Of Holiness: Its Nature, Violence, and Pleasure. Its Beauty consisteth in the infinite Love of Righteousness and Perfection.

THE infinite Love of his own Goodness is the Holiness of GOD. There are infinite Pleasures and perfections in its Nature, that Merit an infinite Esteem and Desire. His Goodness is all Beauty, and his Holiness all Fire and flame in pursuing it. His Holiness is all Beauty, and his Goodness all Fire and flame to enkindle it. The infinite Excess of his Eternal Goodness is its own Holiness, and the Beauty of Holiness is Excess of Goodness. For if Righteousness and Holiness be well distinguished, Righteousness is that Vertue by which GOD doth apprehend, affect and Esteem all Excellent Things according to their value, and chuse and do always the Best and most Excellent: Holiness is the Love which he beareth to his own Righteousness: Which being infinite, makes him infinitely enflamed with the Love of the most perfect Actions; and carries him with an infinite Ardor to the performance of them. For tho it be a Righteous Thing to esteem the Righteousness of GOD in an infinite manner, yet there is as much difference between Righteousness and the Love of Righteousness, as between an Object and the Affection embracing it. Tho here also the Affection & the Object are the same Thing: For this Holy Esteem and Love of Righteousness is Righteousness it self: for it does but render Righteousness its due, tho the Affection be infinite which it bears unto it.

HOLINESS (if it be strictly defined) is that Vertue in GOD, by which he Loveth the most Perfect Things, and infinitely delighteth in them. For by Vertue of this Affection he shunneth and hateth all that is profane, pursuing and delighting in all that is Holy. For the Object of Holiness may be Holy, as well as the Affection, Whereupon it followeth, that Holiness is of two kinds, either the Holiness of the Affection, or the Holiness of the Object. They bear a Relation to each other, yet are absolute Perfections in themselves. For the Hatred of all Defects, Imperfections, Blemishes and Errors is a Glorious thing in it self, yet relates to the Perfection of those Objects from which it would remove those odious Imperfections.