account to be call'd such a Man's Son yet not be his proper Son thus an adopted though he excel never so much above the rest yet that can never make him to be a proper Son To refute some Cavils of theirs one thing more we are again to take notice of upon this matter how the the word God is in Scripture sometimes taken essentially for the most holy Trinity and sometimes personally for one of the Persons as when 't is said * Acts 20.28 God hath purchased his church with his own blood which is meaned our Saviour the second Person of the Godhead In the first sense must be understood those places of Scripture wherein 't is said The name of the Lord is one and there is none besides him there is but one God and others to the same purpose to shew the Oneness of the Nature which as well as they we do affirm but as to teach well one must distinguish well so for want of observing this Rule that which is spoken of the Essence of God they mis-apply it to the Persons and so make a Confusion between things to be distinguished We already proved how the Unity of Nature doth not take away the Trinity of Persons nor the Plurality of Persons destroy the Unity of Nature which Mistake of theirs doth also hold in the Mystery of the Incarnation or of the Word being made Flesh and about our Saviour's Person in whom they confound the Natures so that which is spoken of his Humanity they mis-apply to his Divinity The second Argument whereby Christ is proved to be God's natural Son is drawn from the word only begotten which for greater confirmation is attributed to Christ in several * John 1.18 places wherefore in Scripture Christ is called the Son of God to shew he is the only begotten for that 's the signification of the word and †Heb. 1.2 vers 5. Paul's interpretation of it for he saith Such is the Son to whom only God saith Thou art my son this day have I begotten thee and other places of Scripture By the words God's only begotten Son do all mean Christ only The Adversaries would have him to be called so only in a special manner above the rest as we already have taken notice of in the instance about Isaac whereunto here we shall add that of Solomon which also they made use of called say they * Prov. 4.3 only begotten in the sight of his mother but they must not go about to impose upon us for in the original the word begotten is not in but only which in our Bibles is according to the sense of the place explained by beloved only beloved one may be the only yet not only begotten Son when of many Children one alone is remaining and the rest are dead as to Isaac we already observed he was the only begotten in relation to Sarab by Promise but Christ is so called God's only begotten Son that it was never said to any one else Thou art my Son c. whence we may conclude him so to be God's Son as to be the only begotten of him that is according to his Nature in the word he is properly and absolutely called the only begotten * John 1.14 We beheld his glory as of the only begotten of the Father the Particle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as is not comparative as only denoting a likeness but as Chrysostomus observes well is expressive of the truth as being really as if one willing to describe a Royal State and Carriage of a King should say as that is in a manner becoming and proper for a King and farther the Evangelist addeth v. 18. The only begotten son which is in the besom of the Father he hath declared him where Christ is called the only begotten 〈◊〉 it being his own proper Name signifying how besides him there is no true natural Son of God again ‖ John 3.16 God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son and * 1 John 4.9 God sent his only begotten son into the world See what a care the Spirit of God hath taken to confirm and make that Truth known how Christ is properly and absolutely God's only begotten Son now he is absolutely only begotten that is not only so called lookt upon and loved as such but that is really so and indeed we know our blessed Saviour is call'd †Joh. 20.17 Brother of his Disciples and of ‖ Heb. 2.17 Believers but not in a proper and strict sense The relation of Brotherhood hath a great latitude for among the Jews Persons belonging to any branch of a Family to a Tribe or to any of the Tribes were call'd Brethren * Gal. 1.19 James and John were call'd the Lord's Brothers and in another sense our Saviour calls †Mat. 12.50 his brother his sister and his mother whosoever shall do the will of God He is our Brother in that he hath taken upon him our human Nature all Men are Brothers in human Nature but Adoption cannot be the ground of his as 't is of our being call'd the Sons of God he is never called adopted as we are neither can he be adopted with us seeing we are adopted in him we are the Branches of the wild Olive-Tree that have been grafted in him who is the true natural Olive-Tree and thereby are become Members of his mystical Body How can our blessed Saviour be called God's only begotten Son if he be not partaker of the same Nature And the more to enforce this in that sâ—â—e Chapter and Verse John 18. 't is added which is in the bosom of the Father can he be in and from the Bosom of the Father and not be of the same Nature All other Children of God are made but this is begotten and only begotten none but he is properly begotten Our Third Argument is taken out of our Saviour's Question to the Pharisees * Mat. 12.41 41 4â— 44. What think ye of Christ whose son is he they say unto him the son of David he saith unto them how then doth David in spirit call him Lord By this way of arguing he shewed how in him besides human Nature there was another namely the divine according to which he by no means might be called David's Son but David's Lord which to the Pharisees proved an unanswerable Argument for upon this same 't is positively said v. 46. and no man was able to answer him a word one would think this should also stop the mouth of Socinians Indeed there the Lord proposeth the Question about the Nature of Christ or the Son whose natural Son he was Whereunto the Pharisees returned an imperfect Answer for only they said he was the Son of David but the Lord Jesus out of Scripture which they could not deny concluded that since he was by David's confession his Lord he must in him have another Nature besides human according to which he might not be called
to be Essential Differences when to speak of three Spirits in the Godhead is as good as to say there are three Gods 1 Cor. 8.4 whilst Scripture saith there is none other God but one who hath his Being from himself and from none else for we must say of every God so called which is not such by Nature Hosea 8.6 what the Prophet saith of the Calf of Samaria the workman made it therefore it is not God and 't is a right Consequence for nothing can be God that is made by another So then to talk of three Spirits in the Godhead is to set up three Gods for God as our Saviour saith absolutely is a Spirit and when we say Spirit we understand his Nature for a Spirit is a Spiritual Substance and being thus they go on still upon their Suppositions they would have the words unbegotten begotten and proceeding to be essential Differences and not personal as they are so other times they would have the Son because he is of the Father not to be one God with the Father who existeth of himself and so not to be the one true God because he hath a Being from another but we must distinguish between the being of Essence and that of the Person the first the Son hath of it self and the second of the Father They farther object he that is Mediator with the God of Israel is not the God of Israel himself for if it were so three Absurdities say they would follow the first God would be inferiour to himself 2dly God would pray to himself 3dly the Party offended shall be Mediatour with himself but to the first we answer Tho' God be Mediator it followeth not he is inferiour to himself for tho' upon the account of the Office he that is a Mediator be inferiour to him whom he intercedeth with yet he is not thereby inferiour in Nature for even among Men one Equal doth intercede with his Equals As to the second the Son prayeth to God for us according to his Humane Nature tho' we exclude not the Divine from interceding for it belongs to it in as much as it is the Eternal Will of the Son that the Father would by reason of his Sacrifice receive us into Favour the Prayers and Submission belong to Humane Nature but the Divine maketh them effectual both Natures being united in one Person The Divine was united with the Humane mediately in the Person of the Son but the same Person was immediately united to Humane Nature As to the third it were absurd indeed if the Party offended was Mediator when there is but one Person offended but where several Persons are offended there is no Absurdity if by their common Consent one of those offended Persons offereth satisfaction for the Offender and to reconcile and in this Case it could not be otherwise for it was required that the Reconciler should be God and 't is but a Cavil to say that he with whom the Son is not Mediator could not be reconciled and that the Son was not Mediator with himself or with the Holy Ghost but only with the Father for first not only he is reconciled and appeased by the Mediator with whom the Son performeth the Office of Mediator but also they that are joyn'd and about it agreed with him wherefore seeing in every thing the Will of Father Son and Holy Ghost be agreed it followeth that through the Merit and Satisfaction of the Mediator the Father being fully satisfied the Son and Holy Ghost are so too I add as to the second it is not absurd as they think that the Son should be Mediator with himself for the Son of God doth the Office of Mediator in both Capacities for as God being one with the Father he receiveth us into Favour and as he is Mediator according to both Natures so as he is God manifested in the Flesh by reason of his Merit and Satisfaction we are received into favour and although this being received into favour be common to Father Son and Holy Ghost yet the Mediator is said to intercede for us with the Father who is consider'd as the Spring of all Divine Counsels and Operations who being willing that the Son should satisfie for our Sins and that by vertue of that satisfaction our Sins should be forgiven it is not possible for the Son to will and do otherwise to this purpose makes what the Apostle saith about our being reconciled to God by Jesus Christ and what the Evangelist writeth he that hath my commandments 2 Cor. 5.18 19 20 21 and keepeth them he it is that loveth me and he that loveth me shall be loved of my father and I will love him and manifest my self unto him John 14.21 23. to the same effect doth tend what is said in another place of Christ who when he had by himself purged our Sins sat down on the right hand of the majesty on high So then the Son is appeased Heb. 3.3 and forgiveth our sins receiveth us into favour and giveth us Eternal Life upon the account of his own satisfaction The Father Son and Holy Ghost do the same by reason of the satisfaction given by the Son In the mean while in relation to the Son who for his own sake receiveth us t is call'd his Will in relation to the Father 't is call'd Mediation or Intercession therein the Will of the Son in order of the Person and Divine Working doth follow the Will of the Father Hence it appeareth how they do ill to confound the Divine Nature of Christ under his Office of Mediator as such according to his Humane Nature he pray'd to the Father and taught us a form of Prayer that we should call upon the Father through the Mediator yet he thereby never intended to exclude or deprive himself of his own Due or Right there is no Contradiction to worship the Father in the Face and thorough the Intercession of the Mediator for we worship the Father not in his Person only but of the whole Nature and Christ in John 5.22 as in the form of Baptism proposeth himself to be worshipped for Adoration is not confined in the Person of the Father only They say If the Father be greater than Christ then he is not God equal with the Father but Christ saith John 14.28 the father is greater than I Therefore is not God equal with the Father in this place Christ speaketh not of his Divine Nature but of his Office the Father doth send and the Son is sent and though he be less as to his Humanity he is equal in relation to his Divinity Wherefore I answer Christ is less than his Father in respect to his Humane Nature which he assumed with the Infirmity thereof Sin excepted for he was hungry weary sorrowful and the like and we read he wept tho' never that he laughed but before that Assumption of the Flesh he had a Being of another Nature which can be no
found alive at the last Day They would have Christ's Incarnation to be against Reason and Scripture they deny him to be truly God the like of the Holy Ghost That there is in One God no Trinity of Persons and that the Old Testament is needless for Christians c. All these and other Blasphemies are found in the Works of Socinus in the Racovian Catechism whereof Smalcius is the Author of Ostorodius Crellius Wolkelius Vaydovius c. but we shall by the Grace of God insist only upon some of their greatest Blasphemies Now to the Cause Matters of this high Nature and fundamental Concernment to our Holy Religion must not be prostituted to the captious scanning of Men of corrupt Minds nor the ways of God be made layable to the Judgment of Men rather humbly to be adored with Submission of Mind and Obedience of Faith to the Revelation declared in God's Word and herein we ought the more to be sober and cautious that we know Errors to be link'd together and to have a dependency one upon another he that strikes at the Grace of the Lord Jesus will afterwards make no Conscience to fly out against his Person he who denies him to be a Prophet will soon disown him to be a King and a Priest for as one Depth calls to another so an Arminian can easily become a rank Pelagian and Socinian Wherefore 't is necessary at the very beginning to oppose Errors defend every inch of ground against such as will daily grow worse and worse as do the * James 1.8 double-minded men that are for their own more than for the Truth 's Interest for they are unstable in all their ways and the more Hands orderly employed the better is the Effect like to be This Consideration makes me to appear amongst those who heretofore did and now do oppose false Teachers who not only privily but also in publick bring in again those damnable Heresies which of old Truth and Learning exploded and baffled out of the World The Divinity of Christ was the Stumbling-block to the Jews who could not endure to hear him call himself the Son of God absolutely and without limitation and thereat were enraged which made 'em take up Stones to cast at him John 8.59 and also at another time Chap. 10.31 the Doctrines about the Holy Trinity and the Person and Deity of Christ do stand and fall together In our Saviour's time it began to be oppos'd by the Jews and since from time to time continu'd to be so by the Devil's Instruments raised to that same purpose and within the last Age revived by the fore-named Blasphemers against the Rock of the Church which is built on the Confession that Christ is the Son of the living God not by any special Favour or any such Restriction for then there would be only a gradual difference between his and our being Sons of God but he is simply the Son of God yea his only begotten Before we enter upon this important Matter some things to clear the state of the Question must be premised so that we must shew wherein we agree before we speak of that wherein we differ as to the first this Foundation must be laid there is a God the Cause of all the Effect of none who hath made all and is made by none who hath given all things their Being and hath his own of himself This is not denyed so I shall not go about to prove it the Light of Nature the Book of Scripture and the Testimony of Conscience do sufficiently convince Men of it The next thing is what God is He being infinite cannot be defined but imperfectly described only according to what he hath in his Word revealed of himself how he is infinite independent self-sufficient eternal unchangeable But such is the blindness of some Mens Judgments or the Perverseness of their Hearts that they will cavil at the Nature Names Attributes and Works of this eternal and infinite Being But about this fundamental Truth our Faith must be directed by the Revelation which God hath made of it in his holy Word herein Men must not follow their own fancy for * 〈◊〉 Mat. 〈…〉 no man knoweth the father but the son and he to whom the son will reveal him Now the sum of this Revelation in the Word is that God is One that this One God is Father Son and Holy Ghost that the Father is the Father of the Son and the Son the Son of the Father and the Holy Ghost the Spirit of the Father and of the Son and that they are distinct one from another in respect of this their mutual Relation by this Rule we must be guided how to know believe worship love fear and obey him that is the Father One true God the Son One true God and the Holy Ghost One true God to be believed worshiped and obeyed Now for our Edification and further Instruction thâ—â— Doctrin admits of some Enlargement and Explanation to prevent undue Notions of God which by reason of the Blindness and Ignorance we are naturally involv'd in our Minds are liable unto thus out of the Revelation that God is One we easily deduce he is so in respect of his Nature Essence or Godhead and how being Father Son and Holy Ghost he doth subsist in these Three distinct Persons thence also is derived the manner of their Subsistence what are their mutual respects to each other and such like things by a necessary Consequence from the Revelation Upon these Grounds were compiled the Nicene Athanasian and other Creeds or Articles of Faith in opposition to the Heresies of those Times for therein was explained the true Sense of Scripture about those matters which were wrested by the Enemies of the Truth and though the Orthodox Doctors and Councils to oppose the Error and lay open the Venom made use of some Words and Expressions which in so many Letters are not set down in the Word of God yet they were not to blame for they were drawn out of it by lawful and necessary Consequences Men may lawfully conceive in their Minds what is the nature of the Things or the sense of the Words according to the scope of the Spirit of God in the Writings of the Prophets and Apostles and also as to the Analogy of Faith or else we are no better than Brutes So that if the chief Assertion contained in the Revelation be true so must also be whatsoever is therein included and in the Explication thereof drawn by a true and right Consequence Wherefore seeing God hath declared Father Son and Holy Ghost to be One God it necessarily follows they are One in Nature because therein only they can be One And this is the ground of any other Unity and seeing it is also declared they are Three it must be explained of three distinct Persons or Subsistences wherein only it is possible they can be Three The Revelation is clear there is One God this God is
they do penetrate one another for they most perfectly and infinitely know and love one another now Love is an earnest desire of Union so then they be most intirely united The Apostle makes the necessary difference of the Three on Earth he saith they agree in One but of the Three in Heaven he saith they are One. Moreover either one knows something which the other doth not or loves something which the other doth not love or can do something which the other cannot do or not if the former how are they God For God knows and can do all if the last then not only they have one Will but also one Mind one Power one Knowledg one Love Now let Man think upon several Natures of the same kind which mutually do penetrate themselves and by a mutual inclination do embrace and unite themselves inseparably and have the same Thoughts Will and Action doth not all this conclude for one and the same Nature And that there is no difference but in some manner of Existing which because they are such are distinct one from another without Confusion all which from Oneness of Will leads to Oneness of Essence for the Will of God is not a thing different from his Nature Another Text wherein the most holy Trinity is demonstrated and not only may be read but also be heard and seen is that about our Saviour's Baptism where the Father speaks from Heaven and calls him his Son Christ the Son is baptized and the Holy Ghost appears in the shape of a Dove if Men do believe Scripture this they must believe to be true S. Austin lookt upon this Text as a strong and convincing Proof of that divine and essential Truth Vade ad Jordanem c. saith he Go to the River Jordan and there thou shalt find the holy Trinity and be convinced of the Verity thereof Besides these we have a Cloud of other Witnesses to prove this Truth where the Three Persons are mentioned under their proper Names and first * Acts 2.22 23. This Jesus being by the right hand of God exalted and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost the Three Persons are plainly named Again the same Jesus Christ was declared †Rom. 1.3 4. to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness Elsewhere the same Apostle saith ‖ Tit. 3.4 5 6. God saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost through Jesus Christ And in another place ‡ Gal. 4.6 God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts by the word God is meaned the Person of the Father * Heb. 9.14 How much more shall the blood of Christ who through the eternal Spirit offereth himself without spot to God Furthermore †Ephes 2.18 Through him Christ we both have an access by one spirit unto the Father Our blessed Saviour himself out of his own sacred Mouth doth plainly and positively speak to this purpose when he saith * John 14.16.17 I will pray the Father and he will give you another comforter the Father I the Son and the comforter whom he calls the Spirit of Truth are Three Persons which in the next Chapter †Chap. 15 26. is by him repeated But when the Comforter is come whom I will send to you from the Father even the Spirit of truth One Text more I shall bring to confirm this * 2 Cor. 13.14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God that is the Father and the communion of the Holy Ghost be with you all And in the Text of another Apostle †1 Pet. 1.2 are contained the Workings of the Three Persons in the Trinity Elect according to the fore knowledg of God the Father through the sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ As the New Testament is full of Proofs to confirm this holy Doctrine for indeed these Mysteries of the Trinity and Incarnation are more clearly and fully therein related so out of the Old Testament we have enough to confute the Enemies of this Truth and because we look upon Socinians in their Principles to be a sort of Jews and as well as they Blasphemers against our holy and blessed Saviour so we will bring such Arguments against them as we would if we were disputing against unbelieving Jew◠only a few Texts out of many We begin with the Book of Genesis Chap. 1. wherein is contained a relation of the History of the Creation which is a Work common to the Three Persons of the Trinity and though we may not look upon it as the clearer upon the matter yet in it is Light enough to shew the Truth we now assert I shall say nothing of the Name God under that of Elohim which already we have spoken of as representing the plurality of Persons in the most holy Trinity but we may say that though the Name God was there which it is not in the singular and taken for the Person of the Father yet the Son had a hand in the act of Creation for it is God said here is the word which is the proper Name of the Son our Lord Jesus Christ who in Scripture especially by S. John is so often called by that Name the Word God saying and speaking is that which made the World We read God said when any thing was created which being compared with what is spoken by John * John 1.3 All things were made by him that is the Word the Person of Jesus Christ for actiones sunt suppositorum acting is proper to Persons and without him was not any thing made that was made now that Word God said is that which created every thing so then here is the Person of the Son but we also find the Person of the Holy Ghost Gen. 1.2 the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters by his acting represented by motion to cherish give life and motion to things as a Hen doth when sitting upon her Eggs for the word in the Original signifies such a thing This sense is given by a competent Interpreter †Psal 33.6.9 By the word of the Lord were the heavens made and all the host thereof by the breath of his mouth Here we can read distinctly the Lord if it were to be understood only of the first Person about which there is no dispute the Word and the Breath or Spirit this though it be clear I could set in a greater Light with comparing it with other places which I now forbear to do because I shall have occasion to make use of them in some other branch of my Discourse Another Text is this * Isai 42.1 Behold my servant whom I uphold mine elect in whom my soul delighteth I have put my spirit upon him besides the Person that speaks namely the Father here we have the Son under the name
