Chapter 32 [XIII.]—The Inscrutability of God’s Free Purposes.

But now, since we are now treating of the gift of perseverance, why is it that aid is afforded to the person about to die who is not baptized, while to the baptized person about to fall, aid is not afforded, so as to die before? Unless, perchance, we shall still listen to that absurdity by which it is said that it is of no advantage to any one to die before his fall, because he will be judged according to those actions which God foreknew that he would have done if he had lived. Who can hear with patience this perversity, so violently opposed to the soundness of the faith? Who can bear it? And yet they are driven to say this who do not confess that God’s grace is not bestowed in respect of our deservings. They, however, who will not say that any one who has died is judged according to those things which God foreknew that he would have done if he had lived, considering with how manifest a falsehood and how great an absurdity this would be said, have no further reason to say, what the Church condemned in the Pelagians, and caused to be condemned by Pelagius himself,—that the grace of God, namely, is given according to our merits,—when they see some infants not regenerated taken from this life to eternal death, and others regenerated, to eternal life; and those themselves that are regenerated, some going hence, persevering even to the end, and others kept in this life even until they fall, who certainly would not have fallen if they had departed hence before their lapse; and again some falling, but not departing from this life until they return, who certainly would have perished if they had departed before their return.

CAPUT XIII.

32. Jam vero, quoniam de dono perseverantiae nunc agimus, quid est quod morituro non baptizato subvenitur, ne sine Baptismate moriatur; et baptizato casuro non subvenitur, ut ante moriatur? Nisi forte illi adhuc absurditati auscultabimus, qua dicitur nihil prodesse cuiquam mori antequam cadat, quia secundum eos actus judicabitur, quos eum praescivit Deus acturum fuisse si viveret. Hanc perversitatem sanitati fidei tam vehementer adversam, quis patienter audiat? quis ferat? Et tamen hoc dicere urgentur, qui non fatentur gratiam Dei non secundum merita nostra dari. Qui autem nolunt dicere unumquemque mortuorum secundum ea judicari, quae Deus illum praescivit acturum fuisse si viveret, intuentes quam manifesta falsitate et quanta absurditate dicatur; non eis remanet cur dicant, quod in Pelagianis damnavit, et ab ipso Pelagio damnari fecit Ecclesia, gratiam Dei secundum merita nostra dari: cum videant alios parvulos non regeneratos ad aeternam mortem, alios autem regeneratos ad aeternam vitam tolli de hac vita; ipsosque regeneratos, alios perseverantes usque in finem hinc ire, alios quousque decidant hic teneri, qui utique non decidissent, si antequam laberentur hinc exissent; et rursus quosdam lapsos quousque redeant non exire de hac vita, qui utique perirent, si antequam redirent, exirent.