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GraciousCall.org - Calvin: Commentaries - General Introduction
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General Introduction
Introductory Selections from Calvin
IF THOSE WHO READ THIS COMMENTARY, WHICH HAS cost me much labor, derive
some benefit from it, I should like to have them know how greatly I have been
helped [in writing it] through those relatively mild conflicts by which the
Lord has trained me. My own experience not only aided me in applying to our
present situation the teaching I gathered [from the Psalms], but also opened
the way to an intimate understanding of the mind of those who wrote them. It
gave me no little help in understanding the complaints of David, the greatest
of the psalmists, about the evils which the church suffered at the hands of
those who were supposed to be its members, for I myself had had the same or
similar experiences with enemies within the church. I differ so much from David
since I lack the many virtues which distinguished him, and I labor so much
under the corresponding faults, that I am ashamed to compare myself to him. But
although as I read the records of his faith, endurance, ardor, zeal, and
sincerity, the difference between us often made me groan, yet I found especial
help for myself when I saw in the Psalter as in a mirror both the requirements
of my calling and how ceaselessly [David] fulfilled them. . . .
It goes without saying that my own position is far below David's. And yet, as
he was elevated from the sheepfolds to the highest position of authority, so
God took me also from obscure and small beginnings and honored me with the
office of herald and minister of the gospel. My father intended me as a young
boy for theology. But when he saw that the science of law made those who
cultivate it wealthy, he was led to change his mind by the hope of material
gain for me. So it happened that I was called back from the study
of philosophy to learn law. I followed my father's wish and attempted to do
faithful work in this field; but God, by the secret leading of his providence,
turned my course another way.
First, when I was too firmly addicted to the papal superstitions to be drawn
easily out of such a deep mire, by a sudden conversion He brought my mind
(already more rigid than suited my age) to submission [to him]. I was so
inspired by a taste of true religion and I burned with such a desire to carry
my study further, that although I did not drop other subjects, I had no zeal
for them. In less than a year, all who were looking for a purer doctrine began
to come to learn from me, although I was a novice and a beginner.
Then I, who was by nature a man of the country and a lover of shade and
leisure, wished to find for myself a quiet hiding place -- a wish which has
never yet been granted me; for every retreat I found became a public lecture
room. When the one thing I craved was obscurity and leisure, God fastened upon
me so many cords of various kinds that he never allowed me to remain quiet, and
in spite of my reluctance dragged me into the limelight.
I left my own country and departed for Germany to enjoy there, unknown, in some
corner, the quiet long denied me. But lo, while I was hidden unknown at Basel,
a great fire of hatred [for France] had been kindled in Germany by the exile of
many godly men from France. To quench this fire, wicked and lying rumors were
spread, cruelly calling the exiles Anabaptists and seditious men, men who
threatened to upset, not only religion, but the whole political order with
their perverse madness. I saw that this was a trick of those in [the French]
court, not only to cover up with false slanders the shedding of the innocent
blood of holy martyrs, but also to enable the persecutors to continue with the
pitiless slaughter. Therefore I felt that I must make a strong statement
against such charges; for I could not be silent without treachery. This was why
I published theInstitutes-- to defend against unjust slander my
brothers whose death was precious in the Lord's sight. A second reason was my
desire to rouse the sympathy and concern of people outside, since the same
punishment threatened many other poor people. And this volume was not a thick
and laborious work like the present edition; it appeared as a briefEnchiridion. It had no other purpose than to bear witness to the faith
of those whom I saw criminally libeled by wicked and false courtiers.
I desired no fame for myself from it; I planned to depart shortly, and no one
knew that I was the writer [of the book]. For I had kept my authorship secret
and intended to continue to do so. But Wilhaim Farel[54]forced me to stay in Geneva not so much by advice or
urging as by command, which had the power of God's hand laid violently upon me
from heaven. Since the wars had closed the direct road to Strasbourg, I had
meant to pass through Geneva quickly and had determined not to be delayed there
more than one night.
A short time before, by the work of the same good man [Farel], and of Peter
Viret,[55]the papacy had been banished from the city; but things were
still unsettled and the place was divided into evil and harmful factions. One
man, who has since shamefully gone back to the papists, took immediate action
to make me known. Then Farel, who was working with incredible zeal to promote
the gospel, bent all his efforts to keep me in the city. And when he realized
that I was determined to study in privacy in some obscure place, and saw that
he gained nothing by entreaty, he descended to cursing, and said that God would
surely curse my peace if I held back from giving help at a time of such great
need. Terrified by his words, and conscious of my own timidity and cowardice, I
gave up my journey and attempted to apply whatever gift I had in defense of my
faith.
