The Blessed Birth-day celebrated in some religious meditations on the Angels Anthem. Lvc. 2. 14. Also holy transportations, in contemplating some of the most obserueable adiuncts about our Saviours Nativity. Extracted for the most part out of the Sacred Scriptures, Ancient Fathers, Christian Poets. And some moderne Approved Authors. By Charles Fitz-Geffry. The second Edition with Additions |
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 | The Blessed Birth-day |  |
Once God of Adam in derision said,
Behold the man like one of vs is made.
The sons of Adam now of God may say,
Behold God's made like one of vs to day.
Not only like to vs but even the same,
All that belongs to this our mortall frame
He tooke, saue that which made it mortall, Sinne,
Wer't not for which man had immortall binne.
Yea sinne itselfe he tooke (as truth doth say)
But tooke it only to take it away.
Similitude of sinfull flesh arraies
His God-head, so sinne in the flesh he slaies.
Similitude of sinfull flesh he takes,
But yet in taking it this difference makes:
Behold the man like one of vs is made.
The sons of Adam now of God may say,
Behold God's made like one of vs to day.
Not only like to vs but even the same,
All that belongs to this our mortall frame
He tooke, saue that which made it mortall, Sinne,
Wer't not for which man had immortall binne.
Yea sinne itselfe he tooke (as truth doth say)
But tooke it only to take it away.
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His God-head, so sinne in the flesh he slaies.
Similitude of sinfull flesh he takes,
But yet in taking it this difference makes:
The flesh he takes in truth with flesh endude,
The sinne he takes but in similitude:
The flesh he takes is ours, but so he takes it
As that his owne, and cleane from sinne he makes it.
The sinne he takes is ours, and not his owne,
For sinne in him, saue ours, was never knowne.
The flesh he takes for ever to enioy it,
The sinne he takes but only to destroy it.
He knew no sinne, yet sinne was made, that wee
The righteousnesse of God in him might be.
Both what he made and made not, he did take,
Flesh which he made, sinne which he nere did make:
That which he never made, and doth detest
He would be made for vs, to make vs blest:
That which he never was, never could be,
(Such was his loue) he would be made for me.
Lord what is man that only for his sake,
Th'Almighty should such strange exchanges make?
The sinne he takes but in similitude:
The flesh he takes is ours, but so he takes it
As that his owne, and cleane from sinne he makes it.
The sinne he takes is ours, and not his owne,
For sinne in him, saue ours, was never knowne.
The flesh he takes for ever to enioy it,
The sinne he takes but only to destroy it.
He knew no sinne, yet sinne was made, that wee
The righteousnesse of God in him might be.
Both what he made and made not, he did take,
Flesh which he made, sinne which he nere did make:
That which he never made, and doth detest
He would be made for vs, to make vs blest:
That which he never was, never could be,
(Such was his loue) he would be made for me.
Lord what is man that only for his sake,
Th'Almighty should such strange exchanges make?
| The Blessed Birth-day | |