Johannes Marck’s Marrow of Christian Theology, Didactic-Elenctic XXXIV

CHAPTER XXXIV

Concerning Glorification

---

I. The fourth state of man is GLORIFICATION, or the consummated salvation of the elect, which is the end of faith and of our theology.

II. As there are various names—glory, salvation, kingdom, crown, joy, &c.—by which this blessedness is expressed, so here is not meant the inchoate glorification of this life, Ps. 16:3, “to the saints who are in the earth, and to the excellent,” &c.; Ps. 45:14, “the King’s daughter is all glorious within,” &c.; but that which is consummated after this life.

III. This, which Scripture and the goodness of God bid us expect, is rightly called a good to be conferred by God upon the covenanted and elect, according to his eternal purpose, and on account of the merit of Christ apprehended by faith, after departure from this life with respect to the soul,

[Page 454]

but on the last day with respect to the soul and the body raised together, after judgment has been held, unto the eternal praise of his grace.

IV. It is a good at once honorable, useful, and pleasant; it excludes every evil, and endures forever. It is given to the covenanted and elect, Rom. 8:30, “whom he predestinated,” &c., “them he also glorified”; Matt. 25:34, “come, ye blessed of my Father,” κληρονομήσατε τὴν ἡτοιμασμένην ὑμῖν βασιλείαν ἀπὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου [inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world], &c.; and this by the grace of God in Christ, Rom. 6:23, τὸ δὲ χάρισμα τοῦ Θεοῦ ζωὴ αἰώνιος [but the gift of God is eternal life], &c.; Eph. 2:8, τῇ γὰρ χάριτί ἐστε σεσῳσμένοι [for by grace ye are saved], &c.; unto the praise of his glorious grace, 2 Thess. 1:10, ὅταν ἔλθῃ ἐνδοξασθῆναι ἐν τοῖς ἁγίοις αὐτοῦ [when he shall come to be glorified in his saints], &c.; Eph. 1:6, εἰς ἔπαινον δόξης τῆς χάριτος αὐτοῦ [unto the praise of the glory of his grace].

V. Its moment is twofold: namely, at death and on the last day, when this glory will happen to both soul and body together, to all the elect, and indeed publicly.

VI. In the glorification of the soul we presuppose its existence and actuality after death, against the Socinians and Mennonites, who think that souls sleep, being without life, sense, understanding, and every activity; thus plainly overthrowing the spiritual and most active nature of the soul, and the clear testimonies of Scripture: Luke 16:25, “Son, remember that thou receivedst thy good things in thy life, and Lazarus likewise evil things; but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented”; 2 Cor. 5:7, 8, θαρροῦμεν καὶ εὐδοκοῦμεν μᾶλλον ἐκδημῆσαι ἐκ τοῦ σώματος καὶ ἐνδημῆσαι πρὸς τὸν Κύριον [we are confident, and willing rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord]; Phil. 1:23,

[Page 455]

ἐπιθυμίαν ἔχων εἰς τὸ ἀναλῦσαι καὶ σὺν Χριστῷ εἶναι [having a desire to depart and to be with Christ], πολλῷ μᾶλλον κρεῖσσον [which is far better], &c.

Objection 1. Sleep and rest are attributed to the dead, John 11:11, 13, 14; Rev. 14:13.

Reply Those terms are to be understood metaphorically, referring partly to the body, and partly to the ceasing of the troubles of this life.

Objection 2. Life and death belong to the whole man.

Reply Yet originally to the soul, which is sufficient even by itself.

VII. But we hold at the same time that surviving and living souls are glorified immediately in death, against the Socinians and Anabaptists, who, with many of the ancients, defer this to the day of the last judgment. Various examples teach otherwise: Luke 16:22, “the poor man died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom”; Luke 23:43, “verily I say unto thee, today thou shalt be with me in Paradise”; and the common assertions, Eccl. 12:7, “and the spirit returns to God who gave it”; and the confidence of Christians, 2 Cor. 5:1, 8, “we know that, if our earthly house of this tabernacle be dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens,” &c.; εὐδοκοῦμεν δὲ μᾶλλον ἐκδημῆσαι ἐκ τοῦ σώματος καὶ ἐνδημῆσαι πρὸς τὸν Κύριον [we are willing rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord], &c.; Phil. 1:23, “having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ,” &c.

