The Usefulness and Excellency of Christ, Section 2
SECT. 2.
Of Christs fairenesse, usefulesse, Desirablenesse.
Prose∣cution. 3 FOr application. Now as Roses and flowers are good for the head, for the braine, for the heart, and for The application of this poynt.many things: so is the Rose-like Doctrine or flower which this next affords good and usefull
1. For the understanding of man to informe it.
2. For the conscience to satisfie and to convince it.
3. For the affection or heart to moove it.
4. For the will to incline it.
Of these in order.
Ʋse 1 First, it is usefull for the understanding to helpe it, and to informe it, and that of 3. things.
1. Of Christs fairenesse; 2. usefulnesse; 3. desirablenesse.
First I beginne with the first of these, to informe you of Christs admirable fairenesse, forasmuch as himselfe compares Christs fairenessehimselfe to a Rose, which is one of the tVnde Rosa olim propter pulcbritudinem & suavem odorem veneri saera fuit Calepin. Thomson in loc.fairest flowers among all flowers, yea to a Rose of Sharon, which of all roses are held to bee the most faire and fragrant, by reason of the sunne which shineth so much upon that soile, and heateth it, and maketh the roses prosper as Authors write of it, see Psal. 45. 2. How David in that song of loves (for so that Psalme is intitled) sets forth the beauty of this sweetest rose, saying thou art fairer then all the children of men, uPalcher admodum fuisti.yea thou art exceedingly fairer then the children of men. For the originall importeth so much and more too; even more then I am able to expresse, for asmuch as the Holy Ghost doth even ingeminate the ordinarie word heere, speaking of a more then ordinary-beauty to make it more significant, and it must needs bee so, whether wee doe reflect the eyes of the minde upon his Deity, or upon his Humanity.
I. To beginne with his Deity, how can hee but bee fairer then all the children of men, who is not onelyonly a sonne of man, but also the naturall sonne of God, even God of God, and coequall with God his father, who as God himselfe maketh all men, and all things faire that are faire, for the sons of men, and therefore must needs be infinitly fairer then all; for it is a true ground in Philosophie that that thing for whose sake an other thing is thus qualified or such and such, must needs be more such, and more so qualified, so as that we may truely say of Christ that sweetst rose of Sharon, that hee is not onelyonly fairer then all men but even Beauty it selfe.
II. As man so he is most faire, first in regard of his soule, Col. 2. 9. for in him dwelleth all the fulnesse of the Godhead bodily, so that needs he must bee xDurand. Rat. Div. offic. l. 6. f. 106.void of sinne and full of grace and therefore all faire.
III. Christ is fairer then all the sons of men in respect of the exact beautifulnesse and comly lineaments of his body, whether wee looke upon it as it was in the state of humiliation, or as now is in the state of exaltation.
First in the state of humiliation: for all deformities of the body proceede originally from enormities of the soule, & therefore Christ being exemped from the one, must needs be far too from the other, as in his minde so in his body, whose glorious & most excellent beauty even yEutropius in Annal. Senatorum Roonr. Cent. 1. l. 1 c. 10. p. 34. Cassanaus in Catalog. part. 4. Consid. 6.Lentulus a Romā in his Epistle to Tiberius the Romane Emperour describeth after his manner; that hee was a man goodly to behold, having a reverent countenance, his stature some what tall; his haire after the colour of the ripe hazelnut, from his eares downeward somewhat curled, parting it selfe in the middest of the head, and waving with the winde, after the manner of the Nazarites; his face without wrincle mixed with moderate red; his beard somewhat copious, tender, and divided at the chin; his eyes gray, various & cleere; but what need we goe so farre as to alledge the Roman writers, having a farre more ample and surer description of Christs most admirable beauty nearer home, even in this same sweetest love-Song, out of which my text is taken, the words are these. My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand; his head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushie and blacke as a raven; his eies are as the eies of doves by the river of water washed with milke, and fitly set; his cheekes are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers; his lips like Lillies, dropping sweet smelling myrrhe; his hands are as gold-rings set with the Beryll; his belly is as bright yvory overlaid with saphires; his legs are as pillars of marble set upon sockets of fine gold; his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the Cedars; his mouth is most sweet, yea he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend O daughters of Ierusalem. Now I am not ignorant of that sense which some put upon these words, understanding them altogether of Christs spirituall and inward beauty, and I doe willingly assent unto them in this, that that fairenesse is zAnd therfore I doe so expound it in the first let or impedimēt, that keeps men from Christ, where this whole description is largely opened. Sect. 12.chiefly meant: But yet I hope I shall be suffered to extend the largenesse of so rare an expression to his body also in some sort, even so farre forth as to conceive that his body also must needs be passing faire, as well as his soule, even by vertue of this description, which his faire Spouse ends with this Epiphonema; or sententious close: Hee is altogether lovely, or throughout and wholly lovely, or delectable, forsomuch the aT…t…s ipse & in universum delactabil… & d…siderabilis.original doth more significantly import; he is throughout and wholly lovely saith she, whereupon it followeth necessarily, that his body must be so lovely too: for else it cannot be said that he is wholly lovely, and throughout delectable; and hence it is, as I conceive, that Tremellius who hath been a Jew converted, being most expert in the holy language doth understand many passages in this description literally, and not he only, but others also, who yet in many things are very mysticall.
