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I Doe not beleeue, that GOD ele∣cted me, for the foreseen good works, that I would doe; for I dis∣clayme all inherent good∣nesse by nature; and doe belieue that God giues me * 1.1 both will and the power to doe good; and all the good that I doe, I ac∣knowledge to be of God: and the euill that I doe, to bee of my selfe: therefore the good that I doe, I doe not beleeue to be the cause, but the effect of mine election. I confesse
that God did foreknow I would doe good, not but that hee likewise forepur∣posed to indue me with his owne Spirit, whereby I should doe it, therefore is not the worke mine, but the Spirits, that God hath giuen me: for, if I should beleeue that God foresaw the good that I (setting the Spirit of God aside) should doe, and therefore did elect mee; were it not to beleeue, that mine own workes were the cause of * 1.2 mine election, and so as∣sume vnto my selfe power to worke mine owne sal∣uation? which God forbid God giues the wil and the power to worke, and re∣wards the worke, not as a
debt hee owes mee for my worke; but as he first gaue me the will and the power freely, so hee rewards not my work, but manifesteth his mercie, wherein hee likewise, as hee freely ele∣cted * 1.3 mee, so hee freely be∣stowes vpon me his salua∣tion, through his owne meanes: and therefore I ra∣ther vtterly condemne my best works, then to expect any meritorious reward for them.
I feele the force of mine owne corruption daily, and that appeares in the whole course of my life by the fruits, which of them-selues * 1.4 are euer euill, which I cannot suppresse but by the grace of GOD in Christ.
If I knewe nothing by my selfe, to yeeld me cause of doubt, yet were not I thereby iustified. But I know no good in my selfe, what shall I say then? am I condemned? God forbid: for as God did freely elect mee, so hee freely iustifies mee, not for mine owne good workes, the best of which are imperfect, but of his owne free mercie, by imputing Christs righte∣ousnesse and merits vnto me; in whom, and with whom, a Crowne of glo∣rie is laid vp in heauen, e∣uen for mee: from whose fulnesse, I receiue euen here, * 1.5 grace for grace: whereby, and not by any meanes of mine owne, I doe grow
and increase, and the elder I waxe in Christ, the more I fasten my roote, and the more I flourish in the Spirit: for, They that are planted in the Courts of the Lord, shall flourish in their age, and bring forth fruit: and happy are they that are in Christ Iesus, whom neither life, nor death, nor things present, nor things to come, shall se∣parate from the loue of God.
Shall not Death then se∣parate * 1.6 me from Christ? no, it shall not only not sepa∣rate me, but it shall bring me into his Real and Roy∣all presence, into his King∣dome of glorie, new Ierusa∣lem; where I shall see his Maiestie, as farre to ex∣ceed the glorie of Salomon
in the day of his magnifi∣cent Coronation, as the Sunne exceedes in bright∣nesse the darkest and blac∣kest cloud.
Is this then the hurt that Death can doe vnto mee? and shall I feare it? will a wise man refuse a rich pos∣session, for not passing to it by an ordinarie bridge, by which hee hath seene millions goe before him? And shall I desire to dwell in this base and beggerly cottage, this ruined and rotten house of clay, in la∣bour, trauaile, care, feare, trouble, enuie, griefe, and a thousand miseries, rather then passing by the ordi∣naire way of death, to in∣herit a glorious Kingdom? God forbid.
I desire farre rather to be * 1.7 with CHRIST in glorie, which glorie, I beleeue, farre surpasseth, both what is or can be spoken, or con∣ceiued of it. The very An∣gels that presently partake of it, cannot expresse it: nay, the holy Ghost, though hee doe assure vs that it is prepared for all Gods e∣lect, yet the very fulnesse * 1.8 of it is not reueiled, words cannot so sufficiently de∣clare it, as that the most il∣luminate man can expresse it; not Paul himselfe, though hee were taken vp into the third Heauen, where hee heard, and no doubt, sawe wonderfull things, yet could hee not discouer them to the full
apprehension of any mor∣tall.
But, by the glorie that * 1.9 God hath reueiled in his works, by the Firmament, the Sunne, the Moone, the Stars, the Seas, the Earth, the order and course of all his creatures visible, may leade vs to iudge by way of comparison, That if the things, for the vse of mor∣tall men here, bee so won∣derfull and glorious, what are they that are in the heauens, where no base or corrupt thing commeth?
The Sunne is a creature * 1.10 that shall be darkned, yet who is able firmely to fixe his eyes vpon the glorie thereof? How much more glorious, may I thinke, is
he that made it? whom ne∣uer mortall man could e∣uer see and liue. Moses seeing, as it were, but the shaddow of his glorie, re∣ceiued yet such a trāsplen∣dencie of glorie in his coū∣tenance, through that litle sparke of Gods glorie, as the Children of Israel could not behold the brightnes of it.
What glorie then, shall I thinke the Elect of God shall receiue from GODS al-fulnesse of glorie, which is so vnspeakeable as can∣not bee conceiued? But as the Iron, partaking the feruent heate of the fire, becomes like vnto the fire: so I, with the rest of Gods Saints, shall so partake of
his glorie, as this my cor∣ruptible bodie, when it hath put on incorruption, shall become totally glo∣rious, through the tran∣splendencie of his glorie.
The bodie of man is a * 1.11 beautifull visible worke∣manship, yet it is of the earth, earthie: how much more beautifull is the in∣uisible soule of the rege∣nerate man, which is of heauen, heauenly; spiri∣tuall and inuisible?
