6. He is so incomparably excellent, that his excellencies are beyond the understanding and apprehension of Men and Angels. The excellency of God is not only beyond all our expressions, verbal in our words, vital or real in our lives; but also beyond all our apprehensions. A fluent tongue may speak much of the excellency of God; an enlarged rational understanding can apprehend much more, (The mind of man ⟨p. 293⟩is much wider than his mouth) but the excellency of God is infinitely beyond all our apprehensions of him; His works are unsearchable, Rom. 11.33. Lo, he goeth by me, and I see him not; he passeth on, and I perceive him not, Job 9.11. He goeth by me in his works, he passeth by me in the operations of his hands, and I perceive him not. There are such motions of God in the heavenly bodies, earthly plants, ordinary providences, the growth of a Child in the womb, &c. that men are nonplussed at them, they are at a loss about the nature, reason, and mode, or gradual progressions of them. How much more is his being unsearchable, and his essence past finding out? If his footsteps are unconceivable and invisible, much more is his face; if his works cannot be apprehended, much less can his nature; because his works are in some respect finite, as they are terminated on limited beings, and they are also many of them visible, and so obvious to our senses; but his essence is wholly, and altogether, and in all respects infinite, and is no way visible or liable to apprehension by our senses, 1 Tim. 6.16. Who dwelleth in that light that is inaccessible. As no mortal eye ⟨p. 294⟩can behold the Sun in its full strength (the attempt of which, according to some, hath struck the adventurers blind) so no creature whatsoever can apprehend the incomparable God in his full beauty and brightness, in his boundless excellency and perfection. It's the voice of God to Moses, Thou canst not see my face, for no man can see me, and live, Exod. 33.20. No man clothed with a mortal body, or in this estate of imperfection, can behold an extraordinary created appearance of God; but he is thereat filled with fears and frights, Job 4.12, 13, 14, 15. Job 21.22. Dan. 10.8.16, 17. Habak. 3.16. No man, no, nor Angel, can behold God in his infinite essence, to the utmost of his perfections, but would be thereat crumbled into nothing.
6. He is so incomparably excellent, that his excellencies are beyond the understanding and apprehension of Men and Angels. The excellency of God is not only beyond all our expressions, verbal in our words, vital or real in our lives; but also beyond all our apprehensions. A fluent tongue may speak much of the excellency of God; an enlarged rational understanding can apprehend much more, (The mind of man ⟨p. 293⟩is much wider than his mouth) but the excellency of God is infinitely beyond all our apprehensions of him; His works are unsearchable, Rom. 11.33. Lo, he goeth by me, and I see him not; he passeth on, and I perceive him not, Job 9.11. He goeth by me in his works, he passeth by me in the operations of his hands, and I perceive him not. There are such motions of God in the heavenly bodies, earthly plants, ordinary providences, the growth of a Child in the womb, &c. that men are nonplust at them, they are at a loss about the nature, reason, and mode, or gradual progressions of them. How much more is his being unsearchable, and his essence past finding out? If his footsteps are unconceivable and invisible, much more is his face; if his works cannot be apprehended, much less can his nature; because his works are in some respect finite, as they are terminated on limited beings, and they are also many of them visible, and so obvious to our senses; but his essence is wholly, and altogether, and in all respects infinite, and is no way visible or liable to apprehension by our senses, 1 Tim. 6.16. Who dwelleth in that light that is inaccessible. As no mortal eye ⟨p. 294⟩can behold the Sun in its full strength (the attempt of which, according to some, hath struck the adventurers blind) so no creature whatsoever can apprehend the incomparable God in his full beauty and brightness, in his boundless excellency and perfection. It's the voice of God to Moses, Thou canst not see my face, for no man can see me, and live, Exod. 33.20. No man cloathed with a mortal body, or in this estate of imperfection, can behold an extraordinary created appearance of God; but he is thereat filled with fears and frights, Job 4.12, 13, 14, 15. Job 21.22.
