For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his sonne much more being reconciled we shall be saued by his life And a little after Neither that alone but also wee reioyce in God through our Lord Iesu Christ by whom wee haue now obtained reconciliation Againe If death raigned by one offence much more those who doe receiue that abundant grace gift of righteousnes shall raigne in life To Titus chap. 2. He gaue himselfe for vs to redeeme vs from all sinne and to purge vs a peculiar people for himselfe zealous of good workes Peter also ioyneth these things together 1. Epist chap. 2. when he saith that our Lord bore our sinnes in his bodie vpon the tree that we being dead to sinnes might liue to righteousnes Of these things there ought to bee a daily consideration The true vse of the former ends if they be well weighed Ephes 1. that we may vnderstand the greatnes of the gift of Christ and giue him thanks without ceasing weighing with ourselues what is the breadth and length and depth as Paul speaketh of the grace of God and what is the hope of his calling and the riches of his glorie in his Saints Further the daily meditation hereof is profitable and necessarie partly to nourish in vs faith and hope and partly to stirre vp and strengthen in vs more and more newnes of life Hauing saith the Apostle Heb. 10. libertie to enter into the holie place by the blood of Iesu and hauing an high priest who is ruler ouer the house of God let vs come with a true heart and a sure perswasion of faith and let vs hold the confession of hope without wauering And as touching the framing of our life we are commanded to walke worthie of the Lord Colos 1. who when wee were the seruants of sinne to death hath deliuered vs from sinne and made vs seruants of righteousnesse Hereupon are those exhortations of Paul Rom. 6. Let not sinne raigne in your mortall body and giue not your members weapons of vnrighteousnes vnto sinne but giue your selues vnto God as such as are aliue from the dead and your members weapōs of righteousnes vnto God Againe As you haue giuen your members seruants to vncleannes and iniquitie for iniquitie so now giue your members seruants of righteousnesse vnto holinesse Certainly seeing we are the freemen of Christ we ought to liue vnto him who hath redeemed vs Tit. 2. and would haue vs his peculiar people and followers of good workes neither ought we as forgetfull of our Redeemer retyre vnto the campes of Satan and the world our enemies and submit againe our bodies and soules vnto the yoke of our old bōdage frō whence we were redeemed with the blood of the Sonne of God O mad men O vile traytors and the wickeddest of all mortall men who so greatly reproch a Christian name nay Christ the Redeemer and doe little lesse then tread the blood of the couenant vnder their feete CHAP. XI WHO BE REDEEMED BY CHRIST The controuersie of the question propounded is rehearsed and briefly expounded For whom Christ died THese things being declared let vs come to the question reserued to the last place Who they be whom Christ the Mediatour of God and men redeemed by his death or for whom he died And this matter shall be more largely handled then the former questions as farre as the Lord shall assist vs for their sakes that are desirous to learne and for the defence of the truth of the Gospell seeing not long agoe by occasion of the Conference at Mompelgart the matter hath growne into a grieuous contention Huberus and a certaine man inflamed with anger and seeming to be mad hath too too bitterly and reprochfully in his writings which he hath spersed abroad both in Latine and Dutch blowne the same with the fanne of contention as though there had not been before discords and strifes more then enough in this our corrupt age in the Church of Christ with often and most grieuous offences of the weake He ouerwhelmeth such as dissent from him with all kinde of reproches and railing words as come into his mouth The shamefull reproches and slanders of Huber against vs the truth That they come neere to Mahometisme and Paganisme That they maintaine Satanicall blasphemie are franticke desire to extinguish the name of Christ and that they are hereunto inclined to driue away Christ first out of the hearts then out of the Scripture and lastly out of the Church it selfe And hee termeth them seducers Pharisees Scribes a subtill poysoned and false sort of men and grieuously abuseth innocent persons with other hard words as often as pleaseth him according to that his passing christian zeale towards the Church of God supposing by his brasen forehead as I thinke to get himselfe credit with the reader to thinke it written truly what he should write impudently forgetting altogether the admonition of the Apostle 2. Tim. 2.24 The dutie of a Diuine That the seruant of the Lord must not be contentious but gentle towards all apt to teach forbearing euill men with meekenes instructing those that are contrary minded This is the dutie of a Diuine As for reproches railing speeches mockes biting taunts ill reports back-biting and all other doggish eloquence let scoffers and iesters take them to themselues In 2. cap. 2. ep ad Timot. A notable speech of Ambrose against contention Conference saith Ambrose and not contention ought to be among the seruants of God For strife must needes wring out something nay many things which are spoken against conscience so so that inwardly he looseth in his minde when outwardly he goeth away with the victorie For no man suffereth himselfe to be ouercome although hee know the things to be true which hee heareth Therefore let vs speake of the thing itselfe For to railing words and reproches he will answere who hath said Vengeance is mine Deut. 32. Rom. 12. I will repay vnto whom for Christs