VJ! R s.u. An Expofttil'll, withNotes of fpecial-ufe to·quicken you to Cbriflian -care and watchfulnefs: ·There are Evangelical refleClions, which ferve to make the fpirit Jlr'if1, butnotforvile. ~is a fondnefs in them that think this Ar.. gument is wholy legal : The Apo!He Paul maketh the Do6trineof Judgment to come to be apart, of the GofpeL; Rom. l. 1;. God Will judg the fecrets ·of aft mm, according tomyGof}el; that is, accordingas I have taught in the Difpenfation of the Gof~el. And indeed •tis a branch of the moftglorious part of the Doctrine of the·Gofpel; -Chrifl:s 1udging being the higheO: and moft imperial atl: of his.Kingly Office. The cnuh is, ·•[is of excellent ufe to invit~ Wickfd men to Repentanre: and therefore Paul chofe this Argu– ment at Athens, Act. 17. 3r. He h11th comma;ededa!l men to re– pent, becau}e he bath appointed a Day, wherein he Will judg the ~orld in -righ.teoufn-;fs. _Three Rea(ons may be given, why be ufeth that motive to them at fidl ; One is intimated in the Text, becaufe •cis aforcible and preffing motivetoRepentance: And the other two may be eafily conjeCtured, or colleCI:ed out .of -the Con– text ; as, fecondly, to prevent their:plea, That if they had been in a wrong way, they had found it an happy way, no judgment or plague had lighted upon them; The Apofile anticipateth this Ob– jetl:ion, by telling them, At thofe days of ignorPlnce God Wink.!d, but now taketh notice: And if they did not repent now, how– ever .they efcaped here, they fhould be fure to meet with Judg· ment to come. And thirdly, becaufe the Heathens themfelves had fome kinde of dread and expetl:ation of fuch a day, Confcience being but the counter·_~art of this Doctrine; and therefore whm ,Paut JPakf ofJudgment to come, Felix trembled, though anHea– then, A a. 24. 15.-The Philofophers bad fome dreams of a fevcre day of accounts, asappeareth by Plato•s qorgi~ts, many paffages inTufty, &c. And poffibly herein the light of Nature might be much helped by Tradition : So that for the firft and inviting mo– tive,it ferveth excellendy: Nay, the people of God, thac are al· ready brought: into ChriO:, .finde agreat deal of {weet ufe and pro– fit by exerciGng their thoughts in it. The firielnefs of it (erveth to ftarethem out of their own righteoufnefs: Nothing UHt Chrifts Righteou]nefsWill ferve for Chrifls Jt~agment; Th~t I may be found inhim, &c. Philip. 3• 9· When wrathcometh thus folemn– ly to make inquifition for finners, "tis comfortable to be hidden in the clefu DJ th~ /lock., to 6t found itJ him. So alfo it is itfeful to ·- --- · -- - -- - mall.!
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