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| Chapter XV.—At first God deemed it sufficient to inscribe the natural law, or the Decalogue, upon the hearts of men; but afterwards He found it necessary to bridle, with the yoke of the Mosaic law, the desires of the Jews, who were abusing their liberty; and even to add some special commands, because of the hardness of their hearts.
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Chapter XV.—At first God deemed it
sufficient to inscribe the natural law, or the Decalogue, upon the hearts of
men; but afterwards He found it necessary to bridle, with the yoke of the
Mosaic law, the desires of the Jews, who were abusing their liberty; and even
to add some special commands, because of the hardness of their hearts.
1. bridle the desires of the Jews" title="479" id="ix.vi.xvi-p1.2"/>They
(the Jews) had therefore a law, a course of discipline, and a prophecy of
future things. For God at the first, indeed, warning them by means of
natural precepts, which from the beginning He had implanted in mankind,
that is, by means of the Decalogue (which, if any one does not observe,
he has no salvation), did then demand nothing more of them. As Moses says
in Deuteronomy, “These are all the words which the Lord spake to
the whole assembly of the sons of Israel on the mount, and He added no
more; and He wrote them on two tables of stone, and gave them to
me.”3969
For this reason [He did
so], that they who are willing to follow Him might keep these
commandments. But when they turned themselves to make a calf, and had
gone back in their minds to Egypt, desiring to be slaves instead of
free-men, they were placed for the future in a state of servitude suited
to their wish,—[a slavery] which did not indeed cut them off from
God, but subjected them to the yoke of bondage; as Ezekiel the prophet,
when stating the reasons for the giving of such a law, declares:
“And their eyes were after the desire of their heart; and I gave
them statutes that were not good, and judgments in which they shall not
live.”3970
Luke also has
recorded that Stephen, who was the first elected into the diaconate by
the apostles,3971
and who was the
first slain for the testimony of Christ, spoke regarding Moses as
follows: “This man did indeed receive the commandments of the
living God to give to us, whom your fathers would not obey, but thrust
[Him from them], and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt, saying
unto Aaron, Make us gods to go before us; for we do not know what has
happened to [this] Moses, who led us from the land of Egypt. And they
made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifices to the idol, and were
rejoicing in the works of their own hands. But God turned, and gave them
up to worship the hosts of heaven; as it is written in the book of the
prophets:3972
O ye house of Israel, have ye offered
to Me sacrifices and oblations for forty years in the wilderness? And ye
took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of the god Remphan,3973
| 3973 In accordance with the Codex
Bezæ. | figures which ye made to worship them;”3974
pointing out plainly, that the law being
such, was not given to them by another God, but that, adapted to their
condition of servitude, [it originated] from the very same [God as we
worship]. Wherefore also He says to Moses in Exodus: “I will send
forth My angel before thee; for I will not go up with thee, because thou
art a stiff-necked people.”3975
2. And not only so, but the Lord also showed that
certain precepts were enacted for them by Moses, on account of their
hardness [of heart], and because of their unwillingness to be obedient,
when, on their saying to Him, “Why then did Moses command to give a
writing of divorcement, and to send away a wife?” He said to them,
“Because of the hardness of your hearts he permitted these things
to you; but from the beginning it was not so;”3976
thus exculpating Moses as a faithful servant, but acknowledging
one God, who from the beginning made male and female, and reproving them
as hard-hearted and disobedient. And therefore it was that they received
from Moses this law of divorcement, adapted to their hard nature. But why
say I these things concerning the Old Testament? For in the New also are
the apostles found doing this very thing, on the ground which has been
mentioned, Paul plainly declaring, “But these things I say, not the
Lord.”3977
And again: “But this I speak
by permission, not by commandment.”3978
And
again: “Now, as concerning virgins, I have no commandment from the
Lord; yet I give my judgment, as one that hath obtained mercy of the Lord
to be faithful.”3979
But further, in another
place he says: “That Satan tempt you not for your
incontinence.”3980
If, therefore, even in
the New Testament, the apostles are found granting certain precepts in
consideration of human infirmity, because of the incontinence of some,
lest such persons, having grown obdurate, and despairing altogether of
their salvation, should become apostates from God,—it ought not
to be wondered at, if also in the Old Testament the same God permitted
similar indulgences for the benefit of His people, drawing them on by
means of the ordinances already mentioned, so that they might obtain the
gift of salvation through them, while they obeyed the Decalogue, and
being restrained by Him, should not revert to idolatry, nor apostatize
from God, but learn to love Him with the whole heart. And if certain
persons, because of the disobedient and ruined Israelites, do assert that
the giver (doctor) of the law was limited in power, they will find
in our dispensation, that “many are called, but few
chosen;”3981
and that there are those
who inwardly are wolves, yet wear sheep’s clothing in the eyes of
the world (foris); and that God has always preserved freedom, and
the power of self-government in man,3982
| 3982 [Note this stout assertion of the freedom of human
actions.] | while at the same time He issued His own
exhortations, in order that those who do not obey Him should be
righteously judged (condemned) because they have not obeyed Him; and that
those who have obeyed and believed on Him should be honoured with
immortality.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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