Chap. 3:Para. 3 Gods Decree in Salvation

We come now to the most controversial part of the chapter where paragraph 3 takes us into
the territory of double predestination. ‘By the decree of God, for the manifestation of his
glory, some men and angels are predestinated, or foreordained to eternal life through Jesus
Christ, to the praise of his glorious grace; others being left to act in their sin to their just
condemnation, to the praise of his glorious justice.’ This is the next necessary step in
working out the doctrine of God’s plan of all things. We have seen who God is; and in light
of who God is His decree must have certain characteristics being eternal, unconditional,
immutable, universal and impeccable. Because of this we had to deny certain things last
week. We had to show that God could not have done things in a certain way closing the
door on middle knowledge. God does not look down the corridors of time to a situation that
He has not willed and react to what we would do. Having stated things generally the 1689
is now ready to apply this biblical teaching of God to how God planned salvation, and this
brings us face to face with the dreaded doctrine of double predestination.