passion Peter was angry and rebuked Christ and thought earnestly that he had raued and not wist what he sayde as at another time when Christ was so feruently busied in healyng the people that he had no leisure to eat they went out to hold him supposing that he had bene beside hymselfe And one that cast out diuels in Christes name they forbade because he wayted not on them so glorious were they yet And though Christ taught alway to forgeue yet Peter after long goyng to schole asked whether men should forgeue seuen tymes thinkyng that viij tymes had bene to much And at the last supper Peter would haue dyed with christ but yet within few houres after he denyed him both cowardly and shamefully And after the same maner though he had so long heard that no man might auenge him self but rather turne the other cheeke to then to smite agayne yet when Christ was in takyng Peter asked whether it were lawful to smite with the sword and taried none aunswere but layed on rashly So that though when we come first vnto knowledge of the truth and the peace is made betwene God and vs and we loue his lawes and beleue and trust in him as in our father and haue good hartes vnto him and be borne a new in the spirite yet we are but childrē and young scholers weake and feble and must haue leysure to grow in the spirite in knowledge loue and in the ded◅ therof as young children must haue tyme to grow in their bodies And God our father and scholemaster feedeth vs and teacheth vs accorcordyng vnto the capacitie of our stomackes and maketh vs to grow and waxe perfect and fineth and trieth vs as gold in the fire of temptations and tribulations As Moyses witnesseth Deutero viij saying Remember all the way by whiche the Lord thy God caried thee this xl yeares in the wildernesse to humble thee and to tempte or prouoke thee y t it might be knowen what were in thine hart He brought thee into aduersitie and made thee an hungred then fed thee with Manna which neither thou nor yet thy fathers euer knew of to teach that man lyueth not by bread onely but by all that procedeth out of the mouth of GOD. For the promises of God are lyfe vnto all that cleaue vnto them muche more then breade and bodyly sustenaunce as the iourney of the children of Israell out of Egipt into the land promised them ministreth thee notable ensamples and that aboundantly as doth all the rest of the Bible also Howbeit it is impossible for flesh to beleue and to trust in the truth of Gods promises vntil he haue learned it in much tribulation after that God hath deliuered him out therof agayne God therefore to teach Ionas and to shew him his owne hart to make him perfect and to instruct vs also by his ensample sent him out of the lande of Israell where he was a Prophet to go among the heathen people and to the greatest and mightiest Citie of the world then called Niniue to preache that within xl dayes they should all perish for their sinnes and that the Citie should be ouerthrowen Whiche message the free will of Ionas had as much power to doe as the weakest harted womā in the world ▪ hath power if◅ were commaunde◅ to leape int◅e of lyuyng snakes and adders as happely if God had cōmaunded Sara to haue sacrificed her sonne Isaa◅ as he did Abraham she would haue disputed with him yer shee had done it or though she were strong enough yet many an holy Saint could not haue founde in their hartes but would haue runne away from the presence of the commaundement of God with Ionas if they had bene so strongly tempted For Ionas thought of this maner loe I am here a Prophet vnto Gods people the Israelites Whiche though they haue Gods worde testified vnto them dayly yet despise it and worshyp God vnder the likenesse of calues and after all maner fashions saue after hys owne word and therfore are of all nations the worst and most worthy of punishment And yet God for loue of fewe that are among them and for his names sake spareth and defendeth them How then should GOD take so cruel vengeaunce on so great a multitude of them to whō hys name was neuer preached to and therfore are not the tenth part so euill as these If I shall therfore go preach so shal I laye and shame my selfe and God thereto make them the more to dispise God and set the lesse by him and to bee the more cruell vnto his people And vpon that imagination he fled from the face or presence of God that is out of the coūtrey where God was worshipped in and from the prosecutyng of Gods commaundement and thought I will get me an other way among the heathen people and be no more a prophet but liue at rest and out of all combraunce Neuerthelesse the God of all mercy which careth fo◠his elect children turneth all vnto good to them and smiteth them to heale thē againe and killeth them to make them aliue agayne and playeth with them as a father doth some tyme with his young ignoraunt children and tempteth them and proueth them to make them see their