ••• ting to receive these Blessings nor any way able to dispose or prepare themselves thereunto; unprofitable and useless Creatures: God himself must first make them meet for the Inheritance, before they could partake in it.

2. THAT he was ill-deserving: Not only had no Desert of Glory, but had Ignominy belonging to him; had by Sin & multiplied Transgressions given God abundant Provocations to destroy him; had wearied God with Iniquity; as in Isa. 43.24. Thou hast wearied me with thine iniquities. Justice had demanded his forfeited Life, & must needs have had it, if Grace had not stepped in and rescued him: He was a Child of Wrath 〈◊〉 really as those in H • ll; Eph. 2.3.— And were by ••• ure the children of wrath, even as others.

(2.) CONSIDER the Subject in relation to God; and there we shall see the Excellency of this Grace, in that he doth all this for one whom God hath no need of: He saves none because he could not otherwise have done with them. For,

1. HE was happy & blessed in Himself from Eternity: He lived without them or any other second being, when no World was; and so he should have done, if no World had been: His name is, God Blessed forever; He gives all to, receives nothing from the Creature.

2. HE had an Innumerable Company of blessed Angels to sing Everlasting Hallelujahs to his Praise: In these he would have been glorified forever; D •• . • .10. — Thousand thousands minister unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him —.

3. HE had the Residue of the Spirit, Mal. • .15. He was not tied to this Race of Men: 〈…〉 had seen meet to be honored by such a sort of Creature, he could but have said it, and the Stones should have risen up Children of Abraham, Matth. 3.9.

4 HE could have gotten Himself a Name Glory & Renown in their Ruin. He would have shined forth in the Triumphs of his Justice, with his Garments died in their Blood, if he had shewn his Wrath, and made his Power known in them, as well as he doth in th • se that are the miserable Subjects of his revenging Justice.

(3.) CONSIDER the Subject in way of Comparison; and here also will Grace appear eminently. And that,

1. IF we ask Why God pitched upon fallen Men rather than fallen Angels: That when all the vast Number of Apostate Spirits are kept in Chains of Darkness, and not one of them is brought back to Salvation, but they must forever feel the smart of their Disobedience; God should see meet to lift up the Heads of some of desolate Mankind from the Prison, and set them at his own Table: What was there in Man more than in an Angel to prefer him in the Choice? Paul puts therefore a Remark on this, Heb. 2.16. For verily he took not on him the nature of Angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham.

2. IF we ask a Reason of the vast Difference made between Man & Man: Why this Man is recovered out of his Misery, and the other left to perish in it: All were equally Children of Wrath, Eph. 2.3. equally become Unprofitable, Rom. 3.12. equally full of enmity against God, Rom. 8.7. equally capable of Salvation: Almighty Power could have done it for one as well as for the other: The same Price would have paid for their Redemption; the same Spirit could have converted them: It must be nothing but astonishing Grace that determined this Case.

[3.] IF we shall 〈◊〉 over and glance upon the several Parts of Man's Restitution, we shall discover in each of them a rich 〈◊〉 of Grace, enough to transport us into Admiration.

1. ELECTION is an Act of Grace. Rom. 11.5. Even so thou at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace. Eph. 1.5. Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will. It is impossible that any Created finite Agent should move or incline the Eternal and Immutable Will of God, to set his Love upon some, who were to receive their Being and their All as the Result of his good Pleasure; or that anything besides his own Good Will should direct him to put down this Man's Name in the Lamb's Book of Life, and leave out others, who were all to be of the same Lump, all alike and under the same Capacity.

2. REDEMPTION is also an Act of free Grace; and there is manifold Grace to be observed in it: It was inexpressible Love in God to send his Son to redeem us; Joh. 3.16. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. It was incomparable Love in Christ to come upon this Errand; Eph. 3.19. — The Love of Christ which passeth knowledge —. It was mere free Grace in God, to accept of the Redemption of Christ, and take him in Exchange for Sinners: For though' a Surety may stand in Law for Debt, yet the Judge may choose whether he will accept of one for a Crime.

3. APPLICATION also is an Act of free Grace in all the parts of it. Faith whereby we come to have an Evangelical Right to the Promise, is a Gift of God, as well as the Promise itself; Eph. 2.8. For by grace are ye saved, through saith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. The Justification of a Sinner, in Pardoning of his Sin, and adjudging him to Life, is of mere Grace; Rom. 3 24. Being justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ. Our being Adopted to the Inheritance of Children, and being made joint Heirs with Christ, is as a great, so an undeserved Favor; Eph. 1.5, 6. Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will. To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein be hath made us accepted in the beloved. Our Sanctification, or being restored to the Image of God, and furnished with the Graces of his Spirit derives from the same Fountain, and therefore it is called Grace; 2 Pet. 3.18. But grow in grace, &c. Our Perseverance in the Faith, and being kept from falling away, is owing to Him; and must therefore needs flow from Grace, 1 Pet 1.5. Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation — And what is Eternal Glory, but the Top and Consummation of Grace? and for that reason said to be the Gift of God; Rom. 6.23. — But the gift of God is eternal life, 〈◊〉 Jesus Christ our Lord. Yea all these are but so many Links in one Chain, whereof Election is the first, and so they must bear the same Denomination.

USE 1. LEARN hence, How much they rob God of his Glory, who ascribe their Salvation to Themselves, either in whole or in part. Needs must all such endeavor to obscure the Grace of God; and how injurious this is to his Honor, will be seen if we consider how dear this Attribute is to him, and what a costly as well as curious Contrivance he hath laid for the Exaltation of the Riches of it; all of which, Men that would be their own Savior's endeavor to darken: It derogates from the very Design of Salvation in a Gospel way; Rom. 9.23. And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory. It puts Man into a better Condition than the Fall hath left him in; Rom. 5.6. For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. It in part at least, arrogates to the Man himself some of the Acknowledgment of his Salvation: and so much as it gives to Man's free Will or Strength, so much it takes away from Grace: Needs then must God reject all such as thus seek and hope to be saved.

USE 2. LEARN from the Description of God's Grace, that it is a Sovereign Thing; and consequently, neither have Any cause justly to complain of God if they miss it, nor to be proud if they obtain it: Deny the Freedom of it, and you deny it to be Grace. Here is 〈◊〉 any room to charge God with a sinister respecting of Persons, for that hath no 〈◊〉 in Gratuities: God may do with his own as he will: There is no Man deserves this Favor at his hands: If therefore he bestow it not, there is no room for complaining: They feel his Severity, but there is no Unrighteousness: If they miss Heaven and Glory, and meet with Everlasting Misery, 〈…〉 but their Wages: and as for those that have it, it so comes to 〈◊〉 , as to exclude all Boasting: It is Grace, and they did nothing to purchase it; nor had they ever had it, if they had not found Grace in the sight of God.

USE • THE Doctrine of God's free Gr ••• tells us, that the Chief of Sinners have no reason to Despair of Salvation. It is no little Glory which is brought to this Attribute, by the large Expressions that it makes of itself to the Children of Men: Grace therefore doth 〈◊〉 where more abound, than where Sin hath •• nally abounded: When therefore the ag ••• vated Considerations of Sin from the Greatness, Multitude, and ill Circumstances of them, and ready to bear our Spirits down into Discouragement, and make us afraid to hope; 〈◊〉 us entertain ourselves with the Contemplation of the Grace of God, the Fulness and F ••• ness of it: Remember that it is in God In •••• and therefore cannot be outdone by us; 〈◊〉 that will show us, that the lowest Hell, that we apprehend ourselves to be i • , is a pl ••• of Hope; and though we have nothing in 〈◊〉 selves to rely upon, there is still room for us to hope in his Grace.

USE 4. THIS also tells us, after 〈◊〉 Manner we are to go to God if we would 〈◊〉 his Salvation, viz. So as may be most for 〈◊〉 Illustration of this Attribute: Ou • 〈◊〉 must be such; a Conviction of our Sin, Misery, Unworthiness, Impotency, must 〈◊〉 us down to the Foot of God, and make 〈…〉 sign and submit ourselves to the Dispos •• of Sovereign Grace. Our Pleadings also must 〈◊〉 built upon such Topics as these: we must ask all for his own Name sake: There must be 〈◊〉 mention of our Doings, our Abstinences, o • 〈◊〉 thing that we have done; But, together with the Acknowledgment of our own Demerit, and adoring of his wondrous free Favor, we must ask as Beggars, and resolve that if he 〈◊〉 us, his Great Name shall have the Honor of it, and we will sing everlasting Praises to T •• Riches of the Glory of his Grace in JESUS CHRIST.

SERMON XXIX.

6. THE last of the Divine Virtues here mentioned is Truth. This also 〈◊〉 essentially in God, for it hath its eminent 〈◊〉 plays in the works of Efficiency.

THE one Truth admits of various Notions which are put upon it; but when it is applied to God, it use ally comes under one of these T •• s •• ses either, 1. As it is applied to his Being, on which account he is said to be the True God, in opposition to all the feigned and made ones of the Gentile • to all Idols; but this is not here to be considered, but will come under the following Question. Or, 2. As it is looked upon as 1 〈…〉 , in Men. Truth may be considered Obje •••• ely, and so it relates to the Understanding, whose proper Object is Truth: and then it imply: a Knowledge of things as they are; and this when Attributed to God, belongs to his Omniscience, and is accounted a Virtue of his Understanding, of which we have already heard under his Wisdom: Or it may be considered Subj •• tively as it is a Property inherent in the Subject, and then it is a Virtue of the Will, and it compri • e him 〈◊〉 those two Virtues of Faithfulness and Constancy: True and Faithful are therefore of ••• joined together in Scripture Language: and thus it is often ascribed to God, after the 〈◊〉 of Men: and in this sense we may take up this Description of it:

TRUTH is God, Fulfilling of all his Will, according to his Word. There is an exact harmony between his Will, his Word, and his Performance, and in this it appears that God agrees with himself, and that is his Truth. For a brief •••• ring up of the Doctrine of this Attribute, let these things be observed,

(1.) THAT God's Will hath determinately, •••• lie, unchangeably, purposed what he will do. The Scripture ascribes unto God a Will; sometimes under the n • tion of a Faculty, sometimes of an Act, and in this latter respect, it refers it sometimes to his Purposes, and sometimes to his 〈◊〉 ; is the former respect it is more ge ••• sly, and here to be understood: We are here to consider,

1. THAT God hath Decreed or fore determined all his Works of Efficiency; so that what ••• es to pass in Time, is no other but what he had appointed before all Time, in the days of E •• ity; and for this very reason all God's 〈◊〉 are said the • to be known to him, Acts 15.18. Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world. And how should he know them antecedently, but because he had Decreed them?

2. THAT this Decree is an Act of his Will. I • God we conceive some Acts to be Immanent, others Transcient; to the former belongs his Decree, which is nothing else but his Will as it respects the Works of Efficiency; and this is an Eternal Act, in which he hath resolved with Himself what to do, and there is nothing comes to pass, which was not first in this Purpose; Hence that, Eph. 1.11. In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will. i. e. He took counsel of no other but his own Will.

