OF THE INFINITY OF
GOD,
HIS
OMNIPRESENCE AND ETERNITY
John Gill
The next attribute of God to
be considered is, his "Infinity"; when we say that God is
"infinite", the meaning is, that he is unbounded and unlimited,
unmeasurable or immense, unsearchable and not to be
comprehended. This attribute chiefly respects and includes the
"omnipresence" and "eternity" of God; these are the two
branches of it; he is not bounded by space, and therefore is everywhere; and he
is not bounded by time, so he is eternal {1}: and that he is in this sense
infinite appears from his spirituality and simplicity, before established; he
is not a body, consisting of parts; was he, he would be
finite; for body, or matter, is a creature of time, and not eternal; and is
limited to a certain place, and so not everywhere; but God is a Spirit: though
this barely is not sufficient to prove him infinite; because there are finite
spirits, as angels, and the souls of men; these are created spirits, and have a
beginning, though they will have no end; which is owing not to themselves, but
to the power of God, that supports them in their being; who
could, if he would, annihilate them; and they are definitively in some place,
and so, on all accounts, finite: but God is an uncreated Spirit; was before all
time, so not bounded by it; and was before space or place were, and existed
without it; and so not to be limited to it, and by it. He is the "first
Being", and from whom all others have their being; "Before
him there was no God formed, neither shall there be after him; yea, he is the
first and the last", #Isa 43:10 44:6 and therefore there is none before
him nor above him, to limit and restrain him: he is an "independent"
Being; all creatures depend on him, but he depends on none; all things are
"of" him, "through" him, and "to" him, as the
first cause and last end of them {2}: all creatures live, and move,
and have their being in him; but not he in them: men, angels, good and bad, are
checked and limited by him; but not he by them. He is "immutable";
this attribute has been already established; but if he changes place, or is
moved from place to place, or is sometimes in one place, and sometimes in another,
he would be mutable: and if he rose from non-existence into existence, or there
is any end of his days, he would not be unchangeable; but he
is the "same", and his "years shall have no end":
immutability infers both omnipresence and eternity, the two branches of
Infinity. We commonly say that sin is infinite, and the truest reason that can
be given for it is, because God is the object of it; for as an act, it is
finite, being the act of a finite creature; but with respect to the object
against whom it is committed, it is infinite, and requires
an infinite satisfaction; which none but an infinite person can give, and which
Christ is in his divine nature, and so gave to his sufferings and death, in his
human nature united to him, an infinite value and virtue, whereby justice had
from them an infinite satisfaction.
God is
infinite in all his attributes; and which are indeed, himself, his nature; as
has been observed, and are separately considered by us, as a relief to our
mind, and helps to our better understanding it; and, perhaps, by observing some
of these distinctly, we may have a clearer idea of the infinity of God. His
"understanding" is infinite, as is expressly said, #Ps 147:5 it
reaches to, and comprehends all things that are, though ever
so numerous; to the innumerable company of angels in the highest heavens; to
the innumerable stars in the lower ones; to the innumerable inhabitants of the
earth, men, and beasts, and fowl; and to the innumerable creatures that swim in
the sea; yea, not only to all that are in being, but to all things possible to
be made, which God could have made if he would; these he sees and knows in his
eternal mind, so that there is "no searching of his
understanding", #Isa 40:28 there is no end of it, and therefore infinite.
