Chapter XIII
How Christ, God-man, is subservient to God in all the works of his providence. He upholds and supports all things. He governs the world, and rules all
affairs in it. After his government is expired, at the end of the world, he
will judge all creatures, both angels and men.
He is before all things, and by him all things consist. COL. I. 17.
Thus we have seen the subserviency of Christ, as God-man, to the work
of creation, and the highest ends thereof, the manifestation and the com munication of the Godhead the highest way. The next thing to be con
sidered by us is his serving God in the works of his providence, the
upholding, governing this world whilst it stands, and his judging it at the
last ; unto all these ends also doth Christ, God-man, subserve.
First, For the upholding all things ; that is evident in this text of Col. i.
17, By him do all things consist. He is the corner-stone that keeps the
< He
building and all the parts of it together ; Heb. i. 2, 3, it is said,
upholds all things by the word of his power, and it is spoken of him not
simply considered as second person, but as God-man, for so he is heir
appointed, not as second person, but so heir naturally without a decree, and that as such he should uphold all things by the word of his power, is
proper to him ; and therefore it refers to it, for to the heir it belongs to have a care of, and to see to his inheritance, that it fall not into ruin and
decay. God, as it were, leaves it to him, seeing he hath given it him for
his inheritance, to keep it up in repair at his own proper costs and charges. And thus he upheld it virtually in the state of innocency, for John i. 4, he
is called that light that then was the life of man, even afore man fell into
sin and darkness, a^ well as after ; as ver. 5 (as God made and created the
564 THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD THE FATHER, [BOOK III.
world then upon the virtual supposition of his coming into the world, though to a further end also), for the world was then upheld by virtue thereof, it was the hoop held all together ; God should not have cared else for any creature, for to me those imperfect pieces of his workmanship are alone not worthy enough of his power and wisdom, if this had not been to come, which he had purposed and decreed, as well as the making of the world. And since man fell, it is granted by all, that it is by virtue of his redemp tion to come, that the world stood and was kept from falling about Adam s
ears. Christ took the shattered condition of the world, as David did, and
upheld the pillars of it, and as a Lord, promised to buy it, and did so, 2 Peter ii. 1, because he had elect to be brought forth in their successions out of it ; and therefore vouchsafed all those mercies which wicked men
enjoy, and paid God a price for his patience towards them. He had this
into the bargain of his redemption of his church, God else in justice would have destroyed all.
Secondly, Whilst the world stands he governs it, easeth God of that
burden, and is his prorex for him. All judgment is committed to the Son : John v. 22, For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judg ment unto the Son. And the government is upon his shoulders : Isa. ix.
6, For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given ; and the govern ment shall be upon his shoulders : and his name shall be called Wonderful,
Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. He entered upon the kingdom when man fell, for by virtue of the covenant
of works given by the Father at the creation, it must have been destroyed ; but he undertook it, to order things so, that a greater revenue of glory should in the end arise to God, out of the confusions and sins of men in
the world, and in executions of punishments, and by providences meeting with men according to their own ways, than should have arisen to God out
of the state of innocency in a direct way. And what infinite wisdom, power,
providence, justice, patience, &c., even all sorts of glorious perfections doth he shew forth in this administration, and ordering things, and the affairs of
this sinful world ! This Lord reigneth though the earth be never so unquiet, as the psalmist speaks, Ps. xcix. 1. Rev. v. 2, there is a proclamation made, who would take that book out of the hand of him that sat upon the throne ; and that book is a commission to execute the things decreed and
written therein, and the taking of it was an undertaking so to do ; and
Christ the Lamb having seven horns of power, and seven eyes of providence sent oat into all the earth, by which he both views and governs all, he undertook it, and is God s King, and the executioner of all God s decrees. And then, thirdly, When he hath thus governed the world with a greater advantage unto God, then this man Christ Jesus will judge it also at the
last, and give all men their accounts ; Acts xvii. 31, He hath appointed a
day in the which he will judge the world, by that man whom he hath
ordained. The decree or ordaining Christ, God-man, serves for this also. The Father, John v. 22, is said to judge no man, that is, visibly, sub persona
judicis, but hath committed all to this man Christ Jesus, who at present is
