Romans — Chapter 3
These annotations are from the original 1582 Rheims New Testament, produced by English scholars in exile at the English College of Rheims. The archaic spelling is preserved.
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Verse 0
If our iniquitie.] S. Paules speaches mistaken of the wicked. No maruel that many now a-daies deduce false and detestable conclusions out of this Apostles high and hard writings, seeing that S. Peter *noted it in his daies, and himself here confesseth that his preaching & speaches were then falsely misconstrued; as though he had taught that the Iewes & Gentils il life & incredulity had been directly the cause of Gods more mercie, & that therfore sinne commeth of God to the aduancement of his glorie, & consequently that men might or should doe il, that good might ensue thereof. Which blasphemous constructions they tooke of these and the like wordes: **Where sinne abounded, there did grace more abound; and: The Law entred in, that sinne might abound; and out of the Psalme 50. ***That thou maiest be iustified in thy words, and ouercome when thou art iudged. As though he meant that men doe sinne, to the end that God may be iustified. The sense of the places that sound as if God caused sinne. And at al these & the like places of the Apostle though forewarned by S. Peter, and the Apostles owne defence and Protestation, that he neuer meant such horrible things, yet the wicked also of this time doe stumble and fal. But the true meaning is in al such places, that God can and doth when it pleaseth him, conuert those sinnes which man committeth against him & his commandments, to his glorie: though the sinnes themselues stand not with his wil, intention, nor honour, but be directly against the same, and therfore may not be committed that any good may fal. For, what good soeuer accidentally falleth, it proceedeth not of the sinne, but of God's mercie that can pardon, and of his omnipotencie that can turne il to good. And therfore against those carnal interpretations, S. Paul very carefully & diligently giueth reason also in this place, v. 6, that it is impossible: because God could not iustly punish any man, nor sit in iudgement at the later day for sinne without plaine iniurie, if either himself would haue sinne committed, or man might doe it to his glorie. Therfore let al sincere Readers of the Scriptures, and specially of S. Paules writings, hold this for a certaintie, as the Apostles owne defense (whatsoeuer he seeme to say hereafter sounding in their sense, that sinne commeth of God, or may therfore be committed that he may work good thereof) that the Apostle himself condemneth that sense as slanderous and blasphemous. *2. Pet. 3. **Rom. 5,20. ***Rom. 3,4.