Particulars
of Christianity:
401
First Eight Writers' Consensus
13: Freewill (B) Against
Unconditional Election
Early
Church Confirmation Rubric
Early
Church Consensus: Introduction
1:
Nature of the Godhead
2:
Covenants & O.T. Saints Relationship to the Church
3:
Kingdom (Hell), Timing of 2nd Advent and Kingdom
4-5:
Age of the World (6000 Years); Communion Meal
6:
Baptisms
7-8:
Law of Christ; Repentance
9-12:
Excommunication; Divorce; Sabbath; Tithing
13:
Freewill (A) Against Original Sin and Total Depravity
13:
Freewill (B) Against Unconditional Election
13:
Freewill (C-D) Against Ltd. Atmt.; Ir. Grace, OSAS
14-15:
Church Authority; Roles of Men and Women
16-18:
Charismatic Gifts; Civil Gov't., War; Men & Angels
Addendum
1: Eternal Begetting - Irenaeus and Ignatius
Addendum
2: Eternal Begetting - Justin Martyr
Full
Catalog
13)
View of Freewill and Election
b)
Which men were elected for redemption and reward and which
men were selected for final condemnation and punishment was
unequivocally viewed as being conditional upon which men would
choose to believe and obey and which would not. This
conditional election took place before creation by means of
God’s ability to foreknow all things, including men’s entirely
free choices. Consequently, the Calvinist doctrine
of Unconditional Election was rejected.
NOTE:
The first quotes below are from Ignatius’ epistles. And, contrary
to Open Theism, in these quotes Ignatius plainly states that
time was not always around (existing co-eternally with God)
but instead time began (i.e. was created) at a certain point.
And before time began, God (including the Word) existed outside
of time.
Ignatius
–
THE
EPISTLE OF IGNATIUS TO THE EPHESIANS
[Introduction]
Ignatius, who is also called Theopharus, to the Church which is at Ephesus, in
Asia, deservedly most happy, being blessed in the greatness
and fulness of God the Father, and predestinated
before the beginning[1] of time, that it should be always
for an enduring and unchangeable glory, being united[2] and
elected through the true passion by the will of the Father,
and Jesus Christ, our God: Abundant happiness through Jesus
Christ, and His undefiled grace.
CHAP.
XVIII. Let my sprat
be courted as nothing(10) for the sake of the cross, which
is a stumbling-block" to those that do not believe, but
to us salvation and the cross of Christ is indeed a stumbling-block
to those that do not believe, but to the believing it is salvation
and life eternal. "Where is the wise man? where the disputer?"(13)
Where is the boasting of those who are called mighty? For
the Son of God, who was begotten before time began(2),
and established all things according to the will of the Father,
He was conceived in the womb of Mary, according to the appointment
of God, of the seed of David, and by the Holy Ghost. For says
[the Scripture], "Behold, a virgin shall be with child,
and shall bring forth a son, and He shall be called Immanuel."(4)
He was born and was baptized by John, that He might ratify
the institution committed to that prophet.
Ignatius
–
THE
EPISTLE OF IGNATIUS TO THE MAGNESIANS
CHAP.
VI. Since therefore
I have, in the persons before mentioned, beheld the whole
multitude of you in faith and love, I exhort you to study
to do all things with a divine harmony,[4] while your bishop
presides in the place of God, and your presbyters in the place
of the assembly of the apostles, along with your deacons,
who are most dear to me, and are entrusted with the
ministry of Jesus Christ, who was with the Father before the
beginning of time,[5] and in the end was revealed. Do
ye all then, imitating the same divine conduct,[7] pay respect
to one another, and let no one look upon his neighbour after
the flesh, but do ye continually love each other in Jesus
Christ. Let nothing exist among you that may divide you ;
but be ye united with your bishop, and those that preside
over you, as a type and evidence of your immortality.[8]
Ignatius
–
THE
EPISTLE OF IGNATIUS
TO POLYCARP
Chapter
III. Let not those who seem worthy of credit, but teach strange
doctrines, [1080] fill thee with apprehension. Stand firm,
as does an anvil which is beaten. It is the part of a noble
[1081] athlete to be wounded, and yet to conquer. And especially,
we ought to bear all things for the sake of God, that He also
may bear with us. Be ever becoming more zealous than what
thou art. Weigh carefully the times. Look for Him who is above all time, eternal and invisible, yet who
became visible for our sakes; impalpable and impassible, yet
who became passible on our account; and who in every kind
of way suffered for our sakes.
Justin
Martyr –
JUSTIN'S
HORTATORY ADDRESS TO THE GREEKS
CHAP.
XXXIII. And from what source did Plato draw the information that time was created
along with the heavens? For he wrote thus: "Time, accordingly, was created along with
the heavens; in order that, coming into being together, they
might also be together dissolved, if ever their dissolution
should take place." Had he not learned this from the divine history
of Moses? For he knew that the creation of time had received
its original constitution from days and months and years.
Since, then, the first day which was created along with
the heavens constituted the beginning of all time (for thus
Moses wrote, "In the beginning God created the heavens
and the earth," and then immediately subjoins, "And
one day was made," as if he would designate the whole
of time by one part of it), Plato names the day "time,"
lest, if he mentioned the "day," he should seem
to lay himself open to the accusation of the Athenians, that
he was completely adopting the expressions of Moses. And from
what source did he derive what he has written regarding the
dissolution of the heavens? Had he not learned this, too, from the sacred prophets, and did he not
think that this was their doctrine?
NOTE:
The remainder of the quotes below in this section are general
quotes on foreknowledge and conditional election.
Mathetes
–
THE
EPISTLE OF MATHETES TO DIOGNETUS
CHAP.
X. If you also desire
[to possess] this faith, you likewise shall receive first
of all the knowledge of the Father.[1] For God has loved
mankind, on whose account He made the world, to whom He rendered
subject all the things that are in it,[2] to
whom He gave reason and understanding, to whom alone He imparted
the privilege of looking upwards to Himself, whom He formed
after His own image, to whom He sent His only-begotten Son,
to whom He has promised a kingdom in heaven, and will give it to those who have loved Him.
And when you have attained this knowledge, with what joy do
you think you will be filled? Or, how will you love Him who
has first so loved you? And if you love Him, you will be an
imitator of His kindness. And do not wonder that a man may become an imitator of God. He can, if
he is willing.
CHAP.
XII. …For I trust that ye are well versed in the Sacred Scriptures,
and that nothing is hid from you; but to me this privilege
is not yet granted.(23) It is declared then in these Scriptures,
"Be ye angry, and sin not,"(23) and, "Let not
the sun go down upon your wrath."(24) Happy is he who
remembers(25) this, which I believe to be the case with you.
