or if S. Mathew had proued and declared that Marye had ben Dauids daughter or of Dauids house then I thinke there would haue ben no cause of doubting but for all my simple capacitie it would haue bene both esy playne and yet I would not you should think I speake this as one that doubteth any thing at all of the truth of the Gospell For I beleue verely that all which is in the scripture is most true and I yeld vnto God such dew honor that I beleue that his word is as it is in deed the truth it selfe and such a sound certaynty and sure foūdation as neuer shal be remoued But I say it because I earnestly desire to learne some certayne ground and profe out of the holy scriptures of this matter wherby my fayth may be strengthened ☜ Vrb. In asmuch as Mathew sayth that the virgin Mary the mother of Christ was betrowthed to Ioseph he needed not recken vp the petegrees of the woman or the genealogy of Mary for it was sufficient to set out Iosephs petegree whereby it is of it self playne and certayne that Mary was of the tribe of Dauid and so Christ the sonne of Dauid For as Hierom sayth the scripture doth not vse to draw the petegree of the woman This is the truth of the matter Ioseph and Mary were both of one tribe to wit of the tribe of Iuda For Ioseph tooke Marye who was his cosin to wife according to the law of the Lord in Nume the wordes of the law be these They shal be wiues to whome they thinke best onely to the familye of the tribe of their father shall they mary So shall not the inheritance of the children remoue from tribe to tribe for euery one of the children of Israell shall ioyne himselfe to the inheritāce of the tribe of his fathers And euery daughter that possesseth any inheritance of the tribes of the children of Israell shal be wife vnto one of the family of the tribe of her father that the children of Israel may enioy euery man the inheritance of their fathers neither shal the enheritance go about from tribe to tribe but euery one of the tribes of the children of Israell shall stick to his owne enheritance as the Lord cōmmaunded Here now it appeareth that in as much as Ioseph and Mary were spoused together they were both of one tribe and family For she could not marry any man vnlesse he were her cosen or of his owne tribe linage If therfore Ioseph be of the tribe of Iuda Mary his spouse is also of the tribe of Iuda Wherfore S. Math. in that he drew the genealogy of Christ from Zerobabell Abiud comming downe to Ioseph the husband of Mary drew it well and truly according to Moises his law Yet S. Luke draweth this genealogy from Zerobabell by Resa Iohanna Iuda or Ioseph Semei til he came to Hely and so to Ioakim who was the father of the virgin Mary the blessed mother of god And this genelogy is also both trew very wel drawne You heard a little before a prophesye out of Esay which sayth There shall come a rod of the stock of Ishai and a graffe shall grow out of his rootes and the spirite of the Lord shall rest vpon him Here the Prophet sinne death and hell Of his glory and his ascending into heauen Of his Eternall kingdome as both of what sorte it should be and how he should raigne And of his other second or latter and glorious cōming in the last day to Iudgement ¶ Anna. There be me thinks many articles of Christ in the prophets did Christ I pray you expound thē all to those two disciples on the way betwixt Ierusalē and Emaus which towne as the scripture witnesseth in Luke was but threescore furlonges distant from Ierusalem ☜ Vrb. Christ as I thinke onely expounded those prophesies which are written of his passion death resurrection and glory Because in those that is to say in his passion they were most offended supposing in so much as they had seene him end his natural lyfe vpon the Crosse there had bin neither counsaile hope nor helpe left in him for Israell to looke for and for this cause were they so sad They sorrowed and were pensiue because they knew not nor thought not that Messias ought first to suffer that vile and ignominious death and rise agayne and so enter into his glory redeeme the world and remaine our God for euer as I haue sayd before But when they now vnderstood the prophesies of his passion and resurrection and when they had learned by the prophets that it was gods wil and ordinance that Messias by dying should become Lord of life death they had no further cause to sorrow and therfore their hartes were so ioyfull and their hope so sure that they could not hide their ioy but vttered and participated it with their fellow disciples which were at Ierusalem ¶ An. God be praised for euer Verily we haue no perfit or right ioy in deed vnles first we be wel throughly acquainted with Christs death and resurrection which if we surely beleue and haue them inwardly by fayth grounded within vs they not onely expell all mistes and cloudes of sorrow but also make vs triumphantly reioyce in the lord And although Christ perhaps opened no prophesies to those two disciples but onely of his passion and resurrectiō yet would I faine heare what els the scripture hath prophesied of him concerning those things which you haue alredy summarily gathered into a Catalogue certayne articles that I may herby haue a more sensible sure feling of Christ ¶ ☞ Vrb. It shal be no great labor for me to recite and expound them all whereby the rather we may haue euery part of the Sermon which Christ thē preached and I will doe it so much the more willingly and diligently because S. Luke sayth Christ begonne at Moyses and interpreted vnto them all scriptures which were written of him That Sermon then must needes haue ben a good long sermon if he expounded all the scriptures to them and therefore my explanation of them will also require some tyme. Of the stocke or genealogie of Christ ¶ Anna GO to then first say what the scripture hath of Christes stock ☞ Vrb. You haue hard before that he should come of the seede of Abraham and the prophesye in the 18. of Deutero declareth that he should be born of the Iewes to whome the promise was made and this was no small prerogatiue nay there was none like it as Paul witnesseth to the Romans saying The Israelites are they to whome pertayneth the adoption and the glory and the couenauntes and the geuing of the law and the seruice of God and the promises of whome are the fathers and of whome concerning the flesh Christ came who is God ouer all blessed for euermore Amen This promise in processe of tyme did God make to Dauid by the
and haue esteemed him aboue Moyses But when Christ was come they would be Moyses discyples although the terme of his time was ended For Moyses was but only a seruant in the house of the lord And when the Lord Christ himselfe came then ought the seruaunt to geue place and all men ought to heare the word which Christ did speak by the word of his father The righteousnes of faith had also her testimonies in the law in Moyses and in the prophets But when Christ and the Apostles taught it saying Repent and beleeue the gospel the Iewes refused their doctrine and would be iustified by Moyses and his law and vsed not the true mediator and sauyour Christ in the work of their iustificatiō but refused that most precious corner stone and could not abide to vse and admit it in their building of iustification And therfore they became abominable and perished they and their building And least the day of Christs former comming should be vnknown vnto them he geueth thē a notable signe wherby they might haue learned that the day of Messias was now at hand for he promiseth that he would send them that former Iohn the Baptist before that great day he calleth him Elias because he should go before Christ and prepare the way for him in the spirite and strength of Elias as the Angel of the Lord expoundeth this prophesy of Elias to be ment of Iohn the Baptist And Christ himself applieth this prophesy in Mathew vnto Iohn Baptist saying that Iohn is that Elias which was to come that is of whom Mala. the last prophet did prophesy Let him which hath eares to heare heare But their harts was blinded their eares stopped vp that they could not vnderstand He calleth that day of Christs former comming fearfull or horrible beames of the falling away blindnes of the Iewes For before they were the welbeloued children of God and the inheritance of the lord But whē they killed the true Messas the son of god and preferred that wicked offender Barabas before him and wished that his innocent bloud might be vpō them and their children then they were reiected and blinded and the kingdome of God was taken from them and they lost both the City and the temple and the whole land and they are afflicted as well with spirituall as corporall captiuity vnto this day and the Gentiles are receaued and adopted as children This is that Heren or cursse wherewith the earth was smitten But they which at the beginning beleued Iohn and took Christ to be their sauior and forsaked Moyses they escaped the cursse And such as were the apostles and those of the Iewes which beleeued christ and his apostles And these in the prophets are called the remnant of Iacob Malachy therfore which concludeth the old testament doth tell vs that Moyses with the law and the prophets doe all with one consent beare witnes of Christ that he is the true deliuerer of Israell As if he had sayd Moyses serued in the house of the Lord vnto his appointed terme of time was expired prophesying in all his figures external sacrifices oblations and plaine promises of Christ and he referred all his doctrine vnto Christ And this is that seede of Abraham by which all nations are blessed This is that true high priest propiciation and sacrifice which reconcileth vs vnto God. This is that true Melchisedech and that serpent in the wildernes and that great prophet whom Moyses commaundeth all them to heare which will not incur the wrath of the lord And this is the sonne of Dauid to whom the Lord had promised an eternal kingdome Beware therfore that when he commeth you take not the seruant for the master and a figure and shadow for the light and truth For it is he in deede of whom the law and all the prophets with one consent doe prophecye If you refuse him thē geue you not credite to moyses and the prophets and the Lord wil smite you with a curse Beware therfore for I haue now geuen you warning before All laud and honor be vnto our good and most faithfull God for euer and euer for the gift of all prophesies through our Lord Iesus Christ of Nazareth the true and only Messias promised in the law and the prophets whom God sent into the world at the fulnes of time To wit 1576. yeares agoe And who perfectly and thorowly fulfilled all things which were necessary for the repayring and absolute redemption of mankind And now sitteth at the right hand of God our Bishop and King omnipotent for euer And here now good wife you haue almost all the chief prophesies of Iesus Christ expounded and gathered out of all the prophets as diligently as I could by which you now know what Christ preached vnto his disciples on the way from Ierusalem to Emaus Anna. Seeing that Emaus is but onely 60. furlongs frō Ierusalem it seemeth to me that Christ did not recite all these prophecies which you haue beene this 2. or 3. weekes in expounding to me ☞ Vrb. Verely S. Luke sayth that Christ begon at Moyses and expounded vnto them all the prophesies in the scripture which were spoken of hym wherby it may be gathered that it was a famous and good louing sermon in which he proued and confirmed vnto them that he must by the cros enter into his glory But it is lyke that Christ expounded vnto his disciples the most chiefe prophecies which speake of his passion resurrection and euerlasting kingdome that thereby they might learne that it was the good wil of God the father that his well beloued son Iesus Christ should redeeme the true Israell not with gould or siluer nor by any worldly pompe or power but in the weakenes of his crosse by his most precious bloud which he shed to deliuer vs from all our enemies from the wicked world from poysenfull sinne from horrible death and from our perpetuall and cruell enemy Sathan with whome all his members we haue bellum 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a continuall warre I haue bene louing in citing the scriptures that I might the better set downe and more plainely expound the whole sermon of Christ as farre as appertained to the witnesses of the prophets as I haue sayd before But how saye you is it not a great ioy and a very paradise to a godly hart by fayth to search and learne the comfortable misteries of Christ cōtained in the prophets as the Thes the valiant sowldiers of Christ often times did because this kinde of exercise auaileth much to the confirmatiō and establishing of our Christian fayth For which our Lord God hath layde a perfite sure foundation euen from the beginning of the world by his holy prophets his seruauntes which are the most auncient doctors in the earth and also by the gospel of Iesus Christ which is a doctrine of great antiquitie in the world and hath alwayes bin most vehemently assailed by Sathan and his
nor no tyme to come as the creature hath and therefore Christ speaketh of his deuine and eternall nature in that one word or syllable of the present tyme saying I am For in deed eternitie is for euer and hath neyther former nor latter tyme beginning nor ending The vacabond and vnbeleuing Iewes supposed iudged that he was no more but bare man and such a one as Abraham or Elias was neither could they abide to heare the mysteries of Christes wordes or giue credite to them They dreamingly thought it could not be possible that he should haue seene Abraham seyng it was ful two thousand yeares and more betwixt Abrahams departure out of the world and Christs comming in the flesh into the world neither did they know or vnderstande the scriptures which teache and foreshew that Messias should not only be borne in Bethleem in tyme but also that his forth going was before all tyme as Paul testifieth to the Hebrues saying Iesus Christ yesterday and to day and the same also euen for euer Here then if you will well waigh this prophesie you maie see in it both the death and resurrection of Christ which necessarily is to be required that hee might raigne and rule eternally and spiritually For in as much as it was determined that he should be borne of the stocke of Dauid a perfect and very natural man in the citie of Bethleem it was not to be thought strāge though he should dye as well as Dauid Salomon other men did What meruail is it I pray you to see a naturall man die certainly the corporal or vitall life can not alway indure Neuerthelesse for all that in as much as he should be the true and chiefe Lord of Israel it can not be that he should be subiect to death or that death should vanquish or deteyne him but that of necessity he must rise agayne from death liue for euer And therfore is he compelled by temporall death to leaue his mortall lyfe for how can mortall man come to immortalitie least first he put of his mortall body which can not be done but by corporal death And thus it behoued him to change this frayle corporal and corruptible lyfe into a spirituall inuisible immortall and incorruptible lyfe that he might become the true and euerlasting Lord of all the Israelites as well of those that before had bene as of those that thē were and afterward at any tyme should be and that he might also begin his true eternall and spirituall kingdome the administration whereof is not after the maner of men nor yet consisteth in worldly matters And therefore Iohn sayth Verily verily I say vnto you except the wheat corne fall into the ground and die it abideth alone but if it die it bringeth forth much fruit ¶ Anna. O good Lord though it be not seene and known of fleshly eyes yet how full of sweete comfort and consolation how full of marueilous maiesticall deuine wisdom and deep mysteries is the sacred scriptures O how great and vnspeakable wisdome and knowledge lyeth hid vnder the letter how truly sayd Dauid O how sweete are thy promises vnto my throte yea sweeter then hony vnto my mouth By thy Commandements haue I gotten vnderstanding therfore I hate all wicked wayes Thy worde is a lanterne vnto my feete and a light vnto my paths O I say what a tresure of knowledge wisdome what precious pearles of euerlasting lyfe lye hid in the wordes of God how doth it flow with vnderstanding most aboundantly and intelligence farre passing mans capacitie what sound present and aboundant comfort may a godly man cōceiue of this holy worde If these two disciples after this sort had known the person of Christ in this prophesie of Micheas they had not bene so offended at his death but had vnderstood and receiued comfort Because God had so ordeyned prouided all these things to come to passe and had so determined that the crosse of Christ should be the glory and triumphant victory of all true Christians But in as much as you haue shewed me the scriptures concernyng the place of his birth Say also I pray you what is written of his Mother ¶ Of the Virgin Mary the Mother of Christ and of Christes conception Vrbane WHen Pekah the king of the ten tribes which fell away in Israell and Rezin the king of Syria made warre vpon Achas the fifteenth king of Iuda murthered and spoyled the inhabitantes of the country purposing and determining to remoue Achas place an other in his kingdome then the holy ghost while these two kings with detrunēt and bloodshed had all to defaced the land of Iuda prophesied by the Prophet Esay Of the blessed Virgine Mary that she should beare the child Christ And although those kings were very cruell vpon Achas and were both mightily and maruelous bloudily bent against him yet did not God for all that suffer them to preuayle against him and his poore tribe of Iuda because he would faithfully perform and pay that which he had promised to Dauid euen that Messias should come of his house and lynage He comforteth therfore Achas the king in this perill purposing to quicken and confirme his faith by this miracle to the ende he should not feare his enemies For God promised that he himselfe would ayde him But Achas was an Idolater and an hypocrite neither did he receyue that for a signe of Gods helpe Wherfore God reiected that wicked king and yet neuerthelesse published the myracle and gaue the signe to the house of Dauid which was the signe of true helpe and deliuerance from the horrible and euerlasting calamity and misery wherin all we were wrapped euen death damnation and the tiranny of Sathan These be the wordes of the prophet Behold Haalmah or a Virgin shall conceiue and beare a sonne and his name shall be called Emanuel or Immanuel Loe here you see that he prophesieth of the Virgin Mary and her sonne Christ our Sauiour And here the holy ghost telleth vs that Messias should not be borne after the maner of all the other sonnes of Adam of the seed of man but onely of the pure and vndefiled virgin Mary And therfore his birth is not as ours is vncleane defiled and infected but holy pure and free from all blemish of sinne Because he is that blessed seed of Abraham by which onely and by no other all we wretched children of Adam conceiued and borne in sinne must be clensed blessed sanctified iustified frō all the filthines of our sinnes Moreouer the wordes of this prophesie do plainly paynt out the maner of his conception signifiyng that he was not conceyued of mans seede but that Mary onely by the vertue of the holy ghost conceiued For here is promised that a child should be borne and yet the mother remayne a pure virgin And yet here is no mention of any father because it might bee a famous signe and miracle
which are the elect in Christ the children of promise the children of the new testament without respect For here the carnall natiuitie ganealogie kindred or seed and ofspring of Abraham Isaac and Iacob is not regarded at all but the spiritual natiuitie and inward circūcision of the hart Of such Iewes and true Israelites Iohn Baptist speaketh in Luke saying Say not with your selues we haue Abraham to our father for God is able of these stones to rayse vp childrē vnto Abraham And Paul to the Romanes saith wel and bouldly All they are not Israelites which are of Israell neither are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham but in Isaac shall the seede be called saith the Lord. That is they which are the children of the flesh are not the children of God but the children of the promise accounted for the seed Do you not heare see that God at the first chose his ministers and children out of Iudaisme when the gentils were without Christ and were alienate from the common wealth of Israell and were strangers from the couenants of promise and had no hope and were without God in the world But God alwayes reueiled in the prophets the mistery of our communion in Christ to wit how the Gentiles also should be coheires with Israell of the heauenly kingdome to come and be partakers of one body and promise in Christ Iesus But marke I pray you wherefore the scripture setteth forth the chief patriarchs as Abraham and Iacob so gloriously It doth not commend and set forth vnto vs Abraham only born of flesh and bloud but Abraham beleeuing in Christ Iesus regenerated by faith and born a new and made a new man as Paul plainly teacheth saying They which are of faith the same are children of Abraham For the Scripture foreseeing that God by faith would iustifie the Gentils preached before the gospel vnto Abraham saying In thee shall all the gentils be blessed So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithfull Abraham who is the father vnto all them which beleeue in Christ whether they be Iewes or Gentils And in lyke sort doth the scripture set forth vnto vs Iacob not simple Iacob but that Iacob which wrastled with the Lord and ouercommed by fayth in Christ and thereupon obtained he the glorious name to be called Israell that is a man of great might with God who by the Christian fayth in God is with God and through god the Lord of all thinges And these are the patriarkes vnto whom as vnto good Christifidelians the spirituall promises were made and not for their corporall circumsition or for the law for the law of Moyses was geuen long after that promise Note here what the true Israell is what is the true Iuda and who be the right children of the patriarkes and then the promises that were made vnto Israell shall be more plain and easy to be vnderstood and you shall better perceaue who they are which shall enioye the kingdome of heauen For Esay sayth For though thy people O Israell be as the sand of the Sea yet shall the remnant of them returne Here you see that the promises are not vnderstode of all the Iewes or Israelites in Israell according to the flesh but that a certain onely in the house of Iacob shall be deliuered by Messias from death to wit those which haue beleued the promises which Abraham Iacob did beleue so are become the true children of Abraham and Israell through fayth But least any for this great defect and incredulitye of the most part in Iudaisme should thinke that the eternall couenaunt of grace made with Israell is broken the prophets do wonderfully agaynst this doubt cōfort the people And they looke as Hosye doth here with spirituall eyes into this great wide world the spirituall Ierusalem which consisteth of the Iewes and gentiles for by and by after those wordes that I recited he sayth Yet the number of the Children of Israell shall be as the sand of the Sea which can not be measured nor tould and in the place where it was sayd vnto thē you are not my people it shall be sayd vnto them ye are the sonnes of the liuing god then shall the children of Iuda and the children of Israell be gathered together and appoint them selues one head Thou must vnderstand the prophet thus God in deed made a couenant with Abraham his seed wherin he promiseth that he will be their god and multiply them as the sād of the sea and not reiect them And he did well and magnifically performe this in the beginning amongest the Iewes whom the Lord by wōderfull miracles multiplied and preserued neuer vtterly leauing them vntill Iesus Christ the true seed of Abraham came into this earth in whome all nations were blessed For when Christ came and was preached by the gospel through the hole world then was the couenant of Gods grace which he had made with Abraham and his seede first published and it began truly to be fulfilled when an innumerable multitude of Abrams children not onely of the Iewes but euen of the Gentiles through out all the world sprong vp by the gospell by which Abraham also himselfe was made the child of God. This therefore is the prophets meaning Although the Lord cast of the outward Israell neuer minding to bring him agayne into the land of Canaan yet neuerthelesse the great worthy promises of the Lord made vnto Israell shall be fulfilled and the children of Israell shall neuer the later be in number as the sand of the sea and Messias shall build and erect a great famous and princely kingdome but this shall so be performed that he will not raise vp children to Abraham of the Iewes onely but euen of the Gentiles through out the whole world and they shall be the true children of Abraham and Israell which through fayth receaue that blessed seede of Abraham Iesus Christ the true and euerlasting king of Israell This is the notable and worthy multiplying of Abrahams seede and the children of Israell which thing is wrought by the gospell in fayth through the whole world and shall be in working till the last day vntill all be come into the kingdome of Christ which shall come and are elected thereunto This also is to be marked that the kingdome of Israell before the natiuitye of Christ was deuided and 2. tribes onely Iuda and Beniamin taryed with the house of Dauid the other tribes chose for thēselues a king and the greatest part of thē became Idolaters but it shall not be so sayth Hoseas in the dayes of Iesus Christ the true king of Israell For Iuda Israell that is the children of promise shall be gathered together in one fayth and spirite both out of all these tribes and out of all nations vnder the true king Iesus Christ And there shall dayly more and more christians spring out of all nations for the kingdome of
commaundements and word of God. Is not this promise full of comfort where he sayth I will heale Israells backsliding that is he will pardon all their offences and neuer be angry with them any more for their sinns In which promise Christ the throne of grace is included and comprehended For these determinations of God is that he will forgeue sin to no man that he wil loue no man and that he wil receaue none vnto grace by any other meanes but by his deerely beloued sonn who is become our onely redeemer mediator recōciler bishop priest propiciatory or throne of grace as Paule affirmeth saying We are accepted in his beloued by whome we haue redemption through his bloud euen the forgeuenes of sinns according to his rich grace It is manifest therfore by the firme foūdation of the apostles doctrine that Hoseas here speaketh of Christ although he name him not seing that there is no other reconciler which can turne the wrath of God from vs but onely Iesus Christ Wherefore I haue often sayd that where the Lord promiseth his grace redemption forgeuenes of sinns righteousnes lyfe and health that there is Iesus Christ promised by whose death and pretious bloud we are reconciled to God the father and receaue forgeuenes remission of our sinns true righteousnes and lyfe euerlasting There followeth in the text more promises but expressed in figuratiue wordes For he taketh a similitude of the dew of roses of Libanō and of the oliue tree which wordes import nothing els but the great felicitie of Israell or christifidelians after that they beleue and are receaued in the grace of God and obtaine forgeuenes of their sinns Is it not an exceeding great felicitie to obtaine forgeuenes of our sinns to be counted righteous before God and to receaue the holy ghost with all his gifts and by the same to be healed vp in fayth Which is the receauing of that great pretious and heauenly earnest peny that is the spirite of God the father and the son which doth assure vs that we be the children of God and so his heyres and coheyres with Iesus Christ what I pray you can he want which hath the Lorde for his inheritance This prophesy chefely taketh place in the tyme of Christ when the gospell brought forth fruite throughout the whole world and christs heauēly kingdome was builded in euery place that Christ the king of glory be imbrased for our God and sauiour through fayth by which we are made the children of God and shall prayse him for euer together with his holy angells to whome we shall be like in the world to come in the resurrectiō of the dead the glory whereof exceedeth all that the hartes of earthly creatures can conceaue but it is now hid For we are as yet but blessed in hope but when our king the prince of glory shall come in his maiestye to iudgement then shall our felicitie be made manifest To be short the Lord shall be the defence bulwark comfort helpe solace and sound felicitye of Israel But the Prophet speaketh of a greater defence comfort helpe and benefit thē this world hath or can vnderstand The kingdome therfore of Christ is a kingdome of blessing wherin we inioy aboūdance of all goodnes The prophets prophesied that this deliueraunce helpe comfort and kingdome should be a continuall and spirituall not a tēporall kingdome which aboundeth in fraile vayne and transitory welth of this world as the carnall Iewes dreame and imagine ¶ Anna. What I pray you doth Iohell the prophet prophecy of Christ ☞ Vrba Ioell in his 2. chapiter prophesieth that the kingdome of Christ shall be illuminated and beutified with the rich knowledge of God and that it shall receaue the holy ghost with all his gifts and that espetially in the mount Sion to wit in the catholicke church where shall be true deliueraunce helpe and redemption from sinn and death and that afterwarde there shall be no more respect of persons betwene the Iewes and Gentiles but whosoeuer shall call vpon the name of the Lord Messias shall be freely deliuered from all his sins These are the wordes of the prophesye Ye shall also know that I am in the middest of Israell and that I am the Lord your God and none other and my people shall neuer be ashamed And afterward as Peter cited this prophecy on whitsonday in his sermon at Ierusalem In those dayes that is in the tyme of Messias I will powre out my spirit vpon all flesh And your sons and daughters shall prophesy your ould men shall dreame dreames and your young men shall see visiōs and also vpon the seruants and vpon the maydens in those dayes will I power my spirite and I will shew wonders in the heauens and in the earth bloud and fier and pillers of smoke The sun shal be turned into darknes and the moon into bloud before the great and terrible day of the Lorde come But who so euer shall call vpon the name of the Lord shall be saued For in mount Sion and in Ierusalem shall be deliueraunce as the Lord hath sayd and in the remnant whome the Lord shall call This prophesy tooke place in Christs time for Israell had then experience in deed that god was with thē in mans flesh And the holy ghost was then much more gloriously royally and aboundātly geuē them thē before the natiuitie passiō resurrectiō of Messias For before they were but few which had the spirit of prophesying but when Iesus Christ was ascended vnto the right hand of his father then the holy ghost withall his giftes was wonderfully and richly geuē vnto many as the hebrew word Eschpoch declareth which signifieth to poure out The holy ghost was visibly poured vpon faythfull Christians when they were baptised and the Church in all places had his teachers who had the spirite of prophesying And the knowledge of Christ is now spread abroad and dispersed throughout the whole world But where the prophet speaketh of Sion and Ierusalem it must be vnderstood of the church of faythfull Christians wherein Christ hath his habitation as in his owne kingdome Who so euer will be saued from sinne death and tyranny of Sathan he must beleue in Christ call vpon Christ and be brought into the church of christ for without that Church is neither health nor forgeuenes of sins Neither is there any cause why any sinner should respect this or the citie aboue other as the Iewes did earthly Sion Ierusalem seeing Ioell sayth that the Lord would poure out his spirite vpō all flesh not only vpon the Iewes in Ierusalem or in the land of Canaan but euery where through the whole worlde where the Gospel is beleued It followeth therfore that whosoeuer shall call vpon the name of god shall be safe and not the Iewes onely which serued and called vpō God at Ierusalem for then was that time come of which Christ sayth in Iohn that the heauenly father requireth
fier Note that Malla sayth that the Lord that is Christ shall come to his temple Pithom that is by and by vnloked for For when the people came on heapes and flocked vnto Iohn where he preached sodainely Christ came and commaunded Iohn to baptise him and began to teach and went in to the temple at Ierusalem And Mala. sayth whome seeke you for Christ was in the law and prophets promised as the true deliuerer of Israell And therfore all the godly gredely earnestly looked for him And Malla calleth Christ the Angell of the new testament or couenaunt For he was sent from the father as the messenger of the great message that he might be the mediator of the new testament or of the eternall couenaunt of grace which was made and confirmed by the precious bloud and death of Christ Yf this messenger had not ben sent and stroken this couenaunt of grace betwixt God the Father and vs and if he had not recōciled vs and in his owne person wiped away our sinnes we had taried and perished in our sinnes in death and in the wrath of God for euer But seeing that Christ is come and hath made and confirmed this testament or league by so great a price wee which beleue in Christ haue in Christ the messenger of the new testament remission of our sinnes euerlasting righteousnes reconciliation with God and lyfe and saluation He which first promised this testament is god the truth it selfe he which confirmed and approued it is the naturall son of god our sauiour in whom the father is well pleased and he which teacheth vs to vnderstand this couenaunt and to beleue it who also witnesseth vnto vs that the couenaunt is firme and stable and that we are the children of God is the holy Ghost Loe these are the vnsearchable riches of Christ which Paule euery where did magnifically preach And therefore very well sayth the prophet Escher athem hephezim that is whome doe you so carefully greedely and hartely desires You know that Hopheptz in the holy toung doth signifie to be rauished with a singular and harty desire of any thing as when we couet to haue any thing with a harty desire with a good will and with a great and ardēt appetite And thus did the true Israelites with all their hartes earnestly looke for the comming of Christ because they knew that we through Christes merits onely should obtaine all true felicitye with God that is full deliueraunce frō all euils They did know that which the new testament euery where now witnesseth to wit the man of himselfe without the spirite power hope of Messias could not performe the law and that none could obtaine righteousnes and saluation but by Christ And therefore did they looke for him as the onely reconciler and Sauiour and as that true and onely fulfiller of all thinges or as Paule calleth him the fulfilling of the law in whome they put all their confidence For wheresoeuer they desire preach the mercy and deliueraunce of God there also do they desire and glorify Christ who onely and no other in the whole world hath obtained and deserued the mercye of God and hath brought vs true and euerlasting redētion Wherefore Augustine that worthy Doctor of the Church sayth well and godly after this sort For his sake the testament is in him the testament is decided he is the mediator of the testament he sealed the testament he is surety for the testament he is witnes of the testamēt he is the inheritance of the testament and he is fellow heire of the testament ¶ Anna. Whether of Christes comming is it that Mala sayth shall be so heauy and intollerable ☞ Vrba He speaketh of his former comming which although vnto the true Israelites and children of promise it was a singular comfort and great ioy and a thing especially desired as appeareth in Simeon and Anna the prophets and such lyke yet was it a horrible and feareful comming to the rest of the vnbeleuing Iewes Pharises Saduces other deceauers of which they did reape no ioy or profite but were offended in Christ could not stād in his sight Their doctrine had daiseled the eyes of the cōmon sort with a great shew of holynes whereas it was nothing els in deed but horrible errors hipocrisye and deceite When Christ Iesus came the true light of the world and the truth it selfe by whome came grace and truth then all the errors simulations and deceites craftes and hipocrisie of those deceiuers were manifested and they thēselues destroyed For he did openly reproue and accuse their lyfe and doctrine and he so confounded them which before were accounted most godly and learned in Iudaisme that it might easely appeare vnto all men that they were blind guids of the blinde and meere deceiuers For when the gospell was mightely truely taught then could no error or hipocrisie lurke and be vnknowen so forceable was the truth Nay the word is so pure and perfect that euen the most holy are accused by it because no man in this flesh is free from sin To be short for this cause was Christ borne and for this cause came he into the world that he should bere witnes vnto the truth and he that is of truth heareth his voyce Sathan had sowen and spread marueilous hipocrisies and lyes in the world but Christ came that he might confound the lyes and teach the truth And therfore his first comming of Christ because his doctrine was vnpleasāt and sharpe vnto the world and because he accused them of sin was as a fier which purifieth and clenseth all filth and drosse from gould maketh a strange seperatiō of the euill from the good Whē he teacheth he doth seperate gould and siluer that is good men from copper and drosse to wit from the hard harted hipocrites For he which was of God heard the word of Christ and left all his errors and cast all his hipocrisie a side and became a faythfull or true Israelite in whome was no deceite By the crosse also they were purged and tryed as gould in the fier This tribulation and crosse alway waiteth vpon the word and alwayes commeth with the word And Christ at his first comming hath true Leuites spirituall priestes which are consecrated and clensed These are as Peter sayth all that truly beleue in christ but especially they which faythfully teach the word by which the righteousnes of fayth doth enter into the hart These offer true acceptable sacrifices in righteousnes that is in the fayth of Christ which before God is true righteousnes They offer themselues in fayth they offer an humble and penitent hart and they offer prayses and thankesgeuing for their redemption in Christ The holy doctors as often as they do conuert the people by the gospell from darcknes of vnbelefe vnto the light and from the power of Sathan vnto God so often do they offer an acceptable sacrifice vnto the