Existence and Attributes of God, Discourse 8 (3 of 4)

Existence and Attributes of God · Discourse 8 (3 of 4)

p. 305In general, God doth neceſſarily knovv all things; he is neceſſarily Omnipreſent, becauſe of the immenſity of his Eſſence; ſo he is neceſſarily Omniſcient, becauſe of the infiniteneſs of his Underſtanding. 'Tis no more at the liberty of his Will, whether he will know all things, than whether he will be able to create all things; 'tis no more at the liberty of his Will, whether he will be Omniſcient, than whether he will be Holy; he can as little be ignorant, as he can be impure; he knows not all things, becauſe he will know them, but becauſe it is Eſſential to his nature to know them.

In particular,

Propoſition 1. God knows by his own Eſſence; that is, He ſees the nature of things in the Ideas of his own mind, and the events of things in the Decrees of his own Will; he knows them not by viewing the things, but by viewing himſelf; his own Eſſence is the Mirrour and Book, wherein he beholds all things that he doth ordain, diſpoſe and execute; and ſo he knows all things in their firſt and original cauſe; which is no other than his own Eſſence Willing, and his own Eſſence executing what he Wills; he knows them in his Power, as the Phyſical Principle; in his Will, as the moral Principle of things, as ſome ſpeak.

He borrows not the knowledg of Creatures from the Creatures, nor depends upon them for means of Underſtanding, as we poor Worms do, who are beholden to the objects abroad to aſſiſt us with Images of things, and to our ſenſes to convey them into our minds; God would then acquire a Perfection from thoſe things which are below himſelf, and an excellency from thoſe things that are vile; his Knowledg would not precede the Being of the Creatures, but the Creatures would be before the act of his Knowledg. If he underſtood by Images drawn from the Creatures, as we do, there would be ſomething in God which is not God, viz. the Images of things drawn from outward objects: God would then depend upon Creatures for that which is more noble than a bare Being; for to be Underſtanding, is p. 306more excellent than barely to be. Beſides, if Gods Knowledg of his Creatures were derived from the Creatures by the impreſſion of any thing upon him, as there is upon us, he could not know from Eternity, becauſe from Eternity there was no actual exiſtence of any thing but himſelf; and therefore there could not be any Images ſhot out from any thing, becauſe there was not any thing in Being but God; as there is no Principle of Being to any thing but by his Eſſence; ſo there is no Principle of the Knowledg of any thing by himſelf but his Eſſence: If the knowledg of God were diſtinct from his Eſſence, his Knowledg were not Eternal, becauſe there is nothing Eternal but his Eſſence.

His Underſtanding is not a faculty in him as it is in us, but the ſame with his Eſſence, becauſe of the ſimplicity of his nature; God is not made up of various parts, one diſtinct from another as we are, and therefore doth not underſtand by a part of himſelf, but by himſelf; ſo that to be, and to underſtand, is the ſame with God; his Eſſence is not one thing, and the power whereby he underſtands, another; he would then be compounded, and not be the moſt ſimple Being: This alſo is neceſſary for the Perfection of God; for the more perfect and noble the way and manner of knowing is, the more perfect and noble is the knowledg. The perfection of Knowledg depends upon the excellency of the medium whereby we know. As a knowledg by Reaſon, is a more noble way of knowing than knowledg by ſenſe; ſo 'tis more excellent for God to know by his Eſſence, than by any thing without him, any thing mixt with him; the firſt would render him dependant, and the other would demoliſh his ſimplicity.

Again, the natures of all things are contained in God; not formally; for then the nature of the Creatures would be God: but eminently; he that planted the ear, ſhall he not hear? he that formed the eye, ſhall he not ſee? Pſal. 94.9. He hath in himſelf eminently the Beauty, Perfection, Life and Vigor of all Creatures; he Created nothing contrary to himſelf, but every thing with ſome foot-ſteps of himſelf in them; he could not have pronounced them good, as he did, had there been any thing in them contrary to his own goodneſs; and therefore as his Eſſence primarily repreſents it ſelf, ſo it repreſents the Creatures, and makes them known to him. As the Eſſence of God is eminently all things, ſo by underſtanding his Eſſence, he eminently underſtands all things.**Diony…, And therefore he hath not one knowledg of himſelf, and another knowledg of the Creatures; but by knowing himſelf, as the original and exemplary cauſe of all things, he cannot be ignorant of any Creature which he is the cauſe of; ſo that he knows all things, not by an underſtanding of them, but by an underſtanding of himſelf; by underſtanding his own Power as the efficient of them, his own Will as the orderer of them, his own Goodneſs as the adorner and beautifier of them, his own Wiſdom as the diſpoſer of them, and his own Holineſs, to which many of their actions are contrary.

**Kendall againſt Goodwin of Foreknowledg.As he ſees all things poſſible in his own Power, becauſe he is able to produce them; ſo he ſees all things future in his own Will, decreeing to effect them, if they be good, or Decreeing to permit them, if they be Evil. In this Glaſs he ſees what he will give Being to, and what he will ſuffer to fall into a deficiency, without looking out of himſelf, or borrowing Knowledg from his Creatures; he knows all things in himſelf. And thus his Knowledg is more noble, and of a higher elevation than ours, or the knowledg of any Creature can be; he knows all things by one comprehenſion of the cauſes in himſelf.

Propoſition 2. God knows all things by one act of intuition. This the Schools call an intuitive knowledg. This follows upon the other; for if he know by his own Eſſence, he knows all things by one act, there would be otherwiſe a diviſion in his Eſſence, a firſt and a laſt, a nearneſs and a diſtance. As what he made, he made by one word; ſo what he ſees, he pierceth into by one glance from Eternity to Eternity: As he Wills all things by one act of his Will, ſo he knows all things by one act of his Underſtanding: he knows not ſome things diſcurſively from other things, nor knows one thing ſucceſſively after another. As by one act he imparts Eſſence to things; ſo by one act he knows the nature of things.

1. He doth not know by Diſcourſe, as we do. That is, By deducing one thing from another, and from common notions drawing out other rational concluſions and arguing p. 307one thing from another, and ſpringing up various conſequences from ſome Principle aſſented to; but God ſtands in no need of reaſonings; the making inferences and abſtracting things, would be ſtains in the infinite Perfection of God; here would be a mixture of knowledg and ignorance; while he knew the Principle, he would not know the conſequence and concluſion, till he had actually deduc'd it; one thing would be known after another, and ſo he would have an ignorance, and then a knowledg; and there would be different conceptions in God, and knowledg would be multiplyed according to the multitude of objects; as it is in humane Underſtandings. But God knows all things before they did exiſt, and never was ignorant of them, Acts 15.18. known unto God are all his Works from the beginning of the World. He therefore knows them all at once; the knowledg of one thing was not before another, nor depended upon another, as it doth in the way of Humane reaſoning.Suarez. vol. 1. de Deo, lib 3. cap. 2. p. 133, 134. Tho' indeed ſome make a vertual Diſcourſe in God; that is, tho' God hath a ſimple knowledg, yet it doth vertually contain a Diſcourſe by the flowing of one knowledg from another; as from the knowledg of his own Power, he knows what things are poſſible to be made by him; and from the knowledg of himſelf, he paſſes to the knowledg of the Creatures; but this is only according to our Conception, and becauſe of our weakneſs they are apprehended as two diſtinct acts in God, one of which is the reaſon of another: As we ſay that one Attribute is the reaſon of another; as his Mercy, may be ſaid to be the reaſon of his Patience; and his Omnipreſence, to be the reaſon of the knowledg of preſent things done in the World. God indeed by one ſimple act, knows himſelf and the Creatures; but when that Act whereby he knows himſelf, is conceived by us to paſs to the knowledg of the Creatures, we muſt not underſtand it to be a new Act, diſtinct from the other; but the ſame act upon different terms or objects; ſuch an order is in our underſtandings and conceptions, not in God's.

2. Nor doth he know ſucceſſively, as we do. That is, not by Drops, one thing after another. This follows from the former; a knowledg of all things without Diſcourſe, is a Knowledg without Succeſſion.Gamach in Aquin. q. 14. cap. 1. p. 119. The knowledg of one thing is not in God before another, one act of knowledg doth not beget another; in regard of the objects, one thing is before another, one year before another, one Generation of men before another, one is the cauſe, the other is the effect: In the Creatures there is ſuch a Succeſſion, and God knows there will be ſuch a Succeſſion; but there is no ſuch order in Gods knowledg; for he knows all thoſe Succeſſions by one glance, without any ſucceſſion of knowledg in himſelf.

