<!DOCTYPE ETS PUBLIC "-//UMDLPS//DTD EEBOPROOF 2.0//EN">
<ETS>
<TEMPHEAD>
<REVDESCR>
<CHANGE>
<DATE>2012-07-02</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>Olivia Bottum</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
</RESPSTMT>
<ITEM>Did text and markup review.</ITEM>
</CHANGE>
</REVDESCR>
</TEMPHEAD>
<EEBO>
<IDG S="marc" R="UM" ID="A96684">
<STC T="W">W3034</STC>
<STC T="C">R231145</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99896675</BIBNO>
<VID>132570</VID>
</IDG>
<GROUP>
<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>GOD A Chri&s;tian's Choice, Compleated by particular Co|venanting with GOD.</P>
<P>Together with an <HI>APPENDIX,</HI> containing Propo&s;itions, tending to clear up the Lawfulne&s;s, and Expe|diency of tran&s;acting with God in that way.</P>
<P>In pur&s;uit of a De&s;ign propo&s;ed by Mr. <HI>R. A.</HI> in his Book entituled, <HI>The Vindication of Godline&s;s.</HI> And by Mr. <HI>Tho. Vincent,</HI> in his Book, called <HI>Words whereby we may be &s;aved.</HI></P>
<P><HI>To which is added,</HI> A brief Di&s;covery of the nearne&s;s of &s;uch a People unto God, on <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 148.14.</P>
<P>By <HI>SAMUEL VVINNEY,</HI> &s;ometimes Mini&s;ter of the Go&s;pel at <HI>Gla&s;ton</HI> in Somer&s;et&s;hire.</P>
<P><HI>London,</HI> Printed for <HI>Thomas Cockeril</HI> at the <HI>Atlas</HI> in <HI>Cornhil,</HI> near the Royal Exchange, 1675.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="dedication">
<PB REF="2">
<PB REF="2">
<HEAD>To the Wor&s;hipful <HI>John Lane</HI> E&s;quire, Citizen of <HI>London;</HI> together with his Vertuous Yoke fellow, Mris. <HI>Elizabeth Lane, S. W.</HI> wi&s;heth happine&s;s here and hereafter.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Honoured Sir, Madam;</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>GOD's making, and entring into Cove|nant with Man, I look upon as the mo&s;t Conde&s;cending act of Grace, that ever was pa&s;&s;ed to|wards the Sons of Men. That the Almighty God &s;hould form a Man out of the Clay, or Du&s;t, and then take him into Covenant with him&s;elf; It
<PB REF="3">was &s;o high a Dignity vouch|&s;afed, and Conferred, that can hardly enter into our thoughts with &s;ufficient ad|miration: but that when the fir&s;t Covenant was bro|ken, God &s;hould make a new Covenant, and not take the for&s;eiture of the fir&s;t, to his utter undoing, how much more great is his kindne&s;s! It &s;hews the matchle&s;s and unconceiveable love and re|&s;pect that God had to the Sons of men. Methinks the hearts of men &s;hould not (I ble&s;s God I hope I can &s;ay in the &s;implicity of my heart, that I cannot) but, not onely with joy, but exultation humbly adore this his di&s;pen&s;ation towards us. What, that we &s;hould be in &s;uch a Covenant? which is e&s;tabli&s;hed upon bet|ter Promi&s;es, laid on a better
<PB REF="3">Foundation, yea the be&s;t Pro|mi&s;es, and the be&s;t Founda|tion: not only with man, but with him upon the account of the Mediator, a Covenant that &s;hall never be broken; For God will never break it on his part, and he hath un|dertaken that we &s;hall never fin ally fall from it, yea that hee'l pardon all the falls that are out of infirmity from it, that do thereby violate it. Cer|tainly the&s;e expre&s;&s;ions of <HI>taking hold of God's Covenant, and joyning our &s;elves to the Lord in Covenant,</HI> are to my Soul, &s;uch things as are better than a thou&s;and Cordials, to any &s;inking, fainting heart, and through grace do, and &s;hall Experimentally find more &s;olid Satisfactory Comfort in, than in all things in the World; That &s;uch as we are,
<PB REF="4">&s;hould be &s;o highly favoured, and befriended by the Great and Glorious God. Sir, the vindication of the lawfulne&s;s, and expediency of every Chri|&s;tians particular Tran&s;acting with God in this way, is the &s;um of all the middle part, which occa&s;ioned the prefix|ing this foregoing, and the ad|dition of the la&s;t part of this &s;hort Treati&s;e. To your &s;elf and your good Lady do I de|dicate this &s;mall piece, as knowing that you have a through experience of the Truth which is contained in the following &s;heets: And therefore not only upon the account of the honour, I ow you for the Multitude of kindne&s;&s;es, and tokens of faithful love which &s;ince I knew you, I and my whole family have received from
<PB REF="4">your &s;elf, your gracious Lady, yea your whole family; which I &s;hall forbear here to menti|on further, as knowing, that you de&s;ire not any one &s;hould (as you your &s;elf do not) <HI>blow a Trumpet</HI> before you; But for Religion's &s;ake, and that Covenant-relation, in which you and yours &s;tand allyed to God. I know not how to te&s;tifie and render dues of thanks to you, in any other or better way than this; if you &s;hall continue to favour me, in accepting this &s;mall te&s;timony of love, and re&s;pects to your &s;elf, and family, as I know you do not only ap|prove of, but al&s;o are per&s;wa|ded of, and have embraced the Truth, and Priviledges herein pre&s;ented to the World, I have attained the end in this Dedication. Sir, though they
<PB REF="5">are devoid of the Embelli&s;h|ments of large and many Mar|ginal quotations, and the Em|broidery of curious and en|ticing words; yet here are the plain Truths of God which I do the rather pre&s;ent to you, knowing that true of you which is upon record of <HI>Ja|cob,</HI> as his high Commenda|tion, by the Holy Gho&s;t, who though he was a great man, yet he was <HI>a plain Man;</HI> which phra&s;e is no mean Commendation, if we Con|&s;ider the Lord him&s;elf giving it to <HI>Job. chap.</HI> 1.1. with <HI>Gen.</HI> 25.27.<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>Which I cannot better expre&s;s than in the Paraphra&s;e of a Re|verend Divine.</HI> It is of larger &s;ignification than that phra&s;e of ours [a plain man] for that in Common &s;peech noteth one that is &s;imple, and dealeth &s;quarely and evenly, without fraud, deceit, guile, or any tricks in his actions, &s;o may one be and have no great good|ne&s;s in him; but this word is u&s;ed to denote an up|right-hearted man, a truely and intirely Godly man, a perfect man that is good within as well as with|out, and good in all things, at all times, and in all places, one as well as another; one that care|fully follows all the Commandments of God, not gi|ving him&s;elf leave to &s;werve from any of Gods ways at any time. <HI>Mr. Wheatlys Prototype Examp. of Ja|cob. Cap. 26. P. 42.</HI></NOTE> who was a non-&s;uch in his Generation; he
<PB REF="5">was a <HI>perfect and upright man,</HI> &amp;c. yea to the accu&s;ers face, <HI>Job</HI> 2.3. in the &s;ame words. Sir, de&s;iring God to reward all your labour of love to my &s;elf, and all my brethren, which hath not been &s;mall, for quantity or duration, even ever &s;ince I knew you, to my &s;elf. In Te&s;timony of my thankfulne&s;s to you, being well-a&s;&s;ured of this, that your &s;elf, and all yours will very well reli&s;h and accept, and do partake of the things herein treated of and humbly pre|&s;ented to your view, not doubting, but they will be all your portion, I crave leave
<PB REF="6">to Commend them to you, and your &s;elf and yours to the protection of Almighty God, and &s;hall Continue to be,</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Your unfeigned thankful Friend, and Servant in the Go&s;pel. <HI>S. W.</HI></SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="6">
<HEAD>To the Courteous Reader, e&s;pecially the Hearers of the things here pre&s;ented to the publick.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Chri&s;tian and courteous Reader,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>THe Expo&s;ing of the&s;e things to the publick view, was thus occa|&s;ioned: Had not the &s;ubjoined Propo&s;itions been (though at the fir&s;t written for the u&s;e and &s;atisfacton of a pri|vate friend) de&s;ired by many, Mini&s;ters &s;ome, at well as o|thers, to be made publick; I had not been prevailed with, to put the&s;e &s;hort notes before the eyes of the World: but being approved by the Judgment of the Reve|rend
<PB REF="7">Author of <HI>Vindiciae Pieta|tis,</HI> and another Ancient and able Divine, who&s;e joint &s;uffrage I looked on as a &s;ufficient encou|ragement to it; and indeed with|out the Con&s;ent of Mr. <HI>R. A.</HI> I &s;hould never have yielded to it, looking upon it as a thing too &s;ancy, and pragmatical with|out him, to adventure &s;o to do, the thing vindicated being fir&s;t expo&s;ed and propo&s;ed in his fore|named Book. And &s;ith I heard, that that way of tran&s;acting with God was que&s;tioned by &s;ome o|thers, both before, and &s;ince they were expo&s;ed to his judicious Con&s;ideration; Some looking on it as a new kind of Covenant between God and his people, whereas it is but the &s;ame Cove|nant, more particularly applyed and laid hold on; I thought it meet, as I was encouraged to pro|po&s;e what meditations I had di|ge&s;ted
<PB REF="7">for the &s;atisfaction of their judgments, and preventing tho&s;e mi&s;apprehen&s;ions they had about it. Some other things I had in my thoughts to prefix: but by a providence (&s;omething more than ordinary) was more pre&s;t in my Spirit, to fix my thoughts on this Scripture here in&s;i&s;ted on: which when I ob&s;er|ved &s;o &s;uitable thereto, I could no longer forbear but &s;et my mo&s;t &s;erious meditations on work to comply at once both with the Pro|vidence, and with the reque&s;t of my many friends, reque&s;ting its Communication. The tran&s;crib|ing of which, though &s;hort, yet would have proved tedious to the many that reque&s;ted it, and I hope may bring &s;ome profit, and &s;atisfaction to &s;ome into who&s;e hands they may come; that never de&s;ired, nor thought of a|ny &s;uch thing: The only thing I
<PB REF="8">have cau&s;e to be a&s;hamed of, is, the narrowne&s;s of my own heart, in handling a matter of &s;o excel|lent, and important a concern. I have de&s;ired to &s;peak pertinent|ly, and briefly, and not to en|large by digre&s;&s;ion, but what may prove mo&s;t &s;uitable to my main de&s;ign. In Sermons, that are preach<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, where there is only hear|ing for the time of Speaking, there need to be inculcating things a|gain and again, as others of my Brethren know as well as I: affection's Dull, memorie's trea|cherous, and after-meditation too too much neglected. So that repetitions, and rehear&s;al, if they be not vain repetitions, and af|fected, prove beneficial very much to the hearers, from whom (their under&s;tandings being al|&s;o &s;hallow, for the generality of mo&s;t auditors,) the heads, and material pa&s;&s;ages once named
<PB REF="8">only, the mo&s;t part of them pa&s;s away, (if the affections be for pre&s;ent a little &s;tirred) without that due &s;avour and abiding ef|ficacy, that by pre&s;&s;ing again and again they might have. Now this is needle&s;s in Printed Books, where reviewing makes up the &s;upply of that if there be any additions or alterations, as &s;ome few there are, which may be ob&s;erved by the Reader that heard the&s;e things; I hope they will not be unacceptable, or un|profitable. Accept of this &s;mall undertaking as the good will of the Author, and read not <HI>in tran&s;itu,</HI> or by rote, but with deliberation and meditation (for I am Confident, that the benefit we might reap by many a good book, is lo&s;t for lack of this) that the &s;weetne&s;s of this work (for 'tis both precious and &s;weet, and I ble&s;s God for the
<PB REF="9">experience of it) may be at la&s;t diffu&s;ed wholly into thy Soul: and then the de&s;ign is accompli|&s;hed, for which the publication was intended, and that this may be the i&s;&s;ue, &s;hall be the prayer of</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><HI>Thine in the work of the Go&s;pel</HI> S. W.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<PB N="17" REF="9">
<DIV2 N="1" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD>CHAP. I. The Introduction. Connexi|on of the words ob&s;erved. Text con&s;idered; and the Doctrine drawn.</HEAD>
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Jo&s;hua 24.22.</HI></BIBL>
<P>And <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> &s;aid unto the people, ye are witne&s;&s;es again&s;t your &s;elves, that ye have cho&s;en you the Lord, to &s;erve him, and they &s;aid we are witne&s;&s;es.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>BEloved, if I &s;hould &s;peak to you in the words of <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> here, as he did to this peo|ple, would you, could you return the an&s;wer that this people did return to <HI>Jo&s;hua?</HI> you that are here in this place. Have you cho&s;en the Lord to you to &s;erve him, yea or no? how many per&s;ons are there
<PB N="18" REF="10">that are yet to chu&s;e their Religion? to chu&s;e their God! after they have lived many years in the world. Nay Beloved, are not you yet to chu&s;e your God? the Lord help you to con&s;ider it; how many peo|ple be there that are either altoge|ther to chu&s;e to this day, or el&s;e have cho&s;en others be&s;ides the Lord, the true God! how many have cho&s;en the God of this world for their God! How many have cho&s;en Satan to be their God! and how many are joyned to &s;in as their God, and the&s;e only will they &s;erve; whereas it is the great duty and priviledge of Chri&s;tians, to joyn them&s;elves, and to be joyned to the Lord, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 56.3. with<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 6.17. not glued to &s;in, but to the Lord, which denoteth the neare&s;t con|junction, and firme&s;t adhe&s;ion, that can't be parted, or taken a&s;un|der.</P>
<P>Now my de&s;ign in choice of this Scripture is, not to &s;peak to you concerning &s;crupulous queries, or of di&s;putable and doubtful things, but to treat with you about the main
<PB N="19" REF="10">thing, of your chu&s;ing God to be your God; only a little that you may take notice of the order, and connexion of the words. You may find in the beginning of the Chap|ter, that holy <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> now going the way of all the<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Chap.</HI> 23.14.</NOTE> Earth, hav|ing brought the Children of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> into po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of the promi&s;ed Land, ju&s;t at his departure, gathers toge|ther the Repre&s;entatives of the whole body of the people. v. 1. <HI>And</HI> Jo|&s;hua <HI>called for the Elders of I&s;rael, and for their Heads, and for their Judges, and for their Officers,</HI> and they <HI>pre&s;ented them&s;elves before the Lord,</HI> &amp;c. and in a general convo|cation recites the whole Narative of God's dealing towards them <HI>ab cri|gine,</HI> from their very Original, <HI>i.e.</HI> not only from the beginning of their being a Nation, but from the choice of <HI>Abraham</HI> their Father, (who was by de&s;cent, nation, and practice an Idolater before God cal'd him, <HI>v.</HI> 2, 3.) to that very day and time that he &s;pake unto them. In the <HI>14th ver.</HI> he gives them an exhortation, to behave them&s;elves
<PB N="20" REF="11">an&s;werably to all tho&s;e benefits be|&s;towed upon them, in a &s;uitable pra|ctice towards him. <HI>Now therefore fear the Lord, and &s;erve him in &s;ince|rity, and in truth, and put away the gods which your Fathers &s;erved,</HI> &amp;c. and that he might the more effectu|ally win upon them, he offers it as it were to their choice, v. 15. <HI>and if it &s;eem evil to you to &s;erve the Lord, chu&s;e you this day whom you will &s;erve, whether the gods which your Fathers &s;erved that were on the other &s;ide of the Flood or the gods of the</HI> Amorites <HI>in who&s;e Land ye dwelt,</HI> and clo&s;eth up the ver&s;e with his own holy re&s;olution, &mdash; <HI>but as for me and my hou&s;e we will &s;erve the Lord;</HI> he propo&s;eth to them others, if they thought they had de&s;erved better of them, than God had, by what he had done for them. The people &s;eem with indignation (as they had ju&s;t cau&s;e) to an&s;wer, and utterly dete&s;t the motion: and therefore give their full a&s;&s;ent to the &s;ervice of God, on con&s;ideration of the mighty wonderful works he had wrought for them. <HI>God forbid that
<PB N="21" REF="11">we &s;hould for&s;ake the Lord to &s;erve other gods,</HI> v. 16. and they rehear&s;e his Works v. 17, 18. <HI>for the Lord our God, he it is that brought us up, and our Fathers out of the Land of Egypt,</HI> &amp;c. thereupon they re&s;olve, that they will &s;erve the Lord only. Now <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> again that he might the better fix them in this their a&s;&s;ent and choice, tells them that they could not &s;erve the Lord, for he is an holy God, v. 19. that is, as they ought if they did not for&s;ake their &s;ins, or other gods, and cleave to him &s;tedfa&s;tly; then &s;aith he, <HI>ye cannot &s;erve the Lord,</HI> viz. accepta|bly, and well plea&s;ingly. Their re|ply, with full and joynt con&s;ent is reiterated v. 21. <HI>they &s;aid nay, but we will &s;erve the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>The words of the Text do con|tain the ratification,<NOTE PLACE="marg">General &s;cope of the words</NOTE> and firm con|clu&s;ion of the Covenant that is made between God and his People, upon the mo&s;t &s;olemn deliberation that can be expre&s;&s;ed.</P>
<P>In them you may take notice of the&s;e two things,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Particu|lars in the words</NOTE> in particular.</P>
<P N="1">I. There is <HI>Jo&s;hua's</HI> Propo&s;al and
<PB N="22" REF="12">Declaration of a double act of this people:</P>
<P N="1">1. Choice of God to be their God, ye have cho&s;en you the Lord to &s;erve him:</P>
<P N="2">2. Their own witne&s;s to the act, <HI>Ye are wine&s;&s;es again&s;t your &s;elves;</HI> as if he &s;hould &s;ay, your own act and deed this day, &s;hall be proof and evidence again&s;t you, if you decline from following the Lord in time to come, your own Con&s;ciences with|in you, and your own act and deed without you, &s;hall te&s;tifie a|gain&s;t you.</P>
<P N="2">II. Here is the Peoples accep|tance, and yielding to this propo&s;al, wherein they do di&s;cover their un|feigned a&s;&s;ent and con&s;ent to what <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> &s;aid in the la&s;t words, <HI>and they &s;aid we are Witne&s;&s;es.</HI></P>
<P>Now the matter I &s;hall cull out of the&s;e words to treat of, (pa&s;&s;ing by what el&s;e I might con&s;ider in them) is the act of this people, in chu&s;ing the Lord to be their God.</P>
<P><MILESTONE UNIT="Doct."> The Doctrine is this.</P>
<P><HI>That God is, and God ought to be the choice of every good Chri&s;tian.</HI>
<PB N="23" REF="12">O who will not &s;ay Amen to this Truth! Or take it thus; That it is the highe&s;t and greate&s;t duty of Chri&s;tianity, to chu&s;e God unto our &s;elves, to chu&s;e the true God to be our God: ye have cho&s;en you the Lord. The an&s;wer of the peo|ple before, and what is here &s;aid of them, doth &s;uit with the propo&s;al of <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> in the very letter, v. 15. <HI>chu&s;e you this day, whom ye will &s;erve,</HI> &amp;c. Here, and before they have made God their chief and only choice. <HI>Ye are witne&s;&s;es again&s;t your &s;elves, that ye have cho&s;en the Lord to &s;erve him.</HI> This is fully expre&s;t in the Prophet <HI>David's</HI> words, who &s;eems to have done the very &s;ame thing. <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 16.2. <HI>Oh my &s;oul, thou ha&s;t &s;aid to the Lord, thou art my Lord, my goodne&s;s extendeth not to thee. O my &s;oul, thou ha&s;t &s;aid unto the Lord,</HI> &amp;c. the Prophet &s;eems to entertain a &s;oliloquy with his own &s;oul, he had cho&s;en God to be his God, and he was able to &s;peak it with the greate&s;t confidence to, and before God him&s;elf, which argues full a&s;&s;urance, <HI>thou art my Lord,</HI>
<PB N="24" REF="13">and to this choice he had made of God, he was re&s;olved to &s;tick and &s;tand, &s;o far was he from chu&s;ing others, or being taken from God, that he would not make mention of them, or any thing that concerned them. v. 4. <HI>Their &s;orrows &s;hall be multiplyed that ha&s;ten after another God, their drink Offering of Blood will I not offer, nor take their name into my lips.</HI> So Gen. 28.20, 21. <HI>Jacob</HI> was flying from his Brother <HI>E&s;au,</HI> and he &s;aid, <HI>if God will give me bread to eat and rayment to put on, the Lord &s;hall be my God;</HI> if <HI>Jacob</HI> will take God to be his God upon the account of a little bread and water, and apparel, then &s;ure|ly we have greater encouragement to take him to be our God. The te&s;timony of the&s;e two eminent Saints of God, are &s;ufficient to prove the truth; be&s;ides the peoples act in the Text &s;pecified.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="2" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="25" REF="13">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. II.</HI> The fir&s;t thing evplained. What it is to chu&s;e God, opened.</HEAD>
<P>IN the explication of the Do|ctrine, I &s;hall open the&s;e two things following.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, I &s;hall &s;hew you what it is to chu&s;e God to be ours.</P>
<P>And Secondly, why we are to chu&s;e God to be ours.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, what it is to chu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> God to be ours, what is the inte<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">dment of it, and what it imports.</P>
<P>Here &s;everal things con&s;iderable; 1. Some things precedent. 2. Some things there are wherein the e&s;&s;ence of the act con&s;i&s;teth. 3. And &s;omething that is the i&s;&s;ue and product of it.</P>
<P N="1">1. Somethings implyed as pre|cedent.</P>
<P N="1">I. The Choice of God doth im|ply a knowledg of God, that is a thing nece&s;&s;arily antecedent to eve|ry
<PB N="26" REF="14" MS="y">choice, that thing cannot be cho|&s;en that is not known; &s;o that the Soul that chu&s;eth God to be his, mu&s;t know, not that God is only, but &s;omething what he is al&s;o, ac|cording as he hath revealed him&s;elf in his holy Word. God hath laid him&s;elf open before us in the Word, as in a gla&s;s, and the only way to chu&s;e him, is by beholding of him by the eye of the under&s;tanding, en|lightned by this Spirit of God, in this gla&s;s of the Go&s;pel. In all choices knowledg is prerequired. A man chu&s;eth not a per&s;on to be his Wife, that he knoweth not; no Woman chu&s;eth a man to be her Husband, whom &s;he knows not; a Per&s;on chu&s;e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h nothing to be a por|tion, which he knoweth not; no more will the Soul chu&s;e God to be his God, that hath not acquaintance with him, who&s;oever will chu&s;e him mu&s;t have &s;ome knowledg of him.</P>
<P N="2">II. There is required to a choice of God Conver&s;e with, and &s;ome Ex|perience of him. Therefore <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> rehear&s;eth here all that ever God had done for <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> from the begin|ning
<PB N="27" REF="14" MS="y">to that day, in order to this Tran&s;action between God and them. They had experience of God all their days, how much God had done for them. And <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> here recals them on purpo&s;e to draw them on to chu&s;e him, and &s;ix them in their choice. Deliberation is re|quired to every choice, and when a man doth deliberate, he doth con|&s;ider of things, and thereby debates within him&s;elf about the object of his choice, and hereby he conver|&s;eth with, and hath experience of it: &s;o when a man by the view of God in the gla&s;s of the Word, deli|berately con&s;iders, and apprehends the excellencies of God, above all other objects what&s;oever; he be|comes the more firmly fixed, and &s;ettled in his choice of him; ra&s;h choices are often repented of, there|fore the word<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Elegit, as a general doth Sol<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">|ers, for &s;pecial &s;er|vice, of who&s;e valour and skill he <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ath had pro<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">. <HI>Exod. 17.9. P. I. Crit. Sacra.</HI></NOTE> here u&s;ed, and rendred to chu&s;e doth &s;ignifie to chu&s;e upon proof and tryal: So that there mu&s;t be in every per&s;on that chu&s;eth God acquaint|ance
<PB N="28" REF="15" MS="y">with God, and experience of God; had we a little more Conver&s;e with God what experience &s;hould we have of him, and how &s;hould we chu&s;e him! the more we Con|ver&s;e with God, the more &s;hall we &s;ee, and know, and have experi|ence of him, and con&s;equently the more deliberately, and the more re|&s;olvedly chu&s;e him.</P>
<P N="3">III. Choice of God doth al&s;o im|ply a de&s;ire after, and a love to God; this is apparent in nature, a man will never chu&s;e that again&s;t which he hath an enmity, or an Antipa|thy; a man will not chu&s;e that meat, that he hath Antipathy a|gain&s;t. Now there is never an one of us, but are naturally enemies to God, and are haters of God, <HI>Rom.</HI> 5.10. with <HI>Rom.</HI> 1.30. This people cannot endure to hear of, and will hardly believe, but &s;o it is, Gods Word tells you &s;o God's mi|ni&s;ters tell you &s;o, that you were born <HI>enemies in your mind by wick|ed works:</HI> and this is the great Command of God's Law, <HI>to love the Lord our God with all our heart, &amp;c.</HI>
<PB N="29" REF="15">Mat. 22; and they that do not, will not chu&s;e him to be theirs: chu&s;ing of God, and loving of God go to|gether, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 56.4. with 6. <HI>Thus &s;aith the Lord, to the Eunuchs that keep my Sabbaths, and chu&s;e the things that plea&s;e me, &amp;c.</HI> ver. 6. <HI>al&s;o the &s;ons of the &s;tranger, that join them&s;elves to the Lord &mdash; to love the name of the Lord, &amp;c.</HI> what the heart is mo&s;t of all &s;et upon with de|&s;ire and love, that it doth chu&s;e: <HI>Affection always goeth before Ele|ction, and Election is the i&s;&s;ue of Af|fection.</HI> The heart mu&s;t be &s;et up|on that which a man takes to him|&s;elf to be his. <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 26.9. with 13. <HI>With my Soul have I de&s;ired thee in the night, &amp;c.</HI> 13. <HI>other Lords have had dominion over us, but by thee only will we make mention of thy name,</HI> &amp;c. If there be the l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">a&s;t di&s;gu&s;t of the heart again&s;t, and loathing of any thing, never do we make choice of that to be ours: That we are &s;o far from chu&s;ing, that we cannot endure it, the affe|ctions are the ground, or beginning of the choice; when the heart is
<PB N="30" REF="16" MS="y">drawn up in love toward God, and enamoured with de&s;ire after him, then it will chu&s;e him. The choice is of the Heart, if that be alienated, their's no clo&s;ure with, nor choice of any thing<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;o nor of God, if the heart be &s;till alienated from him: <HI>if we love him we chu&s;e him.</HI></P>
<P>The&s;e three things are anteceda|neous to the choice of God, do go before it; now there be two other things, wherein the very e&s;&s;ence of the Act con&s;i&s;ts, and they are Ele|ction and Appropriation.</P>
<P N="4">IV. The fir&s;t of the&s;e (or the fourth in order to the former) is the Election, and preference of God above all: &s;o that now all o|ther things are neglected, and un|dervalued in Compari&s;on with God; thus <HI>David</HI> &s;aid, P&s;al. 73.25. <HI>Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon the earth that I de&s;ire, in</HI> Compari&s;on of thee. <HI>David</HI> cho&s;e God becau&s;e he had God an E&s;teem above all the World; <HI>q. d.</HI> Take all in heaven and Earth, yea Heaven and Earth them&s;elves, who&s;oever will, &s;o as I may have
<PB N="31" REF="16" MS="y">God to be mine. Now doth thy Soul &s;ay &s;o? &s;o when Je&s;us Chri&s;t is cho&s;en by a Soul, <HI>all things</HI> el&s;e are but <HI>dro&s;s and dung in Compari|&s;on of the Excellency of the knowledg of Je&s;us Chri&s;t,</HI> Phil. 3.8, 9. It is a Chri&s;tians chief duty, and di&s;po|&s;ition, eminently to prefer God, and Chri&s;t above all. Remember, that <HI>God is a Chri&s;tian's all, and his all is in God.</HI> And a Soul that is in &s;uch a frame chu&s;eth God a right.</P>
<P N="5">V. (But the Second thing where|in the Souls actual choice con&s;i&s;teth), is Appropriation of God to a mans &s;elf, a taking God to be his own, when we lay claim to God as our peculiar portion; as though there was no one that had intere&s;t in, nor relation to God but our &s;elf on|ly. So the Church, P&s;al. 67.6. <HI>And God even our own God &s;hall ble&s;s us.</HI> I do not know any &s;uch expre&s;|&s;ion through the Scripture as here, implying &s;uch &s;pecial Appropriation. When the Soul takes hold on God, receiveth him and embraceth him as his own peculiar, as if he was his own, and none's el&s;e be&s;ide. The
<PB N="32" REF="17" MS="y">Church &s;eems &s;o to &s;peak, as if it was her peculiar priviledg, and her's alone to appropriate, and claim God to her &s;elf. When a man can come to &s;ay God is my own God, then he hath cho&s;en God indeed. So <HI>David</HI> P&s;al. 18.1, 2. <HI>I will love thee O Lord my &s;trength, the Lord is my rock, and my fortre&s;s, and my deli|verer, my God, my &s;trength in whom I will tru&s;t, my buckler, and the horn of my Salvation, and my High Tower.</HI> How many <HI>My's</HI> be there? no le&s;s than eight or nine which the Pro|phet as &s;o many terms of intere&s;t doth there u&s;e to expre&s;s propriety: and as the Church &s;aith el&s;ewhere, <HI>My beloved is mine, and I am his,</HI> Song. 2.6.</P>
<P N="6">VI. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">hu&s;ing of God con&s;i&s;teth as the i&s;&s;ue of all this, in the rejecti|on o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> all others be&s;ides God, when once God is cho&s;en, then all other god's be ca&s;t away: this is accor|ding to what God him&s;elf doth call for and require. Ho&s;. 3.3. <HI>And I &s;aid unto thee, thou &s;halt abide for me many days, thou &s;halt not play the Harlot, thou &s;halt not be for another,
<PB N="33" REF="17">&s;o will I al&s;o be for thee:</HI> as God can't endure the &s;oul &s;hould have any god be&s;ides him, but doth com|mand the contrary; &s;o neither will the Soul endure it. Ju&s;t as a Vir|gin that hath many Suit<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">rs, when once her affections are &s;et on the per&s;on whom &s;he makes choice of, then away with all the re&s;t, &s;he will not conver&s;e with them any more; &s;o it is here, if there be an in|differency in the affections to divers things, it's a &s;ign the choice is not yet made, for the choice being once made, all other things are overlook|ed and refu&s;ed, but ther's an in|differency &s;till remaining where more than one is entertained, P&s;al. 81.9, 10. <HI>O I&s;rael if thou wilt hear|ken unto me, there &s;hall no &s;trange god be in thee, neither &s;halt thou wor&s;hip any &s;trange god: I am the Lord thy God.</HI> They that have or will have God for theirs, mu&s;t have no other to them&s;elves but <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> thus we &s;ee, wherein the chu&s;ing of God con&s;i&s;teth.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="3" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="34" REF="18">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. III.</HI> The &s;econd thing opened, <HI>viz.</HI> Why we are to chu&s;e God to be ours.</HEAD>
<P>HAving di&s;patched, and cleared the fir&s;t thing in the Ex|plication, we go on to the &s;econd. <HI>viz.</HI> Why it is the highe&s;t Duty of Chri&s;tianity, to chu&s;e God to be ours.</P>
<P>In general this is the only rea&s;on; becau&s;e God is only Good; and this I &s;hall branch out into the&s;e three particulars.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. God is the chiefe&s;t Good.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. God is a communicative Good.</ITEM>
<ITEM>3. God is the only &s;atisfying Good.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Summum Bonum</NOTE></ITEM>
</LIST>
<P>Fir&s;t, God is the chiefe&s;t, and be&s;t Good that can be, an undoubted Maxim, <HI>God is all Good, and all Good is in God;</HI> nothing is Good without God, and there <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> thing Good to be found ou<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> he is in|finitely
<PB N="35" REF="18" MS="y">good, and no per&s;on or thing is good but God, <HI>Luk.</HI> 18.19. and this we know to be true in na|ture, that good is the proper object of the choice. Nothing is cho&s;en but as far as it is Good, or appears to be &s;o; if a man chu&s;e that which is not really good, it is meerly from the mi&s;apprehen&s;ion of the object; for men do not chu&s;e that which is evil, asevil, but as it &s;eems, or as it appears to be good; their apprehen|&s;ion of it to be good, provokes to a de&s;ire and choice of it. And he that knows God to be the chiefe&s;t Good, he it is that will chu&s;e him above all to him&s;elf; the &s;ame <HI>David</HI> that &s;aid of God <HI>thou art Good,</HI> P&s;al. 119.68. the &s;a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">e <HI>David</HI> &s;aid al&s;o, <HI>thou art my Lord,</HI> P&s;al. 16.2. P&s;al. 4.6. <HI>Many will &s;ay, who will &s;hew us any Good?</HI> that is worldly Good, be|cau&s;e they know no better; <HI>but Lord lift thou up the light of thy Counte|nance, &amp;c.</HI> to this &s;uits the <HI>Etymo|logy,</HI> of the Greek word<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> a duc<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, quia duc &amp; allicit nos ad &s;ui expetitionem, <HI>Mag. in Ari&s;t. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">|vel,</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>i.e.</HI> valde currendo, quia ad bonu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> valde currimus <HI>i. e.</HI> Expetimus. <HI>I eigh Crit &s;ac.</HI></NOTE> <GAP DESC="foreign">
<PB N="36" REF="19" MS="y">for good. Some take it as coming from a word which &s;ignifieth to draw, becau&s;e it doth draw effectu|ally to the de&s;ire of it, and others derive it from a word which &s;igni|fieth running, becau&s;e when once the Soul hath the apprehen&s;ion of it, it will run &s;wiftly after it; now God being the only real and chief God, he is the chief de&s;ire of every Soul that knows and apprehends him to be &s;o.</P>
<P>Secondly, God is a Communi|cative Good, and &s;o he is not cho&s;en only for the Good that is in him|&s;elf, (though chiefly therefore); but for the good that is communicated, and diffu&s;ed daily from him unto us. The &s;ame <HI>David</HI> that &s;aid, thou art my Lord, &s;aid al&s;o, in the &s;ame <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 16. <HI>The Lord is my portion;</HI> further he &s;aid too, <HI>thou art Good, and thou do&s;t Good,</HI> P&s;al. 119. This &s;eems to be &s;omething of kin to that &s;peech of <HI>Jacob</HI> expre&s;&s;ing his choice of God. Gen. 28. <HI>If the Lord will give me but bread to eat, and raiment to put on, the Lord &s;hall be my God;</HI> and that is the mea<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">&s;t of all the&s;e
<PB N="37" REF="19" MS="y">good things: and if <HI>Jacob</HI> will take God for his upon &s;uch low terms, what &s;hould we do? what obliga|tions do lie upon us to chu&s;e him, who gives us Life, Breath, Being, Grace and Glory and all?</P>
<P>Thirdly, He is the only &s;atisfy|ing Good, therefore is he to be cho|&s;en; &s;uch a Good that will fill up the whole affection, and all the de|fires of the Soul, and nothing will &s;atisfy it but God: the Soul till it come to God is never &s;atisfied, nor at re&s;t, no more than the Dove that fled from Noah's Ark, till it returned thither again. All created Goods are not &s;atisfying Goods; though the Soul be a finite being, yet the de&s;ires be infinite, and therefore what&s;oever it chu&s;eth and re&s;teth in, it will not be &s;atisfyed, till it come to God who is infinite. P&s;al. 63.1. <HI>My Soul thir&s;teth for thee, yea my fle&s;h longeth for thee,</HI> &mdash; 2. <HI>to &s;ee thy power and thy glory:</HI> When it enjoys God, then it &s;ays as he, ver. 5. <HI>My Soul is &s;atisfyed as with Marrow and Fatne&s;s</HI> &mdash; ver. 6. <HI>when I remember thee on my bed,</HI> &amp;c.
