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THE PNEUMATOLOGY
by
Donald Dean Smeeton
William
Tyndale
is
frequently
OF WILLIAM TYNDALE
treated in the histories of transla-
is
rightly
a
printed English
New Testa-
tion but
seldom,
if ever, in the histories of theology. Tyndale honored as the first
person
to
prepare
ment and his idiom dominated all English translation until the twentieth
work has often been studied
Tyndale,
century.
Because
Tyndale’s and historians of
translation, shadowed
Tyndale,
the
theologian.
Tyndale’s theology,
the
translator,
by linguists has over-
like the woman with the issue of
blood,
has suffered much at the hands of
many
doctors.
Tyndale’s
theology
was neither
significant
Philip Hughes
said nor
originaLl Tyndale’s
Donald Dean Smeeton (Cand., Ph.D., University of Louvain) is Professor of Church
at Central Bible College, Sint-Pieters-Leeuw, Belgium.
History
1 Philip Hughes, The Reformation in England VoL I, The King’s Proceedings (London: Hollis & Carter, 1954), p. 138.
– 22-
1
contemporary protagonist, Luther
disciple.1
Thomas
piece
for Luther;s words.2 increasingly
Tyndale’s theology
grow.4
4
Spitz presents Tyndale Yost, stressing Tyndale’s
The
Luther-Tyndale
so much that Tyndale often appears
Others, however,
claim
Tyndale
from the Swiss reformation.3
as the seed from which
puritanism
More, presented Tyndale
as a
association has been stressed
little more than
English
mouth-
borrowed
Spalding
and Clebsch see
would later as
primarily
a Christian humanist.5 5
rather than to
Luther,
affinities to Erasmus
finds
Tyndale
to be the founder of the
Anglican
“Via Media.”6
to judge the
validity
of any of these classifica-
penumatology
might
illustrate his
Without
attempting
tions,
an
inquiry
into
Tyndale’s independence
butions to
evangelical thought.
Tyndale
was not a
systematic
in this one area as well as isolate some of his contri-
theologian
in the sense of
Aquinas
cal treatises does not
attempt
or Calvin. He makes no
attempt
to be exhaustive. He
prepares theologi-
as a military officer in the midst of battle aims a cannon: he
to demonstrate
centers on a specific
target.
In pneumatology,
salvation.
all
aspects
of the field
piece,
but he
Tyndale’s target
is man’s s
lThomas More, Confutation of Tyndale’s “Answer, ” edited by Louis A. Schuster in The Complete Works of St Thomas More (London: Yale University Press, 1973), passim.
Philip Hughes, p.
ship” English
2A. G. Dickens, The English Reformation (London: Batsford, 1964), pp. 71-73. And
A Popular History of the Reformation (London: Hollis & Carter, 1958), 167. This passage claims that Tyndale’s theology had “the closest possible relation-
to Luther’s. This conclusion is also shared by James Edward McGoldrick, Luther’s
Connection (Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Northwestern Publishing House, 1979).
of the
3 For example, G. E. Duffield, “Tyndale, William,” The New International Dictionary Christian Church, ed. by J. D. Douglas (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1974), p. 990.
Academy of Religion XL, pp. History
4James C. Spalding, “Restitution as a Normative Factor,” Journal of the American
47-63 and Clebsch, “The Origins of Puritanism,” Church
XX (1951), pp. 37-43.
5Lewis W. Spitz, The Religious Renaissance of the German Humanists (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1963), p. 233.
English
6John K. Yost, “William Tyndale and the Renaissance Humanist Origins of the
Via Media,” Nederlands Achiefvoor Kerkgeschiedenis XLI (1970-71), pp. 167-86.
