Fathers

Two Dissertations · §400

Cap. IV Arg. 9 Sol close: general decree not sufficient certainty; Cap. IV Collocutors' args end

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Further: the foundation we assert proves far more that God constituted Christ Savior and Head of those who will be saved than their general one. All who will believe will be saved shows a pact of salvation with the human race for Christ's sake — but it lacks effect unless we fulfill the believing condition, about which that decree constitutes nothing. When we defend that God further decreed for Christ's sake to give grace, faith, and life to all the elect, and from his fullness really pour efficacious saving grace into them, we make Christ Savior and Head of all who share salvation not by bare pact but by the fact itself. Besides, All believers will be saved is not the good-pleasure decree our whole salvation rests on — it is, so to speak, declarative and doctrinal; singular persons' salvation must rest on a practical operating decree of God. It would go miserably with us if all our salvation rested on If you believe you will be saved, with no further good-pleasure decree to give us faith and save us efficaciously. Finally that general decree cannot be any singular person's sufficient certainty of his salvation: it saves no one by its own virtue alone — many will be damned who know and believe all believers and repenting will be saved. Certainty needs another decree's efficacy: that I believe, that I will persevere to the end. Whence that certainty of my faith and perseverance? Not from my contingent free choice — therefore from some immutable divine decree. As to the thing: certainty for this or that singular person rests on a practical decree infallibly decreeing and working that person's salvation. As to our knowledge: certainty rests on some revelation of that decree through the Spirit of adoption and its effects in individuals' hearts — that Spirit witnesses to our spirit that we are those sons of God destined to eternal life, sanctified in this age to be glorified hereafter. In the universal law-form decree Whoever believes will be saved, neither certain salvation of any singular person nor certain knowledge of one's infallibly future salvation can be founded. And these are all the Collocutors' arguments trying to establish election of singular men from the antecedent condition of foresight faith — all taken from Arminius's writings.

Latin

Porro, hoc fundamentum quod nos asserimus, multo magis probat Christum a Deo constitutum Salvatorem et Caput eorum qui servabuntur, quam illud generale quod ab istis urgetur. Nam in illo, Omnes qui credent salvabuntur, pactum salutis cum humano genere initum ostenditur propter Christum; sed quod effectu carebit nisi conditio credendi a nobis impleatur; qua de re in illo decreto nihil constitutum est. At quando defendimus, Deum insuper decrevisse propter Christum dare gratiam fidem et vitam omnibus electis, et ex plenitudine ejus realiter in eos diffundere hanc gratiam efficacem et salutiferam: non nudo pacto, sed ipso facto facimus Christum Salvatorem, et Caput eorum omnium qui fiunt salutis participes. Adhaec illud generale decretum, Omnes credentes salvabuntur, non est decretum illud εὐδοκίας cui tota salus nostra innititur. Nam hoc decretum est, ut sic dicam, declarativum et doctrinale; sed salus singularium personarum niti debet decreto Dei practico et operante. Misere ageretur nobiscum, si tota nostra salus niteretur hoc pacto conditionato, Si credideris salvus eris, et non esset aliud εὐδοκίας Divinae decretum de fide nobis danda, nobisque efficaciter servandis. Denique illud generale decretum, Omnes credentes salvabuntur, non potest esse alicui personae singulari fundamentum sufficiens certitudinis de salute sua. Nam illud decretum neminem servat sua sola virtute: Imo multi damnabuntur qui sciunt et credunt omnes credentes et resipiscentes fore salvandos. Accedat ergo oportet ad certitudinem faciendam alterius decreti efficacia; Nimirum, quod ego credam, quod ego in finem usque perseverabо. At unde haec certitudo fidei meae, et perseverantiae meae? Non a contingente meo libero arbitrio; ergo ab immutabili aliquo decreto Divino. Si igitur rem spectemus, certitudo salutis quoad hanc vel illam personam singularem niti debet decreto aliquo Dei practico infallibiliter decernente et operante salutem ejusdem. Si certam rei cognitionem quoad nos: certitudo salutis nostrae niti debet revelatione aliqua ejusdem decreti, per Spiritum adoptionis, et effecta ejusdem in cordibus singulorum. Nam Spiritus ille testificatur spiritui nostro nos esse illos Dei filios, quos destinavit aeternae vitae, quosque sanctificavit in hoc saeculo, ut possit glorificare in futuro. Caeterum in illo universali decreto per modum legis promulgato, Quisquis crediderit salvus erit, nec certa salus cujusquam singularis personae fundari potest, nec certa cognitio cujusquam de salute sua infallibiliter futura. Atque haec sunt omnia illa argumenta, quibus Collocutores conati sunt stabilire electionem hominum singularium ex antecedanea fidei praevisae conditione. Quae omnia ex Arminii scriptis desumpta sunt.

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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