And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
Ver. 15. And saying, The time is fulfilled] These were four of our Saviour's sermon heads. The prophets of old were wont to set down some short notes of their larger discourses to the people, and to fasten them to the doors of the temple till the people had read them. a And then they were taken down by the priests, and laid up for the use of posterity.
Repent ye and believe, &c.] Repentance, then, is a gospel duty, and (as some argue from this text) before faith; the proper purchase of Christ's blood, Acts 5:31. Indeed, faith and repentance keep up a Christian's life (saith a learned man), as the natural heat and radical moisture do the natural life. Faith is like the innate heat; repentance like the natural moisture. And, as the philosopher saith, if the innate heat devour too much the radical moisture, or on the contrary, there breed presently diseases; so, if believing make a man repent less, or repenting make a man believe less, this turneth to a distemper. Lord, cast me down (said a holy man upon his deathbed) as low as hell in repentance; and lift me up by faith into the highest heavens, in confidence of thy salvation.
a Calvin in Esaiam.