Secondly, These glorious works of God do indeed show the infi- nite glory of him that made them. This is the use that men should have made of their contemplation of them, and not have chosen them for their gods, as they did when “their foolish hearts were dark- ened,” and “they waxed vain in their imaginations.” This use the psalmist here makes of them, and this the Scripture everywhere directs us unto. This David brings them in preaching unto all the world, Ps, xix. 1-6. They have a voice, they speak aloud unto all the world; and by their beauty, greatness, order, usefulness, they make known the incomprehensible glory of him that made them. The 7) yywordy rod Ocod, “that which may be known of God,” is ma- nifest in them, saith Paul, Rom. i.19. And what is that? “Even his eternal power and Godhead,” verse 20; that is, his infinite power, all-sufficiency, and self-subsistence. These things are clearly seen in them. Being all made and created by him in their season, doth it not manifest that he was before them, from eternity, and that ex- isting without them, in perfect blessedness? And that he hath made them so beautiful, so glorious, so excellent, and that out of nothing, doth it not declare his infinite power, wisdom, and goodness? 1d they not all lead us to the contemplation of iis infinite excellencies? And whence is it that he who made all these things of nothing
VER, 6-9.) EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS. B45
should have such regard to the weak, frail nature of man? But that this consideration may be the more effectual, let us tako a little weak view of some of those excellencies of the nature of God which his works declare, and which set an especial lustre on his condescension unto us; as,—
Virst, His greatness, “ His greatnoss is unsearchable,” saith the psalmist, Ps. exly, 8; that is, it is infinite, The immensity of bis nature is his greatness, “'The heaven of heavens,” saith Solomon, “cannot contain him,” 1 Kings viii, 27. The infiniteness and ubi- quity of his essence are beyond all that the understanding and ima- gination of man can reach unto. If mon would set themselves to think and imagine a greatness, they can reach no higher than hea- vens above heavens, and that as far as they can fancy; but this ex- presseth not immensity. Those heavens of heavens cannot contain him, Our thoughts of greatness are apt to consist in adding one thing unto another, until that which we think on be extended unto the utmost of our imagination. But this hath no relation unto the immensity of God, which is not his filling of all imaginary place or space, but an infinite existence in an infinite space. So that as he is present with, indistant from the whole creation,—for saith he, “ Do not I fill heaven and earth?” Jor, xxiii. 24,—-so is he no less present where there is no part of the creation, And if he should produce thousands of worlds (which he can do by his power), he would be no less present in them all, indistant from every thing in them, than he is in and unto this which he hath already created; and this not by the extending of his essence and greatness, but by the infiniteness of his being. Neither are there parts in this immensity; for that which hath parts cannot be imfinite or immense, Somewhat of God is not present in heaven, and somewhat in earth; but God is wholly pre- sent in his whole being everywhere. ‘This leaves no place for the imagination-of men, but calls us for pure acts of understanding and faith to assent unto it. And thus far reason will go, that it will assent unto the truth of that which it cannot comprehend, because it is convinced that it cannot be otherwise. What remains it leaves to faith and reverential adoration. Reason having, by the help of divine revelation, led the mind and soul thus far, that God is im- mense, not only present unto the whole creation, but existing in his infinite being where no creature is, and that in his whole essence equally, there it gives them up to admiration, reverence, adoration, and the improvement by faith of this excellency of God, wherever they are. So doth the psalmist, Ps. cxxxix. 7-11. Thoughts of God’s omnipresence are of singular use to the soul in every condi- tion. And who can sufficiently admire this excellency of the nature of God? How astonishable is this his greatness! How are all the nations of the world as the “ drop of a bucket,” as the “ dust of the
346 AN EXPOSITION OF THE [CHAP. II.
balance,” as “ vanity,” as “nothing” before him! What is a little dust to an immensity of being? to that whose greatness we cannot measure, whose nature we cannot comprehend, whose glory we can only stand afar off and adore? What is a poor worm unto him who is everywhere, and who is everywhere filled with his own excellencies and blessedness? The issue of all our thoughts on this property of God’s nature is admiration and holy astonishment. And whence is it that he should take thought of us, or set his heart upon us? And this greatness of God doth he set forth, by showing what a mean thing the whole creation which we behold is unto him: “Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance?..... Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as a very little thing...... All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him Jess than nothing, and va- nity,” Isa. xl 12, 15, 17.