Chapter I: The Meaning of the Word “Create,” § 7
CHAPTER I: ON THE MEANING OF THE WORD
§ 7. To “create” means properly to make something out of nothing [ex nihilo]. In Scripture this is applied to other things, but these, too, are actions of God alone and surely are of no less might than His very work of creation. In regard to the various meanings of this word, as well as its synonyms, be sure to see Chemnitz (Loci theol., part 1, locus 4, ch. 1). In the church we must carefully observe the difference between creation and begetting. The former happens out of nothing; the latter, from the substance of the begetter. Through the former, something diverse from the substance of the creator is produced; through the latter, a thing similar according to its essence is produced. The former is an external work [opus ad extra]; the latter is an internal work [opus ad intra].