First, The Irrationality of it will evidently appear, if we distinguish between the two states of reason, before the fall of man, and since. Reason before the fall was a pure and virgin light without any spot in it, afterwards it was destoured and overshadowed with the fall, and by that means all that is in the mind of man in his lapsed estate is not reason, the blinds and dark shades there are not so, but only that which is the relic of the pure primitive light, and congruous thereunto, ⟨p. 48⟩the blemish in the eye is not the light, the rust in the gold is not the pure metal, neither is all that is in lapsed reason to be reckoned reason. If then in this case we would know what is rational, we must consider what reason, so far as it is pure and right, doth dictate to us in this point: and what is that, but that God as the first unerrable truth, must be believed in his words for himself, and above all other things, even above reason it self?1 Justum est (saith the Schoolman) ut intellecius noster ita captivetur, & subjacoat summae veritati, sicut affectus noster debet subjacere summae bonitati, nec potest esse anima recta nisi intellectus summe, veritati propter se, & super omnia assentiat, & affectus summae bonitati adhaereat: It's just and purely rational, as to love the supreme goodness, so to assent to the supreme truth for it self and above all; that is, without any salvocs or exceptions at all; the authority being infallible, the belief should in all reason be absolute. Reason says, that God should be believed as a God, one that cannot lye, no more then cease to be; and if as a God, then for himself and above all. That in the Socinian, which adds a salvo to his belief of the holy Scriptures, is not his reason, but the rust and proud flesh and spiritual corruption of it; and to believe such stuff before the truth of God, and make it the allay and supreme ruler of our faith, is desperately and monstrously irrational. How this rust grew upon our reason at first, is evident in the fall of man, the Serpent creeps in upon the woman, with an yea, hath God said? Gen. 3.1. ⟨p. 49⟩his plot was to weaken the authority of Gods word, and when she began to waver about it, and diminish the peremptory threatening of death, with a least ye dye, v. 3. her reason began to corrupt and become dreggy, which, while pure, could not but assert the truth and veracity of God.
First, The Irrationality of it will evidently appear, if we distinguish between the two states of reason, before the fall of man, and since. Reason before the fall was a pure and virgin light without any spot in it, afterwards it was destoured and overshadowed with the fall, and by that means all that is in the mind of man in his lapsed estate is not reason, the blinds and dark shades there are not so, but only that which is the relique of the pure primitive light, and congruous thereunto, ⟨p. 48⟩the blemish in the eye is not the light, the rust in the gold is not the pure metal, neither is all that is in lapsed reason to be reckoned reason. If then in this case we would know what is rational, we must consider what reason, so far as it is pure and right, doth dictate to us in this point: and what is that, but that God as the first unerrable truth, must be believed in his words for himself, and above all other things, even above reason it self?1 Justum est (saith the Schoolman) ut intellecius noster ita captivetur, & subjacoat summae veritati, sicut affectus noster debet subjacere summae bonitati, nec potest esse anima recta nisi intellectus summe, veritati propter se, & super omnia assentiat, & affectus summae bonitati adhaereat: It's just and purely rational, as to love the supream goodness, so to assent to the supream truth for it self and above all; that is, without any salvocs or exceptions at all; the authority being infallible, the belief should in all reason be absolute. Reason says, that God should be believed as a God, one that cannot lye, no more then cease to be; and if as a God, then for himself and above all. That in the Socinian, which adds a salvo to his belief of the holy Scriptures, is not his reason, but the rust and proud flesh and spiritual corruption of it; and to believe such stuff before the truth of God, and make it the allay and supream ruler of our faith, is desperately and monstrously irrational. How this rust grew upon our reason at first, is evident in the fall of man, the Serpent creeps in upon the woman, with an yea, hath God said? Gen. 3.1. ⟨p. 49⟩his plot was to weaken the authority of Gods word, and when she began to waver about it, and diminish the peremptory threatning of death, with a least ye dye, v. 3. her reason began to corrupt and become dreggy, which, while pure, could not but assert the truth and veracity of God.
- 1Ronand. l. 3. dist. 23.
