Space is an infinite Object in his understanding But for the Glory of his Moderation it is evident that he hath attained a far greater and more perfect End HAD he made an Infinite Object of a Spiritual Nature it must be a Spirit endued with illimited Power to see his Omnipresence and Eternity And had he made no more but only this it is to be feared that the Spectator would be displeased for want of Objects in preparing which the Love of GOD should have glorified his Wisdom and Goodness for its fruition IF you say the Omnipresence and Eternity of GOD had been filled with that Creature it is evident that Spirits fill no Room though they see all things and that it had been much better if Objects had been prepared for its Enjoyment HAD he prepared any one Corporeal Object for the fruition of that Creature any Corporeal Object if infinite in Dimensions would be wholly useless nay pernicious and destructive for it would exclude all other Beings to which it might be serviceable out of place and have nothing whereto to be beneficial IF you say it would be Beneficial to GOD or to that Spectator or that Intelligible Power that Spirit for whom it was made It is apparent that no Corporeal Being can be serviceable to a Spirit but only by the Beauty of those Services it performeth to other Corporeals that are capable of receiving them and that therefore all Corporeals must be limited and bounded for each others sake And for this Cause it is that a Philosophical Poet said As in a Clock 't is hinder'd-Force doth bring The Wheels to order'd Motion by a spring Which order'd Motion guides a steddy Hand In useful sort at Figures just to stand Which were it not by Counter-ballance staid The Fabrick quickly would aside be laid As wholly useless So a Might too Great But well proportion'd makes the World compleat Power well-bounded is more Great in Might Than if let loose 't were wholly Infinite He could have made an endless Sea by this But then it had not been a Sea of Bliss A Sea that 's bounded in a finite shore Is better far because it is no more Should Waters endlesly exceed the skies They 'd drown the World and all whate're we prize Had the bright Sun been Infinite its Flame Had burnt the World and quite consum'd the same That Flame would yield no splendor to the Sight 'T would be but Darkness though 't were Infinite One Star made Infinite would all exclude An Farth made Infinite could ne're be view'd But all being bounded for each others sake He bounding all did all most useful make And which is best in Profit and Delight Though not in Bulk he made all Infinite He in his Wisdom did their use extend By all to all the World from End to End In all Things all Things service do to all And thus a Sand is Endless though most small And every Thing is truly Infinite In its Relation deep and exquisite THIS is the best way of accommodating things to the Service of each other for the fruition of all Spectators MODERATION is not so called from Limiting and Restraining but from Moderating and Ruling If Reason require that a Thing should be Great it is the part of Temperance to make it so Where Reason requires it is a point of Moderation to enlarge and extend Power Nay to stretch it out to the utmost of its Capacity if Wisdom order it is but equal To moderate Almighty Power is to limit or extend it as Reason requires Reason requires that it should be so limited and extended as most tends to the perfection of the Universe IF it be more Wise and more tends to the perfection of the Universe that Millions of intelligible Spirits should be Created and every one of them be made in finite in Understanding it shall be done If not Temperance forbears If Sands and Atoms tend more to the perfection of the World than Angels there where they do so Sands and Atoms shall be made and Angels there where they tend more to the perfection of the World So that every thing is best in its proper place Were there no Sands or Atoms there would be no Universe For the Earth the Sea the Skie the Air all Bodies consist of these either united or divided If they had been lest unmade and Angels had been created in their Places there had been no visible World at all TO make Visible Objects useful it was necessary to enshrine some Spirits in Corporeal Bodies and therefore to make such Creatures as Men that might see and feel and smell and taste and hear and eat and drink by their Bodies and enjoy all the Pleasures of the World by their Souls And by their Souls moreover know the Original and End of all understand the design of all and be able to celebrate the Praises of the Creator For by this means pure Essences abstracted from all Corporeity might enjoy the World while they delight in the glory of its Uses and especially in those compleat and amiable Creatures for whom it was prepared IT was expedient also to make their Bodies finite that they might converse together but their inward Intelligences of endless reach that they might see the holy Angels delight in them and by their Love be delightful to them that they might also be able to search into the depth of all Things and enjoy Eternity Nay that they might be fit Recipients for the infinite Bounty and Goodness of GOD which is infinite in its Communications THAT they should be subject to his Laws and depend upon him was necessary in like manner For by that distinction an infinite difference was between him and them that disparity being laid in the foundation though the benefits they receive are altogether infinite the distance is still the more infinite between them for the greater the Bounty is the deeper is the Obligation The Love and Service they owe is infinite and so is the Gratitude TO see all his Glory is to be able to admire it and to adore it with infinite amazement and joy which is to be compleatly just unto it and perfectly blessed There is but one thing more wherein Almighty Power was by Wisdom infinite to restrain it self for the perfection of his Kingdom And that is to create them free that were made to enjoy it Not to determine their Wills by a fatal Necessity but to make their esteem and fruition of GOD and his Works their duty and to leave them to themselves for the more free and voluntary discharge of their duty For by that means it would make them capable of Rewards and Punishments in the Righteous distribution of which the nature and the glory of a Righteous Kingdom consisteth THUS did GOD by infinite Moderation and by a sublime and transcendent Temperance prepare his Kingdom and make every Thing exquisite in his whole Dominion to the praise of his Glory and the satisfaction of his infinite
