onely you doe worshippe and honour so doe the Turkes Sarracenes Moores and Scythians as well as ye And where is there anie one nation vnder the coape of heauen so sauage and beastly that doeth not professe coÌ„fesse and worship one God onely And what is this to the purpose Albeit ye esteeme neuer so much of that your worshipping the great God if yet in meane whiles ye persecute his messengers and Ambassadours whome hee sendeth if you kill his Prophets if ye murther his Apostles Martyrs and Preachers Finally if you put to the most slaunderous death of the Crosse the deare entierly beloued and onely begotten sonne of God him selfe being tormented with all kynde of horrible tortures to the vnspeakeable reproche of the same your owne God with what shamelesse visage can you bragge that God to be your father whose sonne you haue so shamefully crucified Yea what were this to the purpose or what might it auayle you to seeme to your selues that the same God is your father if he do not reknowledge you for his children Take this for an vndouted trueth that no kinde of people can bee adiudged to bee the people of the liuing God but in respect of his deare sonne Christ iesu Which if your blundered senses can not comprehend as yet what meane those woordes of Osee I beseeche you and of whome were they spoken For yee bee not my people therefore will I not bee yours And it shall come to passe in the place where it was sayde vnto them you are not my people it shall bee sayde vnto them you are the sonnes of the liuing God. You doe persist still obstinately in the opinion of Gods Lawe and quite contrarie to the Lawe of God without all lawe equitie and conscience hanged and racked vpon tree the very same person of whome the whole Lawe did prophesie before notwithstanding so many strange and woonderfull miracles wrought by him so many brotherly benefites employed vpon you yea finding also no maner of cause worthy of death in him You â—o vaunt your selues lustily in speach of the circumcision of your fores kinnes and your vncircumcised hearts ouerflowe with spyderlike poyson you bragge of keeping the Sabboth daye whiles you take your bodily repast onely but the right vse of the Sabboth of the Lorde is to haue a quiet minde free from all iarre of enuie and malice This Sabboth you do prophane continually but then chiefely most wickedly when ye murthered the Lord him selfe neither seeme as yet satisfied therewith nor ye will relent any iote at al from your caâ—ckred conâ—umacie you professe in wordes the letter of the lawe but vtterly disclayme from the spirituall meaning of the lawe in your deedes You crye â—ut The Temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord and yet you abhorre the Church of Christ being the true Temple of the Lorde you challenge to your selues a wonderful hautie prerogatiue of the blood offrings of the Priesthoode of the Sacrifices and ceremonies of the Law which in deede carry a certaine gallaunt resemblance of true religion But these outwarde shadowes and ceremonies had their tyme and place long agoe and were not instituted to the ende they should continue irreuocable but for a season to represent as it were a superficiall viewe vnto vs of more excellent thinges Euen as the kingly Throne of Dauid and all that politique gouerâ—ement of the Israelites dyd prefigure nothing els vnto vs but the euerlasting kingdome of Christ and were as certaine principles wherewith the mindes of the beholders might be raysed vp to a more deep consideration of farre highe mysteries in so much that the very same which was but figured in king Dauid we playnly perceiue to haue bene expressely discouered in the king of the newe Ierusalem which is the Church of Christ. The same which was prefigured in Abel in Noah in Abraham Melchisedech Ioseph Moyses Aaron Iosuah Sampson Dauid Elias Ionas Iesu the great Priest in the Paschall Lambe in the brasen Serpent in the Rocke in Manna in the feast of Pentecoste briefely whatsoeuer exercises were practized in shadowes types figures we do vnfainedly acknowledge to haue met coÌ„curred byn accoÌ„plished in one body And this body truely is Christ Iesu who is also the ende consummation of al the whole Lawe In like maner the sacrifices and ceremonies trimminges and deckings of the olde Law conteined in them selues no sounde nor permanent matter but were shadowes and forerunners of more excellent graces For what is he so poreblinde in this our age that knoweth not that God doth not dwel in Temples made by mens handes that consciences are not cleaÌ„sed from sinnes with the blood of goats of bulles But these bloody offrings obteined a certaine resemblance only of the true purging of sinnes What doth the commandement of the prophete emply when in your Passeouer he charged a lambe of a yere olde cleane vndefiled to be slayne by families tribes Can your senses be so blockishe to thinke that so great effectuall operation lurketh in the blood of beasts as may auayle to deliuer you from cruel thraldome translate you to the lande of promise flowing with milke hony if there were no cornell of deeper mysterie enclosed within the outwarde shell of the letter It remayneth nowe that we treate of the promises of the Prophetes whereupon you boaste so much and rayse all your building which onely thing of all others doeth vnioynte and shyuer in pieces all the strong bulwarkes of your vnbeliefe euen to the very bottome of the foundation And to the ende I may make this appeare more euidently I wyll combate a crashe with you in your owne castle whereunto I will vse none other furniture but your owne weapons I meane the very words and knowen sentences of your owne prophets And I wil so deale with you in this coÌ„flict by the ayde assistaÌ„ce of God as not heaping together out of all the Prophets in generall their whole armorie of proofe that I know for that were vnmeasurable But I wil chuse rather out of certaine of theÌ„ not a multitude to surcharge you with nomber but certaine especial testimonies with the which as with choise shot powder I wil so batter y bulwarks of your bluÌ„dered vnbeliefe that you shall not be able by any meanes possible to delude the matter with caffling nor escape by denyall nor with any subtile legerdemayne of litterall exposition cast a myste before mine eyes nor vntwyne your selues out of the meashe by any crooked conueyaunce as you are wont to do though ye would neuer so fayne but either you shall be peruinced willingly to come to reason or els against your willes to be confouÌ„ded altogether with the manifest light of the trueth And to beginne first with the prophete Esay what answere can all the ofspring of the Hebrewes make to these woordes written in the ninth chapter of his prophecie For the yoke of their burden
thee nor allurâ—tâ— thee to abandone thy doting error for thou doest as yet breathe out villanie against the king of the Iewes whose name we haue in greatest estimation But what thinkest thou to gaine by kicking against the pricke Doest thou not perceiue how God hath made frustrate all thy deuises contrary to thine expectation Doest thou not see how thy mischieuous practises recoyle backe vpon thine owne head Doest thou not feele thy downfall into the pit which thy selfe hast diggedâ— Thou seest the Temple so razed and ouerthrowen to the ground that no stone thereof can be found thou doest see thy religion vtterly abolished the priesthode the Lawe the kingdom your cities your nation your race and kindred wholy extinguished brieâ—ely thou canst recompt no one thing remaining but a fewe wretched roages and contemptuous runnagates true monuments of the outragious insolencie and miserable calamitie of their forlorne forefathers yea that seely small porcion also enduring through none other priuilege then by this commendation of Paul and the gentle sufferâ—â—ce of the Christians And beeing thus continuallyâ— turmoyled wyth sundrie miseries notwithstanding Gods iust iudgement doeth daylie execute newe encreases of his seuere wrath against you yet are your myndes so intoxicate with the poysoned doâ—â—oreanche of bewitched ignoraunce that these woonderfull scourges can plie your heartes to no better grace persisting still in peruerse frowardnes as that these pinching plagues y horrour whereof might haue preuayled to procure amendement seeme rather to stirre and prouoke you to further crueltie For albeitâ— you do plainely perceiue and can not denye but that all whatsoeuer your owne Prophets haue foretolde of the Messhias is absolutely accomplished in the person of Christ Iesu albeit you may easily learne out of the holie Scriptures by continual experience and successes of tymes that there is none other Christ but euen the same whome the whole worlde doeth worshippe at this present albeit you sensibly feele that you are become a mockerie not to almightie God onely but accompted also no better then rascalles runnagates of al nations of y world yet do yee curse Christ in your synagogues dayly and expect yet an other Messhias I know not whome which you shal neuer see but in that terrible dreadfull day of wrath at what time maugte your teeth you shal beholde him whome you haue cruelly crucified What monstruous hardnes of heart is this yee men and Hebrewes that so manyâ— heauenly oracles of so many your owne Prophets so many manifest testimonies of sacred scriptures so many horrible punishments so many vnmercifull plagues wherewith your nation is and hath bene continually tormented can not enduce you to conceiue some sparkle of true repentance The Romanes did â—ansacke you with such outrage in their conquest that they spared neither yong nor olde men women nor infants neither left one stone standing vpon an other of your whole citie Finally your habitations are become waste and desolate ye haue now neither citie nor temple kingdome nor priesthode people nor Prophete and which of all other is most lamentable you haue eyes that can not see eares that can not heare nor hearts that can vnderstand whereby you may repent and be conuerted to your liege Lord and â—â—uâ—reigne king Buâ— go ye to let all that which is past be imputed either to your ignoraunce or to the wrathful vengeaÌ„ce of God for your vnbeliefe sake because ye knewe not the tyme of your visitation And beyng allured stirred vp to better remembrance by so manifold exaÌ„ples learne now at the length by the preaching of the Gospel to acknowledge our Christâ—Iesu the Lord of peace of meekenes of humilitie to be the onely Messhias sent from God the father in whose name all nations of the earth shal be saued to whome all knees in heauen and earth ought to bow downe and prostrate them selues There was sometimes an vnsaâ—orie season of darkened ignorance when as our Temples also were polluted with filthy Idolatrie but nowe sithence all cloudes of foggy superstitioÌ„ are for the more part scattered and vanished out of sight the cleare dawning of the lightsome trueth of Christs Gospel displayeth his orient beames treade no longer the dyrty tracke of superstitiouse mismases but returne with vs and be made partakers of the liuely welspring of syncere and pure doctrine The same Christ whome you do persecute must be worshipped whose doctrine you do practize to roote out euen he doth offer you saluation freely and frâ—nkely The same whome you contemptuously entreated as a man is woorshipped in all the worlde both God and man howsoeuer ye despised him as Ioseph was sometyme reiected of his brethren yet reygneth he in the glorie of his father whome you mortall men beleeâ—ed to dye the naturall death the same reuiued agayne immortall and shall lyue in immortalitie for euer Whome your forefathers embased vnder the raskall rabble of the people and accompted for an abiect and outcast of all men euen to his Maiestie doe all the loftie estates and stately powers of heauen and earth prostrate and humble them selues that the saying of Esay may aptly be verified in this place The kings of the earth shal stoppe their mouthes before him Whom you reproched with the most shamefull death of the crosse the very same crosse is turned into his glorie to our saluation to the iudgement of the world to the destruction of his enemies and euerlasting consolation of them that be redeemed So that here agayne the prophecie of Esay may seeme to take effectâ— And euerlasting ioye shal be vpon their heads and sorow and mourning shall flee away Finally whose name your forefathers hoped to haue bene razed out of all mens memory the very same name hath God magnified aboue all the glorie of Angels and men at the calling vpon whose name the dead aryse againe maladies are cured deuils doe tremble and quake for feare vncleane spirites are tormented and flee awaye yea the whole Ierarchie of Angels doe bowe downe and worshippe Nowe for as much as these thinges are so manifest that no man can be ignoraunt of them I doe woonder much what reason you can alleadge to colour your obstinate contumacie who being taught by so many examples can content your selues neuerthelesse to lye still snorting and slumbring in vanishing shadowes neglecting the very naturall sonne of God can groâ—e like buzzards after aseÌ„selesse imaginatiue shape of I know not what Meschias when as your true Meschias is already comeâ— or besides him els shal neuer any one come vnlesse al your own prophets were lyars who haue described vnto you none other Meschias but this one onely person But this matter happely may offeÌ„d you to repete againe somewhat of that I haue spokeÌ„ because his comming was contemptible base of no reputation because he was condemned to death because he was crueified on the crosse because he dyed and was buryed But if euery of these had
redeemer and attaine eternall saluation of bodie and soule together with vs in thy euerlasting kingdom through thee our Lord and Sauiour Amen FINIS Imprinted at London by Christopher Barker Printer to the Queenes Maiestie ANNO. 1578. The confession of faith which Nathanael a lewe borne made before the Congregation in the Parish church of Alhallowes in Lombard streete at London whereupon he was according to his desire receiued into the number of the faithfull and so baptized the first of April 1577. MEn and brethreÌ„ to whom God hath reuealed in these later dayes the secrete of his sonne which was hidden from you many ages it is not vnknowen vnto you how that in the dayes of our forefathers God chose vs to be a precious people vnto himself aboue all the people that are vpon the earth and he loued vs and chose vs not because we were mo in number then anie people for we were the fewest of all people but hee chose vs onely because hee loued vs and because he would keepe the othe which he had sworne vnto our fathers Abraham Isaac Iacob By vertue of which promise the same our Lord and God whose name is Iehouah brought our fathers by a mightie hande and deliuered them out of the house of bondage from the hande of Pharaoh King of Egypt that they might knowe that the Lorde their God is the God in deede the faithfull God which keepeth couenant and mercie vnto theÌ„ that loue him and keepe his coÌ„mandements euen to a thousand generations According to which great vnspeakeable louing kindnesse he kept and preserued our fathers in the land of Israel which he had giuen them vnder the obedience of his Lawe in such seruice of sacrifices and other rites as he had appointed them to be done and practised all the dayes of their liues in the citie of Ierusalem where was his Temple built vpon the mount Sion so long as they kept them selues in obedience to the same Lawe and ordinances But when they forsaked the Lord their God and cleaued vnto false gods he rewarded them to their face because they hated him and brought them to destruction by deliuering them into the handes of manie enemies as into the hands of Nabuchadnezer by whom they were caried into captiuitie to Babylon and there remained the dayes foretolde them by our Prophet Ieremie Fulfilling thereby the wordes of our Prophet Moseh foretelling vs that it should so be if we forsooke the Lord our God and leauing vs their posteritie an example thereby that if we followed like iniquitie like seueritie of punishment should ouertake vs As it came to passe and is fulfilled in the eyes of all the world by this captiuitie which we are now in and haue been in we and our forefathers euer since the death of that righteous man Iesus Christ whome the Scribes and Pharisies and Elders of our people deliuered into the handes of Pontius Pilate to be put to death being before betrayed into their handes by one of his owne disciples that sonne of perdition Iudas Ishcarioth As our forefathers then pronouÌ„ced against them selues Let his bloud be vpon our heads and vpon our children so it is come to passe by the righteous iudgement of that mightie dreadfull god For euen from those dayes vnto this present the whole house of Israel that is wee that come of the stocke of Abraham after the fleshe is are strangers out of the land of Israel our owne countrie without Lawe or Prophets without all exercise of his statutes and ordinances concerning his worshippe prescribed vnto vs by the hande of his seruant Moseh This long and weariesome captiuitie hath consumed a great number of our forefathers â—nd hath caused some of vs froÌ„ time to time through the grace and loue of God wherewith hee loueth vs for the promise sake to thinke vpoÌ„ our promised Messhiach conferring these dayes of sorowe calamitie with our former captiuities of our fathers which were nothing so many in number of yeres nor so grieuous for want of our Prophets These fiftene hundreth yeres haue we bene strangers these fiftene huÌ„dreth yeres haue we lacked our Prophets a thing not seen at any time before wheÌ„ we our fathers were caried into a strange land For in Egypt they had Mosheh Aaron and in Babylon they had Ieremie Daniel besides Ezra Nechemiah and manie other onely in this captiuitie is Israel left desolate and our Prophets cleane gone Whereof when it pleased God I should haue consideration I was lead to thinke that our Messhiach is come and that our long looking for an other was but in vaine And that rather for that I see the wordes of Iacob our father accomplished where hee sayeth The Scepter shall not depart from Iudah nor a lawegiuer from betweene his feete vntill Shiloh come and the people shal be gathered vnto him For the Scepter and gouernement was continued in the house of Iudah as our fathers accord vntill the comming of this man Iesus in whom if it were not continued according to the woordes of our scriptures it hath failed and wanted euer since For since the dayes of that iust man there hath bene no Scepter amongest vs neither haue we or do we runne for iudgements vnto Ierusalem So that if the wordes of our father Iacob be true That the Scepter should not depart from the house of Iudah vntill Shilo came and there is no Scepter nor Lawegiuer nowe in that house then must it needes be that this man Iesus whoÌ„ you confesse and beleeue is that Shilo which was to come and is that childe of whom one or our Prophetes sayeth Unto vs a childe is borne and vnto vs a sonne is giuen and the gouernement is vpon his shoulder And hee shall call his name Wonderfull Counseller The mightie God The euerlasting Father the Prince of peace the increase of his gouernement and peace shall haue none end he shall sitte vpon the throne of Dauid and vpon his kingdome to order it to stablish it with iudgement and iustice from henceforth euen for euer The zeale of the Lord of hosts will performe this This man then no doubt is that Messhiach which was looked for according to promise and our fathers and people acknowledge not fulfilling in them selues the wordes of their owne mouth His bloud be vpon our heads In deede it seemed strange to me and doth to the rest of my brethren according to the flesh eueÌ„ vnto this daye in whome this blindnesse and hardnesse of heart is in part continued through occasion giuen by them that professe the name of this man Iesus And not onely in vs which are of the house of Israel but in other as the Turkes and Mahomets which are of the race of Ishmael For had it not bene for the great and manifolde Idolatrie that is committed and vsed amongst the Christians almost in all places where his Name is professed manie of our nation had repeÌ„ted in
in the holie scriptures that vnderstandeth not what is ment by that scepter which the Patriarche Iacob enspired by diuine oracle did boldly pronounce should neuer be remoued from the tribe of Iudah And who is he at the length but euen the same whome the Prophet Esay describeth saying I haue giuen him for a gouernour and teacher of the Gentiles Which sentence the holy Patriarche inspired with the same holy ghost did long before in the same sense professe though in other wordes And the Gentiles shal be gathered vnto him But as then was not the scepter yet of power in Israel But the godly grayheaded father foreseing loÌ„g before the euents of things to come did prophesie of Iudah in this wise The Scepter or Mace of the empire shall not departe from Iudah nor a Lawgiuer from betweene his feete vntill Silo come and the gathering of the Gentiles shal be vnto him Howsoeuer some rascal Thalmudistes do practise to peruert this place with most friuolous cauillatioÌ„s yea though all the start vp Rabbines woulde burst in sunder yet can this sentence by no violent wrest be framed appliable otherwise but that two speciall matters must necessarily be grounded thereupon First that Iudah and his tribe should be inuested in the title and the interest of the kingdome Next that this prerogatiue should endure vnmoueable vntil Mesâ—hias did come vnto whome the Gentiles should gather them selues And to the same effect tendeth the interpretation of Ionathas and others who liued long before the age of Christ whose wordes who listeth to heare are these The kings seat shall not be taken or depart from the house of Iudah neither shall Lawgiuers want of their childrens children vntil the time that Messhias shal come to whom the kingdome doeth belong And all the kings of the earth shall become his vassalles How beautifull is this Messhias that shall come to continue in the house of Iudah he shal girde vp his loynes go forth to battel against his enemies and the kings and their princes shal be slaine He shall die the riâ—ers red with the blood of the slaine his teeth shal be ordered with knowledge lest he partake the fruites of their spoyles and wrong doings The hilles shall looke redde with their vines and their winepresses with the wine the