Point 15: Of the Intercession of Saints
Our consent.
Conclusion 1. The saints departed pray to God by giving thanks to him for their own redemption and for the redemption of the whole Church of God upon earth. Revelation 5:8-9: The four beasts and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, and they sang a new song: You are worthy to take the book and to open the seals thereof, because you were killed and have redeemed us to God. Revelation 5:13: And all the creatures which are in heaven — praise and honor and glory and power be to him that sits upon the throne and to the Lamb forever.
Conclusion 2. The saints departed pray generally for the state of the whole Church. Revelation 6:9-10: I saw under the altar the souls of them that were killed for the word of God, and they cried: How long, Lord, holy and true, do you not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? Whereby we see they desire a final deliverance of the Church and a destruction of the enemies thereof, that they themselves with all the people of God might be advanced to fullness of glory in body and soul. Yes, the dumb creatures in Romans 8:23 are said to groan and sigh, waiting for the adoption — even the redemption of our bodies. Much more then do the saints in heaven desire the same. Thus far we consent.
The dissent or difference.
They hold and teach that the saints in heaven — as the Virgin Mary, Peter, Paul, and others — do make intercession to God for particular men according to their several wants, and that having received particular men's prayers they present them to God. But this doctrine we flatly renounce upon these grounds and reasons.
Reason 1. Isaiah 63:16: The church says to God: Doubtless you are our Father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel know us not. Now if Abraham knew not his posterity, neither Mary nor Peter nor any other of the saints departed know us and our estate, and consequently they cannot make any particular intercession for us. If they say that Abraham and Jacob were then in Limbo, which they will have to be a part of hell, what joy could Lazarus have in Abraham's bosom (Luke 16:25), and with what comfort could Jacob say on his death bed: O Lord, I have waited for your salvation (Genesis 49:18)?
Reason 2. 2 Kings 22:20: Huldah the prophetess tells Josiah that he must be gathered to his fathers and put in his grave in peace, that his eyes may not see all the evil which God would bring on that place. Therefore the saints departed do not see the state of the Church on earth, much less do they know the thoughts and prayers of men. This conclusion Augustine confirms at large.
Reason 3. No creature, saint, or angel can be a mediator for us to God, saving Christ alone, who is indeed the only Advocate of his church. For in a true and sufficient mediator there must be three properties. First, the word of God must reveal and set forth him to the Church, that we may in conscience be assured that praying to him and to God in his name we shall be heard. Now there is no Scripture that mentions either saints or angels as mediator in our behalf, save Christ alone. Second, a mediator must be perfectly just, so that no sin be found in him at all. 1 John 2:1: If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father — Jesus Christ the righteous. Now the saints in heaven, however fully sanctified by Christ, yet in themselves were conceived and born in sin, and therefore must needs eternally stand before God by the mediation and merit of another. Third, a mediator must be a propitiator — that is, bring something to God that may appease and satisfy the wrath and justice of God for our sins. Therefore John adds: And he is the propitiation for our sins. But neither saint nor angel can satisfy for the least of our sins. Christ only is the propitiation for them all. The Virgin Mary and the rest of the saints, being sinners, could not satisfy so much as for themselves.
Reason 4: The judgment of the Church. Augustine: All Christian men commend each other in their prayers to God. And: He who prays for all, and for whom none prays, is that one and true mediator. And: This says your Savior: You have nowhere to go but to me, you have no way to go but by me. Chrysostom: You have no need of patrons to God or of much discourse to smooth over others. But though you be alone and want a patron, and by yourself pray to God, you shall obtain your desire. And on the saying of John, If any sin, and so on: Your prayers have no effect unless they be such as the Lord commends to your Father. And Augustine on the same place has these words: He being such a man said not, you have an advocate — but, if any sin, we have: he said not you have, neither said he, you have me.
Objections of Papists.
