I AM THAT I AM

I AM THAT I AM
EDITED BY REV. EDWARD ATKYS BRAY
FROM BEVERIDGE*
£XODUS HI. 14.
And God said unto Moses, I am that I am : and
he said, thus shall thou say unto the children of
Israel, 1 am hath sent me unto you.
All the happiness of which mankind is capable^
consists in the enjoyment of that supreme and all-
glorious Being, which we call God. But we can
never enjoy him^ unless we first serve him, nor
serve him, unless We first know him. And this
knowledge we never can attain, without consulting
those divine oracles, in which this Almighty Being
has been pleased to discover his perfections to us.
From these, therefore, I shall endeavour to show
what thoughts and conceptions we should frame in
our minds concerning the most High God, and
* William Beveridge, Bi&hop of St, Asaj^, was born 1638,
and died 1707*
^6
Vvhat influence they will have upon our hves and
actions.
Bat who is sufficient for these things ? At least,
who am /, that 1 should take upon me to speak of
Him, by whom alone I speak ? and, being myself
but a finite and sinful creature, should strive to un-
veil the nature of the infinite and most holy God ?
Alas ! 1 cannot so much as begin to think of him,
but my thoughts are confounded, and my whole
soul seems unhinged and overwhelmed within me.
His mercy exalts me, his justice depresses me, his
wisdom astonishes me, his power affrights me.
How then shall I dare to discourse of him, and en-
deavour to manifest and declare his greatness and
glory unto others? Had he not himself, in his
most holy word, given me a command to do it, I
should not presume to attempt it. But, since he
has been pleased, both to blame his people for not
knoioing him, and his ministers for not making
him known to his people ; and has enjoined us so
to display and discover his divine perfections^, that
others may fear and love him ; in obedience to his
command, I shall stammer out as well as I am
able, what we are to believe and conceive of him.
But where shall I begin to speak of Him, who
had no beginning, and will have no end ? And by
what words can I express His glory, who infinitely
surpasses all expressions ? All expressions, did I
say ? Yes, and conceptions also. For his nature
i^5 so pure, his goodness so great, his knowledge so
ttmiscendant, his power so boundless, his wisdom^
justice, and mercy so mysterious, his glory so m-*
Comprehensible, and all his perfections so infinitely
high, that our highest conceptions of him are still
infinitely below him. And, therefore, when he
w^ould make himself known to us in his Holy Scrip-
tures, he is pleased to condescend to our capacities,
so as to adapt his expressions to the weakness of
our apprehensions ; not speaking of himself as he
really is, (for tiien we should not be able to appre-
hend his meaning) but as a nurse to a child^ who
utters not her mind in complete sentences, but lisps
in broken language, suitable to the shallow capacity
of its tender years. So even God speaks to us in
such language as we are best able to understand ;
sometimes making use of the names that we give to
the several parts of our bodies, and passions of our
minds, to signify those infinite perfections that are
in him, or the effects of them upon us. Thus he
uses the word eye to signify his omniscience ;
and the word hand to express his power. Thus
also he uses the words rejoicing, grieving, loving,
hating, repenting, and the like, to denote some-
thing in him, which we cannot so well apprehmid,
as by the dark resemblance which these our pas-
sions have of it.
As, then, it is by names that we usually know
both persons and things, and distinguish one from
another; hence God is pleased to give himself
such names in holy writ, from whence we may
288
gather what he would have us think of his nature^
so as to distinguish him from all other things.
That which he himself in a more especial manner
calls his name, is Jehovah t which our English
translation always renders The Lord ; and which
is the most proper and essential name of God, sig-
nifying essence, or being itself.
Hence, therefore, it having pleased the most
high God to reveal himself to us under this name
or title^ he thereby suggests to us, that he is the
Being of all beings, who gives being to, and there-
fore exercises authoriti/ over all things.