of his Servant of his elect in whom his Soul delighteth whereby none may deny the Lord Jesus to be understood and the Holy Ghost or Spirit Nothing better than this can quadrate with the History of our Saviour's Baptism ‖ Matth. 3.16 And in another place of the same Prophet †Iâ—al 6.3 when he saw the Vision and heard that Trisagion or holy holy holy which long after was also heard by John * Rev. 4 8. that three-fold repetition of God's Name compar'd with the proper Hypotheses of the antient Jews ' that it signified three things in God is adapted to the Trinity of Persons in S. John's Vision we have some enlargement as to the Lord Jesus represented by the Lamb for the same Twenty four Elders and Four Beasts * Rev. 5.8 9 13. fell down before the lamb and sung a new song and every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea paid the same Worship to the Lamb as to him that sitteth on the Throne Again the same Prophet †Isai 61.1 The spirit of the Lord is upon me for he hath anointed me this to be understood of Christ as applyed Luke 4.18 and of the Holy Ghost by the anointing for he was anointed with the Oyl of Gladness that is the Graces of the Spirit These Three are also to be read amongst the last Words of David * 2 Sam. 23.2 saying The Spirit of the Lord spake by me and the Word was in my tongue here is the Lord the Word and the Spirit To the same purpose speaks another Prophet †Hagg. 2.5 according to the word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt so my Spirit remaineth among you the Father with the Word his Son and his Spirit made a Covenant with Israel There are several other Texts in the Old Testament of the Nature of One which I already made use of I mean of the thrice holy wherein the Name of God or Lord is thrice repeated I own I have such a persuasion of the infinite Wisdom of God as to believe there is nothing at all in his Word but what there is a particular reason for it to be in and in this belief of mine I am confirmed by what our blessed Saviour saith in earnest and with a strong Asseveration †Matt. 5.18 Verily I say unto you till heaven and earth pass one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled and I am sufficiently satisfied that though through the Infirmity of our Nature in the Ignorance of our Mind we cannot apprehend the Causes of many things in the Word of God yet therein is nothing without a Cause So out of that Principle I dare say God meaneth something when in the Blessing which he prescribed to be pronounced to the People the Lord's Name is thrice in it thus * Numb 6.24 25 26. The Lord bless thee and keep thee the Lord make his face shine upon thee and be gracious unto thee the Lord lift up his countenance upon thee and give thee peace and when God speaks unto Moses he dictates what he was to speak to the Children of Israel when he was come to them in his Name that is The Lord God of your Fathers one would have thought this had been enough but no for he addeth †Exod. 3.15 The God of Abraham the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob it was the same God yet thrice named So when the Law is given he saith ‖ Exod. 20.5 I the Lord thy God am a jealous God once Lord and twice God which is the same so in another place the * Psalm 136.1 2 3. Psalmist exhorteth thrice to give thanks to whom unto the Lord unto the God of Gods to the Lord of Lords One more I shall quote and 't is this †Isa 33.22 The Lord is our Judge the Lord is our Lawgiver the Lord is our King Why thrice and no more Surely God aims at something for as he doth nothing so he saith nothing in vain these things are not in by Chance and seeing with a full assurance I believe according to Revelation a Trinity of Persons in the Divine Nature Why should not I also believe that these things relate to it Now if one would seriously attend upon these quoted places and compare them with others of the same kind may be God would impart upon the Matter greater Discoveries than I for the present am able to give only this I shall add how the Name Jehovah called in Greek Tetragrammaton because it originally consists only of four Letters signifieth both God's Self-existence for the Root whence 't is derived doth denote to be and also his Eternity for it contains all times to come present and past one out of the two first Letters draws the Words beginning and to live and the third having a Vertue of copulating or joyning together is for Love whereby is denoted the Holy Ghost as by the two before are Father and Son and because the second Letter h is twice in he would have both Natures in the Second Person of the most Holy Trinity to be meaned tho' I have nothing to say against these mysterious Interpretations which may be well grounded yet we build not our main Arguments thereupon however knowing that essential and incommunicable Holy Name to confist of three different Letters I can see nothing to hinder me from believing that that same Nature is communicated to Three Persons and as the same Letter is twice in it doth signifie Two Natures in One Person especially it falling upon the Second Letter relating to the Second Person of the most blessed Trinity and as God is the Author of the Name Why may not he in his Infinite Wisdom therein denote some Mystery This I take to be Rational Here I must not omit for Proof of this great Truth to bring in our Creed called the Apostolical as an Evidence I meddle not with the others for the Adversaries will not own them though they ever were by better more Learned more Pious and Sound in all Ages than they are or I doubt can be I know the World hath afforded some Men who out of a vain-glory and to seem to be something through a tryal of their Parts have attempted to enervate with their Criticisms the Strength and Orthodoxy of these Creeds but as to this Socinians themselves can except against it no more than they do against the written Word of God whence this is extracted Father Son and Holy Ghost are all Three named in the Creed and as the Word God is expressed when joined with the Father so 't is understood of Son and Holy Ghost thus I believe in God his only begotten Son and I believe in God the Holy Ghost for to them it also doth belong and as there we profess to believe in that is to
it would follow that the Persons should make several Gods different in Number and Nature Secondly We say where the Name of God is absolutely used it doth not always as the Hereticks would have it signify the Name of One of the Persons but sometimes the Person and sometimes the Nature and herein lays their Mistake that they suppose the Name of God ever to be taken Personally and the Comparison is the cause of the Mistake for the infinite Essence is not multiplied as the finite now when the Name of God is taken for the Person either something is added which gives a Notion of the Person as when God is said * Act. 20.28 to have purchased the Church with his own blood which is understood of the Son or else the Persons are compared among themselves and then the Name of God is taken for the Person of the Father for because the Father is the Spring of the Godhead in relation to the Order and Origin of the Persons so in the comparison of the Persons the Name of God is by Excellency attributed to the Father especially where mention is made of the Mediator for whensoever Christ speaks himself or is spoken of as and in the Person of the Mediator he retains a middle degree between God and Man and then by the Name of God is understood the Father Thirdly When the Name of God is put instead of One Person and it signifies One Father then is thereby understood the Godhead which is common to Son and Holy Ghost who are Author and Maker of all Creatures for though the Son doth exercise the Office of Mediator yet he hath not thereby lost the Glory of the Divinity with the Father neither is his Essence inferiour or secondary to the Father's or his Godhead Essentiated Fourthly When God's Name without any personal Attribute or Comparison of one Person with the other is simply indefinitely and absolutely used then it signifies the Divine Nature and Essence which is Father Son and Holy Ghost One God Besides in these Texts of Scripture where the Name of God is mentioned in opposition to false Gods or Creatures it is by no means to be restrained to the Person of the Father only but is indefinitely spoken of Father Son and Holy Ghost as for instance if when the Law commands to adore One God the Father alone and not the Son is to be understood it would follow that the Son who is to be adored is another God likewise when God calls himself the God of Israel he by this mark distinguisheth himself from all false Gods How then might it be said of one Personal one whether Father or Son * 2 Sam. 7.22 Who is great as thou art who is like unto thee for several of the Arians who denied the Consubstantiality or the Sameness of Nature yet owned a likeness between Father and Son and in the Prophets where God's Name is absolutely taken often it addeth an universal Negative or Exclusive but if the Name of God belongeth only to the Father and if Father Son and Holy Ghost be but One God and Saviour and One Nature it will follow that Son and Holy Ghost are excluded from Things attributed unto God for 't is said of the True God of Israel that he is the only God and Saviour and that there is no other God besides and without him Moreover seeing the Father alone is One God and they own also the Son to be God and the Holy Ghost to be God though not that One God then it follows there are Three Gods which is Blasphemy These Things being premised do afford Matter of answer to their Sophistical Cavils against this Truth and so shew how the Word God absolutely used in Scripture is to be understood not only of the Father but also of the Son and Holy Ghost whence also appeareth the Mystery of these Doctrines one with another and they are so twisted that they stand or fall together So no wonder if under one Head we say somethings belonging to and spoken of in another here they form thus an Argument against us The God of Israel whom the Israelites ever adored is that One God whom the Law and the Prophets speak of but the Father of Christ is that One God mentioned in the Law and the Prophets therefore he is that One God but the Argument concludes nothing against us we altogether grant it the Father is the One God of Israel for we do not say that there is another God another Nature in the Father than that same which Law and Prophets call the only God and God alone and we on our part do Argue thus The God of Israel is One God but Christ is the God of Israel who appeared to the Fathers and by whose Spirit the Prophets being inspired spoke therefore Christ is that only God For there is in Christ no other Godhead no other Divine Nature than what is in the Father as the Father is One so is the Son One God and both together are One God in Nature But if the meaning of their Argument be that of the Three Persons of the Trinity only the Father not the Son nor Holy Ghost is the God of Israel then we deny their minor Proposition for out of Scripture the Son is the God of Israel whom they adored for not only under the Name of God they adored the Messiah whom they believed to be God but even they made a distinct mention of him in their Prayers as we read when Jacob blessed Joseph's Children God before whom my Fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk the God which fed me all my life time to this day 3 the Angel which redeemed me from all evil bless these Lads and this is spoken of the true antient Jews for as to those that believed not when our Saviour himself spoke to them who owned only the Father of Christ the Messiah for their God we may say they knew not the True God in a true manner seeing * Joh. 14.6 none comes to the Father but by the Son and †Mat. 11. none 〈◊〉 the Father but the Son and he to whom the Son 〈◊〉 veal him wherefore since they rejected the Son 〈◊〉 wanted the true Knowledge of the Father and 〈◊〉 stead of God the Father they adored the Idol 〈◊〉 their own heart wherefore when Jesus said to 〈◊〉 * Matt. 8.44 If I honour my self my glory is nothing 't is my Father that honoureth me whom you say to be your God he upbraids them with their Vain-glory who boasted to be the People of God but falsly by reason they owned him not to be God in the mean while against their aspersions he asserted his Glory because they look'd upon him as very much below Abraham and other Patriarchs he in his Capacity of Mediatour and as a Man owns a difference between him and God whom he declareth to be the Author of his Glory and he often mentioneth his Father to the end
in this Comparison of Persons all Things may be acceptable unto him but hence it doth not follow that Christ is not of the same Nature with the Father seeing they are not compared in relation to the Essenâ—â— but herein he doth condescend to their Capacity whom not owning his Deity he would by degrees bring to the knowledge thereof As to the use of the Name of God in Scripture the remaining Evidences are reduced under two kinds First In some the Name of God is absolutely taken for God the Father Secondly In others is added an exclusive Particle which is by some joyned with the Name of God and by others with the Things spoken of and attributed unto God Out of the first nothing may be deduced contrary to this Doctrine for in all those places by them quoted which anon we shall mention is a Comparison of the Persons wherein the Name of God is properly attributed to the Father upon the account of Order and Origin but 't is inconsequent to say that in every place where the Name of God is absolutely taken that is without Comparison of the Persons it is to be understood only of the Father for in several places where the Word God is indefinitely set down yet it is by no means to be reduced to the Father alone as to the other sort of Proofs wherein an exclusive Particle is expressed that exclusive Particle relates to the Creatures and to every thing which by Nature is not God whither they be things in Nature as Sun Moon and Stars which Heathens worshipped as Gods or else those which are Effects of Man's fancy and imagination such are several Idols by foolish Men worshipped as Gods wherefore seeing the True and Essential God is opposed to those which by Nature are not Gods it follows that by the Word God may well be understood Father Son and Holy Ghost likewise though sometimes mention be made only of One Person we must not take it as if thereby the other Persons were excluded but only that which by Nature is not God and that this is a right Interpretation it may well be proved out of several places of Scripture as for Instance when God saith by * Isa 43.11 the Prophet I even I am the Lord and besides me there is no Saviour and by another †Hos 13.4 For there is no Saviour besides me Here in the Adversaries Opinion Salvation is attributed to the Father but that the Son is not excluded it appears out of several places amongst the rest out of this ‖ Act. 4.12.10 Neither is there Salvation in any other that is in Jesus Christ who hath been crucified and we know Scripture doth not contradict it self and if out of the Prophet's one would exclude the Son he might as well out of this exclude the Father Again the Lord Jesus saith No man knows the Father but the Son now if all but the Son be excluded from knowing the Father as in the foregoing Text he would be excluded from being a Saviour so in this from knowing himself also the Holy Ghost would be excluded from knowing the Father though he be said To * 1 Cor. 2.10 search all things yea the deep things of God in this very same Sense Paul said ‖ Chap. 2.1 10. I determined not to know any thing among you save Jesus Christ and him crucified he doth not thereby deny that he determined to know the Father and the Holy Ghost but he meaneth he knows nor owns no way of Salvation out of Christ and v. â—1 The things of God knows no man but the spirit of God but in other places we read how * Joh. 5.20 the Father knows the Son and the Son knows the Father and the Father shews the Son all things that himself doth hence we may conclude how the Apostle speaks exclusively only of Creatures not of the Son nor of the Holy Ghost CHAP. VI. Christ is True Natural Son of God by Eternal Generation BUT we must by the Grace of God come to another Head as Scripture gives Christ truly properly and essentially the Name of God so it doth give him that of Son of God the First we shewed already the Second whereby he is declared the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity we must now speak of as we observed that the Word God in Scripture is spoken in several Senses as the True God properly Angels and Magistrates improperly and * Judg. 9.2 l. 46. Idols †2 Cor. 4.4 the Devil and the ‖ Phil. 3.19 Belly abusively So here I must say how the Name Son of God admits of Three different Significations for God hath three sorts of Sons for all others are reduced under these three Heads the First is by Creation and Preservation which is a continued Creation for * Act. 17.28 in him we live and move and have our being thus Adam is called †Luke 3.38 Son of God and Men ‖ Gen. 6.2 Sons of God on this Account God is Father of all Creatures whether in Heaven as Angels nay of the Sun Moon Stars of the Birds of the Air and on Earth of all Men Beasts Plants c. and of Fishes under Water this in relation to Nature and in general to the whole Creation The Second kind of God's Sons or Children is by Adoption and Grace such are his Elect and People of these in a special manner God is called the Father In a Third way Scripture speaks of a Son of God and of none else thus the only begotten from all Eternity namely our Blessed Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who is not Son according to the first manner which being common to all Men would make no difference between him and others and bring him into a Croud of the whole Work of Creation neither is he Son of God upon the account of Grace and Adoption which they would have him to be but if he be by Adoption how can he be the Only Begotten Son seeing that through Grace God hath adopted so many adopted Sons once and before their Adoption were not Sons of God which cannot be said of the Lord Jesus that the time hath been when he was not Son of God all and every adopted Son of God were once * Ephes 2. dead in trespasses and sins and by nature children of wrath even as others once †Colos 1.13 under the power of darkness and ‖ Rom. 5.10 enemies to God none of which things may without Blasphemy be spoken or thought of the Lord Jesus He is called Son not by Creation for * Colos 1.16 all things were created by him and one cannot be Creatour and Creature nor by Adoption for †Ephes 1.5 in him we are adopted nor by any Dignity or Eminency over inferiour Creatures as are Angels for the ‖ Heb. 1.4 5. Apostle denies it nor also upon the account of a personal Vnion or Incarnation as he is called Son
David's Son for if only upon some borrowed account or accidental reason he were David's Lord as may be some Power and Dignity above him then Christ's Argument would quite loose its strength which wholly lies in this if he be his Lord how can he be his Son Upon some extraordinary account and relation it may happen that a Son may become a Lord over his Father but here Christ is certainly asserted to be Lord over David and in some sense 't is impossible for David to become Lord over Christ which can be upon no other account but of his divine Nature besides that he was David's Lord in David's time and before his Birth of the Virgin Mary His Son he was according to the Fâ—esh and his Humanity and his Lord according to the Spirit and his Divinity The Fourth Argument whereby Christ is proved to be God's natural Son is taken out of the Words whereby he declares himself to be such a Son as is one with the Father not any other way to be understood than by Nature 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for this the Jews took to be his meaning and for that same cause called him a Blasphemer and would have stoned him and thereupon our Saviour did not go about to shew they were mistaken though his Life was concerned on the contrary he used Arguments to make 'em believe he was so though to them it seemed incredible and blasphemous Chap. 5. And in another Text he affirmeth himself to be such a Son of God as is of an equal Power with and can do the same Works as the Father so that what things soever the Father doth this also doth the Son likewise the Son doth nothing without the Father nor the Father without the Son by reason of their Oneness of Nature and Equality of Poweâ— Though the Jews out of these words of his v. 7. My father works hitherto and I work concluded he made himself equal with God yet though they were offended at it and he thereupon did run the hazard of his Life though he never was so uncharitable as to give any one just ground of offence nor so rash as unnecessarily to venture his Life yet he would not deny his Equality with the Father but on the contrary with several Arguments he confirms it from v. 19. to 22. and this not to be understood of an Equality only in some respects for the Unity of natural Power and Operation argueth an absolute Equality and as in Power so in Nature * John 10.30 I and my Father are one and v. 38. you may by my works believe that the Father is in me and not only so but I in him as for greater confirmation * ch 14.10 repeated out of that place of John I and the Father are one Augustine's †Pereant vaniloqui mentis seductores c. words are to be taken notice of let vain and Seducers Arrius and Sabellius perish Christ said not I and the Father am one but I and the Father are one when I say one let the Arian take notice of it and what I say we are let the Sabellian mind it let not the Arian divide one nor the Sabellian take away are one we refer to Nature are to the diversity of Persons The Fifth Argument is taken out of the Lord Jesus his own words and we know him not only to be true but truth it self †John 14.6 though he beareth record * c. 8.14 of himself this is when in a legal way being asked by Caiaphas and ‖ Mat. 26.63 64. adjured by the living God to tell whether he be the Christ the son of God * Mar. 14.61 62. the Christ the son of the blessed he owned it and said Thou hast said I am For which Confession he was accused of Blasphemy and condemn'd to death for said they to Pilate †Joh. 19.7 We have a law and by our law he ought to dye because he made himself the son of God so he suffer'd for owning himself to be the Son of God which Confession of his S. Paul takes special notice of in the Charge he giveth his Disciple * 1 Tim. 6.13 the meaning is that he was the true natural Son of God or else it would not have been accounted a Blasphemy for any Jew to have called himself Son of God no more than God's People Abraham's Seed by virtue of the Promises and Privilege of the Covenant and Grace and God they call their Father John 8.41 yet thought not they were Blasphemers for that therefore Christ's Words they took in another that is in a strict and proper sense Indeed the High Priest's Question was a Snare laid for Christ for though they sought false Witnesses and many came yet their Witness did not agree together wherefore they sought to have something out of his mouth wherewith to accuse him The Question was amongst other things grounded upon what our Saviour had said of himself in the Fifth and Tenth Chapters of John whether he was of the same Nature with God and in Power equal with him which is the same as to be natural Son of God and of the same Essence which he having affirmatively answered unto and said he was thereupon having gained their Point they rent their Cloaths and said What need we any farther Witnesses and upon this very Confession he was accused condemned and executed Hence I ask Socinians Did Christ speak the truth when he said he was the Son of God one with him or of the same Nature and to him equal in Power I farther ask whether the High Priest and the rest did not well apprehend this to be the true meaning of his words If so as certainly both are true if Socinians had been in the place of the Jews they would have used him as they did and would do the like if ever it were in their power for some of them when they write and give a Character of our blessed Saviour's Person they seem to take a pleasure to say he was by the Senate or Council of Scribes and Pharisees in Jerusalem condemned and executed for Blasphemy in that he had said he was the Son of God that he said so 't is most true out of John 10.36 but I ask again when the Lord said so did he speak the truth or not If the truth why do Men not believe him that is in the sense the Jews understood it true proper natural Son of God equal with God For this they took his meaning to be but if he was not what he owned himself to be then he must be supposed to have spoken a lye which is a Sin To such Blasphemers our blessed Lord speaks in defiance as once he did to the Jews * John 8.46 Which of you convinceth me of sin We know he suffer'd as a Blasphemer a Deceiver and a Transgressor but was he really so The Apostle saith †1 Pet. 3.18 He suffered the just
