Absolute, Definite, Unconditional, Complete, Irrevocable and Immutable. It maketh God to chuse Man, and not Man first to chuse God. It hath no affinity at all with Pelagianism in the matter of Predestination, nor in the matter of Grace; unless this be Pelagianism, to hold that under the aids of Grace, the Will is still free to Evil, of which we shall dispute in the third part. It maketh Predestination the root and cause of Calling, Justifying, Glorifying; of Faith, Repentance, Perfeverance; and of all the Good that is in us: which are the effects of Predestination, and effects of the love of God Predeftinating them unto us. 4. It miniftreth no matter of despair, nor of presumption, but cherisheth both Hope and Fear. Not of despair; for first, no Man is Decreed againft, but upon the foreknowledge of his own refusal of Life offered him. Secondly, the promises are General, and he may truly think them to belong to him. Thirdly, there is fufficient Grace in the means of converfion, to remedy all the Weakness and Perverseness that is in Man's depraved Nature: every fincere Person may therefore entertain a well grounded hope. Not of Presumption; for first, no Man is Decreed for, but with the foreknowledge of his own acceptance of Life offered him. Secondly, though the Promises of God are general, they have conditions, which he must be careful to observe, who will inherit the things Promised. Thirdly, the Grace, that is in the means of converfion, is not tyed unto them by any Physical connexion, but is dispensed by the Good pleasure of God, who may offer and unite it to the Word, when and how long he will; or may with-hold the influence of it, and so harden or forsake the careless or the proud; such therefore have reason to fear. 5. It ministreth as much sweet comfort to all Godly perfons, who find themselves walking in the ways E 2 ways that lead to Life, and confirmeth their Faith of Eternal Salvation to be enjoyed thro' Chrift, and as fervently kindleth their love to God, as any way or order of our Election conceived otherwife. 6. Lastly, it acknowledgeth the deepness of God's Judgments, and the unsearchableness of his Counsels; for who can tell why God by his Decree resolved upon Peter, rather than upon Judas; why he loved Efau less than Jacob; why he suffered one Man to perish, and not another, when he was able out of the Treasures of his Wisdom and Knowledge to have disposed their Course, Calling, and Government to quite contrary ends? Who can tell a reason why he distributed the Gifts of Nature, and of Grace so diversely? Why he beareth some with so long Patience, and cuts of others in so great severity? Why some have so much, some so little, both of Rom. 11. Temporal and Spiritual Blessings? Who hath known 34-35-36. the mind of the Lord, or who hath been his Counfellor? Or who hath first given unto him? For of him, and through him, and to him are all things. To whom be Glory for ever. : : The End of the first Part. CHAP. VII. The Transition to the second Part. AVING now propounded that which I conceive to be the Truth, and commended it by comparing it with other Opinions that seem defective; I have yet one thing more to do, necessary for the confirming and vindicating this Truth against all exceptions either of Heresie in general, or of Schism in this Church of England. I am therefore to show how all the Articles, or Heads of Divinity, that necessarily run into this Question, being rightly Explained do cohere and consent to this Doctrine. That I may demonstrate it to be what † Truth should be, harmonious and confonant with it felf in all its parts and circumstances. I am to declare then the Orthodox doctrine both of the antient Church, and of the Church of England: First, of these things, as Eternal viz. God's Knowledge, Will, Providence, Predestination, Election, Reprobation; These shall make a second Part. Secondly, of these things as done in time, viz, of the Creation, of the Fall of Man, the effects of the Fall, the Restauration of Man, his Vocation, Conversion; Of Grace, Freewill, Perseverance, and of the last Judgment, which is commonly neglected and left out by them that dispute of these matters: and these shall make a third Part of this Work, through God's Goodness and assistance. + Τῦ μὴ γὰρ ἀληθεῖ πάντα συνάδει τὰ ὑπάρχοντα, τῶ δὲ ψευ δεῖ ταχὺ εφονεῖτ ̓ ἀληθές. Aristot. Ethic, Lib. 1. cap. 8. ? CHAP Acts. 15. 18. Rom, 8. 29. CHAP. I. OF GOD's KNOWLEDGE. K all his NOWN unto God from Everlasting are Works, Saith St, James; and St. Paul telleth us, that whom he foreknew, he Predestinated: and we 1. Pet. 1. 2. find St. Peter writing to such as were Elect according to the Fore knowledge of God the Father. There be some indeed who interpret these two laft places See Pareus rather by the word Precognition, than by the word Prefcience; and Tropically, so as to fignify Approbation, and Love, rather than Knowledge properly taken: and they complain of the Ignorance of the Latines who understood not the Greek, and of the Ignorance of the Greeks who understood not the Hebrew phrase in this word; and that by the word Prescience, they occafioned the Pelagian Herefie, of Election upon Prescience of works. But notwithstanding this charge of unskilfulness upon the Antients, they are beholden to Origen for this their interpretation, who as he was not ignorant either of Hebrew or Greek, so neither is he by them thought altogether guiltless of giving occafion to Pelagius his Heresie. But if it be their Minds in the word πρόγνωσις, fo to include approbation, as to exclude fore-knowledge properly taken, 1. I will for once appeal to the Almanack-makers, who will wipe away this Gloss by the common ufe of the word Prognostication. : 2. Next, I will say that an Hebraism, or Grammatical nicety, is too weak a thing to sway a cause of this Weight and Value. 3. That it is very improbable that St. Paul, and St. Peter, not being in any Poetical or Popular Vein, but but in a Solemn and Grave Discourse, should use any figurative, or improper Term, where most propriety, and perfpicuity, and certainty was needful to be used, 4 I demand a proof that the use of the Verb simple shall draw the compound to follow it in the like signification; that because The Lord knoweth Pfalm. 1.6 the way of the Righteous, is well interpreted, the Lord approveth it: therefore that God Foreknoweth the way of the Righteous, is well interpreted God Foreapproveth the way of the Righteous; which though it is true, it doth not follow by any necessity of the Connexion. 5. Lastly, if this interpretation makes the whole, and the only sense of this word Foreknowledge here, then I say the difference is quite taken away which St. Paul and St. Peter make between these two, to Foreknow, and to Predestinate; to Foreknow, and to Elect; nay worse, that is put into Foreknowledge, which more properly belongs to Predestination, and Election; for Approbation and Love is more discovered by the act of the Will which is to Predestinate and to Elect, than it is by the act of the Understanding, which is to Foreknow. Yet if their defire be only to have it admitted and granted, that there goes with the foreknowledge of God, a Good liking and a Well-pleasing, and approving of the subject foreknown, as fit to be loved, and capable of being chosen, which was * Origen's mind, I shall not only allow, but maintain* in Rom. their opinion. For this is the reason why the Scrip. 8. 29. tures observe a diftinction which the Schools neglect, calling only the Good and the Elect Prasciti, or foreknown, and not the Reprobate; for tho' they also were fimply Fore-known, God not being ignorant of them, yet there was not that in them which he might approve or think well of. Notwithstanding, this doth neither hinder the proper accepta |