But as it were in an image we maie beholde in the coale God the worde vnited to mannes nature yet that he hath not cast awai that he was before but hath rather traÌsformed the nature which he receaued to his glorie operation For as fier fixed in the woodde percinge in to it coÌpreheÌdeth the wood though the wood cease not to be wood stil yet the fier sendeth his force in to it coÌueieth it selfe in to it and is now thought to be one with it so vndrestaÌde of Christ For God beinge incompreheÌsibly vnited to maÌnes nature hath in that kepte the same that he was he remaineth stille that he was but yet beinge once vnited he is compted as it were one with maÌnes nature makinge that that pertained to it his awne giuinge it the operation of his nature Hitherto Cyrille He vseth also in this matter the similitude of mannes bodie and soule ioign'd together which in dede expresseth it of al other most proprely For the soule is not turned in to the bodie nor the bodie in to the soule but ech retaineth his propre nature maketh one maÌ AND the word In that he saieh the worde became flesh not man he sheweth how far Goddes sonne huÌbled and abased him selfe For the scripture calleth man flesh whan it wil signifie the pouertie vilenes and miserie of man As whan it is saide al flesh is grasse and he remembred that they were but flesh my spirite shal not euer striue in man for he is flesh But whaÌ the Euangelist saieth the worde became flesh we maie not imagine that Goddes sonne ioigned to his diuine nature flesh only and not mannes soule as Appollinaris thought in his trauÌce that flesh and the Godhead made one person in Christ without mannes soule For he imagined that the diuinitee was in stede of a soule But so it shuld folow that the lorde Iesus was not a verie maÌ For flesh is not a man For the soule is the formal parte of a maÌ namely that whereby a man is a maÌ with out which a maÌ can not be And that the lord had a maÌnes soule beside his diuinitee he him selfe testifieth whaÌ he saieth my soule is heauie vnto the death Nether caÌ Apollinaris aide him selfe with this place For whaÌ the scripture calleth meÌ flesh it meaneth not that thei ar without soules For thaÌ thei were no meÌ in dede Here we must know also from whens Goddes sonne became flesh For we maie not thiÌcke that he brought his flesh from heaueÌ or made it in the aire For the holie scripture teacheth that he shulde coÌme of the sede of AbrahaÌ Dauid shuld be the fruite of his loines For such plaine wordes it vseth to assure vs of the truth of so necessarie a matter vtterly to stoppe the mouthes of dotinge meÌ And in the writers of the new testameÌt it is most plainly sette forth vnto vs that he receaued flesh out of the substaÌce of the virgin Marie For. S. Mattheu hath these wordes to gar en aute gennethen that which is engendred in hir S. Paule genomenon ekgynaicos made of a womaÌ the Angel in S. Luke ho karpos the frute of thy wombe The frute of a tree is of the same substaÌce that the tree is of That which only passeth thorough a thinge is not the frute of that thinge For water is not the frute of the coÌducte pipe nor ale the frute of the spickette or of the kinderkinne Against this most manifest truth wherein the pith of our saluatioÌ lieth the franctike Anabaptistes briÌge two priÌcipal reasons I wot not whether more ignoraÌtly or more vngodly For first thei saie that if the lorde receaued our flesh he receaued vncleane flesh But iudge you whether al the scriptures be they neuer so plaine must giue place to this their simple imagination or whether their simple imagination shuld giue place to so manie plaine scriptures But first I aske them whether God cold not make cleane our vncleane flesh or wold not If thei saie he colde nor they limitte his power ouer much If thei saie he wolde not we wil hisse them out For if God of his goodnes wolde make his sonne to die for vs he wolde of his goodnes make his flesh cleane for vs. Secondly laske them why God wold haue his sonne to be borne of a virgine not to be begotteÌ betwene maÌ and womaÌ after the commune course of the worlde Doeth not that teache vs that he meÌt to make his sonnes flesh pure holie Yea doeth not the angel so signifie in Luke whan he saieth the holie gost shal comme vpoÌ the the power of the highest shal ouersshadow the for which cause the holie thinge to gennomenoÌ that is engeÌdred shal be called Goddes sonne But this their reason hath no weight bicause it is oÌly forged in maÌnes braine Thother is takeÌ out of the scripture For S. Paule to the Cor. writeth thus The first man was of the erth erthlie The secoÌde maÌ is the lorde from heaueÌ In which place S. Paules purpose is not to speake of the substaÌce of our bodies or of the substance of the lordes bodie but of the qualities as the wordes folowinge declare hoios of what qualitee the erthlie was of that qualitie ar the erthlie of what qualitee the heaueÌlie is of that qualitee ar the heaueÌlie This thaÌ is the sense The first maÌ was of the erth erthlie that is subiecte to sinne corrupte affectioÌs which bringe death The secoÌde heaueÌlie that is ful of heaueÌlie qualities which thorough the power of Goddes spirite draw with them life immortalitte As we bare the image of the erthlie that is were sinful and therefore compassed with death so shal we beare the image of the heauenlie that is our spirites shal be renued to tru holines our bodies to immortalitee Wherefore whaÌ he saieth the seconde maÌ is the lorde from heaueÌ he meaneth not that he brought his bodie from heauen but that he is heauenly as he expouneth himselfe that is endued with heaueÌlie qualities Now to procede in our former purpose it shal be good to seke out the causes why Goddes sonne became flesh or as Sainct Paule speaketh why God was manifested in flesh And no man can shew vs theÌ more certainly than S. Paule hath don to the Hebru For there he teacheth vs that the cheife and principal cause was that by death he might destroie him that had deathes power that is Satan For Satan had power ov vs to punish vs with death bicause we were sinners And sinne cold not be purged but in the flesh of Goddes sonne If he had remained God only purgation and satisfactioÌ for sinne cold not haue beÌ made by him For the Godhead cold not suffre nor shew obedience But sith thorough disobedience sinne came in to the world it must be putte awaye thorough obedience which required mannes nature Howbeit if he had
now greately blemished darckned yet the sparckes remaininge suffice to shew so much vnto vs of goddes soÌne as maie iustly coÌdeÌne vs of wilful ignoraÌce The beames of his glorie euer shined in dede yet do shine euerie where to the sight of al meÌ maÌ was so first made by him as he might perfectly see theÌ But he fondly folowinge SataÌs aduise wold see more thaÌ was coÌuenieÌt so lost the sight that he had or at the lest so blurred marred it that where before his eyes perced in to the glorie of Goddes maiestie cold wel abide the brightnes there of now thei be so bluÌt that thei can not entre so weake that thei ar streight waie daseld and blinded with so great glisteringe light Yet it hath pleased God to helpe this weaknes other waies thaÌ by the sight of his wondreful worckes but most cheifely clearely perfectly by clothinge his sonne with maÌnes nature which thinge our EuaÌgeliste teacheth with like compeÌdiousnes shortnes of wordes saiynge the worde became flesh The heatheÌ sette forth the meruailous conninge of Vergil in coÌpeÌdious shorte speakinge whan he saide that Aeneas passed by the fildes where Troie was For with one worde saie thei he swalowed vp so manie houses teÌples towers huge buildinges walles and left not so much as the ruines rubbish But if we wel coÌsidre the matter we shal se that our Euangeliste hath compreheÌded more thiÌges makiÌge to the purpose with as few wordes For by these few wordes the worde became flesh he teacheth that Goddes natural sonne so ioigned vnto him maÌnes nature that of two natures one person was made which thiÌge cold not haue ben vttered with other wordes so shortely so pithely to the purpose For if he had saied that Goddes sonne ioigned vnto him maÌnes nature it had ben truly spokeÌ in dede but it had not so wel expressed the vnitee of person For an husbande ioigneth vnto him a wife yet thei grow not in to one person after such sorte as the soule the bodie make one person in a man For the soule is not one person the bodie another person but they both make one person namely a man But an husbaÌde not witstandinge his ioigninge of a wife vnto him remaineth one person the wife another person they be two persons not one Therefore the