the glorious name of god which delyvereth vs froÌ„ all evils The second is the flesshe where of it is writeÌ„ The flesshe lusteth coÌ„trary to the sprete / Gala. v the sprete coÌ„trary to the flesshe These are coÌ„trarye one to the other so that ye caÌ„ not do that which ye wolde The flesshe is called not only the desyres of the flesshe but all thinges that we do / thinke or speake / yee our hole body / soule reason / with the cheffe and hyghest powers of them / yf they be not led and gowerned with the sprete of God The sprete is every outward aÌ„d inward worke that a maÌ„ havinge faith aÌ„d cherite which are the frutes and gyftes of the sprete Gala. v. doth worke seakinge spirituall thiÌ„ges This sprete beareth witnes vnto oure sprete that we are the children of god / Roma viij for he that hath not this sprite of Christ / is none of his kingdome But is the boÌ„d seruaÌ„t of synne / vnder which he is subdewed and remayneth captive vnder the lawe ij Pet. il Roma vi Roma vij But ye deare brothren are made dead as concerninge the lawe / by the bodye of Christ / that ye shuld be coupled to him that is rysen agayn from death / that we shuld bringe forth frute vnto god / for when we were vnder the lawe / the lustes of synne which were sturred vppe by the lawe raigned in oure membres / to bringe forth frute vnto death But now are we delivered from the lawe / and dead from it / where vnto ne were in bondage that we shuld serve in anew conversation of the sprete / and not in the old coÌ„uersatioÌ„ of the letter We knowe that the flesshly mind is enmyte against God Roma vij For it is not obedient to the lawe of God nether can be / so that they which are geven to the flessh can not please god We knowe that every maÌ„ is tempted / drawne awaye / and entyesed of his awne concupicence / Iaco. j. and when this concupiscence and lust hath conceaved / she bringeth forth synne / And synne when it is fine sched bringeth forthe death We knowe that as longe as we lyve in this world we carye aboute with vs the old man of synne / which with out he be with contynuall diligeÌ„ce suppressed aÌ„d mortifyed beseageth the new maÌ„ with his venom and concupiceÌ„ces which is original synne planted as naturall ye in him as venom in a serpeÌ„ts toth / syth theÌ„ we can not be with out this old maÌ„ of synne for the which / no man shal be iustified in the sight of god / i. Ioan. j for which Yff we saye that we haue no synne we are lyers / and the trueth is not in vs. For the which also / yf we profite neuer so hygh / yet must we ever saye forgeve vs / Math. vj father oure trespases yet let vs do oure diligeÌ„ce / callinge for the sprete of god / that this coÌ„cupiscence raigne not in oure mortall bodye ever knowleginge with a milde harte oure iniquites to oure father which is in heveÌ„ / Io. vi for he is faithfull iust / i. Ioan. j to remitte vs oure synnes / and to purge vs from all iniquite / thorow the bloude of Iesu Christe his sonne The third which other alone / or els chesly is counted Antichrist / because he resisteth the personall coÌ„minge of Christ in the fleshe for oure redemption / is the world / of the which it is writhen Yf the world hate yow / ye knowe that it hath hated me before you / yf you were of the world / the world wold loue that that is his awne because ye are not of the world but i have chosen you out of the world / therfore hateth you the world / and sanct Ioan exhortteth his brothers like a faithfull minister of Christ sayinge i. Ioan .ij. Se that you love not the world / nether the thinges that are in the world / if eny / man love the world the love of the father is not in him / for all that is in the worlde as the lust of the flesshe the lust of the eyes / and the pride of this lyffe is not of the father but of the world The world in this place is vnderstond for theÌ„ that are carnall carnallie minded / for these trulye are Antichristes But how shall we prove that / sith sanct Ioan seameth contrarye / i. Ioan. iiijj where he sayeth / Derely beloved beleve not every sprete / but prove the spretes whether they are of god or no / for many false prophetes are gone out iÌ„ to the world / hereby shall ye know the sprete of god Every sprete that confesseth that Iesus Christ is comeÌ„ in the flessh / is of god And everie sprete which confesseth not / that Iesu Christ is come in the flesshe is not of god / this is that sprete of Antichriste / of whom you have harde how â—hat he shuld come / eveÌ„ now all redye is he in the world what shall we now saye / Doth the world confesse that Iesus Christ is come in the flesshe yee verely / how shall they theÌ„ be Antichristes Ioan. â— Truely by sanct Paules expounding of this place where he saith / They confesse that they know god / but with dedes they denye him / And are abominable / and disobedient / and vnto all good workes discommendable Do they saye that they know him and denye him in workes yee truely / let vs then also note what sancte IoaÌ„ sayeth / he that sayeth I know hiÌ„ / i. Ioan. â— kepeth not his coÌ„mauÌ„dmeÌ„tes / is a lyer and the verite is not in him To know the lord is to have perfect fayth in him And perfect fayth hath with hiÌ„ sure hope cherite / of these foloweth the fulfillinge of the coÌ„mauÌ„dmites necessarylye / EveÌ„ as the light foloweth the fyre / how be it here had we nâ—de to make a division / for the world hath two sortes of Antichristes The one sorte are in greate power authorite / the other in subiectioÌ„ The one obdurate reproved / the other waÌ„deringe out of the right way untill it shall please the father to drawe theÌ„ vnto grace Ioan. vi The one resistiÌ„ge for subbornesse knowing the trueth so sinne agaynst the holy goste / the other only for ignoraÌ„cye transgresse the preceptes / these will I not speake of because there come not so great ioperdyes perels of theÌ„ / coÌ„mittinge theÌ„ only vnto the provision of god / desyringe hiÌ„ / that his wil be fulfilled to shew his glorye in them The first I will thouch some whate i. Ioan. ij Not for to teach them which are chosen of god for they have an oyntemeÌ„t of the holy gost know all thiÌ„ges And nede not that enyman teach theÌ„ But only to monyssh theÌ„ of that
of Rome with his Pope is returned to worse gentilite / then it was before / sainge / for if they after they have escaped by fayth from the filthines of the world thorow the knowledge / Math. xij of the lord and of the saviour Iesus Christ / are yet tangeled agayne therin / and overcome / then is the latter end worsse with theÌ„ / theÌ„ the beginninge / for it had bene better for them not to have knowen the waye of rightewesnes that is to say of faith then after they have knowne it / to returne from the holy commaundemeÌ„t geven vn to them which is of faith in Christ It is happened vnto them according to the true proverbe Prover xxvi The dogge is turned to his vomet agayne And the sowe after she is wasshed is / returned to her wallowinge in the myre EveÌ„ so do wese that in the Popes kingdome faith is extincte And that we now are worse gentilles / then ever we were And for this we may thanke the abominable rydles and lawes of this kinge of faces / which Peter Iudas as we se have described and painted effectuouslye / with his saces and exterior powers Now foloweth the frute and finall worke / of them Danie viij And he shall corrupte mervelous thinges ¶ This word / mervelous / in the hebrewe is called niphlaoth and in other places is traÌ„slated / great / misticall / and secrete / as in the xj of Daniel / Danie xi He shall speake greate wordes against the god of goddes / And this word / Gene. vj. corrupte / signifyeth here as it doth in the .vj. of Genesis where it is writeÌ„ that the erth was corrupte / aÌ„d that all flessh had corrupte / their waye / and that god wold corrupte / or destroy them with the erthe So that paraveÌ„ture we might saye better in this place / And he shall corrupte greate thinges And Daniel is indifferent to be taken .ij. wayes Other to vnderstond those great aÌ„d mervelous thinges / which this kinge shall invade to corrupte them Or els his workes that he doth / exercyse in corruptinge other thinges / signifiinge that his actes be mervelous and incredible / And this latter sense doth oure interpreter folowe / whom also we will folow / all though the first sense be even as true / for / no doute / they are greate and mervelous thinges which he doth corrupte / but they are onlye knowne and attayned by faith Therfore the sense shal be / He shall corrupte mervelouslye / aÌ„d shall