§. 48. Of Gods not remembring sin.
THe inference of this verse upon the former sheweth, that Gods pardoning sin is a remembring of it no more. In the former verse, God is brought in thus speaking, their sins will I remember no more. Thereupon the Apostle makes this in∣ference, where remission of these is. For God to remit sin, is not to remember it: and not to remember it, is to remit it. These are two reciprocall propositions. Therefore they are thus joyned together, I will forgive their iniquity, and I will re∣member their sin no more, Jer. 33. 34. And again, I am •…•…e that blotteth out thy trans∣gressions, and will not remember thy sins, Isa. 43. 25.
Not to remember a thing that was once known, and was in mind and memory, is to forget it. But this properly is not incident to God: it is an infirmity. To him all things past, and future are as present. What he once knoweth, he alwayes know∣eth. His memory is his very essence: neither can any thing that hath once been in it, slip out of it.
Object. God saith to a wicked people, seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
Answ. This as other things appertaining to man, is attributed to God after the manner of man, for teaching sake: to shew that such and such things are to God as forgotten: He hath no more thought of revenging them, then he that hath clean forgotten a wrong: or he will take no more care of such a thing, then he that hath forgotten that ever it belonged to him. Gods not remembring, or forgetting a thing is not simply to be taken of his essentiall knowledge: but respectively of his judiciall knowledge, to bring the same into judgement.
They therefore who from this or other like phrases infer, that God cannot see sin in justified persons, come too neer to the heresie of Anthropomorphists. See more here∣of Chap. 4. v. 13. §. 78.