3. THAT this Will of his is determinate, fixed, immutable: the Decree is sometimes called his Word • for what he hath, as it were said in himself, that he will do; and herein is the Truth of this Word, that he stands to his own Purposes, and never alters them, Job 23.13. But it is in 〈◊〉 mind, and 〈◊〉 can turn him? and what his 〈◊〉 desireth, ever that he doeth. God's Decrees are not Conditional but Absolute: He hath indeed Decreed Conditions or Connexions between things; but he hath not Connected any dependent undetermined Conditions between things, but he hath fixed them: the Conditions of things are but Me •• e in his Decrees, and only intend, that he will bring about such Ends, by such Means; and having once purposed, he never varies: He engageth to himself, that thus he will do, and he stands to his Word: But of this more in the Doctrine of the Decree.

(2.) THAT God is pleased as far as he sees meet, is reveal this Will of his unto Men. He hath not indeed revealed all his Counsels and Purposes; there are the secret things which belong to God, and are no otherwise known but by the Accomplishment: But so far as in Wisdom he sees it convenient, he doth declare his Mind, and acquaint his People with what he hath Decreed. And these Discoveries of his Will are made,

1. IN those Predictions which he hath given of things beforehand, which in the Time appointed were to come to pass. The Scripture abounds with such as these; some referring to personal, others to more public Affairs: some in respect of his Church, others relating to the Enemies of his Church; some that have been already accomplished, others, that are as yet to be expected, the Time not being come for the fulfilling of them.

2. IN the Revelation of the Rule of Man's Happiness. He hath shewn to Man the Way: He made known to Man at first, the things wherein his Felicity did consist, and how he might be blessed forever; and he hath also discovered to fallen Man the Way and Means of his Recovery out of Misery, and obtaining Salvation by Jesus Christ: and this is called the Will of God in Scripture, because he did forever purpose within himself that there should be a Connection between these things: Hence we have that assertion of Paul, Acts 20.27. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.

3. IN the Promulgation of the Promises. The word of God is full of precious Promises, in which God obliged himself, and past his Word to his People, that he will bestow these and those Favors and Blessings upon them; and they do contain in them Matter of universal Consolation: These also are the Manifestations of his Decrees, and give us to understand what Thoughts he entertained in his Heart from Eternity concerning his People; Jer. 29 11. For I know the though'ts that I think towards you, saith the Lord, though'ts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expelled end.

4. IN the Denunciation of his Threatenings: There are fearful Menaces uttered in the Scriptures against these and those who are God's Enemies, and Haters of Him; whereby Men are fully acquainted what he would have them •• pect • t his Hands; which are the making known of those Judgments that he had purposed, and prepared in his Decree concerning such; Isa. 〈◊〉 For T • phe • is ordained of old; yea, for the king it is prepared, he hath made it deep & large: the pile thereof is •• re and 〈◊〉 •• od, the breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, doth kin •• t 〈◊〉 .

(3.) THAT God speaks Nothing but what he hath purposed. There is Truth in his Word; and this Truth is the exact Agreement which there is between his Counsels and his Declarations: He doth not say one thing and intend another: He speaks nothing rashly, undeliberately, unknowingly. There are Two Reasons of Men's fall •• ng short of Truth in what they say; but God is far from both of these:

1. IGNORANCE or Inadvertency. Men often mistake, and think of things otherwise than they are, and yet persuade themselves they are 〈◊〉 the right; and this ariseth from a want of Knowledge or Deliberation: But thus He cannot utter a Falsehood or Error, because of his Infinite all Knowledge: He knows his own Thoughts; and in knowing them, he knows everything.

2. DECEITFULNESS, or a lying Disposition: Many speak with a Purpose to deceive others, and to impose things that are not true, upon their Credit; and there is a root of this perverse Disposition in all Men by Nature: But there is no such thing with God: Hence the Opposition in, Rom. 3.4. — Yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged. And this in Man proceeds from the Wickedness of his Heart; But God is Holy, and therefore it is said to be Impossible to him; Heb. 6.18. That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie—. When therefore God is said to Deceive the Prophet, Ezek. 14.9. it doth not intend that God revealed a Falsehood to him; but it respects his Providence, suffering him to deceive himself by false Conjectures, and disappointing his confident Expectations, which he had in second Causes: All that God saith is very True, and Faithful.

(4.) THAT God Always performs what He hath spoken. What He saith, He will do, That he doth without fail: As there is Truth which consists in a Conformity between the He • rt and Tongue, so there is a Truth appears in an Agreement between Words and Deeds: God not only intends to do it when he speaks it, but he stands by and pursues that declared Intention of his: There is Constancy appertains to Truth, and that is when one is not to be put by from what he hath said: Men may not say one thing, and intend another; and yet they may change their Mind and Repent of what they have said, and so go back from it, which is also a Defect in point of Truth: But neither is there any such thing with God; and therefore these two things are put together, Numb. 23.19. God is not a man that he should lie, neither the son of man that he should repent-hath he said, and shall be not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? God is incapable of those things that make Men to break their Words, which they intended when they spake them, viz.

1. WANT of Ability, which they before suspected not. And there are many things which do casually intervene, unforeseen; for which reason Men are always to resolve with that Clause, If God •• ll: But God cannot be obstructed; His Power is as large as his Will, so that he could never be impeded: If he hath a Mind to do anything, he is able to accomplish it; Job 23.13. But he is in one mind, and why 〈◊〉 turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he dieth. There was no great work ever yet put Him to a stand; there is no Mountain too high for Him to skip over.

2. SOME new Discovery which makes them to see reason to alter their Thoughts. Men sometimes say, before they have seen the thing through, and their after Thoughts are wiser: There are many Inconveniences that discover themselves upon Deliberation, which at first view lay out of their sight: But God is incapable of this also; for he sees all things in their Causes, and Effects, and all their Circumstances and Consequences, at one view; so that it is impossible that he should even have any occasion to repent of his Word. When therefore Repentance is ascribed to Him in Scripture, it is an Human Expression; the Change is neither is his Purpose, nor in his Word, but in his Providence, or Works, and that according to his Word: And if it be said, that we find both Promises and Threatenings in the Word of God, which never were accomplished, but God did otherwise; the Answer is ready, viz. That God often reveals Himself to Men in conditional Promises and Threatenings: If therefore the Condition cease, the Truth of the Word doth stand, though the Thing itself be not done: So David understood the Promise, 1 Chron. 28.6, 7. And he said unto me, Solomon thy son, he shall build my house, and my courts: for I have chosen him to be my son, and I will be his father. Moreover, I will establish his kingdom forever, if he be constant to do my commandments, and my judgments, as to this day. And so God himself tells us he would have the Threatning to be interpreted, Jer. 18.7, 8. At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull 〈◊〉 , and to destroy it: If that nation against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to 〈◊〉 unto them.

(5.) THAT God doth all things Exactly, as he hath spoken. The Execution is not varied from the Expression: He doth not come short 〈◊〉 his Word, in the Performance: We have Solomon acknowledging of this, 1 King. 8.56. Bless • be the Lord, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: the • hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant. And this is to be observed not only as to the Substance, but also the very Circumstances of things; and this both in Predictions, Promises, and Threatenings: If we shall in particular take notice of the Predictions concerning Christ; How many things, which may to us look like minute Circumstances, and yet in the Gospel we shall find manifold references to the Old Testament in such things as these, to certify us, how exactly God is careful in performing the Truth of his Word; and how he orders all things so as to bring it about: God's Promise to Abraham was not only about the Thing, but the Time too; and see what a Remark Moses makes upon it, Exod. 12.41. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred & thirty years, even the self-same day it came to pass, that all the • olts of the Lord wnt out from the land of Egypt. If it be here Objected, that 〈◊〉 Prophesied Nineveh 's Destruction in Forty Days, which yet was adjourned. Forty Years; It may readily be answered that Forty Prophetical Days, which are Years, might be intended, though' Jo •• h understood it not; or the Threatning might be Co • •••••• , and the general Repentance and Reformation it put them upon might be a length • ing out of their Tranquillity; which neither altered God's Purpose, not impaired the Truth of his Word.

(6.) THAT God hath not so much as the 〈◊〉 Inclination in him to vary from his Word. The Psalmist speaks of Truth in the inward parts. Men may perform their Obligations, because they cannot with Honor or Safety omit so doing when yet they have many Reluctances and Strivings in them, inclining them so to do, if they could; which is a secret Evidence that there is a great deal of Falseness in their Hearts: But with God there is no such thing: He never so much as entertains o • Thought in him to do otherwise: He doth not 〈◊〉 his Word merely because he hath Given it, but he gave it because he resolved to fulfill it; and it pleaseth him always; he takes a Delight and is fully satisfied in it: As he cannot, so he will not Repent: His Heart is in all he doth. When therefore the Scripture faith, He doth not do a thing willingly, as L •• . 3.33. it is spoken after the Manner of Men, and only intends that he doth it not without just Cause, and sufficient Reasons moving him thereto. And in these things doth the Truth of God shine out to us:

USE 1. LEARN hence, How safe it is to be under the Promises, and how dangerous to be under the Threatenings of God. The Word of God is full of great and precious Promises, which contain in them complete and perfect Happiness; and here lies the Safety of the Children and Heirs of the Promise, that when once they come to be under them, and have •••• en God engaged to them, they can never fail, because they have the Truth of God Yet as a Seal to them: This is the Encouragement, 1 Thes. 5.24. Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it. And this is the Consolation of Believers, Heb. 6.18. That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, 〈◊〉 might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope for before us. If God hath once past his Word to your Souls, and His Spirit given his Testimony, that you are the Sons of God; never fear, His Truth stands to pawn for your Salvation: Hath he wrought the Condition in you; your Salvation is then secured: They horribly injure this Attribute, who say a Child of God may lose his Hope. There are also fearful Threatenings menaced by God in his Word against ungodly Men; and here lies the Terror of them, God speaks as he intends. He would not have Men to please themselves with an Opinion, that these are but to fright them, and never purposed to be executed upon them: See how he backs his Menaces against Soul, 1 Sam. 15.2 • . And also the strength of Israel will 〈…〉 , nor repent: for he is not a man that he should repent. And how dangerous a thing is it for Men to presume he will not be as Good as his Word, we find in that particular Threatning, Deut. 29 19, 20. And it come to pass when 〈◊〉 • eareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though' I walk in the imagination • f mine • ear • , to 〈◊〉 drunkenness to thir • : The Lord will 〈◊〉 spare him, but then the anger of the Lord, and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written 〈◊〉 this book shall He upon him, and the Lord shall 〈◊〉 out his name from ••• er heaven. It is true, God hath graciously left the Door of Repentance open for Sinners to escape; but there is no other way. If God be true, let Sinners then be afraid of coming under his dreadful Threatenings.

