ICO Of the I\!!owledg of' {jod the Father, ~\..?Y'I And yet, as ifthe Apoll\e having enumerated thefe (though the chief) of Bo ° KIll. Jefus Chrift's Prerogatives; )Ct becaufe not all Particulars, but had given thefe ~ few ofall the reft for lnftance Ctke : therefore he turns up all whatever in there two Totals, or Generals. r. 1 hat in all he migbt have the Preheminence, or the Primacy : The meaning therwfis, That God ordered him to be fuch an one,as might not only have [all] manner ofPriviledges, that any in thisor the other World, do or may be fuppo– fcd to excel in; but alfo with a Preheminence, a Primacy in all, above what any one bath in any thing whereof he may boaf'c. And, 2. That it pleated the Father, That in him foould all Fulnefl dwell, verf. 19. Here is again another [.dii,J and a [ Ftdnefl] added to that [All]; an [Ail] for Parts, [a Fulnefl] for Degreer; a tranfcendency in all, above all. All thefe mentioned, are over and befidcs that great and eminent work and Service, ofreconciling us Men, as Sinners, to God: Which is, . The Founh Head. That ove~and bdides thefe Preh~minencies, be is the Reconciler and Redeemer, by the Blood ofhis Crols, verC 20. And (having made Peace through tl:e Blood of his Crofl) by him to reconcile all things unto himfelf, by him, I fay, whether they be thi11gs in Earth, or things in Heaven. So as that prehe– minence of things which is in the clofe of the 18th Verfc, as alfo that Fulnefs, verC 19. is dillinct from the work ofRedemption and Reconciliation, which ap– pears not only becaufe in all this·glorious defcription of him, from ver(. r 5· the Apof'clc mentions not the work of Redemption or Reconciliation, as making up any ofthis Fulnels, which in the 19th Verfe he intends: But further, he makes that a Surplufoge, or rather another Fulmjs over and above this ofReconciliation, here rehcarfed : So the Coherence carries it. For it pleafed the Father, that all Fulneji fbould dwell i11 him, and by him to reconcile, &c. verf. 20. As being a work bdides and fuperadded unto all his other Fulnefs ordained to be in him. As a Premife to all that follows, I have one thing to clear, which is neceiTary to found my way for the handling the forefaid Particulars; Namely, That all this fulnels,and the Particulars thereofmentioned in this Text,are at– tributed to Chrif'c, as God-Man; either as actually united, or to be united in one Ptrfon, and not only, or fimply confidered as God, or Second Perfon. For the better entertaining ofthis Affertion, and the taking off Prejudices, it , , is meet that the Reader fbould know, how that holy and greatt:f'c Light of the Reformed Churches, Calvin, in his Comment upon this Scripture, interpreting the very firf'c Pafiage, which leads on all the ref'c ; namely, That he is the Image ofthe Invi{ible God, fpeaks thus in his Comment thereon. He foews hereby,fays he, that it is be tJ!one by wbom God, tbat h othenvife invijib!e, is ma11ifefled to rH, accor– ding to th•t,No Man hath feen God at any time: The only Begotten that is in the Boj411J oftl.>e Father, he hatb manifejled him to"'· I kpow (fays he) how the .Ancients are rro"t to cxpotmd this; who beraufe they had a Controverfj with the Arrians (who held Cf.riji a wecr Creature) do urge this place for Chrijl:"s being ofthe fome FJJence or Na– ture with tf,e F(tther; (namely, fimply as Second Perfon and God.) But i>Z the mean time, the;' onntted tvhat Wd5 t/;e chief things in the Words; 1Jamely, how the F"thcr h"th exhibited, or expofed himfelf,tU in Chrift, to be /znown by w. And again, fays he, The Name (or Title) ofImage, is notJPok§n ofthe EjJence, but bath a Re– lation unto ta. So M therefore, Urift is the Image of God, becaufe he mak§s, a5 it nwe, God vifible unto w. Andyet withal, (fo he adds) For this is it aifoinferred, That C/;rift is oftheJtme EjJence with the Father; (namely, as Second Perfon.) For he cott!d not tmly (or to the Life) >·eprefent God to us, (namely, as God-Man); unlefl he were the ejfentia/ Word ofGod: it being not compatible to any Creature, to rtpreje11t God as here is intended. A wretched Papif'c, to caf'c odium upon Calvin, wrote a Treatife againf'c him, to prove him,out ofhis own Writings,unfound, in that great Article ofour Faith, the T,.i,it)', and about the God-bead of tbe Perfon of Chl"ijl, entituling his Book, Calvin Judaizmg, or turned Jew, and heaping up about 38 Scriptnres; which, as he c,y,, Cdvin perverted to fuch a meaning. He alledgeth his Comment on this, in the laf'c plac\:,.againf'c him. WhereofParew in his Opufiula,printed I 595, ' " undertook
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