there was any difference the words for the first seem stronger than those for the last for to be in the form is more than to be in the likeness because forma dat esse rei a thing hath being from its Form or Nature but he gave sufficient and great demonstration of both Natures in him to those among whom he did converse Socinians would wrest the Text of Luke 1.3 〈◊〉 The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of the highest shall over-shadow thee therefore that also which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God They would have the Particle therefore to signifie the Cause wherefore Christ was to be called the Son of God that is that miraculous Conception by the Holy Ghost but no such thing may be deduced 't is not the Cause but the Consequence or Inference which is signified by the words therefore and wherefore by which Particles we usually draw Conclusions from Premises whether they be Causes Effects or Signs or that which upon any other account whatsoever may be deduced therefrom And in this place out of the scope thereof it cannot be demonstrated out of any Circumstances that the Conception by the Holy Ghost is the true cause why Christ was to be called the Son of God 't is not upon the account of that manner of his Conception for then for that same cause either Christ would call himself or be called by others Son of God else the Angel's Prediction should prove false by which reason he rather should not be called than called the Son of God even according to their Principles which deny the Holy Ghost to be true God but the words of the Angel do import not that he should be called once or by some few Son of God but always and generally by all that should own him to be the Son of God Besides this Exposition of theirs they can bring no Example to confirm it for in abundance of places we read Christ to be called Son of God but find none at all wherein he is called Son of God according to the Flesh And the Angel doth not say therefore he may happen to be but absolutely and publickly declareth he shall be called wherefore seeing he no where is called Son of God according to the Flesh we may necessarily conclude he is not such in that sense to be called is sometimes really to be as in that Text * 1. John 3.1 Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us that we should be called the Sons of God that is that we should really be owned and declared to be the Sons of God such as truly we are being adopted in Christ his true natural Son The word holy used gives a strong Evidence that Christ was to be called Son of God for a much better and higher reason than that he was to be born of a Virgin he shall be called Son of God because he is holy therefore not upon the account of the Flesh but by reason of his Holiness because the Holy Ghost coming upon the Virgin some holy thing was to be born of her that makes the Angel say Therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God not as to the manner of Conception but as to the thing to be conceived though by the Angel it be not expressed how great was that Holiness we may well conceive it to be that highest and infinite Holiness as becomes the Son of God wherefore Isaiah in his Prophecy of him calls him as already observed the mighty God Elizabeth calls him Luke 1.43 her Lord the Angel calls him ‖ Chap. 2.11 Saviour Christ the Lord and Daniel * Dan. 9.24 He was anointed the most Holy Before the wise Men fell down and worshipped him which they were sent to do and to that purpose guided by a Star †Mat. 2.2 11. and according to the Prophecies ‖ Psal 72.10 offered him Gifts and Presents as to a King for under that Name his Birth was declared to them and promised therefore the Holiness of Christ is the Holiness of God and of him who is by Nature Lord and King The Particle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and or also which follows therefore is not in vain but shews a Comparison and is related not to the word called but to be born and the sense is not only that word which from Eternity is born of God is Son of God but that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God because that eternal Son of God shall take human Nature and be born of thee And this is one of the things which the Holy Ghost coming upon the Virgin was to do namely that she should conceive without Man and conceive a Man him who from eternity is according to divine Nature the Son of God which could not otherwise be effected than with the Holy Ghost uniting human Nature which was to be formed out of her own Blood and Substance sanctified before and preserved from Sin and Corruption with the Person of the Son Men must not think there is in Scripture the least tittle or word without cause for the Holy Ghost doth and saith nothing in vain Another reason is the Angel saith Christ shall be called the Son not of the Holy Ghost but of God the Father Now if the manner of this Conception was the cause of his being called Son of God he should properly be the Son of the Holy Ghost not of the Father for he is said to be conceived by the Holy Ghost but they deny the Holy Ghost to be a Person yet actiones sunt suppositorum is a Rule in Philosophy and this Conceiving being an Act the Holy Ghost must be a Person for I defie them to shew any thing to be done but by a Person Scripture in the quoted place Rom. 1.3 the Question being about Christ's being the Son of God excludes the Flesh to attribute it to the Spirit but Socinians would have it according to both yet S. Paul's scope is to teach how he is Son of God according to the Flesh and how according to the Spirit as to the first he explains himself when he saith which was made of the seed of David as to be second he declareth his meaning when he saith he was declared Son of God with power whence we may conclude he saith Christ to be called and really be the Son of God not according to the Flesh but to the Spirit or else he had not sufficiently declared in what sense he is the son of God and 't is clear how he opposes the Flesh to the Spirit according to the first he was made of the Seed of David according to the last he was declared the Son of God Withal Scipture would have such a Son of God as is without Father c. such as Melchisedec no mention being made of his Father Mother or Genealogy
Words and Mind of those whom he discoursed with What could in so serious a Matter and of so high a Concernment as this is to make him alter his method and differ from himself when his main Design was all along to make himself truly known for what he was yet here as much as in them lays they make him say nothing to the purpose of the Jew's Question and Objection as they attempt to rob him of his Divinity so they would of that Heavenly Wisdom Gentleness and Readiness to do good which ever appeared in his whole Carriage here not only they make him not to speak pertinently to the Question but also they so mangle his answer that Men cannot tell what to make of it Is the Etymology or Derivation of Abraham's Name to any purpose here The Jews look'd upon it as very absurd that Christ so young should have been in Abraham's time the Lord doth plainly and to the purpose answer before Abraham was I am and with this very strong Asseveration by him used only in Matters of the highest Concernment Verily verily I say unto you not once but twice Verily now we know him to be †Rev. 3.14 Amen Amen the true and faithful witness Their Brains are fruitful in idle Inventions for upon this place they say one thing more wherein Arminians joyn with them How this before Abraham was I am is to be understood of a Divine Constitution or Pre-ordination that is in the fore-sight and fore-knowledge of God Christ was before Abraham but not really so in Existence but Christ here saith not he was fore-ordained but that he was and existed I am we deny not Christ to have been fore-ordained for * 1 Pet. 1.20 Peter saith he was but we deny that to be the Ground of his Divinity or that in this place Christ saith so when the Question is about his Deity being pre-ordained of God is no Prerogative of Christ for it is †Rom. 8.29 common to all believers Is it not ridiculous for one to say he is older than others because he was fore-ordained of God before they were born This I shall conclude with one thing more I must say to it how our Saviour in this place saith clearly and positively before Abraham was I am the Jews understood how thereby he made himself to have been before Abraham which could not be upon that account of his human Birth our Saviour doth not go about to shew they were mistaken which if it had been the Evangelist would have spoken of on the contrary he did run the hazard of being stoned and indeed he not only is before Abraham but also ‖ Colos 1.17 before all things and Persons Adam not excepted One place more I shall speak of and then shall have done with this Head I am * Rev. 1.8 Alpha and Omega the beginning and the ending saith the Lord which is which was and which is to come the Almighty As before Alpha there is no other Letter in the Green Alphabet which Language the Book is written in so before the Son of God there is nothing and as of all things that are Christ existed the first so he shall exist the last and herein the Metaphor doth exactly fit and is explained by the following words the beginning and the ending which though v. 4. be spoken of the Father yet it hinders not but is here attributed unto the Son neither is there any thing in the whole Verse but what is adapted to the Son as well as to the Father as to the Name Lord How often is the Son in the New Testament called by that Name As to the expressions which is which was and which is to come taken out of the * Isa 44.6 Prophet which are the explanation of the word Jehovah they belong to Christ as we have before proved the Name doth and so doth the Thing for in a place already quoted the Signification is applied to the Lord Jesus Christ the same yesterday to day and for ever he that is named Alpha the beginning and the first and which is may well be called he which was and he who is called Omega the end and the last may also be well called he that is to come which is properly and in a special manner spoken of Christ as it appears out of this †Heb. 10.37 yet a little while and he that shall come will come and this is spoken of him in ‖ Rev. 17. and 3.11 and 16.15 and 22.7 12 20. several places of this Book Besides that in this whole Chapter the Apostle's Design is to describe the Son not the Father as it doth appear by the foregoing and following Verses so 't is not likely he would in this v. 8. describe the Father only and seeing in this first Chapter he was to dispose the seven Churches to receive the Epistles by the Son to be directed to them with that Submission and awful Reverence as became them so to prepare their Spirits it was a due Course to make an ample and glorious Description of the Son for the Father doth not immediatly in his Person shew himself to or speak with Men but the Son doth therefore there is a kind of Necessity that he should make his own Description seeing therefore how the Words and the Things of the Description do belong to Christ why should not we say that the Description is adapted for him This Interpretation of ours is natural with the words and scope of the place it neither altereth taketh away or addeth thereunto as their Interpretation doth with wresting forcing and restraining it to the Person of the Father when the Son absolutely without any limitation or restriction calls himself Alpha and Omega beginning and ending first and last but it seems they would teach the Spirit of God how to speak though nothing can be said more fully and plainly than this is he doth not say only 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 am but joyns the Person 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I so when in the several Epistles †Rev. 2.7.17.26 to him that overcometh he promises to give to eat of the tree of life and of the hidden manna Chap. 2.5.12.21 the white stone and the new name with power over the nations c. and * Chap. 22.17 the water of life freely to him that is thirsty he doth not send them to the Father but offereth it himself as to the †John 4.10 Woman of Samaria nay in his state of Humiliation he calls Men ‖ Chap. 7.37 38. to come to himself much more after his exaltation and glorisition But to conclude this Matt. 11.28 and at the same time shew how this is simply spoken of Christ not only in this 8 verse but also in the 11 and 17 it appears out of the 12 and 13 where he turned to see the voice that spake with him and in the midst of the seven Candleiticks he saw one like
all men knowing him to be one with the Father may honour the Son even as they honour the Father whereby he demonstrates himself to be God for divine honour belongs to none else for thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only shalt thou serve We must love honour and worship one person of the God-head as well as the other as we love God in the person of the Father so we must love God in the person of the Son and of the Holy Ghost for if any man loves not the Lord Jesus Christ let him be an Athema 1 Cor. 16.22 Maran-atha He who loveth not the Son loveth not the Father and he who loves not the Holy Ghost loveth not the Father nor the Son Here I bring in point of worship the instance of love because without it no true worship We ought not to worship God otherwise than he hath declared in his word he that woshipeth not God the Father Son and Holy Ghost doth not worship God as he ought 't is not enough to worship God as God essentially but also he must be in the three persons for all three are the object of worship or else our Religion is vain and we are to look not only to the object but also to the order of worship the Father through the Son John 16. and by the Son to go to the Father and so by the means of the Holy Ghost we go to both for we know not what we should pray for as we ought Rom. â— 26 1 Cor. 12.3 but the spirit helpeth our infirmities and maketh intercession for us Neither can one say that Jesus is the Lord but by the Holy Ghost And in giving glory to God 't is not enough to glorifie him except it be in the three persons Father Son and Holy Ghost And the consideration of this Mistery of one God in three persons which ought to be our guide in worshiping that eternal and infinite Being ought to teach us modesty and humility which is so essential in our serving God to adore the incomprehensibility of these high things the Majesty of God and the Mistery of his Son 's being made Flesh and be made sensible of our weakness and then endeavour to bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ 2 Cor. 10.5 Here I cannot forbear inserting the words of two eminent Doctors of the Primitive Church Ambros de fid ad gratian lib. 1. cap. 5. Mihi impossibile est saith one generationis scire secretum mens deficit voxsilet non mea tantum sed Angelorum licet scire quod natus fit non licet discutere quomodo natus sit illud negare mihi non licet hoc quaerere metus 'T is impossible for me to know the secret of that Generation my understanding faileth me my mouth is stopt 't is lawful not only for me but also for Angels to know He is born but 't is not lawful to enquire how he is born that I cannot deny but I am afraid to search into this The other saith filium esse a deo patre immortali genitum novi sed quemadmodum ignoro spiritum ex co procedere scio Chrisost hom de incomprehens dei natura sed quemadmodum nescio I know the Son to be begotten of the immortal Father but in what manner I cannot tell I know the Holy Ghost to proceed from him but how I know not These being just come into my thoughts though they exactly are not belonging to the present part of our discourse yet being much to the purpose of the whole I here have set them down Indeed in things of that nature men ought to yield an obedience of Faith and believe unity of Nature and Trinity of Persons for numero deus impare gaudet so we must worship one God in three persons Our present purpose is to prove Christ to be true Essential Eternal God because the same worship due only to the true Eternal God is rendred unto him as anon we shall by the grace of God make it appear But now somethings must be premised which can contribute towards the better understanding of the point first Christ's enemies are not agreed in this particular one Valentinus Gentilis by us named in the beginning of this Discourse and some others do flatly deny Christ this Divine Worship because they disown him essentially to be God and no divine worship is to be rendred to the Creature which to do is Idolatry but Socinus said he is to be worshiped but with such restrictions as such a worship is all most no better than none at all They would have him to be worshiped only after his resurrection and that the resurection was the standing sign and true reason why one whom God raised from the dead should be worshiped but if this be true then the Son of the Widow of Sarepta of the Shunamite 1 Kings 17.22 2 Kings 4.34 c. Chap. 13.21 and of the dead man that having touched the bones of Elisha was revived under the Old Testament and the Son of the Woman of Naim and the daughter of Jairus Lazarus Dorcas and Eutichus under the New are to be worshiped according to this rule of theirs Wherefore some other cause than this must be assigned why Christ must be worshiped they say he ought to be so as he is Mediator we own that Christ Mediator is to be worshiped but that honour belongs to him in relation to his Deity for when God bringeth in the first born into the world Heb. 1.6 he saith and let all the Angels of God worship him he is called first begotten not in relation to his humanity for many were Children of God before his Birth but in respect to his eternal generation He is to be adored by Angels though he be not their Mediator when we adore Christ as Mediator 't is not in relation to his Office abstracted from his Deity but as he is true God In this sence the Lamb that was slain is worthy to receive as he did by the Angels Rev. 5.12 the Beasts and the Elders honour and glory and blessing because in his humane nature dwelleth all the fullness of the God-head bodily Colos 2.9 The Ark was not worshiped but God in the Ark as not the Bush but God in the Bush not the ground which Moses stood upon but God in that place sanctified by his special presence and so in several other places of the Old Testament Indeed Christ is to be worshiped Phil. 2.7 though in the form of a Servant and made a little lower than the Angels though not as a Servant or as lower than the Angels by which all God would have him to be adored for no other cause but for his divine nature V. 6. the form of God whereby he shall remained equal with the Father in his state of humiliation As Angels are commanded to worship Christ so is the Church under the
Jews in his Nature and Power with making a parallel between the Father and himself the more because he useth not a pronoun relative but possessive not the Father but my Father my father worketh hitherto and I work not the Father that is a Common Father as God is to all but my Father in a most special and true manner who hath communicated his nature unto me Now that equality with the Father he on another account doth insist upon but he doth not in the least go about to shew that he made not himself equal with the Father which certainly he would have done if it had not been true and only a mistake in them and thereby he could have calmed their rage on the contrary he speaks to confirm this equality of his with the Father upon the account of his divine power manifested in his works one whereof upon occasion was the restoring the impotent Man that had the infirmity for 38 years to the use of his Limbs and perfect Health which none could deny to have been done by a divine Power Now none but God can have a power equal with God for God's power is infinite but that of any Creature is finite and so there is no equality between finite and infinite this equality of Power and Working is here clearly demonstrated For what things soever the Father doth these also doth the Son likewise That is the Father doth nothing but what the Son doth also and this he instanceth in the case of raising the dead which none but a Divine and Infinite Power can Effect For as the Father raiseth up the dead and quickeneth them even so the Son quickeneth whom he will That is without exception he can do what he will now 't is an Attribute of God Psal 115.3 and 135.6 to do what it pleaseth him in Heaven in Earth and in the Sea Because the Jews believed not our Saviour to be more than a Man he in the exercise of his Prophetical Office went often about both in his Discourses and Works to insinuate into them that he was God and in this place he presses it much upon them both by what I already said and by what he addeth in v. 22. The Father judgeth no man but hath committed all judgment unto the Son and the end which in so doing the Father and he in declaring it proposed unto themselves is this that all men should honour the Son even as they honour the Father as the Son in Nature and Power is equal with the Father so he ought equally to be honoured or worshiped as the Father is and this Divine Honour is so equally due to both that he which honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father for the Father cannot and will not be honoured that is worshiped without him for honour rendred unto God is the same as religious worship The Son must be honoured in the same nature manner and degree as the Father is One would think this to be plain and clear enough beyond all exception yet they Cavil thus the word as doth not import an equal honour but only a likeness and this they go about to confirm out of two places the first is every man that hath this hope in him 1 Joh. 3.3 1 Pet. 1.15 purifieth himself even as he is pure the other is but as he which hath called you is holy so be ye holy in all manner of conversation We answer first in the Text of Peter the word as is not sicut 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but secundum 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 't is a Preposition not an Adverb The word as doth not always signifie a similitude but some times is a Particle of Causality thus in the Gospel 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Joh. 1.14 the glory as of the only begotten That is because he is the only begotten of the Father So in another place 2 Cor. 3.18 We all are changed into the same image from glory to glory even as by the same spirit of the Lord. Sometimes the word like signifies equality 2 Pet. 1.1 thus the like precious faith not only of similitude but of the same nature equally precious In the two objected places and in our Text there are indeed duties expressed but different in that of John here 't is in relation to God in the others as to our selves the first doth regard the worship of God the other holiness in our selves in our Text a parity and equality is implied which is not in the others the difference of the sense is grounded upon two things First of the scope of the spirit of God in those places Secondly of the Analogy of Faith To know the scope of the Text we now are upon one must go back to verse 18. the cause of the Jews hatred and seeking to kill our Saviour was because he made himself equal with God which he to shew they had no cause to take exceptions against it as we said before proves it by an equality of power in raising the Dead and of judging the world As to this last he goeth further for he saith the Father judgeth no man but hath committed all judgment unto him but what doth all this aim at The scope is to the end that all men should honour the Son even as they honour the Father God the Father will have all men to honour his Son as they honour him without any difference because his Son is equal with him and this affirmative is strengthned with a negative for he that honoureth not the Son Josn 14.1 honoureth not the Father so that to honour one is to honour the other and one cannot well honour the Father except he equally honoureth the Son this is the true sense of the place We ought to honour the Son in the same sense and manner as we must believe in him that is as much and as well as we are to believe in the Father that is to put our whole trust and confidence in the Son as in the Father so all the honour both in quantity and quality which we render to the Father must be given to the Son Now as to the Analogy of Faith that is that this sense doth not contradict but well agree with other Scriptures it appears out of this the Great Commandment and Duty of Man is as our Saviour saith Thou shalt love the Lord thy God Matth. 22.37 Mark 10.27 with all thy heart and with all thy Soul and with all thy mind and with all thy strength None but the true God the God of Israel is so to be loved obeyed and honoured And is not our Blessed Saviour thus to be beloved and honoured Love is the true Ground of honour We ought to love Christ before all things that are near and dear unto us Matth. 10.37 38 39. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me and he that loveth son or daughter more than me◠is not worthy of me he
