brethren were crept in to espie out their liberty and would haue constrained Paule to circumcise Titus Paule perceauing this constraint and necessity would geue no place no not for one hower but strongly resisted them And therefore he saith Neither Titus vvhich vvas vvith me being a Gentile vvas compelled to be circumcised If they had required this in the way of brotherly charitie doubtles he would not haue denied it But seīg they would haue done it as a necessary thing and that by compulsion to the ill example of others to the ouerthrowing of the Gospell and to bring mens consciences into bondage therefore he setteth himselfe mightely against them and preuailed so that Titus was not circumcised It may seeme to be but a small matter to be or not to be circumcised But when a man hath an affiance in keping or is in feare for not keping of it here God is denied Christ is reiected the grace and all the promises of God are refused But if circumcision be kept without this addition there is no daunger If the Pope would in this sort require of vs the keping of his traditions as bare ceremonies it should not be greuous vnto vs to kepe them forasmuch as we also doe vse ceremonies but to binde mens consciences to these ceremonies and to make of them an high and acceptable seruice vnto God yea and moreouer to adde that life and saluation or death and euerlasting damnation consisteth in the obseruation hereof is a deuilish superstition and full of blasphemie Who so will not crie out against this accursed be he Verse 6.7 And of them vvhich seemed to be great I vvas not taught vvhat they vvere in times past it is no matter to me c. This is a vehement and a stout confutation For he geueth not to the true Apostles themselues any glorious title but as it were abasing their dignitie he saith vvhich seemed to be great that is which were in authoritie vpon whom the determination of all matters depēded Notwithstanding the authoritie of the Apostles was in deede very greate in all the churches And Paule also did not seeke any whit to diminish their authoritie but he thus contemptuously aunswereth the false Apostles which set the authoritie dignitie of the Apostles against Paule in all the churches that therby they might weaken his authority bring his whole ministery into contempt This Paule might not suffer To the end therfore that the truth of the Gospell and liberty of conscience in Christ might continue among the Galathians and in all the churches of the Gentiles he aunswereth stoutly to the false Apostles that he passed not how greate the Apostles were or what they had bene in time past and wheras they alleadged the authority of the name of the Apostles against him it toucheth him nothing at all He confesseth that the Apostles are in deede somewhat and that their authority is to be reuerenced Notwithstanding his Gospell and ministery ought not to be ouerthrowne for the name or title of any whatsoeuer be he an Apostle or an Angeil from heauen And this was one of the greatest arguments that the false Apostles vsed against Paule The Apostles said they were familiarly conuersant with Christ for the space of three yeares They heard and saw all his preachings and miracles Moreouer they themselues preached wrought miracles whiles Christ was yet liuing in the world whom Paule neuer saw in the flesh as touching his conuersion it was long after the glorification of Christ Wherefore they should now consider which of these they ought more to beleue Paule which was but one and alone and also but a disciple yea and one of the last of all or the cheifest and most excellent Apostles which long before Paule were sent confirmed by Christ himselfe To this Paule aunswereth what of all this This argument concludeth nothing Let the Apostles be neuer so greate yea let them be Angels from heauen it is no matter to me The question is not here cōcerning the excellency of the Apostles but concerning the word of God and the truth of the Gospell Herein consisteth all the weight of the matter that the Gospell may be preserued pure and vncorrupt which also aboue all things ought to be preferred Therefore how greate Peter and the other Apostles haue bene what greate miracles they haue wrought it is no matter to me This is it that I onely seeke euen that the truth of the Gospell may continue among you This seemeth to be but a slender aunswere of Paule when of purpose he so contemneth the authoritie of the Apostles which the false Apostles alledged against him and geueth no other solution to their mighty argument then this it is no matter to me Notwithstanding he addeth a reason of the confutation Verse 6. God accepteth no mans person This place he alledgeth out of Moses who vseth the same not once but many times Thou shalt not accept in iudgemēt the persō of the rich man or of the pore And this is a principle of diuinitie God is no acceptor of persons With the which saying he stoppeth the mouthes of