The impact of John Calvin on the modern world has, by any measure, been great. It would be difficult, and probably impossible to say which aspect of his work has been the most influential in history: has it been Calvin as Systematic Theologian, as Biblical Commentator, as Protestant Statesman, or as Preacher of the Word of God?

Without attempting definitively to answer this question, we can note that all through the nineteenth century, the greatest emphasis has been placed on Calvin as Systematic Theologian. Indeed, Ritschl, Harnack, Orr and other historians of dogma even attempted to isolate one grand idea as the architectonic principle of the 'system' of Calvin (usu­ally something like sovereignty, predestination, etc.).

Later studies have, I think properly, moved away from the endeavour to construct an underly­ing Calvinist system based on one or two major doctrines to the recognition that Calvin was less a systematician than a Pastor of the flock, who wished to expose his people to the fullness of the revelation of the Word of God. Professor T.H.L. Parker, now of Cambridge, and Bouwsma of the University of Cali­fornia at Berkeley have done significant work in this regard, as has Professor Rodolphe Peter of Stras­bourg. Without in any sense wishing to demote the importance of the Institutes of the Christian Religion as a major influence on the development of Re­formed Theology, twentieth century studies have given more attention to Calvin's voluminous Bibli­cal work – both as commentator and as preacher.

The significance of Calvin's contribution as Bib­lical commentator has of course been more appreciated than his role as Biblical preacher. As we shall later see, large numbers of Calvin's sermons were disposed of by the Library of Genevan in 1805, and many of those that did remain were not included in the great Corpus Reformatorum issued in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Indeed, some of his sermons are only now being gradually issued, and most of these have yet to be translated into English. While most of us would probably agree that if one has to make a choice between publishing a commentary and a series of sermons, the commen­tary should usually be chosen, nevertheless, I would hold that there is much to be gained by a more thorough study of the preaching of Calvin.

If it is true that Calvin did think, write and act primarily as pastor of the flock (albeit a very widespread flock), then we would expect to find in his preaching insights (at least of the practical nature) that might not be taken up in his necessarily briefer systematic work. Just the sheer massiveness of the preaching done by Calvin would indicate that he held the task of the pulpit in the highest regard. To consider his preaching therefore, as an avenue into the heart of the theological and pastoral concerns of this major figure of Reformed Protestantism opens to us some fruitful lines of thought. Before we look at specific points in his preaching, however, we must first look at his activity as a preacher in general, and then at some characteristics of his preaching as the necessary background for the particular emphases we wish to mention.

Calvin's Activity as a Preacher⤒🔗

Calvin had done some preaching before he came to Geneva in 1536, but we have very little information about it. For all practical purposes, his preaching ministry begins in earnest in late 1536 as 'reader in Holy Scripture' and then 'Pastor and Doctor in the Church.' We are not certain how often Calvin preached nor precisely what books of Scripture he may have preached through during his first Genevan stay. After his banishment by the Town Council of Geneva, he was pastor of the French Church in Strasbourg from 1538 to 1541, when he was recalled to be chief Pastor of Geneva. At Strasbourg Calvin lectured or preached nearly every day, and preached twice on Sundays. Among many other duties there, he preached through Romans, St. John's Gospel, and 1 Corinthians.

After his return to Geneva in 1541, Calvin again began his expository preaching (starting with the very next verse following the one he had last preached on before his banishment in 1538 – the better to show the nature of his ministry as a mere servant of the Word of God written). From 1541 until his death in 1564, Calvin preached effectively and voluminously, apparently considering the pulpit as the heart of his ministry.

Upon his return, he seems to have preached twice on Sundays and once on every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. In the words of T.H.L. Parker.

But in the autumn of 1542 some who appre­ciated his preaching urged him to preach more frequently, 'which I have already commenced and shall endeavour to do until the others have become more acceptable to the people' (Opera Calvini 11, 417; Herminjard 8, 79). But this proved too heavy a burden and after two months the council released him from preaching more than once a Sunday (OC 21, 302). In October 1549, however, sermons were ordered for every day of alternate weeks as well as twice on Sundays.