But may the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and Jesus
Christ Himself, who is the Son of God, and our everlasting
High Priest, build you up in faith and truth, and in all meekness,
gentleness, patience, long-suffering, forbearance, and purity;
and may He bestow on
you a lot and portion among His saints, and on us with you,
and on all that are under heaven, who shall believe in our
Lord Jesus Christ, and in His Father, who "raised Him
from the dead.(1)
Barnabas
–
THE
EPISTLE OF BARNABAS(1)
CHAP.
III. To this end, therefore, brethren, He is long-suffering, foreseeing how the people
whom He has prepared shall with guilelessness believe in His
Beloved. For He revealed all these things to us beforehand,
that we should not rush forward as rash acceptors of their
laws.(10)
CHAP.
XIII. But let us see
if this people(21) is the heir, or the former, and if the
covenant belongs to us or to them. Hear ye now what the
Scripture saith concerning the people. Isaac prayed for Rebecca
his wife, because she was barren; and she conceived.(22) Furthermore
also, Rebecca went forth to inquire of the Lord; and the Lord
said to her, "Two nations are in thy womb, and two peoples
in thy belly; and the one people shall surpass the other,
and the eider shall serve the younger."(23) You ought
to understand who was Isaac, who Rebecca, and concerning what
persons He declared that this people should be greater than
that. And in another prophecy Jacob speaks more clearly to
his son Joseph, saying, "Behold, the Lord hath not
deprived me of thy presence; bring thy sons to me, that I
may bless them."(24) And he brought Manasseh and Ephraim,
desiring that Manasseh(25) should be blessed, because he was
the eider. With this view Joseph led him to the right hand
of his father Jacob. But
Jacob saw in spirit the type of the people to arise afterwards.
And what says [the Scripture]? And Jacob changed the direction
of his bands, and laid his fight hand upon the head of Ephraim,
the second and younger, and blessed him. And Joseph said to
Jacob, "Transfer thy right hand to the head of Manasseh,(25)
for he is my first-born son."(26) And Jacob said, "I
know it, my son, I know it; but the eider shall serve the
younger: yet he also shall be blessed."(27) Ye
see on whom he laid(28) [his hands], that this people should
be first, and heir of the covenant. If then, still further,
the same thing was intimated through Abraham, we reach the
perfection of our knowledge. What, then, says He to Abraham?
"Because thou hast believed,(1) it is imputed to thee
for righteousness: behold, I have made thee the father of
those nations who believe in the Lord while in [a state of]
uncircumcision."(2)
CHAP.
XVII. As far as was possible, and could be done with perspicuity,
I cherish the hope that, according to my desire, I have omitted none(20) of those things at
present [demanding consideration], which bear upon your
salvation. For if I should write to you about things
future,(21) ye would not understand, because such knowledge
is hid in parables. These things then are so.
Clement
–
THE
FIRST EPISTLE OF CLEMENT TO THE CORINTHIANS
CHAP.
IX. Let us stedfastly contemplate those who have perfectly
ministered to His excellent glory. Let us take (for instance)
Enoch, who, being found righteous in obedience,
was translated, and death was never known to happen to
him? Noah, being found faithful, preached regeneration
to the world through his ministry; and the Lord saved by him
the animals which, with one accord, entered into the ark.
CHAP.
X. Abraham, styled
"the friend,"(11) was
found faithful, inasmuch as he rendered obedience to the words
of God. He, in the exercise of obedience, went out from
his own country, and from his kindred, and from his father's
house, in order that, by forsaking a small territory, and
a weak family, and an insignificant house, he might inherit
the promises of God. For God said to him, "Get thee out
from thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's
house, into the land which I shall show thee. And I will make thee a great nation, and
will bless thee, and make thy name great, and thou shall be
blessed. And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse
them that curse thee; and in thee shall all the families of
the earth be blessed."(12) And again, on his departing from Lot,
God said to him. "Lift up thine eyes, and look from the
place where thou now art, northward, and southward, and eastward,
and westward; for all the land which thou seest, to thee will
I give it, and to thy seed for ever. And I will make thy
seed as the dust of the earth, [so that] if a man can number
the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered."(13)
And again [the Scripture] saith, "God brought forth Abram,
and spake unto him, Look up now to heaven, and count the stars
if thou be able to number them; so shall thy seed be. And
Abram believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness."(14)
On account of his faith
and hospitality, a son was given him in his old age; and in
the exercise of obedience, he offered him as a sacrifice
to God on one of the mountains which He showed him.(1)
CHAP.
XI. On account of his
hospitality and godliness, Lot was saved out of Sodom
when all the country round was punished by means of fire and
brimstone, the Lord thus making it manifest that He does not forsake those that hope
in Him, but gives up such as depart from Him to punishment
and torture.(2) For Lot's wife, who went forth with him, being
of a different mind from himself and not continuing in agreement
with him [as to the command which had been given them], was
made an example of, so as to be a pillar of salt unto this
day.(3) This was done that all might know that those who are
of a double mind, and who distrust the power of God, bring
down judgment on themselves? and become a sign to all succeeding
generations.
CHAP.
XII. On account of
her faith and hospitality, Rahab the harlot was saved.
For when spies were sent by Joshua, the son of Nun, to Jericho,
the king of the country ascertained that they were come to
spy out their land, and sent men to seize them, in order that,
when taken, they might be put to death. But the hospitable
Rahab receiving them, concealed them on the roof of her house
under some stalks of flax. And when the men sent by the king
arrived and said "There came men unto thee who are to
spy out our land; bring them forth, for so the king commands,"
she answered them, "The two men whom ye seek came unto
me, but quickly departed again and are gone," thus not
discovering the spies to them. Then she said to the men, "I
know assuredly that the Lord your God hath given you this
city, for the fear and dread of you have fallen on its inhabitants.
When therefore ye shall have taken it, keep ye me and the
house of my father in safety." And they said to her,
"It shall be as thou hast spoken to us. As soon, therefore,
as thou knowest that we are at hand, thou shall gather all
thy family under thy roof, and they shall be preserved, but
all that. are found outside of thy dwelling shall perish."(5)
Moreover, they gave her a sign to this effect, that
she should hang forth from her house a scarlet thread. And
thus they made it manifest that redemption should flow through
the blood of the Lord to all them that believe and hope
in God.(6) Ye see, beloved, that there was not only faith,
but prophecy, in this woman.
CHAP.
XXI. Take heed, beloved,
lest His many kindnesses lead to the condemnation of us all.
[For thus it must be] unless
we walk worthy of Him, and with one mind do those things which
are good and well-pleasing in His sight. For
[the Scripture] saith in a certain place, "The Spirit
of the Lord is a candle searching the secret parts of the
belly."(1) Let us reflect how near He is, and that
none of the thoughts or reasonings in which we engage are
hid from Him. It is right, therefore, that we should not leave
the post which His will has assigned us. Let us rather offend
those men who are foolish, and inconsiderate, and lifted up,
and who glory in the pride of their speech, than [offend]
God. Let us reverence the Lord Jesus Christ, whose blood was
given for us; let us esteem those who have the rule over us;(2)
let us honour the aged(3) among us; let us train up the young
men in the fear of God; let us direct our wives to that which
is good. Let them exhibit the lovely habit of purity [in all
their conduct]; let them show forth the sincere disposition
of meekness; let them make manifest the command which they
have of their tongue, by their manner(4) of speaking; let
them display their love, not by preferring(5) one to another,
but by showing equal affection to all that piously fear God.
