Commentary on Romans, Biblical exegesis 2 · Chapter 14 · Section 3 · Subsection 15 – Subsection 18
Quest. 15. Whether S. Pauls defense (that he which doth or omitteth any thing in matters of religion, doth, or not doth it vntounto God) be perpetuall.
Here are diuerse necessarie points to be considered for the solution of this question: for if this doctrine of S. Paul were vniversall and generall, that one should not regard what an other doth, but euerie man should be left vntounto himselfe, and that it were not lawfull to censure any ones doings, then many wicked persons should goe vncontrolled, and doe what they lift: wherefore these considerations are here necessarie. 1. of what things the Apostle entreateth. 2. and of what manner of iudgement. 3. of what persons he speaketh. 4. in what time. 5. in what manner these things were done. 6. and to what ende.
1. Concerning the things, he speaketh not of things in their owne nature good or euill, directly forbiddē or commanded: but of things indifferent in themselues, and such as sometime were commanded in the lawe, as abstinence from some kind of meate, obseruing of dayes: so Chrysostome well noteth, sed cum de dogmatis illi sermo est, &c. but when the Apostle speaketh of points of doctrine, he is in an other tune: whosoeuer shall teach otherwise, &c. is accursed, Galat. 10.
2. The iudgement, and iudging one of an other, which the Apostle speaketh against, is not so much the iudgment of the thing, which may be done with charitable moderation, as of the person, whom we must not take vponupon vsus to censure & condemne in such things, Beza.
3. The Apostle speaketh not of obstinate and refractorie persons, for to such S. Paul would not hauehave giuen place at all: for though he caused Timothie to be circumcised, for feare of offending the weake, Act. 16.1. yet would he not circumcise Titus, least he should hauehave yeilded to the obstinate and peruerse in iudgement, Galat. 2.3. so Chrysostome saith, novella erat adbuc Romanorum fides, the faith of the Romanes was but yet young: and neophytorum in gratiam ista disserit, he disputeth thus for their sakes which were newely planted in.
4. The time also must be considered, nondum tempus erat, it was not yet time, Chrysostome: so we are to distinguish of three times, the one vnderunder the lawe, when all these things were necessarie to be obserued and kept of the Iewes, an other vnderunder the Gospel published to the world, when all Iudaicall rites were as vnlawfull: then there was tempus intermedium, a time betweene both, when after Christ was ascended, the commonwealth of the Israelites was yet standing, and Evangelium tanquam in cunabulis, the Gospell was as in the cradle, it was requisite, that some thing should be yeelded to the infirmitie of the Iewes for a while.
5. The maner was this: these things were obserued, sine opinione necessitatis & meriti, without opinion of necessitie or merit, Osi. and Calv. well distinguisheth here between, obseruatio, the obseruation it selfe, & opinio, the opinion conceiued thereof, which is superstitious: the other the Apostle tolerateth for a time in the weake, in respect of their infirmitie: but in the epistle to the Colossians c. 2. Gal. c. 4. c. 5. he condemneth them which retained the ceremonies of the lawe with an opinion of necessitie: for Christ should profit them nothing, Gal. ….…. which were so superstitiously addicted to the legall rites and ceremonies.
6. The ende also maketh a great difference: for these eating or not eating, discerning meates, or not discerning, did both to the glorie of God: but they which either sought their owne glorie: as among the Galathians, that sought to get disciples vntounto them, c. 4.17. and to make a faire shewe in the flesh, c. 6.2. were not at all to be borne with: so likewise the Popish festivals which are dedicated vntounto the honour of Saints, and not of God, are not within the compasse of the Apostles rule here, Gualter.
Quest. 16. Of the coherence of these words, none of vsus liueth to himselfe, v. 7. &c.
1. Chrysostome thinketh that this saying is applyed onelyonly to the weake, that it is impossible that God should contemne them, but that in convenient time, ista correcturus sit, he will amend those things and confirme them, because they liue, and die vntounto him: and so there should be reference to the 4. ver. God is able to make him stand.
2. Some will hauehave it a confirmation of the former verse, why all our actions, should be directed to the glorie of God, because he is our Lord and Master: Hyper. Martyr.
3. Tolet maketh it an other reason of that saying, v. 5. that euerie one should abound in his owne conscience, and not examine an others doings.
4. Gualter will hauehave it to be a reason taken from the generall ende of man, he was created vntounto the glorie of God, and his we are, therefore all our actions must be referred to his glorie: and then he addeth, non haerendum in cibis, that we should not insist in meats, but seeke whether in our meates, or in any thing else to please God.
5. But it is rather a newe argument, to prooue the thing in question, that one should not iudge or condemne an other, because they are the Lords seruants: and so it answeareth to the 4. v. he standeth or falleth to his owne Master: Beza, Gryneus, Faius: and so he giueth the same reason of the second instance, concerning the observing or not observing of dayes, as he did of the other particular before, touching eating or not eating.
Quest. 17. How we are saide to liue vntounto the Lord.
1. Origen vnderstandeth it of the spirituall life vntounto righteousnes, and death vntounto sinne: so we liue vntounto God, because novitas vitae, &c. Christo reputatur, the newnes of life is imputed vntounto Christ, it is not of our selues: and à Christo sumit mortis exemplum, eueryevery one from Christ taketh his example of dying, who died first vntounto sinne: But in this sense to liue and die, should be in effect the same, for the death of sinne, is the life of righteousnesse: whereas the Apostle maketh a distribution of these two, whether we liue, or die, &c. and both of the dead, and the quicke.
