proved from that scripture before-mentioned, which is evidently applied
to him, Isa. ix. 6. where he is called, _the mighty God_; and, in Psal.
xlv. 3. which, as has been before observed, is spoken concerning him, in
which he is called _most mighty_; and, in Phil. iii. 21. we read of his
_changing our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious
body_; which is such an effect of power, as plainly argues it divine, as
much as the production of all things out of nothing could do; and this
is said to be done, _according to the working, whereby he is able to
subdue all things to himself_. We might observe many other things, which
he has done, and will do, that require infinite power, which we shall
have occasion to consider, when we prove his deity from his works under
a following head.
But since all this is to no purpose, with respect to those who deny his
proper Deity, unless we can prove that he is called _Almighty_; and the
whole stress of this argument is laid upon it, for no other reason, as I
presume, but because they think it impossible for us to do it: I shall
attempt it; and I hope to make it appear that we have greater
probability, on our side, that he is so called, than they have ground to
deny it. Here I shall take notice of this perfection of the divine
nature, as we find it in the book of the Revelations, in which this
attribute is mentioned nine times, and, in some places, seems to be
applied to the Father, but in others to the Son.
The first we shall mention is in chap. i. 8. _I am Alpha and Omega, the
beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and
which is to come, the Almighty_; which seems to be spoken of our
Saviour,
1. Because he is described at large in the three foregoing verses; and
there is nothing which gives the least ground to question its
application to him, unless that character s being given to the Person
here spoken of, which is given to the Father, in ver. 4. _which is, and
which was, and which is to come_; but since we find in other scriptures,
the same divine glories ascribed to the Son that had before been
ascribed to the Father; as in John v. 21. _As the Father raiseth the
dead, and quickeneth them, even so the Son quickeneth whom he will_; and
in Tit. iii. 4. the Father is called _God our Saviour_, as appears by
comparing it with the 5th and 6th verses; and so is Christ called, chap.
ii. 10, 13. therefore, why may not the Father and the Son be each of
them described with this character, _Which was, is, and is to come_? and
that more especially, if we consider, that the ascribing this to Christ,
is, in effect, the same with what is said of him elsewhere, Heb. xiii.
8. where he is said _to be the same yesterday, to-day, and for
ever_.[149]
2. It farther appears, that this text, in which the Person spoken of is
called _Almighty_, is applied to Christ, because that character, _Alpha_
and _Omega_, seems to be applied to none but him in other places, where
it is used. We find it four times in this book, _viz._ not only in this
verse, but in ver. 11. in which it is indisputably applied to him, as
will appear, by comparing it with the followings verses. And, in chap.
xxi. 6. he is again called _Alpha_ and _Omega_, which, that it is
applied to him, appears from the context; it is he that _makes all
things new_, or puts a new face upon the affairs of his church; and it
is he who commands John to write what he saw and heard; _He said unto
me, Write these words_, ver. 5. We may observe, that whereever John is
commanded, in this book, to write, it is Christ that gives forth the
command: thus he said to him before, chap. i. 19. _Write the things
which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which
shall be hereafter_; and he is again commanded to write, _Blessed are
the dead which die in the Lord_, by him who is called the Son of man,
chap. xiv. 13, 14.
Again, in chap. xxii. 13. he is called _Alpha_ and _Omega_, who is
described in the foregoing verse, _as coming quickly, whose reward is
with him_; which is undoubtedly meant of our Saviour; for it is said
concerning him, ver. 20. _Surely I come quickly, Amen: even so come,
Lord Jesus._
That which I infer from hence, is, that if Christ be styled _Alpha_ and
_Omega_, in all other placed in this book, it is more than probable he
is so in this 8th verse of the 1st chapter, in which he is said to be
_the Almighty_. And as he is called _Alpha_ and _Omega_, so the
explication of these words, wherever we meet with it in this book
without the words themselves, is applied to Christ: thus he is called,
chap. i. 17. and ii. 8. _the first and the last_; and, chap. iii. 14.
_the beginning of the creation of God_: from hence, I humbly conceive,
we have more ground to conclude, that Christ is called the _Almighty_ in
this verse, than the Arians have to deny it.
