On the Excellency of the Soul. 247 and acknowledge : Oh it is indeed a dreadful thing the lofs of the foul. But now becaufe it is a point of fö great moment , I will not fatisfie my felf meerly in telling you thefe things, but endeavour to open them unto you , what the evil of this lots is , th ac if it might bee , by prefenting this before the fouls of _men, they may fee more the danger that they are in, and how the Devil bath gulled and de- ceived them all this while : It may make many fouls to bee at a Rand, if they come to know what this lots indeed doth mean. Now I (hall endeavour the opening of this in the three la(i particulars that I named. Fir(t, For the reje6tion of the foul from God fo as to bee deprived of all the good there is in God , and that it is capable of ; Now for the underftanding of the evil of this, wee muff inquire what is that good that the fouls of men are capable of, or elfe wee cannot come to underhand what an evil thing it is to lore it. Now for the good that the foul is capable of , I wilt but onely name fome heads unto you , for in a Treatife that force of you have in your hands, of Motes looking to the reeompenfe of reward there are the principal heads of the good and excellency that the foul is capable of , and (hall bee bleffed in heaven eternally with : And the apprehend- ing the lofs of thefe things, will difcover much , The fish part of the evil of the lofs of the foul. I will but in a very brief way prefent them unto you. Why the Glory of God upon theI the Image of God , the Life of God, the Divine nat a that the foul ïs capable of : Now for the foul never to live the Life of God, nor ro have his Image,. nor any of the Glory of God. upon it , this is a fearful evil to thofe that know the excel -. lency of thefe thing's ; of the bleffed vifion of 'God in heaven;, to fee him that is the infinite fir(t-being of all things, to fee him as hee is , to fee him that hath all .ex- cellency in him, and to fee all the good there is in God, as the good of the foul. The foul is capable of the . under- Handing of die minde of God , to have all the glorious Court-
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