having saving uptakings of the gospel, Paul mentions "the eyes of their understanding being enlightened," Eph. i. 18. Whether as to the law or the gospel, this promise, illustrated by fuch other scriptures, feems to infinuate, that faith is properly and immediately feated in the understanding.

In the enjoyment of this promise, the eyes of finners shall be opened as to themselves: they shall see their natural and practical guilt, their original and actual fin, their total depravity, universal corruption, and absolute disconformity to the image of God: they shall see the true demerit of their characters, as guilty finners; rendering them obnoxious to the divine displeasure, expofing them, foul and body, for time and eternity, to the wrath of God: they shall fee, not only that they are unworthy of any favour, but that they justly deserve every frown: shall fee, that they cannot deliver or rescue their own fouls, cannot better their covenant ftate, cannot appease the divine wrath, nor acquire and procure the divine absolution; and fee, that they are fpiritually, as well as legally dead; and that, as they have destroyed, so, they can do nothing but destroy themselves. This much seems implied in what Paul faw of himself, after the grace of this promise took hold of his heart; When "the commandment came, fin revived and I died," Rom. vii. 9.

Under the influence of this promise, their eyes shall likeways be opened, with respect unto God. They shall fee God as abfolute, and shall see him as gracious: as abfolute, finners shall fee him, in the demands, penalty, threatenings and curses of the law; fee him as angry with them, speaking words of terror to them, pouring wrath upon them, and pointing the fword of justice against them; becaufe of their breach of his law, and disconformity to it, in heart

heart and life: they shall see him to be of such infinite perfection, excellence, moral excellence, and glory, that he cannot but be angry with finners, as such; and angry with them every day; nor do otherways than act as a confuming fire to the workers of iniquity.

Was this the whole, their feeing God could only wound, distress, distract, and drive them to hopelesness and defpair: for none, in this fenfe, can fee God, and live. But the promise carries in it, their feeing him also as gracious. Accordingly, under the influence of it, finners shall fee God as reconciling the world unto himself, in Jesus Christ, not imputing to them their trefpatses; as not only merciful, but juft, in justifying even the ungodly who believe; as accessable by sinners, the chief not excepted; and placable toward them in the way of his appointment by the gospel: they shall see him, as calling, warranting, encouraging, commanding them, whatever they have been, done, deserved, to return to him; as revealing, exhibiting and offering peace and pardon, life and falvation, grace and glory, to the hearers of the gospel; and declaring his willingnefs they should be saved, his unwillingness they should perish: they shall see him as particularly exalted in the dispensation of eternal life to finners, and wonderfully glorified in their enjoyment of it: they shall fee him, as using every argument for prevailing with men to believe, and to make their calling and election fure: and, to crown all, they thall see him as exhibiting his free, gracious, absolute promife, to work in them the whole good

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pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith

" with power," 2 Theff. i. 11.

SECT. III.

Another blessing here promised, is, "They "shall fear." As the blessing represented in the preceding section respects the finner's understanding, so this has a regard to his affections, the proper feat of fear. Under the influence of this promife, finners shall be made anxious and thoughtful about falvation; shall dread the consequence of abiding in their natural state; shall be apprehenfive of perishing under the load of divine wrath; shall become restless, as long as they are far from God, and his righteousness; shall not be easy at a distance from Jesus Christ, the only ordinance of heaven for faving finners; small forebode a peculiar degree of misery, in the event of dying in their fins, after all the means, toward their recovery, they have enjoyed; shall defpair of help from themselves, or other creatures; and may labour under some degree of uncertainty, that ever the Lord will interpose in their behalf, or come for their salvation. According to the degrees of this legal fear, they shall read of no threatening, in the whole book of God, and shall hear of no terror, in the application of scripture doctrine, without confidering the whole as addref fed to them. It is in this way that the arrows of the Almighty drink up their spirits; that the terrors of the Lord make them afraid; that they feel the fentence of death in themselves; that their confciences are wounded, their peace broken, their false hopes overturned, the foundations of their former rest entirely fapped, and all their wounds made to wear an incurable aspect. Thus far finners my fear, thus far numbers have feared, without going farther, without being faved.

But

But, where the Lord has gracious designs upon the foul, he leaves them not in this lurch,-forfakes them not in this labyrinth; but makes an evangelical and saving exercise to follow this of a common and legal kind; and makes that law work conducive toward their future experience of gospel grace. Wherefore, under the influence of this promife, they shall be made to fear in a filial, as well as in a legal manner; they shall be put among the children of God, as a neceffary pre-requisite to their having, and exercising the temper of children; shall, in confequence of their union to Jefus Chrift, have interest in God as their Father, and in all the privileges and blessings-arifing from that relation, connected with it, and infeparable from it. They shall belong to his family, not only as creatures, but as renewed and redeemed creatures; not only, as he is the great Parent of mankind, but as he is a God of grace, and Father in Chrift. This endearing relation, as to their enjoyment of the fruits and effects of it, commences at converfion, and continues to eternity : "Ye are all the " children of God (fays the apofile to the Galati"ans) by faith in Christ Jefus," Gal. iii. 26 and, to the Romans, he speaks " of the glorious liberty " of the children of God," Rom viii. 21. Besides this tranflation into the family of God by converfion, they shall, under the influence of this promife, be animated with the Spirit, -the living Spirit of Jesus Christ, as equally necessary toward the fuitable exercise of this holy fear. For, when the Lord promises the effect, it implies his promifing likeways the caufe from whence such effect can only flow: "And because ye are sons (says the apostle,

to the believers at Galatia) God hath fent forth "the Spirit of his Son into your heart," Gal. iv. 6. Moreover, under the influence of this promife, they shall have a holy and confcientious respect to the authority and law of God: "Then shall I not " be ashamed (says the pfalmist) when I have a re

spect unto all thy commandments," Pfal. cxix. 6. They shall, from a principle of love to God, be tender of offending him, at any time, in any way, to any degree. They shall be as cautious of incurring fatherly displeasure, or fubjecting themselves to the difcipline of the new covenant, as, under the influence of legal fear, they were of falling under the divine wrath, and bearing the penalty of the covenant of works: they shall entertain a holy jealousy and fufpicion of themselves; and, convinced of the deceitfulness and desperate wickedness of their own hearts, study a habitual watchfulness against backsliding from the Lord, in heart or way: they shall thence be particularly concerned, that the Lord would "hold up their goings in his

paths, that their footsteps flip not," Pfal. xvii. 5. Thus, by Solomon, the holy Ghost represents the man as "happy, that feareth alway," Prov. xxviii. 14. and the man as wretched, who is a stranger to that fear; "For he that trusteth to his own heart, " is a fool," Prov. xxviii. 26.

SECT. IV.

The last blessing mentioned in this promise is, that they " shall trust in the Lord." - Upon gospel principles, the object of the sinner's truft must be a God in Chrift; a God revealing himself to men, in the perfon of Christ, "who is the brightness of " his glory, and the express image of his perfon," Heb. i. 3. in so much, that "he who hath seen "the Son, hath seen the Father." John xiv. 9.

It