A Short and Plain Proof by the Word and Works of God

AMonge the rest of the fearefull works of the misterie of iniquitie, this is not the least (if not the greatest) that men seduced by Sathan, & sinne (through ignorance) are growne to that hight off evil, as they do call the Creator (who is a Spirit) to accōpt: & they wil have a natural reason off al his works. And to come to one particuler, they will have a reason how sinne came, & who or what was the first cause thereoff? the word off God cannot restraine these men, they will not be kept within the bounds thereoff: But they will enter into the secret counsels off God, & by their vanie Philosophy, measuring Gods thoughts by their thoughts & his wayes by their wayes, they wil find out a cause off sin before the World was: & finding that the Almightie hath decreed al thinges that come to passe, & that off him, & through him al thinges are, they wil & do conclude most blasphemously that God hath foredecreed that sin should come to passe: & not content to stay thē selves here, they runne on with an high hand, & because they see sin enters by actiō, & that God is the moveing cause off al thinges. For in him wee live / and move / ād have our being. Act. 17.28. These men by their natural art, & from their harts that are carnal, must, & do necessarily conclude that God is the moving cause in the action off sinne. But yet by the craste & subtiltye off Sathā who lieth in wait hereby to deceive vnder a culler, they say that God is not the author off sinne, nor actor off sin: But he is the author & actor off every action, & they Wil have Gods providence in everie action, although the action bee sinfull, but not Gods providence in the sin off the action, as in Adams eating off the forbidden 〈…〉, & moveing cause in the action off eating, but not in the sinne, not seeing that that action was the sinne.

Thus do they walke by their owne ymaginations and intents deceaving, & being deceaved pretending not to lay sin vpon God, when (indeed & in truth) they directly make God the author off sin. Our best thoughts off them is, that they do it ignorantly: the Lord give them harts to repent all whose conversions should bee the ioy off our soules.

To deale in this high point & mistery off godlines who more vnfit then we: & to deale with these men off al wee are most vnfit: but yet to shew our selves Faithfull with that talent that God hath given vs, we have through the grace off God taken in hand to do our best service vnto the Lord herein, hopeing off his assistance & acceptāce

And first thus much to these their reasons & conclusions, to shew wherein we differ from them, & they digresse From the truth.

Wee confesse that God hath decreed al the good that cometh to passe, & that off him, & through him are all good thinghs: & that the Lord is the author, actor, & moveing cause in, & to every good action: & that his providence is in every good action. (But God hath not decreed that any evil should come to passe: neither is he the author, actor, or moveing cause, to, or in, anie evil action: neither is his providence over, or in, anie action, wherein is evil. Iam. 1.13—18. Al these forealleged reasons, & collectiōs, (& how many mo we knowe not) are brought to mainteine that Faire glorious deceaving opinion off perticuler Election, & perticuler reprobation, & so off perticuler Redemption: which (to speake to the vnderstanding off the simplest) is, that God hath out off his eternal decre & wil, especially chosen & appointed some perticuler mē to be saved, & they off necessity must be saved; & out off his owne Fore purpose & wil, he hath cast away some to be daned which he would not should be saved, & they of necessity must be damned: & so hath perticulerly redeamed some, & left others to perish,

To conclude, & vtterly destroy, vnder one ground off truth, a these & al other distinctions, conclusions, & devices produced to mainteyne this opinion, we wil (by the grace off God) take the most plaine, easie, and short way that by the direction off his Spirit, our harts can device, which is a way most fitting our owne capacities, & (wee hope) wilbe most profitable for the vprigt harted reader.

And to proceed to this, we wil first set downe what is the cause off condemnation, & that is shewed in these words off th'Appostle. Rom, 5.12. Death entred by sin & vers 18. by Offence the fault came on all men to condemnation. Whereby it is proved, that Syn / is the cause off cōdemnation, which al wil graunt that knowe God. And all that feare God might graunt here & seeke no Further, that iff sin be the cause off condemnation. then Gods decree is not the cause, this wee knowe will not give satisfaction. But to give ful satisfaction, we must seeke to find out, who, or what, is the first cause off sin, and this must be found out, by the first sin in the first sinner. In the which passage (by the grace off God) wee will labor, withal our poore endeavours to shew, that the Almightie hath cleared himself, by his word & works. That he did not decre, nor was the author, actor, nor moveing cause, in, or to the first sin, & then off no sin, which being proved, we hope it wil appeare vnto al, that do not either willingly, or necligētly shut their eies, that no man is condemned because God hath decreed him to condemnation: mans sin being the cause off condemnation, as is proved, & the Holie one being no cause off mans sin.