Q. 87. What is repentance unto life?

A. Repentance unto life is a saving grace, whereby a sinner, out of a true sense of his sin, and apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, doth, with grief and hatred of his sin, turn from it unto God, with full purpose of, and endeavor after, new obedience.

Now why call this REPENTANCE UNTO LIFE? It is because, being a “saving grace,” in order for this to be the genuine article, one will have already been born again and one will have inherited eternal life—so “whoever hears my word and sbelieves him who sent me has eternal life. He tdoes not come into judgment, but uhas passed from death to life” (Jn. 5:24). Repentance is a living thing and leads to more of the good things that make life what it was meant to be. 

In his classic little book, The Doctrine of Repentance, Thomas Watson gives a more concise definition of repentance that is in keeping with the Catechism: “Repentance is a grace of God’s Spirit whereby a sinner is inwardly humbled and visibly reformed.”1

Calvin had given this definition:

“A real conversion of our life unto God, proceeding from sincere and serious fear of God; and consisting in the mortification of our flesh and the old man, and the quickening of the Spirit.”2 

We will see this in four parts: 1. the GIFT of repentance; 2. the GROUND of repentance; 3. the TURNING of repentance; and 4. the FRUIT of repentance. Those two middle sections especially will cover the basic nature of repentance. 

The Gift of Repentance

As with faith, so here—repentance is A SAVING GRACE. Revisting the question of the order of repentance and faith, Watson said, 

“I shall not dispute the priority, whether faith or repentance goes first. Doubtless repentance shows itself first in a Christian’s life. Yet I am apt to think that the seeds of faith are first wrought in the heart. As when a burning taper is brought into a room the light shows itself first, but the taper was before the light, so we see the fruits of repentance first, but the beginnings of faith were there before. 

“That which inclines me to think that faith is seminally in the heart before repentance is because repentance, being a grace, must be exercised by one that is living. Now, how does the soul live but by faith? ‘The just shall live by his faith’ (Heb. 10.38). Therefore there must be first some seeds of faith in the heart of a penitent, otherwise it is a dead repentance and so of no value.”3

Now why does this matter? First, because of what the answer says about both faith and repentance—each being “a grace”—but if that is true, then a second reason follow: it is because repentance is a spiritual action. That is the case of true repentance. It has a spiritual cause and is done in a spiritual manner, bearing much spiritual fruit. 

The Scriptures are as plain about this being a gift as they are about faith:

“When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, ‘Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life” (Acts 11:18).

In speaking of how to trust God’s work in the course of our dealing with opponents of the faith, Paul says, “God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth,” (2 Tim. 2:25)

Note that the quickening of the heart by God and the human response of repentance are in no way in conflict. So at Pentecost it says, 

“Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:37-38).

The Ground of Repentance

By the “ground” here I will mean all that which animates the activity that one sees in true repentance. Accordingly, Watson divides the nature of repentance under six heads, and says, “If any one is left out it loses its virtue.” Those are, 1. Sight of sin, 2. Sorrow for sin, 3. Confession of sin, 4. Shame for sin, 5. Hatred for sin, 6. Turning from sin.4 In this point of the “ground” we will speak of the sight, sorrow, and shame. 

The first heading Watson uses goes together with the first expression in the Catechism answer. He says a “sight” of sin, whereas the word used in our answer is “sense,” but the sense must start with a sight. Luke tells us of the Prodigal Son and how he “came to himself” (15:17). There is the whole view David had of Nathan’s tale, so that before Nathan could fire the verbal arrow, “Thou art the man!” (2 Sam. 12:7) into David’s heart, he had first to bend it back with all the force of the picture that caused the King to despise such a man. But when the arrow sinks in—if one is truly born from above—then that tender heart is struck with sorrow. It says about the woman with the alabaster jar that she was “standing behind him at his feet, weeping, [and] she began to wet his feet with her tears” (Lk. 7:38). The inward state is called “a broken and contrite heart” (Ps. 51:17). 

From the feeling of sorrow there is also shame and hatred of sin. Of the first, the expressions is used throughout the Scriptures of putting on sackcloth and ashes (Isa. 22:12), plucking out one’s hair (Ezra 9:3), or the tearing of one’s robe, as when Josiah discovered the sins of the people because of the recovery of the book of the law (2 Ki. 22:11). It is even in the imperative, indicating a deeper act: “and rend your hearts and not your garments” (Joel 2:13).

More fully, then, there is A TRUE SENSE OF HIS SIN. This is that sight and sorrow and now shame all fixed to their proper target. David said “My sin is ever before me” (Ps. 51:3). Sin haunts one to true repentance. Two passages used by the Westminster divines capture this by prophetic charge and by contrast.

