Commentary on Genesis and Exodus, Theological treatise · Commandment 10 · Doctrines 2 – Moral observations 2
4. Places of Doctrine.
1. Doct. Of the difference of the Law and the Gospell.
Vers. 18. WHen the people saw it, they fled, and stood afarre off. Here is set forth the difference of the Law and the Gospell: for the Law worketh these two effects: Terrorem incutit, &c. It striketh terrour by the manifestation of our sinne: as the prodigall childe confessed, I am not worthy to be called thy sonne. And, retrocedere facit, it causeth to goe afarre off. Hereupon the Publicane stood afarre off, beating upon his breast, as not worthy to come neere into the presence of God. But the Gospell hath two other contrary effects: Consolatur & allicit; It comforteth and allureth: as our blessed Saviour saith, Come unto me all ye that are weary and laden, and I will ease you, Mat. 11.28. They that finde not the Law and the Gospell to worke these severall contrary effects, doe shew, that they understand neither, but are like unto those in the Gospell, of whom it is said, We have piped unto you, and yet have not danced; wee have mourned unto you, and ye have not wept: such can neither be wonne by the comfortable promises of the Gospell, not terrified by the heavy threatnings of the Law, Ferus. B. Babington.
2. Doct. One truth, one religion.
Vers. 24. AN altar of earth shalt thou make.] Quòd unum at que …undeus cultum inter omnes esse vellet, &c. Because he would have one and the same worship among all, he commanded but one altar, Gallas. He would have but one altar, to note one truth, and one religion: B. Babington; as the Apostle saith, Ephes. 4.5. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptisme.
5. Places of Confutation.
1. Confut. Against Tostatus, that it is no more lawfull to make images in the new Testament than it was under the old.
Vers. 23. GOds of silver, or Gods of gold, yee shall make yee none, &c. Tostatus alleaging these two reasons why images were not allowed in the old Testament, because Idolatry was then commonly practised among the Gentiles, and therefore the Lord would take away all occasion thereof among his people: and for that no image could be made to represent God being visible; yet he saith that it is lawfull to have images in the new Testament, … aliqua predi…tarum causarum, neither doth any of the former reasons hinder it: because now there is no danger of Idolatry in making an image to represent God: Quia non est nunc generalis … ; There is not now a generall custome of the Gentiles leading that way: and though in the old Testament there was nothing which could be expressed by an image, God being invisible; yet in the new Testament Christ truly tooke our flesh: Ita ut statua et couveniat, quia … nostrûm … ; So that an image may well agree unto him, because he is like unto any of us. Sunt etiam …liqu… sancti viri, &c. There are also holy men, whom though we worship not as Gods, yet we have them as intercessors with God, and doe make pictures of them, to be put in remembrance of them, Tostat. qu. 39.
Contra. 1. If the forbidding to make any graven image to represent God by, be a morall precept, as it cannot be denied, then it bindeth Christians as well in the new Testament, as it did the Israelites in the old. 2. And there is more danger of idolatry …, than there was the…: for the grosse idolatry of the Gentiles was not so dangerous to imitate, nor so like to be followed, as the coloured superstition, and refined idolatry of those which professe themselves Catholikes and Christians: the grosse Pagane idolatry is now turned into counterfeit Christian imagery. And if the nations, which have not yet received the Christian Faith, as the Turkes, Mahometanes, Jewes, have renounced idolatry, it is a shame for Christians in profession to retaine it still. 3. Concerning the other reason, first the Godhead and divine nature is no more circumscriptible and to be pictured now, than it was in the old Testament. And as Christ in the new did take upon him the shape and forme of man, so also in the old he appeared in humane shape to the Fathers: why might they not then have pictured him, according to that appearance, as well as now? therefore in this respect there is no difference. But can they also by any image resemble Christs divine nature? If they cannot, it is a lying image: for either they make a picture of Christ as God and Man, and so they with Eutyches will confound the natures of Christ, making the Godhead circumscriptible: or else with Nestorius they must divide his person, making two Christs, one as he is Man, whom they cannot picture; another, as he is God, who cannot by any image bee resembled. And whereas Tostatus himselfe misliketh that any image should be made of the Trinity, upon this reason: Quia cum nihil tale, ut est, exprimere in personis divinis valeat, solius erroris Arriani occasio est, ut tres Deos essentialiter distenctos, &c. …: Because no picture can expresse any thing in the divine persons, as it is, and so it would only give occasion of the Arrian errour, that wee should imagine three Gods essentially distinguished, &c. this reason may be returned againe upon him: that seeing nothing of Christs divine nature can be expressed by a picture, such delineation and portraiting of Christ would give occasion of the Nestorian heresie, to make two Christs; one, which may be pictured, as he is man, and the other, which cannot be pictured, as he is God.
