802a.启13:7.“又赐予他与圣徒作战，并且胜过他们”表示与那些处于来自良善的真理，没有因表象而跟进组合的人争战。这从“战(争)”、“圣徒”和“胜过他们”的含义清楚可知：“战(争)”是指属灵的争战，也就是真理与虚假，并虚假与真理的争战(参看AE573,734节)；因此，“作战”是指从真理与虚假交战，并从虚假与真理交战，在此是指从虚假与真理交战。“圣徒”是指那些处于来自良善的真理之人(参看AE204节)。“胜过他们”是指使它们属于他们的教义，由此属于他们的宗教；这一点是通过推理实现的，他们通过这些推理，以及取自圣言字义、用来确认其推理的一些经文在虚假上面引发真理的表象；因此，这些话也表示那些没有跟进，或不理解他们的推理之人，就是他们通过在虚假上面引发真理的表象而推理信仰如何能与善行结合。由此可见，“又赐予他与圣徒作战，并且胜过他们”表示与那些处于来自良善的真理，没有因表象而跟进这些组合的人争战。
前面几个地方已经论述了与生活分离之信的捍卫者用来在虚假上面引发真理表象的推理，通过这些推理，他们觉得自己似乎清除了与圣言的不一致；但他们并没有清除这些不一致，而是仿佛编织了一张看不见的蛛蛛网，以便催生对虚假的信，这一点可从前面的引证(AE780a,781a,b,786,790a节)，以及下面这些事明显看出来：他们通过教义、讲道和著述主张并坚持认为，信作为得救的手段已经被赐下，因为人不能凭自己行善；还认为神仍在人里面运作良善，而人对此一无所知，通过这种运作，一个因信称义的人所行的邪恶就不是罪了，而是本性的软弱；故意或自愿的邪恶要么立刻被赦免，要么在进行某种口头悔改之后被赦免；最后可以推知，在圣言中，“作为”和“实行”是指信和有信。
这就是他们编织的网，他们通过这张网诱使简单人相信：从只交托给教师和学者的智慧或内在感知的宝库中，他们已经提取出强有力的论据，以建立信与人那一方行善的任何明显努力，也就是意愿分离的教义。他们就这样对自己和教会的所有人松开缰绳，放任自由地照着自己的喜好和特定倾向而在各种欲望的放纵中行事和生活，或说照着一切欲望的倾斜和趋向行事和生活。由于这个信条取悦肉体和眼目，所以普通人很乐意接受它。因此，这就是此处“又赐予这兽与圣徒作战，并且胜过他们”所表示的。不过，为了避免从这些狡猾的推理中提取出的毒素传染给那些在开始担任神职人员时，开始接受这个信条的教会领袖，并从他们传染给教会的人，我想再次讨论刚才提到的关于信与人所行的良善分离的论据，以及关于人为的错误结合的论据，他们通过这些结合从某种事物走向无有，从真理走向虚假，我还想将包含在这个信条中，比包含在异端邪说中的还要多，并不断从它那里涌出的可憎的邪恶之虚假和虚假之邪恶，呈现在从某种程度上被光照的理解力面前。
802b# 第一，信作为得救的手段已经被赐下，因为人不能凭自己行善。人不能凭自己行善，这是真的。由于人不能凭自己拥有任何信，所以可推知，他因不能从自己做任何事，故不能凭自己相信任何事。在教会里，有谁不承认信来自神，而不是来自人？论及信的话和论及作为的话完全是一样的。论到作为，有人说，如果它们来自人，并且只要它们来自人，就不会使人称义。如果信来自人，并且只要它来自人，信也是如此。然而，每个人都从自己那里相信，因为他明显在自己里面貌似凭自己思考，并愿意思考属于其信的东西。因此，如果这同样适用于信，就像适用于作为一样，那么可推知，只有选民才能有信并得救。这涉及预定论，结果，恶人会变得不加注意，或说各种生活安全由此流出，而善人则被剥夺一切希望，由此导致绝望；然而，所有人都被预定上天堂；那些学习并实行真理的人被称为选民。由于信与善行的情况是一样的，所以根据这个教义可以推知，人只能，也应当像一个机器人，或没有生命的东西那样行动，只等着被来自神的流注驱动，从而继续不思考，也不意愿圣言所吩咐的任何事；然而，这样一个人却不断从自己意愿和思考某种东西。由于来自人自己的东西不是来自神，而是来自地狱，从地狱思考和意愿就是反对神，这两个对立面无法同时共存，所以这样一个人要么变得愚蠢，要么成为无神论者。如果在此之后，有人说，由于信被赐下作为得救的手段，所以它能被人貌似凭自己接受，那么他会说这是真的。但有信，也就是说，认为一件事就是如此，并由此貌似凭自己说话，却因一件事就是如此而不能貌似凭自己意愿它，就是在毁灭信；因为一个没有另一个就是虚无。但如果有人说，使人称义的信就是简单地相信父神差遣了圣子，好叫祂通过十字架受难成为我们的挽回祭，救赎和拯救，这并不涉及任何要做的事，因为使人得救的是归算，那么可推知(因这种相信里面没有天堂的任何真理，如将在它自己的地方所说明的)，这等于说，对虚假的信，也就是死的信使人称义。
第二，神仍在人里面运作良善，而人对此一无所知。神在人里面运作良善，这是真的，而且大部分是在人对此一无所知的情况下；但神仍赐予人感知得救所必需的那些东西的能力。因为神作工是为了叫人可以思考并说那些属于信的事，也可以意愿并实行那些属于爱的事；当人以这种方式思考、说话、意愿和行动时，他必貌似凭自己思考、说话、意愿和行动。因为神在人里面那些来自祂自己而在他里面的事物上运作，也就是说，祂进入信之真理和爱之良善进行运作。因此，当神使前者存在于理解力中，使后者存在于意愿中时，在人看来，它们似乎是他自己的，他也当作自己的把它们带出来。任何人都无法以其它任何方式从神思考、说话、意愿和行动。对人来说，知道并承认这些来自神，就足够了。这神性运作本身经常在人不知不觉的情况下发生，但人能意识到结果。这就是这些话的意思：
除非是从天上赐给他的，否则人什么都得不到。(约翰福音3:27)约翰福音：
耶稣说，离了我，你们就不能作什么。(约翰福音15:5)如果人在思考真理和实行良善时，没有意识，免得它们被当成他自己的良善和真理，那么他要么像一个动物，要么像一根树干，从而不能思考并意愿神的任何东西，或来自神的任何东西；因此，他将不能通过信和爱与神结合，并活到永远。动物与人之间的不同之处在于，动物不能思考和讲说真理，也不能从神意愿和实行良善，但人却能；因此，他们能相信他们所思考的事，热爱他们所意愿的事，并且貌似凭自己如此行。如果真的不貌似凭自己，那么神性的流注和运作就会流过去，不会被接受，因为人就像一个没有底的器皿，不能盛水。人的思维是真理的容器，人的意愿是良善的容器；接受是不可能的，除非人意识到它。如果没有接受，那么就不可能有相互作用；因为正是这种相互作用使得属神的东西就好像属于人。每一个想要与别人结合的行动主体都必须拥有似乎属于对方自己的某种事物，以实现与它的结合，否则就不可能有反应。在既没有作用，也没有反应的情况下，结合是不可能的。人里面与神，唯一的行动主体结合的事物是理解力和意愿。这些官能是人的；它们虽来自神，但不能不貌似凭自己行动。由此可推知，不如此行动的真理和良善什么都不是。不过，这一点要举例来说明。圣言吩咐，人不可通奸、不可偷盗、不可杀人、不可作假见证。众所周知，人能凭自己做这一切事；他也能因它们是罪而停止它们。但他却不能凭自己停止它们，只能从神停止它们；然而，当他从神停止它们时，他仍认为他愿意停止它们，因为它们是罪，因此他貌似凭自己停止它们。当情况是这样时，他因称通奸为罪而活在贞洁中，并热爱贞洁，这貌似是凭他自己；他因称偷盗为罪而诚实生活，并热爱诚实，这也貌似是凭他自己。当他称谋杀为罪时，就活在仁爱中，并热爱仁爱，这貌似是凭他自己。当他称假见证为罪时，他活在真理和公义中，并热爱真理和公义，这貌似是凭他自己。尽管他貌似凭自己活出这些，并热爱它们，但他仍是从神那里活出并热爱它们的；因为凡一个人貌似凭自己从贞洁本身、诚实本身、仁爱本身、真理本身和公义本身所做的，他都是从神做的；因此，它们都是良善。总之，当邪恶被移除时，人出于这些原则貌似凭自己所做的一切都来自神，并且就是良善。但在邪恶移除之前，人所做的一切虽然是贞洁的作为，诚实的作为，仁爱的作为，或真理和公义的作为，却不是良善，因为它们来自人。由于一切作为，包括从神所做的作为和不是从神所做的作为，必须由人，或貌似由人来完成，所以明显可知，为何在圣言中，经上如此频繁地提到“作为”、“行为”、“作工或工作”和“实行或遵行”，如果根据那些将信仰与善行分离之人的教义的内在意义，它们都是在人不知不觉的情况下由神来做的，那么经上根本不会提到并吩咐它们。
