1. How he made all things? Freely, and of his own will: Rev. 4.11. Thou art worthy, O Lord to receive honour and glory and power for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. They use three words to set forth the honour that is due to Christ for creating the World; Glory, because of his Excellencies discovered; ⟨p. 56⟩Honour, which is the ascription or acknowledgement of those Excellencies; and Power, because the invisible things of his Godhead and power are seen by the things that are made, Rom. 1.20. For in the creating of the World, he exercised his Omnipotency, and this they do not express their Affection but his own due desert: Thou art worthy O Lord: The reason they give, is because he hath created all things for his own pleasure, or according to his own Will, not out of necessity, there was no tie upon him to make them, but only he of his good pleasure thought fit to do so. He might have done it in another manner, or at another time, or in another order. There is nothing in the World that hath a necessary connection with the Divine Essence, so as if God be, that must be; nothing external cometh from God by necessity of Nature, but all is done according to the Counsel of his own Will. Some thought all created things did come forth from the Creator, by way of emanation, as Rivers flow out of their Fountain, but there is no stream floweth out of any fountain, but it was before a part of that fountain while it was in it; but that cannot be said of any Creature in respect of God, that it was any part of God before it came out from him: Others say ⟨p. 57⟩the Creatures came out from God by way of representation, as an Image in the glass from him that passeth by or looketh on it; b•t before the world was made, there was no such glass to represent God: others would express it thus, that the world cometh out from God as a shadow from the body, but yet this will not fit the turn neither; for the shadow doth not come out from the body, but follows it: because of the deprivation of light from the interposition of another body. Others say, all cometh from God as a foot-print, or tract in Clay or Sand, from one that passeth over it; but there was nothing on which God by passing might make such an impression:
1. How he made all things? Freely, and of his own will: Rev. 4.11. Thou art worthy, O Lord to receive honour and glory and power for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. They use three words to set forth the honour that is due to Christ for creating the World; Glory, because of his Excellencies discovered; ⟨p. 56⟩Honour, which is the ascription or acknowledgement of those Excellencies; and Power, because the invisible things of his Godhead and power are seen by the things that are made, Rom. 1.20. For in the creating of the World, he exercised his Omnipotency, and this they do not express their Affection but his own due desert: Thou art worthy O Lord: The reason they give, is because he hath created all things for his own pleasure, or according to his own Will, not out of necessity, there was no tye upon him to make them, but onely he of his good pleasure thought fit to do so. He might have done it in another manner, or at another time, or in another order. There is nothing in the World that hath a necessary connexion with the Divine Essence, so as if God be, that must be; nothing external commeth from God by necessity of Nature, but all is done according to the Counsel of his own Will. Some thought all created things did come forth from the Creator, by way of emanation, as Rivers flow out of their Fountain, but there is no stream floweth out of any fountain, but it was before a part of that fountain while it was in it; but that cannot be said of any Creature in respect of God, that it was any part of God before it came out from him: Others say ⟨p. 57⟩the Creatures came out from God by way of representation, as an Image in the glass from him that passeth by or looketh on it; b•t before the world was made, there was no such glass to represent God: others would express it thus, that the world cometh out from God as a shadow from the body, but yet this will not fit the turn neither; for the shadow doth not come out from the body, but follows it: because of the deprivation of light from the interposition of another body. Others say, all cometh from God as a foot-print, or tract in Clay or Sand, from one that passeth over it; but there was nothing on which God by passing might make such an impression:
