And then to be fore God himself will not reverse his own Seal. Nulla est litura in decretis fapientum, say the Stoicks; A wise man will scorn co blot out any thing. Nulle funt liture in libro vita. God is so full of light,as that there is no shadow of change in him: Therefore has God picke thee out as a Jewel, and laid thee up in a secret repository, in the Cabinet of his secret Councel! He will then bring chee out, and shew thee in cime; he means to polish thee, and put a lustre upon thee ; le means to let thee as a Diamond in his ring, and to put thee upon the band of a Saviour. Did God from all eternity resolve to see thee as a Captive soul ac liberty? Truly then thou needest not doubt, but that he will in time break open the prison-doors, and beat off thy Chains and thy Fercers, and give thee full enlargement God has been preparing a Feast for thee from everlasting, a feast of sweet & fac things, a Refined, an Evangelical feast: To be sure then he will invite thee in time, he will stand at thy door and knock, nay, be will compell thee to come into it. God glanced an eye of love opon thee, when thou lay'st bid in the barren womb of

nothing; to be sure then in time he means to wooe thee, and to win thee, and to espouse thee to himlelf in faithfulnesse, and in truth,

IV. Eledion and Vocation, though in respe& of us they have gradual & climbing accomplifhments, yet in respect of God they are equally present for there is no succession in Eternity. There can be no prius & pofterius, where there was no beginning. Tis true, chat our finite Beings, as they cannot fufficiently grasp an infinice effence, so neither can they measure an infinite Duration. And therefore our understandings put many times several periods there, wbere there ought not to be the least comma, because we fpan out things by our own narrow Duration.

For Duration is noching else but permanenlia inase, a continue ation and abiding in Being, the spinning out of Entity: And therefore as the soul cannot see the face of God, fo neither can ic fee the vastness of his Duration which is ada quate and commenfurate to the degree of his Entity. So that we being but of yesterday, are not competent judges of Eternity. And as the soul imprilon'd in a body, can buc darkly conceive of spiritual Beings, and cannot behold the lustre and oriency of an Angel; nay, ic cannot bebold its own beauty much lesie is it able to behold the

glory

.

6

glory of God himself; fo being here conversant with transient things that have their ortum & occafum, their Fluxum Refluxum cheir Spring & Autumn, their Bounds and their bocrom, and dwelling among temporals; tis not so well acquainted with the vaft duracion of Eternity; and yee it can far better behold the back-parts of Eternicy, then the face of it: Eternity à parte post, than Eternity à parte antè ; because the foul it self is measured by that Duration; whereas onely chat one supreme Being, God himielf has the compleatnesse and perfection of Eternity. No wonder then that our understandings put several periods there, where there ought not to be the leait comma, because we span out things by our own Duration; that wbich bubbles from Eternicy, comes flowing to us in time. But Vocation is as ecernal as Ele&tion: In relpeot of God, facob was as foon call'd, as he was chosen; and tbat not only in respect of the secret counsel and decree of God; but whenloever God does actually call facob, he calls him ab Æterno ; for Eternity is not at all spent and exhausted by continuance, but is always in vigore viridi. Tis a flourishing Duration that never wishers, nor decayes. Indeed Vocation is nothing else but Election pulling off her veil and smiling upon the soul, and telling her that God loves her, and manifests and displayes bis love to her.

V. It is altogether irregular and anamolous for the soul. 1. To pry into Election: Tis dangerous to tread on the highest round first, and here it is imposlible. Thus the soul forgets that it is a Creacure,it forgers its own Duration, and would be measuring it self by Egernity. The windows of the soul must be set open for che entertaining such light as does more immediately flow in upon it, and the understanding must close and comply with fuch objects as are best proportion'd to it. Now you know that those things which are first intelligible in their own Nacure, yet are not alwayes first presented to the view and eye of the foul. : For whatsoever is first in being, may first be known; Encicy being the root and just foundation of intelligibility; and yec sometimes secondary and junior. Entity is fain to prepare che way, like a Icha Baprift, for one that comes after it, and yer was in worth and being before it. Thus sometimes the causes of chings lurk , and lie couch'd , they hide their beads, onely a little flourish out at the Lattesses, peeping

