IT must be the cheifest care of all that would be happy, to know God, The cheifest happinesse of man is to know God. Joh. 17.3. which is the cheifest happinesse of all; and therefore our Savi­our saith, That this is eternall life, to know him to be the onely true God, and whom he hath sent, Jesus Christ: Yet the misery of mans nature is so great, that whereas it was created to the bright knowledge, and even the ve­ry image of God, it is fallen so far, as it is not onely ignorant who, and what God is, but also maketh dis­putation, whether there be any God in Heaven or no; who hath care o­ver the World and humane affaires; as Ovid confesseth of himselfe,Ovid Amor. l. 3. Eleg. 8. Solli­citor nullos esse putare Deos. And in­deed it is very sad and dreadfull, that [Page 2] these sollicitations and suggestions of Satan have prevailed, not only with diverse of the Heathens, but also with many Christians, even in these our dayes, which as Justin Martyr ob­serveth,Justin Martyr in dial. cum Tryph. p. 153. Vide etiam Theodoret. de Provident. Ser. 1. to. 2. p. 576. Psal. 14 1. are so called, and yet are nullius numinis cultores, no better in­deed then plaine Atheists, though not such, as Diagoras and Theodorus that did plainly deny all Deity, but such as the Prophet David speaks of, that say in their hearts, There is no God, because they cannot see him: yet let all such fools, Atheists, Hea­thens, and wicked persons know, that they err and are deceived,Matth. 22.29. Exod. 33.20 Joh. 1.18. Joh. 4.24. not know­ing the Scriptures. No man can see God and live: No man hath indeed seen God at any time with the bodily eye (and yet there is a God) who as he will be worshipped with the worship of the spirit spiritually, so will he be seen with the eyes of the spirit inwardly. Thou hast a soule and yet thou seest it not, there is a winde and yet thou perceivest it not. So there is a God though thou see him not. The which to averr (con­trary to the fools saying,Gen. 1.1. Deut. 4.35. & 6.4. Atheists living, Heathens worshipping, and [Page 3] wicked persons thinking) there are in generall six things that do mani­festly and apparently prove that there is an everlasting and incompre­hensible One, to wit, Elohim, El, 1 Cor. 8.6. Psal. 83.18. & 86.10. Psal. 68.4: E­jeth, Shaddai, Jah, Jehovah, God a­lone in persons three, but in essence onely one, 1 Joh. 5.7.

1. Gods Works of Creation, Psal. 19.1 Rom. 1.20. which is a long Volume, and especially a­bove all the rest, the Soule of Man breathed by God into him.

2. The Word of the Lord, the holy Bible, being a briefe Compendium, wherein thou mayst read of Gods na­ture and being.

3. The Incarnation of the Son of God, an ingraven Table,Heb. 2.16. in which thou shalt see God himselfe manifest­ed in the flesh of man.

4. The Consent of all Nations, who worship any God rather then no God: for there is no Nation so barba­rous, but it beleives that there is some Divinity; or holds opinion that there must needs be an Essence or a first ef­ficient cause, the producer of all things else whatsoever; because the vertue of the God-head hath such powerfull efficacy, that it very mani­festly [Page 4] declares it selfe, to all such as have the least taste of reason.

Exod. 8.19. Rom. 2.15. Dan. 4.4. &. 5.6.5. The Terrours of Conscience, which maketh the most ungodly mis­creants, will they nill they, to ac­knowledge him, and to tremble at his judgments sent upon them.

Prov. 16.33.6. His Power in sustaining, his Providence in maintaining, his Love in correcting, his bounty in promis­ing, his faithfulnesse in performing, his grace in giving, and his mercy in taking away, maketh the faithfull to confesse him, and in all his proceed­ings to justifie his wisedome.

So that we may plainely see God left not himselfe without witnesse suf­ficient at all times, and in every place, to prove unto every one that there is a God: And seeing Atheists beleeve not the Scriptures, we have more te­stimonies then them to testifie the same.

Acts 14.17.Search among all the Precepts of the Heathens, and you shall find this was their cheifest lesson, [...], know God. Take the testimo­nies of the wisest men and of the sharpest apprehensions in the world, whom Plutarch distinguisheth to be [Page 5] either Philosophers,Plutarch in amat to. 3. mo­ral. p. 416. Law-givers or Poets, & hi omnes uno ore dicunt De­um esse, and all these with one voice, do say that There is a God. Plato de legi­bus l. 10. Plato not only saith it, but also confirmeth it by many invincible reasons.

Aristotle, though a man,Aristotle in l. de mundo p. 1566. & in l. 1. Me­taph. to. 2. c. 2. p. 1371. saith Grotius, not very credulous in this kind; yet we find in his later works, he doth most plainely affirme God to be the cause, and the beginning of all things, and in his last booke of natu­rall Philosophie, after he had written five afore (of eight that hee writ in all) only of Motions and the affecti­ons of it,Molinaeus de cognit. de [...]p. 8. S. 17. he doth end his last Booke in the First Mover, who is immove­able; for seeing all things that are moved, are moved by some one thing, and that again by another, and so forward, it must needs follow that in such a chain of Motionary things, because wee cannot proceed to what is infinite; we must needs stay at one first mover, who though he moveth all things yet is himself immoveable. Zeno which Cicero calleth the Father of the Stoicks, doth not only affirme that there is a God; but saith fur­ther, Ʋnum Deum esse, ipsumque & [Page 6] mentem & fatum & Jovem multis­que aliis appellari nominibus, Cicero de Nat. Deor. l. 3. D. Laertius in vitae Zenon. that there is but one God, which is some­times called by one name, and some­times by another: And Epicurus, Quem nihil pudendum pudet, tamen Deum negare pudet; Mornoeus de verit. relig. c. 1. who was not a­shamed of any shamefull thing, yet was he ashamed to deny that there is a God, as Du-Plessis saith.

2. The Law-givers affirme there is a God,Plut. to. 3. cont. colot. moral. p. 532. for Plutarch saith, that in Con­stitutione legum, facilius [...]rbem condi sine solo, quam civitatem coire sine Re­ligione, in the making of their Lawes, it is not so impossible for a man to build a City without a foundation, as it is for him to gather and guide his Citizens without Religion; and therefore all the ancient Law-givers gave it out among their people, that they composed their Lawes by the assistance of some one or other of the Gods,Diodor. Sicul. [...]. 1. c. 5. as Menes, the Law-giver of the Egyptians, from Mercury; Mi­nos, the Law-giver of the Cretians, from Jupiter, Lycurgus, the Law-gi­ver of the Lacedemonians, from A­pollo; Zaleucus, the Law-giver of the Locrians, from Minerva; and so all [Page 7] the rest derive their Lawes from their Gods: And no wonder; because as Job saith,Job 36 22. Nullus est similis in Legis-Latoribus, there is none like him a­mongst all the Law-givers, nay he is the Only Law-giver which is able to save and to destroy, James 4 12 Prov. 8.15. as Saint James testifieth; and God himself saith, By me Kings do raigne, and Princes de­cree Justice: And therefore Plato saith, It is not man but God, Qui le­gum condendarum est causa, Plato de leg. l. 1 which is the cause of making all good Lawes.

3. The Poets teach there is a God, for it is a common thing with them all. A Jove principium, to begin their Workes with the invocation of the Gods, as Ovid saith, ‘— Dij ceptis —’

Aspirate meis — O Gods I crave your help to assist me in this my work; and Manilius saith,Ovid Me [...]. l. 1. that Caelo carmen descendit ab alto: Manilius l. 1. the whole faculty of Poets depended more upon a Divine Incitation, then any humane gift or art [...]ciall instru­ction, and therefore Martiall in his scoffing vain saith of Cicero,

That he was no Poet because he wan­ted Apollo's helpe

Now I have given you the Testi­monies of Philosophers, Law-givers, and Poets, I proceed next to the te­stimony of every mans Conscience, and especially of all or most wicked men, that continually affright them for their odious facts, doth suffici­ently shew unto them that there is a God, which will one day call them to a strict account for all their wicked Deeds; for there is an imbred fear of God in all mens hearts, and accor­ding as they live vertuously or vici­ously, so is this fear augmented or di­minished;Cicero de Nat. Deorum l. 1. Quis enim non timeat om­nia providentem, & cogitantem, & ad se omnia pertinere putantem De­um? For who can choose but fear a Provident, remembring, and an all observing God, that professeth all things to belong to himselfe? and therefore every one that is adicted to Vice, is many times afraid at the sha­king of a leafe. And although in the course of his Prosperity he shakes off all thought of God; yet in any sud­den Danger, he will cry out, O God, [Page 9] and crave his assistance to be releived whom in all his former actions hee prophanely despised.

Moreover, let us consider the End, and the Cause efficient of all Creatures. Doth not Experience tell us, that every thing brought forth in Nature hath a peculiar end, by Nature the Bird is directed to build her Nest, and the Fox to make his Den: Now the Philosopher asketh here, what thing is that that direct­eth Nature her self, seeing each thing must have somewhat to direct it to its end? And no answer can be made, but that the Director of Nature must be something above Nature, which is God himselfe. This argument of the finall end, is most excellently handled by Phylo Judeus in his learned Treatise of the work­manship of the World.Phylo lib. de Opific. mund. Concerning the Cause efficient, the Philosophers dispute thus, It is evident by all reason, in respect of the Corruptions, Alterations, and perpetuall Moti­ons of all Creatures, that this world had a beginning,Vide Plutar. de Pla. Phylos. and all excellent Philosophers that ever were have a­greed thereupon, except Aristotle, [Page 10] who for a time held a fantasie,Aristot. lib. De Mund. that the world had no beginning, but was from all Eternity; albeit at last in his old age, he confessed the contrary in his book to King Alexander. This then being so, that this World had a Beginning, it must needs follow also, that it had an Efficient cause, now then is the question, Who is that effi­cient cause that made the World? if you say that it made it self, it is ab­surd, for how could it have power to make it selfe before it selfe was, and before it had any being at all? if you say, that something within the world made the world, that is, that some one part thereof made the whole, this is more absurd; for it is as if a man should say, that the finger (and this before it was a finger) or part of the body, did make the whole body. Wherefore we must confess by force of this Argument, that God is the Efficient cause that made the World.

A Maxime in Metaphisick. Aristot. lib. 8. Metaphis. ca. 2.Yet further, The Philosopher in his Metaphisicks, saith, That every thing which is by Participation, must be reduced and referred to some other thing, that is not by participation, [Page 11] but of it self, as for Example, Water, or any thing else that is heated by the Fire, is hot by participation, and not of it self. And therefore is redu­ced (concerning its heate) to the heat of the Fire, as to its Originall: Now then (saith the Philosopher in his Metaphisicks) we see by expe­rience, that all the creatures and Parts of this World, are things by Participation only, and therefore they must of necessity be referred to some higher cause that is infinite in perfection, and consisteth of it selfe alone without participation from o­thers: And this is God, who being Absolute, Endlesse, and without all limitation of perfection in himselfe, deriveth from his own incomprehen­sible infinitenesse, certaine limited Natures and perfections to every creature; which perfections in crea­tures, are nothing else but little Par­ticles, and Participations of the Bot­tomlesse Sea of Perfections in the Creatour, whereunto they are to be referred and reduced, as the Beame to the Sun, and the Brooke to the Fountain.

I might here accumulate many [Page 12] arguments more, which prove to e­very man that there is a God, but I do not this to satisfie the doubting minds of wicked Atheists, that be­leeve there is no God; because I think such deserve rather to be Exe­cuted by the Tormentor, then instru­cted by any Philosopher, but wee bring these things to shew how far they are beyond excuse, that having so many arguments before their eyes to prove that there is a God, will not­withstanding not glorifie him as God; Rom 1.21. and therefore, as by the operation of our Soules, we do know that we have Soules though we see them not; so by the workes of God in our selves, and in all things else we do assuredly beleive, and most certainly know, there is a God, though our blind eyes cannot see this great light; and though the negligence of the Hea­thens, and their wickedness that blin­ded all their light, which Nature had ingrafted in their Soules, made them multitudes of Gods, that in Hesiods time they amounted to the number of thirty thousands; yet to us that are guided by the light of Gods Word, and are inspired with the Gra­ces [Page 13] of Gods Spirit to beleeve that word, it is most apparent that there is but One God; and this,Deut. 6.4.32.39. Isa. 44.6. 1 Cor. 8.4. not only the Scriptures, but also Reason it self can make it plain. For,

If there should be many Gods, it must needs then ensue as an espe­ciall Maxime, that they must needs be all alike, or different in their pow­ers. If they be all alike, or equall, why then they can be but all as One: For Dissimilitude maketh the diver­sity of things only.

But if there were many Gods differing in their equality; it is ap­parent that they could not justly be called Gods, if there be any imperfe­ction in one, more then is in the o­ther.A note worthy observation. For hee that is Absolute and most perfect, must needs be God, in regard there is no imperfection found in him, and then, the other (being impotent or imperfect) can­not be termed Gods, but must needs submit their utmost power, to the others perfect priviledge: It is ne­cessary therefore that there should be but One God only, (as in very truth) there is no more then one; who is the sole Beginning of all [Page 14] things; and yet notwithstanding hath no beggining or ending.

Anselm. in lib. De Memb. Dei.If any man (saith Anselme) do beleive that God hath Humane mem­bers and Motions, or Perturbation of Soule as we have, assuredly hee doth but forge meer Idoll [...] in his Heart. And therefore we are to know that such phrase and manner of Lan­guage in the sacred Scriptures, is pro­perly used to make our rude and dull understanding the more apprehensive of the unspeakeable Majesty of God. For he being invisible, and yet wil­ling to manifest himselfe unto his People, doth accommodate his pre­sence to men, by an Analogie of such things as are most frequent and fa­miliar to them. For Example,

And he is sayd to

So that whatsoever is attributed to God, must evermore be interpre­ted spiritually;Damas. in 1. & 2. cap. de fide Orthodox. as Damascene very well declareth in these words, Multa igitur quae ad Deum spectant tenui quadam & obscura cognitione percipi­untur commode, & proprie nequeunt efferri. Itaque loquentes de iis quae supra nos sunt, cogimur uti verbis no­bis congruentibus. Ex quo fit ut Deo [Page 19] & somnum, & iram, & securitatem, & manus, & pedes, & alia ejusmodi tribuamus. There are many things which concerne God, that insignifi­cation doe carry an obscure con­struction, and cannot properly be delivered. Wherefore, in speaking of those which are above us, we strive to use apt and congruent words to our capacity, whereby ensueth, [...]. that sleepe, anger, ease, hands, feete, and other such like, may seeme to be ascribed unto God.

We finde also in the sacred Scrip­tures many Epithets and Appellations answerabe to the manifold effects of his power, rule, and Divinity. His Epithets are, Almighty, Strong, Exod. 6.3. Matth. 1 7. Psal. 86.10. Jam. 1.17. Deut. 7.21. & 10.17. 1. Tim. 1.11. Gen. 21.33. Psal. 31.2. Isa. 42.13. Isa. 28.5. Isa. 42.14. Hos. 13.7. Hos. 11.10. Deut. 32.11. Lam. 3.10. Job. 16.4. Great, Ʋchangeable, Dreadfull, Ter­rible, Wronderfull, Blessed, Everlast­ing, Favourable, Eternall, Faithfull, Gracious, Good, Holy, Jealous, Invi­sible, Just, Mercifull, Pittifull, Righ­teous, True, uncorruptible, Incompre­hensible, most Powerfull, &c. He is compared unto a strong Rock, a man of Warr, a Diadem of Beauty, and unto a woman Travelling. He is also compared unto a Leopard, a Lyon, an Eagle, a Beare, a Gyant, and a [Page 20] Moth, Hos. 5.12. and he is compared unto a righteous Father, a strong Lord, a Law-giver, a righteous Judge, a Cart pressed downe, a Counsellor, a freind, a House of defence, a lender, a mighty man, a Mother, a Purifier, a Purger, and a Refiner of Gold, &c. Lastly his Appellations are as followeth,

Moreover, It is observed, that al­most all Nations do write and pro­nounce the name of (God) with four Letters.A remarkable note. He is called in Hebrew [...] [...] Jehovah, In which word there are con­tained all the Vowells, a.e.i.o.u. with­out some of which no word can be spoken, no name can be uttered; and that in it there is nothing but Vowels, excepting h, which is no letter, but the aspiration of the word; to note unto us, that as the Vowels, together with the aspiration, are the Life, and, as it were, the Soule of every word; so is Jehovah, the Lord God, the very Life, and being, as it were, of every creature that can be named; because that of him, and for him, Rom. 11 36. and through him, are all things. Non quod illa sunt, quod ipse est, sed quia ex ipso sunt; Not that they are the same that he is, [Page 24] but because they have their existence and perfection from him,Bern. in Cant. Ser. 4. as Bernard saith, God is called in Greek [...], à currendo, of running; Quod ubique dum opus sit accurrat, adsit, opemque ferat; sive ab urendo, quod improbos habitus comburat, quando, ex ea re & ignis consumens dicitur. That every where (while need re­quireth) he runneth, is there pre­sent, and giveth helpe: or else of Burning, that he will burn the dwel­ling of the wicked, when he is said to be a Consuming fire to them. The La­tines breaking the Greek word, in­stead of [...], say Deus.

God is called in English Godd, with a double Letter d, as hath been observed in antiquity. In Spanish he is called Dios, in French Dieu; in Italian Idio, In Dutch Gott, in Chal­de and Syrian Eloho, in Arabian Alla, in Ethiopian Ahilah; in Egyptian [...] or [...]; in Assyrian Sure, or Adad, in Persian [...]; in Dalmatian or Illirian Orsi, In Turkish Abgl; In New found land Zimi, and lastly, the Wizards of Persia do write [...]. Thus you see that the name of God is contained in foure letters, as some [Page 25] think to demonstrate thereby, that it is hee that hath made and formed all things, that they are composed of Four Elements, and that he made al­so the foure Elements themselves, which do rule over all things created in this world. Now for the under­standing and knowledge of this one eternall and omnipotent being, we must first note, that no creature can define what God is, because he is in­comprehensible,Psal. 115.3. dwelling in the Heavens, that none can attain unto; and this the very Heathens knew full well,Vide Na [...]ell p. 54. Ita etiam allu­sit Plutarchus in Iside de the­ologia Aegypti­ [...]rum. Vide Job c. [...]2. Psal. 18.9.11. when Orpheus speaking of God could say, [...]. I cannot see him, because he is compassed about with darkness; and Damascius the Platonist, speak­ing of the wise men of Egypt, saith, [...], they call the first beginning of all things darknesse, unknown darknesse, passing all our understanding, an­swerable to that place of the Psalmist, He made darknesse his secret place, and all to this end, to shew that he cannot be seen or comprehended by us, Quia secundum essentiam in [Page 26] cognitus & secundum Majestatem im­mensus; because his Majesty is im­measurable, and his being is uncon­ceivable,Thalas. apud Paulinum Pres­byt. Job 28 24 saith Thalassus, [...], for he is every where, and seeth every thing, when as nothing can see him: and as the sun is in it self most visible, so is God in himselfe most intelligible; Why the na­ture of God is not to be com­prehended by the understan­ding of man. and therefore that the sun dazeleth the eye, and God the understanding, it is from the abundance of glory in both, in respect of our weakness to see, and insufficiency to apprehend; so that our defect of knowledge in the Nature of God, is not so proper­ly from the Excellency of the Object, as from the deficiency of the Facul­ty; John 1 18. our understanding being too nar­row to comprehend the incompre­hensible Essence of the God-head; as whatsoever is finite must needs be too short, either to reach, or to fa­thom that which is infinite.

1 Tim. 6.16.Wherefore God dwelling in that light of Glorious Excellency, and in­accessible Glory, which no eye of hu­mane Reason can approach, or enter into,Psal. 144 3. we not being able to compre­hend him in a full Knowledge, have [Page 27] some apprehensions of him by a di­vine faith, for it hath pleased him in his word revealed unto us, to reveale himselfe so far, as our weake capacity can conceive him, and that by giving himself (as you have heard) many Names, Titles, & Attributes, to shew what a one he is, who being a most simple essence, void of al composition, not subject to any accident, or quali­ty, useth in the Scriptures to entitle himselfe by many qualities, the which we must so understand, that whatso­ever he is, whether Good, Wise, Pow­erfull, &c. he is the same by Essence not by quality.

Now although God cannot be defi­ned, 1. Because he is immense, and his Essence unknown unto us, 2: Be­cause, as Aristotle saith,Aristot. Topicor. l. 1. [...], the definition of any thing is the expression of what it is in its own nature and vir­tue, and so we cannot possibly shew what he is, yet some way he may be described, and therefore his descrip­tion according to Phylosophy is on this wise; God is an eternall minde or intelligence, The descrip­tion of God according to Philosophy. sufficient in himselfe to all felicity, most good, and the cause of [Page 28] good in nature. The des­cription of God accor­ding to the rules of Divi­nity. But Divinity hath taught us a more full and ample de­scription of him, which is in this sort: God is an Essence spirituall, intelli­gent, Eternall, infinite, different from all the creatures, without body, parts, or passions, incomprehensible, most per­fect in himself, immutable, Omnipo­tent, of exceeding wisdome and good­nesse, just, true, chast, mercifull, boun­tifull, most free, wroth and angry without sin. Or thus, God is a Spirit, in and of himselfe,Joh. 4.24. Exod 3.14. Exod. 24.16. 1. Tim. 1.11. Mat. 5.48. Gen. 17.1. 1. Tim. 1.17. Mal. 3.8. 1. King 8.27. Psal. 139.1. to 13. Rev. 4.8. Heb. 4.13. Rom. 16.27. Isa. 6.3. Deut. 32 4. Exod. 34.6. Nancelius l. 1. infinite in being, Glory, Blessednesse, and perfection, all-sufficient, Eternall, Unchangeable, Incomprehensible, every where pre­sent, Almighty, knowing all things, most wise, most holy, most just, most mercifull and gracious long, suffering and abundant in goodnesse and truth.

We finde three speciall wayes of expressing what he is; first, by way of Negation, by removing from him what we find in the creatures, as when we say and affirme him to be, [...], Immortall, In­visible, Incorporeall, Immoveable, [Page 29] Infinite, Unchangeable, and so forth. And because,Dionys. de ca­lest. hierarch. c. 2. as Dionysius the Areo­pagite saith, [...]. Negations are true in God, but affirmatives are not alwayes agreeable to him, therefore this is the best part of our knowledge of him (as S. Augustine saith) when we know rather what he is not, then what he is.

Secondly,By way of per­fection. by way of affirmation and perfection, as when we doe ana­logically and in respect of certaine similitudes, ascribe unto God the best and most excellent things that can be found in any of the creatures whatsoever; and so we say, he is Great, Strong, Faire, Mercifull, Just, &c. So Hermes saith, [...], God is an indefatigable Spirit, [...], the highest King of Kings, and a most good God, and Thales Mi­lesius calleth him [...], the most ancient uncreated God:Cicero in Tus­cul. 1. Lactan. lib. 2. cap. 5. And Cicero (so well as he could) defined him [...] in manner fol­lowing. Deus meus est vis quaedam soluta & libera, segregata ab omni [Page 30] concretione mortali, omnia sentiens & movens, ipsaque praedita motu sempi­terno, God is a certain intelligence or spirit, free and ready, separated from all mortall mixture or concretion, knowing and moving all things, and having in himself an eternall motion: and Plato defineth God to be [...],Plato in Phoe­done. a divine God-head, immortall, and good, and wise, and understan­ding of one and the same manner, in­dissoluble, having himself alwaies after the same way, and most like unto himself: And in ano­ther place, he saith, that God is [...], The chei­fest good, the shape or Idea of the cheifest good, the King of all kinds, and of that invisible and inac­cessible place that none can attaine unto, the maker of the Sun, beyond all substance, the beginning of the Universe, from whom are all the be­ings and substances that are knowne [Page 31] to be: But we must remember (as I said before) that all these Defini­tions and many more beside, can give us no true knowledge of the Essence of God, because it is wholy incom­prehensible. Solus Deus est altissimus, S. Aug. in lib. de mor. Eccles. quo altius nihil est: Only God is most high, above whom there is nothing higher, and besides, the Philosophers say, that Definition may wholy spe­cifie the Proportion of a thing, or his Kind, Quality, Difference, or some Peculiar accident: all which severall things are not to be found in God, which is the reason that he cannot be defined or comprehended, as very learnedly the Philosopher Symonides answered, for hee being demanded concerning the Essence of God, and having many dayes given him to re­solve the question, at last he said, The more I strive to consider what God is, the more difficult I find the matter to be, therefore we ought to take great heed that we wade not too far into this depth; but let us learne,Chrysost. hom. 2. in heb. Potius glorificare eum, qui est, quam investi­gare quid est, Rather most faithfully to serve him, which is, then too curi­ously to search what he is: for as S. [Page 32] Chrysostome saith,Chrysost. quo supra hom. 2. in Heb. Neque ad loquen­dum dignè de Deo lingua sufficit, ne­que ad percipiendum intellectus prae­valet; our tongues are not able to speake worthily enough of God, and our understandings are not sufficient to conceive of him as we ought to do; therefore we should never think up­on God without great reverence, saith Musculus.

Thirdly, By way of supereminency, & transcendent excellency; as when we ascribe to God whatsoever excel­lencies that are or may be spoken of him; far above all the excellencies of all creatures whatsoever: as when we say not only in the Concrete, that God is just, mercifull, wise, strong, good, and such like; but also in the Ab­stract, By way of su­pereminency That the ab­stract names all excellen­cies, are only proper to God. that hee is Justice, Mercy, Wisedome, Strength, and Goodnesse it selfe, which cannot be said of any of all the creatures, for that all the best excellencies of the cheifest creatures, are but as little sparkes in respect of a huge infinite fire, or as a few drops of rain, in comparison of the whole Ocean Sea, if we should compare them to the excellency of God; Nay, we should finde their [Page 33] wisdomes Folly, their strength Weak­nesse, their beauty Baldnesse, and all their goodnesse to be nothing in re­spect of the goodness of God;Job, 4.18. for He chargeth his Angells with folly, and the Heavens are not cleer in his sight.

