DISCOURSE III. 811 in Iieb. i. 3. the express image of Ais Father's person, it must be understood either of his divine nature or his human. If it be understood of his divine nature, it must mean that he is the image of the Father's essence or of his personality, for the per- sonality together with the essence, make up the complete cha- racter of God theFather., But the divine nature of Christ cannot properly be the image of his Father's nature or essence; for the essence of godhead, or the divine nature both in the Father and in the Son, is one and the same individual nature or essence, which cannot properly be the image of itself, nor can the same individual essence be both the original and the image at the same time. When we conceive of the self-same body, or the self-same man, or the self-same angel, in different positions or situations, cir- cumstances, relations, or appearances, we never say that the self-same thing is the image of itself. Thus Christ in hisdivine essence cannot be the image of the Father's essence, when it is the same individual essence with that of the Father. The es- sence, of God in the person of the Son cannot properly be the image of that essence in the person of the Father, since it is the same individual essence. Nor is Christ in his divine nature an express image of the personality of the Father. Sonship is no image of paternity: A derived property or subsistence is no image of an underived property or subsistence, but just the reverse or directly contrary to it. since therefore Christ in his divine nature is neither the image of his Father's essence, nor of his Father's personality, these words must be spoken with regard to Christ's human nature; and in this respect he is the express image of bis Father, or the image of the invisible God; and that, these, three ways : 1. As the human soul of Christ is a creature, which has the nearest likeness to its Creator. This Son of God is a most glo- rious Spirit, the brightest and nearest image to the Father, the eternal glorious Spirit; far nearer than the angels who are also the sons of God, or than Adam who was the Son of God too ; for his properties and perfections are much greater than their's, and bear a much nearer resemblance to . the properties and per- fections of God the Father. -2. The human nature of Christ is the image of the invisible God the Father, as he often assumed a visible form under the Old Testament, and appeared, and spake, and acted as God in a visible glory; and so he is the proper imageof the invisible God, Col. i. 15. -3. As he took upon him, in the fulness of time, a visible body of flesh and blood, and therein appeared as one in whom the fulness of the godhead dwelt bodily, the visible image of his invisible Father. QQ2
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