Magiftris, Diis & Parentibus, non po teft reddi æquivalens. Arißot.9 Ethic. Laus & gratiaruma&tio debetur danti, non accipienti. Arift.

4. Eth.

Qui fan&ti? qui Re

prefent exercife of Love it felf on God as prefent; when the foul in the contemplation of his infinite Goodness,is wrapt up in the pleasures of his Love: And this is a degree of fruition of our end, before the perfect fruition of it. And therefore take notice that there are thefe two wayes of our comfort in this life: 1. Exploratio juris, the tryall of our title: 2. Exercitium amoris; the feafting of the Soul in the exercises

of Love.

0.21. 3. The final perfect act of Love will not be in via, but when we have fully reacht our end.

.22. This final act is not well expreffed by the common word [fruition] because it intimateth that we are the finis cui our Jelves, and that our own enjoyment of God as our felicity, is the finis ultimatè ultimus, which is not true.

. 23. Yet is [fruition] one ingredient into our End, because our final act of Love is for our felves, though not principally.

1.24. All the difficulties de fine hominis are best refolved by understanding that it is finis amantis, and what that is: The Nature of Love is an inclination or defire of Union or Adhafton: And therefore it includeth the felicity of the Lover, to gether with the attractive excellency of the Object; and is both gratia amantis & amati fimul. But when the Lover is infinitely above the Object, the Lover is the chief end (for his own complacency) though the Object have the benefit: And when the Object is infinitely better than the Lover, the Object must be incomparably the chief end, cujus gratia potiffimum: though the Lover witball intend bis felicity in fruition.

0. 25. But if any foul be fo far above felf-love, as to be drawn up in the fervours of Holy love, in the meer contemplation of the infinite Object, not thinking of its own felicity herein, its felicity will be never the lefs, for not intending or remem bring it.

6.26. Therefore the final act of Love, bath no fitter name than Love it felf, or delightfull adhæfion to God, the infinite nifi qui meritam Diis Good, with full complacency in him.

ligionem colences,

immortalibus grati- 0.27. Though God must be loved as our Benefactor, yet the am, juftis honoribus, perfect goodness of his Will and Nature, as standing above all our Intereft or Benefits, must be the principal reafon and Object of our Love.

memori mente perfolvunt? Cicer. pro Planc.

That

That we must love God more for Himself, than for our felves, is thus proved: 1. That which is most Amiable if we must love good must be most Loved: But God is most amiable, and not much more God. ubi men for themselves, we our felves: Therefore he must be Loved above our felves, beneficus, fi nemo alCand confequently not for our felves, but our felves for him :) terius caufa benigne The minor is foon proved: That which is most Good is moft facit. Ubi gratus, fi Amiable: But God is moft good: Ergo. And Goodness is referunt gratiam, ipfi non cum ipfum cui the proper object of Love.

cernunt grati? Ubi 2. That which the Soul moft Loveth it doth moft de- illa faneta amicitia, vote it felfto, and adhere to, and reft in: But we muft more fi non ipfe amicus per devote our felves to God, and adhere to him, and reft in him, than ourselves: Ergo, we must Love him more.

3. That which is an Abfolute Good, and is dependent on nothing, must be abfolutely loved for it felf: But fuch is God: Ergo. And that which is only a derivative, limited, dependent Good, and not made ultimately for it felf; is not to be loved ultimately for it felf: But fuch is man: Ergo.

4. That which is the Fountain of all Goodness and Love, must be the end of all: But that is God and not Man: Ergo.

5. To love God ultimately for our felves, is to deific our felves, and take down God into the order of a Means, that is, of a Creature.

re: qui etiam defefe amatur,toto peñorendus & abjiciendus eft, defperatis emolumentis & fructibus: immanius? Cicere de quo quid poteft dici leg. 1. p. 227.