Objection 1. Revelation 5:8-9: The twenty-four elders fall down before the Lamb, having every one harps and golden vials, full of odors which are the prayers of the saints. Hence the Papists gather that the saints in heaven receive the prayers of men on earth and offer them to the Father. Answer: There by prayers of the saints are meant their own prayers, in which they sing praises to God and to the Lamb, as the verses following plainly declare. And these prayers are also presented to God only from the hand of the angel, who is Christ himself.
Objection 2. Luke 16:27: Dives in hell prays for his brethren upon earth — much more do the saints in heaven pray for us. Answer: Out of a parable nothing can be gathered but that which is agreeable to the intent and scope thereof. For by the same reason it may as well be gathered that the soul of Dives being in hell had a tongue. Again, if it were true what they gather, we may gather also that the wicked in hell have compassion and love to their brethren on earth, and a zeal to God's glory — all of which are false.
Objection 3. The angels in heaven know every man's estate, they know when any sinner repents and rejoice thereat, and they pray for particular men. Therefore the saints in heaven do the like, for they are equal to the good angels (Luke 20:36). Answer: The place in Luke is to be understood of the estate of holy men at the day of the last judgment, as appears in Matthew 22:30, where it is said that the servants of God in the resurrection are as the angels in heaven. Secondly, they are like the angels not in office and ministry, by which the angels are ministering spirits for the good of men, but they are like them in glory.
Secondly, we dissent from the Papists because they are not content to say that the saints departed pray for us in particular, but they add further that they make intercession for us by their merits in heaven. Peter Lombard says: I think (speaking of one that is of but modest goodness) that he as it were passing through the fire shall be saved by the merits and intercessions of the heavenly Church, which does always make intercession for the faithful by request and merit, until Christ shall be complete in his members. And the Roman Catechism says as much: Saints are so much the more to be worshipped and called upon, because they make prayers daily for the salvation of men, and God for their merit and favor bestows many benefits upon us. We do not deny that men upon earth have help and benefit by the faith and piety which the saints departed showed when they were in this life, for God shows mercy on them that keep his commandments to a thousand generations. Augustine says it was good for the Jews that they were loved of Moses, whom God loved. But we utterly deny that we are helped by the merits of saints either living or departed. For saints in glory have received the full reward of all their merits if they could merit, and therefore there is nothing further that they can merit.
Our consent.
Conclusion 1. The departed saints pray to God by giving thanks to Him for their own redemption and for the redemption of the whole church of God on earth. Revelation 5:8-9: 'The four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song: "Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation."' Revelation 5:13: 'To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.'
Conclusion 2. The departed saints pray generally for the state of the whole church. Revelation 6:9-10: 'I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?"' In this we see that they desire the final deliverance of the church and the destruction of its enemies — so that they, together with all God's people, might be brought to the fullness of glory in body and soul. Even the creation itself, in Romans 8:23, is said to groan and wait for the adoption — the redemption of our bodies. How much more, then, do the saints in heaven desire the same. This is how far we agree.
The dissent or difference.
The Roman Catholics hold and teach that the saints in heaven — such as the Virgin Mary, Peter, Paul, and others — make intercession to God for particular individuals according to their specific needs, and that upon receiving people's prayers they present them to God. We flatly reject this teaching for the following reasons.
Reason 1. Isaiah 63:16: The church says to God: 'Surely You are our Father, even though Abraham does not know us and Israel does not recognize us.' If Abraham did not know his own descendants, then neither Mary nor Peter nor any other departed saint knows us or our condition — and therefore they cannot make any particular intercession for us. If they respond that Abraham and Jacob were then in Limbo — which they consider a part of hell — how could Lazarus have had any joy in Abraham's presence (Luke 16:25)? And with what comfort could Jacob say on his deathbed, 'For Your salvation I wait, O Lord' (Genesis 49:18)?
Reason 2. 2 Kings 22:20: Huldah the prophetess tells Josiah that he will be gathered to his fathers and buried in peace, so that his eyes will not see all the disaster God would bring on that place. This shows that the departed saints do not see the condition of the church on earth — much less do they know the thoughts and prayers of individual people. Augustine confirms this conclusion at length.