USE 2. HENCE one have good Encouragement is Believe for the Church of God. Christ's Flock indeed, • eeds upon the Mountain of Lion • , and Hill of Leopards, and they lie open to no little Danger by reason of this; but the Word of God is so full for it, that there is a Day of Deliverance a coming; and the Predictions there do give us sufficient Footsteps to trace, which may assure us, that the time for Accomplishment of this cannot be far off; and what though the Face of Providence be covered with Clouds and Darkness, yet the Word of Prophesy is sure: That God is able to give being to his Word, is witnessed to by his Omnipotency; and that he will certainly do it, is ratified by his Truth: This therefore affords sure Footing for our Faith: When therefore John had his Revelations about these Great things, he had that given him for his Confirmation, Rev. 19.9. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage-supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, these are the true sayings of God.

USE 3. BE we exhorted to Imitate God in this Attribute. As he is a God of Truth himself, so he loveth Truth in his People, Psal. 51.6. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts —. And on the contrary, he hates and abhors Lying, and hath fearfully threatened it, Rev 21.8. — And all liars, shall have their part in the lake which barns with fire & brimstone: which is the second death. Let us then abstain from l • ying, Dissembling, Deceitfulness either in Words or Deeds, as we would not pull down Divine Displeasure upon ourselves. And let Children and Young ones beware of this Sin: Be afraid of telling a Lye; the true God will be for fully Angry with you if you addict yourselves to Falsehood; you mend no Fault by it, but make two of one: Remember, you are naturally addicted to it, you are born with • Lye in your Mouth, Psal. 58.3. The ••• ked are 〈◊〉 from the 〈◊〉 , they go astray 〈◊〉 as they be born, speaking lies. You must then pray with David, Psal. 119 29. Remove from 〈…〉 of lying —. Get a Love to the Truth, and a Hatred to every false Word and Way; and so God will Love you; Uprightness and Integrity shall preserve you; and you shall be called the Children of God, and His Truth shall make you Happy.

SERMON XXX.

IT is of Infinite Concernment, that we be rightly fixed on the Object of Worship; for if it be not such an one as can make us happy, our Religion is vain. That this must be a God, the Light of Nature discovers, and therefore all Nations do acknowledge it: But yet how woefully have they mist it, through their vain Imaginations, by reason of the Darkness on their Minds, whilst they have sought to God's that cannot save? That we may not be mistaken in this, which is as much as our Life; after the Description of God by his Attributes, in the former Question, our Catechism in this leads us to some further Discoveries of Him: In which, 1. It re ••• eth • s is an Unity, ••• aring us that there is but ONE. 2. P ••• ts us to some Discriminating Notes by which we may know Him, and not take another for him; and these are T •• , 1. He is the LIVING. 2. He is the TRUE God. For the help of our Faith, these things may be briefly opened.

First, THE Unity of the Divine Essence is here asserted: There is but ONE God. This is a Foundation Principle of the Christian Religion, 1 Cor. 8.4, 5, 6. — There is none other God but one. For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (a • there be gods many, and lords many) But to us there is but one God —. The Heathen worshipped many God's: Though they had some Notion of a Deity, yet they divided and crumbled it in pieces, distributing it to everything that did them good, Sun, Moon, Stars, Rivers, Fountains, Elements, Brutes, Vegetatives: Yea, they increased their God's according to the Number of their Cities: Yea they had their Tutelar God's, their Household God's, their God's for all particular Callings, Concerns, Diseases: We have an Account in Gentile Antiquity of Thirty Thousand of them: The Romans had their Pantheon, a Temple in which all the God's of the Nations were Worshipped, the True God excepted: And though' the true Religion acknowledgeth but One, and no more, yet even among those that have professed Christianity, the 〈◊〉 , and 〈◊〉 , and 〈◊〉 , made T •• , one the Author of Good, the other of Evil; and the • r • t • enes, for the Trinity of Persons, have surrogated Three God's: It is therefore necessary to be well-grounded in this Article: And if our Faith will give Credit to the Divine Testimony, we need look no farther for Proof; the Scripture everywhere asserting it: See Deut. • .4. Hear, O Israel, The Lord our God is one Lord. Psal. 8 • .18. That men may know, that then whose name alone is JEHOVAH. art the most high 〈◊〉 all the earth. God denies himself to have •• y Corrival. Deut. 4 35. Unto thee it was shown, that thou mightest know that the Lord he is God, there is none else besides him. Isa. 44.8. — Is there a God besides me? you, there is 〈◊〉 God, I know not any. Ch. 45.4. • 1. I am the Lord, and there is none else, there is no God besides me: — There is no God else beside me, a 〈◊〉 God and a savior, there is none beside me. And 〈◊〉 he will part with none of 〈◊〉 Glory, Isa. 42 • I am the Lord, that is my name, and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise • graven ••• ges. Nay, Reason itself, and 〈◊〉 Light, if well improved, would convince M • n of this Truth: And therefore the wisest of Heathen Parts and Philosophers have believed this Assertion, and spoken it as far as they durst to avoid the Severity of their Laws, whilst they have taught that all things must needs proceed from One First Cause, who is the Efficient, and prime Mover of them: Yea, Socrates spake i • so plain that he died for it: and Plato hardly escaped the Ostracism. Among many Evidences, convictive of this, let a few suffice.

1. THE First Being can be but One. Reason saith, that if there be a Second, there must be a First; for all Number begins in an Unity, and to say there are two firsts, is a Contradiction in the Nature of things▪ Equality and Priority are inconsistent to the same Subject: Now it is one of the Divine Properties to be First: And from thence God Himself argues 〈◊〉 being alone; Isa. 44.6. Thus saith the Lord the king of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts, I am the first, and I am the last, and besides 〈◊〉 there is no God.

2. THE very Order of things 〈◊〉 the World, proves that there can be but ONE God. There is a Plurality of second Beings, therefore there must be but One first Being. As the First can be but One, so there must be a First; for where is no First, there is no Order; and where there is no Order, there can be no Goodness; for what Goodness can there be in Confusion' and where there is no Goodness there is Nothing; 〈…〉 .

3. IF there be more God's than One, either they must be all Equal one to another, or else there must be Superiority & Inferiority between them: 〈◊〉 neither • these can possibly 〈◊〉 with right Reason 〈…〉 of. If we conceive them Equal, there can be no Chief Good; we cannot call one of them so, because there is another as Good as he: and then the Attribute of the most High must • ease; for among Comparatives, there is no Superlative: If we conceive an Inequality, we cannot 〈◊〉 them both to be God: If there be another above Him, then He is not over all God blessed forever: He must Himself be a dependent being, and so, not an adequate Object for our Faith to rely upon: If he be acknowledged Superior to the other, then that other is a Subject weak, imperfect, and cannot be God; Supremacy being a Prerogative of the Deity. It is F •• lie to count Him our God, that cannot do what he will without Control, that cannot save us in despite of all Opposition.

4. ALL the Divine Attributes prove that there is but One God. God hath revealed himself to us in and by his glorious Perfections: If then we acknowledge none to be God, but Him to whom these so belong, we must conclude that there is but One: There are indeed some Attributes that we call Communicable, a Shadow of which is in the Creature; such are the Divine Virtues, as Wisdom, Holiness, &c. But then, if we consider, that they belong to the Creature only in the 〈◊〉 , to the Deity in the Abstract, and consequently in the Superlative, they can so appertain but to One: There may be many Wise, but 〈◊〉 itself is but One: There may be Holy O • es, but the most Holy cannot be more then One. As to the Incommunicable Perfections, it is impossible that they should be multiplied; and this more essentially carries conviction to his Infinity: It belongs to God to be Immense 〈◊〉 ; but this inseparably belongs to Unity: The Notion of two Infinites being contradictory to all rational Conceptions; For if there be two, they must confine each other, and so neither be Infinite, &c.

Hence learn,

• 1. THAT Polytheism is but a sort of Atheism. They that worship more God's than God, do in effect worship no God at all: For they cannot worship any one at God, who divide their Worship to more than One: They therefore who thus fear God, are in Scripture said, not to fear him, a King. 17.33, 34. They scared the Lord, and served their 〈…〉 , •• ter the 〈◊〉 of the nations, whom they carried away from thence. Unto this day they do after former manners: they fear not the Lord—.
• 2 THAT there can be but One Religion. Religion is properly the Worshipping and Serving of God: Where there is no God acknowledged, there is no Religion professed, and if so, then, where there is but One God confessed, there 〈◊〉 to be but One Religion practiced. The Reason of the Heathens different Rites, was their adoring of divers God's, whom they apprehended they must worship in a different manner: Thus therefore the Apostle argues, Eph. 4.4, 5, 6. There is one body, and one Sp ••• , even as ye are called in one hope of y • ur •• • ing; One Lord, one saith, are baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

Secondly, THE way to Ke •• this Ones God, is here pointed to us: And if there be but One, it is necessary that we Know Him: And here are Two Titles put upon Him, by which He is to be distinguished from False God's & lords.

1. HE is the Living God. A • Being is better than no being, so a Living Being is more noble than such things as are without Life: The Scripture therefore ascribes Life to God: And because there are many second Beings that participate in Life, we are therefore to distinguish the Life of God, from that of the Creatures, in that they have their Life by Participation, but He hath his Life of Himself; according to, Joh. 5.26. For as the Father 〈…〉 himself; so hath he given to the S •• to have life in himself.

LIFE, according as it refers to the Creature, is the Act of the Soul upon the Body; • more generally, a power is the 〈◊〉 of self- •• tion in its proper Place: Whatever hath a • internal Principle of Motion in it, is accounted to have Life: Now Life is attributed to God by way of Analogy: And as the Rational Life is of all the most noble, or that which same call Intellectual, we therefore ascribe that to Him: and of this Life of God, we may take this brief Description;

IT is that whereby God is in Himself, the, Fountain or Original of all 〈◊〉 Actings.

Here observe.

• 1. GOD Lives. He •• e this Attribute is given to Him; and he so Lives 〈◊〉 that it belongs eminently to him; See Psal. 18 46. The Lord Liveth, and Blessed be my 〈◊〉 . • er. 10.10 But the Lord is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king—. 1 Tim. 6 17.— Nor trust in uncertain riches but in the living God—. And by this he is differenced from 〈◊〉 , Psal 115.4. Their Idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands, &c. The Sum i • , they are altogether Lifeless.
• 2. GOD is the Fountain of Life. He not only hath Life, but he is Life: It is one of his Attributes, and he hath it belonging to Him i • the Abstract.

Here Two things,

• 1. HIS Life is His own, He borrowed it not. It is not a derivative Life, but it is originated in Himself; He is beholden to none for it • And herein he differs from other Living things; They live, but they are not all Life: They live, but it is a borrowed Life which they enjoy; They received it from another to whom they own Acknowledgment of its Derivation, but none gave Him His.
• 2. HE is the Author of Life to all other Living Beings. They are but little Springs of Life which they have, and they come from th • Fountain; Acts 17 25, 28. — Seeing he giveth to all life and breath, and all things. For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. It is by his Favor or Indulgence that they live, but he depends on the Courtesy of none for His.

3. BY Virtue of this Life He is the Original of all eminent Actings. Because he is all Life, therefore Divines call him a Pure All, having no Passivity, or Potentiality in Him; and hence also He exerteth such noble Acts as no Creature can do the like; and there are Two things wherein the Eminency of God's Actings discovereth itself, viz.

1. HE acts with the greatest Light. His Life is most transcendently intellectual; surpassing our Comprehension: Hence his Thoughts which he makes known to his People are most wonderful, Psal. 40.5. Many, O Lord my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward. And yet the World hath but some Rays of this shining in it: and though' the Angels and glorified Saints shall dwell in great Light, such as is beyond our present Conception, yet His transcends them all, 1 Tim. 6.16. — Dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto, whom no man hath seen, nor can see—.

2. HE acts with greatest Delight. Some define a Rational Life to be an act with delight: The damned have the Light of Reason, but it is with Sorrow, and therefore they are said to Dy: The glorified enjoy complete Satisfaction, and in that regard are said to Live: But God's Happiness is infinite; his Pleasures can receive no Accession, no Contribution from the Creatures. Job 22.2, 3. Can a man be profitable unto God? — Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? or is it gain to him, that thou ••• est thy ways perfect?

Hence learn;

• 1. THAT GOD is Immortal. This Attribute is ascribed to Him, 1 Tim 1.17. Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, • e honor & glory, forever & ever, amen. And herein it appears to us; for He who lives of Himself cannot die: And though Immortality doth actually belong to some Creatures, yet not so as to Him; He that gave their Life to them, is able to take it from them: Thô they cannot die by Dissolution, yet they may by Annihilation; And should he withdraw his Upholding Hand from them, they would return to their former Nothing; For this reason Immortality is restrained to Him, 1 Tim. 6.16. Who only hath Immortality—.
• 2. THAT GOD is Independent. This Attribute is also implied in Scripture, Rom. 11.35. O • who hath •• st given to Him? And is argued from his being the Fountain of Life, Act. 17.25. Seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things. He lives of and therefore on Himself; He needs nothing to support Him; All his Life is at home; He is self sufficient. Our Dependence ariseth from our Derivation of all from Another: He then who derives nothing must be independent; He who gives all, and receives nothing, must needs be so; Thus doth God.
• 3. HENCE GOD must needs be his o •• Last End, and the Last End of all other Beings. If He lives of Himself, He can then look no farther than Himself; If He lives from Himself, he must needs live to Himself; and if all others live from Him, they ought to live to Him: The First Cause and the Last End cannot be diverse, but must be the same; These are therefore put together, Rom. 11.36. For of him, and through him, and to him are all things: to whom be glory forever. Amen.

II. HE is the True GOD. There are many False gods, that are so called by foolish and deceived Men; But this One God, this Living God is the True God: And it concerns us to know Him; for if we serve a False god, we have a False Trust, and False Hopes; But if we serve the True God, and in Truth, we shall have a True Happiness. And would we know Him from every other, we may take These Rules for our Direction.

1. THE True God, is the Everlasting First Being. If we worship any Being from the First, we worship an Idol: If there were anything before it, that is not God: And this must be an Eternal Being: This is the Comfort which Mosts encourageth God's Israel withal, Deut. 33.27. The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. And when God would set on his Consolations on his People with Efficacy, He presseth them with this Consideration, Isa. 44. • . Thus saith the Lord the king of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts, I am the first, and I am the last, and besides me there is no God.

2. THE True God is He who hath his Being in Himself, and received it of no other. O • Faith is not to live upon any one that hath ••• rowed his Being: He is Being itself, who i • God: And therefore when God sends Moses to tell Israel under the Tyranny of Egyptian Bondage, that He would come and work a Deliverance for them. He reveals Himself to them under that Name, I AM, Exod. 3.14. And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: And he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. That which is but a little Crumb or Particle of Being, cannot be a God to us, nor is to be acknowledged as such by us.

3. THE True God is the Author & Cr ••• of all other Beings. He is no God that hath 〈◊〉 made the World, and everything in it: God therefore often reveals himself to his People by this Consideration, and proves Himself to be God by it, Isa. 45.5,—13. So, Isa. 44.24. Th •• saith the Lord thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the Lord that maketh all things, that stretcheth forth the heavens 〈◊〉 that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself. And on this consideration he casts Contempt upon 〈◊〉 the Heathen gods; Jer. 10.11. Thus shall ye 〈◊〉 unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens & the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens. They are gods of no Value.

4. THE True God can See all our W ••• and Hear all our Cries: It is a vain thing to • upon a God that hath neither Seeing nor Hearing Psal. 135.15, 16, 17. The idols of the heathen are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not. They have ears, but they hear not; neither is there any breath in their mouths. But such is not this God whom we are called upon to Worship & Serve; Psal. 34.15, 17. The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, & his ears are open unto their cry. The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. He is one that sees all their secret Necessities, knows all the close Contrivances of Hell against them, Hears their groans, and the very Desires of their Hearts: This is a God to be trusted in.

THE True God can afford us Help everywhere, and in every Case, and all his People at once. He is not afar off, but a Present help: Psal. 46.1. God is our refuge & strength, a very present help in trouble. He is not like Baal, otherwise occupied, so as he cannot tend us; He is not only a God of the Hills, but of the Valleys too: He can help all and everywhere at the same time.

6. THE True God hath all second Causes at his Command. He can order and dispose them as he sees meet. He hath no Dependence upon them, but they are entirely subordinate to Him: He can give Rain, and he can withhold it; open or shut the Bottles of Heaven at his Pleasure; can turn the Hearts of Men for or against us; and they all wait for his Word, and move at his Bidding.

7. THE True God can give Eternal Life to his Friends and Favorites, in spite of Men and Devils. He is a poor God who can only bestow temporary Favors on such whom he hath a delight to honor: Our God is not so; He gives Eternal Life, an Everlasting Kingdom, an Infinite Glory; and he gives his People leave to challenge all the World to separate them from this Love; Rom 8.38, 39. There is None that is able to pluck them out of his Hand: This is the God whom we are to acknowledge for Ours, and no other.

USE. HOW happy then are they, whose this One, the Living and True God is? They, and only they have made a good Choise, that have renounced all other, and put themselves under the shadow of His Wings: Be then advised, Older, Younger, to labor to be able to say, This God is our God. It is not sufficient to say, that you have a God, but ask who he is: Be able to say with Paul, 2 Tim. 1.12. I know whom I have believed. Do not build Altars to an Unknown God, lest it prove a False one, and then you be undone; Let it be the Living God: You stand in need of Life, you can find it nowhere else but in Him; all other things are dead, the Spring of Life is with him, and it is a living Spring, is always full and running over, and the Life that he hath to give is an endless, never-dying Life, and such a Life only can make you happy. And be sure that it is the True God, whom you Acknowledge, Worship, Trust in: Everyone talks of God, but how few are there who can tell who their God is? And yet the Dependence here is as much as your Souls are worth: If after all the Profession you have made, and confidence you have pretended unto, it should be found that you have made to yourselves More God's than One, or taken up with a dead Idol in the room of the Living God, a False instead of the True One; and then when your folly comes to be discovered to you, this God should refuse to help you, and send you to the God's whom you have served, to see if they can save you; what a misery will you labor under? Say then, Ashur shall not save us, we will have no more to do with Idols: Make Him your only Trust, and He will make you Happy forever.

SERMON XXXI.

THE Divine Alsufficiency displays itself unto us in God's Essence, and Subsistences: The former hath been already spoken to; the latter now follows: Under that we considered his Unity, in this we are to observe how this 〈◊〉 is Three. The Doctrine of a Trinity of Persons in the Unity of the Divine Essence, is one of the great Mysteries of Religion, and above the Comprehension of human Understanding; It therefore requires us to search into it with Sobriety: It is an Article merely of Faith, and we must rest in the Discoveries which the Scripture gives us about it; not counting it our Wisdom to be wise above what is written. Our business is to inquire what The Word saith, to believe that it is true; and Faith must silence the Uprisings of Carnal Reason, that asks, How can these things be?

THERE are Three Heads to which the Answer may be reduced,

• 1. The Distinction of the God-head into the Persons in it.
• 2. The Names of these Persons.
• 3. Their Unity & Parity in the God-head.

First, THE Distinction of the God-head, into the Persons in it; This One • s Three. In the right stating of this, we may gather out of Scripture These Conclusions,

I. THAT in the Divine Essence, there are certain Divine Subsistences. The word Subsistence is used, Heb. 1.3. translated Person: It signifies a standing under. Though there be but One God, yet that One God subsists in a diverse Manner; or the Essence stands under a different respect to itself: Though God be but One, yet He is more than One, he is Three; not Three God's, but Three Manners of Being are in this One God. This Unity of Being and Plurality of Persons, are plainly asserted in, 1 Joh. 5.7. For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. That this is so, we are therefore to believe; How it is, though many have essayed to shadow it to us by earthly Similitudes, yet none have reached it: Human Reason must be here silent and wonder: But,

II. THESE Subsistences are distinguished from the Essence, as a relation in a being is from the being itself: Joh. 1.1. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. A Relation is less than an Essence, and yet it is more than a thing merely Rational: It is True, though it be not essential: Things differ really when there are Two Essences, Rationally, when the Difference is only in our Conception: Modally or Relatively, when the Being itself differs from the several respects that it bears: Thus a Man differs modally from himself considered as a Man, and as a Master, and as a Servant; which though it be but a dark resemblance of this great Truth, yet it is such as God accommodates us with: Thus then, though' God the Father be God, yet He is not Father as he is God, but as he begets the Son: Hence these Relations are assigned to Him in the Concrete, and not in the Abstract: He is called Father, not Fatherhood; Eph. 1.3. Blessed be the God & Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

III. THESE Subsistences are significantly called Persons: So the word Subsistence is translated, Heb. 1.3. and that word, 2 Cor. 4.6. Face, is used in that Language for a Person; and it is very Analogous. A Person in our account, is an individual Subsistence of a Rational Being: That thing which is endowed with Reason, and is an Individual, is a Person: A Beast is an Individual, but without Reason: The Soul hath Reason, but it is not an Individual: Now every manner of Being makes a distinct Person in God, because his Essence being indivisible, must be in every Manner of Being.

IV. A Divine Person may be thus Described: It is the Divine Essence subsisting under an Individual Relative Property.

Here three Things.

