Preface to Olivétan's New Testament, by John Calvin (excerpted from an introduction to Calvin's commentaries: http://www.ccel.org/ccel/calvin/calcom.iv.html)

JohnCalvinPrefaceToNT.txt

To all those who love Christ and his gospel, Greetings. God the Creator, the most perfect
and excellent Maker of all things, who had already shown himself more than admirable in
their creation, made man as his masterpiece, to surpass all other creatures. Man is
endowed with a singular excellence, for God formed him in his own image and likeness, in
which we see a bright refulgence of God’s glory. Furthermore, man would have been able
to continue in the state in which he was formed, if he had been willing to bow down in
humility before the majesty of God, magnifying him with deeds of grace; not to seek his
glory in himself, but knowing that all good things come from above, always to turn his
mind on high and to glorify the one and only God to whom belongs the praise.

But the
wretched man, wanting to be somebody in himself, began incontinently to forget and
misunderstand the source of his good; and by an act of outrageous ingratitude, he set out
to exalt himself in pride against his Maker and the Author of all that is excellent in
him. For this reason, he went down in ruin and lost all the dignity and superiority of the
state in which he was first created; he was despoiled and divested of all his glory and
deprived of all the gifts which were his; and this, to confound him in his pride and to
constrain him to understand what he was unwilling to do voluntarily: that he was by
himself nothing but vanity, and would never have been anything else except with the help
of the Lord of power.

Therefore, seeing that God’s image and likeness was thus
defaced, and man was without the graces which God in his 59goodness had bestowed upon him,
God began to hold man in abhorrence and disavowed him as his handiwork. Since he had put
man there and ordained [his life] for his own enjoyment and pleasure in him, as a father
with his beloved child, He now held him in contempt and abomination. Whereas before
everything in man pleased him, it now gave him displeasure; everything that he would have
loved, now aroused his wrath; everything that he had contemplated with the good will of a
father, he began to detest and to look at with regret. In short, the whole man with all
that he had, his deeds, his thoughts, his words, his life, wholly displeased God, as
though man were a special enemy and adversary of God; so much so that God repented of
having made him. After having been thrown into such a confusion, man was fruitful in his
cursed seed, to beget descendants like himself; that is, vicious, perverse, corrupt, void,
and deprived of all good, rich and abundant in evil.

Still, the Lord of mercy, who not
only loves but is himself love and kindness, being ready in his infinite goodness to love
him who deserved no love, did not altogether destroy men, or overwhelm them in the abyss
of their iniquity. But on the contrary, he sustained and supported them gently and
patiently, giving them time and opportunity to return to him and to apply themselves again
to that obedience from which they had turned aside. And even though he disguised himself
and kept silent, as though he wished to hide himself from them, leaving them to go after
their desires and the yearnings of their lusts, without law, without order, without any
correction of his Word, he nevertheless has given them notice enough [of his presence] to
move them to seek, feel, and find him, and to know him and honor him as is his due.

For
he has raised everywhere, in all places and in all things, his ensigns and emblems, under
blazons so clear and intelligible that no one can pretend ignorance in not knowing such a
sovereign Lord, who has so amply exalted his magnificence; who has, in all parts of the
world, in heaven and on earth, written and as it were engraved the glory of his power,
goodness, wisdom, and eternity. Saint Paul has therefore said quite rightly that the Lord
has never left himself without a witness; even among those to whom he has not sent any
knowledge of his Word. It is evident that all creatures, from those in the firmament to
those which are in the center of the earth, are able to act as witnesses and messengers of
his glory to all men; to draw them to seek God, and after having found him, to meditate
60upon him and to render him the homage befitting his dignity as so good, so mighty, so
wise a Lord who is eternal; yea, they are even capable of aiding every man wherever he is
in this quest. For the little birds that sing, sing of God; the beasts clamor for him; the
elements dread him, the mountains echo him, the fountains and flowing waters cast their
glances at him, and the grass and flowers laugh before him. Truly there is no need for
long searching, since everyone could find him in himself, because every one of us is
sustained and preserved by his power which is in us.

