A17698:1835
Sermons upon Deuteronomy
The sermons of M. John Calvin upon the fifth book of Moses called Deuteronomy faithfully gathered word for word as he preached them in open pulpit; together with a preface of the ministers of the Church of Geneva, and an admonishment made by the deacons there. Also there are annexed two profitable tables, the one containing the chief matters; the other the places of Scripture herein alleged. Translated out of French by Arthur Golding.The sermons of M. Iohn Caluin vpon the fifth booke of Moses called Deuteronomie faithfully gathered word for word as he preached them in open pulpet; together with a preface of the ministers of the Church of Geneua, and an admonishment made by the deacons there. Also there are annexed two profitable tables, the one containing the chiefe matters; the other the places of Scripture herein alledged. Translated out of French by Arthur Golding.
London: printed by Henry Middleton for George Bishop, 1583
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
When as Moses saith here, that men must beware that they overshoot not themselves: thereby he doth us to understand, how §30frail we be, & how inclined unto evil, if we be not diligently restrained by the fear of God, & by continual minding of the doctrine whereby he guideth and governeth us. To our seeming it had bin enough to have said; Keep the commandments of your God. Ye see what he requireth of you: sith ye know his will, hold your selves to it. But forasmuch as men are unconstant, & a small thing or nothing will make them start out of the right way:§40 he addeth yet further this warning, that they should beware; As if he should say; Sirs, keep good watch. Why so? For we shall be surprised by and by, if we watch not to withstand Satan's temptations & wiles. Specially when the case concerneth the serving of God, we be straightways turned aside, and we need none other body to tempt us, for every man shall find continually some seed of superstition in his own heart, and the mind of man is a warehouse of Idolatry, so §50as even without schooling, every of us will forge idols, & overthrow the service of God. For the devil sleeps not,1 ne ceaseth to entangle us in many fond & wicked fancies. Hereby therefore we may judge how needful this warning is for us, where we be willed to be watchful. Yea and we know the frailty of our mind to be such, that if we be not well fenced to withstand Satan's temptations constantly, he will soon have turned us out of the way of salvation, & from the pure doctrine of God.§60 And therefore let us understand at a word, that we have need to stand continually upon our guard, as long as we live in this mortal life. For why? On the one side the devil tempteth us, & hath an infinite number of wiles to wind about us every minute of an hour: & although his temptations were not so great as they be; yet are we so weak of our selves, that every thing of nothing is able to overthrow us. Sith it is so with us, let us watch, specially seeing that the spirit of God warneth us so to do. But what? It is well seen how we be taken unawares & unprovided, and God punisheth our negligence in falling so asleep, as though we were at peace & rest here. Nay our life must be kept occupied here as though there were continual war, & the devil faileth not to put us to infinite assaults & skirmishes on all sides.