A69028:775
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 1 › I Believe in God.THE CREEDE. › Article 1 › I Beleeue in God.
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.
For the third, the whole Essence is in each Person. They are all consubstantial not [Greek or Hebrew], of like essence only, no• [Greek or Hebrew] of a divers essence, nor are they [Greek or Hebrew], that is, such as have one Nature common to them, but not the same in number, as it is with men: nor are they [Greek or Hebrew], that is, such as have every one a nature, that no other either person or thing hath, as the Sun and Moon have such a Nature as no other have, there being but one Sun and one Moon, but they are [Greek or Hebrew], that is, all of the same substance, Coessential, and Consubstantial.
For the third, the whole Essence is in each Person. They are all consubstantiall not 〈non-Latin alphabet〉, of like essence onely, no• 〈non-Latin alphabet〉 of a diuers essence, nor are they 〈non-Latin alphabet〉, that is, such as haue one Nature common to them, but not the same in number, as it is with men: nor are they 〈non-Latin alphabet〉, that is, such as haue euery one a nature, that no other either person or thing hath, as the Sunne and Moone haue such a Nature as no other haue, there being but one Sunne and one Moone, but they are 〈non-Latin alphabet〉, that is, all of the same substance, Coessentiall, and Consubstantiall.
For the fourth, That the Persons are distinguished is common to all the Persons, how they are distinguished, is that which is to be considered in the next place: Distinction imports Opposition: Now there is a threefold opposition, The ⟨p. 120⟩greatest opposition is amongst contraries, for these fight one against another. There is also a middle opposition which is in things only disparate as they call them, as between men and beasts, so as a man is not a beast. The least opposition is between things that are relate, as the Father is not the Son, the Subject is not the Prince, and the like: this opposition between things in relation, is in things that do in many respects agree, and this distinction agrees to the Nature of God and is the least of all distinctions.