nent effect of vindictive justice, wherein God would set forth an example of it unto all ensuing generations, in the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. And both these were the proper works of him on whom the care of the church was in an especial manner incumbent,—all whose blessedness depended on that promise,—and to whom the rule of the world, the present and future judgment thereof, is committed; that is, the person of the Son. And hence, in the overthrow of those cities, he who is to be their judge is said to set forth an ensample of his future dealing with ungodly men, 2 Pet. ii. 6.

7. Aben Ezra reflects with scorn on the Christians who from this place, because three men are said to appear unto Abraham, and he calls them, "My Lord," would prove the tri-personality of the

-Be -; הנה קצת אמרו כי השם ג' אנשים הוא אחד והוא ג' ולא יתפרדו :Deity

cause of the appearance of three men, God is three, and he is one, and they are not separated or divided." How then doth he

-Be -; וחנח שכחו ויבאו שני המלאכים סדומה ?answer what they say

hold, they forget that there came two angels unto Sodom;" that is, that two of those who appeared were angels, and no more. But if any Christians have taken these three persons to have been the three persons of the Trinity, it were an easy thing to outbalance their mistake with instances of his own and companions' pernicious curiosities and errors. It is true, a trinity of persons in the Deity cannot be proved from this place, seeing one of them is expressly called Jehovah, and the other two, in distinction from him, are said to be angels; so, and no more, Gen. xix. 1. But yet a distinction of persons in the Deity, although not the precise number of them, is hence demonstrable. for it is evident that he of .the three that spake unto Abraham, and to whom he made his supplication for the sparing of Sodom, was Jehovah," the Judge of all the earth," chap. xviii. 22-33; and yet all the three were sent upon the work, that one being the Prince and Head of the embassy; as he who is Jehovah is said to be sent by Jehovah, Zech. ii. 8, 9. Neither is there any ground for the late exposition of this and the like places, namely, that a created angel representing the person of God doth both speak and act in his name, and is called Jehovah; an invention to evade the appearances of the Son of God under the old testament, contrary to the sense of all antiquity, nor is any reason or instance produced to make it good. The Jews, indeed, say that they were three angels, because of the threefold work they were employed in; for they say, "No more than one angel is at any time sent about the same work." So one of these was to renew the promise unto Abraham; another, to deliver Lot; and the third, to destroy Sodom. But besides that this is a rule of their own making, and evidently false, as may be seen, Gen. xxxii. 1, 2; 2 Kings vi. 17; so in the story itself it is manifest that they were all employed in the

same work,—one as Lord and Prince, the other two as his ministering servants.

And this is further cleared in that expression of Moses, Gen. xix. 24, "The LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven." Targum, ", " from before the Lord," or "the face of the Lord." Aben Ezra answers, in s Ins Dym,-that this is the elegancy of the tongue, and the sense of it is, "from himself;" and this gloss some of our late critics embrace. And there are instances collected by Solomon Jarchi to confirm this sense,—namely, the words of Lamech, Gen. iv. 23, "Hear my voice, ye wives of Lamech," not "my wives;" and of David, 1 Kings i. 33, "Take with you the servants of your lord," not "my servants;" and of Ahasuerus unto Mordecai, Esther viii. 8, "Write ye for the Jews in the king's name," not "in my name." But the difference of these from the words under consideration is wide and evident. In all these places the persons are introduced speaking of themselves, and describe themselves either by their names or offices, suitably unto the occasion and subject spoken of: but in this place it is Moses that speaketh of the Lord, and he had no occasion to repeat in лs, were it not to intimate the distinct persons unto whom that name, denoting the nature and self-existence of God, was proper; one whereof then appeared on the earth, the other manifesting his glorious presence in heaven. Wherefore Rashi, observing somewhat more in this expression, contents not himself with his supposed parallel places; but adds, that the n is to be

כל מקום שכ' ויי הוא ובית דינו,understood, and gives this as a rule

"Every place where it is said, in, And the LORD,' he and his house of judgment are intended"! as if God had a sanhedrim in heaven,—a fancy which they have invented to avoid the expressions which testify unto a plurality of persons in the Deity. There is therefore in this place an appearance of God in a human shape, and that of one distinct person in the Godhead, who now represented himself unto Abraham in the form and shape wherein he would dwell amongst men, when of his seed he would be "made flesh." This was one signal means whereby Abraham saw his day and rejoiced; which himself lays upon his pre-existence unto his incarnation, and not upon the promise of his coming, John viii. 56, 58. A solemn preludium it was unto his taking of flesh, a revelation of his divine nature and person, and a pledge of his coming in human nature to converse with men.

8. Gen. xxxii. 24, 26-30, " And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the ascending of the morning. And he said, Let me go, for the day ascendeth. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be

called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore dost thou ask after my name? And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved." This story is twice reflected upon in the Scripture afterwards: once by Jacob himself, Gen. xlviii. 15, 16, "And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, the Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads;" and once by the prophet Hosea, chap. xii. 3-5, "By his strength he had power with God: yea, he had power over the Angel, and prevailed: he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him in Beth-el, and there he spake with us; even the LORD God of hosts; the LORD is his memorial." In the first place he is called a "man:" "There wrestled a man," Gen. xxxii. 24. In the second, Jacob calls him an "Angel:" "The Angel which redeemed me," chap. xlviii. 16. And in the third, he is expressly said to be "God, the LORD God of hosts," Hos. xii. 3, 5.