• 1. THAT the Essence & Subsistence go together to constitute a Divine Person. Subsistence adds to Substance its Individuation, or its distinct Manner of Being, and consequently it giveth Personality to Rational Substances: And we look upon God under the Notion of a Reasonable or Intellectual Being, which is the highest we can ascribe to Him.
• 2. THE Subsistences are so many several Relations of the God-head to itself: Our Conception of them comes under the rational Head of Relation; and therefore the Names which are given to these Persons in Scripture, are Names of Relation, and do directly point us to such a Conception of them; and though' a Relation in the Creature do not constitute a Person, yet such Relations do hold forth such Persons in the Deity.
• 3. NOT a Relation alone, but a Relative Property denominates a Divine Person. It must be a particular individuating Relation; It must be proper to this Person, and distinguish Him from the other Persons; and therefore it must not be that which is common to more than One: Hence though' there be Four Relative Affections, yet not Four Persons, because One of them is common to Two of them, viz. to Breath: And though' there be more Properties, yet they are not Relative, and so donit Denominate a Person: Thus, not to be Begotten is a Property of the Father, but it is no Relation, and so no Person. Now a Divine Person differs from one Created in three respects,

  1. EVERY Created Person hath a distinct Essence by itself; But all the Divine Persons have one and the same Essence; Joh. 10.30. I and my Father are one. 1 Joh. 5.7. For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.

  2. ONE Created Person, hath not his • being in another, whereas these have, Joh. 14.10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you, I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.

  3. ONE Created Person proceeds from another in Time: But though' here be an ext ••• Order, yet there is no Priority of Time or Nature▪ They were all of them together in the same Eternity.

V. THE Divine Persons are Three, neither more nor less, and therefore we call them the Trinity: This also is of Revelation; the Works of Creation and Providence declare a God, but not a Trinity; But the Scripture confirms us in this.

For,

1. THERE is a Plurality in the Deity there asserted. Hence words of the Plural used to express God by; called, Elo • im, Gen. 1.1. Jehovah Elo • im, Gen. 2.4. Makers, Job 35.10. Creators, Eccl. 12.1. Adon • i or Pillars, Gen. 1.26.

2. THE Word of God also confines this Plurality to the Number of Three: Some Footstep of this there are in the Old Testament; Psal. 33. • . By the word of the Lord were the heavens 〈◊〉 and all the host of them by the breath of his 〈◊〉 Psal. 67.6, 7. Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God shall bless us. God shall bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear him. Isa. 6.3. And one cried unto another and said, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of his glory. But more clearly and positively is asserted in the New Testament, Matth. • .16, 17. And Jesus when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him. And lo, a voice from heaven, saying thie is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Matth. 28.19. Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. 2 Cor. 13.14. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ; and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen. 1 Joh. 5.7. For there are Three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost —.

Secondly, THE Names of these Persons are expressed; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Under which Names, every of which the Scripture makes mention of, is recommended to us that which is to be known of their distinct Personality; and from these we are to Describe them, and conclude their Difference one from the other. Here then,

I. FOR their Description.

1. GOD the Father is a Divine Person, Begetting the Son. Active Generation shows the Father's Manner of Subsisting: What this Generation is, the Word of God forbids our over curious Enquiring; Isa. 53.8. — And who shall declare his generation? — But this is the Father's Relative Property: It is not an Essential Act, for then it were common to them all; But it is Personal; To Beget, and not to be Begotten, belongs to the Father as He is Father, Psal. 3.7. I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my son, this day have I begotten thee. Hence, though' He is not the Fountain of the Deity, yet He is the Original of the Persons, and the Fountain of all Blessedness: Eph. 1.3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.

2. GOD the Son is a Divine Person Begotten of the Father. See, Joh. 1.14. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father) —. Heb. 1.5. For unto which of the Angels said • e at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son. Prov. 8.24, 25. When there were no depths, I was brought forth: when there were no fountains abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled; before the hills was I brought forth. Passive Generation is the Son's Manner of Subsisting; and hence to be Begotten, and not to Beget is his Relative Property: For this reason he is called The Bright Image of his Father's Person, Heb. 1.3. The word signifies a derived Light: For though' as He is God, He is of Himself; yet an He is Son, He is of the Father.

3. THE Holy Ghost is a Divine Person Proceeding from the Father and Son. Joh. 14.26. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Chap. 15.26. But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth which preceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me. It is hard for us to conceive of the Difference between the Nature of the Son's Generation, and the Spirit's Procession; But this the Scripture certifies us of, that as the Son is from the Father alone, so the Spirit is from Them Both; and for this reason He is not only called the Spirit of the Father, but of the Son too, Rom. 8.9. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. Gal. 4.6. And because ye are sons, God hath sent the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Procession therefore is His Manner of Subsisting; and His Relative Property is to Proceed from Both.

Hence.

II. THAT wherein they Differ one from the other, is especially in these Three Things;

• 1. THEY Differ in the Order of their Original in the Divine Nature. And that is in one Persons being from another; For according to their Processions and Relations, such is their Order; The Father is the First, &c. And we may not invert this Order: The Father is not of Another, and Another is from Him; The Son is of Another, and from him together with the Father, is Another; The Holy Ghost is from Others, viz. The Father and Son, and from Him is not Another; which Order is not an Order of Duration, or Dignity, or Causality, nor Nature; But only of Original.
• 2. THEY differ in their Personal Properties. i. e. Those Incommunicable Properties which belong to one Person, and not to any of the other: From whence it follows that one Person cannot be another; The Father cannot be the Son, &c. Tho' he that hath seen the Son, hath seen the Father, Joh. 14.9.
• 3. THEY differ in their Manner of Working: Because that flows from their Manner of Subsisting: The Father worketh of Himself, the Son from the Father, the Holy Ghost from both Father and Son, Joh. 5.19. Then answered Jesus, and said unto them, Verily verily I say unto you, the Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. Ch. 16.13. Howbeit, when he the Spirit of truth is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come.

Thirdly, THEIR Unity and Parity in the God-head.

I. THEIR Unity: They are One God, the same in Substance: This is evident from the Consideration of Two Things.

• 1. THAT God is but One pure and individed Essence. That there is but One God hath been already proved; and to this Oneness of His belongs the Simplicity of his Essence, that it admits of no Division; There can be no Partition made in the God-head, because it hath no Parts neither potential nor actual.
• 2. THAT these Three Divine Persons are all of them God. This also hath full and clear Evidence from Scripture-Testimony: That Person, to whom the Titles, Names, and Incommunicable Attributes and Works of God are ascribed in Scripture, He is God. All these we shall find asserted of Each of these Persons in particular.

1. CONCERNING the Father. In the Old Testament, Gen. 1.2. So Psal 33.6. i. e. in respect of the Spirit: And in the New Testament, Rom. 15.6. 1. Tim. 1.2, 17. Chap. 6.15, 16. Matth. 19.17. 2. Cor. 6.18. But because none but Atheists question the Father's Deity, no more need be said of that.

2. CONCERNING God the Son. The Scripture holds forth his Deity plentifully: In the Old Testament He is called, JEHOVAH, Gen. 18.14, 17, 20. Eternal, Psal. 110.4. Prov. 8.12. to 31. Omnipotent, Isa. 9.6. Judge, Gen. 18.25. The Object of Divine Worship, Psal. 45.11. God from Eternity, Joh. 1.1. Blessed Eternally, Rom. 9.5. Creator, Heb. 1.2, 10. Eternal Governor, Ver. 8. Wrought Miracles in his own Name, Luk 5.13. Knows the Heart, Chap. 6.8. Forgiveth Sin, Matth. 9.2,—6. Col. 1.14. And is Equal with God, Phil. 2.6.

3. CONCERNING God the Holy Ghost. In the Old Testament, He Co-operates with the Father, Gen. 1.2. Creation is ascribed to Him, Psal. 33.6. He gives Understanding, Job 82 8. In the New Testament, Baptism is in his Name, Matth. 28.19. And so is Blessing, 2 Cor. • 3.14. Believers Bodies are His Temple, 1 Cor. 6.19. And He Regenerates, Joh. 3.5.

HENCE therefore Everyone of them possesseth the whole Divine Essence entirely.

II. THEIR Parity: They are Equal in Power and Glory. And this follows from the former: For if they be all the same God, they must be so; For God is not above or below Himself. Hence that, Phil. 2.6. Who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God. And Joh. 5.23. That all men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. — If they are Co-essential, they must be Co-equal. And there are several Things in which this Equality appears:

• 1. THEY are Equal in Existence; being Coexistent; Joh. 14.11. Believe me, that I am in the Father, and the Father in me—. They are one in another, and one is as much God as the other: Each is God of Himself, and not God of God: Ones Subsistence is not derived from another's Essence; For if so, then the Son should Beget Himself, and the Spirit Breath Himself.
• 2. THEY are Equal in Duration. They are Co-eternal. Each is God, and God is not Older than Himself: Everyone is from Everlasting to Everlasting, and there are no Ages in ••• nity, Joh. 1.1, 2. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. Isa. 9.6. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of peace.
• 3. THEY are Equal in Operation: All the Works of Efficiency are done by them jointly: They are all the Works of God; flowing from the Essence, which they are alike concerned in: All Three made the World, Psal. 33.6. By the word of the Lord were the heavens made: and all the host of them by the Breath of his mouth. Christ doth the same Works that the Father doth; Joh. 5.19. — For what things soever He doeth, thes • also doeth the Son likewise.
• 4. THEY are Equal in Honor: Divine Honor is due to them all, and that alike; Joh. 5.23. — All men should honor the Son, even • they honor the Father. — They are all to • Sought or Prayed to, to be Trusted in, to have all Divine Perfections ascribed to them: • are beholden to them all Equally for our Salvation; and therefore, we owe each of them an Equal Acknowledgment of it.

USE 1. THE Doctrine of the Trinity shows us the Sufficiency of God for our Happiness, all only as we are Creatures, but also as we are Sinners. It then may well be brought under the Head of Al-sufficiency. As he is God all those Oceans of Goodness are in Him, that can fi • the most enlarged Desires of our Souls, and make them to run over; And as He is Three Persons, He is suitable to bring poor Apost ••• Men to the Enjoyment of Communion with Himself in these inexhaustible Treasures of Goodness. The Father may be pleased with us, the S •• can please Him, the Spirit can apply the S ••• Satisfaction to us: Man in Integrity might be happy in the Enjoyment of One God; 〈◊〉 Fallen Men cannot be recovered without a Trinity.

Hence,

USE 2. BE we all Exhorted to labor after a distinct Knowledge of the Trinity. To move you to it Consider,

1. THIS Knowledge is necessary to Salvation. One God in Three Persons is the Object of o •• Faith; and to know Him so, is our Life, Joh. 17. • And this is life eternal, that they might know th •• the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom th •• hast sent. The Knowledge of God the Father is necessary, Joh. 1.18. No men hath seen God • any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. Of the Son, 1 Joh. 5.20. And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding that we may know him that is true: and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life. Of the Holy Ghost, Rom. 8.9. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And the Reason is, because God heareth none but such as come in the Name of Christ; and by the He •• of the Spirit.

