predestination
Predestination (noun) means the Christian doctrine that God has decided in advance who will be saved, so that a person's eternal fate is settled by divine choice rather than earned by their own actions. Example: “Calvin's account of predestination split the Reformation church.”
How to Use Predestination
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishThe idea that God has already decided how things, including who is saved, will turn out.
Theological and formal; outside religion it appears mainly in philosophical discussion of free will.
In theology, predestination concerns salvation specifically; determinism is the wider claim that all events are fixed by prior causes.
Trace the full origin ↓Fill the Gap
Can you complete this real example?
Calvin's account of _____ split the Reformation church.
Etymology
From Latin praedestinare meaning 'to determine beforehand', from prae 'before' and destinare 'to appoint'.
Synonyms
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Rhymes for predestination
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between predestination and free will?
Predestination holds that outcomes, especially salvation, are settled in advance by God. Free will holds that people genuinely choose their own actions. Many theologians argue the two are compatible — that God's foreknowledge does not force the choice — but the tension between them is one of the oldest debates in Christian thought.
What is the difference between predestination and determinism?
Predestination is a religious doctrine: a personal God has decreed what will happen. Determinism is a philosophical or scientific claim: every event follows necessarily from prior causes and physical laws, with no divine agent required.
What is double predestination?
Double predestination is the stricter version of the doctrine, holding that God actively chooses both those who will be saved and those who will be damned. Single predestination holds that God elects the saved while simply passing over the rest rather than condemning them by decree.