all things mightst see him This is the Good of GOD his Vertue is this to appear and be seen in all Things This is the bottom of all other Greatnesses whatsoever GOD is infinitely communicative infinitely prone to reveal himself infinitely Wise and able to do it He hath made the Soul on purpose that it might see him And if the Eye that was made for the World being so little a ball of Earth and Water can take in all and see all that is visible if the sight of the Eye be present with all it beholdeth much more is the Soul both able to see and to be present with all that is Divine and Eternal I know very well that a Man divided from GOD is a weak inconsiderable Creature as the Eye is if divided from the Body and without the Soul but united to GOD a Man is a transcendent and Celestial thing GOD is his Life his Greatness his Power his Blessedness and Perfection And as the Apostle saith He that is joyned to the Lord is one SPIRIT His Omnipresence and Eternity fill the Soul and make it able to contain all Heights and Depths and Lengths and Breadths whatsoever And it is the desire of the Soul to be filled with all the fulness of GOD. Magnanimous desires are the natural results of a Magnanimous Capacity The desire of being like Gods knowing Good and Evil was the destruction of the World Not as if it were unlawful to desire to be Like GOD but to aspire to the Perfection in a forbidden way was unlawful By Disobedience and by following our own Inventions by seeking to the Creature to the stock of a Tree to make us Like GOD that is erroneous and poor and despicable but to know our selves and in the strait and divine Way to come immediately to GOD to contemplate him in his Eternity and Glory is a right and safe Way for the Soul will by that means be the Sphere of is Omnipresence and the Temple of the God-head It will become ETERNITY as Trismegistus speaketh or ONE SPIRIT with God as the Apostle And then it must needs be present with all things in Heaven and in the Earth and in the Sea as GOD is for all things will be in it as it were by Thoughts and Intellections A Magnanimous Soul then if we respect its Capacity is an immovable sphere of Power and Knowledge far greater than all Worlds by its Vertue and Power passing through all things through the Centre of the Earth and through all Existencies And shall such a Creature as this be contented with Vanities and Trlfles Straws and Feathers painted Butterflies Hobby-horses and Rattles These are the Treasures of little Children but you will say a Man delighteth in Purses of Gold and Cabinets of Jewels in Houses and Palaces in Crowns and Scepters Add Kingly Delights and say he delighteth in Armies and Victories and Triumphs and Coronations These are great in respect of Play-things But all these are feeble and pusillanimous to a great Soul As Scipio was going up to Heaven the Earth it self seemed but a Nutshel and he was ashamed of all his Victories and Triumhs amazed at his madness in Quarrelling and fighting about Territories and Kingdoms contracted to a Star and lost into nothing the whole Earth is but one invisible Point when a man foareth to the height of Immensity and beholdeth and compasseth its everlasting Circumference which is infinite every way beyond the Heavens It is the true and proper Immensity of the Soul Which can no more be contented with the narrow confinement of this World no more rest in the Childishness of all the noise of the Interests of Men be no more satisfied with its Earthly Glories than the SUN can be shut up in a Dark-Lanthorn It is true indeed it would desire to see as the Angels do the least and lowest of all the Creatures full of the Glory and Blessedness of GOD all Wisdom and Goodness in every thing and is apt to complain for want of some eternal and Celestial Light wherein to behold them but if all the expansions of Time and Eternity should be void and all the extents and out-goings of Infinity empty round about them though things upon Earth nay and things in the Heavens should be never so Rich and divine and beautiful yet such is the Magnanimity of a Great Soul that it would hugely be displeased its loss and its distaste would be alike Infinite Infinite Honours infinite Treasures infinite Enjoyments things endless in number value and excellency are the Objects of its Care and Desire the greatness of its Spirit leads it to consider and enquire whether all the spaces above the Heavens and all the parts of GOD's everlasting Kingdom be full of Joyes whether there be any end or bound of his Kingdom whether ther there be any defect or miscarriage any blemish or disorder in it any vile and common thing any remissness or neglect any cause of complaint or deformity As also whether all the Ages of the World are Divine and Sacred whether after they are gone they abide in their places whether there be anything in them to entertain the Powers of the Soul with delight and feed them with satisfaction What end what use what excellency there is in Men Whether all the waies of GOD are full of beauty and perfection all Wisdom Justice Holiness Goodness Love and Power What Regions eternal Blessedness is seated in What Glory what Reason what Agreeableness and Harmony is in all his Counsels Whether those durations of Eternity before the World is made are full or empty full of bright and amiable Objects or dark and obscure Whether the government of the World be perfect whether the Soul be Divine in it self whether it be conducive to its own felicity or to the happiness of all those in whom it is concerned Whether the World shall end If it shall after what manner whether by Design or Accident Whether All Ages and Nations shall rise from the Dead Whether there shall be a general Doom or a day of Judgment Whether I am concerned in all the transactions and passages at that day Whether all Mankind shall be united into one to make up one compleat and perfect Body whereof they all are the fellow-Members What shall be after the End of the VVorld Whether we shall live for ever Whether we shall see GOD and know one another Whether we shall reign in eternal Glory Whether in the Confusions of Hell there be any Beauty and whether in the Torments of the damned we shall find any joy or satisfaction Whether all the Riches Customs and Pleasures of this World shall be seen Whether in the World to come any fruit shall appear and arise from them for which they shall be esteemed to have been not in vain but profitable in relation to all Eternity What kind of Life we shall lead and what kind of Communion and fellowship Angels and Men shall have with each other
when we see all these Virtues in their several Places and Offices their Objects and their Uses the Ends for which and the occasions on which they were introduced all are Delightful to the Reason of mans Soul and highly Eligible while GOD is adored and admired for the depth of his Wisdom and Goodness and beloved for the Equity and Excellency of his Proceedings For all these Occasional Vertues are but Temporary when our Life and this present World are past and gone as a Dream Love and Joy and Gratitude will be all that will continue for ever in which Estate Wisdom and Knowledge Goodness and Righteousness and True Holiness shall abide as the Life and Glory into which the Souls of all that are Blessed will be transformed Repentance shall be gone and Patience cease Faith and Hope be swallowed up in fruition Right Reason be extended to all Objects in all Worlds and Eternity in all its Beauties and Treasures seen desired esteemed enjoyed Let it be your Care to dive to the Bottom of true Religion and not suffer your Eyes to be Dazled with its Superficial Appearance Rest not in the Helps and Remedies that it bringeth but search for the Hidden Manna the substantial Food underneath the Satisfaction of all Wishes and Desires the true and Coelestial Pleasures the Causes of Love and Praise and Thanksgiving founded in the Manifestations of Gods Eternal favour especially in the Ends for the sake of which all Helps and Remedies are prepared For it is exceeding true that his Laws are Sweeter then the Hony and the Hony Comb and far more precious then thousands of Gold and Silver CHAP. V. Of the Necessity