But that which we are now to confider, is the Love of God as exercifed and manifefted towards his Creatures. And his Love, confidered in this View, properly confifteth in his pure and steady Benevolence, or Difpofition to do them Good, and to promote their Happiness. And this is principally intended here, when it is declared that God is Love.

And with regard to this it may be obferved,

First, That when it is here faid, that God is Love, it fignifieth that he is perfect Goodness and Benignity, without any Defect, or the leaft Mixture of any contrary Affection. He is Love without Imperfection or Alloy, Love in its highest Exaltation and unmixed Purity. Love in created Beings is often, even where it is in a prevalent Degree, attended with fome Paffion which tends to the Diminution of it, or with fome private Affections and Views. But in God it is wholly pure and difinterested. He is infinitely happy in himself, and therefore it is impoffible that he should envy his Creatures any of the good Things they enjoy, and which are all derived from his Bounty. He giveth liberally, and upbraideth not, as St. James expreffeth it, James i. 5. The abfolutely perfect Being can have no nar

row fordid Affections, no particular Interefts of his own in View, to cramp the Exercife of his Benevolence. No Ill-will, or Cruelty of Difpofition, can poffibly have Place in his infinite and most benevolent Mind. He is incapable of delighting in the Pain or Mifery of his Creatures, merely for its own Sake, or of doing any Thing needlefsly to vex and give them Uneafinefs, only to fhew his Dominion over them. He doth not afflict willingly, nor grieve the Children of Men, but always for wife and good Ends; and is not therefore the proper Cause and Author of their Mifery and Ruin. He is the glorious Source and Original of all the Good that is in this vaft Universe, and therefore muft himfelf be originally, effentially, and infinitely good.

But fecondly, It is proper to obferve farther, that though God is faid to be Love, it must not be understood as if he were mere infinite Goodness, acting always neceffarily to the utmost of its Ability, without Difcernment or Diftinction. For this would not be a Virtue or Perfection. But his Goodness must be confidered as always in Conjunction with, and as guided in all its Effects by infinite Wisdom, and by what appeareth to his all-comprehending Mind to be best and fittest upon the whole. Though

Though God be all Love and Goodness, he doth not diftribute the Effects of his Goodness by a natural and undistinguishing Neceffity, as the Sun difpenfeth its Rays, and a Fountain its Streams, but most freely and voluntarily in fuch a Manner and in fuch Proportion as feemeth fit to him in his fovereign Wisdom, which always proceedeth upon the wifeft and fitteft Reasons. Thus in creating the World he did not act by a natural Necesfity, for then he must neceffarily have made the World from everlasting; but he made it at that Time and in that Manner, in which his own infinite Understanding faw it was beft and fittest it should be made. And in all his fubfequent Dealings towards his Creatures after having made them, he exerteth his infinite Goodness, not by an abfolute Neceffity, to the utmost Extent of his almighty Power, but in fuch a Manner as is moft worthy of himself, and most becoming his own glorious Perfections. His Goodness will always fhew itfelf towards his reasonable Creatures in a Manner becoming him, a fovereign Benefactor, and a wife and righteous moral Governor. He will promote their Happiness in such a Way as to leave room for the Exercife of the Liberty belonging to them as reasonable Beings, moral Agents,

and will not therefore manifeft his Love equally and promifcuously at all Times to the good and bad without Distinction, and without any Regard to their moral Conduct and Behaviour. Such a Notion of the divine Goodnefs would be difhonourable to the Deity, and of the most pernicious Confequence to the Interests of Religion and Virtue in the World. It would take away the Fear of God, and would tend to diffolve all Order and Go-vernment, and to confound the Differences between moral Good and Evil. Let none therefore presume that because God is infinite Love and Goodness, therefore obftinate Sinners have Nothing to fear from him, and may tranfgrefs his Laws with Impunity. His Goodness muft not be fo understood, as to exclude, or be inconfiftent with the Exercife of his rectoral and punitive Juftice. On the contrary, Goodnefs itself, confidered in the most extenfive View, as defigning and pursuing the greateft Good of the whole rational Creation, and the Peace, Order, and Harmony of the moral World, includes Juftice as one neceffary Branch of it. And indeed it may be faid, that all God's moral Attributes are the divine Love and Goodness displaying itself in various Views. Even his Juftice and Hatred against Sin is his

Love of Order, of Purity and Rectitude, of moral Goodness and Beauty. This infinite Love and Goodness carrieth him to have a steady, unalterable Regard to the Happiness and good Order of the rational Creation; and this determineth him to hate Sin, which tends to fpread Mifery and Disorder through the World, and to do all that is proper for him to do, as a moral Governor, to prevent it, or to stop the Progress of moral Evil, by holy Laws enforced with proper Sanctions. No wife Man ever counted it a Derogation from the Goodness of an earthly Prince, that he maintained the Authority of his Government and Laws, by inflicting proper Punishment on the Tranfgreffors; on the contrary, it would be justly looked upon as a great Diminution of his Character, and even an Impeachment of the Goodness of his Government, if through a soft Indulgence he suffered all manner of Crimes to be committed with Impunity. And shall we ascribe such a Conduct to the fupreme Lord and Governor of the World, the infinitely good and abfolutely perfect Being? The Goodness of God is that of a most holy and understanding Mind, always exercised in fuch a Way as is most becoming his own glorious Perfections, and as feemeth moft fit to his all-compre

hending