Page images
PDF
EPUB

XI.

Here follow fome fingle Texts, to which I add no paralels; there being no danger of miftaking their application.

John XX. 28. And Thomas anfwered and faid, MY LORD, and MY GOD.

XII.

Rom. IX. 5. Of whom as concerning the Flesh CHRIST came, who is over all, GOD BLESSED for ever.

Amen.

Pfal. XXIII, 1. The LORD (Heb. Jehovah) is my SHEPHERD, John X. 16. There shall be one fold, and ONE SHEPHERD.

If Christ be not the Lord, in Unity with the Father, there must of course be two distinct beings, to whom the Scripture has appropriated this Character of a Shepherd; and that would make two Shepherds. But Chrift has affirmed there is but one Shepherd, that is himself, THE SHEPHERD of the Sheep, v. 2. whom St. Peter calls the chief Shepherd, 1 Pet. V. 4. So again

we are His

Pfal. C. 3. Know ye that the LORD he is GOD
people, and the SHEEP of HIS Pasture.
John X. 3. HE (that is, Chrift himself) calleth His Own
SHEEP.

And again-John XXI. 16. Feed мY Sheep-faid Chrift to St. Peter: which in the Language of St. Peter himself, 1 Pet. V. 2. is Feed the Flock of GOD.

-

XIII.

2 Pet. I. 1. — Through the Righteoufnefs of OUR GOD and Saviour JESUS

CHRIST.

--

The Greek is Στο θεό ημών και Σωτήρος Ιησε Xe158 the very fame, as to the order and Grammar of the words, with the last verfe of

this Epistle Στο Κυριό ημών και Σωτήρος Ιησε Χρις8

which is thus rendered in our English verfion —of our Lord and Saviour Jefus Christ. And fo, without doubt, it fhould be in the other paffage there being no poffible reason why, 78 DE8 ημών, fhould not fignifie, our God, as well as, 78 Kupis nμwv, our Lord. It is not my design to caft any reflection upon the wisdom of our excellent and orthodox Tranflators (whofe verfion, taken altogether, is without exception the beft extant in the world) or to advance this as any discovery of my own: for the Tranflators themselves have preferved the true rendering in the Margin; declaring it, by their customary Note, to be the literal fenfe of the Greek.

There is another expreffion, Tit. II. 13. that ought to be claffed with the foregoing. Looking for that bleed hope, and the glorious appearing,

το μεγαλο θες και Σωτηρο ημών Ιησε Χρις8, of our Great God and Saviour, Jefus Chrift. Of which a great man, deep in the Arian Scheme, gives this defponding Account —" "Many understand "this whole Sentence to belong to one and the "fame Perfon, viz Chrift: as if the words "fhould have been rendered, The appearing of "our great God and Saviour Jefus Chrift. Which Conftruction, the words will indeed bear; as "do alfo those in 2 Pet. I. 1.

[ocr errors]

But it is much agreable to the "whole Tenor of Scripture, to understand the "former part of the words, to relate to the Fa"ther." As for the whole Tenor of Scripture, it

"more reasonable, and more

a

is a weighty phrase, but very easily made use of in any caufe good or bad: fo I fhall leave the reader to judge of that, after it has been exhibited to him in the following pages. And as for the reasonableness of the thing itself, let any ferious perfon confider, whether the Doctrine of the Scripture is not more rational under the orthodox application of these words, than under that of this Author. For to allow, as he does, that Chrift is God, but not the Great God, is to make two Gods, a greater and a lesser; which is no very rational principle. And I make not the least doubt but this Author, had he been dreff

a Clarke's Doctr. of the Trin. C. 2. §. 1. 541.

ing up a Syftem of natural religion, would have protested against a notion fo abfurd and impious. But when the Scripture was to be dealt with, he chose it as the leffer of two evils, the greater of which, was the Doctrine he had fubfcribed to.

XIV.

2 Cor. V. 19. GOD was IN CHRIST, reconciling the world to HIMSELF.

It is allowed on all hands, that the world was reconciled by Christ Jesus to the one, only, great and fupreme God. But, this very Jame God (for the word is but once used in the whole fentence) was in Chrift; manifeft in the flesh, and reconciling the world to himself. And were there no other paffage of Scripture to be found, this alone is fufficient to overthrow the whole Doctrine of Arianism; which, as far as the Scripture is concerned, depends upon this one affertion that "the word GOD, in Scripture, "NEVER fignifies a complex notion of more "perfons than one; but ALWAYS means one perfon only, viz. either the perfon of the Fa"ther fingly, or the perfon of the Son fingly."

[ocr errors]

a Clarke's S. D. P. II. §. 33.

[ocr errors]

Which is abfolutely falfe: for here it fignifies both. The text confiders God as agent and patient at the fame time, and upon the fame occafion; as the reconciler of the world, in the perfon of the Son; and the object to whom the reconciliation was made, in the Perfon of the Father; yet there is but one word (God) to exprefs them both. So that the word God, though of the fingular number, is of a plural comprehenfion. And thus I find it to have been taken by fome of the most eminent writers before the council of Nice, "Plafmatus in initio homo per "manus DEI, id eft, FILII & SPIRITUS," fays Irenæus; putting the fingular name of God, for the two perfons of the Son and Spirit. And the fame word, in the language of Origen, (if we are allowed to take the verfion of Ruffinus as genuine) includes the whole three perfons · Igitur de DEO, id eft, de PATRE & FILIO & SPIRITU fancto. And our excellent Church has used the word God in the fame fense; as in the Bleffing after the communion fervice-GOD ALMIGHTY, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghoft.

a

b

a Lib. V. §. 23. b De principiis. Lib. IV. C. 2.

« PreviousContinue »