154 Chap.' 2. Ofthe Lave ofOoc4and the contraries thereto. Corn. r. but Dragons, Snow, Fire, andall Creatures, not that they could praife the Lord, but that there is not the bafeß Creature of them all; that hadnot caufe enough to praife the Lord, if they could. And thus much for Prayer. CHAP. XII. The feventh Vertue required is, Love ofGod. That God is to be loved. Ofmercenary and free Love. The excellency of Love. The mtafure o Love. The oppo/i of the Loveof God. r. Loveofthe.World. 2. Self-love. 3. Stupidity 4. $ f God. All themotives of Love areeminently in God. I. Beauty. _. Propinquity, 3. Benefits beflowed. Sixfignr of Love. Ofdrawing others to love God. 6. HE next Duty is Love. The fame which the Apoftle faithof the Law, to have Ibeen for atime, till the promifed Seed came, may be faid concerning the other afiedions, and their Affions, that they were only till the Love ofGod came, ofwhich the Fathers fay, that occupareamorem, to have love inus,drowneth all other affeEtions. For we have fear firft, and being delivered fromthat we feared , we .love , and being' heard in what we hope and pray for, we love. God, and fay with the Pro- phet, dilexi quía audivit, eke. I lovethe Lord , becaufe hehath heard myvoice. There is a coherence betweenLoveand Prayer. We have formerly faid, that to enjoy, and have a thing , we are'firft to know it ; and the knowledge ofit breeds in us a true eftimate of it, and the eftimateofathing, makes us loveit; fo ',sabers Deum, eft feire, to poffefs God , is to know him ; and this knowledge breeds a true eftimate ofGod, whereupon we love him : for according toour eftimation our love is, more or lefs, to that we have. Thefe affections of fear and hope are for this end , that whenGod hath bellowed emirs the things we either fear to lofe or hope to enjoy , we may the better efteemof them. For as cito-data vilefcunt , we fleight thofe things whichare eafilygot , when we can but ask and have; fo the things we have felt the want offo long , and for whichwe have been humbled, when they come, we will thebetter regard them, and love him thebetter for them. The Objet ofLove is bomm, in which the very natural reafon of Man kath found two properties, viz. that it is. a. Communicative. 2. Attrafliye. r. Every good is defirous to communicate it fell to as many asare willing and Meet to partake of it. As we fee in the Sun and other Celeftial Bodies in the Natural Elements; fo there is in God a quality ofdefiring tocommunicate his goodnefs: and indeed it was the caufe why heCreated all things, to have aChurch, and to Phew his glory and mercy on it. So that the mind of Man feeing this nature in God, con- feghently hath a delire to it; and that desire goeth fo far, rill it come toa conjundîion, and that to an union, its conjangi ut uniantur; becaufe by the union oftwo good things there will come good to the definer, whichhe had not before, and whereby ' he is Made better. z. Secondly, it hath vim attraElivam. It hath been faid , that if.inferiourthings be coupled and united with things of mere excellent nature, they are thereby made more noble. As a Potfheard being covered withGold. As on the other-fide , things which are ''excellent , being joyned with viler, are made more abjedt: as the mind ofMan with inferiour Creatures. And there can be nothing which can make the mind more tranfcendcnt, than the conjun&ionof it with that which in it felfis all good,-and containeth all good things, and that for ever; and from hence arifeth this atiradiive property and force for in every -good there is that force, which affureth. And therefore to {hew usthis good , it is neceffary that faith and knowledge precede. Boman non amatur (as the School men fay) quod -non cógrofcitur`, the good that is not known, cannot be loved. For if it were known (it being, the natural delire of all to be' better) we fhoutd love it, to be the better by ill It is therefore well -faid That good things have no greater Enemy, than Ignorance. ,Knowledge and Faith then (as is faid) (hewing
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