For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16.
Here Christ presents us with the cause and as it were the fountain of our salvation, so as to remove all doubt; for our minds cannot come to rest in tranquillity unless they arrive at the free love of God. Since we are not to seek the ground of our salvation anywhere but in Christ, we must try to find out where he came to us from and why he was offered up to be our Savior. This verse distinctly teaches both truths: faith in Christ means life to all men, and Christ had this life because God loved mankind and would not let it perish. This sequence must be carefully noted. When it is a question of the source of our salvation, we must consider the inborn and wicked ambition of our nature, which traps us into the devilish fancy that we deserve to be saved. Therefore we imagine that God is good to us because he judges us worthy of his favor. But Scripture praises everywhere his pure and unmixed mercy, which does away with all merit.
By this text, Christ means to do nothing else than establish the love of God as
the ground of our salvation. When we try to go beyond this, the Spirit himself
slams the door in our face; he teaches us by Paul's mouth that God's love is
founded in his own will and purpose (Eph. 1:5). And it is obvious that Christ
spoke as he did so as to turn men's attention from themselves to the mercy of
God alone. God does not declare that he was led to deliver us because he found
us worthy of such a blessing. On the contrary, he attributes the glory of our
deliverance solely to his love. This appears more clearly from the added
statement: the Son was given to men that they may not perish. Therefore,
The above may seem to conflict with many testimonies of Scriptures that Christ
is the ground of God's love for us, since apart from him they present God as
hating us. We must remember what was said before: the secret love with which
our Heavenly Father embraces us, being his eternal purpose for us, takes
precedence over all other reasons for our deliverance. But it is true that the
grace which God wanted to show us, and by which we are moved to the hope of
salvation, appeared with the reconciling work of Christ. Since sins are of
necessity odious to God, how can we maintain that God loves us freely, unless
an offering has been made for these same sins which are offensive to him?
Hence, before we receive any knowledge of God's Fatherly good will for us, the
blood of Christ must intercede for us and restore us to God's favor. Besides,
as we were formerly told that God so loved us as to give up his Son to die for
us, so it is immediately added that in a strict sense faith should look to
Christ alone.
He gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not
perish. Faith looks to Christ rightly when it sees in him the heart of God
overflowing with love. Faith rests upon the death of Christ as upon a firm and
solid support, and finds in it the only surety of salvation.
Only-begotten is emphatic, commending to us God's love in all its
fervor. And because it is hard for men to be persuaded of God's love, he
removes all doubt by saying, We are so dear to God that for our salvation he
did not spare his only-begotten Son. Since, therefore, God has testified to his
love for us so sufficiently and abundantly, anyone who is not content and still
doubts offers no small insult to Christ, as though he were someone who was
killed by accident. Rather, we ought to reconsider that since God had the
highest regard for his only-begotten Son, our salvation must be very precious
to him, because he was willing to pay for it with the Son's death.
That whosoever believeth in him may not perish. What a praise of faith,
that it delivers us from eternal destruction! Christ means clearly that even
though we are born for death, by faith in him we are offered a sure deliverance
from it; therefore, we ought not to fear the death which still awaits us. And
now he adds a
On the other hand, let us remember that while life is promised in Christ to all
who believe, only a small part of the people are believers. Christ is indeed
presented to all, but God opens the eyes of the elect alone, and enables them
by faith to seek after him. The wonderful effect of faith is also seen in our
receiving Christ from the Father, who has in Christ truly freed us from the
punishment of eternal death, and made us heirs of eternal life; for by the
sacrifice of his death, Christ has expiated our sins; and now nothing keeps God
from acknowledging us as his sons. Since therefore faith embraces Christ,
together with the efficacy of his death and the fruit of his resurrection, it
is no wonder that by faith likewise we obtain the very Life of Christ.
It is not yet quite clear as to why and how faith gives us life. Is it because
Christ himself regenerates us by his Spirit, so that the righteousness of God
may live and flourish in us; or is it because, purged by his blood, by God's
free forgiveness, we are accounted righteous before him? Of course these two go
together. Still, when it comes to the certainty of salvation, we must hold to
it that we live because God loves us, and that freely; this he shows by not
imputing our sins to us. Sacrifice is here mentioned because by it sin, curse,
and death have been abolished. As I have already explained, the two clauses put
together in this verse mean that, having lost life, we recover it in Christ. In
this wretched state of mankind, ransom comes before salvation.
As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my
love. John 15:9.
There is much more in this verse than is commonly believed. Those who think
that he is here speaking of the eternal and secret love of the Father,
philosophize beside the point. It was rather Christ's purpose, in effect, to
deposit in our laps a sure pledge of God's love toward us. The abstruse
question of how God in eternity loved himself in the Son has nothing to do with
this verse. The love in question here has to do with us, because it is as the
Head of the church that Christ testifies to God's
Continue ye in my love. Some explain these words to mean that Christ
enjoined his disciples to love one another. Others explain it better when they
say that they refer to the love with which Christ loves us. He in fact bids us
live always in the joy of the love with which he once and for all loved us,
warning us not to deprive ourselves of it. For many reject the grace offered
them, and many throw away what they have in their hands. So then, once we are
beneficiaries of the grace of Christ, let us see to it that we do not fall away
from it through our own fault.
It is foolish to infer from the above words that, without the help of our
constancy, God's grace avails nothing. I do not concede that the Spirit asks no
more from us than what is within our ability. Rather, he shows us where we must
turn when we lack the strength to obey him. When we hear Christ, in this verse,
exhort us to perseverance, we must not rely on our own energy and industry; we
must rather pray him who commands us to confirm us in his love.
For the Holy Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet
glorified. John 7:39.
