because they haue not the knowledge of good or evill shall be saved in the day of judgement by the faith with which their Fathers have put them into Baptisme In effect exceeding great is the force efficacy of Faith I say of that which giving credit to the promises of God stands certain of the fulfilling of them shewing its certification by putting in execution that outward thing which on Gods behalfe is commanded This Faith saved Noah in the Floud by meanes of the Ark and this Faith shall save all us in the day of judgement by the meanes of Baptisme us who believing the Gospell shall be Baptised in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Ghost to whom be glory for ever Amen CONSID. CV Three principles whence the ignorances arise with which men erre against God COnsidering that which S. Paul saith of the sin which he had committed against God in persecuting the Christian Church But I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief And considering the prayer wherewith Christ being put on the Crosse prayed his eternall Father for the sin of them that crucified him saying Father forgive them for they know not what they doe And considering that which S. Paul saith of the wisemen of the world For if they had known it they would never haue crucified the Lord of glory I haue gathered three Principles from which I understand and all the errours which men doe against God through ignorance doe proceed The first is Malice The second is Inconsideratenesse The third is Incredulity In this manner from S. Pauls standing in unbeliefe from his not believing that Christ was the Sonne of God that he was the promised Messias in the Law that he died for the sinnes of every one that he was raised up for the resurrection of every one and that he was glorified for the glorification of every one it proceeded that he persecuted and slew them that did believe and preach this thinking therein to doe service to God as from step to step others haue done with the selfesame intentions which S. Paul did who as S. Paul haue erred and doe erre against God not by Inconsideratenesse for he and they go with attention to that which they doe nor through Malice for they doe not hate for their own interest those whom they persecute but through Infidelity because they doe not believe in Christ. Whence I understand it proceeded that God using mercy which S. Paul gaue him to know Christ and so of a famous persecuter he became a most famous Preacher as I understand hath befallen them who haue erred as S. Paul erred From the Gentiles who were Ministers and executers of Christs death not considering what they did proceeded that they erred inconsiderately killing the innocent as many Gentiles haue erred who have been the death of many Christians not cōfidering what they doe For if they did ◅onsider it as they ought there is no doubt they would not doe it And therefore because they erre as Beasts their errour is not put to their accompt This I believe holding for certain that God did heare Christ when he said Father f◅rgiue them for they know not what they doe And S. Steven whē he said Lord lay not this sin to their charge From that the Scribes and Pharisees minds stood full of indignation against Christ as haue been and are from time to time full of indignation against them that imitate Christ the minds of those who being like unto the Scribes and Pharisees make profession of outward holinesse being void of the inward it did proceed that is come to passe and goes on proceeding that maliciously killing them whom they haue known and doe know to be members of Christ who haue been alwaies hated of the Saints of the world because they ruine throw down that sanctity whereof they make profession With them I doe not understand that God useth mercy For albeit they stand as S. Paul did in Incredulity that is not in credulity which maketh the erre but proper Malice and Malignity Nor doe I understand that Christ prayed nor that his members pray for them for their errour ariseth not through Inconsideratenesse but from Malignant Depravation Nay this sin I understand is that which Christ calls against the holy spirit which he saith shall not ◅e pardoned neither in this nor in the other world And this selfesame sin I understand Saint Iohn calls a sin unto death The men who imitating the Scribes Pharisees erre through ignorance arising of malice I understand they haue left to be men and are in◅ernall spirits The men who imitating the Gentiles who killed Christ erre through ignorance arising from inconsideratenesse I understand they have left to be men are beasts And the men who imitating S. Paul erre through ignorance bred from incredulity are as I understand truly men to whom incredulity is so proper as Inconsideration is proper to the Beasts and as malice is proper to the infernall Spirits And therefore the errour which growes from Incredulity without mixture of malice and inconsideratnesse findes mercy with God he being drawn to the faith who errs through ignorance bred of incredulity Whereupon if any shall ask me saying whence dost thou think that the Hebrews erring through ignorance grew of which S. Paul saith Rom. 10. For being ignorant of the righteousnesse of God and going about to establish their own righteousnesse they haue not submitted themselves to the righteousnesse of God I will answer him that it was bred partly from Malice and partly from Incredulity through the hatred which they bore unto the Gospell That this is true is approved that some believed and others remained in their ◅beliefe The selfesame will I answer to him that shall demand of me whence it did proceed doth proceed the erring through ignorance of them of whom Christ saith Every one that shall kill you will think that ◅e doth God good service And so much the more by how much to me it is approved that S. Paul was one of these and found mercy for his erring through ignorance grew from Incredulity In this discourse I learne this That every man ought to stand on his watch not to appassionate himselfe at any time in the things that appertain to religion I would say in defending one thing and impugning another with passion to the end that the passion may not blind him in such manner as he come to erre against God through Ignorance bred of malice Further I learn that a man ought not without consideration to set himselfe to any of those things which shall offer themselves unto him and much lesse to those which belong to religion to the end that he come not to bee counted in the number of Beasts Further I learn that a man who findes himselfe free from passion and from Inconsideration that hee erre not against God ought to acknowledge himselfe to be in Incredulity and so to pray
whether piety be a fruit of justification 98 How that is to be understood that the holy Scripture saith attributing condemnation sometimes to infidelity and sometimes to evill works and salvation sometimes to faith sometimes to good works 99 Whence it proceeds that men believe not that all our sinnes were chastized in Christ or they believe it with difficulty 100 That the fruits which in christian persons in the beginning of their incorporation in Christ seem of the spirit are of the flesh 101 Whence it proceeds that the impious cannot believe that the superstitious believe with ease and that the pious believe with difficulty 102 That christian faith hath necessity to be confirmed with experience of what kind the experience is and how it iâ—… obtained 103 Against the imagination with which our christian faith is troubled 104 That Baptisme through the faith of the Gospell is efficacious even in children who dye before they come to the age to be able to approve their being baptized 105 Three Principles whence the ignorances arise with which men erre against God 106 That that which the Scripture calls the knowledge of good and evill the wise men of the world have called and doe call naturall light prudence and humane reason 107 In what manner from a man 's not knowing himselfe nor God there is caused in him an impossibility in accepting the grace of the Gospell 108 In what manner the evill of Adams disobedience appertaines to us all And the good of Christs obedience reacheth unto us all 109 The conceit which as a christian I have at present of Christ and of them who are the members of Christ. 