be as a great and incredible corruptor / he doth not describe what evill good thinges / shall suffer of him / But what great abominatioÌ„ he shuld worke against good thinges / shewinge his fortune and prosperite Therfore he speaketh not of violent corruption and destruction / as tyrantes spoile and destroye kingdoms and contres thorow warres aÌ„d violeÌ„ce of armure / for soch a kinge as he is / soch a destroyer is he also / that is to say he shall do all thinges with faces and rydles / which shall not be streÌ„ghthed by armure / witte / nor learninge / but thorow a strange and outward power as the next verse doth specifye / which sayeth And he shall prosper / and shall do / aÌ„d shall corrupte stronge men / and the people that are holye / and deceate shall prosper in his haÌ„d It foloweth therfore that he destroyeth not Cytes and provinces / but rather those thinges which are wont to be suppressed of these faces / rydles / and deceates / and which are clene contrarye to them that is to say the trueth and word of trueth the sprete and playne symplenes / which is the faith in Christ / and kingdom of good consciences / and that Christ calleth the kingdom of God / the kingdom of heven and the kingdome of trueth For so before pilate he confesseth and knowlegeth that his kingdom is the kingdom of trueth for he sayeth every man which is of the trueth heareth my voice Ioan xviij Wherfor this kiÌ„ge which is the destroyer of the kingdome of heven / and corruptour of the simplicite which is in Christ Iesu as it is said to the CorinthiaÌ„s is no nother but very Antichriste teaching in sted of the faith / workes / for the trueth / a cloked vysare / for secreat mysteryes / outward faces / for the gospell / lawes and rydles / for pure clennes sotle craftes / and for the word of god / their awne traditions and decrees / so destroing the consciences / and corruptinge the sprtte Let vs now iudge whether the pope fulfill this parte First this is evideÌ„t that thorow Christ all synnes wer so damned and taken awaye / i. Timo. j. that also the occasioÌ„ of synne which is the lawe did not remayne / but was suppâ—essed / for thorow the faith he made all thinges / fre So that a christen shuld worke nothinge by the coÌ„pulsion of the lawe / but all thorow the sprete of libertye / as Paule sayeth in the .j. of the first epistle to Timothe The lawe is not geven to a righteous man / for what so ever is done by compulsion of the lawe is synne / for it is not done with a glad and willinge sprete / but with a contrarye will and rebellinge against the lawe / aÌ„d this truelye is synne ij Co. in iij. Therfor in the .iiij. of the second epistle to the CorinthiaÌ„s he calleth the preachers of the new testament the ministers of the sprete and not of the letter because they teach grace and not the lawe Wherfore in the hole new testameÌ„t are there no vrgent grevous preceptes But only exhortatioÌ„s to observe those thinges which were verye necessarye to oure helth Nether did Christ and his apostles at any time coÌ„pell any man And the holy goste was for that cawse called paracletus / that is to say an exhorter and coÌ„forter And here is theffecte of the hole matter / that they are the people of Christ / which willingly do heare and folowe him / not for any feare of the lawe / but only entysed and led with a gracyous libertye aÌ„d faithfull love / Not doing any thinge be cause it is commaunded / but because it is pleasant and acceptable vnto them / though it were not commaunded / for they the wold do otherwisse shuld be counted the people of the lawe / and synagoge / wherin the transgressers were killed Wherfor in the .xix of Mathew / he speketh coÌ„ditionally / Math. â—ix if thow wilt entre kepe the commaundmentes And in the .v. of Mathew he sayth not / Dat. v. I will that you be poore but he exhorteth them geÌ„tyll ye sayinge / blessed are the poore in sprete / and so forth And to be shorte in the new testament are all thinges declared which we ought to do and leve vndone / what reward is ordened for them that do and leve vndone And
