sed Legis et Moisis doctrina, et | Gospel, but the teaching of the Law sunt alienum opus Christi, per and Moses, and are Christ's strange quod accedit ad proprium suum work, through which he proceeds to officium, quod est, prædicare de gratia Dei, consolari et vivificare. Hæc propria sunt prædicationis Evangelicæ.

his proper office, which is to declare the grace of God, to console and vivify. These things are the peculiar function of the evangelical preaching.

Contrary and false doctrine, which is rejected.

We reject, therefore, as a false and perilous dogma, the assertion

Contraria et falsa doctrina, quæ rejicitur. Rejicimus igitur, ut falsum et periculosum dogma, cum asseritur: quod Evangelion proprie that the Gospel is properly a preachsit concio pœnitentiæ, arguens, ing of repentance, rebuking, accusaccusans et damnans peccata, ing, and condemning sins, and that quodque non sit tantummodo it is not solely a preaching of the concio de gratia Dei. Hac enim grace of God. For in this way the ratione Evangelion rursus in Gospel is transformed again into Legem transformatur, meritum Law, the merit of Christ and the Christi et sacræ literæ obscuran- Holy Scriptures are obscured, a tur, piis mentibus vera et solida true and solid consolation is wrestconsolatio eripitur, et Pontificiis ed away from godly souls, and the erroribus et superstitionibus fores way is opened to the papal errors aperiuntur. and superstitions.

ART. VI.

DE TERTIO USU LEGIS.

STATUS CONTROVERSIÆ.

prop

ART. VI.

OF THE THIRD USE OF THE LAW.
STATEMENT OF THE CONTROVERSY.

Since it is established that the

Cum constet, Legem Dei ter tres causas hominibus datam Law of God was given to men for esse, primo, ut externa quædam three causes: first, that a certain disciplina conservetur, et feri at- external discipline might be preque intractabiles homines quasi served, and wild and intractable repagulis quibusdam cœrceantur, men might be restrained, as it were,

secundo, ut per Legem homines by certain barriers; secondly, that ad agnitionem suorum peccato- by the Law men might be brought rum adducantur, tertio, ut ho- to an acknowledgment of their mines jam renati, quibus tamen sins; thirdly, that regenerate men, omnibus multum adhuc carnis to all of whom, nevertheless, much adhæret, eam ipsam ob causam of the flesh still cleaves, for that certam aliquam regulam habeant, very reason may have some certain ad quam totam suam vitam for- rule after which they may and ought mare possint et debeant, etc., orta to shape their life, etc., a controest inter paucos quosdam Theo- versy has arisen among some few logos controversia, super tertio theologians concerning the third usu Legis: videlicet, an Lex use of the Law, to wit: whether the etiam renatis inculcanda, et ejus Law is to be inculcated upon the reobservatio apud eos urgenda sit, an non. Alii urgendam Legem censuerunt: alii negarunt.

AFFIRMATIVA.

Sincera et pia doctrina de hac controversia.

generate also, and its observation urged upon them or not? Some have judged that the Law should be urged, others have denied it.

AFFIRMATIVE.

The souna and godly doctrine concerning this

controversy.

I. We believe, teach, and confess

I. Credimus, docemus et confitemur, etsi vere in Christum cre- that although they who truly believe dentes, et sincere ad Deum conversi, in Christ, and are sincerely converta maledictione et coactione Legis ed to God, are through Christ set per Christum liberati sunt [ge- free from the curse and constraint freiet und ledig gemacht], quod ii of the Law, they are not, neverthetamen propterea non sint absque less, on that account without Law, Lege, quippe quos Filius Dei eam inasmuch as the Son of God reob causam redemit, ut Legem Dei deemed them for the very reason diu noctuque meditentur, atque in that they might meditate on the ejus observatione sese assidue exer- Law of God day and night, and ceant (Psa. i. 2; cxix. 1). Etenim continually exercise themselves in ne primi quidem nostri parentes, the keeping thereof (Psa. i. 2; etiam ante lapsum, prorsus sine cxix. 1 sqq.). For not even our first Lege vixerunt, quæ certe cordibus parents, even before the fall, lived

ipsorum tum inscripta erat, quia Dominus eos ad imaginem suam creaverat (Gen. i. 26 sqq.; ii. 16 sqq.; iii. 3).

wholly without Law, which was certainly at that time graven on their hearts, because the Lord had created them after his own image (Gen. i. 26 sq.; ii. 16 sqq.; iii. 3).

II. Credimus, docemus et con- II. We believe, teach, and confitemur, concionem Legis non fess that the preaching of the Law modo apud eos, qui fidem in should be urged not only upon those Christum non habent, et pæni- who have not faith in Christ, and tentiam nondum agunt, sed etiam do not yet repent, but also upon apud eos, qui vere in Christum those who truly believe in Christ, credunt, vere ad Deum conversi are truly converted to God, and et renati, et per fidem justificati regenerated and are justified by sunt, sedulo urgendam esse. faith.

