is filent on the account thereof. Or reft in his love, that is, he will not remove it; he will not feek farther for another object. It fhall make its abode upon the foul where it is once fixed, for ever. And complacency or delight: he rejoiceth with finging, as one that is fully fatisfied in that object he hath fixed his love on. Here are two words ufed to exprefs the delight and joy that God hath in his love. The first denotes the inward affection of the mind, joy of heart; and to fet out the intenfenefs hereof, it is faid, he fhall do it in gladness, or with joy; to have joy of heart in gladness is the highest expreffion of delight in love: the latter word denotes not the inward affection, but the outward demonstration of it: It is to exult in outward demonstration of internal delight and joy. Tripudiary; to leap as men overcome with fome joyful fürprifal. And therefore God is faid to do this, ·with a joyful sound, or finging: to rejoice with gladnefs of heart, to exult with finging and praife argues the greatest delightand complacency poffible. When he would exprefs the contrary of this love, he fays, he was not well pleafed, 1 Cor. x. 5. he fixed not his delight, nor reft on them. And if any man draw back, the Lord's foul hath no pleasure in him, Heb x. 38. Jerem. xxii 28. Hof. viii. 8. Mark i. 10. He takes pleasure in thofe that abide with him. He fings to his church, A vineyard of red wine, I the Lord do keep it, Ifa. xxvii. 3 Pfal. exlvi. 11. cxlix 4 There is reft, and complacency in his love. There is in the Hebrew, but a metathefis of a letter between the word that fignifies a love of will and defire (is fo to love) and that which denotes a love of reft and acquiefcency, (which is) and both are applied to God. He wills good to us, that he may reft in that will. Some lay, to love, is perfectly to acquiefce in the thing loved.

And when God calls his Son, beloved, Matth. iii. 1. he adds as an expofition of it, in whom I reft well pleafed.

2. The return that the faints make unto him to compleat communion with him herein, holds fome analogy with his love in this; for it is a love alfo of reft and delight. Return to thy reft O my foul, fays David, Pfal. cxvi. 7. He makes God his reft; that is, he in whom his foul doth reft, without feeking further, for a more fuitable and defirable object Whom have I, faith he, in heaven but thee, and there is none on earth that I defire befides thee, Pfal. Ixxiii, 25. Thus the foul gathers in itself from all its wandrings, from all other beloveds to reft in God alone, to fatiate and content himself in him, choofing the Father for his present and eternal reft. And this alfo with delight. Thy loving kindness, faith the Pfalmift, is better than life, therefore will I praife thee, Pfal xiii. 3. I will not deny, but life in a fingle confideration fometimes is fo expreffed: but always emphatically; fo that the whole life, with all the concernments of it, which may render it confiderable, are thereby intended. Auftin on this place reading it fuper vitas, extends it to the feveral courfes of life that men engage themselves in. Life in the whole continuance of it with all its advantages whatever, is at least intended. Suppofing himfelf in the jaws of death, rolling into the grave through innumerable troubles, yet he found more fweetness in God, than in a long life, under its beft and most noble confiderations, attended with all enjoyments that make it pleafant and comfortable. From both thefe, is that of the church in Hofea xiv. 3. Abur fball not fave us, we will not ride upon horfes, neither will we fay any more to the work of our hands, ye are our gods, for in thee the fatherless findeth mercy. They reject the most goodly appearances of reft and con

D

tentment, to make up all in God, on whom they caft themselves as otherwife helplefs orphans.

2. The mutual love of God and the faints agree in this, that the way of communicating the illues and fruits of thefe loves, is only in Chrift. The Father communicates no iffue of his love unto us, but through Chrift: and we make no return of love unto him but through Christ. He is the treasure wherein the Father difpofeth all the riches of his grace, taken from the bottomlets mine of his eternal love; and he is the Prieft, into whole hand we put all the offerings, that we return unto the Father. Thence he is firit, and by way of eminency faid to love the Son: not only as his eternai Son, as he was the delight of his foul before the foundation of the worid, Prov. viii. 30. but also as our Mediator, and the means of conveying his love to us, Matth. iii. `1 7. John iii. 33. John v. 21. John. x. 17. John xv. 9. John xvir 24. And we are faid through him to believe in, and to have access to God.