Excellency and Use of Knowledge its Depths and Extents its Objects and its End KNOWLEDGE and Love are so necessary to Felicity that there can be no Enjoyment or Delight without them Heaven and Earth would be Dark and obscure Angels and Men vain and unprofitable all the Creatures base and unserviceable Felicity impossible were there no Knowledge Nay GOD himself without Knowledge and Love could not well exist for his very Essence is seated in infinite Knowledge GOD is Light and in him is no Darkness at all He is Love by nature and there is no hatred in his Essence His very Godhead is all Perfection by the infinite Knowledge and Love in his Nature THE Original of our Knowledge is his Godhead His Essence and his will are the Fountain of it and the stream so excellent that in all Estates it is for ever to be continued as the Light and Glory of the whole Creation THE understanding Power which is seated in Soul is the Matter of that Act wherein the Essence of Knowledge consisteth Its form is the Act it self whereby that Power of knowing apprehendeth its Object IT S nature is invisible like that of all other Spirits so simple and uncompounded that its form and matter are the same For all Powers when transformed into Act are Acts themselves And the faculty of understanding in a Compleat and Perfect Act of Knowledge attains its Perfection and is Power exerted or an Act in its Exercise For every Act is Power exerted THE Power of Knowing is vain if not reduced into Act and the Soul a melancholly and Dreadful Cave or Dungeon of Darkness if void of Knowledge Had GOD himself a Power of Knowing Distinct from its Operation if he never exercised that Power it would be useless to him His Glory and Blessedness are seated in the Light of that Knowledge whichto us upon Earth appeaeth Inaccessible IF we would be perfect as our Father which is in Heaven is perfect our Power of knowing must be transformed into Act and all Objects appear in the interior Light of our own understanding For tho all Eternity were full of Treasures and the Whole World and all the Creatures in it transformed into Joys and our Interest to all never so perfect yet if we are Ignorant of them we shall continue as poor and Empty as if there were nothing but Vacuity and Space For not to be and not to appear are the same thing to the understanding WERE a Man a Seraphim by his Essence or something by nature more Glorious and Divine then the Highest Order of the most Blessed Angels nay the greatest Creature that Almighty power was able to produce his Soul and Body would signifie nothing if he were unknown to himself and were not aware of his Excellence IF you would have a solid Prospect of any Vertue you must understand that Vertues are Powers transformed into right wise and regular Acts avoiding all extremes of remissness on the one hand and excess on the other The Extreams of Knowledge are Ignorance and Error FOR ought you know Heaven and Earth are as full of Treasures as Almighty Power was able to create them and you by Nature the best and highest of all possible Creatures made like GOD for the highest and best of all possible Ends and called to live in Communion with him in all his fruitions but being vilely corruptted you have lost the sence of all these Realities and are ignorant of the Excellences of your own Estate and Nature I am sure that GOD is infinite in Wisedom Goodness and Power and nothing is wanting on his Part to perfect your Desires But yet you may be blind and idle and ignorant and dead in a manner while you are wanting to your self and have need of nothing but clear and perfect apprehensions but because they are Sottish and Erroneous at present they may make you miserable and Poor and Blind and Naked IF Sin had been like Circe's Cup and changed the shape of Mans Body to that of a Swine or Dragon the Depravation of his Nature had been plain and visible yet without knowing what kind of Form he had before it would not appear because we should be unsensible of his first Form and unable to compare the one with the other But Sin is a Moral Obliquity and the change it produceth in the Soul is Spiritual It makes a man to differ far more from himself than any alteration of Body can do but withal so blinds his Understanding that he does not remember what he was in his first Parent Tho the first Man who had experience of both Estates was able to compare them because in his Corruption he might possibly retain a Sence of that Nature and Life which he enjoyed in his integrity Yet all his Posterity that are born Sinners never were sensible of the Light and Glory of an Innocent Estate and for that cause may be wholy ignorant both of GOD and themselves utterly unable to conceive the Glory of the World or of that Relation wherein they should by Nature have stood towards all the Creatures IT is impossible to conceive how great a change a slight Action may produce It is but pressing the Wick a little with ones Finger and a Lamp is extinguished and Darkness immediately made to overspread the Room The Glory and
kinds of love Of the Power Inclination and act of Love Its extent and capacity BECAUSE Love is the most Desirable Employment of the Soul the Power of Loving is to be accounted the most High and Noble of the Faculties It is not seated by it self in the mind but attended with a mighty Proneness and Inclination THERE is no Creature so unsociable and furious but it is capable of loving something or other Wolves and Tygres live at peace among themselves Lions have an Inclination to their Grim Mistresses and Deformed Bears a natural Affection to their Whelps expressed in their Rage when they are bereaved of them Things must either be absolutely Dead or live in misery that are void of love Whatsoever is endued with Life and sence delights in easie and grateful Operations Love is a necessary Affection of their Souls because it is impossible to apprehend any thing Delightful but it must be pleasing and what is Pleasing must be Lovely For to be Pleased and to love are the same thing If there be any difference the pleasure we take in any Object is the root of that Desire which we call Love and the affection whereby we pursue the pleasure that is apprehended in it is part of the Love that we bear unto it the end of which is the Completion of that pleasure which it first perceives All is Love variously modified according to the Circumstances wherein the Object is represented AS Love is the only Easie and Delightful Operation so is Hatred of all other the most troublesom and tormenting Displeasure and Enmity are the Ingredients of its nature and the fruits of it allyed to their Root as Bitter as Gall and Wormwood Murder and Vexation and Grief are the off-spring of the one with Separation Contention and Horror Peace and Embraces are the Fruit of the other with Praises and Complacencies Honors Services Benefits and Pleasures These are the little Cupids that flie about this coelestial Venus when it is what it ought to be the Mother of Felicity and the Daughter of GOD. ALL Creatures that are sensible of Pain or pleasure must of necessity be addicted to Love and Hatred to the Love of what is pleasing to the Hatred of what is Painful And if any Question be made which of these Twins is the First born the answer is that they may seem Twins in respect of Time but in nature Love is the first born and the Mother of Hatred For where nothing to be hated does