9. Jacob was now passing with his whole family into the land of Canaan, to take seizure of it, by virtue of the promise, on the behalf of his posterity. At the very entrance of it he is met by his greatest adversary, with whom he had a severe contest about the promise and the inheritance itself. This was his brother Esau, who coming against him with a power which he was no way able to withstand, he feared that he would utterly destroy both his person and his posterity, Gen. xxxii. 11. In the promise about which their contest was, the blessed Seed, with the whole church-state and worship of the old testament, was included; so that it was the greatest controversy, and had the greatest weight depending on it, of any that ever was amongst the sons of men. Wherefore, to settle Jacob's right, to preserve him with his title and interest, he who was principally concerned in the whole matter doth here appear unto him; some especial particulars of which manifestation of himself may be remarked.

10. First, He appeared in the form of "a man:" iny WN PANT; -"A man wrestled with him." A man he is called from his shape and his actions. He "wrestled," P; that is, saith R. Menachem in Rashi, yn," he dusted." This, saith he, is the sense of PN; for bay by ra," they stirred up the dust with their feet," as men do in earnest wrestling; or, as himself would have it, in allusion to another word, to signify "the closing with their arms," to cast one another down, as is the manner of wrestlers. A great contention is denoted, and an appearance in the form of a man, further manifested by his "touching the hollow of Jacob's thigh."

11. Secondly, He is called an "Angel" by Jacob himself: Gen. xlviii. 16, "The Angel that redeemed me." This was the greatest danger that ever Jacob was in, and this he remembers in his blessing of Joseph's children, praying that they may have the presence of this Angel with them, who preserved him all his life, and delivered him from that imminent danger from his brother Esau. And he calls him, “The Angel the Redeemer;" which is the name of the promised Messiah, as the Jews grant, Isa. lix. 20, 2, -"And the Goël" (the "Redeemer") "shall come to Zion." And he is expressly called "The Angel," Hos. xii. 4.

12. Thirdly, This man in appearance, this angel in office, was in name and nature God over all, blessed for ever: for, in the first place, Jacob prays solemnly unto him for his blessing, Gen. xxxii. 26, and refuseth to let him go, or to cease his supplications, until he had blessed him. He doth so, he blesseth him, and giveth him a double pledge or token of it, in the touch of his thigh and change of his name; giving him a name to denote his prevalency with God,that is, with himself. And from hence Jacob concludes that he had "seen God," and calls the name of the place, "The face of God." In the second place, Gen. xlviii. 16, besides that he invocates this Angel, for his presence with and blessing on the children of Joseph,which cannot regard any but God himself without gross idolatry,-it is evident that "the Angel which redeemed him," verse 16, is the same with "the God which fed him," that is, the God of his fathers.

And this is yet more evident in the prophet: for with regard unto this story of his power over the Angel, he says, "He had power with God;" and proves it, because "he had power over the Angel, and prevailed." And he shows whereby he thus prevailed: it was by "weeping and making supplication unto him;" which he neither did nor lawfully might do unto a created angel. And therefore some

of the Jews apply these words, "He wept and made supplication,” unto the Angel's desire to Jacob to let him go !-foolishly enough; and yet are they therein followed by some late critics, who too often please themselves in their curiosities. Again, this Angel was he whom he found, or "who found him, in Bethel;" an account whereof we have, Gen. xxviii. 10-22, and xxxv. 1. Now, this was no other but he unto whom Jacob made his vow, and entered into solemn covenant withal that he should be his God. And therefore the prophet adds expressly in the last place, Hos. xii. 5, that it was "the LORD God of hosts" whom he intended.

13. From what hath been spoken, it is evident that he who appeared unto Jacob, with whom he earnestly wrestled, by tears and supplications, was God; and because he was sent as the angel of God, it must be some distinct person in the Deity condescending unto that office; and appearing in the form of a man, he represented his future

assumption of our human nature. And by all this did God instruct the church in the mystery of the person of the Messiah, and who it was that they were to look for in the blessing of the promised Seed. 14. Exod. iii. 1-6, "And Moses came to the mountain of God, to Horeb. And the Angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God." And herein also have we expressed another glorious appearance of the Son of God. He who is here revealed is called "Jehovah," verse 4; and he affirms of himself that he is "the God of Abraham," verse 6; who also describes himself by the glorious name of "I AM THAT I AM," verse 14; in whose name and authority Moses dealt with Pharaoh in the deliverance of the people, and whom they were to serve on that mountain upon their coming out of Egypt; he whose

, or "merciful good-will," Moses prays for, Deut. xxxiii. 16. And yet he is expressly called an "Angel," Exod. iii. 2,—namely, the Angel of the covenant, the great Angel of the presence of God, in whom was the name and nature of God. And he thus appeared that the church might know and consider who it was that was to work out their spiritual and eternal salvation, whereof that deliverance which then he would effect was a type and pledge. Aben Ezra would have the Angel mentioned verse 2, to be another from him who is called "God," verse 6: but the text will not give countenance unto any such distinction, but speaks of one and the same person throughout, without any alteration; and this was no other but the Son of God.

15. Exod. xix. 18-20, " And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly. And when the voice of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God answered him by a voice. And the LORD came down upon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount." The Jews well interpret these words concerning the descent of God, to be by way of the manifestation of his glory, not change of place. And hence Aben Ezra interprets that expression, chap. xx. 22, "Ye have seen that I have talked with you from heaven." God was still in heaven when his glory was on

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