worde ioigninge shuld not haue so fully expressed the matter For this ioigninge is a special singular ioigniÌge For Goddes nature is so ioigned to maÌnes that one persoÌ is made of bothe namely one Christ as of the bodie and the soule one maÌ is made And this is verie necessarie for vs to know For if we imagine the lordes maÌhod a nature a parte his Godhead a nature a parte with out such a singular coÌiunction vnion that of both natures one person is made as the haeretike Nestorius did thaÌ the lorde Iesus cold not be a mete mediator betweÌ God vs nor make a sufficieÌt satisfaction redemption for the sinnes of the worlde For a mediator betwene God maÌ must be partaker of both natures And a sufficieÌt redemer of al the worlde he can not be that is a maÌ only For how caÌ a maÌ satisfie the infinite iustice of God ouercoÌme SataÌ hel death and giue life Therefore the holie scripture teacheth that the lorde Iesus was not theophoros as Nestorius dreamed a maÌ in whoÌ god was whom Gud assisted with whom God was preseÌt for God is also in vs but in him the godhead was so knitte vnited to his maÌhod as those twaine made one person And so it is wel truly saide that God purchased his coÌgregation with his blood and that the lorde of glorie that is to saie God was crucified not that he suffred in his diuine nature but bycause those two natures ioigned vnspeakably together make one persoÌ therefore that the one nature did and suffred is attributed to thother some times to bothe together that pertaiÌeth to one only Which colde not be if thei were two sondrie persons As if the soule were a person alone by it selfe the bodie a person alone by it selfe the soule shuld not so be saide to do or suffre that the bodie did ot suffred nor the bodie that the soule did de or suffred nor the hole man that one parte only did or suffred which thinges yet we now admitte bicause of the vnitee of the person We must know than this vnitee of person in the lorde Iesus God man which the EuaÌgelist meruailously teacheth in these wordes But where he saieth the worde became flesh he meaneth that the worde abode stil though it became flesh that the worde I saie was not chauÌged turned altered from his awn nature in to flesh For some auoidinge Nestorius haeresie who made two persons in Christ fled the smoke raÌne iÌ to the fier For ether thei turned the diuine nature in to mannes nature or maÌnes nature in to the diuine or so confused and meÌgled the two natures together that nether nature remained perfectly as whan wine water ar meÌgled to gether there remaineth nether perfectte wine nor perfectte water In our time also some Anabaptistes haue taught that the diuine nature was turned in to flesh for a time became felcable and that now the lordes flesh is turned in to his diuine nature againe and is no more flesh Which dreame is to to sonde For it implieth a plaine impossibilitee For it is as impossible for goddes nature to be altered chaunged as it is impossible for it to cease to be Goddes nature For what so euer maie be altered and chaunged hath an imperfection in it is subiecte to passioÌs But Goddes nature hath no imperfectioÌ nor is subiecte to passioÌs for that were not to be God so his nature caÌ not be chauÌged We must therefore so coÌfesse beleue the ioigninge to gether vnitinge of two natures in Christ that we meÌgle theÌ not together nor turne th one in to the other but that eche remaine stil in his awne propre nature The Godhead is not the maÌhod nor the maÌhod the Godhead The Godhead is a nature by it selfe the maÌhod a nature by it selfe of those two natures ona Christ consisteth This vnitinge together of two natures Cyrille laboureth to teach weake vnderstaÌdinges by a similitude though similitudes in this behalfe haue some imperfection These be his wordes Esaie the prophete saieth one of the Seraphins was sent vnto me he had a coale in his hande which he toke from the altar he saide beholde I haue touched thy lippes with this it shal purge thine iniquitee We saye that the fiere coale giueÌth vnto vs a figure and image of the worde made maÌ Which if it shal touch our lippes that is to saie if thorough faith we shal coÌfesse it it maketh vs pure from al sinne
his awne giftes in vs. And so he calleth faith whereby we ar iustified one grace euerlastinge life another grace verie truly godly to the coÌfusion of the commune idols souldiars Other expouninge grace for grace grace vpoÌ grace reach that out of this fulnes of his sonne god gaue to our fathers vndre the old testameÌt the spirite of feare whereby as childreÌ vndre a scolemaster thei were kepte in restrained that thei shuld not straie abrode after fleshlie lustes but be led forth framed to some godlines And in the new testameÌt he giueth the spirite of fredoÌ whereby with more fraÌcke free hertes with more ioiful courage by the motioÌ of the spirite we do the thiÌges that please god Not that our fathers were al together voide of this free spirite but bicause of their childlie age thei were more kepte vndre by feare the spirite was not so richely largely giueÌ to theÌ as to vs I meane vniuersally touchinge goddes ordinarie dispeÌsation For to some special persons the spirite was as largely giueÌ and more largely thaÌ it is now The exposition of other is that God loueth fauoreth vs bicause of the loue fauor that he beareth to his sonne as S. Paule writeth that he hath made vs acceptable in the biloued For by nature we ar the childreÌ of wrath the loue fauor that we finde iÌ goddes sight is for that that of his awne goodnes he hath made vs the membres of his most derely biloued sonne so loueth vs as a parte of his sonnes bodie Other thincke that the meaninge of these wordes is that God powreth al his graces in to the lord Iesus by him coÌueieth the same vnto vs as by a conducte pipe I leaue to your choise which of these expostions you wil folow The law The nature of meÌ is coÌmunely ether to giue to litle or to much reuereÌce to Goddes ministers And to despice them while thei liue and whan thei be ded to make them more thaÌ saintes In the time of the lordes coÌuersation vpoÌ erth the Iues had Moses in such reuereÌce and estimation that thei made him verie litle lesse than a God In Moseis person thei gloried Moseis person thei bosted and extolled aboue the starres Thei had this also that thei so pust vp them selues in their knowlege of Goddes wil and in their holie perfecte worckes wrought accordinge to the rule of the law as that thei excelled al other meÌ were halfe goddes vpoÌ erth and more mete to be placed in paradise amonge the heaueÌlie spirites theÌ to walke in this vale of miserie amonge sinful men Wherefore Io. Baptist to plante Christ Iesus in the hertes of theÌ to whoÌ he was sent to be a teacher and the better to aduance his glorie laboureth to pulle those two great hindrauÌces out of their hertes namely their preposterous gloryinge in the persone of Goddes minister and their vaine confideÌce in their awne holines and righteousnes And first he setteth vp the lord Iesus far aboue Moses makinge a comparison betwene the office of Moses and the lordes office For he assigneth to Moses that he ministred and gaue the law to the people he assigneth to the lord Iesus that he hath brought grace truth Now there is aÌ excediÌge greate differeÌce betwene these two offices For th one is the ministration of death and condemnation thother of life iustificatioÌ The law in dede prescribeth vnto vs true holines certainly sheweth vs what we ought to do and to leaue vndon in euerie pointe but while thereby ether it represseth restraineth meÌnes raginge lustes or coÌuinceth al men proueth that thei do not the thinges thei ought to do nor eschue the thinges thei ought to eschue as S. Paule lernedly and truly writeth it encreaseth sinne worcketh wrath killeth and condeÌneth vs. It encreaseth sinne bicause the more our lustes ar restrained the more ragingly thei burst out It worcketh wrath bicause that whan our lustes ar bridled we ar angrie with God for puttinge that snaffel in to our mouthes so to our other vices we adde disobedieÌce stubburnnes murmuringe against God It killeth and condeÌneth bicause it pronounceth al meÌ accursed that kepe not the thinges prescribed taught in it to the vttermost title where as we perfirme not one iote perfetly as we shuld But here we must know that the law of hir selfe of hir awne nature hath not these effectes but by accideÌt that is by the meanes of our vicious nawghtie corrupte nature For the law is good holie iust worcketh not coÌdeÌnation of hir awne nature but bicause our sinful nature can abide no good thinge therefore of necessitee it must be