Saint Augustine his enchiridion to Laurence, or, The chiefe and principall heads of all Christian religion a most profitable booke to all those which desire to haue a most compendious briefe of Augustines doctrine, out of Augustine himselfe, when he was old, being repurged, by the old manuscript, of many faults and vnusuall wordes, wherewith it formerly flowed.

CHAP. 46.

That infants be not onely guiltie of the sinnes of their gift fa∣ther's, that is to say, Adam and Eue; but of their owne, and the sinnes of their immediate pa∣rents added to originall sinne. That therefore regeneration is necessarie for them, because that generation or of〈…〉〈…〉 is 〈◊〉〈◊〉.

IT is also not impropably said, that ininfants stand-found for their fathers faults, not onely of the first parents Adam & Eue, but also of their owne fathers, from whom they did naturally descend. For, that text of holy scripture, where it is said, I will lay the sinnes of the fathers vpon the children, doth make them liable to that 〈◊〉〈◊〉 alwaies, before such time as by rege∣neration they beginne to haue a•• neerest in the new Testamēt:

which Testament was prophe∣sied in the saying of Ezechiel, that children should not beare the burthen of their fathers iniqui∣ties, Neither yet, that that Pro∣verbe should bee more vsed in Israel affirming, the fathers haue eaten sower grapes, and the chil∣drens ••ecth were set on edge. Eue∣ry one therfore is to be borne a∣new, whether he may be freed from that sinne, wherein he was borne. For, the sinnes which hee afterwards committed by euill life, may be salued by repentāce, whereof we haue visible exam∣ples after baptisme. By which reason recreation was ordai∣ned for none other coūsel, but because our generation is vici∣ous; insomuch as the man which is borne in pure wedlooke may say, I am conceived in iniquities, and my mother hath borne 〈◊〉〈◊〉 with my sinne while I was 〈◊〉〈◊〉 wombe. In which place hee hath not say, I was conceiued in iniqui∣tie and sinne, which hee might

very well haue said: but hee had rather say, in iniquities and sinns; because, both in that one sinne, which hath infected all man∣kinde (and is so great, as thereby the whole nature of man was consequently changed, & made subiect vnto death, as I haue formerly maintained by reason) Many other be included, and o∣ther also committed by parents: which albeit they cannot alter or confound nature, as originall (sin doth; yet do they by imputa∣tion make the childrē answera∣ble for the same, except the free mercy & grace of God do helpe to make satisfaction.