the Lord Jesus Christ; that he is represented to our view as possessing the same characteristics and divine privileges with the Father (whose Deity I here assume).-And, therefore, whilst I fully maintain that there is but one God, I at the same time, submit to the force of all these scriptural proofs, by maintaining that the Lord Jesus Christ is in a sense distinct from, but consistent with, his assumed condition as Man and Mediator; One God with the Father.

This is a statement of the general argument, the logical validity of which will not be questioned, because it is based upon the same principles by which our opponents prove the Deity of the Father. I shall now proceed to adduce, in detail, the scriptural proofs by which I substantiate this general argument.

I. I SHALL BRING FORWARD PROOFS OF THE NAMES, ATTRIBUTES, AND PREROGATIVES OF DEITY BEING ASCRIBED TO CHRIST ; viz.

In ISAIAH vii. 14, we read the following passage: "Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call his name Immanuel;" which is asserted by MATTHEW to be a prophecy of the nativity of Christ, containing a descriptive designation of his person: "Behold a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a Son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel; which, being interpreted, is God with us." MATTH. i. 23.

In Isa. ix. 6, 7, the prophet, having spoken of Christ in reference to his human nature as "the child born," immediately describes him in contrast to this, as the "mighty God," or strong God," and as invested with everlasting dominion: "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever: the zeal /of the Lord of Hosts will accomplish this." The reference of this prophecy to Christ is evident: 1st, from its connexion with Isa. vii. 14, of which the application to him is confirmed by MATTHEW; 2dly, from the application of the 1st and second verses to Christ, in MATT. iv. 14 to 16; and from the virtual application of the passage itself to him, in LUKE i. 32 and 33; and, 3dly, from the fact that the description of person and character contained in this prophecy will not comport with any other person.

In JEREMIAH xxiii. 5 and 6, the personal glory and mediatorial value of Christ are described by the complex title of "Jehovah our righteousness.". "Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth; in his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely; and this is his name whereby he shall be called, The Lord our righteousness."

In Mic. v. 2, the prophet, having foretold Christ's coming forth from Bethlehem, immediately adduces, in contrast with this, a de

scription which asserts his strict eternity: "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me, that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, of everlasting. The application of this passage to Christ is proved by reference to MATTH. ii. 16, and JOHN vii. 42.

In MAL. iii. 1, the prophet speaks of Christ by a distinct reference to his Deity and to his mediatorial office: "Behold I will send my Messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me; and the Lord whom ye seek shall suddenly come to his temple; even the Messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in; behold he shall come, saith the Lord of Hosts." The application of this passage to Christ is clearly asserted in MARK i. 2. And as it describes the temple in Jerusalem as being "his temple," it is evident that he was the God of the temple, or else it was consecrated to idolatry.

In LUKE i. 17, we find Christ designated as the "Lord the God of Israel."" And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God, and he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias," &c. That Christ is here intended there can be no question, especially when we read the words of the Baptist in John iii. 28. "I am not the Christ, but I am sent before him."

In JOHN, i. 1, Christ's Deity is expressly asserted, under the designation of the Word: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

In JOHN i. 3, the Apostle shows that he understands Christ, as the Word, to be God in the strict and true sense, by ascribing to him, both positively and negatively, the creation of all things: "Ali things were made by him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.”

Also, in verse 10, he ascribes to him the creation of the world in which he was: "He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not."

In JOHN iii. 13, we learn that Christ was in heaven (which he could only be in his divine nature), whilst he was in his human nature conversing with Nicodemus, "And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man, which is in heaven."

Christ permitted his disciples to ascribe to him the faculty of omniscience, without rejecting it, in JOHN xvi. 30: "Now we are sure that thou knowest all things, &c.; and in JOHN xxi. 17: "Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee."

In JOHN xx. 28, two titles of Deity are ascribed to the Saviour, with his full approbation: "And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God."

In Rom. ix. 5, we read, "Whose are the fathers, and of whom, as concerning the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for In this passage there are four distinct attributes of true Deity referred to Christ, in respect of that nature of his which is not

ever."

according to the flesh," viz. the title "God;" the attribute of supremacy and eternity; and the title "blessed," which, of itself, without any adjunct, implies true Deity, as is evident from Mark xiv. 61. "Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed ?"

PHIL. ii. 5-8. "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus; who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross; wherefore God also hath highly exalted him," &c. In this passage Christ is spoken of in three respects;-1st, as to his pre-existent state, in thẹ form of God; 2dly, as to his humiliation in the flesh; and 3dly, as to his subsequent mediatorial exaltation by the Father.-The first view is that upon which I rest the argument for his Deity.

The independent and unlimited power of Christ is asserted in PHIL. iii. 21. "Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working (or energy) whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself."

The priority of Christ to all created things, and the creation and preservation of all things by him, is asserted in CoL. i. 15—17 : "Who is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of every creature for by him were all things created that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers; all things were created by him, and for him; and he is before all things, and by him all things consist."-This last clause, also, necessarily implies his possession of an existence coextended with his works.

