The Divine Triunity of the Father Son and Holy Spirit, Chapter 1
CHAP. I.
The Godhead is Spiritual, Infinite, Incomprehensible.
WE read of the eternal Godhead in the Book of the Creature, Rom. 1. 20. and therefore I prize Philosophy because it is subservient to Divinity; nay that Philosophy which manifests the Eternal Power and God-head of our great Creator is indeed and Truth, nothing else but Natural Divinity: This Natural Divinity is called The truth, Rom. 1. 18. and it is a Divine Truth, because it doth declare foreign, all that can be known of God by the light of nature, Rom. 1. 19, 20. I subscribe to that of Clemens Alexandrinus: We ought not to swear allegiance to any sect of Philosophers, whether Stoicks, Epicures, Platonists or Peripatetiques, but we must select and embrace whatsoever is true and faithfully delivered concerning God by any SectaProverbia etiam non Christianis familiaria apud Tertullianum, Deus videt Deus reddet, si Deus voluerit, quod Deus dederit, Deo commendo, Deus inter nos judicabit, &c. id ipsum de monstrant. Summum illud & aeternum neque mutabile neque interiturum. Tacitus, foreign. Thales foreign. Philemon. Nec vero Deus qui intelligitur a nobis alio modo intelligi potest quàm mens soluta quaedam & libera segregata ab omni concretione mortali, omnia sentiens & movens. Cicero. Plato in Phaedro & lib. 10. de legibus. Vide Clem. Alexand. lib. 1. Stromat. Gen. 9 6. Jam. 3. 9. Rom. 2. 14, 15. Vide sis dicta Poetarum apud Stobaeum ab. H. Grotio emendata. Aquin. Contra Gent. R. de Sabunde de Theologia Naturali. A. S. Eugubinus de perenni Philosophiâ. G. Pacardum de Theolog. Naturali. P. Mornaeum. Aug. de Civit. Dei. Theodoret. de curand. Graec. affectibus Clem. Alexand. Basilium, &c.; and the Truth selected out of all Sects is not vaine Philosophy, but Natural Divinity. There is something of the Image of God & Law of Nature written in our hearts and consciences, as is evident by common experience and plain testimonies of the world of God, and therefore the Scripture doth not condemn all Philosophy, but vain Philosophy, Colos. 2.
These natural notions of the eternal Godhead should excite us to enquire farther after God as the Apostle shewes in Acts 17. ver. 27. because though our natural notions concerning God are true, yet they are such imperfect and obscure notions, or rather hints, that we are by reason of the corruption of our nature, very apt to abuse them, and therefore we must regulate them by the Word of God.
Thebforeign, uti Antiphanes Socraticus. foreign Xenophon. Godhead is Spiritual, and therefore invisible; the Professors of Wisdome became fools, when upon a clear sight of some invisible things of God they changed the glory of God into a visible Image made like unto corruptible man, and unreasonable creatures; such Images are both Artificial and Real lyes; for by making Images of God, these learned Fools changed the truth of God into a Lye, and then adored and worshipped their own lyes, Rom. 1. 20, 23, 25.
The Godhead is Infinite, and the Immensity of Gods perfection cannot be measured by any created understanding. God is great, and his greatnesse is unsearchable cTunc dignè Deum aestimamus cùm inaestimabilē dicimus. Haebreorum Deum foreign vocat Lucianus. Dion Cassius foreign ineffabilem & inconspicuum. Theologia notitias naturales excolit, & confirmat. Deus elegit stulta mundi ad confusionem Philosophiae. Tertul. Praescript. adversus Haereticos Theologia non subjicitur Philosophiae sed praeficitur. Catechismus negat Philosophi…m non Philosophia Catechismum, Lu…her. Vera Philosophia est naturalis Theologia; concurrit gemina patefactio, naturalis & supernaturalis, gemina authoritas, gemina lux. Haec itaque loquendicausâ de ineffabilibus diximus ut fari aliquo modo possemus quod effari nullo modo possumus. Vide Aug. de Trinitate lib. 7. c. 4. Qui vult sapiens fieri in Aristotele, stultificetur ante in Christo. Lutherus. Tunc stultus Plato cum suis discipulis, &c. Tertul., Psal. 145. 3. The greatnesse of God is not a greatnesse of Bulk and Quantity, but of Perfection and Excellencie; he is great in Power, and his understanding is Infinite, Ps. 147. 5. and therefore his understanding is unsearchable, Isa. 40. 28 when men and Angels search farthest into Gods perfection, they do most of all discover their own imperfection, for God will make them know that the secrets of his wisdome are double to that which they behold, and that it is impossible by our most accurate disquisition to finde out the Almighty unto perfection, Job 11. 6, 7. but we may find him out unto salvation in the holy Scriptures.