The same may be said of his knowledge and wisdom, there is a bayov, a
"depth", the apostle ascribes, to both; and which is not to be
sounded by mortals, #Ro 11:33 he is "a God of knowledge" or
"knowledges", of all things that are knowable, #1Sa 2:3 he is the
only and the all-wise God; and in comparison of him the
wisdom of the wisest of creatures, the angels, is but folly, #Job 4:18. The
power of God is infinite; with him nothing is impossible; his power has never
been exerted to the uttermost; he that has made one world, could have made
millions; there is no end of his power, and his making of that, proves his
"eternal power", that is, his infinite power; for nothing but
infinite power could ever have made a world out of nothing,
#Ro 1:20 #Heb 11:3. His "goodness" is infinite, he is abundant in it,
the earth is full of it, all creatures partake of it, and it endures
continually; though there has been such a vast profusion of it from the
beginning of the world, in all ages, it still abounds: there is no end of it,
it is infinite, it is boundless; nor can there be any addition to it; it is
infinitely perfect, "my goodness extends not to
thee", #Ps 16:2. God is infinite in his "purity, holiness, and
justice": there is none holy as he is; or pure and righteous, with him; in
comparison of him, the most holy creatures are impure, and cover themselves
before him, #Job 4:17,18 #Isa 6:2,3 in short, he is infinitely perfect, and
infinitely blessed and happy. We rightly give him titles and epithets of
"immense" and "incomprehensible", which
belong to his infinity. He is "immense", that is, unmeasurable; he
measures all things, but is measured by none; who can take his dimensions? they
are "as high as heaven, what canst thou do? deeper than hell, what canst
thou know?" If the heavens above cannot be measured, and the foundations
of the earth beneath cannot be searched out, how should he be measured or
searched out to perfection that made all these? #Job 11:7-9
Jer 31:37. As there is an height, a depth, a length and breadth in the love of
God, immeasurable, #Eph 3:18 so there is in every attribute of God, and
consequently in his nature; his immensity is his magnitude, and of his
"greatness" it is said, that it is "unsearchable", #Ps
145:3 and therefore, upon the whole, must be "incomprehensible"; not
only cannot be comprehended and circumscribed by space, or
in place, "for the heaven of heavens cannot contain" him; but he is
not to be comprehended by finite minds, that cannot conceive of him as he is;
his omniscience is "too wonderful" for them, and "the thunder of
his power who can understand?" Somewhat of him may be apprehended, but his
nature and essence can never be comprehended, no not in a state of perfection;
sooner may all the waters of the ocean be put into a nutshell,
than that the infinite Being of God should be comprehended by angels or men,
who are finite creatures; infinity is an attribute peculiar to God, and, as has
been observed, its two chief branches are "omnipresence" and
"eternity"; which will be next considered.
1. The
"Omnipresence" of God, or his ubiquity, which, as it is included in
his infinity, is a branch of it, and strictly connected with it, it must, be
strongly concluded from it; for if God is infinite, that is, unbounded with
respect to space and place, then he must be everywhere; and this is to be
proved from his power, which is everywhere: as appears, not only in the
creation of all things, as the heaven, and the heaven of
heavens, the earth, and the ends of them, and all that is in them; but in his
providence, supporting and sustaining them; for not only the creatures have
their being in him, and from him, and therefore he must be near them; but
"he upholds all things by his power", they consist in him, he
provides for them, and preserves them all; and which is the argument the
apostle uses to prove that he is not far from them, #Ac
17:27,28. The omnipresence of God may be argued from the distributions of his
goodness to all; to angels and glorified saints, who partake of his special
favours; to all men on earth, to whom he does not leave himself without a
witness of his kindness to them, giving them food and raiment, and all things
richly to enjoy; he is present among them, and opens his hand and plentifully
and liberally communicates to them: as well as from his
universal government of the world by his wisdom; for his kingdom rules over
all, the kingdom of nature and providence is his, and "he is the Governor
among the nations". And as he is everywhere by his power and providence,
so he is by his knowledge; all things are naked and open to him, being all
before him, and he present with them; though he is in the highest heaven, he can see and judge through the dark clouds, and behold all
the inhabitants of the world, and their actions: and since these attributes of
power, wisdom, and knowledge, are no other than his nature, or than himself, he
must be everywhere by his essence; and which is most clear from the
omnipresence of the divine nature in Christ, who, as a divine person, was in
heaven, when he, as man, was here on earth, #Joh 1:18 3:13
and, indeed, unless he was omnipresent, he could not be in whatsoever place two
or three are gathered together in his name, or be in the midst of the
candlesticks, the churches, or with his ministers, to the end of the world, #Mt
18:20 28:20 for though this is to be understood of his gracious presence, yet
unless he was omnipresent, this could not be vouchsafed to all the saints, and
all the churches, in all ages, at different places, at the
same time; as when they are worshipping in different parts of the world; as in
Europe, so in America. Now if God, personally considered, or in anyone of the
divine Persons, is omnipresent, then God, essentially considered, must be so.
The presence of God may be observed in a different manner; there is his
glorious presence in heaven, where he, in a most eminent
manner, displays the glory of his majesty to angels, and the spirits of just
men made perfect; and there is his powerful and providential presence with all
his creatures, giving them being, and supporting them in it; and there is his
gracious presence with good men, regenerating, sanctifying, comforting, and
refreshing them; dwelling in them, carrying on his work of grace in them, to
fit them for himself in glory; and all suppose his
omnipresence: the heathens acknowledge this attribute; Anaxagoras calls him an
infinite mind; and Pythagoras {3} defines him, a mind that is diffused
throughout all the parts of the world, and goes through all nature; and
Sallustius {4} observes, that he is not contained or comprehended in place. So
the Jews say {5} the Shecinah, or divine Majesty, is everywhere; and they call God Mwqm, "place", by an antiphrasis, as
Buxtorf {6} observes, because he is not local, who is not contained in any
place, but gives place to all; and so the Jews themselves say {7}, that he is
the place of the world, but not the world his place, for he is without the
world, and fills all worlds; and they further say {8}, he is so called because
in every place where the righteous are, he is with them; or as Aben Ezra {9}, expresses it, because every place is full of his glory;
agreeable to which Philo, the Jew {10}, says, autov eautw topov he is place,
full and sufficient to himself.
