Vermigli:

45. They also put forward the statement to Timothy, “God will have all men to be saved (1 Tim 2:4).” Pighius regularly repeats this passage as if it were invincible. Yet Augustine often taught that it may be expounded in such a way that it lends no weight at all to prove their fond invention [Augustin Corrept. 14.44 (PL 44.943); idem, Ep. 217.6.19 (PL 33.985-86); idem, C. Jul. 8.42 (PL 44.75940), idem, Praed. 8.14 (PL 44.971)]. First, we take it to be spoken of all states and kinds of men, that is, that God will have some of all kinds of men to be saved. This interpretation agrees perfectly well with the purpose of the apostle. He had instituted that prayers and supplications should be made for all men, especially kings and those in public authority, so that under them we may live a quiet life in all piety and chastity (Tim. 2:l-2). Therefore, to declare that no state or kind of person is excluded, he added, “God will have all men to be saved.” It is as if he had said that no one is prevented by that calling and level in which he is placed, so long as it is not repugnant to the word of God, but that he may come to salvation; therefore, we should pray for all kinds of men. Yet we cannot infer from this that God endows everyone in particular with grace, or predestines everyone to salvation. Similarly, in the time of the flood, all living creatures are said to have been saved in the ark with Noah, but only some of every kind were gathered together in it.

Or we may understand it like this: God will have all men to be saved, for as many as are saved, they are saved by his will. It is as if one should say of a teacher of rhetoric in a city that he teaches all men. This kind of speech does not mean that all the citizens are hearers of rhetoric, but that as many as learn are taught by him. It is also like someone pointing to the gate of a house and saying that everyone enters this way. We must not understand from this that everyone enters that house, but that as many as enter do so by way of that gate alone.

Third, there are some who interpret these words of the apostle as referring to the signified will or antecedent will, that all men are invited since preaching is set forth to all indifferently. No one fails inwardly to feel some spur by which he is continually stirred up to do well. Thus if we relate this to the will of God, we will easily grant that he will have all men to be saved. They will not have it to be understood of the hidden and effective will which they call the consequent will. In this way one may understand such speech as “God illumines every man who comes into this world and “Come unto me all who are weary and heavy laden,”(John1 9; Matt. 11:21), for all are provoked by the oracles of God and all are inwardly moved by some spur.

All these interpretations are quite probable and also fitting, yet beside these there is another, both ready and plain. The Holy Scriptures set forth two human societies: one of the godly and the other of the ungodly. Both societies have universal propositions attached which should be restricted to their own category by j the careful reader. The prophets say, and Christ cites them: “All shall be taught by God (theodidaktos) and all shall know me from the least to the greatest”; and again he says, “When I shall be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all things to myself (John:4 5; Jer. 31:33). Unless these universal propositions refer to the godly who are elected, they are not true. This is also true of these passages: “I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh” and “All flesh shall come in my sight and shall worship in Jerusalem:’ and again, “All flesh shall see the salvation of God:’ and finally, “God lifts up all who fall (Joel 2: 28; Isa. 66:23; Luke 35; Ps. 145:14). Who does not see that these passages are to be understood only of the saints?

In contrast, these following passages refer to the ungodly: “No one receives his testimony” yet many believed, and “You will be hated by all.” Again it is stated, “They all seek after their own interests”; and “They have all turned aside together; they have become corrupt. There is no one who does good, not even one” (John 3: 32; Matt. 10:22; Phil. 2:21; Ps. 14:3). Those who are pious and regenerate are acceptable to God and endeavor to show him some obedience to the law, but these universal sayings should not be extended beyond their own society.

Augustine had this distinction in mind in his book The City of God, where he proves that there have always been two cities, one the city of God and the other the city of the devil. Therefore, in these general propositions we must always give due consideration as to which class or group of men they refer. If we do so here, we will apply the statement to the saints and the elect, namely, that “God will have all men to be saved”: and so all doubt is removed. Otherwise, it seems that God does not effectively will the salvation of all men, as is demonstrated by the many infants who have perished without Christ and many also which have been born fools, and deaf, and never had the right and proper use of reason. It often happens that some have had long lives, honest and faithful enough, and yet suddenly fall at last and are taken out of the world to perish eternally. Others, on the contrary, who have perpetually led a life of wickedness, are at the end of their lives endowed with faith and repentance and are saved. Yet they I might have been taken away first, so that evil would not have changed their minds. Who will in these examples say that God wills the salvation of all with the same effectiveness? They bring up a saying of Christ’s: “How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her chicks, and you would not?” (Matt. 23:37) Here also it is the antecedent will of the sign that is meant. God through his prophets, preachers, apostles, and Scriptures invited the Jews to fly to him by repentance time after time, but they refused, but by his effective will, which is called consequent, he always drew to himself those who were his. Nor was there any age when he did not gather as many of the Hebrews as he had predestined. Therefore, as Augustine said, those that I would, I have gathered together, although you would not.

