Commentary on Galatians, Chapter 2 · Verse extract 20
Verſe. 20. Thus I liue, yet not I novv, but Chriſt liueth in me.
Wher he ſaith: Thus I liue, he ſpeaketh it as it were in his owne perſon. Therfore he by and by correcteth himſelfe, ſaying: yet not I now. That is to ſay, I liue not now in mine owne perſon, but Chriſt liueth in me. In deede the perſon liueth, but not in himſelfe, nor for his owne cauſe, nor for any thing that is in him. But who is that I of whom he ſayeth:He ſpeaketh of the olde man. yet not I. This I is he which hath the lawe, and is bound to doe the workes therof: who alſo is a certaine perſon ſeperate from Chriſt. This perſon Paule reiecteth. For as he is ſeperate from Chriſt he belongeth to death and hell. Therfore he ſayeth: Novve not I, but Chriſt liueth in me. He is my forme, my furniture and perfection, adorning and beutifying my faith, as the colour, the cleare light, or the whitnes do garniſh and beutifie the wall. Thus are we conſtrained groſſely to ſet forth this matter. For we can not ſpiritually conceaue that Chriſt is ſo nerely ioyned & vnited vntounto vsus, as ye colour or whitenes are vnited vntounto the wall.Chriſt beſtovveth himſelf and all that he hath, vponupon thoſe that beleue in him. Chriſt therfore (ſayth he) thus ioyned and vnited vntounto me and abiding in me, liueth this life in me which I now liue: yea, Chriſt him ſelfe is this life which I now liue. Wherefore Chriſt and I in this behalfe are both one.
Now Chriſt liuing in me aboliſheth the lawe, condemneth ſinne, and deſtroyeth death: for it can not be but at his preſence all theſe muſt nedes vaniſh away. For Chriſt is euerlaſting peace, conſolation, righteouſnes and life: and to theſe the terrour of the law, heauines of mind, ſinne, hell, and death muſt nedes geue place. So Chriſt liuing and abiding in me, taketh away and ſwalloweth vp all euils which vexe and afflict me. This vnion or coniunction then is the cauſe that I am deliuered from the terrour of the law and ſinne, am ſeperate from my ſelf, and tranſlated vntounto Chriſt and his kingdom, which is a kingdom of grace, righteouſnes, peace, ioy, life, ſaluation, & eternal glory. Thus I now abiding and dwelling in him, what euill is there that can hurt me?
In the meane ſeaſon the old man abideth without and is ſubiecte to the lawe: but as concerning iuſtification, Chriſt and I muſt be entierly conioyned and vnited together, ſo that he may liue in me and I in him. And this is a wonderful maner of ſpeech. Now, becauſe Chriſt liueth in me,VVhatſoeuer good the godly hauehave in thē, it is Chriſtes, and vve are ſo knit together, that he liueth in vsus and vve in him. therefore looke what grace, righteouſnes, life, peace, and ſaluation is in me, it is his, and yet notwithſtanding the ſame is mine alſo by that vnſeparable vnion and coniunction which is throughe Faithe: by which Chriſte and I are made as it were one bodye in ſpirite. For as much then as Chriſt liueth in me, it foloweth, that as I muſt nedes be with him pertaker of grace, righteouſnes, life, and eternall ſaluation: ſo the lawe, ſinne, and death can hauehave no place in me: yea the lawe is crucified and ſwallowed vp of the lawe, ſinne of ſinne, and death of death. Thus Paule goeth about to draw vsus from the beholding of our ſelues, the law & workes, and to plant in vsus true faith in Chriſt: ſo that in the matter of iuſtification we ſhould thinke vponupon nothing elſe but grace, ſeparating the ſame farre from the law and works, which in this matter ought to hauehave no place.
Paule hath his peculiar phraſe or kind of ſpeach,Paules excelent and heauenly maner of ſpeach. which is not after the maner of men, but diuine and heauenly: nor vſed of the Euangeliſtes or of the reſt of the Apoſtles, ſauing only of Iohn, who alſo is wont ſometimes ſo to ſpeake. And if Paule had not firſt vſed this phraſe and ſet forth the ſame vntounto vsus in plaine words, the very Saincts thēſelues durſt not hauehave vſed it. For it ſeemeth a very ſtraunge and a monſtrous maner of ſpeaking thus to ſay: I liue, I liue not: I am dead, I am not dead: I am a ſinner, I am not a ſinner: I hauehave the law, I hauehave not the law. Which phraſe is ſweete and comfortable to all thoſe that beleue in Chriſt. For in that they behold themſelues,Albeit the faithfull be ſinners yet are they alſo righteous. they hauehave both the law and ſinne: but in that they looke vntounto Chriſt, they are dead to the law and hauehave no ſinne. If then in the matter of iuſtification thou ſeparate the perſon of Chriſt from thy perſon, then art thou in the law, thou abideſt in the law, thou liueſt in the law and not in Chriſt, and ſo thou art condemned of the law and dead before God.The Papiſtes faith. For thou haſt that faith which (as the Sophiſters dreame) is furniſhed with charitie. Thus I ſpeake for examples ſake. For there was neuer any one found that was ſaued by this faith. And therfore what things ſoeuer the Sophiſters hauehave written touching this faith, are nothing els but vaine toyes and meere deceites of Sathan. But let vsus graunt that ſuch there be as hauehave this faith: yet are they not therfore iuſtified. For they hauehave but an hiſtoricall Faith concerning Chriſt, which the Deuill alſo and all the wicked hauehave.