Let your children be partakers of true Christian training;
let them learn of how great avail humility is with God--how
much the spirit of pure affection can prevail with Him--how
excellent and great His fear is, and how it saves all those
who walk in(6) it with a pure mind. For He is a Searcher of
the thoughts and desires [of the heart]: His breath is in
us; and when He pleases, He will take it away.
CHAP.
XXIII. The all-merciful
and beneficent Father has bowels [of compassion] towards those that fear Him, and kindly and
lovingly bestows His favours upon those who come to Him with
a simple mind. Wherefore let us not be double-minded;
neither let our soul be lifted(9) up on account of His exceedingly
great and glorious gifts.
CHAP.
XXVII. Having then this hope, let our souls be bound to Him
who is faithful in His promises, and just in His judgments.
He who has commanded us not to lie, shall much more Himself
not lie; for nothing is impossible with God, except to lie.(7)
Let His faith therefore be stirred up again within us, and
let us consider that all things are nigh unto Him. By
the word of His might(8) He established all things, and by
His word He can overthrow
them. "Who shall say unto Him, What hast thou done?
or, Who shall resist the power of His strength?"(9) When and as He pleases He will
do all things, and none
of the things determined by Him shall pass away? All things are open before Him, and nothing can be hidden from His counsel.
"The heavens(11) declare the glory of God, and the
firmament showeth His handy-work. Day unto day uttereth speech,
and night unto night showeth knowledge. And there are no words
or speeches of which the voices are not heard."(12)
CHAP.XXVIII.
Since then all things
are seen and heard [by God], let us fear Him, and forsake
those wicked works which proceed from evil desires;(13) so
that, through His mercy, we may be protected from the judgments
to come. For whither can any of us flee from His mighty hand?
Or what world will receive any of those who run away from
Him ? For the Scripture saith in a certain place, "Whither
shall I go, and where shall I be hid from Thy presence? If
I ascend into heaven, Thou art there; if I go away even to
the uttermost parts of the earth, there is Thy right hand;
if I make my bed in the abyss, there is Thy Spirit."(14)
Whither, then, shall any one go, or where
shall he escape from Him who comprehends all things?
CHAP.
XXIX. Let us then draw near to Him with holiness of spirit,
lifting up pure and undefiled hands unto Him, loving our gracious and merciful Father, who has
made us partakers in the blessings of His elect.(15) For
thus it is written, "When the Most High divided the nations,
when He scattered(16) the sons of Adam, He fixed the bounds
of the nations according to the number of the angels of God.
His people Jacob became
the portion of the Lord, and Israel the lot of His inheritance."(1)
And in another place
[the Scripture] saith, "Behold, the Lord taketh unto
Himself a nation out of the midst of the nations, as a man
takes the first-fruits of his threshing-floor; and from that
nation shall come forth the Most Holy.(2)
NOTE:
The quote below states plainly that although God needs nothing
from us, our salvation does require something from us. It
is not without our participation. Specifically, although God
is in no need of a sacrifice from us (ultimately providing
that sacrifice Himself through Jesus Christ), yet God does
require our confession of faith and repentance.
CHAP.
LII. The Lord, brethren,
stands in need of nothing; and He desires nothing of any one,
except that confession be made to Him. For, says the elect
David, "I will confess unto the Lord; and that will please
Him more than a young bullock that hath horns and hoofs. Let
the poor see it, and be glad."(6) And again he saith,
"Offer(7) unto God the sacrifice of praise, and pay thy
vows unto the Most High. And call upon Me in the day of thy
trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me."(8)
For "the sacrifice of God is a broken spirit."(9)
CHAP.
LV. Esther also,
being perfect in faith, exposed herself to no less danger,
in order to deliver the twelve tribes of Israel
from impending destruction. For with fasting and humiliation
she entreated the everlasting God, who seeth all things;
and He, perceiving the humility of her spirit, delivered the
people for whose sake she had encountered peril.(3).
Ignatius
–
THE
EPISTLE OF IGNATIUS
TO POLYCARP
Chapter
VII. A Christian has
not power over himself, but must always be ready for [1113]
the service of God. Now,
this work is both God's and yours, when ye shall have completed
it to His glory. [1114] For I trust that, through grace,
ye are prepared for every good work pertaining to God. Knowing,
therefore, your energetic love of the truth, I have exhorted
you by this brief Epistle.
Justin
Martyr –
THE
FIRST APOLOGY OF JUSTIN
CHAP.
X. And we have been
taught that He in the beginning did of His goodness, for
man's sake, create all things out of unformed matter; and
if men by their works show themselves worthy of this His design, they
are deemed worthy, and so we have received--of reigning in
company with Him, being delivered from corruption and suffering.
For as in the beginning He created us when we were not, so
do we consider that, in like manner, those who choose what is pleasing to Him are,
on account of their choice, deemed worthy of incorruption
and of fellowship with Him. For the coming
into being at first was not in our own power; and in order
that we may follow those things which please Him, choosing
them by means of the rational faculties He has Himself endowed
us with, He both persuades us and leads us to faith.
CHAP.
XXVIII. For among us the prince of the wicked spirits is called
the serpent, and Satan, and the devil, as you can learn by
looking into our writings. And
that he would be sent into the fire with his host, and the
men who follow him, and would be punished for an endless duration,
Christ foretold. For the reason why God has delayed to do this,
is His regard for the human race. For He fore-knows that some
are to be saved by repentance, some even that are perhaps
not yet born.(4) In the beginning He made the human race with
the power of thought and of choosing the truth and doing right,
so that all men are without excuse before God; for they have
been born rational and contemplative. And if any one disbelieves
that God cares for these things,(5) he will thereby either
insinuate that God does not exist, or he will assert that
though He exists He delights in vice, or exists like a stone,
and that neither virtue nor vice are anything, but only in
the opinion of men these things are reckoned good or evil.
And this is the greatest profanity and wickedness.
CHAP.
LXV. But we, after
we have thus washed him who has been convinced and has assented
to our teaching, bring him to the place where those who
are called brethren are assembled, in order that
we may offer hearty prayers in common for ourselves and for
the baptized [illuminated] person, and for all others
in every place, that we may be counted worthy, now that we
have learned the truth, by
our works also to be found good citizens and keepers of the
commandments, so that we may be saved with an everlasting
salvation.
