Commentary upon the Epistle to the Galatians

Here have ye the true mean of justification,¹ and a perfect example of the assurance of faith set before your eyes. He that can with a firm & constant faith say these words with Paul: I live by Faith in the son of God, who hath loved me, & given him self for me, is happy in deed. And even with these words Paul taketh away the whole righteousness of the law and works, as afterwards we will declare. But we must diligently weigh and consider these words: The son of God hath loved me, and given him self for me. It was not I then that first loved the son of God, and delivered my self for him: as the Sophisters dream, that they love the son of God and deliver themselves for him. For they teach that a man ex puris naturalibus, that is,² of his own pure natural strength, can do meritorious works before grace, & love God & Christ above all things. These fellows prevent the love of God and Christ: for they do that which lieth in them (as they are wont to say) that is, they do not only keep the commandments, but they do also the works of supererogation, & sell the overplus of their merits to laymen, & so (as they imagine) they deliver them selves for Christs sake, whereby they save both themselves & others, turning the words of Paul clean contrary, and saying:³ we have loved Christ and given our selves for him. Thus, whiles the wicked being puffed up with the wisdom of the flesh, imagine that they do what in them lieth, that they love God, and deliver them selves for Christ: what do they else but abolish the gospel, deride, deny and blaspheme Christ, yea spit upon him & tread him under foot? They confess in words that he is a justifier and a Saviour: but in very deed they take from him the power both to justify and save, and give the same to their own will-works, ceremonies, and devotions. This is to live in their own righteousness and works, and not in the faith of the son of God.

Here haue ye the true meane of iustification,¹ and a perfect example of the assuraunce of faith set before your eyes. He that can with a firme & constāt faith say these words with Paule: I liue by Faith in the sonne of God, vvho hath loued me, & geuen him selfe for me, is happie in deede. And euen with these wordes Paule taketh away the whole righteousnes of the lawe and workes, as afterwardes we will declare. But we must diligently wey and consider these wordes: The sonne of God hath loued me, and geuen him selfe for me. It was not I then that first loued the sonne of God, and deliuered my selfe for him: as the Sophisters dreame, that they loue the sonne of God and deliuer thēselues for him. For they teach that a man expuris naturalibus, that is,