Senn. XCII. The C'oodnef.r of God: 693 nite Knowledge forefees the fins and wickednefs ofMen, and hath from all eterni- ty determined in himfelf, what in his Word he hath fo plainly declared, that he will punilh impenitent Sinners with everlafting defiru&ion; or if by reprobation be meant that God hath not eled?ed all Mankind, that is abfolutely decreed to bring -them infallibly to Salvation ; neither of there Notions of reprobation, is any ways inconfiflent with the Goodnefs of God ; for he May forefee the wickednefs of Men, and determine to punilh it, without any impeachment of his Goodnefs: He may be very good to all, and yet not equally and in the fame degree ; if God pleafe to bring any infallibly to Salvation, this is tranfcendent Goodnefs ; but if he put . all others into a capacity of it, and ufe all neceffary and means to make them happy, and after all this, any fall fbort of happinefs through their own wilful fault and ohflinacy, theft Men are evil and cruel to themfelves, but God hath beenverygood and merciful to them. Buc'if by reprobation be meant, either that God bathdecreed, without refpe& to the Sins of Men, their abfolute ruin and mifery ; or that he hath decreed that they fhall inevitably fin and perilh ; it cannot be denied, but that fuch a reprobati- on as this doth clearly overthrow all poflible Notion of goodnefs. I have told you, that the true and only Notion of GoodnJs in God is this, that it is a propen- fon and difpo/ition of the Divine Nature, tocommunicate Being and Happinefs to his Creatures : But furely nothing can be more plainly contrary to a difpoftion tomake them happy, than an abfolute decree, and aperemptory refolution to make them mife- rable. God is infinitely better than the belt of Men, and yet none can pofibly think that Man .a good Man, who fhould abfolutely refolve to difinherit and de- ANT his Children, without the forefight and confederation of any fault to be committed by them. We may talk of the Goodnefs ofGod : But it is not an eafy matter, to devife to fayany thing worfe than this of the Devil. But it is Paid, reprobation is an ad offovereignty in. God, and therefore not to be meafured by the common rules of goodnefs. But it is contrary to Goodnefs, and plainly inconfftent with it ; and We mull not attribute fuch afovereignty w God, as contradidts his goodnefs ; for if the fovereignty of God may break in at pleafure upon his other Attributes, then it lignifies nothing to fay that God is good and wife, and jug, if hisfovereignty may at any time at contrary to theft Perfe&ions. Now if the Dodtrine of abfolute reprobation, and the goodnefs of God cannot poffibly hand together, the Queftion is,. Which of them ought to give way to the other ? What St. Paul determines in another cafes concerning the truth and fidelity of Gods will equally hold concerning his Goodnefs ; Let God be good, and every Man a lyar. The Dodtrine of abfolute reprobation is no part of the Dod nine of the Holy Scriptures, that ever I could find ; and there's the Rule ofour faith. If fóme great Divines have held this Dodtrine, not in oppofition to the Goodnefs of God, but hoping they might be reconciled together, let them do it if they can ; but if they cannot, rather let the Schools of the greateft Divines be call'd inqueftion, than the Goodnefs ofGod, which next tohis Being, is the greateft and clearelt truth in the World. Thirdly, It is farther objen ed, that the eternal punifhment of Men for Tem- poral Faults feems hard tobe reconciled with that excels ofGoodnefs, which we fitppofe to be in God. This Objedtion I have fully anfwer'd, in a Difcourfe upon St. Math. 2.5 46. and therefore (hall proceed to the Fourth and lark Objection, againft the Goodnefs of God, from fundry Inftances of God's feverity toMankind, in thofe great Calamities which by the Providence of God have in feveral Ages either befallenMankind in general, or particular Na- tions. And. here I (hall confine my felf to Scripture Inftances, as being molt known and molt certain and remarkable, or at leaft equally remarkable with any that are to be met with in any other Hiftorÿ ; fuch are the early and univerfal degene- racy of all Mankind, by the Sin and Tranfgrefion of our firft Parents the de- ftruation of the World by a general Deluge ; the fudden and terrible deftrucion of
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