<PB N="38" REF="20">It is God's mercy and goodne&s;s a|lone, that can &s;atisfy which way &s;oever it comes, whether he com|municates it mediately by his Or|dinances, here on Earth, or im|mediately from him&s;elf in heaven: Here in his ordinances, P&s;al. 65.4. <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed is the man whom thou chu&s;e&s;t, and cau&s;e&s;t to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy Courts, he &s;hall be &s;atisfied with the Goodne&s;s of thy hou&s;e, &amp;c. O &s;atisfy us early with thy mercy.</HI> P&s;al. 90.14. <HI>I will &s;ati|ate the Soul of the Prie&s;ts with fat|ne&s;s, and my people &s;hall be &s;atisfled with Goodne&s;s,</HI> &s;aith the Lord, <HI>Jer.</HI> 31.14. &s;o hereafter, <HI>when I awake</HI> (in the morning of the re&s;urrecti|on) <HI>I &s;hall be &s;atisfyed with thy likene&s;s;</HI> &s;aith <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 17.15. other things &s;atisfy not, riches will not &s;atisfie, the eye is not &s;atisfied with riches. <HI>Eccle&s;.</HI> 4.8. He that loveth &s;ilver &s;hall not be &s;atisfyed with &s;ilver, nor he that loveth a|bundance. <HI>Eccl.</HI> 5.10. The great plea with which the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t Expo&s;tulateth with Souls is I&s;a. 55.2. <HI>Why do you &s;pend your
<PB N="39" REF="20">money for that which is not bread? And your labour for that which &s;a|tisfieth not? It is God and he alone is the Souls only &s;atisfaction, there|fore chu&s;e him.</HI></P>
<P>Before I pa&s;s to the u&s;e, I &s;hall for the further evident proof of this that God is the only Soul-&s;a|tisfying Good, propo&s;e to you the Experience of two per&s;ons, who found &s;uch &s;atisfaction in God, e|ven in this life, that it might be ef|fectual to draw our affections to chu&s;e him above all to our &s;elves. And the one is of Mr. <HI>John Welch,</HI> a Scotch Mini&s;ter, who be&s;ides his continued enjoyment of Commu|nion with God, e&s;pecially,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">The ful|filling of the Script. <HI>P. 429.</HI></NOTE> Du|ring his Sickne&s;s, was &s;o filled, and overcome with the &s;en&s;ible enjoy|ment of God, that he was &s;ome|time overheard in prayer, to have the&s;e words. Lord, holdthy hand, It is enough, thy &s;ervant is a clay-ve&s;&s;el, and can hold no more; &s;uch large manife&s;tations he had of God to his Soul, which gave him full &s;atis|faction.</P>
<PB N="40" REF="21">
<P> And<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Xaverius clama|bat, &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> tis e&s;t Domine, &s;atis e&s;t; nec enim mens mea in hac vitat antum gaudi|orum pondus capit, <HI>A. Lap. in Cant. 2.3.</HI></NOTE> Another &s;aid, It is enough Lord, it is enough: my Soul is not able to receive, &s;uch an exceeding weight of joys in this li&s;e. Do not the&s;e words of the&s;e per|&s;ons evidently declare, the abundant Satisfaction that is to be had in God, even here? be&s;ides that fulne&s;s of joy and Satisfaction that there is to be had in him, and from him, in the li&s;e to come? there is then Satisfaction to be had in God, and who would not chu&s;e &s;uch a God as this is?</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="4" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. IV.</HI> The Application entred on; fir&s;t U&s;e of Information.</HEAD>
<P>The Truth being cleared and con&s;irmed, the next thing that follows is, the putting of it to a due u&s;e &amp; improvement in our lives and practices.</P>
<DIV3 N="1" TYPE="application">
<PB N="41" REF="21">
<HEAD>U&s;e 1. Information.</HEAD>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">&V;&s;e <HI>1.</HI> In|form.</NOTE>This doth di&s;cover to us, the great and indi&s;pen&s;ible duty of all men, even of all people that mean to be happy; E&s;pecially of all that profe&s;s them&s;elves to be the people of God, and that is to chu&s;e God to be theirs. How hard a matter it is to be per&s;waded to it, or convinced of the nece&s;&s;ity of it! this is the great que&s;tion you are to put to your Souls, have I yet cho&s;en God to be mine? Reader, what do&s;t thou &s;ay in this Ca&s;e? What an&s;wer doth thine heart give, to this mo&s;t impor|tant query propo&s;ed? Have you yet cho&s;en God to be yours or not? Oh Chri&s;tians! if I might be but in&s;trumental in this great Work, in cau&s;ing your hearts and affections to embrace and chu&s;e God, what a work would this be! It is a very hard matter to be made to believe any of the&s;e truths, that God is &s;o infinitely good in him&s;elf, and Satisfactorily good to the &s;ouls of his people, and therefore eminently to be cho&s;en by them; but believe it every one, thou art not a Chri&s;tian
<PB N="42" REF="22">indeed, thou art not, cau&s;t not be happy, till thou ha&s;t cho&s;en God to be thine. What is it to be bap|tized, and to have an outward pro|fe&s;&s;ion, if thou art not, and will not come up to this, to have and chu&s;e God to be thine, to take God to be thine own? Can&s;t thou be a godly man that hath not cho|&s;en God to be thy God? It's an im|po&s;&s;ible thing that a man &s;hould be Godly, that hath nothing to do with God. Is not a Godly man na|med from God? Here is the e&s;&s;ence of Chri&s;tianity: and there is no re|al Chri&s;tianity (what&s;oever the pro|fe&s;&s;ion be) till this be done. Do not you be &s;o fooli&s;h, as to content your &s;elves with the paint of Religi|on and &s;eeming to be Chri&s;tians, if you have not taken God to be yours, you have nothing to do with him, and you are not Chri&s;tians in|deed. That man that hath not cho|&s;en God for his God, hath not yet learned the fir&s;t Commandment in a practical way. What is that? Why, <HI>Thou &s;halt have no other gods before me,</HI> Exod. 20. and &s;o he is
<PB N="43" REF="22">no &s;ervant of God: this commands thee to chu&s;e God to be thy God, and him only, and art thou a Chri|&s;tian, that art not practically come up to, much le&s;s taken out the very fir&s;t rule in the Law of God? I dare &s;ay thou dare&s;t not &s;ay it.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="5" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. V.</HI> Exhortation Double: Fir&s;t, To them that have not yet done this, and &s;hewing what we ought to chu&s;e God to be to to us.</HEAD>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>2.</HI> &V;&s;e Ex|hort.</NOTE>THe 2. U&s;e of this truth is by way of Exhortation, Double:
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. To them that have not cho&s;en God.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. To them that have done &s;o.</ITEM>
</LIST></P>
<DIV3 TYPE="application">
<HEAD>U&s;e of Exhortation.</HEAD>
<P N="1">I. To them that have not cho&s;en God to be their God, that are yet to make their choice. And alas!
<PB N="44" REF="23">how many are there yet &s;o to do! how many! be per&s;waded all in the name of God to do what is propo&s;ed to you, to chu&s;e God to be yours. Chri&s;tians, are you in good earne&s;t Chri&s;tians or are you not? Will you chu&s;e God? are you re&s;olved to have him to be yours?</P>
<P>Here 3 things briefly opened.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. What we are to chu&s;e God to be to u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">?</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. How we are to chu&s;e God to be ours.</ITEM>
<ITEM>3. Several motives to provoke hereunto.</ITEM>
</LIST>
<P N="1">1. Under what notion we are to chu&s;e God to us, or what we are to chu&s;e him to be unto us.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. To be in all relations to us.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. To be in &s;tead of all enjoy|ments to us.</ITEM>
</LIST>
<P N="1">1. We are to chu&s;e God to &s;tand in all relations to us. What re|lations?</P>
<P N="1">I. Generally; chu&s;e him to be our friend, 'tis Good having God to be a friend, make in to him therefore, and make &s;uit to him to
<PB N="45" REF="23">be your friend, <HI>Who&s;oever hath cho|&s;en God to be his, hath cho&s;en the be&s;t friend in Heaven and Earth.</HI> He is the able&s;t, faithfulle&s;t, free&s;t, riche&s;t friend that is in this or in another World; none &s;o bountiful, and ready to help as he; and did we be|lieve it, we &s;hould ea&s;ily be per&s;wa|ded to it: when the Church had cho&s;en Chri&s;t to be her beloved, then he was her friend; <HI>this is my belo|ved, and this is my friend, O ye Daughters of Jeru&s;alem.</HI> Song. 5.16. &s;o <HI>Abraham</HI> when he had cho|&s;en God to be his, he was his friend, <HI>and he became the friend of God.</HI> James. 2. the Church of the Jews cal'd <HI>the &s;eed of Abraham my Friend,</HI> I&s;a. 41.8. Be you therefore per|&s;waded, let me be&s;eech you, to chu&s;e God to be your chief friend.</P>
<P N="2">II. More particularly; chu&s;e God to be to you a Father: God is the Father of all by creation; but we ea&s;t off that relation daily, by our trau&s;gre&s;&s;ion, and rebel again&s;t him; though &s;ometimes we &s;ay, <HI>our Father</HI> with our mouths, yet how vain is this! for where is his honour
<PB N="46" REF="24">that we give him? <HI>Mal.</HI> 1.6. ju&s;t as the prodigal ca&s;t off, and run a|way from his Father, <HI>Luk.</HI> 4 15. But when we are regenerate, and born again of God, then we chu&s;e God for our Father again, and he adopts us to be his Children. The new <HI>Divine nature</HI> laies a new claim to the old (though formerly lo&s;t) relation: As the prodigal did, <HI>I will go to my Father,</HI> ver. 18. and be&s;peaks God; as the Church, I&s;a. 63.16. <HI>Doubtle&s;s thou art our Fa|ther.</HI> We are Commanded to cal<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> no man Father upon Earth, Mat<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> 23. (under&s;tand it in a right &s;en&s;e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> not as though we were to ca&s;t off ou<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> natural relations, as &s;ome wickedly do); <HI>For that we have one to be ou<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> Father, which is in heaven,</HI> wh<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> hath promi&s;ed that he will be <HI>a Fa|ther to us, and we &s;hall be his Sons and Daughters,</HI> 2 Cor. 6.17. and therefore, well may we, and of Dut<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> ought to chu&s;e him to be &s;o unt<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> us.</P>
<P N="3">III. Chu&s;e God to be an Husband to you; this God offers him&s;elf mo&s;t willingly to be, but we keep him
<PB N="47" REF="24">off and will not yield our Con&s;ent, as a Virgin doth a Suiter a long time that comes to her; how hard a mat|ter to get the Soul e&s;pou&s;ed to God, and Chri&s;t! It is not &s;o hard a mat|ter to get the Lord's Con&s;ent to be an Husband, as to get ours to become his Spou&s;e. How long and painful a work is it for the Mini&s;ters of the Go&s;pel to be wooing for Chri&s;t, and to be be&s;eeching in Chri&s;t's name, before they can get the con&s;ent of one Soul to he married to him! Jer. 3.14. <HI>Turn O back &s;liding Chilaren, for I am married unto you.</HI> God &s;aith, <HI>I will betroth thee unto me for ever, yea I will betroth thee unto me in righteou&s;ne&s;s, and in Judg|ment, and in loving kindne&s;s, and in mercies. I will betroth thee unto me in faithfulne&s;s;</HI> three times toge|ther. Ho&s;. 2.19, 20. but we are very loath, we will not be betrothed, we can't be won to yield to it. God is our maker, and &s;aith further, <HI>Thy Maker is thine husband, the Lord of Ho&s;ts is his name,</HI> I&s;a. 54.5. What will you not have your
<PB N="48" REF="25">Maker for your Husband? What better Husband can there be?</P>
<P N="4">IV. Chu&s;e God to be your Lord and Ma&s;ter; &s;o much is implyed as, our duty in the Text, <HI>ye have cho&s;en you the Lord to &s;erve him:</HI> other Lord's do and have ruled over us, and Oh that we were brought to the re&s;olution of the Church, <HI>but by thee only will we make mention of thy name,</HI> I&s;a. 26.13. which implies a choice of God, and a rejection of others. Be per&s;waded to ca&s;t off all other Lords, World, and Fle&s;h, and Devil; take his yoke upon you, en|ter into Covenant, every one to be his &s;ervant, as the Eunuch did, I&s;a. 56.6. &s;ay as <HI>David</HI> P&s;al. 116.16. <HI>Oh Lord, truly I am thy &s;er|vant: I am thy &s;ervant:</HI> our du|ty is to chu&s;e God, and Chri&s;t to rule, govern, and have domi|nion over us, to <HI>be our leader, and Commander,</HI> I&s;a. 55.4. let him be our onely Lord, to &s;erve him, and wor&s;hip him according as we are bound, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 45.11. Obey no Commands, but what are agreea|ble to his Commands, he is our
<PB N="49" REF="25">principal, and chief Ma&s;ter, who&s;e Word we are to conform unto.</P>
<P N="2">2. As we are to chu&s;e God to be in all relations to us, &s;o we are to chu&s;e him to be in&s;tead of all en|joyments to us.</P>
<P N="1">1. As our portion, &s;o we &s;hould chu&s;e him: &s;o did the Church, Lam. 3.24. <HI>The Lord is my portion, &s;aith my Soul:</HI> Then was a fit time to &s;ay &s;o, and chu&s;e him to be &s;o, when &s;he had nothing left in her captive e&s;tate. So &s;aith <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 16.5. <HI>The Lord is the portion of mine inheri|tance:</HI><NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> pars partis, &s;ive por|tio portiones mea, jun|guntur hic duo &s;yno|nyma auxe&s;eos cau|&s;a, <HI>q. d.</HI> omnimoda pars mea.</NOTE> Word for word, the part of my part, or portion of my portion, to &s;hew that God was his only part or portion. There are two words of like import, to &s;hew that he cho&s;e God to be altogether a portion to him; to which purpo&s;e we may ob&s;erve, that God that is call'd the God of I&s;rael, is call'd <HI>the por|tion of Jacob,</HI> Jer. 10.16, &amp;c.
<PB N="50" REF="26">51.19.<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Quia aliis gen|tibus alios &s;ibi Deos optantibus, Deus ho|rum oculos aperuit us &s;e eligerent. <HI>M. P. &s;yn. Crit. ex Riv.</HI></NOTE> Becau&s;e o|ther nations chu&s;ing o|ther gods to them&s;elves, the Lord opened their eyes that they &s;hould chu&s;e him only; in which regard he is call'd <HI>the portion and inheritance of Aaron,</HI> Numb. 18.29. who was to have no inheritance among&s;t the re&s;t of the I&s;raelites in <HI>Canaan.</HI> What a rejoycing &s;hould this be to every Chri&s;tian, who hath no portion nor inheritance in the World, in the meane&s;t and lowe&s;t Condition in the world, who yet hath, and hath cho&s;en the Lord for his portion! <HI>Eliphaz</HI> tells <HI>Job chap.</HI> 22.25. the Almighty &s;hall be thy defence; Marg. thy Gold: For &s;o it may be rendered, as by<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> vel angu&s;tiis tuis, vel arx roborts tui, vel aurum lecti&s;&s;imum. <HI>I. T. i. e.</HI> &s;i de&s;it aurum obtinebis quod pretio|&s;ius eo e&s;t. <HI>n.</HI> Deum. <HI>M. P. Syn.</HI></NOTE> &s;ome it is; He &s;hall be to thee in&s;tead of trea&s;ures of Gold and Silver; if thou &s;halt want Gold, thou &s;halt have what is far more precious than Gold, <HI>viz.</HI> God him&s;elf. We are apt to chu&s;e
<PB N="51" REF="26">and &s;o to make Gold our God, whereas God &s;hould be unto us in|&s;tead of, yea above all the Gold in the World, which u&s;ually men make their chief portion.</P>
<P N="2">2. In &s;um to &s;hut up all, we &s;hould chu&s;e God to be unto us, as our All in All, our only Ble&s;&s;edne&s;s in this life, and that to come. It is prophe&s;ied of a people, (and is it not all our duty?) I&s;a. 65.16. even of the Gentiles, <HI>That he who ble&s;&s;eth him&s;elf, &s;hal ble&s;s him&s;elf in the God of truth;</HI> viz. in appre|hending, and appropriating to them|&s;elves God as theirs, they &s;hould look on them&s;elves as the mo&s;t ble&s;|&s;ed people, (as ju&s;tly they may) in all the World. There is no condition, that a man can account to him&s;elf as a Ble&s;&s;ed condition, but when he hath God to be his God; he may &s;ing and rejoice in God (as though, yea) better than though he had all the World; he is, and he hath all, and who&s;oever hath God to be his hath indeed all, and therein is ble&s;&s;ed. It is a kind of Happine&s;s, if our garners be full of
<PB N="52" REF="27">all manner of &s;tore, if &s;heep bring forth thou&s;ands, if that our oxen may be &s;trong to labour; Happy is the people that is in &s;uch a ca&s;e, P&s;al. 144.15. with, 13, 14. i. e. they may in a kind, and in a de|gree be &s;aid to be happy: But then the Prophet adds the &s;urmounting Happine&s;s; <HI>Yea, happy is that people,</HI> (and &s;o that per&s;on,) <HI>that hath the Lord for their God.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="6" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. VI.</HI> Shewing how we are to chu&s;e God to be ours.</HEAD>
<P>THe Second thing we are to o|pen; is, How we are to chu&s;e God to our &s;elves, to be ours.</P>
<P N="1">1. Chu&s;e him really, not feign|edly, and in outward &s;hew onely; there be a great many that lay claim to God, and &s;ay God is mine, yet are they mo&s;t pro&s;ane, and a|bominable; they &s;eem to own God with their mouths but deny him in
<PB N="53" REF="27">their works and lives, as tho&s;e men|tioned, Tit. 1.16. <HI>In works they deny him, being di&s;obedient, and to e|very good work reprobate.</HI> Even as tho&s;e whom our &s;aviour taxeth, Luk. 6.46. <HI>Why call ye me Lord, Lord, and will not do the things that I &s;ay?</HI> Ju&s;t &s;o we read of &s;ome that <HI>call God Father,</HI> and <HI>yet do as evil things as they could,</HI> Jer. 3.4, 5. whom the Lord reproves, as he doth to the &s;ame purpo&s;e the prie&s;ts, Mal. 1.6. <HI>If I am a Father where is my honour? if I am a Ma&s;ter where is my Fear?</HI> They &s;eem to take God to be theirs in &s;ome of the foremen|tioned relations; yet for all that, their deeds and &s;peeches are as evil as can be, <HI>With their lips they &s;hew much love, but their hearts are after their Covetou&s;ne&s;s,</HI> Ezek. 33. With their lips only it is, and no more, not with their heart; they chu&s;e him with their lips, but re|fu&s;e him and ca&s;t his law behind their backs, in their lives.</P>
<P N="2">2. Chu&s;e him wholly to be yours, that is, chu&s;e him as he offers him&s;elf to us, and as he is &s;et forth
<PB N="54" REF="28">in all the relations the Scripture makes mention of him to us; not only in tho&s;e Comfortable Relati|ons which-imply our priviledg, but tho&s;e honourable ones al&s;o, which imply and engage us to our duty; not to be a Friend, a Fa|ther, and an Husband only; but a Ma&s;ter, Lord, and King al&s;o.</P>
<P N="3">3. Chu&s;e him freely to be your God, not out of Force. Many &s;eem to be willing to chu&s;e God, but it is when they mu&s;t of nece&s;&s;ity leave the World; when they come to die and they cannot of nece&s;&s;ity avoid it, they can be without him no longer: If they could have the World in health, and &s;trength one day lon|ger they would let God alone, till &s;uch a time as death did indeed come. How great many of people never de&s;ire to acquaint them&s;elves with God, de&s;ire him not, chu&s;e him not, or get any intere&s;t in Chri&s;t, till they come to die, then &s;eem to look after and chu&s;e him for theirs! They neglect, and re|fu&s;e God in all his offers of grace vouch&s;afed to them all their lives;
<PB N="55" REF="28">but when they mu&s;t part with all the World, whether they will or not, then at the hour of death will be &s;eemingly forward to chu&s;e him. But they that chu&s;e him truely, chu&s;e him freely.</P>
<P N="4">4. Chu&s;e God chiefly, let God be preferr'd before all, nothing be|fore him. If God be preferr'd as he de&s;erves, &s;o it will be; He will be &s;et before every thing in heaven or Earth. Let God be your chief de&s;ire, <HI>your exceeding Joy, as</HI> P&s;al. 43.4. word for word,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE> the gladne&s;s or my Joy: Two Synonima's or words of like import (as before) to &s;ignifie the fulne&s;s of his Joy in God, or the excellency of his Joy in God, above all other Joys; no Joy in the World that <HI>David</HI> had like to the Joy that he had in God. As the Church had cho&s;en Chri&s;t to be her beloved, and &s;he preferred him <HI>as the chiefe&s;t of ten thou&s;and,</HI> Song. 5.30.</P>
<P N="5">5. Chu&s;e God only, if we can have nothing el&s;e with him, or be|&s;ides him, yet let us chu&s;e him on|ly; he is God only, Good only, as
<PB N="56" REF="29">well as chiefly, and &s;o let us chu&s;e him; let God be cho&s;en, though we let all go to have him, and to keep our hold fa&s;t of him. We do not know what times we may &s;ee, when we mu&s;t part with all things; and if we be Chri&s;tians, as we have cho&s;en, &s;o we mu&s;t keep clo&s;e to (bear with the expre&s;&s;ion) a naked God, or God alone, without any thing el&s;e, as many, <HI>of whom the world was not worthy,</HI> have done be|fore us.</P>
<P N="6">6. Chu&s;e God for him&s;elf, have no Sini&s;ter end in chu&s;ing of him, not for any external thing he brings with him (as he never comes alone,) but only for his own Excellencies. What Excellencies are there in him! if we did but view them, according as they are di&s;plaied in the Word, what an attractive vertue might they have to draw our hearts to chu&s;e him! we mu&s;t not chu&s;e God, as men chu&s;e Wives, and Women chu&s;e Husbands, for the mo&s;t part for what they have, not for them|&s;elves; more for their e&s;tates, than for their per&s;ons: he that chu&s;eth
<PB N="57" REF="29">God for any thing be&s;ides God him&s;elf, chu&s;eth not God indeed, but that other thing in his Stead; he doth not chu&s;e God chiefly, and he that doth not chu&s;e him chiefly, doth indeed not chu&s;e him at all, but refu&s;e him.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="7" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. VII.</HI> Propo&s;ing &s;everal Motives to provoke us hereunto.</HEAD>
<P>HAving di&s;patched the two fore|going particulars, I come now to treat of the third, <HI>viz.</HI> to pro|po&s;e to you &s;ome moving con&s;idera|tions, to &s;tir you up to this &s;o im|portant a Duty: and give me leave in a few words to expo&s;tulate with you, about this matter of &s;o great Con&s;equence.</P>
<P N="1">I. Motive. Now fir&s;t con&s;ider what offers God hath made, and doth &s;till make of him&s;elf unto you. If you look on me to &s;peak in Gods name to you, then this is
<PB N="58" REF="30">the work that I have to do now, to offer God to every one of your choice; If you will be prevailed with to chu&s;e him. This is the work of the mini&s;try of the Go&s;pel to offer God and Chri&s;t according to the tenour of the Covenant of grace: How doth he di&s;play his glo|rious excellencies in the Go&s;pel, to prevail with people to accept of him and embrace him! is not this the &s;um of every Sermon? God &s;aith in every Sermon chu&s;e me: is not this the intent of the Covenant of Grace which we daily preach, <HI>I will be your God, I am thy God, &amp;c?</HI> as much as if God &s;hould &s;ay, I offer my &s;elf to you, chu&s;e me to be your God, and I am yours. This is the &s;um of the Covenant, and the meaning of tho&s;e words: God and the World &s;tand by the Soul, ju&s;t as two Suiters to a per&s;on whom they are wooing, and are not we ready to joyn with, and chu&s;e the World rather than God? yea have we not often refu|&s;ed God for the World? Oh Bre|thren! I be&s;eech you that we may
<PB N="59" REF="30">lay it to heart; hath not God &s;tretched out his hand a long time, <HI>and no man regards? how oft hath he called, and yet hath been refu|&s;ed?</HI> Prov. 1.24. and doth he not &s;ay to us as he did to I&s;rael? I&s;a. 65.1. <HI>I &s;aid, behold me, behold me to a nation</HI> (and &s;o to a per&s;on or people) <HI>that was not called by my name.</HI> And may he not go on to upbraid us as he doth there v. 2. <HI>I have &s;pread out my hands all the day-long, unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that is not good, after their own thoughts?</HI> Surely methinks God &s;aith to eve|ry Soul the &s;ame words, and yet how hard a matter to win a Soul to be drawn to chu&s;e God, to be e&s;pou|&s;ed and betrothed to Je&s;us Chri&s;t!</P>
<P N="2">II. Motive. Con&s;ider how long God hath done this. How long have you lived? and how many Sermons have you heard? even &s;o long and &s;o often hath God offered him&s;elf to you: how long have you been a di&s;obedient and a gain&s;aying peo|ple! though God hath &s;tretched out his hand! <HI>Rom.</HI> 10.21. may
<PB N="60" REF="31">not God's me&s;&s;engers &s;ay? yea may not God him&s;elf &s;ay? they will not be prevailed with, Rev. 3.20. <HI>Behold I &s;tand at the door and knock; if any man will open the door, I will come in, and Sup with him, and he with me.</HI> Though Chri&s;t be kept out all day-long, till Supper time; yet if the door be then opened, he will Come in, &amp; Sup (conver&s;e) with the Soul: yet for all that, though he &s;o far conde&s;cends, how many per&s;ons be there that will not open the door, as not all the day long, &s;o nor yet at night neither! the wor&s;e will be their condition one day: in how many Sermons, and Sabbaths hath God offered him|&s;elf to be your God, and yet ye have not cho&s;en him to be your God to this day! and will not this come up|on account again&s;t you another day, if you &s;till continue to refu&s;e? Cer|tainly it will.</P>
<P N="3">3. Mot. Con&s;ider, they are no hard terms that God &s;tands upon with us, but that we may chu&s;e him and embrace him. And if they be hard he can make them ea&s;y, and
<PB N="61" REF="31" MS="y">enable us to perform them; and to be &s;ure they be all for our be&s;t Good and advantage. What be they? the terms be, that you for&s;ake the World, Fle&s;h, and Devil, and is not this for thy be&s;t advantage? nay but is it not? Stand, and Pau&s;e a little about it; no man is able to gain&s;ay this. It is true, of him&s;elf no man can do this, but God can impower us to renounce them, <HI>and to &s;ay to every idol, get thee hence;</HI> as it is prophe&s;ied, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 30.22. And becau&s;e the terms are not impo&s;&s;ible, nor unprofitable, but for our advantage; therefore we &s;hould not &s;tick at them, but chu&s;e the Lord to us. The advan|tage is much every way: the ca&s;ting off the things to be for&s;aken for him is advantageous; and the chu&s;ing of God him&s;elf to us is much more for our advantage: the for&s;aking of them is of great Good, in that it removeth from us that which is of greate&s;t prejudice to us,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Damnum ce&s;&s;ans; Lucrum emergens.</NOTE> and the choice of God is the choice of the chief Good: So that here is the removal of the greate&s;t lo&s;s, and
<PB N="62" REF="32">al&s;o there accrueth the greate&s;t gain. So then they are not hurtful, nor prejudicial terms that are requi|red of us at all, nor &s;hall we fail of fulfilling the terms, unle&s;s it be through our own default; God will enable us, that we &s;eek it of him. If a man did offer me a gift, upon &s;uch terms as I was never able to accompli&s;h, I &s;hould think that he did it, but to deceive and befool me; but that per&s;on that offers me a kindne&s;s, upon &s;uch terms, that he will make me capable of enjoy|ing it, I have ju&s;t cau&s;e to think he is in good earne&s;t: So it is with God; God can and will enable the Soul to reject all el&s;e, whereby it may be capable of chu&s;ing, and enjoying him. He can give us, &amp; a&s;&s;i&s;t us to do what&s;oever is requi&s;ite in order to our acceptance of him; and further. I &s;hall add in the clo&s;e of this, that it is impo&s;&s;ible without the&s;e, or upon any other terms to chu&s;e him, or have him to be ours; no having and cleaving to the World, Fle&s;h, and Devil, and yet having and chu|&s;ing God to be ours too. You cannot
<PB N="63" REF="32">keep the former, odious, &amp; unclean Trinity, and chu&s;e and take to you the ble&s;&s;ed and glorious Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Gho&s;t; <HI>No man can have, nor &s;erve two Ma&s;ters, for either he will hate the one, and love the other, or el&s;e he will hold to the one, and de&s;pi&s;e the other; ye can|not &s;erve God and Mammon.</HI> Mat. 6.24.</P>
<P N="4">4. Mot. Shall I &s;ay to you that you do not know what you chu&s;e, when you do chu&s;e God to be yours? I may well &s;ay &s;o; for you do not know what you do chu&s;e, as to the benefit and advantage there is by him. You know not your own priviledg thereby; every one mu&s;t &s;ay as Chri&s;t of <HI>Mary,</HI> Luk. 10.42. <HI>Mary hath cho&s;en the better part:</HI> he that hath cho&s;en the be&s;t, and chiefe&s;t Good hath cho&s;en the <HI>be&s;t part,</HI> and therefore I will &s;ay again, you do not know what you chu&s;e, when you chu&s;e God; for</P>
<P N="1">(1.) He that chu&s;eth God to be his chu&s;eth Life; God is the living God, and God is <HI>our Life and the length of our daies.</HI> Remember as
<PB N="64" REF="33">you would chu&s;e life for your Souls, chu&s;e God to be your portion; there is life, and life to be had on|ly in him, and will you not be pre|vailed with, for life's &s;ake to chu&s;e him?</P>
<P N="2">(2.) <HI>God</HI> is light, and, he that chu&s;eth <HI>God</HI> chu&s;eth the light; and who that is wi&s;e would not chu&s;e the light rather than darkne&s;s? He is as he is call'd, <HI>the light of I&s;rael,</HI> I&s;a. 10.17. <HI>The Lord is my light and my Salvation,</HI> P&s;al, 27.1. <HI>God is Light and in him is no darkne&s;s at all,</HI> 1. Joh. 1. and <HI>God</HI> is &s;aid to <HI>be the Father of Lights,</HI> James. 1.17. Yea <HI>God</HI> is a Sun, in whom is concentered all the light, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 84.11. who would not chu&s;e to be in the Sun-&s;hine of his Face? Eccle&s;. 11.7. <HI>Truely the light is Sweet, and it is a plea&s;ant thing for the eyes to behold the Sun;</HI> if &s;o plea&s;ant to <HI>behold the created Sun,</HI> as who would not chu&s;e the Sun to &s;hine, and to give light? who is it that would not behold the light of the uncreated Sun of Righteou&s;ne&s;s? who&s;e light would be more refre&s;h|ing,
<PB N="65" REF="33">than ten thou&s;and Suns &s;hin|ing in their &s;trength.</P>
<P N="3">(3.) <HI>God</HI> is an exceeding great reward, <HI>Gen.</HI> 15.1. what a re|ward do God's people chu&s;e in chu|&s;ing him to be theirs? God is he that will abundantly recompen&s;e thy affection to him, and all thine obedience to him, all your rejoic|ing in him, and e&s;timation of him. What&s;oever of the&s;e you have ma|nife&s;ted to him, <HI>God</HI> will requite you, &s;even, nay an hundred-fold: every duty that you have perform|ed, <HI>God</HI> will recompence it; all the plea&s;ure you have taken in him, and wherein&s;oever you have denied your &s;elves any thing for him, <HI>God</HI> will make it up many-fold in this life, yea here, and hereafter too. And who would not chu&s;e &s;uch a <HI>God</HI> to be his <HI>God,</HI> who is &s;uch a great reward!</P>
<P>In &s;hort what may I &s;ay more, he that chu&s;eth God chu&s;eth All at once, and I think no man will deny this to be the be&s;t choice. A man that chu&s;eth God, is like one that labours to gra&s;p All at one gripe.
