fome colour in claiming a title and intereft in this bufinefs. 1. Civil wisdom and prudence, for the management of affairs. 2. Ability of learning and literature, but God rejecteth both these as of no ufe at all to the end and intent of true wisdom indeed. There is in the world that which is called understanding, but it comes to nothing; there is that which is called wifdom, but it is turned into folly, 1 Cor. i. 19. 20. God brings to nothing the underftanding of the prudent, and makes foolish the wifdom of the world. And if there be neither wifdom nor knowlege (as doubtlefs there is not) without the knowlege of God, Jer. viii. 9. it is all fhut up in the Lord Christ, John i. 18. No man hath feen God at any time, the only begotten Son which is in the bofom of the Father he hath revealed him. He is not feen at any other time, John v. 37. nor known upon any other account, but only the revelation of the Son: he hath manifefted him from his own bofom: and therefore ver. 9. it is faid that he is the true Light that lightneth every man that cometh into the world. The true Light which hath it in himself, and none hath any but from him, and all have it who come unto him; he who doth not fo, is in darkness.

1. The fum of all true wifdom and knowlege, may be reduced to thefe three heads.

1. The knowlege of God, his nature, and his properties.

2. The knowlege of ourselves in reference to the will of God concerning us.

3. Skill to walk in communion with God.

The knowlege of the works of God, and the chief end of all, doth neceffarily attend thefe. In these three is fummed up all true wisdom and know

lege;

lege; and not any of them is to any purpose to be obtained, or is manifested, but only in and by the Lord Christ.

God by the work of the creation, by the creation itself, did reveal himself in many of his properties, unto his creatures capable of his knowlege; his power, his goodness, his wifdom, his all-fufficiency are thereby known: this the apostle afferts, Rom. i. 19, 20, 21. ver. 19. he calls it, to gnofton tou theou; ver. 20. That is, his eternal power and Godhead, and ver. 21. a knowing of God: and all this by the creation. But yet there are fome properties of God, which all the works of creation cannot in any meafure reveal, or make known; as his patience, longfuffering, and forbearance. For all things being made good, there could be no place for the exercife of any of thefe properties, or manifestation of them. The whole fabric of heaven and earth confidered in itfelf, as at first created, will not discover any fuch thing as patience and forbearance in God; which yet are eminent properties of his nature, as himfelf proclaims and declares, Exod. xxxiv. 6, 7.

Wherefore the Lord goes further; and by the works of his providence in preferving and ruling the world which he made, difcovers and reveals these properties alfo. For whereas by curfing the earth, and filling all the elements oftentimes with figns of his anger and indignation, he hath as the apostle tells us, Rom. i. 18. Revealed from heaven his wrath against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, yet not proceeding immediately to destroy all things, he hath manifested his patience and forbearance to all: this Paul, Acts xiv. 16, 17. tells us, He fuffered all nations to walk in their own ways, yet he left not himself without witness, in that he L 3

did

did good, and gave rain from heaven and fruitful feafons, filling their hearts with food and gladness. A large account of his wisdom and goodness herein, the Pfalmift gives us, Pfal. civ. throughout. By these ways he bare witness to his own goodness and patience and fo it is faid, he endures with much long-fuffering, &c. Rom. ix. 22. But now here all the world is at a ftand; by all this they have but an obfcure glimpse of God, and fee not so much as his back parts. Mofes faw not that until he was put into the Rock, and that Rock was Chrift. There are fome of the most eminent and glorious properties of God, (I mean in the manifestation where of he will be most glorious, otherwise his properties are not to be compared) that there is not the leaft glimpfe to be attained of, out of the Lord Chrift, but only by, and in him; and fone that comparatively we have no light of, but in him, and of all the reft no true light, but by him.

Of the first fort, whereof not the leaft guefs and imagination can enter into the heart of man but only by Christ, are love, and pardoning mercy. Without

1. Love, I mean love unto finners. this, man is of all creatures most miferable; and there is not the leaft glimpfe of it that can poffibly be difcovered but in Chrift; the Holy Ghost fays, 1 John iv. 3, 16. God is love: that is, not only of a loving and tender nature but one that will exercise himfelf in a difpenfation of his love, eternal love towards us; one that hath purposes of love for us from of old, and will fulfil them all towards us in due feafon. But how is this demonftrated, how may we attain an acquaintance with it? he tells us, ver. o. In this was minifefted the love of God, becaufe God fent his only begotten Son into the world

that

that we might live through him. This is the only discovery that God hath made, of any fuch property in his nature, or of any thought of exercising it towards finners, in that he hath fent Jesus Christ into the world that we might live by him; where now is the wife, where is the fcribe, where is the difputer of this world, with all their wisdom? Their voice must be that of the hypocrites in Sion, Ifa. xxxiii. 14, 15. That wisdom which cannot teach me that God is love, fhall ever pass for folly. Let men go to the fun, moon and ftars, to fhowers of rain and fruitful feafons, and answer truly, what by them, they learn hereof? Let them not think themfelves wifer or better than those that went before them, who, to a man, got nothing by them, but being left unexcufable.

2. Pardoning mercy or grace; without this even his love would be fruitlefs. What difcovery may be made of this by a finful man, may be seen in the Father of us all; who when he had finned had no reserve for mercy, but hid himself, Gen. iii. 8. He did it when the wind did but a little blow at the presence of God and he did it foolishly thinking to hide himself among trees, Pfal. cxxxix. 7, 8. The law was given by Mofes, grace and truth came by Jefus Christ, John i. 7. Grace in the truth and substance, pardoning mercy that comes by Christ alone, that pardoning mercy which is manifefted in the gospel, and wherein God will be glorified to all eternity, Eph. i. 6. I mean not that general mercy, that velleity of acceptance which fome put their hopes in, that which to ascribe unto God is the greatest difhonour that can be done him, fhines not with one ray out of Chrift; it is wholly treasured up in him, and revealed by him. Pardoning mercy i

God

God's free gracious acceptance of a finner upon fatisfaction made to his juftice in the blood of Jefus. Nor is any difcovery of it, but as relating to the fatisfaction of justice, consistent with the glory of God. It is a mercy of inconceivable condefcenfion in forgiveness, tempered with exact justice and severity, Rom. iii. 25. God is faid, to set forth Christ to be a propitiation, in his blood, to declare his righteoufnefs in the forgiveness of fin. His righteoufnefs is alfo manifefted in the business of forgiveness of fins; and therefore it is every where faid to be wholly in Chrift, Eph. i. 7. So that this gospel grace, and pardoning mercy is alone purchafed by him, and revealed in him. And this was the main end of all typical inftitutions, to manifeft that remiffion, and forgiveness is wholly wrapt up in the Lord Chrift, and that out of him there is not the leaft conjecture to be made of it, nor the least morfel to be tafted. Had not God fet forth the Lord Christ, all the angels in heaven and men on earth could not have apprehended, that there had been any fuch thing in the nature of God, as this grace, of pardoning mercy. The apostle afferts the full manifeftation, as well as the exercise of this mercy to be in Chrift only, Tit. iii. 4, 5. After that the kindness and love of God our Saviour towards man appeared; namely in the fending of Christ, and the declaration of him in the gofpel, then was this pardoning mercy, and falvation not by works, difcovered.

And thefe are of those properties of God, whereby he will be known, whereof there is not the leaft glimpfe to be obtained, but by and in Christ; and whoever knows him not by thefe, knows him not at all. They know an idol, and not the only true

God.