to the E PHESI A N S. caufe he had that glory now; and the~efore. needed not to begg it. Nay, he ~ could not begg it;lt was too much for lnm fo to begg, tor fo he 1s equal with God. J'n·m. V. Therefore it mufi be the glory of the Medmor-Jiup. [ whJCh I h,zd brfore the ~ thr WorldwM,] that is, in 1hyrepute; thou atcountulfi me thus and thus glorious in refpectof the glory ordemad meby.my undertakmgto be Man and the Mediator of the Church. And tlus IS plam, Il you compare It with the 24thv. tor there he fpeaks of thatglory which was given him; which can be no other then the glory of the Medmor-lh1p. So thtn, Jefus Chn.fi the fi:cond perfon being exiltent, a~d undertakmg to be a~ommon perfon .and a Mediator for Men, God did reckon lum as fuch, he was tn Ius account, at the choofing of h1m, as a common perfon and Head, and as • Mediator too. And indeed , there was this great advantage ofour Mediator his being Go,d, that thereby he wasnot only pre1entat, andpnvytothe makmg of allGod •Decrees; butwasalfoby, toun• dertake tor all that concerned Ius Fatt tn 1t which God lhould decree, and to enter upon the Title and Relation of our Head and Mediator then. And there is this Reafon why Chrifi mufi needs have been an Head to his Members, before his affuming our Nature, or his.Afcending up to Heaven; (which I fee not how it can be anfwered.) Becaufe otherwife Jelus Chrifi had not been an head to the Fathers under the Old Tefiament; for he had not as then taken an human Nature. And yet was actually a common perfon for forgiving their Sins, by vertue ofthat nttonement he had engaged tbperforl)1 for them; which was fuch in God's repute cxilling before him in .7o6's tiine. 'Deliver him, I havt /ou11d a Rm1{om, .7ob ~ ~· And upon the account thereof God did as really and actually forgive the Sins of the Old Tellament, as he did Rom. >· ~5' Now if .he was ahead then, and they aClually Members of hu'n; then he might be fo, VIrtually, and reprefentativeiy, from everlafiing, through hisundertaking of it ; and this, in as jufi a fenfe as he is faid to be the LambJlaill frow the btgzmzmg of the Worfd. Why may not the Promife of the fecond perfon then palfcd unto God, g1ve as full, yea a fuller fubfiltence of thofe things which God decreed and which he undertook for before God his Father; as God's promifewhich was written in the Old Tefia: ment, gave to the Fathers Faith then, in refpect unto which Chrifi was as then already llain? God the Father, who was then prefent, had a certain alfurance that Chrifi his Son, that gave his promife tor performance, would and Jhould perform it. And Chr.ifhts Son of God, who was God, having promis'd, I may fay of both, that Chrifi's word then was as good as his bond, and the Father's affurance that he lhould perform 1[, as good as It he had already feen it done : And bu caWt~gthi11gs that are 11ot, as certajn a; tjthey werr. An.! I may apply one and !he lame effect of the Apofile Pa11t equally to both, if of God rhe Father giving; Chrifl: his promife before the world began, it mufi be faid, God that ca 11 - ;tot l~e, And fo it is, and was as firm and lure as if done and tulfilled, and this becaufe he is God, as Tit,. I. 2 •. 't,is exprefly there faid; I11hope ofettr1Jdl/ 1 fe, wh1ch God, that cannot lte prom1s d, 6tfore the World btga11. I may invert it and fay for the f~me reafon, d1~t that promife which Chrifi made the Father to undertake the Mediator-!hip in Man's Nature before the world was and to do all . he did in the fulnefs of time; that Chrill's promife then mu{( hav'e been and was reputed as fure ari~ fiedfafi by ~od the Father,as if it had been already'done; And God the Father m1ght as certamly bUild upon It to do any thing that was to be done,<;lep_cndmg upon what Chnfi U!)dertook to do then, as if Chrifi had alrea– dy i'erformed all that promife and under't~k,ing,and this upon as equal reafons, for Chnfi was God then,as well as the Father,and could no m3re lie than he;for they both aree quals,.Yoh. ro.and all the terms of bothfides. are equal, before the world WM,&c. both of them.I might hkewrfe urge that wluch followeth in the 10. v. of this I .Chap. totheEphejJ,ziJS,_.thereyou have an d''"'-'~"'"'"~<,rlj(rJiheri11 g together · agamtt111o o11t head, both of ]ew and Gmttlr. Why a gathering together again unto one head? (for fn the word fignifieth,) One Reafon may be, becaufe in J':lcClu:m they were 10 Chrifi as a Head bcforo,But !leave the difcul1ing that till! come to rhe , oth. v. So .that (to conclude this point) that we are l:tid to be Etec7eJ i11 Cbr,f/, the mcamng of it is fummcd up in thefe particulars. t, That
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