Observations Natural and Moral, Chapter 11 – Chapter 12
CHAP. XI. Why the Children are ſayd to come out of their fathers thigh.
Gen. 46.26. All the ſoules that came with Iacob out of Egypt, which came out of Iacobs thigh.
THeſe who have deſcribed the Anatomie of man, Of the generation of man.ſay that the ſeed bringers called vaſa ſeminaria, bee two veines and two arteries which come downe to the thigh.
Theſe veines take their beginning from vena cava the Maſter veine, which hath the originall from the liver, and the arterie hath its beginning from the heart, and ſo they deſcend to the parts of generation.foreign virga foreign teſticuli, foreign fila teſticulorum.
Theſe membraſeminis or vaſa ſeminaria the Hebrewes call them firſt [gid] virga: ſecondly, [habezim] teſticuli, thirdly, [haſhebhelim chute bozim] fila teſticulorum.
They came out of Iacobs thigh, for modeſtie the Hebrewes put other parts of the body for the part of generation, as firſt they call it the feete, Eſay. 7.20. I ſhall ſhave the haire of the feete, The Hebrewes for modeſtie put other parts of the bodie for the members of generation.ſo ſhe ſhall eate that which commeth out betwixt her feete, ſo they call it the Navell Iob. 40.16. and the thigh Num. 5.2. and the heathen Poets ſay that Bacchus was borne of Iupiters thigh.
Secondly, they came out of Iacabs thigh, becauſe pater eſt principium activum generationis, and not the mother; Why the children are ſayd to come out of the fathers thing….& therefore ſome Divines conceit that if Adam had not ſinned, although Eve had ſinned, then originall ſinne had not beene tranſmitted to the poſteritie; becauſe he was principium generationis, Rom. 5.12. By one man ſinne entred into the world.
Thirdly, they came out of Iacobs thigh, theſe ſeventie ſoules came out of many bellies, but from one thigh, they came out of the bellies of Lea and Rachel, Zilpah and Billah &c.
Fourthly, Children come out of their fathers thigh, Why the husband is to love his wife better than his children.but the wife was taken out of the husbands ſide, therefore the husband ſhould love his wife better than his children.
Fiftly, they came out of Iacobs thigh, Many came out of … thigh that was a poore man.that was a ſillie poore man, Deut… 26.5. And thou ſhalt ſpeake and ſay before the Lord thy God: Syrus perditionis erat pater meus, a Syrian readie to periſh was my Father, yet he went downe into Egypt and ſojourned there with a few, and became there a nation great and mightie and populous, who multiplied exceedingly even as the fiſh of the ſea [ijſhretzu] Exod. 1.7. foreign multiplicarunt mere piſcium.Looke to the number of the fighting men in Iudea in Iehoſaphats time, how they encreaſed that came out of of his thigh, there were eleven hundreth and three-ſcore thouſand fighting men, 2 Chronicles 17. What number of women and children were beſide? and then if we ſhall adde all the number that was in Iſrael, Gods promiſe verified to Abraham.we ſhall ſee how Gods promiſe was verified to Abraham, I will multiplie thy ſeed as the ſands of the Sea. Although the Lord gave him ſeventie children out of his thigh, yet he touched the hollow of Iacobs thigh, and the paine made him to weepe, Hoſ. 12.4. and he halted upon it all the dayes of his life. foreign The Hebrewes ſay that a thing forgetteth, when it leaveth off to doe that which it was wont to doe.This ſinew which ſhrunke in, in his thigh, in the originall it is calld [gid haneſhe] nervus oblivionis, the ſinnew of oblivion, and it never ſtirred any more there. So Iob. 28.4. The waters are forgotten of the foote; that is, the foote treadeth no more there. God promiſeth no good thing in this life, but with condition of the croſſe.What ever the Lord giveth his children in this life, it is alwayes cum exceptione crucis, Mark. 10.30. He ſhall have an hundreth fold, but it is added, with perſecution. Seventie ſoules ſhall come out of Iacobs thigh, but he ſhall halt upon foureteene all his life time; So Paul was taken up to the third heaven, yet the Lord gave him a pricke in the fleſh to humble him, 2 Cor. 12.7. God this wayes tempereth our wine with water, he upholdeth us with the one hand, and taketh us downe with the other.
