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book_n	church_n	know_v	write_v	3,089	5	5.4567	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A68160	A copy of the letters, wherin the most redouted [and] mighty pri[n]ce, our souerayne lorde kyng Henry the eight, kyng of Englande [and] of Frau[n]ce, defe[n]sor of the faith, and lorde of Irla[n]de: made answere vnto a certayne letter of Martyn Luther, sente vnto him by the same and also the copy of the foresaid Luthers letter, in such order, as here after foloweth.; Literarum, quibus invictissimus princeps, Henricus octavus, rex Angliae et Franciae, dominus Hyberniae, ac fidei defensor respondit, ad quandam epistolam Martini Lutheri, ad se missam. English	Henry VIII, King of England, 1491-1547.; Luther, Martin, 1483-1546. Epistola ad Henricum Octavum Angliae et Franciae regem. English.	1527 (1527)	STC 13086; ESTC S106085	31,003	102

whiche natwithstādynge / ye write that ye be forced and compelled ernestly to write vnto me / bycause that I haue nowe begon to beare fauoure to the gospell / whiche is as ye saye ioyfull tidynges to your herte / wherin ye beseche god to encrese me / that I may with hole hert obey and fauour the gospell And that he suffre nat myn eares to be occupyed with the pestylent voyces of those Serenis / which can nothyng els do / but crye out that Luther is an heretyke ¶ ye write also / that ye wolde I shulde consyder / that there can be no harme in your doctryne / syth ye teche as ye say nothing els / but onely that man must nedes be saued / in the faythe of Iesu Christ And that vpon this foūdation / ye bylde charite to your neyghbours and obeydience to your gouernours / with the crucifyeng of the body of synne And in these ye desyre to be herde / moche marueyling that ye be condempned vnherde and vncōuyct Than after your accustomed maner / ye rayle vpon the churche of Rome bostyng that many princes of Almayne take your parte / that it is no marueyle / though the Emperour some other prīces and people pursue you / but rather were it wondre that any wolde holde with you / for asmoch as alwaye princes and people be as ye say enemyes to Christ wysshinge / that ye myght ones se that myracle / that by god workīg with your good wordes / I might be fully tourned to be one of those that might fauour the gospell / and be a fauourer of yours Requyring and besechyng me in dyuers partes of your letter to pardon you / that ye haue offēded me by your boke / and offrynge your selfe / if it so stāde with my pleasure / that ye wyll write put out another booke to my prayse / recantyng and reuokyng all suche wordes / as ye haue in your other boke written to the contrary / affyrming also / that no litell frute were lyke to growe therof / if ye might haue leaue / at liberte to write to the king of Englande / cōcernyng the gospell of god ¶ These be Luther all thynges / whiche were in your letter contayned In whiche / as we right well ꝑceyue your couert fraudulent purpose / so shall we on the othersyde / after our accustomed playnnesse leste your crafty wayes might abuse gode symple folke to euery poynt gyue you trewe and open answere ¶ where ye write / ye be ashamed of your boke written agaynst me / I am nat very sure / whyder ye saye trewe therin but of one thynge I am very sure / that ye haue good cause to be ashamed / nat onely of that booke / but also of a great meyny mo than that / they beyng suche as they be nothyng els cōtayning / but errours and heresyes / neyther by reason nor lernynge proued / but onely by shamelesse boldnesse affyrmed Alowyng your selfe / to be as good or better authour / than any afore your tyme hath ben / or be nowe And as touchyng your boke written agaynst me / who so solycited or prouoked you to put that forth / rather semed to haue bē your yuell wyller / than myne / your boke being such as the maker coude therof haue but rebuke / and myn therby be moche honoured Against which boke of myn your boke declared / that ye coude fynde no wyse worde to write / nor alledge authour of substaūce agaynst it / whiche thynge is ynough as I thynke for the reders or hearers / to dyscusse / whiche of vs is in the righter faithe And although ye fayne your selfe to thynke my boke nat myne owne / but to my rebuke as it lyketh you to affyrme put out by subtell sophisters yet it is well knowen for myn / and I for myne auowe it and as for the rebuke / though ye dissimule it / yet may all the worlde well ꝑceyue / how moche it fretteth your stomake that nat onely my worke / hathe so highly to myne honour ben approued of many wyse and good men / but specially of that holy see Apostolyke also / of whō saynt Hierome