c Amb. n. 37. de Virgin Tull. Epist 69. Aug. Cont. Jul. l. 3. c. 13. Libri non erub sâ—unt your black Comment cannot blush Yet St. Austin said of Julian a Pâ—lagian for asserting an heresie lesse dangerous then yours Puto ipsum libri tui atramentum erubescendo convertitur in minium CHAP. VIII Sheweth against this Commenter that mens soules dye not with their bodies I Must not omit your rare doctrine concerning the soules of dead men You tell us that they are void of all sense of time intervening between the time of our p. 228. 267. death and resurrection though Scriptures speak as if we should wholly live till Christs coming but 't is because thousands of years seem but as one minute to one that sleâ—peth or is dead so long and None are entred into heaven besides Christ c. I perceive you like not the opinion of those Anabaptists who taught the Psychopanychian or sleeping of dead mens soules neither are you arrived to the height of the Jewish Sâ—dduces or heathenish Epicures for they denyed a resurrection which you confesse yet you have chose a fair middle way and with them you believe that our soules dye with our bodies and your confessing of the resurrection is but a reserve by which you re-inforce your doctrine of the Soules mortality for when you perceived that the words of Christ against the Sadduces made also against you when he alledged Matth. 22. 32. Exod. 3. 6. those words I am the God of Abraham to prove that Abraham then lived because Abraham's soul lived for those words were spoken long after Abâ—aham was dead to avoid this you tell us that it proves onely that Abraham must one day be recalled to life so though Abraham's soul was then dead and therefore Abraham was not living yet God is the God of the living that is of the living dead Abraham because some thousands of years after Abraham may be revived you may do well to reform Church-Creeds and adde to The Resurrection of the body the resurrection of the soul which hath been alwayes omitted because the Church thought that onely the body falleth and that the body onely is câ—davâ—r and onely of that there will be a resurrection to the penitent Thief it is said This Luke 23. 43. day shalt thou bâ—wâ—th me in Pâ—â—â—d se this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is not yet come by your doctrine though sixteen hundred years are run out since St. Paul in the narration of his rapture into the third heaven confesseth he 2 Cor. 12. 2. knew not whether he were in the body or out of the body therefore in his opinion posâ—â—bly his soul might be in that heaven whilest his body was on earth and St. Stephen at his Martyâ—dome said Lord Jesus receive Acts 7. 59. my 〈◊〉 if his soul was then to dye I marvel why he would not as well say Lord Jesus receive my body but surely he thought his spirit or soul was not mortal and this is consonant with the doctrine of the best â—ilosophers who proved the soul to be separably existible because they discovered that our soul hath operations which are inoâ—ganical for the intellective faculty useth the body onely as an object but not as an instrument and our most excellently learned Physician and rare Philosopher Doctor Thomas Brown of Norwich hath taught us d Râ—lig Medici paâ—t 1. sect 35. 〈◊〉 l. de Aniâ—â— c. 44. vide 〈◊〉 l. 7. c 52. 〈◊〉 Hesâ—châ—â—m in vita Arisâ—â—ae Epimenidis â— 4â— 46. That in the dissecting of a man no Organ is found proper to the Reasonable Soule and that in the brain of man there is nothing of moment 〈◊〉 then in the Cranie of a â—east And Tertullian telleth a story of one Hermotimus whose soul used to leave hâ—s body for a time and Evagari as his word is to wandâ—r abroad whilest his body lay like a dead corps and to return again till his enemies took advantage and whilest his soul was absent they burnt his body And such another story doth Origen tell of the same Orig. cont Cels l. 3. man whom he cals Clazomenius Now whether this be true or not yet it argues that in the judgment of these profound Philosophers the soul possibly may exist out of the body I perceive that the Judgment of the Church hath but little power to sway you for you snatch at any paradox though heretical that comes in your way Eusebius tells us that this very opinion Euseb hist l. 6. c. 27. of the soules dying with the body and rising again with the body was accounted heretical by the Church and that it was in an open Council confuted by Origen though Origen himself erred on the other side and St. Austin in his catalogue of Heresies calls Aust haer 83. Aug. de Ecclesiast dogm c. 15. n. 72. Basil hom de avar n. 12. Philo. de mundi opificio p. 31. n. 2. this of yours the Arabick heresie and our humane soul is by him called Anima substantiva i. e. a substautivesoul because it can subsist alone and of such men which say their soules are mortal St. B sil saith they have Animam pâ—rcinam a swinish soul and Philo the learned Jew saith that a man is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. a creature mortal and immortal because he hath a mortal body and an immortal soul and this the Church hath taught in all ages and is so delivered Ambr. de fide l. 2. c. 3. n. 22. by St. Ambrose That the soul of man cannot dye The sleeping of dead Saints which you read of in Scripture is meant just as their rising is not of soules but of bodies Many bodies of the Saints which slept arose Matth. 27. 52. But what think you of the soul of Christ did that die with his body No Christian that ever I heard of thought so perhaps neither do you or if you do I care not the same argument which the Apostle drawes from Christs resurrection to prove our resurrection will be as firm to prove the immortality of our soules by the immortality of his soul 1 Cor. 15. 16. If the dead rise not then is not Christ risen So if man's soul be not immortal then was not Christ's soul immortal and if Christ's soul dyed not neither will our soules dye The doctrine of the Soules immortality is so demonstrable by nature that the Ancient Christians symbols or rules of faith did not expresly declare it as an article of faith Christian because even * Si in hoc erro quòd animas hominum immortales credam libeâ—â—èr erro hunc erâ—orem mihi extorqueri nolo aveo patres vestros mortuos videre Cic de Senect heathen Philosophers both confessed and proved it but yet in the later Creeds of the Church the article of Christ's descent was added for no greater cause at first that ever I could learn or discover then this as
Christ is the Authour or Testator of the Evangelicall Testament and not onely a Witnesse or Martyr as the Commenter would have him Chapter VIII The Immortalitie of the Soules of Men asserted against this Commenter from our Saviours Page 23 words Matthew 22. 32. Luke 23. 43. That the Article of Resurrection is therefore expressed to be said of the body onely because the Soul dieth not which is shewed in Saint Pauls Rapture and Saint Stephens Prayer from Church Writers Philosophers and Physicians observations in Anatomie the Souls mortalitie was the old Arabick Heresie Of the immortalitie of Christs humane Soul and consequently of ours That the Doctrine of the Souls immortalitie is now an Article of the Creed and why this Article was then newly added to the old Creed Chapter IX That the Article of Christs descent was added to Page 26 the old Creed principally to set forth the Immortalitie of the Soul of Christ and so of our souls An examination of the tradition oral and the writing of Creeds The summe of the ancient Doctrine of Faith briefly delivered by Irenaeus and the most Ancient Creed thereunto agreeing recorded by Tertullian Chapter X. That divers additions were made to the old Creed Page 29 occasioned by divers Heresies What the Heresies were and what Articles they occasioned and particularly that the Arabick Heresie denying the Souls immortalitie occasioned the Article of Descent is probably shewed for that it was not any Creed generally received before the death of Saint Austine the Nicene hath it not yet the Athanasian at first had it not nor is it in the symbolicall Hymne called Te Deum A modest censure of the Athanasian symbol and an Observation concerning the multitude of Creeds Chapter XI Of the word Hades which is translated Hell Page 32 that it proves the soules immortalitie in that it signifies a being subsistence or permanencie of the souls of dead men separated from their bodies and residing in a Mansion and Condition invisible to us Mortals That the place and state of souls separated is kept secret from us though the knowledge thereof hath been and is much desired Of Saint Hierom's and Curina's visions and the apparition of Irene deceased Chapter XII A censure of those visions of Saint Hierome and Page 35 Curina by comparing them with the Ecstasies of Saint Peter and Saint Paul mentioned Acts 10. 10. and Acts 22. 17. What an Ecstacie Traunce or Vision is In what manner God spake to the Prophets in visions Of Saint Johns Revelation The difference between Divine Inspirations and prophane Enthusiasmes That the one illuminates the other obtenebrates mens understanding and how such raptures or exstacies do argue and prove the Soules seperabilitie and immortalitie Chapter XIII That the Apparitions of the dead do not prove the Page 39 Souls immortalitie For that they are not really the Soules of men deceased but possibly may be the delusions of Satan assuming the shapes of men Why Necromancy is forbidden Deuteronomie 18. 11. Albeit the dead cannot appear to the living at their desire That the state of Soules seperated is concealed Chapter XIV That the Soules immortalitie is confessed by the Page 41 Church Catholick That the Commemoration of the dead in the Church Litnrgies was principally to set forth the Churches belief of the immortalitie of their Soules For that the dead receive no benefit by the prayers of the living The Opinion of some Divines concerning Saint Pauls prayer for Onesiphorus 2 Timothy 1. 18. and of that saying 1 John 5. 16. of which see a full Exposition in my fourth Book Chapter XV. That the Father's did not believe as the Commenter Page 43 doth that Soules departed are insensible as if they were dead or asleep because the Saints departed do pray for the Church Militant as the Fathers thought Chapter XVI Of the departures of mens soules That their conductors Page 48 and leaders to the other World are Angels good or bad That soules seperated are setled in certain Mansions is shewed by Scriptures and Fathers whereby the permanencie and immortalitie of the soul is clearby proved That all those severall mansions go under the generall appellations of Heaven and Hell Chapter XVII A particular detection of the blasphemies contained Page 51 in the Commentarie which are reduced to these two heads The first shewing the blasphemies against the Godhead of Jesus Christ The second shewing the blasphemies against the Incarnation of God and his gracious work of Redemption CHAP. XVIII The dreadfull consequences of the Commenters Page 51 blasphemies in denying the Godhead of Christ and his great works both of Creation and Redemption That it is much better never to have been born or by death to be annihilated or to perish as the beasts doe then to live and die in these sinnes and to rise to judgement The conclusion of the first Book The Table THE SECOND BOOK Containing an assertion of the Godhead of Jesus Christ against the Commentarie Chapter I. AN introductorie discourse concerning Page 1 the sinne against the Holy Spirit as it is described Matth. 12. 31. Mark 3. 29. Luke 12. 10. Divers doubts difficulties and opinions thereof Chapter II. What the word Blasphemie signifies That this Page 4 sinne was the blasphemous denying the Godhead of Christ The spreading of that Pharisaicall blasphemie amongst Jewes and Heathens Of Apollonius of Tyana the Magician compared by Heathens with Christ for miracles Certain considerations premised for clearing doubts concerning this sinne and two conclusions extracted from those consisiderations Chapter III. That the Godhead of the Sonne is called Spirit 7 and Holy Spirit that every Person in the Trinitie is and may be called the Everlasting Father in respect of Creatures and yet how the appellation Father is proper to the first Person That every Person is holy and an Holy Spirit and yet how the appellation Holy Spirit is proper to the third Person That the words Spirit and Ghost signifie the same thing Chapter IV. Diverse Observations of the words of Christ Matthew Page 20 12. The result is that the Pharisee's blasphemie consisted in the deniall of Christ's Godhead The difference between a sinne against the Sonne of Man and against the Holy Spirit The judgement of the Fathers herein Chapter V. The Opinion of later Divines concerning this Page 14 sinne that they affirm Arius and the Emperor Julian the Apostate to have sinned this sinne An examination of the particular sinne of the said Arius and Julian and a breif narration of their lives and deaths Chapter VI. Why the Blasphemy of denying Christs Godhead Page 33 is called the unpardonable Sinne that the Commenters Doctrine in this grand Heresie is no better then Judaisme or Turcisme that it is by the Fathers esteemed and called Antichristianisme To deny Christs Godhead is to renounce redemption and salvation by him wherein the worth and preciousness of the blood of Christ consisteth Chapter VII That the Commenter in Logick sheweth himself Page 37 to be a
and matter here handled is the most noble and high cause in the World and the most neerly concerning the glory of God and the salvation of man to which I was drawn by the importunity of some Learned and Religious friends and also by the iniquity of a most blasphemous Book lately Printed and called A Commentary on the Hebrewes written by a namelesse Doctor of Divinity who new resideth in this Countrey but formerly in Broad-gate Hall so it was then called wherein he hath vented such blasphemies against Jesus Christ as without special revocation and repentance will in the end bring both himself and all his seduced Sectaries to that wofull Broad-gate of which mention is made Matth. 7. 13. Lata est porta quae ducit ad perditionem The Controversies are not concerning the mighty and glorious reformrtion of a square-cap a Surplisse and Crosse and a painted glasse-window or the like which have been an out-side pretendment amongst Vulgars to bring upon this Land innumerable Calamities But that Commentary hath laid the axe to the root and foundation of our Christian Religion by un-Godding Jesus Christ and blasphemously denying his grand and most gracious Work of Redemption and it is feared that the pernicious doctrines therein contained have many abetters and favourers in these dangerous Times albeit this Commenter is the first of all the Serpents nest that dared to peep out and appear in our English print who both by this Book and by his personal insinuations hath already as we know perverted many from the saving truth of the Gospel to the evident danger both of theirs and of his own soul and his iâ—pious ambition to be the Ring-leader in this blasphemy hath in this Countrey procured to him such a Title and Character as was fastned on Marcion the Heretick by Polycarpus when he called him Euseb hist â— 4. c. 14. Primogenitum Satanae Wherefore setting before me the honour of Jesus Christ and the service which I owe to the Church and to my Countrey and also the care which a Father ought to have of the soules of his Children I have endeavoured both to detect the blasphemies of this Commentary and also to set down with all such possible plainnesse as so weighty a cause would admit the evidences of our most necessary and precious Christian faith in the Eternal Son of God both by shewing his Divine nature and glorious Godhead who is our True Onely Supream and Eternal Jehova and also the Incarnation of this our God by assuming an humane body and soul and thereby the inestimable benefits which our Redeemer and Saviour hath acquired for us First in exempting his servants from eternal death by his obedience Passive in suffering death in our stead and Secondly by meriting eternal life for us by his Obedience Active in performing the whole Law of God as a Surety and Undertaker for us These things have I endeavoured to set forth not onely by the sacred evidences of the holy Scriptures and by the constant doctrine of the Church-Catholick in several ages thereof but also by humane illustrations and the probable correspondence of our Christian faith with right reason Which thing hath been formerly much wished and thereupon laudably begun in some of the high mysteries of our Religion long ago by a Writer of good antiquity to supply the defect thereof in the elder Writers whereof he saith Rich. de St. Vict. de Trin. l. 1. c. 5. Legi de Deo meo quòd sit Unus Trinus sed undè haec probentur me legisse non memini Abundant in his authoritates sed non aequè argumentationes i. We read the high and holy Mysteries of Christian Religion evidently and abundantly affirmed by authority of Scripture but where to read the proof thereof by humane arguments to convince our Carnal reason we find not This task I have taken upon me now especially in these dangerous Times for that the abounding of moral iniquity and dogmatical impiety maketh me fear that Christianity is upon the point of departure from our dear Countrey as it hath done formerly from most places both in Asia and Africa and also from some parts of our Europe where it once flourished as high as ever it did here I see false prophets multiply with great applause and that the greatest number of the true godly and learned Prophets are disgraced discountenanced silenced and left speechlesse and in their places God knowes for which this Kingdome generally groaneth a new Succession is sprung up like Darknesse succeeding light Which by an Ancient and Wise States-man was observed to be a forerunner and symptom of a Lands destruction Naevius apud Cicer. de Senect Cedo quî vestram Rempub. tantam amisistis tam cito Proveniebant Oratores Novi Stulti Adolescentuli For the like pressures which we now suffer extorted such a sad expression from the holy and learned Bishop Gregory Nazianzen when by reason of the insolencies of the domineering Sectaries he was fain to resign his Church of Constantinople saying in a publick Oration Naz. Orat. 46. ad Nect Deus Ecclesias vitam hanc deseruisse videtur He feared that God had withdrawn his providence from that Church and State Indeed God did in after-time remove the golden Candlestick from thence when he suffered the Turks to possesse that City God in mercy with-hold the like Judgment from this Land both in our dayes and for ever after us But yet when for the present we see so many most impious blasphemies not onely printed and published but also in shew licensed and connived at and that in so many Congregations unlearned intruders are crept in and take upon them to teach others what themselves never learned it seems to me a visible representation of our Saviours words foreshewing a fall For if Matth. 15. 14. the blind lead the blind both shall fall into the ditch at least it seemeth to be like that which we have often seen a poor blind man led by a dog Certainly these things must needs make godly Parents very anxious how their posterity can be instructed in the succeeding generation I have heard a most learned and prudent Gentleman in these Times professe That for the reason before alledged he would be careful to provide some printed Books of the true old Clergy of England that in them the necessary doctrines of Christianity might be had when such will not be found in the new verbal time-serving and men-pleasing Sermon-makers This I confesse hath been a great motive to me for the penning and publishing this Book that so I may in some measure lay up both an antidote and also a store for the good of the soules of mine own family and of others also Which consideration my Lord I am firmly perswaded is deeply printed in your honourable and pious heart as being tenderly affected to your own noble off-spring the surviving Jewels of your most vertuous and dear Lady already with God Which care is imposed upon
afterwards Is not this the Carpenters son Matth. 13. 55. disparaging him for his mean parentage this is the Exposition of St. Ambâ—ose a Ambr. de Spirit l. 1. c. 3. In Filium Hominis pâ—ccare est remissius sentire de carne Christi c. To sin against the Son of Man is to conceive too basely of the flesh of Christ and they that so sin are not utterly excluded from pardon 2. The Jewes blasphemed him now in his Godhead by denying it and ascribing the miracle to confederacy with Beelzebub and of this blasphemy which doth take away the very foundation of remission of sins it is said It shall not be forgiven 5. I may adde hereunto that those unbaptized Pharisees in probability did not intend any obloquy or blasphemy against the Person of the holy Spirit as it is the third Person of which they had never been instructed neither had they so much Christianity as those disciples at Ephesus who though they had been baptized unto Iohns baptisme yet they had not so much as heard whether there be an holy Ghost Act. 19. 2. Thus having shewed that in Scripture and in the writings of the Fathers and later Divines the Godhead of Christ is called a Spirit and holy and also an holy Spirit and that in St. Matthew those words holy Spirit are to be understood of the Godhead of Christ which is for ever united to and residing in the Holy Temple of his most sacrâ—d Body and Soul I now reassume my former Conclusion That the denying Christ to be God is the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost which is there said to be unpardonable Now that in a Doctrine of so great moment and concernment the Reader may understand that I do not obtrude any novell and private opinion of mine own upon him I will heâ—e lay down the judgement of soâ—e of the Fathers in this very question and first of Athanasius one of the most profound and godly Divines that since the Apostles dayes the Church ever had who in his book De Communi essentia Patris c. aith b Arha to 3. p. 625. It is hard to conjecture what our Saviour means by those words He that speaketh against the Sod of Man shall be forgiven but he that speaketh against the holy Ghost shall not be so given So that the Son may seem â—o he infâ—riour to the Spirit and yet the So saith The Father and I are one If he that saith to his brother Thou fool shall be cast into hâ—ll â—n quam gehennà gehennarum conjiriâ—tur is qui â—ssâ—rit Deum creatu am â—sse Into what Hell of Hells will he be cast who calleth him that is God a Creature and a Servant and a Minister onely And a little after he saith Dâ—iâ—atâ—m Vâ—rbi ipse Christus Spiriâ—um Sanctum vocâ—t humanitatem suam Filium Hominis nâ—minavit i. Our Saviour called his own Godhead the holy Ghost and his own Manhood he called the Son of Man and of those that blaspheme his holy Spirit by blaspheming his Godhead is this sentence to be understood It shall not be forgiven him neither in this world nor in the world to come This is the judgement of Athanasius To him I adde the Opinion of St. Hilâ—râ— who was contemporary with Athaâ—asius who in his Exposition of that Text Matth. 12. 32. saith c Hil. in Mat. Can. 12. p. 731. Si negetur Dâ—us in Christo caret omni misâ—ricordia i. If a Man deny God to be in Christ that man shall finde no mercy And again he saith d Hil. ib. Can. 31. p. 426. Blasphemia in Spiritum â—st Christum Deum â—sse negare i The blasphemy against the Spirit is to deny Christ to be God The same Father in the place last quoted speaking of Saint Peters deniall of Christ saith Because to deny Christ to be God is that sinne which shall never be forgiven therefore Peter denied thus I know not the Man because a word spoken against the Son of Man may be forgiven The very same conceit hath Saint Chrysostome also in his Sermon of Peters deniall and upon these words I kâ—ow not the Man e Chrys to 6 p. 631. Non dixit non noâ—i Deum Verbum sic enim peccasset in Spiâ—itum Sanctum i. Peter said not I know him not to be God for so he had sinned against the holy Ghost but I know not the Man Now whether Saint Peter meant so as these two Fathers conjectured I cannot affirm for certain but by this I finde that the judgement of these two great Doctours was that the denying of the Godhead of Christ is indeed that great unpardonable sinne To this I adde the testimony of Saint Basil who deserved to be called the Great He in that excellâ—nt Book De Spiritu Sancto saith f Basil de Spirit c. 7. Testificer omni Homini Christum profiâ—enâ—i sed â—um neganti Deum â—sse quod Christus nihil â—i proderiâ— i. I testifie to every Man who professeth himself to be a Christian and yet deâ—â—ieth Christ to be God Christ shall nothing at all profit that man And if Christ do not profit us in the remission of our sinnes I am sure our sinnes shall never be forgiven in this world or in the world to come CHAP. V. The Opinions of later Divines concerning the unpardonable sin A brief Narration of the life and death of Arius and of Julian the Apostate TO the above-named Ancients I subjoyn the opinions of our later Divines who in their Expositions and Tractats where they inquire what particular sin this is although they do not agree therein yet when they inquire what persons have sinned this sin they do commonly affirm for one that Arius in his Heresie did sâ—n thus and this is the opinion of Polanus and also of Bucanus and others Now the Polan synt p. 340. Bucan Lo. Com. p 174. onely noted heresie of Arius was the denying the Godhead of Jesus Christ saying that he was not from everlasting and that he was but preferred to be a God Just as our Commenter would have him onely exalted and deisied This Arius was born in Africk and was a Presbyter or Priest of the Cathedrall Church of Alexandria in Egypt In that City in the dayes of the Emperour Constantine the Great there were ten Churches besides Epiph. haer 69. the Cathedrall Just such as we now call Paraecial or Parish-Churches wherein ten of the Presbyters of the Cathedrall Church were the incumbents and Preachers of these ten Arius was one and was more esteemed and followed then any of his brethren It fell out that the Bishop of Alexandria died Arius gaped for the place but mist it for one Alexander was elected then Arius raised a faction and revived the former Heresie of Paulus Samosatenus preaching this damnable doctrine that Christ was not God When Bishop Alexander was informed of this he convented Arius and upon examination discovering his
