Bellarmine · De Controversiis · On the Loss of Grace · Book VI: The Punishments of Original Sin
Chapter 15: That not only concupiscence, but all the miseries of human nature, are punishments of sin
Our translation, from the Latin of the Opera Omnia (Paris: Vivès, 1870–74), vol. V, De Amissione Gratiae et Statu Peccati, Book VI. The Latin source text is public domain; this English rendering is released with the site. Scripture quotations follow Bellarmine's Vulgate citations, rendered in Douay-Rheims wording where he quotes exactly. Click “Show the Latin” for the original (raw OCR of the scan; scanning errors remain — the scan itself is the authority).
Now in order, but most briefly, we shall demonstrate that all the calamities of human life numbered above are from the desert of sin, not from the condition of nature. On which matter we have also said some things in book 1 On the Grace of the First Man. Now all the human calamities can be reduced to ten principal ones.
The first is ignorance in the mind. That this arose from sin David testifies in Psalm 48: Man, when he was in honor, did not understand; he is compared to senseless beasts, and is become like to them. That Adam also, before sin, knew the natures of things of which we are now ignorant, is gathered openly enough from chapter 2 of Genesis, where he imposed names on all the animals as the nature of each seemed to require. Finally, in paradise there would have been no error, no deception, no ignorance of those things which, for the place and time, ought to have been known. For all these are evils, and punishments of sin, as St. Augustine teaches in the Enchiridion, chapters 24 and 25, and in book 3 On Free Choice, chapter 18; but no evil would have been in paradise if Adam had not sinned, as the same author teaches in book 14 On the City of God, chapter 10.
The second, malice in the will. That this was not in the first parents before sin, and was born from sin, Ecclesiastes testifies, chapter 7, where he says: Only this I have found, that God made man right, and he hath entangled himself with an infinity of questions.
The third, concupiscence in the lower part. That this is a punishment of sin the Apostle teaches, Romans 7, when he very often calls it sin — namely because it was born from sin. The shame of the first parents also teaches it, who after sin blushed at their nakedness, and hastened to cover it with the leaves that first came to hand, Genesis 3. Finally reason also teaches it. For (as St. Augustine reasons in book 1 against the Two Epistles of the Pelagians, chapter 17) either lust would have been in paradise, and as often as it arose, so often it would have been satisfied through carnal union; or it would have been there indeed, but bridled by temperance; or finally it would not have been there, and, no lust existing, the genital members also, like the rest of the members each for its own works, would have served the commands of the willing without any difficulty for their proper work. But the two former are to be rejected, by which lust is either served or resisted; for the so illustrious honorableness of that state will not have the first, and the so great felicity will not have the second. It remains, therefore, that the third alone is true; and that lust, which was not in the first parents before sin, was born from sin, and descends to us, propagated through the sin in which we are conceived.
The fourth calamity, labor and pain in the body. That this flowed from sin God himself testifies, when he says in Genesis 3: In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat thy bread. Whence are those words of Ecclesiasticus, chapter 40: A heavy yoke is upon the children of Adam, from the day of their coming out of their mother’s womb, until the day of their burial into the mother of all.
The fifth is death itself, of which blessed Paul, Romans 5: By one man sin entered into this world, and by sin death. And chapter 6: The wages of sin is death.
The sixth, the wrath of God. That this is a punishment of sin can in no way be doubted, unless the justice of God himself be doubted. For the countenance of the Lord, as we read in Psalm 33, is only upon them that do evil things, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth. And in Romans 1 the Apostle writes that the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all impiety and injustice. And so we would not be born children of wrath — as the Apostle writes in Ephesians 2 that we are born — unless we were conceived in iniquities, and our mothers brought us forth in sins, as we read in Psalm 50.
The seventh, the captivity under the devil. That this is a punishment of sin blessed Peter teaches, in the second epistle, chapter 2, when he says: By whom a man is overcome, of the same also he is the slave. Then, as St. Augustine rightly notes in epistle 28 to Jerome, God would not give men to the devil as a lower nature to a more excellent nature, in the way he delivered the beasts of the earth to man. For though man is mortal, yet he is also rational, and capable of God; and therefore he is not the slave of the Angels, but their fellow-servant, and renders service to God not through the Angels, but by himself. Wherefore, that the devil is named the prince of this world in the Scriptures, and holds men captive at his own will, and that we need the help of Christ that we may be freed from the power of Satan, cannot have come to pass from any other source than from sin.