Essentially exclusively not to Son and Holy Ghost but to Idols and Creatures the word Father is here taken for God as 't is when said one God and Father of all and Abba-Father Ephes 4.6 Rom. 8.15 Also the Father of Spirits The words our Father are often taken for our God and Lord In those places the word Father is said relatively not to the Son Heb. 12.9 Matth. 10.21 29. Luke 30.32 John 14.13 Chap. 3.13 but to men whose Father God is The things in the Lord's Prayer asked and prayed for are asked of the Son as well as of the Father as the coming of his Kingdom the forgiveness of our Sins whence saith our Lord Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name that I will do And the words which are in Heaven do belong to the Son as to the Father and the Holy Ghost too as appeareth out of Psal 139.7 8. and Matth. 3.16 Nay as we said before the Son is called the everlasting Father And if we consider the Etymology of the word which in the Original signifieth to preserve all things we shall find he is a Father indeed by whom all things are upheld and preserved which the Holy Spirit within us beareth witness unto when our heart laying under the sense of some trouble or mercy doth on a sudden by means of an Ejaculatory Prayer either in thoughts words or both poure it self before him begging for help or giving thanks breaking out upon occasion into these or the like expressions Lord Jesus have pity on me or Lord Jesus make me thankful Thus I through the grace of God have under those several heads brought in proofs for our blessed Lord and Saviour's divinity of many more which Scripture affords I shall take notice but of few wherein he is properly and truly called God which to assert is the main drift of the word as it is the foundation of the whole Gospel for it was absolutely necessary he should be God by nature or else any man might have preached taught prayed given good example and made intercession as well as Christ and if he came into the world and dyed only to teach us good doctrine and give us good example he had done for us no more than the Apostles and Martyrs who taught good doctrine and gave good example so might as well be called our Mediators and Saviours If this had as they say been the whole work of the Mediator our redemption had been no hard matter to be performed But I say that his threefold office of Mediatorship Prophecy Kingship and Priesthood demonstrate him to be true Essential God for none of the three could perfectly have been performed but by a God himself As to the Prophetical to enlighten the understanding and effectually to turn the heart as to the Regal to defend Believers against the Power of Satan and as to the Priestly to obtain forgiveness of Sins favour of God and glory none of these could be obtained but by him who is infinite as in Power so in Nature there is an infinite distance between God who is infinite and every finite Creature no proportion between Infinite and Finite Scripture owneth nothing but God to be higher than Angels now Christ is higher and above all Angels Besides that the necessity of satisfaction to be given to Divine Justice doth argue a necessity for Christ to be God for the satisfaction could not have been adequate as it ought to be except he was God and this divinity in him doth prove the plurality of persons in the God-head which is the whole of the difficulty alledged against the most holy Trinity Certainly the great design of the Apostles and others was to preach Christ to be truely and really God Son of God whereby their Ministry was exalted this was the foundation they were to build upon Acts 8.37 The Eunuch must make this Confession I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God before he could be baptized so did every one else being converted to the Faith this in our Religion is the first thing to be known and preached thus Paul after his Conversion Chap. 9.20 the first thing he did was to preach that Christ is the Son of God for that was the great question the Jews denyed him not to be Man Son of Man but he went about to convince them how also he was God Son of God and he was by Nature God as certainly as by nature he was Man Wherefore he would raise the thoughts of the Corinthians from the consideration of Christ's humanity to that of his Deity when he saith 2 Cor. 5.16 though we have known Christ after the flesh yet now henceforth know we him no more after the flesh but according to the spirit not in the humane but in the divine nature according to which he is called by the glorious names of the holy one Act. 3.14 15. 1 Cor. 2.8 and the just the prince of life and the Lord of glory our Blessed Saviour who when he was in the world had so often declared himself to be the Son of God in a proper sense after his Ascension when he had a full possession of that glory as it were to confirm from Heaven what he had declared upon Earth in the Revelation he made to that disciple of his who doth so eminently bear witness of his divinity 1 Joh. 4.14 15. when he saith we have seen and do testifie that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world and whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God God dwelleth in him and he in God and not otherwise I say on that occasion the Lord Jesus from Heaven proclaims himself to be Son of God in the letter to the Angel of the Church in Thiatira with this glorious description Rev. 2.18 compared with chap. 1.14 15. These things saith the Son of God who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire and his feet like unto fine brass Tho his enemies would not hear him upon earth during the time of his humiliation when through his Passive Obedience he was about performing the first part of his Priestly Office to satisfie divine Justice and make expiation for our sins I think now they should when he speaks from Heaven whence he exercises his Royal Office I know well enough how what I say about his satisfying Divine Justice through his death doth not affect his enemies who deny he hath given satisfaction for us but what can his intercession on in Heaven which is the second part of his Priesthood be grounded upon but his own merits through his Sufferings and Death he thereby hath payed our Debts and by vertue of that payment he asks we should be released but that point I intend not to meddle with in this place In the New Testament the name Saviour is as proper to him as that of Christ as indeed that of Jesus the same with Saviour was given him by the Angel and
by St. Paul the name Saviour is often joyned with that of God Tit. 1.3 according to the commandment of God our Saviour both names belong to one and the same person as truly really and actually God as he is Saviour and in another place all these names God Saviour and Lord are given to Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Saviour and Lord Jesus Christ 1 Tim. 1.1 As he is Jesus Christ so as certainly he is God Lord and Saviour not only his Offices but also his divine Nature is therein contained and in the same Chapter he calls him the Blessed God ver 11 as in another place God Blessed for ever That Christ is thereby meant it appears by his saying the glorious Gospel of the Blessed God Now 't is in several places called the Gospel of Christ wherefore in almost every Epistle of his he calleth himself an Apostle of Jesus Christ Mark 1.1 Rom. 1.16 1 Cor. 9.12 18. Gal. 1.7 Rom. 8.9 sent by him to preach the Gospel So elsewhere he saith if so be that the spirit of God dwell in you now if any man have not the spirit of Christ he is none of his That which in the beginning of the verse Paul calls the spirit of God in the latter end he calls the Spirit of Christ whereby he makes God and Christ to be but one and the same person Under another Head our Blessed Saviour doth in many places afford us an argument for his divinity consisting in a certain divine manner of speaking with Authority not as subordinate or delegate but original in him as the Head and Spring not as by Favour and Courtesie derived upon him but out of his own natural Right which is above what any Man ever did or could pretend to as when in his Sermon upon the Mount he reformeth the abuses crept in against the Law wherein he asserteth his Legislative Power at several times Matth. 5.20 22 28 32 34 39 44. Chap. 7.29 but I say unto you And the people that heard him could take notice how he taught them as one having authority and not as the Scribes And he said unto his Disciples when he sent them recive ye the holy ghost whosesoever sins ye remit they are remitted and whosesoever sins ye retain they are retained and to Peter Feed my Sheep go and teach all Nations All these are words of Command Further let us observe how no Man's Will is absolutely the rule of another's one Man's Will is free and independent from that of another no Man is bound absolutely to follow the will of another because every Man's Will is fallible and so may led us into errour but the will of God alone is infallible and so alone to be followed wherefore in our Prayer simply we say thy will be done and when Man's Will is to be obeyed 't is relatively and only in conformity to that of God But Christ's Will is the Law without Dispute or Exception thus when he calls those that are heavy laden Matth. 11.27 28. he positively saith I will give you rest having in the foregoing verse affirmed how none knoweth the Father but he to whom the Son will reveal him Thus when he cured the Leper he said I will be thou clean so he saith The Son quickeneth whom he will and him that believeth on me I will raise up at the last day Joh. 6.40 44. Herein is his own Power set forth So 't is when speaking with the Samaritan Woman that the water he will give shall be in him that receives it a Well of water springing up into everlasting life and in that other place If any man thirst let him come unto me and drink He doth not say I will pray the Father that he may have everlasting life or that out of his belly may flow rivers of living water but let him come to me and without going for this farther to any he shall certainly drink and be satisfied for that I will do for him this is to speak like Lord Master and God But it may be said Men he may speak to after that rate being so graciously exalted above them all well but I will go higher and say something more than hath been hitherto when the Lord Jesus speaks to the Father Joh. 17.24 he sometimes saith I will as in the Prayer which before his leaving the World in the capacity of Mediator he puts up to him for the Elect Father I will that they also whom thou hast given me be with me where I am to behold my glory thus according to his own will he disposeth of Glory Did any Man meerly such ever speak to God in that way Elijah and John Baptist were the two most fervent Men in spirit that we read of in Scripture but can we ever find any thing like this that ever they did or said No none but God the Son can be so familiar with God the Father and we must believe that he well knew both God the Father and himself when he spake thus except he had been sure he might he would not have done it but it had been as a most unsufferable Presumption nay Blasphemy in any Man to have said so we must conclude he was more than a Man and that he thus spoke upon another account even upon the same he had said before I and the Father are one and had made himself equal with God We read how our Saviour took on him Heb. 2.16 not the nature of Angels but he took on him the seed of Abraham the reduplication took not and took denotes the voluntary Act of a person who made a choice which he had not been in a capacity to do except he had praeexisted before he took the Seed of Abraham so that before he was made of the Seed of Abraham he must need have had another Being and before he was made he must really have been God he could not have been an Angel because he took not upon him the nature of Angels Again our Saviour saith I ascend unto my Father and your Father and to my God and your God why not to our Father as he said when he taught them to pray for themselves For if they had been brethren upon the same bottom of Grace though in different degrees he would have spoken of him as of their common Father but speaking disjunctively and in different numbers seeing he said and did nothing without good cause there must be a particular reason for it which is naturally and easily insinuated to be this That God was their Father and His not upon a common one and the same but upon a much different account their Father by Grace and his by Nature Furthermore Christ so often speaketh of his being sent by the Father as I seek not my own will John 5.3 6 38. Chap. 7.16 Mark 9.37 but the will of him that sent me I came down from Heaven not to do mine own
mistaken for the word alone or onely which they lay the stress upon doth not belong to the Subject thee but to the Predicate not to thee but to true God not to that which goes before but to that which followeth after 'T is not said to know only thee to be but know thee to be the only true God This we may look upon as one of their usual pieces of Sophistry our Saviour makes it appear that this is the true God whom Scriptures mention namely the Father who sent and the Son that was sent for the true sense of the place we cannot have a better Interpreter of than the Evangelist himself 1 John 5.20 here the true God and eternal Life are joyned in the same the same that is eternal Life is also the true God onely eternal Life and onely true God Now Christ is called true God and eternal Life His Son Jesus Christ John 10.28 this is the true God and eternal life And if here we consider eternal Life as the Gift of the onely true God doth not Scripture say in several places how eternal Life is the gift of Christ Let of many this one serve for all I give unto them his Sheep eternal life If the Son was not that onely true God why should he joyn himself with the Father And whom thou hast sent Jesus Christ to know thee and whom thou hast sent Jesus Christ to be the only true God This is the true order of the words whereof the true sense is resolved into this The Father is the onely true God and not the onely or Father alone is the true God The words in the original are not thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to know thee only the true God but thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to know thee the only true God where any one may see how the Particle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doth not belong to the Pronoun thee but to the true God and tho' the Particle was removed yet thereby Christ would not be excluded for the true God is said as I already observed not in opposition to Christ but to false Gods according to the stile of Scripture the word alone or onely doth not always give a general exclusion as we see it under the Old Testament when Jacob said unto Reuben My Son shall not go down with you Gen. 42.38 for his brother is dead and he is left alone he meaneth by the Mothers side and not by the Father's for all the rest were his Brethren And in the New in the Transfiguration Luk. 9.36 't is said And when the voice was past Jesus was left alone Certainly Peter James and John were not excluded for they were with him but Moses and Elias In the same sense are taken Martha's words to our Saviour Lord dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone Luk. 10.40 only meant of Mary and not of the Servants of the House And to the matter now in hand let it be known that Scripture never saith the Father only is the true God tho' it says the Father is the only true God so is the Son and so is the Holy Ghost Here Christ would not deny himself the honour of being the true God which in other places he attributes unto himself for the two words alone and true go with God not with thee and his meaning is how true eternal Life consists in this Gal. 4.8 1 Thes 1.9 1 Cor. 8.6 that men may detest Idols and false Gods and be converted to thee O Father who art the only true God by nature which Idols are not Thus when the name One Lord is given the Son 't is not to exclude the Father who also is Lord and the name Spirit given the third Person doth not exclude Father or Son who also are Spirit so this Text doth admit of the same construction as this when Paul saith 1 Cor. 9.6 I only and Barnabas have we not power to forbear working where it is plain that Barnabas far from being excluded is joyned and included in the same power with Paul And here the thing requireth it seeing eternal Life is made to consist in the knowledge of Christ as of the Father wherefore both are equally said to be the true God Those men who pretend to know better than God himself what becomes his glory are very apt to lay hold upon any thing like to favour their notions wherefore because 't is said God hath appointed his Son heir of all things Heb. 1.2 John 5.22 and hath committed all judgment unto him with other things to the same purpose they with the Jews do therewith entangle themselves and form this Argument It cannot consist with the Majesty of the God of Israel of the most high God to be appointed Heir by any one but God hath appointed his Son Heir of all things therefore his Son is not the God of Israel nor the most high God In answer to this Objection I say first that the Person of the God of Israel c. is not the Person of his Father but the same Dignity Nature and Authority he hath as already demonstrated common with the Father he is not made Heir of all things in reference to his Nature for he is such of himself by his own right and inheritance not by favour but in relation to his Office of Mediator in which sense he is not only God but God and Man and upon this account is all Judgment committed unto him by the Father but otherwise he is the God of Israel and the most high But secondly this Argument contains two branches which before I have spoken about yet to what hath already been said this I shall add to the first part That the Son of God the Lord Jesus above 3400 years before his being manifested in the Flesh Numb 24.17 Micah 5.2 Luk. 2.32 John 1.49 Acts 5.31 was called the Star of Jacob and the Scepter of Israel and long after the ruler in Israel after his birth the glory of Israel and after his Baptism the King of Israel which in that sense and place is as good as God of Israel as indeed in the same Verse he is called the Son of God that is of the God of Israel a Prince and a Saviour for to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins As to the other part That he is not the most high God we must in the first place take notice how they set up a high God that is Christ and a most high God the Father which is by such a comparative difference to make two Gods and they would have the Son of the highest not to be highest himself as to Essence and Power The word most high or highest is an Hebraism for in that Language God is called Helion 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is Supreme whence the Greeks borrowed the Name they call the Sun by because the chief of all Stars and Planets
brightness of the Father's glory to shew that as from a lightful Body proceeds Light so the Son as naturally comes from the Father and 't is one thing to be called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Image of God Col. 1.15 Heb. 1.3 and another 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the express Image of the Father but Christ is called both He who is called the Image of God is thereby distinguish'd from God but he which is called the Character of the Father is distinguish'd from the Father not from God wherefore we say Christ as Mediator may be and is called the Image of God But this comes short of what is intended to express the eternal generation of the Son of God tho' our Adversaries would have that Filiation to be grounded upon his Mediatorship These few things which may have a place in our Discourse being premised I now directly answer the Objection To be begotten is to be understood as becomes God to be begotten in God doth not imply to have a beginning or to be made in time Secondly they say Divine Nature admitteth of no renting or division wherefore nothing doth proceed that is different in number from it I answer There is no Comparison between the Finite and Infinite Essence for this last is communicated to the Persons without multiplication separation or division Thirdly they go on That which is begotten hath a beginning I answer 'T is true in the Creatures but not in God Fourthly Nothing say they is wanting in the Father so it is superfluous to give him a Son I answer The Father is perfect therefore he hath a Son God's fecundity makes the Persons but borroweth nothing from without 5thly Whatsoever cometh from unity to plurality cannot be perfect except the substance be multiplied I answer God doth not come nor go with God there is no terminus a quo not ad quem no place from which and to which but God is always God is not divided but begets indivisibly 6thly If the Son be from the Father it followeth that all the Father hath is divided because it passeth into the Son so the Father hath given the Son part of himself and so the Son hath deprived the Father of something The Answer is The Son is not asunder from the Father for the Essence is the same There is no renting the Father with giving loseth nothing but retains all the Nature is whole in the Father and whole in the Son as one Candle lighteth another without any dimunition of its own light 7thly They say a man hath no Son before he hath begotten I answer Nor God neither but this I must say 't is a gross mistake to draw Consequences from human things to divine which is to measure God by Men God always begetteth as the Sun doth produce its brightness 8thly If God begets 't is either according to his Nature or to his Will not the first for then he would beget without consideration if according to his Will then the Father's Will was before the generation of the Son I answer He begets according to his Nature and that freely 9thly If the Son be born he had a beginning so is not from Eternity I answer The Father is eternal the Son eternal and the Generation eternal in things created to beget is indeed to produce that which is not but in divine and uncreated 't is otherwise 10thly A spiritual Nature doth not beget We say a Spirit created doth not but the Creator exceedeth the Reason of the Spiritual Creature 11thly If the Father hath begotten the Word either he hath begotten Himself or another but neither of these therefore He hath not begotten Himself He hath not begotten as granted nor another neither because there is no other God and so not begotten at all I answer the word he hath begotten alium non aliud another Person but not another thing He hath begotten another who is God but not another God 12ly If God hath begotten the Word either the whole Divine Essence hath begotten or only the Father's Person if the Essence then it hath begotten Himself or another both which be absurd if the Father's Person hath begotten either he is the only true God or else the word is not that Son of the only true God wherefore the Father hath not begotten the Son from Eternity We answer the Father hath of Himself begotten from Eternity there is no necessity for the Father only to be the true God 't is enough he is the only true God therefore the Son is the Son of the only true God not of two Persons but of the Father These Objections which I have set down in short and answer'd as briefly I look not upon as material because not taken out of the word of God the only Judge of those Controversies but herein they shew how they affect Sophistry to impose upon some sort of People but however some Advantage we get by it for out of all these it appears how this true Heavenly Doctrine is not contrary to the Principles of Reason They have three or four Cavils or Questions more which by the Grace of God we shall answer in few words First Whether the Father begat the Son when he was already a Son or before he was the Son I answer the Father is Eternal the Son Eternal and begotten from all Eternity which hath no Parts the Father could no more be without the Son than the Sun without Light or Light without Brightness Their 2d Questie on is Whether the Father after the Generation of the Son hath begotten any other because he is called the only Begotten if he hath Begotten none other then he hath lost the Power of Begetting But I answer that Generation is without time always perfect not successive without beginning or end The 3d is the Father hath begotten either unwilling or willing if unwilling then he hath suffer'd something which he would not if willing then his Will was before the Generation of the Son I say part of this Argument was answered a little before whereunto I shall add The Will of God was indeed before all Creatures for he hath done whatsoever he pleased Psal 115.3 but 't is not so of the Son for of him we read in Scripture he was and is with the Father so the Son is no Creature neither is he made by the Will as Creatures are he is born of the Father and is Co-eternal with the Person of the Father the Father's Will is in Him for in HIm he willeth and by Him He doth all things In those things which proceeded from Nature there is no Fore-counsel or Predeliberation yet the Father hath not begotten being unwilling for He begat with a Will not Antecedent but Concomitant thus the Father's Person is not because He was willing to be but because He is and willeth not Himself not to be so the Son is not born against the Father's Will neither doth the Fathers Will go before His Generation A
