sanctifie their spirits which doth set their trust onlie in the redemption promised theÌ„ in Christs blessed bloud this church by Christ is made without spot or wrinkle D. Barnes fol. 313. The Church saith Lyra doth not stand by reason of spirituall power or secular dignitie for many Princes many Popes other inferiour persons haue swarued from the faith wherfore the church doth stand in those persons in whom is the true knowledge and confession of faith and veritie Lyra in Math. Chap. The holie church are we saith Augustine but I do not say are we as who should say we that be héere alonelie that heare me now but as manie as bee héere faithfull christen men in this church the is to say in this citie as manie as be in this regigion as many as be beyonde the sea as manie as be in all the whole world for from the rising of the Sunne vnto the going downe of the same is the name of God praised So is the church our mother August sermo 99. de tempore Saint Paule calleth the church the spouse of Christ for that she ought in all things to giue eare to the voice of the Bridegrome Likewise he calleth the church the piller of the truth for that that she â—aieth hir selfe onlie by the word of God without which word the church were it neuer so beautifull should bée nâ— church The holie church is all they that haue bene and that nowe are and alwaies to the end of the world shall bée a people the which shall endeuour them to know to kéepe the commandements of God dreading ouer all things to offend God and louing and séeking most to please him c. Booke of Mar. 632. The church saith Lambart I doe take for to be all those that GOD hath chosen or predestinate to be inheritours of eternall blisse and saluation whether they be temporall or spirituall king or subiect bishop or deacoâ— father or childe Grecian or Romaine c. Booke of Mar. fol. 1276. Of whom the Church began When Adam and Eue his wife had taken comfort of Gods promises which was that Christ should come of the womans séede to redeeme the world from sinne death and hell then they beléeuing the same stedfastlie in their heartes were the beginning of the true Church Lanquet Whie the Church is holie and Catholike On this consideration saith Saint Austen the Church is holy and Catholike not because it dependeth on Rome or anie other place nor of anie multitude obedient to Rome both which are donatistical but Quia recte credit in Deum because it beléeueth rightly in God I. Bridges fol. 543. The Fathers began to call this true and right teaching the Church of Christ the catholike Church which is as much to saie as vniuersall Augustine to his cosin Seuerinus This is saith he the catholike Church wherevpon it is also called Catholice in Gréeke because it is spred throughout al the world Isichius vpon Leuiticus For the vniuersal Church saith he is Hierusalem the citie of the liuing God which conteineth the Church of the first begotten written in heauen And Gelasius vnto Anastatius the Emperour The same is called saith he the Catholike Church which is by a pure cleane and vndefiled fellowship sequestred from all the vnfaithfull and their successours and companions otherwise there should not be a difference giuen of God but a miserable mingle mangle c. Musculus fol. 258. Cipriane the Bishop and Martyr in his booke De simplicitate Clericorum saith The Church is one which is spread further and further abrode by fertile increase euen as there are manie heames of the Sunne and but one light and manie boughes of a tree yet but one Oke grounded vpon a stedfast roote And where as manie brookes issue out of one spring though the number séeme to be increased by the abundaunce of store yet it is but one at the head Plucke a beame of the Sun from the Gloabe that one once separated is voide of light Breake a bough from the Tree it can bring foorth no fruite Cutte a Brooke from the Springe and béeing cutte of it drieth vp Guen so the Church lightened with Gods light which is spread euerie where neither is the vnitie of the bodie seperated she extendeth hot braunches with plenteous increase throughout all the earth she sendeth out her plentifull riuers all abrode Yet is there but one head and one spring and one mother plentifull with fertile successâ—â— c. Bullinger fol. 841. How the Church is made cleane by Christ. If the feare of God haue deliuered you then are yée trulie deliuered You are washed you are sanctified you are iustified in the name of Iesus Christ and in the spirit of God Of Christ is the Church made faire first she was filthie in sinnes afterward by pardon and grace was she made faire D. Barnes 253. How the Church hath spots and wrinkles in her The whole Church praieth Lorde forgiue vs our sinnes wherefore she hath spottes and wrinkles but by knowing of them her wrinkles are stretched out knowledging her spots be washed awaie The Church continueth in praier that shée might be cleansed by knowledging of her sinnes and as long as we héere liue so standeth it And when euerie man departeth out of this bodie all such sinnes are forgiuen him which ought to be forgiuen him For they be forgiuen by dailie praier and he goeth hence cleansed And the Church of God is laide vp in the treasure of God for golde and by this meanes the Church of God is the treasure of our Lord without spotte or wrinkle Sequitur Let vs praie that God maie forgiue vs and that we maie forgiue our debters séeing it is said And it shall be forgiuen vnto you Wee saie this dailie and dailye we doe this and this thing is done dailie in vs. We are not héere without sinne but we shall depart without sinne D. B. fol. 254. How it is said aright that the Church cannot erre The Church is the pillor and foundation of the truth how then can it erre Wée aunswere brieflie saith Musculus wée doe knowe right well that the Church is the onelie and welbeloued spouse of Christ the kingdome of heauen the it is ruled by the masterie and leading of the holie spirit and that wée bée alwaies taught by his anoninting and that it is the piller and foundation of the truth But these saiengs do perteine not vnto all particuler Churches but vnto that onelie vpright and catholike church which is the communion of the Saints and elect throughout all the worlde which doth beléeue in Christ their Lord and spouse in all ages And touching this ther is no variaunce there is none of vs that saie that the catholike church hath erred in the faith of Christ. For how can it erre when it followeth Christ and walketh not in darknesse but hath the light of
stirred him to beléeue that it was no vaine doctrine but that it must néeds be of God in the it had such power with it For it happeneth that they which will not heare the word at beginning are afterward moued by the holie conuersation of them the beléeue c. Read 1. Pet. 3. 1. 1. Cor. 16. Tin How the church is our Mother Christ is our Father as the Church his sponse is our Mother As all men naturallie haue Adam for their father Eue for their mother so all spirituall men haue Christ for their Father and the church for their mother And as Eue was taken out of Adams side so was the church taken out of Christs side whereout flowed bloud for the satisfaction and purging of our sinnes D. Harpsfield in the booke of Mar. fol. 1791. He shall not haue God to be his Father which acknowledgeth not the church to be his Mother Moreouer without the church saith Saint Austen be the life neuer so well spent it shall not inherit the kingdome of heauen ¶ This is not ment of the Popish Church but of the holie catholike or vniuersall Church which is the communion of Saints the house of God the citie of God the spouse of Christ the piller and staie of the truth out of this Church there is no saluation indeede N. Ridley How the Church is visible The Church is none otherwise visible then Christ was héere on earth that is by no exteriour pompe or showeâ— that setteth hir foorth commonlie and therfore to see hir we must put on such eies as good men put on to see Christ when he walked heere on earth for as Eua was of the same substaunce that Adam was of so was the Church of the same substaunce that Christ was of flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone as Paule saith Ephe. 5. 30. Looke therfore how Christ was visiblie known to be Christ when he was héere on earth that is by considering him after the word of God so is the Church knowen Bradford Markes whereby the Church is knowen The Church saith the Papists hath thrée markes vnitie antiquitie and consent These thrée saith the Aunswere maie be as well in the euill as in the good as well in sinne as in vertue as well in the Diuells church as in Gods Church As for example Idolatrie among the Israelites had all these thrée Chrisostome telleth plainlie that the Church is well knowen tantummodo per Scripturas alonelie by the Scriptures Bradford Master Caluine saith This honour is méete to be giuen to the word of God and to his Sacrraments that wheresoeuer we see the word of God trulie preached and God according to the same trulie worshipped and the Sacraments without superstion administred there we maie without all controuersie conclude the Church of God to be And a little after So much we must estéeme the word of God and his Sacraments that whersouer we may finde them to be there we certainelie know the Church of God to be although in the common life of men manie faults and errours be found Whitegift fol. 81. Of the Church of Antichrist the Pope The tyrannie of the Popes Church sheweth them not to be Christs Church The Church saith S. Hylarie doth threaten with vanishments and imprâ—onments and the compelleth men to beleeue hir which was exiâ—ed and cast into prison She hangeth on the dignitie of their fellowship the which was consecrated by the threatnings of persecutors she causeth priests to flée that was increased by the chasing away of Priests Shée glorieth that she is loued of the world the which could neuer be Christs except the world did hate hir To proue that the spirituall aâ—aiâ— and gorgeous apparrell that is vsed in the Popes Church doth not make the Church S. Barnard saith thus They be the Ministers of Christ but they serue Antichrist They go gorgeouslie araied of our Lords goods vnto whom they giue no honour And of these commeth the decking of harlots that thou seest dailie the game-plaiers disguisings and kings apparrell Of this commeth golde in their bridles in their saddles and in their spurres so that their spurres be brighter theÌ„ the Altars Of this commeth their plenteous wine presses and their full sellers belking from this vnto that Of this commeth their Tonnes of sweete wines Of this bée their bagges so filled For such things as these be wil they be rulers of the Church as Deacons Archdeacons Bishops and Archbishops c. D. Barnes fol. 2 6. Obiection Hath God saith the Papists forsaken his Church a thousand yeares and were all our fathers deceiued before Luther was borne such antiquitie vnitie and vniuersalitie was it al in errour c. Aunswere Was the world deceiued so manie hundred yeares Whie should it not The Lord ordeined that there should come an apostacie and generall fall from the saith of Christ that the world might be seduced with the man of sin whose age began in the Apostles time and shall not vtterlie die till the daie of Christ. Thus the Lord appointed and so let it be for all things are for his glorie Deering Of the vniuersall Church ¶ Looke Vniuersall CIRCVMCISION What circumcision doth represent CIrcumcission representeth the promises of God to Abraham on the one side and that Abraham and his séede should circumcise and cut of the lusts of their flesh on the other side to walke in the waies of the Lord. Tindale fo 6. There be two Circumcisions the one outward made in the flesh by mens hands cutting awaie a round péece of the skinne of the secret members And this Circumcision was not necessarie to saluation after the Gospell was openlie preached after Christs passion but was abrogated and left as indifferent and not necessarie to saluation The other Circumcision was the inward Circumcision by yâ— spirit of God by yâ— which yâ— who le bodie is mortified put away cléerelie by the spirit by faith in Christ. And this Circumcision is necessarie to saluation L. Ridley Circumcision is nothing of it self it signifieth yâ— blessed séede in which al nations are blessed And it signifieth yâ— circumcision of the hart which consisteth in yâ— spirit not in yâ— flesh D. Heynes The Nazares did contend no Nation to appertaine to the Church of God vnlesse they were circumcised Paule Barnabas said that all as well Gentiles as Iewes if they beléeue in Christ should be saued without circumcision D. Heynes Circumcision was the holie action whereby the flesh of the fore-skinne was cut awaie for a signe of the couenaunt that God made with men Or to describe it more largelie Circumcision was a marke in the priuie members of men betokening the eternall Couenaunt of God and was ordeined by God himselfe to testifie his good will towards them that were circumcised to warne them of regeneration and cleannesse and to make difference betwixt the confederates of God and other people or nations Bullinger fol. 355. What
