he had sayde that the Gospell is maliciously and frowardlye despised because many doo stubbornly refuse to heare peraduenture this color touchyng vniuersall callyng should preuayle Neither is it the purpose of the Prophet to dymynyshe the faulte of men when he teacheth that the fountayne of blyndnesse is that God vouchsaueth not to open his arme to them onely he geueth warnyng that because fayth is a singular gift the eares are beaten in vayne with outwarde doctrine But I woulde fayne know of these doctors whether onely preachyng or fayth make the chyldren of God Certainly when it is sayde in the fyrste chapiter of Iohn Whosoeuer beleue in the only begotten Sonne of God are themselues also made the children of God there is not in that place a coÌ„fused heape iumbled vp together but a speciall order is geuen to the faithfull whiche are borne not of blood nor of the wil of the fleshe nor of the will of man but of God But say they there is a mutuall consent of faith with the word Namely whersoeuer is faith But it is no newe thyng that seede fall among thornes or in stonie places not only because the greater part appeareth in dede obstinate against God but also because not al men haue eies and eares How then shall it agree that God calleth to him them who he knoweth will not come Let Augustine answere for me Wilt thou dispute with me Meruaile with me and crie out O depthe Lett vs bothe agree in feare least we perishe in error Moreouer if election as Paule witnesseth be the mother of faith I turne back the argumeÌ„t vpon their owne head that Faith is therfore not general because election is speciall For by the orderly hangyng together of causes and effectes it is easily gathered that where Paul saith that we are full of al spirituall blessing as God had chosen vs before the creation of the worlde therefore these richesse are not common to all because God hath chosen onely whome he woulde This is the reason why in an other place he commendeth the faith of the electe least it should be thought that any man doeth by hys own motion get faith to himself but that this glorie may remaine with God that they are freely enlightned of hym whome he had chosen before For Bernarde saith rightly Frendes do seuerally heare to whom he also saith Feare not thou small flocke for to you it is geuen to know the mysterie of the kyngdom of heauen Who be theseâ— euen they whom he hath foreknowen and predestinate to be fashioned like to the image of his Sonne A great and secrete counsel is made knowen The Lord knew who be his but that which was knowen to God is made manyâ—est to men neither doth he vouchsafe to make any other partakers of so great a mysterie but those selfe same men whome he hath forknowen and predestinate to be his A little after he concludeth The mercie of God is from eternitie euen to eternitie vpon them that feare hym â–ª from eternitie by reason of predestination to eternitie by reason of blessed makyng the one without beginnyng the other without endyng But what nede I to cite Bernarde for witnesse when we heare of the masters owne mouthe that none doo see but they whiche are of God By which wordes he signifieth that all they which are not begotten agayn of God do dasell at the brightnesse of his countenance And to election faith in dede is fittly ioyned so that it kepe the second degree Which order the wordes of Christ doo clerely expresse in an other place This is the wil of my Father that I lose not that which he hath geuen For this is his will that whosoeuer beleueth in the Sonne shall not perishe If he would haue all saued he would appoint ouer them his Sonne to be their keper and would graffe them all into his body with the holy bond of Faith Now it is certain that faith is a singular pledge of his fatherly loue laâ—ed vp for his childreÌ„ whom he hath adopted Therfore Christ in an other place faith that the shepe folow the shepherd because they know his voice but they folow not a straÌ„ger because they know not the voice of strangers Whense coÌ„meth his difference but because their eares are boared by God For no maÌ„ maketh himselfe a shepe but he is made one by the heaueÌ„ly grace For which cause also the Lord teacheth that our safetie shall alway be certaine and free from danger because it is kepte by the inuincible power of God Wherfore he concludeth that the vnbeleuers are not of his shepe namely because they are not of the nuÌ„ber of them whom God hath promised by Esaie that they shal be his disciples Nowe because in the testimonies which I haue alleged is expressed perseuerance they do therwithal testifie the vnmouable stedfastnesse of electioÌ„ â–ª Now let vs speake of the reprobate whoÌ„ the Apostle ioineth there together For as Iacob hauing yet with good works deserued nothing is taken into grace so Esau beyng yet defiled with no wicked dooyng is hated If we turne our eies to workes we do wrong to the Apostle as though he sawe not the same thyng whiche we clerely see It is proued that he sawe it not â–ª forasmuch as he expresly enforceth this pointe that when they had not yet done any good or euell the one was chosen and the other refused to proue that the fundation of the predestination of God is not in workes Agayne when he moued the obiection whether God be vnrighteous he allegeth not that which had ben the moste certaine and plaine defence of his righteousnesse namely that God reduced to Esau according to his euellnesse but he was coÌ„tent with an other solution that the reprobate are stirred vp to this ende that the glorie of God may be sett foorth by them Last of all he adioyneth a concluding sentence that God hath mercie vpon whom he will hardeneth whom he will See you not howe he imputeth bothe to the onely will of God Therfore if we can not declare a reason why he vouchsaueth to graunt mercie to them that be his but because it so pleseth him neither also shal we haue any other cause in reiectyng of other than his owne will For when it is sayd that God hardeneth or sheweth mercie to whom he wil men are therby warned to seke no cause ells where than in his will ¶ The .xxiii. Chapiter A Confutation of the sclaunders wherwith this doctrine hath alwaye been wrongfully burdened BUt when the witt of man heareth these thynges the frowardness therof can not be restrained but that by and by as at the bloody blast of a trumpet soundyng to battaile it diuersly and excessiuely turmoyleth And many in deede as thoughe they would driue away the malice from God doo so graunte election that they denye that any man is reprobate but they do to ignorantly childishely forasmuche as election