<PB N="66" REF="34">Even as that devout Nobleman of France &s;aid, in return to his Friend, which &s;ent a letter to him, in which were in&s;erted the&s;e Words, <HI>Deus meus &amp; Omnia,</HI> My God and my all;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mon&s;ieure de Renti.</NOTE> you invite me thereby to re|turn the &s;ame to you, and to all Creatures, <HI>my God and my All, my God and my All, my God and my All:</HI> Be it known unto you therefore, that he is <HI>my God and my All;</HI> and if you doubt of it, I &s;hall &s;peak it an hundred times over, I &s;hall add no more; for any thing el&s;e is &s;uperflu|ous, to him that is truely penetra|ted, po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed with, and a&s;&s;ured of <HI>my God and my All,</HI> &amp;c. Oh that thou&s;ands more had made (and could a&s;&s;ure them&s;elves that they had made) this choice! that they might an hundred times over &s;ay with the &s;ame confident a&s;&s;urance; <HI>my God and my All.</HI></P>
<P N="5">5. Mot. Con&s;ider, how freely God chu&s;eth you, and would, had ye hearts to chu&s;e and embrace him; and will you not an&s;wer God in his choice? there is no &s;uch hard matter to prevail with him, for his
<PB N="67" REF="34">choice and acceptance of us, all the difficulty is on our &s;ide. Shall not we be as ready to chu&s;e him, if he be &s;o free to chu&s;e us? he would chu&s;e us, if we were not backward and unwilling; yea though altoge|ther unwilling, how doth he draw the heart, and makes us willing in the day of his power! which &s;hews his &s;uperabundant grace, &s;o freely di&s;pen&s;ed to us, in fixing his choice on us, till he hath prepared our hearts, not only to a fixed re&s;oluti|on, but to an actual choice of him.</P>
<P N="6">6. Mot. As an improvement of the former, Con&s;ider, if you chu&s;e God, this will evidence to you that God hath cho&s;en you unto him&s;elf from all eternity; for your choice of God in time, is but a fruit of his fore-choice of you: therefore I mu&s;t &s;ay as, 1. Joh. 4.19. <HI>We love him, becau&s;e he fir&s;t loved us.</HI> So we chu&s;e him; becau&s;e he fir&s;t cho&s;e us: So our Saviour &s;aith very &s;uitable to this purpo&s;e, Joh. 15.16. <HI>Ye have not cho&s;en me</HI> (that is fir&s;t)
<PB N="68" REF="35">but I have cho&s;en you. Ob&s;erve this, that that per&s;on that God hath cho&s;en from all eternity, will, and &s;hall in time chu&s;e <HI>God</HI> to be his <HI>God;</HI> and he that doth in time chu&s;e God to be his God, was from all eternity, before the Foundation of the World was laid, cho&s;en to be one of God's people. Oh who would not make &s;ure of this to him&s;elf, and manife&s;t this before all the World, that he hath cho&s;en, and that he is cho&s;en of <HI>God</HI> to be of the number of his peculiar peo|ple!</P>
<P N="7">7. Mot. Again, Con&s;ider yet further, that whatever there is that may provoke to a choice, is mo&s;t eminently to be found in God. If beauty, honour, greatne&s;s, riches, faithfulne&s;s, ble&s;&s;edne&s;s, love, im|portunity, may be &s;ufficient mo|tives to prevail with us to chu&s;e God, here's enough of all the&s;e; and how could I wi&s;h for the under|&s;tanding, and tongue, and pen of the highe&s;t Angel, that I may appre|hend and expre&s;s, &s;uch deep things of God as the&s;e be! 1. If the per|&s;on
<PB N="69" REF="35">be a beauty that is a Suiter, how is he doted upon! Oh the beauty of holine&s;s that is in the face of <HI>God!</HI> the glorious beauty of ten thou&s;and Suns, &s;hining in their noon-day Splendour, can't match the bright|ne&s;s that &s;hines in his face continu|ally. How earne&s;tly did the Pro|phet both de&s;ire, and &s;eek after the beauty of the Lord! <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 27.4.2. If an honourable per&s;on makes choice of, and &s;ues to a per&s;on of mean extraction, how &s;oon do the affections &s;eem to comply? <HI>David</HI> tells us, that he would &s;peak of the glorious honour of his Maje&s;ty, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 145.5. he is clothed with honour, and maje&s;ty, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 104.1.3. If Greatne&s;s will prevail on us, <HI>God's</HI> Greatne&s;s is un&s;earchable, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 145.3. who can prai&s;e him ac|cording to his excellent greatne&s;s! <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 150.2.4. If riches: Oh the un&s;earchable riches of his grace! <HI>Eph.</HI> 3.8.5. If faithfulne&s;s will do? how faithful are all his promi&s;es! how many Suiters come with fair preten|ces, and promi&s;es, with great &s;hewes of riches, greatne&s;s, and ho|nour,
<PB N="70" REF="36">yet altogether in&s;ignificant! but <HI>God</HI> will never &s;uffer his faith|fulne&s;s to fail, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 89.6. If wi&s;|dom, none will chu&s;e (if po&s;&s;ible) a fool to him&s;elf; now <HI>God</HI> is the on|ly wi&s;e <HI>God,</HI> 1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 1.17.7. If love, how great is the love where|with he hath loved us! <HI>Eph.</HI> 2.4.8. If patience will at la&s;t prevail, Oh the riches of his goodne&s;s, and long|&s;uffering, and patience! how ma|ny refu&s;als, and put-offs hath he born at our hands! which yet &s;hall never be laid to our charge, no nor ca&s;t in our teeth, if at la&s;t we are prevailed with to chu&s;e, and give our Con&s;ent to him. 9. If importunity, who hath u&s;ed more! how oft hath he be&s;ought us by his mini&s;ters, by his word, Spirit, mercies, menaces, what not? 10. If Ble&s;&s;edne&s;s, Oh the infinite glo|rious, eternal Ble&s;&s;edne&s;s of God! <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.12. Is he not <HI>God ble&s;|&s;od for ever?</HI> Rom. 5. he is the ble&s;&s;ed, and the ble&s;&s;ing of God, the Fountain of all ble&s;&s;edne&s;s: O at la&s;t let &s;ome, or all the&s;e things prevail with you, to chu&s;e him to be your God!
<PB N="71" REF="36">And as much as God is before all the&s;e things, and the&s;e eminent perfections are more con&s;picuous in him than in all other be&s;ides him, &s;o much we &s;hould be the more effe|ctually prevailed with, &s;peedily, without debate or delay to chu&s;e him, before any of them all.</P>
<P N="8">8. Mot. Con&s;ider, moreover, if you chu&s;e God to be your God, you &s;hall be &s;ure here to enjoy your choice, which as it is the be&s;t, and mo&s;t ble&s;&s;ed enjoyment of all in Heaven or Earth; &s;o what&s;oever we chu&s;e el&s;ewhere, we may mi&s;s of, and go without the enjoyment of it; as well if it be a mean thing, as if it be the more excellent in and among the&s;e low contem|ptible things of this world; yea and of the lowe&s;t of them we cannot chu&s;e and take: But I dare in the name of God, to make this offer to any per&s;on whom&s;oever, that if he chu&s;e really, and unfeignedly God to be his <HI>God,</HI> as he ought, chu&s;e him and take him; chu&s;e him and he will become thine, thou ha&s;t him as thine own, and &s;halt enjoy
<PB N="72" REF="37">and po&s;&s;e&s;s all the Good that is in him, as thine own peculiar trea&s;ure, if thou chu&s;e him and embrace him. We cannot wi&s;h &amp; have, chu&s;e and po&s;&s;e&s;s, in the&s;e matters of this World; if &s;o, who would not be in a far better e&s;tate than he is and can be? if a poor maid would chu&s;e the King for her husband, &s;he might go without him; or if a poor man chu&s;e a great mans e&s;tate, he might go without it: but if the poore&s;t, and unworthie&s;t Soul &s;hall chu&s;e his maker for his hus|band, he &s;hall have him. I <HI>will betroth thee unto me,</HI> &amp;c. Ho&s;. 2. and who&s;oever will chu&s;e the un|&s;earchable riches of Je&s;us Chri&s;t for his portion, the Kingdom of God for his, the inheritance of the Saints in light for his man&s;ion, may enjoy them. Here you may certainly chu&s;e and take by choice; you may get in|tere&s;t in, nay po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of what&s;o|ever you make choice of to your &s;elves: here is no failure, nor fru|&s;tration of your affection and Ele|ction; and will not this prevail with you?</P>
<P N="9"><PB N="73" REF="37"> 9. Mot. Yet once more, Con&s;i|der, that if you make choice of God for your God, you make choice of that can never be taken away from you: what&s;oever you chu&s;e of the World, either is pe|ri&s;hing in it &s;elf, or is &s;ubject to be made a prey, and a Spoil unto o|thers, even the wor&s;t of per&s;ons; all Worldly trea&s;ures, if we could chu&s;e and have them, are &s;ubject to the moth or ru&s;t,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mat. <HI>6.</HI></NOTE> or el&s;e the thief may &s;teal them, and &s;o take them away; either they breed that will de&s;troy them&s;elves, or el&s;e others may de&s;troy us for them, or if not &s;o, they may at lea&s;t take them violently away from us; if you chu&s;e Gold, that will be gone, if Silver that may be taken away, if riches they <HI>Take them&s;elves wings, and flee away as an Eagle towards Heaven;</HI> and how &s;wi&s;t is that! <HI>Prov.</HI> 23.5. but if you chu&s;e God, he can never be taken away, God will never take him&s;elf away. It is true God is plea&s;ed &s;ometimes to withdraw him&s;elf, and to hide his face, but yet never takes him&s;elf a|way
<PB N="74" REF="38">from any Soul that hath cho|&s;en him, and whom he hath cho&s;en; and none el&s;e can take him away, Devils, nor men, can never rob us of God, what&s;oever they may, or do take from us.</P>
<P N="10">10. Mot. La&s;tly con&s;ider, that if you continue to refu&s;e, and will not make choice of him to be your God, take heed that he doth not reject you, and ca&s;t you off for ever; if we refu&s;e him now, beware that he refu&s;e us not hereafter, when we would: Is not this the trouble of per&s;ons, when they are awakened &amp; made &s;en&s;ible! come to them and ask them, whether they do not think that God is willing to receive them? they reply; Ay, but have not I ne|glected the offers of his Grace too long; &s;o that God will not now be reconciled, and become mine though I do chu&s;e him? If he &s;tand at the door, and knock, and we will not o|pen, time may come, that we may &s;tand at his door too, and knock, and he not open unto us. <HI>Prov.</HI> 1.24. <HI>Becau&s;e I have called, and ye re|fu&s;ed, I &s;tretched out my hand, and no
<PB N="75" REF="38">man regarded, and would none of my reproof:</HI> ver. 28. <HI>They &s;hall call upon me, but I will not an&s;wer, they &s;hall &s;eek me early and &s;hall not find me, becau&s;e they would not chu&s;e the fear of the Lord.</HI> So Zech. 7.11. <HI>As I called and they would not hear, &s;o they &s;hall call and I will not hear, &s;aith the Lord.</HI> Mat. 23.37. <HI>O Je|ru&s;alem, Jeru&s;alem, how often would I have gathered thy Children toge|ther, as an Hen gathereth her Chick|ens under her wings, but ye would not<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, therefore your hou&s;e is left unto you de&s;olate.</HI> God utterly ca&s;t off the Jews, becau&s;e they would not chu&s;e him, nor clo&s;e with his tenders; let us take heed, le&s;t if we &s;tand off till too late, he may reject us for ever.</P>
<P>Now lay all the&s;e things toge|ther, and &s;ee, whether they will not work upon your Spirits, to chu&s;e God to be your God! Oh let nor the tenders of Grace be alwayes in vain! but let God prevail with you while it is cal<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d to day.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="8" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="76" REF="39">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. VIII.</HI> Containing reproof to them that do not, will not chu&s;e God.</HEAD>
<P>BEfore I pa&s;s unto the &s;econd branch of the Exhortation: give me leave to &s;ubjoin here a few words of Reproof, to them that will not be prevailed with &s;o to do.</P>
<P>U&s;e.<NOTE PLACE="marg">&V;&s;e of re|proof.</NOTE> Reproof here is to all (I had almo&s;t &s;aid, but to all) tho&s;e per&s;ons that are negligent and care|le&s;s in this Duty, what &s;hame, and cen&s;ure, yea indeed Condemnation are they worthy of, that do not, will not chu&s;e God, but refu&s;e him; and how many are there that may ju&s;tly be charged with this guilt! this is the &s;in of the mo&s;t in the World at this day, and that God's own people, that are a profe&s;&s;ing people &s;hould be guilty of it, is a very &s;ad thing. This &s;eems to be
<PB N="77" REF="39">God's charge on his I&s;rael; P&s;al. 81.8. <HI>Hear O my people, and I will te&s;tifie unto thee, O I&s;rael, if thou wilt harken unto me.</HI> 10. <HI>I am the Lord thy God, &amp;c. But my people would not barken to my voice, and I&s;rael</HI><NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Noluit me. Non a&s;|&s;en&s;it (cum <GAP DESC="foreign">) noihi Pi. non accepit &s;ua&s;i|onem a me. <HI>M. P. Syn. Crit.</HI></NOTE> <HI>would none of me,</HI> had none to me, they would not accept of my offer, or my coun|&s;el, they would not yield, nor a&s;&s;ent to have me to be their <HI>God,</HI> they would not be per&s;waded to de&s;ire &s;uch a thing as this, or to obey my voice. Which is always a con|comitant, and evidence of the &s;ame, re&s;olve on the contrary, that they will not have him to rule over them, chu&s;e any thing rather than him. As the Jews, <HI>denyed the holy one, and the Ju&s;t, and de&s;ired a murde|rer to be granted unto them,</HI> Acts. 3.14.</P>
<P>Having already rea&s;oned with you, and argued the ca&s;e about it, to provoke, and move you to take God to be yours, let us here &s;ee, and
<PB N="78" REF="40">take notice of what may be the rea|&s;on of this great unwillingne&s;s.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, one rea&s;on may be, Igno|rance of him, they know him not: many times where per&s;ons are put to their choice, they are apt to chu&s;e the wor&s;t, becau&s;e they know not the difference between things, nor the excellency of one thing above another. Men do not like, nor chu&s;e him, becau&s;e they never<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 3.6.</NOTE> <HI>have &s;een him, nor known him.</HI> Oh the Ignorance of God that reigneth in the World! if men had the offer of a worldly e&s;tate, a rich, well-&s;ituated farm, here they were in their element, here they knew what to &s;ay, and here quickly would they make a free choice; but becau&s;e <HI>The natural man under&s;tandeth not the things of God,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 2 14.</NOTE> <HI>being &s;piritually di&s;cerned,</HI> and they &s;till carnal, they have not an eye to &s;ee, nor yet an under&s;tanding to apprehend his ex|cellencies; but as it was &s;aid of the Jews, to the &s;ame Purpo&s;e, <HI>They &s;aw no beauty nor comeline&s;s in him,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 53.2.</NOTE> <HI>wherefore they &s;hould de&s;ire him.</HI> The worldlings eyes are holden that they
<PB N="79" REF="40">cannot know him. <HI>Luk.</HI> 24.16. they perceive any thing more pre|tious, and de&s;irable than the Al|mighty, and therefore are they rea|dy to &s;ay, <HI>Who is the Lord</HI> that they &s;hould chu&s;e him *?<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Exod.</HI> 5.2. <HI>Job</HI> 21.14.</NOTE> <HI>let him depart from us, for we de&s;ire not the knowledg of his wayes.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Others have prejudices again&s;t God and Chri&s;t, they think there is but little to be gotten by him; nay, they may think of all things to be parted with for him, and con|&s;ulting with fle&s;h and blood, may imagine that the gain will &s;carcely quit the co&s;t, if they &s;hould embrace and chu&s;e him to them; they may think him an hard ma&s;ter, and ha|ving &s;uch hard thoughts of him, will never chu&s;e him. What profit &s;aid they <HI>Job.</HI> 21. if they chu&s;e to &s;erve him? <HI>What can the Almighty do for them?</HI> Job 22.17.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Others have enmity in their hearts again&s;t God; &s;o that they can bla&s;pheme God, and cur&s;e God, and deny God, and &s;o vent and breath out their hatred of him, but they have not one good
<PB N="80" REF="41">thought of, nor motion towards God.</P>
<P>To clo&s;e this, I add a &s;hort ex|po&s;tulation and ejaculation.</P>
<P>But why blind Soul, will not thou be prevailed with? Can&s;t thou &s;hew any ju&s;t rea&s;on or excu&s;e for thy refu&s;al; were thine eyes open|ed, &s;urely thou woulde&s;t run like the Roe, and the Hinds of the Fields after him. Thou looke&s;t in|to a naughty gla&s;s, that mi&s;repre|&s;ents God to thee, &s;tay a little and look into one gla&s;s yet, which it may be thou never hitherto did&s;t look into, even the gla&s;s of his Word, and ble&s;&s;ed Go&s;pel: could but one ray of his excellency dart it &s;elf into thy heart, thou woulde&s;t with both hands earne&s;tly lay hold on him; How quickly woulde&s;t thou open thy heart to let him in! and he would become the de&s;ire of thy Soul!</P>
<P>Oh Ble&s;&s;ed God, wilt thou ever &s;uf|fer &s;uch poor Creatures to turn their back upon thee! &s;till to hold fa&s;t their wickedne&s;s, and always to let thee go? how long wilt thou &s;uffer
<PB N="81" REF="41">them to belch out their malice a|gain&s;t thee, to thy very face, who art &s;o infinitely glorious in Holine&s;s? how long &s;hall they be &s;pitting their Venom thus at thee? When &s;hall they learn to chu&s;e thee the chief Good, &amp; refu&s;e the evil? When wilt thou encline their hearts to thee? Oh Lord, pluck off the Scales from their eyes, per&s;wade their obdu|rate hearts, that at la&s;t they may chu&s;e thee the Lord to them, that they may love the name of the Lord, and be his Servants, and chu&s;e the things that plea&s;e thee, and take hold of thy Covenant! Lord, let the reading of the&s;e few lines prevail with one heart, if it plea&s;e thee, to take hold of thee! Oh, that one Soul by this my weak labour, might be brought to chu&s;e and embrace thee, and to &s;ay with Thomas, <HI>my Lord, and my God!</HI></P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="9" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="82" REF="42">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. IX.</HI> Coutaining the &s;econd Evhorta|tion, to them that have cho|&s;en God to them.</HEAD>
<DIV3 N="2" TYPE="application">
<HEAD>2. U&s;e of Exhortation.</HEAD>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">&V;&s;e <HI>2</HI> Ex|hort.</NOTE>HEre follows in the &s;econd place, Exhortation to all them that have made choice of God to them&s;elves, to be their God, as I hope many that heard it, and there are al&s;o many that read this that have done it. Oh your infinite hap|pine&s;s that have made this choice! all that God is is yours, and all God hath is yours. I &s;tand a&s;to|ni&s;hed, in the very Admiration of the portion of that per&s;on, that hath cho&s;en God to be his God, and &s;o may every Soul: What hath not God? and what cannot God do? What is his happine&s;s and portion then, that hath this God for his portion!</P>
<P>A few &s;uitable particular Exhor|tations.</P>
<P N="1"><PB N="83" REF="42"> 1. Exhortation. As you have cho&s;en God, &s;o cleave to the God you have thus cho&s;en, hug him, and embrace him, and let him not go again away from you: Do not ca&s;t him off, I pray you; remem|ber that pa&s;&s;age, Mal. 2.16. <HI>The Lord, the God of Jacob &s;aith, that he hateth putting away.</HI> The pa&s;|&s;age is uttered, in reference to mar|ried per&s;ons &s;tedfa&s;tne&s;s one to ano|ther; and if &s;o be, that God hateth putting away in reference to the&s;e Corporal, and Carnal marriages, between a Man and his Wife, Doth he not much more in this Spiritual marriage, between the Soul and him&s;elf? If God be once married to us, and we are betrothed unto him, he is as much again&s;t putting away on either &s;ide, as he is again&s;t the Husbands, or Wives putting away each other; Doth He &s;o to us? <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 41.9. there is a notable pa&s;&s;age, <HI>I have cho&s;en thee, and not ca&s;t thee away.</HI> God doth not chu&s;e us, and then ca&s;t us away, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> then &s;hould we deal thus <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word">, God? be per&s;waded to cleave <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">, and
<PB N="84" REF="43">not ca&s;t him away, &s;tick to God as <HI>David</HI> re&s;olved to do, <HI>P&s;.</HI> 16. before. When <HI>Barnabas</HI> came, and &s;aw the Grace of God in &s;ome whom he vi|&s;ited, <HI>Acts</HI> 11.23. It's &s;aid, he <HI>exhorted them, that with full purpo&s;e of heart they &s;hould cleave unto the Lord.</HI> It's God's Command, <HI>Thou &s;halt fear the Lord thy God, and &s;erve him, and cleave unto him,</HI> &amp;c. Deut. 10.20. And this is made the condition of God's driving out the <HI>Canaanites</HI> before them, <HI>Chap.</HI> 11.22. The like Exhortation joyn'd with a Commendation is given, Jo&s;h. 23.8. <HI>But cleave unto the Lord your God, as ye have done unto this day.</HI> And this in the text, is put in oppo&s;ition to denying God, <HI>ver.</HI> 27. where we read that <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> put up a &s;tone, in this place in the pre|&s;ence of all the people, to be as a witne&s;s, between the Lord and them of this tran&s;action; that &s;tone &s;hould be a witne&s;s, of what they had done, in making &s;uch a wil|ling choice of God to them&s;elves; le&s;t upon the occa&s;ion of any temp|tation, they &s;hould deny and re|nounce
<PB N="85" REF="43">him. Be intreated, whoe|ver hath heard or doth read this to cleave to God, and not deny him, nor put him away: when you have cho&s;en him, do not change him, as the heathens will not, though God's people are apt &s;o to do, Jer. 2.10. <HI>Hath a nation</HI> (that is Heathen and Idolatrous) <HI>changed their gods which yet are no gods? but my peo|ple have changed their Glory, for that which profiteth not;</HI> Oh do not &s;o, e&s;pecially &s;ith God doth not deal &s;o with us, and he indeed hath cau&s;e and provocation &s;o to do, yet we have none at all: this God hinteth to them, and upbraid|eth them with, ver. 5 before. <HI>Thus &s;aith the Lord, what iniquity have your Fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me,</HI> &amp;c. ver. 6. <HI>Neither &s;ay they in their heart, where is the Lord, that brought us up out of the Land of Egypt?</HI> &amp;c. The Lord taxeth them, <HI>What iniquity have your Fathers found in me?</HI> &amp;c. but what iniquity may not God charge us with, as a ju&s;t cau&s;e of ca&s;ting us off, and putting us away
<PB N="86" REF="44">for ever! and who&s;oever will may &s;ee it charged home on <HI>Jeru&s;alem, Ezck.</HI> 16, 19, 20, 23, &amp;c. if o|thers lie at us for embracements; let us ca&s;t them away, but let us not deal &s;o with God, who is &s;aith|ful to us, notwith&s;tanding our de|merits from him.</P>
<P N="2">2. Exhortation. Content your &s;elves with him alone, whom you have cho&s;en. So did the Prophet <HI>David</HI> and rejoice in his portion, P&s;al. 16.5. <HI>The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance,</HI> &amp;c. ver. 6. &s;hews his &s;atisfaction with this, <HI>The lines are fallen unto me in plea&s;ant places, yea I have a Godly heritage;</HI> as if he had &s;aid, I am in a very good e&s;tate,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><P>Significat &s;e dili|gere Deum &s;uper om|nia, &amp; ip&s;o conten|tum e&s;&s;e. <HI>Calvin.</HI></P>
<P>Cum Deum habe|ame &amp; haeriditate, optima amaena pars agri mihi obtigitt. <HI>M. P. &s;yn.</HI></P></NOTE> having God to be my portion, I am in a Condition that doth wonderfully Con|tent me, let others chu&s;e riches, honours, &amp;c. Be &s;atisfied therewith, look after none other but him&s;elf; be taken up with him: Yea, there is rea&s;on to be Con|tented with God only, becau&s;e God
<PB N="87" REF="44">is All, and hath All. Therefore continue for ever with him.</P>
<P N="3">3. Exhortation. Having cho&s;en God, never repent of your choice. You may repent of chu&s;ing the World, becau&s;e that may be hurtful unto you: but we can never have cau&s;e, ju&s;tly to repent of chu&s;ing God to be ours; are not the things of the World compared, and that fit|ly to Briars and Thorns? and hath not a Thorn co&s;t and lo&s;t many a man a Limo, yea his very life? how many have ventured their Souls for the World! though our Saviour &s;aith, <HI>What will it profit a man to gain the whole World, and lo&s;e his Soul? or what &s;hall a man give in Exchange for his Soul?</HI> alwaies there is danger in chu&s;ing other things, but never any danger in chu&s;ing God to be ours. It brings de&s;olating judgments on any peo|ple, <HI>They cho&s;e new Gods, and there was War in their Gates,</HI> Judg. 5.8.</P>
<P N="4">4. Exhortation. Be per&s;waded, to joy in him above all, re&s;t in your love to him as he in his love to
<PB N="88" REF="45">you. Zeph. 3.17. <HI>He will rejoice over thee with joy, he will re&s;t in his love, he will joy over thee with &s;inging:</HI> Have we not much more cau&s;e to re|joice in him than he in us? he fills our de&s;ire with goodne&s;s, we never fulfil his de&s;ire, but grieve and pro|voke him; &s;ay and do as <HI>Mary,</HI> Luk. 1.46, 47. <HI>My Soul doth magnifie the Lord, and my Spirit hath rejoi|ced in God my Saviour.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="10" TYPE="chapter">
<HEAD><HI>CHAP. X.</HI> Clo&s;eth up all, &s;hewing the in|tendment of the whole,</HEAD>
<P>ANd now in the clo&s;e of all I be&s;eech and per&s;wade you, to chu&s;e and clo&s;e with God by heartily accepting, and embracing of the terms of his Covenant of Grace. God's Covenant runs in the form of an offer on his part, and of a gracious acceptance, and charge mixed together as to our part, <HI>I will be your God;</HI> as who &s;hould &s;ay,
<PB N="89" REF="45">chu&s;e me and I am yours (as before Mot. 1.) <HI>and ye &s;hall be my people.</HI> I will take you, accept you as mine, and ye &s;hall become my holy, obe|dient people, and I could heartily wi&s;h, that I might prevail with you all, for a particular expre&s;s en|tring into Covenant with God. To chu&s;e and take God to your &s;elves according to the afore&s;aid offer, and &s;o &s;olemnly give and yield up your &s;elves to God, to become his people as he requires. That there might be a deliberate and open tran&s;acti|on between God and your Souls, and that you would have a draught by you as a te&s;timony thereof, con|taining the Sum of the whole, &s;ub|&s;cribed with the hand, and &s;ealed with your &s;eal, as we read of &s;ome that did. <HI>Neh.</HI> 9.38. whether that was done by every particular of that great multitude, as by rea&s;on of the<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> at or over the &s;ealing <HI>Annotat.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Hebrai&s;m</HI> &s;ome conceive, that the Princes, Levits, and Prie&s;ts, were to &s;ee the Covenant &s;ealed by all, or whether they as the Heads and Repre&s;entatives of
<PB N="90" REF="46">the re&s;t did it, is not now needful to Que&s;tion, but if the former was done as it may be rationally &s;uppo|&s;ed, then it &s;peaks fully to our pur|po&s;e, it may be not only &s;ub&s;cribed with the hand, but &s;ealed al&s;o. This would be as effectual a Monitor of, and Bond upon us, as <HI>Jo&s;hua's</HI> &s;tone that he &s;et up for a te&s;timony, <HI>ver.</HI> 27. This way is the Coun&s;el of a Reverend Divine, in a book writ|ten by him, called a <HI>Vindication of Godline&s;s</HI> (which it may be &s;ome of you that hear and read this, and I hope thou&s;ands more have &s;een) wherein <HI>pag.</HI> 173. &amp;c. he hath gi|ven &s;uitable direction, very quick and pre&s;&s;ing to &s;uch a way of deal|ing with God; and <HI>pag.</HI> 179. he hath &s;et down the form of &s;uch a Covenant. Such a thing is directed to al&s;o,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Mr. Thomas Vin|cent, <HI>Treat.</HI> called Words whereby we may be &s;aved. <HI>pag. 63.64. &amp;c. Al&s;o in</HI> Mr. Jo&s;. Alleins <HI>book of Conver&s;. pag, 164. the &s;ame as is in</HI> Vindictae Pietatis.</NOTE> in another Reverend Di|vine's book, named in the margin, and another you may find &s;ubjoyned at the end hereof; you may make u&s;e of which you plea&s;e: But I think
<PB N="91" REF="46">it be&s;t, for every judicious Chri&s;tian to have a draught of his own, as be&s;t &s;uiting his e&s;tate; which will much tend to our Spiritual good and ad|vantage, as the Appendix will di&s;co|ver; and then in life manife&s;t, that you have cho&s;en him, by chu&s;ing all tho&s;e things that plea&s;e him. God complaints of it as a great &s;in of the Jews, <HI>that they did evil before him,</HI> and wherein was that &s;o evident? <HI>and did chu&s;e that wherein I delight|ed not,</HI> I&s;a. 65.12. ju&s;t as if a wo|men &s;hould chu&s;e a man for her husband, but not do any thing he delights in, rather chu&s;e to do all that might di&s;plea&s;e him. Where|as tho&s;e that do take hold of God's Covenant, mu&s;t chu&s;e al&s;o tho&s;e things that plea&s;e God, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 56.4. It may be &s;he will live with him, for a &s;hew and a pretence, but is &s;o far from plea&s;ing him, as that &s;he is always vexing, and fretting him; ju&s;t &s;o <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> fretted God in all the&s;e things, Ezek. 16.43. <HI>Though we &s;hould walk &s;o as to plea&s;e God, and abound therein more and more.</HI> 1 The&s;. 4.1. The carriages
<PB N="92" REF="47">and conver&s;ations of mo&s;t towards God, do di&s;cover, that they chu&s;e the things that do di&s;plea&s;e him, but let us do and chu&s;e to do the things that plea&s;e him. Particularly. 1. chu&s;e the fear of the Lord, <HI>Be in the fear of the Lord all the day long.</HI> Prov. 23. that is a brave life, and that will make a man e&s;chew what|&s;oever is di&s;plea&s;ing unto God. God laies it on a people as their great &s;in, that they <HI>did not chu&s;e the fear of the Lord,</HI> Prov. 1.31.</P>
<P N="2">2. Chu&s;e the &s;tatutes of God; <HI>David</HI> that cho&s;e God for his por|tion and inheritance, he al&s;o cho&s;e Gods &s;tatutes. P&s;al. 119.111. <HI>Thy te&s;timonies have I taken as an heri|tage for ever, for they are the re|joicing of my heart;</HI> and ver. 30. <HI>I have cho&s;en the way of thy truth.</HI> Men look upon the actions, but God looks on the choice of per&s;ons more than their actions, (though he look to and ob&s;erves both): &s;ome &s;in out of infirmity, others out of choice chu&s;e the things wherein God hath no plea&s;ure. <HI>Folly is joy to him that is de&s;titute of Wi&s;dom.</HI>
<PB N="93" REF="47">Prov. 15.21. now God pities the one, and pardons; <HI>But if we &s;in wil|fully, after we have received the knowledg of the truth, this is &s;ad in|deed!</HI> Heb. 10. I be&s;eech you therefore, chu&s;e God, and cleave to him, with all your Heart and Soul for ever. And frequently re|iterate and &s;olemnly view this way of tran&s;acting with God; accord|ing to the draught you have lying by you, e&s;pecially every fa&s;t-day, &amp; every Sacrament-day, wherein there is (as I may &s;o &s;ay) a new Seal &s;et to the bond of the Covenant, where|in you are obliged: Oh that the tran&s;action between God and I&s;|rael, might be between every Soul, that hath heard and may read this. Deut. 26.17. <HI>Thou ha&s;t avouched the Lord this day to be thy God, and to walk in his waies, and to hearken to his voice.</HI> ver. 18.<NOTE PLACE="marg">See the Ap|pendix.</NOTE> <HI>and the Lord hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people, as he hath promi&s;ed,</HI> and that thou &s;houlde&s;t keep all his Commandements.</P>
</DIV2>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="prayer">
<PB N="94" REF="48">
<P>Having directed you to two forms of the Covenant, whereby the Chri&s;tians choice of God is compleated, by a free and ble&s;&s;ed clo&s;e with him; as al&s;o made mention of another to be &s;ubjoyned: I thought good to offer you the u&s;e and view thereof, though I have wi&s;hed, and &s;till do, that each per&s;on that can, would be his own penman in this ca&s;e; becau&s;e though it may be drawn full enough to any hand, yet it may not &s;o &s;uit and &s;atisfy every ones Con|dition, or Experience, as it might if it were drawn out of, (as I may &s;ay) and
<PB N="95" REF="48">according to the frame and workings of a Man's own Soul.</P>
