of their Siaie by Creation. 6t . and believing on him: And l Co.-. t;. 12. though it be but darkly, m1d i11 a w ' G!af.r' yet it i's fa id we rr~ .tU m"Gtaji. So I Joh!l 3· 6. The like Phrafe is U• Chap. 7· fed; He t'h,Jt (innetf; '· hrlt'h not Jetlt btm, tt~llhtY known h1m : That is, oot ~' known him with 'this Knowledge of fight. And thus_Fauh 1s a Knowledge of 'God as he is in bimfelf, though 1n the face of Chnft, and the Glafs ot the 'Gofp~l: But .ll!la~'s was but in his works by Collection, They gatheredHerct~lts by his foot!l~ps·:. So A dam collected G?ds power, ~c. ~rom the works of Cre.-rion: But'this IS (h·e preferrnng Gcd h1mfelf, though as m a Glafs, in the Gofpel: So it is not knowing God, ex atio; by Collellion from an.other thing, bur knowing God h1mfelf m alto, m t11t othe.-lhmg,whetemby 1}1s own Light he prefents himfetf as a Man Cloth in a Glals; Th·cDifferen-c~emay lie el.:preffedby waybf Similitude, by thcfeveral ..·ays of Affurante of Co·d's love. Look, what difference tkere is between that way; when we know Gotls love to us but by figns only, this is knowing and gather– ing his love, pi alio, by effect; Collecting it from another thing, and,fo ~-s but difcourfiv·e ; ·as when the Caufe IS known by the Effects, though the Sp!· rit fecre'tly joyns a<reftimony in the Condufton, and that other which comes frol1! an immediate Light of the Spirits fealing up that Light, and the ta!le of it, and reV'e·alfng Gods heart and rriind i'n itfelt towards us; Thi; is fo tranfcen– dent hs it worl<S joy 'unfp-eakable and Glorious; it is intuitive : Not fo the o" rhet:' Such difference is there between Adam's knowing God and ours. Or to fet oat ttle d<ffcr~nce by another Inftance. When Job, at Iart in the winding up of Gods dealing~ With him, had a more di!linct intuitive reprefentation of G!)d to his Faith,ct>mp11·ting it with many ofhis former Apprehenfions wrought,Jo~ 4:2.. S· he com;pares them to fecond hand Knowledge, a Hear-fay, by the hear, ing of the E:tr: l1u111~w, fays he, mine eyts havt j:em him. How di!lind: and differing is fillhtto hear.fay? And it may be, that hear-fay Knowledge Jo6meanr, was, That knowing God by the Works of Creation and Provi– dence, and by Vitions, ~c. He may compare that way of Knowledge, which was familiar in thofe times, even to Believers ; God training them up, though they had a Principle of Faith beyond it, in the Elements of the World before the Law, to !ludy him in his Works and ordinaty Viftons; which is called comparatively but the hearing with the Ear; both becaule the manner of the Godly then, was to talk together of God out of his Workt, and communicate fuch Obfervations, And, as I find fome Interpreters obferve on Chaptt.- 36. 2+ where Etihzt going about to in!lruct Jo6 with a fenfe of the greatnefs of God's Majefty, he ca!ls upon him to look into his Works which men have Sung: So S:m8ill4 renders it. He minds him ofthe common Songs men made of the Works of God; or elfe becaufe the Heavens, and Day and Night, are faid to have a voice, and utter fpeech, Pfal. '9· '' 2. :is Man_an Ear to hear their found, todeclare the Glory of Gocl: To whofe voice Jo6 had lent his Mind to !ludy God out. Add unto ;his, that Phrafe ufed in that 36th Chapt.2).~trf. when Elihucalls upon Jo6 to fee God's greatnefs in his Wotks, which Sa118im m:rkes the be– ginnlog of that Song which Elihu minds 'Jo6 of, that holy men did fing. E· very man may fee what is the Work of God. Man beholds a{a.- off; fo 'tis in the Original: that is, God afar off in his Works. It is a remote, and but an obfcure Knowledge, and yet how great doth it argue him? So it follows, B•hotd,God is great and we k110w not; or, but little of him thus by his Works. And therefore,Rom.ug,2o.that Knowledge gotten by the Works ofGod,Paul calls 71 "'!"' 7;; e,; , fomething that may be known of God; rather than the Knowledge of him in himfelf, as indeed it is not, And though the Godly then had Faith as well as we now; yet the Covenant sfWorks and Nature be– ing more predominately the Difpenfation under the Law of Nature,they were in that very firft Infancy of the World very much kept to that Schoolrat leaf! in tlut form. As
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=