Man in his view of things, muſt turn ſometimes his Body, ſometimes only his Eyes, he cannot ſee all the Contents of a Letter at once, and tho' he beholds all the lines in the page of a Book at once, and a whole Country in a Map, yet to know what is contain'd in them, he muſt turn his eye from word to word, and line to line, and ſo ſpin out one thing after another by ſeveral acts and motions. We behold a great part of the Sea at once**ſaith Epiphanius., but not all the dimenſions of it; for to know the length of the Sea, we move our eyes one way; to ſee the breadth of it, we turn our eyes another way; to behold the depth of it, we have another motion of them. And when we caſt our eyes up to Heaven, we ſeem to receive in at an inſtant the whole tent of the Hemiſphere; yet there is but one object the eye can attentively pitch upon, and we cannot diſtinctly view what we ſee in a lump, without various motions of our eyes, which is not done without ſucceſſion of TimeAmyrant morale chreſti. Tom. 3. p. 137.. And certainly the Underſtanding of Angels is bounded, according to the meaſure of their Beings; ſo that it cannot extend it ſelf at one time, to a quantity of objects, to make a diſtinct application of them, but the objects muſt preſent themſelves one by one: But God is all Eye, all Underſtanding; as there is no ſucceſſion in his Eſſence, ſo there is none in his Knowledg; his underſtanding in the nature, and in the act, is infinite, as it is in the Text. He therefore ſees Eternally and Univerſally, all things, by one act, without any motion, much leſs various motions; the various changes of things, in their ſubſtance, qualities, places and relations, withdraw not any thing from his Eye, nor bring any new thing to his Knowledg; he doth not upon conſideration of preſent things turn his mind from paſt; or when he beholds future things, turn his mind from preſent; but he ſees them not one after another, but all at once and all together; the whole Circle of his own Counſels, and all the various Lines drawn p. 308forth from the Center of his Will, to the circumference of his Creatures; Juſt as if a man were able in one moment to read a whole Library; or, as if you ſhould imagine a tranſparent Chryſtal Globe, hung up in the midſt of a Room, and ſo framed as to take in the images of all things in the Room, the Fret-Work in the Cieling, the in-laid parts of the Floor, and the particular parts of the Tapeſtry about it, the eye of a man would behold all the Beauty of the Room at once in it. As the Sun by one light and heat frames ſenſible things; ſo God by one ſimple act knows all things: As he knows mutable things by an immutable knowledg, bodily things by a ſpiritual knowledg; ſo he knows many things by one knowledg, Heb. 4.13. All things are open and naked to him, more than any one thing can be to us; and therefore he views all things at once, as well as we can behold and contemplate one thing alone. As he is the Father of Lights, a God of infinite Underſtanding, there is no variableneſs in his mind, nor any ſhadow of turning of his eye, as there is of ours, to behold various things, James 1.17. his Knowledg being Eternal, includes all times; there is nothing paſt or future with him, and therefore he beholds all things by one and the ſame manner of knowledg, and comprehends all knowable things by one act, and in one moment.

This muſt needs be ſo,

1. Becauſe of the eminency of God. God is above all, and therefore cannot but ſee the motions of all. He that ſits in a Theater, or at the top of a place, ſees all things, all perſons, by one aſpect he comprehends the whole Circle of the place; whereas he that ſits below, when he looks before, he cannot ſee things behind; God being above all, about all, in all, ſees at once the motions of all. The whole World in the eye of God, is leſs than a Point that divides one Sentence from another in a Book; as a Cypher, a grain of Duſt, Iſa. 40.15. ſo little a thing can be ſeen by man at once; and all things being as little in the eye of God, are ſeen at once by him. As all Time is but a moment to his Eternity; ſo all things are but as a point to the immenſity of his Knowledg, which he can behold with more eaſe than we can move or turn our eye.

2. Becauſe all the Perfections of Knowing, are united in God. Cuſan. p. 646.As particular ſenſes are divided in man, by one he Sees, by another he Hears, by another he Smells, yet all thoſe are united in one common ſenſe, and this common ſenſe apprehends all; ſo the various and diſtinct ways of knowledg in the Creatures, are all eminently united in God. A man when he ſees a grain of Wheat, underſtands at once all things that can in Time proceed from that Seed; ſo God by beholding his own vertue and power, beholds all things which ſhall in time be unfolded by him. We have a ſhadow of this way of knowledg in our own Underſtanding; the ſence only perceives a thing preſent, and one object only proper and ſuitable to it; as the eye ſees colour, the ear hears ſounds; we ſee this and that man, one time this, another minute that; but the underſtanding abſtracts a notion of the common nature of man, and frames a conception of that nature wherein all men agree; and ſo in a manner beholds and underſtands all men at once, by underſtanding the common nature of man, which is a degree of knowledg above the ſenſe and fancy; we may then conceive an infinite vaſter Perfection in the Underſtanding of God. As to know, is ſimply better than not to know at all; ſo to know by one act comprehenſive, is a greater Perfection than to know by divided acts, by ſucceſſion to receive information, and to have an increaſe or decreaſe of knowledg, to be like a Bucket, alway deſcending into the Well, and fetching Water from thence. 'Tis a mans weakneſs that he is fixed on one object only at a time; 'tis Gods Perfection that he can behold all at once, and is fixed upon one no more than upon another.

Propoſition 3. God knows all things independently. This is Eſſential to an infinite Underſtanding. He receives not his knowledg from any thing without him, he hath no Tutor to inſtruct him, or Book to inform him; who hath been his Counſellor? ſaith the Prophet, Iſa. 40.13. he hath no need of the Counſels of others, nor of the inſtructions of others. This follows upon the firſt and ſecond Propoſitions; if he knows things by his Eſſence, then as his Eſſence is independent from the Creatures, ſo is his Knowledg; he borrows not any images from the Creature, hath no ſpecies or pictures of things in his Underſtanding, as we have; no Beams from the p. 309Creature ſtrike upon him, to enlighten him, but Beams from him upon the World; the Earth ſends not Light to the Sun, but the Sun to the Earth.

Our knowledg indeed depends upon the object; but all Created objects depend upon Gods Knowledg and Will: We could not know Creatures, unleſs they were; but Creatures could not be, unleſs God knew them. As nothing that he Wills is the cauſe of his Will; ſo nothing that he knows is the cauſe of his Knowledg; he did not make things to know them, but he knows them to make them; Who will imagine that the mark of the foot in the Duſt, is the cauſe that the foot ſtands in this or that particular place?

If his knowledg did depend upon the things, then the exiſtence of things did precede Gods knowledg of them; to ſay that they are the cauſe of Gods Knowledg, is to ſay, that God was not the cauſe of their Being; and if he did Create them, it was effected by a blind and ignorant power, he Created he knew not what, till he had produced it. If he be beholden for his Knowledg to the Creatures he hath made, he had then no knowledg of them before he made them. If his knowledg were dependant upon them, it could not be Eternal, but muſt have a beginning when the Creatures had a beginning, and be of no longer a date than ſince the nature of things was in actual exiſtence; for whatſoever is a cauſe of knowledg, doth precede the knowledg it cauſes, either in order of time, or order of nature; Temporal things therefore cannot be the cauſe of that knowledg which is Eternal. His Works could not be foreknown to him, if his Knowledg commenc'd with the exiſtence of his Works, If he knew them before he made them,Act, 15.18. he could not derive a knowledg from them after they were made. He made all things in Wiſdom, Pſal. 104.24. how can this be imagin'd, if the things known were the cauſe of his Knowledg, and ſo before his knowledg, and therefore before his actionBradward lib. 1. cap. 15.? God would not then be the firſt in the order of knowing Agents, becauſe he would not act by Knowledg, but act before he knew, and know after he had acted, and ſo the Creature which he made, would be before the act of his Underſtanding, whereby he knew what he made.

Again, ſince Knowledg is a Perfection, if Gods knowledg of the Creatures depended upon the Creatures, he would derive an excellency from them, they would derive no excellency from any Idea in the Divine mind; he would not be infinitely perfect in himſelf; if his Perfection in Knowledg were gained from any thing without himſelf and below himſelf, he would not be ſufficient of himſelf, but be under an indigence, which wanted a ſupply from the things he had made; and could not be eternally perfect till he had created, and ſeen the effects of his own Power, Goodneſs and Wiſdom, to render him more wiſe and knowing in Time than he was from Eternity; Who can fancy ſuch a God as this, without deſtroying the Deity he pretends to adore? for if his Underſtanding be perfected by ſomething without him, why may not his Eſſence be perfected by ſomething without him; that as he was made knowing by ſomething without him, he might be made God by ſomething without him?

How could his Underſtanding be infinite, if it depended upon a finite object, as upon a cauſe? Is the Majeſty of God to be debas'd to a Mendicant condition, to ſeek for a ſupply from things inferior to himſelf? Is it to be imagin'd that a Fool, a Toad, a Fly ſhould be aſſiſtant to the knowledg of God? that the moſt noble Being ſhould be perfected by things ſo vile, that the ſupream cauſe of all things ſhould receive any addition of knowledg, and be determin'd in his Underſtanding, by the notion of things ſo mean? To conclude this particular, all things depend upon his knowledg, his knowledg depends upon nothing, but is as independent as himſelf, and his own Eſſence.