Again, there is another place in this book where he seems to be styled
_the Almighty_, chap. xv. 3. _And they sing the song of Moses, the
servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous
are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King
of saints._ This triumphant song is occasioned by one of the greatest
victories which the church expects to obtain in this world: by the song
of Moses, I humbly conceive, is meant the church’s celebrating the glory
of God, for the greatest victory that ever was obtained under the legal
dispensation; and the song of the Lamb, is an acknowledgment of the
greatest that is, or shall be obtained under the gospel-dispensation;
and, in celebrating the Lamb’s victories, they set forth the praises of
the mighty Conqueror in the following words, _Great and marvellous are
thy works, Lord God Almighty_: it is the Lamb that is every where
described in this book, as fighting the church’s battles, and obtaining
victory for it; therefore it is his glory which is here set forth.
And as he is always described, in this book, as thus fighting the
church’s battles; so it is he who is described as taking vengeance on
its enemies, which is the just consequence thereof. Therefore I cannot
but conclude, that he is spoken of, in chap. xvi. 6, 7. as having
_given_ their persecutors _blood to drink, for they were worthy_; and,
in ver. 7. _Even so Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy
judgments._
Again, in chap. xvi. 14. we read of _the battle of that great day of God
Almighty_; and then it immediately follows, _Behold, I come as a thief
in the night_, &c. which expression is known to be elsewhere applied to
our Saviour, and to none but him; and that it is he who fights the
church’s battles, is evident from chap. xvii. 14. _These shall make war
with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overthrow them_; and from chap. xix.
12, &c. where it is said, _his eyes were as a flame of fire_; as he is
elsewhere described, chap. i. 14. to denote that the great day of his
wrath was come; and his name is called, in the 13th verse of this 19th
chapter, _the Word of God_; and we read of the _armies which followed
him_, and that _out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that he might
smite the nations_. From whence we may conclude, that since Christ is
represented, in so many places in this book, as fighting with, and
triumphing and reigning over his enemies, inflicting his plagues upon
them, and delivering his church from their persecution, which is a work
of divine power, he is fitly styled in several places, _Lord God
Almighty_.
We might consider several other divine attributes ascribed to Christ,
which prove his Deity, _viz._ holiness, truth, and faithfulness: thus,
in Rev. iii. 7. _These things saith he that is holy, he that is true_;
and he is farther described in the following words, as having
uncontroulable power; _who openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth,
and no man openeth_. That this is spoken of him, is beyond dispute; and
in chap. vi. 10. _They cried with a loud voice, How long, O Lord, holy
and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell
upon the earth?_ to whom did they cry but to the Lamb, who is said to
have opened the seals, or to have discovered the mysteries that were
thereby revealed, as in ver. 1.? And when he had opened the sixth seal,
he is described, as hearing his church’s prayer, and avenging their
blood, and so is represented as coming to judgment, in a very terrible
manner; upon which occasion it is said, _the great day of his wrath is
come_; and therefore it is he who is described as _holy and true_.
But if it be replied to this, that creatures are sometimes called holy
and true, we may farther add, that it is Christ to whom it is said,
chap. xv. 4. _Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name, for
thou only art holy; for all nations shall come and worship before thee,
for thy judgments are made manifest._ This I infer from what has been
before considered, that it is he who obtains victory over, and pours
forth his judgments on his church’s enemies; and it is he whose praises
are celebrated in the song of the Lamb, mentioned in the verse
immediately foregoing.
Having considered several divine perfections, as ascribed to our
Saviour, and these so glorious, that nothing greater can be mentioned to
set forth the glory of a divine Person; yet we may add hereunto, those
glorious titles that are given him with a design to excite in us adoring
and admiring thoughts of him: amongst which we shall only mention some
which are either the same with, or are equivalent to those which are
given to the Father, which they who deny Christ’s Deity, cannot but own
to be distinguishing characters of a divine Person, when so applied.
