of the prophets of old, and in the days of Noah, so long before his being born according to the flesh, he was from everlasting, or had an existence antecedent to his incarnation ; but this is expi'essly affirmed of our Saviour. It was his Spirit that spake in the pro- phets; which if he were not, could not be, for of him who is not nothing can be affirmed. He preached by his Spirit in the days of Noah to the spirits that are in prison.
Of this latter place our catechists take no notice ; about the first they inquire, —
Q. What answerest thou to this?
A. Neither is a divine nature proved from hence: for the Spirit which was in the prophets may be said to be "the Spirit of Christ," not that he was given of Christ, but because he fore-declared the things of Christ, as Peter there spealcs ; " he testified l^eforehand of the sufferings of Christ, and the glorv that should fol-
248 VINDICI^ EVANGELICiE.
low." Which niannei' of speaking we have, 1 John iv. 6, " Hence know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error;" where it is not called the spirit of truth and error because truth and error as persons do bestow the spirit, but because the spirit of truth speaks the things of truth, and the spirit of error the things of error.*
1. It is confessed that if the Spirit that was in the prophets was the Spirit of Christ, then he hath a divine nature; for the only evasion used is, that it is not, or may not (possibly) be, so meant in this place, not denying but that if it be so, then the conclusion in- tended follows. 2. That this j^lace is to be interpreted by 1 John iv. 6 there is no colour nor pretence. Christ is a person ; he was so when Peter wrote : truth and error are not, and the spirit of them is to be interpreted according to the subject-matter. 8. The Spirit in other places is called the Spirit of Christ in the same sense as he is called the Spirit of God, Rom, viii, 9, Gal. iv. 6. 4. The Spirit of Christ is said directly to take of his and show it to his apostles, John xvi. 15; and so he did to the prophets. They may as well, on the pretence of 1 John iv. 6, deny him to be the Spirit of God the Father as the Spirit of Christ, as being of him and sent by him.
And thus far of the testimonies proving the pre-existence of Christ unto his incarnation, and so, consequently, his eternity: whence it follows that he is God over all, blessed for ever, having this evi- dence of his eternal power and Godhead. Sundry others of the same tendency will fall under consideration in our progress.
CHAPTER X.
Of the names of God given unto Christ.
In the next place, as a third head, our catechists consider the scriptural attributions of the names of God unto our Saviour, Jesus Christ; whence this is our argument: —
" He who is Jehovah, God, the only true God, he is God properly by nature ; but Jesus Christ is Jehovah, the true God, etc. : therefore he is God properly by nature."
The proposition is clear in itself. Of the innumerable testimonies which are or may be produced to confirm the assumption, our cate- chists fix upon a very few, — namely, those which are answered by
' " Quid ad hoc rcspondes ? — Neque hinc naturam in Christo divinam effici ; nam hie Spiritus qui in prophetis erat, Christi dici potest, non quod a Christo datus fuerit, scd quod ca quae Christi fuerunt prnenunciarit, ut ibidem Petrus ait, proenuncians illas in Christum passiones, et post hsec glorias. Quern loquendi modum ctiam, 1 Job. iv. 6, habcs, Hinc cognoscimus spiritiim veritatis, et spiritum erroris ; ubi non propterea spiritus veritatis et erroris spiritus dicitur, quod Veritas et error, tanquara personae, cum spiritum conferant ; verum eo, quod spiritus veritatis loquatur quae veritatis sunt, et spiritus erroris quce sunt erroris."
DEITY OF CHRIST PROVED, ETC. 249
Socinus against Weik the Jesuit, whence most of their exceptions to these witnesses are transcribed. To the consideration of these they thus proceed : —
Ques. What are those places of Scripture which seem to attribute something to Christ in a certain and definite time ?
Ans. They are of two sorts, whereof some respect the names, others the works, which they suppose in the Scriptures to be attributed to Christ.
Q. Which are they that respect the names of Christ ?
A. Those where they suppose in the Scripture that Christ is called " Jehovah," etc., Jer. xxiii. 6; Zech. ii. 8; 1 John v. 20; Jude 4; Tit. ii. 13; Rev. i. 8, iv. 8; Acts XX. 28; 1 John iii \Q}
The first testimony is Jer. xxiii. 6, in these words, " In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, Jehovah our righteousness." To which add the next, Zech. ii. 8.
Before I come to consider their exceptions to these texts in par- ticular, some things in general may be premised, for the better under- standing of what we are about, and what from these places we in- tend to prove and confirm : —