Universal redemption of mankind, by the Lord Jesus Christ stated and cleared by the late learned Mr. Richard Barter [sic] ; whereunto is added a short account of Special redemption, by the same author.

Arg. 18th. A Beneficiis in omnes Collatis, quâ satisfactionis sunt effecta.

If Christ give to all Men those mercies which are the effects of his dying for them, then Christ died (or satisfied) for all Men: But Christ doth give to all Men those mercies which are the ef∣fects of his dying for them, Ergo, &c.

The Minor only requires proof, and here I have these three things to prove. 1. That Christ giveth mercies to all. 2. That these mercies are the effects of his Death and satisfaction. 3. That they are the effects of his Death for those Men to whom they are given. For I look to meet with three sorts of opposers. 1. Such as say, wicked Men have no mercy (viz. The Non-Elect) for all is given them in judgment and wrath, and shall but ag∣gravate their condemnation. 2. Such as say, They have mercies, but it is from Gods com∣mon providence, and not from Christs Blood. 3. Such as say, their mercies are from Christs Blood, but only as shed for the Elect, and not for them.

1. For the first, It is so openly blasphemous against God and his providence, for Men to say, that God is merciful to none but the Elect, that one would think no Christian should ever own

such an Assertion. 1. If none but the Elect have any mercy from God, then none else are obliged by mercy to repentance: But the mercies of God lead others to repentance, Rom. 2. Even those that by hardheartedness and impenitency do heap up wrath against the day of wrath and Revelation of the righteous judgment of God. 2. Else none but the Elect should be obliged to love and thank∣fulness for mercy, which is false and wicked. 3. Else none but the Elect should be guilty of sinning against mercy, or should need to confess any such Sin, or need pardon of such, or can be accused, condemned or punished for any such, which are all false. 4. Their own words do con∣fute themselves, for whereas they say, that Re∣probates have no true mercy because all do but encrease their condemnation and misery; It is evident that if they were not real mercies, no Mans condemnation or punishment could be ag∣gravated by the abuse or rejecting of mercy, Jo••. 4. 2. God had mercy on more Ninevites then were Elect, Jon. 3. 10. and 4. 11. Christ him∣self saith God is kind to the unthankful and the Evil, Luk. 6. 35. and commandeth us to imitate him in loving our Enemies and being merciful as he is mer∣ciful, Psal. 106. 7. Psal. 145. 9. His tender mercies are over all his Works, Act. 14. 17. Mat. 5. 45. 48. Mat. 25. throughout; sure those that deny the Non-Elect to partake of any mercy on Earth, think it no mercy to be out of Hell, to have Christ and pardon and glory given them, on condition of acceptance, they would hardly yield then that God is merciful to the very damned in Hell, and yet our own Di∣vines and Papists say it is past doubt. See Ursin Ca∣tech. Page 68. Edit. Parai posthum. & Robert. Baronius

disput. de peccat Mortali & Veniali Pag. 75. Aquin. 1. q. 32. a. 4. c. & 1. & 1. q. 21: a. 4. 1. Scot. in 4. dist. 46. Pag. (mihi) 250. &c. Bradwardin, de causa Dei lib. 1. Cap. 34. So Cajetan, Lorinus, Paes, Feuerdentius Salmeron, Genebrard, &c. (I say as Jac. Laurentius in Jac. 2. 12.) And our most judicious Brittish Divines in the Synod of Dor•• do well conclude, that Gods mercies must not be denied or accounted less because wicked Men yet perish through their abuse of them.

2. And that these mercies are the effects of Christs Blood and satisfaction, is proved thus. 1. Of some of them it is expresly affirmed, Heb. 10. 29. [hath counted the Blood of the Covenant wherewith he was sanctified an Unholy thing] 2. God cannot according to the tenor of the Covenant of Works (voluntate saltem ordinatâ) give Men so much mercy as they all receive: For that Covenant curseth them, and sentenceth them to Death, and leaveth no proper mercy, at least none that hath a conducibility to repen∣tance and recovery: Dare any Man think that all the mercies temporal, and the offers of Christ and Grace, and the Word and other means, and the common gifts of the Spirit, and the conditi∣onal pardon of the Non-Elect, and the patience, and long-suffering of God inviting and beseeching them to be reconciled to him, promising them Life and Glory if they will believe, that all these are given according to the Law of Works? If not, then it must be according to the Law of Grace and the New Covenant, or according to no Law▪ If the former, then none will question, I think▪ but it must come from Christs Blood: For the New Law and Testament is founded in his Blood,

and Sealed by it: If the later, then at least the Law of Works must be first relaxed, and they so far pardoned, seeing according to that Law they should have lived, not among these mercies, but in misery: And Scripture assures us, that it was the Blood of Christ that delivered us from the Curse of the Law, and that on the Cross he took down the hand writing that was against us, &c. And without his suffering there is no Relaxa∣tion of the Laws obligation. They that set open so wide a door of mercy to all the World be∣side Jesus Christ, do not lightly wrong him and do dangerously deceive themselves and others: I am sure Christ will expect repentance, thanks and obedience for these mercies, and condemn Men for not improving these Talents which he committed to them; however Men may now tell Sinners that all comes but from common providence and not by the Blood of Christ. 3. Yea, that which they call common providence is the disposal of things by the Redeemer: For all things are delivered to him of the Father, and all power given him and to that end he died, rose and revived that he might be Lord of the Dead and Living: And therefore if Men have any mercy now, it must come through the Re∣deemers Hands, and consequently is a fruit of his Blood. But this will yet further be proved in the next which is.

3. That it is Christs dying for those same per∣sons to whom he gives these mercies, that is the ground of them: And this further is proved thus. 1. Some of the mercies given are such as could no other way be procured and given, as is ordinarily granted: Such as are, the Universal Re∣mission,

Justification, Adoption, and gift of Christ himself on condition that Men will accept them; Christ given as Redeemer supposeth his Redemp∣tion as to paying of the price to be past; With∣out Blood there is no Remission neither conditi∣onal not absolute (as is proved in the first Argu∣ment:) But a conditional Remission to all, is given in the New Testament, Ergo, &c. The Remission also of their punishment for the time of this Life, or at least of so much of it, is actu∣al (though not plenary) Remission, and wick∣ed Men partake of that; Of one of these two Christs speaks in the parable of the ungrateful unmerciful Servant, Mat. 18. 27. 32. 35. [The Lord of that Servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt, &c. His Lord said, O thou wicked Servant, I forgave thee all that debt, &c. So likewise shall my Heavenly Father do also by you, if ye from your Hearts forgive not every one his Brother their Tres∣passes.] But of this Text more hereafter. So that God doth remit to the Non-Elect most of the temporal punishment of their Sin actually, and all the Eternal punishment conditionally. That he remitteth the temporal punishment, is further proved, Psal. 78. 38. [But he being full of com∣passion for gave their iniquity and destroyed them not: Yea many a time turned he his anger away and did not stir up all his wrath] He that reads out the rest of the Psalm will not believe that all these dissembling Israelites were Elect. So for the legal forgiveness of Sin upon the use of Cere∣monies, See Lev. 4. 26, 31, 35. and 5. 10, 13, 16, 18. and 6. 7, and 19, 22. Numb. 15. 25, 26, 28. It shall be forgiven all the Congregation of the

Children of Israel, and the Stranger that sojourn∣eth among them, seeing all the People were in ignorance] but all Israel were not Elect, Numb. 14. 19. Pardon I beseech thee the iniquity of this People, according to the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this People, from Egypt, even until now. 20. And the Lord said I have pardoned according to thy Word, Dev. 21. 8. Psal. 85. 2. Isa. 40. 2. So the Example of Ahab, the Ninevites, &c. Shew clearly: For that which God did in mer∣cy in respect to their humiliation, was some kind of Remission. 2. And further I prove it as by these express Texts of Scripture, so by this Scripture reason: Either God remitteth much of the temporal punishment, or else he shews them no mercy: (And consequently they are not beholden to him, nor owe him any thanks) but God doth shew them mercy, Ergo, &c. He that remitteth none of the punishment due, sheweth no mercy, in this case: And he that sheweth mercy remitteth part of the punishment, for it was part of the punishment to be depri∣ved of the mercies which wicked Men enjoy: Who dare once imagine, that Health, Strength, Friends, Liberty, Peace, Riches, Honour, Food, Raiment, Houses, Accommodations, Cattel, all Creatnres to serve us, Publick Peace, Sun, Rain, Fruits of the Earth, prospering of our Labours, &c. Knowledg, Parts, Motions of the Spirit, excellent means, and offers of Grace, Godly so∣ciety and Examples, Admonitions, Tast of the good word of God and the powers of the World co come, Illumination, Partaking of the Holy Ghost, working Miracles, casting out Devils, hearing the word with joy, believing for a time,

clean escaping the pollutions of the World by the knowledg of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, to be sanctified with the blood of the Co∣venant, to be loved of Christ (as the man was Mar. 10. 21.) to have the easiest place in Hell, &c. who dare say that none of all these are Mercies? Or that the enjoyment of these may stand with the full execution of the sentence of the Law? If the Curse lay in the deprivation of these, then the enjoyment of them is a remission of that curse or Penalty: But &c. Ergo, &c. read Deut. 28.

Now that this Remission is granted to none, but by virtue of Christs dying for him, I will now but refer you to the whole multitude of Reformed Divines, in their Writings against the Papists about Purgatory, Indulgences, and Hu∣mane Satisfactions, where they argue with great∣est Zeal, and many Arguments, that temporal punishments are remitted only for Christ's Satis∣faction: even the same men that deny Univer∣sal Satisfaction; not remembring how this over∣throweth their own cause. The reason, I con∣ceive, is, that here the evidence of truth con∣straineth them; but in the denial of Universal Redemption, they constrain themselves to it, meerly because they have not found out the way of reconciling Universal Satisfaction, with Spe∣cial Predestination, and therefore think they are necessitated to deny the former (though against the clear light of many express Texts of Scripture) for fear of contradicting the later.

1. Amesius saith, Bellarm. Enervat. To. 2. li. 5. c. 2. p. (mihi) 158. Christus per spiritum suum nihil in nobis operatur, nisi virtute satisfactionis plenae Deo anteapro nobis presentatae. Ne{que} quidquam per nos facit,

quod ipsemet antea satis & perfecte fecit. 3. Per Causas secundas Deus non operatur Creationem ex nihilo: sed Satisfactio & Redemptio eundem locum habent in ordine Gratiae quem Creatio habet in ordine naturae (& p. 172. Deus aliquando parcit iis quibus non est propriè reconciliatus, &c.)

2. Sadeel is full this way, Adversus humanas Satisfactiones, p 211. he saith, [Aut Christus me∣rito mortis suae delet culpam peccatorum venialium (ut vocant) aut non delet; Si dicant, non delere: Ergo Christus non pro omnibus peccatis mortuus est, sed tantum pro mortalibus. O blasphemos homines si qui∣dem id dixerint! & quid est aliud delere ac remittere culpam ejus peccati, quod ex ipsorum sententia poenas temporales promeretur, quam nullas exigere poenas tem∣porales propter illud peccatum promeritas. Nesciunt profectò isti homines quid sit peccati culpa, nec adver∣tunt poenam peccati non posse definiri abs{que} mentione culpae. (So that sin it self may be said so far to be pardoned, as the punishment is remitted: and therefore he saith it was only the punishment and not the fault that Christ bore) p. 215. At quomodo Christus satisfecit Deo pro peccatis nostris, An non id factum est quia Christus peccatorum nostro∣rum, non culpam pertulit sed poenam. Sic. p. 228. Nam Chrisius (ut nostram non nostris, sed Augusti∣ni verbis explicemus sententiam) suscipiendo poenam & non suscipiendo culpam, & culpam delevit & poenam.]

3. So Chamier at large, shews that it is only through Christ's Satisfaction that fault or punish∣ment is remitted, and that God cannot remit without satisfaction, Tom. 3. l. 23. c. 2. § 22. Ita{que} in genere concedo, non posse Deum impunita pec∣cata

dimittere, id est, nisi puniantur vel in peccatore vel in Mediatore: (of which Voetius in his Thesis is full) and § 31. Nihil ergo rectius quam luisse pro nobis Christum poenas: num aliquas tantum, an vero omnes? &c. si non luisset omnes, neminem liberant ab omnibus. So that he takes the argument to be good a liberatione ad solutionem per Christum, and § 27. Remissio opponitur exactioni poenarum. Now I have proved that God remitteth much punish∣ment to wicked men not Elect: yea even in Scripture phrase, the remitting of that punish∣ment is called, the Remission of their sin, as is shewed before, and lest any should say, it is but a delay of their punishment till the Life to come: I answer, 1. Is not punishment due to them both in this Life and that to come? And therefore to remit one is true remission. 2. No Scripture intimateth that God will lay so much the more on them in Hell, meerly because he punished them not more on Earth, but for their abuse of Mercy on Earth. 3. Doth not Christ himself expresly speak of not forgiv∣ing sin in this life or that to come? 4. Many have so much remission here, as tends to the great abatement of their everlasting torments: for Christ gives them that freedom from temp∣tations, and such means, and common Grace, as brings them to be almost Christians, and almost Saved, and such as the man whom he is said to have loved, and said to him, thou art not far from the Kingdom of God. Whereas doubtless the ri∣gorous execution of the Curse of the Law re∣quires that men be wholly forsaken of God, as to any such Grace or Mercy, and consequently given up to the prevalency of their own Lusts.

And it is a doubt whether they that make all this Remission and Mercy to the Non-Elect, to befal them without the satisfaction of Christ, do not wrong Christ somewhat more than the Pa∣pists themselves (who in their vile Doctrine of Satisfaction and Indulgence) do ascribe all to Christ radically and remotely, and to man di∣rectly; saying that for temporal punishments Christ satisfieth in and by man, to whom he hath procured that power by his own immediate sa∣tisfaction. These give Christ some part of the honour, but the other none at all.

And that a conditional remission of the eternal pu∣nishment is given in the Gospel to the Non-Elect, under Gods hand, is so plain, that he that knows it not, knows not the plain tenour of the Gospel.

Besides, if it be said that all this can be given to the Non-Elect without Christs satisfying for them, then it would follow that it may be given to the Elect also without Christs satisfying for them, but all our Divines call that Impious and blasphemous (in their disputes against Purgato∣ry, Indulgences, and humane Satisfactions.) Nay mark well, that the same conditional deed of Gift of Christ and his Benefits, which is un∣effectual to Unbelievers, because they perform not the condition, is the same that becomes effectual to the Justification and Adoption of Believers, and that without any new additional real act of God.

Lastly, Satisfaction for one man will not serve to the remitting of any part of the Debt of ano∣ther; so that I may conclude that Christ satisfied for All, seeing all receive the fruits of that satis∣faction. The effects cannot be without their cause.