Book 2, Chapter 8, Section 35 to Book 2, Chapter 9, Section 5

[Alex, Moderator]

Last time, we began our study of the Ten Commandments and looked at the first table of the law. In this session, we turn our sights to the second table.

8. EXPLANATION OF THE MORAL LAW (THE TEN COMMANDMENTS)

Sections 35 to 38 exposit the fifth commandment:

35. to 38. The purpose of this commandment is to maintain God’s established order. The positive requirement is that “we should look up to those whom God has placed over us, and should treat them with honor, obedience, and gratefulness. It follows from this that we are forbidden to detract from their dignity either by contempt, by stubbornness, or by ungratefulness” (p. 401).

The reason that the fifth commandment explicitly asks us to honor our parents is because they are model examples of all authority. From this simple relationship, we can understand the rightful duty we owe in all other relationships. “By that subjection which is easiest to tolerate, the Lord therefore gradually accustoms us to all lawful subjection” (p. 401). From this, we can understand the universal rule that God has established: “That is, knowing that someone has been placed over us by the Lord’s ordination, we should render to him reverence, obedience, and gratefulness... It makes no difference whether our superiors are worthy or unworthy of this honor, for whatever they are they have attained their position through God’s providence — a proof that the Lawgiver himself would have us hold them in honor” (p. 402).

This is also the first commandment with a promise (Eph. 6:2). “We should reflect that we are promised long life in so far as it is a blessing of God; and that it is a blessing only in so far as it is an evidence of God’s favor, which he testifies to his servants far more richly and substantially through death, and proves it in the reality” (p. 403). The crux of the promise is in eternal life.

As a threat, the sentence of death is imposed on those who are disobedient. “[God] has expressly bidden us to reverence our parents, who have brought us into this life… Those who abusively or stubbornly violate parental authority are monsters, not men! Hence the Lord commands that all those disobedient to their parents be put to death. For since they do not recognize those whose efforts brought them into the light of day, they are not worthy of its benefits” (p 402). If appreciation is not paid to our life-givers, life should be taken away! In cases where there may be conflict between the demands from our parents and God, Calvin reminds us that we are to be obedient to our parents “in the Lord” (Eph. 6:1). “Hence, if they spur us to transgress the law, we have a perfect right to regard them not as parents, but as strangers who are trying to lead us away from obedience to our true Father. So should we act toward princes, lords, and every kind of superiors” (p. 404).

Sections 39 to 40 exposit the sixth commandment:

39. & 40. The purpose of this commandment is to preserve human life because we are made in the image of God. The positive requirement is that “each man ought to concern himself with the safety of all” whereas “all violence, injury, and any harmful thing at all that may injure our neighbor’s body are forbidden to us” (p. 404). “We are accordingly commanded, if we find anything of use to us in saving our neighbors’ lives, faithfully to employ it; if there is anything that makes for their peace, to see to it; if anything harmful, to ward it off; if they are in any danger, to lend a helping hand” (p. 404).

The commandment encompasses thought, word, and deed. “Therefore this law also forbids murder of the heart... The hand, indeed, gives birth to murder, but the mind when infected with anger and hatred conceives it” (p. 4040; cf. 1 Jn 3:15; Mt. 5:22). The requirements of this commandment concern both body and soul. “If there is so much concern for the safety of [our neighbor’s] body, from this we may infer how much zeal and effort we owe the safety of the soul, which far excels the body in the Lord’s sight” (p. 405).

Sections 41 to 44 exposit the seventh commandment:

41. The purpose of this commandment is “because God loves modesty and purity, all uncleanness must be far from us” (p. 405). Its positive requirement is that we remain chaste in all part of our life. Its negative prohibition includes all forms of lust and fornication.

42. to 44. Pertaining to this commandment, Calvin discusses marriage and its implications for celibacy. Marriage is a legitimate way that God has provided to keep us from “plunging into unbridled lust… Hence, those who are troubled with incontinence and cannot prevail in the struggle should turn to matrimony to help them preserve chastity in the degree of their calling” (pp. 405-406).