We know that the Spirit is eternal. But the Evangelist denies that the grace of
the Spirit which was poured upon men after the resurrection of Christ was
manifested in public while Christ was in the world in the form of a humble
servant. He draws a similar contrast between the New Testament and the Old. In
the New Testament, God promises his Spirit to believers as though he had never
given him to the fathers. But of course the disciples had already received the
first fruits of the Spirit; for where is faith from except from the Spirit? The
Evangelist
But there is one question left. Does the Evangelist mean here the visible
graces of the Spirit, or that true regeneration which is the fruit of adoption?
I answer that the Spirit, which was promised with the coming of Christ, was
seen in visible gifts as in a mirror; but here we have to do with the power of
the Spirit by which we are born again in Christ and become new creatures. If
now we are left on earth, poor, dry, and almost empty of spiritual goods, while
Christ sits on the right hand of the Father glorious with the majesty of
empire, it is because our faith is too puny and we are too slow [to rise to
him].
He who heareth my word, and believeth in him who sent me, hath eternal life
. . . hath passed from death to life. John 5:24.
Certain later Latin copies have changed passed into shall pass.
But they have done this out of ignorance and rashness; not knowing what the
Evangelist meant, they have presumed to do more than what was right. The Greek
word is not in the least unclear. There is nothing wrong about saying has
passed from death, because the children of God even now have in them the
incorruptible seed of life, by which they are called and sit with Christ, by
faith, in heavenly glory. Thus they have the Kingdom of God established firmly
within them (Luke 17:21; Col. 3:3). Even while their life is hid, they
nevertheless by faith do not fail to possess it. Even while they are besieged
by death, they have peace because they know that Christ defends them
adequately, and that they are safe. The state of the believers in this life is
such that they always carry about the stuff of death in themselves. But the
Spirit who lives in them is Life itself, and will at the end destroy what is
left of death. Paul was right in saying that death shall be the last enemy to
be destroyed (1 Cor. 15:26). But obviously this verse has nothing to do with
the coming full destruction of death, or with the ultimate complete
manifestation of Life. The point here is that though life in us is only begun,
Christ announces it to the believers as their sure possession. Thus he removes
the fear of death from them. And this is
Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life; he that believeth in
me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. John 11:25.
This is the exposition of the second clause. It tells us that Christ is the
Life, because he will never let the Life he has given us be destroyed, and will
on the contrary preserve it till the end. What would happen to us if we, who
are flesh and weak, having received the Life, should be left to our own
strength? Therefore, if Christ is to finish what he has begun, it needs be that
we continue in Life through the power of Christ himself. Believers are said
never to die because their souls, born again of an incorruptible seed, enjoy
the indwelling of the Spirit of Christ, who gives them Life without ceasing.
While the body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit is Life
because of righteousness (Rom. 8:10). The fact that the outer man decays
from day to day does not hurt the believers' true Life. It even helps its
growth, because the inner man in turn is renewed day by day (2 Cor. 4:16). What
is more, death itself is in its way an emancipation from bondage to death.
And I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither
shall any man pluck them out of my hand. John 10:28.
We have this matchless fruit of faith that, by Christ's command, we live with
confidence and safety when we are gathered in his fold. At the same time let us
keep in mind the support which makes this confidence firm; for he testifies
that he has our salvation in his hand and will remain its faithful
guardian. And as though this were not enough, Christ says that his disciples
shall be defended by God's power. This is a striking passage. We are taught
that the salvation of all the elect is as certain as that God's power is
invincible. Besides, Christ was not beating the air. He wanted to give them a
word of promise and to fix it deeply in their minds. Therefore, we must
understand this statement of Christ as showing that the salvation of the elect
is sure and firmly established. We are besieged by powerful foes; and we are so
weak that every moment might well be our last. But because our salvation is in
the hands of One who is greater, who is mightier, than all, we ought not to
tremble as though our very life were in peril.
From this we gather further how insane is the trust of the papists which rests
on free will, on one's own virtue and the
And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath, I am from above; ye are of this
world, I am not of this world. I said therefore unto you that ye shall die in
your sins, for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.
John 8:23-24.
Since they did not deserve instruction, he wanted to confound them with a curt
reproof. So, in this place, he declares that they reject his teaching because
they absolutely abhor the Kingdom of God. Under world and below
he includes whatever men have by nature, and brings out the difference between
his gospel and the sharpness and penetration of the human mind: the gospel is
heavenly wisdom, but our minds are of the earth. No one, therefore, is fit to
be Christ's disciple unless he is refashioned by his Spirit. And faith itself
is so rare in the world because by nature all men, except those he lifts up by
a special grace of his Spirit, are turned against Christ and estranged from
him. If ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.
The lost have no way of recovering salvation except by going to Christ. That
I am here is emphatic, because it includes all that Scripture says of the
Messiah and all that it bids us to hope in him. He is talking primarily about
[his work in] the restoration of the church, which exists by the light of
faith, and the righteousness and new life which grow from it. Some of the
ancients have interpreted this passage as having to do with the divine essence
of Christ. But in this they are wrong, because he is speaking of his office [or
work] in our behalf. This statement is worthy of special notice. Men are always
ignoring the evils which surround them. Even when they have to admit their
peril, they neglect Christ and look all around for some other
For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Phil. 1:21.
In my Judgment, interpreters so far have given a wrong translation and
exposition of this passage; for the distinction they make is that, to Paul,
Christ was life, and death gain. I, on the other hand, take Christ to be the
subject of both the phrases in this statement, so that he is said to be gain in
life and in death. (It is common in Greek to imply the word
Which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead and set him at
his own right hand in the heavenly places. Eph. 1:20.
The Greek word is
However, here Paul rightly enjoins us to consider the power of Christ; for, so
far, its presence in us is hidden, and God's power is perfected in our
weakness (2 Cor. 12:9). How are we ahead of the children of this world,
except that our situation seems to be worse than theirs? Even though sin does
not reign in us, it is still there. Since death itself is working in us, the
blessedness we have by hope is totally hidden from the world; for the power of
the Spirit is something flesh and blood knows nothing about. Meanwhile, we are
exposed to a thousand distresses, and more than all other men are become
objects of derision.
