The true doctrine of justification asserted and vindicated, from the errors of Papists, Arminians,…The true doctrine of justification asserted and vindicated, from the errours of Papists, Arminians,…

LECTURE XXIII.

¹The next Question to be considered, is, Whether in this prayer, we pray only for the Assurance of Pardon, not Pardon it self? For thus the Antinomians answer to the Objection fetched from this place, that the whole sense of this Petition is, That we may feel in our selves, and assuredly perceive, what pardon God had given us before, Honey-Comb. p. 155. So Den reconcil. of God to man, p. 44. making this Argument of the Text against himself, If we pray for forgiveness of sins, then sins are not forgiven before, answereth, The Protestants (saith he) with one consent hold, That they do beg at the hands of God greater Certainty and Assurance of Pardon, and he instanceth in a condemned person, that is upon the ladder, who having received the pardon of his Prince, may when called into the Kings presence fall down and ⟨p. 195⟩say, Pardon me my Lord and King; but this is to abuse Protestant Authors, for although many of them may make this part of the meaning, yet none make it the only meaning. Gomarus in his Explication of this Petition, doth excellently confute Piscator, for explicating Pardon of sin by a Metonymy of the subject, viz. The sense and feeling of this in our hearts, and saith, That such a signification cannot be proved out of any place of Scripture, nor out of the language of any good Authors, and one of his reasons is this, Prayer for pardon of sin would be imprudently taken out of the Lords Prayer; for he, who prayeth for the sense and feeling of a thing, supposeth it already done. Now (saith he) every wise Petition hath for its object, a thing to come, and not a thing past.