rekened it suffycient / that his faith were approued / in whiche neuerthelesse / if any good thyng be / I do ascrybe it to hym / of whom all goodnesse cometh / and nat to me Howe beit / this delyteth me nat a lytell / that as symple as my boke was for I knowe well inough myn own imbecillyte yet somoche more feble was your cause / that my boke for so farre as it touched that is to wytte / the Sacramentes of Christes churche nat onely clene wyped away / all that euer ye had blasphemusly written agaynst them before but also / all that euer sythens ye ꝑniciously haue written agaynst thē / and droue you to the writyng of that furious boke / by whiche all the worlde well ꝑceyued / that ye were for angre fallen as who sayth in a very fransy In whiche boke / all wytte / lernyng / and honesty forgotten ye nothynge alledge but mere scurrilyte / furious babling braulyng / and conuytious raylyng where as I refelled your erronyous opinyons nat without charyte and labour of your amēdement by effectuall reason and euydent scrypture nat interpreted after myne owne fantasye as ye do by yours but by the olde holy fathers of Christꝭ churche / nat medlīg therin / with any of those whom ye call Sophysters / which be men in dede / good / vertuous / connyng Whom ye therfore call Sophisters / bycause that euery substātyall reason / by which they confoūde your foly / ye wolde were enfamed / vnder the name of Sophistry ¶ And where as your pestilent tong is so leude / to rayle vpon the most reuerende father in god / the lorde Legate / Cardynall of yorke / oure chefe counsailour Chaūceller / it greueth hym lytell I wot well to be rayled vpon / with that blasphemous tōg / that rayleth and rageth against Christes hole churche / his saintꝭ / his apostles / his holy mother / and hym selfe / as it euidently as well by many partes of your pestylent bokes / as by the furious actꝭ of your faction appereth And his fatherhode nowe is shal be so moche in more cordyall fauoure with me / In how moche I parceyue hym to be the depar in the hatered of you / or other suche as ye be whome where ye call / the pestilence of my realme / I purpose to gyue you no reknynge / what manyfolde good frute my realme I receyue by his faythfull dilygence / labour / traueyle and wysedome Howbeit / all other thynges set a parte / it well appereth / that his fatherhode is in this one poynt / to my realme very gode and holsome in that he conformable to my mynde and accordyng to my cōmaūdement / studiously pourgeth my realm from the pestylent contagion of your factious heresyes with

nat onely bycause of that your kingly clemēcy / whiche is daylye so moche tolde of vnto me / bothe by wordes writyng / of very many men / that seing you be your selfe mortall / I can nat thinke you wyll beare enemyte immortall but also for as moche as I haue by credyble ꝑsones ben enformed / that the boke made out agaynst me in the name of your highnesse / is nat the kynges of Englande as crafty Sophisters wolde it shuld seme whiche / whan they abused the name of your highnesse / cōsydred nat in what peryll they put them selues / by the sclaundring of a kyng / and especially aboue other / that monster cōmen hate of god and men / the car-Cardynall of yorke / that pestylence of your realm Wherfore / I am now so sore ashamed / that it yrketh and abassheth me to lyfte vp myne eyen afore your highnesse / whiche haue suffred my selfe to be with suche lyghtnesse moued agaynst suche so great a kynge by those workes of wyckednesse / namely being my self but dregges and a worme / whiche had ought onely by contempte / to haue been eyther ouercomyn or let alone Also an other thyng is / whiche seriously caused me beyng neuer so vyle / yet for to write / bycause your highnesse begynneth to fauour the gospell / and wexe nat a lytell wery of that sorte of vngratious folkes Verily that was gospell in dede / that is to say / gladde tidynges vnto my hert wherfore I prostrate my selfe with these letters / vnto the fete of your highnesse / as hūbly as I can deuyce / and beseche for the crosse and honour of Christ / that your highnesse wolde vouche safe to enclyne some thyng / and pardon me / in whatsoeuer I haue offended your highnesse / lyke as Christ prayed and cōmaunded vs also / one to forgyue another his dettꝭ Moreouer / if your highnesse thynke it nat to be refused / that I make out another booke / and therin vnsay my former writynge / nowe on the contrary syde / honoure the name of your highnesse / please it your maiestie to gyue me some mylde token / there shal be no taryenge in me / but I shall do it most gladly / for though I be a man of no reputation / in cōparison of