1. The Father loves us, and choofeth us before the foundation of the world; but in the purfuit of that love, he bleffeth us with all spiritual bleffings in heavenly places in Chrift, Eph. i. 3, 4. From this love, he Jheds or pours out the Holy Spirit richly upon us, through Jefus Chrift our Saviour, Tit. iii. 6. In the pouring out of his love, there is not one drop falls befides the Lord Chrift. The holy anointing oil, was all poured on the head of Aaron, Pfal. cxxxiii. 2. and thence went down to the skirts of his cloathing. Love is firft poured out on Chrift; and from him, it drops as the dew of Hermon upon the fouls of his faints, The Father will have him to have the pre-eminence in all things, Col. i. 18. It pleafed him that in him all fulness fhould drell, ver. 19 that of his fulness we might receive, and grace for grace, John i. 16. Though the love of the Father's purpose and

good pleasure, have its rife and foundation in his mere grace and will, yet the defign of its accomplishment is only in Christ. All the fruits of it are first given to him; and it is in him only that they are difpenfed to us. So that though the faints may, nay do fee an infinite ocean of love unto them in the bofom of the Father, yet they are not to look for one drop from him, but what comes through Christ. He is the only means of communication. Love in the Father, is like honey in the flower; it must be in the combe, before it be for our ufe. Chrift must extract and prepare this honey for us He draws this water from the fountain, through union and difpenfation of fulnefs, we by faith from the wells of falvation that are in him. This was in part before difcovered.

2. Our returns are all in him, and by him alfo And well is it with us, that it is fo. What lame and blind facrifices fhould we otherwife prefent unto God? He bears the iniquities of our offerings, and he adds incenfe unto our prayers. Our love is fixed on the Father, but it is conveyed to him, through the Son of his love. He is the only way for our graces, as well as our perfons, to go unto God: through him paffeth all our defire, our delight, our complacency, our obedience. Of which more after

wards.

Now in these two things, there is fome refemblance, between that mutual love of the Father and the faints, wherein they hold communion.

[2.] There are fundry things wherein they differ. (1.) The love of God is a love of bounty, our love unto him is a love of duty.

His

1. The love of the Father is a love of bounty, a defcending love. Such a love as carries him out to great things for us. of all difpenfations towards

do good things to us, love lyes at the bottom

us and we scarce any where find any mention of it, but it is held out as the caufe and fountain of fome free gift flowing from it. He loves us and fends his Son to die for us: he loves us, and bleffeth us with all fpiritual bleflings. Loving is choosing, Rom. ix. II, 12. He loves us and chaftifeth us. A love like that of the heavens to the earth, when being full of rain, they power forth fhowers to make it fruitful: as the fea communicates his waters to the rivers, by the way of bounty, out of its own fulness; they return unto it only what they receive from it. It is the love of a Spring, of a Fountain, always communicating. A love from whence proceeds every thing that is lovely in its object. It infufeth into, and creates goodness in the perfons beloved; and this anfwers the defcription of love given by the Philofopher: To love, faith he, is to with well to thofe who are thought good, and with might to endeavour to be of that number.' He that loves, works out good to them he loveth, as he is able. God's power and will are commenfurate. What he willeth

he worketh.

2. Our love unto God, is a love of duty: the love of a child. His love defcends upon us in bounty and fruitfulness; our love afcends unto him, in duty and thankfulness. He adds to us by his love, we nothing to him by ours. Our goodness extends not unto him. Though our love be fixed on him immediately, yet no fruit of our love reacheth him immediately, though he requires our love; he is not benefited by it, Job xxxv. 5, 6, 7, 8. Rom. xi. 35. Job xxii. 2, 3. It is indeed made up of these four things. 1. Reft. 2. Lelight. 3. Reverence. 4. Obedience. By thefe do we hold communion with the Father in his love. Hence God calls that love which is due to him as a Father, honour, Mal. i. 6. If I be a