If it be objected that in Esa. 53. 2, 3. Toms in ver 13. So Ch…ys in Psal. 45.he is said to have neither forme, nor beauty.
I answer first with Saint Hierome, that the Prophet speaks so of Christ, as he was abased and abused upon the crosse, and before, when Pilat brought him forth, and uttered these words: Ecce homo, Behold a man; and I adde, b Theodoret. in text.that in regard of some he is said to have no forme, because they then could not, nor would not see any such beauty in him; for otherwise the godly c Hieron. Epist ad P…i. cip.see comlinesse enough in him, as I noted before out of the 45. Psal. 2. Thou art fairer then the children of men, on which words one of the dAug…in …c.ancient paraphrasts most sweetly: VntoUnto us who beleeve, the heavenly bridegroome seems to be every way most faire; faire in heaven, faire on earth, faire in the wombe, faire in his mothers armes, faire in his miracles, faire in his stripes, faire upon his crosse, faire in his very grave.
2. But especially in the state of Exaltation, his body must needs be fairer then the sons of men: for if the face of Moses did shine so, after he had been with God upon the mount, where nothing but lightening and thundering was to be expected, how must needs the precious body of the son of God now shine with incomprehensible splendor, being next to Gods owne right hand in that holy hill above, where there is nothing but light; and blisse, brightnesse, and blessednesse to be enjoyed for ever and ever. See Phil. 3. 20. How therefore that holy and blessed Apostle cals his body a glorious body, *foreign.or, a body of his glory, which is more, according to the originall, as if he should say, a body all full, or made of glory; and of his glory, which is the glory of the only begotten son of God, whose bright-shining Deity doth so illustrate, clarifie, and glorifie all his body, as that every part and member of it must needs be infinitely more resplendent and bright then that of the sun, which yet is farre more glistering and glorious then the burnished gold of Ophir; And therefore, O my soule, doe thou elevate and lift up thy selfe above thy selfe, and consider this ravishing and transcendent beauty of thy most deare and glorious Saviour, so as that no creature under the sun may be fairer and dearer in thine eies then he, who is fairer then all.
The second thing. 2. This informes us of Christs usefulnesse. Seeing he compares himselfe to A. Rose, which how usefull and medicinall it is all men know in some sort; but Physicians, and such as have any skill in herbs know it in an especiall Petr. Andr. Matth. l. 1. Diosc. c. 112.manner. There is scarce any herb or flower to be named, which for its vertue and usefulnesse goes beyond it. Now Christ is like it, as he saith himselfe, yea transcendently more medicinall and usefull then it: For he can heale all our inward and outward, spirituall and corporall diseases, Psal. 103. when Roses though never so faire and good, yet cannot cure so much as one sin, which is a most dangerous gangrene and leprosie of the poore soule. And therefore O that the besotted soules of men were but sensible of so great a worth and inestimable good, as is to be had in so precious a Rose, as Jesus Christ is, blessed for ever! and ô that they did but weigh it, and firmely beleeve it; for then they could not, nor would neglect so great salvation.
the thing. 3 3. And must not Christ be very desirable, seeing he compareth himselfe to a Rose (which is as desirable a flower as any) both for her fairenesse, and usefulnesse formerly mentioned. See Iohn 1. 47. how desirous therefore Nathaniell was to see him; and Luke. 19. 4. how Zacheus climbed upon a tree to looke downe upon him that was higher then the heavens; and it was the chiefest of Saint Austines three wishes, that he might have seen Christ in the flesh, whom he now beholdeth in glory. And therefore, O that men were but wise, and had eyes to see, and eares to heare! for then would they resort, and flocke from all parts to Iesus Christ the rose of Sharon, to heare his voice with gladnesse, and to see his fairenesse, and to taste of his goodnes; yea then would they out of some experience doubtlesse say with his faire spouse, Cant. 5. 16. His mouth is most sweet, yea he is altogether lovely *foreignor desirable.