Bunyan:

Third, Another cause of eternal reprobation, is the act and working of distinguishing love, and everlasting grace. “God hath universal love, and particular love; general love, and distinguishing love; and so accordingly doth decree, purpose, and determine: from general love, the extension of general grace and mercy: but from that love that is distinguishing, peculiar grace and mercy: ‘Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?’ saith the Lord, ‘yet I loved Jacob’ (Mal. 1: 2). Yet I loved Jacob, that is, with a better love, or a love that is more distinguishing. As he further makes appear in his answer to our father Abraham, when he prayed to God for Ishmael: ‘As for Ishmael, [saith he] I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful. But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee’ (Gen. 17:20, 21). Touching which words, there are these things observable.

1. That God had better love for Isaac, than he had for his brother Ishmael. Yet,

2. Not because Isaac had done more worthy and goodly deeds, for Isaac was yet unborn.

3. This choice blessing could not be denied to Ishmael, because he had disinherited himself by sin; for this blessing was entailed to Isaac, before Ishmael had a being also (Rom. 4:16-19; Gen. 15: 4, 5, chapter 16).

4. These things therefore must needs fall out through the working of distinguishing love and mercy, which had so cast the business, ‘that the purpose of God according to election might stand.’

Further, Should not God decree to shew distinguishing love and mercy, as well as that which is general and common, he must not discover his best love at all to the sons of men. Again, if he should reveal and extend his best love to all the world in general, then there would not be such a thing as love that doth distinguish; for distinguishing love appeareth in separating between Isaac and Ishmael, Jacob and Esau, the many called, and the few chosen. Thus by virtue of distinguishing love, some must be reprobate: for distinguishing love must leave some, both of the angels in heaven, and the inhabitants of the earth; wherefore the decree also that doth establish it, must needs leave some.”

John Bunyan, “Reprobation Asserted,” in The Works of John Bunyan [Banner of Truth edition] 2:340.

Credit to Tony.

Bates:

“2. The next general consideration is this; the glory of God is that which will bear a proportion to that love of God which he hath to his people. It shall be a noble expression of that love, and suitable to it. Now to make you a little to understand the force of this: God hath a general love to his creatures, and a special love to his children, to those who are his friends and favourites.

1.) There is a general love that God bears to mankind in this lower world, as they have the title of his creatures: that love hath declared itself in making this world so pleasant an habitation for man as he is in his natural state. Now pray consider with yourselves; God hath made a thousand things in this world, which are not absolutely necessary for the support of our lives, but for the refreshment, and comfort, and pleasure of them; and this is from his general love to mankind. How many stars are there that adorn the firmament in the night? which are a most pleasant spectacle, but are not so absolutely necessary for lights. And how many things are there which are for pleasure and delight, which are not necessary for the support of life.

2.) God hath a peculiar love to his children, and that love he hath designed to glorify in heaven: therefore you shall find, Eph. 1. 6. the great work of redemption, both as to the accomplishment of it, and the actual bestowing the fruits thereof upon us; the great end of it is said to be to the praise of the glory of the grace of God; the glory of his love; that love which warmed his breast from eternity with thoughts of compassion towards man; this love he will glorify in heaven; and he hath prepared such glory and joy for them, that they shall know he will love them like a God in an infinite and inconceivable manner. Do but a little ascend in your thoughts thus; ‘Hath God made a beautiful world, so full of comforts and refreshment; hath he made this, and given it to rebellious contumacious sinners, those that live in open defiance of his laws and government? What then hath he prepared for those that love and serve him, in the kingdom above?

William Bates, “The Everlasting Rest of the Saints in Heaven,” in The Whole Works of William Bates, (London, 1815), 3:40.

Ripped from Tony

Trelcatius:

OF THE CALLING OF MAN unto Salvation

The Part Confirming.

Chap. 8.

For as much as we have treated of the Beginning and Dispensation of our Redemption: that is, of the Person and Office of Christ: We now are to treat, according to our appointed order, of he Application thereof.

Now the verity of this Application, ought three ways severally to be marked: by the degrees thereof; by the outward means, and by the Subject: the degrees, according to which, God in time applies unto us the benefit of Redemption, are chiefly two: Vocation, and Justification.

Vocation, is the first degree of Application, on God’s behalf; called therefore by Augustine, The entry unto salvation, and the first passage towards the end.

Of this Vocation, there is usually had a divers knowledge, according it is distinguished, either, as touching the manner of calling, into an Inward, and outward: or as touching divers condition of the cause Efficient, into a General, and Particular: or Lastly, as touching the effect of calling, unto an Effectual, and not Effectual Vocation.

Now of this Vocation, where Inward, Particular , and Effectual, or outward, general, and ineffectual, there is a double respect: the one Absolute in itself; the other Joint, or conjoined in an ordinary vocation. For God calls outwardly in general; inwardly, in particular; and jointly, both ways ordinarily.

Of both, we are orderly to treat, according to the course of causes.

The outward and general Vocation (we may speak of it in the first place) is a gracious action of God, whereby he calls men forth, by word, sign, and work, from unbelief unto faith; that both the faithful might be disposed to the communion of salvation, and that others being convinced of the grace offered unto them by God, might become inexcusable.

The cause Efficient of this Vocation is God, because it is from him properly, if you mark the true beginning thereof; and is from him, first (or chiefly), by himself , and principally, if you have a respect unto the means, which God would have to be used, either the extraordinarily, or ordinarily, for the calling of men.

