[Matt. vi.

PART nothing but from God, in such manner as He, not as we, will. III. And our Saviour by word of mouth bids us pray, "Thy will," 10.-Luke not our will, "be done;" and by example teaches us the xi. 2.] [Luke xxii. same, for He prayed thus, "Father, if it be Thy will, let this cup pass," &c. The end of prayer, as of thanksgiving, is not to move, but to honour God Almighty, in acknowledging that what we ask can be effected by Him only.

42.]

[Reply.]

taketh

an act of

the judg

ment.]
[James ii.

19.]

J. D.-I hope T. H. will be persuaded in time, that it is not the covetousness, or ambition, or sensuality, or sloth, or prejudice of his readers, which renders this doctrine of absolute necessity dangerous; but that it is in its own nature destructive to true godliness. And though his answer consist more of oppositions than of solutions, yet I will not [T. H. mis- willingly leave one grain of his matter unweighed. First, he piety to be errs in making inward piety to consist merely in the estimation of the judgment. If this were so, what hinders but that the devils should have as much inward piety as the best Christians? for they esteem God's power to be infinite "and tremble." Though inward piety do suppose the act of the understanding, yet it consisteth properly in the act of the will; being that branch of justice, which gives to God the honour which is due unto Himc. Is there no love due to God, no faith, no hope? Secondly, he errs in making inward piety to ascribe no glory to God but only the glory of His power or omnipotence. What shall become of all other the Divine attributes? and particularly of His goodness, of His truth, of His justice, of His mercy? which beget a more true and sincere honour in the heart than greatness itself. "Mag[His opin- nos facilè laudamus, bonos lubenter." Thirdly, this opinion of absolute necessity destroys the truth of God; making Him moral attri- to command one thing openly and to necessitate another privately, to chide a man for doing that which it hath determined him to do, to profess one thing and to intend another. It destroys the goodness of God; making Him to be a hater of mankind, and to delight in the torments of His creatures, [Luke xvi. whereas the very dogs licked the sores of Lazarus in pity and 21.] commiseration of him. It destroys the justice of God; making Him to punish the creatures for that which was His

[And to respect God's

power only.]

ion destroys the

butes of

God.]

[Thom. Aquin., Summ., Secund. Secund., Qu. lxxxi. art. 5.]

I.

own act, which they had no more power to shun than the fire DISCOURSE hath power not to burn. It destroys the very power of God; making Him to be the true Author of all the defects and evils which are in the world. These are the fruits of impotence, not of omnipotence. He who is the effective cause of sin, either in himself or in the creature, is not almighty. There needs no other devil in the world, to raise jealousies and suspicions between God and His creatures, or to poison mankind with an apprehension that God doth not love them, but only this opinion; which was the office of the serpent. Gen. iii. 5. Fourthly, for the outward worship of God. How shall a man [And the praise God for His goodness, who believes Him to be a greater worship of tyrant than ever was in the world, Who creates millions to God.] burn eternally without their fault, to express His power? How shall a man hear the word of God with that reverence and devotion and faith which is requisite, who believeth, that God causeth His Gospel to be preached to the much greater part of Christians, not with any intention that they should be converted and saved, but merely to harden their hearts, and to make them inexcusable? How shall a man receive the blessed Sacrament with comfort and confidence, as a seal of God's love in Christ, who believeth, that so many millions are positively excluded from all fruit and benefit of the Passions of Christ, before they had done either good or evil? How shall he prepare himself with care and conscience, who apprehendeth, that "eating and drinking unworthily" is not the cause of damnation, but because God would damn a man, therefore He necessitates him to "eat and drink unworthily?" How shall a man make a free vow to God, without gross ridiculous hypocrisy, who thinks he is able to perform nothing but as he is extrinsecally necessitated? Fifthly, for [And repentance.] repentance, how shall a man condemn and accuse himself for his sins, who thinks himself to be like a watch which is wound up by God, and that he can go neither longer nor shorter, faster nor slower, truer nor falser, than he is ordered by God? If God sets him right, he goes right. If 688 God set him wrong, he goes wrong. How can a man be said to "return into the right way," who never was in any other way but that which God Himself had chalked out for d [See above, T. H. Numb. xi., p. 59.]

III.

