Philistians priestes and soâ—h sayers gaue glory to God iudged him to be iust in that he plagued Pharaâ— in that he hardened his heart against God desiring their ruler â–ª by the same example not to hardeÌ„ theâ—r heartes against God but to send away the Ark of the Lord lest he likwies plague them But if the Philistians soth sayers had knoweÌ„ as ye presume to do that God did harden Pharaâ—s heart what 〈◊〉 coulde they attribut to God for punishing Pharao for that thing wherâ—of he was the author him self mouing and forcing Pharao therunâ—o seing as you haue said no man is able to resist his secrete will what iustice had it bene to punishe Semei for that oâ—fence where of God was the author commanding him to do it Dauid Saieth thus the Lord is knowen to execute true iudgement when the vngodlie is trapped in the workes of his â—wne handes not when he punished for the offence wherunto he moued men him self If God should punish a man because he hath a beard should any glory redound to God thereof seing he hath giuen vs beards him self â–ª But here you be very religious and say we oght not to speake so vnreuerently of the woâ—kâ— of God for this is the secret iudgement of God vnknowen to vs I answere there be some secretes of God vnknowen to vs. But the iudgement of God is knowen made manifest to vs in the word and after this word as saint Paul teacheth not after your secret iudgement shall God iudge the world so shal God be glorified of all godlie vngodlie forasmuch as all shall iudge is to be iust they which haue not obeyed the trueth not your vnknowene trueth but that which is knowen that is â—he word shal be punished aÌ„d they which haue obeyed to the â—rueâ—h not secrâ—t as yours but reueled in gods word shall receaue their rewarde Moreouer if this be the secret iudgemeÌ„t of God who reuâ—led it â—heÌ„ to you Hâ—we do you knowe it to be secret is it secreâ—e which you knowe and teachâ—n dede I thiÌ„k it to heso for it is so secret that I caÌ„ not cache no holde of it But herin I de perceaue not the secret but â—he manifest iudgemeÌ„t of God which suffereth you to erre thus because you with holde the trueth is vnrighteousnes aÌ„d according to your knowledge you haue not glorified God neither haue you bene thankfull but waxâ—d full of vanities in your owned imaginations wherfore my counsell is that you â—urnâ— againâ— from â—hat infiâ—â—â—â—tie wherin you haue drowned your selues beleue â—he worde sâ—kâ— no forther for it is the power of God to salutation to euery one that beleuâ—â—h ANSWERER As your most pestilent sect euen from the first originall of it hath with all malicious craft labored to subuert and confound gods most perfect ordinance so do you in this mater confound those things which we most plainely aÌ„d most destinctly set a parte and deuide them the one from the other for first you are neuer able to proue that any of vs hath alledged or yet doeth alledge the word or fact of Ioseph and his brethren for any proof of gods eternall election or most iust reprobation but to declare that such is gods prouideÌ„ce towardes his chosen childreÌ„ and towardes their saluation preseruation of his church that what so euer sathan and wicked men imagine to the destruction of gods elect that same doeth his infinit goodnes conuert to their profit comfort and ioye And so this is the first that impudeÌ„tly ye confounde to witt his prouidence which exteÌ„deth to all his creatures with his election which perteineth onely to his children The second is no man hath euer put more plaine difference betwext the wicked will of Sathan the corrupt and malicious will of man and the holie aÌ„d most iust will of God theÌ„ we do in all o r doctrine aÌ„d writings And yet ye accuse vs that we attribut to God that which is propre to the deuill that is to moue the thoght of men to do euill Howe far that impietie is from all our cogitations as God one day shall manifestly reuele to your eternall confusion except that spedely you repent so may all godlie men who either haue heard our voices or redde our writings beare record how iustly you accuse vs. we constantly affirme that God neither moued by his holie spirit the heartes of the patriarkes to enuie aÌ„d hatred neither vet of Pharao to crueltie neither yet to iniquitie for that is naturally borne with all men and nedeth the power of the potent Spirit of God to extinguish and queÌ„ch it but not to inflaÌ„be and kindle it But yet we say that God who out of darknes produced or broght forth light had in y t most detestable facte of the patriarckes both his will and his counsell farre coÌ„trarie to their myndes and purpose euen as hâ— had in the cruell and most vniust death as coÌ„cerning the instrumeÌ„tes that were the executers of his deare sonne Christ Iesus nether yet doth it ther of folowe y t euill thoghtes whereunto we are comanded to resist are moued by him or yet come from him for the fountaine thereof doth euerie wicked man so fynd within him self that his owne conscience shall conuict him that no where elles is the cause of his iniquitie of the seuere punishment which for the same he shall susteine to be soght but onely within him self and as proceding of him self by instigation of the deuill into whose power he is deliuered as was Saul and others by the inscrutable and incompreheÌ„sible but yet most iust iudgemeÌ„tes of God If in you were ether modestie or discretioÌ„ to iudge of those thinges y t be well godly spoken or yet docilitie to be taught in those thinges wher of vterly ye declare your selues ignorant ye coulde not thus as in a furious rage spewe forth your venim against gods supreme Maiestie for your horrible blasphemies are not so much spoken against vs as against God As for vs they do no more obscure the manifest light of our doctrine then if in your despyte ye should spitt against the bright sunne to impede the brightnes therof for in none of our writinges be you able to shewe any of these sentences which maliciously without shame you laye to our charge Euill thoghtes come â–ª from God God punisheth maÌ„ for the offences wherof he is author and wher vnto he prouoketh him God moued and forced Pharaâ— to pnuishe the people These I say and others your horrible blasphemies which we so detest that we affirme the first authors of them to be worthie of most sharp punishment you be neuer albe to shewe in any of our writinges And this might serue for a sufficient answered to all your dispitefull raling But lest you should still glory in your iniquite and grosse ignorance I will discouer the same folowing your answer in the wordes of S. Iames saying God teÌ„pteth no man
clensed yet nether of both chaÌ„ge theire owne nature But y e dogge remaineth the dogge and therfor can do none other thing but to returne to his vomite and the sow remaining the sow must nedes returne to wallowe in the myre But say you Peter affirmeth that they were verely escaped I answer as touching the trueth and nature of the doctryne which they professed so they were â–ª for it was the verye true knowledge of God which was offered vnto them and whiche apperantly they had receaued In w c if they had coÌ„tinued they should verely haue bene fre frome all bondage according to Christes promes But becaus they were none of his chosen shepe nor peculiar flocke they did decline froÌ„ y e holie coÌ„mandemeÌ„t and so were their last wors then their first because y t the seruant knowing the will of the master and not doing the same is worthie many stripes All this I know doth please you except y t I affirme that they were neuer of Christes chosen noÌ„bre no not eueÌ„ wheÌ„ they professed most boldly wheÌ„ they liued most streitly and when most they appered to haue bene purged I will not bynd you to beleue myn affirmation except that I bring y e witnessing of the holie Gost S. Iohn saieth they haue passed out froÌ„ vs he speaketh of antichristes but they were not of vs for if they had bene of vs of a trueth they should haue remained w t vs c. These wordes nede no coÌ„meÌ„tarie for saieth he they haue passed out frome vs. And why because they were not of vs no not eueÌ„ wheÌ„ they professed most earnestly c Shut vp your own eyes as ye liâ—t this light shall ye neuer be able to obscure much lesse to extinguish The place of S. Iames and of y e Apostle Paule to Timothe 2. Timoth. 2. do teach not onely the ministers of y e word but also euerie faithfull man how carefully one should procure the saluation of an other And to make all meÌ„ more diligent in doing their duetie he declareth in what extreme danger stand such as do erre froÌ„ the trueth or that remaine in bondage of SataÌ„ as also what acceptable seruice vnto God do such as by whom God calleth others from the way of damnation That this is the simple meaning of both the Apostles I trust euerie godlie man y t diligently will read the text shall confesse with me your foolish questions demanding whether they were elect or reprobate ofwhom the Apostle speaketh and your academical reasons grounded vpoÌ„ your own fantasies I omitt as vnworthie to be answered for y e Apostle speaketh to no one particulare sort but proposeth a coÌ„moÌ„ and general doctrine for the endes which I haue rehearsed before And albeit ye feare not now to affirme that the preaching of repentance is in vaine if our opinion be true the day shall com when ye shall know that nether was the sharp preaching of Iohn nether yet the glad tydinges and amiable voice of Christ Iesus blowen to the worlde in vaine albeit that the Scribes and Pharesies remained still the generation of vipers and that they could nether feare nor beleue the promes of saluation because they were not of God but of the deuil whose children they were The places of Isaiah and Ieremie I haue before declared therefor in few wordes I will touche y e purpose of the holie Gost which was not to instruct that people whom when or how many God had elected to lief euerlasting in Christ Iesus his Sonne or whom for iust causes he had reprobated but to conuict them of their manifest and most vnthankfull defection and to take from them all excuses both the prophetes do declare how gently God had entreated them yea how beneficial he had bene to their fathers whom he called from ignorance whom he norished in â—is own knowledge and at length planted and hedged them about with all munition and necessarie defence So that now the children declining to Idolatrie could haue no excuse for their fathers Abraham Isaak Iacob and Dauid whom he calleth the faithfull sede gaue vnto them no such example But how saieth he art thow now changed to be vnto me a degenerate vineyard what maketh this I praye you for your purpose or for to proue that these that be elected in Christ Iesus to lief euerlasting may becom reprobates If I should answere that the stocke which was planted faithfull remained faithfull but that it produced many rotten and vnfrutefull branches which therefor must nedes be cut of none of your sect were able to confute me for I should haue the Apostle for my warrant But I delyte in nothing somuche as in the simple and natiue meaning of the scriptures as they be alledged in their own places by the holie Gost. The places of the prophetes Isaiah and Hoseas haue not both one end for Isaiah in the 14 chapter doth promes in the person of God that he wold shew mercie to Iacob and that he wold choose Israel againe yea that he wold destroy Babylon for their saik and so wold choose his people to him self againe whom for a tyme he appered to haue reiected so that other lordes then he did beare rule ouer them But Hoseas in the contrarie sense affirmeth that because they had abused the long pacience of God and had not righteously considered howtenderly he had intreated them that therefor should the sword râ—shâ— in into the citie that it should destroy and deuore so that none should be found to releue them This I dout not is the meaning of both the prophetes O but you crie here is mention made that God will choose his people againe therefor he had once reiected whom before he had chosen I trust ye â—â—ll not that gods Maiestie shal be subiect to periurie for the establishement of your error he had before solemnely sworn not onely to Abraham but also to Dauid that he wold for euer be the God of that people and that of the frute of his loynes should one fitt vpon his seate and that for euer â–ª If he had so reiected his people that no election had remained nether yet that he had made any differeÌ„ce betwext them and the prophane natioÌ„s before the coÌ„ming of Christ Iesus where was the stabilitie of this former promes we know y t the giftes and vocation of God are without repentaÌ„ce in him self y t he casteth not away such as he be foreknew to be his own but that in y e greatest extremitie his promes abideth stable as in this people he most euidently declared for he did not so disperse them so reiect them and as it were in his anger cast them of and giue them ouer to the appetites of theire ennemies but that still he did knowe and auowe them to be his people yea euen in their greatest calamitie As in these wordes he doth witnes saying when they shal be in the land of theire ennemies I
most feareful end and I suppose that none wil be so peruerse of iudgement as to denie that none other was appointed to be the salt of y e earth and the light of the worlde except those twelue I verilie beleue that Paule is nothing inferior to any of the chiefest Apostles in that case And so yet I affirme that nether were those wordes spokeÌ„ of all the twelue nether yet of theÌ„ onely If this can not satisfie your curiositie labor you to proue that Iudas was elected to life euerlasting in Christ Iesus before the fundacions of the world were laid I haue before proued that the elect can not finally refuse nor deny Christ Iesus their head and therefor I will not trouble the reader with the repetition The place of Ezechiell serueth nothing your purpose for there doth he onely intreat of such righteous men as in the beginning of the same chapter vsed this prouerbe The fathers haue eaten soure grapes and the childrens teeth are set on edge signifying thereby as before we haue declared that they were iust and innoceÌ„t and that yet they did suffer punishement for the offenses of their fathers Against whom y e Prophet speaketh most sharpely affirming that the soule which did sinne shoulde die in this praising gods iustice that he wolde suffer sinne vnpunished in none of his creatures supposing that some for a time had a shew of righteousnes The prophet doeth further accuse and conuict their consciences for they knew them selues criminall in all crimes which the prophet there recited And therefore to prouoke them to repentaÌ„ce w t this exhortacion Cast away from you saieth he all your transgressioÌ„s whereby ye haue transgressed and make you a new heart and a new spirit for why wil you die ô house of Israel for I desire not the death of him y t dieth saith the Lord God Cause therefore one another to returne and liue ye Of this coâ—clusioÌ„ I say it easely may appere of what sort of righteous men y e Prophet speaketh not of such as being ingrafted in Christes bodie by the true sanctification of his spirit do daylie studie to mortifie their affections but of such as hauing an outward appearance or shew of holines did notwithstaÌ„ding lowse y e bridle to all impietie In very dede God can not remeÌ„bre y e iustice of any such w c is not but their sinnes must craue iust vengeance y t the rather because by theÌ„ y e name of God is blasphemed Now to y e rest of y t w