Of Interpreting The Holy Scripture; and of Fathers, Councils, and Traditions

THE TRUE INTERPRETATION OF SCRIPTURE

The apostle Peter has said that the Holy Scriptures are not of private interpretation (2 Pet. 1:20), and thus we do not allow all possible interpretations. Nor consequently do we acknowledge as the true or genuine interpretation of the Scriptures what is called the conception of the Roman Church, that is, what the defenders of the Roman Church plainly maintain should be thrust upon all for acceptance. But we hold that the interpretation of the Scripture to be orthodox and genuine which is gleaned from the Scriptures themselves (from the nature of the language in which they were written, likewise according to the circumstances in which they were set down, and expounded in the light of and unlike passages and of many and clearer passages) and which agree with the rule of faith and love, and contributes much to the glory of God and man's salvation.

Scripture references for paragraph 1

Berean Standard Bible. Public domain text and source credits.

2 Peter 1:20
20Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture comes from one’s own interpretation.

INTERPRETATIONS OF THE HOLY FATHERS

Wherefore we do not despise the interpretations of the holy Greek and Latin fathers, nor reject their disputations and treatises concerning sacred matters as far as they agree with the Scriptures; but we modestly dissent from them when they are found to set down things differing from, or altogether contrary to, the Scriptures. Neither do we think that we do them any wrong in this matter; seeing that they all, with one consent, will not have their writings equated with the canonical Scriptures, but command us to prove how far they agree or disagree with them, and to accept what is in agreement and to reject what is in disagreement.

COUNCILS

And in the same order also we place the decrees and canons of councils.

Wherefore we do not permit ourselves, in controversies about religion or matters of faith, to urge our case with only the opinions of the fathers or decrees of councils; much less by received customs, or by the large number of those who share the same opinion, or by the prescription of a long time. Who Is The Judge? Therefore, we do not admit any other judge than God himself, who proclaims by the Holy Scriptures what is true, what is false, what is to be followed, or what to be avoided. So we do assent to the judgments of spiritual men which are drawn from the Word of God. Certainly Jeremiah and other prophets vehemently condemned the assemblies of priests which were set up against the law of God; and diligently admonished us that we should not listen to the fathers, or tread in their path who, walking in their own inventions, swerved from the law of God.

TRADITIONS OF MEN

Likewise we reject human traditions, even if they be adorned with high-sounding titles, as though they were divine and apostolical, delivered to the Church by the living voice of the apostles, and, as it were, through the hands of apostolical men to succeeding bishops which, when compared with the Scriptures, disagree with them; and by their disagreement show that they are not Apostolic at all. For as the apostles did not contradict themselves in doctrine, so the apostolic men did not set forth things contrary to the apostles. On the contrary, it would be wicked to assert that the apostles by a living voice delivered anything contrary to their writings. Paul affirms expressly that he taught the same things in all churches (I Cor. 4:17). And, again, "For we write you nothing but what you can read and understand." (II Cor. 1:13). Also, in another place, he testifies that he and his disciples - that is, apostolic men - walked in the same way, and jointly by the same Spirit did all things (II Cor. 12:18). Moreover, the Jews in former times had the traditions of their elders; but these traditions were severely rejected by the Lord, indicating that the keeping of them hinders God's law, and that God is worshipped in vain by such traditions (Matt. 15:1 ff.; Mark 7:1 ff).

Scripture references for paragraph 4

Berean Standard Bible. Public domain text and source credits.

1 Corinthians 4:17
17That is why I have sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which is exactly what I teach everywhere in every church.

2 Corinthians 1:13
13For we do not write you anything that is beyond your ability to read and understand. And I hope that you will understand us completely,

2 Corinthians 12:18
18I urged Titus to visit you, and I sent our brother with him. Did Titus exploit you in any way? Did we not walk in the same Spirit and follow in the same footsteps?

