chap. viii. 30. that whom he loveth, he loveth to the end, John xiii. 1. with numberlefs paffages to the fame purpose. Nor would his word be true, with regard to the non-elect, if it was poffible for them to be faved; for it is there declared, that they are fitted for deftruction, &c. Rom. ix. 22. foreordained unto condemnation, Jude 4. and delivered over to a reprobate mind, in order to their damnation, Rom. i. 28. 2 Thef. ii. 12. (4.) If, between the elect and reprobate, there was not a great gulph fixed, fo that neither can be otherwife than they are; then, the will of God (which is the alone caufe why fome are chofen and others are not) would be rendered inefficacious and of no effect. (5.) Nor could the juftice of God stand, if he was to condemn the elect, for whofe fins he hath received ample fatisfaction at the hand of Chrift; or if he was to fave the reprobate, who are not interested in Chrift, as the elect are. (6.) The power of God (whereby the elect are preferved from falling into a state of condemnation, and the wicked held down and fhut up in a state of death) would be eluded, not to fay utterly abolished. (7.) Nor would God be unchangeable, if they, who were once the people of his love, could commence the objects of his hatred; or if the veffels of his wrath, could be faved with the veffels of grace. Hence that of St. Auftin*; "Brethren," fays he, let us not imagine, that God puts down any man in his book, and then erafes him: for, if Pilate could fay, what I have written, I have written; how can it be thought, that the great God would write a perfon's name in the book of life, and then blot it out again?" And may we not, with equal reason, afk, on the other hand, how can it be thought, that any of the reprobate fhould be written in that book of life, which contains the names of the elect only? or, that any fhould be infcribed there, *Tom. 8. in Pfalm 68. col. 738.

who

who were not written among the living from eternity? I fhall conclude this chapter with that obfervation of Luther*, "This," fays he, "is the very thing that razes the doctrine of free-will from its foundations to wit, that God's eternal love of fome men, and hatred of others, is immutable and cannot be reversed." Both one and the other will have its full accomplishment.

CHAP. III.

Concerning Election unto Life; or, Predeftination, as it refpects the Saints in particular.

HAV

AVING confidered predestination, as it regards all men in general; and briefly fhewn, that, by it, fome are appointed to wrath, and others to obtain falvation by Jefus Chrift, 1 Thef. v. 9. Ι now come to confider, more diftinctly, that branch of it, which relates to the faints only, and is commonly stiled election. Its definition I have given already, in the clofe of the firft chapter; what 1 have farther to advance, from the Scriptures, on this important fubject, I fhall reduce to feveral pofitions; and fubjoin a fhort explanation and confirmation of each.

Pof. 1. Thofe, who are ordained unto eternal life, were not fo ordained on account of any worthiness foreseen in them, or of any good works to be wrought by them; nor yet for their future faith: but, purely and folely, of free, fovereign grace, and according to the mere pleasure of God. This is evident, among other confiderations, from this; that

* De Serv. Arbitr. cap. 168.

VOL. V. (25.)

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faith,

faith, repentance and holinefs, are no lefs the freegifts of God, than eternal life itfelf. Eph. ii. 8. Faith-is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Phil. i. 29. Unto you it is given to believe. Acts v. 31. Him hath God exalted with his right hand, for to give repentance. Acts xi. 18. Then hath God alfo to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life. In like manner, holiness is called the fanctification of the Spirit, 2 Theff. ii. 13. because the divine Spirit is the efficient of it in the foul, and, of unholy, makes us holy. Now, if repentance and faith are the gifts, and fanctification is the work of God; then thefe are not the fruits of man's freewill, nor what he acquires of himself; and so can neither be motives to, nor conditions of, his election, which is an act of the divine mind, antecedent to, and irrespective of, all qualities, whatever, in the perfons elected. Befides, the apoftle afferts, exprefsly, that election is not of works, but of him that calleth; and that it paffed, before the perfons concerned had done either good or evil, Rom. ix. 11. Again, if faith or works were the caufe of election, God could not be faid to chufe us, but we to chufe him; contrary to the whole tenor of Scripture; John xv. 16. Ye have not chofen me, but I have chofen you.. 1 John iv. 10, 19. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved We love him, becaufe he, firft loved us. Election is, every where, afferted to be God's act, and not man's, Mark xiii. 20. Rom. ix. 17. Eph. i. 4. 1 Thef. v. 9. 2 Thef. ii. 13. Once more, we are chofen that we might be holy, not because it was forefeen we would be fo, Eph. i. 4. therefore,. to reprefent holinefs as the reafon why we were elected, is to make the effect antecedent to the caufe. The apoftle adds, verfe 5, having predeftinated us according to the good pleafure of his will: most evidently implying, that God faw nothing extra f, had no motive from without, why he fhould either