life Christ hath not forsaken it nor neuer will forsake it all our whole strife is vpon the particular churches which be mingled with good and euill together They not onelie can erre but also haue erred and doe erre yet in manie points c. Musculus fol. 267. Saint Augustine in his preface vpon the 47. Psalme alleadgeth this place of the Apostle in this wise Therefore wée must vnderstaÌ„d by the second of the sabboth none but the church of Christ but the church of Christ in his Saintes the church of Christ in them which be written in heauen the church of Christ in them which doe not yéelde vnto temptations of this world for they be worthie to beare the name of the firmament Therefore the church in them which be strong of whom the Apostle saith Wée which be strong beare with the infirmities of the weake is called the firmament whereof it is song in the Psalme Let vs heare let vs knowe let vs sound let vs glorie let vs reigne For heare you and knowe that the same also is called the firmament by the writing of the Apostle which is saith he the church of the liuing God the piller and firmament of truth Thus saith Augustine Chrisostome doth expound this place in this sort Not as the Iewish church for this is that which conteineth the faith that is to saie the piller and establishment of the church and the preaching For truth is the piller and establishment of the church this saith he He maketh not the church to be the piller establishment of the truth but the truth of the church c. Mus. fo 268 To proue that the congregation of faithfull men is the church that cannot erre heare their owne law The whole church cannot erre â— Againe The congregation of faithfull men must néeds be which also cannot erre ¶ This church which is spred abrode throughout all the world and standeth in the vnitie of faithfull christen men is the church that God suffereth not to erre in those things that belong to saluation D. B. fol. 254. How the Church is knowne Whereas the word of God is purelie and sincerely preached the Sacraments orderlie ministred after the blessed ordinance of Christ. And wheras men do patiently suffer for the veritie And the hearers doe applie their liuing to Christ doctrine and with méeknesse receiue the holie Sacraments these be good and present tokens to iudge vpon that there be certeine members of Christs church and to proue this read the doctors following Our mother holie church faith Augustine throughout all the world scattered farre and wide in her true head Christ taught hath learned not to feare the contumelies of the crosse nor yet of death but more and more is she strengthened not in resisting but in suffering They that be in Iudea let them flie vnto the mountaines that is to saie they the be in Christendome let them giue themselues to the scriptures for in that time in the which heresies haue obteined into the church there can be no true probation of christendome nor no other refuge vnto christen men willing to knowe the veritie of faith but by the Scriptures of God Afore by manie waies was it shewed which was the church of Christ and which was the congregation of the Gentiles But now there is none other waie to them the will know which is the verie true church of Christ but onely by Scriptures By works first was the church of Christ knowne when the congregation of christen men either of all or of manie were holie the which holinesse had not the wicked men But nowe christen men are as euill or worse then heretiks or Gentiles yea greater continence is found among them then among christen men Wherefore he the will knowe which is the verie church of Christ how shal he know but by the scriptures only And therefore our Lord considering that the great confusion of things should come in the latter daies for that cause coÌ„maunded he that christen men willing to reserue the stablenesse of the true faith shuld flée vnto none other thing but vnto the scriptures For if they haue respect vnto other things they shall bée slauÌ„dred shal perish not vnderstaÌ„ding which is the true church The same Doctour saith â— It can no waie bée knowne what is the Church but onelie by the Scriptures Againe Christ commaundeth that who so will haue the assuraunce of true faith séeke to nothing else but vnto the Scriptures Otherwise if they looke to anie thing else they shall be offended and shall perish not vnderstanding which is the true Church and by meanes héereof they shall fall into the abhomination of desolation which standeth in the holie places of the Church There bée certeine bookes of our Lord vnto the authoritie whereof each part agréeth there let vs séeke for the church Thereby let vs examine and trie our matter Againe hée saith in the same Chapter I will ye shew me the holie church not by decrées of men but by the word of God August de vnit eccl cap. 3. The question or doubt is where the Church should bee what then shall wée doe Whether shall we séeke the Church in our owne wordes or in the wordes of her head which is our Lord Iesus Christ In my iudgement we ought rather to séeke the Church in his words for that he is the truth and best knoweth his owne bodie August de vnit eccle Chap. 2. Whether of vs be Scismatikes wée or you aske not me I will not aske you Let Christ be asked that hée maie shewe vs his owne Church Augustine cont litter Petilium li. 2. chap. 85. In times past saith Chirsostome there were manie waies to knowe the church of Christ that is to saie by good lyfe by myracles by chastitie by doctrine by ministring the Sacraments But from that time heresies did take holde of the church it is onelie knowne by the Scriptures which is the true church They haue all things in outward shew which the true church hath in truth They haue Temples like vnto ours c. Wherefore onely by the Scriptures doe we knowe which is the true church Verses Hoc est nescire sine Christo plurima scire Si Christum bene sâ—is satis est si caetera nescis Englished This is to be ignorant to know manie things without Christ If thou knowest Christ well thou knowest inough though thou knowest no more What is meant by the militant and triumphant Church Men doe diuide the true Church of Christ into the militant the triumphant church So that the militant church should be of them which doe yet trauaile in this mortall flesh do striue with Satan the flesh and the worldâ— The triumphant of them which are passed to heauen and haue ouercome all manner of their enimies In this sort Augustine placeth the Angels also These bée not two churches but the
in the sixt yeare of the same Darius So that from the second yeare of Cyrus vnto the. 6. yeare of Darius were 46. yeares wherein they were a building The meaning of this place following I will worship towards the holy Temple c. ¶ Both the temple and ceremoniall seruice at Christs comming wer abolished so that now God will be worshipped onely in spirit and truth Geneua Of them that trusted in the outward seruice of the Temple Trust not in lyeng words saieng The Temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord c. ¶ Beleeue not the false Prophets which say that for the temples sake the sacrifice there the Lord will preserue you and so nourish you in your sinne and vaine confidence for in the next verse after God sheweth on what condition he made his promise to this temple yâ— they should be an holy people vnto him as he would be a faithfull God vnto them Geneua How Churches or Temples are not to be builded to Saints Saint Austen in his booke De imitat Dei sayth plainely we build no Temple vnto our Martirs And againe in his first booke against Maximinus a Bishop of the Arrians if we shuld saith he build a Church of timber stones vnto some excellent holy Angell shoulde we not be accursed by the truth of Christ and the Church of God Therefore if we should commit sacriledge in making a temple to euery creature whatsoeuer how may it be that God is not true vnto whome wée make no Temple but wée our selues are a Temple for him Bullinger fol. 1127. How the Pope doth sit in the temple of God as God Compare the commaundements of God with the constitutions of men and you shall easily vnderstand yâ— the Bishop of Rome whom they call the Pope to sit in the temple of God as God and to bée extolled aboue all that is named God It is written The Temple of the Lorde is holy which is you Therfore the conscience of man is the temple of the holy Ghost in which Temple I will proue the Pope to sit as God and to be exalted aboue all that is called God For who so contemneth the Decalogue or the Table of the ten commandements of God there is but a smal punishment for him neither is that punishment to death but contrariwise he that shall contemne or violate speaking to Frier Brusiard the constitutions which you call the sanctions of men is counted by all mens iudgements guiltie of death what is this but the Bishop of Rome to sit and to reigne in the Temple of God that is in mans conscience as God Bilney in the booke of Mar. fol. 1140. TEMPTATION What Temptation is TEmptation is nothing else but to take proofe or triall of any thing wherefore the end of temptation is rightly called knowledge And they which will passe ouer a water doe trie out the shallowe places to know the depth of the water wounds also are tried of Surgions to féele the déepenesse of them In tempting therefore knowledge is sought But God néedeth not that new and fresh knowledge for such is his nature that he knoweth all things most perfectly But when he tempteth he onely doth it to leade men to the knowledge of those things which they ought to knowe Wherefore when he sometime tempteth good and holymen hée bringeth into lyght and maketh open the fayth obedienceâ— strength and godlynesse which before laye hidde in their heartes that they which sée the same things might glorifie God the authour of them And that they which are so tempted when they haue gotten the victorye may giue thankes and desire of him that euen as he hath done now so he woulde vouchsafe to helpe them continually in temptations Pet. Mar. vpon Iudic fol. 33. How temptation generally is not euill All temptations or tryall is not euill For God tempted his seruauntes One friende is tempted of an other The childe is tried by the Father the wife by her husband the seruaunt by his Maister not that they might bée hurt by tryall but rather that they might thereby bée profited The Diuell also tempteth wherevpon also hee is called a temptor in the Scripture Also enimies vse to tempt not to profite thereby but to hurt and destroye This kinde of temptation is wicked Therefore the Lorde hath exhorted vs to beware of those which tempt with an euill minde when hée willeth vs not onely to bee innocent as Doues but also wise as Serpents Marlo vpon Iohn fol. 283. The Israelites are rebuked of Moses for tempting the Lord. Wherefore do ye tempt the Lord. ¶ Why distrust you God Why looke ye not for succour of him without murmuring against God Geneua How God tempteth no man to euill God tempteth not vnto euill ¶ Almightye GOD hath euer tempted and proued his elect by trouble and persecution and by nurâ—uring them with outwarde plagues neuerthelesse he doth it not vnto euill but for good namelye because he loueth them and will haue their fayth exercised Thus tempted hée Abraham Genesis 22. â— and the Israelites Deut. 8. 2. As for temptation that we praye in our Pater noster to bee deliuered from it is the 〈…〉 and concupiscence of our flesh whereby we are entised vnto euill Tindale ¶ This worde to Tempt is taken two manner of wayes first it â—etokeneth to entice a man to euill after this sayeng we saye that God tempted no man For as GOD is of his owne nature good and canâ—e in no wise be entised to euill so doth hée moue or entice no man to sinne which he himselfe doth detest and abhorre Héere we learne that if we sinne we ought not to putte the fault in God but in our owne selues Secondly this worde to Tempt is taken for to proue As when wée saye God tempted Abraham Gen. 22. 1. And that hée did tempt the Israelites Deut. 8. 2. that is to saye did proue Abraham and tryed the Israelites whether they loued him or not Sir I. Cheeke Of the Pharesies and Saduces tempting of Christ. Then came the Pharesies and Saduces to tempt him ¶ To trye whether hée coulde doe that which they desired but their purpose was naught for they thought to finde some thing in him by that meanes wherevpon they might haue iust occasion to reprehende him Or distrust and curiositye moued them so to doe for by such meanes also is God sayde to bée tempted that is to saye prouoked to anger as though men would striue with him Beza ¶ Men tempt God either by their incrudelitie or curiositie Geneua How Christ is tempted of the Diuell To bée tempted of the Diuell ¶ To the ende hée ouercomming these temptations might gette the victorye for vs. Geneua Christ is by and by after Baptime tempted which thing we must looke for Yea the more wée shall encrease in fayth and vertuous liuing the more strongly will Satan assault vs. Sir I. Cheeke When the diuell had ended his temptations
