7 a 8 The Long-MTering ofGod. Vol. I. difpleafure againft fin; Psalm 5. 4, 5. Thou art not a God that hoJ1 pleafure in wickednefs, neitherfball evil dwell with thee. The foolilh Jhall not Hand in thy fight; thou hotel? all the workers of iniquity. Thou art not a God that hall pleafurein wicked- nefs. The wordsare a t.tuuoO¢, and leis is fpoken than is meant and intended, viz. ThatGod is fo far from taking pleafure in the fins of Men, that he is highly dif- pleafed at them, and bears an implacable hatred againft them. And do not the terrible threatnings of God against fin declare him to be highlyoffended at it? when he Pays, That he will come in flaming fire to render vengeance to all them that know not the Gofpel.of his Son, and that they (hall be pu- nifht with everlafling deflrullion, from the pretence of the Lord, and from the glory of hispower. Can we think that all the threätnings of God's Word and all thofe dire- ful curfes which are written in his book, /hall return empty, without doing any exe- cution ; Thou that now flattereft thy felf in vain and groundlefs hopes, that none of thefe Evils shall come upon thee, when thou cornea to stand before the great Judge of the World, and tobehold the killing frowns of his Countenance, and - to hear thofe bitter words of eternal difpleafure from the Mouth of God himfelf, Depart ye turfed into everlafling fire, preparedfor the Devil and his Angels, thou .wilt then believe that God is heartily angry, and offended with thee for thy fins. We shall find in that day, that the threatnings of God's Word, which we now hear fecurely, and without terror, had a full fignification, or rather, that no words could convey to us the terror of them. What the Scripture fays of the happinefs and glory of the next life, is true alfa of the mifery and punishments ofthe other World ; That eye hath not teen, nor ear heard, neither have entree/ in- to the heart of man, thofe terrible things, which God bath referved for the workers of iniquity. But above all, the direful Sufferings of the Son of God, when fin was but im- puted to him, are a demonftration of God's implacable hatred of fin ; for that rather than fin should go unpunifh'd, God was pleafed to fubject his own Son to the fufferings due to it ; this plainly thews, that he hated fin as much as he loved his ownSon. But (idly,) God may conceive a very great difpleafure againft fin, and be high-: ly incenfed and provoked by it, and yet fufpend the Effects of his difpleafure, and defer the punishment of it for a great while ; and to imagineotherwife, ar- gues a gross miftake of the Nature of God, arifing from our not confldering the Attributes and Perfections of God in conjunction and confiflency with one ano- ther. When we confider one Attribute of God Jingly, and feparate it from the reff, and frame fuch wide and large apprehenfions of it, as to exclude his other, Perfections, we have a false Notion of God ; and the reason of this miftake is, . becaufe among Men, an eminent degree of any one Excellency, doth commonly íhut out others ; becaufe in our narrow and finite Nature, many Perfections can- not hand together ; but 'tis quite otherwife in the Divine Nature. In Infinite Perfe Lion, all Perfections do meet and confift together, one Perfection doth-not hinder and exclude another, and therefore in our conceptions of God, we are to take great heed, that we do not raise any one Attribute or Perfectionof God up- on- the ruin of the refs. So that it is a false imagination of God, when we fo attribute ,lufiice or Anger to him, as to exclude his patience and longfuffering; for God is not impotent in his Anger, as we are ; every thing that provokes him, doth not prefently put himout of patience, fo that he cannot contain his Wrath, and forbear immedi- ately to revenge himfelf upon Sinners. In this fenfe God Pays of himfelf, Ifa. , 5-7- 4. Fury is not, in me. There is nothing of a rails and ungoverned paffion in the Wife and Juft God. EverySin indeed kindles his anger, and provokes his dif- pleafure againft us, and by our repeated and continued Offences, we -till add Fu- el to his Wrath ; but it doth not of neceffity inflantly break forth like a confuming fire, anda devouring flame. The holy and righteous Nature of God makes him neceffarily offended and difpleafed with the Sins of Men ; but as to the manife- Ration of his Wrath, and the effects of his Anger, his Wildom and Goodness do regulate and determine the proper time and circumflances of' punishment. 3. From
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