CHAPTER VIII

OF THE SEVENTH ARTICLE

“FROM THENCE HE SHALL COME TO JUDGE THE LIVING AND THE DEAR”

QUESTION I

The Three Benefits of Christ towards his Church, and the Meaning of the Seventh Article

To adorn and render illustrious his Church, there are three eminent offices and functions of our Lord Jesus Christ, those of Redeemer, Patron, and Judge. As then, from the preceding Articles, it is evident, that the human race was redeemed by his passion and death, and that, by his ascension into heaven, he has for ever undertaken the advocacy and patronage of our cause, it next follows, that, in this article, his character as judge be set forth. The force and purport of the article is to declare, that, on the last day, Christ the Lord will judge the whole human race.

QUESTION II

The Advent of Christ is Twofold

For the sacred letters bear witness, that there are two comings of the Son of God, one, when for our salvation, he took upon him the flesh, and was made man in the womb of the Virgin; the other, when he shall come, at the end of the world, to judge mankind. This coming is called in Scripture, the day of the Lord; of which the apostle saith: The day of the Lord shall so come, as a thief in the night; and our Lord himself: But of that day and hour no one knoweth. And in proof of the last judgment, let the authority of the Apostle suffice: We must all, says he, appear before the judgment-seat of Christ, that every one may receive the proper things of the body, according as that he hath done, whether it be good or evil. For the sacred Scripture is full of testimonies, which will every where occur to the pastors throughout the inspired volume, and which will serve not only to establish the truth of the fact, but also to place it before the eyes of the faithful; that as, from the beginning of the world, that day of the Lord, on which he was clothed with our flesh, was most earnestly wished for by all, because in that mystery they reposed the hope of their liberation, so, also, after the death and ascension into heaven of the Son of God, the second day of the Lord may be the object of our most earnest desires; waiting for the blessed hope, and coming of the glory of the great God.

QUESTION III

How often every Man must undergo Judgment in the Presence of Christ

But, to explain this matter, the pastor must distinguish two different periods, at which every one must necessarily appear in the presence of the Lord, to render an account of all his thoughts, deeds, and words, and to receive sentence accordingly from the mouth of his Judge. The first is, when each of us departs this life, for he is instantly placed before the tribunal of God, where all that he had ever done, or spoken, or thought, is subjected to the most strict scrutiny, and this is called the particular judgment. The second is, when, on the same day and in the same place, all men shall stand together before the tribunal of their Judge, that, in the presence and hearing of all ages, each may know his final doom and sentence; the announcement of which will constitute no small part of the future pains and punishments of the wicked, and of the remuneration and rewards which the just will receive, when it shall clearly appear what has been the tenor of each man’s life. And this is called the general judgment.

QUESTION IV

Why a General Judgment was necessary, as well as a Particular

It becomes an indispensable duty of the pastor to show why, besides the particular judgment respecting each individual, a general one should also be passed upon all men. For those who depart this life, leave behind them sometimes children who follow the example of their parents, sometimes books, followers, admirers, and defenders of their example, their language, their deeds, by which matters the rewards or punishments of the dead must necessarily be augmented; and as such benefit or ill effect, appertaining as it does to so many persons, is to terminate only with the end of the world, it was meet that a perfect inquiry should be held touching all these good or bad actions and words, a thing which was impossible without a general judgment of all men.

Moreover, as the good report of the pious is often injured, whilst the wicked are commended with the praise of innocence, the nature of the divine justice demands that the pious recover, in the presence, and with the suffrage, of all men congregated, the good name, of which they had been been unjustly deprived before men. Again, as good and bad men perform their good and bad actions, not without the co-operation of the body, it follows, that these actions appertain, also, to the body as their instrument; and it was, therefore, most fitting, that the bodies should participate with the souls in the eternal rewards or punishments; and this can be accomplished only by means of a general resurrection, and general judgment of all men. Lastly, it was necessary to prove that, in the prosperity and adversity of men, which are sometimes the promiscuous lot of the good and the bad, everything is done and ordered by the infinite wisdom and justice of God. It was, [therefore], meet, not only that rewards should await the good, punishments the wicked, in the next life, but that they should also be awarded by a public and general judgment; that thus they might be rendered better known, and more conspicuous to all; and that, in atonement for the unjust complaint, in which, on seeing the wicked abounding in wealth and flourishing in honours, even the saints themselves, as men, have sometimes bewailed, praise may be offered up by all to the justice and providence of God: My feet, says the Prophet, were almost moved, my steps had well nigh slipped; for I was envious at the wicked, seeing the prosperity of sinners; and a little after: Behold! these are sinners, and yet, prospering in the world, they have obtained riches; and I said, verily I have justified my heart in vain, and washed my hands among the innocent; and I have been scourged the whole day; and my chastisement hath been in the morning. And this has been the frequent complaint of many; and it was, therefore, necessary that a general judgment should be exercised, lest perchance men should say that God, walking about the poles of heaven, regards not the things of earth. Justly, therefore, has this formula of truth been made one of the twelve articles of the Christian faith, that, should any men’s minds hesitate touching the providence and justice of God, they might be confirmed by means of this doctrine. Besides, the just should be encouraged, the wicked appalled, by the idea of a future judgment; so that, knowing the justice of God, the former may not be disheartened, and, through fear of eternal punishment, the latter may be recalled from falling away. Hence, speaking of the last day, our Lord and Saviour declares, that a general judgment shall one day take place, and describes the signs of that coming period; that, seeing them, we may know that the end of the world is at hand. At his ascension, also, he sent angels to console his Apostles, who were bewailing his departure, in these words: This Jesus who is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

QUESTION V

The Power of Judging the Human Race is given to Christ according to both his Natures

But that this judgment is assigned to Christ our Lord, not only as God, but also as man, the sacred letters declare. For although the power of judging is common to all the persons of the holy Trinity, yet we especially attribute it to the Son, because to him we also ascribe wisdom. And that he will judge the world as man, is confirmed by the testimony of our Lord, when he saith: As the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son also, to have life in himself; and hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of Man.

