Of Eleflion.; ~ 2Cor. I 3.1111.2 Theif, 2. I 3, 16. and up and down every where. BooK Ill. Alfo 2. Eledion is peculiarly attributed to him , as his eminent work: And ~robe beloved of the Father~ and to be Elellcd, are equivalent'· and are pm for each other, or are often )Oyned together; Love bemg the hr!\ and chief moving Caufe of Eledion. Thus Rom. 11. 28. Btloved accord~~~~ to ElrH:– Oit; that ts, therem and thereby they are the Beloved of God indeed. And 2 Theff z. q. We give thmzks to Godfor )'011 ( Brethrm) beloved of the Lord, becauje God bath choftll 1ou, &c, And fo therem and thereby bath manitefled . you to be his dearefi beloved, and for tltar, and in that refpetl:, bearin" the title of Beloved: And joyn theretoVer{ 16. where his having choje11 ,: that went afore, in Verj, q. is here, who bath Loved"'· 3• By this reading the Series and Order ofthe three things in Ver(. 1 . i< fet right, andrendredmoreclear atleafi: 1, Beloved of God the F.Jther, who is the firfi perfon , as that of Eledion is the Original Ad. 2. Prefervtd i 11 Chrif/, which is the fecond perfons parr. 3· Called, which is the Holy Ghofis. 'fim>r,ul""• Beza's Glofs and Interpofition, is very obfervable upon that fecond · [ Prejer– ~t~"!n~r;~:::n4 ved in Chris1 J. that is, ( fays he) having ktntJet a pa.rt, or cbofe~J 111 and6y fi'lioq•i ch,iflo Gods etemal Cotmfel; they wbofbottld6egtvm to Chrljlto 6e kept by htm. Sa ;~;?~~~;;:~;. as he , though he inclines_rather to the other reading offan<lijied, .and makes · a d!fnculty of our readtng 11 Beloved of God tht Father, and IS agatnfi it; yet he takes in the fenfe thereof, as touched in the other word, Prejerved i1J Chrif/: He difcerned both from the Scope of tire Epifile , and the great Em– phaticalnefs of that exprellion Preferved ht Chrijl. So that Eledion by the 'Father mufi be fuppo(ed firfi, and necelfarily t•ken in; •nd a giving us to Chrifi, ( which accompanied thlt Eledion) to be the proper Caufe of our being preferved in and by that Chrifi: And fo that <]Jrejervrd in Chnfl, re• ferred unto the Fathers Ad of giving; and therefore he would have it to be brought in fome where, though but implicitely aimed at in that exprellion [Preferved i11 Chrijl.] But why then fuould we av01d this other reading ofBe– loved of God the Father, which more plainly and exprelly denotes that Atl: of Gods, out of which, and together with which, God d,d give us to Chri!l ; and gave us thereby with this Commmdamm and Declaration of his will, that he the Father, having loved them firfi, and thereby made them his, and had now given them to him, and that therefore out of all that love to him, and between t hem, he would preferve them ( which I flJal! by and by again fpeak to ; ) fo then, that Beloved of God the Fathn·, that i.s, Eleded by him, fhould be faid firfi to hold the moll fair coherence of all other with Pre(erved in Chri(l, (as that which follows next) declaring therein the very ground and foundation of that our prefervation, and that as i11 Chrijl, and fo !hewing the true order of Caufes; God the Father's Love firfl, in choofing, ~c. 20<1. Chrifi's next, to whom they were given, and is anfwcrably in order here firll: placed, it having been the fountain and original of all, the fource, and be· ginning of our Salvation, as the Father is of the Perfons. 4• The Parallel ofother Scriptures does favour this our reading ofthe words; The Apofile Peter in like manner annexing this benefit ofprefervntion(as ']ttde here) unto Eledion: For whereas, Tlerf. )· he fays. Who art kept by the Power ofGod unto Salvation; h.e had firfi entitled his Epinle, as Jude doth To tbe Ele8 according to theforeknowledge of God the Father; Verj. 1. a11d thm, who are kept 6y the power of God, Ver[. )• (and the word is the fame that here.) )• The oppofite mention of God's rejeding and ordaining thofe Apoflates to that Judgment, verf. 4· as the original of their Condemnation; t his cafis bacl<ward, and refers unto what he had faid of thefe other, their havmg been ordained unto Salvation and Prefervation. And therefore this reading , Be!o– wd of Godtht Father, is rather to be fuppofed to have been his meanin~. For 1. the.Apofile's fcope betng to comfort and tnfirud the Satnts tn thiS Ept· file, much more than to fet out the fate of thefc Apoflates, and the narranon thereof being but to illufirate that fiate and grace to thofe Saints, furcly ol the two, he would to that purpofe rather make mention of their Eledion , than of the others Reprobation, Efpecially, 2dly, fee ing Atl:sof Grace do mnre read1ly
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