NOTE:
In the quote below, Justin describes two prophecies from Moses
and Leviticus concerning the Israelites, warning them of God’s
terrible anger against and the punishments that would come
upon them if they did not circumcise their hearts. Justin
offers these prophecies to explain that the suffering of the
nation of Israel
in his days was just, because they had been warned ahead of
time of the consequences of their sinfulness. In the midst
of this, Justin affirms that not even the unbelieving Jews
would deny that God foresees future events, indicating clearly
that Justin himself believes God foreknows the future as indicated
by his citation of these Old Testament prophecies. Lastly,
Justin’s comments here also directly assert that what each
man receives in judgment is a result of God’s foreknowing
what each man will deserve (i.e. his “deserts). This demonstrates
the Freewill model of conditional election based upon God’s
foreknowledge of men’s actions.
Dialogue
of Justin –
PHILOSOPHER
AND MARTYR, WITH TRYPHO, A JEW
"And
God himself proclaimed by Moses, speaking thus: 'And circumcise
the hardness of your hearts, and no longer stiffen the neck.
For the Lord your God is both Lord of lords, and a great,
mighty, and terrible God, who regardeth not persons, and
taketh not rewards.'(4) And
in Leviticus: 'Because
they have transgressed against Me, and despised Me, and because
they have walked contrary to Me, I also walked contrary to
them, and I shall cut them off in the land of their enemies.
Then shall their uncircumcised
heart be turned.'(5) For the circumcision according to the
flesh, which is from Abraham, was given for a sign; that
you may be separated from other nations, and from us; and
that you alone may
suffer that which you now justly suffer; and that your land
may be desolate, and your cities burned with fire; and that
strangers may eat your fruit in your presence, and not one
of you may go up to Jerusalem.'(6) For you are not recognised
among the rest of men by any other mark than your fleshly
circumcision. For none
of you, I suppose, will venture to say that God neither did
nor does foresee the events, which are future, nor fore-ordained
his deserts for each one. Accordingly, these things have happened
to you in fairness and justice, for you have slain the Just
One, and His prophets before Him; and now you reject those
who hope in Him, and in Him who sent Him--God the Almighty
and Maker of all things--cursing in your synagogues those
that believe on Christ.
NOTE:
The quote below from Justin Martyr is out of order (i.e. it
is from a later chapter). It has been included here because
its content and implications are the same as the quote above.
It attests to God’s foreknowledge of men’s free decisions,
including their decisions to sin, and that God’s judgment
and punishment of men is conditional. However, the quote below
also plainly states that it is slanderous to state that God
has no foreknowledge or to deny that “God is always willing”
that every sinner “may obtain the salvation of Christ.”
CHAP.
XCII. For if one should wish to ask you why, since Enoch,
Noah with his sons, and all others in similar circumstances,
who neither were circumcised nor kept the Sabbath, pleased
God, God demanded by other leaders, and by the giving of the
law after the lapse of so many generations, that those who
lived between the times of Abraham and of Moses be justified
by circumcision, and that those who lived after Moses be justified
by circumcision and the other ordinances--to wit, the Sabbath,
and sacrifices, and libations,(5) and offerings; [God will
be slandered] unless you show, as I have already said, that God who foreknew
was aware that your nation would deserve expulsion from Jerusalem,
and that none would be permitted to enter into it…[And, further, God will be slandered unless you show] that you were
commanded to observe the Sabbath, and to present offerings,
and that the Lord submitted to have a place called by the
name of God, in order that, as has been said, you might not
become impious and godless by worshipping idols and forgetting
God, as indeed you do always appear to have been. (Now, that
God enjoined the ordinances of Sabbaths and offerings for
these reasons, I have proved in what I previously remarked;
but for the sake of those who came to-day, I wish to repeat
nearly the whole.) For if this is not the case, God will be slandered,(1) as having no foreknowledge,
and as not teaching all men to know and to do the same acts
of righteousness (for many. generations of men appear to have
existed before Moses); and the Scripture is not true which
affirms that 'God is true and righteous, and all His ways
are judgments, and there is no unrighteousness in him.' But
since the Scripture is true, God is always willing that such
even as you be neither foolish nor lovers of yourselves, in
order that you may obtain the salvation of Christ,(2) who
pleased God, and received testimony from Him, as I have already
said, by alleging proof from the holy words of prophecy.
NOTE:
In the quote below, Justin records the question “O Lord, why
hast Thou made us to err from Thy way? and hardened our hearts,
so that we do not fear Thee?” Does this mean that Justin believes
that God is the cause of human sinning? The answer is shown
to be “no” by the context. This question is itself the words
of those who falsely justify themselves on the grounds that
they are biologically Abraham’s children. Isaiah, under the
guidance of the Holy Spirit, impersonates such self-justifying
individuals. It is those men, in their self-justification,
that place the blame on God for their own errors and flaws.
But at the end of the quote, Isaiah (and by extension Justin)
finally clears up this self-justification, when these men
realize that, in reality, God is “wroth” and that they have
erred, not by God’s doing, but because they “were sinning”
and “by reason of [their] iniquities.”
CHAP.
XXV. "Those who
justify themselves, and say they are sons of Abraham, shall
be desirous even in a small degree to receive the inheritance
along with you;(6) as the Holy Spirit, by the mouth of Isaiah,
cries, speaking thus while he personates them: …'O
Lord, why hast Thou made us to err from Thy way? and hardened
our hearts, so that we do not fear Thee? …Behold,
Thou art wroth, and we were sinning. Therefore we have erred
and become all unclean, and all our righteousness is as
the rags of a woman set apart: and we have faded away like
leaves by reason of
our iniquities; thus the wind will take us away.’”
CHAP.
XLII. And in short, sirs," said I, "by enumerating all the other appointments
of Moses I can demonstrate that they were types, and symbols,
and declarations of those things which would happen to Christ,
of those who it was foreknown were to believe in Him, and of those
things which would also be done by Christ Himself. But since
what I have now enumerated appears to me to be sufficient,
I revert again to the order of the discourse.(1)
CHAP.
LXX. But I must repeat
to you the words of Isaiah referred to, in order that
from them you may know that these things are so. They are
these: 'Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; those
that are near shall know my might. The sinners in Zion are removed; trembling
shall seize the impious. Who shall announce to you the everlasting
place? The man who walks in righteousness, speaks in the right
way, hates sin and unrighteousness, and keeps his hands pure
from bribes, stops the ears from hearing the unjust judgment
of blood closes the eyes from seeing unrighteousness: he shall
dwell in the lofty cave of the strong rock. Bread shall be
given to him, and his water[shall be] sure. Ye shall see the
King with glory, and your eyes shall look far off. Your
soul shall pursue diligently the fear of the Lord. Where
is the scribe? where are the counsellors? where is he that
numbers those who are nourished,--the small and great people?
with whom they did not take counsel, nor knew the depth of
the voices, so that they heard not. The people who are become
depreciated, and there is no understanding in him who hears.'(5)
…And this prophecy proves that we shall
behold this very King with glory; and the very terms of the
prophecy declare loudly, that
the people foreknown to believe in Him were fore-known to
pursue diligently the fear of the Lord.
CHAP.