<P>OM&s;t Glorious, Gracious and ble&s;&s;ed Lord God, the great Creator,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Gen.</HI> 14.19.</NOTE> and mo&s;t high po&s;&s;e&s;|&s;or of Heaven and Earth; I thy poor and unworthy Creature,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 139.14.</NOTE> fearfully and wonderfully made by thee at fir&s;t in my Creation, and as wonderfully dignified by thee, in being taken into Covenant with thee, in that ble&s;&s;ed e&s;tate wherein I was at fir&s;t made; do de&s;ire to come humbly pro&s;trate before thee in the &s;en&s;e of thy great mercy, and my own vilene&s;s and undone e&s;tate by the fall; and the irreparable breach of that fir&s;t Covenant, by that tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion of my fir&s;t pa|rents, and manifold violations of all thy holy and ju&s;t,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> 7.12.</NOTE> and good Laws, in my &s;inful practice and Con|ver&s;ation, being touched by thy ble&s;|&s;ed Spirit with a &s;erious remor&s;e, therefore, am emboldned by thy gra|cious invitations, and frequent call,
<PB N="96" REF="49">to come, in the mo&s;t humble and unfeigned manner that I can unto thee: be&s;eeching thee that thou woulde&s;t accept of me in thy dear Son, and mercifully vouch&s;afe to receive me into Covenant a-new with thy &s;elf, even that Covenant of Grace, which thou ha&s;t revealed in thy holy Word; wherein thou offer|e&s;t &amp; a&s;&s;ure&s;t, to all that will come unto thee, and lay hold on thy mercy,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Joh.</HI> 6.37.</NOTE> that <HI>they &s;hall in no wi&s;e be ca&s;e out;</HI> I am, I acknowledg a lo&s;t &s;inner in my &s;elf; and have daily played my part again&s;t thee, in thought, and word, and deed; di&s;covering that enmity, that my heart hath been by nature full of again&s;t thee, in my enormous re|bellions, and provocations. Thy Promi&s;e is,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 55.7.</NOTE> Though I have been wicked, If I for&s;ake my evil way, and though I have been unrighte|ous, if I for&s;ake my evil thoughts, and turn unto the Lord, thou wilt have mercy upon me, and abun|dantly pardon. Having encourage|ment by thy promi&s;e, and hoping in thy word,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Jer. 3.22.</NOTE> behold I come
<PB N="97" REF="49">unto thee, be&s;eeching thee O Lord, that thou woulde&s;t have mercy up|on me, a mi&s;erable &s;inner.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Luk.</HI> 18.13.</NOTE></P>
<P>Now &s;ith it hath plea&s;ed thee to require, and do&s;t expect of him that expecteth to be received of thee, that he &s;hould not<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 6.17.</NOTE> touch the unclean thing, I do here in thy pre&s;ence, abhorring my &s;elf for all my pa&s;t vilene&s;s, &s;infulne&s;s, and unprofitablene&s;s; re&s;olve, Co|venant and promi&s;e in thy name, and by thy &s;trength to for&s;ake the Devil, World, and Fle&s;h,<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.1.</NOTE> and do re|nounce all the hidden works of darkne&s;s, and di&s;hone&s;ty: and be|fore the Lord<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 30.22.</NOTE> &s;ay to every Idol (in heart and Life) get thee hence; purpo&s;ing in my heart, never to<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> 6.13.</NOTE> yield my body, or Soul, nor the members, and faculties of them, as the members of unrighteou&s;ne&s;s to &s;in, nor &s;uffer for time to come, as heretofore, through thine a&s;&s;i&s;ting grace,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>v.</HI> 12.</NOTE> &s;in to reign in my mortal bo|dy, nor immortal Soul, that I &s;hould obey it in the lu&s;ts thereof; that I will keep con&s;tant, &s;trict watch again&s;t all the advantages, &s;nares,
<PB N="98" REF="50">and temptations of all mine, and and thine Enemies; earne&s;tly in|treating, and imploring thine<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">2. <HI>Cor.</HI> 12.9.</NOTE> All&s;ufficient Grace to make me<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Pet.</HI> 5.8, 9.</NOTE> Sober and Vigilant, that my adver&s;ary the Devil, though he goes about like a roaring Lyon, &s;eeking whom he may devour, may not by any of<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 2.11.</NOTE> his devices, take any ad|vantage again&s;t me, but that I may re&s;i&s;t him &s;tedfa&s;tly in the faith, thy grace a&s;&s;i&s;ting thereto; keeping my Heart, Tongue and way, from that which is di&s;plea&s;ing unto thee. And &s;ith I know and am convinced<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 64.6.</NOTE> that my righteou&s;ne&s;s is as filthy rags and no po&s;&s;ibility of Salvation by it, I do renounce it, and loath my &s;elf for the imperfections of it; being a lo&s;t, peri&s;hing and damnable wretch, without thy pardoning and &s;aving Grace!</P>
<P>And<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Tit.</HI> 3.4.</NOTE> becau&s;e the kindne&s;s and love of God towards man, hath &s;o exceedingly appeared, as that thou ha&s;t freely offered, and promi&s;ed, to make an<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Jer.</HI> 32.40.</NOTE> Everla&s;ting Covenant, that thou wilt never turn away from them, to do them good, but
<PB N="99" REF="50">wilt ever be their God, that do<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 56.6.</NOTE> lay hold on thy Covenant, I de&s;ire heartily to take thee O God, Father, Son, and Holy Gho&s;t to be my God; to be my Father, Saviour, and Comforter, to be my portion, and happine&s;s here, and hereafter; be|&s;eeching thee, that thou woulde&s;t<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Cron.</HI> 29.18.</NOTE> keep this purpo&s;e in my heart, and continue to communicate this power to my Soul, that I may ever cleave to the my Lord and God, that I may become wholly, and only thine for ever and ever &s;tick|ing unto thy te&s;timonies, &amp; chu&s;ing the way of thy Commandements all my daies; for now the<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 56.12.</NOTE> vows of God are upon me, yea I have<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.106.</NOTE> &s;worn, and will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous Judg|ments.</P>
<P>And forasmuch as there is no Coming to the Father but by Chri&s;t, who is the<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Joh.</HI> 14.6.</NOTE> way, truth, and life, who is freely offered in the Go&s;pel,<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 3.17.</NOTE> in whom alone thou art well plea&s;ed, and I can only be accepted; I heartily and thankfully de&s;ire<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Col.</HI> 2.6.</NOTE> to receive Je&s;us Chri&s;t,
<PB N="100" REF="51">and to walk in him; To take him to be my<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 1.30.</NOTE> Wi&s;dom, Righteou&s;ne&s;s, Sanctification, and Redemption, to e&s;pou&s;e my Soul to him this day, and<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 56.6.</NOTE> joyn my &s;elf to him in a Co|venant, that can never be broken off or forgotten.</P>
<P>My dear Saviour, who ha&s;t made<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Heb.</HI> 10.19.</NOTE> a new and living way to the Fa|ther, for me, I do here &s;olemnly and freely<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 24.7, 9.</NOTE> open the everla&s;ting doors of my heart to thee, that thou the King of glory may&s;t come in, that &s;o thou may&s;t<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Eph.</HI> 3.17.</NOTE> dwell in my heart by faith, that being lo&s;t with|out thee, yet<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Phil.</HI> 3.9.</NOTE> found in thee, I may be &s;aved; thine I de&s;ire to be, though I de&s;erve no &s;uch priviledg at all, being a filthy &s;tinking &s;inner,<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Eph.</HI> 2.1.</NOTE> dead in tre&s;pa&s;&s;es and Sins;<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 3.6.</NOTE> Laden with helli&s;h lu&s;ts, pre&s;&s;ed down even to Hell it &s;elf: but it hath plea&s;ed thee to<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 2.18.</NOTE> e&s;pou&s;e me to thy &s;elf, in Righteou&s;ne&s;s, and Mercy, and Faithfulne&s;s; I do with my whole Soul embrace and lay hold on thee, and do take thee the<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Rev.</HI> 15.4.</NOTE> King of Saints, to be my only Lord, and Head and Husband, my
<PB N="101" REF="51">only King and Commander, and willingly<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 11.29.</NOTE> taking thy ea&s;y yoke upon me, I pre&s;ent my &s;elf unto thee re&s;olving to<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 3.3.</NOTE> continue not only many but all my daies with thee,<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> 12.1.</NOTE> yielding up my &s;elf, body and Soul, as an holy, living, ac|ceptable &s;acrifice to thee, who ha&s;t offered up thy &s;elf as a<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Eph.</HI> 5.2.</NOTE> Sacrifice to the Father, for my poor lo&s;t Soul, engaging through thy Grace, that I will &s;toop to thy Scepter, fulfil thy will, and<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Rev.</HI> 14.4.</NOTE> follow thee the Lamb of God whither&s;oever thou goe&s;t, to be di&s;po&s;ed of by thee in every condition, that neither po|verty, nor riches; nor<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> 38, 3<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"></NOTE> life, nor death, &s;hall &s;eparate between me and thee.</P>
<P>Moreover, &s;i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h this<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Eph.</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> 12.</NOTE> acce&s;s is by one Spirit unto the Father through Chri&s;t, I do here mo&s;t ble&s;&s;ed Spirit, take thee to be my on|ly God al&s;o: to be my Guide, and<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>J<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="3 letters"></HI> 18.9<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"></NOTE> Comforter, be&s;eeching thee that thou woulde&s;t<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Eph.</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> 30.</NOTE> Seal me up unto the day of redemption. That thou woulde&s;t be in me a<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Jo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"></HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> 38.</NOTE> Fountain of living Water, &s;pringing up to life e|ternal.
<PB N="102" REF="52">That &s;o I may notwith|&s;tanding all difficulties,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Job</HI> 17.9.</NOTE> hold on my way and grow &s;tronger and &s;tronger, vowing to be<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Gal.</HI> 5.18.</NOTE> led by no other Spirit, but thy &s;elf,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> 8.1.</NOTE> walking after the Spirit, for time to come, and not after the fle&s;h.</P>
<P>Al&s;o, becau&s;e thou require&s;t eve|ry one that expecteth to<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Rev.</HI> 22.14.</NOTE> enter by the Gate into the City, to keep thy Commandments: and having now entred into (and renewed) the bond of the Covenant &s;o to do, as one of thy people, to which end thou ha&s;t graciou&s;ly promi&s;ed, that thou wilt<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Jer.</HI> 32.40.</NOTE> put thy fear into my heart that I &s;hall not depart from thee; I here as thy Covenant-&s;er|vant, engage &s;olemnly to become wholly thine: that I will be for no other;<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 116.15.</NOTE> O Lord truely I am thy Servant, I am thy Servant,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.38.</NOTE> de|voted to thy Fear, Love, and Ser|vice: Praying that thou woulde&s;t keep thy promi&s;e, to enable me to walk in thy &s;tatutes, and through the never-failing influence of thy Heavenly power,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.8.</NOTE> I will keep thy &s;tatutes,<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>v.</HI> 48.</NOTE> my hands al&s;o will I
<PB N="103" REF="52">lift up to thy Commandements which I love: Oh for&s;ake me not ut|terly, yea I will<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 30.1.</NOTE> follow no coun|&s;el but of thy Spirit, and Word from henceforth all the days of my life. Though Satan tempt, the World allures, and the<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Gal.</HI> 5.17.</NOTE> Fle&s;h lu&s;teth again&s;t the Spirit; yet be|ing<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Eph.</HI> 3.16.</NOTE> &s;trengthned with might by thy Spirit in the inner man, will<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Eph.</HI> 6.12.</NOTE> wre&s;tle again&s;t Sin, Satan, and the World, yea all manner of wick|edne&s;s what&s;oever,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Tim</HI> 6.12.</NOTE> fighting the good fight of Faith, till I lay hold on the po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of eternal life,<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Tim<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"></HI> 4.8.</NOTE> having fini&s;hed my cour&s;e, and ob|tain'd the Crown of righteou&s;ne&s;s, which thou ha&s;t promi&s;ed.</P>
<P>Yet &s;ith there is no man,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Eccle<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"></HI> 7.20.</NOTE> that liveth and &s;inneth not, I do in thy holy pre&s;ence prote&s;t again&s;t any contrived, allowed &s;in, whereby I &s;hall<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"></HI> 18.21.</NOTE> wickedly depart from my God, and that though of force I do, and &s;hall in part while I am in this body,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> 25.</NOTE> with my fle&s;h &s;erve the law of &s;in, yet with my mind will I &s;erve the law of God wholly, and for ever.</P>
<PB N="104" REF="53">
<P> Now the<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Jo&s;h.</HI> 22.22.</NOTE> Lord God of Gods, the<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Jer.</HI> 17.10.</NOTE> &s;earcher of the hearts, and tryer of the reins,<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 139.23, 24.</NOTE> &s;earch me, and try me, and if their be any way of wickedne&s;s in me, lead me in the way everla&s;ting: &s;ith thou<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.4.</NOTE> command|e&s;t me to keep thy precepts diligent|ly,<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 27.8.</NOTE> my heart &s;aith unto thee,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.5.</NOTE> Oh that my waies were directed, to keep thy &s;tatutes; therefore will I<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Deut.</HI> 26.16.</NOTE> keep, and do them with all mine heart, and all my Soul.</P>
<P>Ble&s;&s;ed God, I de&s;ire to<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Phil.</HI> 4.4.</NOTE> rejoice in thee, and in the<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Chron.</HI> 15.15.</NOTE> Oath and Covenant made with thee, this I do in the truth, and uprightne&s;s of my heart, as I have cho&s;en &s;o I de|&s;ire to prize thee above all;<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;.</HI> 73.25.</NOTE> Whom have I in Heaven but thee! and there is none on Earth that I de&s;ire be&s;ides thee:<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Song.</HI> 6.3.</NOTE> I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine.<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 16.6.</NOTE> The lines are fallen to me in plea&s;ant places, yea I have a goodly heri|tage.<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Eph.</HI> 1.4, 5.</NOTE> Ble&s;&s;ed be the God and Father of our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, who hath cho&s;en me in him, before the Foundation of the World,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Rev.</HI> 5.9, 10.</NOTE> Ble&s;&s;ing, Honour, and Glory be
<PB N="105" REF="53">given to the Lamb for ever, who was &s;lain, and ha&s;t redeemed me to God, by thy blood,<NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Zech.</HI> 9.11.</NOTE> the blood of the Covenant. Ble&s;&s;ed be the e|ternal Spirit who ha&s;t<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><HI>Gen.</HI> 1.2.</NOTE> moved my heart to enter, into this &s;olemn relation, and obligation unto God.</P>
<P><NOTE N="&dagger;" PLACE="marg"><HI>Deut.</HI> 7.9. <HI>&amp;</HI> 29.9.</NOTE> The Lord my God, the faith|ful God, which keepeth Covenant, and Mercy to them that Love him, and keep his Commandments: keep to me the Covenant, and the Mercy, and Confirm it to the end, and &s;trengthen me &s;o with thy Grace that I may keep the words of this Covenant, and do them; and this Covenant made this day with my God, let not any thing, Sin, Sa|tan, World, Life nor Death, di&s;|annul; but let it be confirmed to all Eternity. <HI>Amen. Amen.</HI></P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="54">
<PB REF="54">
<P>AN APPENDIX Containing PROPOSITIONS Evidencing, Not only the warrantablene&s;s, but expediency, of tran&s;acting with God in a particular expre&s;s Covenant-way.</P>
<P>Written at fir&s;t, for the &s;atisfaction of a private friend; now publi&s;hed at the reque&s;t of &s;ome others, and for the benefit, and advnatage of any that &s;hall peru&s;e them.</P>
<P>By <HI>SAMUEL VVINNEY,</HI> &s;ometimes Mini&s;ter of the Go&s;pel at <HI>Gla&s;ton</HI> in Somer&s;et&s;hire.</P>
<P><HI>London,</HI> Printed for <HI>Thomas Cockeril</HI> at the <HI>Atlas</HI> in <HI>Cornhil,</HI> near the Royal Exchange, 1675.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="55">
<PB REF="55">
<HEAD>To the Reader.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Courteous Reader.</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>THere being lately extant a worthy Treati&s;e of a Reverend Divine, cal|led <HI>Vindiciae Pietatis,</HI> written by <HI>Mr. R. A.</HI> pre&s;&s;ing to a <HI>&s;trict and preci&s;e Conver&s;ation,</HI> and in it giving advice to per&s;ons not yet in <HI>Covenant,</HI> to come <HI>in</HI> and compleat all by <HI>Solemn Cove|nanting</HI> with God, I mo&s;t glad|ly, &s;weetly and delightfully viewed the de&s;ign, and meeting with the doubts of &s;ome per&s;on (a pretious Servant of God, and my dear and intimate friend) about the warrantablene&s;s of that way, becau&s;e I my &s;elf was &s;o much affected with the thing,
<PB REF="56">did &s;et my &s;elf (upon his reque&s;t and letter to me) &s;eriou&s;ly to &s;eek what warrant Gods word affor|ded to it, and at &s;ome &s;pare|hours, in &s;ome few days of <HI>vacati|on</HI> from my incumbring and te|dious imployment, drew up the following <HI>Propo&s;itions</HI> tending to the evidence thereof; hoping that either the author of the forenamed treati&s;e or &s;ome per|&s;on el&s;e, who&s;e <HI>Graces, Abilities</HI> and <HI>Lei&s;ure</HI> are greater than mine, may be &s;tirred up more ful|ly to clear it. The Lord grant, that who&s;oever may peru&s;e them may have the &s;ame comfort and bene|fit thereby, as the Author that compo&s;ed them, and now through the importunity of o|thers made them publick. <HI>Amen.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="propositions">
<PB N="5" REF="56">
<HEAD>Certain <HI>PROPOSITIONS</HI> tending to the clearing of a Que&s;tion, and Satisfaction of &s;ome doubts, about particular expre&s;s entring into Cove|nant with God.</HEAD>
<DIV2 N="1" TYPE="proposition">
<HEAD>Prop. I.</HEAD>
<P>THat God hath of his own good plea&s;ure, from all eternity, elected &s;o me to everla&s;ting life: 1 <HI>Pet.</HI> 1.2. <HI>Elect according to the foreknowledg of God.</HI> Eph. 1.4. <HI>According as he hath cho&s;en us in him before the Foundation of the World.</HI></P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="2" TYPE="proposition">
<HEAD>Prop. II.</HEAD>
<P>That God did from all eternity ran&s;act the bu&s;ine&s;s of the Salva|tion of the&s;e elected per&s;ons, be|tween
<PB N="6" REF="57">him&s;elf and his Son Je&s;us Chri&s;t. God gave every one of tho&s;e whom he would have mercy on, to Je&s;us Chri&s;t, to the intent that he might deliver them all, and every one of them, out of the e&s;tate of &s;in and mi&s;ery, which they &s;hould implunge them&s;elves into by the fall of <HI>Ad<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">m,</HI> and the Son he accepts of this work of Salvation and Redemption of them by his own death, to be accompli&s;hed in the fulne&s;s of time, and this by Di|vines is called the <HI>Covenant of Re|demption.</HI></P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="3" TYPE="proposition">
<HEAD>Prop. III.</HEAD>
<P>That (be&s;ides the Covenant tran&s;acted between the Father and the Son, about the Redemption and Salvation of the elect from all eter|nity) God he enters into a Cove|nant of Grace, with the per&s;ons them&s;elves, that are elected, in due time, which yet is a con&s;equent of the former; For if Chri&s;t had ne|ver undertaken, or accepted of the terms in that Covenant of Re|demption,
<PB N="7" REF="57">before time, there had been no Covenant of Grace in time, with the Elect them&s;elves.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="4" TYPE="proposition">
<HEAD>Prop. IV.</HEAD>
<P>This Covenant between God and his people is mutual, and &s;tipula|tory, (that is) obligeth God, (to &s;peak with due reverence of &s;o great a Maje&s;ty,) and al&s;o obligeth all, and every the per&s;ons of his people, taken into it, wherein, as God graciou&s;ly doth promi&s;e to be their God, to be good and kind un|to them, yea to be all to them, and do all for them, which &s;hall be for pre&s;ent, and future, temporal, &s;pi|ritual, and eternal good: &s;o are they an&s;werably bound, to become his people, for their part, and &s;o to live before God, as his people, in Faith, Repentance, Holine&s;s and Obedience, all their daies. So that the preceptive part, as well as the pro|mi&s;&s;ive part of the Covenant, is ex|pre&s;ly in Scripture called, and en|titled by the name of a Covenant,
<PB N="8" REF="58">becau&s;e of that tye on per&s;ons, to perform the duty, as God hath gra|ciou&s;ly bound him&s;elf to perform the mercy; &s;o the Moral law is cal|led a Covenant, <HI>Deut.</HI> 4.13.2 <HI>Chron.</HI> 6.11. and the mandatory part in general, <HI>Lev.</HI> 26.15. <HI>Deut.</HI> 29.1.9.12, 14, 21, 25. and the He|brew Phra&s;e, which properly &s;ig|nifies to cut a Covenant, among&s;t variety of words by which the LXX. u&s;e to tran&s;late it, one is <GAP DESC="foreign">, to Command. See <HI>Heb.</HI> 9.10. from <HI>Exod.</HI> 24.8.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="5" TYPE="proposition">
<HEAD>Prop. V.</HEAD>
<P>That this Covenant is made with Believers and their Seed, not only with the &s;ingle per&s;ons of Believers, but with their Seed al&s;o in them, and them&s;elves the repre&s;entatives of their Seed.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="6" TYPE="proposition">
<HEAD>Prop. VI.</HEAD>
<P>That every particular per&s;on of the&s;e is bound for him&s;elf, to lay hold on the Covenant: By Faith to
<PB N="9" REF="58">apply all the Promi&s;es; and in O|bedience to perform all the precepts, and duties required in this Cove|nant.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="discussion">
<P>Now about our particular en|tring into, and being in Covenant with God, divers things are to be weighed, and con&s;idered, for a right under&s;tanding thereof.</P>
<P>We may be &s;aid, to be in, and to enter into Covenant with God, two waies.</P>
<P N="1">1. Virtually; and this is two waies.</P>
<P N="1">1. Either in our Fathers relation and obligation to God; God enters into Covenant not with Believers per&s;ons only (as before) but with them and their Seed al&s;o. Gen. 17.7. <HI>And I will e&s;tabli&s;h my Covenant between mee, and thee, and thy Seed after thee, in their generations, for an everla&s;ting Covenant, to be a God unto thee, and thy Seed after thee.</HI> And every Believer ought to accept the Covenant, not for him&s;elf only, but for his &s;eed. Now my Father's accepting the Covenant, not for him|&s;elf only, but for me, and God's Cove|nanting
<PB N="10" REF="59">with me as well as with him; doth engage me with him to God in the &s;ame obligation. This way of Covenant-tran&s;action hath been always in all Gods dealings with the Sons of men in this kind, even in both Covenants <HI>(viz,)</HI> that of Works (called a Covenant of life by our Divines) before the fall, and that of Grace, ever &s;ince. And this way of being in Covenant with God, may be as &s;oon as a man is conceived, and before while he is in his fathers Loins; thus were all the Sons of men (all mankind) in <HI>A|dam's</HI> Covenant, and every beli|vers Seed in their Fathers.</P>
<P N="2">2. Or el&s;e in our being baptized and receiving thereby the outward &s;ign, and Seal of the Covenant of Grace. Now though hereby an outward application of the &s;ign of the Covenant was made to us, yet we did but virtually enter then, and thereby into Covenant with God, becau&s;e we were altogether pa&s;&s;ive, and not at all active in our partici|pation of that Sacrament.</P>
<P N="2"><PB N="11" REF="59"> 2. Actually, and this is two waies too.</P>
<P N="1">1. Something re&s;pects the nature of the thing it &s;elf, that there be a &s;erious, cordial, total Re&s;ignation of our &s;elves to God, in a holy depen|dance, reliance, and affiance on all his Promi&s;es, accepting him to be our Saviour, the Holy Gho&s;t to be our God, and Je&s;us Chri&s;t to be our Sanctifier, and Comforter, up|on his own terms: as he hath of|fered him&s;elf to us, in his ble&s;&s;ed Word, with an unfeigned, and uni|ver<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">l Obedience to all his Com|mandments.</P>
<P N="2">2. Something re&s;pects the man|ner of doing of it; and here al&s;o &s;omething is;</P>
<P N="1">1. Publick, when a per&s;on grown to years, and under&s;tanding, doth freely, and voluntarily, yea and openly too, in the face and pre|&s;ence of the Congregation,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mr. Ham|ner of Con|firmation.</NOTE> take up|on him to fulfil that Covenant, which his Father in his name, and behalf at his Bapti&s;m, undertook for him.</P>
<P N="2"><PB N="12" REF="60"> 2.<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">The na|ture of this particular expre&s;s Co|venanting with God briefly o|pened.</NOTE> Private; and that is when a per&s;on either at his Conver&s;ion, or after doth this upon due, &amp; delibe|rate Con&s;ideration between God and his own Soul, draw up in writ|ing, a certain form of words, ac|cording as his own heart &s;hall (up|on &s;erious &s;earch and knowledg of his e&s;tate according to the Scrip|tures) direct him. Wherein there &s;hall be an humble and hearty ac|cepting, owning, and acknowledg|ing of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Gho&s;t, to be his God in Covenant upon his own terms, and that for ever; as al&s;o a full, and unfeigned Re&s;igna|tion of him&s;elf made to God, and Re&s;olution in the &s;trength of God's grace, to walk with him in an ho|ly Communion, and Conver&s;ation, according to the duty requi|red by God from him, in this holy Covenant-&s;tate into which he is en|tred and taken.</P>
<P>Now for our better under&s;tand|ing, in a matter of &s;o great impor|tance, for further clearing of it, I
<PB N="13" REF="60">&s;hall offer the&s;e following particu|lars to &s;erious Con&s;ideration.</P>
<P N="1">1. That I make the&s;e two la&s;t im|diately forenamed, only as the Cir|cum&s;tance of this matter, not at all of the &s;ub&s;tance of our entring into Covenant. We may truely be in Covenant, partake of the benefits of it, have an intere&s;t in God, Je|&s;us Chri&s;t, Remi&s;&s;ion of Sins, and Salvation, yield our &s;elves to God, although we do neither of the&s;e la&s;t things forementioned: that is to &s;ay, though we are never brought into the Congregation, there openly to profe&s;s our taking the&s;e obligations upon our &s;elves, which our Father did for us at our Bapti&s;m, or never have &s;uch a draught in expre&s;s writing, between God and our &s;elves.</P>
<P N="2">2. The Scripture &s;aith, <HI>One &s;hall &s;ay I am the Lord's,</HI> as well as, <HI>a|nother &s;hall &s;ub&s;cribe with his hand unto the Lord, and another &s;hall call him&s;elf by the name of Jacob.</HI> I&s;a. 44.5. Now if this particular &s;hould be a nece&s;&s;ary Duty, <HI>(viz)</HI> &s;ub&s;cribing with the hand, and
<PB N="14" REF="61">the other too: then &s;ome would be bound to one mode or form of tran&s;acti<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> with God and others to another <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">hereas the Scripture maketh one as lawful, good, and valid as another; yea the Scripture &s;eems to &s;peak more in that expre&s;&s;ion of &s;aying, than that of &s;ub&s;cribing with the hand, as is ea&s;ily ob&s;erva|ble: there being two expre&s;&s;ions of the former, one only of the latter. So that text, Deut. 26.17, 18. <HI>Thou ha&s;t avouched the Lord this day to be thy God, and to walk in his waies, &amp;c.</HI> or as the <HI>Hebrew</HI> hath it,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> thou ha&s;t made to &s;ay, that is, to promi&s;e, as worthy <HI>Ain&s;worth</HI> on the place; though others, thou ha&s;t exalted the Lord to be thy God: and &s;urely they that take God to be their God, as they &s;hould exalt him above all in their e&s;timation, as the Prophet did, <HI>Whom have I in heaven but thee?</HI> P&s;al. 73.25. &s;o &s;hould they make him their Lord Paramount, make him their Sovereign, and Supream, &s;hould not &s;et up, or &s;uffer any thing higher than he, the<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">. IXX.</NOTE> <HI>Greek, thou ha&s;t cho&s;en the Lord
<PB N="15" REF="61">this day to be thy God,</HI> but this in|terpretation though good is a di|gre&s;&s;ion; to return therefore.</P>
<P N="3">3. All cannot do this, taking only one expre&s;&s;ion in the letter, (that is) &s;ub&s;cribe with the hand; for very many cannot write, therefore cannot &s;ub&s;cribe with the hand to God: And if it &s;hould be drawn for them, they may &s;et their hands to they know not what, and &s;o, if they &s;hould &s;ub&s;cribe by &s;etting their mark, (it's po&s;&s;ible) they may be deluded therein, they being not capable, (being not able to read write-hand nor them&s;elves to write) to know what they do.</P>
<P N="4">4. Yet further, I add this to all that hath been &s;aid, that it is not only lawful, and warrantable, but al&s;o very expedient, nece&s;&s;ary, and advantageous for Chri&s;tians per&s;o|nally, particularly, and expre&s;ly by word, yea and writing, if they can, to tran&s;act with God in a Co|venant-way.</P>
<P>I &s;hall &s;peak a little to each of <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> branches of this Propo&s;ition.</P>
<PB N="16" REF="62">
<P> Fir&s;t, That it is lawful, and warrantable the&s;e things &s;eem to e|vince.</P>
<P>It is prophe&s;ied,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Scripture evidence.</NOTE> that they &s;hall do &s;o. <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 4 45. <HI>One &s;hall &s;ay I am the Lords: another &s;hall &s;ub&s;cribe with his hand unto the Lord.</HI> I&s;a. 45.24. <HI>Surely, &s;hall one &s;ay, in the Lord have I righteou&s;ne&s;s, and &s;trength,</HI> Zech. 13.9. <HI>They &s;hall &s;ay the Lord is my God.</HI> Ho&s;. 2.16. <HI>Thou &s;halt call me I&s;hi, and &s;halt call me no more Baali.</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. This is practi&s;ed by the Saints of God in former time, the I&s;ra|elites: &s;ee Deut. 26.17, 18. <HI>Thou ha&s;t avouched the Lord this day to be thy God, and to walk in his waies,</HI> &amp;c. A notable enumeration of the&s;e, according to a particular di|&s;tribution of them, into their &s;eve|ral ranks, ages, and &s;exes. <HI>Deut.</HI> 29.10, 11, 12. Captains, Elders, Officers, Wives, little ones, <HI>that thou &s;houlde&s;t enter into Covenant with the Lord thy God,</HI> Deut. 5.27, 28, 29. Three times did the people thus expre&s;ly enter into Covenant with God, <HI>Exod.</HI> 19.8. and chap. 20.
