(Calvin, Institutes on the Christian Religion 1, part 6)
Chapter 4.
4. The knowledge of god stifled or corrupted, ignorantly or
maliciously.
Sections.
1. The knowledge of God suppressed by ignorance, many falling away
into superstition. Such persons, however, inexcusable, because
their error is accompanied with pride and stubbornness.
2. Stubbornness the companion of impiety.
3. No pretext can justify superstition. This proved, first, from
reason; and, secondly, from Scripture.
4. The wicked never willingly come into the presence of God. Hence
their hypocrisy. Hence, too, their sense of Deity leads to no
good result.
1. But though experience testifies that a seed of religion is
divinely sown in all, scarcely one in a hundred is found who
cherishes it in his heart, and not one in whom it grows to maturity
so far is it from yielding fruit in its season. Moreover, while some
lose themselves in superstitious observances, and others, of set
purpose, wickedly revolt from God, the result is, that, in reward to
the true knowledge of him, all are so degenerate, that in no part of
the world can genuine godliness be found. In saying that some fall
away into superstition, I mean not to insinuate that their excessive
absurdity frees them from guilt; for the blindness under which they
labour is almost invariably accompanied with vain pride and
stubbornness. Mingled vanity and pride appear in this, that when
miserable men do seek after God, instead of ascending higher than
themselves as they ought to do, they measure him by their own carnal
stupidity, and neglecting solid inquiry, fly off to indulge their
curiosity in vain speculation. Hence, they do not conceive of him in
the character in which he is manifested, but imagine him to be
whatever their own rashness has devised. This abyss standing open,
they cannot move one footstep without rushing headlong to
destruction. With such an idea of God, nothing which they may
attempt to offer in the way of worship or obedience can have any
value in his sight, because it is not him they worship, but, instead
of him, the dream and figment of their own heart. This corrupt
procedure is admirably described by Paul, when he says, that
"thinking to be wise, they became fools" (Rom. 1: 22.) He had
previously said that "they became vain in their imaginations," but
lest any should suppose them blameless, he afterwards adds that they
were deservedly blinded, because, not contented with sober inquiry,
because, arrogating to themselves more than they have any title to
do, they of their own accord court darkness, nay, bewitch themselves
with perverse, empty show. Hence it is that their folly, the result
not only of vain curiosity, but of licentious desire and overweening
confidence in the pursuit of forbidden knowledge, cannot be excused.
2. The expression of David, (Psalm 14: 1, 53: 1,) "The fool has
said in his heart, There is no God," is primarily applied to those
who, as will shortly farther appear, stifle the light of nature, and
intentionally stupefy themselves. We see many, after they have
become hardened in a daring course of sin, madly banishing all
remembrance of God, though spontaneously suggested to them from
within, by natural sense. To show how detestable this madness is,
the Psalmist introduces them as distinctly denying that there is a
God, because although they do not disown his essence, they rob him
of his justice and providence, and represent him as sitting idly in
heaven. Nothing being less accordant with the nature of God than to
cast off the government of the world, leaving it to chance, and so
to wink at the crimes of men that they may wanton with impunity in
evil courses; it follows, that every man who indulges in security,
after extinguishing all fear of divine judgement, virtually denies
that there is a God. As a just punishment of the wicked, after they
have closed their own eyes, God makes their hearts dull and heavy,
and hence, seeing, they see not. David, indeed, is the best
interpreter of his own meaning, when he says elsewhere, the wicked
has "no fear of God before his eyes," (Psalm 36: 1;) and, again, "He
has said in his heart, God has forgotten; he hideth his face; he
will never see it." Thus although they are forced to acknowledge
that there is some God, they, however, rob him of his glory by
denying his power. For, as Paul declares, "If we believe not, he
abideth faithful, he cannot deny himself," (2 Tim. 2: 13; so those
who feign to themselves a dead and dumb idol, are truly said to deny
God. It is, moreover, to be observed, that though they struggle with
their own convictions, and would fain not only banish God from their
minds, but from heaven also, their stupefaction is never so complete
as to secure them from being occasionally dragged before the divine
tribunal. Still, as no fear restrains them from rushing violently in
the face of God, so long as they are hurried on by that blind
impulse, it cannot be denied that their prevailing state of mind in
regard to him is brutish oblivion.
3. In this way, the vain pretext which many employ to clothe
their superstition is overthrown. They deem it enough that they have
some kind of zeal for religion, how preposterous soever it may be,
not observing that true religion must be conformable to the will of
God as its unerring standard; that he can never deny himself, and is
no spectra or phantom, to be metamorphosed at each individual's
caprice. It is easy to see how superstition, with its false glosses,
mocks God, while it tries to please him. Usually fastening merely on
things on which he has declared he sets no value, it either
contemptuously overlooks, or even undisguisedly rejects, the things
which he expressly enjoins, or in which we are assured that he takes
pleasure. Those, therefore, who set up a fictitious worship, merely
worship and adore their own delirious fancies; indeed, they would
never dare so to trifle with God, had they not previously fashioned
him after their own childish conceits. Hence that vague and
wandering opinion of Deity is declared by an apostle to be ignorance
of God: "Howbeit, then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto
them which by nature are no gods." And he elsewhere declares, that
the Ephesians were "without God" (Eph. 2: 12) at the time when they
wandered without any correct knowledge of him. It makes little
difference, at least in this respect, whether you hold the existence
of one God, or a plurality of gods, since, in both cases alike, by
departing from the true God, you have nothing left but an execrable
idol. It remains, therefore, to conclude with Lactantius, (Instit.
