andMSon !fe]its [brifi. and conGdered in Cbrifr. God bad as then his Chrifi prefcnt with him, and by '~ him; and reckoned of usas Members ofhim, and eleCted us as fuch. And God Chap. 9· thought not his bare Purpofe of EleCtion of our Perfons, enough to fati>fy ~ ,Chrifi, who at that prefent undertook for us; nor to comfort u s, when we fbould come actually to exifi in this World, and to lay hold of hJS Grace; nor was he contented, if I may fo fpeak, with Chrifi's bare Concurrence, as Seconcj Perfon,in chooGng us as well as the Father himfelfdid; but further to firengthen his own Heart in thofe his Purpofes towards us: as in the 8th ofProverbs it is laid, our Chrifi was with him, firengthening, and fupporting his intended Creation to him: He thereby engaged himfelfunto Chrifi, then prefent, for us: Yea, and confiiiuted, and fet up Chtifi, as a Reprefentative ofus, and common Perfon for us; and Chiifi accepted us, rook us in tO Himfelf, and owned us as his; and pieces of himfelf. And in thefe refpeCl:s the EleCt had a Being afore God ; fuch as was far more than what was fimply given them in God's Decrees, or Purpofes ofGraee, or Good-Will, or bare Choice on God's part; but his Choife did find a Foundation oftheir Exifiing: For this his Chrifi was there prcfent with him, actually .exifienr, and at his R.eguefi to bear the Perfon of God-Man; and therein to efiate us all, at the infiant of his Choice, as f.1r as he fbould name them to him, to be his Body, Spoufe, Members; and he from that infiant alfo to bear, and reprefent their Perfons afore his Father: and foro give them a reprefentative Being in himfelf, which other Crertures then had not, but were left fingly to their own Fortunes, Stations. And in thefe refpeCts it is that Chrifi as God-Man is fiiled the Everlafiing Father, lfo. 8. Father of us; namely from Everlafiing: bearing us then in his Heart, as a Mmher cloth her Children in her Womb. So as by means hereofit came to pofs, that the EleCt were not as Branches hanging iu the Sun-beams of God's fingle Purpofe of Grace only, to produce, and bring them forth into aCtual Exifience by its fingle Influence; but fuch as have withal a Soil,a Root they were planted in,the Perfon ofChrifi: He and we being aV!"<PV-n>l, as Twin-Plants, planted together in God's Heart from the firfr. Hence that higil Foundation ofEleCtion, which is called the Ele{];on of Grace, is f.1id to be in Chrifi: He hath chofen us in Chrifl afore the World began. And though God chofe the Perfons, yet compleated he his Choice ofthem in Chrifi, and gave us a Being in Him, as in an Head, and then gave them this Being in Chril[ ; but. chofe them in Chrifi, from the firfr cafiofhisThoughts to choofe them. God never confidered us as fingle Perfons out ofChrifi, (though in this refpeB: that he determinately, and difrinCtly foreknew, and pitch'd upon each of our Pcrfons ;) but chofe us one in and with his Son, as an Head, or common Perfon, taking our Perfons, and undertaking for them; He never abfiraCtedly confidered, or viewed us apart from, or without Chrifi, but as one in Him, and with Him; confiituted and made one Head and Body at once: And this afore-hand gave thema Subfifience ofanoiher kind, than what by Creation they were to receive. Infornuch, as their State in Him is termed a Being, a new Being, and Exifience 3 as the SubjeB: upon which Being firfr confiituted, the Benefits do fall. Of HitJt )"e are in ']efiu Chriji, fays the Apofile, I Cor. 1. 30. Lay that as our Foundation of Chrifi his being made Wifdom, Rigbteoufnefs, Sandification, and R.edemption to us ; which are the Benefits that belong to that Being: In him ye are, or have a Being, fays the Apofile. And before God Chrifi had it, from that time wherem we were given to God by him. And we began fu far to be, as we were conGdered in Him, and that was at our Everlafiing Elellion ; and he to be fure had an aCtual Being, and bore an aCtual reprefentation of us ; And this laid a Corner-fione of a higher Being fitpernatural, even from Eternity, than what our firfi Creation came unto. This Supercreation-Being having been thus fetlcd, I come to the fecond Head propofed, vh. !I. .AGeneral Conjideratio1l ofthe Benefts wholly S11percreational. Thefe Supercreauon-Bleffings we hold of Chrifi, are oftwo forts, and difiinet. I. Such as are Supernatural, even in refpeCt of our firfi-Creation Efiate, unto whtch for that caufe I give the fiile ofSupercreation-Benefits; whlch do far ex– ceed m value the fidr frock dfCreation-)\Jeffings; Such as that of Adoption of Z :i Sons,
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