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BUt that godly and meke doctor (I meane the most blessed Cipriane) was not of thys iugement: which sayd that we ought to glo¦rye in nothyng,* 1.1 for asmuche as no thyng is our owne. This thyng to proue he alleged ye Apostle for wyt∣nesse sayeng: what haste thou, that thou hast not receaued?* 1.2 but yf thou
haue receyued, why dost thou glo∣ry as tho thou had not receyued? By this wytnesse chiefly, was I al∣so ouercome, when I dyd in lyke maner erre,* 1.3 thynkyng fayth wher by we beleue in God, not to be the gyft of God, but to be in vs of our selues: and that we dyd obteyne by it the gyftes of God, wherby we myght lyue in thys world soberly, iustly, and Godly. For I dyd not thynke that faythe was preuented by God his grace, that throughe it myght be geuen vnto vs that we dyd profitablye aske: but onlye I thought, that we could not beleue, except we herde fyrst the preaching of the truthe: but that we myght cō¦sent to the Gospel when it is prea∣ched vnto vs, I supposed it to be our owne, and of our selues. The whyche myne error is declared in dyuers of my workes,* 1.4 that were writtē before I was made byshop. Amonge which is also that, wher∣of you haue made mēcion in your letters: where as is an exposicion of certeine propositions of thepist∣le wrytten to the Romanes. Fur∣thermore when I retracted all my
workes,* 1.5 and dyd wryte the same re¦tractacion: of the which I had now fynished two bokes, before I had receyued your longe letters: when I was in the fyrst dolume now co∣me to the retracting of thys boke, ther I spake after thys maner: In lyke maner disputing what (I say) God dyd chose in hym ye was not yet borne,* 1.6 to whom he sayd that the elder should serue hym: and what he reiected in the same elder, being in lyke maner not yet borne: of whome for the which cause the pro¦phete said:* 1.7 I haue loued Iacob, but Esau I haue hated (altho this testi¦mony of the Prophet was spoken lōge after) at the length I brought my disputacion vnto thys point, That I sayd: God hath not therfo∣re in his forknowledge chosen any mans workes, which he should gy¦ue hym: but he hath in hys for kno¦wlege chosen fayth, so that he hath chosen hym, whom he knewe afor∣hāde would beleue in hym, to whō he myght geue ye holy Goost, that by workynge of good workes, he myght also attaine to eternal lyfe. I had not yet diligētly sought,* 1.8 nor yet foūde out, what maner a thing
the election of grace was: wherof the same Apostle sayeth. The rem∣naunt are saued by the election of grace: whych verely is no grace, yf any merites at al go before it: leste that whych is now geuen, shoulde not be geuen accordyng to grace, but rather as dewtye recompensed to merites. Wherfore thys that I sayd immediatly: For the same A∣postle sayeth, it is ye selfe same God that worketh all in all:* 1.9 but in no place it is sayde, that God bele∣ueth all in all: and then after I added. For in that we beleue, it is our owne, but in that we wor∣ke wel, it is his, that geueth the ho∣ly goost to them that beleue: suerly I would not haue sayd thus: yf I had then knowē, that the self fayth had ben also founde amonge god∣des gyftes, whych are gyuen of the same spirite. Both then are oures, for the choise of wyl: & yet that not∣wythstandyng both are geuen, tho¦rowe the spirite of fayth and chari∣tie. For not charitie only, but as it is wrytten: Charitie with fayth frō God the Father and the Lorde Iesu Christ. And where as a lytle after I sayd thus:* 1.10 for to beleue and
wyll is oures, but to gyue to them that beleue and wyl power to wor∣ke well thorowe the holy goost, by whome the loue of God is spred a∣brode in our hartes, is his: This is true: but by ye same rule, both these are also his, forbecause he doth pre¦pare the wyl: & both are oures, be∣cause they are not done excepte we be wyllyng. And by this whiche I sayd also after. For neither can we wyll, except we be called, and whē after callyng we shall wyl, our wil and runnyng are not sufficient, ex¦cept God geueth strength to vs rū∣nyng, and brynge vs thether, whe∣ther he do cal vs: And then after I concluded thus: It is therfore ma∣nifest that it lyeth neither in the rū¦ner nor in the wyller that we wor¦ke well, but in God that hath mer¦cye: thys is a moste true sayeng.* 1.11
* 1.12But I dyd speake but lytle of that callyng, whyche is wrought accor∣dyng to the purpose of God. For thys maner of callynge belongeth not to al that are called, but onlye to the electe. Therfore this that I sayd a lytle after: For lykewyse as in them whome God hath chosen,
not workes, but fayth begynneth the merite, that they maye worke thorowe the gyft of God: Euen so in them whome he condemne, infi¦delitie and vngodlynes begynneth the merite of paine, that by the self paine they may also worke wycked¦ly: this I said moste truely: but yet I sayd not that the merite of fayth was also the selfe gyft of God: nei∣ther dyd I thynke it a thynge wor¦thy to be enquyred for. And in an other place. For vpon whom (sayd I) he hath mercy, he maketh hym to worke wel: and whome he dothe harden, he leaueth hym to worke euel. But bothe that mercy is geuē to the merite of fayth goynge befo∣re, and also thys harding to the pre¦cedynge wyckednes. The whyche verely is true, but yet we ought to haue serched further whether that also the merite of fayth do preuent gods mercy: that is, whether thys mercy is therfore only wrought in man, because he was faythfull: or whether it was also wrought, that he myght be made faythfull.* 1.13 For we reade (as thapostle sayeth) I ha¦ue opteined mercy, that I myghte
be made faythful: he sayeth not, be¦cause he was faythful. It is then geuen vnto the faythful, but it was also geuen, that he myght be made faythfull. Wherfore in an other place of the same boke, I sayd most truly. For yf not of workes, but thorowe goddes mercy, we be both called that we mai beleue, and also when we beleue, it is geuē vs that we maye worke well, the Gentyls are not to be enuyed for this mercy neuerthelesse. I dyd not there so di¦ligently entreate of that callynge, which is accordyng to goddes pur∣pose, as I ought to haue done.
No good thynge is our owne
1. Corin. 4
S. Aug. cōfesseth his error: wolde to god oure B. and P. that haue the lyke er¦ror, wold make the lyke con∣fession.
Out of these wor¦kes do our aduer¦saries ga¦ther diue∣rs autho∣rities of S. Aug.
against grace for the defen¦ce of free wyl and merites.
Rom. 9.
Mala. 1.
The cau∣se why s. Aug. con∣tinued so¦longe in this error Rom. 11.
1. Cor. 12.
Ephe. 6.
Rom. 9.
There is one pecu∣lier callīg that belō∣geth only to gods chosen, wherof is men on made Ro. 8. & this is ac¦cordyng to the pur¦pose of God.
1. Timo. 1.