-----------------------~~~----~~----~ JLOOlting unto 'jjtfu.t>. Book 11 L Chap. 2 . Scct.2. into hell? for one day to be Monarch of the World, and o.f all Creatures in the world, and the very next day to be the ilave of SJtan, and to be ~ound hand and foot in a darkfom dungeon? for a few hours to live in Eden, to enJOY every tree m the Garden, pleafanr totheftghe, andgood for food, and then ro_enter mro the confin~s of eternity, and ever, ever, everto be tormented wah the Devtl and hts Angels? It 15 Gen. ,• S. no wondrr if .Adam hid himfelf from the prefence of the Lord God amongft the trees of the · Garden: 0 my foul, in that cafe thou would(! have cried to the Rocks and \O the . mountains, fail all me, and hide me from the face of him that fttteth on the Throne . JfR<v.~.U,I7; God be angry, who may abide it ? Whenthegreatday of hiJ wrath i< come, who jha!l· be able to }land? And yet defpair not, cheer up 0 my Soul; for in the very midfi of wrath God is pleafed to remember mercy ; even now when all the wot·ld lhould have been damned, a [efm is proclaimed and promif~d; a~d .he it is that mufi die according to the commination · for he ts our Surety , and he Jt 1s that by death mufi overcome Death and the Devil; !tfha/l brui{e thy Reed, faid God to Satan, q.d. Come Satan, thou haft taken captive ten riloutands of Souls ' .Adam and Ew are n0w enfi1ared, and in their loins all the men and women that ever /hall be from this beginning of the world to ihe end thereof; now is rhy day of triumph, now thou keepefbholy-day in Hell· bur thou !halt not carry it rhus , I forefaw from all eternity what thou !tal! don'e, I knew thou would(! dig a hole through the comely and beautiful frame of the Creation; but I have decreed of old a Coumer-work, out of the Seed of the Woman fltaU fpring a Branch, and he fhall bruife thy hMd, he fit all break thy power, he !hall tread rhy Dominion uncle~; foot, he ll!alllead thy captivity captive, he /hall rake away lin , he !hall paint out to men and Angels rhe Glory of Heaven, and a new world of free Grace: in this promife, Q ri1y Soul, is foulded and wrapped up thy Hope thy Heaven, thy Salvation ; and therefore con(ider of it, turn it upfide down, loo'k on all fides of it, view it over and over; there is a Jefm in it, it is a field that contains in the bowels of it a precious treafure, there is in it a Saviour, a Redeemer, a Deliverer from lin, death, and hell: are notthefe dainties to feed upon? are nor theferariries to dwell on in our meditations? 2. Conlider. Jefw in that next promife made to .Abraham : I will ejfabli(h my Cove- Gen. , 7 , 7 • na"' betweenme anJ thee, and thy Seed after thee m thetr generatzons for an everlaftiJ'ig Covenant, to be aGodtothee and to thy feed after thee: In refpect of this <;:ovenant Rom. 4 .lli .Abraham is called the Father of the Faithful; ,and they., which are of the. Faith, are Gal. 3 7· · called the Children of .Abraham : And 0 my Soul, if rho.u art in Covena~twith God, ,furely thou dolt by faich draw ir through .Abrah11m, to whom this promifewas made: for if ye be Chrijls, thmareye.Abrahams feed, andheirs according tothep•·omife :Con- Gal. 3• ' 9· fider, what a mercy is this, that God lhould enter into a Coven;mt-with thee ill. tlw loins of .Abraham? God made a promife of Chriil:, and inclulively a covenant of Grace io Ins comforting Adam ; but 'he makes a Covenant expreily under the name of Covenant, wirh.AbrahAmand his feed: Omu(e, and be amazed! What? that rhe great and glorious God of heaven and earth fhould he,willing to make ~imfelf a debtour ro us? 0 my Son!, think of ,it ferioufly ; he is in heav~n, . anq tlJou art on earrh, he is the Crearot, and thou art his Creature ~ ~h>rhat art thoil! or 1v.hat u thy Fathen houfe, that thou fhouldft be raifed ·up hitherto! The veryCovemmt is a wonder; as it relates to God and us 1 what is i.t bur a Compact, an Agreement, a tying, a binding of God and us? When {ehojhaphat ·and .Ahab were in Covenant, fee how 7ehofha- . _ phat exprdTeth hi';lfelf , _I am as thou drt, my people ~s thy people , my h•rfes as 1 Kms••'·4l thy horfes: .so 1r 1s betwiXt .God and us. , If once he. give us the Covenant, then ·h1s ftrengrh ts our firengrh, his power is_QQr power, his, armjes are our armies, his .arrnbures are our attributes, we have interN\ .in all ; r_qere is an offenfive and a de- ~enlive L~ague (as I may fa)') betwixt God and us; ancJ.. if ;we pur him in mind of It m all ourthaltS; he cannot deny us. As kW~$. with tbe Nations allied to Rome, if they fought at any time, the R•mans were bound in honour to defend "them · and th.ey did ir with as much diligence as they deferded their own City of Ron:e; fo it is Wit? t.he peop_le alhed t_o God, he is bound in (lonour,ro d~fend h~ peopk,_;an~:qe . will d~ 1r 1f rhey.'mplor_eh1s a~d ; how elfe? Is it pJ>.IflbleGo.4.fl!quJ4 brea'Jdu,sC0 ve!\ant? WJJl he not !hr up h1mfelf't<>!katter his, 1 and out fpiritu~l ~!\fJ:!lie1? <;:~F~~~~y ,4• wi~. Thus runs the tenour of hls.•Covenant., I.will be a {iod.Jfi!P;f,~.an~ .\~f)V- fe.ed!'f:~r thee. !h1s ~~ the general prom1fe_, I may p!\!!r rh~Mother-p~qljl!(.' -that c~rril's ~~ otfjer prom1fes 1n Its womb; an~ !• find a [efus in thisNifomi(e, ~qtgger ;A~riir is Co,d i~ qh.ari!l: . :z. t t
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=