LXXIV.And I answered, "Attend to me, I beseech you, while
I speak of the statement which the Holy Spirit gave utterance
to in this Psalm; and you shall know that I speak not sinfully,
and that we(5) are not really bewitched; for
so you shall be enabled of yourselves to understand many other
statements made by the Holy Spirit.
CHAP.
LXXVII. Proceed then to make this plain to us, that we may
see how you prove that that[passage] refers to this Christ
of yours. For we assert that the prophecy relates to Hezekiah."
And I replied, "I shall do as you wish. But show me yourselves
first of all how it is said of Hezekiah, that before
he knew how to call father or mother, he received the power
of Damascus and the spoils
of Samaria in the presence of the king of Assyria. For it will not be conceded to you, as you
wish to explain it, that Hezekiah waged war with the inhabitants
of Damascus and Samaria in presence
of the king of Assyria. For
if the Spirit of prophecy had not made the statement with
an addition, 'Before the child knows how to call father or
mother, he shall take the power of Damascus and spoils of
Samaria,' but had only said, 'And shall bear a son, and he
shall take the power of Damascus and spoils of Samaria,' then you might say that God foretold that he would take these things,
since He fore-knew it. But now the prophecy has stated it
with this addition: 'Before the child knows how to call father
or mother, he shall take the power of Damascus
and spoils of Samaria.' And you cannot prove that such
a thing ever happened to any one among the Jews. But we are able to prove that it happened in the case of our Christ.
For at the time of His birth, Magi who came from Arabia worshipped
Him, coming first to Herod, who then was sovereign in your
land, and whom the Scripture calls king of Assyria on account
of his ungodly and sinful character. For you know," continued
I, "that the Holy Spirit oftentimes announces such events
by parables and similitudes; just as He did towards all the
people in Jerusalem, frequently saying to them, 'Thy father
is an Amorite, and thy mother a Hittite.(3)
NOTE:
In the quote Justin explains even the selective determinism
that God exercises over limited events, such as the crucifixion,
do not involve God overriding, guiding, or tampering with
human freewill. He states plainly that although God willed
for Christ to suffer and die, those who put Christ to death
were disobeying God’s will. How then did God cause it? Justin
indicates that God had precedent from the numerous examples
of how the Jewish people would treat a righteous man because
of all the prophets that they killed. He also states plainly
that God foreknew how the Jews of Jesus’ day would act toward
him. So, in Justin’s thoughts, God caused His Christ to be
killed not by manipulating the will of men, but by sending
Christ to people that God foreknew would surely kill such
a righteous messenger.
CHAP.
XCV. For although His
Father caused Him to suffer these things in behalf of the
human family, yet you did not commit the deed as in obedience to the will of God.
For you did not practise
piety when you slew the prophets. And let none of you
say: If His Father wished Him to suffer this, in order that by His stripes
the human race might be healed, we have done no wrong.
If, indeed, you repent of your sins, and recognise Him to
be Christ, and observe His commandments, then you may assert
this; for, as I have said before, remission of sins shall
be yours. But if you curse Him and them that believe on Him,
and, when you have the power, put them to death, how is it
possible that requisition shall not be made of you, as of
unrighteous and sinful men, altogether hard-hearted and without
understanding, because you laid your hands on Him? CHAP. XCVI.
"For the statement in the law, 'Cursed is every one that
hangeth on a tree,'(3) confirms our hope which depends on
the crucified Christ, not because He who has been crucified is cursed
by God, but because God foretold that which would be done
by you all, and by those like to your, who do not know(4)
that this is He who existed before all, who is the eternal
Priest of God, and King, and Christ. And you clearly see that
this has come to pass.
NOTE:
In the following quote, Justin affirms that no one can know
the Father or the Son except those to whom the Son has revealed
them. But Justin then immediately says that this much-needed
revelation comes from reading the scriptures, even calling
the record of the scriptures a grace or gift from God. And
no doubt it is a gift, since in the scriptures sinners can
find recorded for them the true knowledge that they and their
ancestors have rejected and forgotten, yet God has not left
them without a way to restore that knowledge. But since Justin
ascribes the Son’s work of revealing the Father and the Son
to the act of reading the scriptures (which are the record
of the Son’s teachings about Himself and the Father), there
is no reason and no room to suggest that the means of revelation
is some irresistible, inner work performed by God on man’s
heart. Justin’s words here simply make no mention of such
an irresistible, inner work. For Justin, the revelation of
the Father and the Son is in the record of the scriptures
that record Jesus’ teachings.
CHAP.
C. …I have proved that it is not in the blessing of Joseph
and Judah alone that what relates to Him was proclaimed mysteriously,
but also in the Gospel it is written that He said: 'All things are delivered unto me by My Father;' and, 'No man knoweth the Father but the Son; nor
the Son but the Father, and they to whom the Son will reveal
Him.'(1) Accordingly He revealed to us all that we have perceived
by His grace out of the Scriptures.
CHAP.
CXVIII. And we have
not in vain believed in Him, and have not been led astray
by those who taught us such doctrines; but
this has come to pass through the wonderful foreknowledge
of God, in order that we, through the calling of the new and
eternal covenant, that is, of Christ, might be found more
intelligent and God-fearing than yourselves, who are considered
to be lovers of God and men of understanding, but are not.
CHAP.
CXX. And this was a
symbol of the fact that some of your nation would be found
children of Abraham, and found, too, in the lot of Christ;
but that others, who are indeed children of Abraham, would
be like the sand on the sea-shore, barren and fruitless, much in quantity,
and without number indeed, but bearing no fruit whatever,
and only drinking the water of the sea.
CHAP.
CXXXIV. For while Noah gave to the two sons the seed of the
third as servants, now on the other hand Christ has come to
restore both the free sons and the servants amongst them,
conferring the same honour on all of them who keep His commandments;
even as the children of the free women and the children of
the bond women born to Jacob were all sons, and equal in dignity.
And it was foretold
what each should be according to rank and according to fore-knowledge.
NOTE:
The quote of Justin Martyr below is actually a fragment of
Justin quoted by Irenaeus. The quote directly dismisses the
Calvinist concept of “compatibilistic will” in which God (in
His uncooperative sovereign determinism) unilaterally causes
all of men’s choices, even men’s sins, as exemplified in the
Calvinist interpretation of Joseph’s brothers selling him
into slavery. For Calvinists, a man chooses a sinful action
because God determines for him to do so. The man’s fulfillment
of God’s choice manifests in the man’s own selfish and sinful
motives prompting him to sin, while God’s motives for irresistibly
causing this sinful act to come to pass are righteous even
though they are lead to the same evil action. However, an
equally valid Freewill interpretation of this same example
is that God foresaw the choices of Joseph’s brothers and allowed
those choices to occur, perhaps even instigating the event
by giving Joseph dreams, but without in any way tampering
with or internally controlling their freewill. Thus, what
they meant for evil, God intended for good. But this “foresee
and allow” interpretation places God in a responsive role
to the foreknown choices or tendencies of men, rather than
God acting as the initiating and unilaterally causative role
for all men’s choices, as Calvinistic “compatibilism” claims.