Objection 1. A descent to the lower parts is attributed to souls, Acts 2:31; Phil. 2:10; Luke 16:23, 24.

Reply This partly concerns the body, or damned men, and partly belongs to the fitting dignity of the parable.

Objection 2. The reward is everywhere deferred to the last day, 2 Cor. 5:10; 2 Tim. 4:8.

Reply There the matter concerns the coronation of the whole man and of the Church, which does not remove the preceding coronation of individual souls.

[Page 456]

VIII. The Papists err in the same way when they imagine an infernal limbo, in which the souls of the fathers were detained until the death and ascension of Christ. This is contrary to the Covenant of Grace entered into with the fathers, Matt. 22:32, “he is not the God of the dead, but of the living”; and to the heavenly salvation ascribed to them, Acts 15:11, “through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we believe that we shall be saved, even as they.” Eccl. 12:7, “the spirit returns to God who gave it”; and to their confident expectation, Ps. 73:24, “thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory”; Heb. 11:10, 14, 15, “he looked for a city which has foundations,” &c.; “for they who say such things plainly declare that they seek a country,” &c.

Objection 1. No one entered heaven before Christ, John 3:13.

Reply Either distinct knowledge of heavenly things is there treated, or the proper right and power of entering there.

Objection 2. Christ is the forerunner who prepares a place for us, Heb. 6:20; John 14:2, 3.

Reply He is called this with respect to his dignity, merits, and intercession.

Objection 3. The way into the heavenly sanctuary was formerly not made manifest, Heb. 9:8.

Reply It was not so clearly proposed to all promiscuously.

Objection 4. Christ descended to the lower parts to liberate the fathers thence, 1 Pet. 3:19; 4:6.

Reply In these places the matter concerns preaching done upon earth through the prophets to men now damned.

IX. Nor is the error of the same men concerning Purgatory any lighter; that is, an infernal place in which souls not fully freed from venial sins are tormented by the most grievous punishments of the damned, until

[Page 457]

they have fully satisfied divine justice, either by themselves or by other living men. But this collapses, since Scripture acknowledges only a twofold state of men after this life, Luke 16:22, 23, “the rich man also died and was buried; and in hell, lifting up his eyes, being in torments,” &c.; and ascribes glory to the soul in the hour of death, Luke 23:43, “verily I say unto thee, today thou shalt be with me in Paradise”; Rev. 14:13, “blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on, says the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them,” &c.; and derives full cleansing from the blood of Christ alone, 1 John 1:7, “the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from every sin”; Rom. 8:1, “there is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus,” &c.

X. The Papists object:

1. Various places of Scripture, Isa. 4:4; Zech. 9:11; Matt. 12:32; 1 Cor. 3:13, 15, &c. Reply In these places the matter concerns partly the sanctifying grace of the Spirit; partly natural and Babylonian captivity under Satan; partly perpetual irremissibility; partly a serious inquiry into doctrine built upon the foundation.

2. Various reasons from the practice of praying for the dead, from the necessity of satisfaction and expiation, from the example of those twice dead, from security otherwise to be introduced, &c. Reply Prayers for the dead are not found in the Old Testament, and in the Christian Church they rest upon another foundation. The satisfaction and expiation of Christ are most complete. The example of those twice dead is extraordinary, nor were they in Purgatory. Security ought rather to be driven away by the fear of Gehenna than of Purgatory.

3. The consent of almost all peoples and the most ancient Christians. Reply Other peoples have not always held the truth; and both their purgatory and that of the ancient Christians differs greatly from the Papistic one.

[Page 458]

XI. While the souls of the godly are glorified in death, they are also immediately transferred locally into heaven, Luke 16:22, “he was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom”; Luke 23:43, “today thou shalt be with me in Paradise”; 2 Cor. 5:1, 8, “a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens,” &c.; ἐνδημῆσαι πρὸς τὸν Κύριον [to be present with the Lord]. Phil. 1:23, “to depart and to be with Christ,” where the beatific vision of God is granted, Matt. 18:10, “their angels in heaven always behold the face of my Father who is in heaven,” &c. This Christian confidence ought not to be shaken by the more recent Sophists, as though souls in death were nowhere any more, but only a change of state then obtained.

