The Bowels of Tender Mercy Sealed in the Everlasting Covenant, Religious treatise · Part 1 · Chapter 5 · Section 3
SECT. III.
3. A Third property of this Covenant, is, that it is a giving Covenant; Gen. 17. 2. I will make my Covenant between thee and me; in the Original It is a giving Covenant.it is, I will give thee my Covenant; as God ſpake unto Phineas, Num. 25. 12. I give unto him my Covenant of peace; ſo he doth give a Covenant unto his people, Iſa. 42. 6. I give thee for a Covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles. Iſa. 55. 4. Behold I have given him for a witneſſe to the people; ſurvey In it,the Covenant all over, you ſhall finde it to be a giving Covenant in all the particulars of it.
God gives himſelf to be ours, therefore he is called our Husband, Iſa. 54. 5. The husband gives himſelf to the wife, ſo doth God to us.God gives himſelf to be ours.
And he gives Chriſt; he gave his onelyonly begotten Sonne, John 3. 16. and Chriſt did give himſelf, Gal. 2. 20.He gives Chriſt.
And he gives his love, Cant. 7. 12. There will I give thee my love.His love. His peace Eternal life. His Spirit.
And he gives his peace. John 14. 27. My peace I give unto you.
And he gives eternal life. John 10. 28. I give unto them eternal life.
And he gives his Spirit. He will give the holy Spirit to them that ask him, Luke 11. 13.
And he gives the new heart, and the new spirit. Ezek. 36. 26. A new heart alſo will I give you, and a new ſpirit will I put within you.A new heart.
And he gives faith; Ʋnto you it is given to believe. Phil. 1. 29. By grace are Faith.you ſaved through faith. It is the gift of God, Epheſ. 28.
And he gives repentance. Acts 11. 18. Then hath God given (or granted) unto Repentance.the Gentiles repentance unto life.
And he gives mercy. 2 Tim. 1. 16. The Lord give mercy to the houſe of Oneſiphorus.Mercy.
And he alſo freely gives us all things. Rom. 8. 32. He gives grace, and he gives All things.glo…y, Pſal. 84. 11.
And he gives unto us exceeding great and precious promiſes, that by them we Great and precious promiſesmight be partakers of the Divine Nature, 2 Pet. 1. 4.
This Covenant is a Covenant of gifts; all that God promiſeth in it, is given; and all that God requires of us is given; and all that we are to give again to God, is firſt given unto us by God.Reaſons why it is ſo, from
And there are two reaſons, why this Covenant is an altogether giving Covenant.
1. One is our univerſal brokenneſſe, and impotency, and inſufficiency; our ſinful Our univerſal inſufficiency.fall hath ſo ſhip-wrack't and ruined us, that we have nothing at all left us; we are naked, and poor, and miſerable, Rev. 3. 17. Without ſtrength, Rom. 5. 6. Not ſufficient of our ſelves to think any thing as of our ſelves, 2 Cor. 3. 5. What hast thou that thou hast not received? I Cor. 4. 7. Such a brok…n veſſel is the ſinner, ſuch a ſelf-undoing, and deſtitute creatures; like the Prodigal who ſpent all, and had neither bread nor rayment, nor ſhoes, nor any thing; and therefore his father muſt provide all, and give all; he muſt give him houſing, and he muſt give him rayment, and he muſt give him ſhoes for his feet, and he muſt give him meat to eat, and wine to drink. Where the creature is univerſally miſerable, and utterly impotent, there muſt be nothing but giving; Mercy muſt give all, or the ſinner is undone.
2. Another is Gods inten…ion and purpoſe in this Covenant, and that in the Gods intention and purpoſe in this Covenant.praiſe of the glory of his grace, Epheſ. 1. 6, His intent in making this Covenant, is wholly and only to exalt himſelf, to proclaime his own glory; and therefore he will give all, and the ſinner is to receive all, that all the glory and praiſe of mercy, of grace, of bleſſings, may be returned unto himſelf al…ne. Rom. 11. 35. Who hath firſt given to him? and it ſhall be recomp…nced unto him again. Ver. 36. For of him, and through him, and to him are all things, to wh…m be glory for ever, Amen.
Ʋſe 1 If this Covenant be a giving Covenant, then the poor and needy may traffique at it. If it were a buying and ſelling Covenant (in proper ſenſe) then Then the poor and needy may traffique at it.poor ſinners muſt deſpaire; but it is a giving Covenant, and therefore poor ſinners have hope; May not the poor (who keep no houſe of their own) yet go to the rich mans door where all is given?
When we ſurvey our hearts and conditions, we finde a world of wants, and when we ſurvey the Covenant, we finde a Heaven of ſupplies.
Objection. But then we fear, and diſpute, and reaſon, But how ſhall we get this mercy, and gaine that bleſſing, and enjoy that help? We have nothing, and we can bring nothing; the Well indeed is deep, but we have nothing to draw.
S…l. True, but yet God can give all, though you can bring nothing; and according duplicate page duplicate page to the tenor of this Covenant, He will give all, the greateſt and the leaſt; But will he give me food and rayment? yes, he will give you bread, and he will give you double cloathing.
O, But will he give me Grace? yes, he will give grace and glory.
