their signification, but each one of them denotes not two only
102 ON CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. [BOOK III.
" Your adversary tlie devil^ as a roaring lion, walketh about seekiug whom he may devour." ^ In the same way the serpent is used in a good sense, " Be wise as serpents ;" ^ and again, in a bad sense, " The serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty."
Bread is used in a good sense, " I am the living bread which came down from heaven ; " ^ in a bad, " Bread eaten in secret is pleasant.'"* And so in a great many other cases. The examples I have adduced are indeed by no means doubtful in their signification, because only plain instances ought to be used as examples. There are passages, however, in regard to w^hich it is uncertain in what sense they ought to be taken, as for example, " In the hand of the Lord there is a cup, and the wine is red : it is full of mixture." ^ Now it is uncertain whether this denotes the wrath of God, but not to the last extremity of punishment, that is, " to the very dregs; " or whetlier it denotes the grace of the Scriptures passing away from the Jews and coming to the Gentiles, because " He has put down one and set up another,"—certain observances, however, which they understand in a carnal manner, stiU remaining among the Jews, for " the dregs hereof is not yet wrung out." The following is an example of the same object being taken, not in opposite, but only in different significations : water denotes people, as we read in the Apocalypse,' and also the Holy Spirit, as for example, " Out of his belly shall flow
" ® and many other things besides water must be interpreted according to the place in which they are rivers of living water found.
37. And in the same way other objects are not single in their signification, but each one of them denotes not two only but sometimes even several different things, according to the connection in which it is found.
Chap. xxvi.—Obscure passages are to be interpreted by those which are clearer.
( Now from the places where the sense in which they are used is more manifest we must gather the sense in whicli they are to be understood in obscure passages. I For example, there is
1 Pet. V. 8. a Matt. x. 16. '2 Cor. xi. 3. *.Iolm vi. 51. ' Trov. ix. 17. * Ts. Ixxv. S. ^Kev. xvii.