2. THIS Knowledge will establish you against damnable Heresies, which Carnal Reason hath •• truded on Man: Such as those of the Antetrinitarians, the Trithe ••• s, the Arians & S • cinians.

3. WE cannot perform True Worship to God without this. Divine Worship is due to Everyone of these Persons: But how shall They be worshipped by us, if we do not Know them?

4. THIS Knowledge will confirm us in the Belief of the Scriptures. We know the Word of God to be True, upon Divine Testimony; The Word of God, is the Basis of our Faith & Hope; It is needful then that we be confirmed in the Verity of it: And by this Knowledge we find that there are Three Witnesses, 1 Joh. 5.7. For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And see Jo • . • .12,—18.

5. THIS Knowledge is necessary to our Communion with God. Those that have true Fellowship with him, have it with One God in Three Persons, 1 Joh 1.3. That which we have seen and heard, declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. 2 Cor. 13.14. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all: Amen. It is by the Son that we come to the Father; and the Holy Ghost brings us to Christ. And if we desire to have a right Conception of these things, we must veil Carnal Reason, and hearken to the Word of God, and content ourselves with studying what that reveals of this Mystery.

USE 3. BE we also advised, if we desire to be truly happy, to labor to make sure of an Interest in this One God in Three Persons. Let us cease from vain Creatures, which can neither deliver us from Misery, nor make us Happy: But here is all Communicable Glory to be derived to the Soul: One God in Three Persons, is a sufficient Portion for all Souls: If we can come to enjoy God Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, we are Blessed forever. Let us then ascribe all Glory hither, and expect all Happiness from hence; that Unity in a Trinity, from whom we derived our Being, unto whom we owe our Lives and all that we have and are, and at whose Hands we only can receive our Eternal Felicity.

SERMON XXXII.

OUR Catechism having given an Account of God's Alsufficiency, appearing in his Essence and Subsistences; is now passing over to the Consideration of his Alefficiency; And for an Introduction hereinto, gives us a View of the Decree: And here indeed is the true and proper Place for the Doctrine of it to be Methodically handled; because we look upon God as a Rational or Intelligent Agent, and Wise Artificer, who will have an Idea of his Works before him: • therefore God works in Time, we presuppose that he Purposed so to do before Time. Our Catechism puts a Plural Word upon this Act of God, calling it his Decrees; not with respect to God Decreeing, for in Him it is one Eternal Act, as we may hear; but with reference to the Things Decreed, which are man fold and uncountable by us We may he • e in the First place Consider the Evidence, that there is such a Decree, and then Enquire into the Nature of it, as the Word of God hath given us Light to discover it.

First, THAT there is a Divine Decree, will appear, more particularly from Two Evidences.

1. FROM the Works of Efficiency: If there be any Works done by God, then there was a Decree for the doing of them: It is proper to a Cause by Counsel, and such we conceive God to be, to deliberate and conclude before he Acts: Rashness and Incogitancy are Defects, and not the Commendations of a Rational Agent: If therefore God doth all He purposed to do all; unless we will say that He doth He neither knows nor regards what; which would contradict that Infinite Wisdom which is in Him: Hence that assertion, Eph. 1.11. — Who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will.

2. FROM the Consideration of his Omnipotency. When we consider that the Works of God wrought in Efficiency, are not natural and necessary, but Voluntary and Contingent; He was under no Compulsion to make a World, He did it for his Pleasure, Rev. 4.11. — For thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created; And then remember that he is able to do every Work of Power, and therefore hath not gone to the utmost of his Ability, but there was the Residue of the Spirit with Him; it saith that there must be something that made a Partition between the Possible Beings, which never shall actually be, and those Future Things that shall in Time have Existence; and what could that be but the Decree? inasmuch as they wholly depend on his Will.

Secondly, IN the Consideration of the Nature of the Decree; We may take up with the several Parts of the Description given in the Answer; in which we have,

1. A 〈◊〉 General Account of it; it is His Eternal Purpose; and this includes all: Here is,

1. SOMETHING in which it agrees with other Decrees; it is His Purpose: Now a Purpose signifieth a fixed, resolved, determinate Resolution about a Thing. It is therefore said to be settled, Psal. 119.89. For ever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven. A Purpose is opposed to Irresolution, and Indetermination, when a Thing is under Deliberation: But He is resolved, He knows his own Thoughts, Jer. 29.11. For I know the thot's that I think towards you, saith the Lord —.

2. SOMETHING in which it differs, viz. It is Eternal: In God we conceive some Acts to be Immanent, some to be Transient; To the Former of which his Decree appertains: It must needs therefore be Eternal: God never was without this Decree; It is therefore said to be Forever, Psal. 119.89. Else there would be a Change in God, which is contrary to his Nature, Mal. 3.6. For I am the Lord, I change not.—

II. A more Particular Account of this: In which,

(1.) THE Subject of the Decree; or the the Things decreed; Whatsoever comes to pass; i. e. All that is wrought in his Efficiency: The Decree involves every Thing in it, and hath left nothing uncertain as to that; It extends itself to all Effects and Events; Eph. 1.11. It reacheth to Sparrows, Matth. 10.29. And Hairs, Ver. 30. To Goards and Worms, Joh. 4. And as it neglects not the Least things, so it orders the Greatest; all Changes in Kingdoms and Monarchies, Dan. 4.32. And things most Eventual, Prov. 16.33. The lot is cast into the lap: but the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord. Yea, even the Arbitrary Contingent Actions of Reasonable Creatures, Acts 2.23. Him being delivered by the determinate counsel & foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified & slain.

(2.) THE Influence which this Decree hath upon the Subject; it Fore-ordains Them; it Pre-determines Them. There are a vast Company of Possible Beings in the Knowledge or Understanding of God; the Decree appoints which of them shall be; and therefore by it they pass from Possibility to Futurition: And it appoints, not only their Being, but the Manner of their Production, the Time, the Means; and all this Before-hand: Hence that Acts 2.23. and Chap. 4.27, 28. For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel were gathered together, For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done. And this Ordination is a Firm and Immutable Determination; and therefore in the Execution of them God's Constancy discovers itself: In all that He doth, he stands by his Decree: What He hath once purposed he never alters, or goes from in the least, Numb. 23.19. God is not a man, that he should lie, neither the son of man that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken and shall he not make it good? (Rom. 11.29. Psal. 102.27.) Prov. 19.21. There are many devices in a man's heart; nevertheless the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand. And the Reason of it will anon appear.

(3.) THE Freedom or Liberty which God used in making this Decree; He did it according to the Counsel of his Will, Eph. 1.11. And here are Two Perfections or Attributes of God, which eminently appear in this Decree:

[1.] HIS Counsel; in which his Infinite Wisdom appears: Counsel in our Conception, is necessary to a Decree, which cannot be well made without it: And God is a Cause by Counsel: The Decree is therefore frequently called by this Name: And it may be th •• Described,

IT is His Eternal Deliberation with Himself, concerning the Best Way of effecting his own Designs.

1. IT is a Deliberation: This is after the Manner of Men; who in Consulting do Deliberate about Matters: And though' God knew from Eternity, and at first Sight, what was Best, yet is He brought in Deliberating, Gen. 1.26. And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness, &c.

2. IT is an Eternal Deliberation: For his Decrees are Eternal Projects, Acts 15.18. known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world. 1. Cor. 2.7. But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the world unto our glory. These were past before Time had any Existence.

3. IT is with Himself: For in that Eternity there was no other to consult with but Himself; nor needed there any, He comprizing all Wisdom in Himself: All second Beings were • be the Product of this Counsel, and there • none of them could be at it.

4. IT was concerning the Best Way of effecting his Designs. In all Counsels there is an End • Design propounded; and that which is the Question is, How this may be Best brought about? So that the Nature of Counsel properly, is to be employed about the Means, though' always with an Eye or respect to the End. God hath many Ways in which he could have brought about his Ends; but his Wisdom sets itself • work, to contrive that which may Best 〈◊〉 them.

NOW in this Counsel, God contrives in his Mind an Eternal Idea of all things that are to be. God having a Work to do, in the Creation and Gubernation of the World; lays out the W ••• Scheme of it in his Infinite Understanding, in which he hath a Pattern of the Whole World, and everything in it: And this Idea must be Eternal, because Time, and all the Things of it are contrived in it, Acts 15.18. Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world. And there is a vast Depth of Wisdom in it, Rom. 11.33. O the depth of the riches both of the wis ••• and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways post finding out! There is a Double Knowledge we ascribe to God; a Knowledge of his Alsufficiency, by which he knows his own Power, and what he can do; and in this are comprised all Possible Beings: And a Knowledge of his Decree, which is called a Knowledge of Vision, in which he knows all Future Things; and this is in Scripture called his Fore-knowledge, Rom. 8.29. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son. And hitherto belongs this Idea, which is nothing else but a knowing of what he inte ••• to do: For though' in Men, the Things are the Idea, and their Knowledge is nothing else but the Image of the Things; yet in God his Knowledge is the Idea and the Things are the Image: They are the first in his Mind before they are in themselves: N •• this Idea, is but One in God; at One Perfect and Eternal View, he clearly sees • Things that are to be, without any successive 〈◊〉 : They all stand before Him at once; For in seeing Himself he sees all Things: And put as it hath a diverse respect to the Creature, so it is manifold; so that the Idea or Rule of one Creature, is not the Idea of another; and for this reason it is called, The manifold wisdom of God, Eph. 3.10. It extends not only to the Kinds and Natures of Things, but to every Individual in each Kind, and every Action and Change that belongs to it: It counts every Drop of Rain, Hail, Snow that shall fall, where and when; Every Thought that comes into the Mind of every Creature; and there is not the most minute Thing that escapes it; Psal. 139.2, 3. The • knowest my down • t •• ng, and mine up-rising, thou understandest my thought afar • ff. Thou compassest my path, and my • ying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.

[2] HIS Good Pleasure. For though Counsel be used in the Preparation of a Decree, yet the Will exerts itself in the Fixing of it: The Authority of that Signs and Seals it, and • makes it a Decree: And of this, we may take this Description:

IT is An Act of God's Will, most freely and 〈◊〉 determining in Himself, concerning the ••• ecting of all Things. Here observe,

1. IT is an Act of God's Will; i. e. according to our Conception, 1 Pet. 3.17. though' it be improper; For in God, the Faculty and Act are one. But it implies he hath an Intention: The will •• ts the Understanding on work, by intending a Thing which it will have that contrive •• d so the Will is the First Mo • er: As also a Determination, when the Way contrived by the Understanding is approved by the Will; That determines nothing, but leaves it to This, which • etting its Ro • all Signet to it makes it Authentic: For though God be Omniscient, yet he is not Omni ••• ent; It is therefore called his Determinate Counsel, Acts 2.23.

