Ver.4. ofProvidence about the ftrf thoughts of God, of themfelves , of Sm, of Obedience, of the Judgement to come, of Eternity, that feed upon the afhes of rumors, reports, hearfayes, traditions, without looking into the reality of things,may, and do take this to be an ordinary and acknowledged truth, eafie to be entertained,which upon the mat- ter no man disbelieves. But convinced fanners, who make a tryal of thele things, as running into Eternity, have other thoughts of them. And as to that which it is pretended every one believes, we have great caufe to cry out , Lord who bath believed our report, to whom bath this arm of the Lord been revealed ? 2. That the difcovery of forgivenefi in God, being a matter of fo great difficulty, is a thing precious and excellent, as being the foundation of all our Communionwith God here, and of all undeceivingExpeóation ofour enjoyment of him hereafter. It is a pure Gofjel truth that hath neither fhaddow, footfiep, nor intimation elfewhere ; the whole creation hath not the leali obfeure impreflìon of it left thereon; fo that, 3. It is undoubtedly greatly incumbent on us to enquire dili- gently as the Prophets did of old into this Salvation; to confider what fure Evidences faith bath of it, fuch as will not, as can- not fail us. To be flight and common in this matter, to take it up at random, is an Argument of anunfound rotten heart. He that is not ferious in his enquiry into the Revelation of this matter, is ferious in nothing wherein God or his foul is concerned. The Holy Ghoil knows what our frame of heart is, andhow flow we are to receive this bleffed truth in a gra- cious Paving manner. Therefore doth he confirm it unto us with fuch weighty conliderations, as Heb. 6. 17, i8. Godwil- ling more abundantly tofliew unto the heirs ofpromif the immuta- bility of his coung, confirmed it by an oath ; that by two immu- table things in which it was impoffible for God to lye, we might have fit-mg confolation. It is of forgivenefl of fin that the Apolile treats, as hath been made evident by the defcription of it before given. Nów to give evidence hereunto, and to beget a beliefof it in us, he fiat engagesa Property of Gods Nature in that bufinefs. He withwhom we deal, is d evd r',s as Tit. I. 2. The God that cannot lye, that cannot deceive, or be T deceived. 137
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