As manie as I loue I rebuke and chasten ¶ To chastice saith Gasper Megander is to correct one to his behoose And therfore héere is to be noted the difference betwéene the afflictions of the godlie the vngodlie for the godlie are afflictted to their owne profit namelie that they maie be nurtured to patience holde fast in the feare of the Lord according as you maie sée in Iob. 5. 17. lere 31. 18. and. 47. 28. Pro. 3. 11. Heb. 12. 6. But the correction of the vngodlie is called a consuming of them Ieremie 30. 23. 24. and 46. 10. And therefore the chosen doe amend at the Lords chatisement as did Dauid 3. Reg. 12. 13. but the reprobates are hardened the more by Gods scourge as Pharao was Exo. 9. 7. 35. Marlo vpon the Apo. fol. 69. Whie the iust be afflicted There are two principall causes whie God doth yéelde the iust men to be punished of the vngodlie and vniust The one is for their exercise the other for a speciall example For exercise that they maie thereby be trained in faith hope praier and praise of his name Such a matter Paule expressed saieng We will not haue you ignorant brethren of our trouble which betided vs in Asia c. The other is the elect and godlie persons be made examples of faith and patience when they doe with constant faith and sufferaunce beare the struglings of their afflictions in this world and so doe shine as bright as starres in the Church of the faithfull c. Musculus fol. 511. How our afflictions suffered for the truth shall be witnesses against our enimies And this shall turne to you for a testimoniall ¶ This shall be the end of your troubles and afflictions They shall be witnesse both before God and man as well of the trecherous and cruell dealing of your enimies as also of your constancie A notable saieng that the afflictions of the godlie and holie men perteine to the witnesse of the truth Beza ¶ This their sufferance shall both be a great confirmation of the Gospell and also by their constancie the tyrannie of their enimies shall at length be manifest before God and man Chapter 12. 12. Mathew 10. 19. Marke 13. 11. Geneua How afflictions are called light things For our light afflictions which is but for a moment ¶ Afflictions are not called light as though they were light of themselues but because they passe awaie quicklie when as indeede our whole life is of no great continuaunce Beza Light afflictions which is so called in respect of the euerlasting life Geneua How the rest of Christs afflictions are fulfilled And fulfill the rest of Christs afflictions c. ¶ The afflictions of the Church are said to bée Christes afflictions by reason of that fellowshippe and knitting together that the bodie and the head haue the one with the other not that there is anie more néede to haue the Church redéemed but that Christ sheweth his power in the dailie weaknesse of his and that for the comfort of the whole bodie As Christ hath once suffered in himselfe to redéeme his Church to sanctifie it so doth he dailie suffer in his members as partakers of their infirmities and therefore a reuenger of their iniuries Geneua Looke passion AGAINST Who is against Christ and who not WHosoeuer is not against vs is on our side ¶ Hée that doth not withstand the Gospell nor let the preaching of it but rather doth fauour it and willeth it to bée set foorth suffering himselfe to bée taught and rebuked by it though that he doe not followe Christ in all things yet ought wée not to count him for an enimie but much rather for a friend Christ saith in the. 12. Chapter of Mathew He that is not with me is against me but that saieng is nothing contrarie to this where he saith Hée that is not against vs is with vs. For in the twelfe of Mathew he speaketh of open blasphemies and haters of the truth Sir I. Cheeke Although he shew not himselfe to be mine yet in that he beareth reuerence to my name it is inough for vs. Geneua He that is not with mée is against me ¶ Hée declareth to the Pharesies that they were in two sorts his enimies not onelie because they did forsake him but also make open war against him Geneua AGONIE Whie Christ was in such an agonie BUT being in an agonie he praied more earnestlie ¶ This agonie sheweth that Christ stroue much was in great distresse for Christ stroue not onelie with the feare of death as other men vse to doe for so manie martyrs might séeme more constant then Christ but with the fearfull iudgement of his angrie Father which is the fearefullest thing in the world and the matter was for that he tooke the burthen of all our sinnes vpon himselfe Beza ¶ The word signifieth the honour that Christ had receiued not onelie for feare of death but of his Fathers iudgement and wrath against sinne Geneua AGRIPPA For what cause Agrippa was so willing to heare Paule I Would also heare the man my selfe ¶ Agrippa will heare Paule not for to learne the truth whereof he was nothing desirous but that he might heare some new thing beeing in this matter like vnto manie which now a daies goe to sermons not to learne how to amend their liues but to heare newes Sir I. Cheeke Agrippa said vnto Paule somewhat thou perswadest me to be a Christian. ¶ He sawe a little light but it was soone out much like vnto those that hearing a Sermon are for the time well minded but after returne to their olde trade The Bible note ALABASTER What the propertie of Alabaster is SAuing an Alabaster bore ¶ This was a verie fine and delicate boxe being made of Alabaster which was a kinde of glasse verie necessarie to preserue ointment in it was so called of the Grecians and of taking the primatiue A because for the smoothnesse thereof it could not be held Plâ—ie in his 36. booke and viij Chapter maketh mention of the Alabaster stone For when he had spolien in the. 35. Chapter of the Onix stone he goeth forward thus Some men saith he call this the Alabaster stone the which they make holowe to put in ointment bicause it is said to preserue the same verie well These things agrée with that which Homere writeth saieng the little Onir will drawe vnto it a pipe of the Oile Spiknard or Nardus ointment Marl. vpon Mathew fol. 620. ALBANENSES The opinions that these heretiâ—es held THis sect began about the yeare of our Lord. 1120. which held sundrie heresies One was that the soule of man after his death was put into an other bodie An other that Baptisme was of no efficacie The third that there were two Gods one good and an other euill And that of the good God procéeded good thinges and of the euill God euill things The fourth that in hell were
The Church is likened to a Candelsticke because the true light shineth in it whereof all the godly are pertakers And therefore Paule calleth the Church the piller and ground-worke of truth 1. Tim. 3. 15. Or els Christs Church is called a candelstick because there are in it Prophets Apostles Euangelists Pastors and Teachers Eph. 4. 11. to giue light vnto others by the most wholesome doctrine of Christ together with the holinesse of their owne life thereby to guide them in their trauailing through the darknesse of this life vnto the heauenlie heritage as it is said 2. Pet. 1. 19. The Church then is as a cresset set vp in an hauen to shewe the hauen a farre off to such as wander vpon the déepe sea in the night season Euen so doth our Sauiour saie of Iohn Baptist that he was a burning and blasing cresset Iohn 5. 35. And vnto his disciples You are the light of the world Mat. 5. 14. Marl. vpon the Apo. fo 28. ¶ Consider also the 7. golden candelstickes which thou sawest about me to be the said 7. Congregations vpon whom I ought to shine which am the light of the world in whose works I ought to appeare which am the cléerenesse of the Gentiles They are called héere 7. golden Candelsticks as most pretious in value forsomuch as they are pretious in the sight of God and were also redéemed and bought with a great price euen with the pretious bloud of the vndefiled Lambe Iesus Christ. Bale CAPTIVITIE The meaning of this place following HE that leadeth into Captiuitie goeth into Captiuitie ¶ This is said for the comfort of the godly to the end they maie knowe that they shall be deliuered from captiuitie and conâ—rariwise that such as holde them captine shall be caried into captiuitie according to this text He lead Captiuitie captiue Psa. 68. 18. Eph. 4. 8. Wherwithall agreeth this saieng of yâ— Prophet Woe vnto thée that spoilest hast not bene spoiled which dost wrong hast had no wrong done vnto thée For when thou hast done spoiling thou shalt be spoiled thy selfe when thou hast made an ende of doing wrong thou shalt haue wrong done vnto thée Esay 33. 1. Also Behold the Lord commeth with his thousand of Saints to doe iudgement vpon all men and to reproue all such as are wicked of all the deeds which they haue wrought wickedlie and of all the hard things that the wicked sinners haue spoken against thée Iude. vers 14. 15. Also It belongeth to Gods righteousnes to render affliction vnto such as afflict you and vnto you that are afflicted reliefe c. 2. The. 1. 6. Most foolish then are they and farre from vnderstanding the minde of the Holie Ghost which impute the Turkes suceesse victories to his religion and iust dealing and not rather to their owne sinnes For they are like those that fathered all the prosperitie of the Heathen vpon the seruing of their Idols and conâ—rariwise their owne miserie vpon the neglecting of their Idol seruice as it is written in Iere. 44. 18. Therefore such as lead men captine from the faith and doctrine of the Gospell as Antichrist now doth shall be lead into captiuitie of endlesse damnation except they repent Marl. vpon the Apo. fol. 194. ¶ As God ouercame the enimies of his Church tooke them prisoners and made them tributaries so Christ which is God manifested in flesh subdued Satan and sinne vnder vs gaue vnto his Church most liberall giftes of his spirit Geneua ¶ The Messias came downe from heauen into the earth to triumph ouer Satan Death and Sinne and lead them as prisoners and slaues which before were Conquerours and kept all in subiection which victorie he gate and also gaue it as a most pretious gift to his Church Geneua CARE What Care is forbidden BE not carefull afore hand c. ¶ We are not forbidden to thinke before hand but pensiue carefulnesse whereby men discourage themselues which procéedeth from distrust want of confidence and sure hope of Gods assistaunce that carefulnesse we are forbidden to beware of Mat. 6. 27. Beza ¶ All manner of Care is not forbidden but that worldlie diuelish care yâ— springeth of an inordinate loue to worldlie things and of mistrust in God As for an example I couet inordinate more then sufficient or but euen that I haue néede of And it because I mistrust God and haue no hope in him and therfore praie not to him commeth not then I mourne forrowe pine awaie and am whole vnquiet in my heart Or whether I haue too much or but sufficient and loue it inordinatelie then I care for the kéeping And because I mistrust God and not hope in him that he will helpe me therefore when I haue locked dores chambers and cofers I am neuer the néerer at rest but care still and cast a thousand waies and perills of which yâ— most part were not in my might to auoide if I neuer slept where this care is there can the word of God haue no resting place but is choked vp as soone as it is sowen Tindale fol. 236. Care not then for to morrow c. ¶ It is commanded vs in the sweate of our faces to winne our bread but not to be carefull what profit should come vnto vs thereof for that were to care for to morrow we must commit that to God which to prosper our labours with his blessing and that abundantlie so that most shall we profit when we are least carefull Tind ¶ God will prouide for euerie daie that that shall be necessarie though we doe not increase the present griefe by the carefulnesse how to liue in time to come Geneua What care we ought chiefely to care for Care daie by daie and houre by houre earnestly to kéepe the couenaunt of the Lord thy God and to record therein daie and night and to do thy part vnto the vttermost of thy power And as for Gods part let him care for it himselfe and beleeue thou his word stedfastlie and be sure that heauen and earth shal sooner perish then one iot bide behind of that he hath promised c. Tindale fol. 235. CARPOCRATES Of his wicked opinions and diuelish illusions CArpocrates as Ireneus li. I. ca. 24. writeth liued in the time of Saturnius Basilides He gloried of charmed loue drinks of diuelish dreames of associate spirits Euse. li. 4. cap. 7. Carpocrates patched his opinions out of Simon Menander Nicholas Saturnius Basilides Besides the wicked doctrine of these Heretikes which he maintained he worshipped as Epiphanius saith the Images of Iesus of Paule Pythagoras Plato Aristotle c. He denied that the bodie should be saued Epipha haeres 27. Augu. li. de haeres Eliote rehearseth his opinions on this wise He denied saith he Christ to be God affirming that he was pure man Affirmed also the world to be made by Angels He reiected the olde Law and denied the generall resurrection He denied
and strong doubting of altering in no parte but by all meanes studieth euerie daie to make their faith more stronger and stronger by all manner of good workes Bibliander vpon Iude. HELINDIVS What his heresie was HElindius said that Marie was a Uirgin when Christ was borne Yet afterward to haue borne the bretheren of Christ. August Gennad catalog vir illustrâ— HEM How we touch the hem of Christs vesture ANd touched the hem of his vesture ¶ We touch the hem of Christs vesture when we beléeue that he did take our fraile nature vpon him to heale the filthie diseases of our corruptible flesh Sir I. Cheeke HEMEROBAPTISTS What manner of Heretikes they were THe Hemerobaptists were Iewes in all points they affirmed that it was impossible for anie man to attaine vnto euerlastiâ—g life vnlesse he were euerie daie purified and baptised Epiphan perâ—a lib. 1. de heres HENOCH What his taking vp into heauen signifieth THis is not Henoch the first sonne of Caâ— but Henoch the sonne of Iared whose taking vp into heauen doth manifest vnto vs the immortalitie that remaineth after this life and that God would iudge the world who will saue those that be righteous and dampne those that be wicked Lanquet For God tooke him awaie ¶ To shewe that there was a better life prepared and to be a Testimonie of the immortalitie of soules and bodies As to enquire where he became is méere curiositie Geneua HER AND ANAN How they were slaine for not vsing the lawfull benefite of mariage HEr the eldest sonne of Iuda was maried to Thamar of Mesopotamia the daughter of Aran. Now Her was a wicked impe and doubted of Thamar because she was not of the lande of Chanaan therfore the Angell of the Lord slew him the third night after his mariage when he had not yet companied with hir by reason of his mothers subtiltie and so he died in his naughtinesse for she was loath that he should haue anie child by hir When Anan was mariageable Thamar was giuen vnto him and he also of a spite companied not with hir notwithstanding that he liued a full yeare with hir and when he was threatened of his father Iuda then he companied with hir but yet by his mothers commandement he let his séed fall vpon the ground and so he also died in his wickednesse ¶ This Storie is in the booke of the 12. Patriarks HEARE HIM How Christ is to be heard in all things THis is my deare sonne in whom I delight heare him ¶ Sith that we are from aboue by the voice of the heauenlie Father