第三，因信称义的人所行的邪恶不是罪，而是他本性的软弱；自愿或故意的邪恶要么立刻被赦免，要么在经过某种口头悔改之后被赦免。这就是那些深入调查研究信仰与善行分离的奥秘之人的宣告，只是照着推理并得出结论的能力而各有不同；它们都是推论。因为那些将拯救的一切都归于唯信，丝毫不归于善行，或说将拯救与善行分离的人说，他们处于恩典，有些人说，他们在神里面。若处于恩典，他们就得出结论说，邪恶不会被看到，即便被看到，它们也立刻被赦免了；因此，邪恶不是罪，因为罪会定人的罪，这些邪恶是本性的软弱。由于来自意愿或自愿的邪恶(它们在圣言中被称为“昂然无惧地犯罪”)不是本性的软弱，所以他们说，它们要么立刻被赦免，要么经过某种口头悔改之后被赦免；因为通过信的称义处于良善的人无需生活的悔改；一些人还补充说，因为这些邪恶是经许可而做的。这些事也是从以下事实得出的：他们认为，因信称义的人得到救赎了，在神面前洁净了，也重生了；由于他不能凭自己行善，所以主的功德被归于和归算给他，他凭这归算，连同救赎和重生而被接纳为神的儿子，并被父神引领，被圣灵光照；因此，他的作为也被接纳，因为他的邪恶不像其他人的邪恶那样是邪恶；它们不定人的罪，故不能被称为罪，而是被称为软弱，就是诸如从亚当那里继承而来、粘附于每个人的那种，这些软弱一出现，就被赦免并逐出。那些持有唯信教条的人照着他们对信的本质、信与生活良善的分离，或信与这些良善的结合的观念而怀有这些和其它各种观点。但没有必要调查这一切细节，因为它们都是从一个虚假原则中流出的溪流，从一个虚假原则流出的，只能是在一个连续系列中的虚假。当独自思考时，谁不知道并承认，人应当检查自己，在神面前忏悔自己的罪，憎恨它们，然后过一种新生活，好承受永生？教会中指定的祷告，尤其预备参加圣餐礼的祷告都教导了这些事；圣言，以及取自圣言的讲道也教导了它们；但凡被光照的理性也会宣称这些事。然而，一旦有人研究唯信教义的奥秘，渴望由此获得博学的名声，这真理之光就会熄灭。他因被自我之爱引领，由此被自我聪明的骄傲引领，就背离了普通人的信仰，转而信奉摧毁圣言的一切真理和天堂的一切真理的虚假。这种人因被视为有学问的，所以会吸引并迷惑许多人；因此，他通过以下教导分散了他应当聚集的绵羊：那能怀着信心思考并宣称基督为他受苦，由此救赎了他的人，邪恶不定他的罪。但这种信里面没有任何生命，这一点可见于接下来的内容。这些人与那些从幻想中获得视觉，或视觉失常的人没什么不同，他们看到人，就以为是幽灵，看到幻影，就以为是人；因此，他们视真理为虚假，视虚假为真理，尤其当虚假之光产生的幻想形成与这光一致的形像时。他们在他们的奥秘所造成的谵妄中看到智慧；殊不知，那些对这些事一无所知的人在结束这个世界的生活之后，或说在未来的世界，都会有(译注：比他们)更好的命运。
第四，在圣言中，“作为”和“实行”是指信和有信。他们想通过这些手段说服其他人相信，他们正在验证圣言的一切；而事实上，他们正在歪曲圣言的一切，因为得出的这个结论既是自相矛盾，也是一个谎言。说行善意味着有信，然而，所接受的信不仅将善行与得救的手段分离，还把它从得救的手段中排除，这是自相矛盾的；与某种事物分离，并从这种事物中被排除(因而与据说不仅是某种事物，还是一切事物的信分离，并从信中被排除)的东西，决不能存在于该事物里面，因而不能被它理解。说拯救人并属灵、据说还属于信的东西同时是指不拯救人，也不属灵的东西，这也是自相矛盾；因为他们称信为拯救人并属灵的，但又称作为不拯救人，因而不属灵。说圣言中的“作为”和“行为”是指神性运作，没有人的任何合作，而人却被吩咐做它们，这是一个谎言。说“善行”是指被接受、被称为拯救的信，而信只属于思维，根本不属于意愿，这也是一个谎言。此外，他们还说，圣言提到“作为”和“行为”是为了简单人，因为他们不明白信的奥秘。然而，值得注意的事，相信一个人或说相信一个人的存在是一回事，信他或信奉他是另一回事；如相信有一位神和信祂(译注：是两回事)。信神，或信祂的名表示既实行又有信，如约翰福音：
凡接待祂的，就是信祂名的人，祂就赐他们权柄，作神的儿子；这等人不是从血生的，不是从肉欲生的，也不是从人意生的，乃是从神生的。(约翰福音1:12,13)
“不是从血生的”人是指那些没有歪曲圣言的人；“不是从肉欲生的”人是指那些没有因自我之爱而处于欲望的人；“不是从人意生的”人是指那些没有因自我聪明的骄傲而处于虚假的人；“从神生的”人是指那些被主通过来自圣言的真理和照之的生活重生的人；他们就是那些信主的名，因而被称为“神的儿子”的人。这种信不是当今教会的教师的信。
802. (Verse 7) And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them. That this signifies combat with those who are in truths from good, and are not a match for combinations owing to appearances, is evident from the signification of war, as denoting spiritual combat, which is that of truth against falsity and of falsity against truth (concerning which see above, n. 573, 574); hence to make war is to fight from truths against falsities, and from falsities against truths, in the present case from falsities against truths; and from the signification of the saints, as denoting those who are in truths from good (concerning which also see above, n. 204); and from the signification of conquering them, as denoting to cause them to be of their doctrine and consequently of their religion. And they accomplish this by reasonings, whereby they induce upon falsities the appearances of truth and also by passages from the sense of the letter of the Word, by which they confirm their reasonings; therefore, by those words is also signified, those who are not match for, or have not understood, their reasonings concerning how faith can be conjoined with good works, by reason of the appearances of truth induced upon falsities. From these things it is evident, that by its being given to the beast to make war with the saints, and to overcome them, is signified combat with those who are in truths from good, and are not a match for combinations due to appearances.
