Calvin listened to him without interrupting him; but he could no longer keep silence. A justification on his part was almost superfluous. He had fully professed the doctrine in his popular writings; he had even, as we have seen, employed the terms of the school in his theological _Institution_. But the point of importance for the safety of the Church was to make his adversary known, to tear the mask from his face. That man, of dissolute life, destitute of convictions, destitute of faith, whose only thought was how to get possession of the highest place, and who was endeavoring to conceal the licentiousness of his evil life under the pretence of religion, dared to accuse, with hypocritical lips, the faithful servants of God. A course so revolting roused Calvin’s indignation; and from his lips fell such earnest words as were inspired by the fraud, the vices, and the shamelessness of his adversary. He completely stripped the man. ‘What wickedness this is,’ said he, ‘without any cause but mere lawless passions, to disturb the Church and to check the progress of the Gospel by bringing atrocious accusations against persons entirely innocent, who have rendered the most conspicuous services to the truth! Caroli sets up a quarrel with us about the distinction of the persons in God. I am going to examine him in turn, but I take up the subject at a higher point, and I ask him if only he believes in God. I declare before God and before men, that he has no more faith in the divine Word than the dog and the swine that trample under foot holy things.’ Some will perhaps exclaim against this language, but it must be remembered that Calvin took these two words from holy Scripture, where they are used to mark two different characters, of both of which we must equally beware.[517] ‘Give not that which is holy unto the dogs,’ said Jesus, ‘neither cast ye your pearls before swine.’ The swine represent men defiled by debauchery, and the dog is the beast that barks, pursues, and bites. These two kinds of excess precisely characterized Caroli. But Calvin did not stop there. He did not mean that people should be able to say that the ministers were not cleared of the charges brought against them. He therefore made a confession which had been beforehand approved by his colleagues. ‘When we distinguish the Father, his eternal Word, and his Spirit,’ said he, ‘we believe, in common with ecclesiastical writers, that in the simple unity of God there are three hypostases or substances, which, although they be one sole and identical essence, are nevertheless not confounded with each other. With respect to Jesus Christ,’ he added, ‘before taking on himself our flesh, he was the eternal Word, begotten of the Father before time was, very God, of one same essence, power, and majesty with the Father, Jehovah himself, who has ever existed of himself, and gives to others the property of existing.’[518] [Sidenote: CALVIN AND THE EARLY CREEDS.]