at all appear pleasant Things are Beloved for their own sake whereas if there were no pleasant thing to be beloved nothing could be hated because nothing could be Hurtful which appeareth by this because where there is no Love there is no Interest and where there is no concernment there can be no Affection no Fear or Hope or Joy or sorrow AS Fire begets Water by melting Ice so does Love beget contrary passions in the soul of a living creature Anger Malice Envy Grief and Jealousie not by its own nature but by the accidental Interposure of some Obstacle that hinders or endangers the fruition of its Object Were there no Love of Ease and Pleasure there could be no Anger or Quarrel between Competitors no Emulation or Desire no Aversion or Endeavour All Enmity and Hostility Springs from a Contention who shall enjoy what is Desirable or from some other Principle of Envy or Revenge in relation to what is Good as is Obvious to Daily Experience LIFE and Love are so individualy united that to live without Loving something is impossible Even in Hell where their whole Life seemeth to be spent in Detestation and Hatred and actual Love is like fire under those Embers covered and continued Could they put off self Love all Love of Felicity and Interest their Torments would be gone Punishments and Rewards are things impossible where there is not selfLove For without Love to something Pains and Joys are equally Grateful AS Love is the Root of Endeavor so is it the Spring of all the Passions They all depend upon Love alone We are Angry at that which stands in our Way between our Love and its object We Desire an absent Good because we Love it We Hope for it when we conceive its Attainment feasible We rejoyce in it when we have it We fear to lose it we grieve when it is gone we despair if we cannot get or recover it We hate all that is opposite to it And for this Cause is our Love when well regulated the greatest Vertue because upon the right Choise of its Object and true Goverment of it self all the Powers and Affections of the Soul are well employed and when we Love all that we ought as we ought to do we fulfil all Laws Hope and Fear and Hate and Grieve and Desire and Rejoyce and do every thing in a regular Manner THERE is a Sensual and Brutish Love there is a Humane and Divine Brutish Love is of two sorts the one Springs from a Harmony of Complexions and a Sympathy of Bodies the other from the Consideration of Pleasure abstracted The First of these is occasioned by a secret and unexpressible Agreement of Tempers by which upon the presence of each other the Senses are delighted we know not why it being a mystery in nature and perhaps founded in a grateful Transpiration of Spirits from one to the other THE Consideration of Beauty seemeth peculiar to the Love of Men because no Beast is observed to make any Distinction between Lineaments and Features nor upon any account of shape and Colours to be delighted with each other Wherein Man exceeds the Capacity of Beasts in being able to note and admire the Workmanship of GOD in the decent Order of Symmetry and Proportion HUMANE Affection and Divine Love are near allyed yet of several Kinds If you take the Love of Reason in its utmost Height it is always Divine For it is comformable to the Love of GOD in its measures and Degrees in its Effects and Causes For the Love of GOD is it self the Love of perfect Reason And as the Reason of his Love is Infinite and Eternal so is its Operation But in a lower Acceptation Humane Love differs from Divine it being founded upon Temporal Causes Vivacity Wit Learning Beauty Behaviour Moral Honesty Fidelity Kindness Goodness Power Majesty Wealth Nobility Worth Vertue and the like But all these may be exalted when they are Sanctified and made Divine by the superadded concurrence of Coelestial Causes For when a Man loves another because he is made in the Image of GOD and by the Beauty of his Soul is something more than Humane this Love is made Sacred and receives a Grace from the Influences of Religion DIVINE Love strictly so called is founded on Eternal Causes agreeable to the Life of Heaven Delightful to GOD and Pleasing to the Angels IF Divine Love be taken in the highest Sense there is none but in GOD. For it is his Peculiar Prerogative
Christ is an incredible mystery to them that do not consider the Love of GOD towards Men in the Creation of the World But they that measure it by his Laws and works and see it in the value of their own Souls would think it very Strange if that Love which appeareth so infinite in all other things should be defective only in its Ways of Providence They easily believe it may express it self in the Incarnation Especially Since all Ages are Beautified with the Effects and Demonstrations of this verity that GOD so Loved the World that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have Everlasting Life For Love is apt to transform it self into all shapes that the necessity of its Object requires and as prone to suffer as rejoyce with it as apt to suffer for it as with it Many fathers have died for their Children many for their Country but the Love of GOD exceedeth them all To be beloved in our Guilt is exceeding Wonderful but this also is in the Nature of Love it may be provoked with the Guilt or moved with Compassion at the misery of a Sinner WHERE the Love is extreamly violent and the weak Estate of the Object fit for Compassion it is more inclined to Pity than Revenge Tho where the Object is strong and endued with all advantages it is more offended at the Outrage of its Rebellion WHETHER we consider the Nature of Man or his Estate before the Fall we have some reason to believe that he was more Beloved then the Holy Angels for there was more exquisite Care and Art manifested in the Creation of his Person and his Condition was fitted for a more curious Tenderness and Compassion if he offended IF you look into the Nature of Angels and Men you will find this mighty Difference between them Angels are more Simple Spirits Men are Images of GOD carefully put into a Beautiful Case Their Souls would seem equal to the Angels were they not to live in Humane Bodies and those Bodies are Superadded certainly for unspeakable and most Glorious Ends the visible World was made for the sake of these Bodies and without such persons as men are it would be utterly useless The Hypostatical Union of two Natures so unspeakable different as the Soul and Body are is of all things in the World most mysterious and Miraculous Man seems to be the Head of all Things visible and invisible and the Golden clasp whereby Things Material and Spiritual are United He alone is able to beget the Divine Image and to multiply himself into Millions His Body may be the Temple of GOD and when it pleased GOD to become a Creature he assumed the Nature of Man Angels are made Ministring Spirits for the sake of Man and by him alone GOD and his works are United IF you respect his Condition he was made a little lower than the Angels that he might be crowned with Glory and Honour Lower for a Time that he might be Higher for ever The Angels were placed in such an Estate that if they fell it would be with more shame yet if they stood it would be with less Glory For having the Advantages of Greater Light and strength to Sin against them was more Odious and to stand in them less Wonderful While man being more remote from GOD was more Obnoxious to