caufe they first deferted God. And why God left Pharaoft, and why the Egyptians were left to their hardness of heart, any one will fee who confiders their preceding behaviour to the Ifraelites. Why did he afterwards defert the heathen nations? Because when they knew God, they honoured him not as God. Yea, fearch the Scriptures all over, and you will find no man forfaken of God, before he has forfaken God. Wherefore thofe words, He hath mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth, do not mean that God hardens or forfakes any man, without why or wherefore: feeing all the infpired Writings point out the cause, for which alone God forfakes man.

Lewis. But does not God himself fay to Pharaoh, For this fame purpofe have I raised thee up, that I might fhew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy; and whom he will he hardencth. Thou wilt fay then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath refifted his will! Nay, but O man! who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed fay unto him that formed it, Why haft thou made me thus? Here it seems, that Pharaoh was raifed up for punishment, and that it was God's will he should fin, that God might be glorified in his punishment. Fred. When God fays, For this purpofe have I raifed thee, it does not refer to his creation, as if God had created him to punishment; but when he was already wicked, God raised him up unto punifhment, on account of his wickednefs. His will here mentioned, is only, as was fhewn before, his permiffive will.

With regard to the Potter, we should obferve that here are two comparifons interwoven: the one, of veffels which are made unto difhonour; the other, of veffels which are broken. For to be broken, and to be made to difhonour, is not the fame thing. The former comparifon is this: as a potter, out of the fame mafs makes veffels, fome to honourable, fome to lefs honourable ufes, fo God, out of the fame mafs of mankind,

makes

makes fome men to be as eyes, or ears in the body of Chrift, (fuch as Prophets, Apoftles, Evangelifts,) others to be as the feet or lefs honourable parts. Such are thofe to whom God has not imparted fo large gifts, or raifed to fo high offices. And here none have reason to find fault with God, the Potter.

The other fimilitude is this. As a good and wife Potter makes no veffel on purpose to break it, fo God never created any man, on purpose to deftroy him. But if any vellel prove faulty, then he breaks it: and fo if any man prove wicked, God deftroys him. This is confirmed by St. Paul himself, faying, God willeth all men to be faved. And again, He hath concluded all under fin, that he may have mercy upon all. Mark that word, That he may have mercy upon all. It is therefore his will, not to deftroy, but to have mercy even upon finners. Wherefore when God is compared to a Potter, it is to a good potter, who is not willing to lofe his labour. We muft alfo take care, not to make this text contradict those others, wherein God is compared to a Father, who knoweth how to give good gifts to his children.

Lewis. But when God knew what men would perish, why did he create them? Fred. You may fuppofe God to speak to the wicked Ifraelites in the following manner. O Ifrael! I created you for falvation: it was my defign, that you should befaved, not deftroyed. Therefore, that you do perish, is wholly your own fault, who will not be faved; who will not do those things which I have commanded, which are neceffary for your falvation. If you afk, But did I not foreknow that you would refufe falvation? I anfwer, this is nothing to you. For my foreknowing it, neither makes me guilty, nor you innocent. For whether I foreknew it, or not, you are guilty, who refufed the falvation I offered. And I not only am blamelefs, but have deferved well of you, who have given you fo many benefits, and would have given you more, had not you yourselves hindered. Wherefore fuppofe I did not foreknow your perverseness, does not your ingratitude and obsti

nacy

nacy deferve punishment? And fuppofe I did, is not my goodness so much the greater, who fo loaded you with benefits, though I knew you would be ungrateful? Had I created you on purpose to destroy you, you might justly have complained. But as I created you to be faved, and you might have been faved if you would, you have only yourselves to blame. If you still afk, Why I created you, if I knew you would perifh? I answer, Woe unto the man that contendeth with his Maker; the clay with the potter! Shall the clay fay to the potter, Why makeft thou me thus? Woe to him, who afketh of his Father, why didft thou beget me? What is more unworthy, than for him who is created, to afk his Creator, why he created him? He might answer, You ought not to ask why I created you, but to thank me, that I did create you: and create you to happiness if you perifh it is your own fault, which I will turn to my own glory in punishing you. you on purpose to punish you: (this would bring me no glory) but deserve punishment, for making void my counfel against your felves.

you

Not that I created

This is the true account of St. Paul's fimilitude of the potter. The fum is, God created no man for deftruction. But as men are free agents, most of them will not obey God, and fo perish, and are called veffels of wrath. Not that they were created with that defign: but that was the event. Why the Apoftle files them veffels of wrath, appears from his own words: The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteoufness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteouf nefs, You fee, which are the veffels of wrath, namely, thofe men who hold the truth in unrighteoufnefs. If you fay, they were created for this purpose. You excufe them; whereas St. Paul fays, They are without excufe.

But let us weigh the paffage in Jeremiah, from which this fimilitude of the Potter is taken, chap. xviii. ver. 1, &c. The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, faying, Arife, and go down to the potter's houfe. Then I went down to

the

the potter's houfe, and behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the veffel that he made was marred: fo he made another veffel, as feemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the Lord came unto me, faying, 0 houfe of Ifrael, cannot I do with you as this potter? Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, fo are ye in my hand! At what inftant I fhall Speak concerning a nation and a kingdom, to pluck and to pull down, and to deftroy it: if that nation turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them. Now tell me, what is the caufe of God's changing his purpose, and revoking their punishment? Lewis. Their amendment. Fred. Therefore if that nation does not amend, it will be a vessel of wrath. Lewis. True. Fred. Therefore the wrath purposed against that nation may be avoided, as in the cafe of the Ninevites. Lewis. It may. Fred. Therefore that nation was not created to wrath. Lewis. It was not. Fred. And yet if it does not amend, wrath is purposed against it. Lewis. It is. Fred. You fee therefore, the purpose of God is not inevitable; but it is his will that even those who are by that purpose destined to death, fhould yet repent and live.

He goes on. At what inftant I fhall speak concerning a nation and a kingdom, to build and to plant it: if it do evil in my fight, then I will repent of the good wherewith I faid I would benefit them. Now tell me: when God fays to any nation, Thou shalt live, is it his will that they fhould? Lewis, It is. Fred. If that nation offends him, and fo procures its own deftruction, Does it not act contrary to his will? Lewis. Certainly. Fred. He does not then destroy it,, because he created it for deftruction, but because it would not obey him. Lewis. True. Fred. But he did not create it, to difobey him. Lewis. No; for he would not have promised it life, if he had created it to death. Fred. Therefore that nation becomes a veffel of wrath, through its own difobedience, not God's creation. On the whole then, God is a good potter, who makes no vessel, on purpose to destroy it.

A Sermon on Romans viii. 19, 20, 21, 22.

The earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the mani. feftation of the fons of God,

For the creature was made fubject to vanity, not willingly, but by reafon of him that fubjected it.

Yet in hope that the creature itself alfo fhall be delivered from the bondage of corruption, into the glorious liberty of the fons of God.

For we know, that the whole creation groaneth, and travaileth in pain together until now.

1.

NOTHIN

OTHING is more fure, than that as the Lord is loving to every man, fo his mercy is over all his works; all that have fenfe, all that are capable of pleasure or pain, of happiness or mifery. In confequence of this, he openeth his hand, and filleth all things living with plenteousness: he prepareth food for cattle, as well as herbs for the children of men. He provideth for the fowls of the air, feeding the young ravens when they cry unto him. He fendeth the Springs