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VI Providence

1. PROVIDENCE AND HUMAN ACTION

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. . . . Ps. 23:1-4,6.

God gently draws us to himself by his good gifts to us, giving us a taste of his sweetness as our Father; but nothing is so easy for us as to forget him when we are enjoying peace and comfort. We ought then to attend most carefully to the example set for us by David. David, raised to a king's throne, possessing ample wealth and great honors, testifies in the midst of the pleasures of his court that he remembers God and is mindful of the benefits which God has conferred upon him. He makes of them ladders by which he may climb nearer to God.

By the metaphor of the shepherd, he praises God's care; he means that God's care for those who are his own is like the solicitude of a shepherd for the sheep intrusted to him. In the Bible, God often assumes the title and role of shepherd, which we must recognize as a special sign of his love for us. Such a mode of expression is humble and undemanding and should make a deep impression upon us, since God for our sake is willing to stoop down and, by such a wonderfully gentle and intimate invitation, entice us to him, so that we may rest safely and quietly under his protection.

But it must be noted that God is shepherd only of those who are conscious of their own needs and weakness, and who feel the necessity of his guidance; for it is they who willingly remain in his flock and submit themselves to his leading. David, who excelled in power and possessions, acknowledged freely that he was a sheep, so that he might have God for his shepherd. What then would become of us, whose floundering proves our wretchedness, if we did not remain under the guidance of this same Shepherd?

Moreover, we must not forget that our greatest happiness is to have God's guiding hand stretched out to us, and to live under its shadow, so that his providence may watch over our safety.

He leadeth me beside the still waters. Bystill watersDavid meant waters that flow gently, because swift torrents are not suitable for sheep to drink from, and often they are even dangerous. . . . David here says once again that the Heavenly Shepherd overlooks nothing which might take away from the happiness of those under his care. . . . God in no way fails his faithful ones; he sustains them with his own power, feeds and strengthens them, and keeps them from all harm, so that they journey in comfort on smooth roads.

He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness. This means easy and plain paths. Since he continues with his metaphor, it would be out of place to understand this as referring to the direction of the Holy Spirit. David has said that God supplies him liberally with all he needs for this life; and he now adds that God protects him from all trouble.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. The faithful who dwell safely under God's hand are nevertheless exposed to many perils. Keeping the same metaphor, David compares God's care in guiding the faithful to the shepherd's rod and staff. When a sheep is walking in a dark valley, only the shepherd's presence keeps it safe from the attacks of wild beasts or from other accidents. David was not boasting of his own fearlessness; but was rather saying that he would walk boldly wherever his shepherd led him. And now that God reveals himself to us in the person of his only-begotten Son, as our Shepherd, more brightly than he did of old to the fathers under the law, we do not honor his protection properly unless we keep our eyes fixed upon it and by so doing trample upon all our trepidations.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Whence was this confidence that God's kindness and mercy would be with him forever, if not from the promise by which God confines his benefits to those who believe, lest they be devoured by those whose palates have no taste for such benefits? For when David said earlier that in the shadow of death itself his eyes would be intently fixed on the providence of God, he showed well enough that he did not depend on things external; nor did he judge God's favor by his bodily senses. When all earthly aids failed, his faith remained, because it rested solely on the Word of God.

The last words of the psalm show clearly that David did not confine himself to the pleasures or comforts of this earth, but kept his gaze on heaven as the ultimate end of everything else. He says plainly that for him the culmination of all the good [gifts] from God isto dwell in the house of the Lord.

Blessed is the people whose God is the Lord, and the people whom he hath chosen for his inheritance.

The Lord looketh from heaven, and he seeth all the sons of Adam.

A king is not kept safe by the size of his army, nor will a giant be saved by his great strength.

A horse is a vain thing for safety; neither shall he deliver by his great strength.

Let thy compassion be upon us, O Lord, according as we hope in thee. Ps. 33:12,13,16,17,22. (Calvin's wording.)

. . . It is of little use to talk of the stability of God's purpose if we do not relate it to ourselves. Therefore the prophet declares that those whom God takes under his guardianship are blessed because God's purpose is not hidden from them, for it is seen in action in the safety of the church. And so we understand that it is not those who consider God's power coldly and with indifference, but those who apply it to their own immediate need, that have a right knowledge of God as the Pilot of the world.

