430 QUESTIONS CONCERNING JESUS, pies understood him in the plain literal sense, ver. 29. for imme diately his disciples said unto him, Lo; now thou speakestplainly, and speakeat no parable. John viii. 58. Verily, I say unto you, before Abraham was, I am. And in his prayer to his Father, John xvii. 5. Now, O Father; glorify me with thyownself, with theglory' which I had with thee before the world was. Ver. glory which thou hast given nie, for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world. 4. He assumes to himself the character of the Son of God, and that in a more eminent and superior way than men or angels are the sons of God ; for he calls himself the only begotten Son of God ; John xiii. 16, 18. The beloved Son óf God ; John v. 20. which he also took care that his disciples should know, twice by a voice from heaven ; Luke iii. 22. at his baptism, and Luke ix. 35. at his transfiguration. Ile told them also that he was such a -Son of God as knew the Father so as none besides knew hirn ; Luke x. 22. such a Son as that " the Father shewed him all things'that 'himself did ;" John,v. 20. and that " whatsoever things the.Father dotti, these doth the Son likewise;" verse 19 that " the Father has committed all judgment to him, that all men should honour the Son as they honour the Father ;" verses 22, 23..and that ".the dead should hear the voice of the Son of God and live ; and as the Father hath life in himself, so bath he given to the Son to have life in himself;" which things cannot be supposed to be spoken of any mere creature, and therefore by this sort of language, he gave some intimations ofhis union with godhead, or his divinity, though the more name Son of God be not construed to so divine a sense. .5. He sometimes takes opportunity to acquaint, them with his most intimate union or oneness with the Father, and hispecu- liar communion with him. For when he says, John x. 29. My Father who gave me my sheep, is greater thanall ; yet he adds in the next verse, 1 and my Father are one; which I think are intimations of a superior and inferior nature, and that thedivine nature of the Father was in him. This also he discovers in some other places. John x. 38. " Believe the works that I do, that ye may know and believe that the Father is in me and I in him. John xi v. 7 -11. " If ye had known me, ye would have known my Father also ; and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficed' us. Jesus saith unto him, have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not -known me, Philip ? He that bath seen me, batti seen the Father ; and how sayest thou, shew us the Father ? Believest thou not that I am in the Fattier, and the Father in me? The words-that I speak unto you, I speak not of myself, but the Father that dwelleth in me, he dotti the works. Believe the that I am in the
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