This attribute is most clearly
expressed in several passages of Scripture, as particularly in #Ps 139:7-10
where the Psalmist asks, "Whither shalt l go from thy Spirit?"
which, if it is to be understood of the third Person, the Spirit of the Father,
and of the Son; if there is no going from him, then not from them, since the
same nature is in the one as in the other; if there is no going from God,
personally considered, or as in any of the divine Persons, then not from him,
as essentially considered: or by his Spirit may be meant himself, for "God
is a Spirit", #Joh 4:24. He adds, "Or whither
shall I flee from thy presence?" not his gracious presence, for a good man
would never seek to flee from that, nothing being more desirable to him; nor is
there anything he more earnestly deprecates than to be cast away from it, #Ps
4:6,7 51:11 but his essential presence, which is everywhere; it is in the
Hebrew text "from thy face"; and face signifies the essence and
nature of God, which is invisible and incomprehensible, #Ex
33:20 then the Psalmist goes on to enumerate all places that could be thought
of to flee to, and yet God was there; "If I ascend to heaven, thou art
there": could he by any means climb up to heaven, there God is in all the
glory of his Majesty; there is his palace, his habitation, and his throne.
"If I make my bed in hell, behold thou art there": whether the place
where the wicked are turned, and the apostate angels cast;
there God is sustaining them in their being, pouring in his wrath into their
consciences, and continuing the punishment inflicted on them: or whether the
grave is meant, which is sometimes the sense of the word used, and is a bed to
saints, #Job 17:13 there God is watching over their dust, preserving it from
being lost, in order to raise it up at the last day. "If I take the wings of the morning", and fly as fast as the morning
light, which soon reaches the furthest parts of the earth; or as the rays of
the sun, which dart from east to west, at its rising, instantly; "and
dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea"; in the most remote islands of
it, or in the uttermost parts of the western shore; "even there shall thy
hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me": there should he
experience the providential goodness and special favour of
God to him; who leads, guides, and upholds his people at the ends of the earth,
where some of them sometimes are, and where they have his presence, #Isa 45:22
24:16 see a like enumeration of places in #Am 9:2,3 {11}. Another passage of
scripture, proving the Omnipresence of God, is in #Isa 66:1. "Thus saith
the Lord, the heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool".
So immense is he that he sits upon the one, and treads on the other:
"Where is the house that ye build unto me?" or where can a house be
built for him? what place can be found for him he is not possessed of, and does
not dwell in already? Stephen, the proto-martyr, produces this to prove,
"that the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; that is,
cannot be included in them, and limited to them, since he
is everywhere, in heaven and in earth, #Ac 7:47-50. But nowhere is the
Omnipresence of God more expressly declared than in #Jer 23:23,24. "Am I a
God at hand, saith the Lord, and not afar off?" yea, he is both; he not
only observes persons and things in heaven, which may be thought at hand, and
near him; but persons and things on earth, and those at the greatest distance;
he is as near to, and as present with the one as the other;
and he sees and knows all that is done by them, as if he was at their elbow;
and therefore adds, "Can any hide himself in secret places, that I shall
not see him, saith the Lord?" As some might foolishly imagine, supposing
him to be limited and confined to heaven above, and was not present to see what
was done below; especially in the dark and distant places of the earth: "Do not I fill heaven and earth, saith the
Lord?" not only with inhabitants, and with all things, the effects of his
power and goodness; but with his nature and essence, which exceeds all bounds
of place and space. Hence the Jews call God by the name of "Makom",
place; because he fills all places, and is contained in none; is not local and
is infinite.
