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ple, hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not; make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes, lest they see with their eyes, and bear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and convert and be healed." Compared with John xii. 40, 41. "He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their hearts, that they should not see with their eyes, and understand with their hearts, and be converted, and I should heal them." These things said Isaias, when he saw his glory, and spake of him. It is manifest enough to any whose pre-conceived opinions do not turn them aside from the obvious sense of scripture, that our Lord Jesus Christ is the person here meant.

So Zech. xi. 12, 13. "They weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver: And the Lord [Jehovah] said unto me, Cast it unto the potter, a goodly price that I was prized at of them!" Compared with Mat. xxvii. 9. "Then was fulfilled that which was spoken, They took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued." The prophet here tells us, it was the Lord Jehovah that was thus valued, and that was Christ, as St. Matthew applies it.

That the name Jehovah is applied also to Christ in other places, I shall take frequent notice.

2. The name God, with some additional honour, is another name whereby God is distinguished from creatures, as, The true God, the great and mighty God, the only wise God, the only God, or God and none else, and God blessed for ever. For though upon some special account the word God is sometimes applied to a creature, yet it is without any honourable addition or epithet joined to it.

John xvii. 3.

1. The true God, is a distinguishing name. "This is life eternal to know thee the only true God." Now Christ is so called 1 John v. 20, 21. "And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols, Amen.”It is very unlikely that the apostle John should conclude his epistle with such a solemn charge against idolatry, or the worshipping that which is not God, and yet in the foregoing verse leave his expression concerning the true God so easily and so naturally to be interpreted concerning Christ Jesus, if he were not the true God.

It is farther evident, that he who is called the eternal life in this verse, is the true God, and it is as evident, that Christ is called the life, and the eternal life, in the same epistle; 1 John i. 2. For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and shew unto you that eternal life, [that is, the Son of God] which was with the Father and was manifested unto us."

2. The great and mighty God," is a distinguishing name; Deut. x. 17. "The Lord God, your God, is a great God, a mighty, and a terrible;" Jer. xxxii. 18, 19. “The great, the mighty God, the Lord of hosts is his name. Great in counsel, and mighty in works." Which appellations are given to Christ. Titus ii. 13. "Looking for the blessed hope, and the glorious appearance of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ, or as it may be properly translated, our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ;" Is. ix. 6. "To us a child is born, to us a Son is given, his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God."

3. "The only wise God," is a distinguishing name. 1 Tim. i. 17. "To the king, eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever, Amen." Rom. xvi. 27. "To God only wise be glory through Jesus Christ for ever, Amen." Which character is applied to Christ himself; Jude 24, 25. "Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy; to the only wise God our Saviour be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever, Amen." Now that this doxology is ascribed to Christ, it appears not only from this that he is called our Saviour, which is Christ's special title; but it is he who shall present the church without fault to himself, or before the presence of his own glory. See Eph. v. 25, 27. "Christ loved the church, and gave himself for it, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle,-and without blemish.

4. "The only God,” or “ God and none else," is another distinguishing name; Deut. iv. 35, 39. "The Lord he is God, and there is none else besides him;" Is. xlv. 5. "I am the Lord, and there is none else, there is no God beside me." Now whosoever will read the latter end of the xlv. chapter of Isaiah, from verse 15, to verse 25, will find several expressions of the same kind. "I am the Lord, there is no God else beside me; I am God, and there is none else;" and yet they are applied to this, who is eminently called the Saviour, verses 15, 21. “In whoin Israel shall be saved with an everlasting salvation." Verse 17. To whom "all the ends of the earth are to look that they may be saved." Verse 22. In whom we "have righteousness and strength." Verse 24. in whom the "seed of Israel shall be justified and shall glory." Verse 25. And to whom "every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall swear;" Verse 23. All which characters belong to our Lord Jesus Christ in the common language of the New Testament, and this 23d verse is particularly cited and applied to him; Rom. xiv. 10, 11. "We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ: For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every

tongue shall confess to God." And whosoever will read that chapter from the 6th to the 12th verse, will find the words Lord, God, and Christ, used very promiscuously for one another.

5. "God blessed for ever," is also a distinguishing name; 2 Cor. xi. 31. "The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is blessed for evermore." Rom. i. 25. They "worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever, Amen." Yet this name is given to Christ; Rom. ix. 5." Christ who is over all, God blessed for ever, Amen."

Here it is proper to be noted, that when the word God is applied to creatures in scripture, there is generally some degrad ing circumstances, or some diminishing expression added in the same place, to exclude them from any interest or share in the true godhead. But when it is ascribed to Jesus Christ, there are characters of additional honour often joined to it, to shew that he is the true God. So if Satan be called God, it is but the God of this world; 2 Cor. iv. 4. "If Moses be called god, it is a god that was made a god only to Pharaoh, and a god whose brother was a man." Exod. vii. 1. "I have made thee a god to Pharaoh, and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet."If magistrates are called gods, they are mortal gods; Ps. lxxxii. 6. "I have said ye are gods, but ye shall die like men." If angels are called gods, they are such gods as worship a superior God; Ps. xcvii. 7. "Worship him, all ye gods." But our Lord Jesus is called the "true God, the great and the mighty God, the only wise God, God, and there is none besides him, God blessed for evermore," as we shall shew hereafter.

II. The titles of God ascribed to Christ.

1. "The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.". This was, the glorious name whereby God described himself when he sent Moses to fetch Israel out of the land of bondage; Exod. iii. 6, 15. "I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, &c.And God said 'to Moses, thus shalt thou say to the children of Israel, the Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me to you. This is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations."