because in the whole sede of Adam the heaueÌ„ly father founde nothing worthy of his election he turned hys eyes vnto hys Christ to thoose as it were members out of hys body them whome he would take into the felowship of lyfe Lett thys reson then be of force among the faythfull that we were therefore adopted in Christe into the heauenly inheritance because in our selues we were not able to receiue so greate excellence Whiche also he toucheth in an other place wheÌ„ he exhorteth the Colossians to geuing of thankes for thys that they were by God made fytt to be partakers of the estate of the holy If electioÌ„ goe before thys grace of God that we be made fitt to obteyne the glorie of the life to come what shall God hymselfe nowe fynde in vs wherby he maye be moued to elect vs My meaning shal yet be more openly expressed by an other sayeng of hys He hath chosen vs sayeth he ere the fundacioÌ„s of the world were layed according to the good pleasure of his will that we might be holy and vnspotted and vnreprouable in his sight where he setteth the good pleasure of God against al our deseruinges whatsoeuer they be That the profe may be more strong it is worth the labor to note al the partes of that place which being coupled together doe leaue no doute Where he nameth the elect it is no dout that he speaketh to the faithful as he also by and by afterwarde affirmeth Wherefore they doe with to fowle a glose abuse that name whiche wrest it to the age where in the Gospel was first published Where he sayth that they were elect before the beginning of the world he taketh away all respect of worthinesse For what reason of difference is there betwene them whiche yet were not and those which afterwarde should in Adam be egall Now if they be elect in Christ it foloweth that not only euery man is seuered without hymselfe but also one of them from an other forasmuch as we see that not al are the members of Christ. That which is added that they were elect that they might be holy plainly coÌ„futeth the error which deriueth election from foreknowlege forasmuch as Paule cryeth out against it and sayth that whatsoeuer vertue appeareth in men it is the effecte of electioÌ„ Now if a hyer cause be sought Paul answereth that God hath so predestinate yea and that according to the good pleasure of his will In which wordes he ouerthroweth whatsoeuer meanes of their electioÌ„ men do imagine in themselues For he also teacheth that whatsoeuer thinges God geueth towarde spirituall lyfe they flowe out of thys one fountaine because God hath chosen whom he would and ere they wer borne he had seuerally layed vp for them the grace which he vouchesaued to geue them But whersoeuer this pleasure of God reigneth there no works come to be considered He doth not here in dede pursue the comparison of coÌ„traries but it is to be vnderstanded such as he himselfe declareth He hath called vs sayth he with a holy calling not according to our workes but according to hys purpose and the grace which is geuen vs of Christ before the tymes of the world And we haue alredy shewed that al dout is takeÌ„ away in this which foloweth that we might be holy and vnspotted For if thou say because he foresawe that we should be holy therefore he chose vs thou shalt peruert the order of Paule Thus therefore thou mayest safely gather If he chose vs that we might be holy then he chose vs not because he foresawe that we would be such For these two thinges are contrarie the one to the other that the godly haue it of election that they be holy and that they come to it by meane of woorkes Neyther is their cauillation here any thing worth to which they commonly flee that the Lord doth not render the grace of election to any workes going before but yet graunteth it to workes to come For wheÌ„ it is sayd that the faythfull were chosen that they might be holy therewithall is signified that the holinesse which was to come in them toke beginning at election And how shall thys sayeng agree together that those thinges which are deriued from election gaue cause to election The same thing which he sayd he semeth afterwarde to confirme more strongly where he sayth According to the purpose of his wil whiche he had purposed in himselfe For to say that God purposed in hymselfe is as much in effect as if it had ben said that without himselfe he considered nothing wherof he had any regarde in decreing Therfore he by by addeth that the whole summe of our election tendeth to this ende that we shoulde be to the prayse of the grace of God Truely the grace of God deserueth not to be praysed alone in our electioÌ„ vnlesse our election be free But free it shal not be if God in electing his doe consider what shal be the workes of euery one Therfore we fynde that the whiche Christ sayd to hys disciples hath place vniuersally among al the faythful Ye haue not chosen me but I haue chosen you Where he not onely excludeth deseruinges past but also signifieth that they had nothing in themselues why they should be chosen if he had not preuented them then with hys mercie Lyke as thys sayeng of Paul is also to be vnderstode Who first gaue to him and shal receiue recompense For he meaneth to shewe that the goodnesse of God so preuenteth men that it fyndeth nothing in them neither past nor to come wherby he may be wonne to be fauourable to them Now to the Romaines where he fetcheth thys questioÌ„ further of and foloweth it more largely he denyeth that al they are Israelites which are issued of Israel because although by ryght of inheritance they were all blessed yet the succession did not egally passe to them al. The beginning of thys disputation proceded of the pryde and deceitful glorieng of the Iewishe people For wheÌ„ they claimed to themselues the name of the Chirch they would haue the credit of the Gospell to hang vpoÌ„ their wil as the Papistes at thys day would gladly wyth thys fained color thrust themselues into the place of God Paul although he graunt that the ofspryng of Abraham is holy by reson of the couenauÌ„t yet affirmeth that the most parte of them are strangers in it and that not onely because they â—warue out of kynde so that of lawful children they become bastardes but because the speciall election of God standeth aboue and reigneth in the hyest top which alone maketh the adoption therof sure If their owne godlinesse stablished some in the hope of saluation and their owne fallyng away alone disherited other some Paul verely should both fondly and vnconueniently lift vp the reders euen to the secrete election Now if the wil of of God the cause wherof neither appeareth nor is to be
