Selected quad for the lemma: mercy_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A42221
|
A defence of the catholick faith concerning the satisfaction of Christ written originally by the learned Hugo Grotius and now translated by W.H. ; a work very necessary in these times for the preventing of the growth of Socinianism.; Defensio fidei catholicae de satisfactione Christi. English
|
Grotius, Hugo, 1583-1645.
|
1692
(1692)
|
Wing G2107; ESTC R38772
|
124,091
|
303
|
A DEFENCE OF THE Catholick Faith Concerning the Satisfaction of Christ Written originally By the Learned HVGO GROTIVS And now Translated by W. H. A Work very necessary in these Times for the preventing of the Growth of Socinianism LONDON Printed for Thomas Parkhurst at the Bible and Three Crowns at the lower end of Cheapside near Mercers Chappel and Jonathan Robinson at the Golden Lyon in St. Paul's Church-yard 1692. TO THE RIGHT WORSHIPFUL Sir CHARLES WOOSELEY Knight and Baronet Much Honoured Sir THE Translation of this worthy Labour of the great and famous Grotius may boldly Claim the Honour of being Dedicated to your Patronage for many Causes The Excellency of this Subject being a Defence of one of the most Fundamental Articles of the Christian Faith requires a Patron of Worth and Excellency and such a one I may speak it without flattery is your self who are eminent for Learning and exemplary for Piety Your Works that are published in the World which are both greatly approved for their Piety and justly admired for their Profundity are an invincible Argument how Greatness and Goodness are joyned together in you by a a lovely Union But there is also a peculiar Encouragement to Dedicate this Book to you because you were the first that encouraged the Translation and Publication of this Work And verily if the seasonableness of a thing adds to its beauty as Solomon hath testified this Work hath found a fit time for its Impression For at this time that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 damnable Heresie or Heresie of Destruction as the word in the Original signifies that Root of Bitterness the hellish Error of wretched and blasphemous Socinus who trampled under his Feet the Blood of Jesus the Mediatour of the New Covenant is now beginning to spread it self in England and to infect whole Houses with a worse and more dangerous than any Egyptian Plague If the Son of Croesus who had been dumb all his days before was so wonderfully affected with the danger his Father's Life was in that the bands of his Tongue through the vehemency of Natural Affection were dissolved so that he that never spake before suddainly cried out Kill not my Father King Croesus how much more zealously may I that have been a great while lurking in Darkness as those that have been long dead now appear in the Light against those Enemies of my Redeemer who by their horrid Blasphemies are not ashamed to spit in the Face of my Lord Jesus with greater Impudence than ever did the Jews at his Crucifixion I am very glad that my blessed Redeemer hath honoured me to be Instrumental for the Confutation of that filthy Error of Socinianism which is as ready a way to Hell as ever the Devil of Hell found out since he was a Devil Methinks the very mention of the name of Socinus may make the heart of a gracious Christian to rise with holy Indignation and his hair to stand with amazement that such a blasphemous Wretch could be found upon the Earth How did this Blasphemer strive to vilifie the Blood of Christ Jesus as if thereby our Sins had not been expiated as if thereby no Satisfaction had been made to the Justice of the holy God as if the Death and Sufferings of this Lamb of God had not taken away the sins of the World and had been no Propitiation for our sins Those wicked Blasphemies are throughly Confuted both by invincible Arguments of sound Reason and evident Testimonies of Scripture in this Learned Work of Grotius God hath exhorted all Christians by the holy Apostle Jude 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to contend vehemently or to contend as men that are striving for the mastery as the Original Word signifies for the Faith that was once delivered to the Saints therefore I may justly hope that this Work will be acceptable to all good Christians into whose hands it shall come And that your self as you were the first Encourager of its Publication will now also willingly Patronize its being published Worthy Sir I recommend you to the Grace of the Lord Jesus and I beg of God that he may prolong your Life to the glory of his Name and after you have passed the time of your Mortality that an Entrance may be ministred to you abundantly into the Everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ I am Your much obliged Servant W. H. A DEFENCE OF THE Catholick Faith Concerning the Satisfaction of Christ AGAINST FAVSTVS SOCINVS Written by Hugo Grotius CHAP. I. The State of the Controversy is shewed and the true Opinion is Explained in the Words of Scripture BEfore we come to this Dispute we will first set down that Opinion which being taken out of Sacred Writings the Church of Christ hath hitherto defended with an unwavering Faith that afterwards it may evidently appear what is the difference between this and the Opinion of Socinus Therefore we shall explain the same Opinion bringing some Testimonies of Scripture which because Socinus wrested to another Sense by the way the true Interpretation of them shall be vindicated Therefore the Catholick Opinion is thus God being moved by his own Goodness to be signally beneficial unto us but our sins standing in the way which deserved Punishment he appointed that Christ being willing of his own free Love towards men should suffer punishment for our sins by enduring very grievous Torments and a bloody and ignomious Death that without prejudice to the demonstration of the Divine Righteousness we should by Faith Interposing be delivered from the punishment of Eternal Death The first Efficient Cause of the Thing whereof we treat is God God gave his only begotten Son that he that believeth in him should not perish John 3.16 God spared not his own Son but delivered him up for us all Rom. 8.32 God laid upon Christ the sins of us all Isai 53.6 God made Christ sin 2 Cor. 5.21 The former Cause that moved God is Mercy or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Love to Mankind So God loved the World that he gave his Son John 3.16 God commends his Love to us that when we were yet sinners Christ died for us Rom. 5.10 The other Cause which moved God is our Sins deserving Punishment Christ was delivered for our sins Rom. 4.25 Where 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is with an Accusative which amongst the Authors of the Greek Tongue Sacred and Profane is a very usual sign of an impulsive Cause As when it is said 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 For these things the wrath of God comes upon the Children of Disobedience Eph. 5.6 And as oft as that Phrase propter peccata for Sins is joined to Sufferings it admits no sense different from an impulsive Cause I will punish you seven times for your sins Levit. 26.28 For those Abominations the Lord God casts them out from your sight Deut. 18.12 and in several other places of Scripture neither is it any where other ways And that other Phrase pro peccatis for