Propoſition 4. God knows all things diſtinctly. His underſtanding is infinite in regard of clearneſs; God is light, and in him is no darkneſs at all, John 1.5. he ſees not through a Miſt or Cloud; there's no blemiſh in his Underſtanding, no mote or beam in his eye, to render any thing obſcure to him. Man diſcerns the ſurface and outſide of things, little or nothing of the Eſſence of things; we ſee the nobleſt things, but as in a glaſs darkly, 1 Cor. 13.12. the too great nearneſs, as well as the too great diſtance of a thing, hinders our ſight; the ſmallneſs of a mote eſcapes our eye, p. 310and ſo our knowledg; alſo the weakneſs of our underſtanding is troubled with the multitude of things, and cannot know many things but confuſedly. But God knows the forms and eſſence of things, every circumſtance; nothing is ſo deep, but he ſees to the bottom; he ſees the maſs, and ſees the motes of Beings; his Underſtanding being infinite, is not offended with a multitude of things, or diſtracted with the variety of them; he diſcerns every thing infinitely more clearly and perfectly than Adam or Solomon could any one thing in the Circle of their knowledg: What knowledg they had, was from him; he hath therefore infinitely a more perfect knowledg than they were capable in their natures to receive a communication of. All things are open to him, Heb. 4.13. the leaſt fibre in its nakedneſs and diſtinct frame, is tranſparent to him; as by the help of Glaſſes, the mouth, feet, hands of a ſmall Inſect, are viſible to a man, which ſeem to the eye, without that aſſiſtance, one intire piece, not diverſified into parts. All the cauſes, qualities, natures, properties of things are open to him, he brings out the Hoſt of Heaven by number, and calleth them by Names, Iſa. 40.26. he numbers the Hairs of our heads; what more diſtinct than number? thus God beholds things in every unity, which makes up the heap: He knows, and none elſe can, every thing in its true and intimate cauſes, in its original and intermediate cauſes; in himſelf, as the cauſe of every particular of their Being, every Property in their Being.

Knowledg by the cauſes is the moſt noble and perfect Knowledg, and moſt ſuited to the infinite excellency of the Divine Being; he created all things, and ordered them to a univerſal and particular end; he therefore knows the eſſential Properties of every thing, every activity of their nature, all their fitneſs for thoſe diſtinct ends, to which he orders them, and for which he governs and diſpoſeth them; and underſtands their darkeſt and moſt hidden qualities, infinitely clearer than any eye can behold the clear Beams of the Sun. He knows all things as he made them; he made them diſtinctly, and therefore knows them diſtinctly, and that every individual; therefore God is ſaid, Gen. 1.31. to ſee every thing that he had made; he took a review of every particular Creature he had made, and upon his view pronounced it good: To pronounce that good, which was not exactly known in every Creek, in every Mite of its nature, had not conſiſted with his veracity; for every one that ſpeaks truth ignorantly, that knows not that he ſpeaks Truth, is a Liar in ſpeaking that which is true. God knows every act of his own Will, whether it be poſitive or permiſſive, and therefore every effect of his Will. We muſt needs aſcribe to God a perfect Knowledg; but a confus'd Knowledg cannot challenge that Title. To know things only in a heap, is unworthy of the Divine Perfection; for if God knows his own ends in the Creation of things, he knows diſtinctly the means whereby he will bring them to thoſe ends for which he hath appointed them: No Wiſe man intends an end, without a knowledg of the means conducing to that end; an ignorance then of any thing in the World, which falls under the nature of a means to a Divine end (and there is nothing in the World but doth), would be inconſiſtent with the Perfection of God; it would aſcribe to him a blind Providence in the World. As there can be nothing imperfect in his Being and Eſſence, ſo there can be nothing imperfect in his Underſtanding and Knowledg; and therefore not a confus'd Knowledg, which is an Imperfection. Darkneſs and Light are both alike to him, Pſal. 139.12. he ſees diſtinctly into the one, as well as the other; what is Darkneſs to us, is not ſo to him.

Propoſition 5. God knows all things infallibly. His Underſtanding is infinite, in regard of certainty; every Tittle of what he knows, is as far from failing, as what he ſpeaks; our Saviour affirms the one, Math. 5.18. and there is the ſame reaſon of the certainty of one as well as the other; his Eſſence is the meaſure of his Knowledg; whence it is as impoſſible that God ſhould be miſtaken in the knowledg of the leaſt thing in the World, as it is that he ſhould be miſtaken in his own Eſſence; for knowing himſelf comprehenſively, he muſt know all other things infallibly: Since he is Eſſentially Omniſcient, he is no more capable of error in his Underſtanding, than of Imperfection in his Eſſence; his Counſels are as unerring as his Eſſence is perfect, and his knowledg as infallible as his Eſſence is free from defect.

Again, ſince God knows all things with a knowledg of Viſion, becauſe he Wills p. 311them; his Knowledg muſt be as infallible as his purpoſe; now his purpoſe will certainly be effected; what he hath thought ſhall come to paſs, and what he hath purpoſed ſhall ſtand, Iſa. 14.24. His Counſel ſhall ſtand, and he will do all his pleaſure, Iſa. 46.10. There may be interruptions of nature, the foundations of it may be out of courſe, but there can be no bar upon the Author of nature; he hath an infinite power to carry on and perfect the reſolves of his own Will; he can effect what he pleaſes by a Word. Speech is one of the leaſt motions; yet when God ſaid, let there be Light, there was Light, ariſing from Darkneſs. No reaſon can be given why God knows a thing to be, but becauſe he infallibly Wills it to be.

Again,Suarez. Vol. 2… p. 228. The Schools make this difference between the knowledg of the good and bad Angels, that the good are never deceived; for that is repugnant to their Bleſſed State; for deceit is an evil and an imperfection, inconſiſtent with that perfect Bleſſedneſs the good Angels are poſſeſſed of; and would it not much more be a ſtain upon the Bleſſedneſs of that God that is Bleſſed forever, to be ſubject to deceit? His knowledg therefore is not an Opinion, for an Opinion is uncertain; a man knows not what to think, but leans to one part of the Queſtion propos'd, rather than to the other. If things did not come to paſs therefore as God knows them, his knowledg would be imperfect; and ſince he knows by his Eſſence, his Eſſence alſo would be imperfect, if God were expos'd to any Deceit in his Knowledg; he knows by himſelf, who is the higheſt Truth; and therefore it is impoſſible he ſhould err in his Underſtanding.

Propoſition 6. God knows immutably. His Underſtanding elſe could not be infinite; every thing and every act that is mutable, is finite, it hath its bounds; for there is a term from which it changeth, and a term to which it changes.Tileni Syntagina Part 1. Diſp. 13. Thel. 13. There is a change in the Underſtanding when we gain the knowledg of a thing, which was unknown to us before; or when we actually conſider a thing which we did not know before, tho' we had the Principles of the Knowledg of it; or, when we know that diſtinctly, which we before knew confuſedly. None of theſe can be aſcribed to God, without a manifeſt diſparagement of his infiniteneſs: Our knowledg indeed is alway arriving to us or flowing from us; we paſs from one degree to another, from worſe to better, or from better to worſe; but God loſes nothing by the Ages that are run, nor will gain any thing by the Ages that are to come. If there were a variation in the knowledg of God, by the daily and hourly Changes in the World, he would grow wiſer than he was, he was not then perfectly wiſe before. A Change in the objects known, infers not any change in the underſtanding exerciſed about them; the Wheel moves round, the Spokes that are loweſt, are preſently higheſt, and preſently return to be low again; but the eye that beholds them, changes not with the motion of the Wheels. Gods knowledg admits no more of increaſe or decreaſe, than his Eſſence doth; Since God knows by his Eſſence, and the Eſſence of God is God himſelf, his knowledg muſt be void of any Change. The knowledg of poſſible things ariſing from the knowledg of his own power cannot be changed, unleſs his power be chang'd, and God become weak and impotent; the knowledg of future things cannot be chang'd, becauſe that knowledg ariſeth from his Will, which is irreverſible, the Counſel of the Lord that ſhall ſtand, Prov. 19.21. ſo that if God can never decay into weakneſs, and never turn to inconſtancy, there can be no variation of his knowledg. He knows what he can do, and he knows what he will do, and both theſe being immutable, his knowledg muſt conſequently be ſo too. It was not neceſſary that this or that Creature ſhould be, and therefore it was not neceſſary that God ſhould know this or that Creature with a knowledg of Viſion; but after the Will of God had determin'd the exiſtence of this or that Creature, his knowledg being then determin'd to this or that object, did neceſſarily continue unchangeable. God therefore knows no more now, than he did before; and at the end of the World he ſhall know no more than he doth now; and from Eternity he knows no leſs than he doth now, and ſhall do to Eternity. Tho' things paſs into Being and out of Being, the knowledg of God doth not vary with them, for he knows them as well before they were, as when they are; and knows them as well when they are paſt, as when they are preſent.