sought without hymselfe maketh the one sorte differing from the other so that not al the children of Israel be true Israelites it is vainly fayned that euery mans estate hath beginning in hymselfe Then he further foloweth the mater vnder the example of Iacob and Eâ—au For when they bothe were the sonnes of Abraham bothe together enclosed in one mothers wombe it was a monsterlyke change that the honor of firste birth was remoued to Iacob by whiche change Paul affirmeth that there was testified the election of the one and the reprobation of the other The originall and cause of it is enquired whiche the Teachers of foreknowlege wyll haue to be sett out in the vertues and vices of men For thys is an easy shorte way wyth them that God shewed in the persone of Iacob that he chooseth the worthy of hys grace and in the persone of Esau he refuseth them whom he foreseeth to be vnworthy Thus they saye boldly But what sayeth Paule when they were not yet borne and had not done any good or euell that according to election the purpose of GOD mighte abyde not of workes but of hym that calleth it is sayed The elder shall serue the yonger as it is written Iacob I haue loued but Esau I haue hated If foreknowlege were of any force in this difference of the brethren then verily mention were vnfittly made of the tyme. Let vs graunt that Iacob was chosen because he had worthinesse gotteÌ„ by workes to come to what purpose should Paul say that he was not yet borne And this now should be vnaduisedly added that he had yet done no good because this shal be a redy answer that nothiÌ„g is hidden from God and that so the godlinesse of Iacob was presente before hym If workes do win grace they shold then worthily haue had their price before that Iacob was borne as if he had ben growen to full age But the Apostle goeth forwarde in vndoing this knot and teacheth that the adoption of Iacob was not made of workes but of the calling of God In works he enterlaceth not the time to come or time past then he directly setteth them against the calling of God meaning by stablishiÌ„g of the one expresly to ouerthrow the other as if he had sayd that it is to be considered what hath pleased God not what men haue brought of themselues Last of al it is certayne that by the wordes of Election and Purpose al causes whatsoeuer men are wont to faine ellswhere than in the secret counsel of God are quite remoued from thys mater What color wil they bring to darkeÌ„ these things who in electioÌ„ assigne some place to workes either past or to come For this is vtterly to mocke out that which the Apostle affirmeth that the difference of the brethreÌ„ hangeth not vpon any consideration of works but vpon the mere calling of God because it was put betwene them wheÌ„ they wer not yet borne Neither had he ben ignorant of this their sutteltie if it had had any soundnesse in it but because he very wel knewe that God can foresee no goodnesse in man but that which he hath first determined by the benefit of his election to geue him he fleeth not to that vnorderly order to set good workes before the cause of theÌ„selues Thus haue we by the words of the Apostle that the saluation of the faythful is founded vpon the wil of the only electioÌ„ of God and that the same fauor is not gotten by workes but cometh of free calling We haue also as it were an image of that thing sett before vs. Esau and Iacob are brethreÌ„ issuing bothe of one the same pareÌ„tes enclosed yet bothe in one wombe not yet brought out into the world In them al thinges are egal yet of them the iugement of God is diuerse For he taketh the one and forsaketh the other There was nothing but the only first birth by right wherof the one excelled the other But this also being passed ouer that thyng is geuen to the yonger which is denied to the elder Yea and in other also God semeth alway as of set purpose to haue despised first birth to cutt of from the fleshe al mater of gloryeng Refusing Ismaell he cast hys mynde to Isaac Plucking backe Manasse he more honored Ephraim If any maÌ„ interrupt me with sayeng that we must not by these inferior smal benefites determine of the summe of the lyfe to come that he which hath ben aduaunced to the honor of first birth should therefore be reckned to be adopted into the inheritance of heauen for there be some which spare not Paul himselfe as though in alleging these testimonies he had wrested the Scripture to a strange sense I answere as I haue done herebefore that the Apostle nether slipped by vnaduisednesse nor wilfully abused the testimonies of the Scripture But he sawe whiche they can not abide to consider that God minded by an earthly signe to declare the spiritual election of Iacob which otherwise was hidden in his inaccessible throne For vnlesse we refer the first birth graunted to him vnto the worlde to come it shoulde be a vaine and fonde forme of blessyng wherby he obteined nothyng but manyfolde miseries discommoties grefefull banishement and many bitternesse of sorow and cares Therefore when Paule sawe without douting that God by outwarde blessyng testified the blessing whiche he had in his kyngdome prepared spirituall and neuer decayeng for his seruant he douted not for profe of this spirituall blessyng to fetche an argument from that outward blessyng This also we must remembre that to the land of Canaan was adioyned the pledge of the heauenly dwellyng so that it ought not at al to be douted that Iacob was graffed with the Angels into the body of Christ that he might be partaker of the same lyfe Iacob therefore is chosen when Esau is reiected and by the Predestination of God is made different from hym from whom he differed not in any deseruyngs If you aske a cause the Apostle rendreth this because it is sayde to Moses I wyll haue mercie vpon whom I will haue mercie and I wil vouchsaue to graunt mercie to whome soeuer I will vouchsaue to graunt mercie And what I beseche you meaneth this Uerily the Lord himself most plainly pronouÌ„ceth that men haue in themselues no cause why he shold do good to them but he fetcheth the cause from his owne mercie onely and therfore that the saluation of his is his own worke When God setteth thy saluation in himselfe alone why wilt thou descende to thy self When he appointeth to thee his mercie alone why wilte thou runne to thyne owne deseruinges When he holdeth thy thoughte wholly in his merciefulnesse alone why wilt thou turne part to the beholding of thyne owne works Therfore we must nedes come to that lesser people which Paule in an other place saith to haue ben foreknowen to God not in suche sort as these men imagine to