Celibacy should not be pursued foolishly. “Let no man rashly despise marriage as something unprofitable or superfluous to him; let no man long for celibacy unless he can live without a wife” (p. 407). Although we are all called to be single (at one time or another), this may not always be a permanent condition that everyone should aspire to. “If [a person’s] power to tame lust fails him, let him recognize that the Lord has now imposed the necessity of marriage upon him… If those who are incontinent neglect to cure their infirmity by this means, they sin even in not obeying this command of the apostle” (p. 407; 1 Cor. 7:9).

To those who are married, Calvin reminds them to remain modesty and faithful in marriage. “Therefore let not married persons think that all things are permitted to them, but let each man have his own wife soberly, and each wife her own husband… so as not to wallow in extreme lewdness” (pp. 407-408).

Sections 45 to 46 exposit the eighth commandment:

45. & 46. The purpose of this commandment is to “render to each man what belongs to him” (p. 408). “We are forbidden to pant after the possessions of others, and consequently are [positively] commanded to strive faithfully to help every man to keep his own possessions” (p. 408). When applying this commandment, “we must consider that what every man possesses has not come to him by mere chance but by the distribution of the supreme Lord of all” (p. 408).

Included in this commandment are thefts of force, fraud, or flattery. Thefts are not just limited to taking someone else’s money, merchandise, or property, but can also include instances where these things are improperly handled. “For we defraud our neighbors of their property if we repudiate the duties by which we are obligated to them. If a shiftless steward or overseer devours his master’s substance, and fails to attend to household business; if he either unjustly spends or wantonly wastes the properties entrusted to him; [etc.] — all these are deemed theft in God’s sight” (p. 409). We should be careful not to damage other people’s things, nor to be wasteful.

Also included in this commandment are acts of charity. “Let this be our constant aim: faithfully to help all men by our counsel and aid to keep what is theirs, in so far as we can… And not this alone: but let us share the necessity of those whom we see pressed by the difficulty of affairs, assisting them in their need with our abundance” (p. 410). “In this manner, I say, let each man consider what, in his rank and station, he owes to his neighbors, and pay what he owes. Moreover, our mind must always have regard for the Lawgiver, that we may know that this rule was established for our hearts as well as for our hands, in order that men may strive to protect and promote the well-being and interests of others” (p. 411).

Sections 47 to 48 exposit the ninth commandment:

47. & 48. The purpose of this commandment is “since God (who is truth) abhors a lie, we must practice truth without deceit toward one another” (p. 411). Its negative prohibitions require that we “not malign anyone with slanders or false charges, nor harm his substance by falsehood, in short, injure him by unbridled evilspeaking and impudence” (p. 411). The positive requirements of the commandment are for us to “faithfully help everyone as much as we can in affirming the truth, in order to protect the integrity of his name and possessions” (p. 411).

The ninth commandment is compared in relation to the previous one. “For if a good name is more precious than all riches [Proverbs 22:1], we harm a man more by despoiling him of the integrity of his name than by taking away his possessions” (p. 412). It is not just about refraining from falsehood, but also preserving our neighbor’s good name. “For he who does not allow a brother’s name to be sullied by falsehood also wishes it to be kept unblemished as far as truth permits” (p. 412). Included in this commandment are prohibitions against “fawning politeness” under the guise of jokes or sarcasm.

The prohibition against evilspeaking does not mean that we can never speak negatively about others. “Now, we understand by ‘evilspeaking’ not reproof made with intent to chastise; not accusation or judicial denunciation to remedy evil. Nor does evilspeaking mean public correction, calculated to strike other sinners with terror; nor disclosure before those who need to be forewarned lest they be endangered through ignorance. By ‘evilspeaking’ we mean hateful accusation arising from evil intent and wanton desire to defame” (p. 412).

Sections 49 to 50 exposit the tenth commandment:

49. & 50. The purpose of this commandment is “since God wills that our whole soul be possessed with a disposition to love, we must banish from our hearts all desire contrary to love” (p. 413). Its negative prohibitions are that “no thought should steal upon us to move our hearts to a harmful covetousness that tends to our neighbor’s loss. To this corresponds the opposite precept [as positive requirements]: whatever we conceive, deliberate, will, or attempt is to be linked to our neighbor’s good and advantage” (p. 413).

