God Righteous as Well as Good.
1279.
Then said Simon:
Inform us, therefore, what he who desires to know the truth must first learn.
1280.
Then Peter:
Before all things it must be inquired what it is possible for man to find out.
1281.
For of necessity the judgment of God turns upon this, if a man was able to do good and did it not.
1282.
And therefore men must inquire whether they have it in their power by seeking to find what is good, and to do it when they have found it;
for this is that for which they are to be judged.
1283.
Yet more than this there is no occasion for anyone except a prophet to know:
for what is the need for men to know how the world was made?
1284.
This, indeed, would be necessary to be learned if we had to enter upon a similar construction.
1285.
Yet now it is sufficient for us, in order to the worship of God, to know that He made the world;
yet how He made it is no subject of inquiry for us, because, as I have said, it is not incumbent upon us to acquire the knowledge of that art, as though we were about to make something similar.
1286.
Yet neither are we to be judged for this, why we have not learned how the world was made,
yet only for that, if we be without knowledge of its Creator.
1287.
For we shall know that the Creator of the world is the righteous and good God,
if we seek Him in the paths of righteousness.
1288.
For if we only know regarding Him that He is good, such knowledge is not sufficient for salvation.
1289.
For in the present life not only the worthy, but also the unworthy, enjoy His goodness and His benefits.
1290.
Yet if we believe Him to be not only good, yet also righteous, and if, according to what we believe concerning God, we observe righteousness in the whole course of our life, we shall enjoy His goodness for ever.
1291.
In a word, to the Hebrews, whose opinion concerning God was that He is only good,
our Master said that they should seek also His righteousness; Matthew 6:33
1292.
that is, that they should know that He is good indeed in this present time, that all may live in His goodness, but that He shall be righteous at the day of judgment, to bestow eternal rewards upon the worthy, from which the unworthy shall be excluded.
God's Justice Shown at the Day of Judgment.
1293.
Then Simon:
How can one and the same being be both good and righteous?
1294.
Peter answered:
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Because without righteousness, goodness would be unrighteousness;
for it is the part of a good God to bestow His sunshine and rain equally on the just and the unjust;
Matthew 5:45
1295.
but this would seem to be unjust, if He treated the good and the bad always with equal fortune,
and were it not that He does it for the sake of the fruits,
which all may equally enjoy who are born in this world.
1296.
Yet as the rain given by God equally nourishes the grain and the tares,
yet at the time of harvest the crops are gathered into the barn, yet the chaff or tares are burnt in the fire,
Matthew 3:12
so in the day of judgment, when the righteous shall be introduced into the kingdom of heaven,
and the unrighteous shall be cast out, then also the justice of God shall be shown.
1297.
For if He remained for ever alike to the evil and the good,
this would not only not be good, but even unrighteous and unjust;
that the righteous and the unrighteous should be held by Him in one order of desert.
Immortality of the Soul.
1298.
Then said Simon:
The one point on which I should wish to be satisfied is, whether the soul is immortal;
for I cannot take up the burden of righteousness unless I know first concerning the immortality of the soul; for indeed if it is not immortal, the profession of your preaching cannot stand.
1299.
Then said Peter:
Let us first inquire whether God is just;
for if this were ascertained, the perfect order of religion would straight-way be established.
1300.
Then Simon:
With all your boasting of your knowledge of the order of discussion,
you seem to me now to have answered contrary to order;
for when I ask you to show whether the soul is immortal,
you say that we must first inquire whether God is just.
1301.
Then said Peter:
That is perfectly right and regular.
1302.
Simon:
I should wish to learn how.
Proved by the Success of the Wicked in This Life.
1303.
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Listen, then, said Peter:
Some men who are blasphemers against God, and who spend their whole life in injustice and pleasure die in their own bed and obtain honourable burial;
while others who worship God, and maintain their life frugally with all honesty and sobriety,
die in deserted places for their observance of righteousness,
so that they are not even thought worthy of burial.
1304.
Where, then, is the justice of God, if there be no immortal soul to suffer punishment in the future for impious deeds, or enjoy rewards for piety and rectitude?
1305.
Then Simon said:
It is this indeed that makes me incredulous,
because many well-doers perish miserably, and again many evil-doers finish long lives in happiness.
The Book of Recognitions CHAPTER FORTY FIVE
Divisions 1306-1335
Book 3
RECOGNITIONS 3
Cavils of Simon.
1306.
Then said Peter:
This very thing which draws you into incredulity, affords to us a certain conviction that there shall be a judgment.
1307.
For since it is certain that God is just, it is a necessary consequence that there is another world, in which every one receiving according to his deserts, shall prove the justice of God.
1308.
But if all men were now receiving according to their deserts, we should truly seem to be deceivers when we say that there is a judgment to come;
and therefore this very fact, that in the present life a return is not made to every one according to his deeds, affords, to those who know that God is just, an indubitable proof that there shall be a judgment.
1309.
Then said Simon:
Why, then, am I not persuaded of it?
1310.
Peter:
Because you have not heard the true Prophet saying,
'Seek first His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.' Matthew 6:33
1311.
Then said Simon:
Pardon me if I am unwilling to seek righteousness, before I know if the soul is immortal.
1312.
Then Peter:
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You also pardon me this one thing, because I cannot do otherwise than the Prophet of truth has instructed me.
1313.
Then said Simon:
It is certain that you cannot assert that the soul is immortal, and therefore you cavil,
knowing that if it be proved to be mortal, the whole profession of that religion which you are attempting to propagate will be plucked up by the roots.
1314.
And therefore, indeed, I commend your prudence, while I do not approve your persuasiveness;
for you persuade many to embrace your religion, and to submit to the restraint of pleasure,
in hope of future good things;
to whom it happens that they lose the enjoyment of things present,
and are deceived with hopes of things future.
1315.
For as soon as they die, their soul shall at the same time be extinguished.
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