c foloweth in yo r book THE ADVERSARIE This say you with many other manifest testimonies of the Scriptures ye â—osse and turne vpside dounâ— seking shiftes to maintein your errors where by you declare your self to be of the nombre of them of whom it is written in the same place which do say tush the way of the Lord is not indifferent ye will not that the Lord iudge according to this way set furth in his word but of necessitie by an immutable 〈◊〉 saue a certeÌ„ of necessâ—tie to coÌ„deÌ„ne all the rest ye must not so read gods word studying rather to teache the holy Gost then to learne your duetie of him seking meanes rather to coÌ„firme your preconceaued error then to auoid it what trueâ—â— can he learne at the word of God which worshippeth the idoll of his own phantasie and hath alredie forsaken the mynd of the trueth RemeÌ„bre that the first lessâ—Ì„ of wisdom is to be willing to learne wisdom â–ª Cast away therefor the â—doles of your heartes which made you stâ—mble in your wayes submit your selues to the word as humble and meke laÌ„bes for the lambe onelie was found worthie to open the seales of the book Trust not your error to be the-better because it hath many fauorers specially of theÌ„ which haue the name of learning for such haue bene alwaies in all ages ennemies to the trueth inuenters of sectes errors such like as Iannes and â—ambres resisted Moises so do they the trueth as the learned scribes Phariseâ—s blasphemâ—d the word of God and persecuted Christ the trueth it selfe so do they yet in hu membres And euen as the pharesies said do any of the reulers or of the phareseis beleue in him this comoÌ„ people which know not the law is cursed so say they nowdo any of our learned doctors teach so these vnlearned felowes are cursed for they caÌ„ not vnderstaÌ„d gods word they vnderstaÌ„d onely the english toÌ„gue yet wil they medle with 〈◊〉 as thogh the gifte 〈◊〉 the giftes of prophecying were so bouÌ„d together that God coulde not minister the one without the other but this is no newâ— thing for this was laid to Christ his Apostles charge â–ª that they were vnlearned â–ª But the holie Gost willeâ— vs not to iudge so marke saith Paul your calling how that not many wyse meÌ„ after the fleshe not many migthie not many of hieght degre are called but God haâ—h chosen the weake things of the worlde the vile things of the worlde thinges which are despised of 〈◊〉 reputacioÌ„ to confound the mightie to bring to naught things of reputacioÌ„ how caÌ„ such great meÌ„ beleue seing they seke tobe praised one of an other and to be preferred for their knowledge in the tongues for the multitude of their bookes which they writ such learned meÌ„ are more mete to be in Herodes hall theÌ„ in Christes stable the dore is to lowe â—hey 〈◊〉 stout they may not stowpe so lowe for the disgracing of their grauiâ—ie onely poore shepherds which are accustomed to stables are fouÌ„d mete to haue Christ reueled to them not that I dispâ—se learning or learned men for I knowe that learning is the good gift of God yeâ— as S Paul saith knowledge maketh a man to swel and many in our tyme as in all ages paste do abuse this good gift of God yet not all God forbid for som I know I prayse God to whom it hath pleased God to reuele the trueth of this mater which in perfect knowledge of the soÌ„gâ—es are to be compared with any of your Rabbes Be not deceaued therefore with vaine 〈◊〉 of learning or of worldlie wisdome ifye seke Christ seke him where he is in the poore stable and not in Annas and Caiphas pallasses wiâ—hout ye will se and heare Christ accused to such a banket peraduenture Christ may be called of the learned If you wil haue Christ ye must not go to seke him in â—he vniuersities where you may be praised for your sharp wittes and eloquent tongues but you must go forth vnto him out of the tentes and suffer rebuke with him â–ª knowe ye not that the learned phareseis and lawers coueted to talke somtime with Christ not to learne but to dispute and trap him in his sayinges and so did the learned Philosophers of Grecia with Paul Awake therefore in time be no longer deceaued with heâ—r auctoritie examyn your selues examyn
and when Moses did repete the same he said Behold I haue laid before you this day life and death benediction and execration chose therefore life that thou and thy sede may liue If God wold that all men and all nations indiffereÌ„tly should come to the same knowledge why were not the lawes statutes and iudgemeÌ„tes of God made manifest to others as they were to Israel And if you answer that so they were the holy Gost shall coÌ„uict you of a liâ— For he affirmeth that God had not done so to all nations and that his iudgemeÌ„tes he had not reueled nor made knowen vnto them But if that plaine diuision made by God him selfe betwext Iew and GeÌ„tile during the time of the law doth not fully satisfie you Heare yet the sentence of our Master Christ Iesus who saith to his disciples To you it is giuen to vnderstand the secretes of the kingdom but vnto others in parables that hauing eyes they should not see And y t most plainely in that his solemned thâ—Ì„ckes giuing he saith I praise the ô father for y u hast hidde these thinges from the prudent and from the wise but y u hast reueled them to litle ones If God wold haue had the true knowledge of him selfe and of his Sonne Christ Iesus common to all why should Christ him selfe affirme y t to some it was giuen to others it was not giuen to some it was reueâ—ed froÌ„ others it was hidde And therefore seing it is plaine y t God will not giue his true knowledge to all yea to some he doth neuer offer it ye shall neuer be able to proue that God will all men to be saued For the onely meanes to atteine to saluation and to life is to know and embrace God to be our merâ—ifull father in Christe Iesus to w c knowledge who so euer doth not atteine I meane of those y t come to y e yeares age of discretion can haue no assuraÌ„ce to be saued This were sufficient to coÌ„uict you euen in your owne coÌ„science For albeit malice will not suffer you to giue place to y e plaine veritie yet shall the weight therof so oppresse your pride that when you do open your mouth against it yeâ— shall ye be witnesses euen against yo r selues But yet for the cause of my simple brethereâ— I will adde two thinges first how all such places as ether make a general promes of saluation to all or yet that do pronounce gods wrath against all must be vnderstand Secondarely what sinners they are wose death God will not For the first I say that who so euer doth denie that from the beginning there hath bene this day are and to y e endâ— shall remaine two armies bandes or companies of men whom God in his eternall counsell hath so deuided that betwext theÌ„ there coÌ„tinueth a battâ—ll w c neuer shal be reconciled vntill the Lord Iesus put a finall ende to the miseries of his Church who doth not vnderstand the trueth of this I say doth nether know God nether his Sonne Christ Iesus nether yet do such beleue his word in w c both y e one sort y e other are most manifestly expressed The one of these Armies is called the Church of God the elect Spouse of Christe Iesus y e shepe appointed to slaughter the kingly priesthode the sonnes of God and the people redemed by ancient writtets it is termed the citie of God The other is called the sinagoge of satan the church malignant cruell deceat full and bloodthirstie wolues Progenie of vipers sonnes of the deuill workers of iniquitie and such as worship the beast and his image And according to the diuers natures coÌ„ditions and endes of these two companies doth the scripture pronounce generall sentences and vniuersall propositions which not withstaÌ„ding must be restreined to those of whom the holy Gost meaneth For nether iustly may those sentences spoken of gods elect be referred to the reprobate nether yet such as be spoken of the reprobate sorte be rightly applied to the elect except it be for terrifying of their conscience and that onely for a ceason as Christ Iesus called Peter sathanas and Nathan called Dauid the Sonne of death I will adduce examples of the one sort and of the otherâ— that the mater may be more euident The Prophet Isai which place also our Master alledgeth speaking of gods elect childreÌ„ saith They shall all be taught of God and they shall know me froÌ„ the least to the greatest I shall powre forth of my spirite on all flesh All flesh shall see the saluation of God The Lord raiseth vp all that fall All the inhabitantes of the earth shall learne iustice All men shall come out of Saba All thy people shable iust I shall comfort all that mourne You be all the Sonnes of God ye be all the Sonnes of light These and many mo places which be vniuersally spoken must be restreyned to gods children onely who be elected in Christe Iesus For those that be with out his body are nether taught of God nether yet know they God in such sort as the Prophet there meaneth Into them is neuer powred the spirite of sanctification They giue neuer vnto God true honor and glorie They nether learne iustice nether yet are they iust They are not the sonnnes of God by adoption nether yet the sonnes of light whose workes shine before men to the praise of our heauenly father But remaine ignorant prophane idolaters filthie persones replenished with darckenes as the sonnes of the deuill And therefore can not these former sentences which apperteine to gods children onely be rightly spoken or pronounced of the reprobate Of the other sort it is said All that see me haue mocked me they put furth their toÌ„gues they shake their heades These wordes spake Dauid in the persone of Christe and yet God forbid that we should think that all without exception did so mocke and iest at Christe no not euen in his greatest extremitie For some we reade stode beside his crosse with sorowfull heartes Some returned giuing open confession that he was the Sonne of God And the thefe began to be a preacher eueÌ„ when others did most dispitefully rayle And therefore where it is said all that saw me did mocke me that generalitie must be restreined to those enraged dogges the Priestes Scribes wicked souldiours and most vnthaÌ„kfull people who of verye malice did deny and crucifie their Lord and Messias that was promised â–ª Isai and Ieremie speaking of the destruction of Ierusalem and of the causes of the same say I shall consume you all at once and ye shall all be ashamed by a people that shall not profit you They haue all folowed their owne waies Euery man gapeth for bribes Why will ye contend with me ye haue all declined from me From the least to the most euerie one is bent vpon auarice they are
it shall please God to assist my weakenes I will not spare labors to communicate with my brethern what pestilence lurketh in your enuenomed doctrine to the end that all the faithful may auoyde the same You fearing to forget any thing of your master Castalios â—currilitie do thus conclude THE ADVERSARIE And as for you Careles mâ—n you oght to take it in good worth what so euer I haue said â–ª first because it is trueth Secondly because ye holde that all things â—e doâ—e of mere necessiâ—ie then haue I written this of necessitie ANSWER To the which I answere that if the deuill were not a lier and the father not of lyes onely but also of all deceatful lyers it were not possible that you who in so manie thinges haue declared your selues horrible lyers should vainly bragge that ye haue writteÌ„ the trueth For besides those odious crimes which most impudently and most falsely you lay to our charge amongest al the scriptures by you alledged their are not three which ye do not abuse yea and in some ye do so openly belye the holy Gost that you conclude contrarie to his expressed wordes But when I coÌ„sider that your Master father Satan him self eshamed not in the presence of Christe Iesus to boast and to bragge that all the power and glorie of the earth was giuen vnto him and that he gaue it to such as best pleased him wheÌ„ yet in very dede he had no power to giue to his felow angelles and companions of darkenes licence to enter into the bellies of swine till that he aÌ„d they were faine to begge that pleasant palace of him to whom all power is giuen in heauen and in earth When this I saye I do considre I do more lament your miserable blindnes then that I can stomake against your vanitie except in so farre as to the ende I must saye that such as obstinatelye denie the plaine trewth of God are lyers and the sonnes of that lier who first deceaued man and powred into his hart the same venome and error which this day ye teach and mainteine For he was bold to affirme that wisdom and lyfe was to be found by other meanes then God had determined yea where God had pronounced death and damnation he promised saluatioÌ„ and life and so do you For God hath apointed life to none of his elect but in Christe Iesus onely aÌ„d that by such meanes as in his holy word expressed which are trew faith continuall repentance abnegation of our selues of owr owne iustice and wisdom aÌ„d finally by receauing of free grace in Christe Iesus whatsoeuer we haue lost in Adam But ye ashame not to affirme that the iustice of Christe sufficeth vs not except that we haue a personall iustice of our owne How coldely ye speake or write of his death of his resurrection of his mediation and perpetuall intercession is euident Your bragging and prowd boasting of your owne iustice and of your greate perfectioÌ„ are euident tokens how you do agree with Christe Iesus the trueth and veritie it self who commandeth vs to saye not for the fashioÌ„ but from vnfeined heartes we are vnprofitable seruantes But some of you in your iesting eshame not to saye â–ª that ye are not two thousand passes distant from the fulnes of perfection But this your vanitie your blasphemies excepted doth not greately offend vs. For a small pricke of of a pinne or of a nelde shal be sufficieÌ„t to declare that bladders be they neuer so streitly blowen conteine in them selues nothing but wind That by necessitie you haue written your railing blasphemies and most impudent lies we easily confesse For seing that ye are the sede of the serpent I meane such as in your error shall continue to the end what thing can you els do but of necessitie spew forthe veÌ„nom wheÌ„ the weight of gods eternall veritie beginneth a litle to presse downe your head for so doeth the serpent whensoeuer she is touched But why do ye not considre seing ye be reasonable serpentes that like as prowdly ye lift your selues against the glorie of the eternall Sonne of God and as ye cease not maliciousely to slander suche instrumeÌ„tes as in his Church be most profitable and most wort hie of prayse in the eyes of all godly that likewise of necessitie it is that ye come to ruine that your pride be repressed and your blasphemous tongues be coÌ„founded for euer seing that God who hatch all iniquitie must nedes resist the proude destroy the lying lippes and remoue from his societie suche as declare them selues enemies to his eternall veritie the knowledge wherof we confesse with Iob commeth onely by inspiration of the holy Gost and doth not procede from flesh or blood from studie care or wordly wisdome but is the free gift of God reueled to the lytle ones and comonly hid from the wisest of the world Which sentence wold God that depely ye could wey for then I doubt not but y â— ye should clearely se that to come to Christe Iesus is nether of the runner â–ª nether yet of the 〈◊〉 but of God who sheweth mercie to such as pleasâ—â—â— him whose counselles eternal and iudgementes mâ—st profound can no creature apprehend and compasse and therâ—fore oght all the true seruantes of God with reuerence and with trembling saye O how incomprehensible are thy iudgementes ô Lord and how vnsearchable are thy wayes for of thee by thee and for thee are all things To thee be glorie for euer and euer So be it Isaiah 54. EVERIE TONGVE THAT SHAL CONTEND WITH THEE IN IVDGEMENT THE SAME SHALT THOV MOST RIGHTLY CONDEMNE Fautes escaped in the printing In the 24. page the 19. line not for nor In the 33. page the 4. line Curthe for Church In the 95. page the 17. line displease for displeasure In the 117. page in the margent gode for gods In the 153. page the 21. line through for thoght In the 193. page the 32. line maciously for maliciously In the 165. page the 6. line yea for yet In y e 204. page the 3. line thy penne for my penne In the 263. page line 3. A scaoth for Asteroth In the same page the 16. line yet the became for yet he became In the 199. page the 24. line and affirming for and we affirming In the 312. page the 34. line 24. for 23. In the 321 page the last line defacedâ— for defaced to his vttermost In the 322. page the 18. line good reasonly for goodly reason In the 435. page the 18 line cheir for their Ephes. 1. 3 2. Cor. 2. 1â— Esaie 8. 14 2. Cor. 2. 16 1. Cor. 1. 28 Iohn 1. 5 Matt. 27. 38. Act. 2. 23 Companions of the trueth Matt 1. 7 1. Cor. 11 19 Luke 7. 13 Sathan hath euerraged against the fre mercies of God Ephes. 2. 8 How Satan drew maÌ„first from God The cause of the writing of this worke The necessitie of the doctrine of gods eternall predestination The