Nor is this to be disproved by
other passages of Scripture, which may seem, at first sight, to discountenance
or contradict it; not such as speak of mens' departing and fleeing from his
presence, as Cain and Jonah are said to do, #Ge 4:16 Jon 1:3 for Cain only went
either from the place where he and the Lord had been conversing; or from the public place of worship, at the east of the garden
of Eden, where were the symbol of the divine presence, an altar, where he and
his brother had sacrificed. Jonah's fleeing, was withdrawing himself from the
service of God, and declining to go on his errand; foolishly imagining, that, by
going beyond sea, he should avoid being urged to his duty; but he soon found
his mistake, and that God was everywhere, and could meet
with him by sea and by land. Likewise, not such that represent God as
descending from heaven; as at the building of Babel, at the cry of the sin of
Sodom, and on mount Sinai, #Ge 11:5,7 18:21 Ex 19:18,20 for these only denote
some more than ordinary manifestations of his presence, or exertion of his
power; as at Babel, by confounding the language; at Sodom, by destroying that,
and the other cities; at Sinai, by giving the law out of
the midst of fire, attended with thunder and lightning. Nor such as speak of
the Lord not being with wicked men; particularly what Moses said to the
disobedient Israelites, "The Lord is not among you; and he will not be
with you", #Nu 14:42,43 which he might very truly say, since the ark of
the covenant, the symbol of the divine presence, remained in the camps and went not with them, #Nu 14:44 nor had they any reason to
believe that God would be so with them, as to prosper and succeed them, when
they acted contrary to his express command: nor is God ever in such sense with
wicked men, as with good men; namely, by his gracious presence: but this
hinders not, but that he is with them by his omnipresence and power, supporting
them in their being. Nor such passages which relate the
departure of God from men; as from Samson and Saul, #Jud 16:20 1Sa 28:15 since
this only respects the withdrawment of uncommon bodily strength from the one;
and wisdom and prudence, courage and greatness of soul from the other; leaving
him to the fears, distractions, and confusions of his mind; without any hope of
success in war: nor such portions of Scripture which express the desertions and distance of God from his people, and their desires that he
would return to them, and not cast them away from his presence, #Ps 10:1 80:14
51:11 since these only respect his gracious presence, the deprivation of that,
and the return of it; the manifestations of his love and favour, and the withdrawment
and renewal of them. And whereas it is urged against the omnipresence of God,
that he is said to be in heaven, and that to be his
habitation, and that men pray unto him as their Father in heaven, #Ps 115:3
#Isa 63:15 Mt 5:9. In what peculiar sense God may be said to be in heaven, has
been observed already; nor is he ever said to be in heaven "only",
but in many places to be on earth also, and elsewhere; see #De 4:39 Isa 66:1
though he is not contained in any place, as not on the earth, so neither can
the heaven of heavens contain him, #1Ki 8:27 he was before
there was any space or place; his nature, and so this attribute of
omnipresence, were the same then as now: and should it be asked, Where did he
dwell then? I answer, In himself, in his own immensity and eternity; see #Isa
57:15. The objection from the pollution of the divine Being, through sordid and
filthy places, in which he must be if omnipresent, scarce deserves
any regard; since bodies only touch them and are capable of being defiled by them;
not spirits, even created ones, as angels, and the souls of men; as the angel
in the filthy den of lions where Daniel was, was not; nor the souls of men that
are in filthy bodies; much less God a pure, infinite, and uncreated Spirit, who
can no more be affected by such means, than the sun is, by its rays striking on
a dunghill.
2. The "Eternity" of
God belongs to his infinity; for as he is not bounded by space, so neither by
time, and therefore eternal. He is often called "the everlasting
God", and the "King eternal", #Ge 21:33 De 33:27 Isa 40:28 Jer
10:10 Ro 16:26 1Ti 1:17 yea, eternity itself, #1Sa 15:29 and is said to inhabit
it, #Isa 57:15. These words, "eternal, everlasting", and "for ever",
are sometimes used in an improper sense, as of things which are of a long
duration, but limited, and have both a beginning and an end; as the everlasting
possession of the land of Canaan, granted in the everlasting covenant of
circumcision, and yet both are now at an end, #Ge 17:7,8 the rites and
ceremonies of the law of Moses are said to be ordinances and statutes for ever; and yet they were designed to continue but for a time,
and have been long since abolished, #Nu 10:8 15:15 18:8,11,19,23 the temple
built by Solomon is said to be a settled place for God to abide in for ever;
yea, he himself says, that he would put his name in it for ever; and it should
be his rest for ever; and yet it has been demolished long ago, #1Ki 8:13 9:3 Ps
132:14 the thrones of David and Solomon are said to be
established for ever, and yet, if taken in a literal sense, they are no more:
indeed, if understood spiritually, as David's Son and Antitype, his throne will
be for ever and ever, #2Sa 7:12,16 the earth is said to abide, and not be
removed for ever, #Ps 104:5 Ec 1:4 yet both that and the heavens shall perish,
though not as to substance, yet as to quality, form, figure, and present
use. Sometimes this phrase "for ever", only respects the year of jubilee, #Ex
21:6 and, at most, but during life, #1Sa 1:28.
