Heidelberg Catechism (1563)
Section 4: Lord’s Day 4
Zacharias Ursinus and Caspar Olevianus
Section 4: Lord’s Day 4
Doth not God then do injustice to man, by requiring from him in his law, that which he cannot perform?
Not at all;a for God made man capable of performing it,b but man, by the instigation of the devil,c and his own wilful disobedience, deprived himself and all his posterity of those divine gifts.d
a. Ecclesiastes 7:29
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b. John 8:44; 2 Corinthians 11:3
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c. Genesis 3:4, 7
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d. Romans 5:12
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Will God suffer such disobedience and rebellion to go unpunished?
By no means:a but is terribly displeased with our original as well as actual sins;b and will punish them in his just judgment, temporally and eternally, as he hath declared, “Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things, which are written in the book of the law, to do them.”c
a. Psalm 5:5
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b. Romans 1:18; Deuteronomy 28:15; Hebrews 9:27
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c. Deuteronomy 27:26; Galatians 3:10
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Is not God then also merciful?
God is indeed merciful,a but also just;b therefore his justice requires,c that sin, which is committed against the most high majesty of God, be also punished with extreme, that is, with everlasting punishment, both of body and soul.d
a. Exodus 34:6
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b. Exodus 20:5; Job 34:10–11
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c. Psalm 5:5–6
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d. Genesis 2:17; Romans 6:23
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