2. THIS Will of God is most Fr •• & Sovereign God acted in the Decree with the greatest Liberty: He acted not by Necessity; For there is no Dependance of the Being of God upon that of the Creature: He might have done as well without those that be, as without those: Possible 〈◊〉 , that shall never be: Nor hath He any Obligation to the Creature, which He willed to • : If God had never willed the Creature to be, He had not injured it in the least; being no otherwise obliged than as he hath 〈◊〉 Himself, Rom. 11.34, 35.— Or who hath 〈◊〉 his counselor? Or who hath first given to 〈◊〉 — And if he had not been • r • e; there had been no room for Counsel: Necessary Things must be, and therefore need no Deliberation 〈◊〉 them.

3 THIS Will of God is most Efficacious. This Decree, by reason of it, puts a certain Fu • into things, Psal. 135.6. Whatsoever the Lord pleased, that did he in heaven, and in earth, • the se • s, and all deep places. His Will •• ngs all Things ordained by Him into Actual Existence in the due Season, without fail: His Operative Will doth but say, Let such Things be, and they are, Gen. 1.

4. HENCE this Will of God, is the First, Cause of all Things. If the Reason of the Being of Things be followed up to the Top, we must find it in the Decree; and in that we shall find them to have been determined by God's Will; Instrumental and 〈…〉 Causes there may be many, which he Wills to improve in the Execution of his Decree; But this is the highest cause of all: Hence was the Creation, Rev 4.11. The • art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory, and honor and power: 〈◊〉 thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are, and were created, The New-birth. Ja • . 1.18. Of his own will 〈…〉 us by the word of truth —.The Application of Mercy, Rom 9.18. Therefor • hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will, he • ardeweth. Hence He is guided by no Provision in the Creature.

5. HENCE the Will of God is without Cause; or there can no proper Reason be given why he Wills: I mean any Thing without Himself, determining his Will: There can be nothing greater than the Will of God, for it is Infinite; Nor before it, for it is Eternal. Matth. 11.25, 26. At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank th •• , O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, • o cause thou hast 〈◊〉 th • se things from the wise and ponders, and hast revealed there was a ••• es. 〈◊〉 • o Father, for so it secured good in thy sight. There may be a Reason of God's Will given, in respect of the Creature willed; He may Will the Existence of One for Another, and all have their Ends; so that if we ask why God made the 〈◊〉 , &c. But if we ask what moved and inclined God's Will, &c. we must say, Nothing but his Will.

6. THE Object of this Decreeing Will, is all Things in Efficiency. It concerns the effecting of all things; There is nothing escapes it, as we have already heard.

7. THIS Will makes the Decree unalterable. It engageth God in Constancy to see to the Execution of all Things just as they 〈◊〉 determined: Hence that, Job 23.13. But he is in one mind, and who can t • r • him? and when his soul desireth, even that he doeth. It therefore cannot, shall not be frustrated: If anything have post under this Act, it stands ratified, and God abides firm by it, and all the Creation shall not turn him away, Isa. 43.1 • . Yea, before the day was, I am b • ; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand: I will work, and who shall let it?

8. YET this Will lays • o forcible Necessity o • the Creature; but only a Certainty as to the 〈◊〉 . Things shall be as it hath determined; and yet the Freedom of Causes by Counsel is no whit infringed by it, but ratified; because in it, God hath purposed that Free Agents shall Act freely: As to the Event, Christ's Bones could not be broken, and yet there was no Necessity Cogent laid on the Soldiers.

(4.) THE Great & Univerts End of the 〈◊〉 ; it is for h • s own Glory. Every Wise •• nt hath an End in is Working, and that •• d is in his Eye when he lays out his Work: •• w else shall he be able to accommodate it •• ght? For that being to be a Mean to the End, ••• ot be so without a suitableness for it: Now 〈◊〉 there are several subordinate Ends of Crea ••• es, one being made for another; yet all and very one of them are ultimately for God: That ••• d made all for himself is certain, Prov. 16.4. 〈◊〉 Lord •• th ma • e all things for himself: yea, even the worked for the day of evil. And if so, then He purposed thus to do: God is the Best Agent, and must have the Best End: end there can be Nothing better than His G •••• : This then is that to which other ends are but means: Hither then all God's Designs drive; Eph. 1.5, 6. Having predestinated us unto the ••• p • i • n of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his well, To the praise of the glory of his grace—. And therefore the Wisdom of all is to be judged of according as it serves to the Advancement of this.

USE 1. INFORMATION, Learn hence,

1. THAT there are no Events Casual in resped of God. To us it is true, Time & Chance happen to all Things: They come to pass by unseen Ways, and unknown Accidents: But in respect of God it is not so: There can Nothing fall out either besides his Knowledge or Intention; For it is his Decree that gives Being to all Events, and the Things that are, had never been if he had not Purposed them; Joseph 's Vendition into Egypt had not come to pass, if God had not Fore-ordained it, &c. Gen. 45.5, 7. Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with year selves, that ye sold me • ither: for God did send me before you, to preserve life.— And God sent me before you, to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.

2. THAT all Things that come to pass, are the Product of Infinite Wisdom. God doth all, and he doth it according to Counsel. We are ready to find some Flaw in God's Providence, and think we could mend many things; but remember, all Things are ordered by the Counsel, not of Men or Angels, but of God, who doth nothing rashly: The highest and most dreadful Wheels are full of Eyes, Ezek. 1.18. As to the Creature, sometimes Things might have been better, Matth. 26.24. The son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed: it had been good for that man if be had not been born. But as to the Great End, which swallows up all else, viz. The Glory of God, all is best; and if we do not see it, it is our Ignorance.

3. THAT no Decrees of God can be Unrighteous, but all are Just & Holy. His Sacred and Divine Will 〈◊〉 the Rule of the Decree 〈◊〉 is also the Rule of all things. He who W •• s things because they seem Good in his s • ght, and is not any way accountable; He w • se Will is Supreme and Holy: He cannot errors do amiss. It is therefore Impudent B •• dness for us to find Fault with Him for anything

USE 2. LET the Doctrine of the D • r • s, teach us these Pr ••• cal L •••• s:

1. TO see our Nothingness witho •• God; How out of Him we are Nothing: It was him Decree that gave us ou • Being: He accounts 〈◊〉 Nothing. Isa. 4 • .15, 1 • ••• id, the 〈◊〉 was are as a • r • p of a ••• ket, ••• d are ••• ted at the s ••• dust of the because: behold be •• keth of the 〈◊〉 as a very little thing.—All 〈◊〉 was before him are • s • th •• g; and they are ••••• ed to him • ess then nothing, and vanity. Let us c •• nt ourselves so. As Creatures we are •• cer Effects of his Good Pleasure: When we are listed up in Ourselves, let us look on the Possible E ••• gs, which never shall be, and remember it is the Decree that put all the Difference between Us and Them: We came from Nothing, and had been Nothing still, but for this.

2. TO above the Wisdom of God in 〈◊〉 Things that fall out in the World, and that bes •• U • in particular. We are apt to Cavil; but remember, Infinite Counsel ordered them; That satisfied Him, Job 23.14. For be p • rjorm ••• the thing thus is appointed for we: and many s ••• things are with him. The Reason why we s • not the Wisdom of them, is, Partly because being Creatures we cannot fathom the Wisdom of the Creator: and as sinful Creatures we are b •• nd and prejudiced: Partly because we forget the End they ultimately aim at, and measure them by such as we allot them; and Partly that Pride, having an high Opinion of our own Wisdom, which is indeed Foolishness.

3. TO Sanctify God in all our Changes: Let us to this End acknowledge his hand in all; neither ascribing them to Chance, as if they fell out beside the Intention of the First Cause, which is a Blasphemy against Providence; nor looking too much upon Instruments, either in Good 〈◊〉 Evil, forgetting their Absolute Sub • rdinacy 〈◊〉 the First Cause, but acknowledge his and, sending and disposing of all: And let us Acknowledge his Sovereign Prerogative to Order all 〈◊〉 he sees meet; that He is Lord, and hath a Liberty to determine of all Things at Pleasure: And hence learn quietly to Submit to the all-disposing hand of God: Let that silence us in every Thing, It is the Lord's Will: Psal. 38.13, 14. and 39.9. Remember, He is the Potter, and we are the Clay, &c.

4. TO Commend all to Him; not anxiously fearing what may come to pass; believing all shall be as He hath in Wisdom appointed.

SERMON XXXIII.

WE have heard, That the Decrees of God relate to such things as come to pass in Time; in this Decree therefore we are to consider its Constitution, and its Exec ••••• : 〈◊〉 former hath been taken notice of under the foregoing Question; the latter comprehends in it the whole Work of Efficiency; a Distribution of which out present Answer affords us; and gives us the occasion to look into the thing itself, whereof this Distribution is made, • e. God's Efficiency; of which take this Description: IT is that whereby God worketh things, & • li in •• l • bengs. What God fore-ordained in his Decree, that be brings to pass in his Works; these therefore are of an equal latitude. Efficiency signifies the thorough doing of a thing. Every Being or Thing is a Work of God, and claim's Him for the doer of it.

I. CONCERNING the general Nature of Efficiency, take these Conclusions.

1. THE Efficient is a Cause from which the thing is. For he communicates his Virtue unto the Effect. As Christ once said, Virtue is gone •• t from me; so God, in all his Works, sends out Virtue from Himself, and communicates it to the Creature; so that all things are vert • ally in Him as their Efficient cause; as, Rom. 11.36. Of him, and thro' him, and to him 〈◊〉 all things—.

2. THE Work of the Efficient is to Prepare the Matter, bring in the Form, and Finish the Thing; so making it fit for the attainment of his End. Thus • s see in Artificial Works, as of the Carpenter in building an House; &c. And thus God doth Work Artificially in all the things that be doth.

3. EFFICIENCY is not an Immanent Act remaining in God, but Transient, falling upon an external Subject, and leaving an Impression or Change upon that. This Act leaves no Change in God; He is the same he was; it only adds a Relation to Him, which he bears to the Effect; the only Change is in the Subject, which by it passeth from Not-being, to Being; and so to such a Being.

II. AS to the special Nature of Efficiency, take these two things, in the Description.

1. IT is that whereby God Works All things. He Works all kinds of things, great and small: His Finger is in everything; there is nothing done in the World but he is the doer of it, Eph. 1.11. — He worketh all things —. If we look all ev •• the World, and see anything effected or made: any operation wr •• g •• or thing brought to pass: we may say as the ••• g •• ians once. This is the Finges of • nd. 〈◊〉 had his • a • d in it, or it had never been done.

2. NOT only 〈◊〉 but he Works Ast 〈◊〉 •• l things: 1 Cor. 12.6. 〈◊〉 the some God, which worketh all i • 〈◊〉 i. e. The •• ole Efficiency of all things Depends upon the First Cause; not only as to their Substantial Beings, but also as to the real Circumstances thereof, Isa. 45.7. I form the Light; and create Darkness: I make Fence, and create Ex • l; I the Lord 〈◊〉 all these things. All that concerns the Time, Place, Event, Success, &c. are ordered and wrought by Him; He himself drives the great a •• whose Trade of all the World; being the Cause of all Causes, and First mover of everything that moves; Acts 17.2 • . In Him we live, were • nd have • ur being.

