12 "-..A.J1 BooK I. v-v"J Of EleClion. CHAP. II. That there it an Eleflion ofGrace, with dNon Elee!ion or paj]ing -by othm. That difference 10 be out ofthe Pure Grace and f;ood pleafureo[God. ._-Which fHrpofe ofEleflion, is the caufe oftheir effetlual ca!Jing andSal– vation. ROM. II. I,Z,3,4,5,6,7· 1. I fay then, bath God cajt away hupeople? God forbid: for I alfo am atz Ifraelite of the feed of Abraham, of the Tribe ofBenjamin. 2. God bath not cajt away hi5 people, which he forek_new : Wotye not what the Scripture faith of Efias? how he mak_eth interceJ!ion to God againfl I(rael,faying, 3· Lord, They have kjlled thy Pro~ phets, and digged down thineAltars; and I am left alone,and they feel( my life: 4· But what falth the Anfwer ofGod unto him? I have referved to my {elffe7Jen thoufand 11un, who have not bowed the !{nee to the Image ofBaal. 5· Evenfo then at thuprefent time al– fo there i5 a remnant, according to the Eleflion ofGrace. 6. And ifby Grace, then it i5 no more ofwork;; otherwije Grace uno more Grau : But if it he ofwork_s, then it i5 no more Grace ; otherwife work_is no more work, 7· What then ·? I[rael bath not obtainedthat which befeekfth for, hut the Eleflion bath ohtain_ed it, and the rejt were blinded. I T was a great exercife to Paul's fpirit, as appears '!iy Chap. 9· in the be– ginning; and unto the carnal Jew a ftmhble,. a furewd Objection againft Chrif\ianity it felf; That after the Me.f!iah, our Chrij/ was come in the ftefu, and was afcended to Heaven; And his Golpel had had its courfe among that Nation; Both by Chrifts own Miniftry amongft them, and ofhis Apoftles after him; That there fuould be fofew ofthat Nation that Believed on him: Yea, that the geneulity ofthat Nation were caft offby God, upon their ha· ving rejected Him for their Me.f!iah : When as yet there had been made all a· long the old Tef\ament fuch large and abundant Promifes to that Nation, of whom Chrift was to come: Which might have'been expected fuould have been fulfilled umo them, upon his coming amongft them in the flelh. The eonlideration of which might and did lie in the way, as a great fiumbling block unto his former Doctrine ofSalvation by faith on ChriH. This you have inli– nuated from the Coherence ofthe fourth and fifth verfes of Chap. 9. !11 that they were lfi'aelitu, to whom pertaineth the AdoptiotJ, and the Glory, and the giving ofthe Law, and the Service ofGod,a11d the Promifts; _whofr are tht Fathtrs, and ofwhomM concert~ing thtjlejbChrifl came, whou over All, God 6/efledfor tver. (As the Chrifiians profelfed their Chrift to be). And that yet there l(ratlites lhould fo few of them be profelfors of him, wasaftrong prefumption, That therefore it was not He, that was the trueU';tt.f!iah. And ThiS
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