A53688:1223
The Doctrine of the Saints' Perseverance
The doctrine of the saints perseverance, explained and confirmed, or, The certain permanency of their 1. acceptation with God & 2. sanctification from God manifested & proved from the 1. eternal principles 2. effectual causes 3. external means thereof ... vindicated in a full answer to the discourse of Mr. John Goodwin against it, in his book entitled Redemption redeemed : with some digressions concerning 1. the immediate effects of the death of Christ ... : with a discourse touching the epistles of Ignatius, the Episcopacy in them asserted, and some animadversions on Dr. H.H. his dissertations on that subject / by John Owen ...The doctrine of the saints perseverance, explained and confirmed, or, The certain permanency of their 1. acceptation with God & 2. sanctification from God manifested & proved from the 1. eternal principles 2. effectuall causes 3. externall meanes thereof ... vindicated in a full answer to the discourse of Mr. John Goodwin against it, in his book entituled Redemption redeemed : with some degressions concerning 1. the immediate effects of the death of Christ ... : with a discourse touching the epistles of Ignatius, the Episcopacy in them asserted, and some animadversions on Dr. H.H. his dissertations on that subject / by John Owen ...
London: printed by Leon. Lichfield, 1654
Title page typeset from the transcription.
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.
But he addeth the Reason of this bold Assertion:1 for (saith he) That a God infinitely righteous and holy, should irreversibly &c.
- 1§. 15.
Ans. Neither yet doth this at all mend the matter. Neither doth the particular instance given alter at all, but confirm the first general Assertion: (viz.) that If there be any thing in the Scriptures contrary to those thoughts of God, which an intelligent man (without the Scripture) doth conceive of him, he hath just grounds to question their Authority, which wholly casts down the Word of God from its Excellency, and setteth a poor, dark, blind creature, under the notion of an intelligent man, at liberty from his subjection thereunto, making him his own rule, and guide, as to his Apprehensions of God and his Will: And is it possible, that such a thought should enter into the heart of a man fearing God, & reverencing his Word, which God hath magnified above all his name? There is scarce any one Truth in the whole Book of God,but some men, passing in the world for intelligent and considering men do look upon it, and profess it to be unworthy of an infinitely Righteous, and Holy God. So do the Socinians think of the Doctrine of the Satisfaction of Christ, the great treasure of the Church; At the rate that men pass at in this world it will be difficult to exclude many of them from the number of intelligent & considering men; And are they not all absolved here by Mr G. in this Principle, from bowing to the Authority of God in the Scriptures, having just ground to question, whether they are from God or no. The case is the same with the Papists & others in sundry particulars. Frame the supposition how you will, in things never so uncouth and strange, yet if this be the position, That in things which appear so to men, upon their consideration, if any thing in the Scripture ⟨p. 254⟩be held out, or may be deduced from this to the contrary, they are at liberty from submitting their understandings to them, and may arraign them as false and suppositions their whole divine Authority is unquestionably cast down to the ground, and trampled on by the feet of men. (for [Greek or Hebrew]) God will take care for the vindication of the honour of his Word.