ng Benefits? Can they claim the Benefits of Covenant of Grace, who are themselves under Covenant of Works, which curses them for not continuing in all Things written in the of the Law to do them? - I entreat you, Sir, nsider this Cafe; it is of vasft Importance to -If you have not good Evidence of an Inin Chrift, how can you pretend to the Pries purchased with his precious Blood? How ou pretend to Access to God through him, Claim to the blessed Influences of his holy =?--How can Unbelievers have a Claim to the ur of God by Christ, when he himself affures hat the Wrath of God abideth on them?ut," Will not God have Compassion on his reatures, when they do what they can to ferve m?" What Answer would a Prince make to ondemned Rebel in his Shackles and Dungeon, -should make this Plea for Pardon? Would the minal's doing what he can to serve his Prince mich, in his present State, is nothing at all to any od Purpose) atone for his past Rebellion? Or uld this qualify him for his Prince's Favour, nile he yet retains the same Enmity in his Heart ainst him, and will not so much as submit to his vereign good Pleasure and meer Mercy? The pplication is easy; and it belongs to you, Sir, consider seriously, whether a Sinner, who is dead Trespasses and Sins, who is in a State of Reellion against God, and therefore under the conLemning Sentence of the Law, can any more atone For his Sins, or make a reasonable Plea for Grace and Pardon, than the Traitor aforesaid? But were your Reasoning ever so just, it would afford you no Grounds of Comfort; for there never was, nor ever shall be, any Man, that can fairly make this Plea in his own Favour, and truly say, he has done all he can in the mortifying his Lufts, and her you can have in his Endeavours to serve God. There will, af-eopled, while you ter all his Attempts, remain enough neglected, even at the Law and Go of the external Part of his Duty, that was most in ikient and holy his own Power, to condemn both his Person and fled with mere his Services.

shen he knows you

dange your own Hea

You complain, that " the Arguments in the air from him. Co "Book I fent you do not give you Satisfaction.*"nde the Cale bester, -Well, I have here added some further Evidence to what was there offered; and would now call up-in on you to confider, whether all these Things put together do not make it evident, that you lie at Mercy, and convince you of those Scripture-Truths, that it is not in him that willeth, nor in him that runneth, but in God that sheweth Mercy; and that God giveth his saving Grace only because it hath so seemed good in his Sight. --Confider, whether you can atone for past Sins by present Duties, byd Duties which are so polluted by the Principle from which they flow, and which have so much Car-leaft Proporti nality, Selfishness, Hypocrify, and finful Defects cleaving to them, that if the Iniquity of your most holy Things be imputed, it must greatly increase the moral Distance between God and you. Confider, whether, while you are under the Law, or Cove nant of Works, you are capable not only to fulfil all its preceptive Demands, and so not further ex

Chrift Jefus, ant new World. C the your Eternity dy do what you c there be not fuch of Performances, and them. Com addo all you can do any Thing ob the Terms o drequires. C his own Favo epleales; and the will beftov those who a St, if you Atonemen if you can n

God has ne

of the Covena

come up to the

*The true Scripture Doctrine, &c.

ein in you

Cinto Accept

ider, whether you can have any Promise of ptance to plead, while you remain under the e, both of the Law and Gospel. Confider, her an omnifcient and holy God can be either ed or gratified with mere external Shews of ion, when he knows you have an Heart in hat is far from him. -Confider, whether you ver make the Case better, by all your Endeato change your own Heart, and to create yournew in Chrift Jesus, any more than you can ace a new World. Consider, whether you venture your Eternity upon this Issue, that incerely do what you can to serve God; and her there be not fuch sinful Defects cleaving bur best Performances, as may justly condemn you and them. - Confider again, whether, if hould do all you can in the Service of God, would do any Thing that would either fully e up to the Terms of the Covenant of Grace, ear the least Proportion to that Salvation which Gospel requires. - Consider once more, whether glorious God has not an absolute Right to dife of his own Favours, just how, when, and ere he pleases; and whether he has not assured that he will bestow his everlasting Mercy upon ne but those who are really conformable to the erms of the Covenant of Grace.

