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God can pull down; which he must do, when he gathers the people to Shiloh: and hence, in gathering finners, he not only preaches peace to them that are afar off, but in Chrift Jefus, they that were afar off, are made nigh by the blood of Chrift: they that were feparate from God, and without a head, fince the firft Adam fell, are gathered together to God, under a new head, the fecond Adam, and unite to him: it is called, "A gathering together gathering_together into one, all things in Chrift," Eph. i. 10. They are thus unite to God, and one among themfelves in Chrift. This union is by the bond of the Holy Spirit, and inftrumentally of faving faith and the gathered foul becomes one building with Chrift, whereof Chrift is the foundation; one temple, one body, one Spirit; "He that is joined to the Lord, is one Spirit."

(5.) It fuppofes REBELLION, and imports SUBJECTION, RECONCILIATION, and OBEDIENCE.-The natural ftate is a ftate of rebellion, alienation, and enmity. Before people are gathered to Shiloh, they are gathered under the ftandard of the devil, and carrying on a rebellion against heaven; every man and woman is a rebel: "The carnal mind is enmity against God:" every thought of every man is a rebel againft God; "Every imagination of the thoughts of the heart is evil, and only evil continually." Now, when God gathers people, he brings. them into fubjection to his Son, as they are unite to him. as their Head, fo they are fubject to him as their King. This fubjection and obedience is imported in the original word, as I told in the explication. The gathered peopleare brought to say, "Other lords befide thee have had dominion over us; but now, by thee only will we make mention of thy name." As the Jews faid, "We have no king but Cæfar:" fo they are brought to fay, We have no king but Shiloh; no lord but the Lord Jesus. Rebellion is turned to fubjection and obedience; and their alienation, to amity and love.

(6.) In a word, it fuppofes an AMISSION, OF LOSING, and imports RESTORATION and RECOVERY. The natu ral ftate is a loft ftate; we are loft in the rubbish of the fall of Adam. We are loft privately, in that we are not what we were, in a state of innocence and uprightness,

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nor in a state of friendship and fellowship with God, nor in a ftate of power, ftrength and ability to do God's will; we have forfeit all this by our fin and fall; "Ail have finned and come fhort of the glory of God," Rom. iii. 25. We are pofitively, in regard we are that which we should not be, even filthy finners, and guilty criminals; filthy, and fo are children of difobedience, Eph. ii. 3.; guilty, and fo are called, children of wrath, Eph. ii. 3. Our bodies and all their members are corrupted, which is called, the filthinefs of the flesh; our fouls, and all their faculties are corrupted, this is the filthinefs of the fpirit: being filthy and guilty finners, we are pofitively lost.— We are loft judicially, as being under a fentence of death, and under the curfe of the law, Gal. iii. 10. The law faith, "The foul that finneth fhall die."-We are loft meritorioufly, in that our fins deferve death, which is the wages of fin, Rom. vi. 23. And no wonder, for it is a violation of God's holy, juft, and good law, Rom. vii. 12. It is a contrariety and contradiction to God's holy, juft, and good nature, Hab. i. 13. In a word, we are loft in point of power and ability to fave and recover ourselves: loft as to all capacity in the creature to help us: "We are by nature without ftrength," Rom. v. 6. We are not fubject to the law of God, neither indeed can be, Rom. viii. 7. We cannot know or discern the things of God: yea, they are foolishness to the natural man, 1 Cor. ii. 14.; far less can we by any atonement fatisfy God for our offences; therefore, "The redemption of the foul is precious, and ceaseth for ever."-Thus we are every way loft.

Now, as this is the loft ftate fuppofed, fo this gathering of loft fouls, imports the Son of man his coming to feek and fave that which was loft, Luke xix. 10. While yet the finner is ftout-hearted, and far from righteoufnefs, unwilling to be faved and gathered, like thefe, Mat. xxiii. 37. O Jerufalem, Jerufalem, bow often would I have gathered you, but ye would not! He makes inquiry after them by his word, by his rod, by his Spirit, saying, as to Adam, when he made inquiry after him, Adam, where art thou? Man, woman, where art thou hiding thyfelf? I am come to feek, to fave, and gather

you.

you. And as he feeks them out by his word, fo he finds them out by his Spirit, and restores them to a ftate of falvation. Thus he gathers them preparatively by the law, formally and immediately by the gofpel, meritorioufly by his blood, procuratively by his interceffion, occafionally by his providence, and effectually by his Spirit; drawing them with grace, covering them with his righteoufnefs, quickening, fanctifying and fealing them to the day of redemption. But how he gathers, may come to be more particularly fhown upon the fourth head. Only fo much for the remarks I promifed, concerning the nature and import of his gathering.

