These things being thus agreed upon, and concluded by the weighty authority of Paul, of necessity from thence follows, That there is a twofold manner, or 1way of being righteous to be distinguished, as I said, according to the different conditions of both Covenants; of which the one belongs to the Law, the other is ⟨p. 23⟩peculiar to Christ. Then both the Law and Christ [Greek or Hebrew]have their own righteousness; for as the Law, which is wholly exercised in works of righteousness, endures no unrighteousness, and renders the fruits of righteousness plentifully to those, who persevering in that which is good, have filled up all the parts of perfect Innocency. Likewise Christ also hath his own righteousness, both much more powerful, and also not a little differing from the other; though not so much differing in respect of the matter, yet exceeding much in the manner of dispensing; for the Law communicates only to them that Work, but Christ communicates to them that believe, perfect righteousness, and often also to the unworthy and undeserving, by a 2singular grace of dispensation. Therefore this Righteousness, is properly called the Righteousness of Faith; Which is necessarily to be distinguished by us from the other, which is called the Righteousness of the Law: Which they who do not, verily they do a great injury to the Scriptures, and quench all light of Doctrine, confounding both their own Consciences, and the Consciences of their hearers, with a wonderful 3kind of disturbance, so that scarcely any Man can certainly know what should be hoped or feared; for they who dispute thus concerning the Righteousness of the Law, and draw all things to that alone, as if there remained no other way to hope for Salvation, but that which ⟨p. 24⟩the strict and severe observation of the Law brings: I beseech you, what else do those Men do, but leave the Souls of Men in a doubtful wavering? And by what way those Men encourage us to hope, by the same they compel us to fear and utterly to despair of Salvation: seeing there is no Man in the World, to whom the daily offences of his Life gives not much more cause to fear, than his virtues give him to hope.
These things being thus agreed upon, and concluded by the weighty authority of Paul, of necessity from thence follows, That there is a twofold manner, or 1way of being righteous to be distinguished, as I said, according to the different conditions of both Covenants; of which the one belongs to the Law, the other is ⟨p. 23⟩peculiar to Christ. Then both the Law and Christ 〈non-Latin alphabet〉have their own righteousness; for as the Law, which is wholly exercised in works of righteousness, endures no unrighteousness, and renders the fruits of righteousness plentifully to those, who persevering in that which is good, have filled up all the parts of perfect Innocency. Likewise Christ also hath his own righteousness, both much more powerful, and also not a little differing from the other; though not so much differing in respect of the matter, yet exceeding much in the manner of dispensing; for the Law communicates only to them that Work, but Christ communicates to them that believe, perfect righteousness, and often also to the unworthy and underserving, by a 2singular grace of dispensation. Therefore this Righteousness, is properly called the Righteousness of Faith; Which is necessarily to be distinguished by us from the other, which is called the Righteousness of the Law: Which they who do not, verily they do a great injury to the Scriptures, and quench all light of Doctrine, confounding both their own Consciences, and the Consciences of their hearers, with a wonderful 3kind of disturbance, so that scarcely any Man can certainly know what should be hoped or feared; for they who dispute thus concerning the Righteousness of the Law, and draw all things to that alone, as if there remained no other way to hope for Salvation, but that which ⟨p. 24⟩the strict and severe observation of the Law brings: I beseech you, what else do those Men do, but leave the Souls of Men in a doubtful wavering? And by what way those Men encourage us to hope, by the same they compel us to fear and utterly to despair of Salvation: seeing there is no Man in the World, to whom the daily offences of his Life gives not much more cause to fear, than his vertues give him to hope.
- 1A twofold manner of Righteousness of the Law: and of the Gospel, or Faith.
- 2The Righteousness of Faith.
- 3The necessary distinction of Legal and Evangelical Righteousness.