7%us much I thought right to premise concern*
ing this great and most glorious name of God ; be-
cause it will prepare us for better understanding
the words of the text, in which he is pleased to
manifest himself under the same notion that is in-
timated to us by that name. For we find, that
Moses being ordered by God to bring the children
of Israel out of Egypt, he said unto him. Behold,
when I come unto the children of Israel^ and shall
saT/ unto them, 'Mie God of your fathers hath sent
me unto you ; and they shall say to me. What is
Ms name ? what shall I say unto them ? Then it
follows. And God said unto Moses, I am that I
AM. And he said, thus shall thou say unto the
children of Israel, I am hath sent me unto you.
He does not say, I am the great, the living, the
true, the everlasting God ; he does not say, I am
the almighty creator^ preserver, and governor of
289
Uxe whole world ; but / am that I am : intimating,
that if Moses desired such a name of God, as might
fully describe his nature, that is a thing impossi-
ble ; there being no words to be found in any
language, by which to express the glory of an in-
finite Being ; especially so as that finite creatures
should be able to conceive it. He is pleased, how-
ever, in these words to acquaint us what are the
thoughts he would have us entertain of him,
Moses, desiring to know God's name, certainly in-
tended by it to understand his nature, who and
what he i$. To which he is pleased to return this
answer, / am that I am ; or, as the words also
signify, / icill he that I will he. Which expres-
sion suggests to us,
First, That he is one Being, existing in and of
himself. His unity is implied in that he saith, I ;
his existence, in that he saith, I am ; his existence
in and of himself, in that he saith, I am that I am;
that is, I am in and of wj/seZ/^ not receiving any
thing-yro/n, nor depending upon any other. For
he that is not of himself, but depends upon another
for his being, as all creatures do, can never say,
/ am that I am, or / loill be that I loill be ; he-
iause he can never be sure but that immediately he
may not be : for He from whom we receive pur
being, may, deprive u^ of it when he pleaseth. So
that we can never promise ourselves to be, any
longer than we lind ourselves in existence : be-
V
290
cause it is in God, that we not only live and move,
but have our very being also.
But we may further observe, that as God asserts
the unity of his nature in saying I am, so he as
plainly asserts a Triniti/ of Persons in that nature,
by calling himself Elohim, in the plural number :
for in the original it is, Elohim said to Moses, /
am thai t am. And nothing, indeed, is more usual
than for these two names Jehovah and Elohim to
be put together, the one of the singular, the other
of the plural number ; the first denoting the unity
of the Trinity, the second the Trinity in the unity.
Still, though there be Elohim, three distinct Per-
sons ; yet all and every of them may equally say,
I am that I am.
And, therefore, we must not conceive of God, as
made up of several parts, ov faculties, but as one
who alone is that he is, and whatsoever is in him,
is himself God in himself is a most simple and
pure act, and therefore cannot have any thing in
Win), but what is that most simple and pure act
itsef The same may be said of all his attributes.
They are ail one and the same act in him ; but we
are forced to apprehend them severally, by reason
of the finiteness of our understandings : whereas
God, whose understanding is infinite as himself,
does not apprehend bimself under the distinct no-
tions of wisdom, or goodness, or justice, or the like^
but only as Jehovah, And therefore he says not,
291
t art! wise, or just, or good, but simply, / am that
I am.
Moreover, as God is pleased to say only that he
isy without respect to time, or place, it necessarily
follows, that he is in all places, at all times, or, as
St. Austin expresses it, '' in all things, beyond all
things, every wliere vvholly the same God/' So
that he is as really here, as he is in the highest
heavens : only he is said to be there in a more
especial manner, because in ia more especial manner
he there unveils and manifests himself^ And for
the like reason he is said to be present in places
dedicated to his service, because he distributes his
blessings more especially to those who meet to
serve him in such places ; accordhig to his promise.
In all places where I record my name, I will come
unto thee, and 1 will bless thee.
And, as the omnipresence and omniscience, so
also the omnipotence of God is clearly implied in
those words. He being Jehovah, (Being itself)
whatsoever he wills should be> lUust be. And this
is the proper notion of omnipotence, whereby God
doeth ibhatsocvcr he pleaseth. Thus it was that
he made all things at first, only by expressing his
will and pleasure that they should be, and imme-
diately they were. He said only. Let there be
light, and there was light : Let there be afLrma-
mament in the midst of the waters, and it was so.