110 That the spirituall guifts are not understood untill they be possessed BEing desired by Mr Vicechancelor Dr Baylie to peruse this Book entituled The Hundred and ten Considerations of IOHN VALDESSO and to give a censure of it I cannot but much approve and commend the greatest part of it as very worthy of the Presse and a Christians reading There be some passages obscure dubious and offensive wherein notwithstanding the Publisher has given me satisfaction and I doubt not but his Annotations in the Preface together with M. Herberts Apologie for the offensive places will doe the like to every unpreiudicate and unpartiall Christian Reader THOM. IACKSON CCC Pres. A Copy of a letter written by M c George Herbert to his friend the Translator of this Book MY deare and deserving Brother your Valdessâ—… I now returne with many thanks and some notes in which perhaps you will discover some care which I forbare not in the midst of my griefes First for your sake because I would doe nothing negligently that you commit unto mee Secondly for the Authors sake whom I conceive to have been a true servâ—…nt of God and to such and all that is theirs I owe diligence Thirdly for the Churches sake to whom by Printing it I would have you consecrate it You owe the Church a debt and God hath put this into your hands as he sent the fish with mony to S. Peter to discharge it happily also with this as his thoughts are fruitfull intending the honour of his servant the Author who being obscured in his own country he would have to flourish in this land of light and region of the Gospell among his chosen It is true there are some things which I like not in him as my fragments will expresse when you read them neverthelesse I wish you by all meanes to publish it for these three eminent things observable therein First that God in the midst of Popery should open the eyes of one to understand and expresse so clearely and excellently the intent of the Gospell in the acceptation of Christs righteousnesse as he sheweth through all his Considertions a thing strangely buried and darkned by the Adversaries and their great stumbling-block Secondly the great honour and reverence which he every where beares towards our deare Master and Lord concluding every Consideration almost with his holy Name and setting his merit forth so piously for which I doe so love him that were there nothing else I would Print it that with it the honour of my Lord might be published Thirdly the many pious râ—…les of ordering our life about mortification and observation of Gods Kingdome within us and the working thereof of which he was a very diligent observer These three things are very eminent in the Author and overweigh the defects as I conceive towards the publishing thereof c. Bemmorton Sept. 29. THE HVNDRED AND TEN CONSIDERATIONS OF VALDESSO Translated out of the Italian Language into English CONSIDERATION I. How it is to be understood that man was created after the Image and Likenesse of God MANY times haue I deliberated to understand in what that Image and Likenes of God after which the holy Scripture saith Man was created doth properly consist and whilst I have endeavoured to understand by reading I haue not profitted at all For reading drew me now to one opinion by and by to another untill at last endeavouring to doe it by Consideration it seemed to me to understand or at least to haue begun to understand it The selfe same God that hath given me that which I have attained shall I am assured give me that which I yet want The Image and Likenesse of God as I understand consisteth in his proper essence in as much as he is impassible and immortall and as much as he is benigne mercifull just faithfull and true With these Qualities and with these perfections I understand that God created man in earthly Paradise where before he became disobedient to God he was impassible and immortall hee was good mercifull just faithfull and true This Image and likenesse of God as I understand the first man lost for his disobedience to God and so hee remained passible mortall he remained wicked cruel impious unfaithfull and a lyar After that I haue understood this by Consideration willing to confront it with the holy Scripture I finde it doth much and well agree with that which S. Paul saith Ephes. 4. and Colos. 3. and by so much the more am confirmed in my Consideration And passing on farther I understand that this Image of God was in the person of Christ as much as belongs to the soule before his death so that he was benigne mercifull just faithfull and true And after his resurrection as much as belongs both to soule and body in as much as over and aboue benignity mercifulnesse justice truth faithfulnesse he also doth possesse immortality and impassibility And farther then this I understand that they who being called and drawne by God unto the grace of the Gospell make the justice of Christ to become their own are incorporated in Christ doe in this present life recover in part that part of the Image of God which appertaines to the soul and in the life everlasting they recover that part also which appertaines to the body And by this meanes
satisfied for all that which wee sinne through evill inclination which is naturall unto us through originall sin Fourthly that the faith of them who believe being taught neither quieting nor pacifying their consciences doth not facilitate them to believe that all our sinnes were chastised in Christ. Fiftly that the faith of them who believe inspired quieting and pacifying their consciences facilitaeth them to believe That all our sins were chastised in Christ. And so it is that they who haue this infpired faith proving and experimenting in themselves the truth which the Gospell preacheth come to understand by experience that which at first they believed by inspiration First they believe that Christ was chastised for them For so the Gospell preacheth unto them and they are inwardly moved to believe that is true Afterwards finding peace in their consciences they understand in what manner Christ was chastised for them They who doe not believe it or believe it not being inspired but taught never finding peace in their consciences never understand that saying of the Prophet being fulfilled in them Except you shall believe yee shall not understand Esay 7. CGNSID C. That the fruits which in Christian Persons in the beginning of their Incorporation in Christ seem of the spirit are of the flesh SEing by experience that almost in all persons who accepting the Gospell come to be incorporated in Christ in the begining of their incorporation there are found certain tasts and feelings and certain desires and vehemencies and certain intelligences of holy Scripture of the Christian buisinesse and certain teares all which seem to be of the spirit and is altogether of Flesh and as matter of the Flesh in time dries and falls And willing to understand whence this proceeds I have considered that to every one of thē who are incorporated in Christ that befalls which to a branch which being cut from one tree is grafted in another I would say that as that branch would not produce the fruit which it doth if it were not grafted in that tree but that first fruit is as it were altogether of the sappe which it brought with it from the tree from whence it was cut so the person incorporated in Christ would not have the tasts or the feelings nor the vehemencies nor the desires nor the intelligencies nor the teares which he hath if he were not incorporated in Christ but that is as it were all Flesh affection of the flesh and complacency and satisfaction of the flesh which standing yet alive and not able to satisfy itselfe nor to please it selfe in carnall matters pleaseth it selfe and satisfieth it selfe in spirituall matters Whence I understand that every person who comes to be incorporated in Christ may rejoyce himselfe of those tasts and feelings of those desires and impetusses and of those intelligences and teares in as much as they assure him that he is incorporated in Christ for as much as he should not have any of these things if he were not partaker of the incorporation And I understand that holding them for fruits of the flesh and not of the spirit by the sappe of that root of Adam not of that root of Christ he ought to cast them away and to cut them off no waies feeding himselfe with them for that would befall him which befalls many persons who feeding themselves with such meat perswade thēselves to live in the spirit and live in the flesh And I understand that they ought to have intent that there should be nothing found in them but that which is of the spirit and of the root of Christ in which he stands incorporated and as it were engrafted holding for fruit of the root of Christ humility meeknesse patience the despising of himselfe the denyall of his own proper will the obedience to God charity for all these things were seen in Christ whilest he conversed corporally amongst men and unto these doth God inspire us and the spirit of Christ moveth us And these shine out in them who stand perfectly incorporated in Christ and the fruits redound to the Glory of God and to the glory of Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. CI. Whence it proceeds that the impious cannot believe that the superstitious believe with ease and that the pious believe with difficulty IN the Impious I consider the impossibility in believing and I call them impious who make profession to be the enemies of God as Pharaoh and as the Scribes and Pharises who were contrary unto Christ. In the superstitious I consider the facility in believing and I call them superstitious who not being pious make profession of piety and believe that they are pious And in the pious I consider the difficulty in believing and I call them pious who having by the Spirit accepted the generall pardon which the Gospell offers unto us attend to confirme themselves in it and to live in this present life a life like unto that which they are to live in life eternall The impossibility of the impious I understand consists in this that God blindes their eyes and shuts their eyes and shuts their cares and harde◅s their hearts to the end that not knowing the generall pardon which is intimated unto them they doe not believe it and so doe not obtain salvation This S. Iohn understood in this manner when he said therefore they could not believe because Esaias said again he hath blinded their eyes Nay this very thing Christ meant as it is proved by the three other Evangelists and S. Paul understood it as S. Luke testifieth the last of the Acts. The facility where with the superstitious believe I understand proceeds from their believing with humane wisdome from believing by opinion and by relation and from believing by use and custome they holding it for impiety to doubt That this is true is approved by this that amongst those true things which they believe they believe many other false things and they believe the false things more then the true Nay they doe not believe that which is the foundation of all true things that is the remission of sinnes and the reconciliation with God by the justice of God executed on Christ. And I say they doe not believe it for if they did believe it for the selfe-same reason they would leave to be superstitious and would be pious The difficulty wherewith the pious believe I understand proceeds from human wisdome from evill conscience and from the livelinesse of mind and from the lasciviousnesse of the flesh and it proceeds from human wisdome for by how much they goe on the more procuring to certify themselves in the faith so much the more contrast and impediment doth human wisdome goe making against them in it That this is true is approved by this that because they principally procure to certify themselves and confirme themselves that all their sinnes were chastized in Christ in this they who are Christians finde more contrast then in all other things which they believe It proceeds