Some creatures and things are
said to be everlasting, and even eternal, which have a beginning, though they
have no end; and this is what the schools call "aeviternity", as distinct from eternity: thus angels, and the souls of men,
being creatures of God, have a beginning; though, being immaterial and
immortal, shall never die. The happiness of the saints is called eternal glory,
"eternal weight of glory; eternal life; an eternal inheritance; an house
eternal in the heavens", #1Pe 5:10 Tit 1:2 2Co 4:17 5:1 Heb 9:15. And the
misery of the wicked is signified by suffering the vengeance of eternal fire, by everlasting fire, and everlasting punishment,
#Jude 1:7 Mt 25:41,46 yet these have a beginning, though they will have no end;
and so are improperly called eternal.
Eternity, properly so called,
is that which is without beginning and end {12}, and is without
succession, or does not proceed in a succession of moments one after another;
and is opposed to time, which has a beginning, goes on in a succession, and has
an end: it is the measure of a creature's duration, and began when creatures
began to be, and not before, and is proper to them, and not eternity, which
only belongs to God. Thales being asked what God was, answered thus, what has
neither beginning nor end {13}, which is eternity. A Jewish
writer {14} defines it, "in which there is no former nor latter; nor
order, nor succession of times; it being without motion". And which
Boetius {15} expresses in a few words,
``Eternity is the interminable
or unbounded and perfect possession of life whole together.''
And is thus described,
"Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the
earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God", #Ps
90:2.
Eternity, in this sense, is
peculiar to God; as he only hath immortality, so he only has eternity; which
must be understood not of the Father, or first person only, but of the Son and
Spirit also; who are, with the Father, the one God; and possess the same
undivided nature; of which Eternity is an attribute. So the Son, though as to his human nature, was born in the fulness of time; yet, as to
his divine nature, "his goings forth were from of old, from
everlasting": and as Mediator, in his office capacity, he was "set up
from everlasting, or ever the earth was", #Mic 5:2 Pr 8:23,24. The Spirit
of God was concerned in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and so must
be before them; and which is the only idea we have of eternity, that it is before time and creatures were, #Ge 1:1,2 Job 26:13
Ps 33:6 and, according to some, the Spirit is called, "the eternal
Spirit", #Heb 9:14. Eternity is true of God, essentially considered, and
in the sense explained, is to be proved, and that he is without beginning,
without end, and without succession.
2a. First,
That he is without beginning, or from everlasting: this is put by way of
interrogation, #Hab 1:12 not as a matter of doubt, but of certainty, and is
strongly affirmed, #Ps 93:2 and may be proved,
2a1. From his
nature and being; as from his "necessary
self-existence":
the existence of God is not arbitrary, but
necessary: if
arbitrary, it must be from his own will, or
from the will
of another; not from his own will, which would
suppose him
in being already; and then he must be before he
existed, and
must be, and not be, at the same instant; which
are
such contradictions as cannot be endured: not from the
will of
another, for then that other would be both prior and
superior to
him, and so be God, and not he: it remains,
therefore,
that he necessarily existed; and if so, then he
must be
eternal; since there was none before him; nor can
any
reason be given why he should necessarily exist at such
an instant,
and not before. His eternity may be argued from
a state of
"non-existence" he must have been in, if not
eternal; and
if so, then there was an instant in which he
was not; and
if there was an instant in which he was not,
then
there was an instant in which there was no God; and if
so, there may
be one again in which he may cease to be; for
that which
once was not, may again not be; and this will
bring us into
the depth of atheism; unless it could be
supposed,
which is quite irrational, that there was a God
before
him, and that there will be one after him; but this
is strongly
denied by himself; "Before me there was no God
formed;
neither shall there be after me", #Isa 43:10. The
eternity of
God may be inferred from his immutability, which
has been
already established: these two go together, and
prove
each other, #Ps 102:27 they are both to be observed in
the great
name of God, Jehovah, which signifies, he is, and
was, and is
to come, and takes in all time; but he is
bounded by
none, and is eternally the same; for if he is not
eternal, he
must have passed from non-existence into being;
and
what can be a greater change, than to come out of
nothing into
being? Moreover, God is the most "perfect
Being";
which he would not be, if not eternal; for not to
be, or to
have a beginning, is an imperfection; and it is an
humbling
consideration to man, a creature of time, that he
is
but "of yesterday", #Job 8:9. And if God was not eternal,
let his