he had bene an heretike that had receaved both but now sith he doth not forbed it / aÌ„d so ordeneth no sinne in the receavinge / but rather doth orden both partes to be receaved / his vicaâ—e in a thinge not forbed / but lawfull and fre / yee aÌ„d ordened of Christ hiÌ„silf / hath made not onlye synne but also hyghe heresye Nether so is Antichrist knoweÌ„ / but is yet worshupped / as the vicare of God O the rowghnes of the wrath aÌ„d furye of god Playnly I thinke that the hole is takeÌ„ away sith I se manifestly on parte gone for the bred and the wine is but one sacrameÌ„t the other is left only for a laughinge stocke / for he that in one parte offendeth against god is giltye in all / except paraventure god by his secreate iudgemeÌ„t hath reserved it in the faith / with out any outward receavinge of the sacramente Therfore it were better to receâ—ve nether of the partes then the one alone / for so we might the more suerly eschew the traÌ„sgression of that which Christ did institute Yet he not satisfied with this his furye setting a most cruell and deadly snare to tangle the consciences / suffereth not the vse of this sacrament to be fre But compelleth all to gedder on one certaine daye ons in the yeare to communicate Here I pray the good ChristeÌ„ brother / how many dost thow thinke do excommunicate only by the compulsion of this precept which truely in their harte had lever not to communicate And all these synne for they do not communicate in sprete / that is to say nether in faith nor will / but by the compulsion of this letter and lawe syth that this bred requireth a hungery harte / and not a full / aÌ„d moch lesse a disdayning and hatefull mind And of all these synnes the Pope is author constrayning all men by his most cruell lawe to theyr awne destruction / where as he ought to leve this communion fre to every man / and only call and exhorte them vn to it / not coÌ„pelle and dryve them to it Consider well / whether by this occasion the world be not replenisshed with synnes vpe to heveÌ„ And with this floude ynough destroyed So he doth not only despoyle vs of oure sacrameÌ„t / but also that which he leveth vs / he ordereth on that maner / that thorow the occasion of it he fulfilleth the world with sinne / and so bringeth vs vnto destruction How be it he doth moch more mocke aÌ„d illude the prestes for fyrst he turneth the masse which is a sacrament and testament / to be reputed for a benefite and good work by the which prestes shuld make sacrifice for synnes / and shuld helpe the qwicke and deade in all tribulations Chalenging vn to him filf by this fayned lye all ryches / glorye / and powers of the world So that now the masse is clene vnprofitable vn to oure healthe / and is only of value for luker vnder this incredible perversite and vngodlinesse / forthermore they make a sacrifice of it / By the which they do well and geve thankes vnto God / as though he had nede of oure goodnesse / of whom we receave all thinges / playnly this weked perversite passeth all sense and wordes / and yet hath it beseaged / yee and oppressed the hole worlde Thierdly / he maketh a private thinge of a comen / for the masse in both partes never ought to be suffered vn to one maÌ„ / sith that Christ wold have it comen / so that the prest executinge shuld communicate both partes vn to some congregation gadered vn to him How be it now the prest celebratinge doth communicate only to him silf both partes And yet in the meane ceason he doth communicate and applye spiritually the fruere of the masse vn to whoÌ„ so ever he will that is to saye he dreameth that he doth coÌ„municate some thinge as though it were a good worke sacrifice And so where it ought to be receaved comeÌ„lye / he only doth receave it / aÌ„d yet not as the gifte of god to possesse it / but as his awne gifte to offer it O what profund sees of synnes / abound in this one sacrament Good lorde / how fewe / or rather none are there which vse it lawfullye as Christ did orden it / and as his apostles kepte it Auriculare confession The same and like madnes doth corrupte all thinges in the auriculare confession of oure sinnes / for first / sith this confession is a thinge verye holesume / it ought to be fre for oure new lawe which is the gospell will not suffer any lawe of compulsion / but only of councell and exhortation But so many synnes doth the Pope make / and so many soules doth he condeme / as are confessed against their willes how ofteÌ„ so ever it be / for when they confesse thorow the compulsion of the Popes lawe their mind resisteth his lawe And so do they synne / belevinge in their weke and wretched conscience that they are bounde of necessite to confesse them selves / and yet confesse they against their willes / and knowlege their sinnes with their mouthes and not with their hartes / that is to say faynedly And so offend grevouslye Now consider substantiallye what surges and waues the Pope hath excitate in the world by this one lawe of compelled confession How manye is there that with a glad and fre harte confesse them selves Yet no maÌ„ doth thinke that this is sinne / in so moch the all men perissh or they beware thorow this same sonne of perdition abominable man of synne And to th entent that this profoundite of sinnes and perditions shuld be greatter / he compelleth also that the offenses which are coÌ„mitted against his lawe shuld be confessed / yee and that chefly of all / with all the differences of synnes / kindes / natures / doughters / nesys / branches / circunstances / aÌ„d infinite other abominations / in so moch that the most spirituall maÌ„ of all / shuld here begyne to synne aÌ„d perisshe / that is to say coÌ„fesse against his will / for this sentence stoÌ„deth firme and stable / he that doth a thinge against his will doth it not And againe CoÌ„pelled servises please not god Sith theÌ„ the Pope hath no nede of these lawes / but only to stablissh and encreasse his tyrannye it is evident that he is the author of infinite synnes and infinite perditioÌ„s / while that by his lawes / he geveth a greate occasion of evill to weake and froward coÌ„sciences / which thinke them self to be bound vn to the fulfilling of his lawes / for if a man beleve that he is bounde / and doth not fulfill that which he thinketh him silf bound to with harte aÌ„d miÌ„de / he doth sinne with out câ—asinge as Paule saieth in the .xiiij. Roma xiiij to the Romayns he that maketh conscience is damned if he eate
organes / musike / and diversite of songes / but these are nothinge to the sprete / which rather is extincte thorow these waÌ„tan trifels Ah Christe / with what violeÌ„ce / with what hoste and power are they driven heddelinge to synne and perisshe / thorow â—his abomible abomination / It is an â—â—â—rible / tremblinge and feare to loke in â—o these cruell whorlp oules of consciences / which perisshe with soch great paynes and labour xi Reg. xxi O what light and childisshe offeÌ„ces are these / wherin Manasses and other weked kinges synned by doing sacrifice with their awne children and progenye Truely the cursed sacrifices of the most rude gentils / no not of the lestrigones / Maâ—h xij may be compared vn to oures / The sayeinge of Christ may be verified in vs seven more weked spretes make the end worsse then the beginninge / for I saye that we gentiles are worsse seven times theÌ„ we were before we knew Christ And that we may be shorte concerninge this corruptioÌ„ / and that thow maiste perceave that there is nothing in the pope but synne and perdition Marke well / not only his lawes are synes / but also all the workes that folow them and not those alone which are fained and done with werynes as I saide before yee and the rewardes are the greatest synnes of all / So that the lesse sinnes are rewarded with the greater Thow will axe me how I will tell the. They are not contente to binde and destroy Iesus but also they let go Barrabas the theffe / that is to say / he doth exempte thorow his privileges the hole multitude of his clargye / from the burdeÌ„s and labours of all men / that they may lyve in idelnes and riches / regardinge nothinge to committe the abomination of Zodom Gomorrha Nether is it lawfull for any maÌ„ to reprove / accuse or correcte them wheÌ„ they transgresse But only the pope / which nether will do it / nether yet caÌ„ yf he wold here spriÌ„ge out of fatte their iniquites By these meanes abound / defloueringe of virgins / advoutrye / fornicatioÌ„ / vnclennes / covetuousnes / soreltye / deceate / and the hole cloude of wekednes / yee and not only abound / but also raigne vnpunisshed / with out feare of god or man And if any maÌ„ rebuke or checke theÌ„ he is reputed a weked transgressor of the popes privileges / and is giltye for hurtinge his mageste To this pertaine the most holy lawes and decrees / de foro competenti And all those in the which the clergye is exempte from the accusation / iudgement / and punishmeÌ„t of the laye men yee and their possessions finally / this most holye adversarye of Christ hath made vsurye / sotiltye / and rape / lawfull vn to them / while that he doth admitte to the encreasse of the honour and worshuppe of God / vniust restoringes vnlawfull bargaynes / and despenseth graciously with pety bryebrye / geving thapostles benediction to be pertaker with them As for the abstayninge from matrimonye we have spoken of it bot / he how Sathan was the author that it was forbede / and what synnes and perditions are entered / yee aÌ„d daylye encreassed thorow the forbedinge of it Have we any ende of this bottomlesse pitte and hell Were not only the othes where with he bindeth / bisshopes / prestes / moÌ„kes / princes aÌ„d vniversites / sufficient to make him the man of synne and sonne of perdition For who is able to recite the periuryes / syth there is in a maner no maÌ„ that swereth with his will / and yet is he compelled to swere / where as is no necessite of the faith or of his neghburs profite / wherfore thow takist the name of god in vayne / for that which is not done with the affect and mind of the harte / is done vaynly and with synne So that this kingdome of faces hath not only prevayled to corrupte the fayth / but also to destroy good maners In so moch that he hath lefte nothinge But it is attaynted aÌ„d in a maner putrified And yet hath he cloked and covered these cursed moÌ„stres with soch a fyne aÌ„d beutyfull colour of faces / and hath so defended theÌ„ against every power both of vertue wepon / that this kinge of faces was most mete to be the laste monstre in the end of the world / prepared against the great cominge of Christ / that Christ might shew his great vertue and power / in the greatnes of this monstre / here speake I nothinge of the infinite evilles by the which he transgresseth the iiij.v.vij and viij commaundmentes / for he taketh awaye thobedience which the children owe to their parentes / sturringe vp and arminge the sonnes against the fathers as it is sene en HeÌ„rie the .iiij. and manye other / Henry the iiij emperoure for he will that he be hard above / and afore all other Also that he replenissheth the world with bloude and murther / makinge debate at his awne plesure be twixte kinges and princes / beinge the occasion of great warres and coÌ„tentions So that a man may doute / whether sathan him silf if he raigned presently among vs might bring soch thinges to passe as the Pope doth Now doth this mighty these invade aÌ„d subdew hole kingdoÌ„s and dukedoms And devoreth bisshoprickes benefices / aÌ„d all the goodes movable immovable in the hole world / thorow subsidyes bulles / and other infinite craftes very sotle / craftye and lyeinge / knittinge / and vnbindinge all thiÌ„ges / according to his pleasure And this man of synne and sonne of perditioÌ„ / conveyeth his matters on that facyon / that he denieth them to be synnes / yee and affirmeth that it is synne if any man resist or laughe at them And that so abominable synne that no hell is sufficient to punissh it And he hath drawen vn to him in to this weked mind and sentence all though not the hole world yet truly at the lest the hole hepe of the clergye / and a great parte of the laye people / destroyng them that consente vnto him perpetuallye / so that not by one maner of waye / but by all wayes he corrupteth and destroyeth all thinges / and may well be called a corrupter of mervelous thinges The sacrament of the altare But let vs procede to the greatest most abominable mischeffe of all other / concerninge the sacrament of the altare and baptime or repentance First he hath taken from the chirch the holy misterye of the masse And so hath corrupte it concerning the laye people that he hath clene taken awaye the one parte from them / and not only takenie awaye / but also made it sinne / yee aÌ„d extreme heresye if any man according to the ordenance of Christ vse both the kindes O lyvinge immortall god / what presumptuous boldnes hath this weked abominatioÌ„ If Christ had forbeden any of the kindes /