Blogs by Ligon Duncan

Calvin reminds us in 1.16.9 that though all things are ordained by God's plan yet the events of our lives and world often look to us as if they are random and fortuitous. As Calvin says "the order, reason, end,... continue

For Calvin, providence means God governing, not merely watching, his creation (1.16.4). Calvin is emphasizing that providence entails more than "bare foreknowledge." It involves God's will, and his acts. Nor is it merely a general control, but a specific direction.... continue

1.15.8 is a "rock your world" important passage in the Institutes. In it, Calvin explains a fundamental source of confusion in the quest for "free will.""The Philosophers," says Calvin, by discussing the question of free will apart from understanding the... continue

Calvin, having introduced the subject of our creation in the image of God in 1.15.3, argues that we learn what the image of God entails not only by studying man as originally created (Genesis 1-2), but by studying what Scripture... continue

Calvin now turns to the creation of mankind (1.15.1), and he does so with a view to further elaborate his assertion that we cannot have a clear and complete knowledge God unless we have a corresponding knowledge of ourselves. Calvin... continue

Why should you read through Calvin's Institutes with the lads here at ref21 as we blog through this work every weekday of 2009? Ten reasons: 1. Because it the most important book written in the last 500 years. 2. Because... continue