beginning be when it may, in comparison of an
eternity
past, it would be but as yesterday; which can never
be admitted
of. Add to this, that God is the "first Cause"
of all
things, and therefore must be eternal: all wise and
thoughtful
men acknowledge a first Cause; and in their
reasoning
rise from one cause to another, until they arrive
to a first
Cause, and there stop, and which they truly call
God; for
otherwise there would be no subordination of
causes: if
there was not a first Cause, there would not be a
second,
nor a third, &c. but all would be first, and all
eternal; and if
God is the first Cause, then he is without a
cause, and
therefore must be eternal; hence he is so often
called
"the first and the last"; a phrase expressive of his
eternity,
#Isa 41:4 44:6 48:12. He is the "Creator" of all
things,
the heavens, earth, and sea, and all that in them
are; and
therefore must be before all things, as every
artificer is
before his work made by him; and if before all
creatures,
then before time, which begins with them, and
therefore
from eternity, since we can conceive of nothing
2a2. The
Eternity of God may be proved from his "attributes",
several of
which are said to be eternal, or from
everlasting:
the "power" of God is expressly called his
"eternal
power"; and is proved to be so by the works of
creation, to
which it must be prior, #Ro 1:20. The knowledge
God has of
all things is from eternity; though the things
known are in
time, his knowledge of them is before time;
"Known
unto God are all his works from the beginning of the
world",
ap' aiwnov, from eternity, #Ac 15:18. The "mercy"
of God is
eternal, it is said to be "from everlasting to
everlasting",
#Ps 103:17. And so the "love" of God, which is
no other than
himself, for "God is love", #1Jo 4:16 his
love to his
Son, "the brightness of his glory, and the
express
image of his person", was from everlasting; before
the earth,
the hills, and mountains were formed, then was he
by him,
"as one brought up with him", his darling and
delight, #Pr 8:30
our Lord himself says, his Father
loved him
before the foundation of the world, #Joh 17:24
and
as early did he love his elect in him; for he loved them
as he loved
him, #Joh 17:23 even with an everlasting
love, a love
which is both from everlasting and to
everlasting,
#Jer 31:3.
2a3.
That God is Eternal, may be argued from his purposes,
counsels, and
decrees; which are said to be "of old", that
is, from
everlasting, #Isa 25:1 this is true of them in
general; for
no new purposes and resolutions rise up, or are
framed by him
in his mind; for then there would be something
in
him which was not before; which would imply mutability.
Besides, they
are expressly said to be "eternal", #Eph 3:11
and if they
are eternal, then God, in whom they are, and by
whom they are
formed, must be eternal also. In particular,
the purpose
of God, according to election, or his choice of
men
to everlasting life, is eternal; not only was before men
had done any
good or evil, #Ro 9:11 but they were chosen by
him "from
the beginning", #2Th 2:13 not from the beginning
of the gospel
coming to them, nor of their faith and
conversion by
it; but from the beginning of time, and before
time,
even "before the foundation of the world", as is in so
many words
expressed, #Eph 1:4 wherefore God, that chose
them to
salvation, must be eternal. Christ is eminently
called the
elect of God, being as Man and Mediator, chosen
out from
among the people, #Isa 42:1 Ps 89:19 and the
appointment
of him, to be the Redeemer and Saviour of men,
or the
preordination of him to be the Lamb slain for the
redemption of
his people, was before the foundation of the
world, #1Pe
1:20 and therefore God, that foreordained him
thereunto,
must be as early.
2a4. The
Eternity of God may be concluded from the covenant of
grace, styled
an "everlasting covenant", #2Sa 23:5 not only
because it
will endure immoveable and unalterable for ever,
but because
it was from everlasting; for though it is
sometimes
called a new covenant, yet not because newly made,
or only newly
manifested; but because it is always new, and
never waxes
old. Christ, the Mediator of it, and with whom
it was made,
was set up from everlasting as such; and his
goings forth
in it, representing his people, and acting for
them,
were from of old, from everlasting, #Pr 8:22,23 Mic 5:2
and he had a
glory with God in it before the world began,
#Joh 17:5
there were blessings of goodness laid up in
it, and with
which Christ, the Mediator of it, was
anticipated;
yea, the people of God were blessed with these
spiritual
blessings in Christ, as "they were chosen in him
before the
foundation of the world; and had grace given them
in him before
the world began", #Eph 1:3,4 2Ti 1:9.
Promises also
were made as early to Christ, and to them in
him, into
whose hands they were put, and in whom they are,
yea
and amen; particularly, eternal life was promised by
God, that
cannot lie, before the world was, #Tit 1:2.
Now if there
was a covenant made by God from everlasting,
and Christ
was set up by him so early, as the Mediator of
it; and there
were blessings of grace, and promises of
grace,
made by him before time was, then he must be from
everlasting.