Scarcely four months had passed before we were attacked on the one side by the
Anabaptists and on the other by a certain rascally apostate who, relying upon
the secret aid of certain important people, was able to give us much trouble.
Meanwhile, internal dissensions, coming one upon another, caused us dreadful
torments.
I confess that I am by nature timid, mild, and cowardly, and yet I was forced
from the very beginning to meet these violent storms. Although I did not yield
to them, yet since I was not very brave, I was more pleased than was fitting
when I was banished and forcibly expelled from the city.
Then loosed from my vocation and free [to follow my own desire], I decided to
live quietly as a private individual. But that most distinguished minister of
Christ, Martin Bucer,[56]dragged me back again to a new post with the
same curse which Farel had used against me. Terrified by the example of Jonah
which he had set before me, I continued the work of teaching. And although I
always consistently avoided public notice, somehow I was dragged to the
imperial assemblies.[57]There, whether I
wished it or not, I had to speak before large audiences. Afterwards the Lord
had pity on the City of Geneva and quieted the deadly conflicts there. After he
had by his wondrous power frustrated both the criminal conspiracies and the
bloody attempts at force, I was compelled, against my own will, to take again
my former position.[58]The safety of that
church was far too important in my mind for me to refuse to meet even death for
its sake. But my timidity kept suggesting to me excuses of every color for
refusing to put my shoulder again under so heavy a burden. However, the demand
of duty and faith at length conquered, and I went back to the flock from which
I had been driven away. With how much grief, with how many tears, and in how
great anxiety I went, God is my best witness. Many faithful men also understood
my reluctance and would have wished to see me released from this pain if they
had not been constrained by the same fear which influenced me.
It would make too long a story to tell of the conflicts of all sorts in which I
was active and of the trials by which I was tested. I will merely repeat
briefly what I said before, so as not to offend fastidious readers with
unnecessary words. Since David showed me the way with his own
footsteps, I felt myself greatly comforted. The holy king was hurt more
seriously by the envy and dishonesty of treacherous men at home than he was by
the Philistines and other enemies who harassed him from the outside. I also
have been attacked on all sides and have had scarcely a moment's relief from
both external and internal conflicts. Satan has undertaken all too often in
many ways to corrupt the fabric of this church. The result has been that I, who
am a peaceable and timid man, was compelled to break the force of the deadly
attacks by interposing my own body as a shield.
In all these five years certain men have had too great an influence, and a part
of the common people who were corrupted by their alluring propaganda have been
seeking unrestrained license. We therefore had both to oversee discipline and
to fight without intermission. For the ruin of the church was a matter of no
account to profane men and despisers of heavenly doctrine who desired and
obtained power to gain every indulgence they dared. Some were driven mad by
famine and hunger, and certain others by insatiable ambition or shameful greed
for profit; and they all were ready to ruin themselves and us by mixing
everything up rather than to [allow us to] maintain order. They were at it a
long time, and I think made use of every tool forged in Satan's workshop. The
only possible way to end their wicked plots was to destroy the men themselves
by a shameful death -- a spectacle which grieved me very much. For although
they deserved any possible punishment, I would rather have had them live safe
and unharmed. And they could have done so, if they had not been wholly
impervious to wise counsel.
This five-year trial, hard and burdensome enough to me, was made still worse
torture by the ill will of those who never ceased to attack me and my ministry
with vile slanders. Many were so blinded by their desire to abuse me that their
effrontery became shamefully outspoken. Others were saved by their own craft
from conviction and ignominious exposure. But when anyone repeats an offense of
which he has been accused a hundred times and acquitted, the indignity of it
all is hard to bear.
Because I assert that the world is governed by the hidden providence of God,
insolent men rise up and say that I make God the author of sin -- a futile and
baseless slander which would come to nothing of itself if it did not find eager
listeners. Envy or spite or ingratitude or wickedness so rules men that they recoil from no lie, however absurd and monstrous. Others strive to
overturn the eternal predestination by which God distinguishes the reprobate
from the elect; others undertake the defense of free will. And not ignorance so
much as a kind of perverse zeal brings many adherents to these factions.
When one suffers trials at the hands of professed enemies, one can bear them.
But when people who hide under the name of brothers, those who not only eat the
sacred bread but also serve it to others, and who boast loudly that they are
heralds of the gospel -- when these carry on such wicked warfare, how
detestable it is! It is of this kind of thing that David most rightly
complains, when he says,The man of my peace and he who ate bread with me
has lifted his heel against me(Ps. 41:10); and also,My companion and
associate who used to go with me to the temple of God, with whom I took sweet
counsel, he like an enemy has handed me over to the wicked(Ps. 55:14).
