58.如果当今流行的有关神全能的观点是正确的，以致它延伸到了既行善又行恶的地步，那么，神就可以，确切地说，很容易将整个地狱提入天堂，将魔鬼和撒旦变为天使，在一瞬间将不信的人从世上的罪孽中洁净，让他们焕然一新，使他们成圣、重生，将他们从易怒之子转变为恩典之子（以弗所书2:3－8），也就是使他们称义，而成就这一切仅凭祂儿子公义的转稼和归给。但神不会凭自己的全能这样做，因为这违反祂施加于整个宇宙的秩序法则，同时违反施加于每个人的秩序法则，这些法则要求神与人之间的结合应是相互的。这一点将在本书后面予以证明（即89，99，100，110:4－6，368－372节）。关于神全能的这种谬念和信仰导致的结果是：神能将人的山羊本性变为绵羊；祂若乐意，便能将他从祂的左边移到右边（马太福音25:31－46），还能将龙的使者变成米迦勒的使者（启示录12:7）；并且具有鼹鼠般的理解力之人能被赋予雄鹰的敏锐视觉；总之，祂能将猫头鹰样的人作成鸽子样的人。然而，所有这些事神都不可能做，因为它们违反祂的秩序法则。不过，祂一直不断意愿它们，并努力实现它们。祂若能做这种事，就不会让亚当听从蛇的话去摘善恶知识树上的果子，并将它放在嘴里。若能这样做，祂不会让该隐去杀他的兄弟，不会让大卫去数点百姓数目，也不会让所罗门为偶像建神殿，或犹大和以色列的王亵渎圣殿，他们经常做这种事。事实上，若神真的能通过祂儿子所成就的救赎这样做，那祂会拯救全人类，无一例外，并且会铲除所有地狱。古代的异教徒将全能归给他们的神和女神，这是他们的神话传说的源头。如丢卡利翁和皮拉的传说，他们将石头扔到身后去，人就从石头中长了出来；阿波罗将达芙妮变成一株月桂树；黛安娜将猎人变成一头牡鹿；他们的另一位神明则将帕纳萨斯山的少女变成喜鹊。如今还流行着关于神性全能的类似信念。如此多迷信的异端邪说之所以传入世界各地凡有宗教的地方，即源于此。
58. 如果像當今的信仰所認為的, 上帝的全能是絕對的, 行惡也罷, 行善也罷, 而且凡事都能, 甚至易如反掌, 那麼上帝就可以將整個地獄提至天國, 就能將魔鬼和撒旦變成天人, 就能在片刻之間接受地上所有不信的人, 將他們從罪中潔淨, 使他們更新,聖潔,重生, 並稱他們為義, 從可怒之子變為恩典之子(Ephesians 2:3-8), 僅僅憑著將祂兒子之義賦予和歸給他們。
事實上, 上帝無法用祂的全能來做這樣事情。這有背於祂是宇宙之定規。也有背於祂為人類的定規, 這定規指明, 我們每個個體必須與上帝形成互相合作的關係。(89, 99-100, 110, 368-372節, 你將會更明白此點。)
現今關於上帝全能的這般荒謬的信念, 意味著上帝能將所有山羊般的人變成綿羊, 可按自己的意思把他們從左邊挪到右邊(馬太福音25:31-46)。意味著上帝能將龍轉變成米迦勒的使者(啟示錄12:7)。意味著祂能將鷹的眼界賜給鼴鼠般智力之人。一句話, 祂能從貓頭鷹中造出鴿子來。
上帝不能做這些事, 因為如此行就是與祂的定規作對, 儘管祂從未停止去欲求如此或試圖如此。如果祂能這樣行, 就不會讓亞當聽蛇的話, 去摘善惡知識樹的果子並放在嘴裡。倘若上帝能規避一些事情的發生, 就不會讓該隱去殺他的兄弟。祂就不會讓大衛去數點百姓數目。就不會讓所羅門為偶像建殿, 或者讓猶大和以色列的王褻瀆聖殿了, 他們一次又一次這樣行。如果祂能, 無需祂兒子的救贖,祂就已拯救全人類, 還會將地獄完完全全連根拔除。
古時的外邦人將這樣的全能歸給他們的神明, 你可以從他們的神話故事中看出。例如, 丟卡利翁扔的石頭變成了男人, 皮拉扔的則成了女人。還有阿波羅將達芙妮變成一顆桂樹。另外, 戴安娜將獵人變成鹿。還有一個故事, 一位神明將帕納塞斯山的少女變成喜鵲。
今天, 關於神性的全能的信念, 類似於以上那些神話故事。這就是為何一些迷信的和異端的思想會潛入當今的宗教之中, 只要有宗教的地方都是如此。
58. If, as the modern-day belief goes, God's omnipotence was as absolute for doing evil as it is for doing good, surely it would be possible, even easy, for God to lift the whole of hell to heaven. He could turn devils and satans into angels. In a moment he could take all the ungodly people on earth, purify them from sin, make them new, holy, and reborn, and justify them, turning them from children of wrath into children of grace [] solely by assigning and attributing to them the justice of his Son.
