A20762:178
A guide to godliness or a Treatise of a Christian life showing the dutiesA guide to godlynesse or a Treatise of a Christian life shewing the duties
A guide to godliness or a Treatise of a Christian life showing the duties wherein it consisteth, the helps enabling & the reasons persuading unto it the impediments hindering the practise of it, and the best means to remove them whereunto are added divers prayers and a treatise of carnal security by John Douname Bachelor in Divinity and minister of Gods Word.A guide to godlynesse or a Treatise of a Christian life shewing the duties wherein it consisteth, the helpes inabling & the reasons parswading vnto it ye impediments hindering ye practise of it, and the best meanes to remoue them whereunto are added diuers prayers and a treatise of carnall securitie by Iohn Douname Batcheler in Diuinitie and minister of Gods Word.
London: printed by Felix Kingstone and William Stansby for Ed, 1622
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.
§. Sect. 6 What Gods secondary attributes are, and how they may be described.
Now, these secondary attributes of God, though they be all but one in him, yet in our comprehension and conceit, who can only judge of them according to their several kinds of working towards the creatures, they are manifold, as Gods life, and immortality; his wisdom, truth, will, goodness, holiness, beneficence, love, grace, mercy, clemency, long suffering, patience, his justice, anger and hatred; all which are needful to be known of every Christian, not only that we may take notice of Gods actions and operations towards us, but also may accordingly frame our actions and lives, that so being agreeable to his pure and holy nature, they may be acceptable in his sight. And therefore I thought it necessary to describe them briefly and severally, referring the Reader, who desireth to have them fully handled, to such Treatises as purposely entreat of this argument. aThe life of God is an essential attribute: whereby is signified, that the divine nature liveth, worketh and moveth in himself, and giveth unto all things life and motion. bThe immortality of God is his essential property: whereby is signified that he liveth eternally, and never dyeth, but hath, doth and shall for ever live, work and move himself, and give life, action and motion to all things that have life and motion. cThe wisdom of God is his essential property: whereby is signified, that God truly and perfectly with one eternal act of understanding, at once doth know himself and all things; and that not only externally, but also internally in their essence; not successively by discourse of reason, but at once most distinctly and clearly. Of which wisdom there are two parts. First, his dprescience, whereby he hath from all eternity, seen and known all things which are, have been, or shall be, with infallible knowledge, as being all present to him, though past or to come, in respect