existence, or whatsoever nature affords him without his help, is
given to him solely by the Divine power, acting either through
human nature or through external circumstance.  (16) So whatever
human nature can furnish itself with by its own efforts to preserve
its existence, may be fitly called the inward aid of God, whereas
whatever else accrues to man's profit from outward causes may be
called the external aid of God.

(3:17) We can now easily understand what is meant by the election
of God.  (18) For since no one can do anything save by the
predetermined  order of nature, that is by God's eternal ordinance
and decree, it follows that no one can choose a plan of life for
himself, or accomplish any work save by God's vocation choosing him
for the work or the plan of life in question, rather than any other.
(3:19) Lastly, by fortune, I mean the ordinance of God in so far as
it directs human life through external and unexpected means.
(20) With these preliminaries I return to my purpose of discovering
the reason why the Hebrews were said to be elected by God before
other nations, and with the demonstration I thus proceed.

(3:21) All objects of legitimate desire fall, generally
speaking, under one of these three categories:
    1. The knowledge of things through
       their primary causes.
    2. The government of the passions,
       or the acquirement of the habit
       of virtue.
    3. Secure and healthy life.

(3:22) The means which most directly conduce towards the first two
of these ends, and which may be considered their proximate an
efficient causes are contained in human nature itself, so that their
acquisition hinges only on our own power, and on the laws of human
nature.  (23) It may be concluded that these gifts are not peculiar
to any nation, but have always been shared by the whole human race,
unless, indeed, we would indulge the dream that nature formerly
created men of different kinds.  (24) But the means which conduce to
security and health are chiefly in external circumstance, and are
called the gifts of fortune because they depend chiefly on objective
causes of which we are ignorant; for a fool may be almost as liable
to happiness or unhappiness as a wise man.  (25) Nevertheless, human
management and watchfulness can greatly assist towards living in
security and warding off the injuries of our fellow-men, and even of
beasts.  (3:26) Reason and experience show no more certain means of
attaining this object than the formation of a society with fixed laws,
the occupation of a strip of territory and the concentration of all
forces, as it were, into one body, that is the social body.  (27) Now
for forming and preserving a society, no ordinary ability and care is
required: that society will be most secure, most stable, and least
liable to reverses, which is founded and directed by far-seeing and
careful men; while, on the other hand, a society constituted by men
without trained skill, depends in a great measure on fortune, and is
less constant.  (3:28) If, in spite of all, such a society lasts a long
time, it is owing to some other directing influence than its own; if
it overcomes great perils and its affairs prosper, it will perforce
marvel at and adore the guiding Spirit of God (in so far, that is, as
God works through hidden means, and not through the nature and mind of
man), for everything happens to it unexpectedly and contrary to
anticipation, it may even be said and thought to be by miracle.
[3:3] (29) Nations, then, are distinguished from one another in respect
to the social organization and the laws under which they live and are
governed; the Hebrew nation was not chosen by God in respect to its
wisdom nor its tranquillity of mind, but in respect to its social
organization and the good fortune with which it obtained supremacy and
kept it so many years.  (30) This is abundantly clear from Scripture.
(3:30a) Even a cursory perusal will show us that the only respects
in which the Hebrews surpassed other nations, are in their successful
conduct of matters relating to government, and in their surmounting
great perils solely by God's external aid; in other ways they were on
a par with their fellows, and God was equally gracious to all.
(3:31) For in respect to intellect (as we have shown in the last chapter)
they held very ordinary ideas about God and nature, so that they cannot
have been God's chosen in this respect; nor were they so chosen in
respect of virtue and the true life, for here again they, with the
exception of a very few elect, were on an equality with other nations:
therefore their choice and vocation consisted only in the temporal
happiness and advantages of independent rule.  (32) In fact, we do not
see that God promised anything beyond this to the patriarchs [Endnote 4]
or their successors; in the law no other reward is offered for obedience
than the continual happiness of an independent commonwealth and other
goods of this life; while, on the other hand, against contumacy and the
breaking of the covenant is threatened the downfall of the commonwealth
and great hardships.  (33) Nor is this to be wondered at; for the ends
of every social organization and commonwealth are (as appears from what
we have said, and as we will explain more at length hereafter) security
and comfort; a commonwealth can only exist by the laws being binding on
all.  (34) If all the members of a state wish to disregard the law, by
that very fact they dissolve the state and destroy the commonwealth.
(3:35) Thus, the only reward which could be promised to the Hebrews for
continued obedience to the law was security [Endnote 5] and its
attendant advantages, while no surer punishment could be threatened for
disobedience, than the ruin of the state and the evils which generally
follow therefrom, in addition to such further consequences as might
accrue to the Jews in particular from the ruin of their especial state.
(36) But there is no need here to go into this point at more length.
(3:37) I will only add that the laws of the Old Testament were revealed
and ordained to the Jews only, for as God chose them in respect to the
special constitution of their society and government, they must, of
course, have had special laws.  (38) Whether God ordained special laws
for other nations also, and revealed Himself to their lawgivers