vity and Incarnation of our B. Saviour: The Word was made flesh, that is, he who is perfonally called the Word, and whom the Evangelift St. John had fo fully defcribed in the beginning of this Gofpel, he became flesh, that is, affumed our Nature and became Man; for fo the word flesh is frequently used in Scripture for Man or human nature : 0 thou that heareft Pfal. 65. prayer, unto thee fhall all flesh come, that 2. is, to thee fhall all men address their Supplications: again, The glory of the Ísa: 40. Lord fhall be revealed, and all flesh fhall 5, 6. fee it together, that is, all men fhall behold and acknowledge it; and then it follows, all flesh is grafs, fpeaking of the frailty and mortality of man: And fo likewife in the new Teftament, our B. Saviour foretelling the misery that was coming upon the Jewish Nation, fays, Except thofe days Mat. 24. fhould be fhortened no flesh should be faved, 22. that is, no man should escape and furvive that great calamity and deftruction which was coming upon Á 4

them:

16.

Gal. 2. them: By the works of the Law, fays the Apoftle, fhall no flesh, that is, no man be juftified.

So that by the Word's being made or becoming flesh the Evangelift did not intend that he affumed only a human Body without a Soul, and was united only to a human Body, which was the Herefie of Apollinaris and his Followers, but that he became Man, that is, affumed the whole human Nature, Body and Soul. And it is likewife very probable that the Evangelift did purposely chufe the word flesh, which fignifies the frail and mortal part of a Man, to denote to us that the Son of God did affume our Nature with all its infirmities, and became fubject to the common frailty and mortality of human Nature.

The words thus explain'd contain that great Mystery of Godliness, as the Apoftle calls it, or of the Chriftian Religion, viz. the Incarnation of the Son of God, which St. Paul expref

feth

3. 16.

feth by the appearance or manifeftation of God in the flesh, And without 1 Tim. controverfie great is the mystery of godli nefs, God was manifefted in the flesh, that is, he appeared in human Nature, he became man; or, as St. John expreffeth it in the Text, The Word was made flesh.

But for the more clear and full explication of these words, we will confider these two things.

First, the Perfon that is here spoken of, and who is faid to be incarnate, or to be made flesh, namely the Word.

or

Secondly, the Mystery it self, the nature of this Incarnation, so far as the Scripture hath revealed and declared it to us.

I. We will confider the Perfon that is here spoken of, and who is faid to be incarnate or to be made flesh, and who is fo frequently in this Chapter called by the Name or Title of the Word; namely the eternal and only begotten

I.

begotten Son of God; for fo we find him defcribed in the Text, The Word was made flesh, and dwelt amongst us; and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, &c. that is, fuch asbecame fo great and glorious a Perfon as deferves the Title of the only begotten Son of God.

For the explaining of this Name or Title of the Word given by St. John to our B. Saviour, we will confider thefe two things.

First, The reafon of this Name or Title of the Word, and what probably might be the Occasion why this Evangelift infilts fo much upon it, and makes fo frequent mention of it.

Secondly, The Description it self, which is given of him under this Name or Title of the Word by this Evangelift, in his entrance into his Hiftory of the Gospel.

I. We will enquire into the reafon of this Name or Title of the Word, which is here given tơ

Our

our B. Saviour by this Evangelift: And what might probably be the Occafion why he infifts fo much upon it and makes fo frequent mention of it. fhall confider these two things diftinctly and feverally.

I

Firft, The reafon of this Name or Title of the Word, here given by the Evangelift to our B. Saviour. And he seems to have done it in compliance with the common way of speaking among the Jews, who frequently call the Meffias by the Name of the Word of the Lord; of which I might give many inftances: But there is one very remarkable, in the Targum of 70nathan, which renders those words of the Pfalmift, which the Jews acknow ledge to be spoken of the Messias, viz. The Lord faid unto my Lord, fit thou on my right hand, &c. I fay it renders them thus, The Lord faid unto his Word, fit thou on my right hand, &c. And so likewife Philo the Jew calls him by whom God made the World, the Word of God, and the Son of God. And Plato probably