ARMINIAIVISM. (a) one great prophet of their own affirms roundly, that God after his manner often- times feareth ; that is, fufpeaeth and that not without caufe, and prudently con- jeaureth, that this or that evil may arife, larft. And their chiefeft patriarchs, (b) that God Both often intend, what he doth not forefee will come to país, Armin. Cowin. Now whether this kind of atheifm he tolerable among Chriftians, or no, let all men judge who have their fenf)s exercifed in the word of God, whichlam fare teacheth us another Lefton. For, f [t.] It is laid down as a farm foundation, that known unto God are all his narks, from the beginnin, of thç world, Acts i. 8. every thingthen, that in any relpeG may be called his work, is known untohim fromall eternity I now, what in the world, if wemay fpcak as he hark taught us, can beexempted from this denomination ? Even aftiods in them- dives finfùl are not ; though not as finful yet in fame other regard, as punifhments of others. Behold, Pith Nathan to David, in thename of God, I will take thy mime be- fore thine eyes, an l ive them unto thy neighbour, and he ftiall lie with thy wives, in the fight- of Chit first,for that diddeff it fecretly, but I willdo this siting before all Ifaei, a Sam. xis. v. a a. t 2. fo elfo, when wicked robbers had nefariouiy fpoilcd ,)ob of all his fubflance 5 the holy man concludech, the Lord gave, and the Lord hashtaken any, Job i. s. now, if the working of God's providencebe fomighty, and effeGual, even io, and over thofe cations, wherein the devil and men do moll malicioufly offend, as did Abfatem, and theSaimaa, with theCaldear, thieves, that it may be raid tobe his work, andhe may be fàid todo it ( I crave liberty to of the fcripture phrafe) then certainly nothing in the world, in fome refpeft or other, is independent of his all-difpofing hand yea, :Tidier (c) himlèlf betraying our Saviour, did nothing, but what his hand and coutfel before determined fhould be dare, AEïr iv. 28. in refpeft of the event of the thing it felf: and if thefe a&ions, notwithtianding thefe two hinderances, Fi:ff that they were contingent, wrought by flee agents, working according to ele£tion and choice. Secondly, that they werednful andwicked in the agents, had yet their dependence on his purpofe and determinate counfel ; Purely, he hath an intereft of operation in the ads of every ' creature ; but his works, as it appears before, are all knower unto him from the begin- ning : for he worked nothing by chance, or accidentally, but all things.determinately according to hisown decree, or thecannel of his own will, Ephef. i. v. t 1,. [a.] The manner of God's knowing of things, dais evidently Phew; that nothing that is, or may be, can be hid him r (d)' which is not by di(courfè and cob'efrion ofone thing out of another, cor.clufions our ofprinciples : but altogether, and at once, evidently; clearly, and diftinaly, both in refpe£t s "r an, 6" et ¿4e,, by one mod pure aft of his own effeuce he dil'erneth all things : For there is no creature that is not ma., nifefI in his fight, but all are nakrd andopened to his eyes, Aeb. iv. 13. Só (e) that thofe things, concerning which we treat, he knoweth three ways; FirfI, In himfelfand his own decree, as the drfl caufe, àn anhielt refpe£t'they may be neceffary, 'in refpef} of the certaintyoftheir event. Secondly, In their immediate caufes, wherein their contin- gency doth properly confifb. Thirdly, In their own nature as future, but to his infinite knowledgeeven prefent. [3.] The fcripture (g) is full ofexprefïions tothispurpofe, towit; that God knoweth 4l1 ferrets, and revea!eth hidden things : he fearcheth the reins, and theheart r he knoweth the number of the fears and the birds of the air, the lilies of the "field, the fallingoffparrows, the number of the hairs of oil, heads: force places are moll remarkable, as that of the Pfalmiff, he knoweth my thoughts longbefore r 'evenbefore ever they come intoourminds, before their fiat rifog ; and yet many a£tiores that are mod contingent, depend upon thofe thoughts known unto God from eternity: tray, which breaketli the very neckof the ggoddefs contingency, Chofe thingswhereùther greatefì power is imagined to confift, are dire£tly afcribed unto God : as our words, the anfoer of the tongue, Prov. xvi. a. the direeling of an arrow, _Pot by chance to a mark' not aimed at, 1 King.-xxii. 34. furely God () Deus No modo aliquando metuit, hoc eft, merito firfpicatur & prudenter conjicit, hoc vel illud malum oriturum, Vefli. de Deo. p q. 41r. (b) Deus non romper ex prefcientie finem intendit, Armin;. Antis. peg. 667. Corvin. ad Mil. cap. 1. fed. 1. (e) Cum& pater tradiderit filium foam, &We Chrfee corpus funm. & ,yudai dominum fnnm, cur in hat tradition Deus eft pins, Lk Loma revs, od quia in reuna scam fcerunt, caulk non fait ono propter gram feeernnt, Aug. Ep g. 4/. (d) Dens non particulatim, vel hngillatim omnia videz, releet alternanter. concepta, Line illud, inde hoc, fed amnia vider 6mu1, Augfl. lib.- 75. de triple. p. 54. In foientia dialog nullos eft difcarfus, fed omnia perfefte intelligit, The. p. q. ro. a. 7. e. (e) Ti'len. syntag. de attrib. Der. Thep: xxii. Zanch. de nat. Dei. (f) Ummmquodque quod eft dam eft, overlie eft, ut lit. (g) Pfal. süo, 21. Job. xiv. 11. Dan. ri. 47. Flab vii. 2. eauri. 2, estofe. 4. Luke sii, 2 blot. x. 29, 3o. Pral, main. 2. T cxx mug
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