The eighth, the cruelty of men toward other men. That this truly flows from sin the Apostle James teaches, when in his epistle, chapter 4, he says: From whence are wars and contentions among you? Are they not from your concupiscences, which war in your members? But that concupiscence is a punishment of sin we showed a little before. And so sin begot concupiscence; and concupiscence, contentions and wars — and not these only, but also seditions, quarrels, homicides, poisonings, unchastity, and all those evils which the Apostle calls the works of the flesh, Galatians 5.
The ninth, the enmity and rebellion of the beasts. That this evil would not have existed in the state of innocence is gathered from chapter 3 of Genesis, where the serpent converses familiarly with Eve, and neither does she shudder at the serpent, nor does the serpent either flee from her or strike her. The same can be understood from chapter 2, where at the nod of God all the animals came to man, that they might receive a name from him as from their own king and lord, and in a certain manner attest their subjection and fidelity to him. There is added also that many holy men — as the great Antony, St. Martin, St. Francis, and very many others — even in this life had a wonderful obedience of animals, even the most ferocious. Which certainly came to pass from no other source than that in them the grace of God had in great part healed nature; and as the disobedience of the first man toward God had brought it about that the beasts refused the command of man, so also the perfect obedience of the Saints toward God brought it about that the brute animals recognized the ancient command.
The tenth calamity is all those evils which men suffer from heaven, earth, and sea, whether foreseen beforehand or altogether unexpected. For that all these pertain to the punishment of sin, the book of Wisdom teaches, chapter 5, where it says that the creature is armed for the revenge of the enemies of God, and that the globe of the earth fights with him against the senseless; nor can it be doubted that Ecclesiasticus looked also to these calamities when he said that a heavy yoke has been laid upon the children of Adam. And thus far it has been demonstrated from Scripture that the miseries of human life are punishments, or fruits, of original sin.
We can prove the same thing also by reason and human authority. For although almost all the calamities of the human race could have been natural — which would have happened had God willed to create man in his pure natural endowments, without original justice; from which it follows that, divine revelation being removed, it cannot be established with certainty that human corruption is a punishment of sin — yet, this revelation being now had, and faith being divinely kindled in our minds, natural reason corroborates that faith in no small measure. For it is altogether likely that God, most good and most loving of our race, would not have created man as miserable as he now is, unless the greatness of our sin had merited such a punishment. Wherefore most of the ancient heathen so bewail the miseries of human life that they either complain of nature as of a stepmother, or suspect that through these miseries the sins of souls committed in another life are punished. Of whom St. Augustine rightly pronounced, book 4 against Julian, chapter 12, that they saw the thing, but were ignorant of the cause. See these testimonies of the heathen in Theodoret, book 5 On the Curing of the Affections of the Greeks, not far from the beginning, and Augustine, book 4 against Julian, chapters 12, 13, 14, 15.