Div. lib i. 2,, 6,) "No religion is genuine that is not in
accordance with truth."
4. To this fault they add a second, viz., that when they do
think of God it is against their will; never approaching him without
being dragged into his presence, and when there, instead of the
voluntary fear flowing from reverence of the divine majesty, feeling
only that forced and servile fear which divine judgement extorts
judgement which, from the impossibility of escape, they are
compelled to dread, but which, while they dread, they at the same
time also hate. To impiety, and to it alone, the saying of Statius
properly applies: "Fear first brought gods into the world," (Theb.
lib. i.) Those whose inclinations are at variance with the justice
of God, knowing that his tribunal has been erected for the
punishment of transgression, earnestly wish that that tribunal were
overthrown. Under the influence of this feeling they are actually
warring against God, justice being one of his essential attributes.
Perceiving that they are always within reach of his power, that
resistance and evasion are alike impossible, they fear and tremble.
Accordingly, to avoid the appearance of condemning a majesty by
which all are overawed, they have recourse to some species of
religious observance, never ceasing meanwhile to defile themselves
with every kind of vice, and add crime to crime, until they have
broken the holy law of the Lord in every one of its requirements,
and set his whole righteousness at nought; at all events, they are
not so restrained by their semblance of fear as not to luxuriate and
take pleasure in iniquity, choosing rather to indulge their carnal
propensities than to curb them with the bridle of the Holy Spirit.
But since this shadow of religion (it scarcely even deserves to be
called a shadow) is false and vain, it is easy to infer how much
this confused knowledge of God differs from that piety which is
instilled into the breasts of believers, and from which alone true
religion springs. And yet hypocrites would fain, by means of
tortuous windings, make a show of being near to God at the very time
they are fleeing from him. For while the whole life ought to be one
perpetual course of obedience, they rebel without fear in almost all
their actions, and seek to appease him with a few paltry sacrifices;
while they ought to serve him with integrity of heart and holiness
of life, they endeavour to procure his favour by means of frivolous
devices and punctilios of no value. Nay, they take greater license
in their grovelling indulgences, because they imagine that they can
fulfil their duty to him by preposterous expiations; in short, while
their confidence ought to have been fixed upon him, they put him
aside, and rest in themselves or the creatures. At length they
bewilder themselves in such a maze of error, that the darkness of
ignorance obscures, and ultimately extinguishes, those sparks which
were designed to show them the glory of God. Still, however, the
conviction that there is some Deity continues to exist, like a plant
which can never be completely eradicated, though so corrupt, that it
is only capable of producing the worst of fruit. Nay, we have still
stronger evidence of the proposition for which I now contend, viz.,
that a sense of Deity is naturally engraven on the human heart, in
the fact, that the very reprobate are forced to acknowledge it. When
at their ease, they can jest about God, and talk pertly and
loquaciously in disparagement of his power; but should despair, from
any cause, overtake them, it will stimulate them to seek him, and
dictate ejaculatory prayers, proving that they were not entirely
ignorant of God, but had perversely suppressed feelings which ought
to have been earlier manifested.
Chapter 5.
5. The knowledge of God conspicuous in the creation, and continual
government of the world.
This chapter consists of two parts: 1. The former, which occupies
the first ten sections, divides all the works of God into two great
classes, and elucidates the knowledge of God as displayed in each
class. The one class is treated of in the first six, and the other
in the four following sections: 2. The latter part of the chapter
shows, that, in consequence of the extreme stupidity of men, those
manifestations of God, however perspicuous, lead to no useful
result. This latter part, which commences at the eleventh section,
is continued to the end of the chapter.
Sections.
1. The invisible and incomprehensible essence of God, to a certain
extent, made visible in his works.
2. This declared by the first class of works, viz., the admirable
motions of the heavens and the earth, the symmetry of the human
body, and the connection of its parts; in short, the various
objects which are presented to every eye.
3. This more especially manifested in the structure of the human
body.
4. The shameful ingratitude of disregarding God, who, in such a
variety of ways, is manifested within us. The still more
shameful ingratitude of contemplating the endowments of the
soul, without ascending to Him who gave them. No objection can
be founded on any supposed organism in the soul.
5. The powers and actions of the soul, a proof of its separate
existence from the body. Proofs of the soul's immortality.
Objection that the whole world is quickened by one soul. Reply
to the objection. Its impiety.
6. Conclusion from what has been said, viz., that the omnipotence,
eternity, and goodness of God, may be learned from the first
class of works, i. e., those which are in accordance with the
ordinary course of nature.
7. The second class of works, viz., those above the ordinary course
of nature, afford clear evidence of the perfections of God,
especially his goodness, justice, and mercy.
8. Also his providence, power, and wisdom.
9. Proofs and illustrations of the divine Majesty. The use of them,
viz., the acquisition of divine knowledge in combination with
true piety.
10. The tendency of the knowledge of God to inspire the righteous
with the hope of future life, and remind the wicked of the
punishments reserved for them. Its tendency, moreover, to keep
alive in the hearts of the righteous a sense of the divine
goodness.
11. The second part of the chapter, which describes the stupidity
both of learned and unlearned, in ascribing the whole order of
things, and the admirable arrangements of divine Providence, to
fortune.
12. Hence Polytheism, with all its abominations, and the endless and
irreconcilable opinions of the philosophers concerning God.
13. All guilty of revolt from God, corrupting pure religion, either
by following general custom, or the impious consent of
antiquity.
14. Though irradiated by the wondrous glories of creation, we cease
not to follow our own ways.
15. Our conduct altogether inexcusable, the dullness of perception
being attributable to ourselves, while we are fully reminded of
the true path, both by the structure and the government of the
world.
1. Since the perfection of blessedness consists in the
knowledge of God, he has been pleased, in order that none might be
excluded from the means of obtaining felicity, not only to deposit
in our minds that seed of religion of which we have already spoken,
but so to manifest his perfections in the whole structure of the
universe, and daily place himself in our view, that we cannot open
our eyes without being compelled to behold him. His essence, indeed,
is incomprehensible, utterly transcending all human thought; but on
each of his works his glory is engraven in characters so bright, so
distinct, and so illustrious, that none, however dull and
illiterate, can plead ignorance as their excuse. Hence, with perfect
truth, the Psalmist exclaims, "He covereth himself with light as
with a garment," (Psalm 104: 2;) as if he had said, that God for the
first time was arrayed in visible attire when, in the creation of
the world, he displayed those glorious banners, on which, to
whatever side we turn, we behold his perfections visibly portrayed.
In the same place, the Psalmist aptly compares the expanded heavens
to his royal tent, and says, "He layeth the beams of his chambers in
the waters, maketh the clouds his chariot, and walketh upon the
wings of the wind," sending forth the winds and lightnings as his
swift messengers. And because the glory of his power and wisdom is
more refulgent in the firmament, it is frequently designated as his
palace. And, first, wherever you turn your eyes, there is no portion
of the world, however minute, that does not exhibit at least some
sparks of beauty; while it is impossible to contemplate the vast and
beautiful fabric as it extends around, without being overwhelmed by
the immense weight of glory. Hence, the author of the Epistle to the
Hebrews elegantly describes the visible worlds as images of the
invisible, (Heb. 11: 3,) the elegant structure of the world serving
us as a kind of mirror, in which we may behold God, though otherwise
invisible. For the same reason, the Psalmist attributes language to
celestial objects, a language which all nations understand, (Psalm
19: 1,) the manifestation of the Godhead being too clear to escape
the notice of any people, however obtuse. The apostle Paul, stating
this still more clearly, says, "That which may be known of God is
manifest in them, for God has showed it unto them. For the invisible
things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being
understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and
Godhead," (Rom. 1: 20.)
2. In attestation of his wondrous wisdom, both the heavens and
the earth present us with innumerable proofs not only those more
recondite proofs which astronomy, medicine, and all the natural
sciences, are designed to illustrate, but proofs which force
themselves on the notice of the most illiterate peasant, who cannot
open his eyes without beholding them. It is true, indeed, that those
who are more or less intimately acquainted with those liberal
studies are thereby assisted and enabled to obtain a deeper insight
into the secret workings of divine wisdom. No man, however, though
he be ignorant of these, is incapacitated for discerning such proofs
of creative wisdom as may well cause him to break forth in
admiration of the Creator. To investigate the motions of the
heavenly bodies, to determine their positions, measure their
distances, and ascertain their properties, demands skill, and a more
careful examination; and where these are so employed, as the
Providence of God is thereby more fully unfolded, so it is
reasonable to suppose that the mind takes a loftier flight, and
obtains brighter views of his glory. Still, none who have the use of
their eyes can be ignorant of the divine skill manifested so
conspicuously in the endless variety, yet distinct and well ordered
array, of the heavenly host; and, therefore, it is plain that the
Lord has furnished every man with abundant proofs of his wisdom. The
same is true in regard to the structure of the human frame. To
determine the connection of its parts, its symmetry and beauty, with
the skill of a Galen, (Lib. De Usu Partium,) requires singular
acuteness; and yet all men acknowledge that the human body bears on
its face such proofs of ingenious contrivance as are sufficient to
proclaim the admirable wisdom of its Maker.
3. Hence certain of the philosophers have not improperly called
man a microcosm, (miniature world,) as being a rare specimen of
divine power, wisdom, and goodness, and containing within himself
wonders sufficient to occupy our minds, if we are willing so to
employ them. Paul, accordingly, after reminding the Athenians that
they "might feel after God and find him," immediately adds, that "he
is not far from every one of us," (Acts 17: 27;) every man having
within himself undoubted evidence of the heavenly grace by which he
lives, and moves, and has his being. But if, in order to apprehend
God, it is unnecessary to go farther than ourselves, what excuse can
there be for the sloth of any man who will not take the trouble of
descending into himself that he may find Him? For the same reason,
too, David, after briefly celebrating the wonderful name and glory
of God, as everywhere displayed, immediately exclaims, "What is man,
that thou art mindful of him?" and again, "Out of the mouths of
babes and sucklings thou hast ordained strength," (Psalm 8: 2, 4.)
Thus he declares not only that the human race are a bright mirror of
the Creator's works, but that infants hanging on their mothers'
breasts have tongues eloquent enough to proclaim his glory without
the aid of other orators. Accordingly, he hesitates not to bring
them forward as fully instructed to refute the madness of those who,
from devilish pride, would fain extinguish the name of God. Hence,
too, the passage which Paul quotes from Aratus, "We are his
offspring," (Acts 17: 28,) the excellent gifts with which he has
endued us attesting that he is our Father. In the same way also,
from natural instinct, and, as it were, at the dictation of
experience, heathen poets called him the father of men. No one,
indeed, will voluntarily and willingly devote himself to the service
of God unless he has previously tasted his paternal love, and been
thereby allured to love and reverence Him.
4. But herein appears the shameful ingratitude of men. Though
they have in their own persons a factory where innumerable
operations of God are carried on, and a magazine stored with
treasures of inestimable value - instead of bursting forth in his
praise, as they are bound to do, they, on the contrary, are the more
inflated and swelled with pride. They feel how wonderfully God is
working in them, and their own experience tells them of the vast
variety of gifts which they owe to his liberality. Whether they will
or not, they cannot but know that these are proofs of his Godhead,
and yet they inwardly suppress them. They have no occasion to go
farther than themselves, provided they do not, by appropriating as
their own that which has been given them from heaven, put out the
light intended to exhibit God clearly to their minds. At this day,
however, the earth sustains on her bosom many monster minds - minds
which are not afraid to employ the seed of Deity deposited in human
nature as a means of suppressing the name of God. Can any thing be
more detestable than this madness in man, who, finding God a hundred
times both in his body and his soul, makes his excellence in this
respect a pretext for denying that there is a God? He will not say
that chance has made him differ from the brutes that perish; but,
substituting nature as the architect of the universe, he suppresses
the name of God. The swift motions of the soul, its noble faculties
and rare endowments, bespeak the agency of God in a manner which
would make the suppression of it impossible, did not the Epicureans,
like so many Cyclops, use it as a vantageground, from which to wage
more audacious war with God. Are so many treasures of heavenly
wisdom employed in the guidance of such a worm as man, and shall the
whole universe be denied the same privilege? To hold that there are
organs in the soul corresponding to each of its faculties, is so far
from obscuring the glory of God, that it rather illustrates it. Let
Epicurus tell what concourse of atoms, cooking meat and drink, can
form one portion into refuse and another portion into blood, and
make all the members separately perform their office as carefully as
if they were so many souls acting with common consent in the
superintendence of one body.
5. But my business at present is not with that stye: I wish
rather to deal with those who, led away by absurd subtleties, are
inclined, by giving an indirect turn to the frigid doctrine of
Aristotle, to employ it for the purpose both of disproving the
immortality of the soul, and robbing God of his rights. Under the
pretext that the faculties of the soul are organised, they chain it
to the body as if it were incapable of a separate existence, while
they endeavour as much as in them lies, by pronouncing eulogiums on
nature, to suppress the name of God. But there is no ground for
maintaining that the powers of the soul are confined to the
performance of bodily functions. What has the body to do with your
measuring the heavens, counting the number of the stars,
ascertaining their magnitudes, their relative distances, the rate at
which they move, and the orbits which they describe? I deny not that
Astronomy has its use; all I mean to show is, that these lofty
investigations are not conducted by organised symmetry, but by the
faculties of the soul itself apart altogether from the body. The
single example I have given will suggest many others to the reader.
The swift and versatile movements of the soul in glancing from
heaven to earth, connecting the future with the past, retaining the
remembrance of former years, nay, forming creations of its own - its
skill, moreover, in making astonishing discoveries, and inventing so
many wonderful arts, are sure indications of the agency of God in
man. What shall we say of its activity when the body is asleep, its
many revolving thoughts, its many useful suggestions, its many solid
arguments, nay, its presentiment of things yet to come? What shall
we say but that man bears about with him a stamp of immortality
which can never be effaced? But how is it possible for man to be
divine, and yet not acknowledge his Creator? Shall we, by means of a
power of judging implanted in our breast, distinguish between
justice and injustice, and yet there be no judge in heaven? Shall
some remains of intelligence continue with us in sleep, and yet no
God keep watch in heaven? Shall we be deemed the inventors of so
many arts and useful properties that God may be defrauded of his
praise, though experience tells us plainly enough, that whatever we
possess is dispensed to us in unequal measures by another hand? The
talk of certain persons concerning a secret inspiration quickening
the whole world, is not only silly, but altogether profane. Such
persons are delighted with the following celebrated passage of
Virgil:--
Know, first, that heaven, and earth's compacted frame,
And flowing waters, and the starry flame,
And both the radiant lights, one common soul
Inspires and feeds - and animates the whole.
This active mind, infused through all the space,
Unites and mingles with the mighty mass:
Hence, men and beasts the breath of life obtain,
And birds of air, and monsters of the main.
Th' ethereal vigour is in all the same,
And every soul is filled with equal flame.
The meaning of all this is, that the world, which was made to
display the glory of God, is its own creator. For the same poet has,
in another place, adopted a view common to both Greeks and Latins: -
Hence to the bee some sages have assigned
A portion of the God, and heavenly mind;
For God goes forth, and spreads throughout the whole,
Heaven, earth, and sea, the universal soul;
Each, at its birth, from him all beings share,
Both man and brute, the breath of vital air;
To him return, and, loosed from earthly chain,
Fly whence they sprung, and rest in God again;
Spurn at the grave, and, fearless of decay,
Dwell in high heaven, art star th' ethereal way.
Here we see how far that jejune speculation, of a universal
mind animating and invigorating the world, is fitted to beget and
foster piety in our minds. We have a still clearer proof of this in
the profane verses which the licentious Lucretius has written as a
deduction from the same principle. The plain object is to form an
unsubstantial deity, and thereby banish the true God whom we ought
to fear and worship. I admit, indeed that the expressions "Nature is
God," may be piously used, if dictated by a pious mind; but as it is
inaccurate and harsh, (Nature being more properly the order which
has been established by God,) in matters which are so very
important, and in regard to which special reverence is due, it does
harm to confound the Deity with the inferior operations of his
hands.
6. Let each of us, therefore, in contemplating his own nature,
remember that there is one God who governs all natures, and, in
governing, wishes us to have respect to himself, to make him the
object of our faith, worship, and adoration. Nothing, indeed, can be
more preposterous than to enjoy those noble endowments which bespeak
the divine presence within us, and to neglect him who, of his own
good pleasure, bestows them upon us. In regard to his power, how
glorious the manifestations by which he urges us to the
contemplation of himself; unless, indeed, we pretend not to know
whose energy it is that by a word sustains the boundless fabric of
the universe - at one time making heaven reverberate with thunder,
sending forth the scorching lightning, and setting the whole
atmosphere in a blaze; at another, causing the raging tempests to
blow, and forthwith, in one moment, when it so pleases him, making a
perfect calm; keeping the sea, which seems constantly threatening
the earth with devastation, suspended as it were in air; at one
time, lashing it into fury by the impetuosity of the winds; at
another, appeasing its rage, and stilling all its waves. Here we
might refer to those glowing descriptions of divine power, as
illustrated by natural events, which occur throughout Scripture; but
more especially in the book of Job, and the prophecies of Isaiah.
These, however, I purposely omit, because a better opportunity of
introducing them will be found when I come to treat of the
Scriptural account of the creation. (Infra, chap. 14 s. 1, 2, 20,
sq.) I only wish to observe here, that this method of investigating
the divine perfections, by tracing the lineaments of his countenance
as shadowed forth in the firmament and on the earth, is common both
to those within and to those without the pale of the Church. From
the power of God we are naturally led to consider his eternity since
that from which all other things derive their origin must
necessarily be selfexistent and eternal. Moreover, if it be asked
what cause induced him to create all things at first, and now
inclines him to preserve them, we shall find that there could be no
other cause than his own goodness. But if this is the only cause,
nothing more should be required to draw forth our love towards him;
every creature, as the Psalmist reminds us, participating in his
mercy. "His tender mercies are over all his works," (Ps. 145: 9.)
7. In the second class of God's works, namely those which are
above the ordinary course of nature, the evidence of his perfections
are in every respect equally clear. For in conducting the affairs of
men, he so arranges the course of his providence, as daily to
declare, by the clearest manifestations, that though all are in
innumerable ways the partakers of his bounty, the righteous are the
special objects of his favour, the wicked and profane the special
objects of his severity. It is impossible to doubt his punishment of
crimes; while at the same time he, in no unequivocal manner,
declares that he is the protector, and even the avenger of
innocence, by shedding blessings on the good, helping their
necessities, soothing and solacing their griefs, relieving their
sufferings, and in all ways providing for their safety. And though
he often permits the guilty to exult for a time with impunity, and
the innocent to be driven to and fro in adversity, nay, even to be
wickedly and iniquitously oppressed, this ought not to produce any
uncertainty as to the uniform justice of all his procedure. Nay, an
opposite inference should be drawn. When any one crime calls forth
visible manifestations of his anger, it must be because he hates all
crimes; and, on the other hand, his leaving many crimes unpunished,
only proves that there is a judgement in reserve, when the
punishment now delayed shall be inflicted. In like manner, how
richly does he supply us with the means of contemplating his mercy
when, as frequently happens, he continues to visit miserable sinners
with unwearied kindness, until he subdues their depravity, and woos
them back with more than a parent's fondness?
8. To this purpose the Psalmist, (Ps. 107) mentioning how God,
in a wondrous manner, often brings sudden and unexpected succour to
the miserable when almost on the brink of despair, whether in
protecting them when they stray in deserts, and at length leading
them back into the right path, or supplying them with food when
famishing for want, or delivering them when captive from iron
fetters and foul dungeons, or conducting them safe into harbour
after shipwreck, or bringing them back from the gates of death by
curing their diseases, or, after burning up the fields with heat and
drought, fertilising them with the river of his grace, or exalting
the meanest of the people, and casting down the mighty from their
lofty seats: - the Psalmist, after bringing forward examples of this
description, infers that those things which men call fortuitous
events, are so many proofs of divine providence, and more especially
of paternal clemency, furnishing ground of joy to the righteous, and
at the same time stopping the mouths of the ungodly. But as the
greater part of mankind, enslaved by error, walk blindfold in this
glorious theatre, he exclaims that it is a rare and singular wisdom
to meditate carefully on these works of God, which many, who seem
most sharp-sighted in other respects, behold without profit. It is
indeed true, that the brightest manifestation of divine glory finds
not one genuine spectator among a hundred. Still, neither his power
nor his wisdom is shrouded in darkness. His power is strikingly
displayed when the rage of the wicked, to all appearance
irresistible, is crushed in a single moment; their arrogance
subdued, their strongest bulwarks overthrown, their armour dashed to
pieces, their strength broken, their schemes defeated without an
effort, and audacity which set itself above the heavens is
precipitated to the lowest depths of the earth. On the other hand,
the poor are raised up out of the dust, and the needy lifted out of
the dung hill, (Ps. 113: 7,) the oppressed and afflicted are rescued
in extremity, the despairing animated with hope, the unarmed defeat
the armed, the few the many, the weak the strong. The excellence of
the divine wisdom is manifested in distributing everything in due
season, confounding the wisdom of the world, and taking the wise in
their own craftiness, (1 Cor. 3: 19;) in short, conducting all
things in perfect accordance with reason.
9. We see there is no need of a long and laborious train of
argument in order to obtain proofs which illustrate and assert the
Divine Majesty. The few which we have merely touched, show them to
be so immediately within our reach in every quarter, that we can
trace them with the eye, or point to them with the finger. And here
we must observe again, (see chap. 2 s. 2,) that the knowledge of God
which we are invited to cultivate is not that which, resting
satisfied with empty speculation, only flutters in the brain, but a
knowledge which will prove substantial and fruitful wherever it is
duly perceived, and rooted in the heart. The Lord is manifested by
his perfections. When we feel their power within us, and are
conscious of their benefits, the knowledge must impress us much more
vividly than if we merely imagined a God whose presence we never
felt. Hence it is obvious, that in seeking God, the most direct path
and the fittest method is, not to attempt with presumptuous
curiosity to pry into his essence, which is rather to be adored than
minutely discussed, but to contemplate him in his works, by which he
draws near, becomes familiar, and in a manner communicates himself
to us. To this the Apostle referred when he said, that we need not
go far in search of him, (Acts 17: 27,) because, by the continual
working of his power, he dwells in every one of us. Accordingly,
David, (Psalm 145,) after acknowledging that his greatness is
unsearchable, proceeds to enumerate his works, declaring that his
greatness will thereby be unfolded. It therefore becomes us also
diligently to prosecute that investigation of God which so
enraptures the soul with admiration as, at the same time, to make an
efficacious impression on it. And, as Augustine expresses it, (in
Psalm 144,) since we are unable to comprehend Him, and are, as it
were, overpowered by his greatness, our proper course is to
contemplate his works, and so refresh ourselves with his goodness.
10. By the knowledge thus acquired, we ought not only to be
stimulated to worship God, but also aroused and elevated to the hope
of future life. For, observing that the manifestations which the
Lord gives both of his mercy and severity are only begun and
incomplete, we ought to infer that these are doubtless only a
prelude to higher manifestations, of which the full display is
reserved for another state. Conversely, when we see the righteous
brought into affliction by the ungodly, assailed with injuries,
overwhelmed with calumnies, and lacerated by insult and contumely,
while, on the contrary, the wicked flourish, prosper, acquire ease
and honour, and all these with impunity, we ought forthwith to
infer, that there will be a future life in which iniquity shall
receive its punishment, and righteousness its reward. Moreover, when
we observe that the Lord often lays his chastening rod on the
righteous, we may the more surely conclude, that far less will the
righteous ultimately escape the scourges of his anger. There is a
well-known passage in Augustine, (De Civitat. Dei, lib. 1 c. 8,)
"Were all sin now visited with open punishment, it might be thought
that nothing was reserved for the final judgement; and, on the other
hand, were no sin now openly punished, it might be supposed there
was no divine providence." It must be acknowledged, therefore, that
in each of the works of God, and more especially in the whole of
them taken together, the divine perfections are delineated as in a
picture, and the whole human race thereby invited and allured to
acquire the knowledge of God, and, in consequence of this knowledge,
true and complete felicity. Moreover, while his perfections are thus
most vividly displayed, the only means of ascertaining their
practical operation and tendency is to descend into ourselves, and
consider how it is that the Lord there manifests his wisdom, power,
and energy, - how he there displays his justice, goodness, and
mercy. For although David (Psalm 92: 6) justly complains of the
extreme infatuation of the ungodly in not pondering the deep
counsels of God, as exhibited in the government of the human race,
what he elsewhere says (Psalm 40) is most true, that the wonders of
the divine wisdom in this respect are more in number than the hairs
of our head. But I leave this topic at present, as it will be more
fully considered afterwards in its own place, (Book I. c. 16, see.
6-9.)
11. Bright, however, as is the manifestation which God gives
both of himself and his immortal kingdom in the mirror of his works,
so great is our stupidity, so dull are we in regard to these bright
manifestations, that we derive no benefit from them. For in regard
to the fabric and admirable arrangement of the universe, how few of
us are there who, in lifting our eyes to the heavens, or looking
abroad on the various regions of the earth, ever think of the
Creator? Do we not rather overlook Him, and sluggishly content
ourselves with a view of his works? And then in regard to
supernatural events, though these are occurring every day, how few
are there who ascribe them to the ruling providence of God - how
many who imagine that they are casual results produced by the blind
evolutions of the wheel of chance? Even when under the guidance and
direction of these events, we are in a manner forced to the
contemplation of God, (a circumstance which all must occasionally
experience,) and are thus led to form some impressions of Deity, we
immediately fly off to carnal dreams and depraved fictions, and so
by our vanity corrupt heavenly truth. This far, indeed, we differ
from each other, in that every one appropriates to himself some
peculiar error; but we are all alike in this, that we substitute
monstrous fictions for the one living and true God - a disease not
confined to obtuse and vulgar minds, but affecting the noblest, and
those who, in other respects, are singularly acute. How lavishly in
this respect have the whole body of philosophers betrayed their
stupidity and want of sense? To say nothing of the others whose
absurdities are of a still grosser description, how completely does
Plato, the soberest and most religious of them all, lose himself in
his round globe? What must be the case with the rest, when the
leaders, who ought to have set them an example, commit such
blunders, and labour under such hallucinations? In like manner,
while the government of the world places the doctrine of providence
beyond dispute, the practical result is the same as if it were
believed that all things were carried hither and thither at the
caprice of chance; so prone are we to vanity and error. I am still
referring to the most distinguished of the philosophers, and not to
the common herd, whose madness in profaning the truth of God exceeds
all bounds.
12. Hence that immense flood of error with which the whole
world is overflowed. Every individual mind being a kind of
labyrinth, it is not wonderful, not only that each nation has
adopted a variety of fictions, but that almost every man has had his
own god. To the darkness of ignorance have been added presumption
and wantonness, and hence there is scarcely an individual to be
found without some idol or phantom as a substitute for Deity. Like
water gushing forth from a large and copious spring, immense crowds
of gods have issued from the human mind, every man giving himself
full license, and devising some peculiar form of divinity, to meet
his own views. It is unnecessary here to attempt a catalogue of the
superstitions with which the world was overspread. The thing were
endless; and the corruptions themselves, though not a word should be
said, furnish abundant evidence of the blindness of the human mind.
I say nothing of the rude and illiterate vulgar; but among the
philosophers who attempted, by reason and learning, to pierce the
heavens, what shameful disagreement! The higher any one was endued
with genius, and the more he was polished by science and art, the
more specious was the colouring which he gave to his opinions. All
these, however, if examined more closely, will be found to be vain
show. The Stoics plumed themselves on their acuteness, when they
said that the various names of God might be extracted from all the
parts of nature, and yet that his unity was not thereby divided: as
if we were not already too prone to vanity, and had no need of being
presented with an endless multiplicity of gods, to lead us further
and more grossly into error. The mystic theology of the Egyptians
shows how sedulously they laboured to be thought rational on this
subject. And, perhaps, at the first glance, some show of probability
might deceive the simple and unwary; but never did any mortal devise
a scheme by which religion was not foully corrupted. This endless
variety and confusion emboldened the Epicureans, and other gross
despisers of piety, to cut off all sense of God. For when they saw
that the wisest contradicted each others they hesitated not to infer
from their dissensions, and from the frivolous and absurd doctrines
of each, that men foolishly, and to no purpose, brought torment upon
themselves by searching for a God, there being none: and they
thought this inference safe, because it was better at once to deny
God altogether, than to feign uncertain gods, and thereafter engage
in quarrels without end. They, indeed, argue absurdly, or rather
weave a cloak for their impiety out of human ignorance; though
ignorance surely cannot derogate from the prerogatives of God. But
since all confess that there is no topic on which such difference
exists, both among learned and unlearned, the proper inference is,
that the human mind, which thus errs in inquiring after God, is dull
and blind in heavenly mysteries. Some praise the answer of
Simonides, who being asked by King Hero what God was, asked a day to
consider. When the king next day repeated the question, he asked two
days; and after repeatedly doubling the number of days, at length
replied, "The longer I consider, the darker the subject appears."
He, no doubt, wisely suspended his opinion, when he did not see
clearly: still his answer shows, that if men are only naturally
taught, instead of having any distinct, solid, or certain knowledge,
they fasten only on contradictory principles, and, in consequence,
worship an unknown God.
13. Hence we must hold, that whosoever adulterates pure
religion, (and this must be the case with all who cling to their own
views,) make a departure from the one God. No doubt, they will
allege that they have a different intention; but it is of little
consequence what they intend or persuade themselves to believe,
since the Holy Spirit pronounces all to be apostates, who, in the
blindness of their minds, substitute demons in the place of God. For
this reason Paul declares that the Ephesians were "without God,"
(Eph. 2: 12,) until they had learned from the Gospel what it is to
worship the true God. Nor must this be restricted to one people
only, since, in another place, he declares in general, that all men
"became vain in their imaginations," after the majesty of the
Creator was manifested to them in the structure of the world.
Accordingly, in order to make way for the only true God, he condemns
all the gods celebrated among the Gentiles as lying and false,
leaving no Deity anywhere but in Mount Zion where the special
knowledge of God was professed, (Hab. 2: 18, 20.) Among the Gentiles
in the time of Christ, the Samaritans undoubtedly made the nearest
approach to true piety; yet we hear from his own mouth that they
worshipped they knew not what, (John 4: 22;) whence it follows that
they were deluded by vain errors. In short, though all did not give
way to gross vice, or rush headlong into open idolatry, there was no
pure and authentic religion founded merely on common belief. A few
individuals may not have gone all insane lengths with the vulgar;
still Paul's declaration remains true, that the wisdom of God was
not apprehended by the princes of this world, (1 Cor. 2: 8.) But if
the most distinguished wandered in darkness, what shall we say of
the refuse? No wonder, therefore, that all worship of man's device
is repudiated by the Holy Spirit as degenerate. Any opinion which
man can form in heavenly mysteries, though it may not beget a long
train of errors, is still the parent of error. And though nothing
worse should happen, even this is no light sin - to worship an
unknown God at random. Of this sin, however, we hear from our
Saviour's own mouth, (John 4: 22,) that all are guilty who have not
been taught out of the law who the God is whom they ought to
worship. Nay, even Socrates in Xenophon, (lib. 1 Memorabilia,) lauds
the response of Apollo enjoining every man to worship the gods
according to the rites of his country, and the particular practice
of his own city. But what right have mortals thus to decide of their
own authority in a matter which is far above the world; or who can
so acquiesce in the will of his forefathers, or the decrees of the
people, as unhesitatingly to receive a god at their hands? Every one
will adhere to his own judgement, sooner than submit to the
dictation of others. Since, therefore, in regulating the worship of
God, the custom of a city, or the consent of antiquity, is a too
feeble and fragile bond of piety; it remains that God himself must
bear witness to himself from heaven.
14. In vain for us, therefore, does Creation exhibit so many
bright lamps lighted up to show forth the glory of its Author.
Though they beam upon us from every quarter, they are altogether
insufficient of themselves to lead us into the right path. Some
sparks, undoubtedly, they do throw out; but these are quenched
before they can give forth a brighter effulgence. Wherefore, the
apostle, in the very place where he says that the worlds are images
of invisible things, adds that it is by faith we understand that
they were framed by the word of God, (Heb. 11: 3;) thereby
intimating that the invisible Godhead is indeed represented by such
displays, but that we have no eyes to perceive it until they are
enlightened through faith by internal revelation from God. When Paul
says that that which may be known of God is manifested by the
creation of the world, he does not mean such a manifestation as may
be comprehended by the wit of man, (Rom. 1: 19;) on the contrary, he
shows that it has no further effect than to render us inexcusable,
(Acts 17: 27.) And though he says, elsewhere, that we have not far
to seek for God, inasmuch as he dwells within us, he shows, in
another passage, to what extent this nearness to God is availing.
God, says he, "in times past, suffered all nations to walk in their
own ways. Nevertheless, he left not himself without witness, in that
he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons,
filling our hearts with food and gladness," (Acts 14: 16, 17.) But
though God is not left without a witness, while, with numberless
varied acts of kindness, he woos men to the knowledge of himself,
yet they cease not to follow their own ways, in other words, deadly
errors.
15. But though we are deficient in natural powers which might
enable us to rise to a pure and clear knowledge of God, still, as
the dullness which prevents us is within, there is no room for
excuse. We cannot plead ignorance, without being at the same time
convicted by our own consciences both of sloth and ingratitude. It
were, indeed, a strange defence for man to pretend that he has no
ears to hear the truth, while dumb creatures have voices loud enough
to declare it; to allege that he is unable to see that which
creatures without eyes demonstrate, to excuse himself on the ground
of weakness of mind, while all creatures without reason are able to
teach. Wherefore, when we wander and go astray, we are justly shut
out from every species of excuse, because all things point to the
right path. But while man must bear the guilt of corrupting the seed
of divine knowledge so wondrously deposited in his mind, and
preventing it from bearing good and genuine fruit, it is still most
true that we are not sufficiently instructed by that bare and
simple, but magnificent testimony which the creatures bear to the
glory of their Creator. For no sooner do we, from a survey of the
world, obtain some slight knowledge of Deity, than we pass by the
true God, and set up in his stead the dream and phantom of our own
brain, drawing away the praise of justice, wisdom, and goodness,
from the fountain-head, and transferring it to some other quarter.
Moreover, by the erroneous estimate we form, we either so obscure or
pervert his daily works, as at once to rob them of their glory and
the author of them of his just praise.
Calvin, Institutes on the Christian Religion, Volume 1
(continued in part 7...)
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