owne hartes prouided for Ionas how all thinges should be When Ionas entred into the shyp he layd him down to slepe and to take his rest that is his conscience was tossed betwene the commaundement of God which sent him to Ninine and his fleshly wisedome that dissnaded counselled him the contrary and at the last preuailed against the commaundement and caryed him an other way as a shyp caught betwene two streames as Poetes faine the mother of Meliager to be betwen diuers affections while to aduenge her brothers death shee sought to slea her owne sonne Whereupon for very paine and tediousnes he lay down to slepe for to put the commaundement which so gnewe and fret his conscience out of mynde as the nature of all wicked is when they haue sinned a good to seke all meanes with riot reuell and pastime to driue the remembraūce of sinne out of their thoughtes or as Adam did to couer their nakednes with apornes of Pope holy workes But God awoke him out of his dreame set his sinnes before his face For when y t lot had caught Ionas then bee sure that his sinnes came to remembraunce agayne and that his cōscience raged no lesse then the waues of the Sea And then he thought that he onely was a sinner and the heathen that were in the shyp none in respect of him and thought also as veryly as he was fled from God that as veryly God had cast him away for the sight of the rodde maketh the naturall child not onely to see and to knowledge his faulte but also to forget all his fathers old mercy and kindnesse And then he confessed his sinne openly
Not onely foule and beast but also tree herbe all the floures of the earth do crye vnto vs to trust God and to cast away all care that is coupled with couetousnesse of more then sufficient to beare the charges whiche we haue in our handes by the reason of the state we be in the world and all care that is annexed with mistrust that God shuld not minister inough to beare all our charges if we endeuer our selues to keepe his commaundementes and to do euery man his craft or office he is in truly and when God to proue vs suffereth vs to haue neede of our neighbours we first complayne to God desire him to prepare the hartes of our neighbours agaynst we come to desire their helpe But MaÌ„mon pypeth an other song saying if thou shouldest make no other maner of labour for a benefice then as if thou careddest not whether thou had dest it or haddest it not it would be loÌ„g ere thou gattest one all would be take out of thyne hand I aunswere as thy labour was to get it such shal be thy be hauiour in it as thou flatteredest to haue it so shalt thou it it And as thou boughtest and souldest to get it so shalt thou sell in it to bye â—auour and to be set by in the world If thy principall in tent that thou seekest a benefice for be lucre then take hede to the example of thy forefather Symon Magus Let thy care therefore be to do the office that God putteth thee in trulye and the blessyng that he coupleth thereto that take with thankes and neither care nor couet further Take no thought therefore saying What shall we eate or what shall we drinke or what shall we put on all these thynges the heathen seke Yea and your heauenly father knoweth that ye neede all these things But seke first the kyngdome of God and the righteousnesse therof and all these thynges shal be ministred vnto you Be not like the heathen which haue no trust in God nor his word nor beleue any life to come Let them vexe them selues and ech be a deuill to an other sor worldly thynges But comfort thou thy self with y â— hope of a better life in another worlde euer assured that y â— shalt haue here sufficient onely if thou keepe couenaunt with the Lord thy God and seke his kyngdome and the righteousnesse therof aboue all things The kyngdome of God is the Gospel and doctrine of Christ And the righteousnesse therof is to beleue in Christes bloud for the remission of sinnes Out of which righteousnesse springeth loue to God thy neighbour for his sake which is also righteousnesse as I haue sayd afore so farre as it is perfect and that which lacketh is supplied by faith in Gods word in that he hath promised to accept that til more come Then foloweth the outward righteousnesse of workes by the which and diligent recording of Gods word together we grow and waxe perfect and keepe our selues from goyng backe and losyng the spirite agayne And these haue our spiritualtie with their corrupt doctrine myngled together that is to say the righteousnes of the kyngdome of God which is fayth in Christs bloud the outward righteousnes of the meÌ„bers that we ascribe to the one that pertaineth to the other Seke the kingdome of heauen therfore and the righteousnesse of the same and be sure thou shalt euer haue sufficient and these thynges shal be ministred vnto the that is to say shall come of their owne accord by the promise of God yea Christ promiseth thee an huÌ„dredfolde euen