0.28. Having proved, that God must be loved above our felves, we need no other proof, that not we, but God must be Juftitia nihil exour ultimate end.

petit præmii, nihil 0.29. Because we here fee not God intuitively, but in his pretii: per fe igitur expetitur: eademq; Works, we are bound with fervent defire to study and contem- expetitur: omnium virtutum plate them, and therein to feaft our love in bebolding and tasting caufa atq; fententia of his Love and Goodness. eft: Atq; etiam fi As a Man will look on the Picture, the Letters, the works emolumentis, non fuof his abfent Friend, and retain the Image of him in his apte natura. virtus heart; fo God, though not abfent, yet unfeen, expreffeth himfelf to us in all his works, that we may ftudiously there behold, admire and love him.

virtus, quæ malitia expetitur, una eric rectiffimè dicetur. Ult enim quifque ad fuum commodum re

1.30. Therefore Gods Works must be more valued and ftu- fert maxime quæcundied, as they are the Glass reprefenting the Image of his per- que agit, ita minime

eft vir bonus: ut qui virtutem præmio metiuntur, nullam virtutem nifi malitiam putant. Cicero de Leg. 1. 8. 227.

fections, and fhewing us his chief effential amiableneß, than as they are beneficial and useful to us, and fo fhew us only his benignity to us.

D. 31. Yet muft felf-love, and fense it self, and the fenfible Sweetness and experience of Mercies be improved to our eafier taste of God's effential Goodneß, and we must rife up from the lower to the higher object: and this is our chief ufe of fenfible endum, nifi ne fæli- benefits.

Nihil homini metu

citatem excludat. So

conftituta funt om

Doubtless as the Soul, while it dwelleth with flesh. doth lon in Laert. p. 31. receive its objects by the mediation of fenfe, fo God hath purSummo Bono confti- pofely put fuch variety of fenfible delicacies into the creatures, tuto in Philofophia, that by every fight, and smell, and hearing, and touch, and nia: nam cæteris in tafte, our fouls might receive a report of the fweetness of rebus five præter- God, whofe goodness all proceed from. And therefore miffum, five ignora- this is the life which we should labour in continually, to fee tum eft quippiam, God's goodness in every lovely fight, and to tafte God's non plus incommodi, quam quanti quæque goodness in every pleasant talte, and to smell it in every pleacarum rerum eft, in fant Odour, and to hear it in every lovely word or found; quibus neglectum eft that the motion may pafs on clearly without stop, from the aliquid. Summum fenfes to the mind and will, and we may never be to blockifh autem bonum fi ignoretur, vivendi ra- as to gaze on the glass, and not fee the Image in it, or to tionem ignorari ne- gaze on the Image, and never confider whofe it is: or to read ceffe eft: ex quo the Book of the Creation, and mark nothing but the words tantus error confe- and letters, and never mind the sense and meaning. A Phiquitur, ut quem in portum fe recipiant, lofopher, and yet an Atheist or ungodly, is a monster; one fcire non poffunt. that most readeth the Book of Nature, and leaft underftandeth Cognitis autem re- or feeleth the meaning of it.

rum finibus (bono

rum & malorum) in

0.32. Therefore God daily reneweth his mercies to us, that venta vitæ via eft the variety and freshness of them producing renewed delight, may conformatioque om- renew our lively feelings of his love and goodness, and fo may nium officiorum. Pifo carry us on in love, without ceffations and declinings.

pag. 182.

in Cic. de finib. lib. 5. Our natures are fo apt to lose the fenfe of a Good that is Decrefcere fummum grown ordinary and common, that God by our renewed bonum non poteft. neceflities, and the renewed fupplies, and variety of mercies, Mortalia eminent, doth cure this defect.

cadunt, deteruntur, 0.33.Thofe therefore that turn God's mercies to the graticrefcunt, exhauriunzur, implentur. Di fying of their fenfitive appetites and lufts, and forget him, and vinorum una natura offend him the more, and love him the lefs, do forfeit his mercies eft. Senec. Epift. 66. by their inhumane and irrational ingratitude and abufe. P. 644, 645.

Which is the fin of all proud, covetous, voluptuous per

fons;

fons; the ambitious, fornicators, gluttons, drunkards, and lovers of fports, recreations, idleness, or any pleasure, as it turneth them from God.

.34. Above all other fin, we should most take heed of the Cœleftia femper fpeinordinate love of any creature (for it felf, or for our carnal &tato: illa humana felf alone) because it is most contrary to our love to God, which is our highest work and duty.

1.35. Thofe mercies of God are most to be valued, defired and fought, which few us most of God himself, or most help up our love to him.

6. 36. We must love both our natural felves and neighbours, the bad as well as the good, with a love of benevolence, defiring our own good and theirs: But at the fame time we must hate our felves and them, fo far as wicked, with the hatred of Difplicency: and with the love of Complacency, must only fo far love our felves or others, as the Image of Divine Goodneß is in ws or them.