Show the Latin (Vives edition, OCR)
CAPUT XV Non solum concupiscentiam , sed omnes miserias humana ; natura; poenas esse peccati. Nunc ordine, sed brevissime demonstra¬ bimus , omnes supra numeratas humana; vita; calamitates, ex merito esse peccati, non ex conditione natura;. De qua re di¬ ximus etiam aliqua in i. lib. de gratia primi hominis. Possunt autem humana; calamita¬ tes omnes ad decem pra;cipuas revocari. Prima est, ignorantia in mente. Hanc or¬ tam esse ex peccato, testatur David in Psal. 48 : Homo cum in honore esset, non intelle¬ xit, comparatus est jumentis insipientibus, et similis factus est illis (2). Adamum quoque ante peccatum novisse naturas rerum, quas nunc ignoramus, satis aperte colligitur ex cap. 2. Genes, ubi nomina imposuit omnibus animantibus, ut natura uniuscujusque exige¬ re videbatur, denique in paradiso nullus fuisset error, nulla deceptio, nulla ignoran¬ tia earum rerum, quae pro loco et tempore scienda fuissent. Nam ista omnia sunt mala, et poena; peccati, ut S. August. docet in Enchir. cap. 24. et 25. et in lib. m. de libe¬ ro arbitrio cap. 18. nullum autem malum (1> Matth. VII, 18. - (2) Psa!, XUVIII, 13. 482 LIBER VI. in paradiso fuisset, si Adam non peccasset, ut idem auctor docet in lib. xiv. de Civ. Dei cap. 10. Secunda, malitia in voluntate. Hanc non fuisse in primis parentibus ante peccatum, et ex peccato natam esse testatur Ecclesia¬ stes cap. vil. ubi dicit : Hoc inceni quod fece¬ rit Deus hominem rectum , et ipse se infinitis miscuerit quaestionibus (1). Tertia, concupiscentia in parte inferiore. Hanc poenam esse peccati docet Apostolus Rom. 7. cum eam saepissime vocat pecca¬ tura, quia videlicet ex peccato nata sit. Do¬ cet etiam verecundia primorum parentum, qui post peccatum erubuerunt nuditatem suam, eamque frondibus, quae primae in promptu fuerunt, tegere festinarunt Gen. 3. Docet postremo etiam ratio, nam (ut S. Au¬ gustinus ratiocinatur in i. lib. contra duas epistolas Pelagian. cap. 17.) aut in paradiso fuisset libido et quotiescumque illa exurge¬ ret, toties et per concubitum satisfieret : aut fuisset quidem, sed per temperantiam fraenaretur, aut denique non fuisset, et nul¬ la existente libidine, ut caetera membra, quaeque ad opera sua, sic ad opus proprium etiam genitalia jussis volentium sine ulla difficultate servissent. Sed duo priora re¬ spuenda sunt, quibus libidini aut servitur, aut repugnatur. Nam illud primum tam prae¬ clara status illius honestas, hoc autem se¬ cundum, tam magna felicitas non vult : re¬ stat igitur ut tertium solum sit verum, et li¬ bido, quae in primis parentibus ante pecca¬ tum non fuit, ex peccato sit nata, et ad nos per peccatum in quo concipimur, propagata descendat. Quarta calamitas, labor et dolor in corpo¬ re. Hanc ex peccato manasse Deus ipse te¬ statur, cum ait Genes, iii. In sudore vultus tui vesceris pane tuo (2). Unde sunt illa Eccles. cap. xl. Jugum grave super filios Adam, a die exitus de ventre matris ipsorum, usque in diem sepulturae , in matrem omnium (3). Quinta, est mors ipsa, de qua B. Paulus ad Rom. v. : Per unum hominem peccatum in hunc mundum intravit , et per peccatum mors (4). Et cap. vi. Stipendia peccati mors. Sexta, ira Dei, hanc autem esse poenam pec¬ cati, nulla ratione dubitari potest, nisi de ip¬ sius Dei justitia dubitetur. Nam vultus Domini , ut legimus in Psal. xxxm. non est, nisi super facientes mala, ut perdat de terra memoriam eorum (3). Et ad Rom. i. scribit Apostolus : Revelari iram Dei de coelo super omnem im¬ pietatem et injustitiam (6). Itaque non nasce¬ remur filii irae, quales nos nasci scribit A- postolus ad Ephes. 2. nisi in iniquitatibus conciperemur, et in peccatis parerent nos matres nostrae, ut legimus in Psal. l. Septima, captivitas sub diabolo, hame poe¬ nam esse peccati docet B. Petrus in epist. ir. cap. ii. cum ait, A quo quis superatus est, hijjus et servus est (7). Deinde, ut recte notat S. Augustinus in epist. 