condeÌned by that that is good whaÌ the same is laied vnto it The propre cause is not in the summe beames that they make a carion to stincke the more but in the nature of the carion For thei shine upon other bodies without such effecte If our nature were good the law shuld be most liuelie and coÌfortable vnto it Now bicause it is corrupte poisoned the law worcketh not the thinges that it wold and shuld but the thinges that such a nature wil only suffre to be wrought Grace and truth We haue now the office of Moses letre vs on thother side coÌsidre the office of the lord Iesus But first lett vs vndrestande the wordes By grace some vndrestande that that maketh vs amiable and acceptable and getteth vs fauor before God meÌ By truth thei vndrestande true sincere perfecte sounde and sure righteousnes Other by grace in this place vndrestande forgiuenes of sinnes and by truth the fulfillinge of al the figures and shadowes of Moseis law In which so euer signification you shal take the wordes the sense shal be good and godlie For the lorde Iesus maketh vs amiable and acceptable in Goddes sight apparellinge vs with his awne swete smellinge garmeÌtes that is with his awne holines and he renueth our mindes vnto true sound and fast abidinge righteousnes he also hath optained for vs remissioÌ of our sinnes hath perfirmed al that was shadowed in Moseis law For he hath washed sanctified and purged vs with his awne blood He hath suffred death in our stede and offred him selfe a slaine sacrifice vpon the crosse to be a perpetual satisfaction for the sinnes of al Goddes chosen to appease for euer Goddes wrath kinled against sinne And here we ar clearely taught that the law cold not bringe these thinges to passe Wherefore al thei that haue assigned righteousnes and acceptation in Goddes sight to the dedes of the law or haue sought anie holines anie forgiuenes of sinnes anie sparcke of grace life other waies than by the lord Iesus only alone haue miserably begiled them selues to their perpetual confusion and perdition Let vs my brethern be no more deluded but resorte to the true fouÌtaine of al heaueÌlie graces draw from
ben man only he could not haue ouercomme death nether shuld his satisfaction haue ben sufficient for the sinnes of al the world as we touched before yea scarcely for the sinnes of one man For the maiestie of God that is offended thorough sinne is infinite And therefore he must be no lesse that shal make satisfaction to that maiestie It was than of necessitee that God shuld becomme maÌ Another cause was that he might be made like to his brethern sinne only excepte For as S. Paule writeth it was semelie for him for whom by whom al thinges ar whaÌ he wold bringe manie childreÌ to glorie to make the high capitaine of their saluation perfecte thorough suffringes For he that sanctifieth thei that be sanctifieed ar al of one For which cause he is not ashamed to cal them brethern saiynge I wil shew forth thy name to my brethern and againe I wil trust in him and againe lo I the childreÌ whom God hath giueÌ me Seinge than that the childreÌ were partakers of flesh blood he likewise became partaker of the same c. A thirde cause S. Paule reherseth that is that he might be merciful pitie the miserie of his people hauiÌge felt teÌtations him selfe that is to saie that we might be the better persuaded and certified that he wold pitie vs knowinge that he had experieÌce and felinge of our miseries griefes in himselfe For we caÌ not thincke that anie shuld pitie vs so wel as he that feleth or hath felt the same grife smarte that we do To returne to S. Io. in thes his wordes the worde became flesh we haue a siÌgular consolation in that I saie Goddes sonne hath takeÌ flesh of our flesh bones of our bones For so haue we a nigh affinitee familiaritee with God And so that that was ours is made Goddes and that that was Goddes is made ours And we caÌ not doubte but that he wil do al thiÌges for vs who beinge God wold familiarly be ioigned to vs in our nature In teÌtations wrastlinges of coÌscience let vs flie hereunto coÌsidre this great goodnes excedinge loue freÌdlines we shal be relieued preserued froÌ the baleful pit of despeare AND dwelt The greke worde escenosen is asmuch to saie as he made his tabernacle Whereby the EuaÌgelist signifieth that he was coÌuersant amonge them as a verie