Reason 3. No creature — saint or angel — can be a mediator for us to God, except Christ alone, who is the only Advocate of His church. A true and sufficient mediator must have three qualities. First, God's word must reveal and identify him to the church, so that believers may be assured in their conscience that when they pray to God in his name, they will be heard. No Scripture presents any saint or angel as a mediator on our behalf — only Christ. Second, a mediator must be perfectly just, completely free from sin. 1 John 2:1: 'And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.' The saints in heaven, however fully sanctified by Christ, were still conceived and born in sin — and therefore must stand before God eternally through the mediation and merit of another. Third, a mediator must be a propitiator — one who brings something to God that satisfies and appeases His wrath and justice for our sins. This is why John adds: 'And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins.' No saint or angel can satisfy for even the least of our sins. Christ alone is the propitiation for them all. The Virgin Mary and the rest of the saints, being sinners, could not make satisfaction even for themselves.
Reason 4: The testimony of the church. Augustine: 'All Christians commend one another in their prayers to God.' And: 'He who prays for all and for whom none prays — that is the one true mediator.' And: 'Your Savior says: You have nowhere to go but to Me, and no way to go but through Me.' Chrysostom: 'You have no need of patrons or of elaborate words to smooth things over with others. Even if you are alone and lack a patron, and pray to God by yourself, you will obtain what you ask.' On 1 John 2:1: 'Your prayers have no effect unless they are such as the Lord commends to your Father.' Augustine on the same passage: 'He, being what kind of man He is, said not "you have an advocate" but "we have" — he did not say "you have," nor did he say "you have me."'
Objections of Papists.
Objection 1. Revelation 5:8-9: The twenty-four elders fall before the Lamb holding harps and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. From this the Roman Catholics conclude that the saints in heaven receive the prayers of people on earth and offer them to the Father. Answer: In this passage, 'prayers of the saints' means the elders' own prayers — in which they sing praises to God and to the Lamb, as the following verses make plain. And even these prayers are presented to God from the hand of the angel, who is Christ Himself.
Objection 2. Luke 16:27: The rich man in hell prays for his brothers on earth — therefore, they say, the saints in heaven pray for us even more. Answer: From a parable, nothing can be drawn except what fits its purpose and scope. By the same logic, one could conclude that the soul of the rich man in hell had a physical tongue. Furthermore, if their reasoning were valid, we could also conclude that the wicked in hell have compassion and love for their brothers on earth, and a zeal for God's glory — all of which are false.
Objection 3. The angels in heaven know every person's condition, they know when a sinner repents and rejoice over it, and they pray for particular people. Therefore the saints in heaven do the same — for they are equal to the good angels (Luke 20:36). Answer: The passage in Luke refers to the condition of holy people at the day of the last judgment, as Matthew 22:30 makes clear, where it says that God's servants in the resurrection are like the angels in heaven. Furthermore, the saints are like the angels not in office and ministry — by which angels are ministering spirits serving for the benefit of people — but in glory.
We also disagree with the Roman Catholics because they are not content to say that the departed saints pray for us personally — they go further and say the saints intercede for us by their merits in heaven. Peter Lombard says: 'I believe that a person of only modest goodness will, as it were passing through fire, be saved by the merits and intercessions of the heavenly church, which always intercedes for the faithful by both prayer and merit, until Christ is complete in His members.' The Roman Catechism says the same: 'The saints are to be venerated and invoked all the more because they pray daily for the salvation of people, and God for their merit and favor bestows many benefits upon us.' We do not deny that people on earth receive help and benefit from the faith and godliness that the departed saints demonstrated during their earthly lives — for God shows mercy to those who keep His commandments, to a thousand generations. Augustine said it was good for the Jews that they were loved by Moses, whom God loved. But we completely deny that we are helped by the merits of saints, whether living or departed — for the saints in glory have already received the full reward of all their merits (if merits they had), and therefore they have nothing further to merit.