<PB N="17" REF="62">and <HI>Exod.</HI> 24.3.7. &s;o <HI>David</HI> in many and many places. P&s;al. 16.2. <HI>O my Soul, thou ha&s;t &s;aid unto the Lord, thou art my Lord,</HI> &amp;c. P&s;al. 42.9. <HI>I will &s;ay unto God my rock,</HI> &amp;c. &s;o P&s;al. 89.26. <HI>He &s;hall cry unto me, thou art my Father, my God,</HI> &amp;c. P&s;al. 91.2. <HI>I will &s;ay of the Lord he is my refuge, &mdash; my God,</HI> &amp;c. P&s;al. 142.5. <HI>I cryed unto thee O Lord, I &s;aid thou art my refuge</HI> be|&s;ides. P&s;al. 18.1, 2. with 144.2. &s;o P&s;al. 119.94. <HI>I am thine &s;ave me &mdash; like that</HI> I&s;a. 44.5. (before) and ver. 106. <HI>I have &s;worn and will perform it, that I will keep thy righ|teous judgments. Thomas</HI> did &s;o, Joh. 20.28. <HI>my Lord and my God;</HI> after Je&s;us Chri&s;t had &s;aid, <HI>I go to my Father and your Father,</HI> ver. 17. Paul &s;aid &s;o, Act. 27.23. <HI>Who&s;e I am and whom I &s;erves</HI> The Churches of <HI>Macedonia,</HI> 2 Cor. 8.5. <HI>Fir&s;t gave their own &s;elves to the Lord,</HI> &amp;c. And the Apo&s;tle <HI>Paul</HI> &s;aith, that all Chri&s;tians may do it, and that boldly too. Heb. 13.6. <HI>&s;o that we</HI> (<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ach one in particu|lar)
<PB N="18" REF="63"><HI>may boldly &s;ay, the Lord is my helper,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P N="3">3. Something al&s;o may be ob&s;er|ved, much tending to the opening and confirming of this from that Scripture, P&s;al. 50.5. <HI>Gather my Saints together, which have made a Covenant with me by Sacrifice.</HI> It's &s;poken of them as though they had a part, and each for him&s;elf, entred into Covenant with God, who were to be gathered, that is, to be &s;um|moned to appear before God; which makes nothing for the groundle&s;s, independent Saint or Church-gathering &s;o much &s;tickled for; for the Lord doth but here charge, and &s;ummon the Church of the Jews, collectively called Saints, the whole having a denomination from the better part,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Caiv. in loc.</NOTE> to convince them of, and return them from their gro&s;s h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">pocri&s;y; that Herald-like expre&s;&s;ion <HI>pag.</HI> 1. an&s;wering &s;uch obte&s;tations of <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> as we read of in divers pa&s;&s;ages, Deut 30.19. <HI>I call Heaven and Earth to witne&s;s,</HI> and 32.1. <HI>give Ear Oh Heavens,</HI> &amp;c. with <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 1.2. but
<PB N="19" REF="63" MS="y">this is to our purpo&s;e that the Scripture doth imply, that they had di&s;tinctly, and apart entred into Covenant with God, each for him|&s;elf by Sacrifice. Of this Covenanting between God and his people by Sa|crifice, we may &s;ee a lively de&s;cripti|on, Exod. 24.4.8. <HI>And Mo&s;es wrote all the words of the Lord, and ro&s;e up early in the morning, and builded an Altar, under the hill, and</HI> 12 <HI>pillars according to the</HI> 12 <HI>tribes of I&s;rael.</HI> 5. <HI>And he &s;ent young men of the Children of I&s;rael, which offe|red burnt-offerings, and &s;anctified peace-offerings, of Oxen unto the Lord</HI>&mdash;7. <HI>And he took the book of the Covenant and read in the au|dience of the people, and they &s;aid, all that the Lord hath &s;aid, will we do and be obedient.</HI> 8. And <HI>Mo&s;es took the blood, and &s;prinkled on the people, and &s;aid, behold the blood of the Covenant which the Lord hath made with you.</HI> Concerning all The&s;e words. By the&s;e two &s;orts of Sacrifices the &s;anctification of the people was te&s;tified,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ain&s;w. in loc.</NOTE> who by the death of Chri&s;t, (whom the&s;e Sacri|fices
<PB N="20" REF="64">did figure out) pre&s;ented them&s;elves wholly to God, as obe|dient Servants (according to that of the Apo&s;tle, Heb. 9.14. <HI>How much more &s;hall the blood of Chri&s;t, who through the eternal Spirit offe|red him&s;elf without &s;pot to God, purge your Con&s;cience from dead works, to &s;erve the living God;</HI>) and it is to be ob&s;erved, about both of them, how particularly, and per&s;onally they did tran&s;act with God. 1. Of the burnt-offering Lev. 1.2. <HI>If any man bring an offer|ing to the Lord.</HI> ver. 3. <HI>If his offer|ing be a burnt-&s;acrifice of the herd, let him offer a</HI> Male without ble|mi&s;h, &mdash; ver. 4, and he <HI>&s;hall put his hand, upon the head of the burnt-of|fering, and it &s;hall be accepted for him to make an atonement for him.</HI> 2. The like is &s;aid of the peace-offer|ing. <HI>Lev.</HI> 3.1, 2, and <HI>ver.</HI> 6, 7, 8. Now this particular laying on the hand by every per&s;on that brought a Sacrifice to the Prie&s;t to be offered to God, what doth it teach us? Among&s;t many things I &s;hall not mention, all which might be expre&s;|&s;ed,
<PB N="21" REF="64" MS="y">the&s;e two principally to our purpo&s;e;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Bp. Bab|ington's Comfort. Notes on <HI>Lev. 1.4.</HI></NOTE> 1. That every one was bound to apply Chri&s;t, particular|ly to him&s;elf by the hand of his own Faith. 2. That he was to make an holy re&s;ignation of him&s;elf to God and <HI>Chri&s;t, that men bringing &s;acrifices to God &s;hould rather &s;acri|fice them&s;elves&mdash;than that bea&s;t;</HI> a|greeing with the Exhortation of the Apo&s;tle Paul, Rom. 12.1.<NOTE PLACE="marg">ubi &s;up.</NOTE> <HI>I be&s;eech you therefore Brethren, by the mer|cies of God, that ye pre&s;ent your bodi|es a living holy acceptable Sacrifice unto God, which is your rea&s;onable Service.</HI> For many are Content to give their goods to God, but them|&s;elves to the Devil, which God ab|horreth; &s;aid that holy Bi&s;hop. How plainly doth it hence appear,<NOTE PLACE="marg">ibid.</NOTE> that this Covenanting with God by Sacrifice, proves the truth treated of, in that Sacrifice, each per&s;on laying his hand on his Sacrifice, implying his particular dependence upon, and applying Je&s;us Chri&s;t to him&s;elf, for Salvation; and giving up him&s;elf to God and Chri&s;t, in an holy and
<PB N="22" REF="65">Univer&s;al Obedience. Something more of this anon.</P>
<P>Some Arguments drawn from Scripture for the proof of its lawful|ne&s;s which I &s;hall propo&s;e not in way of Syllogi&s;m formally,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>2</HI> Scrip. Argu|ments.</NOTE> but of ordinary rea&s;on, for the capacity of any that may de&s;ire Satisfaction.</P>
<P N="1">1. It is lawful and warrantable to tran&s;act with God, in a particu|lar, and per&s;onal way, becau&s;e eve|ry per&s;on is bound, by a particular Faith to apply the Promi&s;es to him|&s;elf in particular, that are propo&s;ed in general to all: yea &s;ome Promi|&s;es, that are made to &s;ome particular per&s;ons in reference to &s;ome particu|lar matters, are yet by the Holy Gho&s;t extended to all, and offered to and to be applyed by every Chri|&s;tian: thus <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> was not to carry away, and impropriate to him&s;elf all the benefit of the Promi&s;e made to him, about Gods being with him, and not failing, nor for&s;aking him, <HI>Jo&s;h.</HI> 1.5. Compared with <HI>Heb.</HI> 13.5. where the Apo&s;tle extends it to all, and yet &s;eem thereby to apply it to every particular Chri&s;tian<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>I
<PB N="23" REF="65">will never leave thee, nor for&s;ake thee.</HI> Ther's the particular application of that Promi&s;e made at fir&s;t to <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> to every particular Chri&s;tians exi|gence, ver. 6. <HI>Wherefore we may boldly &s;ay.</HI> (viz. All Collectively, and each one &s;inglely in his own behalf, and for his own e&s;pecial be|hoof) <HI>the Lord is my helper, &amp;c.</HI> And if &s;o, why &s;hould not (&s;ith the Covenant is mutually and recipro|cally obligatory) there be a parti|cular re&s;ignation, made by every Chri&s;tian of him&s;elf to God?</P>
<P N="2">2. If I am bound in particular by every Command, then I ought and may lawfully give my a&s;&s;ent thereto, in word or writing, ei|ther or both. That command reach|eth every particular Chri&s;tian. <HI>Rom.</HI> 6.13. yield your &s;elves unto God.</P>
<P N="3">3. Where there was a general, vocal a&s;&s;enting &s;tipulation made to God, and at any time an an&s;wer made to his call, there were al&s;o the particulars implyed, or expre&s;t, or both. So before, <HI>Exod.</HI> 19.20. and 24. <HI>Chap.</HI> It is &s;aid all the people an|&s;wered together, and all the people
<PB N="24" REF="66">an&s;wered with one voice: So <HI>Deut.</HI> 5.27, 28. It is not &s;aid, their Heads only, or Officers, or Elders, but all the people with an expre&s;s mention of their voices. Yea further we &s;hall &s;ee the people expre&s;ly mentioned, and di&s;tinctly from all the&s;e, <HI>Jo&s;h.</HI> 24.1, 2. with 16.17. <HI>&amp;c.</HI></P>
<P N="4">4. Becau&s;e the benefits of the blood of the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t (which is called <HI>the Blood of the Co|venant,</HI> Zech. 9.11.) which are al&s;o the benefits of the Covenant of grace, (for both are one) are apply|ed in particular by Gods Saints, in Scripture: &s;ee Gal. 2.20. <HI>I am cru|cified with Chri&s;t, neverthele&s;s I live, yet not I, but Chri&s;t liveth in me, and the life which I now live in the fle&s;h, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave him&s;elf for me.</HI> The like the Apo&s;tle &s;peaks, Rom. 8.2. <HI>for the law of the Spi|rit of life in Chri&s;t Je&s;us, hath made me free from the law of &s;in and death.</HI></P>
<P N="5">5. <HI>David's</HI> Prayer may give a little light to this truth, which he makes, and we may read recor|ded,
<PB N="25" REF="66"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 35.3. <HI>Say unto my Soul I am thy Salvation. Wherein Da|vid</HI> de&s;ires God to &s;ay to him, in this kind in particular: then cer|tainly it may not be unwarranta|ble, for Gods people to deal with God in re&s;erence to their particular Intere&s;t in God, and con&s;equently in the Covenant.</P>
<P N="6">6. It's Con&s;iderable, how much Gods tran&s;action with the Sons of men in this kind, and way is &s;po|ken of and uttered, in the terms, and under the notion of &s;ingle and particular per&s;ons. (1.) They were particularly numbred out to Je&s;us Chri&s;t, and accordingly returned by tale (as I may &s;ay) to the Father by the Son. John. 17.12, <HI>Tho&s;e thou gave&s;t me, I have kept, and none of them is lo&s;t, but the Son of perdition. &amp;c.</HI> (2) <HI>One &s;hall &s;ay, and another &s;hall &s;ub&s;cribe,</HI> not &s;ome, and others, in the plural number but one and another in the &s;ingu|lar number. (3.) In the precepts of the moral law at mount Sinai, (which all &s;ound Divines hold, &amp; ac|knowledg to be a Covenant of
<PB N="26" REF="67">grace,) with <HI>I&s;rael, Exod.</HI> 20. the Lord &s;peaks particularly, thou &s;halt and thou &s;halt not, not ye but thou. (4.) The Covenant with Chri&s;t (My&s;tical) mentioned, <HI>Gal.</HI> 3.16. is expre&s;&s;ed in Terms of particularity. Now to <HI>Abraham</HI> and his Seed, were the Promi&s;es made; he &s;aith not, and to his Seeds, as of many, but as of one, and to thy Seed, which is Chri&s;t: now though by Chri&s;t, here is not meant Chri&s;t's &s;ingle per&s;on, but Chri&s;t my&s;tical (a collective term; As 1 Cor. 12.12. <HI>So al&s;o is Chri&s;t</HI> that is Chri&s;t's my&s;tical body, of which he is the Head) yet this may &s;hew and point out to us, by Ana|logy and proportion, that every believer hath intere&s;t in, and &s;hould accordingly make particular appli|cation, of the whole of the Cove|nant unto them&s;elves.</P>
<P N="7">7. Becau&s;e the Holy Gho&s;t war|ranteth this in his own expre&s;&s;ion. See 1 Cor. 12.27. <HI>Now ye are the body of Chri&s;t, and members in par|ticular.</HI> Our tran&s;acting with God this way is to that end and purpo&s;e, that we may make &s;ure of an inte|re&s;t
<PB N="27" REF="67">in him, and our union, and relation to the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, to our &s;elves in particular: If the Holy Gho&s;t is &s;o particular in this kind, &s;urely, we may not onely be &s;o, but much more ought to be &s;o.</P>
<P N="8">8. If the Devil, in the Cove|nants he makes with per&s;ons, doth make every particular per&s;on, &s;ub|&s;cribe with his hand, yea and &s;ome (I have heard, or read, or both) with their own blood, their re&s;ig|nation of them&s;elves to him, in that helli&s;h bond they are tyed to him in: may we not then, yea how much more, are we bound to deal particularly with God, to make him &s;ure to us and our &s;elves &s;ure to him?</P>
<P N="9">9. The expre&s;&s;ions and re&s;em|blances by which this Covenanting with God is &s;et forth, do imply and import as much as this is (1.) It is re&s;embled to a marriage-Cove|nant, Ho&s;. 2.16. <HI>thou &s;halt call me I&s;hj,</HI> that is, my husband; and ver. 19. <HI>I will betroth thee unto me for ever, yea I will betroth thee unto me in righteou&s;ne&s;s,</HI> &amp;c. ver. 20. <HI>I
<PB N="28" REF="68">will hetroth thee unto me in faithful|ne&s;s,</HI> &amp;c. Now God is our hus|band, I&s;a. 54.5. <HI>thy maker is thy hu&s;band, &amp;c.</HI> And doth the hus|band in the mariage Covenant, (for that is called a Covenant al&s;o) the wife married is called <HI>the wife of thy Covenant,</HI> (viz.) by marri|age, <HI>Mal.</HI> 2.14. the marriage. knot and obligation is called <HI>the Cove|nant of God,</HI> Prov. 2.17.) only promi&s;e to be a loving, faithful hus|band, and no more? Surely this is but half-marriage, the promi&s;e of the one party; or rather doth not the wi&s;e al&s;o engage by word of mouth, that &s;he will be a loving, faithful, and obedient wife? and then the marriage is full and com|pleat: In like manner as God, the hu&s;band of his people promi&s;eth to be their God; &s;o the e&s;pou&s;ed Soul promi&s;eth to be only for God, and Je&s;us Chri&s;t and for none el&s;e, and this ought every particular Soul to do which is the &s;pou&s;e of the Lord Je&s;us. <HI>I have betrothed you unto one husband,</HI> &s;aith the Apo&s;tle Paul,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Con|ver&s;ion is the Soul's E&s;pou&s;al,</NOTE> 2 Cor. 11. Now Conver&s;ion is
<PB N="29" REF="68">a work wrought upon every parti|cular Soul, and that Soul and as ma|ny Soul's as are converted, do in par|ticular turn to God, every one for him&s;elf, &amp; re&s;olves to be for him on|ly, and none el&s;e. (2.) Another expre&s;&s;ion of this is by the giving of the hand, <HI>Rom.</HI> 6.13. compared with 2 Chron. 30.8. <HI>Now be not &s;tiffnecked as your Fathers were, but yield your &s;elves to the Lord;</HI><NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> He|brew; Give the hand to the Lord, as the Margin of &s;ome Bibles hath it, which hath &s;ome re&s;emblance to marriage al&s;o forenamed; wherein as there is an expre&s;s Promi&s;e by word of mouth, &s;o there is at the &s;ame time a &s;olemn and publick Gi|ving of the hand each to other. And this action hath many times the virtue of a ratification of Pro|mi&s;es, in our civil Commerce and mutual contracts one with another. The Greek; Give glory to God;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">, LXX.</NOTE> like that Jer. 13.16. <HI>give Glory to God</HI> by repentance and humiliation, pre&s;&s;ing to the &s;ame duty laid down in the fir&s;t words, po&s;itively, though there negatively; be not &s;tiff|necked
<PB N="30" REF="69">in both places, <HI>yield your &s;elves to the Lord</HI> in our tran&s;lati|on. (3.) Another expre&s;&s;ion we &s;hall &s;aid, P&s;al. 50.5. <HI>Gather my Saints which have made a Covenant with me by Sacrifice;</HI> Hebrew; Cut a Covenant,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> for at holy Covenants, the Sacrifices were cut a&s;under, and both the per&s;ons went between the parts, to &s;hew that there was a mutual &s;tipulation and engagement, not one per&s;on only was tyed,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ain&s;w.</NOTE> but both did thus reciprocally tran&s;act one with another, and were inter|changeably obliged to and a&s;&s;ur|ed of the terms therein contain|ed.</P>
<P N="10">10. Further, this is no more than is already done virtually by us in our Bapti&s;m-Covenant, and ther's no per&s;on of &s;ound judgment but thinketh him&s;elf to be really and fully bound thereby, and wo be to every baptized per&s;on, that lives and dies in the neglect of fulfilling that Covenant. And this kind of ex|pre&s;s tran&s;acting between God, and our &s;elves by &s;peech or writing is but a doing of the &s;ame thing in ano|ther
<PB N="31" REF="69">way. So al&s;o in the Sacra|ment of the Supper wherein every per&s;on takes both the Elements, the Bread and the Cup into his own hand, denoting his receiving Chri&s;t to him&s;elf in particular, and giving up him&s;elf to him, both receiving, and re&s;igning him&s;elf up back again is implyed thereby.</P>
<P N="11">11. La&s;tly, doth not every Chri|&s;tian do the &s;ame thing, when he comes to die? It is the la&s;t work that all men that die in Chri&s;t, and in the faith do, <HI>viz.</HI> re&s;ign them|&s;elves up particularly, Body and Soul into the hands of God; and as the Apo&s;tle phra&s;eth it, <HI>Commit their Souls unto him after all their well-doing as into the hands of a faithful Creator,</HI> 1 Pet. 4. ult. How comforta|bly, freely, &amp; confidently will they do it then, having done it &s;olemnly before hand in their life-time? for this we have our ble&s;&s;ed Saviour for a patern: See Luk. 23.46. <HI>Cryed with a loud voice and &s;aid, Father in|to thy hands I Commend my Spirit, and gave up the Gho&s;t;</HI> the very &s;ame words that <HI>David</HI> the type of Je&s;us
<PB N="32" REF="70">Chri&s;t did u&s;e when he was alive (in his life-time) P&s;al. 31.5. <HI>Into thy hands I Commend my Spirit, thou ha&s;t redeemed me, O Lord God of truth!</HI> in the doing of this work, when he was in great danger of death by the malice, and mi&s;chief his enemies contrived again&s;t him: the &s;ame did <HI>Steven</HI> the Protomar|tyr at his di&s;&s;olution and violent death, <HI>Act.</HI> 7.59. in effect though not in expre&s;s words. <HI>Lord Je&s;us re|ceive my Spirit.</HI></P>
<P>And thus much for the lawful|ne&s;s, and warrantablene&s;s of it, which is the fir&s;t thing.</P>
<P>Secondly, that it is expedient, ne|ce&s;&s;ary, and advantageous, appears very plainly by the&s;e things follow|ing.</P>
<P N="1">1. The per&s;on gets true, and full a&s;&s;urance that the work is once done indeed, &s;o that the matter will no longer hang in doubt, or if there be any doubts, and ob|jections ari&s;e at any time, this draught will be a te&s;timony of it, which God will never di&s;own, it being done in &s;incerity of heart, or
<PB N="33" REF="70">if not this way, yet if there hath been a tran&s;acting by word of mouth, wherein an intere&s;t in God hath been humbly and heartily ac|cepted and embraced, and &s;erious giving up our &s;elves to God totally and for ever; I &s;ay, if it hath been done in this manner the Soul will have &s;ome ground of evidence, and &s;ome plea with God, when in the mid&s;t of detections and temptati|ons. This puts me in mind of one poor Soul, that was in a mixture of Soul and bodily di&s;traction to|gether; who though then as not o|therwi&s;e, in many things and ca&s;es &s;en&s;ible, yet being &s;et to prayer by &s;ome per&s;ons that vi&s;ited her, where|of &s;ome were Mini&s;ters, and I my &s;elf was one, &s;he made u&s;e of this pa&s;&s;age in the&s;e words or to this effect; Lord,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Expre&s;&s;ing here her came.</NOTE> thou knowe&s;t me poor by name, and thou knowe&s;t that in &s;uch a place (naming it both Hou&s;e and Room) I had Communion with thee, and thou did&s;t give me a&s;&s;urance of intere&s;t in thee, and be|ing thine. And &s;oon after through her bodily di&s;traction taken off
<PB N="34" REF="71">from the duty, and diverted: So that this is one beneficial advantage, that comes by it, that the work is &s;urely and irrevocably done, and &s;o &s;hall be able with humble boldne&s;s to plead with God for our acceptance with him in any Soul-di&s;tre&s;&s;es we are, or may come into; and be|ing once thus in good earne&s;t done, &s;hall never be undone, for that <HI>the gifts and calling of God are without repentance,</HI> Rom. 11.33. and though we are a people, that &s;hall while we are in the World, through infirmity break Covenant, yet it is God's Covenant-promi&s;e, <HI>to forgive our iniquities; and remember our &s;ins no more,</HI> Jer. 31.3.4. And it is not every infirmity, that &s;hall utterly disannul this Covenant, and break off this marriage-Covenant, and di&s;&s;olve this marriage-knot: &s;ee <HI>Jer.</HI> 3. throughout; If we hearti|ly, and mournfully return to him, as <HI>ver,</HI> 22, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> For God is a God that keeps Covenant, and mercy to a thou&s;and Generations, to them that love him and (make it their whole bent and endeavour to)
<PB N="35" REF="71">keep all his Commandments, <HI>Deut.</HI> 7.9. hence did <HI>David</HI> fetch Com|fort in his per&s;onal, and dome&s;tical troubles. 2 Sam. 23.5. <HI>Although my hou&s;e be not &s;o with God, yet he hath made with me an Everla&s;ting Covenant ordered in all things, and &s;ure, for this is all my Salvation, and all my de&s;ire, although he make it not to grow.</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. This will be a mo&s;t &s;trongty and bond to keep our hearts clo&s;e unto God in dependence and Obe|dience. The be&s;t are u&s;ed to find their hearts hang loo&s;e, and to &s;tand at a di&s;tance through the re|mainders of unbelief, that makes their hearts depart from the living God, <HI>Heb.</HI> 3.12. Now what a &s;pur and goad will the Con&s;idera|tion of this be to us, that we are in Covenant, and have &s;olemnly li&s;t|ed up our hands to God, and yield|ed our &s;elves to him? How will this quicken us when we be &s;luggi&s;h, and backward, and our hearts dull, and &s;low in our &s;aith &amp; dependence, &amp; in our holy Conver&s;ation and Obe|dience? if any thing in the World
<PB N="36" REF="72">will draw on the Soul that is with|drawing, or drawing back, this will do much, to con&s;ider how we have bound our &s;elves, and that if we prove not &s;tedfa&s;t in this Co|venant, both our tongues and our hands will witne&s;s again&s;t us; and that this will be, as it were an hand-writing, (of our own act and deed) another day again&s;t us.</P>
<P N="3">3. This will be a &s;trong motive to keep the heart off more firmly from, and again&s;t all &s;in; for this is the fir&s;t thing that is done in this &s;o &s;olemn a work, even to renounce all others that have been as the Lords of, and over the Soul. Say as the Church did I&s;a. 26.13. <HI>O Lord our God, other Lords be&s;ides thee have had dominion over us; but by thee onely, will we make mention of thy name.</HI> The Con&s;ideration of the mi&s;chief of which, was the great motive to draw her to the di&s;claim|ing of them, in&s;omuch, that the&s;e two things laid together, will make the per&s;on that laies them to heart, re&s;olve, to follow the Apo&s;tles di|rection.