of God the Son and the reason and purpose why he was Incarnate THe Mysterie of the Incarnation of God is frequently in Scripture set forth unto us when the Saviour promised is said to be the seed of the woman the seed of Abraham Emmanuel the Son of David the Word made flesh taking the form of a servant and most evidently of all Heb. 2. 14 taking part of the same flesh and blood with us men And yet this commenter tels us that Christ can not be said to be Incarnate 31. c. 2. v. 14. though both of them are confessed to partake of flesh and blood a bould assertion but false and dull untheological unphilosophical for here are two Propositions both false and one of them blasphemous also I. The faithful are not Incarnate Faithfulnes or unfaithfulnes doe not hinder Incarnation the question must be whether a man may be said to be Incarnate if every man prove Incarnate then must Christ also be so for he is a perfect man and more also a very smal matter will give a denomination a man that hath but a gowne on his back is denominated Tâ—gatus and shall not he who hath an immortal soule united with his flesh be called incarnate to be incarnate is to be in Carne i in the flesh I hope you will not denie that the soule of a man whilest it is in the bodie may be said to be Incarnate the soule of a man can exist without the body and is seperable and when it shall be parted from the body then it is Discarnated but when it is joyned with the body who will doubt to say it is incorporated or incarnated now from the Incarnation of this principal and essential part of man the whole man is said to be Incarnate S. Paule knew a man whether in the body or out the body he could not tell 2 Cor. 12. 2. surely a man in the body may be called Incorporate and so Incarnate and Gal. 2. 20. the life which I now live in the flesh S. Paule saith he lived in the flesh in Corne therfore he thought himself incarnate againe Phil. 1. 22. If I live in the flesh abide in the flesh is more needful for you S. Paule is one of the faithfull and he confessed that he lived abode in the flesh therfore he was in Carne incarnate I never read that a beast is called incarnate because the body and soule of a beast cannot both exist if seperated as mans soule and body doe therfore the fathers spake of them as of two distinct men Care anima duo homines exterior interior Amb. de Inst veig l. 2. n. 35. Naz. Epist 94 n. 38. Ath. de Incar n. 23. Tert. de anim c. 9. Mens cujusque is est quisque Tul in Som. Scip. Ro. 7. 14. 1 Cor. 2. 14. i. the soule and the body two men the outward and the inward man Apud nos Philosophus Anima vocantur externus internus homo i. The Philosopher with his soule are called by us the outward and the inward man just so saith Athanasius and Tertullian although he went too far in saying the soul was corporeal If any the soule a man be denominated Animatus shall he not as well from his flesh be called Carnatus I am sure in Scripture a man is called both 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Carnal 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Animalis because he hath some of the natural inclinations of soule and body in him not wholly subdued by the Spirit If wee will speak strictly and properlie Incarnation must principally be said of the Soule because that part of us in its owne nature is incorporeal but being joyned with the flesh becomes Incarnate it seemes by Moses description of the Creation Gen. 2. 7. that the body of man was framed before the soule was insufflated and both Orâ—gen and divers Philosophers before him thought that the soule was more ancient then the bodie and they called the body the sepulcher and Theod. de div decret l. 5. n. 17. Ambr. Epist l. 4. n. 53. id in Hex l. 6. c. 6. Tert. de anim prison of the Soul and the Christian writers said of it to the like purpose one calleth it Tunicam Pelliceam Adami and againe Caro est amictus animae and another cals it Domum animae and another vestimentum animae and saith that the soule is but inquilinus corporis i. the body is the coat of skin the apparel the howse of Chrys ho. 5. Antioc the soule and the soule is but a temporary inmate of the body the departure of the soule is like the putting off the apparrel of the body the 2. souldier-martyrs in id Epist ad Olymp. n. 39. Chrysostome calleth their bodies Indusium ultimum i. the innermost garment of the soule and of the holy woman Olympics he said That she was more ready to put of her body for Christ then others were to put of their apparel wherfore as when our naked bodyes are invested with garments they are said to be apparrelled so our souls clothed with our flesh are said to be Incarnate the Apostle describes the reuniting of our souls and bodies at the resurrection by this phrase of putting on immortalitie then I think no Christian will denie that when our souls after a long discontinuance from our flesh shall be restored and reunited with our bodies they may be said to be Incarnate or re Incarnate and the same kind of reasoning will much more prove the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus against the Commenters second proposition viz. 2. Christ the Captaine of the faithfull is not Incarnate Because the Ingredients of which our Jesus the Emmanuel is Composed are two viz. the divine nature or Godhead and the humane nature or manhood and because one of these ingredients I meane the Godhead had a real and seperate being by it self without flesh and without a body from all Eternitie before the creation of the world and because the same divine nature in the fulnes of time did assume an humane body and so partake of our flesh and blood I may now well say that our God is Incarnate because he is in carne in the flesh so that his Godhead and manhood are as the principles and ingredients of one Compound for they are but one person one Christ one Emmanuel because that divine nature which before had bin entire and single by it self is now joyned with another inferior nature the Scripture expresseth the mysterie in this phrase Joh. 1. 14. The word was made flesh he saith the word rather then the Son because the word signifieth his pure Godhead but the Son may also signifie his humane nature and that alone too for if Christ were nothing but a mere man yet hee might be called the Son but he could not be called the Word This is that which in Scripture is called God manifest in the flesh 1 Tim. 3. 16. and Christ is
called his may appear by these passages Christ saith Matth. 25. I was hungry I was naked I was in prison Act. 9. 4. Saul Saul why persecutest thou me when these things were not meant of his own proper and individual person but only of his servants and members which he calleth himself for so he saith Verily in as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of my brethren ye have done it unto me So the Apostle saith that 2 Cor. 5. 21. Christ was made sin for us when in the same breath it is also affirmed that he knew no sin Both are most true because our sins are his sins by reason of this union as the debt of the principal is also the debt of the Surety So Christ is said to be Rev. 13. 8. slain from the beginning of the world even before he was incarnate because of Abel who was both his member and type Lyranus upon that place saith Lyra. in loc Christus fuit in Abel occisus in prophetis exhonoratus for all the holy Patriarchs and Prophets who dyed before the birth of Christ are his members as well as others who novv live or shall hereafter live untill the end of the world even as we read of that birth Gen. 38. 28. where the hand came out of the Womb before the other parts yet it was a member united to the body as well as the other parts Upon that speech of Christ Matth. 23. How often would I have gathered thee as an hen c Orig. in loc Origen saith Christ in Moses and the Prophets would have gathered them in every age before Upon that passage in Psal 61. 2. From the Aug. in Psal 60. ends of the earth will I cry unto thee Austin asketh this question What one man cryeth from the ends of the Earth And answereth That it is meant of Christ for his Members or Church is that one man And upon that saying of the Psalmist Psal 86. 3. I cry unto thee daily or all the day long that is all the time of the world continuance If question be made how this can be true of any one man Austin Aug. in Ps 85. answereth That it is meant of the body of Christ which groaneth under pressures in all ages this one man is extended unto the end of the world in his Members preceding and succeeding Thus he Finally upon these grounds If it be demanded how any man can be saved seeing man daily transgresseth the Law Our answer is That every true member of Christ doth perfectly perform the Law in that Christ hath done it who is one with his members So if we enquire how Christ could with Justice suffer death who never sinned The answer is That his suffering was just because the sins of his Members or body are his sinnes in that himself and his Members are One for it is as easie to conceive our most innocent Saviour to be justly charged with our sins as to conceive sinful man to be justly discharged of all sin and to be truly called righteous even the righteousnesse of God in him Thus much I have thought fit to premise as an Introduction and a needful Preparative for the reading of these Books All which I humbly submit to the Judgment of Superiors and to the serious consideration of the Christian Reader THE Principal Contents of the four Books following In the first Book THe Authors and spreaders of the Arian or Socinian heresie Why the title Saint was of old withdrawn from Churches That the most high God is the Author of the Gospel That the soules of men and women never dye The article of Christs descent into hell is expounded The Original of Creeds and what hath been added to the most ancient of them and why The meaning of the word Hades or hell A full discourse of Ecstasies Raptures Inspirations Revelations and Enthusiasmes Of the apparitions of dead men Of Angels good and bad which conduct the soules of the dead to their receptacles and mansions in the other world A Summary of the blasphemies contained in the said Commentary on the Epistle to the Hebrewes In the second Book THat to deny and renounce the Godhead of Christ is the sin against the holy Ghost The sin against the holy Ghost is fully described The eternall Godhead of Jesus Christ is fully proved The deniers of Christ's Godhead are of no better religion then Jewes Turks or Antichrist Of the Deification of Jesus Christ and how it is to be understood The manner how Christ doth intercede and mediate for us in Heaven The Subjection and Minoration of Christ and the delivering up of his Kingdome at the end of the world expounded out of 1 Cor. 15. A plain discovery of Originall sin On what Object the Christian is to fix his mind in prayer How the most high God became a Priest Why the Church of England required adoration when the Lord Jesus is named That Christ is Jehova and what that word signifieth In the Third Book THat the most high God was incarnate How and when the most high God appeared visibly to the Patriarchs and the mystery thereof unfolded The meaning of the face and backparts of God The everlasting Covenant of Grace made before the Creation and after is plainly set forth How the Son of God was necessitated to be incarnate and to suffer death That the Obedience of Christ is with perfect justice and equity imputed to his mysticall Body the Church for the salvation thereof The Originall of the Soul of Christ and of other mens souls is disputed The Omnipresence of the Spirit of God and the diversities of the graces thereof The curing of the Kings Evill by the Kings of England and the Scripturall warrant for the same In the Fourth Book IN what cases the sinne against the Holy Ghost is unpardonable or pardonable is fully shewed The dangerous sin of Anabaptism is shewed by evidence of Scripture with the History of the ancient Anabaptists The reasons why the ancient Christians did defer Baptism till ripe years or old age shewed to be carnall The reason why St. Paul commanded those to be baptized who had been baptized before with St. John Baptists baptism Acts 19. A plain description what true repentance is The meaning of Sins unto death and sins not unto death 1 John 5. 16. The meaning of sins Mortall and Veniall so oft mentioned in the Fathers In what cases sinners must be prayed for and in what not shewed out of 1 John 5. 16. OBSERVATIONS UPON THE COMMENTARY ON The Epistle to the HEBREWES published under the Capital Letters G. M. Anno Dom. 1646. CHAP. I. The Original and growth of the Arian Heresie THe blasphemous heresie of denying the Godhead of Jesus Christ began early and after 〈◊〉 was first broached by one a Euseb hist l. â— â— 28. 〈◊〉 c. 20. 〈◊〉 as Eusebius and Niâ—eph have written and after him 〈◊〉 seconded by his disâ—â—ple â—â—â—odotus who was an 〈◊〉 of
Christians in all ages even to his own time But because he thinks his soul shall dye with his body as soules of other Animals do let him for my part provide such a burial for himself as they have of which we read Jer. 22. 19. Also the hair of your head for the greater conformity is as we hear shorn most affectedly close but the wickednesse of your doctrine may well make men fear that you have made a fishing-line of your cut hair with a dangerous hook at the end of it In Aug. de oper Mon. n. 71. Viros fuge â—â—tenatos quibus fâ—minei crines hircorum barba nigrum pallium haec Omnia argumenta sunt diaboli Hier. Ep. ad Eustoch c. 12. p. 53. Acts Mon. n. 55. former times there was as great hypocrisie in long hair as is now in short St. Austin found fault with Monks in his time for wearing long hair in hypocrisie So did St. Jeromâ— and afterwards when in a Synod where St. Anselm sate President it was decreed that the hair of Clergy-men should be rounded short yet because of their hypocrisie and wickednesse it grew to a proverb Quà m primum Clericus suscipit rasuram statim intrat in eum diabous as Mr. Fox hath noted Long hair in Sampson and in Nazraites was honourable it was Propheticum velamen as Austin calls it Instead of a Mosâ—ical veil to signifie that there was some holy mystery covered in their typical persons but yet when hypocrites masked themselves with it then King * Josephus Ant. l. 19. Agrippa caused those Pharisaical Nazarites Aug. de Oper. Mon. n 71. to be shorn and now also that we perceive that the very shortest hair is degenerated into hypocrisie and that this Tonsa Sanctiâ—as as St. Austin's word is doth not prove much more holinesse then hair I shall advise Aug. de Opere Monach. c. 31 â— 71. the Reader with merry Martial's words Brevibus nec crede 〈◊〉 lib. 5. ep 49. Neither is this intended to deride short hair but to reprove thâ— hypocrisie of it when 't is made an hair-net to catch men withall which is no new observation but was of old discerned in Heathens as hypocrital Atque supercitio breviâ—r Coma Juv. Sat. 2. Cicero Orat. pro Roscio Comaedo and also suffered to continue written and painted in those very Monasteries where short hair-hypocrisie was then mostly practised witnesse those old riming Verses Quod fueram non sum frater caput aspice â—ousum Poenas profundi fraudes capâ—tisque rotundi Et Judae suavium det Deus ut caveam Upon those words of our Saviour Matth. 10. Th. Matth. 10. 30. Isych in Levit. c. 13. very haires of your bead are numbred Isychâ—us writeth That haires signifie our thoughts and imaginations which are therefore said to be numbred because by them we shall be judged CHAP. V. How the Commenter complieth with the Arians of the Author of the Epistle to the Hebrews of the Nicene Fathers and how the Father and the Son may be said to be opposites NExt your compliance and correspondence with the old Arian Hereticks is to be observed for first you will not acknowledge this Epistle to the Hebrewes to be written by St. Paul but it must be the Authors onely so that both the Author and the Commenter must be alike unknown just so dâ—d the Arians Epiph. hae 69. as Epiphanius observes Ariaâ— Epistolam ad Hebrâ—os rejiciunt 〈◊〉 ipsam Pâ—uli non â—sse .i. The Arians râ—jâ—cted the Epistle to the Hebrews and said that it was not St. Paul's but you go further and tell us that it appears that Nâ—ither Paul nor any Apostle was P. 20. the Author and this because you would make this most Divine Epistle seem invalid as indeed you have great reason because it doth so evidently declare against your heresie your chief argument is drawn from the Postscript because it is there said to be written by Timothy but yet uncertain it is by whom the Postscript was written as is confessed and uncertain again whether it be meant that Timothy was St. Paul's amanuensis or his Messenger the words will bear both neither is it any extraordinary or vain thing as you would have it to send Letters by one of whom mention is made in those Letters witnesse Davids Letter sent by Vriah 2 Sam. 11. 14. 2 Sam. 11. 14. yet such is your frivolous cavil But to the Point This Epistle is by Judicious Divines thought to be asserted for St. Pauls by the testimony of Scripture for St. Peter mentioneth his very name 2 Pet. 3. 15. himself also then writing to the dispersed Jewes so as Beza thought this very Epistle is there meant and St. Hâ—â—rome though he would not conclude for St. Paul Hier. Epist 129. n. 29. yet confesseth that this Epistle was received of the Eastern Churches and generally acknowledged to be St. Paul's which we find to be true for in the Canons called the Apostles which go with the works of Clemens Clem. Can. Apost n. 16. Cyril cat n. 8. Naz. Poem 33 Chrys to 5. Ser. 61. Euseb hist l. 6. c. 11. there are 14 Epistles of St. Paul mentioned therefore this must be one Just so doth St. Cyril of Jerusalem reckon and so also doth Greg. Nazâ—anzâ—n in his Poems and so doth St. Chrysostome and Eusebius tell us that St. Paul writ it in the Jewish Language but that it was translated either by St. Luke or by Clemens for that it agreeth with the stile of the Acts of the Apostles written by St. Luke and that the stile of Clemens agreeth with this Epistle Who doubteth but that * Hier. descript in Petro. St. Peter was the Author of that Gospel which goes under the name of St. Mark or that †Euseb hist l. 3. c. 4. St. Paul was the Authour of that Gospel which goes under the name of St. Luke onely St. Mark and St. Luke were the Scribes that from the Apostles mouthes set the Gospels down in writing Tert. de Pudic. in 25. Aug. de Civ l. 16. c. 22. De doct Christ l. 2. c. 8. Exposit in Rom. P. 321. therefore it is no marvel that some Latines called this Epistle by another mans name just as we call those Gospels by other names and so Tertullian calleth this Epistle to the Hebrews The Epistle of Barnabas But St. Austin doth constantly and often assert it to be St. Paul's and so is it at this day in this Kingdome acknowledged by the best authority by which the translation of the Bible was ratified yet this self-conceiied Commenter will be wiser then all like another Abailardus of whom St. Bernard writes that he would Bern. Epist 190. say Omnes sic Ego non sic â—ll say so yet I say not so Again to shew your conformity with the Arians you reprove Eusebius his Muâ—tiple Error for thinking Christ to be consubstantial with the Father and
had lapsed into sin 5. Catholick Church was added because the Donatists had confined the true universal Church onely to be in the part or sect of Donatus and in Africk as is copiously shewed by St. Austin 6. The Lord and giver of life was added to the article of the Holy Ghost against the Sect of Eunomius who denyed the Godhead of the Holy Ghost 7. The Article of Christs Descent into hell was added later then the forenamed additions nor was it put into the Creed so as to be generally received untill the Arabick heresie grew ranck which denyed the Immortality of mans soul as this our Commenter doth and was therefore put into the Roll of heresieâ— by St. Aâ—stine as is said before because by this article the Immortality of mans soul is asserted in that the soul of Christ is confessed to descend to the same invisible condition that other dead mens soules do For what greater reason can be alledged or hath hitherto appeared to us mortals why this article of Christs descending into Hades should be so long after other articles received into the Church or what have we learned more by it then that his soul as other mens did subsist during its separation though in a state and condition which is not yet revealed to us There was no Creed which was generally received that had the Article of Christs descent till after St. Austin's time for ought can appear to me and though St. Austin oft mentions this Creed which is called Apostolical and disputes it quite through and before a Council also a Aug. de fid Symb. n. 57. yet never mentions the article of descent and besides that Creed in Tertullian before set down neither the Nicene hath it nor was this article anciently in that Creed which we call the Athanasian nor in the Symbolical hymn which goes under the names of Ambrose and Austin though it is ancient and hath been generally received in the Western Church nor was this Article in the Confession of the Councill of Chalcedon That it was not in the Creed of Athanasius at first hath been declared lately by the renowned Primate of Ireland nor doth it yet sufficiently appear that Athanasius was the writer of it onely we are sure that all the doctrinal Articles of that Creed are still to be found in the writings of Athanasius and there are some passages in the Fathers and Church-Histories that may incline us to think that when the Emperor Jovinian sent to Athanasius for an exquisite draught of the Orthodox faith b Theod hist l. 4. c. 4. Ruff. hist l. 2. c. 1. Naz. Orat. 21. in Athan. Athanasius answered That the Nicene Creed was to be observed and withall sent him as Ruffinus writeth a form or description of his faith and so also saith Nazianzen That he sent it in writing which Nicetos thinks to be this very Creed Indeed this article was in the Creed of the Church of Aquileia which Ruffinus expounded and also in some Arian Creeds before the death of St. Austin but not received generally till after his death as is said before and therefore I think it very probable that as other heresies occasioned other new articles to be added as is shew'n so this Arabick heresie occasioned this article of descent Now that it may appear that errours heresies and sects were the causes of not onely new articles but of a multiplying of new Symbols Confessions and Creeds the Fathers and Histories do evidently declare for in the dayes of Constantius and also of Valens both Arian Emperors when every Sect of Religion was tolerated except onely the Orthodox and they onely were persecuted whereof St. Basil complained who Basil Epist 38. n. 42. then lived and suffered affronts Occlusa sunt ora piorum reserata est quaelibet blasphema tingua i. All pious men are silenced and any blasphemer may open his mouth and prattle In these very times new Creeds did exceedingly encrease and multiply insomuch that St. Hilarie who then lived thus complained of them Hil. advers Const lib. 3. p. 277. Scribendae innovandae fidei usus in olevit Secundum annos scribitur miserabile est tot nunc fides quot voluntates c. annuas menstraus de Deo fides decernimus i. Now a fashion is brought in of writing and innovating Creeds now faith is subservient to the times rather then according to the Gospel and Creeds are dated with the note of the year and which is lamentable there are as many Creeds as are several minds we have yearly and monethly new Creeds decreed And Socrates writing of the same times calls those Soc. l. 2. c. 32. multituder of Creeds a labyrinth and observeth no lesse then nine new Creeds published in one Emperors dayes insomuch that some of them for distinction were dated not onely with the name of the then Emperor but also with the names of the Consuls of that year The same Socrates also setteth this mark upon Soc. l. 2. c. 29. those times That then Religion was most weak when so many Religions were afoot and Erasmus setteth Erasm de rat Relig. this brand upon those perfidious Arian times Vbi coepit esse minus fidei mox increvit symbolorum numerus i. The lesse Faith the more Creeds as Lipsius Lips de Const in praefat also observed of these later times Nullum saculum feracius Religionum steril us pietatis i. Never more Religions nor lesse godlinesse Thus may the Reader perceive the reason both why so many new Creeds were stamped and why so many new articles were added to the first Creed and particularly that to assert the immortality of Christs soul and so consequently of every mans soul the article of Christs descending into Hades or hell was with others added to the old Creed CHAP. XI What the word Hades signifies which we translate Hell that the place and condition of soules departed is unknown of the visions of S. Hierome and Curina and the apparition of Irene deceased IF it be examined what the meaning of those words in the Creed is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it will appear that they signifie no more then that the soul of Christ during its separation from his body was existent in such an invisible state place and Condition as the soules of other dead men were but where and how it was I think all the Philosophers and Theologs in the world cannot by their reading certainly determine and yet these are the very same words which are used in Scripture Act. 2. 27. for this word Hades signifies Invisible Act. 2. 27. Psal 16. 10. and is a word which the heathens used to signifie that the soules of men deceased as they are truly and really existent so that the place and condition of them was unknown and invisible and although this word was used by heathens and with some mixture also of fabulosity yet the Scripture retained it to countenance so much