QUESTION VI

Why this Judgment is not similarly ascribed to the Father or the Holy Spirit

But [the pastor] will teach, that this judgment is particularly said to be exercised by Christ our Lord, in that, as sentence is to be pronounced on mankind, they may see their judge with their eyes, and hear his sentence with their ears, and thus perceive their judgment through the medium of the senses. Most just is it, too, that the man, who was condemned by the most iniquitous judgment of men, should himself be, afterwards, seen by all men sitting as judge of all. Hence the Prince of the Apostles, when he had expounded, in the house of Cornelius, the principal heads of the Christian religion, and had taught that Christ was suspended on a cross, and put to death by the Jews, and rose to life on the third day, added: And he commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is he, which was ordained of God, to be the judge of the living and the dead.

QUESTION VII

By what Signs the General Judgment will be perceived to be impending

The Sacred Scriptures declare, that these three principal signs shall precede the general judgment; the preaching of the Gospel throughout the whole world, a falling away from the faith, and [the coming of] Antichrist; for our Lord says: This Gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world, for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the consummation come; and the apostle admonishes us, that we be not deceived by any one, as that the day of the Lord is at hand; for, unless there come a falling away first, and man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, the judgment will not take place.

QUESTION VIII

In what Manner the Last Judgment will take place, and in what Manner Sentence will be passed upon all

The form and process of this judgment, pastors will easily learn from the Oraclos of Daniel, and from the doctrine of the holy Evangelists, and of the Apostle. The sentence, moreover, to be pronounced by the judge, is here to be expounded with diligent care. For Christ our Lord, beholding the just, standing on his right hand, with joyous eyes, will pronounce sentence on them with the utmost benignity, in these words: Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. That nothing can be conceived more delightful to the ear than these words, they will comprehend, who compare them with the sentence of condemnation passed upon the wicked; and reflect within themselves, that, by these words, pious and just men are invited from labours unto rest, from the vale of tears to the highest joy, from miseries to the everlasting happiness, which they have previously deserved by their works of charity.

QUESTION IX

With what Kinds of Punishments the Wicked, who are placed at the Left Hand, will be afflicted

Turning next to those who shall stand on his left hand, he shall pour out his justice upon them in these words: Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. For, in these first words, depart from me, is expressed the heaviest punishment with which the wicked shall be visited, when they are banished to the greatest distance from the sight of God, unrelieved by one consolatory hope of enjoying so great a good. This the theologians call the pain of loss, because in hell the wicked shall ever want the light of the sight of God. The words, ye cursed, which are added, augment to a marvellous degree their wretched and calamitous condition. For if, when about to be banished from the divine presence, they were deemed worthy of any sort of blessing, it might be to them a great source of consolation; but having no such expectation as might alleviate calamity, the divine justice, with an undoubted right, pursues them, when banished, with every kind of malediction. The words, into everlasting fire, which follow, express another sort of punishment, called by the theologians the pain of sense; because, like stripes and flagellations, or any other severer sort of punishments, amongst which no doubt fire produces the most intense feeling of pain, it is felt through the organs of sense. When we further reflect that this pain is to last for eternity, we may at once perceive, that the punishment of the damned will comprise an accumulation of all punishments. And this the words, prepared for the devil and his angels, at the close of the sentence, more fully declare; for as it is naturally found that we all experience some alleviation of our afflictions, if we possess some companion and fellow in our misfortune, from whose prudence and humanity we may, in some degree, derive assistance; what then shall be the misery of the damned, to whom, in such calamities, there shall never be permitted a separation from the society of the most lost demons? And most justly shall this sentence be passed by our Lord and Saviour on the wicked, as upon them who neglected all the works of true piety, who gave not meat to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, shelter to the stranger, clothing to the naked, nor visited him who was sick and in prison.

QUESTION X

The Faithful ought frequently to be reminded of the Judgment

These are matters, which the pastor should very frequently press upon the hearing of the faithful people; for the truth contained in this article, conceived by faith, has the utmost effect in bridling the perverse propensities of the heart, and withdrawing souls from sin. Hence we read in Ecclesiasticus: In all thy works remember thy last end, and thou shalt never sin. And, indeed, it will be almost impossible that any one will be so abandoned to vice, as not to be recalled to the pursuit of virtue by the reflection, that a time will come, when he will have to render an account, before a most strict judge, not only of all his words and deeds, but even of his most hidden thoughts, and shall pay a penalty according to his deserts. But the just man must be more and more excited to cultivate justice, and, although he spend his life in want, and infamy, and torments, must be transported with the greatest joy, when he looks forward to that day, on which, when the conflicts of this wretched life shall have ceased, he shall be declared victorious in the hearing of all men; and, admitted into his heavenly country, shall be crowned with divine, and these, also, eternal honours. It remains, therefore, that the faithful be exhorted to study the best manner of living, and exercise themselves in every practice of piety; that thus they may be able to await with greater security that great coming day of the Lord, and even, as becomes children, to desire it most earnestly.