Faith therfore muſt be purely taught: namely that thou art ſo entirely and nerely ioyned vntounto Chriſt,Faith ſo knitteth all beleuers & Chriſt together, that they become one perſon. that he and thou are made as it were one perſon, ſo that thou maieſt boldly ſay, I am now one with Chriſt, that is to ſay, Chriſtes righteouſnes, victory, and life are mine. And again, Chriſt may ſay, I am that ſinner, that is, his ſinnes and his death are mine becauſe he is vnited and ioyned vntounto me & I vntounto him. For by faith we are ſo ioyned together that we are become one fleſh & one bone. Eph. 5. we are the members of the body of Chriſt,Epheſ. 5.30. fleſh of his fleſh, and bone of his bones: So that this faith doth couple Chriſt and me more neare together then the huſband is coupled to his wife.True faith is not idle. This faith therfore is not an idle qualitie, but the excellencie therof is ſuch, that it vtterly confoundeth theſe fooliſh dreames of ye Sophiſters touching their formed faith and counterfeit charitie, their merits, workes and worthines. Theſe things I would gladly ſet forth more amply if by any meanes I could.
Hitherto we hauehave declared this to be the firſt argument of Paule: that either Chriſt muſt needes be the miniſter of ſinne, or els the lawe doth not iuſtifie: when he had finiſhed this argument, he ſet forth himſelfe for an example, ſaying: that he was dead vntounto that old law by a certaine new law. Now he aunſwereth two obiections which might be made againſt him. His firſt aunſwere is againſt the cauillations of the proude, and the offence of the weake. For when remiſſion of ſinnes is freely preached, then doe the malicious by and by ſclander this preaching. As Rom, 3: Let vsus doe euill that good may come therof. For theſe fellowes as ſoone as they heare that we are not iuſtified by the law,VVhat occaſion the malicious take of this doctrine. forthwith do maliciouſly conclude and ſay: why, then let vsus reiect the law. Againe, if grace doe there abound (ſay they) where ſinne doth abound, let vsus then abound in ſinne that we may become righteous, and that grace may the more abound. Theſe are the malicious and proude ſpirites, which ſpitefully and wittingly ſclaunder the ſcriptures & ſayings of the holy Ghoſt, euen as they ſclaundered Paule whileſt the apoſtles liued, to their owne confuſion & cōdemnation, as it is ſaid. 2. Pet. 3.
Hovv the vveake are to be inſtructed.Moreouer, yt weake which are not malicious, are offended when they heare yt the law & good works are not to be done as neceſſary to iuſtification. Theſe muſt be holpen, and muſt be inſtructed how good works doe not iuſtifie:Good vvorks are not the cauſe but the frutes of righteouſnes. how they ought to be done, how not to be done. They ought to be done, not as the cauſe, but as the frutes of righteouſnes: and when we are made righteous we ought to doe them: but not contrariwiſe, to the end that when we are vnrighteous we may be made righteous. The tree maketh the apple, but not the apple the tree.
He ſaid before: I am dead. &c. here the preſumptious and malicious might ſoone take occaſion to cauill after this maner. What ſaieſt thou Paule? art thou dead? how then doeſt thou ſpeake? how doeſt thou write? The weake alſo might ſoone be offended and ſay vntounto him: what art thou Paule? Doe we not ſee yt thou art liuing, and doeſt ſuch things as pertaine to this life?Life taken tvvo maner of vvaies. To this he aunſwereth: I liue in deede, and yet now not I, but Chriſt liueth in me. Ther is then a double life. The firſt is mine, which is naturall: the ſecond is the life of an other, that is to ſay, the life of Chriſt in me. As touching my natural life I am dead, and now I liue an other life. I liue not now as Paule, but Paule is deade. Who is it then that liueth? The Chriſtian. Paule therfore as he liueth in him ſelfe, is wholy dead through the law: but as he liueth in Chriſt, or rather as Chriſt liueth in him, he liueth by an other life: for Chriſt ſpeaketh in hin, liueth in him, and exerciſeth all the operations of life in him. This cometh not now of the life of Paule, but of the life of the chriſtian and regenerate perſon. Therfore thou malicious ſpirite, where I ſay that I am dead, now ſclaunder my words no more. And thou ye art weake, be not offēded, but diſtinguiſh & diuide this matter rightly. For (as I ſaide) there are two liues: to wit, my naturall life, and the life of an other. By mine owne life I liue not: for it I did,The faithfull liue not their ovvne life, but the life of Chriſt. the law would hauehave dominion ouer me, and hold me in captiuitie. To the end therfore that it ſhould not hold me in captiuitie & bondage, I am dead to it by an other law: and this death purchaſeth vntounto me the life of an other, euen the life of Chriſt: which life is not mine by nature, but is geuen vntounto me by Chriſt through faith.
The ſecond aunſwere is this. It might againe be obiected vntounto Paule: what ſaieſt thou Paule? Doeſt thou not liue by thine owne life, or in thine owne fleſh, but in Chriſt? we ſee thy fleſh, but we ſee not Chriſt. Wouldeſt thou then delude vsus by thine inchauntments, that we ſhould not ſee thee preſent in fleſh, liuing as thou diddeſt before, and doing all things in this corporall life as others doe? he aunſwereth.