His custom was to expound the Old Testa­ment on weekdays, the New on Sundays, al­though sometimes he gave up Sunday after­noons to psalms. We have little evidence as to what books he expounded or even what indi­vidual sermons he preached before 1549. Cer­tainly he was preaching through Hebrews until August 1549, and it would therefore seem that he began that book in 1548. At some time prob­ably between 1546 and 1548 he was expounding on Sunday afternoons the metricized psalms in the service book. Since he did not preach on Romans, St. John's Gospel, Philippians, Colossians, and the Catholic epistles after 1549, we may conjecture that he preached on them earlier.¹

It is much easier for us to trace the details of Calvin's preaching after 1549, for in that year the French emigrants to Geneva hired an able profes­sional scribe, Denis Raguenier (who had a system of shorthand), to take down, transcribe, and bind in sets all of Calvin's sermons (usually around six thousand words in length). We refer again to Parker:

And so we can trace him preaching on Sundays with one hundred and eighty-nine sermons on the Acts between 1549 and 1554, a shorter series on some of the Pauline letters between 1554 and 1558, and the sixty-five on the harmony of the gospels between 1559 and 1564. During this time the weekdays saw series on Jeremiah and Lamentations (up to 1550), on the minor prophets and Daniel (1550-52), the hun­dred and seventy-four on Ezekiel (1552-54), the one hundred and fifty-nine of Job (1554-55), the two hundred of Deuteronomy (1555-56), the three hundred and forty-two on Isaiah (1556­-59), one hundred and twenty-three on Genesis (1559-61), a short set on Judges (1561), one hun­dred and seven on 1 Samuel and eighty-seven on 2 Samuel (1561-63) and a set on 1 Kings (1563- 64).²

Roughly speaking, John Calvin preached more than 2300 sermons in his lifetime, and of these we possess nearly 1500 sermons. Bernard Gagnebin ex­plains how the majority of the manuscripts of Calvin's sermons were sold (by weight – for the value of the paper) by the library of Geneva in 1805.³ Presumably it was felt that what mattered was Calvin's commen­taries, not the sermons, and in addition, the sermons manuscripts were not transcribed by Calvin himself and were difficult to read. At any rate, a number of years later some theological students found several volumes of these sermon manuscripts (less than half of them), and returned them to their home in the Library of Geneva.

Large numbers of these sermons remained unprinted until1936, when the Sermons on 2 Samuel were printed. Since that time (and especially since 1961) the Supplementa Calviniana have printed (in addition to the 87 Sermons on 2 Samuel) 66 on Isaiah 13-29, 28 on Micah 1-7, 25 on Jeremiah 14-18, and 2 on Lamentations. Eight more volumes are planned in the Supplementa Calviniana series to contain at least 370 more sermons (from Psalms, Easter, Pentecost, Passion, 1 Corinthians, Acts, Ezekiel, Isaiah, and Joshua). Most of Calvin's other sermons are found in the Opera Calvini of the Corpus Reformatorum (espe­cially in volumes 8, 23-29, 32-35, 41, 46-54).

The vast majority of these sermons, which exer­cised such a strong hand in transforming much of Northern Europe, have yet to be translated out of their original French and Latin into English. Some of these sermons are in English (for the most part in antiquated versions), such as those on Ephesians, fairly recently reprinted (in the old translation) by Banner of Truth Trust in Edinburgh, and those on Deuteronomy. The Deuteronomy translation is rare, and I understand the Banner of Truth is seriously considering their republication (but in the old trans­lation). About 35 years ago, Leroy Nixon translated three volumes of 47 selected sermons of Calvin from Job, Isaiah 53, the Gospels and Acts (printed by Baker Book House in the USA). Professor T.H.L. Parker re-translated these sermons on Isaiah 53 in 1956, and in his introduction very truly stated: '...Nixon is usually so over-literal that it sometimes leads him into misinterpretation and nearly always makes the style creak.'⁴ In the later 1970s Professor Ben Farley of South Carolina re-translated Calvin's Sermons on the Law of God (also published by Baker). In his Oracles of God, T.H.L. Parker lists the early English translations of several of Calvin's se­lected sermons (generally unavailable except in the best libraries).⁵ So for the most part, Calvin's ser­mons are still not available to us in contemporary English. I am at present finishing the final revisions of the translation of Calvin's Sermons on 2 Samuel. I have done only the first volume (i.e. his first 43 Sermons on 2 Samuel). The rest will follow later. I will speak of the content of some of these 2 Samuel Sermons as giving us an open door into some unexpected thoughts and concerns of Calvin after we consider.

