Angels and Men by a first Creation of them This Creature-Son and Branch is call'd by the Name of its peculiar divine Causer in the Creature-part of the Mediator's Person the Word This Word as the Lamb slain from the Foundation of the World Revel 13. 8. and exalted by and out of that Death into the originally unchangeable Life of his Creature-root and Father became the living Word of God and immediate Creator of all Angels and Men by a first Creation and of an innumerable Multitude of both by a second He will also be the immediate Performer of the whole Divine Will on all Angels and Men good and bad in the final Love or Wrath of God in Heaven or Hell to all Eternity 3. In order to all this did the third of the Divine Three call'd Holy Ghost cause the said Creature-root and Father as the supream mystical Abraham to perform a sacrificing Death-work on his Creature-Son and caus'd the said Creature-Son as the supream mystical Isaac not only to submit thereto in a compleat Passive Obedience to the Divine Will but in the supreamly partaken of heavenly Creature-life of his Root and Love thereto to join therewith in Active Obedience to the Divine Will for carrying on the said Death-work on himself The like did he in our mortal Nature when in the Fulness of God's appointed time taken by him in the Fountain-purity thereof above and beyond what it was in the first Adam before his Fall He was therein also full of Grace and Truth John 1. 14. full of the Holy Ghost Luke 4.1 He was Son of Man in Heaven in full Possession of the eternal Life of his Creature-root without any mortal Life about him at same time that he was Son of Man on Earth in our mortal Nature Iohn 3. 13. and long before All in Christ's Person below his infinite Divinity and Creature-root is call'd Man His whole Creature-nature Root and Branch in personal Union is the heavenly Creature-spirit or Holy Ghost render'd communicable to Angels and Men by the exalted Creature-Son and Branch This Creature-Son was one of the three Men that did eat of Abram's Meat else would not have own'd his worshipping him in Prayer for Sodom when the other two created Angels were gone towards it to destroy it and deliver Lot c. The two good Angels are also call'd Men Gen. 18. 1-8 and v. 22-33 Satan also with his evil Angels are Men of Sin 2 Thess. 2. 3. Christ was active in carrying on the Death-work upon himself as First-born of every Creature and so was he in his second Sacrifice by carrying on the Death of our whole mortal Nature in him Spirit Soul and Body By the Holy Ghost or heavenly Creature-spirit in him did he crucify the Spirit of our Nature in himself Luke 12. 49 50. He was also a voluntary Giver up of his Body into the Hands of Men under Devils to put a full Period to all that was mortal about him Iohn 10. 17 18. He laid down the Life of our whole mortal Nature and took it up again in the originally incorruptible immortal eternal creature-Creature-life of his Root above all Deaths or Enemies And by his communicated heavenly Creature-spirit or Holy Ghost in Saints will he enable them to be active in carrying on the like Death-work on the Spirit of Nature at best in themselves and freely also to give up their bodily Life into the Hands of evil Angels and Men God's and their Enemies where God so permits and orders for the witnessing his Gospel-Truths The Record Witness or Products of the first and second of the Divine Three Father and Word in the Creature-part of the Mediator's Person as brought into inseparable Union by the Third bears the Name of the peculiar Divine Causer Holy Ghost All these things were transacted and done by and within God himself before any meer Creatures Angels or Men were brought forth The Three in the Divine Nature with their Record in Heaven the Divine Form are one and the same Three as bearing Witness in Earth the Creature-part of the Mediator agree in one The one Divine Mind is declar'd and done in and by both and all 1 Iohn 5.7,8 By what was done of the Divine Three by their distinct Products and Operations in the Creature-part of the Mediator will they let down themselves to the Sight and Enjoyment of blessed Angels and Saints for evermore The Divine is not the Creature-nature in Christ nor in his whole Creature-nature is the Creature-root the exalted Branch And his whole Divine and Creature-Person is most intimately one with the Divine Essence or Father the Head of all in him 1 Cor. 11. 3. All are one incomprehensible God Iohn 10. 30. The exalted Branch in Christ is the immediate Head of his true Gospel-Church The Creature-root in him Head of that his Divine Form Head of his whole Creature-nature Root and Branch the Divine Essence or Father Head to his whole Divine and Creature-person yet remains uncompounded with Creature-nature as the Divine Form or Son is Gal. 3. 20. 1 Tim. 2. 