it as euidently false but also strongly confuted it yea after his reuokyng of it in reprouyng the Pelagians for that they continued in the same error sayeth Who can not meruayl that the Apostle knew not this moste suttle sense For when he hadde sette out a thyng to be wondred at of these brethren while they were not yet borne and afterwarde obiected a question agaynste hymselfe sayeng what then Is there vniustice with God Here was fytte place for hym to answere that God foresawe the merites of them bothe yet he sayeth not this but fleeth to the iudgements and mercie of God And in an other place when he had taken awaye all merites before election Here sayth he is confuted their vayne reasonyng whyche defende the foreknowlege of God agaynste the grace of GOD and therefore saye that we are chosen before the makyng of the worlde because God foreknewe that wee woulde bee good not that he hymselfe woulde make vs good He sayeth not this whyche saythe Ye haue not chosen me but I haue chosen you For if he hadde therefore chosen vs because he forknewe that we woulde be good he shoulde therwithall also haue forknowen that we we woulde choose hym and so foorthe as foloweth to that effecte Let the testimonie of Augustine bee of force among them that wyllyngly reste in the authoritie of the Fathers Howe be it Augustine suffreth not hymselfe to be seuered from the reste but by cleere testimonies sheweth that this disagreemente is false with the maylyce whereof the Pelagians burdened hym For in the .xix. chapiter of his booke of the Predestination of Sainctes he allegeth out of Ambrose Christe calleth whome he hathe mercie on Agayne If he had willed of the vndeuoute he myghte haue made devoute But God calleth whome he vouchesaueth and whome he wylle he maketh religious If I lysted to knytte together a whole volume out of Augustine I coulde readily shewe to the readers that I neede no other woordes but his but I wyll not loade them with tediousnesse But goe to lett vs imagine that they speake not at all but lett vs geue hede to the mater it selfe A harde question was moued whether God dydde ryghteously in this that he vouchesaued to graunte his grace but to some Of whyche question Paule myght haue vncombred hymselfe with one woorde if he had alleged the respecte of woorkes Why therefore dothe he it not but rather continueth on a discourse whyche abydeth in the same hardenesse Why but because he oughte not For the Holye ghoste whyche spake by his mouthe had not the disease of forgetfullnesse Therefore withoute any circumstances he answereth that God therefore fauoreth his electe because he will therefore hath mercie because he will For this Oracle of God I wyll haue mercie vppon whome I wyll haue mercie and I wyll shewe mercie to whome I will shewe mercie is as muche in effect as if it had been sayd that God is moued to mercie by no other reason but because he wyll haue mercie Therefore this sayeng of Augustine remaineth true that the grace of God doth not find men fitt to be chosen but maketh them Neyther do we any thyng passe vpō that sutteltie of Thomas that the foreknowyng of deseruyngs is not in dede the cause of predestination on the behalfe of the act of hym that doth predestinate but on our behalfe it maye after a certayne maner be so called that is accordyng to the particular weyeng of Predestination as when it is sayd that God predestinateth glorie to man by deseruynges because he hath decreed to geue to hym grace by which he may deserue glorie For sythe the Lorde will in election haue vs to loke vnto nothyng but his mere goodnesse if any man shall couete here to see any more it shal be a wrongfull gredinesse If we lusted to striue in sutteltie we want not wherwith to beat backe this silly suttletie of Thomas He affirmeth that to the electe glorie is after a certayne maner predestinate to them the grace by whithe they may deserue glorie What if I answer on the contrary syde and say that predestination vnto grace serueth election vnto lyfe and is as it were a waityng maide after it that grace is predestinate to them to whome the possession of glorie hath ben long agoe apoynted because it pleaseth the Lord to bryng his children from election into iustification For therupon it shall folowe that the predestination of glorie was rather the cause of the Predestination of grace than contrariwise But away with these striuynges as thynges superfluous for suche as shall thynke that there is wysedome enough for them in the worde of God For this was in olde tyme truely written of an Ecclesiasticall writer that they whiche assigne the election of God to merites are more wyse than they ought to bee Som do obiect that god shold be cōtrari to hiself if he shold vniuersally cal al mē to hi receue but a few elect So by their opiniō that vniuersalues of the promise taketh awaye the difference of speciall grace And thus certayne sobre men speake not so muche to oppresse the truthe as to debarre exabhed questions and to brydle the curiositie of many Their wyll is prayse woorthye but theyr counsell is not to be allowed because dallyeng by shiftes is neuer excusable But theyr obiectyng of it whiche doo more raylyngly inuep agaynst it is verily to fonde a cauillation or to shamefull an error Howe the Scripture maketh these two to agree together that by outward preachyng al men are called to Repentance and Faithe and yet not to al men is geuen the Spirite of Repentance and Faith I haue in an other place already declared and by and by somewhat of it muste bee repeted agayne Nowe that whyche they require I denye to them sythe it is two wayes false For he that thretneth that whyle it rayneth vppon one citie there shall be droughte vppon an other He that pronounceth that there shal in an other place be famine of doctrine byndeth not hymselfe with a certayne lawe to call all men egally And he whiche forbyddyng Paule to speake in Asia and turnyng hym from Bythinia draweth hym into Macedonia sheweth that it is in his owne power to distribute this treasure to whomesoeuer it shall please hym Yet more playnely he sheweth by Esaie how he peculiarly directeth to the electe the promyses of saluation for he sayeth of them onely and not of all mankynde indifferently that they shall be his disciples Whereby it is certayne that the doctrine of saluation is wrongfully sette open in common to all men to profite effectually whyche is sayde to be seuerally layde vp onely for the chyldren of the Chirche Lette this suffice at this presente that althoughe the voyce of the Gospell speake generally to all yet the gifte of Faithe is rare Esaie assigneth a cause for that the arme of the Lorde is not open to all men If