PART him? What is his purpose to amend, who is destitute of all power, but as if a man should purpose to fly without wings, or a beggar who hath not a groat in his purse purpose to build hospitals? We use to say, " Admit one absurdity, and a thousand will follow." To maintain this unreasonable opinion of absolute necessity, he is necessitated (but it is hypothetically, -he might change his opinion if he would) to deal with all ancient writers, as the Goths did with the Romans; who destroyed all their magnificent works, that there might remain no monument of their greatness upon the face of the earth. Therefore he will not leave so much as one of their opinions, nor one of their definitions, nay, not one of their terms of art standing. Observe what a description he hath given us here of repentance:" It is a glad returning into the right way after the grief of being out of the way." It amazed me to find 'gladness' to be the first word in the description of repentance. His repentance is not that repentance, nor his piety that piety, nor his prayer that kind of prayer, which the Church of God in all ages hath acknowledged. Fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes, and tears, and humicubations', used to be companions of repentance. Joy may be a consequent of it, not a part of it. It is a "returning," but whose act is this returning? Is it God's alone, or doth the penitent person concur also freely with the grace of God? If it be God's alone, then it is His repentance, not man's repentance. What need the penitent person trouble himself about it? God will take care of His own work. The Scriptures teach us otherwise, that God expects our concurrence :— "Be zealous and repent; behold, I stand at the door, and knock; if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him." It is "a glad returning into the right way;"-who dare any more call that a wrong way, which God Himself hath determined? He that willeth and doth that which God would have him to will and to do, is never out of his "right way." It follows in his description,-" after the grief," &c. It is true, a man may grieve for that which is necessarily imposed upon him; but he cannot grieve for it as a fault of

Rev. iii. 19, [20.]

e ["Posito uno absurdo sequuntur mille."]

* [“ Δάκρυα, στεναγμοὺς, ἀνακλήσεις, χαμευνίας, ἀγρυπνίας, τῆξιν ψυχῆς καὶ

σώματος, τὴν δι' ἐξαγορεύσεως καὶ ἀτιμοτέρας ἀγωγῆς ἐπανόρθωσιν.” Greg. Naz., Orat. xl. in Sanct. Baptisma, Op. tom. i. p. 642. B. fol. Paris. 1609.]

I.

his own, if it never was in his power to shun it. Suppose DISCOURSE a writing-master shall hold his scholar's hand in his, and write with it: the scholar's part is only to hold still his hand, whether the master write well or ill; the scholar hath no ground, either of joy or sorrow, as for himself; no man will interpret it to be his act, but his master's. It is no fault to be out of the "right way," if a man had not liberty to have kept himself in the way.

PART
III.

[Gen.xxxii.
24-30.]

more compassion than a wicked man. This was signified by 689 Jacob's wrestling and prevailing with God. Prayer is like the tradesman's tools, wherewithal he gets his living for himself and his family. But, saith he, God's "will" is "unchangeable." What then? He might as well use this against study, physic, and all second causes, as against prayer. He shews even in this, how little they attribute to the endeavours of men. There is a great difference between these two; "mutare voluntatem"-"to change the will"," [James i. (which God never doth, in Whom there is not the least shadow of turning by change; His will to love and hate was the same from eternity, which it now is, and ever shall be; His love and hatred are immoveable, but we are removed;—

17.]

"Non tellus cymbam tellurem cymba reliquit ;")—

and "velle mutationem"-"to will a change";" which God often doth. To change the will argues a change in the agent, but to will a change only argues a change in the object. It is no inconstancy in a man, to love, or to hate, as the object is changed. "Præsta mihi omnia eadem et idem sum." Prayer works not upon God but us. It renders not Him more propitious in Himself, but us more capable of mercy. He saith, this-that God doth not bless us, except we pray-is "a motive to prayer." Why talks he of "motives," who acknowledgeth no liberty, nor admits any cause, but absolutely necessary? He saith, "Prayer is the gift of God no less than the blessing" which we pray for, and contained "in the same decree" with "the blessing." It is true, the spirit of prayer is the gift of God; will he conclude from thence, that the good employment of one talent, or of one gift of God, may not procure another? Our Saviour teach[Matt. xxv. eth us otherwise;-"Come, thou good and faithful servant; 21.] thou hast been faithful in little, I will make thee ruler over much." Too much light is an enemy to the light, and too much law is an enemy to justice. I could wish we wrangled less about God's decrees, until we understood them better. But, saith he, "thanksgiving is no cause of the blessing past," and "prayer is but a thanksgiving." He might even as well tell me, that when a beggar craves an alms, and when h [Thom. Aquin., Summ., P. Prima, Qu. xix. art. 7.]