XII. Meanwhile, the souls of the ungodly, which also truly survive in death, are thrust down, with actual sense of divine wrath, into the true place of the damned, or hell. The truth of this place Scripture teaches throughout: 1 Pet. 3:19, “the spirits in prison”; 2 Pet. 2:4, σειραῖς ζόφου ταρταρώσας παρέδωκεν εἰς κρίσιν [having cast them down to Tartarus, he delivered them to chains of darkness unto judgment]; Matt. 10:28, “who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna,” &c.; although we are ignorant of its whole manner, situation, and measure.

XIII. The other moment of glorification begins with the bodily and universal RESURRECTION of all the dead. That this is future is demonstrated, against the Sadducees and all Epicureans,

[Page 459]

from very many statements of the Old and New Testaments: Job 19:25, 26, 27, “I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he shall stand upon the dust; and after my skin has been destroyed, yet out of my flesh shall I see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another,” &c.; Ezek. 37:4, 5, “prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of Jehovah; thus says the Lord Jehovah to these bones, behold, I will cause spirit to enter into you, and ye shall live,” &c.; Dan. 12:2, “many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to eternal life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt”; Matt. 22:29, 31, 32, πλανᾶσθε μὴ εἰδότες τὰς γραφὰς [ye err, not knowing the Scriptures], &c.; “but concerning the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken to you by God, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.” John 5:28, 29, “marvel not at this, for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth: those who have done good to the resurrection of life, but those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.” 1 Cor. 15:19, “if in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable,” &c.; Rev. 20:12, 13, “and I saw the dead, small and great, standing before the throne, and the dead were judged,” &c.; and from the example of Christ raised, 1 Cor. 15:12,

[Page 460]

and of other dead men, Luke 7:15, καὶ ἀνεκάθισεν ὁ νεκρός, καὶ ἤρξατο λαλεῖν [and the dead man sat up and began to speak], &c.; John 11:44. It is also probably gathered from the power, constancy, and justice of God, and from various likenesses found in nature.

Objection 1. There is no difference between the death of men and of beasts, Eccl. 3:12.

Reply In death itself, and in the external sight of men.

Objection 2. Men will not rise again until the moon is not, Job 14:10, 11, 12.

Reply This is either not before the end of the world, or never to this earthly life.

Objection 3. From total privation there is no return.

Reply Not by natural causes, above which the power of God greatly prevails.

XIV. This resurrection is the work of God, who by his infinite power will effect it, Rom. 4:17, τοῦ ζωοποιοῦντος τοὺς νεκρούς [who gives life to the dead], &c.; Eph. 1:19, 20, καὶ τί τὸ ὑπερβάλλον μέγεθος τῆς δυνάμεως αὐτοῦ εἰς ἡμᾶς τοὺς πιστεύοντας κατὰ τὴν ἐνέργειαν τοῦ κράτους τῆς ἰσχύος αὐτοῦ, ἣν ἐνήργησεν ἐν Χριστῷ, ἐγείρας αὐτὸν ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν [and what is the exceeding greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of the might of his strength, which he wrought in Christ, raising him from the dead], &c.; yet with the intervention of a voice, both inarticulate, and perhaps some articulate voice, to which the trumpet of God and the voice of the archangel belong, 1 Thess. 4:16, ὅτι αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος ἐν κελεύσματι, ἐν φωνῇ ἀρχαγγέλου, καὶ ἐν σάλπιγγι Θεοῦ καταβήσεται ἀπ’ οὐρανοῦ [for the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God], &c.