p. 312Propoſition 7. God knows all things perpetually, i. e. in act. Since he knows by his Eſſence, he always knows, becauſe his Eſſence never ceaſeth, but is a pure act; ſo that he doth not know only in habit, but in act. Men that have the knowledg of ſome Art or Science, have it always in habit, tho' when they are aſleep they have it not in act: A Muſitian hath the habit of Muſick, but doth not ſo much as think of it when his Senſes are bound up. But God is an unſleepy eye Plato, foreign., he never ſlumbers nor ſleeps; he never ſlumbers, in regard of his Providence, and therefore never ſlumbers in regard of his knowledg. He knows not himſelf, nor any other Creature more perfectly at one time than at another; he is perpetually in the act of knowing, as the Sun is in the act of ſhining; the Sun never ceas'd to ſhine in one or other part of the World, ſince it was firſt fixed in the Heavens; nor God to be in the act of Knowledg, ſince he was God; and therefore ſince he always was, and always will be God, he always was, and always will be in the act of knowledg; always knowing his own Eſſence, he muſt alway actually know what hath been gone and ceas'd from Being, and what ſhall come and ariſe into Being. As a Watchmaker knows what Watch he intends to make; and after he hath made it, tho' it be broken to pieces, or conſumed by the Fire, he ſtill knows it, becauſe he knows the Copy of it in his own mind. Some therefore in regard of this perpetual act of the Divine Knowledg, have called God not Intellect us, but the intellection of intellections; we have no proper Engliſh Word to expreſs the act of the Ʋnderſtanding; as his power is co-eternal with him, ſo is his knowledg; all times paſt, preſent and to come, are embrac'd in the Boſom of his Underſtanding; he fixed all things in their Seaſons, that nothing new comes to him, nothing old paſſes from himDamianus.. What is done in a Thouſand years, is as actually preſent with his Knowledg, as what is done in one day, or in one Watch in the night, is with ours; Since a Thouſand years are no more to God than a day, or a Watch in the Night is to us, Pſal. 90.4. God is in the higheſt degree of Being, and therefore in the higheſt degree of Underſtanding. Knowledg is one of the moſt perfect acts in any Creature. God therefore hath all Actual, as well as Eſſential and Habitual knowledg, his Ʋnderſtanding is infinite.

IV. The fourth general, is Reaſons to prove this.

Reaſ. 1. God muſt know what any Creature knows, and more than any Creature knows. There is nothing done in the World, but is known by ſome Creature or other; every action is at leaſt known by the perſon that acts, and therefore known by the Creator, vvho cannot be exceeded by any of the Creatures, or all of them together; and every Creature is knovvn by him, ſince every Creature is made by him.Gerhard. And as God vvorks all things by an Infinite Povver, ſo he knovvs all things by an Infinite Underſtanding.

1. The Perfection of God requires this. Gamach in 1. part Aquin. q. 14. cap. 1. p. 118. 119.All Perfections that include no Eſſential Defect, are formally in God; but knowledg includes no Eſſential Defect in it ſelf, therefore it is in God. Knovvledg in it ſelf, is deſirable, and an excellency; Ignorance is a defect; 'tis impoſſible that the leaſt grain of defect can be found in the moſt perfect Being. Since God is Wiſe, he muſt be Knovving; for Wiſdom muſt have Knovvledg for the Baſis of it. A Creature can no more be vviſe vvithout Knovvledg, than he can be active vvithout Strength. Novv God is only Wiſe, Rom. 16.27. and therefore only knovving in the higheſt degree of Knovvledg, incomprehenſibly beyond all degrees of Knovvledg, becauſe infinite.

Again, the more Spiritual any thing is, the more Underſtanding it is. The dull Body underſtands nothing; Senſe perceives, but the Underſtanding faculty is ſeated in the Soul, vvhichwhich is of a ſpiritual nature, vvhichwhich knovvs things that are preſent, remembers things that are paſt, foreſees many things to come. What is the property of a Spiritual nature, muſt be in a moſt eminent manner, in the ſupream Spirit of the World, that is, in the higheſt degree of Spirituality, and moſt remote from any matter.

Again, nothing can enjoy other things, but by ſome kind of Underſtanding them; God hath the higheſt enjoyment of himſelf, of all things he hath Created, of all the Glory that accrues to him by them; nothing of Perfection and Bleſſedneſs can be vvanting to him. Felicity doth not conſiſt vvith ignorance, and all imperfect knovvledg is a degree of ignorance: God therefore doth perfectly know himſelf, and all things from vvhence he deſigns any glory to himſelf. The moſt noble manner of p. 313acting muſt be aſcribed to God, as being the moſt noble and excellent Being; to act by Knowledg, is the moſt excellent manner of acting; God hath therefore, not only Knowledg, but the moſt excellent manner of Knowledg; for as it is better to know than to be ignorant, ſo it is better to know in the moſt excellent manner, than to have a mean and low kind of knowledg; His knowledg therefore muſt be every way as perfect as his Eſſence, infinite as well as that. An infinite nature muſt have an infinite knowledg: A God ignorant of any thing, cannot be counted infinite, for he is not infinite to whom any degree of Perfection is wanting.

2. All the knowledg in any Creature is from God. And you muſt allow God a greater and more perfect Knowledg than any Creature hath, yea, than all Creatures have. All the drops of Knowledg any Creature hath, come from God; and all the knowledg in every Creature, that ever was, is, or ſhall be in the whole Maſs, was derived from him. If all thoſe ſeveral Drops in particular Creatures, were collected into one Spirit, into one Creature, it would be an unconceivable knowledg, yet ſtill lower than what the Author of all that knowledg hath; for God cannot give more knowledg than he hath himſelf; nor is the Creature capable of receiving ſo much Knowledg as God hath. As the Creature is uncapable of receiving ſo much power as God hath, for then it would be Almighty; ſo it is uncapable of receiving ſo much Knowledg as God hath, for then it would be God. Nothing can be made by God equal to him in any thing; if any thing could be made as Knowing as God, it would be Eternal as God, it would be the cauſe of all things as God. The Knowledg that we poor Worms have, is an Argument God uſes for the aſſerting the greatneſs of his own Knowledg, Pſal. 94.10. He that teaches man knowledg, ſhall not he know? Man hath here Knowledg aſcribed to him, the Author of this Knowledg is God, he furniſht him with it, and therefore doth in a higher manner poſſeſs it; and much more than can fall under the comprehenſion of any Creature; as the Sun enlightens all things, but hath more Light in it ſelf than it darts upon the Earth or the Heavens; and ſhall not God eminently contain all that knowledg he imparts to the Creatures, and infinitely more exact and comprehenſive?

3. The accuſations of Conſcience, evidence Gods knowledg of all actions of all his Creatures. Doth not Conſcience check for the moſt ſecret Sins, to which none are privy but a mans ſelf; the whole World beſide being ignorant of his Crime? do not the fears of another Judg gall the heart? If a Judgment above him be fear'd, an Underſtanding above him diſcerning their Secrets is confeſt by thoſe fears; whence can thoſe horrors ariſe, if there be not a Superior that underſtands and records the Crime? What Perfection of the Divine Being can this relate unto, but Omniſcience? What other Attribute is to be feared, if God were defective in this?

The Condemnation of us by our own Hearts, when none in the World can condemn us, renders it legible, that there is one greater than our hearts, in reſpect of Knowledg, who knows all things, 1 John 3.20. Conſcience would be a vain Principle, and ſtingleſs without this; it would be an eaſy matter to ſilence all its accuſations, and mockingly laugh in the face of its ſevereſt frowns. What need any trouble themſelves, if none knows their Crimes but themſelves? Conceal'd Sins, gnawing the Conſcience, are Arguments of Gods Omniſcience of all preſent and paſt actions.