<PB N="37" REF="72">Rom. 6.12. <HI>That they will not let &s;in reign in their mor|tal bodies, that they may obey it in the lu&s;ts thereof.</HI> Their <HI>Covenant with hell, and death being broken,</HI> and di&s;&s;olved, they re&s;olve through grace, that they will not be <HI>Ser|vants any more to divers lu&s;ts and plea&s;ures,</HI> nor will they be as they have been any more taken captive by Satan at his will.<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 2.26.</NOTE></P>
<P N="4">4. This will be a means to bani&s;h all hard and evil thoughts of God, and to cheri&s;h and fo&s;ter good thoughts of him. For hereby we &s;hall look on God as at peace with us; and our &s;elves as friends, and reconciled unto him. So that we &s;hall not be filled with jealou&s;y a|bout his love, nor &s;lavi&s;h fear of his wrath, and indignation; which we were before under in our e&s;tate of nature being an e&s;tate of wrath, for we were <HI>by nature children of wrath as well as others,</HI> &s;aith the Apo&s;tle, <HI>Eph.</HI> 2.3. So that now the &s;tri&s;e, is at an end, and the Controver&s;y is taken up, that there was between God and us: and &s;o
<PB N="38" REF="73">the&s;e thoughts and &s;u&s;picions, that he is armed with vengeance again&s;t us, and that it may be &s;peedily ex|ecuted upon us are removed: So that as <HI>Jacobs</HI> fear of <HI>Laban</HI> was taken off, when there was a &s;olemn Co|venant entred into by them on both &s;ides; &s;o the &s;lavi&s;h fear in the Soul will be hereby for the pre&s;ent re|moved, and by degrees abate,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Gen. <HI>31.</HI></NOTE> and decay in the Chri&s;tians heart more and more.</P>
<P N="5">5. All our unwillingne&s;s to come unto and before God, will be taken away, and our boldne&s;s in com|ming to him to the throne of grace will be increa&s;ed: yea it will breed an earne&s;t longing to be in Commu|nion with him: for though <HI>two can|not walk together except they be agreed;</HI> yet they can meet and walk delightfully together, when they are agreed. All that loathne&s;s and &s;hiene&s;s will be taken out from us, and we &s;hall be brought to de|light in his pre&s;ence: See it in <HI>David</HI> who could &s;ay God was his God, he could al&s;o long to come and appear before God <HI>as the hart panteth af|ter
<PB N="39" REF="73">the Water-Brooks,</HI> P&s;al. 42.1, 2.</P>
<P>An An&s;wer to &s;ome few Obje|ctions lying in the way that might &s;eem to be made again&s;t this way of tran&s;acting with God, in particular and expre&s;s Covenant.</P>
<P>Object. 1. <HI>There is no precept for this in all the Scripture.</HI></P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> 1. It is enough that it is warranted by the practice, and ex|ample of the Saints of God, in the Word, (which is proved abundant|ly in the &s;econd Scripture-evidence, <HI>Sup. p.</HI> 16. Where it hath been &s;uffici|ently &s;hewed that God's Saints have particularly owned God, and ap|propriated him unto them&s;elves, as their own God: P&s;al. 67.6. <HI>God even our own God &s;hall ble&s;s us;</HI> and have al&s;o engaged them&s;elves to God, in a particular manner in du|ty and obedience, which is ground enough for &s;uch a practice.</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> 2. To the real, and &s;erious, and inward doing of this, all are bound that intend to be &s;a|ved. Rom. 6.13. <HI>Yield your &s;elves unto God,</HI> with 2 Chron. 30.8. and
<PB N="40" REF="74">Rom. 12.1. <HI>I be&s;eech you Brethren by the mercies of God, that ye pre&s;ent your bodies, a living Sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> 3. I grant that we are not bound to this external formal doing of it, in &s;uch a manner, as a matter that is nece&s;&s;ary to Salvation, &s;o as that every Chri&s;tian mu&s;t of nece&s;&s;ity do it, if he ever means to go to Heaven, or partake of the be|nefit of the Covenant (this hath been &s;poken to before al&s;o) but as an ex|cellent expedient, for the comfort of our Souls, in a&s;&s;uring our &s;elves of the partaking of the benefits of the Covenant, and keeping the heart more firm and clo&s;e to God, in an holy Covenant-Conver&s;ation, and walking in order to Salvation.</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> 4. This is but doing the &s;ame thing in another way, which hath been already done, and that often (it may be) and many ways too, as to the &s;ub&s;tance thereof; for I take the&s;e things for granted, (1.) That every true Chri&s;tian hath done this already in his heart. (2.) That every per&s;on in the vi&s;ible
<PB N="41" REF="74">Church hath done this virtually in his Bapti&s;m, (as before) and in the primitive times, none were baptized without an expre&s;s Covenanting, wherein they renounced the World, the Fle&s;h, and the Devil, and en|gaged them&s;elves to Chri&s;t, and promi&s;ed to obey him: I &s;hall refer you for more (yet not much) of this to Mr. <HI>Baxters Saints re&s;t, Edit.</HI> 8. p. 149. <HI>Edit.</HI> 9. p. 143. The Que|&s;tion was propo&s;ed. <HI>Abrenuncias?</HI> that is, do&s;t thou renounce? &amp;c. An&s;. <HI>Abrenuncio,</HI> I do renounce. Q. <HI>Credis?</HI> do&s;t thou believe? <HI>Credo,</HI> I do believe. Now if it was done actually by per&s;ons aged at their Bapti&s;m, afore-time, o|penly, and before others, though in few words, Why is it not war|rantable to be done by any now, in a more full and large way either o|penly, or privately in this expre&s;s way, here treated and di&s;cour&s;ed of, as God &s;hall incline the hearts of a|ny among&s;t us? Further con&s;ider, (3.) How often do men do it actu|ally in their own per&s;ons at the Lord's Table? even as often as they
<PB N="42" REF="75">come to partake of the &s;ame. For what el&s;e is &s;et forth by the&s;e Sacra|mental actions of every Communi|cant in their participation, that be|ing al&s;o a Sign and Seal of the Cove|nant, they take God to? be their God, and Je&s;us Chri&s;t to be their alone Saviour, and every one doth this for him&s;elf, and by the &s;ame reaching forth of the hand, as he doth receive Je&s;us Chri&s;t unto him|&s;elf, &s;o doth he as it were give up the hand to God, and thereby his whole &s;elf to Je&s;us Chri&s;t, (according to the former ob&s;ervation,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Sup. &s;cript. Arg. <HI>10</HI></NOTE>) to become one of his people, and Servants, thereby re&s;igning him&s;elf up to him, to be wholly his, and at his Com|mand. (4.) How often do men do this al&s;o on their &s;ick-beds? their re&s;olution is very earne&s;t and &s;trong, and how often doth it i&s;&s;ue forth into expre&s;s promi&s;e? how apt are men to purpo&s;e and promi&s;e both, when death and judgment look them in the face? that they will become the Lords, are grieved that &s;in hath &s;wayd them &s;o much, and that they have &s;erved it &s;o
<PB N="43" REF="75">long, and if it ever plea&s;e the Lord to &s;pare them, recover them, and continue them longer in the world, they will be only for the Lord, and for no other, that they will drudg for the World, fulfil the lu&s;ts of the fle&s;h no longer, nor ever any more as they have done, <HI>make provi&s;ion</HI> for it <HI>to fulfil them.</HI> The&s;e things are not only determined in mens brea&s;ts, but uttered by their tongues, and with their mouths too, at &s;uch a time: and is not this the &s;ame thing, the lawfulne&s;s of which we hereby labour to ju&s;tify and e&s;tabli&s;h? (5.) Nay further yet, we find this occa&s;ionally done, by Gods Saints, upon &s;ome extraor|dinary deliverance out of eminent and particular troubles. See this clear in the Prophet <HI>David's</HI> pra|ctice, P&s;al. 116.16. <HI>O Lord, truly I am thy Servant, I am thy Servant, and the Son of thine hand-maid, thou ha&s;t loo&s;ed my bonds.</HI> The P&s;alm was penned as mo&s;t (and mo&s;t rati|onally too) agree, upon the &s;ame occa&s;ion as <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 18. (as may be &s;een by comparing &s;everal ver&s;es of
<PB N="44" REF="76">that and this together): Now upon occa&s;ion of this deliverance (which was from the hand of all his ene|mies, &amp; from the hand of <HI>Saul, P&s;.</HI> 18. <HI>Title.</HI>) the Prophet breaks out into expre&s;s acknowledgment of his obligation to God; and of his own re&s;ignation of him&s;elf to him accord|ingly. Now all the&s;e things being con&s;idered, and &s;eriou&s;ly laid toge|ther, may we not rea&s;onably con|clude, that a per&s;on upon delibe|rate and weighty con&s;ideration, may take any &s;uch form of words, as are drawn up by either of the&s;e &s;eri|ous Divines Mr. <HI>G.</HI> or Mr. <HI>A.</HI> or a|ny other, or any that they may draw up them&s;elves from their own expe|rience, according to the Scripture, and having done the preparatory duties there directed to, fall down before God, and &s;olemnly under|take the engagement there propo&s;ed, and a verbal profe&s;&s;ion of his accep|tation of God, &amp; his Son, and Cove|nant, according to the tenour of that form there drawn up and expre&s;&s;ed.</P>
<P><HI>Object.</HI> 2. <HI>But</HI> (&s;aith a worthy Divine) <HI>God never makes a Cove|nant
<PB N="45" REF="76">with a &s;ingle per&s;on per&s;onally,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Mr. Wills's morning Excerci&s;e on <HI>Rom. 5.12.</HI></NOTE> <HI>and individually, that all others are unconcerned in it, but with whom|&s;oever God enters into Covenant, that per&s;on is a repre&s;entative of o|thers, and is to be looked upon as a publick per&s;on; otherwi&s;e God &s;hould make as many Covenants as there are per&s;ons, which is the greate&s;t ab&s;ur|dity to a&s;&s;ert,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> 1. This is true, if it be &s;uppo&s;ed that God makes different Covenants as to the matter of them, as the Covenants of Works and Grace were; and this is the very ground upon which this pa&s;&s;age was uttered, and that which it doth purpo&s;ely drive at, it being &s;poken about the Covenant with <HI>Adam</HI> and all mankind in him, and with Je&s;us Chri&s;t and the elect of God in him: For as <HI>Adam</HI> in the fir&s;t Co|venant of Works, &s;tood as the re|pre&s;entative of all mankind, that &s;hould de&s;cend from him by ordi|nary Generation; &s;o Chri&s;t in the &s;econd Covenant of Grace, did &s;tand as a publick undertaker, in the be|half
<PB N="46" REF="77">of all tho&s;e, whom God had ap|pointed to Salvation.</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> 2. But this doth not hin|der, but that God may enter into Covenant with many per&s;ons, par|ticularly and individually, that Covenant being the &s;ame with all &amp; every one of them: not only with the per&s;on of the repre&s;entative him&s;elf, but al&s;o with every parti|cular per&s;on of that Collective bo|dy included in him; that is to &s;ay, every particular per&s;on of that nu|merous multitude obliged to God, upon the termes of one an the &s;ame Covenant, in that common or publick per&s;on, may &s;ue out claim and appropriate, or apply to them&s;elves in due time the benefits thereof, and al&s;o, may particular|ly tran&s;act with God, in an holy giving up them&s;elves to him, for the performance (through the &s;trength of his own grace) of that duty, to which they are bound in the participation of tho&s;e privi|ledges. So God did with all and every particular of mankind un|der the Covenant with <HI>Adam.</HI>
<PB N="47" REF="77">And &s;o with every particular elect per&s;on in the Covenant of Grace through Je&s;us Chri&s;t: the&s;e two do not interfere, nor cla&s;h one with or again&s;t another, <HI>(viz)</HI> God taking &s;uch a number though never &s;o nu|merous, or many, into Covenant in the repre&s;entative, and yet en|tring into Covenant particularly, and with every one of them apart, and in their own per&s;ons, in&s;omuch that every one of them may be concerned to lay hold on it, as be|ing bound in the &s;ame terms with the repre&s;entative.</P>
<P>Object. 3. <HI>But doth not this &s;eem too much to &s;avour of &s;eparation, and look too much like that dividing pra|ctice of &s;ome in the Church, who, ma|ny of them, otherwi&s;e good men (as it is to be hoped) do yet gather them|&s;elves out of, and &s;eparate them&s;elves from the Communion of the vi&s;ible Church, and enter into an expre&s;s and explicite Covenant one with ano|ther? how may the&s;e two be &s;aid to differ one from another?</HI></P>
<P><HI>A.</HI> For the &s;olution of this Objecti|on &s;everal things are to be con&s;idered.</P>
<P N="1">1. It will tend much to the
<PB N="48" REF="78">clearing of the ca&s;e, to unfold in brief the nature of that expre&s;s Co|venant, of the&s;e per&s;ons mentioned; for by di&s;cerning what this is, we &s;hall be the better able to di&s;cern the difference between it, and that we are now di&s;cour&s;ing of.</P>
<P>For the nature of that Covenant (as far as by reading yet I do un|der&s;tand) it is this: A Combination or joyning together of &s;everal Chri|&s;tians, by mutual Con&s;ent, and o|pen and expre&s;s Covenanting (to u&s;e their own very words) to walk together with &s;uch a body of Saints; in a participation of all the Ordi|nances of Je&s;us Chri&s;t.</P>
<P N="2">2. But to this we may &s;ay, as God of the Jews &s;ervices, who hath required this at their hands? to make &s;uch a Covenant as this is? we cannot find any &s;uch thing in all the whole Word of God, either Commanded by Chri&s;t, or practi&s;ed by any former primitive Church. It is true, the Scriptures mention a general implicite Covenant of the Go&s;pel (as &s;ome Divines call it in oppo&s;ition to that of tho&s;e Brethren
<PB N="49" REF="78">fore-&s;poken of) or Covenant of Chri&s;tianity, which all profe&s;&s;ing Chri&s;tians entred into, by their ad|mi&s;&s;ion unto the Sacrament of Bap|ti&s;m, &amp; live in the profe&s;&s;ion, of and hold to, whereby they are bound to acknowledg God as their only Lord, and Je&s;us Chri&s;t as their only Head, Husband and Comman|der, that they will conform to all his Laws and Ordinances appointed in his Word: but of peoples openly Covenanting &s;o to do with one a|nother, and only in this or that So|ciety, as it were apart from all the re&s;t of the particular Congrega|tions of the Catholick Vi&s;ible Church, we never read of: As fa|vourable a judgment pa&s;t on this practice as any I know,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mr. Hud|&s;on of the Catholick vi&s;. Ch. <HI>p. 19.</HI></NOTE> I &s;hall in|&s;ert of a di&s;&s;enting Brother from it. [I dare not make a particular ex|plicite holy Covenant, to be the form <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> particular Church&mdash;be|cau&s;e <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> no mention of any &s;uch Covenant, be&s;ides the general, impo|&s;ed on Churches, nor Example, or Warrant for it in all the Scriptures; and therefore I cannot account it
<PB N="50" REF="79">an Ordinance of God, but a pru|dential humane device, to keep the members together, which in &s;ome places and ca&s;es may happi|ly be of good u&s;e, &s;o it be not urged as an Ordinance of God, and &s;o it be not u&s;ed, to enthral any, and abridg them of liberty of removal into other Places, and Congregati|ons for their convenience, or urged as the form of a Church: I deny not that mutual Con&s;ent of per&s;ons within &s;uch a vicinity to join toge|ther con&s;tantly in the Ordinances of God under the in&s;pection of &s;uch &amp; &s;uch officers is requi&s;ite to a particu|lar Congregation.] To which joyn that which another &s;aith; The Co|venant of the Go&s;pel or Chri&s;tia|nity,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mr. Caw|drey incon|&s;i&s;t. of In|dop. with the Script. and it &s;elf <HI>p. 101.</HI></NOTE> as it engageth them to God, &s;o to one another, to walk in all the ways of God, and to watch over one another, and that primarily too; their explicite con&s;ent only is a renewing of that Covenant <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> ties the knot fa&s;ter to a nece&s;&s;ary duty.</P>
<P N="3">3. The con&s;ideration and laying together of all the&s;e things, will help us to &s;ee wherein the difference
<PB N="51" REF="79">of the&s;e two do ly, which is very great and manifold.</P>
<P N="1">1. This expre&s;s Covenanting o|penly to walk in &s;uch a way, &amp;c. is not at all warranted in Scripture as this is, though not by any ex|pre&s;s precept, yet by prophe&s;y, and practice of the Saints of God, as may be (before) &s;een; to which add one more of <HI>Jacob</HI> to all the re&s;t; &s;ee Gen. 28.20, 21. <HI>And Jacob vow|ed vow, &s;aying, if God will be with me, and will keep me in the way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and rayment to put on, &s;o that I come again to my Fathers hou&s;e in peace, then &s;hall the Lord be my God.</HI> Which words are not to be looked upon as an indenting with God, or propo&s;ing conditions to God, up|on which he would (or otherwi&s;e would not) take or accept God to be his; but a choice, and ready ac|ceptance of God, upon any (his own) conditions be they never &s;o mean or low, according as he had promi&s;ed to be a God to him, as well as to <HI>Abraham</HI> and <HI>I&s;aac</HI> be|fore him.</P>
<P N="2"><PB N="52" REF="80"> 2. This open Covenanting <HI>(viz.)</HI> with this or that Society, is apparently tending to divi&s;ion,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mr. Caw|drey <HI>p. 101. 4</HI> la&s;t lines to the end of that pa|rag.</NOTE> and &s;eparation, and thereby the members of one Congregation are parted from another, as to the partici|pation of all Go&s;pel-ordinances, but this is not &s;o in this of our particular tran&s;acting with God, this being the only fruit to bring the heart more near to God, and unto a bet|ter conformity to his will in an ho|ly Conver&s;ation.</P>
<P N="3">3. In the term to which it drives, the one to a Combination one with another, and &s;o to this or that particular Society, but the other only to a more firm union of the whole per&s;on, in heart and life, to God and Je&s;us Chri&s;t.</P>
<P N="4">4. They differ in this, in that they make their open Covenant|ing to be the formality of a Church-member, &amp; &s;o this mu&s;t follow, that a Church cannot be without it, nor are there any rightly admitted but in this way, which no-where hath a <HI>Probatum e&s;t</HI> by Chri&s;t, or any of the Apo&s;tles; but as to this parti|cular
<PB N="53" REF="80">tran&s;acting with God (of which we treat) we &s;ay, that it nei|ther gives being to a Church-mem|ber, nor yet to a member of Chri&s;t; for this a man may be, though this be not done as above&s;aid <HI>(viz.)</HI> a true member of Chri&s;t, and his Church too; only this excites to the keeping of the heart and life in better order towards and before God.</P>
<P N="5">5. The one is privately done, be|tween God and a Chri&s;tians own heart, in his Clo&s;et, the other is openly done, before the Face of a whole Society.</P>
<P>The &s;um of all is this: 1. The one hath warrant, Gods Word in the other hath no Foundation there. 2. The one tends to &s;eparation, the other not &s;o, only for a man to &s;e|parate him&s;elf from Sin and Satan, to God and his Service, but not from any part of God's Church. 3. The one is ab&s;olute, the other relative. 4. Without the one (if we believe them) no man can be a true Church-member, but without this formal expre&s;s doing of the o|ther
<PB N="54" REF="81">a man may be a true mem|ber of Chri&s;t and his Church too. Only let him look to it, that he true|ly believes in Chri&s;t, repents of &s;in, and obeys God. 5. The one done privately, the other publickly and openly. I &s;hall clo&s;e up all with a &s;erious Wi&s;h or two about this mat|ter.</P>
<P N="1">1. How could I heartily wi&s;h, that no per&s;on that is virtually in Covenant with God, were Igno|rant of that Covenant, wherein he is bound to him. Ah! how many be there, that Con&s;ider not at all that they are, nor know or under&s;tand what it is &s;o to be. How &s;ad is it as to be Ignorant of all others, &s;o of this &s;o precious a priviledg, and comfortable e&s;tate! I wi&s;h that all per&s;ons would &s;eriou&s;ly mind it more, and meditate of it, that they may apprehend, di&s;cern, and perceive tho&s;e obligations that lye upon them.</P>
<P N="2">2. How could I further wi&s;h with all my Soul, that tho&s;e that
<PB N="55" REF="81">cannot but confe&s;s, and acknow|ledg this, would not &s;o &s;light and neglect it as they do, remember often that the vows of God are al|ready upon you in &s;ome &s;ence, as to your Bapti&s;mal Covenant and vow, and is this a light matter? is God's Conde&s;cen&s;ion thus to vouch&s;a&s;e to deal with you nothing? is your re&s;ignation of your &s;elves, and obli|gation to an holy God nothing to you? however you do make light of it, it will be requited of you e|very one another day.</P>
<P N="3">3. How could I again earne&s;tly wi&s;h, that every Soul would often &s;eriou&s;ly renew their Covenant with the Lord. Renew your Re|pentance, and Godly Sorrow for your &s;ins and failings, and for your being un&s;teadfa&s;t in the Covenant, and renew your actings of Faith, a|fre&s;h on the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, who is the Mediator of the Covenant, fu|ing out the benefits of his blood, the blood of the Covenant, which are the priviledges contained in the Covenant; yea further, that you
<PB N="56" REF="82">would deal in this particular ex|pre&s;s way, debated here, proved, and evidenced not only to be warrant|able, but al&s;o wonderou&s;ly profit. able, follow tho&s;e &s;erious and &s;piri|tual directions propo&s;ed by Mr. <HI>R. A.</HI> that &s;o you may. once in good earne&s;t compleat this work.</P>
<P N="4">4. Having dealt thus &s;eriou&s;ly, I wi&s;h you yet &s;till to be careful and watchful over your &s;elves, that you do not for&s;ake this Covenant, that you would con&s;ider, what a weighty matter is done now by you, how &s;ad to be found a Cove|nant-breaker: often think how grievou&s;ly God complains of &s;uch per&s;ons, P&s;al. 78.8. <HI>And might not be as their Fathers, a &s;tubborn, and rebellious Generation, a Gene|ration that &s;et not their heart aright, and who&s;e Spirit was not &s;tedfa&s;t with God;</HI> and further ver. 37. <HI>For their heart was not right with him, neither were they &s;tedfa&s;t in his Covenant;</HI> and again. ver. 57. <HI>But turned back, and dealt unfaithfully like their Fathers, they were turn|ed
<PB N="57" REF="82">a&s;ide like a deceitful bow:</HI> And how &s;evere Go Almighty will prove, and &s;hew him&s;elf again&s;t all tho&s;e that do thus abominable take his name in vain.</P>
<P N="5">5. Finally, I wi&s;h all per&s;ons to &s;ee to it that they walk worthy of it, and an&s;werable to it, in that holy, &s;trict, pure, and upright way of Obedience, which God calls for in that chearful dependence on God, and Je&s;us Chri&s;t, and in that pure Conver&s;ation which the holy Co|venant requires. Suffer not the remainders of unbelief in your hearts to cau&s;e you to depart from the living God; and let not that hand be lifted up again&s;t God, which you have lifted up to him in this tran&s;action. Beware of your &s;elves, that your practice and Conver&s;ation be no un&s;uitable, but every way conformable thereunto; that &s;o you give not God cau&s;e to upbraid you, as we read, P&s;al. 50.16, 17. <HI>What ha&s;t thou to do &mdash; to take my Covenant in thy mouth? &s;eeing thou hate&s;t in&s;tru|ction,
<PB N="58" REF="83">and ca&s;te&s;t my words behind thee?</HI> I wi&s;h unfeignedly that all tho&s;e upon whom the&s;e &s;trong and holy obligations lie, might have a Conver&s;ation alike to that of <HI>Levi,</HI> whom God commends as a patern unto others, and reproves the Prie&s;ts for difformity thereunto: (I know this Covenant &s;poken in this place, had a peculiar re&s;pect to that Tribe) yet his holy Conver&s;a|tion, is in a mo&s;t &s;trict and exact manner po&s;&s;ible to be imitated by every true Chri&s;tian in Go|venant with God; &s;ee it recorded Mal. 2.5. <HI>My Covenant was with him of Life and Peace, and I gave them to him, for ohc fear wherewith he feared me, and was afraid before my name.</HI> ver&s;. 6. <HI>The Law of truth was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found in his lips, he walked with me in Peace and Equity, and turned</HI> (him&s;elf chiefly, as well as) <HI>ma|ny</HI> (others) <HI>from iniquity.</HI> The Lord keep, and uphold us by his free Spirit, in an holy Covenant-Conver&s;ation,
<PB N="59" REF="83">an&s;werable to our profe&s;&s;ed, and I hope real E&s;pou&s;als to God, and Je&s;us Chri&s;t here, untill the marriage of the Lamb be come in the Kingdom of Heaven: <HI>Amen.</HI></P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV2>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="84">
<PB REF="84">
<P>THE NEARNESS OF God's Covenant-People Unto Him.</P>
<P>Being the Sum of two Ser|mons, preached on <HI>P&s;alm,</HI> 148. <HI>14th ver&s;. la&s;t part.</HI></P>
<P>Added as a motive to provoke Chri|&s;tians to, and to promote the great de&s;ign of particular expre&s;s-Co|venanting with God.</P>
<P>By <HI>SAMUEL VVINNEY,</HI> &s;ometimes Mini&s;ter of the Go&s;pel at <HI>Gla&s;ton</HI> in Somer&s;et&s;hire.</P>
<P><HI>London,</HI> Printed for <HI>Thomas Cockeril</HI> at the <HI>Atlas</HI> in <HI>Cornhil,</HI> near the Royal Exchange, 1675.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="85">
<PB REF="85">
<HEAD>To the Reader.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Chri&s;tian Reader,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>Appine&s;s is the Vote of all men: But though all de|&s;ire it, yet mo&s;t take the wrong cour&s;e to the at|taining of it; as if one &s;hould intend a voyage to the Ea&s;t and Sail quite We&s;tward, <HI>Au&s;tin</HI> reckons up 288 opi|nons of the Philo&s;ophers a|bout Happine&s;s, and they have all &s;hot wide of the mark. We mu&s;t not weigh happine&s;s <HI>populari trutina,</HI> in the World's Ballance, but in the <HI>ballance of the Sanctu|ary.</HI>
<PB REF="86">Doubtle&s;s the <HI>P&s;almi&s;t</HI> did hit upon the right. P&s;al. 144.15. <HI>Happy is the people who&s;e God is the Lord.</HI> God is the <HI>Summum bonum,</HI> or chief Good. In the chief Good there mu&s;t be. 1. Suavity, it mu&s;t be delitious, cau&s;ing a jubila|tion, or exta&s;y of Joy. And where can we &s;uch tho&s;e pure, quinte&s;&s;ential Comforts, which do ravi&s;h the Soul with &s;weet delight, but in God?<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">In Deo duad im dulcedine delecta|tur ani|ma, immo rapitur, <HI>Aug.</HI></NOTE> P&s;al. 16.11. <HI>In thy pre&s;ence is fulne&s;s of Joy.</HI> 2. Tran&s;cen|dency; the chief Good mu&s;t have an innate, &s;parkling Beauty, Superior to all other. God is the &s;pring of Being, who doth enrich and be&s;pan|gle the whole Creation; <HI>the Cau&s;e is more noble than the Effect;</HI> He mu&s;t needs infinite|ly out-&s;hine all &s;ublunary
<PB REF="86">Glory. God is better than the Soul, than the Angels, than Heaven. 3. Duration; the chief Good mu&s;t run paral|lel with Eternity.<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Chry&s;.</NOTE> God <HI>a|bides King for ever.</HI> P&s;al. 29.10. Eternity is a Flower of his Crown; he is an inexhau|&s;tible trea&s;ury of Goodne&s;s. So that God being the <HI>chief Good,</HI> the enjoyment of God is the &s;ole thing which Crowns us with Ble&s;&s;edne&s;s. And how doth God come to be our God but by <HI>choo&s;ing</HI> him? It is one thing for the Judgment to <HI>approve</HI> of God, and another thing for the Will to <HI>chu&s;e</HI> him. Many are in their Judgments convinced that God is the mo&s;t amiable Object, but they are &s;wayed a|nother away: their Corrupti|ons are &s;tronger than their
<PB REF="87">Convictions. But we mu&s;t upon mature deliberation <GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>Cleave to the Lord,</HI> Acts 11.23. We mu&s;t choo&s;e him though with Affliction, <HI>Heb.</HI> 11.25. Religi|on is not a matter of chance<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Nemo fortuito fit bonus.</NOTE> but of <HI>choice,</HI> P&s;al. 119.30. <HI>I have cho&s;en the way of truth.</HI> This choo&s;ing of God for our God. 1. Pre&s;uppo&s;eth <HI>an en|lightned mind.</HI> We mu&s;t un|der&s;tand tho&s;e illu&s;trious Per|fections which are in God, his Wi&s;dom, Holine&s;s, Ve|racity, Bounty; as Knowledg u&s;hers in <HI>Faith. P&s;al.</HI> 9.10. &s;o it precedes <HI>choice.</HI> 2. It de|notes a &s;ingling out God from all other Objects to &s;et out heart upon. While others Court the World, and like <HI>Apollo</HI> embrace the Lawrel-Tree in &s;tead of <HI>Daphne,</HI>
<PB REF="87">the Believer &s;aith as <HI>A&s;aph,</HI> P&s;. 73.25. <HI>Whom have I in Hea|ven but thee?</HI> and as <HI>Jacob</HI> Gen. 28.21. <HI>The Lord &s;hall be my God.</HI> This Choo&s;ing God is that in which the <HI>vital part</HI> of Chri&s;tianity con&s;i&s;ts: Affections not grounded up|on a judicious Choice die and vani&s;h. That fruit cannot la&s;t which wants a root to grow upon. This choo&s;ing God is a ble&s;&s;ed &s;ign we love God, and belong to him; our choo&s;ing God is but the re&s;ult and effect of his choo&s;ing us, <HI>John</HI> 15.19. And where there is this chu&s;ing of God, there will be a <HI>davoting</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> &s;elves to him. P&s;al 9.38. and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> <HI>entring into Co|venant with him;</HI> Jer, 50.5. <HI>Come and let us joyn our &s;elves to the Lord in a perpetual Cove|nant
<PB REF="88"><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> follows <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> <HI>Bond,</HI> and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> a con|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="4 letters"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> Vow,</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> &s;o often re|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="4 letters"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> ratified in the <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"> Supper? The&s;e things are the &s;ubject-matter of the en&s;uing Treati&s;e, wherein the Reverend Author hath (&s;o far as I have read) taken good pains, and given the World a ta&s;te of that Savoury gracious Spirit which re&s;ides in him: his whole De&s;ign in this book, is, to di&s;cover the intrin&s;ecal Excellencies in God, which may ha&s;ten our Choice of him for our &s;upream &s;olace and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word">. As al&s;o to make us break off our Covenant with Sin, and engage in Covenant with the high God: by vertue whereof, we procure that
<PB REF="88">great Dignity to be matched into the Crown of Heaven. The Lord give an effectual ble&s;&s;ing, and &s;ucce&s;s to this pre&s;ent Di&s;cour&s;e; and cau&s;e Souls to enter into a more &s;trict way of Commun<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="3 letters"> with him: Which is the ear|ne&s;t prayer of him who is,</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Thy Friend and well-wi&s;her in Spiritual-Affairs, <HI>Thomas Wat&s;on.</HI></SIGNED> <DATE><HI>Octob.</HI> 28. 1674.</DATE></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="preface">
<PB REF="89">
<PB REF="89">
<HEAD>THE PREFACE.</HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Courteous Reader,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P><HI>I</HI> Do here ingenuou&s;ly con|fe&s;s, that taking up a Book in my hou&s;e, and looking on the names of &s;ome books at the end of it, I there met with a di&s;covery of a Di&s;|cour&s;e on this &s;ame Subject, both for matter and text, a Di&s;cour&s;e I &s;ay, of a very Re|verend Divine, Mr. <HI>Ri|chard
<PB REF="90">Vines;</HI> but I can and mu&s;t as truely acquaint thee, that it was after the&s;e Meditations of mine were &s;tudied, preached, and intend|ed for the pre&s;s: and having tran&s;iently viewed it (for I have not had time, for various diver&s;ions, to read it over, though I believe near as &s;hort as my own, and indeed one main rea&s;on was the fitting my own for, and ha&s;ting it to the pre&s;s; I find that his and mine differ very much as to the methed of the handling of this ble&s;&s;ed Priviledg; and I have read from <HI>St. Au&s;tin,</HI> that it's very profitable, for divers
