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016 - Verses 9-13 · Commentary on the Epistle to the Colossians

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  Speaker 1: Section sixteen of Commentary on the Epistle to the Colossians
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  Speaker 1: by John Calvin, translated by Reverend John Pringle. The LibriVox
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  Speaker 1: recordings in the public domain Verses nine to thirteen lie
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  Speaker 1: not to one another, seeing that ye have put off
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  Speaker 1: the old man with his deeds, and have put on
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  Speaker 1: the new man, which is renewed in knowledge, after the
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  Speaker 1: image of Him that created him. Where there is neither
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  Speaker 1: Greek nor jew circumcision, nor uncircumcision, Barbarian Scythian bond, nor
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  Speaker 1: free but Christ is all and in all put on
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  Speaker 1: therefore as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels
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  Speaker 1: of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long suffering, forbearing
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  Speaker 1: one another, and forgiving one another. If any man have
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  Speaker 1: a quarrel against any even as Christ forgave you, so
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  Speaker 1: also do ye nine lie not. When He forbids lying.
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  Speaker 1: He condemns every sort of cunning and all base artifices
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  Speaker 1: of deception. For I do not understand the term as
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  Speaker 1: referring merely to calumnies, but I view it as contrasted
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  Speaker 1: in a general way with sincerity. Hence it might be
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  Speaker 1: allowable to render it more briefly and I am not sure,
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  Speaker 1: but that it might also be a better rendering. Thus
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  Speaker 1: lie not one to another. He follows out, however, his
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  Speaker 1: argument as to the fellowship which believers have in the
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  Speaker 1: death and resurrection of Christ, but employs other forms of expression.
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  Speaker 1: The old Man denotes whatever we bring from our mother's womb,
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  Speaker 1: and whatever we are by nature, it is put off
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  Speaker 1: by all that are renewed by Christ. The new Man,
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  Speaker 1: on the other hand, is that which is renewed by
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  Speaker 1: the Spirit of Christ to the obedience of righteousness, or
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  Speaker 1: it is nature restored to its true integrity by the
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  Speaker 1: same spirit. The old Man, however, comes first in order,
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  Speaker 1: because we are first born from Adam and afterwards are
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  Speaker 1: born again through Christ. And as what we have from
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  Speaker 1: Adam becomes old and tends toward ruin, so what we
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  Speaker 1: obtain through Christ remains forever and is not frail, but
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  Speaker 1: on the contrary, tends toward immortality. This passage is worthy
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  Speaker 1: of notice inasmuch as a definition of regeneration may be
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  Speaker 1: gathered from it, for it contains two parts, the putting
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  Speaker 1: off of the old man and the putting on of
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  Speaker 1: the new And of these Paul here makes mention it
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  Speaker 1: is also to be noticed that the old man is
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  Speaker 1: distinguished by his works, as a tree is by its fruits. Hence,
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  Speaker 1: it follows that the depravity that is innate in us
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  Speaker 1: is denoted by the term old man ten, which is
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  Speaker 1: renewed in knowledge. He shows in the first place that
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  Speaker 1: newness of life consists in knowledge, not as though as
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  Speaker 1: simple and bare knowledge were sufficient. But he speaks of
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  Speaker 1: the illumination of the Holy Spirit, which is lively and effectual,
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  Speaker 1: so as not merely to enlighten the mind by kindling
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  Speaker 1: it up with the light of truth, but transforming the
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  Speaker 1: whole man. And this is what he immediately adds, that
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  Speaker 1: we are renewed after the image of God. Now, the
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  Speaker 1: image of God resides in the whole of the soul,
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  Speaker 1: inasmuch as it is not the reason merely that is rectified,
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  Speaker 1: but also the will. Hence too we learn, on the
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  Speaker 1: one hand, what is the end of our generation, that is,
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  Speaker 1: that we may be made like God, and that His
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  Speaker 1: glory may shine forth in us. And on the other hand,
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  Speaker 1: what is the image of God, of which mention is
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  Speaker 1: made by Moses in Genesis nine six. The recitude and
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  Speaker 1: integrity of the whole soul, So that man reflects like
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  Speaker 1: a mirror the wisdom, righteousness, and goodness of God. He
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  Speaker 1: speaks somewhat differently in the Epistle to the Ephesians, but
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  Speaker 1: the meaning is the same See the passage Ephesians four
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  Speaker 1: twenty four. Paul at the same time teaches that there
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  Speaker 1: is nothing more excellent at which the Colousians can aspire,
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  Speaker 1: inasmuch as this is our highest perfection and blessedness to
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  Speaker 1: bear the image of God. Eleven where there is neither Jew.