fieldes shal be adorned with beautifull blossome by reason of the aboundance of fruites of beasts sheepe c. Thus much thought I good to rehearse out of Ionathas yet haue we no neede praysed bee God to vouche any commentaries of the Iewes to manifest the mysteries of the holy Scripture namely sith there can bee no better interpreter of the propheticall scriptures then time and approued experience of the successes thereof The testimonie that I thought good to borow out of Osee most worthy to be noted of you that are Iewes is that which he setteth downe in the first Chapter of his prophesie where the Prophet inueighing against Israel vseth this speach Call his name â—aieth he not my people because you are not my people therefore will I not be yours c. Whereby you may plainely perceiue the saying of S. Paul confirmed by the Prophet to wit The same which he teacheth concerning the naturall branches which he sayde were hewen of from the Oliue tree And now ye men of Israel where is that your arrogant vaine glorious vaint of the ofspring of your kindred If to be issued of the race of Abraham be prised so highly in the sight of God what meaneth then this casting away of the Israelites mencioned by the Prophet what signifieth that speciall choyse and calling of the Gentiles and the wilde Oliue tree to be planted in their place for so wee reade the promise set downe by the Prophet And the nomber of the children of Israel sayeth hee shal be as the sande of the sea which can not be measured and tolde And in the place where it was saide yee are not my people it shal be sayd vnto them you are the sonnes of the liuing God It was a singular prerogatiue for them not being Israelites borne to be named and nombred amongst the true children of Israel But that other did farre surmount that being before the broode of the deuil they should now be called the sonnes of the liuing God. And to whom I beseech you is this vnspeakable benefite promised forsooth neither to the Israelites nor to the Iewes nor to theÌ„ which seemed to apperteine vnto God but vnto theÌ„ which were altogether seuered estranged from God the very abiect rascall Gentiles barbarous vncircumcised heatheÌ„ perdie whome the incomprehensible mercie of God will ioyne neere vnto him selfe and wil engraffe them into the roote of his owne naturall Oliue tree hauing first sawed of the naturall branches in whose steade he shal gather the Gentiles together from out a wylde Oliue tree in such plentifull aboundance and infinite heapes as will not be comprehended within the territorie of Palestine onely but like vnto the sandes of the sea will replenish the whole worlde farre and wide from the rising of the sunne to the going downe of the same Ye haue heard the minde and purport of the Prophet which if ye suppose to be as yet not accomplished for your behoofe through the Gospel of Messhias our Lord and Sauiour open your eyeliddes if you bee not blinde and beholde the innumerable multitude of people and tongues which euerie where throughout all the worlde doe professe the true worshipping of God nomber them if you be able but if the quantitie be so infinite as the sande of the sea exceeding all reache compasse of nomber you may easily coniecture thereby ye men of Israel into what streightes your wilfâ—ll ignorance forceth you and how perillous that frowarde blindnes of yours is and withallâ—bethinke your selues in time what were best for you to embrace from henceforth nay rather how foolishly you haue behaued your selues heretofore God did send his onely begotten sonne into the worlde the seede of a woman and borne of a virgine whose parentage kindred from whence he issued because you dyd not knowe and neuerthelesse were amazed to beholde his heauenly power in doing miracles his wonderfull clemencie employed to the cure of all maner diseases and casting out of deuils yet being swallowed vp of extreame madnes ouerwhelmed with blinde rancour caÌ„ckred malice you did most cruelly despoyle him of life and spilt his guiltlesse blood without all cause of offence For why may I not iustly accuse you as partetakers of the same crime sithence yee doe with whole bent affection of hatefull despite pursue the embrued steppes of your bloodie sires and gladly allow of that execrable murther And therefore thou cursed Iewe thou art duly charged with the guilt of innocent blood englut therfore thy greedie guts with goare Thou didst receiue Cesar to be thy king refusing Christ continue his bondslaue stiâ— Yet this worketh no grace in