in this life of all that thou leauest for his sake If that were true would some say who would not rather serue him then Mammon yet is it true For first if thou be seruaunt of MammoÌ„ thou must kepe thy God and thy God not thee And euery man that is stroÌ„ger then thou will take thy God from thee Moreouer God will take either thee from thy Mammon or thy Mammon from thee ere thou wouldest to aduenge â–ª him selfe of thy blynd vnkyndnesse that when he hath made thee and geuen thee all thou forsakest him and seruest his mortall enemy But if thou folow Christ all the world and let them take all the deuils in hell to them shall not be able to disappointe thee of a sufficieÌ„t lyuing And though they persecute thee from house to house a thousand tymes yet shall God prouide thee of an other with all things sufficient to liue by Now compare y e suretie of his with y â— incertaintie of the other then the blessed end of this that heaueÌ„ is promised thee also with the miserable departyng from the other so sore agaynst thy will and then the desperation that thy hart â—eeleth that thou art all ready in hell And theÌ„ may not this be wel called a thousand fold more then the other Care not then for the day folowyng but let the day folowyng care for it selfe For the day that is present hath euer inough of his owne trouble If thou looke well on the conenauÌ„t that is betwene thee thy Lord God on the one side and the temptations of the worlde the fleshe and Satan on the other thou shalt soone perceiue that the day present hath euer inough to be cared for for which thou must â—ry instantly to God for helpe also though thou do thy best Now theÌ„ seing y t day present is ouercharged with her owne care what madnesse is it to lade vpon her also the care of the day folowing yea the care of a yeare ye of xx yeare or as though thou neuer entendest to die and to torment and vexe the soule thorow mistrust and vnbeliefe to make thy life soure and bitter and as vnquiet â–ª as the lyfe of the deuilles in hell Therefore care day by day houre by houre earnestly to keepe the couenaunt of the Lord thy God and to recorde therein day and night and to do thy part vnto the vttermost of thy power And as for Gods part let hym care for it himselfe and beleue thou his wordes stedfastly and be sure that heauen and earth shal sooner perishe then one iote bide behinde of that he hath promised And for thine owne part also care not of that maner as though thou shouldest do all alone Nay God hath first promised to helpe thee Secondarily to accept thine hart and that little y â— thou art able to do be it neuer so imperfect Thirdly though wynde weather the streame cary thee cleane contrary to thy purpose yet because thou bidest still in thy profession ready to turne the right course as soone as y â— tempest is a little ouer blowen God promiseth to forgeue that not y t lesse to fulfill his promises of one iote Doth Christ so defend his that they neuer come in daunger of trouble yes they come into such straites oft that no witte
and token that at y t repeÌ„taunce of the hart thorow an offering to come and for that seedes sake that was promised Abraham theyr sinnes were forgeuen them And in like maner the ornamentes and all other ceremonies were eyther an open preaching or secret prophesies and not satisfactions or iustifyinges And thus the workes did serue them and preache vnto them and they not the workes nor put any confidence therein ¶ False worshipping BUt what did the children of Israell and the Iewes They let the significations of their ceremonies goe lost the meaning of them and turned them vnto the workes to serue them saying that they were holy workes coÌ„maunded of God the offerers were thereby iustified obtayned forgeuenes of sinnes thereby become good as the parable of the Pharesey Publican declare Luke xviij and as it is to see in Paule and thoroughout al the Byble and became captiue to serue put their trust in that which was neyther God nor hys worde And so the better creature agaynst nature did serue the worse Whereof all likelihode God should haue accepted their worke by the reason of them if their harts had bene right and not haue accepted their soules for the blouds sake of a Calfe or shepe for as much as a man is much better then a Calfe or shepe as Christ testifieth Math. xij For what pleasure should God haue in the bloude of Calues or in the light of our candels hys pleasure is onely in the hartes of them that loue his commaundementes Then they went further in the imagination of their blynd reason saying in as much as God accepteth these holy workes that we be made righteous thereby then it foloweth that he which offereth most is most righteous and the bestman yea and it is better to offer an Oxe then a shepe because it is more costly And so they stroue who might offer most and the priests were well apayde Then went they further in their fleshly