The Doctrine of the Saints' Perseverance

This Solid Foundation being laid,¹ he proceeds; Those who thus love him, and he approves of them, he Predestinates to be conformed to the Image of his Sonne. It is true, the Apostle speaks of them, and to them that Love the Lord; but doth not (in the least) suppose them, as such, to be the Objects of the Acts of his Sovereign Grace after mentioned. If God Call none, but those that Love him Antecedently to his Call, that Grace of his must eternally rest in his own bosom, without the least exercise of it, towards any of the Sons of Men. It is those persons indeed, who in the process of the Work of Gods Grace towards them, are brought to love him, that are thus Predestinated and Called: but they are so dealt withal, not upon the Account or Consideration of their Love of God (which is not only in order consequential to some of them, but the proper Effect and product of them) but upon the Account of the Unchangeable Purpose of God, appointing them to Salvation; which I doubt not but Mr Goodwin studiously and purposely omitted to insist upon, knowing its absolute inconsistency with the Conclusion, (and yet not able to wave it, had it been once brought under consideration) which from the Words he aimeth to extract. As then, to make mens Loving of God to be antecedent to the Grace of Vocation, is an express contradiction in it self; so to make it, or the Consideration of it, to be previous unto Predestination, is an insinuation of a gross Pelagian figment, giving rise and spring to Gods Eternal Predestination, not in his own Sovereign Will, but the self-differencing Wills of men: Latet anguis also in the adding grass of that exegetical term, (Preordained) Predestinated, that is Preordained; Though the word being considered in the Language, whereof it is, seems not to give occasion to any suspicion, yet the change of it from Preordained into Preordained, is not to be supposed to be for nothing, in him who is expert at these Weapons. To ordain, is either ordinare ut aliquid fiat, or ordinem in factis statuere; or according to some, subjectum disponere ad finem: to Preordain, is of necessity, precisely tied up to the first sense: to Preordinate, I fear, in Mr Goodwins sense, is but to Predispose men by some good inclinations in themselves: and men Preordained, are but ⟨p. 59⟩men so predisposed;

This Solid Foundation being laid,¹