Now according to these three waies God is described to be an Immortall, A description of God by way of 1. Negation 2. Affirmati­on. 3. Superemi­nency. invisible, incomprehensible, spiritual, in­finite, Eternall Essence, the cause of all causes, & the author of all excellencies.

So here you see a boundlesse Oce­an, and a very large Description of God, and I may sooner loose my selfe in the prosecuting of the same, then find him fully as he is, in any place, which is fully & truly in every place. In a sober sence Bernard saith true, Nusquam est & ubi (que) est, God is every where by his Essence reple­tively, no where inclu­sively. he is no where because no place whether reall or imaginary can comprehend or contain him, he is everywhere, because no body, no space or spirituall sub­stance can exclude his presence, or a­void the penetration (if I may so speak) of his essence. He is in Christ spiritually in himself Alpha & Omega: In the world a Governour, in Angels as Beauty, in his Church as an Hous­holder in his Family, in the Soul as [Page 34] a Bridegroom in his Marriage-cham­ber, in the Righteous, as an Helper, in the Reprobate, as fear and horror, in the Godly, to defend them, and in the wicked, to punish them. There are indeed foure degrees of Gods pre­sence,Jer 23 24. Psal 19.1.6. 1. An Ʋniversall, 2. A Speci­all, 3. A more speciall, 4. A most spe­ciall.

Psal. 130, 7.1. The Lord is present by his Es­sence, in all places.

1 Cor. 3.16.2. Hee is present by his Glory, in Heaven.

Joh. 15.26.3. He is present by his Grace, in his Saints.

1 Pet. 3.18.4. Hee is present by his Spirit, in Christ.

Heb. 9.14.He is every where, replenishing the place with his being, no where by Circumscription, and locall definiti­on. So that Curiosity, in this highest point of Divinity, is very dangerous; for God is one, Deut. 6.4. Isa, 44.5 [...] 1 Cor. 8.4. Iam, 2.19. Deut. 4 15 16 1 Sam. 15.29. Act. 14.15. Matt. 5 48 single, pure, and per­fect Being; single, without parts, pure without passions, and perfect without infirmities; being in mea­sure unmeasurable, in Majesty inscru­table; in Nature incomprehensible, in Power irresistible, in Will unchan­geable, in Place not circumscript, in [Page 35] Time indefinite, in Love immutable,1 Joh 1.5. August. Med. cap. 12. in favour unspeakable, and in Pro­mise inviolable, Good without quali­ty, Great without quantity, Creatour without want, in Act without moti­on, every where present without sight, the First and the last without time, making all things mutable, without a­ny passive mutability in himselfe. So that here we must needs acknowledge it impossible, that a Finite under­standing should comprehend an infi­nite, eternall, spirituall Essence, and therefote I desire to remember that excellent rule of Saint Augustine, Aug. de Trini­tate l. 5. c. 1. Cavendum est, ne dum de Deo cogita­mus, & non possumus invenire quid sit, aliquid de eo sentiamus quod non sit; we must take great heed, least in see­king to know what God is, we think him to be what he is not. And in ano­ther place. Quid est Deus? August. lib. 1. de Quaest. nov. & vet. Testam. est id quod nulla attingit opinio. What is God? Hee is that which no opinion can reach unto.That it is not safe to enquire too far into the being of God. To search then too far, is perverse curiosity, to beleeve the word, is infallible security; and to see him as he is, is most absolute fe­licity; Climbe not too high [...]or fal­ling, Dive not too deep for drowning; [Page 36] and soare not too high for dazeling, labour to know so much as is reveal­ed in the scriptures, in which we are to search for all points, much more for this, and therefore that I may not err in this point, I will say no more, but with himselfe which knowes him­selfe best, that he is Jehovah, whose Knowledge is infallible,Rom. 11.33. Psal. 107. Job 10, 7. Heb. 6.17. Rom. 1.18. 1 John 4.10. Rom. 15.16. Prov. 2 10. Psal. 83.18: Isa. 28.29. Providence inexplicable, Judgements inevitable, Decree immutable, Wrath terrible, and Love unspeakable, whose Spirit doth sanctifie us, Wisdome teach us, Counsell guide us, Favour compasse us, and Power govern us, the most High over all the earth, wonderfull and great in Counsell, mighty and ex­cellent in works,Eph. 2.4. Exod. 15.11. Ezeck. 36.26. Tit. 3.5. rich in mercy, glo­rious in Holinesse, fearfull in Praises. The Regeneratour of our Nature, our Defence in Adversity, Perseverance in the faith,Eph. 1.4. the Life of them that be­leeve, and in the end is Eternall life, it is he that elected us to salvation, promising remission of sins by belei­ving in Christ,Joh. 3 15.16 Acts 8.37. being the first person named in order, not in power nor time, existing of himselfe, and of no other, is call [...]d Father, Isa 63 16. first in respect of his naturall Son Christ, begotten from [Page 37] eternity. Secondly in respect of the Elect, his Adopted Sons, Gal. 4.5. who being not sons by Nature, are made sons by Grace. Eph. 2.5.

God hath fix­ed many im­pressions of hi goodnesse in the crea­tures. WHosoever will religiou­sly and seriously ob­serve those manifold impressions of the Di­vine goodnesse, which the Lord God hath planted in the nature of all living creatures; he shall surely finde so much matter of reverence, love, and admiration, that he shall never be a­ble sufficiently to comprehend the ex­cellency of so huge an ocean of good­nesse, within the strait and narrow compasse of his understanding. For the Kingly Prophet David being as it were ravished or wrapt in an ex­tasie, at the inexplicable expression, and unconceivable consideration of the plentifull and far-spread good­nesse of God, he breaketh forth in­to these heavenly acclamations, say­ing, [Page 39] O Jehovah, Psal 36.5.6.7 In coelis est benignitas tua, O Lord our Governour, How excellent is thy Name in all the world, thou that hast set thy Glory above the Heavens, thy Faithfullnesse reacheth unto the Cloudes, thy Righteousnesse is like the strong Mountaines; thy Judg­ments are like the great deep, thou sa­vest O Lord both man and beast. But I will not at this time enter into that infinite Ocean of Gods Goodnesse, whereby he giveth Food unto all flesh, Psal 147. Gods infinite Goodnesse. and adorneth the feilds with all kind of fruitfull trees and pleasant flowers; neither will I enter into any part or parcell of his excellent Providence, whereby hee governeth the whole world by his Wisdome, sustaineth all things by his Power, and releiveth all things by his Goodnesse: But I will rather bathe my selfe in those cheifest Fountaines of Gods admirable Love, whereby he imbraced Mankinde, the Epitome of the whole Universe. For God so loved the World, Joh 3.16. that hee gave his onely begotten sonne: That whosoever beleeveth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Indeed there is no comfort in the Father without the Son, neither [Page 40] can any beleeve in him, and through beleeving come to him, but by the Sonne, for hee dwelleth in light inaccessible, whom none can know, till the Sonne who is [...], the brightnesse of his glory, Heb. 1 3. and ingraved forme of his person reveale him. Yea, without the Sonne, he is a consuming fire, but in him hath proclaimed him­selfe to be well pleased: So that the knowledge of Jesus Christ is the onely thing that makes us happy; Nam omnia habemus in Christo, & omnia in nobis Christus; because we have all things in Christ, and Christ is all things unto us. He is α Legis, & ω Evangelij, the beginning of the Law,Quicquid est veteris Testa­menti Christum sonat. and the end of the Go­spell; Velatus in veteri, revelatus in novo Testamento; vailed and sha­dowed in the Old, revealed and ex­hibited in the New Testament; pro­mised in that, preached in this; there shewed unto the Fathers in Types, here manifested unto us in Truths; All the men of note, and all the names of Dignity, were but types of Iesus Christ. for the Tree of Life, the Arke of Noah, the Ladder of Jacob, the Mercy Seat, the Brazen Ser­pent, and all such Mysticall Types, [Page 41] and Typicall figures, that we read of, what were they else but Christ obscurely shadowed, before he was fully revealed? And so all the men of note, Noah, Isaac, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, Joshuah, Sampson, David, Sa­lomon, Kings, Preists, Prophets, titles of Dignities, names of Honour, or whatsoever else was any ways ascrib­ed to any of them to expresse their soveraignty, were onely used to ex­presse those transcendent excellencies which these personall Types did ad­umbrate, and shew most properly to belong unto this King of Kings, Isa 9.6. this mighty Counsellor, and this Prince of peace.

Now if we well consider, how all those things which the Prophets of old prophesied, were to be done by the promised Messiah, are all accom­plished in the person of Christ; wee shall find the Word like a light shin­ing in darknesse, clearly declaring un­to us, that Jesus the son of Mary, is the true Messiah: For the Scriptures foretell every particular act, accident, and circumstance, that should fall out of importance at his comming, incar­nation, birth, life, death, resurrection, [Page 42] and assention. Matth. 1 As for example, at what particular time hee should ap­pear, Matth. 1 18. Matth. 2 1 Gen. 49 10. that he should be born of a Virgin, Isa: 7.14. That the place of his Birth should be the town of Beth­lem, Matth. 2 16. Mic. 5 2 That at his Birth all the Infants round about should be slaine for his sake, Jer. 31 15. that the Kings of the East should come and adore him,Mat. 2 11 and offer Gold and other gifts unto him,Luke 2 22. Psal. 72. that he should be presented by his Mother in the Tem­ple of Jerusalem, Mat. 2 13 14 Mal. 3.1. that hee should flye into Egypt, and be recalled thence again.Mat. 2 21 Luke 1 17. & 3.3. Isa 19.1. Hos. 11.1. that John Baptist should go before him, and cry in the Desart, Isa 40.3. Mal. 3.Mat. 4.12 &c. Mat. 5.1. After this, that he should begin his own Preaching in Galilee, Isa. 9.1. and that with all Humility, Quiet­nesse, Mat. 4 23. and Clemency of spirit. Isa. 42 2. that hee should do strange Mi­racles, Mat. 8 Mark 8 and heal all diseases, Isa, 35.5, 6. that he should dye for our sins Isa. 53 That he should be betrayed by his own Disciple, Mat. 26. Mat. 26 & 27. Psal. 41 9. that hee should be sold for thirty peeces of sil­ver, Zach. 11 12. that with those thirty peeces there should be bought afterward a Potters feild, Zach. 11 [Page 43] 13.Math 21.7. Matth. 26. & 27. that he should ride into Jerusa­lem upon an Asse before his Passi­on, Zach 9.9. that the Jewes should beat and buffet his Face, Mat. 27. and defile the same with spitting upon him. Isa. 50 6. that they should whip, rent, and tear his Body before they put him to death,Luke 23 33 Isa. 53 5 that they should peirce his Hands and his Feet Psalme 22 16.Mat. 27.38. that they should put him to death among Theives, and Malefa­ctors, Isa. 53 12. that they should scorn him and nod their heads at him,Mat. 27 39 40 41 42 43. saying, He trusted in the Lord, let him deliver him, &c. Psal. 22.7.Mat. 27.34.8 that they should give him gall in his meat, and in his thirst, Vinegar to drinke, Psal. 69.21.Mat. 27.35 Mat. 27 57 &c. that they should cast lots about his Vesture, and part his Gar­ments among them, Psal. 22 18. That he should lye in the Grave of a rich man, Isa: 53 9.Luke 29 that he should rise a­gain from death the third day, as was shadowed in his Figure, Jonah, chap. 1 verse 17. Matth. 12.40 Luke 11 30. Psal. 16 10 that he should ascend to Heaven, Luk. 24 51. Act. 21.55 56. and sit at the Right hand of God his Father for ever, Psal. 68 18 & 110.1.4. All these Particularities, and a number more were revealed in [Page 44] Scripture, some four thousand, some two thousand, and some one thousand years before the Nativity of Christ, the true Messiah, on whom all the Fathers since the first beginning fast­ned their Hope, and of whom all the Prophets have spoken, pointing him out as it were with the Finger, how he was to come to work the work of our salvation, which in all circum­stances wee see performed by him, as was prophesied by them to our ever­lasting comfort.

Moreover, because there is a Ge­neration of men in these our dayes, that blasphemously deny our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and his Deity, and so consequently the Scriptures, I shall hereunto add some testimonies of the Gentiles, yea and of the Jewes themselves, (a people that are our greatest enemies) to prove and te­stifie that Jesus is the son of God, the true and promised Messiah.

Vide Clem. A­lex. l. 1. Strom. & Orig. l. 6. contra Cel­sum, & Procl. l. 2 & 3. in Par. Plato.First in the writings of that anci­ent and learned Zoroaster, there be-found very significant speeches of the son of God, whom he calleth, Secundam mentem, the second mind. And Hermes Trismegistus (who re­ceived [Page 45] his Learning from this Zoroa­ster) calleth the second person in the Trinity,Mercu. Her. in Poemand. cap 1 & de incept. The first begotten son of God, his only Son, his dear, eternall, immutable, and incorruptible Son, whose sacred name is ineffable. This Hermes or Mercurius, sirnamed [...], thrice great, did often de­scribe the Power and Majesty of Je­sus Christ; and as S. Augustine saith,Aug. l. 5. c. 3. de hae [...]esibus. did compose a booke, whose Title was [...], The perfect word, that is Christ, which he calleth [...], the very same word that our E­vangelist useth; and Lactantius saith, that Zeno affirmed [...], the word (Christ) to be the Maker of this Ʋ ­niverse, so that he is rightly called Expectatio Gentium, the hope and expectation of the Gentiles, for those many multitudes that became Prose­lites of the Jewish Religion, and those Magi that came from the East, to worship him as soon as ever hee was borne, do sufficiently prove, that the Gentiles expected the coming of this promised Messiah before his incar­nation. Besides, I cannot truly think,That the Gen­tiles expected the coming of a Messiah. that Plato, that ancient Writer should be ignorant of these things, [Page 46] for Theodoret, Clemens, Alexandrî­nus, and Justin Martyr do plainly affirme, that he read the bookes of Moses, and the Prophets, insomuch thot Numenius a Platonist was wont to say,Plato a Greci­an Moses. [...], that Plato was none else but Moses in the Grecian tongue.

The ten fa­mous Sybills, viz. Persica, Libyca, Delphi­ca, Cumaea, E­rythraea, Sam a, Cumana, Hel [...]s­pontia, Phrygia, Tiburtina.Secondly, Among the Gentiles there were certaine Prophetesses, or women Prophets, called Sybils, who were indued (as it seemeth) with a certaine spirit of prophesie, and did utter from time to time most won­derfull particularities of Christ to come, agreeing (as it were) wholy with the Prophets of Israel; one of them called Sibylla Erythraea, maketh a whole discourse of Christ in Greek Accrostick Verses, at the latter end of which she saith, that he is Immortall Saviour, and a King that must suffer for our sinnes. But I will leave these Sibyls a little while, and proceed to other Authorities: Yet first I thinke it very fit to make mention of some admirable accidents which happened at the birth of our blessed Saviour. Paulus Orosius and Eutropius, both Historians in the time of Octavius, Paulus Orosius and Eutropus, Writers be­longing to Octavius. [Page 47] doth say, That at such time as Jesus Christ was borne, on earth, there happened in Rome, that in a common Inn or Taverne, A spring of Oyle arising out of the ground in Rome when Christ was borne. a well or spring of pure and excellent Oyle brake up out of the ground, which for the space of a whole day, ran and issued forth in­cessantly in great abundance.

How excellently may this allude to Jesus Christ, who was not onely Christus Dei, the annointed of God, but also Christus Deus, God himselfe annointed. Eutropius addeth more­over, that in Rome and the neigh­bouring places thereabout, even in the full calme, and clearest time of the day,A bright cir­cle seen a­bout the Sun in the day time. a circle was seene about the Sun, of as bright splendor and radi­ancy, as the sun it self. The same Pau­lus Orosius further saith, that at the very same time, the Senate and people of Rome made free offer to Octavius Augustus, to entitle him cheif Lord, which he refused, and by no meanes would accept; prognosticating to himselfe, that a much greater Lord then hee, was then on the Earth, to whom that Title more worthily ap­pertained.Commestor in lib de Hist. Scholiast. Commestor in his Scholia­stick History, affirmeth, that in [Page 48] Rome upon the same day: The Temple dedicated by the Romans to Peace the Goddesse, Templum pacis fell to the ground at the Birth of Christ. fell in ruines to the earth. For they had formerly consulted with the Oracle of Apollo, to know how long the Temple should stand in good estate, and answer was made them, Untill a Virgine should bring forth a Childe, which they re­puted to be utterly impossible, and therefore their Temple should stand for ever, notwithstanding at the Vir­gins Deliverance, Mother to the King of Heaven, it fell to the ground.

Suidas in vitae August. Niceph. lib. 1. Hist. cap. 17. Suidas also recordeth, that Augu­stus inquiring of the Oracle of Apollo, what man should rule after him, re­ceived this Answer from Satan.

Augustus having received this an­swer, went away, and set up an Al­tar in Capitolium, with this Inscrip­tion in Roman Letters.

[...] THIS IS THE ALTAR OF THE FIRST BEGOTTEN OF GOD.

So that it is worthy of great con­sideration,The Devills plain manife­station of his foyle and o­verthrow. to note how evidently the Devill shewed himselfe (even sud­denly) to be overcome and conque­red: For after Christs coming, and suffering on the Crosse, the Oracles of the Devills were altogether silenced, the Groves, Altars, and Temples of the false Gods began to lye Wast, yea the Gentiles detesting the impostures of satan, embraced the Faith of Christ, giving over their Magicall bookes to Vulcan: A remarkable Example whereof we read touching the Ephesians, Acts. 19.Act. 19.8. &c.

Moreover, Plutarch doth report, that in the later years of the Raigne of the Emperour Tyberius, a strange voice and exceeding horrible clamor,Plut. de defectu Oracu. Pan. some Ma­ster Devill that lost his Dominion. with hidious cryes and howlings, were heard by many in the Grecian sea, lamenting and complaining, that the great God Pan was now departed. In [Page 50] so much that all the sea resounded their dreadfull Ecchoes. Of this you may see more at large in Eusebius to Theodorus. Euseb. in Hist. Eccle. & ad Theodo. And in his sixth book, De preparatione Evangelica, you shall find that Apollo oftentimes exclaimed Hei mihi, congemiscite: Hei mihi: Hei mihi: Oraculorum defecit me cla­ritas. Woe unto me, lament ye with me, woe unto me, woe unto me, for that the honour of Oracles hath now forsaken me.Suidas in Thu­lis, & Porphyr. & Plut. de Ora. And being demanded, (by a Priest of his own) concerning God and true Religion, he gave this answer, O thou unhappy Priest, why dost thou aske me of God, that is the Father of all things, and of this most renowned Kings dear and onely sonne, and of the spirit that containeth all, &c. Alas that spirit will enforce mee shortly to leave this habitation and place of Oraces. The Devills complained our Saviours Nativity. Whereby it is plain and manifest, that (even in all parts) the Devils complained on the Nati­vity of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, because it was their utter de­struction.Joseph. in An­tiquit. Jud. l. 4. And at, or a little before his passion, (as Josephus writeth) a voice was heard in the Temple of Je­rusalem, (albeit there was then no [Page 51] living creature in it) Let us speedily be gone, and leave this Country. Be­side, it is marvelous to consider, how this puissant Authority of Christ was imparted to Christians, in so much that it extended it selfe so far forth, that not only their words and com­mandements, but even their very pre­sence did shut the mouthes, and drive into fear the miserable and damned spirits. So Lactantius sheweth, that in his dayes,Lact. lib. 2. de Inst. cap. 16. a Serving-man that was a Christian following his Master in­to a certain Temple of Idolls, the Gods or Devills rather, cryed out, that nothing could be well done, as long as that Christian was in pre­sence. The like recordeth Eusebius, of Dioclesian the Emperour, who go­ing to Apollo for an Oracle, Euseb. lib. 5. de prep. Evan. received answer, That the just men were the cause that hee could say nothing. Which just men, Apollo's Priests in­terpreted to be meant of Christians, and thereupon Dioclesian began his most feirce and cruell persecution. Lastly, The Pagan Porphyrie, Porph. lib. 5. eont. Christ. apud Euseb. l. 5. ca. 1. de praep. Evangel. that of all other, most earnestly endeavoured to impugne and disgrace us Christians, and to hold up the honour of his en­feebled [Page 52] feebled Idols, yet discoursing of the great plague that raigned most fu­riously in the City of Messina, in Cicilie where he dwelt, yeelded this reason, why Aesculapius the God of Physick (much adored in that place) was not able to helpe them. It is no marvaile (saith he) if this City so many years be vexed with the Plague, seeing that both Aesculapius and all other Gods be now departed from it, A marvailous confession of Porphyrie. by the coming of Christians. For since that men have begun to worship this Jesus, we could never obtaine any profit by our Gods. Thus hath the Deity of Christ been declared and approved by his omnipotent power, in subduing in­fernall Enemies. It remaineth now that (according to my promise) I endeavour to manifest the same by other Testimonies and Authori­ties.

Justin. l. 1.First that famous Zoroastres King of the Bactrians, a man excellent in all learning,Sybil. Samia. apud Betul. as (Justin saith) left this as a Tradition among the Gen­tiles, and afterwards it was more plainely published by the Sybils, [Page 53] that a day Star should appeare be­fore the arising of the Son of Righte­ousnesse; Chalcid. apud Marsil. Ficin. tract. de stella Magi. and Chalcidius a Platonick doth say, that the Chaldaean Astrono­mers did gather by contemplation of this starre, that some God descen­ded from Heaven, to the benefit of Mankind. And Fulgentius saith,Fulgent. fol. 657. in Octavo Ser. de Epiphan. That Puer natus novam stellam fra­bricavit; Christ being horne, did of nothing frame this new starr; which did bear such evident witnesse of him; for the wise men being upon the mountaine Victorialis, worship­ping their God,Chrysost. hom. 2. op. imperf. in Mattheum 2. (as Saint Chryso­stome saith) a star did appeare unto them, in the likenesse of a little child. Now though Ammonius Alex­andrinus, and Nicephorus thinke,Ammon. Alex. in harm. Niceph. l. 1. c. 13 that this starre appeared two yeares before the Nativity of Jesus Christ, that so they might make preparation for so long a journey; because these Magi were Kings themselves, as Saint Cyprian delivereth it from the tradition of the Church,Cyprian. ser. de Baptist. Chrys: hom: 6. in 2: Matth. and Saint Chrysostome seemeth to con­sent, and Bosquierus laboureth to confirm it; Yet I thinke rather with S. August., that these three wise men, [Page 54] Iter unius anni in tredecim diebus pe­regerunt, Did perform that journey, which was enough for a whole year, in thirteen dayes, because (as Remegi­us saith) Puer ad quem properave­runt, potuit eos in tam brevi temporis spacio ad se adducere; That Child un­to whom they hastened, might help and further them forward to come unto himselfe, in so short a space: And therefore this their diligence and speedy haste to come to Christ, doth sufficiently shew that they belei­ved this new born Babe, to be the true and eternall God, so that these wise men were wise indeed; not be­cause they had all the wisdome of the Gentiles, but because they did both seek and find him, In whom are hid all the Treasures of Wisdome and Know­ledge:

Also their behaviour being come, doth plainely shew,Chrysost. quo supra. that puerum quem viderunt hominem, agnoverunt Re­demptorem; the child which they saw to be a man, they did acknowledge to be their God; for though they saw him dandled in the lap of his poore Mother, wrapped about with meane clouts, and having not the [Page 55] least signe of any humane Kingly dig­nity, yet they did homage unto him, as unto the King of Kings: For they fell downe, to shew their humility; they worshipped him, to shew their faith; they offered their gifts, to shew their charity. Quid? In gremio pau­peris matris po­situm, & pannis vilibus involu­tum, & nullum regiae dignitatis humanae signum habentem. adorant regem nuper natum, &c. And what is this, that they adore this Childe newly borne, and sucking on his Mothers Breasts, and would not adore that King which had been long ordained, and was most gloriously raigning on his Kingly Throne? What is the cause of this? Ille natus in pallatio contemnitur, iste natus in diversorio quaeritur; that he which was born in the Pallace should be contemned, and he which lay in the Manger should be adored? S. Chrysostome, Leo, Fulgentius Ser. de Epiphar. and Fulgentius, do all agree it was, be­cause the Wise men knew, that hee Quem dixerunt regem Judaeorum erat Creator Angelorum, & quem vide­runt parvum in praesepio, erat immen­sus in Coelo; whom they had called King of the Jewes, was the Lord and Maker of the Angells, and whom they saw little and poor in the Cratch, was rich and immeasurable in Heaven. [Page 56] Lastly, the cruell murther commtited by Herod, on poore harmelesse Inno­cents, doth sufficiently prove the birth and comming of the true Mes­sias: Philo Judaic. in Abbrev. Temp. For Philo, the learnedst Man that ever wrote among the Jewes (except the Writers of holy Scri­ptures) in his Abridgement of times doth say, that Herod caused certaine Children to be slaine, and his owne Son with them; because he had heard, that the Christ a King promised to the He­brews, was then borne.

