Watts - BX5200 .W3 1813 v.6

PROPOSITIONVIII. 137 earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens." But this leads me to the last distinguishing character, of godhead. V. Divine worship ascribed to Christ. Religious worship is so peculiar a prerogative of God that be will by no means suffer any meaner being to share in it. He assumes thischaracter to himself with a divine jealousy, lest any thing beneath God should partake Of it; Deut. vi. 13, 14, O. " Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve him, and shalt swear by his name. Ye shall not'go after other gods, for the Lord thy God is a jealous God among you, lest the anger of the Lord thy God be kindled against thee, and destroy thee from off the face of the earth." This charge is repeated again Deut. x. 20. and it is cited by our Lord Jesus Christ in these words ; Mat. iv. 10'. " It is written, thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." The first command doubtless includes this meaning, " Thou shalt have no other gods before me,"' that is, no other objects of wor= ship; and Ex. xxxiv. 14. repeats it, " Thou shalt worship no 'other God; for the Lord whose name is jealous, is a jealous God." Yet it is abundantly evident, that our Lord Jesus Christ is theproper object of worship, both for angels and men; lieb. i. 6. " And again, when he bringeth the first begotten into the world, he saith, let all the angels of God worship him." Which is cited from Ps. xcvii. 7. " Worship him all ye gods :" Upon which account "our Lord Jesus Christ may be called the God Of gods, as well as the Father; Deut. x. 17. Ps. cxxxvi: 2. since angels, which arecalled gods, must worship him. And let it be noted, that if our translation be right, this is not that worship or honour "which is given him as Mediator by the Fa- ther's appointment, upon the account of his sufferings and death, as it is elsewhere expressed, hut upon the account of his original divine nature, and as God now taking flesh : Though it must be confessed the Greek words rather bear this sense : When he bringeth again his first-begotten into the world, which may refer to his resurrection ; yet still it is evident, that angels must worship him. Our Lord Jesus Christ was worshipped as the true God, the Lord Jehovah, by the patri- arcos, when he appeared unto them in a visible shape under the Old Testament. He was worshipped also when lie dwelt on earth veryoften : but I will not cite nor insist on particular instances of this, be- cause some may doubt whether this were not sometimes a mere high degree of reverence and obeisance paid to him under the surprising influence of his miracles, which does scarce amount to religious worship, since his godhead was not then so fully

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