wisdome saying if I be good for the offering of a Doue and better for a shepe and yet better for an Oxe and so euer the better thing I offer the better I am Oh how accepted should I be if I offered a maÌ„ namehym that I most loued And vpoÌ„ that imagination they offered their owne children and burnt them to ashes before Images that they had imagined And to coÌ„tiâ—…e their blindues they layd for them no doubt the ensample of Abraham which offered his sonne Isaac and was so accepted that God had promised hym how that in hys seede all the worlde should be blessed Hereof ye see vnto what abhomination blynde reason bringeth a man wheÌ„ she is destitute of Gods word And to speake of y â— Sabbath which was ordeyned to be their seruaunt to preach to be a signe vnto theÌ„ that God thorow his holy spirit and word did sanctifie them in that they obeyed hys commaundementes and beleued and trusted in hys promises and therfore were charged to leaue workyng and to come on the holy day and heare the word of God by which they were saÌ„ctified vnto it also they became captiue and bond to serue it saying that they were iustified by absteyning from bodely labour as ours thinke also in so much that though they bestowed not the holy day in vertue prayer and hearing the word of God in almosedede in visiting the sicke the needy comfortlesse and so forth but went vp and downe idlye yet what soeuer nede his neighbour had he would not haue holpe him on the Saboth day as thou mayst see by the ruler of the Sinagoge which rebuked Christ for healyng the people on the holy day Luke xiij And of like blyndnesse they went fet out the brasen Serpent which Moses commauÌ„ded to be kept in the Arke for a memory offered before it thinkyng no doubt that God must be there present for els how could it haue healed the people that came not nye it but stode a farre of and beheld it onely And a thousand such madnesse dyd they And of the temple they thought that God heard them there better then any where els yea and he heard them no where saue there And therfore they could not pray but there as ours can no where but at Church and before an Image For what prayer can a man pray when the word of God is not in the temple of his hart yea wheÌ„ such come to Church what is their prayer what is their deuotioÌ„ saue the blind image seruice of their hartes But the Prophetes euer rebuked them for such faythlesse woorkes for such false fayth in their workes In the xlix Psalme saith y t Prophet I wil receaue no Calues of your houses nor Goates out of your foldes thinke ye that I will eate the flesh of Oxen or drinke the bloud of Goates And Esayas sayth in his first Chapter what care I for the multitâ—de of your sacrifices sayth the Lord. I am full I haue no lust in the burnt offeringes of your Rammes or in the fat of faâ— beastes or bloud of Calues Lambes or Goates offer me no more such false sacrifice And therto your swete cense is an abhominatioÌ„ vnto me And thus he sayd because of the false fayth and peruertyng the right vse of them And for their calfe fastyng not referryng their fast vnto the tamyng subduyng of their fleshe vnto the spirite wheÌ„ they complained vnto God iustifying theÌ„ selues and saying how happeneth it that we haue fasted and thou wouldest not looke vppon it we haue humbled our soules and thou wouldst not know it God aunswered them by the Prophet Esayas in the. lviij chapter behold in the day of your fast ye do your owne lustes and gather vp all your dettes And how soeuer ye fast ye neuerthelesse striue and fight and sâ—inite with tiste cruelly I haue chosen no such fast and humblyng of soule c. But that ye louse wicked bondes and let the oppressed go free and to breake bread vnto the hungry and to cloth the naked and so forth And concerning the temple Esayaâ— sayth in his last chapter What house will ye build for me or in what place shall I rest heaueÌ„ is my seate and the earth my foote stole As who should say I am to great for any place that ye can make and as Steuen sayth Actes vij and Paul Actes xvij I dwell not in a temple made with handes ¶ How ceremonies sprang among vs. VNderstaÌ„d also to see how we came into like blindnesse that before the commyng of Christ in the flesh the Israelites Iewes were scattered thoroughout all the world for their Image seruice both East West South and North as ye read in the Chronicles how England was once full so that there was no Prouince or great Citie in the world where no Iewes were God so prouidyng
can doe of his owne free will of his owne proper strength and enforcing Notwithstandyng thoughe there be neuer so great workyng yet as long as their remaineth in the hart vnlust tediousnes grudgyng grief payne lothsâ—nnes compulsion toward the law so long are all the workes vnprofitable lost ye and damnable in the sight of God This meaneth Paule in the iij. Chapter where he sayth by the dedes of the lawe shall no fleshe be iustified in the sight of God Hereby perceauest thou that those sophisters are but disceauers whiche teach that a man may and must prepare him selfe to grace and to the fauour of god with good workes How caÌ„ they prepare them selues vnto the fauour of God to that whiche is good when them selues can do no good no can not once thinke a good thought or consent to do good the deuill possessing their hartes myndes thoughtes captiue at his pleasure CaÌ„ those workes please GOD thinkest thou whiche are done with grief payne and tediousnes with an euill will with a contrary and a grudgyng mynde O holy saint Prosperous how mightely with the Scripture of Paule diddest thou confound this heresie twelue hundred yeares a goe or therupon To fulfill the law is to do y t workes therof and what soeuer the lawe commaundeth with loue lust and inward affection and delectation and to lyue godly and well freely willyngly and without compulsion of the lawe euen as thoughe there were no lawe at all Such lust and free libertie to loue the law commeth onely by the workyng of the spirite in the hart as hee sayth in the first Chapter Now is the spirite none otherwise geuen then by fayth onely in that we beleue the promises of God without waueryng how that God is true and will fulfill all hys good promises toward vs for Christes blondes sake as it is playne in the first Chapter I am not ashamed sayth Paule of Christes glad tydynges for it is the power of GOD vnto saluation to as many as beleue for at once and together euen as we beleue the glad tydynges preached to vs the holy ghost entreth into our hartes and looseth the bondes of the deuill whiche before possessed our hartes in captiuitie and held them that we could haue no lust to y t will of God in the law and as the spirite commeth by fayth onely euen so fayth commeth by hearyng the word or glad tidynges of God when Christ is preached how that hee is Gods sonne and man also dead and risen againe for our sakes as he sayth in the thyrd fourth and tenth Chapters All our iustifying then commeth of faith and faith and the spirite come of God and not of vs. Hereof commeth it that fayth onely iustifieth maketh righteous and fulfilleth the law for it bringeth the spirit through Christes deseruinges the spirite bringeth lust looseth the hart maketh him free setteth hym at libertie and geueth him strength to worke the deedes of the lawe with loue euen as the law requireth then at the last out of the same fayth so workyng in the hart spryng all good workes by their owne accorde That meaneth he in the thyrd Chapter for after he hath cast away the workes of the law so that he soundeth as though he would breake and disanulle the law through fayth he aunswereth to that might bee layd agaynst saying we destroy not the law through fayth but mayntaine further or stablish the law through fayth that is to say we fulfill the law thorough fayth Sinne in the Scripture is not called that outward worke onely committed by the body but all the whole busines and what so euer accompanyeth moueth or stirreth vnto the outward deede and that whence the workes spring as vnbelefe pronenes and readynes vnto the deede in the grounde of the hart with all the powers affections and appetites wherwith we can but sinne so that we say that a man then sinneth when he is caried awaye headlong into sinne all together as much as he is of that poyson inclination and corrupt nature wherein hee was conceiued and borne For there is none outward sinne committed except a maÌ„ be caried away all together with life soule hart body lust and mynde thereunto The Scripture loketh singularly vnto the hart vnto the roote and originall fountaine of all synne which is vnbelefe in the bottom of the hart For as fayth onely iustifieth and bryngeth the spirit and lust vnto the outward good workes Euen so vnbelefe onely damneth and keepeth out the spirit prouoketh the flesh and styrreth vp lust vnto the euill outwarde works as it fortuned to Adam Euâ— in Paradise Gene. 3. For this cause Christ calleth synne vnbelefe and that notablie in the. 16. of Iohn the spirite sayth he shall rebuke the world of sinne because they beleue not in me Wherefore then before all good workes as good frutes there must needes be fayth in the hart whence they spryng and before all bad deedes as bad frutes there must nedes be vnbelief in the hart as in the roote fountain pith and streÌ„gth of all sinne whiche vnbelefe is called the head of the Serpent and of the old Dragon which the womans seede Christ must treade vnderfoote as it was promised vnto Adam Grace and gift haue this difference Grace properly is Gods fauour beneuolence or kynd minde which of his owne selfe without deseruyng of vs he beareth to vs whereby he was moued and inclined to geue Christ vnto vs with all his other giftes of grace Gift is y t holy ghost and his working which hee poureth into the hartes of them on whoÌ„ he hath mercy and whoÌ„ he fauoureth Though the giftes the spirit encrease in vs dayly haue not yet their ful perfection ye and though there remaine in vs yet euill lustes synne which fight agaynst the sprite as he sayth here in the 7. chapter and in the 5. to the Galath and as it was spoken before in the 3. chapter of Gen. of the debate betwene y â— womans sede the seed of y t serpent yet neuertheles gods fauour is so great and so strong ouer vs for Christes sake that we are counted for full whole and perfect before God For Gods fauour towarde vs deuideth not her selfe encreasyng a little and a little as do the giftes but receiueth vs whole altogether in ful loue for Christes sake our intercessour and mediator and because y t the giftes of the sprite the battell betwene the sprite and euill lustes are begonne in vs already Of this now vnderstandest thou the 7. chapter where Paul accuseth hymselfe as a sinner and yet in the 8. chapter sayeth there is no damnation to them that are in Christ and that because of the spirite and because the giftes of the sprite are begonne in vs. Sinners we are because the fleshe is not full killed and mortified Neuertheles in as muche as we beleue in
Christ and haue the earnest and beginning of the sprite God is so louyng fauourable vnto vs that he will not looke on such sinne neither wil counte it as sinne but will deale with vs accordyng to our belief in Christ and according to his promises which he hath sworne to vs vntyll the sinne be full slayne and mortified by death Faythe is not mans opinion and dreame as some imagine and fayne when they heare the story of the Gospell but when they see that there follow no good workes nor amendment of liuyng though they heare ye can bable many thyngs of fayth then they fall from the right way and say fayth onely iustifieth not a man must haue good workes also if he will be righteous and safe The cause is when they heare the gospell or glad tidinges they fayne of their owne strength certaine imaginations and thoughtes in their hartes saying I haue heard the gospell I remember the story loe I beleue and that they counte right fayth which neuerthelesse as it is but mans imagination and faining euen so profiteth it not neither followe there any good workes or amendmēt of liuing But right fayth is a thing wrought by the holy ghost in vs which chaungeth vs turneth vs into a new nature and begetteth vs a new in God and maketh vs the sonnes of god as thou readest in the first of Iohn and killeth the olde Adam and maketh vs altogether new in the hart mynde wyll lust and in all our affectiōs and powers of the soule and bringeth the holye gost with her Fayth is a liuely thing mighty in working valiant strong euer doyng euer fruitfull so that it is vnpossible that he whiche is endued therwith should not worke alwayes good workes without ceasing He asketh not whether good workes are to be done or not but hath done them already ere mention be made of them is alway doing for such is his nature for quicke fayth in hys hart and liuely mouyng of the sprite driue hym and stirre hym therunto Whosoeuer doth not good woorkes is an vnbeleuyng person faithles loketh roūd about him groping after faith good works woteth not what faith or good workes meane though he bable neuer so many thinges of faith good workes Fayth is then a liuely and a stedfast trust in the fauour of God wherewith we commit our selues altogether vnto god that trust is so surely grounded and sticketh so fast in our hartes that a mā would not once doubt of it though he should die a thousand tymes therefore And suche trust wrought by the holy gost through faith maketh a man glad lusty chereful true harted vnto God and vnto all creatures By the meanes wherof willingly and without compulsion he is glad and redy to do good to euery man to do seruice to euery man to suffer all thinges y t god may be loued and praysed which hath geuen hym such grace so that it is impossible to separate good workes from fayth euen as it is impossible to separate heat and burning from fire Therfore take hede to thy selfe and beware of thyne owne fantasies and imaginations which to iudge of fayth good workes wyll seme wyse when in dede they are starke blind and of all things most foolish Pray God that he wyll vouchsafe to worke faith in thine hart or els shalte thou remayne euermore faythlesse fayne thou imagine thou enforce thou wrastle with thy self and do what thou wilt or canst Righteousnes is euen such faythe and is called Gods righteousnesse or righteousnes that is of value before God For it is gods gift and it altereth a man and chaungeth him into a new spiritual nature and maketh him free and liberall to pay euery man his duety For through fayth a mā is purged of his sinnes and obteyneth luste vnto the law of God whereby he geueth God hys honor and payeth hym that he oweth hym and vnto men he doth seruice