fuch as have made themselves miferable by fin, that they can be exercised about.

2dly, There are no excellencies of God's nature, that are more expreffive of divine goodnefs, loveliness and beauty, than thefe are, of mercy, grace, long-fuffering, and patience; and therefore there is nothing that God fo requireth our likenefs unto him, in our conformity unto his image, as in thefe; namely, mercy, grace, and readiness to forgive: And the contrary frame in any he doth of all things moft abhor. They Shall have judgment without mercy, who fhewed no mer-▸ cy. And therefore it is certain, that God will be glorified in the manifeftation of thefe properties of his

nature.

3dly, Thefe properties can be no otherwife exercifed, and confequently no otherwife known, but only in and by the pardon of fin; which puts it beyond all quef tion, that there is forgivenefs with God. God will not lofe the glory of thefe his excellencies; he will be revealed in them, he will be known by them, he will be glorified for them; which he could not be, if there were not forgivenefs with him: So that here comes in, not only the truth, but the neceffity of forgivenefs alfo.

Forgiveness manifefted in the fending of the Son of God to die for fin.And from the obligation that is on us to forgive one another.

XII. In the next place, we fhall proceed unto that evidence which is the center wherein all the lines of thofe forgoing do meet and reft: The fountain of all thofe ftreams of refreshment that are in them, that which animates and gives life and efficacy unto them, This lies in God's fending of his Son. The confideration hereof will leave no pretence or excufe unto unbelief in this matter.

To make this evidence more clear and legible, as to what is intended in it, we must confider,

1. What

1. What was the rife of this fending, we fpeak of. 2. Who it was that was fent.

3. How or in what manner he was fent.

4. Unto what end and purpofe.

First, The rife and fpring of it is to be confidered. It came forth from the eternal mutual confent and counsel of the Father and the Son, Zech. vi. 13. The counsel of peace fhall be between them both. It is of Chrift the Branch, of whom he fpeaks. He hall build the temple of the Lord, and he shall bear the glory. And ball fit and rule upon his throne, and Shall be a priest upon his throne, and the counsel of peace fball be between them both. That is, between God the Father, who fends him, and himfelf; There lay the counsel of peace-making between God and man, in due time accomplished by him who is our peace, Eph. ii. 16. So he speaks, Prov. viii. 30, 31. Then I was by him, as one brought up with him, and I was daily his delight; rejoicing always before him. Rejoicing in the habitable parts of the earth, and my delights were with the fons of men. They are the words of the Wisdom that is, of the Son of God. When was this done? Then I was with him. Why, before the mountains were fettled, whilft as yet he had not made the earth nor the fields; that is, before the creation of the world, or from eternity, ver. 25, 26. But how then could he rejoice in the habitable parts of the earth? And how could his delight be with the fons of men? feeing as yet they were not? I anfwer, It was the counfel of peace towards them before mentioned, in the purfuit whereof he was to be fent to converfe amongst them on the earth. He rejoiced in the fore-thoughts of his be ing fent to them, and the work he had to do for them. Then, with his own confent and delight, was he foreordained unto his work, even before the foundation of the world, 1 Peter i. 20. and received of the Father, the promise of eternal life, even before the world began, Tit. i. 2. That is, to be given unto finners, by way of E e 2

for

r

forgiveness through his blood. So is this whole counfel expreffed, Pfal. xl. 7, 8. Whence it is made use of by the apoftle, Heb. x. 5, 6, 7. Then faid I, lo I come in the volume of thy bock it is written of me, 1 delight to do thy will, O God. Thy law is in the midst of my heart. There is the will of the Father in this matter, and the law of its performance; and there is the will of the Son, in anfwer thereunto; and his delight in fulfilling that law which was prefcribed unto him.