Secondly, As for his life and con­versation, by the testimony of his greatest adversaries, it was more ad­mirable then his Doctrine, his life be­ing a most lively Table, wherein the perfection of all his Doctrine was ex­pressed: A Man of such gravity, as never in his life he was noted to laugh, of such Humility, as being the son of God, he scarce used in this world the Dignity of a Servant, of such sweet and mild behaviour, as all the injuries of his Enemies, never wre­sted from him one angry word. And as the Prophets did foretell the vertue and sanctity of this Messiah, so the Devills themselves could not but con­fesse [Page 57] the same to have been fulfilled in the person of Christ; as is most e­vident by Porphiry, Porph. lib. de laud Phylo. a professed ene­my of the Christian name; who after consideration of diverse Oracles ut­tered by his Idolls, touching Jesus, he breaketh forth into this confession; It is exceeding wonderfull, (saith hee) what testimony the Gods do give of the singular piety and sanctity of Jesus, for which they avouch him rewarded with immortality. And Josephus, Joseph. in lib. 2. de Antiq. not only a Jew by Lineage and Nation, but al­so by his Life and Profession, writeth thus of Christ, At the same time lived Jesus, a very wise man, if it be lawfull to term him a man, because in deed and verity he did wonderfull things, & was Master and Doctor to such as loved & sought for truth. Hee assembled and was followed by great troops of Jews & Gentiles, and he was Christ. By which testimony of Josephus, we see mention is made, not only of Jesus, and his life, but also of his miracles, which were plainly foretold and published by the Sibylls, among whom, one of them (as- Lactantius recordeth) wrote thus of Christ to come,Lact. lib. 4 di­vina. Instit. cap. 15. He shall do all by his only word, he shall cure all infirmities, [Page 58] He shall raise the dead, he shall make the lame to run and skip, the deafe shall hear, the blind shall see, and the dumbe shall speake: In five loves and two fi­shes, five thousand persons shall be sa­tisfied, and the fragments shall fill twelve baskets to the hope of many. He shall command the winds, and walke upon the furious sea with his Feete of Peace.

To these predictions of Sibylla, do agree the Doctors of the Jewes them­selves, in many places of their Thal­mud, to wit, that the Messias should be wonderfull in working miracles. And in their publick Commentary up­on Ecclesiastes, Misdrach, cohe­leth, cap. 1. they have these words, All the former miracles of Pro­phets and Saints, shall be nothing to the miracles of the Messias when hee cometh. And thus much of the fore­telling of Christs Miracles, but now for the fulfilling thereof in Jesus, that is, how these Predictions were perfor­med in the stupendious workes and a­ctions of our blessed Saviour, there is no difficulty. For that besides the for­mer testimony of Josephus, The confession of Jesus mi­racles by his enemies. (which were sufficient in this case) the Jews themselves do grant and record Jesus [Page 59] miracles in diverse places of their Thalmud, yea, they make mention of many wonderfull things that Jesus did, which are not written by our E­vangelists. The same doth Mahomet in his Alcoran, Tha. in teact. Auadozaera Misdr. coheleth Alcoran Az [...]r 14. 11. 13. affirming Jesus the son of Mary, to have been a great Prophet, and to have wrought his mi­racles, by the only Power and spirit of God.

Thirdly about his Passion, there is little or no controversie, and there­fore the testimony of Josephus may suffice, whose words are these,Joseph. lib. 18. antiq. cap. 4. That the principall Jewes of his Country, ha­ving accused and delivered over Jesus to Pilate, (that was Governour of Jurie for the Roman Emperour) hee adjudged him to the Crosse. The same do other Jewes and Gentiles record. Also the particulars of Christs passion was plainly foretold by Sibylla, for these are her own words, set down by Lactantius, He shal appear miserable, ignominious and deformed, Lactan. l. 4. De­um instit. cap. 16. & 18. to the end hee may give hope unto the miserable. Afterward he shall come into the hands of most wicked and faithlesse men: they shall buffet him with their sacriligious fists, and shall spit upon him with their [Page 60] unclean mouthes, he shall yeild his in­nocent back to the whip, and shall say nothing while he receiveth the stripes, to the end he may speak to those that are dead. He shall bear a Crown of thorns, and they shall give him gaule to eat, and vinegar to drink. And this shall be the hospitality hee shall finde among them.

Thal. tract. San­hica helec. Misdr. Ruth. Rab. Josep. in lib. Siph. &c.Neither do the ancient Rabbines and Teachers among the Jewes dis­sent from this. For that in their Thal­mud, that was gathered above one thousand and two hundred years a­gone, the plain sentences of diverse are set down, That their Messias at his coming shall be put to death. And what can be more plaine then the written words of Rabbi Simeon, which are as followeth,Rab. Simeon Ben. Jehai. lib. de spe. Woe be to the men of Israel, for that then shall slay the Mes­sias. God shall send his Son in mans flesh to wash them, and they shall murder him. Yea in their Commentary upon Daniel, Rab. Haedar. in Dan. 9.27. they have these words, Three years and a halfe shall the presence of God in flesh cry and preach upon the Mount Olivet, and then shall he be slaine: And Sibylla addeth further two particular miracles that should [Page 61] fall out in the said passion of the Mes­sias, to wit,Lact. lib. 4. Di­vin. inst. capit. 19. That the Veile of the Jewes Temple should break in two: And that at mid-day there should be darkness for three houres over all the World. Which thing to have beene fulfilled at the death of Jesus, not only Saint Mat­thew doth assure us in his Gospell,Matth. 27. but also Eusebius affirmeth, that hee had read the same word for word, recor­ded in diverse Heathen Writers.

Phlegonius a Greek Historian,Phlegonius a Grecian, borne in Asia, recor­ded by Suidas. of whom Suidas maketh mention, re­porteth for a wonderfull thing, That in the fourth year of the two hundred and tenth Olimpiad, (which by just account, was in the eighteenth year of the Raign of Tiberius, and at which time our Saviour suffered) there was an Ecclipse of the Sunne, the very greatest that ever had beene seen, or ever found to be written of, and that it continued from the sixth houre, untill the ninth houre. And that during this Ecclipse, the tremb­ling of the Earth was so great in A­sia, and in Bythinia, that infi­nite strong built houses fell to the ground.

It appearteh moreover, that be­sides this Phlegonius, Plin. in lib. 2. Pliny also felt and wrote of the selfe same matter, for he saith, In the time of the Empe­rour Tiberius, the quaking of the earth was much greater then ever before had been. Twelve Cities ruined by the Earth-quake at Christs pas­sion. By means whereof (saith another) twelve Cities were ruined and over­thrown in Asia, with infinite other good­ly buildings and houses, so that the Hi­storiographers amongst the Gentiles, (albeit they knew not the cause) did not forbear to write of the miracles of Christ.

Orig. cont. Cels. lib. 6.Furthermore, Aesculus an old A­stronomer, doth prove by the scituati­on and constitution of the Sun and Moon at his Passion, that no Ecclipse could then be naturally, and there­fore it was very miraculous, contrary to the Order of Nature,Dionysius was 25 years old at the death of our Saviour, and lived a long time af­ter with the Apostles, as himself re­cords in the 11. Epistle Apollophanes. and only done by the omnipotency of God, who deprived the sun of his light for all that space of time.

Dionysius Areopagita being on that day in Athens, and beholding the Sun to be so strangely obscured, knowing also (as a man learned and skillfull in Arstology, and the Celesti­all courses) that this Ecclipse was [Page 63] contrary unto the rule of Nature, he cryed with a loud voice, say­ing; Aut Deus Naturae patitur, aut mundi Machina dissolvetur, either the God of Nature doth now suffer, or the Frame of the whole world shall be dissolved: And to another hee spake of that Ecclipse in these words, Ignotus in carne patitur Deus, Michael Syn­gellus in Enco­mio S. Dionysij. cujus gratia rerum universitas densa hac caligine obscurata est atque concussa, God unknown in the flesh did suffer; for whose sake the universe was struck and covered with thick dark­nesse.S. Dionys. in E­pis. ad Polyc. And this Dionysius in an E­pistle written to Polycarpus, being as­ked what this great Ecclipse might portend, said, That it shewed a change, and a great alteration, and that hee did seriously observe the day and houre.

The other Miracle, Joseph in l. 2. de antiq. of the Vayle of the Temple which rent in sunder, Josephus also giveth faithfull testimo­ny thereof.

Finally, I will conclude this dis­course with the authority of learned Philo, who doth plainly confesse the Deity of Jesus Christ, and the necessi­ty of his suffering. This man that [Page 64] was the learnedst among the Jewes, made a speciall booke of the banish­ment of his country-men, where hee hath this discourse ensuing:Philo: lib. de exulibus: What time may be appointed (saith he) for return home of us banished Jewes, it is hard to determine. For by tradition we have, that we must expect the death of an high Preist. But I am of opinion, that this high Priest shall be the very word of God, which shall be void of all sinne, both voluntary and involunta­ry: Whose Father shall be God, and this word shal be the Fathers wisdome, by which all things in this world were created. His head shall be anointed with Oyl, and his Kingdome shall flou­rish, and shine for ever. This wrote Philo Judaeus at that time, when hee little imagined, the same high Priest, whom he so much expected, and the same word of God, whose Kingdome he describeth, was now already come into the world. Fourthly, As Jesus Christ, did declare himselfe truly to be the Son of man, by yeilding unto Death; so hee did declare himselfe mightily to be the Son of God, by his Resurrection from the dead: And this Resurrection of him was exactly [Page 65] foretold, not only to the Jewes, but also to the Gentiles; for these are the words of Sibylla, Hee shall end the ne­cessity of death by three dayes sleep, Lactan. lib. 4. inst. Div. c. 19. and then returning from death to light a­gain, he shall be the first that shall shew the beginning of Resurrection to his chosen, for that by conquering death, he shall bring us life. What thing can be more plainely described then this? but now to prove the truth and cer­tainty of his Resurrection. Our first and most evident testimony shall be derived from our greatest enemies, among which number is Josephus, that learned Jew, Joseph. in lib. 2 de Antiq. whose words are these, Although hee was accused by the principall men of our faith, and crucified, yet he was not abandoned of them which had formerly followed him; but three days after his death, he appea­red alive again unto them, according as the Prophets (inspired of God) had fore­told, and prophesied of him. Which ex­press plain & resolute words, we may in reason take, not as the confession only of Josephus, but as the common judgment, opinion, & sentence of all the discreet and sober men of that time, laid down and recorded by this [Page 66] Historiographer. In whose dayes there were yet many Christians alive, that had seene and spoken with Jesus after his Resurrection; and in­finite Jewes, that had heard the same protested by their Fathers, Brethe­ren, Kinsfolks and freinds, who had been themselves eye witnesses there­of.

Ignatius was twelve years old when our Saviour suffered, and for certain­ty, that he did see Christ after his Resurrection, take his owne words. Ego verò, In Ep. ad Smyr. & ad Polycarp. & post Resurrectionem in carne eum vidi, & credo quia sit: And truly I did see him after his Re­surrection in the flesh, and I do be­leeve that it is he; yea, he sets down the time and persons, when, and be­fore whom it was: Et quando venit ad Petrum, & ad eos qui cum Petro erant. And when he came to Peter, & to those that then were with him; he sayd, Touch and see, for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as you see me have, and they touched him and beleived, so that his own words are sufficient proofs, but yet it is the consent of all the Church-Historians, as Eusebius, Saint Jerom, Ruffin. cap. 6. and Ruffinus testifie.

Moreover, Dionysius the Areopa­gite, Saint Bernard, and others, re­port a famous saying of Saint Igna­tius, which he uttered with sighes, and is extant in his Epistle to the Ro­mans, and it is this, [...], Amor meus crucifixus est, that is, My Love is crucified. Indeed this ho­ly and pious Bishop,Mirandula de motre Christi l. 1. c. 10. did so continu­ally meditate upon those great things, which Christ had done and suffered for him, that he was there­by brought so intirely to love him, as when he was demanded, why hee would not forsake and forget Christ, rather then suffer himself to be torne and devoured of wilde and savage Beasts? He answered,The story of Ignatius at his Death. that hee could not forget him, because the sufferings of Christ, were not only words tran­sient in his mouth, or removeable ob­jects before his eyes, but they were indeleble characters, so engraven in his heart, that all the Torments of the Earth could never rase them out: And therefore being commanded by that bloudy Tyrant Trajane, to be ript and unbowelled, they found Jesus Christ written upon his Heart, in Characters of Gold. He is stiled Di­vinus [Page 68] Ignatius, Biblioth. Pa­trum, Tom. 1. pag. 76. Inclytissimus & fer­ventissimus Martyr, Divine Ignatius a most famous and fervent Martyr. Nay Nicephorus goes beyond that ti­tle, and calls him [...], one that saw God, and one that was carried of God; for when hee was a child,Niceph. Hist. li. 2. cap. 35. Nicephorus reports, that our Saviour would take him up in his arms, and shew him to his Disciples. And it may be that this was one of those little children that were brought to Christ to touch them, or that little child whom Jesus took and set in the midst of them, to learn them humili­ty.Aug. de vera religione. Indeed as Saint Augustine saith, Tota vita Christi in terris, per homi­nem, quem gessit, disciplina morum fuit; The whole life of Christ, which he spent here on earth, was, and is, a pattern for all Christians,Christ despi­sed all world­ly vanities. Nam omnia bona mundi contempsit, for he despised all the pompe and vanity of this world, to teach us, In his mundanis faelicitatem uon reponere, that we should not greedily seek, nor childish­ly place our delight in these vain and worldly toyes, hee suffered all the sorrowes of this world,Christ suffer­ed all mise­ries. hunger, thirst, cold & nakedness, lyings, slanders, spit­tings, [Page 69] mockings, whippings, & death it selfe, to teach us, ut nec in illis quaere­retur faelicitas, ita nec in istis infaelici­tas timeretur; that as we should place no felitity in the vanities of this life, so we should not fear all the miseries of this world,Judg. 6.12.14 but to say with Debo­rah, March valiantly, O my Soul, & with the Angell unto Gideon, Go on thou mighty man of War, and passe through all the ranks of miseries. To be breife, if we do but seriously look into the life of Jesus Christ, we shall easily find, that (as St. Bernard saith) True Wisdome is found in his doctrin,Bernard Ser. 2. super Cantic. Prud [...]ntia ve­ra in ejus do­ctrina, justitia in ejus misericordi­a, temperantiae in vita, & for­titudo in ejus­dem passione reperiuntur. Righteousness in his mercy, Mercy in his Justice, temperance in his life, truth in his words, fortitude in his suffer­ings, & all vertues in all his actions, all the Ethicks of Aristotle, all the mora­lity of Seneca, and all the wisdome of Greece, can no ways describe vertue so perfectly, as we see it expresly pour­traied in the lively example of our Sa­viours life: yea, such was the piety of Jesus Christ, that even his greatest e­nemies were forced to acknowledge & confess it,Suidas upon the word Iesus for the talk of one Theo­dosius a Jew with a christian merchant man named Philip, in the time of the [Page 70] Emperour Justinian, is here worthy to be noted. In the Temple of Hieru­salem (sayd the Jew) there were two and twenty ordinary Preists; and as soone as any of them dyed, the residue chose another in his place. Christs Piety is acknowled­ged and con­fessed by a Jew. Now it hap­ned, that Jesus for his singular Piety and Doctrine was chosen by them. And to the intent they might know the name of his Father and Mother, and inre­gister it according to their custome, they sent for them, and Mary came thither alone, Joseph dyed before the Virgin Mary. because Joseph was then dead. She being asked the name of the Father of Jesus, answered upon her Oath, that she had conceived him by the holy Ghost, and reported to them the words of the Angell. Moreover, shee told them the names of the women that came to her labour unlooked for; upon due inquisition whereof, when all things were found to fall out true, they registred his Name in the Register of the Preists in these words, Jesus the Son of the living God, and of the Vir­gin Mary.A proof of Christs Divi­nity. And this Register (sayd Theodosius) was saved at the sacking of Hierusalem, and afterward kept in the City of Tyberias, where it is pre­served in secret, and I have seen it as [Page 71] one of the cheif among the Jews, and as one from whom, in respect of my degree, nothing was restrained. And I beleeve thereby that it is not ignorance that hol­deth me in the Jewish Religion, Why Theodosi­us the Jew would not im­brace Chr [...]st. but the honour which I have among my country­men, the like whereof I could not have elsewhere. Thus we see that the Jews themselves were forced to acknow­ledge and declare the Piety and Deity of Jesus Christ. And as for the family from whence he descended, it remai­neth registred in the Jews Thalmud, that Jesus of Nazereth Crucified, Thal. Tact. San. ca. Nig­mar had. was of the Blood Royall, from Zorobabell of the house of David. Thus much by way of digression.

But now to return to the forego­ing Subject of our discourse, namely the Resurrection of Jesus Christ; al­though the Testimony of Josephus and Saint Ignatius might suffice, to prove the truth and certainty here­of, against all the Atheists of the World, yet hereunto I will add some other testimonies and circumstanti­all proofes, that do infallibly prove the Resurrection of Christ, and so consequently that Jesus is the Son of God, the true and promised Messias.

1. atth. 28.1. The Angells testifie the re­surrection of Christ. Luke 24.4.First, the Angell said unto the wo­men, why seeke yee the living among the dead? hee is not here, but he is ri­sen, Et si non credideritis Oraculo, cre­dite oculo, and if you will not beleive us, beleeve your own eyes, for you may see the place where he lay.

2. That Christ appeared twelve seve­rall times af­ter his resur­rection.2. Truth it self confirms this truth unto us, by those manyfold appariti­ons that he made after his resurrecti­on, during the space of forty dayes, that before he ascended into Heaven, he walk'd here on earth. And these (if I be not far deceived in my reckoning) were at least twelve times, according to the number of his 12 Apostles.

First to Mary Magdalen. Mark. 16.9.First, Hee appeared unto Mary Magdalen apart; where we must ob­serve, that he appeared first unto a woman, that no woman should thence­forth be any waies reproached for their first transgression & seduction of man; Quia ut culpam viro transfu­dit, Ambros. l. 10 in Luc. 24. Beda in cap. ult. Luc. transfudit etiam & gratiam, vete­ris (que) lapsus aerumnam resurrectionis in­dicio compensavit, because that as a wo­man was the first instrument of death, so she was the first messenger of life, & brought the first tidings of the resur­rection of Christ, which is the surest argument of mans salvation. And hee [Page 73] appeared to this woman, first, quia do­minum prae caeteris dilexit, Aug. Meditat. cap. 35. ideo prae cae­teris videre meruit, because she loved him above all, therfore she obtain'd to see him before all, she rose early, Joh. 20.1.11.15. she sought him carefully, & she wept bit­terly, not with those undiscreete wo­men for Tammuz, which was a bra­zen image with leaden eies,Ezech. 8.14. that being molten with heat, did seem to weep, and so caused the women to sympa­thize in teares, and to weepe (as is thought) for Adonis, but she weeps for Adonai, for her Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, a rare example of great piety, & therfore though she had of­fended much, yet because she sorrowed much, and loved much, she had much forgiven her, and much love shewed unto her,Revel. 1.8.11 for hee which is Alpha and Omega, the first & the last, did shew himself first unto her.

2.Secondly, To the three wo­men returning homeward. Matth 28, 9. He appeared to all the women to­gether, as they returned homeward from the sepulcher, to teach us, that never any man truly sought for Christ, but with these women, he should be sure to find him.

3.Thirdly to Si­mon Peter a­lone. 1 Cor. 15.5. He appeared to Simon Peter a­lone, the first among the men, saith Chrysost. because S. Peter was the first [Page 74] Apostle whom hee called first, and who confest him first to be the Son of God, and therefore hee appeareth first to him, and biddeth the women tell his Disciples and Peter, that is, and Peter especially, that hee was ri­sen, and went before them into Gali­lee. But when or where, or after what manner he appeared thus unto Peter, because the scripture doth not ex­presse it, we can no wages determine it,Theoph. in Mar. 1.16. as both Theophylact and Saint Gregory do observe, and therefore it being a question, Plus subtilitatis quam utilitatis habens, that hath more subtile scrupulosity, then any comfortable Ʋtility, I will peace­ably passe it over.

Fourthly, to the two Disci­ples travelling to Emaus, Luk. 24.13.Fourthly, Hee appeared to the two Disciples, journeying towards E­mans; the name of the one was Cle­ophas, and many think the other to be Saint Luke himselfe, who out of his modesty concealeth his own name,Theoph. Suc. Luc. saith Theophylact. These two Fugi­entes civitatem sanguinolentaus sla­tim inveniunt Chrîstum, flying this bloudy city, did presently find their Saviour; to shew unto us, that while we live among the wicked, we [Page 75] shall live separate from God, but as Elias when he left Jezabe [...], was pre­sently accompanied by the Angell, so these two, and all those that forsake the World, or shun the wicked, shall presently finde their God.

Fifthly,Fiftly to the eleven A­postles toge­ther. Mark 16.14. Luke 24.33. &c. Joh. 20.19. Hee appeared unto the eleven Apostles, and all the rest of the Disciples that were with them, when the doores were shut, and standing in the midst of them, he sayd, Peace be unto you; to shew, that he was the Prince of Peace, which had now purchased their Peace indeed; and he demanded, why thoughts should a­rise in their hearts, to shew unto us, that he was a God; because he knew the very secrets of their hearts.

Sixtly, He appeared to the same company again, Sixtly to the same company when Thomas was with them. Joh. 20.24, 26. within eight dayes after, when Thomas was with them, and then he shewed them the wounds of his sacred body, which he suffered to be handled, and which he kept (saith Saint Augustine) Non necessi­tate, sed potestate, not for any weak­ness in himself, that he could not heal and whole up those wounds that hee received, but through his power hee reserved them.

[Page 76] Why Christ reserved his wounds.1. To shew the greatness of his love, that would suffer so much of, and for wretched men.

2. To shew the greatness of mans malice, that would, Diomedes like, so cruelly deal with so mercifull a God.

3. To strengthen the weak saith of his waving servants, ut vulneribus cor­poris sanaret vulnera incredulitatis, that they seeing the wounds of his bo­dy, might thereby have the wounds of their unbeleeving soules healed.

4. To shew the certainty of his Re­surrection, when they saw he had the same body which was crucified and peirced by his enemies.

Seventhly, to seven men to­gether. Joh 21.27. He appeared to Peter, James & John, Nathaniel, Didymus, and two o­ther disciples, when they were a fish­ing at the sea of Tyberias, and there he proved unto them the verity of his Deity, by that miracle of providing fishes for them to eat, and the truth of his humanity by eating with them.

Eighthly, to Saint James. 1 Cor. 5.7. Hieron. in Ca­tall.8. He appeared unto James the bro­ther of the Lord, that is, the cosen-Germane of Christ, according to the flesh, being the son of Mary, that was sister until the Virgin Mary (as Saint Hierome saith) and not the son of Jo­seph, [Page 77] by another wife (as some would have it) and he was called James the just, in regard of his upright and in­nocent life.Ninthly, to the eleven Disciples on Mount Thabor. Mat. 28.10.16 Tenthly, to more then 500. Brethren at once. 1 Cor. 15.6. Eleventhly, to all his Disci­ples in Mount Olivet. Acts 1.9.12. Twelfthly, to Saint Paul, go­ing to Damas­cus, 1 Cor. 15.8.

Ninthly, He appeared unto the ele­ven disciples at one time upon mount Thabor in Galilee.

Tenthly, Hee appeared to more then five hundred brethren at once.

Eleventhly, he appeared to all his Apostles and Disciples upon Mount Olivet by Jerusalem, when in the presence of them all hee ascended up to Heaven.

Twelfthly, He appeared unto Saint Paul travelling to Damascus, as un­to one born out of due time, as himself confesseth.

Thus hee did appeare unto his A­postles and Disciples, which by his e­ternall wisdome were pre-ordained to be witnesses of his glorious Resurre­ction; and methinks the plainnesse of their declaration, and the smalnesse of their expectation of any manner of profit in the world, for the testify­ing of these things, should be suf­ficient to make all men give credit to their testimony. Besides all this, [Page 78] there be many other circumstantiall proofs and demonstrations of his Re­surrection. For,

First the great Earth-quake, Cajetan in Mat. 28.First, at the very moment of time, that he rose from his Sepulcher, and the Angells descended from Heaven, there was a great Earth-quake, the earth either dancing for joy that Christ was risen, or trembling for feare, that men would not beleeve it.

Secondly, the apparitions of the raised bo­dies Mat [...] 27.52.53.Secondly, Many that were dead, came forth from their graves, and ap­peared unto many in the City of Je­rusalem, to testifie unto them, and assure them of his Resurrection. Di­ves thought, if one were sent from the dead, his Bretheren would beleeve him; and behold here are many sent, and yet the Jewes, the brethe­ren of Christ, will not beleeve them: And yet notwithstanding, when they read that one Erus an Armenian, that one Aristeus, or that one The­spesius rose again to life; they think no evill of Plato, Herodotus, or Plu­tarch for reporting it.

Thirdly, the testimony of Pilate, Euseb. lib. 2. cap. 2.Thirdly, Pilate himself that con­demned him to death, did testifie of his Resurrection unto life, in a let­ter [Page 79] that he wrote unto Tiberius Cae­sar.

Fourthly,Fourthly, The sudden cou­rage of the A­postles. Whereas a little before the resurrection of Jesus Christ, his Apostles and Disciples, durst not peep out of doores, because they did but waveringly thinke that this was he, which should have redeemed Israel, they do now couragiously compasse the whole world, and con­fidently teach and avouch, There is no other Name given under Heaven, whereby men may be saved, but the Name of Jesus.

Fiftly,Fiftly, The suf­ferings of the Martyrs. All Martyrs have most boldly confessed this truth, and sealed it with their blood: Tertullian doth most excellently shew the Difference betwixt the Martyrs and Malefa­ctors, saying, Mali apparere devitant, deprehensi trepidant, accusati negant, condemnati maerent, evil doers are loath to be seen, being taken they trem­ble, being accused, they deny it, being condemned they deplore themselves; but with the Martyrs, there is no such matter, for they are neither a­shamed of their profession, neither do they greive at their apprehension, but if they be noted for Christians, [Page 80] they rejoyce at it, if they be accused, they confesse it, if adjudged to dye, they deem it better then life: And therefore (saith hee) Quid hoc mali est, cujus reus gaudet, cujus accusatio votum est, & cujus poena faelicitas? What evill is this, when the guilty of the fact rejoyceth in his accusation, and is made happy in his condemnati­on.

