CHAP. XVII.

What natural Light declareth of the Mercy of God to Sinners, and of the Means and Hopes of Man's Recovery.

SECT. 1. Notwithstanding all this fore-mentioned sin, and guilt, and misery, of man, and justice of God, experience assureth all the earth, that great mercy is still continued to them, and that they have to do with a most merciful God. *

Men's lives are continued even while they sin; patience endureth them; time is vouchsafed them; food, and raiment, and friends, and habitations, and health, and ease, and liberty is given them; the sun sendeth them its moving influence, its light and heat; the earth supporteth them, and affordeth them fruit, and maintenance, and pleasure; the clouds yield them rain, the air breath, and the sea itself is not unkind and incommodious to them. Beasts, birds, and fishes, and all inferior creatures, serve them; and yet much more mercy they receive from God. 1

Novi ego hoc seculum moribus quibus sit: malus bonum malum esse vult ut sit sui similis: turbant, miscent, mores mali, rapax, avarus, invidus, sacrum profanum, publicum privatum habent: Hiulca gens: Hæcego doleo: hæc sunt quæ excruciant; hæc dies noctesque tibi canto ut caveas.-Plaut. Nisi enim talis (mala) esset natura hominum, non anteponerent vindictam sanctitati et lucrum justitiæ, invidentes alienæ potentiæ non lædenti. Sed volunt homines vindictæ cupiditate communes leges dissolvere, &c.—Thucid. 1.3. Sed et boni, dicetis, sunt in rebus humanis; viri sapientes, justi, inculpati--Res. Sint licet perhonesti, fucrintque laudabiles,——sed audire deposcimus, quot sint aut fuerint numero,--Unus, duo, tres,--centum certe numero diffiniti.-At genus humanum non ex pauculis bonis, sed ex cæteris omnibus æstimari convenit, ponderari. In toto enim pars est, non totum in parte-Et quinam isti sunt, dicite? Philosophi credo, qui se esse solos sapientissimos autumant--Nempe illi qui cum suis quotidie cupiditatibus pugnant-Qui ne in vitia proritari facultatis possint alicujus instinctu, patrimonia et divitias fugiunt, ne causas sibi afferant lapsus. Quod cum faciunt et curant, apertissime animas esse indicant labiles, et infirmitate ad vitia proclives. Nostra autem sententia, quod bonum natura est, neque emendari neque corrige se poscit: Immo ipsum debet quid sit malum nescire, si generis forma cujusque in sua cogitat integritate perstare-Qui luctatur animorum ingenitas corrigere pravitates, is apertissime monstrat imperfectum se esse, quamvis omni et pervicacia contendat.-Arnob. adv. Gentes, lib. 2. in Auctuar. Bib. Pat. Tom. 1. 20.

* Crede mihi miseris cælestia numina parcunt.

Næc semper læsos et sine fine premunt.-Ovid. 3. de Pont. When Piso (in Cicero) seeketh after the Summum Bonum, he proceedeth by these steps; 1. Omnem naturam esse sui conservatricem. Neminem esse qui

Sect. 2. It is, therefore, manifest, that God dealeth not with the sinful world according to the utmost rigour of justice, nor punisheth them as much as they deserve.

For all these mercies they have forfeited, and deserved to be deprived of them.

Object. But it is no mercy, which hardeneth them in sin, and endeth in misery; it is rather a punishment, as to give cold water to a man in a fever.

Answ. If it hardened them of its own nature, and not merely by their abuse, and if it ended in misery by the designment of the giver, and the tendency of the gift, then were it, as you say, no mercy, but a plague. But it is mercy which, in its nature, and by the donor's will, hath a fitness and tendency to men's recovery, and to prevent their misery, and they are commanded and entreated accordingly to use it; and are warned of the danger of abuse.

Object. But God knoweth, when he giveth it them, that they will so abuse it.