Thus, is the Father styled, in Heb. xiii. 20. _The God of peace_? our
Saviour is styled, in Isa. ix. 6. _The Prince of peace_; and he is said,
Eph. ii. 14. to be _our peace_; and as peace includes in it all the
blessings that accompany salvation, Christ’s being styled the Author
thereof, denotes him to be the Fountain of blessedness, which he could
not be, were he not a divine Person.
Again, as God is called _a Sun_, and _a Shield_, Psal. lxxxiv. 9. so
Christ is called, in Mal. iv. 2. _The Sun of Righteousness_; and, in
Isa. xxxii. 2. _An hiding place from the wind, a covert from the
tempest, and the shadow of a great rock in a weary land._
Again, it is said of God the Father, Deut. xxx. 20. _He is thy life, and
the length of thy days_; our Saviour says, concerning himself, in John
xi. 25. compared with chap. xiv. 6. that he is _the life_; and, Acts
iii. 15. he is called _the Prince of life_; and, in Colos. iii. 4. _our
life_. Again, is the Father called, in Psal. lxxx. 1. _The Shepherd of
Israel_? Christ is called, in Heb. xiii. 20. _That great Shepherd of the
sheep._
Moreover, is God often described in scripture as a glorious King; as in
Zeph. iii. 15. _The King of Israel, even the Lord in the midst of thee_?
our Saviour is styled, in Isa. vi. 5. _The King, the Lord of hosts_;
and, in John i. 49. _The King of Israel_; and, in Rev. xix. 16. _King of
kings, and Lord of lords._
Again, is God styled the _Hope of Israel_, Jer. xiv. 8? our Saviour
seems to be so called by the apostle, when he says, in Acts xxviii. 20.
_for the Hope of Israel, I am bound with this chain_, that is, for
Christ’s sake, who is the object of his people’s hope. However, whether
he is intended thereby, or no, in that scripture, he is called elsewhere
_our hope_, 1 Tim. i. 1. compared with Coloss. i. 27.
Moreover, is God the object of desire, so that there is _nothing in
heaven or earth_, or within the whole compass of finite beings, that is
to be desired _besides_, or in comparison with _him_, as the Psalmist
says, Psal. lxxiii. 25? our Saviour is called, in Hag. ii. 7. _The
desire of all nations._ I might refer to many other glorious titles that
are given to him in the 2nd and 3rd chapters of the Revelations, in the
epistles to the seven churches; every one of which is prefaced with such
a character given of him, as is designed to strike them with an holy
reverence, and esteem of him, as a divine Person. Thus concerning those
proofs of Christ’s Deity, which are taken from the names, attributes,
and titles which are given to him; which leads us to consider,
III. The next head of argument taken from those works, which have been
done by our Saviour, that are proper to God alone. Divine works argue a
divine efficient, or that he has infinite power, and consequently that
he is an infinite Person, or truly and properly God, who performs them.
Now these works are of two sorts; either of nature and common
providence, or of grace, to wit, such as immediately respect our
salvation; in all which, he acts beyond the power of a creature, and
therefore appears to be a divine Person.
1. He appears to be so, from his having created all things. He that made
the world, must be before it; and therefore since time began with the
first creature, as has been before observed, it follows that he must be
before time, that is, from eternity.
Again, he that created all things, must have a sovereign will, for whose
_pleasure they are, and were created_, Rev. iv. 11. And it follows from
hence, that he has an undoubted right to all things, and that he might
have annihilated them, had it been his pleasure; and also, that he has a
right to dispose of them as he will, as the potter has power over his
clay. All these things are consequent on the work of creation; therefore
it is an undeniable argument, that he, who created all things, must be
God.
It may also be observed, that to create, is to exert infinite power, or
to act above the power of a creature, which, at best, is but finite: now
whatever is more than finite, must be infinite; and consequently he who
created all things, must exert infinite power, and that is certainly
such as is truly divine.
We might farther consider, that there are many scriptures which
appropriate creation to God, and, indeed, it cannot be otherwise; for to
suppose that a creature gave being to itself, is to suppose him to be
both a cause and an effect, and consequently to be, and not to be, at
the same time, to exist as a creator, and not to exist as brought into
being, which is a plain contradiction; and it is evident, that, in
scripture, the creature is opposed to the Creator: thus, in Rom. i. 25.
it is said, _they worshipped and served the creature more than the
Creator, who is blessed forever_. And there are several scriptures that
speak of creation, as a distinguishing evidence of divine glory: thus,
in Isa. xl. 28. we have a magnificent description of God, taken more
especially from this work, when he is called, _The everlasting God, the
Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth_; and, in chap. xlii. 5.