5. After all this account of Superiorities and Inferiorities in all that 's truly call'd God the lowest Creature-part in the Mediator the exalted Branch or living Word of God thinks or infallibly knows that 't is no Robbery or unwarrantable Presumption in him to reckon himself equal with God as in personal Union with his Creature-root and infinite Divine Nature Phil. 2.6 These are strange seeming Contradictions to Man's Wisdom which is Foolishness to God's and to be destroy'd Isa. 29. 14. in all self-confident Disputers of this World 1 Cor. 1. 19 20. CHAP. IV. The infallible Consequents of the said preparatory Condescensions of God within himself in pursuance and for the accomplishing of his abovesaid twofold Purposes in the twofold Creation of Angels and Men. 1. THUS were the Works determin'd of God to be set up in Angels and Men by a first Creation of them finish'd Heb. 4. 3. to his well-pleasing by the right Use of the mortal earthly First-Covenant Law-life of the Creature in order to receive the Heavenly-Creature New-Covenant Gospel-Life of the Creator Finish'd they were by the Mediator himself as the Lamb slain in the Fountain-purity of the first and ascended into the originally unchangeable Gospel-life of the second Rev. 13.8 All this was done within God himself by the Mediator as the Lamb slain from or in the Foundation of both Worlds natural and spiritual this World and the World to come laid in himself the Creator of both All receiv'd by Angels or Men in their first Creation or restor'd in Men by the Redeemer since their Fall in Adam is with the fallible Understanding and corruptible Will thereof their discerning and desiring Powers their own Righteousness Wisdom Glories natural Excellencies and Perfections therein to be given up in Sacrifice to the Will of God by Passive Obedience This is the only possible Means and Way for their being transform'd and exalted into
cause them to be so accounted also against Heathen Cesars and others of his Party under him Christ himself was condemn'd and murder'd on this Pretence Iohn 19. 12 15. Saints can discover him when sitting in the Temple of God shewing himself that he is God 2 Thess. 2. 4. to be the worst of all Creatures the Man of Sin and Son of Perdition ver 3. Will he quietly bear this Discovery will he not by his humane Instruments shew his utmost Rage against them and God permits But be it as it will the Sum of all true Gospel-teaching is a declaring the Mystery of Godliness for the Salvation of Men and preventing their Damnation and a discovering Satan's Mystery of Iniquity for the Damnation of Men and preventing their Salvation So only can Saints with Paul become free from the Blood of all Men Acts 20. 26. Ezek. 33. 7-9 as having no Share in that Guilt by which they bring that Blood upon their own Heads which will be found to amount unto no less than eternal Death to their whole Beings Spirit Soul and Body in a Resurrection of Damnation The experimental Knowers of the Mystery and Power of Godliness and faithful Discoverers of the Mystery of Iniquity will have a Resurrection of Life John 5. 29. above all Deaths temporal or eternal CHAP. IX The first Sin Fall and Punishment of many evil Angels and of all Mankind in Adam EVIL Mankind in Adam joyn'd with evil Angel-kind in Satan through a mutual Union of Love to themselves and one another electing or chusing for themselves their own earthly mortal First covenant law-Law-life of the Creature given by a First-creation in preference and opposition to the heavenly immortal Second-covenant Gospel-life of the Creator offer'd them by a second or new Creation The evil Angels herein did at first commit the unpardonable Sin against the Holy Ghost under the immediate Beamings forth of Christ's heavenly Creature-Gospel spirit the Son of everlasting Righteousness upon their highest single intuitive natural Understandings Secondly They had no superiour Rank of Creatures in the First-creation already fallen above them in Subtlety and Power to tempt them Thirdly They were all actually created and set up in their compleated personal Beings and Life at first Mankind receive their personal Beings successively Generation after Generation Fourthly Mankind's first Sin in Adam was not against such clear Knowledg of their own unspeakable Concern as well as Duty to God though in the same kind of First-covenant Law-life with Angels The inferiour Ingredients into Man's personal Constitution bodily Sensual-life tho created pure and incorrupt rendred his intuitive Discerning inferiour to that of Angels where 't was single and alone Hence what was immediately and more convincingly made known to Angels was represented to Adam by a figurative Tree of Life and himself in distinction from that by the Tree of Good and Evil. The former represented Christ to him in that heavenly