Fathers

Two Dissertations · §20

Cap. 3 Obj. 9: A-pari — dying for the unsaved as absurd as saving those Christ did not die for

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Obj. 9. Some dispute, by an argument drawn from parity, as they think, in this way: It is as far from the truth that Christ by God's ordination died for some who are not saved, as that some are saved for whom by God's ordination he did not die; But this is absurd to say: Therefore that also.

Sol. I deny that the reason is equal on both sides. For (what is most received in the School of Theologians) Good does not arise except from complete causes, evil from any defect whatever. Human salvation, therefore, which is the greatest good, is not produced except by the full concurrence of all causes: but the loss of salvation, which is an evil, once one or another cause ordained to a human being's salvation is in place, can nevertheless occur from the defect of any. Although therefore it is impossible that some human beings be saved for whom Christ did not die, because Christ's death is one of those ordained causes which work human salvation; yet it is not impossible that some for whom he did die fall away from salvation, because it was not established by God that this death of Christ alone by the very fact of offering should render God propitious to all and save all, but that it should be a propitiation through faith in his blood, for the declaring of his righteousness through the remission of sins (Romans 3:25), and so upon all and over all who believe: for there is no distinction, as is had in verse 22. If further someone presses, Why is Christ's death defended as given to all human beings as a remedy, but faith given or prepared for all is not defended? I answer, Because the Scriptures clearly teach that Christ by dying obtained for all and each human being this grace, that under the condition of faith they can now hope for and obtain remission of sins and salvation; but this conditional grace could not be offered to all, nor would it look in any way to all, unless this death of Christ belonged to all human beings by God's own ordination: Now on the other side we do not defend faith as destined or given to all, because the same sacred Scripture which proposes Christ's death as a benefit granted to all, and applicable to anyone through faith, does not make this faith a benefit promised or given to all, but derived from the peculiar decree of election. Add to these that the Mediator himself, who offered himself to God as a sacrifice for expiating the world's sins, obtained from God that all and each who would believe in him should be absolved from sins, and thus far willed to pay this lytron for all: but he did not apply to all the merit of his death, nor obtain from God that all should infallibly follow faith and salvation. And here the secret of election opens, which ought not to overturn or weaken the universality of the offering and the truth of the Gospel promise.

Latin

Obj. 9. Disputant nonnulli, argumento ducto a pari, ut ipsi opinantur, hoc modo: Tam est a vero alienum, Christum ex Dei ordinatione mortuum esse pro aliquibus qui non servantur, quam servari aliquos pro quibus ex Dei ordinatione mortuus non est; At hoc absurdum est dici: Ergo et illud. Sol. Nego parem esse utrobique rationem. Nam (quod in Schola Theologorum est receptissimum) Bonum non oritur nisi ex causis integris, malum ex quovis defectu. Salus igitur humana, quae maximum bonum est, non producitur nisi pleno concursu omnium causarum: at salutis amissio, quae malum est, posita uni aut alteri causa ad salutem hominis ordinata, evenire potest nihilominus ex defectu cujuscunque. Licet ergo sit impossibile servari aliquos homines pro quibus Christus non est mortuus, quia Christi mors est una ex illis causis ordinatis quae operantur salutem humanam; non tamen est impossibile a salute excidere quosdam pro quibus est mortuus, quia non est a Deo statutum, ut sola haec mors Christi ipso facto oblationis redderet Deum omnibus propitium, et omnes servaret, sed ut esset placamentum per fidem in sanguine ipsius, ad declarandam justitiam suam per remissionem peccatorum, Rom. iii. 25, itaque in omnes et super omnes qui credunt: non est enim distinctio, ut habetur vers. 22. Si porro quis urgeat, Cur mors Christi omnibus hominibus in remedium data defenditur, fides autem omnibus donata aut praeparata non defenditur? respondeo, Quia Scripturae clare docent Christum moriendo impetrasse omnibus et singulis hominibus hanc gratiam, ut sub conditione fidei possint jam sperare et obtinere remissionem peccatorum et salutem; at haec gratia conditionalis non posset omnibus offerri, neque ad omnes quoquo modo spectaret, nisi haec mors Christi ad omnes homines ex Dei ipsius ordinatione pertineret: Jam ex altera parte non defendimus fidem omnibus destinatam aut donatam, quia eadem sacra Scriptura, quae proponit mortem Christi ut beneficium omnibus indultum, et cuivis per fidem applicabile, non facit hanc fidem beneficium omnibus promissum aut datum, sed ex peculiari decreto electionis derivatum. His adde, ipsum Mediatorem, qui se in sacrificium Deo obtulit pro expiandis mundi peccatis, obtinuisse a Deo ut omnes et singuli qui in eum credituri essent a peccatis absolverentur, atque hactenus voluisse hoc lytron pro omnibus persolvere: sed non applicuisse omnibus meritum mortis suae, neque obtinuisse a Deo ut omnes infallibiliter fidem et salutem consequerentur. Atque hic se aperit arcanum electionis, quod universalitatem oblationis et veritatem Evangelicae promissionis non debet evertere aut enervare.