of it as was true Our English tongue is I think defective in translating this and some other a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 words for Hades in heathen Writers signified as well a good and joyful condition of soules departed as a sad and woful state and I have heard that Mr. Broughton reported that he had seen the Lords Prayers in an ancient Greek Manuscript which began thus * Archbish of Armach 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 if this be true then Hades must there signifie 〈◊〉 But our English word Hell is ever with us taken in the worse sense but yet so it signifies a state of 〈◊〉 and permanency of the soul aâ— neither â—yâ—â—◠〈◊〉 The Ancient Fathers as they did generally and dogmatically teach the Immortalitie of man's soul 〈◊〉 did they as generally teach the doctrine of 〈◊〉 descending into Hades but as they could not tell us certainly the condition of other mens soules no more could they assure us of the place and condition of 〈…〉 Christs soul though some of them ventured very far and yet much differing one with another for that saying 〈…〉 Epist 〈◊〉 â— 30. Psal 24. 7. Lift up your 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 gave is expounded of Christs ascending into heaven by Eusebius and c Hierom and d Theod. 〈◊〉 inconsâ—â—n 1â— The 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 But the very same words are also expounded of his descent into hell by e Epiph. Ser Mag. Sab n 32. Epiphanius and also by f Chrys Ser. de Pâ—nt n. 49. â—â—â—â—m quod Christus Deus n. 52. Chrysostome in another place so that he expounds the same words both wayes I am therefore perswaded that God hath purposely for reasons best known to his Divine wisdom concealed from us mortals the state of souls departed because I find in Scripture that dâ—yers have risen from the dead but â—â—â—nd not that they ever made any discovery of that unknown land no not Lazarus who was dead foure dayes and though he lived 3â— years Epiph hae 6â— 2. Cor. 12. 2. after his resurrection as Epiphanius writeth nor St. Paul though he died not yet was rapt into the 〈◊〉 heaven and tels us that he heard words which is not lawful for a man to utter and though he also lived more then 14 years after yet neither of them revealed it though the knowledge of it ever was and â—â—â—ll is very much desired and it was the wish of 〈◊〉 Eras ad Theol. Parisiens â—â— 22. Cle. Ro. in Recog princip Vtinam Paulus 〈◊〉 ruisset qualitèr extent animae 〈◊〉 à corpore ubinum extent i. I wish St. Paul was declared in what place and condision souls departed 〈◊〉 And this was an old currositie for we read in 〈◊〉 that before his conversion he was very desirous to kuow something of the souls immortality and for himself confesteth often thought to imploy some 〈◊〉 to raise dead a mans soul that so he might be informed Jâ—st apol 2. â— â—â— and after him Justin Martyr laboureth to prove that mens souls are immortal because as he thought Conjurers used to raise the souls of dead men and in the raigne of the Emp. Caligula one Canius a worthy man was playing at tables when a Warrant came for his execution Sen. de Tranq c. 14. so he took leave of his play-follows and promised them that if after death he could he would appear to them and certifie them of the affairs of the other World as Seneca relates but we find not that he ever returned from the dead and though we read in the Ecclesiastical histories that Irene the daughter of Ruf. l. 1. c. 5. Soc. l. 1. c. 8. Bishop Spiridion who was a member of the Nicâ—ne Council having in her custody in her life-time a rich jewel which was left with her in trust and that she having hid it died and did not discover the place where she had laid it so that the owner demanded it of her father with bitter menacing words charging him with fraud The holy man went in the bitternesse of his soul to his dead daughters Sepulchre and there prayed that the truth might be made known and presently he saw an apparition of his said daughter which revealed the place where the jewel was hid and there it was found yet no tidings from the other World are mentioned I know not why I may not think that this apparition was a good Angel in the shape of Irâ—nâ— for why may not good Angels appear in the femal shapes as well as an evil Angel appeared in the likenesse of Samuel It is a strange story that 1. Sam. 2â— Hier. Epist 53. c. 13. n. 5. St. Hierom tels of himself in his travâ—l toward Jerusalem he fell into a fever and to mens thinking was dead and was laid out and burial was prepared for him during this time of his seeming death he thought he was brought before a judgement-seat and by sentence of the judge was greivously scourged for reading secular books but at the request of them that stood about the Judge he was released and dismissed and so presently returned to his life and senses and found his eyes full of teares and his shoulders black and blew and sore as if they had bin beaten so that himself knew not what to thinke of it whether it were an extasie a rapture or a real emigration of his soul for he saith t' was more then a sleep and dream It was a divine monition no doubt by a kind of vision to ingage him more earnestly in divine studies as himself confesseth it did but what ever it was yet we are never the wiser concerning dead mens souls and their state such another story doth St. Austin tell of Aug. de Cura pro Mort. c. 13. one Curina who lay as dead for some dayes but returning to his senses tels them that in this trance he was certified that the Messenger which was sent to fetch his soul mistook him for another man of the same name hiâ— neer neighbour and indeed it was found that at the same moment wherein this Curina was restored to life the other Curina died yet neither the dead which come to the living nor the living which as they imagined went to the dead and returned again have yet informed us of the other World CHAP. XII A digressive Censure of St. Hierome's anâ— Curina's Visions how they might be presented and of Exstasies Raptures or Trances both from God and from the Devil By the way it will not be amisse to digresse a little and discourse how and in what manner these apparitions and visions probably were shewed to St. Hierome and also to other holy men for I do not believe that their soules were then really departed and totally separated from their bodies but I think they were taken in an exstasie or trance such as we read of Act. 10. 10. for when the vision of the sheet was presented to the soul or mind of St. Peter the
word there used is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and so again when Christ shewed himself to St. Paul in the Temple Act. 22. 17. he was in a trance 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Now an exstasie or trance is as St. Austin describes it Cum abripitur animi intentio Aug. de Gen. ad lâ—t l. 12. c. 6. Ibid. c. 21. n. 69. à sensibus i. When our soul is elevated and taken off from the use and management of our bodily senses and is actuated inlightened by the Spirit of God or some Angel So the same Father saith again Bono Spiriâ—u assumitur anima hominis cum in somnis futura videt sic Aâ—gelus apparet Joseph in somnis i. When in our sleep things to come are revealed to us our soul is taken and informed by some good spirit as Joseph was by an Angel Matth 2. 13. And so also Prosper saith Ecstasis est cum mens aliqua inspiratime assumitur i. An Ecstasie is when Prosper in Psal 115. n 46. our soul is wholly taken up and imployed by some inspration And St. Bisil saith That when we read that the Basil in Ps 28. hom 5. Word of the Loâ—d came to the Prophets we are not tâ— think so grosly as if God uttered vocal and audible sounds or words to them but that he informed and instructed their soules by a more divine way of illumination though something like as we in our ordinary dreams do imagine we hear voices and discourses of men and see our friends or such like when they are but the imaginations of our brain St. Austin Aug. Epist 101. doth very fitly resemble them thus Non erant voces corporâ—ae exâ—rinsecùs sed quales apud nos tacitè transâ—urrimus memoriâ—â—r vel canâ—ando i. e. When the Word of the Lord came to a Prophet it was not any outward corporeal voice but in such a way as we use when silently in our minds and by our memories we discourse with our selves inwardly as in running over a businesse or an Oration or a song which men usually do onely by thoughts though our tongue never move and just so doth the holy Poâ—t Prudentius describe St. Prudent in hamartig p. 187. John's Revelation Corporeus Johannes adhuc nec carne solutus Secedenie anima non discedente videbaâ— St. John saw the Revelation when his soul was not out of his body but retired to it self from the use â—o the body and St. Basil tells us Si nos viveremus animâ Basil hom Divers 3. n. 11. nudâ sine carnis velamentis cogitationes cognosceremus nunc verbis opus est i. When our soules have put off the garments of our flesh then they shall understand one another by thoughts as now men do by words And St. Austin is of the same judgment Tunc patebunt Aug. de Civ l. 22. c. 29. cogitationes invicem i. That our pure spirits shall perceive and converse with one another by thoughts Now when our soules are so ecstatically retired from our bodies as that they do not so much as contemplate the Phantasmes as their object then are they in a fit posture to converse with the Divine Spirit of God or those immaterial and heavenly spirits the holy Angels and when our soules are so elevated then such visions or revelations as are presented to our minds are as evident to us as if they had been sensibly presented to our eyes or eares and thus St. Hieromâ— Hier proaem in Esai n. 33. saith That the holy Prophets were instructed in their Prophecies by God in such câ—stâ—sies and by Angels also for that which we read Zach. 2. 3. The Angel that talked with me in St. Hier. it is thus read Angelus qui loquebatur in me i. The Angel which spâ—ke in me and Terâ—ullian saith Ecstasis est qua Propheâ—ia Constat i. e. Tertul. de anima c. 21. Prophâ—cie doth coâ—sist in ecstasie and in the Primitive times of the Church before the ordinary gift of Prophetical Revelations was ceased St. Cyprian tells us Impletur apud nos Spiritu sancto puerorum innocens Cyp. l. 3. Epist 14. n. 71. aetas quae in ecstasi vidit oculis audit loquitur ea quibus nos Dominus monere dignatur i. With us children in their innocent age see and hear in ecstasies and declare to us suâ—h things as God doth vouchsase to admonish us of and St. Austin doâ—bteth not to call that Aug. de Gen. cap. 5. l. 6. wonderful sleep of Adam when the rib was taken out of him an ecstasie or divine â—apture Deus misit ecstasin in Adam evigilabâ—â— plenus Prophetiae inirans in curiam angeloâ—um i. e. God sent an ecstasie upon Adam he awaked full of Prophecy entring into the Court of angels and therefore Origen reckons Orig. in Cant. ho. 2. Adam amongst the Prophets Now when such ecstasies were brought upon men by God or good Angels from him the person so illuminated was called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but if evil Angels invaded 2 Tim. 3. 16. and actuated mens minds then their ejaculations were called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ethusiasmes because they proceeded from Satan the heathens god by which spirit the Oracles of the heathens gave answers in Pythonists and that spirit it was which spake in men possessed with an evil spirit so that many times when the Priest was in an extatical fury or madnesse he knew not what the evil spirit spake in him or her just as men possessed did not know what they said or did such persons were by the Church called â—nergâ—menâ— daemoniâ—â—â— that is such as were acted and wrought upon by evil spirits and therefore Tertullian translates this Tert. de anima c. 21. word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 amentia madnesse they knowing no more what they said then that Serpent in which the devil spake when he tempted Eve For whereas the Spirit of God in divine exstasies did wonderfully enlighten holy Prophets who were therefore called Videntes i. Seâ—rs contrarily the spirit of Satan did mostly darken the minds of his Prophets and Demoniacks so that they perceived nothing of what their lips uttered and therefore Justin Martyr said of Justin lib. 1. ext n. 6. such Sibylla non intelligunt quae dicunt i. These Prophâ—â—â—sses do not understand what themselves prophâ—sie and Origen saith Pythia furit nec sui compos est dum promit Orig. cont Cels l. 7. n. 36. 〈◊〉 i. The Pythonisse is mad when she uttereth the Oraclâ—s and therefore such are commonly called Arrepâ—iâ—iâ— men forcibly snatcht and used but as an instrument by the evil spirit and the same Origâ—n tells Orig. Peri Arc. l. 3. c. 3. Hier. in vita Hilarion n. 10. us that Magicians would cause young Children to pronounce Poems which they never learned and St. Hierome writes of one Orionus a Demoniack in whom the evil spirit spake with many several voices at the same
time This is sufficient to shew in what manner those extatical apparitions probably might be presented to mens soules and also may be an argument of the soules sepaâ—ability because by this we perceive it may have operations which do not at all depend upon the body and in all these revelations and intercourses with Angels good and bad we cannot receive any certain intelligence what the state of the other world is CHAP. XIII Of the apparitions of the dead and that they are not the soules of men deceased but other spirits assuming their shapes ALthough the known Inhabitants of both parts of the other Woâ—ld I mean the holy Angels and the infernal spitits have oftentimes appeared to and conversed with mortal men yet still we are ignorant of the affaires both of the City of God and also of the infernal Sodome howbeit those spirits have shewed themselves in plausible shapes of men and of our friends and kindred and not in such terrible apparitions as might deter men from any converse with them for the Scripture declareth that God and good Angels have appeared in shapes of men and that evil Anâ—els have also appeared so as to Sâ—ul in the likenesse of Samuel and also to Christ in his temptation for no doubt Satan conversed with him in the similitude of a man and the Ecclesiâ—stical Writers asfirm the same Tertullian tells us that in the Tert. de anima c. 57. exorcismâ—s which the Church in his time used over men possessed with unclean spirits the spirit would say Se esse aliquem pâ—rentum aut bestiarium aut talem gladiatorem defunctum i That they wâ—re some of their forefathers or some beast-master or such a fencer deceased and again he saith that it was usual with Magicians Ibid. to tell men that the spirits which they raised were the soules of dead men and that they could raise the soules of the holy Prophets from the dead The like is also observed by St. Chrysostome that when evil spirits appeared Chrys Ser. 2. de Laz. n. 〈◊〉 unto men they used to say Monachi illius sum anima sed non câ—edo quia daemones dicunt i. I am the soul of such a Monk deceased but I do not believe it because the Devil said so and again he saith That Idem ibid. the Devil perswaded Conjurers and witches to murther some young men making them believe that the soules of those whom they murthered should become familiar spirits and be at the command of those Conjuâ—â—rs to serve them and fulfill their commâ—nds and in later times Johannes Wier de praestig l. 1. c. 15. Wierus writâ—s that to satisfie the curiosity of the Emperour Maximilâ—an the fiâ—st about the year of ouâ— Lord 1500 a certain Magician in his Court raised spirits representing the shapes of Hector Achiâ—es and David which visibly apâ—â—aâ—ed â—n the presence of the â—â—id Emperour Many more such instances may be alledged out of Wriâ—ers of approved credit but these may suffice to inform us that althouâ—h many have comâ— to us from the other world yet none have given us intelligence of the state of things there for although those apparitions good and bad have entertained discourse with men as with Saul and with the blessed Virgin yet of this particular they have been silent and for this reason perhaps Poets called such apparitions and ghâ—sts Silenâ—â—s umbras and therefore they had a pretty fiction that such spirits as returned to this life from the dead first drank of the a Virg. Aen. 6. Lâ—â—hean River to signifie that they were so silent of those affaires as if they had forgot what their condition was in the other world because either they would not or could not relate the stâ—â—y of it even in the holy Scripture the place of the dead is called the Land of forgeâ—fulnesse and that Psal 88. 12. which the Latine reads Anima mea habiâ—asset in infeâ—no qâ—i dâ—scendunâ— in insernum our English Translation reads Psal 94. 17. My soul had almost dwelt in silenâ—e and â—hey that go down inâ—o silence for this Psal 115. 17. reason as I suppose Necromancie or consulting with the dead is forbâ—dden by God Deuâ— 18. 11. not that we should think the dead can at their own pleasure or at the desire of the living return to us without the special diâ—pensation and appointment of God for St. Austiâ— assâ—â—â—d himself that if it were in the power of Aug. de Cur. pro Mort. c. 13. soules departed to come and converse with mortals his holy and most loving mother dâ—ceased who followed hâ—m by Sea and Land in her life would nor have been so long absent fâ—om him but would have come and administred comfort to him among his man old sorrowes and so he concludes out of the 27 Psal My faâ—her and my mother have forsâ—keâ— me But bâ—cause Psal 27. 10. God having dâ—termined to conceal from us the state of the dead and because men should not delude thâ—mselves nor be deluded by Satan by conversing with Devils when they were raised in the shapes of men departed this life therefore Necromancy is forbidden and indeed as Origen hath well noted upon that Law Orig. ho. 7 in Esai 22. that they that enquire of the dead A daemonihus quaerunt qui moâ—tui sunâ— Dâ—o i. Nâ—cromancers that enquâ—re of the dead do consult with Devils who are dead to God CHAP. XIV That the Commemoration of the dead in the prayers of the Church was intended principally to set forth the Immortality of their soules IF it be enquired to what end or purpose the ancient Church set up that custome of praying for the soules of men departed it will appear that the chief motive hereunto was to declare the Churches assured belief that the soules of men survived after this life was ended and conrinued in a state of Immortalâ—ty for it cannot appear clearly that the Church had any precept for it or any example in the Scripture and so much is acknowledged by Epiphanius when he wrote against that Aërius who separated from the Church partly because he disliked the custome of praying for the dead and cheifly because Eustatius was preferred to the Bishoprick before Aâ— ius I say Epiphanius Epiph. haer 75. confesseth that the Church performed those rites to the dead Tradiâ—ione à patribus accepâ—aÌ„ i. because the ancient Fathers did so before his time and from them the Church received that custome for saith he Quis poterit Ib. n. 22. statutum matris dissoâ—â—â—re aut legem paâ—ris i. Who can dissolve the statutes of the Church our Mother or the laws of the Fathers and it cannot appear to us what benefit the dead receive by the prayers of the living nor hath the ancient Church fully satisfied us herein for St. Ambrose prayed for the deceased Emperor Theodosius Ambr. de obit Theod. n. 47. whom he then beleeved to be in lumine Sanâ—torum
â—â—tu i. that he was in the light of God and company of Saints and St. Austin prayed thus for his godly Aug. Confes l. 9. c. 13. Mother deceased Pro peccatis matris mea deprecor te Deus demitâ—e illi debita sua c. i. I beseech thee O God for the sins of my Mother that thou wouldst forgive her and yet immediatly he saith Credo jam feceris quod rogo i I beleeve thou hast alreadâ—y done what I now pray for Notwithstanding the Church did so pray and Epiphanius gives this reason why the names of the dead were Epiph. hae 75. mentioned in the Church-prayers Quia hoc magis fuerit utile quid commodius quod credunt praesentes quòd bi qui decesserunt vivunt non sunt nulli i. What can be more profitable to the living then to be assured that the dead persons commemorated do still live and that they are not annihilated So we see the Church had other reasons which moved them so to commemorate the dead though the deceased received no benefit thereby As 1. To commend unto the living and in their mindes to preserve the wholesom doctrine of our Souls immortality 2. Their prayers did challenge the performance of Gods promises to those deceased who had lived and died in the Lord as is declared Rev. 14. 13. Blessed are the dead that dye in the Lord saith the Spirit 3. For the coâ—solation of the living the Priest declared that the sins of such holy men which had lived and died in the faith of Christ were forgiven 4. The Church gave thanks for their departure to rest as acknowledging the mercy of God by which they were saved and not by their own merits Some Divines think that when St. Paul prayed for Onesiphorus The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day 2 Tim. 1. 18. that Onesiphorus was at that time dead because in the end of the Epistle in the salutations there is no mention of Onesiphorus but of his familie only 2 Tim. 4. 19. And because there is no state or condition of men in this life though never so sinful which excludeth them from the benefit of being prayed for therefore some Expositors have thought that when St. John said There is a sin unto death I do not say he shall pray for it 1 Joh 5. 16. his meaning is that such an one who liveth and dieth in a soul-destroying sin such as shall in this book afterwards be discovered without repentance for such a mans prayers are unprofitable and vaine not excluding others that die in the Lord to be commemorated in the prayers of the living as Onesiphorus before mentioned and in that sense as is before said and this is St. Heromes exposition in his objurgatory Hier 10. 9. Epiad Evang. Epistle to Evangius if it be his own and so also saith the interlineal glosse with Lyra. St. Austin being hard put to it to give an account why the Church prayed for the dead and what benefit the dead had by the prayers of the living by the questions of Dulcitius and Paulinus confesseth most inge Aug. lib. de Cur promortâ— c. 1. nuously that the dead can have no benefit at all by our prayers here except by their good life they were capable of good before their death and again he saith Because the Church knoweth not unto what dead men Aug. ib. c. 17. her prayers are profitable therefore she prayeth pro omnibus regeneratis i. for all the regenerate that none may be omitted CHAP. XV. That the Fathers did not beleeve that Souls departed were insensible as if they were dead or asleep because the Saints departed do pray for the Church Militant as the Fathers thought HAving shewed before what the Church Militant did here below for the Triumphant part above it would now be considered what the Triumphant Church above doth for us that are on earth in the judgement of the Fathers The ancient Church were so far from thinking that our souls died with our bodies that they affirme and verily beleeve that the souls of holy men departed and being in rest did pray for the Church on earth for so St. Hierom tels us the Saints deceased pray for the living Hier. Epist 53. n. 17. for they that had so much charity on earth as to pray even for their enemies and persecutors much more will they now in heaven pray for the Church St. Paul is not lesse charitable after his departure then he was before and so he wished Heliodorâ—â— that if he died before Hier. Eipst 1. n. 1. Hierom to pray for him when he was in heaven so likewise he desireth a Id. Epist 27. n. 7. Principia and b Id. Epist exeg 140. n. 30 Paula to remember him when they are in heaven And St. Ambrose professeth c Amb. de fide Resur n. 30. That he expecteth the intercession of his brother Satyrus deceased for the speedier deliverance out of the miseries of this life and that he hoped the godly Emperour d Id. de Obit Theod. n. 47. Theodosius departed did yet pray to God for his surviving Children and that the dead Emperor e Id. de Obit Valent. n. 46. Gratian did pray for his brother Valentinian Of the same Judgment is St. Chrysostom f Chrys ser de uno Legisl to 6. n. 55. for he doubteth not to affirm that the Martyrs and Prophets Apostles deceased do actually pray for the living and before him St. Cyprian in his life-time contracted with Cornelius g Cyp. l. 1. Epist 1. Qui prior è vita discesserit oret pro sratribus i. That which of them should first dye must pray for the survivers and in an Epistle written to some Martyrs who were very speedily to suffer death for Christ he desireth †Cyp. ad Marty n. 98. Naz. Orat. 24. them to be mindful of him when they were in the honour of Martyrs with the Lord. Greg. Naz. tells us that Athanasius though deceased yet as he was perswaded did still help and assist the Church and that his friend St. Basil deceased and now in heaven yet Naz. Orat. 20. even there poured out prayers for the people And of his reverend old father deceased who had been a long time Bishop of Nazianzum he saith That he doubteth Id. Orat. 19. not but though he were in heaven yet the same Pastoral care which he had on earth remaineth still with him and now that he is approached nearer to God he doth more good for that flock by his prayers in heaven then he could do by his doctrine on earth This is enough to shew what the Fathers thought of the Immortality of the soules of men and the same opinion was so generally received of Christian people in those dayes that as St. Chrysostome reporteth they Chrys Ser. 4. de Laz. n. 42. would commonly boast that they should