God cannot do this with his omnipotence. It is against the laws of his design for the universe. It is also against the laws of his design for human beings, which dictate that the individual and God have to form a mutual partnership. (From later sections in this book [89, 99-100, , 368-372] you will see that this is the case.)
The ridiculous modern-day belief about God's omnipotence would mean that God could turn all goat people into sheep people and move them at will from his left side to his right [Matthew 25:31-46]. He could transform the dragon's spirits into Michael's angels [Revelation 12:7]. He could give the sight of an eagle to someone with an intellect like a mole. In a word, he could make a dove person out of an owl person.
God cannot do these things, because doing so is against the laws of his design, although he never stops wanting to or trying. If he could have done things like this he would not have let Adam listen to the serpent, pluck a piece of fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and bring it to his mouth. If God could have avoided it, he would not have let Cain kill his brother. He would not have let David take a census of the people; he would not have let Solomon build shrines for idols, or let the kings of Judah and Israel desecrate the Temple, which they did a number of times. Indeed if he could have, he would have saved the whole human race without exception through his Son's redemption and would have uprooted hell in its entirety.
Ancient gentiles ascribed this kind of omnipotence to their gods and goddesses, as you can see from their myths. For example, in the story of Deucalion and Pyrrha, the stones they throw behind their backs become people; in another story Apollo turns Daphne into a laurel tree; in another, Diana turns a hunter into a deer. And there is a myth that one of their gods turned the young maidens of Parnassus into magpies.
The belief about divine omnipotence today is similar to these ancient myths. In every region where there is religion many fanatical and heretical ideas have been brought into the world as a result.
58. If the current belief about God's omnipotence was correct, so that it extended to doing evil as well as good, surely it would be possible, or rather easy, for God to lift the whole of hell up into heaven, change devils and satans into angels, and in an instant cleanse any irreligious person on earth of his sins, make him new and sanctify him, regenerate him, turn him from a son of wrath into a son of grace, that is, justify him, by the simple attribution and imputation of His Son's righteousness. But God cannot do this by His omnipotence, because it is contrary to the laws of order He has imposed on the universe, and at the same time to the laws of order imposed upon every person; for these demand that both sets should be mutually linked together. The proof of this will be demonstrated later in this book.
It would be the result of that absurd opinion and belief about God's omnipotence, that God could change any person from a goat to a sheep, and at His pleasure transfer him from His left side to His right; at His pleasure He could transform the spirits of the dragon into the angels of Michael; He could endow a person whose understanding resembled a mole's with the eagle's keen vision, in short to make a person a dove instead of a horned owl. All these things God cannot do, because they would be contrary to the laws of His order; yet all the time He wills them and endeavours to effect them. If He could do such things, He would not have allowed Adam to listen to the serpent, and pluck the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and put it in his mouth. He would not, if He could do this, have allowed Cain to kill his brother, David to number the people, Solomon to build shrines for idols, and the kings of Judah and Israel to profane the Temple, as they did so many times. Rather, if God could do this, by the redemption effected by His Son He would have saved the whole human race with no exceptions and wiped out all hell. The ancient gentiles attributed omnipotence of this sort to their gods and goddesses; this is the source of their myths, as that of Deucalion and Pyrrha, who threw stones behind their backs to make men; of Apollo turning Daphne into a laurel-bush; of Diana turning a huntsman into a stag 1 , of another of their deities turning the maidens of Parnassus into magpies. The current belief about the Divine omnipotence is similar, and that is the source from which so many fanatical and heretical ideas have spread to every region of the world where there is any religion.
Footnotes:
1. The Latin has 'hind', but this differs from 'stag' by only one letter.
58. If, in accordance with existing belief, God's omnipotence were absolute both to do evil and to do good, would it not be possible and even easy for God to elevate all hell to heaven, and to convert the devils and satans into angels, and to cleanse in an instant every impious man on earth from sin; to renew, sanctify, and regenerate him, and from a child of wrath make him a child of grace, that is, to justify him, which would be done by simply ascribing and imputing to him the righteousness of His Son? but God's omnipotence does not enable Him to do this, for the reason that it would be contrary to the laws of His order in the universe, and at the same time contrary to the laws of order enjoined upon every man, these laws requiring that the conjunction between God and man shall be mutual. This will be made clear in the following pages of this work. From this absurd opinion and belief concerning God's omnipotence it would follow that God could convert every goat nature among men into a sheep, and at His good pleasure could transfer men from His left hand to His right; that He could at His good pleasure transform the spirits of the dragon into angels of Michael; and that a man with an understanding like that of a mole could be endowed with the vision of an eagle; in a word, that out of a man like an owl He could make a man like a dove. These things God cannot do, for the reason that they are contrary to the laws of His order; and yet He unceasingly wills and endeavors to effect them. If He could have done such things He would not have permitted Adam to listen to the serpent, and to pluck fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and put it to his mouth. If He could have done this He would not have permitted Cain to kill his brother, or David to number the people, or Solomon to build temples for idols, or the kings of Judah and Israel to profane the temple, which they often did. In fact, if He could have done this He would have saved the entire human race, without exception, through the redemption wrought by His Son, and have extirpated all hell. The ancient heathen ascribed omnipotence to their gods and goddesses and this gave rise to their fables, as that Deucalion and Pyrrha threw stones behind them which became men; that Apollo changed Daphne into a laurel; that Diana changed a hunter into a stag; and that another of their gods changed the virgins of Parnassus into magpies. There is at this day a like belief respecting the Divine omnipotence, and it is the source of the many superstitions and consequent heresies that have been introduced into the world in every country where there is any religion.