About this text

John Davenant — Dissertationes duae from the 1650 Cambridge Latin. Honest partial through De praedestinatione Cap. 1 subject tip; Cap. 1 mid-Thesis and remainder remain; De praedestinatione Cap. 1 Prolegomena IV distinguishing conditions tip; De praedestinatione Cap. II Variae (Pelagian opening) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. II Scholastici / Vasquez Arg. 1 tip; De praedestinatione Cap. II Arg. 2 praescientia tip; De praedestinatione Cap. II Arg. 3 (1 Cor. 2:9) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. II Arg. 4 (2 Tim. 2:21) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. II Arg. 5 (1 Tim. 2:4) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. II Arg. 6 (James 2:5) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. II Arg. 7 (Apoc. 3:11) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 1 (common inefficacious will) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 2 (Vasquez physical vs moral media) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 3 (king/prize / victory foresight) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 4 (optimum modus / crown of justice) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 5 (acceptor personarum) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 6 (misericordia/congruitas) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 7 (equal disposition) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 8 (few saved / major part) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 9 (Stephen / glory from others' sins) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 10 (mere beneplacitum / Predestinati) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III reprobation ratio (foresight of sin) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 12 (efficacious election / free choice) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 13 (hortation/prayer) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. III Rat. 14 (decree/execution conformity) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. IV Arminianorum open tip; De praedestinatione Cap. IV Arg. 1 Sol tip; De praedestinatione Cap. IV Arg. 7 (τρόπος; Rom. 9:22) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. IV Arg. 8 (ordo exsecutionis) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. IV Arg. 9 (Christus fundamentum) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. V Obj. 1 (amor ad salutem) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. V Obj. 2 (actualis vitae datio) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. V Obj. 3 (qualis existens) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. V Obj. 4 (justitiae satisfactio) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. V Obj. 5 (natura vitae aeternae) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. V Obj. 6 (Christus a decreto) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. V Obj. 7 (Evangelium invertitur) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. V Obj. 8 (arcana/revelata) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI (Orthodoxa sententia) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI Arg. 2 (gratia specialis) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI Arg. 3 (Scripturae) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI Arg. 4 (vocatio) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI Arg. 5 (adjutorium) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI Arg. 7 (inconveniens) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI Arg. 8 (perseverantia) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI Arg. 9 (unica ratio) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI Arg. 10 (abyssus) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI Arg. 11 (efficacia) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI Arg. 12 (segregativum) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VI Arg. 13 (pura gratia) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VII open (reprobatio) tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VII Junius trifariam tip; De praedestinatione Cap. VIII open (adversariorum) tip; Cap. VIII peccata-causa tip; Cap. VIII fewer-reprobates tip; Cap. VIII Argentina tip; Cap. VIII dives-misericordia tip; Cap. VIII Corvinus tip into Cap. IX; Cap. IX Ab Adae tip; Cap. IX Ab Adae Christus omnibus+Minor tip; Cap. IX Arg. 3 Sol tip; Cap. IX vocatione Evangelica tip; Cap. IX vocatione Sol cont. tip; Cap. IX Arg. 6 Sol cont. tip.

English follows locked 1650 Cambridge Latin of De morte Christi Cap. 1-6 opening (origin + Thesis 1 + Cap. 2 Rat. 1-ultima + Cap. 3 Satisfit through Obj. 17 + Cap. 4 Thesis 2 tip through Mem. 1 close + Cap. 4 Mem. 2 through Mem. 3 tip + Cap. 4 Mem. 3 possible-faith through Thesis 2 close + Cap. 5 Thesis 3 tip through Mem. 2 Scripture close + Cap. 5 Mem. 2 Rat. 1-4 + Cap. 5 Mem. 2 Fathers tip + Cap. 5 Mem. 2 Huberiana objections tip through Obj. 3 Solut close + Cap. 5 Mem. 2 elect-from-eternity objections tip through Obj. 3 Solut close + Cap. 5 Mem. 2 Scripture elect objections tip through Cap. 5 thesis close + Cap. 6 opening tip through Arg. 1 close before Arg. 2), reconstructed from the Internet Archive PDF (pdftotext + tesseract) of the Roger Daniel folio with DjVu OCR check. The 1683 reprint was not used as copy-text. No modern English was copied.

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