The Canons of Dort
Table of
Contents
- First Head of Doctrine
- Divine Election and Reprobation
- Articles of Faith
- Rejection of Errors
- Second Head of Doctrine
- The Death of Christ, and the Redemption of Men
Thereby
- Articles of Faith
- Rejection of Errors
- Third and Fourth Heads of Doctrine
- The Corruption of Man, His Conversion to God, and the
Manner Thereof
- Articles of Faith
- Rejection of Errors
- Fifth Head of Doctrine
- The Perseverance of the Saints
- Articles of Faith
- Rejection of Errors
- Conclusion
First Head of Doctrine
Divine Election and Reprobation
Article 1
As all men have sinned in Adam, lie under the curse, and are
deserving of eternal death, God would have done no injustice by
leaving them all to perish and delivering them over to
condemnation on account of sin, according to the words of the
apostle: That every mouth may be stopped, and all the world
may be brought under the judgment of God (Rom. 3:19). And:
For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God (Rom.
3:23). And: For the wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23).
Article 2
But in this the love of God was manifested, that He sent his
only begotten Son into the world, that whosoever believeth on him
should not perish, but have eternal life (1 John 4:9; John
3:16).
Article 3
And that men may be brought to believe, God mercifully sends the
messengers of these most joyful tidings to whom He will and at
what time He pleases; by whose ministry men are called to
repentance and faith in Christ crucified. How then shall they
call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they
believe in him whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear
without a preacher? And how shall they preach except they be
sent? (Rom. 10:14, 15).
Article 4
The wrath of God abides upon those who believe not this gospel.
But such as receive it and embrace Jesus the Savior by a true and
living faith are by Him delivered from the wrath of God and from
destruction, and have the gift of eternal life conferred upon
them.
Article 5
The cause or guilt of this unbelief as well as of all other sins
is no wise in God, but in man himself; whereas faith in Jesus
Christ and salvation through Him is the free gift of God, as it
is written: By grace have ye been saved through faith; and
that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God (Eph. 2:8).
Likewise: To you it hath been granted in the behalf of Christ,
not only to believe on him, etc. (Phil. 1:29).
Article 6
That some receive the gift of faith from God, and others do not
receive it, proceeds from Gods eternal decree. For known unto
God are all his works from the beginning of the world (Acts
15:18, A.V.). Who worketh all things after the counsel of his
will (Eph. 1:11). According to which decree He graciously
softens the hearts of the elect, however obstinate, and inclines
them to believe; while He leaves the non- elect in His just
judgment to their own wickedness and obduracy. And herein is
especially displayed the profound, the merciful, and at the same
time the righteous discrimination between men equally involved in
ruin; or that decree of election and reprobation, revealed in the
Word of God, which, though men of perverse, impure, and unstable
minds wrest it to their own destruction, yet to holy and pious
souls affords unspeakable consolation.
Article 7
Election is the unchangeable purpose of God, whereby, before the
foundation of the world, He has out of mere grace, according to
the sovereign good pleasure of His own will, chosen from the
whole human race, which had fallen through their own fault from
their primitive state of rectitude into sin and destruction, a
certain number of persons to redemption in Christ, whom He from
eternity appointed the Mediator and Head of the elect and the
foundation of salvation. This elect number, though by nature
neither better nor more deserving than others, but with them
involved in one common misery, God has decreed to give to Christ
to be saved by Him, and effectually to call and draw them to His
communion by His Word and Spirit; to bestow upon them true faith,
justification, and sanctification; and having powerfully
preserved them in the fellowship of His Son, finally to glorify
them for the demonstration of His mercy, and for the praise of
the riches of His glorious grace; as it is written: Even as he
chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we
should be holy and without blemish before him in love: having
foreordained us unto adoption as sons through Jesus Christ unto
himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the
praise of the glory of his grace, which he freely bestowed on us
in the Beloved (Eph. 1:4, 5, 6). And elsewhere: Whom he
foreordained, them he also called: and whom he called, them he
also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified
(Rom. 8:30).
Article 8
There are not various decrees of election, but one and the same
decree respecting all those who shall be saved, both under the
Old and the New Testament; since the Scripture declares the good
pleasure, purpose, and counsel of the divine will to be one,
according to which He has chosen us from eternity, both to grace
and to glory, to salvation and to the way of salvation, which He
has ordained that we should walk therein (Eph. 1:4, 5; 2:10).
Article 9
This election was not founded upon foreseen faith and the
obedience of faith, holiness, or any other good quality or
disposition in man, as the prerequisite, cause, or condition on
which it depended; but men are chosen to faith and to the
obedience of faith, holiness, etc. Therefore election is the
fountain of every saving good, from which proceed faith,
holiness, and the other gifts of salvation, and finally eternal
life itself, as its fruits and effects, according to the
testimony of the apostle: He hath chosen us (not because
we were, but) that we should be holy, and without blemish
before him in love (Eph. 1:4).
Article 10
The good pleasure of God is the sole cause of this gracious
election; which does not consist herein that out of all possible
qualities and actions of men God has chosen some as a condition
of salvation, but that He was pleased out of the common mass of
sinners to adopt some certain persons as a peculiar people to
Himself, as it is written: For the children being not yet
born, neither having done anything good or bad, etc., it
was said unto her (namely, to Rebekah), The elder shall
serve the younger. Even as it is written, Jacob I loved, but Esau
I hated (Rom. 9:11, 12, 13). And as many as were ordained
to eternal life believed (Acts 13:48).
Article 11
And as God Himself is most wise, unchangeable, omniscient, and
omnipotent, so the election made by Him can neither be
interrupted nor changed, recalled, or annulled; neither can the
elect be cast away, nor their number diminished.
Article 12
The elect in due time, though in various degrees and in different
measures, attain the assurance of this their eternal and
unchangeable election, not by inquisitively prying into the
secret and deep things of God, but by observing in themselves
with a spiritual joy and holy pleasure the infallible fruits of
election pointed out in the Word of God such as, a true faith in
Christ, filial fear, a godly sorrow for sin, a hungering and
thirsting after righteousness, etc.
Article 13
The sense and certainty of this election afford to the children
of God additional matter for daily humiliation before Him, for
adoring the depth of His mercies, for cleansing themselves, and
rendering grateful returns of ardent love to Him who first
manifested so great love towards them. The consideration of this
doctrine of election is so far from encouraging remissness in the
observance of the divine commands or from sinking men in carnal
security, that these, in the just judgment of God, are the usual
effects of rash presumption or of idle and wanton trifling with
the grace of election, in those who refuse to walk in the ways of
the elect.