Hence, Christ alone is the mirror in whom we are able to see the glory which is
altogether blurred in us who live in weakness under the cross we ourselves
bear. Since it behooves us to raise our minds on high, to believe in
righteousness, blessedness, and glory, let us learn to turn them to Christ. For
we now live subject to the dominion of death; but he, having been made
Yet a little while, and the world shall see me no more; but ye see me:
because I live, ye shall live also. John 14:19.
He continues to speak to his disciples of his special favor toward them, which
should have been enough to mitigate and even take away their sorrow. "When I go
away," he says, "and the world no longer sees me, I shall no less be still with
you." If we are to rejoice in such secret vision of Christ, we must not judge
his presence or absence with the eyes of the flesh. We must rather be intent
upon discerning his power with the eyes of faith. Thus it is that Christ is
always present to the believers and seen by them in the Spirit, even though
they are bodily far from him.
Because I live. This may be taken in two ways. It may simply confirm
what went before, or it may go with the next phrase, which says that the
believers shall live because Christ lives. I accept the former alternative,
even though we may also learn from it that we live because Christ lives. Christ
points out why it is that his disciples shall see him, while the world shall
not: Christ cannot be seen except in the spiritual life which the world does
not possess. No wonder the world does not see Christ, for it is blind because
of death. But no sooner does a man begin to live by the Spirit than he is given
eyes with which to see Christ, because our life flows from the life of Christ
as from its source. Otherwise, we have no life. We in ourselves are dead, and
the life we boast is a most awful death. Therefore, when it comes to
Then said the Jews unto him, Now we know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is
dead, and the prophets; and thou sayest, If any man keep my saying, he shall
never taste of death. John 8:52.
The reprobate who keep on with their stupidity are not touched by promises,
whether small or great. Hence they can neither be led nor drawn to Christ. Some
think that the Jews slandered Jesus and twisted his words around when they
spoke of tasting death, because they had not heard him saying anything of the
sort. But I think this objection is flimsy. I rather think that the Hebrews
meant the same thing by tasting death and seeing death. Both
expressions meant simply "to die." Of course, to apply the spiritual teaching
of Jesus to the body is to interpret it falsely. No believer shall see death,
for he is born again of an incorruptible seed. Even though believers die, being
united with Christ their head, they shall be not snuffed out by death. Their
death is simply a transition to the Heavenly Kingdom; the Spirit dwelling in
them is Life because of righteousness, and what is left of death in them is
consumed. Those who are carnal know nothing about freedom from death except in
an obviously physical sense. And this disease is much too common in this world,
since many have only contempt for the grace of Christ, which they judge merely
by the senses of their flesh. If we do not wish the same blindness to affect
us, let us arouse our minds, so that they may discern spiritual life in the
midst of death.
And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also
himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all
in all. 1 Cor. 15:28.
Will God be all in all also in the devil and the ungodly? Far from it, unless
perhaps we choose to accept "to be" as meaning to be known and openly be seen.
If so, the statement would mean: "Since now the devil is at war with God, since
the wicked confound and confuse the order established by him, since we see an
infinity of scandalous deeds with our own eyes, it is by no means clear that
God is all in all. But when Christ executes the judgment commanded him
by God, and
Now, this is a pious interpretation, and since it agrees well enough with the
apostle's purpose, I am willing to accept it. However, there would be nothing
wrong in taking this verse as having to do with believers, in whom God has
already begun his Kingdom and shall then perfect it, so that they shall cleave
to him completely.
Both these interpretations in themselves are sufficient refutation of those who
pretend that this verse proves their wicked deliriums. Some imagine that God
shall be all in all, in that all things shall vanish and become nothing.
But Paul's words mean only that all things shall be brought back to God as
their only beginning and end, and shall thus be bound firmly to him. Others
infer from this verse that the devil and all the wicked shall be saved, as
though the fullness of God would not be more striking in the destruction of the
devil than if he made him his associate and equal. We see therefore with what
impudence such madmen torture Paul's statement when they use it to establish
their blasphemies.
But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate
of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 1 Thess. 5:8.
Paul adds this in order that he may shake us the better out of our torpor. He
calls us as it were to arms, to impress upon us that it is no time for sleep.
He does not, indeed, mention war. But when he bids us to arm with a breastplate
and a helmet, he is in fact calling us to warfare. It goes without saying that
anyone who expects a surprise attack must rouse himself and keep watching.
Having warned us to be watchful while we have the truth of the gospel for
light, he now stirs us up with the argument that we have a battle to fight with
the enemy, and that it is much too dangerous to be doing nothing. We know that
soldiers, who may ordinarily be rather loose-living fellows, when they are near
the enemy and in danger of being killed, avoid getting drunk or any other way
of "having fun" so that
Some interpreters are much too clever in their handling of the pieces of armor
mentioned by the apostle. This verse is quite different from Eph. 6:14, where
Paul by "breastplate" means "righteousness." Here it is enough to understand
that the whole life of Christians is like a perpetual warfare, since Satan
never stops attacking and troubling them. It is therefore necessary to be
prepared for resistance; and of course we are warned that we had better be well
armed against such a powerful enemy. However, Paul does not in this place go
into detail about the armor we must have; he merely mentions two pieces, the
breastplate and the helmet. But he leaves out nothing a man needs for this
spiritual warfare. For anyone who is provided with faith, hope, and love has
all the weapons he needs.
Stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of
the gospel, and in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an
evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God. Phil.
1:27-28.
In the second place, he commends to the Philippians an indomitable spirit, that
they may not be confounded by the fury of their enemies. At that time the fires
of savage persecution blazed almost everywhere, because Satan fought with all
his force to prevent the inauguration of the gospel; and the more Christ
exercised the grace of his Spirit, the greater was the impotent rage of Satan.
The apostle, therefore, enjoins the Philippians to stand firm and not to be
perturbed.
Which is to them an evident token of perdition. This is the proper
meaning of the Greek, and those who translate as "cause" have no good reason
for doing so. When the wicked strive against the Lord, they engage in a
preliminary battle which anticipates their ultimate ruin; and the greater the
outrage they do against the godly, the more they are bent on their own
perdition. Of course, Scripture does not teach us anywhere that the afflictions
which the godly suffer at the hands of the godless become the cause of their
salvation. Paul calls afflictions evidences or proofs [of
salvation] in another place also (2 Thess. 1:5). Instead of the word
And that from God. This is put here as the last clause, so that it may,
with God's grace, mitigate the bitter taste of the cross. It goes against
nature to see in the cross a sign or proof of salvation. In fact, the cross and
salvation seem to be contraries. Therefore, Paul asks the Philippians to
consider that God turns those things which make for our misery into occasions
of well-being. In this way, he shows that enduring the cross is a gift of God;
for it is certain that everything which is for our good is God's gift to us.
"To you," he says, "it is given not only to believe in Christ, but also to
suffer for him. Therefore your very sufferings are witnesses to the goodness of
God, because in them you have a real evidence of your salvation." If only we
were convinced deep in our hearts that persecutions are among God's blessings,
what progress we should make in the knowledge of divine truth! What is more
certain than that the highest honor which grace bestows upon us is that we
suffer reproach, or prison, or troubles, or tortures, or even death itself, in
his name? For so it is that he decorates us with his medals. And yet there are
many who would tell God to take such gifts away, rather than embrace with
grateful hearts the cross offered to them. But so much the worse for our
stupidity!
For unto you is given in behalf of Christ not only to believe on him but
also to suffer for his sake. Phil. 1:29.
He is wise to join faith inseparably with the cross, for in this way the
Philippians are taught that they have been called to faith in Christ to the end
that they may endure persecution in his name. In other words, their adoption
could no more be separated from the cross than Christ could be severed from
himself.
Thou therefore endure hardship as a good soldier of Christ. No man that
warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life: that he may please
him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. 2 Tim. 2:3-4.
It was very necessary to add this second warning. For, anyone who offers to
obey Christ, must be ready to endure hardship; there is no perseverance without
patience in enduring evil. Therefore he adds, As becomes a soldier of Christ:
which means
It is absolutely necessary for us to think these things over. How many people
we see every day who throw their spears away, people who had passed themselves
off as good soldiers! And why does this happen, except because they cannot get
used to the cross? In the first place, they are so soft that they cannot stand
the thought of battle. Secondly, their idea of the warfare is to get into an
[immediate] fight with their enemies. They cannot bear to learn what it is to
possess their souls in patience.
He continues with the simile from warfare. Strictly speaking, at first he spoke
of a "soldier of Christ" in a metaphorical sense. Now he definitely compares
military warfare with the spiritual warfare of the Christian man. Military
discipline requires that, as soon as a soldier puts himself at the disposal of
a general, he leaves his home and every business behind, and thinks of nothing
except the warfare to which he is committed. So also we, if we are to give
ourselves wholly to Christ, must break away from all the entanglements of this
world.
By the affairs of this life he means the care of maintaining a home and
other ordinary occupations. The farmers leave their farming, and the merchants
their shops and their business until they have served their term as soldiers.
So also, whoever wants to fight under Christ must lay aside all the
involvements and preoccupations of the world, so that he may apply himself
wholly to the warfare. In short, let us keep in mind the old proverb, Hoc
age; this do: which means that in doing our holy duty nothing should hinder
our zeal and attention. The common translation, "No one who fights for God,"
etc., corrupts the whole meaning of what Paul has in mind.
Then answered Peter and said unto him, Behold, we have forsaken all, and
followed thee; what shall we have therefore? And Jesus said unto them. . . .
Every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or
mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive a
hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life. Matt. 19:27-29
Peter tacitly contrasts himself and the other disciples with the rich man whom
the world had turned away from Christ. Since they led a life of privation and
wandering, and suffered insults and sundry vexations, without hope of a better
future, he asks rightly whether it was for nothing that they had left behind
But then, what were all those things they had left behind? Being poor and
low-class folk, they did not even have a house to leave behind; hence, their
boasting was nothing less than ridiculous. Our own experience shows that people
commonly overestimate the things they do in the way of duty before God. There
are people who were hardly more than beggars under the papacy; and now they go
around arrogantly, complaining that they have made great sacrifices for the
sake of the gospel. However, there was some excuse for the disciples who,
although they did not possess splendid fortunes, lived by the labor of their
hands, and were no less happy in their homes than people of great riches. And
we know that humble people, who are used to a quiet and decent life, find it
harder to be torn away from their wives and children than those who are driven
by ambition, or thrown this way and that by the winds of prosperous fortune. Of
course, unless there was some reward waiting for the disciples, they had been
foolish to change their way of life. Still, although one might excuse them on
that ground, they were wrong to demand a taste of triumph before their warfare
was finished. When annoyance at the delay of our reward creeps upon us, and
lures us to impatience, let us first learn to consider the consolations with
which the Lord reduces the bitterness of the cross in this world, and then let
us raise our spirits to the hope of heavenly life. Christ's answers make these
very two points.
And whosoever shall leave. After having raised their minds to the hope
of the future life, he offers them comforts for the present life, and fortifies
them for bearing the cross. God does not allow his people to be grievously
afflicted, at times even to the point of forsaking them, without making up for
their sufferings with his help. Jesus does not say this to the apostles only;
he takes the occasion to address his words to all believers in general. The
point is that those who willingly give up all for the sake of Christ, have
their chief reward in heaven; and yet, even in this life, they are happier than
if they had kept everything.
However, it does seem that the hundredfold compensation provided them is not in
line with the facts. For in most cases, those who have been deprived of their
parents, or children, or other relatives, wives who are widowed and those
stripped of their fortunes, all because they have borne testimony to Christ,
[I] now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and complete that which is
behind in the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is
the church. Col. 1:24.
The apostle had previously claimed for himself the authority which was his by
virtue of his calling. Now he is concerned that the Colossians do not detract
from the honor due him as an apostle because he had been in bonds and was
persecuted for the sake of the gospel. For, Satan uses these occasions to bring
contempt upon the servants of God. Further, the apostle encourages them by his
example not to be terrified by persecutions; and he reminds them of his zeal,
so that his words may carry more weight. Nay more, he settles the matter with
an appeal to his love for them, and asserts that he is joyful and only too
willing to suffer affliction for their sakes. Someone will ask, "But where is
this joy from?" It is from the fruits which [his labors] have produced. "It is
pleasant for me to be afflicted for you, because I do not suffer in vain." In
the same way, in a former letter to the Thessalonians, he says that, having
heard of their faith, he rejoices in all privations and afflictions.
And fill up that which is behind, etc. I take and to mean
because; he says that he is joyful because in suffering he is associated
with Christ. He desires nothing more blessed than such fellowship with Christ.
He presents all believers in common with the comfort that in all tribulations,
especially in those they suffer for the gospel, they share the cross of Christ,
to the end that they
There is a second consideration, which ought to encourage and comfort our
spirits in affliction: God himself has fixed and appointed by his providence
that we be conformed to Christ by enduring the cross, and that our communion
with him extend to this very point.
To this, he adds a third reason: that the sufferings of Christ bear fruit not
only for the few, but for the church as a whole. He had before said that he
suffered in behalf of the Colossians; now he declares more inclusively that the
fruit of his sufferings extends to the whole church. Philippians 1:12 also
speaks of this same fruit. What other explanation of this verse is clearer,
simpler, and less forced? Paul rejoices in tribulation because, as he writes
elsewhere, he considers that if Christ's life is to be manifest in us, we must
carry about his death in our own bodies (2 Cor. 4:10). He says the same in the
letter to Timothy: "If we suffer with him, we shall also reign with him: if we
die with him, we shall also live with him" (2 Tim. 2:1). All will end in joy
and glory. Hence, if the members of Christ are to have a symmetry with the
Head, they must not reject the state which God himself has appointed for his
church. The third point is this, afflictions must be borne to the end
willingly, because they are useful to all the godly and promote the well-being
of the whole church, by giving a peculiar beauty to the truth of the gospel.
Then they shall deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye
shall be hated by all nations for my name's sake. Matt. 24:9.
Now Christ predicts for his disciples another kind of temptation which shall
try their faith; namely, that besides the common
Christ here is speaking of the afflictions which the disciples were to suffer
for the gospel. What Paul says in Rom. 8:29 is of course true. Those whom God
elects, he destines to bear a cross, so that they may conform to the image of
the Son. But there Paul means more than persecution at the hands of the enemies
of the gospel. Here, on the other hand, Christ is speaking of the kind of cross
which the faithful have to carry because of their witness to the gospel; for
this makes it necessary for them to incur the hatred of the ungodly, to face
their insults and provoke them to fury. He wants to warn his disciples that, as
he had explained to them before, the doctrine of the gospel, of which they were
to become witnesses and heralds, would at no time please the world or receive
its applause. So he prophesies that they will not be fighting with only a few
enemies, but that, everywhere they go, nations shall rise against them.
It was monstrous and incredible, calculated to amaze and trouble the strongest
minds, that the name of the Son of God should become so infamous and hateful as
to create hatred everywhere toward those who honored it. Therefore, Mark says,
take heed to yourselves; and in this way he brings out the purpose and
use of the above warning that they be prepared to endure, lest, being
incautious, they be overcome by temptation. It is added further by the same
Mark that when the disciples of Christ shall be brought before kings and
rulers, it will be a testimony against them. Luke puts it a little
differently: This will happen to you in testimony; but it means the same
thing. For Christ says that, where his gospel is defended at the peril of
death, there the testimony for it shall be all the greater.
Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep
for the slaughter. Ps. 44:22.
The faithful here plead for God's mercy, not because they are punished for
their own evil deeds, but because they are hated by unbelievers for the name of
God.
At first sight, this seems a foolish complaint, and Socrates' answer seems the
more admirable when, in answer to his wife's reproach, he said that it was
better to die innocent than for his own wrongdoing. Furthermore, the
consolation which Christ offered (Happy are those who are persecuted for
righteousness' sake, Matt. 5:10) appears very different from the words of
the psalm. Peter also said the same thing: Anyone who suffers for Christ's
name has all the more reason for joy and thankfulness (1 Peter 4:14).
But I answer that although the best comfort for our sorrow is that its cause is
connected with Christ, yet the faithful do not complain to God in vain or
wrongly when they say that they are suffering unjustly for his sake. For in
this way, they want him to come forward with more vigor as their defender,
since it is right that he himself take care of his own glory, when the impious
insult and deal cruelly with his worshipers. . . .
It is also right to remind ourselves that the faithful have not been so pure of
all stain that God would be unjust in exacting punishment for their sins. But,
by his incomparable indulgence, he does bury our sins and subject us to unjust
persecution, so that we may glory in bearing the cross of Christ and may
therefore be sharers and companions of his blessed resurrection.
This doctrine we must take for our own use. First, we must be ready, after the
example of the fathers, to bear calmly any suffering by which our loyalty to
the confession of our faith is validated. Secondly, in the deepest shadows of
death we must constantly call on the name of God, and we must stand fast in
fear of him.
Paul (Rom. 8:23) goes further and asserts that this passage does not merely
offer us an example, but describes the perpetual situation of the church.
Therefore we are assigned, by God's decree, the perpetual warfare of bearing
the cross. At times God spares our weakness by allowing a truce, or a
relaxation [of the warfare]. But although swords are not always drawn against
us we must, because we are members of Christ, be always ready to share his
cross. Let us not then be terrified by the bitterness of the cross, and let us
keep this picture of the persecuted church always before us. So long as we are
adopted by God in Christ, we are destined for slaughter. If we are to
Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin. . . . For whom
the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
Heb. 12:4,6.
The apostle goes further and reminds us once again that, even while the wicked
persecute us in Christ's name, our warfare is with sin. Christ himself was free
from this struggle, because he was clean and unspotted by any sin. In this
respect we are unlike him, for sin dwells in us at all times; and our
afflictions serve to overcome and rout it.
In the first place, we know that all the evils in the world come from sin; and
so came in the beginning death itself. But this is not what concerns the
apostle. His point is that the persecutions we suffer are useful to us, because
they are medicine for destroying sin. For in this way, God keeps us under the
yoke of his discipline, so that our flesh may not play loose with sin. At times
he checks our hot blood; at other times he punishes our misdeeds in order that
we may afterwards become more careful. Therefore, whether he sets out to heal
our vices, or to prevent us from doing evil, as the apostle says, he is
training us for the struggle against sin. And when we suffer for his gospel,
the Son of God himself honors us with his favor, and does not count our
sufferings as punishment of sin. Still we must acknowledge the validity of what
the apostle says: When we act against the ungodly in defense of the cause of
Christ, we at the same time battle against sin which is the enemy within us.
Thus the grace of God is double; he converts the remedy he uses for curing us
from our vices into a means of defending his gospel.
Let us remember that the apostle is speaking to people who had thrown away
their possessions and suffered many indignities; and had done all that
willingly and with joy. And yet, he charges them with indolence because,
exhausted while the battle was still in progress, they had not kept up the
strenuous march to the end. It is not for us to ask the Lord to discharge us
from his army, no matter what fighting we have done. For Christ will have no
discharged soldiers, except those who have overcome death itself. . . .
For whom the Lord loveth. The reasoning of this verse seems
Wherefore, even though God's hand falls upon those in his house and those
outside, it falls upon the former to show his peculiar care for them. The true
solution of our problem is as follows: anyone who knows and is persuaded that
he is castigated by God must promptly go on to consider that God afflicts him
because he loves him. Since the godly know that God intervenes in their
punishment, they have a sure pledge of his good will towards them; for if he
did not love them, he would not care about their salvation. Hence the apostle
concludes that God offers himself as a Father to all those who endure
correction. Those who would rather kick like wild horses, or harden themselves
and fight back, are a different sort. In short then, the apostle teaches us
that, when God corrects us, he does so only as our Father, provided we yield
and obey.
And when forty years were expired, there appeared unto him in the
It remains to say something of the burning bush. God frequently makes use of a
certain similarity among things for giving us signs; and this is the common
reason for the sacraments. Besides, nothing could have been more appropriate
for confirming the faith of Moses in God's present business with him. Moses
knew in what state he had left his people. Although they were a great
multitude, they were not unlike a bush. For the denser a bush and the more
twigs it has, compactly put together, the more likely it is to burst into flame
and the fire spreads most easily to all its parts. Similarly, the band of
Israelites was weak and exposed to every kind of harm. This unwarlike
multitude, kept down by its own dead weight, inflamed the fury of the Pharaoh
until it could burst out with success. A people oppressed by a cursed tyranny
is like a pile of wood which has caught fire on all sides. Nothing keeps it
from being quickly reduced to ashes, unless the Lord himself sit in the midst
of it. Although this story refers to the unusual persecution which was aflame
at that time, it nevertheless in a way depicts the perpetual state of the
church which is never, in this world, safe and free from affliction. For what
are we but food for fire? Countless burning torches of Satan fly around
constantly, and set souls as well as bodies on fire; but the Lord himself, by
his wonderful and matchless grace, guards and defends us. The fire, therefore,
must needs so burn that in this life it reduce us to nothing. But since God
dwells in our midst, he keeps us from harm in the midst of our tribulation, as
we read also in Ps. 46:5.
And the multitude rose up together against them; and the magistrates rent
off their [the apostles'] clothes, and commanded to beat
them. Acts 6:22.
When Luke tells us how a crowd gathered together, how some nobodies -- in fact
jugglers and those who put their bodies on sale, whose sordid ways everybody
knows -- raised a hue and cry, he reminds us of the world's fury against
Christ. Although folly and levity are ever present among the whole population,
the amazing power of Satan appears when those who are otherwise reserved and
stable suddenly get excited over nothing and join the company of worthless
people in resisting the truth of God. Nor did the magistrates themselves show
any more restraint. By their gravity, they should have appeased the fury
One might also ask, Why were the apostles thrown in prison, when they had
already received their punishment? For prisons were established for keeping
people in custody, partly for punishment and partly that more might be learned
about their case. But it is evident that the servants of Christ are treated
with less humanity than adulterers, robbers, and other malefactors of their
kind. This gives us a clearer insight into the power of Satan, who incites the
spirits of men so that they observe no kind of justice when they persecute the
gospel. Still, though the lot of the godly in defense of the gospel is harder
than that of the godless in their wickedness, yet theirs is the brighter,
because in all the evils which they undergo, they triumph gloriously before God
and his angels. They indeed suffer insult and ignominy, but because they know
that the wounds of Christ are more precious and carry more dignity in heaven
than all the vain and smoky pomps of the earth the more they are wronged and
slandered by the world, the more abundant reason they have for glorying. For,
if Themistocles[86] used to be so honored by
profane writers that they preferred his prison to the seats and courts of
magistrates, how much more we should honor the Son of God in whose cause the
faithful at all times suffer persecution for the gospel's sake. Besides, even
though the Lord allowed Paul and Silas to be inflicted with scourging at the
hands of godless magistrates, yet he did not let them suffer shame without
turning it into a greater glory. Since the persecutions which go with bearing
witness to the gospel are left over for us from the passion of Christ, as our
Prince himself converted the curse of the cross to a chariot of triumph, so
also he shall adorn the prisons and gibbets of his servants, and
Rending their garments. Since the ancient interpreter[87] had translated this phrase rightly, it was wrong of
Erasmus to change it to mean that the magistrates tore their own garments. Luke
simply meant to say that when the holy men were beaten, the order of lawful
judgment was neglected and that those who laid hands upon them were so violent
that their clothes were torn. For it was most alien to Roman custom for
magistrates to tear their clothes to pieces publicly in the market place,
especially when the matter on hand had to do with an unknown religion, whose
protection was no great concern of theirs. But I will not dispute at length
about such an obvious matter.
Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in
heaviness through manifold temptations, that the trial of your faith, being
more precious than of gold that perisheth though it be tried with fire, might
be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 1:6-7.
Even though the ending of the Greek verb is unclear, the sense of the passage
requires that we read you exult rather than exult! The phrase
in which refers to the manifold hope of salvation set down in heaven.
But Peter does not so much praise as exhort them. His purpose is to teach the
benefit we receive when we hope that we shall be saved; namely, the spiritual
joy which not only mitigates the bitterness in all evil, but also conquers all
melancholy. So, there is more to exult than to rejoice.
But it appears rather contradictory that the faithful who exult with joy should
at the same time be sorrowful, for these are opposite feelings. But they know
by experience what words can hardly express: that joy and sorrow go together.
However, to settle the matter with few words, the faithful are not blocks of
wood that they should be bereft of human sensibility when they meet sorrow, or
that they should not be afraid when in peril, or be troubled by poverty, or by
the hardships they have to endure under persecution. Therefore, evil does
indeed make them unhappy. But faith sweetens their sorrow, so that there is no
lack of joy in them because of it. Their sorrow yields to their rejoicing,
rather than preventing it. Again, even though joy overcomes sorrow, still it
does not abolish it, because it does not deprive us of our humanity. Thus we
learn true patience; for its beginning and, as it were, its very root is the
knowledge
Ye are in heaviness. Since the reprobate in their turn are not immune to
evil, do they not also experience sorrow? Yes, they do. But Peter recognizes
that the faithful suffer sorrow willingly, whereas the godless murmur and are
perverse enough to battle against God. The godly man suffers as a tame ox bears
his yoke or as a horse that is broken submits to the bridle even when put on by
a child. God visits the wicked with trouble, even as people bridle a fierce and
ornery horse with violent hands: the horse kicks and fights back; but it is no
use. Hence, Peter praises the believers because they bear their troubles
willingly, and not under compulsion.
He says now for a season by way of consoling his readers. For the
shortness of time is a mitigation of the evils we suffer no matter how hard
they hit us. And we must remember that this present life lasts only a moment.
If need be. The reason for our sufferings is here taken for their cause.
The apostle wants to make it clear that God does not make a trial of his people
without reason. If God afflicted us without a reason, our burden would be too
heavy to bear. Therefore, Peter argues for our comfort on the ground of God's
purpose, not that we can always see the reason for our afflictions, but that
they occur rightly (so we ought to be persuaded), since they occur at God's
pleasure. . . .
More precious than gold. He argues from the lesser to the greater. For,
if we prize a corruptible metal like gold so much that, to prove its value, we
test it with fire, is it any wonder that God should want to prove our faith,
which he prizes much more highly, in the same way? Even though the words of the
apostle suggest another interpretation (in that he seems to set no value on
gold), he nevertheless compares faith to gold so as to present it as the more
precious of the two, and to imply that it is worth the trial to which God
subjects it. Besides, the full extent of the meanings of
At the appearing of Jesus Christ. This is added to teach the faithful to
keep their spirits high until the end. For now our life is hidden in Christ;
and it will remain hidden, and as it were buried, until Christ appears from
heaven. The whole course of our lives moves toward the destruction of the outer
man; and all the things we suffer are so many anticipations of death.
Therefore, if we want to see glory and praise in the midst of our afflictions,
we had better fix our eyes on Christ. For the trials, which are so full of
reproach and shame for us, are in Christ full of glory. But such glory in
Christ is not as yet seen clearly because the day of our consolation has not as
yet arrived.
Searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ which was in
them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and
the glory that should follow. 1 Peter 1:11.
Peter tells his readers that their sufferings had been foretold long before by
the Spirit, so that they may endure them with a calm spirit. But there is much
more to this statement. He means that from the very beginning God has so
ordained and governed the Christian church that the cross has been the
preparation for victory, and death the way to life. Such is the clear testimony
of Scripture. Therefore, there is no reason why we should be unduly depressed
by our troubles, as though they meant our misery, when the Spirit of God
himself calls us blessed.
But notice the order. He puts sufferings first, and the glories which are to
follow second; and he makes it clear that this order can be neither changed nor
reversed. The afflictions come first; and then comes glory. There are two
striking thoughts expressed in this sentence: Christians must first suffer many
tribulations that they may know the joy of glory; secondly, their sufferings
are not evil, because they are bound closely with the
Of course, Peter says that it is Christ's own sufferings that were foretold by
the Spirit; but he does not separate Christ from his body. Therefore, we must
not limit the sufferings in question to Christ's own person. We must rather
begin with the Head, that the members may follow him in their order. As Paul
says, we must conform to him who is the first-born among his brethren (Rom.
8:29). Hence, Peter is speaking not of something peculiar to Christ, but of the
universal situation of the church. We have a better confirmation of our faith
in that he invites us to consider our own sufferings in relation to Christ:
because in this way, in our relationship to him, we discern better the
connection between death and life. It certainly is right and fitting that in
this sacred union, the Head should suffer daily in his members. For in this way
his sufferings are completed in us, and his glory in turn is fulfilled in his
members. More is said about this in Col. 3 and 1 Tim. 4.
Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try
you, as though some strange thing happened unto you; but rejoice, inasmuch as
ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings, that, when his glory shall be
revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. 1 Peter 4:12-13.
There is a great deal said about afflictions in this epistle. We have explained
the reason for this elsewhere. However, we must notice that sometimes when he
calls the believers to patience, he speaks in general of the common ills which
infest human life; here, on the other hand, he speaks of the evils which the
faithful suffer for Christ's name. In the first place, he reminds them that
they must not be surprised [by affliction], as by something sudden and
unexpected; that they must meditate upon the cross for a long time, in order to
be prepared to bear it when the occasion arises. Anyone who has chosen to go to
war under Christ will not become panicky when he meets persecution; he will
rather bear it with patience as one who knows all about it. Therefore, if we
would have presence of mind when persecutions
This then is the whole comfort of the men of faith: they are Christ's
associates, that they may in time come to have a share in his glory. So, we
must always consider that the way is from the cross to the resurrection. But
since this world is a labyrinth where no escape from evil is in sight, Peter
turns our eyes to the future when the glory of Christ shall be revealed. What
he means is that we must not spurn the day of his revelation because it is now
hidden, but we must live in expectation of it. He sets before us a double joy:
one which we now have in hope, and another which shall be complete at the
coming of Christ. Because the first is mixed with sorrow and sadness, it is the
latter which he connects with exultation. It is not good sense to be dreaming
in the midst of tribulation of a joy which shall rid us of all trouble. But the
consolations of God do temper our experience of evil so that, while we suffer,
we have joy.
For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto
their prayers; but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil. And who
is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good? But and if
ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye, and be not afraid of their
terror, neither be troubled. 1 Peter 3:12-14.
It ought to be enough to take the sting out of whatever evil we suffer that we
are under the eyes of the Lord and that in his
But the face of the Lord. With this phrase Peter points out that since
the Lord is our vindicator, the godless shall not be permitted to flourish
forever in their insolence. At the same time, he threatens that if we take it
upon ourselves to defend our lives against the wicked, we shall have God
himself against us. But, it may be objected, experience teaches us far
otherwise; for the more just a man is, and the more he loves peace, the more he
is vexed by the wicked. To this I answer, No one follows justice and peace so
far that he does not sometimes, some way, sin in this matter. But we must
observe above all that in this life we are promised nothing beyond what we need
for doing our duty. Hence, our peace with the world is often turned into
trouble, in order that our flesh may be subdued for obedience to God; hence,
whatever causes us trouble, nothing should be a loss to us [but it should
contribute to the same end of obedience].
And who is he, etc. He again confirms the above with an argument derived
from common experience. It happens often that the wicked pick a quarrel with
us, or that they are cut to the quick by us. We may fail to put ourselves out
to win their favor; for the truth is that anyone who keeps being kind is able
to soften hearts which are otherwise like iron. This same truth is set forth by
Plato in the First Book of The Republic:
For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well-doing,
than for evil-doing. For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for
the unjust, that he might bring us to God. . . . 1 Peter 3:17-18.
For it is better. This phrase qualifies not only the next sentence, but
also the whole passage. Peter has spoken of the confession of faith, which at
that time was a perilous affair. He now adds that it is much better for them to
bear privation in defense of a good cause, and so to suffer unjustly, than to
be chastised for their own infamy. But this encouragement is understood when we
ponder it inwardly, rather than by much talk around it. We read often in
profane writers that, when we suffer evil and must needs go through with it, a
good conscience is help enough. This sounds very courageous. But it still is
true that the spirit is strong only when it looks to God. Therefore he adds the
conditional phrase if it be God's will. By these words he tells us that
when we suffer any evil unjustly it comes about not by accident, but rather,
and surely, by the will of God. And he assumes and confesses that God neither
wills nor appoints anything except for the best of reasons. Hence, the
believers have this comfort in their miseries, that God knows all about it;
they know that it is God who leads them to the scene of contest, in order that
under his auspices they may show forth their faith.
For Christ also. It is another comfort that, if in our afflictions
But now someone may bring up the question, is it not true God chastises
believers when he allows them in some way to be afflicted? I answer that God
often inflicts upon believers the punishment they deserve. And this Peter
himself does not deny. But he reminds us what a great comfort it is to have our
cause bound up with God! We shall see in the next chapter that those who are
persecuted for righteousness' sake are not being punished by God for their
sins. We shall also consider in what sense they are called innocent.
Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed: but let him
glorify God on this behalf. 1 Peter 4:16.
After having forbidden Christians to hurt or do any harm so that they may not,
like the unbelievers, arouse the world's hatred by their evil-doing, he now
bids them to thank God when they suffer persecution in the name of Christ.
Certainly, it is no ordinary kindness on God's part that he not only has freed
us and exempted us from the common punishment of sins, but also calls us to an
honorable warfare, in which we may suffer exile or privation, or insults, or
even death itself. It is therefore plain ingratitude to God that, when
persecutions come upon us, we murmur or cry out, as though some grave injustice
were being done to us; we ought rather to count it gain and favor from God.
. Faith; V. Faith
[85]Calvin's citation is not correct. He has
elegit for <foreign lang="gkc">proe/gnw</greek>.
[86]Themistocles (ca. 514-449 B.C.), the
Athenian leader in the naval battle of Salamis against Xerxes, was a forceful
and imaginative statesman. His checkered career ended in ostracism, and he went
to Asia Minor where he was received by the Persians and lived in Magnesia until
his death. He was a strong man, but he does not appear to have been a model of
virtue. (See Plutarch's Lives.)
[87]Jerome
2. THE CHRISTIAN WARFARE
3. THE CROSS AND PERSECUTION