4-34 The Sins of Men not chargeable upon God j evil ; he cannot be drawn to any thing that is bad himfelf, and therefore it cannot be imagined he rbould have any inclination or defign to [educe others. And this will appear to be a thong and forcible Argument, if we confider, Fi fi, The Propofition upon which it is grounded, that God cannot be temp- ted by evil. Secondly, The Confequence that clearly follows from it ; and that is, that becaufe God cannot be tempted by evil, therefore he cannot tempt any Man to it. Firfl, We will confider the Propofition upon which this Argument is built, and that is, that God cannot be tempted by evil. He is out of the reach of any temptation to evil. Whoever is tempted to any thing, is either tempted by his own inclination, or by the allurement of the Object, or by fome external Mo- tive and Confideration : but none of all thefe can be imagined to have any place in God, to tempt him to evil. For, Firfl, he hath no temptation to it from his own inclination. The holy and pure Nature of God is at the greateft diftance from evil, and at the greateft contrariety to it. He is fo far from having any inclination to evil, that it is the only thing in the World to which he hath an irreconcilable Antipathy. This the Scripture frequently declares to us, and that in a very emphatical manner; Pfal. q. 4. He is not a God that hath pleafure in wickednefs, neither )(hall evil dwell with him. The words are a Diminution, and lets is laid, than is in- tended by them ; the meaning is, that God is fo far from taking pleafure in Sin, that he hath a perfe 1 hatred and abhorrence of it, Hab. 2. 13. Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canft not look upon iniquity. As when Men hate a thing to the higheft degree, they turn away their eyes, and cannot endure to look upon it. Light and Darknefs, are not more oppofite to one another, than the Holy Nature of God is to Sin. What fellow(hip path Light with Darknefr, or God withBelial? Secondly, There is no allurement in the Object, to fir up any inclination in him towards it. Sin in its very nature is imperfeftion, and irregularity, crookednefs, and deformity ; fo that unlefs there be an inclination to it before-hand, there is nothing in it to move any ones liking or delire towards it ; it hath no attractives or enticements in it, but to a corrupt and ill- difpofed Mind. Thirdly, Neither are there external Motives and Confiderations, that can be imagined to tempt God to it. All Arguments that have any temptation, are either founded in hope or fear ; either in the hope of gaining force be- nefit or advantage, or in the fear of falling into force mifchief or inconveni- ence. Now the Divine Nature being perfelly happy, and perfe£tly fecured in its own happinefs, is out of the reach of any of there temptations. Men are many times tempted to evil very ftrongly by thefe Confiderations ; they want many things to make them happy, and they fear many things which may make them miferable ; and the hopes of the one, and the fears of the other, are apt to work very powerfully upon them, to feduce them from their Duty, and to draw them to Sin : but the Divine Nature is firm againft all there attempts, by its own fulnefs and fecurity. So that you fee now the Pro- pofition, upon which the Apoftle grounds his Argument, is evidently true, and beyond all exception, that God cannot be tempted with evil. Let us then in the Second place, confider the Confequence that clearly follows from it ; That becaufe God cannot be tempted with evil, therefore he cannot tempt a- lly Man to it. For why fhould he delire to draw Men into that, which he himfelf abhors, and which is fo contrary to his own nature and difpofi- tion ? When Men tempt one another to Sin, they do it to make others like themfelves ; and when the Devil tempts Men to Sin, it is either out of dire& malice to God, or out of envy to Met). But none of there Confide- rations
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