Let us now confider, to what purpose was this eternal counfel of pe ce, this agreement of the Father and Son, from erernity about the ftate and condition of man. kind? If God would have left them all to perish under the guilt of their fins, there had been no need at all of any fuch thoughts, defign, or counfel. God had given unto them a law, righteous and holy, which if they tranigreffed, he had threatned them with eternal deftruction. Under the rule, difpofal, and power of this law, he might have righteously left them to ftand or fall, according to the verdict and sentence thereof. But now he affures us, he reveals unto us, that he had other thoughts in this matter; that there were other counfels between the Father and the Son concerning us; and thefe fuch as the Son was delighted in the profpect of his accomplishment of them. What can thefe thoughts and counfels be, hut about a way for their deliverance, which could no otherwife be, but by the forgiveness of fins? For whatever elfe be done, yet if God mark iniquities, there is none can ftand. Hearken therefore, poor finner, and have hope. God is confulting about thy deliverance and freedom: And what cannot the wifdom and grace of the Father and Son effect and accomplish? And to this end was the Son fent intó the world, which is the fecond thing propofed to confideration.

Secondly, Whom did God fend about this bufinefs? The fcripture lays great weight and emphafis on this confideration, faith must do so alfo, John iii. 16. God Jo loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son;

So

So I John iv. 9. In this was manifefted the love of God towards us, because that God fent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. And again, ver. 10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us; and fent his Son to be the propitiation for our fins. And who is this that is thus fent, and called the only begotten Son of God? Take a double defcription of him, one out of the Old Teftament, and another from the new. The first from Ifa. ix 6. To us a Child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulders, and his name hall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the everlafting Father, the Prince of Peace: The other from Heb. i. 2, 3. God hath spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom alfo he made the worlds. Who being the brightness of his glory, and the exprefs image of his Perfon, upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our fins, Jat down on the right-hand of the majesty on high. This is he who was fent. In nature he was glorious; even over all, God bleffed for ever: In anfwerablenets unto the Father, the brightness of his glory, and the exprefs image of his perfon; poffeffed of all the fame effential properties with him: So that, what we find in him, we may be affured of is in the Father alfo; for he that hath feen him, hath feen the Father, who is in him: In power omnipotent; for he made all things, and upholdeth all things with an unfpeakable facility, by the word of his power: In office, exalted over all, fitting on the right-hand of the majefty on high: In name, the mighty God, the everlafting Father: So that whatever he came about, he will affuredly accomplish and fulfil; for what should hinder or let this mighty One from perfecting his defign.

Now this confideration raifeth our evidence to that height, as to give an unquestionable affurance in this matter. Here is a near and a particular object for faith to be exercised about and to reft in. Wherefore did this glorious Son of God come and tabernacle á

mong

mongst poor finners? We beheld the glory of the eternal word, the glory of the only begotten of the Father; and he was made flefh, xiv, and pitched his tabernacle amongst us, John i. 14. To What end? It was no other, but to work out, and accomplish the eternal counsel of peace towards finners before mentioned, to procure for them, and to declare unto them, the forgiveness of fin. And what greater evidence, what greater affurance can we have, that there is forgivenefs with God for us? He himself hath given it as a rule, that what is done by giving an only begotten, or an only beloved Son, gives affured teftimony of reality and fincerity in the thing that is confirmed by it. So he fays unto Abraham, Gen. xxii, 12. Now I know that tbou feareft God, feeing that thou haft not withheld thy fon, thy only fon from me. This way it may be known, or no way. And they are bleffed conclufions that faith may make from this confideration; now, I know that there is forgivenefs with God, feeing he hath not withheld his Son, his only Son, that he might accomp-. Jifh it. To this our purpose the apostle teacheth us to reafon, Rom. viii. 32. He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, How shall be not with him alfo freely give us all things?

What further can any foul defire? What ground remains for unbelief to ftand upon in this matter? Is there any thing more to be done herein? It was to manifeft that there was forgiveness with him, and to make way for the exercife of it, that God fent his Son; that the Son of God came into the world, as will afterwards more fully appear.

Thirdly, To this fending of the Son of God to this purpose, there is evidence and fecurity added from the manner wherein he was fent. How was this? Not in glory, not in power, not in an open difcovery of his eternal power and Godhead. Had it been fo, we might have thought, that he had come merely to manifeft and glorify himself in the world. And this he might have done without thoughts of mercy or pardon towards