I fpeak not of the meer natural paffion of the parent to the child, which is common, to man and beast: nor of the exercifes of love in outward acts, for thofe may be directed by God's commands to go more to one (as a wicked child ) that hath less true amiablenefs in him. But all holy love must be fuited to the measures of the trueft object. 0.37. The love of God should be with all our foul, and with all our might, not limited, fuppreffed or neglected, but be the moft ferious, predominant action of our fouls.

contemnito.Cic.Somn.

Scipi

Templum mentis amo, non marmoris, aurca in illo

Fundamenta: manet fides ftru&tura nivali. Confurgit pietate

culmen :

How cafie a matter is it to prove Holiness to be naturally mans greatest duty, when love to God, which is the fumm of nitens, tegit ardua it, is fo cafily proved to be fo. All the reafon in the world, Juftitia interius fparthat is not corrupted, but is reafon indeed, muft confefs git fola pieta rubenti without any tergiverfation, that it is the moft great and Flore, pudicitiæ puunquestionable duty of man to love God above all; yea, with dor almus, & atria all our heart and foul and might. And he that doth fo, fhall never be numbred by him with the ungodly, for thofe are hi eft, hxc me pulHæc domus apta miinconfiftent.

fervat.

cherrima fedes

na,Prudent.

1. 38. The exercises of love to God in complacency, defire, Accipit, aterno ca. Seeking, &c. fhould be the chief employment of our thoughts. leftique hofpite dig. For the thoughts are the exercife of a commanded faculty, Quicquid boni ege. which must be under the power of our will: and the ulti- ris in Deos refer: mate end, and the exercifes of love to it, fhould daily govern Bias in Laert.

P 3

them.

when the acle of them. And what a man loveth moft, ufually he will think Delphos adjudged the of, with his moft practical powerful thoughts, if not with Tripos to the wifeft, it was fent to Thiles, the most frequent.

and from him to an

•ber, till it came to Solon, whe fent it to the Oracle, faying, None is wifer thin God. Laert. in Tha

.39. The love of God should employ our tongues in the proclaiming of his praise and benefits, and expreffing our own admiration and affection, to kindle the like in the fouls of others, For the fame God who is fo amiable, hath given us our fpeech with the rest of his benefits, and given it us purposely ket. So should we all to declare his praise. Reason telleth us that we have no highfend back to God the glory and praise of all er, worthier, or better employment for our tongues; and that good which is afcribed we fhould use them to the beft. The tongues of men are adorned with language, for charitable and pious communication, that they may be fit to affect the hearts of others, and to kindle in them that facred fire, which is kindled in themfelves. Therefore that tongue which is filent to its Makers praife, and declareth not the Goodness, and Wisdom, and power of the Lord, and doth not divulge the notice of his benefits, condemneth it felf, and the heart that should employ it, as neglecting the greatest duty it was made for.

to us.

Numen divinum omni modo, omni tempore iple cole, juxta

1. 40. The lives of Gods Beneficiaries should be employed to leges patrias, & this praise and pleasure, and should be the streaming effects of inward love. And all his mercies should be improved to his fervice, from a thankful heart.

alii colant effice: Dion. 1. 52.

Ariftippus rogatus aliquando, quid haberent eximium Philofopi? Si omnes in

Liert.

All this hath the fulleft teftimony of reafon, according to the rules of proportion and common right. To whom should we live, but to him from whom and by whom we live? What but our ultimate end fhould be principally intended, and fought through our whole lives? A creature that hath all from God, fhould in love and gratitude bring back all to him; and thus we make it more our own.

0.41. This Life of Love fhould be the chiefest Delight and Pleasure of our Souls, which all other pleasure should fubferve, and all be abhorred which contradicteth it.

Nothing is cafilier confeffed by all, than the desirableness quit, leges intereant, of Delight and Pleasure: and the most excellent object, which equabiliter vivimus. must be most beloved, must be our chief delight: for Love it felf is a delighting act, unless some stop do turn it aside into Oderunt peccare bo- fears and forrows. Nothing can it felf be fo delectable as God, the chiefeft Good; and no employment fo delectable as loving him. This therefore fhould b: our work and our recre

ni virtutis amore. Hor.