94 Of god's gracious Operations on Man's .Soald : pofitive abfolute will, of men in originalfin, and the.effedt of it exeæcation and obduration ; but not thepermiffion of the first :fin. lei. to. This is the Epitome of yanfenius as far as concerneth our prefent buftnefs. The Animadverfions. I. 2. I. (T feems Augußine and Pelagius were both pious men , that j differed in the n' ethodizingg and wording thofe fundamental conceptions in which they agreed; by whichpelagius ran intoerrors. And I doubt, he was not fo innocent asyanfenius intimateth, when he maketh Anlufiine to be the firft true Teacher of grace, and Pelagius his Opinion tohave been fo ancient. And if it were not too bold to fay fo asinft one that read over all Auguflineten times, and all his writings againft thePelagian thirty times, I would fay that I think that Auflin owned more univerfal grace and free-will, than7anfenius fuppofeth him to have owned. OfProfper andFulgentius it cannot modeflybe denyed ; who I think were ofAuguflines mind. I I. He confefleth that [elf determiningfree-will and fufficient Grace, were the condition of the Angels and innocent man; and fo that it is not alien to Gods government, or prerogatives, for fubjedts to be foRu- led andJudged. III. He feemeth to me to afcribe far too much to innocent man and Angels in ufrngfufficientgrace, when he maketh their wills the chieflau- dable caufe of the effedl : I rather think that no Angelever didany good, the chief praife of whichwas not due toGod as the principal firft caufe. God giveth them all the power,liberty, help, means, motives, by which they do it ; Befides that they did nothing but what he fore-decreed and willed they thould ( eventually) do : Therefore there is no good but of him as the fiat caufe, though not as th'e fóle caufe. I V. Whether the bell allions of Infidels or ungodly men be properly to be called good, is but a Logomachy: Call them but aLefe evil, orthe abatement of evil, and adtions that tend as Means to their repentance, and falvation, and I (hall not difagree with you in this. V. His conceffcon that the firft fin was not neceflitated is of great mo- ment : But it is a great miftake, thatfollowing fins are neceffary, becaefe they are punilhments. It is not the exiftence of the fin that is a pupa- ment, but the hurtfulnefs of itfuppoing the exiftence. If drunkennefs, or gluttony be themfelves noxious and penal, that is but a confequent of their exiftence, whichwas not necefficated by God as punifhing them that caufed them. V I. The fixth I think found , and the Schools [pure nature], as if Adams Love (in theprinciple) was not his neceffary sanity, is unfound. V I I. Here again, s. I thinkhe giveth too much to free-will in inno- cency,and too little to God. For Gods Help didnot thenferve mans will fo much as Gods ; and, God fulfilled all his will while Angels ufed their pos' er and liberty, and`they didno good but whatGod willedand caufedas he faw bell. And while man and Angels ufed their liberty , they fulfil- led Gods will in all their duty, asmuch as if they had been necefficated by natural predetermination. s. And
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