4. God is the firſt cauſe of every thing, every Creature is his Production. Since all Creatures, from the higheſt Angel to the loweſt Worm, exiſt by the power of God; if God underſtands his own Power and Excellency, nothing can be hid from him, that was brought forth by that Power, as well as nothing can be unknown to him, that that Power is able to produce.**Bradwardin p. 6. If God knows nothing beſides himſelf, he may then believe there is nothing beſide himſelf; we ſhall then fancy a God miſerably miſtaken: If he knows nothing beſides himſelf, then things were not Created by him, or not underſtandingly and voluntarily Created, but drop'd from him before he was aware. To think that the firſt cauſe of all ſhould be ignorant of thoſe things he is the cauſe of, is to make him not a voluntary, but natural Agent, and therefore neceſſary; and then that the Creature came from him as Light from the Sun, and moiſture from the Water; this would bean abſurd opinion of the Worlds p. 314Creation; if God be a voluntary Agent, as he is, he muſt be an intelligent Agent. The faculty of Will is not in any Creature, without that of Underſtanding alſo: If God be an intelligent Agent, his knowledg muſt extend as far as his operation, and every object of his operation, unleſs we imagine God hath loſt his Memory, in that long Tract of time ſince the firſt Creation of them. An Artificer cannot be ignorant of his own Work; If God knows himſelf, he knows himſelf to be a Cauſe; how can he know himſelf to be a Cauſe, unleſs he know the Effects he is the Cauſe of? One relation implies another; a man cannot know himſelf to be a Father, unleſs he hath a Child, becauſe it is a name of relation, and in the notion of it refers to another. The name of cauſe is a name of relation, and implies an effect; If God therefore know himſelf in all his Perfections, as the Cauſe of things, he muſt know all his acts, what his Wiſdom contrived, what his Counſel determin'd, and what his Power effected. The knowledg of God is to be ſuppos'd in a free determination of himſelf; and that knowledg muſt be perfect, both of the object, act, and all the circumſtances of it. How can his Will freely produce any thing that was not firſt known in his Underſtanding? From this the Prophet argues the underſtanding of God, and the unſearchableneſs of it, becauſe he is the Creator of the ends of the earth, Iſa. 40.28. and the ſame reaſon David gives of Gods Knowledg of him, and of every thing he did, and that afar off, becauſe he was formed by him, Pſal. 139.2, 15, 16. As the perfect making of things only belongs to God; ſo doth the perfect knowledg of things; 'tis abſurd to think, that God ſhould be ignorant of what he hath given Being to; that he ſhould not know all the Creatures and their qualities, the Plants and their vertues; as that a man ſhould not know the Letters that are formed by him in Writing. Every thing bears in it ſelf the mark of Gods Perfections; and ſhall not God know the repreſentation of his own vertue?

5. Without this Knowledg, God could no more be the Governour, than he could be the Creator of the World. Knowledg is the Baſis of Providence; to Know things, is before the Government of things; a practical knowledg cannot be without a theoretical knowledg. Nothing could be directed to its proper end, without the knowledg of the nature of it, and its ſuitableneſs to anſwer that end for which it is intended. As every thing, even the minuteſt, falls under the conduct of God, ſo every thing falls under the knowledg of God. A Blind Coach-man is not able to hold the Reins of his Horſes, and direct them in right Paths: Since the Providence of God is about particulars, his Knowledg muſt be about particulars; he could not elſe govern them in particular; nor could all things be ſaid to depend upon him in their Being and Operations. Providence depends upon the knowledg of God, and the exerciſe of it upon the Goodneſs of God; it cannot be without Underſtanding and Will; Underſtanding, to know what is convenient, and Will to perform it. When our Saviour therefore ſpeaks of Providence, he intimates theſe two in a ſpecial manner, Your Heavenly Father knows that you have need of theſe things, Mat. 6.32. and goodneſs, in Luke. 11.13. The reaſon of Providence is ſo joyned with Omniſcience, that they cannot be ſeparated: What a kind of God would he be that were ignorant of thoſe things that were governed by him? The aſcribing this Perfection to him, aſſerts his Providence; for it is as eaſy for one that knows all things, to look over the whole World, if writ with Monoſyllables, in every little particular of it; as it is with a man to take a view of one Letter in an Alphabet.

Sabund Tit. 84. much changed.Again, if God were not Omniſcient, how could he reward the Good, and puniſh the Evil? the works of men are either rewardable or puniſhable; not only according to their outward circumſtances, but inward Principles and Ends, and the degrees of Venom lurking in the heart. The exact diſcerning of theſe, without a poſſibility to be deceived, is neceſſary to paſs a right and infallible Judgment upon them, and proportion the cenſure and puniſhment to the Crime: Without ſuch a Knowledg and diſcerning, men would not have their due; nay, a Judgment juſt for the matter, would be unjuſt in the manner, becauſe unjuſtly paſt, without an underſtanding of the merit of the Cauſe. 'Tis neceſſary therefore that the Supream Judg of the World ſhould not be thought to be blindfold, when he diſtributes his Rewards and Puniſhments, and muffle his face when he paſſes his Sentence. 'Tis neceſſary to aſcribe to him the knowledg of mens thoughts and intentions; the p. 315ſecret wills and aims; the hidden works of darkneſs in every mans Conſcience, becauſe every mans work is to be meaſured by the Will and inward frame. 'Tis neceſſary that he ſhould perpetually retain all thoſe things in the indelible and plain records of his Memory, that there may not be any work without a juſt proportion of what is due to it. This is the glory of God to diſcover the ſecrets of all hearts at laſt, as 1 Cor. 4.5. the Lord ſhall bring to light the hidden things of darkneſs, and will make manifeſt the Counſels of all hearts, and then ſhall every man have praiſe of God. This knowledg fits him to be a Judg; the reaſon why the ungodly ſhall not ſtand in Judgment, is becauſe God knows their ways, which is implyed in his knowing the way of the righteous.**Pſal. 1.5, 6.Ps 1:5Ps 1:6

I now proceed to the Ʋſe.

ƲSE the firſt, is of information or inſtruction. If God hath all knowledg; then

1. Jeſus Chriſt is not a meer Creature. The two Titles of wonderful Counſellor, and mighty God, are given him in conjunction, Iſa. 9.6. not only the Angel of the Covenant, as he is called, Malach. 3.1. or the Executor of his Counſels, but a Counſellor, in conjunction with him in Counſel as well as Power: This Title is ſuperior to any Title given to any of the Prophets in regard of their Predictions; and therefore I ſhould take it rather as the note of his perfect underſtanding, than of his perfect teaching and diſcovering; as Calvin doth: He is not only the Revealer of what he knows, ſo were the Prophets according to their meaſures; but the Counſellor of what he revealed, having a perfect underſtanding of all the Counſels of God, as being intereſted in them, as the mighty God. He calls himſelf by the peculiar Title of God, and declares that he will manifeſt himſelf by this Prerogative to all the Churches, Rev. 2.23. And all the Churches ſhall know that I am he, which ſearches the Reins and Hearts, the moſt hidden operations of the minds of men that lye locked up from the view of all the World beſides. And this was no new thing to him, after his Aſcenſion; for the ſame Perfection he had in the time of his earthly fleſh, Luke 6.8. he knew their Thoughts; his eyes are therefore compar'd, Cant. 5.12. to Doves eyes, which are clear and quick; and to a flame of fire, Rev. 1.14. not only heat to conſume his Enemies, but Light to diſcern their contrivances againſt the Church; he pierceth, by his knowledg, into all parts, as fire pierceth into the cloſeſt particle of Iron, and ſeparates between the moſt united parts of Metals; and ſome tell us, he is called a Roe, from the perſpicacity of his Sight, as well as from the ſwiftneſs of his motion.

1. He hath a perfect Knowledg of the Father; he knows the Father, and none elſe knovvs the Father; Angels knovv God, men knovv God, but Chriſt in a peculiar manner knovvs the Father; no man knows the Son but the Father; neither knows any man the Father, ſave the Son, Mat. 11.27. he knows ſo, as that he learns not from any other; he doth perfectly comprehend him, vvhichwhich is beyond the reach of any Creature, vvith the addition of all the Divine Vertue; not becauſe of any incapacity in God to reveal, but the incapacity of the Creature to receive; finite is uncapable of being made infinite, and therefore incapable of comprehending infinite; ſo that Chriſt cannot be Deus factus, made of a Creature a God, to comprehend God; for then of finite he vvould become infinite, vvhichwhich is a contradiction. As the Spirit is God, becauſe he ſearches the deep things of God, 1 Cor. 2.10. that is, comprehends themPotav. Theo. dogmat. Tom. 1. p. 467. &c., as the Spirit of a man doth the things of a man (now the Spirit of man underſtands vvhat it Thinks, and vvhat it Wills) ſo the Spirit of God underſtands vvhat is in the Underſtanding of God, and vvhat is in the Will of God. He hath an abſolute knovvledg aſcrib'd to him, and ſuch as could not be aſcrib'd to any thing but a Divinity: Novv if the Spirit knovvs the deep things of God, and takes from Chriſt vvhat he ſhevvs to us of him, John 16.15. he cannot be ignorant of thoſe things himſelf; he muſt knovv the depths of God that affords us that Spirit, that is not ignorant of any of the Counſels of the Fathers Will; ſince he comprehends the Father, and the Father him, he is in himſelf infinite; for God whoſe Eſſence is infinite, is infinitely knowable; but no Created underſtanding can infinitely know God. The infiniteneſs of the object hinders it from being underſtood by any thing that is not infinite. Though a Creature ſhould underſtand all the works of God, yet it cannot be therefore ſaid to underſtand God p. 316himſelf: As tho' I may underſtand all the volitions and motions of my Soul, yet it doth not follow that therefore I underſtand the whole nature and ſubſtance of my Soul; or if a man underſtood all the effects of the Sun, that therefore he underſtands fully the nature of the Sun. But Chriſt knows the Father, he lay in the Boſom of the Father, was in the greateſt intimacy with him, John 1.18. and from this intimacy with him, he ſaw him and knew him; ſo he knows God as much as he is knowable; and therefore knows him perfectly as the Father knows himſelf by a comprehenſive Viſion; this is the knowledg of God wherein properly the infiniteneſs of his underſtanding appears: And our Saviour uſes ſuch expreſſions which manifeſt his Knowledg to be above all Created Knowledg, and ſuch a manner of knowledg of the Father, as the Father hath of him.