– 23-
2
Tyndale
learning
at Oxford and
Cambridge scholastic
speculation.
term,
the
Spirit
of God-was orthodox definition
had imbibed too
deeply
from the well of Renaissance
to
indulge
in the luxuries of
to use
Tyndale’s
favorite
part
of the
thought,
works
The
Holy Spirit-or
not so much an essential
of the
Trinity,
but He was a Divine
Being actively escorting
men to God. The
Holy Spirit,
in
Tyndale’s
to bring men to
Christ, applies salvation, and abides in the believer to
bring
about
righteous
in the unconverted
THE SPIRIT’S
WORK
WITH THE UNCONVERTED
living.
.
eousness. Man is alienated
reason nor his will can achieve confidence in human reason, Tyndale
Tyndale depicted
man as
helplessly
ineffective before God’s
right-
from God to the extend that neither his
reconciliation.
Rejecting
Thomistic wrote “a natural
(unregenerate)
of the
Spirit.”1
Likewise,
works of
righteousness,
“canst not consent
The
specific target
of Tyndale’s
man,
and led of his blind reason
only,
can never ascend to the
capacity
man’s will is not
sufficiently strong
to
produce
so until God’s
Spirit
frees the
heart,
man
unto
good
works.”2
Luther,
who saw the Church
attack was not so much the
dogmas
Unlike
captivity”
to the sacra-
For
example,
of the Roman Catholic Church, as it was the
corrupt practices.
in
“Babylonian
mental
system, Tyndale
said such ceremonies “neither
help
nor hinder.”
unction was “without
extreme
Henry
promise
and therefore
1 William Tyndale, “The Parable of Wicked Mammon,” Doctrinal Treatises, ed. by
Walter (Cambridge: University Press, 1848), p. 111. Herein called L This is part of a longer series prepared for the Parker Society. Expositio.e and Notes, published in
is herein called II. And Answer to Sir Thomas More, published in 1850, is herein
1849, called IIL
2Ibid. Also Tyndale, “Exposition of the First Epistle
of Sit John,” II, p. 181.
,
– 24-
3
without the
Spirit
and without superstitious.”1
For
Tyndale
profit,
but
altogether
unfruitful
and
and Geneva as well as Rome.2
all the sacraments were mere
memorials; thus he
parted company
with
Nittenberg
such as
holy water, bells, fire, bread,
salt and wax were
only
and could never
bring
the
Holy Spirit.
The
Holy Spirit,
of
faith, brings salvation. As soon as thou believest in Christ, the Holy Ghost cometh, sin falleth
away,
and devils
Externals
superstition
coming by
the
preaching
fly. “3
In
response
(“born
of water and the
Spirit”) Tyndale
to the Catholic assertion
that the formula of John 3:5 teaches
regeneration
at
baptism,
pointed
to Galatians 3:2
(“Did you
receive the
Spirit by
ob- serving
the law or
by believing
what
you heard?”).
preach
me the
washing
in Christ’s
So now if
baptism blood,
so doth the
Holy
Ghost ac-
through
faith doth
put away
.
a mumming.”4
simply
because
company it;
and that deed of
preaching
my
sins. For the
Holy
Ghost is not dumb
God,
nor a God that
goeth
Thus the
working
of the
Holy Spirit
cannot be assumed
of the
presence
THE SPIRIT’S
WORK AT CONVERSION
of the sacraments.
God,
Because
unregenerate God must initiate an internal,
man cannot
by reason
or will approach
supernatural change.
He wrote:
and make him abhor
again
with the
pleasant the sweet
promises to believe the
promise.5
No man therefore can
prevent (go before)
the
Spirit
in
doing good.
The
Spirit
must first
come,
and wake him out of his sleep
with the thunder of the
law,
and fear
him,
and shew him his miserable estate and
wretchedness;
and hate
himself,
and to desire
help;
and then comfort him
rain of the
gospel,
that is to
say
with
of God in Christ and stir
up
faith in him
5
lTyndale, “Obedience of the
Christian Man,” I, pp. 274f.
2Yost, p. 178.
3Tyndale, “Obedience,” I, pp. 225-26 and “Prologue to Romans,” I, p. 488.