sake who hath pardoned vs our sinnes wee heartily pray that hee would forgiue our aduersaries those grieuous wrongs they doe vnto vs that he would take away discord and plant loue and peace in the truth among the Churches that with one mouth wee may glorifie God the father of our Lord Iesus Christ and receiue one another as Christ hath receiued vs to the glorie of God Rom. 15. Therefore comparing matter with matter and cause with cause The state of the controuersie Huberus Thes 1. let vs begin at the state of the controuersie The question is Whether Christ suffered for the redemption of all or not Here straightway those men crie out that the Caluinists so they call vs for the hatred of the truth raging against the passion of the Lord Iesus Christ doe openly denie that hee died for the sins of the whole world Compend Thes 1. and his Dutch booke in the preface Againe
the Minor of the argument is false for he that hath knowledge knoweth himselfe to beleeue as before hath been shewed And whosoeuer beleeueth A man may know himselfe to haue faith and so to haue Christ Luk. 22. Matth. 26. is partaker of the merits of the death and humiliation of our Lord Iesus Christ as he saith this is my body which is giuen for you and this is my blood the blood of the New Testament which is shed for you as Luke hath or as Matthew saith which is shed for many for remission of sinnes Why saith he for many Because albeit the blood of Christ be shed for all as touching sufficiencie yet it was shed for the regenerate onely as touching efficiencie as I shewed before out of Innocentius Whereupon Basil saith All of vs as many as do beleeue Exhortat Baptis are redeemed from sinnes by the grace of God which is through his onely begotten sonne our Lord Iesus Christ who said This is my blood the blood of the New Testament which is shed for many for the remission of sinnes which exposition he twise repeateth in his Sermon following of Baptisme for many that is for all beleeuers the blood of Christ was shed CHAP. XVI An answere to the residue of the Absurdities HVber goeth on and that he may maintaine any way his opinion he obiecteth also other absurdities so horrible that a godly minde cannot but tremble in thinking of them as Hubers blasphemies that God is accused of fraud and lying Of fraud in that he saith one thing and thinketh another Of lying in that by word he offereth and commandeth to receiue things which in the meane while by his irreuocable iudgement he forbiddeth to receiue Also that Christ by his passion hath mocked God and men and that the mightie and holy Lord of hosts is worthily accused of crueltie iniustice reioycing at mens harmes and of other great euils agreeing rather to a most cruell tyrant then to God For such and so many words doth his rude and shameles mouth vtter often or rather roreth out But these be the sleights of the aduersarie issuing out of the same forge that his other lyes and slanders doe too too presumptuous truly But because those obiections and mocks excepting only the last saue one respect not so fitly the doctrine of Redemption as of Predestination which treatises Huber here and there without order confoundeth and are long agoe largely confuted by Doctor Luther in his booke of seruile freewill I will not suffer my selfe in refuting them to be carried beside the matter I haue in hand One or two places onely of Luther I will alleadge for their sakes who depend vpon that mans authoritie that they may vnderstand that the doctrine of Luther is wounded through our sides He therefore in his answere to the place of Ezech. 18. Luther de seruo arbit cap. 107. seq J will not the death of a sinner confirmeth the receiued distinction of a double will in God which truly was wont to bee so distinguished for our capacitie And one will he one while calleth secret fearefull and vnsearchable other while the most reuerend secret of Gods maiestie sometime the hidden God but the other will A double will in God he calleth one while the reuealed will other while the word preached sometime God preached and worshipped How God willeth and willeth not the death of a sinner Eze. ca. 18. and proceedeth after this sort God doth many things which he hath not shewed vs in his word and he willeth many things which in his word he doth not shew that he willeth So he will not the death of a sinner in his word that is in his will reuealed in his word but he willeth it by his vnsearchable will Therefore it is well said If God will not the death of a sinner wee must impute it to our will that we perish well I say if it bee vnderstood of God preached For he willeth that all men be saued while he commeth vnto all by the word of saluation and it is the fault of the will which doth not admit God as Matth. 25. it is said How often would I gather thy chickens and thou wouldest not But why Gods maiestie taketh not away this fault of our wil or changeth it in all or why he doth impute it vnto man seeing he cannot want it we may not inquire and if thou wouldest inquire yet thou shalt neuer finde it as Paul Rom. 9. saith Who art thou then that reasonest with God Againe it is sufficient saith Luther to know that God so willeth and this will it is meete we should reuerence loue and adore restraining the rashnes of our reason Here Luther sufficiently sheweth that it pertaineth to his reuealed will that God willeth the conuersion and saluation of all and to his hidden will that he neither giueth nor purposeth to giue conuersion and saluation to all but to whom he will according to his meere good pleasure Neither are these cōtrarie one to another The hid and reuealed will are not contradictorie therefore no suspition of fraude or lying in God as though God spake one thing and thought another when we say that he willeth that is commandeth that all repent and beleeue the Gospell to saluation and yet that he will not worke in all men faith and repentance Euen children may perceiue that here is no contradiction because of the diuers signification of the word will The same man cap. 160. God is not vniust or one that reioyceth at mans miserie This surely offendeth common sense and naturall reason that God of his meere will forsaketh hardeneth and damneth men as though he who is said to be of so great mercie and goodnes delighted in the great and eternall paines and torments of miserable persons This seemeth wicked cruell and intolerable to imagine of God But here the most mercifull God ought to be honoured and reuerenced and wee must referre freely some thing vnto his diuine wisedome that he may bee beleeued to be iust A notable saying where he seemeth to vs to bee vniust For if such were his iustice as might be iudged by mans capacitie to bee iust it should not be altogether diuine and should differ nothing from humane iustice But seeing God is true and one wholly incomprehensible and inaccessible by mans reason it is meete yea necessarie that his iustice also be incomprehensible c. Therefore what peruersenes is this that wee should destroy the iustice and iudgement of God These and many other such things hath Luther against such as contend with their maker Esay 45. Brentius in 1. Sam. 2. v. 25. Brentius also vpon those words touching Elies sonnes They heard not the voyce of their father because the Lord would slay them subscribeth vnto this doctrine and concludeth this whole question in these words Therefore that they may be punished according to the worthines of their deserts the Lord
eternall fire which is prepared for the deuill and his angels And chap. 10. of Matth. Chap. 10. Feare not them that kill the bodie but cannot kill the soule but rather feare him who is able to destroy the bodie and soule in hell 2. Pet. 2. 2. Pet. 2. The Lord knoweth to deliuer the godly out of temptation and to reserue the vniust vnto the day of iudgement to be punished If therefore the damnation of hell be the worke of God he hath also foreknowne that is predestinated from euerlasting them Fulgent lib. 1. 2. ad Moâ—â—â— vpon whom he will inflict the same For his predestination is the preparation of his workes which in his eternall decree he did foreknow that he would either in mercie or iustice bring to passe Apoc. 20. Apoc. 20. The bookes were opened and iudgement was giuen of euery one according to their workes and he that was not found written in the booke of life was cast into the lake of fire What that the reprobates are called vessels of wrath and prepared for destruction For to bee a vessell of wrath as Augustine expoundeth is Epist 10â— for a man to be appointed to be punished for sinnes What a vessell of wrath is who was created for the benefit of nature And Fulgentius saith Hereunto God formed the vessels of wrath whereunto he predestinated them that is not to sinne but to destruction for sinne Therefore the destruction of them that perish is the worke of God reprobating them and therefore it is the effect of reprobation Obiection 1 But thou wilt say Perdition is to bee ascribed to themselues that perish as Hos 13. saith Thy perdition is of thy self O Israel but onely in me is thy helpe Answere That is true speaking of the fault and not of the punishment For they that are damned haue in themselues the fault deseruing damnation but it is his part to punish that iudgeth the world who can tell how to condemne iniquitie but not to doe it And this is the meaning of the Prophet that God doth not punish but for sins which men haue of themselues as for deliuerance from sinne it commeth from him freely Obiection 2 and not for any workes As Paul also saith The reward of sin is death but the gift of God is eternall life through Iesu Christ our Lord. Those sayings also are wont to bee obiected God made not death Wisd 1. 2. Eze. 18. Through the enuie of the deuill death came into the world Againe I will not the death of him that dieth c. But here with a deafe eare wee must not forget what elsewhere wee reade Eccles 11. Wisd 16. Deut. 32. that death and life good and euill come of God Which shew of contrarietie to take away we must vnderstand that death as well as life may bee vnderstood not two only but also three maner of waies For in the first man God created both the soule and flesh also immortall But while man sinned Three deaths of the soule bodie and hel the soule dyed and that death of the soule to wit sinne is the beginning and cause of another double death corporall and infernall The sacred Scriptures call it the first and second death Therfore God made not the death of the soule because he made not sinne but the deuill is the author of it by suggesting of sinne and by consequence he is the author also of the other kindes of death which arise from sinne to wit in respect of the vehement stirring vp of it and not that he hath power to punish as God hath Augustine distinctly saith Cont. Iulian. lib. 7. cap. 7. The deuill the deceiuer of man is the cause of death which God inflicted not as the first author but as the punisher of sinne Some vnderstand the place of the Prophet Ezechiel of that death of the soule as Fulgentius I will not the death of a sinner others referre it to the punishment of sinne vsing the distinction of the will of God hidden and reuealed So Luther de ser arbit cap. 109. He will not the death of a sinner to wit by his word while by the word of saluation he commeth to all and so he will haue all men to bee saued But he willeth the same by his vnsearchable will Which will saith he in the same booke chap. 107. is not to be searched into but with reuerence to be aâ—ored as the highest secret of Gods maiestie Againe He will not the death of him that dieth simply and as it bringeth destruction but as it is a punishment for the Lord delighteth not in the perdition of the liuing Wisâ— 1.13 as it is written But he is the punisher of sinners Now as touching the matter of forsaking blinding Of forsaking hardening and blinding Rom. 9. 