andhiJ Son !fefus Chrtfl• i89 m~ofl Latitude ofGod's vatt Purpoles, which he made in Chrift, befides thole~--, of Man's Redemption, and the beginning ofall his WayS; ad extra. .. ~ 2. Not as Second Perfon fingly confidered, for he is there made the ObjeCl of God's Decrees; which as God's Son fimply coofidered, . be did no way come under: But only as God-Man, r Pet. L 19, 20, 2 L BHt with the preciow Blood v[Chrijl, as of a Lmtb withont Blemijh and withont Spot: Who verily was fore– ordained before the Fvundation of the World, bnt was manifefl 7n theft lajt Times for ) '011; Who by him do believe in God that raifed him np from the Dead, and gave hi1n Glory, thatyonr Faith and Hope might be in God. And yet WifdoiJt, or Chrjfl as here fpoken, is made the ObjeCl of aDecree of God's, I was fit np .fro!Jt ever, lajling, and the Lord poJ!ejfed me in the beginning ofhi<r Way : that is,he fo defigned and decreed me afore all his other Ways, and as the Foundation of them: Or as the Revelation bath it, The beginning of the CreatiPn of God, Rev. 3· 14. .And •mto the Ar~gel of the ChHrch of the Laodiceans, write, Tlefe Things foith the A"'Cil, the foithfitl and tme Witnejl, the beginning ofthe Creation of God. · Now compare but this 1Jrov. 8. with this of}ohn I. from the fecond Vcrfe; belldes, that the Titles are in.EffeCl and Significancy the lame in the Original Languages, the Word, and Wifdont, you will find, that Soi011t01t !peaks but. the Ctme Things of him there, that John cloth here; he calls hi111 by the fame Nam(·, (that is, the fame in Senfe and Meaning) for Wifdom and oMy@' the Word, are all one, and both refpeClus; that which is there in John, fa id of the Word; That He 1Vtll in the Beginning, is verf 2 2. ofthe 8th of Proverbs faid, The Lord pojfejfed me in the Beginni>;g of his W,l)': And fo it may explain what is meaot..b.y [In the Beginning] here; namely, of the Creation, alluded to there: For tht;: Ways of God are his goings forth towards the Creatur<S, whi~h are calle~ .Opera ad extra; and therefore is not meant of his F;ternal Generation: for fo, Chrifl is not the beginning ofGod's Ways. That Spee<;h isall one withCol. us. Where he is called, The Firft-Born ofevery Creat11re, being in God's Decree of Creation, the Fir Pc; the Corner-Stone, and Beginning of the rel'c: So as it mul'c be meant ofChrifl, as God-Man, and not !imply as Second Perfon. Again, That which is here C1id, [was with God, J is there laid [ tbc Lord pojfejfed me; J they dwelt together: He was with God as poffeffed of him. And veri: 30. Tben was 1by bim; and from verf 23. to verf ;o. He rehearfeth the particular Works of Creation, by Parcels; as here they are in this one Sum, AUThings were made by hin1. And verf 30. that which is tranflated {I "''" bro11ght "P ,.ilh him,] as a Nourilbing, -or one nourilbed Pafftvely taken, is rendred by JttniJH Actively, [ed11cam J as one Nourifl1ing; that is, by my Power fitpporting the Creatures, and God's Decrees about them, and his Purpofc to Create. And· that which is here laid, that he was [The Life of M,m,J is there L1id, verf. 31. [L£tifcam,] that is, Blef/i"g; or with Blejjing, 111JAj11g jo;fitl the Sons of Me11: So J•niw out of the Hebrew reads it; and Cartwright alfo, with others : So as the one Place may interpret the other. Nor doth this Interpretation, weaken or derogate any thing, from alledging thefe Texts as firong Proofs, for tl)e aClual Exil'cing of the Second Perfon, as Son ofGod, begotten by him from Everlal'cing. For, look as the Greatnefs of aTerjimage, doth argue the Greatnefs ofthe Perfon in his Birth, (when fuch or fuch an Office br Dignity goes by Birth.) So here, all this laid hitherto, cloth neceffarily fuppofe and argue our Chrift to have been God; (as John affirms) and Natural Son ofGod: And that he did then alfo aClually exil'c, as bearing and fufiaining this Dignity and Office afore God, of being his Word and Wij~ dom. Infomuch, as if this Natural Greamefs of his Perfon, were not as the S~tbjlratilin, firfi fuppofed, and laid down, all thefe Aflenions we have infilled on, would fall at once to the Ground, as having no Bafis or Foundation to fiand upon: Ifthere were not a Perfon of Original Worth for fuch a Place.and Employmenrs. And accordingly, the Apoflle, Heb. 1, argues and infers from the one to the other; and alfo this rJ1 ofJohn, That He is God. To come then to that which Is eminently and fummarily intended in his bein·g called the Word, in refpeCl of his then ful'caining and alf'uming the Perron of God-Man, in relatidn to all God's Works 1 Ways, and Cotrnfels, whereof ]Pbn gives
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