XV. The dead alone will be raised, as opposed to the living who will be changed, 1 Cor. 15:51, 52, “we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,” &c.; “the dead shall rise incorruptible, and we shall be changed,” &c.; and all without distinction, even of the godly and the ungodly. This is plainly evident from general utterances, John 5:28, 29,

[Page 461]

“all who are in the graves shall hear his voice and shall come forth,” &c.; Rev. 20:12, 13, “and I saw the dead, great and small,” &c.; and from the resurrection of the just and unjust, promised to all, Acts 24:15, ἐλπίδα ἔχων εἰς τὸν Θεόν, ἣν καὶ αὐτοὶ οὗτοι προσδέχονται, ἀνάστασιν μέλλειν ἔσεσθαι νεκρῶν δικαίων τε καὶ ἀδίκων [having hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust]; and from the future judgment of all, 2 Cor. 5:10, “for we must all appear before the tribunal of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or evil”; and from the different state immediately to follow, John 5:29, καὶ ἐκπορεύσονται οἱ τὰ ἀγαθὰ ποιήσαντες εἰς ἀνάστασιν ζωῆς, οἱ δὲ τὰ φαῦλα πράξαντες εἰς ἀνάστασιν κρίσεως [and they shall come forth: those who have done good to the resurrection of life, but those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment]; Dan. 12:2, “these to eternal life, those to reproach and eternal contempt,” &c. The Socinians object, denying the resurrection of the ungodly:

1. Resurrection is the privilege of the godly, Luke 20:35, 36; 1 Cor. 15:20, 22, &c.

Reply The blessed resurrection is then understood.

2. The ungodly remain in eternal destruction.

Reply This does not consist in annihilation, but in painful exclusion from God.

3. Resurrection is denied to the ungodly, Isa. 26:14; Ps. 1:5.

Reply This is either with respect to this life, or among the godly, according to the vindication of themselves in judgment.

XVI. The qualities of bodies will indeed be changed, 1 Cor. 15:42, 43, 44, σπείρεται ἐν φθορᾷ, ἐγείρεται ἐν ἀφθαρσίᾳ· ἐγείρεται ἐν δόξῃ, ἐγείρεται ἐν δυνάμει, σπείρεται σῶμα ψυχικόν, ἐγείρεται σῶμα πνευματικόν [it is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption; it is raised in glory, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body], &c.; but we again assert against the Socinians that the same body in species and number is to be raised, from the passages Job 19:25, 26, 27, “out of my flesh I shall see God,”

[Page 462]

&c.; 1 Cor. 15:53, 54, δεῖ γὰρ τὸ φθαρτὸν τοῦτο ἐνδύσασθαι ἀφθαρσίαν, καὶ τὸ θνητὸν τοῦτο ἐνδύσασθαι ἀθανασίαν [for this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality], &c.; and from the example of Christ, Luke 24:39, “see my hands and my feet, that it is I myself; handle me and see, for a spirit has not flesh and bones, as ye see me have,” and from the very name of the resurrection of the flesh.

Objection 1. The belly is to be abolished, and flesh and blood do not inherit the kingdom of God, 1 Cor. 6:13; 15:50.

Reply The former looks to the present use of the belly; the latter to the corrupt and corruptible body.

Objection 2. Bodies will be spiritual, and we shall be ἰσάγγελοι [equal to the angels], 1 Cor. 15:44; Matt. 20:30.

Reply Both are to be understood of various qualities and powers, not of substance.

Objection 3. The same body has long been dissolved, and its parts variously lost.

Reply God by his power and wisdom will restore it no less easily than he formerly produced it from dust or from seed.

XVII. The time will be one, common, and most brief, 1 Cor. 15:52, ἐν ἀτόμῳ, ἐν ῥιπῇ ὀφθαλμοῦ [in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye], &c.; nor has it hitherto been declared, Matt. 24:42, “watch therefore, for ye know not what hour your Lord comes”; Mark 13:34, “but of that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels who are in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father,” &c.; although there are many signs noted, which have long been fulfilled, and others also to be fulfilled near the appearance of the Lord, Matt. 24:29, 30, “immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,”

[Page 463]

“and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken; and then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven,” &c. The place of the resurrection, however, will by no means be only the land of Canaan, but every place indiscriminately shall give up its dead, Matt. 24:31, “and he shall send his angels with a trumpet and a great voice, and they shall gather his elect from the four winds, from the extremities of the heavens to the extremities thereof”; Rev. 20:13, “and death and hell gave up their dead,” &c. Thus there is no need here to seek holier places, although honorable burial is not to be neglected.