Sixthly, the heavy punish­ments that were inflicted upon Christs persecutors.Sixthly, the great Plagues and pu­nishments that were presently infli­cted, and have still to this very day continued upon all the Persecutors and denyers of Jesus Christ, do suffi­ciently prove the truth and certainty of his Resurrection, and that he is the true and promised Messias; for Pi­late being accused by the Jewes, was inforced to appeal from Vitellius the cheif Governour of Syria, and to go to Rome, Joseph. antiq. l. 18. cap. 11. to defend himself before Ca­sar, who before Pilate came there, was dead; and therefore he had none other remedy, but to wander as a pil­grim and a forlorn creature, till hee ended his dayes in extreame miseries: So Agrippa suffered intollerable cala­mities,Cap. 17. so Herod the Tetrarch was spoyled of his goods, deprived of his [Page 81] Kingdome, and banished from his Country: so Herod that killed James, was miserably eaten up of loathsome wormes,Cap. 18. and to the Jewes was mea­sured the same measure, as they had measured unto Christ before; for as they had sold him for thirty pence, so thirty of them were sold for one pen­ny; and five hundred of them were nailed to Crosses in one day: It were too too lamentable to relate more of those dolefull Tragedies, which Jose­phus, Eusebius, Evagrius, and o­thers have written of them, and what they suffered at the finall ruine and destruction of Jerusalem, and what heavy bondage, (far worse then that Aegyptian slavery) they have endu­red to this very day: Hence it is that Rabbi Samuel, In aureo tra­ctatu Rabbi Sam. de mise­rimo statu Ju­daeorum, about six hundred yeares agone, wrote a Tractate in form of an Epistle, unto Rabbi Isaac, Master of the synagogue of the Jews, in Subjulmeta, a City of Morocco, wherein hee doth excellently discusse the cause of their long captivity, their great blindness, and extream misery: And after that he had proved, that this punishment was inflicted upon them for some great and greivous sin, [Page 82] hee sheweth that sinne to be the same whereof the Prophet Amos speaketh,Amos. 2 6. For three transgressions of Israel, and for foure, What Rabbi Samuel saith concerning Jesus Christ. Non transferam eos, I will not turn away the punishment thereof, because they sold the Righteous for sil­ver: And though he saith, that their Rabbies do understand this Righte­ous to be Joseph, that was sold by his Brethren into Aegypt; yet because the Prophet putteth this for the fourth sin, and the greatest sin of Is­rael, and because he cannot find any three sins of the sons of Israel, before the selling of Joseph, therefore hee maketh the selling of Joseph to be the first sin of Israel, the worshiping of the Calfe in Horeb to be the second, the abusing and killing of Gods Pro­phets to be the third, and the fourth to be the selling of Jesus Christ. For the first, they served four hundred years; for the second, they wandred forty years in the Wildernesse, untill they that came out of Aegypt were all consumed and brought to no­thing, excepting only Caleb and Joshuah; for the third, they were held captives seaventy yeares in Ba­bylon; and for the fourth, the said [Page 83] Rabbi Samuel confesseth that they were held in most pittifull capti­vity to this very day, because he was most unjustly sold, and most shamefully delivered to death, as hee sheweth in the seaventh Chapter of the said Tractate. Many more cir­cumstantiall proofs and declarations of his Resurrection, might be produ­ced, to shew him to be the true Messias; but I hope these will serve, to shew also, that our fore-fathers have not, and we do not beleive these things without more then abundant and unanswerable proofs thereof; and to convince that malicious obstinacy and infidelity of all those, whether professed Jewes, plaine Atheists, or seeming Christians, which notwith­standing such an Army of arguments, and such a Cloud of witnesses, will still continue blinded and hardned in unbeleif.

Fifthly, and lastly, as for his As­cention whosoever seeth and acknow­ledgeth, that Jesus being dead, could raise himself again to life, will easily beleeve also, that he was able likewise to ascend up to Heaven. Whereof [Page 84] notwithstanding saint Luke alledg­eth one hundred and twenty witnes­ses at the least,Acts 1. in whose presence hee ascended from the top of Mount O­livet, after forty dayes space, which hee had spent with them from the time of his Resurrection.

He alledgeth also the appearing of two Angells among all the people for testimony whereof.Likelyhoods of truth. Hee nameth the day and place, when, and where it hap­pened. He recounteth the very words that Jesus spake at his Ascention. He telleth the manner how hee ascended, and how a Cloud came down, and re­ceived him out of their sight. He de­clareth what the Multitude did, whi­ther they went, and in what place they remained after their departure thence.

And finally, hee setteth downe so many particulars, as if it had beene the easiest matter in the world, for his enemies to have refuted his narra­tion, if all had not been true. Where­fore to conclude this Discourse, of the Birth, Life, Death, Resurrection, and Ascention of Jesus: seeing no­thing hath happened in the same, [Page 85] which was not foretold both to Jew & Gentile, nor any thing fore-shewed concerning the Messias, which was not fulfilled most exactly in the per­son of Christ, as have been proved by the foregoing testimonies; we may most certainly assure our selves, and confidently affirm, against all the unbeleiving Jewes, and wretched A­theists of the world, that Jesus is the son of God, the true and promised Messiah.

Moreover, Touching the excel­lency of this Person, I shall yet fur­ther prove, first, That for time, he is God, co-eternall with his Father, and this both apparent scriptures,That Christ is a true God is proved. and unanswerable reasons drawne from thence do make plain. For,

First,First from the Scriptures. The scriptures call him the true Jehovah, as wee may see by the collation and comparing of these places, viz. Exodus 3.2.13.4.14.24 20.2. And Acts 7.30.32. 1 Cor. 10.4.9 &c. And so the scriptures call him God, as Gen. 32.28. Psal 45.7. Isa. 7.14. Matth. 3.3. Heb. 1.8.1 Tim. 3.16. Joh. 1.1. Acts 20.78. And therefore saint John saith, [...], And the word was God, Also Thomas saith unto Christ, My [Page 86] Lord and my God: 1 Joh. 3.16. 1 Joh. 5.20. And so we finde the same truth expressed in many o­ther places of the Scripture.

Secondly by unanswerable reasons drawn from scripture.Secondly, Wee may shew the same by infallible and unanswerable rea­sons, drawn from scripture. As,

First, From those incommunicable properties of the Deity, which are pro­perly ascribed unto him: as,

• 1. To be omnipotent, Joh. 3.31. Heb. 1.3. Phil. 3.21. Apo. 1.18.
• Mat. 16.11. Mat. 28.20. Joh. 16.15.
  2. To remit sins, Matth 9.6. Mar. 2.5.7.9. Luke 5.20. Joh. 20.23.
• 3. To be in many places at the same instant, Matth. 18.20.
• 4. To have the same equall power with the Father, Joh. 5.17.
• 5. To raise himself from the grave, Rom. 1.4. Joh. 10.18.
• 6. To send forth, and to give the Holy Ghost, Zach. 12.10 Joh. 16.7.

2. From those Epithites, which are ascribed unto him, and are only agreeable to the divine nature; as,

Joh. 13.18. Joh. 1.9. Mat 9 4.5. Joh. 14 14.To be the Author of our Election. To illuminate us. To know the secrets of our hearts. To hear the prayers of them that call upon him. To judge the quick and the dead. To give unto his servants everlasting life. To be [Page 87] truly rich, and so able to do,Joh 5.22.24 2 Cor 8.9. Psal, 50.12. and to bestow these great rewards upon his servants, Joh. 16.15.

Thirdly, From those relations that he hath with God, as to be [...],J h. 1.18. Heb. 1.3. the only begotten son of God the bright­ness of his glory, and as the Poet saith,

Also to be the arme of God,Isa 53 1. Joh. 14.7.8 9. Phil. 2.6. which the Fathers do expound of Christ, to be the Image of the Father, 2 Cor. 4.4. Col. 1.5. and to be the very form of God, which is most simple and essen­tiall, not compounded or accidentall, for that in God there is no compositi­on, no accidents; Et nihil est in Deo, quod non sit ipse Deus, nor any other thing which is not God, because the Divine Essence Identificat sibi omnia que sunt in Divinis, doth identifie,Gabriel. [...]iel. super 1. sentent. dist. 1. q. 5. or deifie all things that are in the Deity.

4. From the universall effects,Gen. 1.1. Pal 45.6. Psal. 102.25. Joh. 1 2.3 Col 16 17. Heb. 1 2 3. Joh. 5.17. and proper works of God, for he that cre­ated, preserveth and governeth all the things that are created, is the true and everlasting God, but Christ created all things, & doth still sustaine and govern all things, and therefore [Page 88] hee must needs be the true and eter­nall God. To be breif, He is the Son of the Father, the Wisdome and the Power of God;A Proof of the co-eternity of the Son with his father. and therefore ei­ther the Father was without a Son, (and then he could be no Father) and God was without his Wisdome, and without his strength, or else hee was never without his Son; but to say that God was without his wisdome, or without his strength, is most absurd: Ergo, non ex tempore genitus est, qui cuncta tempora condidit, & therefore hee was not begotten in time, which created all times, Aug. Ep. 6.6. saith Saint Augu­stine.

That Christ is co-essential with God, is proved.Secondly, it followeth, that I should prove and shew, how for Na­ture he is co-essentiall with his Father, touching which point, Athanasius saith, Non res quaepiam extrinsecus ad inventa est filij substantia, neque ex nihilo inducta est, sed ex Patris essentia nata est, The substance of the son is no outward thing, either found or created, but begotten of the very Essence of his Eather, even as you see the brightness springing from the Light, or the Vapour from the Water, Neque enim splendor ne­que [Page 89] vapor est ipsa aqua, aut ipse sol, neque res aliena; For neither the light is the Sun it self, nor the vapour the water it selfe, and yet they are none other things, of another kind then be the Substances from whence they spring; even so the Son issueth from the substance of his Father, Et tamen Patris substantia non perpessa est partitionem; And yet the sub­stance of the Father admits no parti­on; for as the Son remaineth still the same, and is no way lessened or dimi­nished, Athanas. in Ep. Cont Eusebi­um. in respect of those beams that flow from him, so the Father suffereth no mutation, by having and begetting, Suam ipsius imaginem fili­um, this his Son and eternall image; but remaining still the same, he be­getteth his Son of the same Essence, and wee find not only all the Ortho­dox Fathers, but also the scriptures, are plain enough to confirm the same truth; for our saviour saith,Joh. 10.30. I and my Father are one, and so saint John having spoken of the Father, the Word, and the spirit, saith, That these three are one, 1 Joh. 5.7. and reason it selfe must needs confirme the same thing, for seeing the Divine Essence is most [Page 90] simple, impartible, and indivisible, and that the Father is God (as none denyeth) and that the Son is God, (as I have already proved) and that the Holy Ghost is God, (as all the holy Fathers have sufficiently confirmed) and yet there are not three Gods,Athan. in Sym. but one God, (as Atha­nasius sheweth) therefore it must needs follow, that all three have but one and the selfe same Essence, and consequently, that the son is [...], Patri, consubstantiall or co-essentiall with his Father: And there­fore hence also, it must needs follow that our Saviour Christ is [...], A God of himselfe, independent, as absolute as the Father is.

And yet for the better understan­ding of this point, how Christ may be said to be [...], God of himself, we must consider,Them. p. 1. q. 33 that Aliud est ha­bere essentiam Divinam a seipso, ali­ud habere essentiam Divinam a seipsa existentem; How Christ is God of him­selfe. It is one thing to have his divine Essence from himselfe, and another thing to have his Di­vine Essence existing of it self, to say that the person of the son, hath his divine Essence, that is his personall [Page 91] being from himself, we cannot, be­cause it is from the Father, the Fa­ther communicating his whole Es­sence unto the son, and therefore we say that the son, Ratione [...] in respect of his personall being, is not [...], God of himselfe, but God of God, and Light of Light, (as the Nicen Councill hath it) be­cause the person of the son, existeth from the person of the Father, but to say that the son hath his divine essence existing of it selfe, is most cerrain;Idem ibid. Quia remota relatione ad Patrem, so­la restat essentia, que est a seipsa, for taking away the relation of the Son unto the Father, there remaineth but the Essence, which is of it selfe: And therefore we may say, that the Son, Quoad essentiam absolutam, in respect of his absolute Essence, is [...], A God of himself, because the Essence of the son is the very same, that the Essence of the Father is, and so to this truth set down by Calvin, Bellar. de Chr [...] sto. Bel­larmine himselfe subscribeth.

Thirdly, It remaineth that I shew how for Dignity hee is Co-e­quall with his Father:That Christ is co-equall to the Father, is proved. And this point is as cleare as the former, be­cause [Page 92] in an Essence most simple, there cannot be so much as imagined, more or lesse, and therefore Fulgen­tius saith most excellently, that see­ing Christ is from everlasting, be­cause hee is the eternall Wisdome and Power of God,Baruch 3.25. seeing he is immeasu­rable, because he is great and hath no end, and seeing he is most high, as Zacharias sheweth in his speech of John the Baptist, Luke 1.76. That he should be cal­led the Prophet of the most high, that is, of Christ, he must needs be in all re­spects equall unto his Father, Nam quid anterius sempiterno, quid majus immenso, quid superius altissimo? for what can be before him, that hath been before all things? what can be greater then that which is immeasu­rable? or what can be higher, then that which is highest? and so saint John saith, That the Jewes sought the rather to kill him, because he did not only break the Sabboth, but sayd also, that God was his Father, Joh. 5.18. making him­selfe equall with God.

How malici­ously Here­ticke have d [...] ­nyed the God-head of ChristMany Objections are made by Hereticks, against the Co-eternity, Co-essentiallity; and Co-equal [...] ­ty of the son with his Father, but [Page 93] they are all so triviall, that they deserve no answer, and they are all deduced from those places, that are spoken of Christ, as he is a man, and misapplyed by them, to deny his Excellency, as he is a God. Yea such is the Perversenesse of Hereticks and Atheists that they wil be wicked, [...], in the higstest degree, by searching so far into the Nature of Christ, that at last they will deny him to be a God.

And therefore, that we may be the better able to withstand their Here­sies, and discover their falacies, let us observe the words of Gregory Nazi­anzene, and Fulgentius, who doth most excellently shew, how the pro­perties of both his Natures concurred together, and might be easily discer­ned in him, from the very beginning of his dayes, to the last end of his be­ing here on Earth. For,

Hee is borne of his Mother,Luke 2.7. and wrapped in swadling clouts, as being a man, but a Star doth manifest him, and the wise men adore him,Matth. 2.11. as being a God; He is laid in a Cratch, as he is a man, but he doth wonderfully work in Heaven, as he is a God, he suf­fereth [Page 94] himself to be carried in their armes,Ful. Ser. de Epi­phan. Iste puer in praesept qui­dem parvulus collocatur, sed magnus in coelo mirabiliter ope­ratur; permit­tit se manibus in terra portari, sed praecipit sibi caelestia fa­miliari. as he is a man, but he suppor­teth all things, and Commandeth all the Hoast of Heaven to do him ser­vice, as he is a God, he isMat. 3.16. Mar. 1.12. Joh. 4.6. Mat. 8.24.25. baptized in Jordan, as being a man, but the Ho­ly Ghost descends upon him from hea­ven as being a God; he is tempted of the Devill, as he is a man, but he o­vercomes and expells the Devills, as he is a God, he travels and is thirsty, he is hungry and is weary, as hee is a man, but he refresheth the weary, he seedeth the hungry, and hee giveth drink unto the thirsty, as he is a God: He sleeps in the ship, Mat. 8.26. and his Disciples awake him, as he is a man, but he re­bukes the windes, and stilleth the rage of the Seas, as he is a God; he is poor and needy, Mat. 8.20. and hath not an house to put his head in, as he is a man, but hee is rich and mighty, and cannot be con­tained in the heavens, as hee is a God: He is sorrowfull and sad, Mat. 36.38.39 hee weepes, and he prayes, as he is a man, but he heareth our Prayers, Joh. 14. Isa. 53. and comforteth the sorrowfull as he is a God; hee is subject to infirmities, as hee is a man, but hee healeth all our infirmities, Math. 27.51.45. as hee is a God; he is whipped and cru­cified, as hee is a man, but hee rent­eth [Page 95] the vaile of the Temple, and causeth the sun to hide his face for shame to see him crucified, as he is a God; he saith, Eloi, Eloi, Math. 27.46. Luke 23.43. Lama­sabachthani, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? as hee is a man, but hee saith unto the Theefe, This day shalt thou be with me in Paradise, as he is a God; Math. 27.50.60. He yeildeth up the Ghost, and hee dy­eth, and is buried, and lyeth in his Grave, as hee is a man, but hee overcometh Death, and de­stroyeth the Devills, and raiseth himselfe unto Life again, as hee is a God, and being risen, Luke 24.15.31.51. hee ap­pears unto his Disciples, and eates and talkes with them as he is a man, but he vanisheth out of their sight, and ascendeth up unto heaven, as he is a God; and so now the Heavens do containe him, and hee sitteth there on the right hand of God, as he is a man, but hee sustaineth the Heavens, and rideth upon the same, Psal. 68.4. as upon an horse, as he is a God.

And so wee see, that maugre all the spite of Hell, it is most apparant, that the person of Christ so subsisteth, [Page 96] Ʋt cum in homine Christo videtur ve­ritas hominis, Fulg [...]nt. de per­sona Christi l. 2. ad Trasim. in eodem Deo Christo cognoscatur paternae veritas Deitatis, as when we see the verity of the man­hood in the man Christ Jesus, we must know and acknowledge the Eternall Deity in the same God Christ Jesus, because he is still a perfect God and a perfect man, and of these two Na­tures subsisting in one person incon­fused.

Moreover, We find in the sa­cred scriptures, many Names, Ti­tles, and Attributes, answerable to the manifold effects of his Huma­nity, Power, Rule, and Divinity: For example.

True it is,All the things of this world without Christ, will a­vaile us no­thing. that as the Bird cannot fly without her wings, nor the body move without the Soule, so no more can any man do any thing that is good and acceptable unto God, without the helpe of Jesus Christ; for, all our Knowledge is but heathe­nish science, able to make us proud, not to make us happy, if hee be not Objectum adaequatum, the chiefest, yea, and the sole object of the same; all our Faith in God is but ungroun­ded confidence, if it be not grounded upon Jesus Christ; all our righteous­nesse is but as Pollutio Panni, men­struous clouts,1 Joh. 1 2. if it be not washed in his blood; and all our patience, tem­perance, chastity, and all other ver­tues, that either Nature planted, or education effected in us, are but splen­dida peccata, glistering guilded sins, unacceptable unto God, and unprofita­ble unto our selves, if they be not gui­ded by the grace, and directed to the glory of Jesus Christ, who is indeed the most perfect pattern of all vertue.

And as there is no way for us to find true vertue but onely in him which is vertue it self,The know­ledge of, Christ the only means to suppresse all vices so there is no­thing in the world, that is so availea­ble to suppresse all Vice, as is the [Page 106] true knowledge of Jesus Christ; Nam haec irae impetum cohibet, superbia tu­morem sedat, For this will refrain the violence of anger, when they consider how hee suffered all violence and vil­lanies,Isa. 53.7. and yet as a sheepe before his shearer was dumbe, so opened he not his mouth; This will allay the swellings of Pride, when they consider how he was the noblest of all creatures, and the fairest among the sons of men, and yet was hee meek and lowly in heart, Psal. 45 2. Matth. 11.29. this will heale the wounds of envy, it will stoppe the streams of Luxury, it will quench the flames of Lust, it will temper the thirst of Coveteous­nesse, and it will keepe thee from the itching desire of all filthinesse, when wee consider how much hee loathed these, how free hee was from these, and how earnestly he diswaded us from all vices whatsoever.

Ne spiritu men­dacii & erro­ [...]is seducaris lucescat tibi veritas chri­stus, & ne ad­versitatibus fatigeris, com­fortet te virtus Dei christus.And therefore, Ne mundi glo­ria seu carnis voluptatibus abducaris dulcescat tibi pro his sapientia Chri­stus, least thou shouldest be with­drawn from God, through the pom­pous vanities of this world, or the lustfull and delightfull pleasures of thine own flesh, let Christ, the true [Page 107] wisdome of God waxe sweete unto thee, least thou shouldest be seduced by the spirit of lyes and of errors, let Christ the true light shine unto thee, and least thou shouldest be wearied and waxe faint under the burthen of adversities, let Christ the power of God refresh thee, because whatsoe­ver we do want, he alone is alsuffi­cient to supply our need. For if thou art sick with sin, and thy soul woun­ded, or poysoned unto death, and wouldst be healed, Christ is thy best and alone Physitian, only hee, and no one but he can cure thee, if thy soule doth hunger and thirst after Righteousnesse, and wouldest be sa­tisfied, he is the bread of Life; Joh. 6.35. Chap. 7.38. and the Fountain of living waters; if thou art as naked of all goodnesse, as thou wert of all cloathing, when thou camest out of they Mothers wombe, and wouldst be adorned with the best robes of vertue, Christ is the Gar­ment of Righteousnesse; Rom. 13.14. or whatsoe­ver thou wantest, and wouldst have, thou mayst fully and freely have the same from him; yea, if thou be simple, he is thy wisdome, if thou be sinfull, 1 Cor. 1 30. hee is thy Righteousnesse, if thou [Page 108] wouldest be holy, hee is thy sanctifi­cation; if thou beest the slave of hell, and held captive by the Divell, hee is thy redemption, and thy redeemer that hath led captivity captive, Ephes. 4.8. and to comprehend all in a word, This Je­sus is All in All; Ʋt qui omnia prop­ter Christum dimittit, unum inveni­at pro omnibus Christum; That he which forsaketh All for Christ his sake, might find all in Christ, and Christ instead of all, far better then all unto his soul; that so he might joyfully sing with the Psalmist, The Lord is my portion, Psal. 23.1. and I have a good­ly heritage, the Lord is my shepheard, and therefore I can want nothing; yea as all the accessions and accumulati­ons of all worldly things, can adde nothing unto the felicity of a Chri­stian, so all the defects or wants of the same things, can detract nothing from the happinesse of him, that hath Jesus Christ, Vita ab errore, gratia a peccato, & mors a morte liberabit; for his life will preserve thee from error, if thou wilt follow it, his grace will free thee from sin, if thou wilt receive it; and his death will deliver thee from eternall death, if thou wilt be­leeve in it. So that he is truly called [Page 109] the way, without wandring in our Peregrination, whereby our pathes are directed; Truth without shadow­ing in our deliberation, whereby our Errors are corrected, and Life with­out ending in our remuneration, whereby our mortality is eternized.

In that he is

• Our Righteousnesse to justifie us.
  Ephes. 1.7 Rom. 3.24 Col. 1.20 1 Pet. 1.2. Heb. 10 9. Col 2.13. 1 Thes. 1.10.
• Our Wisdome to teach us.
• Our Reconciliation to reconcile us.
• Our Holinesse to sanctifie us.
• Our Redemption to free us.
• Our Reward to glorifie us.

So that by him our sins are dischar­ged, we cleered, the debt payd, the score is crossed, the creditor satisfi­ed, and the debtor acquitted. In that his condemnation is our Absolution, and Passion our payment, his death is our life, & blood our purgation, his sacri­fice is our satisfaction and curse our blessing, his Grave is our mortifica­tion, and Ascention our Glorificati­on. Thus much by way of digres­sion, therefore now to come back to the foregoing subject of our discourse, namely the Deity of Jesus Christ, If all the testimonies of the forenamed Jews & Gentiles, of all the [Page 110] Evangelists, Apostles, Fathers, Mar­tyrs, and of all the holy men of God, be not sufficient to prove Jesus the son of Mary, That God himself testi­fied Christ to be his son. to be the Eternall Sonn of God. We finde God himselfe the cre­ator of Heaven and Earth, testifying the same; for though the testimony of John was sufficient, to satisfie any man, because hee was a burning and a shining Light, Joh. 5.35 in whom the Jewes themselves were willing to rejoyce for a season, as our Saviour witnesseth, yet Christ needed not to receive testi­mony from man,Joh. 5.36. because hee had a greater Witnesse then that of John, e­ven the Father himself which sent him, hee bare witnesse of him, and with an audible voice hee proclaimed the same twice from Heaven,Mat. 3.13.17. saying, first at the river Jordan, and then on Mount Thabor, Matth 17.5. That hee was his belo­ved Son, in whom he was well pleased: So that these are sufficient witnesses, Quia dicta Jehovae dicta pura; Be­cause the words of the Lord are pure words, as the Psalmist saith. And lastly,That Christ appeared di­verse times before his in­carnation. Christ himselfe confirmes this truth unto us, by those manifold ap­paritions that hee made before his in­carnation: For it is most certain, that [Page 111] hee appeared and conferred with the Fathers, in the visible forme and shape of man; Et praestantissimi theologo­rum dicunt quotiescunque Deus im­mortalis hominibus apparuit, Petrus Cunae­us de re pub. Heb. l. 3. c. 3. p. 406. apparu­isse personam secundam, id est, filium; quod sane ab illis recte existimatum est, saith Cunaeus: the most excellent Divines do say, That whensoever the immortall God hath appeared unto mortall man, it was the second person of the Trinity, that is, the son of God, Christ Jesus, that did appeare, which in truth is most rightly said of them, in the judgement of that lear­ned man, and therefore it is not im­probable, nor to any men incredible, that he assumed upon him, the forme and shape of man, when hee created man, and so made him not only in his own Image, which he had as God, That Christ diverse times assumed the form of a man, before he was made man. that is, in holinesse and true righteous­nesse, but also like unto himselfe, in respect of that forme and shape, which he then assumed, and which hee in­tended to be made himselfe thereaf­ter: And this may be collected out of Moses, where he saith,Gen. 3 8. That Adam heard the voice of the Lord God wal­king in the Garden; For God, as he is [Page 112] a God, hath neither voice to speake, nor feet to walke, but assuming the forme and shape of a man, he did both walke and talke with him, and in re­spect of this bodily presence of God, the man did specially seek to hide him­self among the trees of the Garden, when hee heard his voice and not be­fore. But to Abraham it is apparent, that he appeared.

Gen. 18.13.20. vers. 25.First, In the Plaine of Mamre, for Moses saith, not only that the Lord talked with Abraham, but hee saith also, that Abraham calleth him, The Judge of all the world, which can be ascribed to none but Christ, which is the Judge of quick and dead.