Here Justin affirms that God is not in any way behind the
choices of men to sin, but instead each man sin’s by his own
will and preferences without God being in any way complicit
in the decision for any reason.
Justin
Martyr –
OTHER
FRAGMENTS FROM THE LOST WRITINGS OF JUSTIN
III.
Justin well said: Before the advent of the Lord, Satan never
ventured to blaspheme God, inasmuch as he was not yet sure
of his own damnation, since that was announced concerning
him by the prophets only in parables and allegories. But
after the advent of the Lord learning plainly from the discourses
of Christ and His apostles that eternal fire was prepared
for him who voluntarily departed from God and for all who,
without repentance, persevere in apostasy, then, by means
of a man of this sort, he, as if already condemned, blasphemes that God who inflicts judgment
upon him, and imputes the sin of his apostasy to his Maker,
instead of to his own will and predilection.--IRENAEUS:
Heresies, v. 26.
Dialogue
of Justin –
PHILOSOPHER
AND MARTYR, WITH TRYPHO, A JEW
CHAP.
CXXXIII. "Now, although these and all other such unexpected
and marvellous works were wrought amongst and seen by you
at different times, yet you are convicted by the prophets of having
gone to such a length as offering your own children to demons;
and besides all this, of having dared to do such things against
Christ; and you still dare to do them: for all which may it
be granted to you to obtain mercy and salvation from God and
His Christ. For God,
knowing before that you would do such things, pronounced this
curse upon you…
CHAP.
XXVIII. 7. That eternal
fire, [for instance,] is prepared for sinners, both the
Lord has plainly declared, and the rest of the Scriptures
demonstrate. And that God fore-knew that this would happen,
the Scriptures do in like manner demonstrate, since He prepared
eternal fire from the beginning for those who were [afterwards]
to transgress [His commandments]...
NOTE:
The quote from Irenaeus below is also placed under the section
below on Unlimited Atonement as well. Here Irenaeus explains
that God’s predetermination and foreordination concerning
the elect refer not to God determining which individuals would
believe, but on setting a limit on the number of men who would
believe effectively by determining the length of time he would
allow men the opportunity to repent.
Irenaeus
–
AGAINST
HERESIES, BOOK II
CHAP.
XXXIII. 5. And therefore,
when the number [fixed upon] is completed, [that number] which
He had predetermined in His own counsel, all those who
have been enrolled for life [eternal] shall rise again, having
their own bodies, and having also their own souls, and their
own spirits, in which they had pleased God. Those, on the
other hand, who are worthy of punishment, shall go away into
it, they too having their own souls and their own bodies,
in which they stood apart from the grace of God. Both classes
shall then cease from any longer begetting and being begotten,
from marrying and being given in marriage; so that the number of mankind, corresponding to the fore-ordination of
God, being completed, may fully realize the scheme formed
by the Father.(1)
NOTE:
In the quote below, the statement that man “could not be saved
by their own instrumentality” is not at all incompatible with
Freewill. Freewill theology agrees that atonement and, indeed,
the triumphing over the devil and our enemies as well as making
us immortal so that we overcome death itself, are not things
that men could do for themselves. However, agreeing that these
things are accomplished by God, does not imply that choosing
to repent and believe man is also outside man’s instrumentality
or ability. There is no mention of God needing to provide
men with the ability to choose God or with faith, as Calvinists
assert. Instead, Irenaeus here restricts his comments to saying
that God provides resurrection from the dead and deliverance
from our enemies when Jesus comes again in judgment. It is
also interesting to note that Calvinists often assert that
for man to be saved requires more than God’s help, but God’s
irresistible grace. But Irenaeus seems to think that it is
sufficiently glorifying to God to say that God helps men in
salvation, as plainly stated in the last line of the quote
below. The next quote below also affirms that Irenaeus only
meant such things as the atonement, when he spoke of man’s
salvation provided by the incarnation as not being accomplished
by man’s will. While the incarnation was accomplished by God’s
will and instrumentality, not man’s, that does not imply that
man’s faith in the atonement is beyond man’s power or will,
as Calvinists teach.
Irenaeus
–
AGAINST
HERESIES, BOOK III
CHAP.XX.
3. On this account, therefore, the Lord Himself,(10) who is
Emmanuel from the Virgin,(11) is the sign of our salvation,
since it was the Lord
Himself who saved them, because they could not be saved by
their own instrumentality; and, therefore, when Paul sets
forth human infirmity, he says: "For I know that there dwelleth in my flesh
no good thing,"(12) showing that the "good thing"
of our salvation is not from us, but from God. And again:
"Wretched man that I am, who
shall deliver me from the body of this death?"(13)
Then he introduces the Deliverer, [saying,] "The grace
of Jesus Christ our Lord." And Isaiah declares this also,
[when he says:] "Be ye strengthened, ye hands that hang
down, and ye feeble knees; be ye encouraged, ye feeble-minded;
be comforted, fear not: behold, our
God has given judgment with retribution, and shall recompense:
He will come Himself, and will save us."(14) Here
we see, that not by ourselves, but by the help of God, we
must be saved.
CHAP.XXI.
7. Wherefore also Isaiah says: "Thus saith the Lord,
Behold, I deposit in the foundations of Zion a stone, precious,
elect, the chief, the corner-one, to be had in honour."(5)
So, then, we understand that His advent in
human nature was not by the will of a man, but by the will
of God.
NOTE:
The statements that God “saves whom He ought” and “those whom
He should save” and “judges those worthy of judgment” plainly
indicates that election and salvation are conditional, based
upon what God finds within men, particularly their choice
to believe and follow Him through repentance or not. In addition,
Irenaeus’ proofs against this particular Gnostic view also
disprove Calvinism. In refuting the Gnostic concept of two
gods, one who judges and one who is good, Irenaeus argues
that in order to be both good and just, it is absolutely necessary
for God to “bestow favors upon the deserving” but also to
“test those upon whom he shall send his goodness” in order
to make sure they are deserving. Consequently, a Calvinistic
God who elects unconditionally, regardless of what men deserve
or what good or bad qualities are in men, would be neither
good nor just according to Irenaeus.
CHAP.
XXV. 2. Again, that they might remove the rebuking and judicial
power from the Father, reckoning that as unworthy of God,
and thinking that they had found out a God both without anger
and [merely] good, they have alleged that one [God] judges,
but that another saves, unconsciously taking away the intelligence
and justice of both deities. For
if the judicial one is not also good, to bestow favours upon
the deserving, and to direct reproofs against those requiring
them, he will appear neither a just nor a wise judge.