Meanwhile, in order to reveal his
infinite goodness and kindness more fully among men, he was not content to teach all men
as we have just described; but he made his voice to be heard especially by a certain
people, whom he elected, by his good will and free grace, from among all the nations of
the earth. These were the children of Israel, to whom he showed himself clearly by his
Word, and declared to them by his marvelous works what he intended them to know. For, he
drew them away from subjection to Pharaoh the king of Egypt, under whom they were held
down and oppressed, to deliver them and set them at liberty. He accompanied them night and
day in their flight, as one more fugitive in their midst. He fed them in the desert. He
made them to possess the Promised Land. He gave victories and triumphs to their hands. And
as though he were nothing to the other nations, he willed expressly to be called the God
of Israel, and to have Israel called his people, on condition that they would recognize no
other Lord and receive none else as their God. And this alliance (covenant) was confirmed
and handed down by authentic instruments of testament and testimony given by
himself.

Nevertheless, these people, all of whom shared in the experience of their
cursed race, showed themselves to be true heirs of the wickedness of their father Adam.
They were unmoved by all these remonstrances [of God], and did not listen to the teaching
by which God admonished them. The creatures that had the glory and magnificence of God
stamped upon them were of no help to the Gentiles, and failed to make them glorify him to
whom they testified. And the Law and the Prophets did not have the authority to lead the
Jews in the right way. All have been blind to the light, deaf to admonitions, and hardened
against the commandments.

It is true enough that the Gentiles, astonished and convinced
by so many goods and benefits which they saw with their own 61eyes, have been forced to
recognize the hidden Benefactor from whom came so much goodness. But instead of giving the
true God the glory which they owed him, they forged a god to their own liking, one dreamt
up by their foolish fantasy in its vanity and deceit; and not one god only, but as many as
their temerity and conceit enabled them to forge and cast (feindre et fondre); so that
there was not a people or place which did not make new gods as seemed good to them. Thus
it is that idolatry, that perfidious panderer, was able to exercise dominion, to turn men
away from God, and to amuse them with a whole crowd of phantoms to which they themselves
had given shape, name, and being itself.

As for the Jews, even though they received and
accepted the messages and commandments which their Lord sent them by his servants, they
have nonetheless intemperately falsified the faith before him, turned carelessly away from
him, violated and despised his law, hated it, and resisted walking in its ways. They have
become strangers to the house of God and run as dissolute men after other gods, worshiping
idols after the manner of the Gentiles, contrary to the will of God.

Wherefore, if God
were to approach his people, whether Jew or Gentile, a new covenant was needed: one which
would be certain, sure, and inviolable. And to establish and confirm it, it was necessary
to have a Mediator, who would intercede and come between the two parties, to make concord
between them; for without this, man would have had always to live under the ire and
indignation of God, and would have had no means of relief from the curse, misery, and
confusion into which he was snared and had fallen. And it was our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ, the true and only eternal Son of God, who had to be sent and given to mankind by
the Father, to restore a world otherwise wasted, destroyed, and desolate.

Also from the
very beginning, the world was not without the hope of recovering the loss suffered in
Adam. For even Adam, in spite of his incontinency after his ruin, was given the promise
that the seed of the woman would crush the head of the serpent; which is to say that Jesus
Christ born of a virgin would strike down and destroy the power of Satan.

After that,
this promise was renewed more fully to Abraham, when God told him that all the nations of
the earth would be blessed in his seed. This meant that from his seed would come Jesus
Christ according to the flesh, by whose blessing all men of every land would be
sanctified. And the same promise was 62renewed to Isaac, in the same form and in the same
words; and after that it was announced often, repeated and confirmed by the testimony of
the various prophets, so as to state plainly, and most reliably, of whom Christ was to be
born, at what time, in what place; what afflictions and death he was to suffer, and with
what glory he was to rise from the dead; what was to be his Kingdom, and to what salvation
he was to bring his own.

