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Jesus Christ, Who is the Word, and the Image, God manifest in the flesh, is the living
example of God's gracious Condescension to poor frail mankind.
Dr. Bullinger sub-divides this figure into nineteen sections. We cannot stay to
tabulate these divisions, or to give examples of each, but the passages below are fairly
representative of the figure as a whole:--
"I will guide thee with Mine eye" (Psa. 32: 8).
"Let Thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications" (Psa. 130: 2).
"At the blast of the breath of Thy nostrils" (Psa. 18: 15).
"Jehovah hath made bare His holy arm" (Isa. 52: 10).
"Through the bowels of the mercy of our God" (Luke 1: 78, Margin).
"It repented Jehovah that He had made man on the earth" (Gen. 6: 6).
"They provoked him to jealousy with strange gods" (Deut. 32: 16).
"Where art thou?" "Where is Abel thy brother" (Gen. 3: 9; 4: 9).
"And God remembered Noah" (Gen. 8: 1).
"I even I, will utterly forget you" (Jer. 23: 39).
"He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh" (Psa. 2: 4).
"Years" and "days" are attributed to God (Psa. 102: 24; Dan. 7: 9); and weapons of
war, such as bow and arrow, sword, spear, shield and chariot. The Lord is spoken of as a
lamb, as a lion, and as a vine. God is spoken of as a light and a fire, as a rock, a hiding
place, a "portion" and a shade. In all these and many other ways has the Lord
condescended to our low estate.
The two figures that remain need not occupy much space.
Antimetathesis (or Dialogue).--A good illustration is found in Rom. 3: 1-9, where
the Jew is represented as asking a series of questions, which are answered by the apostle
Paul.
Association (or Inclusion).--This is a figure in which the speaker, after addressing
others, turns and includes himself.
"And you hath He quickened . . . . . among whom also we all had our conversation in
times past" (Eph. 2: 1-3).
This concludes our study of the Figures of Change involving persons. We must next
consider those figures that deal with subject-matter.