On the other hand,
the good God, if he is merely good, and not one who tests
those upon whom he shall send his goodness, will be out of
the range of justice and goodness; and his goodness will seem
imperfect, as not saving all; [for it should do so,] if it
be not accompanied with judgment. …3. For
He is good, and merciful, and patient, and saves whom He ought:
nor does goodness desert Him in the exercise of justice,(3)
nor is His wisdom lessened; for He saves those whom He should save, and
judges those worthy of judgment. Neither does He show
Himself unmercifully just; for His goodness, no doubt, goes
on before, and takes precedency.
NOTE:
The quote below is from Irenaeus’ fourth book, but it is placed
here because it contains a similar comments to the larger
quote immediately above.
Irenaeus
–
AGAINST
HERESIES, BOOK IV
CHAP.
XXXIII. 2. Moreover,
he shall also examine the doctrine of Marcion, [inquiring]
how he holds that there are two gods, separated from each
other by an infinite distance.(1) Or how can he be good who
draws away men that do not belong to him from him who made
them, and calls them into his own kingdom? And
why is his goodness, which does not save all [thus], defective?
NOTE:
The quote below is also being placed in the Total Depravity
section and Perseverance of the Saints section. Concerning
Total Depravity, the quote specifically states that God “always
preserved freedom, and the power of self-government in man.”
In saying this, Irenaeus outright prohibits the doctrine of
Total Depravity, which states that as a result of Adam’s sin,
all his offspring lost the freedom and ability to choose God.
Moreover, Irenaeus argues that because man’s freedom is always
preserved by God, consequently, those who have obeyed God
are justly rewarded while those who have not obeyed are justly
condemned because has had it in their power to obey. This,
of course, disproves Unconditional Election. Lastly, the quote
also disproves Perseverance of the Saints, declaring plainly
that those with salvation can become apostates, revert to
idolatry and apostatizing from God.
Irenaeus
–
AGAINST
HERESIES, BOOK IV
CHAP.
XV. 2. If, therefore, even in the New Testament, the apostles
are found granting certain precepts in consideration of human
infirmity, because of the incontinence of some, lest such persons, having grown obdurate, and despairing altogether of
their salvation, should become apostates from God,--it
ought not to be wondered at, if also in the Old Testament
the same God permitted similar indulgences for the benefit
of His people, drawing them on by means of the ordinances
already mentioned, so that they might obtain the gift of salvation
through them, while they obeyed the Decalogue, and being restrained
by Him, should not
revert to idolatry, nor apostatize from God, but learn to
love Him with the whole heart. And if certain persons,
because of the disobedient and ruined Israelites, do assert
that the giver (doctor) of the law was limited in power, they
will find in our dispensation, that "many are called,
but few chosen;"(11) and that there are those who inwardly
are wolves, yet wear sheep's clothing in the eyes of the world
(foris); and that God
has always preserved freedom, and the power of self-government
in man,(12) while at the same time He issued His own exhortations,
in order that those who do not obey Him should be righteously
judged (condemned) because they have not obeyed Him; and
that those who have obeyed and believed on Him should be honoured
with immortality.
CHAP.
XXVI. 3. Those, however,
who are believed to be presbyters by many, but serve their
own lusts, and, do not place the fear of God supreme in their
hearts, but conduct themselves with contempt towards others,
and are puffed up with the pride of holding the chief seat,
and work evil deeds in secret, saying, "No man sees us,"
shall be convicted
by the Word, who does not judge after outward appearance (secundum
gloriam), nor looks upon the countenance, but the heart...
NOTE:
The quote below denies Calvinism’s “compatibilistic will”
and view of God’s sovereignty by stating plainly that men
are not always subject to God’s will. At times, God’s will
is thwarted by men. (Of course, this is what sin is by definition).
However, the quote also attests to conditional election, because
it describes damnation or salvation as resulting from an individual
man possessing the trait of either faith or disobedience.
The passage also explains that “hardening” is not a matter
of God causing men to choose sin or disbelief, but a matter
of God foreknowing whether or not each individual would ever
choose to believe, and God simply choosing at times not to
aid or speak gently to explain things to those whom he foreknew
would never believe. Consequently, in saying these things,
Justin not only denies Calvinistic “compatibilistic” sovereignty,
but he also affirms that election is based upon conditional
foreknowledge of which men would and would not believe.
CHAP.
XXVIII. 3. For the apostle does also say in the
Second [Epistle] to the Corinthians: "For we are unto
God a sweet savour of Christ, in them which are saved, and
in them which perish: to the one indeed the savour of death
unto death, but to the other the savour of life unto life."
To whom, then, is there
the savour of death unto death, unless to those who believe
not neither are subject to the Word of God? And
who are they that did even then give themselves over to death?
Those men, doubtless, who do not believe, nor submit themselves
to God. And again, who are they that have been saved and received the inheritance?
Those, doubtless, who do believe God, and who have continued
in His love; as did Caleb [the son] of Jephunneh
and Joshua [the son] of Nun,(2) and innocent children,(3)
who have had no sense of evil. But who are they that are saved now, and receive
life eternal? Is it not those who love God, and who believe
His promises, and who "in malice have become as little
children?"(4) CHAP. XXIX. 1. "But,"
say they, "God hardened the heart of Pharaoh and of his
servants."(5) Those, then, who allege such difficulties,
do not read in the Gospel that passage where the Lord replied
to the disciples, when they asked Him, "Why speakest
Thou unto them in parables?"--"Because it is given
unto you to know the mystery of the kingdom of heaven; but
to thorn I speak in parables, that seeing they may not see,
and hearing they may not hear, understanding they may not
understand; in order that the prophecy of Isaiah regarding
them may be fulfil leading, Make the heart of this people
gross and make their ears dull, and blind their eyes. But
blessed are your eyes, which see the things that ye see; and
your ears, which hear what ye do hear.(6) For one and the
same God [that blesses others] inflicts blindness upon those
who do not believe, but who set Him at naught; just as
the sun, which is a creature of His, [acts with regard] to
those who, by reason of any weakness of the eyes cannot behold
his light; but to those
who believe in Him and follow Him, He grants a fuller and
greater illumination of mind. In accordance with this word,
therefore, does the apostle say, in the Second the] to the
Corinthians: "In whom the [[god of]] this world hath
blinded the minds of them that believe not, lest the light
of the glorious Gospel of Christ should shine [unto them]."(7)
And again, in that to the Romans: "And as they did not
think fit to have God in their knowledge, God gave them up to a reprobate mind,
to do those things that are not convenient."(8) Speaking
of antichrist, too, he says clearly in the Second to the Thessalonians:
"And for this cause God
shall send them the working of error, that they should
believe a lie; that they all might be judged who believed not the truth, but consented to iniquity."(9) 2. If, therefore, in the present time also, God,
knowing the number of those who will not believe, since He
foreknows all things, has given them over to unbelief, and
turned away His face from men of this stamp, leaving
them in the darkness which they have themselves chosen for
themselves, what is there wonderful if He did also at
that time give over to their unbelief, Pharaoh, who never
would have believed, along with those who were with him? As
the Word spake to Moses from the bush: "And I am sure
that the king of Egypt will not let you go, unless
by a mighty hand."(10) And
for the reason that the Lord spake in parables, and brought
blindness upon Israel, that seeing they might not see, since
He knew the [spirit of] unbelief in them, for the same reason
did He harden Pharaoh's heart; in order that, while seeing
that it was the finger of God which led forth the people,
he might not believe, but be precipitated into a sea of unbelief,
resting in the notion that the exit of these [Israelites]
was accomplished by magical power, and that it was not by
the operation of God that the Red Sea afforded a passage to
the people, but that this occurred by merely natural causes
(sed naturaliter sic se habere).
