Man’s testimonies are agreeable with God’s; which also teach us, that souls being separated from their bodies cannot wander or stray in these regions. The words are too long to rehearse, which Tertullian learnedly disputeth of this matter in the end almost of his book De Anima; yet they are all levelled to this mark, to shew that souls separated from their bodies, and appointed to their places, do not return again into this world. To the objection of some that boast of art magic, and also that by the power of God many have returned from the dead into this life, he answereth: But although the power of God hath called back again some souls into their bodies, to give us instruction of his might and right; yet therefore that shall not be communicated with the credit and boldness of magicians, and the deceitfulness of dreams, and licentiousness of poets: but in the examples of the resurrection, when God’s power, either by prophets, or by Christ, or by apostles, bringeth souls into bodies, it is manifestly declared by sound, evident, and full truth, that it is the shape of a true body: that thou mightest judge all appearings of dead men without bodies to be delusions” Therefore Chrysostom in his twenty-ninth Homily upon Matthew demanding: “What then shall we answer to those speeches; I am such a soul?” he answereth; “It 1s not the soul of that dead body which speaketh these things, but the devil, who de- [6 ne beatas quidem animas, Lat.; that not even blessed souls.]
[5 Sed etsi quasdam revocavit in corpora Dei virtus, in documenta juris sui, non idcirco communicabitur fidei et audaciee Magorum, et fallacize somniorum, et licentize poétarum. Atquin in resurrectionis exemplis, cum Dei virtus, sive per prophetas, sive per Christum, sive per apostolos in corpora animas repreesentat, solida et contrectabili et satiata veritate, preejudicatum est hanc esse formam veritatis, ut omnem mortuorum exhibitionem incorporalem preestigias judices.—Tertull. de Anim. cap. 57. Opp. ed. Semler. Tom. 1v. p. 287. Hal. Magd, 1824.]
[Bullinger, I11.]
viseth these things to deceive them that hear him.” And anon he saith: “Wherefore these are to be counted the words of old wives and of dotards, and children’s toys and phantasies.” And again: “A soul separated from the body cannot wander in these regions. For the souls of the righteous are in the hands of God, and the souls of infants likewise: for they have not sinned. And the souls of the wicked after this life are by and by carried away: which is made apparent by Lazarus and the rich glutton. But in another place the Lord also saith: This night they shall require thy soul again from thee.” Therefore the soul, when it departeth from the body, cannot wander here with us: and that not without cause. For if they which go a journey, chancing into unknown countries, know not whither they are like to go, except they have a guide; how much more shall the soul be ignorant whither it shall go, after it hath left the body and entereth altogether into a new life and strange way, unless it have a guide! Out of many places of the scripture it may be proved, that the souls of just and righteous men (0 not go astray! after death. For Stephen saith, Lord Jesu, receive my spirit.” And Paul desired to be loosed and to be with Christ. Of the patriarch the scripture also saith, He died in a quiet (or good) age, and was gathered unto (or laid by) his fathers” And that the souls of the wicked cannot tarry or have their abiding here, give ear what the rich glutton saith, and consider what he craveth, and obtaineth not. For if the souls of men might be conversant here, he had come himself as he desired, and had certified his brethren of the torments of hell. Out of which place of scripture this also plainly appeareth; that souls after their going out of the body are carried into some certain appointed place, from whence they cannot return of their own accord when they will return, but wait and look for that terrible day of judgment.” Thus much hitherto out of Chrysostom.
[1 non errare hic, Lat.; do not wander up and down here.] [2 Αὐτοὶ, φησὶν, οἱ δαιμονῶντες βοῶσιν, ὅτι ψυχὴ τοῦ δεῖνος ἐγώ.]
[Ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦτο σκηνή τις καὶ ἀπάτη διαβολική. Οὐ γὰρ ἡ ψυχὴ τοῦ τελευ-]
[τηκότος ἐστὶν ἡ βοῶσα, ἀλλ᾽ ὁ δαίμων ὑποκρινόμενος ταῦτα ὥστε ἀπατῆσαι]
[τοὺς ἀκούοντας.. Ὥστε γραϊδίων μεθυόντων ταῦτα τὰ ῥήματα, καὶ παίδων]
[μορμολύκεια. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἔνι ψυχὴν ἀποῤῥαγεῖσαν τοῦ σώματος ἐνταῦθα]
[πλανᾶσθαι λοιπόν” ψυχαὶ γὰρ δικαίων ἐν χειρὶ Θεοῦ εἰ δὲ αἱ τῶν δικαίων,]
Against these things they oppose the appearing of Samuel fetched from the holy scriptures; whereby they go about to peared prove that souls return again after death, and instruct men touching things which they shall demand. We answer in few words, that that disguised masker, which seemed to be Samuel, was called Samuel by a trope or figure, but in very deed he was not Samuel: for of a certainty it was a spirit, a juggling and delusion of Satan. For sorcery is straitly forbidden in the law of the Lord: therefore blessed spirits obey not forbidden ways and unlawful practices, which, when they were as yet joined with their fleshly bodies, by all means abhorred and resisted them in their assaults: as for damned spirits, they exercise themselves therein. But who would believe their oracles? Samuel (say they) foretold what happened the morrow after. And what of that? That was no hard matter for the devil, since that the true and living Samuel foretold many things a little while before: but this crafty fox might foreknow the judgment of God which was to come, even by things present, and by the fear and quaking of the hosts. Tertullian in his book De Anima saith: “God forbid we should believe that the soul of any saint, much less the soul of a prophet, can be fetched up by the devil; since we have learned that Satan is transformed into an