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  Speaker 1: He has added this intentionally that he may again draw
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  Speaker 1: away the Colossians from ceremonies. For the meaning of the
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  Speaker 1: statement is this that Christian perfection does not stand in
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  Speaker 1: need of those outward observances, Nay, that they are things
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  Speaker 1: that are altogether at variance with it. For under the
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  Speaker 1: distinction of circumcision and uncircumcision of Jew and Greek, he
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  Speaker 1: includes by syenectic key all outward things. The terms that
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  Speaker 1: follow Barbarian Scythian bond free are added by way of amplification.
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  Speaker 1: Christ is all and in all that is. Christ alone holds,
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  Speaker 1: as they say, the prow and the stern, the beginning
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  Speaker 1: and the end farther By Christ, he means the spiritual
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  Speaker 1: righteousness of Christ, which puts an end to ceremonies. As
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  Speaker 1: we have formerly seen, they are therefore superfluous in a
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  Speaker 1: state of true perfection. Nay more, they ought to have
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  Speaker 1: no place inasmuch as injustice would otherwise be done to Christ,
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  Speaker 1: as though it were necessary to call in those helps
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  Speaker 1: for making up his deficiencies. Thirteen put on. Therefore, as
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  Speaker 1: he has enumerated some parts of the old Man, so
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  Speaker 1: he now also enumerates some parts of the new Quote.
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  Speaker 1: Then he says, will it appear that ye are renewed
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  Speaker 1: by Christ when ye are merciful and kind? For these
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  Speaker 1: are the effects and evidences of renovation? End quote. Hence
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  Speaker 1: the exhortation depends on the second clause, and accordingly he
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  Speaker 1: keeps up the metaphor. In the word rendered. Put on,
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  Speaker 1: he mentions first bowels of mercy, by which expression he
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  Speaker 1: means an earnest affection with yearnings, as it were, of
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  Speaker 1: the bowels. Secondly he makes the mention of kindness, for
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  Speaker 1: in this manner I have chose and to render crestoteta,
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  Speaker 1: by which we make ourselves amiable. To this, he adds humility,
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  Speaker 1: because no one will be kind and gentle but the
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  Speaker 1: man who, laying aside haughtiness and high mindedness, brings himself
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  Speaker 1: down to the exercise of modesty, claiming nothing for himself. Gentleness,
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  Speaker 1: the term which follows, has a wider exception than kindness,
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  Speaker 1: for that is chiefly in look and speech. While this
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  Speaker 1: is also an inward disposition, as however, it frequently happens
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  Speaker 1: that we come in contact with wicked and ungrateful men,
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  Speaker 1: there is need of patience, that it may cherish mildness
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  Speaker 1: in us. He at length explains what he meant by
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  Speaker 1: long suffering, that we embrace each other indulgently and forgive
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  Speaker 1: also where any offense has been given, as however it
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  Speaker 1: is a thing that is hard and difficult. He confirms
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  Speaker 1: this doctrine by the example of Christ, and teaches that
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  Speaker 1: the same thing is required from us, that as we
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  Speaker 1: who have so frequently and so grievously offended, have nevertheless
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  Speaker 1: been received into favor, we should manifest the same kindness
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  Speaker 1: towards our neighbors by forgiving whatever offenses they have committed
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  Speaker 1: against us. Hence, he says, if any one have a
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  Speaker 1: quarrel against another, By this he means that even just
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  Speaker 1: occasions of quarrel according to the views of man, ought
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  Speaker 1: not to be followed out as the chosen of God.
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  Speaker 1: Elect I take here to mean set apart. Quote. God
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  Speaker 1: has chosen you to himself, has sanctified you and received
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  Speaker 1: you into His love on this condition that ye be merciful,
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  Speaker 1: et cetera. To no purpose does the man that has
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  Speaker 1: not these excellences boast that he is holy and beloved
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  Speaker 1: of God. To no purpose does he reckon himself among
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  Speaker 1: the number of believers. End quote and of section sixteen
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  Speaker 1: read by David Ronald