Some Characteristics of Calvin's Preaching←⤒🔗

Calvin's preaching was, as we have noted, exposi­tory. Zwingli in Zurich preached directly through books of Scripture in an expository manner, and in this was following such great Church Fathers as John Chrysostom and Augustine as well as the more allegorical Origen. Calvin broke with the elaborate medieval forms of allegorical preaching in favour of straightforward explanation of the text, plus direct and relevant application to life in his own day.

In the truest expository manner, whether preach­ing from Old or New Testament, Calvin subjected himself to the message of the particular text with which he was dealing, without importing into every text the entirety of systematic theology. It was Calvin's desire to follow the thrust of the passage rather than fit the passage into a preconceived theological mould: 'I do not willingly accept interpretations which can only be fitted to the words by twisting the words to them' (OC 49, 3840. To avoid such twisting, Calvin laid heavy emphasis on the context of the verse and passage. What T.H.L. Parker says in his Calvin's New Testament Commentaries of Calvin's commentary methodology is equally true of his sermons:

The context is all-important. Individual words or clauses are not allowed any eccentric­ity; they are controlled by the context. Con­versely, the meaning of the context is under­stood by the inter-relationship of the meanings of the individual parts. Hence these parts are to be interpreted only in relationship to the other parts. This is illustrated by Calvin's practice in the sermons, where he will not single out for special treatment some sublime verse, far less a clause, but builds up the meaning of the pas­sage from a patient explanation of the members.⁶

After deriving the meaning of the historical docu­ment for its own time, Calvin then relates its lessons to the contemporary world, often with remarkable insight but never at the expense of dehistoricizing the document. Parker has summarizes this move­ment very clearly:

Hence for Calvin, the historical document is of prime importance; it cannot be dispensed with; it cannot be left aside in favour of the substance that is extracted from it: in brief, it must never cease to be a historical document. But then, this document is seen as addressed to all men of every age, to be for every age God's message, meaning life or death for every man. Nothing, therefore, could be of more concern than this document. It is not right to treat it as history unrelated to every generation. The unrelieved tension between history and con­temporaneity is reflected in Calvin's commen­taries in the way the scene continually shifts from the first to the sixteenth century, from the third person to the first person plural, and back again. We almost forget which century we are in; we hardly know whether the participants are they or we. We are talking about the Judaizers in Galatia – no, we are not, they are the Romanists in France and Switzerland – indeed, we are not talking about the Judaizers at all. We are joining in the controversy, we are taking sides, entering into an engagement that will certainly change the outward course of our lives. Or St John is speaking; but as we listen, his Greek strangely becomes the sort of Latin or French with which we are familiar and we find to our surprise that he knows about our modern problems and says the definitive thing about them.⁷

Thus Calvin seeks to understand the message of the ancient text and then to apply it to modern life. His sermons do not have what we would consider today an orderly outline of let us say three or four parts with an introduction and conclusion. Yet these homilies are not totally without form. They are es­sentially a running commentary plus application on the various parts of a passage. Parker gives a typical 'outline' of a Calvin sermon in The Oracles of God:

Having established the meaning of a verse, he applies it to the congregation and exhorts them to follow its teaching. Assuming a verse consist­ing of two members, we might reconstruct a typical sermon as follows:

1. Prayer.
    
2. Recapitulation of a previous sermon.
    
3. (a) Exegesis and exposition of first member.
   (b) Application of this, and exhorta­tion to obedience or duty.
    
4. (a) Exegesis and exposition of sec­ond member.
   (b) Application of this, and exhorta­tion to obedience or duty.
    
5. Bidding to prayer, which contains a summary of the sermon.​

There might of course, be considerably more than two main headings, and sometimes he digressed from his text, though rarely from his subject; but the structure of the sermon remains the same.⁸

Elsewhere, Parker notes:

The form of his sermons is determined by the exposition. In theory it follows the pattern of explanation of a clause or sentence and its ap­plication to the people, sometimes in the con­text of an immediate situation. In practice, the form is flexible, even loose. It is saved from being rambling by his capacity for keeping to the point and breaking the material up into short sections, usually with some formula as `so much for that point,' or 'so you see what the prophet (or apostle) meant to say.'⁹

Calvin employed very few anecdotes and per­sonal references, but did often paint vivid scenes and engaged the Biblical characters (or modern sinners and saints) in imaginary dialogues in order to bring home the point of the text.