Dangers and more Weak to resist them His Want of Clear Light if he fell would lessen his offence And the Difficulties wherewith he was surrounded if he stood would increase his Vertue which by consequence would make his Obedience more pleasing and much augment his Eternal Glory All which put together when Angels and Men both fell fitted Man rather to be chosen and redeemed he being the Greater Object of Compassion and Mercy THE Degrees and measures of that Mercy which was shewn to Man in his Redemption are very considerable When he was Weak and unable to help himself when he was Guilty when he was an Enemy when he was Leprous and deformed when he was Miserable and Dead before he desired or Thought of such a Thing God freely gave his Son to die for his Salvation and condescended to propose a reconciliation Which should teach us tho higher then the Cherubims and more pure then the Light tho our Enemies are never so base and injurious and ingrateful nay Obstinate and Rebellious to seek a reconciliation by the most Laborious and Expensive Endeavors to manifest all our Care and kindness toward them pursuing their Amendment and Recovery For the same Mind ought to be in us that was in Christ Jesus who being in the form of GOD thought it no Robbery to be Equal with GOD yet took upon him the Form of a Servant and being found in fashion as a man humbled himself to the Death of the Cross Wherefore GOD also hath highly exalted him and given him a Name above every Name that at the Name of Jesus every Knee might bow The very reason why we so infinitely adore him being the incomparable Height and Perfection of his Mercy expressed in his Humiliation and Abasement for us If we would enter into his Glory we must walk in the Way which he hath trod before us for that only will lead us into it THO GOD hath in his infinite Mercy redeemed us from the unavoidable Necessity of being Damned yet hath he with infinite Prudence ordered the Way and Manner of our Redemption in such sort that we are not immediately translated into Heaven but restored to a new Estate of Trial and endued with Power to do new Duties as pleasing to him as those which he required from us in Eden For he Loved a Righteous Kingdome from the Beginning wherein his Laws were to be obeyed Rewards and Punishments expected and administred in a Righteous manner THE Great and necessary Duties in this second Kingdome are Faith and Repentance introduced by his Wisdom and occasioned by Sin necessary for our Justification and Sanctification and Superadded to the former THIS Kingdome of Evangelical Righteousness being founded on the Blood of Christ is by Death and Sin and by the Supernatural Secrets of Love and Mercy made infinitely more Deep and mysterious than the former CHAP. XV. Of Faith The Faculty of Believing implanted in the Soul Of what Nature its Objects are The Necessity of Faith Its End Its Use and Excellency It is the Mother and Fountain of all the Vertues FAITH and Repentance are the Principal Vertues which we ought to exercise in the Kingdome of Evangelical Righteousness because by them alone a Sinner is restored to the Capacity and Power of living in the Similitude of GOD in the Practice of his Divine and Eternal Vertues For without Faith it is impossible to please GOD because we can never believe that he is the Rewarder of all those that diligently seek him without that Credit which is necessary to be given to the Discovery of his Love to them that are
Vertue of a man they think seated in this They forget that Policy and Learning and Prudence and Gratitude and Fidelity and Temperance and Industry and compassion and Bounty and Affability and Courtesie and Modesty and Justice and Honesty are Vertues and that in every one of these there is something fitting a Man for the Benefit of the World Nay they have lost the Notion of Vertue and know not what it is Those things by which a man is made serviceable to himself and the World they think not to be Vertues but imagineâ— Chimeraes which they cannot see then deny they have any Existence A Man is capable of far more Glorious Qualities then one of them And his Courage it self may be raised to far higher Ends and purposes then Buffoons and Thrasonical Heroes can dream of IT is to be noted here that any one of those Things that are called Vertue being alone is not a Vertue It is so far from aiding and setting us forward in the Way to Happiness that oftentimes it proveth a Great and intollerable Mischief and is never safe but when it is corrected and guided by the rest of its Companions To stir no further then Courage alone What is Courage in a Thief or a Tyrant or a Traytor but like Zeal and Learning in a pernicious Heretick YOU may note further that Goodness is a principal Ingredient in the excellency of this Vertue tho it be distinct in its Nature from the Being of Courage A brave man will expose his Life in an Honest cause for the Benefit and preservation of others tho not for the Dammage or Destruction of any He will slight his own safety and despise his Repose to make himself a Saviour and a Benefactor A true Courage holdeth Vertuous Actions at such a Price that Death Imprisonment Famine Dishonour Poverty Shame Indignation all Allurements and Temptations are nothing compared to the Performance of Heroick Deeds He exceedeth all constraint and walketh in the Glorious Liberty of the Sons of GOD. THE last note which I shall offer to your Observation on this Occasion is this for the Illustration of the Reason and excellency of GODS Dispensations The Great End for which GOD was pleased not to seat us immediately in the Throne but to place us first in an estate of Trial was the Multiplication of our Vertues For had we been seated in the Glory of Heaven at the first there had no such Vertues as Patience and Courage and Fidelity been seen no Faith or Hope or Meekness no Temparance or Prudence or self Denial in the World Which Vertues are the very clothes and Habits of the Soul in Glory The Graces and Beauties of the Soul are founded in the exercise of them Actions pass not away but are fixed by the permanent Continuance of all Eternity and tho done never so long ago shall appear before the Eye of the Soul for ever in their places be the Glory of their Author the Lineaments and Colours of his Beauty seen by GOD and his holy Angels and Delightful to all that love and delight in worthy things Our Life upon Earth being so diversified like a Sphere of Beauty so variously adorned with all sorts of Excellent Actions shall wholly and at once be seen as an intire Object rarely and curiously wrought a Lively Mirror of the Nature of the Soul and all the Elements of which it is compounded all the Parts that conspire in its Symetry all the Qualities Operations and Perfections that contribute to its Glory shall afford wonder and pleasure to all Spectators While every Soul shall be concerned more in its Actions then in its Essence indeed its Essence how ever considerable is of little or no Value in Comparison of its Operations Every Vertue being the Natural Off-spring and production of the Soul in which its Vigor principally appeareth an effect discovering the Nature of the cause and the sole occasion of its shame or Glory For if the Essence of the Soul be all Power and its power exerted in its operation the Soul must needs enter into its Actions and consequently be affected with all that befalls its Operation