OfEleflion. 12 ] th at w hich wos the bte.Jling mdeed, thts, hi< Brother( here- fays ) h.1d t,1km ~-, aw.1y , Vn:[: l\'· which was that by Election ( which we are upon.) And thus Chap. :<. d 1 d God without the confideratlon of the Fall, ordaw hts chofen to that Super-~ creation Glory, though he denied [the refl] thnt gr~at good. He yet did purpofe to ordam them to other good thtngs ot an Exco.lem Nature and Kind, as.th111Creation perjeff F-lul111ejs which was.Gods Ima ge, and the Dominion over all the work of his Hands , whtch Ad,tm, and In him , we all were ap; pointed unto by the- Law ofhiso nd our Creation_; which C ondition,_ we all predicate as a complea t haptnds: But fltll thts was not that good we fpcak ot , not t h.lt Glory in wl1ich Ood becomes All and 1n All. And al.though , unto fo great a good, al l Men were in this manner made heirs of , yet that ·" iil hnhl true w hich wJs fJd of E[ull, in compJrifon of],,rob's Portion,Ejau h.1ve I h.1ted; and in that comparifon, Election to that fupercreation Glory only hath t he name of Love. And I underfland the purport of thof~ Speeches thus; That there was fo vafl a difference put, and fo great a love ca!t upon the one , and lo tranfcendent, as that comparatively the other was as F-J,llred; r undedland it, r fay, that this Love was fo infinitely high, as that it made all other Love, and .that Love to all Mankind in their Creation, to be but a< no Love, 1to Glory (as the Apo!Ue fays of tbe Law in comparifon of tl1e Gofpel wh ich excelleth ) yea it was as hatred. And thus r am taught to underlland th at hatred may be underflood ofa leffer Love when fet in comparifon with a Love farr exceeding: As when our Saviour fpeaks of what . Love ought to be beilowed upon himfelffo defervedly nbove what to Father and Mother , he fays, If ) 'e bate 110t Fatb(r ll!ld J.4other, ye m·e uot worthy ofme. Hatred 'I"nHsVafliues there imports , not barely a ltfs lovetng , but alfo (erves to exprefs, and fet "d Efli"'-H'· out how great a Love th~t mu!l needs be, and ought to be, that !hall only de- !11~,;:,';::;/" ferve the name ofLove, tn companfon unto w luciJ, all other Love of what ts, aliqoid ,,. and ought to be in other refpects, the highefl Love among!l. Men ( for we "mq•i ·~i ought to Love Parents and W1ves above all other Relations on Earth) flwuld :::;;~:7.1 no~: be accounted hatred , and that whilfl: we thus Love rhem~ \Ve mufl: but Love vw amaton:– thcm with a Love fo far below that Love we owe to Chrifl:., as it mu11 be but nrshominrs in nn ha;red of them i~ collation with that tO\~·ards him. thus. And thus in ~7/;:;:b:~;~tm like manner to magntfie the Love he bearetli hiS Elect ( ],1co6s, ) he termet h ,m,ib" ;, . that Love he bcareth all others of Mankind, but b,ttreri. !'(;{"mq<u· And the comparing alone of 1his Supernatural good with all otber good v:t/h~/~~~1!/ttr. thingc;, God did b~Oow.cither on A.dam, or on Men after.the Fall, in G:frs Su· :~;!:a~~:~tnr pernatural., as cnhghrotng~ and tafbngs of the Powers ot rhe \oYorld to corn("', unodiohabm. f!ic. or omwardB!tfTings, the Glory and 1-bppinefs fuppofe w hich millions ofs<~ A"ow– Worlds c_ould aff~rd, might alone be fuflicient ro en ii_ghten us in this Argument ~~·;~~~t,. to magntfie,electmg Grace by. I may fay, That tt all the common Merctes ,co.d< El<lli· and Favours of all or any fort that God hath fcattercdly vouch fa fed to ond a- oocp '77· mong all men, were heaped upon one man alone, and he made the Polfeffi>r of them, they all would be found too light in the Ballanee with the Endowment of this Eternal weight of glory on m, and fo light , as that they will be allowed no better account than of hatred ; and it is a big word to be fa id, Thi<. 'Tis true indeed,thJt commonly men do not difcern or conceive ofthe grear– nefs of this Elect,on priviledge made without, or afore the cotifideration of the F.11l, but by the Fall and the mifery they are brought into by fin. Yet in this other way of Con;parifon I hnve now made, thefe other good things fore– mentioned mufl be acknowledged (if taken in.by us) to be a moO: piercing and accommodate way to nggrandife it by : I !hall further urge this Compara– tive of it with this Suppofition made concerning Adam's !late and condition. Suppofe we that Admnand all men had flood to this day(and toilluflrate things we may make Suppofitions of things that were never, but might have been as Chrifl, does Lrske 1o,q.) and not only fo,but fhould havcfo continued for ever; and t hat God, out from among them had elected fome to that ultimate Glory and Kingdom we have been fpeakingof, whom he had taken up immediately into it without Redemption, f§c. whilfl thofe others fhould have enjoyed but that holincfs and happinefs they were created in, and continued in flill upoli Eatt!r
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=