pay such a price of Redemption Therefore it remained that the sinless God ought to dye for them that had sinned for this only way remained of deliverance from that Evil. What then he that brought every Nature out of nothing into being who was not in distress to find out a way of Deliverance he found out for them that were Condemned a most sure Life and a very honourable way of abolishing Death and he is born a Man of the Virgin after such a manner as he himself knows for speech cannot declare the wonderfulness thereof and he died in what he became and purchased Redemption by what he was according to the saying of Paul In whom we have Redemption by his Blood the remission of sins O glorious works he purchased Immortality for others for he himself was Immortal Leo concerning the Passion Serm. 12. What hope can they have in the safeguard of this Sacrament who deny the truth of Human Substance in the Body of our Saviour Let them tell by what Sacrifice they are reconciled by what Blood they are redeemed who is he that gave himself for us an Oblation and Sacrifice for a savour of sweet smell Or what Sacrifice was ever more holy than that which the true High-Priest laid upon the Altar of the Cross For though the Death of many Saints was precious in the sight of God yet the killing of no other Innocent person was the Propitiation of the World The Just receive Crowns but did not give them and from the Courage of the Faithful have arisen Examples of Patience but not Gifts of Righteousness for there were singular Debts in each one of them neither did any of them pay another man's Debt by his Death whereas it was only our Lord Jesus Christ that was found among the Sons of Men in whom all were crucified all died all were buried and also all were raised again Claudianus Mamertus concerning the State of the Soul lib. 2. Pictavus Hilarius in many of his high Disputations being somewhat different in his Opinion asserted these two things contrary to truth one of of which was this That he said nothing was created Incorporeal the other was this That he said Christ suffered no pain in his Passion whose Passion if it had not been true our Redemption also could not have been true Anastasius Sinaita Bishop of Antiochia concerning the Right Rules of the Catholick Faith lib. 4. concerning the Passion and impassible Deity of Christ His Blood was shed which was sufficient to redeem many Perhaps it would be better to say it was sufficient to redeem all for all are also many Procopius of Gaza on the 24th of Exod. Seeing Christ was by nature joyned to the Father if we are made partakers of him by the Spirit we will also by him be united to the Father coming into the Society of the Divine Nature Neither did they go up into the Mountain before they were crucified with the Blood of Christ who gave himself a price of Redemption for us offering his own Flesh as an unblameable Sacrifice to God and the Father Gregor M. lib. 3. Moral cap. 13. Another that was created for Paradise would proudly take upon him the similitude of Divine Power Nevertheless the Mediator paid for the fault of this Pride being himself without fault Hence it is that a certain wise man said to the Father because thou art just thou desposest all things justly also thou condemnest him that ought not to be punished But it must be considered how he can be just and dispose all things justly if he condemns him that ought not to be punished For our Mediator ought not to have been punished for himself because he had no contagion of sin But if he had not undertaken an undue Death he had never delivered us from a due Death Therefore the Father because he is just in punishing the just one he disposeth all things justly For hereby he justifies all in that he condemns him that is without sin for sinners Isychius on Levicic cap. 16. The Law made the Children of Israel liable to the Curse and to Death so that they had therefore a necessity of Expiation and the Sacrifice of the only begotten is slain for them principally but he is Sacrificed for all men so that Caiphas said It behoveth that one man should dye for the People and not the whole Nation perish And the Evangelist John confirming and also correcting what was said added But this he said not of himself but being High-Priest that year he prophesied that Christ was to dye for that Nation and not for that Nation only but that he should gather together into one the Sons of God that are scattered to wit the Gentiles Jesus was slain for Israel and he offered him for all Mankind to be an Expiation of our Uncleanness Antiochus in Exomologess Thy Word was discoloured with no sprinkling of sin at all whom thou sentest through the bowels of thy Mercy that he might call back his own handy-work into the way being made flesh he suffered himself for our sake to be crucified and abolished the Hand-writing that was against us being made a Propitiation for our sins Sophronius of Jerusalem Epist to Sergius Patriarch of Constantinople Christ condescended to dye for men and for their redemption shed his Divine Blood and laid down his Soul which was a Gift more Divine than all Dignity Elias Cretenses Christ was called Redemption because he set us at liberty that were sold under sin and gave himself as a price of Redemption for the Expiation of the whole World Nicephorus of Constantinople Epist to Leo 3. which is extant in Baronius Tom. 9. Annal. p. 587. Edit Mor. 2. I believe he was crucified not in that Substance wherein he shines with the Father though it is said the Lord of Glory was crucified but in our Earthly Nature in which he took upon him our Earthly Mass and was made a Curse for us that he might make us partakers of the Blessing that comes from him and he was content to suffer the Death of Malefactors according to the flesh that by suffering Death he might condemn the sting of Death in his flesh and might destroy him that had the Power of Death that is the Devil Mark the Hermite in his Book concerning them that think they are justified by Works Christ is Lord according to his Essence and Lord also according to Dispensation Because he made them that were not and hath redeemed them that died to sin by his own Blood and gave Grace to them that thus believed Theodorus Abucara Bishop of the Carians Disp 15. cap. 5. God in his just Judgment required all things of us that are written in the Law which because we were not able to pay therefore our Lord paid those things for us and freely took and received upon himself the Curse and Condemnation to which we were liable he himself suffered those things that we ought to have suffered The same in the