Article 14
As the doctrine of divine election by the most wise counsel of
God was declared by the prophets, by Christ Himself, and by the
apostles, and is clearly revealed in the Scriptures both of the
Old and the New Testament, so it is still to be published in due
time and place in the Church of God, for which it was peculiarly
designed, provided it be done with reverence, in the spirit of
discretion and piety, for the glory of Gods most holy Name, and
for enlivening and comforting His people, without vainly
attempting to investigate the secret ways of the Most High (Acts
20:27; Rom. 11:33, 34; 12:3; Heb. 6:17, 18).
Article 15
What peculiarly tends to illustrate and recommend to us the
eternal and unmerited grace of election is the express testimony
of sacred Scripture that not all, but some only, are elected,
while others are passed by in the eternal decree; whom God, out
of His sovereign, most just, irreprehensible, and unchangeable
good pleasure, has decreed to leave in the common misery into
which they have wilfully plunged themselves, and not to bestow
upon them saving faith and the grace of conversion; but,
permitting them in His just judgment to follow their own ways, at
last, for the declaration of His justice, to condemn and punish
them forever, not only on account of their unbelief, but also for
all their other sins. And this is the decree of reprobation,
which by no means makes God the Author of sin (the very thought
of which is blasphemy), but declares Him to be an awful,
irreprehensible, and righteous Judge and Avenger thereof.
Article 16
Those in whom a living faith in Christ, an assured confidence of
soul, peace of conscience, an earnest endeavor after filial
obedience, a glorying in God through Christ, is not as yet
strongly felt, and who nevertheless make use of the means which
God has appointed for working these graces in us, ought not to be
alarmed at the mention of reprobation, nor to rank themselves
among the reprobate, but diligently to persevere in the use of
means, and with ardent desires devoutly and humbly to wait for a
season of richer grace. Much less cause to be terrified by the
doctrine of reprobation have they who, though they seriously
desire to be turned to God, to please Him only, and to be
delivered from the body of death, cannot yet reach that measure
of holiness and faith to which they aspire; since a merciful God
has promised that He will not quench the smoking flax, nor break
the bruised reed. But this doctrine is justly terrible to those
who, regardless of God and of the Savior Jesus Christ, have
wholly given themselves up to the cares of the world and the
pleasures of the flesh, so long as they are not seriously
converted to God.
Article 17
Since we are to judge of the will of God from His Word, which
testifies that the children of believers are holy, not by nature,
but in virtue of the covenant of grace, in which they together
with the parents are comprehended, godly parents ought not to
doubt the election and salvation of their children whom it
pleases God to call out of this life in their infancy (Gen. 17:7;
Acts 2:39; 1 Cor. 7:14).
Article 18
To those who murmur at the free grace of election and the just
severity of reprobation we answer with the apostle: Nay but, O
man, who art thou that repliest against God? (Rom. 9:20), and
quote the language of our Savior: Is it not lawful for me to
do what I will with mine own? (Matt. 20:15). And therefore,
with holy adoration of these mysteries, we exclaim in the words
of the apostle: O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom
and the knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and
his ways past tracing out! For who hath known the mind of the
Lord, or who hath been his counsellor? or who hath first given to
him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and
through him, and unto him are all things. To him be the glory for
ever. Amen. (Rom. 11:3336). [Return to
Contents]
REJECTION OF ERRORS
The true doctrine concerning election and reprobation having been
explained, the Synod rejects the errors of those:
Paragraph 1
Who teach: That the will of God to save those who would believe
and would persevere in faith and in the obedience of faith is the
whole and entire decree of election unto salvation, and that
nothing else concerning this decree has been revealed in Gods
Word.
For these deceive the simple and plainly contradict the
Scriptures, which declare that God will not only save those who
will believe, but that He has also from eternity chosen certain
particular persons to whom, above others, He will grant, in time,
both faith in Christ and perseverance; as it is written: I
manifested thy name unto the men whom thou gavest me out of the
world (John 17:6). And as many as were ordained to eternal
life believed (Acts 13:48). And: Even as he chose us in
him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy
and without blemish before him in love (Eph. 1:4).
Paragraph 2
Who teach: That there are various kinds of election of God unto
eternal life: the one general and indefinite, the other
particular and definite; and that the latter in turn is either
incomplete, revocable, non-decisive, and conditional, or
complete, irrevocable, decisive, and absolute. Likewise: That
there is one election unto faith and another unto salvation, so
that election can be unto justifying faith, without being a
decisive election unto salvation.
For this is a fancy of mens minds, invented regardless of the
Scriptures, whereby the doctrine of election is corrupted, and
this golden chain of our salvation is broken: And whom he
foreordained, them he also called: and whom he called, them he
also justified: and whom he justified, them he also
glorified(Rom. 8:30).
Paragraph 3
Who teach: That the good pleasure and purpose of God, of which
Scripture makes mention in the doctrine of election, does not
consist in this, that God chose certain persons rather than
others, but in this, that He chose out of all possible conditions
(among which are also the works of the law), or out of the whole
order of things, the act of faith which from its very nature is
undeserving, as well as its incomplete obedience, as a condition
of salvation, and that He would graciously consider this in
itself as a complete obedience and count it worthy of the reward
of eternal life.
For by this injurious error the pleasure of God and the merits
of Christ are made of none effect, and men are drawn away by
useless questions from the truth of gracious justification and
from the simplicity of Scripture, and this declaration of the
apostle is charged as untrue: Who saved us, and called us with
a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his
own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before
times eternal (2 Tim. 1:9).
Paragraph 4
Who teach: That in the election unto faith this condition is
beforehand demanded that man should use his innate understanding
of God aright, be pious, humble, meek, and fit for eternal life,
as if on these things election were in any way dependent.
For this savors of the teaching of Pelagius, and is opposed to
the doctrine of the apostle when he writes: Among whom we also
all once lived in the lust of our flesh, doing the desires of the
flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even
as the rest; but God, being rich in mercy, for his great love
wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead through our
trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace have ye
been saved), and raised us up with him, and made us to sit with
him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus; that in the ages to
come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in kindness
towards us in Christ Jesus; for by grace have ye been saved
through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;
not of works, that no man should glory (Eph. 2:39).
Paragraph 5
Who teach: That the incomplete and non-decisive election of
particular persons to salvation occurred because of a foreseen
faith, conversion, holiness, godliness, which either began or
continued for some time; but that the complete and decisive
election occurred because of foreseen perseverance unto the end
in faith, conversion, holiness, and godliness; and that this is
the gracious and evangelical worthiness, for the sake of which he
who is chosen is more worthy than he who is not chosen; and that
therefore faith, the obedience of faith, holiness, godliness, and
perseverance are not fruits of the unchangeable election unto
glory, but are conditions which, being required beforehand, were
foreseen as being met by those who will be fully elected, and are
causes without which the unchangeable election to glory does not
occur.
This is repugnant to the entire Scripture, which constantly
inculcates this and similar declara tions: Election is not of
works, but of him that calleth (Rom. 9:11). And as many as
were ordained to eternal life believed (Acts 13:48). He
chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we
should be holy (Eph. 1:4). Ye did not choose me, but I
chose you (John 15:16). But if it is by grace, it is no
more of works (Rom. 11:6). Herein is love, not that we
loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son (1 John
4:10).
Paragraph 6
Who teach: That not every election unto salvation is
unchangeable, but that some of the elect, any decree of God
notwithstanding, can yet perish and do indeed perish.
By this gross error they make God to be changeable, and
destroy the comfort which the godly obtain out of the firmness of
their election, and contradict the Holy Scripture, which teaches
that the elect can not be led astray (Matt. 24:24), that
Christ does not lose those whom the Father gave him (John
6:39), and that God also glorified those whom he foreordained,
called, and justified (Rom. 8:30).
Paragraph 7
Who teach: That there is in this life no fruit and no
consciousness of the unchangeable election to glory, nor any
certainty, except that which depends on a changeable and
uncertain condition.
For not only is it absurd to speak of an uncertain certainty,
but also contrary to the experience of the saints, who by virtue
of the consciousness of their election rejoice with the apostle
and praise this favor of God (Eph. 1); who according to Christs
admonition rejoice with his disciples that their names are
written in heaven (Luke 10:20); who also place the
consciousness of their election over against the fiery darts of
the devil, asking: Who shall lay anything to the charge of
Gods elect? (Rom. 8:33).
Paragraph 8
Who teach: That God, simply by virtue of His righteous will, did
not decide either to leave anyone in the fall of Adam and in the
common state of sin and condemnation, or to pass anyone by in the
communication of grace which is necessary for faith and
conversion.
For this is firmly decreed: He hath mercy on whom he will,
and whom he will he hardeneth (Rom. 9:18). And also this:
Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of
heaven, but to them it is not given (Matt. 13:11). Likewise:
I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou
didst hide these things from the wise and understanding, and
didst reveal them unto babes; yea, Father, for so it was
well-pleasing in thy sight (Matt. 11:25, 26).
Paragraph 9
Who teach: That the reason why God sends the gospel to one people
rather than to another is not merely and solely the good pleasure
of God, but rather the fact that one people is better and
worthier than another to which the gospel is not communicated.
For this Moses denies, addressing the people of Israel as
follows: Behold, unto Jehovah thy God belongeth heaven and the
heaven of heavens, the earth, with all that is therein. Only
Jehovah had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and he chose
their seed after them, even you above all peoples, as at this
day(Deut. 10:14, 15). And Christ said: Woe unto thee,
Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had
been done in Tyre and Sidon which were done in you, they would
have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes (Matt. 11:21).
[Return to Contents]
Second Head of Doctrine
The Death of Christ, and the Redemption of Men Thereby
Article 1
God is not only supremely merciful, but also supremely just. And
His justice requires (as He has revealed Himself in His Word)
that our sins committed against His infinite majesty should be
punished, not only with temporal but with eternal punishments,
both in body and soul; which we cannot escape, unless
satisfaction be made to the justice of God.
Article 2
Since, therefore, we are unable to make that satisfaction in our
own persons, or to deliver ourselves from the wrath of God, He
has been pleased of His infinite mercy to give His only begotten
Son for our Surety, who was made sin, and became a curse for us
and in our stead, that He might make satisfaction to divine
justice on our behalf.
Article 3
The death of the Son of God is the only and most perfect
sacrifice and satisfaction for sin, and is of infinite worth and
value, abundantly sufficient to expiate the sins of the whole
world.
Article 4
This death is of such infinite value and dignity because the
person who submitted to it was not only really man and perfectly
holy, but also the only begotten Son of God, of the same eternal
and infinite essence with the Father and the Holy Spirit, which
qualifications were necessary to constitute Him a Savior for us;
and, moreover, because it was attended with a sense of the wrath
and curse of God due to us for sin.
Article 5
Moreover, the promise of the gospel is that whosoever believes in
Christ crucified shall not perish, but have eternal life. This
promise, together with the command to repent and believe, ought
to be declared and published to all nations, and to all persons
promiscuously and without distinction, to whom God out of His
good pleasure sends the gospel.
Article 6
And, whereas many who are called by the gospel do not repent nor
believe in Christ, but perish in unbelief, this is not owing to
any defect or insufficiency in the sacrifice offered by Christ
upon the cross, but is wholly to be imputed to themselves.
Article 7
But as many as truly believe, and are delivered and saved from
sin and destruction through the death of Christ, are indebted for
this benefit solely to the grace of God given them in Christ from
everlasting, and not to any merit of their own.
Article 8
For this was the sovereign counsel and most gracious will and
purpose of God the Father that the quickening and saving efficacy
of the most precious death of His Son should extend to all the
elect, for bestowing upon them alone the gift of justifying
faith, thereby to bring them infallibly to salvation; that is, it
was the will of God that Christ by the blood of the cross,
whereby He confirmed the new covenant, should effectually redeem
out of every people, tribe, nation, and language, all those, and
those only, who were from eternity chosen to salvation and given
to Him by the Father; that He should confer upon them faith,
which, together with all the other saving gifts of the Holy
Spirit, He purchased for them by His death; should purge them
from all sin, both original and actual, whether committed before
or after believing; and having faithfully preserved them even to
the end, should at last bring them, free from every spot and
blemish, to the enjoyment of glory in His own presence forever.
Article 9
This purpose, proceeding from everlasting love towards the elect,
has from the beginning of the world to this day been powerfully
accomplished, and will henceforward still continue to be
accomplished, notwithstanding all the ineffectual opposition of
the gates of hell; so that the elect in due time may be gathered
together into one, and that there never may be wanting a Church
composed of believers, the foundation of which is laid in the
blood of Christ; which may steadfastly love and faithfully serve
Him as its Savior (who, as a bridegroom for his bride, laid down
His life for them upon the cross); and which may celebrate His
praises here and through all eternity. [Return to Contents]
REJECTION OF ERRORS
The true doctrine having been explained, the Synod rejects the
errors of those:
Paragraph 1
Who teach: That God the Father has ordained His Son to the death
of the cross without a certain and definite decree to save any,
so that the necessity, profitableness, and worth of what Christ
merited by His death might have existed, and might remain in all
its parts complete, perfect, and intact, even if the merited
redemption had never in fact been applied to any person.
For this doctrine tends to the despising of the wisdom of the
Father and of the merits of Jesus Christ, and is contrary to
Scripture. For thus says our Savior: I lay down my life for
the sheep, and I know them (John 10:15, 27). And the prophet
Isaiah says concerning the Savior: When thou shalt make his
soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong
his days, and the pleasure of Jehovah shall prosper in his
hand (Is. 53:10). Finally, this contradicts the article of
faith according to which we believe the catholic Christian
Church.
Paragraph 2
Who teach: That it was not the purpose of the death of Christ
that He should confirm the new covenant of grace through His
blood, but only that He should acquire for the Father the mere
right to establish with man such a covenant as He might please,
whether of grace or of works.
