Ambrose - BT200 A42 1658

Book II. Chap.~Sed.ol not pay the debt of obedience : God cafts him into Prifon, and the urrno{l: he can pay is' but (as it were) a penny a day; · and hence the poor Gnner rnufr frill be paying, and paying, and paying to eternity : this is the ground of thetr eternal punifhment in hell , becaufe in any finite time they can never pay enough : But now comes {cfas Chrift, and he fully payes the debt at once, fo that jufrice faith,J have eno11gh, lam fatisjied : Surely this is the greater glory to the very juitice ofGod. , Thefe were the counfels of God from all Eternity, how he {hopld make way for his love and goodnelfe, and yet fatisfie -his Truth and Ju!lice. 0 my foule, confider and wonder ! Je. fus Chrift was the Expedient,and in Chrift not only Gods mercy, ·but his jufrice is exalted , yea more exalted and more glorifiedin thy f."lvation then ever it could have been in thy damna· tion. 3. Confider the fore-knowledge ofGod; he knew from everlalhng whom he would f.:t apart for life and falvation. All the Saints ofGod from fir!l to !all:, they were then prefcnt to him , and before him, and he did look on them in his beloved C hrifr Before there was a world, or a man , or any creature in it, h~ foreknew Adam, and Abraham, and Jfaac, and {acob , and all the Patriarchs , and all the Prophets, and all the ApoHles , and all the Difciples of Chritt, and beleevers in Chrifr; And 0 my foule, if thou art o1e· of gods eleCt, he foreknew thee with a knowledge oflove and approbatiom: he had thee in his eye, and heart: he had thoughts on { nrob, when he was ;et rmborne, Rom.,. II .tnd had done neither good, nor-evil. Affure thy felf , the Lord workes n6t without previfion or fore-knowledge. of the thing effeCted; that cannot be in God, which is not to be found in a wife and prudent man ; be that builds an houfe hath the frame of it lirfr in bimfelf : and the Pfalmifr tells thee, that tbe e)'fs of Pl.d. r 39.16. €od di.l fee thy[11bjfance yet being unperje[f: in this boofz. ofknowIedne were all dy rurnbtrs n'ritren, when as yet thrre was noit.e of Rom.~.13. · tfoe~!'yea . he knew thee with a knowledge of !ingular love;l1e-em· braced thee in hi,Erernall01e,as it is written,Taccb have Ilowd, bnt Efau have I he;ted: I will no~ l:1y that th1s love was at'tuall y befrowed on thee till due time, yet it was prepared for thee from all eternity: and hence it is called, an everlasting love; The Jer.jl-3 Lord hath·appeared of old wnto me, faying, I h.Jve loved thee ?J·ith ' 411 ever/aft ing loN, therifore with loving kindneJJe have I draw__n ~. 0

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