them for so is affirmed in a parable that one lord did to his steward If we shall rather beleue Christ Iesus then you then we shall thus conclude Many are called but few chosen wonder it is that ye can not se the difference betwext these wordes The king called many and God chose all I am ashamed of your ignorance Of gods coÌ„stant fidelitie of his promises of the causes why y e reprobate are more aÌ„d more blynded we haue before somwhat spoken and after will haue occasion to repete the same When ye wold be sene most craftie and subtill then appereth most your ignoraÌ„ce and vanitie To proue an absurditie in our doctrine thus ye reason If where so euer election be there is also reprobation of the same kynd this last patch I say is your malicious addition but let it stand for a testimonie of your vntrueth if then say you Christ be the elect and chosen of God as the scriptures affirme him to be then must it nedes folowe that there be mo Christes of whome â—ome must be reprobate and thereupon ye bring in your foolishe tale of your Iew. First I answer you according to your merie disposition which I perceaue did titill you in writing this part That if ye can make no difference betwext election and elect then I wold ye were commited agane to som quick and sharpe Pedagoge who with sharp roddes wold let you fele what difference there is betwext Agentem Patientem Assuredly your vnreuereÌ„t iesting in these secrete mysteries of our redemption and these scoffing tantes in malice casten out against the eternall Sonne of God and his vndoubted veritie deserue none other answer but yet partly to let your ignorance appere and partly for the instructioÌ„ of the simple I will prepare my self to answer with greater modestie then your malice deserueth I haue said before that this patch vpon the which ye gather your absurditie is none of our doctrine for we haue neither written nor yet taught that where so euer is election there must also reprobation be of the same kynd but simply we say that election hath respect to his contrarie reprobation But to grant you somwhat and not to hold you so streit let it be that so we had written what should rightly thereof folowe that there must be mo Christes of whoÌ„ som must be reprobate say you becaus that Christ is called the elect of God I answer in this your argument ye vse two fallaces that is fals and deceatfull apperances of a trueth which are but manifest lies The former you change the termes putting elect and reprobate in the minor and in the conclusion where we put election and reprobation in the Maior which is not lawfull in a good argument for where we say as ye affirme where so euer is Election there must also reprobation be ye infer Christ is the elect of God Ergo there must be mo Christes of whom som must be reprobate Who seeth not here the changing of the termes Let your argument procede in order and coâ—clude what ye list Where so euer is electioÌ„ there must also be reprobation And add if ye list of the same kynd but Christ is election thus must you procede if that ye kepe the forme of a good argument Proue your Minor and conclude what ye please Thus doeth your vaine and foolishe sophistrie compell me to trouble the simple with the termes of the artes which most vnwillingly I do The seconde fallaâ— and deceat lieth in the ambiguitie and doubtfull vnderstanding of this patch which ye craftelie forge of the same kynd for if we had so spoken or written yet is our vnderstanding far other then you imagine That is we applie not these wordes of the same kynd to the particularitie of persons and of euerie especiall man that is elect but to the hole masse as by saint Paule we are taught To make the mater more sensible I will lay my self for exeÌ„pell for I will not nor dare not so â—rreuereÌ„tly iest w t the maiestie of my God and of his dear son Christ Iesus as ye do You reason against vs as that we did vnderstand your addition of the same kynd of euerie particulare person a part as thus I Iohn knoxe do constantly beleue that as of mercie and fre grace it hath pleased the goodnes of my God in tyme to call me to his knowledge aÌ„d so to remoue my blyndnes and vnbeliefe that in a part I se his fatherlie loue towardes me in Christ Iesus his Sonne so do I most certenlie beleue that in the same Christ Iesus of fre grace he did elect and choose me to lief euerlasting before the fouÌ„dation of the world was laid Ergo by your vnderstanding I must also beleue that there is another Iohn knoxe of the same kynd hauing the same substance with the same qualiteis proprieties and conditions that I haue that was reprobated and so must be damned Who seeth not here your vanitie yea your most malicious cauilation who labor to impute vpon vs that which did neuer enter into our heartes We with all reuereÌ„ce and feare beleue and teach that God of one masse that is of Adam hath prepared som vessels of mercie honour and glorie and som he hath prepared to wrathe and destruction To the vessels of his mercie in his eternall counsell before all tymes he did appoint a head to reule and giue lief to his elect that is Christ Iesus our Lord whom he wold in tyme to be made like vnto his brethren in all thinges sinne except Who in respect of his humaine nature is called his seruante the iust sede of Dauid and the elect in whom his soule is well compleased Because as I haue said he is appointed onely head to giue lief to the bodie without whom there is neither electioÌ„ saluatioÌ„ nor lief to man nor to Angell And so in respect of his humanitie froÌ„ the w c he in no wies can be seperated he is called y e elect CoÌ„clude now if you caÌ„ there must be mo Christes of whoÌ„ soÌ„ must be reprobate I will make a more sure and more trew conclusion then you do which is this God of one masse hath elected some men to lief in Christ Iesus Ergò there was left of the saâ—me masse an other sort vnder an other head the deuil who is the father of lies and of all such as continue in blasphemie against God Gather now what absurdities ye caâ— THE ADVERSARIE An other argument gather they furth of gods prescience but I will first borow an argument of them concerning the prescience of God And then God willing I shall answere to theirs Paul saieth Those which God knew before he also ordeined them before that they should be lyke fashioned vnto the shape of his Sonne that he might be the first begotten Sonne among many bretheren but God knew all men before Ergo be ordeined all men before that they should
passions God hath in him self as ye do For so appereth in this your question Wil ye say that God werieth him self suffering and sorowing for them whom he had reprobated before the world Surlie I think that thogh ye hitherto haue vnaduisedly said so ye will from hence furth say so no more And so ye end this portion with a prayer To the which we answere in few wordes that albeit we will not take vpon vs to define what after this shal your cogitations be yet will we not cease to pray to God that your heartes beiÌ„g humbled with greater reuerence ye may not onely think but also speak of gods hie Maiestie of his iudgements most holie most iust and vtterlie in this life in comprehensible to our dull senses But now we go forward to that which foloweth THE ADVERSARIE Now must we declare the saing of S. Luke so many as were ordeined vnto life did beleue where we must vnderstand that as they that will not obey the trueth are called in the scriptures ordeined to damnation as is sufficiently proued before so they which willingly receaue the trueth and coople the word with faith working by charitie are called ordeined to life Where ye do replie so predestination is without any condition I grant predestination to lief is the verie fre gift of God without any condition Notwithstanding we can not com to life but by the way which leadeth vnto life As he which receaued the one talent of his master receaued it of a fre gifte without his deseruing but because he did not walk in the way appointed by his master his talent was taken from him againe And as afore by the fre benefitt of his master he was chosen vnto life so now because he did not walk in the way which leadeth vnto life he is ordeined to â—damnation The prodigall sonne is receaued of his father not for â—his deseruing but of the fre goodnes and beneuolence of his father â—et is it required of him that he walk hereafter as an obedient sonne which if he did not the latter fall should be worse then the first Predestination therefor is the mere gifte of God afore the foundation of the world at the which time nothing could be commanded vnto vs yea afore we either haue faith orâ—ls by hearing of the worde we may haue faith no spiritual comandemeÌ„t is giueÌ„ vs but wheÌ„ by hearing we may receiue faith theÌ„ is the way of saluatioÌ„ opened vnto vs in w c we must walk if we wil be saued And yet foloweth it not we must walk in the way which leadeth vnto saluation Ergo for walking the way of saluation we are chosen and accepted for S. Paul saieth I am giltie to my selfe in nothing but therefor I am not iustified If a learned Phisician seing one in danger of death whom he can and may helpe offereth Phisick to the pacient able to restore him to his healthe and therwith prescribed the pacient a diet now that the phisicion giueth phisick to the pacient it cometh onely of his owne goodnes But if the pacient do not order him self according to the prescript of the Phisition the phisick shall not help him And thoghe he obserue good diet yet oght he not to repute the receauing of his healthe to him self but to the Phisicion for thogh it lieth in the pacientes power to hinder his healthe yet it is not in his power to giue him selfe healthe So Christ our Phisition offereth healthfull phisick to vs all and there with prescribeth our diet which if we do not obserue the Phisick shall not auale vs. And thoghe we obserue it yet oght we not to attribute our healthe to our selues but to the liberalitie of our Phisition Christ which of his mere mercie hath made vs hole wherefor to return to our argument they are ordeined vnto life so many as will gladly walk in the way which leadeth vnto life that is true obedience and they do beleue as S. Luke saieth ANSWER The place of saint Luke which ye studie to corrupt is written in the 13. chapter of the Actes of the Apostles The light whereof is so clere that you be neuer able to obscure the same And therefor I will not spend much tyme in coÌ„futation of your vanitie for the simple trueth of the historie shall disclose the same Paule comming to Antioche in Pisidia did vpoÌ„ the Sabboth eÌ„ter in to the Sinagoge of the Iewes aÌ„d therein preached a sermoÌ„ most profound â–ª most effectuall and most comfortable In the which by plaine scriptures he proued that the same Iesus which was crucified at Ierusalem was the Messias promised and the onely Sauior of the world At which doctrine many of the Iewes being offended and yet som embrasing the same Paule the next Sabboth preached to the hole multitude of the Iewes and Gentiles assembled together But when plaine contradiction was made by the Iewes who did blaspheme Christ Iesus Paule and Barnabas taking boldnes said to the Iewes first it behoued to speake to you the word of God but becaus ye reiect it and iudge your selues vnworthie of the life euerlastiÌ„g behold we are turned vnto the Gentiles for so hath the Lord commanded vs. At which wordes the Gentiles reioysed and glorified the word of the Lord and did beleue saieth the text so many as were ordeined to the life euerlastiÌ„g Who is be so blynd that doeth not se that in these wordes the holie Gost assigneth the plaine cause why some do beleue and others do blaspheme and remaine vnfaithfull The cause why som beleue is becaus they are ordeined to the life euerlasting as they that are the shepe of Christ Iesus therefor they heare and beleue his voice the others as they are left in the power of the deuiÌ„ll as they that are neuer giuen to Christ to the eÌ„d that they may receaue life remaine in blyndnes and so by contradiction and blasphemies declare them selues whose chilren and generation they are None of vs do nor yet euer did deny but that the elect of God do willingly receaue and obey the trueth and that the spirit of God so worketh in their heartes that not onely they beleue but that also they are made frutefull yea and that frome iustice they procede to iustice But as the hole praise of this we giue to God arrogatiÌ„g no part of it to our selues so we constantly affirme that nether faith neither workes neither yet any qualitie that is or that God forsaw to be in vs is the caus of our predestination or electioÌ„ to life euerlasting as before we haue sufficiently proued Ye are so inconstaÌ„t now granting predestination to be the fre and mere gift of God without any condition of our workes and immediatly after ascribing it to our obedience and walking in the way that leadeth to life In this your inconstancie say I can not tell how to handle you One thing I se to my great comfort that the glorie of