assert the Distinction of Persons but because they are distinct Persons it doth not follow that there is not one and the same Essence of the three Persons and that they are not one only God Father Maker and Preserver of all and out of the Texts they produce they cannot make out what they intend how the Father and the Son are never contain'd together under the Name of God for the Persons are distinguish'd where Scripture speaketh Relatively of God and doth oppose or compare them or describe their Proprieties Further they object they have distinct Essences whose workings are distinct but Father's and Son's workings are distinct therefore their Essences are so But we say the major Preposition is to be understood of Operations ad extra or outward for if whilst one doth work the other ceaseth then the Essences are distinct but as to the inward workings there is no distinction or difference of Essences far from it that the Generation of the Son and the Procession of the Holy Ghost do confirm the unity of Essence for by the Generation one and the same whole Essence of the Father is communicated unto the Son and by this same reason there is but one and the Essence of both Now the Minor Proposition speaketh of inward Operations and this Omonimy or Ambiguity of Terms brings in four Termini in the Argument contrary to Rules but if one and the same kind of Operations be understood then one of the Propositions is false the major is understood of those ad imra the minor of those ad extra and in the case of the Incarnation there are two terms to be consider'd a quo from whom and ad quem to or in whom tho' as thus it be terminatively in the Son yet a quo or originatively it is the work of the whole Trinity Another Argument of theirs is this the Essence unbegotten and begetting is not the same with the Essence begotten and not begetting but the Essence of the Father is unbegotten yet hath begotten the Son but the Son 's is begotten yet nor begetting therefore the Essence of the Father is not the same with that of the Son This Argument is borrow'd from the Arrians whereof the minor Preposition is false namely that the Essence of the Son is begotten the Names begotten or not begotten do not belong to the Essence but shew an Hypostatical or Personal Difference Should the Essence beget it would either beget it self and so should be begotten of it self so it would make many different Essences of the Godhead whence would follow many Gods Moreover as in natural things not the Essence but the compositum doth beget so in divine things the Person begets and is begotten which yet is not a vain Relation seeing it is not constituted without the Essence Now if it were true that the Divine Essence doth beget one could say either the Son doth beget or deny the Son to have the Divine Essence Again They say Two or three distinct Persons have so many distinct Essences for the distinction of Essences doth follow that of Persons so then Father Son and Holy Ghost being three distinct Persons they have three distinct Essences but the first Preposition is true only in natural not in Divine things besides they are in a mistake when they think there is no real Distinction except the things do differ in an Essential Number when there are several things that differ in the thing and definition which yet in Essence and Number are but one Here by the by I say the words like and likeness when a Comparison is made between the Persons is not convenient to be used but equal and equality which indeed containeth a likeness but something above Another thing I shall add here how some things are properly spoken of the Essence which also are properly spoken of the Persons for 't is properly said of the Essence and of the Persons Father Son and Holy Ghost that they are Spirit and Holy for the word Spirit is spoken of as common and essential John 4.24 God is a Spirit properly and personally of the Son Christ declared to be the Son of God according to the Spirit of Holiness Rom. 1.4 Heb. 9.14 â—Pet 3 18. and who thorough the Eternal Spirit offereth himself and elsewhere Christ was put to death in the flesh but quickned in the spirit So of the Father and Holy Ghost also to be holy is an Attribute of the Essence yet in particular and properly in Scripture attributed to the Father to the Son and to the Holy Ghost Upon this Matter one thing more I shall take notice of how Adjectives in the Plural may be attributed to God by reason of the Number of Persons and Substantives in the Singular only upon account of the Essence Further they object Christ hath a Father who is the God of Christ but the Father hath no God call'd his therefore Father and Son are distinguished in Essence the major they prove out of our Saviour's Word I ascend unto my Father and to your Father unto my God and to your God and my God my God why hast thou forsaken me I answer Christ hath a common Father and God with us in as much as the word was made Flesh and dwelt among us and in as much as the Man Jesus Christ is Mediator between God and Man yet so as in his Mediatorship he is true Man so he is true God This Discourse being intended for his Brethren he begins with the Profession he makes to own them as his Brothers Go to my Brethren all which to be understood of the Nature which the Brotherhood doth relate to and tho' the Father continueth such in relation to what the Son was when the Word was with God yet in the Birth and Incarnation the Father remaineth what he was God is the Father of all Flesh but not in the same manner and sense as he is the Father of the word in Scripture 't is declared in what sense and on what side they are Brethren to the only begotten Son of God Colos 1.18 I will declare thy Name unto my Brethren but he said before I am a Worm and no Man Psal 22.6 Christ is by the Apostle call'd the First-born amongst many Brethren also because the First-born from the Dead Furthermore they say if Christ when he speaketh of God stould mean also himself he would include himself in the mention he makes of God but he doth not but maketh a difference between himself and God whom he calls the true God so in the Apostolical Writings God and Christ are spoken of asunder which places I quote in the Margin c. John 3.16 and 17.3 d. Rom. 16.23 1 Tim. 6.13 14 15 16. 1 Cor. 15.24 Col. 1.3 Eph. 4.5 1 Thes 1.2 3 9 10. to shew we omit none of them So say they he not joyning himself with God sheweth he is not the same with God thus the name God absolutely taken belongeth only
to the Father I answer the name of God is taken either personally namely as he begets and as he is begotten and thus the Son is distinguished from the Father and upon this account the Apostle speaks of them separately Christ is distinguished from God both in Person and Office not in the Godhead or Essence or else the name is absolutely simply Rom. 8.31 32. 1 Tim. 1.1 1 John 5.20 Joh. 14.1 and essentially taken when the Question is about the Godhead then as to the Deity the Son is not distinguished from the Father as when Christ saith there is none good but God he doth not exclude himself from being good 't is as if he had said unto the Man if thou believest me to be good for so thou callest me thou must also believe me to be God for none is good but God and this was to have the Man to look upon him to be God Again When our Saviour saith Vnto God all things are possible and that God is able out of Stones to rise Children unto Abraham when the Apostles in their Salutations name first God and our Father and then the Lord Jesus Christ 't is no good Consequence to say that the Son is not of the same Nature with the Father for the Name of God is therein attributed unto the Father as the Spring and first in order of the Deity then the Son is proposed as Mediatour to lead us unto God for we are led by Christ unto the Father to worship and adore him together with the Father for he saith Ye believe in God believe also in me thereby shewing we ought to render unto him the same things we render to the Father wherefore in several places we read how when the Name Father is added yet that of God is immediately put before when generally something is taught which belongeth to Father Son and Holy Ghost then having named the Father the Mediatour is mention'd to breed in us Hope and Comfort thus the same Apostle opposeth one God to Idols where Christ is not excluded for immediately in the same Verse he declareth who that one God is namely the Father of whom are all things and we in him and one Lord Jesus Christ by whom are all things 1 Cor. 8.6 Ephes 4.5 6. and we by him thus in another place he saith there is one God as there is one Baptism Christ in whose Name we are baptized is not excluded from that oneness of Godhead Joh. 14.6 and because he would come to the Mediatour he very fitly nameth the Father to whom as the Head of the Deity there is no approach without the Mediator so by the Name Father is represented God essentially offended by Mankind and by the Son and Christ that Person of the adorable Trinity who hath undertaken to make our Peace and reconcile us unto God he is the way the truth and the life and none can come to the father but by him So when we read the word God we must not separate the Father nor the Son because the Divinity of the Father and of the Son is but one and the same Moreover they object the Father is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 God of himself hath all of himself and acts of himself but the Son is not God of himself he is from the Father himself he saith he came from the Father and the Father sent him to this I answer They go upou a wrong Principle for they would have this to be of one self or of another to import a different Essence or Nature for even in created things that which is begotten is ever of the same Nature with that which hath begotten but by reason of Imperfection these are one only in Species but God the Father and the Son may not be said to be one in Species or Kind because thus they would make two Gods What they add how in Divine things he that begetteth and he that is begotten are not one either in Essence or Species because Men and Angels are called Sons of God which are not one with God either in Nature or Kind is very frivolous for 't is certain they are call'd Sons of God upon a very different account from that on which Christ is so call'd None is ever call'd God's own and proper Son only begotten come from the Bosom of the Father for unto which of the Angels or Men said he at any time thou art my Son Heb. 1.5 this day have I begotten thee and again I will be to him a Father and he shall be to me a Son Moreover they are mistaken to think that to be of another is to be of a different and inferiour Nature indeed he who receiveth not all but out of favour only part of what another hath may be said to be inferiour to him of whom he receiveth but he not so who hath all that another hath not by favour but by Nature and Generation They are farther much mistaken when they deny Christ simply and absolutely to be God of himself for he must need be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 who is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That is a being or Essence of himself Life of himself Holy of himself Power of himself is good of himself Light of himself Truth of himself Wisdom of himself Righteousness of himself Perfect of himself and Glory of himself which all are Attributes of the Deity and to whom they belong So doth also Divine Nature all which Attributes were by the antient Orthodox Doctors of the Church and after them by the eminent Instruments of Reformation owned to be the Right and Property of the Son of God grounding themselves upon the Authority of Scripture in several Places especially that of 1 John 5.20 by me already quoted we are in him that is true even in his son Jesus Christ This is the true God and eternal life If we look upon the Son of God as he is from Eternity begotten of the Father and as he is the second Person on such an account we own the Son to be from the Father seeing he is true Son but if we consider him as God he is altogether self God and God of himself for the Divinity is wholly unbegotten and of her self knoweth of no beginning and needs not to borrow of others what it hath of it self and if to the Son one would attribute a Begotten and formed Essence this is from the Father to make a second God Lastly Many of the Places which the Adversaries do heap up do speak of Christ's Office of Mediator which they improperly misapply to his Divine Nature for though Christ's Humane Nature hath no Personality but is upheld by the Divine Person yet that upholding doth not confound the Natures otherwise Passion and Death might be attributed to Divine Nature On this Matter they form other Arguments grounded upon false Suppositions as sometimes they would have Father Son and Holy Ghost to be three Spirits and the words unbegotten begotten and proceeding
to the prejudice of this be guided by our own Reason which in such matters is but an ignis fatuus a false and deceitful Guide that will lead us to Rocks and Precipices that only must be our Rule which God hath revealed in his Word For an Instance Will not Human Reason suggest that if our Saviour instead of poor Fishermen unlearned and of no account in the World had called the Josephs of Arimathea the Nicodemus and men of good parts and of quality in the World the Gospel would hove gotten more ground and been more spread abroad in the World yet this is contrary to God's Method who hath hidden these things from the wise and prudent Mat. 11.25.26 1 Cor. 1.26 27 28 29 and revealed them unto Babes who hath chosen and called the foolish the weak and base things of the world to confound the wise and the mighty And why so first because so it seemed good in his sight secondly to the end that no flesh should glory in his presence Joh. 7.48 This confirmed by Experience for Have any of the Rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him So then to insist on this reason is no less than to arraign the Wisdom of God which no Man may or ought to do Farther some things there are taught by Philosophy of the Soul of the World of several things therein and of Man's Soul which to human Understanding appear to have no Truth in them yet in those things if upon the account of the Learning and Wit of those great Men we have a kind of esteem and reverence for their Opinions much more ought we to have a reverence for the Truth contained in God's Word and received by so many great and good Christians and suffer'd for by them in all Ages for never was any Divine Truth more universally and in all places and times received notwithstanding the opposition of some wicked men than the Mystery of the most holy Trinity As indeed not only the Offering and Preaching but also the whole Application of Salvation to be obtained in this and another Life do depend upon the truth of the holy Trinity because everywhere the Father works by his Son and this with the Father by the Holy Ghost which if we believe not we cannot have either the use or comfort of things relating to Salvation but God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit 1 Cor. 2.10 12. and we have received the Spirit which is of God that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God 'T is then our Duty and Comfort to know the Father in the Son and both through the Holy Ghost for the Spirit searcheth all things yea the deep things of God as Christ saith none knoweth the Father but the Son and to whom the Son will reveal him so John testifies that he that hath not the Son hath not the Father and Paul Mat. 11.27 1 Joh. 2.23 Eph. 2.12 that those that are without Christ are also without Hope and without God in the world 'T is said indeed how God at sundry times and in several manners spake in time past unto the Fathers by the Prophets but the knowledge of him and of Salvation then was in the dark till the last days when he spoke unto Men by his Son When we hear of the salvation which God sent into the World then at the same time the Son and Holy Ghost are mention'd because without them there is none Among several other places in Scripture wherein this great work is spoken of and wherein we find the three Persons mention'd that is remarkable wherein the Apostle joyneth them together Heb. 10.29 Of how much sorer punishment suppose ye shall he be thought worthy who hath trodden under foot the Son of God and hath counted the blood of the Covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing and hath done despite unto the spirit of grace All three are concerned so they were before salvation was actually effected long before when all was under Types and Figures 1 Pet. 1.11 12 compared with 2 Pet. 1.21 for by the spirit of Christ the Prophets prophesied of old so now in this great business the Son hath his part and the Holy Ghost his also As much as God hath been pleased to reveal unto us about this adorable Mystery we must study and enquire after but no farther where God is silent we must be so too and we ought to curb our Curiosity and Presumption and not to stretch our Brains to find out Proofs out of Comparisons with Sun Soul Rainbow Trees Triangle c. which are all lame and defective This I speak as to us who believe that high and incomprehensible Mystery upon God's Word wherein he hath revealed it unto us for as to the abominable wretches which out of Hell are broken loofe against it and not only make a Jest of and despise and hate it we must leave them to God if peradventure he will give them repentance 2 Tim. 2. â—â— to the acknowledging of the Truth As to our blessed Saviour whom they go about to rob of that Glory and Honour which Scripture declares do belong to him and which therein he assumeth unto himself and whom they would make a meer Man a Creature and if I dare speak it without blasphemy an imaginary and a mock God acting the part of a God as an Actor doth upon a stage that of a Prince when he is not such In Scripture the Names of God absolutely attributed to none but unto the true God and that also in so many places of Scripture whereof many we already quoted and others not We have given instances of all the incommunicable Names of Divine Nature appropriated unto him also we made it appear how all Attributes proper to the true God and never communicated to the Creature do belong to Christ as do all divine works truly such why then should not all own him to be true God by Nature seeing essential Attributes are inseparable from the Essence The Oneness of which Essence with the Father he doth attribute unto himself explaining in what sense he calleth God his Father not by Adoption or Grace or meerly by reason of his assumption of our human Nature John 10.30 38. or by vertue of any Office and Dignity but because of his eternal Generation and Co-essentiality with the Father in which sense he saith I and the Father are one Chap. 1.14 3.16 Rom. 8.3 32. Mar. 14.33 and upon the account of this oneness of Nature he saith The Father is in me and I in him And this eternal Generation in one Essence is denoted in Scripture when called only begotten of the Father Gods own and proper Son the true Son of God yea such a Son as is Heir of all things and in opposition to Angels as the Son is to the Servants which Sonship and Generation is more clearly expressed when he is called the Brightness and
express Image of the Father's Person because in him through that eternal Generation is expressed the whole Person and Glory of the Father for which Image of God he is called the First-born of every Creature that is begotten before there was any Creature and so from Eternity as in the Form and Nature of God to be equal with God who otherwise hath not and owneth none equal to himself 2 Sam. 7 1â— In these high and divine matters Men must not presume beyond what is written and revealed in Gods Word nor wrest the Delign of the Spirit of God or force an unusual and contrary sense to the words of the Text but we ought to keep our selves within the bounds of that holy reverence which becomes us in the contemplation of the Majesty of God In these very things Hierom as said before was very cautions about acknowledging three Hypostases in the Deity because he thought the word to denote substance When God was upon withdrawing the Spirit of Prophecy from among his People Chap. 4.4 he by Malâ—câ—y the last of the Prophets commands them to remember the law of Moses his servant So now when the Apostles immediately inspired by the Holy Ghost ceased so long since men should wholly acquiesce to the sound Doctrine which those Servants of his Son Jesus left for our use and instruction wherein we learn how God hath revealed himself and communicated his own infinite fulness unto his Creatures in all of them immediately by his own Son first in the creation of all things secondly in their providential disposal and rule thirdly in the revelation of his Will and Ordinances fourthly in the communication of his Spirit and Grace in none of which is the Person of the Father otherwise represented unto us than in and by the Person of the Son for the whole end of the Gospel is 2 Cor. 4.6 1 Tim 6.10 1 â—oâ—n 4.12 to give knowledge of the glory of God in the 〈◊〉 of Jesus Christ that is the glory of the 〈◊〉 visible God whom no man hath seen Now in that forenamed Prophecy of Malachy the same Chapter and two last Verses the coming of the 〈◊〉 which had often been prophesied of before is again promised yea of the Lord himself who then was and had been from all Eternity but was to come only at such a time which is called the great and dreadful day of the Lord for against the appearing and long before of that Sun of Righteousness all those Stars the Prophets were to disappear one only excepted like the Morning-star before the rising of the Sun Behold I will send you Elijah the Prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord By whom the Lord Jesus is meant as John Baptist is by Elijah so called because he came in the spirit and power of Elias for both were endow'd with a fervency of Spirit which made them spare neither Kings nor People And the Evangelist makes use of the words of the Prophet He shall turn the hearts of the Fathers to the Children Luke 1.17 compared with Matt. 11.14 Mark 9.11 12 13. That same Lord whose coming with such Concomitants as great and dreadful was Jehovah himself the God of Israel whose words tho' in his state of humiliation were so conspicuous glorious and great as he in one particular said himself to the man out of whom he had cast a Legion of Devils Return to thine own house Luk. 8.39 and shew what great things God hath done unto thee And the Evangelist who in the beginning of the Verse relateth Christ's words to the man doth in the latter end of the same declare what the man did And he went his way and published throughout the whole City how great things Jesus had done unto him he did it in the same words how great things only instead of God he said Jesus so that Jesus was the God that had done great things unto him This was in the Land of Judah where no other God but the true God of Israel was own'd and worshipped so the Lord Jesus was that same God whom the Father from Heaven calls his Son which is the Name mentioned Phil. 2.9 that is above every name and this name more excellent than any given the Angels Heb. 1.4 he hath obtained by inheritance not by favour according to what saith the Apostle for the name by him designed is that of Son of God Thou art my Son with the exegetical adjunct of his generation This day have I begotten thee Acts 13.33 which words Paul doth apply to the Lord Jesus This day of Eternity after the manner of time spoken in relation to God with whom are no parts of time as with Men past present and to come With God are not days but only one day which had no beginning and shall have no end It was never said to any Angel personally upon his own account Thou art the Son of God much less with the reason of the appellation This day have I begotten thee so in that place the Apostle doth not speak of the general Name of a Son but of the particular appropriation thereof unto the Lord Jesus upon his own account When the Apostle saith he is the first-born the thing it self is not meant of being the first begotten but the Dignity and Privilege that attended it Psal 89.27 Thus God saith of David I will make him my first-born explained in the later part of the Verse higher than the Kings of the carth Thus among Men one may say I will make such a one my First-born or my Heir which is the Privilege attending the Birth-right This is Christs Title by Nature and not by Office anointing was a Ceremony used to make and declare a King but that anointing made him not a Man for he was so before So the Lord Jesus was God before he was Christ CHAP. XI Some Animadversions upon a Book called Christianity not Mysterious WHAT I said somewhat before concerning Reason puts me in mind of a thing I promised about the middle of my Discourse namely to take notice of a Book with the Title of Christianity not mysterious wherein the Author undertakes to shew there is nothing in the Gospel or in our Religion against or above Reason And tho' I have hardly any room left yet to be as good as my word I must briefly say something to it We agree with him against all human Authority contrary to the Word and own Scripture to be the only competent Judge and allow of our Reason as long as it draweth out of that Spring and not otherwise Let us be sincere and avoid Ambiguities there is true and sound Reason whereof the Word of God is the right and standing infallible Rule for the Will of God is the measure of all Truth and Equity and our Reason to be Reason indeed must be guided by that or else it doth deviate from the Rule There is also that