In these vivid scenes Calvin was somehow able to enter into the very mind and soul of the Biblical characters and 'make them talk' so that they reveal to us our own inner motives and moral character. The late Ford Lewis Battles had depicted this aspect of Calvin's preaching and exegetical work:

his exegesis strongly enters the personal expe­rience of biblical characters, in whom he finds a reflection of his own. In the Psalms of David he finds 'an anatomy of all the states of the soul.' Here is an 'experiential' approach to biblical exegesis through biographical identification with Old Testament personages strikingly simi­lar to that of Martin Luther (cf. C.W. Hovland, 'Anfectung in Luther's Biblical Exegesis,' in Franklin H. Littell, ed., Reformation Studies), and not unrecognized by all authentic preachers. Elsewhere (cf. The Piety of John Calvin) I have discussed the 'imitatio Davidis,' so frequently met with in Calvin's writings – especially in the Institutes and in the Commentary on the Psalms. Frequently he prefers to let David speak for his own spiritual condition...¹⁰

Calvin preached without notes, but not without careful preparation. He apparently preached directly from the original Hebrew and Greek texts. Calvin had, of course, written his own commentaries on most of the books from which he preached, and never ceased to study the commentaries of others: Church Fathers, medieval scholastics, Jewish rabbis, and fellow reformers (such as Bullinger, Bucer, and Melanchthon). He did careful work in the best vol­umes of his time on Hebrew and Greek grammar, history, customs and geography. And obviously he thought out ahead of time the specific lessons which the text contained for the lives of the people. He then went to the pulpit with all of these matters stored in his powerful mind.

Between 1536 and 1559, Calvin devoted much time and painstaking effort to the almost continual revision of his Institutes (which he saw as a manual to help students understand the message of the Scriptures – cf. his 'Letter to the Reader' in the 1559 edition), yet he spent even more time and effort on his preaching. A man so orderly and systematic would not have given such a large portion of his working life to the activity of preaching without a compelling reason. Such a reason is of course found in the foundational theology of the entire Protestant Reformation with its emphasis on renewal, revival, and reformation by returning to the purity and wholeness of the Word of God. The continual as­sumption of the Reformers was that as this Word is explained to the people (and illumined by the Spirit of God) all that God wants to do in their individual lives and corporate church and culture will come to pass.

Even more specifically, Calvin saw the sermon as a way in which God comes down to the people in order to lift them up to himself. What Calvin says of the down coming and uplifting nature of the Biblical sermon, he also says of the two sacraments. To appreciate the emphasis and thrust of Calvin's ministry so centred in Word and Sacrament, we can place Word and Sacrament under the larger theo­logical, Biblical concept of God's accommodation to man (as has been so fruitfully done for instance in Ronald S. Wallace's Calvin's Doctrine of Word and Sacrament. See also the notes in the Battles' transla­tion of the Institutes on 1.v.2. – note 3 and 2.vii.1 - note 3).

In Sermon XVI of the 2 Samuel Series, for exam­ple, Calvin describes what happens in a sermon, and what he says there more than explains why he de­voted such a vast portion of his mature years to preaching.

When we have access to the preached Word, God speaks to us in a common and ordinary fashion. It is an illustration of his condescen­sion. Hence the preaching of the Gospel is like a descent which God makes in order to seek us. We must not abuse this simplicity of the Word of God by disdaining it. Rather we must receive it all the more, recognizing that he indeed deigns to transfigure himself, so to speak, that we might approach him. He is not content with giving us his word, but adds baptism to it ... The point is of course that since God has come down to us, we must go up to him.

Granted then the great emphasis placed on preaching by John Calvin, as is seen in the time he devoted to it and the massive corpus of sermons he left behind him, we may well expect to find in his more copious sermons rich insights into his theo­logical and pastoral concerns that are not to be found in his necessarily briefer summary of systematic theology – the Institutes. If what Professor T.F. Torrance said in 1949 is even partially correct, then we will do well to dig deeply into Calvin's sermon material:

One of the calamities of traditional exposi­tion and interpretation of Calvin's theology has been, by means of arid logical forms, to make Calvin's own distinctions too dean and too rigid. This has resulted in an over-simplifica­tion which has obscured the flexibility as well as the range and profundity of his thought. There is no doubt that Calvin was at times himself guilty of this procedure, particularly in his more systematic treatises when he was engaged in debate, as in regard to the problems of predes­tination and providence, but in the vast bulk of his work where he sticks closely to the Scrip­tures there is much profound theology that has never been sufficiently brought to light.¹¹

With this in mind, let us look into some of Calvin's 2 Samuel Sermons for insight into some of Calvin's concerns which may not be elucidated in his more systematic treatises (though, be it noted, these concerns are fully consistent with his systematic work). I have chosen the 2 Samuel Sermons, not because they are any more important or more repre­sentative of his thought than the other sermons, but merely because I know them better and they are soon to be available in English.