from evill conscience in as much as it accuseth a man as the enemy of God and therefore he with difficulty assures himselfe in that which the Gospell believes that God hath now pardoned him and holds him for his friend That this is true is approved by this that instantly when a man findes peace in his conscience he stands confirmed in the faith in such manner that he is litle sollicited to doubt It proceeds from the livelinesse of the mind and from the lasciviousnesse of the flesh in as much as mans mind being a friend to life and his flesh being a friend to reioycing doth eagerly combat against the faith understanding or divining that faith slaies in a man the livelinesse of the mind and mortifies the lasciviousnesse of the Flesh. That this is true is approved by this that according as the vivacity of the minde goes dying in a man and the Lasciviousnes of the flesh so the beleiving goes on facilitated But it is not to be understood that the death nor the mortification are those things which facilitate to believe but that faith being that which kills us and mortifies us the believing is facilitated in us the forces being taken away from our enemies I say from them which make difficult to us our believing in such manner as humane prudence an evill conscience and the vivacity of our minds with the laciviousnesse of our flesh are three Instruments whereby the evill spirits serve themselves to make difficult our believing to us who believe by Revelation and by divine Inspiration nay with these three selfe same Instruments I understand that the beliefe of the generall Pardon is hindred to the superstitious who with ease believe all other things and with the same I understand the believing is made impossible to the impious whom God hath made blind deafe dumbe there being in all that is in the impious in the superstitious and in the Pious selfe love for the Principall enemy And certainly it is true that from it proceeds the contradiction of human prudence from it the contradiction of the evill conscience and from it the repugnancy of the livelinesse of the mind and of the lasciviousâ—…esse of the flesh That this is true is approved by this that if there were no proper love a man would not be so curious in willing to assure himselfe of the Christian verity he would not be so scrupulous in his conscience nor would so much repugne against the death of the livelinesse of the mind nor to the mortification of the lasciviousnesse of the flesh and so the contradictions would cease and the contradictions ceasing the difficulty of believing would also cease From all this discourse this resolution may be taken that if the wicked would be free from the impossibility in believing they must attend to renounce their proper love if they can And that if the superstitious would know that they are not pious that they doe not believe as they ought to believe nor that which they ought to believe they must attend to dispoile themselves of their proper love as much as they can And that â—…he Pious who shall feele themselves molested with the difficulty of believing and would take away the difficulty and so facilitate the believing they must travell to disenamour themselves of themselves and of the world and to enamour themselves of God and of Christ. This they shall doe considering the evill that is in themselves in the world and the good that is in God and in Christ. I say that this consideration will be very profitable to them so that it alwaies goe acâ—…ompanied with prayer praying God that he would disenamour them of themselves and of the world and that he would enamour them of himselfe and of Christ and that he would slay and mortify in them all that which is flesh and humane prudence to the end they may be capable of so great a quantity of faith as may suffice to cause that they never come to doubt nor to stagger in it being to him alway loyall and faithfull as belongs to them being made his sons by the incorporation wherewith they stand incorporated in his only begotten son Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. CII That Christian faith hath necessity to be confirmed with experience Of what kind the experience is and how it is obtained BElieving being the foundation of the Christian businesse which consists in accepting the generall pardon by the justice of God now executed on Christ it seemes a proper thing that a Christian should exercise himselfe in those considerations which appertaine to believing And so amongst other things which I have considered about believing this is that a man never stands solid and firme and constant in the Christian faith untill he have in himselfe some experience of that which he believes And it is as certain that he holds so much firmenesse as he holds of proper experience and no more at all It befalls us that believe with the Gospell that which comes to passe to us with a very wise and spirituall man I would say that as whilest we believe the wisdome and spiritualty of this man by relation of othermen we are in such manner disposed that other men comming who make us contrary relation we shall change the opinion which we had of him or at least we shall doubt of it untill having strict familiarity with such a man we know by experience that the relation is true which was made us for as then no man is able to perswadeus the contrary even so likewise whilest we believe that which the Gospell saith that God chastized all our sinns in Christ by their relation who preach the Gospell to us we stand in hazard that other Preachers comming which should tell us the contrary we shall believe in another manner or at least we shall doubt of the first preaching untill that we having experience of that which is preached unto us in the Gospell stand firme and constant in that which we believe all the men of the world being unable either to change or alienate our faith in any manner after that it is confirmed by proper experience Whence I understand that the first and principall intent which we ought to have who accept the Gospell believing that in Christ God hath chastized all our sinnes is to get the experience of this to the end that our faith being â—…o confirmed no man may be able to sever us from it nor to make us doubt thereof nor to stumble as they are able whilest our faith is not confirmed with experience And if any man shall aske me how the experience offaith is gâ—…tten I will answer him that then a man hath experience of that which he believes when he hath peace in his conscience it seeming to him that he can appeare in the judgement of God with that selfe-same security wherewith he would appeare if he had lived with that innocency wherewith Christ lived and had by Gods will suffered that
descends a vitall vertue by meanes whereof it lives so every one of those who being incorporated in Christ are the Church of god because he can speake saith and affirmeth that he feeles that from Christ there comes unto him a spirituall vertue by meanes whereof he lives a spirituall life This S. Iohn thus understood Chap. 1. when he said For of his fullnesse have we all received and grace for grace And so S. Paul understood it Colos. 1. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fullnesse dwell I know Christ for King in the people of god for I understand that he is he who with his spirit rules and governes it not onely in inward things and divine as head but also as god In outward things and corporall as King In all which things being as they are the Sonnes of god as S. Paul saith Rom. 8. they are lead by the spirit of God And so I understand that the kingdome of god is not called the spirituall kingdome because he governes us in spirituall things but because governing us in spirituall and corporall things he doth not govern us with the outward law but with the inward law which is the government of the Holy Spirit the Christian spirit Of this kingdome of Christ the holy Scriptures are full Esay 5. Mic. 5. Daniel 7. By which I understand that in this present life God reigns but by Christ that in lifeeternall god shall reign but by himselfe For then he shall be all in all 1. Cor. 15. In this manner I know Christ glorious for King in the people of god for Head in the Church of god and for Lord of the Elect of god And I know Christ humble most innocent and free from all sinne and abounding in all justice And I know fullfilled in him in part the promises of god made to David and to Abraham And I know him for the Sonne of god first borne and onely begotten I know that he is the Word of god with which god created all things I know him eternall consubstantiall And I hold for certain that as the Christian faith shall goe on being in me more efficacious mortifying me and quickening me so theseknowledges of Christ shall goe on being more cleare and more distinct by which I shall goe on from day to day alwaies more knowing god as he may be knowne whilst this flesh being passible and mortall is not a subject habilitated to see Christ to see God face to face as I shall see him in life eternall Having taken this resolution in the conceit which I ought to have of Christ I goe resolving my selfe in the conceit that I ought to have of them who are the members of Christ considering every one of them a Sonne of god not first borne as Christ who alwaies was a Sonne but an adopted Sonne by Christ and in Christ not onely begotten as Christ who is the sonne by generation but regenerated by Christ and in Christ borne the sonne of wrath and re-borne the sonne of God not in the state of gloryfication in which Christ i◅ but in the state of opprobry in which Christ was not Lord of Gods elect but one of the number of them who being elected of God are the servants of Christ redeemed and bought by Christ Not head of the Church of God as Christ but a mēber of the Church of God of which Christ is the head Not King of the people of God as Christ but governed by the spirit of Christ by meanes of which spirit I know that all the members of Christ stand united amongst themselves and united with Christ himselfe and therefore united also with God God abiding in them and they in God And so I see fullfilled that Prayer which Christ made unto his Father for this union Iohn 17. saying That they may be one in us c. And I understand that in this vnion consisteth all the christian perfection I pray God that he doe in such manner Imprint it in my memory that it may not seeme that it sever itselfe or depart from it not so much as for one moment to the intent that I never may doe thing which shall not be worthy of this union which I acknowledge from my christ who is my Lord my Head and my King To him be glory with the Father and the holy spirit Amen CONSID. CX That the principall gifts are not understood untill they be possessed A Most great testimony of the Christian life is this that according as a christian man goes perfecting himself in his christian customes so he goes clearing himselfe in his christian conceptions Nay I hold for certain that the selfesame christian spirit which goes perfecting him in his customes goes clarifying him in his conceptions so much that it can be hardly understood whether the clarification in the conceptions comes from the perfection in the customes or the perfections in the customes come from the clarification in the conceptions And therefore it is sure to say that both the one and the other thing comes from the christian spirit which doth marvellously work both the one and the other in them who accept the Gospell of Christ. This I haue said to this purpose that I having understood that the christian businesse is not science but experience and having by many comparisons procured to make some persons capable of this truth I haue never remained satisfied in my minde in such manner that it seemed to me to haue expressed to mine own manner my conceit untill now that having in mine own judgement comprehended it with more clearenesse itseems to mee to bee able to expresse it better And so I say that between the believing and accepting the christian things Faith Hope Charity with humane wit◅ or with the christian spirit I know the difference which I know between accepting approving those three naturall vertues Magnanimity Valour and Liberality and having them indeed I would say that as there be mē who hearing speak of these three naturall vertues and of the perfection of them albeit they doe not know them in themselves do approue them and accept them for good so there bee also of those men who hearing speak of those three gifts of God Faith Hope and Charity and of the perfection and efficacy of them albeit they doe not know them in themselves doe approve them and accept them for good believing that thy who accept the grace of the Gospell doe enjoy the remission of sins the reconciliation with God through Christ and approving the hope with which they expect the felicity of eternall life and the loue with which they loue God aboue every thing and they loue their neighbour as themselves And I say farther that as whilst they who approve those three natural vertues not possessing them albeit they willingly heare talk of them through the desire which they haue to possesse them yet is not that so much as that it gives them entire
neglect the Consideration of Gods Worke in his heart through the Word doth amisse both are to be done the Scriptures still used and Gods worke within us still observed who workes by his Word and ever in the reading of it As for the Text They shall be all tâ—…ught of God it being Scripture cannot be spoken to the disparagement of Scripture but the meaning is this That God in the dayes of the Gospell will not give an outward Law of Ceremonies as of old buâ—… such a one as shall still have the assistance of the holy spirit applying it to our hearts and ever outrunning the Teacher as it did when Peter taught Cornelius there the case iâ—… plaine Cornelius had revelation yet Peter was to be sent for and those that have inspirations must still use Peter Gods Word if we make another senâ—…e of that Text wee shall overthrow all means save catechizing and set up Enthusiasmes In the Scripture are Doctrines these ever teach more and more Promises these ever comfort more and more Ro. 15. 4. To the 33 CONSID. The Doctrine of this Consideration cleareth that of the precedent For as the servant leaves not the letter when he hath read it but keepes it by him and reads it againe and againe and the more the promise is delayed the more he reads it and â—…ortifies himselfe with it so are wee to doe with the Scriptures and this is the use of the promises of the Scriptures But the use of the Doctrinall part iâ—… more in regard it presents us not with the same thing only when it is read as the promises doe but enlightens us with new Considerations the more we read iâ—… Much more might be said but this sufficeth he himselfe allowes it for a holy conversation and refreshment To the 36 CONSID. On these words Neither fearing chastisement for transgressiion nor hoping for reward for observation c. All the discourse from this line till the end of this Chapter may seeme strange but it is sutable to what the Author holds elsewhere for he maintaines that it is Faiith and Infidelity that shall judge us now since the Gospell and that no other sin or vertue hath any thing to doe with us if we believe no sinne shall hurt us if we believe not no vertue shall helpe us Therefore he saith here we shall not be punished which word I like here better then chastizement because even the godly are chastized but not punished for evill doing nor rewarded for weldoing or living for all the point lies in believing or not believing And with this exposition the Chapter is cleare enough but the truth of the Doctrine would be examined however it may passe for his opinion in the Church of God there is one fundamentall but else variety To the XXXVII CONSID. On these words That God is so delicate and sensitive c. The Apostle saith that the wages of Sinne is death and therefore there is no sinne so small that merits not death and that doth not provoke God who is a jealous God To the 46 CONSID. On these words Exercise not thy selfe in anything pretending Iustification He meaneth I suppose that a man presume not to merit that is to oblige God or justify himselfe before God by any acts or exercises of Religion but that he ought to pray God affectionâ—…tely and fervently to send him the light of his spirit which may be unto him as the sunne to a Travellour in his journey hee in the meane while applying himselfe to the duties of true Piety and syncere Religion such as are Prayer Fasting Almeâ—…-deedes c. after the example of devout Cornelius To the 49 CONSID. On these words Remaining quiet when they perceive no motion c. In indifferent things there is roome for motions and expecting of them but in things good as to relieve my Neighbour God hath already revealed his Will about it Therefore wee ought to proceed except there be a restraining motion as S. Paul had when hee would have preached in Asia and I conceive the restraining motions are much more frequent to the godly then inviting motions because the Scripture invites enough for it invites us to all good according to that singular place Phil. 4. 