find great friends and assistants in the other life because they had many pious friends gone before them one would say My father was a Martyr and another My Grandfather was a Bishop and a third Such and such a holy man was my dear friend on earth therefore we shall find friends in the other world Thus far St. Chrysostome Notwithstanding all this that hath been said of which this Commenter cannot be ignorant yet against all this evidence he denyes the Immortality of the Soul Like another Vrbicus Potentinus an heretick to whom Athanasius thus writeth O Potentine adversus Scripturas Athan. cont Poten n. 30. divinas vel totum mundum tu solus sentis i. Potentinus held an opinion heretical against the holy Scriptures and also against the whole world CHAP. XVI Of the departure of our soules from our bodies and the Conductors or leaders of them to the other world and of the places or mansions of dead mens soules IN the last place it will not be amisse to set down what the Scriptures and the Ancient Fathers have said concerning the departures and mansion-places of dead mens soules which will be also a strong argument against the Epicurean doctrine of this Commentary The Angels in Scripture are called ministring spirits to the heires of salvation Heb. 1. 14. their charge is to keep such in all their wayes Psal 91. 11. therefore as Angels conducted Peter out of prison Act. 12. 7. and Lot out of Sodom Gen. 19. 16. so likewise Angels are imployed no doubt in the conveying and placing and settling departed soules in such mansions as are by God appointed for them for so the Scripture declareth in the Parable of the begger which for substance is indeed but parabolical yet for the Circumstance of the conducters of his soul the persons are really set forth so as is usual in the passage of other mens soules even as the burial of the rich man is mentioned because it was the common custom of other rich men to be buried It is therefore said The begger dyed and was carried by the Angels into Abraham's bosome Luk 16. 22. And of another sort of Angels conducting soules it is said Thou fool this night shall they take â—â—y soul from thee Luk. 12. 20. So of the place or mansion of a blessed soul it is said it was carried into Abraham's bosome and This day shalâ— thou be with me in Paradise Luk. 23. 43. but of the mansion of a reprobate soul it is said that it was placed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. a place secret hidden invisible and of torment this is the summe of what we find in Scripture for the present condition of soules departed untill the last judgment And of the last Judgment it is also said The Angels shall gather his Elect from one end of heaven to the other Matth. 24. 31. In correspondence to these overtures of Scripture the Church-Writers have set down at large their expositions and opinions both for the several sorts of Conductors and also for the distinct mansion-places of the soules of Pious and of Impious Just quaest n. 31. men First Justin Martyr saith Animae hominüm ducuâ—tur ad condigna loca ab angelis ubi servantur usque ad resurrectionem i. The soules of men are conducted by Angels to convenient mansions and there are kept untill the resurrection and we read in the Constitutions of Clemens that the Church in the office of the godly deceased Clem. Const l. 8. c. 47. prayed thus Deus Collocet â—um in regionâ— piorum Angelos placidos ei constitute i. That God would place them in the region of the godly and appoint them gentle Angels and Irenâ—â—s saith Discipulorum animae Iren. l. 5. prope finem abibunt in invisibilem Loâ—um definitum eis à Deo ibi usque ad resurrectionem â—ommorabuntur i. The soules of Christians shall go into a place invisible appointed by God and there abide untill the resurrection St. Hierom Hier. Epist 25. n. 26. saith Moâ—tuos nos Angelorum turba coâ—itatur when we are dead a multitude of Angels accompanieth us And again he saith of the Martyrs soules against Vigilantius Hier. cont Vigil to 2. p. 159. Senatoriae dignitatis sunt ut noâ— inter homicidas teterrimo carcere sed liberâ honestâ—que custodid vecluduntur i. The soules of Martyrs are not committed to dark prisons as men-slayers are but like unto Senaâ—ors they are placed in a free and honourable Custody and this also is the doctrine of St. Chrysosto◠†Chrys hom in laud. Mart. to 1. Martyres in caelum ascendunâ— Angelis comitantibus i. The soules of Martyrs ascend into heaven accompanied with Angels but of the soules of the reprobate he saith Malorum animae Chrys de Laz. Ser. 2. to 5. n. 41. Atha de Virgin n. 24. Basil exhort ad bapt hom n. 14. Macar hom 22. à metuendis virâ—utibus repetuntur sunâ—que doctores viae i. The soâ—les of evil men are taken and conducted by terrible and affâ—ighting powers which also Athanasius calls Inclementes angelos i. Churlish and unkind angels and of them St. Basil saith Veniet angelus tristis animam tuam rapiet ad Tartara i. A sad dâ—smal angel will seize on thy soul and convey it to hell and the same is yet more particularly set forth by Macâ—â—ius of Egypt Cum animapeccatirea è corpore exierit accedunt Chori daemonum sinistâ—i angeli c. animam ad partes suas trahuntâ— when a guilâ—y soul deparieth troops of evil and unhappy angels drag it to their ownquarters These are the Messengers which are sent for mens soules some terrible and feared others of pleasant appearance and desired the slight apprehension of this truth and such Messengers hath occasioned men to fansie and to paint a meager raw-bon'd thing with a dart to be the summoner of mens soules to the other world which of these several â—orts of Angels is true Now whatsoever common or distinct and severall mansions there are for pious soules respectively correspondent to their qualities and demeanures on earth and so likewise for impious soules in their severall degrees as they are in bundles gathered which Lâ—ctantius Lact. de Div. Cult c. 21. n. 25. Aug. de Dulc. quaest n. 89. qu. 2. calls Communis custodia i. e. their common lodge and St. Austin Abdita receptacula i. Secret receptacles and the Scripture calleth them The spirits in prison 1 Pet. 3. 19. yet the Ancient Church did as we do reduce all those mansions to these two appellations of heaven and hell * Ath. de Incarnat n. 23. although there may be several different mansions in hell for the damned as well as we read of the blessed in heaven Joh. 14. 2. In my Fathers house are many mansions CHAP. XVII Of the blasphemies contained in the Commentary against the Godhead of Christ and the Incarnation thereof and his Redemption of man Good Reader be
vigilant now at all the ports of thy soul and take some antidote of thy precious Christian faith to corroborate thy heart against the danger of most deadly poyson for now the Serpents nest and Pandora's box are to be opened containing multitudes of evils and deadly blasphemies against the Divine Person of thy dear Saviour and his precious death all which I must now present to thy view and for thy more easie discovery I will draw them out in two files The first containeth such blasphemies which deny the Godhead and Divine nature of Jesus Christ The second containeth such blasphemies as deny the Incarnation of God and the Redemption of man by the Passion bloodshed and death of thy Saviour when he offered himself a full sufficient expiatory sacrifice on the altar of the Crosse and also such as deny the merit of his active obedience in fulfilling the Whole Law and performing the Covenant of God in our stead on our behalf and to our benefit and now they advance Blasphemies against the Godhead of Jesus Christ 1. That Christ was by his Resurrection consequently deiâ—ied Chap. 1 vers 2. pag. 3. it seemes the Commenter doth not believe that Christ was God before his death 2. That the Creation of the world cannot be referred to Christ Chap. 1. vers 10 p. 10. That his making of the world was but the restoring of mankind to a new state pag. 3. yet all things were made by him that were made Joh. 1. 3. 3. That Christ had an immense measure of the Holy Ghost Cap. 1. 9. p. 9. If it were immense how is it a measure and if by measure how is it immenâ—e is not this illogical blasphemy the Scripture saith of him God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him Joh. 3. 34. 4. That Christ had a beginning Cap. 1. 12. p. 13. Yet of Christ it is said His goings forth have been from everlasting Mich. 5. 2. 5. That if the Author of this Epistle to the Hebrewes had taken Christ to be the supream God he had discouâ—sed impertinently C. 1. 10. p. 10. That it is manifest that Christ is not the Supream God C. 5. 5. p. 80. That Christ was a divine man C. 7. 22. p. 136. That Christ was opposed to God Cap. 5. 5. p. 80. That Christ carried himself as a person diverse from God and that he was so the thing it self declares C. 12. 25. p. 320. p 54. 6. That Christ doth not forgive sins of his own authority Cap. 4. 14. pag. 70. That Christ hath not power of himself to save us C. 9. 24. p. 192. Yet Christ saith The Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins Matth 9. 6. and Thou shalt call his Name Jesus for he shall save his people from their sins Mâ—â— 1. 21 7. That the Angels are equal to Christ for duration C. 1. 10. p. 10. The â—ngel are creatures Christ is their Creator and therefore before them and of longer duration à parte anâ—e but if he mean that Angels are equal to him for duration à parte â—â—st onely he hath said nothing to his own purpose for so soules of men yea and devils â—â— all endure for ever but the Son of God is from everlasting to everlasting as is shewed out of Mich. 5. 2. 8. That the Lord Christ was not the first Author of the Gospel but God was the first C. 2. 3. p. 19. If the Law had been published by God himself it had been mâ—re excellent then the Gospel c. C. 2. 2. p. 16. This blasphemy is particularly answered before Cap. 7 9. That the Saints in heaven shall noâ—â—e under Christ but besides him C. 2. 6. p. 23. What! Check by soul yet Philip. 2. 1â— God hath puâ— all things under his feet and gave him to be head over all things to the Church and this Supremacy is there said to be in heavenly places verse 20. and The four and twenty Elders fall down and worship the Lamb Rev. 4. 10. 10. That it appears that faith in Christ is not contained in all faith in God Cap. 11 6. p. 251. That he that believes in Christ doth not believe in him finally but in God by him C. 3. 12. p. 54. He would have you believe there is something greater and better then Christ to believe in Ultimatè Terminativè 11. That Christ must not be compared with that Angel who represented God C. 12. 25. p. 321. Yet Christ even in his humane nature exalted is set far above all Principalities and powers and might and dominion and every name that is named not onely in this world but in that which is to come Ephe. 1. 21. Indeed he is said to be made lower then the Angels to suffer death Heb. 2. 9. lower in the humiliation of his humane nature but of his Divine nature alone and of his humane exalted and so of his whole Person as he is Emmanuel it is said Heb. 1. 6. Let all the Angels of God worship him The total summe of all these is Onely this blasphemy That Christ is not God Blasphemies against the Incarnation of the Son of God and his Work of Redemption 1. That Christ the Son of God cannot be said to be Incarnate more then the Saints are Heb. 2. 14. pag. 31. 2. That the Supream God can no way be a Priest C. 5. 5. p. 80. True if you had added this Except he be Incarnate and assume humane nature 3. The expiatory Offering of Christ for our sins was not performed on earth but in heaven C. 7. 1. p. 116. c. 8. 4. p. 146. c. 9. 12. p. 168. That his offering did not consist in his death but by his entrance into heaven after death C. 9. 7. p. 160. his Priesthood began there C. 9. 14. p. 171. 4. That Christ was not the Author of the New Testament but is called the Testator only because he was the main witnesse C. 9 19. p. 182 183 184. 5. That when it is said Jesus made a surety of a better Testament Heb. 7. 22. it is not meant that Christ became our surety to God and took upon him the payment of our debts But was a surety of Gods promise and dyed to assert the truth of the Covenant C. 7. 22. p. 136 319 348 357. 6. That Eusebius would not have the Son of God who appeared to Abraham to be the most high God Cap. 13. 2. p. 331. 7. That the Nicene Fathers hâ—ld not that the Son is that one most high God who is the Father These are the Articles of Infidelity which are affirmed by this Commenteâ— against which consisting of two Heads as is said I will Gods assistance addresse two Books following in the former whereof The Godhead of Christ shall be declared and in the later the Incarnation of the same Jesus who is the true onely and supream God shall be manifested and thereby the Great and gracious Mystery of man's Redemption by our God so Incarnate
will be unfolded CHAP. XVIII The Conclusion of this first Book with a friendly Caution to the Commenter BEfore I close up this Book I desire the Commenter who denyeth the Godhead of Christ and the Works of Creation and Redemption by him to lay to his heart that saying of St. Austin Domine qui In Vita Aug. pro Cor. lanâ— lib. 3. c. 42. non amat te propter opus Creationis dignus est inferno quid dicam de to qui non amat te â—ropter Redemptionem i. Lord he that doth not love thee for thy work of Creation is worthy of hell but what shall I say of him that doth not love thee for the work of Redemption And when the same Father heard an heavenly voice saying unto Idem ibid. him Augustine amas me Dic quantum amas me i. Austin lovest thou me declare how much thou lovest me This holy man returned answer thus Si ego Deus essem tu Augustinus vellem fieri Augustinus ut tu Deus fieres i. If I were God and thou wert Austin I would desire to be Austin that thou might'st be God I do not marvel that he which denieth the Godhead of his Saviour doth labour to prove and also earnestly desire that mens souls may die with their bodies and more yet that they may be for ever annihilated or if a resurrection and judgment must needs be that hell-torments may continue but three dayes for although some School-men argue that it is better to be in the state of eternal torment then to be annihilated and so not be at all yet I am sure the Scriptures and Fathers speak otherwise as of Judas Matth. 26. 24. It had bin good for that man if he had not bin boâ—ne Then they shall say to the mountaines Fall on us Luk. 23. 30. And I doubt not but the devils whose continuance is but Misera aeternitas Aug. de Civ l. 9. c. 13. Minut. Foel p. 330. n. 102. as Austin speaks Eâ—eâ—lasting misery would willingly have an end of being wish an end of torment Minutius Foelix saith of some Malunt extingui penitùs quam ad suppliâ—ia reparari i e. They would rather be for ever dead then to be restored to a living torment and Nazianzen saith Optandum est imprâ—bis hominibus igne Naz. Orat. 10. aeterno dignis ut corpus â—orum protiâ—us extingueretur i. e. They that have earned eternal fiâ—e may wish that they may never reâ—urn from death but More perire serae †Idem poem 14. n. 42. Prosp iâ— Sent. 170. to be like the beasts that perish because as the first death taketh mens soules from them against their wills so the Second death as Prosper saith Animan nolentem tenet in corpore i. In hell the soules of the damâ—ed shall be kept in their bodies against their wills I have read of one in despair that wished that he had been a toad rather then a man and St. Ambâ—ose saith Ambr. ad virg laps n. 36. to such kind of men Beatae vos serae volueres quibus nullus meâ—us est de inseris i. Happy are the silly beasts and birds in whom there is no fear of hell yea some have been so affrighted with the thought of those infernal torments that they feared to leave this present life as Seneca reports of Mecaenas a noble but a very Sen. Epist n. 17. voluptuous Heathen that he wished Deformitatem debiâ—â—tatem crucem acuâ—am modo vita prorogetur i. That with continuance of this life he would be content to suffer deformity diseases yea and the sharp pain of the Crosse and of such despairing men St. Austin saith Si Aug. de lib. arbit l. 3. c. 6. quis dixerit non esse quam me miserum esse mallem respondebo mentiâ—is If I should hear such a man say I would rather dye then live in this misery I would give him the lie Now I heartily wish and pray that this Commenter may live to see and revoke and repent these blasphemies because I am verily perswaded that they are such of which it is said in the Gospel that he that so blasphemeth and therein liveth and Matth. 12. 32. dyeth impenitent shall never be forgiven in this world nor in the world to come of which I shall have occasion to speak at large hereafter Now that this first Book may not swell to the Readers too much tediousnesse it shall here end for I am apprehensive by mine own reading of other mens Books as they will be of mine and as Austin said of Aug. de fide cont Man c. 24. his own Ita â—ibri termino reficitur lectoris intentio sicut labor viatoris hospitio i. The end of a book refresheth a weary Reader as an Inne doth a weary Traveller L. Deo FINIS THE Second Book Wherein is shewed THAT JESVS CHRIST is the True and Onely Supream and most High GOD. Qui stabilimenta fidei Christianae subvertere nititur Stantibus eis ipse subvertitur Aug. Cont. Julian l. 6. c. 1. Qui fidem incertam habent certam infidelitatem ostendunt Athan. Cont. Arian Orat. 1. LONDON Printed for Humphrey Moseley and are to be sold at his Shop at the Princes Armes in St. Paul's Church-Yard 1655. THE PREFACE HAving in the first Book transacted some of the lighter errours of this Commentary I now proceed to the weightier blasphemies therein contained and particularly to that of the denial of the Divine nature and eternal Godhead of Jesus Christ which I conceive to be that blasphemy which the Scripture saith shall never be forgiven And because the diligent discussion thereof will give a great light to the Mystery of our Saviour's Godhead I have resolved to make my entrance into that Discourse by handlingt this blasphemy as it is described by three of the Evanglists Matth. 12. 31. Mar. 3. 29. Luk. 12. 10. And because the Exposition of those places in my way may perhaps to others seem new though in truth it is not so I do here humbly submit mine own opinions therein unto the Judgment of the Church and her more Learned and grave Divines The GODHEAD OF Jesus Christ CHAP. I. Of divers doubts and difficulties concerning the sin against the holy Spirit and divers opinions thereof IF this question be loosely and negligently handled what man can be found free from this sin for every sin against God may be called a sin against the holy Spirit because as Athanasius Atha de Commu essent p. 625. noteth Contumelia unius Personae est blasphemia universae plenitudinis deitatis i. A Comumelie against any one Person in the Trinity is the blaspheming of the fulnesse of the Godhead But if you say that by this sin is meant some particular sin or blasphemy onely against the third Person I ask Did not Ananias and Sapphira thus sin Act. 5. 3. Why hath Satan filled thy heart to lie to the Holy Ghost Yet I
open Market-place cured diseases raised spirits presented to their view Magical banquets and seemed to release those that were possessed by devils therefore Celsus said that Jesus performed his miracles by art Orig. Cont. Cels lib. 1. n. 32. magick I say seemed onely for we learn from our Saviour that one devil is not cast out by another and Satan is not divided against himself and although when ignorant people imploy one Witch to help them against another some present ease may seem to be procured yet indeed as Austin observeth Non exit Aug. l. 83. quaest qu. 79 n. 88. Satanas per infimas potestates sed in intima regreditur regnat in voluntale corpori parcens i. Satan is not dispossessed by any infernal power but retireth himself into the more inward parts of the possessed and though he spare the body yet he â—yrannizeth more in the soul and maketh his possession stronger Because this is a dangerous apostasie to seek to or to attribute the work of God to him therefore Christ used divers arguments against it and so did the Ancient Fathers Origen Athan. Euseb Austin and others which having but touched I omit to avoid digressions The greatest difficulty in this question is what our Saviour meant by the words holy Spirit or holy Ghost when he said The blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven for the understanding whereof I will lay down a few Considerations to the Reader that from them he may gather the true meaning of that hard saying First That in Christ there are two natures 1. His Godhead or Divine nature by which he is called God over all blessed for ever Rom. 9. 5. 2. His humane nature or manhood made of the seed of David according to the flesh Rom. 1. 3. The first of these is called Forma Dei the second is called forma Servi both are Philip. 2. 6 7. mentioned Philip. 2. 6. Who being in the form of God thought it no robbery to be equal to God but made himself of no reputation and took upon him the form of a Servant Secondly Consider that there are two spirits in Christ 1. His soul or humane spirit of which he saith Father into thy hands I commend my spirit Luk. 23. 46. Secondly his Divine Spirit of which it is said If any man have not the Spirit of Christ he is noni of his Rom. 8. 9. Thirdly that according to his two natures there are two filiations in Christ for 1. He is called the Son of man the son of David 2. He is called the Son of God Fourthly That according to those two natures two spirits and two sonships the Scripture mentioneth two kinds of blasphemies against Christ thâ— one against him as he is the Son of man and this is pardonable Whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man it shall be forgiven him Matth. 12. 32. The other unpardonable But Whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost â—t shall not be forgiven him Ibid. Fifthly That the appellation Holy Spirit in Scripture is taken two wayes 1. Pro deitate essentiae omnium personarum Paâ—ris Filii Spiritûs i. For the Godhead or divinity of all the Persons Father Son and Holy Ghost because all are one God as Matth. 12. 28. John 4. 24. 2. It is taken Personaliter i. properly for the third Person alone as Baptizing them in the Nâ—me of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost Matth. 28. 19. and this distinction is acknowledged by divers late Divines of the Reformed Churches a Polan l. 3. c 6 Polanus b Bucan l. 3. p â—â— Bucan c Tilen p. 141. Tilenus and d Melan. in loc Com. de Spirit Ph. Melanthon From these plain and confessed Considerations I extract these two Propositions 1. That it is no inconvenience to affirm That those words hoâ—y Spirit or Holy Ghost in that place do signifie the Godhead of the second Person Jesus Christ 2. That to deny the Godhead of Jesus Christ is that blasphemy which in the Gospel is said to be unpardonable And this is my Conclusion which hereafter I hope I shall evidently demonstrate to the Readers satisfaction CHAP. III. That the Godhead of the Son is called Spirit and holy Spirit that the words Ghost and Spirit are of the same signification LEt it not seem strange that the appellation of one person is given to another for as in this place the Godhead of the Son is called the holy Spirit so in another place the Godhead of the Son is called the Everlasting Father Esa 9. 6. For unto us a child is born his Name shall be called wonderfull counsâ—llour the mighty God the everlasting Fâ—ther In that he saith a child is born it must needs be meant of the Son of God and the Son is called the everlasting Father because he is God for the Godhead of every person being but one in all is may be called the everlasting Father and so the holy Ghost is the everlasting Father also because the holy Ghost is God and yet this doth not confound the three persons or their severall and distinct prâ—prieties and personalities for albeit every Person is the everlasting Father in respect of men and of creatures because all concurred in the creation yet onely the first Person hath this Personall proprietie to be the Father of the sâ—cond Person and so the Father of God as the Son is the Father respectu Creaturarum i. in respect of the creatures so the first Person is Father of God and of Man as that in the Poet if it were in the singular number might illustrate Hominum sator atque deorum a Virg. Aene. l. 1. so God the Father is the Father of God the Son that is the Father of the Person of the Son but not the Father of the Godhead of the Son b Pater Personae non essentiae Pater Filii non deitatis We in our Creed confess the Son to be God of God that is God the Son of God the Father but we do not say Deitas de deitate Godhead of Godhead Neither could the Son of God call God the Father his Lord and his God but onely because the Person of the Son assumed the humane nature and form of a servant as St. Augustino hath observed upon that saying Ps 22. 10 Thou art my God from my mothers belly c Pater est Deus Dominus Filio quia in eo est forma servi De ventre matris Deus meus es tu Ps 22. 10. Sed antâ— omnia secula Pater est i. The Father is the Lord and God of the Son because the Son assumed the form af a servant therefore it is said in the Psalme Thou art my God from my mothers belly but the Father may be said to be his Father from eternitie As every Person is called a Father so as is said so also every Person is called Holy because the Godhead is holy