28. ad Hieronymum, non daret Deus homines diabolo tanquam naturam inferiorem naturae excellentiori, quomodo tradidit homini bestias terrae. Nam etsi mortalis est homo, tamen est etiam ra¬ tionalis, et Dei capax, et ideo non Angelo¬ rum servus, sed conservus est, et Deo non per Angelos, sed per se famulatum praestat. Quare quod diabolus princeps hujus mundi nominetur in Scripturis, et homines captivos teneat ad suam ipsius voluntatem, et nos Christi ope indigeamus, ut de potestate Sa¬ tanae liberemur, non potest aliunde, quam ex peccato factum esse. Octava, crudelitas hominum in alios homi¬ nes. Hanc vere ex peccato manare Jacobus Apostolus docet cum in epistola sua cap. IV. dicit : Unde bella et lites in nobis, nonne ex concupiscentiis vestris, quae militant in mem¬ bris vestris (8) ? Concupiscentiam autem poe¬ nam esse peccati, paulo ante monstravimus. Itaque peccatum concupiscentiam procreavit; concupiscentia vero lites et bella. Neque hgee solum, sed etiam seditiones, rixas, homici¬ dia, veneficia, impudicitiam, et illa omnia mala, quai opera carnis vocat Apostolus ad Galat. v. Nona, inimicitia et rebellio bestiarum. Non fuisse futurum hoc malum in statu in¬ nocentiae, colligitur ex iii. cap. Gen. ubi ser¬ pens familiariter cum Heva colloquitur, et neque ipsa serpentem horret, neque serpens ipsam aut fugit aut ferit. Idem intelligi po¬ test ex c. ii. ubi Dei nutu animantia omnia venerunt ad hominem, ut ab eo tanquam a proprio rege ac domino nomen acciperent, et subjectionem ac fidelitatem eidem quodam modo testarentur. Accedit etiam, quod multi sancti viri, ut Magnus Antonius, S. Martinus, S. Franciscus, et alii quamplurimi, etiam in (l| Eccl. VII, 30. —(2) Gen. III, 19. — (3)Eccl. XL, l.-(4)Rom. V, 12; Rom. VI, 23, - (5) Psal. XXXIII, 17; — (6) Rom. I, 18. — (7) Pet. II, 19. — (8) Jacob. IV, 1. CAPUT XVI. m hac vita, miram animantium etiam ferocis¬ simarum obedientiara habuerunt. Quod cer¬ te non aliunde fiebat, nisi quia in eis gratia Dei sanaverat magna ex parte naturam ; et sicut inobedientia primi hominis erga Deum effecerat, ut bestiae imperium hominis de¬ trectarent, sic etiam perfecta obedientia Sanctorum erga Deum faciebat, ut animan¬ tia bruta antiquum imperium recognosce¬ rent. Decima calamitas, sunt illa omnia mala quae a coelo, terra, mari, vel ante praevisa, vel omnino inopinata homines patiuntur. Haec enim omnia ad peccati supplicium per¬ tinere, docet liber Sap. cap. o. ubi dicit, ar¬ mari creaturam ad ultionem inimicorum Dei, et pugnare cum eo orbem terrarum con¬ tra insensatos, neque dubitari potest, quin ad has etiam calamitates Ecclesiasticus respe¬ xerit, cum jugum grave impositum esse dixit super filios Adae. Atque hactenus ex Scri¬ ptura demonstratum est humanae vitae mise¬ rias, poenas sive fructus esse peccati origi¬ nalis. Possumus rem eamdem ratione quoque et auctoritate humana probare. Nam tametsi calamitates humani generis fere omnes po¬ tuerint esse naturales, quod accidisset, si Deus hominem sine originali justitia in pu¬ ris naturalibus condere voluisset; ex quo se¬ quitur, ut remota revelatione divina, non possit certo statui corruptionem humanam poenam esse peccati : tamen hac revelatione jam habita, et fide in animis nostris accen¬ sa divinitus, non mediocriter ratio naturalis fidem ipsam corroborat. Omnino enim veri¬ simile est, non fuisse Deum optimum et no¬ stri generis amantissimum conditurum homi¬ nem tam miserum, quam nunc est, nisi pec¬ cati nostri magnitudo tale supplicium me¬ ruisset. Quare pleri que veterum ethnicorum huma¬ nae vitae miserias ita deflent, ut vel de natura, tanquam de noverca querantur, vel per has miserias, puniri peccata animarum in alia vita comn\issa suspicentur. De quibus recte pronuntiavit Sanctus Augustinus lib. iv. in Julianum, cap. 12. eos rem vidisse, causam ignorasse. Vide haec Ethnicorum testimonia apud Theodoretum lib. v. de curandis Grae¬ corum affectionibus, non procul ab initio, et Augustinum lib. iv. in Julian. cap. 12. 13. 14. 15.