An Answer to a Great Number of Blasphemous Cavillations

ANSWER.

How ignorantly and how impudently ye confound the eternal purpose of gods reprobation with the just execution of his judgements I have before declared and therefore here only resteth to admonish the reader that most unjustly ye accuse us in that ye say: that we hold and teach that God damned man before he offended. This you be never able to show in any of our works. for constantly in word and writing we affirm that man willingly fell from God, and made him self slave to satan before that death was inflicted upon him. and so neither make we death the reward of gods ordinance, neither do we burden him with unrighteous judgement. But say with the Apostle, that death is the reward of sin, and that our God is righteous in all his works. and therefore be ashamed and repent your manifest lie.¹ That God forgiveth the sin committed, and doeth remember mercy even when he appeareth in his hot displeasure to punish his Church, with thanks giving and joy we acknowledge. But that thereof ye conclude▪ (as ye say with Job) that the great God casteth away no man, we can not cease to admonish both you and the readers, that either ignorantly, or else maliciously ye corrupt and deprave the mind of the speaker in that place: Elihu sayeth not as ye allege.² The great God casteth away no man, but sayeth: Behold the mighty God casteth away none that is mighty and valiant of courage, He main teneth not the wicked, but he giveth judgement to the afflicted. And in this behalf your master Castalio (who notwithstanding that he useth to take large liberty in translation, where any thing may seem to serve his purpose) is more circumspect and more faithful then you be. for thus he translateth that place. Although that God be excellent yea excellent and strong of courage, yet is he not so dissolute, that either he will keep the wicked,