2. Chriſt knows all Creatures. That knowledg which comprehends God, comprehends all Created things as they are in God; 'tis a knowledg that ſinks to the depths of his Will, and therefore extends to all the acts of his Will in Creation and Providence; by knowing the Father he knows all things that are contained in the Vertue, Power and Will of God; whatſoever the Father doth, that the Son doth, John 5.19. As the Father therefore knows all things he is the cauſe of, ſo doth the Son know all things he is the worker of; as the perfect making of all things belongs to both, ſo doth the perfect knowledg of all things belong to both; where the action is the ſame, the knowledg is the ſame. Now the Father did not Create one thing, and Chriſt another; but all things were Created by him, and for him: all things both in Heaven and Earth, Col. 1.16. as he knows himſelf as the cauſe of all things, and the end of all things, he cannot be ignorant of all things that were effected by him, and are referred to him; he knows all Creatures in God, as he knows the Eſſence of God, and knows all Creatures in themſelves, as he knows his own acts and the fruits of his Power; thoſe things muſt be in his Knowledg that were in his Power, all the Treaſures of the Wiſdom and Knowledg of God are hid in him, Col. 2.3. Now it is not the Wiſdom of God to know in part, and be in part ignorant. He cannot be ignorant of any thing, ſince there is nothing but what was made by him, John 1.3. and ſince it is leſs to know than Create; for we know many things which we cannot make.Petav. Theolo. Dogmat. Tom. 1. p. 467. If he be the Creator, he cannot but be the diſcerner of what he made; this is a part of Wiſdom belonging to an Artificer to know the nature and quality of what he makes. Since he cannot be ignorant of what he furniſht with Being, and with various endowments, he muſt know them not only univerſally, but particularly.

3. Chriſt knows the hearts and affections of men. Peter ſcruples not to aſcribe to him this knowledg, among the knowledg of all other things, John 21.17. Lord thou knoweſt all things, thou knoweſt that I love thee. From Chriſts knowledg of all things, he concludes his knowledg of the inward frames and diſpoſitions of men. To ſearch the heart, is the ſole Prerogative of God, 1 Kings 8.39. for thou, even thou only knoweſt the hearts of all the Children of men: Shall we take (only) here with a limitation, as ſome that are no Friends to the Deity of Chriſt would, and ſay, God only knows the hearts of men from himſelf, and by his own infinite vertue? Why may we not take (only) in other places with a limitation, and make nonſence of it, as Pſal. 86.10. Thou art God alone. Is it to be underſtood, that God is God alone from himſelf, but other Gods may be made by him, and ſo there may be numberleſs infinites? As God is God alone, ſo that none can be God but himſelf; ſo he alone knows all the hearts Of all the Children of men, and none but he can know them; this knowledg is from his nature.Placaeus de deitate Chriſti. The reaſon why God knows the hearts of men, is rendered in the Scripture double, becauſe he created them, and becauſe he is preſent every where, Pſal. 33.13, 15. theſe two are by the Confeſſion of Chriſtians and Pagans univerſally received as the proper Characters of Divinity, whereby the Deity is diſtinguiſh'd from all Creatures. Now when Chriſt aſcribes this to himſelf, and that with ſuch an Emphaſis, that nothing greater than that could be urg'd, as he doth, Rev. 2.23. we muſt conclude that he is of the ſame Eſſence with God, one with him in his Nature, as well as one with him in his Attributes. God only knows the hearts of the Children of men; there is the unity of God: Chriſt ſearches the Hearts and Reins; there is a diſtinction of Perſons in an oneneſs of eſſence; he knows the hearts of all men, not only of thoſe that were with him in p. 317the time of the Fleſh, that have been and ſhall be, ſince his Aſcenſion; but of thoſe that lived and died before his coming, becauſe he is to be the Judg of all that lived before his humiliation on earth, as well as after his exaltation in Heaven. It pertains to him as a Judg, to know diſtinctly the merits of the Cauſe of which he is to Judg; and this excellency of ſearching the hearts is mention'd by himſelf with relation to his judicial Proceeding, I will give to every one of you according to your Works. And tho' a Creature may know what is in a mans heart, if it be revealed to him, yet ſuch a knowledg is a knowledg only by report, not by inſpection; yet this latter is aſcrib'd to Christ, John 2.24.25. he knew all men, and needed not that any ſhould teſtify of man, for he knew what was in man; he looked into their hearts. The Evangeliſt to allay the amazement of men at his relation of our Saviours knowledg of the inward falſity of thoſe that made a ſplendid Profeſſion of him; doth not ſay, the Father revealed it to him; but intimates it to be an unſeparable Property of his nature. No covering was ſo thick as to bound his eye; no pretence ſo glittering as to impoſe upon his underſtanding. Thoſe that made a Profeſſion of him, and could not be diſcerned by the eye of man from his faithfulleſt Attendants, were in their inſide known to him plainer than their outſide was to others; and therefore he committed not himſelf to them, tho' they ſeemed to be perſwaded to a real belief in his name, becauſe of the Power of his Miracles; and were touched with an admiration of him, as ſome great Prophet, and perhaps declared him to be the Meſſiah, ver. 23.

4. He had a foreknowledg of the particular inclinations of men, before thoſe diſtinct inclinations were in actual Being in them. This is plainly aſſerted John 6.64. but there are ſome of you that believe not, for Jeſus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who ſhould betray him. When Chriſt aſſured them from the knowledg of the hearts of his followers, that ſome of them were void of that Faith they profeſt; The Evangeliſt to ſtop their amazement, that Chriſt ſhould have ſuch a power and vertue, adds, that he knew from the beginning, that he had not only a preſent knowledg, but a foreknowledg of every ones inclination; he knew not only now and then what was in the Hearts of his Diſciples, but from the beginning of any ones giving up their Names to him; he knew whether it were a pretence or ſincere, he knew who ſhould betray him, and there was no mans inward affection but was foreſeen by him.foreign From the beginning, whether we underſtand it from the beginning of the World, as when Chriſt ſaith concerning Divorces, from the beginning it was not ſo, that is, from the beginning of the World, from the beginning of the Law of Nature; or from the beginning of their attending him; as it is taken, Luke 1.2. he had a certain preſcience of the inward diſpoſitions of mens hearts, and their ſucceeding ſentiments; he foreknew the treacherous heart of Judas in the midſt of his ſplendid Profeſſion; and diſcern'd his reſolution in the root, and his thought in the confus'd Chaos of his natural corruption; he knew how it would ſpring up, before it did ſpring up, before Judas had any diſtinct and formal conception of it himſelf, or before there was any actual preparation to a reſolve. Peters denyal was not unknown to him, when Peter had a preſent reſolution, and no queſtion ſpake it in the preſent ſincerity of his Soul, never to forſake him; he foreknew what would be the reſult of that Poyſon which lurkt in Peters nature, before Peter himſelf imagin'd any thing of it; he diſcern'd Peters Apoſtatizing heart, when Peter reſolved the contrary; our Saviours Prediction was accompliſht, and Peters valiant reſolution languiſht into Cowardice.

Shall we then conclude our Bleſſed Saviour a Creature, who perfectly and only knew the Father, who knew all Creatures, who had all the Treaſures of Wiſdom and Knowledg, who knew the inward motions of mens hearts by his own Vertue, and had not only a preſent Knowledg, but a Preſcience of them?