[2] In several places above we have treated of the reasonings by which the defenders of a faith separate from life have induced upon falsities the appearances of truth, by which they seem to themselves to have removed its disagreements with the Word; but that those disagreements were not removed, and that they have woven, as it were, an invisible spider's web, and this with the view of inducing a faith in falsities, is evident from what has been adduced above (n. 780, 781, 786, 790); and also from these things:- That in their doctrine, preaching, and writings, they labour hard to show, that faith was given as the means of salvation, because man cannot do good of himself; and that still God operates the goods in man, he being ignorant of it, by which operation the evils that the man does who is justified by faith, are not sins but natural infirmities; and that deliberate or voluntary evils are remitted either immediately, or after some repentance of the lips; and hence it follows, that by works and by doing, in the Word, is meant faith, and to have faith.
[3] This is their web, by which they induce the simple to believe that out of the treasures of wisdom or interior perception that are entrusted only to the teachers and the learned, they have drawn powerful arguments for the establishment of the doctrine of faith separated from any manifest endeavour, which is the will, of doing goods on the part of man. Thus, both with respect to themselves and the entire body of the church, they remit and relax the reins, in order that they may act and live in the indulgence of all kinds of lusts, according to their pleasure and the particular bent of their inclinations. And because this dogma is pleasing to the flesh and to the eyes, the common people easily receive it. This therefore is what is here signified by its being given to the beast to make war with the saints, and to overcome them.
But lest the rulers of the church - who are initiated into that dogma when they are initiated into the priesthood - and, by their means, the people of the church, should be infected by such poison prepared by crafty reasonings, of which they cannot but die, I desire to take up again the subject of the arguments just mentioned concerning the separation of faith from the good to be done by man, and concerning the conjunctions fallaciously contrived to connect them together, by which they proceed from something to nothing, or from truth to falsity; and I desire to place clearly before the understanding, enlightened in any degree, the detestable falsities of evil, and also the evils of falsity contained in that more than heretical dogma, and continually flow from it.
[4] 1. That faith was given as the means of salvation, because man cannot do good of himself. That a man cannot do good of himself is true. And because a man cannot have any faith from himself, it follows that, as he cannot do any thing from himself, so neither can he believe any thing of himself. For what man of the church does not acknowledge that faith is from God, and not from man? Just the same things may be said of faith as of works. Concerning works it is said, that if they are from man, and as long as they are from man, they do not justify. It is the same in respect to faith, if it is from man, and as long as it is from man. And yet every one believes from himself, for he evidently thinks, and wills to think in himself, as of himself, that which is of his faith. If therefore it is the same with faith as it is with works, it follows, that the elect only can have faith and be saved. This involves predestination, as a result of which the wicked are heedless, and there is a deprivation of all hope - from which comes despair among the good. When, nevertheless, all are predestinated to heaven; and those are called the elect who learn truths and do them. But as the case is the same with faith as with good works, it also follows on this doctrine that a man cannot and ought not to act differently from an automaton, or a thing which has no life, waiting to be moved by influx from God; and so may go on thinking nothing and willing nothing that is commanded in the Word, when, nevertheless, such a man is continually willing and thinking something from himself.
And because what is from the man himself is not from God but from hell - and yet to think and will from hell is to be opposed to God, and two opposites cannot exist together at the same time - such a man becomes either foolish or an atheist. If any one after this should say that faith, because it is given to be the means of salvation, can be received by a man as of himself, he would say what is true. But to have faith, that is, to think that a thing is so, and thence to speak as of oneself, and yet not be able to will a thing because it is as of oneself, is to destroy faith; for one without the other is a nonentity. But if it be said, that justifying faith is only to believe that God the Father sent the Son in order that, by the passion of the cross, He might become our propitiation, redemption, and salvation, and that this does not involve any thing to be done, because it is imputation that saves; this - inasmuch as there is no heavenly truth in such belief, as will be demonstrated in its place - is the same as to say that a faith of falsity, which is a dead faith, justifies.
[5] 2. That still God works good in man, whilst he is ignorant thereof. That God works good in a man is true, and also for the most part whilst man is ignorant thereof; but still God gives man the power to perceive those things that are necessary to salvation. For God works in order that a man may think and speak the things that belong to faith, and may will and do those things that pertain to love; and when a man thinks, speaks, wills, and acts in this way, he cannot but think, speak, will, and act, as of himself. For God operates upon those things in a man that are from Himself in him; that is, into the truths of faith, and into the goods of love. Wherefore when God causes the former to exist in the understanding, and the latter in the will, they appear to man as his own, as it were, and as his own he brings them forth. No one can think and speak, will and act but from God; it is sufficient for a man to know and to acknowledge that these are from God. The very Divine operation frequently takes place without a man being aware of it, but he is conscious of the effects. This is meant by the statement
That a man cannot take any thing, unless it be given him from heaven (John 3:27); and by Jesus saying, "Without me ye can do nothing" (John 15:5).
If man were not conscious of thinking truths and doing goods, lest they might be regarded as his own goods and truths, he would be like either an animal, or a stock, and so would not be able to think and will any thing of God or from God; consequently he could not be conjoined with God by faith and love, and live for ever. The difference between animals and men is, that animals cannot think and speak truths, and will and do good from God, but that men can; and thus they can believe the things they think, and love the things they will, and this as if of themselves. Were it not as of themselves, the Divine influx and operation would pass through them and would not be received; for a man would be like a vessel without a bottom, which retains no water. Man's thought is the receptacle of truth, and the will is the receptacle of good; and there can be no reception unless a man is conscious of it. And if there is no reception, there can be no reciprocity; for it is this which causes what is of God to be as if it were of man. Every acting thing that desires to conjoin itself with another, must necessarily have somewhat, as it were, belonging to that other with which to conjoin itself, otherwise there could be no re-action. And where there is neither action nor re-action, no conjunction is possible. The things in man with which God, the sole activity, conjoins Himself, are the understanding and the will. These faculties are man's; which, although from God, cannot but act as of themselves. It now follows, therefore, that truths and goods that do not so act, are nothing. But this shall be illustrated by examples.
