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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A93868	Vindiciæ fundamenti: or A threefold defence of the doctrine of original sin: together with some other fundamentals of salvation the first against the exceptions of Mr. Robert Everard in his book entituled, The creation and the fall of man. The second against the examiners of the late assemblies confession of faith. The third against the allegations of Dr. Jeremy Taylor, in his Unum necessarium, and two letter treatises of his. By Nathaniel Stephens minister of Fenny-Drayton in Leicestershire.	Stephens, Nathaniel, 1606?-1678.	1658 (1658)	Wing S5452; Thomason E940_1; ESTC R207546	207,183	256

if he would as appeareth by the event Now that the libertie of Adam did stand between these two between the choosing of the good and the refusing of the evil it is clear from the signification of the two trees The Tree of life signified what happinesse he should enjoy if he stood the Tree of knowledge of good and evil what misery should attend him if he fell Therefore the liberty of Adam stood betwixt choosing of the good and refusing of the evil For your definition of free-will that it is a chearful issuing forth to action by vertue of abilities received this might in some sort be applied to the blessed Angels and Saints in the state of glory For though they be established and confirmed in their holy and happy estate that they cannot fall yet they do most freely voluntarily and chearfully put forth their abilities to the glory of God but Adams freedom was otherwise for the trial of his obedience He was made in a mutable and changeable condition in which he might stand or fall by his own free election not only because the Lord would be obey ed by a free choice but also that through his fall a door might-be opened to the sending of the Sonne and that salvation might be had upon termes of grace only to the fuller declaration of the glory of God CHAP. VIII How far God assisted Adam or assisteth other men that they might be such free-willers as hath been described TO the performance of duty you tell us that God doth give first a capacity to understand secondly ability to perform thirdly time fourthly he doth use exhortations and reproofs And then you adde that he giveth these rich accommodations as a sufficient means for all men to obey every one of his commands and he goeth no further for effecting any mans actions in the world ☞ page 42 43. In these words of yours you do plainly eliminate and extinguish Gods peculiar grace by and through which he doth infalliblie and certainly carry on his own people to salvation But that we may joyne issue with you we do freely yield that God giveth greater abilities and helps to men then they ordinarilie make use of Yet I know no reason in the world you have to confound the abilities that Adam had before the fall with the abilities that every man now hath in the state of nature Again if you look upon all men as lapsed or fallen how can you affirm that the abilities which the Lord giveth are equal to all Is not this contrary both to Scripture and experience you tell us how far God goeth with every man in the conferring and bestowing abilities upon him and then peremptorily and magisterially determine that he doth not go further to the effecting of any mans actions in the world Thirdly it is a point well worth the searching what you mean by these abilities Pelagius himself did stand much upon this that he was a patron and a great friend to the grace of God But how did he maintain it he had a clancular and a reserved sense he conceived the minde will and other natural abilities to be the gifts of God and called them by the name of his free grace This Augustine of old did acknowledge to be true in the general but he did blame him for his obscuring and darkning the inward special grace of God through which he doth effectually work upon the hearts of men And I would we had not too much cause given to us to judge the same of you For though you speak much of the ability which God doth give yet when all is done you go no further then the natural faculties Let any man consider what you have written concerning this point in the denial of Original sin in the advancement of the purity of nature in the emprovement of natural abilities in asserting that Adams ability was as good after the fall as it was before By the collation of all these let any man judge whether you do not advance nature and depresse the grace of God and whether in these assertions affirmations of yours you are not a downright Pelagian You cite that place Is 5 Judge I pray you now betwixt me and my vineyard what could I have done more to my Vineyard that I have not done From whence you infer Where are those disputers against God that will say be made a man able to oppresse and do unrighteously and left him destitute of ability and power to do those things which he commanded Because this text as formerly so now is much alledged by the Patrons of free-will I shall endeavour the more diligently to shew the meaning thereof I see no reason from the Lords peculiar bounty to the Jewish Church that we should conclude so generally that he gives the same ability to every man in the same degree and the same measure and that in point of Conversion and turning to God There is nothing in the parable but if the Scriptures rightly be compared you shall finde the truth of the thing will answer the emphasis of the words For that expression What could I have done more to my Vineyard that I have not done the truth of this will appear if you consider all along what God had done for them in chusing them above all the people of the world what he had done for them in Egypt in the wildernesse in bringing them into the land of Canaan how he had been present with them in all the times of the Judges and the Kings how he had delivered them from great dangers how he had taught them by afflictions how he had raised up Prophets in several successions of time to turne them from the evil of their evil ways and many such like passages of his grace and goodnesse to that people which plainly seal the truth of that saying What could I have done more to my Vineyard which I have not done This is true in particular of the Jewish Church set forth by the figure of the Vineyard but how doth it prove the question that doth lie before us your task is to shew the general assistance that God giveth to every man to make him a free-willer yet here I do in sense agree with Dr. Mayer and others upon the place that at seasons the Lord by sending in of light doth so loosen the will that is bound that then a man hath some power to will that which is good And hereupon they inferre ☜ that the fault is in man himself For although by nature he be not able to will the good yet when he heares outwardly and the Spirit moves inwardly he is able to go the next step and his condemnation is in this that he doth not act according to the ability administred As for that saying of yours that God giveth a man ability to oppresse but not to obey his Commands This is none of our positions but it is one of your calumnies We hold that God hath put