8. A man is to embrace all good but because he cannot doe all God often chuseth which he shall doe and that by restraining him from what he would not have him doe To the same CONSID. Vpon these words A man's free-will doth consist c. He meanes a mans fre-will is only in outward not in spirituall things To the same CONSID. On these words Neithor Pharaoh nor Iudas c. could cease to be such This doctrine however true in substance yet needeth discreâ—…t and wary explaining To the LVIII CONSID. Vpon the seventh difference By occasions I suppose hee meaneth the ordinary or necessary duties and occasions of our calling and condition of life and not those which are in themselves occasions of sinne such as are all vain conversations For as for these pious persons ought alwaies to avoid them but in those other occasions Gods Spirit will mortify and try them as gold in the fire To the LIX CONSID. Upon these words And with doubtfulnesse I see he prayed in the Garden To say our Saviour prayed with doubtfulnesse is more then I can or dare say But with condition or conditionally he prayed as man though as God he knew the event Feare is given to Christ but not doubt and upon good ground To the LXII CONSID. This Chapter is considerable the intent of it that the world pierceth not godly mens actions no more then Gods is in some sort true because they are spiritually discerned 1. Cor. 2. 14. So likewise are the godly in some sort exempt from Lawes for Lex iusto non est pofita But when he enlargeth them hegoes too farre For first concerning Abraham and Sara I ever tooke that for a weaknesse in the great Patâ—…k And that the best of Gods Seâ—…vants should have weaknesses is no way repugnant to the way of Gods Spirit in them or to the Scriptures or to themselves being still men though godly men Nay they are purposely accorded in holy Writ Wherefore as David's Adultery cannot be excused so need not Abraham's Equivocation nor Paul's neither when he professed himselfe a Pharisee which strictly he was not though in the point of Resurrection he agreed with them and they with him The reviling also of Aâ—…anias seemes by his owne recalling an oversight yet I remember the Fathers forbid us to judge of the doubtfull actions of Saints in the Scriptures which is a modest admonition But it is one thing not to judge another to defend them Secondly when he useth the Word Iurisdiction allowing no Iurisdiction over the godly this cannot stand and it is ill Doctrine in a common-wealth The godly are punishable as others when they doe amisse and they are to be judged according to the outward fact unlesse it be
they should suffer when they suffer because they bee Saints just men he doth not consent that they should suffer for those things which indifferently be fall to men in this present life From all this which is spoken it may be gathered that a Christian person when he is evill entreated for his piety and justice rejoycing that in it and by it the name of God is illustrated he ought to remit himselfe wholly and altogether to God reducing his minde to content it selfe of that which God shall ordain and dispose of him and when he is evill entreated as a person of the world he ought to believe and hold for certain that God will draw him out of that affliction and out of that trouble with much satisfaction and his own content and hee ought to reduce his minde to content himselfe of that which God will doe And this truly is a Christian disposition of the soule which is only found in them that stand incorporated in Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. XVI That the promises of God belong to them who belieue them CHristian piety requires that a Christian man should hold certainly and firmly that God will maintaine him in this present life with his grace and in his grace that in the other life he will giue him immortality and glory Humane wisdome presuming or pretending piety perswades him that hee ought to hold for certain that God will deal thus with him but on condition that hee haue Faith Hope and Charity which are the gifts of God that giue life and being to a Christian. And in the mean while humane wisdome understands not that a man shall so far enjoy these three Graces as he shall abide certainly and firmly grounded in those other two things wherein Christian piety requires that a Christian man should abide firm and assure himselfe in For in these two things doth Faith and Hope consist from which Charity doth arise and proceed Whence it is well gathered that it belongs to a Christian to shut his eares to humane wisdome and to open them to the Promises of the holy spirit and so to attend to certifie himselfe and found himselfe in those two first things And as I understand the matter he shall then obtain and possesse these three Christian gifts of Faith Hope and Charity when he shall certainly and firmly belieue that God will maintain him in this present life with his grace and in his grace and that in the other life he will give him immortality and glory I know will the pious Christian say that God calls not unto him but those whom he hath first known and predestinate I know also that those whom he calls them hee iustifies and them he glorifies And I know certainly that he hath called me and thereby I assure my selfe that hee hath known and predestinated me and that he hath justified me and that he will glorifie me In this let him stand in this let him confirm himselfe without doubting in any manner For the promises of God are fulfilled with them That this is true may be proved by many authorities of holy Scripture But better it will be to say in this māner That the truth of this matter is not believed except it be experimented and the experience appertaines only to them that stand incorporated in Iesus Christ our Lord. CONSID. XVII In what manner a Man ought to resolue himself touching the world and touching himself that he may become a true Christian. ALL the Christian businesse consists in trusting believing and loving for all this is piety justice and holinesse for as much as a man having confidence gets piety believing gets justice and loving holinesse That a man may trust belieue and love it is necessary to apprehend to understand and know To apprehend in what thing he ought to haue confidence To understand in what it is cōvenient to believe And to know that which ought to be loved Of this wisdome cognition and intelligence a man is uncapable partly for the depravation that is naturall to him by reason of Originall sin and partly by reason of that which is acquired by evill custome worse exercises The Wise man meant this when he said That wisdome entreth not into a minde that is evill enclined nor abideth in a body subject unto sin Whereupon I understand that a man which desireth to trust belieue and loue that he may obtain piety justice and holinesse to such a one it appertaines to bee wise to know and to understand dispoilng his minde of all evill inclinations and estranging his body from all evill exercises and from every evill custome Together with this I understand that to the intent a man may dispoile his mind of every evill inclination it is meeter that a man should couragiously and generously resolve himselfe touching the world turning his back to all the honour thereof to all the glory thereof and to all the estimation thereof not pretending unto it not procuring it nor willing it in any thing nor in any manner putting an end to all kinds of ambition and self esteem Together with this I understand that to the intent a man may estrange his body from all evill exercise and from all evill custome it is meet that a man should valorously resolve touching things which concern himselfe renouncing in good earnest all those things from which there doth come or may come any satisfaction or any corporall content putting an end to all estranging himselfe from it and abhorring it For doing in this manner he shall purifie his soule and his body and he shall make himselfe able God giving unto him that wisdome understanding and knowledge which he is capable of And so doing he shall come to obtain Confidence Faith and Loue and shall be Pious Iust and Holy and consequently he shall become a true Christian. Vnto this resolution I understand that Iesus Christ our Lord inviteth every one of us saying Hee that will come after me c. And as I understand it then a man is to be said to take his crosse upon him when willingly he suffers the martyrdome with which the men of the world will martyrize him whether it be of the body or of the soule That of the body the true Christians of the Primitiue Church did suffer when those which were open enemies of God and of Christ took away their lives because they believed in Christ That of the minde hath been suffered and is daily to be suffered by true Christians that haue followed the steps of the Ancient when they who are secret enemies of God of Christ doe despise them esteem them for vile and for nobody deprive them of honour and fame And as I understand it this is the most cruell and most terrible and most unsupportable martyrdome of all And a man that stands constant in this kind of martyrdome may well hold himselfe for a true martyr of Christ. Together with this I understand that to the resolutions