It is commanded in the Word that man shall not commit adultery, shall not steal, shall not kill, shall not bear false witness. Now it is known that a man can do all those things of himself; and also, that he can also desist from them because they are sins. But still he cannot desist from them of himself, but from God. When, however, a man, from God, desists from them, he still thinks that he wills to desist from them because they are sins, and thus he desists from them as of himself. And when this is the case, then because he calls adultery sin, he lives in chastity and loves chastity, and this also as of himself. And because he calls theft sin, he lives in sincerity and loves sincerity, and this also as of himself. When he calls murder sin, then he lives in charity and loves charity, and this as of himself. When he calls false testimony sin, then he lives in truth and justice, and loves truth and justice, and this as of himself. And although he lives and loves these things as of himself, still he lives and loves them from God. For whatever a man does as of himself from chastity itself, from sincerity itself, from charity itself, and from truth and justice itself, he does from God; and hence they are goods. In a word, all those virtues which a man does as of himself, evils being removed, are from God, and are good. But all the things that a man does before evils are removed, although they are works of chastity, sincerity, charity, truth, and justice, still they are not good because they are from man.
Because all works, both those that are done from God as those that are not done from God, can be performed only by man, or as it were by him, it is evident why works, deeds, working, and doing, are so frequently mentioned in the Word, which would not have been mentioned and commanded at all, if they were done by God without a man being aware of it, according to the interior meaning of the doctrine of those who separate faith from good works.
[6] 3. That the evils that a man does who is justified by faith, are not sins, but infirmities of his nature; and that voluntary or deliberate evils, are remitted either immediately or after some repentance of the lips. This is the confession of those who have deeply scrutinised and investigated the mysteries of the separation of faith from good works, variously according to the keenness of the faculty that reasons and draws conclusions; they are inferences. For those who attribute everything of salvation to faith alone, and separate salvation from good works, say that they are in grace, and some that they are in God. If in grace, they conclude that evils are not seen, and if seen, that they are immediately remitted; if in God, nothing can condemn them, thus that evils are not sins, because sins condemn, these are infirmities of nature. And as evils done from the Voluntary - which in the Word are called sinning with a high hand - are not infirmities of nature, they say that they are remitted either immediately, or after some penitential expressions of the lips; because he who is in good by justification of faith has no need of repentance of life; and some also add, because they are done by permission.
These things also follow from the fact that they believe that he who is justified by faith is redeemed, purified before God, and regenerated; and that because he cannot do good of himself, the Lord's merit is ascribed and imputed to him, by virtue of which imputation, and also of redemption and regeneration, he is adopted as a son of God, and is led of God the Father and enlightened by the Holy Spirit, consequently his works are accepted, because his evils not being evils like those of others; but they do not condemn, they cannot be called sins, but infirmities, which adhere to every one, being inherited from Adam, and which, as soon as they arise, are remitted and cast out. These and various other opinions besides, are entertained by those who hold the dogma of faith alone, according to their ideas concerning the essence of faith, and the separation thereof from the goods of life, or concerning the conjunction of faith with those goods.
But to enter into a particular examination of each of these is not important, for they are all streams flowing from a false principle, from which nothing but falsities in a continual series can possibly flow. Who does not know and acknowledge, when he thinks about it, that a man should examine himself, confess his sins before God, abhor them, and afterwards lead a new life, in order that he may inherit life eternal? These things are taught in the prayers used in the churches, especially in those which are preparatory to the sacrament of the Supper; they are taught in the Word, and in all preachings from the Word; and reason, in the least degree enlightened, declares the same. But still the light of this truth is extinguished as soon as any one studies the mysteries of the doctrine [of faith alone], and thence desires to attain fame for erudition. For being led by the love of self, and the arrogance of his own intelligence, he recedes from the faith of the general body, and embraces the falsity, which destroys all the truth of the Word, and all the truth of heaven. And because such a man is believed to be learned, he attracts and seduces many; and thus he scatters the sheep which he ought to bring together, by teaching that no evil condemns him who can think and declare with confidence that Christ suffered for him, and thereby redeemed him. But that there is nothing of life in such a faith will be seen in what follows.
Such persons are not unlike those whose sight is perverted, who when they see men believe them to be spectres, and when they see phantoms believe them to be men. Thus they see truths as falsities, and falsities as truths, especially if the imagination under a false light forms images in agreement with such light. They see wisdom in the delirium caused by their mysteries, not knowing that, in the world to come, those who are ignorant of these things have a better lot.
[7] 4. That by "works," and by "doing," in the Word, is meant faith and to have faith. By this they desire to persuade others that they prove everything in the Word, although they falsify everything in it. For to form a conclusion of this kind is to be inconsistent and speak falsely. It is inconsistent to say that by doing goods is meant to have faith, when nevertheless the faith received not only separates, but also excludes good works from being a means of salvation; and what is separated and excluded from anything, thus from the faith which is said not only to be something but also every thing, cannot possibly exist in it, and, consequently, cannot be understood by it. It is inconsistent also to say, that by what is saving and spiritual, which is said to belong to faith, is meant at the same time, what is not saving and not spiritual; for they call faith saving and spiritual, but works not saving, and, consequently, not spiritual. It is a false mode of speaking to say, that the Divine operation, without any co-operation on the part of man, is meant by works and by doing in the Word, when nevertheless a man is commanded to do them. It is also a false mode of speaking to say that by good works is meant the faith that is received, and is called saving, when nevertheless, that faith belongs to the thought alone and nothing thereof to the will. They say also, that works and deeds are mentioned in the Word for the sake of the simple, who do not grasp the mysteries of faith. It is, however, to be observed, that it is one thing to believe [in the existence of] any one, and another to believe in any one; as to believe that there is a God, and to believe in Him. To believe in God or in His name, signifies both to do and to have faith, as in John:
"As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, to them that believe in his name, who were born not of bloods, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (1:12, 13).
Those who are born not of blood, are those who do not falsify the Word. Those who are born not of the will of the flesh, are those who are not in lusts from the love of self. Those who are born not of the will of man (vir), are those who are not in falsities from the arrogance of their own intelligence. Those who are born of God, are those who by truths from the Word, and by a life according thereto, are regenerated by the Lord. These are they who believe in the name of the Lord, and thence are called the sons of God. Such a faith is not that of the teachers of the church at this day.
802. Verse 7. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, signifies combat with those who are in truths from good, and who on account of appearances have not followed out the combinations. This is evident from the signification of "war," as being spiritual combat, which is the combat of truth against falsity and of falsity against truth (See above, n. 573, 734); consequently "to make war" means to fight from truths against falsities and from falsities against truths, here from falsities against truths. Also from the signification of "saints," as being those who are in truths from good (See above, n. 204). Also from the signification of "overcoming them," as being to make them to be of their doctrine and thence of their religion; and as this is done by reasonings by which they induce upon falsities the appearance of truth, and by passages from the sense of the letter of the Word by which they confirm their reasonings, therefore these words also signify those who have not followed out, or have not understood, how faith can be conjoined with good works, because of the appearances of truth that have been induced upon falsities. From this it can be seen that "it was given unto the beast to make war with the saints and to overcome them" signifies combat with those who are in truths from good, and who on account of appearances have not followed out these combinations.