Some Insights from Calvin's 2 Samuel Sermons←⤒🔗

As would be expected in a book such as 2 Samuel which deals so extensively with battles and warfare, Calvin has much to say on the subject of war. What, however, might not be expected is that Calvin, who has been thought of by many as a bellicose Reformer, eager for holy war, paints a realistic picture of the horrors of war and thus insists on the moral neces­sity of negotiation – even, where possible, with reli­gious enemies. Thus he states at some length in Sermon VI:

Let us thus learn that God will punish any pride than strengthens our cruel passions so that we have no pity on men, but expose them to butchery like calves or sheep. That is an enormous vice to which we must give serious consideration. I speak to those who have power of some sort, for one sees how earthly princes only rejoice when they fill the fields with dead bodies. There will be many poor widows and orphans as victims of their greed. That to them is only a pastime; it is of no more concern than wiping their mouths. Well, since God has de­clared a manifest judgement on them, they will in no way escape giving an account for their cruelty...

(The fact that 360 men were killed in the battle between Joab and Abner) shows us even more how horrified we should be over shed blood of the faithful and of those who are joined to us in the name of God. In general one cannot kill a man without the image of God being violated. And that is why Scripture says that a man, being created in the image of God, cannot be killed without the offence being against God himself, who has stamped his image in our nature. It is a crime because everyone should see himself in his neighbour. We are worse than savage beasts when we are thus burning to destroy one another. And there is in particular a sacred bond among those who claim to be the people of God – as it was formerly among the whole family of Abraham, so it is today in the Church. That is why, therefore, even though there were only three hundred and eighty men killed among all who were defeated, it is still said that the battle was hard.

That is for our instruction. Thus when we see that in Christendom people are tearing one another up, let us realize that this is being taken into account by God, and even if men harden themselves, God does not change his mind. We have already seen battles over such a long time. There is no end to them. And even apart from battles we have seen how many people have been killed by wars. This has not been the case merely in one place and in a single army, but it has gone on among princes who claim to be Christians and Catholics – and yet they are killing an infinite number of people. One sees poor people dead among the bushes, and others who are left have to endure hunger and thirst, and heat and cold, and many deprivations – to such a degree that if you cut their throat, you would do them a favour. For they are suffering and will die ten times, so to speak, before death strikes the final blow. Now that is nothing to us because we have become too used to it.

Not only is it those who attack one another in a diabolical rage, but also the adherents of Christianity are thus embittered against one another. Notice the extremity of the situation, that the bond (as I have said) of our union consists in the call that God has given to us to be his people, and yet we come to the point of breaking and dismembering it. Well, under the shadow of the name of God, under the shadow of the pure religion which ought to keep us united in one body, under the shadow of our Lord Jesus Christ who is our head, if we are in strife and contentions, what will be the out­come?

Calvin goes on to say in this sermon that neutral­ity is not always possible or moral, and that fighting can be imperative. Nevertheless, Calvin teaches that insofar as it is possible, we should try to emulate what Joab did in showing mercy to his enemies in this religious/civil war:

Nonetheless, let us try to carry on peace­ably as far as we can and to pursue brotherhood as far as possible. For the love of Joab is shown here to be worthy of praise, when he had compassion on his unfortunate brethren. Even though those people in history, with the excep­tion of the tribe of Judah, were his enemies, he nevertheless treated them kindly, keeping in mind the fact that God had chosen them to be his heritage along with the others. When he took that into consideration, he was moved with pity towards them. Therefore, even when we do battle for the cause of God, we should still seek reconciliation when it is genuine, but not such hollow reconciliations (i.e. as that of Abner and Joab).