III. Etsi enim renati, et spi- III. For, although they are reritu mentis suæ renovati sunt: generate and renewed in the spirit tamen regeneratio illa et renova- of their mind, yet this regeneratio, in hac vita non est omnibus tion and renewal is in this life numeris absoluta, sed duntaxat not absolutely complete, but only inchoata. Et credentes illi, spiri- begun. And they that believe actu mentis suæ perpetuo luctan- cording to the spirit of their mind tur cum carne, hoc est, cum cor- have perpetually to struggle with rupta natura, quæ in nobis ad their flesh, that is, with corrupt natmortem usque hæret (Gal. v. 17; ure, which inheres in us even till Rom. vii. 21, 23). Et propter vete- death (Gal. v. 17; Rom. vii. 21, 23). rem Adamum, qui adhuc in ho- And on account of the old Adam, minis intellectu, voluntate, et in which still remains fixed in the inomnibus viribus ejus infixus re- tellect and will of man and in all his sidet, opus est, ut homini Lex powers, there is need that the law Dei semper præluceat, ne quid of God should always shine before privatæ devotionis affectu in ne- man, that he may not frame any gotio religionis confingat, et cul- thing in matter of religion under an tus divinos verbo Dei non insti- impulse of self-devised devotion, and tutos eligat. Item, ne vetus Adam may not choose out ways of honorpro suo ingenio agat, sed potius ing God not instituted by the Word suam voluntatem, non of God. Also, lest the old Adam

contra

modo admonitionibus et minis should act according to his own Legis, verum etiam pœnis et pla- bent, but that he may the rather be gis coerceatur, ut Spiritui obse- constrained against his own will, quatur, seque ipsi captivum tra- not only by the admonitions and dat (1 Cor. ix. 27; Rom. vi. 12; threats of the Law, but also by punGal. vi. 14; Psa. cxix. 1 sqq.; Heb. ishments and plagues, in order that xii. 1; xiii. 21). he may give obedience to the Spirit, and render himself up captive to the same (1 Cor. ix. 27; Rom. vi. 12; Gal. vi. 14; Psalm cxix. 1 sqq.; Heb. xii. 1; xiii. 21).

IV. As respects now the distinction between the works of the Law

IV. Jam quod ad discrimen operum Legis et fructuum Spiritus attinet, credimus, docemus and the fruits of the Spirit, we beet confitemur, quod opera illa, lieve, teach, and confess that those quæ secundum præscriptum Le- works, which are done according to gis fiunt, eatenus opera Legis the commandment of the Law, are sint et appellentur, quatenus ea and are called works of the Law so solummodo urgendo, et minis pœnarum atque iræ divinæ, ab homine extorquentur.

far as they are extorted from man only by sharp urgency, and by the threats of punishment and of the divine wrath.

V. Fructus vero Spiritus sunt V. But the fruits of the Spirit opera illa, quæ Spiritus Dei, in are those works which the Spirit credentibus habitans, per homi- of God, dwelling in believers, efnes renatos operatur, et quæ a fects through regenerate men, and credentibus fiunt, quatenus re- which are done by believers so far nati sunt, ita quidem sponte as they are regenerate, and thereac libere, quasi nullum præ- fore freely and spontaneously, as if ceptum unquam accepissent, nul- they had never received any prelas minas audivissent, nullam- cept, had never heard any threats, que remunerationem expectarent. and expected no remuneration. Et hoc modo filii Dei in Lege And in this way do the children of vivunt, et secundum normam God live in the Law, and fashion Legis divinæ vitam suam insti- their life according to the rule of tuunt; hanc vivendi rationem the divine Law, which way of living

D. Paulus vocare solet in suis St. Paul is wont to call in his episEpistolis Legem Christi et Le-tles the Law of Christ and the Law gem mentis (Rom. vii. 25; viii. 2, of the mind (Rom. vii. 25; viii. 2,7; 7; Gal. vi.-2). Gal. vi. 2).

fore the penitent or the impenitent, the regenerate or the unregenerate. But the distinction, as to obedience,

VI. Ad hunc modum una ea- VI. After this manner the Law demque Lex est manetque, im- is and remains one and the same, mota videlicet Dei voluntas, sive to wit: the unchangeable will of pænitentibus sive impœnitenti- God, whether it be set forth bebus, renatis aut non renatis proponatur. Discrimen autem, quo ad obedientiam, duntaxat in hominibus est: quorum alii non is only in men, of whom some, not renati Legi obedientiam qualem- being regenerate, render to the Law cunque a Lege requisitam præ- a certain manner of obedience restant, sed coacti et inviti id quired by the Law, but do this confaciunt (sicut etiam renati fa- strainedly and unwillingly (as also ciunt, quatenus adhuc carnales the regenerate do, so far as they are sunt): credentes vero in Chri- yet carnal); but believers in Christ, stum, quatenus renati sunt, abs- so far as they are regenerate, do que coactione, libero et spontaneo without compulsion, with a free and spiritu, talem obedientiam præ- unconstrained mind, render such an stant, qualem alias nullæ quan- obedience as otherwise no threattumvis severissimæ Legis commi-enings of the Law, however grievnationes extorquere possent. ous, would be able to extort.

NEGATIVA.

False doctrinæ rejectio. Repudiamus itaque ut perniciosum et falsum dogma, quod Christiana disciplinæ et vera pietati adversatur, cum docetur, quod Lex Dei (eo modo, quo supra dictum est) non sit piis et vere credentibus, sed tantum impiis, infidelibus et non agentibus pœni

NEGATIVE.

Rejection of false doctrine.

We repudiate, therefore, as a false and pernicious dogma, contrary to Christian discipline and true piety, the teaching that the Law of God (in such wise as is described above) is not to be set forth before the godly and true believers, but only before the ungodly, unbelievers, and