In John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, what is the purpose of the “certificate”?When Ignorance gets to the gates of the Celestial City,...

At the very end of the original version of John Bunyan’s
The Pilgrim’s Progress, Ignorance approaches the gates of the
Celestial City. He assumes that he will easily be admitted, but when he is asked to
produce a “certificate,” he is unable to do so:

readability="10">

Then they asked him for his certificate, that
they might go in and show it to the King; so he fumbled in his bosom for one, and found
none. Then said they, Have you none? But the man answered never a
word.

When the King of the
city learns that Ignorance has no certificate, he refuses to meet Ignorance but instead
commands that he be tossed into hell.

The “certificate”
demanded of Ignorance has been interpreted in various ways, including the
following:

• As evidence that he is one of the
  “elect” and is thus worthy of admittance to heaven. In other words, the “certificate” is
  a symbol of his predestined salvation.


• As evidence that
  he truly knows God.


• As a symbol of scripture (although
  this interpretation has been disputed).


• As a symbol of
  assured salvation, of already being saved.


• As an allusion
  to the Bible, specifically to Rev. 20:15 and I John 5:10. See also I John 3:24, I John
  3:9-10, and 5:1.