as this Câ—rinâ—hus meant and Jesus he manhood or humane nature So his doctrine was hat Jesus when he suffered was but a meere câ—eature ust as our Commenter teacheth and this in â—ffect is all one with the Heresie of the Manichtes who although they did not deny Christ to be God as the Commenter doth yet they would not believe that the Emmanuel or incarnate God was crucified but another in his stead and that a creature too Whereupon St. Austin Aug. de fide cont Man to 6. c. 33. saith to them Miseri non timetis ne dicatur vobis in judicio ego cos liberavi pro quibus pessus sum ite ille vos liberet cui meas ascribitis passiones i. Are ye not afraid ye wretched men that Christ in judgement will say to you Depart from me and go to that meer creature to whom you ascribe my passion for I redeemed those onely for whom I suffered Now if Christs passion on earth did not redeem us to whom shall we go for redemption seeing he redeemed onely those for whom he suffered I wish our Commenter would consider another speech of this renowned Father who whilest he continued in the said Manichean Heresie and then living at Rome he fell into a dangerous sickness and was very near death and because at that time he did not rightly believe the passiou of Christ but erred therein and yet no more phantastically or dangerously then this Commenter doth he said of himself Ibam ad inferos portans omnia mala quae commiseram nam Christus pro eis non solverat cum crediderim crucem ejus phantasticam i. 1 Aug. Confes l. 5. c. 9. was going to hell with the burthen of all my sins lying on my soul for Christ had not satisfied for me because I believed not in the truth of his passion Now he that believeth that Christ is but a meer man and that his death was onely as a witness or Martyr to seal a Truth with his blood and not at all for mans redemption shall be so far from receiving the blessing of Redemption by him that he shall moreover bring and accumulate a curse upon himself For so the ancient Martyr Ignatius understandeth these words Ier. 17. 5. Ig. Epist ad Antioch n. 46. Cursed be the man that trusteth in man and maketh flesh his arm that is Maledictus est qui dicit Christum nudum hominem juxta Prophetam i. According to those words of the Prophet he is accursed who calleth Christ a meer man and yet trusteth in him And Athanasius doubted Atha orat 1. Cont. Arian 3. 4. not to say that the Arians who called Christ a creature and yet did perform religious worship to him as this Commenter requireth were within the compass of the Heathens sin in that they worshipped him whom they thought to be but a creature and therefore he Ath. ad solit vit agentes n. 18. Soc. l. 3. c. 19. calls them Porphyrianos because Porphyrie once had been a professed Christian and had revolted to heathenism as Socrates saith Thus the Reader may perceive that this blasphemous denying Christs Divinity doth dissolve our Religion into Heathenisme and Antichristianisme I have heard from the mouth of an ancient and most learned Doctour that Socinus the Father of our late society of Socinians was the son of such Parents whereof one was by Religion a Turk and the other a Christian and that therefore Socinus laboured to bring Turcisme and Christianisme to the nearest conjunction and uniformity in Religion by denying the Eternall Godhead of Christ as Turks also do which grand impiety is so destructive to Christian Religion that it may be fitly called the Devils master-piece and so the ancient Fathers esteemed it Epiphanius called Arius Epiph. haer 69. statuam Diaboli i. An Idoll set up by the Devill and St. Hilary said of it Mihi diabolus erit qui Arianus Hil. Cont. Aux n. 7. i. He that Arianizeth is no better then Satan and Athanasius called it Haeresin totum Diabolum induentem Ath. ad sol vit agentes n. 19. i. An heresie indued with the whole plenitude of Satan For the Devils cannot be saved and such blasphemers as these shall never be forgiven It was the opinion of Theodoret that the grand Antichrist Theod. haer fab l. 5. n. 17. of all shall be the Devill shewing himself in the shape of a man and taking upon him the name of Christ now as Christ is but one and yet hath many members even his whole Church which is called his mysticall body so the grand Antichrist it may be is but one person but shall have and it may be he hath already great multitudes of members acted and indued with his malignant spirit which make up his mysticall Aug. de gen ad lit l. 11. c. 24. n. 68. Aug. de doct Ch. l. 3. c. 37. n. 56. corporations which is the Mystery of iniquity And this was the opinion of St. Austine and by him divers times expressed thus Diaboli corpus sunt impii ipse est corum caput ficut Christus est caput ecclesia i. the wicked are the body of Satan Satan is the head of them as Christ is the head of his Church And again De Gen. l. 11. c. 24. Corpus Diaboli est imptorum multitudo i. The body of the Devill is a multitude setting themselves to work impiety and again speaking of those words 2 Thes 2 4. sitting in the Temple of God he saith Aliqui intelligunt De Civit. l. 20. c. 19. hic non ipsum principem sed multitudinem hominum cum ipso doâ—c fiat magnus populus Antichristi i. Some do not here understand onely the great Antichrist of all but also a great multitude of people with him untill at length Antichrist become as a populous nation and Prosper saith moreover Antichristus Prosp de promis n. 14. praecâ—nes mendacii sui habiturus est i. Antichrist shall have preachers to set forth his lies who will edifie his great body for destruction such as Hil. de Trinit lib. 2. p. 25. n. 1. also St. Hilary calls Novi apostolatus sub Antichristo Praedicatores i. Preachers of a new calling under Antichrist Now if amongst other Hereticks also may be admitted to be members of the body of Antichrist surely none will be more advantagious to him then those who blaspheme Christ in his highest title by denying Iren. l. 5. c. ult n. 124. his Godhead Irenaeus and after him divers old Writers conceived that the grand Antichrist will appear out of the Tribe of Dan because of that saying in Ieremy 8. 16. The sâ—orâ—ing of his horses was heard from Dan and for this reason 〈◊〉 thought that amongst the Tribes of Israel which are sealed Rev 7. the Tribe of Dan is not mentioned to intimate that no limbs of Antichrist shall be sealed to salvation CHAP. VIII Of the hypostaticall union
of the Godhead and manhood in the Person of Jesus Christ the communication of the properties of each nature the life and death of Nestorius and how Christ is said to be deified FOr the avoyding of the unpardonable sin before mentioned it will not be sufficient to believe and confess that God is in Jesus as a man in a ship or as God was in the Prophets and is now in holy men who are therefore called the Temples of the living God 2 Cor. 6. 16. or as God is every where who filleth heaven and earth Jer. 23. 24. For though God be in an holy Man yet we cannot say that God and that Man are one Person and though God be in Heaven yet he and Heaven are not one hypostasis or subsistence in one Personall union but as our soul and body united and composed are one Man and one Person so the Godhead and Manhood united in Iesus are one Person one Christ Now these two distinct natures to wit the Godhead and Manhood are in Christ so united that they will be for ever inseparable and they are so entwined one with the other that no action or passion can be said of the man Christ which may not be said of God the rule of Divines is Effâ—ctus hypostaticae unionis est Regula Theolog communicatio idiomatum i. The result or effect of the Personall union is a communication of properties which rule is laid and more plainly expressed by St Austine in these words Vnilas Personae Christi sic Aug. to 6. cont Ser. Arian n. 7. constat ex humana divina natura ut quaelibet earum vocabulum impertial alteri i. The unitie of the Person of Christ doth so consist of the Divine and humane natures that each nature imparteth its appellation mutually to the other so that what is properly belonging to the divine nature is ascribed as done also by the humane nature the same is also thus expressed by Theodoret Communia Persona evadunt quae sunt Theod. Dial. impatib n. 13. P. 398. propria naturarum i. By reason of this hypostaricall union those things which are proper to each nature severally become common to the whole person and hence it is that Christ is called the Son of Man and the Son of God eternall and yet born the on of David and yet the Lord of David of him it is said John 3. 13. He that came down from Heaven even the Son of Man which is in Heauen yet the Manhood did not come from heaven nor was the Manhood at that time in Heaven so again Christ said to the thief Luke 23. 43. To day shalt thou be with me in paradise and yet Christ was not there that day in his body nor by his soul for ought we know but onely by his Godhead which was then in Paradise when his body was on the earth and hence it is that the appellation of God is stamped on the humane and infirm actions and passions of Christ for though he was crucified through weaknesse as it is said 2 Cor. 13. 4. that is as he was man yet because his Divine Nature is for ever inseparable from the humane nature he is truely called Deus crucifixus Hier. ut sup c. 6. Naz. Orat. 51. n. 35. i. God crucified as is shewed before out of Saint Hierome and Nazian saith Si quis crucifixum non adorat anathema sit i. He that doth not worship him that was crucified let him be accursed This great mystery of the hyposiaticall union was prudently discerned by the ancient Fathers Origen saith Judaei Dâ—um crucifixâ—â—unt i. The Jewes crucied Origen hom 5. in Ps 36. Orig. in Luc. hom 38. n. 45. Chrys in synax n. 35. God and the same Father speaking of the tears which Christ shed over Jâ—rusalem calleth them Lacrymas Dei i. the tears of God So St. Chrysostome calleth Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. the crucified God The Prophet Esay prophesying of the birth of Christ Esay 9. 6. Vnto us a child is born immediately addeth his name shall be called The mighty God and the Church used the same language Fulgentius saith Maria Fulg. de grat n. 3. est genetrix Dei quia were propriâ— peperit Deum Verbum i. Mary is the Parent of God for she brought forth truly and properly God the Word St. Hierome saith Virgo Deum puerum peperit i. Mary brought Hier. Ep. 30. n. 8. forth a child that is God So Saint Ambrose speaketh i Ambr. in sym n. 20. Deus natus est ex virgine God was born of a Virgine and Athanasius saith k Atha apol 2. n. 15. n. 22. Deus incarnatus Deus passus est God was incarnate and God suffered This doctrine is so true and necessary that otherwise we could not have been redeemed the denying thereof no doubt is within the compass of the unpardonable blasphemy and the Church accounted such as taught the contrary to be in the number of the most dangerous hereticks as may appear by the story of Nestorius thus in brief This Nestorius was by birth a German and was admitted Soc. l. 7. c. 29. Theod. haer fab l. 4. n. 16. to be a Presbyter or Priest in the Church of Antioch from thence he was preferred to be Patriarch of Constantinople and there he was a sore vexer of the Arians Novatians and Macedonian hereticks and so eager therein that he incensed the Emperour against them using this proud speech O Imperator da mihi Soc. l. 7. c. 29. terram purgatam hâ—reâ—icis ego tibi eoelum vetribuam i. If the Emperour would purge his Empire of hereticks he would assure him of Heaven He was a man very cloquent and so proud thereof that he disdained to reade the ancient Writers and so being ignorant of Catholick Doctrine he fell into this Heresie of dividing or separating the two Natures of Christ and particularly teaching that the Virgin Mary ought not to be called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is the Parent or Mother of Evag. l. 1. c. 3â— God and because some of his sect would have her called onely ' 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is the mother of a man Nestorius desiring to go in a middle way would have her called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. the Mother of Christ but at no hand the Mother of God so his error was in this that he divided and rent and severed the two natures of Christ that which his crucifiers were not permitted to do to his very garments in effect as Vincentius noteth Nestorius duos vult esse Filios Dei duos Christos Vincent Lirin c. 17. n. 53. unum Deum alterum hominem i. Nestorius would have fancied two Sons of God and two Christs whereof one should be God and the other a man and so by denying the unity of his Person he indeed made a quaternity of Persons instead of a Trinitie against the sentence of
〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is his word Men indued with Gods Spirit are Deified because God is in them and as it were mingled with them and worketh in them And Athanasius saith Homines in quibus est Spiritus Deificantur Atha ad Serapion n. 26. vid. 2 Pet. 1. 4. Now in what sense our Saviour may be said to be Deified in the later times of the world who was the supream and onely God from all eternity would next be inquired CHAP. IX More concerning Deification and in what sense Christ may be said to be Deified THe Arians were in this Doctrine something more ingenuous then this Commenter though in them it was also most pernicious for they Ath. Hil. cont Arian n. 7. confessed that Christ was the Son of God because they knew that the Saints were so called and they said Christ was before time began because they believed that Angels and Devils were before the world and they called Christ by the Name of God because the Scriptures call some creature so But they would not confess him to have the same Godhead with the Father for they said that he was Deus factus made a God or Ambros de cil div c. 2. n. 26. deified and that he was the Son of God not by nature but by gift or grace and not by eternall generation but by power given as Kings are called Gods for so Saint Ambrose observeth Deus in Scripturis est Ambr. de fide l. 1. lib. 5. c. 1. n. 22 23. 1 Verus 2 Nuncupativus nam sunt qui dicuntur Dii non sunt 3 Falsus ut Dâ—mones i. In Scripture God signifieth 1 The true God 2 Such as 〈◊〉 but called Gods and â—re not so 3 False gods of 〈…〉 this Commenter when he was argued 〈…〉 learned 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 this 〈…〉 they were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 confessed that Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But one of the â—â—â—pany â—â—quired him further to declare how long Christ had been God and whether from Eternity at which question he seemed very angry and for present left the room Now indeed the Fathers do oftentimes apply this word to Christ and say that he was Deified and that in time also and not before his incarnation for he could never have been said to have been deified if he never had been incarnate it is only his humane nature that is said to be deified and not his Spirit or divine nature for the Word cannot otherwise be said to be deified then as he is hominified if I may have leave to use that word for Joh. 1. 14. The word was made flesh signifieth that God was made man by his incarnation and man was made God by the person I union of the divine and humane natures for so he alcame Theanthâ—opos and Emmanuel The reason is because when God assumed a body by his incarnation that body then became the body of God as is shewed before out of Origen and so that Orig. in Mat. tract 21. n. 41. Father expresseth himself thus Christus deificavit humanam naturam quam suscepit Christ deified that humane nature which he assumed Neither may we think so grosly of this deification as if the flesh of Christ were turned into the Goâ—head but onely because it is joyned to the Godhead and assumed into a personall union with it therefore the Name of God is also stamped upon it so that we may truly say the man Christ is God and yet the body and soul of Christ still are and for ever will be creatures In Aug. Epi. 221. this sense St. Austin saith Homo versus est in Deum nâ—c amisit naturam Man is become God and yet man did not lose his humane nature and thus Athanasius saith Archangeli semper antea adorabanâ— Filium sed nunc Atha Orat. 2. cont 2. Arian n. 5. Jesum adorant incarnatum carne quâ—m deâ—fiâ—averat The Archangels did alwaies before the incarnation worship the Son of God but they worship him now in that flesh which by assuming it he now hath deified For now it is the flesh of God as the Scripture calleth his blood the blood of God Act. 20. 28. and so the same Father useth thâ—s word divers times in the same sense g Atha orat 2. cont Ar. n. 5. h. Id. ser 4. cont Arian n. 7. Non deificatus fuisset homo nisi verbum fuisset incarnatum And h. Christus carnem assumendo hominem deificavit The manhood could not have been deified if the Word had not been incarnate and Christ deified man by assuming flesh St. Austin writing upon those words Paul an Apostle of Jesus Christ not of men nor by man Gal. 1. Gal. 1. 1. 1. Aug. exp in Gal. in praefaâ— n. 97. 1. saith 1. Paulus missus est per Christum jam totum Deum quia ex omni parte immortalem That Paul is said not to be called by man because Christ was at that time wholly God because now he was perfectly immortall so he fastned this deification or immortality 2. Aug. Retract l. 1. c. 21. only on his humane nature for his divine nature was the immortall God from all eternity and Theodoret upon those words God hath highly exalted him Phil. 2. 9. saith Est de carne quae deificata est nam dominus Theod. Dial. in confu n. 12. gloriae non dicitur glorificari 'T is meant of the flesh of Christ deified for as he is the Lord of glory he cannot be exalted deified or more glorified So Origen Orig. in Levit. hom 3. saith of a Levitical sacrifice that it signified Carnem Christi in coelis deificandam that the flesh of Christ in heaven was to be deified and this deifying the flesh of Christ is said to be done in heaven because there it was glorified and immortall and on earth he is said to be deified because of the Hypostaticall union of his 3. Pet. Diac. apul Fulg. n. 2. 2 natures whereby his flesh was indeed Caro Dei the flesh of God By thus distinguishing the two natures in Christ the ancient Fathers answered the objections of old hereticks made against the eternall divinity of Christ for in the same sense that the Son of God is said to be Phil. 2. 9. Eph. 1. 20. Mat. 28. 18. Act. 3. 13 15. deified he is also in Scripture said to be exalted to be set far above all Angels and Principalities to be made the head of the Church to sit at the right hand of God to have a name given him above all names that are named That all power is given him in heaven and in earth that God raised him from the dead and that Jesus is made an high Priest for ever all these sayings and many more of this â—ind are to be understood of the humane nature of Christ but cannot be verified of his divine nature Athanasius doth in generall give us this excellent rule m Athan. Ser. 4. cont Ar. n. 7. n. ib. Quae Christus
expâ—cted in this life for against this thorn in the flesh did this Apostle pray â— but it was answered My Gâ—â—ce iâ— sufficient That 2 Cor. 12. 7. is no other deliverance may be had but power by grace to resist this temptation yet not so much power as to annihilate and quite extinguish it in this life If it be here objected that the Holy Scriptures acknowledge Gen. 6. 9. Job 1. 1. Luke 1. 5. some persons just and righteous and perfect ones as Job and Noah and Zecharie the answer is that this perfection doth not imply impeccancie or impeccability for such just men fall seven times Prov. 24. 16. Noah was just but it is said there in his generation such may be called perfect Travellers but not perfect Possessors having not yet finished their course so a child is called perfect which hath all his limbs and lineaments compleat yet is far from a perfect man and a perfect man is yet far short of Angelicall perfection Men are called just who are not Aug. de natura Grat. â— 38. free from sin Justi suâ—runt sine peccato non suerunt That this truth hath been ever acknowledged by the Church may appear in that the Apostle saith â—f we say we havë no sin we deceive our selves civitas 1 Joh. 1. 8. Dei oâ—atâ— dimiâ—te nobis debiâ—a the universall Church in the time of prayer saith Forgive us our trespasses Indeed Aug. de Civit l. 19. c. 22. De peccat merito l. 2. c. 6. S. Austin confesseth That a man may sometime live without acting a sin yet that any mortall man can be without sin he denyeth For when the Pelagians urged that the Virgin Mary was without sin he desired to be excused from all accusation of that Blessed Mother of our Lord God yet he was assured that all Saints on earrh would submit to that speech of Ambr. de Jacob l. 1. c. 6. Hier. ad Ctesiphon cap. 5. Id. Cont Pelag l. 2. cap. 8. Saint Iohn If we say we have no sin c. Sainâ— Ambrose saith Non glâ—riâ—r quia justus sum sâ—d quia redemptus not glorying in Justice but in Justification St. Hierom saith men are called just not because they are without sin but because they are endowed with many vertues as Ezechias was a just man though he sinnâ—d and wept he did not lose the repute of a just man for some sins but he retained it because withall he performed many just and worthy actions besides a man is â—steemed righteous when his unâ—ighteousnesse is forgiven as he is â—steemed with God a performer of the Law whose transgrâ—ssions are pardoned Omnia Aug. Retract 1. c. 19. mandata facta deputanâ—ur quando quiâ—quid non fit ignosciâ—ur Now that the rebellion of flesh and blood or concupiscâ—nce doth contâ—nually dwell in all mankind during this life may clearly appear in the Holy Person of Saint Paul by his own words for thus he writes Rom. 7. 19. The goâ—d that I would I do not but the evil which I would not that I do f we inquire what evill it is which the Apostle would not do and yet did it it must needs be answered that evill concupiscences or carnall lusts did arise in him which he desired to be quit of and free from that they might not all be in him but because evill concupiscences will ever be in mortal men therefore his next care is that such desires may be râ—sisted so that they proceed not into action as he saith Rom. 6. 12. Let not sin reign in your mortall body that ye should obey iâ— in the lusts thereof he doth not say let it not be for it will alwaies be in us but let it not rule and pâ—evail over Grace So Gala. 5 16. wâ—lk in the Spirit and ye shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh he doth say ye shall not have those lusts but not fulfill and peâ—form them and ver 17. Ye cannot do the thing that ye would that is because ye cannot as you desire be free and quit from evill desires so as no evill desires at all should arise in you yet resist them do not obey them Tene Aug. de Verb. Dei ser 43. manus pedes ocuâ—oâ— c. withhold your members from acting those carnal suggestions Where he saith What I hate that I do We are not Rom. 7. 15. to imagine that the Apostle meaneth that although he hated fornication adultery rapine c. yet he did act these things but he meaneth that he hated evill lusts which yet did continually arise in him he desired they might not all be in him Nolo concupiscere tamen conâ—upisco O â—i tamen Aug. de verbis Apost ser 5. ago quamvis membraâ—â—eneo arma nego So himself adviseth Rom. 6. 13 Yâ—â—ld not your members as iâ—st â—ments of unrighteousness Although sinfull desires arise in Id de Temp. Ser. 45. your carnall heart Rebellant râ—bella pugnant pugna This is the strife betwen the flesh and the spirit he did continually resist those temptations Luctabatur noâ— Id. ibid. subjugâ—baâ—ur alwayes strâ—ving with them but not overcome by them Rom 8. 8. They that are in the flesh cannot please God Though holy men are in the flesh yet because they are not over-ruled by the flesh they do please Id. de verbis Apost Ser. 6. God Carnem portant sed non pâ—rtantur ab â—a Where he saith Rom. 7. 25. With the mind I my self serve the Law of God but with the flesh the Law of sin We are not to think that the naturall mind or intellective faculty of this Apostle was free from carnall concupiscence for by nature our whole man body and soul is carnall but the mind here signifieth his understanding reformed and renued by the Spirit of God for the very naturall spirit or mind of man needeth â— renuing by the Spirit of Grace as himself saith Ephes 4. 23. Bâ— râ—nued in the Spirit of your mind When he saith Rom. 7. 17. It is no more I that do it but sin that dwelleth in me His meaning is not to excuse himself so as if he were without sin and blameless But that his Spirituall part or in ward man did detest that which his carnall part or outward man did suggest Just so doth this Apostle ascribe his holy and spirituall actions not to himself but to the Grace of the Spirit as 1 Cor. 15. 10. I laboured more then they all yet not I but the Grace of God which was with me So 1 Cor. 7. 10. I command yet not I but the Lord. So again Gal. 2. 20. The conclusion is that The Son himself that is to say Christ as he is considered with the plenitude of his Mysticall Body and so is the Whole Christ cannot be perfectly subject and obedient to the Godhead untill this mortall hath put on immortality and our naturall body be raised a Spirituall body when
Christ hath put down all carnall and sinfull rule authority and power for where the Apostle saith 1 John 3. 9. Hâ— that is bâ—rn of God sinâ—eth not He meaneth that the seed and fountain of sinning is not in his regenerating and Spirituall part by which he is born of God but he is also born of flesh and by that onely he sinneth CHAP. XI Why the unpardonable sinne is rather fastened on the deniers of the Godhead of the Sonne then on them that deny the Godhead of the other Persons BUt why should the denying of the Godhead of the Son be so especially said to be a blasphemy unpardonable when as the denying of the Godhead of the other Persons is also damnable for first Saint Basil saith expresly more then once Qut Spiritum sanctum Crâ—â—turam vocant incidunt inblasphâ—miam Basil epist 387. n. 17. 43. illam irremissiâ—item He that calleth the Holy Ghost a creature falleth â—nto the unpardonable sinne so that Eunomius the Heretâ—cke who said the Spirit was the Creature of the Son was involved in Basil cont Euno n. 20. this blasphemy as well as Arius who said the Son was but a Creature of the Faâ—herâ— and therefore called him Mâ—ttendarium onely an Emissarie of the Father as Ruffinus reporteth and Saint Cyprian calâ—eth the Devill Ruff. in symb apud Cyp. n. 91. who is under the pressure of eternall unpardonableness both Antichristum Antispiritum an Antichrist and an Antispirit intimating as much danger in the one as in the other For we â—earn in Scripture that without holyness no man shall see God Heb 12 14. Therefore how can that man expect the gift of Holyness who denieth the Author of Holyness which iâ— the Holy Ghost Secondly He that denieth the Godhead of the Father is an Atheist for all sorts of Religions which confess 2. a God do also confess a Fatherhood in that God even the Heathens called their Jupiter a Father but how can an Atheist expect salvation from God who denieth that there is any God For answer hereunto it may be said that although the denying of the Godhead of any Person in the Trinity be destructive to salvation yet this sin is rather fastned on the deniers of Christ then the deniers of the other Persons First because the confession of the Father and the holy Spirit is not salvificall without the Confession of Christ for even Heathens confessed both a Fatherhood and a Divine Spirit of God as appeareth by the confession of Neâ—u hadnezar Dan. 4. 9. but the Confession of Christ is alone salvificall because he is not alone as himselfe saith John 8. 16. I am not alone but I and the Father which sent me for the confession of Christ includeth Basil de 〈◊〉 c. 12. the whole Trinity as Saint Basil affirmeth Christi appâ—llatio est professio totius trinitatis deâ—larans Deum Patrem qui unâ—it Filium qui unctus est Spiâ—itum qui est unctio and Saint mbâ—oâ—e affirmeth the same Amb. de 〈◊〉 c. 3. Christus implicat Paâ—rem unguentem Filium unctum Spiritum unctionem i. The appellation of Christ is the profession of the whole Trinity declaring the Father anointing the Son anointed and the Spirit who is the ointment and therefore albeit the form of Baptisme was precisely set down to be in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost yet because the Name Jesus Christ implyeth all these Saint Peter mentioneth onely this name Acts 2. 38. Be baptized everyone of you in the Name of Iesus Christ for remission of sins so doth Saint Paul also Rom. 6. 3. Galatians 3. 27 Secondly the unpardonable sin is fastned on the deniers of the second Person rather then on the deniers of the other Persons because the work of redemption was immediately wrought by the second Person For it was the Person of the Son onely that became a Surety for us and not onely a bare Witness or Testifier as the Commenter affirmeth the Son onely took upon him our nature and therein fulfilled the Law for us and suffered death in our stead for our transgressions he onely was our Surety and Mediatour and he onely was incarnate and died and rose again and carried our flesh into Heaven with him and there still continueth a Mediatour for us not by any verball pleading or intreating for our salvation but by presenting there in the glorious Sanctuary of Heaven that humane body and soul which had actually and perfectly performed the whole Covenant of God and therefore even in the most strict Justice of God shewing that Heaven is due by the said Covenant to all his mysticall Body for which his naturall Body was sacrificed on the Crosse for the expiation of all their sinnes which was prefigured by the High Priests entering into the Sanctum Sanctorum All these dispensations and actions which conduced to our salvation must be ascribed onely to the Person of the Sonne but cannot be said of the Father or of the Holy Ghost For that was the Heresie of the â—oc l. 2. c. 15. Sabellians who were therefore called Patripassiani for these workes are proper to the Sonne alone Filius natus passus resurrâ—xisse ascendâ—sse dicitur non Aug. de Trin. l. 1. c. 5. n. 60. Pater As Augustine saith i. The Father cannot be said to be born or suffer or to rise again or to ascend but onely the Sone Therefore Kisse the Son lest he be angry and ye perish Psalme 2. 12. For the denying of him is the renouncing of salvation CHAP. XII The Godhead of Jesus Christ shewed by Scripture and by the type of the Tabernacle BEcause the apprehension and believing of this great Mystery of God Incarnate is a wonderfull consolation to the Christian and the denying thereof pertinaciously a certain note of eternall perdition therefore the Scripture hath very evidently and frequently declared this weighty truth both by express words and otherwise for the child to be born of a Virgin must be called Emmanuel Esay 7. 14. that is God with us or God incarnate and the same Prophet Esay 9. 6. giveth that childe such Titles as cannot be attributed to any meer creature as The mighty God the everlasting Father the Prince of Peace This Prophets words do so agree with the Evangelicall and Apostolicall Doctrine as the Word was made flâ—sh and the Word was God John 1. and God manifest in the flesh 1 Tim. 3. 16 and of whom as concerning the flâ—sh Christ came who is over all God blessed for evermore Rom. 9. 5. that Saint Jerome called this Prophet Hier. proaem in Isai n. 33. Esay Non solum Prophetam sed Evangelistam Apostolum Not onely a Prophet but an Evangelist and an Apostle for as the Prophet before the incarnation bringeth in God saying I have sworn by my self to me every knee shall bow Esay 45. 23. So the Apostle applieth that saying to Christ being the same