Secondly, It is the opinion of some, that he appeared unto Abra­ham in his returne from the conquest of the four Kings, for though some of the ancient Iewes in their idle fan­cies have imagined him to be such a person,Illegitimus as is much derogatory to the Majesty of so glorious a Priest, and such a super-excellent King, because he is only named by Moses, Hi [...]ron. in E­pist. ad Eva­grium. Petrus Cunaeus de repub. Heb. l. 3. c. 3. p. 396. with­out any mention of his Discent, and saint Hierome, with divers others old and new writers, of good esteem [Page 113] in the Church of Christ, do reject the judgement of one, which in Saint Hieroms time did say, that Melchi­sedech, which met Abraham and bles­sed him, was the Son of God; and though some of our latest Divines have imagined him to be Sem the son of Noah; yet some learned men agree with him in Saint Hierome, That Melchi­sedeck was the son of God whose name he doth not set downe, and whose arguments to confirme his speech, he doth neither relate nor confute, that it is most probable unto them, and most agreeble to the Apo­stles mind, that hee was none other then Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

First, Because the Apostle saith,Heb. 7.7. That hee was greater then the Patri­arch Abraham, who is sayd to be the Father of the Faithfull, which Epithete, with the words [...], do sufficiently shew him to be, Divinioris cujusdam naturae, of a far more excellent and diviner nature then Abraham was.

Secondly, Because the Apostle go­ing to speake of this Melchisedeck, saith,Heb. 5.11. That hee had many things to say concerning him, which [Page 114] were [...], hard to be explained, which certainly he would never have said, had hee not under­stood this Melchisedech to have been some excellent and ineffable per­son.

Thirdly, Because the Apostle saith not, whose death is not mentioned by Moses, for so he might be dead, though his death is not spoken of; but he saith, that David testifieth of him, [...], that he liveth, to shew the difference betwixt this Priest, and those Leviticall Preists which dyed; yea they say he can be none other then Christ, because he was of an endlesse life, or else the similitude doth not hold that Christ was of an endlesse life, [...], af­ter the likenesse of Melchisedech. Heb. 7.3.

Fourthly, Because he saith, That this Melchisedech was like unto the son of God, even as Nebuchadnezzar saith,Dan. 3.25. That the fourth man, which walked with the three children in the fiery furnace, was like unto the son of God, so here the Apostle saying, that he was [...], like the son of God, meaneth that hee assu­med a body of the same likenesse and [Page 115] habit, and countenance, as afterward he meant to unite personally unto him­selfe.

Fifthly,Heb. 7.2. Because Abraham did give unto him Tythe of all, as percei­ving under that visible forme and shape of man, an invisible Deity to subsist, to whom Tythe is only due, and everlastingly due, because he is an Everlasting Priest.

Sixthly, Because all they, which do affirm this Melchisedech to be either, Shem or any other King of Salem, and a mortall man, Fateri coguntur ea omnia, quae de illo Apostolus dixit etiam Messiae convenire; are compel­led to confesse, that all those things which the Apostle speaks of Melchi­sedeck do very wel agree with Christ And therefore they say, that this Melchisedeck was no mortall man, but the immortall son of God, which assuming this visible shape, did ap­pear unto Abraham, and offered (as a Type of our blessed Sacrament of the Lords Supper) Bread and Wine unto him, after his victory over his enemies: And it may be that our Saviour had respect hereunto, when he said,Joh. 8.56. that Abraham saw his day and [Page 116] rejoyced, that is, Not onely with the eyes of faith, (as all the rest of the Patriarchs and Prophets did) but also in a visible shape which he assu­med like unto that, whereunto hee was afterward to be united. But that man which wrestled with Jacob, was none other but the man Christ Jesus; for hee himselfe sayd,Gen. 32.28.30 That Jacob should be called Israel, a wrestler and prevailer with God, and Jacob cal­led the name of the place Peniel, be­cause hee had seene God Face to face; and so that man, which appeared unto Joshuah, Josh. 5.14. and came as a Captain of the Hoast of the Lord, was none o­ther then Jesus Christ, as Peter Martyr doth most excellently by many arguments confirme. Whereby you see Christ did heretofore assume unto himselfe humane formes, where­in he appeared unto the Fathers, to be as a Praeludium of his incarnati­on, which is the greatest benefit that ever man received from God, Quia in Creatione dedit te tibi Deus, Because in thy creation, hee did but give thy being unto thee, but in his incarnation, he gave himselfe unto thee.

Now if it be demanded how these things can stand together? that the Father of eternity should be borne in time? that the Son of man speaking upon Earth▪ should yet at the same instant be in Heaven? and that the mighty God should become a child, which is the weakest state of man him­selfe? wee must call to minde, that the first letter of his great name,Isa. 9.6. is wonderfull. When hee appeared of old to Manaoh, his name was wonderfull, and hee did wonderous­ly, Judg. 13.18.19. But that, and all the wonders that ever were, must give place to the great mystery of his incarnation;Greatness of this mystery. Nam mysterium singulariter mirabile, & mirabilitor singulare, for it is a mystery sin­gularly wonderfull, and wonderfully singular.

So that neither the Creation of all things out of Nothing, which was the beginning of the Workes of God (those sixe working dayes putting, as it were, an end to that long Sabbath that never had begin­ning: Wherein the Father, Son, [Page 118] and holy Ghost, Joh. 17.5. Prov. 8.30. did infinitely glorifie themseves and rejoyce in the fruition one of another, without communica­ting the notice thereof unto any creature) nor the Resurrection from the dead, and the Restauration of all things, the last workes that shall go before that everlasting Sabbath, (which shall have a beginning, but never shall have end) neither that first, I say, nor these last, though most admirable peeces of worke, may be compared with this, wherein the Lord was pleased to shew the highest pitch (if any thing may be sayd to be highest in that which is infinite and exempt from all measure and dimen­sions) of his Wisdome, Power, and Glory.

Gal 4.4. Joh 1 3. Col [...].16. Act [...] 3.21. 1 Kings 8.22.A notable wonder indeed, and great beyond all comparison. That the Son of God should be made of a woman; even made of that woman which was made by himself. That her Wombe then, and the Heavens now, should containe him whom the Heaven of Heavens cannot contain. That he who had both Father and Mother, whose Pedegree is upon Record even up un­to Adam, who in the fullnesse of time [Page 119] was brought forth in Bethlehem, Mic. 5.2 Isa. 58.8. and and when he had finished his course, was cut out of the land of the living at Jerusalem; should yet notwith­standing be in truth, that which his shadow Melchisedech, was only in the conceit of the men of his time, Without Father, without Mother, without Pedegree, Heb. 7.3. having neither be­ginning of dayes nor end of life. Joh. 14.28. That his Father should be greater then he, and yet he his Fathers equall. That he is before Abraham was, and yet A­brahams birth preceded his, well nigh the space of two thousand years. And finally, That he who was Davids son, should yet be Davids Lord;Joh. 5.18. Phil. 2.6. Joh. 8.58. Matth. 22 42.43 &c. a case which plunged the greatest Rabbies among the Pharisees; who had not yet learned this wisdome, nor known this knowledge of the holy. The un­tying of this knot, dependeth upon the right understanding of the won­derfull conjunction of the Divine and humane Nature, in the vnity of the person of our Redeemer,Col. 2.9. In whom dwelleth all the fullnesse of the God-head bodily, that is to say, by such a personall and reall union, as doth inseparably, and everlastingly [Page 120] conjoyn that infinite Godhead with his finite manhood, in the unity of the selfe same individuall person, who is both perfect God,Luke 1.35. Pro. 8.22.23.25. begot­ten of the substance of his Father, before all worlds; and perfect man, made of the substance of his Mother in the fullnesse of time: And the reason why hee was borne of a wo­man,Amb. in Luc. 24. (as Saint Ambrose saith) was Ne perpetui reatus apud viros oppro­brium sustinerent mulieres, least women should still suffer the Re­proach of the perpetuall guiltinesse and blame in the sight of men,Why Christ was borne of a woman. for their first transgression; for her yeilding unto the Serpent, and the seducing of her Husband, made her and all her sexe to be deserved­ly subject unto much Reproach: And therefore, though because the Mankind is more noble, Christ would be made a man; yet be­cause Women should not be contem­ned, hee was contented to be borne of a woman, Aug. cont. Faust. Et sic formam viri as­sumendo, & de famina nascendo u­trumque sexum hoc modo honorandum indicavit, and so he did sufficiently honour both sexes, the men, by as­suming [Page 121] the forme of a man, and the women, by taking his flesh from a woman; that as a woman was the meanes to make him a sinner, so she might be the instrument to bring him a Saviour; but, Licet secundum conditionem naturae natus est ex fae­mina, Thom. p. 3. q. 31 art. 5. tamen supra conditionem na­turae natus est ex virgine, he would, beyond the condition of Nature, be borne of such a woman that was a Virgin; because it became not God to have any Mother, but a Maide; and it beseemed not a Mayd to have any Son, but a God, Barrad. l. 7. c. 10. saith Barradius: And so hee was made of a Woman, of a Woman that was a Virgin, and of a Vir­gin without the helpe of man.

But now, [...]. Joh. 1.14. That we may truly un­derstand this point, how Christ was made flesh, the word [...], u­sed by our Evangelist, doth plain­ly shew unto us (as both Saint Chrysostome and Tolet do observe) Mirabilem ejus conceptionem, non virili virtute, sed divina potentia; eum esse conceptum, his wonderfull Conception, that hee was made, [Page 122] not by any vertue of mans seed, Two things to be considered for the under­standing of Christs concep­tion. First, Of the manner how Christ was conceived, but by the power of Gods spirit, and therefore we must well consider,

First, The manner of this wonder­full and divine conception.

Secondly, The matter, or substance from which he was framed.

First, Touching the Agent, and the manner of the act, how this substance should be framed, and this Child should be conceived without the helpe of man, Saint Luke doth most plain­ly and fully declare unto us, saying, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, Luk 1.35. & the Power of the highest shall over­shadow thee, which words are not to be understood so, as if he were be­gotten, spermatic [...]s per concubitum, by any carnall effusion of seminall hu­mour, as Jansenius seemeth to imagin, nor of the Essence or substance of the Holy Ghost, as some hereticks have sayd, for so the Holy Ghost being God, should have begotten him, not man, but God; Quia omne gene­rans generat sibi simile, because eve­ry begetter begets his like, and that which is borne of the Spirit is spirit, Joh. 3.6. [...]; but he was conceived by way of Manufa­cture, [Page 123] that is, by the handy worke or operation, or by the vertue of the Holy Ghost, whereby the Virgin did conceive, as Justin Martyr saith,Just. Martyr Apol. 2 pro. Christianis. Aug. Ser. 3 de temp. or else by the energeticall command and ordination of the holy Ghost, as Saint Augustine saith, or by the Benedi­ction and blessing of the holy Ghost, as Saint Basil saith,Basil. ser. de nativitate. whereby that part of the Virgins blood, or seed, whereof the body of Christ was to be framed, was so cleansed and san­ctified, that in it there should be nei­ther spot nor staine of originall polluti­on, and then was so composed and fra­med, that it became a perfect Christ, and though the substance and parts of other men, in ordinary generation be framed successively by degrees; for the seminall humour, first becomes an Embryo, then a body in-organicall, then are the Liver, heart, and Brain fashioned and then the rest one after another perfected, and it is at least forty dayes, before the body of any Child in the wombe be fully formed; That Christ was conceived a perfect man in the first mo­ment of his conception. yet Christ in the very instant of his conception, Quoad perfectionem partium, non graduum, in respect of the perfection of all parts, was made [Page 124] a perfect man in body and Soule, void of sin, and full of Grace, and so in a moment, Totam naturam humanam uniendo formavit, & for­mando univit, he was perfectly fra­med, and instantly united unto this eternall Christ, because it is the property of the Holy Ghost, su­bito operari, to worke instantly and perfectly.

And therefore, When wee con­sider how wonderfully and inexpli­cably Christ was made flesh, how a star gave light unto the Sun, a branch did bear the Vine, a Creature gave being unto the Creatour, how the Mother was younger then what shee bare, and a great deale lesser than what shee contained, and how this Child was suddenly, perfectly, and holily made, without the helpe of man, wee may well say with the A­postle, 1 Tim. 3.16. that great is the Mystery of Godlinesse, and we should say with Saint Augustine, Rem credo, modum non quaero, I do most faithfully be­leeve the matter, but I will not curi­ously search into the manner of his [Page 125] Conception,Tertull. de re­sur. carnis. Quia ratio facti est potentia facientis, ideo considerans, autorem, tollo dubitationem. Moreo­ver, touching the end and finall cause of this his extraord nary and miraculous Conception, it was,Christ was conceived of a Virgin, that he might be free from all sin. That he might be pure and free from all Originall sin, because it was requi­site, that hee which should save sinners, should be himselfe free from all sin. For this end his Mo­ther was sanctified with the full­nesse of Grace, with overshadow­ing of the Holy Ghost, and with the Inhabitation of the son of God, and therefore Saint Bernard saith, That shee was,Mariam non libido impreg­navi [...] sed fides. Sine pudore foe­cunda, sine gravamine gravida, & sine dolore puerpera: great with Child, without breach of Chastity, a Mother and yet a Mayde, a woman, and yet escaping the Curse of all Women, for the Law had accursed them all; Vrigins, Luke 1.25. G [...]n. 3.16. because they were barren, and the mar­ryed wives, because they should bear in sorrow, but the blessed Virgin escaped both: Quia virgo genuit & dolorem non sensit: for that shee conceived [Page 126] without sin, and was delivered with­out paine, as Saint Augustine shew­eth by the example of the Sun, that shines through a Glasse, and yet breaks it not, and of the fire that Mo­ses saw in the bush, and yet consu­med it not; but whether she felt any paines or not, I cannot tell; only this wee may be sure of, that the greatnesse of her joy and gladnesse, to bring forth such a son, might well swallow up the greatest pain and greif, and as she conceived a Virgin, so she continued a Virgin, as all the most ju­dicious writers have affirmed; for it is neither piety to speake, nor Reason to thinke, that Joseph being so just and so godly man as the holy Scrip­tures do testifie of him, and being eighty yeares old when he was espou­sed unto Mary, That the bles­sed Virgin con­tinued a Vir­gin. (as Epiphanius saith) should have any desire to know her, whom he knew did bear his Saviour, or that shee especially should yeeld to the desire of any man, after shee had conceived, and brought forth a God.

2. Of the mat­ter whence Christ his flesh was composed Rom. 1.3.Secondly, Touching the matter from which the flesh of Christ was formed, Saint Paule saith, he was [Page 127] made of a woman, that is, of the flesh and blood, and substance of his Mother; and so he saith, That hee was made of the Seed of David, Heb. 4.15. and therefore it must needs follow, that he was made in all things like unto his brethren, sinne only excepted, for the seed of the parents is the first matter and substance whereof the man is made: And if it be true what Ari­stotle, and the Philosophers do affirm,That we take the substance of our flesh from our mo­thers. that Semen patris in substantiam faetus non cadit, sed ad menstruum mulieris se habet tanquam artifex ad artifici­um, the seed of the man doth not fall into the substance of the Child, but doth so dispose the seed of the wo­man, as a workman frameth and dis­poseth his worke, to make the same into the forme of man (as this is most probable to be true, although Gale­nus and most Physitians say the con­trary) then have we no reason at all to thinke that hee tooke not all the whole nature because he had another Worker to dispose and to frame the same substance into the forme of man, yea, seeing hee had a far more excellent Agent to worke the same, then any seed of man can be, and [Page 128] because the effect is ever better, Ibi potior effe­ctus, ubi nobi­lior est causa. where the cause is more excellent, Reason it self sheweth, that we have no reason to think that he was defective in any thing, that pertained to the perfecti­on of humane Nature, or of the naturall properties of the same: And therefore, seeing hee was made of a woman, as all other men be, diffe­ring only in the manner of his con­ception, or in the Agent and worker of his Substance, it is most apparent that he assumed all our humane nature, What Christ assumed. because the whole nature of man, that is, both body and Soule was to be redeemed; for that both body and Soule were captivated unto satan: but the son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost, Mat. 18.11. therefore he must consist both of body and soule, for seeing the Divine pity was content to deliver all, it behoved the Divine Majesty to assume all,Fulgent. l. 1. de mysterio redemp. ad Trasim. That Christ had a true hu­mane body. Gen 3.15.22.18. Luke 24.39. saith Fulgen­tius, and more particularly, that hee had a true and perfect humane body, it may be easily proved, for when the Apostles thought that they had seen a Phantasme, or a spirit, hee sayd unto them, handle mee and see, because a spirit hath not flesh and bones [Page 129] as you see me have: Besides, it may be proved by the uniform consent of all Orthodox antiquity, as the great Councill of Chalcedon, that had in it 630 Bishops, the Councill of Late­ran, the Councill of Toledo, Fulgen­tius in his second booke,Basil. in. l. de hum. Christi gener. Aug. de Trin. l. 13 c. 18. Beda in 11 Luc. l 4. c. 48. De persona Christi, Saint Basil, Saint Augustine, Tertullian in his booke De carne Christi, venerable Bede, and diverse others, whose pithy sayings and un­answerable arguments to prove this point, I could here alledge: But a­bove all, the words [...],Gal. 4.4. used by Saint Paul, and [...] used by the Evangelist, which signifie to take our nature upon him, and to be made flesh, if they be well and truly understood, do make it most appa­rently plaine, that the Sonne of God took unto himselfe personally the true nature of man and the very substance of his Mother,Luke 1.31.42. Heb. 2.14. for the Apostle doth not say, factus de muliere, sed factus ex muliere, made in a woman, but made of a woman, Gorrham super Galat. (as Nicolaus de Gor­rham well observeth) and therefore though Christ had his Principium formale, his formall beginning from the Holy Ghost, yet it is most cer­tain, that hee had his Principium [Page 130] materiale, his whole matter and sub­stance from the body of his mother: And as hee had a true humane body, so hee had a perfect reasonable Soule; That Christ had a true reasonable soule. Mat. 26 38. Luke 23.46. for the testimonies of the Scriptures are most plain herein; As my Soul is heavy unto death, and again, Father into thy hands I commend my spirit: Also the whole School of Divinity, did ever teach the same truth; for Nazianzen saith, Quod non assump­sit, non salvabit, either hee had a soule, or he will not save a soule, and Saint Augustine saith,Totum suscepit ut totum libe­raret verbum. Aug. de tempo­re. Ser. 145. Christ took all upon him, that is, both body and soule, that he might save them both. And so you see, that Christ had not Ideam humanae naturae, An imagina­ry patterne of humane nature, (as some in these our dayes would have it) but the whole nature of man, In uno individuo, consisting both of body and soule.

That Christ was subject to all our hu­mane frailties which are without sin.Moreover, As Christ had all the parts of a true and perfect man, so he had all the propertyes that do con­cern mans nature, or do belong ei­ther to the soule or to the body of man, as length, breadth, thicknesse, understanding, will, affection, &c. [Page 131] And all other infirmities that wee have, sin only excepted.Why he un­dertook our infirmities. Ambros. in Luc l. 10. c. 22. And it was requisite (saith Saint Ambrose) Ʋt infirmitates nostras susciperet, That he should take upon him our infirmi­ties.

First, To demonstrate the truth of his assumed humanity.

Secondly, To strengthen, and un­der-prop the weaknesse of our decli­ning Faith; and yet here wee must distinguish and understand, that those infirmities which are not sinfull, are either Personall or naturall. Those that are Personall, we say not,That Christ took no perso­nal infirmities upon him. that he took; for though many of us be affected with maladies, infeebled with infirmities, and disfigured with de­formities, yet the body of Christ be­ing framed by the Holy Ghost, of the purest Virgin blood, was proporti­oned in most equall Symmetry and correspondency of parts; and there­fore he was speciosus forma prae filijs hominum, fairer then the sons of men, wholy pure, more pure then the body of Absolon, 2 Sam. 14.25. in whom there was no blemish, so Cassiodorus saith, Forma ejus lactei coloris de core illuxit, Cassidor in Psa [...]. 45. & in­signi statura prae-eminuit; his body of [Page 132] the best composed stature, did excell all other men,Christ of a ravishing beauty. and so Saint Hierom saith, that his countenance carryed hidden and vayled in it a star like shining brightnesse, which being but a little revealed, it so ravished his Dis­ciples hearts, that at the first sight thereof,Mat. 19.27. Joh. 18.6. they left all and followed him, and it so astonished his enemies, that they stumbled and fell to the ground. But now those that are natu­rall or common infirmities, That Christ took upon him all naturall & common infir­mities. Heb. 2.17.4.15. Damasc de fide Orthodoxa. l. 3. c. 20. Discipulus in ser. de temp. we affirm that he had them in all things, like unto us, for we confesse, saith Da­mascen, that Christ took all the na­turall passions of man, which are with­out sinne; and Discipulus saith, that every man was subject unto twelve naturall defects and infirmities, wher­of (saith he) our Saviour Christ hath undergon ten of them, and hath suf­fered the same, Luke 22 43. even as we do.

• First Cold,
• Secondly, Heat

Two infirmities incident to every man, and denyed by no man to be in Christ.

Mat. 21.18.Thirdly, Hunger, as when he came to the fig-tree and would have eaten.

Joh. 4.7. c. 19. 28Fourthly, Thirst, As when he asked Drink of the woman of Samaria.

Fifthly, wearinesse, Joh. 4.6. As when hee sate by the well side to rest him.

Sixthly, Weaknesse and paine, Mat. 27.32. Joh. 19.17. as when he was not able to bear his cross any further.

Seventhly, Heavinesse and sorrow; Mat. 26 38. Luke 16 41. as when his soule was heavy unto death.

Eighthly, Shamefastnesse, Mar. 6.6. and ad­miration, as when hee marvelled at the infidelity of the Jewes.

Ninthly, Feare, Heb. 5.7. as when his Fa­ther heard him in that which hee fea­red.

Tenthly, Anger, Mat. 21.12. as when he drove the Buyers and sellers out of the Tem­ple.

These are the ten infirmities which Discipulus saith, were in our saviour Christ.

The other two which hee denyeth to be in him, are sin and ignorance. For the first, that is sin, wee all know and are sure, that hee had none; but for the second, we must di­stinguish and understand that there is first, Ignorantia pravae dispositionis, That there is a two fold ig­norance. An ignorance of a wicked disposition, as when men know not, or wil not know, the things that they ought or might, [Page 134] and this wee say was not in Christ. Secondly, Ignorantia merae privatio­nis, an ignorance of meer privation, Et ignorantia negativa, seu nescientia plurimorum, and a negative igno­rance, or the not knowing of many things, which are not of absolute ne­cessity to be known, and this igno­rance wee say was in our Saviour Christ, according to his humani­ty.

Ignatius in Ep. 2 ad Trallian.First, Because Adam in the state of his innocency was ignorant of ma­ny things that God did know, and he knew not, that he should be seduced by the Serpent.

That Christ was ignorant of some things Damasc: l 3 Nazian. l 2 de­fil. Amandus Pola­nus in Sym pho: catholica Thesi 7 c: 9Secondly, Because he did increase in wisdome and knowledge; that is, in his acquisite and experimentall wis­dome, and not in his infused or di­vine, for he had that perfect from the very first moment of his concep­tion, and therefore by his acquisite and experimentall wisdome, he lear­ned some things that he knew not be­fore; so that in this respect we may lawfully say, That Christ was igno­rant of many things in his youth, which afterwards hee learned in his age.

Thirdly,Mat. 21 19. Mark 13 32 Because hee knew not that there were no figgs on the figge-tree, untill hee went and saw there was none, and he knew not the houre and the day of Judgement.

And yet we say, that although the man Christ Jesus knew not these things, Ex natura humanitatis, Scotus in sent: dist. 14 q 1 & 4. by the manhood; yet he did know them in natura humanitatis, in the man­hood, because he was hypostatically united unto that eternall son of God, which made, and seeth, and knoweth all things: And so you see, that as Christ assumed our Nature, Christ assu­med our im­perfections. so he assumed our naturall imperfections, that are void of sin.

But here we must observe that hee assumed them all (as Saint Augustine saith) not by any imposed necessity, Non miseran­da necessitate, sed miserante voluntate. but by a voluntary assuming of them to deliver us from them, when as no Law could have compelled him to un­dergo them.

So that from hence we may clearly see, this son of God was not made flesh, to dignifie or to better himself, for if it had been so, then hee would never have assumed all our humane frailties: Besides, He was before [Page 136] his incarnation (as I have shewed) a God in the best and highest degree, from everlasting, [...], a God of himselfe, How greatly God loved us, that he would be made man for our good. co-essentiall and co-equall unto his Father: What therefore should he merit, or where­in could he be dignified by his incar­nation, more then hee was before, Gloria ejus augeri non potuit, nothing could be added unto his Glory, or if it could, his love to us could not be so great, A love like himselfe in­comprehensi­ble. for then it might be sayd, he did it not only for our sake, but also for his own, that himself might there­by be the more dignified and exalted, but seeing he was so high before, that he could not be higher, so great that he could not be greater, and so good that he could not be better, it is most certainly apparent, that he descended from the height of his dignity, unto the very depth of humility, to be made flesh, only for our sake: And as Hu­go saith,Hugo in l. de Sacrament. Nulla causa veniendi fuit nisi peccatores salvos facere, Tolle mor­bos, tolle vulnera, & nulla est causa medicinae, there was no cause that he should come to us, but to save us, for where there are no wounds, where there are no Diseases, there [Page 137] is no need of Medicines, there is no use of Plaisters, because the whole need not the Physitian;Non eum de coelo ad terram merita nostra, sed peccata no­stra traxerunt. Aug in Joh. & gloss. in 1 Tim. 1. which may serve to shew, it was not our Goodnesse, but our wickednesse, our greivous sins that brought down Je­sus Christ out of heaven, the place of eternall happinesse; so that from hence also we may see, his rare and singular humility, in that hee being the eternall Sonne of God, and the head of all Principality and Power, How Christ humbled him­selfe. that could have comman­ded all the Angells, and by his stretched out Arme, without the assumption of our Weaknesse, have made all his enemies his foot­stool, was notwithstanding con­tented, Exinanire seipsum, The greatest sign of Christ his love. to emp­ty and dis-robe himselfe, as it were of all his royall dignities and di­vine Riches, and to cloathe him­selfe with our humane Nakednesse only for our sake, to free us from under the tyrannicall Bondage of the Devil: And therefore we may wel say, that greater love then this cannot be, that he which is the highest, cheifest, Joh. 15.13. everlasting God, should descend and be made the son of man, that we [Page 138] through him might be made the sons of the immortall God, for by his incarnation Naturam humanam no­bilitavit, he hath so ennobled our humane nature (as Saint Augu­stine saith) that we which were worms and no men,2 Pet: 1 4 are now [...], partakers of the divine nature: So that now our nature being repai­red, it is exalted far above the dig­nity of its first originall,That we attain to a far better state in Christ (by his incar­nation) then we lost in A­dam. Bernard, ser: 1 1 de Epiphan: and it hath obtained to a far better state in Christ, then it had, and lost in Adam; because Adam was but in the Image of God, but we are joyned and made one with God, as Saint Bernard saith. And therefore Faelix culpa, quae talem meruit redemptorem, happy was that fault (as it hapned unto us) which brought forth such a Saviour, to be made partaker of our flesh, that wee might be Partakers of his Spirit, as Saint Gregory speaketh.