NOW that God is such an Efficient is worth our proving, that so our Faith being send 〈◊〉 upon it, may make suitable Improvement of • o great and momentous a Truth: and this will • ppear if we consider.

1. THAT all Beings or Things are l • e ••• •• tical, they can do nothing without the conco •• se of His Power & Efficiency. If we speak of them, as Not being; (and once they were not) what can, what could the thing. (having no Existence, not any remote principle of Essence,) contribute to its own Being, then it never thought of itself, not was anything; not having so much as a Material Cause, out of which it might be made? Or if we speal: of the Creatures 〈◊〉 ready Made, being now is Act; there is a first Mover and Cause of their Actions and Operations about themselves without which they can do nothing: All Creatures are dead Cyphers, of no signification, except the Influence of God adds a Figure to them; if He mov • s them not, they lie dead, and cannot stir; they are as Pictures and Idols, that can let out no Efficacy, except he acts upon them. Sometimes the Sea flows not, and Sun shines not, the Fire doth not burn: and the Reason is because he withdraws His Efficacy from them; they are all nothing and vanity; Isa. 40.17. All nations before him are us nothing, and they are courted to him seft than nothing, and vanity.

2. IF we consider His Sovereign Acting and Oratring of every Motion of the Creature, and that whether Natural or Moral. Here mind two things:

• (1.) HE can Interpose & Prevent the Motion of the Creature, when He Will. That he doth so, shows that he can; & we have Instances sufficient for it; See for this, Job 9.7. He commandeth the Sun, and it riseth not; and sea • eth up the St •• s. Psal. 106.9. He rebuked the Red Sea else, and it was dried up. Many such Acts as these have been done at the Exercise of the Faith of his People; divers whereof are montioned in Heb. 11. particularly v. 33, 34.
• (2.) THE Creatures, when they do act, are always at His Command. They do just what He bids them, and no more, or otherwise: Psal. 78.26. He caused on east wind to blow in the heaven: and by his power he brought in the south • ind, &c. He is therefore said to be the Father of all these Effects, Job 38.18, 29. Hath the rain a father? or who bath begotten the drops of the d ••• ? Out of whose too •• b came the Ice? and the hoary frost of heaven, who bath gendred it? And they all are at his Word, and fulfill it, Ver. 31. Psal. 148.8. And how can this be ascribed to Him, but in regard of His prevalent and predetermining Efficiency? He who doth this, must needs be acknowledged the First Mover.

3. IF we take a particular Account of things, we shall discern that this Efficiency is in them all, and that their whole Dependance is upon it. And this will appear, hath,

1. IN the Production of all things. Whatsoever is made, He made it. All things are the Workmanship of His Hands, Effects which he hath produced by the Word of his Power, Gen. • 1.1 Isa. 40.26. & 41.4. He made us, and not we ourselves. If we were made, we had a Maker, and there was none could make the Creature but He; besides whom there was none, when the Creature was not. And,

2. IN the Ordering of Management of the things that are produced by Him. In all the carrying on of the Affairs of the whole World, He is All in All; and his Hand is in everything:

• (1.) IN the very Smallest things that are. There is not so much as a Sparrow falls to the ground, but it is according as He disposeth it, it is not without Him; and the very Hairs of our head are all numbered by Him Matth. 10.29, 30 There is not a Goard grows, nor a Worm that eats it, but it is according as he Orders it; Jonah 4.6, 7. He hath an Hand in the very Birds building their Nests, and disposeth thereof as he pleaseth. Psal. 104.17, 18
• (2.) IN the Greatest things that are. As the Least are not beneath Him, so the Greatest are not above Him: All the high Wheels in the World are turned about by his Hand. All the translations of Kingdoms, desolations brought upon Dominions, and ruefull versions of Thrones, are the work of his Pleasure; He doth all this; Jer. 27.5 6, 7. Dan. 4.32.1 Sam. 2.5, 6. All the risings and fallings of great Men are done by Him; Isa. 40.20, 23. Psal. 76.12. He shall cut off he spirit of Princes, He is terrible to the Kings of the earth.
• (3.) IN the most Eventuous things that be. Things which seem to us to be most Casual, and to have no pre-disposal, He is the determining Agent in all these. We may instance in Lots; Men cast them, and there is a Contingency in them; as to anything in second Causes, there is no Disecretion of the Creature in the direction of them; yet are these wisely over-ruled by Him, and he makes them Decide matters just as he had before Purposed; Prov. 16.33. The Lot is cast into the jap, but the whole disposing thereof is of the Lord. Thus the Lot fell upon • chan, upon Saul, &c. And this also is eminent in the Determination He puts upon things that are done without Counsel, to make them so fulfill his Counsel; thus in the Arrow that slow Abah, 1 Kings 23.34. God is said to deliver a Man into his hand, that kills another accidentally, • xed. 21.13.
• (4.) IN all the Evils that do befall the Children of Men: God challengeth this to himself, Amos 3.6. Shall there he Evil in the City, and the Lord hath not done it? And the things that are most Eventuous in themselves, yet they are Purposely and Deliberate y done by God; and He Connected all the things which produce such an Event. If a Tile fall from a House, and slay a Man, God brought him thither in the instant. And indeed, it all these things are fore appointed by God, 〈◊〉 we before heard proved; then He hath an hand in the fulfilling of his Purpose; & this Joh gives Him the free Acknowledgment of, in everything that he met withal; Joh 23.14. For 〈◊〉 performeth the thing that is appointed for me.
• (5.) IN the disposing of the freest Actions of the freest Creatures, viz. Angels and Men. These are Causes by Counsel, of their own Actions; they have a free Will of their own, but yet He doth all here too. He preserves this Will of theirs, or else it could not exert itself at all; and He inclines it too, to be sure to all that is Good; there is never a good motion in it, but He put it in, Psal. 119.33, 34. Yea He hath an hand also about Sin, though without Sin: He hardens the heart, and blinds the Mind; Exod. 14.8. and Rom. 11.8. God ha •• given them the Spirit of slumber, Eyes that they should not see. He useth them as Tools, or Instruments, to Work his Pleasure by, in the World, and makes their Wrath serve his Praise &c. Psal. 76.10. Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee—. They mean one thing, and He another; and whilst they pursue their own Designs, they only Accomplish His; Isa. 10 6.1. I will send him against an hypocritical nations and against the people of my wrath will I give h ••• a charge to take the spoil, and to take the prey and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. Howbeit, be meaneth not so —. And if all these Works belong to God, then needs must Al-sufficiency belong to Him; He must be Acknowledged to Work all, and in all. And it is 〈◊〉 be observed, that in all things, God keeps His Eye fixed upon His Decree: Efficiency is nothing else but His executing of that; it doth neither more, nor less, nor otherwise. He is said to do whatsoever he willed or pleased, which Will or Pleasure of His is not an occasional thing, as Men's Pleasures are: but it is Himself, from Eternity, Fixed, and Immutable; which is His Decree.

NOW our Answer given us a full, general Distribution of this Efficiency, giving us the two Heads, to which all that can be mentioned, as relating to it, must be reduced. All the External Works of God belong hither; God gives a le • ng to all things that are; and having made them He takes Care of them, and Provides for them, Orders and manageth them to the Ends and Porposes they were made for. The Creature could not make itself; a meet Nonentity could not reduce itself into a Being, but must have remained Nothing forever, if he had not given it Existence: and when it is made, it is as little able to Maintain its own Being; the same hand that produced it, must set a second hand to it, or else it will return again into Nothing; and under these two we shall find all the Works of God. A distinct inquiry into each of these will be afforded us in pursuance of the following Questions; which will afterwards come under our consideration.

USE 1. HENCE, It is a safe and good way to root Arbersm out of our hearts; and confirm us in the Belief that there is a God, to study much the Dodrine of Efficiency. The Apostle tells us, That the invisible God, is seen and known by visible things, i. e. Acts of Creation and Providence, Rom. 1.19, 20. And the Psalmift read the Declaration of His God-head in His Works, Psal. 86 10. For thou art great and • oest wondrous things: thou art God alone. There are glorious, mighty and powerful Works wrought which claim no less Wisdom and Power than that of a God to bring them about. The Production of. World, so framed and made; so great, so many, and so curious Beings produced, and all out of Nothing; the great Revolutions and Changes in the World, the wonderful secret movings of those great Wheels; the Concurrence of all things to the bringing about Eternal Projects: Did but the Atheist read these things over in his mind, and well consider of them, he must say, the Finger of God, (not Nature, nor Chance, but the God of Nature,) is in all these things; and the hearts of Christians would be greatly settled against all the Temptations to doubt of the Being of God by this Consideration.

USE 2. HENCE There is much of God to be seen in all the Works which we daily see done in the World. Something of God appears in all; there is no Work which He is not in, no Action which he Orders not; and that, not as a bare Spectator or Supervisor, but an Agent in all. We see and hear of many wonderful Providences, strange Changes that are brought about, stupendous Effects which non-plus our Understandings in the enquiry after the Causes of them: Now, who, or whatever be the Instrument, He is the Efficient; and this is to be observed in every Passage, whether of Kindness shewn us, or Injury done to us, it is the Lord, he bids Shimet to Curse David; and this may teach us to Adore and Worship Him in all, and to sit down quieted under whatsoever befalls us, saying with him, Psal. 39.9. I was dumb, I opened not my muth, because thou didst it.

USE 3. LEARN hence, That it is the Christians Duty to dwell much in the Contemplation of the Efficiency of God. Psal. 66.5. Come and see the works of God. Psal. 77.11.12. I will remember the works of the Lord: surely I will remember thy wonders of old. I will meditate of all thy works. God's Works help his People to Work, in the reviewing of them: And this will serve both to keep the Mind in a Spiritual frame, admiring at the Glory of God, declared in His Works; and to help them to carry it reverently, and fearfully before Him, keeping up an high esteem of Him in their hearts: (All low and mean thoughts of God, proceeding from a want of considering his Works,) and keeping their Souls humble, when by discovering His Infinite Greatness, in the great things that he hath done, they are effectually convinced of their own Littleness, yea Nothingness; that humbled Job, Chap. 38. with 40.41. & 42 5, 6.

USE 4 HENCE God is to be sought to, to work all our works in us, and for us: We, alas! can do nothing of ourselves; and yet we have great Duties lying upon us, but are without Strength; our Operations depend upon him; Phil. 2.13. It is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do, of his good pleasure. Joh. 15.5. — Without me, ye can do nothing. He must set our Wheels on going, else they stand still.

USE 5. HERE is the Reason, why the Saints shall never fail in their Works; because they have an Interest in, and Assistance from Him, who works all things according to the Counsel of His Will. Christ, who is all, and in all,