XVIII. The resurrection will be followed by the last and universal judgment, which is opposed to every particular judgment held either in this life or at death. Many interpret the text Heb. 9:27 concerning this: καθ’ ὅσον ἀπόκειται τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἅπαξ ἀποθανεῖν, μετὰ δὲ τοῦτο κρίσις [inasmuch as it is appointed to men once to die, and after this judgment]; but perhaps less solidly, since it is best referred to the last judgment.

XIX. That such a judgment is to be held, besides the justice of God, which is to be openly manifested, Scripture teaches everywhere, Jude 14, “behold, the Lord comes with his holy myriads to execute judgment against all,” &c.; Eccl. 11:9, “rejoice, young man, in thy youth,” &c.; “and know that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment.” Acts 17:31, διότι ἔστησεν ἡμέραν ἐν ᾗ μέλλει κρίνειν τὴν οἰκουμένην ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ [because he has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness].

Objection 1. This has long been delayed beyond the expectation of the Apostles themselves, 2 Pet. 3:3, 4; compare 1 John 2:18.

Reply This delay is only apparent and salutary to the elect; nor did the Apostles expect this judgment in their own age, 2 Thess. 2:1, 2,

[Page 464]

ὑπὲρ τῆς παρουσίας τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ ἡμῶν ἐπισυναγωγῆς ἐπ’ αὐτόν, εἰς τὸ μὴ ταχέως σαλευθῆναι ὑμᾶς ἀπὸ τοῦ νοός [concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together unto him, that ye be not quickly shaken in mind], &c.; deservedly, however, they looked upon the time of the New Testament generally as the last.

Objection 2. It would be useless after men have long been saved or damned.

Reply It concerns the glory of God that it should be manifested publicly in whole men and in all men together.

XX. The Judge indeed will be the Triune God, Rom. 2:5, δικαιοκρισίας τοῦ Θεοῦ [of the righteous judgment of God], &c.; yet economically, the Son as God-man, John 5:22, 27, “for the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son,” and “has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man,” &c. He will also have the Apostles and the faithful, first judged, as assessors of his judgment, Matt. 19:28, “verily I say unto you, that ye who have followed me, in the regeneration, when the Son of Man shall sit on the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel”; 1 Cor. 6:2, 3, “know ye not that the saints shall judge the world?” &c.; “know ye not that we shall judge angels?” &c.

XXI. Those to be judged will be the angels—not the good, but the evil, 2 Pet. 2:4, “if God spared not the angels who sinned,” ἀλλὰ σειραῖς ζόφου ταρταρώσας παρέδωκεν εἰς κρίσιν τηρουμένους [but having cast them down to Tartarus, he delivered them to chains of darkness, reserved unto judgment]; Jude 6, “and the angels who did not keep their own principality, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day,” &c.; and all men, without distinction, even of the godly and ungodly, Acts 10:42,

[Page 465]

“that he was appointed by God Judge of the living and the dead”; 2 Cor. 5:10, τοὺς γὰρ πάντας ἡμᾶς φανερωθῆναι δεῖ ἔμπροσθεν τοῦ βήματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ, ἵνα κομίσηται ἕκαστος τὰ διὰ τοῦ σώματος, πρὸς ἃ ἔπραξεν, εἴτε ἀγαθόν, εἴτε κακόν [for we must all be manifested before the judgment-seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done through the body, according to what he has done, whether good or evil], &c. Yet the godly will not come into the judgment of condemnation, John 5:24; nor will the ungodly be able to stand in the judgment, Ps. 1:5.

XXII. There are five acts of judgment.

1. A valid summons, Matt. 24:31, καὶ ἀποστελεῖ τοὺς ἀγγέλους αὐτοῦ μετὰ σάλπιγγος φωνῆς μεγάλης, καὶ ἐπισυνάξουσιν τοὺς ἐκλεκτοὺς αὐτοῦ [and he shall send his angels with the trumpet of a great voice, and they shall gather together his elect], &c.

