without an heade in it And when we speake of the head of the Churche we must keepe our selues in the Metaphore and as it should be absurde and monstrous for one man to haue two natural heades so shal it be iudged as portentous for the Churche to haue two Metaphorical that is spiritual heads We must alwaies wheÌ„ we entreate of any thing persist in the same order and kinde which thing if wee doo not obserue we shal easily be deceaued by equiuocation But let vs returne to the Pope Of the keyes foundation of the Churche who least he shoulde seme to be destitute of testimonies of the holy scriptures taketh two places out of them Whereof the one is Vpon this rocke I wil builde my Churche and wyll gyue the keyes c. But that place pertaineth to al those which confesse the verity of faith for Peter when the Lord demaunded what the Apostles beleued of him aunswered in the name of them al that he was the sonne of the liuing God Wherefore that which Christ speaketh vnto him pertaineth to all them whych together wyth him beleue and professe the same selfe thing For the keyes are geuen vnto the Church And in Iohn the Lord after his resurrection gaue them vnto all them at the last also when he should ascend vp into heauen he sent them all alike to preache throughout the world And as touching the fouÌ„dation the Church hath no other foundation but Christ For Paul vnto the Corinth sayde No man can lay any other foundation then that which is already layde How the Apostles are called foundations of the Church which is Christ Iesus And if at any time the Apostles be called foundacions of the churche that is to be vnderstand bicause they in the first time of the Churche cleaued vnto the foundation as the first and greater stones not bicause the Churche leaned vnto them as to the principal foundation The other place which they bring out of the scriptures is Not onely to Peter was the coÌ„maundement geuen to feede the flocke of Christ bicause Christ saith vnto Peter feede my Lambes But they are excedingly deceaued for it was not the office of Peter onely but also of the other Apostles to feede the flocke of the Lord. But it was so sayd peculiarly vnto Peter bicause he had denyed the Lord thrise and therefore he might haue seemed to haue fallen from the fellowship of the Apostles vnles he had of Christ bene restored by certaine woordes And that not onely he but also other ought to feede the shepe of Christ his own woordes testify which be writeth in his Epistle wher he admonisheth other Ministers to feede the flocke of the Lorde But graunt that the Lorde gaue vnto Peter anye principal thing what hath the bishop of Rome common with him Let hym declare his spirite and as Peter hath labored for the Church let hym also labour which thing if he performe then wil we acknowledge him not as an vniuersal bishop but as a good Minister of Christ The spirite of Christ is not bouÌ„d to chairs He sayth that hee hath the chaire that Peter had What seate I pray you speaketh he of The holy ghost is not bounde to seates But graunt that it were so Antioche had Peter sitting in it before Rome had For that church he planted and long whyle gouerned But they say that he was slayne at Rome But the Iewes crucified Christ himselfe at Ierusalem which is a thing of greater waight Wherfore if we should follow this argument the bishop of Ierusalem should be preferred aboue all other Yea and Peter as it is written to the Galathians was not the Apostle of the Gentiles but of circumcision as it was agreed betwene Paul Iames Iohn and Barnabas Neither do we euer reade that Peter prescribed the other Apostles any thyng or that they depended of him Yea Paul most manifestly testifieth that he receaued nothing of Peter Farther it is certaine that Peter was slain vnder Nero Iohn liued euen to the time of Traiane And they say that Cletus Linus and Clemens succeded Peter at Rome What then shal we thinke that Iohn the Apostle was subiect vnto Clemens And of necessity he should be so if the Byshop of Rome be the vniuersal head or general bishop But who wil say that this may be suffred Moreouer An Epistle of Clemens lyes may be confuted with lyes Our aduersaries bring the Epistle of Clemens which is a fained Epistle as a thing certaine We wyl gratefy theÌ„ in this thing Clemens Iacobo â—ratri domini Epis copo EpiscoruÌ„ regnanti Ecclesiam que esi Hierosolymis omnes que suÌ„t vbique Dei prouidentia and we wyll now graunt that to be true which is false Let them marke his superscription which is written after thys maner Clemens to Iames the brother of the Lord by the prouidence of God the bishop of bishops gouernour of the Church which is at Ierusalem and of al the Churches euery where What wyl they say here The bishop of Rome ascribeth his title vnto the Byshop of Ierusalem and attributeth this vniuersall charge of all Churches vnto him and not to himselfe This argument maketh verye muche agaynste those which haue vnto the Churches obtruded this Epistle for true ratefied it But that can nothing hurt vs which is takeÌ„ out of that epistle against our doctrine For we know that it is a fayned thing as that which was neuer alledged by any of the fathers And in it the same Clemens affirmeth that he hym selfe wrote the litle booke called Itenarium Perri which booke as it is said in the Decrees is counted among the Apocripha bookes But of this thing I haue spoken sufficient these thinges haue I rehearsed onely that we might vnderstand howe much Gideon is to be preferred before the Antechristes of Rome Whither the gouernment of God bee excluded by humane Magistrates Here is put forth an other question whether the rule and gouernmeÌ„t of God be therfore excluded bicause the Magistrate of a publike wealth or of Aristocratia or of a kingdome is geuen vnto a man The cause of the doubt is bicause when it was sayd vnto Gideon Thou shalt raygne ouer vs he answered I wyl not raygne ouer you but the Lord shal raign ouer you It is not hard to dissolue this question proposed forasmuch as the administration wherwith God gouerneth publike wealthes hindreth not the Magistrate which is his Vicar Minister And assuredly God raigned together with Dauid and Iosias and the Israelites at that tyme had a certaine Magistrate and one of their own with whom also God himselfe also gouerned Wherfore the wordes of Gideon do not teach this that God cannot raigne there where as is a lawfull king But this thyng onelye he regarded that the present state of thinges whiche was instituted by God When God is sayd to gouerne pub wealthes ought not to be altred
troublesome dreames 137. b Bearing with others weaknes 52 Beda liued in a corrupt time 42. b Bearfoote is Elleborus 164. b Bees of bullockes dead 218 Begging disalowed 203 Behauor in prosperiti aduersiti 6 Benefits degres worthines 198 Benefits whether they be to be wtdraweÌ„ froÌ„ vnthaÌ„ful persons 198 Benefits of god ar of .2 sorts 198 b Beniamin had .x. families 269 Beniamites worthy to be condemned 271 Beniamites how many of theÌ„ wer slayne by the Israelites 273. b Berdes of Priestes 201. b Bernhards error of angels 209 Bethabara 141 Bethel is not alwayes a propper name of a place but wher the ark of the couenant remained 269. b Bethlehem .2 of that name 239. b Betraying handled 36 b Betraying defined 37 Betraying wurs theÌ„ besieging 37 Betraying lawful 37. b Betraying examples 38. b Betrothing in woordes of the future tence 284. b Bezek situate 11 Bibles preserued by the Iewes 57 b Bishop of Rome hath nothing common with Peter 149 Bishops of Rome refused kingdom in the church at the first 147 Bishops ambicious 12 Bishops coÌ„secrating of kings whether they be therein greater then kinges 261. b Blabbing a vice moste peculiare to women 221. b Blasphemies horrible 235 Bloudshedding iustly and rightly restrayneth not from the holy ministery 146. b Boasting what 87. b Boasting against God 132. b Body what it signifieth with Tertulian 209 Body spiritual how 211 Body and bloud of Christe howe it is eaten 212. b Bodies of men after the floud whether lesse then before 17 Body humaine cannot consist with out flesh and bones 118. Body remoueth vs not from the beholding of God 117. b Bodye is ioyned to the soule for a helpe and not punishment 208. b Body is anoyed with druÌ„keÌ„nes 163. b Bodely diseases les grieuous then the mindes 247. b Bona goods 139. b Bondage first of the Israelits 77 Bondage more grieuous then losse of goods 70 Bondage is agaynste the nature of man 80 Bondage is a ciuill death 36 Bond saruants may not flye from their masters 227. b Bonifacius the right 257. Booke de Patientia none of Augustines 158. b Booke de Dogmate ecclesiastico is none of saint Augustines 121 borders of the Hebrues couÌ„tri 267 Bramble a vile plant 160. b Breade remayning in the Eucharist 205 brethreÌ„ for al maner of kinsfolks 23 Brothers children ar not forbidden to mary by Gods lawe .19 but by the law of nature 21 Brothers wyfe onelye lawfull for the Iewes to mary 21. b Bribery of Abimilech 158 Burials of the Hebrues in their own possessions 66 Burnt offringes 271 Burthens personall 263. b C. CAesar touched 153. b Caiphas the hie priest was no prophet 137 Calcedonia Synode 147. b Calfes made by Aaron IeroboaÌ„ were made of a good intent 48. b Calues of the lyps 192 Canons of the apostles allow mariage of Ministers 94. b Canons latter corrupt 215 Canons authority aboue the Ciuill lawes 217. b Cantones vilages of Heluetia â—67 Captains ouer ten Centurions c why God appointed 115. b Captaynes to haue Ministers in their campes 96. b Captaine needefull in great daungers 176. b captiues returning or escaping 85 b Carthage inhabited wyth Sidonians 243. b Cardinals hoorehunters 232 Carefulnes contrary to securitye yet not alwaies to be praised 247 case new requireth a new help 88 b Cases of lying to auoyd dauÌ„ger 90 Castels whether it bee lawfull to fence 113 Castels municions cannot defend from the anger of God 112. b Cathecumeni 42 b Cato burthened with droÌ„kennes 163 Caues described 112. b Cause of synne is not to be layd vnto God 167 Cause iust vniust differ much 271 Causes first more to be considered then the second 71 Centurions c. why God appointed 115. b Ceremonies complayned on 190. b Ceremonies neede not be all a lyke euery where 54. b Ceremonies of the law howe long they might be vsed 52 Ceremonies of the law howe farre Paule condemned them 51. b Ceremonies are not good bycause they had a good begynning but bicause they be good of theyr nature 48 Ceremonies in the Masse what they signify is vnknowen 50 Chaire of Peter 149 Chaldry paraphrast with the Hebrues is of great authority 285. b Chalebs petigree 18. b Chaleb a faythful spy 18 Chanaan nation discussed 7 ChanaaÌ„ deuided by Iosua before it was possessed by the Israelits 7. b Chananites why God woulde not by and by destroy them 8 Chananites expelled by the Israelites went into Affricke 7 Charges extraordinary 263. b Chariotes for warre described 32. they can not resist God 32 b Charity is neglected when we depart from the true God 155. b Charity not broken in destroying of Cities 31 Chaunce is not with God 172 ChauÌ„ce is not wtout gods wil 165 b Chaunge is not in God 175 Chemos god of the Amonites 185 Cherem vowes 192 Ches play 220 Children many is an excellent gyft of God 200 Children fayre of foule Parentes how 4. b Childe of a day old is not pure 180 Children are more of the father theÌ„ of the mother 156. b Children deuided for legitimacion c. 177. b Childrens obedience to their Parentes 203. b Childrens duties to their parents al one with subiects to their Magistrates 265 Children whether they may marye wtout coÌ„sent of their parents 214 Children when they maye disobeye their parentes 253 ChildreÌ„ ar not punished for theyr fathers as touching eternal life 182 Choyce of meates is not to bee followed 278 Christ is man 211. b Christ is the vniuersal head 147. b Christ the head of the church 241 Christ dissembled 89. b Christ as wee reade oft wept but neuer laught 63 Christ how he resembled Melchisedech 261 Christe is the mediator in makyng leagues 73. b Christ refused a kingdoÌ„ offred 147 Christ is our peace 122. b Christes appearing to the olde Fathers how it may be proued 119 b Christ how he is taught bi the boke of Iudges 2. b Christ had a true body after hys resurrection 209 Christes bodye howe it entred the doores shut 211. b Christ appeared to Gedion 115 Christes body bloud ar not included in the simbols or signes 212 b Chronicles howe they differ from histories 3 Chrysippus foolish answer 147 Church is gouerned of God wyth a singuler care 203 Church had not two swords in the apostles time 260. b Churche howe it maye haue twoo swordes 259. b Churche geueth not authoritye to the scriptures but contrary 5 Church hath three offices touching the word of God 5 Churches consent if it be to be waited for in reformacion of religion 265 Church ought to entreat for the reconciliation of the repentant 250 Church that payeth tythes is greater then the minister 261. b CipriaÌ„ resisted the church of Rome 148 Circumstances make much in euery matter 101 City of Palmes what 27. b Cities whether it bee lawfull to fence 113 Cities of refuge beloÌ„ged to the Leuites 18 Citizen good who 150 Ciuil lawes are to bee corrected by the woord
