Ser. 136. First, That God is the only wife God. In handling of this, I fhall fhew, 1. In what fenfe God may be faid to be the only wife God. 2. Prove that this attribute belongs to God. J. In what fenfe God may be faid to be the only wife God. For anfwer to this, we may take notice, that there are fome perfections of God that are incommunicable to the creatures; as his independency and eternity: Thefe God only poffeffeth, and they are to be attributed to him alone; God only is independent and eternal: but there are other perfections which are communicable, that is, which the creatures may, in fome measure and degree, partake of, as knowledge, and wifdom, and goodness, and juftice, and power, and the like; yet thefe the fcriptures do peculiarly attribute to God; not that they are altogether incommunicable to the creature, but that they belong to God in fuch a peculiar and divine manner, as doth fhut out the creature from any claim or title to them, in that degree and perfection wherein God poffeffeth them. I fhall give you fome inftances of this. His goodness, this is referved to God alone, Matth. xix. 17. Why calleft thou me good? there is none good, but one, that is God. His power and immortality, 1 Tim. vi. 15, 16. Who is the bleffed and only potentate; who only hath immortality. His wisdom, 1 Tim. i. 17. The only wife God: Rom. xvi. 27. To God only wife be glory. His holiness, Rev. xv. 14. For thou only art holy. The tranfcendent degree and fingularity of thefe divine perfections which are communicable, is beyond what we are able to conceive: fo that although the creatures partake of them, yet in that degree and perfection wherein Gad poffeffeth them, they are peculiar and proper to the Deity: fo that, in this fenfe, there is none good but God; he only is holy, he is the only wife: in fa inconceivable a manner doth God poffefs even thofe perfections, which in fome degree he communicates; and we can only understand them, as he communicates them, and not as he poffeffeth them; fo that when we confider any of thefe divine per. perfections, we must not frame notions of them contrary to what they are in the creature: but we must fay that the goodness and wisdom of God are all this which is in the creature, and much more, which I am not able to comprehend. This being premifed in general, God may be faid to be only wife in these two refpects: I. As being originally and independently wife. 1. God only is originally and independently wife. He derives it from none, and all derive it from him: Rom. xi. 33, 34. O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unfearchable are his judgments, and his ways paft finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord, or who hath been his counsellor ? Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompenfed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and to him are all things; to whom be glory for ever. Amen. He challengeth any creature to come forth and fay, that they have given wildom, or any other perfection, to God: No, all creatures that are partakers of it, derive it from him: Prov. ii. 6. For the Lord giveth wisdom. Ecclef. ii. 26. God giveth to a man that is good in his fight, wisdom, and knowledge, and joy. Dan. ii. 21. He giveth wisdom to the wife, and knowledge to them that know understanding. 2. He is eminently and tranfcendently fo: And this follows from the former, becaufe God is the fountain of wisdom, therefore it is moft eminently in him: Pfal. xciv. 9, 10. He that planted the ear, hall he not hear? be that formed the eye, shall he not fee? he that teacheth man knowledge, shall nor he know? In like manner we may reafon concerning all other attributes of God, that if he communicates them, he is much more eminently poffeffed of them himfelf; the greatest wifdom of the creatures is nothing in oppofition to the wisdom of God, nothing in comparison to it. Nothing in oppofition to it: Job. v. 13. He taketh the wife in their own craftiness. Job ix. 4. He is wife in heart, and mighty in ftrength: Who hath hard ened Ser. 136. ened himself against him, and profpered? Prov. xxi. 30. There is no wisdom, nor understanding, nor counfel against the Lord. 1 Cor. i. 19. He will deftroy the wisdom of the wife; ver. 29. and by foolish things confound the wife. Nothing in comparison of it. There are a great many that pretend to wisdom; but most are deftitute of true wifdom: and thofe who have it, have it with many imperfections and difadvantages. Ufually those who are deftitute of true wifdom, pretend moft to it: Job xi. 12. Vain man would be wifse, though he be born like a wild afs's colt. The high and the great of this world pretend to it: Job. xxxii. 