Lu\cc J$.lO. _t.S:lm 18.8. t_l\<g-3.16. 3Tht:ir prs. pertf. Ill. Our rtco&nZ~ liDth_ Ofthe GuN~Pown R R--TR ~AS ON. ~ themercies mofl merciful/. The belt, ' both becaufe rh~ feth•m,and come cheerefully :(An eafie matter ro difcerne between; dry •me~ af. amercyfromthebowels.) 1 And becaufe tomercy one may be inclined by r. J,and fromw irhout; when that failes,where are we then ~ But;thebowels ;re wi~~eHhat and when we have broughtthe caufe within Him,we are fafe. ~Ando c 4 u[a: ~ •m, defe & vif<f?ribtufins, that mercy is belt, and yeeldeth the belt comfort. J"'"' 1 But, in this word ofthe Prophets, there is yet more than.bo,.,e/s, C')l!l\Vete e, nough for them: c•~.:~n, are more; are thebowels, or veJ!els neere thewombe • the loyncs: In a word, nor vi(ceraonely, but parentmn vifcer•, the bowels of~7e ther, or mother, thofe arec•on, which addes more force agreat deale. Seethe •· in the parable, ofrhe fatherrowards his riotous lewd Sonne; when he had con(u• j all vittotifly, his farher;y bowels of compaflion f~iled him not though. Seeth:m in the Story, mDavtd, toward Ius ungrauous 1mpe LAbfalom, that fought his crowne, fought lm life, Abt~fedhu Conc11bines tn thefight of all Ifrael; yet heare the bowels ofa father, BegoodtotiJCyonth LAbfalom, hurt him not, u(ehim wel!formy (ak See them, in the better harlot ofthe t!'vaine: Out ofher motherly lm•ds, rather givelway her cbtlde qmte, renounced it rather, than (u it h11rt. This is mercy .here iscompafionindeed: opaterwa vifccra miferationt~m! when we have namedth~m a mult itddcoffuchmercies, as come from afathers b1wels, we have faid as much as;ve cJnfay,orcanbefaid. ' AnJ, mention ofthis word is nor unfit, whether we regard them (our enemies) per qt~os, it11mejl invifceratcrr.o (in which place, Go n'5 bo111e/sturnedaoainfl:them and toward us:) or whether we rhinke, that His bowels had pity on our fo ~any bow· els, as fl10uld have f!owne about, all rhe ayreover,and light {ome in the frreers,fome in he river, fome beyond it, fome I kaow not where. Now, that which maketh up all, is the pr~perty !act plit; qt~ia n1ndeficiunt, or (which is all ooe)non confi;mtmttlr,faile not, or (as ye may readeit)m{t•me not. And fo,as we begun, we end withNonconfumpti. There cannot be amorekindely confcquence than this; our notj~tili11g, from their notfailing; we doe not, becaufc they doe not. Ifthey did, we ihould: But, qt~ia t~on confim•pt.o i/l,., non confiempti naJ: for, theyare not confi•med, no morcar11ve. And why doe they nor faile ~ Becaufe He Himfelfe dorh not. He r5 the f,tmejli/1, He failesnot: His6o"'elsareas he is; fo,they faile nor, no more than He. And in t1is [f!!Ya non deficitmt] is all the comfort we have. For, fince /Ill· mies time, one would bee amazed to confider, (the huge number of foule enormi– ties, that have beenecommirred, and yet the parties that commit them not confu– med .) where there ihould be mercy to ferve; for them all. One would thmke, by this,'rhey ihould have beenedra.vne drie. So they had, but forthis ;b NC,. Ir CJCl never bee faid, Now there is all; there is(now) nomorelefr. No: an wcxhaufl: founr;zinerhere is ofrhem : never dry, but floweth !till fi·clh Jnd freih. And looke, even the next words, Ieremie tels us, they renew every morning: No mormng comes, but a freihfupply ofthem. And even this morning, thu v. ofNovm,ber, we had a good proofe ofit. Yea, they are never perfeCt, the{temme is n~vermade up: There is (till added every day; and they fl1all not be conlummatc, ull thecMfiemmawn. ~ofthe world. · · . . . And but for thefe fJOJvels, that !till melt ; and for thefe compaf1111! ever-jlmmg and never failing, they (our enemies) had nor failed of their p~>rpofe. But ~ b: caufe the[ejAiled nDt, rhey failed; becaufethefe confiemed not, wee were 'ttv"w{ med. They are nor omly plentifuU, as, in thepl"rAII; and chotce, as from t 11 owe • the bowels of afather; burperpetual/: (what talke we ofperpetuall :)theyareeter· nail. Thefe three, their 1 multiplicity, their •jpeciality, their 3 etermty, thefc three wchold by. And now to our Recognition. To performe it to the full, as it defervet_h, that (l know) we cannot.. w_ orthily to celebrate, and [et forth f!_is mercies therem, acdf~ '.
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