2. The separation of the godly from the ungodly, formerly mixed here, Matt. 25:32, 33, “and before him shall be gathered all nations, and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.”

3. Knowledge of the case, by the opening of the books, Rev. 20:12, “and the books were opened, and another book was opened, which is the book of life,” &c.; namely, of eternal predestination, of legal and evangelical Scripture, of providence, and of one’s own conscience. Here Christ mentioned alms and sins of omission as specimens; but all hidden works also are to be remembered, not even excepting the sins of the faithful, as appears from Eccl. 12:14, “for God shall bring every work into judgment, whether good or evil”; and Matt. 12:36, 37, “I say unto you, that every idle word which men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment,” &c.

4. The pronouncing of the sentence, according to the quality and quantity of works—irrevocable and public.

5. Finally, the most prompt execution of the same, Matt. 25:46, “and these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

[Page 466]

XXIII. The time of this judgment, as to its moment and duration, is uncertain to us, coming under the name of “the day of the Lord,” of his ἀποκάλυψις [revelation], παρουσία [coming], and ἐπιφάνεια [appearing]; yet so that we read of various signs which will precede more remotely and more nearly. The place will still be the region of the air near the earth, Matt. 24:30, “and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven”; 1 Thess. 4:16, 17, “then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in clouds to meet the Lord in the air,” &c. But what particular tract of the earth this will be is guessed without ground; for the Valley of Jehoshaphat, Joel 3:2, 12, is so called appellatively from judgment, and there the matter concerns not a universal but a particular judgment.

XXIV. Thus at last the glory of the elect will be consummated. This is indeed depicted to us in various phrases, but in this state we cannot worthily conceive or express its greatness, 1 Cor. 2:9, “what eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not ascended into the heart of man, what things God has prepared for those who love him”; 1 John 3:2, ἔτι οὐκ ἐφανερώθη τί ἐσόμεθα [it has not yet been manifested what we shall be].

XXV. It consists generally in the enjoyment of God as the supreme good, Gen. 15:1, “I am thy shield, and thy very great reward”; Rom. 8:17, “if children, then heirs: heirs indeed of God, and joint-heirs with Christ”; 1 Cor. 15:28, ἵνα ᾖ ὁ Θεὸς τὰ πάντα ἐν πᾶσι [that God may be all in all], &c.; and this most special, immediate, perfect, and eternal, 1 Cor. 13:10, ὅταν δὲ ἔλθῃ τὸ τέλειον, τότε τὸ ἐκ μέρους καταργηθήσεται [but when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part shall be done away]; 2 Cor. 4:17, 18, τὸ γὰρ παραυτίκα ἐλαφρὸν τῆς θλίψεως ἡμῶν καθ’ ὑπερβολὴν εἰς ὑπερβολὴν αἰώνιον βάρος δόξης κατεργάζεται ἡμῖν, μὴ σκοπούντων ἡμῶν τὰ βλεπόμενα

[Page 467]

ἀλλὰ τὰ μὴ βλεπόμενα· τὰ γὰρ βλεπόμενα πρόσκαιρα, τὰ δὲ μὴ βλεπόμενα αἰώνια [but looking not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things seen are temporary, but the things not seen are eternal].

XXVI. The acts of this enjoyment can be stated more distinctly. 1. Perfect knowledge of God, according to the measure of our finite capacity, which is especially denoted by Vision, 1 Cor. 13:9, 10, 11, 12, “for now we see through a mirror in an enigma, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then shall I know as also I am known,” &c. To this knowledge we think will be joined the knowledge of other chief saints and friends, from Matt. 17:3, “behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah,” &c. 2. Consummated holiness of the will, Ps. 17:15, “I, in righteousness, shall behold thy face; I shall be satisfied when I awake with thy image”; Eph. 5:27, “that he might present it to himself a glorious Church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish”; 1 John 3:2, “we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him,” &c. 3. Full joy, Ps. 16:11, “fullness of joys with thy face; pleasures at thy right hand forever”; Matt. 25:21, “enter into the joy of thy Lord.” 4. Finally, incorruptibility and great glory of the resurrected body, Phil. 3:21, ὃς μετασχηματίσει τὸ σῶμα τῆς ταπεινώσεως ἡμῶν, εἰς τὸ γενέσθαι αὐτὸ σύμμορφον τῷ σώματι τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ [who shall transform the body of our humiliation, that it may be conformed to the body of his glory], &c.