Now, Sir, if you, while unregenerate, can neier make Atonement for your past Sin and Guilt, at come up to the Demands of the Law of Naif you can neither please God by your fin1 Performances, nor impose upon him by your ypocritical Shews; if you run further in Debt y the Sin in your very Duties, instead of paying ny Thing of the old Score; if you have no Claim to Acceptance on Christ's Account, without ■ special Interest in him, nor any Claim to the Be

be will be ack separake of his ta I am prepared which you draw steven directly co ought to make ch

kerion I offer fo of the Truth be Glory to God. Happiness to vo

nefits of the Covenant of Grace, till you actually comply with the Terms of it; if both Law and Gospel condemn you in your present State, and nothing but Omnipotence can change your Heart and make your State better; if God be a sovereign Donor of his own Favours; and you can have no Promise to plead, while you remain under the Curse and Wrath of God, and a Stranger to the Covenants of Promife; if even you yourself must allow all these Things to be undoubted Truths, it must then be true, even to Demonstration, that (while in such a State) you are capable wider him as the of no Qualifying Condition of the divine Favour; and had need therefore to feel that you lie at Mercy.

it conduceth

Grace and Merc we enjoy, or h Goodness of

bim.In

To conclude this Head; if God himself may be or Induceme believed in the Cafe, He will have Mercy upon whom he will have Mercy; and whom he will be hardeneth. Rom. ix. 18. 'Tis not for our Sakes, that he bestows Grace upon us, but for his holy Name's Sake, Ezek. xxxvi. 22, 31. He predeftinates us untothe Adoption of Children by Jesus Chrift

Honour to an trofe him a fel

Sovereign Jurselves cap

to himself, according to the good Pleasure of his mange his Pur

Will, to the Praise of the Glory of his Grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the Beloved. Eph. i. 5, 6.-He acts, in this Case, according to his own fovereign Pleasure, as a Potter that bath Power over his Clay, to make one Veffel to Honour, and another to Dishonour; and we have no Liberty to reply against Ged: It is infufferable Arrogance for the Thing formed to say to him that formed it, Why haft thou made me thus ? Rom. ix. 20, 21.-Sir, as you yourself claim a Sovereignty in the Difpensation of your Favours, surely you will not dare to deny a like Sovereignty in the eternal God. --Believe it, the glorious God is a fovereign Bene

e and move t ceive him to t

r; and he will be acknowledged as fuch, by at ever partake of his saving Mercy.

ad now I am prepared to fhew you, that the quence which you draw from this Doctrine is 4, and even directly contrary to the Improvyou ought to make of it.

nd the Reason I offer for this is, that a realizBelief of the Truth before us directly tends to g most Glory to God, and most Safety, Com

and Happiness to yourself. It is easy to cone how it conduceth most to God's Glory, for o confider him as the Fountain and Foundatiof all Grace and Mercy; and to consider all the Tours we enjoy, or hope for, as flowing from mere Goodness of his Nature, and not from y Motive or Inducement which we can possibly before him. In this View of the Cafe, we that Honour to an infinite and eternal Being, to suppose him a felf-existent, independent, and mutable Sovereign; while, on the contrary, to magine ourselves capable, by any Thing we can , to change his Purposes, engage his Affections, r excite and move his Compassions towards us, is O conceive him to be altogether fuch an one as ourelves, liable to new Impressions from our Complaints or Perfuafions, mutable in his Affections, Hependent upon our Duties for the Exercise of his Grace. And I leave it to you to judge, which of these Apprehenfions are most worthy of that God, who is infinitely exalted above us, and is without any Variation or Shadow of turning: 1 leave it likewife to you to judge, which Principle is most likely to fubserve our best Interests, that which does the most Honour, or that which does the most Difhonour to God.

If we apply this to the present Cafe, I ask, In which Way can we find most Encouragement to