John Calvin Commentary Luke 7:50

"And he said unto the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace." — Luke 7:50 (ASV)

Thy faith hath saved thee. To repress those murmurings,²⁵¹ and, at the same time, to confirm the woman, Christ commends her faith. Let others grumble as they may, but you adhere steadfastly to that faith which has brought you an undoubted salvation.²⁵²

At the same time, Christ claims for himself the authority which had been given to him by the Father; for, as he possesses the power of healing, faith is properly directed to him. And this intimates that the woman was not led by rashness or mistake to come to him, but that, through the guidance of the Spirit, she had preserved the straight road of faith. Hence it follows, that we cannot believe in any other than the Son of God, without considering that person to have the disposal of life and death.

If the true reason for believing in Christ is that God has given him authority to forgive sins, whenever faith is rendered to another, that honor which is due to Christ must of necessity be taken from him. This saying also refutes the error of those who imagine that the forgiveness of sins is purchased by charity; for Christ lays down a quite different method, which is, that we embrace by faith the offered mercy.

The last clause, Go in peace, denotes that inestimable fruit of faith which is so frequently commended in Scripture. It brings peace and joy to the consciences, and prevents them from being driven here and there by uneasiness and alarm.

²⁵¹ “Pour reprimer les murmures de ces gens;” — “to repress the murmurings of those people.”;” — “to repress the murmurings of those people.”

²⁵² “Qui t’a apporte certitude de salut;” — “which has brought thee certainty of salvation.”;” — “which has brought thee certainty of salvation.”