11. and hardening I will produce a few testimonies of many Wee reade in the sacred Scriptures He hath mercie on whom he will and whom he will he hardeneth The elect haue obtained it but the rest were hardened as it is written God hath giuen them the spirit of slumber eyes that they should not see cares that they should not heare See the prophesie of Esay 29. vers 10. and chap. 6. Goe and say to the children of Israel In hearing ye shall heare and shall not vnderstand and seeing ye shall see and shall not perceiue harden the hearts of this people and make their heires heauie and smeere ouer their eyes least they should see with their eyes and heare with their eares and vnderstand with their hearts and so bee conuerted and I should heale them Which prophesie S. Iohn alleadging affirmeth Ioh. 12. that the Iewes beleeued not in the Lord albeit they had seene many signes neither that they could beleeue because he had blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts To the same vnbeleeuing Iewes the Lord said Ioh 10. Ye doe not beleeue for ye are not of my sheepe My sheepe heare my voyce and I know them and they follow me Againe to his disciples Matth. 13. To you saith he it is giuen to know the mysteries of the kingdome of heauen but to others it is not giuen therefore in parables I speake vnto them Neither came it to passe without cause that in so many hundred yeares before the comming of Christ Acts 14. no light of sauing doctrine was reuealed to the Gentiles but as Paul witnesseth the liuing God that made heauen and earth passing ouer the former ages suffered all nations to walke in their owne waies vntill the comming of the time of grace he was found of them that sought him not And in Israel that was fulfilled that the Prophet saith Esay 65. All the day long I haue stretched out my hands vnto a rebellious and gainsaying people By these things it is euident that they that were not ordained to life are also reiected from the grace of faith and conuersion and are
that our Lord and Redeemer our King and high Priest Iesus Christ came into the world Christ was borne in the 42. yere of Augustus Anno mundi 3963. made of the seede of Dauid after the flesh in the 42. yeare of the raigne of Octauius Augustus which was the yeare of the world 3963. after Funccius supputation Yet I am not ignorant that others disagree from that account certaine of the olde Latines and Greekes ascending vp to the 5000. yeare but by a plaine error in account which riseth from the difference betweene the Hebrew copies and the Greeke Septuaginte But to proceede in my purpose the Lord from the time of his comming and appearing in the flesh sustained all his whole life both in bodie and soule the wrath of God against the sinne of all mankinde but specially in his end 1. Pet. 2.24 when he bare our sinnes in his bodie vpon the tree Coloss 2.14 and tooke out of the way the hand-writing of death that was against vs nailing it on the crosse And it is recorded that this was done in the 34. yere of the incarnation of Christ He suffered death in the 18. yere of Tiberius being 34. yeres old or as Epiphanius saith 32. yeres and 74. daies on the 12. day of the Calends of Aprill that is 21. of March and in the 18. of the raigne of Tiberius Caesar Yet Epiphanius contra Alogos haeres 51. will haue all the yeres of Christs presence in the flesh from his birth to his passion which he writeth was done the day before the 13. of the Calends of Aprill to be only 32. and 74. daies differing one yeare from the former opinion And the same man diligently refuteth the naughtie supputation of others who misunderstanding that prophesie of Esai chap. 61 that I may preach the acceptable yeare of the Lord thought that the Lord after he had finished only one yeares ministerie after his baptisme by Iohn suffered death in the full thirtith yeare of his age In which opinion was Seuerus Sulpitius who noteth that our Lord was crucified when the two twinnes Fusius and Rebellius were Consuls And their Consulship fell in the 31. yeare of Christ as Epiphanius witnesteth But now to omit the curious searching out of these things least any should marueile that Christ after so many thousand yeares should bee made manifest at the length vnder Tiberius as it were in the euening of the world Heb. 9. and as the Scripture speaketh in the end of the world to abolish sinne by the offering of himselfe wee must thinke that it happened not so by chance or fortune but by the eternall counsell and prouidence of God Wised 81. 11.17 which as the Wiseman saith reacheth mightily from one ende to another and disposeth all things pleasantly and ordereth all things in number weight and measure Hereupon saith Peter 1. Epist 2. Christs comming into the world after so many thousand yeares was appoynted so from al eternitie in Gods counsell as the Scripture teacheth vs. that the Lambe by whose precious blood we are redeemed was made manifest in the last times for our sakes being foreordained before the foundations of the world were layd And by the witnes of Paul Gal. 4. God sent his sonne made of a woman after the fulnes of time was come And he meaneth the time of the incarnation of the Sonne and of our redemption by him which was before appointed of his heauenly father which thing the similitude vsed in that place doth declare For he had said that the heire being an infant is vnder tutors