314 VINDICI^ EVANGELICiE.
grant, by restraining this participation of Christ in the foreknowledge and decrees of God to things concerning the church ; in which sense Socinus grants the knowledge of Christ to be infinite, namely, in respect of the church, Disput. de Adorat. Christi cum Christiano Franken, p. 15, But it being certain that he whose the prescience of God and his purposes are properly as to any one thing, his they are universally, it is too evident that he intends these things to be- long: to Christ no otherwise but as God revealeth the things that are to come concerning his church to him ; which respects his office as Mediator, not his nature as he is one with God, blessed for ever. Of the deity of Christ, neither in this nor the other place is there the least intimation in that author.
Q. But what scripture calleth Christ "the eternal Father" ?
A. Isa. ix. 6.
Q. What sayest thou thereunto ?
A, From thence a divine nature cannot be proved, seeing Chi'ist is called the " Father of eternity" for a certain cause, as may be seen from the words there a little before expressed. But it is marvellous that the adversaries will refer this place to the Son, which treats of the eternal Father, who, as it is evident, according to themselves, is not the Father. But Christ is said to be the " Father of eternity," or of the " world to come," because he is the prince and author of eternal life, which is future.
It were well for our adversaries if they could thus shift off this testimony. Let the words be considered, and it will quickly appear what need they have of other helps, if they intend to escape this sword that is furbished against them and their cause. The words of the verse are, " For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his naiiie shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince' of Peace."
1. Our catechists, confessing that this is spoken of Christ, and that he is here called " The everlasting Father" (they are more modest than Grotius, whose labour to corrupt this place is to be bewailed, having ventured on the words as far as any of the modern rabbins, who yet make it their business to divert this text from being applied to the Messiah), have saved me the labour of proving from the text and context that he only can possibly be intended. This, then, being taken for granted, that is that which is here affirmed of hiixi, that " his name shall be called," or " he shall be," and " shall be known to be" (for both these are contained in this expression), " Wonder- ful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince
' " At qutc scriptura Christum Patrera letemitatis vocat ? — Isa. ix. 6.
" Tu vero quid ad haac ? — Ex eo naturam divinam probari non posse, cum ccrtam ob causam Pater seternitatis Christus sit vocatus, ex ipsis verbis ibidem paulo superius expressis videre est. Mirum vero est adversaries hunc locum, ubi agitur de Patre aDterno, ad Filium referre, quem constat secimdum eos ipsos Patrem non esse. Pater vero ajtcrnitatis aut futuri seculi propterea dictus est Christus, quod sit princeps et autor vitaj seternoa, quae futui-a est."
TESTIMONIES TO THE DEITY OF CHRIST VINDICATED. 315
of Peace." He who is " The mighty God" and " The everlasting Father" is God by nature; but so is Jesus Christ. The expression here used of '•'The mighty God" is ascribed to God, Deut. x. 17, Nehem. ix. 82, Jer. xxxii. 18; and is a most eminent name of God, — a name discriminating him from all that are not God by nature. And this may be added to the other names of God that are attri- buted to Christ : as " Adonai," Ps. ex. 1 ; — " Elohim," Ps. xlv 6 ; Heb. i. 8; — "Jehovah," Jer, xxiii, 6, xxxiii. 16; Mai, iii. 1; Ps. Ixxxiii. 18;— "God," Johni. 1;— "The true God," 1 John v 20; — " The great God," Titus ii, 13, (of which places before); — and here " The mighty God, The everlasting Father,"
2. What say our catechists to all this ? They fix only on that ex- pression, " The eternal Father," and say that we cannot intend the Son here, because we say he is not the Father ; and yet so do these gentlemen themselves! They say Christ is the Son of God, and no way the same with the Father; and yet they say that upon a peculiar account he is here called " The eternal Father,"
3, On what account, then, soever Christ is called "The eternal Father," yet he is called so, and is eternal. Whether it be because in nature he is one with the Father, or because of his tender and fatherly affections to his church, or because he is the author of eternal life, or because in him is life, it is all one as to the testimony to his deity in the words produced. He who is " The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace," is God by nature; which was to be confirmed.