All Acts are Immortal in their places being enbalmed as it were by Eternity till the Soul revive and be united to them Then shall it appear in its own Age and in eternity too in its last life enjoying the Benefit of its first And in that sence is that voice from Heaven to be understood which commanded the Divine to write Blessed are they that die in the Lord from henceforth yea saith the Spirit that they may rest from their Labours and their Works do follow them For the Glory of the place is nothing to us if we are not endued with those Glorious Habits which will make our Souls all Glorious within We must be Glorious and Illustrious our selves and appear in Actions that will Beautifie the Throne to which we are exalted THAT these Actions may be Great and Amiable manifold and Excellent is the desire of every soul the natural Wish and Expectation both of Reason it self and of self Love HOW Glorious the Counsel and Design of GOD is for the Archieving of this Great End for the making of all Vertues more compleat and Excellent and for the Heightening of their Beauty and Perfection we will exemplifie here in the Perfection of Courage For the Hieght and depth and Splendor of every Vertue is of great Concernment to the Perfection of the Soul since the Glory of its Life is seated in the Accomplishment of its essence in the Fruit it yeildeth in its Operations Take it in Verse made long ago upon this occasion For Man to Act as if his Soul did see The very Brightness of Eternity For Man to Act as if his Love did burn Above the Spheres even while its in its Urne For Man to Act even in the Wilderness As if he did those Sovereign Joys possess Which do at once confirm stir up enflame And perfect Angels having not the same It doth increase the Value of his Deeds In this a Man a Seraphim exceeds To Act on Obligations yet unknown To Act upon Rewards as yet unshewn To keep Commands whose Beauty 's yet unseen To cherish and retain a Zeal between Sleeping and Waking shews a constant care And that a deeper Love a Love so Rare That no Eye Service may with it compare The Angels who are faithful while they view His Glory know not what themselves would do Were they in our Estate A Dimmer Light Perhaps would make them erre as well as We And in the Coldness of a darker Night Forgetful and Lukewarm Themselves might be Our very Rust shall cover us with Gold Our Dust shall sprinkle while their Eyes behold The Glory Springing from a feeble State Where meer Belief doth if not conquer Fate Surmount and pass what it doth Antedate THE Beatifick Vision is so sweet and Strong a Light that it is impossible for any thing that Loves it self
VVhether the VVorks of GOD were unworthy of his Choice or the best of all that were possible What his Laws are as to their nature and excellency Whether his Love be really sincere and infinite Whether there be any such thing as infinite Wisdom Goodness and Bounty Blessedness and Glory Such things as these are the Concerns and Inquiries of a Magnanimous Soul And if its expectations and desires are absolutely satisfied it will easily appear and break forth upon all Occasions into the most high and Magnanimous Actions Trismegistus or whoever else was the Author of that Book saw the deep Capacity of his own Soul but if a Conjecture may be made by the residue of the discourse did not understand the end at least not clearly for which it was implanted Some knowledge he had that all the things in Eternity were the Objects of that Power by reason of which he calls them Fair and Good but that they were to be the Treasures and Enjoyments of the Soul I do not find him affirming He that knows this must needs be of our Saviours mind who when all the Kingdoms of the World and the Glory of them were shewed him by Satan in a moment of time despised them all For the divine and Celestial Kingdom is infinitely greater and in a far more perfect manner to be enjoyed HE that knoweth the Honour which cometh from above will despise the Honour which men can pay and in comparison of that Honour which cometh from GOD only esteem all the Honour of this World but false and feeble Not as if Men were in the truth of Nature vile and despicable Creatures a Magnanimous man knows all others to be by Nature like himself and is apt to reverence all of his kind as sublime and Celestial Creatures But he is a Man of a clear and discerning Spirit and the Corruption of Nature makes him to slight all that is defiled He sees that Men are generally Evil deformed and blind erroneous perverse and foolish poor and miserable And that all the Honour which they generally give is irrational and feigned A little colour in the face a gay Coat a fine Horse a Palace and a Coach an Exchequer full of Gold or some such light and superficial Causes are all the grounds of the respect that they pay us And if the Glory and Esteem I have Be nothing else than what my Silver gave If for no other ground I am with Love or Praises crown'd 'T is such a shame such vile such base Repute 'T is is better starve than eat such empty Fruit. IF a King be dejected from his Throne it is but a poor comfort that he is admired by Persons condemned to die and praised by Beggars The dignity and power of the Persons that admire us is of great consideration in the love and delight which they take in us They all must vanish and perish as a Dream no Honour is truly great but that which is continual and endless too A great and mighty Soul can care for no Honour but that which comes from wise and amiable Persons that are themselves great and honourable most rich and powerful holy just blessed and glorious Honour from GOD and his holy Angels from the eternal Son of GOD and all his Saints is marvellous and substantial That Honour which is paid upon great and solid causes because a Man is well-pleasing to GOD and exalted to his Throne because he is the very true Image of GOD and has dominion over all the Creatures because he is infinitely beloved of GOD and all Angels and Men are commanded to love him because he is redeemed by the Blood of Christ and made a Temple of the Holy Ghost because he is a Priest and King to his eternal Creatour because he is full of Goodness and Wisdom adorned with all kind of Vertue and made an Heir of eternal Glory because he is Faithful and True and Just and Holy because he hath conquered Death and Hell and Sin and the Grave and triumpheth over them this is being paid by such Persons Honour indeed and to desire this Honour is the Property and the Vertue of a Magnanimous Soul An Eagle cannot stoop at Flies An Alexander or a Caesar cannot debase or confine their Souls to the pleasures of a Cottage in a Wilderness Infinite Hopes and infinite Desires infinite Fears and Despairs and Sorrows infinite Joyes and Delights and Glories infinite Adorations Praises and Thanksgivings infinite and eternal Objects are the only fit and proper Concerns for the Affections of a Great and Magnanimous Soul The very signification of the word is Greatness of Soul or if you please of Mind For a distinction may be made between the Soul and Mind The Soul of Man is the immutable essence or form of his Nature unimployed His power of Reasoning is alive even then when it is quiet and unactive and this is his Soul It is one and the same in all men and of it self equally inclined to all great and transcendent things but in the most it is misguided baffled and suppressed and though