Even the fantasies and dreams we secretly harbor in our minds can be sinful. Calvin explains how this commandment is tightly linked to the previous five. “As [God] has forbidden our minds to be inclined and led into anger, hatred, adultery, robbery, and lying, he now prohibits them from being prompted thereto [by coveting]” (p. 413). Coveting is the opposite of loving. “The heart, then, in so far as it harbors covetousness, must be empty of love” (p. 414).

51. This is the purpose of the whole law: “the fulfillment of righteousness to form human life to the archetype of divine purity. For God has so depicted his character in the law that if any man carries out in deeds whatever is enjoined there, he will express the image of God, as it were, in his own life” (p. 415). The law is summarized by the two great commandments: “That we should love the Lord God with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our strength” [Deuteronomy 6:5], “and our neighbor as ourselves” [Leviticus 19:18; cf. Matthew 22:37,39]. “First, indeed, our soul should be entirely filled with the love of God. From this will flow directly the love of neighbor” (p. 415). We cannot progress beyond the law. The law is not just the beginning of righteousness but the sum of it.

[Alex, Moderator]

52. & 53. Calvin acknowledges that sometimes Scripture only mentions the second table of the law. The reason for this is because the first table is difficult to assess outwardly because it is primarily kept in the heart. On the other hand, obedience to the second table can be outwardly seen through works of love. However, the first table of the law takes priority. When we love our neighbors, it is evidence that we love God. This is why the apostle teaches, “The whole law is comprehended in one word, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” [Galatians 5:14] (p. 417).

54. There is no need to teach men how to love themselves. We are already inclined to excessive self-love. “Hence it is very clear that we keep the commandments not by loving ourselves but by loving God and neighbor; that he lives the best and holiest life who lives and strives for himself as little as he can, and that no one lives in a worse or more evil manner than he who lives and strives for himself alone, and thinks about and seeks only his own advantage” (p. 417). We are reminded that “love does not seek its own” [1 Cor. 13:5] and that “the Lord has not established a rule regarding love of ourselves” but “we must be ready to benefit our neighbor with no less eagerness, ardor, and care than ourselves” (p. 418).

55. We should love everyone, but our love should be of a greater degree to our close kindred. “Now, since Christ has shown in the parable of the Samaritan that the term ‘neighbor’ includes even the most remote person [Luke 10:36], we are not expected to limit the precept of love to those in close relationships. [But] I do not deny that the more closely a man is linked to us, the more intimate obligation we have to assist him” (p. 418). How is it possible to love everyone (even our enemies)? It is only possible when we look to God for help. “If we rightly direct our love, we must first turn our eyes not to man, the sight of whom would more often engender hate than love, but to God, who bids us extend to all men the love we bear to him, that this may be an unchanging principle: whatever the character of the man, we must yet love him because we love God” (p.419).

56. & 57. Calvin disputes the Roman Catholic teaching that some commands are universally binding (precepts) while others are optional (counsels). For example, Roman Catholic Church suggests that poverty, celibacy, and loving our enemies are voluntary counsels. Calvin points out the absurdity of it all. “Either let them blot out these things from the law or recognize that the Lord was Lawgiver, and let them not falsely represent him as a mere giver of counsel” (p 419). Calvin provides numerous Scriptural proofs, specifically focusing on the commandment to love our enemy, to show that “the obligatory character of these utterances reveals them clearly to be not exhortations but imperatives” (p. 420; cf. Matt. 5:44-47; Luke 6:27-28; Rom. 13:9; Prov. 25:21; Ex. 23:4-5; etc.).

58. & 59. Calvin also rejects the Roman Catholic distinction between venial and mortal sins. The Roman Catholic Church defines a venial sin as a “desire without deliberate assent, which does not long remain in the heart” (p. 421). But, Calvin points out that Rome uses the category of venial sins as an excuse for harboring secret sins which violate the first table of the law (against God) or the last commandment (against our neighbors). We are no position to judge which parts of the law are more or less important. In weighing sins “let us not bring forward false balances to weigh what we please and as we please, according to our own opinion, saying, ‘This is heavy’; ‘This is light’” (p. 422). Rather, “Paul calls death ‘the wages of sin’ [Romans 6:23]” proving that all sins are damnable. In this sense, all sins are mortal. It is dangerous to minimize parts of the law and its penalties.