out

ouc of an effect or two. Thus the Test may be in Hebrew,
wben the commentary is in Latine; many may understand
the one, that cannot read the other. Eledion, it is the
Original: Vocation, cis che interlineary glosse for the help
of weak beginners. If. God should let chee' fee into E-
lection before Vocation, it were the onely way to frustrate and
disappoint his own decree. For if God should thew thee thy
name in the book of Lile, before thy heart were changed and
renewed; what would this but make thee sin more secure-
ly, and curn bis grace into wantonnesse? Whereas the wis-
dome of God never determines the end, but ic also dei
termines the meanes; and as the end is alwayes glorious, so
alfo are che means powerful and efficacious. Now thou canst
not more clearly demonstrate that thou art in a good tenden-
cy and proximity to the end, than by a thankful use and sea-
sonable applicacion of the means. And what do they do but
lay a snare for their own souls, that catch and entangle
themselves with such a desperate fallacy as this is ; If we be
elected , we shall be unquestionably faved, and if we be
not elected we shall be unavoidably damned and therea
fore we may do what we list. : Ob what a bold and blaspbea
mous inference is this! What is this elle, but to distill the
rankest poison out of the richest and most fovereign Cordial?
To kindle Hell out of a spark of Heavenly Truch, which if
it were blown up gently by the Spirit that breathed it,' and
kept within its just bounds i would onely cheer, quicken, and
enliven the soul. Because chou dost not as yet
ther thou art a veffel of honour, wilt thou therefore pre«
sently dash thy selfin pieces? because thou doft not for the
present cercainly know chat thou shalt come safe to the
Haven, wilt thou therefore court the waves , rush opon a
Rock, and make Shipwrack' of Faith and a good conscience?
would'st thou do chus in temporals? Why, thou dost not know
how long thou shalt live , the number of thy dayes is cere
tainly fixe , and thy time is an appointed and decermined
time: wilt thou therefore refufe to lead upon the staff of
bread? Wilt thou not repair thine earthly and decaying
tabernacle? Wilt thou not maiotain the oyl in the Cruse?
that Balfamum radicale , with such fresh supplies as are

Y

afforded.

10

yet know whea

afforded to thee? Wilt thou break thy glass in pieces, because thou canst not tell how long it will run;

Is it not a mercy that God vouchsates thee the means? Why should'nt thou distrust of obtaining the end, more than any other? There is not a curtain that hides Election more from thee chan from any other ; tis equally bid to all, till it shine forch upon some in the vse of means, till che curtain be drawn, and then it will equally shine out opon chee, if chou useft she same means. If all should argue as thou do'st, there would none be saved ; if all men, because Election is absolute and uncertain, should resolve to live as chey lift, , who wuld then fet his face towards Canaan? where would, God, have any glory in the world? What would become of his great Name? but he will root our such an unsavory principle as this is out of the hearts of all chat love him; and that truth which is made a fatal stumbling block co fome, shall prove a solid foundation of joy and sweetnesse unto them. The yery possibility of Election Thould banish all such thoughts as these. Who can tell but God may have been gracious unto chee, and have fixţ an eye of love upon thee? Ohchen breath after him, pant and long for bim, desire him to expresse his mind to thee, to communicate his love to thee.

Besides, though thou do'st not know Ele&ion, will meer love do nothing? Though thy God did not intend to glorifie thee, yet thou shouldst intend co glorifie him. Though he does not chuse thee for his servant, yet thou shouldst chose him for thy Lord. There is worth in him, though there be none in thee.

Resolve that incowbar condicion soever he throw thee, though into hell it fell, that there thou wilt love him, and there thou wilt praise him, and long for hims thac there thou wilt, adore and honour him, and wile grieve onely for this, that thou canst honour him no more thac chou wile admire his goodnesse to Oz Ebers, bis justice to thee; I, and his goodnesse to thee too, that layes lesse upon thee than thou deserveft, Such Thoughts as these would make hell it self lightsome,

VI. As Election is secret and mysterious, so Vocation may be easily known. That Astrologer was deservedly laught at, tbac was foxncensely gazing upon the Stars, so admiring their twinkling beauties, as that unawares he tumbled into the water;where

as

1701

as before, if he had bur been pleased to look so low as the water,
he might have seen the Atarfes there represenced in that crystal
glafs. Such as will needs be prying into the farvest. chat
will afcend up into beaven, and gaze upon Election; they do
but dazle their eyes, and sometimes by this are overwhelmed in
the depths of Sachan; whereas they might easily see the starres ia
the water; they might fee Election in Sanctification Regene
ration. Now Vocation does plainly and eafily appear by chat
great and eminent alceration which it brings along wicb it. It is
a powerful Call, cis an audible and quickening voice; the
voice of the first trumpet that awakens men out of the graves,
and makes them happy, by having their part in the first Resur-
rection; great and sudden alterations they are very discernable.
Now here's a most notorious, and signal change made; Old
things are past away, and all things are become new: here's a
change from deach to life, from darkness to light; and what
more discernable than this? A living man may know that he is
alive, and that without any further proof or demonstration,
whatever the Scepticks old or new would per swade us to the
tilla
central flic you not allow a man to be certain cbar he lives,

.
and death haih

uponi

him? Could not the blind man in the Gospell (think you) perceive when his eyes were opened? could be not easily tell, that now he could see and discern variety of Obje&s? or must he onely conjecture chat he lees, and guess at a Sun-beam? Mult he still at noon-day go groping in uncertainties? And is there not and easie and sure difference between those thick veils and shadows of the night, between chrofe dark and Æthiopick looks, and the virgin-blushes of the morning; those beautiful eye-lids of the day?

The smilings and flowrings out of light, much more the advancement of light to its Zenith and Noon-day-glory? And why then cannot an Intelle&ual eye discern as well, that now it sees? chat now it looks upon God with an

with an eye of love with an eye of faith, with an eye of confidence and that now God looks upon him withan eye of tendernesse and compallion, with an eye of grace and favour, with an eye of delight and approbation? Wbo but an Anaxagoras will go about to perswade a man to disbelieve his eyes? and if a corporal eye delerve such credit, why may not a spiricual eye then expect as much; Say not