An exposition with practical observations continued upon the eighth, ninth and tenth chapters of…An exposition with practicall observations continued upon the eighth, ninth and tenth chapters of…

But though God be thus invisible in his essence, yet there is a way by which the essence of God may be seen. And of that Moses, to whom the Lord said, Thou canst not see my face, the Author to the Hebrews saith (Heb. 11.24.) That he saw him who was invisible; the letter of the text carries a contradiction in the adjunct, it is as much as if one should say, He saw that which could not be seen. The meaning is, He saw him by the eye of faith, who could not be seen by the eye of sense; faith sees not only the back-parts, but the face of Jehovah: the essence of God is as clear to that eye, ⟨p. 231⟩as any of his attributes, yea his essence is as plain to faith, as any of his works are to sense. Thus he is seen, Whom no man hath seen nor can see (1 Tim. 6.16.) not the Saints in heaven: they are not able to see the Lord in his essence, He passeth by them there, and they see him not; in heaven we are promised a sight of him, yet not that fight, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for they shall see God: and without holiness no man shall see the Lord, then holy men shall see him; the state of the Saints in glory is vision, as here it is faith (2 Cor. 13.12.) We shall see him face to face, and as he is (1 Joh. 3.2.) These Scriptures which speak of the estate of the Saints, beholding God in glory, are not to be understood, as if the nature and essence of God could be seen, for no man hath seen that, nor ever shall; but they are meant of a more full and glorious manifestation of God; We shall see then face to face; that is, more plainly, for it is opposed to seeing him in a glass; we see him now in a glass, that is, darkly, in ordinances, in duties, in his word, and in his works, but there shall be no need of these glasses in heaven. We shall have so direct and full manifestation of God, that these glasses which reflect him shall be out of use. The Saints on earth have sometimes a sight of God without a glass, that is, out of all ordinances, promises and works either wrought in them or for them. God comes near to their spirits, and lifts them above means, and shows them his love, and their interest in him by an immediate witness of the Spirit, (