Secondly, concerning the images of Saints: Were there not glorious and renowned Saints in the old Testament, as the Patriarkes, Abraham, Isaack, Iacob, with the Prophets, Moses and Elias, with the rest, as the Apostles and Evangelists, and holy Martyrs under the New? Why then was it not as lawfull to make images and visible representations of the Saints then, as now? Therefore herein there is no difference betweene those times, and these: and so, notwithstanding all these shifts and evasions, it is found to bee no more lawfull to have Images and pictures for religious uses now, than it was then.
2. Confut. Against the grossenesse of idolatrie.
BUt this place which forbiddeth any Gods of silver or gold to bee made, maketh strongly against all adoration of such Images, which by so doing they make their Gods. And whereas the Lord saith, Ye shall not make with me: Hac voce ostendit alios sibi deos adjungi, cum eriguntur simulachra: By this word he sheweth, that other Gods are joyned with him, when as Images are erected, &c. For when they doe bow before them, and make their prayers, and offer unto them, and give that unto dumbe Idols, which belongeth unto God, they doe in effect make Images of silver and gold, their Gods. Those reasons which Damascene urgeth against the Idols of the Pagans, may be also enforced against the superstitious Images of the Romanists. 1. Stulte, pretiosius est tuo idolo animal quod offertur ei: nam idolum homo fecit, animal Deus creavit, &c. Thou foole, that beast is more precious than thine Idoll which thou offerest unto it: for thou madest the Idoll, but God created the beast. …. Deum quis emit, Deum quis vendit, &c. Who hath bought God, or who hath sold God? but thine Idols are sold, some for a greater price, some for a lesse. 3. Quomodo Deus vocatur, qui non movetur? How is that called God, which is not moved? Doest thou not see, how if an Image sit, it never standeth, and standing it never sitteth? 4. Antiqui…r es tu deo à te facto, &c. Thou art more ancient than the god which thou makest: but God was before all. 5. Confidis teipsum, cum sis homo, Deum posse facere, &c. Thou perswadest thy selfe, that thou being a man, canst make God: but man was created and made by God, he then cannot be a maker of his God. 6. Nisi custodes assiderent, deum tu perderes, &c. Unlesse thou shouldest set watchmen by, thou mightest lose thy God: but God is our keeper, God hath no need of our keeping. And so he concludeth, Amentiae non pietatis sunt vestra opera, &c. Your workes then are workes of madnesse, rather than piety: Damascen in histor. Barlaam & Iosaphat.
