. An Expofttion )f the Epiffle r-....J\../' ham, !faac, atid'}acob i11 his KitJgdomi then will God Feafi, then will he bring Sertn. XL forth all his Glory,and empty lumfelf for ever, ~ Therefore (my Brethren) long for this day, and let your heartsfeek to be one of this number not to be left out of thts All. · For ) our encouragement herem cdnfidcr this, (~hich is a fecond Obfervation,) that no condition can be faid tC! be any hindrance tb you from being in C!:hrifi. Thou canft object nothing againll thy (elf, neith·er poverty, nor folly, nor want of memory and underllanding, nor weaknefs, np't finfulnefs. I fay there is nothing at all thou canft object againll thy fef't~ which may hinder thy falvation.' Why? Becaufe God takes all forts of things on Earth. T(lou canll fay ,nothing of thy felf, but that there are fotne whom Gop bath faved juft 1ike thee, There is no difference (faith he, Rom.J.'12.) hejtJj/ifieth freely b{;f;hgrace. ' '!,here is no difference; tal<e a Beg– gar and a Kmg, they have the fame lhadoW ui the Sun. Alas, Stns (my Bre– thren} they make no differepce, the greatnefs or the fmalnefs of them, to hinder ililvation. Mountains, they beaT no proportion, no more than Mole-hills to the Heavens, they are fo high. If one werein the Heavens, the Earth would feem n~ a tound Globe; Mountains would not be feen no ~ote than Mole-hills are, Again, in t~~ third plac~, You ma):' fee here the infinite goodnefs of God to all, that ~e takes of all .lorts of thtngs , of all forts of ranks ; of. Angels in Heaven, he takes of all thmgs there ; ot all forts of thmgs on Earth, m all their feveral varieties. This is a great tefpect God bath to his Creation, in that he will do fo. He created and made all things, and he made them all by 'Jefus Chrifi, and therefore he lhall n.ave the Fir[\.fruits of every one, and of every fort of thing. ·I take 'it to 'b'e 'part of the meaning, though not all, of that F;fhef ~· where fpeaking of this Myfte.ry, that at/ mm (fait~ he, ver.9.) jho 11 1d fee the fellowfbip of the Myf/er)•, (havmg fpoken of the Calltng of the J•w and Gtlttile before, ver.8.) that Myfiery whir;h from th• btgitming of the World bath been hid i11 God, What cometh in after.ward? Who crfated all thh~gs by Jefru Chrifl. He made atltkmgs by htm (fa~th he,) and therefore he will fave of 'all'forts by him. He hath refpect to the whole Creation; he will have fame of"all forts in it. Therefore AC1s 10. 34• when they faw that God did fave the Gentiles as wet! as Jews; what conclufion do they make out of it? Thm Peter opflud hi. mouth 1111d(aid, of a truth I ptrceive that God is 110 refPeC1er of P•rfims; bt<t i11 every Nation, he that fearfth him and worketh righteotsf1JejJ, is accepted of h1m. And there is another reafoo intimated in the next verfe following, ver. ~6. The word(faith he) which God font tmto the Childrm of Ifraet, preachitJg peace by Jefus Chrijl,he is Lord of all. Js he Lord of all? He will fave of all forts by him. God, as he hateth nothing that h~ hath made, as it is his Creature : fo he willlhew the freenefs of his Grace, by faving all varieties of his Creatures. For therein lieth the freenefs of his Grace, that no condition lhall hinder, ( conclude with that which the Apoftle concludeth (Rom. u.) all the Doctrinal !'art of his Epiftle, He had lhewed, that Jews andGmtiles were both corrupt, mChap.2, and~· He had lhewed that God would fave both of Jew and Gmtile, in Chap. 9· I o, and I I. How co!]cludeth he? Verf"t jO. of that I Ith Chap(er, As)'DU i11 timepajl (fpeaking to the Gmtiles, they take their turns) have 11ot believed God;yet have 11ow obtainedmercy through their Uti belief: EvmJo have thefe alfo (fpeaking of the Jews) now not 6e!teved, that through J'Dtlr mtrcy they atfo might obtai11 mercy, that 6oth they andyo11 might have mercy togtther; for God bath co11cluded (it is tranilated Them; but the word ='•1•, is) A t!, Jew and Ge11tile, itttm6e!ief, that he might have mere)• t<potJ at/, And upon this hedoth(aswealllhould do;)Othedepthoj' the riches, 6oth of the wijdom atJd knowledge of God, ( and mercy-too;) how tmfearchable are his 1t~dgmwts, m1d bis wayspajlfinding out? . So much now fort hat part of gathenng a body out of all forts of thit~gs 011 Earth a11d thitJgs in Heavm. . I ha_ve lhewed you, in op:ning thefe words, firfi, that God bath fummed up all mChnft, he ea[\ up all as tnto one number in his Perfan; which was the firft fignification of the words. Ht gatbertth all thit~gs, I oth m Heave" and o11 Earth, as aCht~rch, as aFamily to him, M ttnto one Head; that the word lil<cwife iignificth. There
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