superstitious works If this which thou saist be true what need were there to make mention of works Were it not better that the Scripture stood solid in saying that whosoever shall believe shall be saved and whosoever shall not believe shall be condemned To them I will answer three things The first that from their not understanding the Scriptures it proceeds that they finde inconstancy in them and they would not finde it if they understood them they should understand them if they would not understand them with prudence and humane reason which is incapable of the things which are of the spirit of God such as are the holy Scriptures The second That God having as it hath been said to iustifie his sentence before men who see not but the outward it is necessary that hee should alleage the works which are outward those which give testimony of the Faith of him who believes and of the infidelity of him who believes not And the third That all men being most ready to work evill and most slow to work well it seems a necessary thing that the holy Scripture should use this manner of speech to refrain the pronesse to evill and to incite the slownesse to good to the end that as they who now feel the Regeneration and Christian renovation should depart from evill and apply themselves to the good onely for the duty of the selfesame regeneration and renovation to observe the Christian decorum not to grieve nay rather to reioyce the holy spirit So they also who begin to feel themselves regenerated and renued shoul doe the selfesame to make firm their vocation and to work their salvation And that should they also doe who doe not know the regeneration nor renovation for feare of being condemned And so even these should be lesse evill And they being lesse evill should be more good for their proper interest untill such time as having begun to feele the affections of the Christian regeneration and renovation they also may be good not doing evill and doing good not now for feare and for interest but onely for the duty of Christian persons incorporated in Iesus Christ our Lord to whom be glory forever CONSID. XCIX Whence it proceeds that men bâ—…eve not that all our sinnes were chastised in Christ or they believe is with difficultie COnsidering the extreme difficulty wherewith men bring themselves tobelieve the Gospell the good news of the Remission of sinnes iustification and reconciliation with God for the iustice of God executed on Christ For as much as they also who believe by revelation and divine inspiration finde more difficulty in believing this Remission of sinnes Iustification Reconciliation then all other things besides which the Christian Church believes I haue many times set my selfe to think whence this difficulty may proceed And lastly I am come to this resolution that to believe this Remission of sinnes Iustification and Reconciliation a man findes in himselfe the contradiction of his evill conscience and from hence it comes that with extreme difficulty they who belieue by divine Revelation and divine Inspiration bring theÌ„selves to hold themselves for just They who believe by opinion and relation being never able to bring themselves to this They who believe being inspired untill they finde peace in their consciences doe not entirely belieue the Gospell And finding peace in their consciences the inward contradiction ceasing the difficulty of believing the Gospell is taken away They who believe being taught as they never finde peace in their consciences they never believe the Gospell For the inward contradiction never ceaseth that not ceasing neither doth the difficulty in belieuing cease nay whilst the contradiction lasteth the difficulty may be called impossibility Men doe easily believe by relation of holy Scriptures that God is most omnipotent most just They believe that Christ is most innocent and pure from all sin They believe that Christ suffered by the will of God for in none of these things they finde inward contradiction which sufficeth to cause that they should not believe that which holy Scriptures affirme And not to exclude the benefit of Christ they believe also that Christ satisfied for originall sin for neither in this doe they finde contradiction in as much as their consciences not accusing them of originall sin they not knowing their own proper fault therein they easily bring themselves to believe that without their proper merit that is pardoned unto them wherein they know not their own 〈◊〉 And when it comes to the point to believe that Christ satisfied God for the sinnes that every one of them commits albeit they haue the Scriptures which most largely giue testimony thereof nay all they in conformity preach this suddenly they draw back because they finde the inward contradiction in their own consciences and so they resolve to restrain the benefit of Christ only to originall sin understanding it after their own manner or to enlarge it also to their proper sinnes but with the addition of proper satisfaction As if Christ had said I haue satisfied for the sins of you all but with condition that every one should satisfie for his own And they consider not the injury which herein they doe to Christ they consider it not because they feel it not and they feel it noâ—… because they know not Christ. They who by Gods gift believe that God is most iust that Christ is most innocent that it was the work of God that Christ should suffer and that he suffered for originall sin in the end reduce themselves to believe that through Christs sufferings they get remission of sinnes and are iust and are now in the grace of God reconciled with God considering in this manner if God be most just if Christ be most innocent if that which Christ suffered he suffered by the will of God and the will of God was that hee should satisfie for originall sin it is also true that men who haue obtained the whole pardon of their sins are iust and are reconciled with God since from originall sin it comes to all to be sinners uniust and enimies of God and it comes for us to doe things whereby we grow in iniustice in enmity With this Consideration they pacifie their consciences and facilitate their believing and hold for certain that they who doe not believe this either doe not believe that God is most iust or doe not hold that Christ is most innocent or doe not believe that it was Gods will that Christ should suffer for if they did believe it they would believe that which followes that is that he suffered not for himselfe but for them and so would holde themselves for Iust. Here I understand all this First the blindnesse of humane wisdome which is not capable of the truth which the Gospell preacheth Secondly the ignorance of men who not understanding whence this incapacity comes doe not attend to remedy but to cover it Thirdly that Christ satisfying for originall sin he
to giue me an abhorring of corporall things humane and of the world the which albeit I doe not altogether abhorre I am at least come to this that I doe not loue them I doe not procure them I doe not desire them as I was wont And in this manner by experience of mortification he shall confirme himselfe in the Christian truth Fiftly he shall think thus If I knew any other better thing then this or at least that were equall to this with which I might appeare before the iudgement of God I should indeed haue cause to doubt of the truth of this Now I knowing no other thing better nor other thing such as it is I haue no cause to doubt And in this manner he shall certifie himselfe that he is come upon the gaine and not on the losse and that in persevering in this Christian faith he cannot loose but gaine And if it shall come into his fancy to say that he might loose much in case that which the Gospell saith were not true in as much as hee should attribute that to Christ which were not due to him and it not being due to him hee should come to offend the glory and the maiestie of God he shall instantly haue recourse to experience and think thus After that I know my selfe pardoned through Christ and reconciled with God through Christ acknowledging my selfe dead with Christ and raised up with Christ and expecting my glorification with Christ I know and feel and finde in me the beginnings of mortification through the despisall of the world and of my selfe and I feele the beginnings of vivification through the loue and affection to God to the glory of God and to the will of God And these principles are good And it being true that from an evill cause never comes a good effect it is true also that the cause is good whence this effect is growne And therefore it is most certain and true that which the Gospell publisheth and affirmeth That God having put on Christ all our sins and having chastised them all in Christ he hath pardoned us all and hath reconciled us with himselfe by Christ which pardon and reconciliation all they which believe enioy Here the Christian person shall stay himselfe who willing to embrace himselfe with the iustice of Christ shall be disturbed with the perswasions which shall sollicite him to doubt and shutting the dore to them which may come shall recommend himselfe to God saying with Hezechias Lord I suffer violence answer for me Isaia 38. And let him be sure that God will help him fulfilling with him that which he promised by David where hee saith I am with him in trouble I will deliver him and bring him to Honour CONSID. CIV That Baptisme through the Faith of the Gospell is efficacious even in Children who dye before they come to the age to be able to approue their being Baptized TAking occasion from that which S. Peter saith That the Ark wherein Noah saved himselfe in the floud was a figure of our Christian Baptisme I haue considered that as Noah giving credit to the word of God did believe that the floud would come and did believe that himselfe and his should be saved in the Ark not by vertue of the Ark which could not naturally work this effect but by the will of God who used this Ark for an instrument of safety to him and his so we also giving credit to the Gospell of God believe that Christ shal come to iudge the quick and the dead and we believe that all our sinnes being chastised in Christ we and ours shall bee saved in that iudgement being Baptised not by vertue of the water which