66

one and prudence one, may be understood partly, how God is One; One only and undivided, notwithstanding any distinction or multiplicity of persons that he may offer or animate; and also how, notwithstanding the idols with all that men offer to them so profusely, GOD IS STILL BUT ONE, AND THERE IS NONE OTHER GOD BUT ONE. For though there be that are called gods whether in Heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many and lords many,) there is to us but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him" (Cor. I. viii. 4-6)-as virtue is only one abstract, notwithstanding so many particular properties or examples as there are of the same; as patience, meekness, contentment, humility, and a great many more, which are called virtues. It being also very conceivable how the Deity might have stooped or been humbled by its association with humanity in the person of Christ without being debased; as virtue may be humbled apparently by its association with a plain exterior, or with what would be thought unworthy circumstances, only shining itself the more conspicuously on that account. And what is thus exemplified in the character of virtue might be exemplified as well, if not better in the character of wisdom, which is its counterpart when remembering the universality of the subject, we perceive how several properties distinguishable from each other may agree in being all equally wisdom; as prudence, piety and benevolence, for example. For prudence is wisdom, piety is wisdom, and benevolence is wisdom: yet not three wisdoms, but one; three very distinct properties in one relation, but only one in another: and in the same manner may the three divine Persons of the ever blessed Trinity be conceived to be distinct as persons, but united as God. Also

7, Taking another case into our consideration, the enjoy ment of such a character; we may similarly conceive by these examples, how the One great almighty God; the God of the universe, was (and is, let us hope) peculiarly the God

of Israel, as represented in the Old Testament, without that odious and unnatural limitation which his people, or some of them are apt to imagine. For as one property is wisdom or virtue, and another property likewise without their being two wisdoms or two virtues; so wisdom or virtue or both may be the property of two persons, without being two subjects, or two pieces, or two sorts, or two degrees, shades or any thing else. So Moses, their UNRIVALLED LEGISLATOR, tells the Israelites, that keeping the commandments of God is their wisdom (Deut. iv. 6): but is it not ours too? Yes; it is: and just the same too, as their God is ours. He is peculiarly theirs, and peculiarly ours, equally of both but theirs with circumcision and ours without; circumcision being the assignment of Abraham, but ours, (and theirs likewise, it should be) the cross of Christ who, the apostle says " hath redeemed us from the curse of the law; being made a curse for us that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith" (Gal. iii. 13, 14). "For he is our peace; who hath made both one .... that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross," &c. (Eph. ii. 14, 16).

....

But the Trinity that we worship in unity and ought also to obey in the terms of our allegiance, can only be understood in relation to the observer, and not in relation to the object, as a Trinity To the worshipper, and not IN the Object of worship. For in the Object itself there is no distinction (as before observed *) to mark either a plurality or a division: all the distinctions in the world are made by it; but in it not all the world is able to find a distinction. God is, what for want of other terms or conceptions we should call a Spirit, Power or Quality: which may be understood either alone or in apposition, like Cold, Light, Red, &c., and may be applied to persons as these are to things; for example,

* Vol. II. p. 358.

-1, There is God alone; the original Spirit, Power or Quality, as there may be cold.

-2, There is the same God exemplified in à person, as cold may be in a thing: and then,

J.

-3, One person may be God, and another may be God without a plurality or division of the Godhead, just as one thing and another may be cold without a division of the quality. For two or three things partaking of one quality do not make so many qualities of that one, no 'more do two or three persons: the Father is good, the Son is good, and the Holy Ghost is good; yet are they not three Goods, but three Types, Examples or Personifications of that which is good. Again; as iron is cold, stone is cold, and water is cold; so in the divine Majesty that we worship-the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Ghost is God, without any distinction as to the divine Majesty and Godhead. For as water, stone and iron are one with respect to coldness, so the Father, Son and Holy Ghost are One with respect to Divinity. As the coldness of water, stone and iron is one in kind, so the Divinity of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost is One: there is no essential difference in the divinity of Father, Son and Holy Ghost, whatever difference may appear in their `personifications of the same, or in its associations with any other subjects. We should also remember,

-4, The analogy of Immutability in this relation. For if the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Ghost is God, God is not however the person of either; but each is a person, or presentation, being all together the full Presence of God; the Presence which all we who are blessed with the same in a distant degree look up to as God: in the same manner as we consider that in a vessel of iron, iron is not the vessel, but the vessel is iron, and as of iron, water, stone, each is cold; though cold be neither water, stone nor iron, but a physical property impartible to many other substances as well as these. So God is light, love &c. according to St. John (John I. i. 5; iv. 8; 16, &c.);

and man is both darkness and light according to St. Paul (Eph. v. 8): and more instances of the kind might be mentioned; as Christ," the Desire of all nations" (Hag. ii. 7); who was made sin for us without knowing sin (Cor. II. v. 21), &c. Yet the converse of these propositions will not stand in any case: for light is not God; darkness is not man; sin is not Christ, &c. And,

-5, continuing the same analogy, or parallel: if THREE persons be God, God will not therefore be three persons, any more than coldness will be three things because three things are cold: and God is as much a person because three Persons are God, or He is so presented, as coldness is a thing because three things are cold, or coldness is felt thereby. Can any one tell us the form of coldness? No; but any one may tell us the form of a thing that is cold. So no man can really tell another the form of God, whatever he may pretend for the sake of idolatry: but there have been those who could tell us the form of that which is God. "Which was from the beginning: (says one of them) which we have heard; which we have seen with our eyes; which our hands have handled of the Word of life" (John I. i. 1). So the way or operation of the Holy Spirit is as invisible as the ends of the wind: but the presence of the Creator may be discerned only in the natural force of that impetuous element; how much more in the divine Power, by which not only that, but the more active element of intellect itself is controlled! "For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal Power and Godhead" (Rom. i. 20). But all things being made by him, he is seen, felt or perceived in every thing; more perfectly in some than in others, but most perfectly in the idea that we have of him by his Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, and in "the fruit of the Spirit,-love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance" (Gal. v. 22); which we have also by this "Image of the invisible God" (Col. i. 15). "For the tree is known by his fruit" (Matt. xii. 33): and by such as have just

been enumerated know we God's Holy Spirit with the Father and the Son.

And with this parallel here let us conclude the comparison of an incomparable Subject. It may be thought that fewer examples than have been given might have sufficed, and so they might with some. But even where so many examples were not required, it is to be hoped, that what are now given will be attended with no inconvenience, if they do not promote the intended conception by their united effect. For the Subject itself is liable to be regarded in different ways on different occasions; as absolutely or relatively in the first place, and as variously related in the second: to suit which diversity a diversity of parallels may be required, and all perhaps not enough, For when we endeavour to parallel or illustrate by comparison the nature of that incomprehensible Being to whom we owe our existence, all our parallels or comparisons appear to be defeated as fast as they are brought forward: there is not one of them scarcely, but is met with an exception as soon as it appears; there is not one that will reach farther than to the beginning, or to the middle of an idea of Him at most, much less to a perfect notion. But what then? What are we to infer herefrom, and what does this inability to parallel the internal relations of the Deity with any other demonstrate? It demonstrates the same with our inability to parallel the divine Subject himself by any human conception: demonstrates, that God is not to be paralleled by man in any respect; as we shall now have occasion to observe still farther in considering, as before proposed, the general evidences of the doctrine that has been advanced on the ever blessed Trinity and illustrated by a variety of parallels, as far as their inadequacy would permit. The mention of these evidences will also naturally call up a train of objec tions and errors; which also will require their answers in turn; such requisitions naturally happening one upon another in the usual routine of discussion.

2

i