Fathers

A Candid Inquiry into the Controversies among Evangelicals · §53

Controv. VI: Whether there is an absolute a-priori decree of reprobation and preterition

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VI. Is there a decree of reprobation — or of passing certain people by as to grace and glory — and of divine predamnation, absolute from the first, independent of any cause outside God and His good pleasure?

In that decree God (who by most free right could have saved everyone, passed no one by, and shown only the glory of mercy, power being enough in God and in Christ's satisfaction as ransom) decided, in His eternal counsel about all that would be done or permitted outside Himself (Proverbs 16:4; Lamentations 3:37; Matthew 25:34; Acts 2:23; 15:18) — and that counsel is immutable (Romans 9:11; 2 Timothy 2:19; Hebrews 6:17) — by an act of most free good pleasure according to the good pleasure of His will (Matthew 20:15; Romans 9:15, 20–21, and the like), to leave certain people (Romans 9:13, 15, 17), and comparatively many (Matthew 7:13; 20:16), who stood level with the rest (Romans 5:12; 9:11, 21; Ephesians 2:3), in sin and misery: not electing them, not pitying them for salvation (Matthew 7:13; 24:40; John 13:18; Romans 8:29; 9:13, 15, and the like).

So He withholds grace from them — not every grace, lest they have a pretext (John 15:22; Romans 1:20) (invitation, urging to duty, kindness, forbearance, preaching of the Word — Matthew 23:37; Romans 2:4, and the like) — yet He does withhold saving grace, the grace of reconciliation through Christ (John 10:15, 26; 17:9), and with it effectual calling, faith, and justification (Matthew 11:26; 13:11; Romans 8:28–29; Ephesians 2:8, and the like).

And by the same decree, acting as a most severe Judge (Romans 1:18, 32; 9:22), has He adjudged those same people — evil and miserable by their own fault, under original misery (Romans 5:12; Ephesians 2:3) and misery gained by actual, voluntary sins against the Law (Romans 2:12) or the Gospel (Mark 16:16; John 3:18; 12:40), finally impenitent and in many ways despisers of God (Romans 2:4; 11:7; Matthew 10:15, and the like), each convicted by his own judgment and conscious of willing rebellion (Matthew 27:4; Luke 16:24, 28; Romans 2:15) — to eternal death, condemned for their own sins (Proverbs 16:4; Hosea 13:9; Matthew 25:41–42; Jude 4, and the like)?

All of it displays His liberty, power, wrath, and justice that avenges sins (Proverbs 16:4; Matthew 20:15; Romans 9:17–18, 20, 22, and the like).

Latin

VI. An detur Decretum Reprobationis, seu praeteritionis quorundam quoad gratiam & gloriam, ac praedamnationis divinae, absolutum a priori, seu independens a causâ extra Deum, ejusque beneplacitum: Quô scilicet Deus, (qui omnes, pro liberrimo jure, servare potuit, ac neminem praeterire, illustrareque solam misericordiae gloriam, sufficiente in Deo potentia, & in Christi satisfactione λύτρῳ) in consilio suo aeterno, quô de rebus omnibus extra sese faciendis aut permittendis statuit, Prov. XVI. 4. Lam. III. 37. Matth. XXV. 34. Act. II. 23. XV. 18. eodemque immutabili Rom. IX. 11. 2. Tim. II. 19. Hebr. VI. 17. actu liberrimi beneplaciti κατ' εὐδοκίαν τοῦ θελήματος, Matth. XX. 15. Rom. IX. 15. 20. 21. &c. certos homines Rom. IX. 13. 15. 17. & comparatè multos, Matth. VII. 13. XX. 16. in equali cum reliquis conditione positos, Rom. V. 12. IX. 11. 21. Eph. II. 3. voluit relinquere in peccato & miseria, seu non eligere, non misereri ad salutem, Matth. VII. 13. XXIV. 40. Joh. XIII. 18. Rom. VIII. 29. IX. 13. 15. &c. Hinc negare illis gratiam, non quidem omnem, praetextum ne haberent, Joh. XV. 22. Rom. I. 20. (puta invitationis, sollicitationis ad officium, beneficentiae, tolerantiae, praedicationis Verbi Matth. XXIII. 37. Rom. II. 4. &c.) sed tamen negare gratiam salutarem, seu reconciliationis illam per Christum, Joh. X. 15. 26. XVII. 9. seu etiam vocationis efficacis, fidei, justificationis, Matth. XI. 26. XIII. 11. Rom. VIII. 28. 29. Eph. II. 8. &c.? Deinde etiam, Deus eodem Decreto, ut actu severissimi Judicis, Rom. I. 18. 32. IX. 22. eosdem homines suo vitio malos & miseros, miseria ut originali, Rom. V. 12. Eph. II. 3. sic acquisita per peccata actualia, & voluntaria, seu in Legem, Rom. II. 12. seu in Evangelium Marc. XVI. 16. Joh. III. 18. XII. 40. ac finaliter impaenitentes, Deique variis modis contemptores, Rom. II. 4. XI. 7. Matth. X. 15. &c. ac suo quemque judicio convictos, sibique conscios ultroneae rebellionis, Matth. XXVII. 4. Luc. XVI. 24. 28. Rom. II. 15. adjudicarit aeternae morti, propter peccata sua damnandos, Prov. XVI. 4. Hos. XIII. 9. Matth. XXV. 41. 42. Jud. 4. &c. Omnia ad ostensionem suae libertatis, potentiae, irae, justitiae vindicis peccatorum, Prov. XVI. 4. Matt. XX. 15. Rom. IX. 17. 18. 20. 22. &c.

About this text

Samuel Strimesius — Prefatio through Controversiae Post Lutherum Controv. III-XIII + XV Tolerantia, Hexades Annotationum Prooemium and Annotatio I through Decem Theses / Francus plus Annotatio II §.I-§.VI and Annotatio III §.I–§.VII (through Cassellanum 1661) from Ingenua in Controversias Evangelicorum (Frankfurt an der Oder, 1708). Honest partial; Prefatio silence reasons, Annotatio III §.VIII+ fruits / §.IX+, Hexades theses body, deeper Controversiae / Part II remain.

English follows the locked 1708 Francofurti ad Viadrum Latin of Prefatio §I–II, Crimina defenses through III, Part I Protheoria through Controversiae Obices/Historia/Varii gradus, Formula Discord/Disparitas, Ulterius confirmatur / Classes / Formula protest / triplex differentia, Coena Domini Controversiae Priores through Precariae Hypotheses (Controv. print pp. 34–40), Controversiae Post Lutherum Natae Controv. III–XV tip (providence through De Tolerantia mutua; Controv. print pp. 40–78), Hexades Annotationum Prooemium H.I–§.III (Hexades print pp. 1–4 / PDF ~182–185), and Annotatio I De Augustana Confessione §.I–§.VIII tip (Hexades print pp. 5–24+ / PDF ~186–205+), reconstructed from Google Books PDF page images (ONB copy, id 3epYAAAAcAAJ) with pdftotext as check. No modern English was copied. Sister Halle digitization of Ingenua in Arminianismum (DOI 10.25673/65287) remains Anubis-blocked — skipped; Controversias only. Prefatio silence reasons, Annotatio I §.IX+, Hexades theses body beyond §.VIII, and remainder of Controversiae / folio remain.

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