the false apostles As though he would say Ye set those against me which seeme to be somewhat but God careth not for such outward things He regardeth not the office of Apostleship It is not the dignity or authority of mē the he loketh vpon And in tokē hereof he suffered Iudas one of the chiefest Apostles Saul one of the greatest kings yea the first of all to fall away to be damned Ismaell also Esau he refused being both first born So shal you find throughout al the whole scripture that god oftētimes reiected those which in outward shew were very good holy mē And in these exāples God semeth sometimes to be cruel but it was most necessary that such feareful exāples should be shewed also be writē For this vice is naturally grafted in vs that we highly esteeme that persons and outward appearance of men and more regard the same then the word of god Contrariwise God will haue vs to fixe our eies and to rest wholy vpon the word it selfe he will not haue vs to reuerence and adore the Apostleship in the persons of Peter and Paule but Christ speaking in them and the word which they bring and preache vnto vs. This the naturall man can not see but the spirituall man onely discerneth the person from the word the veile of God from God himselfe Now this veile of God is euery creature Moreouer God here in this life dealeth not with face to face but couered and shadowed from vs that is as Paul saith in an other place vve se him novv as it vvere through a glasse and darkely Therefore we can not be without veiles in this life But wisedom is here required which can discerne the veile from God himselfe and this wisedom the world hath not The couetous man hearing
of faith where neither the law nor reason do shine but onely the light of Faith which assureth vs that we are saued by Christ alone without any law Thus the gospell leadeth vs beyond and aboue the light of the law and reason into the inward and deepe secretes of Faith where the lawe and reason haue nothing to doe Notwithstāding we must hearken also vnto the law but in place and time Moises whiles he was in the mountaine where he talked with God face to face had no law made no law ministred no law but when he was come downe from the mountaine he was a lawgeuer and gouerned the people by the law So the conscience must be free frō the law but the body must be obedient vnto the law Hereby it appeareth that Paule reproued Peter for no light matter but for the chiefest article of all Christian doctrine which by Peters dissimulation was in great daunger For Barnabas and the other Iewes dissembled togither with him which did all offend not through ignorance or malice but for feare of the Iewes wherby their hearts were so blinded that they did not see their sinne And certainly it is much to be maruelled that such excellent men as Peter Barnabas and others should so sodenly and so lightly fall especially in that thing which they knew to be well done had also before taught vnto others It is a perilous thing therefore to trust to our owne strength be we neuer so holy neuer so well learned and although we thinke our selues neuer so sure of that we know For in that wherof we thinke our selues most sure we may erre and fall bring our selues and other into great daunger Let vs therefore diligently and with all humilitie employ our selues in the studie of the holy scriptures and let vs heartely pray that we neuer lose the truth of the gospell Thus we see then that we are nothing with all our giftes be they neuer so great except God assist vs When he leaueth vs to our selues our wisedom and knowledge is nothing For in the houre of tentation it may suddenly come to passe that by the subteltie of the Deuil all the comfortable places of the scripture shal be taken out of our sight and such places onely as containe threatnings shal be set before our eies shal oppresse vtterly confound vs Let vs learne therfore that if God withdraw his hand we may soone be ouerthrowne Neither let any man vaunt and glory of his owne righteousnes wisedome and other gifts but let him humble himselfe and pray with the Apostle Lord encrease our faith Verse 14. But vvhen I savv that they vvent not the right vvay to the truth of the Gospell This is a wonderfull example of such excellent men and pillers of the church There is none but Paule that hath his eies open and seeth the offence of Peter Barnabas and the other Iewes which dissembled with Peter On the other side they doe not see their owne offence nay they rather thinke that they doe well in bearing with the infirmitie of the weake Iewes Wherefore it was very necessary that Paule should reproue their offence and not dissemble it and therefore he accuseth Peter Barnabas and other that they went not the right way to the truth of the Gospell that is to say they swarued from the truth of the Gospell It is a greate matter that Peter should be accused of Paule as one that was falne from the truth of the Gospell