it selfe coulde not stande vnlesse it were set contrary to reprobation God is said to seuer them whome he adopteth vnto saluation it should be more than foolishly said that other doo either by chaunce or by their owne endeuor obteyne that whiche onely election geueth to a few Therefore whom God passeth ouer he reiecteth and for none other cause but for that he will exclude them from the inheritance which he dothe predestinate to his children Neither is the waiwardnesse of the men tolerable if it suffre not it selfe to be bridled with the word of God where the incomprehensible counsell of God is entreated of whiche the Angels themselues do worship But we haue already heard that hardening is no lesse in the hand and will of God than mercie Neither dothe Paule as these men doo that I haue spokē of busily labor to excuse God with a lyeng defence but only he teacheth that it is not lawfull for the thing formed to quarell with him that formed it Nowe who so do not admitt that any are reiected of God how wil they vncombre themselues from that sayeng of Christe Euery tree which my father hath not planted shal be plucked vp by the roote They plainly heare that all they are adiudged auowed to destruction whom the heauenly Father hath not vouchsaued to plant as holy trees in his ground If they denie this to be a signe of reprobatiō then is there nothing so clere the it may be proued to thē But if they cesse not to wrāgle let the sobrietie of Faith be contented with this admonition of Paule that there is no cause to quarel with God if he willyng on the one syde to shewe his wrath and to make his power knowen doo with dumme sufferance and lenitie beare wyth the vessels of wrathe prepared to destruction and on the other side he make knowē the richesse of his glorie toward the vessels of mercye which he hath prepared to glorie Let the Reders marke how Paule to cutte of occasion from whisperinges and backbitinges geueth the chiefe rule to the wrath and power of God bicause it is vniust that those depe iudgementes which swallow vp all our senses should be made subiect to our determination Our aduersaries aunswer is very triflyng that God doth not vtterly reiect them whome he suffreth in lenitie but abideth with a mynde hanging in suspence towarde them if peraduenture they may repente As thoughe Paule geueth to God a patience to loke for their turning whome he sayeth to be made to destruction For Augustine sayth rightly where he expoundeth this place where power is ioyned to sufferāce God doth not suffer but gouerne with his power They further say also that it is not for nothing said that the vessels of wrath are prepared to destruction but that God hathe prepared the vessels of mercie bicause by this meane he ascribeth and chalengeth the prayse of saluation to God but the blame of destruction he casteth vpon them which by their owne will doo bring it vpon themselues But although I graunt to them that Paul by the diuerse maner of speaking didde soften the rowghnesse of the first part of the sentence yet it is not mete to assigne the preparing vnto destruction to any other thing than to the secret counsel of God which also is affirmed a little before in the rest of the texte That God stirred vp Pharao Then that he hardneth whome he will Wherupō foloweth that the hidden coūsel of god is the cause of hardning This at the lest I get which Augustine saith that whē God of wolues maketh shepe he doth with a mightier grace reforme thē that their hardnes may be tamed therefore god for this cause doth not cōuert the obstinate bicause he doth not shew forth in the thē the mightier grace which he wāteth not if he wold shew it forth These sayenges in dede shoulde be sufficient for the godly and sobre and them which remembre themselues to be men But forasmuche as these venemous dogges do cast vp not only one sort of venime against God we will as the mater shal serue answer to euery one particularly Foolishe men doo diuers waies quarell with God as though they had hym subiect to their accusations First therfore they aske by what right the Lorde is angry with his creatures of whome he hath not been first prouoked by any offence for to condemne to destruction whom he will agreeth rather with the wilfulnesse of a tyrant than the lawful sentēce of a iudge Therfore they say that there is cause why mē shold charge God if by his bare will without their owne deseruyng they be predestinate to eternal death If such thoughts do at any time com into the mynd of the godly to breake their violent assaultes they shal be sufficiently armed with this although they had no more if they consider howe greate wickednesse it is euen so muche as to enquire of the causes of the wil of God sith of all thinges that are it is the cause worthily so ought to be For if it haue any cause then somwhat must go before it wherto it must be as it were boūd which it is vnlawful ones to imagine For the will of God is so the highest rule of righteousnesse that whatsoeuer he willeth euē for this that he willeth it it ought to be takē for righteous When therfore it is asked why the Lord did it it is to be answered bicause he willed it But if thou goe further in asking why he willed it thou askest some greater hier thing than the will of God which cānot be foūd Let therefore the rashnesse of man restrayne it self not seke which is not least paraduenture it may not finde that whiche is With this bridle I say he shal be wel withholden whosoeuer he be that wil dispute of the secretes of God with reuerence As for the boldenesse of the wicked which drede not openly to speake euel of God against it the lord with his owne righteousnesse without any our defense shal sufficiētly defend himself when he shal take al shiftyng frō their cōsciences hold them fast conuinced and condemne them Neither do we yet thrust in the fained deuise of absolute power which as it is prophane so worthily ought to be abhorted of vs. We faine not God lawlesse who is a law to himself bicause as Plato sayth men stand in neede of lawes whoe are troubled with vnlawful lustes but the wil of God is not only pure from al fault but also is the hiest rule of perfectiō yea the law of all lawes But we denie that he is subiect to yelde accompt We denie also that we are mete iudges which wold pronoūce of this cause after our owne sense Wherfore if we attēpt further than we lawfully may let that threatenyng of the Psalme bryng vs in feare that God shal ouercome so oft as he is iudged of any mortall man So can God in