_Thus saith God the Lord, he that created the heavens, and stretched
them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of
it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them
that walk therein_; in which, and many other scriptures of the like
nature, which might be referred to, it appears that creation is a work
peculiar to God.
The next thing we are to prove is, that our Saviour created all things.
There are many who think that this may be proved from the work of
creation’s being ascribed to more persons than one; and therefore when
we read of creators, in the plural number, as it is in the original, in
Eccles. xii. 1. _Remember thy Creator_, or creators; and when God, in
creating man, is represented as speaking after this manner, _Let us make
man after our own image_, &c. this seems to imply that there were more
divine Persons engaged in this work than the Father.
I do not indeed lay so much stress on this argument, as many do, yet it
is not wholly to be neglected; for, I confess, I cannot see any reason
why there should be such a mode of expression used, were it not to
signify this divine mystery, of a plurality of Persons in the Godhead,
to whom this work is ascribed.
_Object._ As for the objection, which some of the Anti-trinitarians,
especially the Socinians, bring against it, that this mode of speaking,
is such as is used in conformity to the custom of kings who, speak in
the plural number;
_Answ._ To this it may be answered, that though kings do often speak in
the plural number, yet this is only a modern way of speaking, implying,
that whatever a king does, is by the advice of some of his subjects, who
are his peculiar favourites, and who are also made use of to fulfil his
will; but, nevertheless, this way of speaking is not so ancient as
scripture-times, much less as Moses’s time, or the beginning of the
world, which he refers to, when God is represented as thus speaking. It
is the custom of kings, in scripture, to speak in the singular number:
and it is very absurd to pretend to explain any mode of speaking used in
scripture, by customs of speech, not known till many ages after.
I am sensible, some think that mode of speaking used by Ahasuerus Esth.
i. 15. _What shall we do unto the queen_ Vashti, _according to law?_ is
a proof that it was used in former ages. But the words may be rendered,
_What is to be done_, according to law, &c. or what is expedient for me
to do? and therefore it doth not prove that kings used, in ancient
times, to speak of themselves in the plural number; and consequently it
cannot be argued, that when God is represented as speaking so in
scripture, it is in compliance with any such custom. Besides, whenever
he is represented as speaking in scripture, in all other instances,
excepting those that are supposed to be contained in our argument, he is
always represented as speaking in the singular number; and therefore it
seems still more probable, that this variation from his usual way of
speaking, is not without some reason, and that hereby we are led into
this doctrine, that there are more divine Persons than one, that created
all things.
But not to insist on this, since we have more plain proofs hereof in
scripture, it evidently appears that Christ made all things, not only
from what is said in John i. 3. that _all things were made by him; and
without him was not any thing made that was made_; but, from Col. i. 16.
_By him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are on
earth, visible and invisible, whether they are thrones, or dominions, or
principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him_;
in which he is not only said to be the Creator, but the end of all
things, which is the same with what is said in Prov. xvi. 4. that _the
Lord hath made all things for himself_.
This farther appears from Psal. cii. 25. _Of old hast thou laid the
foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of thy hands_;
which is expressly applied to Christ by the apostle, in Heb. i. 10.
