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Here in a convenient one-volume edition is John Calvin’s magnum opus. Written as an introduction to the Christian life, the Institutes remains the best articulation of Reformation principles and is a marvelous introduction to biblical Christianity. Newly retypeset for clarity, this volume translated by Henry Beveridge offers a more affordable edition of one of the last millennium’s must-have works. This book will appeal to libraries, seminarians, pastors, and laypeople.
Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin is an introduction to the Bible and a vindication of Reformation principles by one of the Reformation’s finest scholars. At the age of twenty-six, Calvin published several revisions of his Institutes of the Christian Religion, a seminal work in Christian theology that altered the course of Western history and that is still read by theological students today. It was published in Latin in 1536 and in his native French in 1541, with the definitive editions appearing in 1559 (Latin) and in 1560 (French). The book was written as an introductory textbook on the Protestant faith for those with some learning already and covered a broad range of theological topics from the doctrines of church and sacraments to justification by faith alone. It vigorously attacked the teachings of those Calvin considered unorthodox, particularly Roman Catholicism, to which Calvin says he had been “strongly devoted” before his conversion to Protestantism. The overarching theme of the book—and Calvin’s greatest theological legacy—is the idea of God’s total sovereignty, particularly in salvation and election.
John Calvin (1509–1564), a French theologian and reformer, was persecuted as a Protestant. As a result, he traveled from place to place. In 1534 at Angouleme he began the work of systematizing Protestant thought in his Institutes of the Christian Religion, one of the most influential theological works of all time.
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781598565072 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Hendrickson Publishers, Incorporated |
| Publication date: | 05/03/2022 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 1104 |
| Sales rank: | 550,138 |
| File size: | 2 MB |
About the Author
John Calvin (1509-1564) the French theologian and reformer was persecuted as a protestant. As a result, he traveled from place to place. In 1534 at Angouleme he began the work of systematizing protestant thought in the Institutes of the Christian Religion, one of the most influential theological works of all time.
Read an Excerpt
Institutes of the Christian Religion
By John Calvin, Henry Beveridge
Hendrickson Publishers Marketing, LLC
Copyright © 2011 Hendrickson Publishers Marketing, LLCAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-59856-507-2
CHAPTER 1
The Knowledge of God and of Ourselves Mutually Connected. Nature of the Connection
Sections
1. The sum of true wisdom, i.e., the knowledge of God and of ourselves. Effects of the latter.
2. Effects of the knowledge of God, in humbling our pride, unveiling our hypocrisy, demonstrating the absolute perfections of God, and our own utter helplessness.
3. Effects of the knowledge of God illustrated by the examples,
1. Of holy patriarchs;
2. Of holy angels;
3. Of the sun and moon.
* * *
1. Our wisdom, insofar as it ought to be deemed true and solid wisdom, consists almost entirely of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves. But as these are connected together by many ties, it is not easy to determine which of the two precedes and gives birth to the other. For, in the first place, no man can survey himself without forthwith turning his thoughts toward the God in whom he lives and moves; because it is perfectly obvious, that the endowments which we possess cannot possibly be from ourselves; no, that our very being is nothing else than subsistence in God alone. In the second place, those blessings which unceasingly distill to us from heaven, are like streams conducting us to the fountain. Here, again, the infinitude of good which resides in God becomes more apparent from our poverty. In particular, the miserable ruin into which the revolt of the first man has plunged us, compels us to turn our eyes upward; not only that while hungry and famishing we may thence ask what we want, but being aroused by fear may learn humility. For as there exists in man something like a world of misery, and ever since we were stripped of the divine attire our naked shame discloses an immense series of disgraceful properties, every man, being stung by the consciousness of his own unhappiness, in this way necessarily obtains at least some knowledge of God. Thus, our feeling of ignorance, vanity, want, weakness, in short, depravity and corruption, reminds us (see Calvin on John 4:10) that in the Lord, and none but he, dwell the true light of wisdom, solid virtue, exuberant goodness. We are accordingly urged by our own evil things to consider the good things of God; and, indeed, we cannot aspire to him in earnest until we have begun to be displeased with ourselves. For what man is not disposed to rest in himself? Who, in fact, does not thus rest, so long as he is unknown to himself; that is, so long as he is contented with his own endowments, and unconscious or unmindful of his misery? Every person, therefore, on coming to the knowledge of himself, is not only urged to seek God, but is also led as by the hand to find him.