God but now incarnate of whom Esay spake Rom. 14. 11. As it is written As I live saith the Lord every knee shall bow to me So that the saying of the Psalmist Psalm 97. 7. Worship him all ye gods is applied to Christ Heb. 1. 6. Let all the Angels of God worship him Neither doth the Scripture set forth this great truth onely by words but also by the visible type of the Iewish Tabernacle and Temple to teach the people of Israel where they should profitably seek and find that God whom they were appointed to worship and therefore God confined them to perform their worship of him at the Tabernacle or Temple lest they like other Nations should set up a God of their own invention or worship the host of Heaven seeing men naturally desire either a sensible object of their adoration or at least will fancie such an one in their brain The Israelites not yet weaned from idolatry before the Tabernacle was erected made a Calf or Oxe to worship just as they had seen the Aegyptians worship before the like figure in memory of Ioseph as Aug. de Mir. scrip l 1. n. 74. Ruff. 6. n. some thought who had preserved them by corn in the Famine because that beast doth usually work in Tillage and because in after-times the Jewes abhorred image-worship not admitting any such Statues in their Temple Therefore the Heathens thus usually twitted them Incerti Iudaea Dei And Iuvenal saith Lucan l. 2. Juv. sat 14. of them Quidam sortiti metuâ—ntem Sabbata Patrem Nil praeâ—er nubâ—s coeli numen adorant i. That either it was uncertain what God they worshipped or that they worshipped nothing but the Clouds or Heaven For the Heathens used to set up visible images before which they performed their adoration not intending to worship the Images terminativè or finally as our Commenters word is but they worshipped them just so as the Commenter saith Christ was worshipped For they terminated their worship in their gods whom they thought to be assistant and present in those images as Arnobius affirms from Arnob. l. 6. n. 115. the mouths of Heathens Nos nec aera nec auri argentive maâ—eâ—ias Deos esse decâ—â—nimus sed cos in hiâ— colimus quos dedicatio infert efficit inhaebitare simuâ—a hris i. We Heathens do not worship the brass or silver or gold image but we worship those gods which by Dedication-Charmes are invited and brought to inhabit the Images So Saint Augustine alleadgeth Aug. de Civ l. 8. c. 23. Trismegistus affirming that Images were as the bodies of their gods and that the spirit was by Art Magick invited to reside in them Simulachrum Id. ib. c. 26. pro corpore Daemon pro anima est i. The image was the body and a Spirit was the soul within it For so indeed Heathens used to do when they had made an image to represent their god they made a Ceremonious Vide Macrob. Satur. l. 3. c. 9. de evocatione Deorum Dedication of it to that god and so inviting him by Charms and Magicall Conjurations to shew himself to be present in that image as Conjurers they say have had the evill Spirit in a ring or boxe And this is diverse times affirmed by Origen the manner whereof is partly touched in the Story of the Dedication of Nebuchadnezzars image For the Devill apishly imitating God indeavoured to set up his own worship in such a manner as God hath appointed for himself For Psalm 96. 5. Dii Gentium Daemonia i. The gods of the Gentiles are Devils Therefore as God manifested his presence in the Tabernacle and Temple where the Israelites were required to worship God so the Devill manifested his presence in Idols and Idoll-Temples that so he also might be there worshipped and this appeareth by what we reade of Heathen Oracles and the Images of Iuno and Fortune which uttered words as Lactantiüs sheweth out of Valerius Lact de falf Relig. lib. 2. n. 6. CHAP. XIII The Godhead of Christ further proved from the typicall Tabernacle and Temple IT will not be impertinent to this business in hand to inquire why God confined the Jewish worship to the Tabernacle and Temple as it is manifest he did for Levit. 17. 3 4. the Israelites are required upon pain of death to bring their sacrifices to the doore of the Tabernacle So the publick Passeover is to be sacrificed onely in the place which the Lord shall chuse Deut. 12. 5. and what place that is we finde set down 2 Sam. 7. 13. The house that Solomon the sonne of David shall build and this building was performed by him 1 King 8. 20. and God declared his acceptation of that House or Temple 2 Chron. 7. 12. The Lord appeared to Solomon and said unto him I have heard thy prayer and have chosen this place to my self for an house of sacrifice Now the reason why the Israelites were confined to perform their worship in this place was because God would keep them in a perpetuall memory and confession of the Messiah to be incarnate of whole incarnation both the Tabernacle and the Temple were but Figures or Types Templum erat figura Corporis Dominici Aug. de Trin. l. 4. c. 5. saith Augustine i. The Temple was the Figure of our Lords Body for as God did manifestly shew his presence in the Tabernacle and Temple by a cloud and the Glory of the Lord filled both as we reade Exodus 40. 34. and 1 Kings 8. 10. So did he in the Body of Christ by his great Miracles Deus erat in Aug. de Consens Evang. n. 86. Templo Vâ—rbum caro factum i. When the Word was made flesh God was there as n his Temple So that the prudent and religious sort of Israeites in the Typicall Tabernacle and Temple did indeed worship their god who as yet was but Typically incarnate for the Tabernacle did represent an humane body Philo and Josephus both of them Jewes by birth and religion called the Tabernacle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Jos Ant l. 3. c. 4. Phil. de vit Mosis l. 3. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. A moveable and a portable Temple as a mans body is the covering of it was with skins as mens bodies are covered Exodus 26. 14. and with Curtains as mens bodies are with Garments and it represented the Body of Christ Ath. Orat. 5. cont Ar. n. 4. Corpus Domini ist Amiculum saith Athanasius i. The Body of our Lord was the Garment of God And the two great Apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul in allusion hereunto call their own bodies Tabernacles 2 Cor. 5. 1. and 2 Peter 1. 14. Hence it is no doubt that so often mention is made of worshipping towards the Temple of Jerusalem Psalme 5. 7. and 138. 2. I will worship toward thy holy Temple and Psalme 29. 2. Worship the Lord in the beautie of Holynesse that is in his glorious
so said to be in the body of his flesh Col. 1. 22. And after his incarnation the time is called the dayes of his flesh Heb. 5 7. And he is said to be sent in the likenes of sinfull flesh Rom. 8. 3. not that his flesh was not real or but a meer similitude or phantasme as the Manichees said but it was real and pure without sin yet like unto our flesh which is sinfull surely S. Peterâ— thought Christ to be incarnate when he said Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh 1 Pet. 4. 1. I desire this Commenter who denieth this to consider Soberlie what the divine Apostle S. John hath said to this point more then once 1 Ioh. 4. 3. Every Spirit that confesseth not that Iesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God and this is that Spirit of Antichrist wherof you have heard that it should come and even now already it is in the world Thus is this place now read and againe he saith 2 Ioh. 7. Many deceivers are entred into the world who confess not that Iesus Christ is come in the flesh this is a deceiver and an Antichrist The fathers spake in the same manner of the Godhead to be Incarnate in the flesh of Christ as they spak of the incarnation of an humane soule in an humane bodie Corpus Domini est vestis regia Chrys to 5. ser 65. Atha Disp in Nic. Concil n. 27. Aug. de Civit. l. 18. c. 35. Euseb Emiss n. 32. i. the bodie of the Lord his garment royal Corpus Domini est amiculum dei Caro est amictus verbi i. the flesh of the Lord is the garment of God and upon those words Mal. 3. 1. The Lord shall suddenly come to hisâ— Temple S. Austin expounds thus In Templum id est in Carnem i. by coming into his temple is meant his coming in the flesh and â—hristi vestimentum humanitas est qua divinitas induta videri non poterat i. The garment of Christ is his humane nature which covered his divinitie as garments doe our bodies The reason why our Commenter denieth the Incarnation of an humane soule is as I imagine because he thinketh the soule dieth wiih the body And shall rise againe at the resurrection of the body and that it hath no existence but only in the body and the reason why he denies the Incarnation of Christ is because he doth not believe Christ to be God from Eternitie but that he hath his beginning from his humane birth and that after his resurrection he was Deified for his fore-runners the Arians said that Christ was but a God made that is all one with Deified that this Son of God was not equall to the Father in Eternitie in his answer I trow he will resolue that question which S. Austin asked the Arians Quot annis precedit Deus Pater Aug. de 5. her to 6. n. 6. filium suum i. how many yeares was God the Father older then God the Son or how long was the Father God before the Son was God in the meane time we will rest satisfied in the sure word of God who saith Esa 43. 10. Before me there was no God formed neither shall there be after me wee read that by God the Word all things were made Joh. 1. 3. time is a creature therfore it was made by him and he was before for if time time were before the Son of God then could he not be called The first borne of every creature Coloss 1. 15. The reason why rhe Son of God did take upon him our nature was because he would in our stead as a suretie and undertaker both performe the whole Law and also sustaine all the penaltie of our transgressions of which more hereafter CHAP. VIII More reasons why the Son of God was Incarnate how and when he became our suetrie the Aeternal covenant explained distinction of Persons in the Godhead THe Supream and Eternal â—od in the person of the son did for mans redemption â—â—kâ— man's nature upon him not because God had no other way by which he could have saved us but because he would not save us any other way for wee know that the same God who saveth man by taking man's nature did and still doth preserve the blessed angels in their estate of glorie and from falling by his power and gracious goodnes although he did not take upon him the naâ—ure of Angels but he took on him the seed of Abraham Heb. 2. 16. The Church never taught thaâ— God could not have saved man without the Incarnation of his Son but the contrarie Athanasius saith a Poterat Deusâ—sine adventu Atha cont Aria ser 3. n. 7. Christi peccatum solvâ—re verbulo suo i. God could have remitted our sins with the least word though Christ had not come in the flesh for if an earthly King can save his subject who hath by the law forfeited his life could not the Omnipotent King have saved mankind by his power for who can resist his will But then why did God give his Son to take our nature on him To this it may be answered that albeit the Son of of God was Originally a meer gift and from the free grace of God to mankind yet accessarily it became a debt and due to man so that God was bound in Justice ro give his Son because God had by his promise and Covenant ingaged and bound himself so to doe for although his meer mercy and goodnes moved him to make such a promise yet when he had once promised his justice and truth required the performance of that promise Deus dignatur promissionibus suis debitor Aug Confes. l. 5. c. 9 fieri i. God vouchsafed to make himself a debtor to or by his owne promises and having so made himself a debtor to man how could he without violating his word and promise forbeare the performance But where doth this promise appeare and how shall wee know that the Son of God became an undertaker and suert â— for us men and when was this Covenant made for the mysterie of man's redemption doth depend upon the Covenaâ—t and by it the Son of God did engage and bind himself out of his free and meer grace to become a suertie for man therfore before I proceede any further this Covenant must be inquired after as the cheife evidence of Christs ingagment It was an old question moved either by some scoffers or curious persons what God did before he made heaven and earth unto which some made answer with a jocular reproof Gâ—hennas parabat alta Scrutâ—ntibus i. he made hel for such seekers but S. Austin liked not Aug. Conf. l. 11. c. 12. this answer but said libentius respondeo nescio quod nescio i. I would rather answere that I know not So in that book of Cicâ—ro which was called Hortensius but is now lost this objection was made against the unitie of God Si Deus unus est
for us in Heaven and there shewing and offering himself for us As this P. 84. c. 5. v. 7. page 160. c. 9. v. 7. Commenter would have us believe and if he could what need was there that God the Sonne should undergoe such bitter and cruell torments and death also To this I answer that as things then stood God could not otherwise save us but by the Incarnation yea and the death of his Son because as is before shewed God hath limited and bound and confined himself by his own word his Law his Decree and Covenant for by his sentence and determinate judgement he had denounced death and a curse to our first Parents and in them to all their Posteritie Gen. 2. 17. In the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die and Ezech. 18. 4. The soul that sinneth it shall die and Rom. 6. 23. The wages of sin is death and Deut. 27. 26. cursed be he that confirmeth not all the words of this Law to do them and Matt. 5. 19. Whosoever shall break one of the least of these Commandments shall be called the least in the kingdom of God and James 2. 10. Whosoever shall keep the whole Law and yet offend in one point he is guiltie of all We see that here is a curse and death denounced to all transgressors of the Law and this curse and death must needs fall upon Mankind because God is true and just and righteous But suppose the transgressours of the Law could escape the curse and death denounced yet how should they obtain life eternall seeing that is not obtained but by the perfect and exact performance of the Law of God which no mere man of all the sonnes of Adam hath or can perform For the Condition or Covenant for life is Levit. 18. 5. Keep my Statutes which if a man do he shall live in them so Ezech. 20. 11. Rom. 10. 5. Gal. 3. 12. and this is confirmed by Christ Matth 19 17. If thou will enter into life keep the Commandments These considerations being premised let us now move the question cannot God assoil men and give them eternall life at the request onely of Jesus Christ although Jesus had never suffered the pain and death of the Crosse I answer That God cannot absolve man from sinne without satisfaction to his Justice his Truth and Righteousness I may say God cannot do this as well as the Scripture saith Tit. 1. 2. God cannot lie And 1 Sam. 15. 19. The strength of Israel will not lie for as Saint Austin hath truly said Diabolus non fuit superandus potentia Dei Aug. de Trin. l. 13. c. 13. sed justitia i. as things then stood The devil was not to be conquered by the power onely but by the Justice of God And therefore before man can be redeemed and absolved the curse and death denounced must fall upon man for transgressing the Law 〈…〉 of his God and before man can enter into 〈…〉 Commandements of God must be perfectly 〈◊〉 by man Now if we can shew that the just sentence of God in the curse and death hath bin fully executed on man and that the Justice of God hath had its full course and if we can shew that the whole Law of God hath bin most exactly performed by man and all this by no other man but onely by the great Son of Mâ—â— Iesus Christ being God Incarnate and for this reason incarnate that he might as an undertaker and suretie for mankind both take upon him the curse and suffer death by obedience passive and also perform everâ— title of the Law by active obedience and this for us and in our stead and that our transgressions were imputed to him and his righteousness in performing the Law is imputed to us and that by vertue of the Covenant most justly and that mans redemption and salvation could not otherwise stand with the truth and righteous judgement of God For as Athanasius saith Verbum Atha Ser. 3. cont Arian 6. nunquam destinatum fuisset fieri homo nisi hominum necessitas requisisset i. the Son of God had never been ordained to be made Man if mans necessity had not so required All this being undeniable I trust the Christian Reader doth apprehend the reason why our true and onely God must needs have been incarnate for the working out of mans redemption Justification and salvation CHAP. XI That Christ was a person able and fitt to performe the law and to suffer for manking and that he did stand in the place and stead of all men VVEe have seen what Christ hath vndertaken for us But it must next be inquired whether Christ were a person able and fitly qualified to performe what he undertook viz. to take away the sins of the world and indeed Iesus Christ the Son of God perfect God perfect man was a person able and every wayfitly qualified for performance of the truth of God both in suffering the punishment and in performing the whole law of God in the behalf of man for as man is a Miâ—rocosme or an abridgment of the great world as Austin saith Omnis creatura in homine est i in man Aug. l. 83. quaest n. 87. Every creature is comprised So Christ is the Epitome of mankind and to be esteemed an Vniversal man in as much as â—â—rist the head and all his mystical members arâ— one mystical body as hath bin shewed before Christus universus est caput cum membris i the whole Idem ibidem quaest 69. Christ is himself the head and his Church the members for if the first Adam be esteemed as all mankind why should not the second Adam be so much rather accounted S. Austin saith of the first man Omnis homo Aug. Retract l. 1. c. 15. Abm. de Obitu Satyri n. 29. Pros resp ad Cap. Gall. c. 9. â—errenus est Adam i All men earthlie are one Adam â—nd of Christ S. Ambrose saith as much in Christo Summa universitatis est portio singulorum i Christ is the â—otal sum of all men and a portion of everie man and Prosper gives this true and excellent reason of it Nullus est hominum Cujus natura non erat suscepta in Christo i There is no man in the world whose nature Christ took not upon him and therfore the Scripture calleth Christ the last Adam as well as the first man is called the first Adam 1 Cor. 15. 45. And yet more expreslie it saith Gal. 3. 28. Yee are all One in Christ Iesus And so againe 1 Cor. 12. 12. And indeed wee are rather nearer of kindred and by a better tie to the Second then wee are to the first Adam not because Christ and wee are the Sons of men which cannot be said of Adam who was Terrae-Filius the Son of the earth and not the Son of man but Omnes nati ad primum renati ad secundum Pros sent 299. pertinent Wee derive ourworse carnal
Generation from Adam but our better and spiritual regeneration is derived from Christ and as there are no Sons of Men but such as are so from Adam so ther are no Sons of God but those that are so from Christ Now if it be demanded how Christ and wee can be accounted one and what it is which came from Christ and is in man that so he may be said to be in us and so that what he did or suffered should be really accounted as done or suffered by us for although wee know why Adam's sin is imputed to us viz. because wee are of the same Lump propagated carnallie from him but yet why Christs righteousnes oâ— his sufferings should be imputed to us seeing wee are not propagated from Christ nor ever were in his loines as wee were in Adams is now the question To which this is the arswer that as Christ received his flesh and blood from man so man hath received the divine Spirit from Christ and as the natural bodie of Christ is made of the same lump of Adam that our's is so man hath in him the self same spirit that is in Christ though he be in heaven and wee on earth by which spirit wee are called the Sons of God just as Christ by taking our flesh is called the Son of Man Nos homines vocamur filii dei quia filius dei Atha in decret Nic. Conc n. 13. nostrum gestavit corpus quia Spiritus filii in nobis est i Men are called the Son of God because the Sons of God took his bodie of man and put his owne Spirit into man and therfore Christ doth fitly sustaine an Universal person of mankind That the Spirit of Christ is given and put into man the Scriptures doe manifestlie declare First it appeareth evidently in the regenerate Man of sueh S. Paul speaketh when he prayeth Ephe. 3. 17. That Christ may dwell in their harts And how Christ may be sayd to dwell in Man Saint John sheweth 1 John 4. 13. Hereby we know that we dwell â—in him and â—e in us because he hath given us of his Spirit and hence it is that Saint Chrysostome saith Anima sancta est Tabernaculum Chrys ho 2. Antioch Christi id est The soul of an holy Man is Christs Tabernacle For indeed though Christ had not at all assumed flesh from Man yet because the same Spirit which is in Christ is also so put into and communicated to man it is sufficient to make Christ the head of the Saints his Members to be but one mysticall Body with him And this is intimated by Saint Paul when he saith Ephesians 4. 4. There is one body and one Spiriâ— which is as much as if he should say though the Saints on earth are many yet because all are endued with one and the same Spirit of Christ therefore all are but one body with Christ even as in man there are many parts and members yet because all parts have the same soul in them therefore all together are but one body Hence it is that Origen saith Omnes salvandi sunt Orig. in Eze. ho. 9. unum Corpus id est All those which shall be saved are but one body and Saint â—asill giveth this reason of their vnitie Quia unus est Deus si in singulis Bas Epist 141. sit omnes coadunat id est Because there is but one God if this one God be in all he doth thereby Tert. de Trin. n. 28 Christus est ecclesia De Paenit n. 16 unite all and this unitie is also expressed by these odd words in Tertullian Spi itus nos Christo confibulat id est It is the Spirit that doth button us or joyn us to Christ For this reason the Scripture saith Romans 12. 5. We being many are one body in Christ And again 1 Corinthians 6. 17. He that is joyned to the Lord is one Spirit And again Galathians 3. 28. Ye are all one in Christ Jesus yea such is our conjunction and union with Christ and his with us by reason that his Spirit is in us that Theodoret doubted not to say Si pati possit Theod. in Dâ—alog impatib n. 13. divina natura supervacanea fuisset corporis assumptio id est If the pure Godhead were of a nature passible so that it could have suffered for man God should not have needed to be Incarnate And Saint Augustine puts the case a little plainer and nearer thus Si Christus non assumpta carne à Virgine sed vera tamen apparens nos vera morte redimeret quis eum non potuisse audet dicere Suppose Christ had not taken his flesh from the Virgine and so not from Adam but yet had really taken a body upon him some other way and in that assumed body had really died to redeem man who dares say that he could not and no doubt such a suffering had been sufficient for our redemption if as I said before God had not otherwise determined and limited himself by his sentence of the curse and death upon the seed of Adam And thus we have seen how Christ and the Saints are united and become one body SECT II. More of the same That Jesus Christ was a Person every way fitly qualified to be Man's Redeemer both for that he was free from all sin Originall and Actuall although he took flesh from the loynes of Adam and also in regard of the infinite worth and excellencie of his Person THe qualities required to a redeeming high Priest are set down Heb. 7. 26. For such an high Priest became us who is holy harmless 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 undefiled seperate from sinners For if Christ were not absolutely without sin in his own Person he could not be a fit sacrifice for our sins the Lamb of God must be answerable to the paschall Lamb his Type A Lambe without blemish and so the Scripture describeth Christ 1 Pet. 1. 19. as a Lambe without blemish or spot and that he knew no sin that he did no sin and that in him 1 John 3. 5. is no sin As for any actuall sinne there will be no question among Christians but the difficulty is in shewing Christ to be without Origâ—â—â—l◠〈◊〉 because he was in the loins of Adam when he fell and is the Son of David of Abraham and of Adam and the Church hath ever acknowledged that the whole lump of Adam is a Prosper Resp ad Genu. Massa corruptionis as Prosper saith and b Aug. Epist 105 157. De Civit. l. 15. c. 1. alibi Massa damnationis Vâ—nculnm damnationis Apostatica radâ—x Massa originaliter tota damnata as S. Austin often confesseth in all these words and many more id est a corrupt lump a lump of damnation an Apostate root totally condemned from the the very Originall The Apostle also seemeth to lay this to the charge of Christ 2 Cor. 5. 21. He hath made him to