your highnesse yet myght we trust that no small frute shuld growe vnto the gospell and the glorie of god herby / if I myght haue lyberte to write in the cause of the gospell / vnto the kyng of Englāde In the meane season our lorde en encrease your hyghnesse / as he hath begon / that you may with full spyrite / bothe obey and fauour the gospell and he suffre nat your regall eares and mynde to be holden with the mischeuous voyces of those mermaydes that can nothyng / but crye that Luther is an herityke and it maye lyke yor highnesse to cōsyder what harme can I teche / that teacheth none other thynge / but that we must be saued by the faythe of Iesu Chryste / sonne of god whiche for vs suffred / and was raysed agayne / as witnesseth the gospell and the epystols of the apostels / for this is the heed and foūdatyon of my doctryne vpon whiche aftwarde I buylde and teche charyte towarde our neyghbour / obedyence vnto the heedes and rulers of countrees / and finally to crucifye the body of synne / lyke as the doctrine of Christ cōmaūdeth what yll is in these chapters of doctryne yet let the mater be loked vpon / let it haue hearyng and iugement fyrst why am I condempned / neyther herde ne conuycte Furthermore / where I rebuke the abusion of popes / whiche teche other than these foresayd chapiters / and nat onely other / but also clene contrary / and in the meane tyme leanynge them selfe vpon pōpe / money their belyes / ye / kyngdomes / principalytees / euery mannes rychesse / dothe nat the very cōmen people parceyue this dāpne it / and their owne selues be cōstrayned to confesse it why do they nat amende them selues and teche well / if they wyll be without hate blame Also your noble maiesty seeth / howe great princes in Almayne fauoureth my partie / and thāked be god / wolde I shulde nat be condempned / vnto whose company and nombre / I pray Christ he adde adioyne your highnesse / and seperate you from those tyrannes of soules Nowe / what wonder is it / though Cesar and certayne princes be sore agaynst me Dothe nat natyons murmure agaynst oure lorde and his Christ As the seconde psalme saith people study / kynges of the erthe cōsppyre / and princes come togyder / in so moche / that it is more to be marueyled at / if any prīce or kyng fauour the gospell / and I desyre with all my hert inwardly / that I may ones haue cause to reioyce make congratulatyon of this myracle in your highnesse / and I pray god / by whose fauour and assistēce I write this letter / that he so worke with my wordꝭ / that the kynge of Englande may be made shortly / the perfyte discyple of Christ and professour of the gospell / and finally / most benigne lorde vnto Luther Amen Some answere / if it may lyke your highnesse I loke after / mylde and benigne At wyttemburch / the fyrste day of Septembre / the yere of our lorde / a. M.D.xxv. Most humble subiecte vnto your regall maiesty / Martyn Luther / his owne hāde ¶ The answere of the most mighty noble prīce kyng Hēry the .viii. kyng of Englāde of Fraūce / defēsor of the fayth and lorde of Irelāde / vnto the letters of Martyn Luther YOur letters wrytten the fyrst day of Septembre / we haue receyued the .xx. day of Marche In whiche ye write your selfe / to be sorie and ashamed / that ye folyly hastely / nat of your owne mynde but by the instygation of other / suche as lytell fauoured me / dyd put out your boke agaīst me / with whiche ye knowe your selfe that ye haue sore offended me / And therfore haue cause to be ī drede and shame to write vnto me Nat withstandyng / ye saye that ye be the more bolde nowe to write vnto me / nat only bycause ye parceyue my benignite suche / that cōsydring my selfe a man mortall / I wyll nat beare immortall enmyte but also for as moche / as ye by credible enformation / vnderstāde that the boke put forthe in my name / for the assertyon of the Sacramētes was nat myn own / but fraudulently deuised by false Sophisters / to myn ignominy and rebuke / and specially by the Cardynall of yorke / whom ye call a monster / odious to god man / and the pestylēce of my realme And therfore ye say / that ye be nowe ashamed to lyfte vp your eyen to me / that haue of lightnes so suffred your self to be moued agaynst suche a kynge /

