“ These words,” saith he, “being first expressly spoken of God, and here by this writer referred unto Christ, we must consider what in them makes to his scope and purpose, what is agreeable to the nature and condition of Christ, who certainly was a man; and such, certainly, is not he which the psalm speaks of about the creation of heaven and earth. And this was well known to them with whom the apostle had to do.”
But any one may perceive that these things are spoken gratis, and upon the supposition that Christ was a mere man, and not God by nature, when the words themselves, ascribing a pre-existence to the world and omnipotency unto him, do prove the contrary. What is the scope of the apostle in the whole discourse under consideration hath been showed, as also how directly this whole testimony tends to the proof of what he had proposed. It is true that the words are spoken of him who is God; but no less true, the apostle being judge, that it is the Son of God who is that God. It is true that
202 AN EXPOSITION OF THE - [omap. 1
he also was man, and nothing is ascribed unto him but what belongs unto him who was man, but not as he was man; and such was the creation of heaven and earth.
The opinion of these men is, that whereas two things are men- tioned in the words, the creation of the world, which was past, and the dissolution or destruction of it, which was to come, that the latter is assigned unto Christ, but not the former; and for this division of the words, which confessedly is not in the least intimated by the apostle, he gives these reasons :—
1. “ All the words of the psalm being manifestly spoken of the high God, and no word in the psalm declaring Christ to be that God, yet of necessity, if these words be applied unto Christ, he must be supposed to be the high God there spoken of. But if this divine writer had taken this for granted, he had been eminently foolish to go about to prove by arguments and testimonies that the Creator does excel all creatures. He should use, in a matter no way doubt- ful, witnesses no way necessary.”
This is the first reason whereby he would prove that the apostle did not apply the words to Christ, though himself says plainly that he does; for his preface to them is, “ But to the Son he saith:” or, that if he doth so, he doth it wondrous foolishly ;—for such liberty do poor worms take to themselves. That the psalm so speaketh of the high God, that it directly and peculiarly intends Christ the Son of God, hath been in part declared, and shall further afterwards be evinced. And the eulogium in these words given unto him proves him to be so. And though he affirms that it was a foolish thing in the apostle to prove from the works of him that is God that he is above the angels, the most glorious of made creatures, yet God him- self most frequently from these his works, his omniscience, omni- presence, and other attributes declared in them, proves his excellency in comparison of idols, which have no existence but im the imagina- tion of men. See Isa. xli, 21, ete.
By this testimony, then, the Holy Ghost with infinite wisdom proves that he who was made less for a little while than the angels, in one respect, was absolutely and in his own person infinitely above them, as being the creator of heaven and earth.
2. He adds, “ Those Hebrews to whom he wrote were either persuaded that Christ was God, the creator of heaven and earth, or they were not. If they were, what need of all these arguments and testimonies? One word might have despatched this whole controversy, by affirming that Christ was the creator, angels crea- tures, between whom there could be no comparison, nor any reason to fear that the law given by the administration of angels should be preferred to the gospel, whereof he was the author. If we shall say the latter, that they did not yet believe it, now do we suppose that
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he takes a great deal of pains to little purpose; for he assumes and takes for granted that that was true which was alone in question. What need he, then, to prove by so many arguments that Christ was more excellent than the angels, and to take that for granted which would have put it out of question, namely, that he was God, who made heaven and earth ?”
Ans. This dilemma hath as much force against the other testi- monies produced in this chapter or elsewhere by the apostle as it hath against this; so that the using of it doth scarce argue that re- verence to the holy word of God which is required of us. But the truth is, grant whether of the suppositions you please, nothing of inconveniency as unto the apostle’s argumentation will ensue. Let it be granted that they did believe, and that expressly, Christ to be God, have believers no need to have their faith confirmed by testi- monies out of the word that may not so readily occur to themselves? Have they no need to be strengthened in the faith, especially in such points as were in those days greatly opposed, as was this of the eternal glory of the Messiah, concerning which the believing He- brews had to do with learned and stubborn adversaries continually 2 And if the apostle might have ended the whole controversy by plainly affirming that he was the creator of all things and the angels creatures, might he not as well have ended the dispute about his pre-eminence above angels with one word, without citing so many testimonies to prove it? But had he then unfolded the mys- teries of the Old Testament to the Hebrews, which was his design ? Had he manifested that he taught nothing but what was before revealed (though obscurely) to Moses and the prophets; which he aimed to do, thereby to strengthen and confirm in the faith those that did believe, and convince gainsayers? Again, suppose some of them to whom he wrote did not yet expressly believe the deity of Christ,—as the apostles themselves did not for a while believe his resurrection,—could any more convincing way be fixed on to per- suade them thereunto, than by minding them of those testimonies of the Old Testament wherein the attributes and works of God are ascribed unto him? Nor was it now in question whether Christ were God or no, but whether he were more excellent than the angels that gave the law; and what more effectual course could be taken to put an end to that inquiry than by proving that he made the heaven and earth,—that is, producing a testimony wherein the creation of all things is assigned unto him,—is beyond the wisdom of man to invent.