bidden to heare Christ we ought not as Saint Cyprian saith to care what the Fathers haue done before vs but much rather what Christ which was before the Fathers did commaund vs to doe that are we most bound to follow and to doe Sir I. Cheeke HERESIE The definition of Heresie AS touching the definition of Heresie S. Austen saith To expresse by orderly definition what thing maketh and Heretike as I iudge is either impossible or verie hard ¶ The word Heresie is deriued of a Uerbe which signifieth to elect or chuse vnto themselues some certain opinions which are against the holy Scriptures and do stubbornly defend the same And the causes of this their choise for the most part are either because they are ignoraunt of the holy Scriptures or els if they knowe them they despise them and being driuen by some couetousnesse they apply themselues to the inuention of some errours Wherefore Augustine in his booke De vtilitate credendi writeth An Heretike is he which for the loue of gaine or rule either bringeth vp or els followeth new opinions The definition therefore of Heresie is a choice and stubborne defending of opinions which are against the holy Scriptures either by reason of ignoraunce or els contempt of them to the ende the easier to obtaine their owne pleasures and commodities The choise and stubborne defending is in this definition in steed of the forme but the opinions disagréeing with the holy Scriptures serue for the matter Pride and couetousnesse make Heresie And the obtaining of dignities gaine and pleasures are appointed the endes of this so great a mischiefe By this definition it is manifest inough as I thinke who be Heretikes Pet. Mar. vpon Iudic. fol. 58. What things are required for the proofe of Heresie For iust proofe of Heresie thrée things necessarie are required for the proofe of Heresie First that it be an errour Second that it be an errour against the truth of Gods word Thirdly that it be stoutly and willingly maintained Otherwise an errour in Gods truth without wilfull maintenaunce is not an Heresie S. Austen saith Errare possum c. In an errour I maie be but an Heretike I cannot be Iewel How Heresie is to be auoyded and punished A man that is giuen to Heresie after the first and second admonition auoid c. After that the godlie Minister hath by the mightie word of God conuinced any man of heresie if that man will obstinately abide in his erronious opinion doctrine it is lawfull for the godly Magistrate to punish him with the sword this place which doth only pertain to the Minister vnto whom the temporall sword is not deliuered notwithstanding Paule did smite Bariesu with blindnesse Act. 13. 11. And the Lord Deut. 13. 5. did commaund yâ— the false Prophet shall be slaine put to death This law is not yet abolished Sir I. Cheeke ¶ This Commaundement is giuen to the Minister and so particularly to all men to whom the sword is not committed but els the Magistrate whose chiefe office is to maintain Gods glorie in his Church ought to cut of all such rotten infectious members from the bodie Geneua HERETIKE What is to be done with Heretikes MY bretheren saith Iames if anie of you doe straie from the truth so that anie man conuert him he must know that who soeuer doe cause a sinner to turne from the errour of his waie shall saue a soule from death But now a daies you maie find men that will trauaile rather to ouerthrow then to turne heretiks The Lord saith Augustin doth ouerthrow the kingdomes of errour through his seruaunts but he giueth charge that the men forasmuch as they be men should be rather reformed then lost Neither ought we to dispaire of the turning of our brother which is fallen into Heresie For vnlesse that such a one might be conuerted by the grace of the Lord the aduise of Iames hadde bene vtterly to no purpose This Augustine knew well and therefore he emploied himselfe whollie vnto the conuerting of Heretikes and that with great lenitie and mildenesse of spirite according vnto the monition of the Apostle Againe he saith It was our dutie to chuse and to wish the best that we might make our waie to your reformation not in contention wrawling and persecution but by comforting of you gently by aduising you fauourably by
beléeue but to them that beléeue not And plainly to argue that a thing is good because a miracle is shewed by it or else to approue a present vse by that which néedfully sometime was done hath too many absurdities and inconueniences to bée yéelded to D. Calfehill Whether we should beleeue miracles If onely the word of God is to be beléeued why said Christ that if they would not beléeue him they should yet at the least beleeue his works To this we aunswere that miracles are as testimonies by which men are the easilier brought to beléeue so that they are things by meanes whereof men beléeue not that faith is directed vnto them as vnto his obiect although as touching the miracles of Christ of the Apostles we must beléeue yâ— they were done by God not by Belzabub or by the diuell as the Pharesies slaunderously reported and this is conteined in the word of God for it giueth testimony yâ— these miracles should be wrought that they were wrought in their due time namely in the preaching of the second doctrine c. Pet. Mar. vpon the Rom. fol. 326. In olde time it was knowne by miracles who were the true Christians and who the false but nowe the working of miracles is taken quite away and rather found among them that be false Christians Why miracles be not done now a daies To these that demaund this question why is not miracles done now a daies by the ministers of Gods word Aunswere Because that the glorie of Christ truth of Gods word was confirmed by miracles long agoe which being done they haue discharged their duetie Hemmyng Pope Leo maketh them answere thus ye foolish Scribes wicked Priests the power of our sauiour was not to be shewed at the discretion of your blindnesse God sheweth his miracles when and where and to whom he will Whosoeuer requireth miracles to bring him to the faith is himself a great miracle that the world beléeuing remaineth still in vnbeliefe How Miracles are wrought by the diuell In the end of time power shal be giuen to the diuel to work profitable signes and miracles so that then we cannot knowe the mysteries of Christ by that they work profitable miracles but by that they worke no miracles Let no man say saith S. Austen therfore it is true for that this man or that man hath wrought this or that miracle or for that men make their praiers at the tombs of the dead and obteine their desire or for that these or these miracles be wrought there c. Away with these things they may be either the iuglings and mockeries of deceitfull men or else illusions of lieng spirits S. Austen saith Contra istos c. My God hath warned me to beware of those mongers of miracles saieng In the last day shall rise vp false Prophets working signes wonders to the end of it be possible to bring the elect to errour behold I haue forewarned you therfore the bridegrome hath willed vs to beware for we may not be deceiued no not by miracles Alexander of Halys saith In the sacrament it selfe there appeareth flesh sometimes by the conueiance of men sometimes by the working of the diuell Nicholas de Lyra saith sometime in the Church the people is shamefullye deceiued with feined miracles wrought either by the Priestes or else by their companions for lucre sake S. Austen saith to Faustus the Maniche ye worke no miracles and yet if ye wrought anie at your hands we wold take heede of them The Prophet Ieremy saith They haue deceiued my people by their lies and by their false miracles These wonders which they call miracles be wrought daily in the Church not by the power of God as many one thinke but by the illusion of Satan rather who as the Scripture witnesseth hath bene loose now abroad 500. yeares according as it is written in the booke of the Apocalips after a thousand years Satan shall be loose c. Neither are they to be called miracles of true christian men but illusions rather whereby to delude mens mindes to make them put their trust in our Ladie and in other Saints and not in God alone to whom be honour and glory for euer Bilney in the bo of Mar. fol. 1140. Vulgus hominuÌ„ c. The common people saith he estéemeth Saints by miracles counteth him the greater that hath done mâ— miracles but they erre manifestly that so iudge Miracles are indéed to vse S. Paules words the operatioÌ„ of great works the gift of the holy Ghost But heereon they are not onely estéemed Saints else the blessed virgin and Iohn Baptist were of all Saints yâ— least that are dead to haue wrought no miracles We may not therefore esteeme Saints héerevpon Moreouer oftentimes miracles are giuen to the euill for many shall say in yâ— day Lord Lord haue we not cast out diuels in thy name and I shall say vnto them I haue not knowne you Why Christ did not many miracles in his owne country And he did not many miracles thereâ— c. ¶ Christ might haue wrought miracles yea though they beleeued not but he did not work many yâ— for their own profit Least if he had done there as he did in other places their condemnation should haue ben greater Sir I. Cheeke How to know true miracles from false Euen as we take those Sacraments for true Sacraments ceremonies which preach vnto vs Gods word so do we account these for true miracles only which moue vs to harken vnto yâ— word of God Other rule theÌ„ this to discerne theÌ„ by ther is not namely yâ— the true are done to prouoke meÌ„ to come harkeÌ„ vnto Gods word and yâ— false to confirme doctrine yâ— is not gods word How faith grounded vpon miracles abideth not What a multitude came out of Aegipt vnder Moses of which the Scripture testifieth yâ— they beléeued moued by yâ— miracles of Moses Neuertheles yâ— scripture testifieth yâ— vi hundred thousaÌ„d of those beléeuers perished through vnbeliefe left their carcasses in the wildernes neuer entred into yâ— land yâ— was promised them Iudas beléeued because of Christ his miracles Symon Magus beléeued through occasion of Philips preaching but Peter sayde that his heart was not aâ—ight with God Act. 8. How false teachers shall deceiue by nothing more then by miracles Christ saith there shall arise false anointed and false Prophets and shall shew great miracles Also in the same chapter verse 5. Many shall come in my name c. by the which words it appeareth that they must be in the church of Christ of them that shall call themselues Christians What the cause of false miracles is The cause of false miracles is for that they loue not the truth and therfore God hath promised by S. Paule to send them abundance of false miracles to stablish them in lies and to deceiue them lead them
to this word of persecuting The first is touched in Samuel Saule sought or pursued for Dauid euery day but the Lord did not deliuer him into his handes What is it els to séeke a man euery day to slay him but to persecute him continually Of the second we doe read in the same Chapter where he saith But in case he doe hyde him in the earth I will search for him amongst or out of all the thousands of Iuda He meaneth that he will search for Dauid diligently in euery corner and that he will omit nothing touching the persecution of him And Dauid vsed this word properly in the Psalme saieng I will persecute mine enimies and ouertake them I will not returne till they shrinke I will breake them so that they shall not be able to stand they shall fall vnder my féete When he saith I will persecute mine enimies and ouertake them he doth expresse the purpose of them which doe persecute which is bent to this ende to ouertake and catch them whom they doe persecute And whereas he doeth adde I will not returne vntill they doe shrinke it declareth his earnest diligence and desire in the persecution or following And that poynt I will breake them and crush them together that they shall not be able to stand they shall fall vnder my féete expresseth the reuenge which the persecutour entendeth to take vppon him when hée doeth persecute And these bée the partes of full and perfect persecution continually without ceasing to persecute to catch and to reuenge Musculus fol. 516. How some persecution is iust and some wrong If that be the true Church saith Augustin which suffereth persecution not that which doth it so said the Donatist let them aske of the Apostle what church Sara signified when the did persecute hir hand-maid for he saith that the frée woman our mother the heauenly Hierusalem that is to say the true Church of God was figured in that woman which afflicted hir handmayd And a little after Againe I demaunde in case that the good and holy doe persecute none but onely suffer whose saieng suppose they that the same is in the Psalme where we read I will persecute mine enimies and ouertake them and I will not tourne till they shrinke Therefore if we speake and acknowledge the truth that is a wrongfull persecution which the vngodly maketh vpon the Church of Christ and that persecution is iust which the Church of Christ maketh against the vngodly Thus saith Augustine Musculus fol. 518. How the Church doth persecute The Church saith Augustine in the place before doth persecute by louing to reforme and to call men backe from errour and to make them to profite in the truth And it is like the persecution of a louing mother and not of a spitefull stepdame Such I would haue the Church persecution saith Musculus when the rulers of the Church shall in the name of the Church persecute not the innocent but the hurtful more politikely then Church lyke But whereas the false shepheards vnder pretence of heresie and schisme doe persecute not the Goates which they cherish but the true shéepe of Christ which doe follow the voice of their onely shepheard and doe abhorre the voice of straungers with banishment and out-lawe prison wrongfull iudgements snare sword faggot and fire what shall we call it els but the tyranny of Antichrist whereas Augustine sayd that is a wrongfull persecution which the vngodly maketh against the Church of Christ he might well haue added therevnto and that in ten times more wrongfull which the malignant Church worketh against the godly But in his time the Romish Tyranny had not yet so openly set vp hir shamelesse head to practise all kinde of persecutions and publike oppressions of them that would discent from them Musculus fol. 519. Wherefore the true Christians are persecuted Blessed are they that suffer persecution for righteousnesse sake ¶ If the faith of Christ and lawe of God be written in thine heart that is if thou beleeue in Christ to be iustified from sinne or for remission of sinne and consentest in thine heart to the lawe that it is good holy and iust and thy dutie to do it and submittest thy selfe so to do and therevpon goeth forth and testifieth that faith righteousnesse openly vnto the world in word and déede Then will Satan stirre vp his members against thée and thou shalt be persecuted on euery side but bée of good comfort and faint not Call to minde the saieng of Saint Paule 2. Timothy 3. 