Christe Iesu our sauiour who onelye is the ende of all prophecies in whome they al are made perfecte with whome we shall enioye this perfecte peace so many as defire to knowe the liuinge God and whome he sent downe to saue the worlde Iesu Christ nowe sitting at his right hande to whome be glorie For euer and euer So be it Iohn iiii Episto i. Who so knoweth God heareth vs. Anâ— he that is not of God heareth not vs. And herby do we know the spirite of truthe and the spirite of errowre The Prologue GRace and peace from the Lorde the liueinge God who hath all our hertes in hys hande to moue and stere to what shall lyke hym beste who onely knoweth the hertes of men and therefore oneli is the iudge of the thoughtes and intentes of vs all what or whan so euer we speake or thinke whose daye and iudgment is without regarde what man which is but flesh and bloud and therefore ful of erroure and blindnesse shall dispute and determine and iudge I paciently loke for and a bide whan as all darnell drake and weede shall be caste into the hell fire and all the good graine shal be gathered into God his owne garner vnto whome we lyue all the tyme that we walke vpon the earth And wheÌ„ we die yet are we sure that we are his owne by the raunsome that his dearely beloued sone Christ our Lord and heade hath paied geueinge the holy gost into our hertes as a most suer wittnesse of the same teacheinge vs to crie Aba father whereby we knowe that though we die yet we die vnto hym to lyue euer after cowpled and ioyned in one kinde and nature vnto our heade Christe who as he is fully God and of equale powre wyth his father so shal he make vs like vnto hym when he shal appeare after our porcion and measure partakers of his godly nature like as he hath in hys world though but in a shadowe and cloude in regarde of the fulnesse that shalbe declared be gonne al redy to regenerate and begete vs a newe â–ª creature by the holy gost workinge by the worde of hys trueth that we nowe resembling the image of God whereunto we were made maye be continually occupyed in the workes of hys kingdome as be these Iustice peace â–ª and ioy in the same holy gost geuear of al goodnes For he that by these workes serueth Christe is acceptable to God and conmended of men Thys sâ—me â—â—e euer lasteinge God without begininge and without endinge he geue me grace to the fortheraunce of his glorie to make answere to that deuellishe detection the sophistrie of Sathan published by Stephane Gardiner bishope of Winchester for the maintenaunce of the popishe Idole the dombe God and poetical chaungling wher by not onely the true liuinge God is neglected his true honoure obscured and defaced the preachinge of hys worde almoste set at nought but also all kindes of poperie as images blessing kissinge shaueinge of crownes supersticioÌ„ of garmenets and such like are craftily by subtile pointes of the popes sophistri and wordes filthy framed for such merchaundise confirmed and established as thought al the whole heape of these triffes heaped vp together were the religion of a Christian man wher as to knowe God for our true God and whom hehath sent Iesu Christ and by this knowledge to be borne a new and to kepe our selfe immaculate and vnde filed from the worlde is the true and perfecte religioÌ„ demauÌ„ded of vs true christians The other is but countrefaite what so euer â—his sophistrie doeth name it because our maister christ who can not lie doeth saie ful plaine 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 They worshipe me in vaine teacheinge the doctrine and preceptes of men c. And where he bringeth in this texte in the ende of his boke nothing so ful as our sauior Christ did speake it as he knoweth well inowgh if he haue so muche Greke as he braggeth abrode he addeth therunto his owne glose as though he coulde vtter the wordes of christ the sone of God much more wiselie by hys babling Yet am I coÌ„tent to let his own glose be his owne iudge in these matters His wordes bee these They worshippe me in vaine with the teachinge of such as remaine in the estate of men onely theÌ„ teach their owne for theÌ„ selues for al such teachinge is like the teachar that is to saye carnal Let eueri man that hath not his conscience al redie brenned wyth the hote proâ—e marke whether hys owne glose make against him and all the ceremonies that hys father the pope beinge I trowe but in the estate of a man and that a carnal maÌ„ hath made though Winchester go aboute craftily accordinge to the cannon lawe whereof he is sworne by solemne othe doctoure and teacher to make him more theÌ„ a man And marke againe good christen hertes what they win by theyr gloses and multiplied wordes wherby in fayth it were verie easy to confute them all euen by the testimonies of their owne doctours as Bucere Ecolampadius and Frith haue done perfectlie well if these men woulde suffer there bokes to come to lyght For these papistes do so mixte the trueth and salsehed together for without some ground of