us..

chufe

chufe any at all, or this man before another. In a word, the elect were freely loved, Hof. xiv. 4. freely chofen, Rom. xi. 5, 6. and freely redeemed, Ifai. lii. 3. they are freely called, 2 Tim. i. 9. freely jultified, Rom. iii. 24. and fhall be freely glorified, Rom. vi. 23. The great Auguftin, in his book of Retractations, ingenuously acknowledges his error, in having once thought, that faith forefeen was a condition of election: he owns, that that opinion is equally impious and abfurd; and proves, that faith is one of the fruits of election, and confequently, could not be, in any fenfe, a cause of it: "I could never have afferted," fays he, "that God, in chufing men to life, had any refpect to their faith, had I duly confidered, that faith itself is his own gift." And in another treatife of his *, he has thefe words; "Since Chrift fays, ye have not chofen me, &c. I would fain afk, whether it be fcriptural, to fay, we must have faith, before we are elected; and not, rather, that we are elected in order to our having faith?".

Pof. 2. As many as are ordained to eternal life," are ordained to enjoy that life in and through Chrift, and on account of his merits alone, 1 Thef. v. 9. Here let it be carefully obferved, that not the merits of Chrift, but the fovereign love of God only, is the cause of election itfelf: but then the merits of Christ are the alone procuring caufe of that falvation, to which men are elected. This decree of God admits of no caufe out of himfelf: but the thing decreed, which is the glorification of his chofen ones, may and does admit, nay, neceffarily requires, a meritorious caufe; which is no other than the obedience and death of Chrift.

Pof. 3. They, who are predeftinated to life, are likewife predeftinated to all thofe means, which are indifpenfably neceffary in order to their mectness for, entrance upon, and enjoyment of, that life:

* De Prædeft. cap. 17.

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fuch

fuch as repentance, faith, fanctification; and perfe

verance in these to the end.

Acts xiii. 48. As many as were ordained to eternal life, believed. Eph. i. 4. He hath chofen us in him, before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy, and without blame before him in love. Eph. ii. 10. For we [i. e. the fame we, whom he hath chosen before the foundation of the world] are his workmanship, created in Christ Jefus unto good works, which God hath fore-ordained that we Thould walk in them. And the apostle affures the fame Theffalonians, whom he reminds of their election, and God's everlafting appointment of them to obtain falvation, that this alfo was his will concerning them, even their fanctification, Theff. i. 4. and v. 9. and iv. 3. and gives them a view of all these privileges at once, 2 Thef. ii. 13. God hath, from the beginning, chofen you to falvation, through fanctification of the fpirit, and belief of the truth. As does St. Peter, 1 Ep. i. 2. Elect-through fanctification of the fpirit, unto obedience, and fprinkling of the blood of Jefus Chrift. Now, though faith and holiness are not reprefented as the caufe wherefore the elect are faved; yet, these are conftantly represented, as the means through which they are faved, or as the appointed way wherein God leads his people to glory: these bleffings being always bestowed previous to that. Agreeable to all which, is that of Auftin: "Whatfoever persons are, through the riches of divine grace, exempted from the original fentence of condemnation, are undoubtedly brought to hear the gospel +; and when heard, they are caufed to believe it: and are made likewife to endure to the end, in the faith which

• De Corrept. & Grat. cap. 7.

+ We must underftand this, in a qualified fenfe; as intending, that all those of the elect, who live where the Chriftian difpenfation obtains, are, fooner or later, brought to hear the gospel, and to believe it.

works