In Sermon XXX, Calvin shows that there are occasions when it is wise and proper to negotiate alliances with open pagans. He speaks of this as he comments on 2 Samuel 10:1-4, where King Hanun abused the ambassadors of King David:

Well, because the outcome was not good, and because Hanun turned the friendship' that David had for him into mockery and shame, some think that God wanted to chastise him for having thus sought fellowship with unbeliev­ers. It is true that the Ammonites are kept back and banished from the church by law. But nev­ertheless it is not said that David could not act kindly toward them. For he is not rebuked for having had an alliance with King Hiram, and yet Hiram was an idolater. We see also that Abraham had an alliance with those who had nothing in common with him as far as religion is concerned. It is not said in Scripture that one should not seek such alliances, but according as God presents occasions for them, sometimes one is constrained to form them. For when Abraham was dwelling in the midst of the unbelievers, what could he have done, and especially when he sees that he cannot achieve peace otherwise, unless he has a mutual prom­ise? And when the King of the Philistines comes to him, he must also swear and promise to be loyal to him.

What is even more noteworthy in Calvin's teach­ing about war than his insistence on negotiation and treaty, is his insight into the frequent economic mo­tivation of war. Since the nineteenth century Marxist attempts to examine the economic motivations of society and statecraft, we have become familiar with discussions of the economic foundations of national and international conflict (from both conservative and liberal viewpoints). It is perhaps surprising that in the sixteenth century, Calvin – from a Biblical viewpoint – uncovered the sinful greed and vain glory that lie behind so much warfare. He says in Sermon XXXI that there are such things as just wars: '...if the honour of God is procured and the rulers have regard to the peace and general condition of the people.' But he goes on to say in this sermon (and in others in the series) that most wars in fact are under­taken from dishonourable motives:

We see many people who will argue in good cause, and indeed will seem to be moti­vated by nothing but zeal, and yet when we look at them more closely, we will discover that under the pretext of the honour of God and the public good, they are actually seeking an occa­sion to enrich themselves. For instance, in these troubles that we see today, how many are there who are fighting under the very shadow of the banner of Jesus Christ, making profession of the Gospel, and yet in actuality are addicted to pillaging and plundering, and sing of nothing but their purse and grab money wherever they can get their hands on it?

And why? ... Now if it is really only a matter of marching and doing their duty, and of procuring the honour and service of God without any profit in it, very soon their zeal will become as cold as ice. But if it is simply a question of gathering into the coffer and cabinets, now they are the greatest zealots in the world.¹²

In Sermon XXX, Calvin speaks at greater length of how most wars come from the economic and power ambitions of the ruling classes:

Now here are the only two just causes of war: the good and common salvation of the people and the honour of God, which is men­tioned in this text (i.e. 2 Samuel 10:12) in the second place. Not that God's honour should be considered of least value, but the main thing is often placed at the end and at the tail, as it weighs the most ... Yet if we consider the oppo­site which has always caused wars, we will find that the greatest part has come from avarice and ambition.

Here, for instance, is a prince who under­takes war. And why? He wants to be great. He has no other goal; or he is insatiable as the pit of hell. He wants to get everything for himself, and it seems to him that his income will not be sufficient for him. Now that is the source of wars. Distrust is also mixed in with these mo­tives. For when a prince will have a strong enemy, he will say: 'If I advance myself, I will be first.' Therefore he concludes: 'It is necessary to wage war, and when I gain the advantage, I will profit all the more from it...' And yet where is the common good? A prince will have his poor subjects. He must raise his taxes and rates, and does this without end or measure. And he will shed human blood. It will not bother him to make many widows and orphans, and for many houses to be burnt and for all their goods to be taken as prey, and for all that one is accustomed to do in time of war to happen

Today the Venetians will say that it is for the civil good when they trouble the world with their enterprises, but it is certain that it is noth­ing but the avarice and ambition to be great and to become famous which pushes them to make war … It is the same with the Romans. For the fact that they stirred up and whipped the whole world was only for their grandeur and in order to acquire fame and renown, more and more, and then riches also set them on fire.

