i zt Ofgod's gracious Operations on Man's Soul : tem ; quaprimà propriéque Intelleatis dicitur agenr : l'rimæ fub- ftanti,e adh'erens, abeaexcrerrens, indivifts er ¡Ion sitter ac Lumen à Lrecido emanat : and fo in many other particulars. (). r6. To all this my Mort time will allow me to give you but there flaortobfervations following : r. The doetrine of Redemption 'is fo mud of meer fupernatural Revelation, as that we mutt not eafily receive that concerning it,which is not in the Scriptures ; And whereChrilis pcrfonbath fuch a defcription in Scripture as hegiveth, Í am not fatisfied : ( e. g. inrag. 232. where he thus faith [«The Wordmade flefb, is the whole Tree 'of " Being, Uncreatedand Created, the Root, the Body, with all theBranches, «putting forth themfelves into one little top branch, now wiihering, that- " its death, they may renew all to a frefh and flourithing fpring: I am loth to fay that theUniverfe is Chrift : that his Divinity is the foal, and the world his body, and everyMan and Beaft and fubflance part of °it, and that he dyeth in all that dye, and that his body born of the Virgin Mary, was but one top branch of the Tree, which Chrift thus animateth, and fo that all other bodies are as truly perfonally united CO the ward, as that. 0. 17. I willnot denythat the Opinionof a Threefold nature in Christ; lookethvery plaufibly; viz. that the Divine eternal word ( the firft na- ture) produced and united itfelfto theprime created fuperaneelical Mind ( the fecond nature :) and that this fecond nature in the fulnefs of time produced and united it felf to the humane ( third) nature. i, There are many texts which feem to countenance it. 2. It feemeth to give Chrift the greateft honour, as being the molt excellent ofall Gods Creatures which is not fo eafilybelieved of him as Man. 3, It feemeth CO expoand thofe textsof the Old Teftament, which mentionloch appearances of God to Adam, Abraham and others, whichmanyof the Ancients faywas Chrift And it feemethto fome more probable that Come pre-exiftent created nature Ihould affume a body, :than,, the Divine nature only and immediately,' q. And it fmileth on us as an opinion likely to reduce and reconcile the Arians, (once toogreat a part of the Chriftian World, (as called Chri- flians) asnot onlyPhilotorgiva, and saudius Phew, but alfoPetavius de Tri- nit.) who holding the prime-created fuper-angelical nature, and denying the Divine, it's like would the more eafily be brought to acknowledge the Unionof the Divine Nature with the fuper-angelical, if the fuper-angcli- .cal it fell were firft granted them; For they might the fooner be convinced that the eternal wifdomor word,which made that firft creature, was inti- mately united to it. I know force pious worthy perlonswho upon. fuch reafonsincline to this opinion of a threefold nature in Chrift ; ( Though forceof them think that this fecond nature, was the humane foul, affirming only a body, andothers; that it aflùmed both foul and body.) 1 am not forward to takemen for unfuflerable Hereticks, that differ fromme,,or hold that which feemeth ro me hard and ftrange ; But I muff fay, r. That I (he no cogent proofof this fuper-angelical nature : 2 .That Teeming congruities and conveniences mud not emboldenus to take up adoctrine which is new and drange to the Church of Chrift, in fo great a matter as the Natures and perfon of Chrift are. 3. And were it never fo true, if it be not fuffici- ently revealed to usinGods Word, it cannot be necefláryto our falvation. 4. Yea prefumingtoo boldly to concludeof unrevealed things, (fo high ) feemeth tome dangerous temerity, curiofity, and prophanenefs, like the Bethfhemites or Uzzah'smeddling with theArk, and theSons of Aaron of- fering falfe fire. Let them therefore here thus proceed that dare. For I dare not. ?). 18, But
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