lie a great question between the grace administred to the elect and to the non-elect where doth the way part and how shall we distinguish them In this case we may not look so nicely to every punctilio there is a day appointed in which God will judge the world yet for the particular time no man can tell when it shall be that all may be prepared for it So in the present case it is confessed by all serious and sober-minded men that God doth administer his grace to bring the sonnes of men to salvation yet for the manner why he should administer it to some this way and to others that way why he should continue it to some notwithstanding all resistings and on the contrary take it from others when they have resisted such a certaine time For these various several ways of administration I think they are of set purpose kept secret in the will of God that men should work out their salvation with fear and trembling that they should strive to enter in at the strait gate that they should not neglect the day of their visitation We now come to your fourth reason Reas 4. If God say you were so the giver of actions that our not performing of actions were for want of his gift then our not acting could not be transgression pag. 56. Answer Let them consider this to whom it doth belong it is none of our doctrine but you are as faulty in the other extreame when you say that God requireth action of none but those whom he hath furnished with present abilities This if my judgment be any thing is the grand fallacie that hath not onely imposed upon you but also upon many others of your way But seeing you will needs have it that God calleth men to act according to present abilities I pray you tell me what present ability had Moses to bring Israel out of Egypt what ships had he prepared to transport them over the red sea shew me also what provision he had laid up in store for fourty years march thorough the wildernesse what councel of warre had he to judge when it was fit for the campt to move Nay thorough the whole story of the Bible make it appear what abilities any of the Saints had ☞ if you speak of their own abilities to do the greatest works of faith In these cases I think rather that Gods Word of command is given in mutual relation and correspondencie to his Word of promise and not to abilities which any man hath in present possession If we attentively consider the meaning of the Scriptures we shall finde when the Spies returned from searching the Land of Canaan the great sinne of the people of Israel was that they measured all by present abilities Because the sonnes of Anach were there they did conclude it was a thing impossible to bring that Land into subjection they never considered that it was the Land of promise and that the Lord himself would do all by his own power Num. 13.27 28. Josh 1.2 3. Psal 44.1 2 3. And for that speech of yours that Christ never blamed the unprofitable servant for want of abilities Though he did not blame him for that yet he did condemne him for not putting his money to the exchanger In this case though he had no ability of his own yet he might have it from another if he had looked after the grace and the power of God And further whereas you say that Christ calls for action of them onely whom he hath already furnished this is not so he calleth for action of those whom he either hath furnished or will furnish The Martyrs have been called forth to great sufferings in times of persecution yet the whole stock of abilities was not put into their hands at one time they did beleeve what God did call them to he would make them able to bear And that which they had not for the present they did beleeve they should have seeing he was faithful that had promised As for that instance which you aledge that Jethro Moses his father in Law did blame him for doing of that which he was not able to do Consider the case aright Jethro did question whether the thing which Moses did was commanded of God or no and therefore he did debate the matter with him why he did undertake a businesse beyond his strength But it is not so in the matter that concernes our salvation we are to do that which is commanded of God and to look to him for supply of Spirit for the performance of his own work But against this you let fall a desperate speech Such a neglect of action say you will never deserve to be called sinne because it is a forced waiting and staying the Lords leasure But where men are entituled offendors for not putting forth to action is not because they stayed for Gods acting but rather God for a long time waited for them pag. 57. I answer men are entituled offendors both wayes first because they come not in to God when he calls them Secondly when they do not waite upon him for the performance of the promise The Israelites in the Wildernesse may be an example they sinned in this in that they came not in to God when he waited for them and it is as true also that they sinned in not putting forth to action when they had so many promises of the presence and assistance of God to go along with them The Psalmist did assigne this as the chief cause of their grand rebellio they alwayes erred in their hearts because they knew not his wayes They would have all in present possession and God would have them also to live by faith in the promise Reas 5. We must say you take heed of harbouring such a doctrine which in the very nature of it breedeth such conceits that God is a respecter of persons if he should give some men meanes to act and actions and not give them unto all whom he bath commanded to act page 60. Answ In this I do agree with you that they do involve themselves in many difficulties whosoever they be that teach that obedient actions are so the gift of God that man is meerly passive without life or motion There are more then too many in these dayes that are of this belief and there are a multitude of abfurdities which follow that doctrine But whereas you admonish us of harbouring such a tenent as in the very nature of it breedeth such conceits that God is a respecter of persons this imputation as of old so now of late in your apprehension doth seeme to lie heavie upon them that maintaine the doctrine of Gods free election But in this case the Apostle himself doth make a plaine and an expresse answer he hath mercy on whom he will have mercy and he hath compassion on whom he will have compassion Rom. 9.11 12 13. The sense of the place is briefly this If God chuse Jacob it

man onely this is sufficient that the first man is the root of all his branches and all that come of him were made sinners by him and the second man is the root of all his branches and all that are ingraffed into him are made righteous by him Secondly some of them that stand for the universal redemption do not plead an absolute or universal justification of all men by the obedience of the first man but onely plead for a general impretation or possibility of salvation which then onely comes to be applied when men believe and receive the promise by a lively faith Thus we have passed through all the arguments of the Examiners and we have seen their cavils against the several Scriptures alledged by us As for those similitudes of punishing the posterity of Traitors for the treason of their parents and the killing of the young vipers with the old by reason of their poysonous nature c. forasmuch as these are onely illustrations of the truth so all the pains which they take here is onely to cavil at illustrations Other passages they have of lesser moment which we have answered before onely they have one argument in the Chapter of free will from that place Isaiah 7.14 Before the child shall know to refuse the evil and chuse the good the land which thou abhorrest shall be forsaken of both her Kings Here they would have us observe two points First that though this place be commonly understood of our Saviour yet it is meant of the common state of man Secondly this child from his infancy according to the common state of mankinde should have the knowledge and ability to refuse the evil and choose the good From hence they do inferre that a natural man can both will and act according to his first integrity untill he disables and corrupts himselfe Further they stand upon it that a man hath a power to choose the good and to that purpose they cite the words of Moses Deuteronomie 30.19 I have set before you life and death blessing and cursing therefore choose life page 126 127 128. If they did well understand the meaning of these Scriptures they would not pervert them to so strange a sense For the Text in Isaiah we do acknowledge that the children in an ordinary way have a power to choose the good and to refuse the evil when they come to yeares of discretion But what kinde of good is here meant not that good which is spiritual or divine for this they cannot chuse without an inward work of the Spirit but that good onely which is moral and civil and this at yeares of discretion men are able to make choyce of And for the words of Moses I have set before you blessing and cursing therefore choose life c. To the clearing of this Let us distinguish First what he speaks of and Secondly the persons to whom he speaks First if by choosing the good be meant the true God in opposition to all the Heathen gods of the Gentiles here Moses speaks to the Israelites as to a people that had cleare evidences and convictions that there was no other God in all the world but theirs onely And therefore he doth exhort them to chuse the true God for their God Secondly if by choosing the good be meant the loving of the Lord their God with all their heart and with all their soule as it is implyed verse 10. then this word of command is given onely in relation to the word of promise verse 6. And the Lord thy God will circumcise thine heart and the heart of thy seed to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart and with all thy soul that thou mayest live In immediate relation to this promise Moses saith I command thee this day to love the Lord thy God to walk in his wayes and to keep his commandments that thou mayest live verse 16. So then we do conclude that the ability to choose the good is not from any natural power but from the grace of God and the word of promise Thus I have gone thorough all the reasons which are alledged either by Mr. Everard or the Examiners the late Patrones of the purity of natural birth If they have any thing more to say for this my desire is that they would shew their strength or else confesse their wicked errors and submit to the clear evidence of truth Now let us consider the several and respective arguments of Dr. Jeremy Taylor and what hath been lately said by him concerning the same subject The third Book containeth the Answer to several Arguments of Dr. Jeremy Taylor in his Vnum Necessarium and two smaller Treatises of his Forasmuch as this Learned man doth tread in the footsteps of our Antagonists and doth plead the same things against the Doctrine of original sinne as they have pleaded against us for certain years last past And seeing also that many are like to be taken with the purity and elegancy of his Style that probably are not able to judge of the foulenesse and impurity of his Doctrine We have thought it worth our labour to provide an antidote to secure the soules of men and if it may be possible in a peaceable and brotherly manner to reduce him from the evil of his opinions And so we come to the several Sections of the sixth Chapter in the treatise aforesaid SECT 1. Of Concupiscence and original sinne and whither or no and how far we are bound to repent of it ORIGINal sinne is so called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or figuratively meaning the sinne of Adam which was committed in the original of mankind by our first parent Answ We deny not but the sinne of Adam may be called the original or the first sinne because it was the first that was committed But then we must take heed that with our Authour we do not deny also the pollution and the corruption of the natural birth In so doing we must needs destroy regeneration or the new birth we must needs also evacuate the Baptisme of the Spirit so farre as it doth seal regeneration humiliation for the birth sinne will be a meere non ens and the mortification of the sinne of the nature will be a nullity In a word one of the chief ends of the Christian faith which is to put on the Christ-like disposition will be frustrated and greatly impaired For what need I to put on the new disposition as it is from Christ the root of all grace and spiritual life if there be no pravity and sinfulnesse of nature from Adam the root of corruption In Scripture the one is set forth as the immediate opposite to the other But he further sheweth This sinne brought upon Adam all that God threatned but no more a certainty of dying together with the proper effects and affections of mortality Answ Besides the affections of mortality and the certainty of dying this sinne also brought upon Adam the depravation of original righteousnesse