An Answer to Blasphemous Cavillations by an Anabaptist, Section 19
THE ADVERSARIE.
But now to returne to our purpose.The nyntēth section. if I shall grante that all thinges of mere necessitie must come to passe according to the prescience and fore knowledge of God, then had Adam afore the tra…sg…ssion no fre will, but of mere necessitie did he offend, forasmuch as God did foresee his fall. Then had Christ no fre will: for God did foresee all that Christ was to do, then is God bound him self ād hath no libertie to do nor leaue vndone that which he doeth, forasmuch as he foreseeth all his own workes. This belike you will make a goodlie wise God. God saue vsus frome such dangerous ād horrible errors, and giuegive vsus stedfast and perfect faith to beleue not onelyonly that he is but also that he is an omnipotent God. Which frely after his own good pleasure doeth and may do, or leaue vndone what so euer pleaseth him.
ANSWER.
Before I answer to the absurdities,To the 1. which of our doctrine ye collect, I must in few wordes put you in minde, that verie foolishely ye ioyn the fre will of Adame with the free will of Christe Iesus,Difference betwext the libertie of Chri…tes will, and the fredō of Adams will. and with the libertie of God. for Adams will was neuer so free but that it might (as that it did) cō to thraldom, which weaknes you be neuer able to proue at any tyme to hauehave bene in Christes will. further the will of Adam was alwaies vnderunder the impire and threatning of a law, to which subiectiō I thi…k ye wil not bring God. But now to your absurdities.
If (say you) I shall grante that all thinges of mere necessitie must com to passe according to the prescience and foreknowledge of God, then had Adam afore his transgression no fre will, your illation, or consequence is fals. for the fore knowledge and prescience of God did neither take away fre will from Adam, neither yet did compell it by any violence, but did vse it as an ordinarie mean, by the which his eternall counsell and purpose should take effect. but for the better vnderstanding hereof, we must aduerte and note that which before we hauehave towched, and promised after more largely to entreat the same. to witt that gods prescience and foreknowledge is not to be seperated from his will and decre,Gods prescience is not to be seperated from his will. For none otherwies doeth God foresee things to com to passe but according as he him self hath in his eternall counsell decreed the… same… for as it apperteineth to his wisdome to foreknow and foresee all things that are to come, so doeth it appertein to his power to moderate and reule all things according to his own will: neither yet herefor doeth it folow, that his fore knowledge prescie…ce, will or power, doeth take away the fre will of his creatures, but in all wisdom and iustice, (how euer the contrarie appere to our corrupted iudgements) he vseth them, as best it pleaseth his wisdom to bring to passe in time, that which before all tyme he had decreed. To the which purpose and end, they (I mean the creatures and their willes) what so euer they purpose to the contrarie, or how ignorantly that euer they worke it neuertheles do volontarely, and as it were of a naturall motion incline and bow to that end to the which they are created. To make the mater more plaine, let vsus take the creation and fall of Adam with the creatures that serued in the same, for example. For what cheif end did God create all thinges (of Salomon and Paule we hauehave before declared) to witt for his own glorie to be shewed: the glorie I say of the riches of his merciemercy towardes the vessels of merciemercy,Rom. 9. and the glorie of his iustice and most iust iudgements towardes the vessels of wraith.Prouer. 16. And that this eternall counsell of God should take effect as he had purposed, mā was created righteous, wise, iust and good, hauing fre will, nother subiect to the thraldom of sinne, nor of sathan at the first creatiō: but sodanly cometh sathan ennemie to God, and to mā, his good creature, and first powred in vennom into the heart of the woman, which afterward she powreth into the heart of Adame: to the which bothe the one and the other, without all violēce vsed of gods part, doeth willingly consent: and so conspiring with the serpent do accuse God of a lie, do fully consent to vendicat or challenge to them selues the power of the God head of minde a…nd purpose (so far as in them lay) to thrust downe, and depose him from his eternall throne. Here we se how the creatures and their willes without compulsion, do serue gods purpose and counsell. for sathan was neither sent nor commanded of God to tempt man: but of malice and hatred did most willingly and gredely runne to the same: the will of man being fre before, was not by God violently compelled to obey sathan: but man of fre will did consent to sathan and conspire against God. And yet was the fall of man not onelyonly foresene and fore knowen of God, but also before decreed for the manifestation of his glorie. Let vsus yet take an other exemple that the mater may be more euident. The death of Christe Iesus for mans redemption, was decreed in the eternall counsell of God before the foundations of the world were laid as we were elected in him, and as he was the lambe killed from the beginning, which death also was decreed in the same counsell of God to be in a certein time appointed: And that so certenly that neither could the malice of any creature preuent the houre appointed of God thereto: neither yet could any policie or chance impede or transferre the same to any other tyme. For how oft Christ was afore assaulted, the Euangelistes do witnes: But alwaies his answere was: my houre is not yet come. And what impedimentes did occure immediatly before his death, is also euidēt. The feast of Easter was instant, the fame of Christ was great, the fauor of the people, with publick voices was declared, and the counsels of the hie priestes and seniors had decreed that to auoid sedition his death should be delayed, till after that feast: But all these were shortly ouerthrowen, and Christ did suffer in the verey tyme appointed as he before had forespoken. But now to the instrumentes which serue in this mater, and whether they were compelled by God or not. Iudas we know was not one of the least: and what moued him, the holie Gost doeth witnes, to witt his auariciousnes. The scribes, Phariseis, Priestes and Seniors and people, led, som of malice and enuie, some to gratifie their ruelers, and altogether of set purpose to crucifie Christ, do consent with Iudas. Pilate albeit he long