S rm. XC. T e Goodne, s of God. 677 lent of Beings, than which nothing deferves more to be confidered by us, nor 'ought in Reafon to affeet us more. The Goodnefs of God is the caufe, and the continuance of our Beings, the Foundation of our Hopes, and the Fountain of our Happinefs ; our greateft Comfort, and our faireft Example, the chief Object of our love and praife, and admiration, the joy and rejoicing of our Hearts ; and therefore the Meditation and Difcourfe of it mutt needs be pleafant and de- lightful to us ; the great difficulty will be to confine our felves upon fo copious an Argument, and to fet Bounds to that which is of fo vaft anextent, the Lord is good to all, and his tender mercies are over all his works. Which Words are an Argument, which the Divine Pfalmift ufeth, to fir up, himfelf and others to the praife of God : At the 3. v. he tells us, that the Lord is great, and greatly to be praifed ; and he gives the reafon of this, v. 8, and 9. from thofe Properties and Perfections of the Divine Nature, which declare his , Goodnefs, the Lord is gracious, and full of compajion, floü to anger, and of great mcrcy ; the Lord is good to all, and his tendermercies are over all his works ; where you have the Goodnefsof God declared, together with the amplitude and extent of it, in refpect of the Objects of it ; the Lord is goodto all. In the handling of this .Argument, I fhall do thefe four things. Firfl, Confider what is the proper Notion of Goodnefs, as it is attributed to God. Secondly, Shew that this Perfection belongs to God. Thirdly, Confider the Effects and the Extent of it. Fourthly, Anfwer fome Objections which may feem to contradict and bring in queftion the Goodnefs ofGod. Firfl, What is the proper Notion of Goodnefs, as it is attributed to God. There is a dry Metaphyfical Notion of Goodnefs, which only lignifies the Being and Effential Properties of a thing ; but this is a good word ill beltowed ; for in this Senfe, every thing that hath Being, even the Devil himfelf, is good. And there is a Moral Notion of Goodnefs ; and that is twofold. I. More general, in oppofition to all moral evil and imperfection, which we call Sin and Vice ; and fo the yuflice, and Truth, and Holinefs of God, are in this fenfe his Goodnefs. But there is, a. AnotherNotion of MoralGoodne(s, which is more particular and refrained ; and then it denotes a particular Virtue in oppofition to a particular Vice ; and this is the proper and ufual acceptation of the word Goodnefs ; and the beft de- fcription I can give of it is this ; that it is a certainpropenf¢on anddifpo[ition of mind, whereby a Perfon is inclined to defere andprocure the happinefs of others ; and it is beft underflood by its contrary, which is an envious difpofition, acontracted and narrow Spirit, which would confine happinefs to it felf, and grudgeth that others fhould partake of it, or (hare in it ; or a malicious and mifchievous tem- per, which delights in the harms of others, and to procure.troubie and mifchief to them. To communicate and lay out our felves for the goodof others, is Goodnefs ; and fo the Apofile explains doing good, by communicating to others, who are in mifery, or in want, Heb. 13. t 6. but to dogoodand tocommunicate forget not. The yews made a diftindion between a righteous and a good Man ; to which the Apoftle alludes, Rom S. 7.fcarcely for a righteous Man, will one die ; yet peradven- ture for agood Man, one would even dare to die. The righteous Man was he, that did no wrong to others ; and thegood Man he, who was not only not injurious to others, but kind and beneficial to them. So that Goodnefs is a readinefs and difpofition tocommunicate the Good and Happinefs which we enjoy, and to be willing othersfhould partake of it. This is the Notion of Goodnefs among Men ; and 'tis the fate in God, only with this difference, that God is Originally and Tranfcendently Good ; but the Creatures are the belt of them, but imperfectly good, and by derivation from God, who is the Fountain and Original of Goodnefs ; which is the meaning of -our Saviour, Luke 18. 19. when he fays, there is none good fave one, that is God. But tho' the Degrees of Goodnefs inGod,. and the Creatures, be infinitely une- qual, and that Goodnefs which is in us, be fo fmall and inconfiderable, thatçomr pared
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