it be never so great it is to no purpose This greatness implanted by Nature is not Magnanimity It is a Natural disposition not an acquired habit as all Vertue is A Man is then said to be of such a Mind when he determines or thinks in such a manner His mind is Good that intendeth well his mind is Evil that designeth mischief So that the Mind is the Soul exerting its power in such an act and the greatest Soul in all the World is but Pusillanimous that mindeth little things A great Soul is Magnanimous in Effect a Mind applyed to mighty Objects Some men have a Magnanimity infused by the power of Education and are led by Custome to Great things and in a manner by Necessity for such is their Place and Calling that they are frequently led to greater Objects than other men Of this sort are the most eminent rank of Grandees and Princes Kingdoms and Thrones and Privy Councils and Queens and Armies are their natural Dialect This is no Vertue for though it be not innate by Nature yet they are born to it and it is given by Fortune Others consider what they have to do and make an election and though they are born in a poor and despicable estate are not Magnanimous by Nature or Fortune but by Choice and voluntary Election Not to satisfie the humour of a high Blood choler and fire nor to answer the necessities of a higher Calling but to discharge the office of Vertue and Wisdom And this is the Off-spring of the Will the true and genuine Vertue Which as it is far more worthy than any of the rest is guided to far better and more glorious Objects and more diffusively given by the Bounty of GOD to all kind of Men in all Conditions In the Poor it is more marvellous than in the Great and Rich It has such an undaunted property in its Nature
implies Greatness and Bounty united THE Creation of the Universe was a great and Magnificent work because the lustre and beauty of the WORLD is a sublime and wonderful Gift imparted to millions The bounty of GOD in adorning all ages with Cities and Empires for the benefit and enjoyment of all the World is another piece of his Royal Magnificence The infusion of a Soul so divine and everlasting into the Body of a Man is an act of love transcendently greater than all the Aquaeducts and Trophies in the World For such a Celestial presence such a sublime and illimited power such a vast and noble Workmanship as that is which can see and comprehend all Eternity and Time together extend to all Objects in all Worlds and fill Immensity with life and joy and love and knowledge with light and beauty and glory with adorations and praises though its essence be invisible and all its splendour within is next under GOD the highest Object of all the admiration of Men and Angels It is a being as publick as the Sun the great occasion of all the extasies of the Seraphims the wonder and the rapture of all the Cherubims the glory of GOD communicated to the World in so divine a Creature a miraculous effect of his eternal Power and the resemblance of his Godhead among all the Creatures THE Incarnation of his Eternal Son and the giving of the Holy Ghost was another Magnificent effect of his almighty Power so was the preparation of his Word with the Gifts he gave unto Men in the Patriarchs Prophets and Apostles adorned with all the varieties of their Labours and Vertues Wisdom Courage and Patience Lives and Examples Deaths and Sufferings Oppositions and Successes Miracles and Revelations The Jewish Nation alone is a Magnificent gift to the whole World The Apostle phraseth the Regiment of it as a matter of Bounty Now if the Fall of them be the Riches of the World and the diminishing of them the Riches of the Gentiles how much more their Fulness And again When he ascended up on high and led Captivity captive he gave Gifts unto Men some Apostles and some Prophets c. When he presented all Nations and Kingdoms as a token of his love to the Angels when he gave all those glorious Hosts in the Heavens to the vision service and pleasure of Men much more when he gave all these in their marvellous order and amity united to every Soul When he filled the Heaven of Heavens with Joyes and gave all the glory of his Kingdom to one and that one to every one he manifested the glory of his Magnificent power in that of his great and transcendent goodness And in relation to this we may cry out with the Apostle more than for the mysterious Regiment of a little Nation as he doth upon the account of GODS dealing with the Jews O the depth of the riches both of the Wisdom and Knowledge of GOD How unsearchable are his judgments and his waies past finding out For all things are yours Whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the World or Life or Death or things present or things to come all are yours and ye are CHRISTS and CHRIST is GODS Wherefore he saith My Thoughts are not your Thoughts nor your Waies my Waies For as the Heavens are higher than the Earth so are my Waies higher than your Waies and my Thoughts than your Thoughts You give triflles and give them but to one I give Worlds and give them to every one You divide and disperse your Gifts and lessen by dispersing them I communicate and unite my Gifts and augment by giving them You think it impossible for one man to enjoy all things I think it possible for innumerable Millions You think your interest is abated and your fruition endangered by the communication of your Treasures to many I know they are increased and multiplied by the number of the Enjoyers You think Gold and Silver to be the greatest Gifts and that nothing is yours but what is shut up within such Shores and Walls and Hedges I know that Men are the greatest Treasures and that your interest is extended through all Worlds and your Possessions illimited For according to the tenour of these words and a little before he saith Thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles and make the desolate Cities to be inhabited Fear not for thou shalt not be ashamed neither be thou confounded for thou shalt not be put to shame for thou shalt forget the shame of thy Youth and shalt not remember the reproach of thy Widowhood any more For thy Maker is thy husband the Lord of Hosts is his Name c. And a little after he saith Thou shalt also be a Crown of Glory in the hand of the Lord and a royal DIADEM in the hand of thy GOD. Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken neither shall thy land any more termed Desolate but thou shalt be called Hephzibah and thy land Beulah for the Lord deligheth in thee and thy Land shall be married For as a young Man marrieth a Virgin so shall thy Sons marry thee and as the Bridegroom rejoyceth over the Bride so shall thy GOD rejoyce over thee For a Son to marry with his Mother is Incest it is Confusion also for a Child to go in unto his Fathers Wife And yet the Church of GOD shall be the lawful Bride of every one of all her Sons Here is Magnificence GOD giveth himself and his eternal Son and his Holy Spirit and his Bride and his Apostles and Prophets and all the Universe to every Soul Which justifieth that saying of St. Chrysostome GOD loveth every one with all the Love wherewith he loveth the whole World His Magnificence exceedeth all Limits Laws Imaginations Wishes Possibilities and he maketh every one Heir of the World Coheir with Christ to inherit all things every one more than the sole end of all his Kingdom For all the Ornaments and Riches of a Bride are given with her Person her Palace and Attendants are her Lovers upon the Marriage as well as she and all things that magnifie or make her amiable are subservient to his enjoyment and really his that is her Husband So that GOD giving us his Church to be our Mother and our Bride hath intended us in all the things whereby he benefited her in all kingdoms and ages and hath loved us in all the Love which he hath exercised towards her and all the fruit of all his Love to the whole World resteth in our Exaltation This is the Magnificence of Almighty GOD to every Soul in his Kingdom And for this it is that the Church is called The Assembly of the First-born because all her Children are the perfect Heirs and Kings and Bridegrooms every one compleatly and more to his satisfaction than if he were so alone For as GOD is wholly every
