Did he promise

promise to be Abraham's God? So he was. to give the land of Canaan to his seed for an inheritance? So he did. Did he promise to send his Son into the world, and to set him up a kingdom upon earth? Even so he has done : And he is in like manner true and faithful to all his promises, which he has made to his people. And did he threaten to drown the old world....to make Israel wander forty years in the wilderness....to deliver them into the hands of their enemies, at what time soever they should forsake him, and go and serve other gods, and, finally, to send them captives into Babylon for sev enty years? Even so he has done. God's word may always be depended upon; for what he designs, that he says; and what he says, that he will do. And this is another of the glorious perfections of his nature.

Thus all the perfections of God are discovered in his government of the world. By his conduct we may see what he is, and learn the very temper of his heart. And now, I might go through his other works....his redeeming, justifying, sanctifying sinners, and bringing them to eternal glory at last,and shew how his glorious perfections shine forth in them. But I have already hinted at some of these things, and shall have occasion afterwards to view the divine perfections shining forth in these works of God, when I come to consider the nature of the gospel. Sufficient has been said to answer my present purpose; and, therefore, for brevity's sake, I will proceed no further here. Thus, then, we see how the perfections of God are manifested in his works.

Secondly. The same representation is made of God in his WORD: For these great works of God....his creating, preserying and governing the world....his redeeming, sanctifying and saving sinners, are the subject-matter of all the Bible. God, in his works, acts out his perfections, and, in his word, lays the whole before our eyes in writing. Therein he has told us what he has done, and what he intends to do; and so has delineated his glorious perfections in the plainest manner. In his word, God has revealed himself to the children of men..,.has manifest

ed and shewn what he is. But how? Why, by declaring and holding forth his works, as that in which he has exhibited the image of himself. Thus, the scriptures begin with an account of God's creating the world, and goes on throughout all the Old Testament, informing how he preserves and governs it: And, then, in the New Testament, we are informed more particularly how he redeems, justifies, sanctifies, and saves sinners. And now, as the actions of a man discover the temper and disposition of his heart, and shew what he is, so the works of God, from first to last, all taken together, hold forth an exact representation of himself. If we will begin with God's creating the world, and survey all his conduct in the light of scripture....his conduct towards man before the fall, and after the fall....his con duct towards Abel and Cain, Enoch and Noah, and all the old world....his conduct towards Lot and Sodom-towards Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and Joseph-towards the children of Israel, in Egypt, at the Red-Sea, in the wilderness, at Sinai, at Massah, at Taberah, &c....and in the times of Joshua, of their Judges, of their Kings, &c. and then come into the New Testament, and survey his conduct with relation to the redemption and salvation of sinners, and then look forward to the great judgment-day, and see his whole scheme finished....see the result, the conclusion and end of all; look up to heaven and take a view of that world, and look down to hell and survey the state of things there; from the whole we may see what God is: for, in the whole, God exerts his nature, and, by the whole, God designs to exhibit an exact representation of himself. And, then, are our apprehensions of God right, and according to truth, when we take in that very representation which he has made of himself: And now to account him infinitely glorious in being what he is, and to love him with all our hearts, because he is what he is, is the very thing which the law of God requires.

And, indeed, so plain is that representation which God has made of himself, by his works and in his word; and he is really so infinitely glorious in being what he is, that were not mankind, through their exceeding great depravity, entirely void of a right

taste and relish for true beauty, they could not but be even ravished with the divine Being. They would naturally feel as they do in heaven, and naturally speak their language, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory! ....Isai. vi. 3. But such is the vile temper of sinful, apostate creatures, that they are not only blind to the moral excellency of the divine nature, but are even in a stated, habitual contrariAnd ety to God in the frame of their hearts....Rom. viii. 7. hence, the manifestation which God has made of himself, can find no place in their hearts....John viii. 37. They cannot attend to things of such a nature, (verse 43.) because so disagreeable to their taste; for (verse 47.) He that is of God, heareth God's word; ye, therefore, hear them not, because ye are not of God. It is hard to bring unregenerate men so much as to have right notions of what God is, because he is a Being in his nature so contrary and disagreeable to them. They do not like to retain God in their knowledge....Rom. i. 28. Men had rather that God was another kind of Being, different from what he really is, and more like themselves-one that would suit their temper, and serve their interest: and, therefore, they frame such an one in their own fancy, and then fall down and worship the false image which they have set up. From hence it is, that all those false notions of God have taken their rise, which have always filled the world. But were men brought to have right notions of what God is, and to take in that very representation which he has made of himself, by his works and in his word; yet they would be so far from accounting him infinitely glorious in being what he is, that they would see no form or comeliness in him wherefore they should desire him: but would feel the like malignant spirit towards him as the Jews did towards their prophets, and towards Christ and his apostles, only in a worse degree. The same temper which caused the exercise of such enmity towards their prophets, and towards Christ and his apostles, would have caused as great or greater towards God himself, had they but had right notions of him. And the clearer apprehension a sinner has of God, the more will his enmity ex

