A treatise of Mr. Cottons clearing certain doubts concerning predestination together with an examination…A treatise of Mr. Cottons clearing certaine doubts concerning predestination together with an examination…

Here at length I observe the place you stand upon to prove that hatred in holy Scripture, doth sometimes signify a less degree of love, and that seems to be Levit. 19. 17. Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart, thou shalt plainly rebuke thy brother, and suffer him not to sin. And to serve your turn in this interpretation, you shape a correspondent practise of Love consisting in vouchsafing communion; which unless it be a communion of reproof, is nothing to your purpose, who desire to shape hatred in contradiction thereunto. And yet hatred, all conceive to be much more then not to love. But were all this yielded unto you, yet doth it fall short of your purpose; for albeit he that forbears to reprove his brother, doth him harm, yet if he do not intend him harm, he cannot be said to hate him. For in Scripture phrase hatred denotes an intention to harm, as Deut. 4. 42. Where we read that certain Cities were appointed, That the slayer might fly unto, which had killed his Neighbour at unawares, and hated him not in times past. But if you measure hatred by the harm done, why should the sparing of reproof to preserve a brother from sin, and consequently from incurring the wrath of God, be so qualified as to be accounted a less degree of love, and not a fruit of hatred: for consider I beseech you, is not this far worse then to mischief a man by cutting off an arm or limb? So that albeit Scripture did plainly profess that not to reprove a neighbour, but suffer him to sin, were an act of hatred, ⟨p. 206⟩yet it followeth not hence, that hatred in this case signifies only a less degree of love. For certainly, such an act (to wit, in sparing reproof) is worse by far then to give a man a box on the ear; yet I presume you will not interpret that to be hatred only in such a sense, as signifying a less degree of Love. For certainly the fruits of love are the communications of good, and not any contumelious inflicting of evil. But by your leave I do not find that this is the Scriptures meaning in the place you aim at; but rather in my judgement it seems to meet with a corrupt course of the world, prone to conceive none to be their greater enemies, then such as reprove them.

Here at length I observe the place you stand upon to prove that hatred in holy Scripture, doth sometimes signifie a lesse degree of love, and that seemes to bee