9. Great men are not always wife. Learned men, they pretend to it; the heathen Philofophers were great profeffors of wisdom : Rom. i. 22. Profeffing themfelves to be wife, they became fools: They were wife to do evil, but to do good they had no understanding, as the Prophet fpeaks, Jer. iv. 22. The politicians of the world, they pretend to it; but theirs is rather a craftinefs than a wifdom. Men call it prudence; but they are glad to use many arts to fet it off, and make it look like wifdom; by filence and fecrecy, and formality, and affected gravity, and nods and gestures, The fcripture calls it the wisdom of this world, 1 Cor. ii. 6. and a fleshly wisdom; 2 Cor. i. r2.. It is wif dom mifapplied; it is the purfuit of a wrong end.. The petty plots and defigns of this world are far from wifdom: 1 Cor. iii. 20. The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wife, that they are vain. That can. not be wisdom, which miftakes its great end, which minds mean things, and neglects those which are of greatest concernment to them: Job xxii. 2. He that is wife, is profitable to himself. Prov. ix. 12. If thou be wife, thou shalt be wife for thyself. Tully tells us, Ennius was wont to fay, Ne quicquam fapere fapientem, qui fibi ipfi prodesse non quiret: The wife fages of the world as to the beft things are fools, Mat. xi. 25. God hath hid these things from the wife and prudent. There are many that are wife in their own conceits; but there is more hope of a fool than of them, Prov. xxvi. 12. So that the greateft part of: that which paffeth for wifdom among men, is quite another thing. Nihil tam valde vulgare quàm nihil Sapere; we talk much of prodigies, maximum portentum vir fapiens, Tully. Thofe few in the world that are the children of true wisdom, they have it in a very imperfect degree; they are not ufually fo wife for their fouls, and for eternity, as men of this world. Luke xvi. 8. The children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light. It is attended with many inconveniencies, Eccl. i. 18. In much wisdom there is much grief; he speaks of the wisdom about natural things. But we need not inftance in the folly of wicked men, and worldly men, and in the imperfect degrees of wisdom which are to be found in good men, in wildom's own children; the wifdom of God needs not these foils to fet it off: the wifdom of man in innocency, or of the higheft Angel in heaven bears no proportion to the unerring and infinite wifdom of God. We mortal men, many times mistake our end out of ignorance, and apply unfit and improper means for accomplishing good ends; the Angels in glory have not a perfect comprehenfion of the harmony and agreement of things, of the unfitnefs and oppofition of them one to another but the divine wifdom propounds to itself the highest and best ends, and hath a perfect comprehenfion of the fitnefs and unfitnefs of all things one to another; fo that the Angels are but foolish beings to God. Job iv. 17. His Angels he chargeth with folly.. Job, upon a full enquiry after wisdom, concludes that it only belongs to God, that he only is perfectly poffeffed of it, Job xxviii. 12, c. But where shall wisdom be found, and where is the place of understanding? In fuch an eminent and tranfcendent degree it is not to be met with in any of the creatures; God only hath it, ver. 23. God knoweth the place thereof. II. I fhall prove that this perfection belongs to God, 1. From the dictates of natural reafon; and, 2. From fcripture. : I. From 1. From the dictates of natural reafon. I have often told you the perfections of God are not to be proved by way of demonftration, because there is no caufe of them; but by way of conviction, by fhewing the abfurdity and inconvenience of the contrary. The contrary is an imperfection, and argues ma ny other imperfections; therefore wifdom belongs to God. Among men folly is looked upon as the greatest defect; it is accounted a greater reproach and difgrace than vice and wickedness; it is of so ill a report in the world, that there are not many but had rather be accounted knaves than fools; but in a true esteem and value of things, it is, next to wickedness, the greatest imperfection; and, on the contrary, wisdom is the highest perfection next to holiness and goodness; it is ufually more cried up in the world than any thing elfe. Reafon tells us, though the fcripture had not faid it; that wifdom excells folly as much as light doth darkness, Eccl. ii. 13. The wisdom of a man maketh his face to fhine, Eccl. viii. 1. Wisdom is a defence, -vii. 12. and ver. 19. Wif dom ftrengtheneth the wife more than ten mighty men that are in the city. And the denial of this perfection to God, would argue many other imperfections; it would be an u niverfal blemish to the divine nature, and would darken all his other perfections. It would weaken the power of God. How impotent and ineffectual would power be without wifdom! what irregular things would it produce! what untoward combina❤ tions of effects would there be, if infinite power fhould act without the conduct and direction of infinite wifdom! it would eclipfe the providence of God, and put out the eyes that are in the wheels, as the Prophet reprefents God's providence. There can be no counsel, no forecast, no orderly government of the world without wifdom. The goodnefs, and mercy, and juftice, and truth of God, could not shine with that luftre, were it not for his wifdom, which doth illuftrate these with so much advantage. · |