Thus it was that our Saviour cured the leper. He
only said, / will, be thou clean, Aiul thus it was
v2
292
that he raised Lazarus from the dead : he said but
Lazarus, come forth ; and the words were no
sooner out of his mouthy than Lazarus arose from
liis grave.
By saying, / am that I am, God also assures us
that he always is the same, without any variable-
ness, or shadoto of turning. He uses, therefore,
his name Jehovah (of the same signification) to
show his immutabilitij , saying, / am Jehovah, 1
change not ; therefore the sons of Jacob are not
consumed. Where we may likewise observe, that
his immuiabiliti/ , signified by this name, is to be
understood not only of his essence, but also of his
decrees, his threats and promises. For he gives
this as the reason w!iy they were not consumed,
because he is Jehovah, wlio doth not change, but
faithfully pcrformeth the promises which he had
made them. Hence it is that we read in Moses
and the PiO])hets, when he threatens any judg-
mcnt, or promises any blessing to his people, he
commonly confirms it by saying, Thus saith the
Lord, or I am the Lord, or Ye shall know that I
am the Lord.
And hence we may perceive the true meaning of
what hitherto has seemed so obscure, when God
says to Moses, 1 am the Lord: and I appeared
nnlo Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by
the name of God Almighty ; but by my name
Jehovah was 1 not known unto them : that is, I
never made myself known, nor confirmed ray
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293
promise to them, as I now do to thee, by saying,
/ am Jehovah, For this is the first place in all
the Scriptures where these words are used, as an
entire proposition of themselves, for the confirma-
t'xon of what is said. He assures the children of
Israel, that he now will perform what he had
promised to their fathers, by saying, lam Jehovah;
which in effect is the same with, I am that I am.
I shall instance only one more of the many per-
fections signified by these words, and that is, the
eternity of God. This is intimated by St. John,
when he says of God, Who is, who was, and who
is to come. For, that he intends it as a proper
name of God, is evident from this, that the Apostle
wishes to the Asian churches, grace and peace,
not from him who is, but from him who is, who
was, and who is to come ; that is, from Jehovah,
from / am that I am. Thus also our blessed
Saviour signified his eternity, by saying, Before
Abraham was, I am. For, had he been measured
by time, as all creatures are, he must have said,
Before Abraham was, I was. But he says. Before
Abraham was, I am. And so uses the same ex-
pression of Himself, which God does in my text,
and thus demonstrates himself to be the same God
who said, I am that I am.
Thus having offered something towards the ex-
planation of the frst of these mysterious sayings,
I shall briefly consider the other, whereby God
calls himself absolutelyy I am. For, that it is a
294
proper name, is plain, because tliough it be a verh
of the Jirsit person, it is here used as a noun sub"
stantive, and the nominative case to another verb
of the third person, I am hath sent me, A strange
expression ! But when God speaks of himself, he
cannot be confined to rules of grammar ; being
infinitely above the reach of all the languages in
the world. And, therefore, it is no wonder, that,
when he would reveal himself, he quits our common
made of speaking one to another, and expresses
himself in a way most suitable to his own nature
and glory.
Hence therefore, as, when he speaks of himself, and
his own eternal essence, he says, / am tJiat I am ;
so, when he speaks of himself, with reference to his
creatures, and especially to his people, he says^ /
am. He says not, / am their friend, their father,
their protector. He says not, I am their light,
their life, their guide ; but only, / am. He sets,
as it were, his hand to a blank, that his people may
write under it what they please, that is good for
them. As if he should say. Are they weak f I am
strength. Are they poor ? I am riches. Are
they in trouble ? I am comfort. Are they sick ?
I am health. Are they dyin^ ? I am life. Have
they nothing ? I am all things. I am wisdom
and power, I am justice and mercy, I am grace
and goodness, I am glory, holiness, perfection,
eternity, Jehovah, 1 am. Whatsoever is suitable
to their nature or their several conditions, that
395
I am: Whatsoever is good in itself^ or desirahk
to them, that I am. Whatsoever is pure and holj/,
whatsoever is needful to make men happy, that I
AM. So that, in short, God here represents himself
unto us as an universal good, and leaves us to
make the application of it to ourselves, according to
our wants, capacities, and desires, by saying- only,
generally, I am.