But now it will be here demanded, (as Saint Augustine saith) Quare non potuit Dei sapientia aliter homines liberare? Why God de­creed the in­carnation of his son, for the salvation of man. &c. Why could not the Wisdome of God devise, and the Power of God effect some other way to deliver and save sinfull men, then [Page 139] by sending his son to be made man, to be borne of a woman, and to suffer such shamefull things of shamelesse sinners? to this saint Bernard fra­meth this witty answer, That as in the creation of man, God did as it were consult with his wisdome, how to make him, when hee said,Gen. 1.26. Let us make man in our image, so after the transgression of man, there was (as it were) a consultation in heaven what should become of man; for Truth and Justice stood up against him and said, that man had sinned, Cap. 2.27. and therefore man must dye, but Mer­cy and Peace rose up for man, and said,Quo quisque est major, magis est placabilis ira: Regia (crede nobis) res est suc­currere lapsis, it is a royall thing to releive the distressed, and the grea­ter any one is, the more placable and gentle he should be, and that God himselfe had said, hee was the God of Peace, and the Father of mercies, and therefore they concluded, that although man had sinned, yet man must be pardoned or else abandoned, therefore the wisdome of God became an umpire, and devised this way to re­concile them, that as one man had sin­ned, and thereby destroyed all men, [Page 140] so Ʋnus homo nobis patiendo restituet rem, Bosquier. de pass Dom: ser 13. p. 793. one righteous man should suf­fer for all men, and so Justice should be satisfied; and then all that be­leived in that man, should be pardo­ned, and so mercy should be shewed: then, all thus contented, God loo­ked down from heaven upon the chil­dren of men, to see if there were any that would understand and seeke after God, Psal. 14.2.3. but they were all corrupted; and therefore the Wisdome of God, that had found out this way, was contented to performe this worke himselfe and to be made man, that mercy might be extended, and to suffer death for man, that Justice might be satisfied: and so in him mercy and truth met together, Psal. 85.10. righte­ousnesse and peace kissed each other.

Aug. de Trinit. l. 13. c. 10. Gregor. Moral. l. 20. c. 26.But Saint Augustine and Saint Gregory do more solidly answer, say­ing, Omnia Deus poterat si voluisset, That in regard of his Wisdome, God could have devised another way, and in respect of his Power, hee could have performed the salvation of man, without the incarnation of his son, but if hee had done it other­wise, it would, no doubt, have like­wise [Page 141] displeased our foolishnesse; for God appeared visibly (saith Saint Augustine) that hee might prepare us to invisible things,How hard it is for the wis­dome of God to please foo­lish men. and therein hee displeased the covetous man, because hee brought not a body of Gold; he displeased the las­civious, because hee was borne of a woman; hee displeased the Jewes, because hee came so poor; and hee displeased the wise men of this world, because hee erecteth his Kingdome by the foolishnesse of Preaching; and so hee should have displeased man, what other way soever hee had invented for to save him. And therefore,Aug. de An­nunt. Dom. ser. 3. Sic voluit ruinam vasis fragilis reformare, ut nec peccatum hominis dimitteret impunitum, quia justus erat, nec insanabile, quia mise­ricors; so God would repaire the ruine of fraile and fickle man, that neither the sin of man should escape unpunished, because God is just, nor yet miserable man remaine un­cured, because hee is mercifull; and although hee could otherwise have saved man, Quantum ad potentiam medici, in respect of the power and skill of the Physitian, yet hee saw [Page 142] there was no fitter way to do it, Quantum ad medicinam aegroti, & quantum ad Justitiam Dei, in regard of the state of the Patient, to free him from sin, and to satisfie the Justice of God, for it behoved the Mediator between God and man,Ne in utroque deo similis lon­ge esset ab ho­mine, aut in utroque homini similis longe, es­set a Deo to have some­thing like unto God, and to have something like unto man, least that in all things being like unto man, hee might be so too far from God, or being in all things like unto God, he might be so too far from man, and therefore Christ betwixt sinfull mor­tall men, and the just immortall God, did appear a mortall man with men, and a just God with God; and so the mediator betwixt God and men,1 Tim. 2.5. was God and man Christ Jesus.

That in Christ there are two distinct na­tures. Rom. 14.19.The distinction of these two na­tures, the Deity and the humanity of our Saviour Christ is most excellent­ly shewed by saint Paul, where hee saith that Christ was made man, [...], according to the flesh, and de­clared mightily to be the son of God [...], according to the Spirit of Sanctification, for that according to his humane nature only he was made of the seed of David, [Page 143] which according to his Divine nature was declared still to be the eternall Son of God, so that here saint Paul sheweth two Natures to be in Christ, that is, his divine and his humane Nature, still remaining entire after his incarnation; because as he was made only of the seed of David, in respect of his manhood, (for that his God-head was not made of the seed of David) so was he declared only to be the Son of God, in respect of his God-head, for that his Manhood was not the omnipotent and the eternall son of God.

This truth of the two natures of Christ,Two natures in Christ pro­ved. may be confirmed by most apparant and unanswerable argu­ments, for the Jewes said,Joh. 5.18. that he did not only break the Sabbath, but also sayd, that God was his Father, making himselfe equall with God; And Christ himselfe said,Joh. 10.30. I and my Father are one, and therefore the Pharisees did rightly collect, that Christ by these words had affirmed himselfe to be a God, and yet he saith,Joh. 14.28. My Father is greater then I, but it cannot possi­bly be, that Christ according to the same Nature, should be equall, nay [Page 144] one with the Father, and yet inferi­our to the Father, and therefore it must needs follow, that hee hath one nature, according to which hee is equall to his Father, and another nature, in respect whereof he is infe­riour to him.

Joh. 8 58.Besides, our Saviour saith, Before Abraham was, I am; and yet saint Luke saith,Luke 2.7. He was born in the dayes of Augustus Caesar, but it cannot be that Idem secundum idem, the same one, in the same respect, should be before Abraham, and after Abraham: And therefore hee must needs have two natures in him, according to one whereof, he was before Abraham, and according to the other hee was after him.

And further, wee finde the same confessed by all Antiquity;All orthodox Antiquity confessed two natures to be in Christ. Vigil l 2. cont. Eutych. Philip. 2. mirum est, &c. for Vigi­lius writing upon those words of the Apostle, Who being in the forme of God, tooke upon him the forme of a ser­vant, saith, It is a wonder to think, why some are afraid to say, that Christ had two Natures, when as the Apostle saith, that he had two formes; and the great oecumenicall Councill of Chalcedon, left this confession unto [Page 145] all potesterity;Concil. Calced. Act. 5. in Symb. fidei. Confitemur in novis­simis diebus, filium Dei unigenitum in duabus naturis inconfuse, immuta­biliter, indivise, inseparabiliter agnos­cendum, nunquam sublata differentia propter unionem; We confess, that the only begotten son of god, which came in the last days to be incarnate, is now to be acknowledged, to be, & to sub­sist of two natures, (that is, Divine & humane) inconfusedly, immutably, inseparably, and undividedly united together, and that the differences or disjunction of these natures is never to be abolished and taken away, by reason of the union of the same.

And here wee must observe,That the two natures do make but one person in our Lord and Sa­viour Jesus Christ. that although this eternall son of God, was so made flesh, that is, a perfect man, of the seed of David, as that still each na­ture remaineth intire and inconfused; yet wee must not imagine that hee is therefore two sons or two persons (as Nestorius thought) but that he is one only person, consisting of both these natures: so that he in whom the ful­nesse of manhood dwelleth is not one, and he in whom the fulnesse of the Godhead another; but he in whom the fulness of both those two dwelleth, is one and the selfe same Christ, [Page 146] that is, one Christ, one person; and here wee must consider, that the di­vine Nature did not assume an hu­mane person, but the divine person did assume an humane nature: The son of God assuming into the unity of his person, that which before hee was not; and yet without change, (for so must God still be) remaining that which he was: And so Grego­ry Nazianzen saith,Permansit quod erat, & assumpsit quod non erat. Nazian. Orat. 3▪ de Theolog. Hee remained what he was, and he assumed what he was not, because Christ was made flesh, Non deposita, sed seposita Maje­state, not by cancelling or laying a­way, but as it were, by concealing and laying aside for a time, the most glo­rious appearance of his divine Maje­sty,Emyssen. hom. 2 de nativiatte. as Eusebius Emyssenus doth most excellently declare, and the Poet as wittily, saying,

This truth of the union of these two natures may be confirmed by the holy scriptures, The unity of Christ his per­son most clearly proved from Scrip­tures. for when Christ as­ked his Apostles, Whom do men say that I, the son of man, am, Saint Peter answered, that hee was Christ, the son of the living God; therefore hee is but one person, because Saint Peter confesseth the son of man to be the son of the living God: Mat. 16.13.16 And the Angell said unto the Virgin,Luke 1.35. That holy thing which shall be borne of thee, shall be called the son of God; therefore hee is but one person, because hee which was born of the Virgin, was and is none other, but he that is truly called,Joh 20.31. and is the true son of God; and Saint Paul speaking of Christ, as hee was the eternall son of God.Rom. 1.8. [...], in respect of his Godhead, and as he was the Son of David, [...], in respect of his manhood, yet doth he not say of his sons as of two, 1 Joh. 1 1. c: 2. v. 22. Chap. 3. v. 16. Chap. 4 v 3. but of his son made and declared to be his son, to shew unto us, That as be­fore his making, so now after his ma­king, [Page 148] he is still but one son, one per­son, of the two distinct natures sub­sisting: And this is confessed by all antiquity;All our Creeds and all anti­quity confes­seth the same truth, touch­ing the unity of Christ his person. for in the Apostles Creed, we say, that we beleeve in Jesus Christ his only son our Lord, which was con­ceived of the Holy Ghost, and borne of the Virgin Mary, and therefore he is but one person, because hee which is said to be the only son of God, is said also to be born of the Virgin Mary; and in the Creed of Athanasius, it is said, That although Christ be both God and man, yet he is no more twain but one Christ; and that not by con­founding of the substances, but by the unity of person, that is, by the uni­ting of both natures into one person.

Concil. Calced. Concil. Nicen. Si quis non confitetur carni­secundum sub­sistentiam uni­tum Dei Patris verbum ana­thema sit.Also the third Councill of Ephesus, the Councill of Lateran, and all the ancient Orthodox Fathers, as Ju­stin Martyr, Irenaeus, Saint Basil, saint Nazianzen, saint Damascen, saint Hillary, saint Ambrose, saint Hierome, saint Augustine, and the rest of them, have most truly and learnedly confessed this truth; that although Christ hath two natures, yet do these two make but one person, one son of God, one Saviour of men.

So that this we may safely say, and must firmly hold, that as the distincti­on of the Persons in the Holy Trinity, hindreth not the unity of the nature of the God-head, although every person intirely holdeth his own incommuni­cable property, so neither doth the distinction of the two Natures in our Mediator any way crosse the unity of his person, although each nature remaineth entire in it selfe, [...]. and re­taineth the properties agreeing thereunto, without any conversion, composition, commixion, or confusi­on.

Now for the clearer understanding of this point, we say that the under­standing of these two natures, is,

• 1. Inconvertible
• 2. Indivisible
• 3. Inconfused
• 4. Insepar [...]ble
• 5. Substantiall
• 6. Ineffable.

Frst, Inconvertible, 1 Inconver­tible. Because neither the di [...]ine Nature is turned into the humanity, [...]r the humanity into the Deity.

Secondly, Indivisible, 2. Indivisible. Because the natures are so united into one person, that they can never be separated, un­lesse we divide the person of Christ, which is most hereticall.

3. Inconfused.Thirdly, Inconfused, Because the na­tures remain still intire, without con­founding either their Essence, or their properties, or their wills, or any other operations whatsoever; there­fore we do affirm, that in Christ there are two Natures, How the properties of each nature do remain in­tire and in­confused to each nature. two Wills, two Na­turall proprieties, & operations, intire and unmixed, that we may not con­found them with Eutyches; for sith the natures are neither confused nor transfused each into other, the pro­perties also must needs remain entire to either nature, and as a man hath his soule and body both united and in­confused, Ita multo magis Christus habens divinitatem cum corpore, ha­bet utraque permanentia, & non confusa, so much more Christ ha­ving his divinity united with our flesh, hath them both remaining in­tire and inconfused, for that rule can never be disproved, Confundens proprietates essentiales, confundit na­turas, confound the naturall or es­sentiall properties of any things, and you take away the nature of the things: And therefore in that one and selfe-same subsistence of Christ, there must needs be a divine and aJo [...]. 10.17. [Page 151] humane nature, a divine and a hu­mane wisdome, a divine and a hu­mane will, and so of all other pro­perties of each nature, they must be as well inconfused, as indivisible

Fourthly, inseparable, 4. Inseparable. because the natures are so inseparably uni­ted, that the humane nature can ne­ver be separated from the divine per­son that assumed it, and therefore when Christ dyed, subtraxit visionem, sed non solvit unionem, the soule par­ted from the body,Psal. 16.10. When Christ dyed, and bo­dy and soul were parted, the Godhead parted from neither. but the Deity was separated from neither, as Leo saith; but as a tree cut in twaine, the sun cannot be cut, but that it may still shine on either part, so the body and soule of Christ being parted, the De­ity was still united unto them both, and could never be separated from the manhood, after hee had once assu­med the same into the unity of his person.

Fifthly, substantiall, 5. Substantiall. because he is a true and perfect man, whose being is no accident, but a substance.

Sixthly, It is ineffable, 6. Ineffable. so absolute­ly perfect, and so exceedingly mysti­call, that it can never be perfectly de­clared by any man; for though the [Page 152] Fathers sought by many examples and similitudes,That the mannet of the uniting of the two natures, is ineffable. to expresse and to illustrate the same, as by the union of the body and soule, of a Branch in­grafted into a tree, of a fiery iron, and such like, yet all come too short, for the full expressing of this inexplicable mystery: And therefore Saint Ber­nard compareth this ineffable myste­ry of the uniting of these two natures, unto that incomprehensible mystery of the Trinity, and so indeed that of the Trinity is the greatest, and this of the incarnation is like unto it, far exceeding mans capacity rather most faithfully to be beleeved,Psal. 77.19. then too curiously to be searched into, be­cause God hath overshadowed this mi­stery with his own vaile, that wee might not presume,1 Sam. 6.19. with the men of Bethshemesh, to look into this Ark of his; least for our curiosity, we be smitten as they were: Or least whilst we make too strict a scrutiny to finde out the depth of this mystery, we for­feit that small and weak knowledge, which by divine bounty is bestowed upon us; and therefore what we can­not comprehend by reason, we should apprehend by faith, because as Hein­sius saith, Omnia in Deo supra ratio­nem, [Page 153] nihil supra fidem, The mysteries of our religion are to be be­leived by faith, rather then to be searched out by reason. though many things may be above the reach of reason, yet nothing beyond faith; Nam quicquid solus Deus potest face­re, sola fides potest credere, For what­soever God alone can do, faith alone can beleeve the same, and faith is the compendium of our salvation, and hu­mane wisdome the cheifest obstacle of the same. Therefore indeed it should be our cheifest care to keep our selves within the limits of Faith, & because I find the Creed of blessed Athanasi­us, concerning the Incarnation of the son of God, to be pure and clear from all Errour and heresie whatsoever, I shall here insert the same.

1 It is necessary (saith he) unto e­ternall salvation,Joh 3.36.6.40. 1 Joh. 4.3. Heb. 2.16. that whosoever will be saved, do beleive rightly the incar­nation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2 This then is the right faith,Joh. 1.1. Luke 24.39. that wee beleeve and confesse, that our Lord Jesus Christ the son of God is God and man.

3 He is God,Joh. 1.14.18. Prou. 8.22.23.25.30. Luk. 1 35. Gal 4.4. 1 Joh. 5.20. of the substance of his Father, begotten before the world, & man of the substance of his mother Born in the world. Perfect God Perfect man, of a reasonable soul & human flesh [Page 154] subsisting.Luke 24.39. Mat. 26.38. Joh. 5.17.14.18. Equall to the Father, accor­ding to his Divinity: Inferiour to the Father, according to his Hu­manity.

4. Who though he be God and man, yet he is not two but one Christ. One, not by converting of the divinity in­to flesh,Hebr. 2.14.16. Damasc. l. 3. Orthod. fidei c. 3. Concil. Chalc. Act. 20. but by assuming of the huma­nity into God. One altogether, not by conversion of the substance, but by unity of the person. For as the rea­sonable soul and flesh are one man, so God and man is one Christ.

5. Who suffered for our Salvation. Went down to Hell. The third day rose again from the dead.Rom. 4 25. Phil 2.8. Psal. 16.10.116.3. 1 Cor. 15.17. Acts. 1.11. Psal. 110.1. 2 Tim. 4.1. Ascended into Heaven. He sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence he shall come to judge the quick and dead.

6. At whose coming all men shall rise with their bodyes, and shall give an account of their own deeds.1 Thes. 4.16. 1 Cor. 15.52.53. Mat. 12.36. Rev. 20.12 Dan. 12.2. Joh. 5.28.29. Mar. 16.16. Heb. 11.6. 2 Thes. 1.8.9. And who have done good, shall go into life eternall, but who have done evill into everlasting fire.

7. This is the Catholike Faith, which except every one do faithfully and firmely beleeve, hee cannot be sa­ved.

Many other points of great mo­ment I might here shew unto you, as the effects and benefits of the hypo­staticall or personall union of the two natures,Oftentimes it comes to pass, that by reason of the perso­nall union of the two na­tures, each one of them doth inter­changeably take the con­crete or com­pounded names each of other in pre­dication, Acts 20.38. the communicating of the properties, which is nothing else but a form of speech, whereby those things are spoken, sometimes of the whole person of Christ, which in­deed are proper to either one nature, and not to the other; yet by reason of the strictness of this personall uni­on, whatsoever may be verified of ei­ther of those natures, the same may be truly spoken of the whole person, from whethersoever of the natures it be denominated; but that to write or speak all that I might of this point, would inlarge this Treatise into a great volume, Joh. 3.13. 1 Cor. 2.8. That it is im­possible for any one man to expresse all the particulars of Christ his incarnation. and that indeed the wit and learning of any one man is no more able to expresse all the My­steries and most excellent points that we might collect and learne from the Incarnation of Christ, then one poor fisher man is able to catch all the fi­shes in the ocean sea.

And therefore thus much shall suf­fice concerning this discourse of the Incarnation, Birth, Life, Death, Re­surrection [Page 156] and Ascension of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ▪ who is (as hath been proved) the true and promised Messiah, the only son of God, the brightnesse of his glory, the ex­presse image of his Person, heire of all things, Heb. 1.2.3.4. &c. more excellent then the Angels, having honour glory, Power, strength, Praise, 2 Pet. 1.17. Rev. 5.12. Colos, 2.3.1.18. Psal. 2.8. Eph. 1.20.21.22. Psal. 72.8.17. Phil. 2 9. Dignity, Riches, and Wis­dome, (yea all treasures of know­ledge and wisdome) the heathen for his inheritance, the Earth for his possessions, and the Heavenly places for his seate, far above, all Power, Might, Dominion, and Principalities, with a Name given him above all Names, (at which every knee should bow, &c.) Being the second Person in Trinity, begotten of his Father from Eternity, Gal. 4.4. in one Person the Son of God, and very man; Man, (Non exeundo quod habuit, sed induendo quod non habuit) not by loosing that he had, but by accepting what hee had not our miserable nature, con­ceived of a Virgin by the Holy Ghost, called of his Father ever since the fall of Adam, to be a Mediator between God and man, desired of the Patri­archs, prefigured in the Law, fore­told [Page 157] by the Prophets, accomplished in the time of Grace, manifested in the flesh, justified in the spirit, 1 Tim. 3.16. seen of An­gells, preached unto the Gentiles, be­leeved on in the world, and received up into Glory: For man hee became a King to rule, a Prophet to teach, and Priest to sacrifice.

Wherein the greatnesse of Gods goodness doth appeare. WHEN we think upon the infinite goodnesse of the great Jehovah, how gracious he is in all respects, amiable in himselfe, placable unto men, & liberall unto all his crea­tures, none is so stupid and dull as not to admire it in him, such is the never-dying streams of the goodness of God; it is like a boundlesse Ocean, there is no end of his Goodnesse, and therefore Saint Bernard in admi­ration thereof, breaketh forth into these heavenly acclamations, saying, Quam dives es in misericordia, & magnificus in Justitia, & munificus in gratia; Domine Deus noster! O [Page 159] how rich art thou in mercy, how magnificent in Justice, and how boun­tifull in Grace, O Lord our God! For thou art a most liberall bestower of heavenly gifts,Nam tu mune­rator copiosissi­mus, remune­rator aequissi­mus, & libera­tor piissimus. Bernard. a most righteous Rewarder of humane workes, and a most gracious Deliverer of all that trust in thee, yea so great is the good­nesse of God, it is beyond expression, beyond our imagination, our words are beneath our thoughts, and our thoughts far lower then the truth thereof:Deut. 32.49. & 52. Yet as Moses from the top of Mount Nebo, be­held the borders of the land of Ca­naan, so if you please to ascend with me to the Mount of Contemplation, I will shew you some glimpses of Gods goodnesses, Certaine glimpses or shadowes of Gods good­ness. for he elected us before we were, he created us of nothing, hee redeemed us when we were lost, hee preserveth us being found, and that hee might bring us to eternall life, hee hath given us the Author and Fountain of all temporall and spiritu­all gifts, even the holy Ghost, What the ho­ly Ghost is. 1 Joh. 5.7. Joh 15.26. Gal. 4.6. Psal. 139.7 who is the third Person of the true and only God-head, proceeding from the Fa­ther and the Son, and co-eternall, co­quall and consubstantiall with them [Page 160] both.Mat. 28.19. Isa. 6.8.9. Act 28.25.26. He is call'd by the name of spirit, proceeding from the Father and the son, to shew the Essence and Nature that he is of; for as the spirit of man must needs be truly of mans nature, and is the most formall and Essentiall part of man: 1 Cor. 2.11.12. So and much more it must be thought of the Spirit of God, upon whom no Composition falleth.

And yet some have been so bold, as most impiously to affirme, that the ho­ly Ghost was but a created quality, or a godly motion in the hearts and minds of Righteous man.Isa 6.8.9. Acts 28.25.26 But if wee do compare the words of Isaias, with the words of Saint Paul, they will sufficiently confute this damnabe [...]r­rour, and most manifestly shew un­to us, this holy spirit to be the true and eternall God. Besides, the scrip­ture saith, That the spirit of the Lord filleth heaven and earth, Sap. 1.7. where­upon Saint Basil, Ambrose de S. S. l. 1. c. 7. Saint Augustine Saint Ambrose, and others have most plainly proved against all hereticks whatsoever, that the holy Ghost is a true God by Nature, That the Ho­ly Ghost is a true God by nature. because that to be every where, cannot by Grace belong to any, but only to him [Page 161] that is by Nature God, which re­serveth this unto himselfe to be eve­ry where, and therefore Saint Au­gustine writing against Maximinus an Arrian Bishop, saith,Aug. cont. Maxim. l. 3. c. 21. Epist. 66. I cannot ex­press how much I marvell what a heart you have, so to extoll the holy Ghost, as to make him every where present, to sanctifie the faithfull, and yet that thou dare deny him to be a God, for is not he a God which fil­leth heaven and earth.

Also Dydimus in his booke,Basil. de spiritu sancto c. 22. and Saint Basil in his treatise, De spiritu sancto, declare that to be God, Didym. lib. 1. de spiritu san­cto. which can be in diverse places at one time: Which thing is not agreeable to any creature. But that the holy Ghost was present with the Apostles and Pro­phets in sundry parts of the world at one time, no man professing the faith of Christ doth in the least doubt the truth thereof: Wherefore it fol­loweth, that he is a God. Job 33. Mat. 28.19. 1 Joh. 5.7. Joh 14.1.16. 1 Cor 3.16. 2 Cor. 13.14. Psal. 33.6.104 30 The Symbo­lum of Nice out of the holy scripture teacheth, That the holy Ghost is hee that maketh alive, and hee that toge­ther with the Father and the sonne is worshiped, and with them is honoured; therefore the holy Ghost of necessity [Page 162] must be true and everlasting God with the Father and the son in one only essence; touching which point, the holy Fathers powerfully did set themselves against the Hereticks, and out of holy scripture stoutly main­tained the same.