Christ Iesus is so manifest and the power of his trueth so inuincible that he will reigne in the midest of his ennemies The deuilles them selues must acknowledge and openly confesse that he is Lord and the onely Son of the liuing father and the aduersaries of his trueth euen when they fight most outrageously against the same are coÌ„pelled to giue testimonie to it as you do here in diuers places as wheÌ„ ye say it foloweth not y t because we must walke in y e way that leadeth to life that therefor for walking in the way of saluation we are chosen and as you write accepted But because I say that your inconstancie doeth streight carie you to denial of this I caÌ„ the les credit that this be a trew confession proceding from an vnfeined heart but rather that it is the mightie power of the veritie which will ye nill ye compelleth your mowthes to giue witnessing vpon her part against your selues God grant I may be deceaued in this my iudgement for him I take to record that I am no otherwies ennemie to any of you then in so far as ye declare your selues manifest ennemies to y e fre grace of God aÌ„d to the glorie of y e eternal SoÌ„ne of y e eternal father of Christ Iesus our Lord aÌ„d onely Sauiour Becaus there is nothing in this your last part w c I haue not before at large declared in diuerse places I wil onely note those thiÌ„ges in the w c we do not aggre with you First we vse not to call predestinatioÌ„ the fre gift of God but we call it the eternall and immutable couÌ„sell of God in which he hath purposed to choose to lief euerlasting such as pleased his wisdom in Christ Iesus his Son Secondly we say that ye are neuer able to proue by the parable of the talentes that any reprobate was chosen in Christ to life euerlasting Thirdly that we fynd neither contract neither condition betwext the louing Father and the prodigall son in his admission to his former dignitie neither do we so vnderstand the parable as that the said son newly receaued to mercie wold after of stubbornes vnthaÌ„kfully depart from his father But rather we think that as he had felt what miserie he susteined by folowing his own counselles he wold in tymes comming with all diligence attend the counselles of his father Your mynd is dark to vs and your writing obscure where that ye say before we haue faith or by hearing of the worde can haue faith no spirituall commandement is giuen vnto vs. and also the wordes of saint Paule appere not to be well applied for there he entreateth no thing of election but onely affirmeth that in the dispensation of that ministerie committed to his charge he knew him self giltie in nothing c. but because these be of small importance I onely put you in remembrance of them Last your similitude betwext your PhisitioÌ„ offering medicin and prescribing diet to the patient who may receaue and kepe it at his pleasure and so recouer healthe and preserue his life orels reiect and break it and so procure his own destruction and betwext Christ Iesus who say you being our Phisition offereth healthfull phisike vnto vs all and therewith prescribeth our diett which if we do not obserue the phisike shall not auale vs c. This similitude in one respect doeth altogither mislyke vs. For it taketh from our soueraign Lord his chief glorie and honor for in no wies can we abyde that his mightie power and operation by his holie spirit shal be compared to the power of any creature We say not we teach not nor beleue not that Christ Iesus doeth onely offer medicin and prescribe a diet as a common Phisition leauing the vsing and obseruation of it to our will and power But we affirme that in the heartes of his elect he worketh faith he openeth their eies he cureth their leprosie he remoueth and ouercometh their inobedience yea by violence he pulleth theÌ„ furth of the bondage of Sathan and so sanctifieth them by the power of his holie Spirit that they abyde in his veritie according as he hath praied for them and so continue they vessels of his glorie for euer And herein we disseÌ„t froÌ„ you as afterward more plainely shal appere in discussing of this which you thus terme THE ADVERSARIE The second error of the careles by necessitie The elect thogh they sinne greuously â–ª yet are they neuer owt of the fauâ—r and electioÌ„ of God neither caÌ„ they by any meanes finally perishe So that Adam when he transgressed and Dauid committing adulterie and homicide were fauored euen then and beloued of God aÌ„d neuer owt of election nether could they be Againe the reprobate as Saul and Iudas were neuer in the fauor and election of God neither could they nor none other reprobate attein vnto saluation ANSWER The trueth of this proposition doeth nothing excuse your malice and hatered for albeit there be no senteÌ„ce in it conteined w e beiÌ„g rightly vnderstaÌ„d is not aggreable to gods worde yet of what purpose and mynd ye haue gathered these sentences leauing those that should explaine the same it easely may appere by that vennom which ye spew furth against vs to make vs odious to all the world as here foloweth THE ADVERSARIE The confutation of the second error Here you se how they deuide all men into two sortes one elected or chosen which by no meanes can perishe and the other reiected or reprobate before the world so that by no meanes can they be saued What can the deuill wishe his membres to teach more for the aduancement of his Kingdom then this What can be inuented to prouoke men to liue a careles and libertyne life more then if they be persuaded that neither well doing auaileth or pleaseth God nor euill doing doeth hinder vnto saluatioÌ„ this is asmuch as if one should counsell the pacient to refuse all healthfull Phisick and good diet and so wilfully to be the occasion of his own death for if they be say they of the elect sorte thogh they do commit theft fornicatioÌ„ adulterie murther or any other sinne yet be they still so beloued and fauored of God that they can not finally perish And if they be of the reprobate sorte say they neither repetance amendement of life absteining frome euill neither fasting praier Almes nor other good dede can auale for they be so hated of God before the world that by no meanes they can obtein his fauor but of mere necessitie do what they can they must perish seing it is so saieth the naturall maÌ„ let vs set the cock on hoope aÌ„d let the world slyde let vs eate and drinke for to morow shall we die so the people sit downe to eat and drink and then ryse vp to play why masters haue ye no conscience thus to cause the people of God to sinne se ye not how ye be led with the same
former election when Israel was yong I loued him and called my sonne owt of the land of Egypt forasmuch as Israel was the sonne of God and that also beloued insomuch that the lordled them with cordes of friendship and bondes of loue they must nedes be â—he elect of God yea because they prouoked the lord through their abominations they are cast away â–ª and the lord rewardeâ—h them according to their desertes ANSWER If I should labor to the end of this your most confused worke to reduce euerie scripture by you wrested and abused to the true meaning and vnderstanding of the holie Gost as hitherto I haue done in the most parte of them which ye haue alledged my trauale should be great aÌ„d the work should excede a iust measure Therefor seing that sufficiently by the plaine scriptures of God I haue confirmed the doctrin which we teach beleue and maintein aÌ„d by the same trueth of gods worde I haue confuted your error from hencefurth I inteÌ„d onely to toâ—che the proposition which ye maintein and by confuting the same briefly ether by scripture orels by exemple to shew in what sorte ye wrongfully apply the scâ—iptures to maintein your error offring yet to satisfie to my power such as charitably shall ask of me by word or writing further explanation of any scripture by you alledged by me at this tyme not fully resolued The chief propositioÌ„ which ye maiÌ„tein to y e end of this your book is that the elect may fall froÌ„ their election To the which I answer that if ye vnderstand that those whom God the father hath elected in his eternall counsel to lief euerlasting in Christ Iesus may so fall from their election that finally they perish if this I say be your vnderstanding then I feare not to affirme that proposition to be vtterlie fals erroneous and daÌ„nable as it that doeth expressedly repugne to gods plaine scriptures for Christ Iesus doeth affirme that so many as his father hath giuen to him shal come vnto him And to such as do come he promiseth life euerlasting which he hath in him self for the saluatioÌ„ of his flock whereof none shal perish for furth of his hands can none be pulled away But because this before is largely intreated I come shortly to the scriptures which ye abuse First ye proue that those which be elected be sanctified by the spirit and through beleuing of the trueth which we confesse to be most true Thereafter ye alledge that such as be sanctified may after dishonor the spirit of grace tredde doune the blood of the testament so drawe to damnation I answer the cause of your error is that ye make no difference betwext the sanctification and liuely faith which is proper onelie to the sonnes of God which once begonne is perpetuall and that sanctification and faith which is common to the reprobate and therefore it is but temporall If this distinctioÌ„ displeaseth you quarel with y e holie Gost and not with vs for of his plaine workes wordes euideÌ„t haue we receaued it for all Israel were sanctified to be y e kinglie priesthode all were circuÌ„cised yea did drink of y t spirituall drink and yet were they not all inwardly saÌ„ctified vnto saluatioÌ„ life euerlasting The hole tribe of Leuie were saÌ„ctified to y â— seruice of y e Lord in his tabernacle but how many of theÌ„ did stil remaine prophane persoÌ„s y â— scripture coÌ„cealeth not EueÌ„ so all y t great multitude whoÌ„ Christ fed in y e wildernes yea all those y t adhered for a time to his doctrine were after som maner sanctified that is seperated deuided froÌ„ y e rest of y e world But that sanctification was but temporall like as also was their faith we do not denie but that the reprobate haue som maner of faith aÌ„d som sort of sanctification for a time that is that they are compelled eueÌ„ by the impire of the Spirit of God to confesse and acknowledge that all thinges spokeÌ„ in gods sciptures are true And y t therefor their conscience in afeare and terror do seke som meanes to please God for the auoiding of his veÌ„geaÌ„ce For as this is nother the true faith iustifying neither yet the perfect sanctification of the Spirit of God which reneweth y e elect in the inwarde man so doth nether of both long coÌ„â—inue for they returning to their natural prophanation and darknes do leaue the waye of light and life and drawe them selues to death and damnation But hereof without the contumelie of the SoÌ„ne of God and without abnegation of his plaine veritie ye can not conclude that the elect membres of his bodie can be rest out of his hands that those for whom soleÌ„nely he hath prayed that they shoulde be sanctified in the veritie and that they should be one with him as he is one with his father may come to finall prophanation and so to perditioÌ„ we feare not to affirm that to be a thing no les impossible then that it is that Christ Iesus shall cease to be head of his Churche and the sauiour of his bodie In the wordes of the Apostle writeÌ„ in the second chapter to the Ephesians ye seme not to vnderstand his meaning where he saieth ye were soÌ„times without Christ â—for saye you we are sure that without Christ there is no election In which wordes thow that writest plaiest with the simple ignorant reader the vile sophister confounding by the inglishe word without that whiche in latine is moste euidently distincted Doth Paule say Eratis aliquando extra ChristuÌ„ or saieth he not Eratis sine Christo To make the mater sensible to you my deare brethren be you neuer so simple where he saieth without Christ there is no election that proposition is â—rue if it be vnderstand that man was neuer elected to lief euerlasting but in Christ Iesus onlie But if he will affirme that none are elected in Christ Iesus without Christ that is to say before that they come to the true and perfect knowledge of gods mercies in Christ that proposition is most fals and doth repugne as plainely ye may se to the mynde and wordes of the Apostle for he affirmeth that we were elected in Christ Iesus before the fundation of y e world was laid yea wheÌ„ we were dead by sinne ignorant of him strangers from the testament of his promes which S. Paule calleth to be without Christ without God in this world without the league of the testament And by these wordes doth the Apostle magnifie the superaboundaÌ„t mercies of God shewed to the world in Christ Iesus By the which he receaued not onely the Iewes who long had continued in league with God but also the Gentiles to the participation of his glorie albeit that from the daies of AbrahaÌ„ they had liued as dispised reiected of God Let the reader now iudge how strongly ye conclude To the place of the Aâ—postle touching the
illumination of such as after vtterly fall back I haue before answered ye vniustly accuse vs y t we seke shiftes and narrow bores to the end y t we shall not be subiect to the trueth For this is our plaine confession which we simply and boldly do affirme that this is a stable and immutable foundation the Lord knoweth his own that no creature is able to seperat his elect frome his loue which in Christ Iesus he beareth to them Where boldly ye affirme vs to be of a peruers and reprobat mynd if we deny them to be elect who haue receaued from God such graces as man in this life can receaue no greater It may seme that because ye delyte to speak what ye please ye take libertie to lay to our charge what soeuer semeth good to you I trust ye be neuer able to proue that any of vs hath affirmed that he who had receaued of the fre gift of God a true vnfeined and liuelie faith is not the elect of God and that faith we knowe do gods children which cum to aige and discretion receaue in this life as Peter did against the which did Christ pronounce that the gates and portes of hell should not preuaile But it appereth to me that your doubt is ether to witt whether God bestoweth his great and riche talentes vpon the reprobate for if so he should do ye asffirme y t he bestoweth them in vaine meaning to receaue no frute of them That God bestoweth great talentes vpon the verie reprobate the scriptures manifestly do witnes to speake nothing of lief reason corporall health richesse and honors which the reprobate in greatest abundance do possesse doth not Christ witnes that many shall cry Lord in thy name we haue prophecied we haue cast owt deuils and in thy name haue we done many wonderous workes And yet shall Christ answer I neuer knew you Doth not Paule affirme that albeit he knew all mysteries had all prophecie and knowledge and all faith suche he meaneth as by the which miracles are wroght yet without he had charitie he were nothing But yet I pray you do prophecie knowledge the gift of toÌ„gues and of miracles cease to be the good and riche taleÌ„tes of God ye crie yet are they bestowed without hope of frute to be receaued in vaine if they be bestowed vpon the reprobate That of you is boldly and most blasphemously affirmed for God knoweth the frute which his Churche shall receaue not onely of those spiritual talentes how wicked that euer they be to whose dispensation they are committed but also of the corporall and temporall benefit yea of very tyranny doth his wisedom and goodnes cause a frute and commoditie com and spring out to his Churche By the tyranny of Nabuchadnezer he punished the proude contemners and tried and partly purged his children who before were slothfull and negligent by that great conquest and victorie whiche he gaue to Cyrus he procured the dedeliueraÌ„ce of his people from bondage By the great abundaÌ„ce of victuales giuen in the daies of Pharao were Iacob and his children susteined And think you that with out frute and all togither in vaine were these and the like benefites bestowed althogh that the most part of these were idolatrers cruel murtherers and reprobate to whose custodie these taleÌ„tes were coÌ„mitted ye are to bolde thus to controle God for his wisdome will not in