maÌ that he shewed not him selfe the twincklinge of an eye so vanished awaie but had his abode coÌtinued amoÌge theÌ longe time whereby thei might haue sure certaine experience of his godlie behauior of his singular vertues and of his wondreful worckes Some thincke that by this worde is signified that the lorde Iesus had no certaine dwellinge place in this world but was faine to flitte often and remoue For so do thei that dwel in tentes tabernacles In vs Chrysostome taketh in vs for in our flesh and vnderstandeth that the humanitee of Christ was a tabernacle to the diuinitee so frameth this argumeÌt against the haeretikes that affirmed the worde to be turned in to flesh The word dwelt in flesh ergo the worde was not turned in to flesh and made flesh only For nothinge dwelleth in it selfe It is also true that it is taken for amonge in manie places of the scripture One shal suffice for this purpose Act. 4. There was not one nedie enautois in them that is to saie amonge them The worde escenosen he made his tente or tabernacle fauoreth some what Chrysostomes vnderstandinge AND we haue seen Now the EuaÌgelist briÌgeth his awne experieÌe the experieÌce of thother Apostles disciples which with their awne eyes saw such actes of the lorde Iesus as proued hiÌ to be Goddes only begotteÌ sonne The Latines haue a prouerbe that one eyed witnes is worth teÌ eared Of those thinges which we haue seen with our awne eyes we maye be faithful witnesses Thapostles bicause thei saw the thiÌges theÌ selues which thei witnessed to the worlde ar called in the holie scripture with a meruailous elegaÌt worde autoptai selfe seers epoptai inseers or onbeholders WE haue seen Where the Grekes haue sondrie wordes that signifie to see the EuaÌgelist vseth a special one etheasametha which signifieth to beholde a thinge diligeÌtly leasurely We maie see thinges glaunsingly which sight is not so perfecte certaine as whaÌ we beholde a thinge stedfastly leasurely The Grekes haue propre wordes for both kindes of seinge The thinges that thapostles saw thei so saw as they cold not be deceaued therefore they ar called peplerophoremena fully ascertained His glorie The diuinitee of the lorde Iesus shined out of his wordes dedes at al times in al places His uertuous innoceÌt life his miracles his resurrection his ascension sendinge of the holie gost did speake as it were crie out that he was Goddes sonne He gaue them also a tast of his diuinitee heaueÌlye maiestie whaÌ he was most gloriously transfigured before them in the mouÌt But how do miracles proue the diuinitee of Christ seinge that meÌ haue don the like as Elias and Elizeus in the old testameÌt and thapostles in the new You shal vndrestaÌde that the lorde Iesus did miracles by his awne power which the scripture obserueth diligeÌtly teacheth plaiÌly where meÌ do theÌ by a borowed power Of the lorde worckiÌge miracles the scripture saieth I saie vnto the arise I charge the go out Of meÌ the lorde Iesus make the hole in the name of the lorde Iesus arise walke Man receaueth power to worcke miracles God giueth power But the scripture witnesseth that the lorde Iesus giueth also power to worcke miracles that in his awne name Whereby we easely see the differeÌce of the lordes worckinge of meÌnes worckinge of miracles The glorie as of We behelde such glorie magnificeÌce as besemeth goddes only begotteÌ sonne agreeth only to him The worde as some times signifieth not the thinge to be in dede but a likenes of it as whaÌ we saie he speaketh holily as a good maÌ but he is an hypocrite Some times it noteth the truth of a matter a thinge truly to be don Walke as the childreÌ of light saieth Paule He biddeth theÌ not couÌtrefaite the childreÌ of light but to shew them selues the childreÌ of light in dede After such sorte S. IohaÌ vseth the worde as for he meaneth that such vertue such power as he had declared him to be verely goddes natural sonne that such thinges as he did belonge to Goddes sonne only nether can be found in anie other As if we shulde saie of the most noble holie and blessed kinge Edwarde the sixte that he behaued himselfe as a kinges sonne our meaninge shuld not be that he was not a kinges sonne but shewed him selfe as though he had ben a kinges sonne but our meaninge shuld be that he shewed him selfe none other wise than his birth required