[2] The reasonings by means of which the defenders of faith separated from the life have induced upon falsities the appearance of truth, by which they have seemed to themselves to have cleared away the disagreements with the Word, have been treated of in several places before; but that they have not cleared away these disagreements, but have woven as it were an invisible spider's web, that they might induce a faith in falsities, can be seen from what has been presented above (n. 780, 781, 786, 790); also from this, that by doctrine, preaching, and writings, they assert and insist that faith was given as the means of salvation, because man is unable to do good of himself; also that God continues to operate whatever is good in man while man is unconscious of it, and by this operation the evils that are done by a man who is justified by faith are not sins but infirmities of nature; and that deliberate or voluntary evils are forgiven, either immediately or after some repentance of the mouth; and finally that it follows that by "works" and "doing," in the Word, faith and to have faith are meant.
[3] This is their web by which they induce the simple to believe that out of the treasures of wisdom or interior perception, that are stored up only with the teachers and the learned, they have brought forth clear evidences to establish the doctrine of faith separated from any manifest endeavor of man (which is the will) to do what is good. Thus for themselves and all the people of the church they give license and free rein to acting and living according to the bent and trend of all lusts; and as this dogma is pleasing to the flesh and to the eyes, the common crowd gladly receive it. This, therefore, is what is here signified by "it was given to the beast to make war with the saints and to overcome them." But lest the leaders of the church, who are initiated into this dogma when they are initiated into the priesthood, and from them the people of the church, should be infected by the poison drawn from these crafty reasonings, from which they cannot but die, I will take up again the arguments just mentioned respecting the separation of faith from the goods to be done by man, also the conjunctions fallaciously contrived, by which they proceed from something to nothing, or from truth to falsity, and I will present to the light before the understanding in any degree enlightened, the detestable falsities of evil and evils of falsity that are contained in that more than heretical dogma, and that gush forth from it in a constant stream.
[4] First, "That faith was given as the means of salvation, because man is unable to do good of himself." That man is unable to do good of himself is true; and as man is unable to have any faith of himself it follows that as he is not able to do anything from himself, so is he not able to believe anything of himself. For what man of the church does not acknowledge that faith is from God and not from man? Therefore altogether similar things must be said of faith as is said of works. Of works it is said, that in case they are from man, and while they are from man, they do not justify. It must be similar with faith in case it is from man and while it is from man. And yet everyone believes from himself, for he evidently thinks and wishes to think in himself as if from himself that which belongs to faith. Therefore if the same is true of faith as of works, it follows that the elect only can have faith and be saved; and this implies predestination, from which with the evil flow all kinds of security of life, and with the good deprivation of all hope from which comes despair; and yet all are predestined for heaven, and those are called the elect who learn truths and do them. Again, since the same is true of faith and of good works, it follows that man cannot act and should not act otherwise than as an automaton, or as a thing that has no life, waiting to be moved by influx from God, and thus go on thinking nothing and willing nothing that is commanded in the Word; and yet such a man is continually willing and thinking something from himself. But as that which is from oneself is not from God but from hell, and yet to think and will from hell is against God, and two opposites cannot exist together, such a man is either foolish or an atheist. If anyone after this shall say that because faith is given to be the means of salvation it can be received by man as of himself he will say what is true; but to have faith, that is, to think that a thing is so and from that to speak as of oneself, and yet to be unable to will a thing because it is so as of oneself, is to annihilate faith; for one without the other is a nonentity. But if anyone shall say that justifying faith is simply to believe that God the Father sent the Son, that by the passion of His cross He might effect propitiation, redemption, and salvation, and this does not involve anything to be done, also because it is imputation that saves, it follows (since there is no truth of heaven in such belief, as will be shown in its place) that a belief in falsity, which is a dead faith, justifies.
[5] Secondly, "That still God operates what is good with man, while man is unconscious of it." It is true that God operates what is good with man, and for the most part while man is unconscious of it, and yet God gives man the power to perceive the things that are necessary to salvation. For God operates that man may think and speak those things that belong to faith, and may will and do those things that belong to love; and when man thence thinks, speaks, wills, and does, he must needs think, speak, will, and do, as if of himself. God operates into those things in man that are from Himself with him; that is, into the truths that belong to faith and into the goods that belong to love; consequently when God presents the former in the understanding and the latter in the will they appear to man as if they were his own, and he brings them forth as his own. In no other way can anyone think and speak and will and act from God. It is enough for man to know and acknowledge that these things are from God. This Divine operation itself often takes place while man is unconscious of it, but the effects that come from it man is conscious of. This is the meaning of the words:
That man can receive nothing unless it be given him from heaven (John 3:27).
Jesus said, Without Me ye can do nothing (John 15:5).
If man had no consciousness in thinking truths and in doing goods, that they might not become goods and truths from himself, he would be either like an animal or like a stock; and thus would be unable to think and will anything of God or anything from God, thus would not be able to be conjoined with God by faith and love and live to eternity. The difference between animals and men is that animals are unable to think and speak truths and to will and do goods from God, while men are able to do this, and thus to believe those things that they think, and to love those things that they will, and this as if of themselves. If it were not as if of themselves the Divine influx and operation would flow through and not be received, for man would be like a vessel without a bottom, which receives no water. Man's thought is the receptacle of truth, and his will the receptacle of good; and reception is not possible unless man is conscious of it. And if there is no reception there can be given no reciprocal, which makes that which is of God to be as if it were of man. Every agent that wills to conjoin himself with another must needs have something that is seemingly his own with which conjunction is effected, for otherwise there is no reagent; and where there is no action and at the same time reaction no conjunction is possible. The things in man with which God, who is the sole Agent, conjoins Himself, are the understanding and the will. These faculties are man's; and although when they act they act from God, they cannot act otherwise than as if of themselves. From this it now follows that truths and goods that do not so act are not anything. But this shall be illustrated by examples. It is commanded in the Word that man must not commit adultery, must not steal, must not kill, must not bear false witness. It is known that man is able to do all these things of himself, also that he is able to refrain from them because they are sins; and yet he is not able to refrain from them from himself, but only from God; yet when he refrains from them from God he still thinks that he wills to refrain from them because they are sins, and thus he refrains from them as if from himself; and when this is done, then because he calls adultery a sin he lives in chastity and loves chastity, and this as if of himself; and because he calls theft a sin he lives sincerely and loves sincerity, and this also as if of himself. When he calls murder a sin he lives in charity and loves charity, and this as if of himself. When he calls false testimony a sin he lives in truth and justice and loves truth and justice, and this as if of himself. And although he lives and loves these as if of himself, yet he lives and loves them from God; for whatever a man does from chastity itself, from sincerity itself, from charity itself, and from truth itself and justice itself, as if of himself, he does from God, and consequently they are goods. In a word, all things whatever that a man does from these principles as if from himself, these, when evils are removed, are from God and are goods. But all things that a man does before evils are removed, although they are works of chastity, works of sincerity, works of charity, or works of truth and justice, are not goods, because they are from man. Since all works, both those that are done from God and those that are not done from God, must needs be carried on by man or as if by him, it is evident why "works," "deeds," "working," and "doing," are so frequently mentioned in the Word, which would never have been so mentioned and commanded if they were done by God without man's knowledge, as is taught in the interior meaning of the doctrine of those who separate faith from good works.