For this is repugnant to Scripture which teaches that
Christ hath become the surety and mediator of a better, that
is, the new covenant, and that a testament is of force where
there hath been death (Heb. 7:22; 9:15, 17).
Paragraph 3
Who teach: That Christ by His satisfaction merited neither
salvation itself for anyone, nor faith, whereby this satisfaction
of Christ unto salvation is effectually appropriated; but that He
merited for the Father only the authority or the perfect will to
deal again with man, and to prescribe new conditions as He might
desire, obedience to which, however, depended on the free will of
man, so that it therefore might have come to pass that either
none or all should fulfill these conditions.
For these adjudge too contemptuously of the death of Christ,
in no wise acknowledge the most important fruit or benefit
thereby gained, and bring again out of hell the Pelagian
error.
Paragraph 4
Who teach: That the new covenant of grace, which God the Father,
through the mediation of the death of Christ, made with man, does
not herein consist that we by faith, inasmuch as it accepts the
merits of Christ, are justified before God and saved, but in the
fact that God, having revoked the demand of perfect obedience of
faith, regards faith itself and the obedience of faith, although
imperfect, as the perfect obedience of the law, and does esteem
it worthy of the reward of eternal life through grace.
For these contradict the Scriptures: Being justified freely
by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus; whom
God set forth to be a propitiation, through faith, in his
blood (Rom. 3:24, 25). And these proclaim, as did the wicked
Socinus, a new and strange justification of man before God,
against the consensus of the whole Church.
Paragraph 5
Who teach: That all men have been accepted unto the state of
reconciliation and unto the grace of the covenant, so that no one
is worthy of condemnation on account of original sin, and that no
one shall be condemned because of it, but that all are free from
the guilt of original sin.
For this opinion is repugnant to Scripture which teaches that
we are by nature children of wrath(Eph. 2:3).
Paragraph 6
Who use the difference between meriting and appropriating, to the
end that they may instil into the minds of the imprudent and
inexperienced this teaching that God, as far as He is concerned,
has been minded to apply to all equally the benefits gained by
the death of Christ; but that, while some obtain the pardon of
sin and eternal life, and others do not, this difference depends
on their own free will, which joins itself to the grace that is
offered without exception, and that it is not dependent on the
special gift of mercy, which powerfully works in them, that they
rather than others should appropriate unto themselves this grace.
For these, while they feign that they present this distinction
in a sound sense, seek to instil into the people the destructive
poison of the Pelagian errors.
Paragraph 7
Who teach: That Christ neither could die, nor needed to die, and
also did not die, for those whom God loved in the highest degree
and elected to eternal life, since these do not need the death of
Christ.
For they contradict the apostle, who declares: Christ loved
me, and gave himself up for me (Gal. 2:20). Likewise: Who
shall lay anything to the charge of Gods elect? It is God that
justifieth; who is he that condemneth? It is Christ Jesus that
died (Rom. 8:33, 34), namely, for them; and the Savior who
says: I lay down my life for the sheep (John 10:15). And:
This is my commandment, that ye love one another, even as I
have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man
lay down his life for his friends (John 15:12, 13). [Return to Contents]
Third and Fourth Heads of
Doctrine
The Corruption of Man, His Conversion to God, and the Manner
Thereof
Article 1
Man was originally formed after the image of God. His
understanding was adorned with a true and saving knowledge of his
Creator, and of spiritual things; his heart and will were
upright, all his affections pure, and the whole man was holy.
But, revolting from God by the instigation of the devil and by
his own free will, he forfeited these excellent gifts; and in the
place thereof became involved in blindness of mind, horrible
darkness, vanity, and perverseness of judgment; became wicked,
rebellious, and obdurate in heart and will, and impure in his
affections.
Article 2
Man after the fall begat children in his own likeness. A corrupt
stock produced a corrupt offspring. Hence all the posterity of
Adam, Christ only excepted, have derived corruption from their
original parent, not by imitation, as the Pelagians of old
asserted, but by the propagation of a vicious nature, in
consequence of the just judgment of God.
Article 3
Therefore all men are conceived in sin, and are by nature
children of wrath, incapable of saving good, prone to evil, dead
in sin, and in bondage thereto; and without the regenerating
grace of the Holy Spirit, they are neither able nor willing to
return to God, to reform the depravity of their nature, or to
dispose themselves to reformation.
Article 4
There remain, however, in man since the fall, the glimmerings of
natural understanding, whereby he retains some knowledge of God,
of natural things, and of the difference between good and evil,
and shows some regard for virtue and for good outward behavior.
But so far is this understanding of nature from being sufficient
to bring him to a saving knowledge of God and to true conversion
that he is incapable of using it aright even in things natural
and civil. Nay further, this understanding, such as it is, man in
various ways renders wholly polluted, and hinders in
unrighteousness, by doing which he becomes inexcusable before
God.
Article 5
Neither can the decalogue delivered by God to His peculiar
people, the Jews, by the hands of Moses, save men. For though it
reveals the greatness of sin, and more and more convinces man
thereof, yet, as it neither points out a remedy nor imparts
strength to extricate him from this misery, but, being weak
through the flesh, leaves the transgressor under the curse, man
cannot by this law obtain saving grace.
Article 6
What, therefore, neither the innate understanding nor the law
could do, that God performs by the operation of the Holy Spirit
through the word or ministry of reconciliation; which is the glad
tidings concerning the Messiah, by means whereof it has pleased
God to save such as believe, as well under the Old as under the
New Testament.
Article 7
This mystery of His will God revealed to but a small number under
the Old Testament; under the New Testament (the distinction
between various peoples having been removed) He reveals it to
many. The cause of this dispensation is not to be ascribed to the
superior worth of one nation above another, nor to their better
use of the innate understanding of God, but results wholly from
the sovereign good pleasure and unmerited love of God. Hence they
to whom so great and so gracious a blessing is communicated,
above their desert, or rather notwithstanding their demerits, are
bound to acknowledge it with humble and grateful hearts, and with
the apostle to adore, but in no wise curiously to pry into, the
severity and justice of God s judgments displayed in others to
whom this grace is not given.
Article 8
As many as are called by the gospel are unfeignedly called. For
God has most earnestly and truly declared in His Word what is
acceptable to Him, namely, that those who are called should come
unto Him. He also seriously promises rest of soul and eternal
life to all who come to Him and believe.
Article 9
It is not the fault of the gospel, nor of Christ offered therein,
nor of God, who calls men by the gospel and confers upon them
various gifts, that those who are called by the ministry of the
Word refuse to come and be converted. The fault lies in
themselves; some of whom when called, regardless of their danger,
reject the Word of life; others, though they receive it, suffer
it not to make a lasting impression on their heart; therefore,
their joy, arising only from a temporary faith, soon vanishes,
and they fall away; while others choke the seed of the Word by
perplexing cares and the pleasures of this world, and produce no
fruit. This our Savior teaches in the parable of the sower (Matt.
13).
Article 10
But that others who are called by the gospel obey the call and
are converted is not to be ascribed to the proper exercise of
free will, whereby one distinguishes himself above others equally
furnished with grace sufficient for faith and conversion (as the
proud heresy of Pelagius maintains); but it must be wholly
ascribed to God, who, as He has chosen His own from eternity in
Christ, so He calls them effectually in time, confers upon them
faith and repentance, rescues them from the power of darkness,
and translates them into the kingdom of His own Son; that they
may show forth the praises of Him who has called them out of
darkness into His marvelous light, and may glory not in
themselves but in the Lord, according to the testimony of the
apostles in various places.
Article 11
But when God accomplishes His good pleasure in the elect, or
works in them true conversion, He not only causes the gospel to
be externally preached to them, and powerfully illuminates their
minds by His Holy Spirit, that they may rightly understand and
discern the things of the Spirit of God; but by the efficacy of
the same regenerating Spirit He pervades the inmost recesses of
man; He opens the closed and softens the hardened heart, and
circumcises that which was uncircumcised; infuses new qualities
into the will, which, though heretofore dead, He quickens; from
being evil, disobedient, and refractory, He renders it good,
obedient, and pliable; actuates and strengthens it, that like a
good tree, it may bring forth the fruits of good actions.
Article 12
And this is that regeneration so highly extolled in Scripture,
that renewal, new creation, resurrection from the dead, making
alive, which God works in us without our aid. But this is in no
wise effected merely by the external preaching of the gospel, by
moral suasion, or such a mode of operation that, after God has
performed His part, it still remains in the power of man to be
regenerated or not, to be converted or to continue unconverted;
but it is evidently a supernatural work, most powerful, and at
the same time most delightful, astonishing, mysterious, and
ineffable; not inferior in efficacy to creation or the
resurrection from the dead, as the Scripture inspired by the
Author of this work declares; so that all in whose heart God
works in this marvelous manner are certainly, infallibly, and
effectually regenerated, and do actually believe. Whereupon the
will thus renewed is not only actuated and influenced by God, but
in consequence of this influence becomes itself active. Wherefore
also man himself is rightly said to believe and repent by virtue
of that grace received.
Article 13
The manner of this operation cannot be fully comprehended by
believers in this life. Nevertheless, they are satisfied to know
and experience that by this grace of God they are enabled to
believe with the heart and to love their Savior.
Article 14
Faith is therefore to be considered as the gift of God, not on
account of its being offered by God to man, to be accepted or
rejected at his pleasure, but because it is in reality conferred
upon him, breathed and infused into him; nor even because God
bestows the power or ability to believe, and then expects that
man should by the exercise of his own free will consent to the
terms of salvation and actually believe in Christ, but because He
who works in man both to will and to work, and indeed all things
in all, produces both the will to believe and the act of
believing also.
Article 15
God is under no obligation to confer this grace upon any; for how
can He be indebted to one who had no previous gifts to bestow as
a foundation for such recompense? Nay, how can He be indebted to
one who has nothing of his own but sin and falsehood? He,
therefore, who becomes the subject of this grace owes eternal
gratitude to God, and gives Him thanks forever. Whoever is not
made partaker thereof is either altogether regardless of these
spiritual gifts and satisfied with his own condition, or is in no
apprehension of danger, and vainly boasts the possession of that
which he has not. Further, with respect to those who outwardly
profess their faith and amend their lives, we are bound, after
the example of the apostle, to judge and speak of them in the
most favorable manner; for the secret recesses of the heart are
unknown to us. And as to others who have not yet been called, it
is our duty to pray for them to God, who calls the things that
are not as if they were. But we are in no wise to conduct
ourselves towards them with haughtiness, as if we had made
ourselves to differ.
Article 16
But as man by the fall did not cease to be a creature endowed
with understanding and will, nor did sin which pervaded the whole
race of mankind deprive him of the human nature, but brought upon
him depravity and spiritual death; so also this grace of
regeneration does not treat men as senseless stocks and blocks,
nor take away their will and its properties, or do violence
thereto; but it spiritually quickens, heals, corrects, and at the
same time sweetly and powerfully bends it, that where carnal
rebellion and resistance formerly prevailed, a ready and sincere
spiritual obedience begins to reign; in which the true and
spiritual restoration and freedom of our will consist. Wherefore,
unless the admirable Author of every good work so deal with us,
man can have no hope of being able to rise from his fall by his
own free will, by which, in a state of innocence, he plunged
himself into ruin.
Article 17
As the almighty operation of God whereby He brings forth and
supports this our natural life does not exclude but require the
use of means by which God, of His infinite mercy and goodness,
has chosen to exert His influence, so also the aforementioned
supernatural operation of God by which we are regenerated in no
wise excludes or subverts the use of the gospel, which the most
wise God has ordained to be the seed of regeneration and food of
the soul. Wherefore, as the apostles and the teachers who
succeeded them piously instructed the people concerning this
grace of God, to His glory and to the abasement of all pride, and
in the meantime, however, neglected not to keep them, by the holy
admoni tions of the gospel, under the influence of the Word, the
sacraments, and ecclesiastical discipline; so even now it should
be far from those who give or receive instruction in the Church
to presume to tempt God by separating what He of His good
pleasure has most intimately joined together. For grace is
conferred by means of admonitions; and the more readily we
perform our duty, the more clearly this favor of God, working in
us, usually manifests itself, and the more directly His work is
advanced; to whom alone all the glory, both for the means and for
their saving fruit and efficacy, is forever due. Amen. [Return to Contents]
REJECTION OF ERRORS
The true doctrine having been explained, the Synod rejects the
errors of those:
Paragraph 1
Who teach: That it cannot properly be said that original sin in
itself suffices to condemn the whole human race or to deserve
temporal and eternal punishment.
For these contradict the apostle, who declares: Therefore,
as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through
sin; and so death passed unto all men, for that all sinned
(Rom. 5:12). And: The judgment came of one unto
condemnation (Rom. 5:16). And: The wages of sin is
death (Rom. 6:23).
Paragraph 2
Who teach: That the spiritual gifts or the good qualities and
virtues, such as goodness, holiness, righteousness, could not
belong to the will of man when he was first created, and that
these, therefore, cannot have been separated therefrom in the
fall.
For such is contrary to the description of the image of God
which the apostle gives in Eph. 4:24, where he declares that it
consists in righteousness and holiness, which undoubtedly belong
to the will.
Paragraph 3
Who teach: That in spiritual death the spiritual gifts are not
separate from the will of man, since the will in itself has never
been corrupted, but only hindered through the darkness of the
understanding and the irregularity of the affections; and that,
these hindrances having been removed, the will can then bring
into operation its native powers, that is, that the will of
itself is able to will and to choose, or not to will and not to
choose, all manner of good which may be presented to it.
