The English works of Thomas Hobbes of Malmesbury, Volume 05 (of 11)
Thomas Hobbes · en
(_e_) “How shall a man praise God for his goodness, who believes him to
be a greater tyrant than ever was in the world; who creates millions to
burn eternally without their fault, to express his power?”
If _tyrant_ signify, as it did when it came first in use, a king, it is
no dishonour to believe that God is a greater tyrant than ever was in
the world; for he is the King of all kings, emperors, and commonwealths.
But if we take the word, as it is now used, to signify those kings only,
which they that call them tyrants, are displeased with, that is, that
govern not as they would have them, the Bishop is nearer the calling him
a tyrant, than I am; making that to be tyranny, which is but the
exercise of an absolute power; for he holdeth, though he see it not, by
consequence, in withdrawing the will of man from God’s dominion, that
every man is a king of himself. And if a man cannot praise God for his
goodness, who creates millions to burn eternally without their fault;
how can the Bishop praise God for his goodness, who thinks he hath
created millions of millions to burn eternally, when he could have kept
them so easily from committing any fault? And to his “how shall a man
hear the word of God with that reverence, and devotion, and faith, which
is requisite, who believeth that God causeth his gospel to be preached
to the much greater part of Christians, not with any intention that they
should be converted and saved,” &c.; I answer, that those men who so
believe, have faith in Jesus Christ, or they have not faith in him. If
they have, then shall they, by that faith, hear the word of God with
that reverence, and devotion, and faith, which is requisite to
salvation. And for them that have no faith, I do not think he asketh how
they shall hear the word of God with that reverence, and devotion, and
faith, which is requisite; for he knows they shall not, until such time
as God shall have given them faith. Also he mistakes, if he think that I
or any other Christian believe, that God intendeth, by hardening any
man’s heart, to make that man inexcusable, but to make his elect the
more careful.
Likewise to his question, “how shall a man receive the sacrament with
comfort, who believeth that so many millions are positively excluded
from the benefit of Christ’s passion, before they had done either good
or evil”; I answer as before, _by faith_, if he be of God’s elect; if
not, he shall not receive the sacrament with comfort. I may answer also,
that the faithful man shall receive the sacrament with comfort, by the
same way that the bishop receiveth it with comfort. For he also
believeth that many millions are excluded from the benefit of Christ’s
passion, (whether positively or not positively is nothing to the
purpose, nor doth positively signify any thing in this place); and that,
so long before they had either done good or evil, as it was known to God
before they were born that they were so excluded.