If we sum up all that the Philosophers and Schoolmen can attain to in their discourses of this first Principle, it will amount to no more then this; Men and Angels can never comprehend that perfection which dwels in God; for the perfection of God is Infinite, and therefore …ncomprehensible.
Let Schoolers examine t…is brief account, Deus est …ns, Ens entium, Essentia Essentiarum, Ens purum, Ens Simplex, Ens simpliciter Simplex, Ens Absolutum, Ens Necessarium, Ens Absolutè necessarium. Ens Primum, aeternum, independens, perfectum infinitum, infinitè perfectum, & proinde immensum. Let us therefore study, beleeve and embrace the holy Scriptures, which may satisfie and save us.
I confesse I have been very much taken with some discourses in Aristotle's dforeign. Nihil praestantius Deo; ab eo igitur Mundum regi necesse est. Cicero. Vide que Operum initio extant apud Hesiodum. Si Deus est animus nobis ut ca…mina …cunt, &c.Metaphysicks concerning the spiritual and eternal efficacy of the first Principle, first mover or prime understanding, whose very Essence, Substance, Nature and Being is a spiritual and Eternal Self-efficacy, from whence it was easie to demonstrate the Self-sufficiency and All-sufficiency of this Eternal understanding, and from thence to inferre that this Eternal Spirit, whose very Being is Efficacy (or as we say a pure Act) should be effectually obeyed and sincerely worshipped with pure and spiritual worship.
I shall not examine those passages which are usually cited out of Plato, Iamblichus Trismegistus and others upon this subject, because it is clear to me that those glorious mysteries which they did either discourse or treat of were discovered to them by an Hebrew light.eVide Just. Mar. Protrep. Lactan. Euseb. de praeparat. Evan. Aug. de Civit. D…i, de doct Christiana Hiera…ym. Epistola ad magnum oratorem Mar…il. F…cinum. Alcin. de doctrina Platonis. B…ssarion. Va…es. de Phil…. Sacr. l. S. Fugubinum, Lemnium, Al…iedium, Philonem Iudaeum l…actan ium, Isidorum, Aug. contra Academ. Cor. Ag…ip. de Van. Scien…. D. Alting. Problem. Vo…tium Select. Di…p. p. 1. Videlium R…t. Theol. Ricetum in Exod. p 94. Gat…k. lib. p. 262. Amel. Pl…ton, Iustin. Martyr. Apol. 2. Tertu…. Apol. c. 44. Plato was not called the Atticising Moses in vaine, Clemens Alexandrinus and divers others have said enough of that, and saved me the labour of a learned Digression upon that subject; and it is conceived that Christians have inserted such passages into the works of Heathens.
The Platonists say Lumen est umbra Dei, Deus est lumen luminis. The Aposile saith God is light, and in him is no darknesse at all: That is, God is perfection it self without any imperfection at all, 1 John 1. 5. God is a pure Act, God is one Single Infinite Perfection. And therefore asfVid. Senec. l. 7. Natural. Qu. De Deo etiam vera dicere periculosum est. Seneca said, we had need compose our whole man into an Argument of Modesty when we discourse of the nature of God, lest we speak any thing rashly, or affirme any thing that is untrue.
The works of God are great, and his thoughts (Decrees and Counsels) very deep, Psal. 92. 5. Who then is able to sound the depth of his natural perfection, whose immense perfection is like a Sea (if there were any such) which hath neither banks nor bottome; who can sound a bottomlesse depth, or define an infinite perfection? God is near us, nay in us, and yet farre off from us; there is an infinite distance between his excellency and our infirmity gExcedit supereminentia Deitatis humani eloquii facultatem. Veri…s enim cogitatur Deus quàm dicitur: Et veriùs est quàm cogitatur. August. de Trinit. lib 7.: he is far off from our senses and from our understanding; and therefore instead of begging longer time as the Philosopher did, I will conclude as the wise man doth, Eccl. 7. 23, 24. All this have I proved by Wisdom: I said I will be wise, but it was farre from me; That which is farre off and exceeding deep, who can finde it out? Heraclitus put forth a pretty Riddle. Ifhforeign. Heraclitus foreign, &c. Philemen. you do not hope for something above hope, you shall never finde out that which can never be found. It is safer as the Poet said, to beleeve and worship God then to pry into him. Nam praeter ipsum quaerere acquires nihil. How much Raymundus de Sabunde, A. Steuchus Eugubinus, Pacardus and others would have found without the help of the Scripture, let such as are spiritually judicious judge.