2. On the other hand, it is evident that man never attains to a true self-knowledge until he have previously contemplated the face of God, and come down after such contemplation to look into himself. For (such is our innate pride) we always seem to ourselves just, and upright, and wise, and holy, until we are convinced, by clear evidence, of our injustice, vileness, folly, and impurity. Convinced, however, we are not, if we look to ourselves only, and not to the Lord also—he being the only standard by the application of which this conviction can be produced. For, since we are all naturally prone to hypocrisy, any empty semblance of righteousness is quite enough to satisfy us instead of righteousness itself. And since nothing appears within us or around us that is not tainted with very great impurity, so long as we keep our mind within the confines of human pollution, anything which is in some small degree less defiled delights us as if it were most pure: just as an eye, to which nothing but black had been previously presented, deems an object of a whitish, or even of a brownish hue, to be perfectly white. No, the bodily sense may furnish a still stronger illustration of the extent to which we are deluded in estimating the powers of the mind. If, at mid-day, we either look down to the ground, or on the surrounding objects which lie open to our view, we think ourselves endued with a very strong and piercing eyesight; but when we look up to the sun, and gaze at it unveiled, the sight which did excellently well for the earth is instantly so dazzled and confounded by the refulgence, as to oblige us to confess that our acuteness in discerning terrestrial objects is mere dimness when applied to the sun. Thus, too, it happens in estimating our spiritual qualities. So long as we do not look beyond the earth, we are quite pleased with our own righteousness, wisdom, and virtue; we address ourselves in the most flattering terms, and seem only less than demigods. But should we once begin to raise our thoughts to God, and reflect what kind of being he is, and how absolute the perfection of that righteousness, and wisdom, and virtue, to which, as a standard, we are bound to be conformed, what formerly delighted us by its false show of righteousness will become polluted with the greatest iniquity; what strangely imposed upon us under the name of wisdom will disgust by its extreme folly; and what presented the appearance of virtuous energy will be condemned as the most miserable impotence. So far are those qualities in us, which seem most perfect, from corresponding to the divine purity.
3. Hence that dread and amazement with which as Scripture uniformly relates, holy men were struck and overwhelmed whenever they beheld the presence of God. When we see those who previously stood firm and secure so quaking with terror, that the fear of death takes hold of them, no, they are, in a manner, swallowed up and annihilated, the inference to be drawn is that men are never duly touched and impressed with a conviction of their insignificance, until they have contrasted themselves with the majesty of God. Frequent examples of this consternation occur both in the book of Judges and the prophetical writings; so much so, that it was a common expression among the people of God, "We shall die, for we have seen the Lord." Hence the book of Job, also, in humbling men under a conviction of their folly, feebleness, and pollution, always derives its chief argument from descriptions of the divine wisdom, virtue, and purity. Nor without cause: for we see Abraham the readier to acknowledge himself but dust and ashes the nearer he approaches to behold the glory of the Lord, and Elijah unable to wait with unveiled face for his approach, so dreadful is the sight. And what can man do, man who is but rottenness and a worm, when even the cherubim themselves must veil their faces in very terror? To this, undoubtedly, the Prophet Isaiah refers, when he says (Isa 24:23), "The moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the Lord of Hosts shall reign," i.e., when he shall exhibit his refulgence, and give a nearer view of it, the brightest objects will, in comparison, be covered with darkness.
But though the knowledge of God and the knowledge of ourselves are bound together by a mutual tie, due arrangement requires that we treat of the former in the first place, and then descend to the latter.
CHAPTER 2What It Is to Know God—Tendency of This Knowledge
Sections
1. The knowledge of God the Creator defined. The substance of this knowledge, and the use to be made of it.
2. Further illustration of the use, together with a necessary reproof of vain curiosity, and refutation of the Epicureans. The character of God as it appears to the pious mind, contrasted with the absurd views of the Epicureans. Religion defined.
* * *
1. By the knowledge of God, I understand that by which we not only conceive that there is some God, but also apprehend what it is for our interest, and conducive to his glory, what, in short, it is befitting to know concerning him. For, properly speaking, we cannot say that God is known where there is no religion or piety. I am not now referring to that species of knowledge by which men, in themselves lost and under curse, apprehend God as a Redeemer in Christ the Mediator. I speak only of that simple and primitive knowledge, to which the mere course of nature would have conducted us, had Adam stood upright. For although no man will now, in the present ruin of the human race, perceive God to be either a father, or the author of salvation, or propitious in any respect, until Christ interpose to make our peace; still it is one thing to perceive that God our Maker supports us by his power, rules us by his providence, fosters us by his goodness, and visits us with all kinds of blessings, and another thing to embrace the grace of reconciliation offered to us in Christ. Since, then, the Lord first appears, as well in the creation of the world as in the general doctrine of Scripture, simply as a Creator, and afterward as a Redeemer in Christ—a twofold knowledge of him hence arises: of these the former is now to be considered, the latter will afterward follow in its order. But although our mind cannot conceive of God, without rendering some worship to him, it will not, however, be sufficient simply to hold that he is the only being whom all ought to worship and adore, unless we are also persuaded that he is the fountain of all goodness, and that we must seek everything in him, and in none but him. My meaning is: we must be persuaded not only that as he once formed the world, so he sustains it by his boundless power, governs it by his wisdom, preserves it by his goodness, in particular, rules the human race with justice and judgment, bears with them in mercy, shields them by his protection; but also that not a particle of light, or wisdom, or justice, or power, or rectitude, or genuine truth, will anywhere be found, which does not flow from him, and of which he is not the cause; in this way we must learn to expect and ask all things from him, and thankfully ascribe to him whatever we receive. For this sense of the divine perfections is the proper master to teach us piety, out of which religion springs. By piety I mean that union of reverence and love to God which the knowledge of his benefits inspires. For, until men feel that they owe everything to God, that they are cherished by his paternal care, and that he is the author of all their blessings, so that naught is to be looked for away from him, they will never submit to him in voluntary obedience; no, unless they place their entire happiness in him, they will never yield up their whole selves to him in truth and sincerity.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin, Henry Beveridge. Copyright © 2011 Hendrickson Publishers Marketing, LLC. Excerpted by permission of Hendrickson Publishers Marketing, LLC.
