Two Dissertations · §647 · John Davenant

Cap. IX Arg. 10 Sol cont.: Remonstrants themselves place preaching under common providence — we grant that, adding special mercy for the elect and permission of contrary effect for the rest

The Remonstrants themselves, when it suits them, take Gospel preaching not to flow from some absolute decree to save or damn every hearer, but from a more common providence — what they call Christ's wise, merciful, and just government (Collat. Hagiens. P. 95). Let them then let us subscribe that view, with this added: preaching flows from the predestination decree for those in whom God decreed of special mercy to work penitence, faith, and salvation infallibly through that instrument; and it flows from a more common providence for those in whom he decreed to permit that by their fault it should take a plainly contrary effect — yet we never grant that for these latter it flows from the reprobation decree, or is subordinated as a medium to their damnation by God's primary intention.

Latin

Ipsi Remonstrantes intelligunt, quando ex re ipsorum est, praedicationem Evangelii non manare ex absoluto aliquo decreto salvandi aut damnandi omnes et singulos quibus praedicatur, sed ex communiori quadam ratione providentiae, quam illi vocant sapientem, misericordem, et justam Christi gubernationem, Collat. Hagiens. pag. 95. Patiantur igitur et nos illorum sententiae subscribere, hoc addito, Evangelicam praedicationem ex decreto praedestinationis manare quoad illos, in quibus Deus decrevit ex speciali sua misericordia per illud organon poenitentiam, fidem, et salutem infallibiliter operari; Evangelicam autem praedicationem ex communiori quadam providentiae ratione manare quoad illos, in quibus Deus decrevit permittere ut illorum vitio effectum sortiatur plane contrarium; ita tamen ut quoad hosce posteriores ex decreto reprobationis fluere, aut tanquam medium damnationi eorundem primaria Dei intentione subordinatum esse, nullo modo concedamus.

Report a mistake in this passage

About this text

John Davenant argues from Scripture that Christ's death is a remedy offered to every person, so that anyone who hears the Gospel may be called to believe, and then opens a second dissertation on predestination.

John Davenant (1572–1641) was Lady Margaret Professor of Divinity at Cambridge, bishop of Salisbury from 1621, and England's leading delegate to the Synod of Dort. A Reformed theologian of the moderate school, he defended universal atonement language within a Calvinist frame.

The Two Dissertations (1650) press two theses: that Christ died sufficiently for all, and that God sincerely calls all who hear the gospel — against the novel claim that Christ died only for the elect in every sense. They are Davenant's mature statement of the hypothetical-universalist position that divided English Calvinists.

This volume covers the opening of the first dissertation through the close of chapter 3, with the theses on the extent of Christ's death.

Date1572–1641 AD (Bishop of Salisbury; 1650 Cambridge imprint)

The 1683 reprint was not used as base text. No modern English was copied.

Printed text used

Also checked PDF of the 1650 (Latin · print facsimile)
Also checked DjVu machine-read text of the 1650 (Latin)

We have not yet re-checked this work against its source. We made this study translation with AI help. No scholar has yet certified it as faithful and complete. Open Latin on any section, or the Latin source link, to see the source text. It is not a critical edition.

Report a mistake