vnto the time appointed of the father So Ephes 1. he mentioneth the fulnes of times for the restoring of all things by Christ And that we may more certainly vnderstand that this time of the restoring of all things was by God from all eternitie appointed the same was by diuine inspiration plainly foretold by the mouth of the holie Prophets 1. Epist 1. who as Peter teacheth foretold of the grace that should come to vs searching when and at what instant that foreshewing spirit of Christ that was in them should declare the passions that should happen to Christ and the glorie that should follow Vnto whom it was reueiled that not to themselues but vnto vs they should minister those things We haue examples in the prophesie of Iacob Gen. 49. and of the 70. weekes in Daniel chap. 9. And euery where the Prophets when they foretell of the kingdome of Christ haue made mention of the last daies A question Why came he in the old age of the world and not in the beginning after the fall Acts 1.7 But some man may aske why in the old age and almost end of the world hath God sent his sonne to be a Redeemer and not rather straightwaies after the fall of mankinde Although it be not our part curiously to enquire into the counsell of GOD and it is sufficient to answere curious wits as Christ answered his disciples It is not for you to know the time or seasons which the father hath put in his owne power yet there are reasons of some account alleadged by learned men Thom. part 3. quaest 1. art 5. of the redemption or sending of the Sonne of God so long deferred First it was expedient that the greatnes of mans disease and corruption should more and more be felt Foure causes why Christs birth was so long deferred and made manifest not by the examples of one age onely but of many Therefore God left man first in the state of nature that hee might know the strength or infirmitie rather of his nature after when it decaied he receiued the Law which being giuen the disease increased through the fault not of the Law but of nature that so his weakenes being knowne he might crie vnto the Phisition and seeke for the helpe of grace Secondly the Law and the Prophets the figures and legall shadowes and promises of Christ to come ought to haue their course also and the greater the Iudge or Lord is that was to come the longer rew of cryers or heralds ought to go before as the glosse saith vpon that to the Galathians chap. 4. When the fulnes of time came Thirdly it is agreeable to order that that which is vnperfect and naturall should be first and then that which is spirituall 1. Cor. 15. Therefore the states of nature and of the law as being more vnperfect haue well gone before the state of grace and that by a iust distance of time Fourthly that way the godly were exercised in faith and in the expectation of the redemption to come which when they had beheld a farre off through faith they dyed not obtaining the promises as farre foorth as the exhibiting of the Messiah did not fall out in their times Hereupon the author to the Hebrewes setteth out their faith and long sufferance with notable praises and propoundeth them vnto vs for imitation Heb.
is proper to his members Iesus Christ is promised who should destroy the workes of the diuell and hee being conquered should set his Christians at liberty from his power to raigne for euer with himselfe in the inheritance of the Saints Hereupon saith Paul Rom. 16. v. 20. The God of peace shall treade Satan vnder your feete shortly Where he restraineth without question the victorie against Satan vnto the faithful of whom also Colos 1. Col. 1. he saith He hath made vs meete to be partakers of the inheritance of the Saints in light and hath deliuered vs from the power of darkenes and translated vs into the kingdome of his deare sonne to wit through faith without which saith Ambrose there is no going out of hell Ambrose in epist ad Col. or out the power of darkenes wherein we were held captiue of the diuell Moreouer that reparation and victorie against Satan as it is promised respecteth not onely the merite but also the efficacie of Christ whereby he maintaineth and preserueth in the conflicts of this life the saluation which he purchased for vs and strengtheneth vs against the diuell the world and our owne flesh with the vertue of his spirit vntill at length we obtaine full victorie De pass cruce Domini For it is the worke of our Sauiour saith Athanasius not onely to deliuer vs from bondage but to destroy the author thereof least he growing strong doe supplant vs and make voide the conquest of the deliuerer And now experience and Scripture teach it to be farre off from al the sonnes of Adam 1. Thes 3.3 and 5.23 to be after this sorte victors ouer Satan but that victorie God bestoweth vpon his Saints And also by those words in Moses I will put enemitie betweene thee and the woman The reprobate◠are excluded from the promise betweene thy seede and her seede the reprobates are manifestly excluded from the promise for they are ioyned to the diuell who is the head and father of reprobates and against this kingdome of Satan that is against the diuell and his members victory is promised to the Church through Christ for in the seede of the woman altogether as in the seede of Abraham the sonnes of the promise are accounted Rom. 9.8 and 4.16 But let vs see the pretie reasons of the Aduersarie First The adueraries reasons to proue reprobates to be deliuered from Satan by Christ he will haue this place to be vnderstoode of the whole repayring of whole mankinde because not onely a part of the bodie of the diuell but his head should be broken A fine reason as though the head also were not a part of the bodie Secondly because the head of the diuell was to bee broken through Christ we must needes vnderstand that so the diuell is troden down that he doth not exercise the power of death any longer against them for whom he is destroyed But this hath place onely in them who are the members of Christ He bringeth also for declaration those sayings Ioh. 12. 