2a5. It may be
proved from the works of God in time: all
creatures are
the works of his hands; all beings have their
being
from him; and time beginning with them, he that made
them must be
before all time, and therefore eternal: this is
the argument
used to prove the eternity of Christ, the Word,
that he was
in the beginning, that is, from eternity with
God;
"because all things were made by him, and that he is
the
firstborn of every creature, and before all things,
because all
things are created by him, and by him do all
things
consist", #Joh 1:1-3 Col 1:15-17 and the same
proves the
eternity of God; for all things are from him, and
so have a
beginning; but he from whom they are, is from
none,
has no cause of his being, and therefore must be
eternal. So
creation is made a proof of his eternal power
and Godhead,
#Ro 1:20 creation proves his eternity, and
his eternity
proves his deity. Hence Thales said {16},
"The
most ancient of Beings is God."
2b. Secondly, That God is to
everlasting, and without end, may be proved from his "spirituality"
and "simplicity", already established; what is mixed and compounded,
and consists of parts, may be resolved into them again, and so be dissolved, as
bodies may; but spirits, such as angels and the souls of men, being immaterial, are immortal, and continue for ever; and God being
a Spirit, an infinite and uncreated one, simple, and uncompounded of parts,
must much more be so; and therefore is called, "The incorruptible
God", #Ro 1:23. It may be argued from his "independency", he is
self-existent; the first Cause, and without any cause; he is the only
Potentate, "God over all, blessed for ever", and dependant on none;
there is none above him, nor superior to him, that can put
an end, to his being; nor can it be thought, he being in such a state of
infinite happiness, would ever put an end to it himself. His eternity is to be
proved from his "immutability"; for those, as before observed, infer
one another. God is immutable, and therefore without end; for what can be a
greater change than for a being not to be? Hence God is opposed to creatures, to mortal men, whose flesh is as grass, the most
changeable and perishing of anything, and even to the heaven and the earth,
they being such; but he is unchangeably the same; and so there is no end of his
years, #1Pe 1:24,25 #Ps 102:26,27. This may be inferred from his
"dominion" and government; he is, and sits King for ever; he is an
everlasting King, his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and
his dominion is from generation to generation, and will never end, #Jer 10:10
#Ps 10:16 29:10 Da 4:3 and therefore he himself must be to everlasting.
Moreover, he is not only called the living God, #Jer 10:10 but is often said to
"live for ever and ever", #Re 4:9,10 10:6. Hence his purposes and decrees
are never frustrated, because he ever lives to bring them into execution: men
take up resolutions, and form schemes, which, by reason of
death, are never executed; their purposes are broken, and their thoughts
perish; but "the counsel of the Lord stands for ever; and the thoughts of
his heart to all generations", #Ps 33:11 and therefore he himself must
endure for ever: his promises are all fulfilled; not only because he is able
and faithful to perform, but because he continues for ever to make them good;
and therefore is said to "keep truth for ever",
#Ps 146:6. His covenant is firm and sure; more immoveable than rocks and
mountains; it stands fast, with Christ, for ever, and God commands it for ever;
because he ever lives to keep it. His love is to everlasting, as well as from
it; he rests in it; nothing can separate from it; and "with everlasting
kindness he gathers his people, and has mercy on them"; and therefore must be for ever: his grace, mercy, and goodness, continually
endure, and therefore he himself must; and "he will be the portion of his
people for ever"; their everlasting ALL in ALL; and they shall reign and
dwell with him for evermore. All which proves him to be without end.
2c.
Thirdly, The Eternity of God, or his being from everlasting to everlasting, is
without succession, or any distinctions of time succeeding one another, as
moments, minutes, hours, days, months, and years: the reasons are, because he
existed before such were in being; "Before the day was, I am he",
#Isa 43:13 before there was a day, before the first day of the creation, before
there were any days, consisting of so many hours, and these
of so many minutes; and if his eternity past, may it be so called, was without
successive duration, or without succeeding moments, and other distinctions of
time, why not his duration through time, and to all eternity, in the same
manner? Should it be said, that days and years are ascribed to God; it is true,
they are; but it is in accommodation and condescension to our weak minds, which
are not capable of conceiving of duration but as
successive: and besides, those days and years ascribed to God are expressly
said not to be as ours, #Job 10:5. He is, indeed, called, "The Ancient of
Days", #Da 7:13 not ancient "in" days, or "through"
them, as aged persons are said to be in years, and well stricken in them; not
so God: the meaning is, that he is more ancient than days; he was before all days, and his duration is not to be measured by them. And it
may be observed, that the differences and distinctions of time are together
ascribed to God, and not as succeeding one another; he is "the same
yesterday, today, and for ever"; these are all at once, and together with
him; he is he "which is, and was, and is to come", #Heb 13:8 Re 1:4
these meet together in his name, Jehovah {17}; and so in his nature;
he co-exists, with all the points of time, in time; but is unmoved and
unaffected with any, as a rock in the rolling waves of the sea, or a tower in a
torrent of gliding water; or as the rod or pin of a sundial, which has all the
hours of the day surrounding it, and the sun, by it casts a shade upon them,
points at and distinguishes them, but the stile stands firm and unmoved, and
not affected thereby: hence it is that "one day is
with the Lord as a thousand years; and a thousand years as one day", #2Pe
3:8. But if his duration was successive, or proceeded by succeeding moments,
days, and years; one day would be but one day with him, and not a thousand; and
a thousand days would answer to a thousand days, and not be as one only.