In the first place, it is foretold for us in Isaiah, how he
was to be born of a virgin, saying: Behold, a virgin shall conceive and shall bear a son,
and you shall call his name Immanuel (Isa. 7:14). The time is described for us in Moses,
when good Jacob says, The scepter shall not be taken from the line of Judah, nor the
government from his hand, until the coming of the One who is to be sent; and the same is
the expectation of the nations (Gen. 49:10). And this was verified when Jesus Christ came
into the world; for the Romans, after having divested the Jews of all government and rule,
had, thirty-seven years before [the coming of Christ] ordained Herod king over them, whose
father was Antipater the Edomite and his mother an Arabian; he was therefore a foreigner.
It had happened sometimes before that the Jews had been without a king; but they had never
before been left as they were now without counselors, rulers, and lawgivers. Another
numbering [of the time of Christ’s birth] is given in Daniel, by the reckoning of the
seventy weeks (Dan. 9:24). The place of his birth was given us clearly by Micah, who said,
And thou Bethlehem Ephrata, thou are the least among the thousands of Judah; but from thee
shall come for me the One who shall reign over Israel; and his coming shall be for all the
days of eternity (Micah 5:2). As for the afflictions he was to bear for our deliverance
and the death he was to suffer for our redemption, Isaiah and Zechariah have spoken of
those matters fully and with certainty. The glory of his resurrection and the nature of
his Kingdom, and the grace of the salvation he was to bring to his people — these things
were fully treated by Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Zechariah.

Such promises, declared and
testified to by these holy men who were filled with the Spirit of God, have been the
comfort and consolation of the children and elect of God, who have nourished, supported,
and sustained their hope in these promises, waiting upon the will of the Lord to show
forth what he had promised. Many kings and prophets among them have desired greatly to see
its accomplishment, never ceasing all the while to understand, in their hearts and spirits
by faith, the 63things they could not see with their eyes. And, God has confirmed his
people in every possible way during their long waiting for the great Messiah, by providing
them with his written law, containing numerous ceremonies, purifications, and sacrifices,
which were but the figures and shadows of the great blessings to come with Christ, who
alone was the embodiment and truth of them. For the law was incapable of bringing anyone
to perfection; it only presented Christ, and like a teacher spoke of and led to him, who
was, as was said by Saint Paul, the end and fulfillment of the law.

Similarly, many
times and in various seasons, God sent his people kings, princes, and captains, to deliver
them from the power of their enemies, to govern them in peace, to recover their losses, to
give them flourishing reigns, and by great prowess to make them renowned among all the
other peoples. He did all this to give them a foretaste of the great miracles they were to
receive from this great Messiah, who was to be endowed with all the power and might of the
Kingdom of God.

But when the fullness of time had come and the period foreordained by
God was ended, this great Messiah, so promised and so awaited, came; he was perfect, and
accomplished all that was necessary to redeem us and save us. He was given not only to the
Israelites, but to all men, of every people and every land, to the end that by him human
nature might be reconciled to God. This is what is stated plainly in the next book (the
New Testament), and set forth there openly. This book we have translated as faithfully as
we were able according to the truth and the style of the Greek language, to enable all
Christians, men and women, who know the French language, to understand and acknowledge the
law they ought to obey and the faith they ought to follow.61
It is to declare this thing
(reconciliation), that the Lord Jesus, who is its foundation and substance, has ordained
his apostles, whom he has charged and commanded to publish his grace to the whole world.
And the apostles, in order to discharge their duty properly and plainly, not only have
taken pains and shown diligence in fulfilling their embassy by the preaching of the word
by mouth, but they have also followed the example of Moses and the prophets, and have left
an eternal remembrance of their doctrine by reducing it to writing; in which they have
first told the story 64of the things the Lord Jesus did and suffered for our salvation,
and then shown us its value, what profit we gain from it, and how we are to receive it.
This whole collection is called the yew Testament, and is called such in relation to the
Old, etc.

And this book is called the New Testament in relation to the Old, which, in
so far as it had to be succeeded by and related to the New, and was shaky and imperfect in
itself, was abolished and abrogated. It is the new and the eternal, which will never grow
old and fail, because Jesus Christ is its Mediator. He has ratified and confirmed it by
his death, by which he has accomplished full and complete remission of all sins
(prevarications) which remained under the first testament.

Scripture is also called
gospel, that is, new and joyful news, because in it is declared that Christ, the sole true
and eternal Son of the living God, was made man, to make us children of God his Father, by
adoption. Thus he is our only Savior, to whom we owe our redemption, peace, righteousness,
sanctification, salvation, and life; who died for our sins and rose again for our
justification; who ascended to heaven for our entry there and took possession of it for us
and [it is] our home; to be always our helper before his Father; as our advocate and
perpetually doing sacrifice for us, he sits at the Father’s right hand as King, made
Lord and Master over all, so that he may restore all that is in heaven and on earth; an
act which all the angels, patriarchs, prophets, apostles did not know how to do and were
unable to do, because they had not been ordained to that end by God.

As the Messiah had
been promised so often in the Old Testament by the many testimonies of the prophets, so
also Jesus Christ was by sure and certain testimonies declared to be the One, and none
other, who was to come and was to be waited for. For the Lord God has made us so
completely certain in this matter, by his Word and his Spirit, by his angels, prophets,
apostles, and even by all his creatures, that nobody is in a position to contradict it
without resisting and rebelling against God’s power. In the first place, the eternal God
has testified to us by his voice itself (which is without doubt irrevocable truth),
saying, Behold my well beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear him (Matt. 9:7). And
as Saint John says, the Holy Spirit himself is our great witness in our hearts (1 John
5:1). The angel Gabriel, sent to the Virgin Mary, said to her: Behold, you shall conceive
in your womb, and shall bear a Son, and shall call his name Jesus; for he shall be great
and shall be 65called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God shall give him the throne
(le siege) of his father David, and he shall reign forever in the house of Jacob; and
there shall be no end to his Kingdom (Luke 1:32–33). This same message was given in
substance to Joseph; and later also to the shepherds, who were told that the Savior was
born, who was Christ the Lord (Matt. 1:20–21; Luke 2:10–11). And this message was not
only brought by an angel, but was confirmed by a multitude of angels, who all together
glorified the Lord and announced peace upon earth. Simeon the Just confessed it nobly in
the spirit of prophecy: and taking the little child in his arms, he said: Now, O Lord, let
thy servant depart in peace according to thy word. For my eyes have seen thy salvation,
which thou hast prepared in the presence of all peoples (Luke 2:29–31). John the Baptist
also spoke of him as was fitting, when he saw him coming to the river of Jordan, and said,
Behold the lamb of God; behold him who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29). Peter
and all the apostles have confessed, testified, preached all the things which belong to
salvation, of which the prophets had foretold that they would be accomplished in Christ
the true Son of God. And those whom the Lord has ordained to be witnesses down to our own
age have amply demonstrated the same by their writings, as their readers can see well
enough.

All these witnesses come together into a unity so well, and they are of one
accord among themselves so fully, that it is easy to recognize in such agreement most
certain truth. For there could not be such harmony in lies. Besides, it is not only the
Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, the angels, the prophets and apostles that bear witness
to Jesus Christ; his own wonderful works show forth his most excellent power. The sick,
the lame, the blind, the deaf, the mute, the paralytic, lepers, lunatics, demoniacs, and
even the dead raised by him have carried the emblems of his power. By his power, he has
given life; in his name, the works he has had given him to do were sufficient witnesses to
him (John 10:25). Besides, even the wicked and the enemies of his glory were constrained
by the very force of truth to confess him and to acknowledge something [of his glory]: for
instance, Caiaphas, Pilate, and his wife. I do not care to bring up the witness of the
devils and unclean spirits, seeing that Jesus Christ rejected them.

In short, all the
elements and all the creatures have given Jesus Christ the glory. At his command, the
winds ceased, the 66raging sea subsided, the fish brought two drachmas in his belly, the
stones (to render him witness) were broken to pieces, the veil of the Temple was torn in
the middle, the sun was darkened, the graves were opened, the many bodies were restored to
life. There has been nothing in heaven or on earth which has not witnessed that Jesus
Christ is God, Lord and Master, and the great Ambassador of the Father sent here below to
accomplish the salvation of mankind. All these things were announced, manifested, written,
and signed in this Testament, by which Jesus Christ has made us his heirs in the Kingdom
of God his Father, and declares to us his will (like a testator to his heirs) that it [his
Testament] be put into execution.

Furthermore, we are called to this inheritance
without respect for persons; male or female, little or great, servant or lord, master or
disciple, cleric or lay, Hebrew or Greek, French or Latin — no one is rejected, who with
a sure confidence receives him who was sent for him, embraces what is presented to him,
and in short acknowledges Jesus Christ for what he is and as he is given by the
Father.

In the meantime, all we who bear the name of Christians, male or female, shall
we permit ourselves to dishonor, to conceal, and to corrupt this Testament, which is so
rightly ours, without which we could not pretend any right to the Kingdom of God, without
which we should be ignorant of the great blessings and promises which Jesus Christ has
given us, of the glory and beatitude he has prepared for us? We do not know what God has
commanded or forbidden us; we cannot tell good from evil, light from darkness, the
commandments of God from the ordinances (constitutions) of men. Without the gospel
everything is useless and vain; without the gospel we are not Christians; without the
gospel all riches is poverty, all wisdom, folly before God; strength is weakness, and all
the justice of man is under the condemnation of God. But by the knowledge of the gospel we
are made children of God, brothers of Jesus Christ, fellow townsmen with the saints,
citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven, heirs of God with Jesus Christ, by whom the poor are
made rich, the weak strong, the fools wise, the sinners justified, the desolate comforted,
the doubting sure, and slaves free. The gospel is the Word of life and truth. It is the
power of God for the salvation of all those who believe; and the key to the knowledge of
God, which opens the door of the Kingdom of Heaven to the faithful by releasing them from
sins, and closes it to the unbelievers, binding them in their sins. Blessed are all 67they
who hear the gospel and keep it; for in this way they show that they are children of God.
Woe to those who will not hear it and follow it; because they are children of the
devil.

O Christians, men and women, hear this and learn. For surely the ignorant man
shall perish in his ignorance, and the blind who follows another blind man will fall into
the ditch with him. There is but one way to life and salvation, and that is faith and
certainty in the promises of God which cannot be had without the gospel; for by hearing it
and knowing it living faith is provided, together with sure hope, and perfect love for God
and a lively love toward our neighbor. Where then is your hope, if you contemn and scorn
to hear, see, read, and retain this holy gospel? Those who have their affections fixed
upon this world chase with every means whatever they think will bring them happiness,
without sparing labor, body, life, or reputation. And all this is done in the service of
this wretched body, which has a life so vain, miserable, and uncertain. When it is a
question of life immortal and incorruptible, of beatitude eternal and immeasurable, of all
the treasures of Paradise, shall we not endeavor to pursue them? Those who give themselves
to the mechanical arts, however low and mean these may be, expend pain and labor to learn
and know them; and those who aspire to a reputation of greatest excellence torment their
minds day and night, to understand something of the human sciences, which are nothing but
wind and smoke. Should we not then much more be employed and diligent in the study of this
divine wisdom, which passes beyond the whole world and penetrates as far as the mysteries
of God, which it has pleased him to make known by his holy Word!

What then shall
estrange and alienate us from this holy gospel? Shall injuries, curses, disgrace, and want
of worldly honor? But, we know well that Jesus Christ has traveled the same road which we
have to follow, if we would be his disciples; that we must not refuse to be despised,
mocked, humiliated, and rejected before men. For it is thus that we shall be honored,
prized, glorified, and exalted in God’s judgment. Will there be banishments,
proscriptions, privation from goods and riches? But we know that if we shall be banished
from one country, the whole earth is the Lord’s, and if we be thrown out of the earth
itself, nonetheless we shall not be outside of his Kingdom. [We know] that when we are
despoiled and impoverished, we have a Father who is rich enough to nourish us; even that
Jesus Christ was made poor, so that we might follow him in his poverty. 68Will there be
afflictions, prisons, tortures, torments? But we know by the example of Jesus Christ that
this is the way to arrive at glory. Finally, will there be death? But death does not do
away with a life that is worth having.

In short, if we have Jesus Christ with us, we
shall come upon nothing so accursed that he will not turn it into a blessing; nothing so
execrable that it shall not be made holy; nothing so evil that it shall not turn into our
good. Let us not lose our comfort when we see all earthly powers and forces against us;
for the promise cannot fail, that the Lord on high will hold in mockery all the
assemblings and efforts of men who would conspire against him. Let us not be desolate, as
though all hope were lost, when we see true servants of God die and perish before our
eyes. For it was said truly by Tertullian, and so it has been approved and shall be until
the consummation of the age, that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the
church.

And we have a still greater and a more sure consolation, when we turn our eyes
away from this whole world and set aside all that we can see before us, to wait with
patience for the great judgment of God, by which in one moment all the machinations of men
against him shall be struck down, brought to nought, and overturned. This shall be when
the Kingdom of God, which we now see in hope, shall become manifest; when Jesus Christ
shall appear in majesty with his angels. It shall then be that the good and the evil shall
be present before the judgment seat of this great King. Those who have remained firm in
this testament, who have followed and kept the will of this good Father, shall be at his
right hand as his true children, and shall be blessed with the fulfillment of their faith,
which shall be eternal salvation. And since they were not ashamed to own and confess Jesus
Christ, when he was despised and condemned before men, they shall also share in his glory,
and shall be crowned with him in eternity. But the perverse, rebellious, and condemned,
who have despised and rejected this holy gospel, and similarly those who for the sake of
holding on to their honor, riches, and high estate have been unwilling to be humbled and
made low with Jesus Christ; who for fear of men have cast aside the fear of God and like
bastard [sons] disobeyed this Father — these shall be on the left hand; they shall be
executed and cast out; for the reward of their unfaithfulness, they shall receive eternal
death.

Therefore, when you hear that the gospel presents you Jesus Christ in whom all
the promises and gifts of God have been 69accomplished; and when it declares that he was
sent by the Father, has descended to the earth and spoken among men perfectly all that
concerns our salvation, as it was foretold in the Law and to the Prophets — it ought to
be most certain and obvious to you that the treasures of Paradise have been opened to you
in the gospel; that the riches of God have been exhibited and eternal life itself
revealed. For, this is eternal life; to know one, only true God, and Jesus Christ whom he
has sent, whom he has established as the beginning, the middle, and the end of our
salvation. He [Christ] is Isaac, the beloved Son of the Father who was offered as a
sacrifice, but nevertheless did not succumb to the power of death. He is Jacob the
watchful shepherd, who has such great care for the sheep which he guards. He is the good
and compassionate brother Joseph, who in his glory was not ashamed to acknowledge his
brothers, however lowly and abject their condition. He is the great sacrificer and bishop
Melchizedek, who has offered an eternal sacrifice once for all. He is the sovereign
lawgiver Moses, writing his law on the tables of our hearts by his Spirit. He is the
faithful captain and guide Joshua, to lead us to the Promised Land. He is the victorious
and noble king David, bringing by his hand all rebellious power to subjection. He is the
magnificent and triumphant king Solomon, governing his kingdom in peace and prosperity. He
is the strong and powerful Samson, who by his death has overwhelmed all his enemies.

It
follows that every good thing we could think or desire is to be found in this same Jesus
Christ alone. For, he was sold, to buy us back; captive, to deliver us; condemned, to
absolve us; he was made a curse for our blessing, sin offering for our righteousness;
marred that we may be made fair; he died for Our life; so that by him fury is made gentle,
wrath appeased, darkness turned into light, fear reassured, despisal despised, debt
canceled, labor lightened, sadness made merry, misfortune made fortunate, difficulty easy,
disorder ordered, division united, ignominy ennobled, rebellion subjected, intimidation
intimidated, ambush uncovered, assaults assailed, force forced back, combat combated, war
warred against, vengeance avenged, torment tormented, damnation damned, the abyss sunk
into the abyss, hell transfixed, death dead, mortality made immortal. In short, mercy has
swallowed up all misery, and goodness all misfortune. For all these things which were to
be the weapons of the devil in his battle against us, and the sting of death to pierce us,
are turned for us into exercises which we 70can turn to our profit. If we are able to
boast with the apostle, saying, O hell, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?
it is because by the Spirit of Christ promised to the elect, we live no longer, but Christ
lives in us; and we are by the same Spirit seated among those who are in heaven, so that
for us the world is no more, even while our conversation is in it; but we are content in
all things, whether country, place, condition, clothing, meat, and all such things. And we
are comforted in tribulation, joyful in sorrow, glorying under vituperation, abounding in
poverty, warmed in our nakedness, patient amongst evils, living in death.

This62 is
what we should in short seek in the whole of Scripture: truly to know Jesus Christ, and
the infinite riches that are comprised in him and are offered to us by him from God the
Father. If one were to sift thoroughly the Law and the Prophets, he would not find a
single word which would not draw and bring us to him. And for a fact, since all the
treasures of wisdom and understanding are hidden in him, there is not the least question
of having, or turning toward, another goal; not unless we would deliberately turn aside
from the light of truth, to lose ourselves in the darkness of lies. Therefore, rightly
does Saint Paul say in another passage that he would know nothing except Jesus Christ, and
him crucified. And such knowledge although mean and contemptible to the mind of the flesh
is nevertheless sufficient to occupy us all our lives. And we shall not waste our time if
we employ all our study and apply all our understanding to profit from it. What more would
we ask for, as spiritual doctrine for our souls, than to know God, to be converted
(transformez) to him, and to have his glorious image imprinted in us, so that we may
partake of his righteousness, to become heirs of his Kingdom and to possess it in the end
in full? But the truth is that from the beginning God has given himself, and at present
gives himself more fully, that we may contemplate him in the face of his Christ. It is
therefore not lawful that we turn away and become diverted even in the smallest degree by
this or that. On the contrary, our minds ought to come to a halt at the point where we
learn in Scripture to know Jesus Christ and him alone, so that we may be directly led by
him to the Father who contains in himself all perfection.

Here, I say once again, is
enclosed all the wisdom which men can understand, and ought to learn in this life; which
no angel, 71or man, dead or living, may add to or take away from. This is where we ought
to stop and put a limit to our understanding, mixing nothing of our own with it and
refusing any doctrine whatever which might be added to it. For anyone who undertakes to
teach one other syllable beyond what is taught us in it, ought to be accursed before God
and his church.