12. Now all that will lyue godlye in Christ Iesu shall suffer persecution c. Tindale Chrisostome saith Doth the Shéepe persecute the Wolfe at any time No but the Wolfe doth persecute the Shéepe For so Cain persecuted Abel not Abel Cain So Ismael persecuted Isaac not Isaac Ismael so the Iewes persecuted Christ not Christ the Iewes So the Heretikes persecute the Christians and not the Christians the Heretikes Therefore ye shall knowe them by their fruites Againe Chrisostome saith in the same place Whomsoeuer ye sée reioyce in the bloud of persecution he is a Wolfe Iewel fol. 2. Moses saith Ismael plaied or sported with Isaac But Saint Paule saith the same plaieng and sporting was persecution For thus he writeth He that was after the flesh persecuted him that was after the spirit D. Heynes How the Christians in persecution doth multiply The Christians saith S. Austen were bound were imprisoned were beaten wer tormented were burnt and yet wer multiplied c. The miserable ende of certaine cruell persecutors Saule did murder himselfe Achitophel hanged himselfe Iudas did the lyke Sennacherib murdered of his owne sons Herode and Antiochus murdered by lyce Pilate murdered of himselfe Nero murdered of himselfe Dioclesian and Maximianus Emperours deposed themselues Maximinus eaten vp with lyce Maxentius and Pharao both drowned in their owne harnesse PETER Why Peter is called chiefe of the Apostles THey say that Peter was chiefe of the Apostles verely◠as Appelles was called chiefe of Painters for his excellent cunning aboue other euen so Peter may be called chiefe of the Apostles for his actiuitie and boldnesse aboue the other But that Peter had anys authoritie or rule ouer his bretheren and fellow Apostles is false contrary to the Scripture Christ forbad it euen the last houre before his Passion and in diuers times before and taught alway the contrary Tindale fo 143. Of Peters confession When Peter had professed the very true confession of Christ that he was the Sonne of God Christ said to him Thou art Peter and vpon this Rocke I will build my Church that is to say vpon the faith whereby thou hast confessed and acknowledged me And that Christ by this Rocke wherevpon he said he would build his Church did vnderstand and meane himselfe Saint Austen doth write in an Homely which he hath written vpon this place where he saith If Christ would haue layed the
they that are vnder Christs Priesthoode are not vnder the sacrifices or ceremonies And of this manner iuggle they with all the Scripture which falshoode least the laye men shoulde perceiue with reading the processe of the text is all their feare whatsoeuer they pretend Tindale Moe of the Papists reasons for the Popes supremacie Peter drewe his sword and cut of Malchas eare therefore the Pope is head of the Church The world was finished in 7. daies therefore none must marrie within 7. degrees of kinred God made two great lights the Sunne the Moone therefore as much as the Sun is brighter then yâ— Moone so much yâ— Pope is greater then the Emperour The Prophet saith Behold the face of thine annoynted this saith the Pontificall is a Bishops prayer ouer the Popes Legate when he knéeleth before the Altar Behold I send my messenger to prepare the way before thy face saith God by the Prophet Esay the Pontificall this is a Prophecie fulfilled when the Popes Legate méeteth the Emperour to receiue him into any Citie I haue found Dauid my seruaunt and annoynted him with holy Oyle My Loue is beautifull among the daughters of Hierusalem this they apply to Kings Quéenes when the Clergie receiueth them personally into their Churches The Prophet saith Sprinkle me Lord with Hisope I shall be cleane that they apply to the Priest sprinkling with holy water Lift vp your heads O ye gates ye euerlasting dores lift vp your selues that is when the Clearke openeth the Church dore for the Priest to come in with the Crosse on Palme Sunday Ten thousand such applications and expositions are in their bookes such as no bedlem man could deuise more vaine and foolish Deering ¶ Looke Vniuersall head How the Popes Doctors proue him the head of the Church Nicolaus Cusanus saith The truth cleaâ—eth fast to the Popes chaire therefore the members vnited to the chaire and ioined to the Pope make the Church Iohannes de parisijs saith There shall be one flocke one shepheard which thing cannot be taken of Christ we must néedes vnderstande it of some other Minister that ruleth in his stéede Hosius saith It is so necessary a thing that one onely man ouer rule the whole Church that without the same the Church cannot be one The Canonists say It is plaine that therefore the Church is one because that in the whole vniuersall Church is one supreame head that is the Pope They alledge S. Hieroms words to the same purpose The safetie of the Church hangeth of the worship of the high Priest meaning the Pope Peters successour But S. Hierome meant not thereby the Bishop of Rome but euery seuerall Bishoppe within his owne charge euerye which Bishop he calleth the high Priest Of the Popes triple crowne and signification thereof A man can receiue nothing except it be giuen him from aboue ¶ If a man can receiue nothing except it be giuen him from heauen that howsoeâ—er humaine wisedome braggeth and boasteth it selfe yet notwithstanding it cannot haue in verye déede that which it hath not receiued from heauen although the world attribute the same vnto him Therefore although the Bishop of Rome to signifie his power and authoritie in heauen earth and in hell weareth the triple crowne on his head and would haue all men to worship the same being héerein like vnto Iupiter of whom the Poet faigneth with the triple seepter yet notwithstanding because he hath receiued the same from Constantine as some affirme and not from heauen he sheweth himselfe to be vain-glorious and nothing inferiour in pride to Luciter And whereas his faulters and defenders obiect vnto the Church it skilleth not for it is not written hâ—ere by the Euangelist except it be giuen him from the Church but hée saith except it be giuen him from heauen Marl. vpon Iohn fol. 90. How the Pope blasphemeth God The Bishop of Rome ought to be abashed ashamed and to abhorre his owne pride For in this be outragiously doth offend God and blasphemeth him in that he presumeth to take this high name from our Bishoppe Christ in that he taketh away as much as lieth in him the glory of God the Maiestie appertaining to Christ in that he taketh vpon him these names onely appropriate to Christ. Summus Pontifex maximus Pontifex vniuersalis Pontifex The highest Bishop the greatest Bishop the vniuersal Bishop of al the world I much meruaile how he dare be so bolde to vsurpe and take these great names vpon him Greater blasphemie can there not be then to take from God that that naturally belongeth vnto him then to takâ— from God his glory and honour then to vindicate and take vppon him such high names as beséemeth no Christen man to vsurpe God said by his Prophet Non dabo gloriam meam alteri I will not giue my glory away to any other to any creature he doth reserue that glory that laud and honour that belongeth to him vnto himselfe no man to attempt so far no man to take so much vpon him B. Langland in the b. of Ma. fo 1251 How the Pope is an Idoll And the Lord saith Zachary said vnto me Take yet vnto thée the instrument of a foolish Shepheard for loe I will rayse vp a Shepheard in the lande which shall not looke for the thing that is lost nor séeke the tender Lambes nor heale that that is hurt nor féede that that standeth but he shall eate the flesh of the fat and teare their clawes in péeces O Idoll Shepheard that leaueth the flocke The sword shall be vpon his arme and vpon his right eye his arme shall be cleane dried vp his right eye shall be vtterly darkened ¶ Who exerciseth this tyranny ouer the people and the Princes too eating them to the bones yea bones and all deposing them destroieng them and pilling their kingdomes with insatiable extortions but yâ— Pope The Popish gloses ascribe it to Antichrist but they describe the Popes practises A Pastor in the land saith Lyra that is Antichrist to rule therein that shall not visite the forsaken that is he shall doe no worke of godlinesse but shall be of great crueltie toward the iust and therefore he saith and shall eate the flesh of the fat that is by spoyling of their goods and teare their clawes in péeces by afflicting and killing them Againe what Pastour may better be called an Idoll than this Antichrist the Pope That is called an Idoll saith Lyra that is worshipped for God and is not God And so shall it be of Antichrist that shall sit in the Temple of God as though he were God O Pastour and Idoll saith the Glose thou art so wicked that thou shalt not be called a worshipper of Idols but shalt be called an Idoll while thou wilt be worshipped of men who leaueth the flocke to be deuoured of Beastes that the Lorde had alwaies kept This Pastour shall therefore arise in Israel because the true
by Salt for as Salt maketh meates sauorie so godly wisdome causeth our communication and talke to be allowable and haue a grace we ought to take héede with whom and before whom we do talke according to the audience to moderate and rule our communication Sir I. Cheeke Let your speach be alwaies gratious c. ¶ Perteining to edification and mixt with no vanitie Geneua How the nature of Christ is set out by the ceremonie of salt Upon all thine offering thou shalt bring Salt ¶ By this ceremonie is the nature of Christ set forth which is figured in all sacrifices For Christ is the true and heauenly Salt by whoÌ„ all that beleeue in him be made sauorie and pleasant vnto God the father so that they shall neuer so putrifie that they shall Perish The Bible note How salt in Baptime is not Christs ordinaunce The vse of Salt in the olde Testament was appointed to the Iewes by the law prescribed by Moses to them that were vnder the lawe If it had bene Christs pleasure yâ— his ministers should haue looked backe vnto the rites of Moses taken out of them such as they listed he would rather haue had declared the same or els the Apostle wold haue done it wherefore our opinion is saith Musâ—ulus that this vse of Salt also in Baptime is to be attributed vnto yâ— wil worship of the Bishops Mus. fo 290 Of the salted couenant Let it be a salted couenant for euer ¶ Like as Salt doth preserue flesh from corruption so this couenant shuld be sure stable and incorruptible The Bible note Neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the couenant of thy God to be lacking ¶ All offerings must be salted with Salt signifieng that al our works must be directed after the doctrine of the Apostles and Prophets and then shall they be acceptable in the sight of the Lord if they sauour of the Salt thereof or else not T. M. What the sowing of Salt meaneth Destroied the citie and sowed Salt in the place ¶ He sowed Salt there to make it barren for euer for Salt maketh the â—round vnapt to bring forth any thing as saith Plinie in hisâ— 13. booke the. 17. chapter Abimelech after he had destroied the citie of Sichem soweâ— Salt therein which was a token of a wildernesse and desart For Salt drieth the ground and maketh it vnfruitfull In Hebrew Malach signifieth Salt Thereof commeth the Uerbe Malach which is to Salt but in the Coniâ—gation Niphal Niuilah is a Uerbe which signifâ—eth to destroy to breake downe to wast That word leremy vsed in his 14. chapter And Dauid in his 107. Psalme God turneth a fruitfull land into a saâ—â—ish ground that is maketh it wast desart In the yeare 1165. Frederike Oenobarbus the Emperour ouerthrew Millaine sowed Salt there For that citie tooke part with Alexander the third being Pope against Caesar which thing Frederike tooke in ill part Pet. Mar. vpon Iudic. fol. 170. SALVATION A firme Argument for the certeintie of our saluation ANd seeing it is sayd that faith shall be imputed vnto vs vnto righteousnesse as it was in times past imputed vnto Abraham we haue a most firme argument of the certeintie of saluation For as Abraham behaued himselfe towardes the promise of God as touching that he should haue issue So must we behaue our selues towardes the promises of the remission of sinnes But he was certeine neither doubted hée whereof we ought to be certeine of the saluation promised vnto vs and by no meanes to doubt thereof This reason let vs holde fast and not suffer it to slip from vs. Pet. Mar. vpon the Rom. fol. 96. As the holy Scriptures teacheth vs we ought to hope such is the nature of hope not to confound we may manifestly infer that we ought not to doubt of our saluation There are which pretend the their doubt héereof springeth for yâ— they are vncertein whether they shal perseuer vnto yâ— end