88 P R 0 S 0 P 0 P E I A. Book I. God is called a SHADE, Pfal. cxxi. 5· '!'he Lord is thy Shade upon thy Right-hand, which denotes his heavenly Protection, which he affords Believers, as a Shade refrefhos and defends from the fc01·chin(! 1-leat of the Sun ; hence fuch are faid to abide under the Shadow of the Almighty, Pfal. xci. 1. When it is faid the Shadow of his Wings the Metaphor becoh10s double and more emphatical, for he is not only a pleafant Shac\~ in dry and torrid Places, but fuch a nourifhing protecting Shade as the Hen's Wings are to her Chickens; and fo denotes a Gngular Love and Care. We read alfo of the Shadow of God's Hand, which alfo denotes a firong Protection againrt all Enemies, for a Hand when attributed to God denotes fo much. Of which before. There is an eminent Empbajis in that Text, Luke i. 35· and the Angel anfwered -and faid unto her, '!'be Holy Gbo.ft Jbaii come upon thee, and the ,Power of the Higbeft jhall over jhadow thee, ""~""'"" ~"· Mary being aftonifhed by the View of that Ange: lical Mdlenger, enquirecl Verfe 34· How jhall this be, feeing I know not Man? viz. what was faid, Verfe 3t. /}nd behold thou jhalt conceive in thy Watilb, and bring forth a Son, and thou /halt call his Name ']ejitS. He jhall be great, and jhali be called the Son of the Higheft, &c. Verfe 32. To Mary wondering at this, the Angel anfwers, that it fhould be by the fupernatural, and moft lingular Operation of the Holy Spirit and Power of the Higheft, wh;ch Operation is by an Anthropopathy exprelfed by overjhadowing, defcribing th~ Manner thereof, as that there fhould be Divine Protection, which is the metaphorical Signification of a Shadow, as before. For God being a confuming Fire, would confume Mary, by filling her with his peculiar and majeftical Glory, unlefs there were fome Divine Ob-umbration or Shade between; as God covered Mofes with his Hand in .that peculiar and extraordinary Appearance of his Divine Glory, left by the dazzling and Majefty of God's Pre!C:nce he fhould be cbnfumed, Exod. xxxiii. 22. It may alfo refpeEt that hidden Formation of that moft holy Child in the Virgin's Womb, and his . being fecured from the kart Spot of Sin, in his moft admirable Union with Humanity. : This Emphajis the Word ( Sbadow) carries, which being contrary to Light is a Note of the incomprehrnlible and hidden Energy of God; intimated alfo by the Shadow of q Cloud over the 'l'abemac!e, Exod. xl. 35· Let this Shade therefore be a Prohibition from ·any rafh or curious lnquiGtivenefs into this adorable Myftery. The Cloud was put over the Tabernacle, that we fhould not rafhly rufh in, and the Cherubims covered the Ark, 2 Chron. v. 8. left any Body fhould be cunoufly prying into the Majefty of God which dwelt upon it: So the Shadow of the Higheft, ob-umbrates this Myftery, left our foolifh Reafon fl>ould be inquiGtive into the Manner of it. And fo with a Sha– dow of imperfect Revelation of thefe Divine Things, we end this Chapter. C H A P. lX. Of METAPHORS whereby 'l'hings are propofed as Petfons, which are not Perfons, which Kind they call PROSOPOPEI A. pROSOPOPEIA is, wben any 'l'hing (which is not a Perfonj is metaphorically introduced or propofed as a Perfon: Or wben the Properties of a Man are attributed to ,other 'l'hings, for 'l'hings, for Likenefs and Agreement's Sake. Prophane Authors ufe very elegant Metaphors of this Kind, as that of Cicero. What did that drawn Sword of yours do in the Pharfalian Field? Whofe Side did that Point feek? What was the ~enfe of your Arms. Arijlotle defines this Metaphor, That which is in AEt, bringing in inanimate Things doing fomething, as if they had Life and Senfe; but we will fol· low the diftinC1: Clalfes of Scripture Examples. Some Things are faid of the Members of a Human Body, which are properly the AEt of the M ind, as Gen. xlviii. He made his Hands to ttnder.ftand, (fo the Hebrew*) that is, (as Vatabltts and our Tranflation notes) he guided or laid his Hands knowingly, fkilfully
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