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018 - Verses 18-25 · Commentary on the Epistle to the Colossians

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  Speaker 1: Section eighteen of Commentary on the Epistle to the Colossians
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  Speaker 1: by John Calvin, translated by Reverend John Pringle. This LibriVox
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  Speaker 1: recordings in the public domain, Verses eighteen to twenty five. Wives,
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  Speaker 1: submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit
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  Speaker 1: in the Lord. Husbands. Love your wives, and be not
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  Speaker 1: bitter against them. Children. Obey your parents in all things,
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  Speaker 1: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord. Fathers, Provoke
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  Speaker 1: not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged servants.
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  Speaker 1: Obey in all things your masters according to the flesh,
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  Speaker 1: not with eye service as men pleasers, but in singleness
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  Speaker 1: of heart, fear in God. And whatsoever ye do, do
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  Speaker 1: it heartily as to the Lord, and not unto men,
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  Speaker 1: knowing that of the Lord, ye shall receive the reward
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  Speaker 1: of the inheritance, for ye serve the Lord Christ. But
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  Speaker 1: he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which
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  Speaker 1: he hath done. And there is no respect of persons. Eighteen.
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  Speaker 1: Wives be subject now follow particular duties, as they are called,
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  Speaker 1: which depend on the calling of individuals. In handling these,
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  Speaker 1: it were superfluous to take up many words, inasmuch as
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  Speaker 1: I have already stated in the Epistle to the Ephesians.
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  Speaker 1: Almost everything that was necessary here I shall only add
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  Speaker 1: briefly such things as are more particularly suited to an
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  Speaker 1: exposition of the passage before us. He commands wives to
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  Speaker 1: be subject. This is clear, But what follows is of
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  Speaker 1: doubtful signification, as it is fit in the Lord for
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  Speaker 1: some connected Thus, quote be subject in the Lord, as
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  Speaker 1: it is fit end quote. I, however, view it rather differently,
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  Speaker 1: as it is fit in the Lord, that is, according
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  Speaker 1: to the appointment of the Lord. So that he confirms
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  Speaker 1: the subjection of wives by the authority of God, he
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  Speaker 1: requires love on the part of husbands, and that they
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  Speaker 1: be not bitter, because there is a danger lest they
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  Speaker 1: should abuse their authority in the way of tyranny. Twenty children,
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  Speaker 1: obey your parents. He enjoins it upon children to obey
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  Speaker 1: their parents without any exception. But what if parents should
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  Speaker 1: feel disposed to constrain them to anything that is unlawful?
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  Speaker 1: Will they in that case to obey without any reservation?
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  Speaker 1: Now it were worse than unreasonable that the authority of
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  Speaker 1: men should prevail at the expense of neglecting God. I
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  Speaker 1: answer that here too, we must understand as implied what
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  Speaker 1: he expresses elsewhere Ephesians six y one in the Lord.
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  Speaker 1: But for what purpose does he employ a term of universality,
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  Speaker 1: I answer again that it is to show that obedience
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  Speaker 1: must be rendered not merely to just commands, but also
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  Speaker 1: to such as are unreasonable. For many make themselves compliant
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  Speaker 1: with the wishes of their parents only where the command
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  Speaker 1: is not grievous or inconvenient. But on the other hand,
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  Speaker 1: this one thing ought to be considered by children, that
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  Speaker 1: whoever may be their parents, they have being allotted to
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  Speaker 1: them by the providence of God, who by his appointment
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  Speaker 1: makes children subject to their parents in all things. Therefore,
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  Speaker 1: that they may not refuse anything, however difficult or disagreeable,
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  Speaker 1: in all things, that in things indifferent, they may give
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  Speaker 1: deference to the station which their parents occupy. In all things,
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  Speaker 1: that they may not put themselves on a footing of
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  Speaker 1: equality with their parents in the way of questioning and
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  Speaker 1: debating or disputing. It, being always understood that conscience is
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  Speaker 1: not to be infringed upon, he prohibits parents from exercising
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  Speaker 1: an immoderate harshness, lest their children should be so disheartened
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  Speaker 1: as to be incapable of receiving any honorable training, for
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  Speaker 1: we see from daily experience the advantage of a liberal education.
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  Speaker 1: Twenty two Servants be obedient. Anything that is stated here
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  Speaker 1: respecting servants requires no exposition, as it has been already
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  Speaker 1: expounded in commenting on Ephesian six, with the exception of
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  Speaker 1: these two expressions, For we serve the Lord Christ, and
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  Speaker 1: he that will act unjustly will receive the reward of
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  Speaker 1: his iniquity. By the former statement, he means that service
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  Speaker 1: is done to men in such a way that Christ,
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  Speaker 1: at the same time holds supremacy of dominion and is
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  Speaker 1: the supreme master. Here truly is choice consolation for all
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  Speaker 1: that are under subjection, inasmuch as they are informed that
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  Speaker 1: while they willingly serve their masters, their services are acceptable
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  Speaker 1: to Christ as though they had been rendered to him.
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  Speaker 1: From this also Paul gathers that they will receive from
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  Speaker 1: him a reward, but it is a reward of inheritance,
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  Speaker 1: by which he means that the very thing which is
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  Speaker 1: bestowed in reward of works is freely given to us
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  Speaker 1: by God, for inheritance comes from adoption. In the second clause,
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  Speaker 1: he again comforts servants by saying that if they are
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  Speaker 1: oppressed by the unjust cruelty of their masters. God himself
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  Speaker 1: will take vengeance, and will not, on the ground that
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  Speaker 1: they are servants, overlook the injuries inflicted upon them, inasmuch
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  Speaker 1: as there is no respect of persons with him. For
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  Speaker 1: this consideration might diminish their courage if they imagine that
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  Speaker 1: God had no regard for them, were no great regard,
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  Speaker 1: and that their miseries gave him no concern. Besides, it
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  Speaker 1: often happens that servants themselves endeavor to avenge injurious and
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  Speaker 1: cruel treatment. He obviates accordingly this evil by admonishing them
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  Speaker 1: to wait patiently the judgment of God and of Section
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  Speaker 1: eighteen read by David Ronald