[6] Thirdly, "That the evils that a man does who is justified by faith are not sins but infirmities of his nature; and that voluntary or deliberate evils are forgiven, either immediately or after some repentance of the mouth." This is the profession of those who have inwardly examined and entered into the mysteries of the separation of faith from good works, with a difference with some according to the keenness of their ability to reason and draw conclusions. This, indeed, necessarily follows. For those who ascribe everything of salvation to faith alone, and ascribe nothing of salvation to good works, say that they are in grace, and some that they are in God; and if in grace they conclude that evils are not seen, and if they are seen that they are immediately forgiven; if in God they conclude that nothing condemns them, thus that their evils are not sins, since sins condemn, but are infirmities of nature. And as evils from the will, which are called in the Word "sinning with a high hand," are not infirmities of nature, they say that they are forgiven, either immediately or after some repentance of the mouth, since he who has been justified by faith is in good and has no need of repentance of life; and some add, because these evils are done by permission. Again, this follows as a consequence from the belief that he who is justified by faith is redeemed, purified before God, and regenerated; and since he cannot do good of himself, that the merit of the Lord is ascribed and imputed to him, and by virtue of this imputation, together with redemption and regeneration, he is adopted as a son of God, and is led by God the Father, and enlightened by the Holy Spirit; consequently his works are accepted, and his evils are not evils like evils with others; and as they do not condemn they cannot be called sins, but infirmities, such as cling to everyone as an inheritance from Adam, and which, as soon as they come forth, are forgiven and cast out. These and various other opinions they assert, according to their ideas about the essence of faith, and its separation from the goods of life, or the conjunction of faith with those goods. But to investigate all these particulars is not necessary, for they are all streams from a false principle, from which nothing but falsities can flow forth in a continual series. Who does not know and acknowledge, when he thinks by himself, that man should examine himself, confess his sins before God, abominate them, and afterwards lead a new life, that he may inherit life eternal? This is taught in the appointed prayers in the churches, especially in those preparatory to observing the sacrament of the Supper; this is taught in the Word, and in all preachings from the Word; and reason that is at all enlightened declares it. And yet the light of this truth is extinguished as soon as anyone studies the arcana of this doctrine, and desires to gain a reputation for learning therefrom; for being led by the love of self and thence by the pride of self-intelligence, he departs from the faith of the common people, and embraces the falsity that destroys every truth of the Word and every truth of heaven. And as he is believed to be learned he draws after him and misleads many; and thus the sheep that he ought to gather he scatters, by teaching that he who is able to think and declare with confidence that Christ suffered for him, and thereby redeemed him, is condemned by no evil. But that there is nothing of life in such a faith will be seen in what follows. Such are not unlike those who from fantasy have visions, and who believe the men whom they see to be specters, and when they see phantoms believe them to be men, thus they see truths as falsities and falsities as truths, especially when the fantasy arising from the lumen of their infatuation is skillful in forming by means of fallacies images conformable to their lumen. In the delirium of their arcana they see wisdom, not knowing that those who know nothing about these things have after their life in this world a better lot.
[7] Fourthly, "That by "works" and "doing" in the Word, faith and to have faith are meant." The wish of such is to persuade others by these means that they are verifying all things of the Word, when in fact they are falsifying all things of it, for this conclusion is both a contradiction and a false statement. It is a contradiction to say that doing goods means to have faith, when nevertheless the received faith not only separates good works but also excludes them from the means of salvation; and that which is separated and excluded from anything (thus from the faith which is said not only to be something but also everything), cannot possibly exist in it, and thus cannot be meant by it. It is also a contradiction to say that that which is saving and spiritual which is said to belong to faith-means at the same time that which is not saving and not spiritual; for they call faith saving and spiritual, but they call works not saving and so not spiritual. It is a false statement to say that the Divine operation, without any co-operation by man, is meant by "works" and "doing" in the Word when yet man is commanded to do these. It is also a false statement to say that "good works" mean the faith that is received and is called saving, when yet that faith is of the thought alone and not at all of the will. Furthermore they say that "works" and "deeds" are mentioned in the Word on account of the simple who do not grasp the arcana of faith. But it is to be noted that it is one thing to believe a person and another thing to believe in him; as to believe that there is a God and to believe in Him. To believe in God or in His name signifies both to do and to have faith, as in John:
As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become sons of God, to them that believe in His name; who were born, not of bloods nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man (vir), but of God (John 1:12, 13).
Those born "not of bloods" are those who do not falsify the Word; those born "not of the will of the flesh" are those who are not in lusts from love of self; those born "not of the will of man" are those who are not in falsities from the pride of self-intelligence; those "born of God" are those who are regenerated by the Lord by means of truths from the Word and a life according to them; these are they who believe in the name of the Lord, and thence are called "sons of God." Such a faith is not the faith of the teachers of the church at this day.
802. [Vers. 7.] "Et datum ei bellum facere cum sanctis, et vincere illos." Quod significet pugnam cum illis qui in veris ex bono sunt, et non assecuti combinationes propter apparentias, constat ex significatione "belli", quod sit pugna spiritualis, quae est veri contra falsum, ac falsi contra verum (de qua supra, n. 573, 734); inde "bellum facere" est pugnare ex veris contra falsa, et ex falsis contra vera, hic ex falsis contra vera: ex significatione "sanctorum", quod sint qui in veris ex bono sunt (de qua etiam supra, n. 204): et ex significatione "vincere illos", quod sit illos suae doctrinae et inde religionis facere; et quia hoc faciunt per ratiocinia, per quae inducunt falsis apparentias veri, et per loca e sensu litterae Verbi, per quae ratiocinia sua confirmant, ideo per illa verba etiam significatur, qui non assecuti, seu non intellexerunt, quomodo fides conjungi potest cum bonis operibus, propter inductas falsis apparentias veri: ex his constare potest quod per "Datum bestiae bellum facere cum sanctis, et illos vincere", significatur pugna cum illis qui in veris ex bono sunt, et non assecuti combinationes propter apparentias.
[2] Supra pluribus in locis actum est de ratiociniis, per quae defensores fidei separatae a vita induxerunt falsis apparentias veri, per quas sibi visi sunt submovisse discordantias cum Verbo; verum quod discordantias non submoverint, sed quod telam quasi araneae inconspicuam texuerint, ad inducendum fidem falsis, constare potest ex illis quae supra (n. 780 [a] 781 [a, b] , 786, 790 [a]) allata sunt; et quoque ex his: quod doctrina, praedicatione, et scriptis satagant et instent quod fides data sit medium salvationis, quia homo non potest bonum facere a se; et quod usque Deus operetur bona apud hominem illo inscio; per quam operationem mala, quae homo justificatus per fidem facit, non sunt peccata, sed naturae infirmitates; et quod mala ex proposito seu voluntaria, vel statim, vel post aliquam paenitentiam oris, remittantur: et quod inde sequatur, quod per "opera" et per "facere", in Verbo, intelligatur fides ac fidem habere.