The beginning is that love of God towards man, whereby as a lover of souls, and the Saviour of Men, he bears his goodwill towards all men, and generally offers his Grace unto them.

Now, he offers the same (that we may in few words speak of the means) by word, by signs, and by works; all which in respect of God, that ordains them, are general: by word, either extraordinary, such as was in the first times of the Church; or Ordinary, by the universal Canon of faith and life, which we call the Scripture; by signs, by which added unto the word (the Lord being author) his grace is visibly sealed up; by works, either Ordinary, or Extraordinary, either within the Church, or without the Church.

The matter, or Subject of this vocation, are all men, without a difference of nations, sexes, or states; unto whom by name, the means, whereof we have spoken, do extend: For God will have all men be saved, both generally, because he calls forth out of all whomsoever he will; or out of every one, of the general sorts, the general sorts of everyone, unto salvation: as also, because the grace of God is offered unto all; not by universal efficacy, but by a general sign, and power.

Lucas, Trelcatius, A Briefe Institution of the Common Places of Sacred Divinity: Wherein the Truth of every Place is proved, and the Sophisms of Bellarmine are reproved, (London: Imprinted by T.P. for Francis Burton, dwelling in Paules Church-yard, at the sign of the Green Dragon, 1610), 208, 210-211.

“Lucas Trelcatious, the younger, (1573-1607); studied at Leiden and become professor of theology there in 1603. He participated in the debate with Arminius over predestination and Christology. His major work is the Scholastica et methodica locorum communium s. theologiae institutio (1604).”

Source: Richard Muller, Post-Reformation Reformed Dogmatics, 1:45 (first edition).

Turretin:

1) IV. From goodness flows love by which he communicates himself to the creature and (as it were) wills to unite himself with and do good to it, but in diverse and degrees according to the diversity of the objects. Hence is usually made a threefold distinction in the divine love: the first, that by which he follows creatures, called “love of the creature” (philoktisia); the second, that by which he embraces men, called “love of man” philoanthropia); the third, which is specially exercised towards the elect and is called “he love of the elect“ (eklektophilia). For in proportion as the creature is more perfect . and more excellent, so also does it share in a greater effluence and outpouring (aporroen) of divine love!, Hence although love considered effectively and on the part of the internal act is equal in God (because it does not admit of increase and diminution), yet regarded effectively (or on the part of the good which he wills to anyone) it is unequal because some effects of love are greater than others. Trruetin, Institutes of Elenctic Theology, 2:241.

2) VII. (2) The question is not whether God is borne by a general love and philanthropy (philanthopia) towards men as his creatures, and also bestows upon them various temporal benefits pertaining to the things of this life (ta biotika). We do not deny that God has never left himself without witness (amartyron) with regard to this (Acts 14:17). And we readily grant that there is no one who does not owe some gratitude to God and who, whatever he is or can do, is not bound to give thanks to his Creator. But the question concerns the special and saving love which tends to spiritual benefits, and by which God willed to have mercy upon them to salvation. We thing this is particular to the elect alone, not universal and common to all. Turretin, Institutes of Elenctic Theology, 1:396-397.

3) XVI. Second, not more happily is the love of God here distinguished into comparative and absolute. Is it maintained that Paul, when he speaks of the love of Jacob and the hatred of Esau, wishes only to intimate that God loved the former more and preferred him to the latter (just as the word meaning “to hate” is often put in the Scripture for “to love less,” Gen. 29:31). Although God may be said to have embraced some with a peculiar love (so as to give faith to them), it does not follow that he was unwilling to save others. For various degrees in the love of God towards men can be conceived no less than towards other creatures. We answer as follows: although we readily grant that sometimes hatred is put for a diminished love among men, yet we deny that with Paul God’s hatred towards Esau can be thus understood. It is opposed to his loved Jacob, which is said to be according to election (kat’ eklogen). Therefore this love necessarily includes the purpose of having mercy upon and saving Jacob; the hatred denies it and marks the purpose of reprobation by which he was freely passed over and excluded from salvation (so that thus far the Reformed theologians have uniformly held it) Nor if, in the effects of God’s general love and the common providence by which he is borne to all his creatures (according to the variety of subjects distinguished by a greater or less excellence of nature), there are degrees, does it forthwith follow that there are degrees affectively in God’s special and saving love. Since his love cannot be vain and inefficacious, those whom he loves unto salvation he ought to love fully and even unto the end (Jn. 13:1) Turretin, Institutes of Elenctic Theology, 1:400.

4) II. The reasons are (1) saving faith differs from temporary faith in origin and foundation. The former flows from the special grace of election when it is called “the faith of the elect” (Tit. 1:l); which is given only to those who are called according to his purpose (kata prothesin), Rom.8:28) and were ordained to eternal life (Acts 13:48). On the contrary, the latter depends upon common grace which bestows even on the reprobate certain blessings: not only external and temporal, but also spiritual and initial gifts (although not saving) as a testification of a certain general love and to increase their guilt on the supposition of their contumacy. Hence Paul , speaking of the apostasy of Hymenaeus and Philetus, says, “Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure” (2 Tim. 2:19), i.e., not on this account does the faith of true believers waver, being built upon the immovable foundation of the election of God. Turretin, Institutes of Elenctic Theology, 2:588.