A Discovrse of Fire and Salt. Blaise de Vigenère
came so farre to adore Jesus Christ, were willing to have some acquaintance and commerce.
The third is that which men call Caballe, or reception, because men left it there verbally, and by mouth from hand to hand, from one to another. It is divided into two, the one of Beresith, that is to say, of the Creation, that consisteth in the Sensible world, where Moses staid, without speaking of the Intelligible, or of separated substances. The other is of Mercavah, or of the Throne of God, which Ezekiel principally treats of, whose vision is almost all of fire. So much is this Element throughout the whole holy Scripture appropriated to Divinity, as one of the most perfect and neare symboles and markes in things sensible; by meanes whereof wee are so elevated, that by Jacobs Ladder, or Homers golden Chaine, we come to the knowledge of things spirituall and intelligible; for the invisible things of God from the Creation of the World, are clearely seene, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternall power and Godhead. For the world with the Creatures being there, they are a portraict of God; for the Creator is understood by the Creature; saith Saint Augustine; for God hath made two things to his image and resemblance, according to Tresmegistus: the world, therein to rejoice, and please our selves with the infinite brave pieces of worke; and Man, wherein hee set his most singular delight and pleasure, which Moses hath tacitely expressed in Gen. 1. & 2. where when there was question of creating the world, Heaven, Earth, Vegetables, Minerals, Animals, Sunne, Moone, Starres, and all the rest, hee did no more but command by his word, for hee said, and they were done; hee commanded and they were created. But in Mans formation, hee insisted much further therein then in all the rest, saith he; Let us make man after our Image and Similitude, hee created him male and female, and formed him dust of the earth, afterward breathed in his face the spirit of life, and hee was made a living soule. In which are touched 4 or 5 particularities. So Cyrill observes it. After the same manner then, as the Image of God is the world, so the image of the world, is man: therein there is such a relation of God with his creatures, that they cannot bee well comprehended, but reciprocally one by the other, for all the Sensible nature, (as Zohar hath it) in regard of the intelligible, is as that of the Moone, towards the Sunne, who thereinto reverberates its light: or as the light of a Lampe or torch, which parteth the flame fastned to the weik, which is therein nourished by a grosse matter, viscous, adustible, without which this splendor and light could not communicate it selfe to our sight, nor our sight comprehend it: And likewise the glory and essence of God, which the Hebrewes call Sequinah, could not appeare but in the matter of this Sensible world, which is an image or patterne thereof. And it is that, which God said to Moses, Exod. 33. You shall not see my face, you shall see my hinder parts. The face of God is his true Essence in the intelligible world, which no man ever saw, except the Messihe, I did set the Lord alwayes before mee, Psal. 16. 8. And his posteriour parts are his effects in the Sensible world. The soule likewise cannot bee discerned and knowne, but by the functions it exerciseth in the body whilst it is annexed thereunto: By which Plato was moved to thinke that soules could not consist without bodies, no more then fire without water. So that after long revolutions of times, they should come againe to incorporate themselves here below: whereunto adheres that in the 6 of Virgils Æneads.
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