149、为何人不以同样的方式从属灵奴役中走出来，进入属灵自由，其原因有三，首先：他不知道什么叫属灵的奴役，什么叫属灵的自由；也没有教导这一点的真理；没有真理，属灵的奴役会被视为自由，而属灵的自由会被视为奴役。其次：基督教界已关闭理解力，唯信的神学把它封起来；两者都在自己周围设置了一道铁墙，这墙就是以下信条：神学问题超越人的理解力，人不可用自己的理性靠近它们，它们是为了盲人，而不是为了看见的人。教导何为属灵自由的真理就这样被掩藏起来。第三个原因是：很少有人检查自己，看见自己的罪。凡看不见自己的罪并停止它们的人都在罪的自由里，这自由是地狱的自由，本质上是奴役。从这种视角来看为自由本身的天堂自由，就像在浓雾或黑暗中看白昼，或在乌云之下看上面来自太阳的东西。由于这些原因，人们不知道什么叫天堂自由，也不知道它与地狱自由之间的区别就像活物与死物之间的区别。
149. As for why a person does not wish in the same way to go from a state of spiritual servitude into a state of spiritual freedom, one reason is that he does not know what spiritual servitude and spiritual freedom are. He does not have the truths to teach him, and without truths he believes spiritual servitude to be freedom, and spiritual freedom to be servitude.
Another reason is that the religion of the Christian world has closed the intellect, and faith alone sealed it shut; for both bodies have placed around them, like an iron wall, this dogma, that theological matters are transcendent, and that they are not to be approached therefore with any rationality, but are for the blind and not for the seeing. By this they have hidden away any truths that might teach what spiritual freedom is.
The third reason is that few people examine themselves and see their sins; and one who does not see them and desist from them feels free to do them, which is hellish freedom, in itself slavery. Moreover, to view heavenly freedom, which is real freedom, from this state is like peering at daylight while in pitch darkness, or like seeing the sunshine above from beneath a black cloud.
So it is that no one knows what heavenly freedom is, and that the difference between it and hellish freedom is like the difference between being alive and being dead.
149. One reason people do not make a similar effort to move from spiritual slavery to spiritual freedom is that they do not know what spiritual slavery and spiritual freedom are. They do not have the truths that would teach them, and in the absence of truths, they think that spiritual slavery is freedom and spiritual freedom is slavery.
A second reason is that the Christian religion has closed the door on intelligence, and the theology of faith alone has sealed it shut. Each of these erects an iron wall around itself, the wall being the dogma that theological matters are beyond our grasp and that we should therefore not use our rationality in our approach to them, that they are for the blind, not for the sighted. This hides from view the truths that teach what spiritual freedom is.
A third reason is that not many people look into themselves and see their sins; and if they do not see them and refrain from them, they are in the freedom of their sins, a hellish freedom that is essentially slavery. Looking at heavenly freedom (which is freedom in its essence) from this perspective is like seeing daylight in darkness, like looking under a black cloud at what comes from the sun overhead. This is why they do not know what heavenly freedom is, or know that the difference between it and hellish freedom is like the difference between life and death.
149. One reason why man does not in like manner desire to come out of spiritual servitude into spiritual liberty is, that he does not know what spiritual slavery is and what spiritual freedom is; he does not possess the truths that teach this; and without truths spiritual slavery is believed to be freedom, and spiritual freedom to be slavery. Another reason is that the religion of the Christian world has closed up the understanding, and faith alone has sealed it; for both of these have placed around themselves like an iron curtain the dogma that theological matters are transcendent and cannot therefore be reached by any exercise of rationality, and that they are for the blind, not for those that see. In this way the truths have been hidden that teach what spiritual liberty is. A third reason is that few examine themselves and see their sins; and he who does not see his sins and desist from them is in the freedom of sin, which is infernal freedom, in itself slavery; and from this viewpoint to see heavenly freedom, which is freedom itself is like seeing day in a fog, or like seeing what comes from the sun above when under a black cloud. Hence it is that it is not known what heavenly freedom is, and that the difference between it and infernal freedom is like the difference between the living and the dead.
149. Man does not wish in like manner to come out of spiritual servitude into spiritual liberty, for the reason, first, that he does not know what spiritual servitude is and what spiritual liberty is; he does not possess the truths that teach this; and without truths, spiritual servitude is believed to be freedom, and spiritual freedom to be servitude. Another reason is that the religion of the Christian world has closed up the understanding, and faith alone has sealed it; for both of these have placed around themselves, like a wall of iron, the dogma that theological matters transcend the comprehension, and cannot therefore be reached by any exercise of the reason, and are for the blind, not for those that see. In this way have the truths been hidden that teach what spiritual liberty is. A third reason is, that few examine themselves and see their sins; and he who does not see his sins and refrain from them is in the freedom of sin, which is infernal freedom, in itself bondage; and from this to see heavenly freedom, which is freedom itself, is like seeing day when immersed in thick darkness, or like seeing what is from the sun above when under a dark cloud. For these reasons it is not known what heavenly freedom is, and that the difference between it and infernal freedom is like the difference between what is alive and what is dead.
149. Quod homo non similiter velit venire e servitute spirituali in libertatem spiritualem, est una causa, quod non sciat quid servum spirituale, et quid liberum spirituale; non ei sunt vera quae docent, et absque veris creditur quod servum spirituale sit liberum, et liberum spirituale sit servum. Altera causa est, quia religio Christiani orbis occlusit intellectum, et sola fides obsignavit illum, nam utraque sicut murum ferreum circum se posuit id dogma, quod Theologica transcendant, et quod ideo non ex aliqua rationalitate adeunda sint, et quod sint pro 1caecis et non pro videntibus; per id abscondita sunt vera, quae docerent quid Libertas spiritualis. Tertia causa est, quia pauci explorant se, et vident sua peccata, et qui non videt illa, et desistit ab illis, in libero illorum est, quod est liberum infernale, in se servum, et ex hoc videre Liberum coeleste, quod est ipsum Liberum, est sicut videre in caligine diem, et sub atra nube id quod a sole supra est. Inde est, quod nesciatur quid Liberum coeleste, et quod discrimen inter illud et inter Liberum infernale sit sicut discrimen inter vivum et mortuum.
Footnotes:
1 Prima editio: prae