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Show What it jignifteth, &c. ii God that jufli{itth, it u Chri/1 that dted, yta r3ther that iJ rifill ag.>i11. Bur this doth not render the Soul formo{am in confpdl~t, be1utiful in the Eye of God ; "'c therefore fJy there is alfo an a{ five righteoufiu[i imputed ro "'· Chrifl was not made of God vnly ji11 far ur, but he was rmde for us w1{dqme and righteoufiujJ: Will any Soul ask what need is there of rhis? J anfwer, to make the Soul comely. ·suppofe, (if you could fuppofe fach a thing amongll men,) the Princes Son in love with a poor condemned woman, he payeth a price to his Father for the womans life, and obt,ins,fo that now (he is nubili1, io a capacity to live and wmar· ry ro whom the will, but fhe is poor, fhe is cloathed with rags,fhe is not in an habit lit for a Prince. The Prince therefore out of his Wardrobe fupplies her with Robes, Jewels and other Ornaments; fo lhe is made comely through his comelinefs. A poor Soul by Chrills p1llive Obedience, by his being become a curfe, and fuffe" ring rhe wrath of God doe to !in, is difcharged from her guilt, from the Obligation the was under to death, but fl ill fi,e is a filthy nally crEature, fiill fhe is cloathed with rags, and is not a Bride prepared for fi1Ch an Husband ; fhe indeed now hath a righteouf. nefs, an inherent righteoufnefs ; for in the fame hour in which God jullifieth the Soul, he doth alfo regenerate the Soul and infufe new habits of Grace,in the firength of whjch fhe acteth: but this ri£,hteoufnefs is a rag, a pitiful imperfect righteoufnefs ; Chrifls active righteoufnefs is therefore imputed and reckoned to h<r: for though it be true that (orne tell us, that Chrifls actual Obe• dience of the Law was the obedience of the humane Nature, which being a creature was fo far indebted to God : yet by their leave, thofe acts of righteoufnefs were the acts of a perfon that was God and Man, and the hypofiatical union of the divine Nature to the humane, added an infinite value and vertue unto thofe a(ts; (o that he had of this righteoufnefs more than enough for himfelf, even enough to be reckqned and imputed to all Believers: . fo that by verrue of a gracious imputation of it, there is the come· linefs of Chrifr put upon the Soul; and,as the Prophet fpeaks, the Soul is made perfefr and comely,through this comelinefs ofChrill • . The Apofile tells us in Col. 2. ro. that in Chrifl w• are compleat. Two ways we are compleat in Chrifi, r. Compleatly righteous by jufiification through his bloud, 2. Compleatly c•mely and beau· tiful by imputation of hi/ 11ai11e olmlience. But this is ~not ~~ . . t. Secondly, The Spoufe of Chrill is alfo c~mdy through an i11r.rre11t comdinejl, Cant. r. to. Htr cbeel{f ar. comely with r01P! of 1e1Peil, her neck with ch•iHr of told. Thele are the habits ofher graces: the other was a Comelinefsonly imputed and reckon'd ro her as if it were hers. This is a comelinefs inherent and dweUing In ber, by rcafon of that change which God hath wrought in the powers of her Soul: and all her practice of rhefe habits are exceeding comely in the Eyes of the Lord Jefus. Grace is a comely thing in the eyes of Chrill; it is lovely in the root, in the bud, in the bloom. The Spou(c of Chrifl if lhe be in the eKerci(es of her grace is comely, though n,e be ill"'hc clefts of the Rocks. J havd now done with the Explication of the Propofition in both Bran· ches: I fhall not need in large upon the proof. For the gmtral termr: the Scripture proves it plainly they· are the words of the Text, Let me fee thy face ; for the plrticulars by which I opened this general, fou had the proof anneKed to every partkular. Now if you ask me whence it is that the Lord hath thus far indulged his Spoufe, and accounts herfo comely? I anfwer; Who caR give a reafon of Love? even of that Love which is betwixt creatures: who can give a reafon why one friend is fo dear toanother, who perhaps was never in a capacity to merit at his hands, why many a Wrfe fhould be fo lovely m the eyes of her Husb1nd? much lefs are we_able to give an account of divine Love. Mof'r could give no other account of the Lordsdiflinguifhing favour to the Jews, Deut.ro.15. Only the Lord h11d a delight in their fatberJ to love them, and he cho{e their .feed after them. Why doth the Lord de!ire to fee the face of his Spoufe? why doth he account their eounteHan&e Nmely l · Only becaufe the Lord had an eternal De· light in them to love them, to fix his heart upon them. This is the original reafon : for no man hath given unto God fir fl. In· deed, when once the Lord hath ptll his cometinefs upon us, when .once his new creation is m1de in any Soul, then he hlth a real caufe in us, though it b~ not ori~ir\ated in us. As the Lot-d when he had created the World, Gen. r. 3'· looked over his own work that he had made, and fa wit v.ry good: fo when the Lord ·hath jullified and regenerated a poor guilty, ugly, filthy Soul ; he can, c_hen l_oo.k over what he hlth m1de, and be pleated, 'and take ~ dehght 1111t as very good; he !nth nude it comely, and it is comely • . l 'come now to the Application ciftl)is Point. ' In .the firll place, Let every devout Soul be here wrap,! up into Vfe. x; au . |