1

the word of God, and, by repeated prayer, fay do not condemn me; shew me wherefore thou contendeft with me, fob 10. 2. 2dly. He is to renew his faith, and repentance; promife God, as by a folemn oath, that he will, for the future, improve his grace to better purpose, and keep it with greater care, if he may again enjoy it. Nay he is to proteft, and that fincerely, that he will ferve God, becaufe God is worthy, to be ferved, and because it is his glory to ferve him, tho' he should never again, which God forbid, tafte' the sweetness of divine favour. Nothing can be done by man, more acceptable to God. 3dly. He is to be inftant in continual prayer, pleading with the greateft earneftnefs poffible, that he may not be caft away from his prefence, but that he would have mercy upon him, according to his loving kindnefs, and restore again the joy of his falvation, Pf. 51. 1. 11, 12. The Holy Spirit himself has dictated forms of prayer, Pf.88 and 102. 4thly. He is patiently to wait for the hour, in which God may be pleafed to receive him into favour, not omitting his duty to God, in the mean time, Lam. 3. 26, it is good, that a man fhould both hope and quietly wait for the falvation of the Lord

XXVI. To him who acts in this manner, will which come, at length will come, the bleffed day, when generally God will change the bitter water of tears into the done in moft delightful wine of confolation; receive and certainly this world, entertain his friend with the greater familiarity, the in the longer and the more mournfully he had been next. deprived of the delightful fenfe of his love, and abundantly repay all with intereft. Believers have generally experienced this; whofe triumphant fongs we remember to have read and heard, no less than their mournful complaints. And it fcarce ever happens otherwife: but fhould there be no appearance of being reftored on earth, to the fweet fenfe of

The abundance of parched ftate will either expreffed or

divine love, all however is reserved to be fully bestowed upon them in heaven. which, the former dry and render, beyond what can be conceived, extremely fweet and delightful. Difference XXVII. From what has been faid, it is evident, fpiritual this fpiritual peace differs very much from carnal peace,and fecurity. For, 1ft. The latter arifes from mere carnal fe ignorance of one's own ftate, into which he never curity.

between

s

made any serious enquiry, or, in forming a judgment about it, he deceived himself by falfe reafoning. But the former refts upon a fure foundation and is preceeded by forrow for fin, a fenfe of mifery, a hunger and thirst after grace, diligent felf examination and a fenfe of his union with Chrift. 2dly. The latter makes a man well pleased with, and to have an inward joy on account of, that imaginary good, tho' in other refpects he neglects God; whereas the former ravishes the foul with admiration of the divine goodness, and makes him confefs himfelf unworthy of fo great an honour and favour. 3dly. By the latter men are fwallowed up in pleasure, are dull and heavy in that which is good, and unhappily give themselves up to an irregular life, thinking they fhall have peace, though they walk in the imagination of their heart, Deut. 29. 19. But the former keeps the heart in fafety, Phil. 4. 7, that they may be in the fear of God continually; and this is what neither can be obtained, nor preferved without a ftrict exercife of godlinefs. 4thly. Tho' the latter falfely imagines, that he is the object of God's love, yet he himfelf is deftitute of all true love to God. But the former confifts in mutual friendship. The fame Abraham, who fam. 2. 23 is called the friend; is Ifa. 41. 8, called as the lover of God.

F

Spiritual XXVIII. As fpiritual peace is the consequence of peace ob- juftification, it was a bleffing of the old, as well as ained un- it is of the New Teftament, as we fhall fhew in its

proper

ment.

proper place; and confequently the ancient fathers der the O. were allo partakers of it; who, by an unfeigned Teftafaith, believed, that they were reconciled to God, on account of the furety, the Meffiah, that the enmity, caufed by fin, was removed; they had a maft delightful, and experimental fenfe of this, and often gloried in the Lord. We indeed, cannot sdeny,that a peace was eminently promised to the New Teftament church, Pf. 72. 3; Ifa. 9. 563010 •Hagaba 210, Zech. 9. 10. But we are not to

3

underftand this of peace and friendship with God abfolutely, which is a benefit of the covenant of grace, and not of the New Teftament alone; but ft. Of the more abundant, fense of the divine favour, with refpect to believers in general, 2dly. Of the bagreement between the believing Ifraelites with the Gentiles, having abolished in his flesh the venmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances, Eph. 2. 15. 3dly. Of the peace of God granted likewife to the Gentiles. This is expressly mentioned Zech. 9. 10.

