The Incomparableness of God, Treatise · Chapter 4
CHAP. IV. God incomparable in his Being, as he is abſolutely perfect, univerſal, unchangeable.
HE is an abſolutely perfect Being: There is a two-fold perfection competible to Beings; Some are perfect in their kind, that is, have all things requiſite to that Species of which they are. So we ſay the World is perfect, becauſe it hath all things needful to a World. A man is a perfect man, that hath a body with all its parts and members, and a Soul with all its powers and faculties: But ſecondly, A Being is abſolutely perfect, when nothing can be added to it, or taken from it, when it is uncapable of the leaſt Acceſſion or Diminution. Now ſuch a Being is God, and none but God. As the Sun gets nothing by the ſhining of the Moon and the Stars, neither loſeth any thing by their Eclipſes, or withdrawing. So the ſelf ſufficient God gains nothing by all the Suits and Services, Prayers and Praiſes of his Creatures; neither looſeth any thing by their neglect of their Duties. He is above the influence of all our performances; our holineſs addeth not the leaſt to his Happineſs. Can a Man be profitable to God, as he that is wiſe may be profitable to himſelf? Is it any pleaſure to the Almighty that thou art righteous? or is it gain to him that thou makest thy wayes perfect? Job 22.2, 3. He is beyond the malice of Sin: As Holineſs doth not help him, ſo the Sin of his Creatures doth not hurt him. All thoſe Darts of Sin which the Wicked ſhoot up againſt Heaven, fall ſhort, and fall down upon their own Heads. If thou ſinneſt, what doſt thou againſt him? or if thy Tranſgreſſions be multiplyed, what doſt thou unto him? If thou be righteous, what givest thou him? or what receiveth he of thine hand? Thy Wickedneſs may hurt a Man, as thou art, and thy Righteouſneſs may profit the Sons of Men, Job 35.6. 7, 8. Fleſh and Blood may be injured and pierced by the Weapons of unrighteouſneſs; but not the Rock of Ages, that is impenetrable. They who are of the ſame make and mold with our ſelves, may be advantaged by our Bleſſings and Praiſes, but not he who is above all Bleſſing and Praiſes.
What doth the great Light of the World get by the Perſians admiration and adoration of it. What is a Fountain the better, if Men drink of its water, and commend it; or the worſe, if Men paſs by, and deſpiſe it. What would God get, if he ſhould make millions of Worlds to land and magnifie him; or what would God looſe, if there were no World, no Creature at all? Who hath given to him, and it ſhall be recompenced again? Rom. 11, 35. He hath given to all what-ever they are, or have; but none ever gave to him. They who give to him their Love, and Fear, and Truſt, and Names, and Eſtates, give nothing to him. We can give nothing to him, to whom we owe all: Beſides, all we have, and are, and do, and ſuffer for him, addeth nothing to him. His declarative glory may, but his eſſential glory, or glorious eſſence admits not in the leaſt of any increaſe or decreaſe. But no other Being is abſolutely perfect; Men are exceeding imperfect, ſince their Falls: They are ſo far from being above all additions, that they ſtand in continual need of Additions. They need the Air to breath in, the Earth to bear them, Food to ſtrengthen them, Rayment to cover them, Fire to warm them, Sleep to refreſh them; They want Righteouſneſs to juſtifie them, the Holy Ghoſt to ſanctifie them, Love to comfort them, and Mercy to ſave them. Man is an heap of Infirmities, an Hoſpital of Diſeaſes, and a bundle of Imperfections: He is ſo far from being abſolutely perfect, that (in a moral conſideration) ſince his Apoſtacy, he is not perfect in his kind. And though Angels are more perfect then Men, yet they are imperfect to God: Angels, 'tis true, are perfect in their kind, but not perfect in all kinds; ſomething may be added to them, ſomething may be taken from them. The higheſt Angel may be higher, and the holieſt Angel may be holier, and the beſt of them may be better. Though the Stars differ from each other in brightneſs and glory, yet none of them is a Sun: Though Angels differ from Men, and each from others in honour and excellency; yet none of them is a god, none of them is abſolutely perfect.
5. God is an univerſal Being, he hath all good eminently and virtually in himſelf: Whatſoever excellencies are ſcattered and diſperſed among the Creatures in Heaven or in Earth, they are all united in, and centered after an infinite manner in the Creator. It's a true Rule in Phyloſophy, Quod efficit tale est magis tale; Whatſoever good is in the effect, is more abundantly in the cauſe: Now God being the principle and cauſe of all the good and excellency that is in every Creature, it muſt of neceſſity be more abundantly in him. As ſome Potions have the quinteſſence of many Herbs, many Drugs in them; ſo God hath the quinteſſence of all Creatures, and infinitely more in him.
For this cauſe he is called by, and compared to whatſoever is good and anſwerable, either to neceſſity, conveniency or delight. Sometimes to that good which is neceſſary, as to life, John 1.4. To the Fountain of life, Pſal. 36.9. To Light, John 1.9. To the Father of Lights, James 1.17. To Food, as to Bread; yea, living Bread, John 6.51. To water, yea living water, John 4.10. To Rest, Return to thy Rest, O my Soul, for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee, Pſal. 116.7. He is the onelyonly Ark, wherein alone the Dove wearied about the waters of this World, can find reſt: Sometimes he is compared to that good which is convenient, as to an Habitation, Pſal. 90.9, 10. O Lord, thou hast been our dwelling-place from all Generations. To Health, Pſal. 42. ult. To Peace, 2 Cor. 13.11. To Protection or Defence, as a Shield, which defends the Body from the ſhot or thruſts of men, Gen. 15.1. To a Wall of Fire, which defends the Traveller from the fury of Beaſts, Zechar. 2.5. To a Refuge, which ſecures the Army, when 'tis foy'ld by the Enemy, Pſal. 57.1. To a Rock, a Fortreſs, an high Tower, Pſal. 18.2. Sometimes he is compared to that good which is delightful. As to Riches, Job 22.24, 25. To unſearchable Riches, Eph. 3.8. Durable Riches, Prov. 8.18. To Honour and Glory, as a Royal Diadem: He is called a glorious Lord, Iſa. 33.21. Said to be the Glory in the midst of his People, Zach. 2.5. To joy and pleaſure, Pſal. 43.4. To Relations, he is a Father, 2 Cor. 6.18. An Huſband, Hoſ. 2.19. To a Feast of fat things, of Marrow and Fatneſs, of Wine, of Wine on the Lees well refined, Iſa. 25.6, Which are the delight of the Pallat. To Beauty, which is the delight of the Eyes, Cantic. 5.10. & ult. To ſweet Smells, which are the delight of the Noſtrils, Cantic. 4.10. Cantic. 1.3. To the moſt harmonious Muſick, which is the delight of the Ears: His mouth is moſt ſweet, or ſweetneſſes, Cantic. 5.16. My Soul failed when he ſpake, ſo raviſhing was his Voyce, Cantic. 5.6. To Truth, which is the delight of the Underſtanding, Pſal. 31.5. John 14.6. To Good, which is the delight of the Will, Math. 19.17. Thus God is not one good, but all good: The truth is, all the good, all the excellencies that are in Men or Angels, are not worthy to be a ſhadow, or foyl to ſet off thoſe excellencies that are in God. All good is in one God, Mark 10.29, 30. But Creatures are but particular Beings: Man is but a particular Being, a low limited Being. What is Man, that is a Worm; or the Son of Man that is a Worm, Job 25.6. There is ſome good in one man, and ſome good in another man; but not all good in any man, no, not in all men. Angels are but particular Beings, little Beings: One Angel is one drop, another Angel another drop, a third Angel a third drop; every one is but a drop: None of them is an Ocean, as God is, which containeth all thoſe drops, and infinitely more.
6. God is an unchangeable Being, not only without, but uncapable of the leaſt alteration. He is the ſame Yeſterday, to Day, and for Ever, Heb. 13.8. He is what he was, and what he will be eternally. He is the ſame ſince the World was made, that he was before the World, and that he will be when this World ſhall be no more: With him is not the least variation, or ſhadow of turning, James 1.17. No foreign, or variableneſs: It is an Aſtronomical word, taken from the heavenly Bodies, which ſuffer many Declenſions and Revolutions, which they call Parallaxes. Though thoſe heavenly Lights are variable, have their increaſes and decreaſes; their times of riſing and ſetting; yet our Father of Lights is not variable: He knoweth no riſing or ſetting, no increaſing or decreaſing; but ſhineth alwayes with the ſame light and lustre, with the ſame beauty and brightneſſe. Nor ſhadow of Turning, foreign. The leſſer Luminaries, or Stars, according to their different Poſtures, have divers ſhadowings, or obumbrations, according to their nearneſs to, or diſtance from the Sun, their ſhadows are greater or leſſer; but our Sun is ſtill the ſame, knoweth no clouding, no ſhadowing, no eclipſing. When God hates thoſe Angels as Apoſtates, whom firſt he loved, as created pure and holy, he is ſtill the ſame; the change is not in God, but in them. Bring Clay to the Sun, it hardens it; bring Wax to the Sun, with the ſame influence, it ſoftens it, without any alteration in the Sun: When God puniſheth a Man that is wicked, and proſpereth the ſame Man, becoming a Penitent, he is ſtill the ſame. If a man walk on one ſide of a Church, the Pillars are on his left hand, if on the other ſide, on his right hand: The Pillars remain where they were, the motion or change is in the Man.
But Creatures are all mutable; the Heavens ſeem conſtant, but it is in inconſtancy; their perpetual motion ſpeaks their perpetual alteration: Pſal. 102.26, 27. They ſhall periſh, but thou ſhalt endure, they ſhall wax old as a Garment, (that is, wearing out, and waſting every day); as a Vesture ſhalt thou change them, and they ſhall be changed, but thou Lord art the ſame for ever. The old Heavens will paſs away, and new ones ſucceed in their room at the general Conflagration, but the God of Heaven will never paſs away. Man is ever in motion, from one condition to another: His Body changeth in its age, conſtitution, temper, at laſt into rottenneſſe, duſt and corruption: I have ſaid to Corruption, thou art my Father, and to the Wormes, ye are my Brother and Sister, Job 17.14. His Soul changeth in its paſſions, affections, love hatred, delights, deſires: His whole man changeth in its place, company, carriage, converſation: He hath no conſiſtency while he is, he continueth not what he was, Job 14.2, 3. Angels are changeable, even the good Angels, though not as Men, yet as Creatures; as perfect as they are, they have this imperfection, 1. They are who once were not, and (in regard of themſelves) have a poſſibility not to be. 2. Angels may looſe what they have, and attain what they have not. 3. Angels are mutable in regard of place, ſometimes in Heaven, ſometimes on Earth. What little unchangableneſs is in Angels, is derivative, God is the original of it; their immutability at moſt is but from their Creation I ſuppoſe ſome time ſince; for the good Angels as well as bad were created mutable, but Gods immutability is from eternity. The whole World indeed is a Sea of Glaſs, Rev. 4.6. alwayes ebbing and flowing, never at a ſtay; but the Maker of the World may well ſay, I the Lord change not, Mal. 3.6.