6o An Expojition of the Epzfile ----------~--~ ----------- ~we all b~1t confu(edly 1 a~d in grofs, and as in his election only, Goddid not Serm. V. choofe in the generol; as a Kingdom cloth choofe the Chtldren of a Kmg that ~ coine after him, and are involved in him, in a general nouon only; fo as their diflioct choife is of the King himfelf alone. No, the Scnpture faith, God ktww– etb ~vho fire bis, he lmoweth the very perfons full y and particularly; yea, and diflinctly viewed them then when he elected them.. And yet. notwuhflandmg he thus chafe us as diflinct perfons from Chnfl; yet fltll our. electwn was mCbnjl. As fuppofe a Kingdom that choofeth a King.and Ius Children, lhould know by way of Prophecy what manner of Men alllus Sons to come would be, and how many he ihould l;ave, and yet fhould choofe him and them ; though ( I fay ) they did diflinctly know all the)rPerfonsand Natures, yet fhll they cho<:le thetn in him as the Head of the fam1ly. Now Chnfl: IS the head of all the tamily of them that are named, both in Heaven and Earth. Thefecond thing to be fpoken to,is, How Jefus Chrifl may be rightly confidered to be a common perlon when hewas chofen. Some Divines yield that he was cho– len to be a common perfon when he ihould take up Man's Nature; and that we were chofcn then tq be by him reprefented. They acknowledge that he was a common perfon in his Death, reprefenting us, and IS now a common perf6n in Heaven, and fits there as in our !lead, reprefeming os. But (fay they) in the act of choofing, how fhould he be confidered as a common perfon, in that he did not then exif\ as God-Man ? He might indeed be ordamed to be a common per– fan, after he did Exzjlas God-Man, but how in election was he, or could he be iuch, he being as then only the Son of God, and not Man? To folve this difficulty,lay we out thefe few things together. 1. That the perfGn of the SotJ of God, (who was ordained this common per• fon) he wos u.itli God then; lje was then extflent. SoPro. 8.Jo. Thm (lai"es wi1dom, namely Chri11,) I WM by him, ~c. And the Evangeli!t ]oh11 faith,He WM i11the beginning wztb God; that 1s, from evcrlafhng (as I lhall !hew after– wards.) 2. This Son of 6od that then exifl:ed (confider him as one that was to become l'vlan,) was the object ofelection as well as the Man-hood, ( which was chofen to become one with God.) That divige perfon was by an Act and Decree of God's will pitcht upon and fingled out to alfume our nature and to fuflain the perfon of an head before God in the mean while, l· At or in the Ad' of Election, this Son ofGod (as he actually exifled at the palling of that act of election upon himfelf) fo he actually and folemnly under– rook to be an head and common perfon reprefenting Us; and to that end to af– fume our Nature. And this is in order of Nat~re to be fuppofed before our Election though coexiflent together froni eternity. 4· Upon this he was;,, rtputtfuch with God the Father. He was a common perfon in God's efleem, and.that juflly. So Pro. 8. 23. I ( namely Chrifl) wa> jet ttpjromeverlafli11g, e'reever the E11rth wM, ~c. I wMJet 11p, ) that is ,in efl:eem with God for fuch. Now this cannot be underflood ofChrifl as he was the fecond perfon only. But God did fet him up from the beginning, as bearing and fl:eining the perfon ofGod-man,(to which manhood he was chofen and undertook to alfume ;) and os an head to his members,before God, who reputed him fuch. And of him confidered as fuch, are thofe words fpoken; for fo anly he i<called WJj'dom, as there he is. For Chrifl: is no! called the Wifdom of God elfontial– ly taken; for that is· one of his Attributes, and not a perfon. But he is called God's WifdomManifeflativr, that is, as ordained to manifefi God's Wifdom un– to Us, he being to be Godmrmifefl i1ztlie Flejb. And fuch a perfon or relation as he then thus actually undertook, fuch did God then , and from that time re– pute him to le and actually entitled him by, as between himfelf and his Son. Therefore in .1ob. r7. 'i· ( obferve the phrafe there,) Glori(y me ( faies Chrifl to God,) wit b tbe glor)' wbicb [Ibrzd with tbu] brfore the World w.11. What glory was that ? He cloth not mean his glory as he was ftmpl"y fecond perfon; becaufe
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