dreadful Downfal of him that is alone, Chrift's Bride may difcern her unparallelled Happiness by being wedded to Chrift, 2 Cor. xi. 2. She is now fo near a Kin to God the Father as to be ftyled by the Holy Ghoft The King's Daughter, who is all glorious within, because Chrift dwells in her Heart, the Hope of Glory, and her Clothing is of wrought Gold, compleat Redemption, Pjal. xlv. 13. The Holy Ghoft ftyleth it wrought Gold, on account of the ineftimable Worth of it, for it was defigned from Eternity, and actually begun by Chrift her Hufband the Moment he defcended from Heaven, and became the holy Seed, which produced the holy Body that was born of the Virgin Mary; and altho' he was God, and wrought upon it every Day of his Life, yet it was not compleated until the Moment he cryed out It is finished, and bowed his Head, and gave up the Ghaft, John xix. 30. And this ineftimable Gold - wrought Robe of Righteousness, Christ the Maker and Owner thereof gives on the Wedding day unto the Bride, (every Soul whom he efpoufes) as appears by what follows: for faith he, I will betroth, i. e. marry thee to me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in Righteoufnefs, and in Judgment, and in Loving-kindness, and in Mercies: and I will even betroth thee unto me in Faithfulness, and thou fhalt knowthe Lord," Hof. ii. 19, 20. Now thou wilt fay, "I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my Soul fhall be joyful in my God, for he hath clothed me with the Garments of Salvation, he hath covered me with a Robe of Righteoufnefs as a Bridegroom decketh himself with Ornaments, and as a Bride adorneth herself with her Jewels," Ifa. Ixi. 10. As Chrift the Bridegroom decketh himself with the ornamental Righteoufnefs of the Law, having fulfilled it, and made it honourable, and then imputes

66

this

this ornamental Rightcoufnefs to his Bride, Rom. iv. 6, 11. fo the receives it by Faith, and is thereby juftified before God; and thus fhe adorneth herfelt with every inestimable Jewel, which God has annexed to his Inheritance, and promised to the Man who always keeps and never breaks his Law, which is every precious Promife of Reward which God has given in all the Scriptures to his Church, and includes more than can be expreffed, even "fuch as Eye hath not feen, nor Ear heard, neither hath it entered into the Heart of Man to conceive the Things God has prepared and laid up for his Son's Bride, who loveth him," 1 Cor. ii. 9. And this will appear to be abundantly confirmed when we confider God's Love to her from Eternity: that he was chofen in Chrift before the Foundation of the World; that for the Purpofe of Salvation the World was created, and the Means of Grace given, that she should be holy and without Blame before him in Love, Eph. i. 4. Having faved us, and called us with an holy Calling, not according to our own good Works, but according to his own Purpose and Grace which was given us in Christ before the World began, 2 Tim. i. 9. Thus faith the Scripture, fpeaking in the prophetic Style, "The Lord hath appeared of old unto me (the Church) faying, I have loved thee with an everlasting Love, (i. e. from everlafting,) therefore with Lovingkindness have I drawn thee." Again, "I will build thee, and thou shalt be built, O Virgin of Ifrael (O Bride of God) for thy Maker is thine Husband, the Lord of Hofts is his Name: thou fhalt be adorned again with thy Tabrets, and fhalt go forth in the Dances of them that make merry," Jer. xxxi. 3, 4. Ifa. liv. 5. viz. with thofe who praife the Lord with joyful Lips, Pfal. Ixiii. 5. And being adorned with Chrift's Righteoufnefs, thou fhalt dance

with Joy in the Holy Ghoft, like David before the Ark of God, 2 Sam. vi. 2, 14. And as David had Reafon to rejoice in having the Ark of God in Poffeffion, being a Type of Chrift, who is the Fountain of all Bleffings; it being the Ark of the Covenant between God and his Church under the Law, wherein was kept the two Tables, containing the ten Commandments, the golden Pot with Manna, and Aaron's Rod that budded, Heb. ix. 4. So the Believer hath Reafon to rejoice in Chrift, who is the true Ark of the Covenant given by God to the People (his Church) Ifa. xlii. 6. under the Gofpel, who kept entire in himfelf the ten Commandments, in the Believer's (his Bride's) behalf, without breaking one Jot or Title of them. And in him is the true golden Pot of hidden Manna, viz. his loving Heart, his Favour, better than Life itself; which he giveth to him that overcometh; and all the Branches of the Root of fee, the Offfpring of David, when kept fafe in Chrift, the true Ark, bud and blossom like Aaron's Rod: for he that abideth in me, faith Chrift, the same beareth much Fruit. But until this glorious Root and Offspring of David, this bright and Morning Star arife in our Hearts, we continue dead and fruitless, and can do nothing, John xv. 5. But bleffed be God who defigned him from Eternity, to be the Day star and the Sun of Righteoufnefs, to arife and. give Light within the Heart of every one of his that cometh into the World, namely, the new World of Grace; and when he arifeth in the Soul, there is Healing in his Wings, Mal. iv. 2. God from Eternity, for the Bride's fake, decreed the Death of his Son, to ranfom her from the Power of Sin, the Sting of Death and the Bands of the Devil: for he was the Lamb flain from the Foundation of the World, Rev. xiii. 8. By Virtue of a