2. Chrysostome vnderstandeth the Apostle to speake of euerlasting life and death, vitam nostram divitias, & mortem damnum existimat, he counteth our life riches, and our death losse vntounto himselfe: But seeing that Chrysostome confesseth, that in the next words, whether we liue, or die, we are the Lords, that à morte fidei, ad mortem naturalem periransit, he paseth from the death of faith, to speake of the naturall death: the Apostle must be so vnderstood to speake of the naturall life before: for this argument thus hangeth together either we liue and die vntounto God, or vntounto our selues, not vntounto our selues, therefore vntounto God.
3. There is also a ciuill life, and that of two kinds, either it is taken in the good part, as a man is said to liue vntounto himselfe, that is, sui iuris, is a freeman, not at the command of an other: or in the euill, as they are said to liue vntounto themselues, which liue priuately and separated from the societie of others, as single men, solitarie persons, the couetous, which both liue vntounto themselues, not seeking the profit of any, and die vntounto themselues, none hauehave any losse by their death: they hauehave neither wiues nor children to care for: but the Apostle meaneth not any such ciuill kind of life: he speaketh of the naturall life and death, taken after an Evangelicall sense, to liue, and die vntounto the glorie of God.
4. Haymo in one sense would hauehave this especially to be vnderstood of Martyrs. which doe liue and die vntounto God: who is glorified by their life and death: but the Apostle speaketh generally of all the faithfull, and not of Martyrs onelyonly: as Reuel. 13.14. they are said to die in the Lord, which die in the faith of Christ.
5. Wherefore first it is agreed, that the Apostle speaketh of the naturall life and death: and then in this sense, to liue vntounto God, comprehendeth these fowre things. 1. to acknowledge God to be our Lord, and that we are not our owne. 2. and therefore we must seeke to doe Gods will, and not our owne. 3. as we beginne with Gods will, so must we ende with his glorie, making it the scope of our whole life, and the actions thereof. 4. and in all our troubles and afflictions, we must put our trust in God, and relie vponupon his care, as one that care … vsus: likewise to die vntounto the Lord, is 1. to acknowledge, that as we receiued our life from him so death commeth not without his sending. 2. to take therefore patiently diseases, and death it selfe, as sent of God. 3. as in our life, so in our death, to glorifie God, and not to doe any thing whereby he might be dishonoured. 4. to hauehave good hope and confidence in our death, that God will raise vsus vp to life againe.
Quest. 18. How Christ by his dying and rising againe, is said to be Lord both of the dead and quicke.
1. The Apostle maketh mention of the death of Christ, his resurrection, and life: by the first acquisivit dominium, he purchased this dominion, by the second, occupavit, he tooke possession of this dominion.
2. And although Christ had purchased this dominion in his death, yet he had not the exercise of this dominion, vntill he was risen againe: for it is one thing Dominium esse, to be a Lord, an other dominari, to hane rule; the one is, per potestatem, by his power, the other per potestatis exercitionem, by the exercising of this power: for by death was Christs soule separated from his bodie, which till they were vnited againe, he could not exercise his dominion perfectly as man, Tolet: and then a thing is said to be, when it is made manifest: by his resurrection his power and conquest ouer death was made knowne: and so the interlinear. gloss. well interpreteth, vt dominari intelligatur, that he might be knowne to beare rule.
3. And the Apostle speaketh not here 1. of that dominion which Christ hath as God, for that he had before, and should hauehave exercised still, though he had not died. 2. nor yet as Origen here resolueth, is mention made of his death and life, because Christ was an example of obedience vntounto vsus, how to liue vntounto righteousnesse and die vntounto sinne, and therefore he is Lord of both: for this sauoureth too much of Pelagianisme, to make Christ an example onelyonly by the imitation whereof, we should learne to be mortified. 3. neither yet is his death mentioned, to shewe this dominion to be merited, for Christ merited not at all for himselfe, as shall be shewed among the controversies, contr. 8. 4. but onelyonly that dominion is signified, which Christ purchased, in redeeming vsus by death, as man: As God he had an vniuersall dominion, but as man he hath a particular dominion and right ouer vsus, as his inheritance purchased by his blood.
4. Ouer the dead, and the quicke. 1. Origen vnderstandeth the spirituall life and death: but the Apostle speaketh of the naturall, as Christ truely died and rose againe. 2. the dead are set be…ore the quicke, to shewe Christs vniuersall dominion, not onelyonly ouer the then liuing, but euen ouer the dead also that had beene liuing before, Pareus. 3. and he mentioneth the liuing, least it might be thought, that the iudgement onelyonly in the world to come of the dead, was committed vntounto Christ; and not of the liuing here, Gorrhan, Hugo. 4. and whereas our Blessed Sauiour saith, Matth. 22. That he is not the God of the dead, and the Apostle here saith, that he might be Lord of the dead and quicke: they are not contrarie the one to the other: for in the one place, they are said to be dead according to the Sadduces sense, that had no beeing at all, but were vtterly perished and extinct both in bodie and soule, of such the Lord is not God: for he is not a God of that which is not, Martyr: as he is not their God, as they are dead, but as he purposeth to raise them to life againe: but here by the dead the Apostle vnderstandeth them, that are aliue in soule though dead in bodie. 5. Chrysostome addeth that the Apostle here, Iudaizantem pudefacit, doth shame him, that did Iudaize: that seeing Christ had done so great things, in dying and rising again for them, they should not be so vnthankfull, vt ad legem recurrerent, as to runne vntounto the law againe.