59° 7he flappïraefs of Gods .1ró1. L This, I fay, is very credible, becaufe the Happinefs of God himfelf confias in that propenfion and difpofition of Nature, which tends to mare others Happy, And if there can be any acceffion ro that which is infinite, God himfelf finds new pleafure and Felicity in the communication of his goodnefs to his Creatures, and therefore is reprefented in Scripture, as glad of the ConÚer/ion of a Sinner, becaufe the Sinner hereby becomes capable of the happinefs which God de(gn'd for his Creatures, and is always ready to confer upon them, whenever they are qualified for it, and he can, with the Honour of his own PerfeEtions, bellow it upon them. There are Two things which raife cur Hopes and Expedtation of Good from any Perlon ; if he be Able and Willing to bellow upon us what we hope for from him. Now if and one can confer Happinefs upon us, it is He who is infinitely pofl'eft of it, and hath all the Treafures Of it inhimfelf ; and that God only is, :who, as he is able fo is willing to makeus happy, if we be qualified for it ; and it is no impairing of his happinefs to make others happy ; for even that Good- nefs which inclines him to communicate happinefs to others, is a great part of his own Felicity ; fo that; as our Saviour argues, becaufe Ilive, you fhalllive alto, we may reafon in like manner, that becaufe Godis happy, we [hall he happy alfo, if we do but fincerely defireand endeavour to qualifie our felves for it. The Good- nefs of God does ftrongly incline him to delire our happinefs, and makes himwit- lingand ready to bellow it upon us, whenever we are capable to receive it. So that the Goodnefs of God is the great Foundation of all our Hopes, and the firmef ground of our affurance of a BleffedImmortality. It is the happinefs of the Divine Nature to communicate himfelf ; and the communications of God's Goodnefs to us are the caule of our Happinefs ; and therefore, both or our Ex- ample and Encouragement, the Goodnefs of God ought always to be reprefented to the greateft Advantage, and we fhould endeavour to poffels our Minds with a firm Belief and Perfwafion of it, and to remove from the Divine Nature (which we all acknowledge to have infinitely more goodnefs than is to be found in any of the Sons of Men) whatever we would not attribute to a good Man, and to vindicateGod from all fufpicion of Envy and Ill-will, of Cruelty and Arbitrary dealing with his Creatures. And I cannot apprehend why Men Ihould be averfè from thefe fo agreeable and delightful apprehenfions of God ; or how it fhould be any Man's Intereft to leffen the Goodnefs of God ; for moll certainly the better God is in himfelf, the better and happier it will be for us all, if it be not our own fault. 3. From what hath been Paid concerning the happinefs of the Divine Nature, we may learn wherein our Happinefs muff confift, namely, in the Image and in the Favour of God ; in ehé Favour of God as the Caule of our Happinefs ; and in the Image of God, as a necefläry inward difpofition and qualification for it. Unlefs God love us, we cannot be happy, for miferable are they whom he hates ; for God to fay of any Min, that his Soul loath no pleafure in him, imports as great Mifery, and as dreadful aCurfe as can be imagin'd, and his Soul can have no plea fore in a bad Man ; for he loveth Righteaufnefsand hateth Iniquity ; he is not a God that kathpleafure in Wickednefs, neither [hall Evil dwell with him ; the Wicked /hall not handin his fight ; he'hateth all the Workers of Iniquity. Nay, if we could fup- pole that he could love and take pleafure in any Perron that is unlike to him Cwhich is impoffible) yet that Perlon could Mot be happy, becaufè he would want that inward Frame and Difpoftion of Mind, which is necef;ary to ffsppinef. For the very fame'Caafes and Ingredients which make up the happinefs of God, mutt in an inferior degree be found in us, otherwife we cannot be happy ; no, the a Man were in Heaven, if he be ftill a bad Man, Ccelum non animummuta- vit, he hath only changed the Climate, and is gone into another Country, but he bears himfelf fill about him, and his Mind is not changed, which would fignifie a thoufand times more to his happinefs, than any Place or outwardCircurei?ante whatfoever. A bad Man, wherefoever he goes, hash a Root of Gall andRitter- nefs within him, and is miferable from himfelf ; he hatha Fiend in his own Breaf, and the Fuel of Hell in a guilty Confcience, For
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