101. (7) THUS GOD BECAME MAN, AND MAN GOD, IN ONE PERSON.

That Jehovah God became Man, and Man God, in one Person, follows as a conclusion from the preceding articles of this chapter, particularly from these two: "Jehovah, the Creator of the universe descended and assumed the Human, in order to redeem and save mankind," nos. 82-84; and "The Lord, by the acts of redemption, united Himself to the Father, and the Father united Himself to Him, thus reciprocally and mutually," nos. 97-100. From that reciprocal union it is clearly evident that God became Man, and Man God, in one Person. The same also follows as a consequence from the Union of both, which is like that of soul and body. That this is in agreement with the faith of the Church at this day, as it is set forth in the Athanasian Creed, ¹ may be seen above,nos. 98. It is also in agreement with the faith of the Evangelical Protestants, as stated in their chief book of orthodoxy, called the Formula Concordiae, ² where it is strongly established, both from the Sacred Scripture and the Fathers, as well as by rational arguments, that the Human Nature of Christ was exalted to Divine majesty, omnipotence and omnipresence, and also that in Christ Man is God and God Man; as may be seen in that work, p. 607, 765. Moreover it has been proved in this chapter that Jehovah God, as to His Human, is called in the Word, JEHOVAH, Jehovah God, JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH, (A.V., the Lord of Hosts), and also the God of Israel. Therefore, Paul says that in Jesus Christ "dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily" Colossians 2:9;

and John says that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, "is the true God, and eternal life" 1 John 5:20.

That the Son of God, properly speaking, means His Human, may be seen above, 92 and following. Moreover, Jehovah God calls both Himself and Him Lord; for it is written:

"The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand" Psalms 110:1;

and in Isaiah:

"Unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given:... and His name shall be called God, the everlasting Father" 9:8.

By the Son is also meant the Lord as to His Human in David:

"I will declare the decree: JEHOVAH hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee... Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and ye perish from the way" Psalms 2:7, 12.

A Son born from eternity is not here meant, but the Son born in the world, for this is a prophecy concerning the Lord who was to come, and therefore it is called the decree which Jehovah announced to David. It is also written before in the same Psalm:

"I have anointed my King upon Zion," Psalms 2:6, and later,

"I shall give Him the nations for an inheritance," Psalms 2:6.

Therefore, "this day" does not mean from eternity, but in time, for with Jehovah the future is present.

脚注:

2649. 'On the day when he was to wean Isaac' means a state of separation. This is clear from the meaning of 'day' as state, dealt with in 23, 487, 488, 493, 893, and from the meaning of 'being weaned' as being separated, dealt with in 2647. Verse 1 onwards of this chapter has dealt in the following order with the Lord's Divine Essence united to His Human Essence:

The presence of the Divine within the Human, for the sake of the two being united, verse 1.

The presence of the Human within the Divine, and thus a reciprocal union, dealt with in 2004, verse 2,

From that union the Human was made Divine, verse 3.

This was effected gradually and constantly while the Lord lived in the world, verse 4.

It started to be effected when the rational was in a state to receive, verse 5.

The nature of the state of union is described, together with the arcana of that state, verses 6-7.

Now reference follows, and is continued through to verse 12, to the separation of the human received from the mother. That separation is meant in this present verse by 'the weaning of Isaac', and in those that follow it is represented by Hagar's son being cast out of the house. And because the union of the Lord's Divine with His Human, and of the Human with the Divine, is the marriage itself of Good and Truth, and from this marriage is derived the heavenly marriage, which is the same as the Lord's kingdom, mention is therefore made of 'a great feast which Abraham made when Isaac was weaned', by which is meant the first stage of that marriage or the first union. Unless this 'feast', and also the weaning, had had some hidden meaning, it would never have been mentioned.

[2] Since the subject which follows now is the separation of the first human which the Lord had from the mother and the total casting off of it ultimately, it should be recognized that right to the end of His life when He was glorified the Lord gradually and constantly separated from Himself and cast off that which was merely human. That is to say, He cast off that which He had derived from the mother, until ultimately He was no longer her son but the Son of God not only in conception but also in birth, and so was one with the Father and was Jehovah himself. The truth that He separated from Himself and cast off the whole of the human received from the mother, insomuch that He was her son no longer, is plainly evident from the Lord's own words in John,

When the wine failed, the mother of Jesus said to Him, They have no wine. Jesus said to her, O woman, What have you to do with Me? John 2:3-4.

In Matthew,

Someone said, Behold, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside asking to speak to You. But Jesus answering said to the one who had told Him, Who is My mother, and who are My brothers? And stretching out His hand over His disciples He said, Behold My mother and My brothers; for whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven is My brother, and sister, and mother. Matthew 12:47-50; Mark 3:32-35; Luke 11:27-28.

In Luke,

A certain woman lifting up her voice out of the crowd ¹ said to Him, Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts that You sucked. But Jesus said, Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it. Luke 11:27-28.

[3] Here, when the woman referred to His mother, the Lord spoke of those mentioned in the preceding quotation. That is to say, He spoke of 'whoever does the will of My Father is My brother, sister, and mother', which amounts to the same as saying, 'Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it'. In John,

Jesus seeing his mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, said to His mother, O woman, behold your son! Then He said to the disciple, Behold your mother! From that hour therefore the disciple took her to his own home. John 19:26-27.

From these words it is evident that the Lord spoke to her according to what she was thinking when she saw Him on the Cross - though He does not call her mother but woman - and that He gave the name mother instead to those meant by the disciple; hence His words to the disciple, Behold your mother! The matter is plainer still from the Lord's own words in Matthew,

Jesus questioned the Pharisees saying, What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is He? They said to Him, David's. He said to them, How is it then that David in the spirit calls Him Lord, saying, The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies Your footstool. If therefore David calls Him Lord, how is He his son? And no one was able to answer Him a word. Matthew 22:41-end; Mark 12:35-37; Luke 20:42-44.

Accordingly He was no longer David's son as to the flesh.

[4] As regards the separation and casting off of the human from the mother, it must be added that they have no conception of this who entertain merely bodily ideas about the Lord's Human and think of it as they do of the human of any other. To such people these matters are as a consequence stumbling-blocks. They do not know that as is the life so is the person, and that the Divine Being (Esse) of life, or Jehovah, was the Lord's from conception and that a similar Being (Esse) of life manifested itself within His Human through union.

脚注: