The Harmony of the Divine Attr-ibutes ~the Breall againll God: Till the Soul is releafed from Terrors it can never truly love him. Chap. 5· To extinguilh our Hatred, he mull conquer our Fears, and this he hath done by givjng us ~the moll undoubted and convincing Evidence of his Affeaions. I. By contraCting the moll intimate Alliance \Yith Ma~l{ind. In this God is not only lovely, but LO".Jt, 1 Joh. 4· 8, 9· and his Love is !10t only vt{ible to our Undcrfl:an~ings, but to our Senfes: The Divin~; Nature in Chri11 is Joync:d tO the Humane, in an Umon ·rhat is not ty pi~a l or temporary, but real and per~anent. The f!Vord wat mtzde Fifft;, J~hn t. And m lum drvells the ftt!nejj of the Godhead bodtly, Col. 1. Now as LO'Ve is an AfJCCbon of 'Vnion, fo the firiCteft 7Jnion is an Evidence of the greateft Love. The Son of Gcd rook the feed of Abraham, ( Heb. 2. ) the origtnal Element of our Nature, tha t our lntereft in Him might be more clear and certain. He fioop'd from the height of his Glory to our low Embrace~, ~hat we might \~ith '!lore Con6dence lay hold on his Mercy. 2. By proviChng compleat Sansfaa1on to offended J ultice. The guilty convinced Crea- ~~~eai~~-~~i;;~~o~~n~l~~6u~~tl7se aa!r~~~e~~:J }uf~1,e ,~f'; ~;;;11en~b~~m~f t1~0~r:~~~f~0ad:d nearnetS of the Danger, there being nothing between it and Eternal Torments, but a thin vail of Flen1. NO\":' an a~undant S~isfa8:ion is made~ that rnofi effectually expiates at)d abolifhes the gmlt.of St~: That IS a temporary _Act, but or infinite Evil, being committed againll an infimte Obje8";. the Death of Chnft was a Tempora'J Paflion, but of in· -~~1 ~·\~~~1~1 ~~Pc~~l,0:n~1~~~~~~~ ~:!~o~~~~~~ ~o~:/t~vd~E~~r(n~J,~"e~; £~,l1j,~ {h~/'l;~~;:,; ~~ ~tt~, ~~J;/:ea}:}i/e;r;;g~";:v~: b:~e:;~ f:]:itk:0 :~:.e j~1~/{tg:~~uCi~~ ftronger Sccurit~ can be given, . rl.lat G?d is ready to pardon Man, upon his accepting the term• of the Gofpel, than t he glVlng IllS Son to be our Atonement ? If the Stream fwcll fo high as to overflow the Banks, W ill it fiop in a defcencing Valley? Hath He, with fo dea r an Expence, fatisfied his Jufiice, and will he deny his. Mercy to relentmg and returning Sinners ? Tlus Argument 15 powerful enou~;h to overcome the mol! obltinate Infidelity. · 3· By the unfpeakable Gift of his Son, he a!Turcs our Hopes of Heaven, which is a Re· ward fo great and glorious, that our guilty Hearts are apt to fufpeEl: we !ball never enjoy it. We are fecure of his Fa1thfulnefs, havmg his inla!lible Prom,fe; and of his Goodnefs, having fuch a Pledge m our Hands. As the Apoltle argues, Rom. 8. 22. If he hath given m hU Son, will he not rvith himgivemali thin~s? Will hegi~eustheTreeofLife, and not permit us to eat of .its Fruit? Is it concetvable, that havmg laid the Foundation of our Happinefs in ~he Death of his Son, an Afr, to which his tender Atfe8:ion feem'd fo repugnant, that He w11l not perform the relt, which He can do by the meer fignification of Ius Witl? 'Tts an excellent encouragement St. Aujtm propounds from hence; SecuYtts _ ~~~e ~;e{~i~'~tfe:~,~:~a~K{!~i lt~~~t~fsi;i~ehi~~~~tt!uJe ~~h~~~f~~~~dt~oo~-e~~~tnp:I; promifcd. 'Tis more incredible, that the Eternal fhould die, than that a Mortal Cre'\ture fbould live for ever. Jn01ort; Since no mortal Eye can difcover the Heavenly Glory, to convince us of the re~hty of the invi!iblc State, and to fupport our depart1ng Souls m then· paffage through the dark and terrible Valley, our Saviour rofc from the Grave, afcended in our Na~ure to Heaven, and is the model of our Happinefs: He is at the Right-hand of God to d1fpenfe Jjfe and Immortality to all that believe on Him. An~ what can be more comtOrrable to us~ than the alfurance of thatBleffednefs, which, as itecltp{es all the Glory of the World, fo it makes Death it felf delirable in order to the enjoyment of it. 2. As the Comfort~ fo the Holinefs of Man is moft promoted in this way of our Re~ dcmption. Suppofe we had been recovered npon eaf~er terms, the Evil of Sin '~ould have been lcffen'd in our efteem ; (We a:·c apt to Judge of the danger of a D1~eafe from the difficulty of its Cure: ) Hunger IS reputed a fmall trouble, ( although if 1t be nottari!,ficd 'twill prove deadly) becaufe a fmall pnce wtll procure v.:hat m~y remo~e it;) And the mercy that faves us, had not appeared fo great. He that falls IntO a Ptt, and is drawn forth by an cafy pull of the Hand, dotl1 not think himfe!fgreatly oblig'd to the Pcrfon that help'd lum, though if he had remain'd there he _mull: have pcn01'd But when rhe Son of God had fuffer'd for us, more then ever one Vricnrl fuflCr'd for another or a Father for a Son, or than the Strength and Patience of :m_ ti ngel ~an en· dure · Who would not be ftruck with Horror at the thoughts of that Potfon whiCh requir'd fuch a dreadful Cure? And the benefit we t·eceivc in fo coltly a way, is jutl:ty magnified by us. N_ow what is m~Jre apt to_ infiame our Love _to God, dun .the a.dn:trable exprcll10n of Ius Love to us, tn that With the moll pre01ous Bluod he 1{an!om ~
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