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The Belgic Confession, 1561
ARTICLE 13—THE
PROVIDENCE OF GOD
We believe that this good God, after He had created all
things, did not abandon them or give them up to fortune or chance, but that
according to His holy will He so rules and governs them that in this world
nothing happens without His direction. Yet God is not the Author of the sins
which are committed nor can He be charged with them. For His power and goodness
are so great and beyond understanding that He ordains and executes His work in
the most excellent and just manner, even when devils and wicked men act
unjustly. And as to His actions surpassing human understanding, we will not
curiously inquire farther than our capacity allows us. But with the greatest
humility and reverence we adore the just judgments of God, which are hidden from
us, and we content ourselves that we are pupils of Christ, who have only to
learn those things which He teaches us in His Word, without transgressing these
limits. This doctrine gives us unspeakable consolation, for we learn thereby
that nothing can happen to us by chance, but only by the direction of our
gracious heavenly Father. He watches over us with fatherly care, keeping all
creatures so under His power that not one hair of our head—for they are all
numbered—nor one sparrow can fall to the ground without the will of our Father.
In this we trust, because we know that He holds in check the devil and all our
enemies so that they cannot hurt us without His permission and will. We
therefore reject the damnable error of the Epicureans, who say that God does not
concern Himself with anything but leaves all things to chance.
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