An exposition with practical observations continued upon the thirty-fifth, thirty-sixth, and thirty-seventh chapters of…

There is one thing further considerable in the Grammar of the Text. The Hebrew is plural, or a plural with a singular; as (Gen. 1.1.) In the beginning God created: The word Elohim, rendered God, is plural; The word Bara, created, singular. Thus here, Where is God my makers? Mr Broughton translates, Where is the puissant my makers. I might spend much time in showing the consent of several Scriptures in that point. Joshua said to the people, (who promised and engaged to serve the Lord) ye cannot serve the Lord. Why could they not? the reason follows; For he is an Holy God, (Josh. 24.19.) The Hebrew strictly is, God holies he. Thus the Prophet expresseth it, (Isa. 54.5.) Thy makers is thy husband. Solomons admonition runs in the same plural stile, (Eccl. 12.1.) ⟨p. 66⟩Remember now thy Creators in the days of thy youth. ¹But though the Scripture speaks of God sometimes in the singular, sometimes in the plural number, yet the sense is always singular. The true God being but One, and the onemost one, and therefore the plural word (Elohim) is always rendered in the singular number God, where mention is made of the true God; they having regard to the true meaning or Divinity of the Text, not to the Grammar, or termination of the word. There are usually two reasons given by learned translators and interpreters, why the true God who is but one in essence and being, is so often expressed in the Hebrew text plurally. First, to insinuate or intimate unto us that Great and glorious mystery of the Blessed Trinity of persons in the God-head; I say, to intimate it, we cannot make a full or convincing proof from it against any Antitrinitarian Adversary; because though the word Elohim notes a plurality, yet we cannot by any force of the word, determine that plurality precisely to a Trinity, that must be done by other Scriptures, of which we have an abundant store to stop the mouth of all gainsayers. Secondly, they tell us, This plural word is used to set forth the honour of God, according to the usage of Kings and Sovereign Princes (called Gods) who speak of themselves (though single persons) in a plural stile, We and Us. But I conceive, neither is this cogent, though both this and the former may be piously improved. So much for the opening of these words, No man saith, Where is God my maker?