do no good worke freely without respect of some profit either in this world or in the world to come neither coulde we haue spirituall ioye in oure hartes in time of affliction and mortifiyng of the flesh Good workes are called the fruites of the spirite Gal. 5. for the sprite worketh them in vs and sometyme fruites of righteousnes as in the second Epistle to the Cor. and 9. chapter before all workes therfore we must haue a righteousnes within the hart the mother of all workes frō whēce they spring The righteousnes of the Scribes and Pharises of them that haue y ◠spirite of this world is y t glorious shew outward shining of workes But Christ sayth to vs Mar. 5. except your righteousnes exceede the righteousnes of the scribes Pharises ye cānot enter into the kingdome of heauen It is righteousnes in y t world if a mā kyl not But a Christen perceiueth righteousnesse if he loue his enemy euen when he suffreth persecution and torment of him and the paines of death and mourneth more for his aduersaries blindnesse then for his owne payne and prayeth God to open his eyes and to forgeue hym his sinnes as dyd Steuen in the Actes of the Apostles the vij Chapter and Christ Luke xxiij A Christen considereth him selfe in the law of GOD and there putteth of him all maner righteousnes For the law suffereth no merites no deseruynges no righteousnes neither any mā to be iustified in the sight of God The law is spirituall and requireth y t hart and commaundements to be fulfilled with such loue and obedience as was in Christ If any fulfill all that is the will of God with such loue and obedience the same may be bold to sell pardons of his merites and els not A Christen therfore when he beholdeth hym selfe in the law putteth of all maner righteousnes deseruinges and merites and mekely and vnfaynedly knowledgeth his sinne miserie his captiuitie and bondage in the flesh his trespasse and gilte and is thereby blessed with the poure in spirite Math. v. Chap. Then he morneth in his hart because he is in such bondage that he can not do the will of God and is an hungred and a thyrst after righteousnes For righteousnesse I meane which springeth out of christes bloud for strength to do the wil of God And turneth him selfe to the promises of God desireth him for his great mercy and truth and for the bloud of hys sonne Christ to fulfill his promises to geue him strēgth And thus his spirit euer prayeth within him He fasteth also not one day for a weke or a Lent for an whole yeare but professeth in his hart a perpetuall sobernes to tame the flesh and to subdue the body to the spirite vntil he waxe strong in the spirite and grow ripe into a full righteousnes after the fulnes of Christ And because this fulnes happeneth not till the body be slayne by death a Christen is euer a sinner in the law and therfore fasteth and prayeth to God in the spirite the world seyng it not Yet in y ◠promises he is euer righteous thorough fayth in Christ and is sure that he is heire of all Gods promises the spirite which he hath receaued in earnest bearyng him witnes his hart also and his dedes testifying the same Marke this then To see inwardly that y t law of God is so spirituall that no flesh can fulfill it And then for to morne and sorrow and to desire yea to hunger and thyrst after strength to do the wil of God from the ground of the hart and notwithstandyng all the sutlety of the deuil weakenes and feblenes of the flesh and wondryng of the world to cleaue yet to y t promises of God and to beleue that for Christes bloud sake thou art receaued to the inheritaūce of eternall lyfe is a wonderfull thyng and a thyng that the world knoweth not of but who soeuer feleth that though he fall a thousand tymes in a day doth yet rise agayne a thousand tymes and is sure that the mercy of God is vpon hym IF ye forgeue othermen their trespasses your heauēly father shal forgeue you yours Mat. in the vj. Chap. if I forgeue God shall forgeue me not for my dedes sake but for his promises sake for his mercy truth and for the bloud of hys son Christ our Lord. And my forgeuing certifieth my spirite that God shal forgeue me yea y t he hath forgeuē me already For if I consent to y t will of God in my hart though thorough infirmitie and weakenes I can not do the will of GOD at all tymes moreouer though I can not do the wil of God so purely as the law requireth it of me yet if I see my faulte mekely knowledge my sinne wepyng in myne hart because I cā not do the will of God and thyrst after strēgth I am sure that y t sprite of God is in me his fauour vpon me For the world lusteth not to do the will of God neither soroweth because he can not though he sorrow some tyme for feare of y ◠paine that he beleueth shall folow He that hath the spirite of this world can not forgeue without amendes makyng or a greater vauntage If I forgeue now how cōmeth it veryly because I feele the mercy of God in me For as a man feeleth God to him selfe so is he to his neighbour I know by mine owne experience that all flesh is in bondage vnder sinne and cā not but sinne therfore am I mercyfull and desire God to loose the bondes of sinne euen in mine enemy GAther not treasure together in earth c. Math. vj. But gather you treasure in heauen c. Let not you◠hartes be glued to worldly thynges studie not to heape treasure vpon treasure and riches vpon riches but study to bestow well that whiche is gotten already and let your abundaunce succour the lacke and neede of the power which haue not Haue an eye to good workes to which if ye haue lust and also power to do them then are ye sure that the spirite of God is in you and ye in Christ elect to the reward of eternal life which foloweth good workes But looke that thine eye be single and robbe not Christ of his honour ascribe not that to y t deseruyng of thy workes which is geuen the freely by the merites of his bloud In Christ we are sonnes In Christ we are heires In Christ god chose vs and elected vs before the begynning of the world created vs a new by the word of the Gospell and put his spirite in vs for because we should do good workes A Christē man worketh because it is the will of his father onely If we do no good worke nor be mercyfull how is our lust therin If we haue no lust to do good workes how is Gods spirite in vs If the spirite of God
necessitie For out of the inwarde beleue of the hart sloweth â–ª the outward conuersation of the members He that beleueth that hee ought to loue hys enemy shall neuer cease fightyng agaynst his owne selfe till he haue weeded aâ—… raÌ„cour and malice out of his hart But he that beleueth it not shall put a visor of hypocrisie on his face till he got oportunitie to aduenge him selfe And here he beginneth to teach them to be that light and that salt of whiche he spake and sayth Though the Scribes and Phariseis beare the people in hand that all I do is of the deuill and accuse me of breakyng the law and the Prophetes as they afterward rayled on the Apostles that they draue y â— people from good workes through preaching the iustifying and righteousnesse of fayth yet see that ye my Disciples â–ª be not of that belefe For heauen and earth shall sooner perish then one â—oâ—â— or tâ—…e of the law should be put out I come not to destroy the law but to repayre it onely to make it go vpright where it halteth and eueÌ„ to make croked strayght rough smoth as Iohn the Baptist doth in the wildernes and to teach the true vnderstandyng of the law Without me the law caÌ„not be fulfilled nor euer could For though the law were geuen by Moses yet grace and veritie that is to say the true vnderstandyng and power to loue it and of loue to fulfill it commeth and euer came through fayth in me I do but onely wype away the filthie and roten Gloses wherewith the Scribes and the Phariseis haue smered the law and the Prophetes rebuke their daÌ„nable liuyng which they haue fashioned not after the law of God but after their owne sophisticall gloses fayned to mocke out the law of God and to beguile the whole world and to leade them in blyndnesse And that the Scribes and Phariseis falsly belye me how that I go about to destroy the law and to set the people at a fleshly libertie and to make them first disobedient and to despise their spirituall Prelates and then to rise agaynst the teÌ„porall rulers and to make all coÌ„mon to giue liceÌ„ce to sinne vnpunished coÌ„meth only of pure malice hate enuie and furious impaciencie that their visures are plucked froÌ„ their faces and their hypocrisie discouered Howbeit what I teach and what my learnyng is concernyng the law ye shall shortly heare and that in few wordes Who soeuer breaketh one of these least commaundements and teach men so shal be called the least in the kingdome of heauen But he that doth them and teacheth theÌ„ the same shal be great in the kyngdome of heauen Whosoeuer studieth to destroy one of the commaundementes folowing which are yet the least and but childish thynges in respect of the perfect doctrine that shall hereafter be shewed of the misteries yet hid in Christ and teach other men euen so in woorde or ensample whether openly or vnder a colour and thorow false gloses of hypocrisie that same doctour shall all they of the kyngdome of heauen abhorre and dispise and cast hym out of their company as a sething pot doth cast vp her fome and scome and purge her selfe So fast shal they of the kingdome of heauen cleaue vnto the pure law of God without all mens gloses But whosoeuer shall first fulfill theÌ„ himselfe and then teach other and set all his studie to the furtheraunce and mayntaining of them that doctour shall all they of the kingdome of heaueÌ„ haue in price and folow hym and seke hym out as doth an Egle her pray cleaue to hym as burres For these commaundementes are but the very lawe of Moses the draffe of the Phareseis gloses clensed out interpreted according to the pure word of God and as the open text compelleth to vnderstand them if ye looke diligently thereon The kyngdome of heauen take for the congregation or church of Christ And to be of the kyngdome of heauen is to know God for our father and Christ for our Lord and sauiour from all sinne And to enter into this kingdome it is impossible except the hart of men be to kepe the commaundements of God purely as it is written Iohn vij if any man will obay his will that is to say the will of the father that sent me sayth Christ he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of God or whether I speake of myne owne head For if thyne hart be to do the will of God whiche is his commaundementes he will geue thee a pure eye both to discerne the true doctrine from the false the true Doctour froÌ„ the howlyng hypocrite And therfore he sayth For I say vnto you except your righteousnesse excede the righteousnesse of the Scribes and Phariseis ye can not enter into the kingdome of heauen The righteousnes of the Scribes Phariseis can not enter into the kyngdome of heauen The kyngdome of heauen is the true knowledge of God Christ Ergo the righteousnesse of the Scribes Phariseis neither knoweth God nor Christ He that is willyng to obey the will of God vnderstandeth the doctrine of Christ as it is proued aboue the Scribes and the Phariseis vnderstand not the doctrine of Christ Ergo they haue no wil nor lust to obey the will of God To obey the will of God is to seeke the glory of God for the glory of a master is the meeke obedience of his seruauntes the glory of a Prince is the humble obedience of his subiectes the glory of an husbaÌ„d is the chast obedience of his wife the glory of a father is the louyng obedience of his children the Scribes and the Phariseis haue no lust to obey y â— wil of God Ergo they seeke not the glory of God Furthermore the Scribes the Phariseis seke their owne glory they that seeke their owne glory preache their owne doctrine Ergo the Scribes and the Phariseis preach their owne doctrine The maior thou hast Math. xxiij the Scribes and Phariseis do all their workes to be sene of men they loue to sit vppermost at feastes and to haue y e chief seates in the Synagoges and salutations in the open markets and to be called Rabbi And y e minor foloweth the text aboue rehearsed Iohn vij he that speaketh of himselfe or of his own head seketh his owne glory that is to say he that preacheth hys owne doctrine is euer knowen by seekyng hys awne glory so that it is a generall rule to know that a maÌ„ preacheth his own doctrine if he seke his owne glory Some maÌ„ will haply say the Scribes and Phariseis had no other law then Moses the Prophetes nor any other Scripture and grounded their sayinges theron That is truth how theÌ„ preached they their owne doctrine verely it foloweth in the sayd seuenth of Iohn He that seeketh the glory of him that sent him the same is true and there is
it impossible that thou shouldest loue Gods commaundementes If thou loue not the commaundementes so is Christes spirite not in thee which is the earnest of forgeuenesse of sinne and of saluation For Scripture teacheth first repentaunce then fayth in Christ that for his sake sinne is forgeuen to them that repent then good workes whiche are nothyng saue the comaundement of God onely And the commaūdements are nothyng elles saue the helpyng of our neighbours at their nede and the tamyng of our members that they might be pure also as the hart is pure thorough hate of vice and loue of vertue as Gods word teacheth vs which workes must procede out of the fayth that is I must doe them for the loue which I haue God for that great mercy which he hath shewed me in Christ or elles I do them not in the sight of God And that I fainte not in y t payne of the slaying of the sinne that is in my flesh myne helpe is the promise of the assistance of the power of God and the comforte of the reward to come which reward I ascribe vnto the goodnesse mercy and truth of the promiser that hath chosē me called me taught me geuen me the ernest therof not vnto the merites of my doynges or sufferynges For all that I do and suffer is but the way to the reward and not the deseruyng thereof As if the kynges grace shoulde promise to defende mee at home in myne owne realme yet the way thether is thoroughe the Sea wherin I might happely suffer no litle trouble And yet for all that if I might lyue in rest when I come thether I would thinke and so would other say that my paynes were well rewarded which reward benefit I would not proudly ascribe vnto the merites of my paynes takyng by the waye but vnto the goodnesse mercyfulnesse and constant truth of the kynges grace whose gifte it is and to whō the prayse and thanke thereof belongeth of duety and right So now a reward is a gift geuen freely of the goodnesse of the geuer and not of the deseruynges of the receauer Thus it appeareth that if I vowe what soeuer it be for any other purpose thē to tame my members and to be an ensample of vertue and edifying vnto my neighbour my sacrifice is vnsauery and cleane without salt my lampe without oyle and I one of the foolishe virgines and shal be shut from y t feast of the bridegrome whē I thinke my selfe most sure to enter in If I vow voluntary pouertie this must be my purpose that I will be cōtent with a competent liuyng whiche commeth vnto me either by succession of myne elders or whiche I get truly with my labour in ministryng doyng seruice vnto the common wealth in one office or in an other or in one occupatiō or other because that riches and honor shall not corrupt my mind and draw myne hart from God and to geue an example of vertue and edifying vnto other and that my neighbour may haue a liuyng by me as wel as I if I make a cloke of dissimulation of my vow laying a net of fayned beggery to catch superfluous aboundaunce of riches and hye degree and authoritie and thorough the estimatiō of false holynesse to feede maintaine my slouthful idlenes with the sweate labour landes and rentes of other mē after the example of our spiritualtie robbyng them of their faythes God of his honour turnyng vnto myne hypocrisie that confidence which should be geuen vnto the promises of GOD onely am I not a wily foxe and a rauenyng wolfe in a lambes skinne and a paynted sepulchre fayre without and filthy with in In like maner thoughe I seeke no worldly promotion thereby yet if I doe it to be iustified therewith and to get an hyer place in heauen thinkyng that I doe it of myne owne naturall strength and of the naturall power of my freewill and that euery man hath might euen so to do that they doe it not is their faulte and negligence so with the proude Pharisie in comparison of my selfe despise the sinnefull Publicanes what other thyng do I then eate the bloud and fat of my sacrifice deuouring that my self which should be offered vnto God alone and his Christ And shortly what soeuer a man doth of his naturall giftes of his naturall witte wisedom vnderstandyng reason will and good entēt before he be otherwise and cleane contrary taught of Gods spirite and haue receaued other witte vnderstandyng reason and will is fleshe worldly and wrought in abhominable blindnesse with whiche a man can but seeke him selfe his owne profite glory and honour euen in very spirituall matters As if I were alone in a wildernesse where no man were to seke profite or prayse of yet if I would seeke heauen of God there I could of myne owne naturall giftes seke it no other wayes then for the merites and deseruyngs of my good workes and to enter therin by an other way then by the dore Christe whiche were very theft for Christe is Lord ouer all and what soeuer any man will haue of God he muste haue it geuen hym freely for Christes sake Now to haue heauē for myne owne deseruyng is myne owne praise and not Christes For I can not haue it by fauour and grace in Christe and by myne owne merites also For free geuing deseruyng can not stand together If thou wilt vow of thy goods vnto God thou must put salt vnto thys sacrifice that is thou muste minister knowledge in this dede as Peter teacheth 2. Pet. 1. Thou must put oyle of Gods worde in thy Lampe and do it accordyng to knowledge if thou wait for the comming of the bridegrome to enter in with hym into his rest But thou peraduenture wilt hang it about the image to moue men to deuotion Deuotion is a feruent loue vnto gods commaundementes and a desire to be with God and with hys euerlastyng promises Now shall the sight of such riches as are shewed at S. Thomas shryne or at Walsingham moue a mā to loue the commaundements of god better and to desire to bee loosed from his flesh and to be with God or shall it not rather make his poore hart sigh because he hath no such at home and to wishe part of it in another place The priest shall haue it in Gods stead Shall the priest haue it If the Priest be bought with Christes bloude then he is Christes seruaūt not his owne and ought therefore to feede Christes flocke with Christes doctrine and to minister Christes Sacramentes vnto them purely for very loue and not for filthy lucres sake or to be Lorde ouer them as Peter teatheth 1. Pet. v. and Paul Acts. xx Beside this Christ is oures and is a gift geuen vs and we be heyres of Christ and of all that is Christes Wherefore the Priestes doctrine is oures and we heyres of it it
outward thing euen so seeke within thy hart the plaister of mercy the promises of forgeuenes in our Sauiour Iesus Christ accordyng vnto all the ensamples of mercy y t are gone before And with Ionas let them that wait on vanities and seke God here and there and in euery temple saue in their hartes go and seke thou the testament of God in thyne harte For in thyne hart is the word of the law in thine hart is the word of faith in the promises of mercy in Iesus Christ So that if thou confesse with a repentyng hart and knowledge and surely beleue that Iesus is Lord ouer all sinne thou art safe And finally when the rage of thy conscience is ceased and quieted with fast faith in the promises of mercy thē offer with Ionas the offring of prayse and thankesgeuyng and pay the vowe of thy Baptisme that God onely saueth of his onely mercy and goodnes that is beleue stedsastly and preach cōstātly that it is God onely that smiteth and GOD onely that healeth ascribyng the cause of thy tribulation vnto thyne owne sinne and the cause of thy deliuerance vnto y t mercy of god And beware of the leuen that sayth we haue power in our free will before the preaching of the Gospel to deserue grace to kepe the law of congruite or god to bee vnrighteous And say with Iohn in the first that as the law was geuen by Moses euen so grace to fulfill it is geuen by Christ And when they say our deedes with grace deserue heauen say thou with Paule Rom. vj that euerlastyng lyfe is the gift of GOD thorough Iesus Christe our Lorde and that we be made sonnes by fayth Iohn i. And therefore heires of GOD with Christ Rom. viij And say that we receaue all of God through faith that foloweth repentaunce and that we doe not our workes vnto God but either vnto our selues to slay the sinne that remaineth in the fleshe and to waxe perfect either vnto our neighbours which do as much for vs agayne in other thynges And when a man excedeth in giftes of grace let him vnderstand that they be geuen him as well for his weake brethren as for him self as though all the bread be committed vnto the panter yet for his felowes with him whiche geue thee thankes vnto their Lord and recompence the panter agayn with other kynde of seruice in their offices And when they say that Christ hath made no satisfaction for the sinne we do after our Baptisme say thou with the doctrine of Paule that in our Baptisme we receaue the merites of Christes death through repentaunce faith of which two Baptisme is y t signe And though when we sinne of frailtie after our Baptisme we receaue the signe no more yet we be renewed agayne through repentance and fayth in Christes bloud of which twaine y t signe of Baptisme euen continued among vs in Baptising our young childrē doth euer kepe vs in mind call vs backe again vnto our profession if we begon astray promiseth vs forgeuenesse Neither cā actual sinne be washed away with our workes but with Christes bloud neither can there be any other sacrifice or satisfaction to Godward for them saue christes bloud For as much as we can do no workes vnto God but receiue only of his mercy with our repenting faith through Iesus Christ our lord and only sauiour vnto whom and vnto God our father thorowe hym and vnto his holy spirite y t onely purgeth sanctifieth and washeth vs in the innocent bloude of our redemption be prayse for euer Amen The Prologue vppon the Gospell of S. Mathew by M. William Tyndall HEre hast thou mostdere reader the new Testamēt or couenaunt made with vs of GOD in Christes bloud Whiche I haue looked ouer agayne now at the last with all diligence compared it vnto the Greke haue weeded out of it many fautes which lacke of helpe at the begynning and ouersight did sow therein If ought seme chaunged or not altogether agreyng with the Greeke let the finder of the faute consider the Hebrue phrase or maner of speache left in the Greeke wordes Whose preterperfectence and presentence is oft both one the futuretence is the optatiue mode also the futuretence oft y t imperatiue mode in the actiue voyce in the passiue euer Likewise person for person number for number and interrogatiō for a cōditionall and such lyke is with the Hebruesa common vsage I haue also in many places set light in the margent to vnderstand the text by If any mā finde fautes either with the translation or ought beside which is easier for many to do then so well to haue translated it thē selues of their owne pregnante wittes at the beginnyng without an ensāple to the same it shal be lawfull to trāslate it them selues and to put what they lust thereto It I shall perceaue either by my selfe or by information of other y t ought be escaped me or might more playnly be translated I will shortly after cause it to be amended Howbeit in many places me thinketh it better to put a declaration in the margent then to runne to farre from the text And in many places where the text semeth at the first choppe hard to be vnderstād yet the circumstaunces before and after and often readyng together make it plaine inough Moreouer because the kyngdome of heauen which is the Scripture and word of GOD may be so locked vp that he which readeth or heareth it can not vnderstand it as Christ testifieth how that the Scribes and Phariseis had so shut it vp Math. xxiij and had taken awaye the keye of knowledge Luke xj that y t Iewes which thought them selues within were yet so locked out and are to this day that they can vnderstand no sentence of the Scripture vnto their saluation though they cā rehearse the textes euery where and dispute therof as subtely as the Popish Doctours of Dunces darke learnyng whiche with their sophistry serned vs as the Phariseis did y t Iewes Therfore that I might be found faith full to my father and Lord in distributyng vnto my brethren and felowes of one faith their due and necessary fode so dressing it and seasonyng it that the weake stomackes may receiue it also and be the better for it I thought it my dutie most deare reader to warne thee before and to shew thee the right way in and to geue thee the true keye to open it with all and to arme thee agaynst false Prophetes and malicious hypocrites whose perpetuall studie is to blind the scripture with gloses and there to locke it vp where it should saue thee soule to make vs shoote at a wrōg marke to put our trust in those thinges that profite their bellyes onely and slea our soules The right way yea and the onely way to vnderstand the Scripture vnto saluation is that we earnestly and aboue all thyng search
be not in vs how are we his sonnes How are we his heyres heyres annexed with Christ of the eternal life which is promised to all them that beleue in hym Now do our workes testifie and witnes what we are and what treasure is layd vp for vs in heauen so that our eye be single and looke vpon the commaundement without respect of any thing saue because it is Gods wil and that God desireth it of vs and Christ hath deserued that we do it Math. vij Not all they that say vnto me Lord Lord shall enter into the kyngdome of heauen but he that doth the will of my father which is in heauen Though thou canst lande God with thy lippes and call Christ Lord and canst bable and talke of the scripture and knowest all the stories of the Bible Yet shalt thou thereby neuer know thyne election or whether thy fayth be right But if thou feele lust in thyne hart to the will of God and bringest forth the frutes therof then hast thou confidence and hope and thy dedes and also the spirite whence thy deedes spryng certifie thyne hart that thou shal enter yea art already entred into the kyngdome of heauen For it foloweth he that heareth the word and doth it buildeth his house vpō a rock and no tempest of temptations can ouerthrow it For the spirite of God is in his hart and comforteth him holdeth him fast to the rocke of the merites of Christes bloud in whom he is elect Nothyng is able to plucke hym out of the handes of God god is strōger then all things And contrarywise he that heareth the word doth it not buildeth on the sande of his own imagination euery tempest ouerthroweth his buildyng The cause is he hath not Gods spirite in him and therfore vnderstandeth it not a right neither worketh a right For no mā knoweth the thyngs of God sayeth Paul in the i. Epistle to the Corinthians in the second Chapter saue the spirite of God as no man knoweth what is in a mā but a mās spirite which is in him So then if the spirite be not in a man he worketh not the wil of GOD neither vnderstandeth it though he bable neuer so much of the scriptures Neuerthelesse such a mā may worke after his owne imagination but Gods wil can he not woorke he may offer sacrifice but to do mercy knoweth he not It is easy to say vnto christ Lord Lord but therby shalt thou neuer feele or be sure of the kyngdome of heauen But and if thou do the will of God thē art thou sure that Christ is thy Lord in dede that thou in him art also a Lord in y ◠thou felest thy selfe loosed and free frō the bondage of sinne and lusty and of power to do the will of God Where the spirite is there is feelyng For y t spirite maketh vs feele all thinges Where the spirite is not there is no feelyng but a vayne opinion or imagination A Phisitian serueth but for sicke men and that for such sicke mē as feele their sicknesses morne therfore and long for health Christ lykewise serueth but for sinners onely as feele there sinne and that for such sinners that sorrow and morne in theyr hartes for health Health is power or strength to fulfill the law or to keepe the commaundementes Now he that longeth for that health that is to say for to do the law of God is blessed in Christ and hath a promise that his lust shal be fulfilled that he shal be made whole Math. v. blessed are they which hunger thurst for righteousnes sake that is to fulfill the law for their lust shal be fulfilled This lōgyng and consent of the hart vnto the law of God is the woorkyng of the spirite whiche God hath poured into thine hart in earnest that y ◠mightest be sure y ◠God will fulfil all his promises that he hath made thee It is also the seale marke which God putteth on all men that he choseth vnto euerlastyng life So long as thou seest thy sinne and mornest consētest to the law longest though thou be neuer so weake yet the spirite shal kepe thee in all temptatiōs from desperatiō and certifie thyne hart that God for his trouth shall deliuer thee and saue thee yea by thy good dedes shalt thou be saued not whiche thou hast done but whiche Christ hath done for thee For Christ is thine and all his dedes are thy dedes Christ is in thee and thou in him knit together inseparably Neither canst thou be damned except Christ be dāned with thee Neither can Christ be saued except thou be saued with him Moreouer thy hart is good right holy and iust For thy hart is no enemy to the law but a frend a louer The law and thy hart are agreed and at one and therfore is God at one with thee The consent of the hart vnto the law is vnite and peace betwene God and man For he is not myne enemy whiche would fayne do me pleasure and morneth because he hath not wherewith Now he that opened thy disease vnto thee and made thee long for health shall as he hath promised heale thee and he that hath loosed thy hart shall at hys godly laysure lose thy members He that hath not the spirite hath no felyng neither lusteth or longeth after power to fulfil the law neither abhorreth the pleasures of sinne neither hath any more certainetie of the promises of God thē I haue of a tale of Robinhode or of some iest that a man telleth me was done at Rome An other man may lightly make me doubt or beleue the contrary seyng I haue no experience therof my selfe So is it of them that feele not the workyng of the spirite therfore in tyme of temptatiō the buildynges of their imaginations fall MAth x. He that receaueth a Prophet in the name of a Prophet that is because he is a Prophet shall receaue the reward of a Prophet he y t geueth one of these litleones a cup of cold water to drinke in the name of a Disciple shall not lose hys reward Note this that a Prophet signifieth as well him that enterpreteth y e hard places of Scripture as him that prophesieth thyngs to come Now he that receaueth a Prophet a iust man or a Disciple shall haue the same or lyke reward that is to say shal haue the same eternall lyfe whiche is appointed for thē in Christes bloud merites For except thou were elect to y t same eternall lyfe haddest the same fayth and trust in God and the same spirite thou couldest neuer consent to their deedes and helpe them But thy dedes testifie what thou art certifie thy conscience that thou art receaued to mercy and sanctified in Christes passions and sufferynges and shalt hereafter with all them that folow God receaue the reward of eternall lyfe Of thy wordes
y u shalt be iustified of thy wordes thou shalt be condēned Mat. xij That is thy wordes as well as other deedes shal testifie with thee or agaynst thee at the day of iudgemēt Many there are whiche abstaine from the outward dedes of fornication and adulterie neuerthelesse reioyce to talke therof laugh their wordes laughter testifie against them that their hart is vnpure and they adulterers fornicatours in the sight of GOD. The toung and other signes oftymes vtter the malice of the hart though a mā for many causes abstaine his hand from the outward dede or act IF thou wilt enter into lyfe kepe the commaundements Math. xix First remember that when God commaundeth vs to do one thyng he doth it not therfore because that we of our selues are able to do that he cōmaundeth but that by the law we might see know our horrible damnation and captiuitie vnder sinne and therfore should repēt and come to Christ receaue mercy the spirite of God to loose vs strength vs to make vs able to do Gods wil which is the law Now when he sayth if thou wilt enter into lyfe kepe the cōmaundementes is as much to say as he that kepeth the commaundementes is entred into life for except a mā haue first the spirite of lyfe in hym by Christes purchasyng it is impossible for him to kepe the commaundements or that his hart should be loose or at libertie to lust after them for of nature we are enemyes to the law of God As touching that Christ saith afterward if thou wilt be perfect go and sell thy substaūce and geue it to the poore he sayth it not as who should say that there were any greater perfection then to kepe the law of God for that is all perfection but to shew the other hys blindnes which saw not that the law is spirituall and requireth y t hart But because he was not knowyng that he had hurt any man with the outward deede he supposed that he loued his neighbour as him selfe But when he was bydde to shew the deedes of loue and geue of hys aboundaunce to them that neded he departed mournyng Whiche is an euiēdt tokē that he loued not his neighbour as well as him self For if he had neede hym selfe it would not haue greued hym to haue receaued succour of an other man Moreouer he sawe not that it was murther theft that a man should haue aboundaunce of riches lying by hym and not to shew mercy therewith and kyndly to succour hys neighbours neede God hath geuen one man riches to helpe an other at nede If thy neighbour nede thou helpe him not beyng able thou withholdest his dutie from hym and art a thefe before God That also that Christ saith how that it is harder for a rich man who loueth his riches so that he can not find in his hart liberally and freely to helpe the poore and nedy to enter into the kingdome of heauen then a Camell to goe through the eye of a needle declareth that he was not entred into the kingdome of heauen that is to say eternall life But he that kepeth the commaundementes is entred into life he hath life and the spirite of life in him THis kinde of deuils goeth not out but by prayer fasting Math. 27. Not that the deuill is cast out by merites of fasting or praying For he sayth before that for theyr vnbelefes sake they coulde not cast him out It is faith no doubte that casteth out the deuils and fayth it is that fasteth and prayeth Fayth hath the promises of God wher unto she cleaueth and in all thinges thyrsteth the honour of God She fasteth to subdue the body vnto the spirit that the prayer be not let and that the spirite may quietly talke with God she also whensoeuer oportunitie is geuen prayeth God to fulfil his promises vnto his prayse glory And God which is mercifull in promising and true to fullfill them casteth out the deuils and doth all that fayth desireth and satisfyeth her thyrste COme ye blessed of my Father inherite the kingdome prepared for you from the beginning of the worlde for I was a thirst and ye gaue me drincke c. Math. xxv Not that a man with works delerueth eternal life as a work man or labourer his hyre or wages Thou readest in the text that the kingdome was prepared for vs from the beginning of the worlde And we are blessed sanctified In Christes bloud are we blessed from that bitter curse damnable captiuitie vnder sin wherein we were borne and conceiued And Christes spirite is poured into vs to bring foorth good woorkes and our workes are the fruites of the spirite the kingdome is the deseruing of Christes bloud and so is fayth and the spirite and good workes also Notwithstanding the kingdome foloweth good workes and good workes testify that we are heyres thereof and at the day of iudgement shall they testify for the elect vnto theyr comfort and glory and to the confusion of the vngodly vnbeleeuing and faythlesse sinners which had not trust in the worde of Gods promises nor luste to the will of God but were caryed of the spirite of theyr father the deuill vnto all abhomination to worke wickednes with all lust delectation and gredienes MAny sinnes are forgeuen her for she loueth much Luk. vij Not that loue was cause of forgeuenes of sinnes But contrariwise the forgeuenes of sinnes caused loue as it foloweth to whō lesse was forgeuen y ◠same loueth lesse And afore he commended the iudgement of Simon which aunswered that he loueth most to whom most was forgeuen and also sayde at the last thy fayth hath saued thee or made thee safe goe in peace We can not loue except we see some benefite and kyndenes As long as we looke on the lawe of God onely where we see but sinne and damnation and the wrath of God vpon vs yea where we were damned afore we were borne we can not loue God No we can not but hate him as a tyraunt vnrighteous vniust and flee from hym as did Caine. But when the Gospell that glad tidinges and ioyfull promises are preached how that in Christ God loueth vs first forgeueth vs and hath mercy on vs then loue we againe and the deedes of our loue declare our fayth This is the maner of speaking as we say Sommer is nie for the trees blossome Nowe is the blossomyng of the trees not the cause y t sommer draweth nie but the drawyng ni◠of sommer is the cause of y e blossoms and the blossomes put vs in remembraunce that sommer is at hand So Christ here teacheth Simō by the feruentnes of loue in the outward dedes to see a strong faith within whence so great loue springeth As y ◠maner is to say do your charitie shew your charitie do a deede of charitie
profession of the fayth in Christes bloud and of the loue to the law and longyng for the lyfe to come be called all these thynges were malyce and froward vnderstandyng away because that where one of them is there be all three and where all are not there is none of them And because that the one is knowen by the other is impossible to know any of them truly and not be deceaued but in respect and comparison of the other For if thou wilt be sure that thy faith be perfect then examine thy selfe whether thou loue the law And in lyke maner if thou wilt knowe whether thou loue the lawe aright then examine thy selfe whether thou beleue in Christ onely for the remission of sinne and obtayning the promises made in the Scripture And euen so compare thy hope of the lyfe to come vnto fayth and loue and to hatyng the sinne of this lyfe whiche hate the loue to the law engendereth in thee And if they accompanie not one another all thre together then be sure that all is but hypocrisie If you say seyng fayth loue and hope be three vertues inseperable Ergo fayth onely iustifieth not I answere though they be inseperable yet they haue seperable and sundry offices as it is aboue sayd of the lawe fayth Fayth onely which is a sure â—nd an vndoubted trust in Christ and in the father thorow hym certifieth the conscience that the sinne is forgeuen and the dampnation and impossibilitie of the lawe taken away as it is aboue rehearsed in the conditions of the couenaunt And wyth such perswasions mollesieth the hart and maketh her loue God agayne and his lawe And as oft as we sinne faith onely kepeth that we forsake not our profession and that loue vtterly quench not and hope fayle and onely maketh the peace agayne For a true beleuer trusteth in Christ onely and not in his owne workes or ought els for the remission of sinne And the office of loue is to powre out agayne the same goodnes that she hath receaued of God vppon her neighbour and to be to hym as she feleth Christ to her selfe The office of loue onely is to haue compassion and to beare with her neighbour the burthen of his infirmities And as it is writteÌ„ 1. Pet. 4. Operit multitudinem peccatorum couereth the multitude of sinnes That is to say considereth the infirmities and enterpreteth all to the best and taketh for no sinne at all a thousand thinges of which the least were inough if a man loued not to go to law for to trouble vnquiet an whole towne and sometyme an whole realme or two And the office of hope is to comfort in aduersitie and make patient that we faint not and fall downe vnder the crosse or cast it oâ—… our backes And thus ye see that these three inseperable in this life haue yet seperable and sundry offices and effectes as heate drith beyng inseperable in the fyer haue yet their seperable operations For the drith onely expelleth the moystnes of all that is consumed by fyer and heat onely destroyeth the coldenes For drith and colde may stand together and so may heate and moystnes It is not all one to say the dryth onely and the dryth that is alone nor all one to say fayth onely and fayth that is alone Go to then and desire God to print this profession in thyne hart and to encrease it dayly more and more that thou mayst be full shapeÌ„ like vnto the image of Christ in knowledge and loue and meeke thy selfe creepe lowe by the grounde and cleaue fast to the rocke of this profession and tye to thy shippe this anker of fayth in Christes bloud wyth the gable of loue to cast it out against all tâ—…pests and so set vp thy sayle and get thee to the mayne sea of Gods worde And reade here the wordes of Christ with this exposition folowing and thou shalt see the lawe fayth and workes restored eche to his right vse and true meaning And therto the cleare difference betwene the spirituall regiment the temporall and shalt haue an entraunce and opeÌ„ way into the rest of all the scripture Wherein and in all other thinges the spirite of veritie guide thee and thyne vnderstandyng Amen ¶ The fift Chapter of Mathew WHen he saw the people he went vp into a mouÌ„taine and sat him downe and his Disciples came to hym and he opened his mouth and taught them saying Blessed be the poore in spirite for theirs is the kingdome of heauen CHrist here in his first Sermon begynneth to restore the law of the ten commanndements vnto her right vnderstandyng agaynst the Scribes and Phariseis which were hipocrites false Prophetes and false preachers had corrupt the scripture with the leauen of their gloses And it is not without a great mysterie that Christ beginneth his preachyng at pouertie in spirite which is neither beggerie nor agaynst the possessing of richesse But a vertue coÌ„trarie to the vice of couetousnesse the inordinate desire and loue of richesse and puttyng trust in richesse Riches is the gift of God geuen maÌ„ to mayntaine y â— degrees of this world and therefore not euill yea and some must be poore and some rich if we shal haue an order in this world And God our father deuideth richesse and pouertie among his childreÌ„ accordyng to his godly pleasure and wisedome And as richesse doth not exclude the from the blessing so doth not pouertie certifie thee But to put thy trust in the liuyng god maketh y â— heyre therof For if thou trust in the liuing God TheÌ„ if thou be poore thou couetest not to be rich for thou art certified y â— thy father shall minister vnto thee fode raymeÌ„t and be thy defeÌ„der if thou haue riches thou knowest that they be but vanitie and that as thou broughtest them not into the world so shalt thou not carie them out and that as they be thyne to day so may they be an other mans to morow and that the fauour of God onely both gaue and also kepeth thee them and not thy wisedome or power and that they neither ought els caÌ„ helpe at nede saue the good will of thy heauenly father onely Happy and blessed then are the poore in spirite that is to say the rich that haue not their confidence nor consolation in the vanitie of their richesse and the poore that desire not inordinatly to be riche but haue their trust in the liuyng God for fode and raymeÌ„t and for all that partayneth either to the body or the soule for theirs is the kyngdome of heauen And contrarywise vnhappy accursed and that with the first depest of all curses are the rich in spirite that is to say the couetous that beyng riche trust in their richesse or beyng poore long for the consolation of richesse and comfort not their soules with the promises
of their heauenly father confirmed with y ◠bloud of their Lord Christ For vnto them it is harder to enter into y ◠kingdome of heauen then for a camel to enter through y ◠eye of an nedle Mar. 10. No they haue no part in the kyngdome of Christ God Ephe. v. Therefore is it euident why Christ so diligētly warneth all his to beware of couetousnesse and why hee admitteth none to be his Disciples except he first forsake all together For there was neuer couetouse person true yet either to God or man If a couetous mā be chosē to preach Gods word he is a false Prophet immediatly If he be of the lay sorte so ioyneth he him self vnto the false Prophetes to persecute the truth Couetousnesse is not onely aboue all other lustes those thornes that choke y t word of God in them that possesse it But it is also a deadly enemy to all that interprete Gods word truly All other vices though they laugh thē to scorne that talke godly yet they can suffer thē to lyue and to dwell in the countrey But couetousnes cannot rest as long as there is one that cleaueth to Gods word in all the land Take hede to thy preacher therfore and be sure if he be couetous and gape for promotion that he is a false Prophet leaueneth the Scripture for all his crying fathers fathers holy Church and fiften hūdred yeares and for all his other holy pretenses Blessed are they that mourne for they shall be comforted This mournyng is also in the spirite and no kinne to the sowre lokyng of hipocrites nor to the impaciēt weywardnesse of those fleshely which euer whyne and complayne that the world is naught because they cānot obtayne and enioy their lustes therin Neither forbiddeth it alwayes to be mery and and to laugh make good chere now and then to forget sorrow that ouermuch heauynesse swalow not a man cleane vp For the wise man sayth sorow hath cost many their lyues And Prouer. xvij an heauy spirite drieth vp the bones And Paule commaundeth Philip. iiij to reioyse euer And Roma xij he sayth reioyse with them that reioyse and sorow with thē that sorow and wepe with them that wepe which seme two contraries This mourning is that crosse without which was neuer any Disciple of Christ or euer shal be For of what soeuer state or degree thou be in this world if thou professe y ◠Gospell there foloweth the a crosse as warmenesse accompanieth the sonne shynyng vnder which thy spirite shall grone and mourne secretly not onely because the world and thyne owne flesh carie thee away cleane cōtrary to the purpose of thyne hart But also to see and behold the wretchednesse misfortunes of thy brethrē for which because thou louest them as well as thy selfe thou shalt mourne and sorow no lesse thē for thy selfe Though thou be King or Emperour yet if thou knowest Christ and God through Christ and entendest to walke in the fight of God and to minister thyne office truly thou shalt to kepe iustice with all be compelled to do dayly that which thou art no lesse loth to do then if thou shouldest cut of arme hand or any other member of thyne owne body yea and if thou wilt folow the right way and neither turne on the right hand nor on the left thou shalt haue immediatly thine own subiectes thyne owne seruauntes thyne owne Lordes thyne own coūsellours and thyne owne Prophetes thereto agaynst thee Vnto whose froward malice and stubburnesse thou shalt be cōpelled to permitte a thousand thynges agaynst thy conscience not able to resiste them at whiche thyne hart shall blede inwardly and shalt sawse thy swete soppes which the world weneth thou hast with sorowes mough and still mournyng studyeng either alone or els with a few frēdes secretly night and day and sighing to God for helpe to mitigate the furious frowardnesse of them whō thou art not able to with stand that all go not after the will of the vngodly What was Dauid cōpelled to suffer all the dayes of his lyfe of his own seruauntes the sonnes of Seruia Beside the mischaūces of his own children And how was our king Iohn forsaken of his owne Lordes when he would haue put a good and godly reformatiō in his owne land How was Henry the secōd compassed in lyke maner of his own Prelates whom he had promoted of nought with the secrete conspiracie of some of his own temporal Lordes with thē I spare to speake of y e mournyng of the true preachers the poore cōmon people which haue none other helpe but the secret hand of God and the word of his promise But they shal be cōforted of all their tribulatiō and their sorrow shal be turned into ioye and that infinite euerlastyng in the lyfe to come Neither are they without comfort here in this world for Christ hath promised to sēd them a comfortour to be with them for euer the spirite of trouth whiche the world knoweth not Iohn xiiij And they reioyse in hope of the comfort to come Rom. xij And they ouercome through fayth as it is written Hebr. xj the Saintes through fayth ouercame kyngdomes obtained the promises And. i. Iohn v. this is the victorie that ouercōmeth the world euē our faith But the blind world neither seeth our comfort nor our trust in God nor how God thorough faith in his word helpeth vs maketh vs ouercome How ouercome they wilt thou say that be alwayes persecuted and euer slayne verely in euery battaile some of them that wynne the field be slayne yet they leaue the victorie vnto their deare frēdes for whose sakes they toke the fight vppon them and therfore are conquerours seyng they obtayne their purpose maynteine that they fought for The cursed riche of this worlde whiche haue their ioye and comfort in their riches haue sence the begynnyng fought agaynst them to wede thē out of the worlde But yet in vayne For though they haue alwayes slayne som yet those that were slayne wanne the victory for their brethren with death euer increased the nūber of them And though they semed to dye in the sight of the foolish yet they are in peace and haue obtayned that euerlastyng kyngdome for which they fought And beside all this when God plagueth the world for their sinne these y ◠mourne and sorrow are marked with the signe of Thau in their foreheades and saued from the plague that they perish not with the wicked as thou seest Ezech. ix as Lot was deliuered frō among the Sodomites And contrariwise cursed are they that laugh now ▪ that is to say which haue their ioy solace and comfort in their riches for they shall sorrow and weepe Luke vj. And as it was answered the rich man Luke xvj sonne remember how that thou receauedst thy good dayes in thy life tyme and Lazarus likewise euill
no King Lord Master or what ruler it be hath absolute power in this world is the very thyng whiche he is called For then they ceased to bee brethren still neither could they sinne what soeuer they commaunded But now their authoritie is but a limered power Which when they transgresse they sinne agaynst their brethren and ought to reconcile them selues to their brethren to aske forgeuenesse they are bounde to forgeue Finally let kynges rulers and officers remember that God is the very kyng and referre the honour that is geuen to them for their offices sake to him and humble them selues to him knowledge and confesse in their harts that they be but brethren and euen no better before God then the worst of their subiectes Amen For if ye forgeue men theyr fautes your heauenly father shall forgeue you also But and if ye do not forgeue men their fautes no more shall your father forgeue your fautes This is Gods couenaunt with vs and a confirmation of the petition aboue rehearsed in the Pater noster forgeue vs our trespasses as we forgeue our trespassers If thou wilt enter into the couenaūt of thy Lord God and forgeue thy brother then what soeuer thou hast committed agaynst God if thou repēt and aske him forgeuenesse thou art sure that thou art so absolued by these wordes that none in heauen nor earth can bynde thee No though our most holy father curse thee as blacke as coales seuen foote vnder the earth and seuen foote aboue and cast all his lightenyng vpon thee to burne thee to powder Keepe the couenaunt of y t Lord thy God therfore and feare no bugges But and if thon wilt not come within the couenaunt of God or if whē thou hast professed it and receaued the signe therof thou cast the yoke of the Lord from of thy necke be thou sure thou art bound by these wordes so fast that none in heauen or in earth can lowse thee No though our earthyshe God whisper all his absolutions ouer thee claw thee stroke thyne head with all his swete blessynges Furthermore though forgeuenesse of thy sinnes be annexed to thy worke and forgeuyng thy brother yet do not as I said thy workes iustifie thee before God But the fayth in Christes bloud in the promises made to vs for his sake doth bryng righteousnesse in to the hart And the righteousnesse of the hart by fayth is felt and knowen by the worke As Peter in the first of his second Epistle commaūdeth to do good workes for to make our vocatiō and election sure that we might feele our fayth be certified that it is right For except a man be proued and tryed it cannot be knowen neither to hym selfe or other men that he is righteous and in the true faith Take an example least thou be beguiled with sophistrie Christ sayth Math. xiij the kyngdome of heauen is like leuen which a womā taketh hideth in thre peckes of meale till all be leuenned or sour◠Leuen is sometyme takē in an euill sence for the doctrine of the Phariseis which corrupted the swetenesse of the word of God with the leuē of their gloses and sometime in a good sence for the kingdome of heauen that is to say the Gospell and glad tydinges of Christ For as leuen altereth the nature of dowe and maketh it through sowre euen so the Gospell turneth a man into a new life and altereth him a litle and a litle first the hart and then the members Faith in Christ first certifieth the cōsciēce of the forgeuenesse of sinnes and deliuereth vs from the feare of euerlastyng damnation and then bryngeth the loue of God of his law into the hart which loue is the righteousnesse of y ◠hart Loue bringeth good workes into the mēbers which workes are y ◠outward righteousnesse and the righteousnesse of the mēbers To hate the will of God is the vnrighteousnesse of the hart causeth euill workes which are the vnrighteousnesse of the members As whē I hated my brother my toung spake euill my handes smote so forth To loue is the righteousnesse of the hart and causeth good workes which are the righteousnesse of the mēbers As if I loue my brother and he haue nede of me be in pouertie loue will make me put myne hand into my purse or almory and to geue him some what to refresh him c. That the loue of God and of his commaundementes is the righteousnesse of the hart doth no man doubt saue he that is hartlesse And that loue spryngeth of fayth thou mayst euidētly see i. Ioh. ij he y ◠loueth his brother dwelleth in y t light But he that hate h his brother is in darkenes walketh in darckenesse and wotteth not whether he goeth for darckenesse hath blynded his eyes Why is he that hateth in darcknesse verely because he seeth not the loue of God in Christ For if he saw that he coulde not but loue his brother for so kynde a fathers sake If any man hate his brother be thou sure that the same mā is in darcknesse and hath not y e light of true faith nor seeth what Christ hath done If a man so loue that he cā forgeue his brother assure thy selfe that he is in the light of the true faith and seeth what mercy is shewed him in Christ This is then the summe of altogetheri workes are the outward righteousnes before y ◠world may be called the righteousnes of y e mēbers spring of inward loue Loue is the righteousnes of the hart and springeth of faith Faith is the trust in Christes bloud is the gift of God Ephes ij whereunto a man is drawen of the goodnesse of God and driuen thorow true knowledge of the lawe and of beholding his decdes in the lust and desire of the members vnto the request of the lawe and with seing his owne dampnation in the glasse of the lawe For if a man sawe his owne dampnation in y t law he should immediatly hate God hys workes and vtterly dispayre except God offered him Christ and forgaue all that were past and made hym hys sonne and tooke the dampnatiō of the lawe away and promised that if he would submit himself to learne and to do his best that he should be accept as well as an Angell in heauē and therto if he fell of frailtie and not of malice and stubbornnesse it should be forgeuen vpon amendment and that God would euer take him for his sonne and onely chastice him at home whē he dyd amisse after the most fatherlyest maner and as easely as his disease would suffer but neuer bring him forth to be iudged after the rigorousnes of y t law And as thou couldest not see Leauen though thou brakest vp a loafe except thou smelledst or tastedst the sourenes euē so couldest thou neuer see true faith or loue except thou
their obedience they destroy the obedience that God ordayned in this world desireth no other With their pouerty they destroy the pouertie of the spirit which Christ taught onely whiche is onely not to loue worldly goodes With their fast they destroy the fast which God commaundeth that is a perpetuall sobernesse to tame the fleshe With their patteryng prayer they destroy the prayer taught by God whiche is either thankes or desiryng helpe with fayth trust that God heareth me Their holynesse is to forbyd y t God ordeined to be receaued with thankes giuyng as meate matrimony And their owne workes they maintayne let Gods decay Breake theirs they persecute to the death But breake Gods and they either looke through the fingers or els geue thee a flappe with a Foxe tayle for a litle money There is none order among them that is so perfect but that they haue a prison more cruell theÌ„ any iayle of theues and murtherers And if one of their brethren commit fornication or adultery in the world he finisheth his penaunce therin in three Wekes or a moneth and then is sent to an other place of the same religion But if he attempt to put of the holy habite he commeth neuer out is so straytly dioted therto that it is meruell if he liue a yeare beside other cruell murther that hath bene found among them and yet is this shamefull dyoting of theirs murther cruell inough Be not deceaued with visions nor yet with miracles But go to iudge their workes for the spiritual iudgeth all thinges sayth Paule i. Cor. ij Who is that spirituall not such as we now call men of holy Church But all that haue the true interpretation of the law written in their harts The right fayth of Christ and the true inteÌ„t of workes which God byddeth vs worke he is spirituall and iudged all thinges and is iudged of no man Not all that say to me Lorde Lorde shall enter into the kyngdome of heauen But he that fulfilleth the will of my father which is in heauen Many will say vnto me at that day Lord Lord dyd we not prophesie in thy name and in thy name cast out deuils and dyd we not in thy name many miracles Then will I confesse vnto theÌ„ I neuer knew you depart from me ye workers of iniquitie This doublyng of Lord hath vehemency and betokeneth that they which shal be excluded are such as thinke theÌ„ selues better and perfitter then other men and to deserue heauen with holy workes not for them selues onely but also for other And by that they prophesied by which thou mayst vnderstand the interpretyng of Scripture and by that they cast out deuils did miracles in Christes name and for all that they are yet workes of wickednesse and do not the will of the father which is in heauen it is playne that they be false Prophetes and euen the same of which Christ warned before And now for as much as Christ and his Apostles warne vs that such shall come and describe vs the fashions of their visures Christes name holy Church holy fathers and xv hundred yeares with Scripture and miracles and commaunde vs to turne our eyes from their visures and consider their frutes and cut them vp and loke with in whether they be sound in the core kernell or no and geue vs a rule to try them by is it excuse good inough to say God will not let so great a multitude erre I will folow the most part and beleue as my fathers dyd and as the preachers teach and will not busie my selfe chose them the faute is theirs and not ours God shall not lay it to our charge if we erre Where such wordes be there are the false Prophetes all ready For where no loue to the truth is there are y â— false Prophetes where such wordes be there to be no loue to y e truth is plame Ergo where such woordes be there be the false Prophetes in their full swyng by Paules rule ij Thessa ij An other conclusion where no loue to the truth is there be false Prophetes The greatest of the world haue least loue to the truth Ergo the false Prophetes be the Chaplaines of the greatest which may with the sword compel the rest As the kynges of Israell compelled to worshyp the golden Calues And by false Prophetes vnderstand falâ—e teachers as Peter calleth them and wycked expounders of the Scripture Who soeuer heareth these words of me and doth them I will lyken him vnto a wise man that built hys house vppon a rocke and there fell a rayne and the floudes came and the windes blew and beate vppon that house but it fell not for it was grounded vpon a rocke And all that heare of me these wordes and do them not shal be lykened vnto a foolishe man that buylt his house vpon the sand and there fell a rayne and the floudes came and the windes blâ—w and dashed vpon that house and it fell and the fall therof was great Christ hath two sortes of hearers of which neither of them do there after The one wil be saued by fayth of theyr owne makyng without workes The other with workes of their owne makyng without faith The first are those voluptuous which haue yelded them selues vp to sinne saying tushe God is mercyfull Christ dyed for vs that must saue vs onely for we cannot but sinne without resistaÌ„ce The second are the hypocrites which will deserue all with theyr owne imagined woorkes onely And of fayth they haue no other experience saue that it is a litle meritorious where it is paynefull to be beleued As that Christ was borne of a virgin and that he came not out the way that other children do he no that were a great inconuenience but aboue vnder her arme yet made no hole though he had a very naturall body as other meÌ„ haue and that there is no bread in the Sacrament nor wyne though the fiue wittes say all ye And the meritorious payne of this belefe is so heauy to them that except they had fayned them a thousand wise similitudes and lowsye lykenesses and as many madde reasoÌ„s to stay them with all and to helpe to captiuate their vnderstandyng they were like to cast all of their backes And the onely refuge of a great many to keepe in that fayth is to cast it out of their myndes not to thinke vpon it As though they forgeue not yet it they put the displeasure out of their myndes and thinke not of it til a good occasion be geueÌ„ to adueÌ„ge it they thinke they loue their neighbour well inough all the while and be in good charge And the fayth of the best of them is but like theyr fayth in other worldly stories But the fayth which is trust and confidence to be saued and to haue their sinnes forgeuen by Christ which was so borne haue they not at all
Realmes and common wealthes but they that do wickedly and namely high Prelates and mighty Princes which walke without the feare of God and lyue abhominably corrupting the common people with their example They be they that bryng the wrath of God on all Realmes and trouble all common wealthes with warre dearth pouertie pestilence euill lucke and all misfortune And vnto all subiectes be it sayd if they professe the law of God fayth of the Lord Iesus wil be Christes Disciples then let them remember that there was neuer man so great a subiect as Christ was there was neuer creature that suffred so great vnright so paciently and so mekely as he Therfore what soeuer they haue bene in tymes past let them now thincke that it is their partes to be subiect in the lowest kynde of subiection and to suffer all thynges paciently If the hyghe powers bee cruell vnto you with naturall crueltie then with softenesse and pacience ye shall either wynne them or mitigate theyr fiercenesse If they ioyne theÌ„ vnto the Pope and persecute you for your fayth and hope whiche ye haue in y e Lord Iesus then call to mynde that ye be chosen to suffer here with Christ that ye may ioy with hym in the lyfe to come with ioye euerlastyng that shall infinitely passe this your short payne here If they commaunde that God forbiddeth or forbyd that God commaundeth then aunswere as the Apostles did Actes v. that God must be obeyed more then maÌ„ If they compell you to suffer vnright then Christ shall helpe you to beare and his spirite shall comfort you But onely see that neither they put you from Gods worde nor ye resiste them with bodely violence But abyde paciently a while till the hypocrisie of hypocrites be slayne with the sword of Gods word and vntill the word be openly published witnessed vnto y e powers of y e world that their blyndnesse may be with out excuse And theÌ„ wil god awake as a fierce Lyon agaynst those cruell Wolues whiche deuoure his Lambes and will play with the hypocrites and compasse them in their owne wyles send them a dazing in the head and a swimming in their braynes destroy them with theyr own counsell And then those malicious and wilfull blynd persecuters whiche refusing mercy when they were called thereto chose rather to haue theyr part with hypocrites in sheddyng of innocent bloud shal bee partakers with them also in hauyng theyr owne bloud shed agayne God geuyng an occasion that one wicked shall destroy an other And as for wickednesse whence it springeth and who is the cause of all insurrection and of the fall of Princes the shortenyng of theyr dayes vpon the earth thou shalt see in the glasse folowyng which I haue set before thyne eyes not to resiste the hypocrites with violence whiche vengeaunce pertayneth vnto God but that thou mightest see their wicked wayes and abhominable pathes to withdraw thy selfe from after them and to come agayne to Christ and walke in hys light and to folow hys steppes and to committe the keepyng both of thy body and soule also vnto him and vnto the father thorough hym whose name bee glorious for euer Amen ¶ Prelates appointed to preach Christ may not leaue Gods worde and minister temporall offices But ought to teach the lay people the right way and let them alone with all temporall businesse OVr Sauiour Iesus Christ answered Pilate Ioh. 18. that his kindome was not of thys worlde And Mathew x. he sayth The Disciple is not greater then his master but it ought to suffice the Disciple that he be as hys master is Wherfore if Christes kyngdome be not of this worlde nor any of his disciples may be otherwise then he was then Christes Vicars which minister his kingdome here in his bodely abseÌ„ce haue y e ouersight of his flock may be none Emperours kinges Dukes Lords Knightes temporall iudges or any teÌ„poral officer or vnder false names haue any such dominion or minister any such office as requireth violeÌ„ce And Math. 6. No maÌ„ caÌ„ serue two masters Where Christ coÌ„cludeth saying Ye can not serue God MaÌ„mon that is riches couetousnes ambicion and temporall dignities And Math. xx Christ called his disciples vnto him and sayde ye know y â— the Lordes of the heathen people haue dommion ouer them and they that be great do exercise power ouer them How be it it shall not be so among you But whosoeuer will be great among you shall be your minister and he that will be chiefe shal be your seruaunt euen as the sonne of man came not that men shoulde minister vnto hym but for to minister and geue his life for the redemption of many Wherfore the officers in Christes kingdome may haue no temporall dominion or iurisdiction nor execute any temporall auctoritie or lawe of violence nor may haue any like maner among them But cleane coÌ„trary they must cast themselues downe vnder al and become seruauntes vnto all suffer of all and beare the burthen of euery mans infirmities and go before theÌ„ fight for them against the world with the sworde of Gods word eueÌ„ vnto y e death after the ensample of Christ And Math. xviij WheÌ„ the disciples asked who shoulde be greatest in the kingdome of heauen Christ called a young child vnto hym and set him iâ— y â— middes among them saying Excepte ye turne backe and become as childreÌ„ ye shall not enter in the kingdome of heauen Now younge children beare no rule one ouer an other but al is felowship amonge them And he sayde moreouer whosoeuer humbleth himselfe after the ensample of this childe he is greatest in the kingdome of heauen that is to be as concerning ambition and worldly desire so childishe that thou couldest not heaue thy selfe aboue thy brother is the very bearing of rule to be great in Christes kingdome And to describe the very â—ashion of the greatnesse of his kingdome he sayd He that receaueth one such childe in my name receaueth me What is y t to receaue a childe in Christes name Verely to submitte to meeke and to humble thy selfe and to cast thy selfe vnder all men to consider all mens infirmities and weakenesses and to helpe to heale their diseases wyth the worde of truth and to liue purely that they see no contrary ensample in thee to whatsoeuer thou teachest them in Christ that thou put no stumblinge blocke before them to make them falle while they be yet youÌ„g and weake in the fayth But that thou absteine as Paule teacheth 1. Thes 5. Ab omni specie mala from all that might seeme euill or wherof a man might surmise aâ—iste and that thou so loue them that whatsoeuer giâ—t of god in thee is thou thinke the same theirs and their foode and for their sakes geuen vnto thee as the truth is and that all their infirmities be thine and that
also coueteth to counterfayte his kinsmaÌ„ although the beames of his braines be nothyng so radiaunt nor his coÌ„ueyaunce so commendable in the eyes of the wise Notwithstandyng this Rastell hath enterprised to dilate this matter and hath diuided it into three Dialoges imaginyng that two men dispute this matter by natural reason and Philosophie secludyng Christ and all Scripture The one of them that should dispute this matter he calleth Gingemen fayneth hym to be a Turke and of Mahometes law The second he nameth Comingo an Almany of Christes fayth And he maketh the Turke to teach the Christen maÌ„ what he should beleue The first Dialoge goeth about to proue by reason that there is a God which is mercyfull and righteous The second entendeth to proue that the soule of a man is immortall Agaynst these two Dialogues I will not dispute partly because this treatise should not be ouer long and tedious and partly because that those twoo poyntes which he there laboureth to proue are such as no Christen man will deny although many of his probations are so slender that they may well be improued but as concerning his thyrd Dialogue wherin he would proue Purgatory it is wholly iniurious vnto the bloude of Christe and the destruction of all Christen fayth if men were so mad as to beleue his vayne persuasions And therfore I thought expedient to coÌ„pare this third Dialoge with all the deceitfull reasons vnto the true light and pure worde of God that at the least Rastell hym selfe might perceiue his owne blind ignoraunce and returne agayne into the right way And if any man haue bene deceiued through his booke as I trust there are but few except they bee very ignoraunt that they may repent with hym and glorifie GOD for his inestimable mercy which hath sent his light into this world to disclose and expell theyr darke and blynd ignorauncy that they may see his wayes and walke in them praysing the Lord eternally Amen The first Booke whiche is an aunswere vnto Rastelles Dialogue THere is no man as I thinke that hath a naturall wytte but hee will graunt me that this booke of Rastels making is either true or false If it be false theÌ„ how so euer it séeme to agrée with naturall reason it is not to be allowed if it be true then must we approue it Naturall reason must bee ruled by Scripture If naturall reason conclude agaynst the Scripture so is it false but if it be agréeyng to Scripture then is it to be heard Of this may I conclude that if Rastels booke be agréeyng to Scripture then is it true and to be allowed if it determine coÌ„trary to the Scripture then is it false and to bee abhorred how soeuer it séeme to agrée with naturall reason Now is there no Christen maÌ„ but hee beleueth surely that if Christ had not dyed for our sinnes we should all haue bene damned perpetually neuer haue entred into the ioyes of heauen whiche thyng is easie to be proued for Paule sayth Rom. 5. As thorough one maÌ„s sinne that is AdaÌ„ ensued death in all meÌ„ vnto condeÌ„natioÌ„ Euen so thorough one mans righteousnes which is Christ came righteousnes in al men vnto y e iustification of lyfe Also Iohn xi It is necessary that one man dye for the people that all the people perishe not so that we had ben condemned and had perished perpetually if Christ had not dyed for vs. But Rastel with his Turke Gingemin excludeth Christ and knoweth not of his death wherfore al y t reasoÌ„s that they can make vnto domesday caÌ„ neuer proue Purgatory except they imagine y â— we must first go to Purgatory and then after to hell for this is a playne coÌ„clusioÌ„ that without Christ whom they exclude we can neuer come to heauen what fondnes were it then to inuent a Purgatory Now may you sée that Rastels booke is fully aunswered and lieth already in the dyrte and that his thyrd Dialogue is all false and iniurious vnto the bloud of Christ As for the first and second Dialogue although there be some errours both agaynst Diuinitie and all good Philosophy yet wil I passe them ouer for they are not so blasphemous agaynst God and his Christe as the thyrd is Notwithstandyng I will not thus leaue his booke although I might full well but I will declare vnto you what solutions he maketh to these seueÌ„ weake reasons which he hath propounded hym selfe for hee auoydeth them so slenderly that if a man had any doubte of Purgatory before it would make hym sweare on a booke that there were none at all Besides that it hath not one solutioÌ„ but there are in it certaine pointes repugnauÌ„t vnto Scripture so that it is greate shame that any Christen man should Printe it and much more shame that it should be Printed with the kynges priuilege The first and chiefest reason that moueth this man yea and all other to affirme Purgatory is this whiche he putteth both in the first Chapter of his third Dialogue and also in y â— last Man sayth he is made to serue and honour God now if man be negligent about the commaundements of God and committe some veniall sinne for which he ought to be punished by the iustice of God dye sodenly without repentaunce and haue not made sufficieÌ„t satisfactioÌ„ vnto God here in the worlde hys soule ought neither immediatly to come into the glorious place of heauen because it is somewhat defouled with sinne neither ought it to go to hell vnto eternal daÌ„natioÌ„ but by al good order of iustice that soule must bee purged in an other place to make satisfactioÌ„ for those offences that it may afterward â—ee receiued into the glorious place of heaueÌ„ And so by the iustice of God there must nedes be a Purgatory Forsoth this reason hath some apperaunce of truth and the similitude of wisedome howbeit in déede it is nothyng but mans imagination and phantasie For if we compare it vnto Gods word then vanisheth it away But we regarde not the word of the Lord and therfore chaunceth eueÌ„ the same thyng vnto vs that happened before vnto the children of Israell Psal 81. My people regarded not my voyce and Israell gaue no bede vnto me therfore let I them go after the appetites of their owne harts They shall wander in their owne imaginations Now what goe they about in this their inuention and imaginatioÌ„ of Purgatory but to ponder the iustice of God in the balance of maÌ„s iustice saying It is no reason that we should enter into heauen which haue not here satisfied vnto God for our iniquitie except that we should be tormeÌ„ted and purified in an other place We were surely in euill takyng if God were of mans coÌ„plection which remitteth the fault and reserueth the payne Nay nay Christ is not gredy to be auenged He thirsteth not after our bloud but suffered all
tormentes in his owne body to deliuer vs from the paines that we had deserued But seyng they thinke their reasō so strōg and inuincible I will confute it with one question that they shal not know whyther to turne them But first I will ground me vpon this Scripture S. Paule writeth 1. Thess 4. on this maner we that liue and are remayning in the comming of the Lord vnto iudgemēt shall not come yere they that sléepe for the Lord himselfe shall descende from heauen with a shoute and the voyce of the Archaungell and trōpe of God And the dead in Christ shall arise first then shall we whiche liue and remaine bée caught vp with them also in the cloudes to mete the Lorde in the ayre and so shall we euer be with the Lord. Now harken to my question Those men that shal be found alyue at the last day for as it was in the tyme of Noe euē so shall the last day come vppon vs vnwares and as a théefe in the night Math. 24. those men I speake of shall any of thē be saued or not There is no mā that liueth but hee may well say his Pater nostor of the which one part is Forgeue vs Lorde our trespasses as we forgeue them that trespasse against vs therfore is no man pure and with out all sinne And this confirmeth S. Iohn saying If we say we haue no sinne we deceaue our selues and the truth is not in vs. 1. Iohn 1. what remedie now shall they all be damned There is no doubt but some of them shall not be very euill although they haue not made sufficient satisfaction vnto God in this world they ought not to go vnto hell to euerlastyng dānatiō as your owne reason proueth and then shall there be no Purgatory to purge and punishe them Besides that if there were a Purgatory at y ◠time yet could they not be cast into it for all shall be done in the twinklyng of an eye 1. Cor. xv and they shall be caught vp to mete the Lord. 1. Thess 4. Is God not as iust then as he was before will he not haue punished as well then as before Nowe sée you no euasion for all your suttle imaginations for they are not pure and without spotte as you say except they make satisfaction them selues vnto God But they must be without spot or wrincle that shall enter into heauē as Rastell him selfe doth proue in the ix Chapter of hys thyrd Dialogue Howbeit I regarde not his testimony but the Scripture affirmeth that to be true as Paul sayth Ephesians 1. and. 5. Now sith they must be pure euē without spot or wrincle that shall enter into heauen and these persons are yet spotted with sinne and haue neither place nor space to purge them in you must néedes conclude whether you will or not that they must all bee damned and yet you thinke that vnreasonable to Sée whyther your Argumentes of naturall reason bring you But what sayth the Scripture verely Paule 1. Thess 4. espyed an other way for he saith and so shall we euer be with the Lord and not damned Of this may we euidently conclude that some shal be saued although they be sinners neuer come in Purgatory there taketh Rastell a fall all his faultours and sith God is as iust and mercyfull now as he shall be then why shall we go more in Purgatory thē they But marke I pray you how properly that substauntiall reason wherewith they go about to stablishe Purgatory concludeth which condemneth into hell so many thousandes yea and euen them whom Paule affirmeth to be saued And yet at the begynnyng it séemed very reasonable Now haue I proued you sufficiētly that this their reason can proue no Purgatory for as I sayd there shall sinners enter into heauen and neuer come in Purgatory Here peraduenture you bee desirous to know how Gods iustice is pacified For all sinne by the iustice of God must néedes be punished Now can the world espy no punishment here and therefore they thought it necessary to imagine a purgatory to purge punish sinne Here aunswere I with S. Paule Christ the sonne of God beyng the brightnes of his glory very image of his substaūce bearing vp all things with the word of his power hath in hys owne person purged our sinnes and is set on the right hande of God Behold the true Purgatory and consumyng fire whiche hath fully burnt vp and consumed our sinnes hath for euer pacified the fathers wrath towardes vs. Marke how he sayth that Christ in his owne person hath purged our sinnes If thou yet séeke an other purgation then are you iniurious vnto the bloud of Christ For if thou thought his bloud sufficiēt then wouldest thou séeke no other Purgatory but geue him all the thākes and all the prayse of thy whole health and saluation and reioyse whole in the Lord. Paul writeth ▪ Ephes 5. on this maner Christ loued the congregation And what dyd he for it sent he it into Purgatory there to be clensed Nay verely but gaue hym selfe for it that he might sāctifie it and clense it in the fountaine of water thorough the word to make it vnto hym selfe a glorious congregation without spot or wrincle or any such thyng but that it should bee holy and without blame Now if Christ by these meanes haue sanctified it and made it without spot wrincle and blame then were it agaynst all right to cast it into Purgatory wherfore I must néedes cōclude that either Paul saith not true which affirmeth that Christ hath so purged his congregatiō or els that Christ is vnrighteous if he cast them into Purgatory whiche are wtout spot wrincle and blame in his sight Christ those vs in hym before the begynnyng of the worlde that we might bee holy and without spotte in his sight Ephes 1. If through his chosyng and election we be without spot in his sight Alas what blind vnthāke fulnes is that to suppose that he will yet haue vs tormented in Purgatory Peraduenture euery man perceaueth not what this meaneth that we are righteous in hys sight seyng that euery man is a sinner 1. Iohn 1 Therefore I will briefly declare the meanyng of the Apostle This is first a cleare case that there lyueth no mā vppon the earth without sinne Notwithstandyng all they that were chosen in Christ before the foundatiō of the world were laid are without spot of sinne in the sight of God Ephes 1. So that they are both sinners righteous If we consider the imperfectiō of our fayth and charitie If we consider the conflict of the flesh and the spirite Gala. 5. If we consider our rebellious members which are sold vnder sinne Roma 7. then are we greuous sinners And cōtrarywise if we beleue that of mercyable fauour God gaue his most deare sonne to redeme vs
e soule after Rastels learnyng must proue that heauen and hell be here in earth or els there cā be none Sée this learned man y t would proue Purgatory by good Philosophy The second cause that Purgatory should be a good example to the liuing to put them in feare to do any like offence is not soluted of Rastell but I haue soluted it before and will yet satisfie you agayne because Rastell leaueth it out We haue here in y e world Moses the Prophetes that is y e old Testament yea also Christ his Apostles which we call the new Testament now if we beleue not these thē shall we not surely beleue although we had Purgatory hel to amōg vs. And this may well bee gathered of Christes owne wordes Luke xvj Where he brought in y e parable of y e rich mā Lazarus for y e rich mā being in paynes desired Abrahā to send Lazarus vnto his v. brethrē to warne them that they might not come into that fire Abrahā aunswered agayne y t they had Moses the Prophetes And added let them heare them Thē sayd the rich mā Nay father Abrahā but if any of them that are departed appeare vnto them then will they beleue it And Abraham concludeth on this maner If they beleue not Moses and the Prophetes no more wil they beleue if any of the dead should rise agayne And therfore may I likewise conclude that if they beleue not neither yet feare the paynes which Moses and the Prophets yea and Christ and his Apostles haue prophesied to fall on the vnfaythfull then will they not beleue for feare of the paynes of Purgatory Now to the last pointe where Purgatory should be he aunswereth as you shall heare First y t it is a foolish question for hee can not aunswere vnto it by his Philosophy And then he sayth that no man can tell neither the place neither yet the maner of the payne Here maketh he S. Thomas yea and all our Scholemen fooles by craft partly because they take vpon them to aunswere vnto this question whiche he calleth foolish and partly because they fully determine that the place of Purgatory is the third place in hell and all to assigne fire to be the maner of y t payne And agayne in this last part hee proueth thē double fooles Once because they stoutly affirme that thyng which no man can tell as Rastel sayth And agayne because they restrayne God of his libertie that assigne any place make him oflesse authoritie then an inferiour iudge which hath no place assigned hym but may doe execution and punish the giltie in what place he will I wonder that our Scholemen may abyde this felow And then he sayth that Purgatory is in a place limitatiue And where soeuer God doth limitte the soule to bee purged there is the limitatiue place of that soule and there is the Purgatory of that soule So y t a man may gather by Rastell that the soules bee not limited to one place to be purged and punished And therto agréeth also his similitude of the iudge whiche assigneth one to be punished in one place and an other in an other place euen at his pleasure If such geare had come from beyond the Sea it should soone haue bene condemned although it had not bene halfe so greuous agaynst our Scholemen But let this passe as it is well worthy and let vs sée examine more of this new-fangled Philosophy NOw are we come vnto the sixte argument whiche begynneth in the. xij chapter the effect is this Repentaunce is the full payment and satisfaction of sinne and bryngeth remission therfore as soone as repentaunce is taken God of his iustice must geue remissiō and so there ought to be no Purgatory This argument is nothyng worth for the first part as we haue oftē proued is false For if repentaunce were the full payment and very satisfaction for sinne then dyed Christ in vayne Notwithstandyng if hee graunt this first part to be true neither he nor all his felowes shal be able to solute this argument whyle they lyue But because we will be short let vs passe ouer to his aunswere whiche is in the. xiij chapter In solutyng this argument hee groundeth hym on two lyes at once the firste is that God neuer geueth remission except he see in vs a conuenient cause counterpaysyng hys iustice What cause founde he in the man that was brought vnto hym sicke of the palsie to whom he sayd be of good comfort sonne thy sinnes are forgiuen thée Math. ix Marke ij Luke v. what cause found he in the théefe that was crucified with him but that hee had bene an vnthryft all his life lōg And yet euen the same day that hee suffred with Christ was he partaker of ioye with him in Paradise Luke xxiij Where was Purgatory then where was the punishment that hee should haue suffered for his enormities If any mā should suffer in Purgatory it is like that this théefe should haue done it But he went from death to life neuer came in Purgatory wherfore I may conclude that no mā shall come there if there were any What cause I pray you doth Paule assigne as touching our redēptiō remission of our sinne forsooth no other but y t we were wretched sinners and the very enemyes of God Roma v. For sayth Paule if whē we were his enemyes we were reconciled vnto God through the death of his sonne much more now we are reconciled shall we besaued by his lyfe So that in vs is no maner cause of remission but onely miserie and sinne But the whole cause of the remission of our sinnes of our saluation is the bloud of Christ which hath fully counterpaysed the iustice of God the father hath pacified his wrath towardes vs that beleue He is the very Purgatory for all faithful which hath already purged our sinnes sitteth on the right hand of the father Hebr. i. The secōd lye is this he sayth that God of hys iustice must geue to euery thyng his own which own is the thyng that it deserueth to haue If this were true then should not one of vs enter the inheritaunce of heauen for we haue euery one of vs deserued death and damnation For as Paul saith Roma iij. we haue all sinned and want the glory whiche before God is allowed But we are fréely iustified through his grace by y t fayth that is in Christ Iesu If it be fréely through his grace then is it not by our owne deseruyng for thē grace were no grace And contrarywise if it be by our own deseruing thē is it not of grace for then deseruyng were no deseruyng Roma xj But the truth is this that God of his mercy had promised vnto our forefathers his deare sonne Christ that hee should deliuer them
frō all their iniquities and that all the nations of the world should be blessed in him Gene. xij This séede he promised of his mercy fauour whō also he sent in the time that he had ordeined Gala. iiij not for our owne deseruynges but for his truthes sake to fulfill that he had promised This Christ is become our righteousnes i. Cor. i. so y t the iustice of God is not to geue vs y ◠we our selues haue deserued as Rastell lyeth but to cloth vs with an other mans iustice that is Christes to geue vs y ◠which Christ hath deserued for vs. And this iustice of God through the fayth of Iesu cōmeth vnto all and vpon all them that beleue Roma iij. Now marke a mystery Christ humbled him selfe and was made obedient vnto the death euen to the death of y t crosse Phil. ij This obedience and death was not for himselfe but for vs for he alone suffered and dyed for vs all Cor. v. Now sith hee was obedient vnto the death for vs that is euen as good as though we our selues had bene obedient euery man for him selfe vnto the death And sith he dyed for vs that is euē as good as though we had dyed our selues for our owne sinnes What wilt thou haue more of a man then that hee be obedient vnto God the father euen vnto death yea dye for his sinnes wilt thou yet thrust hym into Purgatory On these two lyes bryngeth he in an aunswere which is so confused intricate and long that it were not onely foolishnes to solute it but also much lost labour cost to rehearse it wherfore I let it passe for euery child shall easely solute it sith his foūdation and first stone is taken from hym But yet one thyng is necessary to be touched He goeth about to proue hys purpose with an ensample on this maner If I do beate thy seruaunt or apprentisse and do mayme him wher by thou doest loose his seruice and also that this seruaunt duryng hys life is not able to get his lyuyng If so be that thou do forgeue me the offēce done vnto thee in that thou hast lost his seruice yet am I boūd to make an other satisfaction vnto thy seruaunt for the hurt I haue done him which is the cause of the hynderaunce of his lyuyng And in lyke maner if I haue offended God and my neighbour Albeit God for geue me his deale yet can he not of iustice forgeue me my neyghbours deale to but yet must I make satisfaction vnto my neyghbour Now in case I would and be not able to fatisfie my neyghbour and yet he forgeue me not then must I suffer in the paynes of Purgatory for it those paynes shall stād my neighbour in profite for part of his Purgatory if he come there or els to the increase of his ioy if he go to heauē this is y t sūme but he speaketh it in many mo wordes Now because he hath touched the matter of satisfactiō I wil shew you my minde therin There are twoo maner of satisfactions The one is to God the other to my neighbour To God can not all the worlde make satisfaction for one crime In so much that if euery grasse of the grounde were a man euen as holy as euer was Paul or Peter and should pray vnto God all their lyues long for one crime yet could they not make satisfaction for it But it is onely the bloud of Christ that hath made full satisfaction vnto God for all such crimes Heb. vij or els were there no remedy but we should all perish as I haue proued before And he that seeketh any other satisfaction towardes God then Christ our Sauiour hee doth wrong vnto his precious bloud There is an other satisfactiō which is vnto my neighbour whom I haue offended As if I haue taken any mās good from hym For then am I bound to pacifie him either by restoring it agayne or els by other meanes as we two can agrée If I haue diffamed hym then am I bound to pacifie him and to restore him vnto his good fame agayne and so forth But if I be not able to satisfie him thē must I knowledge my selfe giltie and desire him to forgeue me and then is he bounde to forgeue me or els shal he neuer enter into heauē For God hath taught vs to pray Math. vj. that he should forgeue vs as we forgeue them that trespasse against vs so if that we forgeue not one an other then will not God forgeue vs. To this well agréeth the parable Math. xviij The kyngdome of heauen is likened vnto a certaine kyng which would take accomptes of his seruauntes And when he had begon to recken one was brought to hym whiche ought him ten thousand talentes but when he had nought to pay the Lord commaunded him to be sold and his wife and his children all that he had payment to be made The seruaunt fell downe besought him saying Syr geue me respite and I will paye it euery whit Then had the Lord pitie on the seruaunt and losed him and forgaue him y t debt The same seruaunt went out and founde one of his felowes which ought hym an C. pence And layed handes on hym and tooke him by the throat saying pay that thou owest And his felow fell downe and besought him saying haue pacience with me I will pay thée all he would not but went and cast him into prison till he should pay the debt Whē his other felowes saw what was done they were very sory and came told vnto their Lord all that happened Then the Lord called hym sayd vnto him Deuill seruaunt I forgaue thée all the debt because y ◠praydest me was it not méete also y t thou shouldest haue had cōpassion on thy felow euen as I had pitie on thée And his Lord was wroth and deliuered him to the gaylers till he should paye all that was due to hym So lykewise shall your heauenly father doe vnto you if you will not forgeue with your harts ech one to his brother their trespasses Here mayest thou sée that if you forgeue hartly the small debt or offence y ◠thy neighbour hath done agaynst thée then will thy heauenly father forgeue thée y t whole and great debt that thou owest hym for the which thou art well worthy to be damned And so is it more profitable for thée to forgeue it then that thy neighbour should broyle in Purgatory for it as Rastell fayneth And contrarywise if thou forgeue him not thē shall not God forgeue thée thy great debt but thou shalt surely be dāned and so shall not thy neighbours Purgatory profite thée be it in case there were one and that he should goe thether but it is rather the cause of thy dānation but this can not Rastell sée NOw
is written Abac. ij the righteous man lyueth by his fayth And Roma v. because we are iustified by fayth we are at peace with God thorough our Lord Iesus Christ c. WheÌ„ these faithfull or righteous departe theÌ„ sayth this text that they are fooles which thinke them to be in payne or affliction for it affirmeth that they are in peace Now sith their Purgatory whiche they imagine is payne and affliction and yet fayne that the righteous onely shal enter into it after their death then are they fooles that suppose there is a Purgatory or els this text can not be true For what entent will God haue vs tormented in Purgatory to make satisfaction for our sinnes verely theÌ„ is Christ dead in vayne as we haue often proued before But thinke you not rather that our purgation should be to encrease our fayth or grace or charitie for these thrée couer the multitude of sinnes no verely we can not fayne a purgatory for any such cause For fayth springeth by hearing of the word Roma x. But the Pope sendeth theÌ„ no preachers thether Ergo theyr fayth can not there be encreased And agayne payne ingendreth and kyndleth hate against God and not loue or charitie Furthermore My Lord of Rochester is coÌ„pelled to graunt that the soules in Purgatorye obtayne there neither more fayth nor grace nor charitie then they brought in with them and so can I sée no reasonable cause why there should be a purgatory Neuerthelesse M. More sayth that both their grace and charitie is encreased And so may you perceaue that lyes can neuer agrée how wyttie so euer they be that fayne and cloke them For in some poyntes they shall be founde contrary so that at the length they may be disclosed when thou hast no power to accomplish the outward fact For the wiseman sayth Prou. xxiij sonne geue me God is fully pacified with thy will thy hart Now if thy will be vpright and so that thou haue a desire to fulfill the law then doth God reken that will vnto thée for the full fact If then through the frayltie of thy members thou fall into sinne thou mayest well say with the Apostle Roma vâ—j The good that I would doe that do I not that is I haue a will and desire to fulfill the law of God not to displease my heauenly father yet that I do not But the euill which I hate that do I that is I do committe sinne whiche in déede I hate Now if I hate the sinne whiche I do then loue I the law of God whiche forbiddeth sinne and do consent vnto this law that it is good righteous and holy And so the sinne whiche I hate and yet commit it thorough the frayltie of my members is not imputed or rekened vnto me for sinne Neither will S. Paule graunt that it is I which do that sinne but he sayd I haue a will to doe good but I can not performe that will For I do not that good which I would but the euill whiche I would not that do I. Now if I doe that thyng whiche I would not do then is it not I that do it but the sinne that dwelleth with in me I delight in the law of God with myne inward man that is with my will and minde which is renued with the spirite of God but I sée an other law in my members which rebelleth agaynst the law of my mynde and maketh me bonde vnto the law of sinne which is in my members So that I my selfe in my will and mynde do obey the law of God hatyng sinne as the law coÌ„maundeth me and not consentyng vnto it in my mynde will but in my flesh and members I serue the law of sinne for the frayltie of my members compelleth me to sinne Rom. 7. As by example if I sée a poore man whiche is not of abilitie to do me any pleasure and neuertheles doth all his diligence to séeke my fauour would with hart and mynde geue me some acceptable preseÌ„t if he were of power beyng also sory that hee can not performe his will â—nd mynde towardes me Now if there be any point of humanitie or gentlenesse in me I will count this man for my frende and accept his good will as well as though he had in dede performed his wil. For his habilitie extendeth no further If his power were better better should I haue Euen so sith we are not of power and habilitie to performe the law of God and yet beare a good hart towardes God and his law lamentyng our imbecillitie that we can do him no further pleasure then will God recount vs not as his enemyes but as his deare children and beloued frendes Neither will hee afterward thrust vs into Purgatory but as a tender father pardon vs our trespasses and accept our good will for the full déede S. Paule exhorteth vs Gal. vj. that we worke well while we haue tyme for what soeuer a man doth sow that shall he réepe by this may we euidently perceaue that hée shall not receaue according to his doing or sufferyng in an other world and therfore caÌ„ there be no Purgatory The wiseman sayth Eccle. xiiij worke righteousnes before thy death for after this lyfe there is no méete that is to say succour to bee founde There are some which wil vnderstaÌ„d this place also the text in the xlviij argument on this maner that there should be no place of deseruyng but yet there may well bee a place of punishment But this solution besides that it is not grounded on Scripture is very slender For I pray you wherfore should their inuention of Purgatory serue but to bee a place of purgyng punishment and penaunce by the which the soule should make satisfaction that it might so deserue to enter into the rest of heauen Blessed are the dead which dye in the Lord from heÌ„ce forward yea truly sayth the spirite that they may rest froÌ„ their labours But theyr workes folow with them This text they vse in theyr soule masses as thoughe it made for Purgatory But surely me thinketh that it maketh much against them For let vs enquire of all the proctours and fautours of Purgatory whether y â— soules that must be prayed for are departed in the Lord or not And they must néedes aunswere that they are departed in the Lord for the vnfaithfull which dye not in the Lord must not be prayed for And therfore must they be vpright Christen soules which are tormeÌ„ted for the other are all damned Now sayth the text that all such dead as dye in the Lord are blessed but what blessednesse were that to broyle in Purgatory And if they would here fayne a glose as their maner is when they are in a straite euer to séeke a startyng hole say that they are blessed because they are in a good hope
wyll helpe hym to be deliuered from hys ennemie and then warreth vppon hym a freshe what tyme the faithfull man is brought to the knowledge of God and beléeueth in Chryst and hath his will and mynde renued with the spryte of God that consenteth to the lawe of God that is good ryghteous and holy and beginneth to loue the lawe and hath a will and a desire to fulfill the lawe of God and not to despyse hys heauenly father and looke howe much he loueth the lawe countyng it ryghtwise and holye Euen so muche doth he hate synne whych the lawe forbiddeth and abhoreth it in hys heart and inward man and then albeit the outwarde man and rebellious membres do at time beséege him and take hym captyue vnder synne yet doth not the inward man consent that thys synne is good and the lawe naught whych forbyddeth it neyther dothe the heart delighte in thys same synne neyther can it delyght in suche synne bycause the spirite of God testyfieth vnto hym that it is abhomynable in the syghte of God and then fyghteth the inwarde man agaynste the outwarde wyth faythe prayer almose déedes and fastyng and laboureth to subdue the membres lamenting that he hath bene ouercome bycause he feareth to displease God hys father and desyreth him for the bloud of hys sonne Christe that he will forgeue that whych is past and hys diligence that he taketh in tamyng hys membres is not recompēce towards God for the sinne that is paste but to subdue the fleshe y t he synne no more thys rebellion had Paule Rom. 7. saying that he dyd not that good thing whych he would but the euill whych he hated that he did that is he did not fulfil y t good lawe of God as hys hart will and inwarde man desyred but dyd the euill as touchyng hys fleshe and outwarde man whych he hated and so he synned with hys outwarde man then howe is thys true that he that committeth synne is of the Deuill and he that is of God committeth no synne was not Paule of God yes verely and all be it he committeth synne wyth his membres outwarde man yet he sinned not for he saythe If I doe that thyng that I hate then is it not I that doe it but the synne that dwelleth in me and euen lykewyse the faythfull folowers of Christ commit no synne for they hate it and if they fortune to be entangled wyth synne it is not they that doe it as Paule saith but the synne that dwelleth in them which God hathe left to exercise them as he left y t Philistians to exercise and nurtoure the children of Israell and if the remnauntes of sinne fortune at anye time to looke aloft and begin to raigne then he sendeth some crosse of aduersitie or sicknesse to helpe to suppresse them And thus shall it be as long as we liue but when we be once deade then oure members rebell no more and then néedeth neyther purgatorie nor anye other crosse for the outwarde man is turned into vanitie and our inwarde mā was euer pure thorow beléeuing the worde of God and neuer consented to sinne and néedeth nother purgatorie in this world nor in the world to come but only for subduing the outward man and therfore after this lyfe he shall neuer haue any purgatorie Marke well what I say and reade it againe for more shall reade it then shall vnderstande it but he that hathe eares let hym heare The seconde erroure that Rastell layeth to my charge is that I wold bring the people in belefe that repentance of a man helpeth not for the remission of his sinne IN prouing this second error against me Rastel taketh so great paynes that he is almoste besydes hym selfe For he saith that I would make men beléeue that it forceth not whether they sinne or no. Why so brother Rastel verely because I allege S. Iohn S. Paule Erechiell and Hieremie to quenche the hotte fire of purgatorie and allege no aucthorities to proue good woorks whervnto I answer as I did before that it is nothing to my purpose for the prouyng of good workes doth neither make for purgatorie nor against it I coulde haue alleaged all those textes if I had entended my selfe to proue that I shoulde doe good woorkes which I neuer knewe christen man denie but as touchyng my matter it is nothyng to the purpose and as well he mighte haue improued me bicause I bryng in no textes to proue that the father of heauē is god or to proue that whych neuer manne doubted of notwithstanding if Rastel had indifferent eyes I spake sufficiently of good woorkes in the. 34. argument against hys dialoge let all men read the place and iudge Rastel taketh the matter very gréeuously that I attempt to allege howe S. Iohn S. Paul send vs to Christ and then adde that we know no other to take away sinne but only Christe and because I adde this worde only therfore he thinketh that I cleane destroy repentance whereunto I aunswere that I added not thys woorde only for naught but I did it by the authoritie of S. Iohn which saith if we walke in the lighte as he is in the lyght we haue felowship with eche other and in the bloud of Iesu Christe hys sonne purifyeth vs frō all sinne wherupon I say that for vs which are in the lyght hys bloud only is sufficient but for your christen men whych continue still in sinne and walke in darkenesse after theyr father the Deuill muste some other meanes be founde or else they shall neuer enter into the kingdome of heauen But bicause I will be short let Rastell note that I fynde two manner of repentance one is without faith and is suche a repentaunce as Iudas and Rastels christen men which continue still in sinne haue at the latter ende which dothe rather purchace them an halter then the remission of sinnes An other repentance foloweth iustification and remissiō of sinnes and is a florishing frute of faith for when by faith we do perceiue the fauor and kindnesse that our louing father hath shewed vs in his sonne Chryst Iesu and that he hathe reconcyled vs vnto hymselfe by the bloude of hys sonne Thē begin we to loue him the more we hate the body of sinne and lamēt and be sory that our membres are so fraile that they can not fulfil the lawe of God and so in mourning and bewayling our infirmitie it causeth vs to abstaine from bothe meat drinke and all worldly pleasures which is is the pure fasting that we talke of but you vnderstande it not and thys repentaunce commeth not to purge the sinnes which is cōmitted before but only taketh an occasyon by the sinnes before committed to knowe what poyson there remained in oure sleshe and séeketh all meanes to make vs hate this body of sinne and to subdue it wyth all manner of works that God
the Church bee and to whom they were geuen TO declare this matter our Schoolemen haue wrapped them selues in suche doubtes that they were neuer able to come out of theÌ„ nor yet to satisfie theÌ„ selues nor any good Christen mans conscience For all y e they write is but dreames of theyr own inuention and as Paule calleth them the doctrines of y e deuill agaynst the holy word of God and wringyng wrestyng the blessed worde of God to their purpose alonely consideryng how they might by right or by wrong stablishe the authoritie of miserable men not coÌ„sideryng the intent of the holy ghost whiche intended nothyng els in all places of Scripture but to opeÌ„ vnto vs Christ the loosing from our sinne by hym alonely The which thyng our dreamers and inuenters of all subtile lyes dyd neuer preserue nor neuer sought for but by despising the holy worde of God and stickyng so fast to their owne corrupted reasons dyd they fall into innumerable heresies dissentions and contentions and brawlynges of wordes and scoldyng lyke harlots so that none of theÌ„ could agrée with an other Wherfore that saying of the holy Prophete may well bée verified of them My people haue not heard my voice and Israell hath taken no héede vnto me and therfore haue I let theÌ„ passe after the desires of their own harts and therefore they shall folow their own inuentioÌ„s This is alwayes the sore vengeaunce of God when we will not beléeue and receiue alonely hys worde then doth hée let vs passe so that we can doe nothyng but erre Notwithstandyng we are so blynded that we thinke darkenes light and errours veritie This is openly proued by all our greate clarkly schoolemen and that it may bée open to all men I will recite what they learne of the keyes Duns all his scholers say that these keyes bée nothyng els but an authoritie geuen to Priestes whereby they geue sentence that heauen must bée opened to this man and shyt vnto the other so that heauen is opened shyt at the sentence of y e priest This is his learnyng Who could haue inuented such a doctrine but y â— deuill him selfe who can speake greater heresie then this is who can speake more openly agaynst Christe and hys holy Scripture If the authoritie of the Priest bée the keyes of heauen and can open open and shyt heauen then néede we no other thyng to our saluation but the authoritie of the Priest then can no man bée saued without the authoritie of the Priest then can there no Priestes bée damned For they haue the keyes of heaueÌ„ I thinke they wil not bée so mad as by their authoritie to shyt them selues with the deuill Briefely what néede haue we of Christ and of hys holy word For the authoritie of the Priest is the keye of heauen but let me bryng their owne words y e the matter may bée playner The keye in this purpose is taken after the similitude of a materiall key whiche is the next instrument to shyt and to open a doore whereby we enter into the house So lykewise the authoritie to geue sentence that heauen must bée opened vnto this man is called the keye c. To vse many wordes in refellyng this damnable opinion it néedeth not But agaynste them all I will set the authoritie of S. Hierome whose words bée these I shal geue thée y e keyes of heaueÌ„ This place the Byshops and the Priestes not vnderstandyng haue vsuâ—ped vnto them somewhat of the Phariseis pryde so y e they thinke that they may condemne innocentes and loose them that bée giltie when afore God not y e sentence of the Priest but the lyfe of the giltie is regarded c. Here you haue playnly that the sentence of the Priest is not looked on nor able to loose a sinner afore God Marke also that S. Hierome sayth you vnderstaÌ„d not this place Moreouer I would know of you all where you caÌ„ bryng me one example in Scripture that the sentence of a Priest hath loosed a sinner or bound a righteous man and if it can not doe this then is there an other thyng aboue the sentence of a Priest Furthermore that your auctoritie should bée the keyes of heauen it is a gaynst reason agaynst your owne learning For Duns and also Lyra of the same text Qnodcunque ligaueris doe playnely declare that your key of auctoritie may erre Now if it may erre then is it not the right key to the locke of heauen for the right key can neuer erre in his owne locke Wherfore at the most you can make it but a picklocke which belongeth to robbers and théeues onely Moreouer if this were the key theÌ„ should we neuer bée in suretye whether heaueÌ„ were opened or not First we haue no promise nor no worde of God made vnto this key And againe we can not know when it openeth heauen and wheÌ„ not for it may erre after your owne doctours And if it chauÌ„ce for to erre then are not heaueÌ„ gates opened So y e by this meanes we shall bée alwayes in doubt whether we bée losed froÌ„ our sinne or not Wherefore we must séeke out an other key that is the very trew key to the locke the which can not erre of the which we shall bée in surety and without all doubt But ere wee declare what this key is we will first shew the nature and the propertye of this key S. Augustine sayth That must be called a key where by the hardnes of our harts are opened vnto fayth and whereby the secretnes of mindes are made manyfest A key it is sayth hée the which doth both open the concieÌ„ce to y t knowledge of synne and also includeth grace vnto the wholesomnes of euerlasting mistery c. This is the diffynition of this key that we speake of after S. Augustine Now compare your power vnto this diffinitioÌ„ and sée how they doe agrée Fyrst what can your power doe which you call your key to remoue away the hardenes of the harte and to bring in fayth Agayne what can your key Iudge of the secreatnes of mans mynde Thirdly what can your power doe to mens consciences to make theÌ„ to knowledge their sinne yea where by doe you know your awne synne by your power then haue all priestes a like knowledge Fynally what grace doth your power include in hym y e may bring vs to euerlasting Ioye Wherefore you sée that this deffinition agréeth as well with your key as Chalke and Chéese Therfore must we séeke an other key y e hath all these properties This is nothing els but the holy worde of God whereby that we receaue fayth into our hartes as S. Paule sayth Fayth is by hearing and hearing is by the wordes of God And for this cause the holy Prophet calleth it a lanterne saying Thy word is a lanterne vnto my féete it is a lyght vnto my pathes
but y t he woulde géeue it vs if men I say had thys fayth and this loue towarde Christ they would goe no farther but to him onely they woulde make inuente deuise no mediatours but faithfully receaue hym according to y e Scriptures for their onely mediatour Sauiour and redéemer and beléeue and knowe surely that they coulde aske nothyng so great in his name but that they shoulde receaue it so that hée woulde hym selfe géeue it and thereunto is able Also by this fayth they should perfectly know that they coulde not bée so vnworthy but hée of his onely and méere mercy is able also woulde make them worthy to receaue their peticions so that if men had faith they should perfectly know that they had néede of no more then this one Christ that they should nor ought not séeke to any other mediatour eyther to obtayne any thing or els to make them worthy but should know and confesse both in worde and déede that Christ alonely is able inough yea so mighty and so mercifull that all other fayned and inuented mediatours of men bée vile filthy and abhominable of themselues to bée compared to him If this fayth I say were printed in the hartes of mē then what shoulde they or could they desire more then this one mediatour Iesus Christ What could they haue that of him and by him they could not obtaine Truely nothinge that they coulde righteously aske as all Scriptures beare witnes But nowe let all these makers of new Gods cumilate themselues togither on a heape and shewe mée but one place yea but one iot or one example in holy Scripture that euer men did pray to Saintes or one that entered into heauen by Saints prayers Christ ascended as the Scriptures bée plaine into heauen by hys owne power now woulde I knowe of these new Godmakers by whose power and helpe that the first Sainte came into heauen say not by the intercession of Saintes for I will say then there were none in heauen nor by his owne holynes for then dyed Christ in vayne and if hée came by Christ onely why may hée not alone helpe vs thither His power is not weakened his mercy is no lesse towarde vs then it was towarde him Now here you sée all the causes that brought the first Sainte to heauen these causes bée sufficient yea alonely allowed of the Scriptures of God therfore they bée also sufficient for vs if wée will béeléeue the scriptures of God But now to declare and make this matter open I will recite the words of the Scriptures first I will speake of Images of whom speaketh Moyses these wordes Thou shalt make thee no grauen Images nor similitude of any thing that is in heauen aboue or in earth beneath or in waters vnder the earth thou shalt neither honour nor worship them Bée not these wordes plaine against all maner of Images or similitudes For if saints bée in heauē or in earth or vnder the earth here bée their figures excepted either to bée honoured or worshipped and marke that hée excepteth both honouring and also worshipping Now what can you géeue to Images that is neither hohonour nor worship It maketh no matter to mée whether you call it latria or dulia if it bée eyther honour or worship then is it against Scripture and if it bée neither then is it nothyng but a voyde name inuented of your insaciable couetousnes to deceaue simple men with and to heape innumerable good to your selues For if you had no more profite by Images then you haue deuotion to them then shoulde they bée soone lefte downe Who hath séene a precious offerynge of a Priest géeuen to any Image but wée sée dayly how yée robbe Images of other mens oblations But let vs returne to our purpose Duns on this text saith that by it was it forbydden to make images béefore the incarnation of Christ c. Now must you prooue where they bée allowed since the incarnation and shew with manifest scriptures where this text is condemned in the new Testament or els it stādeth fast agaynst you after your own M. Duns whom you dare not deny Also y t Prophet saith a mā dyd plante a pinaple tree and the raine did nurrish it and therof was made a fire vnto men hee toke of it and warmed hym and burnt it and baked bread therewith and of the other parte hee Made hym a God and dyd honour it and prayd vnto it saying deliuer me for thou art my God Marke the processe of y t Prophet first the man planted this trée thē hée burnt part of it and baked bread with it and of the other part he made hym a God whom hée honoured and worshypped marke also if all these bée not true and fulfilled of your images of the one is made your God which you doe honour and of whom you desire to bée deliuered some frō death some from sickenes some frō pestilence some from pouertie some from théeues some frō euill fortune some frō hāging some frō drowning and some to saue you from the tooth ake some to saue your horse some your pyges and some to helpe your wéemen with child with many other thynges more so that for euery thyng that you will desire you haue a God to aske it of Now of the other part is made a payre of gallowes is not this true is not this playne of what other thyng in earth can the saying of y t prophet bée verified but of your images And if it may be verified of an hūdred other things yet is it also true of your images and vnto them agréeth most peculiarly The prophet speaketh not of one onely but of all thinges that bée lyke Now deliuer your Gods if you cā They wil not bée deliuered w t the aunswere that Doctour Rydley did once make vnto mée that there was no man so blynde nor so mad or foolishe for to honour the stocke and the stone that standeth béefore them but they referre the honour to that thyng that the Image doth represent I aunswere good Maister Doctour I pray you tell mée one thyng what did Cicero with all the whole Senatours of Rome did they not honour that same thing that stoode béefore thē and yet as you say they did referre it vnto the thing that was thereby represented These men were wise mē and as well learned in their tyme as you yet you sée for lacke of knowledge of the trueth they honoured stockes and stones I am sure you will not excuse them from Idolatry yea and that béecause they did honour the stockes and stones and not alonely for honouring of the the thing that was represented Also what dyd Roboam when hée dyd set vp two golden calues in Bethell and sayd to the people Go◠no more to Hierusalē behold thy Godes Israell Was not this done to the honour of God for they were not so mad as ye say to thinke
hée but by me bée not all saintes all your fayned mediatours with merites all other thinges cleane excluded in this word but wherfore it is plaine that what so euer hée bée y t maketh any other mediatour or goeth about by any meanes séeme it neuer so holy but by Christ onely to come to the father of heauē first he despiseth Christ if he despise Christe hée despiseth also hys father whiche hath alowed him onely to bée our mediatour way to him as it is writtē I am the way onely in the father therefore let thē bée sure y t séeke any other waye or any other mediatour but Christ alonely to heauē that they accordyng to the word of y t veritie which cā not lye shall neuer come there but as many as trust in him onely let thē not doubt but they shall not onely obteyne to come to heauen but also what soeuer they desire bée side in his name according to his own promise word which cā not deceiue vs What soeuer saith hée you aske in my name the father shall geue it you Marke these woordes what soeuer that we should runne to no other hée addeth also in my name Here is nothing excluded but all thinges fréely bée geuen vs and that for his names sake not for no sainctes name not for none of our holynes or merites but for Christes name Now what is it to runne from thys swéete promise of our most louing Sauiour redemer and onely mediatour Iesus Christ to saintes to other workes but a playne and an euydent token of our infidelity of our vnthankefulnes yée that we thinke hym vntrue and will not fulfill hys promise yée that he is not able to do it and to make hym a lyar vntrue in his worde Also S. Paul sayth He hath geuen his onely sonne for vs how can it bee y t hée shall not geue all things with him Marke he sayth with hym not with saints he sayth all thinges and not certaine things hée that faith all excludeth not the tooth ake leaueth it to S. Appolyne c. but hée excludeth nothing Now you Infidelles and mistrusters of Christ what will you haue of the father of heauen or what cā your hartes desire that Christ is not able to obtaine for you if you béeléeue him able It is his office and thereunto onely appointed of y t father none other yea all other bée excluded w t manifest scriptures Moreouer will you or bée you so foolish to aske a thing of one y t hath it not to géeue nor cā not geue it yea hath néede of it hymselfe leaue hym that hath aboundaunce yea and that hath made an open proclamation that fréely without goulde or siluer or any marchandise hée will géeue the selfe same thing to as many as come and aske of him whatsoeuer they bée Now the Lord hath not alonely goodnes but hée is all goodnesse himselfe and all Saintes haue sinned and néede of his goodnes and he hath made this proclamation by his blessed and euerlasting worde that whosoeuer commeth vnto hym shall haue of his goodnes aboundauntly now will you leaue him and goe to the saintes the which if they euer had any goodnes they receaued it of the father as S. Iames sayth All good giftes cōmeth from the father of lyght Marke how hée sayth all good giftes But here haue you a distinction y t onely God is good of his own nature and Saintes are good by receauinge goodnesse of him Well to doe you a pleasure I will allow your distinctiō to bée good for of it can you make no more with all your subtiltie but that Saintes haue no more goodnes then they haue receaued Now the goodnes that they haue receaued was for thēselues onely yea and they can géeue none of it to you for they receaued it not for you but for themselues yea and no more then was necessary for them and that but alonely of mercy as it is open in Mathewe in the parable of the fiue wise virgines and the fiue foolishe where as the wyse vyrgins had not so much oyle to lend the foolishe virgins as would kindle their lampes finally they had nothing at all that they coulde spare them and yet were they wise virgins and yet were they Saints and yet were they admitted to enter into heauen Farthermore doe you not openly against God when you desire any thing of saintes whether it bée prosperitie wealth health remission of sinnes or in aduersities consolatiōs or comfortes or any other thyng séeing that Scripture onely knowledgeth all these thynges to bée receaued of him and that hée is the onely géeuer of them yea and that all the prophets and fathers in all their tribulation cryed alonely to hym as Dauid testifieth of him selfe in these wordes When I am troubled I will cry vnto the Lord and hee will helpe me Hée cryed not to any Saint to speake to God for him but sayth I will cry vnto the Lord yea and hée doubted not that hée woulde not heare hym béecause hée was a man and a sinner but faithfully said hée will helpe mée as hée testifieth in an other place saying my helpe is of God that hath made heauen and earth Now will you runne from God and aske of Saints comforte prosperitie health or wealth or any other thyng séeing it béelongeth alonely to God to géeue seing hée alonely is the fountayne and auctor of all goodnes and not Saintes which haue no more but their parte and that that is géeuen vnto them Also our M. Christ teaching al creatures to pray biddeth them not to goe to any other thynge but alonely to the father of heauen hée maketh no mention of Saintes no not so much as to bée a meane betwéene them and the father but commaundeth them that pray to pray thē selues to the father The which thing I doubt not but hée would haue done if hée would that there shoulde haue béene other mediatour or géeuers of any goodnes Moreouer is not this a madde manner of prayer that men vse to our Lady O our father which art in heauē halowed be thy name c Thus doe you learne men to mocke our Lady when you learne them to say our Ladyes Psalter You infidels and mockers both of God man are you not ashamed of these open blasphemies Doubt you not if you call not for grace to y t Lord that you may amēde yea and that shortly but God shall straitly auēge this blasphemy on you hée hath suffered long no doubt but of his infinite mercy Notwithstādyng I wil neuer béeleue that hée wil much lēger suffer séeyng that hée hath brought so graciously his glorious veritie into the world and that so openly and so clearely that you can not deny it nor withstand it neither by reason nor by learnyng but your owne consciences bée confounded and marked with hote yrons notwithstādyng