II. The Second general head propofed, was, To fhew who are the people of whom it is faid, the gathering of the people fhall be to him. Why, in general, by the people you are to understand the Gentiles, Rom. xV. II. and therefore here is a door of faith open to us, to gather in by it unto Shiloh: for the promife is to us, whose forefathers were as black and blinded pagans as any in the world; "To us is the word of this falvation fent," that the gathering of the people fhould be to Shiloh. And here is encouragement to us to gather in to him by faith; here is a foundation of faith for all the people that hear this gofpel; God fays, "The gathering of the people fhall be to Chrift, the Meffias," infomuch that whc. ever of all the people, fhall be perfuaded to gather in under his wings, they fhall be welcomed to him, and faved by him. Why, fays one, it may be I am none of the people here intended, none of the elect that shall be effectually gathered; and therefore my attempting to come to him may be vain. In anfwer hereunto, you would confider, that there are two diftin&t queftions here, namely, 1. Whom he designs in this decree? 2. Whom he defines in his word to be the perfons that fhall gather? And we would confider which of these especially is propofed in the gofpel for our encouragement in gathering unto Shiloh.

As to the first, Whom he designs in his DECREE to be gathered? Thefe are indeed the elect, who are faid to

be

be chofen in Chrift before the foundation of the world, Ephef. i. 4. They are faid to be predeftinate; and, Whom he did predeftinate, them he alfo called, Romans viii. 30. They are faid to be given to Chrift; and, "All that the Father hath given me, fhall come to me," John vi. 37.; and, "All that are ordained to eternal life fhall believe, Acts xiii. 48. The election fhall obtain," Rom. xi. 7.-And indeed, if God had not, in his eternal purpofe, defigned to gather fome, none at all would be gathered. Now, I think it is obfervable, that in all thefe places, where God's defign of gathering the elect to him is mentioned, it is readily brought in either as an encouragement to them that are gathered, that they may have the comfort of their election from eternity or as an encouragement to 'minifters that are gatherers, that they may know their labour fhall not be without fuccefs; or elfe as a check and blow to thefe that are final rejecters of Chrift, and refufe to be gathered to him: but never is it brought in for a dif couragement to any people in the world to gather unto Shiloh; hence, to the Jews, that obftinately and finally rejected Chrift, he fays, John vi. 36, 37. Ye will not come; but know to your confufion, that all that the Father bath given me, fhall come. But, that none may be hereupon difcouraged, he fays, Whofoever comes, be will in no wife caft out. Where, as he fhuts the door

upon final rejecters; fo he opens the door to all comers, that they may flock into him; and the rather becaufe it is impoffible they can know their election of God, till once they come and gather to Chrift. It is devilifh reafoning therefore to fay, I know not if I be an elect, and therefore I need not come to Chrift; for it is divine reasoning rather to fay, I know not my election, therefore I will come unto him that I may know it, fince it cannot poffibly be known otherwife. Election is in Chrift, Ephef. i. 4. We are chofen in him; and therefore out of Chrift it cannot be feen. But, if I be not elected, fay you, I will not get grace to come. Indeed if you have no will to come, you have no grace to come; and if you have no will to come, whom can you blame for your enmity but yourfelves, that will not

come

to Chrift? Will you complain you have not grace to come, and yet reject the gofpel of grace, that only can make you willing! O then, " Why will you die, O houfe of Ifrael?" But, Sir, is it not true, that all will not be gathered: and therefore perhaps not me? Well, but is it not as true, that many fhall be gathered; and therefore why not you? Is there any irritant claufe in the gofpel, excluding you from gathering to Shiloh among the reft? Non-election can be no hinderance to you, if a lying devil and deceitful heart do not make it fo; for it is a fecret you are not concerned with: it is a fecret thing that belongs to God, Deut. xxix. 29. Your bufinefs is to notice what belongs to you, namely, what warrant you have from the word for your gathering unto Shiloh. When the gofpel-call is among your hands, it belongs not to you to demur upon that queftion, Whom he defigns in lis decree?

But it belongs to you to anfwer to your name in the fecond queftion, namely, Whom he defigns in his WORD to be the perfons that should gather, and fhall be gathered to Shiloh? And that all may prefs themselves in upon him, without fear of prefuming when they are gathering to him, they are defined by the most general terms, namely, THE PEOPLE; To him shall the gathering of THE PEOPLE be. And that none may have any reafon to think that they are caft out, but that all and every one may be encouraged to venture their perifhing fouls upon Chrift, I fhall fhew what fort of people are here intended.

1. It is a gathering of pagan people and heathens that is here meant; Shiloh fhall come, and the gathering of the people to bim: accordingly Chrift came, that the Gentiles might be gathered, and might glorify God for his mercy; he came to the Jews for the good of the Gentiles: fee Rom. xv. 8,-12. And now, for accomplishing of these promifes, he allows us to preach among you Gentiles, the unfearchable riches of Chrift. This is a part of the mystery of godlinefs, Chrift preached among the Gentiles, 1 Tim. iii. 16. It was a mystery to the Jews and primitive Chriftians, when Chrift was firft preached among the Gentiles, Rom. xi. 17, 18. Why,

the

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