¶ A copy of the letters / wherin the most redouted mighty prīce our souerayne lorde kyng Henry the eight / kyng of Englande of Fraūce / defēsor of the faith / and lorde of Irlāde made answere vnto a certayne letter of Martyn Luther / sente vnto him by the same / and also the copy of the foresaid Luthers letter / in such order / as here after foloweth ¶ Fyrst a preface of our soueraygne lorde the kynge / vnto all his faithfull and enterely beloued subiectes ¶ Copye of the letter / whiche Martyne Luther had sent / vnto our sayd soueraygne lorde the kyng ¶ The copye of the answere of our sayd souerayne lorde / vnto the same letter of Martyn Luther ¶ Henry the eight by the grace of god / kyng of Englande of Fran̄ce / defēsor of the faith / and lorde of Irlande vnto all his faythfull and welbeloued subiectes / gretyng IT hath semed to vs alwayes / our entirely be loued people / that lykewise / as it apperteyneth to the offyce and estate of a kyng / dilygently to procure the tēporall welth / and commodyte of his subiectes So dothe it of dewtie / more especially belonge to the parte and offyce of a christen kynge / ouer and besydes / his labour / payne / and traueyle / bestowed vpon the prouysyon of worldly welth and quyete for his people farre yet more feruently to labour / trauayle and studye / by all the meanes and wayes to hym possible / howe he maye surely kepe / establysshe and cōfyrme / and spyritually set forthe and forther / the hertes and myndes of his subiectes / in the right relygion of god / and trewe faythe of Christ / by whose highe prouydence especiall bounte / they were for that purpose / chefely cōmytted vnto his gouernaunce For albeit so / that our sauyour Christ hath in his ecclesyasticall hierarchy moost ordinately set prouyded / and apoynted the spyrituall fathers and curates / most especially to solycite / procure / and haue in charge / those thyngꝭ that apperteyne by faithe or other spyrituall vertues / to the weale and saluation of his chosen chyldrē / whiche ben christen men yet is there no man but he well wotteth / that the temporall princes / concurryng with them and setting their handes therto / and ouerseyng and orderynge them to execute the charge / whiche god hath elect them to / euery prince in his owne realme / the mater shall bothe moche better moche faster come forwarde The profe wher of / hath euydently appered in tymes past / for soone after the begynnynge of Christes churche / the conuersyon of kynges to the faithe / breuely tourned all their realmes with thē And where the opposyte was vsed / there neither grace / vertue / nor other gode worke coude florisshe or encrese / but alwayes where lacked faythe / there raigned heresies / sēsualyte / voluptie inobedyence / rebellyon / no recognytion of superiour / confusyon / and totall ruyne in the ende Whiche thynges / by the great wysedome of oure noble progenitours well parceyued / they haue of their vertuous mynde and princely corage / as well by the makyng of good and sharpe lawes / requisite for that entent / as by due executyon of the same / nat without the puttyng of their owne bodies / somtyme in the auenture of bataile / done their effectuall deuoyre to withstande and represse from tyme to tyme / the pernicious errours and heresyes / that els had of lykelyhode / as well by wycclyffe / as other abhomynable heretikes / ben depely roted in this realme And surely we for our parte nothing so moche desyre / as the fortheraunce of you our welbeloued people / in the honour and seruyce of almighty god and nat onely to folowe and ensue the frutefull examples of our noble progenytours / but also to putte our selfe in deuoyre in that poynt if we may to passe them / especially syth there neuer was in any of their tymes / so moche nede therto / as to our great grefe displeasure and heuynesse / it is now For we doute nat / but it is well knowen to you all / that Martyn Luther late a frere Augustyne / and now ron out ī Apostasy and wedded / hath nat onely scraped out of the asshen / and kyndeled agayne / almost all the embres of those olde errours and heresyes / that euer heretyke helde sythe Christ was borne hytherto but hath also added some so poysoned pointes of his owne / so wretched / so vyle / so detestable / prouokynge men to myschefe / encoragyng the worlde to syn / preachyng an vnsaciat lyberte / to allecte them with all / and finally / so farre against all honesty / vertue and reason / that neuer was there erst any heretyke so farre voyde of all grace and wyt / that durst for shame speke them We therfore seyng these heresies sprede abrode / and inwardly sorowynge so many christen soules to ron to ruyne / as hath done ī other regions / by the occasyon of suche pesty lent errours / entendyng for our ꝑte / somwhat to set hande therto / wrote after our meane lernyng / a lytell tretyse / for the assertyon and probatyon of the holy sacramentes In whiche we reproued / and as we trust sufficiently refuted and conuinced the most parte of the detestable heresies of the sayde Luther / contayned in his abhomynable boke / entytuled de