And you kings, princes, and Christian lords, who are ordained of God to
punish the wicked and to uphold the good in peace according to the Word of God — to you
it belongs to have this sacred doctrine, so useful and needful, published, taught, and
understood in all your lands, realms, and lordly domains, to the end that God may be
magnified by you, and his gospel exalted; because by right it is his due that all kings
and kingdoms obey him in all humility and serve his glory. Remember that sovereign Empire,
above all kingdoms, principalities, and lordships, was given by the Father to the Lord
Jesus; and he is to be feared, held in awe, and honored by everyone, great or little.
Remember63 what was foretold by the prophets: that all the kings of the earth would render
him homage as their superior, and would adore him as their Savior and their God; let this
come true in you. And remember that it is no dishonor for you to be subject to such a
great Lord, as though in this way your own majesty and high place would be reduced and
become as nothing; for it is the greatest honor you may lawfully desire, to be known and
regarded as the officials and lieutenants of God. It is unthinkable that Jesus Christ, in
whom God wills to be glorified and exalted, should not have dominion over you; and in fact
it is reasonable enough that you should be the ones to give him this preeminence, provided
your own power is founded in him alone. Otherwise what an ingratitude it would be that you
should want to shut out him who has established you in the power you possess, and
maintains and keeps you in it! What is more, you ought to know that there is no better
foundation, nor one firmer, for keeping your domains in true prosperity, than to have him
as Chief and Master, and to govern your peoples under his hand; and that without him they
[your domains] can be neither permanent nor endure for long, but shall be accursed of God
and shall consequently fall down in confusion and ruin. Since God has thus given you the
sword in hand for governing your subjects in his name and by his authority; since he has
done you the honor of giving you his name and 72title; since he has sanctified your
position above those of others, to make a portion of his glory and majesty reflected in it
— let each one of you engage himself by his own hand to magnify and exalt him who is
God’s true and glorious image, in whom he fully represents himself to us. Moreover, to
do this, it is not enough merely to confess Jesus Christ, and to profess to be his own, so
that you have the title without the truth and reality of the matter; you must give place
to his holy gospel and receive it with obedience and humility. This is an office every man
must fulfill; but it belongs to you especially to see to it that the gospel is heard, to
have it published in your lands, in order that it may be known by the people who have been
committed to your charge; in order that they may know you as servants and ministers of
this great King, and may serve and honor him, by obeying you under his hand and under his
guidance.

This is what the Lord requires of you through his prophet, when he calls you
the guardians of his church. For this tutelage and protection is not a matter of enlarging
the riches, privileges, and honors of the clergy, which makes them high and haughty,
living in pomp and in all dissoluteness, contrary to their proper estate; much less is it
a matter of maintaining the clergy in their pride and inordinate displays; it is rather a
matter of seeing to it that the entire teaching of the gospel is kept in its purity and
truth; that the Holy Scriptures are faithfully preached, read, and perused; that God is
honored according to the rule given us in them, and the church is well governed; that all
which is contrary to the honor of God, or to the good government of the church, be
corrected and repressed; so that the Kingdom of Jesus Christ may flourish by the power of
his Word.

O you who call yourselves bishops and pastors of the poor people, see to it
that the sheep of Jesus Christ are not deprived of their proper pasture; and that it is
not prohibited and forbidden to any Christian freely and in his own language to read,
handle, and hear this holy gospel, seeing that such is the will of God, and Jesus Christ
commands it; for it is for this cause that he has sent his apostles and servants
throughout the whole world; giving them the power to speak in all tongues, so that they
may in every language preach to every creature; and he has made them debtors to the Greeks
and the barbarians, to the wise and the simple, in order that none might be excluded from
their teaching. Surely, if you are truly their vicars, successors, and imitators, it is
your office to do the same, watching over the flock and seeking every possible means to
have everyone instructed 73in the faith of Jesus Christ, by the pure Word of God.
Otherwise, the sentence is already proclaimed and put down in writing, that God will
demand their souls at your hands.

It is the will of the Lord of lights by his Holy
Spirit, by means of this holy and saving gospel, to teach the ignorant, to strengthen the
feeble, to illumine the blind, and to make his truth to reign among all peoples and
nations, to the end that the whole world may know but one God and one Savior, Jesus
Christ; one faith, and one gospel. So be it.