Covenant

Covenant made between God and Chrift before Sa tan made War in Heaven, or rebelled againit God, Rev. xii. 7. "The Lord poffeffed me, (faith Chrift) in the Beginning of his Way, before his Works of old. I was fet up from Everlafting, from the Beginning or ever the Earth was. When he prepared the Heavens, I was there: rejoicing always before him: rejoicing in the habitable Part of his Earth, and my Delights were with the Sons of Men," Prov. vii. 22, 23, 27, 30, 31. Thus we find Chrift had undertook to be the Surety of his Bride, before the Earth or Heavens were made, and delighted himself with the Thoughts of being by and by, in the Fulnefs of Time with the Sons of Men, not yet created: confequently we hear of the Formation of the World, of Man's Creation, of his Fall, and the Promise of Chrift, the Seed of the Woman, that fhould bruife the Serpent's Head, Gen. iii. 15. And we find that God was pleated in his great Mercy to promife Chrift to Adam the Evening of the fame Day wherein he fell. For God came to our Parents after the Fall, in the Cool of the Day, to convince them of their Error, which is often his Way of dealing with his People: he does not always convince or reprove immediately after the Committing of Sin, as we may obferve with Regard to David's Sin, reprehended by Nathan, 2 Sam. xii. 13. And after God's gracious Promise to Adam, all the Ordinances given by God for the Edification of the Church under the Mofaick Difpenfation, were Types of Chrift, and Shadows of heavenly Things to come; and not the very Image of the Things (or Sacrifice of Chrift) Heb. X. I. for the Law made nothing perfect, but was calculated to typify a better Covenant, Heb. vii. 19. Therefore when Chrift, who was given for a Covenant to the People, cometh into the World, he

faith,

faith, "Sacrifice and Offering thou wouldeft not, but a Body haft thou prepared me. In Burntofferings and Sacrifices for Sin thou haft no Pleafure. Then faid I, Lo! I come, (in the Volume of the Book it is written of me) to do thy Will, O God," Heb. x. 5, 6, 7. Now God takes away the Shadow to eftablifh (Chrift) the Substance; and when he had done the Will of God in fulfilling the Law, by his active Obedience in the Church's ftead; then it being the determinate Counfel of God that he fhould die for the Sins of his Bride: divine Juftice proclaims, "Awake, O Sword, against my Shepherd, and against the Man that is my Fellow, faith the Lord of Hofts, fmite the Shepherd, and the Sheep fhall be fcattered," Zech. xiii. 7. All which was performed when Chrift was crucified. His Difciples fled, and he was arraigned and condemned to the Crofs: then one of the Soldiers with his Spear pierced his Side, and forthwith came thereout Blood and Water, John xix. 34, 35Now the Fountain was opened according to the Promife," In that Day there fhall be a Fountain opened to the Houfe of David, and to the Inhabitants of Jerufalem, viz. the Church militant, for Sin and for uncleannefs," Zech. xiii. 1. It fhall be opened in the Side of the Man that is my Fellow, faith God, the Man that hath ftruck Hands, or entered Surety, I'll fmite him, the Shepherd, for the Sins of the Sheep, and I'll open a Fountain to wash them clean: thus, died Chrift, to juftify and fanctify his Bride. "For the Blood of Jefus Christ (and his only by Faith cleanfeth from all Sin," i John i. 7. "Known unto God are all his Works from the Foundation," Acts xv. 18. And Christ "faw of the Travel of his Soul, and was fatisfied,” Ifa. liii. 11. viz. fatisfied to lay down his Life, forafmuch as the Sheep fhould be thereby, gathered

into