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Table of Contents
Contents
Preface to the Hendrickson Edition,Original Translator's Preface (1581),
Prefatory Address by John Calvin to Francis I, King of France (1536),
Epistle to the Reader (Calvin, 1539),
Subject of the Present Work (Calvin, 1545),
Epistle to the Reader (Calvin, 1559),
Method and Arrangement, or Subject of the Whole Work,
Book First Argument,
Chapter 1 The Knowledge of God and of Ourselves Mutually Connected. Nature of the Connection,
Chapter 2 What It Is to Know God—Tendency of This Knowledge,
Chapter 3 The Knowledge of God Naturally Implanted in the Human Mind,
Chapter 4 The Knowledge of God Stifled or Corrupted, Ignorantly or Maliciously,
Chapter 5 The Knowledge of God Conspicuous in the Creation, and Continual Government of the World,
Chapter 6 The Need of Scripture, as a Guide and Teacher, in Coming to God as a Creator,
Chapter 7 The Testimony of the Spirit Necessary to Give Full Authority to Scripture. The Impiety of Pretending That the Credibility of Scripture Depends on the Judgment of the Church,
Chapter 8 The Credibility of Scripture Sufficiently Proved, Insofar as Natural Reason Admits,
Chapter 9 All the Principles of Piety Subverted by Fanatics, Who Substitute Revelations for Scripture,
Chapter 10 In Scripture, the True God Opposed, Exclusively, to All the Gods of the Heathen,
Chapter 11 Impiety of Attributing a Visible Form to God. The Setting Up of Idols a Defection from the True God,
Chapter 12 God Distinguished from Idols, that He May Be the Exclusive Object of Worship,
Chapter 13 The Unity of the Divine Essence in Three Persons Taught, in Scripture, from the Foundation of the World,
Chapter 14 In the Creation of the World, and All Things in It, the True God Distinguished by Certain Marks from Fictitious Gods,
Chapter 15 State in Which Man Was Created. The Faculties of the Soul—the Image of God—Free Will—Original Righteousness,
Chapter 16 The World, Created by God, Still Cherished and Protected by Him. Each and All of Its Parts Governed by His Providence,
Chapter 17 Use to Be Made of the Doctrine of Providence,
Chapter 18 The Instrumentality of the Wicked Employed by God, While He Continues Free from Every Taint,
Book Second Argument,
Chapter 1 Through the Fall and Revolt of Adam, the Whole Human Race Made Accursed and Degenerate. Of Original Sin,
Chapter 2 Man Now Deprived of Freedom of Will, and Miserably Enslaved,
Chapter 3 Everything Proceeding from the Corrupt Nature of Man Damnable,
Chapter 4 How God Works in the Hearts of Men,
Chapter 5 The Arguments Usually Alleged in Support of Free Will Refuted,
Chapter 6 Redemption for Man Lost to Be Sought in Christ,
Chapter 7 The Law Given, Not to Retain a People for Itself, but to Keep Alive the Hope of Salvation in Christ until His Advent,
Chapter 8 Exposition of the Moral Law,
Chapter 9 Christ, Though Known to the Jews under the Law, Yet Only Manifested under the Gospel,
Chapter 10 The Resemblance Between the Old Testament and the New,
Chapter 11 The Difference Between the Two Testaments,
Chapter 12 Christ, to Perform the Office of Mediator, Behooved to Become Man,
Chapter 13 Christ Clothed with the True Substance of Human Nature,
Chapter 14 How Two Natures Constitute the Person of the Mediator,
Chapter 15 Three Things Briefly to Be Regarded in Christ—i.e., His Offices of Prophet, King, and Priest,
Chapter 16 How Christ Performed the Office of Redeemer in Procuring Our Salvation. The Death, Resurrection, and Ascension of Christ,
Chapter 17 Christ Rightly and Properly Said to Have Merited Grace and Salvation for Us,
Book Third Argument,
Chapter 1 The Benefits of Christ Made Available to Us by the Secret Operation of the Spirit,
Chapter 2 Of Faith. The Definition of It. Its Peculiar Properties,