ready, says the apostle Peter, to judge the quick and the dead, having
all the accounts of the world afore him, 1 Peter iv. 5. God would not
employ a mere creature in this work, it was too great an honour. And
yet it was meet it should be done visibly and audibly, and to the satisfac
tion of all men s consciences, both concerning themselves and others. God would have a person in the Trinity, manifest in a creature like unto us, to do
it, armed with power and authority, because he is God, that every knee
CHAP. XIII.] AND HIS SON JESUS CHRIST. 565
shall bow afore him, both of things in heaven and earth, and under the
earth (which to a mere creature had been too much), and yet a man that
should deal with creatures in judging them in their own way, in a rational and audible way convince them, and visibly sentence them, so as they should be able to see and hear their judge as man, and yet fear and dread him as
being God. And this is an high and great service, which Christ as man
shall do for God, for a man in a vocal manner to be able to clear the
accounts of the world (which, how entangled are they !), andpunctually to
give every man his due in righteousness. A man that shall be able to con
vince all God s enemies of all their hard speeches they had spoken against him, as Enoch the seventh from Adam prophesied, able to give a full and
satisfactory account of all God s ways and proceedings, which men cavil at, to justify God s decrees, which men quarrel with, and think much at, and
his children, whom men despise and bear down : one able to bring to light the secrets of all hearts, so as all men shall judge of every man, 1 Cor. iv. 5,
* Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both
will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts : and then shall every man have praise of God. One able to search the deep things of God, and bring forth his counsels (for the books are then opened, Rev. xx. 12), and lay open the depths of his
wisdom, in suffering this and that to fall out ; this man to be punished, and another, a greater sinner than he, to escape ; this kingdom to be ruined, and another, as sinful, to flourish ; and to make that glorious comment
upon the obscure text of this world s providence, which we understand not; and to do this out of the original draft and counsel held in heaven, why this or that was done or not done so or so, or not so, and to do this
openly and vocally as a man ; and when he hath sent all men convinced,
non-plussed, speechless (as the word is in the parable), confounded, to
hell, to give up his kingdom, and himself visibly be subject to God his Father : it is a mighty service this. But yet, lastly, after all this, he is the founder of that other world into which he brings his children given him by God, which is his inheritance
for himself and them ; and their happiness is expressed by this, to be ever with the Lord. And, John xvii. 24, Christ in his last prayer says, Father, I will they be where I am, and see my glory ; and till then that
personal fulness (of which I spake at first) that is in God-man, Christ
Jesus, is reserved by God, as a subject of that depth and glory to take up, together with his own perfections, the thoughts of men and angels for
ever. Our happiness will lie in seeing God and Christ as he is ; for unto both doth that speech refer, 1 John iii. 2, Beloved, now are we the sous of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be : but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him ; for we shall see him as he is. And if the sight of Christ, God-man, be not the highest means of the
happiness of the saints (because the Scripture mentions also God his being
* And the
all in all ), yet I am sure it is a main part of it : Rev. xxi. 23,
city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon to shine in it : for the
glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. The glory of God and the Lamb are the light of it. And so Stephen saw the glory of God, and Christ at God s right hand, Acts vii. 56. So that when these two great volumes, this of his word and that of his world, which now in
this life are put into our hands, to read the characters of his glory in by
faith, when both these shall be folded up and clean laid aside, then will the person of Christ, Jod-man, as the glory of the Godhead, shining in
566 THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD THE FATHER, [BOOK III.
and communicating itself to us, through that human nature the Godhead dwells in, be set forth to us, to entertain us for ever with the sight of the glory of God in the face of Christ ; and all our present thoughts and
knowledge we have by faith will become vain, and be made unprofitable, and vanish : 1 Cor. xiii. 8, 9, Charity never faileth : but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail ; whether there be tongues, they shall cease ; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. And that face will make a heaven to us when
redemption shall be forgotten, through the present glory viewed and pos sessed, and sins remembered no more ; but the glory of God, and the per sonal glory of the Lamb, shall be our light and happiness for ever.
