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 EPISTOLA PRIOR, INTER AUGUSTINIANAS CCXIV.

 EPISTOLA POSTERIOR, INTER AUGUSTINIANAS CCXV.

 S. AURELII AUGUSTINI HIPPONENSIS EPISCOPI DE GRATIA ET LIBERO ARBITRIO AD VALENTINUM ET CUM ILLO MONACHOS Liber unus .

 CAPUT PRIMUM.

 CAPUT II.

 3. Sed sunt homines qui etiam de ipso Deo se excusare conantur, quibus dicit apostolus Jacobus: Nemo cum tentatur, dicat, Quoniam a Deo tentor . Deus

 4. Quid illud, quod tam multis locis omnia mandata sua custodiri et fieri jubet Deus? quomodo jubet, si non est liberum arbitrium? Quid beatus ille, d

 CAPUT III.

 CAPUT IV.

 7. Proinde, charissimi, sicut superioribus testimoniis sanctarum Scripturarum probavimus, ad bene vivendum et recte agendum esse in homine liberum vol

 8. De ipsa quoque pudicitia conjugali nempe Apostolus ait, Quod vult faciat, non peccat si nubat (I Cor. VII, 37, 36): et tamen etiam hoc Dei donum es

 9. Propter quod dicit et coelestis Magister, Vigilate, et orate, ne intretis in tentationem (Matth. XXVI, 41). Ergo unusquisque contra suam concupisce

 CAPUT V.

 11. Item quod scriptum est in libro secundo Paralipomenon, Dominus vobiscum, cum vos estis cum eo, et si quaesieritis eum, invenietis si autem reliqu

 12. Meritum enim fuit quidem in apostolo Paulo, sed malum, quando persequebatur Ecclesiam: unde dicit, Non sum idoneus vocari Apostolus, quia persecut

 CAPUT VI.

 14. Ergo redeamus ad apostolum Paulum, quem certe invenimus sine ullis meritis bonis, imo cum multis meritis malis, Dei gratiam consecutum reddentis b

 15. Sed cum dicunt Pelagiani hanc esse solam non secundum merita nostra gratiam, qua homini peccata dimittuntur illam vero quae datur in fine, id est

 CAPUT VII.

 17. Postremo dixit, Fidem servavi sed ille hoc dixit, qui alibi ait, Misericordiam consecutus sum, ut fidelis essem ut fidelis essem: Gratia salvi fa

 18. Homines autem non intelligentes, quod ait ipse Apostolus, Arbitramur justificari hominem per fidem sine operibus legis (Rom. III, 28) putaverunt

 CAPUT VIII.

 20. Ista ergo quaestio nullo modo mihi videtur posse dissolvi, nisi intelligamus et ipsa bona opera nostra quibus aeterna redditur vita, ad Dei gratia

 CAPUT IX.

 CAPUT X.

 CAPUT XI.

 CAPUT XII.

 CAPUT XIII.

 26. Dicunt etiam gratiam Dei, quae data est per fidem Jesu Christi, quae neque lex est neque natura, 0897 ad hoc tantum valere, ut peccata praeterita

 CAPUT XIV.

 28. Jam quidem de fide, hoc est, de voluntate credentis superius disputavi (Supra, nn. 16-18), usque adeo eam demonstrans ad gratiam pertinere, ut Apo

 29. Nam si fides liberi est tantummodo arbitrii, nec datur a Deo, propter quid pro eis qui nolunt credere, oramus ut credant? Quod prorsus faceremus i

 30. Nam et alio loco per eumdem prophetam Deus manifestissime ostendit, non propter eorum aliqua bona merita, sed propter nomen suum ista facere, ubi

 CAPUT XV.

 CAPUT XVI.

 CAPUT XVII.

 0902 34. Istam charitatem, id est divino amore ardentissimam voluntatem commendans Apostolus, dicit: Quis nos separabit a charitate Christi? tribulati

 35. Et apostolus Petrus: Ante omnia, inquit, mutuam inter vos charitatem perpetuam habentes, quia charitas cooperit multitudinem peccatorum Si tamen l

 36. Dicit etiam ipse Dominus Jesus, in duobus praeceptis dilectionis Dei et dilectionis proximi totam Legem Prophetasque pendere (Matth. XXII, 40). De

 CAPUT XVIII.

 38. Nemo ergo vos fallat, fratres mei: quia nos non diligeremus Deum, nisi nos prior ipse diligeret. Idem Joannes apertissime hoc ostendit, et dicit,

 39. Et ad Timotheum dicit: Non enim dedit nobis Deus spiritum timoris, sed virtutis et charitatis et continentiae (II Tim. I, 7). In quo sane Apostoli

 CAPUT XIX.

 CAPUT XX.

 CAPUT XXI.

 43. His et talibus testimoniis divinorum eloquiorum, quae omnia commemorare nimis longum est, satis, quantum existimo, manifestatur, operari Deum in c

 CAPUT XXII.

 CAPUT XXIII.

 CAPUT XXIV.

Chapter 45 [XXIII]—The Reason Why One Person is Assisted by Grace, and Another is Not Helped, Must Be Referred to the Secret Judgments of God.

