John Calvin is known as a theologian and influential Protestant reformer, but he is less often described as a passionate preacher who longed to see the French-speaking world know Christ as Lord and Savior.
After joining the Reformation movement, Calvin wrote a preface to the New Testament in French. This preface begins with an overview of the Scriptures focusing on Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of the Old Testament and center of the New Testament.
Calvin then exhorts the French-speaking laity to read, study, and learn from the Scriptures. He encourages his readers to embrace the truths of Scripture with a pastor’s heart. He then urges the secular and religious leaders to allow the laity to have the true food of the Word by granting them access to the Bible in French.
I’d like to introduce you to this young, zealous John Calvin by way of 20 quotes from his preface to the French New Testament of 1535. These quotes are taken primarily from my new translation of the French work, available for download at the end of this post.
I hope you will be encouraged by the words of a theologian, pastor, and translator who loved his Lord and the Scriptures enough to write this preface and devote his life to feed the flock with the Word.
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When the fullness of time had come and the period foreordained by God was ended, this great Messiah, so promised and awaited, came. He was perfect and accomplished all that was necessary to redeem and save us.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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Thus, He is our only Savior. We owe our redemption, peace, righteousness, sanctification, salvation, and life to Him. He died for our sins and rose again for our justification. He ascended to heaven and opened a way for us to enter as well, taking possession of a heavenly place on our behalf and preparing us a home there.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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In short, the elements and all created things gave glory to Jesus Christ. At His command, the winds ceased, the raging sea became peaceful, and the fish brought a four-drachma coin in its stomach.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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All these things are announced to us, demonstrated for us, written for us in this New Testament, and ratified for us by the new covenant. By the new covenant Jesus Christ makes us His heirs in the kingdom of God His Father.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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Now we are called to this heritage without respect for persons: male or female, small or great, servant or lord, master or disciple, cleric or layman, Hebrew or Greek, French or Latin.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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Without the gospel, everything would be useless and vain.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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But by knowing the gospel, we are made children of God, brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ, fellow townsmen with the saints, citizens of the kingdom of heaven and heirs of God with Jesus Christ. By Jesus Christ the poor are made rich, the feeble powerful, and the foolish wise. By Him sinners are justified, the afflicted are comforted, doubters become confident, and slaves are set free.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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Without the gospel, all wealth would be poverty, all wisdom would be folly before God, strength would be weakness, and all the justice of man would be under the condemnation of God.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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The gospel is the Word of life and truth.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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Blessed are all who hear the gospel and keep it; for in this way they show that they are the children of God. Cursed are those who will not hear it and follow it; for they are children of the devil.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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There is only one way to life and salvation—faith and certainty in the promises of God which can only be had through the gospel. God grants a living faith to those who hear and grasp this gospel. He also grants us a sure hope and perfect love for Him and a fervent love for our neighbors.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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Where is your hope to be found if you regard this Holy Gospel with contempt and scorn the thought of listening to it, looking at it, reading it and holding it tight?
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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We must accept being despised, mocked, humiliated and rejected by others, because we then have the promise of being honored, prized, glorified and exalted at the judgment of God.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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Will there be affliction, imprisonment, torture and torment? But the example of Jesus Christ teaches us that this is the way to reach glory.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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In short, if we have Jesus Christ with us, we will not encounter anything so cursed that He will not turn it into a blessing, nothing so desecrated that He will not make it holy, and nothing so evil that He will not make it good.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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And when we turn our eyes away from this whole world and set aside all that we can see before us to wait with patience for the great judgment of God, we have an even better and firmer consolation. At the great judgment, God will strike down all the machinations of mankind in an instant, reducing them to nothing, completely overturning them.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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Eternal life is knowing the only true God and the One that He sent, Jesus Christ. God has established in Jesus Christ the beginning, middle and culmination of our salvation.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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And all you who call yourselves bishops and pastors of the poor, ensure that the sheep of Jesus Christ are not deprived of their proper food. And ensure that no Christian is kept from or forbidden to read, study and understand this Holy Gospel in his own language, given that this is the will of God and the command of Jesus Christ.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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The Scriptures also refer to the New Testament as the gospel, that is, new and joyful news, because in the New Testament it is declared that Christ, the only true and eternal Son of the living God, was made man to make us children of God by adoption.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535
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This book we have translated as faithfully as we were able according to the truth and the style of the Greek language, to enable all Christians, men and women, who know the French language, to understand and acknowledge the law they ought to obey and the faith they ought to follow.
John Calvin, Preface to the New Testament, Olivétan Bible, 1535