Use 1. Let us admire Christ that thus serves to all, not our ends only, to save us, but which is more, to all God s ends and purposes, and to ac
complish all the desires of his own heart. What an infinite perfection must this needs be ! Nature and art (says the philosopher) make but one instrument to serve in a proper and direct way, but for one purpose ; but this is a person whom God hath set forth for all ends and purposes whatsoever. If you should see an instrument in music serve at once to
supply the use and afford the music of all instruments ; or a mathematical instrument so made as all conclusions in all arts and sciences might be demonstrated on it, and it serve for all uses, in arithmetic to cast exact
accounts, in geometry to measure all quantities, in geography, astronomy, to give you the exact proportion of all the earth and stars in heaven, how would you wonder and admire at it ! Oh ! wonder then at the person of Jesus Christ ! Great is the mystery of godliness, God manifest in the
flesh, 1 Tim. iii. 16. Use 2. If Christ, that is our mediator, is so useful unto God in all his
other businesses, and serves all his other ends as well as this, this may then
help our faith, by persuading us that God cannot but be infinitely well
pleased with the saving of sinners by him, and that believe on him (he being as good, if not better, at that than all those purposes forementioned) ; for the person, in whom we are graciously accepted, being pleasing to God
so many ways besides this, must needs move him the rather to accept his work in this, and us for it. As for instance, if a king, willing and inclined
to pardon a traitor, if besides a work of mercy done, it could be demon
strated that the means whereby that is to be done would bring in a mighty
profit to the king, ten thousand talents of silver, as in another case Haman
said to Ahasuerus, Esther iii. 8, or, as if when David s heart was of itself
set to pardon Absalom, only he would do it with honour ; if Joab (the pro
jector of his reconciliation) could have propounded a project, not only to have fetched Absalom in again, and reconciled him to David upon the king s own terms, but so as withal he should have all his other state ends com
passed whatever he could desire, as to shew forth his majesty, power,
greatness, gratify all his subjects, overcome his enemies, hereby have his
kingdom governed in peace and righteousness, and have his enemies sub
dued, overcome, and all his revenues increased ; would not all the world
say, that surely the propounding this would mightily help forward the ob
taining Absalom s pardon and reconciliation ? And surely so it is here, the work of reconciliation in Christ s hands (who serves God in all these and many ways more) must needs prosper (as Isaiah says) and[speed. And
therefore, in the first of John, and in the first of the Hebrews, and in this
chapter, Col. i., all his usefulness to other ends, all his fulness to other
purposes, is prefaced and mentioned first, and then purging our sins away
CHAP. XIII.] AND HIS SON JESUS CHRIST. 567
by his blood, and making peace by the blood of his cross, are spoken of;
all those other conducing unto this. And therefore, some schoolmen, upon the consideration of these things, give this censure of it, Tanto aliquis modus aptior est ad consequendum aliquem finem, quanto per ipsum plura comparantur.
Use 3. It may invite us to come to him ; as besides the work of recon
ciliation, God had the accomplishment of many other ends in him, so may we. Besides pardon of sin and peace with God, we may have all other
overplus ends acquired and accomplished. The angels who are in favour with God already, and stand not in any need that way, what would they
give to have that near relation to him which we have ? You may come to him for pardon first, but when you are come, his person will further take
you. Fulness much invites, it is the aim of all our desires to have a fulness
of riches, of honours, of pleasures, a 4&JM*<o^a8 the apostle calls it, Eph.
iv. 19, that is, a having one s fill ; so the word which is translated
* greedi ness signifies. Now in Christ, and in Christ only, it is to be had, in whom
is fulness, and all fulness fulness for parts of all sorts, and all fulness for
degrees, which is never spent, for it dwells in him, fulness for evermore, as the Psalmist speaks ; Open thy mouth wide, stretch thy desires to the utmost compass, as Ps. Ixxxi. 10, may Christ say,
* and I will fill it. The mind of man is nothing but emptiness of itself, it is as the stomach is, a vacuity and want, sharpened with desire and hunger,
* empty man, as Job calls him, Job. xi. 12, unto which God hath fitted all things, as
suitable to its desires one way or other ; there is no creature but it may take some pleasure in. But, alas ! the creatures are empty too, vanity, that is, emptiness, as Solomon calls them : husks (as in the parable) without a kernel, and Adam made them more vain and empty, Rom.
viii. 20, subjected them to vanity ; and at best they serve but for some one particular want and end, and not all ends and purposes. Riches serve
against poverty, honour against shame, but Christ he serves to all ends and
purposes. God would have nothing full but Christ, that our souls might rest in nothing else, and have him our centre. It pleased him that all
fulness should dwell in him, and he hath fitted him to our wants ; all we want he hath, and all he hath we want. And his fulness is not ordained
simply to dwell in him, but to be communicated as the sun s fulness of light, which though it resides in the body of the sun, and it carries it with it whither it goes, and leaves nothing but darkness behind it, yet, where it comes it is communicative, it diffuseth all its light, and heat, and influence; and so doth Christ. Therefore, as here all fulness is said to dwell in his
person, so elsewhere it is said, he filleth all in all, as Eph. i. 23. As Adam emptied all, so he fills all, and is never diminished ; his fulness it
is not plenitude vasis butfontis, which is always full; not as the fulness of the sea, which might be emptied, but as the fulness of the sun, or of fire, which multiplies itself, and loseth nothing itself neither.
Use 4. If Christ be thus full, then let those that love him fully delight in
him, and to that end contemplate all his fulness. How will one that is in
love with another think over and over again all the perfections in them they love to confirm their choice ? So should we. And not only so, but take our full delight and contentment in him. And that Christ serves to all ends
else, besides those of our own, of being saved by him, will, if meditated
upon, exceedingly increase our joys and delights in him. A wife that had a husband eminent in all perfections, which perfections yet she had no great
skill in, yet the thought of them would make her love him when once he is
568 THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD THE FATHER, [BOOK III.
hers ; when he is not only a good husband unto her, but also a good com monwealth s man, of eminent place in his country, an excellent soldier, horseman, &c., skilled in all learning, &c., these, because they commend and endear her husband unto others (though she hath not the benefit of them
directly) do yet endear him unto her the more that all these are in her husband. So this should do Christ to us.