9. CHRIST, ALTHOUGH HE WAS KNOWN TO THE JEWS UNDER THE LAW, WAS AT LENGTH CLEARLY REVEALED ONLY IN THE GOSPEL

1. There is essentially one covenant for all believers. Old Testament believers knew Christ through promises, shadows, and types. In this sense, “Moses bore witness to him” [John 5:46] and “Abraham is said to have seen Christ’s day and to have rejoiced” [John 8:56] (pp. 423-424). New Testament believers know Christ as he has been revealed to us visibly. Christ is the substance of the previous promises, shadows, and types. “Those mysteries which they [in the Old Testament] but glimpsed in shadowed outline are manifest to us” (p. 424). “For when he appeared in this, his image, he, as it were, made himself visible; whereas his appearance had before been indistinct and shadowed” (p. 424).

2. When speaking about the gospel, it can be understood broadly as all the promises of God in the Old Testament. More narrowly, the “gospel” refers to “the proclamation of the grace manifested in Christ” (p. 425). The two are interrelated in that “the truth of [God’s] promises would be realized in the person of the Son” and that “all the promises of God find their yea and amen in Christ” [2 Cor. 1:20] (p. 425).

3. We must maintain the important tension between the “already” and the “not yet.” Calvin cautions against an over-realized eschatology. In other words, while it is true that “Christ left unfinished nothing of the sum total of our salvation” (it has already been completed), yet “it is wrong to assume from this that we already possess the benefits imparted by him” fully (because they are not yet until the consummation).

There are some things which have already been given. “In believing Christ we at once pass from death into life” (p. 426). Still, “we must remember that saying of John’s: although we know that ‘we are the children of God, it does not yet appear …until we shall become like him, when we shall see him as he is’ [1 John 3:2]” (p. 426). “Although, therefore, Christ offers us in the gospel a present fullness of spiritual benefits, the enjoyment thereof ever lies hidden under the guardianship of hope, until, having put off corruptible flesh, we be transfigured in the glory of him who goes before us” (p. 426).

We reach closer to the eternal promises than the Old Testament saints, but we should not confuse our present condition as having everything in full. There is “a difference in the nature or quality of the promises: the gospel points out with the finger what the law foreshadowed under types” (p. 426). Still, for the present time, we “walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Cor. 5:5-7; cf. Heb. 11:1).

4. The Lutheran distinction between law and gospel, though having a certain degree of validity, is also exaggerated. For Luther, the “law” exclusively refers to God’s demands. It is true that the “law” is “the rule of righteous living by which God requires of us what is his own, giving us no hope of life unless we completely obey him, and adding on the other hand a curse if we deviate even in the slightest degree” (p. 426).

Still, the gospel is not opposed to the law. They do not represent different ways of salvation. For Calvin, the “law” refers to the whole of Old Testament religion, including its promises. “The gospel did not so supplant the entire law as to bring forward a different way of salvation. Rather, it confirmed and satisfied whatever the law had promised, and gave substance to the shadows… Where the whole law is concerned, the gospel differs from it only in clarity of manifestation” (p. 427).

5. Calvin clarifies John the Baptist’s position. “John stood between the law and the gospel, holding an intermediate office related to both” (p. 427). Although he proclaimed the sum of the gospel when he called Christ the Lamb of God, yet he was never able to witness Christ’s death and resurrection glory. “In this sense Christ calls [John the Baptist] ‘a burning and shining lamp’ [John 5:35], because full daylight had not yet come. Yet this does not prevent him from being numbered among the preachers of the gospel, for he actually used the same baptism as was afterward entrusted to the apostles [John 1:33]. But what John began the apostles carried forward to fulfillment, with greater freedom, only after Christ was received into heaven” (p. 428).

With this, we conclude our focused study of the Ten Commandments. Next time, we will continue our study, looking at the relationship between the Old and New Testaments by comparing their similarities and differences.