O, But will he give me Chriſt? yes he will give his Chriſt, that greateſt gift that ever was given to ſinners; he is the gift of God; O but will he give me mercy to pardon my ſinnes? and all my ſinnes? yes, he will ſhew mercy, and will forgive all thy ſinnes whereby thou haſt ſinned againſt him; O but will he give me Faith? yes, he will draw you to Chriſt, and put forth an Almighty power to make you to believe; O but will he give me another heart? yes, I will give thee a new heart, &c. O but I muſt pray if I would have theſe, and I cannot pray! why? and it is his Covenant to give you the Spirit of grace and ſupplication; Let theſe things quiet your ſorrowful and troubled ſoules; There is enough in the Covenant for you, and all that is there, is to be given.
2. Be content to come and receive, ſeeing God is pleaſed in this Covenant to be Be content to come and receive.giving: He is all upon the giving hand, and we ſhould be all upon the rec…iving hand; The givi…g works is Gods work, and the receiving work is our work; he findes the gift, you muſt open your hand and take it. O what a bleſſed Covenant is this, wherein you may have all for asking and receiving! Mat. 7. 7. Ask, and it ſhall be given. James 1. 5. If any of you lack wiſdome, let him ask of God that giveth to all men liberally, and it ſhall be given him. John 4. 10. If thou kneweſt the gift of God, and who it is that ſaith unto thee, Give me to drink, thou wouldeſt have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
Now there are four qualities, which if you could get them, you Which we ſhall do if we have theſe qualities.would then be content and willing to come unto God, and beg of him, and receive of him what he will give (and without theſe you will not do ſo.)
1. One is poverty of ſpirit; you muſt be poor in ſpirit: the poor man ſpeaks Poverty of ſpirit.ſupplications, ſaith Solomon; It was poor Lazarus that came to the rich mans d…or; and it is the poor ſinner (one who is truly ſenſible of his ſpiritual wants and miſeries) who will come to the door of mercy, and cry out, O Father of mercies give me mercy! O God of grace give me grace! O give me Chriſt, &c. If you be rich and encreaſed, and ſtand in need of nothing (as Laodicea was) if you have enough of your own; if you think that you are righteous, and need not Chriſt, and need not mercy, &c. you will never come to God, and beg him to give you theſe.
2. A ſecond is hum…lity of heart; a proud man ſcornes to beg, and ſcornes Humility of heart.to receive; he will not be beholding to any body; it is the humble man who will acknowledge mercy, and bleſſe for mercy, and beg for mercy, and be glad he may have mercy upon receiving termes. God gives grace to the humble, and the humble are thankfully contented to receive grace from God.
3. A praying heart, will be glad to be receiving.A praying heart. Faith.
4. A fourth is Faith; Faith is a receiving grace; therefore believing is ſtiled receiving; To as many as received him, he gave this dignity to be th… Sonnes of God, even to them …hat believe on him. Faith receives Chriſt, and receives mercy, and receives love, and receives righteouſneſſe, and receives bleſſings, and receives all the gifts of God. Though God hath all to give, yet you have no hand to receive, untill you get faith.
3. Is the Covenant a giving Covenant? Is it ſuch a Covenant wherein the Lord undertakes to give all the good mentioned therein? This then yields Comfort to the people of God. Hence they may conclude.manifold comfort to the people of God, who are in Covenant with him.
1. If God undertakes to give all, then certainly he undertakes to finde all good for us; If he undertakes to give a Chriſt, he muſt finde out that He will find all good for us.Chriſt; and if he undertakes to give you mercy, he then muſt finde out that mercy, &c.
2. If God undertakes to give all, then he muſt finde all from himſelf, and And find all from himſelf.of his own; Men many times give away that which is none of their own; but God gives nothing but what is his own, but what comes out of his own ſtock and treaſury.
3. If God undertakes to give all in the Covenance, then you ſhall be ſurely helped; You ſhall be ſurely helped.you have good reaſon to expect it, for your Father hath all to give; How much more ſhall your heavenly Father give good things to them that ask? will not a father give to his poor child? Certainly your God is an infinite God, a moſt gracious and glorious God, and perfectly al-ſufficient; he hath heaven and earth in his own poſſeſſion; he hath all the good to diſpoſe of which is good; he muſt needs be infinite in mercy, who can give all mercies, and infinite in grace, who can give all grace, and infinite in glory, who can give all glory, &c. For as this ſhews his infiniteneſſe that he hath all good to give, ſo this ſhews his perfection, that when he hath given all this, yet there is no diminution made in his ſtock at all.
4. If God undertakes to give you all that is in his Covenant, then unqueſtisnably Then he doth unqueſtionably love you.he loves you. Indeed he gives many things to the wicked his enemies, whom he hares; but to undertake to give all the good in the Covenant, this proceeds from his great love, and from his ſpecial love; Doth not God love you, who is willing to give you his love? and to give you his Chriſt the Son of his love? and to give you all the graces of his Spirit, the fruits of his love?Then God will not deny the leaſt mercies.
5. If God undertakes to give you all, even the greateſt of mercies, can you reaſonably imagine that he will ſtick with you for the leaſt of neceſſary mercies and bleſſings? How ſhall he not with him, freely alſo give … all things?