Indeed, when the psalmist says, " If the Lord is our God," he points to the Lord as the fountain of divine love toward us, and tells us that we have no happiness except in him. In this way, he includes in one phrase everything we could ask for if we are to live a happy life. God's care for our safety, keeping us warm under his wings, providing for our needs, counting us worthy of his help in time of peril -- all this is grounded in his adoption of us. And in order to keep anyone from thinking that so much good comes from our own prowess and industry, the psalmist specifies that it flows from the fountain of free election which makes us God's people.

Men corrupt this verse senselessly when they transfer to men what the prophet ascribes to God. As if men chose God for their inheritance! I admit that it is by faith that the true God is distinguished from idols; but we must hold fast to the following principle: There would be no communion between him and us if he did not first come to us with his grace.

The Lord looketh from heaven. The psalmist continues the same theme. The conditions of men do not come about by chance. God directs in hidden ways all that takes place. Therefore, the psalmist praises the watchfulness of God so that we may learn to see God's invisible providence with the eyes of faith. For although the evidences of his care are continually before our eyes, the greater part of mankind is blind, and invent a blind chance to match their blindness. The more bountifully and richly God pours out his kindness upon us, the less we turn our minds to him; we keep them instead fixed on what happens to us from the outside.

The prophet castigates the indignity which men offer to God; for no greater wrong can be done to him than to shut him up to stay idly in his heaven. That is like burying him in a grave! For how would God be living if he saw nothing and cared for nothing? Further, by the termroyal throne, the prophet shows how absurd and stupid it would be to divest God of mind and intelligence. For he means that heaven is not a palace for idle pleasures, as the Epicureans imagine, but a king's seat of government from which God exercises his empire in all the realms of the world. But if God has set his seat in the sanctuary of the heavens in order to rule the universe, it follows that he by no means ignores earthly affairs, but controls them with the highest reason and wisdom.

A king is not kept safe, etc. A man's life is safe not by his own power, but by the grace of God. Kings and giants are mentioned because they think they are exempt from the common lot of men and believe themselves beyond the reach of javelin or arrow. If some misfortune occurs, they expect to find an easy escape. Intoxicated with confidence in their own ability, they are hardly able to remember that they are mortal; and their pride is strengthened by the foolish admiration of the crowd who are astounded at their might. But if the resources of a king do not give him security, and a giant does not escape by his strength when danger comes, it is futile for any ordinary man to depend on earthly riches and forget God's providence. For nothing can be more miserably precarious than the position of both the strong and the weak unless they rely on God's protection.

In the next verse, by the use of synecdoche (a part for the whole), the wordhorsemeans every kind of earthly assistance. Of course, kings are not armed with swords for nothing; and horses are not useless; nor are any of the wealth and resources, which God supplies to men to guard their lives, without value when they are rightly used. But the more the majority of men are surrounded with fortifications, the farther they go from God and falsely imagine that their wall is impregnable. God rightly confounds such insanity. So it is that the flood of God's gifts is often without effect; because the world, separating them from their Author, deprives itself of his blessing.

Let thy compassion be upon us.

The psalm closes with a prayer, which the prophet offers in the name of all the faithful, asking that they may know they have not relied on God's goodness in vain. In prescribing this rule of prayer by the mouth of the prophet, the Spirit teaches us that the door of God's favor is opened when we do not seek and hope for safety elsewhere. Meanwhile we draw our sweetest comfort from the certainty that our hope will never crack up while we are still on our way; nor do we need to fear that God will not extend his compassion toward us until the end.

And fear not those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul; but rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna. And yea, I say to you, fear him. Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And not one of them shall fall to the ground without your Father. Matt. 10:28, Luke 12:5, Matt. 10:29. (Calvin's wording.)

Christ is perfectly right when he urges his disciples to despise death, because human beings created for heavenly immortality should treat this mutable and perishing life as so much smoke. The heart of the matter is this: if the believers consider to what end they were born, and what their condition now is, they will have no reason for clinging anxiously to this earthly life. However, these words have a still fuller and richer meaning; for Christ teaches us that the fear of God is dead in people who fear tyrants so much that they fail in their confession, that a brutish stupidity reigns in the hearts of those who fear death so much that they will not even hesitate to give up altogether confessing their faith. . . .