where and the more here for being in other places and infinitely here because he is Omnipresent So does he wholly see and intend every one as if him alone and love him far the more by loving every one for his Love being infinite it is expressed towards him in all the parts of his Kingdom and the more rich and glorious he maketh all things the more great and happy he maketh Him according to the immeasurable All-sufficiency of his infinite Wisdom THERE is in the Goodness of GOD an infinite Greatness that makes it Magnificent for he gives Himself When a Queen gives her self whether it be to a Beggar or to one of her Courtiers or to another King if it proceed from an ardent Love the Gift is full of sweetness within but it is alwaies attended with great Magnificence without together with her self she gives him her Palace her Exchequer Gardens of Pleasure her Crown and Throne her Soveraignty her Nobles Attendants and all her Kingdom GOD doth infinitely more He gives himself by Loving and with himself gives us all his Wisdom Goodness and Power by making them full objects of Complacency by doing with them for us all that we could devise or desire or effect with them had they been our own and seated in our selves His bounty in giving himself is attended with infinite advantages innumerable wonders of love and goodness a care to make himself as a Bridegroom does exceeding amiable and glorious a care to purifie and fit his Queen for himself with all kind of greatness and beauty a care to adorn his Palace with all kind of delectable things Riches Pleasures magnificent Furnitures Perfumes Musicians Pictures Jewels Dainties Feasts Attendants Nobles c. In all which he infinitely exceedeth all the Monarchs of the World His Kingdom is celebrated by David with great Exultation Psal. 145. NOW if we would be Magnificent as GOD is we must have a love within our Souls that is willing to impart all these incomprehensible Treasures and Glories to every Soul and to all his Hosts and if it be possible to out-do all this to give all these Worlds nay GOD himself and every Soul to all with greater ardour and joy and gratitude Angels and Men our selves to all and all to every one For that Love which is the fountain of all is greater than all a greater Gift and a greater Treasure And that love which imitates the first is in its place the only desirable and excellent thing that is possible GODS love in its place is infinitely better then all Removing it you shake and abolish all But in such a Creature he desires to be beloved He made him free that he might be capable of Loving for it is impossible to love by constraint or necessity and having made him free and left him to himself infinitely desires to be beloved of him All his own love unto him and all the glories of Heaven and Earth which are prepared for him are means for the obtaining of that end Obligations Motives Allurements Incentives of that Love which GOD desires If he will not return Love all are imbittered and made distastful Infinite Love infinitely desires to be beloved and is infinitely displeased if it be neglected GOD desires to take Complacency in all to see the beauty of his Bride and the accomplishment of his design in the Love of his Beloved And nothing in all Worlds but the love of that Person can be his satisfaction For nothing can supply the absence or denial of that Love which is his end For in its place it is the only needful and proper thing far more desired than all that went before All that went before was but the Means this is the thing designed and endeavoured by them For upon this Return all the sweetness of the rest dependeth All is made sweet and compleat and delightful if this Soul doth love GOD in all these things if not they are all made vain and his love is turned into sour displeasure All the other things are so far from alleviating that they increase his displeasure the glory and abundance of them is so far from making him to despise this Love that in respect of these things he the more desires it because he would not have his labour vain and his own infinite Love makes him more to esteem the love of this Creature which is in its place his Soveraign object and for that very cause so beloved and admired by all Angels and Men. Is not then the Love which a man returneth a Magnificent thing Certainly if it answers all these preparations and obligations as their end and be lookt upon as that without which all the Creation is vain and frustrate it is the most great and marvellous thing in all the World and is in its own place of all other things most highly desired by all Angels and Men and is the greatest Gift which in and by that Soul can possibly be given It is esteem of honour paid to and delight in all these great and most glorious things It contains in it self a desire to see GOD pleased with more than the fruition of all Worlds and of becoming it self the greatest Treasure to his eternal essence of all that is possible And if this desire be not satisfied all the grandeurs of his eternal Kingdom are to no purpose But the desire satisfied is a Tree of Life What the Sun is to the Eye that is Love to the Desire GODS infinite desire of our Love makes it infinitely delightful to him Davids purpose to build the Temple was more accepted than Solomons performance And if one Contrite groan be better than all Sacrifices to love GOD with all the Soul and Understanding is better than to give him all Worlds We sacrifice all by Loving him as we ought We see the Beauty and Glory of all and offer it all up to him with infinite Desire our selves also with infinite Gratitude Could we make millions of Worlds infinitely greater and more perfect than this they should all be his No delight no joy no pleasure can be greater to us than to see him reigning He gives all to us that we might give it all to him In our Affection and with our Love it is most delightful Our Affections are the flames and perfumes that enrich the Sacrifice He is a Spirit to be served in a Spiritual manner all that we would do we do Infinite desires and intentions of Pleasing him are real objects to his Eye The Goodness of the Soul and the Greatness of his Goodness consisteth in them A Will enlarged with an infinite Fancy is a prodigious depth of goodness when it is all Love It would do millions of things for its Object But GOD is incapable of more Worlds and all that are possible he can make himself our Magnificence must be shewn in something he cannot do unless he were in our Circumstance and which of all things in the World he knows most fit to be