XXVII. It seems likely that there will be various degrees in future glory, on account of such places as Dan. 12:3, “and those who make many righteous shall shine as the stars forever and ever”; 1 Cor. 15:40, 41, 42, “there are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies; but one is the glory of the heavenly, and another of the earthly; one glory of the sun,

[Page 468]

and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory; so also is the resurrection of the dead,” &c.; and on account of degrees of punishments in Gehenna, and of sanctification and sufferings in this life.

Objection 1. The same glory is attributed to all, Matt. 13:43; 20:12; 2 Tim. 4:8.

Reply The good is the same in substance, and truly great in itself.

Objection 2. Election and justification are equal.

Reply The principle is begged, if from this it is insinuated that the good destined and adjudged is of equal degree.

Objection 3. Infinite and full glory does not admit degrees.

Reply The former name belongs to it only objectively; the latter is accommodated to the capacity of individuals and to their satisfied desires.

XXVIII. The godly will enjoy this good eternally in the supreme heaven, John 14:2, 3, “in my Father’s house are many mansions,” &c.; “and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to myself, that where I am ye may be also”; 2 Cor. 5:1, “we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens”; 1 Thess. 4:17, “and so shall we always be with the Lord,” &c.; where they shall rejoice in the pleasant fellowship of God, Christ, and angels. No perpetual or temporary dwelling with the Chiliasts on this earth is to be imagined; these things will then serve otherwise to illustrate the divine glory, 2 Pet. 3:13, “we, according to his promise, expect new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells,” &c.

XXIX. While this glory befalls the godly, the ungodly will be tormented eternally in hell, Matt. 25:41, 46, “depart from me, ye cursed, into eternal fire,

[Page 469]

prepared for the devil and his angels,” &c.; “and these shall go away into eternal punishment,” &c.; but they will not themselves enjoy these lands, or even their former delights. It is by no means lawful to twist the text Rom. 8:20, 21, 22, “for the creature was subjected to vanity, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it,” &c., to that worse Epicurean heresy, where the creature is said to be delivered from servitude and impending corruption.

XXX. And thus the end of the world by fire will arrive in the execution of the last judgment, 2 Pet. 3:7, 10, 11, 12, “but the heavens and the earth, which now are, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men,” &c.; “but the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are in it shall be burned up,” &c. We do not think that the world will perish as to substance, but rather that it will be changed as to qualities, according to the phrases of change, liberation, renewal, restoration, &c., used here, Ps. 102:26, 27, “as a garment shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed”; Rom. 8:21, ὅτι καὶ αὐτὴ ἡ κτίσις ἐλευθερωθήσεται ἀπὸ τῆς δουλείας τῆς φθορᾶς εἰς τὴν ἐλευθερίαν τῆς δόξης τῶν τέκνων τοῦ Θεοῦ [that the creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the liberty of the glory of the children of God], &c.; 2 Pet. 3:13, “new heavens and a new earth according to his promise we expect, in which righteousness dwells”; Acts 3:21, ἄχρι χρόνων ἀποκαταστάσεως πάντων [until the times of the restoration of all things], &c.; and the use of fire also leads us here. Yet some Lutherans urge the contrary, and object:

1. Many places teach annihilation, Job 14:13; Matt. 5:18; Rev. 20:11, &c.

Reply Those things are to be understood of the world with these qualities.

[Page 470]

2. There will no longer be any end or use of the lower world.

Reply Even if the present end of many parts ceases, yet the ultimate end stands in God according to his wise decree. But we must strive that we may one day know all these things more fully with joy in the Lord, and meanwhile we must glorify his name for the grace granted in Christ. Amen.

FINIS.