4Tyndale, “Prologue to the Book of Leviticus,” I, pp. 423-24.
5Tyndale, “Prologue to Romans,” I, p. 498.
– 25-
4
Tyndale variously
described
salvation as “new
nature,”
“begotten
is preached
it, and giveth
her
life,
and
justifieth
of God,” “made Sons of God,” and “loosed from the bonds of the devil.” But
exactly
how does the
Spirit apply
salvation?
Tyndale
would answer by faith
in the Biblical
message
as it is preached.
and believed, the
Spirit
entereth
“cannot
make his
preaching
“When this testament
the
heart,
and
quickeneth her.”l
the
consequent appli-
nor automatic. The
preacher
Yet even
though
the
message
be
preached,
cation
by
the
Spirit
is neither mechanical
spring
in the
heart, no more than a sower can make his corn
grow,
nor can
say,
‘This man shall receive the
word, and this
not;’
but soweth the word
only
and committeth the
growing
to God.”2
Tyndale
had such
supreme
of
Scrip-
confidence in the
authority
ture that he was convinced that
publishing
it would
produce
a great light and
reading
it would
produce growth
in
grace.3 Tyndale’s
the Bible in the vernacular Erasmus,
that
Scripture of scholastic
speculation.
stemmed
desire for from the
assumption,
shared
by
without the
spectacles
unnecessary. are
spiritual. spiritual.”4
could be understood
Because the
meaning
of a
given
text was as clear as the
shining sun,
the traditional four levels of
meaning
“God is
Spirit,” explained Tyndale,
His literal sense is
spiritual,
that the
presence separates
understandeth
were
“and all his words and all his words are
were not so
inseparately
linked which then,
But
again
the
Spirit
and
Scripture
of one
implied
the other.
Taking
a
position
him from both Luther and
Calvin, Tyndale wrote “So if the
Spirit
be not in a man he worketh not the will of
God, neither
it, though
he babble never so much of the
Scripture.”5 The true church does not exist
simply
because the Word is
rightly
The
Spirit
must
accompany
6
preached. darkened
seoul.
faith and
bring light
to the
Epistle
lTyndale, “Prologue to the Book of Exodus,” I, p. 417 and “Exposition of the First
of St. John,” II, pp. 183f. f.
2Tyndale, “Exposition of the First Epistle of St. John,” II, p.
181.
Chapters
3Tyndale, “Prologue on the Gospel of St. Matthew,” I, p. 471 and “Exposition on
5-7 of St. Matthew’s Gospel,” II, p. 35.
4Tyndale, “Obedience,” I, p. 309.
5TYndale, “Wicked Mammon,” I, p. 78.
6Ibid., p. 54. Also “Answer to Sir Thomas More,” III, p. 139.
– 26-
5
All our
justifying
then cometh
of
faith,
and faith and the
that faith deserveth the
in us before
faith;
Spirit
come of God, and not of us. When we
say,
faith
bringeth the
Spirit,
it is not to be
understood,
Spirit,
or that the
Spirit
is not
present
for the
Spirit
is ever in us, and faith is the
gift
and
working
of the
Spirit:
but
through preaching
work in us)
the
Spirit beginneth
to
THE SPIRIT’S WORK AFTER CONVERSION
As
Tyndale
he would not allow faith without
could not conceive of faith without the
Holy Spirit,
feeling.
The
certainty
of salvation
came from the certification of the
Spirit.
“Where the
Spirit is,” Tyndale wrote,
“there is
feeling;
for the
Spirit
maketh us feel all things. Where the
Spirit
is not, there is no
feeling;
but a vain
opinion
or imagination.”2
For
Tyndale “hope-so-salvation”
sin and heartfelt experience, Tyndale
must
yield
to
“know-so-salvation,”
from
personal sin, “weeping
in
and Catholic “historic faith” must
give place
to
“feeling
faith.”
