82 S E R M O N S upon the SERM. XL is appointed : Now 'tis no more lawful to abftain from refpeaing and feeking his End, than 'cis pofftble not to depend upon his Principle. He hath a Superiour, to whom he muff give an account, feei,g he wholly dependeth upon him, and is whóhÿ fubjea to him. But this property is originally and primarily in God as a Fountain, not fubordinate, or dependant upon any higher. If this be not fo in- telligible, let me fpeak more plainly : There is Dominium Jurifdstíionis, & Dorniniam 'Proprieratis; fuch as a Prince hath over his Goods and Lands : His Dominion is more abfolute over his Goods and Lands, than over Isis Subje&s ; that's bounded by Laws. God bath the .molt abfolute Title over us, and all that we poffefs; fo great that it cannot be greater. Fourthly, God cannot be divefied of this Power .and intereft in us. (r.) 'Tis fo abfolutely inherent in him, that it cannot be communicated to ano- ther ; that is, we cannot alienate and make void this right by our fins: Though we fold our [elves for nought, Ifa. 52. 3. it was to our lofs, not to Gods : He ',lath a full right to command us. to keep his Law, whether men be faulty or innocent. A drunken Servant is a Servant, though he be difabled to do his Matters work. No mans right can be vacated without his confent. Creatures are Creatures frill, obnoxious to the Law of the Creator, of his punifhment for the breach of it. In that intereft we have in things, the default of another doth not make void our right, efpecially if ie be Inferiours ; as the Rebellion of the Subjcd doth net ex- empt him from the power of his Prince. (z.) Neither doth God s rve it away by beftowing Gifts upon the Creature : For he bath given us only Difpenfationem, the employment of thefe things, not Dominium, the Sovereign power over them. Man bath nothing that is his own. As to Life, it is clear Man is not Dominos vita, but Cuflos ; which is true, not only of our Life, but of our Time, Wealth, Strength Parts, yea of all that we have: Still we are fubjea to an. higher Lord, who bath an abfolute uncontroulable right. All our owning is but a Stewardlhip, Luk. 16. z. We have a right to pre- vent the encroachment of our fellow Creatures,: We have a right by way of charge and truft, as a Steward to things committed to him, or as a Work -man bath a right to his Tools -or Inftruments to do his work, or a Faaour in the Eftates committed to him ; but an abfolute independent Right we have not : They are not ours to ufe as we think meet. They were Rebels that Paid, Our tongues are our own, Pfal.12.4. Well then, when God difperfed his Gifts, he did not dif- poffefs lsimfelf : As the Husbandman doth not intend to throw away his feed, when he fcattereth it in the Furrows, but fuweth it to receive it again with increafe;. fo God. (3.) I will add this, That God cannot give this abfolute right to another that-is not God, no more than lie can cut off the Creature from depending upon him- felt... In our way ofowning our petty Interefts it may be permitted, as a Lord may make his Vaffal and Slave free, or a Prince his Subjeas ; as Saul proclaimed, that whofoever fhould overcome Goliab, he would make his haute free in Ifrael ; that is, free from Taxes, Impofts, Service in War, r Sam. 07. 25. But now no Creature can be exempted from duty to God ; for dependance upon God, and fubjefrion to him are fo twifted together, that the one cannot be without the other : We wholly depend upon him for Being, and all things elfe, and therefore mutt be wholly fubjeft to him. We frill continue in our Being ; now the continuance of our very Duty and Being doth frill depend upon God. Fifthly, Gods Sovereign Dominion over us, and interefl in us, may be let forth by there three things, at leaft to our prefent purpofe'. t. A Right of making or framing any thing as he wilieth, in any manner as it pleafeth him. As the Potter bath power over his own clay to form what veffel he pleafeth, either of honour or difhonour, Rom. 9. zt. and Jer. 8. 16. As clay in the hand of the Potter, fo are ye in my hand, faith the Lord of Hofts. Nothing before it had a Being had a right to difpofe of it felf, neither did God make it what it was by neceffity of nature, nor by the command, counfel, or will of any Superiour, or the direaion of any Coadjutor ; neither is there any to whom he thould ren- der an account of his work ; but meetly produced all things by the aEt of his own Will, as an abfolute Owner, and fovereign Loyd of all his anions : Eph. r. II. He worketh allthings according to the counfel of his will. And Rev. 4. tr. Thou ha/l created all. things; and for thy pleafure they are and were created: Such was Gods ab- fo-
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