Chapter 3 Regeneration by Faith. Of Repentance,
Chapter 4 Penitence, as Explained in the Sophistical Jargon of the Schoolmen, Widely Different from the Purity Required by the Gospel. Of Confession and Satisfaction,
Chapter 5 Of the Modes of Supplementing Satisfaction, i.e., Indulgences and Purgatory,
Chapter 6 The Life of a Christian Man. Scriptural Arguments Exhorting to It,
Chapter 7 A Summary of the Christian Life. Of Self-Denial,
Chapter 8 Of Bearing the Cross—One Branch of Self-Denial,
Chapter 9 Of Meditating on the Future Life,
Chapter 10 How to Use the Present Life, and the Comforts of It,
Chapter 11 Of Justification by Faith. Both the Name and the Reality Defined,
Chapter 12 Necessity of Contemplating the Judgment Seat of God, in Order to Be Seriously Convinced of the Doctrine of Gratuitous Justification,
Chapter 13 Two Things to Be Observed in Gratuitous Justification,
Chapter 14 The Beginning of Justification. In What Sense Progressive,
Chapter 15 The Boasted Merit of Works Subversive Both of the Glory of God, in Bestowing Righteousness, and of the Certainty of Salvation,
Chapter 16 Refutation of the Calumnies by Which It Is Attempted to Throw Odium on This Doctrine,
Chapter 17 The Promises of the Law and the Gospel Reconciled,
Chapter 18 The Righteousness of Works Improperly Inferred from Rewards,
Chapter 19 Of Christian Liberty,
Chapter 20 Of Prayer—A Perpetual Exercise of Faith. The Daily Benefits Derived from It,
Chapter 21 Of the Eternal Election, by Which God Has Predestinated Some to Salvation, and Others to Destruction,
Chapter 22 This Doctrine Confirmed by Proofs from Scripture,
Chapter 23 Refutation of the Calumnies by Which This Doctrine Is Always Unjustly Assailed,
Chapter 24 Election Confirmed by the Calling of God. The Reprobate Bring upon Themselves the Righteous Destruction to Which They Are Doomed,
Chapter 25 Of the Last Resurrection,
Book Fourth Argument,
Chapter 1 Of the True Church. Duty of Cultivating Unity with Her, as the Mother of All the Godly,
Chapter 2 Comparison between the False Church and the True,
Chapter 3 Of the Teachers and Ministers of the Church. Their Election and Office,
Chapter 4 Of the State of the Primitive Church and the Mode of Government in Use before the Papacy,
Chapter 5 The Ancient Form of Government Utterly Corrupted by the Tyranny of the Papacy,
Chapter 6 Of the Primacy of the Romish See,
Chapter 7 Of the Beginning and Rise of the Romish Papacy, till It Attained a Height by Which the Liberty of the Church Was Destroyed, and All True Rule Overthrown,
Chapter 8 Of the Power of the Church in Articles of Faith. The Unbridled License of the Papal Church in Destroying Purity of Doctrine,
Chapter 9 Of Councils and Their Authority,
Chapter 10 Of the Power of Making Laws. The Cruelty of the Pope and His Adherents, in This Respect, in Tyrannically Oppressing and Destroying Souls,
Chapter 11 Of the Jurisdiction of the Church, and the Abuses of It, as Exemplified in the Papacy,
Chapter 12 Of the Discipline of the Church, and Its Principal Use in Censures and Excommunication,
Chapter 13 Of Vows. The Miserable Entanglements Caused by Vowing Rashly,
Chapter 14 Of the Sacraments,
Chapter 15 Of Baptism,
Chapter 16 Paedobaptism, Its Accordance with the Institution of Christ, and the Nature of the Sign,
Chapter 17 Of the Lord's Supper, and the Benefits Conferred by It,
Chapter 18 Of the Popish Mass. How It Not Only Profanes, but Annihilates the Lord's Supper,
Chapter 19 Of the Five Sacraments, Falsely So Called. Their Spuriousness Proved, and Their True Character Explained,
Chapter 20 Of Civil Government,
One Hundred Aphorisms Containing within a Narrow Compass, the Substance and Order of the Four Books of the Institutes of the Christian Religion,
Common Latin Words and Abbreviations & Authors & Works Cited,