II. Man's origin and states; summary of the kingdom's mysteries
II. But here his origin and states are to be considered, through which he is led to the state of highest perfection.
For neither can the theologian attain his end unless he knows these things, and has so far explored the nature and condition of man — whose return with God his King into grace and eternal salvation he seeks — that he may know how man depends on his Creator and King; to what end and into what state he was placed and created by Him on the sixth day; how, eating the fruit of the forbidden tree which is called the knowledge of good and evil, he soon fell with his whole race; and that Christ obediently handed Himself over to death to God the Father for lost man, and on the tree of the cross became for the whole human race dead in Adam the bread of life, which by faith one may break, eat, and therewith be satisfied and beatified.
For this is the sum of all the mysteries of the kingdom of God and of Christian doctrine, which if each person, according to the measure of his faith, understood more deeply, weighed more loftily, and recalled to his mind with simple study, truly Christ with the riches of His heavenly blessings would be sought by us hungering with unsatisfiable desire, and He Himself would satisfy our hunger and thirst with His banquet.
Latin
II. Sunt autem hic considerandi illius ortus & status, per quos ad statum summae perfectionis deducitur. Neque enim Theologus finem suum assequi potest, nisi haec norit, naturamque & conditionem hominis, cujus reditum cum Deo rege suo in gratiam & salutem aeternam quaerit, hactenus exploratam habeat, ut sciat quomodo is a creatore suo & rege dependeat, quo fine & in quem statum sexto die ab eo positus & creatus fuerit, quo, vescens fructu arboris vetitae, quae scientia boni & mali dicta est, cum universo genere suo mox exciderit, quodque Christus sese pro homine perdito Deo Patri obedienter in mortem tradiderit, totique humano generi in Adamo mortuo in arbore crucis factus fuerit panis vitae, quem fide frangat, comedat, eoque exsatietur atque beetur. Haec enim summa est omnium mysteriorum regni Dei & Christianae doctrinae, quam si quisque, pro mensura fidei suae, penitus intelligeret, altius perpenderet, ac sibi simplici studio ad animum revocaret, nae Christus cum divitiis caelestium benedictionum suarum insatabili cupiditate ab nobis esurientibus expeteretur, ipseque famem & sitim nostram dapibus expieret.