the Angel no less than twice doth direct to the true and only Object of worship when he said ‖ Rev. 19.10 and 22.9 worship God But this belonging to another Head I now shall proceed no farther in it Now to remove all improper and figurative meaning when the word God is attributed to Christ and to prove his Consubstantiality with the Father Scripture sets down Names and Epithets which not only distinguish him from and raise him above all and every Creature but also make him equal with God the Father Thus he is called l 1 John 5.20 the true God and m Tit. 2.13 Re. 19.17 the great God so n Rom. 9.5 God over all blessed for ever also o Jude 4. the only Lord God c. Hence the Name Jehovah is joyntly equally and comparatively given unto the Son as p Psal 2.11 12. serve the Lord with fear c. and q Isai 25.9 this is our God we have waited for him and he will save us this is the Lord we have waited for him we will rejoyce in his salvation Now comparatively or in a Parallel Christ is the same r Isai 8.13 14. Lord of Hosts which shall be for a Sanctuary a Stone of stumbling and for a Rock of Offence to both the Houses of Israel as confirm'd ſ Luke 2.34 and Rom. 9.32 Christ is he who being by the Right Hand of God exalted and having received of the Father the Promise of the Holy Ghost upon the day of Pentecost shed forth those Gifts we read of t Act. 2.3.4.33 and 't is the Lord God of Israel unquestionably the true God that promiseth u Joel 2.28 in the last days to pour out his spirit c. so 't is the same Lord God of Israel the Lord Jesus is the same who is first and last comparing x Isai 44.6 Isaiah with S. John y Rev. 1.17 The Son of God saith z Isai 48.12 16. He is sent from the Lord God and from his spirit after he had said v. 12. I am the first and also am the last So the Titles proper to the true God are given Christ as King of Kings and Lord of Lords as by God's Grace we shall shew when we speak about the Attributes So then the Son is true God as we observed before 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 though not 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Son of himself when we speak of the Son simply and without relation to the Father we properly call him Jehovah and self being for he hath it of himself but when consider'd relatively to the Father then we say he hath his Being from the Father the Son is by himself not of himself his Essence hath no Spring but his Person is from the Father the Essence is not communicated to the Son but only the manner of subsisting in the Essence when the Son is called God personally then he is not call'd the manner of subsisting but an Existence with the manner of being now the modus or manner is understood with the Essence because as the manner of Divinity is not Divinity it self so the mode of Essence is not Essence it self thus when he is called God personally 't is in the Concret not in the Abstract If Christ be not God by Nature he is not true God for nothing is really such but what is so by Nature The Adversaries say that those things which comparatively are called such in Scripture are truly such as Christ is called * Joh. 1.9 Chap. 18.1 the true light and the true vine though he be so called by way of a Metaphor But we do not deny how sometimes the Name true is appropriated to those things that are so called metaphorically but then the sense of the Metaphor doth not really belong to them for in every Metaphor there is true and false in the manner of it thus Christ is call'd the True Light for though in a metaphorical way he be a Light that is spiritually works the same Effect as a corporal Light doth bodily in the like manner he is called a True Vine because that the Metaphor is truly proper to him but here the question is not about the truth of Words taken metaphorically but properly for when the word True is joyn'd to those that are properly taken then it signifieth the very Nature of the thing so when the word true is joyned with that of God it necessarily signifies the Nature of God and whensoever the Name of True God is given any thing thereby is Divine Nature attributed to it This shews how Socinians do not own Christ to be the true God because according to Scripture there is but one true God they deny him to be that only true God When God is called the onely Maker of Heaven and Earth and the onely true God 't is not said only by way of Excellency as comparing God with the Creatures but we thereby exclude all others for in those places the only true God is opposed to false gods in relation to which he is not called true by way of Eminency but because it is the truth for they are true gods by no means and the true God is ever opposed to false gods and Idols wherefore called the Living God Psal 36.9 because saith David with thee is the fountain of Life He that is God only by Participation and not by Nature is not true God for Participation doth import a Likeness but Likeness of a thing is never the thing it self and if they would have Christ to be God only by Participation this in effect is to deny him to be true God that is to make him an improper and metaphorical God and after that way Men and Angels might be called true Gods which is not only Folly but also Blasphemy to say and think But they say if God and Angels be not true Gods then God doth mock when he calls them so but 't is no Mockery to give one some Name in an improper and figurative sense or else when Christ calls his Apostles * Matth. 5.13 14. The light of the world the salt of the earth and a City that is set on an hill he would have mock'd too so would Paul calling †1 Cor. 3.11 and Eph. 2.20 Christ a foundation and a chief corner stone Seeing the Apostles are not true Light only improperly and metaphorically and Christ a Stone figuratively they that are Gods only by Likeness and Communication and not by Nature are not Gods Every thing is called true as I hinted before according to its Nature a true Man true Gold true Silver from the Nature of Man Gold and Silver Now as to Christ can he be esteemed as a true God who first had a Being according to their Principles and was not God then was God and like the Popish Wafer God by degrees was God more and more till he came to a perfection of the Godhead and we may say was
for the unjust as a Lamb without Blemish and without Spot It seems these Socinians set their Hand and Seal to his Condemnation the same Question as was between our Saviour and the Jews is now between Socinians and us he said he was Son of God equal and one with the Father which Socinians no more than Jews are willing to believe and do flatly deny in the sense for which he was condemned namely for calling himself the Son of God and making himself equal with God when the Devil himself was not so peremptory for he made it but questionable when at the time he tempted him he said if thou be the son of God yet at several other times those wicked Spirits owned him to be the Son of the living God But Socinians give him the lye when he doth several times call and suffer himself to be called Son of God in the true sense and contrary to that of Socinians Surely he who is the Truth would not have spoken against it nor allowed others to tell a lye Now 't is most certain that he calls himself Son of God not only in the fore-quoted place of John where he owns he calls himself the Son of God according to the sense which the Jews had given his words and had made himself God in opposition to man that is God by Nature which no man is but also in other places as when he asked the blind Man Dost thou believe in the Son of God Which he declared himself to be in whom the Man ought to believe and to worship him as he did and 't is certain that Men must believe in and worship the only true God Also Martha * Joh. 11.27 declareth she believes him to be the Christ the Son of God by a gradation from his Office to his Person for the Christ or Messiah which should come into the world The antient Jews according to several Prophecies believed the Messiah to be the true Son of God and God by Nature which that Second Psalm doth clearly prove among many others thou art my Son wherefore the Psalmist v. 10. exhorteth kings to be wise and the judges of the earth to be instructed and to serve the Lord with fear and to kiss the Son to kiss his Feet in token of Obedience and Submission lest he be angry and they perish from the way when his wrath is kindled but a little a little Wrath is sufficient to break the Heathens and the uttermost parts of the Earth and to dash them in pieces like a Potter's Vessel All this is spoken of him to whom 't is said Thou art my Son and in the latter end of the last Verse the Prophet declareth blessed are all that put their trust in him and Men are not to put their trust in any but in the true God by Nature in which sense Scripture sheweth how Christ is called God and Son of God not only in that positive Text I and the Father are one but also out of this other * John 8.19 Ye neither know me nor my Father for if ye had known me ye should have known my Father also because we are one and he that sees me seeth him that sent me because he is the express Image of him that sent him And all this is confirmed in that other notable place †John 12.45 ch 14.9 10 11. He that hath seen me hath seen the Father for I am in the Father and the Father in me this truth must needs be very important for 't is affirmed in one Verse and confirmed in the next which truth appears yet farther v. 7. If ye had known me ye should have known my Father also and from henceforth ye know him and have seen him the reason must needs be this because ye have seen me and in the same Chapter to shew that Oneness and Sameness of his in Nature and Power with the Father he saith Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name that I will do which for greater assurance and confirmation is repeated in the next Verse If ye shall ask any thing in my name I will do it I my self there being no need for you to go to any one else S. Paul speaking of the Mystery of Godliness * 1 Tim 3.16 whereof the first part is that God was manifest in the Flesh saith it is a great one by his Expressions the thing is unquestionable and most certain for he saith Without controversie great is the mystery of godliness but Socinians are of another mind for they make not only a great Controversie but give a flat denyal of God being manifest in the Flesh and one of them here among us hath lately reprinted and set his Name to a Book with this Title Christian Religion not mysterious as it were to give the Apostle the lye on which I intend by the Grace of God to make some few general Observations towards the latter end of my Discourse we must do our Duty tho others neglect theirs and endeavour out of Scripture to convince or confound the Enemies of the Truth who are suffer'd with bare face to sow their Tares and spread their Poyson and Blasphemies as if it be only a Problem and a disputable Case whether or not the Lord Jesus did justly or unjustly suffer for Blasphemy for having affirmed himself to be Son of God Good Lord what times are we come to and how great a Darkness is the Nation falling into after so much light And now we are upon the matter of Blasphemy let me observe how in Scripture there is enough said about it to prove Christ to be the Essential Son of God let the Etymology and Derivation of the word Blasphemy be what it will it is most certain that in Scripture * Rev. 13.5 6. it is used to express when any thing is said or done against God in his Nature or Attributes or when one doth assume and arrogate unto himself that which belongs to God alone in the first sense we read when Hezekiah heard the words of Rab-shakeh 2 Kings 19.3 6 22. he said This is a day of Blasphemy and God called it so within few Verses after The servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me and again whom hast thou blasphemed In the second sense the Jews called our blessed Saviour Blasphemer We stone thee not say they to him ‖ John 10.33 for a good work but for blasphemy and because that thou being a man makest thy self God and so after his Confession before the Chief Priests they said ye have heard the blasphemy Wherefore if Blasphemy be against God truly and essentially taken may we not conclude the Lord Jesus to be truly essentially God He calls Blasphemy what the Jews had said against him * Mark 3.22 23. that be did cast devils by Beelzebub prince of devils the Evangelist lays upon occasion of the Abuses put upon him after he was brought before the High Priest †Luk. 22.65 And
and what John expresses thus the word was made flesh S. Paul calls it †1 Tim. 3.16 God was manifest in the flesh if by the word Flesh human Nature be meaned as certainly it is then this imports that God appeared made himself known and was manifest in assuming our human Nature and that the God that was thus made Flesh and was manifest is Christ Jesus the second Person of the Godhead who being in the Form that is in the Nature of God for the Nature is the being of a thing and the Form gives that Being well Jesus Christ in the form of God thought it not robbery to be equal with God ‖ Phil. 2.6 7. because it was his right 〈◊〉 took upon him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men and being found in fashion as a man he was God before he was made in that likeness this is plain that a God became man he was made that which he was not yet ceased not to be that which he was That this God that was made Flesh and manifest in the Flesh and found in the likeness of men here is explained what we must understand by Flesh was the Son of God the second Person of the most holy Trinity is declared elsewhere * Rom. 8.3 God sending his own Son in likeness of sinful flesh All these representing Christ as God and as man doth clearly demonstrate him to be both God and man Another place there is much to our purpose 't is this †Rom. 9.5 of whom the Israelites as concerning the flesh Christ came who is over all God blessed for ever this restriction as concerning the Flesh doth imply that Christ came not from the Jews concerning some other thing this settles two Relations in Christ one according to the Flesh as expressed Acts 2.30 what must the other be Scripture usually doth oppose the Spirit to the Flesh and the Flesh to the Spirit so in Christ there must be a Principle that is spiritual or else this restriction according to the Flesh were frivolous and not pertinent one thing cannot be distinguished of it self a thing is in it self but one thing and Distinctions are between different things for no one thing doth differ from it self Now that as there is in Christ a principle concerning the Flesh and another according to the Spirit anon we shall by the Grace of God have occasion to speak of but now thus far we must say that as by the Flesh his Humanity is meaned so is his divine Nature by the Spirit for * 1 Joh. 4.24 2 Cor. 3.17 God is a Spirit The Text we now are upon is remarkable upon several accounts our blessed Saviour as 't is very well known was a Jew born of the Seed of Abraham of the Tribe of Judah and of the Family of David this is the Apostle's meaning when he saith of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came which doth necessarily imply he came not of them concerning some other thing in him the Pedigree of his Manhood was indeed derived from thence but it had been in vain there to have sought for another Genealogy of this Melchisedec The Article 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 joyned with 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 shews how in him besides human Nature there was another for S. Paul who troubleth not his Readers with superfluous Expressions would not have added those words except in Christ had been another Nature or to what purpose say according to the flesh if he had been a meer man and herein chiefly lyes the Prerogative of the Jews that Christ who is God was born amongst them Their Priviledge doth not herein consist that Moses Joâ—huah Elijah John Baptist c. were born amongst them they all were but Men but that Christ was because he is God for this he addeth as the great reason and speaketh of his divine Nature who is over all God blessed for ever he saith not is called but is he is God over all the Fathers of the same stock thaâ— were born of the Jews before him or over all things whatsoever The words blessed for ever are in Scripture attributed to the true eternal God and even in our Saviour's time when the Jews said the blessed they meaned the true God Thus the High Priest asked the Lord Jesus †Mark 14.61 Art thou the Christ the son of the blessed which another Evangelist expresses thus ‖ Luke 20 70. Art thou the son of God In another place the same Apostle affords a convincing Proof of this Truth that in Christ are two Natures where he speaks of them thus * Rom. 1.3 4. Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh and declared to be the son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by the resurrection from the dead Wherein S. Paul teaches in what respect Christ is the Son of God not according to the Flesh for thus he is the Son of man of the Seed of David but according to the Spirit of Holiness which is the Spirit of God's Nature and according to that Spirit he hath been declared to be the Son of God with Power Certainly the Opposition used by the Apostle sheweth he cannot be Son of God upon both accounts but only upon one for if he had been according to both Paul would have said declared the Son of God as to the Flesh and as to the Spirit and herein would have made no difference between the Son of God according to the Flesh and according to the Spirit for as it is contrary to * Rom. 9.5 Scripture to call the Lord Jesus God according to the Flesh for God and Flesh are opposite so 't is contrary to say Christ is Son of God according to the Flesh for by the same reason one is said to be Son of God by the same he may be call'd God as we see it both joyned †Psal 82.6 I have said ye are God's and all of you are children of the most high And we read where the Jews upbraided our Saviour ‖ Joh. 10.33 36. that he made himself God that is absolutely he renders the words thus I said I am the son of God Jesus Christ is said * Phil. 2.5 6 7 8. to be in the form of God and made in the likeness of men 't is not said Made in the form of God but being his being is related to God and made to man he was God but made man he was made in the likeness of men and form'd in fashion as a man certainly here are two Natures asserted divine and human whence we say that as by his Incarnation he was really man so as surely his being in the form of God signifies that he was really God before he became man as he was man after his being born of the Virgin Mary These Expressions conclude for both his Deity and Humanity and if
he seemed not to be born on Earth but rather fallen from Heaven having neither beginning of Days nor ending of Life but made like unto the Son of God whereof he was a Type shewing these Attributes to be more proper to and true of the Son of God which cannot be otherwise understood then thus either that the Son of God hath such a Nature as doth by no means come and is derived from earthly and carnal Parents without beginning or end and so eternal to all eternity such as is divine Nature or else that both Natures of Christ divine and human are denoted human without Father upon Earth divine without Mother in Heaven and either overthrows the imaginary Notion of Socinus of Father according to the Flesh This must not be understood of the Priesthood about which the Question is not but about his Origine and Genealogy he is said to be without Father or Mother not but that he had some only there is no mention nor description made of it for the Greek word without Genealogy signifieth not the Genealogy it self but the description of it besides that the words without beginning of Days or ending of Life may by no means be applyed to the Priesthood wherefore he is said to have no beginning of Days not but that he had but is brought in as if he had not to answer him whose Type he was Days and Life are not referred to a Priesthood but to a Being a Person an Existence and Life the beginning or ending whereof absolutely no mention is made at all so then in this place the Comparison is not about the Priesthod but about the eternal Person of Christ for Christ's Priesthood had a beginning as is expressy set down in Scripture * Heb. 5.5 6. For he glorified not himself to be made an High Priest but he that said unto him thou art my Son this day have I begotten thee as he saith also in another place Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec So then in that sense it cannot properly be applyed to Christ 't is frivolous to say as if it were to be understood of any Family for the Apostle absolutely speaks of beginning of Days not of a Priesthood to speak absolutely of a Beginning and of a beginning of a Family are two things and that is to wrest the Apostle's sense and meaning and make him say a thing which he never intended We don't deny but that the Apostle speaks of the Priesthood of Melchisedec and of Christ's but it must be owned he also speaks of other things as of Melchisedec's being King of Righteousness King of Salem King of Peace c. and his being without beginning of Days or ending of Life relates to his Person and Life for no mention is made of his Birth or of his Death though both besel him but from the Eternity of his Person the Apostle inferreth the Eternity of his Priesthood So then when the Lord Jesus is said to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Person of Melchisedec the two last are not to be understood of his temporal Generation and Birth of the Virgin for two Evangelists have written his Genealogy but of his eternal Generation and of this speaks the Prophet †Isai 53.8 Who shall declare his generation An Expression equivalent to this no Man can it is eternal incomprehensible When our Saviour was born of the Virgin he was born in time ‖ Gal. 4.4 When the fulness of the time was come as Scripture calls it Now this Parallel between the Type and Anti-Type Melchisedec and Christ doth not run upon our Saviour's Birth according to the Flesh and about his human Nature but about something higher his Divinity wherefore the Apostle in the place where he saith Melchisedec to be without Father c. doth ascend higher saying * Heb. 7.3 but made like unto the Son of God The more â—o prosecute this Argument we must say how Christ in his Childhood even in the Womb was God for he is Immanuel God with us from the Virgins Womb the thing is clear out of this that God being not Flesh but Spirit can have no carnal only spiritual Sons the true Birth makes the true Sons and this is of two sorts those that are born of the Flesh are carnal those of the Spirit are spiritual for saith Christ Joh. 3.6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the spirit is spirit now to be born of the Flesh is to be born of a carnal Seed as to be born of the Spirit is to be born of a spiritual Seed wherefore Peter †Pet. 1.23 24 25. mentioneth two Seeds one corruptible the other incorruptible that of the Flesh as Grass withereth away the spiritual endureth for ever If then Christ was born of the Spirit as not long before we took notice the Adversaries would have him to be because he is said to have been conceived by the Holy Ghost then that Birth of Christ would be spiritual but not according to the Flesh 'T is not without cause that when Scripture speaks of our Blessed Saviour in several places it makes a restriction according to the Flesh and an Opposition to 't according to the Spirit thus 't is in the fore-quoted places Rom. 1.3 4. and Chap. 9.5 thus The word was made flesh the Word and Flesh do signifie two different Principles distinguished and in opposition one to another So the Apostle saith * 1 Pet. 3.18 Chap. 4.1 Christ was put to death in the Flesh but quickened in the Spirit and again He hath suffer'd for us in the flesh that is in his human Nature then in him is a Nature in which he suffer'd not and 1 Tim. 3.16 God was manifest in the flesh In one and the same Subject are two different Natures divine signified by the word God and humane by the Flesh What mean those words of S. Peter * Acts 2.30 31. how God had sworn unto David That of the fruit of his loins according to the Flesh he would raise up Christ and that his Flesh did not see corruption but to shew that in Christ was another Being different from that according to the Flesh according to which he was not David's Son Thus S. Paul as already quoted said God sent his Son in likeness of sinful Flesh there is a difference between being Son of God and being in the likeness of sinful Flesh And elsewhere †Ephes 2.15 Colos 1.22 Heb. 5.7 Ch. 10.20 Having abolished in his Flesh and You hath be reconciled in thâ—â—body of his Flesh again Who in the days of his Flesh and Through the vail that is to say his Flesh that visible Vail did hide some invisible thing Now I say it were in vain in Scripture to see so often mention made of Christ's Flesh if there was in him no other thing as the ground of the Distinction thus when we speak