therfore with mad searchyng to plunge your selues into the bottoÌ„lesse depth which reason it self teacheth you that it shal be to your destruction Why are ye not at the least restrained with some feare of that whiche both the historie of Iob and the bookes of the Prophetes do report of the iâ—comprehensible wisedome terrible power of God If thy minde be vnquieted let it not greue thee to embrace the counsell of Augustine Thou beyng a man lokest for an answer at my hand and I also am a maÌ„ Therfore let vs both heare him that sayth O maÌ„ what art thou â–ª Better is a faithfull ignorance than rash knowledge Seke merites thou shalt finde nothing but peine O depth Peter denieth the theâ—e beleueth O depth Sekest thou a reason I wil treÌ„ble at the depth Reason thou I will wonder dispute thou I will beleue I see depth but I reache not the bottome Paule rested bicause he found wondering He calleth the iudgementes of God vnsearchable art thou come to search them He sayth that his wayes are impossible to be traced ouâ— and doest thou trace them with procedyng further we shall nothyng profit For neyther we shall satisfie their waye wanton curiousnesse neyther doth the Lord neede any other defense than whiche he hath vsed by his Spirit whiche spake by the mouth of Paule we forget to speake well when we cesse to speake with God Their other obiection also ariseth out of vngodlinesse which yet â—oÌ„deth not so directly to the accusing of God as to the excusing of the sinner Howebeit the sinner which is condeÌ„ned of God can not be iustified without dishonor of the iudge Thus therefore prophane tonges do bark agaynst God sayeng why shold God impute those things for sinne to men wherof he hath by his predestinatioÌ„ layed necessitie vpoÌ„ men For what should thei do Should thei wrastle with his decrees â–ª But so should thei do it in vaine sithe they caÌ„ not do it at al. Therfore they are not rightfully punished for those things whereof ytâ—heâ—e cause is in Gods predestinatioÌ„ Here I will absteine froÌ„ that defense wherunto the Ecclesiastical writers do coÌ„monly flee namely that the fore knowlege of God withstaÌ„deth not but the maÌ„ may be accoÌ„pted the sinner bicause God foreseeth the euels of man not his owne For so yâ— cauillatioÌ„ wold not stay here but will rather presse vs further with sayeng that God might if he had would haue prouided remedie for those euels which he foresaw and that sithe he hath not so done he hath of determined purpose created men to that end that he should so behaue himself in earth and if by the prouidence of God man was created to this condition that he should do al those thinges that he doeth theÌ„ he is not to be blamed for that which he can not auoyde which he enterprised by the wil of God Therfore let vs see how this knot ought to be well loosed First of all this ought to be holdeÌ„ certaine among al men whiche SalomoÌ„ sayth yâ— God hath created all thinges for himself the wicked maÌ„ to an euel day Behold when the dispising of al things is in the haÌ„d of God wheÌ„ in his power remaineth the rule of safetie death he so ordereth theÌ„ by his couÌ„sel beck that among men there are borne some adiudged eueÌ„ from their mothers woÌ„be to death which with their destructioÌ„ may glorifie his name If any man answer that there is no necessitie layed vpon them by the prouidence of God but rather that he created them in suche estate bicause he foresaw their peruersnesse to come he neither sayth nothing at al nor altogether The old writers are wont in deede somtimes to vse this solutioÌ„ but as it were doubtingly But the Scholemen rest vpon it as though nothing could be obiected agaynst it In deede I wil willingly graunt that foreknowlege alone bryngeth no necessitie to creatures although al men do not so agree for there be some that wil haue it also to be the cause of things But it semeth to me that Ualla a maÌ„ otherwise not much practised in holy writings saw both more depely and more wisely which shewed that this coÌ„tention is superfluous bicause bothe life death are rather the doynges of Gods will that of his foreknowlege If God did but foresee the successes of meÌ„ did not also dispose order them by his wil theÌ„ this questioÌ„ shold not wtout cause be moued whether his foreseyng any thing auailed to the necessitie of them But sith he doth none otherwise fortee the things that shal come to passe than bicause he hath decreed that they shold so come to passe it is vaine to moue coÌ„trouersie about foreknowlege where it is certaine that al things do happeÌ„ rather by ordinaÌ„ce comaÌ„demeÌ„t Thei say that this is not writteÌ„ in expresse wordes that it was decreed of God that Adam shold perish by his falling away As though the same God whoÌ„ the Scripture reporteth to do whatsoeuer he wil created the noblest of all his creatures to an vncertaine end Thei say he had freewill that he might shape to himself his owne fortune that God decreed nothing but to haÌ„dle him according to his deseruing If so cold a deuise be receyued where shal be that almightinesse of God whereby he gouerneth al thinges according to his secret couÌ„sel which hangeth vpon none other thing than it self But predestination whether they wil or no sheweth himself in Adams posteritie For it came not to passe naturally that all men should lose saluation by the fault of one parent What hindereth them to coÌ„fesse of one man that which agaynst their willes they coÌ„fesse of all maÌ„kinde For why should they lose their labour with dallyeng shiftes The Scripture crieth out yâ— all meÌ„ were in the persone of one man made bonde to eternall death Sithe this can not be imputed to nature it is playne that it proceded from the wonderous couÌ„sell of God But it is to much absurditie that these good Patrones of the righteousnesse of God doe so stumble at a strawe and leape ouer great beames Againe I aske how came it to passe that the fall of Adam did wrappe vp in eternall death so many nations with their children beyng infantes without remedie but bicause it so pleased God Here their tonges whiche are otherwise so pratlyng must of necessitie be duÌ„me It is a terrible decree I graunt yet no man shal be able to denie but that God foreknew what end maÌ„ should haue ere he created him and therefore foreknew it bycause he had so ordeyned by his decree If any man here inuey agaynste the foreknowledge of God he rashly and vndiscretely stuÌ„bleth For what matter is there I beseche you why the heauenly iudge should be accused for that he was not ignorant of that which was to come Therfore if there be any eyther iuste or colorable complaynt it toucheth predestination Neyther ought