Creature-life offer'd by a new Creation the latter represented himself to himself as but a mystical Tree of Good and Evil in his own Life given in his first Creation corruptible and changeable mortal and perishable with all the earthly things therein Will Understanding Righteousness Wisdom c. with all Works or Fruits ever possible to be done or brought forth therein By and under the superiour Subtlety and Power of the Devil the mystical Old Serpent was Adam in the primitive Purity of his whole Being and Mankind in him as their Head and Representative induc'd perswaded and deceiv'd so as to prefer Satan's self-pleasing Lie to God's Spirit of Grace and Truth So under and with the Serpent he chose his own earthly Life of the Creature in preference to God's own heavenly Creature-life of the Creator Many of Mankind when restor'd out of the Darkness and Death of their own Spirits into the Light Life and Righteousness of Man do sin again in their own Persons after the Similitude of Adam's first Transgression who at best in Innocency was but a Figure of the Second Adam who was to come in the Fountain-purity of our Nature and also full of the Holy Ghost Luke 4. 1. Iohn 1. 14. his heavenly Creature-spirit of Grace and Truth Rom. 5. 14. This Sin again in their own Persons after all sad Experience of fallen Mankind thereby in Adam and all Warnings and Counsels of God since is unrepentable by them Heb. 6. 4 6. and unpardonable by God Heb. 10. 26 27. This is the Case of any that conclusively and absolutely prefer their own restor'd earthly Life of the Creature and Righteousness of Man to the heavenly Creature-life of the Creator and everlasting Righteousness of God therein All that will not receive and have the heavenly Creature-life of God by submitting to the Death of restor'd Nature at best the Loss of all their own Life and things therein God will take away the said Life from them again and lay them down for ever under his unquenchable Wrath in eternal Death Luke 8. 18. This is that Christ says Mat. 16.25 Whosoever will save his Life shall lose it and whosoever will hate and lose his own Life for my Sake from Love to my heavenly Creature-life shall find it with unspeakable Gain as chang'd by Death and Resurrection into an eternal Life Satan was at it with Christ himself Matth. 4. 8 9. to stay and set up with and under him as a State of true Happiness in the mortal Life of our Nature and by his Apostle Peter was at the same Point to pity and spare himself there saying be the Death thereof far from thee this shall not be unto thee Christ discover'd and declar'd this Word of Peter to be Satan's Counsel in and by him Mat. 16. 21-23 As the first Sin of Angels was differing from Man's first Sin so was the Punishment The Punishment of evil Angels was the giving them their own evil Choice their own self-chosen earthly Life receiv'd in their First-creation with all the things thereof their own Wisdom Righteousness Subtlety and Power all natural Excellencies and Perfections therein as by them abus'd turn'd into and us'd in unchangeable Enmity to God and his heavenly Creature spirit of eternal Life God also permitted to them the Exercise of a ruling Power over sallen Mankind all along this World by which Satan carries on the same delusive Work as on Adam at first that the Life given in the First-creation is eternal no need of a second nor therefore of the Death of the first Ye shall not die Gen. 3. 3. This is Satan's uniform Lie all along this World that the Life given in the First-creation is eternal You must die or never live and reign with me in my heavenly Creature-life which is eternal This is Christ's Truth his faithful Saying 2 Tim. 2. 11 12. There 's nothing more pleasing to Man's Will in the restor'd earthly Life of the First Adam than Satan's Lie and nothing so universally contrary to it as God's Truth that
Man therein Iohn 14. 26. This better Comforter he told them would teach them all things divine and spiritual and so bring to their Remembrance all that he had hitherto spoken to them in Parables earthly Figures and Similitudes in which the mystical divine and spiritual Truths lay hid from them as well as others The good Angels also rejoic'd at the Birth of Jesus on the behalf of Mankind in general and of Saints in special as the means for recovering all out of the Darkness and Death into which brought by their first Sin and Punishment thereof Gen. 2. 17. Iohn 1. 9. The World was made by him yet when he came into the World none in their worldly Life of the Creature at best either knew receiv'd or own'd him Iohn 1.10 The righteous First-Covenant professing Jews in Union of mind with evil Angels were the most signally enrag'd Contradicters Blasphemers and Murderers of him for his Gospel-Doctrine of Salvation Acts 3 13-15 The exalted Son and Branch was the immediate Former of himself in the Womb of the Virgin the Son of God on Earth remaining still what he was in the Beginning the Son of Man in Heaven John 3. 