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

For it is impossible ⟨image 226⟩that we should take any thing in good part at his hand, when we shall have conceived any such opinion or fancy of him. I see a man that speaks as an Angel: now if I surmise that he hates me, and seeks too byte me, or that he goes about too discover my shame, surely I shall not take any profit by hearing of him. But this cannot excuse us: for it is a lewd fault: and although it were true that a man hated us, and that he rebuked us upon malice and spite: yet ought we too learn too be conformable. The very Heathen men could well enough say, that our foes did us sometimes more good than our friends. For why, they that love one another will wink at many things, and overpass all without thinking amiss. But their enemies keep watch to take advantage of them whom they mislike,¹ and when they spy any fault, they miss not to blaze it abroad, as saith Solomon: yea and sometimes when they would fain fall out with a man, they gird at him under pretence of giving him warning. Nevertheless when our enemies do so, surely God giveth us a mean too bring us back again: for the Devil may now and then serve the turn of a Physician towards us, according as we have seen how Saint Paul sayeth that he was buffeted by the same Messenger, that is too wit,² of Satan, which thing was done to beat down all pride in him. Therefore when our enemies come too sift us after that fashion, and seek nothing else but too find faults with us: God doth by that means waken us, because we were asleep before in our own flatteries: and if we were wise and well advised, surely our enemies should oftentimes do us more good than our friends, as I said afore, and as the Heathen men knew well enough. And it is a great shame for us, that the blind wretches which were plunged in darkness, should see more clearly than we that have the light of salvation, and that we should not know the thing which those silly deceived souls perceived. And yet notwithstanding it is as (ye would say) a piece of our nature, and men make an ordinary rule of it, that if they have once taken any lewd conceit that a man hateth them, they be so eager and forepossessed with it, that they cannot abide too receive any correction at his hand.

For it is impossible ⟨image 226⟩