and singular to himselfe Therfore when he glorieth of this he doth not onely bost that he hath that which belongeth to a true and lawful Pastor but also bryngeth fourth the signes of his Apostleship For whē there were some among the Galathians which trauailing to diminishe his authoritie made him some meane disciple put in office vnder them by the principal Apostles he to defende in safetie the dignitie of hys preaching which he knew to be shot at by those suttle deuises neded to shewe himselfe in al pointes nothing inferior to the other Apostles Therefore he affirmeth that he was chosen not by the iudgement of men lyke some common Byshop but by the mouth and manifest Oracle of the Lorde himselfe But no man that is sober wil deny that it is according to the order of lawful calling that Bishops should be appointed by men forasmuch as there are so many testimonies of the Scripture for profe therof Neither doth that saying of Paul make to the contrary as it is said that he was not sent of men nor by men forasmuch as he speaketh not there of the ordinary choosing of ministers but chalengeth to hymselfe that which was special to the Apostles Howbeit God also so appointed Paule by hymselfe by singular prerogatiue that in the meane tyme he vsed the discipline of Ecclesiastical calling For Luke reporteth it thus whē the Apostles were fastyng and praying the Holy ghost said Seperate vnto me Paule and Barnabas to the worke to whiche I haue seuerally chosen them To what purpose serued that seperatiō and putting on of handes sith the Holy ghost hath testified his own election but that the discipline of the Chirche in appointing ministers by men might be preserued Therfore the Lord could by no playner example approue suche order than he dyd when hauing firste declared that he had ordeyned Paul Apostle for the Gentiles yet he willeth him to be appointed by the Chirch Which thing we may see in the choosyng of Mathias For because the office of Apostleship was of so greate importance that they durst not by their own iudgement choose any one mā into that degree they did set two men in the middes vpō the one of whom the lot should fall that so both the election might haue an open testimonie from heauen and yet the policie of the Chirch should not be passed ouer Nowe it is demaunded whether the minister ought to be chosen of the whole Chirche or onely of the other of the same office and of the Elders that haue the rule of discipline or whether he may be made by the authoritie of one man They that geue thys authorytie to one mā allege that whiche Paule sayeth to Titus Therefore I haue lefte thee in Creta that thou shouldest appoynte in euery towne Priestes Again to Timothee laye not handes quicklye vppon any manne But they are deceiued if they thinke that either Timothee at Ephesus or Titus in Creta vsed a kingly power that either of them shoulde dispose all thinges at his owne will For they were aboue the reste onelye to goe before the people with good and holsome counsells not that they onely excludyng all other shoulde doe what they lysted And that I may not seme to faine any thing I will make it playne by a lyke example For Luke rehearseth that Paule and Barnabas appoynted Pryestes in dyuerse Chirches but he also expresseth the order or manner how when he sayeth that it was done by voices ▪ ordeining Priestes sayeth he by lifting vp of handes in euery Chirche ▪ Therefore they two did create them but the whole multitude as the Grecians maner was in elections did by holding vp their handes declare whom they would haue Euen in lyke maner the Romaine hystories do oftentimes say that the Consul which kept the assemblies created newe officers for none other cause but for that he receiued the voices and gouerned the people in the election Truely it is not likely that Paule graūted more to Timothe and Titus than he toke to himselfe But we see that he was wonte to create Byshops by voices of the people Therefore the places aboue are so to be vnderstanded that they minishe nothing of the common ryght and libertie of the Chirch Therfore Ciprian sayeth well when he affirmeth that it commeth from the authoritie of God that the Priest should be chosē in presence of the people before the eyes of all men and should by publike iudgement and testimonie be allowed for worthy and mete For we see that thys was by the commaundement of the Lord obserued in the Leuiticall Priestes that before theyr consecration they should be broughte into the sight of the people And no otherwise is Mathias added to the felowship of the Apostles and no otherwyse the seuen Deacons were created but the people seing and allowing it These examples saieth Ciprian do shew that the ordring of a Priest ought not to be done but in the knowledge of the people standyng by that the orderyng may be iuste and lawfull which hath been examined by the witnesse of all We are therfore come thus farre that this is by the worde of God a lawfull callyng of a minister when they that seme mete are created by the consent and allowaunce of the people And that other Pastors ought to beare rule of the election that nothing be done amisse of the multitude eyther by lightenesse or by euil affections or by disorder Now remaineth the forme of ordering to which we assigned the laste place in the callyng It is euident that the Apostles vsed no other Ceremonie when they admitted any man to ministerie but the laying on of handes And I thynke that thys vsage came from the maner of the Hebrues which did as it were presente vnto God by laying on of hāds that which they would haue blessed hallowed So when Iacob was about to blesse Ephraim and Manasse he layed hys handes vpon their heds Which thyng our Lorde folowed when he prayed ouer the infantes In the same meaning as I thynke the Iewes by the ordināce of the law layed handes vpon the Sacryfices Wherefore the Apostles by layeng on of handes did signifie that they offered hym to God whō they admitted into the ministerie Albeit they vsed it also vppon them to whom they applyed the visible graces of the Spirite Howsoeuer it bee thys was the solemne vsage so ofte as they called any man to the ministerie of the Chirche So they consecrated Pastors and teachers and so also Deacons But although there be no certayne commaundemente concernyng the laying on of handes yet because we see that it was continually vsed among the Apostles their so diligente obseruing of it ought to be to vs in stede of a commaundemente And truely it is profitable that by suche a signe both the dignitie of the ministerie should be commēded to the people and also that he which is ordered should be admonished that he is
