“The end of reading Scripture is to know the mind of God who is its primary author and interpreter. Pursuit of this end requires the enabling of the Holy Spirit for two reasons. Fir st, the [mystery of the gospel] does not yield to natural apprehension. The gospel is not an inert matter to be subjected to investigation. In relation to the gospel, created intelligence is not directive but directed. Understanding of the gospel arises as the Father of glory gives a spirit of wisdom and understanding, so enlightening the eyes of the heart. What sets in motion creaturely apprehension of the gospel is God himself. Second, the depravity of our nature is such that we resist acquiring knowledge of God’s mind. Our governing affections are corrupt: inclined to vanity, insatiably curious about the surfaces of temporal things, confident in our intellectual powers, nimble in inquiring into what satisfies unregenerate appetite, but sluggish in seeking out knowledge of God, in love with falsehood. The correction of these faults is beyond our capacity. It requires both an objective communication of divine splendor and a subjective enlightenment of the mind.”