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On Repentance

Tertullian

Chapter 5

About this work

Author: Tertullian

Chapter V.—Sin Never to Be Returned to After Repentance.

For what I say is this, that the repentance which,

‹ Chapter 4 Chapter 6 ›

being

shown

us

and

commanded

us

through

God’s

grace

,

recalls

us

to

grace

with

the

Lord

,

when

once

learned

and

undertaken

by

us

ought

never

afterward

to

be

cancelled

by

repetition

of

sin

.

No

pretext

of

ignorance

now

remains

to

plead

on

your

behalf

;

in

that

,

after

acknowledging

the

Lord

,

and

accepting

His

precepts

—

in

short

,

after

engaging

in

repentance

of

(

past

)

sins

—

you

again

betake

yourself

to

sins

.

Thus

,

in

as

far

as

you

are

removed

from

ignorance

,

in

so

far

are

you

cemented

to

contumacy

.

For

if

the

ground

on

which

you

had

repented

of

having

sinned

was

that

you

had

begun

to

fear

the

Lord

,

why

have

you

preferred

to

rescind

what

you

did

for

fear’s

sake

,

except

because

you

have

ceased

to

fear

?

For

there

is

no

other

thing

but

contumacy

which

subverts

fear

.

Since

there

is

no

exception

which

defends

from

liability

to

penalty

even

such

as

are

ignorant

of

the

Lord

—

because

ignorance

of

God

,

openly

as

He

is

set

before

men

,

and

comprehensible

as

He

is

even

on

the

score

of

His

heavenly

benefits

,

is

not

possible

—

how

perilous

is

it

for

Him

to

be

despised

when

known

?

Now

,

that

man

does

despise

Him

,

who

,

after

attaining

by

His

help

to

an

understanding

of

things

good

and

evil

,

often

an

affront

to

his

own

understanding

—

that

is

,

to

God’s

gift

—

by

resuming

what

he

understands

ought

to

be

shunned

,

and

what

he

has

already

shunned

:

he

rejects

the

Giver

in

abandoning

the

gift

;

he

denies

the

Benefactor

in

not

honouring

the

benefit

.

How

can

he

be

pleasing

to

Him

,

whose

gift

is

displeasing

to

himself

?

Thus

he

is

shown

to

be

not

only

contumacious

toward

the

Lord

,

but

likewise

ungrateful

.

Besides

,

that

man

commits

no

light

sin

against

the

Lord

,

who

,

after

he

had

by

repentance

renounced

His

rival

the

devil

,

and

had

under

this

appellation

subjected

him

to

the

Lord

,

again

upraises

him

by

his

own

return

(

to

the

enemy

)

,

and

makes

himself

a

ground

of

exultation

to

him

;

so

that

the

Evil

One

,

with

his

prey

recovered

,

rejoices

anew

against

the

Lord

.

Does

he

not

—

what

is

perilous

even

to

say

,

but

must

be

put

forward

with

a

view

to

edification

—

place

the

devil

before

the

Lord

?

For

he

seems

to

have

made

the

comparison

who

has

known

each

;

and

to

have

judicially

pronounced

him

to

be

the

better

whose

(

servant

)

he

has

preferred

again

to

be

.

Thus

he

who

,

through

repentance

for

sins

,

had

begun

to

make

satisfaction

to

the

Lord

,

will

,

through

another

repentance

of

his

repentance

,

make

satisfaction

to

the

devil

,

and

will

be

the

more

hateful

to

God

in

proportion

as

he

will

be

the

more

acceptable

to

His

rival

.

But

some

say

that

“

God

is

satisfied

if

He

be

looked

up

to

with

the

heart

and

the

mind

,

even

if

this

be

not

done

in

outward

act

,

and

that

thus

they

sin

without

damage

to

their

fear

and

their

faith

:

”

that

is

,

that

they

violate

wedlock

without

damage

to

their

chastity

;

they

mingle

poison

for

their

parent

without

damage

to

their

filial

duty

!

Thus

,

then

,

they

will

themselves

withal

be

thrust

down

into

hell

without

damage

to

their

pardon

,

while

they

sin

without

damage

to

their

fear

!

Here

is

a

primary

example

of

perversity

:

they

sin

,

because

they

fear

!

I

suppose

,

if

they

feared

not

,

they

would

not

sin

!

Let

him

,

therefore

,

who

would

not

have

God

offended

not

revere

Him

at

all

,

if

fear

is

the

plea

for

offending

.

But

these

dispositions

have

been

wont

to

sprout

from

the

seed

of

hypocrites

,

whose

friendship

with

the

devil

is

indivisible

,

whose

repentance

never

faithful

.

Notes

2
i.e., favour.
3
Which is solemnly done in baptism.
4
Adglutinaris.
5
Acts xiv. 15–17: “licet” here may ="lawful,” “permissible,” “excusable.”
6
“Timent,” not “metuunt.” “Metus” is the word Tertullian has been using above for religious, reverential fear.
7
Timor.