Inform. 2. The ſecond Inſtruction from this poſition, That God hath an infinite Knowledg and Underſtanding. Then there is a Providence exercis'd by God in the World, and that about every thing. As Providence infers Omniſcience as the guide of it; ſo Omniſcience infers Providence as the end of it. What Exerciſe would there be of this Attribute, but in the Government of the World? To this, this infinite Perfection refers, Jer. 17.10. I the Lord ſearch the heart, I try the Reins, to p. 318give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings. He ſearches the heart to reward, he rewards every man according to the rewardableneſs of his actions; his Government therefore extends to every man in the World; there is no heart but he ſearches, therefore no heart but he governs; to what purpoſe elſe would be this Knowledg of all his Creatures? for a meer Contemplation of them? no, What pleaſure can that be to God, who knows himſelf, who is infinitely more excellent than all his Creatures? Doth he know them, to neglect all care of them? this muſt be either out of Sloth; but how incompatible is lazineſs to a pure and infinite activity? or out of Majeſty, but 'tis no leſs for the glory of his Majeſty to conduct them, than it was for the glory of his Power to erect them into Being; he that counts nothing unworthy of his Arms to make, nothing unworthy of his Underſtanding to know; why ſhould he count any thing unworthy of his Wiſdom to govern? If he knows them, to neglect them, it muſt be becauſe he hath no Will to it, or no Goodneſs for it; either of theſe would be a ſtain upon God; to want Goodneſs is to be Evil, and to want Will is to be negligent and ſcornful, which are inconſiſtent with an Infinite, Active Goodneſs. Doth a Father neglect providing for the wants of the Family which he knows? or a Phyſician the cure of that Diſeaſe he underſtands? God is Omniſcient, he therefore ſees all things; he is good, he doth not therefore neglect any thing, but conducts it to the end he appointed it. There is nothing ſo little that can eſcape his Knowledg, and therefore nothing ſo little but falls under his Providence; nothing ſo ſublime, as to be above his Underſtanding; and therefore nothing can be without the compaſs of his Conduct; nothing can eſcape his Eye, and therefore nothing can eſcape his Care; nothing is known by him in vain, as nothing was made by him in vain; there muſt be acknowledg'd, therefore ſome end of this knowledg of all his Creatures.

Inſtruct. 3. Hence then will follow the certainty of a day of Judgment. To what purpoſe can we imagine this Attribute of Omniſcience ſo often declared and urg'd in Scripture to our conſideration, but in order to a government of our practiſe, and a future Tryal? Every Perfection of the Divine Nature hath ſent out brighter Rays in the World, than this of his Infinite Knowledg; his Power hath been ſeen in the Being of the World, and his Wiſdom in the Order and Harmony of the Creatures; his Grace and Mercy hath been plentifully poured out in the miſſion of a Redeemer; and his Juſtice hath been elevated by the Dying-Groans of the Son of God upon the Croſs. But hath his Omniſcience yet met with a Glory proportionable to that of his other Perfections? all the Attributes of God that have appeared in ſome beautiful glimmerings in the World, wait for a more full manifeſtation in Glory, as the Creatures do for the manifeſtation of the Sons of God, Rom. 8.19. But eſpecially this, ſince it hath been leſs evidenced than others, and as much or more abuſed than any; it expects therefore a publick righting in the eye of the World. There have been indeed ſome few ſparks of this Perfection ſenſibly ſtruck out now and then in the World, in ſome horrors of Conſcience, which have made men become their own Accuſers of unknown Crimes, in bringing out hidden Wickedneſs to a publick view, by various Providences. This hath alſo been the deſign of ſprinklings of Judgments upon ſeveral Generations, as Pſal. 90.8. We are conſumed by thy Anger, and by thy Wrath we are troubled, thou haſt ſet our Iniquities before thee, and our ſecret Sins in the light of thy Countenance. The word foreign ſignifies Youth, as well as ſecret, i.e. Sins, committed long ago, and that with ſecrecy. By this he hath manifeſted, that ſecret Sins are not hid from his eye: Tho' inward Terrors and outward Judgments have been let looſe to worry men into a belief of this, yet the corruptions of men would ſtill keep a contrary notion in their minds, that God hath forgotten, that he hides his face from Tranſgreſſion, and will not regard their Impiety, Pſal. 10.11. There muſt therefore be a time of Tryal for the publick demonſtration of this Excellency, that it may receive its due Honour by a full Teſtimony, that no ſecrecy can be a ſhelter from it. As his Juſtice, which conſiſts in giving every one his due, could not be Glorified, unleſs men were called to an account for their actions; ſo neither would his Omniſcience appear in its illuſtrious colours, without ſuch a manifeſtation of the ſecret motions of mens hearts, and of Villanies done under Lock and Key, when none were conſcious p. 319to them, but the committers of them. Novv the laſt Judgment is the time appointed for the opening of the Books, Dan. 7.10. The Book of Gods Records, and Conſcience the counter-part, were never fully opened and read before, only novv and then ſome ſome pages turn'd to, in particular Judgments; and out of thoſe Books ſhall men be judged according to their Works, Rev. 20.12. Then ſhall the defaced Sins be brought vvith all their circumſtances to every mans memory; the Counſels of mens hearts fled far from their preſent remembrance; all the habitual knovvledg they had of their ovvn actions, ſhall by Gods knovvledg of them be excited to an actual revievv; and their vvorks not only made manifeſt to themſelves, but notorious to the World: All the Words, Thoughts, Deeds of men ſhall be brought forth into the light of their ovvn minds, by the infinite Light of Gods underſtanding reflecting on them. His Knovvledg renders him an unerring Witneſs, as vvell as his Juſtice a ſwift Witneſs, Mal. 3.5. a ſvvift Witneſs, becauſe he ſhall vvithout any circuit, or length of Speech, convince their Conſciences by an invvard illumination of them, to take notice of the blackneſs and deformity of their hearts and vvorks. In all Judgments God is ſomevvhat knovvn to be the ſearcher of hearts; the time of Judgment is the time of his remembrance, Hoſ. 8.13. Now will he remember their iniquity, and viſit their ſins; but the great inſtant, or now, of the full glorifying it, is the grand day of account. This Attribute muſt have a time for its full Diſcovery; and no time can be fit for it, but a time of a general reckoning. Juſtice cannot be exercis'd without Omniſcience; for as Juſtice is a giving to every one his due, ſo there muſt be knowledg to diſcern what is due to every man; the ſearching the heart is in order to the rewarding the works.

4. This Perfection in God, gives us ground to believe a Reſurrection. Who can think this too hard for his Power, ſince not the leaſt Atome of the Duſt of our Bodies can eſcape his Knowledg? An infinite Underſtanding comprehends every mite of a departed Carcaſs; this will not appear impoſſible nor irrational to any upon a ſerious conſideration of this excellency in God: The body is periſhed, the matter of it hath been ſince clothed with different forms and figures; part of it hath been made the body of a Worm, part of it returned to the Duſt that hath been blown away by the Wind, part of it hath been concocted in the Bodies of Cannibals, Fiſh, ravenous Beaſts; the Spirits have evaporated into Air, part of the Blood melted into Water; what then, is the matter of the body annihilated? is that wholly periſhed? no, the foundation remains, tho' it hath put on variety of forms; the Body of Abel, the firſt man that died, nor the body of Adam, are not to this day reduc'd to nothing; Indeed the quantity and the quality of thoſe bodies, have been loſt by various changes they have paſt through ſince their diſſolution; but the matter or ſubſtance of them remains intire, and is not capable to be deſtroy'd by all thoſe transforming alterations, in ſo long a revolution of Time.

The body of a man in his infancy and his old Age, if it were Methuſelah's, is the ſame in the foundation in thoſe multitude of years; tho' the quantity of it be alter'd, the quality different, tho' the colour and other things be changed in it; the matter of this body remains the ſame among all the alterations after Death. And can it be ſo mixed with other Natures and Creatures, as that it is paſt finding out by an Infinite Ʋnderſtanding? Can any particle of this matter eſcape the eye of him that makes and beholds all thoſe various alterations, and where every mite of the ſubſtance of thoſe bodies is particularly lodged; ſo as that he cannot compact it together again for a habitation of that Soul, that many a year before fled from it?Daillè Serm. 15. p. 21. 22, 23, 24. Since the Knowledg of God is infinite, and his Providence extenſive over the leaſt as well as the greateſt parts of the World; he muſt needs know the leaſt as well as the greateſt of his Creatures in their Beginning, Progreſs and Diſſolution; all the forms through which the Bodies of all Creatures roul, the particular inſtants of time, and the particular place when and where thoſe changes are made, they are all preſent with him; and therefore when the Revolution of time allotted by him for the reunion of Souls and Deceaſed Bodies is come, it cannot be doubted but out of the Treaſures of his Knowledg he can call forth every part of the matter of the Bodies of men, from the firſt to the laſt man that expired, and ſtrip it of p. 320all thoſe forms and figures, which it ſhall then have, to compact it to be a lodging for that Soul which before it entertain'd; and tho' the Bodies of men have been devour'd by Wild Beaſts in the Earth, and Fiſh in the Sea, and been lodg'd in the Stomachs of Barbarous Men-eaters, the matter is not loſt. There is but little of the Food we take, that is turned into the ſubſtance of our own bodies; that which is not proper for nouriſhment, which is the greateſt part, is ſeparated and concocted, and rejected; whatſoever objections are made, are anſwered by this Attribute. Nothing hinders a God of Infinite Knowledg from diſcerning every particle of the matter, whereſoever it is diſpos'd; and ſince he hath an eye to diſcern, and a hand to recollect and unite, what difficulty is there in believing this Article of the Chriſtian Faith? he that queſtions this reveal'd Truth of the Reſurrection of the Body, muſt queſtion Gods Omniſcience as well as his Omnipotence and Power.

