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CHA P. X

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CHAP. I.

A fhort View of Gods All-fufficiency and condefcenfion in revealing himself. The various ways of Manifeftation; In the making of the World and Man; After the fall, in the moral Law; and in types and shadows: Laftly and above all, in and by Jesus Christ.

OD All-fufficient must needs be his own happiness; he hath his Being from himself, and his happinefs is no other than his being radiant with all Excellencies, and by intellectual and amatorious reflexions, turning back into the fruition of it felf. His Underftanding hath profpect enough in his own infinite Perfections: his Will hath reft enough in his own infinite Goodness; he needed not the pleasure of a World, who hath an eternal Son in his bofom to joy in; nor the breath of Angels or men, who hath an eternal Spirit of his own he is the Great All, comprizing all within himself: nay, unless he were fo, he could not be God. Had he let out no beams of his glory, or made no intelligent creatures to gather up and return them back to himself, his happiness would have fuffered no eclipfe or diminution at all: his Power would have been the fame, if it had folded up all B

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Chap. 1.

the poffible Worlds within its own arms, and poured forth never an one into being to be a monument of it self. His Wisdom the fame, if it had kept in all the orders and infinite harmonies lying in its bofom, and set forth no fuch feries and curious contexture of things as now are before our eyes. His Goodness might have kept an eternal Sabbath in it self, and never have come forth in those drops and models of Being which make up the Creation. His Eternity stood not in need of any fuch thing as time or a fucceffion of instants to measure its duration; nor his Immenfity of any fuch Temple as Heaven and Earth to dwell in, and fill with his prefence. His Holiness wanted not fuch pictures of it self as are in Laws or Saints; nor his Grace fuch a channel to run in as Covenants or Promises. His Majefty would have made no abatement, if it had had no train or host of creatures to wait upon it, or no rational ones among them, fuch as Angels and men, to found forth its praifes in the upper or lower World. Creature-praises, though in the highest tune of Angels, are but as filence to him, as that Text may be read, Pfalm 65. 1. Were he to be ferved according to his Greatness, all the men in the World would not be enough to make a Prieft, nor all the other creatures enough to make a Sacrifice fit for him; Is it any pleasure to him that thou art righteous, faith Eliphaz, Job 22.3? No doubt he takes pleasure in our righteousness, but the complacence is without indigence; and while he likes it, he wants. it not.

That fuch an infinite All-fufficient One should manifeft himself, must needs be an act of admirable fupereffluent Goodness;fuch as indeed could not be done without tooping down below his own Infinity, that he might

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