or no. But these meÌ„ shuld coÌ„sider yâ— we ought alwais to pray for perseueraÌ„ce For as saith Cipriane whom Augustine followeth in all the things which we aske in the Lords prayer is included perseueraÌ„ce And as Iames teacheth we must aske without doubting wherfore it is manifest yâ— we must by no meanes doubt of perseuerance especially seeing we haue in our hearts the holy Ghost alwayes bearing an excellent testimonie vnto vs thereof For as Saint Paule saith in this Epistle It is the spirit that beareth witnesse to our spirit that we are the sonnes of God and â—e which hath not the spirit of Christ is none of his And Paul writeth of himselfe that he is sure that neither life nor death nor principalitie nor power can pluck him from yâ— loue of God namely from the loue wherewith God loued him Pet. Mar. vpon the Rom. fo 967. How without the Church is no light or saluation S. Cipriane De simplicitate praelatorum saith Whosoeuer is separated from the Church is ioyned to an adulterous church yâ— same man is separated from the promises of the church neither perteineth he to Christs merits which hath left yâ— church of Christ. He is a strauÌ„ger he is vncleane he is an enimy He cannot now haue God his father who hath not the church his mother If he may scape that was out of the Arke of Noe he may also escape that is abroad out of the church He must néeds be a most wicked man whosoeuer he be that leaueth his owne country the fellowship of very good men and falleth away to the enimies Lactantius therefore most truely sayd It is onely the catholike church which receiueth true religion Héere is the fountaine of truth This is the household of faith This is yâ— temple of God into the which if one enter not or out of the which if any depart he is excluded from the hope of saluation life euerlasting for our sauiour said that out of the sheepfolde life is not to be sound Bullinger fo 843. The causes of our saluation The speciall cause why we obteine euerlasting life is yâ— voluntarie frée will of God And the second cause are yâ— merits of Christ for he died for the saluation of mankinde but this is also a frée gift of the good will of God The third cause is our faith by the which we embrace receiue this good wil of God and the merits of Christ. Marl. vpon Mat. fol. 373. It is most true that the eternall election of God in Iesus Christ is the onely and sole cause of saluation vnto vs miserable and mortall men And holy faith imbracing the mercie of God in Iesus Christ by the testimonie of the holye Ghost in our heartes is that which doth assure vs that it is so Moreouer I say vnto thée that if any man should goe about to take from thée this assurednes and to make thée doubtfull of thy saluation he goeth about
reason with reason August contra Maxi. li. 3. chap. 14. More weightie is the doctrine of the Scripture and the Prophets then of such as be raised from the dead doe report any thing or if an Angell descend from heauen As for the things they talke they be but seruants that speake them but whatsoeuer the Scripture vttereth the Lord hath spoken it The Lord therfore doth teach vs that we should thinke credit shuld be rather giuen vnto the Scriptures then to all other things Chrisost. de Lazaro concione 4. No man will giue héede to the Scriptures for if we did consider them we shuld not onely not fall into â—rrours our selues but also thereof deliuer other that are deceiued and put them from perill Chrisost. in Epist. ad Heb. Homil. 8. Let vs not bring deceitfull ballances wherein we may weigh whatsoeuer we lust at our owne discretion saieng this is heauie this is light but let vs bring the heauenly ballance of the holy Scripture as from the treasure of the Lord therin let vs weigh what is of more weight Hierome causa 24. quest chap. 1. non adfera How Christ ouercommeth Satan with Scriptures Iesus sayd vnto him it is written againe ¶ Christ woulde not ouercome Satan by his diuine and almightie power but with the Scriptures and word of God to teach vs by his own example to fight against Satan with the holy sacred Scripture which are our heauenly armour the word of the spirit Beza How this place following is to be vnderstood Among the which some things are hard to be vnderstoode c. ¶ That is to say among the which things for he disputeth not héere whether Paules Epistles be plaine or darke but saith that amongest those things which Paule hath written off in his Epistles and Peter himselfe in these two of his owne there are some things which cannot be so easily vnderstood and therfore are of some drawne to their owne destruction that hée saith to make vs more attentiue and dilligent and not to remoue vs from reading of holy things For to what end should they haue written vaine speculations Beza ¶ As no man condempneth the brightnesse of the Sunne because his eyes is not able to susteine the cleerenesse thereof so the hardnesse which we cannot somtime compasse or perfectly vnderstand in the Scriptures ought not to take away from vs the vse of the Scriptures Geneua Of them which say that Scripture hangeth vpon the iudgement of the Church I know saith Caluine that they haue commonly the saieng of Augustine where he sayth he would not beléeue the Gospel saue that the â—uthoritie of the Church moued him therevnto But â—ow vntrue and cauillously it is alleaged for such a meaning by the whole tenour of his writing it is easie to perceiue He had to doe with the Maniches which desired to be beleeued without gaine saieng when they vaunted that they had yâ— truth on their side but proued it not Now Augustine asketh them what they would doe if they did light vpon a man that would not beleeue the Gospell it selfe with what manner of perswasion they wold drawe him to their opinion Afterward he saith I myselfe would not beleeue the Gospel c. saue yâ— the authoritie of the church moued me therto meaning yâ— he himselfe when hée was a straunger from the faith could none otherwise be brought to embrace the gospell for the assured truth of God but by this the he was ouercome by the authoritie of the Church And what meruaile is it if a man not yet knowing Christ haue regard to men Augustine therfore doth not there teach yâ— the faith of the godly is grounded vpon the authoritie of the Church nor meaneth that the certeintie of the gospel hangeth theron but simply onely that there should be no assurednesse of the gospell to the Infidels wherby they might be won to Christ vnles yâ— consent of the church did driue them vnto it And the same meaning a little before he doth plainly confirme in this saieng When I shal praise yâ— which I beléeue scorne the which thou beléeuest what thinkest thou méet for vs to iudge or do but the we forsake such men as first call vs to come know certeine truths after commaunded vs to beléeue things vncerteine And that we follow them that require vs first to beléeue that which we are not yet able to sée that being made strong by beléeuing we may attainâ— to vnderstand the thing that we beléeue not men now but God himselfe inwardly strengthening giuing light to our minds These are the very words of Saint Austen Caluin 1. booke chap. 7. Sect. 3. The Papists say it must be vnderstood after the interpretation of the Church of Rome which is false When the Apostles bad vs trie the spirits whether they be of God or no meant he trow ye we shuld trie them according to the testimony of the Church of Rome When the men of Thessalonica tried the Apostles doctrine whether it wer true or no Asked they yâ— iudgement of the Church of Rome c. Deering Obiection How is the word of God and the Scriptures knowne but by the Church Aunswere The Church was and is a meane to bring a man more spéedely to know the scriptures and the word of God as was the woman of Samaria a meane that the Samaritanes knew Christ but as when they had heard him speake they sayde Now we know that he is Christ not because of thy words but because we our selues haue heard him So after we came to the hearing and reading the Scriptures shewed vnto vs and discerned by the Church we doe beleeue them and know them as Christs shéepe not because the Church sayth they are the Scriptures but because they be so being assured therof by the same spirit which wrote and spake them Bradford in the booke of Mar. fol. 1794. When the Scriptures was in English ¶ Looke Bible Of the burning of Scriptures ¶ Looke Herode SEA Of the diuerse names giuen to this Sea OUer the sea of Galile ¶ This is a lake which is called in the Scripture the sea or lake of Ginnereth which some interpret the sweete sea is called of the Gréeks Genezar or Genazareth Of this Iosephus maketh mention in his third booke of the war of the Iewes 18. chapter S. Iohn calleth it the sea of Tiberias because the citie of Tiberias so called of Herode the Tetrach for the honour of Tiberius Caesar bounded vpon the East part of the same Wherefore by this portion the Euangelist doth more plainly describe the place whither Christ went For the whole lake was not called the sea of Tiberias but onely that part which lay more to the shore vpon the which Tiberias was scituate Marl. fo 188. What the Sea of Glasse signifieth As it were a Sea of Glasse ¶ The Hebrues betoken all manner of
gathering of waters by the name of Sea according to this saieng and the gathering togethers of waters he called Seas Ge. 1. 10. And the vessell wherein the Priests washed theÌ„selues wheÌ„ they went about the holy ministrations was called the braseÌ„ sea 3. Re. 7. 23. In this place the word sea is taken for a coÌ„pany of much people whom the spirit of God enlighteneth therfore they be cléere as glasse like vnto Christall that is to saye they be deliuered from darknesse and rustinesse and soule spottes by Christ Iesus reigning in the Church c. In the. 7. chapter the word sea of some is taken for rich merchant men which traficke vpon the Seas And in the. 16. chapter verse 3. the restlesse Sea séemeth to betoken the chiefe estates of the world or the confusion or chaungeablenesse of the world or els those people that dwell farre of in out Iles. Marl. to 73. ¶ The world is compared to a Sea because of the chaunge and vnstablenesse Geneua And I saw as it were a glassie sea mingled with fire ¶ The Sea of glasse mixed with fire signifieth the wickednesse of the world and all wicked enimies and aduersaries of the truth and doctrine of the Gospell Sir I. Cheeke ¶ The glassie Sea signifieth this brittle and inconstant world mixt with fire that is troubles and afflictions but the Saints of God ouercommeth them all and sing diuine songs to God by whose power they get the victory Geneua What Iob meaneth by these two words Sea and Whale Am I a Sea or a Whale fish that thou kéepest me so in prison ¶ Am I a Sea or a Whale saith Iob that thou shouldest set as it were such barres against me and that I should be faine to haue so great lets to stop me Iob protesteth héere before God that there was no néede why he should be stopped with so great violence And why so I am not lyke a Sea saith he which hath néede of rampires and lets If a Sea haue broken ouer his bankes a thousand or two thousand men must be sent against it there must be bringing of timber of earth and of stones to make vp so great a breach Also a Whale will not suffer himselfe to be caught without great adoe but great force must be vsed to holde so strong and mightie a beast But Iob saith I am no Sea nor Whale how is it then that GOD procéedeth with so great violence against me Héereby he meaneth that the miserie which he endureth is ouer great and that God hath no néed to punish him so And héerein he sheweth that he had no such stay in himselfe as he ought to haue had Cal. vpon Iob. fol. 99. SEBELLIVS Of his hereticall opinions THis man denied Christ to be the sonne of God and sayde that he was not the first begotten before all creatures Hée denied also the vnderstanding of the holy ghost He leaned much to the opinion of Noetus as touching the thrée persons And denied that there was a Trinitie Epiph. heraes 62. August li. de heraes SECOND Of the second time of punishing that Nahum speaketh of WHat doe ye think against the Lord He will make an end neither shal tribulation rise vp the second time ¶ Which words some of the Hebrues as Hierome telleth interpret of the Assirians who when they had the first time gotten the victory against the kingdome of yâ— ten tribes thought in like manner to preuaile against the kingdome of Iuda but yâ— it should so come to passe the Prophet denieth saith That after the first tribulation the second should not follow This exposition may indéed be borne withall But there is an other which is more plaine namely to say that these things are spokeÌ„ against Sennacherib which besieged Hierusalem vnto whom God threatened a full and through ouerthrow I will saith he so blot thee out that I shal not néed to rise vp the second time against thee one plague shal be sufficient thou shalt be so vehemently afflicted with it Pet. Mar. vpon the Rom. ¶ Hee sheweth that the enterprises of the Assirians against Iuda and the Church were against God and therfore he wold so destroy them at once that he should not néede to returne the second time Geneua What is meant by the second death He that ouercommeth shall not be hurt of the second death ¶ He that so constantly perseuereth in the truth of God yâ— neither flattering perswasioÌ„ worldly promotion nor cruel tormeÌ„t can plucke his minde from it shall neuer take harme of the second death For the death of them which truly beleeueth is precious in the sight of the Lord their God neither shall sinne be imputed to him that hath fayth nor yet dampnation to them that are in Christ. Bale ¶ The first death is the naturall death of the bodye the second death is the eternall death from the which are all free that beléeue in Iesus Christ. Iohn 5. 24. Geneua SECRETNESSE How secrets ought not to be disclosed ALexander the conquerour reading a letter that came from his mother conteining matter of weight tooke Exhestion his friend to him to read the same with him And after he had read it pulled out his signet and set it to Exhestions mouth giuing to vnderstand thereby that he which knoweth a seceret ought to keepe his mouth close The Romane Fuluius opened a greate secret that Augustus had told him vnto his wife who béeing rebuked of the Emperour sell in dispaire And first rebuked his wife who made him this aunswere You blame me quoth she without a cause for sithens ye haue liued with me so long ye ought perdie to haue knowne my lightnesse long or this time and knowing of it ye should not haue credited me therwith therefore the fault how great so euer it be is your own but yet will I take the punishment vpon me first therewithall slew her selfe incontinent her husband did the like after When one asked Metellus a Romane Captaine what hée would doe touching such an enterprise in warre he aunswered him on this wise If I knew that this shirt which I haue vppon my backe were wiâ—ting what I will doe I would burne it incontinent When one asked Aristotle what thing he thought hardest he aunswered Secrets SECT What is meant by this word Sect. WHich was the sect of the Saduces ¶ The word which is vsed héere is heresie which signifieth a choise and so is taken for a right forme of learning or faction or studye and course of lyfe which the Latines call a Sect. At the first this word was indifferently vsed but at length it came to be taken onely in euil part wher vpon came the name of heretik which is takeÌ„ for one that goeth astray from sound wholsome doctrine after such sort yâ— hée setteth light by the iudgement of God and his Church and continueth in his opinion and breaketh the peace of the Church Beza
