Hobbes - Leviathan.pdf

elieve Jesus to be the Son of the God of Israel, and that the
Israelites had for God the Omnipotent Creator of all things, do
therein also believe that God is the Omnipotent Creator of all things
Or how can a man believe that Jesus is the king that shall reign
eternally, unless he believe him also risen again from the dead For a
dead man cannot exercise the office of a king. In sum, he that holdeth
this foundation, Jesus is the Christ, holdeth expressly all that he
seeth rightly deduced from it, and implicitly all that is consequent
thereunto, though he have not skill enough to discern the consequence.
And therefore it holdeth still good that the belief of this one
article is sufficient faith to obtain remission of sins to the
penitent, and consequently to bring them into the kingdom of heaven.
Now that I have shown that all the obedience required to salvation
consisteth in the will to obey the law of God, that is to say, in
repentance; and all the faith required to the same is comprehended
in the belief of this article, Jesus is the Christ; I will further
allege those places of the Gospel that prove that all that is
necessary to salvation is contained in both these joined together. The
men to whom St. Peter preached on the day of Pentecost, next after the
ascension of our Saviour, asked him, and the rest of the Apostles,
saying, "Men and brethren, what shall we do"* To whom St. Peter
answered, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you, for the remission
of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost."*(2)
Therefore repentance and baptism, that is, believing that Jesus is the
Christ, is all that is necessary to salvation. Again, our Saviour
being asked by a certain ruler, "What shall I do to inherit eternal
life"*(3) answered, "Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit
adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour
thy father and thy mother":*(4) which when he said he had observed,
our Saviour added, "Sell all thou hast, give it to the poor, and
come and follow me": which was as much as to say, rely on me that am
the king. Therefore to fulfil the law, and to believe that Jesus is
the king, is all that is required to bring a man to eternal life.
Thirdly, St. Paul saith, "The just shall live by faith";*(5) not every
one, but the just; therefore faith and justice (that is, the will to
be just, or repentance) are all that is necessary to life eternal. And
our Saviour preached, saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the
kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe the Evangel,"*(6) that
is, the good news that the Christ was come. Therefore to repent, and
to believe that Jesus is the Christ, is all that is required to
salvation.
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* Acts, 2. 37
*(2) Ibid., 2. 38
*(3) Luke, 18. 18
*(4) Ibid., 18. 20
*(5) Romans, 1. 17
*(6) Mark, 1. 15
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Seeing then it is necessary that faith and obedience (implied in the
word repentance) do both concur to our salvation, the question by
which of the two we are justified is impertinently disputed.
Nevertheless, it will not be impertinent to make manifest in what
manner each of them contributes thereunto, and in what sense it is
said that we are to be justified by the one and by the other. And
first, if by righteousness be understood the justice of the works
themselves, there is no man that can be saved; for there is none