cannot naturally work this effect but by the will of God who useth the water for the meanes of our salvation God could well have saved Noah in the floud without the Ark and it seems hee took the Ark for the means to condescend unto the frailty of Noah who more easily believed that he should be saved in the Ark then he would have believed that he should haue been saved without the Ark. Albeit he did not trust in the Ark but in the word of God who promised to saue him in the Ark and so not the Ark but Faith was that which saved Noah with which he made the Ark and put himselfe in it In the selfe same manner God could well saue us in day of judgement without the water of Baptisme and it seemes he takes the water for the meanes to condescend unto our frailty which causeth that wee doe more easily believe to be saved by Baptisme then we should belieue to be saved without it albeit wee haue not confidence in the water but in the word of the Gospell of God which promiseth to saue us by Baptisme And so we shall be saved in the universall judgement not because we are Baptised but through the Faith with which we are Baptised Where I understand two things The one that to all of us who are Christians it appertaines to secure our selves in the iudgement of God with the remembrance that wee were baptised as Noah secured himselfe in the Floud with the remembrance of the Ark the Ark being to him that which Baptisme is to us The other that wee who are baptised being children are to assure our selves that we are then really and indeed baptised when the yeares of discretion being come and feeling by the will of God the voice of the Gospell we reioyce to be baptised in such sort that if so bee we were not baptised we would then be baptised That betiding tous which might haue befallen a man who had bin put into the Ark of Noah whilst he was asleep who being awaked and finding himselfe in the Ark would haue thanked Noah that had put him in the Ark affirming that if he had not been entered therein and could haue entered therein he would without all doubt haue entred therein In such sort that as that man being entered into the Ark not by his own proper faith but by the Faith of Noah should haue saved himselfe in the Ark by his own proper faith esteeming it good that hee had entered into the Ark So we who in out infancies were baptised having entred into Baptisme not through our own proper Faith but by the Faith of them who put us therein shall be saved in Baptisme by our own proper faith approving and holding it for good to be Baptised Another thing also may be said that as the Beasts which Noah put into the Ark entred in by the faith of Noah were saved in the Floud by the faith of Noah they having neither knowledge of good nor evill to enter into the Ark nor to approve their entring in but being put into it So the children of the first Christians who enter into Baptisme by the faith of their Parents and come not to the age to be able to approue or reprove that which their Fathers haue done they
and know God Whereupon remembring my selfe of a comparison which I have written saying That God did with the Hebrew people giving them a ceremonious law that which a Merchant doth departing for the Levant and doubting of the chastity of his wife knowing her inclined to compose sonnets and canzons he enioynes her every day to write him a sonnet on some of those things passed between them albeithe delights not in sonnets And considering that to the Hebrewes who knew not themselves nor God that came to passe which might have come to passe to the Merchants wife in case that not knowing her own inclination nor that of her husbands shee should think to iustify her selfe with him giving him sonnets having lost her chastity considering that to the Hebrews who knew themselves and knew God that came to passe which might have come to passe to the selfe-same woman in case that she knowing her own inclination and that of her husbands should pretend in making sonnets to obey her husband and not to wander out or exercise herselfe in other matters in dishonour of her husband I come to know the exceeding great inconvenience wherein they remaine who in the time of the Gospell pretend suppose to iustify themselves working and working that which is not commanded them for as much as they cannot pretend obedience aâ—… the Hebrew saints which obedience was imputed to them for iustice and held them united with God without committing adultery against God as they who neither knowing themselves nor knowing God did pretend to iustify themselves sacrificing In this discourse I learne two most important things The first is that since it is true that God demands not now of men that they should sacrifice demanding of them that they should believe that they should accept the grace the remission of sinnes and the reconciliation with God which the Gospell offers them shewing unto them how that God having put on Christ the sinnes of all men he hath chastized them all in him and so his iustice resteth satisfied The man how much a sinner and wicked soever he be who shall not hold himselfe for pardoned and for reconciled with God and so for iust shall by this selfesame case give testimony of himselfe that he knowes not God since he doth not trust himselfe on his word and that he doth not know Christ since he doth not stand certain that he is just in Christ. And if such a man shall pretend to iustify himselfe working he shall give testimony of himselfe that he doth not know the naturall inclination of man in such sort that either I must know my selfe to be just in Christ although I know my selfe a sinner in my selfe or I ought to deny that which the Gospell affirmes that God in Christ hath chastized the sinnes and iniquities of all men and mine together with them or else I am constrained to say that God is unjust chastizing sinnes twice once in Christ and another time in mee And because to say this would be impiety and to deny the other would be incredulity it remaines that I enforce my selfe to hold my selfe for pardoned reconciled with God and so for just in Christ subjecting the naturall light to the spirituall The second thing which I learne is that it being true that the impossibility which is in man to accept this holy Gospell of Christ proceeds from a man 's not knowing himselfe nor knowing God it belongs to every man to apply himselfe in good earnest to know himselfe and his own naturall inclination taking it even from Adam and to know God taking for his principall application continuall prayer praying God affectionatly and fervently that he would open the eyes of his minde in such manner that he may come to these acknowledgements and praying him that hath begun to open them that he would every day more and more open them And in this manner if he shall not have begun to accept the holy Gospell of Christ in going on taking away the impossibility he shall begin to accept it and if he shall have begun to accept it the difficulty which he findes in accepting it being taken away he will accept it more and better faith being efficacious in him to mortify him and to make him alive with which things the Christian faith is confirmed in us which is the foundation in that most divine confession of S. Peter when he said unto Christ thou art Christ the sonne of the living God to him be glory for ever Amen CONSID. CVIII In what manner the evill of Adams disobedience appertaines to us all and the good of Christs obedience reacheth unto us all BY that which I read in holy Scripture and by that which I know in my selfe I understand that for to come to believe the good of Christs obedience and that in Christs obedience we all obeyed and that in Christs raysing up we all arose it is convenient and necessary to believe the disobedience of Adam and that Adam disobeying we all disobeyed and that in Adams dying we all dyed I say it is necessary for every man to believe the evill of Adam that he may come to believe the good of Christ. For I understand that it is impossible that a man should believe the good of Christ if he doe not believe the evill of Adam In as much as not believing it he shall not feele it and not feeling it he shall not desire it nor procure to free himselfe from it and not desiring nor procuring it he will never come to believe the good of Christ which is the proper medicine against the evill of Adam But if he believe the evill of Adam together with the believing it he will feele it finding himselfe in himselfe impious unfaithfull and the enimy of God and as he shall know himselfe to be come into such impiety and infidelity and enmity without his own proper fault so he will easily reduce himselfe to believe to be able to come unto piety fidelity friendship without his own proper merit whereupon he will believe the good of Christ and believing it he will feele it feeling himselfe more faithfull and more the friend of God in Christ and then shall know with effect that as the evill of Adams disobedience whilest he did not believe and not believing it did not feele it was effectuall to make him by his own fault more impious more unfaithfull and more the enemy of God so the good of the obedience of Christ is in the selfe same manner efficatious whilest he believes it and whilest believing it he feeles it to make him in himselfe more faithfull and more the friend of Christ. Whence I understand that as they who believe the evill of Adam doe free themselves from it and they who believe the good of Christ doe enjoy it so they who doe not believe the evill of Adam doe not free themselves from it and they who doe not believe the good of Christ doe not enjoy
