inseparably the principles of their nature. But as all created power can give neither life, nor spontaneous motion, nor growth to any thing, no more can it plant in any thing a new natural principle, that should incline it unto a new kind of operation, which was not originally co-natural unto it. There is a peculiar impress of omnipotency upon all the works of God, as he declares at large in that discourse with Job, ch. xxxviii. xxxix. And this power is no less effectual, nor less evident in his sustenation and preservation of all things, than in his creation of them. Things do no more subsist by themselves, than they were made by themselves. "He sustaineth all things by the word of his power," Heb. i. 3. "And by him all things consist," Col. i.

17. He hath not made the world, and then turned it off his hand, to stand on its own bottom and shift for itself. But there is continually, every moment, an emanation of power from God unto every creature, the greatest, the least, the meanest, to preserve them in their being and order, which if it were suspended but for one moment, they would all lose their station and being, and by confusion be reduced into nothing." In him we live, and move, and have our being," Acts xvii. 28. and, "He giveth unto all life and breath and all things," ver. 25. God needs not put forth any act of his power to destroy the creation, the very suspension of that constant emanation of omnipotency which is necessary unto its subsistence, would be sufficient for that end and purpose. And who can admire as he ought this power of God, which is greater in every particular grass of the field, than we are able to search into or comprehend. And what is man that he should be mindful of him.

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Fourthly, His wisdom also shines forth in these works of his hands. In wisdom hath he made them all," Psal. civ. 24. So also, cxxxvi. 5. his power was that which gave all things their being, but his wisdom gave them their order, beauty and use. How admirable this is, how incomprehensible it is unto us, Zophar declares in Job, chap. xi. 6-10. " The secrets of this wisdom are double unto what may be known of it," infinitely more than we can attain to the knowledge of. Searching will not do it, it is absolutely incomprehensible. He that can take but a little, weak, faint consideration of the glorious disposition of the heavenly bodies, their order, course, respect to each other, their usefulness and influences, their disposition and connection of causes and effects here below, the orderly concurrence and subserviency of every thing in its place and operation, to the consistency, use and beauty of the universe, will be forced to cry out with the Psalmist, "O Lord, how manifold are thy works, in wisdom hast thou made them all, the earth is full of thy riches." But alas, what can the best and wisest of men attain unto in the investigation of the wis

dom of God? There is not the least creature, but considered apart by itself, hath somewhat belonging unto it, that will bring them into wonder and astonishment. And what shall we say concerning the most glorious, concerning the order of them all unto one another, and the whole? there must all men's considerations end, and among them this of ours.

Fifthly, His goodness is in like manner manifest in these things. There is in the whole and every part of God's creation a four-fold goodness. 1. A goodness of being and subsistence. That which is, so far forth as it is, is good. So God saw all things, as he made them, that they were good. The very being of every thing is its first goodness, on which all other concernments of it do depend. And this ariseth from hence, because thereby and therein it participates of the first absolute goodness, which is being; whereunto a nothingness, if I may so speak, is negatively opposed ad infinitum. 2. A goodness of order. This gives them their beauty, which is the first principle properly of goodness, and convertible with it. Every thing that is good is beautiful, and every thing that is beautiful is good. Now the pulchritude or beauty of the whole creation, and of every part of it, consists in the order that is given unto it by the wisdom of God, whereof we spake before. This is that to xanov x'ayader of all things, which of old by the light of nature was so much admired. Beautiful goodness, or goodly beauty, whereby every thing becomes comely and desirable, both in itself and its own parts, and in that respect which it hath unto all other things. 3. A goodness of usefulness: nothing is made in vain. Every thing hath its work, service and operation allotted unto it. If the whole creation had been uniform, if it had been only one thing, it would have wanted this goodness, and been but a dead lump, or mass of being. But in this great variety and diversity of things which we behold, every one hath its proper place and service, and nothing is useless. As the apostle says, that it is in the several parts and members of the lesser world, man, that though some of them seem more worthy and comely than others, yet all have their proper use, so that they cannot say unto one another, "I have no need of thee;" so is it in the universe, though some parts of it seem to be very glorious, and others mean and to be trampled on, yet they cannot say one to another, "I have no need of thee," each having its proper use. The eye is a most poble part of the body, but, saith the apostle, "If the whole body were an eye," the beauty of the whole were lost, and the very use of the eye. How glorious is the sun in the firmament in comparison of a poor worm in the earth? yet if the whole creation were one sun, it would have neither beauty nor use, nor indeed be a sun, as having nothing to communicate light

or heat unto. But God hath brought forth his works in unspeakable variety, that they might all have this goodness of usefulness accompanying them. 4. A goodness of an orderly tendency unto the utmost and last end; which is the glory of him by whom they were made. This also is implanted upon the whole creation of God; and hence the Psalmist calls upon all the inanimate creatures to give praise and glory unto God, that is, he calls upon himself and others to consider how they do so. This is the point, the centre where all these lines do meet, without which there could be neither beauty nor order nor use in them: for that which errs from its end, is crooked, perverse, and not good. On all these considerations it is said, that "God saw every thing that he had made, and behold it was very good," Gen. i. 31. Now what an infinite eternal ocean of goodness must that be, which by the word of his mouth communicated all this goodness at once unto the whole creation! How deep, how unfathomable is this fountain! how unsearchable are these springs! This the holy men in the Scripture often express by way of admiration, "How great is his goodness! how great is his beauty!" The first goodness, the fountain of all goodness must needs be absolutely and infinitely so, in which sense there is none good but one, that is God.