Plato, Aristotle, Proclus, Sui­das, Orpheus, Pherecydes, Parmenides, Porphyrius, Numenius, A­melius, Chalci­dius, Avicen.As for Atheists which deny the scriptures, and are altogether igno­rant of this blessed spirit, if they will but look into the writings of the An­cients, they shall surely finde, that as the Gentiles did understand many things concerning God and Jesus Christ his only son, so some of them have delivered some things (although but darkly) concerning this holy spi­rit: For Hermes Trismegistus hath these words, All kind of things in this world (saith he) are quickned by a spirit, one spirit filleth all things, the world nourisheth the bodies, and the spirit the soules; and this spirit as an instrument,Mercu [...]ie in his Esculapius, c. 3. & 7. is subject to the will of God. And further he saith, That all things have need of this spirit, it beareth them up, it nourisheth them, it quickneth them, according to eve­ry of their capacities, it proceedeth [Page 163] from a holy Fountaine, and is the maintainer of all living things, and of all spirits. Here wee see the reason why we call him the holy Ghost, name­ly, because he proceedeth from the foun­tain which is the very holinesse it selfe. And least we should think him to be a creature, Mercurie in his Sermon in his Poemander. c 3 there was (saith hee) an infinite shadow in the deep, whereon was the water, and a fine understan­ding spirit was in that confused mass through the power of God. From thence there flourished a certain ho­ly brightnesse, which out of the sand and the moyst nature brought forth the Elements and all things else. Also the Gods themselves which dwell a­mong the stars tooke their place by the direction and appointment of this spirit of God,

In the writings of Plotinus, Plotin. Enn. 5. lib. 2. & lib. 3. cap. 35. there be found very significant speeches of the holy Ghost, whom hee calleth, Ʋniversi animam, Plotin. Ennead. 3. lib. 9. cap. ult. & E [...]n. 6. lib. 8 cap. 13. 15. 27. & Enn. 3. lib 8. c. 10. lib 9. cap. 1. the soule or life of this whole universe. This soule (saith hee) hath breathed life into all living things in the Air, in the Sea, and on the land, it ruleth the Sun, [Page 164] the stars and the Heaven; it hath quickned the matter which once was nothing, and utterly full of darkness, and all this hath it done by the only will of it selfe. It is all throughout all, like to the father, as well in that it is but one, as in that it extendeth it self into all places. All which doth most apparently prove, that the Gentiles themselves were not ignorant of this holy spirit, whom they clearly shew to be the true and eternall God. And therefore how may this serve to shame the wretched Atheists of this world, which notwithstanding such a cloud of witnesses will still conti­nue ignorant and hardned in unbe­leife.

Why the ho­ly Ghost is called a spirit.Moreover, This third person of the true and only God-head, is called a spirit, not only because hee is a spirituall, (that is) an immateriall and pure essence, (for so likewise is the Father a spirit, and the son as well as he) but first, in regard of his person; because he is spired, and as it were, breathed both from the Father and the son. Secondly, In regard of the creatures; Psal 33.6 Jo [...]h 20 22. because the Father and the son do work by the spirit: who [Page 165] is, as it were, the breath of Grace, which the Father and the son breath­eth out upon the saints; blowing freely where it listeth,Joh 3.8. 1 Cor. 2.12.13. Act. 2. [...].3.4. and working spiritually for manne [...], meanes, and matter, where it pleaseth. Thirdly, In regard of his Property, because the property of him is to move, to set forward, to perswade, to comfort, & to enlighten the spirits & hearts of men, and at length to worke in them such things as pertain to our sanctification. And indeed the saints have such try­all of the marvellous effects thereof, as neither reason nor mans wisdome is able to comprehend those things, neither can they be discerned by the eyes of men: So that (as Peter Martyr saith) wee beleive in the holy Ghost, as in a thing that far ex­ceedeth the capacity of our nature, and yet is distinctly set forth unto us in the holy scripture,Job. 14 26. & 1.33. Joh. 16.13.14.15. Mat. 28.19. That the holy Ghost is di­stinct from the Father and the son. for the Apostles are commanded in the Gospell, that they should baptize in the name of the Father, of the son, and of the holy Ghost. Which place doth most plain­ly expresse the distinction of the three persons, and do signifie nothing else, but that we be delivered from our [Page 166] sins, by the name, authority, and power of the Father, of the Sonne, and of the Holy Ghost. And in the baptisme of Christ,Luke 3 21 22 Mat. 3 16 17 as Luke rehear­seth, the Voice of the Father was heard, and the holy Ghost appeared under the forme of a Dove, where­by is signified, that the holy Ghost doth so differ from the Father and the son, as he is derived from them both. In John it is sayd, I will pray the Father, Joh. 14 16 and hee shall give you another Comforter. Here the son prayeth, the Father heareth, and the Comforter is sent. Now if the Father shall give such a Comforter, then the Father himselfe cannot be that Comforter, neither can Christ (that prayeth) be the same. So that very significantly the three persons herein are plainly set forth unto us. For even as the Father and the sonne are two distinct and severall (though not sundred persons) even so the holy Ghost is another distinct person from the Father and the Son.Joh. 15 26 Luke 1 35

That the holy Ghost is a per­son proved, Luke 3 22And further, that the holy Ghost is a person is proved. 1. By his appariti­ons, because he hath appeared visibly; [Page 167] for seeing he descended in bodily shape upon Christ, and sate upon the A­postles, Acts 2 3 it followeth that hee is subsi­sting. 2 Hee is proved to be a person, 1 Cor. 3 16 Acts 5 3 4 Isa. 40 7 30 Ephes. 4.4.30. Acts 28.25 1 Cor. 12 11 Luke 12 12 Joh. 16.13 Luke 2 26 Mat. 10 20 because he is called God. 3 Because the properties of a person, are attri­buted unto him; as that hee distri­buteth gifts even as he will, that hee teacheth, comforteth, confirmeth, ru­leth, raigneth: Likewise, that hee sendeth Apostles, and speaketh in them: So also hee declareth the things to come.Acts 16 & 10 39 & 20 24 1 Tim. 4 1 He giveth prophesies of Simeons death, of Judas the Trai­tor, of Peters journy to Cornelius, of Pauls bands and afflictions which should betide himselfe at Jerusalem, of a falling away, and of the decei­ver in the last times,Heb 9 8 & 10 15 of the meaning of the high preists entrance into the holiest of all, of the first Tabernacle, of the new Covenant, 1 Pet. 1 11 of Christs sufferings, and his glory which should follow after them, and such like: He maketh request for us with sighes which cannot be uttered;Rom. 8.29 he cryeth in our hearts, Abba, Father; he is tempted by them who lye unto him, hee is a witnesse in Heaven with the Father and the son,Acts 5 9 hee commandeth [Page 168] and willeth that the Apostles be sepa­rated: Act. 13.2. Acts 20.28. And lastly, He appointeth tea­chers in the Church: All these things are proper unto a person existing, in­telligent, indued with a will, working and living.

That the holy Ghost is God co-eternall with the Fa­ther and the son proved. Col. 2.9. Joh. 10.30. 1 Joh. 5.7. Jer. 23.24. Joh. 1.18. Rom. 8.9. 1 Cor. 6.19. Rom. 8.11. Gen. 1.2. Joh. 15.26. Aug. lib. de Trinitate 15. cap. 26. That he pro­ceedeth from the Father & the Son. Gal. 4.6. Joh 15.26. & 20.22. Joh. 16.14.15.Now that the holy Ghost is God co-eternall with the Father and with the son, it may be proved by the unity of the divine Essence, because there is but one God-head, and by the incom­prehensiblenesse of the three persons, the same is also proved by the essen­tiall union of them, that is, because he is often called the spirit of the Father and of the Son: but the Father and the son were never without their spi­rit, therefore hee is God co-eternall with both: Also that which saint John saith, that the spirit proceedeth from the Father: The ancient Fathers holding the right faith, do under­stand, cheifly to be spoken of the e­verlasting proceeding of the spirit from the Father. And he proceedeth from the son first, because he is called the sons spirit. Secondly, Because the son together with the Father, giveth him. Thirdly, Because the holy Ghost receiveth the Wisdome of the son, [Page 169] which he revealeth unto us, where­fore he proceedeth of the substance of the son, because he receiveth that of him which is the sons. By this it ap­peareth, what is the proceeding of the holy Ghost; namely, the communica­ting of the divine essence, whereby the third person of the God-head a­lone receiveth the same and whole or intire essence from the Father and the son, as from him whose spirit hee is; for there is nothing in God which is not his essence; and seeing that is indivisible, it must needs be whole, and the same communicated unto him, which is in the Father and the son. That the Ho­ly Ghost is consubstanti­all with the Father and the Son, proved. Rom. 8.9. Lev. 16.1.34 & Heb. 9.7.8.9.10. Psal. 95.7. & Heb. 3.7. Isa. 6 8.9. & Acts 28.25.26. As the spirit of man which is in man, is of the Essence of man, so the spirit of God which is in God, is of the Essence of God, which divine es­sence is but one, that is, but one Je­hovah or eternall being, one essential­ly; who alone is of none, but himself, communicateth his being to all things, and preserveth it in them. Now the Holy Ghost is Jehovah, and therefore he is the same with the Fa­ther, and the son, not only God co-eternall, but also con-substantiall, or God co-essentiall with both.

That he is co-equall with the father and the Son, pro­ved. Gen. 1.2.And further, That he is co-equall with the Father and the son is proved by those divine Attributes and pro­perties which are attributed and com­municated to the holy Ghost. As, first eternity, because he created hea­ven and earth, and because God was never without his spirit. Secondly, Immensity, or unmeasurablenesse, as who dwelleth whole and intirely in all the elect. Thirdly, Omnipotency, because he,Psal. 33.6. 1 Cor 12.11. 1 Cor. 2.10. together with the Father and the son, created and preserveth all things. Fourthly, Omnisciency, that is, the knowledge of all things. Fifthly,Acts 1.16. Psal. 143.10. unchangeableness. Sixthly, In­finite goodnesse and holinesse, and the causing of goodnesse and sanctity in the creatures.1 Cor. 6.11. Joh. 15.26. 1 Joh. 5.6. Rom. 5 5. & 8.26. Isa. 63.10. Mat. 12.31. Acts 5.9 E­phes. 4.30. Seventhly, truth not to be doubted of, & the fountain of truth. Eightly, Ʋnspeakable mercy. Ninthly, Indignation even against hidden sins. All which do sufficiently prove, that the holy Ghost is God, coequall with the Father and the son. Besides, the same divine works which are attribu­ted to the Father and the son, Mat. 12.28. 1 Cor. 12 4. are also attributed to the holy G [...]ost, as the generall creation, preservation and government of the whole world. Like­wise [Page 171] those works which properly be­long to the salvation of his Church;Job [...].13.33 4. Joh. 3.5. 2 Cor. 3.18. Joh, 14.26. Acts 9.31. Isa. 48.16. Acts 20.18. Luke 12.12. 1 Cor. 12.7. 2 Pet. 1 21. Mat. 28 19. Heb. 9.8. Joh. 16 13. Acts 11 28 Ephes 2 22 1 Cor. 12 13 Joh. 14 26 Ephes. 1 17 Rom. 8.14. Acts 16 6 Isa. 11 2 Joh. 14 16 Rom 8 15 1 Cor 6 11 Joh. 6 63 Rom. 8 11 as the calling and sending of Prophets. The bestowing of competent and fit graces for the Ministry on Mini­sters. The publishing of the Doctrine of the Prophets and Apostles. The instituting of sacraments. The fore­telling and prophesying of things to come. The gathering of the Church. The enlightning of mens mindes. The governing of the Actions, and whole life of the Godly. The strengthning and preserving of the regenerate a­gainst the force of temptation, even unto the end: The pardoning of sins, and adopting the sons of God. The be­stowing of salvation and life everla­sting. All these divine workes being attributed to the holy Ghost, do likewise clearly prove, his co-equality with the Father and the son.

Moreover,Diverse titles of the holy Ghost. Wee finde in the sa­cred scriptures many Titles and Ap­pellations, answerable to the mani­fold effects of his Power, Office, and Divinity: For example,

1 Joh 2.27. Act 2.2. Mat. 3 16. Act. 2.3.He is compared unto Oyntment, a mighty wind, a Dove, and unto clo­ven tongues like fire. Hee is also com­pared unto a Cloud, to seed, to water, fire, and winde.

To what the holy Ghost is compa­red, and why. 1 To a cloud Exod. 13.21. 1 King. 18.45.First; unto a cloud, Because that, as the cloud betokneth a shadowing from heat, and a sending downe of Rain (as both Philosophy and experi­ence sheweth) so the spirit of God doth overshadow us from the heate of the wrath of God, it cooleth and re­fresheth our scorched soules, and as the Raine maketh the barren earth fertile, and fruitfull, so doth the graces of Gods spirit, make our barren hearts plentifull in all goods works.

Secondly, to seed, Because that,2. To seed. as in our naturall birth, we are begotten by the seed of our Parents, so in our new birth wee are begotten by those Graces, that are sown in our hearts by the holy Ghost.

Thirdly, to water, Because that,3 To water. The proper­ties of water. as water mollifieth the hard earth, fructifieth the barren ground, quen­cheth the greatest heat, and clean­seth the foulest things, so doth the spirit of God soften our hard hearts, fructifie our barren soules, quench the heat of lust, and cleanse us from all our sins. And so make us to be­come fit Temples for himself to dwell in, or like the trees that are planted by the water side, Psal. 1.3. which bring forth their fruit in due season.

Fourthly, to Fire, 4. To fire. 1 Cor. 3.13. Because he doth consume away the drosse of sin, and illuminate our understanding with the light of truth, and inslame our hearts with the zeale of Gods glory, and with unfained love,The properties of fire. both towards God and man, yea, as the fire hath in it (saith Oecumenius) these three speciall things.

That is

• 1. Calorem
• 3. Splendorem
• 3. Motionem

1. Heat, to warme, mollifie, and pu­rifie.

2. Splendor, to give light, and to il­luminate.

3. Motion, to be alwayes working.

Even so the spirit of God, first war­meth and heateth the hearts of the Godly, with a fervent and a fiery zeal of all godlinesse, hee mollifieth their hard and stony hearts, and purifieth their souls from all kind of filthiness whatsoever. Secondly, he illumina­teth their hearts with the knowledge of God, and heavenly things. Third­ly, he maketh them allwayes to be in action, and never idle. Finally, he is compared to wind, and that, for these five reasons.5. To wind. Joh. 9.8. Exod. 33.19.

Reason. 1 First, as the wind bloweth where it listeth, so the gifts and graces of Gods spirit are given to whom so­ever it pleaseth him.

Reason. 2 Secondly, as the winde scattereth the dust, and driveth the chaffe away from the Corne, so the graces of Gods spirit doth winnow the consci­ences of the saints, and drive away [Page 177] all wicked thoughts and cogitations from their hearts.

Reason. 3 Thirdly, As the wind cooleth, com­forteth and refresheth all those that are scorched with the heat of the sun; so doth the grace of Gods holy spirit recreate all those distressed people that are scorched with the heate of troubles and afflictions, or burned with the concupiscence of their sins.

Reason. 4 Fourthly, As the winde carrieth away the ship against the maine and mighty stream; so will the grace of Gods holy spirit, carry a man against the current of his naturall inclinati­on.

Reason. 5 Fifthly, As the winde will passe unresistably; so will the grace of Gods blessed spirit, work its own ef­fect, and all the power of darknesse is not able to resist it; and therefore he is compared unto a mighty winde, because that as the mighty winde (we read of in the sacred scripture) did rend the Mountaines, and break the rocks before the Lord; Why the holy Ghost is com­pared to a mighty wind. 1 King. 19.11. so the grace of Gods holy spirit, and the word of the great Jehovah is mighty in operation, a­ble to shake the stoutest & the proudest [Page 178] man, and to break in peeces the sto­niest heart.

The gifts of the holy Ghost 1 Cor. 12.6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11.All these severall operations which this holy spirit worketh in the hearts of the elect, and all those foregoing Titles and Appellations which the sa­cred scriptures do give unto the holy Ghost, do certainly prove him to be the true and everlasting God. Besides, if wee further search the holy scrip­tures, we shall finde, that by the ho­ly Ghost,

First, The word of wisdome, the word of Knowledge, Faith, Gifts of healing, working of miracles, Pro­phesie, discerning of spirits, diverse kindes of Tongues, and the inter­pretation of Tongues, &c. is given,

Heb. 6.4, 5.Secondly, By him the godly are sanctified, and the very Reprobates have a taste of heavenly gifts, and of the good word of God, and of the promises of the world to come.

Exod. 13.3, 4, 0. 1 Sam. 11.6 &c.Thirdly, By him, all excellency in common gifts of Nature & reason, as strength, courage, arts and sciences, Policy and government is given unto man, yea unto many that never heard of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Joh. 6.63 Joh. 14.17.Fourthly, Influence perpetuall, ef­fectuall, and vitall of saving grace [Page 179] from Christ is the head of every true member is given to beleevers,1 Pet 1.2. in which sence, the world cannot receive or know the same.

Fifthly, By the holy Ghost, vertues charity, constancy, benignity, faith, goodness, joy, longanimity, mildness, modesty, love, patience,Gal. 5.22.23. and peace of conscience are gotten, with seven o­ther principall vertues, (to wit) wis­dome, understanding, counsell, forti­tude, knowledge, godliness,Isa. 11.2. and the fear of God. All these gifts being gi­ven by the holy Ghost, do likewise prove him to be a God.

Many of the gifts and graces of Gods holy spirit, are excellently well deciphered and set down unto us, un­der the properties, and conditions of those formes and figures, wherein the holy Ghost did appear. As,

First, he appeared like a dove, when he descended upon our Saviour Christ; because his dove-like properties were to be shewed; that hee was innocent meek, and lowly in heart; for as of all the beasts of the feild, the little silly lamb is, in most respects, best qualified, & therefore is Christ call'd, the lamb of God which taketh away the sins of the world; So of all the fowls of Heaven, the [Page 180] Dove in most respects is most excel­lent:In what re­spects the holy Ghost is like a Dove. For shee is annunciator pacis, the messenger and proclaimer of peace; she brought the Olive Branch unto Noah; Felle caret. Rostro non lae­dit. Optimum granum elegit. Gemicum pro cantu habet. Juxta flumi [...]a aquarum sedet. Innocentia valet. Volatu praestat. Thom. Aquin. de pro­prietat. colum­bae. she wanteth Gall; shee hath no bitternesse in her; shee ne­ver hurts with her bill nor clawes; she is full of Love, and yet shee never sings any wanton tune, but woo, woo, is her matutinus & vespertinus can­tus, her mournfull morning and evening song: and therefore the holy Ghost descended on Jesus Christ like a Dove; to shew these dove-like qua­lities of this Lambe of God, and to teach that we must be thus qualified like Doves, if we should have and enjoy the sweet and comfortable pre­sence of this Heavenly Dove, this ho­ly spirit of God, Joh. 14.16.17.18.26. Rom. 8.15.16. Joh. 16.13. Eph 1.13. & 4 30. Rom. 8.23. who is in the hearts of the elect, as the pledge of Christs presence, the witnesse of their adop­tion, the guide of their life, the com­forter of their soule, the seale of their redemption; and the first fruits of their salvation.

Secondly like cloven tongues of fire.Secondly, He appeared like cloven tongues of fire.

First, Like tongues, because (as a Father saith) Symbolum est lingua [Page 181] spiritus sancti, a Patris verbo proce­dentis; The tongue is a symbole of the holy Ghost, proceeding from the word of the Father; for as the tongue hath the greatest cognation,1. Why the holy Ghost appeared like tongues. and the neerest affinity with the word, and is moved by the word of the heart, to expresse the same by the sound of the voice: (saith Saint Gregory) so the holy Ghost hath the neerest affinity that may be with the word of God, and is the expressor of his voice, and the speaker of his will, Joh. 16.14. that receiveth of him, and revealeth all unto us.

Secondly, Like cloven tongues, 2. Why he ap­peared like cloven tongues. because all tongues and all languages are alike knowne and understood of God, and because this holy spirit can teach all men all Languages, and the gift of tongues is a gift of God.

Thirdly,3. Why he ap­peared like cloven tongues of fire. He appeared like cloven tongues of fire; because the spirit of God delighteth rather in the zealous and the fervent tongues of saint Paul and Apollo's that warme the heart, then in those eloquent tongues of Cicero and Demosthenes that delight the eares; for this is the desire of Gods spirit, to kindle the hearts of [Page 182] men, and to set them on fire, with the love of God, and to make them zea­lous in all good things: Indeed zeal de­rived [...]; is a word that's framed from the very sound and hissing noise, that hot burning coales do make when they meet their contraries in any moystned substance, and so zeal ex­presseth heat, and zealous men are said to be [...], such as burn, or such as waxe fervent in spirit;Acts 18.25. Psa. 39.3. so, as the Prophet saith, The fire kindled, and at the last I spake with my tongue, & zeal is the highest degree of affecti­on good or bad, therefore he that doth any thing moderately, though hee may be called [...]: a Lover of that thing, yet he cannot be called [...], because a Zelot is so intensive, Ʋt quicquid vult, valde vult, as that to all the objects of his affections, he is excessively disposed,Omnis animi impetus a rati­one, vel recta, vel perversa, proveniens ad destruendum vel ad s [...]uen­dum aliquid; sub hoc verbo, zelus significa­tur. and most ear­nestly, stretching himself to the ve­ry height of his abilities; his love is fervent, his desire eager, his delights ravishing, his hopes longing, his ha­tred deadly, his anger fierce, his greif deep; his feare terrible, and so of all the rest of his passions, he hath them all in the highest pitch, so that [Page 183] such a man, all the men in the world had most need to have his biasse right, and to be furnished with that most necessary paire of spirituall en­dowments, nam [...] Wisdome and un­derstanding, Of wisdome & understanding by way of di­gression, first, what they are, two excellent graces and gifts to be desired above all the wealth of this world, if wee would but consider the difference betwixt a Wise man and a foole that is void of understanding: Now there are two sacred scriptures which do tell us what is Wisdome and Un­derstanding, for in the Book of Job it is sayd,Job 28.28. Behold the feare of the Lord, that is Wisdome; and to depart from evill, is under­standing: Deut. 4.4, 5, 6. And Moses sheweth the same also, saying, Behold, I have taught you statutes and judge­ments, &c. Keepe therefore and do them, for this is your Wisdome and your Ʋnderstanding in the sight of the Nations; which shall hear all these statutes, and say, surely this great Nation is a wise and understan­ding people.

Moreover,Sap 7.22. concerning wis­dome, the wise man sayth, that [Page 184] in her is an understanding spirit,2 Of the sun­dry properties in wisdome ho­ly, one only, manifold, subtill, live­ly, clear, undefiled, not subject to hurt, plain, loving the thing that is good, quick, which cannot be let­ted, ready to do good: Kinde to man,Sap. 7.23. stedfast, sure, free from care, having all power, overseeing all things, and going through all un­derstanding, pure and most subtill spirits For wisdome is more moving then any motion;Sap. 7.24. shee passeth and goeth through all things by reason of her pureness.25. For she is the breath of the power of God, and a pure in­fluence flowing from the glory of the Almighty. Therefore can no defiled thing fall into her.26. For shee is the brightnesse of the everlasting light; the unspotted mirrour of the power of God; and the image of his good­nesse.27. And being but one, she can do all things, and remaining in her lelf, she maketh all things new, and in all ages entring into holy soules, shee maketh them freinds of God, and Prophets.28. For God loveth none but him that dwelleth with wisdome.29. For shee is more beautifull then the Sun, and above all the order of the stars; [Page 185] being compared with the light, shee is found before it, so that as Menan­der saith, [...]; Wisdome is a more precious pos­session then all riches, and therefore Nihil sapientiâ ardentius diligitur, nihil dulcius possidetur, nothing is loved, nothing is desired more than Wisdome; and though one man affe­cteth honour, another desireth wealth, and a third loveth his pleasure, Aristot. Me [...]a. l 1. yet all men affect wisdom, which as Aristotle saith, is Cognitio primarum & altissi­marum causarum; Cicero Tusc. l 4. or as Cicero defines it, Sapientiae est divinarum & huma­narum rerum scientia, and it is the greatest glory and eminency of any man, because a wise man in raggs is more to be respected then the grea­test Peer, that is arrayed in gold and pearles, if he be destitute of under­standing.