Answ. God's fore-knowledge, or omniscience, is his perfection, and will you argue from thence against his mercy? His fore-knowledge of men's sin and misery causeth them not : What if he fore-knew them not? Were it any praise to him to be ignorant? and yet the mercy would be but the same. If you will not be reconciled to God's ways, till he cease to be omniscient, or till he prevent all the sin and misery which he fore-knoweth, you will perish in your enmity, and he will easily justify his mercy against such accusations.

Object. But God could give men so much more grace, as to prevent men's sin and misery, if he would.

Answ. True; he is not unable and so he could make every clod a tree, and every tree a beast, and every beast a man, and every man an angel, as I said before: but must he, therefore, do it?

Here note, that it is one thing to say of any punishment, ipse se oderit. 2. Neminem esse qui quomodo se habeat, nihil sua censeat interesse. 3. Hominem è corpore et animo constare, primasque animi partes esse, et secundas corporis. 4. Animum aliquid agere semper, neque ulla conditione quietem sempiternam posse pati. 5. Bona esse quæ naturæ conveniunt, eamque perficiunt. 6. Animi duo genera esse virtutum; 1. Naturales, viz. Docilitas, memoria, ingenium. 2. Voluntarias quæ in voluntate posita magis proprio nomine virtutes appellantur. 7. In prima Classe maxime excellens, considerationem et cognitionem cœlestium. 8. Virtutes autem voluntatis esse præstantissimas. 9. Et ita concludit, Virtutem esse maxime expetendam.-This is the sum of the Lib. 5. de Finib.

This is so deserved, that God may inflict it if he please, without injustice; yea, and thereby demonstrate his justice; and another thing to say, "This is so due, that God must, or will inflict it, if he will be just, unless a compensation be made to justice.' It is of the first sort that I am now speaking; for God may have a variety of times, and measures, and kinds of punishments, which he may use at his own choice, and yet not leave the sin unpunished finally: but whether he properly dispense with any law, which is determinate as to the penalty, I am not now to speak, it being not pertinent to this place and subject.

Sect. 3. Therefore, God doth, in some sort and measure, pardon sin to the generality of mankind, while he remitteth some measure of the deserved punishment.

To remit or forgive the punishment is so far to forgive the sin; for forgiveness, as to execution, is but non punire, proceeding from commiseration or misery. And it is certain, by all the mercy bestowed on them, that God remitteth something of the punishment, which in law and justice he might inflict. Though this be not a total pardon, it is not, therefore, none at all.

Sect. 4. The goodness of God's nature, with this universal experience of the world, possesseth all men's minds with this apprehension of God, that he is gracious, merciful, longsuffering, and ready to forgive a capable subject, upon terms consistent with his truth and honour, and the common good.

It is true, that self-love and self-flattery do cause men to think of the mercy of God, as indulgent to their lusts, and suitable to their fleshly desires; and, therefore, their conceits are none of the measure of his mercy but yet it may be perceived, that this foresaid conception of God, as merciful, and ready to forgive a capable subject, is warranted by the most sober reason, and is not bred by sin and error; for the wise and better, and less sinful any is, the more he is inclined to such thoughts of God, as of a part of his perfection. m

Sect. 5. This apprehension is increased in mankind, by God's obliging us to forgive one another.

m

Sæpe levant pœnas, ereptaque lumina reddunt

Cum bene peccati pœuituisse vident.—Ovid. 1. de Pont.

Dissensio ab aliis; à te reconciliatio incipiat: Cum ignsocis ita beneficium tuum tempera, ut non ignoscere videaris, sed absolvere; Quia gravissimum poenæ genus est, contumeliosa venia.-Senec.

Pulchrum est vitam donare petenti statim.-Theb.

For though it doth not follow, that God must forgive all that which he bindeth us to forgive, for the reasons before expressed, yet we must believe that the laws of God proceed from that wisdom and goodness which is his perfection, and that they bear the image of them; and that the obeying of them tendeth to form us more to his image ourselves, and to make us holy as he is holy; and, therefore, that this command of God to man, to be merciful and forgive, doth intimate to us, that mercy and forgiveness are agreeable and pleasing unto God.