<PB REF="90">to handle the &s;ame point, <HI>alii &s;ic, alii autem &s;ic,</HI> &s;ome in this wi&s;e, &s;ome otherwi&s;e. What&s;oever came from him mu&s;t needs be excellent good, yet &s;ith that may be out of the pre&s;s, and known to very few but in and about <HI>Lon|don,</HI> and &s;carce to be got; I judg this as it cannot detract from the worth, &s;o nor prejudice the e&s;teem, and I hope will never hinder the pau&s;al of that; leaving both that, this and thee to the, ble&s;&s;ing of the Almighty, and not daring, but out of an ingenuous &s;train heartedne&s;s to give thee this notice, being my &s;elf ac|cidentally
<PB REF="91">acquainted with it;</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><HI>I remain thine in the Service of the Go&s;pel,</HI> S.W.</SIGNED>
<DATELINE><HI>From my Study,</HI> <DATE>Aug. <HI>28. 1674.</HI></DATE></DATELINE></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="sermon">
<PB N="7" REF="91">
<HEAD>Gods Covenant-People near unto him, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 148. part of the la&s;t <HI>ver&s;.</HI></HEAD>
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q>A People near unto him.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>THis P&s;alm is of the number of them, that are called Euchari&s;tical, pen'd by way of thank&s;giving to God, wherein, the Prophet doth exhort all the Creatures to that Duty, both that are in Heaven, and that are one Earth too; and I cannot better di&s;tribute them, than it is al|ready done in the Contents pre&s;ixt before it, with a very little varia|tion. 1. We find all things in Heaven; all things Cele&s;tial exhor|ted &s;o to do, in the four fir&s;t ver&s;es, <HI>Prai&s;e the Lord from the Heavens,</HI> ver. 1. <HI>Prai&s;e him all ye his Angels,</HI> ver&s;. 2. <HI>All his Ho&s;ts prai&s;e him, Sun, Moon, Stars,</HI> ver&s;. 3. <HI>&amp;c.</HI> and there is good Rea&s;on &s;ubjoyn'd,
<PB N="8" REF="92">ver&s;. 5, 6. <HI>For he commanded, and they were created, and he hath e&s;ta|bli&s;hed them for ever and ever,</HI> &amp;c. 2. All things Terre&s;trial from the 7th ver&s;. to the 13th ver&s;. wherein we may ob&s;erve, all things i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">i|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ate, or life-le&s;s are exhorted to ble&s;s God, with all things animate or living. 1. Irrational Creatures, <HI>Bea&s;ts and all Cattle, cre<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ping things.</HI> 2. Rational Creatures of all ranks, <HI>Kings of the Earth, and all P<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">inces, and all Judges of the Earth;</HI> of all ages, <HI>young M<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">n and Maidens, old Men and Children:</HI> and here is good rea&s;on here &s;ubjoy<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">'d too. fir&s;t, from what God is in him&s;elf. ver&s;. 13. <HI>His Name is excellent, and his Glory above the Earth and Hea|vens,</HI> 2dly, From what he hath done for his own People, ver&s;. 14, &amp; ult. <HI>He hath exalted the Horn of his Peo|ple,</HI> that is, the dignity, pro&s;perity, and plenty of his People. After which the Prophet goes on to &s;et forth the title, that is given to them; they are &s;aid to be <HI>his people,</HI> and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="3 letters">led <HI>Saints;</HI> then &s;pecifies who they be (viz.) <HI>the people<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> of I&s;rael,</HI>
<PB N="9" REF="92">the alone people, that were in Covenant with God in all the world at that time. 3. Then &s;hews their Priviledg, what their happi|ne&s;s was, in the words of the Text, <HI>They are a people near unto him,</HI> So that in &s;hort the words lay before us, the priviledg, happine&s;s and dignity of the Saints and People of God, that are in Covenant with him; which I &s;hall lay before you in this Ob&s;ervation.</P>
<P><HI>Doct.</HI> That God's Church &amp; People are near unto him: or, God's Saints, and Covenant-people, are a people near unto him: or, as word for word, it may be rendered, His near people,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">m pronom<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">n pro Sep<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">r<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">to. <GAP DESC="foreign"> pro <GAP DESC="foreign"> M. P<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;yn<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">.</NOTE> God's true I&s;rael is his near people. And be&s;ides what is &s;poken in this Text, I &s;hall confirm it by the con&s;ideration of one Text of Scripture more, in which we may ob&s;erve one pa&s;&s;age, wherein the very Priviledg that is here expre&s;ly &s;poken, is &s;trongly implyed. <HI>Jer.</HI> 6.8. <HI>Be thou in&s;tructed, O Jeru&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|lem, le&s;t my &s;oul depart from thee,</HI>
<PB N="10" REF="93">according to the Original Language,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e lu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">a r<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="3 letters">aa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ima <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> abs <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> <HI>Buxt.</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word">.</NOTE> Le&s;t my &s;oul be disjoynted from thee, a metaphor from a Limb thru&s;t out of his place, and put out of joynt. There is as great a Near|ne&s;s between God and his people, (a Nearne&s;s of Union, of which afterward) as there is between a mans Limbs and Joynts one to the other, and you know, that they are &s;o near, that it is an impo&s;&s;ible thing to &s;eparate them, without great pain and difficulty one from another <Q>Intimating, what a pain and grief it is to God to leave or ca&s;t off a people,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Annotat. in Loc.</NOTE> whom he is once in league with, and with how much difficulty he is drawn thereunto.</Q></P>
<P>All that I &s;hall open in the Expli|cation of this Truth, I &s;hall draw up into this</P>
<P><HI>Query;</HI> How, and in what re|gard, are God's Saints, and Cove|nant-people &s;aid to be a People near unto him, and whence it is. And that through God's a&s;&s;i&s;tance, I &s;hall endeavour to open to you, in five or &s;ix particulars.</P>
<PB N="11" REF="93">
<P> Fir&s;t, They are &s;aid to be near to God, in regard of God's Nearne&s;s unto them, and &s;o this Nearne&s;s is a pa&s;&s;ive Nearne&s;s: and &s;ome criti|cally ob&s;erve,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Exponipo te&s;t pa&s;&s;iv<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>q. d.</HI> popu|lo cui ille e&s;t propin|quus. <HI>Muis ex. Ab. Ez, M. P. &s;y<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, Crit.</HI></NOTE> they mu&s;t be Near to God if he be Near to them. Near|ne&s;s comes to pa&s;s, by the approach|ing motion of one thing to another, now if God be nigh unto his Peo|ple, and approacheth unto them, cer|tainly then, they mu&s;t be near un|to him al&s;o, and &s;o there is a mutual Nearne&s;s between God and his Peo|ple; this is according to the directi|on the holy Gho&s;t gives by the Apo&s;tle, James 4.8. <HI>Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.</HI> Now that God is Near unto his People, the Scripture is as full of it, as can be de&s;ired. <HI>Deut.</HI> 47. It is the great Commendation of the People of I&s;rael: <HI>For what nation is there &s;o great who hath God &s;o nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things,</HI> that we call upon him for. P&s;al. 145.18. <HI>The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him.</HI> The like pa&s;&s;age in P&s;al. 34.18. <HI>The Lord is nigh to them that are of a
<PB N="12" REF="94">broken heart, and &s;aveth &s;uch as be of a Contrite Spirit.</HI> This then is the fir&s;t regard, wherein Gods People are &s;aid to be Near to him; <HI>(viz.)</HI> God's Nearne&s;s unto them.</P>
<P N="2">2. In regard of Affection to them, he is, and is &s;aid to be Near to them. Lord help us to believe it, God's People &s;ometimes can't hard|ly believe it; you know the&s;e Peo|ple whom we by love account dear, we account al&s;o to be very Near to us. Dearne&s;s and Nearne&s;s are here Convertible. Now God's People are <HI>the dearly beloved of his Soul,</HI> Jer. 12.7. in Original but one word, I have given the dearly beloved of my Soul. [<HI>Heb.</HI> the love] into the hands of her enemies. And that is one of the titles Chri&s;t gives his Church, throughout the whole <HI>Song</HI> of <HI>Solomon;</HI> My Love, my Dove, &amp;c. So near to him the Church de&s;ireth to be, that <HI>Song.</HI> 8.6. &s;he prays, <HI>Set me as a Seal on thy heart,</HI> What is the meaning of that? in &s;hort, love me dearly, and love makes as &s;trong an im|pre&s;&s;ion
<PB N="13" REF="94">on the heart as a Seal doth upon any thing, to which it is ap|plyed; &s;he de&s;ires to be near the heart of Chri&s;t, and that his Love towards her may have deep impre&s;|&s;ions there, as the names of the twelve Tribes of I&s;rael, had on the bre&s;t-plate of Judgment, which <HI>A|aron</HI> did bear on his heart, when he went in into the Holy-place. <HI>Exod.</HI> 28.21, 29. Further, &s;he prays there, <HI>as a Seal upon thine arm, for love is as &s;trong as death;</HI> in which &s;he de&s;ires al&s;o his Com|pa&s;&s;ion, and Affection. The Lord expre&s;&s;eth the &s;ame thing in a like phra&s;e, to his Church: &s;aying, <HI>Be|hold I have graven thee on the palms of my hands,</HI> I&s;a. 49.16. I remember the Lord makes u&s;e of one expre&s;&s;ion more, to &s;et it forth by, the <HI>&s;ignet on the right hand,</HI> and that is near, in place and affection too. <HI>Jer.</HI> 22.24. where the Lord &s;peaks of <HI>Coniah,</HI> one of the Kings of <HI>Judah,</HI> and &s;aith to this purpo&s;e! <HI>As I live &s;aith the Lord, though Co|niah the Son of Jehojakim, King of Judah, were their Signet on my
<PB N="14" REF="95">right hand, yet would I pluck thee thence, &amp;c.</HI> A Man's Signet, that he wears on his right hand, what an e&s;teem and love hath he for that! yet &s;aith God, though <HI>he was as the Signet on my right hand, would I pluck thee thence:</HI> Sin will make a &s;eparation between a per&s;on or peo|ple, though near to him. And that is the &s;econd thing, God's People are his dearly beloved, and &s;o they are near upon the account of Affection.</P>
<P N="3">3. In regard of Relation to God, they are nearly related to God; there is a Spiritual kin, and alliance be|tween God and his people, you &s;hall find nearne&s;s and kin are Con|vertible in the Scripture. Lev. 21.2. <HI>But for his kin that is near unto him, that is, for his Mother, and Father, and for his Son, and for his Daughter, and for his Brother,</HI> and ver. 3. <HI>and for his Si&s;ter,&mdash; That is nigh unto him,</HI> &amp;c. So that Kin and Nearne&s;s are joyned to|gether, words of the &s;ame im|port.</P>
<PB N="15" REF="95">
<P> Now there is a twofold Relati|on betwen God and his People, which makes the Kin to be &s;o Near.</P>
<P N="1">1. By Regeneration and the new|birth.</P>
<P N="2">2. By the Marriage-Covenant; and ble&s;&s;ed are the people, that are in &s;uch a Nearne&s;s unto God!</P>
<P>Fir&s;t by Regeneration, and the new-birth: that is one way the kin comes in, (if I may &s;o &s;peak) and therefore you &s;hall find through|out the Scripture, that they are &s;aid to be born of God, and born again; and hence is it that all that are regenerate are called the Sons and Daughters of the living God, and who are nearer to us than our Children; the&s;e are the Children of God, being born of him. Joh. 1.12. <HI>As many as believed, to them gave he power, to become the Sons of God,</HI> How came they to be the Sons of God? ver. 13. &s;hews, <HI>which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the fle&s;h, nor of the will of man, but of God.</HI> So in the Epi&s;tle of <HI>John</HI> throughout, are they &s;aid
<PB N="16" REF="96">to be <HI>born of God:</HI> Now how near is the Father and Son, I need not tell you that are Pa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ents. So near is the relation between God and his People, 2 Cor. 6.18. <HI>I will be a Father unto you, and ye &s;hall be my Sons, and Daughters, &s;aith the Lord Almighty.</HI> What a Promi&s;e is this! he will receive them to be as near unto him, as he will receive <HI>his own Son that &s;erveth him.</HI> And what a deal of Nearne&s;s of Affection as well as Relation is there in this ca&s;e, <HI>Behold, what manner of love the Father hath be&s;towed upon us! that we &s;hould be called the Sons of God.</HI> 1 Joh. 3.1. You that are parents, think on this; when you &s;ee your Children in the &s;treets, or any where about you, Oh how are your hearts drawn out after them; learn hence, to be affected with the near|ne&s;s, both of Relation and Affection, that is between God and his People; you cannot love your Children though your hearts run out after them, as God loves his Children; all the affection of all the parents in the World to their Children, is
<PB N="17" REF="96">but the drops of a bucket in Com|pari&s;on of God's love to his people and his Children.</P>
<P N="2">2. By Marriage-Covenant are they Near to God. And this is &s;o near a Relation, that all other kin are to be left for this Relation; they that are married, as to their Relati|on in the fle&s;h, are become one fle&s;h, &s;o near they are, <HI>Mat.</HI> 19.5. Ju&s;t as <HI>Adam</HI> &s;aid of the woman, when God brought her to him, <HI>this is bone of my bone, and fle&s;h of my fle&s;h,</HI> Gen. 2.23. Beloved, Gods people are his married people, and they are his e&s;pou&s;ed people; full of this is the Scripture in many places. 2 Cor. 11.2. <HI>I have e&s;pou&s;ed you to one husband, that I may pre&s;ent you a cha&s;t Virgin to Chri&s;t.</HI> Ho&s;. 2.19, 20. <HI>I will be|troth thee unto me for ever, yea I will betroth thee unto me, in righteou&s;ne&s;s and in judgment and in loving kind|ne&s;s, and in mercies. I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulne&s;s, &amp;c.</HI> Jer. 3.14. <HI>turn Oh back&s;lid|ing Children, &s;aith the Lord, for I am married unto you,</HI> I&s;a. 54.5. <HI>For thy Maker is thine husband, the
<PB N="18" REF="97">Lord of ho&s;ts is his name.</HI> Oh what an husband is this! Every woman is apt to admire her own hu&s;band, but what an husband is this of Souls! Mark, how the Apo&s;tle doth improve this natural marriage to a Spiritual u&s;e. 1 Cor. 6.16, 17. <HI>What, know ye not that he that is joyned to an Harlot is one body? for he &s;aith, ye &s;hall be one fle&s;h,</HI> ver. 17. <HI>but he that is joyned to the Lord, is one Spirit.</HI> The Apo&s;tles de&s;ign is, to take off people from Fornication, and the argument is taken from the de&s;ign of God in Marriage: God made Marriage that there might be an union betwixt the Man and the Woman. Now pre&s;ently after Mar|riage, for per&s;ons to run away one from another, for a Man to make him&s;elf one body with an Harlot, it &s;ubverts the de&s;ign of God in Mar|riage; and the Apo&s;tle improves it, in the next words, <HI>He that is joyned to the Lord is one Spirit.</HI> A Spiritual my&s;tical Union there is betwixt God and his People, and I hope ma|ny that heard and now read this, have experience and a&s;&s;urance of
<PB N="19" REF="97">it, and the Lord grant that more may. And here al&s;o are both the Nearne&s;&s;es joyned together, not only the Nearne&s;s of Relation, but of Affection: if the Affection be &s;trongly knit between the husband and the wife, there is no Affection &s;tronger than that, and no le&s;s &s;trong and faithful between God and the Soul. All which &s;hews, that they are related to God, as near as any Relation in the World.</P>
<P N="3">3. I may yet add another Relati|on which is not &s;o near as the for|mer, that are already mentioned, though near al&s;o; that &s;ets forth this Nearne&s;s between God and his People: and that is that of Servants, God is the Ma&s;ter, and his People are the Servants too; and &s;ome Ma&s;ters and Servants are very dear one to another, a wonderful Near|ne&s;s of Affection there is of &s;ome Ma&s;ters to their Servants, and of &s;ome Servants to their Ma&s;ters; though no Relation as to the fle&s;h by affinity, or Con&s;anguinity, yet they love them tenderly. I &s;hall give you an in&s;tance of this in the
<PB N="20" REF="98">Centurion and his Servant, Luk. 7.2. <HI>A certain Centurions Servant who was Dear unto him was &s;ick,</HI> and he &s;hewed that he was dear to him in his tenderne&s;s of him, in that weak Condition he was; and ap|plying him&s;elf to Chri&s;t for him. <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> is called the Servant of the Lord, <HI>Mo&s;es my Servant is dead,</HI> &s;aith God, and you know that ex|pre&s;&s;ion, <HI>Mo&s;es my Servant,</HI> is a token of the great Affection God had to him, and an high honour and e|&s;teem, that after he was dead the <HI>Almighty</HI> confer'd upon hm.</P>
<P N="4">4. Nay ob&s;erve, in the la&s;t place that God's People are as Near to him, and as Dear to him, as any of our Hou&s;hold, and Family are to us. And therefore are they called the hou&s;hold, and family of God. Eph. 2.13. <HI>But now in Chri&s;t Je&s;us, ye who &s;ometimes were far off, are made nigh by the blood of Chri&s;t:</HI> Compare this with ver. 19. <HI>Now therefore, ye are no more &s;trangers, and foreigners, but fellow-Citizens with the Saints, and of the hou&s;hold of God.</HI> Yea to clo&s;e up this parti|cular,
<PB N="21" REF="98">what&s;oever Relation may ex|pre&s;s Nearne&s;s and Dearne&s;s, in that Relation &s;tand God and his People each to other; and thus is the third thing fully proved.</P>
<P N="4">4. They are near to God, in re|gard of Je&s;us Chri&s;t; and that on two accounts:
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. Of Union to Je&s;us Chri&s;t:</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. Of being purcha&s;ed by Je&s;us Chri&s;t.</ITEM>
</LIST></P>
<P>Fir&s;t, in regard of the Near Uni|on there is between Chri&s;t and them. Nay and add to this, the Near Relation that is between Chri&s;t and them; and there is one, that renders the&s;e words, to this ve|ry &s;en&s;e and purpo&s;e: A people Near unto him. One reads it very critically,<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Populo propinqui &s;ui. <HI>h. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.</HI> e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">s qui accedit ad ip&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="3 letters">, ut &s;acerdos, &amp; &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">t ad dexteram e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">us, ut rex, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">empe Chri|&s;ti. <HI>M. P. &s;yn. ex Gel.</HI> &amp; <HI>Cocceio.</HI></NOTE> the people of his Near one, or of him that is near to him, <HI>viz.</HI> God, of him that comes near to him as a Prie&s;t, and &s;its at his right hand as a King, meaning the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t; now Chri&s;t is near to God, and there is none Nearer to God than he. So
<PB N="22" REF="99">near that he is his only natural Son, the only begotten Son of God; nay he is God him&s;elf, he is of the &s;ame &s;ub&s;tance with the Father, one that accounts it <HI>no robbery to be equal with God,</HI> Phil. 2.6. and therefore call'd <HI>God's fellow,</HI> Zech. 13.7. they are as near to him, as the members are to the body, 1 Cor. 12.27. <HI>Now ye are the body of Chri&s;t and members in particular.</HI> What a priviledg is here! you are the body of Chri&s;t, that is, the my&s;tical body of Chri&s;t. Chri&s;t hath a natural body, and a my&s;tical body, his natural body is that, which was made up of fle&s;h &amp; blood, formed by the Holy Gho&s;t in the Womb of the Virgin: But then his my&s;tical body are all Chri&s;tians, who are as really his members, as his Hands, and Arms, and Feet, and Eyes, and Legs were members of his natural body. Chri&s;t is the my&s;tical Head of his Church and every believer is a my|&s;tical member of Je&s;us Chri&s;t: how fully yet doth the Apo&s;tle expre&s;s this, to the &s;ame purpo&s;e, Eph. 5.30. <HI>For we are members of his body,
<PB N="23" REF="99">of his fle&s;h, and of his bone.</HI> He &s;peaks of the Marriage-Union in the neighbouring ver&s;es, much like that of <HI>Adam</HI> concerning <HI>Eve</HI> his wife, Gen. 2. <HI>This is bone of my bone, and fle&s;h of my fle&s;h.</HI> But &s;aith the Apo|&s;tle, <HI>This is a great my&s;tery, but I &s;peak concerning Chri&s;t and his Church,</HI> ver. 32. Further, if you ob&s;erve the Nearne&s;s of relation they have to Je&s;us Chri&s;t, it will al&s;o appear how near they are to God. They are near to him, in regard of their kin and allyance to Chri&s;t too; He counts them in the neare&s;t Relation to him&s;elf, and therefore they mu&s;t be near to God by vertue thereof: &s;ee it in that full Scripture, Mat. 12.46, &amp;c. <HI>One &s;aid to him</HI> (that is, to Chri&s;t) <HI>behold thy Mother, and thy Brethren &s;tand without, de|&s;iring to &s;peak with thee.</HI> 48. <HI>But he an&s;wered, who is my Mother?</HI>&mdash; &amp;c. 49. <HI>And he &s;tretched forth his hands towards his di&s;ciples, and &s;aid, behold my Mother and my Brethren.</HI> ver&s;. 50. <HI>For who&s;oever &s;hall do the will of my Father which is in Hea|ven, the &s;ame is my Brother and Si|&s;ter,
<PB N="24" REF="100">and Mother.</HI> Now if they be Near to Chri&s;t by vertue of rela|tion, and Union, to him, as we have &s;een, they are in both the&s;e re|gards one together, and proved; then certainly, they mu&s;t al&s;o be Near to God. So that that is the fir&s;t regard, they are near to God on the account of Chri&s;t, <HI>(viz.)</HI> their Union and Relation to the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t.</P>
<P>Secondly, They are Near to God, with re&s;pect to the Lord Je|&s;us Chri&s;t, in regard they are the purcha&s;e of his blood. They are his purcha&s;ed people, and that makes them Near to God; he hath <HI>bought them to God by his blood, out of every kindred and tongue and na|tion.</HI> Rev. 5.9. by the Sufferings of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, and by no other means, were we brought unto God. 1 Pet. 3.18. <HI>For Chri&s;t al&s;o hath once &s;uffered for &s;ins,</HI> the Ju&s;t for the unju&s;t, <HI>that he might bring us to God.</HI> We <HI>had</HI> never been brought un|to God, had it not been for the blood of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, whereby we <HI>that were a-far off were made nigh.</HI> Eph. 2.14. Time was, when there was a great di&s;tance between God
<PB N="25" REF="100">and them, and when they were a great way off, what a &s;ad ca&s;e was that! but being bought by Chri&s;t's blood, we were thereby brought nig<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> unto God al&s;o. How &s;o? Why, we were brought nigh unto God by Chri&s;t's reconciliation, which he made for us to God; by his death and &s;ufferings. And we &s;hall be wholly and fully brought nigh unto God hereafter, when we &s;hall be brought into the Kingdom of God, where God &amp; Je&s;us Chri&s;t are, and we &s;hall be with him for ever. Here are we brought nigh in regard of friend&s;hip, but not in re|gard of that fulne&s;s of fellow&s;hip which we &s;hall enjoy in Heaven. And therefore are we &s;aid <HI>to be ab|&s;ent from the Lord,</HI> 2 Cor. 5.6. <HI>while at home in the body.</HI> But there had been no enjoyment of God here, nor of the Kingdom of God here|after, if Chri&s;t had not &s;uffered, but now ther's both: this is the fourth regard, in which we are &s;aid to be nigh unto God.</P>
<P N="5">5. They are &s;aid to be a People Near to God, in regard of their
<PB N="26" REF="101">liberty of free acce&s;s unto God; they have the priviledg of approaching nigh to the throne of grace, and thereby draw nigh to God. And this the Apo&s;tle lays down by way of Encouragement and Coun&s;el in two places of the <HI>Hebrews,</HI> Heb. 4.16. <HI>Let us therefore come boldly to the Throne of Grace, that we may obtain Mercy, and find Grace to help us in the time of need.</HI> And all this is &s;till upon the account of Je|&s;us Chri&s;t, becau&s;e <HI>we have &s;uch a great high-Prie&s;t, that is pa&s;&s;ed into the Heavens.</HI> Hence it is that we may <HI>come boldly to the Throne of Grace.</HI> Compare with ver. 14. &s;o Heb. 10.22. <HI>Let us draw near with a true heart, in full a&s;&s;urance of Faith, having our hearts &s;prinkled from an evil Con&s;cience.</HI> This is the great priviledg of Chri&s;tians, that they are made <HI>Kings, and Prie&s;ts unto God, and his Father.</HI> Now you know the Prie&s;ts under the law, it was their place, and office to draw nigh unto God; as doth appear by the&s;e two places of Scripture, <HI>Lev.</HI> 10.3. where when fire from Hea|ven
<PB N="27" REF="101">had devoured <HI>Nadab</HI> and <HI>A|bihu,</HI> the two Sons of <HI>Aaron,</HI> for offering &s;trange fire, <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> uttered the&s;e words: <HI>This is that the Lord &s;pake, I will be Sanctified in them that come nigh me.</HI> It was their Office to draw nigh to God, and for them to draw nigh to God with &s;trange fire, contrary to the very Command of God! therefore fire from Heaven came down upon them. See likewi&s;e, <HI>Numb.</HI> 16.40. There, upon the occa&s;ion of the de|&s;truction of <HI>Korab, Dathan</HI> and <HI>A|biram</HI> for oftering Incen&s;e unto the Lord, which thing belonged only unto the Prie&s;t, the Cen&s;ers were laid a&s;ide to be a memorial to the Children of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> That <HI>no &s;tranger, that is not of the Seed of Aaron, come near to offer Incen&s;e before the Lord:</HI> Now Je&s;us Chri&s;t having made us Kings and Prie&s;ts to God, this is the great Priviledg, that we have by him, that we may draw nigh unto God, <HI>Heb.</HI> 7.19. and offer up our Prayers as Incen&s;e to God, together with all other our holy Duties, as &s;o many <HI>Spirltual
<PB N="28" REF="102">Sacrifiees, acceptable to God by Je&s;us Chri&s;t.</HI> 1 Pet 2.5. <HI>Being built upon him a Spiritual Hou&s;e, and Holy Prie&s;thood, to that very end.</HI> Je&s;us Chri&s;t is the per&s;on that doth ap|proach nigh to God in our behalf. Jer. 30.21. <HI>I will cau&s;e him to draw near and he &s;hall approach to me, for who is he that engageth his heart, to approach unto me! &s;aith the Lord.</HI> Who is he that God will chu&s;e to draw near unto him? Literally and primarily it may be under&s;tood of the civil Governour, but ultimately and con&s;ummately of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, (who undertook not his Office without Gods call) who in the be|half of believers, hath engaged his heart to approach nigh unto God, and we by him do draw nigh to God. Heb.10.19. <HI>Boldne&s;s we have to enter into the holie&s;t by the blood of Je&s;us,</HI> with Eph. 2.18. <HI>For through him we both have an acce&s;s, by one Spirit unto the Father;</HI> &s;o Eph. 3.12. <HI>In whom we have boldne&s;s, and acce&s;s, with Confidence by the faith of him.</HI> And what a Priviledg is this, that every one of Gods
<PB N="29" REF="102">Saints and People, may have the liberty as often as they will, to ap|proach nigh to God, to make their <HI>reque&s;ts in every thing by Prayer and Supplication!</HI></P>
<P N="6">6. They are &s;aid to be near unto God in regard of the Lord's choice and &s;eparation of them, from, and and above all the People of the World unto him&s;elf; they are &s;o, both from all eternity, and al&s;o in time; and this is &s;poken of particu|lar per&s;ons, and a who&s;e People jointly. Ob&s;erve both Elect accor|ding to the foreknowledg of God the Father; 1 <HI>Pet.</HI> 1.2. they are his cho&s;en people, Eph. 1.4. <HI>Ac|cording as he hath cho&s;en us in him, before the Foundation of the World:</HI> thus for per&s;ons. If you will ob|&s;erve it al&s;o, for a nation, or a peo|ple; P&s;al. 135.4. <HI>For the Lord hath cho&s;en Jacob for him&s;elf, and I&s;ra|el for his peculiar trea&s;ure.</HI> To which join that place I&s;a. 41.89. <HI>But thou I&s;rael, art my Servant, Jacob whom I have cho&s;en, the Seed of Abraham my friend; thou whom I have taken from the ends of the Earth, and &s;ard
<PB N="30" REF="103">unto thee, thou art my Servant; I have cho&s;en thee and not ca&s;t thee a|way.</HI> Hence are they &s;aid to be a &s;eparated People; &s;o <HI>&s;hall we be &s;e|parated I and my People from all the people that are upon the face of the Earth,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Same word as &s;epara|ted <HI>Exod.</HI></NOTE> Exod. 33.16. &s;o <HI>David</HI> P&s;al. 4.3. <HI>The Lord hath &s;et apart him that is godly unto him&s;elf,</HI> there|fore &s;aid <HI>to be a people of his inhe|ritance,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;ame as Saints in Text</NOTE> Deut 4.20. <HI>and the lot of his inheritance,</HI> Deut. 32.9. <HI>and his peculiar trea&s;ure,</HI> Exod. 19.5. <HI>peculiar people.</HI> 1 Pet. 2.9. and Chri&s;t tells the Di&s;ciples, That <HI>he had cho&s;en them out of the World, and therefore the World hated them,</HI> Joh. 15.19. &s;o that not only from eter|nity but in time, not only per&s;ons but nations, God hath cho&s;en to be his own people, above all the World be&s;ides. And how great is the Priviledg to be God's cho&s;en and peculiar People! and &s;o made Near unto him: mind this I be|&s;eech you; What a matter of &s;pe|cial ob&s;ervance &s;hould this be to us, that God doth take here and there, one, or two, or three above
<PB N="31" REF="103">others, &s;pecially when God <HI>Ca&s;ts a|way all the Wicked of the Earth like dro&s;s,</HI> as P&s;al. 119.119. as a man throws dirt out of doors, then to be cho&s;en out of them that are ca&s;t away, what a &s;pecial favour is this! not to be ca&s;t out as dro&s;s, but made up as Jewels, and pre&s;erved in Je|&s;us Chri&s;t, what grace is this!</P>
<P N="7">7. And La&s;tly, in regard of their daily cho&s;e walking with God, are they near to him. A Chri&s;tians Conver&s;ation is &s;aid to be a walk|ing with God; &s;o &s;aid of <HI>Enoch, Gen.</HI> 22.24. twice together, it was his whole cour&s;e, throughout all his life till God took him. Yea more fully a walking together, and they that walk together are Near each to other: though &s;in makes a di&s;tance that God and a People can't twalk together, becau&s;e then they are not, cannot be agreed; yet being agreed and the proce&s;s made, they may and do very many of God's People walk together: not only in their duties, are they near to him, but in the whole cour&s;e of their Conver&s;ation; their hearts
<PB N="32" REF="104">and Affections are &s;till with him, and his pre&s;ence is with them. And thus in their whloe life is there a ble&s;&s;ed Communion, kept up and maintained betwixt God and their Souls. And this is the la&s;t kind of Nearne&s;s, <HI>(viz.)</HI> the Nearne&s;s of Conver&s;e and Holy Communion with God.</P>
<P>Thus very briefly, I have opened to you, the Explicatory part of this Ob&s;ervation. There remains yet the Application of all this, and I &s;hall &s;peak &s;omething to this pur|po&s;e;
<LIST>
<ITEM>By way of Information.</ITEM>
<ITEM>By way of Con&s;olation.</ITEM>
<ITEM>By way of Exhortation.</ITEM>
</LIST></P>
<P N="1">1. U&s;e of Information; this di&s;|covers to us the great difference there is between Gods own Church and People, and others that are Worldly and Wicked men. God's Saints and People they are near to God, and all others are People far off from him; this is that difference that God hath made, between all the People of the World, and his
