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The conclusion which follows is heretical; for whereas the Nicene Creed said of Christ, in regard of his eternal generation, that he is Deus de Deo, Lumen de lumine,—God of God, Light of light, Mr Coleman’s argument will infer that he is not only ex seipso Deus, but ex seipso Filius; and so deny the eternal generation of the Son of God, and the communication of the Godhead, and the sovereignty, glory, and attributes thereof, from the Father to the Son.
Neither hath the reverend brother so much as once adventured to allege the contrary, except of the church of Israel, which, as it is heterogeneous, being none of the reformed churches mentioned in the covenant, so it shall be discussed in due place; from all which reasons I conclude, that the wit of man cannot reconcile Mr Coleman’s doctrine with the covenant. 6.
But, now, what may be the meaning of Mr Coleman’s cabalistical title, Male Dicis Maledicis? Great philologists will tell him that maledico is taken in a good sense as well as in a bad, according to the difference of matter and circumstances.
There was in the town, where they then were, a gay bachelor, who lived with his mother and sisters, and was a great admirer of that order of female travellers called Cousin Betties. Coleman’s wife had been with him some months before in that character, was very well entertained, and, amongst other favours, received a present of a silk handkerchief.
However, all that he can cite of that kind concerning deposition of ministers by emperors, is meant of a coercive expulsion, not of that which we call properly deposition. And to this purpose let him take the observation of a great antiquary. Mr Coleman’s doctrine was by me charged to be a violation of the solemn league and covenant.
As for the other branch of Mr Coleman’s argument, tending to prove that Christ, as he is the eternal Son of God, cannot be given, which he endeavours to vindicate, p. 14, 15, I answer these two things: First, Granting all that he saith, he concludes nothing against me; for I did from the beginning expound these words, Eph. i. 22, “And gave him to be the head over all things to the church,” in this sense, That Christ as Mediator is given only to the church, to be her head, but he that is given as Mediator to the church is over all.
Aretius holds that God was the author of excommunication in the Old Testament, and Christ in the New. And now are these three Mr Coleman’s way? Or doth not his doctrine flatly contradict theirs? Peradventure he will say, Yet there is no excommunication in the church of Zurich, where those divines lived, nor any suspension of scandalous sinners from the sacrament.
They therefore dressed up the babe very neatly, wrapped it up exceeding warm, and put it in a hand-basket, taking care to put in the handkerchief Coleman’s wife had received from this gay bachelor; then getting a large boar cat, in the dusk of the evening they tied it to the knocker of the door, setting down before it the basket with the helpless infant.
Twelfthly, The twelfth heterodoxy followeth: “Now it is true that Christ, being God as well as man, hath of himself originally, as God, whatsoever he hath by virtue of gift as Mediator,” Male Dicis, p. 13. Now subsume Christ hath, by virtue of gift, as Mediator, the priestly office; therefore, by Mr Coleman’s principles, Christ hath of himself originally, as God, the priestly office.
It did not remain long unanswered. On the 27th of August, the same year, Gillespie preached before the House of Lords; and when his sermon was also published, he added to it an appendix entitled, “A Brotherly Examination of some passages of Mr Coleman’s late printed sermon.” In this appendix Gillespie not only answered and refuted Coleman, but turned his arguments completely against himself.
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