Some men have spread frivolous rumors about my treasures; others about my
enormous power. Others have talked about my sumptuous table. Does a man live in
the lap of luxury when he is content with meager food and plain clothing; when
he requires no more frugality from the poorest folk than he himself practices?
As for my authority, I wish I could hand it over to them! They measure my power
by the amount of my labor, by the weight of work that wears me down. How much
money I have, my death will show -- if there are any whom I cannot convince
while I am alive. But I admit that I am not "
poor,"
because I desire nothing
beyond my actual needs.
These inventions, although they have no basis in fact, are believed among many
people because the majority think that the only way to cover up their shame is
to mix black with white. They think the best guarantee of impunity and license
would be the end of the authority of the servants of Christ. In addition there
are themockers at feastsof whom David complains in Ps. 35:16: not only
the plate lickers but those who hunt the favor of the powerful with false
denunciations. I have become used to swallowing insults for so long that I am
almost insensitive; yet as their insolence increased I could not help feeling
some bitter pricks.
And as though it were not enough for me to suffer the inhumanity of neighbors,
a throng of evil-driven men from the frozen sea [Germany] stirred up (accenderet) against me a storm I have no words to
describe. I am still speaking of internal enemies of the church, proud
proclaimers of the gospel of Christ, who because I do not accept
their crass explanation of [the Lord's Supper as] devouring the flesh of
Christ, are roused against me more violently than my open enemies. Here also I
can associate myself with David,While I seek peace, they rush to war(Ps. 120:7). Moreover they all show great ingratitude when they attack on the
flank and the rear a man who is laboring in defense of the common cause, and
deserves their support. Certainly, if they possessed the slightest human
sympathy, their great hatred of me would be placated by the fury the papists
pour upon me and the way they attack me.
But this also was David's experience. He deserved well of his people, yet he
was hated by many, as he laments in Ps. 69:4:They hate me without a cause.
. . . I returned what I did not rob.[59]When I was assailed by
the undeserved hatred of those whose duty it was to help me, I received no
small comfort from knowing of the glorious example [set by David].
Now these experiences were a very great help to my understanding of the Psalms,
since, as I read, I was going through well-known territory. And I hope my
readers will realize that when I discuss David's thoughts more intimately than
those of others, I am speaking not as a remote spectator but as one who knows
all about these things from his own experience.
I have striven faithfully to make the value of this treasury [of the Psalms]
available to all the faithful. And even though I have not accomplished what I
had desired, I deserve some thanks for my attempt. All I ask is that each
reader judge my labor justly and honestly by its fruits and the profit he finds
in it. Certainly, as I said, when a man reads my book, he will see that I did
not seek to give pleasure unless I also gave help.
I have kept throughout to a simple method of teaching; and to avoid all
ostentation, I have refrained for the most part from the refutation of others,
which readily provides much opportunity for plausible showing off. I have not
mentioned opinions opposed to mine except where there was danger that my
silence would leave my readers doubtful or perplexed. I realized, of course,
that many would have been more attracted and tickled if I had included a varied
mass of ostentatious and glittering material. But nothing meant more to me than
to consider the upbuilding of the church.
May God who gave me this purpose also guarantee its success. Geneva, August 10, 1557.
[54]Guillaume Farel (1489-1565), was like
Calvin, a Frenchman. He was one of the circle of Reformers who gathered around
Bishop Briconnet at Meaux near Paris. When, after much struggle in which Farel
was active, the Reformed faith was established in Geneva in 1535, he was the
leader of the church and induced Calvin to work with him. He was ousted with
Calvin in 1538, and returned with him in 1541, but he left in 1542, and in 1544
settled in Neuchatel. He remained Calvin's close friend, and died a year after
Calvin in 1565 in Metz.
[55]Pierre Viret (1511-1571), Swiss-born Reformer, helped Farel in
Geneva and stayed in the city when Farel and Calvin were expelled (1538-1541).
Thereafter he worked in Lausanne, his birthplace, and also lectured on the New
Testament in Bern, until he was ousted in 1559 and returned to Geneva. After a
checkered career in France and much controversy with French Catholics, he died
at Orthez (south of Bordeaux) in 1571. He was an extensive and respected writer
as well as an effective preacher. Unfortunately he has not been studied fully
or properly.
[56]Bucer: humaniste
chrétien.
[57]At Worms in 1540 and at Regensburg in
1541, where the Catholics and the Protestants entered into futile discussions
on reunion.
[58]See John T. McNeill,The History and
Character of Calvinism, 1954, ch. II.
[59]
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