[3] Haec tela eorum est, per quam inducunt simplicibus credere quod ex thesauris sapientiae seu interioris perceptionis, qui unice apud doctores et eruditos repositi sunt, deprompserint auctoramenta firma pro stabiliendo fidem separatam a manifesto conatu, qui est voluntas, faciendi bona ab homine; ita sibi et universo populo ecclesiae remittunt et laxant frena, ut ex lubitu et ex genio omnium concupiscentiarum agant et vivant; quod dogma, quia carni et oculis placet, communis coetus libenter recepit: hoc itaque est, quod significatur hic per quod "datum sit bestiae bellum facere cum sanctis, et vincere illos." Sed ne antistites, qui in id dogma, cum in sacerdotium, initiantur, et ex illis populus ecclesiae, veneno per astutas ratiocinationes parato, ex quo non possunt non mori, infectentur, velim reassumere modo memoratas argumentationes de separatione fidei a bonis faciendis ab homine, tum conjunctiones fallaciter nexas, per quas procedunt ab aliquo ad nihil, seu a vero ad falsum, et in luce coram intellectu aliquatenus illustrato sistere falsa mali et mala falsi detestanda, quae dogmati isti plusquam haeretico insunt, et ex eo continente fluxu scaturiunt.
[4] Primum, Quod fides data sit medium salvationis, quia homo non potest bonum facere a se. Quod homo non possit bonum facere a se, hoc verum est; et quia homo non potest aliquam fidem habere a se, sequitur quod sicut non potest facere aliquid ex se, ita nec possit aliquid credere a se; quis enim homo ecclesiae non agnoscit quod fides sit a Deo, et non ab homine? Inde nunc prorsus similia dicenda sunt de fide, quae de operibus. De operibus dicitur, si illa ab homine, et dum ab homine, non justificent. Simile erit cum fide, si ab homine et dum ab homine; et tamen quisque credit a se; manifeste enim in se, sicut a se, id quod fidei est cogitat et vult cogitare. Si itaque non aliter cum fide sit, quam sicut cum operibus, sequitur quod solum electi possint fidem habere et salvari, quod involvit praedestinationem, ex qua fluit omnimoda securitas vitae apud malos, ac deprivatio omnis spei, ex qua desperatio, apud bonos; cum tamen omnes praedestinati sunt ad caelum, et vocantur electi qui discunt vera et faciunt illa. Quoniam simile est cum fide sicut cum bonis operibus, etiam sequitur quod homo non aliter agere possit et debeat, quam sicut automaton, aut sicut quod nullius vitae est, exspectando influxum a Deo ut moveatur, et sic eat nihil cogitando et nihil volendo quod mandatum est in Verbo; cum tamen homo talis continue aliquid ex se cogitat et vult, et quia id quod ex se est non ex Deo est sed ex inferno, et tamen ex inferno cogitare et velle est contra Deum, ac duo opposita simul non dantur, talis homo sit vel fatuus vel atheus. Si quis posthac dixerit quod fides, quia data est medium salvationis, possit recipi ab homine, sicut ab illo, dicitur verum; at fidem habere, hoc est, cogitare quod ita sit, et inde loqui, sicut a se, et non posse velle quia ita est sicut a se, est annihilare fidem; unum enim absque altero est non ens. Si autem quis dixerit quod fides justificans sit modo credere quod Deus Pater miserit Filium, ut per passionem crucis Ipsius fieret propitiatio, redemptio et salvatio, et hoc non involvit aliquod faciendum, etiam quia est imputatio quae salvat; sed quia in hoc credendo non est aliquod verum caeli, ut in suo loco demonstrabitur, sequitur quod fides falsi, quae est fides mortua, justificet.
[5] Secundo, Quod usque Deus operetur bona apud hominem, illo inscio. Quod Deus operetur bona apud hominem, hoc verum est; et quoque perplurima, homine nesciente; sed usque necessaria ad salvationem, dat Deus homini percipere: Deus enim operatur ut homo cogitet et loquatur illa quae fidei sunt, ac ut velit et faciat illa quae amoris sunt; cum homo inde cogitat, loquitur, vult et facit, non potest aliter quam ut cogitet, loquatur, velit et faciat sicut a se; operatur Deus in illa apud hominem quae a se in illo sunt, nempe in vera quae fidei sunt, et in bona quae amoris sunt; quare cum Deus sistit illa in intellectu, et haec in voluntate, apparent homini sicut sua, et sicut sua producit; cogitare et loqui, tum velle et facere aliter a Deo nemo potest: satis est, quod homo sciat et agnoscat quod a Deo sint: ipsa illa operatio Divina fit saepe homine nesciente, sed effectus inde fiunt homine sciente: ita intelligitur,
Quod non possit "homo sumere quicquam, nisi sit datum illi e caelo" (Johannes 3:27);
Dixit Jesus, "Sine Me non potestis facere quicquam" (Johannes 15:5).
Si homo non conscius esset in cogitandis veris, et in faciendis bonis, ex causa ne vera et bona sint a se, homo foret vel sicut animal vel sicut stipes; ita non posset aliquid Dei aut aliquid a Deo cogitare et velle, ita non posset conjungi Deo per fidem et per amorem, ac vivere in aeternum. Differentia inter animalia et inter homines est, quod animalia non possint cogitare et loqui vera, ac velle et facere bona a Deo; at quod homines possint, ac ita credere illa quae cogitant, et amare illa quae volunt, et hoc sicut a se; si non sicut ex se, influxus et operatio Divina transflueret, et non reciperetur, foret homo sicut vas absque fundo, quod nihil aquae recipit: cogitatio hominis est receptaculum veri, et voluntas receptaculum boni, et receptio non datur nisi conscio homine; et si non receptio, non daretur reciprocum, quod facit ut sit quasi hominis quod Dei est: omne agens quod vult se cum alio conjungere, necessario habebit aliquod sicut ejus cum quo se conjungit, alioqui non datur reagens; et ubi non actio et simul reactio, non datur conjunctio: illa apud hominem, cum quibus Deus, qui est solus Agens, se conjungit, sunt intellectus et voluntas; hae facultates sunt hominis; quae cum agunt, tametsi a Deo, non possunt aliter agere quam sicut a se: inde nunc sequitur, quod vera et bona, quae non ita fiunt, non sint aliquid. Sed haec illustrent exempla. Mandatum est in Verbo quod homo non adulterabitur, non furabitur, non occidet, non false testabitur: quod homo possit illa facere a se, notum est; tum etiam quod homo possit desistere ab illis, quia peccata sunt; sed usque non potest desistere ab illis ex se, sed ex Deo; cum autem desistit ab illis a Deo, cogitat usque homo quod velit desistere ab illis quia peccata sunt; ita desistit ab illis sicut a se; et cum hoc factum est, tunc quia adulterium vocat peccatum, in castitate vivit et castitatem amat, etiam hoc sicut a se; et quia furtum vocat peccatum, in sinceritate vivit, et sinceritatem amat, etiam hoc sicut a se; cum necem vocat peccatum, tunc in charitate vivit, et charitatem amat, et hoc sicut a se; cum falsum testimonium vocat peccatum, tunc in veritate et in justitia vivit, ac veritatem et justitiam amat, et hoc sicut a se: et tametsi illa vivit et amat sicut a se, usque illa vivit et amat ex Deo; nam quicquid homo ex ipsa castitate, ex ipsa sinceritate, ex ipsa charitate, et ex ipsa veritate et justitia, sicut ex se facit, ex Deo facit, et inde bona sunt: verbo, omnia quaecunque homo ex illis sicut ex se facit, remotis malis, a Deo sunt, et bona sunt; at omnia quae homo facit, antequam remota sunt mala, tametsi sint opera castitatis, opera sinceritatis, opera charitatis, opera veritatis et justitiae, usque non bona sunt, quia sunt ab homine. Quoniam omnia opera, tam quae a Deo quam quae non a Deo fiunt, non possunt aliter quam ab homine, aut sicut ab ipso, patrari, patet cur toties in Verbo dicuntur "opera", "facta", "operari" et "facere", quae nequaquam dicta et mandata fuissent si fierent a Deo, homine nesciente, secundum interiorem sensum doctrinae illorum qui separant fidem a bonis operibus.
