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more especially to designate that part of the divine decree that pertains in a very special sense
to God’s moral creatures, and is known as predestination. These terms will be considered in
connection with the discussion of that subject.
C. The Nature of the Divine Decrees.
The decree of God may be defined with the Westminster Shorter Catechism as “His eternal
purpose according to the counsel of His will, whereby, for His own glory, He hath foreordained
whatsoever comes to pass.”
1. THE DIVINE DECREE IS ONE.
Though we often speak of the decrees of God in the plural, yet
in its own nature the divine decree is but a single act of God. This is already suggested by the
fact that the Bible speaks of it as a prothesis, a purpose or counsel. It follows also from the very
nature of God. His knowledge is all immediate and simultaneous rather than successive like
ours, and His comprehension of it is always complete. And the decree that is founded on it is
also a single, all-comprehensive, and simultaneous act. As an eternal and immutable decree it
could not be otherwise. There is, therefore, no series of decrees in God, but simply one
comprehensive plan, embracing all that comes to pass. Our finite comprehension, however,
constrains us to make distinctions, and this accounts for the fact that we often speak of the
decrees of God in the plural. This manner of speaking is perfectly legitimate, provided we do
not lose sight of the unity of the divine decree, and of the inseparable connection of the various
decrees as we conceive of them.
2. THE RELATION OF THE DECREE TO THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD.
The decree of God bears the
closest relation to the divine knowledge. There is in God, as we have seen, a necessary
knowledge, including all possible causes and results. This knowledge furnishes the material for
the decree; it is the perfect fountain out of which God drew the thoughts which He desired to
objectify. Out of this knowledge of all things possible He chose, by an act of His perfect will, led
by wise considerations, what He wanted to bring to realization, and thus formed His eternal
purpose. The decree of God is, in turn, the foundation of His free knowledge or scientia libera.
It is the knowledge of things as they are realized in the course of history. While the necessary
knowledge of God logically precedes the decree, His free knowledge logically follows it. This
must be maintained over against all those who believe in a conditional predestination (such as
Semi-Pelagians and Arminians), since they make the pre-determinations of God dependent on
His foreknowledge. Some of the words used to denote the divine decree point to an element of
deliberation in the purpose of God. It would be a mistake, however, to infer from this that the
plan of God is the result of any deliberation which implies short-sightedness or hesitation, for it
is simply an indication of the fact that there is no blind decree in God, but only an intelligent
and deliberate purpose.