titled, Fehevah, chap. 13. 8. His Aſſumption of the range to his Perton, Made no alteration in him, being ſtill the lame moſt excellent Perſon as ever, Mal. 3. 1, 6, 1 Cor, 12.5. q As the Being of God the Son is not meaſured nor determined by Tears or Tine, io, in reſpett of his Humanity, the Years which were the Meaſure of it ſhall never fail; tor being raiſed from the Dea, he hall die no more, but abideth for ever, John 12. 34. and ruleth as fore-toid, Luke 1. 33, 1 Pet. 4. 11, How tranſcendently excel- lent is. He,who is immutable and eternal for State and Name above Angels ? ;
13 But to which of the Angels r ſaid he at any
+ Mz, 22-time 5, * Sit thou at my Right Hand, until I make 44. vr. 3* chine Enemics thy Foot-ſtool t ?
Cs 18.12
*Pſal. 34, | 7.& 9. F-0
| Lan,7, 10,
f Gr. 14; at any time we ſhould let them + flip d.
bit as Jeak-
Wi Veſſels.
r This introduceth the laſt Demonſtration of the Goſpel-Mini- ſter's Pre-eminency for State,Office,and Name,above Angels : The
Form is thus; He that is God's Fellow and Right-hand Man,is more f
excellent,and hath a better Name than thoſe who are only Miniſters to his Saints, This to be the State of Chriſt he proves here; for to none of the Angels did Fehovah ever ſay this, He never gave them that Honour by his Word. It is an Interrogatory Challenge to the Hebrews to produce that Text in Scripture,which doth aſſert, that in any Time in any Place God gave ſuch an honorary Word to Angels : This was impoſſible for them to do, s Though God the Fa- vher never {aid this to any Angel, yet did he ſay this, and Records it in the Scripture to the Lord Chriſt. And it was a Word to h:m conftiturivum Rei, fixing the very thing, This is Recorded in P/alm 110, 1, where God's powerful Word ſetled Chriſt in the Honour, Glory and Dignity of Univerſal Lordſhip over Angels and Men, ſo as to Reign over them, 1 Cor, 15, 25. which Adminiſtration he 1s now in the Fleſh ſolemnly managing at the Right-Hand of his Fa- ther, verſe 2. ever ſince his Aſcenſion, and ſo is to continue. # Du- ring all the Time of this World, until by his Power he reduce, ſub- due, and ſub;ugate all to him, even every Thing and Perſon that ſhould be adverſe to his Soveraign Perſon and Kingdom, all Devils and Men, ſihjugating of them to the baſeſt Condition, to be trod under his Ecet, as Mire in the Street,utterly deſtroying them,when
he glorifieth his Saints, 2 Theſſ, 1. 7, to 11, The term of this Work,
until,loth nor denote the end of his Reign, as ifafter this he ſhonld not Reign, but is declarative of his Reign all the time before: Though his Enemies were many and ſtrong, yet it is ſaid, 1 Cor. 15. 24, 28. That then he ſhall deliver up the Kingdom to his Father, AS to his natural Kingdom, which is his, as Gu the Son, that is,equally enjoy with the Father, and that for ever, there is no end of it : But as to his Mediatory Kingdom given him by choice,and in a ſpe- cial manner appropriated to him as God-Man for his ſeaſon, this, when his Work is done, andall his Enemies ſubdued, he will reign unto the Father, that God may he all in all, _
14 * Are they not all miniſtring Spirits #,ſent forth to miniſter for them w who ſhall be Heirs of Salva- tion x ?
The Apoſtle here proves th Angels are but Miniſters to the great Goſpel-Miniſter,and to the Members of his Body the Church, and ſo muſt be meaner than him for State, Nature,and Name. T his NegativeInterrogation is a yehement Affertion. The Nature Dig: njty and Office of Angels were well known to theſe Hebrews out of the Old Teftament, and which he repeats : They were for Nature Spirits, intelle&ual,aQive, incorporeal and incorruptible Creatures, yet though ſo excellent, were till Creatures ; whereas Chriſt was an @71created Spirit, and they were but Servants to him their Lord; and though there be Degrees and Orders among them from the Axch- angel to the loweſt Angel, they are every one of them fingle, and all of them together Servants to Chriſt, and ſo they own themſelves to be, Kev, 19, 10, and 22. 9, w And ſo they move all at his Or- der ;and go and come at his Command. Their Imployment dirett- ed by him; he ſends them forth to deliver his Errants, Aits 5. 19. and 12. 7, 11, to reveal his Will to them, Rev. 1. 1, Pſal, 103. 21+ ©&:. All the parts of Miniſtry to which he appointeth them, they chearfully, ſwiftly, and effe&ually perform. x Such as God hath choſe and called to be Children to himſelf, and Joynt-heirs with his only Son, 2s have a Right to, are fitting for,and ſhall be at laſt poſ-
{eſt of eternal Glory ; theſe Angels are to ſerve and help them on for to attain it, they themſelves being ele in and by Chrift unto this end, 1 Tim. 5. 21, and 2 Tim, 2,10, All which demonſtrate him to be a more excellent Perſon, and to have a more excellent
Name than they. CHAP. IL
Greater Reverence due to the Goſp1 of Chriſt than to the Law given by Moſes through Argels. 1----4. nor are Angels but Chriſt conſtituted Head andK3ng of this new World ; this proved fromScripture applied ro his ſtate both of Humiliation and Exaltation, 5 9. by other Scriptures and Reaſons is proved that Chriſt is partaker of the ſame Nature and AffeFions with us : not ſo with the Angels ; and that for this end that he might be a Captain of Salvation : to ſantlifie his Brethren + deſtroy their Enemies, and deliv.r them ; and be a faith- ful and merciful High-Prieft for us, 10=—_—_—.
Herefore a we ought to give the more earneſt heed b to the things which we have heard c, leſt
4 In this and the three following Verſs the Apoſtle applieth the DoQtrine of the great Goſpel-Prophet's being more excellent for Nature and Perſon,than any,or all the Angels in reſpett of his Dei- ty ; and from thence inferreth the Duty,thar ſince God {peaking by the Prophets,is to be heard by thoſe to whom h= ſends chem 3 how much more when ſpeaking to them by his Son-Prophet, who fo infinitely excelleth not only all Prophets, but Angels too ? 6 We be- lizvers who know thethings ſpoken to be good for us, whether A- poſtles, Miniſters, or Chriſtian-Members, by the indiſpenſable ne- ceſſity laid on us by God's Precept, are obliged more abundantly, ex- cecding abundantly,than formerly they were ; more than they gave to Moſes and the Legal Miniftry, exceſſiyely beyond that, 2 Cor.11. 23, Epheſ. 2. 20, 19 gtve 22d with anattentive and intear mind, ſo I to bays hearts faſtged ty what was diligently gonttdered of be-
HEBREWSYS.