notes and the grand Heresie of Apollinarius applied this errour to Christ himself in saying that Christ had no reasonable or humane soul as other men have but that his Divine Nature was in steed of an humane soul and supplied all the Offices thereof in the body of Epiph. haer 77. Aug. n. 88. Soc. l. 2. c. 36. Christ as we reade in Epiphanius and in the Ecclesistick Histories and in S. Austine CHAP. XIII Of the Originall of Christs humane soul whether it were derived by Propagation from his Progenitors as his body was THe mention of that Heresie of Apollinarius leads me to a new quaere not yet discoursed but yet as I conceive very usefull and pertinent to the setting forth of this great Mystery of the Incarnation of God and Mans Redemption if it could be clearly determined and this it is That seeing the Christian World Catholick hath ever confessed that the Son of God received his flesh and blood by propagation from the first Adam It would be now inquired whence the same Son of God had his reasonable or humane Soul The reason which moved me to make this inquiry is taken from the Arguments which divers of the Fathers used against some Hereticks particularly against Valentinus and his Gnostick followers and against the Manichees and Eutyches for these taught that Christ did not receive his Body by traduction from the Virgine Mother and so not from Adam but that it was either from heaven or else that it was a mere apparition and a phantasticall body which Heresies are so well known to men learned that I shall not need to send the Reader by Quotations to Fathers to finde them The Arguments which the Father 's used against those Hereticks were to this purpose that they might shew a necessity that the Redeemer must needs take his flesh from Adam First Saint Augustine saith Omnis massa Adami Aug De 〈◊〉 cum Felic l. â—â— c. 11. maledicta est Dominus carnem de illa suscepit hinc maledictus dicitur i. Because the whole lump of Adam was accursed therefore the Son of God taking the curse upon himself must needs take flesh from Adâ—m for otherwise how could he take the cuâ—se upon himself to cure mankind And Theoâ—â—â—â— asketh this question Theod. dial 1. n. 12. Why was not Châ—ists Body made of Earth as Adams was And he returned this answer 〈…〉 Creature servaretur quae perieâ—a i. That Christ might save the same creature which was lost therefore he took the same creature upon himself and Athanasiâ—â—s Atha Epist ad Epicter n. 3. strictly examining how mans curse could be fastned on our blessed Saviour answereth thus Christus sic pro nobis execratio factus est sicuâ— factus est caâ—o i. He took our curse as he took our flesh and Saint Basil saith expressely that the Heresie of Valentinus did nullifie Mans redemption for if the flesh of Christ were not derived from Adam Non occâ—dâ—sset Basil Epist 65. n. 37. peccatum in carnâ— i. Christ had not destroyed sin in the flesh and upon this very gâ—ound Diosâ—urus the Bishop of Alexandria and Euâ—yches the Monk were condemned by the Councill of Chalcedon as Euagrius Euag. l 2. c. 18. writeth The self same kind of Argument doth Naziarzâ—n use against Apollinarius who taught that Christ had no humane or reasonable soul as is said before Naz. ad Cledon Orat. 51. but that he took onely flesh from Adam Deus assumâ—sit id quod salute indigebat c. i. God took of Man all that which stood in need of salvation and therefore he took the humane soul also For that fell and needed help as well as the Body For if Christ had taken from Man onely his flesh and not his Soul he had done as if a Man that hath a fore foot and a fore eye should apply a Medicine onely to the foot and neglect the eye besides Christ took the whole and perfect Man upon him but the Godhead with a Body onely is not perfect Man as neither could it be perfect man if it were joyned with an humane Soul without a Body But if you say that God could have saved man though he had never taken an humane soul so may you as well say God could have saved man though he had not assumed a Body Thus far Naziaâ—zen From this discourse I may upon the same grounds infer That if Christ must needs take his Body from man because otherwise he could not destroy sin in the flesh It will follow by the like Argument that Christ must needs take his humane soul by traduction from man for otherwise how could he destroy sin in the soul and then though the body might be saved yet the soul having no medicine applied to it must needs undergo the sentence Ezech. 18. 4. The soul that sinnâ—th iâ— shall diâ— For the soul and body of man are two distinct natures although joyned in one person just so as the Godhead and Manhood in Christ are Thus for ought I can yet see the same reasons that induce us to believe that the flesh of Christ was propagated from the first man may as well prove that his soul must also be so transmitted throughout all Generations to Christ Furthermore because in Scripture phrase the natural soul of Man goes under the notion of Carnall as well as his Natural body for 1 Cor. 2. 14. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies a carnall man the very soul not regenerate is carnall I do not peâ—ceive how the Incarnation of God can be compleat but by his assuming both soul and body from man for otherwiâ—e how can we say that he tooke the whole man upon him the denying whereof was by the Church judged an Heresie in the Apollinarians For they would not confess Christ to Naz. ad Cledon orat 5â— be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 id est A perfect man having God in him but they called Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 idest God bearing flesh onely and this because they believed not that Christ took our humane soul but onely that he took our flesh and therefore the Apolinarian is by Nazianzen called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 id est One that worshipped a God that had assumed nothing but flesh And the Apollinarian in derision said that the Catholick was 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. one who worshipped a man Now although the Church of England doth not expresly declare the propagation of the Soule of Christ from the Virgine Mother yet the second Article of Religion something implicite seemeth rather to incline thereunto for it saith First The Word tooke Mans nature in the wombe 1. Artic. 2. of the blessed Virgine of her substance so that two whole and perfect Natures that is to say The Godhead and Manhood were joyned in one Person c. If the meaning be that Christ took perfect Manhood from his Mother it must needs follow that he took both Body and soul
of her for neither of them severally can be called perfect Man and Master Rogers in his notes upon that Article tells us that it was one of the Arrian errours who said That Christ took â—tha de Incarn n. 22. onely flesh of the Virgine but not the Soul and that some Arrians did indeed so say is affirmed by Athanasius Finally if it can clearly appeare that the Sonne of God did indeed take both his flesh and also his humain Soule by Propagation from Man it will be a great consolation to Mankinde that the great God of Heaven and Earth would vouchsafe to be so compleatly near of kindred to us his poore creatures and hereby also a perfect and compleat Incarnation of God will be proved against this Commenter CHAP. XIV The question of the Soules propagation left undetermined by Saint Augustine yet he thought it more probable that our soules are propagated from our Parents I Will not presume good Reader to determine this great question because that I find that the most profound Doctors of the Primitive Church and after very great and diligent discussion yet left it dubitable as may appear by the Epistles which passed mutually between Saint Hierome and Saint Augustine concerning this very question which neither of them would absolutely determine and conclude either for the Soule of Christ or the Souls of other men for that the Originall of the Soule of Christ was surely the same with the Originall of other mens souls since our first Parents and both alike obscure and hard to be understood Onely I will truely relate what hath been thought and said of it especially out of Saint Augustine who saith utrum origo animarum Aug. n. 7. n. 18. n. 44. sit ex uno illo Adam an semper fiant singulae siâ—gulis adhuc nescio adhuc incertum i. whether the souls of all men came from Adam or whether new souls for severall men be dayly created as yet I know not and it is uncertain And again Nunquam ausus sum definitam proferre Id. Epist 175. Id. Epist 120. sententiam i. I never durst venture upon a definitive sentence thereof and concludeth Satius est ortum animae semper quaerere quam invenisse praesumere i. It is safer to be alwayes seeking then to presume that we have found it And a great while after he said Ego adhuc inter utrosque ambigo vincant qui poterant i. Id. de Gen. ad lit l. 10. c. 22. I am still doubtfull between those two opinions prove either who can And although he confesseth in the same book that he would be more willing to acknowledge that Christ had not his soul from Adam yet saith he the other opinion that men receive their souls from their Parents doth preponderate and turn the scale of my judgement The same Father for the probability of propagation of souls from Adam alledgeth many reasons For first writing to Saint Hierome Tell me saith Id Epist 28. he if Soules are doyly created and not transmitted from the Parents wherein have poore Infants sinned and how are they involved in the sins of Adam or their Parents so that they need the Sacrament of remission of sins But secondly If it be said that our soules are indeed derived from the soul of Adam then who can say I have not sinned seeing the Originall soul of Adam sinned Thirdly It was the Argument which Pelagius used If the soul be not propagated as well as the body then onely the bodies of Infants are liable to the punishment for Originall sinne for it may seem very hard measure that so ancient a sinne should be laid to the charge of a soul newly created and but one day old Fourthly when the woman was made out of the body of Man It is not said that God breathed into her nostrils the breath of life as it was said of the man Gen. 2. 7. Perhaps to intimate that her soul was derived with het body from the man Fifthly Saint Augustine confessed that to say that soules are dayly created seeing God finished the Creation the sixth day will seeme a violent speech Sixthly it is said Romans 5. 18. By the offence of Aug. de Gen. ad lit lib. 10. c. 11. one judgement came upon all to condemnation â— Now because onely the soul sinneth for the body is but the souls instrument how can the soul that was not created till so many generations from Adam are passed be said to sin in Adam for what evill hath the soul of a young dying infant committed if his soul were not derived from Adam Lastly he granteth Non absurde â—reditur â—animas è Id. ibid. traduce â—sse â—id est It is no inconvenience to our Christian Faith to say the souls of men are propagated from the first man For it was indeed anciently received by Christians as a Truth long before Saint Augustines time as we finde in Terâ—ullian who saith Tert. de anima c. 27. expresly that Our souls came from Adam and again he saith in the same Book Omnis anima censetur in Adamo donec in Christo recensâ—atur id est Every Id. ib. c. 40. soul is first câ—nsed or inrolled in Adam untill they be new enrolled and accounted in Christ And Saint Hierome avoucheth this to be the opinion Hier. Epist ad Marcel apud Aug. Epist 27 not onely of Terâ—ulliâ—n but also that the greater part of the Western Churches were of the same minde that as our bodies are derived fâ—om the bodies of our Parents so our souls are propagated from their souls Even as millions of Taâ—ers may be tinded or lighted at one burning Taper and as all the Stars of Heaven receive their light from the Sunne yet neither the light of that one Taper or of the Sunne are any thing diminished So although the manner how our souls are propagated be inestable yet De facto that they are propagated is no way incredible For why not the souls of Men as well as the souls of Beasts and why may not the humane soul extend it self into the childe in the wombe as well as it doth inlarge it self in a greater distance into other parts of the body as the body from its birth waxeth bigger from one cubite length of the Infant to foure Cubites at our full growth and this Doctrine of the Soules propâ—gation seemeth to stand with a great deall of equitie in our mercifull and most iust Redeemer that as he would redeem our bodies by his owne body taken from man so to redeem our soules by his soul so taken and propagated from man And this seemeth to be the Opinion of Athanasius Atha de incarnat n. 23. Corpus Chisti pro corpore nostro anima â—jus pro nostra integer homo pro integro homine in Redemptione rependitur id est The Body of Christ was given for our bodies and his Soule for our Soules and his whole Man for
our whole Man in our Redemption Thus having said so much concerning this question I submit the determination thereof to the Judicious Reader onely adding this that if Christ did indeed take not onely his Body but the whole man by traduction from Adam we may most comfortably entertain a more evident and reasonable Argument of the Redemption both of our bodies and soules by him because hereby we may conceive our selves to be joyned and united unto Christ in a more noble tie then onely in our flesh that as he hath communicated his Divine Spirit to Man as is shewed before so our humane Spirit is communicated to him CHAP. XV. That the Spirit of God is communicated to the unregenerate and of the diversitie of the Measures and the graces therof IN the next place I am to shew how the Spirit of God is said to be communicated to men unregenerate as I promised before and this because many men are apt to beleeve that to have the Spirit of God is a grace proper and peculiar only to those that are the the Sanctified holy ones but the contrarie will appeare a none for a man may have Gods Spirit in him yea and divers common gifs and graces of that Spirit and yet remaine unsanctified and void of vertue and holines Aug. de beat vita n. 16. S. Austin saith Omnis homo deum habet nec tâ—mâ—n omnis beatus est i. every man hath God in him and yet every man is not in a state of blessednes so there is in every man a natural goodnes for every creature is good and where goodnes is there is God though this natural bonitie may be mixed with a great deale of moral pravitie and the same Spirit of God worketh in all men but yet to several purposes and with several Naz. Orat. 44. operations and in diverse degrees Spiritas spirat quando vult super quos vult quantum vult i The Spirit bloweth when it will and on whom it will so much as it will and though the Spirit of God be alwayes in man yet men doe not alwayes perceive it Aug. Confes. lib. 9. c. 4. Id. n. 88. or consider it S. Austin confessed Christus miserat spiritum in me Ego nesciebam i Christ had sent his Spirit into me and I knew it not and againe he saith â—git Spiritus Domini per bonos malos per Scientes nescientes ut per Caipham i The Spirit of the Lord worketh by good and bad by men that know it and by men that know it not as it did by Caiphas Men may have the Spirit of God and Operations of that Spirit in them and some graces also of that Spirit and yet those graces possibly shall not be operative so high as to Sanctification neither are they such high graces as divines call Gratum facientes But yet graces they are for grace is but a free gift and therfore is it called grace because it is Gratis data i freely given There may be grace in those persons who are not therby rendered favourable gracious or acceptable in Gods sight for even our natural endowments and temporal blessings and our very Creation rightly considered will appeare to be an act of Gods grace and therfore men do usually give thanks to God for their very Creation This doctrine of the great variety of graces and workings of Gods Spirit is most evidently set forth 1 Cor. 12. There are diversities of gifts and diversities of operations but the same Spirit the same Lord the same God And you may find mention of many graces there which are not saving or sanctifying graces but are Common even to reprobates as knowledge healing prophecie toungs c. Which wee know may be and are found in men not Sanctified even the knowledg and skill of manual arts are the operations of Gods Spirit in man which no divine will say are saving or sanctifying graces as wee read of Bâ—zaleel Ex. 35. 31. That he was filled with the Spirit of God in wisedome and in all manner of workmanship to devise Curious workes and to worke in Gold Silvâ—â— and brass Philosophers use to say If heaven stood still man could not move so much as his litle finger but surely if God were not Primus Motor in us to be as the soule of our soules we could not live or move and though God be in man and operateth in him yet his operations are diversified by divers degrees in some he worketh but weakly and low in others higher and stronger even to produce holines and happines but though the Spirit of God be in every man yet this Spirit is not a Sanctifier in every man as he is not Paracletus i a Comforter in every man this doctrine hath bin taught of old by the ancients Deus in est multiformiter Richard de S. Vict. de Trin. l. 2. c. 23. secundum participationem Gratiae aliis per participationem potentiae aliis vita aliis sapientiae aliis bonitatis aliis beatitudinis imanum suam parcius vel largius extendens i God is in us by distributing his graces in great diversitie some partake of power some of life only others have wisdome others goodnes others blessednes for so doth he open his hand more or less as he pleaseth The Spirit of God in Scripture is often resembled to water because as the same water falling from heaven in raine upon several Creatures produceth in them great diversitie and varietie of effects Aqua in spiâ—is alba in rosis rubra in Cyril Hieroâ— n. 18. hyacinthis purpurea i The same raine in the thorne produceth a white flower on the rose bush a red and on the hyacinth a purple Colour So doth the Spirit produce diversitie of effects in men so againe Aqua in Aug. de Mirab. script l. 1. c. 18. vite vinum â—it in apibus mel in Oliva olâ—um i Water in the vine is made wine in the Olive tree Oyl in bees honie in man blood teares c. And the like illustration is used by Epiphanius Chrysost To shew Epiph. in Ane Chrys ho. 4. Antioch that the same Spirit of the same God in some mea produceth but life or understanding in others it produceth those effects and more also as wisdome judgment counsel in others more also as faith hope charitie fortitude even to martyrdome and to blessednes the effect of Gods Spirit in Samson was seen eminently in his great strength in Solomon it was great wisdome in Moses mâ—eknes in the Prophets foresight all these are gifts of one and the same Spirit though in such great varietie and when the Scripture mentioneth divers Spirits as Esa 11. 2 Rev. 1 4 It meaneth severall gifts and graces of one and the same Spirit wee may observe that Elisha 2 Kings 2. 9. did not pray for two Spirits but duplex Spiritus that the same Spirit of Eliah might be doubled on him that is increased
externallie some one act wherby that inward grace was shewed as namely by that one gift of healing mentioned 1 Coâ— 12. 9. Of which I spake in the former chapter I trust it will not be denied to be as it is called v 7. A manifâ—station of the Spirit And for this I shall instance in another heathen Prince who was of no better religion then Cyrus was and that is Vespâ—tian the Roman who in the raigne of Nero and before he was Emperor was imploied in the execution of divine vengeance on the rebellious * vide Paulum Oros lib. 7. c. 1. Iewâ—s and the citie of Ierusalem and for that service it may with great pobabilitie be thought that God gave him the Roman Empiâ—e for his reward as he gave Nebuchaduezzar the Kingdome of Egypt for his service against Tyrâ— as we read Ezâ—ch 29. 18. And that the Empi e was the gift of God to him it seemeth to me probable because it was Prophetically foretold unto him by Iosephus the learned Jew who was then a pâ—â—iâ—t unto whom God had revealed both Vespatian's advancement and also the destruction of the Iewish nation God having appeared to Joseph de bel jud l. 2. lib. 7. him in his sleepe as himself relateth and withall confessed that he feared God was offended with him for labouring to save his nation when he knew God had decreed their 〈◊〉 for this reason I think I may call the said Veâ—â—â—tian Gods anointed as being so cleerly designed by God to that empire and also for that as an effect of his unction Tacâ—us Dion Suetonius doe Tac. hist l. 4. c. 19. Suet. in vesp c. 7. Dion in vesp c. 2. vide Plutarch in vita Pyrrhi p. 384. unanimously report that whilest this Emperor was in Egypt the gift of healing was manifested in him for a blind man was restored to his sight and a lame man was cured by his touch If this prove true in an unregenerate and heathen Prince give me leave good reader a litle to discourse unto thee the like effect of divine unction in a regenerate King the most vertuous and most Christian King this day as I doe firmly beleeve and so doe the greatest number of his subjects in the whole world I meane our owne most gracious King Charles For that the King is Gods anoined was never with us called in question before this sceptick time and God never shewed a greater manifestation of any Kings unction in this nation since the dayes of King Edward the Confessor who was the first of our Kings that by his royal touch cured the disease called the Kings Evil then he hath lately shewed in the person of our most pious and most mercifull King Charles for never were so many in so short a time restored to their health and soundnes as of late by him many hundreds were touched by his sacred hand and as many returned home with health in their bodies and blessings in their soules to their royal physician to the great admiration of many witnesses where of my self am one for to his majesties court at Newmarket Jnue 18. Anno 1647. did I â—end one of my Children a child of 11. yeares old who immediatly before had bin extreamly afflicted and indeed tortured with that disease but having bin there and then touched the next day following he returned home perfectly cured and sound and hath so continued ever since for the space of more then 5 Moneths Blessed be the Lord Jesus who is the author of every good gift and blessed be his anoinred servant in whom his goodnes was so cleerly manifested These things might stop the mouthes of his Majesties most implacable enemies who in print have endeavoured to make the people beleeve that the King is not Gods anointed and might particularly shame them who most unchristianly have called this Gift of healing witchcraft although there is an expresse warrant 1 Cor. 12. 9. for it in the word of God these men without doubt except they repent shall one day be accountable for the sinne of blaspheming God and the King for ascribing that worke to witchcraft and so to Satan which is done both by the Kings hand and with the finger of God assisting his anointed just so did the Pharisees blaspheme Christ when he cast out Satan by the finger of God for they said he cast him out by Belzebub Neither wil it be sufficient to say that the gift of healing was a temporâ—rie grace and now quite expired for it can not be so pâ—oved Gods arme is not shortned for although the ordinarie and frequent use of such divine cures is now abated yet no man can for certaine affirme that the gift is utteriie ceased and for our owne particular case in this kingdome why should we not rather thinke that our merciful God now in these needful times to stop the mouthes of al the enemies of his anointed or at least to leave the obstinate without excuâ—e hath so manifestly shewed and declared him to be indeed his anointed and that these multitudes of Royal cures are as so many lampes manifesting the divine Oile of his unction for so the Royal Pâ—almist bringeth in God â—aying Psal 132. 17. I have ordained a Lamp soâ— mine anointed his enemies will I clothe with shâ—â—â— but upon himself shall his Crowne florish Even so Amen Deus dâ—fendat Opt. lib. 2. Oleum suum Upon himself and his royal posteritie Lord let this Crowne florish as long as the Sun and moone endure CHAP. XVII The Vnion of Christ and his Church further shewed why Christ is called by the names Adam Jacob David Why all mankind was extracted out of One man why S. Austin denied the Antipodes wherin this Vnion consisteth An Explication of Heb. 7. 9. Which was slubbered over by the Commenter touching Melchisedech and Levi. BY what hath bin said the Christian reader I trust doth by this time perceive that our blessed Saviour Jesus Christ with great love justice and equitie did sustaine our person and in our steed and to our behalf did both beare the punishment of our transgressions and also fulfilled the whole law of God for us as our suretie because he was as an Vniversall man in whom all mankind was united The sower leaven of the first Adam had â—owred the whol lump of mankind but the divine Spirit of the second Adam sweetned his whole mystical body for a Spirit us est genitoris Aug. de Trin. l. 6. genitiqae Suavitas i The Spirit is the sweetnes of the Father and the Son and because our true and only God hath assumed both our flesh and our soule also on himself and hath put his Spirit into us therefore he is become one with us mystically and we with him hence it is that Prosper saith Tota ecclesia cum Christo Pâ—osp in I sal 102. capite est unus homo i The whol bodie of the Church with Christ the head is one man
