Having thus shown that in the early ages the denial of Christ's Divinity was condemned as heretical and dangerous, while whole churches avowed the great truth, and formed their prayer and praise accordingly; I shall proceed to inform you what were the sentiments of the chief antenicene Fathers with respect to this important doctrine; that you may know how they, who were doubtless better acquainted with the original language of the New Testament than we are, interpreted it; and may see how completely their sentiments accord with those now maintained by a very great proportion of pious men.

I quote first from IGNATIUS, who wrote, at latest, about the year 107. "Be not led aside (says he) by

early heretics, Caius shows that there was an awful similarity between their practices, and those of many modern rejectors of Christ's Divinity. "They corrupted the Holy Scriptures without any reverence; they re66 jected the canon of the ancient faith; they remain ignorant of Christ, "not searching simply what the Holy Scripture affirms, but exercising "themselves and sifting it syllogistically to impugn the Divinity of "Christ. So, if any reasoned with them out of Holy Writ, forthwith "they demanded whether it were a conjunct or a simple kind of syllo“gism. ..............They abuse the art of infidels to the establishing their "heretical opinion, and corrupt the simplicity of the Scriptures. To 66 prove that I do not affirm this untruly, examine their copies; compare "them one with another, and note their contrariety. The books of "Asclepiades agree not with those of Theodotus; nor those of Hermo"philus with either: nor are the copies of Apollonius at concord among "themselves. ....Either these persons persuade themselves that the "Scriptures were not indited by the Holy Spirit, and in that case they 66 are infidels; or else they think themselves wiser than the Holy Spirit, "thus showing themselves possessed of a devil. Such things they "cannot deny, because we possess them in their writings: nor can they "show us who instructed them, who delivered them such Scriptures, or "whence they translated their copies."

"strange doctrines, nor by antiquated tales, which are "unprofitable. For, if we yet live according to “Judaism, it is equivalent to declaring that we have "not accepted grace; for the most holy prophets lived according to Christ Jesus. And for that cause were

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they persecuted, being inspired by the grace of "Christ that the unbelievers might be convinced "that there is one God who hath manifested himself "by his Son Jesus Christ, who is his Eternal "Word." (f)

JUSTIN MARTYR has the following passage, preserved by Dr. Grabe: "When man's nature had con"tracted corruption, it was necessary that he who "would save it should do away the principle of corruption. But this could not be done without uniting "essential life with the nature so corrupted, to do

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away the corruption, and ever after to immortalize "the corrupt nature. Wherefore it was meet that "the Word should become incarnate to deliver us "from the death of natural corruption." (g)

The same writer, in one of his " Apologies," says, "The pagans tax us with atheism; and we frankly "confess the charge, that with respect to the gods in "worship among you we are atheists. But we are far "otherwise in respect of the most true God, the "Father of righteousness, purity, and every virtue, a God infinitely removed from the least mixture or spot of evil: Him, and his only begotten Son, toge"ther with the SPIRIT, who spake by the prophets,

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VOL. II.

(f) Ignat. ad Magnes. s. viii.
(g) Grab. Spicileg. vol. ii. p. 17.

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"we worship and adore: and our way of worshipping "is in spirit and in truth." (h)

IRENEUS treats very forcibly and fully respecting the Deity of Christ; but I shall only extract two passages. After remarking that the Son of God, and Word of the Father, became man that he might "give salvation to his own creature," he proceeds thus: "Therefore, as I said before, he "united man to God. For if it were not man that "should overcome the adversary of man, the enemy "would not have been rightly vanquished: and, on “the other hand, if it were not God to give the salva❝tion, we could not be firmly possessed of it. Besides, "if man had not been united to God, he could "never have been partaker of incorruption. So it was 66 necessary that a mediator between God and man "should bring both together into amity and concord "by his own proximity to both, that so he might pre"sent man to God, and notify God to man."(i) The same Father, when speaking of the miracles which were wrought in his time, assures us they were effected "not by enchantments, or by invocation of angels, but "by calling on the name of Jesus Christ." This, by the is farther manifest from the prayer for the

way,

(h) Just. Apol. ii. § 6. See also Dial. cum Tryp. § 17, and 28, where Justin illustrates the generation of the Son of God, by a reference "to fire, which, without diminution of its substance, kindles another." "God of God, as fire of fire."

It may not be amiss to add that "that they who make Christ the

(i) Irenæus, iii. c. 18. 1. ii. c. 55. Irenæus contends in lib. iv. cap. 52, "Son of Joseph, attain neither remission of sins, nor the adoption of the 66 sons of God, nor so much as the right of a blessed resurrection." This is also testified by Feuardentius.

Energumens, in the eighth book of the Apostolical Constitutions, which is directed personally to Christ under the title of "the only begotten God.”

ATHENAGORAS, who flourished in the second century, speaks of Christians as "men that made small "account of the present life, but were intent only

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upon contemplating God, and knowing his Word, "who is from him; what union the Son has with the "Father, what communion the Father has with the "Son; what the Spirit is, and what the union and "distinction are of such so united, the Spirit, the Son, "and the Father." (k)

TERTULLIAN understood the phrase Son of God as applied to Christ to mean the same as God of God; as is obvious from many parts of his writings. (1) Theré is still extant a creed of his, which runs thus: "We "believe in one God; but under this dispensation, "which we call the economy, that the one God hath "a Son, which is his Word, who proceeded from him, "and by whom all things were made. He was sent "from the Father to the Virgin, and was born of her "both God and man, Son of man and Son of God "who afterwards, according to his promise, sent from "the Father the Holy Ghost, the Comforter, the "Sanctifier of the faith of those who believe in the "Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost. This is "the rule which has come down to us from the begin"ning of the Gospel." (m) And again, "What is

(k) Athenag. Legat. 1. xi. p. 46. Ed. Ox.

(1) See especially Tertul. Apol. c. 21.

(m) Tert. adv. Prax. c. 2. p. 5, 6. Welchman Ed.

"it that the Gospel has done, what is the substance of "the New Testament, extending the Law and the "Prophets as far as John, if, from thenceforwards, "Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, three persons, are not "believed to make one God?" (n)

ORIGEN, also, in his writings against Celsus, furnishes many assertions which are unequivocal and decisive. Thus, he affirms: first, that Christ was the uncreated Son of God: secondly, that the Maker of the world is to be worshipped: thirdly, that Christ is the Maker of the world. He maintains a precise distinction between creatures and their Creator; and he brings them together into comparison as to the respect that is due to them. He next says that we ought not to worship any creatures, but only the Creator: that we can only lift up our eyes to the Creator of all the magnificence of nature to see whom we ought to admire, serve, and adore. Then he proclaims Jesus Christ as the Creator of the Universe; that God working with him said, at the Creation, "Let there "be light; let us make man." Nay, he is yet more

distinct in the statement of his opinions. He distinguishes between the Divine and human natures of Jesus Christ, and refers the necessity of their union to the required efficacy of the sacrifice or atonement.

(n) Tert. adv. Prax. c. 31. p. 102. The collection of Creeds and Doxologies given by Bingham, and indeed many of those that are drawn together by Whiston, furnish ample proof of the early prevalence of this momentous truth. So, again, many of the early hymns. One of these, composed in the second century, has been transferred into the Liturgy of the Church of England. It begins with-" Glory be to God on High!'' and occurs just before the benediction in the Communion service.