Calvin's concern for a godly, just social order does not stop with exposing the evil economic motivations of ruling classes who are eager to start wars. In tones not unlike those heard in many indus­trialized countries today, he laments the damage a dishonest bureaucracy can do, and calls for honest public servants. In Sermon Ill (on 2 Samuel chapter 2), Calvin describes the situation:

It is better of a good prince to relieve his subjects. This must be carefully noted, for it is a thing very rare. Today the princes do nothing but draw to themselves everything they can, and then they support these raving wolves who never have enough to fill their appetite. For when one enters the court, instead of serving his prince, he tries to make himself important. One will use his pen to get into the rank of the brave, another to be debauched, another to be a cook, another for this or that. They will not be satis­fied to remain in a low degree, but one by using this person or that person will acquire some lordship or the rent of fifteen thousand francs...

At whose expense? Of the poor people, who are skinned alive; who are eaten and rav­ished on every side. But it is necessary neverthe­less that the mouth be politely closed when my lord speaks. This is how princes are stunned after this rabble despoil their impoverished subjects in order to adorn themselves sumptu­ously.

In a somewhat more positive, though slightly sarcastic vein, Calvin mentions the 'almost angelic reformation' that would occur if kings – like David ­would choose godly and just civil servants and officers (in Sermon XXVIII on 2 Samuel chapter 8).

In addition to the wars in which David was involved, 2 Samuel paints a realistic picture of his family life with both its joys and disasters. Calvin is not slow to take up this subject and make strong applications from it to the family responsibilities of the people of God in every age. In Sermon XXVIII (on 2 Samuel chapter 8), Calvin speaks of how we should face the frustrations involved in rearing good chil­dren.

After commenting on 2 Samuel 8:18, which as­serts that David's sons were priests, Calvin goes on to explain the apparently unusual usage of 'priest' here:

In sum, David's children could never have been priests, because that would have been an abomination to God. What this expression re­ally means is that David took pains to have them instructed and taught in the requirements of the law. So we must conclude that they are considered excellent persons who were emi­nent among the people. But this passage extended their excellent reputation in one area by analogy to another area; as though it were say­ing they were sacred persons. Still these words show us that David attempted to make his children worthy, so he might have good and faithful successors who could train the people in righteousness and maintain them in integ­rity. That is why he did not bring up his children only in pompous show, but gave them personal excellence so they might know what it is to govern and might be trained in it for the future. This shows us that he was not merely content with doing his duty during his life, but that he wanted a well-regulated state to continue even after his death.

He took great pains to carry this out, but was frustrated in his attempt. It is true that God raised up Solomon to succeed him as he had promised, but what about Absalom and all the others? Why were they so disorderly?

Although kings may seriously attempt to have their children trained to govern them­selves properly, yet they will not always be successful. This principle applies to everyone. Fathers, for instance, often try to train their children properly, and yet they do not get the fruit they hoped for. This is not meant to make them lose courage, as though we were saying: 'Why worry ourselves about this matter, since those who are so concerned to guide their chil­dren properly are only wasting their time? Thus we must leave them alone, since God has promised to take care of them.'

On the contrary, this is the conclusion we should draw: 'Since those who take such pains and spend so much to have their children prop­erly taught, are still frustrated in their hopes, what terrible things will happen if I care noth­ing about it, and put the reins in their hands so they will have freedom to become degenerate?' The sad experience of David teaches fathers to strive harder to instruct their children.

Calvin then gives some practical advice to fa­thers on how to avoid frustration in raising their children:

Fathers are further instructed by this prin­ciple to commend their children to God, asking him to instruct them by his Spirit. They must realize that all their labour, industry and vigi­lance will be useless unless it is blessed by his Spirit ... Even when fathers spare neither gold nor silver, even when they send their children to school, and give them good examples and keep them under a firm hand of leadership – still their whole duty has not been discharged. They can do all of that, and still miss the main thing, which is to call upon God and recognize their dependence upon him to prosper the instruc­tion of their children.

In Sermon XLII (concerning David's failure to punish Amnon for his violation of Tamar in 2 Samuel chapter 13), Calvin advises the timely punishment of erring children:

Now it is not that David applauded Amnon, nor that he approved, but that he was lax and did not sue severity and rigor as he should have done. This, therefore, is the evil which David did.

Now we are taught in this passage that it will not be enough for evil to displease us, unless we correct it, or at least unless we make the effort as far as we are able. We must, I say, exterminate the evil and force ourselves to do it. We will not be let off for saying: 'I wish it had not been done; I am perplexed over it; it dis­pleases me.' When we have made all these impressive protestations, it is certain that we will not fail to be condemned before God. Above all, fathers are instructed here. When they see that their children have done wrong, it is not enough to be angry, but to use such correction that the child may be brought back to the right path, and may have no occasion to let himself go astray – but that he may be kept in control

In fact, what follows this story shows that David was chastised as he deserved, when he failed to punish Amnon. If David had done his duty, he could have prevented this very enormous homicide which occurred; the wrath of Absalom would have been appeased.