NOTE:
From the quote below, notice the conditional nature of whether
the Spirit “rests” on us so that we become immortal or instead
we are cast out into “outer darkness.” In addition, notice
that this comes “after our calling” and that the same God
who called is the one who casts out from among those he called,
those who do not meet the conditions? This means that God’s
grace in calling us is not irresistible and there is no automatic
perseverance of the saints caused by an irresistible component
of grace.
Irenaeus
–
AGAINST
HERESIES, BOOK IV.
CHAP.
XXXIV. 6. Still further
did He also make it manifest, that we ought, after our calling,
to be also adorned with works of righteousness, so that the
Spirit of God may rest upon us; for this is the wedding
garment, of which also the apostle speaks, "Not for that
we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might
be swallowed up by
immortality."(3) But
those who have indeed been called to God's supper, yet have
not received the Holy Spirit, because of their wicked conduct
"shall be," He declares, "cast into outer darkness."(4)
He thus clearly shows that the very same King who gathered
from all quarters the faithful to the marriage of His Son,
and who grants them the incorruptible banquet,
[also] orders that man to be cast into outer darkness who
has not on a wedding garment, that is, one who despises
it. For as in the former
covenant, "with many of them was He not well pleased;"(5)
so also is it the case here, that "many are called, but
few chosen."(6)
NOTE:
In the quote below, Irenaeus asserts that if the Father does
not judge, then “all persons will be equal, and accounted
in the same condition.” It seems to be an open possibility
then that this equation could be reversed as well. If no judgment
necessarily implies that God views all men as being in the
same equal condition, then God viewing all men as being in
the same equal position, would imply that God does not actually
judge or discern the right or wrong, good or bad, desirable
or undesirable, better or worse among men. If election is
not based upon a man’s individual condition, but men are selected
by God without regard for their condition, then God is not
actually a just judge of mankind. Consequently, this statement
could be a strong argument against Calvinistic Unconditional
Election, since that doctrine necessarily requires that with
regard to eternal rewards of punishments (the primary aspect
of divine judgment), God sees all men as equal and of the
same condition as one another. Ultimately, it seems unavoidable
that this quote demonstrates Irenaeus rejection of unconditional
election (or judgment) given the fact that he considers the
possibility of God viewing all men as equal and in the same
condition as itself so obviously wrong that it is sufficient
to disprove the suggestion that God does not judge. And, of
course, the rest of the quote articulates Irenaeus’ strongly
conditional view of election and damnation. Moreover, Irenaeus
states that the only universal condition that all men remain
in when it comes to election or damnation is the universal
condition of being able to freely choose belief or disobedience.
Lastly, the quote states that God’s providence, so much as
it pertains to these issues of salvation or damnation, works
the same to the benefit of all men, the elect and the un-elect,
so that all may be saved or damned based upon their own choice
rather than any lack on God’s part.
Irenaeus
–
AGAINST
HERESIES, BOOK V
CHAP.
XXVII. 1. If the Father,
then, does not exercise judgment, [it follows] that judgment
does not belong to Him, or that He consents to all those actions
which take place; and if
He does not judge, all persons will be equal, and accounted
in the same condition. The advent of Christ will therefore
be without an object, yea, absurd, inasmuch as [in that case]
He exercises no judicial power. and when two are in one bed,
to take the one, and to leave the other; and of two women
grinding at the mill, to take one and leave the other:(2)
[also] at the time of the end, to order the reapers to collect first the tares together, and bind them
in bundles, and burn them with unquenchable fire, but to gather
up the wheat into the barn;(3) and to call the lambs into
the kingdom prepared for them, but to send the goats into
everlasting fire, which has been prepared by His Father
for the devil and his angels.(4) And
why is this? Has the Word come for the ruin and for the resurrection
of many? For the ruin, certainly, of those who do not believe
Him, to whom also He has threatened a greater damnation
in the judgment-day than that of Sodom and Gomorrah;(5)
but for the resurrection
of believers, and those who do the will of His Father in heaven.
If then the advent of the Son comes indeed alike to all,
but is for the purpose of judging, and separating the believing from the unbelieving,
since, as those who believe do His will agreeably to their
own choice, and as, [also] agreeably to their own choice,
the disobedient do not consent to His doctrine; it
is manifest that His Father has made all in a like condition,
each person having a choice of his own, and a free understanding;
and that He has regard to all things, and
exercises a providence over all, "making His sun to rise
upon the evil and on the good, and sending rain upon the just
and unjust."(6) 2. And to as many as continue in their love towards God, does He grant
communion with Him. But communion with God is life and light, and the enjoyment of all the benefits which He has in store. But
on as many as, according to their own choice, depart from
God, He inflicts that separation from Himself which they have
chosen of their own accord. But separation from God is death, and separation from light is darkness;
and separation from God consists in the loss
of all the benefits which He has in store...It is in this
matter just as occurs in the case of a flood of light: those
who have blinded themselves, or have been blinded by others,
are for ever deprived of the enjoyment of light. It
is not, [however], that the light has inflicted upon them
the penalty of blindness, but
it is that the blindness itself has brought calamity upon
them: and therefore the Lord declared, "He that believeth
in Me is not condemned,"(7) that is, is not separated
from God, for he is united to God through faith. On the other
hand, He says, "He that believeth not is condemned already,
because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten
Son of God;" that is, he separated himself from God of
his own accord. "For
this is the condemnation, that light is come into this world,
and men have loved darkness rather than light. For every one
who doeth evil hateth the light, and cometh not to the
light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light,
that his deeds may be made manifest, that he has wrought them
in God." …CHAP. XXVIII. 2.
And for this reason
the apostle says: "Because they received not the love
of God, that they might be saved, therefore God shall
also send them the operation of error, that they may believe
a lie, that they all may be judged who have not believed the
truth, but consented to unrighteousness."(1)
For when he (Antichrist) is come, and of his own accord
concentrates in his own person the apostasy, and accomplishes
whatever he shall do according to his own will and choice,
sitting also in the temple of God, so that his dupes may
adore him as the Christ; wherefore also shall he deservedly "be
cast into the lake of fire:"(2) [this will happen
according to divine appointment], God
by His prescience foreseeing all this, and at the proper
time sending such a man, "that they may believe a lie,
that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth,
but consented to unrighteousness;" whose coming John
has thus described in the Apocalypse.