1. Ioh. 3. Heb. 2. Colos 2. Luk. 11. Matth. 12. that the prince of this world is cast forth that the sonne of God came to destroy the workes of the diuell that by death he hath destroyed the diuell that the diuell and all his power was triumphed ouer Also that he comming vpon the pallace of the strong armed man ouercame him and tooke away all his armour and diuided his spoyles From these he laboureth to inferre that not any one is excepted who hath been brought vnder the power of the diuell whom Christ hath not deliuered from him or else to whom the head of the diuell is not broken These words be talke but not weighty reasons For so Augustine discoursing of those things very exactly saith Tract 53. The deuill is ouercome and destroyed for the faithfull onely and in them in Ioh. The deuill possessed mankind and held them guiltie of punishments by the handwriting of sinnes he bare rule in the hearts of vnbeleeuers But by the faith of Christ through his blood which was shed for the remission of sinnes thousands of beleeuers are set free from the power of the deuill This thing he called iudgment separation and expulsion of the deuill from his redeemed ones The same man a little after God foresaw what he knew that after his passion and glorifying many people through out the world should beleeue in whose hearts the deuill was whom when they renounce through faith he is cast forth to wit out of the harts of the faithfull The Master of sentences following Augustine in like maner expoundeth those places lib. 3. dist 19. Therefore they are the beleeuers out of whom he is cast out In these he is abolished ouercome and conquered and his workes are destroyed Ephe 2. but in the vnbeleeuers in whom the prince of this world as yet is effectuall he ceaseth not to exercise a lamentable triumph 1. Ioh. 5. 2. Tim. 2. vntill they also through faith which is our victorie get out of the snare of the deuill of whō they are held captiues And this the words of Iohn do plainly confirme 1. Ioh. 3. For if he who committeth sinne be of the deuill and hee who is borne of God sinneth not surely the workes of the deuill are in very deede destroyed in none but in the regenerate Obiections 1. Cor 1◠But if Satan be abolished and conquered he is once and for all men together destroyed Answere Not so For euen the last enemie death shall be destroyed and there shall be that most famous triumph of the last day ouer Satan yet how great shall their number bee ouer whom death and he that hath the power of death the deuill shall for euer raigne Neuerthelesse all things then shall truly bee subiect vnto Christ witnesse the Apostle as euen now all things are subiect vnto him after a sort All things are subdued vnder Christ and ye◠Satan 〈◊〉 in the reprobates Contrarily how vnskilfully doth Huberus except that al things cannot be said to be subiect vnto Christ if the greatest part of Satans kingdom be not ouerthrowne by him Yea the whole kingdome of Satan shall be destroyed by him specially at the last day but for that cause there is no neede that Christ should adopt all none excepted into his kingdome of grace and glorie Reprobates and Satan are vnder his power to be damned In the meane while all reprobates with the deuill and his angels are and shall be for euer put vnder the Lords feete and hee shall take vengeance on them in vnquenchable fire as vpon subiects that are rebellious against his kingdome of power For they know The kingdom of God is takē many waies who haue read the Scriptures and ancient interpreters of them that the kingdome of God is one thing which is called the kingdome of grace and the kingdome of glorie is another thing and there is also that
for euer retained Let the same man also be weighed loco de Redemp where he saith Wee know that all men are not made partakers of this redemption Againe saith he Men reprobate and desperatly wicked receiue not redemption The contrary hereof Huber with full mouth auoucheth that all by Christ are made partakers of redemption that all receiue it but that the reprobates hauing once receiued it doe lose it againe Neuerthelesse Three reasons of Musculus why redemption is vniuersall according to the reasons assigned of Musculus this redemption is rightly termed vniuersall 1. Because it commeth not to passe by the defect of grace that many doe perish but by the defect of faith seeing grace is prepared for all to wit that do not refuse it Matth. 22. as all things were readie for the marriage 2. Because all are called vnto it 3. Because so it is appointed for all that no man without it is of can be redeemed Where now he doth vnderstand this appointing otherwise than before yet rightly because albeit many are not redeemed nor iustified yet all by Christ are redeemed and iustified because no man is redeemed but by him Of all which things it plainly appeareth that Musculus as well as others is against the aduersarie and nothing at all on his side That which he citeth out of Hemingius his Syntagma The 9. testimonie Hemingius or Treatise hath some colour to wit that Christ came not for to redeeme onely certaine selected out of mankinde but that that grace is vniuersall as touching the fatherly will of God But albeit Hemingius hath thus written because he otherwise vnderstandeth the doctrine of Predestination yet he greatly dissenteth from the deuise of the aduersaries that all beleeuers and vnbeleeuers without doubt properly and in verie deede by receiuing remission of sinnes are receiued into