The
Holy Spirit gives
two-fold assurance: heartfelt contrition over
desire for
good. Perhaps speaking
stated that
by acknowledging
mine heart, because I cannot do the will of God, and thirst after
strength; I am sure that the
Spirit
of God is in me and his favour
upon
me.”3 On the
positive side,
the
Spirit brings
a desire to do
good
works. “But if thou canst find in thine heart to do
good
unto him that rewardeth thee evil
again,
thou art sure that the same
Spirit
is in thee that is
in Christ.”4
unto the law courteous,
and
When a man feeleth that his heart consenteth
of
God,
and feeleth himself
meek, patient,
altered and fashioned like unto
merciful to his
neighbour,
lTyndale, “Prologue to Romans,” I, p. 488.
2Tyndale, “Wicked Mammon,” I, p. 78.
cojoined
3Ibid., p. 76. Against More, Tyndale does not allow the possibility of correct faith
to evil works. “Answer,” III, p. 32.
4Tyndale, “Wicked Mammon,” pp. 78 and 117.
– 27-
6
Christ; why
should he doubt but that God hath
forgiven him,
and chosen him, and
put
his
Spirit
in
him, though he never
his sins into the
priest’s
The
Spirit
of God
brings
“lust” and
strength
crome
(crammed)
works are an essential
Tyndale’s
consequence
faith of the
apostles.
Also in
opposition the
priority
rather love flows naturally
ear?l
to do God’s
law,
so that of
“feeling
faith.”
they
have not the
argued
for
Love,
as the result
view of the assurance of salvation
placed
him in
oppo- sition to the Catholic Church, “Our
(Catholic)
doctors
say they
cannot know whether
they
be in the state of grace; therefore
And that
they
knew it
not,
is the cause
why they rail on it.”2 Because such men did not have the
Spirit working
in their hearts, they
were rebellious to
everything godly.
to his Catholic
opponents, Tyndale
of faith over love. Faith does not
spring
from
love,
but
from faith. “If we have the
Spirit
of
God, then are we sure. But how shall we know whether we have the
Spirit? Ask
John, and
he will
say,
‘If we love one another.’ ”
of faith and the
Holy Spirit, compels
a Christian to seek his
neigh-
his own.
in the
subjective
and Calvin.
They
would
argue
that such an
leads to
insecurity.
the
Spirit
Himself secures the believer to Christ. “For the Spirit
of God is in his
(the believer’s)
holdest him fast to the rock of the merits of Christ’s
blood,
in whom
bor’s
good
above
Such a confidence foreign
to both Luther internal asurance because
he is elect.”4
witness of the
Holy Spirit
is
Not at
all, Tyndale
responds,
heart,
and comforteth
him,
and
But
siding
with Luther and
Catholics,
against
the
Calvinists, was not unconditionaL A
genuine
believer’s
responsi-
Tyndale taught
that such
security Christian
bility
was to allow the natural dammed,
wrote
Tyndale,
could become a total
reprobate.5
The
flow of
good
works. If that flow was the
Spirit
would
depart. “By
these
(alms, prayer, fasting),”
“we
keep
the
Spirit
of God.”6
1 Tyndale. “Obedience,” I, pp. 263-64.
2Tyndale, “Exposition of the First Epistle of St. John,” II, p. 211.
3Tyndale, “Obedience,” I, p. 223.
4Tyndale, “Mammon,” p. 78.
5Tyndale, “Answer,” III, p. 24; “Prologue to the Hebrews,” I, p. 522; “Marginal notes on Matthew XII,” II, p. 232; “Practice of Prelates,” II, p. 344.
6Tyndale, “Exposition of Matthew 5-7,” II, p. 94.
– 28-
7
Is it possible to affirm sola
fide, yet
to require
good
works?
Tyndale would answer
by pointing
to the source of
good
works. The Catholic faith was
corrupt,
because the Catholic Church was
corrupt;
a church devoid of
good
works was devoid of the
Spirit.
