A04920:588
An Answer to a Great Number of Blasphemous Cavillations
An answer to a great number of blasphemous cavillations written by an Anabaptist, and adversary to Gods eternal predestination. And confuted by John Knox, minister of Gods word in Scotland. Wherein the author so discovereth the craft and falsehood of that sect, that the godly knowing that error, may be confirmed in the trueth by the evident Word of GodAn answer to a great nomber of blasphemous cauillations written by an Anabaptist, and aduersarie to Gods eternal predestination. And confuted by Iohn Knox, minister of Gods worde in Scotland. Wherein the author so discouereth the craft and falshode of that sect, that the godly knowing that error, may be confirmed in the trueth by the euident Worde of God
Geneva: printed by John Crespin, 1560Geneva: printed by Iohn Crespin, 1560
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
ANSWER.
Because that nothing resteth to the end of this y or book (your blasphemies and railing excepted) which is not sufficiently before answered, I intend only to touch those things which you unjustly lay to our charges,1 and frankly confess in what points you and we do manifestly dissent in opinion, and doctrine. and first I say that most unjustly you accuse us, laying to our charge that we burden God, to be the cause of condemnation, the which we all with one consent impute to man, to sin, and to the devil the first solicitor to sin. And therefore, except that ye can note, and evidently convict some one (or mo) of us, that so hath written or affirmed of God, ye can not be purged from the horrible crime of unjust accusation, and detestable slander. We utterly dissent from you that God lighteneth every man, that cometh into this world, in such sort as you affirm, that is, hat he calleth all to repentance & offereth light of salvation to all, so that God refuseth none, except such as utterly refuse light, or such as have been partakers of gods grace, and do forsake the covenant of the Lord. for besides the evident testimonies of the scriptures, the common experience from the beginning doeth witness, that God in that manner hath not illuminated every man. for how many do perish in their mothers bellies? how many suddenly die before their reason can judge of good and evil? how many are deprived of natural reason & understanding? Yea how many remain wild & brutish, living like beasts and eating one another? how many do continue all their life without any other knowledge of God, than the visible creatures of God do teach them? which I think ye will not affirm to be sufficient illumination to provoke them to repentance or to attain to life. I pray you what light had Esau refused when God pronounced this sentence: the elder shall serve the younger. upon the which the Apostle as before we have declared doeth conclude ⟨p. 330⟩that ere the children had done either good or bad, the one was loved, & the other was hated.