Peter Martyr Vermigli, Predestination and Justification, trans., by Frank A. James, (Kirksville, Missouri: Sixteenth Century Essays and Studies, 2003), 8:62-64.

1) Our God is the God of all men and nations, who according to the saying of the apostle, “would have al men to be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth[1 Tim 2:4]:” and therefore has he, for the benefit, life, and salvation of all men, revealed in his word, that so indeed there might be a rule and a certain way to lead men by this path of justice into life everlasting. Decades, 1st Decade, Sermon 2, vol 1, p.,57.

2) Dearly beloved, this hour you have heard our bountiful Lord and God, “who would have all men saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth,” how he has revealed his word to all men throughout the whole world, to the intent that all men in all places, of what kind [Lat: sexus], age, or degree soever they be, may know the truth, and be instructed in the true salvation; and may learn a perfect way how to live rightly, well, and holily, so that the man of God may be perfect, instructed to all good works. Decades, 1st Decade, Sermon 2, vol 1, p.,69.

3) Wherefore our Lord Jesus Christ, being both God and man, was a fit Mediator for both parties. Which thing the apostle witnessing saith: “One God, and one Mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself the price of redemption for all [1 Tim 2:5,6.] Decades, 1st Decade, Sermon 7, vol 1, p., 131.

4) Whereupon we do necessarily gather, that only Christ is the mediator or intercessor with the Father. For principally Christ may se himself in the midst between God and men, because he only is partaker of both natures. The saints participate but only one; for they are men; but Christ is both God and man. Furthermore, he that is an intercessor must also be a reconciliator, or an atonement-maker. For the end, whereat he maketh intercession doth shoot at reconciliation. But Christ is the only reconciliator of men, therefore, also the only intercessor. For it belongeth to an intercessor to dissolve the cause of contention and discord, that is to say, to abolish and take away sin. But Christ alone, and no creature taketh away sin. It remaineth therefore that Christ is the only intercessor. Hithertoo do now pertain the testimonies of Scripture. Paul saith: “There is one God, and one reconciler (or mediator) of God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself the price (or ransom) for the redemption of all [1 Tim 2.]. And although the apostle speak expressly of redemption, yet notwithstanding these words are placed in the midst between the disputation of the invocation upon God which is done by Christ, who is the only mediator of redemption and intercession. For he alone redeemed us, so doth he alone even now command us, being redeemed, unto the Father. Decades, Decades, 4^th Decade, Sermon 5, vol 2, p., 214-215.

Dabney on allusions or references to 1 Tim 2:4-6:

1) These passages doubtless teach that the Son was, in the beginning, the immediate agent of creation for these, as for all other beings; and that the God-man now includes angels in His mediatorial kingdom, in the same sense in which He includes the rest of the universe, besides the saints. But that He is not a mediator for angels is clear, from the fact that, while He is never called such, He is so emphatically called “the Mediator between God and man” (1 Tim. 2:5). Second. He has assumed no community of nature with angels. Last. It is expressly denied in Hebrews 2:16, 17. (Greek.) Lectures, p., 232.

2) In conclusion, the powerful demonstration which the Scripture gives us against creature worship is the strongest proof against creature mediation; for if they mediated, they must be worshiped.

The Scripture testimony must hold the fifth, and crowning place. We have heard the Apostle assert, (1 Tim. 2:5) that as there is one God, there is one Mediator, between God and men, and that this is the Being who gave himself a ransom for all. As the words, “one God,” doubtless express the exclusive unity of God, so we are bound to construe the counterpart words, “one Mediator,” in the same way. And it is implied that He who mediates must have given the adequate ransom, on which to found His plea. So, our Savior declares, (John 14:6) “No man cometh to the Father but by me,” and Peter, (Acts 4:12) “There is none other name under heaven, given among men, whereby ye must be saved.” So, the words of Christ, (John 6:37) “Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out,” at least prove that any other intercessor is superfluous. It is said, that affirmations do not prove the counterpart negative. But when we find the Scriptures full of such passages as Rom. 8:34; 1 John 2:1, 2, which all assert with emphasis that the Lord Jesus Christ is our Mediator, and that there is an absolute silence throughout the Bible as to any other, even this proof is complete. Lectures, p., 482.

