Sermons of M. John Calvin upon the Epistle of Saint Paul to the GalatiansSermons of M. Iohn Caluine vpon the Epistle of Saincte Paule to the Galathians

O Ye unwise Galatians, who hath bewitched you that ye should not obey the truth, unto whom Jesus Christ hath heretofore bin portrayed out before your eyes, and crucified among you? 2 I would know but this one thing of you, received you the spirit by the works of the Law, or by the preaching of faith? 3 Are ye so unwise, that when ye have begun in the spirit, ye vvill now end in the flesh?

O Yee vnwize Galathians, vvho hath bevvitched you that yee should not obey the truth, vnto vvhom Iesus Christe hath heretofore bin pottrayed out before your eyes, and crucified among you? 2 I vvould knovv but this one thing of you, receyued you the spirit by the vvorkes of the Lavve, or by the preaching of fayth? 3 Are yee so vnvvize, that vvhen ye haue begon in the spirit, yee vvill novv end in the flesh?

We see how God goeth about to win us by gentleness and fair means, till our naughtiness and stubbornness enforce him to deal roughly with us, because we suffer not our selves too be handled so gently by his hand. For throughout the whole doctrine of the Gospel, God doth as it were stretch out his arms to bring us in unto him and to receive us in his fatherly love: or rather (as he likeneth himself by Moses) he is as a Hen that spreadeth out her wings too gather her young chickens under them.¹ Ye see then that God of his infinite goodness allureth us to him,² but we be like wild beasts, that will not suffer themselves to be guided by him. And therefore in respect of such our frowardness, he had need to use roughness, and to show us our unthankfulness, too the end we may learn to be ashamed of it. And that is the cause why S. Paul having showed that all our welfare lieth in Jesus Christ, and that if we will be partakers of his righteousness and of the benefits that he is willing too impart unto us, we must utterly renounce ourselves, and acknowledge that there is nothing but sin and corruption in us: doth now sharply rebuke such as would mingle their own devotions with the grace that is offered them in our Lord Jesus Christ: for they had bin instructed faithfully before. If S. Paul had begun in some place where men had never heard one word of the Gospel afore, he would not have used such roughness: for he would have pitied the blind and ignorant wretches. But forasmuch as the Galatians had bin taught faithfully by him, and he had taken pains to train them too the Gospel accordingly, and they thereupon had shrunk back and suffered themselves too be turmoiled with false opinions: therefore is he so rough with them, according also as he himself showeth, that the reason thereof was, for that Jesus Christ had bin crucified among them, and that they having seen the treasures of Gods infinite goodness laid forth after that manner before them, had none excuse to return again to their pelting trash, in hope to be justified and too purchase salvation by the Ceremonies of the Law. Thus ye see in effect that the thing which we have to gather upon this text, is that if we desire too find a pleasant taste in Gods