so then were it very easy to persuade the Ethnickes and Turkes of the holy Scriptures and to bryng the Iewes to receaue the new Testament and how true this is the thing it selfe witnesseth And I thincke I haue spoken enough of the efficient cause of this booke and of the holy Scriptures Of the ende of this booke And now lastly order semeth to require the seyng we haue spoken of the matter forme and efficient cause of the holy bookes we shoulde also entreate somewhat to what end they were written Wherin I thincke it not nedeful to kepe the reader long for that before when I entreated many thynges of an historye I haue expounded also the profite and commodities whiche come therof whiche no doubte of it belong vnto the ende but nowe presently I will say thus much compendiously that all these thinges are mentioned by the holy ghost that we shoulde behaue our selues vprigthly both in prosperitie and also aduersitie For we learne by the examples of holy men when we are afflicted with sundry troubles and miseries stedfastly to holde our faith to put our hope in God to call vpon him only therewithall to repent vs of our sinnes whiche thinges if we do he will no lesse be presente to helpe vs than we know that he oftentimes deliuered the people of the Iewes And this Paul declared when he sayde to the Romaines whatsoeuer things are written they are written for our learning that we thorough patience and consolation of the Scriptures might haue hope Moreouer we are instructed in prosperous thinges to kepe the feare of god lest we fal into grieuous sinnes by whiche meanes we might be made guiltie both of punishement in this lyfe and also of euerlastyng damnatiō Finally we may moste manifestly gather the ende of reading of these bookes out of the Apostles doctrine whiche he deliuered to Timothe writing after this sorte in his second Epistle and third chap. All Scripture geuen by inspiration of God is profitable to doctrine to reprouing to correction and to instruction which is in righteousnesse that the man of God may be perfect and prepared to al good workes And now that as I suppose I haue spoken enough of the end and other causes of this booke I will come nygher to the exposition of the same first I wil declare whether this booke according to the sentence of the Hebrewes be the second booke of the firste Prophetes whose coniunction is so great with the history of Iosua that a man woulde easely saye that they be both one Whether the booke of Iosua ought to be reckened with the booke of Iudges And peraduenture there be some which suppose that Iosua should be reckened with the iudges to whom I will not subscribe For iudges were raised vp of god when the people were oppressed with outwarde enemies but when Iosua was proclaymed prince all the affaires of the Israelites were in good prosperitie For Sihon and Og most mightie kinges were ouercome and that office was cōmitted to Iosua wherby Moyses being dead he might leade the people ouer Iordane and take possessiō of the lande of Chanaan and deuide the promised lande by lottes vnto the children of Israell and besides that the people did set their handes to a decree whiche they had made of Iosua that he whiche obeyed not his voyce should be killed as we read it written in the first chap. of his booke But there is no mention made of suche thynges as concernyng the Iudges And yet both the bookes are so like and of such affinitie that many thinges are repeated in this our booke especially in the beginning whiche no doubte were done when Iosua was yet lyuing There resteth now to admonishe the reader somewhat of the partes of this boke The partes of the booke of Iudges There are as many principall membres in it as there were Iudges to Samuels tyme. For that in euery one of them still riseth vnto vs a new historye But the first of all was Othoniel of whom we will speake in the third chap. So that all those thinges whiche are written vnto that place do contayne the thynges done from the death of Iosua vnto Othoniel And certainly bycause the Iewes as long as Iosua liued worshipped god a right kept the lawe as muche as the weakenesse of mā coulde do god stil wrought with them accordyng to his couenaunt gaue thē a great victorye ouer their enemies so that euery tribe ouercame his enemies for the most part which were yet adioynying to their borders And then when the Israelites obteynyng the victorye did transgresse the commaundements of their god did not cleane destroy the nations which they had ouercome as god had commaunded them yea they made them tributaries vnto them god therfore grieuously admonished them by his messanger bycause they had not onely saued their enemies but also had moste filthyly honoured theyr gods So that god was not wtout a cause angry with them and deliuered them into the handes of outwarde tyrannes But when they were sorye for it and called vpon their god he had compassion of them and raysed them vp Iudges by whom they might be deliuered when they were deliuered they fell agayne to Idolatry they were afflicted againe they repented wherby in course their deliueries and oppressions are set forth But their first oppressiō worthy of memory was vnder Chusan Resanthaim from the which Othoniel the first of al the iudges reuenged them of whom we will speake in his place But now we will put here vnderneth the wordes of the holy history The first Chapter 1 IT came to passe after the death of Iosua that the childrē of Israel asked the Lord sayeng Who shall go vp for vs agaynst the Chananites to fight first agaynst them 2 And the Lorde sayd Iudah shal go vp beholde I haue deliuered the lande into his handes IT semed good vnto the children of Israel to take warre in hande for as it is writtē in the xiii chap. of Iosua they had not yet at this tyme conquered all the promised land so that in euery tribes lotte there were enemyes remayning And when they sawe there was no remedy but that they must dryue them out by force they doubted not whether they shoulde make warre agaynst them but their doubte was whiche tribe should fight before all the other The Israelites aske counsell of God The matter seemed to be of such great importaunce that they asked counsell of god whiche was the chief gouernour of their publicque weale Iosua that worthy captayne was no more a liue at whose becke and pleasure they hanged The Israelites affaires had euill successe whē they were done without God hys counsell Neither yet had they forgotten howe euill successe they had when not long before they toke weighty affaires in hand without asking counsell of God For in their settyng forth to battaill against the citie of Hai they sped very vnluckely in the
Glory to God on high which they wil haue to be the inuention of Telesphorus Then had they Collectes which are ascribed vnto Gelasius Moreouer certain lessons were rehearsed out of the holye scriptures either out of the old testament or els out of the Actes or Epistles of the Apostles The Epistle Whiche lessons being done there was to be rehearsed some part of the Euangelicall hystory But when the Readers had red vnto the church the fyrst lessons the deacon stoode vp in a high place or pulpit namely to be sene and to be vnderstande of al men The Gospel The graduale Halleluiah wher he distinctly pronounced that which was to be redde out of the Gospell But whylest hee went and ascended vp the stayres the people vsed to syng some verses of Psalmes which commonlye they called Graduales that is stayre songes They added also vnto them Halleluiah that is prayse the Lord as it were clapping of hands with a ioyous cry for the glad tidinges of the gospell This hebrewe woord Halleluiah semeth to be taken out of the Churche of Ierusalem whereof there is mencion made also in the Apocalipse and in the tytle of certayne Psalmes When the Deacon had red the Gospell the Byshop A Sermon or the Pastor of the Churche added thereunto an interpretation and exhortation wherin vices were reproued and deliberation taken of such as wer to be excommunicated Which thinges being thus finished The Papistes haue transposed the sendyng away of the people the Cathecumenites and others which woulde not communicatr were sent awaye But in our tyme bycause there are found very seldome any Cathecumenites and they whych do not communicate doo stande myngled with the rest yea almost none communicate except it be the Sacrificer alone The Papistes haue differred that Missio that is that sendyng awaye to the ende of their abhominations For then they vse to say with a loude voyce Ite Missa est That is Go your way Ite Missa est nowe is the departure But in the olde tyme those thinges being finished The Symbole of the fayth whyche wee haue rehearsed they which abode to be partakers of the holy Supper dyd sing the Simbole of the fayth that they might diligentlye instruct one an other in the principal heades of religion wherein they consented For in Symboles is comprehended the fumme of faith whiche comprehension or summe The Symbole is called the tradition of the Church Tertulian The counsel of Nice if a man wyll diligently reade the olde Fathers he shal finde to be called Traditio Ecclesiae that is the tradition of the Churche which is both taken out of the holy Scriptures and also necessarye to be beleued for saluation And sometimes Tertullian bringeth it agaynst the heretickes which denyed the holy Scriptures The Synode holden at Nicena made a full and perfecte Symbole but not the fyrste for as muche as there were certaine Symboles before as we may know euen of Tertullian hym selfe Then whyle they soong the Creede or Symbole such as were present offered of theyr goods suche thynges as they thought good Three vses of oblation The offering serued for three maner of vses for parte of it was spent on certayne moderate banquets whiche the Christians dyd at that tyme verye religiouslye celebrate among them selues and they were commonly called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Charitable banquetes that is charitable