Babilonica Captiuitate For angre and furye wherof / vpon two yeres after / Luther wrote and sent oute agaynst vs a boke / nothyng answeryng to the mater / but all reason sette asyde / stuffed vp his booke with onely furious raylyng / whiche his boke we regardynge / as it was worthy / cōtempned and nat wolde vouchesafe any thing to reply / reputyng our selfe in Christes cause / nat to good with a ryght meane man to reason or cōtrary / but nothing metely frutelesse with a leude Frere to rayle So came it than to passe / that Luther at laste / parceyuyng wyse men to espye hym / lerned men to leaue hym / good men to abhorre hym / and his frantyke fauourers to fall to wracke / the nobles and honest people in Almaygne / beynge taught by the profe of his vngratyous practyse / moche more hurt myschefe to folowe therof / than euer they loked after / deuysed a letter to vs written / to abuse them and all other natyons / in suche wyse / as ye by the cōtentes therof / herafter shal well ꝑceyue In whiche he fayneth hym selfe to be enformed / that we be tourned to the fauour of his secte And with many flateryng wordes / he laboreth to haue vs content that he myght be bolde to write to vs in the mater / and cause of the gospell And thervpon without answere had from vs / nat onely publysshed the same letter and put it in print / of purpose that his adherentes shulde

be the bolder / vnder the shadowe of our fauour / but also fell in deuyce with one or two leude ꝑsons / borne in this our realme / for the translatyng of the Newe testament in to Englysshe / as well with many corruptiōs of that holy text / as certayne prefaces / and other pestylent gloses in the margentes / for the aduauncement and settyng forthe of his abhomynable heresyes / entendynge to abuse the gode myndes and deuotion / that you oure derely beloued people beare / towarde the holy scrypture / to enfect you with the deedly corruption and contagious odour of his pestylent errours In the aduoydynge wherof / we of our especiall tēdre zele towardes you / haue with the deliberate aduyse of the most reuerende father in god / Thomas lorde Cardynall / legate de Latere of the see Apostolyke / Archebysshop of yorke / primate and our Chauncellour of this realme / and other reuerende fathers of the spyritualtye / determyned the sayde corrupte and vntrue translatyons to be brēned / with further sharpe correction punysshment against the kepars and reders of the same / rekenyng of your wisdomes very sure that ye wyll well and thankfully parceyue our tendre and louyng mynde towarde you therin / and that ye will neuer be so gredy vppon any swete wyne / be the grape neuer so plesaūt / that ye wyll desyre to taste it / beyng well aduertised that your enemy before hath poysoned it Ouer this / where as we before had entended / to leaue Luther to his leudnesse / without any further writynge yet for the frustratyng and aduoyding of his malycious fraude / whereby he entendeth to abuse the worlde / with a false opynion of our fauour towarde him / we letted nat efte sones / to write hym an answere / of his more subtyle / than eyther true or wyse writynge After whiche letter written and sente hym / sithe we parceyued and considred farther / that he had by sōdrie false inuentions / laboured to sowe some of his venomous seed amonges you / oure welbeloued people / and hath besydes that / sought the meanes to make you beleue that he were vntruely spoken and written of / and that he is nat maryed / nor that he dothe nat wryte or teche suche execrable heresyes / as men reporte that he dothe / whiche hym selfe knoweth to be of suche a sort / as your good christen eares wolde abhorre to here And for that cause / wolde for a begynnyng / tyll he myght entre in farther credence and fauour amonges you / bring you in the mynde / by the mouthes of some that sette forthe his maters / that he were neyther suche man as he is made / nor saith such thynges / as men saith he dothe ¶ We therfore our welbeloued people / nat wyllyng you by such subtyll meanes / to be disceyued or seduced / haue of our especiall fauour toward you / translated for you / gyuen out vnto you / as well his said letter written to vs / as our answere also / made vnto the same By the sight wherof / ye may partely parceyue bothe what the man is in hym selfe / and of what sorte is his doctryne whiche two thiges / if ye well pondre / ye shall soone vnderstande his doctryne so abhominable / that it must nedes make the man odious / and shewe hym to be naught were his lyueng in apparence neuer so good / and the man him selfe of his lyueng so openly naught vycious / that his open vyces and boldely bosted