When, therefore, we apprehend a Being so infi-
nitely above us, how low, how despicable must we
appear in our own eyes, who, in comparison of
Him, are next to nothing, and may be made so
altogether whensoever he pleaseth ! With what
reverence and godly fear should we serve and ivor-
ship him I For how can we think of so great a,
God, and not fear him ? of so powerful a God,
and not obei/ him ? How can we think of so immu"
table a God, and not trust in him ? of so good a
God, and not love bim with all our hearts and
souls?
But who is able to express the happiness of
those who are always thus thinking upon God?
one, surely, but they who enjoy it. They can
tell you, that there is more solid comfort, more real
delight in one single thought of God rightly formed,
than all the riches, and honours, and pleasures of
this world are able to afford. As they live above
this v/orld, they arc pever troubled or disturbed at
whatsoever /?«pp€ws in it. For, let whatever hap-
pen, ^hey ^ ^^i^gkjig^^ wisdom, power.
296
and goodness, ordering and disposing it ; so as to
make it turn to God's gloiy, and their good. And
therefore, the same things which luffle the minds of
others, to them are matter of joy and triumph.
Thus, eveti whilst they are on earth, they live in
heaven, and are always ready and prepared to go
thither, where they shall most perfectly an<l eter-
nally behold, enjoy, and praise Him, who, and
who alone^ can say of himself, I am that I am.
Wherefore, as w^e desiie to be truly humble,
holy, just, or happy, we must endeavour to keep
our minds continually possessed with such thoughts
of God, as we have been now considering. Let us,
therefore, raise them from things below, and fix
them upon the most High God, apprehending him
as one so pure and simple, that there is nothing in
him but himself ; as one so infinite and omnipotent,
that wheresoever any thing else is, in the whole
world, there He is, and beyond the world, where
nothing else is, there all things are, because He is
there ; as orie so wise, so omniscient, that he, both
now and ever, beholds what all the angels are doing
in heaven; what all the fowls are doing in the
air ; what all the fishes are doing in the waters ;
what all the devils are doing in hell ; what- all the
men and beasts, nay, the very insects, are doing
upon earth; and what we in particular are no^v
doing here; as one so powerful, so omnipotent,
that he can do whatsoever he will, only by willing
it should be done ; as one so great, so good, so
glorious, so immtlTaWe, so transcendent, so infinite,
so incomprehensible, so eternal, (what shall I say ?)
so Jehovah, that the more we think of him, the
more we admire him, the more we adore him, the
more we love him, the more we may and ou^ht :
our hig'hest conceptions of him being as much
beneath him, as our greatest services come short of
what we ozoe him.
Since, then, we cannot think of God so highly as
he is, let us think of him as highly as we can. And
for that end, let us soar above ourselves, and above
the iDorld, and raise our thoughts still higher and
higher ; and when we have raised them as high as
possibly we c«n, let us apprehend a Being infinitely/
higher than the highest of them : and then, finding
ourselves amazed, lost, confounded, at such an infi-
nite height of infinite perfections, let us fail down,
in humble and hearty desires, to be freed from
these gloomy prisons wherein we are now immured ;
that we may take our flight into eternitj/, and by
the merits and m'ediaiicm of the ever-blessed Jesus,
mount up to tlie highest heavens, and there see
this infinite Being face to face, and enjoy him for
ever.
In the mean while, let us of the Church militant
here on earth, join with the Church triumphant in
heaven, in praising and magnifying his great and
glorious name, saying, Holj/, holy, holy, Lord God
Almighty, idiich was, and is, and is to come : the
ivhole earth is full of his glory, . Thou art looi^thy,
298
O Lord, to receive glori/, and honour, and power,
for thou hast created all things, and for thy plea-
sure they are and were created. Amen, Halle-
lujah : blessing, and glory, and icisdoni, and
thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might,
to our God, the great, the all-wise, almighty, ever-
lasting God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, one
JeuoVxIh, for ever and ever.
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