Of EM/ion. ~· greatefi goodnefsHecando us is, t(jmake known his goodnefs ; Thus Gcd 10 BooK II. .Mefa, Exod. ll• 14,]wt!l make att my goodmfs pa(S 6rforttha. · t..fY""'to..J But it was nor limply his goodnefs, but his grace, which is the top perfection of his Name and this Grace our God did value as his choicefi riches: Hu Gr11ce; hu mercy, you have it up and down in 'PauJ'J Epi!\les. And this as it isthe excellency of his goodnels, fo fiill hclpt forward to m>ke his will to Commu– nicate all his goodnefs; For (mark it) Grace and Mercy are fuch Attributes as have not himfelf for their Object, though for their Subjed:, and {o if any needed a manite!\ation unto Creatures , .then thefe, Himfelf indeed is the Ob– ject ot hi sown Love; (he loves himfelf) but himfelf is not rhe Object of his · own Grace, to be fure nor of his Own Mercy. God is ilo where faid to be gra– cious or merciful to himfelf, nor is it meet to have it faicl of him; and there– fore in this refpect he is not faid to be rich to him.felf, but as Rom. 10 , 12. He is rich to others, evm to a/J that ca/J upo~t him. God indeed hath a glory arifing from his own Mercy and Grace, but then it is but what is difpenfed unto others; the riches thereof are difpofeable no way bur to the ufe and benefit of Crea– tures, Well then, fays God with himfelf, thefe riches lie by me, and I have no.ufe of them, and yet I have them: I will therefore·put them ro ufe, and lay tltem out upon others, as rich Men do their riches, and lay them out upon fome Purchafe; fo God refolved that one day fome body might be the better for them. And la!\ly, to infiance in no more Particulars, take the refulr of that whole blefl.edncfs which arofe from the injoyment of his own Perfellions, namely the fweerncfs, the contentment he had in his own happinefs; it mol\ !\rongly moved him to make Creatures Partakers of it. He would not be happy alone; He would have others (as Chri!\ expre[erh his Spirit,and his Fathers alfo,John 17. 3· 24.) who might foe hi& Glory, and be glorified in feeing of it. And this u made the original of this Gofpel of Salvation, and of our Salvation it felf: For what other doth thegofpel hold forth than Gods bleffed intentions, contrivements, and purpofes for our Salvation for the glory ofhis Name,which Chrifr came to preach aRd declare? The motive thereunto is intimated in one fmall word added, yet clearly enough , 1 Trm. 1. 1 1; According to theglo– t-iomgofpd[ of tht 6ttffed God. ]'Tis a fure Rule, wherever you find any fpecial Attribute of God fingled forth in connexion with fome other thing that flows from him , it is frill fuch as is peculiarly effellivc, or more properly the caufe of that thing mentioned; and fo here, the bleffed God ( bleffed in the injoyment of his own glory) is here inferred to fhew what had moved him thereby tomake his Creatures Bleffed, and therefore to contrive the whole of this Gofpel of our Salvation, But it will be faid,If this goodnefs and bleffednefs in himfelfwere that which moved him , why then fhewed he not this favour unto All? The Anfwor is, that is not my part now to fpeak to; the account thereof belongs to another place: My prefent bufinefs bath been, that whether it :fhould be to many or to all, to manife{\ himfelf was the motive. The Se<;ond Anfw~r is, That it was not to many, becaufe Gra~e was the great thing in his Name he meant to !hew, and wasthat which managed his goodnefs, and had the prevolent fway and hand in this matter, as every where the Scripture afcribes it, then the glory of this Grace will fhew itfelf in a free love, and fo in a choice of the perfoos : Says Grace, I am free and will ufe a freedom, and nnt communicate them to all; l ·uJJJI 6t graclotu to w hom I wiP 6e ;;racrom: So the words run in Mo{tJ, Exod. 33· '9• I wi/J 6t mercr[11l to whom 1w r!J 6tmercrful: And as, 'Paul Rom.3 :18. Thert uno fear of Godbe– fore tht~r f)'tJ. And was yet more free in this, and therefore he calls the Elet!o Veffels of mercy, fingled out of mercy, Oil whom, and unknown, ht wr/J makt k1row11 the.·ichtJ of hu Glory: He compares them to fmoller Vcffels,and himfelf to the Sea that fills rhem : And what is ir, a created Glory our of hin.J– fel f ? No, but that glory which is irl himfell which fills them in making them glorious; which is properly his own: And thereupon if it be to be refolved and
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