The anatomy of Arminianisme: or The opening of the controuersies lately handled in the Low-Countryes, concerning the doctrine of prouidence, of predestination, of the death of Christ, of nature and grace. By Peter Moulin, pastor of the church at Paris. Carefully translated out of the originall Latine copy

CHAP. XXVII.

How farre, and in what sence Christ died for all. The opi∣nions of the parties.

I. THE Arminians are of opinion, that Christ by his death obtained & got re∣mission of sins, * 1.1 reconciliation, & salua∣tion for all, & particular men: Nor doe they doubt to say, that by the death of Christ, reconciliation was obtained for Pharaoh, Saul, Iudas, and Pilate, not as they were reprobates, but as they were sinners: For God doth equally intend and desire the saluation of all men; and that the incredu∣lity of man is the cause that remission and reconcilia∣tion is not applied to all.

Yet Vorstius alone, the champion of the Armi∣nians, doth stagger in this question, and doth seeme to be more prone to the contrary opinion. In the 56. Page Collat. cum Piscat. He saith that Christ was deli∣uered by God to death, not for the elect alone, but for all men whatsoeuer, at least for them that are called.

III. They thinke that the end which God pro∣pounded to himselfe in deliuering his Sonne to death, was not to apply this benefit to some certaine men; nor doe they thinke that Christ was appointed to death, by the precise will of God; to saue man, for Christ was appointed to death by his father, before God thought of sauing of men, and therefore that he was appointed to death without that respect, that they which beleeue in him should be saued. Greuin∣chouius, Page 21. doth say expressely, that reconcilia∣tion being obtained, there was yet no necessity of ap∣plication, that is, after saluation and reconciliation for all men was obtained, there was no necessity that any one should be saued, and it was possible that no man in act should be reconciled: Because he will haue the decree of sending Christ, in order, to goe before the decree of sauing those which beleeue, and therefore that God determined to send his Sonne, when he had not yet determined to saue those which beleeue. But the Arminians would haue this to be the end which God propounded to himselfe in sending his Sonne, to wit, to make the saluation of men possible, and to lay open a way for himselfe, whereby hee might saue finners, without any hurt to his iustice. By this meanes, they say, God hath gotten power of sauing man, because without the death of Christ, * 1.2 by which the iustice of God was satisfied, God could not be willing to saue men.

IV. And if no man had beleeued in Christ, yet Christ (if these men be beleeued) had obtained that end which he propounded to himselfe in dying: For they denie that he died to saue any man precifely, but

that the saluation of man might be made possible, and a gate might be opened vnto him to saluation, which is left free for man by the helpe of grace to en∣ter, or not to enter.

V. * 1.3 They distinguish therefore, betweene the ob∣taining of reconciliation and the application of it. They contend that reconciliation and remission of sinnes, is obtained for all, which yet is applied onely to them that beleeue: That all men are giuen to Christ in the right of saluation, but not in the communica∣tion of saluation: That God hath neither willed nor nilled the application of reconciliation (that is, faith and saluation) to all men, but he hath thus willed it, if they beleeue, if they will receiue grace.

VI. * 1.4 The same men also doe deny, that Christ on the crosse sustained the person of the elect, or that he died for the elect: Because election had not then place, for election is something that is after the death of Christ.

VII. They say indeede that Christ offered him∣selfe for a sacrifice for all men, but as concerning his intercession, they are not constant to themselues in that, * 1.5 sometimes they will haue him to make inter∣cession onely for the saithfull, as if something might be obtained without intercession: Sometimes they make two kindes of intercession, * 1.6 one generall and common to all, another particular, which is onely pe∣culiar to the elect.

VIII. We doe very much differ from this opi∣nion: We acknowledge that Christ died for all; but we denie, that by his death saluation and forgiuenesse of sinne is obtained for all men: Or that reconci∣liation,

is made for Cain, Pharaoh, Saul, Iudas, &c. Neither doe wee thinke that remission of sinnes is obtained for any one, whose sinnes are not remit∣ted, or that saluation was purchased for him, whom God from eternity hath decreed to condemne: For this were a vaine purcha••e. We denie that election is after the death of Christ, as for many other causes, so also because Christ in the very agony of death gaue a notable proofe of election in the theefe, whose heart he affected, and enlightned his minde after an vnvtte∣rable manner; the other theefe being left and neg∣lected. And seeing Christ doth euery where say that he died for his sheepe, and for those whom his father gaue him, he doth sufficiently declare that he died for the elect.

IX. And when we say that Christ died for all, we take it thus, to wit, that the death of Christ is suffi∣cient to saue whosoeuer doe beleeue, yea, and that it is sufficient to saue all men, if all men in the whole world did beleeue in him: And that the cause why all men are not saued, is not in the insufficiency of the death of Christ, but in the wickednesse and incredu∣lity of man. Finally Christ may be said to reconcile all men to God by his death, after the same manner, that we say that the Sunne doth enlighten the eyes of all men, although many are blinde, many sleepe, and many are hid in darkenesse: Because if all and seue∣rall men had their eyes, and were awake, and were in the middest of the light, the light of the Sunne were sufficient to enlighten them. Neither is it any doubt but that it may be said, not onely that Christ died for all men, but also that all men are saued by Christ, be∣cause

among men, there is none saued but by Christ: After the same manner that the Apostle saith, 1. Cor. 15.20, that all men are made aliue by Christ, because no man is made aliue but by him.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Coll. Page 130. Christut omnibus per mortem im∣petrauit recenci∣liationem & re∣missionem pecca∣torum. Collat. Hag. P. 183. Non om∣nibus merito suo partam salutem consert etiamsi omnthussit ac∣quisita.
• * 1.2

  Greuinch. Pag. 15.16.17.
• * 1.3

  Vide Collat. Hag. p. 172. Greum. p. 8.9. Deus applicatio∣nem reconnliati∣ones amnibus nec voluit nec noluit, &c.
• * 1.4

  Armin in Per∣kins. Page 77. & 78.
• * 1.5

  Greuinch P. 46. Christus quo∣ad actum oblati∣onis omnium ••m nino hominam sacerd••s suit eti∣am Pharaonis, &c Ib•• per oblationē vult fi••ri impe∣tration 〈◊〉〈◊〉, per intercessionem ••ere applicatio∣nem.
• * 1.6

  Coll Ha. p. 187. Respondemus du∣p••••cē esse inter∣cess••onem vnam generalem quae ••otum mundum spectat, alteram particularē quae ad sol••s credem∣tes p••rti••es.