all thinges be subiect to your foolishnes The diuersitie of creatures here beneth in earth may teach you more sobrietie How many cratures I pray you appere to our iudgement to be supernuouse and vainely created not onelie because they profitt not man but becaus they are vnprofitable to them selues but shall we therfore accuse gods wisdom by whom they are creâ—ted God forbidde for besides the omnipotencie of his power and wisdom manifested in their creation he alone knoweth their vse profitt and commoditie which euery creature receaue of an other how dull so euer our senses be And the same oght you to considre in all talentes and giftes committed to mâ—Ì„ how wicked so euer they be to whom they are committed for not onely therin is gods goodnes to be praised w c exteÌ„deth y e self in some cases eueÌ„ to his enemies but also som profitt doth euer arise to his Church by his graces how so euer they be abused by the reprobat The pregnaÌ„t witt and subtill ingin of Iulian the apostatate serued the Churche in stede of aspurre in his tyme and caused the godlie learned more diligently to searche the scriptures of God then before they had done And the same doth your peruerse iniquite this day towarde vs Where ye say that it is fals thâ—â— God did intend to bestâ—w his taleÌ„â—es in vâ—ine â–ª for asmuch as the holie Gâ—st willeth and exhortâ—th vs not tâ— receaue the grace of God in vaine yet not withstaÌ„ding God willeth not vs to recâ—aue his grace in vaine we may abusing his grace â–ª receaue it in vaine other wies in vaine did Paule exhâ—rte vs nâ—t tâ— receaue his graece in vaine These be yo r wordes this is your reason w c I leaue to be iudged vpoÌ„ by y â— godlie reader for we do not say that God bestoweh his giftes in vaine albeit the reprobate be participant thereof but it is you y t affirm that in vaine and without frute they are bestowed except that all be elect to life euerlasting y t receaue them â–ª which doctrine is so strange to vs that we doubt not to affirme with the hasard of our liues that by gods scriptures it can not be mainteined The wordes of the Apostle in the place by you alledged nether affirmeth what man may do nether yet what he may not do but he declareth how diligently carefully not onely by preaching but also by exhortation and praier he trauailed that his labors myght be frutefull amongest them and so that they should not receaue y e grace of God in vain But admitting that he had said I commande you not to receaue the grace of God in vaine could ye thereof conclude any more then ye may do of these wordes be you holie for I am holie saieth the lord There is a precept geuen but in whom standeth power to perfourme the same If it stand not in man say you in vain is the precept giuen how you be able to proue that I remitt to your better aduisemeÌ„t To me is nothing vaine that God speaketh or commandeth for I am assured y t ether by gods will reueled are the elect instructed how they oght to walke or els are the reprobate in their consciences coÌ„uict that knowing gods holie will obstinatly they rebell against the same and so are they witnesses to their own iust damnation The place of Peter doth manifestly fight against you for how soeuer the dogge hath vomited the corruption of his stinking stomocke and how so euer the sow hath appered to haue bene
to bring better testimonie for my affirmations then ye haue broght against vs. But that I omit to better opportunitie willing you in the mean ceason to remeÌ„bre that he which speaketh alwaie what he listeth is compelled some tymes to heare that which he wolde not At one worde to answer to your sclanderours and malicious accusations we appele from your sentence vnto him whose trueth we maintein not that we feare but that with your confusion we coulde reiect your vennom in your own stomockes againe but that we are determined not to coÌ„teÌ„d with you in dispitesull railing and vniust accusations which is your purpose in this hole book in w c ye thus procede THE ADVERSARIE Often times ye vse this saying Gods election was afore the fundaÌ„cion of the worlde without any condicion wherefore they which are elect they be elect without any condicion by the immutable decree of Gods goodnes so that they can neuer fall out of the said election other wise gods election were not certeyne to the which I answer that Gods hâ—lie election is without any condicion sure and certeâ—ne in Christ Iesu without whome there is neâ—her election nor saluacion further man is made sure in the election by the promes of God in Christ Iesu of which promes when he is made partakâ—r he entereth in couenant with God but when he breaketh the couenant he for sakeâ—h â—he promes when he â—orsaketh the promes he refuseth Christ in refusing Christ he falleâ—h out of the â—lection not withstanding the election abideth sure in Christ election haâ—h no promes without faith true faith is gods worke by his grace and is also partly mans work by consenting thereto wherfor Paul calleth the righteous ioint workers with God because they worke together with him now if man for his parte according to his nature be inconstant in his saith then is he out of promes wherby he was made sure of his election yet gods election remaineth sure and stable in Christ Iesu Adam and all men in him before the transgression might fall from God by sinne not withstanding the election why may not theÌ„ the most righteouse of vs all fall now by sinne from the election is our election surer now after transgression then it was afore transgression The holy Gost saieth yet Cain went away in his wrath from wisdom but a man can not go awaye from that which he nether hathe nore can haue further God gaue him warning afore whiche was sufficieÌ„t to withdrawe him froÌ„ his euill inteÌ„tion To Cain said the Lord. why art thow wrothe â–ª why is thy countenaÌ„ce abated If thow do well shall there not be a promotion And if thou doest not well lyeth not thy sinne in the dores vnto thee also perteineth the lust thereof and thow shalt haue dominion ouer it If Cain was a reprobate afore the fundacion of the world then had he no dominion ouer his lustes to choose the good leaue the bad for then might he haâ—e liued yet God saieth Thow shalt haue dominion ouer it wherfore it is plaine that Cain was no reprobate when the lord spake these wordes to him further if god gaue not Cain dominioÌ„ and power to subdue his lust who was then the author of his sinne â–ª whether is the sworde whiche killethe hauing no power ouer it self more to be blamed or he whiche hath it in his hand if God gaue not Cain power to ouercome his lust and grace wherby he might be saued who is the cause of his damnation God is faithful saieth Paul which shall not suffer you to be tempted aboue your strength but shall in the middest of temptation make away that ye may be able to beare likwiese did God with Cain in his temptatioÌ„ warning that if he did well he shoulde be rewarded if he did euill he should be punished for there â—ncoraging to do well and that he should not saint God shewed him how he should haue dominion ouer his lust to rule it This notwithstanding he went away in wrathe from wisdom and forseke the counsell of God whiche mercifully called him to liâ—f After the stoode Ham was blessed of God as his father Noah and his brethren Sem and Iaphet and with the same blessing where with they were blessed yet fell he from righteousnes reioysing in euill And then â—o became he accursed and not afore but all reprobates be vnder the wraâ—h and curse of God So Ham when he was blessed of God he was not reprobate for then should he haue bene both blessed and cursed â–ª loued and hated all at once The Israelites which were deliuered from the oppression of the Egyptians were chosen and called of God to go and possessâ— the land of Canaan Vnder the conduct of Moâ—ses yet nether Moses for his offence nether any of them because of their inobedience obtâ—ined that whereunto they were ordeined and chosen of God exâ—ept two persons Iosua and Caleb Morouer the same Israelites were in gods holie election and called of God from their sinnes and chosen in Christ to lief and health as Paule witnesseth saing oure fathers were all vnder the cloode and all passed throughe the sea and were all baptised vnder Moises in the cloode and in the sea and did all eat of one spirituall meat and did all drink of one maner of spirituall drink and they drank of that spirituall Rocke that follwed them which Rock was Christ behold how Paule so often rehearsed this word all to declare their choosing and calling to be generall yet there after saieth he in many of them had God no delite for by sinne they fell from Christe and out of their election and so perished And there doth also Paule teach vs how those thinges chanced them for examples to put vs in remembrance that we do not likwise by sinne fall from that wherunto we are chosen and called of God Let him therefor which thinketh he standeth take head lest he fall But you say that he which standeth may well stomble but he can not fall wherfor your doctryne being contrarie to the sayng of the holie Gost must be fals as for them which ye say were reprobates before the world in Vaine should they take hede of any fall seing afore they were they had so sore a falle that they could neuer ryse againe and so depe a fall euen to damnation that they can fall no further Balaam was filled with the spirit of God the spirit of trâ—uth the spirit of power and the sprit of grace so largely that whom so euer he blessed he was blessed and whom so euer he curssed he was cursed but the blessing of the vngodly reprobate is verie cursing so that whom so euer they curse God blesseth and who so euer they blesse God curseth wherfor Balaam during the tyme that he him self was so blessed of God he was no reprobate but the chosen of God and might haue continued in the grace and fauor of God And thereto was
not haue sinne but now haue they nothing to cloke their sinne for they haue sene and hated not onelie me but also my father No man wil be so fond as to affirme that the Iewes before Christs preaching and miracles were cleane without sinne but the coÌ„tempt of grace did so augment and increase their sinne that it became inexcusable euen so say I that Pharao did harden his owne heart frome time to time becomming more vnthankfull vnto God and more cruell to his people And y e fouÌ„teine of this induration and hardnes I confesse to haue bene borne with him and that to raige against gods people he neded no impulsion of gods parte but rather a brydle to impede his fury But yet the question is not resolued as before I haue noted for still we ask why was not that fountein shutte vp why was not the naturall venim purged and his heart mollified searche where you list ye shall fynd none other reason nor cause for the which the subsequent induration of Pharao did principallie procede but y t God in his eternall counsell for causes knowen to his wisedom alone had most iustly denyed to communicate his graces effectually with him but had raysed him vp to haue his power shewed forth in him And so God did hardeÌ„ Pharaos hearte not by permission onely but willingly withdrew his Spirit froÌ„ him as before is said Wonder it is that amongest the ancient doctors ye will seke patrocinie or defense in this mater seing it is a statute amoÌ„gest you that ye will beleue nor admit the wordes nor authoritie of no writer in any mater of con trouersie but all things you will haue decided by the plaine scripture And truly I am not contrary to your mynd in that case so that you vnderstand that ye will not admitt the authoritie of man against gods plaine trueth nether yet that you will beleue maÌ„ any furtherthen that he prouethe his sentence by gods euideÌ„t scriptures If you had produced any doctor who had confirmed his interpretation by the plaine worde of God of reason I oght to haue answered ether by the same or by some other doctor of equall authoritie orels to haue improued his interpretatioÌ„ by the plaine scriptures but seing that ye produce none ye leaue me at greater libertie and yet I will shewe you the mynd of one doctor coÌ„parable to any that euer wrote before him ether in the latin or in the greke Churche I meane of Augustine who writing against Iulian the appostate and against Manacheus who did affirme the self same thing that you do to witte that God was a passiue God that is he did suffer all euill and that against his will but he did work none Against him I say he thus writeth wilt thou say saieth Augustine to Iulian that the wicked that be giuen ouer to their owne desires are to be vnderstand onely left by gods suffering but not compelled to sinnes by power as thogh that the Apostle had not ioyned the suffering and power of God to gether where that he saieth if God willing to shewe wrath and to declare his power fuffered in great patience the vesselles of wrath prepared to destruction w t of these two saiest thou is written And also if the prophet do erre and shall speak I the lord haue deceaued him is this suffering or is it power And after adducing the same w c we before haue alledged of Achas he addeth did God these things ignorantly or doth he any thing iudgeing or doing rashly or vniustly God forbid it is not without cause that it is said Thy iudgemeÌ„tes are a great deapth it is not vaine that the Apostle crieth out Oh the hieght aâ—d depenes of gods iudgementes And after in the same place expounding these wordes lead vs not into temptation after that he hath affirmed that God giueth ouer some for iust causes to their owne lustes and blyndnes as he gaue ouer Roboam to beleue the fals and foolishe counsell of the young men he saith all these things doth God worke by wonderous and vnspeakable meanes who knoweth howe to worke his iust iudgementes not onelie in the bodies but also in the heartes of men he who maketh not the willes euill but yet he vseth them as he will seing that he can will nothing vniustly Thus far haue I alleged vnto you the mâ—nd of one doctor in this our controuersie â–ª when â—e shall bring forth the mynd of any so well grounded vpon scriptures as he dothe this his sentence â–ª I promyse to answer if I can I am not ignorant that diuers of the doctors yea and Augustine him self in some places may seme to fauor your opinion at the first sight But if their wordes in one place be compared with their plaine mynd and with the scope of their disputation in other places it shall plainely appere that none that liue this day do more plainely speak against your error then some of them haue written The places of Iob manifestly and in plaine wordes fight against you for it is said in the one place thou hast excluded their heart from wisedome and therfore this mater shall not be to their praise and in the other God hath taken wisdom from the Estrich and hath not giuen vnderstanding vnto her dare you affirme that in these wordes there is nothing but a bare permission of gods parte is there no difference betwext away taking and suffering to be taken away if any difference be betwext these two maner of speakings God giueth wisdome and God taketh away wisdome then is your interpretation foolishe and absurd nether yet is there any phrase of scripture vnderstand it as you please that can make God to call back that sentence which he hath pronounced to witt that he hath raysed vp Pharao to be an example to all generations folowing what shall be the ende of those that obstinatly resist God Who albeit he tempt no man to sinne by the power of his spirit yet as before I haue proued he iustly giueth them ouer to the inordinat lustes of their own corruption yea he giueth them ouer into the hands power of sathan to be pricked and stirred forward to all iniquitie that their damnation may be iust and also that his vengeaÌ„ce iustly deserued may the more sodenly falle vpon them The mynd of saint Iames is onely to bring men to the right examination and triall of them selues lest that by flattery they beginne to seke y e originall cause of their sinne in an other then in them selues And yet doth that nothing impede but that God in his maner which alwayes is iust doth hardeÌ„ the heartes of those whome before he had reprobated We confesse that no greater plague can chance vnto man â–ª then that he be left to his own lewde mynd â–ª for theÌ„ of him can procede no good nor permanent frute But as the earth lacking rayne dewe and moisture must nedes be barren and so
nomber Israell I answer as the one place repugneth nothing to the other so doeth it not explaine the other in such seÌ„se as ye adduce for it repugneth not to say that God man aÌ„d the deuil work in one fact actioÌ„ as in the histories of Iob Achab Semei and Pharao is manifest God for iust causes giueth his commandement and power to sathan as to his instrumeÌ„t be he neuer so wicked to do what in his eternal cousel was before decreed Sathan of a wicked and rebellious mynd chooseth such instrumentes and vseth such meanes as God likwies hath appointed Men in al wicked actions of their fre and voluntarie motion do folow their corrupt and wicked affections in declaring their pride vanitie malice or crueltie which wicked affections in so farre as they are wicked we confesse that God will not for he can will no iniquitie but yet that his eternal almightie power shall be iudged so ydle that it doeth nothing in such actions but onely suffer we can not admitte for such reasons as we haue before alledged wher that we did examine the differeÌ„ce betwext gods wil and his permission You retein your old nature and iustly I might say the nature of the deuill most maliciously affirming vs to say that what so euer God permitteth he willeth it absoluteâ—â— and so that absolutely he willeth all wickdâ—â—ces Which saying as ye be neuer able to proue vpon vs so do we coÌ„fesse it not onely erroneous but also so blasphemous that who so euer dare pronounce or affirme the same deserueth death for we most constantly in word and writing affirme absolutley God willeth no iniquitie for all his workes in so far as they procede frome his wisedom aÌ„d infinite goodnes are holie and iust and therfor do we make God author of no sinne which onely procedeth frome the fountaines that be corrupted that is from the deuil and frome man as in diuers places most euidently we haue declared Because I do perceaue that greatly ye delyte in your prignaÌ„t wittes I will not say foolish vanitie I will recicite your hole wordes by the which ye wold seme to proue contrarietie in God except that we wold grante a difference betwext gods will and his permission I say saieth the author of your book to vs that ye are the Prophetes if the deuill which teach such filâ—hie doctrine and ye say be the Prophetes of God Now of necessitie one of vs lieth for if ye be the Propheâ—es of God I lie And if ye be the Prophetes of the deuil ye lie And if God will vs to say the trueth he will not that we lie for then he should will two contraries which is impossible yet one of vs lie which must be by permission and suffering of God and not by his will whereof it foloweâ—h that there is difference betwext the suffering and the will of God It appereth that in this description of persons in which ye oppose your selues to vs ye wold more declare what is your iudgement and opinion of vs and what ye wold that we should be estemed of others then that ye greatly do trauale to proue any contrarietie in gods wil by the same for his eternall wisedom seeth the meanes how that his commandement and his will are not contrarious the one to the other albeit that he command one thing and yet for iust causes will wicked men to do the contrary which kinde of coÌ„trarietie and repugnance doeth so blind your eyes that you can not se how God caÌ„ coÌ„mand all men to speak trueth and yet for iust causes before sene and determined in his counsell that he wil y e deuil aÌ„d his slaues to delite in lies Albeit I say that the apperance of this contrarietie blinde you yet will not gods trueth cease of be trueth neither will the libertie of his eternall Godhead be broght into bondage to your corrupt iudgement His commandement and his will do nether debate nether fight betwext them selues but do agree in all thinges euen as do his mercie his iustice his wisedom and his power albeit oftener it is that his iustice doth punish such as vpon whom he hath determined to haue mercie Euen so he commandeth men to obeye his commandementes whom he not onely foresaw to be disobedieÌ„t but for most iust causes willeth his glory to appere euen in their vnrighteousnes lies And this he doth without all contrarietie in his godly will to the full knowledge wherof albeit ye can not atteine yet more profitable it were for you to be ignorant of such thinges as God reserueth to be reueled in the time appointed in his eternall counsell then thus without all reuerence and feare to trouble your foolish braines in deuising such absurdities as may seme to oppugne gods eternall veritie which in the ende wâ—l triumphe to your destruction â–ª shame and confusion if obstinatly you procede as you haue begonne For albeit that he loueth trueth and hateth lies and albeit that he commandeth man to speak the trueth and forbiddeth man to beare fals witnes yet feareth he not to giue a commandement to that wicked spirite to go forth to be a lieng spiritte in the mouthes of all Achabes fals prophetes Yea forther he gaue him power to worke that in the fals prophetes which he forbiddeth all men to do For he commandeth that no man shall deceaue an other and yet giueth he power to the deuill to be a lieng spiritte in the mouthes of the fals prophetes and to them he giueth power to deceaue Achab. If ye list to lay contraritie to the charge of God prepare your winges and with Nabuchadnezer of Babylon saye we will passe vp to the heauens and shall establish our seates aboue the sterres of God we shall passe vp vpoÌ„ the hight of the clowdes and we shall be like to the most highest yea if thus ye will call his secrete counsels to examination and triall ye must be iudges and superiors to him Thus iustly I might illude aÌ„d skoffe y o r reasoÌ„s as vanities most vnworthie to be answered But yet hauiÌ„g respecte to the simple I wil gather your argument and forme it as strongly as your selues can and I will answere so much of the same as ye think nable to be answered your argument is this God can not will two contraries but to speake the 〈◊〉 aÌ„d to lie are contraries Therfor he can not will them both But he permitteth men to lie and willeth them to speake the trueth There is therfor a difference betwene the will and the permission God can not will two coÌ„traries True it is in him selfe in one respecte and for one purpose he who is author of coÌ„cord can not will contrarietie but in consideration of his creatures for diuers respectes and sundrie purposes thiÌ„ges be not coÌ„traries the one to y e other which to our iudgementes haue apperance of contrarietie If you be so wel sene in your artes as some of
strāge worke that he may do his owne worke that is he trieth ād purgeth by fyre our faith frō all drosse and corruption of earthlie affections But in none of all these is there any contrarietie neither in God neither in his will neither in his counsell for all thinges be disposed in such ordre such consent and so conueniently that his glorie and the perpetual cōfort of his electe doth finally and assuredly folowe And euē so it is in the apperant contrarietie betwene you and vs God no doubt will the one of vs to affirme lies to raile to blaspheme ād most vniustly to accuse y e other he will y e other to susteine y e cause of the trueth paciētly to beare opprobrious wordes and sclāderous reportes referrīg iudgement vnto him who righteously and in equitie shall iudge Is there therefor any cōtrarietie in gods wil none at al. For the diuers respectes and endes being considered the same consent shall now be found in this apperant contrarietie which hath remained frō the encrease of gods Church For in all ages hath God willed his true Prophetes with all boldnes and cōstancie to susteine the cause of his simple veritie how odious that euer it was vnto the world And in their cōtrarie he hath raised fals prophetes to whom he hath giuen the efficacie of errors for contrarie purposes I grant to witt that his people may be tried his faithfull seruantes exercised and humbled and finally that such as delyte not in veritie may be giuen ouer to beleue lies Go to now and proue contrarieties In the wordes of Zacharie you shew your ignorāce in collecting the minde of Oded you plainely declare your accustomed falshode in farther stretching the minde of the Prophete thē his wordes will beare Which thing I will first shew by reciting the plaine wordes and so returne to the Prophete Zacharie There was in Samaria a Prophet of the Lordes saith the historie whose name was Oded and he went oute before the hoste that came to Samaria and said vnto them Behold becaus the Lorde God of your fathers is wroth with Iuda he hath deliuered them into your hādes and ye haue slaine thē in a rage that reacheth vp to heauen And now ye purpose to kepe vnder the children of Iudah and Ierusalem as seruants and had maides vnto you But are not you such that sinnes are w t you before y e Lord your God These be his wordes in that mater by the which if you be able to proue that the Israelites did more then God in his eternall counsell had appointed y t they should do against Iuda and Ierusalam we will patiently heare your probatiō and reasons If you say the Prophete reproued them of their crueltie therfor they did more then God wold y ◠doth not folow for the iust will of God must not be measured by the crueltie of their facte but by his owne word which doeth affirme that God gaue ouer Iudah into the handes of the king of Syria into the handes of the king of Israell who did strike them with a great slaughter and that for the sinnes and abominable idolatrie which they Achas their king had committed We heare and see affirmed by the holy Gost that God gaue them ouer into the handes of their ennemies which thing he did willingly and not by permission as you writte Now to the place of Zachariah in which I say you shew grosse and wicked ignorance For if your interpretation shoulde be receaued thē of necessitie it should folow y t in God their lacked power to impede ād staye the furie of those cruell mē who in their victorie did so insolētly rage For if God wold onely haue had y e Iewes gently corrected not to haue bene so seuerely and rigorously destroyed and yet y t against al maner sorte of his wil they were so cruelly entreated it can not be denied but y t the crueltie and rage of the Babyloniās was greater then God coulde impede or staye how blasphemous and fals this is the godlie doeth vnderstād O say you but so do the wordes of the text soūd for they say I am greatly angrie against the careles heathē For I was but a litle angrie against Sion but they haue helped forwarde the afflictiō I answer y t if ye were not more malicious then ignorant ye might easily perceaue y t those wordes were spokē not to proue y t any thing was dōne against Israel and Iudah w c God had not appoīted ād commanded but to instruct the Prophete y t the will and cousell of God in punishing of his people was farre other then was the wil connsell of those y t did destroy them and y t their lōg bondage should haue an other end then either they thē selues or their ennemies did vnderstād That nothīg was dōne against y t people w c the Lord had not appointed yea and commanded the same Prophete doeth affirme saying my wordes my statutes he meaneth the threatnings punishmentes w c I haue cōmanded my seruātes the Prophetes haue they not apprehended y o r fathers in so much that they haue cōuerted and said Euen as the Lord of Hostes hath determined appointed to do vnto vs accordīg to o r wayes and accordig to o r imaginatiōs so hath he donne to vs. Except y t you will belie the holy Gost you must cōfesse y t God had cōmāded God had appointed determined so to punish his people Yea Amos the Prophete feareth not to say Shall there be euill in a citie that is any punishment or plague ād the Lord hath not dōne it Why is he thē offended say you against the proud and carelesse heathē I answer Because they neither had respect to gods will counsell nor cōmandement but to their own priuat cōmoditie ād to the satisfying of their cruel appetites For they did not destroye Ierusalē willing or minding to punish the offēses of the people cōmitted agaīst God Neither yet did they carie thē to Babylon of purpose y t God might be glorified in their deliuerāce No they had determined the plaine contrary To wit y t Ierusalē should remaine desolate for euer That Iudah should be y ◠inheritance of strange nations ād so should gods promise be fals ād vaine And in very dede the Iewes them selues in the extremitie of their trouble yea and when the tēple begā to be reedified were not free from these tēptatios and therfore doeth God assure his Prophetes y t his loue was great towares Siō That he wold destroy that natiō w c intended their destruction that he wold deliuer his people that the warfare of Ierusalē was at an end y t her iniquitie was remitted that she had receiued double punishment for all her sinnes from the hand of the Lord and y t therfore he wold take the dolourous cuppe of anguish ād sorow out of her hād and wold giue it into the handes of
doth the Euangelist attribute to the Prophet not onely that he declared their blindnes but that God by him did in verydede iustly blind their eyes and harden their heartes But this shall more plainly appere in examining the reasons and scriptures which ye alledge for proofe of your interpretation First say you their heartes â—ere alredy hardened which their wickednes did plainely declare yet hath he commanded the Prophet to do his office not to make their heartes hard for that belâ—ngeth onely to God who giuing them ouer to their heartes lustes he alredy hardened them And so ye conclude that the Prophet did onely declare vnto them the hardenes of their heartes We do not deny but that their heartes were hardened before and that iustly for their iniquities sake they were giuen ouer to their heartes lustes But whether they were so hardened before the preaching of the Prophet that after they could be not harder I greately doubte Yea I nothing doubte to affirme but that euen as the claye by the heate of the Sunne becometh more hard and more hard or as the branch cutte of the natural stock doth more more wither vntill that no kinde of sappe nor moisture doth remaine euen so I say do the reprobate from time to time become more obstinate more blinde more hard and more cruell and that by the word w c doth plainely rebuke their iniquitie and euidenly declare whose children their are ExaÌ„ples in scripture hereof are manifest Some lenitie and geÌ„tlenes appered in Pharao toward the people of Israel before that Moses at gods commandement required their libertie But that will and word of God commanding him to let his people go and serue God in the wildernes did so quicklye worke in the heart of that reprobate that the greater hardnes of his heart was sodenlye felt by the Israelites to their greate grief and grudging disconfort In the people of Israel in their elders Priestes and counsell appered some face of iustice when Stephan was accused before that he pronounced these wordes ye stiffenecked and vncircumcised in heart and eares you haue euer resisted the holy Gost eueÌ„ as your fathers haue resisted so do you whom of the Prophetes haue not your fathers persecuted and they haue slayn them whiche shewed before of the coÌ„ming of y t iust whom ye haue now betraied murthered Before this sentence I say there appered some face of iustice but what ensued the holy Gost doth witnes saying wheÌ„ they heard these thinges their heartes brast for anger and they gnashed at him with their tethe And after also that he gaue a more plaine confession of Christe Iesus of his exaltation glory power and Maiestie they cried out w t a great voyce they stopped their eares they as wolues enraged russhed vpon him w t one consent and so without all ordre of iustice did stone him to death If ye coÌ„fesse not y t the word of God proceding froÌ„ the mouth of Stephen did not more harden them who no doubte were hardened before you deny a trueth that is more then euideÌ„t Diuers places more I might adduce for the same purpose but hauing respect to breuitie I stand content with thâ—se two which I doubte nothing are sufficient to proue that men that be alredy hardened yet by the comming of the plaine word which rebuketh their iniquitie they become more hard As the owle being blind euen when she appereth to see best in the night season but yet in y e day time she is more blinded bacause that the weaknes of her eyes can not abide the bright beames of the sunne And eueÌ„ so it is w t the reprobate they are alwaies blind and hard heared but wheÌ„ the light of God doth most plainely shine before theÌ„ or when they are called froÌ„ iniquititie to vertue then becometh the word of glad tidinges to theÌ„ a verie sauor of death by the w c they are both more blinded and more hardened And so in your first reason we dissent froÌ„ you in y t that you seme to affirme that because y e reprobate are once hardened therefore they caÌ„ be no more hardened Your second reason is that because it beloÌ„geth to God onely to make hard their heartes thâ—t therefor there resteth nothing to the Prophetes but to shew vnto them the hardnes of their hartes I am glad that once ye will coÌ„fesse y t it is nothing repugning to gods good nature for iust causes to harden the heart and to make blind y e eyes of the reprobate But y t therfore nothing resteth to y e Prophetes or Apostles but onely to declare vnto meÌ„ their hardnes I caÌ„ not admitte For we do find y t God doth so coÌ„municate his power w t his true messingers and embassadours that what soeuer they lowse in earth he doth lowse in y e heaueÌ„ what soeuer they bynd in earth he bindeth in heaueÌ„ whose sinnes they remitte they are remitted whose sinnes they reteine they are reteined The Lord him selfe saith vnto Ieremie Behold I haue put my wordes in thy mouth and I haue ordeined thee aboue nations and kindomes that thou maiest roote out destroy scatter and that y u maist also build vp and plant And vnto Paul it was said And now I shall deliuer the from the natioÌ„s to y e which I send thee that thou maist open the eyes of those that be blind that they may conuert from darknes vnto light and from the power of fathan vnto God These wordes do witnes that the effectuall power of God doth work with the word which he putteth in the mouthes of his true messingers in so much that ether it doth edifie lighten or mollifie to saluation or els it doth destroy darken and hardeÌ„ For the word of God is of y e nature of Christe Iesus he is not onely come to illuminate and to raise vp but also to make blind and to beate downe as he him selfe doth witnes saying I am come to iudgement into this world y t those that see not shall see that those that see shal be blind And Simeon saith Behold this is he y t is put in resurrection in ruine of many in Israel In so much that vpon whoÌ„ that stone of offense falleth it shall burste him to powder And therefore we can not admitte that the ministerie of his blessed word preached or published by his faithfull messingers be nothing els but a simple declaration what men be No we know that it is the power of God to saluatioÌ„ of all those y â— beleue that the message of reconciliation is put in their mouthes that the word w c they preach hath such efficacie strength that it deuideth asunder y â— ioyntes sinewes y e bones froÌ„ the marye that y e weapons of their warrefare are not carnall but are power in God to the beating downe of all stroÌ„g holdes by the which the true messingers beat down all counselles
God whom we do reuerence in whom we trust and most stedfastly beleue whose Sonne Christ Iesus we preach to be the onely sauiour of his Church and whose eternall veritie we mainteine not onely against Iewe Turke and Papist but also against you enraged anabaptistes who can admitte in God no iustice which is not subiect to the reach of your reason Darest thou and thy conspiracie stand vp and accuse God of crueltie because that in these his workes thou canst not deny but that mo were punished then were preserued mo were left in darknes then were called to the true light Shall not his mercie excede all his workes except that he saue the Deuill aÌ„d those that iustely be reprobated as he is Stoupe Sathan vnder the empire of our Soueraigne God whose will is so free that nothing is able to constreigne or binde it For that is onely libertie that is not subiect to mutabilitie to the inconstancie or appetites of others as most blasphemously you wold imagin God to be in his election and most iust reprobation by the which in despite of SathaÌ„ of thee his slaue and sonne and of all thy sect he will declare his glorie as well in punishing with tormentes for euer such blasphemers as you be as in shewing the riches of his glorie to the members of his deare Sonne who onely depend vpon Christe Iesus and vpon his iustice To purge my God from that iniustice or from those absurdities which thou woldest impute vpon his eternall maiestie I will â—ot labor lest that ether I should seme to doubte of our owne cause ether yet to be sollicite for the defense of our eternall God And therfor seing that ye declare your selues not men ignorant willing to Iearne but deuilles enraged against God against his eternall and infinite iustice as I began so do I finish The Lord confound thee Sathan The Lord confound you enraged dogges which so impudently dare barcke against the most iust iudgementes of God And thus leauing you to the handes of him who sodanely shall reuenge his iustice from your blasphemies For the cause of the Simple I say First that most maliciously ye accuse vs as that we should affirme God to be slow to mercy and readie to wrath which blasphemy we protest before God before his holy Angelles in heauen and before his Church here in earth did neuer enter into our heart For the contrarie thereof we daily see and perceaue not onely in our selues to whom most mercifully he remitteth the multitude of our sinnes but also in the most cruell ennemies of his Church We do not define what nombre God hath elected to life nether yet what nombre presently God hath reprobated Onely we stand content with that which the holy Gost hath reueled openly to witte that their be both elect and reprobate That the elect can not finally perish nether yet that the reprobate can euer be saued we constantly affirme But we adde the causes to wit that because the one sort is giuen to Christ Iesus by y e free gift of God his father before all times therfor in time they come vnto hiÌ„ by power of whose spirit they are regenerate their darkenes is expelled and from vertue they procede to vertue till finally they attein to the glory promised As y e other sorte is left in their own corruption so can they do nothiâ—g but obey their father y e deuil in whose boÌ„dage they iustely are left And so where ye burden vs that we say let the reprobate do what they can yet they must be daÌ„ned ye do most shamefully belie vs. For we saye and teach that who so euer declineth from euill and constantly to the end doth good shall most certenly be saued But our doctrine is thiâ— that because the reprobate haue not the spirite of regeneration therfor they can not do those workes that be acceptable before God How God is almightie and omnipoteÌ„t we haue before confessed to witt that as he in his eternall wisedom foreseeth and appointeth all thinges so doth his power put all thinges in execution how and when it best pleaseth him Neither can his wisedom will nor counsels be subiect to any mutabilitie vnstablenes or chaÌ„ge For if it so were then his godly wil and counsels did not depend vpon him self but vpon his creatures which is more then absurd Nether to Pharao neither to Semei neither yet to any other reprobate did or doth God giue either wicked commandement or euill thoght But those wicked thoghtes and euill motions which be in them of their euill nature and are stirred vp by the instigation of the deuill as he doeth not purge them so doth his wisedom vse them well to his owne glorie to the exercise of his children and to the comfort of his Church In so much that the verie tyranny of Pharao the cursing of Semei and the incest of Absalom in so farre as they were gods workes they were iust and holy because they were iust punishmentes of their sinnes an exercise for his children and some part also of his fatherly correction for their offenses To the rest of your vanitie I will not answere not because I feare your sophisticall subtilitie but because I will not except that yet I be further prouoked nether by tongue nether yet by penne once name or expresse your horrible blasphe mies Which manifestly do witnes and declare that you as dogges enraged without all reuerence do barke against God because his workes do surmount your capacitie The Lord speadely call you to repeÌ„tance or els so bridle your venemous tongues that they be not able further to infect Now to the rest THE ADVERSARIE The properties of the true God God his mercie exceadeth all his workes he hath made man like to hâ—â— own image in Christe Iesus in whom is no damâ—ation he is slâ—we vnto wrathe and readie to foregiue he wil be intreated of all so that â—e biddeth all men euerie where to repâ—nt and â—ffereth faith to all men he is omnipotent and may do and leaue vndone what so euer shal be his good pleasure â—ether is it his pleasure wil tâ—at eiher Pharaâ— Semei or any other do sinne and come to destruction for he willeth the deathe of no creature but willeth all men to be saued and to come to the knowledge of the trueth he hath but one will which is euer onely good reueled in his word to them that feare him and kepe his commandementes nether hath he any secret will contray to this but will performe what so euer goeth outâ— of his mouthâ— he tempteâ—th no man to sinne he is the fuâ—her of ligâ—t and cometh to destroye the workes of the careles libertynes God for be abhorreth all wickednes aÌ„d al wicked dâ—â—â—s ANSWERE In this description of your God whom you do terme the true God I do woÌ„der of three thinges First that in this your description ye dissent from your greate angel Castalio Secondely how
you wold affirme y t gods good wil pleasure may change and y t is to deny his Godhead But I will burden you no further then ye shall plainely confesse I onely put you in minde that y e holy Gost vseth no such phrase You procede saing Nether is it his pleasure aÌ„d will that ether pharaâ— Semei or any other should sinne and come to destruction Before we haue confessed y t iniquitie and sinne is so odious before God y t in it can his goodnes neuer delyte nether yet can he haue pleasure in the destruction of any creature hauing respect to y e punishment onely But seing y t gods glorie must nedes shyne in all his creatures yea euen in y e perpetuall damnation of sathan torment of the reprobate why shal not he wil and take pleasure y t so it come to passe Albeit your phrenetique braines can not comprehend y e brightnes therof yet wil he one day declare y t al his workes are wroght in iustice wisedom and equitie I thinke you will not deny but that pharao Semei Iudas and others came to destruction like as in the end shall all reprobate do Then do I aske if God at no time for no purpose respect nor end did so will how then came their destruction to passe By sinne say you that we denie not but yet the questioÌ„ is not answered For continually we demand if in God there was not power ether to haue impeded their sinne or yet after their sinne to haue called them to repentance if it had so pleased his eternal wisedom and goodnes Consider your foly and giue glorie to God who doth what so euer he will in heauen and in earth But now to that which foloweth For he will the death of no creature but will all men to be saued and to come to the knowledge of the trueth How violeÌ„tly you wrest the wordes of the Prophet and of the Apostle shall shortly appere after I haue reasoned a litle with you how these your propositions do agree with that which goeth before Ye haue affirmed that God is ready to mercie and slow to wrath in which wordes you â—hew and cofesse that in the God head there is readines to â—hew mercy and also that there is a iustice w c must execute wrath vpoÌ„ the disobedient And so in the nature of y e God head ye cofesse mercy ad iustice But here you say that God will the death of no creature but that he will all men to be saued which last wordes being vnderstand as ye do vrge them must destroy the former nature of God take awaye his iustice For if he absolutely will the death of no creature then will he no punishment to folowe sinne And if he will no punishmeÌ„t then willeth he his iustice to cease and so coÌ„sequently must one of the properties of his godlie nature cease Studie for an answere to make your former wordes and latter wordes better agree orels ye wil be compelled to coÌ„fesse that God for som respect willeth both death and damnation to come vpon some creatures Further if God willeth all men to be saued and to come to the knowledge of the trueth and yet many do perâ—sh in ignoraÌ„ce and shal be condemned as Christ Iesus doth pronounce then must it ether folow that gods will is mutable and so he vnconstant and not at all times like to him self or els that he is not omnipotent For if God at the first creation of man wold all men to be saued as ye alledge then wold I know when this will was changed After that man had offended say you Then yet haue I obteined that in gods will there was mutabilitie For after sinne he wold and by his sentence pronounced that Adam and his posteritie should suffer the corporall death yea and that the sede of the serpent should haue the head broken downe by the which is ment the spirituall death which nether of both as you affirme did God will before If you reply gods will towardes the saluation of all mankind did remaine the same after sinne which was before for a generall promes of deliuerance was made by the womans sede that was promised I haue before plainely proued that difference most manifest betwext y â— two sedes was made in that promes But admitting that the promes had bene generall so that the will of God this day remaineth the same which ye alledge it to be to witt that he willeth y e death of no sinner but that he willeth al men to be saued Can you deny but that a separation and diuision of the shepe from the goates of the elect from the reprobate shal be made at the glorious commiÌ„g of y e Lord Iesus Shall not these most ioyfull wordes be said vnto theÌ„ y t shall stand vpon the right hand Come ye the blessed of my father possesse the kingdome which was prepared for you from the beginning And shall not this most fearefull sentence be pronounced and executed against the other Depart ye cursed go to the fire prepared for the deuill and for his angels Shall the Sonne of God in pronouncing senteÌ„ce do any thing that day repugning to the will of his heauenly Father I think you will not so affirme Then if gods will in the day of iudgement shal be that many shal be adiudged to tormeÌ„t perpetual and his will in the creation of man was and this day yet remaineth that all men shal be saued then of necessitie it doth folow that gods will shall change If you say that death and damnation cometh not by gods will but by the sinne and vnbelief of man you haue releued your self nothing for if death be one thing and life be an other damnation one thing and saluation an other TheÌ„ if God this day will all men to be saued and so to haue life and yet that day he shall will many to be damned to torment perpetuall what causes so euer you alledge I shall obteine one of two to witte that ether gods will is and may be mutable orels that there is a power superior to his maiestie and godly will For if willingly he shall damne those whom before he wold and had determined to saue then is his will and determination changed And if he shall damne those vnwillingly whoÌ„ willingly he wold haue saued then is he not omnipotent Consider now vpon whom falleth the snowe and who do cast them selues in greatest absurdities Now it resteth to declare how violently ye wrest the wordes of the Prophet of the Apostle The Prophete speaking in the personne of God saith I will not the death of a sinner but rather that he conuert and liue And the Apostle affirmeth that God will all men to be saued and to come to the knowledge of the trueth Hereupon ye conclude God will the death of no creature this is your first violence which you do to the text For the Prophet