This is an innovation and an error, and tends to elevate the
powers of the free will, contrary to the declaration of the
prophet: The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is
exceedingly corrupt (Jer. 17:9); and of the apostle: Among
whom (sons of disobedience) we also all once lived in the
lusts of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the
mind (Eph. 2:3).
Paragraph 4
Who teach: That the unregenerate man is not really nor utterly
dead in sin, nor destitute of all powers unto spiritual good, but
that he can yet hunger and thirst after righteousness and life,
and offer the sacrifice of a contrite and broken spirit, which is
pleasing to God.
For these things are contrary to the express testimony of
Scripture: Ye were dead through your trespasses and sins
(Eph. 2:1, 5). And: Every imagination of the thoughts of his
heart was only evil continually (Gen. 6:5; 8:21). Moreover,
to hunger and thirst after deliverance from misery and after
life, and to offer unto God the sacrifice of a broken spirit, is
peculiar to the regenerate and those that are called blessed (Ps.
51:17; Matt. 5:6).
Paragraph 5
Who teach: That the corrupt and natural man can so well use the
common grace (by which they understand the light of nature), or
the gifts still left him after the fall, that he can gradually
gain by their good use a greater, that is, the evangelical or
saving grace, and salvation itself; and that in this way God on
His part shows Himself ready to reveal Christ unto all men, since
He applies to all sufficiently and efficiently the means
necessary to conversion.
For both the experience of all ages and the Scriptures testify
that this is untrue. He showeth his word unto Jacob, his
statutes and his ordinances unto Israel. He hath not dealt so
with any nation; and as for his ordinances, they have not known
them (Ps. 147:19, 20). Who in the generations gone by
suffered all the nations to walk in their own way (Acts
14:16). And: And they (Paul and his companions) having
been forbidden of the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia, when
they were come over against Mysia, they assayed to go into
Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus suffered them not (Acts
16:6, 7).
Paragraph 6
Who teach: That in the true conversion of man no new qualities,
powers, or gifts can be infused by God into the will, and that
therefore faith, through which we are first converted and because
of which we are called believers, is not a quality or gift
infused by God but only an act of man, and that it cannot be said
to be a gift, except in respect of the power to attain to this
faith.
For thereby they contradict the Holy Scriptures, which declare
that God infuses new qualities of faith, of obedience, and of the
consciousness of His love into our hearts: I will put my law
in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it
(Jer. 31:33). And: I will pour water upon him that is thirsty,
and streams upon the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon thy
seed (Is. 44:3). And: The love of God hath been shed
abroad in our hearts through the Holy Spirit which was given unto
us (Rom. 5:5). This is also repugnant to the constant
practice of the Church, which prays by the mouth of the prophet
thus: Turn thou me, and I shall be turned (Jer.
31:18).
Paragraph 7
Who teach: That the grace whereby we are converted to God is only
a gentle advising, or (as others explain it) that this is the
noblest manner of working in the conversion of man, and that this
manner of working, which consists in advising, is most in harmony
with mans nature; and that there is no reason why this advising
grace alone should not be sufficient to make the natural man
spiritual; indeed, that God does not produce the consent of the
will except through this manner of advising; and that the power
of the divine working, whereby it surpasses the working of Satan,
consists in this that God promises eternal, while Satan promises
only temporal goods.
But this is altogether Pelagian and contrary to the whole
Scripture, which, besides this, teaches yet another and far more
powerful and divine manner of the Holy Spirits working in the
conversion of man, as in Ezekiel: A new heart also will I give
you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away
the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of
flesh (Ezek. 36:26).
Paragraph 8
Who teach: That God in the regeneration of man does not use such
powers of His omnipotence as potently and infallibly bend mans
will to faith and conversion; but that all the works of grace
having been accomplished, which God employs to convert man, man
may yet so resist God and the Holy Spirit, when God intends mans
regeneration and wills to regenerate him, and indeed that man
often does so resist that he prevents entirely his regeneration,
and that it therefore remains in mans power to be regenerated or
not.
For this is nothing less than the denial of all the efficiency
of Gods grace in our conversion, and the subjecting of the
working of Almighty God to the will of man, which is contrary to
the apostles, who teach that we believe according to the
working of the strength of his might (Eph. 1:19); and that
God fulfills every desire of goodness and every work of faith
with power (2 Thess. 1:11); and that his divine power hath
granted unto us all things that pertain unto life and
godliness (2 Peter 1:3).
Paragraph 9
Who teach: That grace and free will are partial causes which
together work the beginning of conversion, and that grace, in
order of working, does not precede the working of the will; that
is, that God does not efficiently help the will of man unto
conversion until the will of man moves and determines to do this.
For the ancient Church has long ago condemned this doctrine of
the Pelagians according to the words of the apostle: So then
it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of
God that hath mercy (Rom. 9:16). Likewise: For who maketh
thee to differ? and what hast thou that thou didst not
receive? (1 Cor. 4:7). And: For it is God who worketh in
you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure(Phil.
2:13). [Return to Contents]
Fifth Head of Doctrine
The Perseverance of the Saints
Article 1
Those whom God, according to His purpose, calls to the communion
of His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and regenerates by the Holy
Spirit, He also delivers from the dominion and slavery of sin,
though in this life He does not deliver them altogether from the
body of sin and from the infirmities of the flesh.
Article 2
Hence spring forth the daily sins of infirmity, and blemishes
cleave even to the best works of the saints. These are to them a
perpetual reason to humiliate themselves before God and to flee
for refuge to Christ crucified; to mortify the flesh more and
more by the spirit of prayer and by holy exercises of piety; and
to press forward to the goal of perfection, until at length,
delivered from this body of death, they shall reign with the Lamb
of God in heaven.
Article 3
By reason of these remains of indwelling sin, and also because of
the temptations of the world and of Satan, those who are
converted could not persevere in that grace if left to their own
strength. But God is faithful, who, having conferred grace,
mercifully confirms and powerfully preserves them therein, even
to the end.
Article 4
Although the weakness of the flesh cannot prevail against the
power of God, who confirms and preserves true believers in a
state of grace, yet converts are not always so influenced and
actuated by the Spirit of God as not in some particular instances
sinfully to deviate from the guidance of divine grace, so as to
be seduced by and to comply with the lusts of the flesh; they
must, therefore, be constant in watching and prayer, that they
may not be led into temptation. When these are neglected, they
are not only liable to be drawn into great and heinous sins by
the flesh, the world, and Satan, but sometimes by the righteous
permission of God actually are drawn into these evils. This, the
lamentable fall of David, Peter, and other saints described in
Holy Scripture, demonstrates.