the bosome of grace iustified and saued by the death of Christ Contrariwise Hemingius Thes 28. testifieth which These Huber craftily hid when he alleadged the 27. that as touching the euent the grace of redemption belongeth to a few onely because few beleeue and bring forth the fruites of repentance For hee acknowledgeth and often times repeateth that albeit the Gospell offer the benefits of Christ to all men of what nation and condition soeuer they be De promiss reparat yet they are receiued by faith alone and so iustification and saluation are freely giuen to him that beleeueth De Euangelio And cleerely he saith That the condition of faith is required that the benefit may be applied that is remission of sinnes and the condition of perseuerance that it may be retayned being receiued For which thing these men say that all haue once receiued the benefit that the beleeuers abide in the same being receiued and the vnbeleeuers doe lose it againe The 10. testimonie Catackis palatin I come vnto that which is obiected out of the Catechisme of our Churches quest 37. where the words of the Catechisme haue that Christ sustained in bodie and soule the wrath of God against the sinnes of all mankinde But the exposition is all one with the place of Athanasius before where was the like speech Certainely the effect of the death of Christ is not in all beleeuers and vnbeleeuers indifferently but as our Catechisme out of the word of God teacheth quest 30. They that imbrace by a true faith Iesus to be a perfect sauiour doe possesse all things which are requisite to saluation Againe quest 20. to the demaunde Whether then saluation be giuen by Christ to all men who perished in Adam It is plainely answered Not to all men but to them onely who are ingrafted into him by a true faith and imbrace his benefits If thou canst Huber reconcile this with thy opinion which is full of error to wit that all who perished in Adam are receiued into grace by Christ iustified quickened and restored to saluation See also in the Catechisme quest 53.55.60.66 c. in all which places no other participation of Christ and his benefits is set downe than by a true faith hypocrites and vnbeleeuers being excluded But of these things enough Let the aduersarie now goe and maintaine his error by the testimonies of olde and new writers whereby he is most manifestly confuted CHAP. XIII Vnto the fourth accusation Huber pa. 20 â—7 312. THe fourth absurditie obiected vnto vs followeth That men are driuen to desperation and that no man can haue any certaintie of his saluation This malitious and false crime he tosseth too and fro The summe and effect tendeth to this that all the assurance and comfort of saluation according to our opinion leaneth vpon meere particulars whereof nothing followeth after this sorte Some men are in fauour with God and shall be saued I am a man Therefore I am in fauour with God and shall be saued As though we were so foolish and vnwise that we haue not learned better out of the word of God to comfort our selues and others For as there is of those which shall be damned so there is of such as shall be for euer saued a certaine vniuersalitie in the Scriptures neither can any man that is in his right wits denie that some shall be receiued others refused some shall be saued others shall perish in the last day Math. 24.25 the former reioycing for euer in the fathers kingdome prepared for them before the foundations of the world and these contrariwise suffering eternall torments in vnquencheable fire prepared for the diuell and his angels And albeit God knoweth them that be ordained by him to eternall life or else not ordained and all things that I may vse the words of Luther are set down in Predestination Prefat ad Rom. who shall be saued who damned yet we must not goe vnto election without the word and speculatiuely In Gen. 26. as he speaketh least we fall headlong into desperation or contempt but we must iudge of election a posteritie that is by that which followeth it as they say that is by faith The vniuersalitie of the promise of grace and by other fruites of election arising vnto the very cause it selfe Hence come those most sweete promises made vnto the beleeuers vniuersall surely Come vnto me all ye that labour I will refresh you Matth. 11. Ioh. 3. Ioh. 6. Whosoeuer beleeueth in the sonne shall not perish This is the will of the father that all that beleeue in the sonne should haue eternall life Hereunto beare all the prophets witnesse that all that beleeue in him receiue remission of sinnes through his name Acts 10. 13 19. By him whosoeuer beleeueth is iustified The righteousnes of God by the faith of Iesu Christ in all and vpon all that beleeue Rom. 3. 9. Whosoeuer beleeeueth in him shall not be confounded For there is one Lord of all rich towards all that call vpon him for whosoeuer shall call vpon the name of the Lord shall be saued
shall raigne vpon the earth The Minor But vnto the Church properly belongeth this dignitie to be a chosen stocke a royall priesthood a holy nation witnes Peter 1. Epist 2. which also the words out of the Reuelation chap. 5 now cited doe confirme where the voice and confession of the Church is Thou hast made vs to our God kings and priests The conclusion Therefore it followeth that the proprietie of redemption is in the possession of the Church The 12. reason From the vse of the Sacraments The 12. argument from the vse of the Sacraments Vnto whom nothing is sealed in he vse of the Sacraments vnto them the promise of grace in the word belongeth not For the nature of the promise is all one both in the audible and visible word But in the Sacraments Baptisme and the Lordes Supper nothing is sealed to such as be aliants from Gods couenant and vnbeleeuers Therefore neither doeth the promise of grace in the word belong vnto them For the proofe of the assumption let the things be considered that we haue of that matter spoken before in the Confutation The 13. reason The 13. and last argument If all men wholy bee receiued into the grace and fauour of God by the death and grace of the Sauiour Hub. Thes 157. 