willingly wherwith soeuer he can and payeth euery man his duety Such righteousnes can nature freewill and our owne strength neuer bring to passe for as no man can geue himselfe faith so can he not take away vnbeliefe how then can he take away any sinne at all Wherefore all is false hipocrisie sinne whatsoeuer is done without fayth or in vnbeliefe as it is euident in the 14. chapter vnto the Romains though it appeare neuer so glorious or beautiful outwardes Fleshe and sprite mayest thou not here vnderstand as though flesh were onely that which pertayneth vnto vnchastitie and the spirite that which inwardly pertayneth to the harte but Paul calleth flesh here as Christ doth Iohn 3. All that is borne of fleshe that is to witte the whole man with lyfe soule body wit will reason whatsoeuer he is or doth within and without because that these all and all that is in man study after the worlde and the flesh Call fleshe therfore whatsoeuer as long as we are without y t spirite of GOD we thinke or speake of God of fayth of good workes and of spirituall matters Call fleshe also all works which are done without grace and without the working of the sprite howsoeuer good holy and spirituall they seeme to be as thou mayest proue by the 5. chapter vnto the Galathians where Paule numbreth worshipping of idoles witchcraft enuy and hate among the dedes of the flesh and by the 8. vnto the Romaines where he sayth that the law by the reason of the fleshe is weake which is not vnderstand of vnchastitie onely but of all sinnes and most specially of vnbeliefe which is a vice most spirituall and grounde of all synnes And as thou callest him whiche is not renewed with the spirit and borne agayne in Christ flesh all his dedes euen the very motions of his hart and minde his learning doctrine and contemplation of hye thinges his preaching teaching and study in the Scripture buildyng of Churches foundyng of Abbeyes geuing of almes Masse mattēs what soeuer he doth though it seme spiritual and after the lawes of God So contrarywise call him spirituall which is renewed in Christ and all his deedes whiche spryng of fayth seme they neuer so grose as the washyng of the Disciples feete done by Christ and Peters fishing after the resurrection yea and al the dedes of matrimony are pure spiritual if they procede of faith and what soeuer is done with in the lawes of God though it be wrought by the body as the very wiping of shooes and such like how soeuer grose they appeare outward With out such vnderstādyng of these wordes canst thou neuer vnderstand this Epistle of Paule neither any other place in the holy Scripture Take hede therfore for who soeuer vnderstādeth these wordes otherwise the same vnderstādeth not Paule what soeuer he be Now will we prepare our selues vnto the Epistle For as much as it becommeth the preacher of
man a lier as Scripture sayth For the truth of God lasteth euer to whom onely be all honour and glorie for euer Amen The ende of the Parable of the Wicked Mammon ¶ The obedience of a Christen man and how Christen rulers ought to gouerne Wherein also if thou marke diligently thou shalt finde eyes to perceaue the craftie conueyaunce of all iugglers Set forth by William Tyndall 1528. Octob. 2. William Tyndall otherwyse called Hitchins to the Reader GRace peace and increase of knowledge in our Lord Iesus Christ be with thee reader and with all that call on the name of the Lord vnfaynedly and with a pure conscience Amen Let it not make thee dispayre neither yet discourage thee O Reader that it is forbidden thee in payne of life and goods or that it is made breaking of the Kinges peace or treason vnto his highnesse to read the worde of thy soules health but much rather be bold in the Lorde and comforte thy soule for asmuch as thou art sure and hast an euident token through suche persecution that it is the true worde of God which worde is euer hated of the worlde neyther was euer without persecution as thou seest in all the stories of the Bible both of the newe Testament and also of the olde neyther can be no more then the Sunne can be without his light And forasmuch as contrariwise thou art sure that the popes doctrine is not of God which as thou seest is so agreable vnto the world and is so receiued of the world or which rather so receaueth the world and the pleasures of the worlde and seeketh nothing but the possessions of the worlde and aucthoritie in the world to beare a rule in the world persecuteth the worde of God with all wilinesse driueth the people from it and with false and sophisticall reasons maketh them afeard of it he curseth them and excommunicateth them and bringeth them in beleef that they be damned if they looke on it and that it is but doctrine to deceaue men and moueth the blinde powers of the world to slay with fire water and sworde all that cleaue vnto it For the world loueth that which is his and hateth that which is