In an interesting passage addressed to what we call today 'working class' parents, Calvin speaks en­couragingly of their opportunities for successful childrearing:

This passage (i.e. 2 Samuel chapter 8) warns us that it is a very rare thing for the children of princes to bear good fruit, even though they have been instructed in their childhood and youth... let us not be surprised today if the children of rulers are so disorderly, and are more like savage beasts than reasonable crea­tures.

How are they instructed? People simply make idols of them, and they think that the world is created for them…

This warns all those whom God keeps in a low condition in society to realize that it is to their advantage when they can govern their families peacefully, and help their children to live in a modest way, and can earn their living honestly by their labour. We see in fact how those who have more status or money, even though they are neither princes nor kings, can­not get along with their own children when they grow up. Their children unconsciously become presumptuous and proud. They think, 'My father is rich, why should I not be treated as my rank demands?' Then they want to act bra­zenly and cannot be kept in line. They even despise work and want to live off their rents. Moreover, they heedlessly consume everything.

Yet as I have said, those to whom our Lord has given nothing of official authority, nor lordships, nor great riches, should recognize that he does this for their good and profit. Hence they ought to be content with their estate and stay in their small position, but at the same time rejoice as they teach their family to live properly and see their children trained in the fear of God and kept in modesty, as they faithfully earn their living. Thus they can rejoice because their chil­dren are not inflated with pride and presump­tion, and are not rude, as many are who would like to be on top and climb over others.¹³

In these two subjects we have chosen for discus­sion from the 2 Samuel Sermons, warfare and family life, we find a two-fold emphasis running all through them (as indeed it runs all through practically every major subject Calvin tackles in the series): the neces­sity of obedient, godly action on the one hand, and constant trust in the providence of God on the other. Perhaps enough has been quoted to indicate Calvin's emphasis on the necessity of intelligent, practical obedience of God's will in daily life. We shall conclude this study by referring to a passage in Sermon XXXVI, where through all the responsibilities and difficulties of life, Calvin inculcates deep, continual trust in the providence of the God who can turn all the evil that comes across the paths of his children into good:

What should happen if the wicked and even the devil, who is their father, could do something of themselves without the allowance and permission of God? What would our condition be? Here we are surrounded by so many thieves and all sorts of people who seek only to devour us. Now 'the devil is a roaring lion, who only roams here and there, seeking prey,' and would he not have soon swallowed us up. If, therefore, the devil were not held in control, and all the wicked were not governed by the counsel and secret and incomprehensi­ble virtue of God, then where would we be?

Hence, let us realize that when the wicked are in control over us, and trouble us, although they do it unjustly, still God is over it, and we must return to that fact, and we will never know how to profit from it while we endure it, unless we accept this principle: that is, when the wicked pursue their disordered lusts – yet God is still guiding them.

Of course it is true that they do not look at it this way. And that is why also they are never credited with serving God. For they did not want to do it, as Scripture says of Sennacherib, King of the Assyrians, who chastised the people of God by his commandment. Now he did not think of it that way at all, and God compares him to an axe, for he was a tyrant to the fullest degree. God says, 'I hold him in my hand like an instrument in order to lop off bad branches.' Certainly Sennacherib did not look at it in this way, yet God shows by these words that Sennacherib will be condemned, and yet God will not fail to be a just judge.

Let us learn then to discern that however much men remain confused in their iniquities, and in the evil that they commit against the Law (which ought always to be detested), yet God does not fail to exercise his justice in such a way that the evil is turned into good. That is to say, as far as he is concerned, he knows so how to use evil beyond our thoughts that he converts it into good; that is, to a good end, is such a way that he will not only always remain just, but we shall have occasion all the time of our life to glorify him everywhere in every way.

If these few selections that I have taken from several of Calvin's 2 Samuel Sermons have served to give us fuller and richer insight into various aspects of the theology of the great Reformer, then it is to be hoped that the publication of the entire series will encourage a widespread study of his preaching and a better understanding of the breadth and depth of his pastoral theology.