228 Chap.9. How Godpst iyï>e.r thepis i ofFathers,' &c. Corn . . Muth,27.25 may juftly be punned in his feed. They knéw it well, chat fail, His Blood be upon to and'our children. a. Thyys.we fee it is not unjuft, in refpeel of the Father, now that it is not unjuft in refpeet oftheSon, appears. 'r. hil'dren`may be temporallyßunifhed, becatífe Pisa eft res pairis, part of the fathers poffeflion6And fubftance. " G6t.2. 15. Again in regard that theSon may be guiltyby nature,TreChurèh in thëCánt,finds a neftofyoung foxes,tbat as yet hive deftroyed no vin'eyajrds,nor -Worriedarty lambs, Efay 59. S. butif theygrow up,they will do both : The queftion is,s Nether the Church may fay, PGIm 51.5- Take us'thoffe little foxes. And fobecaufe there is a' poyfo'rioùs nature in' the Scorpi- ons or Cockatrices eggs, we may treadthem under feet : and it hands with Juftice. The fun: of all is,God never punifhes one for the finofanother,buthe may ex ¡tare do- minii,as abfolute Lord,inflid any temporal evilon the Soh for the Fathers fin,without any injuftice 5 for it is only an afffi&ion to the Son, which God can turn to his good; but a punifltment it is to the Father, who is punilht in his Soh. To thefe we may add two confiderations more. t. The firft is jus meriti ; for commonlyEducation follows Propagation ; Men ufually bring up their Children like John4.20. themfelves. Children have traditions frbtrr their Fathers ; As our Fathers worjhip- ed, fo will we, and having keptour Religlónfo, manyyears, let us keep it ftilß. Sin pro_ pagates like to Gehenies Leprofic, if it sake bold of the Father, it cleaves to his pofte- rity commonly. And therefore, this pe nifiment may come uponthem, ex jure me. riti, and that juftly, becaufe they follow their Fathers fin. Andherein Godwhen he punifhestheSon, exequitarchirographo fuo, non paterno, it is for his own debt, not for his Fathers. 2. The fecond is jut bencfìcii, and this is the Court ofMercy, God may fhewMer. cies to whomhe will, the Son cannot claim'any thing at Gods hands for the Fathers fake ; Gods Covenant is free, we can challenge nothingas due, but all from Grace. St. Auguftine Paid well, that godly Fathers have wicked Children , ne virtu: videre- cur bareditaria, left vertue should be thought tobe hereditary. Again, wicked men 'have good Children, and why ? ne maliciaferpat in infinitum, left there fhould be no end ofwickednefs. But firft,this is certain there is no punifhment for the Grapes that are in the Fathers mouths, they remain in his own mouth only. 2. And fecondly,this Exod.3 ; rg. Punifhment is in refpe& of his plaice only : yet- mi feretur cujus vult mifereri, he will Phewmercy on whom he will (hew mercy.' His Mercy may exempt whom in juftice he might punifh ; and befides, his Juftice takes hold only on thofe that follow their Fathers fins, and fo the threatning isconditional. Gregory faith, Qui imitatur,gra- 'vacar, he that follows his Fathers example, Shall feel the burdenof it. God faith by the Prophet , ,4t what inftant I _hall afieak concerning a Nation to deftroy it if that Jer.18.7,8. fl'(ation_ball turn fromtheir evil, Iwill repent ofthe evil I thought todo unto them. And when aSandbag return from his Fathers evil ways, hepallline and not die. His threat- Ezek.18.28. nings are of Juftice, his exemptions ofMercy, onas faith from God , that Nineveh Jonah 3.4. than bedeftroyed ; but by a new decree, the former fenrence was reverfed. Thefe to, come from feveral Courts. Theufe. a. The ufe ofall this is, to breed a mutual care betwixt the Father and the Sod; for s sam. 4. 18. we fee Eli the father pundhed for the children : and in another place thechild punifh- 2 Sam.12,15. ed for the Father David, 2. Secondly, to acknowledg that we are Cons of finful Parents , and to fay with Deut.26.5 him in Deuter. ASyrian ready toperifh was myfather, &c. and with David, peccavi- Pfalm ío6.6. mus cumpatribus, we havefinned with ourfathers , and with Daniel, todeprecate the . Dan. 9.8. punifhment due to us for our fathers tranfgref ions. 3. And laftly, with Abraham to be careful to command our Children to keep the Goo. a8a9. way of the Lord, there muff be a mutual care of building up one another. And fo Aon.r4.19 wego from mount Ebal, the Commination, to mount Gerinim, the Promife and Re- ward. CHAP,
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