In these things consist somewhat of the glory, excellency and honour of God, which the Psalmist falls into an admiration of upon the contemplation of the works of his hands, and which made him so astonished at his condescension in the regard that he is pleased to bear unto the nature of man. But besides this consideration, he adds also an intimation, as we have shewed, of the mean condition of man unto whom this respect is shewed, and that both in the manner of his expression, "What is man," and in the words or names whereby he expresseth him, Enosh and Adam, which we shall also briefly add unto our former considerations of the glory of God.

First, "What is man" as to his extract? a little dust, made of the dust of the ground, one that may say to corruption, "Thou art my father, and to the worm, thou art my mother and my sister," Job xvii. 14. His fabric was not one jot of any better materials than theirs. That God put this honour upon him to breathe into the dust whereof he was made, that he should become a living soul, is part of that goodness wherein he is to be admired. Otherwise we are what God said to Adam, "dust thou art ;" poor creature that wouldst be like unto God, thou art dust and no more. And in the sense of this extraction did holy men of old abase themselves in the presence of God, as Abraham, Gen. xviii. 27. "How shall I speak unto the Lord that am but dust and ashes." Poor proud man, which scornest to touch that which thou art made of, and think

est thyself I know not what, whilst the remainder of thee, that which was left in the making of thee, lies under the feet of all the creatures which thou despisest: what is this handful of dust that God should regard it? But yet,

Secondly, This fabric being erected, perhaps is durable, strong and abiding, and so may be considerable on that account. But alas, his frailty is inexpressible. It is true, that before the flood, the life of man was prolonged unto a great continuance, but as that was not in the least any advantage unto the most of them, giving them only an opportunity to increase their sin and misery, nor to the whole society of mankind, seeing by that means the earth was filled with violence, and became a woful habitation of distress, so they also came to their end, and nothing long since remaineth of their memory, but that they lived so many years and then they died, which is the common end of man. But since that, in which our concernment lies, how do the holy men of God set forth, and as it were complain of the woful frailty of our condition! So doth Moses, Psal. xc. 5, 6. "Thou carriest them away with a flood," which he spake in contemplation of those thousands which he saw die before his eyes in the wilderness; "in the morning they are like grass which groweth up, in the morning it flourisheth and groweth up, in the evening it is cut down and withereth." The like also pleadeth Job, ch. xiv. 1, 2. and then turning to God he saith, "And dost thou open thine eyes upon such an one," regard such a poor frail perishing creature? And David doth the like, Psal. cii. 24. And indeed no tongue can express the miserable frail condition of this poor creature. From within, from without, from himself, from all other creatures, and principally from the rage and cruelty of those of the same nature with himself, his misery is great, and his life of short continuance. And God abundantly shews that little weight also is to be laid on that duration which he hath here in this world, in that he takes many from the very womb, who scarce ever beheld the light, into the participation of his own eternal glory.

Thirdly, This earthly frail man hath made himself yet more unspeakably vile by sin; this sets him at the utmost distance from the glory of God, and utterly degrades every thing that is in him, which of itself is worthy of consideration.

All these things being put together, they make the condescension of God in remembering man, and setting his heart on him, exceedingly to be admired and adored. And this also will farther appear, if we might consider what are the blessed effects of this mindfulness of him; but these the apostle insists on in the next verses, whither we may refer our meditations on them. Only the duty itself arising from hence may be here pressed on us. And this is, that on the accounts mentioned we would live

constantly in an holy adoration of this infinite condescension and grace of God. To this end,

First, Let us excrcise ourselves to holy thoughts of God's infinite excellencies. Meditation accompanied with holy adoration is the fountain of this duty. Some men have over-busily and curiously inquired into the nature and properties of God, and have foolishly endeavoured to measure infinite things by the miserable short line of their own reason, and to suit the deep things of God to their own narrow apprehensions. Such are many of the disputations of the school-men on this subject, wherein though they have seemed wise to themselves and others, yet indeed for the most part they have waxed vain in their imaginations. Our duty lies in studying what God hath revealed of himself in his word, and what is evidently suitable thereto, and that not with curious searchings and speculations, but with holy admiration, reverence and fear. This the apostle adviseth us to, Heb. xii. 28, 29. In this way serious thoughts of God's excellencies and properties, his greatness, immensity, self-sufficiency, power and wisdom, are exceeding useful to our souls. When these have filled us with wonder, when they have prostrated our spirits before him, and laid our mouths in the dust, and our persons on the ground, when the glory of them shines round about us, and our whole souls are filled with a holy astonishment, then,

Secondly, Let us take a view of ourselves, our extract, our frailty, our vileness on every account. How poor, how undeserving are we? What is a little sinful dust and ashes before, or in the sight of this God of glory? What is there in us, what is there belonging to us, that is not suited to abase us? alive one day, dead another; quiet one moment, troubled another; fearing, caring, rejoicing causelessly, sinning always; "in our best condition altogether vanity." Though much may be said to this purpose, yet it must be said after all, that in ourselves we are inexpressibly miserable, and as the prophet speaks, "less than vanity and nothing." Would we be wise, we 66 are like the wild asses colt;" would we be honourable, we have no understanding, but are like the beasts that perish; would we be strong, we are as a reed shaken with the wind. And,

Thirdly, Let the result of these thoughts be, a holy admiration of God's infinite love, care, grace, and condescension, in having any regard to us. So doth the Psalmist teach us to do; hence will praise, hence will thankfulness, hence will self-abasement ensue. And this will be a good foundation, as of obedience, so of comfort and support in every condition.

VER. 9.-THESE things being spoken indefinitely of man by the Psalmist, the apostle in the application of them to his pre