to perdition which ende was appointed vnto them not against gods will but by his will â—mmutable in his eternall counsell For no lesse will he that the seueritie of his iudgementes be sene in the vessels of wrath theÌ„ that the riches of his grace be praised in the vessels of mercie Storme and rage spew furth your venom and blaspheme till ye prouoke gods vengeance at once to be powred forth vpon your owne heades this sentence will he neuer retracte He will haue mercie vpon whom he will haue mercy and whom he will he maketh hard hearted That God in him selfe hath but one will which is holy iust and permanent that in him there is no contraritie that he is faithfull and doth perfourme what soeuer he doth promise What we vnderstand by gods secrete will and how he tempteh no man I haue before sufficiently declared And therefore I will not truble the reader with the repetitioÌ„ of the same Now let vs heare what is your iudgement of vs and how ye extolle your selues THE ADVERSARIE As these goddes be of contrarie nature so do they begette children of a contrarie nature the fals God begetteh vnmercifull proud ambicrouse and enuifull children bloody persecutors of others for their conscience saik euill speakers â—mpacient contenciouse and seditious children And they be like vnto their father in that they speake one thing with their mouth and think an other with their heart They can neuer be without filthy thâ—ghtes wicked 〈◊〉 for such poyson do they receaue of their father The trew God begetteth mercifull humble lowlye and louing children abhorring from blood persecuting no man good speakers patient detesting all 〈◊〉 chiding and brawling and they be like vnto their father in that what soeuer they speak with their mâ—uth they think with their heart they be alwaies moued with good thoghtes and gâ—dly reuelations for such grace receaue they 〈…〉 of their father ANSWER It may seme by the description of these your two goddes for nether of both as ye describe them is the true liuing eternall God that ye studie to renew the daÌ„nable error of the Manichies who imagined two beginners the one of all goodnes and of all good creatures the other of all iniquitie and of wicked creatures affirming further that the good and the mercifull God was ouercome for a time by him that was wicked and euill And because that the plaine scriptures did confute these blasphemâ—es therefor did they denie the authoritie of Moises and the certentie of all other scriptures that made any thing against their error If manifestly ye did take vpon you the defense of those your fathers as that ye do of Pellagius of Donatus and of the Papistes for of all these adulterous fathers ye be adulterous children then wolde I from Augustine whom God stirred vp no doubte in the daies of darckenes most learnedly and most plainely by infallible scriptures to cofute those heresies from him I say I might take artilerie all ready prepared able inough to ouerthrow your buildinges and munitions appere they neuer so strong But because as before I haue said my purpose is not to burden you further then you do confesse I onely admonish the reader to be ware of such pestilences as beginne to call the trueth of God reueled in his holy word in doubt and do persuade men to credite dreames and reuelations how soeuer they appere to repugne to that which is reueled in the word Of such men I say â–ª oght Christes flock to take hede as also of those who make of eguall authoritie such bookes as yet the holy Gost hath neuer coÌ„mended to the Church of Christe with these that are written by Moises the Prophetes the Euangelistes and Apostles and that by inspiration of the holy Gost. That some of you be infected with this most pestilent poison I am able to proue by mo argumentes then one Being at London the the winter before the death of king Edward one â–ª of your faction required secrete communication of me in which after that earnestly he had required of me closenes and fidelitie because that the maters that he had to communicate with me were so weightie and of such importance as sythence the daies of the Apostles the like was neuer opened vnto man In the ende after many wordes which I nether gladly heard nether yet will now write he gaue me a boke written as he said by God euen as well as was any of the EuaÌ„gelistes This his booke he adiured me as it were to reade and required to haue my iudgement of it My answer was that at his request I wold reade it so that he wold be coÌ„tent to reason with me of the chiefe pointes in the same conteined but to pronounce sentence or iudgement that could I not vsurpe being but one man farre inferior to many of my brethern y e preachers of gods word in that realme Alwaies he vrged me to reade his booke And I woÌ„dering what mysteries it should coÌ„teine called to me a faithfull brother who then as pleased God was present with me named HeÌ„ry Farrour marchaÌ„t to whom I opened the mater by whose counsell and in whose presence I beganne to reade his boke The first proposition wherof was God made not the world nether yet the wicked creatures in the same conteined but they had their beginning from a nother that is from the deuill who is called the Prince of the world which proposition plainly repugning to gods word I did impugne and begaÌ„ne to declare vnto him for what cause Sathan had that title to be called the Prince of y e world But he vtterly denying ether to reasoÌ„ and dispute ether yet to be reformed in any point that there was written commaÌ„nded me to reade forward to beleue howbeit I did not vnderstand To whom when I had gentilly said Can any reasonable man will me to beleue thinges directly fighting against gods veritie and plaine word reueled Tusch said he for your written word we haue as good and as sure a word and veritie that teacheth vs this doctrine as ye haue for you and your opinioÌ„ And theÌ„ I did more sharpely answere saing ye deserue the death as a blasphemous person and denier of God if ye preferre any word to that which the holy Gost hath vttered in his plaine scriptures At which wordes he toke pepper in nose and snatching his boke furth of my hand departed after he had thus spoken I will goo to the ende of the world but I will haue my boke confirmed and subscribed with better learned men then you be In me I coÌ„fesse there was greate negligeÌ„ce that nether did reteine his boke nether yet did present him to the Magistrate But yet this argument I haue that your faction is not altogether cleane from the heresie of the Manichies I could name and point forth others who labour in the same disease but so long as their venom doth remaine secrete within them selues I am
the king But because he did it so often and neuer ended the king being offended went his way Then hastily he went into the throne and behaued him selfe like a king But the king coÌ„ming in the meane while thrust him out and caused him to be kept in prisoÌ„ne three dayes During the siege they set out a boke naming it y e restitutioÌ„ in which boke besides other things they say The kingdome of Christe to be suche afore the iudgement daye that the elect and godly shal reigne but the wicked that they should be destroyed euerie where Also that it is lawful for the people to put downe the ciuile powers and that althogh the Apostles had no commandement to take iurisdiction vpoÌ„ them yet notwith standing the ministers of the church now oght to take the sworde into their handes and by violence to set vp a new common wealth Also that none oght to be suffered in the common wealth that is not a true Christian that none can be saued vnlesse he put all his goods in common without possessing any thing proper vnto him selfe that Luther and the Pope be false prophetes and of the two Luther to be the worse aÌ„d that the mariage of those which are not illuminated by the true fayth is polluted and impure aÌ„d oght to be takeÌ„ for adulterie and for nicatioÌ„ rather theÌ„ mariage AmoÌ„g other meÌ„ MelanctoÌ„ Iustus Ionas Vrbanus Rhegius withstode their doctrine as it appered by their pleÌ„tiful and excelleÌ„t writings Within feaw wekes after the new prophet of whome wâ— spake before blew a trompet in all the stretes and commanded y t all the people should come in to the church yarde of the great teÌ„ple all harnesed for the wicked were to be driue forthe of the citie When they were come thither they fonâ—d a supper prepared and by commandement they sate downe at the table to the nomber of 4000. After they had supped those y t kept the watch aboute 1000. supped also The king and the Quene with their household serued the supper being almost â—nded the king gaue bread to euerie one saying Take aÌ„d eate shew forthe the death of the Lord. And the Quene giuing them the cuppe said Drinke and shew forth the death of the Lord. This being done the new prophet of whome we spake before went vp into the pulpet and asked of them all whether they wold obey the word of God or no. Whereunto when they had all said yea he said The commandement of the father is that there be sent forth 28. preachers which shal go into the foure quarters of the world and preach the doctrine that is published in this citie And then by order he named theÌ„ and the places to which they should euerie one go Syxe were sent to Osembirge as many to warendorfe eyght to Sufat as many to Cosâ—eld The king and the Quene supped afterwarde with the seruitours that had serued at the table and with them that were ordeined to go forthe When supper was in doing the king rose saying that he had a busines to do commannded him of the father and by chance there was a souldioure taken whome the king accused to be a traitoure as Iudas was and with his owhe hand he stroke of his head This done he returâ—ed to supper and tolde merely of his goodly acte that he had done After supper those 28. preachers were sent forthe alitle before night And besides for the finding of them there was giuen to each of them a piece of golde with a charge that wheresoeuer their doctrine was not receaued they should leaue those pieces in a witnes against theÌ„ of their destruction and euerlasting damnatioÌ„ because they had refused peace and a doctrine so wholesome When they came to the places appointed vnto them they cried in the townes that men should repent orels they should perish out of hand They spred their garmeÌ„tes vpon the ground before the Rulers and cast vpon them their pieces of golde which they had receaued affirming that they were sent of the father to bring them peace which if they wold receaue then they willed them to put all their goods in common and if they refused then by this signe and as it were a marke they wold witnes their euil dede and vnthankfulnes For behold the time said they spoken of before by the prophetes in the which God will that righteousnes shall reigne vpon the whole earth is come And when the king shall haue fulfilled his office that iustice doeth rule in euerie place then shal it come to passe that Christe shall giue vp the kingdome to the father They speaking after this maner were takeÌ„ and in y e beginning by gentlnes and afterwith tormentes they being asked of their doctrine life of y e strength of y e citie answered that they onely had the true doctrine which they wold mainteine with the perill of their liues For said they from the time of the Apostles the trueth hathe not bene truely preached nor any iustice vsed also that there were 4. prophetes two iust Dauid and Iohn Leiden and two vniust the Bishop of Rome and Luther who was the worst of bothe They being asked why coÌ„trarie to their promise they had driueÌ„ y e innocentes out of their Citie occupying their goodes wiues and children by what place of the scripture they wolde proue that their fact to be well and iustly done they answered that the time was come which Christe spake of that the meke should posses the earth and that in lyke case God did giue the goods of the Aegyptians to the Israelites Afterward they tolde of the munition and victualles that were in the citie and the multitude and also that many in it had aboue fiue wiues a pece adding this that they loked for armies of meÌ„ out of Friseland and Holand which when they were once come the king wold set forth with all his host to bring the whole worlde vnder his power and subiection after that he had killed all the kings therof for not ministring iustice When they had bene reasoned withall after this maner and they continued in their purpose and wolde acknowledge none other magistrate then their king they were all put to death sauing one that escaped The Citie was so hardly and so straitly beseged that none could ether go in or out Wherefore the citizens fearing famishment and seing the danger that they were in they thoght to haue taken the king and to deliuer him to the Bishop bound but he getting knowledge therof chose 12. out of all the multitude suche as he thoght to be most faithful vnto him and called them captaines and to eche of them he appointed certeine quarters of the Citie to defend and garisons of men to kepe the people from rising More ouer he promised to all the multitude that by Ester the siege should be remoued and that they should be deliuered from the necessitie that they were in But vnto