You must refer the matter, then, to the hidden determinations of God, when you see, in one and the same condition, such as all infants unquestionably have,—who derive their hereditary evil from Adam,—that one is assisted so as to be baptized, and another is not assisted, so that he dies in his very bondage; and again, that one baptized person is left and forsaken in his present life, who God foreknew would be ungodly, while another baptized person is taken away from this life, “lest that wickedness should alter his understanding;”307    Wisd. iv. 11. and be sure that you do not in such cases ascribe unrighteousness or unwisdom to God, in whom is the very fountain of righteousness and wisdom, but, as I have exhorted you from the commencement of this treatise, “whereto you have already attained, walk therein,”308    Phil iii. 16. and “even this shall God reveal unto you,”309    Phil. iii. 15.—if not in this life, yet certainly in the next, “for there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed.”310    Matt. x. 26. When, therefore, you hear the Lord say, “I the Lord have deceived that prophet,”311    Ezek. xiv. 9. and likewise what the apostle says: “He hath mercy on whom He will have mercy, and whom He will He hardeneth,”312    Rom. ix. 18. believe that, in the case of him whom He permits to be deceived and hardened, his evil deeds have deserved the judgment; whilst in the case of him to whom He shows mercy, you should loyally and unhesitatingly recognise the grace of the God who “rendereth not evil for evil; but contrariwise blessing.”313    1 Pet. iii. 9. Nor should you take away from Pharaoh free will, because in several passages God says, “I have hardened Pharaoh;” or,” I have hardened or I will harden Pharaoh’s heart;”314    See Ex. iv. 21, vii. 3, xiv. 4. for it does not by any means follow that Pharaoh did not, on this account, harden his own heart. For this, too, is said of him, after the removal of the fly-plague from the Egyptians, in these words of the Scripture: “And Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also; neither would he let the people go.”315    Ex. viii. 32. Thus it was that both God hardened him by His just judgment, and Pharaoh by his own free will. Be ye then well assured that your labour will never be in vain, if, setting before you a good purpose, you persevere in it to the last. For God, who fails to render, according to their deeds, only to those whom He liberates, will then “recompense every man according to his works.”316    Matt. xvi. 27. God will, therefore, certainly recompense both evil for evil, because He is just; and good for evil, because He is good; and good for good, because He is good and just; only, evil for good He will never recompense, because He is not unjust. He will, therefore, recompense evil for evil—punishment for unrighteousness; and He will recompense good for evil—grace for unrighteousness; and He will recompense good for good—grace for grace.

CAPUT XXIII.

45. Ad occulta ergo Dei judicia revocate, quando videtis in una causa, quam certe habent omnes parvuli, haereditarium malum trahentes ex Adam, huic subveniri ut baptizetur, illi non subveniri ut in ipsa obligatione moriatur; illum baptizatum in hac vita relinqui, quem praescivit Deus impium futurum, istum vero baptizatum rapi ex hac vita, ne malitia mutet intellectum ejus (Sap. IV, 11): et nolite in istis dare injustitiam vel insipientiam Deo, apud quem justitiae fons est et sapientiae: sed sicut vos exhortatus sum ab initio sermonis hujus, in quod pervenistis, in eo ambulate, et hoc quoque vobis Deus revelabit (Philipp. III, 16 et 15), et si non in hac vita, certe in altera: nihil est enim occultum quod non revelabitur (Matth. X, 26). Quando ergo auditis dicentem Dominum, Ego Dominus seduxi prophetam illum (Ezech. XIV, 9); et quod ait Apostolus, Cujus vult miseretur, et quem vult obdurat (Rom. IX, 18): in eo quem seduci permittit vel obdurari , mala ejus merita 0911 credite; in eo vero cujus miseretur, gratiam Dei non reddentis mala pro malis, sed bona pro malis, fideliter et indubitanter agnoscite. Nec ideo auferatis a Pharaone liberum arbitrium, quia multis locis dicit Deus, Ego induravi Pharaonem; vel, induravi, aut indurabo cor Pharaonis (Exod. IV-XIV, passim). Non enim propterea ipse Pharao non induravit cor suum. Nam et hoc de illo legitur, quando ablata est ab Aegyptiis cynomyia, dicente Scriptura: Et ingravavit Pharao cor suum et in isto tempore, et noluit dimittere populum (Id. VIII, 32). Ac per hoc et Deus induravit per justum judicium, et ipse Pharao per liberum arbitrium. Certi ergo estote quia non erit inanis labor vester, si in bono proposito proficientes perseveretis usque in finem. Deus enim qui modo illis quos liberat non reddit secundum opera eorum, tunc reddet unicuique secundum opera ejus (Matth. XVI, 27). Reddet omnino Deus et mala pro malis, quoniam justus est; et bona pro malis, quoniam bonus est; et bona pro bonis, quoniam bonus et justus est; tantummodo mala pro bonis non reddet, quoniam injustus non est. Reddet ergo mala pro malis, poenam pro injustitia; et reddet bona pro malis, gratiam pro injustitia; et reddet bona pro bonis, gratiam pro gratia.