Two and twenty sermons of Master John Calvin In which sermons is most religiously…Two and twentie sermons of Maister Iohn Caluin In which sermons is most religiously…

The first eight Verses upon

The first eight Verses vpon

ALEPH. 1 Blessed are all those which are upright in the way: and walk in the law of the lord. 2 Blessed are they which keep his Testimonies: and seek him with their whole heart. 3 Surely they work no iniquity: that walk in his ways. 4 Thou hast commanded to keep thy Precepts diligently. 5 O that my ways were directed too keep thy Statutes. 6 Then should not I be confounded: when I have respect unto all thy Commandments. 7 I will praise thee with an upright heart: when I shall learnt the judgements of thy righteousness. 8 I will keep thy Ceremonies: ô forsake me not overlong.

ALEPH. 1 Blessed are al those which are vpright in the way: and walke in the lawe of the lorde. 2 Blessed are they which keepe his Testimonyes: and seeke him with their whole heart. 3 Surely they worke no iniquitie: that walke in his wayes. 4 Thou hast commaunded to keepe thy Preceptes diligently. 5 O that my wayes were directed too keepe thy Statutes. 6 Then should not I be confounded: when I haue respect vnto all thy Commaundements. 7 I will prayse thee with an vpright heart: when I shall learnt the iudgements of thy righteousnes. 8 I will keepe thy Ceremonies: ô forsake mee not ouerlonge.

Beloved, we ought to be greatly ashamed of our selves, when as our good God and heavenly Father, goeth about by all means possible too draw us unto him, and yet we in no wise will come nigh him, but rather as is commonly said, do pull our heads out of the collar and hale backward. If there were none other testimony hereof against us, but this ⟨image 6⟩Psalm which I am here now in hand about to handle, it might suffice. The sum whereof is this, to show unto us what grace the Lord our God offereth unto us, when as we are taught the straight rule and order, by which we may rightly and truly serve him, wherein consisteth the whole effect of our salvation, and the same to be the very way and mean to come thereunto. When as God then granteth unto us his grace, to be thus instructed by his word, behold he hath now given unto us an unspeakable treasure, and impossible too be sufficiently valued. By this Psalm is declared unto us, that this is the very use of the law of God, and also of all the holy Scripture: and that we are instructed and exhorted too profit our selves by that which is there offered unto us. But because that when any talk is ministered of drawing us to God, we are so blockish and dull, that it is pity and lamentable to see: and albeit that God approacheth near unto us, and that we have many and sundry times clearly forgotten all whatsoever we have understood and learned of him, see here what an aid and help he hath added for our behoof: which is this, that his will and meaning is, that this Psalm should be drawn and framed into an order of eight verses apart, and that all the verses of every eight apart, should begin with a several letter, after the order of an A.B.C. As if he should say, It shall not be material that we be profound learned men, for our instruction in that which is necessary to our salvation: But that the doctrine is common aswell to the learned as to the unlearned. Are our wits and memories grown so short? Let us then reckon and tell upon our fingers, when as we have learned A.B.C. Let us then join eight verses together, and so eight by eight, & go through the whole crossrow, and we shall have the whole Psalm at our fingers ends. What shall we farther say?