Saint Basil saith, Ille intelligens est, Basil. sup. prov. 1 qui secundum mentem & rationem vi­vit, he is an understanding man, not which knowes things, but which li­veth according to the dictate of his reason and understanding, which is an habit, Per quem animus ea perspi­cet quae sunt, by which the mind of [Page 186] man doth perceive and see those things which are principia intelligi­bilia, Cicero in Rhe­tor. l. 2. Aristot. Aethic. in l. 5. intilligible principles, as Ari­stotle saith; and Plato hath one excel­lent observation of the understand­ing, Quód infinitam virtutem in se habet, cum nec humana, nec divina respiciens satiatur, nisi infinitum De­um capiat, qui capacitatem ejus, ab eo manantem, Mag. Mor. c. 34. Intellectus est habitus princi­piorum. impleat infinitam, that it hath a most large extent, and is ne­ver satisfied with the knowledge of any hamane or divine things untill it layeth hold upon the most infinite God, which hath enlarged that capa­city unto our soules, and is only a­ble to replenish the same himselfe, and therefore the more that any man understandeth, the more he coveteth to understand, untill he understand­eth God,The under­standing how insatiable. without which we under­stand nothing, but are most truly compared unto the beasts that perish; the whole world being no more able to satisfie our understanding, then a peck of corn is sufficient to fill up all the Vast Regions that are under the circumference of the highest hea­ven. For the understanding of na­turall things, indeed this eye of [Page 187] the soule is very peircing sharpe, its like the Eagles eye that can behold sub frutice leporem, How sharp our understan­ding is in na­turall things. & sub fluctibus piscem, a hare lurking under the shrub and a fish playing under the wave, we will presume to understand the times and seasons, Intellectus est vis animi quae invisibilia per­spicit. Aug. de spiritu & ani­ma. and the secrets of all Natures works, heaven it selfe, and all the host thereof, is within the reach of our understanding, it tells you how far it is to every sphere, and it setteth forth the dimensions of eve­ry star, even to an inch. And yet blind man, I dare be bold to say it, that Aristotle himselfe that great Philosopher knew not all the knowable things in a straw, Joh. 3.12. The least en­tity or invisi­ble being, not wholy known by any man. and therefore, if our understanding be so dimmed and so dulled, that we can but scarcely perceive naturall things, how shall we be able to understand spirituall, which are supra intellectum humanum, above all humane understanding, because Reason cannot peirce into spiri­tuall things: yea all our under­standing, though it be the eye of our soule; yet it is full of darke­nesse, How dull our understanding is in sprituall things. and would soon bring us into the pit of ruin and destruction, if the [Page 188] same were not Dei verbo directus & spiritu divino illuminatus, directed by Gods word, and illuminated by this spirit of God, which is the spirit of understanding, so that indeed, it is most truly said of Caelius Rhodiginus, Ludovicus Cae­lius Rhodig. leg. antiq. l. 3. c. 1. de intellectu agente & pas­sibili. That although the soul of man need­eth no other extrinsecall light, but only that which is innate, if negli­gence or vice did not corrupt the same, to understand those things which are within it, as is the soul it self, powers, habits, faculties, and all the vertue thereof; yet, Ad ea percipi­enda quae sunt supra ipsum, to under­stand those things which are above it, and do exceed all humane understan­ding; indiget omnino anima irradia­tione ab ipsâ luce veritatis primae, The soule doth altogether require to be enlightned with the bright beames of of the first truth,Our soules must be en­lightned to understand God. which is God him­selfe; or else man shall never be able to attain unto the least measure of the understanding thereof; and this irradiation of light from God upon our soules, to the inlightning of our understanding, is called infusio gratiae ad divina contemplanda, the infusion of Gods Grace to inable us to con­template [Page 189] and to understand spirituall and divine things; for we finde the very Apostles themselves could not understand the scriptures untill the spirit of God had opened their un­derstandings;Luke 24. 1 Cor. 2.14. because the carnall or naturall man, cannot perceive the things of the spirit of God, and there­fore Saint Paul saith, No man can say that Jesus is the Lord but by the holy Ghost, no man can beleeve the incarnation, passion, resurrection and assension of our Saviour Christ, and the rest of the mysteries of true Reli­gion but by the speciall helpe and il­lumination of the spirit of God; nay more,Psal. 119.18.34. verse 73.125.14 [...]. Rom 7.14 the Prophet David shew­eth, that we cannot understand the Law of God, which seems to be plain enough without any secret meaning or hidden mysteries, unlesse wee be guided & enlightned by this holy & blessed spirit; who is the Instructer which teacheth us,Joh. 14.26. & 16.13. Rom. 8.2. Joh. 6.63. Ezeck. 47.1. Joh. 3.5. 1 Cor. 3.13. Rom. 8.26. Joh. 15.26. the spirit of life which quickneth us, the water which reneweth us, the fire which inflames us, the comforter which helpes us, the Advocate which speaks for us, and the everlasting fountain and spi­rit of Truth, from whom all truth [Page 190] and celestial riches do flow unto us, and by whom our infidelity is turned into faith, our thraldome into free­dome, our poverty into plentie, our barrennesse into fruitfullnesse, our sorrow into solace, our darknesse into light, our misery into mercy, our wearinesse into strength, our mour­ning into mirth, our death into life, our affliction into glorification, and our Hell into heaven; yea finally, by him the Angells are replenished, Prophets inspired, Scribes are instru­cted, the word is quickned, the Church sanctified, the hardnesse of heart suppled, the weaknesse of faith cherished, the darknesse of the soule enlightned, and the mist of discom­fort dispersed, so that by his presence darknesse is expelled, and by his fa­vour, soules from death and hell are delivered.

GOD is so wonderful saith Saint Gregory, Ʋt semper debet confiderari per stu­dium, How compre­hensible is our God. Greg. in quadam homi­ [...]a. Esa. 6. Ambrose de spirit sanct. l. 3 c 22. sed nunquam discuti per intelle­ctum; that hee ought alwaies to be considered, and admired in our thoughts, but never pried into by our understandings, for as Saint Ambrose speaking of the Seraphims which Esayas saw both standing and flying, saith, Si volabant seraphim, quomodo stabant, si stabant, quomodo volabant? If they did flye, how could they stand, and if they stood how did they flye? surely this must passe our best capacities, and therefore, si hoc comprehendere non possumus quod videmus? quomodo deum comprehendere valemus quem non videmus, if wee cannot ap­prehend that which we do see, how [Page 192] how can wee comprehend him whom we cannot see? What the knowledge of God from a naturall light. Rom. 1.19.30. As for the Knowledge of God which is from the light of nature, that doth take its rise from sence, and can ascend no higher then it is supported, nor go any further then it is led by sensible objects, which give us no clearer knowledge of God, then the effects do of their cause; namely, that he is, and that Hee is not such as they are; but far excelling them in Essence and in Attributes; as not being compounded, not depen­ding, not finite, not mutable, and the like; but now the knowledge of God which is from a supernaturall light, What from a supernaturall light. Joh 1.18. Exod. 33. [...]3 that is meerly by divine Re­velation, as that God is the Father of Christ, and the Holy Ghost the in­effable bond of both. Yea, such is our Knowledge of God (through the ap­prehension of faith) in the glori­ous mystery of the Blessed Trinity, whereby wee beleeve the same God which is One in nature or being,Deut 6.4. Isa. 45.5. 1 Cor. 8.4 6 Gen. 11.7. Isa. 63.7 9.10. 1 Joh. 5.8. Gen. 1.26. & 3.22. is also Three in persons or manner of subsisting, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, for so the scriptures plainly teach us; as, Let us make man in our image, and behold the man is become [Page 193] like one of us, saith the Lord himself; to shew that in this unity of Essence, there is a plurality of Persons;Mat. 3.16. & 28.19. Gen. 19.24. and againe, The Lord raigned upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah from the Lord out of Heaven, that is, the Son rained from the Father, as Ju­stin Martyr, Tertullian, Epiphanus, Cyprian, Ironaeus, Eusebius, Cyrill, and many others do so expouud that place: And so the three men that ap­peared unto Abraham, Gen. 18.1, 2, 3. and that heavenly Harmony of Cherubims, saying, Holy, Holy, Holy, Isa. 6.3. Lord God of sabboth, do sufficiently declare the Trinity of Persons in the unity of Gods Essence,

Now a Person is a distinct subsi­sting of the whole God-head, What a person is. Joh. 1.1. &. 5.31. Chap. 14.5.16. and an individuall understanding, and in­communicable subsistence, living of it selfe, and not sustained by another: So that the three per­sons in the Trinity, are not three severall substances, but three di­stinct subsistences, Col. 2.9. or three diverse manner of being of one and the same substance and divine Essence.

And here wee must consider, that the Essence doth not beget an [Page 194] Essence, Psal 2.7. Heb. 1.5. Joh. 15.26. but the Person of the Father begetteth the Person of the Son, and the Person of the Holy Ghost procee­deth from the Father and the Son by an Eternall and incomprehensible spi­ration, Athanas. 2. Dia­log. de Trinit. as if it be lawfull to compare great things with small, in the rea­sonable faculty of mans soule, when the understanding considereth it self, it begetteth an image of it selfe,Thom p. 1. q. 27 ar. 1. and 3. Mornaeus de verit. Ch [...]ist. Relig. c 5. Keckerm. S [...]st [...]m. Theol. l 2. c. 2. it being in that reflected action, the proper object of it selfe; from the desire or appetite of which image, so produced, there ariseth a mutuall love and delight betwixt the under­standing and his image; so in the e­ternall essence of the God-head, the Father looking upon himselfe, beget­teth the image of himselfe, which is his son, and from the mutuall love and delight of both these persons one to another, the holy Ghost proceedeth, as the common beam of these two in­comprehensible lights: And as in one sun there are, the body of the sun, the sun beames, and the heat, the beames are begotten of the sun, and the heate doth proceed from both;Aug. de Trinit. but the sun it selfe proceeds from none; Even so in the one Es­sence [Page 195] of God, there are the Father, the Son and the holy Ghost, the son is begotten of the Father, the Ho­ly Ghost proceeds from both, but the Father is of himselfe alone; and as the son doth alwaies beget his beams, and both sun and beames do send forth the heat; so the Father from all eternity ever did, now doth, and ever will beget his son, and both Father and Son do spire and breathe forth the Holy Ghost, and therefore Origen saith excellent well,Origen. hom. 6. in Jerem. Salvator noster splendor est gloriae; splendor au­tem non semel nascitur, & deinceps desinit nasci, &c. Our blessed Saviour is the brightnesse of Gods glory, but the brightnesse of Glory,Sed quotiescun­que ortum fue­rit lumen ex quo splendor o­ritur, toties ori­tur splendor gloriae. The Father doth ever be­get the son. is not once begotten, and then afterwards ceasing to be begotten; but as often as the light riseth from whence the bright­nesse springeth, so often doth the brightnesse of glory arise: And our Saviour (saith hee) is the wisdome of God, but the wisdome of God is the brightnesse of that eternall light: Et ideo salvator semper nascitur, and therefore as the scripture saith, An­te colles generat me, Before the mountains were layd, he begetteth [Page 196] me, and not (as some do erronious­ly read it) Generavit me, He hath begotten me; so the truth is, that the son of God is ever begotten, Aug. de verbis Domini. and the Holy Ghost ever proceeding. Al­so as the Fountain begets a brook, and both the Fountaine and brooke do make the poole, and yet all three is the same water, so the Fa­ther is the Fountaine which begets the Sonne, and from the Father and the Son proceeds the holy Ghost, and yet is the Deity of all three the same:That there are certain si­militudes of the Trinity, to be seen in the creatures. In like manner, the fire hath Motion, Light, and Heate, and yet but one fire, and in all other creatures, wee may behold certaine glimps and similitudes, that do af­ter a sort adumbrate, Why Power is ascribed to the Father, wis­dome to the Son, and good­nesse to the Holy Ghost, seeing all and each of the three persons have the same power, wis­dome, and goodnesse. and shadow out this ineffable and expressible my­stery; for by their greatnesse, wee may consider the Power of the Fa­ther, by their beauty we may see the wisdome of the Son, and by their uti­lity we may note the goodnesse of the holy Ghost: Now amongst the crea­tures it is wont to be observed (as Saint Augustine saith) that in a Fa­ther is found a defect of Power, by reason of his Antiquity, in a Son is seen ignorance by reason of his youth, [Page 197] and in experience of things, and in the name of a spirit, there seemeth to be a kind of fearfull vehemency as Quiescite ab homine, cujus spiritus in naribus ejus, rest not in man, whose spirit is in his nostrills: and therefore least the like might be thought to be in these divine persons, we find Pow­er ascribed to the Father, [...]. Justia Martyr in expos. fide [...], Cy il. l. 8 cont. Jul. Wisdome unto the Son, and Goodness unto the Holy Ghost, wheras indeed each one of them is of the same power, wisdome, and goodness as the others be: so we say with Justin Martyr, according as God hath revealed himselfe unto us both in his word & his works, that the unity is understood in the trinity & the Trinity is acknowledged in the unity.

Moreover S. Cyril saith, that the Philosophers have affirmed the Es­sence of God to be distinguished into three subsistences, and sometimes to have delivered the very name of Tri­nity, and the Jewish Rabbins, Gala [...]in de ar. can. fide. l. v. 2. c. 11. & 12 as Ga­latinus saith, have observed this my­stery out of the Hebrew names of God, that there are three in one & but one in three, Vide. N. N n celium i [...] p [...] mio, p 20. and so Hermes Trismegi­stus affirmed that there was one divi­nity or deity, in the Trinity in these words, [...] [Page 198] [...], There was an intellectuall light be­fore the intellectuall light,A mind full of light. and there was alwaies an enlightned mind of the mind; and this was nothing else then the unity of these, and the spi­rit, which containeth all things; be­sides this, there is no God nor An­gell, nor any other substance, be­cause he is the Lord and Father, and God of all things, and all things are under him and in him,Verbum ejus [...]sectam [...] ­sum ins [...] [...] natura, & a­qua secunda prolificam fecit aquam. Quae verba, quia sunt in eis quae­dam carminum vestigia, deinde restituta qui dam Orpheo vindicarunt. for his per­fect word existing and being fruitfull, and a worker or maker of all things, fallen in a fruitfull nature, hath plen­tifully produced all things: And then having sayd these things, he prayeth un­to this God, saying, [...]; O Heaven, the [Page 199] most excellent worke of the great God, I do adjure thee, and I do ad­jure thee, the voice and speech of the Father, which hee first uttered and spake, when hee established all the world, and I beseech thee by thine only begotten word, and the Father which containeth or upholdeth all things, be thou favourable and mercifull unto me. There is no man but he would wonder to see in this Au­thor the very words of Saint John, and yet notwithstanding his bookes were translated by the Platonists a long time before the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: And it is no marvell though we find sayings of his in diverse pla­ces which are not written in his Poe­mander, considering that hee wrote six and thirty thousand, five hundred and five and twenty Volumes, that is to say, Rolls of Paper,Jambilicus in his 39. chap. of mysteries. as Jambili­cus reporteth. This Hermes or Mer­curius sirnamed [...], was the greatest Philosopher, the cheifest Preist, and most prudent Prince of Aegypt, he flourished before Pharaoh in the time of Moses, and was cal­led Ter Maximus, thrice great, be­cause hee writ of the Trinity, yea, [Page 200] Saint Augustine affirmeth,Aug. l. 5. c. 3. de haeresibus. that hee did compose a booke, whose Title was [...], the per­fect word, and that therein hee left written, Monas genuit mo­nada, & in se suum reflexit ar­dorem, which is as much as if hee had said, the Father begat the Sonne, or the minde begate the word, and from both proceeded the Holy spirit.

Also Theodorus the Platonist, as it is in Proclus, affirmeth that there are three cheife workers, whereof hee calleth the one a substantiall minde, the other a mentall substance, and the third the Fountain of all life, and Theodoret doth affirme, That Plotinus and Numenius have col­lected out of Plato, That there are three eternities, Bonum, & mentem, & universi animam, Goodnesse, which answereth the Father, that is the Fountaine of the Deity, the minde, which signi­fieth the Son, and the soule or life of this whole Universe, which is the holy spirit; that as in the be­ginning [Page 201] of the Creation,Gen. 1.2. hee pre­sently moved upon the Waters, to sustain the same; so ever since hee spireth and preserveth every living thing; and so Amelius and ma­ny others, are as full and as plaine in this point as may be, as any man may see, that will looke into Nancelius his Proem, Nancel. in Proem Chal­cidius Avicen. which hee confesseth to have taken out of Eugubi­nus. Thus we see how the An­cient Philosophers, were all of one Opinion and judgement in the Doctrine of the Trinity, The Gentiles did conceive a certaine kinde of knowledge and under­standing, though undi­gested and imperfect, o­vershadowed (as it were) with humane reasonings, concerning this mystery. wherein they had so much know­ledge, as not only was able, I say not with Clemens Alexandrinus, to bring them to salvation, but to make them without excuse in the day of Tribulation, because that they knowing God, glorified him not as God, but also as doth ex­ceede the knowledge of many, which make profession of Chri­stianity, and will no doubt rise in judgement to condemn them in the later day.

Yet further,God [...]oe and indivisible. as the Philosopers [Page 202] have affirmed the essence of God to be distinguished into three subsisten­ces, so likewise they have acknow­ledged the divine Essence to be only one impartible and indivisible. For,

First, Hermes Trismegistus teach­eth, Although many of the Ancient Philosophers (through cu­stome) did ce­lebrate the plu­rality of Gods, yet notwith­standing they did acknow­ledge bu [...] [...]ne only true God by nature. Du. Plessis. That there is but one only God: That One is the roote of all things and that without that One, no­thing hath been of all things that are: That the same One is cal­led the only good and the goodness it selfe, which hath universall power of creating all things: That it is im­possible that there should be many makers: That in Heaven he hath plan­ted immortality, in earth, interchange, and universally life and moving: That unto him alone belongeth the name of Father and of God; and that without blasphemy those titles cannot be attributed either to An­gells, Fiends, or to men, or to any of all those whom men do call Gods, as in respect of honour and not of nature. He calleth him the Father of the world, the Creator, the Be­ginning, the Glory, the Nature, the End, the Necessity, the Re­newer of all things, the worker of [Page 203] all powers, and the power of all works, the only Holy, the only unbe­gotten, the only everlasting, the Lord of everlastingnesse, and the e­verlastingnesse it selfe. Ʋnto him a­lone will hee have us to offer up our prayers, our praises, and our sacrifi­ces, and never to call upon any other.

Secondly, Pythagoras teacheth, Alledged by Cicero, Plu­tark, Clemens of Alexandria, and Cyrillus. That God is but one, not as some think, without government of the world, but all in all: Hee is the orderer of all ages, the light of all powers, the originall of all things; the Cresset of Heaven, the Father, Mind, quickner and mover of all. Yea, and he calleth him the infinite power, from whence all other powers do flow, which cannot be verified but of him alone.

Thirdly, Philo the Jew and Jambili­cus of the sect of Pythagoras. Philolaus a Disciple of Pythagoras saith, That there is but one only God, the Prince and guider of all things, who is alwaies singular, unmoveable, like himselfe, and un­like all other things. Also Architas saith, That he esteemeth no man wise, but him which reduceth all things unto one selfe same originall, that is to wit, unto God, who is the be­ginning, [Page 204] end,Hierocles a­gainst the A­theists. and middle of all things. And Hierocles one of the same sect, saith, That the same is hee whom they call by the name of Zena and Dia, the Father and ma­ker of all things, because all things have heir life and being of him.Aristot. 14. Me­taph. cap. 4. and 1. Phis. cap. 10 lib. 13. To be short, Pherecydes the syrian, the Master of Pythrgoras, Empedo­cles his successor. Parmenides and Melissus, they all taught the same truth, and so did Xenophanes the Colophonian, as wee be credibly infor­med by the verses of Parmenides re­hearsed by Simplicius;Simplic. l. 1. Phis. in the which verses he calleth him the unbegotten, the whole, the only one, not which hath been or shall be, but which e­verlastingly is altogether and all of himself.Du. Plessis. Besides, Of the like opinion were Thales, Anaxagoras, Timeus of Locres, Acmon, Euclide, Archaeve­tus and others of the ancientest Philoso­phers.

Socrates the scholmaster of Plato, hath confessed only one God, Academicks. and (as Apuleius reports) was condemned to drinke poyson, for teaching that the Gods which were worshipped in his [Page 205] time, were but vanity: Hee calleth God, The Father of the whole world, who only is or hath being, and who made the heaven, the earth, the sun, the moon the times and seasons, and all other things both heavenly and earthly, high and low, and whatso­ever else is,Plato in his 13. Epist. to King Denis. Damascius. [...]. and Plato the Disciple of Socrates taught the same truth. And Damascius the Platonist saith, The one bringeth forth all things, The one ought to be honoured by silence: The one (like the sun) is seen dimly afar off, and the neerer the more dimly.Jambilicus in his book of the Sect of Pytha­goras. Also Jambilicus sir­named the Divine, acknowledged eve­ry where a divine cause, which is the beginning, end, and middle of all things: That there is one God, Ma­ster of all, at whose hand welfare is to be sought: That the end of all Contemplation is to aime at one, and to withdraw from multitude un­to unity: And that the same One or Unity is God, the ground of all truth, happinesse and substance, yea, and of all other grounds them­selves.

Proclus in Pla­toes divinity.Proclus, (after the manner of the Pla­tonists, which was for the most part wont to be very superstitious) turneth himself oft times aside to many Gods, but yet his resolution is this in expresse words. Who is he (saith hee) that is King of all, the only God separa­ted from all, and the producer of all things out of himself, which turneth all ends unto himselfe, [...] and is the end of ends, the first cause of ope­rations, [...] the author of all that ever is good and beautifull, the englightner of all things with his light? if thou beleeve Plato, he can neither be ut­tered nor understood. [...] And anon after, Then is it this first simplicity which is the King; the soveraignty and su­perexcellency of all things, incom­prehensible, not to be matched with any other thing, uniforme, going be­yond all causes, the creator of the substance of the Gods which hath some forme of goodnesse. All things go after him and stick unto him: for he produceth & perfecteth all things that are subject to understanding, like as the sun doth to all things that are subject to sence. To be short, it is the unutterable cause which Plato [Page 207] teacheth us under two names, in his commonweale, calling it the very goodnesse it selfe, and the fountaine of truth, which uniteth the under­standing to things that are under­stood. And in his Parmenides, [...] The One or Unity whereupon all the di­vine unities are grounded, and which is the Originall of all that is, and of all that as yet is not.Proclus in his Book of the soule and the spirit. chp. 32. 42. 53. In his book of the soule and of the spirit, he teacheth us a way to attain from many multitudes to this super substantiall unity, which hee calleth the nature grounded in eter­nity, the life that liveth and quick­neth the waking understanding, the welspring of all welfare, the ifinite both in continuance and power, &c. Also Simplicius saith,Simplicius up­on the Edicte­tus if Arrian. Whatsoever is beautifull, cometh of the first and cheifest beauty: All truth cometh of Gods truth▪ and all beginnings must needs be reduced to one beginning; which must not be a particular be­ginning as the rest are, but a begin­ning surpassing all other beginnings, and mounting far above them, and gathering them all into himselfe, yea and giving the dignity of beginning to all beginnings, accordingly as is [Page 208] convenient for every of their na­tures. Also the good (saith he) is the wel-spring and originall of all things, it produceth all things of it selfe, [...]. both the first, the middlemost, and the last. The One goodnesse bringeth forth many goodnesses; The One Unity many Unities, The one begin­ning many beginnings. Now, as for the Unity, Beginning, Good, and God, they be all but one thing. For God is the first cause of all, and all particular Beginnings or Grounds, are fast setled and grounded in him. He is the cause of causes, the God of Gods,Popphyrius in his 2. booke of Abstinence, and in his booke of occasions, chap. [...]1. and the goodnesse of good­nesses: Also Porphyrius acknowled­ged the one God, who alone is every where, and yet in no one place; by whom all things are, both which are, and which are not. This God doth hee call the Father, which reigneth in all: And hee teacheth us to sacrifice our soules unto him in silence, and with chast thoughts.Plotin. in his fir [...]t E [...]nead. lib. 8 c. 2. En- 6. lib. 4. cap. 1, 2, 3, 4 & in the whole 6. booke and in the 3. Enn. l. 8. And Plotinus saith, That there is one Beginner of all things. That this Beginner dwel­leth in himselfe, is sufficient of him­selfe, and of himselfe bringeth forth all manner of Essences. That by his [Page 209] unity he produceth multitude, which could be no multitude, unlesse he a­bode one.

Moreover Aristotle,The Author of the books De caelo & mundo, not certainly known. The Peripate­ticks. or whosoever he was that wrote those bookes, De mundo, did finde, that in this rare peece of worke, and frame of the world, there is a most excellent con­veighance without confusion; great variety, concurring in unity; and diversity of all things without dis­order; all which he attributeth to the powerfull working of the invisible God, of whom the said Author conceives, That for his power hee is most migh­ty, for his beauty most excellent, for his life immortall, and for his vertue most absolute; yea, the same Philosopher entring into further con­sideration of Gods nature, saith, That although God be but one, yet we call him by many names, as [...] and [...], because we live by him, [...], be­cause hee is often of an immuta­ble nature; [...], because nothing is done by chance, but according to his most certaine de­cree, [...], because no man can possibly avoid him, or flye from him, [...], because he abideth for ever; and as for that fable (saith hee) of the [Page 210] three sisters of the Destiny,Clotho filum bajulat. Lache­sis net, Atropos occat. These destinies are but the a­ctions of God. Clotho that spinneth, Lachesis that draweth out a just length, and Atropos that cutteth off the thred of mans life, it is to be understood of God only, who is the begining, midst, and end of all things. Hee likeneth him to the great King of Persia, who from out of his privy Chamber, governed his whole Empire by his power and Officers; sa­ving (saith he) That the one is God infinite in power,Mornaeus de verit. relig. c. 3. and the o­ther a very base and feeble wight. And further he saith, That all the names which are attributed to the Gods, are but devices to expresse the powers of the onely one God, the Prince and Father of all. And Theo­phrastus saith, Theophrastus in his Metaphi­sicks, and in his book of sa­vours. That there is one di­vine beginner of all things, whereby they have their beginning and conti­nuance. But in his Book of Savours, he passeth further, and saith, That God created all things of nothing. But to create of nothing, presupposeth an infinite power,Alexander of Aphrodise, in his booke of Providence, & Cyril against Julian the A­postate. and again, that pow­er presupposeth an unity. And Alex­ander of Aphrodise attributeth provi­dence over all things, unto one only God, which can do whatsoever hee [Page 211] listeth, as appeareth by all his whole discourse. And he was of such renowne amongst all the Aristotelians, that they called themselves Alexandrians after his name. To be short, the most part of the Interpreters and Disciples of Aristotle, found it so needfull to ac­knowledge one only beginner, and so ab­surd to maintaine any more then one, that to the intent they might not confess any such absurdity in their Master, they do by all meanes possible excuse whatsoever might in his works, be con­strued to the contrary.

As touching the Stoicks The stoicks. of the an­cientest time, wee have no more then is gathered into the writings of their ad­versaries; who do all attribute unto them (the maintenance) of the unity and infiniteness of God, according to this which Aristotle reporteth of Ze­no, whom Cicero calleth the Father of the Stoicks, namely, That there must needs be but one God, for else there should be no God at all, be­cause it behooveth him to be singu­larly good and also Almighty, which were utterly unpossible if there were any more then one. Also Cleanthes as Simplicius reporteth acknowledged [Page 212] but one God, the cause of all causes.