A treatise of the loue of God. Written in french by B. Francis de Sales Bishope and Prince of Geneua, translated into English by Miles Car priest of the English Colledge of Doway

That the heauenly prouidence hath pro∣uided man of a most abun∣dant redemption. CHAPTER. V.

1. NOw THEOTIME, affirming that God had seene, and willed first one thing, and then secondly another, obseruing an order in his wills: I intended it according to my declaration made before, to wit that though all this passed in a most sole and most simple Act: yet in that Act, the order, distinctiō, and dependence of things were no lesse obserued, thē in case there had bene indeede many Acts in the Vnderstanding and will of God. And sith that euery well ordered will determined to will diuerse obiects equally present, doth loue bet∣ter, and aboue all the rest that which is most amia∣ble: it followeth that the Soueraigne Prouidence making his eternall purpose and designe of all which he would produce he first willed and Loued, by a preference of Excellencie, the most a∣miable obiect of his Loue which is our Sauiour; and then the other Creaturs by degrees, accor∣ding as they more or lesse belonge to his seruice, honour, and glorie.

2. Thus was all things made for that Deified Mā, who for this cause is called THE FIRST BEGOTTEN OF ALL CREATVRS, possessed by the diuine Maie∣stie in the beginning of his wayes, before he made any thing, created in the beginning before ages:

For in him all things are made, he is before all, and all things are established in him, and he is the head of all the Church, hauing the Primacie in, and through all things. The principall reason of plan∣ting the vine, is the fruite, and therfore the fruite is the first thing desired and aimed at, though the leaues and the buds are first produced. So our great Sauiour was the first in the Diuine Intention, and in the Eternall Proiect which the Diuine Proui∣dence made of the production of Creaturs, and in contemplation of this desired fruite, the Vine of the world was planted, and the succession of ma∣ny generations established which as leaues, or blossoms doe preceede it as forerunners, and fit preparatiues for the production of that Grape, which the sacred Spouse doth so much praise in the Canticles and the iuyce of which doth reioyce God and Man.

3. But now my THEOTIME who can doubt of the abundance of meanes to saluation, hauing so great a Sauiour, in consideration of whom we were made, and by the merits of whom we were ran∣somed. For he dyed for all, because all were dead, and his Mercy was more Soueraigne to buie the Race of mortalls, then Adams Miserie was Veni∣mous to loose it. And so farre was ADAMS fault from surmounting the Diuine Benignitie, that contrariwise, it was therby excited and prouoked. So that by a most sweete, and most louing ANTI∣PERISTASIS and contention it receiued vigour fuom it's aduersaries presence, and as recollecting it's forces to vanquish, it caused grace, to super∣abound where iniquitie had abounded. Whence

the holy Church by a pious excesse of admiration cryes out vpon EASTER EVE, O Sinne of ADAM truly necessarie, which was cancelled by the death of IESVS-CHRIST! ô Blessed fault, which merited to haue such and so great a Redemour! Certes THEOTIME, we may saie as did that Auncient; we were lost, if we had not bene lost; that is our losse brought vs profit, sythens in effect humane nature hath receiued more graces by the redem∣demption of her Sauiour, then euer she should haue receiued by Adam's innocencie, if he had perseuered therin.

4. For though the Diuine Prouidence hath left in man deepe markes of his anger, yea euen a middest the graces of his Mercy, as for example, the necessitie of death, sicknesse, labours, the re∣bellion of the sensualitie, yet the Diuine Assi∣stance, hauing the vpper hand of all these, takes pleasure to conuert these miseries, to the greatest aduantage of such as loue him, making Patience rise out of their trauailes; the Contempt of the world, out of the necessitie of death; a thousand victories ouer Concupiscence; and as the Raine∣bowe touching the Thorne ASPALATHVS makes it more odoriferous then the Lillie: so our Sa∣uiours Redemption touching our miseries, makes them more profitable, and amiable, then Origi∣nall Iustice could euer haue bene. The Angels in heauen saieth our Sauiour, doe more ioy in one penitent sinner, them in nintie nine iust, and so the State of Redemption, is an hundred times better then that of Innocencie. Verily by being watered with our Sauiours Blood, caused by the

Isoppe of the Crosse, we are reduced to a whit∣nesse incomparably more excellent, then the snow of innocencie, returning out of the Flood of health with NAMAN, more pure and vnspotted, as though we had neuer bene Leprous: to th'end that the diuine Maiestie, as he hath also ordained we should doe, might not be ouercome by euill, but ouercome euill by good; that his Mercy as a sa∣cred oyle might keepe aboue Iudgment, and his commiseration surpasse all his workes.