Article 5
By such enormous sins, however, they very highly offend God,
incur a deadly guilt, grieve the Holy Spirit, interrupt the
exercise of faith, very grievously wound their consciences, and
sometimes for a while lose the sense of Gods favor, until, when
they change their course by serious repentance, the light of Gods
fatherly countenance again shines upon them.
Article 6
But God, who is rich in mercy, according to His unchangeable
purpose of election, does not wholly withdraw the Holy Spirit
from His own people even in their grievous falls; nor suffers
them to proceed so far as to lose the grace of adoption and
forfeit the state of justification, or to commit the sin unto
death or against the Holy Spirit; nor does He permit them to be
totally deserted, and to plunge themselves into everlasting
destruction.
Article 7
For in the first place, in these falls He preserves in them the
incorruptible seed of regeneration from perishing or being
totally lost; and again, by His Word and Spirit He certainly and
effectually renews them to repentance, to a sincere and godly
sorrow for their sins, that they may seek and obtain remission in
the blood of the Mediator, may again experience the favor of a
reconciled God, through faith adore His mercies, and henceforward
more diligently work out their own salvation with fear and
trembling.
Article 8
Thus it is not in consequence of their own merits or strength,
but of Gods free mercy, that they neither totally fall from faith
and grace nor continue and perish finally in their backslidings;
which, with respect to themselves is not only possible, but would
undoubtedly happen; but with respect to God, it is utterly
impossible, since His counsel cannot be changed nor His promise
fail; neither can the call according to His purpose be revoked,
nor the merit, inter- cession, and preservation of Christ be
rendered ineffectual, nor the sealing of the Holy Spirit be
frustrated or obliterated.
Article 9
Of this preservation of the elect to salvation and of their
perseverance in the faith, true believers themselves may and do
obtain assurance according to the measure of their faith, whereby
they surely believe that they are and ever will continue true and
living members of the Church, and that they have the forgiveness
of sins and life eternal.
Article 10
This assurance, however, is not produced by any peculiar
revelation contrary to or independent of the Word of God, but
springs from faith in Gods promises, which He has most abundantly
revealed in His Word for our comfort; from the testimony of the
Holy Spirit, witnessing with our spirit that we are children and
heirs of God (Rom. 8:16); and lastly, from a serious and holy
desire to preserve a good conscience and to perform good works.
And if the elect of God were deprived of this solid comfort that
they shall finally obtain the victory, and of this infallible
pledge of eternal glory, they would be of all men the most
miserable.
Article 11
The Scripture moreover testifies that believers in this life have
to struggle with various carnal doubts, and that under grievous
temptations they do not always feel this full assurance of faith
and certainty of persevering. But God, who is the Father of all
consolation, does not suffer them to be tempted above that they
are able, but will with the temptation make also the way of
escape, that they may be able to endure it (1 Cor. 10:13), and by
the Holy Spirit again inspires them with the comfortable
assurance of persevering.
Article 12
This certainty of perseverance, however, is so far from exciting
in believers a spirit of pride, or of rendering them carnally
secure, that on the contrary it is the real source of humility,
filial reverence, true piety, patience in every tribulation,
fervent prayers, constancy in suffering and in confessing the
truth, and of solid rejoicing in God; so that the consideration
of this benefit should serve as an incentive to the serious and
constant practice of gratitude and good works, as appears from
the testimonies of Scripture and the examples of the saints.
Article 13
Neither does renewed confidence of persevering produce
licentiousness or a disregard of piety in those who are recovered
from backsliding; but it renders them much more careful and
solicitous to continue in the ways of the Lord, which He has
ordained, that they who walk therein may keep the assurance of
persevering; lest, on account of their abuse of His fatherly
kindness, God should turn away His gracious countenance from them
(to behold which is to the godly dearer than life, and the
withdrawal of which is more bitter than death) and they in
consequence thereof should fall into more grievous torments of
conscience.
Article 14
And as it has pleased God, by the preaching of the gospel, to
begin this work of grace in us, so He preserves, continues, and
perfects it by the hearing and reading of His Word, by meditation
thereon, and by the exhortations, threatenings, and promises
thereof, and by the use of the sacraments.
Article 15
The carnal mind is unable to comprehend this doctrine of the
perseverance of the saints and the certainty thereof, which God
has most abundantly revealed in His Word, for the glory of His
Name and the consolation of pious souls, and which He impresses
upon the hearts of the believers. Satan abhors it, the world
ridicules it, the ignorant and hypocritical abuse it, and the
heretics oppose it. But the bride of Christ has always most
tenderly loved and constantly defended it as an inestimable
treasure; and God, against whom neither counsel nor strength can
prevail, will dispose her so to continue to the end. Now to this
one God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, be honor and glory
forever. Amen. [Return to Contents]
REJECTION OF ERRORS
The true doctrine having been explained, the Synod rejects the
errors of those:
Paragraph 1
Who teach: That the perseverance of the true believers is not a
fruit of election, or a gift of God gained by the death of
Christ, but a condition of the new covenant, which (as they
declare) man before his decisive election and justification must
fulfil through his free will.
For the Holy Scripture testifies that this follows out of
election, and is given the elect in virtue of the death, the
resurrection, and intercession of Christ: But the election
obtained it, and the rest were hardened (Rom. 11:7).
Likewise: He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up
for us all, how shall he not also with him freely give us all
things? Who shall lay anything to the charge of Gods elect? It is
God that justifieth; who is he that condemneth? It is Christ
Jesus that died, yea rather, that was raised from the dead, who
is at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? (Rom.
8:3235).
Paragraph 2
Who teach: That God does indeed provide the believer with
sufficient powers to persevere, and is ever ready to preserve
these in him if he will do his duty; but that, though all things
which are necessary to persevere in faith and which God will use
to preserve faith are made use of, even then it ever depends on
the pleasure of the will whether it will persevere or not.
For this idea contains an outspoken Pelagianism, and while it
would make men free, it makes them robbers of Gods honor,
contrary to the prevailing agreement of the evangelical doctrine,
which takes from man all cause of boasting, and ascribes all the
praise for this favor to the grace of God alone; and contrary to
the apostle, who declares that it is God, who shall also
confirm you unto the end, that ye be unreprovable in the day of
our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 1:8).
Paragraph 3
Who teach: That the true believers and regenerate not only can
fall from justifying faith and likewise from grace and salvation
wholly and to the end, but indeed often do fall from this and are
lost forever.
For this conception makes powerless the grace, justification,
regeneration, and continued preservation by Christ, contrary to
the expressed words of the apostle Paul: That, while we were
yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now
justified by his blood, shall we be saved from the wrath of God
through him (Rom. 5:8, 9). And contrary to the apostle John:
Whosoever is begotten of God doeth no sin, because his seed
abideth in him; and he can not sin, because he is begotten of
God (1 John 3:9). And also contrary to the words of Jesus
Christ: I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never
perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand. My Father,
who hath given them to me, is greater than all; and no one is
able to snatch them out of the Fathers hand (John 10:28,
29).
