GOD‘S MERCY
JEREMY TAYLOR，who lived from 1613to 1667，is one of the most celebrated divines of the Church of England.His sermons are among the richest treasures of theological literature.He is sometimes styled the Shakspeare of Divinity.The following is a good specimen of his richness of imagery，beauty of style，and force of thought and expression.
1.MAN，having destroyed that which God delighted in，that is，the beauty of the soul，fell into an evil portion，and being seized on by the divine justice，grew miserable，and condemned to an incurable sorrow.Poor Adam，being famished and undone，went and lived a sad life in the mountains of India，and turned his face and his prayers toward Paradise；thither he sent his sighs，to that place he directed his devotions；there was his heart now，where his felicity sometimes had been：but he knew not how to return thither，for God was his enemy，and，by many of his attributes，opposed himself against him；and poor man，whom a fly or a fish could kill，was assaulted and beaten with a sword of fire in the hand of a cherubim.God’s eye watched him，his omniscience was man‘s accuser，his serenity was his judge，his justice the executioner.
2.It was a mighty calamity that man was to undergo，when he that made him armed himself against his creature，which would have died or turned to nothing，if he had but withdrawn the miracles or thealmightiness of his power.If God had taken his arm from under him，man had perished.But it was，therefore，a greater evil when God laid his arm on him and against him，and seemed to support him，that he might to longer killing him.In the midst of these sadnesses，God remembered his own creature，and pitied it；and by his mercy，rescued him from the hands of his power，and the sword of his justice，and the guilt of his punishment，and the disorder of his sin；and placed him in that order of good things where he ought to have stood.
3.It was mercy that preserved the noblest of God’s creatures here below；he who stood condemned and undone under all other attributes of God，was saved and rescued by his mercy；that it may be evident that God s mercy is above all his works，and above all ours，greater than the creation，and greater than our sins.As is his majesty，so is his mercy，that is，without measures and without rules，sitting in heaven and filling all the world，calling for a duty that he may give a blessing，making man that he may save him，punishing him that he may preserve him.
4.And God‘s justice bowed down to his mercy，and all his power passed into mercy，and his omniscience changed into care an watchfulness，into providence and observation for man’s avail，and heaven gave its influence for man，and rained showers for our food and drink；and the attributes an acts of God sat at the foot of mercy，and all that mercy descended upon the head of man.
5.For so the light of the world in the turning of creation was spread abroad like a curtain，and dwelt nowhere，but filled the expansum with a dissemination great as the unfoldings of the air‘s looser garment，or the wilder fringes of the fire，without knots，or order，or combination；but God gathered the beams in his hand，and united them into a globe of fire，and all the light of the world became the body of the sun；and he lent some to his weaker sister that walks in the night，and guides a traveler，and teaches him to distinguish a house from a river，or a rock from a plain field.So is the mercy of God a vast expansum and a hugeocean.From eternal ages it dwelt around the throne of God，and it filled all that infinite distance and space，that hath no measure but the will of God；until God，desiring to communicate that excellency and make it relative，created angels，that he might have persons capable of huge gifts，and man，who he knew would need forgiveness.
6.For so the angels，our elder brothers，dwelt forever in the house of their Father，and never broke his commandments；but we，the younger，like prodigals，forsook our Father’s house，and went into a strange country，and followed stranger courses，and spent the portion of our nature，and forfeited all our title to the family，and came to need another portion.For，ever since the fall of Adam，who，like an unfortunate man，spent all that a wretched man could need，or a happy man could have，our life is repentance，and forgiveness is all our portion；and though angels were objects of God‘s bounty，yet man only is，in proper speaking，the object of his mercy；and the mercy which dwells in an infinite circle，became confined to a little ring，and dwelt here below，till it hath carried all God’s portion up to heaven，where it shall reign and glory upon our crowned heads forever and ever！