A17698:2339
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.
Now afterward here followeth the thing that was treated of yesterday,1 namely the eating of the paschal lamb with their staves in their hands, their shoes on their feet, & their loins girded up. For we cannot have the company of Jesus christ unless we be as wayfarers in this world,2 to go on forward to seek our inheritance elsewhere. And S. Paul in the Epistle to the Colossians saith plainly that our life is hidden with Christ, and that we must be as dead men, if we will be united to the son of God. And why? For he is in heaven, & therefore it followeth that our life ought not to be tied here to the earth. What is to be done then? If we will have Jesus Christ to avow us to be members of his body, & to quicken us by his spirit: we must get us out of this world; not that we should not dwell in it, but that we should not be wedded to it. For these two things agree very well, that gods children should be conversant in this earthly life, & yet nevertheless be heirs & citizens of the kingdom of heaven, accordingly as the Apostle saith to the Hebrews,3 that God can well find in his hart to take us for his children, if we be not tied to this world, but pass on beyond it. Wherefore let us mark, that to have fellowship with our lord Jesus christ, we must depart out of this world: that is to say, our earthly affections must not reign in us, we must not be mortised here, we must not be snarled here: but we must consider that seeing God hath set us here to make a journey, yea & short journey, every of us ought to hie himself a pace, & to look well to the ridding of our selves of the things that may hinder us from attaining to the heavenly life. And we must understand that if we do so, Jesus Christ will come unto us & reach us his hand to strengthen us, that we may be able to overcome all impediments. For it were impossible that ever we should compass the matter, unless we were aided from above. So then, we see now that a man cannot be partaker of the Paschal Lamb, except he have his loins girded and his ⟨p. 605⟩staff in his hand, that is to say, unless he be like a wayfarer and that he stay not in this world.