13. Evil Angels and Men were God's permissive Hand under his infinite over-ruling Wisdom and Power to finish the Death-work on all that was mortal about him in our Nature and so oft on Saints to their greatest Good and Enemies greatest hurt Hereby do they compleat Saints Conformity to Christ's Death freeing them from all that 's mortal about them while in the Body Isa. 57. 1 2. The Iews would have made Christ a King if he would have own'd his Kingdom in that mortal First-covenant law-Law-life they saw him in Iohn 6. 15. But witnessing his Kingdom not to be in that worldly law-Law-life but in his gospel-Gospel-life of Grace and Truth Iohn 18. 36 37. they murder'd him and so compleated the Death of him as to that mortal law-Law-life wherein they would have made him their King They chose rather to be Subjects to a Heathen King than such a King as he own'd himself to be Iohn 19. 12 15. who would have made him such a King as would have render'd them Traitors and Enemies to Cesar. Here 's the confounded Doings of Man at best in his own worldly Spirit and Life Some Corinthians Laodiceans and other Professors in but the First-covenant-life and Righteousness of Man all along since are of the same mind with them 1 Cor. 4. 8. Rev. 3. 17. The God of this World offer'd Christ a far larger Bribe than the Jews did all the Kingdoms of this World visible and invisible under him all worldly Power Human and Angelical in Case he would own his Kingdom to be in this First-creation Worldly-life Mat. 4. 8 9. Whoever are finally taken with his worldly Bribes the literal or mystical Riches of this First-creation World do fall down and worship him as God And by such Loyal Subjects of him does he murder true Saints that refuse so to do as they did Christ himself True Heaven-born Sons of God have the whole self-confident legal-spirited Generation of Professsors on the same Account universally in all times against them They mortally and irreconcileably hate them for owning the Death-work of Christ's Gospel-spirit of Grace on that Law-spirit of Works they confidently trust in for entring into the Kingdom of God Such become the highest Rank of Satan's Subjects and most serviceable Instruments for maintaining the Credit of his worldly Kingdom as the only true Blessedness to any God's Thoughts and Ways for true Salvation are not as Man 's and when he has declar'd his Ways in his holy Oracles let Man's highest Wisdom undertake the interpreting them all shall run on Satan's Side God's Thoughts therein remaining fast seal'd and lock'd up from Man's best Understanding in but a restor'd First-covenant Life Isa. 29. 11. CHAP. XI The Difference of Christ's Death in our Nature as to the intent and Extent thereof from Saints Conformity to him by the Death of Nature in them CHRIST's condescending to take our Nature and therein by the Grace of God to taste Death for every Man Heb. 2. 9. was in reference to the pardonable Sins of Mankind in Adam and also in their own Persons This was God's appointed Way for the redeeming and recovering them out of their fallen State wherein born dead in Trespasses and Sins Ephes. 2. 1. Col. 2. 13. into the Light and also Life receiv'd by them in their First-creation All may receive this general Redemption-Mercy the Common-Salvation-Work of Christ as a Fruit of his meritorious Sufferings and Death in our Nature if they will But as to the special eternal Salvation of the Elect in his new and everlasting Covenant Gospel-life this is not of him that willeth or runneth in the most fruitful Exercise of his own restor'd First-covenant Law-life but of God's Free-Grace Mercy which he will effectually and infallibly shew to whom he pleases only The ceasing from their own Life Will and Understanding is the only appointed Way for their receiving this special eternal Salvation-life of God Iude with others writ of both these distinct Salvations common and special temporal and eternal And when he had with all Diligence inform'd them of the former he found it needful to exhort them to contena earnestly in Prayer to God for a living spiritual Faith working by Love to him in the latter in which only true Saintship and Salvation ever could or will be found by any Man Iude v. 3. Thus is Christ the Saviour of all Men with a common or general Salvation but of them that believe in his Gospel-life and place all their Hopes of Salvation in that with a special 1 Tim. 4. 10. They trust in the living God that living Word of God which is God John 1.1 Those that wax confident in the common Salvation the restor'd Life and Righteousness of Man do trust in that Life for Entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven which Christ crucified in the Fountain-purity of it in himself God will not only that all Men should be saved with the common Salvation but has rendred them capable also of receiving the Knowledg of the Truth 1 Tim. 2. 