He could not be more greuously reprehended Yet he suffered it patiently and no doubt but he gladly acknowledged his offence I sayde before that many haue the Gospell but not the truth of the Gospell So Paule saith here that Peter Barnabas and other of the Ievves vvent not the right vvay to the truthe of the Gospell that is to say they had the Gospell but they walked not vprightly according to the Gospell For albeit they preached the Gospell yet through their dissimulation which could not stand with the truth of the Gospell they established the law but the establishing of the law is the abolishing of the Gospell Who so then can rightly iudge betwene the lawe and the Gospell let him thanke God and know that he is a right Diuine In the time of tentation I confesse that I my selfe doe not know how to doe it as I ought Now the way to discerne the one from the other is to place the Gospell in heauen and the lawe on the earth to call the righteousnes of the Gospell heauenly and the righteousnes of the law earthly and to put as greate difference betwene the righteousnes of the gospell and of the law as God hath made betwene heauen and earth betwene light and darknesse betweene daye and night Lette the one be as the light and the day and the other as the darkenes and the night And would to God we could yet further separate the one from the other Wherefore if the question be concerning the matter of faith or conscience let vs vtterly exclude the law and leaue it on the earth but if we haue to doe with works then let vs lighten the lanterne of works and of the righteousnes of the law So let the Sunne the inestimable light of the Gospell and grace shine in the day and the lanterne of the law in the night Wherefore if thy conscience be terrified with the sense and feeling of sinne thinke thus with thy selfe Thou art now remaining vpō earth there let the Asse labour and trauel there let him serue and carry the burthen that is laid vpon him that is to say let the body with his members be subiect to the law But when thou mountest vp into heauen then leaue the Asse with his burthen on the earth for the conscience hath nothing to doe with the law or works or with the earthly righteousnes So doth the Asse remaine in the valley but the cōscience ascendeth with Isaac into the mountaine knowing nothing at all of the law or workes thereof but onely looking to the remission of sinnes and pure righteousnes offered and freely geuen vnto vs in Christ Contrariwise in ciuill policy obedience to the law must be seuerely required There nothing must be knowne as concerning the Gospell conscience grace remission of sinnes heauēly righteousnes or Christ himselfe but Moses onely with the law and the works thereof If we marke well this distinction neither the one nor the other shall passe his bounds but the law shall abide without heauen that is without the heart and conscience and contrariwise the libertie of the Gospell shall abide without the earth that is to say without the body and members thereof Now therfore as soone as the law and sinne come into heauen that is into the conscience let them by and by be cast out For the conscience being feared with the terrour of the wrath and iudgement of God ought to know nothing of the
Deuil and the Deuil likewise sheweth him selfe in the likenes of God And God will be knowen vnder the similitude of the Deuill and will haue the Deuil knowen vnder the likenes of God. The crosse immediatly foloweth the doctrine of the word according to that saying Psal. 116 I beleued and therfore haue I spoken and I vvas sore troubled Now the crosse of the Christians is persecution with reproch and ignominie and without any compassion and therfore it is very offensiue First they suffer as the vilest people in the world so did the Prophet Esay foreshew euen of Christ himself cap. 53. He vvas reputed amōgst the vvicked Moreouer murtherers and theues haue their punishments qualified and men haue compassion on them Here is no offence or sclaunder ioyned with the punishment Cōtrariwise like as the world iudgeth the Christiās to be of all other mē the most pestilent pernicious so doth it thinke that no torments are sufficient to punish them for their hainous offences Neither is it moued with any compassion towardes them but putteth them to the most opprobrious and shamefull kinds of death that can be And it thinketh that it gaineth hereby a double commodity For first it imagineth that it doth high seruice vnto God in killing of them secondly that the cōmon peace and tranquillitie is restored and stablishing by taking away such noisome plagues Therfore the death and crosse of the Faithfull is full of offences But let not this reprochfull dealing sayeth Paule and the continuance of Christes crosse and offence therof moue you but rather let it confirme you For as long as the crosse endureth it shall goe well with the Gospell In like maner Christe also comforteth