Wesley Corpus

Add to this the common calamities in which infants are involved by fire, earthquake, pestilence. And there are a thousand other acci dents which attend them, whereby their members, their natural powers, receive dismal injuries; so that, perhaps, they drag on life with blindness, deafness, lameness, or distortion of body or limbs. Sometimes they languish on to manhood, or even old age, under sore calamities, which began almost as soon as their being, and which are only ended by death.” (Page 68.) “Now, as these sufferings cannot be sent upon them to cor rect their personal sins, so neither are they sent as a trial of their virtue; for they have no knowledge of good or evil. Yet we see multitudes of these little, miserable beings. And are these treated as innocent creatures; or rather, as under some gene ral curse, involved in some general punishment?” (Page 69.) “‘But may not these sufferings of children be for the punishment of the sins of their parents?” “Not with any justice or equity, unless the sins of the parents are imputed to their children. Besides, many of the parents of these suffering children are dead or absent, so as never to know it. And how in these cases can it be a punishment for their parents’ sin, any otherwise than as it is a general punish ment for the sin of their first parent?” (Page 71.) “But God recompenses them for these sufferings hereafter.’ Where does the Scripture affirm this? Besides, many of them grow up to manhood. And if they prove wicked, and are sent to hell at last, what recompence have they for their infant suffer ings? Or will you say, God punished them before they had sinned, because he knew beforehand they would sin? Yet far ther: What wise or good design can this their punishment answer, when no creature can know what they are punished for, if it be not for that which affects all mankind? “‘But how are such miseries reigning among his creatures consistent with the goodness of God?” Perfectly well, if we consider mankind as a sinful, degenerate part of God’s creation. It is most abundant goodness that they have any comforts left, and that their miseries are not doubled.