/ to tht: E P H E S I AN S. t>nly is the Sun, the Church is_the Moon,_and the ~o.gels they ,:tre t~e Star.>:;~..., they are the Mo.-nlng Stars, as they_ are dlled ~ J~11}8•_lie .eohghten~th both Smn: X: ihe JVJ. 0011 and Stars. Bllt ho":'ev~r tlus'inay ~e certainly lil~d,tl\at the}' Wel'e kept~ from falling by virtue of Jefus. Chntti_o_come: Inth~ fam~ firft of the_cotoj]imu~ having reckoned up all thwgs.10 He~ve~ and Ill ~a~th. ~s q'eated l:ly,?lm; he ad. deth, arul hy him '!tl thmgs co•if/Jf. Angels and Me~ are all ke~tb~ lum, the fta. tiort they have 1~ 10 and through rh:_ ~erd.J~fus Chn!t... .. , . _ , And there is tlmgreat R.eafun for ltJ Becaufe to nand 10 Grace and riot to fall; is a fupcrhatural gift, more than was due to the Angels1 aS Creatures, though they were never fo excellenr, The Devils.. fell, the ?ther Angels ftoo_d ; _what put the difference1 It mun l;e fo'?e fupernat?ral Ora~e.... _Now. Chn!t IS _th_e fouhrain of all Grace, the great beloved, the uillverfai pnnc1ple. Jou 4· 18. 1t ts faid there 1 that God charged his Angels witlifol{y; he put no dJnfidence irt his Servants. the good Ange~s, they !iad.atloffillle f~Uy in t~em, though t~cy had not an ac1ual folly ; they might have Iinhed,_ real i~ 'Yas !l:ri~'?tri~le, be~g but Creatures, but that they fhould have a poffibd1ty t<i fin Cif themfelves, take them as Creatures. They were indeed a houfe of Stone, whereas Man is but a hbufe of Clay ; howmuchti'(s(faithhe, verfe 19,) wt thatdwt!tinhoufrsof Ct~y? but ~hough they were as an houfe of Stone, yet that Hood upon a .O!!~~rii_tre, _the ll10cl<y weak Will of a Creature. And fo they were apt to fall Wlthoutproppmg. Now, what hath underpropp~d ~hefe Creatutt:s that they fiapd 1 What putteth the difference t It is, becau(e tl)eyare uriited, they are headed iil Chri!t, they belong td him, only Chrifi of all Greaftires could iidt fin; for if that lnati could have finned, there had been a Perfon in the trinity wanting; THe focOiidPerfoi: rrtufthavecomedownfromHeaveiJ liimfelf; if tha_tMan could Havelirined; for he was united to it, and as th~ bloOd is called the Bto~dof God, .fo !h~ li_n would have been the Sm of God, wlucli would have been Bla(phemy to 1mag10e; He only could not fin. And fhe Angels; as they !land now, it may be faitl of them that they arc impeccable; _ they cannot fiil,_and they fhall ti~ver liri io all etetiiity; becaufe they are uhderpropped by this Corner-!tone, that IS the Bafisof all parts of the Family both in Heaven and in Earth. Ii is Jefus Chrift that under-props them, both thingsvifible and irivillble, ttiiiJgi iii Heaven, and things iri Earth; 'Now,my Brethren,if they had had no Grace fioni hiin at fir!t,or had ndn'e now 1 but that wl1ich they nad enly by a Covenant of Creation ; yet notwith!tanding 7 to have this Priviledge anne11ed to tlieir Grace; That they fhould nevet fall as the Devils did, and be out of all daage'r of liririing as t1Jey did; this is an infinite Priviledge, it is wotth their acknowledging thr'i!t their Head; if they tiad b'b more by him. It is faid of Glafs, tkat if it coufd be made a Metal th~t Would notbte'ak,itwetew<irthalfthe Gdld and Silver in theWotld; and therefore If is reported of an Emperour that put a man to death for mall:iilg df Glafs that could not be broken; as being an Invention ~hat would fpoil all the Gold arid Sil'vcr in the Wo~ld,_ M~ I3re~tmo-, the Angers are glorious Vclfels, but r)iey are as Clafs; what cloth Chnff now? He makes thel_Il that they canriot fall, they cannot be brokeR, and this is more thari all tfieir Grace; and this they h:tve from Chrifi, as he is their Head, and as theybelOrig unto him; Lafily, They have a•happinefs in Chri!t~ in feeing of hi(ii as well as we. i take that to be part of the meaning_ of that 1 Tim.3. i6. (I have oftenwon– dred at t~e ex_pretrion th~re 1 J fhall gtve you what I think td be _the. meani_ng of It,) fpeakmg of Chn!t,ancfof the great myfiery of Godl10efs m him, faith he, God, whowru mani{tjied'.,tthejlljb, (and'tfieie was mote of God m~nife!ted In the flelh 10 the perfon of Cllrifl', than there is in all Creatures that were made– or potribly could be oiade,) jt~flijitd ;, tht Spirit, (whicll was fpoken _of his R.e! furreCl>,on,) jtm of A11gelr , preached mito the Gmtiles, 6etitvtd 011 J1l the 'fl7ortd ,. remved ttp ~llto glo>J. Here are two, prinCiples, Faith and Vifioli; here IS Fmh•attnbut~d to men, they cleave to Cfirift their Head by Faith. 6t'-' l~evedo11m~h~:world. 'th(} Angels;•they deave ullro him by Vifion ,.foeti <if Allgets; admmng,hiiT!, wi~hinfinitejoy looking'upon.llimta5 upoilt'fleir'Head'; ~hey faw more of God manifefied in ~hat Man Ghrif/Je[uJ, than ,they had feen 10 Heavenbe:or7. We cleave to him by Faith, they cleave to him b}"Senfe 1 thao ;.vh1ch we lliall have, for we /hall fee .6im-orfe day as hi:'is, that tll~ .Angels do
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