z. 3· [ . i. 168 An Expo.fition upon the Firjl, By his rel<ition to us, 7'~ G•d; a God who hath feparatedthee from all Peop~e of the Ear~h, to be his pecuhar T~faf~re ; who bath broUgh_~ thee .n~t qmo h•mfelf, even mto the Bond of the Covenant; who bath betrot hed thee in Righ<e- oufil<f!, and i~ ";Ot only thy Maker, lint t~yHusband, as the Pr.ophet fpeaks, lfai. S+ 5· ThiS God lt IS who commands thee faithfully to perform the Mlrriagc-vow that is betweert thee and him; and nOt to go a whoring after the Vanities of the Gentiles, ~or to. expofe thy fhame and '!"kednefs before any Falfe or Idol-Go d. For Idolatry ' ' Spmtnal Adultery, and moft frequently fet forth under th at Name and Notion in the .t[oly Scriptures. Stcott1ty, Thy God is deicribed by the inightine'fs of his Power : He is El ka11a, a ftrortg and jealous God; able to revenge any difhonour that is done him by thy nn- chalt lewdnefs. ihirdly, He Is defcribed by that violent Pallion \vhich in Men is ~a lied Jealou(y ; 1 the lArd thy God am flrong and jealotu. Now Jealoufy is an affetl:ion or paffion of the Mind, by which we are ftirred up and provoked againft whatfoever hind er!! the en- joyment of that which we love and deli.re :. The Caufe and Ori ginal of it is Love ; and the EffeCt of it is Revenge. Now God to deter the Jfrttelites from Ida:Iatry,. fets forth himfelf as a ltrong and jealous God, that they might be affured ~ot to .efca]ic Punilbment; for he is f'trong, and therefore can inflict it, and h e is jeal~iis,;ipd there- fore will infli<'l it, if they fhall dare to abnfe and injure tha t love which he bath placed upon thern. · Now this Jealoufy is not to be afcribed nnto God, as if there wer~ properly any filCh weak and difturbing paffion in him, but only by way of ac commOdation and fi- militudc, fpeaking after the manner of Men: So that there is not idem tea-m, bnt idem effiEhu; not the.fallle inward affection, but the fame outward ctfe . And fo Iikewife it is to be undetftood when God is faid to be angry, to be grieVed, to r epent, &c. that is, his attions towards u~ are like the actions of one that is angry, or. grieVed, or repents; although the infinite Serenity of the Divin e Effence i's not liable t<1 be difcompofed or ruffled by the tempefts of any fuch-like raffio ns as arc incident to us mutable Creatures. Now the reafon why God calls himfelf a jealous God, you will find in thefc fol - lowing Particulars: Firft, Jealoufy is difl:ruftful and fufpicious; it dares not rely upon t he truth and fidelity of the Perfon of whom we are jealous, but is full of mifgiving doubrs and fears. And fo God (althou.e;h in propriety of Speech he can doubt nothing, nor fear any thing, yet) is pleafed to exprefs his Jealoufy by fuch fpeechcs as intimate d ifl:ruft and diffidence. And therefore when the Ifraelites made that folemn Promifc to the Lord, Drut . 5· 27· .All thttt the Lord our GrJd .Jha/1 [peak unto m, we will hear it and do it. God returns an fwer, ::IS one tha.t mifdoubted the real performa nce of fo fair a Promife, Verfe' 2·8, 29. I httve heArd the voice of rhe. words of thU people:, they httt~e well fpolun all that they haw fprJken : 0 that there were [uch ttn heart in them, that they would fear me, , ttnd luep all my commandments always, that it migh t be well with them, ttnd with their r/:pldYen frJr wer. · Secondly, ]e.alouf'y is fearching and inquifitive: It is an hard matter to e fcape the <,lifcoyery of a jealous Eye, which is ftill prying and feekingafte rtbatwhich it wonld be 16th; to find. Sq the Eye of the All-feeing, and All-linowing God is continuJII.Y upon us; he critically obf"CrVes every look; and every kind o f glance that we cart 11pon our felves; Not the leaft motion of our· hearts, not the l eall:_twinkling Of our thoughts can efcapc his notice and cenfure. And of all fins, th ere IS none that God cloth tho~j'ealoUOy 61;>ferve than that of Idolatry; fof this is. the violation of tha t Marriag~-F;'ith whicll we l~ave plighted to him. And therefore we firld that the idolatrous i(rac!ite,s,. is thon~b they,weiC -'confcious of the great Abnfe tliey offered io tHe'!r ljfake'r, theit .Pltisband, (a. tli~ 'Prophet Stiles God, I(ai. 54: ;.) fought out dark and·dbfcu're GtovcS-to ad: their WicKcdnefs in; that alth ough they' were not cha ft, yet they might feem to be cautious. But in vain is it to draw the Curtains of a thin Shade about them; a few Leaves could not cover their Shame, nor their Na- kednefs from him who is all Eye every-where, and whofe Eye is every-where light to
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