Richard Alleine wrote a little book in 1665 called Heaven Opened: or, A Brief and Plain Discovery of the Riches of God’s Covenant of Grace. It is high on my list of current favorites. Just look at this opening gambit:
Good news from heaven! the day-spring from on high hath visited this undone world! After a deluge of sin and misery, behold the bow in the cloud! the Lord God hath made and established a new covenant…
Glorious tidings, good news indeed! but what is this covenant? Or what is there that is given and granted therein? Why, in sum, there is all that heaven and earth can afford; all that can be needed or desired; and this, by a firm and irrevocable deed, made over, and made sure to all that will sincerely embrace it.
Particularly, God hath in his covenant granted and made over,
First. Himself.
Second. His Son.
Third. His Spirit.
Fourth. The earth.
Fifth. The angels of light.
Sixth. The powers of darkness.
Seventh. Death.
Eighth. The kingdom.
Ninth. All the means of salvtion.
This is also the outline of the book. I will have to say more about the first three chapters another time.