4. his Gospel-spirit of Grace and Truth by the convincing Discoveries thereof to their natural Understandings But after all this are they liable to apostatize fall away and finally refuse so great Salvation as is thereby offer'd them and perish for ever Heb. 6. 4-6 The submitting in Passive Obedience to the Death and Loss of all receiv'd from Christ in the Common-Salvation-Benefit of his Death rendring them but holy Flesh is absolutely necessary to their finding the special eternal Salvation-life of his holy Gospel-spirit the Holy Ghost Otherwise after all receiv'd in the Common-Salvation they 'l find everlasting Destruction Conformity to Christ's Death by the Death of Nature at best in us is the appointed way to reign with him in the Life he is ascended into out of the Death thereof
New-creation The Righteousness and Wisdom of Man are the best sort of things in Nature's First-creation spiritual enlightning Gifts are the best Gifts towards a New-creation receivable by the natural Understanding and yet Man in all these Advantages short of the very Gospel-life of God or a living spiritual Faith therein is nothing has nothing that will give him Entrance into the Kingdom of God 1 Cor. 12. 31. 13. 1 2. The best things in Nature are corruptible and if corrupted become the worst of all things The highest Light Wisdom and Righteousness therein establisht in preference to the marvelous Light Wisdom and Righteousness of God offer'd by a New-creation is the greatest Darkness Wickedness and Folly of all Mat. 6.23 Mystical Babylon and Sodom is worse than literal Mat. 11.23,24 The prevailing Power and Danger of Self-love did most signally appear in the first Sin of evil Angels Under the clearest Knowledg of the Will and Command of God that was possible to be given to their supream natural intuitive Understandings for the right use of their natural Beings and Life given them in their First-creation in order to the Second they turn'd away from God's Offer of the latter in Love to themselves in the former This did they in a known Rebellion against God and a known Contrariety to their own unspeakable Concern for finding eternal Life or scaping eternal Death They preferr'd the Life of the Creature in themselves to the Life of the Creator in himself in an unchast adulterous murdering Mind of unchangeable Enmity to their Creator as offer'd to become their Lord Bridegroom and Husband in the Life of that all-powerful Spirit that gave them their own Beings and Life by a First-creation They added to this first unpardonable Sin the drawing all Mankind in Adam to make the same evil Choice for themselves And all along this World when any are restor'd into the Life of the First-creation and brought under high spiritual enlightning Gifts convincing Discoveries and Offers of the heavenly Creature-life of God by a Second evil Angels do attempt and prevail with many under such Advantages to fetch them back again from Christ's offer'd eternal Gospel-life of the Creator in his holy Spirit and set up for themselves in their own holy Flesh or earthly Life and Righteousness of Man Gal. 3. 1 3. 5. 7 8. Balaam and Saul with many others are signal Instances of such Apostacy from Christ under the prevailing Influence of evil Angels The Spirit of the Lord came upon Saul so that he was among the Prophets of God under the enlightning Gifts thereof by which God turn'd him into another Man gave him another Heart to see know and seek after him But he turn'd from God and the Spirit of God departed from him and when his Life was in danger he ask'd Counsel of the Devil in a known Witch what would become of him 1 Sam. 10. 6 9 11. 16. 14. 28. 7. Balaam taken by the Lord for a time out of the Hands of the Devil was forc'd contrary to his own and the Devil 's and Balak's Mind to bless instead of cursing Israel He declares that he heard the Words of God and knew the Most High saw the Visions of the Almighty Numb 24. 16. He pray'd that he might die the Death of the Righteous and that his last End might be like his Numb 23. 10. He tells Balak if he would give him his House full of Silver and Gold he will speak what the Lord says Chap. 24. 13. After all this the Holy Ghost in Peter charges him with loving the Wages of Vnrighteousness 2 Pet. 2. 15. When he found himself disabled to curse Israel he counsell'd the Midianitish Women to go amongst them to allure them to Whoredom and so to cause the Lord to appear against them Numb 31. 