(2.) Involuntary, in some rational creatures. Sinning men and angels have no design, no will, no desire to give glory to God. They do their utmost endeavour to the contrary, to hate him, reproach and blaspheme him. But they cannot yet cast off the yoke of God. In their minds and consciences they are forced, and shall be for ever, to acknowledge that God is infinitely holy, infinitely wise, powerful, and righteous. And he hath the glory of all these properties from them in their very desires that he were otherwise. When they
481 AN EXPOSITION UPON PSALM CXXX. [Ver.^.
would that God were not just to punish them, powerful to torment them, wise to find them out, holy to be displeased with their lusts and sins, they do at the same time, in the same thing, own, acknowledge, and give unto God the glory of his being, justice, wisdom, power, and holiness. When, therefore, God hath made known his properties, the ascription of glory unto him on their account is to rational creatures nfvtural and unavoidable.
(3.) It is voluntary, in the reasonable service, worship, fear, trust, obedience of angels and men. God having revealed unto them the properties of his nature, they acknowledge, adore them, and place their confidence in them, and thereby glorify him as God. And this glorifying of God consisteth in three things: —
[1.] In making the excellencies of God revealed unto us the prin- ciple and chief object of all the onoral actings of our souls, and of all the actings of our affections. To fear the Lord and his goodness, and to fear him for his goodness; to trust in his power and faithfulness; to obey his authority; to delight in his will and grace; to love him above all, because of his excellencies and beauty; — this is to glorify hiiiL
[2.] To pray for, and to rejoice in, the ways and means whereby he will or hath promised farther to manifest or declare these proper- ties of his nature and his glory in them. What is the reason why we pray for, long for, the accomplishment of the promises of God toward his saints, of his threatenings towards his enemies, of the fid- filling of the glorious works of his power and grace that yet remain to be done, of the coming of the kingdom of Christ, of the approach of glory? Is it not chiefly and principally that the glorious excellen- cies of God's nature may be made more manifest, be more known, more exalted, — that God may appear more as he is, and as he hath declared himself to be? This is to give glory to God. So likewise our joy, rejoicing, and satisfaction in any of the ways and works of God ; it is solely on this account, that in them, God in his properties, — that is, his power, wisdom, holiness, and the like, — is revealed, de- clared, and made known.
[3.] In their joint actual celebration of his praises ; which, as it is a duty of the greatest importance, and which we are, indeed, of all others most frequently exhorted unto and most earnestly called upon for; so in the nature of it, it consists in our believing, rejoic- ing expression of what God is and what he doth ; — that is, our ad- miring, adoring, and blessing him, because of his holiness, goodness, and the rest of his properties, and his Avorks of grace and power suitable unto them. This it is to praise God, Rev. v.
Fourthly, Observe that none of these properties of God can be thus manifested and known, nor himself be glorified for them, but
Yer.4.] evidence of forgiveness with god. 485
hy his declaration of them, and by ilieir effects. We know no more of God than he is pleased to reveal unto ns, I mean not mere re- velation by his word, but any ways or means, whether by his word, or by his works, or by impressions from the law of nature upon our hearts and minds. And whatever God thus declares of himself, he doth it by exercising, putting forth, and manifesting the effects of it. So we know his power, wisdom, goodness, and grace, — namely, by the effects of them, or the works of God that proceed from them and are suited unto them. And whatever is in God that is not thus made known, we cannot apprehend, nor glorify God on the account of it. God, therefore, doing all things, as hath been showed, for the glory of these his properties, he doth so reveal them and make them known.
Fifthly, Upon this design of God, it is necessary that he should reveal and make known all the attributes and j^roperties of his nature, in works and effects peculiarly proceeding from them and answering unto them, that he might be glorified in them; and which, as the event manifests, he hath done accordingly. For what reason can be imagined why God will be glorified in one essential excellency of his nature and not in another? Especially must this be affirmed of those properties of the nature of God which the event manifesteth his principal glory to consist in and arise from, and the knowledge whereof is of the greatest use, behoof, and benefit unto the children of men, in reference unto his design towards them.