with no bondes These Solons do in dede faine that their constitutions are lawes of libertie a swete yoke a light burden but who can not se that they be mere lyes They themselues in dede do fele no heauinesse of their owne lawes which casting away the feare of God doe carelesly and stoutly neglecte both their owne and Gods lawes But they that are touched wyth any care of their saluation are farr from thynking themselues free so long as they be entangled with these snares We se with howe greate warenesse Paule did deale in this behalfe that he durste not so much as in any one thing laye vpon men any snare at al â–ª and that not without cause Truely he foresaw with how great a wounde coÌ„sciences should be striken if they should be charged with a necessitie of those things wherof the Lord had left them libertie On the other side yâ— constitutions are almost innumerable which these meÌ„ haue most greuously stablished with thretening of eternal death which they most seuerely require as necessarie to saluatioÌ„ And among those there are many most hard to be kept but al of them if the whole multitude of them be layed together are impossible so great is the heape How theÌ„ shal it be possible that they vpoÌ„ whoÌ„ so great a weight of difficultie lyeth shold not be vexed in perplexitie with extreme anguish and terror Therfore my purpose is here to impugne such coÌ„stitutions as tend to thys ende inwardly to bind soules before God and charge them with a religion as though they taughte them of thinges necessary to saluation This question doth therfore encoÌ„ber the most part of meÌ„ because they do not suttelly enough put difference betwene the outward court as thei cal it the court of coÌ„science Moreouer thys encreaseth yâ— difficultie that Paul teacheth that the Magistrate ought to be obeyed not only for feare of punishemeÌ„t but for coÌ„sciences sake Wherupon foloweth the coÌ„sciences are also bounde with the politike lawes But if it were so theÌ„ al should fall that we haue spokeÌ„ in the last chap. and entende now to speake coÌ„cerning the spiritual gouernement For the loosing of thys knot first it is good to learne what is CoÌ„science The definition is to be gathered of the proper deriuatioÌ„ of the word For as wheÌ„ meÌ„ do with minde vnderstanding conceiue the knowlege of things they are therby sayd scire to know wherupon is deriued the name of science knowlege so when they haue a feling of Gods iugement as a witnesse adioined with them which doth not suffer them to hide their siÌ„nes but that they be brought accused to the iudgemeÌ„t seate of God the same feling is called CoÌ„scieÌ„ce For it is a certayne meane betwene God maÌ„ because it suffreth not maÌ„ to suppresse that which he knoweth but pursueth him so far til it bring him to giltinesse This is it that Paule meaneth wheÌ„ he teacheth that CoÌ„scieÌ„ce doth together witnesse with meÌ„ wheÌ„ theyr thoughtes do accuse or acquite them in the iugemeÌ„t of God A simple knowlege might remaine in maÌ„ as enclosed Therfore thys feling which presenteth maÌ„ to the iugemeÌ„t of God is as it were a keper ioyned to maÌ„ to marke watch al his secretes that nothing should remaine buryed in darkenesse WhereupoÌ„ also coÌ„meth the old prouerbe CoÌ„scieÌ„ce is a thousaÌ„d witnesses For the same resoÌ„ also Peter hath set the examinatioÌ„ of a good coÌ„science for quietnesse of mynde wheÌ„ we being persuaded of the grace of Christe doe without feare present our selues to God And the author of the Epistle to the Hebrues vseth these wordes to haue no more coÌ„science of synne in stede of to be deliuered or acquited that synne may no more accuse vs. Therfore as workes haue respect to meÌ„ so the coÌ„science is referred to God so the CoÌ„science is nothyng els but the inwarde purenesse of the hart In which sense Paule writeth that Charitie is the fulfilling of the lawe out of a pure coÌ„science and Fayth not fayned Afterwarde also in the same chap â–ª he sheweth how much it differeth from vnderstanding sayeng that some had suffered shipwracke from the fayth because they had forsakeÌ„ good CoÌ„science For in these wordes he signifieth that it is a liuely affectioÌ„ to worship God a sincere desire to liue Godlily and holily Somtime in dede it is referred also to men as in Luke when the same Paul testifieth that he endeuored himselfe that he mighte walke with a good coÌ„science toward God men But this was therfore saied because the frutes of good coÌ„science do flowe come euen to meÌ„ But in speakyng properly it hath respect to God only as I haue alredy said Hereupon coÌ„meth that a law is said to binde coÌ„science which simply bindeth a man without regarde of meÌ„ or not hauing any coÌ„sideration of them As for exaÌ„ple God coÌ„maundeth not only to kepe the minde chast pure from al lust but also forbiddeth al maner of filthinesse of wordes outward wantoÌ„nesse whatsoeuer it be To the keping of this lawe my coÌ„science is subiect although there liued not one man in the world So he that behaâ—â—th himselfe inteÌ„perantly doeth not only synne in thys that he geueth 〈◊〉 exaÌ„ple to his brethren but he hath his coÌ„science bounde with giltinesse before God In thinges that are of themselues meane there is an other coÌ„sideratioÌ„ For we ought to absteine froÌ„ them if they brede any offeÌ„se but the coÌ„science stil being free So Paule speaketh of fleshe consecrate to idols If any sayth he make dout touch it not for consciences sake I say for coÌ„scieÌ„ce not thine own but the others A faithful maÌ„ shold sinne which being first warned should neuerthelesse eate of such fleshe But howsoeuer in respect of his brother it be necessarie for him to absteine as it is prescribed of God yet he cesseth not to kepe still the libertie of coÌ„science We see how this law bynding the outward worke leaueth the conscience vnbounde Now let vs returne to the lawes of meÌ„ If they be made to this end to charge vs with a religioÌ„ as though the obseruing of them wer of it selfe necessarie theÌ„ we say that that is layed vpoÌ„ coÌ„science which was not lawfull to be laied vpoÌ„ it For our conscieÌ„ces haue not to doe with meÌ„ but with God only whereunto perteineth the coÌ„moÌ„ differeÌ„ce betwene yâ— earthly court the court of coÌ„science WheÌ„ yâ— who le world was wrapped in a most thick mist of ignoraÌ„ce yet this smal sparcle of light remained that they acknowleged a mans coÌ„science to be aboue al iugemeÌ„tes of meÌ„ Howbeit the same thing that they did with one worde coÌ„fesse they did afterwarde in dede ouerthrowe yet it was Gods wil the there should theÌ„ also remaine some testimonie of ChristiaÌ„ libertie which might deliuer coÌ„sciences from the tyranny of meÌ„ But the difficultie is not yet dissolued which ariseth out of the words of