16. And listing himself in the Midianites Army was slain with the five Kings of Midian by the Israelites Sword v. 8. None in the restor'd Life of Man and under the enlightning Discoveries and Offers of the Gospel-life of God are out of Satan's reach till born of God Then have they a Life in them which the evil one cannot touch 1 John 5. 18. All restor'd Life and Righteousness of Man renders Men but natural Branches in Christ Servants in the House of God liable to be turn'd out again and cast into unquenchable Fire John 15. 1-6 8. 35. In all restor'd Law-life and Freedom of their own Wills Men are under the Law and under the Curse Gal. 3. 10. in danger of the final condemning Power thereof while destitute of that Gospel-life that 's the only continuing Principle of infallible everlasting well-pleasing Obedience to God This brings with it into Man the glorious Liberty of the Sons of God wherewith Christ makes Men free indeed in a free Will to Good only under an Impossibility of ever doing Evil therein The Will of Man in New-creation-life is in unchageable Harmony with the very Divine Will In this he never sins But in his own Will till fully crucified the Saint continually sins opposing and fighting against his spiritual Will that never sins 1 Iohn 3. 9. 1. 8. Rom. 7. 15 19. Gal. 5. 17. In the First-creation at best Man was but a mystical Tree of good and evil but changeably good and liable by his own choice to become unchangeably unpardonably and unrepentably evil In the second he becomes a particular Tree of Life under and with Christ amongst the innumerable Multitude of blessed Angels and Saints unchangeably Good and under an Impossibility of ever becoming unchangeably evil The uncontroll'd Soveraignty of our own Will at best and the highest Light of our own Understanding fix'd in is the greatest Darkness and Bondage The unchangeable Subjection and Captivity of our Will to the Will of God is the glorious Liberty of the Sons of God 2 Cor. 10. 5. Man in all the Light Life Wisdom and Righteousness of the First-creation restor'd by Christ as the Common-Salvation-Benefit of his Death in the Fountain-purity thereof is still within the Compass of Satan's universal Monarchy or Kingdom of this World in Opposition to the marvellous Light and glorious Liberty of the Sons of God in Christ's reigning Gospel-spirit of the World to come The Old Serpent was too hard for humane Nature and so for all Mankind in Adam at best in the primitive Purity and personal Perfection of all First-creation-life and Things We must quit all kindred with the first Adam yea with Christ himself as a Husband and Head to us in but the restor'd fleshly Life and Righteousness of Man to be married to him as our spiritual Lord and Bridegroom in that quickning Spirit of the Second Adam his Gospel-spirit of true Holiness 2 Cor. 5. 16. 1 Cor. 15. 45-47 Ephes. 4. 24. Christ crucified the living Soul of our Nature in himself by which he purchas'd the restoring of that in Mankind and therein also became an unerrable Pattern to
2. The Three in the Divine Essence or Father singly and abstractedly consider'd will be absolutely invisible to Saints and Angels in Heaven to all Eternity And the Divine Form Son or Glory thereof in Christ's Person will never be the immediate Object of their Sight but be let down to them in the first Conjunction thereof with his Creature-root through the exalted Creature-Son and Branch in him the immediate Creator of all This is the Branch God made strong for himself Psal. 80. 15. to perform his whole Divine Mind in both Creations in this World and the eternal World to come This is the Branch that shall reign on Earth execute Iudgment and Iustice therein as the Lord our Righteousness Jer. 23. 5 6. 33. 15 16. By and through this exalted Branch the immediate Do-all in both Creations will the same Three in the Divine Essence that shin'd forth in the Divine Form from Eternity let down themselves to blessed Angels and Saints to Eternity All the Three in the Divine Essence and heavenly Creature-Glories are one Trinity and that Trinity one individual God Iohn 10. 20. The Three that are One in the Divine Nature are the immediate Object to the Sight and Enjoyment of the whole Creature-nature in Christ Root and exalted Branch that 's in personal Union therewith but never so to any meer Creatures blessed Saints or Angels 1 Tim. 6. 15 16. Iohn 1. 18. Mat. 11. 