ert itself; because a sinful nature and a holy nature are diametrically opposite to each other: And, therefore, the clearest external revelation of God cannot bring sinners to love him. All the world will see just what kind of Being he is at the day of judgment, and that in a very plain and clear manner: But yet they whose nature it is to hate him for being what he is, will hate him still; yea, hate him more than ever: And, therefore, besides the external revelation which God has made of himself, by his works and in his word, there is an absolute necessity that he should internally reveal himself in his glory to the heart of a sinner, in order to beget divine love there: Which brings me to add,

Thirdly. God reveals his infinite glory in being what he is in the hearts of sinners, by his holy SPIRIT....Mat. xi. 25,27. By his works and in his word he has revealed what he is, and that in a manner sufficiently plain-even so plainly that there is no need at all of any further objective revelation; and he is really infinitely glorious in being what he is: Now, therefore, if we would rightly attend to that revelation which God has made of himself, we could not but have right apprehensions of him; and if we had a good taste for true beauty, we could not but be rav ished with his glory: but we are naturally disinclined to right apprehensions of God, and are entirely destitute of a true taste for moral beauty: And hence we may learn what kind of inward illumination we stand in need of from the spirit of God. We do not need the holy spirit to reveal any new truths concerning God, not already revealed; for the external revelation which he has made of himself, is sufficiently full:-we do not need to have the holy spirit immediately reveal all these truths concerning God over again to us, by way of objective revelation, or immediate inspiration; because the external revelation already made is sufficiently plain: We only need (1) to be effectually awakened, to attend to those manifestations which he has made of himself in his works and word, that we may see what he is: And (2) to have a spiritual taste imparted to us, by the immediate influence of the Holy Ghost, that we may have a sense of

his infinite glory in being such: For these two will lay an effectual foundation in our hearts for that love which the law requires. By the common inflences of the spirit, we may be awakened to a realizing sight and sense of what God is; and, by the special and sanctifying influences of the spirit, we may receive a sense of his infinite glory in being such: And also the sense of his glory will naturally cause us to see more clearly what God is : for a sense of the moral excellency of the divine nature fixes our thoughts on God; and the more our thoughts are fixed, the more distinctly we see what he is: And while we see him to be what he is, and see his infinite glory in being such, hereby a divine love is naturally enkindled in our hearts. And thus, He that commanded the light to shine out of darkness, shines in our hearts, and gives us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God: And so we all, with open face, behold, as in a glass, the glory of the Lord, and are changed into the same image...II Cor. iii. 18. and iv. 6. A sight of the moral excellency of the di vine nature makes God appear infinitely glorious in every respect. Those things in God, which before appeared exceeding dreadful, now appear unspeakably glorious: His sovereignty appears glorious, because now we see he is fit to be a sovereign, and that it is fit and right he should do what he will with his own His justice appears glorious, because now we see the infinite evil of sin; and a consideration of his infinite understanding and almighty power enhances his glory: And while we view what he is, and see his greatness and glory, and consider his original, entire, underived right to all things, we begin to see why he assumes the character of most high God, supreme Lord, and sovereign Governor of the whole world; and we resign the throne to him, and take our places, and become his willing subjects; and our hearts are framed to love him, and fear him, and trust in him through Jesus Christ; and we give up ourselves to him, to walk in all his ways and keep all his commands, seeking his glory: And thus a sight and sense of the infinite dignity, greatness, glory and excellency of the most high God, lays the first foundation for a divine love. God's being what he is,