wretchednesse / must nedes make his doctryne suspected And though it bare as fayre a visage of holynesse / as it nowe beareth a shameles open face / of bolde presumption in synne / farre ouer large / and in myschefe to great and wyde sprede / for the good vysar of Euaungelyke lyberte to couer it / but nat / as he wolde that you shulde vnderstande it whiche thynges by your wysedomes / our welbeloued people ones parceyued / as in this lytell worke I verily truste ye shall / I dout nat but your goodnesse shall with goddes grace / take suche frute therby / as shal be to the confort of youre soules / to the reioyse of all good men / to the lette of his myscheuous purpose / and to youre eternall ioye here after And if you do as I trust verily ye wyll nat descāt vpon scrypture / nor truste to moche youre owne commentes and interpretatyons / but in euery doute that shall insourge / lerne the truthe and enclyne to the same / by the aduice of your pastorall fathers of the soule / it shall nat onely encorage well lerned mē to set forthe and translate into our mother tonge / many good thynges and vertuous / whiche for feare of wrong takynge / they dare nat yet do but also that ye / by the good vse therof / shall take moche good and great spirituall profyte / whiche thyng in you parceyued / shall gyue occasyon that suche holy thynges / as yuell disposed ꝑsons by false and erronyous translation corrupted / delyuer you to your immynent paryll distruction / gode men and well lerned may be parcase in tyme cōmynge the bolder / truely faythfully translated / substancyally viewed and corrected / by suffycient authorite to putte in your handes / to your inwarde solace and gostly conforte / to the full extyrpation of all seditious errours / encrease of your deuotion and charitable faithe to god / establysshment of goddes grace / and fauour towardes you / therby good workes with your dilygent endeuer more plentuously springyng in you / your synnes remysed forgyuen you by his mercy ye shall nat onely in heuyn attayne those inestimable rewardes / that your merytes can nat of their own nature / but of his lyberall goodnesse / with vertue of his passyon deserue / but also by your good prayers and intercessyōs / lyueng vertuously in the lawes of god / and this realme cause soner vnyuersall peace in christendome / to ensue folowe whiche thyng in erthe shulde be most desired of all true christē men next after heuē / to which place of ioy our lorde sende me with you / where I had leuer to be your seruaūt / than here your kyng Valete ¶ The letter of Martyn Luther ¶ Vnto the most mighty and noble price / lorde Henry the .viii. kyng of Englande of Fraunce / his most benigne lorde GRace peace in Chryste Iesu / our lorde and sauyour Amen Nat withstādyng most noble kyng / excellent prīce / that I ought of reason to be afrayde / tattēpt your highnesse with letters / whiche am well knowing vnto my self / that your highnes is most greuously displeased with my boke / which I nat of myn own corage / but by the instygation of them that dyde nat well fauoure your highnesse / folisshely hastely set forthe neuerthelesse / I haue good conforte stomake to write /

the churche of Rome is / bycause ye se and were wode therwith / that it hath cōdēpned your heresyes / so that it may with reason aunswere you with holy scripture / which saith Non contra nos est murmur vestrum sed cōtra dominum your murmure is nat against vs but agaynst our lorde And than shall it loke vp to Christ in heuyn / whose place it representeth in erthe / and shall agaynst youre heynous presumptyon gratiously be herde / sayēg Presumētes de se et de sua virtute gloriantes humilias they that presume vpon them selfe / and glorie in their owne strength / thou doest abate good lorde surely there was neuer mā borne I trowe that set so moche by hym selfe / that had so lytell cause but and ye were so wyse ī dede as ye stande well in your owne conceyt / ye wolde nat murmure against your amēdement / for as the wyse mā saithe Uir prudens et disciplinatꝰ non murmurabit correptꝰ A discrete man well taught wyll nat murmure / whan his fautes be shewed him I feare ye shall finde it so / that wenyng your selfe so wyse / it wyll fall by you / as saynt Paule saithe / by the paynym philosophers Euanuerunt in cogitationibus suis obscuratū est īsipiēs cor eorū dicētes se esse sapiētes stulti facti sunt / They haue done vainly in their inuentions / their folysshe hertes were blynded / callyng thē selfe wyse men / they were made fooles So ye ryse highe in your owne herte / and with great bost reken yourselfe very riche of frendes / and namely of great princes / that as ye say take