Faith rests on God's truthfulness; certainty resolves into the Spirit's secret testimony

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We have taught that religion's dogmas, and other things handed down by God's word, can carry many arguments for their truth. Those arguments are still not the proper and principal reason on which the faith rests that receives what God's word hands down. That reason is rather the authority and truthfulness of God as he teaches and reveals.

God's word itself — divine revelation — does have notes and marks by which it can be recognized and told apart from diabolical and human frauds. Even so, our faith does not rest chiefly on notes and marks of that kind. Its certainty is resolved into the Holy Spirit's secret testimony, and into that inward efficiency by which he immediately makes the faithful certain it is God who speaks, and presses a firm persuasion of this on our minds.

Latin

IV. Docuimus, licet religionis dogmata, et alia quae verbo Dei traduntur, multa argumenta suae veritatis habere possint, tamen argumenta ista non esse propriam et praecipuam rationem cui innititur fides qua res Dei verbo traditas accipimus; sed potius authoritatem et veracitatem Dei docentis et revelantis. Ipsum vero Dei verbum, seu divinam revelationem, habere quidem notas et indicia, quibus internosci possit, et a diabolicis et humanis fraudibus distingui, nihilominus fidem nostram non niti potissimum hujuscemodi notis et indiciis: sed certitudinem illius resolvi in arcanum Spiritus S. testimonium, et internam illam efficientiam, qua fideles certos reddit immediate Deum esse qui loquitur, et firmam hac de re persuasionem mentibus nostris imprimit.

About this text

Louis Le Blanc de Beaulieu, Sedan Theses, newly rendered from Latin: from theology proper through the Roman theses I–77 and the Reformed theses of Part Two. The theses only — not the collected works.

English follows locked Pitt Latin through Imaginum CLOSED + Sanctorum Cultu Romana CLOSED + Pars Secunda Reformata I-XL. 1675 PDF ~384-390 (book ~370-376); Vision OCR + pdftotext + tess. No modern English. This slice densifies Sanctorum Pars Secunda I-XL. Next: Pars Secunda XLI–fin (~CI). Claim stays claimed (book densify not done).

Catalogue & scope

ESTC R17887; Wing L802. IA bub_gb_eOkHAW4G0-wC (+ EEBO 1675 for gap leaves). Densify through Sanctorum Cultu Romana I-LXXVII + Pars Secunda Reformata I-XL (Pars Secunda not closed; not whole folio).

Witnesses

Copy-text Locked Latin, De Theologia I-XLIII (Pitt 1675) (Latin)
Checked print Internet Archive PDF of the 1675 Pitt folio (Latin)
Checked print pdftotext of De Theologia pages (Latin)
Checked print Internet Archive DjVu OCR of the 1675 Pitt folio (Latin)
Copy-text Locked Latin, De Fide I-XXII (Pitt 1675) (Latin)
Copy-text Locked Latin, De Authoritate Scripturae Pars I I-XLVII + Pars II I-XXXV + Pars III I-VIII (Pitt 1675) (Latin)
Copy-text Locked Latin, De Scripturae plenitudine densify (Pitt 1675) (Latin)

This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Latin on each section (or the Latin source witness link) for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.