on the Lord'r Prayer. Now in treating of the Attributes of God I (hall endeavouno !hew thete Three Things. Firll, What the True and Proper Notion of Eternity is. Seeondly, That God is Etemal. Thirdly, What Encouragement our Faith may have from this Attribute ofGod's Eternity, that thofe Things which we pray unto him for !hall be granted unto us. Fir!l, Let us fee what Eternity is. And here though it be altogether impoffible exJClly to defcribe what is Boundlefs and Infinite, yet to help our Weak and Shallow Conceptions we may rake this Notion of ir. Eternity is a Duration which bath nei· ther Beginning~ nor End, nor Succeffion, of Parts: Or, according to the Common Defcription of Bottbius, Efi interminabilis vittt tota jimul f!l perfdla pojfoffio; it is rhe Compleat Po!fcffion of an Endlefs Life all at once; fo that it is difiinguiili'd from all other Durations whatfoever. Firll, In that other Durations have had their Beginnings; for all Things were Cre· ared either in Time, or with Time, but Eternity was before all Time, and {hall be af 8 -~ . Secondly, In that all Temporal Durations are fucceffive, mealured by the Motions of Heavenly Bodie.s, by Years, Days and Hours, but Eternity is Permanent; it is but one abiding Inftanr, and ha rh no Parts following one aher another; and though it comprehends.all Time wirhin irs infinire Circle 1 yet ir doth not move along with Time. For as Rivers are contained within rheir Banks, and tlow along by them Part after Part, without any Motion ofthe Banks themfelves ~ fo Time is conrainc:d within Eter· nity, and flows along in it, without any Motion or Succeffion of Eternity itfelf: This I confefs is hard, if not alrogerher impoffible, to be formed imo an Idea; yet conceiving Reafon will inf<t llibly demonfhare tbat Being which neither bath Beginning nor End, can have no Succeffi0n in irs Duration; fOr where-ever there is Succeffion, there mutt needs be a Prioriry, and where ever there is a Priority, there muft needs be Beginning. And if Eternity did conlifi, and were made up of fuch Pans as are equal and cornmenfurare to our Years and Days, it mu(t needs follow tl}at thefe Parts themfelves muft be infinite; for if they be but infinite, we !hall come to a beginning, whch is nor to be granted in Eternity. And if they be infinite, then in Eternity ~here mull be as many Millions of Years as of Minures, and confequently a Minute would be equal to a Mtllion of Years; yea, the lea(\ Part of a Minute would he equal to it; which is grolly abfurd. But I fball not detain you with there Philofophical Speculations: Only when we fay that God is from C\'erlafiing ro everlafting, we ought noi to conceive that there is · any Succeffion in his Duration;' rhat he gro.ws older, or that he hath continued longer this Day than he was Yellerday. For though when we fpeak of God we are forced to ufe fuch Expreffions, and denote Succeffion in his Being, as that he was from everlafl:ing, and thar he fhall be to everlaftir.g, yet to fay that God was, or that he fhall be, is only allowable by Reafon of the Penury of our Conception~: But in llri£! Pro· priery rhefe are Derogarory ro him; for God neitherwas, nor !hall be. but only is,and enjoys his Eternal Elfonce immutably and unfucceffively. An~ therefore when lliojes dt:manded his Name, rha.t he might inform the Ijradites who rhar God was 'that would take Pity of their Suf!erings, he tells him, thou fhalt fay unto rhem, I A M hatbjent me to you, Exod. 3· '4· And rhis indeed is the bell and fittell Expreffion of his Eternity and Unchangeablendl. Yea, and the Scr;pture barb given us one more high and lofty Expre!fionof it, Pfpl. 90. +· .il TboufandTears in thy Sight are b111 as ltfl'(rday when it is pafr; what is Ye. llerday to this Day 1 But a meet Nothing. So a Thoufand Years, yea, all theTboufand Years, and all the Time thar ever the Orbs of He~v en !hall fpin out ro the World, is all to God but as Ydlerday whe'n ir is paU; he lives not by ir, nor is his Being meafured out by Days or Years, but it a P~rpewalJVow, a Srandi11g Moment, an lnd ivifi· ble and.Permane.nt Inftanr, without Flux or Viciffitude. Indeed it is wholly inconfillent wtth Eterntty, and an mfintte Du~atton, rhar there lhould be any Thing pall, or any Thmg to come, tn tt; for what IS already pa~t cannot be lpfi.nite becaufe it is alr.eady ende~, and what is ro come cannot be Eternal becaufe there was fomething gomg before u. And from hence it appears that a Duration which is Eternal muft be without Beginning1 without End, ·and without any Succeffion of Parts. Now, Secondly, That God is thus Eternal aptx;ars b9th f,iom Clear Evideoce of Scnpture, and Invincible Dcmonllrations o£ Reafon itfe!f; R r r 2 Fir{!,
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