A17698:4456
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 Moses addeth immediately, That GOD loveth the people▪ and that the Saints are in his hand. True it is that here is some change. For, word for word it is said, Yet notwithstanding God loveth the People ▪ Or, The true God loveth the people. For the word which Moses useth, importeth both. His Saints are in thy hands. Here he altereth the person. For when as he saith, his Saints; no doubt but he referreth it unto God. Therefore he should say, Are in his hand. But this manner of speaking is rife enough in the scripture, so as we ought not to think it strange. The meaning of Moses then is easy enough, namely that albeit God love all people, yet that his Saints are in his charge or protection, yea even those whom he hath chosen. Unless a man will refer these words, the People, to the twelve tribes: but that were hard and constrained. Moses then doeth here compare all men and all the Nations of the earth with the linage of Abraham which God had chosen: as if he should say, that Gods grace is spread out every where, as we our selves see, and as the scripture also witnesseth in other places. And not only men are partakers of this goodness of God, and are fed and maintained by his liberality: but he doeth also show himself bountiful even to the brute beasts. Even thither doeth his mercy extend according to this saying of the Psalm,1 Who maketh the fields and mountains to bring forth grass for the feeding of Cattle, but God who hath a care of them? Seeing then that GOD vouchsafeth to have so merciful regard of the beasts which he hath created, as to give them food; it is much more to be thought that he will be a foster father to men, whom he hath made and shaped after his own image, which ⟨p. 1189⟩approach nearer unto him, and which have a thing far excelling above all other creatures. God then doth love all people. Yea, but yet not in comparison of his Church. And why? For all the children of Adam are enemies unto God by reason of the corruption that is in them. True it is that God loveth them as his creatures: but yet he must needs hate them, because they be perverted and given to all evil. And that is the cause why the scripture telleth us that God repented §10him that ever he made man,