your parte in Almayn but I wene ye shall finde to preue trewe vpon you these wordes of the Apocalyps / whiche saithe to the ryche man these wordes Tu dicis qia diues sū et locupletatus et nullius egeo et nescis quia miser es et miserabilis et pauper et cecus et nudus thou affyrmest to thy selfe / I am riche and of great substaūce / and haue no nede of nothynge / yet thou knowest nat that thou arte a wretche / and myserable and poore / blynde and naked I thynke ere it be long / our lorde wyll of his highe goodnesse prouyde / that with such wayes as ye take / your vnwyse pride wyll in suche wyse abate / that ye shall fynde your selfe as pore and bare of all frēdes / as ye be of grace and goodnesse / and it beginneth alredy / if ye haue the witte to parceyue it For where ye boost of princes takyng your parte / we here of none suche but haue good experience that rude boystous people / seduced with your secte / haue cōmen to great myschefe / by the valyaunt acquitayle of good and Catholyke princes in Almayne / that resysted your malicious faction there / to their highe meryte of god / honour of this worlde / laude praise of all good christen men And where ye saye / it is no marueyle though the Emperour and some other prynces pursue you / and that it were maruell if any prince or people were on your parte / rehersyng the wordes of Dauid Gentes fremuerūt et populi meditati sūt inania astiterūt reges et principes conuenerūt ī vnū aduersꝰ dn̄m et aduersus Christū eius the gentyls haue ben angry / and the people haue deuysed ī vayne / thynges haue assembled / and prīces haue gathered togider agaynst our lorde / and agaynst his enoynted Christe ▪ These wordes make moche agaynst you / if ye say trouthe / that the prīces and people of Almayne take youre parte / as you ī your letter do affirme for certayne is it / that your doyng is in dede agaynst Christ / wherfore take your parte agaynst hym who so wyll Qui habitat ī celis irridebit eos et dominus subsannabit eos / he that dwelleth in the heuyns shall laugh them to scorne / and oure lorde mocke them / as he hath all redy proued / by thre or fourscore thousāde of your faction / whiche by his highe punysshment / are / hath ben slayne ¶ Now where as ye so holily wysh / that god shulde in me so worke with your wordes / that I might as it were by myracle be cōuerted / and fauour the gospell Verily / I ꝓfesse my selfe to fauour the gospell / and that mynde I praye god / nat onely to contynue / but also dayly to encreace but for as moche as I well knowe / that ye nothyng els meane / by the fauour of the gospell / but the fauour of your owne secte / and wolde haue your pestylent heresyes taken for Christes gospell And sithe I well wote also / that our lorde wyll hym selfe worke no myracles / agaynst the faythe of his owne sonne Therfore / ere the deuyll shuld worke any suche wondre in me / that I shulde vnder the cloke of Christes gospell fauour Luthers heresies / I wolde fyrste wysshe / that ye Luther and all yours / were there where except ye mende ye they be worthy ¶ Nowe as touching your worshipfull gentyll offre / that ye wolde / if I were so content / make and put out another boke / to my prayse honour / with reuokynge of suche wordes / as ye haue written to the contrary / All this laboure I gladly remytte you / nor I desyre none of your bokes / to be written to my prayse / but wolde that ye shulde reuoke your heresyes / and confesse your errours / therby gyue prayse and glorie / to almighty god For if ye perseuer in your heresyes and leude lyueng / ye canne nat more highly praise me / thā in dispraising nor more highly disprayse me / thā in praysing / if it be trewe that Seneck saythe Tā turpe tibi sit laudari a turpibus quāsi lauderis ob turpia It is as great a shame to be praysed of naughty folkes / as to be praysed for naughtynesse And therfore / where as ye in dyuers partes of your letter write your selfe sore ashamed of your boke / that ye put out agaynst me / layeng the faut therof / to the yuell instigatyon of other men / hūbly besechyng me of forgyuenesse prosterning your selfe to my fete / trustyng that sithe I am a man mortall / I wolde nat beare īmortall enemyte Surely Luther / albeit ye haue taken your selfe alwaye for so great a man / in your owne conceyte / that ye haue in writynge / openly professed your selfe / that ye were euer wolde be / bothe quycke and deed / a perpetuall enemye to the Pope to whose highnesse I well knowe / howe farre the estate of a kyng is inferyour yet neuer made I / so great accompte of you / that euer I wolde vouchsafe / to reken my selfe for your enemye all beit I am to your heresyes / as great