banquets Part of that which remained was distributed vnto the poore And finally some of the bread wyne was layd vp for the vse of the holye Supper And that thys oblation of thinges was then added Offertory Collectes twoo thinges doo testefye Fyrst certayne verses which were soong by the people whilest the offering was in doing which was therfore called of theÌ„ Offertorium that is an offring The same is also knowen by those collectes which are redde in that part of the Masse Yea and Iustinus the most auncient Martyr hath made mencion of the same oblation in his Apologie or defence and Ciprian also and some of the old Fathers Sursum corda After these thinges when they came to administer the holye Supper they sayde Sursum corda that is Lyft vp your hartes as the Ethnickes vsed to cry in their holy thinges Hoc age Hoc age that is do this And surely the Christians said so verye aptlye and in conuenient time thereby to admonishe them selues to thinke at that time vpon no carnal nor earthly thing but wholy to lyft vp their myndes vnto heauen where Christ is to be sought and not in earth as thoughe he were included in the breade or wyne After that they gaue thankes when they sayd Gratias agimus tibi From whence is had the name 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Proper words of the Supper The Lordes Prayer Sancâ—us Prefaces Canon We geue thankes O Lorde holye father almightye and euerlasting God through Christ our Lorde c. These thinges are moste auncient and are found very often in old ecclesiasticall wryters Yea and that mystery of the bodie and bloud of Christ was called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is geuing of thankes bycause all the accomplishing thereof dependeth vp on thankes geuing And when the people had sayd Through our Lorde Christe he went to the proper woordes of the Supper Which being rehearsed there was said the Lordes praier But Xystus before the rehersall of it would haue the people to sing Sanctus Sanctus c. that is holy holy c. And that there might be better occasion geuen to come to that song certaine prefaces were put before And to those they peeced theyr Canon which one Scolasticus as Gregory mencioneth in his Register made whiche in deede the same Gregory alloweth not bycause he woulde put in thinges of hys owne and neglected the Lordes prayer The kysse of peace is sayd to be the inuention of Leo the seconde Kisse of peace Which seemeth not so to me for as muche as that maner was in the Churche euen in the tyme of the Apostels that Christians shoulde entertayne one another wyth the kysse of peace Yea and Paule in hys Epistles hath made mencion of that kynd of saluation Agnus dei And Iustine also the martyr in his second Apology hath mencioned of this kysse The song of Agnus dei that is the Lambe of God Distribution of the sacrament is said to haue beene brought in by one Innocentius And when all these thinges were finished they came to the distribution of the Sacrament Whych whilest it was in doing or when it was finished they song a song of thanks geuing Post coÌ„munion Praiers at the end which they called Post Communionem that is an after Communion And all these thinges beyng finished and ended the Minister sent away the people blessing them with a lucky blessing All these thinges althoughe they led awaye the Christian people from that fyrst simplicity of vsyng the Lordes Supper very manye
than an Infidell Yea and the same Apostle hath commaunded that seruauntes of necessitye should obey their Maisters Now resteth to shewe reasons testimonyes of the holy scriptures Testimonies of the holy scriptures for the sentence alledged for the dysalowing of this conuersation Fyrst our Sauiour feared not to say in Mathew the 5. and 18. chap. If thy hand fote or eye be an offence or let vnto thee cut him of and cast him from thee And these as the wyser interpreters do declare spake he not of the members of the body but referred theÌ„ vnto those which are our familiars most nygh of kynred vnto vs. They al are to be seperated froÌ„ oure coÌ„pany although they seme profitable and coÌ„modious when they eyther seperate vs froÌ„ God which is the euerlastyng saluation or do put lets and hynderaÌ„ces wherby we are called froÌ„ hym Chrysostome Chrysostome in a maner intreating the self same argument sayth in the 56. Homely vpon Iohn If we cut of a rotten membre froÌ„ the body least it should corrupt the other partes of the body which vndoubtedly we do not bycause we despyse that member For who at any tyme hated hys owne fleshe How much more should we do the same in those which are wickedly ioyned vnto vs not that we should despyse them but that we should prouide that our saluation be not there indaungered where we see that we can nothing at al profite them Wherfore in thys case it is muche vnprofitable to desire or to seke for familiaritie or concord To this also doth the law of Christ tend which he gaue in the 18. of Mathew that they which are in a manner past hope of saluatioÌ„ wil not heare their brethren iustly admonishing theÌ„ yea and also despise the voyce of the church correcting them let them be counted as Ethnikes and publicanes Which thing Paule also hath taught who in the fyrst of the Corrinthians the v. chap. commaunded the incestuous person to be excoÌ„municated that a litle leuen should not pollute the whole dough of the sainctes Moreouer the same Apostle taught and that in the same Epistle the 15. chap. out of a verse of Menander that Poet the euil coÌ„munications corrupt good maners And therby he shewed that the ryght fayth of the resurrection was greuously weakened among the Corinthians which were newly come vnto Christ and that for that cause bycause they had lightly geueÌ„ credite vnto the arguments prophane reasons of Philosophers or rather heretikes It is not possible to be thought how the bewitching of wicked words corrupteth the teÌ„der fayth of the weake ones Wherfore profitably and conueniently were the Corrinthians admonished with theÌ„ all such as are weake ar exhorted The couÌ„sels of Phisitions to auoyde contagiousnesse to abstayne froÌ„ the fellowship of infidels The phisitions also do counsell that when a contagious disease shal infect either a familye or the next familie vnto it that such as yet are of perfect health goe not vnto them which are sicke For that in the bodyes temperatures of men there is a certayne agrement wherby an affection easly issueth froÌ„ those which ar sicke to theÌ„ which are whole and sound 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the poyson wherof though it be not byandby felt of those which take not hede vnto themselues yet for al that within a litle whyle after it deadly corrupteth Wherfore seing we are bidden so diligently to beware of the diseases of the bodye muche more ought we to prouide agaynste the vices of the mynde that we no way prouoke them vnto vs. Our nature is on euery side subiect to corruption Furthermore our nature is so framed by reason of our naturall or originall sinne that we are on euery side subiect to corruption as both the holy scriptures and also very many experiences do daily teach vs so that it is not to be doubted but that we should easly sucke in the poyson of other mens sinnes if we shoulde not with great diligence auoyde them And those synnes as they do without any laboure cleaue vnto vs before we beware so being once conceaued they can not be plucked from vs but with great paynes Chrysostome Wherfore Chrysostome in his 56. Homely vpon Iohn which I a litle before brought semeth wisely to saye If we coulde make theÌ„ the better and not hurt our selues he entreateth in the place of infidells and vngodly ones we should do all things but when we can do them no good bycause they are past amendment and that we may greuously hurt our selues then are they vtterly to be cut of And to confyrme hys sentence more strongly he bringeth in that which Paule writeth in the fyrst Epistle to the Corinth the .5 chap. which is Take away euil from among you Which wordes of the Apostle can not be vnderstand of synne forasmuche as the Greeke woorde is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is euil By which kynde of speache a wicked man is signifyed Wherfore I shall nothyng erre if I a litle bend the wordes of the Apostle to the commoditie of the weake ones saying Take away your selues from among the euill ones For if ye being weake and vnskilfull shall company with them ye must nedes both see and heare very many thynges agaynst godlynesse the religion which ye professe And bicause ye are not able neyther to confute nor to reproue them ye shall seme to be called as witnesses of blasphemies and reproche of the truth And peraduenture there shoulde remayne a styng in your myndes wherewith your conscience should be vexed longer than ye thynke for Let vs herken vnto the wyse maÌ„ who hath wel and faithfully admonished That he which toucheth pytche shal be fyled with it and that he which hath fellowship with a proude man wil proue like vnto him The vices of other men are like vnto pitch Take vpon thee no greater burthen than thou art able to beare ioyne not thy selfe vnto a mightier thaÌ„ thou thy self art Ecclesiasticus the .13 chap. These things do two wayes serue for thys present matter Fyrst in that the vices of other men are lykened vnto pytche whiche sticketh wonderfull fast to the fyngers of them which touch it We must haue a regard to our own strength and also to garments Secondly are we faythfully admonyshed to haue a regarde to our own strength Examples of the holy scriptures Let the examples of the holy scriptures in any wise teach vs. The Israelits were 70. yeres captiues in Babilon were so infected with the conuersatioÌ„ of vnfaythful natioÌ„s that afterward wheÌ„ they had leaue geueÌ„ theÌ„ fyrst of Cirus theÌ„ of Darius the most noble kings to returne home very many of theÌ„ wold not returne but being ouercome with the coÌ„moditie of houses fields marchandises they remained stil among the Chaldians Medes Persians So cold became they in the loue of godlinesse study of religioÌ„ Exodus â—2
lest their lyes shoulde be founde out For there they saye Take ye and eate and also The Papistes in the Masse make many Lyes As often as ye shall do these thynges ye shall do them in remembraunce of me When as neuerthelesse they haue appoynted to eate and drinke it alone And vndoubtedly very many other thynges speake they secretly and openly in the Masse as thoughe many did communicate or should communicate when as the sacrificer alone doth it in dede A lye is euer fylthy but then most filthy of all when it is admitted in holy thinges and before the Lord. But what shall we saye of their applications They affirme that they can as they luste them selues applye the sacrifices whiche they make vnto the quicke and the dead Euery man is iustified by his owne faith and lyueth dyeth in hys owne righteousnesse But the Scripture teacheth that euery man is iustifyed by hys owne fayth and that all men shall either dye or lyue in their owne ryghteousnesse or vnryghteousnesse but they saye otherwyse for they can as they saye helpe both the quicke and the dead by their Masses If they woulde attribute that vnto prayers namely that they taught that by prayers they mought helpe the necessityes of others it myght be borne with all By praiers we heâ—pe other But when they affirme that the worke it selfe namely of the Masse hath in it so muche power and vertue that it can helpe all kynde of men that maye by no meanes be suffred Besides this Masses are very oftentymes celebrated in the honour of certayne Sainctes whiche vndoubtedly is moste farre from the truthe for as muche as Christe hath for thys purpose instituted hys Supper that it shoulde be a memorie of hys death and not of other Saynctes I will not speake howe that it is moste commonly sene that there is nothyng founde certaine of those Sainctes whome they there worshyppe The lyues of many sainctes are Apochripha and full of Fables the lyues of them are Apochripha and very often also full of fables and Poetes faynenyngs There are also in it certayne yea very many straunge rites signes to be laughed at gestures in a manner foolyshe and garmentes not vsed the significations of whiche thynges are vtterly vnknowen not onelye of them whiche stande by but euen the sacrificers them selues SignificatioÌ„s of Ceremonies in the Masse are not knoweÌ„ if they shoulde be demaunded what they meant they coulde not aunswere Wherefore either they aunswere nothyng or if they go aboute to saye any thyng they bryng forth not one thyng but thyngs moste disagreyng whereby thou mayste easely gather that there is no truth in their wordes Wherefore fayth can haue no place in these thinges whiche they do in theyr Masse when as it onely there hath place where the worde of God offreth it selfe vnto vs. And that they can not defend them selues from the detestable synne of Idolatry the ymages do testifye Images are worshipped in the masse vnto the whiche they turnyng them selues do celebrate their most vnpure seruices For they can not be content in the Masses to looke vpon them but they cense them and kneele before them and finally they do vnto them all kynde of worshippyng whiche is to be done onely to God And bycause as I haue before mencioned they dare affirme that the Masse hath affinitie I can not tell what with the institution of Christ it shall not be from the purpose Sacrifices of the Ethnikes are more agreable with sacrifices appointed by God thaÌ„ is the Masse with the holy supper and it is easy to be done to declare that if we marke the tokens the olde Ethnikes may with much more likelyhode excuse and defend their sacrifices than these can defend the Masses For the sacrifices of the gentiles did not differ from the maner of sacrificyng whiche the fathers had before the lawe and whiche God allowed in his lawe when as these men in their Masse differ from that supper whiche Christ prescribed and as the EuaÌ„gelistes and the Apostle Paul haue deliuered There on euery syde was inuocation of God a temple an alter Sacrifices Priestes Killing sheding of Bloud Salte Wyne Oyle Meale a holy banket religious garmentes washynges fumigations continuall fyer singing oracles and such lyke whiche would be to long to rehearse Let the Popishe sacrificers shewe as many thinges if they can in their Masse whiche do agree with those thinges whiche Christ did in the supper But if so be they can not let them then thinke that their Masse doth no more agree with the godly celebration of the holy Supper than do the rites of the Idolatrers agree with the legall sacrifices Wherfore let them cease of so to kysse their littel daughter and to preache that it ought to be counted the institution of Christ and of the Apostles I will not speake of the yearely Obites and Funerals of the dead whiche are oftentymes vsed there of whiche thinges the Lord hath nothing commaunded By it they stablishe Purgatory wherof the holy scriptures write nothyng That furthermore is most farre from pietie bycause in their Masse they poure out prayers vnto sainctes whiche are already departed out of this lyfe In hearyng of Masses the anger of God is not pacified but prouoked Finally all the thynges whiche they there do they make a market of them sell bargayne and set them out to most filthy gayne Wherfore we must diligentlye take hede that whilest we desyre to worshyp GOD and to haue hym mercifull vnto vs we do not in hearyng of Masses exceadyngly prouoke hys anger agaynst vs. What is to be answerd to the exaÌ„ple of Naaman the SiriaÌ„ These superstitious men go forwarde and by the example of Naaman the Sirian will proue that it is permitted them to be present at the most fylthy Masses Naaman prayed Elizeus the Prophet that if he bowed his knee in the teÌ„ple of the Idoll Rimnon when the kyng whiche leaned his hand on his shoulder should so do he would implore for hym mercy and forgeuenesse of GOD. To whom Elizeus aunswered only go in peace These our men ought to consider with theÌ„ selues whether they onely haue sene and read this diuine history I thinke not For the holy Martyrs in the olde Churche were studious day and nyght in the holy Scriptures Wherfore this history of Naaman was not hidden from them And what cause was there then that they would not followe such an example and that with the losse of their lyfe These auncient noble men and pillers of our fayth sawe that whiche our aduersaryes recken not with them selues namely that that Naaman whiche is set before vs was newly conuerted vnto the true God and was yet a weake souldiour who was not also yet ready to deny both hys owne and hym selfe for Gods cause but desyred after a sorte to kepe hys olde place and dignitie with hys kynge The whiche thyng to attayne vnto he sawe
before other kynde of men had the promise of saluation neither are they paste all hope when as daylye some of them although but a fewe retourne vnto Christ Blindnesse sayeth Paule to the Romanes fell partly on Israel as though he woulde say not on al. Moreouer the same Apostle addeth when the fulnesse of the Gentiles is entred then all Israell shall be saued And least thou shouldest peraduenture thinke that these wordes are to bee vnderstand allegorically Paule writeth them as a miserye and to confyrme his sentence he bryngeth the Prophecye of Esay the Prophet namely that iniquitie shal be then taken away from Iacob Furthermore they are now called enemyes vnto God for our sakes but called frends bycause of their fathers The same Augustine in hys Questions vppon the Gospell the second boke and xxxiii Question if that these bookes be of Augustine his writing when he interpreteth the parable of the prodigal sonne he sayeth that that sonne signifyeth the Gentiles For it is written that he departed into a farre countrey bycause the Ethnikes were so farre departed from God that they openly worshipped Idoles and with open profession But the elder sonne by whome was shadowed the people of the Hebrewes went not so farre And although he were not in hys Fathers house whiche is the Churche he dwelled for all that in the fielde For the Iewes are exercised in the holy Scriptures whiche they doe not ryghtlye vnderstande nor yet with that spirituall sense wherein the Churche of Christe taketh them but in an earthlye and carnall sense Wherefore they are not vnaptelye sayde to bee in the fielde Thys Elder sonne entreth not at the begynnyng into the house of hys Father but in the latter dayes he shall also bee called and come The same Father also bringeth for thys sentence that which is written in the 58. Psalme as he readeth it Do not kil them least they forget thy law but in thy power disperse them The Sonne of God sayth he prayeth vnto the father that that nation might not be destroyed but might wander euery where throughout the worlde Other prouinces when they were ouercome of the Romanes followed the lawes and rites of the Romanes The Iewes receaued not the lawes and customes of the Romanes so that at the length they were made Romanes but the Iewes although they were ouercome by the Romanes yet woulde they neuer followe their lawes rites and ceremonies they yet obserue theyr owne as muche as they maye and being dispersed they wander abroade Neither haue they vtterly forgotten the lawe of GOD not that they Godlye applye themselues to obserue it but only reade it and kepe certayne signes and institutions wherby they are discerned from other Nations Moreouer it semeth that God hath put a signe vppon them as he dyd vppon Caine bycause he had killed his brother Abell namely that euery man shoulde not kill them The dispersing of the Iewes is profitable to Christians Neyther is thys theyr dispersion through oute the worlde vnprofitable to the Christians bycause as it is written to the Romanes they are shewed vnto vs as broken bowes And for so much as we were grafted in their place when as we see that they were so miserably cut of we acknowledge the grace of god toward vs and by beholding of them we are taught to take heede that we also bee not likewyse cut of for infidelitie sake for which self cause they are broken of There is also an other commoditie whiche commeth vnto vs by theyr dispersing bycause our bookes are saued by them I meane the holy Byble whiche they euery where carye aboute with them and reade And althoughe bycause they are blynded Against those whiche burne the Bibles in Hebrewe they beleue not yet they confesse that those writynges are moste true They are in harte deadly enemyes agaynst vs but by these bookes which they haue and reuerence they are a testimonye to our religion Wherefore I can not inough meruaile at those whiche doe so much hate the Iewes tongue and Bibles in Hebrewe Augustine that they desire to haue them destroyed and burnte when as Augustine de doctrina Christiana thinketh that if we chaunce somtymes to doubt of the Greke or Latin translation we must fly vnto the truth of the Hebrue And Ierome in many places writeth the same Whether the Hebrues haue corrupted the bokes of holy scriptures Ierome But they say that the holy bookes were vitiated and corrupted by the Hebrues To thys Ierome vpon Esaye the .vi. Chapter towarde the ende aunswereth thus Eyther they dyd thys before the comming of Christ and Preachyng of the Apostles or els afterwarde If a man will saye that it was done of them before then seing Christ and his Apostles reprehended the moste greuous wicked actes of the Iewes I maruaile why they would speake nothing of that sacrilege and so detestable a wicked acte Vndoubtedly they woulde haue reproued them for viciating and corrupting the Scriptures But if thou wilt contend that there were afterward faultes brought in by them then will I say that they ought chiefly to haue corrupted those places which do testifye of Christ and his religiō and which were alledged by the Lord himself and of the Apostles in the newe Testament But they remaine vncorrupt and the same sentence remaineth stil in the Hebrue Bibles which they put For they wer not so carefull for the words Wherfore it is not likely that they as touching other places haue corrupted the holy scriptures Yea if a man diligently reade ouer their bookes he shall finde in them a great many more testimonyes and those more plaine and manifest than our common traslatiō hath Do not they read in the second Psalme Kysse ye the sonne which ours haue translated Take ye hold of discipline Which woordes vndoubtedly are referred vnto Christ But I meane not at this present to bring all such testimonies It is sufficient if with Ierome I proue that the bokes of holy Scriptures are not corrupted by the Hebrues neither assuredly if they woulde they should haue missed of their purpose For there are found many most auncient handwritten bookes which haue bene of a long time most diligently kept by Christians which came neuer in their hands to corrupt But let vs retourne to treate of that commoditye which Augustine hath declared There are very many sayeth he that would peraduenture thinke that those things which we declare of the auncient people and of the Prophets are vayne and fayned of vs vnlesse they saw the Iewes yet remaining on liue The Hebrues their bokes ar most plaine witnesses of our fayth which with their bookes maintaine our sentence euē against their will Wherfore although the Hebrues be blinded in hart are against vs as much as they maye yet are they with their bokes most plaine witnesses of our fayth And vndoubtedly of al testimonies that testimony is most of value God wil haue a church euen
subiect vnto him as to the onely Vicar of Christ in earth as to the vniuersall Bishoppe of the Church as to him which cannot erre in decreing doctrine of fayth and finally to whom onelye it is lawfull to discerne as hee lyst him selfe of religion and Christian discipline Wherefore let this be euery where a sure and firme rule Note a certain sure rule that these outwarde submissions of the body doo then pertayne vnto Idolatry when as they are testimonies of the mynd attributing more vnto a creature than is mete or which are onely proper vnto God For they are not referred vnto God him selfe or to the obedience of his commaundementes but to vayne formes shewes which we haue fayned vnto our selues and conceaued in our mynde Hereby may we also gather that the inuocations of Saintes which the Papistes vse Inuocatiōs of the dead pertayne to idolatry are Idolatrous For they geue vnto sayntes that which longeth onely vnto God namelye that they being absent shoulde heare our praiers or that they can be present at one time either euery wher or els in many places therby to succour those which call vpon their names in diuers partes of the worlde Augustine in his Epistle to Dardanus durst not affirme that Augustine A creature can not be in many places at one tyme. no not euen of the soule of Christ namely that at one time it might be in many places Wherfore that which Christ said vnto the theefe This daye shalt thou be with me in Paradise he expoundeth the same to be vnderstand as touching his diuine nature for that the bodye of Christ should the same daye be layde in the sepulchre and his soule should be in hell Basilius Didimus Neither coulde that soule be both in Paradise and in hell at one time Basilius also de spiritu sancto also Didimus would not graunt this vnto the Angels that they can at one time be in diuers places affirming that that soly is to be graunted vnto the onely nature of God But they which do cal vpon saintes they beleue that they doo heare them and that they are present with them which without doubt is to attribute more vnto them than the strength and order of a nature created can suffer But here they trifle and say that they doo not thinke so but that God hym selfe which heareth their prayers doth open vnto the Sayntes what is required of them But thus I aunswer that they deceaue both them selues and also others For they knowe not whether God wyll shewe vnto the Sayntes their vowes or prayers Wherfore the praiers which they poure out cannot leane vnto faith which ought to be certaine and without doubt They bryng also a fayned lye of the glasse as they say of the deuine essense wherein the Sainctes beholde all thynges A fayned lie of the papists of a glasse of the deuine essence But this theyr fayning hath no foundation in the holy Scriptures Furthermore seing they will needes haue it so admitte it were as they fayne it to bee Yet shoulde they bee compelled to graunte that that theyr glasse hath not a naturall representyng but a voluntarye so that there the Sainctes can see that onely which GOD will haue sene Otherwise withoute any exception the Sainctes myghte there see all thynges whiche is both false and also moste manifestlye resisteth the holy Scriptures Bycause of that daye sayeth the Lorde neyther doe the Aungelles knowe whiche yet doe see the face of the Father Moreouer the Papistes doe not after thys manner call vppon Sainctes for if they did they shoulde saye thus Cause O God that thys or that Saincte maye knowe those thinges whiche I desire of hym and that he maye bee with me and graunte me that whiche I desire But they doe cleane contrarilye O Saincte Peter saye they Sainct Paule pray for me bryng thys or that to passe for me Wherfore they thinke that the saincts do altogether heare vnderstand their voyces whiche thing if they thoughte not then were their doinges vtterly folyshe They declare also by their titles additions which they ascribe vnto the blessed virgine to the crosse and other creatures The Papistes attribute more vnto creatures than is conuenient how far more worthy they esteme and iudge of them than their nature can suffer Neither are they affeard as I haue before declared when I entreated of the heresyes of the Papistes to lyghte vp lyghtes Waxe tapers and Lampes vnto creatures to cense them and to doe other thyngs which the Ethnikes An alter is not to be erected but only vnto God and also the Iewes in the olde law were wont to geue vnto God only What more Do they not builde alters vnto Images of Sainctes But vnto whom alters are builte the same are confyrmed by a sure testimonye to be powers of God or ells Gods Augustine in hys x. Tome .vi. Sermon writeth thus An alter is Augustine which testifyeth that to be counted for God to whom it is erected For they namely the Ethnikes what GOD they haue and that they take that Image for a god the alter doth testifie What should the alter do there if they counted not that for a god Let no mā say vnto me It is not the power of god it is not god But I haue already sayd I would to god they knew this so wel as all we know it But what they count it or what they make of it that alter testifyeth But say the aduersaries we therfore do these things Of miracles which are done at the alters of saintes bicause we haue by experience proued that they please god for as much as he there worketh miracles I know in dede that god hath sometimes wrought miracles by sainctes and such as were dead God hath some times wrought miracles by dead bodyes corpses of dead saintes For the bones of Elizeus by the touche of them restoreh one being dead to lyfe And the same Elizeus vsed the cloke of Elias to deuide the waters of the riuers that he myght make the more expedition on his iourney But god doeth therefore woorke these thinges sometymes that the doctrine of the Prophetes and the Apostles whiche was the very woorde of god might bee confyrmed And yet the Scripture declareth not that there was any inuocation made eyther vnto Elias or Elizeus when those miracles were done But for as muche as the Papistes by these their inuocations seeke not the confyrmation of the doctrine of the Gospell Miracles which are done at the inuocations of the dead are to be referred vnto Sathan but rather are diligente aboute this to establyshe superstitions those miracles whiche they boaste of are to be referred rather vnto the deuill than to God For Sathan seeketh for nothyng so much as to leade men awaye from the sincere worshippyng of GOD. This vndoubtedlye was assayed by the enchaunters of Pharao and that suche thinges shoulde sometime happen vnto
should violate the league as we may gather out of Lyui the first booke Ab vrbe condita Thre kyndes of leagues And as the same authour writteth in his iiii booke de bello Macedonico there are thre kyndes of leagues The first kynde is when the conquerours set lawes to those whom they haue conquered in punishyng them and commaundyng them what they will haue them afterwarde to do The second kinde is when thinges being yet sound and neither part ouercome they commen together that thynges taken from eche partie may be restored and couenauntes of peace may be established The thirde kinde is when there is no warre betwene the parties and certayne princes or cities are ioyned together by some couenauntes either to lyue the more peaceably or elles to take in hande some common affaires And nowe that we haue thus declared these thinges let vs shewe what a league is A league is that bonde betwen men wherby enterchaungeably they testifye both by wordes signes What a league is that they are boūde to performe certayn things so that they handle together with good fayth And if that it be a bonde and pertayneth to relation it is grounded vpon humane actions is referred to those thinges whiche the partyes confederated ought to performe the one to the other It is expressed by wordes Leagues are expressed both by wordes and signes and for the most parte signes are added God when after the floud he made a league with mankynd he did not onely declare the forme of the obligation by wordes but also he put the raynebowe in the cloudes as a witnesse And in the league whiche he made with Abraham he put the signe of circumcision Furthermore in that whiche was made by Moses at the mount Sinay there were twelue pillers erected the people was sprinckled with bloud Iosua also when he should dye erected vp a very great stone therby to seale the league renewed betwene the people and God What thinges are promised in the league of god made with men And what the promises were which should be kept of eche partyes the Scripture oftentymes teacheth For God promised that he would be the god of hys people namely whiche would be with them to helpe them to deliuer them and by all meanes as touching all kind of good thinges to adorne them Christe is the mediatour in makyng the league The people agayne promised that they would counte the Lord Iehouah for their God in beleuing worshipping and obeyng him And Christ was in the league as the mediatour betwene eche partye This is the exposition and nature of the league made betwene god and men Howe a league is deuided into a new league an olde A league is deuided into the new league and the olde whiche deuision is not of a generall thing into speciall thinges but of the subiecte into accidences for so much as in either league the thing it selfe and substaunce was vtterly one and the selfe same onely certain qualities did vary For the olde league was made with one onely nation of the Iewes and had certayn additions the possession I say of the lande of Chanaan the kingdome of the Iewes and the priesthode of Aaron also the promise of the Messias accordyng to the natiuitie of the fleshe and the ministery of his owne person Moreouer it had very many signes of ceremonyes and sacrifices very mete for that age There wer also in it misteries of saluation and promises of eternall life althoughe farre more obscure than they were afterwarde geuen vnto vs. And contrarywise in the new league there are proprietyes in a manner contrary For it pertayneth not to any one certayn nation but to all nations how farre soeuer the worlde extende Neither is there any peculiar ciuile administration adioyned vnto it Furthermore there are but very fewe ceremonies outward signes and they very plaine and simple added vnto it And lastely all thinges are contayned more openly playnely manifestly in the new testamēt than they are in the old The thing and substaunce of the olde league and newe is all one By these qualities doth the new league and the old differ one from an other howbeit the thyng it selfe and the substaunce abydeth one and the same For as the Lord would then be the God of the Hebrues so now hath he decreed to be the god of the Christians And that also whiche they at that tyme promised namely that they would beleue in the true god obey and worshyp him as he hath prescribed we also ought to performe Christ cōmeth betwen both parties as a mediatour and forgeuenesse of sinnes and also eternall lyfe is by hym promised And the lawes of manners remayne the same now whiche then were Paul in the xi chap to the Romanes hath very wel declared that the league of the elders ours is all one when he compareth the Church with the tree which hath Christ as the roote Then he addeth that from such a tree certayne brāches were cut of namely the Hebrues whiche beleued not And we whiche were gētils were planted in their place that is put in the same league wherin they were comprehended The same tree he affirmeth to remayne into whiche some are by fayth grafted in and from the whiche other some bycause of incredulitie are cut of Wherfore eche league contayneth both the law and the gospel In either of the testamētes are the selfe same sacramentes And there are in either of the Testamentes the selfe same Sacramentes as it is declared in the first Epistle to the Cor. the x. chap For the fathers were al vnder the cloude and were baptized in the sea and did eate the same spiritual meate and dranke of the spirituall rocke followyng them and the rocke was Christ Farther we graunt that as touching outward signes there is some variety in their Sacramētes and ours which yet as concerning the things signified by the Sacramentes is found to be nothing at al. Otherwise the argument of Paul should not haue persuaded the Corin. that they should be subiect vnto the same punishmentes that the Hebrues were For they might haue sayd that they had farre better sacramētes thā had the Hebrues therfore they nede not so much to be affeard lest they should suffre the like for as much as the excellency of the sacraments may auoyde those misfortunes from whiche the Hebrues could not be deliuered by the sacramētes of the law Wherfore the Apostle tooke away from them this shift and maketh our sacramentes and theirs equall and a like as touching the thinges He writeth also to the Rom. the first chap of the gospel that it was in the old tyme promised by the Prophetes in the holy scriptures And in the third chap he speaketh after this sorte but now is the righteousnesse of god made manifest being testified by the lawe and the Prophetes Neither canst thou say vnto me that these in dede
that he was a wycked king neyther departed he from the woorshipping of golden Calues Wherefore it is lawfull for vs to graunt that in lying he synned A distinctiō to be noted And as I thinke and before admonished by this onely distinction we maye easily dissolue this doubt Namely that those men were styrred vp to lye either by the spirite of man or by the motion of God When they dyd it as men wee will not denye but that they synned but when they spake so by the inspiration God we will maruaile at their sayinges and doinges but let vs not take example by them or follow them ¶ Of dissimulation Dissimulacion is of two kindes BVt what shal we affirme of dissimulatiō I answer that it is of two kindes One is which hath a respect onely to deceaue And that forasmuch as it differeth not much from a lye it is vndoubtedlye synne If one being wicked doo fayne himselfe to be good and holy the same man without doubt is an hipocrite and in that he dissembleth he haynously sinneth Whosoeuer also hauing a malitious and enuious hart against anye man doth flatter the same man and dissembleth to be his friend he is not without synne yea he is infected with a detestable dissimulation But ther is an other kinde of dissimulation which tendeth not to deceaue any man but serueth onely to kepe counsels secrete that they bee not hindred And this dissimulation is not to be repudiated or to be condemned as a syn forasmuch as we haue alredy declared that it is not alwaies required that we shoulde open what soeuer truth wee knowe What Christ mēt by his dissimulation So Christe being most innocent tooke vpon him the flesh of syn hid his innocency diuine nature And that not to deceiue mortal men but that he might suffer for the saluatiō of mēt For if he had bene knowen to haue bene the Lord of glory thei would neuer as saith the Apostle haue crucified him The same Christ fained also before two of his Disciples that he would go farther He did not that to deceiue them but hee therfore a while opened not himself vnto them to reprooue them of their incredulity and to instruct them by testimonies of the scriptures Therewithall also he signified how farre he was from their hartes Or as Augustine interprereth it he shaddowed vnto them his departure into heauen Wherefore it manifestly appeareth that in those dissimulations there was no lye seing his woordes did well agree wyth the thyng signified And Dauid when hee fell into a most great daunger before Achin Kyng of Geth chaunged his countenaunce and fained himselfe a foole Of the dissimulatiō of Dauid and for that hee seemed suche a one he escaped Here some say that he cōmitted no dissimulation but that God to deliuer him strake such a feare in him that his senses might be taken from him and so did these thinges whych are rehearsed of him in the fyrst booke of Samuel Wherefore in his Psalme which beginneth Psal 34. I wyl alway geue thankes vnto the Lorde he gaue thankes vnto God for so great a benefite And therwithal in his act by the inspiratiō of God he shadowed what Christ should suffer for our sakes namely that he should be counted as a foole and a mad mā Either els we answer that Dauid is not altogether to be excused of synne if as a man being more afeard than was mete he sought for this kinde of helpe But if he by the mocion of God did it wittingly and with knowledge we wil not accuse him of synne although we may not follow his example Neither is it lawful that any man should fayne himselfe to haue committed any crime which he hath not perpetrated Gregory Augustine although Gregory saith that good myndes wyll there acknowledge a fault wher none is Augustine writeth more truly and soundly of that thing in his .29 Sermon de verbis Apostoli For he writeth In so faining if before thou wast not a sinner thou shalt be made a sinner namely in saying that thou hast cōmitted that yl which thou hast not perpetrated It is lawful in dede for euery man to confesse himself to be a synner in vniuersall But this or that crime in special no man ought to receaue in himself which he hath not in verye deede committed Farther we must note that this is true that it is not required of vs that we should open the truth euery where and in all places to speake al that we know but yet in iudgement the same is not to bee permitted For when two of vs are examined as witnesses there we are bounde to testifye that whych we know serueth for the thing whereof at that time we be demaunded ¶ Whither it be lawful to lye to preserue the lyfe of our Neyghbours BVt there ariseth a more hard doubt namely whether it be lawfull to lye for to preserue the life of our neighbour Augustine of a lye to Consentius saith Augustine If a man should be in verye great daunger of death the same man also should know that his sonne also wer in the like extreme daunger which happeneth to dye and thou knowest of his death when the Parent shal aske thee lyueth my sonne or no and thou art sure that he also wil dye if thou shalt tel him that hys sonne is deceased what wouldest thou do in this case whyther thou sayest he liueth or whither thou saiest I cannot tel thou lyest But if thou shall answer that he is dead al men wyll cry out vpon thee as though thou haddest cōmitted manslaughter and as though by thy heauy newes thou haddest bene the occasiō of the death of this father being sycke and lying at the poynt of death Augustine graunteth that it is a hard case neither denieth he but that as a man he shoulde be moued peraduenture it might so happen that affections woulde not suffer him to speake that which is iust right But al the length he concludeth that he should not lye And he addeth moreouer A similitude that if thou knowest that any vnchaste woman loueth thee inordinately which also threateneth to kyl her selfe yea and wil do it in very dede vnles thou wylt graunt to her wicked lust whether therfore thou oughtest to be entised to commit any filthye thing against chastitye I think not So also saith he thou oughtest not for the sauing of thy neighbours life to offend against the truth And moreouer what a window shuld be made open to lyes if we shoulde otherwise iudge of thys For that which one shall thincke to be lawful for life an other wil iudge that he may do the same for money an other for estimation or for defending of lands possessions And so shal it come to passe that there wil be no measure or end of lyes We maye not suffer sayth Augustine that any man should kil his own soule for the corporall
formes shewed himselfe vnder diuers formes as often as we heare that the scripture testifieth or speaketh the same Now resteth to aunswere vnto the places before brought As touchyng the Epistle to the Galathians I graunt that the disposition of the aungels was in the geuing of the law for they stood by God when he spake they made redy the mist Aungels ministred vnto god when he gaue the law thundringes lightnings lāpes they prepared the tables of stone many wayes ministred vnto God being present speakyng Neither do the wordes of the Apostle deny but that God himselfe spake gaue the law as the scriptures testifie Yea there haue ben some which by the hand of a Mediator do not expound it to be Moses The aungell which spake vnto Moses in the bushe was the sonne of God but the sonne of god but whether they do it rightly or wrōgfully I haue no leasure at thys present to discusse But we nede not in many wordes to aunswere vnto the which blessed Stephen sayth as it is written in the Actes of the Apostles namely that an angel appeared vnto Moses in the bushe talked with him For if by the angell we vnderstand the sonne of God as I haue often admonished there will then remayne no doubt But that the things which I haue now alledged as touching this matter may the plainlyer more certeinly be vnderstand I thinke it good to confirme them by some testimonies of the fathers Chrisostome Chrisostome in his 14. Homely vpon Iohn saith The things which the fathers saw were al of thē by permission but yet they saw not the pure simple substaūce of god And he addeth If they had sene it then should they not haue sene it in any part differing for that it is pure simple cā not be described Wherfore it standeth not it lieth not neither sitteth as sometime it was to those Prophetes shewed He saith moreouer God before the sonne came into flesh exercised the father with those visiōs images He there also writeth the which a litle before we alledged namely the with bodyly eyes we cā not see created spirites as are our soules angels Wherfore much lesse must we beleue that we can see god with the senses And least a man thinke that it onely agreeth with god the father to be inuisible not with the sonne he bringeth thys sentēce of Paul that he is the image of the inuisible God And without doubt he could not be hys image Augustine if he were not inuisible as he is whose image he representeth Augustine also in his 3. treatise vpon Iohn saith of Moses Althoughe it be sayd that he talked with god face to face yet when he desired to see the face of god that is his very substaunce he could not obteyne it And in the same place he addeth He saw the cloude the fire which were figures And within a litle after If they say that the sonne was visible before he was incarnate they dote Augustine besides these hath in his Epistle to Fortunatianus gathered many more things to this purpose out of Nazianzenus Ierome other fathers which wer to long here to rehearse Howbeit I will bring two argumentes which are wont to be obiected against this sentence In the beginning we sayd that the nature of God can not therfore be comprehended with the senses bycause his nature is not bodily But all the old fathers seme not to haue beleued so Tertullian For Tertullian agaynst Praxea writeth that God is a bodye and in other places hee oftentimes testifieth the same Yea in his litle booke de Anima he teacheth that our soules are bodyes And whiche semeth more straunge hee laboureth by manye reasons to confirme it Yea and in his booke de Dogmat. Eccles the 11. chap he writeth that all creatures are bodyes and euen the aungels by name bycause there is nothing whiche filleth all thinges as doth God but all thynges are limited with certayne places as it appeareth of the soule Augustine excuseth Tertulian whiche is closed in with the body Augustine in his Epistle ad Quod uult deum excuseth Tertullian in this maner that by a body he vnderstoode the substaunce that whiche is in very dede as though he therfore wrote that god is a body least he should seme to deny that he is forasmuch as the vulgare people do thinke that that is vtterly nothing The nature of god is without a body which is not a body Howbeit the same Augustine in his boke de Genesi ad litterā in this maner reproueth him that at sometyme being ouercome by the truth he said That euery body is passible wherfore least he should make god passible he ought to haue denied him to be a body Neither neded he so to bend himself to the capacity of the cōmō people the therfore he should pronoūce false things of god For Christiās are not so to be instructed the like rude persons whō Aristotle also cōfuteth they should thinke that that is nothing which is not a body but rather they ought so to be taught that in thinking of god they affirme nothing wtout rules of the holy scriptures And as for the booke de dogmate Ecclesiastico we must attribute no more vnto it thā is mete For it is ascribed vnto Augustine but the learned beleue not that it is his The other thing which is somtimes obiected is an argument of the Anthropomorphites For they cōtēd that for this cause we ought not to beleue the god is without a body bycause the Scriptures testifie the man was made to the image of God which could not be true except he haue a body as we haue For the image should want the similitude of the wherunto it is referred They thinke also the the Scripture maketh with thē when as it oftētimes attributeth vnto god the mēbers of men Ierome But Ierome as Augustine to Fortunatianus citeth him wittely sharpely derideth their argumēt If we should leane vnto this reason saith he we shall easely proue that a man hath winges bycause the scripture sometimes ascribeth thē to god to whose image it is manifest the man was created These men ought rather diligently to haue weighed that the image of God consisteth in holinesse righteousnesse truth as Paul hath taught Whiche thyng if they had sene they had not only remoued a body from god but they should also haue led away their mindes from grosser cogitations Why do they not affirme that God is in very dede a beare a Lion or fire bycause so do Amos and Moses and also the Epistle to the Hebrues call him In the 95. Psalme it is written He that made the eye shall he not see he that made the eare shall he not heare Ierome saith that there should haue ben said he that made the eare hath he not an eare he that made the eye hath he not an eye
the Ephod instituted by Gideon Wherefore Augustines opinion is that Gideon would haue had God worshipped so in his country that the same thynges might ther haue bene done which were done in Silo where the Arke was Which opinion although it can not be confuted by the scriptures yet it appeareth not very lykelye For we reade not that he had Priestes with him Neither doo the Hebrue Doctors who otherwise are diligent in expressing of thinges done attribut these thinges vnto him but rather agree with the other sentence namely that he constituted it for a monument of the victory which he had obtained which afterward was an occasion of superstition Wherefore it semeth to be spoken more probably that this erected signe was had in admiration of the foolishe people so that they thought it to be a place very meete to doo sacrifice there and especiallye for the offring of peace offeringes vnto the true God which seemed not woorthy of reprouing For at that time it was lawfull to doo that in a maner euerye where but superstition dayly creeping more abroade they began to attribute more then was meete vnto that signe as to a thing deuine and which had in it some power of God and for that cause they offred sacrifices and did incense vnto it keping neuertheles a pretence of the worshipping of God and the name of God the Lorde as in the time of Ezechias they did incense and sacrifice vnto the brasen serpent Whence came the begynnyng of reliques and inuocation of the dead And in the same maner we rede happened at the beginning of the sepulchers bones and reliques of holye men The Christians buried the dead bodies of the Martirs as honorablye as they coulde and to haue the memorye of them kept they began to haue places of prayer at their tombes not vndoubtedlye where they would woorship and inuocate the Martirs but where they might heare the woord of God receaue the Sacramentes and exhorte one an other to defende the faith And in deede that place seemed not a litle commodious for such a purpose For the sepulchres of Martirs seemed to admonish inflame the myndes to enterprise the same battailes and to behaue them selues most constantly for the name of Christ Wherfore it was thought that in assembling to the Sepulchres of Martirs two commodities were gotten First bicause some honour might be geuen to so great Confessors whilest the memory of them was not suffered to be forgotten but with verye great ioy thankes were geuen vnto God for their happy victory The other was bicause men might bee stirred vp to enterprise the like The beginning of the images of Sayntes and to hope for the like gifts at Gods hand And after the same maner began the images of Christ and of the Apostles priuatelye to bee made namely that their death which semed vnto the world full of ignominye myght be made more honorable and that the memory of them might floorishe and by beholding of those images so set vp men might be prouoked to the iust and laudable imitacion of them If the thing had abidden within these bondes it might haue bene borne with al neither was there any thing there which might iustly be condemned but euen as the act of Gideon was turned at the length to idolatry so in successe of tyme folowed the inuocation of Martirs at their sepulchers and the images of saintes began to be set vp and woorshipped not onely in priuate places but also in temples The act of Gideon was a snare to him and to his house for both hee synned and his children as we shal heare were horribly slayne It brought also great misery vnto the Israelites For from this superstition they fel by litle and litle to the open worshipping of Baal wherfore they were most grieuously oppressed of their enemies howbeit as long as Gideon lyued they woorshipped not Baal Hereby we gather that al worshipping of God instituted without his woorde is to him vnacceptable and to vs most daungerous There is but one God and he wil be worshipped but one way namely as he himself hath coÌ„maunded And if to the worshipping of him ther be any thing to be added by the decree of men â—oâ— comelines sake and for a iust and ciuil order the same ought to bee but lyttle Gideon sinneth two wayes and also mutable as it shall bee thoughte good for to aduaunce edification Wherefore Gideon synneth twoo wayes both in that hee abused the Ephod which he made for a signe and also bicause when he sawe superstition to come thereby he prohibited it not The good intent of Gideon excused not his act although he had a shewe of piety Leo the first of that name Leo the fyrst in his Sermon of the Passion of the Lorde sayth that Peter when he cut of the eare of the seruant of the highe Priest was moued with a godly mocion But what godlye mocion coulde it be which Christ reproued yea and so reproued it that he affirmed that he which so drewe the swoorde should perishe with the swoorde What other thing was this then to haue a zeale of God but as Paule sayth not accordyng to knowledge Paule also the Apostle when he afflicted and destroied the Christians thought that he dyd God high seruice These thinges haue a shewe of a good intent as they call it or of godlynes but they are not in very deede that which they shewe for Euen so encreased the pompe of the Masse by no other meanes then by a shewe of a good intent For it seemed good vnto our Elders to adorne the Supper of the Lord. Wherfore this Pope added this thing and an other that thing so that at the lengthe the thyng came to thys poynte that these additions excluded the institution of Christ in such sorte that it may seme to be any other thing els then the Supper of the Lord for those thynges are obserued which men haue inuented but that which Christ willed namelye that brethren should communicate together and celebrate the memory of his death this I say is abolished But why the woorshippinges instituted by mans inuention are to bee abiected this is an assured reason Why worshippings inuented by man are to be abiected bycause in woorshipping of God we must do all thinges chiefely throughe fayth but it is of no force if it want the word of God Wherefore if rites which are retayned for the woorshipping of God lacke hys woorde faith may not be geuen vnto them and therfore ar they rather synnes then woorkes pleasing God For all that is not of fayth is synne The authority of the fathers is not sufficieÌ„t as the Apostle saith But they say that in those woorshippinges the authoritye of the Fathers which were present at Counsels ought to be sufficient neither ought we to esteeme their sentences of any lesse value then the holy scriptures But I wil turne the same to them againe and aske whither they
saith Be ye not made dronke with wine wherein is wantōnes But be ye filled with the spirite speaking to your selues by Psalmes Himnes spiritual songes Vpon which place Ierome saith Ierome we cānot at one time be filled with wine and the holy ghost For the Apostle putteth these thinges as contraries euen as we cannot serue two maisters He that is filled with the spirit hath wysedome meekenes shamefastnes and chastity and he which is filled with wyne hath folishnes furiousnes malepertnes and filthy luste They which are not fylled with wine can easely sing Psalmes Himnes and spiritual songes which thing they cannot do which haue gorged themselues with wyne The same Paul also writeth Haue no care of the flesh for the lustes thereof And Christ by expresse woordes saith vnto his Disciples Take heede your hartes be not ouercom with surfeting and dronkennes And in the old testamēt in the Prouerbs the .31 chap. it is written Geue not wine vnto kinges And in the .23 chap. Looke not vpon the wine when it is red and when it sheweth his coulour in the cup and goeth downe pleasantly And in the .2 chap of Ecclesiastes Salomon saith that he thought to geue his hart to wine and pleasant thinges and at the length he founde that this study and purpose was mere vanity Laughter saith he I thought to be errour and I said vnto ioy why doest thou in vaine deceaue This mirth of wyne and pleasant thinges ought not to be often vsed of holye men for as muche as Christ hath taught that they ar blessed which mourne they saith he in Mathew shal receaue consolation But in Luke the .7 chapter it is added that they shall laugh And it is the surest way that we presently want some ioy to laughe perpetually In the .v. of Esay it is written wo vnto you which rise vp carely to follow dronkēnes and to drinke euen til night to be inflamed with wyne and the harpe and viole timbrel and pipe and wine are in your feastes c. And againe in the same chap. wo vnto you that are mighty to drinke wine and are stronge men to mingle dronkennes Ioel also in the first chapter writeth Awake ye vp which are dronken with wine And this is not to be passed ouer that in Leuiticus Aaron and his sonnes are cōmaunded not to drinke wine before they come to sacrifice before the Lord. And Paul twise commaundeth that the Ministers of the Church should not be geuen to much wine And when he counselled his Timothe to vse wyne for the stomake and diseases he addeth that it should be but a litle least he should let lose the bridle to dronkennes In the olde law also the vse of wyne was forbidden the Nazarites and the Rechabites are in Ieremy commended bicause at their fathers commaundement they abstained from wyne at which time yet they knew that these thinges were written which nowe in the history we haue in hand as cōcerning wine namely that with it both God and men ar made mery and that also which is written in the .104 Psalme that wine maketh mery the hartes of men Wherfore let vs gather that these are not contrary to vse wine temperatly and moderatly and that it was geuen of God to make vs mery in a due time and in a right vse There are certaine tymes wherin myrthe is not cōueniēt Neither ought we to be ignoraunt of this that some suche tymes chaunce wherein it is not meete for Christian godly men to geue them selues to mirth sometimes we must mourne for the synnes which we haue committed And somtimes we are troubled with very grieuous miseries and when we are vnder the hand of the rod of God we must pray more vehemently wherunto fastings and chastning of the body much helpeth which thing Paul declareth in his first Epistle vnto the Corrinthians when he saith that it is lawful somtimes for the husband and wife to depart one from an other for a season but yet with the mutual consent of them both that they may geue themselues to fastings and praiers although we must not for such abstinence appoint any certain dayes of the yere but leaue the time to the prudence of the spirite Howbeit this reason maketh much against those which contend that we must continually drinke that at no time we may want mirth Yea and the same Apostle sayd of him selfe I chasten my body and bring it in to bondage By which saying he admonished the Corrinthians by his example to bridle the lustes Ther might be manye more examples rehearsed out of the holy scriptures manifestly to declare that both dronkennes and also to much vse of wyne are prohibited But these shal be sufficiēt at this time And this onely wyl I adde that euen the verye Ethnikes knewe this thing also Plato Testimonies of the Ethnikes Seneca Plato in his .7 booke de Legibus toward the ende writeth that Minos by his lawes prohibited the Cretenses that they shoulde not drinke together to dronkennes And Seneca saith in his .84 Epistle Dronkēnes is nothing els then a voluntary madnes And straight way after The quality of dronkennes continuing many daies is furiousnes Moreouer they which striue wyth cuppes although they ouercome other in taking much wine yet wil they or nyl they they are ouercome of the tonnes And it is filthy for a man to take in more then he is able to receaue and not to know the measure of his stomake Hitherto we haue sufficiently declared that the abuse of wine is both against the holy scriptures and also humane reason Now let vs proue the same by examples that they which wil not beleue by the sentences before alledged maye yet at the least be taught by these examples Noah a great man iust and loued of God The dronkennes of Noah who saw two constitutions of the world for he liued both before and after the flood is set foorth vnto vs as an example vtterly to auoid dronkennes when as he hauing droonke more wyne then was meete laye in the tabernacle most filthely naked and his priuy partes which wer wont to be couered he left bare and vncouered and he which was wont to bee a schoolemaster of vertues was a great offence vnto his children C ham mocked him the other two sonnes of a better and holier nature were sory and very much ashamed of their fathers filthines By this act it is sufficiently declared that shame derision and offence follow dronkennes But of thys synne wee haue a notable example in Lot The dronkennes of Lot who vndoubtedlye dranke not immoderately to the end he would abuse his daughters and to commit incest but to put away cares and griefes which hee had taken for the ouerthrow of the .v. Cities for the losse of his deare wyfe and also of his substaunce Hee woulde also comforte hys Daughters that they shoulde not take to muche thought specially for the losse of their
Why was Socrates condemned at Athens The Ethnike princes had a regard vnto religion I do not now demaunde how holyly or iustly for as all men in a manner beleue Anitus and Melitus lyed agaynst hym this I speake for that he was for no other cause condemned but onely for religion as thoughe he taught newe gods and led away the youth from the olde and receaued worshyppyng of the gods and he was by a prophane Magistrate condēned Socrates was for religiō sake condemned of a prophane Magistrate Wherfore the Athenienses thought that the obseruance and care of religion pertayned vnto their Magistrate The law of God commaunded that the blasphemer should be put to death not I thinke by euery priuate mā or by the Priestes but by the Magistrates The Ethnike Emperors also in those first tymes did for no other cause rage agaynst the Christians but bycause they thought that matters of religion pertayned vnto their iudgement seat And assuredly as touching this opinion they wer not deceaued for none as Chrisostome sayth either Apostle or Prophet reproued the people Chrisostome either Iewes or Ethnikes bycause they had a care ouer Religion but they were deceaued in the knowledge of Religion bycause they defended theyr owne religion as true and condemned the Christian religion as vngodly and blasphemous Constantine and Theodosius are praysed and very many other holy princes bycause they tooke awaye Idoles and either closed vp or elles ouerthrew theyr Temples But they dyd not these thynges but for that they thought that the charge of Religion pertayned vnto them otherwise they should haue bene busy fellowes and should haue put theyr sicle into an other mannes haruest The Donatistes tooke thys in very ill parte and grieuously complayned thereof in Augustines tyme bycause the Catholique Byshoppes required ayde of the Ciuile Magistrate agaynst them Augustine But Augustine confuteth them with the selfe same argumentes whiche I haue a litle before rehearsed and addeth this moreouer Why did ye accuse Cecilianus Bishop of Carthage before Constātine if it be wicked for the Emperor to determine concerning Religion Farther there is gathered by those thynges whiche the same father wrote agaynst Petilianus and agaynst Parmenianus and also in many other his Epistles howe that the Donatistes accused Cecilianus as it is sayde before Constantine the Emperour who first sent the cause to Melchiades Bishop of Rome And when by hym they were ouercome they appealed agayne vnto the Emperor neyther reiected he their appealation from him but committed the matter vnto the Bishop of Orleance by whom they were agayne condemned Neither rested they so Constātine decideth a matter of religion but again appealed vnto the Emperor who heard thē decided their cause condemned them and by hys sentence absolued Cecilianus Where are they now which so often and so impudētly cry that there is no appealyng from the Pope and that the causes of Religion pertayne not vnto the ciuile Magistrate To whom in the olde tyme pertayned the ryght of callyng generall counsels Pertayned it not vnto the Emperors Counsels were called by Emperors As for the counsell of Nice the counsell of Constātinople of Ephesus and of Chalcedonia Emperors called them Leo. 1. of that name prayed the Emperor to cal a counsell in Italy bycause he suspected the Gretians of the error of Eutiches yet could he not obteyne it and the Byshops were called together to Chalcedonia where at the Emperor also was present as was Constantine at the counsell of Nice Neither doo I thinke that they were there present to sitte idle and to do nothing but rather to put forth vnto the Bishops what they should doo and to vrge them to define rightly Theodoretus telleth that Constantine admonished the fathers to determine all thinges by the scriptures of the Euangelistes Apostles Prophetes and Canonicall scriptures Iustinian also in the Code Iustinian Augustine wrote many Ecclesiasticall lawes of Byshoppes and Priestes and other such lyke Yea and Augustine hath taught that the Magistrate ought after the same manner to punish Idolatrers heretikes as he punisheth adulterers for as much as they cōmitte whoredome against God in mynd which is much more heynous then to committe whoredome in body And looke by what lawe murtherers are put to death by the same also Idolatrers and heretikes ought to be punished for that by them are killed not the bodies but the soules although the common people be stirred vp onely agaynst homicides bycause they see the bloud of the bodyes killed but see not the death of the soules Vndoubtedly it is profitable for the Magistrate to take vpon hym this care and by his authority to compell menne to come to holy sermons and to heare the worde of God for by that meanes it commeth to passe that by often hearyng those thyngs begyn to please whiche before displeased As Hystoryes teach that God hath oftentymes with most noble victoryes illustrate godly prynces God hath prospered princes whiche had a care vnto Religion which haue had a care vnto these thinges Farther it can not be denied but that it is the dewty of the Magistrates to defend those Cities and publique wealthes ouer whiche they are gouerners and to prouide that no hurt happen vnto them wherfore for asmuch as Idolatry is the cause of captiuity pestilence famine ouerthrowing of publique wealthes shal it not pertaine vnto the Magistrate to represse it and to kepe the true sound religion Lastly Paul teacheth fathers to instruct their children in discipline in the feare of God but a good Magistrate is a father of the countrey wherfore by the rule of the Apostle he ought to prouide that subiectes be instructed as common children But kynges and princes whiche say that these thynges pertayne not vnto thē do in the meane tyme let geue and sell Bishoprikes Abbacies and benefices to whō they thinke good neither thinke they that to be none of their office onely religion they thinke they haue nothyng to doo with and they neglect to prouide that they whom they exalte to most ample dignityes should execute theyr office rightly Wherfore this thyng onely remayneth for them euen that GOD hymselfe at the length will looke vpon these thynges and with most grieuous punishement take vengeaunce of their negligence These thynges haue I spokē the more at large by occasion of our Hystory which maketh mention twise or thrise that euilles happened in Israel bycause they had not a kyng or lawfull Magistrate ¶ The .xx. Chapter 1 THen all the children of Israell went out and the congregation was gathered together as one man from Dan euen to Beerseba and from the lande of Gilead vnto the Lord in Mizpa 2 And the corners of all the people and all the tribes of Israell assembled in the Churche of the people of God foure hundreth thousand footemen that drew sword 3 And the children of Beniamin heard that the childrē of Israell wer gone vp vnto