Matthew 15:1-39
1Then some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked,
2“Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They do not wash their hands before they eat.”
3Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?
4For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
5But you say that if anyone says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever you would have received from me is a gift devoted to God,’
6he need not honor his father or mother with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition.
7You hypocrites! Isaiah prophesied correctly about you:
8‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me.
9They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’”
10Jesus called the crowd to Him and said, “Listen and understand.
11A man is not defiled by what enters his mouth, but by what comes out of it.”
12Then the disciples came to Him and said, “Are You aware that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”
13But Jesus replied, “Every plant that My heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by its roots.
14Disregard them! They are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”
15Peter said to Him, “Explain this parable to us.”
16“Do you still not understand?” Jesus asked.
17“Do you not yet realize that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then is eliminated?
18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these things defile a man.
19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, and slander.
20These are what defile a man, but eating with unwashed hands does not defile him.”
21Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon.
22And a Canaanite woman from that region came to Him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is miserably possessed by a demon.”
23But Jesus did not answer a word. So His disciples came and urged Him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.”
24He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
25The woman came and knelt before Him. “Lord, help me!” she said.
26But Jesus replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
27“Yes, Lord,” she said, “even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”
28“O woman,” Jesus answered, “your faith is great! Let it be done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
29Moving on from there, Jesus went along the Sea of Galilee. Then He went up on a mountain and sat down.
30Large crowds came to Him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and laid them at His feet, and He healed them.
31The crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled restored, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel.
32Then Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “I have compassion for this crowd, because they have already been with Me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may faint along the way.”
33The disciples replied, “Where in this desolate place could we find enough bread to feed such a large crowd?”
34“How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked. “Seven,” they replied, “and a few small fish.”
35And He instructed the crowd to sit down on the ground.
36Taking the seven loaves and the fish, He gave thanks and broke them. Then He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.
37They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.
38A total of four thousand men were fed, in addition to women and children.
39After Jesus had dismissed the crowds, He got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.

Mark 7:1-37
1Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus,
2and they saw some of His disciples eating with hands that were defiled—that is, unwashed.
3Now in holding to the tradition of the elders, the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat until they wash their hands ceremonially.
4And on returning from the market, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions for them to observe, including the washing of cups, pitchers, kettles, and couches for dining.
5So the Pharisees and scribes questioned Jesus: “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders? Instead, they eat with defiled hands.”
6Jesus answered them, “Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me.
7They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’
8You have disregarded the commandment of God to keep the tradition of men.”
9He went on to say, “You neatly set aside the command of God to maintain your own tradition.
10For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
11But you say that if a man says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever you would have received from me is Corban’ (that is, a gift devoted to God),
12he is no longer permitted to do anything for his father or mother.
13Thus you nullify the word of God by the tradition you have handed down. And you do so in many such matters.”
14Once again Jesus called the crowd to Him and said, “All of you, listen to Me and understand:
15Nothing that enters a man from the outside can defile him; but the things that come out of a man, these are what defile him.”
17After Jesus had left the crowd and gone into the house, His disciples inquired about the parable.
18“Are you still so dull?” He asked. “Do you not understand? Nothing that enters a man from the outside can defile him,
19because it does not enter his heart, but it goes into the stomach and then is eliminated.” (Thus all foods are clean.)
20He continued: “What comes out of a man, that is what defiles him.
21For from within the hearts of men come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery,
22greed, wickedness, deceit, debauchery, envy, slander, arrogance, and foolishness.
23All these evils come from within, and these are what defile a man.”
24Jesus left that place and went to the region of Tyre. Not wanting anyone to know He was there, He entered a house, but was unable to escape their notice.
25Instead, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit soon heard about Jesus, and she came and fell at His feet.
26Now she was a Greek woman of Syrophoenician origin, and she kept asking Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter.
27“First let the children have their fill,” He said. “For it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
28“Yes, Lord,” she replied, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”
29Then Jesus told her, “Because of this answer, you may go. The demon has left your daughter.”
30And she went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon was gone.
31Then Jesus left the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis.
32Some people brought to Him a man who was deaf and hardly able to speak, and they begged Jesus to place His hand on him.
33So Jesus took him aside privately, away from the crowd, and put His fingers into the man’s ears. Then He spit and touched the man’s tongue.
34And looking up to heaven, He sighed deeply and said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means, “Be opened!”).
35Immediately the man’s ears were opened and his tongue was released, and he began to speak plainly.
36Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone. But the more He ordered them, the more widely they proclaimed it.
37The people were utterly astonished and said, “He has done all things well! He makes even the deaf hear and the mute speak!”

Source and edition

Second Helvetic Confession. NonlinearFruit/Creeds.json, Unlicense. Creeds.json, English transcription

Unlicense. Source transcription.

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