A69028:2095
The rule of faith, or, An exposition of the Apostles Creed so handled as…
The rule of faith, or, An exposition of the Apostles Creed so handled as it affordeth both milk for babes, and strong meat for such as are at full age / by ... Nicholas Bifield ; ... now published ... by his son, Adoniram Bifield.The rule of faith, or, An exposition of the Apostles Creed so handled as it affordeth both milke for babes, and strong meat for such as are at full age / by ... Nicholas Bifield ; ... now published ... by his sonne, Adoniram Bifield.
London: printed by G.M. for Philemon Stephens and Christopher Meredith, 1626
THE CREED. › Article 4 › Dead.THE CREEDE. › Article 4 › Dead.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
1. He died truly: It was not a putative death, but a true death. He died in deed, and not in show, or appearance only.
1. Hee died truly: It was not a putatiue death, but a true death. He died in deed, and not in shew, or appearance onely.
2. He died a grievous death: for he died a painful death, and he died a violent death, and he died a cursed death. There were certain in ancient times that held that Christ received many wounds, was smitten, whipped, nailed, and shed his blood, and died, his Soul going out of his Body; but yet never indeed felt any pain. He had, they said, a body that could suffer, but not a Nature that could grieve, or feel pain. But that he did feel pain, is not 1only manifest by his own words, but is expressly affirmed by the Prophet Isaiah, Chap. 53. He suffered also a violent death, he did not die a natural death: and it must needs be so, because Christ had nothing in him to cause him to die; and besides, he thereby answers to the Types in the Sacrifices of the old Testament, which were not only beasts dead, but beasts slain. Thirdly, he suffered a cursed death: for such was the death of the Cross, and God had before pronounced it a cursed way of dying, Galat. 3. 13. All which, as it shows the grievousness of our sins ⟨p. 421⟩by nature, so doth it import the greatness of our blessedness by grace: for therefore did Christ die a cursed death, that we might live a blessed life, as the Apostle shows, Gal. 3. 13, 14. Yea, and besides, hereby the Curse is removed from our death, so as it is a blessed thing for a Christian man to die, and go out of the world when God calls for him.