The Institution of Christian Religion

The only thing they ascribe unto it, to command things that are right, & to forbid wicked doings: to promise reward to the followers of righteousness, & to threaten punishment to the transgressors: but in the mean time neither to change nor amend the perverseness of heart, y• is naturally in ⟨image 158⟩all men.

The onely thing they ascribe vnto it, to commaunde thinges that are right, & to forbidde wicked doynges: to promyse reward to the folowers of righteousnesse, & to threaten punishmente to the transgressors: but in the meane time neither to change nor amende ye peruersenesse of heart, y• is naturally in ⟨image 158⟩all men.

Now let us expound the Apostles comparison, one piece after an other. The old testament is literal, because it was published without the effectual working of the spirit: The new is spiritual, which the Lord hath spiritually graven in the hearts of men. Therefore the second diversity is as it were a declaration of the first. The old is deadly, because it can do nothing but wrap all mankind within the curse. The new is the instrument of life, because it delivereth from curse, and restoreth into favour with God. The old is the ministry of damnation, because it condemneth all Adams children of unrighteousness. The new is the ministry of righteousness, because it reve•eth the mercy of God, by which we are made righteous. The last diversity is to be referred to the ceremonies. Because the old testament had an image of things absent, it behoved that it should in time de•aye and vanish away: but the Gospel, because it giveth the true body in deed, keepeth still a firm and perpetual steadfastness. Jeremiah in deed calleth even the moral laws, a weak and frail covenant: but that is for an other reason, because by the sudden falling away of the unthankful people, it was by and by broken, but forasmuch as such breaking of it was the fault of the people, it can not properly be laid upon the testament. But the ceremonies, forasmuch as by their own weakness were dissolved by the coming of Christ, had the cause of their weakness within them selves. Now, that difference of the letter and spirit is not so to be taken, as though the Lord had given his laws to the Jews without any fruit at all, having none of them converted unto him: But it is spoken by way of comparison, to advance the abundance of grace, wherewith the same lawmaker as it were putting on a new personage, did honourably set forth the preaching of the Gospel. For if we reckon up the multitude of these whom the Lord out of all peoples hath by the preaching of the Gospel regenerate with his spirit, and gathered into the communion of his Church, we shall say, that there were very few, or in a manner none in the old time in Israel, that with affection of mind and entirely from their heart embraced the covenant of the Lord: who yet were very many, if they be reckoned in their own number without comparison.