sonne would not for all that ac◅ompt themselves pardoned and so not return to the kingdome And I understand likewise that neither that Prince to whom this should thus happen should attaine his intention in as much as hee sent his sonne to no other purpose then to the end that being acknowledged for his Sonne hee might bee credited in that which hee manifested so neither doth it seem that God attaines his intention in those who knowing Christ for the sonne of God yet not giving confidence to that which hee gives them notice of on Gods behalfe doe not esteem themselves for reconciled to God He attaines his intention onely in those who knowing Christ to be the son of God and giving confidence to that which hee gives them notice of on Gods behalfe doe accompt themselves for reconciled to God and so for pious for just and for holy It is very true indeed that the knowledge which they haue of Christ as the son of God who feel not themselves reconciled to God cannot properly be tearmed knowledge being more properly opinion then knowledge for were it knowledge it would work in them the same effect that it doth in others certifying them of their reconciliation with God and giving them peace in their consciences And moreover know that by Letter S. Paul understands all that which a man doth saith thinketh without being inspired thereunto by God albeit they be such matters as other men have said done and thought being inspired thereunto Letter it was in S. Peter when in Antioch he severd himselfe from the conversation of the Gentiles because he would not scandalize the Iews and Spirit it was in S. Paul when he did reprehend him for it Know further that by Faith S. Paul understands the credit that a man gives to the pardon generall which Christ published which is now in Christs name on Christs behalfe published And that by Hope he understands the patience and sufferance wherewith a man that believes doth hope for the accomplishment of that which he believes without being wearied in his hope and without giving over the pursuit of that which he hopes for And that by Charity he understands that inward bowelly affection wherewith a man that believes and hopes doth loue that which he believes and that which hee hopes for loving God and Christ from whom and by whom he hopes to obtain that which he believes that which hee hopes and that which he loves and loving also all those things that are Gods and that are Christs Know moreover that by the Justice of God S. Paul understands the perfection of God As we when wee would signifie a man to be perfect say he is just our meaning being this that there is nothing in him that is not very good and in effect that there is nothing wanting to him By the Grace of God he understands the favour that God shews unto a man in drawing him to accept the pardon generall and in maintaining and increasing him with other inward favours which are called Grace inasmuch as God bestows them graciously without any respect of desert onely because it is his will That by the Guift of God he chiefly meanes his having given Christ unto us to the end that the rigor of his justice being executed on him we should hold for certain the pardon generall and hee understands particularly those outward guifts of the holy spirit which in S. Pauls time were in abundance cōmunicated to them that believed That by sinne he almost alwaies understands the affection and the appetite to sin which lives in a man through his naturall depravation and through his acquisite and I say almost in as much as some times he meanes by sinne the sacrifice for sinne That by the Old man he understands the man that is not regenerated nor renewed by the holy Spirit And by the New man he understands the man that is renewed and regenerated by the holy spirit And know likewise that by Flesh by the carnall man by the body of sinne and by the law of the members he understands the selfe same that he doth by the Old man that is nature without the spirit and know that by the law of God he understands that which God gave unto the Hebrew people by Mos◅s which sometimes he termes the Law of death because it was its part to condemne and other where he calls i◅ the Law of sinne because it stirred up in men the affections and appetites of sinning That by the Law of the spirit he understands faith by Circumcision he meanes Iudaisme and by Vncircumcision he understands the state of the Gentiles And finally know that by Christian liberty he understands the degree state and dignity unto which God advanceth a man that accepts the grace of the Gospell who being regenerated and renowed and made the son of God is free and exempt from those things whereunto other men are subject in as much as he maintaines himselfe in his regeneration and renovation and doth not deprive himselfe of that sonship for which he is governed and ruled by the spirit of God Of all this you may serve your selfe as it were of a guide by meanes whereof you may understand many of the things which you shall read in S. Paul And because it may perhaps cause admiration in you to see that S. Paul setting himselfe to reprehend vices in some of them to whom he writes and admonishing them of those vices from which they ought to beware names certain vices which are shamefull even in the men of the world So that it may seeme strange that there should be any necessity of admonishing Christian persons touching those vices and that withall he scarce toucheth those vices which are more inward and more pernitious You shall know that in as much as in S. Pauls time there were some who made carnall licentiousnesse of Christian liberty and gave themselves unto vices and villanies it was necessary that S. Paul should touch them in those particulars wherein they did most sinne In such sort as it was needfull even in that time to seek redresse for outward vices in christian persons in as much as they did not esteem them for evill nor were not ashamed of them through the false perwasion which they had run into of christian liberty and because they had put an end to the esteem of the world But it is now needfull to apply remedy to christian men for their inward vices in regard that they partly for God and partly for the world doe abstain from outward vices suffering themselves to be overcome by the inward partly because they doe not know them for vices and partly because the world holds the want of these vices for a vice You shall find some things in S. Paul which you shall not feel in your selfe and other things which you shall not understand and some other which will seem strange to you And all these it seemes fit to mee that you should passe over not ca◅ing much to weary your selfe for the understanding of them in as much as the intention with which you goe about to read S. Paul is not to understand all that S. Paul saith but to frame your mind as God shall give you grace to understand feel and tast in S. Paul I also advise you that when you begin to read an Epistle you leave not to read the argument which you shall find written before it for it gives much light to the whole Epistle But in truth all these advises are nothing and there is one of much more availe then all these that is that when ever you shall take S. Paul into your hands you should commend yo◅r'selfe to God beseeching him that he would send his Holy Spirit that may be your guide in the reading and you shall endeavour to obtain it by meanes of the only begotten son of God Christ Iesus our Lord to whom be glory for ever AMEN FINIS ERRATA PAge 17. line 6. for execution in this manner read in this manner I desire to c. p. 21. l. 1. f. all good the works r. all the good works p 23. l. 22. f. there r. them p. 24. l. 11. f. believe a lye r. unbelieve a lye p. 29. l. 18. f. perceiving r. persevering p. 29. l. 27. f. dispose r. dispoile p. 34. l. 23. f. once r. one p. 35. l. 22. f. by good r. be good p. 39. l. 25. f. meeter r. meet p. 45. l. penult f watchfulnesse r. watchfull p. 50. l. 28. f. peace and conscience r. peace of conscience p. 82. l. 24. f being a man r. being in a man p. 89. l. 20. f. doth reach unto r. doth not reach unto p. 98. l. 3. f. vocation of r. vocation to p. 103. marg f. omnes homo r. omnis p. 105. l. 1. f. that his piety r. that if his piety p. 109. l. 8. f. knowe r. knowing p. 116 l. 6. f. that then holy spirit r. then the holy spirit p. 172. l. 25◅ f. whilest his soul in his body r. his soul in his body p. 193. l. 24. f. Psal. 75. r. 95. p. 198. l. 12. f. felicity r. facility p. 208. l. 30. f. begins love r. begins to give love p. 220 l. 20. f. proceed r. precedes p. 222. l. 9 f. of man r. to man p. 227. l. 10. f. and it was r. it was p. 239. l. 24. f. the waies r. these waies p. 240. l. 35. f. would r. should p. 241. l. 29. f. justice r. justify p. 244. l. 12. f. purposes in such manner r. purposes and desu◅ in c. This note is the French Translators This note is the French Translators These 32 and 33 Consideratio◅s being read together may vindicate the Authors good meaning from his dubi ous and offen sive expressions in the present Consideration See the Preface This XXXVI Co◅sideration saith the translatour seemes expressed in difficult and ambiguous words which may justly breed exception if so it bee not taken altogether I confessed saith he it is one of them which I doe not fully understand See the Preface Hoc est omnes homo The Weeke before Easter Pretending ◅erit