“Where God’s
Spirit
is not,
there can be no
good works,
even as where an
apple-tree
is
not, there can
grow
no
apples;
but there is
unbelief,
the devil’s
spirit
and evil works But because the Christian has the law of God written on his heart
by
God’s
Spirit,
he
desires, yes,
even
loves,
to do the law.
.
He which hath the
Spirit
of Christ is now no more a child:
neither learneth nor worketh now
any longer
for pain of the
rod,
or for fear of bugs
(objects
of childish or
superstitious terror)
or
pleasure
of
applies,
but doth all
things
of his own
corage
(courage);
as Christ
saith,
John vii. “He that believeth on me
shall have rivers of living waters
flowing
out of his
belly:”
that
is, all good
works and all
gifts
of grace spring out of him natur-
ally,
and
by
their own accord. Thou needest not to wrest
good
works out of him, as a man would
wring verjuice
out of crabs:
nay, they
flow
naturally
out of him as
springs
out of rocks.2 Thus
although Tyndale
could sound
very
much like Luther when speaking
of God
giving
believers eternal
life,
there are no echoes of Luther when
Tyndale
demands that Christians love the law and
fight sin.3
The Christian has the sober
responsibility
of
combatting
sin. The Spirit
has set the believer
free,
but “we are not so free from sin
through faith,
that we should henceforth
go up
and
down, idle,
careless and sure of ourselves, as
though
there were no more sin in us.”4 Sanctification was not an elective. It was
progressive,
but not total.
“Though
the
gifts of the
Spirit
increase in us
daily,
and have not
yet
their full
perfection, yea,
and
though
there remain in us
yet
evil lusts and
sin,
which
fight
lTyndale, “Prologue to Romans,” I, p. 499. .
2Tyndale, “Prologue to Exodus,” I, p. 27
3Tyndale, “Mammon,” I, p. 77; “Obedience,” I, p. 308; Jens. J. Moller “Beginnings of Puritan Covenant Theology,” Journal
of Ecclesiastical History XIX (April 1963), pp. 53,
66.
4Tyndale, “Prologue to Romans,” I, p. 500.
– 29-
8
against
the
Spirit … before God.”
1
yet…
we are counted for full
whole,
and
perfect
tion, security,
This truncated tentative conclusions.
Thus in Tyndale, the
Spirit working
in the believer
provides
sensa-
service and sanctification.
study
of
Tyndale’s
for the sake of
convenience,
have labeled
Tyndale’s theology
without careful delineation
Perhaps
dependence. was
Tyndalian.
Tyndale
was neither
part
of
Anglo-American
penumatology suggests
a few
historians
of his in- Lutheran nor Calvinist
Tyndale
which has characterized has often been traced to John
“feeling
faith.”
The
concept
of a salvation
“experience”
evangelicalism
Wesley,
but the roots can be found in
Tyndale’s
are too
quick
to
reject any subjective
But is it
possible
faith and
feeling?
Is it
possible
ness of the
Holy Spirit
without
minimizing Scripture
or faith?
Tyndale’s
s
on this
point,
but it
might
be
suggestive
Perhaps
some
evangelicals assurance of salvation. between
doctrine is not
complete a
comprehensive
solution.
Some, including
to make a total
separation to define an internal wit-
of
have
suggested
law as the
on the natural
or even
consistency,
flow of the
Spirit
manifested
Without
claiming Tyndale’s pneumatology the
abstract,
believer which concerns iology.
many pentecostals,
model for ethical
decision-making. Tyndale’s emphasis
in works in a corrective to this view of law.
comprehensiveness
is tied to life itself. It is not the
Spirit
in
but the
Spirit
in the
activity
of
creating
new life in the
Tyndale. Tyndale’s
pneumatology
is soter-
lIbid., p. 492. Tyndale’s use of the expression “gifts of the Spirit” should not be understood as charismata
Although
he does allow the
supernatural,
he makes only scant mention of I Corinthians 12 and 14 or Acts.
– 30-
9