Besides, if his duration was measured by a succession of moments, &c. then he would not be "immense, immutable", and
"perfect", as he is: not "immense", or unmeasurable, if to
be measured by minutes, hours, days, months, and years; whereas, as he is not
to be measured by space, so not by time: nor "immutable"; since he
would be one minute what he was not before, even older, which cannot be said of
God; for as a Jewish writer {18} well observes, it cannot be said
of him, that he is older now than he was in the days of David, or when the
world was created; for he is always, both before the world was made, and after
it will cease to be; times make no change in him. Nor "perfect"; for
if his duration was successive, there would be every moment something past and
gone, lost and irrecoverable; and something to come not yet arrived to and
obtained; and in other respects he must be imperfect: the
"knowledge" of God proves him without successive duration. God knows
all things, past, present, and to come, that is, which are so to us; not that
they are so to him; these he knows at once, and all together, not one thing
after another, as they successively come into being; all things are open and
manifest to him at once and together, not only what are past and present, but
he calls things that are not yet, as though they were; he
sees and knows all in one view, in his all-comprehending mind: and as his
knowledge is not successive, so not his duration. Moreover, in successive
duration, there is an order of former and latter; there must be a beginning
from whence every flux of time, every distinction proceeds; every moment and
minute has a beginning, from whence it is reckoned, so every
hour, day, month, and year: but as it is said of Christ, with respect to his
divine nature, so it is true of God, essentially considered, that he has
"neither beginning of days, nor end of life", #Heb 7:3. In short, God
is Eternity itself, and inhabits eternity; so he did before time, and without
succession; so he does throughout time; and so he will to all eternity. The
very heathens {19} themselves had a notion of their supreme
God, as eternal: and this is the definition Thales gave of God; for being
asked, What is God? answered, What has neither beginning nor end; and therefore
calls him, the most Ancient {20}. Sallustius {21} denied that the nature of God
was made, because it always was.
{1} to ton
apanta apeiron yronon kai thn apeirian periecon telov aiwn estin, Aristot. de
Coelo. l. 1. c. 9.
{2} apeiron ara to en, ei mhte
archn mhte teleuthn ecei, Plato in Parmenide, p. 1117. "nihil cum habeat
extremum, infinitum sit necesse est", Cicero de Divinat. l. 2. c. 50.
{3} Ambo apud Lactant. de
fals. relig. l. 1. c. 5.
{4} De
Diis, c. 2. "Jovis omnia plena", Virgil. Bucolic. eclog. 3.
{5} T. Bab. Bava Bathra, fol.
25. 1.
{6} In rad. Mwq.
{7} Vid. Baal Aruch in voce
Mwqm.
{8} Pirke Eliezer, c. 35.
{9}
Praefat. ad Comment. in lib. Esther.
{10} Leg. Allegor. l. 1. p.
48.
{11} "Quo fugis Encelade,
quascumque accesseris oras--sub Jove semper eris"-----Virgil.
{12} ta d'aidia, agenhta kai
afyarta, Aristot. Ethic. l. 6. c. 3.
{13} ti to
yeion, to mhte archn econ, mhte teleuthn, Thales in Laert. l. 1. Vita Thalet.
{14} R. Joseph Albo in Sepher
lkkarim, l. 2. c. 18.
{15} Consolat. Philosoph. l.
5. p. 137.
{16} presbutaton twn ontwn,
yeov, agenhton gar, apud Laert. ut supra.
{17} Plato observes, that to a
temporal being we say of it, "it is, and was, and will be;
"but to the eternal Being, "th sto estin monon, to him only it is,
"in Timaeo, p. 1051.
{18} Joseph Albo in Sepher
Ikkarim, fol. 66. l.
{19} "O pater, O hominum,
ivumque aeterna potestas", Virgil. Aeneid, l. 10. v. 17. "Alii Dii
aliquando Dii non fuerunt, sed Jupiter ab aeterno fuit Deus", Pompon. Sabin. in ibid. dihkwn ex aiwnov atermonov eiv eteron aiwna,
Aristot. de Mundo, c. 7.
{20} Laert. Vita Thalet. l. 1.
p. 23, 24. Plutarch, Sept. Sap. Conviv. vol. 2. p. 153.
{21} De Diis, c. 2.