For this reason, Luke repeats emphatically:Yea, I say to you, fear him. We must understand Christ to say that, when we succumb to the fear of man, we show no respect for God; that when, on the contrary, we show proper reverence to God, victory is easy and in our hands, and no human power can pull us away from our duty. Besides, the experience of every age teaches how necessary it is for ministers and for believers in general to be warned about this danger, because there never was a time when men did not rise up in fury against God, and did not set themselves to crush the gospel. Not all men have equal power to put the fear of death into the believers; still, the majority of men are possessed with the ferocity of a Cyclops, which springs forth when opportunity arises. Besides, the devil often gets hold of giants, whose very looks would throw the servants of Christ down lifeless, were they not taught to be hard and immovable by this teaching.

Moreover, since fearing God and not fearing men go together, it is stupid and wrong to pay attention only to the latter point. On the contrary, as we have said before, Christ set a devout and holy fear of God in opposition to a perverse fear of men, which takes us away from the right way, as the only remedy for it. Otherwise, there would have been no point in his saying that, if we fear God who is Lord over soul and body, we ought not to fear men who have power only over the body. When Christ admits that men have the power to kill, he does so only by way of concession. God holds the bridle of the wicked loose; and they, puffed up by confidence in their own power, will dare anything. They strike at shaky souls, and act as though nothing could stop them. But futile is the insolence of the wicked which makes them fancy that they can do as they please with the life of believers. For, all the while, God holds the reins; and when it pleases him, he checks their attack, however fierce and violent. And yet they may be said to have the power to kill by God's permission, because often they are able to go strong and give vent to their fury. . . .

Are not two sparrows, etc. Now Christ goes on to declare, as I have already hinted, that no matter how mad the tyrants may be, they have no power even over the body. Therefore, those who fear the cruelty of men, as though they were without God's protection, are fools. In the midst of perils, we have this second comfort that, since God is the keeper of our lives, we may safely rely upon his providence. It is really an insult to God, not to place our lives at the disposal of him who has honored us with his protection. Christ extends the providence of God to all creatures in common, and so argues by way of synecdoche (from the whole to the part), that God exercises a particular care over us. There is nothing cheaper than a sparrow (two were sold for a penny; or as Luke has it, five for two pennies), and yet God's eye is upon it, and nothing happens to it by chance. Will he then who looks after sparrows neglect to watch over the lives of men?

Moreover, we must notice two things. Christ defines the providence of God very differently from those who, not unlike the philosophers, admit that somehow the world is under divine government, and yet imagine the workings of providence in a confused way, as though God paid no attention to individual creatures. Christ, on the other hand, declares that every single one of God's creatures is under his hand and care, and that nothing happens by chance. In this way, he firmly opposes the will of God to chance, without however affirming the fatalism of the Stoics. It is one thing to find necessity in a context of a chain of many causes; it is quite another to see the world, as a whole and in its individual parts, as subject to the will of God. I confess there is a certain operation of chance in the nature of things considered in themselves; but I say that nothing occurs merely by the wheels of blind fortune, because the will of God reigns over all that happens.

In the second place, we must not look at God's providence after the manner of curious and silly people. It must be to us the ground of our strength, and an invitation to call upon God. When Christ tells us that even the hairs of our heads are numbered, he does it not to arouse us to empty speculation, but to teach us to rest in God's Fatherly care, which he exercises in behalf of these frail bodies of ours.

Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands crucified and slain.Acts 2:23.

The chief purpose of Peter in mentioning the death of Christ is to establish faith in the resurrection all the more fully. It was well known among the Jews that Jesus had been nailed to a cross. Therefore, that he rose again would have been a token and evidence of the wonderful power of God. Meanwhile, in order to prick their consciences with a sense of sin, he says that it was they who killed Jesus, not that they had crucified him with their own hands, but that his death had been requested by the people with one voice. Although many of those who heard Peter had had no direct part in that godless and cruel wickedness, he was right in blaming them for it, because all of them had defiled themselves either by silence or by unconcern. There was no place for any pretense of ignorance, because God had already set Jesus before them. Peter thus prepares them for repentance by convicting them of sin.

By the determinate counsel. Here he meets a scandal which arises because it seems absurd at first sight, that this man whom God had adorned with such powers should have afterwards been subjected to every kind of insult and allowed to suffer an ignominious death. Because the cross of Christ is at first so disturbing to us, Peter declares that it did not occur by chance, or because Jesus had no power to set himself free, but because it had been ordained by God. For, only the knowledge that the death of Christ was ordained by the eternal purpose of God cut off in advance all occasion for foolish and depraved cogitations, and prevented people's minds from taking offense at it. One thing is certain: that God makes no rash or vain decision. Whence it follows that he had a just reason for willing that Christ should have suffered. Such knowledge of God's providence enables us to take the right step toward understanding the purpose and benefit of Christ's death. For, the counsel of God confronts us with the truth that the Righteous One was delivered to death for our sins, and his blood was our ransom from death.

This then is a notable statement of the providence of God, teaching us that our life as well as our death is governed by it. Luke is indeed speaking about Christ; but in him we have a mirror of the universal providence of God which extends to the whole world, and shines especially upon us who are members of Christ.

In this place, Luke sets forth two things: God's foreknowledge and his sure decree. Although first in order comes foreknowledge (since God contemplates what he will ordain before he ordains it), Luke puts it after God's counsel or decree, to teach us that God neither wills nor decrees anything without having long before directed it to its proper end. People often make rash decisions because they decide quickly. Therefore, when Peter wants to point out that God's counsel is not without reason, he couples it with his foreknowledge. Now, we need to distinguish between these two with some discernment, because many have fallen down at this point. Passing by the counsel of God with which he directs the whole world, these people grab at his mere foreknowledge. Hence arises the common distinction according to which, even while God foresees everything, he lays no constraint upon his creatures. Of course, it is true that God foresees this or that which is in the future. But Peter teaches us that what befell Jesus was not only foreseen by God, but also decreed by him. From this we learn a general truth about God's providence, one that appears in the government of the world as a whole, no less than in the death of Jesus: it belongs to God, not only to know the future, but also to ordain by his will whatever he wants to be done. Peter made this second point when he said that Jesus was delivered by the sure and determinate counsel of God. Wherefore, the foreknowledge of God is other than the will of God by which he rules and regulates all things.

Some whose discernment is sharper admit that God not only foresees but also regulates with a nod everything that is done in this world. At the same time, however, they imagine a vague direction, as though God lets go of the bridle and allows his creatures to follow the rule of their own natures. They say that the sun rules by God's will, because in giving us light it does the duty enjoined on it by God in the beginning. They think that a free will of this kind is left to men, because their nature is capable of a free choice between good and evil. But those who think in this manner imagine that God is sitting idly in heaven. The Scriptures speak very differently, and defend God's control over particular events and over the several actions of men. But we must consider the purpose of Scripture in teaching us this doctrine; and we must at the same time shun all the mad speculations with which we see people carried away. The intention of Scripture is to exercise our faith, that we may know we are protected by God's hand, and that we may not be subject to harm from Satan and wicked men. . . .

By the hands of the wicked. Peter seems to suggest that the wicked did God's will. From this follows one or the other of two absurdities: either that God does evil, or that whatever wickedness men may perpetrate, they do not sin. As to the second statement, I answer that even though the wicked carry out what God himself has ordained, obeying God is the last thing they do. For obedience comes from a willing disposition, and we know that the purpose of the wicked is inspired by something far different. Besides, nobody but one who knows God's will obeys him. Obedience depends upon a knowledge of the will of God. But God has revealed his will to us in the law. Therefore, they only obey God whose deeds fulfill the demands of the rule of the law, who, therefore, submit themselves willingly to its authority. But we see none of this in the wicked, whom God drives hither and thither without their knowing it. Therefore, let no man say that they are to be excused because they obey God. We must seek the will of God in his law; but the wicked seek to resist God with everything in them.

I deny the other statement, that God does evil, because it suggests that God is disposed to wickedness. We must judge wickedness in the light of the purpose which governs a man's action. People who perpetrate theft or murder sin in that they are thieves and murderers; for they do these things with a wicked purpose. God, who makes use of men's wickedness, must not be put in the same class with them; he must be seen in a far different light; because when he sets out to punish one man, and to exercise another in patience, he never deviates from his nature, which is perfect rectitude. Thus, when Christ was delivered by the hands of wicked men, and crucified, it was done by the consent and decree of God. But the treachery in the matter, which as such is evil, and the murder in it which was a great wickedness, must not be attributed to God.

And the Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do, seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? Gen. 18:17-18.

When God proposes something as though it were doubtful, he does so out of kindness to men; for he had already decided what he would do. Here he intended to make Abraham pay close attention to the reasons he gives for the destruction of Sodom.

God gives two reasons for wanting to reveal his purpose before it was fulfilled: first, because Abraham was worthy of the privilege of the superior honor; second, because it would be useful and fruitful in the education of posterity. This in brief is the scope and value of this revelation.

One reason, as I said, why God wished his servant to know beforehand of his terrible vengeance upon Sodom was to honor him with special gifts. God has always shown this same kindness to the faithful; and he even increases it, heaping new and fresh blessings upon the earlier ones; and so it is that he deals daily with us. What ground is there for the innumerable favors he constantly bestows upon us except that he cannot refrain from expressing his Fatherly love with which he has enfolded us; and in doing this, he honors himself and his own gifts in us? For what except his own free gifts does he reward with his kindness? The origin of his kindness was in himself, not in Abraham's merits; nor does the blessing of Abraham flow from any other fountain except God.

Moreover, we learn from this passage, what experience also teaches, that it is the special privilege of the church to know the meaning of the judgments of God and their direction and purpose. God does indeed prove himself a just judge of the world by inflicting punishment on evil men. But because all things seem to happen by accident, God enlightens his sons by his Word, so that they may not walk blindly like unbelievers. So, in the past, when he stretched out his hand to smite all the world, he confined his holy oracle to Judea; that is, when he was ready to bring distresses and misfortunes upon the nations, he declared himself as their author by his prophets and to his chosen people alone. . . . Let us then be mindful that God, having begun to be good toward us, continues unwearied until, having blessed us in every way, he completes our salvation. Having once adopted us and enlightened our minds by his Word, he keeps the torch of the Word blazing before our eyes, that we may in faith keep our minds upon the judgment and punishment of evil which the impious confidently ignore.

Therefore the faithful ought to be well informed on the known history of all times, to be able to judge according to the Scripture the various calamities which befall the wicked, privately and in public. While Sodom was unharmed and enjoying its pleasant luxuries, the Lord announced to his servant Abraham that it would soon perish. There was then no doubt that it perished not by chance but by the act of God. . . . We must accept the same conclusion in other cases; for although God does not foretell the future to us, he wishes us to be eyewitnesses of his acts and to propound their causes wisely. We are not to be deceived by false vision like the unbelievers, who " seeing, see not" and turn their backs to their true goal.

O Assyrian, the rod of my anger, and the staff in their hand is my indignation. Isa. 10:5.

What follows is intended so to announce the coming punishment as to mitigate the sorrow of the faithful with some word of comfort. Therefore greater emphasis is given to the doctrine that whatever the evils perpetrated by the Assyrians, they will be a temporary discipline from God, and that when the unbelievers overdo their insolence, they will finally be put in their places.

Hoiis sometimes an exclamation of pain, sometimes a call for attention; and sometimes it has the sense " woe to," as the ancient interpreters translated it here. But in this passage it can only mean either that the Lord is calling the Assyrians, or that he is assuming the role of a mourner because he has to punish his people at the hand of the Assyrians. But when I look more closely at the whole passage, I prefer the interpretation that God is calling the Assyrians as though they were armed for battle by his own command. The prophet had already proclaimed that the Assyrians would be upon them; but hypocrites feel so secure that the fear of God never troubles them, before they can see his scourge or until they actually feel its blows. This is why God now summons the Assyrians with " Come," just as a judge calls an officer and orders him to bind a criminal, or commands the executioner to put him to death. So the Lord calls the Assyrians to inflict punishment by their hand.

And the staff. This can refer to the Assyrians, and the clause can be understood as a repetition of the preceding in slightly different words. But I find here a difference in meaning. First, the Assyrians are called " the rod of God's wrath" ; second, the swords and weapons with which they are equipped are equated with the anger of God, as though the prophet had said, " God according to his will is using the Assyrian instead of ax or sword as executor of his wrath," and then had added, " Although they may wear swords, what you should fear is [not their weapons but] God's anger against his people." The point is that whatever strength the enemy may have comes from God's anger, and that the enemy would not move a finger unless God roused him by a hidden prodding against the nation He intended to destroy. God callsthe staffwhich they hold in their hand his " anger" to make it clear to the Jews that the apparently blind attacks of their enemies are directed by heavenly providence.

I disagree with some interpreters who would turnbeyadam(in their hand) to " in their place" or " in their land." That is too forced. The point is that God calls the Assyrians as the servants of his wrath, for by their hand he will exact due penalty for the crimes of his people. Therefore, he declares that his anger is all the might they possess.

This teaching has two purposes: first, to terrify the wicked by letting them know that God's threats to destroy them are not empty words, and to show them the reason they are to be punished. These words, therefore, had much more force to rouse from their indifference the wicked who had laughed at all the former threatenings of the prophets.

Secondly, this teaching had also no small value when the Assyrians began to harass the people. For then, in the midst of the disaster, the Jews could see that it was not purposeless, nor happening by accident, for it had been predicted by the prophets.

Someone will object, Why did God when He had first said that the Assyrians were the rod of his anger, afterwards calltheir staffhisindignation? But we must put it, " The Assyrian is my anger, and the staff which he carries is the staff of my indignation." But so long as we understand what the prophet means, we should not stop anxiously over words. He calls men " the rod of God's anger" because God uses them like a rod; he calls the weapons of men God's " indignation," because they are not directed by men's own will but are the evidence of God's anger.

These words of the prophet are most pertinent today, because they forbid us to think that the wicked burst forth unrestrained wherever their lust drives them; for they are guided and checked by a bridle, so that they will accomplish nothing against God's will. Hence we must conclude that God acts by the hand of the wicked. But here we must think and speak soberly, for there is need to distinguish wisely and carefully between the work of God and the work of men.

There are three ways in which God acts through men. First, all are moved and exist through him; from which it follows that all human actions proceed from his goodness. Second, he acts in a special way when he moves the wicked as seems good to him. Although nothing is further from their thoughts, he uses their work so that they mutually destroy one another and perish, or so that he may discipline his own people by their hand. This last is the prophet's point in this place. Third, God guides men by his sanctifying Spirit; but this way belongs only to the elect.

So whether tyrants, or robbers, or any others injure us; or when foreign nations rise up against us, always, among turbulent and confused commotions, the hand of God sheds his light upon us, to keep us from imagining that anything happens by chance.

Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart. . . . Joel 2:12.

After announcing the terrible judgment, the prophet shows that his purpose was not simply to inspire terror, but rather to bring the people back to their right minds. But this he could not do unless he gave them the hope of forgiveness. I have said many times -- and indeed the whole Bible proves it -- that men cannot be brought back to the right way unless they receive the hope of God's compassion. For despair makes men more obstinate and doubles their wickedness, rather multiplies it a hundredfold.

For when a man who has done wrong despairs, he hurls himself wholly into the gulf of wickedness without any restraint whatever. Therefore the prophet now describes the kindness and compassion of God in order gently to lead the people to apply themselves to repentance.

So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God. . . . Gen. 45:8.

This is an especially significant passage, for it teaches us that the true course of events is never disturbed by the wickedness and malice of men; that, on the contrary, God directs men's confused and turbulent movements to a good end. Also it shows us how we ought to think of God's providence and how we are to profit from it. When curious men debate over it, they not only muddle and pervert everything by ignoring its purpose, but also concoct whatever absurdities they can to insult God's justice. Their effrontery even makes some pious and modest men wish they could bury this part of our doctrine. For as soon as it is proclaimed that God holds the government of the whole world and that nothing is done without his assent and command, those who feel too little reverence for the mysteries of God burst out with various questions which are not only frivolous, but also pernicious.

However, in our desire to stop such profane intemperance, we should be very careful not to be satisfied with a crass ignorance of truths which are not only revealed by the Word of God but are also very useful for us to know. Good men are ashamed to confess that nothing which men undertake is accomplished unless God wills it, for fear unbridled tongues will clamor either that God is the author of sin, or that no blame is incurred by impious men since they are only following God's purpose. Although there is no way of refuting this sacrilegious madness, we should be content to detest it, and meanwhile hold firmly to the clear witness of Scripture, whatever men may invent. Amid all the shoutings of men, God directs men's plans and efforts from heaven, and finally accomplishes by their hands what he himself has decreed.

Good men who fear to expose the justice of God to the slanders of the impious take refuge in the distinction that Godwillssome things to be done and onlypermitsothers. As if, without his will, any freedom of action would be possible for men! If he had merelypermittedJoseph to be carried to Egypt, he would not have ordained him as the instrument for saving the lives of his father Jacob and his sons; and this is what is said here explicitly. A statement like our text would be meaningless if evil things which God afterwards turns to a good end were done only by his permission, and not by his intention and will.

I know that on men's side there are evil deeds which are done out of sheer perversity. Moreover, since the doers are inherently sinful, they must be accounted wholly guilty. But God works through them in a wonderful way, so that he produces pure justice out of impure corruption. How he acts is hidden and too high for us. And it is not strange that lusting flesh rebels against it. But for this very reason we ought to avoid attempting to restrict heaven's great height to our narrow vision. Therefore let it be a fixed point that even while men's passion runs high and rushes uncontrollably hither and thither, God remains supreme over all and by his hidden bridle directs their motions wherever it seems to him good.

At the same time we must also hold that God's action is distinct from man's, so that his providence is free from all iniquity, and his decrees have no affinity with the wrongdoings of men. A most beautiful illustration of this truth is presented to our eyes in this story. Joseph was sold by his brothers for no other reason than that they wanted him somehow destroyed and out of the way. The same act is ascribed to God, but with the very different purpose of providing the house of Jacob with food in time of famine and beyond their every hope. . . . Hence it is clear that, although God at first seems to act as do wicked men, in the end their crime is a far cry from his wonderful justice. . . .

But we also see that men are no less criminal because God, contrary to their expectations, transforms the end they seek in their wickedness to a good and happy outcome. . . . Certainly we must hold that men's deeds must be valued not by their issue, but by whether they failed to do their duty, or acted contrary to God's command, or went beyond the limits of their vocation. When a man neglects his wife and children, and does not labor to provide for their necessities, even though they do not die unless God so wills, this in no way excuses the brutality of the husband and father who deserts them when he ought to be their helper. Therefore people with a bad conscience gain nothing by pushing forward the providence of God as a screen for their misdeeds.

But I ask you to note again, How often God resists the malice of those who desire to harm us, not only resists but also turns their evil efforts to our good! Thus he mitigates the afflictions of our flesh and gives us a calm spirit and greater peace.

And he said: Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren. Gen. 9:25.

It is strange that Noah curses his grandson and passes over in silence Ham who committed the crime. The Jews give God's favor as the reason and say that God had so greatly honored Ham that the curse was shifted to his son. But that is a foolish conjecture. I am sure that the punishment was transferred to posterity to make its severity all the more obvious; for God was giving clear testimony that he did not consider the punishment of one man alone to be sufficient, and that therefore the curse had to include his descendants and continue in force through the ages. Meanwhile Ham himself was certainly not exempted; God made his judgment heavier by including his son with him.

Now another question arises. Why did God single out from among Ham's many sons one man in particular for the blow? But here we must not allow too much range to our curiosity. We should keep in mind, it is not without reason that the judgments of God are called an unfathomable abyss. It is not fitting that God, before whose tribunal we must all finally stand, be subjected to our judgment -- or rather to our foolish temerity. God chooses as he pleases some, to make them examples of his grace and long-suffering; he destines others for a different purpose, to be proofs of his anger and severity. Here human minds are blind; yet each one of us, knowing his own failure, should learn to praise God's justice rather than hurl himself by insane audacity into the deep abyss.

The curse of God included the whole seed of Ham. But he singled out the Canaanites by name as cursed above all others. We know that this judgment was from God, for it was afterwards validated by the event. Noah was a man and did not know what was to happen to the Canaanites; but in such obscure and hidden matters he spoke as the Spirit directed his tongue.

There is still another difficulty. The Scripture teaches that the sins of men are punished to the third and fourth generation; and yet [our text] seems to depict the punishment of God's wrath as reaching to ten generations. I answer: Scripture does not prescribe a rule which God himself may not transgress, as though he were bound not to punish beyond four generations. We must see grace and punishment as combined and so understand that, while God justly punishes our crimes, he is still more inclined to mercy. Meanwhile, let us admit that he is free to extend punishment as far as it seems good to him.

Servant of servants. This Hebrew phrase means that Canaan will be the lowest among slaves, or that his situation will be worse than common slavery. But does not the lightning bolt of this stern and terrible prophecy seem a harmless joke, since the Canaanites were [at the time it was written] outstanding, in power, riches, and resources? Where then was their slavery? I answer: First, God's threats need not be fulfilled immediately; but they are never empty or ineffective; second, God's judgments are not always visible to our eyes or recognizable by our physical senses. The Canaanites threw off the yoke of slavery which was divinely imposed upon them and even grasped an empire for themselves. But although they had their time of arrogance, they were never in God's sight free.

In the same way, when the faithful are unjustly oppressed and tyrannically harassed by the wicked, their spiritual liberty before God is not destroyed. God promised to his servant Abraham dominion over the land of Canaan, and condemned the Canaanites to destruction. We must be satisfied with this as proof of God's justice.

One more point. The pope asserts that he utters prophecies. Well, so did Caiaphas. I do not wish to appear to deny all his claims; and I freely admit that the title[89]with which he adorns himself was dictated by the Holy Spirit. May he like Canaan becomeservant of servants.

And he said, What hast thou done? The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. Gen. 4:10.

God shows, first, that he knows men's deeds even when no one complains or accuses; seconds that human life is too precious to him for him not to punish the shedding of blood; third, that he takes the faithful under his care not only when they are alive but also after they die.

Earthly judges for the most part doze unless an accuser appeals to them. But even when the wounded are silent, their very injuries cry out to God to pronounce the penalty. It is a wonderfully sweet comfort to good men who are harassed unjustly to hear that the evils they endure silently go before God of their own accord and demand vengeance. Abel was silent when his throat was cut (perhaps he was killed some other way), but after his death the voice of his blood was more eloquent than the plea of any orator. Thus, men may stifle or silence [the cry of the innocent]; but they cannot prevent God from judging a cause which the world considers buried. This consolation richly nourishes our endurance. When we learn that nothing of our right is lost, we bear our injuries with moderation and steady minds. The soul's calm silence raises an effective cry which fills heaven and earth.

Nor does the teaching of this verse apply to this life alone. We not only know ourselves safe under God's protection amid the innumerable dangers with which we are surrounded, but are also lifted up to the hope of a better life. It clearly follows that those who live under God's protection are safe after they die.

The people therefore that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him. John 12:29.

It was truly monstrous that the multitude was so stupid as to remain unmoved by so open a miracle. Some were so hard of hearing that what God so distinctly uttered they took for a confused sound. Others who were less dull made little of the majesty of the Voice of God, and said it was merely an angel who spoke. But men do the same today. God speaks plainly enough in the gospel, and there reveals such power and energy of the Spirit as ought to shake the heaven and the earth. But for many its doctrine is lifeless as though it were from mortal men; to others the Word of God is confused and barbarous, no different from thunder.

But the question arises, Did that voice sounding from heaven come in vain or without benefit to anyone? I answer that what the Evangelist says of the whole crowd was true only of a part. There were others besides the apostles who had a clearer insight of the matter. The Evangelist wanted to point out briefly what is common in this world: namely, that most people hear but do not understand when God speaks with a clear and loud voice.

[89]The title of the pope, " Pius Episcopus, servus servorum Dei," has been used since the time of Gregory the Great, in the sixth century. It is the regular heading of papal bulls at the present time.

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