refused and by diuers meanes studied to delyuer Christ, yet in the end for fear of displeasure, as …well of the priestes and people, as of the Emperor, he willingly without all compulsion of gods part, pronounced an vniust sentence of deathe against Christ Iesus which his soldiours also most willīgly did execute. This I say we se that the creatures and their willes without all compulsion do serue gods counsell and purpose. Here I know that ye thīk that either I write against my self orels that I conclude a great absurditie. for if I say that God did nothing but foresee these thinges and so permitted them (as after you speak) to folow their own train, that he worketh no more, but as a simple beholder of a tragedie, then do I aggre with you and if I do say (as in verey dede I do vnderstand and affirme) that the eternall counsell and purpose of God did so reule in all these thinges, that rather they did serue to gods purpose and most iust will, then fulfill their most wicked willes: then will you cry blasphemie, and say that I deliuer the deuill, Adam, and all the wicked frome sinne, of the which I make God to be author. To the first I hauehave answered before, that as I seperate not gods foreknowledge from his counsell, so do I affirme that he worketh all in all thinges according to the purpose of the same his good will: and yet that he vseth no violence, neither in compelling his creatures, neither constreining their willes by any externall force, neither yet taking their willes from them: but in all wisdom and iustice, vsing them as he knoweth most expedient for the manifestation of his glorie, without any violence I say done to their willes.When violence is dō to the will of a creature. For violence is done to the will of a creature, when it willeth one thing, and yet by force, by tyranny or by a greater power it is compelled to do the thinges which it wold not: as if a pudique ād honest matron or chaste virgine should be deprehended alone by a wicked and filthie man, who with violence and force (thoghe the will of the woman did plainely repine) did deflowre and corrupte her. This is violence done to will and she of necessitie was compelled to suffer that ignominie and shame, which neuertheles she most abhorred. Do we say that God did (or doeth) any such violence to his creatures? Did he compell sathan to tempt the woman when his will was contrarie thereto? Did the will of Adame resist the temptation of the woman and did he so hate and abhorre to eate of that fruite, that it behoued God to compell his will repugni…g thereto, to eat of it, and so to break his commandements? or did he not rather willingly hear and obey the voice of his wyfe? Cōsider I besech you how plainely we put difference betwext violence, which you call mere necessitie, and gods secrete coūsell and eternall purpose. But yet ye crie, wherein thē did mā offend? who can resist the will of God? why doeth he complein:The grud geing of the reprobat. seing that his counsell and purpose by such meanes is broght to passe? Do ye not vnderstand that these were the furious cries of those to whom saint Paul imposeth silence, with this sentence:Rom. 9. O man what art thow that darest reason agaīst God &c. But lest that ye complein (as your commō custom is) of our obscur…tie and dark speaking, I will euē in one or two wordes declare why the creatures offend euen when they serue most effectually to gods purpose.Why creatures offēd whe… they most serue gods coūs…l To witt becaus that they neither hauehave the glorie of God in their actions before their eies, neither yet mynd they to serue, nor obey gods purpose and wil. Sathan in tempting man studied nothing to promote gods glorie: Man in obeyīg the tēptatiō looked not to ye coūsell of God: Iudas, Ananias, Pilate, the soldiours, and the rest had nothing les in mind then mannes redemption to be perfourmed by their coūsells, and wicked workes. And therefor, of gods iustice were they euerie one reputed sinners, yea and som of them reprobated for euer. if these reasons do not satisfie you, yet shall they be a test…monie what is our doctrin: and as I trust shall also be a reasonable contentation to the godlie and simple reader. More wold I hauehave spoke… duplicate page duplicate page in the same mater, and so to hauehave put end vntounto it at once: but becaus that after, by the reason of your most vniust accusations, I wilbe compelled to hauehave to do with you againe, I abyde opportunitie. Now to your reasons: Mannes will I say in the self remained fre, notwithstanding that God in his eternall counsell had decreed his fall, and that becaus no violēce, as before is declared, was done vntounto it. The will of our master and Sauiour Christ Iesus, notwithstanding the immutable decre of his death, appointed to be at a certein time, was so fre that albeit, the power of nature might hauehave giuen vntounto him mo yeares of lief: and also that the humaine nature did abhorre the cruell and ignominious death, yet did he subiect bothe his will and the power of nature, vntounto the will of his heauenlie Father, as he doeth witnes, saing: Not that I will (father) but let that be done which thow willest.Luk. 22.
Wonder it is that ye can not se how gods will can remaine in libertie, except that he abyde in suspence or dowte, and so daily and hourely change his purpose and counsell,Gods will is fre althogh it chāge not as occasion is offered by mens doings. as occasion is offered vntounto him, by men and by their actions. If this be to make God bounde and to take frome him libertie, to affirme that as he is infinit in wisdom, infinit in goodnes, infinit in iustice, and infinit in power: so doeth he most constantly, most frely, most iustlie and most wisly bring that to passe, which in his eternall coūsell he hath determined. If this (I say) be to take from God fredom, wisdome and libertie, as ye do rayle, I must confes my self a transgressor. But if your cogitatiōs and foolishe conclusions of his eternal God head be (as alas to manifestly ye declare your selues) so prophane, so carnal, and so wicked, that long you abiding in the same, can not escaip gods iust vengeance. Repent before that in his anger he arrest ād declare that your iustice, …wher of so much ye bragge, is manifest blasphemie against his dear Sonne Christ Iesus. God the father of our Lord Iesus Christ preserue his small flock, from your pestilēt vennom, ād most dangerous heresies, and stoppe your blasphemous mowthes, that thus dare ieaste vponupon God, as if he were one of your companiōs sayeng, Then is he a goodly wyse God, Then is God bounde him self &c.