[6] Tertio, Quod mala, quae homo justificatus per fidem facit, non sint peccata, sed infirmitates naturae ejus, et quod mala voluntaria seu ex proposito, vel statim, vel post aliquam paenitentiam oris, remittantur: haec est confessio illorum qui penitius scrutati sunt, et intraverunt in arcana separationis fidei a bonis operibus, cum varietate apud quosdam secundum acumen ratiocinandi et concludendi, sunt enim consectaria; nam qui addicant omne salvationis soli fidei, et derogant omne salvationis bonis operibus, dicunt se in gratia esse, et quidam in Deo esse; si in gratia, concludunt quod mala non videantur, et si videntur quod statim remittantur; si in Deo, quod nihil damnet, ita quod mala non sint peccata, quia illa damnant, sed quod sint infirmitates naturae; et quia mala ex voluntario, quae in Verbo vocantur peccata quae sunt alta manu, non sunt infirmitates naturae, dicunt quod remittantur, vel statim, vel post aliquam paenitentiam oris, quoniam justificatus per fidem in bono est, qui paenitentia vitae non opus habet; addunt quidam, quia ex permissione facta sunt. Haec etiam consequuntur ex eo, quia credunt quod justificatus per fidem redemptus sit, coram Deo purificatus, ac regeneratus; et quia bonum a se non potest facere, quod meritum Domini ei addicatur et imputetur, ex qua imputatione, et simul ex redemptione et regeneratione, ut filius Dei adoptatur, ac ducitur a Deo Patre, et illuminatur a Spiritu sancto; unde opera ejus accepta sunt, ac mala non sunt mala sicut apud alios; quae quia non damnant, non possunt peccata vocari, sed infirmitates, quae unicuivis adhaerent, ut hereditas, ex Adamo, quae ut primum exsurgunt, remittuntur ac ejiciuntur: praeter plura, et varia, secundum ideas de essentia fidei, ac de ejus separatione a bonis vitae, aut de fidei conjunctione cum illis. Sed singula haec sub examen mittere, non interest; sunt enim scaturigines ex falso principio, ex quo non possunt quam falsa in continua serie profluere. Quis non scit, et agnoscit, dum secum cogitat, quod homo se exploraturus sit, peccata sua coram Deo confessurus, quod illa abominaturus, et postea novam vitam acturus sit, ut vitam aeternam hereditet? Haec docent solennes preces in ecclesiis, imprimis per quas praeparatio fit ad obeundum sacramentum Cenae; haec docet Verbum, et docent omnes praedicationes ex Verbo; et haec dictat ratio parumper illustrata: sed usque lux hujus veri exstinguitur, ut primum aliquis studet arcanis doctrinae, et inde eruditionis famam captare vult; is quia ducitur ab amore sui, et inde a fastu propriae intelligentiae, recedit a fide communis coetus, et amplectitur falsum quod destruit omne verum Verbi, et omne verum caeli; ac quia creditur doctus, post se trahit et seducit multos, et sic dispergit oves quas colligeret, docendo quod non aliquod malum damnet illum qui ex fiducia cogitare et enuntiare potest quod Christus passus sit pro illo, et per id redemerit illum: sed quod nihil vitae in illa fide sit, videbitur in sequentibus. Sunt illi non absimiles illis qui in visione ex phantasia sunt, qui dum vident homines, credunt esse spectra, et cum simulacra credunt esse homines; sic vident vera ut falsa, ac falsa ut vera, imprimis si phantasia ex lumine infatuato per fallacias callet formare imagines lumini suo conformes: hi sapientiam spectant in delirio arcanorum suorum, non scientes quod post vitam in mundo melior sors sit illis qui ea ignorant.
[7] Quarto, Quod per "opera" et per "facere" in Verbo intelligatur fides et fidem habere. Per haec volunt persuadere quod verificent omnia Verbi, cum tamen omnia ejus 1
falsificant; ita enim concludere est contradictorium et est falsiloquium. Contradictorium est dicere quod per "facere bona" intelligatur fidem habere, cum tamen recepta fides non modo separet bona opera, sed etiam a salvationis medio excludat illa; in aliquo, ita in fide, in qua dicitur non modo esse aliquid sed etiam omne, non potest dari quod separatum et exclusum est, ita nec per id intelligi: contradictorium etiam est quod per salvificum et per spirituale, quod dicitur esse fidei, intelligatur simul non salvificum et non spirituale; fidem enim vocant salvificam et spiritualem, opera autem non salvifica, ita non spiritualia. Falsiloquium est quod operatio Divina absque ulla hominis cooperatione intelligatur per "opera" et per "facere" in Verbo, cum tamen mandatum est homini ut faciat illa: falsiloquium etiam est quod per "bona opera" intelligitur fides quae recepta est, ac vocatur salvificans, cum tamen illa est solius cogitationis, et nihil voluntatis. Dicunt etiam quod "opera" et "facta" dicta sint in Verbo propter simplices, qui non capiunt arcana fidei. At sciendum est quod aliud sit credere alicui et credere in aliquem, sicut credere quod Deus sit, et credere in Ipsum; credere in Deum, aut in nomen Ipsius, significat et facere et fidem habere: ut apud Johannem,
"Quotquot..receperunt.., dedit illis potestatem ut filii Dei essent, credentibus in nomen Ipsius; qui non ex sanguinibus, neque ex voluntate carnis, neque ex voluntate viri, sed ex Deo nati sunt" (1:12, 13):
qui "non ex sanguinibus", sunt qui non falsificant Verbum; qui "non ex voluntate carnis", sunt qui non in cupiditatibus ex amore sui sunt; qui "non ex voluntate viri", sunt qui non in falsitatibus ex fastu propriae intelligentiae; qui "ex Deo nati", sunt qui per vera ex Verbo, et per vitam secundum illa, a Domino regenerati sunt; hi sunt qui credunt in nomen Domini, ac inde "filii Dei" vocantur. Talis fides non est fides doctorum ecclesiae hodie.
Footnotes:
1. The editors made a correction or note here.