different things thô pertaining to one and the same Subject or else every Lord were a God thus a Husband were a God unto his Wife because Sarah called Abraham her Lord the Lord of the unfaithful Servant were his God because he calls him his Lord the Lord of the Vineyard were the God of the Vineyard because called it's Lord and many more such Instances And I shall illustrate the thing by a trivial Saying among us A Servant may say his Master is Lord but not God at home The Text that saith * 1 John 2.22 23. Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ He is Antichrist that denieth the Father and the Son whosoever denieth the Son the same hath not the Father these words do import how he that denyeth Jesus to be the Christ doth thereby deny the Son not that Christ and the Son do formally signifie the same in themselves but because to be Christ and Son of God do meet in one Person so that none but the Son of God is Christ and Redeemer of the World Withall after this Socinian way of arguing it would follow in this Text that the Names Christ Father and Son do signifie the same for here the Apostle offereth two Propositions the first He is a Lyar that denyeth Jesus to be the Christ the last He is Antichrist that denyeth the Father and the Son The Adversaries make them both equivalent for in both is the same Object of denyal whence they infer that Christ and the Son are of the same signification but according to this Kule it may be concluded that Christ the Father and the Son signifie the same because in the first Proposition Christ is the Object of the denyal and in the last the Father and Son together Any one may see the Absurdity of such Consequences But because Christ to prove himself to be the Son of God speaks to the Jews about his Sanctification by the Father which Sanctification is the anointing spoken of by Peter †Acts 10.38 wherefore they would have that to be the cause of his being Son of God but if there was no other reason of that divine Filiation but the Sanctification and Anointing then the cause by the Angel given in ‖ Luke 1.35 Scripture were false So then Christ is called the Son of God not only upon the account of his extraordinary Birth and of his kingly Office as Socinus saith but for being of the same Nature and Essence with the Father which that Text of John 10. is not against for in that place our Saviour doth not give in the cause why he is Son of God but only goes about to refute the Slander of Blasphemy by the Jews cast upon him not by an Argument à pari taken from equal things but from the lesser to the greater He had said v. 30. I and my Father are one thereby expresly asserting his Consubstantiality and Oneness of Nature with the Father whereupon they took Stones to stone him because of that pretended Blasphemy in that he being man made himself God which Objection he answereth with an Instance from less to greater Thus if those are without Blasphemy called Gods who exercise a divine Office in their ruling and judging of Men much more and upon a better account may Christ the Messiab from eternity begotten by the Father and in time sent down from Heaven into the World be called God wherefore there is no Blasphemy nor have ye any just cause of stoning me because I said I am the Son of God one with the Father The Name Son of God relates to the eternal Generation by and Consubstantiality with the Father therefore not a Name of Office but of Nature and Person and the Names Christ and Son agree as to the material in one Person but not in the formal the Name Son is by reason of an eternal Generation and that of Christ upon the account of a temporal Anointing to an Office In the mean while we retain the proper and literal Sense of the word and not the metaphorical till we see cause to the contrary And this we leave for them to prove how because Magistrates by reason of their Office are called Children of the most high therefore not because of an eternal Generation and Coessentiality with the Father but for his Royal Dignity the Lord Jesus is called Son of God To be short we have other Texts to prove how the Name God's Son signifieth some essential thing in Christ as that heretofore quoted Christ was made of the seed of David according to the Flesh c. the Flesh signifies his Humanity as doth Declared the son of God according to the spirit of holiness his Divinity for we see * Dan. 9.24 To anoint the most holy doth denote by the most holy his divine Person and by to anoint his Office of Mediatour So we have that of the Angel to the Virgin The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee therefore also that holy thing that shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God The Angel's meaning is that in Christ's Conception the Power of God was necessary to the end he that was to be born might be called Son of God but if that Name had related only to the Office and he that was to be invested with it had been a meer Man no need of that Power of the Spirit in the Conception now the Angel calls holy that which it Essential in Christ he was holy before he should be born and that essential holy thing is called the Son of God The 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifieth not that Man that was to be born not holy in the Concret but holy in the Abstract Withall seeing in Baptism the word Son doth not in Christ signifie his Office but his Nature for the Names Father and Holy Ghost do not denote any Office but Persons so in Christ it signifies his divine Nature not his Office All this may also be proved out of other Texts as this †John 3.16 God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son c. compared with ‖ Rom. 8.32 He that spared not his own Son but delivered him up for us all wherein God's Love towards the World and us is so highly comended which if it were only an Office laid upon Christ would come very short of that inflnite Love of God which as Paul saith * Ephes 3.19 18. Passeth knowledg and gives it the four Dimensions bredth length depth and height But to say that God spared not his own beloved and only begotten Son but deliver'd him to death this is Love indeed The same we may learn out of this Heb. 5.8 that though he were a Son yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered What Man is he that would sacrifice his Son to the Safety and Preservation of his Enemies Yet God hath done it
is here said to reign The Lord God Almighty but to reign belong to Kings and if we go back to v. 15. this we shall find The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ who is called * Ch. 19.16 Vers 6. King of Kings and Lord of Lords and if we go back to v. 6. we may hear Alleluia the reason is for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth and in another place we read of the song of the lamb which I suppose no Man doubts to be the Lord Jesus and what is the Song Great and marvellous are thy works Lord God Almighty He is the Almighty God and certainly we have as many Evidences of his Omnipotency as there be Miracles wrought by him And if God the Father be Almighty as they will not deny him to be the Son must also be Almighty †John 5.19 for whatsoever things the father doth these also doth the son likewise Unchangeableness belongs to the true essential God Christ's Immutability but thou art the same saith the Psalmist 102.27 and Christ is unchangeable in his Words and Promises ‖ Matt. 24 35. Heaven and earth pass away but my words shall not pass away for * 2 Cor. 1.20 All the promises of God in him are yea and in him Amen and †Rev. 19.11 He is called faithful and true Other Names and Attributes there are in Scripture which though not incommunicable yet are so eminently spoken of the Divinity that they are almost equivalent to it so that they be fixed in God as their Spring and in the Creature but detivatively and as it were a small Drop in comparison with the vast Ocean and these being attributed unto Christ by way of Excellency do not only illustrate but also prove his Divinity I shall speak but few words about them the first is the highest which indeed I find in Scripture never to be spoken of Men in the superlative degree This is spoken of Christ in the place where it is said * Gen. 14.18 19 20. Melchizedec was the Priest of the most high God equivalent to the word highest and in the two following Verses 't is repeated so that no less than thrice the Name most high is set down which I conceive to be not without cause and may be in relation to the most holy and blessed Trinity Well this Name is attributed unto the Lord Jesus as what Zacharias said of his Son John †Luke 1.76 And thou child shalt be called the Prophet of the highest for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways So the Attribute is given to the Person therein spoken of which no Man may question to be the Lord Jesus This was given him by the Multitude and approved by him upon his entrance into Jerusaâ—em for they cryed saying * Mat. 21.9 Hosanna to the son of David Hosanna in the highest and though as I said this be simply proper to God and †1 Tim. 6.15 belonging only to him yet being joyned with the Name of God is attributed unto Christ ‖ Acts 16. These men are the servants of the most high God which shew unto us the way of salvation Servant of Christ is a Title which Paul doth usually take upon him Who this Most High God is we read in the next Verse Jesus Christ in whose Name he commanded the Spirit to go out which he did the same hour The word the blessed with an Article doth as I have had occasion to shew signifie the same as God and 't is said of the Son of God *âŽ* Psal 72 17. All nations shall call him blessed and the Multitude in the fore-quoted place called him so blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord and in that noted place the Apostle joyneth both blessed and God and gives him * Rom. 9.5 who is over all God blessed for ever Paul saith not Let him be in a way of Wish and Desire nor he shall be as if then the thing was not but only to come but he saith He is God blessed for ever thereby meaning his Being and Nature In Scripture †Isai 14. Psal 71.23 the Name of holy one is given to the only true God whom Israel doth worship This also is spoken of Christ ‖ Psal 16.10 Thou wilt not suffer thine holy one to see corruption and Peter *âŽ* Acts 2.27 and 3.14 doth certainly declare those words to have been spoken of Christ The Angel said to Mary * Luke 1.35 Therefore also that holy thing or holy one for it was a Person which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God before he was born Holiness was his Attribute and 't is †Rom. 1.4 according to the spirit of holiness that he was declared to be Son of God with power he not only is holy but also Holiness it self in the abstract To him sitting upon a Throne the Seraphims ‖ Isai 6.1 2 3. cryed Holy holy holy is the Lord of hosts the whole earth is full of his glory which is by John â‚ Joh. 12.41 applyed unto Christ These things said Esaias when he saw his glory and spake of him and * Rev. 4.8 The four beasts â—est not day and night saying holy holy holy Lord God Almighty which was and is and is to come which last is in S. John's stile a Description of the first these words spoken to him who sits upon the Throne and I hope none will deny Christ is sitting upon the Throne as absolutely expressed in several places of this Book So Daniel ‖ Dan. 9.24 called him The most holy Other Names and Titles Scripture doth appropriate unto Christ which are all strong Demonstrations of what he is namely the natural Son of God which I only shall name for indeed it would be almost an endless Work to insist upon all Testimonies of Scripture upon the matter He is then King of Kings and Lord of Lords Rev. 17.14 and 19.16 King and Lord of glory Psal 24.7 10. compared with 1 Cor. 2.8 Lord of David Psal 110. with Matth. 22.44 where 't is observable how the same Name given to the Lord spoken â—f is also given to the Lord spoken to as equally belonging to both 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and in this sense he is in several places of Scripture called one Lord 1 Cor. 8.6 and Lord of all Acts 10.36 because all things were made by him John 1.3 So the Lord and Saviour because there is no Salvation in any other Acts 4.12 Let special notice be taken of Psal 68. where speaking of Christ according to Paul's interpretation Ephes 4.8 he among other high and great Names is called the Lord God the God of our salvation and such more which certainly do belong only to the true essential God In Scripture the Names of Lord God King absolutely taken or with the distinction
that of the Apostle â—om 4.17 God calleth these things that be not as though they were And by that very word the Angels were made as every other Creature was not as by an Instrument for the particle by is not a sign of an Instrument but of an order in the Creation Rev. 19.13 To our purpose notable is that place his name is called the word of God which makes it appear that the name word of God is appropriated to and appliable to none but him as a Person if the name belongs to him then also the thing as indeed every where in Scripture the Word Father and Holy Ghost are distinguished one from another so John calls him the Word before he was made flesh and before the Creation Herein we may observe Socinians to be worse than Aâ—â—ians who owned Christ to have been from the time of the Creation when they would have him to have been only from that of his Birth But he was in the form of God before he took upon him the form a Servant he existed before Phil. 2.6 7. as indeed before his Incarnation he governed his people was with them in the Wilderness gave them meat and drink for he was the Manna and the Rock out of which they had Water he was the Angel whom God promised to send before them and before his being made flesh he reconciled regenerated preserved and interceded for his people if this be true as certainly it is according to Scripture why should he not have been in the beginning of the Creation and have had a hand in it For there is the same reason for all these if he existed but one year before his Incarnation then we may conclude for a hundred and thousands and so to Eternity upon the same ground on which he existed before he was man it could not be according to his humanity for no man can be said to be before he is but in a different respect from that whereby he is nothing can resolve this difficulty or reduce this impossibility into an act but owning him as he is the Eternal Son of God who when all things are said to be made and created is himself said to be begotten Notwithstanding the clearness of this Truth they use all means to darken it first against the 1. and 3. v. all things were madâ— by him in the beginning say they of the state of the Gopel but nothing more false if we â—â—â—sider every word and the scope of the 〈…〉 was in the beginning simply said without 〈◊〉 relation to this or that but absoluâ—â—â—◠〈◊〉 beginning of all things then the Evangelist will have us to look higher when he addeth the word was with God And if Christ was in the beginning of the Gospel then he was in the beginning of the world for as I observed before the Gospel was preached in the beginning of the world and immediately after the Fall the Messiah was promised but as the design of St. John is to assert Christ's divinity he doth it by degrees as first In the beginning was the Word then He was with God and so to go higher he saith He was God and to shew it farther he comes to the effect namely the Creation of the world All things were made by him c. Secondly they would darken v. 10. the world was made by him whereby they understand the world to come but they forge ambiguities where there is no cause for it here is the world with the Article 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 without any Epithet and thus it is usually taken for the work of Creation and they ought to give a reason why in this place the word world should have a rare and unusual signification and why the Evangelist should bring in ambiguous terms in a thing which he designeth to make plain and clear Neither are there instances that the name world signifies an age or a world to come which is as absurd as if one would say this world signifieth this Life and suppose world meaneth life to come as to enjoy it and to be in Heaven denote the same it would follow that Christ made Heaven which is part of the work of Creation If the Evangelist by the world was made by him had meant only a new Creation or renewing of the old he would have added something to shew it is not to be understood of the old Creation but there is nothing to that purpose on the contrary he could not more plainly have said that the World spoken of is the same as was made by the word So the Apostle saith positively and absolutely The world was made by him but they say it was not made by him but only renewed in this sence they would have these Texts to be understood He lighteth every man that cometh into the world and he is Saviour of the world but as every man is not inlightened and saved by him for the world knew him not it must be understood say they that he doth what he can to save and renew the world but they ought to know there is a great difference between giving Christ the title of Saviour of the world and saying He renewed the world saved and enlightned every man in the world after this manner we might say John Baptist Paul and every Apostle renewed the world in as much as they desired and laboured after that it might be so yet it would not sound well to say the world was made by John and the Apostles which must be inferred from thence if to make the world be only to do what one can to have it renewed The world was made by him expresseth two things the Thing anâ— the Cause the Thing the world was made the Cause by the Word and if the first proposition be true so is the second Now an effect is visibly seen out of this assertion the world was made Another text to prove the Creation of the World by Christ is this The first born of every Creature Colos 〈◊〉 15 16. For by him were all things created that are in Heaven and that are in earth visible and invisible whether they be thrones or domiâ—â—ons or principalities or powers â—ll things were created by him and for him This place is clear and full whence we draw this he who is the first born of every Creature is in time before every Creature not that he should thereby be reckoned among the Creatures only he therein is 〈◊〉 a metaphore dâ—noted to be first of all that in 〈◊〉 things he may 〈◊〉 the preeminence and not 〈…〉 accounted of the same kind with others for 〈…〉 not first created but first born Ye◠〈◊〉 the first born as to be the only begotten and he may also be called a Creature according to the Flesh and as he is a man but not according to the Spirit The reason given why Christ is so called 't is this for by him were all things created which shews plainly that Christ is not
he together with the Father John 5.17 doth work hitherto Thus spiritual creatures are preserved in their Individuum and corporeal in their Species he gives Food raiment and other necessaries unto all disposes of Times and Seasons causes his Sun to shine sends rain c. without which concourse of his the world would soon come to an end and this is a kind of a second Creation The exercising of a miraculous Providence is a kind of work which manifest's Christ to be the true Essential God for such things are beyond and above the power of nature and a property of the true Lord God of Israel who only doth wonderous things and this our Saviour did shew upon some extraordinary occasions in matters of nature Psal 72.18 and also of grace As to the first when he changed water into wine rebuked the wind and the Sea gave the blind sight made the lame to walk Matth. 9.33 John 9. â—2 curing diseases healing distempers virtue daily issuing out of him which made people wonder and admire because such things had never been so seen in Israel nor since the world began and to say that a great Prophet is risen up among us and that God hath visited his people and the Gospels are filled up with such miracles which he did in all kinds and of what nature soever were their infirmities and diseases he cured them all and as Peter said was approved of God by miracles Acts. 2.22 wonders and signs And in this virtue and power of his own he gave others power to do the like But they whom he gave that power to exercised it not in their or any others but in his name Matth. 10 1. Mark 16.17 18. Luke 10.9 to shew how the power of working miracles was only in and from him in my name they shall cast out devils speak with new tongues c. And work miracles by my power and authority Thus the seventy disciples being again returned with joy said Luke 10.17 Lord even the devils are subject unto us thorough thy name Thus Peter having healed the lame man said to the people which ran greatly wondering why look ye so earnestly on us as though by our own power or holiness Acts. 3.12.16 we had made this man to walk men being so apt to look upon and fix on second causes and instruments he first goes about to remove those thoughts out of their heads he directs them to the cause of the miracle Christ's name thorough faith in his name hath made this man strong which in the next Chapter before the high Priest and Councel they solemnly declared Chap. 4 10. be it known unto you all and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth whom ye crucified by him doth this man stand here before you whole And in another place he said to a certain man Aeneas Chap. 9.34 Jesus Christ maketh thee whole Hereby I shew Christ to have been the spring of miracles which were done in his name as before he wrought them himself in his own name whereby his divinity is evidenced The disciples could not at all times work miracles but Christ could Lord said the man if thou wilt thou canst mare me clean Matth. 8 2. John 5.21 and he quickneth whom he will so he answereth the man I will be thou clean and immediately he was cleansed One thing more must be observed upon this how Christ did miracles for his own glory which is not lawfull to say of any man beâ—â—ase it belongeth to God alone Prov. 16.4 to make all things for himself Thus of the Lord Jesus after his first miracle 't is said John 2.11 This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee and manifested forth his glory Thus he said himself that the sickness of Lazarus was yeor the glory of God John 11.4 Chap. 9.3 that the son of God might be glorified thereby And so was the man's being born blind that the works of God should be made manifest in him that is that in giving him his sight he might therein be glorified As amongst miracles raising one from the dead is the most conspicuous so therein at several times the Lord Jesus highly manifested his own divine power but in none so much as when he raised himself for when he by himself had purged our sins Heb. 1.3 John 10.18 he not only rose again from the dead but also sat down on the right hand of the majesty on high No man said he taketh away my life from me but I lay it down of my self I have power to lay it down and I have power to take it again I see so much of Majesty in those words and they are spoken with so much assurance that therein I perceive the character of his divine Power and Nature I joyn them together for I take them to be inseparable here is the triumph of the Son of God Colos 2.14 15. when not only he hath blotted out the hand writing of ordinances that was against us and nailed it to his Cross but also having spoiled principalities and powers he made a shew of them openly triumphing over them in it for all his euemies and ours received their mortal wound and laid dead under his Cross the works of the devil 1 John 3.8 Hos 13.14 1 Cor. 15.54 55 56 c. that is sin he destroyed and invisibly Satan was crucified with him O death he was thy plagues O grave he was thy destruction he conquered them all and thereby death which is the last enemy is by his resurrection swallowed up in victory After his resurrection Peter asserted it to be impossible it should have been otherwise or that he should be holden of death Whence Paul exalteth the exceeding greatness of the mighty power of God Acts. 2.14 Ephes 1.19 20. Rom. 1.4 which was wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead which same efficacy is elsewhere attributed to the spirit of holiness that is to the divinity in the Son distinguished from his humanity all which agreeth with what our Saviour had foretold of the temple of his body John 2.19.21 destroy this Temple and in three days I will raise it up again understood of the temple of his body he rose not to be but because he was God thus much as to matters of Nature But Christ doth also works of Grace all understood under the name of redemption which hath two parts impetration or purchase and application through his active and passive obedience he hath fullfilled the Law for us and redeemed us from the Wrath of God and the Curse of the Law having fully satisfied his Justice and reconciled us unto him he hath obtained the pardon of our sins by a sufficient attonement he made for the same through his Death and sufferings He by the mouth of the Prophet shews what he is at the coming out of his