his disciples in the .5 of Math. Blessed are ye sayeth he vvhen men reuile you and persecute you and shall falsely say all maner of euill against you for my names sake Reioyce and be glad for great is your revvard in heauen For so persecuted they the Prophets vvhich vvere before you The church cā not suffer this reioysing to be wrested frō her Wherfore I would not wish to be at concord with the Pope the bishops the princes and the Sectaries vnlesse they would consent vnto our doctrine For such concorde were a certaine token that we had lost the true doctrine To be short as long as the church teacheth the Gospell it must suffer persecution For the Gospell setteth forth the mercy and glory of God It discloseth the malice and sleightes of the Deuill painting him out in his right coulours and plucking from him the counterfet visour of Gods Maiestie wherby he deceaueth the whole world that is to say it sheweth that all worshippings religious Orders inuented by men and traditions concerning single life meates and such other things wherby men thinke to deserue forgeuenes of sinnes euerlasting life are wicked things and deuelish doctrine There is nothing then that more stirreth vppe the Deuill than the preaching of the Gospell For that plucketh from him the dissembled vizour of God and bewrayeth him to be as he is in deede that is to say the Deuil not god Wherfore it can not be but that as long as the Gospell flourisheth the crosse and the offence thereof must needes folow it or else truely the Deuill is not rightly touched but slenderly tickled But if he be rightly hitte in deede he resteth not but beginneth horribly to rage and to raise vp troubles euery where If Christians then will hold the word of life let them not be afraid or offended when they see that the Deuill is broken lose and rageth euery where that all the world is on an vprour that tyrannes exercise their crueltie and heresies spring vppe but lette them assure them selues that these are signes not of terrour but of ioy as Christe himselfe expoundeth them saying Reioyce and be glad c. God forbid therefore that the offence of the crosse should be taken away Which thing should come to passe if we should preach that which the Prince of this world and his members would gladly heare that is to say the righteousnes of workes Then should we haue a gentle Deuil a fauourable world a gracious Pope and mercifull Princes But because we set forth the benefites and glory of Christe they persecute and spoile vs both of our goodes and liues Verse 12. VVould to God they vvere cutte of that doe disquiet you Is this the part of an Apostle not onely to denounce the false apostles to be troublers to condemne them and to deliuer them to Sathan but also to wish that they might be vtterly rooted out and pearish And what is this else but plaine cursing Paule as I suppose alludeth here to circumcision As if he would say They compell you to cutte of the foresakin of your flesh but I would that they themselues might be vtterly cutte off by the roote Here riseth a question whether it be lawfull for Christians to curse Why not howbeit not alwayes nor for euery cause But when the matter is come to this poynt that Gods word must be euill spoken of and his doctrine blasphemed and so consequently God him selfe then must we turne this sentence and say Blessed be God and his word and what so euer is without God and his word accursed be it yea though it be an Apostle or an Angell from heauen So he sayd before in the first Chapter Although vve or an Angell from heauen preach othervvise vnto you then that vvhich vve haue preached let him be accursed Hereby it may appeare how great a matter Paule made of a litle leauen which for the same durst curse the false apostles who in outward appearance were men of great authoritie and holines Let not vs therefore make litle account of the leauen of doctrine For although it be neuer so litle yet if it be neglected it will be the cause that by litle and litle the truth and our saluation shall be lost and God himselfe be denied For when the word is corrupted and God denied and blasphemed which must needes folow if the word be corrupted there remaineth no hope of saluation But for our partes if we be cursed railed vppon and slaine there is yet one that can raise vs vppe againe and deliuer vs from the curse death and hell Wherefore lette vs learne to aduaunce and extoll the Maiestie authoritie of Gods word For it is no small trifle as brainsicke heades surmise at this day but euery title thereof is greater then heauen and earth Wherefore in this respect we haue no regard of Christian charitie or concord but we sitte as it were on the iudgement seat that is to say we curse and condemne all men which in the least poynt deface or corrupt the Maiestie of Gods word For a litle leauen maketh sovver the vvhole lumpe But if they leaue vs Gods word entire and sound we are not onely ready to keepe charitie