<PB N="33" REF="104">own People and Saints. And as wicked men are &s;eparated and far from God, &s;o are they far from the People of God al&s;o; they are divi|ded by God and &s;eparated in regard of their e&s;tates here, and the work is &s;till doing till the end of the World &s;hall come; and when he hath done this in time, then &s;hall time have an end: but now they are &s;eparated in regard of their e|&s;tates only, hereafter they &s;hall be &s;eparated not only in regard of their e&s;tates but place al&s;o; on Earth there is no &s;uch &s;eparation, there is no po&s;&s;ibility of being altoge|ther &s;eparated from the company of wicked men here; yea in the very Church it &s;elf, who&s;oever will be &s;o, mu&s;t needs go out of the World, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 5.9, 10. hereafter the wicked &s;hall be &s;eparated to the farthe&s;t di&s;tance from God and the Saints too, that po&s;&s;ible can be, they are here now far from him; <HI>The Lord is far from the wicked, but he hear|eth the prayer of the righteous,</HI> Prov. 15.29. what a Priviledg is that! that God is &s;o Near to the Righte|ous,
<PB N="34" REF="105">that he heareth every one of their Prayers in the &s;adde&s;t &s;tate, they can be here in the World! and what a Comfort and Encourage|ment is that to pray to God! there, God's hearing Prayer, is put con|tradi&s;tinct from God's being far from the wicked; and God is far from the wicked in this regard, that he hears none of their prayers, P&s;al. 18.41. <HI>They cryed, but there was none to &s;ave them, even to the Lord, but he an&s;wered them not,</HI> according to that Joh. 9.31. <HI>God heareth not finners;</HI> that is, wilful and impe|nitent finners; but on the contrary, <HI>The Lord is nigh to all that call upon him, that call upon him in truth,</HI> P&s;al. 145.18. the Lord is &s;o near to his People, that he dwels in his People, I&s;a. 57.15. <HI>Thus &s;aith the high and lofty one, that inhabiteth Eternity, who&s;e name is bloy, I dwell in the High and Holy place, with him al&s;o that is of a contrite and Humble Spirit,</HI> &amp;c. While men a|bide in their natural condition, God is far from them, and they are far from God. What a &s;ad
<PB N="35" REF="105">condition is it, to be at a di&s;tance from God, did men but believe and &s;eriou&s;ly weigh it! on the other hand, this is indeed the high Pre|rogative of Gods People to be &s;o Near to him. Even here in this World, what a great dignity, do people think it to be, to be near to a great per&s;onage, whether the King, or if it be one Inferiour! and indeed it is a noble Priviledg to be nigh unto the Kings Per&s;on, either in regard of kin or alliance, or to be conver&s;ant about him by way of attendance. And how greatly do they take on them, that are near the blood Royal in de&s;cent, or but near a Noble-man by way of &s;ervice? what honour and exalta|tion is it then to be near the living God in Spiritual kin and alliance! this is true Nobility, when God is the top of the kin, and Religion the root, &s;aith one, and to be Conver|&s;ant about the pre&s;ence of the Lord in Spiritual &s;ervices, and perfor|mances. It is the <HI>periphra&s;is</HI> or de&s;cription of Nobles, to be <HI>near the Kings Per&s;on,</HI> Jer. 52.25. in
<PB N="36" REF="106">Heb. <HI>That &s;aw the face of the King:</HI> to be about great and high per&s;ons is a great dignity; but how much more to <HI>compa&s;s God about and to be round about him;</HI> as the Saints are &s;aid to do, and to be, P&s;al. 7.7. <HI>So &s;hall the Congregation of the peo|ple Compa&s;s thee about,</HI> So P&s;al. 76.11. <HI>let all that be round about him, bring pre&s;ents!</HI> &amp;c. Gods People are &s;aid to be round about him, as the 12. Tribes pitched round about the Tabernacle, <HI>Numb.</HI> 2.2. and as the four Bea&s;ts, and four and twenty Elders were found a|bout Gods throne, <HI>Rev.</HI> 4.4. with 6. &s;o the <HI>Chaldee</HI> expoundeth it; <HI>Ye that dwell about the Sanctua|ry,</HI> as the Nobles dwell round a|bout the Kings Court:<NOTE PLACE="marg">An&s;. in P&s;al. <HI>76.</HI></NOTE> they &s;ee the Face of God, that are round about God and conver&s;e with God, and God and they &s;peak together, as God is &s;aid to do to <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> who could &s;peak to God, when he would, and was near to God, a great while together, at &s;ome times; and God is &s;aid to &s;peak <HI>to Mo&s;es Face to Face, as a man &s;peaketh unto
<PB N="37" REF="106">his Friend,</HI> Exod. 33.11. the &s;ame he is &s;aid to do to <HI>I&s;rael</HI> his people, (whom the Text tells us was <HI>a peo|ple near unto him</HI>) on mount <HI>Sinai,</HI> Deut. 5.4. but now wicked men are afar off, they have no relation to God, nor affection from God; &s;o &s;aith David, <HI>he knows the proud a|far off,</HI> P&s;al. 138.6. and as they are &s;o they de&s;ire to be, for, <HI>They &s;ay unto God, depart from us,</HI> Job 22.17. thus do we &s;ee the fir&s;t thing di&s;covered to us, even the difference there is between Wicked and Godly men.</P>
<P N="2">2. U&s;e. By way of Con&s;olation; it is for Comfort to all the Saints and People of God, that do enjoy this Priviledg, that are indeed near unto God; and I &s;hall tell you (bre|thren) there are divers Priviledges follow from this.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t of all, God will be &s;ure to &s;uffer none to do them harm that be near to him, or if he doth, he will avenge them. Would you not do &s;o for them that are near you? If any &s;hould come to hurt your Child, would you not &s;ave
<PB N="38" REF="107">him if you could? If any body &s;hould &s;et on your wife, to do her any wrong or injury, you would do the utmo&s;t you could to avenge their quarrel: ju&s;t &s;o it is with God, <HI>he &s;uffered no man to do them wrong,</HI> P&s;al. 105.14<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>yea, he rebuked Kings for their &s;akes,</HI> 15. <HI>&s;aying touch not mine anointed, and do my Prophets no harm; or if they do, he will avenge them, and &s;halt not God a|venge his own Elect?</HI> Luk. 18.78. <HI>which cry unto him day and night, I tell you he will avenge them &s;peedily, although he bear long with them;</HI> where the injury and wrong of Gods People are &s;et forth by the in|jury done by a great per&s;on to a poor Widow, God avenging them; by the parable of a Judg, who though he <HI>feared not God, nor yet re|garded Man,</HI> yet becau&s;e of the Widows importunity, would a|venge her of her adve&s;rary: now if an unju&s;t Judg will avenge, be|cau&s;e of importunity, a per&s;on that is no way allied to him; &s;hall not the mo&s;t righteous God, take Ven|geance for the wrongs of his own
<PB N="39" REF="107">People, that are &s;o near unto him? Now mind that, and comfort your &s;elves, God will be careful of your &s;afety; no body &s;hall hurt you, or if they dare, and do endeavour it, <HI>the Lord to whom vengeance belong|eth,</HI> will take your part, and take vengeance for you. It may be, you may &s;uffer affliction for the Go&s;pels &s;ake, wicked men may be injurious to you, for Religions &s;ake; remem|ber, there is a God that will take your part, that are thus nigh to him; and I could wi&s;h that all that are under &s;ufferings for Righteou&s;|ne&s;s &s;ake, might have Faith to live upon this Truth, and if God call us to more and greater &s;ufferings, we might trea&s;ure up this Truth a|gain&s;t &s;uch a time comes.</P>
<P N="2">2ly, God will fellow-feel with you too, if you are a People near unto him, and this Priviledg is as great, as the former; there is a fa|mous Scripture for this, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 63.9. <HI>In all their afflictions he was afflict|ed, and the Angel of his pre&s;ence &s;aved them; in his love and in his pity he redeemed them, and bare
<PB N="40" REF="108">them, and carried them all the days of old.</HI> The Chapter &s;peaks of the works God had done formerly for <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> but principally with re&s;pect to the Wilderne&s;s, how pitiful was God to <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> when they were in the Wilderne&s;s! and how did God &s;hew him&s;elf to be concerned, in all the Affliction that did light upon them, by a compa&s;&s;ionate Fellow|feeling! If any be &s;ick, or in Affli|ction, that be near to us, how ready are we to lay it to heart, how are we affected with it! &s;o will God be with all our troubles, be they what they will be. And mark you, the &s;ame expre&s;&s;ion is &s;poken con|cerning our inward Affliction, and remember it again&s;t the time that trouble comes; it is &s;poken of our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t; Heb. 4.14. <HI>Seeing then we have a great high|Prie&s;t, that is pa&s;&s;ed into the Hea|vens, Je&s;us the Son of God. &mdash; For we have not an high Prie&s;t, that cannot be touched with our infirmities, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without &s;in.</HI> He was tempted to &s;in, though he was not
<PB N="41" REF="108">prevailed over by the temptation, and therefore Je&s;us the Son of God, can be touched with the feel|ing of our temptations. Sometimes the violence of temptation is &s;o &s;trong, and &s;o hard to be dealt with, that were it not, that a per&s;on could look to Chri&s;ts fellow-feeling, and to God's pitty, it were a cau&s;e not to be undergon. I believe I &s;peak to &s;ome that under&s;tand, and experience what I &s;ay now; if we commi&s;erate tho&s;e that be Dear and Near to us, (nay and tho&s;e that be not &s;o, but in the common bonds of nature with us) &s;o that we take what hath befallen them, as though it had fallen on our own &s;elves, how much more will God! and ble&s;&s;ed be God, that we are nigh to &s;uch an one that can fellow-feel with us, if not, we were an undone people; that's the &s;econd.</P>
<P N="3">3. A third Priviledg is this, the advantage they have of prevailing with God, in the reque&s;ts they do pre&s;ent to him; all their &s;uits and reque&s;ts &s;hall be accepted and granted, and free and open acce&s;s to
<PB N="42" REF="109">his pre&s;ence to ask any thing of him, and not be denied, &s;till asking according to his Will. And hence it is, that they are &s;o prevalent with God, becau&s;e they are a peo|ple near to God, and becau&s;e they are &s;o near to him, that is, &s;o near to him that is the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t; hence it is, that they can have all their Payers an&s;wered, an da l their petitions fulfilled, becau&s;e they are a People near to God; the Lord is near to an&s;wer all their Prayers; the Lord increa&s;e our Faith, for herein lyes much of the comfort of Chri&s;tianity. You know if a &s;tran|ger come to reque&s;t any thing of us, or an enemy, we do not &s;o much as look on them, nor grant them (though it &s;hould not be &s;o with us, and we &s;hould not do &s;o) but if our familiar friend reque&s;ts any thing of us, he will &s;oon prevail; if a wife come, and de&s;ire her Hus|band to do &s;omething for her, or a Child &s;hould de&s;ire his Father to do &s;omething for him, or give &s;omething to him, though another &s;hould not, yet they &s;hall prevail,
<PB N="43" REF="109">why? Becau&s;e they be near to him. So it is with God, God's People are his Married People, his new|born Children, therefore they have &s;uch prevalence with him in all their addre&s;&s;es unto him. They may &s;reely, but humbly Conver&s;e with him, and may have Commu|nion with him, 1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 1.3. God Commanded, <HI>Exod.</HI> 25.22. that there &s;hould be a Mercy-&s;eat, and o|ver the Mercy-&s;eat two golden Cherubims, and they &s;honld look one towards another; and when God did come and &s;peak to his Peo|ple, the text tells us God promi&s;ed, <HI>There will I meet with thee, and there will I Commune with thee, from a|bove the Mercy-Seat;</HI> and hence the Apo&s;tle draws his encouraging argument, <HI>let us come boldly to the Throne of Grace,</HI> Heb. 4.16. <HI>that we may obtain mercy &amp;c.</HI> the Mer|cy-Seat in the Old-Te&s;tament, is the throne of Grace in the New.</P>
<P N="4">4. Their protection is &s;ure, God will undertake for their defence, which is much of the &s;ame impor|tance with the fir&s;t; therefore I &s;hall &s;ay by way of addition little of it
<PB N="44" REF="110">here; their &s;afeguard is &s;ure, becau&s;e God undertakes for them; They are as dear to him as the Apple of his eye, and he that toucheth you, toucheth the Apple of my eye, &s;aith God, <HI>Zech.</HI> 2.8. and their &s;afety is &s;et forth by their Nearne&s;s to God, yea under the &s;hadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, till the&s;e calamities be over-pa&s;t, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 57.1. I have covered thee in the &s;hadow of mine hand. <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 51.16. he &s;hall cover thee with his feathers, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 91.4. nearer we can't be, nor yet &s;afer.</P>
<P N="5">5. They being a People nigh to God, God will provide for them too, and take care for their &s;upply; will not an husband provide for his Wife? and a Father for his Child|ren? O God be merciful to a great many Husbands and Fathers, that have no Compa&s;&s;ion on their Wives and Children, but &s;pend all they get, and undoe their poor families! but God is not &s;uch an Husband, nor &s;uch a Father, God hath laid a &s;pe|cial charge upon Ma&s;ters of families, that they &s;hould provide for their own hou&s;hold; and if a man provide
<PB N="45" REF="110">not for his own, and &s;pecially them of his own hou&s;e, he hath de|nied the Faith, and is wor&s;e than an infidel, &s;aith God by the Apo&s;tle, 1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 5.8. How many &s;uch Ma|&s;ters and Parents are there in the pale of this vi&s;ible Church, that have the badg of Chri&s;tianity upon them, that con&s;uem all in their lu&s;ts, and are in this &s;en&s;e wor&s;e than the Infidels, the Heathens, and Pa|gans! now will God lay that charge upon us, and will he not do it him&s;elf? doth God require us to provide for our hou&s;hold, and will not God provide for his? are not God's People his hou&s;hold, and &s;o his own, as near as Wife, Children, and Servants? and will not God then take care of them? Will God teach us providence, and care for our Relations, and &s;hall not God do &s;o for his? When you want your bread, you that are poor remember this, if you be a People near unto God, he will provide for you; and this &s;hould learn you the Apo&s;tles le&s;&s;on, to ca&s;t all your care upon him, who careth for you, 1 <HI>Pry.</HI> 5.7. And what a mercy it
<PB N="44" REF="111"><GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
<PB N="45" REF="111"><GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
<PB N="44" REF="112"><GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
<PB N="45" REF="112"><GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
<PB N="46" REF="113">is to be able to beg our daily bread from God, upon this Relation, that we are a People nigh to him! will not God provide for his own? Sure|ly he will. God that requires us to <HI>do good to all men, but e&s;pecially to the hou&s;hold of Faith,</HI> Gal. 6.10. he him&s;elf is al&s;o good to all, by that general common Goodne&s;s which he extends to the whole Creation, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 145.9. but &s;pe|cially to his own <HI>I&s;rael; truely God is good to I&s;rael,</HI> P&s;al. 73.1. the <HI>People near unto him,</HI> (text). It's only the hou&s;hold of Faith that is near to God, for Faith is the bond of our Union unto God and Je&s;us Chri&s;t.</P>
<P N="6">6. And La&s;tly, remember and take comfort in this al&s;o, as you are now near to him here, &s;o you &s;hall be more near to him in Hea|ven hereafter; and this clo&s;eth up, and compleateth the Happine&s;s of the People of God, he will bring them all to be near to him in Hea|ven: methinks the&s;e things &s;hould make our hearts a little burn within us, with affection, to be in a long|ing after this great Priviledg; remem|ber,
<PB N="47" REF="113"><HI>you &s;hall be as near to God as Heaven and Glory &s;hall make you;</HI> and how near will that be? God is near to you now and you are near to God now, but yet not|with&s;tanding in Heaven is the greate&s;t and chiefe&s;t Nearne&s;s. Here you have his pre&s;ence in a mea&s;ure with many interruptions; here &s;in, that makes a &s;eparation between God and you; but hereafter, you &s;hall fully, immediately, and for ever have his pre&s;ence, you &s;hall never be excluded, or &s;hut out of it; time will come when there will be nothing that &s;hall &s;tand and inter|po&s;e between God and you, all that &s;hall cau&s;e a di&s;tance &s;hall be taken out of the way: Oh what a ble&s;&s;ed time will that be!</P>
<P N="3">3. U&s;e. By way of Exhortation in two branches.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Labour to make &s;ure with the greate&s;t diligence and &s;peed you are po&s;&s;ibly able, that you are a People near unto God. And will not all tho&s;e things that I hinted, and propo&s;ed to you, pre|vail with you? may not the Con&s;i|deration
<PB N="48" REF="114">of all tho&s;e Priviledges, that follow upon this forenamed, that you are near to God, allure us, and prevail with us? do not be at a di|&s;tance from God &s;till, as you have been; may you not &s;ay truely <HI>It is good for me to be near, as</HI> David &s;aid, <HI>It is good for me to draw near to God?</HI> P&s;al. 73.28. run through in your meditations, every one of the Pri|viledges I have mentioned, be not hearers or readers only, be per&s;wa|ded then: methinks this one well|thought of before-named, of having every reque&s;t an&s;wered, &s;hould be a mighty thing. It is a Priviledg beyond all imagination, &s;ufficient to Provoke to the highe&s;t admirati|on, and greate&s;t de&s;ire, and en|deavour about this, that po&s;&s;ible can be. But Con&s;ider on the other hand, what is the mi&s;ery of being afar off from God, how great is the evil of being far off! why, <HI>They that are far from thee &s;hall peri&s;h, thou ha&s;t de&s;troyed all that go a-whoring from thee,</HI> &s;aith David, P&s;al. 73.27. well, it is a &s;ad ca&s;e then to be at a di&s;tance from him. If we do
<PB N="49" REF="114">&s;eriou&s;ly lay it to heart, and this is the Condition of every man &amp; Wo|man, as they come into the World, till Chri&s;t make them nigh; I pray God make you and me more Con|&s;iderate of it: How long have you lived, and yet continue far from God! It would make ones heart to ake to con&s;ider, how many years we have lived afar off, in point of reconciliation. Con&s;ider one thing more, what Patience hath God ex|erci&s;ed to you all this while, that he hath prevented your peri&s;hing in that Condition! what wonderful Patience, &amp; what a World of long|&s;uffering hath God lengthned out towards you! Let me add one thing more, by asking you a que&s;tion, Will you live and die at la&s;t at a di|&s;tance from God, and not be made nigh unto him? What do you &s;ay? If I &s;hould ask every Man, and wo|man of you, as every one of you ought to apply the word of God to your &s;elves, Art thou willing to live and dy and not be made hear to God? what do your hearts &s;ay to this? the Lord God of Heaven
<PB N="50" REF="115">by his Spirit awaken every one to a &s;erious Con&s;ideration of it: I dare &s;ay there is never a man or woman, if they were going to die this mo|ment, but would be of this mind, that he might be near unto God; unle&s;s God had given them over un|to a reprobate &s;en&s;e, to be &s;o blinded by the Devil in their wickedne&s;s, that they cared not what became of body, or &s;oul, or any thing for ever. What a &s;ad thing, that many &s;ay in their hearts, with tho&s;e in Job 22. <HI>Depart from us, for we de&s;ire not the knowledg of thy ways.</HI> The&s;e do not de&s;ire God, or to be nigh unto him: but now weigh this, as if you were going to die, Would I be &s;et at a di&s;tance from God for ever and for ever? and can I ever expect to be near to God hereafter, if I am afar off from God now?</P>
<P>Weigh the&s;e things above-menti|oned in the&s;e five particulars, for method and memories &s;ake.</P>
<P N="1">1. You came every one into the World, at a di&s;tance from God.</P>
<P N="2"><PB N="51" REF="115"> 2. How long have you lived at a di&s;tance from him?</P>
<P N="3">3. How much patience hath God exerci&s;ed towards you all this while?</P>
<P N="4">4. Whether you intend to live and die in that Condition? or</P>
<P N="5">5. Whether you can expect to be near to God hereafter, if you be not near to but far off from God here? if you live and die at the &s;ame, yea greater di&s;tance, than you came into the World from God at, how far then will you be removed from God? and that for ever? if you be now &s;o far by nature and continue all your lives widening the di&s;tance and pie without having it made up, you will never then come &s;o near, as to &s;ee the face of God with Comfort. I be&s;eech you look to it, for the&s;e be the great truths, yea the greate&s;t concernments of your Souls.</P>
<P>Query. <HI>What &s;hall I do, what Cour&s;e would you advi&s;e me to take, that I may be near to God?</HI></P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> 1. Pray to God for the Spirit of regeneration, that thou
<PB N="52" REF="116">mai&s;t be born of God, thereby thou wilt be made partaker of the Divine Nature; if thou art born of the Spi|rit, then wilt thou be near to God; As near and as dear as a Child is to his Father.</P>
<P N="2">2. Beg of God, to communicate to you the Benefits of Chri&s;t's Suf|ferings. For it is the blood of the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t that makes us nigh to God, Eph. 2.14. <HI>For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and broken down the middle-Wall of partition,</HI> &amp;c. between God and men, as well as between Jew and Gentile. Oh that we might by Faith, and Prayer &s;till apply him to our Souls; <HI>He &s;uffered the Ju&s;t for the unju&s;t, that he might bring us near to God.</HI> Now beg of God to bring you nigh to him by his Sons blood: I wi&s;h I could engage every per&s;on of you, not to lie down this night, till you had prayed this Prayer, that you might be brought nigh to God by the blood of his Son.</P>
<P N="3">3. Lay hold on the Covenant of God, the Covenant between God and his people, it is a matrimonial
<PB N="53" REF="116">Covenant, a Marriage-Covenant: now it is the work of the Mini&s;ters of the Go&s;pel, to be wooers for Chri&s;t, and to be&s;eech you in the name of Chri&s;t, to be married to him; and I de&s;ire in the name of God to make this propo&s;al, Will you hearken to it and accept of it? God in his Word doth offer to be marri|ed to your Souls, God doth call you, you have every one of you run a|way from God, and he calls you, as he did to I&s;rael of old, <HI>Return you back &s;liding Children, for I am</HI> (I will be) <HI>married unto you,</HI> Jer. 3.14. What do you &s;ay? Will you give Con&s;ent or no? &s;hall your Maker be your Husband or &s;hall he not? ask your own hearts this que|&s;tion, Art thou willing, Oh my Soul to be e&s;pou&s;ed to the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, or art thou not? we are amba&s;&s;adors for Chri&s;t, and he hath &s;ent me to invite you to him. And if this day there might be but one Soul brought in to accept of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, as it would be <HI>the day of the gladne&s;s of his heart,</HI> Song. 3.11. &s;o would it be the rejoicing of
<PB N="54" REF="117">mine. There is no &s;uch match as this, no &s;uch Husband as Je&s;us Chri&s;t; how near if e&s;pou&s;ed to God and Je&s;us Chri&s;t! none nearer than Husband and Wife, the Lord therefore prevail with you. You have in the foregoing papers, dire|ction to and information of a De&s;ign of a worthy man, and Mini&s;ter of God, propo&s;ing in &s;everal treati&s;es, advice about particular tran&s;acting with God, between God and your own Souls apart, not in word only, but in writing; and you have al&s;o a few things added to &s;hew the war|rantablene&s;s, and advantage of &s;o doing: and I could wi&s;h that every Chri&s;tian in the World, might be pre|vailed with to do it effectually and &s;peedily, Ble&s;&s;ed be God for the com|fort of it! never any one that hath ta&s;ted of the comfort of it would for any thing have it to do. Be&s;ides the in&s;tance of one per&s;on, I have given in the foregoing <HI>Appendix,</HI> that in &s;ore troubles improved it, I &s;hall here add one more of a per&s;on dying, whom when I came to vi&s;it, being near to death, after I asked concern|ing
<PB N="55" REF="117">the parties &s;tate, I &s;aid I hope you are able to re&s;ign up your whole &s;elf, Body and Soul, into the hands of God: Reply was made, this have I done between God and my own &s;elf many a time in a Cor|ner; and the draught between God and the Per&s;on, was &s;ound after a|mong&s;t other writings, when decea&s;|ed. So that there is no greater preparative, that fits for, nor will there be a greater &s;tay to comfort, and embolden, when at the point of death: What can be greater en|couragement hereunto, than the experience of the Saints of God, both living and dead? Up there|fore, and delay no longer, but do it, that &s;o you may live, and die in full a&s;&s;urance, that you are, and &s;hall be fully, and for ever, near to God.</P>
<P N="2">2. Branch of Exhortation. Let me be&s;eech you in the name of God, that have made &s;ure that you are a people near to God, that you would walk as a people near unto him. Fir&s;t, make the matter clear, and then be &s;ure to have &s;uitable Conver&s;ation; and that will be &s;o
<PB N="56" REF="118">if the former be done indeed, for the &s;ame Spirit of Grace that draws us to the one, will enable us to the o|ther. Carry it towards God as be|comes &s;o great a Priviledg.</P>
<P>Query, <HI>But how &s;hall we do that may &s;ome &s;ay?</HI></P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> 1. Be &s;ure to have a care of that that will cloud your evi|dences, and a&s;&s;urance of Nearne&s;s unto God, and put you in your ap|prehen&s;ions at a great di&s;tance a|gain from him. You may get a&s;&s;u|rance, but then take heed, you do not meddle with that which will cloud it: time was you rejoic|ed in God as your God, and your Father, that your &s;elves were his Children, taken into Covenant with him, and into his family, in the neare&s;t relation to him. And when you are near to God, you will be ever near to God: but yet you may lo&s;e your a&s;&s;urance by your &s;in; for that will &s;et you at a di&s;tance again, it being a for&s;aking God, and de|parture from him; and &s;o cloud your apprehen&s;ion of Gods affecti|on, your adoption, and regenerati|on
<PB N="57" REF="118">and acceptation, and thereby rob you of the Comfort of your condition and all your relation to God; therefore have a care of &s;in, of all and every &s;in what&s;oever, and &s;pecially your own iniquity. Some per&s;ons are addicted to &s;ome &s;ins more than others, &s;pecially therefore take care of them, the&s;e will crack your peace, and cloud your eviden|ces: walk watchfully therefore, and labour to have an un&s;potted Con|ver&s;ation; for the &s;pots and &s;ins of a mans Conver&s;ation will be clouds upon his Soul, and will blur all his evidences, and &s;o break his Peace.</P>
<P N="2">2. Keep near to God as much as you can, and be as often with God as po&s;&s;ibly you can. Do not carry it &s;trangely towards God: be often in Gods Company, and frequent in his pre&s;ence, often &s;ee his face, and draw nigh to him: my meaning is, be often in the u&s;e of Ordinances, and the Duties of Gods Wor&s;hip; &s;pecially in Prayer, which is a duty wherein God and the Soul draw as near one to another as in any duty
<PB N="58" REF="119">what&s;oever. Nobles are &s;till about the King, and if the King &s;tir to a|ny place without their privity, a|way they go, and po&s;t to follow af|ter him; &s;o &s;hould we, if God &s;eems to withdraw him&s;elf: &s;o the Church after her beloved, <HI>Song.</HI> 3. &amp; 5. <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 63.8. <HI>My Soul followeth hard after thee,</HI> &s;aith <HI>David.</HI></P>
<P N="3">3. Ble&s;s God for his di&s;tin|gui&s;hing Mercy, to you above many others, many thou&s;ands in the World: how many are kept off, and at a di&s;tance &s;till, and what are you that you &s;hould be made nigh to God, when many thou&s;ands are yet &s;o far off from him! I cannot tell you why it &s;hould be &s;o, only it is Gods good-will towards you; becau&s;e he will do it, therefore he doth it. There are thou&s;ands and ten thou&s;ands in the World, that have not this liberty to come near to God; they are in the &s;ame &s;tate that ever they were, and enjoy not &s;uch a Priviledg as this is; therefore &s;hould we &s;eriou&s;ly con&s;ider it. Mark what the Holy Gho&s;t &s;peaks, Deut. 6.7, 8. <HI>Thou art an holy peo|ple
<PB N="59" REF="119">unto the Lord thy God, the Lord hath cho&s;en thee to be a &s;pecial peo|ple unto him&s;elf, above all people that are upon the Face of the earth. The Lord did not &s;et his love upon you, or chu&s;e you, becau&s;e ye were more in number than any people, for ye were the fewe&s;t of all people; but becau&s;e the Lord loved you, and becau&s;e he would keep the oath which he had &s;worn unto our Forefathers,</HI> &amp;c. and &s;ay within your hearts, why &s;hould God deal &s;o with me to bring me &s;o near to him, and leave others in the &s;ame &s;tate wherein they were born? let your heart be mightily affected with this Love of God, and kindne&s;s of God. Methinks I could dwell on the per&s;wa&s;ion of people to this du|ty, that they would be much more taken with the Con&s;ideration of Gods &s;pecial and di&s;tingui&s;hing Kindne&s;s towards them.</P>
<P N="4">4. La&s;tly be &s;ure to be humble and keep low; and that upon a double rea&s;on. 1. Becau&s;e that though you are a people nigh to God, of his free Grace, yet there is a great di&s;tance and di&s;proportion between
<PB N="60" REF="120">God and you; for though you are brought &s;o near God, yet you are but Creatures: whereas God is the great Creatour, you are <HI>but du&s;t and a&s;hes;</HI> God is the infinite, holy Maje&s;ty of Heaven and Earth. Now the di&s;tance that is between God and you, &s;hould dwell upon your hearts, and make you keep in a lowly frame &s;till, and &s;hould Create &s;elf-aba&s;ing thoughts in you &s;o much the more: The Con&s;iderati|on of our Priviledges, &amp; the Con&s;i|deration of God's great di&s;tance from us, &s;hould increa&s;e our &s;elf. a|ba&s;ement. 2. And then upon the ac|count of our own &s;infulne&s;s we &s;hould be humble before God. Micah. 6.8. <HI>What doth the Lord thy God require of thee? but to do ju&s;tly and love mercy and walk hum|bly with thy God.</HI> See to it, that you do walk more lowly, and &s;elf-ab|&s;ingly, con&s;idering what you are, on both the&s;e accounts, although God hath &s;o dignified you. <HI>Amen.</HI></P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
<BACK>
<DIV1 TYPE="publisher's advertisement">
<PB REF="120">
<HEAD>Book's Sold by <HI>Thomas Cockeril</HI> at the Atlas in <HI>Cornhil</HI> near the Royal Exchange.</HEAD>
<P>THE <HI>Morning Exerci&s;e at Cripple-gate,</HI> or &s;everal Ca&s;es of Con&s;cience Practically Re&s;olved, by Sundry Mini&s;ters, in <HI>Quarto.</HI></P>
<P><HI>The Supplement to the Morning Exerci&s;e at Cripple-gate;</HI> or &s;everal more Ca&s;es of Con&s;cience Practically re&s;olved, by &s;undry Mini&s;ters. in <HI>Quarto.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Pretious Faith;</HI> or a di&s;cour&s;e of its Na|ture, Growth and Effect; by <HI>Edward Polehil</HI> of <HI>Burwa&s;h</HI> in <HI>Su&s;&s;ex:</HI> E&s;quire in <HI>Octavo.</HI></P>
<P>The Nature, Power, Deceit and Prevalen|cy of the Remainder of Indwelling &s;in, in be|lievers; Together with the ways of Its work|ing and Means of Prevention; by <HI>John Owen</HI> D. D. in <HI>Octavo.</HI></P>
<P><HI>An Antidote again&s;t Di&s;tractions;</HI> or An Endeavour to &s;erve the Church, in the Dai|ly Ca&s;e of wandrings in the Wor&s;hip of God, by <HI>Richard Steel.</HI> M. A. in <HI>Octavo.</HI></P>
<P><HI>The Reuniting Chri&s;tianity;</HI> or the Man|ner
<PB REF="121">how to rejoyn all Chri&s;tians under one Confe&s;&s;ion of Faith, in <HI>Octavo.</HI></P>
<P><HI>God a Chri&s;tian's Choice</HI> Compleated, by Particular Covenanting with God &amp;c. in Pur&s;uit of a De&s;ign Propo&s;ed by Mr. <HI>R. A.</HI> in his Book entitled the <HI>Vindication of God|line&s;s;</HI> and by <HI>Mr. Thomas Vincent</HI> in his Book Called, <HI>Words whereby we may be &s;aved.</HI> in <HI>Twelves.</HI></P>
<PB REF="121">
</DIV1>
</BACK>
</TEXT>
</GROUP>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