The Deity of Christ is asserted in COL. ii. 9. "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.'

In 1 TIM. iii. 16, we have a proof that he who was manifest in the flesh, was God: whether we read the passage as it stands in our English translation, and as GRIESBACH sanctioned in his first edition, "And, without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness; God was manifest in the flesh," &c. or, thus, according to GRIESBACH'S Second edition," But, if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God (which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of truth; and without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness); who was manifest in the flesh," &c.-For, in this case, the last masculine antecedent, which could agree with the relative" who," is " God."

In TITUS ii. 13, we read, "Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ." As the glorious appearing here spoken of refers to Christ's coming to judgment, the application of the title "great God" to him is apparent.

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In HEB. i. 2, Christ is spoken of as the Heir and Creator of all things: Whom he (i. e. the Father) hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds."

D

In HEB. i. 3, we read, "Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power," &c.-In these words two remarkable epithets are given to Christ, which imply his perfect oneness in glory and subsistence with the Father; and also the work of Providence is expressly referred to him.

In HEB. i. 6, he is represented as the proper object of worship to the angels: "When he bringeth in the first-begotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him."

In HEB. i. 8, the Father is represented as addressing the Son in language which necessarily implies his possession of Deity and of everlasting dominion: "Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever," &c. These words being a quotation from the 45th PSALM, show that we are to understand the description of Deity which that Psalm contains as relating to Christ.

In HEB. i. 10, the Father is represented as addressing to the Son a quotation from the 102d PSALM: Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the works of thine hands: they shall perish, but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old, as doth a garment; and as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed; but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.” In this passage, Christ is addressed as the Creator, the beginning and the end of all things, and as invested with the eternity and immutability of Deity.

N. B. The first chapter of HEBREWS, from which the last five proofs have been extracted, also contains passages of an independent nature, in which the mediatorial character and subordination of the Son is mentioned, in contrast with these ascriptions of the peculiarities of Deity..

In HEBREWS xiii. 8, immutability is ascribed to Christ by the same Greek expression (ò avròs) as in chap. i. 12, and with an addition similar to that which is connected with that term in the latter passage: "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever;”— a declaration parallel to, but more emphatic than the other, "Thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail."

In 1 JOHN v. 20, Christ is styled the true God, as is evident not merely from the grammatical construction of the passage, but also from the connexion of that title with the title of "eternal life," which is used as a designation of Christ, as distinguished from the Father, in the 2d verse of the 1st chapter of this Epistle: "And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true; and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life."

In REV. i. 8, we read, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, which was, and which is to come, the Almighty."-Upon this passage we remark, that although we believe it to be the language of Christ, yet our argument is as strong, if not stronger, by submitting to the interpretation which refers it to God the Father; for, according to this view, the passage

characterizes the Father by the very same divine titles which are assumed by Christ in the 17th and 18th verses of the same chapter; and consistency requires that we should not give a different interpretation to the very same terms in the two cases.

In REV. i. 17, the title of First and Last is assumed by Christ: "Fear not, I am the first and the last;" also in chap. ii. 8, "These things saith the first and the last, which was dead and is alive;" and in REV. xxii. 13, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last."

In REV. xvii. 14, two titles of Deity are ascribed to Christ: "These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them; for he is King of kings, and Lord of lords;" and also in chap. xix. 16, "And he hath on his vesture, and on his thigh, a name written, King of kings, and Lord of lords."

In the following passages the title "God" is applied to Christ: EPHES. v. 5, "In the kingdom of Christ and of God," which, according to the Greek, might be more distinctly rendered, "In the kingdom of him who is Christ and God."-2 THESS. i. 12, "According to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ," or "of our God and Lord Jesus Christ."-2 PET. i. 1, "Through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ," or "of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ."

In 1 JOHN iii. 2 and 5, Christ is spoken of under the title of "God :"-" Beloved, now are we the sons 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 ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins."-It is evident that the person designated in these two verses by the pronoun "he" is the Lord Jesus Christ; but, grammatically speaking, this pronoun must refer to the word "God" in the second verse; therefore Christ is here styled God.

MARK

We advance the following proofs of Christ's having received and recognised, whilst upon earth, many acts of homage and petition, which, if he were a merely created being, he should have rejected upon a principle of piety, and because such honours were of too high a nature to be paid to any but one invested with true and proper Deity.-MATTH. viii. 2. "There came a leper, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean." describes the circumstance thus, chap. i. 40. "There came a leper, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him;" and LUKE v. 12. "fell on his face, and besought him, saying," &c. The answer of our Saviour completely recognised, and therefore justified, as correct the ascription of personal ability which the entreaty contained, "I will: be thou clean.”—MATTH. ix. 18. "There came a certain ruler, and worshipped him." LUKE expresses it, chap. viii. 41. “He fell down at Jesus' feet."-MATTH. xiv. 33. "They that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, "Of a truth thou art the Son of God." -MATTH. XV. 25. "Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me." MARK says, chap. vii. 25. “She fell at his fect."