trueth noman woulde beleue them that the one piece of the tale standeth commonly with the trueth and the other vttereth their salshed And therfore speake they longe matter and are not content to saye plainely a spade but they muste necker it as they do in theyr mattens and saye spaâ—a aâ—ade As for me I haue learned to cal breade bread to speake althinges plainelie Therfore by the open scriptures wyll I make them answere to their questions For al the scripture inspired from God is profitable boeth to teache and to reproue to correcte and to instructe in rightuousnesse that the man of God maye be perfecte and fite for euerie good worcke So that if ther be any â–ª good worke â–ª to be taught or yll worck â—o be rebuked we must go to the scripture onely as to the toutchstone and onelye triall of al trueth For wyth scriptures did Christe driue awaie the deuil and not wyth holy water as you are reported to saie that the deuil greatly dreadeth it and so do ye still commaunde that it shalbe made a coniured water euerie sonnedayes in â–ª euery churche to driue furth deuilles But he thoughe he were boeth god and man alledgeth scriptures alwayes to confirme his saienges and commandeth his hearers to sherch the scriptures So doe Peter Paule Iames and Iohn Wheras Paul beinge brought vp at the fete of Gamaliell the greate lawier was redie inoughe to haue disputed out of the Thalmud of the tradicions of their fathers whiche he saieth he hath ernestely studied beinge ouâ— of the phariseies and interpretour of that law and such one as by the outward wordes of the lawe could not be found fantie Yet dyd he accoÌ„pte all thys
vp the great heape of your baggage which you cal the substaunce of your religion And therfore do you nowe fyght wyth fyre faggot for the conseruation of the same that it maye conserue you in your lordly dignities Thus hath your worldly witted fathers euen from the begynnynge fought wyth the sayntes of God whose bloud cryeth froÌ„ vnder the aultare and asketh vengeaunce shal be hearde ryght spedily Marke good bishops whom â–ª you haue alwaye murthered euen froÌ„ the begynnyng Whiche of the Prophetes of the olde testament did escape chiefe priestes and byshops And syth the comyng of Christ your murthers are innumerable I wyll not nor caÌ„ not recken them Dyd not Christe hym selfe dye by the conspiracie of Annas Cayphas and other bishops because he rebuked the worlde of blyndenes Al such as you haue murtherd sence that tyme haue cleare testimonies of theyr innocencie by some of your owne scribes and wryters Had not Husse whoÌ„ yon accompt the Arche heretike foure seales of the noble men of Morania to wytnesse his innocent lyfe and godly learnynge to your cursed cruel counsayle at coÌ„staunce Doeth not Pope Piê° otherwyse called Eneas Silnius Pogius the Florentyne Platina Sabellicus and other your owne men reporte well of hym But to come home boeth to your owne tyme countrey Who doth not bewaile the tiranny that you shewed vnto that innocent lambe Bylnaye who beinge demaunded in derision by a proude papist when he went to his death why he wroughte no miracles beinge so holy as he was accompted answered wyth mylde voice countenaunce God onely sayed he worketh miracles and wonders and he it is that hath wrought thys one wonder in our eyes that I being wrongfully accused falsly belyed opprobriously and spytefully haÌ„dled imprisoned buffetted and condempned to the fyre yet hitherto haue I not once opened my mouth with one euyl worde agaynst any of you This passeth the worke of nature is therefore the manifest miracle of god who wyl by my suffering death be glorified and haue his trueth enhaunced What report haue you gotteÌ„ for the murthering of Hunne in the lowlars towre You had neither felonie nor treason to laye to his charge yet most vilanously dyd the chauncelour of London murther that honest man for his owne childes crisome I wyl say nothing of the priest that was found hanging in your porters warde And fiue hundreth mo wherof some haue by your tirannouse handlyng for sworne the truth forsakeÌ„ theyr maisters Some for feare of your tiraÌ„ny haue renne out of their wittes some haue forsaken their couÌ„treis chosyng rather to â—…ue like banished men then to suffre your cruell and babilonical bondage I coulde reken many whose life is yet in the eyes of the worlde and the cause of their death vtterly vnknowne vnlesse it were for speakynge agaynste your popishe madnesse Wherfore dyed Barnes Therome Garret in the late storme of your capitayne of Norfolke steared for his kinswoman They were neither declared felons nor â—…aytours They dyd not stryue wyth you agaynst the god of bread But this was their death so far as I could learne because they preached man to be iustified by fayth in the bloud of Christ onely by none of your popishe inuentions OhtiraÌ„ny intollerable You haue to long blynded our gouernours made them your butchars and tormentours What should I speake of the last persecution wheÌ„ you caused to