An exposition of the morall lavv, or Ten Commandements of almightie God set dovvne by vvay of exercitations, wherein is contained an explanation of diverse questions and positions for the right understanding thereof, together with an explication of these scriptures which depend upon, or belong unto every one of the commandements, all which are cleared out of the originall languages, the customes of the Iewes, and the distinctions of the schoolemen / by Iohn Weemse ...

EXERCITAT. IV. No image can be made to represent God. Commandement II.

Esay. 40.25. To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equall, saith the holy One?

THe Church of Rome say, for representation the image of God cannot be painted to expresse lively and fully the nature of God: and in this sense they say, that God forbideth any image of him to be made, seing he hath no forme whereby he can be expressed. Esay 40.18. To whom will ye liken God, or what likenesse will ye com∣pare unto him? But to expresse him by some bodily shape as he appeared here, that is no idolatrie, as he ap∣peared to Daniel in the likenesse of an old man, and the holy ghost appeared in the likenesse of a done. Matt. 3.16. When he is painted to teache the histories of the scripture, that so by sensible figures our mindes may ascend to take up the invisible God; to paint him this way is not a sinne; angels themselves are immateriall spirits, yet they were painted under the law, and repre∣sented by cherubins; why then may not God be repre∣sented by an image? There is a great difference betwixt the angels and God. First they are finite, and therefore there may be some proportion betwixt them and an image; but God is infinite, and an image finite; there∣fore no proportion betwixt them.

Secondly, there is imago personae, and imago represen∣tationis officij, the cherubins were no representation of the persons of the angels; for they being immateriall,

cannot be expressed by any materiall things, and if we should conceive an angell to have any quantitie by an image, then the image should teach us a lie: the cheru∣bins then are onely representations of the office of the angels, that they were ministring spirits attending the elect; and they were painted this way, that the Iewes might read (as it were) in a historie, what the angels did to them who wait upon the Church continually.

But members are attributed to God in the scripture: [Ob.] if they be attributed to God for this end, that wee may take him up, why may he not be painted to the laicks, that by the eye as wel as the eare, they may take him up?

Members are attribute to God metaphoricè, [Answ.] but not typicè, metaphora est in verbis, typus in rebus, the scripture setteth him downe with eares, hands, and feet by words borrowed from men, but it never setteth him downe by any bodily shape painted before us, but al∣wayes forbiddeth us to represent him by any bodily shape; and there is no danger to the people by idolatrie, when he is represented to the eare by metaphoricall words, but great danger to them when he is represented to the eye by visible shapes.

How shall we conceive of God then, [Quest.] that we take him not up as an idoll?

We must conceive him to be a spirit, most just, [Answ.] most holy, and infinite; but because the infinite Godhead is but finitely comprehended by us; therefore we should set the eyes of our faith upon the manhood of Christ; for hee that seeth the sonne seeth the father. When a man looketh into a chrystall glasse, it casteth no reflexe to him; but put steele upon the backe of it, it will cast a reflexe: so when we looke upon the Godhead it selfe, it casteth no comfortable reflexe unto us, but put the hu∣manitie, as it were a backe of steele to that glasse, then it casteth a reflexe to us.

Now let us speake of the worship it selfe. The Church of Rome being charged with idolatrie, and worshiping of idols, they wipe their mouth with the whore, and say they did it not, Prov. 30.20. And they goe about by sundrie shifts to cleare themselves of this idolatrie.

There is a double sort of worship, the first is called adoratio respectiva, the second is called adoratio absoluta. Absolute adoration is this, when the worship is termed in the creature, as objectum quod adorationis, & the wor∣ship is limitated to the creature. Respective adoration is this, when worship is given to dead & senselesse crea∣tures for the examplars sake, then the exemplar is obie∣ctum quo, and the dead and senselesse thing is obiectum quod; that is, wee reverence and adore the dead and senselesse thing for the examplars sake. Example, when wee attend the coffin, the corps being buried alreadie, the coffin is obiectum quod which we attend, and the corps are obiectum quo which moveth us to attend the coffin: so when we doe homage to the Viceroy for the King; the Viceroy here is obiectum quod, and the King is obiectum quo. The more modest of the papists of old made but the image obiectum quod adorationis, and God himselfe obiectum quo.

Againe they say, that there is adoratio coniuncta, or coadoratio, and there is adoratio respectiva: coadoratio or coniuncta adoratio, they make to be this; when both the exemplar, and the thing represented by the exemplar are worshiped coniunctim, as obiectum quod adaequatum, this sort of worship they gaue not to the image at the first, but onely respectivam adorationem.

Thirdly, they say that an image is considered secun∣dum rem naturae, and so it is not worshiped. Secondly formaliter & in actu exerci••••••, as it holdeth forth the ex∣emplar to us, and so it is ••••rminus formalis adorationis, and

then the cause of the adoration is in the exemplar, which both moveth the adoration and determineth it; and the image is but a condition of the adoration, and the adoration is not given to it, but to him who is the cause of the adoration, as Caietan saith. But now they goe farther and maintaine that images are not onely to be worshiped accidentally or improperly; but also by themselues, and properly, so that they end and termi∣nate the worship, as they are considered in themselves; and not onely as they are portraitures of the exemplar represented: and some of them say yet more plainely, that it is the self same worship, that is due to God, and to the image; and that it is coadoratio or coniuncta adoratio, & eodem officio, & honoris genere, eodem animi motu, & eadē voluntate excitandi opinionē excellentiae, ille cultus ad proto∣typon spectat secundum se, ad imaginem vero coram ipsa, & in ipsa tanquam vicaria; they clearely confesse, that it is the same worship that is due to God and to the image: and as the Echo est individuum cum suo sono; so it is one sort of worship which is given both to the image and to God: and Vasques implieth, that in some case the devill may be worshiped appearing in some visible shape. When Darius mother Sysigambis came before Alexander the great, (mistaking Ephestion for Alexander) she fell downe before Ephestion, but knowing that she was mis∣taken, she began to blush: But Alexander said vnto her, be not ashamed, non errasti mater, nam Ephestion est etiam Alexander. If a papist falling downe before his image and mistaking the image for Christ, and if Christ should say to him be not ashamed, thou art not mistaken, for this image is also Christ: then he needed not to blush nor be ashamed: but Christ is more jealous of his honour than so, and will not give it to any creature.

The conclusion of this is, 1. Ioh. 5.2. little children, beware of idols, Micha's idoll bewitched the whole tribe of Dan. Iudg. 18.36.

Notes

• No proportion betwixt God and an image.
• Imago

  • Personae.
  • Representatio∣nis officii.
• An image may repre∣sent the office of angels but not their persons.
• Members attributed to God metaphorically not typically.
• How we must con∣ceive God.
• Simile.
• Adoratio

  • Absoluta.
  • Respectiva.
• Obiectum

  • Quod.
  • Quo.
• Simile.
• Adoratio

  • Respectiva.
  • Coniuncta.
• Imago conside∣ratur.

  • Secundum rem naturae.
  • Formaliter.
• Many papists now hold they are not only accidentally to be wor∣shiped but properly.
• Gregorius de Valentia disput. 6. quest. 11. punct. 6.
• Vasq. lib. 3. de ador. disput. 1. cap. 5.
• Conclusione.