101 / 504
Mal.;.6. Vindicated
of
Gods Unchangeableneffe.
C
A
P.
i[.
4s
22.
F,lian,
of
the
Love
of
God
to
the
fallen
Angell!,
whileft
they ftóod
in
their
o-
45
bedience.
Their
Obedience
no doubt
(if
any they
a&wally
yeilded)fell under
=
the
Approbation
of
God; but
that it
was
the
purpofe and intention
of
God,
to
continue and preferve them
in
that
Obedience,
cannot
be afierted
with-
out
afcribing
to
him
mire
palpable mutability; then can
fall
upon
a wife
and knowing
man.
Thirdly
the Difcourfe
of
this setïion
bath a contribution
of
ftrength, filch
as
it is,from
a
fquaring
of
the
Love
of
God, unto the
fweet
nature and
Loving
difpoftionofmen,
which
is
perhaps no
leffegrofieAnthropomorphifine,
then
they were guilty
of
who
affigned him
a
Body
and
Countenance
like
to
ours;
And upon thefe
three
(tilts,
whereofthe
fiat
is
called
Petitio
Principii,
the
fe-
cond
Ignoratio Elenchi,
and
"the
third
Fallacia
non
carafe
pro
caufä,is
this
Dif-
courfe advanced.
I
fhall
not need
to
tranfcribe, and
follow
the Progreffe
ofthis
Argumen-
4.
sz'
tation: the Obfervation
ofthe
Fallacies
before mentioned ,
will
helpe
the
meanefteapacity
to
unravel/
the
Soph
Jry
of
the whole
;
The
clofe only
of
it
may
feeme
to
deferve more particular confederation:
fothen
it prooceedeth.
The
Vnchangeablenefe a/fumed
by
God
himfelfe, unto himfelfe,
in
the
worke
in
hand,
I
ant the Lord
I
change
not,
is,
I
conceive,
that
which
is
found in
him
in
refpefi
of
his
Decrees
;'the
reafon
is,
becaufe
it
is affigned
by
him
as
the reafon
why they were
not utterly
defiroyed:
I
am the Lord,
I
change
not;
therefore
yee
Sonnes
of7acob are
not
confumed;
In
the beginning Ofthe Chapter,he
did
declare
unto them his
purpofe
and
Decree
of
fending
his
only begotten
Sonne, whom he
there callsthe Meffenger
of
the Covenant unto them.
He
predieleth, y.
The
happy
fruit
or
confequence
of
that
his
fending, in
reference to
their
Nation
and
Pofterity.To
the
Ync
angeableneffe
ofthis
his
Decree he
afignes
the Patience,
which
he
had
for
a
longtime
exercifed towards
them under
their great
and
continued
provocations;
whereby he implyes,
that
i
f
he
could
have
been
turned
out
of
the
way
of
his
Decree concerning
the
fending
of
his
Sonne
unto them
in
their
Poflerity, they
would
have
done
it
by
the
greatneffe
of
their
fines;
but
in
fo
much as
this
his
De..
cree, or
himfelfe in
this
his
Decree,was
Vnchangeable,and
it
muff
have
been
chan
ged, in
cafe they
had
been
all
deflroyed(For
the
Decree
was
for
the
fending
to
their
Nation,andPolrerity)
hence,
faith
he,it
comes to
paffe,
that
though
your
fins
other-
wife abundantly have
defined
it,ÿet
I
havefparedyou
from
a
total/ ruine,'there-
fore in
thefe
two
14
Scripture Arguments, there is
every
whit
as much,
or
rather
more
againff,then for
the
common
Dotîrine
ofPerfeverance.
That
the
Vnchangeableneffe
of
God,
which
is
mentioned
in
this Text,
hath
An
f.
Relation
to
the
Decrees
of
God,
is
granted; whatever then God Purpofeth
or
Decreeth
, is
put
upon
a
certainty of
Accomplifliment,
upon
the áccount
of
his
Unchangeableneffe:
There
may
be
forceufe
hereafter made
of
this
con-
cefiìon, where
(I
fuppofe) the
Evafions
that
will
be
ufed
about the
objetfs
of
thofe Decrees, &
their
Conditionality,will fcarce
wave
the
force
of
our
Ar-
guing from it.
For the
prefent, though
I
willingly imbrace
the
Affertion,yet
I
cannot
afTent
to
the
Analyfis
of
that
place
of
Scripture,which
is
introduced
as
the Reafon
of
it.
The
defigne
of
the Lord
in
that
place, hash
beene
before con
fidered:
That
the
Çonfolation
here intended,
is
only this,
that
whereas
God
purpofed
to
fend
the
Lord Chrift
to theNation
ofthe
Jewes,
which he
would
certainly fulfill
and
accoenplifh,
and therefore didnot,
nor
could not
utterly
deftroy
them,
will
fcarcely
be
evinced
to
the Judgement ofany
one, who
íhall
confider
the
bufineffe in
hand with
fo
much
liberty
of
Spirit,
as
to
caft
an
eye
upon
the
Scripture it
felfe:
That
after the
rehearfall
of
the great Pro
-
mife
offending
his
Sonne
into
the
flefh
to that
People,he diftinguifheth
them
into
his
Chofen
ones,andthofe rejel
ed ;his
Remnant,
and
the
xefufe
of the
G
3
Nation
1