27. They are personally united with the exalted Branch in him as Members of his mystical spiritual Body to which he is Head But never so to his Creature-root and much less yet to his Divine Nature The Three in the Divine Nature shining forth to meer spiritual Creatures by and through the exalted Branch are no where in Scripture call'd a Trinity nor said to be three Persons If they be three Persons as three distinct individual Angels or Men in Angelical or humane Nature are would they not be three distinct individual Gods would not this be the asserting a Tritheism the lesser sort of Polytheism If they be call'd three Persons it must be as acknowledg'd in a Unity transcendently above meer Creatures who are so in one specifical humane or angelical Nature The three in God are three in one individual Divine Nature shining forth to Saints and Angels in the Mediator's one individual Creature-nature which in and with his Divine Nature is with his Divine Father or Essence one individual God In this Sense if any may they be call'd three Persons But the acknowledging three distinct Powers in God may justly secure any from the Imputation of Antitrinitarianism They are so three that the first is not the second nor second the third The Divine Form in Christ is not the Divine Essence nor his Creature-nature his Divine nor his Creature-root the Branch in him but all one individual incomprehensible God Iohn 10. 30. He that says knows and owns God the Father and his Divine and Creature-Son says all that God is or is God Man in the fallible Understanding and corruptible Will of his First-creation Life can never truly see rightly know and do the one Will of both All therefore that trust to their own Understanding deny both the Divine Father and the divine and heavenly Creature-Son Whosoever denies the Divine and Creature Son hath not the Father But he that rightly acknowledges the Son hath the Father also 1 John 2.22 23. Antichristian Deniers of both pass in reputed Orthodox Man's Day of Judging under Satan God of this World as the only true Christians excommunicating or casting out of their worldly Churches the true Owners of both as the arrantest Hereticks and Blasphemers in the World God the Son or Mediator in the Divine and Creature-glories of the Divine Essence or Father is call'd a Person 2 Cor. 2. 10. In his Creature-part he is call'd the Brightness of the Divine Glory in himself and therein the express Creature Image of God's whole Divine Person Essence and Form Heb. 1. 3. The Creature-root in the Mediator is God's Soul not immediately discernable to the highest spiritual Understanding of meer Creatures but in its first Conjunction with Divine Nature is let down to their Sight and Enjoyment in and by the exalted Creature-Son and Branch as God's Body or Visibility of all to them Of the Creature-root God's Soul himself says in reference to the unpardonably sinning Shepherds or pretending Teachers of the Way to Heaven and Peace with God in but the restor'd Life and Righteousness of Man my Soul loath'd them and their Soul also abhorred me Zech. 11. 8. Every individual Man in the three essential Ingredients into his personal Constitution Spirit Soul and Body 1 Thess. 5. 23. is a shadowy Image of the three in one God and of the Divine Spirit Creature-root or Soul and creature-Creature-body or Branch in Christ's wonderful compounded Person Man in another Sense was in the primitive Purity of his whole Being a shadowy Image of God's Righteousness This was lost to all Mankind by their first Sin in and with Adam The Reason therefore of the threaten'd Death on Murderers that whosoever sheds Man's Blood by Man shall his Blood be shed for in the Image of God made he Man Gen. 9. 6. relates to Man's being the Image of God in the former Sense Gen. 1. 26 27. The Image of him in the latter being wholly lost the Murderers of him in reference to that might seem unaccountable The Spirit of Man singly and abstractedly consider'd may seem a dark Shadow of the very Divine Essence as comprehending in it a threefold distinct Life rational sensual and vegetable but all three invisible and unexercis'd till brought into hypostatical or personal Union with its fitly organiz'd Body And all the said three Lives when brought into Exercise are called a living Soul in distinction from the Spirit separately consider'd and from the Body that 's the personal Appearance or Visibility of the whole Man And in both and all the Man is but one Person CHAP. VII The Mystery of God in general of all that is truly called God and to be worship'd and in particular of God the Father or Divine Essence and of Christ the Divine and Creature-Son Col. 2. 2. both and all one incomprehensible God John 10. 30. IN general all are one individual God In particular the Divine Form or Son though most intimately one with the Divine Essence or Father in the one infinite Divine Nature became personally united with the Creature-form of God the Divine Essence or Father remaining ever single and uncompounded therewith Gal. 3. 20. A Mediator is not of one Nature but God in his Divine Essence is one God the Mediator as consisting of two Natures Divine and Creaturely in personal Union is fitted to mediate between infinite Divinity and finite Creaturality in blessed Angels and Saints for ever 1 Tim. 2. 5. The Divine and Creature-Son will remain a Mediator for ever in Heaven between infinite Divinity and elect Angels and