Seeing then that earth∣ly and visible creatures be so glorious, as they doe administer great content∣ment and delight vnto the carnall eye: How much more will Gods inuisible works delight the spiritu∣all
sense of Gods elect, when they shall at full par∣take of them? Who then will not long and desire to see them? much more to be partake•• of them? espe∣cially of that glory, which whosoeuer inioyeth, shall bee delighted with no o∣ther obiect? And I verily beleeue, that one day I shall see it, and say with Dauid: As I haue heard, so haue I seene in the Citie of our God: and shall not but acknowledge, that it exceedes all that I haue heard with mine eares, seene with mine eyes, or conceiued with my heart, by infinite degrees.
So gracious is God, as he giueth greater things,
then man can conceiue by * 1.12 his promises: & although I cannot as yet sufficiently conceiue, much lesse speak of the surpassing excellen∣cie of that glorie; yet will I meditate thereupon: the more to make the plea∣sures of this life of no account, and the more to kindle in me a desire to be dissolued, to enioy that vnspeakable glorie, which cannot be attayned vnto, but by death.
The word Glorie im∣ports * 1.13 matter of dignitie; and I see the whole multi∣tude of humane creatures desire it; bending all their studies and endeuours to obtayne it. But, alas, what is it? is it not like
Ionahs Gourd, growing * 1.14 vp and withering all in a day?
What man then of ordi∣narie vnderstanding, will be so earnest & eager in at∣chieuing this moment any, and so remisse and care∣lesse in seeking to obtayne that perpetuall glorie? for, I see that this worlds glo∣rie * 1.15 is ful of suspicion, care, feare, troubles, and dan∣gers, euen in the best e∣state subiect to change: but the future shall be free, full * 1.16 of all constant happinesse and absolute content, and therefore more to be desi∣red then all humane great∣nesse: it fades not, as did glorious Salomons, and o∣ther temporall Potentates
and Princes; who yet, may truely challenge condigne glorie aboue others in this life, through their morall vertues; yet not thereby truely glorious, without the assurāce of that which is to come, which, nothing shall be able to blemish, as doe enemies, sicknesse, and crosses, dishonour and e∣clipse the earthly honored.
Gods iudgements also doe often fall vpon the vn∣duely dignified, not vpon * 1.17 the truely honourable, as they are honored by men, but as they are men offen∣ding the GOD of glorie, Who exalteth the humble & * 1.18 meeke, and casteth the inso∣lent and proud (euen Prin∣ces) downe to the ground.
The glorie to come shall no man or matter blemish, or diminish, which glorie I see now, but as through a vaile, as in a glasse much imperfectly: but when I shall be dissolued, & when my earthly and spirituall parts shall be made one a∣gaine, then, I verily be∣leeue, that I shall see at ful, and freely enioy that ine∣stimable glorie, namely, my glorified Redeemer, face to face, and shall be trans∣formed into the same glo∣rie; so that nothing shall bee left in mee, but that which shal be wholly glo∣rious.
O, how hath the Lord magnified his mercie to∣wards me! He hath raysed
mee from the dust: hee hath * 1.19 deliuered my soule from hell, and assured mee to sit with him in glorie, and to be filled with the ioyes that are at his right hand, to eate at his Table, to drinke of the Ri∣uers of his pleasures: and in his light I shall see light, and bee changed by the sight of his countenance.
The faces of the iust shall shine as the Sunne in the fir∣mament, when the glorie of God shall shine vpon their soules and bodies to∣gether, changed from cor∣ruption, and made parta∣kers euen of the diuine na∣ture.
Can the tongue of Man * 1.20 or Angels then, expresse the aboundant felicitie,
that the Saints of God shal enioy? no, it confoundeth al the imagination of man, to conceiue the vnspeake∣able glorie that there will appeare, now darkely ap∣prehended through faith.
One torch giueth light to the whole roome where it burnes, but where there are many burning, the light is farre the greater. If one Sunne in the firma∣ment giue light to so am∣ple and spacious a world as we here liue in: and the face of euery iust man shal shine as the Sunne; what a glorious light and beauti∣full sight will there bee in the heauens, where milli∣ons of millions of glorified Men, with Angels, Arch∣angels,
Seraphins, and Che∣rubins, shall shine as so many bright and beauti∣full Sunnes together; all taking their light from that all-shining Light of lights, the Sonne of the li∣uing God, all knit toge∣ther in the band of one Spirit, in so sacred a com∣munion and vnion, that e∣uery one of them shall ac∣count the glorie of ano∣ther, the augmentation of his owne ioy, contrarie to the course and condition of the worldly glorious; who emulate and enuie all others that exceede or e∣qualize them in glorie! Moreouer, with what spi∣rituall ioy shall I behold my most louing Redeemer
and Sauiour Iesus Christ, sitting as absolute Prince of Glorie, by whose Merits I haue obtayned this sur∣passing glorie.
Rom. 7. 18, 19. and 2. 13.
Eph. 2. 8, 9.
Gal. 5. 4.
We can∣not sup∣presse sin, but by grace.
Iob. 1. 16.
The bene∣fit of death
The glory to come, farre ex∣ceedes mans vn∣derstan∣ding.
Wordes cannot expresse the glorie to come.
If worldly things be glorious, how much more are heauenly?
Mat. 24. 29 Luk. 21. 25.
Great dif∣ference betweene the beau∣tie of the soule and body.
Eternall ioy can∣not be had but by death.
The word Glorie, what it imports.
Ion. 4. 6, 7.
The glory of the World, what it is.
Future glorie.
Act. 12. 23.
Luk. 14. 11.
Gods wonderful fauours towards vs.
The glory to come vnspeake∣able.