By these, and such-like scriptures, it evidently appears that Christ
made all things. The Socinians, indeed, who are sensible that creation
was an evident proof of divine power, and therefore that the Creator of
all things must be God, labour very hard to prove that all those
scriptures that ascribe this work to our Saviour, are to be taken in a
metaphorical sense, and so signify nothing else but his being the author
of the gospel-state, which is a kind of new creation peculiar to him;
and that he did this as a prophet, revealing those doctrines which
relate thereunto; and accordingly they take the sense of that scripture,
in John i. 2, 3. which speaks of his being _in the beginning, and that
all things were made by him_, as intending nothing else, but that he was
in the beginning of the gospel, and that whatever was made, or ordained,
to be a standard and rule of faith, was by him; and that, in the
discharge of this work, he was to restore decayed religion, and to
correct several mistaken notions, which the Jews had entertained
concerning the moral law, to add some new precepts to it, and give
directions concerning that mode of worship which should be observed in
the church for the future. This is all they suppose to be intended by
that work, which is ascribed to Christ as a Creator; whereas, in this
scripture, it is plainly said, that there was nothing in the whole frame
of nature, nothing that was an effect of power, made without him. And
there is another scripture, which cannot, with any colour of reason, be
understood in that sense, _viz._ in Col. i. 16. _By him were all things
created that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and
invisible_; where the apostle speaks of the creation of angels and men,
as well as all other things: now, certainly, Christ did not come into
the world to rectify any mistakes or restore decayed religion among the
angels, therefore the apostle here plainly proves that our Saviour
created all things.
But since this opinion of the Socinians is now almost universally
exploded by the Anti-trinitarians, we have no occasion to add any thing
farther in opposition to it; but shall proceed to consider what the
Arians say concerning Christ’s creating all things. These allow that the
work of creation is ascribed to him; but they deny that this argues him
to be God in the same sense as the Father is. The account which they
give thereof is, that God, to wit, the Father, created all things by the
Son, as an instrument, created by him, immediately for that purpose; so
that the Son was an inferior, or second cause of the production of all
things; and therefore that it cannot, from thence, be concluded that he
is God equal with the Father.
What I would humbly offer, in opposition hereunto is,
1. That, in this account of creation, there is not a just difference put
between the natural and supernatural production of things, of which the
latter can only be called creation; therefore, if these two be
confounded, the distinguishing character of a Creator is set aside, and
consequently the glory arising from hence cannot be appropriated to God;
nor is that infinite perfection, that is displayed therein, duly
considered, but according to this scheme or method of reasoning a
creature may be a Creator, and a Creator a creature; nor can the
_eternal power and Godhead_ of the divine Being be demonstrated by the
things that are made or created, as the apostle says they are in Rom. i.
20.
2. From that first mistake arises another, namely, that because, in
natural productions, that which was created by God, may be rendered
subservient to the production of other things; in which respect it may
be termed an instrument made use of by a superior cause, and may have an
energy or method of acting, peculiar to itself, whereby it produces
effects according to the course and laws of nature, fixed by God, the
first cause of all things; therefore they suppose, though without
sufficient ground that God might create all things by an instrument, or
second cause thereof, as they conclude he did by the Son.
3. Notwithstanding we must assert, that creation being a supernatural
production of things, what has been said concerning natural production,
is not applicable to it; therefore,
4. Though things may be produced in a natural way, by second causes,
whose powers are limited, and subjected as aforesaid, to the laws of
nature; yet supernatural effects cannot be produced by any thing short
of infinite power; therefore, since creation is a supernatural work, it
must be concluded to be a work of infinite power.
5. It follows, from hence, that it is not agreeable to the idea of
creation, or the producing all things out of nothing, for God to make
use of an instrument. That this may appear, let it be considered, that
whatever instrument is made use of, it must be either finite or
infinite. An infinite instrument cannot be made use of, for then there
would be two infinites, one superior, the other inferior. Nor can a
finite one be made use of, for that, according to our last proposition,
cannot produce any supernatural effect, as creation is supposed to be,
which requires infinite power, and that cannot be exerted by a finite
medium, therefore no such instrument can be used. Moreover, if it
requires infinite power to create all things, this power, in its method
of acting, would be limited, by the instrument it makes use of; for
whatever power a superior cause has in himself, the effect produced, by
an instrument will be in proportion to the weakness thereof. This some
illustrate by the similitude of a giant’s making use of a straw, or a
reed, in striking a blow in which the weakness of the instrument renders
the power of the person that uses it insignificant. Thus if God the
Father should make use of the Son, in the creation of all things, the
power that is exerted by him therein, can be no other than finite; but
that is not sufficient for the production of things supernatural, which
require infinite power. To this we may add,