Paragraph 4
Who teach: That true believers and regenerate can sin the sin
unto death or against the Holy Spirit.
Since the same apostle John, after having spoken in the fifth
chapter of his first epistle, vs. 16 and 17, of those who sin
unto death and having forbidden to pray for them, immediately
adds to this in vs. 18: We know that whosoever is begotten of
God sinneth not (meaning a sin of that character), but he
that was begotten of God keepeth himself, and the evil one
toucheth him not (1 John 5:18).
Paragraph 5
Who teach: That without a special revelation we can have no
certainty of future perseverance in this life.
For by this doctrine the sure comfort of the true believers is
taken away in this life, and the doubts of the papist are again
introduced into the Church, while the Holy Scriptures constantly
deduce this assurance, not from a special and extraordinary
revelation, but from the marks proper to the children of God and
from the very constant promises of God. So especially the apostle
Paul: No creature shall be able to separate us from the love
of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom. 8:39). And
John declares: And he that keepeth his commandments abideth in
him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by
the Spirit which he gave us (1 John 3:24).
Paragraph 6
Who teach: That the doctrine of the certainty of perseverance and
of salvation from its own character and nature is a cause of
indolence and is injurious to godliness, good morals, prayers,
and other holy exercises, but that on the contrary it is
praiseworthy to doubt.
For these show that they do not know the power of divine grace
and the working of the indwelling Holy Spirit. And they
contradict the apostle John, who teaches the opposite with
express words in his first epistle: Beloved, now are we
children of God, and it is not yet made manifest what we shall
be. We know that, if he shall be manifested, we shall be like
him; for we shall see him even as he is. And every one that hath
this hope set on him purifieth himself, even as he is pure (1
John 3:2, 3). Furthermore, these are contradicted by the example
of the saints, both of the Old and the New Testament, who though
they were assured of their perseverance and salvation, were
nevertheless constant in prayers and other exercises of
godliness.
Paragraph 7
Who teach: That the faith of those who believe for a time does
not differ from justifying and saving faith except only in
duration.
For Christ Himself, in Matt. 13:20, Luke 8:13, and in other
places, evidently notes, besides this duration, a threefold
difference between those who believe only for a time and true
believers, when He declares that the former receive the seed in
stony ground, but the latter in the good ground or heart; that
the former are without root, but the latter have a firm root;
that the former are without fruit, but that the latter bring
forth their fruit in various measure, with constancy and
steadfastness.
Paragraph 8
Who teach: That it is not absurd that one having lost his first
regeneration is again and even often born anew.
For these deny by this doctrine the incorruptibleness of the
seed of God, whereby we are born again; contrary to the testimony
of the apostle Peter: Having been begotten again, not of
corruptible seed, but of incorruptible (1 Peter 1:23).
Paragraph 9
Who teach: That Christ has in no place prayed that believers
should infallibly continue in faith.
For they contradict Christ Himself, who says: I made
supplication for thee (Simon), that thy faith fail not
(Luke 22:32), and the evangelist John, who declares that Christ
has not prayed for the apostles only, but also for those who
through their word would believe: Holy Father, keep them in
thy name, and: I pray not that thou shouldest take them from the
world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil
one(John 17:11, 15, 20). [Return to
Contents]
Conclusion
And this is the perspicuous, simple, and ingenuous declaration of
the orthodox doctrine respecting the five articles which have
been controverted in the Belgic Churches; and the rejection of
the errors, with which they have for some time been troubled.
This doctrine the Synod judges to be drawn from the Word of God,
and to be agreeable to the confession of the Reformed Churches.
Whence it clearly appears that some, whom such conduct by no
means became, have violated all truth, equity, and charity, in
wishing to persuade the public:
That the doctrine of the Reformed Churches concerning
predestination, and the points annexed to it, by its own genius
and necessary tendency, leads off the minds of men from all piety
and religion; that it is an opiate administered by the flesh and
the devil; and the stronghold of Satan, where he lies in wait for
all, and from which he wounds multitudes, and mortally strikes
through many with the darts both of despair and security; that it
makes God the author of sin, unjust, tyrannical, hypocritical;
that it is nothing more than an interpolated Stoicism,
Manicheism, Libertinism, Turcism; that it renders men carnally
secure, since they are persuaded by it that nothing can hinder
the salvation of the elect, let them live as they please; and,
therefore, that they may safely perpetrate every species of the
most atrocious crimes; and that, if the reprobate should even
perform truly all the works of the saints, their obedience would
not in the least contribute to their salvation; that the same
doctrine teaches that God, by a mere arbitrary act of his will,
without the least respect or view to any sin, has predestinated
the greatest part of the world to eternal damnation, and has
created them for this very purpose; that in the same manner in
which the election is the fountain and cause of faith and good
works, reprobation is the cause of unbelief and impiety; that
many children of the faithful are torn, guiltless, from their
mothers breasts, and tyrannically plunged into hell: so that
neither baptism nor the prayers of the Church at their baptism
can at all profit them ; and many other things of the same kind
which the Reformed Churches not only do not acknowledge, but even
detest with their whole soul.
Wherefore, this Synod of Dort, in the name of the Lord,
conjures as many as piously call upon the name of our Savior
Jesus Christ to judge of the faith of the Reformed Churches, not
from the calumnies which on every side are heaped upon it, nor
from the private expressions of a few among ancient and modern
teachers, often dishonestly quoted, or corrupted and wrested to a
meaning quite foreign to their intention; but from the public
confessions of the Churches themselves, and from this declaration
of the orthodox doctrine, confirmed by the unanimous consent of
all and each of the members of the whole Synod. Moreover, the
Synod warns calumniators themselves to consider the terrible
judgment of God which awaits them, for bearing false witness
against the confessions of so many Churches; for distressing the
consciences of the weak; and for laboring to render suspected the
society of the truly faithful.
Finally, this Synod exhorts all their brethren in the gospel
of Christ to conduct themselves piously and religiously in
handling this doctrine, both in the universities and churches; to
direct it, as well in discourse as in writing, to the glory of
the Divine name, to holiness of life, and to the consolation of
afflicted souls; to regulate, by the Scripture, according to the
analogy of faith, not only their sentiments, but also their
language, and to abstain from all those phrases which exceed the
limits necessary to be observed in ascertaining the genuine sense
of the Holy Scriptures, and may furnish insolent sophists with a
just pretext for violently assailing, or even vilifying, the
doctrine of the Reformed Churches. May Jesus Christ, the Son of
God, who, seated at the Fathers right hand, gives gifts to men,
sanctify us in the truth; bring to the truth those who err; shut
the mouths of the calumniators of sound doctrine, and endue the
faithful ministers of his Word with the spirit of wisdom and
discretion, that all their discourses may tend to the glory of
God, and the edification of those who hear them. Amen. [Return to Contents]
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