be proclamed that no boke of christian religion should be brought into this Realme froÌ„ beyonde the sea Howe many dyd you then murther woulde haue done mo had not the Kinge by his power plucked out of your clawes one whom you had with small equitie examined and wyth lesse iustice coÌ„demned What iustice did you shewe in that you dyd so shamefully racke Anne Askue after she was condemned But she shewinge more constancie then hath bene communely seene in a woman shal nowe after the death of hir body worke you shame to all your posteritie Was Lassels wyth the other his felowes martyrs coÌ„fessinge the liuinge God and his sonne Christ the only sauiour worthily burned with fire as you did rashly determine and iudge condemned and destroied in body and soule What were they whoremongers Idolatours adulterers theues extorsiouers or maÌ„quellers Vpon suche cometh the wrath of God suche haue no parte in the kingdome of God But you suffre to lyue you shewe no power agaynst them No you are not any thynge terrible vnto suche for they dwell at your noses they eate at your tables and are your darlinges But who that speaketh any thinge agaynste your popishe Idols brainsicke inuentions haue he neuer so faythful an hert to God and be he neuer so trustie to his prince yet must he be an heretike a traytour a lowlar and all together This doeth the worlde espie at the length talketh of you I woulde this talke mighte make you leaue your euyll doinges and to learne at the least to do some parte of your dutie before the wrath of God fal vpon you But I do feare me al wordes are but wynde with you Onely vexation and chastisement wyll giue you vnderstandinge For lo here you saye ful finely and like a popishe prelate that woulde haue all thinge broughte to the olde blyndenes and ignoraunce and to suche captiuitie and bondage that no man shoulde talke of his fayeth but vnder my Lordes licence though Peter commaunded the contrary You saye that of fayth there is so muche talke tattelinge to vse your owne termes that true beliefe is gone Surely if you call thys true beliefe the Romishe beliefe of pardones pilgrimages when we myght haue no talke of â—ure fayth but were coÌ„maunded in payne of cursinge and burninge to beleueâ—… as the churche of Rome beleueth like as you can knowe none other true churche nor none other good men but suche as folowe that church I graunt your beliefe is fore wasted I trust shall right shortly coÌ„sume like stubble with the fyre of Goddes worde and true workes of mercie peace and louing kindneâ—… shall springe furth wheÌ„ men knowynge thaâ— your Pope holy workes are but the madnes of idle braynes shal worship the liuing God in spirite and trueth But lo you wyll haue here the carte to go before the horsse and wyl haue vs to do these workes before we knowe them saying that doing is the way to knowledge where coÌ„trary wise al wel doing must needes springe of knowledge as the onely thinge that maketh our deedes good And because you bishops are so slowe in preaching good workes that God requireth the people muste needes be stacke in doinge them For you should be the salt of the earth But seinge that you be become vnsauourie howe caÌ„ you season other You preach your owne inuentions the preceptes and coÌ„maundementes of men and them must we needes knowe and confesse or els must we be brent But it is
be deceiued wythout the helpe of reasone set in man to be their lady and masters and wyth hir helpe they maye iudge of all bodily and sensible creatures muche more are they able to iudge of breade their continuall obiect dayely offered vnto them wherin not one sense but the sigh taste smelle and feleinge doe wittnesse together reasone approueth and alloweth theyr iudgment and faythfully established in the worde of God affirmeth the same Christe hym selfe as we haue sayed calleth it â—reade and wynne Paul to the Corth â–ª calleth it breade that we breake and sayeth that weaâ—e one bread and one bodie so many as are pertakers of the same breade Againe in the. xi So ofte as we â—ate thâ—s brâ—ode and drinke thys cup we shewe the death of the Lorde vnto he come Therfore who so â—ateth this bread drinketh this cup vnworthily is gilty of the bodye and bloude of the Lorde Let a man proue hym selfe therfore and so eaâ—e of this breade and drinke of thys cuppe Agayne in the Actes of the Apostles Thei coâ—…ed in the doctrine of thapostles In feloweshipe and breakynge of breade Againe he was knowne vnto them in breakeinge of breade Luke xxiiii dayely continuinge with one accorde in the teÌ„ple and brake bread froÌ„ house to house oure sences also do one after other beare witnesse hereunto We heare Christ and his apostles saye This is bread We smell tast and feale it to be breade We se it is breade and so coÌ„clude â—i reasone after thys sorâ—e The baker dyd bake it as breade before it was put to thys vse and in this vse it is nothyng chaunged froÌ„ the kind of bread for it musteth mouldeth and wil be eateÌ„ of â—…sse as other