5. What ſemblance of reaſon is there to expect a juſtification in the ſight of God by any thing in our ſelves. Is there any action done by any of us, but upon a ſcrutiny we may find flaws and deficiency in it? What then? ſhall not this Perfection of God diſcern them? the motes that eſcape our eyes cannot eſcape his, 1 John 3.20. God is greater than our hearts, and knows all things; ſo that it is in vain for any man to flatter himſelf with the rectitude of any work; or enter into any debate with him who can bring a Thouſand Articles againſt us, out of his own Infinite Records unknown to us, and unanſwerable by us. If Conſcience, a Repreſentative or Counterpart of Gods Omniſcience in our own Boſoms, find nothing done by us, but in a Copy ſhort of the Original, and beholds, if not blurs, yet Imperfections in the beſt actions, God muſt much more diſcern them; we never knew a Copy equally exact with the Original; If our own Conſcience be as a Thouſand Witneſſes, the Knowledg of God is as Millions of Witneſſes againſt us: If our Corruption be ſo great, and our Holineſs ſo low in our own eyes, how much greater muſt the one, and how much meaner muſt the other appear in the eyes of God? God hath an unerring Eye to ſee, as well as an unſpotted Holineſs to hate, and an unbribable Juſtice to puniſh; he wants no more Underſtanding to know the ſhortneſs of our actions, than he doth Holineſs to enact, and Power to execute his Laws: Nay, ſuppoſe we could recollect many actions, wherein there were no ſpot viſible to us; the conſideration of this Attribute ſhould ſcare us from reſting upon any or all of them; ſince it is the Lord that by a piercing eye ſees and judges according to the heart, and not according to appearance. The leaſt crookedneſs of a Stick, not ſenſible to an acute eye, yet will appear when laid to the Line; and the impurity of a Counterfeit Metal be manifeſt when applyed to the Touchſtone; ſo will the beſt action of any meer man in the World, when it comes to be meaſur'd in Gods Knowledg by the ſtrait Line of his Law.

Let every man therefore, as Paul, though he ſhould know nothing by himſelf, think not himſelf therefore juſtified; Since it is the Lord, who is of an infinite Underſtanding, that Judgeth, 1 Cor. 4.4. A man may be juſtified in his own ſight, but not any living man can be juſtified in the ſight of God, Pſal. 143.2. in his Sight, whoſe eye pierceth into our unknown ſecrets and frames: It was therefore well anſwered of a good man upon his Death-bed, being ask't What he was afraid of? I have laboured (ſaith he) with all my ſtrength to obſerve the commands of God; but ſince I am a man, I am ignorant whether my works are acceptable to God, ſince God Judges in one manner, and I in another manner. Let the conſideration therefore of this Attribute, make us join with Job in his Reſolution, Job 9.21. tho' we were perfect, yet would we not know our own Souls. I would not ſtand up to Plead any of my vertues before God. Let us therefore look after another Righteouſneſs, wherein the exact eye of the Divine Omniſcience, we are ſure, can diſcern no ſtain or crookedneſs.

6. What honourable and adoring Thoughts ought we to have of God for this Perfection? Do we not honour a man that is able to Predict; Do we not think it a great part of Wiſdom? Have not all Nations regarded ſuch a faculty, as a character and a mark of Divinity? There is ſomething more raviſhing in the p. 321knowledg of future things, both to the perſon that knows them, and the perſon that hears them, than there is in any other kind of knowledg; whence the greateſt Prophets have been accounted in the greateſt veneration, and men have thought it a way to glory to Divine and Predict: Hence it was that the Devils and Pagan Oracles gained ſo much Credit; upon this Foundation were they eſtabliſhed, and the Enemies of Mankind owned for a true God; I ſay, from the Prediction of future things, tho' their Oracles were often ambiguous, many times falſe; yet thoſe poor Heathens framed many ingenious excuſes, to free their Adored Gods from the charge of falſity and impoſture: And ſhall we not adore the true God, the God of Iſrael, the God Bleſſed for ever, for this incommunicable Property, whereby he flies above the Wings of the Wind, the underſtandings of men and Cherubims?

Sabund. Theol. natural. Tit. 84. ſomewhat changed.Conſider how great it is to know the Thoughts and Intentions, and Works of one man, from the beginning to the end of his life; to foreknow all theſe before the Being of this man, when he was lodged afar off in the Loyns of his Anceſtors, yea of Adam; how much greater is it to foreknow and know the Thoughts and Works of three or four men of a whole Village or Neighbourhood? 'Tis greater ſtill to know the imaginations and actions of ſuch a multitude of men as are contained in London, Paris, or Constantinople; how much greater ſtill to know the intentions and practiſes, the clandeſtine contrivances of ſo many Millions, that have, do, or ſhall ſwarm in all quarters of the World, every perſon of them having Millions of Thoughts, Deſires, Deſigns, Affections and Actions!

Let this Attribute then make the Bleſſed God honourable in our eyes, and adorable in all our affections; eſpecially ſince it is an Excellency which hath ſo lately diſcovered it ſelf, in bringing to Light the hidden things of darkneſs, in opening, and in part confounding the wicked Devices of Bloody men. Eſpecially let us adore God for it, and admire it in God, ſince it is ſo neceſſary a Perfection, that without it the goodneſs of God had been impotent, and could not have relieved us; for what help can a diſtreſſed perſon expect from a man of the ſweeteſt diſpoſition and the ſtrongeſt arm, if the eyes which ſhould diſcover the danger, and direct the defence and reſcue, were cloſed up by blindneſs and darkneſs? Adore God for this wonderful Perfection.

7. In the conſideration of this excellent Attribute, what low thoughts ſhould we have of our own knowledg, and how humble ought we to be before God? There's nothing man is more apt to be proud of than his Knowledg; 'tis a Perfection he glories in; but if our own Knowledg of the little outſide and barks of things, puffs us up, the conſideration of the infiniteneſs of Gods Knowledg ſhould abate the Tumor: As our Beings are nothing in regard to the infiniteneſs of his Eſſence, ſo our Knowledg is nothing in regard of the vaſtneſs of his underſtanding: We have a ſpark of Being, but nothing to the heat of the Sun: We have a drop of Knowledg, but nothing to the Divine Ocean. What a vain thing is it for a ſhallow Brook to boaſt of its Streams before a Sea, whoſe depths are unfathomable? As it is a vanity to brag of our Strength when we remember the Power of God; and of our Prudence, when we glance upon the Wiſdom of God; ſo 'tis no leſs a vanity to boaſt of our Knowledg, when we think of the Underſtanding and Knowledg of God.

How hard is it for us to know any thing Paſcall p. 17…? too much noiſe deafs us, and too much light dazels us; too much diſtance alienates the object from us, and too much nearneſs bars up our ſight from beholding it: When we think our ſelves to be near the knowledg of a thing, as a Ship to the Haven, a puff of Wind blows us away, and the object which we deſired to know, eternally flies from us; we burn with a deſire of knowledg, and yet are oppreſt with the darkneſs of ignorance; we ſpend our days more in dark Egypt, than in enlightened Goſhen. In what narrow bounds is all the knowledg of the moſt intelligent perſons included?Amyrant. de praedeſt p. 116. 117. ſomewhat changed. How few underſtand the exact Harmony of their own bodies, the nature of the life they have in common with other Animals? who underſtands the nature of his own faculties, how he Knows, and how he Wills, how the Underſtanding Propoſeth, and how the Will embraceth, how his ſpiritual Soul is united to his material Body, what the nature is of the operation of our Spirits? nay, who underſtands the nature of his own body, p. 322the offices of his ſences, the motion of his Members, how they come to obey the command of the Will, and a Thouſand other things? What a vain, weak, and ignorant thing is man, when compar'd with God? yet there is not a greater Pride to be found among Devils, than among ignorant men with a little, very little flaſhy knowledg. Ignorant man is as proud, as if he knew as God!