the horns of the Unicornes By these Vnicornes vnderstande the common people of the Iewes which cruelly and furiously put themselues in prease against Christ crieng Crucifie him Crucifie him Mat. 27. 22. T. M. VNIVERSALL CHVRCH What it is THe vniuersall Church is a multitude gathered of all manner of nations which béeing sette a sunder and dispearsed by distaunce of places doth neuerthelesse consent in the one truth of the heauenly doctrine and is knitte together in one selfe same bonde of religion But for as much as it is not possible for all Christs members to growe together into one place vnder the vniuersall Church are comprehended the seuerall Churches which are disposed in euery Towne and Uillage according as mans necessitye requireth So as each one of them doth worthely beare the name and authoritie of the Church In the same sense doth Paule saye that he had a dayly care for all Churches 2. Cor. 11. 28. Marl. fol. 7. Whether Christs Church or the Popes be the vniuersall Church That the Church of Christ and not the Romish Church is that true vniuersall Church that hath alwaies remained and euer shall read S. Augustine to Casulane Epist. 80. where yée shall see the Romish Church and other Westerne Churches agreeing with her guiâ—e exempted froÌ„ Christs vniuersal church as one departed from the faith of Christ. Proues against the vniuersall head ¶ Looke Pope VNQVIETNESSE OF THE FLESH Looke Messenger of Satan VNSAVERIE The meaning of this place of Iob. THat which is vnsauerie shall it be eaten without Salt ¶ Canne a mans taste delight in that that hath no sauour Meaning that none toke pleasure in affliction seeing they cannot awaye with thinges that are vnsauerie to the mouth Geneua VNTILL What this word Vntill doth signifie KNew her not vntil she had brought forth her first begotten sonne ¶ This word Untill also doth sometime signifie the certeintie and appointed time And sometime it signifieth the time infinit without end or ceasing as in these places that followeth I am I am and vntill you waxe olde I am Now in this place because hée sayth vntill they be old he will be their God will be therefore when they are olde cease or leaue off to be their God And our sauiour Christ to his Apostles Behold I am with you euen vnto the end of the world will the Lord after the consummation of the world forsake his Disciples Againe the Psalmist saith â— He shall reigne vntill he haue put all his enimies vnder his fâ—â—â—e shall he therfore when his enimies are subdued reignâ— no longâ—â— Againe as the eyes of the maide doe waâ—te vppon thee handes of her mistres euen so doe our eies waie vppon thée vntill thou haue mercie vppon vs when the Lorde therefore hath compassion and mercie vppon vs shall we waite no longer In the lyke sense this word Untill is to be taken in this place for the Euangelist saith He knew hir not vntill she had brought foorth hir sonne that we may much more perceiue and gather that he knew hir not after Marl. vpon Mat. fol. 19. ¶ Christ is héere called the first borne because she had neuer any before and not in respect of any she had after neither yet doth this word Untill import alway a time following wherein the contrary may be affirmed as our Sauiour saieng that he will be present with his disciples vntill the ende of the world meaneth not that after the end of the world he will not be with them Geneua This little word Untill in the Hebrue tongue giueth vs to vnderstand also that a thing shall not come to passe in time to come As Michol had no childe vntill hir death daye 2. Samuel 6. 23. And in the last Chapter of the Euangelist Behold I am with you vntill the ende of the world Beza VNVVORTHELY Of the vnworthy receiuing of the Sacrament SAint Paule doth not say that Iudas did eate the bodye of Christ vnworthely for he speaketh not of his body vnworthely but of the Sacrament vnworthely For he saith Whosoeuer eateth of this bread and drinketh of this Cup vnworthely eateth and drinketh his owne damnation because he maketh no difference of the Lords body and not because he eateth the Lords body If Iudas did eate Christs body it must néedes follow that Iudas was saued For Christ saith in the 6. of Iohn ve 45. Whosoeuer eateth my flesh drinketh my bloud hath eternall life and I will raise him vp in the last day R. Woodman in the b. of Mar. fol. 2181. Who eateth Christs body in the Sacrament vnworthely He eateth this bread vnworthely which regardeth not the purpose for the which Christ did institute it which commeth not to it with spirituall hunger to eate through faith his very body which the bread representeth by the breaking distributing of it which commeth not with a merry heart giuing God hartie thankes for their deliueraunce from sinne which doe not much more eate in their heart the death of his body then they doe the bread with their mouth Obiection He that eateth and drinketh this Sacrament vnworthely shal be guiltie of the body and bloud of the Lord. Now say they how shal they be guiltie of the Lords body and bloud which receiue it vnworthely except it were the very body bloud of the Lord. Aunswere He that despiseth the Kings seale or letters offendeth against his owne person He that violently plucketh downe his graces armes or breketh his broad seale with a furious minde or with violence committeth treason against his own person yet his armes broad seale are not his own person He yâ— clippeth the Kings coyne committeth treason against the Kings person the Common-wealth yet yâ— mony is neither the Kings person nor yâ— CoÌ„mon-wealth S. Paule saith yâ— euery man which prayeth or precheth w e couered head shameth his head his head is Christ shal we therfore imagin yâ— Christ is naturaly in euery maÌ„s head S. Austen saith that he doth no lesse sin which negligently heareth the word of God then doth the other whichâ—vnworthely receiueth the sacrament of Christs body bloud ¶ Héere it is plaine yâ— Christs natural body is not in the word when it is preched yet he sinneth no lesse saith S. Austen the negligently heareth it then doth he that vnworthely receiueth the Sacrament S. Peter witnesseth that our harts are purified by faith true faith therefore is the cleanesse of Christians whervpon S. Austen saith The vnbeléeuers eate not the flesh of Christ spiritually but rather eateth drinketh the sacrament of so great a thing to his owne condempnation because being vncleane hée hath presumed to come to Christs Sacraments which no man receiueth worthely but he that is cleane of whome it is said Blessed be the cleane in heart for they shall sée God Bull. 1107. VOICE The meaning of this place HEaring his voyce but séeing no man ¶ They heard Paules voice for
God is iust and good although his hand be fore vpon him Geneua He that shall blesse in the earth shall blesse himselfe in the true God and he that sweareth in the earth shall sweare by the true God By blessing and by swearing is ment the praising of God for his benefites the true worshipping of him which shall not be onelie in Iudea but through all the world Geneua How this place of the Psalme is expounded And he shall receiue a blessing of the Lord. ¶ When he speaketh of blessing he doth vs to wit that not all they which in title onely vaunt themselues for worshippers of God shal be pertakers of the promised blessednesse but they that are aunswerable to their calling from the heart Howbeit it is a very effectuall encouragement to godlinesse to and good life when the faithfull heare that they misspend not their labour in following righteousnesse because there is an assured blessing laied vp for them with God Caluine BLINDE Who be blinde ANd blinde ¶ That is to saie one whom Christ enlighteth not which knoweth not God nor Iesus Christ whome hée hath sent Concerninn blindnesse sée Iohn 9. 41. Also he is called blinde which séeth not how miserable and néedie himselfe is Marl. vpon the Apoc. fol. 68. Why God is said to blinde men The cause why God is said to blinde men is for that when he hath bereft them of right vnderstanding of minde and of the light of his holie spirit he giueth them vp to the Diuell to be caried awaie into a wilfull wicked minde Rom. 1. 28. and sendeth them strong illusions 2. Thes. 2. 11. And so executeth iust vengeaunce vpon them by the minister of his wrath Marl. vpon the Apoc. fol. 92. ¶ God is said to blinde mens eies so oft as he doth reuoke or take awaie the contemned light of his truth and sinceritie leauing them that delight in darknes stil for then the Lord permitteth his worde to be preached to the vnthankfull and vngodlie receiuers vnto their iudgement or condemnation For so verelie doth the Euangelicall and Apostolique doctrine teach vs to thinke This saith the Lord is condemnation or this is iudgement that the sonne of God the verie true light came into the world and the world loued darknesse more then light And Paule said If yet the Gospell be hid it is hid in them that perish in whom the God of this world hath blinded the senses of their vnderstanding c. Pullinger in his Decades fol. 492. The meaning of this place following Except thou take awaie the blinde and the lame thou shalt not come in hether ¶ The Iebusites spake this in derision béeing perswaded that the◠strong holde was of such force y◠Dauid could not ouercome it although it were defended onelie by lame and blinde men Some write that they spake this of a confidence they had in their Idolls which the children of God estéemed as blinde and lame The Bible note ¶ The Children of God called Idolls blinde lame guides Therefore the Iebusites meant that they should proue y◠their Gods were neither blinde nor lame Geneua BLOVD What is meant by bloud And bloud went out of the wine fat vnto the Horse bridles ¶ By the name of bloud the Scripture is wont to betoken vengeaunce and reuengement and so meant Iohn to describe the greatnesse of Gods wrath in this place Marl. vpon the Apoc. fol. 218. ¶ By this similitude he declareth the horrible confusion of the Tyraunts and Infidells which delight in nothing but warres slaughters persecutions and effusion of bloud Geneua How our cleansing is by Christs bloud And made them white in the bloud of the Lambe ¶ That is to saie in faith and in following the sufferings of Christ. But how can bloud make them white will some man saie I aunswere after the same manner that the Authour of the Epistle to the Romanes saith If the bloud of Bulls and Goates and the ashes of a Bullocke besprinkling them that are defiled doe hallowe them as touching the cleansing of the flesh how much more shall the bloud of Christ who by the euerlasting spirite hath offered himselfe vnspotted vnto GOD cleanse your consciences from deade workes to serue the liuing GOD. The Saints therefore and the faithfull being cleansed by the bloud of the Lambe both from originall sinne and also from actuall sinne committed through humaine ignoraunce and weaknesse and béeing preserued that they should not giue their assent to pestilent errours against y◠faith are said to haue cleare yea and also comelie garments Marl. vpon the Apoc. fol. 111. ¶ There is no puritie nor cleannesse but by the bloud of Christ onelie which purgeth our sinnes and so maketh them white Geneua And sprinckling of the bloud of Iesus Christ. ¶ Héere S. Peter séemeth to haue had respect vnto the olde Ceremonie of bloud sprinckling for euen as it was not inough then that the Sacrifice should be offered and the bloud thereof shed vnlesse the people had bene sprinkeled with the same so now at this present it shall profit vs nothing that Christs bloud is shed vnlesse our conscience be cleansed and purified therewith which thing is done by the ministring of the holie Ghost which doth sprinkle our consciences with Christs bloud to wash them withall Sir I. Cheeke How the verie flesh and bloud of Christ is not in the Sacrament It was not lawfull by Moses lawe to eate nor drinke the bloud neither of man nor of beast And the Apostles themselues somewhat fauouring the infirmitie of the Iewes did institute that men should abstaine from bloud Now if the Apostles had taught that in the sacrament the very flesh and bloud of Christ is eaten and dronken with the téeth and mouth it had bene a great occasion to haue excluded al y◠Iewes at once from Christ againe the Apostles would haue bene too scrupulous if they had so groselie vnderstood it to haue dronken the very bloud séeing it was so plaine against Moses Lawe Reade the 10. of the Actes where as Peter had the cloath sent downe I. Frith Bloud is the soule ¶ S. Augustine vppon these wordes saith thus So is the Bloud the Soule euen as the Rocke was Christ. And in the same Chapter he ioineth these thrée sentences together The Bloud is the Soule the Rocke was Christ and This is my Bodie as being all both of like meaning and also of like manner of vtteraunce ¶ Saint Ambrose expounding the same words saith thus When Moses in that place called the Bloud the Soule doubtlesse he meant thereby that the Bloud is one thing◠and the Soule another For this is my bloud in the new Testament ¶ The wine signifieth that our soules are refreshed and satisfied with the bloud of Christ spirituallie receiued so that without him we haue no nourishment Geneua How the bloud of Martirs is the seede of the Church And there fell
