5 SERMON CIIIo The Incomprehenfiblenefs of God. JoBXI: 7, Canfl thou by fearching find out God? Canll thou findout the Almighty unto ?erfeerfion ? IN treating of the Propertiesand Perfections of God, I ¡hall at prefent con- fider that which refults from the Infinite Excellency of his Nature and Perfection, compared with the Imperfection of our Underftandings, which is commonly caIl'd the Incornprehenfblenefs of God. This you have expreffed here in the words of zophar, Canfl thou by feárching findout God? &c. There is no great difficulty in the words; Canft thou h _Parching find out God, potefne perve/ligare intima Dei, fo Caflalio tranflates it, Doft thou knowGod inti- mately, and throughly within and without ? Canft thou pierce into the centreof his Perfeáions, and dive into the bottom of them ? and, Canfl thou find out the Almighty toperfeflion ? Cana thou find out the Almighty, ufque adultimo, to the very laft and utmoft of him ? fo as thou canft fay after a thorough fearch and en- " quiry, " There is no Perfection in God beyond this, There is nothing ofhim " now that remains to be known; thishe is, and no other; that he is, and no " otherwife ; this he can do, and no more ; hither doth his Knowledge, and " Power, and Wifdom reach, and no farther. Conti thou do this ? Thefe interrogations have the force of a vehement negati. on ; as if he had laid, no, thou rang not ; God is Unfearchable, he is Incomprehen- fble. The two Queftions in the Text feem to be only two feveral expreflìons of the fame thing. The firft Queftion is undoubtedly general, concerning the Nature and Perfections of God in general Canfl thou by fearching find out God ? Canft thou by the molt diligent fearch and enquiry come to a perfect Knowledge and Underftanding of him ? The fecond Queftíou may feem to be a particular inftance to the general truth implied in the firft Queftion ; he feems to inftance in his Power; as if he had Paid, God is unfearchable, and then had inftanced in a particular Perfeétion, the power of God, Cang thou by fearching find out God? Thou canft not comprehend the Divine Nature and Perfections in general ; Canfl thoufind out theAlmighty unto Perfection? Confider particularly his Power, and fee if thou canft know the utmoft of that. But I rather think, that the latter Queflion is altogether the fame in fenfe with the former ; and that the Attribute of Almighty, which is here given to God, is ufed by way of Defcription, and not intended by way of Inftance. Canll thou find out the Almighty, that is, God, unto Perfetlion? Which way foever we take the Words, it is not much material ; we may ground this Obfervation upon them. That God is Incomprehenfble, This Term or Attribute is a relative Term, and (peaks a relation between. an Objet and a Faculty, between God and a Created Underftanding ; fo that the meaning of it is plainly this, That no Created Underftanding can comprehend God, that is, have a perfe& and exact knowledge of him, fuch a knowledge as is adequate to the Perfeeeion of the Object. Or thus, the Nature and PerfeQi- ens of God are above the Underftandingof any of his Creatures; it is only his own infinite Underftanding that can frame a perfeét Ideaof his own Perfeétion. God knows himfelf, his own Underftanding comprehends his own Perfections : But he ilkIncomprehen/ble to his Creatures, In..
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