,"

W

CHA P. X.

Of Adoption.

doctrine

HOM God has admitted into a state of Tranfipeace and friendship with himself, he has alfo tion to the ADOPTED for his fons; that they may enjoy the of adop 3 benefits both of grace and glory, not only by the tion. favour of friendthip, but alfo by a right of inheritance. Theres no friendship more familiar than that between a father and his children. Or, rather that natural affection between these exceeds, in familiarity and fweetness, every thing that can be fignified by the name of friendship. There is not

any

Believers,

fons of

God.

of crea

any one word, any one fimilitude, borrowed from: human affairs, that can fufficiently exprefs or reprefent this moft happy band of love; which can hardly be explained by a great number of metaphors heap'd together. To exprefs tranquillity of confcience, the fcripture calls it peace: to fhew us the pleafantnefs of familiarity, it calls it friendship and when it illuftrates a right to the inheritance, it fpeaks of ADOPTION; which is to be the fubject of this chapter.

II. We affert, that believers are the fons of God. The Apostle John proclaims it, faying, behold what manner of love the father bath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the fons of God: beloved, now are we the fons of God, 1 Epift. 3. 1, 2. This is God's covenant with them: and I will be a father unto you, and ye shall be my fons and daughters, faith the Lord almighty, 2 Cor. 6. 18.

Not only III. But they are not fo, only on this account, on account that God, as creator, gave them being and life, Mal. 2. 10; and as preferver, fupports and protion or vides them with all neceffaries, Ats. 17. 25, prefervation. 28.

Nor of

IV. Neither, are they called the fons of God, any exter-on account of any external preragative only; whether nal prero- political, as magiftrates are called the children of the

gative.

moft high, Pf. 82. 6; or ecclefiaftical, in refpect of an external federal communion; according to which fome are called the fons of God, Gen. 6. 2, and the children of the kingdom, Mat. 8. 12; in this fense alfo the Lord commanded Pharaoh to be told concerning Ifrael, Ifrael is my fon, even my first-born Exod. 4. 22. For this regarded that national covenant, which God entred into with the children of Ifrael, according to which he preferv'd them above all other nations, and heaped many bleffings upon them, both of a corporal, and fpiritual kind, which he did not vouchsafe to other people, Deut. 7. 6. He called then his fons, becaufe he managed their

concerns

concerns with as much follicitous care, as any father could poffibly do thofe of his own children. Deut.32. 10, 11: Nay he call'd them his first-born, not only because he loved them far better than other people, beyond the measure of common providence, fhewing bis word unto Jacob, his ftatutes and his judgments unto Ifrael, Pf. 147. 19, as the firft born had a double portion in the paternal inheritance, Deut. 21. 17; but also because he had appointed them to have a kind of dominion over other people, let people ferve thee, and nations bow down to thee, be Lord over thy brethren, &c. Gen. 27. 29. Tho' thefe words were, indeed, spoken to Jacob, yet they were to be chiefly verified in his pofterity: of which we have illuftrious evidences in David's time, 2 Sam. 8.

tion with

V. But however 'excellent these things were, yet which they are very far below that dignity, for which have no believers are called the fons of God: for, moft of connecthofe, who were called by the name of Ifrael and the falvation. first-born, were fuchs with whom God was not well pleafed, and never were promoted to the inheritance of the land of Canaan, much lefs the heavenly inheritance, but were overthrown in the wilderness, I Cor. 10. 5. That very people, to whom Mofes faid, is not Jehovah thy father, hath be not magnified [eftablished] thee? Are in the fame breath called a foolish people and unwife, Deut. 32. 6. Nay, there are of the children of the kingdom, who shall be cast out into utter darkness, Mat. 8. 12: For that national covenant, without any thing else, did not beftow faving grace, nor a right to poffefs the heavenly inheritance.

more e

minent

VI. The elect and believers are therefore in a far But in a more eminent fenfe, the fons of God: wherein John " obferved a love, never enough to be commended, I fenfe. Ang John 3. 1. Angels indeed, have the glorious ap- els thefons pellation of fons of God, Job 38. 7; with which of God. the Lord honours them, not only because he formed them, but alfo becaufe he imprinted upon 13 VOL. II. M

them