And what answer could be
given? None that we know of which would satisfy the reason. And
what, then? This--viz., that in the light of the drama of the fall,
the doctrine of universal foreordination must be given up as a myth
which ignores philosophy, and reflects injuriously upon the Divine
character.

In Jeremiah vii. 29-31 it is written: "Cut off thy hair, O
Jerusalem, and cast it away, and take up a lamentation on high
places . . . for the children of Judah have done evil in my sight,
saith the Lord: they have set their abominations in the house which
is called by my name, to pollute it. And they have built the high
places of Tophet, . . . to burn their sons and their daughters in
the fire; which I commanded them not, nor came it into my heart."
Here the Lord expressly declares, that instead of having
foreordained these deeds, such an idea was never in His heart. There
is here a clear "Thus saith the Lord" against the dogma of universal
predestination.

In Mark v. 6, it is said of Jesus that "He marvelled because of
their unbelief." But we only marvel when we are ignorant of the
_cause_ of a phenomenon. As soon as we know this the marvel ceases.
Had Jesus, therefore, known that all was fixed, He never would have
marvelled. Would you marvel that the fire had gone out when it was
decreed not to give additional fuel? Would the miller marvel that
the mill did not go when he had ordained that the water should be
shut off? The prefixing of all events, and "marvelling" at anything,
are out of the question. But since Christ did "marvel" it shows that
He believed that they _could_ and _ought_ to have believed, and that
He knew of no reason why they did not. It may be said that He was a
man, and spake and felt like a man. True, but will the followers of
Calvin maintain that he knew more of divinity than Christ? We should
think not.

CHAPTER VII.

GENERAL SUMMARY OF THE DOCTRINE.

WE have thus endeavoured to show that the doctrine of universal
predestination--the foundation of the Calvinistic theology--is not
based upon the principle of the Divine wisdom, nor upon Divine
power, nor upon Divine foreknowledge, nor proved by the Scripture
texts advanced on its behalf. It is closely allied to Pantheism and
the fate of the Stoics. It shakes hands with Socialism, which
maintains that man can have no merit or demerit, that he could not
be otherwise than he has been and is (_Socialism_, by Owen). It is
the creed of the