But doth not God choose some to eternal life, and to this end bring them into his kingdom, and leave others to perish in their sins?

God chooseth those who hear his voice, and cherish the divine influences, and leaves those who refuse his grace and grieve his spirit.  “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and sup with him, and he with me.  Every one that asketh receiveth; hath that seeketh, findeth; and to him that knocked it is opened,” Asking is antecedent to receiving; seeking, to finding; and knocking is the work of those yet without.  When trembling, astonished Saul, of Tarsus enquired, “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?” he was directed by one sent of Christ—­“The Lord said to Annanias, Arise—­go—­enquire—­for one called Saul of Tarsus:  For, behold, he prayeth.”

It is further asked, Whether God doth not act as a sovereign, in his choice of those whom he sanctifies and saves?

God acts as a wise and impartial sovereign.  God is not a sovereign in the sense in which most earthly monarchs are so.  Whim, caprice, passion, prejudice often influence their preferences of some to others.  Not so the divine sovereign.  There are reasons for all his discriminations.  They may be veiled at present from our view; but will one day appear—­“The day will declare them,” and justify God in them.*

1 Corinthians iii. 13.

But the elect, it is said, “are chosen from the foundations of the world; before they have done either good or evil.”

Election is indeed, “according to foreknowledge.”  “Whom God did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son.”

But God could not foreknow, say some, how a free moral agent would act, unless he had first determined how he should act!

A free moral agent, all whose volitions and actions, are fixed by an immutable decree!  We are ignorant how God knows, or how he foreknows.  Perhaps past and future relate only to creatures, Every thing may be present to the divine mind—­with God there may be an eternal Now.  “Beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”  Much which is known to us, is locked up from creatures below us—­they can form no ideas about it.  Still less do we know of God, or the manner of the divine perceptions.  The distance between God and us, is infinitely greater than between us and creatures of the lowest grade.  It is therefore impossible for us to make deductions from the divine perceptions, or determine any thing about them.  When tempted to it we should remember the caution given by Zophar,—­“Canst thou by searching find out God?  Canst thou find out the Almighty to perfection?  It is high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know?” *

* Job xi. 7, 8.