Article XVIII
The True Humanity of the Incarnate Son
The confession affirms that Christ truly took on human nature, body and soul, through the Virgin Mary to fulfill the promise of salvation.
Therefore, we confess that God fulfilled the promise he made to the ancient fathers through his holy prophets by sending his own unique and eternal Son into the world at the appointed time. The Son took the form of a servant and was made in human likeness, truly taking on a real human nature with all its weaknesses, except for sin. He was conceived in the womb of the blessed Virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit, without the involvement of a man. He took not only a human body but also a real human soul, so that he would be truly human; for since the soul was just as lost as the body, he had to take both to himself to save them together. That is why, against the Anabaptist heresy that denies Christ took human flesh from his mother, we confess that Christ shared the same flesh and blood as the children. We confess that according to the flesh he came from David's own body and was born from David's offspring; that he was the fruit of the Virgin Mary's womb, born of a woman, a descendant of David, a shoot from the root of Jesse, one who came from Judah and descended from the Jews according to the flesh; and that he came from Abraham's offspring, since he took Abraham's offspring to himself and was made like his brothers in every way except for sin. In this way, he truly is our Emmanuel—that is, God with us.
Read the original Latin
Nous confessons donc que Dieu a accompli la promesse qu'il avait faite aux anciens Pères, par la bouche de ses saints Prophètes, en envoyant son propre Fils unique et éternel au monde, au temps ordonné par lui; lequel a pris la forme de serviteur, fait à la ressemblance des hommes, prenant vraiment à soi une vraie nature humaine, avec toutes ses infirmités (excepté le péché), étant conçu dans le sein de la bienheureuse vierge Marie, par la vertu du Saint-Esprit sans œuvre d'homme; et non seulement il a pris la nature humaine quant au corps, mais aussi une vraie âme humaine, afin qu'il fût vrai homme: car puisque l'âme était aussi bien perdue que le corps il fallait qu'il prît à soi tous les deux pour les sauver ensemble. C'est pourquoi nous confessons - contre l'hérésie des Anabaptistes, niant que Christ a pris chair humaine de sa mère - que Christ a participé à la même chair et sang des enfants, qu'il est fruit des reins de David selon la chair; fait de la semence de David selon la chair; fruit du ventre de la vierge Marie; fait de femme germe de David; rejeton de la racine de Jessé; sorti de Juda; descendu des Juifs selon la chair; de la semence d'Abraham, puis qu'il a pris la semence d'Abraham, et a été fait semblable à ses frères, excepté le péché; de sorte qu'il est par ce moyen vraiment notre Emmanuel, c'est-à-dire Dieu avec nous.
The Belgic Confession companion
Rule yourself daily, not just on retreat
Chosen Portion turns the mirror into a daily practice — a short reading and examining question each morning before you lead anyone.
Chosen Portion makes the mirror daily: the ruler-formation questions this collection preserves become a two-minute morning examination in the app.
- A daily formation reading drawn from centuries of counsel to those in authority
- One pointed examination question a day — two minutes, before the meetings start
- Track your practice over weeks and watch the examined life become a habit