3) The attempt is made to escape the force of the places which assert the oneness of Christ’s intercession, by saying that He is the only Mediator of Redemption; saints and angels are Mediators of Intercession. On this subterfuge I remark. (a) 1 Tim. 2:5, asserts the singleness of Christ’s intercessory work first, and at least as pointedly as of His ransoming work. (b) Since intercession is grounded only in redemption by satisfaction, the two kinds of mediators must be one. (c) Roman Catholics themselves undermine their own distinction by impiously ascribing to their creature intercessors an imputable merit as the necessary ground of their influence with Christ. Lectures, pp., 482-483.

4) Christ Our Ransom. Again, He is said in many places to be our Redeemer—i. e., Ransomer—and His death or He, is our Ransom, Matt. 20:28; 1 Pet. 1:19; 1 Tim. 2:6; 1 Cor. 6:20. It is vain to reply that God is said to redeem His people in many places, when the only meaning is, that He delivered them, and that Moses is called the redeemer of Israel out of Egypt, who certainly did not do this by a vicarious penalty. Christ’s death is a proper ransom, because the very price is mentioned. Lectures, 511.

5) From Texts Teaching A Seeming Universality. The other class of objections is from the Scriptures; e. g., Those which speak of Christ as having compassion for, or dying for, “the whole world,” “all,” “all men,” “every man,” John 1:29; John 3:16; 4:42; 6:51; 2 Cor. 5:19; 1 John 1; John 12:32; 1 Cor. 15:22; 2 Cor. 5:14, 15; 1 Tim. 2:6; 1 Tim. 4:10; Heb. 2:9. The usual explanation, offered by the strict Calvinists, of these texts is this: that terms seemingly universal often have to be limited to a universality within certain bounds by the context, as in Matt. 3:5; that in New Testament times, especially when the gospel was receiving its grand extension from one little nation to all nations, it is reasonable to expect that strong affirmatives would be used as to its extent, which yet should be strained to mean nothing more than this, that persons of every nation in the world were given to Christ. Hence, “the world,” “all the world,” should be taken to mean no more than people of every nation in the world, without distinction. There is a certain amount of justice in these views, and many of these passages, as 1 Cor. 15:22; John 1:29, and 12:32, may be adequately explained by them. The explanation is also greatly strengthened by this fact too little pressed by Calvinists, that ultimately, the vast majority of the whole mass of humanity, including all generations, will be actually redeemed by Christ. There is to be a time, blessed be God, when literally all the then world will be saved by Christ, when the world will be finally, completely, and wholly lifted by Christ out of the gulf, and sink no more. So that there is a sense, most legitimate, in which Christ is the prospective Savior of the world. Lectures, p., 524-525.

6) To Express His Benevolence. God’s second design in making the common call universal was the exercise of the general holiness goodness, and compassion of His nature, (which generally regard all His creatures), in dissuading all from sin and self destruction. God’s holiness, which is universally opposed to sin, makes it proper that He shall dissuade from sin, every where, and in all sinners. God’s mercy and goodness, being made possible towards the human race by their being under a gospel dispensation, make it proper that He shall dissuade all from self destruction. And this benevolence not only offers a benefit to sinners generally, but actually confers one—i. e., a temporary enjoyment of a dispensation of mercy, and a suspension of wrath, with all the accompanying mercies, and the offer itself of salvation. This offer is itself a benefit, only man’s perverseness turns it into a curse. Blessed be God, His word assures us that this common call is an expression of sincere benevolence towards all sinners, elect and non-elect, (a compassion whose efficient outgoing is, however, conditioned, as to all, on faith and penitence in them). Ezek. 33:11; Ps. 81:13; 1 Tim. 2:4. Lectures p., 555.

It administers matter of comfort to the believer. It is some comfort to all, that they are in a fair way of being happy; the justice of God was the bar to God and man’s meeting together. It was morally impossible, in regard of God’s truth and holiness, for man to be restored without a vindication of that law which had been broken; but now the honour of the law is restored by this sacrifice; God hath owned it, the bar is removed, and where God hath found a sweetness man may find salvation, if he be not his own enemy, and wilfully cast away his own mercy. He ‘gave himself a ransom for all,’ 1 Tim 1:5,6, antilutron, a ransom in our stead, or a counter-ransom, in opposition to the sin of Adam, as the fountain of our bondage; for all upon gospel conditions. As he gave himself for all, so he was accepted for all upon the same conditions; for he was accepted as he gave himself. It is a comfort to a diseased hospital, that a physician is chosen and accepted by the governors that is able to cure every disease; it is no less a comfort to any guilty soul, that there is a sacrifice sufficient to expiate every sin. But there is a ground of sensible comfort to those that believe.

Stephen Charnock “A Discourse of the Acceptableness of Christ’s Death,” in Works [1865], 4:582.