“Then you will remember your evil ways, and your deeds that were not good, and you will loathe yourselves for your iniquities and your abominations” (Ezk. 36:31).

“For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you” (2 Cor. 7:10-11).

We cannot fully ask, “But what marks the difference beteween the two?” since Paul gives us at least one distinguishing mark in the verse itself. But Watson gives us another helpful contrast: “Pharoah was more troubled for the frogs and river of blood than for his sin. Godly sorrow, however, is chiefly for the tresspass against God, so that even if there were no conscience to smite, no devil to accuse, no hell to punish, yet the soul would still be grieved because of the prejudice done to God.”5

It also adds an APPREHENSION OF THE MERCY OF GOD IN CHRIST. So in Jeremiah, God’s people are called back with an appeal to healing—to restoration: “Return, O faithless sons; I will heal your faithlessness” (Jer. 3:22). The desire to repent must be encouraged partly by the news that God is in fact merciful and longsuffering, and that He has proven that this is His will.

“Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love” (Mic. 7:18).

Knowing God in this way not only encourages us that there is opportunity for reconciliation, but increases the shame that we have been so cold to so great a mercy. 

The Turning of Repentance

First, the fact that it is a turning goes to the heart of the meaning of the word. The word repentance in the Greek (metanoia) is a construct of two words—the preposition meta, which can mean above or beyond or after; and the word for mind (nous)—so that many take this to be a “change of mind,” which of course it is. But this raises a question similar to the one we saw about faith. Is this repentance a simple mental assent to new knowledge about sin? That is not the idea at all. It must be the whole soul’s turning from that sin.

“‘Yet even now,’ declares the LORD, ‘return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning’” (Joel 2:12).

For this turning to be true, Watson says, there are five elements. It must be a turning from sin 1. with the heart, 2. from all sin, 3. upon a spiritual ground, 4. as a turning to God, 5. as with no return. So this “reproves those who are but half-turned. And who are these? Such as turn in their judgment but not in the practice … They are half-turned ‘amost Christians’ (Acts 26.28). They are like Ephraim, who was a cake baked on one side and dough on the other (Hos. 7.8).”6

A turning is a noticeable thing. Paul cited this as evidence for conversion to the Thessalonians

“For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because … and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God” (1 Thess. 1:4, 9).

The answer says WITH GRIEF AND HATRED OF HIS SIN. 

“I have heard Ephraim grieving, ‘You have disciplined me, and I was disciplined, like an untrained calf; bring me back that I may be restored, for you are the LORD my God. For after I had turned away, I relented, and after I was instructed, I struck my thigh; I was ashamed, and I was confounded, because I bore the disgrace of my youth” (Jer. 31:18-19)

The Fruit of Repentance

This is the phrase that John the Baptist used to the Pharisees: “Bear fruit in keeping with repentance” (Mat. 3:8).

“Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause” (Isa. 1:16-17).

The last of those six elements that Watson said were so crucial to repentance was confession; and I include it here because it is always a response. That is true whether it is private confession or public confession. 

A main fruit of repentance is, as Luther said, a “life of repentance.” On the one hand, repentance is a foundation—“not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God” (Heb. 6:1)—but it does not follow that more does not follow. And as we have seen, that is because the sin nature still follow us, and is still inside of us, such that it cannot fail to follow like a stalker as much as a dead weight. 

Uses of this Doctrine

First, examining the true nature of a thing is a sure antidote against the counterfeit. So Watson warns of various counterfeit repentances, which have three more general headings: 1. legal terror, 2. resolution against sin, and 3. leaving sins behind.7 All three of these can be a carnal flash in the pan. Ahab and Judas both experienced terror. The Prophets often exposed Israel as having mouthed resolutions: “but you said [concerning their idols], ‘I will not serve’ (Jer. 2:20); “And the people said to Joshua, ‘No, but we will serve the LORD’ (Josh. 24:21). And the Rich Young Ruler was willing to part ways with whatever went against any of the commandments—except the very first, as he would not part ways with his belongings.

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1. Thomas Watson, The Doctrine of Repentance (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth Trust, 2012), 18.

2. Calvin, Institutes, III.3.5.

3. Watson, The Doctrine of Repentance, 12.

4. Watson, The Doctrine of Repentance, 18.

5. Watson, The Doctrine of Repentance, 23.

6. Watson, The Doctrine of Repentance, 56, 57.

7. Watson, The Doctrine of Repentance, 15-16.