The concluſion of this is, Concluſion. that God out of ſmall beginnings can make up a Church to himſelfe. Ezek. 47.3. The waters that flowed out of the Sanctuary were but firſt to the ancles, Simile. then they came to the knees, thirdly they came to the loynes, and laſtly they became a river that could not bee paſſed; God of ſmall beginnings can make a Church to himſelfe.as the graces of God grow in the Church, ſo doth the number of the Saints, from hundreths to thouſands, and from thouſands to Millions.
CHAP. XII. That a woman giveth ſeed in generation as well as the man.
Levit, 12.2. If a woman give ſeede, and have borne a male child.
THe divell who envieth the ſalvation of man kind, The divell ſet himſelfe againſt the nature and the offices of Chriſt.hath ſtill ſet himſelfe againſt Chriſt our redeemer.
Firſt hee ſet himſelfe againſt the divinitie of Chriſt by his inſtrument Areius, whodenied the divinitie of Chriſt, The Arriaus denyed his Godhead.and he poyſoned the third part of the waters with his wormewood, Revel. 8.11.
Secondly, hee ſet himſelfe againſt the perſon of Chriſt by Neſtorius, who taught that there were two perſons in Chriſt, as there were two natures.
Thirdly, he raiſed up Eutiches, who confounded the natures, and made but one nature as there is but one perſon.
Fourthly, hee raiſed up Martion, The error of the Anabaptiſts refuted who deny that Chriſt tooke no fleſh of the woman.who denied that Chriſt was truely a man: and laſt, he raiſed up the, Anabaptiſts who denie that Ieſus Chriſt tooke fleſh of the virgin Mary, but that he paſſed through her as water doth through a golden pype; and their principall reaſon was this, becauſe women give no feede in generation; but this text ſheweth clearely that the women give ſeede in generation as well as the men: it ſhould not be tranſlated then ſi Semen conceperit aut ſuſceperit, for that is contrarie to the nature of the active conjugation hiphil, and it ſhould bee tranſlated ſi ſeminaverit ſemen, and ſo Num. 5.28. ſeminabit ſemen, ſhe ſhall give ſeede, and not conceive feede, foreign foreignand it is oftentimes ſpoken of trees in the Scripture ſementare ſemen, which cannot be tranſlated, ſi ſuſceperint ſemen: ſo Heb. 11.11. Sara received ſtrength ad jaciendum vel emittendum ſemen, foreign is not receptio ſed jactus ſeminis, as when the husbandman ſoweth his ſeede and caſteth it into the ground, Object. the Syriacke paraphraſe paraphraſeth it not rightly, ut conciperet vel ſuſciperet ſemen. 2 Cor. 15.47. The firſt man is of the earth earthly, the ſecond man is the Lord from the heaven, then it may ſeeme that Ieſus Chriſt tooke not his fleſh of the Virgin Marie.
The ſecond Adam is ſayd to be the Lord foreign , not that it was in regard of his manhood, Anſw. & humaine body made of an hevenly ſubſtance, but that it was conceived by the heavenly overſhadowing of the holy Ghoſt, and was made partaker of heavenly qualities, as immor tality, glorie and power. And became the inſtrument of an hevenly converſation upon earth.
The concluſion of this, foreign vindex redemptor propinquus.if Chriſt had not taken our fleſh upon him he had not beene our goel, and ſo jure propinquitatis he could not have redeemed us: he is called our dud our beloved, Eſay. 5.1, Iere. 32. Hananeel becauſe he was in neceſſitie, his dud became goel for him, Ieremie.and redeemed his land for him. So Ieſus Chriſt being our dud or neere kinſman, becometh goel to us: if he had not taken our nature hee ſhould not have beene vindex ſanguinis noſtri, neither redeemed heaven when wee loſt it, neither redeemed us out of Priſon, for all theſe things did the goel to his kinſman.