Sect. 6. God cannot cast away from his love, and from felicity, any soul which truly loveth him above all, and which so repenteth of his sin as to turn to God in holiness of heart and life."

Here seemeth to rise before us a considerable difficulty. That God can find in his heart to damn one that truly loveth him, and is sanctified, is incredible; because, 1. Then God's own image should be in hell, and a saint be damned; 2. Because then the creature should be more ready to love God, than God to love him ; 3. Then a soul in hell should have holy desires, prayers, praises, and other acts of love; 4. And a soul capable of the glorifying mercy of God should miss it. This, therefore, is not to be believed; for God cannot but take complacency on them that love him, and bear his image; and those will be happy that God takes complacency on.

And yet, on the other side, Do not the sins of them that love God deserve death and misery, according to his law; and might he not inflict that on men which they deserve? Doth not justice require punishment on them, that yet sin not away the love of God, nor a state of holiness? To this, some answer, "That all those that consist with love and holiness are venial sins, which deserve only temporal chastisement, and not perpetual misery.' I rather answer, 1. That all sin, considered in itself, abstracted from the cause which counterbalanceth it and procureth pardoning mercy, doth deserve perpetual misery; and, therefore, so do the sins of the best in themselves considered; but that grace which causeth their sanctification, and their love to God, doth, conjunctly, cause the pardon of their sins; so that God will not deal with such as in rigour they deserve. 2. And if the sin of any that love God should provoke him to cast them into

"Nec ex templo ara, nec ex humana natura miserecordia tollenda est; inquit Phocion, in Stobao. Facilius iis ignoscitur, qui non perseverare, sed ab errato se revocare moliuntur: est enim humanum peccare, sed belluinum in errore perseverare.-Cicero in Vatin.

hell, it followeth not, that one that loveth God in sensu composito, should be damned; for God hath an order in his punishments; and, first, he would withdraw his grace from such a one and leave him to himself, and then he will no longer love God; and so it is not a lover of God that would be damned.

Sect. 7. The sinful world is not so far forsaken by God, as to be shut up under desperation, and utter impossibility of recovery and salvation.

For if that were so, they were not in via, or under an obligation to use any means, or accept of any mercy, in order to their recovery; nor could they rationally do it, or be persuaded to do it. There is no means to be used where there is no end to be attained, and no hope of success.

Sect. S. The light of nature, and the aforesaid dealings of God with men, continuing them under his government, in via, and manifold mercies, helps, and means, do generally persuade the consciences of men that there are certain duties required of them, and certain means to be used by them, in order to procure their recovery and salvation, and to escape the misery deserved.P

He that shall deny this will turn the earth into a hell; he will teach men to forbear all means and duties which tend to their conversion, pardon, and salvation, and to justify themselves in it, and desperately give over all religion, and begin the horrors and language of the damned.

Sect. 9. The very command of God, to use his appointed means for men's recovery, doth imply that it shall not be in vain, and doth not only show a possibility, but so great a hopefulness of the success to the obedient, as may encourage them cheerfully to undertake it, and carry it through.4

No man that is wise and merciful will appoint his subject a course of means to be used for a thing impossible to be got; or will say, 'Labour thus all thy life for it, but thou shalt be never the nearer it if thou do.' If such an omniscient physician do but bid me use such means for my cure and health, I may take his command for half a promise, if I obey.

Sect. 10. Conscience doth bear witness against impenitent

• Pœnitenti optimus est portus, mutatio cousilii.—Cicero Phil. 1. 2. Beatus est cui vel in senectute contigerit, ut sapientiam, verasque opiniones consequi possit.Cicer. de Fin. Read Cato's speech in Cicero de Finib. (1. 3.) That the principle of self-love and preservation is the seed of virtue; and how every thing abhorreth its own hurt and destruction.

Scelerum si bene pœnitet, eradenda cupidinis, prava sunt elementa.-Hor. 4 Omnibus natura dedit fundamenta semenque virtutem.-Sen. Ep. 110.