3. Confut. Against those which say the Godhead may be comprehended.
Vers. 21. MOses drew neere unto the darknesse where God was, &c. This sheweth that in respect of us, God is in darknesse, because his divine nature and essence is of us incomprehensible, but in himselfe he dwelleth in light inaccessible, which none can attaine unto, 1 Tim 6.16. as also the Evangelist saith, No man hath seene God at any time, Ioh. 1.18. This then evidently convinceth the errour of the Anomians,R. Parkes his strong positions of comprehending the Godhead: Apolog. pag. 204.20. that affirmed, They comprehended the very essence of God: which errour he strongly savoureth of, that is bold to say, That there is not any thing of God, which his Saints shall not see; that we shall communicate with Christ in all his glory; that Paul being rapt into the third heaven, saw the very essence of God; that we shall see the Godhead of Christ in plaine manner, and in perfect measure. Against these bold assertions, I will oppose the Theologicall conclusions of Thomas Aquin concerning this matter: Nullus intellectus creatus potest ad eum accedere, &c. No created understanding can come neere unto God: Now the understanding …ay two wayes come to the knowledge of the nature of another: Scilicet, ut attingat, & comprehendat, that is, to attaine unto it, and to comprehend it: it is impossible that the intellectuall part should come to comprehend God; seeing he is infinitè cognoscibilis, infinitely to be knowne; Virtus autem intellect… … est sinita; But the power of the understanding, or intelligence created is finite, &c. how then can that which is finite, comprehend that which is infinite? Ideo etiam intellectus Christi, non comprehendit …, &c. Yea even the understanding of Christ, that is, as hee is man, doth not comprehend God. There is another way to know God, scilicet u…ingendo Deum, by attaining or comming neere unto him. And this way no created intelligence can attaine, per propria naturalla, by the naturall power, to know that which is God: and the reason is, Quia null… potent in potest in aliquid altius suo objecto, &c. Because no power can doe any thing in that which is higher than the object▪ now God is higher than the object of our understanding. Thomas proceedeth thus: A thing is said to be invisible two wayes, Vno modo propter defectum sui, ut opaca; alio modo propter excedentiam, ut sol; One way because of the defect in it selfe, as darke and shadowed places; another, because of the excellencie thereof, as the Sunne is to our eye; and so God is invisible. But how is God inaccessible? If we understand the comprehension of God so it is true even of the Angels (that is, that they comprehend him not) for so God only comprehendeth himselfe: si de visione quae attingitur, &c. if we understand the Apostle to speake of the vision attaining, not comprehending, so it is understood three wayes: 1. Nemo vidit oculo corporali, No man hath seene God with the bodily eye: 2. Secundum essentiam oculo m…ne…is vivens in curne nisi Christus, &c. And according to his essence, no man living in the flesh, hath seene him with the eye of the minde, but Christ, as the Lord saith, Exod. 33.20. There shall no man see mee and live. 3. Nemo vidit, quid est Deus, per scipsum, No man hath seene what God is by himselfe, that is, by his owne power, as our blessed Saviour saith to Peter, Flesh and bloud hath not revealed this unto thee, &c. Matth. 16. Sic Thomas in 1. Timoth. cap. 6. lect. 3.
6. Morall observations.
1. Observ. Not to contemne or despise the ordinary ministery.
Vers. 19. TAlke thou with us, and we will heare. This both meeteth with their curiosity and ignorant folly, that say, O if I might heare God speake himselfe, I should be much moved: little doe they conceive, that thus speake, their owne weaknesse, or the Majesty of God: for this people was not able to endure to heare the mighty voice of God, B. Babington. Beside, this sheweth the unthankfulnesse of men, in not acknowledging the Lords mercy, in appointing the ministery of man like unto our selves, for our instruction and comfort; and their prophanenesse which contemne so necessary a meane, without the which they must either be left altogether without a guide, or be overwhelmed with the Majesty of God, Galas.
2. Observ. How fearefull the day of judgement shall be.
LEt not God talke with us, lest wee dye. If the Law was so terrible when it was given, how fearefull is that day like to be, when God shall come to judge the breaches and transgressions of his Law? if the giving of the precept did strike such feare, the rendring of judgement cannot bee without great horrour, B. Babington. Therefore the Apostle saith, Knowing the terrour of the Lord, wee perswade men, &c. 2 Cor. 6.11.
3. Observ. Against curiositie.
Vers. 21. MOses drew neere to the darknesse, &c. This sheweth that God is incomprehensible, therefore we must be sober, and modest, and humble, in speaking or writing of God. This Simonides found, who being asked of Hiero what God was, first asked three dayes, then six, then double againe, to consider of it, and in the end gave over, as being not able to search it out, B. Babing. So the Apostle exhorteth, That no man presume to understand above that which is meet to understand, but that he understand according to sobrietie, Rom. 12.3.