Free Will and Divine Decree in Scripture
The relationship between free will and divine decree is a longstanding theological debate among Christian traditions. The Bible affirms both the sovereignty of God in decreeing events and the responsibility of humans in making choices.
Divine Decree in Scripture
Scripture presents God's decrees as eternal, unchangeable, and sovereign purposes that govern all events [1]. The book of Daniel illustrates this concept, stating that the Most High "rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever he will" (Daniel 4:17) [2]. This understanding is echoed in the Psalms, where it is written that God has a "decree" that will be declared (Psalm 2:7) [5].
Human Free Will in Scripture
The Bible also emphasizes human free will, particularly in the context of making choices that are pleasing to God. The Psalmist prays for the ability to offer "free-will-offerings" to God (Psalm 119:108) [3]. The concept of free will is further supported by the existence of divine commands and exhortations, which imply that humans have the capacity to choose between good and evil [8].
Theological Perspectives on Free Will and Divine Decree
Christian traditions have interpreted the relationship between free will and divine decree in various ways. The Reformed tradition, represented by John Calvin, emphasizes the sovereignty of God in all events, including human decisions, while acknowledging the reality of human choice [7]. In contrast, the Lutheran tradition, as expressed in the Augsburg Confession, affirms that human will has some liberty to choose civil righteousness but not spiritual righteousness without the Holy Spirit [9].
The Catholic tradition, as represented by Thomas Aquinas, posits that humans have free will, but it is influenced by the grace of God. Aquinas argues that Christ had free will, but it was also subject to the will of God [6]. The Anglican tradition, as reflected in the Thirty-Nine Articles, emphasizes the importance of following God's will as revealed in Scripture [10].
The Eastern Orthodox tradition is not directly represented in the sources, but it is known for its emphasis on the synergy between human freedom and divine grace.
Shared Ground and Divergent Perspectives
Despite the differences in interpretation, most Christian traditions agree that both divine sovereignty and human responsibility are affirmed in Scripture. The debate centers on how to understand the relationship between these two concepts.
The divergence in perspectives can be attributed to differing hermeneutical commitments, such as the role of human freedom in salvation and the extent of divine sovereignty. Historical and theological contexts have also shaped the development of these perspectives.
The complexity of this issue is evident in the various scriptural passages that seem to affirm both divine decree and human free will. For instance, Jesus says, "I can of myself do nothing" (John 5:30) [4], highlighting his submission to the Father's will, while also emphasizing human responsibility in making choices.
Sources
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Decrees of God — "The decrees of God are his eternal, unchangeable, holy, wise, and sovereign purpose, comprehending at once all things that ever were or will be in their causes, conditions, successions, and relations, and determining their certain futurition. The several contents of this one eternal purpose are, because of the limitation of our faculties, necessarily conceived of by us in partial aspects, and in logical relations, and are therefore styled Decrees." The decree being the act of an infinite, absolute, eternal, unchangeable, and sovereign Person, compre”
- Daniel “The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones; to the intent that the living may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever he will, and sets up over it the lowest of men. -- Daniel 4:17”
- Psalms “Psalms 119:108 (YLT) — Free-will-offerings of my mouth, Accept, I pray Thee, O Jehovah, And Thy judgments teach Thou me.”
- John “I can of myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is righteous; because I don’t seek my own will, but the will of my Father who sent me. -- John 5:30”
- Psalms (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Psalms 2:7: I will declare the decree,.... These are the words of Jehovah's Anointed and King, exercising his kingly office, according to the decree and commandment of the Father: for these words refer not to the following, concerning the generation of the Son, which does not depend on the decree and arbitrary will of God, but is from his nature; but these words relate to what go before. The Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and Oriental versions, place this clause at the end of Psa 2:6; some render it, "declaring his commandment", or "the commandment of the Lord"; the laws that he would”
- theology (Catholic (Scholastic)) “Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Third Part (Tertia Pars), Of Christ's Unity of Will, Art. 4: Article: Whether there was free-will in Christ? I answer that, As was said above (Article [3]), there was a twofold act of the will in Christ; one whereby He was drawn to anything willed in itself, which implies the nature of an end; the other whereby His will was drawn to anything willed on account of its being ordained to another---which pertains to the nature of means. Now, as the Philosopher says (Ethic. iii, 2) choice differs from will in this, that will of itself regards the end, while choice regards”
- CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 38: any other expression. But it is of great importance attentively to consider what the power of man now is when vitiated in all the parts of his nature, and deprived of supernatural gifts. Persons professing to be the disciples of Christ have spoken too much like the philosophers on this subject. As if human nature were still in its integrity, the term free will has always been in use among the Latins, while the Greeks were not ashamed to use a still more presumptuous term—viz. aujtexouvsion, as if man had still full power in himself”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “NPNF1 Vol 5: Augustine — Anti-Pelagian — CHAP. 2 [II]--PROVES THE EXISTENCE OF FREE WILL IN MAN FROM THE PRECEPTS ADDRESSED TO HIM BY GOD.: Now He has revealed to us, through His Holy Scriptures, that there is in a man a free choice of will. But how He has revealed this I do not recount in human language, but in divine. There is, to begin with, the fact that God's precepts themselves would be of no use to a man unless he had free choice of will, so that by performing them he might obtain the promised rewards. For they are given that no one might be able to plead the excuse of ignorance, as the”
- Augsburg Confession (Lutheran) “Augsburg Confession (Lutheran, 1530), 1 Of Free Will they teach that man’s will has some liberty to: 1 Of Free Will they teach that man’s will has some liberty to choose civil righteousness, and to work 2 things subject to reason. But it has no power, without the Holy Ghost, to work the righteousness of God, that is, spiritual righteousness; since the natural man 3 receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, 1 Cor. 2:14; but this righteousness is wrought in the heart when the Holy Ghost is received 4 through the Word. These things are said in as many words by Augustine in his Hypognosticon,”
- Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion (Anglican) “Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion (Anglican, 1571), Section 243: Furthermore, we must receive God's promises in such wise, as they be generally set forth to us in holy Scripture: and, in our doings, that Will of God is to be followed, which we have expressly declared unto us in the Word of God.”