And yet the person who speaks this, is called "the angel of the Lord." Verse 2. "And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire, out of the midst of a bush ;" and it is plain, that he who sat or dwelt in the bush was God himself; Exod. iii. 16. and 4, 5. This is "the Lord God of the fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob, who appeared to Moses in the bush ;" all this is confirmed in the New Testament; Acts vii. 30. where this history is repeated. And when Moses would bless the tribe of Joseph with a divine blessing and the favour of God, he calls it the "good will of Vol. VI. I

him that dwelt in the bush ;" Deut. xxxiii. 16. Here I shall take occasion to enlarge a little on these appearances of Christ to the patriarchs. Christ Jesus is that God who called to Abraham and bid him offer up his son; Gen. xxii. 1, &c. for he is called the angel of the Lord, verse 11. when he "called to him out of heaven, and said-Now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy Son, thy only Son from me," that is, from that God who commanded him to be offered up. This was the angel of the covenant, and yet the God of Abraham." The angel which redeemed Jacob from all evil, is the God before whom his fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, and the God which fed him all his life long ;" Gen. xlviii. 15, 16.

And it is universally agreed by the ancient and modern writers, that this angel was the same who appeared to Abraham, when the word of the Lord came to him in a vision :" Gen. xv. 1, 2. This was the Lord who appeared to him; Gen. xvii. 1. "And said, I am the Almighty God." This is one of those "three men who appeared to Abraham; Gen. xviii. 1, 2. who is called Jehovah,” verse 13, 14, &c. "This was the man who wrestled with Jacob;" Gen. xxxii. 24. who is called God; verses 28, 30. who is styled the angel of God, the angel of the Lord, and the Lord, or Jehovah, promiscuously, in his appearance to Gideon; Judg. vi. 12, 14, 16, 20, 21, 22, 23. The Captain of the Lord's host, appearing to Joshua, who is called the Lord, or Jehovah; Josh. v. 14, 15. compared with vi. 2. who is also the angel of God's presence; Isai. Ixiii. 9. "The angel or messenger of the covenant;" Mal. iii. 1. and "the angel in whom is the name of God;" Exod. xxiii. 20, 21. or in whom godhead dwells; that is, the Messiah, or our Lord Jesus Christ, who appeared often to the patriarchs in a visible shape, as a prelude or token of his future incarnation.

Nor did he favour the patriarchs only with such a visit, but the prophets were blessed with it too. Isai. vi. is a plain instance of it, as we have shewn before, where Isaiah saw Christ in great magnificence and glory. Ezekiel had the same favour also, and that frequently; Ezek. i. 26. " And above the firmament that was over the heads of the living creatures was the likeness of a throne and the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it." Verse 28. "This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord, or Jehovah; and when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake." Chap. iii. 23. He enjoyed the same vision. And chap. viii. 1, 2, 3, 4. He was favoured with it again, and "the glory of the God of Israel was there." Chap. x. 15, 19, 20. The same again. And xi. 22. Amos also saw God in the form of a man or angel; Amos vii. 7. for "he stood upon a wall with a plumb-line in his hand," and talked with him. And chap. ix. 1. He stood on the

altar and spake to him. Zechariah, in the first six chapters of his prophecy, conversed with the angel of the Lord in the form of a man; as chap. i. 9. and ii. 1, 3. and iii. 1, &c. Yet this angel sometimes seems to be the same with the Lord or Jehovah; as i. 19, 20. and ii. i. 3, 5. and iii. 1, 2.

Now that most or all of these appearances was Jesus Christ, is generally owned by christians of all ages, and all parties; there are scarce any that have denied it.

And it is evident, that in these and other places this angel assumes the peculiar and distinguishing titles of the great God to himself: In his appearance to the more ancient fathers he called himself God Almighty; as in Exod. vi. 4. But when he appeared to Moses, he made himself known by his name Jehovah; verses 2; 3." And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the Lord, or Jehovah: And I appeared to Abraham, and to Isaac, and to Jacob, by the name of God Almighty; but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them." Now it was not possible for those to whom he appeared to distinguish him from the true and eternal God, when he used those express words, "I am God almighty, or all-sufficient, I am Jehovah, the Lord; I am that I am; I am the God of Abraham, &c." and Consequently they were necessarily exposed to the danger of idolatry, and in a manner, I may say, they were unavoidably led into it, if the person speaking to them were not really the true and eternal God, the proper object of divine worship.

It seems to me but a poor and feeble evasion to say, that all these magnificent and distinguishing names and titles of the great and blessed God might be assumed by the angel, or Christ, though he were but a creature, because he came in the name, and with the authority of the true God. 1. It is by no means agreeable to the majesty and high jealousy of God to give his name and glory thus to another, without any sufficient and most evident token of distinction. 2. It was too assuming and presumptuous in a creature thus to personate God, his Maker, without some present and apparent distinguishing marks of his own inferiority. And, 3. It was too hard and invincible a temptation to Abraham, and Jacob, and Moses themselves, to practise idolworship, and give divine honours to that which was not God.

It is therefore made clear to me with abundant evidence, that in all these appearances the true and eternal God himself was present; and, as it is expressed concerning Christ; Col. ii. 9. so in those figures and appearances, whether of light or fire, of a man or an angel, there dwelt all the fulness of the godhead bodily.

2. "The Lord of hosts" is another glorious and distinguishing title of God: He that is supreme over all the hosts or armies of heaven and earth. 2 Sam. vi. 2. " God, whose name

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