3. therefore any sinne which is perceived to be a sinne not unto death may be prayed for and so pardoned Fourthly let it be observed that the Apostle doâ—h 4. in the next verse set down what he means in this place by sinne for verse 17. All unrighteousness is sinne John 3. 4. and he had said before chap. 3. verse 4. Sinne is the transgression of the Law From whence it may be reasonably collected that any unrighteonsnesse or transgression of the Law or any sinne if it be discerned to be not unto death may be prayed for and possibly pardoned A sinne not unto death How any sinne can be said to Beza in loc be a sinne and yet not unto death is hard to be understood seeing we reade Rom. 6. 23. The wages of sinne is death for any sinne ever so little rendereth us liable to death and is affirmed so by Beza Omtria peccata per se lethaliâ— id est All sinnes in their own nature are deadly Our very lapst nature in Adams mass Originall sinne and our minima peccata there is no sinne so small or unconsiderable but draweth after it the weight of eternall wrath and a thousand times meriteth eternall death Thus he and Calvin very truely saith Omne peccatum per se mortale Calv. instit 2. 8. 59. id est Every sinne in it self is deadly but when the sins of holy men are said to be not unto death and veniall it is because by Gods mercy they obtain pardon and not because the sinnes are of themselves veniall for who doubteth but that in the reprobate all sinnes are sinnes unto death but in the Elect no sinne is unto death Saint Chrysostome observeth upon those words Matthew Chrys de compunct n. 18. 5. 22. Whosoever shall say to his brother Thou fool c. De levioribus dat sententiam ut de gravioribus non dubitare debeas id est Christ pronounced sentence of Hell fire against so small a sinne that no man should doubt what greater sinnes deserve Again there are very grand and capitall sinnes which yet in some persons are sinnes not unto death as Galathians 5. 19. Adultery Murther Drunkennesse Seditions Heresies Idolatrie c. of which it is there said They that do such things shall not inherit the Kingdome of God and yet we know that some of the Patriarks and many converted from Heathenisme hath committed these sinnes but obtained pardon and shall inherit the Kingdome of Heaven Noahs excesse Davids adultery the Corinthians incest Peters deniall and the Iewes denying and crucifying the holy One and Pauls persecuting the Church all and every of these sinnes in those penitent and Elect vessels were sinnes not unto death This I think will not be denied Not unto death But why are some mens sinnes called not unto death when the very same speciall sins in other men are indeed sinnes unto death The Poet murmured at such a thing Committunt eadem diverso Crimina fato Juven sat 13. Ille crucem sceleris precium tulit hic Diadema For many sins and very capitall ones are common both to the Reprobates and to the Elect and yet in the Elect and the same sin is not unto death which in the Reprobate is unto death The answer is that our Apostle calls that sin a sin not unto death which is confessed repented forsaken and amended before our death or departure out of this life when a man doth not obdurately continue and persevere in his sin untill his death but forsaketh it in his life-time so that the leaving of his sin and amendment of life may be seen by his brother for how else shall a brother see that the sin is not unto death but by the sinners leaving it desisting from and amending it as by ceasing from adultery rebellion oppression and the like for so the Apostle telleth the Corinthians such as these were some of yee but yee are washed but yee are sanctified 1 Cor. 6. 11. So that sinnes not unto death are not so called from the nature or merit of sin but from the circumstance of the time or person sinning and desisting Fot as is said Every sin is mortall deadly and unto death eternall if we look onely on the merit of sin but every sin though the most grand and capitall sin is not unto death if it be repeated of and left before the departure of the soul from the body So the gloss expoundeth this place Non ad mortem Id est non usque ad mortem i. A sin not unto death is when the sin is not continued in untill the time of death and of David it saith David sinned not unto death for he repented and obtained pardon so that the same sin in one man not repenting produceth damnation when in another it is pardoned upon repentance Neither do we hereby assert any Stoicall f Amb. n. 33. Novatian or g Aug. n. to 6. habes Sardos venales alium alio nequiorem â—ul Epist 125 Iovinian equalitie of sinnes For although no sinne may well be called bettet then another because all are naught yet one is worse then another Of two ill painted pieces one asked uter detâ—rior est i. which is worst and of two evill things in the Comedy it is said h Plaut in Aulular Act. 2. sce â— Alia aliâ pejor est optima nulla est i. one is worse then another neither can be called best i. i Aug. cont mendac c. 8. n. 77. Furum non est ideâ— quisquam bonus quia pejor est unus i One thief is worse then another yet no thief is therefore good Sin in generall is k Bafil n. 5. Proles Diaâ—osi and l Theod. n. 13. mater mortis m Chrys n. 59. grandis Damon peccatum i. the braâ— of the Devil the mother of death and it self is a Devil and so is called in the Gospel yet sins are of severall growths and degrees For therefore are there severall degrees of torments in hell apportioned to the degrees of sins There is a sin as a moâ—e and as a beam and a Camel so there are stripes many stripes weeping wailing gnashing of teeth worm fire and brimstone the damned shall be bound up in bundles according to the likenesse and degrees of their sins and every bundle shall have its just portion as we read of that particular portion of Hypocrites It is a memorable and a terrible observation which Origen makes upon that saying Numb 14. 34. where for one sin in one day a whole year of punishment is apportioned If for every sinne of ours a whole year of Orig. in loc hom 8. punishment shall be allotted I fear that neither the duration of this world nor the eternitie of the next world will be long enough to end ouâ— torments Let us not therefore flatter our selves wâ—th the conceit of a little or a veniall sinne as if such deserved not death for
the very least sin is liable to eternall death except it be confessed and in this life in some measure repented But I proceed CHAP. XVII Whas is meant by a sin unto death the judgment of the Fathers and the Ancient expositdrs therein and the discipline of the primitive Church therunto correspondent that the greatest sins both have bin actuallie and so may be pardoned in what sence the Fathers called some sins venial and some Mortal THere is a sinne unto death I do not say he shall pray for it If any words in the whole sacred Scripture will bear this exposition and make good this Doctrine That there is any sinne at all which once committed cannot possibly upon any terms or condition whatsoever be remitted not upon confession or repentance and forsaking and renouncing it and after it adhering to Gods Truth and his Precepts and that even to death and martyrdome nor upon all these together This saying is most likely to bear it A sinne unto death and not to be prayed for which words require a very diligent Explication being of so great weight and concernment Lord Jesus send thy Light and thy Truth A sinne unto death This sin unto death I conceive not to be intended of any particular sin whether it be absolute Atheisme or the blasphemy of Arâ—us denying the Godhead of Christ or of Eunâ—mius denying the Holy Ghost or totall Apostacie from Christianity or Adultery Idolatry witchcraft murther sedition or any of these grand sins mentioned Gal. 5. 19. such as the Fathers do usually â—in som sence call sins Mortall Mortiferous and Capitall My reason is because it may be made apparant by Scriptures and the Records of the Church that particular men who have sinned these sins severally have bin by Gods mercy and his castigations reduced to renounce their errours and to forsake their sins For many of those sins were seen in King Manasses 2 Chron 33. Who yet was converted and humbled himself greatly and God was intreated and we know that many Heathens Atheists Apostates and â—rrians have Paulinus in vita Ambrosii n. 3. Athan. to 2 page 448. n. 17. bin reduced to Confession of their sins and to repentance of their Arrianismâ— and those who have not bin actually reduced yet during their naturall lives were in a condition reducible if grace sufficient and prevalent had bin given so that their conversion was not absolutely impossible Beza finding fault with distinction of sinnes into Beza in loâ— veâ—iall and mortall as the Schoolmen sometimes use it for which he had good reason affirmeth that it is absurd to say that mortall sins are utterly left without all hope of pardon and yet he thinketh the sinnâ— unto death here meâ—tioned to be that sinne against the holy Ghost and that it is lethiferous and that the commitrers thereof cannot possibly repent which I dare not assent unto but yet he most truly affirmeth that if those who have once committed that sinne against the Holy Ghost would and could repent Certè veniam consequerentur i. certainly they would and might obtain pardon Thus he Vnto death The old Exposition of the Fathers and ancient Expositors surely is the truest and plainest and being received will quit us of many unnecessary doubts and anxiâ—tics and is most agreeable with the Analogie of Faith particularly with the Article of forgivâ—nâ—sse of sinnes and coâ—respondeth best with the justice and mercifulnesse of God for thus they write A sinne unto death is any grand or capitall sinne such as is before mentioned out of Gal. 5. 19. in which a man liveth continueth and dieth impenitently And that it is therefore onely so called a sinne unto death because it is obdurately and impenitently continued and persevered in unto the end of our life and expiration of our souls So Oâ—cumâ—nius saith Solum hoc peccatum ad mortem Oâ—â—um in loc est quod ad paeâ—tentiam non respicit id est Onely that sinne is a sinne unto death which never is repented Beda â—n loc And Beda saith Peccaâ—um ad morâ—em peccatum usque ad tempora mortis protractum diximus râ—cte posse intelligi est de tali magno peccato quale David commisit si proâ—ractum sit usque ad mortem id est A sinne unto death may truely be understood of a sinne continued in untill the time of our death such a great sinne as David committed if we persevere in it till death So doth Saint Hierome understand it Peccâ—tum ad Hier. in Evag. objurg n. 41. moâ—tem est cum tempus râ—â—â—ssionis in vitio inueniâ— id est A sinne unto death is when death cometh and findeth us continuing in sin So doth Saint Austine expound this very Text Peccatum Aug. Retract l. 1. c. 19. ad morâ—â—m est si in hac perversitate finierit â—anc uiâ—â—m id est The sinne unto death is when a man continueth in sinne obstinately and therein endeth his life and in another place he just so expounds the sin against the holy Ghost which shall never be forgiven Non absurde intelligunt â—um peccare in Spiritum â—sse sine Aug. de fide oper c. 16. n. 79. venia reum aeterni peccati qui usque ad finem vitae â— oluerit credere in Christum id est It is no inconvenience â—o understand it thus that he sinneth against the Holy Spirit and shall not be forgiven for ever who will not at all believe in Christ as long as he liveth Just so Lyra and both glossâ—s expound it Ad mortalem i. usque ad morâ—em vitae quod in hac vitâ— non corrigitur est finalâ—s impaenitentia si quis perseveret in eo usque ad finem vitae inclusivè i. unto death signifies to the end of our life natural that sin which is not amended in this life it is finall impenitencie when a man persevereth in sin unto the end of his life inclusively not repenting at the time of his departure but dieth impenitent By all which it appeareth that in the judgement of these Expositors the sin unto death is some of those grand sins in which a man liveth and dieth impenitently and that it is not called the sin unto death in respect of the sin it self but for the sinneâ—s continuance therein unto his death for the same sin which in one man is a sin unto death and shall never be forgiven in another man proves a sin not unto death but is repented of and so is pardoned that this is the judgment of St. Austin I have divers times shewed before and especially in that place alleaged by me before pag. 201. cap. 14. whâ—reafter after a long discourse concerning the sin called the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit he concludeth That no sin against Vide supra â— 14. the Holy Ghost is unpardonable but only in case a man doth obstinately persevere in it without any hope or desire of pardon or care of
13. 13. and 1 Corinthians 14. 47. The second man is the Lord from Heaven Thus did some of the old Hereticks believe as the l Basil n. 37. Valentinians and m Naz. n. 34. Apollinarius n Aug. to 6. n. 9 the Manichees and o Epiph haer Apelles said that Christ made himselfe a body of the Elements and did not take it from Marie And this they professed in a pretended honour 44. of Christ p Aug. to 6. n. 10. Iusipienti honorificentia as Saint Augustine calleth it id est foolishly thinking thereby to honour Christ and this was also one of the Tenents of the late Anabaptists as we finde in the sixteenth Centurie Now to affirme these things is to gainsay the Doctrine and promise of Redemption by the seed of the woman and the promised seed of Abraham and the sonne of David for Christ is not from their loyns if his body came from Heaven and although a simple well meaning soul should live and die in this errour who hath alwayes adhered to the main principall Doctrine viz. God in Christ and God incaruate believing Vide supra lib. 3. cap. 10. 11. that Christ performed the Law actively for him and also suffered death on the Crosse for him in a body howbeit not in such a body as descended from Adam shall we affirm that such a misbeliever must necessarily perish I answer that I dare not so pronounce because this sinfull and erroneous conceit of the incarnation is at most but one of these sinnes which our Saviour called A word spoken against the Sonne of Man Matthew 12. 32. For it is onely against this humane nature and no blasphemy against his Holy and Divine Spirit or Godhead and of such sinnes he saith It shall be forgiven him viz. If such a sinner with an humble heart make an acknowledgement and general confession of his secret and unknown sinnes wherein this will be included so as is before said with a resolution to decline any thing that he knowes to be sinfull so much as by assistance of Gods Grace he can still holding himself close to the main foundation which the forenamed old Hereticks did not but vented many blasphemies against the Divine Nature and also polluted themselves with many fowle Morall vices I say when Jesus Christ hath said It shall be forgiven how dare any Man presume to say It shall never be forgiven For although the Erroneous conceits of Christs Body comming down from Heaven doe disturb the Order of Gods dispensation and the congruitie of the work of Redemption and correspondence thereof with the words of the Covenant yet it doth not take away and root up the foundation This doth not un-God our Redeemer nor deny utterly the gracious work of Mans Redemption So as this most blasphemous Commentarie hath none which I now together with my weak endeavours in opening the dangerous Doctrines thereof leave and submit to the censure of the learned and to the namelesse Anthor thereof I say of both our Writings as Saint Cyprian did Cyp. lib. 4. Epist 9. to Paptanus In die judicii ante Tribunal Christi utrumque recitabitur To God the Father God the Son God the Holy Ghost three Persons one onely God be ascribed all honour and glory for ever and ever Amen Qualitèr haeretici pro falsae opinione in die judicii puniendi sunt nullus potest scire nisi Judex patiens est Deus quia affectis piae opinionis errant Salvian degub l. 5. p. 163. FINIS THE TABLE Of the Contents of each several CHAPTER THE FIRST BOOK Containing General Animadversions upon the Commentarie and Commenter and the assertion of the Souls Immortalitie Chapter I. CErinthus Artemon Theodotus and Page 1. Natalis Authors and spreaders of the blasphemie of the denying Christ's Godhead The Divine warning of Natalis That after these Paulus Samosatenus and Arius were maintainers of the same Heresie The spreading of it in severall parts of the known world even in our Britain That it was here discovered in Queen Maries dayes And punished by fire in the reign of Queen Elizabeth and of King James That the same is now revived by this Commenter the qualitie of G. M. who negotiated in the Printing and publishing this Commentary Chapter II. That the Commenter though he carefully concealed Page 4 his own name yet caused this his Book to be presented to divers persons of quality That this Commenter is the first that ever published this Heresie in our English Print Three reasons conceived why he concealeth his own name Chapter III. Of the licensing of this Comment the Licensers Page 7 censure of it and an Apologie for him in that he called this Commentarie a Comment and in his letter to an honourable Person declared it to be erroneous The copy of the Letter a parallel passage of Libanius concerning Julian and the Manichees concerning their Founder Manes the ancient practice of burning such hereticall books Chapter IV. The Commenters compliance in unsainting the Page 10 Apostles The reason why the Title of Saint was of old withdrawn from Churches by the decree of a Council That the abuse of images occasioned it and yet that the Title of Saint was not denied to the persons of Holy men Of his condemning Tombes Something concerning Hypocrisie in long hair and short Of the reason of the Nazarites long hair and the hypocrisie of their imitators Chapter V. The Commenters compliance with the old Arians Page 15 The judgement of the Ancients concerning the Authour of the Epistle to the Hebrewes A Vindication of Eusebius concerning the words Homo ousion and Homoi ousion and also of the Nicene Fathers falsly charged by the Commenter as if they favoured his own Heresie How the Father and the Sonne are said to be Opposite and yet both are but one God The Commenters Errour in the Logicall Doctrine of Relatives Chapter VI. That this Commenters principall designe was by Page 16 his pretended Commentarie to darken and extenuate or confute the clear Evidences of this Divine Epistle onely because therein are many great Testimonies of Christ's Godhead That herein he imitateth the practices of the old Hereticks Marcion Valentinus and the Manichees The Commenters misexpounding Hebrewes 1. 6. in allowing Divine Adoration to Christ and yet will not acknowledge him to be more then a creature and in applying the appellation Jehova to one whom he denieth to be the Supream God contrarie to Psalme 83. 18. what prostration signifieth Chapter VII That this Commenter mis-expoundeth Hebrewes Page 21 2. 2 3. That the Gospel is therefore preferred before the Law in that the Gospel was delivered by God himself immediately for it was delivered by Christ himself who is the Supream and onely God whereas the Law was delivered indeed by the same God but mediately by the Ministery of Angels or Creatures A true Exposition of Acts 7. 53. and of Gal. 3. 19. and Exodus 20. 21. Moses and Paul reconciled That
Saint Austine therein and the Authors submission thereof to the Reader That because God was to be Incarnate only in the Person of the Sonne and not in the Person of the Father therefore the ancient Fathers said that God was seen in the Person of the Sonne onely and not in the Person of the Father Chapter VII The Incarnation of the Sonne of God is shewed against Page 22 the Commenter That a meer Man may be said to be Incarnate and so may Christ be truly said and much rather because the soul of Man may exist without a body and the Godhead of Christ really did exist from Eternitie without a Body untill his assumption of a temporary shape and his Incarnation in an ever durable Body That the Scripture calleth him that denieth Christs Incarnation a deceiver and an Antichrist Chapter VIII That the Son of God was to be Incarnate necessarily Page 27 by vertue of the Covenant although God could have saved Man by his Power without the Incarnation Of that curious question viz. What God did before the Creation That God was never solitarie though alwaies but One. Of the Everlasting or Eternall Covenant between the Persons of the Father and the Sonne before the world Chapter IX Of the Covenant between God and Man divers Page 33 times renewed The first words of the Covenant about the Tree of Knowledge before the fall The second words of bruising the Serpents head since the fall The same Covenant with Abraham and afterwards with Moses in more words The outward signes of the Covenant viz. Sacrifices circumcision Tabernacle and Leviticall rites That the Legall and Evangelicall Covenant are but one The words of the Evangelicall Covenant Why it is called a new Covenant the Covenant of Grace and of works a better Covenant and a Testament of Christs suretie ship The reason why Christ was circumcised and Baptized Chapter X. That as our state condition now standeth Page 38 man cannot be redeemed and saved but through the Incarnation Obedience and death of the Sonne of God That our salvation is not wrought by the request and verball intreatie of Christ nor by the power onely of God without satisfaction of his Justice The distinction between Christs satisfaction and his merit How Gods just Sentence was fully executed on man and his Law perfectly performed by man Chapter XI That Christ was a Person fitly qualified to stand Page 41 in stead of all Mankind The mutuall unity of Christ and Mankind in that Christ tâ—oke his flesh from Man and Man received the Spirit from Christ That from this mutuall unity it is that Christs Obedience both Active Passive with great justice and equitie may be imputed to Mankind Chapter XII What interest the unregenerate man hath in Page 54 Christ That the Divine Spirit of Christ is communicated to the unregenerate and therewith some common graces That the Doctrine of the Church declareth the benefit of Christs death to be offered to all men good and bad That God is essentially present in every creature though not commugnicating his sanctifying Grace to every one The Stoicks error concerning the souls of Men. Apollinarius his Heresie concerning the soul of Christ Chapter XIII The Heresie of Valentinus and others concerning Page 59 the Body of Christ compared with the Heresie of Apollinarius concerning Christs Soul That the Arguments proving the derivation of the flesh of Christ from mans body do as well prove the traduction of his soul That the soul of man by nature is Carnall The doctrine of the Church of England doth not clearly determine the originall of Christs soul That if the traduction of souls be granted it will argue a greater nearness and conjunction of God and Man Chapter XIV The question of the propagation of the soul of Page 63 Christ and of other mens souls discoursed the difficultie thereof shewed out of Saint Austine and his inclination and reasons to believe traduction rather then a dayly new creation of souls The judgement of the Western Church herein alledged by Saint Hierome That the opinion of Traduction is not inconsistent with Christian Faith But if it be granted it argues a nearer relation between Christ and us then otherwise the Author leaves it undetermined with submission to the judicious Reader Chapter XV. The Ubiquitie of the Spirit of Christ Of the Page 67 diversitie of the Graces thereof In what degree and measure the Spirit with its common Graces is communicated to men unregeneraâ—e How the one Spirit of God is in Scripture represented as if there were more then one how it is said to be withdrawn or not yet given when it is alwayes present That the union of God and man is hence concluded Chapter XVI That the presence of the Spirit doth not alwayes Page 71 sanctifie is proved from the unction of Heathen Kings How such are called Gods annointed though they were not ceremonially annointed with oyl of Christs Vnction and the appellation of Christians Vespatians touching and curing the infirm thereby The King of Englands cures and unction Of the gift of healing mentioned 1 Cor. 12. 9. Whether it be utterly ceased Chapter XVII The union of Christ and his Church further Page 76 shewed Why Christ is called Adam David and Jacob Why all mankind was extracted out of one man Why Saint Austine denied that there were any Antipodes The difference between Christs union with all mankind and his more speciall union with his Church An Exposition of Heb. 7. 9. Touching the difference of Levi and Christ who were both in the loins of Abraham which place is purposely obscured by the Commenter The Table THE FOURTH BOOK Containing a discussion of this Question Whether the blasphemie of denying Christs Godhead which is the sin against the holy Spirit be absolutely unpardonable with full Expositions of certain Scriptures in the Hebrewes and other places which concern that sin Chapter I. THe question stated The judgement of Page 1 some late Divines therein and their grounds That to affirm it absolutely unpardonable seemeth derogatory to the infinite mercy of God in Christ and the grace of repentance The efficacie of true repentance Chapter II. That this sinne possibly may be pardoned upon Page 5 the sinners repentance That Gods threatnings are not to be understood as absolute but as conditionall That therefore his threatnings are not alwayes executed and yet his Truth not violated That threatnings are intended for provocations to repentance an observation upon Theodosius The judgement of the Fathers concerning those threatnings Chapter III. That the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit or Page 8 God-head of Christ is then onely unpardonable when it is accompanied with finall impenitencie a short Exposition of Matth. 12 31. Chapter IV. Whether the grace of repentance be absolutely denied Page 11 to those who have once sinned this sin The judgement of some Divines herein A full Exposition begun of Heb. 6. 4. concerning final impenitencie That the word inlightned is there meant of