Use 5. See the love of Christ to us, that having all fulness in him was
willing to empty himself for us. We "were not only empty but bankrupt to God, and to redeem us and fill us again he was fain to empty himself. It
is the apostle s phrase, Phil. ii. 7; the word we translate, of no reputation, is in the original, he emptied himself, that is, left nothing of all his fulness. So Dan. ix. 26, Messiah shall be cut off, and shall have nothing, so it is in the Hebrew, as well as that which is translated, not for him
self, and so varied in the margin of your Bibles. He that had all that
fulness, and fills all in all, had nothing left, no comfort in God or any creature. If you should see the sea ebb into some other world, and see not a drop of water left, how would you stand astonished at it ! How much more at Christ ! He might say, as Naomi said, Ruth i. 20, 21, The Lord hath dealt bitterly with me. I came from heaven full, but he
brought me to earth empty, emptied of all. For us to leave and abate
anything of our fulness, how loth are we ! To leave a full land, a full diet, a full table, a full house fully furnished, a full condition, and lower our sail, though for Christ ! Oh, but Christ did ; he left heaven and all the fulness of it, and removed to earth, where is nothing but vanity; and he who was Lord of heaven and earth, for our sakes became poor, and left himself not a foot of land, not a house to hide his head in. By what a small abatement
is to our spirits, let us think what so infinite a debasement, an emptying, was to him.
Use 6. See his love yet further, that though he be in himself thus full,
yet that his love is such as he thinks himself not full or perfect without us, but reckons himself defective till he have us knit to him and about him. As Christ said to him that had kept all from his youth, One thing is
wanting, so I may say of Ohrist, that still one thing is wanting. Why, what can he want, that hath all fulness ? Even any one of his members ; and he would not think himself completely happy without them ; for, Eph.
i. 23, though he be he that filleth all in all, yet the church is his fulness,
* which is his body, the fulness of him which filleth all in all. His glory would not content him in heaven if he should want any of our company there ; John xvii. 24, he prays therefore, that they may be with him where he is, to behold his glory
* Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast
given me, be with me where I am ; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me : for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the
world. As Haman said, when he reckoned up all his riches, and honours, and glory, his places and favour at court, what good will all these do me,
says he, so long as Mordecai contemns me ? So Christ in his heart says, If
I have not all my enemies down, my children about me, his whole tale and
number, if but a Benjamin or a Joseph were wanting, heaven would be less
to him. The first Adam, when he had all creatures about him, needed a
companion of all his delight ; and so kings that have full pleasures, yet love
to have consortes imperil. So doth Christ, and till then reckons himself
: From hence
imperfect ; and therefore, Heb. x. 13, he is said to expect
forth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. Expectation argues
defect. Now he had been alone in heaven if he had not died; John xii. 24,
CHAP. XIII.] AND HIS SON JESUS CHKIST. 569
the corn abides alone if it die not : Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a
corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone : but if it die,
it bringeth forth much fruit.
Use 7. Let us applaud our own happiness in such an husband, and keep to him alone, and not doat upon any vanity. Why ? Because, as the
* Be ware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the
apostle argues against vain learning, philosophy, &c. Col. ii. 8-10,
tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are
complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power. That
* in him ye are complete, you need no other learn
all fulness being in him,
ing, no other wisdom ; for, ver. 3, in him are hid all the treasures of wis dom and knowledge, in comparison of which all the wisdom of the world comes to nought. Like a kingdom that hath all commodities, as China, or a great man that hath all about him of his own, so have you in Christ, you need go out to nothing for any thing. You go to seek for light with a
candle, when you have the sun in your hand ; whilst having Christ you seek to be happy in anything else. You need borrow nothing, nor be be holden to any creature ; your husband hath all fulness. We needed not the law to direct us, if we knew his story, and could spell out all the pas
sages of his life, by whom the law was transcendently fulfilled in instances
of a higher kind. If the lives of all the saints, of Paul, Abraham, &c., and
all the law and Bible were burnt, all might be renewed in his story, if that were enough known. They only serve to us to help us to understand him ; we needed no other motives than what may be drawn from him and his
love, if our hearts were holy enough and conformed to him. In a word, if
Christ serve fully to all God s ends (who hath vaster plots than we) and is
adequate to them, then much more to all ours, who have but low contrive -
ments. Let us therefore love him, and serve him, and make him our end, and think ourselves complete in him.
END OF VOL. IV.