58. If the omnipotence of God were, according to the current belief, absolute not only to do good but also to do evil, it would be possible, nay, easy to raise all hell to heaven and convert devils and satans into angels; to cleanse every sinner on earth from his sins in a moment, to renew, sanctify, and regenerate him, and make him a child of grace instead of a child of wrath, that is, to justify him; which would be done merely by ascribing and imputing to him the righteousness of His Son. God, however, from His omnipotence cannot do so, because it is contrary to the laws of His order in the universe, and at the same time contrary to the laws of order enjoined upon every man, which require that conjunction of part with part should be mutual, as will be seen in the following numbers of this work.
From this absurd belief concerning the omnipotence of God it would follow that God could change every goat among men into a sheep, and at His own good pleasure transfer him from His left to His right hand. Then also He could transform the spirits of the dragon into angels of Michael, 1 and bestow the sight of an eagle upon a man with the intellect of a mole; in a word make a human owl into a human dove. These things, however, God cannot do, because they are contrary to the laws of His order, although His constant will and endeavor is to bring them about. If He could have done such things He would not have permitted Adam to listen to the serpent and take the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and put it to his mouth. Nor would He have permitted Cain to kill his brother, David to number the people, Solomon to erect temples to idols, and the kings of Judah and of Israel to profane the Temple, as they so often did. Indeed, if He could have done so, He would have saved, without exception, the whole human race through the redemption wrought by His Son, and extirpated the whole of hell. Such omnipotence as this the Gentiles of old attributed to their gods and goddesses. Thus arose their fables, as that Deucalion and Pyrrha threw stones behind them, which became men, that Apollo 2 changed Daphne into a laurel, that Diana 3 changed a hunter into a stag, and that another goddess turned the maidens of Parnassus into magpies. It is a similar belief concerning the Divine omnipotence which is prevalent today, and from it have spread, throughout the religious world, so many fanatical and consequently heretical opinions.
Footnotes:
1. Michael, the archangel.
2. Apollo, god of divination, healing, poetry and music.
3. Diana, sister of Apollo, goddess of the chase.
58. Si Omnipotentia Dei foret secundum fidem hodiernam absoluta tam ad bonum quam ad malum faciendum, numne possibile, imo facile foret Deo elevare totum Infernum in Coelum, et convertere diabolos et satanas in Angelos, et in terris unumquemvis impium momento purificare a peccatis, innovare, sanctificare, regenerare, a filio irae facere filium gratiae, hoc est, justificare, quod fieret solum per addicationem et imputationem justitiae Filii sui; sed Deus ex Omnipotentia sua hoc non potest, quia est contra leges Ordinis sui in Universo, et simul contra leges Ordinis cuivis homini indictas, quae sunt ut se mutuo ab utraque parte conjungant; quod ita sit, in sequentibus hujus Operis videbitur. Ex fatua illa opinione et fide de Omnipotentia Dei resultaret, quod Deus unumquemvis hominem hircum posset convertere in hominem ovem, et ex beneplacito a sinistro ad dextrum suum latus transferre; tum quod posset Spiritus draconis ex beneplacito transmutare in Angelos Michaelis, et quod posset hominem cujus intellectus est sicut talpae donare visu aquilae, verbo ex homine bubone facere hominem columbam; haec Deus, quia est contra leges Ordinis 1 Ipsius, nequit, tametsi continue hoc vult et conatur. Si talia potuisset, non permisisset Adamo auscultare serpenti, et fructum ex Arbore scientiae boni et mali desumere, et illum admovere ori; si illud potuisset, non permisisset Caino occidere fratrem suum; Davidi numerare populum; Salomoni fana pro idolis exstruere, ac Regibus Judae et Israelis prophanare Templum, quod toties fecerunt; imo si illud potuisset, per Redemptionem Filii sui Universum genus humanum nullo excepto salvavisset, et totum Infernum exstirpavisset. Gentiles antiqui talem Omnipotentiam addixerunt diis et deabus suis, unde orta sunt fabulosa illorum, ut de Deucalione et Pyrrha, quod lapides jacti post tergum facti sint homines; de Apolline quod Daphnem converterit in laurum; de Diana quod venatorem in cervum; 2 et quod alius 3 ex diis eorum virgines Parnassi verterit in picas. Similis 4 fides de Omnipotentia Divina est hodie, unde tot fanatica et inde haeretica in omni Regione, ubi Religio, in Mundum illata sunt.
Footnotes:
1. Prima editio: Ordines.
2. Prima editio: cervam.
3. Fortasse Calliope et aliae Musae.
4. Prima editio: Similes.