was really in Heaven before he came down upon Earth and as he really and actually ascended up into it so he really and actually descended from thence upon Earth here are two terms a quo and ad quem as he could not go up to Heaven but from the Earth so he could not come down upon the Earth but from Heaven and is there the least ground in the whole Chapter to think Christ's intention was to entertain them with his having been in Heaven in Idea and Meditation when his design was to shew how what he had said of being the Author of Resurrection and Life and the manner of it by means of eating his flesh was a thing not to give them offence nor impossible Considering what he was originally from Heaven therefore not to be considered as a meer man but such a one as was far more divine and powerfull than any man They finding this will not do yet to dispute the ground as long as they can they forged in a Dream for otherwise it cannot be a very strange adventure that Christ was in Heaven before he was upon Earth seemeth undeniable therefore because they dare not give him the lye they would mince the matter thus how Christ between his Birth and Death and before he preached went up into Heaven where for a while he remained to be better instructed by the Father in the things which he was to teach mankind after which he came down again but there is not the least ground but only fancy for it The Evangelists do give us an account of most passages of Christ's Life and how could they all four have forgotten this which is one of the most important that might have befallen him in that kind The Evangelists Matthew and Luke in their four first Chapters relate many things belonging to that time as not only his birth but also his Circumcision on the eighth day and his being carryed to the Temple to be presented to the Lord received by Simeon spoken of by Anna a Prophetess adored by the Wise Men carryed into Egypt his return to Nazareth his being found in the Temple sitting in the midst of the Doctors asking them questions his being subject to Joseph and Mary baptized of John tempted in the Wilderness c. and not one word about this pretended ascension How came it that he was not missed by any This they would to have been in imitation of Moses whom God called up to the Mount That it was so with Moses we read in the word but nothing like it of our Saviour And when God is silent our mouth should be stopped and nothing allowed to fancy or imagination besides when Moses was called up the people had publick notice given them of it and by God's command he took Aaron's Sons and Seventy of the Elders all the people saw the glory of God upon the Mount and when Moses came back all Israel saw him with his face shining none of which things can be said of this pretended Ascension of christ's whereof there are no witnesses not so much as any of his Disciples as he had in his Trassiguration which three Evangelists give an exact account of Which though important yet not so considerable as this which could not be performed without a great Miracle whether he had been carryed up only in Soul for then his Soul had been separated from the Body so death must have followed or whether in Body and Soul the Body could not have been sustain'd in the Air without a Miracle And during that time where were his Disciples This certainly should have made a great Gap in the History of his Life which we cannot perceive in any of the Evangelists no nor in those that have written his Life from his Birth to his Death Resurrection and Ascension St. Luke saith of the Gospel he had written how he had made a Treatise of all that Jesus begun both to do and to teach Yet not a word of this Acts 1.1 as indeed there was no necessity for Christ to go up to Know as they say his Father's Will which might have been communicated unto him as to Moses John Baptist without going up to Heaven in case he had not known it but he knew it before At his Baptism the Heavens were opened unto him the Father had highly owned him the Holy Ghost was descended upon him so that he return'd from Jordan full of the Holy Ghost Luke 4.1 wherefore there was no need of his going and so the Cause ceasing so must the Effect so that also it had been preposterous after what happen'd in his Baptism for him to have gone up into Heaven upon such an Errand Besides that we are assured he enter'd but once into the holy place Heb. 9.12 Hereby we see how if we were willing to take it that sort of Men would be ready to put upon us every Suggestion of theirs for an Argument every Argument for a Law yea and every Dream for a Revelation Tho' our Saviour here calls himself Son of Man and not Son of God it doth not in the least prejudice what we say for if he had call'd himself Son of God it had been a begging of the Question for they would not own him to be such And this sheweth the better the Oneness of the Person when there is a Communication of the Idioms when in the Person that which is proper to one Nature is spoken of the other Christ according to the Flesh was never in Heaven before his Ascension but according to the Spirit that is his Divine Nature he was Here our blessed Saviour calling himself Son of Man may allude to with intent to make Men take notice of what is spoken of himself by the Prophet Dan. 7.13 14. I saw in the night Visions and behold one like the Son of Man came with the Clouds of Heaven and came to the ancient of days and they brought him near before him And there was given him dominion and glory and a kingdom that all people nations and languages should serve him his dominion is an everlasting dominion c. This is an exact Prophecy of his Ascension One thing more they have to say and 't is the Example of Paul's having been caught up to the third Heaven but must it from what hath happen'd to Paul 2 Cor. 12.2 follow that the same must needs have befaln the Lord Jesus That indeed we read of Paul therefore we ought to believe but of Christ we read no such thing Yet for all that we never read that either Paul was from Heaven or came down as we read it of Christ very often Paul speaks of that with the greatest modesty in the World for fear he should seem to exalt himself but our Lord without any ambiguity or fear that Men would think he takes too much upon himself doth speak loud highly declares and often proclaims himself to be the Son of God equal with him sent by the
to screw it up into an Allegory nor when the Discourse is doctrinal and the words in it usual proper and suited to the things intended to be expressed this indeed is what Peter calls a resting the Scriptures to their own destruction The later part of the Verse doth explain the first for the words signifie Christ's Ascension into Heaven they were spoken upon the occasion of Christ's instructing encouraging and disposing his Disciples to that Separation which was suddenly to happen by his Death after which tho' he shewed himself alive by many infallible Proofs being seen of them forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God yet he conversed not with them in the same manner as before his Passion Acts 1.2 Now this occasion which they were spoken upon sheweth how he discoursed about leaving the World going to his Father and ascending into Heaven which reaily and visibly happen'd forty days after his Resurrection By these Expressions which were familiar with him of going up or ascending to the Father he signified the same thing and tho' the Father doth fill up Heaven which is his Throne and Earth his Footstool yet in Scripture he is said to sit and dwell in Heaven as in his home Joh. 14.2 wherefore our Saviour calls Heaven his Father's House Now as this later part of the verse signifieth Christ's Ascension from the Earth to the Father so the first signifieth his coming down from Heaven upon Earth Again the Opposition which is seen between both parts as I came forth from the Father with and go to the Father and I am come into the World with again I leave the World do shew that if to come from the Father doth denote to be sent from Heaven to Earth by the Father so to go to the Father signifieth the contrary to that namely to go from Earth up to Heaven to the Father Christ leaving the World is gone to the Father and going to the Father he hath left the World wherefore to go to the Father and leave the World are the same So likewise Christ coming forth from the Father came into the World and coming into the World he came forth from the Father And these two kinds of Expressions signifie the same thing Chap. 13.3 and as he was come from God so he went to God This coming from the Father and coming into the World do imply first a sending as the Lord declareth it John 8.42 I proceeded forth and came from God neither came I of my self but he sent me And then something posterior to the Mission and as it were belonging to the execution thereof for if one should ask Wherefore came Christ into the World it would be well answer'd to say Because the Father sent him So that he who is sent must come from him that sent him to the place whereunto he is sent Then the words I came from the Father must be understood of the execution of the sending rather than the sending itself It is a wrong sence given as to apply them to a divine production I came from the Father that is I am miraculously produced by the Father This Exposition doth confound things that are different for none can be sent before he hath a Being but that 's produced which hath no Being Production is before Sending Thus the words must signifie that Christ return'd to the place whence he came and ascended into that whence he descended before This he went about to inculcate into the Mind of the Jews in the opposition he makes of his Origin with theirs Ye are from benedth V. 23. I am from above ye are of this world I am not of this world but from the Father not from Earth but from Heaven He was not in the World by a natural necessity but voluntarily and by a determined counsel he came into 't as Embassador from his Father to reveal unto Men the Doctrin and Means of Salvation and for Judgment Chap. 9.39 For judgment am I come into this world and all the while he was here even very betimes he minded what he came about Unto his Mother after she found him in the Temple and asking him Why hast thou thus dealt with us he answer'd How is it that ye sought me wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business Luke 2.48 49. So that he continued upon Earth till that was over before which time he would not go back John 17.4 but before his departure he declar'd I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do whereupon he returned back to his Father from whom he was come before leaving Earth a place so disproportionate and inferiour to Heaven whence he had his extraction and consequently unworthy to contain him any longer This Reason he gives his Disciples whose Heart upon his declaring he was about leaving of them had been fill'd with Sorrow how it was not just he should always be among those that had used him so unworthily and withal it was expedient for them that he should go away or else the Comforter Chap. 16. â— 7. who was to be with them after his departure would not come After all that hither to hath been said may not I ask concerning the method and carriage of the Adversaries Is it fair about these fundamental points to turn the whole Scripture into an Allegory and make the Spirit of God never to speak properly to force upon and wrest out of the Word of God such Sences and Expositions as are contrary to the scope of the Spirit to the Deigns of the holy Writers and to the Analogy of Faith and if this cannot serve the turn to screw up and work their Bâ—â—ing how to contrive and forge an imaginary After son of Christ into Heaven about the 〈◊〉 of his Ministry and consequently a ceasing â—â—wn from thence after it yet at the same time deny that true and real descending of â—is upon Earth which is so much and so often assorted in Scripture which is as good as to say Tho' Truth and Scripture do not bear it yet we I now how to supply it of our own Flectere si nequco saperos Ae eroma movebo Now to strengthen what I have said to prove our Lords Divinity before I proceed to answer Objecting I shall add what followeth upon the forementioned Head of the Angel in the Old Testament I mean the increated Angel whose Person in appearance is Man in office Angel in nature God the second Person of the most holy Trinity I shall somewhat insist upon a most notable place and much to our purpose though I already said something about it for I can not willing to lay aside a strong and very useful weapon because I made use of it before for when once it hath been try'd we are the surer of and may better depend upon it On the occasion of the abominable Idolatry of the golden Calf God refused to go up
and wrestled with him when coming from Lanban he had passed over the Ford Jabbock that same I say was God the Angel and the Lord of Hosts This happened when Jacob and his Family were going into Canaan whereof the possession had been promised him and his Posterity upon the very borders he is met by his Adversary his Brother Esau who had a pretence to that Inheritance and therefore came against him with a power which of himself he was not able to resist which made him afraid as we read v. 11 wherefore upon such a tryal to strengthen his Faith and make him lay hold the faster on the Promise 2 Cor. 1.20 he in whom all the promises are yea and Amen the Son of God Jesus Christ appeared unto him in the shape of a man because in his Seed were the Promises made but this man in appearance was God in effect and nature therefore Jacob did solemnly pray to him for his Blessing in the time of the wrestling and would not rest till he had blessed him which he obtained v. 29 and in remembrance of this Jacob called the name of the place Peniel because he had seen God face to face This solemn meeting with much Comfort and Thankfulness Jacob remembred when he blessed Joseph and his two Sons in these most remarkable words God before whom my Fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk the God which fed me all my life long unto this day the Angel which redeemed me from all evil bless the Lads The God of his Fathers the God that sed him all his life-time and the Angel which redeemed him from all evil is but one and the same And the Name Redeemer is proper to Christ the second Person of the holy Trinity All these are irrefragable Truths which Socinians can effectually say nothing against tho' out of the Rabbis or Jewish Doctors Writings they have been screwing up whatsoever they thought might serve their turn thus they were not ashamed to borrow Weapons from Christs sworn Enemies But before I leave off this Point about Angels whether the Creator or created ones for the glory of the Son of God I must say how tho' these be called Sons of God mighty in Power and excellent in created Glory yet when compared with God Job 15.15 4.18 Isa 6.3 John 12.40 't is said they are not pure in his sight and he chargeth them with folly and they cover their faces at the brightness of his glory as not being able nor worthy to look upon t. And that place about Divine Glory as I already observed we know to belong to our Saviour who is called Lord and King of Glory because all Glory is in and from him as its true Spring and proper Center Psal 24 compared with 1 Cor. 2.8 Hence it is that at his coming into the World all Angels were commanded to worship him which was performed in their attendance on his Birth proclamation of his Nativity and celebrating the Glory of God on that account and afterwards declaring his Resurrection and confirming his Ascension even ministring unto him after the Temptation and when he was in his Agony And whilst Angels are called God's Ministers who ought to worship Christ the Son as their Maker Vnto the Son he saith Thy throne O God is for ever and ever to shew that there is as much and as great a difference between the Son and Angels as there is between God and Angels between the Creator and the Creature for indeed in that same place the Heavens are said to be the work of his hands so no comparison to be made between the Son and Angels the noblest of all Creatures The Name Elohim absolutely used is never in Scripture given to any singular Angel or Man which is the same as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with the Article by the Apostle given the Son so he is denoted by that Name as the true God by Nature And this same hath a Kingdom signified by the Royal Marks of a Scepter and a Throne whereunto Eternity is annexed for 't is for ever and ever whereby its duration or lasting is expressed so is his manner of administration with righteousness His scepter is a scepter of righteousness and to shew his preparation for that administration of his 't is said He loved righteousness and hated iniquity Now the Throne is not for the Servants but for the Son because the Kingdom thereby denoted is not theirs but his who indeed is graciously pleased to promise his Apostles that at the last day they shall sit on twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel that is they shall participate only at the last day with him in his Kingly Power Mat. 19.28 and in some degree be made partakers of his Glory with an Interest in his Kingdom which he is pleased to give them in the mean time the Throne is not theirs but his Here I must take notice how for preventing many Errors rash and false Opinions 't is to be wished men would follow the Apostles Practise in this place who abounding in quotations gives us a Rule and an Example to do so for with comparing Scriptures one with another we come to be acquainted with God's Mind and Will in them for by what is spoken of Angels in one place and of the Son in another we are taught what to believe of him and of them They who follow not this Rule are apt to frame in their Heads hasty wrong and false notions about God's Mind especially in the matters we are now upon And what is it that gives the Throne of the Lord Jesus Unchangeableness and Eternity but his divine Nature The words of the Psalmist whence the Apostle draws his Argument do not belong to Solomon for the words O God do not relate to him nor these Thy throne is for ever and ever for he reigned but forty years nor to his Successors who went off the Stage at or about the time of the Babylonian Captivity We know how in some things Solomon was a Type of Christ but it doth not follow that every thing relating to the Antitype should belong unto the Type for 't is enough for the Type so to represent and shadow out the Lord Jesus that what the Prophet would teach concerning him should be spoken of the Type whereby he was represented for the Antitype is what the Spirit of God ever chiefly aimed at So tho the Type and Antitype agreed in some things in others there was a vast difference between them But that in this place the Apostle doth interpret those words of the Son of God Jesus Christ it appears out of v. 8 but unto the Son he saith Thy throne O God c. And 't is in that Party but vain and idle words to go about to perswade us that the Apostle did not say what he said and which is written for our instruction And with us they should take notice how it is said When he bringeth in his
by †De Vnit Eccles Cyprian and also by Tertullian Ignatius c. This Text doth so well agree with that of the Evangelist to baptize all Nations in the name of the Father Son and Holy Ghost which it doth allude unto that none may doubt but it was suggested by the same Spirit and the name word particular to St. John doth sufficiently witness how those lines together with the rest came out of his Pen Non unus sed unum saith one of the fore-quoted Fathers Not one Person sed unum c. one Nature not only the unity of Testimony as they are three distinct Witnesses not only the unity of Consent and Will but also of Nature as I and the Father are one Joh 10.30 which the Jews understood very well for thereupon they accused him of Blasphemy and took up Stones to have cast at him the reason they give for 't is this Because thou being a man V. 33. makest thy self God In few words we cannot be baptized in the name of Father Son and Holy Ghost except the names of these three equal in Authority Dignity and Essence be called upon on our behalf and as I observed before 't is unlawful to be baptized in the name of any man The Israelites were baptized by the Worâ—â— or Ministry or as the Syriack hath it in the Hand of Moses but not in his Name Before we leave off these Objections against the most adorable Trinity for the better understanding of the matter I shall speak some few words more for indeed the point is of so high a concernment and affords such a plenty and variety of Discourse that we can never say enough of what is to be known in the case Tho' as we said they be the same in Essence yet they differ first in personal Names as Father Son and Holy Ghost Secondly in their Order Father first as the Spring then Son thirdly Holy Ghost Thirdly In their manner of Operation the Father doth act of himself the Son from the Father and the Holy Ghost from both Gal. 4.4 John 14.26 15.26 so the Son is sent by the Father the Holy Ghost from both Father and Son but we never read the Father was sent So there is a difference in the outward Works for tho' they be common to the three Persons yet Creation is properly attributed to the Father Redemption to the Son and Sanctification to the Holy Ghost Thus these three Persons have every one their personal unity in number they are distinguish'd yet are but one God in number of Essential and natural unity wherefore in God are not three Beings three Infinites or three Things Yet they object the names of Trinity Personality and Essence were not heard of before the Apostles time nor the Doctrin of the Trinity I answer to the first that tho' the Names were not yet the Things were and Words are to signifie Things that there is one God the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit as it appears out of the places quoted to prove the Divinity of the Son and Holy Ghost which here I need not to repeat and if the things be true why should Men dispute about words which do not in the least prejudice the Analogy of Faith on the contrary do explain and confirm it As to the Second I say that the Doctrin of the Trinity was mentioned of old as I proved it already out of several places of Scripture the Question is not about the Father but the Son concerning whom is the clear Testimony of Psal 2 whose coming as Jehovah and God of Israel for the Prophet speaks to Israel when he calls him your God was foretold Behold Isa 35 4 5. Mat. 11.4 5. Psal 51.10 11. your God will come with vengeance even God with a recompence he will come and save you which is applied unto Christ Of the Holy Ghost mention is made by David and in other places but that which under the Old Testament was under a Vail is clearly revealed under the New for the Persons are plainly named and their number expressed as in the places already made use of not only in the Baptism of our Saviour but in his Commission given his Apostles to baptize c. which as I shewed is unlawful to be done in any man's name As there is truth in Jesus so this is the truth of his Gospel which also hath in conformity thereunto been the sense of the general Orthodox Councils and of the Doctors of the Primitive Church however this must be said that tho' this Mystery of the holy Trinity be expressed in Scripture yet 't is such a one as exceedeth our understanding and capacity Again they say In most places of Scripture 't is said there is but one God and that this God is the Father of Jesus Christ I answer The Name God when properly spoken and of the true God is taken either essentially for Divine Nature or personalty for some of the Persons when taken in the first sense it doth not exclude but include the Persons only it is set down in opposition to Idols and false Gods which by Nature are not Gods the things absolutely spoken of the Oneness of God do not at all prejudice the Persons which are that onely God hence it is that not only the Father but also Son and Holy Ghost are called God In this Essential sense are taken the places they quote out of the Old and New Testament as for instance Mark 2.7 Luk. 5.21 that of Mark and of Luke which among others they make use of Who can forgive sins but God only The word God belongs to the Essence yet that power doth belong to the Son as to the Father for there Christ assumeth it to himself which same power is also attributed unto the Holy Ghost Receive ye the Holy Ghost John 20.21 22. whosoever sins ye remit they are remitted unto them When the word God is to be understood personally then there is a note of distinction joyned to know what Person is spoken of whether Father Son or Holy Ghost What we say of the word God the same we affirm of the name Father which doth not always signifie the first Person but also the Nature and three Persons Thus when God is said to be Father of all and in the Lord's Prayer we call him Our Father when we cry Abba Father c. in all Texts of that nature Father Son and Holy Ghost are understood As to the Particle besides me sometimes used it excepts nothing within tho' every thing without the Deity or that hath not the Divine Nature But one of the Arguments which most of all they ground themselves upon is this Joh. 17.3 And this is eternal life to know thee the only true God and whom thou hast sent Jesus Christ They would have Christ to be excluded from being the only true God which they restrain only to the Father but herein they are much