breade wyl Wherfore we be inge enstructed firste by liâ—… fayeth and thaÌ„ by our senses ruled by reasone dare boldelye conclude thys same to be breade If you myght leade captiue all these three â–ª then shoulde we folowe where you woulde haue vs as oure fathers haue done before As for the misteries and principles of our religion wherof you saye we stande greate neade to be taught â–ª you teache fâ—ll slender lie that is to saye onely wyth a sentence of doctour and a verse songe in the churche But we knowe that so many of them as be corporal and therfore sensuall it hath pleased God so to wrocke them that the verie senses maie perceiue them and therfore be as a testimonie of our fayeth beareinge witnesse of their trueth Nowe as for the misterie of the Trinitie and the vnitie of godhed you do know full well they are not in the numbre of sensible and bodilie thinges and therfore can in no wyse be offerred vnto the sâ—ses wherfore it is no good proffe to iudge them vnable to declare vnto our reasone what is breade and what is wine because the can not attain to that wherwyth they maye by no meanes meddle Or to thynke them not murtified in other thynges because thei witnesse heare agaynste you But you go aboutte to slander vs as thought we dyd not beleue We knowe by our fayeth grounded vpon the boke of Genesis and all other scriptures settinge forth the almyghtie powre of God teacheinge vs to belieue in God the father almyghtie maker of heauen an erth and in hys onely begotten sonne oure Lorde Iesus Christe who was coÌ„cerned by the holy gost and borne of the virgine Marie wherin resteth the chiefe poynte of religion and onely saluacion So sone as he came into the worlde ther were called to wittenesse three herdemen or shepeherdes and three wyse men out of the easte to se wyth theire eyes and testifie vnto other thys the cheife misterie of oure religion that Christe was come in the fleshe bisides the resorte of the men of Bethlehem to se theyr sauioure wyth theyr eyes and the plaine testimonie of Simion saieinge Now haue mine eies sene thy saueing helth More ouer Christ thus comeinge in the fleshe was bodily present in the syght and eyes of al the worlde the space of xxx yeres and what so euer miracle he wrought in the dodient appeared to the eyes and outwarde senses As when he chaunged water into wyne streigh waye it appeared wyne to all the outwarde senses Inlyke maner such as Christe healed bodeli were thei lame blind or lazar streigth waye they appeared whole And so conseqeÌ„tly in all the miracles that Christ wrought in sensible thinges bodilie they so appeared vnto oure senses Whan he raysed Lazar us froÌ„ death to lyffe it was not countertaite for he dyd eate and drinke in the sight of all men So lykewyse when Christe suffered moste paynefull death in the syght of the whole world vnder ponce Pilate he was crucified deade and buried that no eie or tonge shoud wittnesse the contrarie He desended into hel as Peter witnesseth in spirite which falleth not vnder the knowelege of our sences because the spirite goeth and cometh man knoweth not howe Than haue wee wittnesses that God raysed hym the thirde daye and shewed hym to all the people but firste to his wittnesses appoynted for the same purpose whyche dyd eate and drinke with hym after he was risen from death Moreouer that we should nothinge doubt of this misterie so darcke vnto reasone christ appered vnto them agayne and commaunded Thomas Didimus who was before in doubte to put hys fynger in hys syde to see hâ—s handes and the woundes of the nayles that thei al might knowe it to be his natural bodye thus risen frome death yea a bodye whyche hath fleshe and bones contrarie to your doctrine whyche wyll haue ve belieue in a bodie that hath neither fleshe nor 〈◊〉 quantitie nor qualitie that is as much to â—aie as no propretie of a bodie excepte it be borowed of the bread But we beieue according to the â—…e spirite that Iohn describeth that Iesu Christe is comen in the fleshe and hath died in the same accordinge to the saieinge of Paule and testimonies of al scripture in the which he is also raised againe and â—owe sitteth at the right hand of God the father froÌ„ whence he shal come to iudge the â–ª quicke and the deade Vnto whom al the propheres geue wittnesse that who so euer beleueth in hym shall haue remission of â—ynnes by hys name We beleue in the holy gost one God with the father and the sonne euen from the beginninge as appeaâ—eth by the firste creacion of the worlde Now that the euerlasteing Lord and euer liueinge God hath created al thinges by his worde oure Christe and sauiour wyth so vniforme powre of thys holie goste that nothinge coulde come forth to any shap or forme vntyll this spirite procedeing from them boeth dyd mone vpon the walte depe or vnformed waters Wherfore thys almyghtie powre of the trâ— and euer lasting God is in Hebrue called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 plurallye for the diuersitie of persoÌ„es throughout