Looking unto Jesus a view of the everlasting gospel, or, the souls eying of…

2. Specially, by a more special foreknowledge, which is a knowledge with love and approbation; the very same which barely comprehendeth that we call Election;¹ so Gods choosing is expressed by loving: Jacob have I loved, and Esau have I hated. And this is that which the Apostle speaks of, the Lord knoweth who are his, (i.e.) the Lord from everlasting knoweth his with love, and with approbation, hath God cast away his people which he foreknew? (i.) which he before loved and approved? hence we gather that after the Project was laid, and the Counsels of God were agreed upon it, then God foreknew, or foresaw whom to embrace in his eternal love as his own. At one act he foreknew whom he would choose, and set apart of his own free love to life and salvation. And here you have the cause of Gods predestinating his Saints to glory, it was only the foreknowledge, and free love of God: the Lord from everlasting, and before the foundation of the world, fore-ordained or fore-appointed some to salvation, nothing moving him thereunto but his own good pleasure and his own free love. This is it that in order of nature, and strictly goes before, and is the cause of our Predestination;² for whom he did foreknow, he also did Predestinate; first he foreknew, and then he did Predestinate; first he loved, and then he Elected; first he embraced them as his own in the Arms of his ⟨p. 32⟩eternal love, and then of his free love he set them apart to life, and to salvation: hence the Apostle calls it the Election of Grace, ³signifying that our Election springs out of the womb of love, free love, free grace is the cause of our Election.

2. Specially, by a more special foreknowledge, which is a knowledge with love and approbation; the very same which barely comprehendeth that we call Election;¹ so Gods choosing is expressed by loving: Jacob have I loved, and Esau have I hated. And this is that which the Apostle speaks of, the Lord knoweth who are his, (i.e.) the Lord from everlasting knoweth his with love, and with approbation, hath God cast away his people which he foreknew? (i.) which he before loved and approved? hence we gather that after the Project was laid, and the Councels of God were agreed upon it, then God foreknew, or foresaw whom to embrace in his eternal love as his own. At one act he foreknew whom he would choose, and set apart of his own free love to life and salvation. And here you have the cause of Gods predestinating his Saints to glory, it was only the foreknowledge, and free love of God: the Lord from everlasting, and before the foundation of the world, fore-ordained or fore-appointed some to salvation, nothing moving him thereunto but his own good pleasure and his own free love. This is it that in order of nature, and strictly goes before, and is the cause of our Predestination;