536. so that no man shall euer perish now after his redemption vnles he despise the grace of God Hub. thes 157. 136. Marke this reason agaynst the aduersarie and through vnbeliefe shake off and forsake his redemption It will follow that all the children of al Thalmudists Mahumetists Turks Tartarians and such as feed on mens flesh called Anthropophagi and such like as long as they want the vse of reason and therefore actuall sinne and be not yet subiect to the contempt of grace are in the state of saluation and dying in that age of what nation soeuer they be in the Church or out of it are eternally saued which thing is manifestly and Anabaptisticall dotage of those men I say that follow the pauilions of Mennon Mennon Theod Phil. Hofman and Theodorike Philip vp and downe the Low Countries which they haue drawen vnto them from the sinke as it seemeth of Melchior Hofman For Theodore Phillippi is of this opinion and plainely writeth Lib. de baptismo Because Christ the Lambe of God hath taken away the sinnes of the world by his death and blood that no man can be damned for the sinne of Adam and therefore that the kingdome of heauen belongeth to all children indifferently that al are innocents and reputed without sinne before God seeing no sinne beside Adams can be imputed vnto them and that the same is satisfied and taken away vniuersally by the death of Christ so that infantes for Adams transgression cannot be iudged or condemned And the Pelagians also as Augustine witnesseth laboured to bring some such thing in to wit August lib. 2. de nuptijs concup cap. 33. that litle children are innocent and without all guiltines after that Christ had died for them But the Scripture teacheth vs to put here a difference betweene the infants of Gods people Infants of the faithfull differ from others and the infants of vngodly nations and reiected of God And the infantes truely of Gods people Gen. 17. 1. cor 7. Math. 19. albeit as the rest by their carnall natiuitie they bee borne vnder sinne and wrath haue a promise that they belong to the number of Gods people and of the Saints and so to the inheritance of the kingdome of heauen More arguments I will not here alledge A doubt wheÌ„ redemption beginnes in vs. for by those which haue beene brought our purpose I trust is more than sufficiently declared Onely one doubt remaineth If the beleeuers onely are to be accounted for the redeemed of Christ doeth therefore their redemption begin when they begin to beleeue Answere I answere The redemption of the Church by Christ may diuersly be considered Tit. 1. 1. Tim. 1. First in respect of Gods purpose and predestination according to which grace is giuen vs in Christ Iesu before the world Secondly in respect of the merite and satisfaction perfourmed of Christ Foure waies redemption is to be considered Comment in Apoc. 1. when vpon the altar of the crosse hee tooke away enmities and reconciled the whole Church of Iewes and Gentiles to God in one body through the crosse as Paul testifieth Ephesians 2. Then surely as Rupertus writeth he redeemed and washed in his blood from their sinnes not onely these men that now are beleeuers or had beleeued but also those that should beleeue in time to come as farre foorth as hee gaue them power to be washed For he washed them not then actually but in power For they could not in very deed be washed who were not yet borne or els as yet had not beleeued Thirdly redemption is considered as farre foorth as we are made partakers of it by faith whose force and necessitie is so great for reconciliation before and after the worke of redemption performed in the flesh of Christ that as it hindred not the olde fathers which beleeued from their deliuerance in that Christ had not as yet suffered so now it nothing profiteth the vnbeleeuers for their deliuerance that Christ long agoe the iust for the vniust was deliuered to death Lastly redemption is considered as farre forth as we enioy full and perfect redemption for euer all our enemies being vtterly destroyed and euen death it selfe which is of the Apostle called the last enemie of which redemption Christ witnesseth Luke 21.28 and Paul Ro. 8.23 But of this enough THE THIRD RANKE OF PROOFES CONTAINING THE TESTIMOnies of Antiquitie CHAP. VIII TO these things hitherto alleadged out of the Scripture whereunto as to the anchor and prop of our faith wee must flye in all things Atâ—â—â—s in Synopsi that we may be in safetie the testimonies of antiquitie seeme now needfull to bee brought in to this end that the trueth may more and more cleerly appeare by that consent and the mouthes of the aduersaries may bee stopped who reasoning and debating I know not what vngodly nouelties endeuour to reproue vs as though wee spake some new thing Tom. 10. de verb. apost ser 14. as Augustine of old complained of his and the Churches aduersaries For a man may see them grow to such craking if not ignorance that they boldly complaine that our opinion of this controuersie was neuer heard in any time among that people Hub. thes 18. where the name of Christ hath been preached that what they auouch leaneth vpon the consent of all Christianitie forsooth Thes 19. for that the Catholike and true Church hath alwaies beleeued and with one mouth euer confessed that Christ died for all men vnderstand effectually Compend thes 27. whereof the question is betweene vs and our aduersaries As touching this new opinion Thes