a great feare vpon those that sawe them ¶ That is to saie when the enimies of the truth sawe they auailed nothing by putting the Preachers of the word to death they were sore afraid like as at this daie manie of the persecuters of the Gospell are constrained to saie that they loose their labour vtterlie in persecuting those that be against the Popish doctrine For the moe of them that be burned and put to death the mo do come away from the vntoward doctrine to the doctrine of the Gospel for the bloud of Martirs is the séed of the church◠Marl. vpon the Apoc. fol. 159. BODIE What a naturall bodie is A Naturall bodie is he that is led by his affections not vnderstanding the things of the spirit of God Tindale What a spirituall bodie is A spirituall bodie is he that is led by the spirit of God How the bodie of Christ is in one place Dardamus did write vnto Saint Austen for the exposition of these words that Christ spake vnto the Thiefe saieng This daie shalt thou be with me in Paradise and wist not how to vnderstand it whether Christ meant that the Thiefe should be in Paradise with Christs soule or with his bodie or with his Godhead Therevpon Saint Austen writeth that as touching Christs bodie that daie it was in the Sepulcher saith it was not in Paradise although it was in a garden that he was buried for Christ he saith meant of a place of ioie and that was not saith S. Augustine in his Sepulcher And as for Christs soule it was that daie in hell and no man will saie that Paradise is there wherefore saith S. Austen the text must néedes be vnderstood that Christ spake it of his Godhead ¶ Héere S. Austen saith plainlie that Christs bodie as touching his manhood was in the graue and as touching his Soule it was in Hell so that while his bodie was in the graue it was not in Paradise For if he had thought that Christs bodie or soule might haue bene in diuers places at once he would not haue said that the text must néedes be vnderstood of his Diuinitie Againe As touching his Manhoode he was in Earth and not in Heauen where he now is when he said No man ascendeth into Heauen but he that descended from Heauen the Sonne of man which is in Heauen ¶ Doubt not saith Austen againe but that Christ our Lord the onelie begotten sonne of God equall with the Father and the same being the sonne of man wherein the Father is greater is whole present in all places as touching his Godhead and dwelleth in the same Temple of God as God and in some place of heauen for the cordicion of his verie bodie Héere S. Austen saith as touching his Manhood he is onelie in one certaine place in heauen and not in manie places at once ¶ The same one man is locall that is to saie contained in one place as touching his manhood which is also God vnmeasurable from the father The same one man as touching the substaunce of his manhood was absent from heauen when he was in earth and so forsaking the earth when he ascended into Heauen but as touching his Godhead vnmeasurable substance he neither forsooke heauen when he descended from heauen nor forsooke the earth when he ascended into heauen which maie be knowen by the most sure word of the Lord which to shew his humanitie to be locall that is to say conteined in one place onelie did say vnto his Disciples I ascend vnto my father your father my God and your God Of Lazarus also when he said I am glad for your sakes that you may beléeue for that I was not there And againe shewing the vnmeasurablenesse of his Godhead said vnto his Disciples I am with you vnto the worlds ende How did he ascend into heauen but because hée is locall and a verie man or how is he present vnto his faithfull but because he is vnmeasurable and verie God ¶ Now may Christ be called a straunger is he departed into a strange countrey séeing he is with vs vnto the worlds end and is among them that be gathered in his name Aunswere Christ is both God and man hauing in him two natures And as man he is not with vs vnto the worlds ende nor is present with his faithfull gathered together in his name But his diuine power spirit is euer with vs. Paule saith he was absent from the Corinthiaris in bodie but he was present with them in spirit So is Christ gone hence saith he and absent in his humanitie which in his diuine nature is euerie where and in these saiengs we reserue to both his natures their properties ¶ A bodie must néedes bée in some place if it be not within the compasse of a place it is no where if it be no where it is not ¶ Doubt not but Iesus Christ as concerning the nature of his manhood is now there from whence he shall come And we may not thinke that his mans nature is euerie where for we must beware that we doe not so stablish his diuinitie to take awaie the vertue of his bodie ¶ Christian people must beléeue that although Christ be absent from vs concerning his bodie yet by his power he gouerneth vs all things For like as when he was conuersant héere in earth as man yet then he filled heauen Euen so being in heauen with his flesh yet filleth the Earth and is in them that loue him ¶ S. Ambrose saith We must not séeke Christ vpon earth nor in earth but in heauen where he sitteth at the right hande of his Father ¶ To goe to his father from vs was to take from the world the nature which he receiued of vs. He is with vs and not with vs. For touching the forme of a seruaunt which he tooke away from vs into heauen he is absent frōm vs but by y◠forme of God he is present with vs. And neuerthelesse both present absent he is all one Christ. ¶ If the word flesh wer both of one nature séeing that the word is euerie where why is not the flesh then euerie where For when it was in Earth then verelie it was not in heauen And when it is in heauen it is not surelie in earth And so sure that it is not in earth that we looke for him to come from heauen ¶ To be conteined in a place and to be euerie where be diuers and contrarie one nature cannot receiue in it selfe two diuers and contrarie things ¶ He is created by nature of his flesh and not created by the nature of his Godhead He is comprehended in a place by the nature of his flesh and not comprehended in a place by the nature of his Godhead ¶ Thus much of this matter gathered out of the workes of I. Frith BOOKE What the booke of life is ANd
doth onelie call his elect and chosen and whom he hath ordeined before vnto life euerlasting working so in them by the inward operation of his holie spirit that the word preached to them doth take root in their hearts and bringeth foorth fruit vnto life eternall He doth also by the same spirit testifie vnto them I meane vnto their spirites that they be the children of God and heires of the kingdome of heauen I. Veron Of two manner of callings There are two sortes of vocation the one outward and the other inward By the outward vocation I meane a common and generall vocation by the which God doth call by his outward preaching all those to whom the Gospell is preached bée they chosen or reprobates And by the inward I vnderstand a vocation wherby God doth not onelie call men by the outward preaching of his word but maketh them to feele the power and efficacie of the same by his holie spirit in such sort that they doe not onelie heare it with their outward eares but doe also receiue it into their hearts by faith whereby they are iustified Pet. Viret ¶ The calling of God is of two sorts the one is common whereby men in déede are after a sort stirred vp but they â—â—â—not bowed for that those things which are offered please them not but the other is a conuenient apt mighty calling wherby the mindes are touched and truelie chaunged After this manner was Iacob called and not Esau. Therefore the one was beloued and the other hated the one drawne and the other forsaken Caluine in his insti fol. 257. God doth call men two waies the one is a generall calling by the which God with the outward preaching of 〈…〉 word doth inuite al meÌ„ vnto him yea those to whom his word is propounded for their dampnation The other is a special â—â—ling that is a calling according to Gods purpose by the whâ—â—â— he worketh so through the inward lightening of the spirit 〈…〉 the word preached is also grounded in our hearts tru◠〈…〉 stoode faithfully beléeued Euen as we see yâ— wil of God 〈…〉 two sortes the one preached and reuealed in his holie Scripture whereby he willeth that all men should be saued albeit for their iniquities few be saued The other vnsearchable and also vnknowne to vs whereby he worketh his will both in heauen and in earth F. N. B. the Italian ¶ Sée more in these wordes Election Predestination Chosen Manie are called and few be chosen ¶ All nations and people are by the outward preaching of the Gospell called but onelie they that are ordeined chosen to life euerlasting doe beléeue and giue credit to the word Sir I. Cheeke CALFE Of the Calfe that Aaron made ANd made of it a molten Calfe They smelled of their leuen of Aegypt wher they saw calues oxen and serpents worshipped Geneua ¶ The Hebrues when they compelled Aaron to make them a Calfe to worship had not that minde to fall from the true God when they confessed that he brought them out of Aegipt This was onelie their intent to worshippe him vnder some signe or visible forme and they chose that forme whereby they had séene the Aegiptians expresse their God by Pet. Mar. vpon Iudic. CAMEL How the Latin word Camelum is taken two waies IT is easier for a Camel c. ¶ The latin text is Facilius est Camelum acus transire This worde Camelum a Camell in yâ— English translation is expounded of some to signifie in this place the Cabell of a Ship and truelie that doth better agrée to the eie of a nedle And yet Pollux writing of yâ— instruments perteining to a ship maketh mention of this word Camelus Suidas onelie is found to vnderstand this word in that signification yet vnderstanding it so as it is written with i not with e as Camilos and not Camelos For though there be a little difference in the wordes yet notwithstanding in sense there is greate contrarietie for the first signifieth a beast called a Camell and the other signifieth a Rope or Cable of a Shippe Other some doe rather agrée to Hierom which followeth Origen which taketh this word Camelum being a Gréeke word as we shewed before for the beast called a Camell For Christ would haue it seeme altogether as impossible for a rich man trusting in his riches to enter into the kingdome of heauen as for a Camell being a monstrous beast to goe through the eie of a néedle But if this saieng seeme to anie man obscure let them remember the man reprehended of the Lord which went to plucke yâ— mote out of his brothers eie and could not sée the beame in his owne eie What can be more absurd then to saie that a man carieth a beame in his eie But this absurditie of his words hath a great Emphasis and force Marl. fol. 434. CANDELS OR TAPERS Against the superstitions of Candels and Tapers in the Church ANd whereas they bring thether burning Candels and that at noone daies it must néeds come from the superstition of the Ethnikes The old christian men vsed burning candels but it was in the night time because they durst not assemble together in the daie season and it was not very hansome to sit in the darke Wherevpon Hierom also saith We doe not light candels at broad daie as you doe slaunder vs without cause but by this comfort we doe delaie the darknesse of the night and doe watch by light least like blinde folke we should sléepe in darkenesse like as thou dost Musculus fol. 291. ¶ Lactantius inueighing the Heathenish or Popish superstition of Candels that hath bene vsed saith Accendimus lumina velut in tenebris c. They light candels vnto God as it were in the darke But if they wil behold heauenlie light thei we cal the sun they maie vnderstand that their God lacketh no lights that for the vse of man hath giuen so cleare a light And yet whereas in so small a circle which by reason of the distaunce séemeth no bigger then a mans head ther is so great a oliâ—â—ering that the engine of mans eie is not able to looke directly vpon it And if for a while you fixe your sight thereon diâ—â—esse darknesse doe follow your dazed eies What light what clearenes maie we thinke to be with God with whom there is no night at all Who hath so ordered this light of his that neither by too much shining beames nor ouer parching heate he should hurtâ— the Cattell And yet of both hath departed so much as either the bodies of men maie beare or riping of the fruite require wherefore he concludeth with these words saieng Is he to be thought to be in his right wits that to the Authour giuer of light offer vp the light of Candels and Tapers for a gift CANDELSTICKE Why the Church is likened to a candelsticke ANd the 7. Candlestickes which thou sawest are the 7. churches ¶