Human sin is voluntary, yet never autonomous—and Calvin refuses to let that tension be softened or resolved away. In Book 2, Chapter 4, Sections 1–4, he confronts the uncomfortable reality that the human will, enslaved to sin, does not merely drift into evil but is actively governed under judgment, even while remaining morally responsible. Drawing on Scripture and Augustine, Calvin carefully distinguishes between compulsion and necessity, showing that Satan works powerfully in the reprobate without excusing human guilt, while God remains righteous even when the same acts are attributed to him, to Satan, and to men. Divine hardening is not reduced to bare foreknowledge or passive permission; it includes both the withdrawal of grace and the active execution of judgment through appointed instruments. Whether through Pharaoh, Sihon, or the nations raised up against Israel, Calvin insists that God is never a spectator in history. Yet the conclusion is sobering rather than speculative: sin belongs to man alone, while the ordering, limits, and outcomes of sinful acts rest wholly in the just and sovereign will of God.

Readings: Institutes of the Christian Religion — John Calvin Book 2, Chapter 4 (Sections 1–4)

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Grace does not merely assist the human will once it has begun to move—it creates the movement itself, governs it, and preserves it to the end. In Sections 11–14, Calvin follows Augustine closely to deny that grace is a reward for human effort or a supplement to an already-willing heart, insisting instead that grace precedes, transforms, strengthens, and sustains the will entirely by God’s free mercy. The will is not coerced by grace but inwardly renewed so that obedience flows from the heart, yet this renewal leaves no room for boasting, since every ability the will possesses comes from grace alone. Perseverance, Calvin argues, does not rest on the proper use of an initial gift, but on grace continuing to rule—when grace governs, the will stands; when grace withdraws, it falls. The result is a vision of salvation that preserves real human obedience while decisively grounding all confidence in God’s mercy rather than human resolve.

Readings: Institutes of the Christian Religion — John Calvin (Sections 11–14)

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In these sections, the argument presses directly into the heart of the controversy over human will and divine grace, showing that Scripture consistently locates the beginning, continuation, and completion of every good work in God alone. By tracing the testimony of Jeremiah, Ezekiel, the Psalms, the Gospels, and the Apostle Paul, the case is made that a right will does not arise from human capacity but from God’s recreating action—removing the heart of stone and giving a heart of flesh. The prayers of the saints themselves bear witness to this reality, as even the desire to obey must be created and sustained by God. Against any notion of a merely assisting or conditional grace, the conclusion is drawn that God does not simply offer help and wait for consent, but effectually works in the will itself, guiding, ruling, and preserving it to the end, so that perseverance is not left suspended on human choice but secured by divine action.

Readings: Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 2, Chapter 3 (Sections 8–10)

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