chosen out of the world to serue God in the spirite as Christ sayth to his Disciples Iohn 15. If ye were of the world the world would loue his owne but I haue chosen you out of the worlde and therefore the world hateth you An other comfort hast thou that as the weake powers of the worlde defende the doctrine of the worlde so the mighty power of God defendeth the doctrine of God Which thing thou shalt euidentlye perceiue if thou call to minde the wonderfull deedes whiche God hath euer wrought for his word in extreame necessitie since the worlde began beyond all mans reason Whiche are written as Paule sayth Roma 15. for our learning and not for our deceauing that we through patience and comfort of the scripture might haue hope The nature of Gods word is to fight agaynst hypocrites It beganne at Abell and hath euer since continued and shall I doubte not vntyll the laste daye And the hypocrites haue alway the world on their sides as thou seest in the time of Christ They had the elders that is to witte the rulers of the Iewes on theyr side They had Pilate and the Emperors power on theyr side They had Herode also on theyr side Moreouer they brought all theyr worldlye wysedome to passe and all that they coulde thinke â–ª or imagine to serue for theyr purpose Fyrst to feare the people withal they excommunicated all that beleeued in him and put them out of the temple as thou seest Iohn 9. Secondly they founde the meanes to haue him condemned by the Emperors power and made it treason to Cesar to beleeue in him Thirdly they obtayned to haue him hanged as a theefe or a murtherer which after theyr belly wisedome was a cause aboue all causes that no man should beleeue in him For the Iewes take it for a sure token of euerlasting damnation if a man be hanged For it is written in theyr lawe Deutero 21. Cursed is whosoeuer hangeth on tree Moyses also in the same place commaundeth if any man be hanged to take him downe the same day and bury him for feare of polluting or defiling the countrey that is least they shoulde bring the wrath and curse of God vpon them And therfore the wicked Iewes themselues which with so venemous hate persecuted the doctrine of Christ and did all the shame that they coulde do vnto him though they would fayne haue had Christ to hang still on the crosse and there to rotte as he shoulde haue done by the Emperors lawe yet for feare of defiling theyr Sabboth and of bringing the wrath and curse of God vpon them begged of Pilate to take him downe Ioh. 19. which was against them selues Finally when they had done all they coulde and that they thought sufficient and when christ was in the hart of the earth so many billes and pollares about him to keepe him down and when it was past mans helpe then holpe God when man coulde not bring him agayne Gods truth fetched him agayne The oth that God had sworne to AbrahaÌ„ to Dauid to other holy fathers Prophetes raysed him vp agayne to blesse and saue all that beleeue in him Thus became the wisedome of the hypocrites foolishnes Loe thys was written for thy learning and comfort How wonderfully were the children of Israell locked in Egipt In what tribulation combraunce and aduersitie were they in The land also that was promised them was farre of and full of great cities walled with high walles vp to the skye inhabited with great giantes yet Gods truth brought them out of Egipt and planted them in the land of the giantes This is also written for our learning For there is no power agaynst Gods neyther any wisedome against Gods wisedomeâ— he is stronger and wiser then all his enemies What holpe it Pharao to drowne the men childreÌ„ So little I feare not shall it at the last helpe the pope and his byshops to burne our men children whiche manfully confesse that Iesus Christ is the Lorde and that there is no other name geuen vnto men to be saued by as Peter testifieth Actes 4. Who dryed vp the red sea Who slew Golias Who did all those wonderfull deedes which thon readest in the Bible Who deliuered the Israelites euermore from thraâ—dom and bondage as soone as they repented and turned to God Fayth verely and Gods truth and the trust in the promises which he had made Read the xj to the Hebrues for thy consolation When the children of Israell were ready to dispayre for the greatnes the multitude of the Giantes Moyses comforted them euer saying RemeÌ„ber what your Lord God hath done for you in Egipt his wonderfull plagues his
The Friers lykewise make their benefactours which onely they call their brethren and sisters partakers of their masses fasting watchynges prayings and wolward goynges Yea and whē a nouice of the obseruauntes is professed the father asketh him will ye kepe the rules of holy S. Fraunces and he sayth yea will ye so in dede sayth he the other aunswereth yea forsoth father Then sayth the father and I promise you agayne euerlastyng lyfe O blasphemy If eternall life be due vnto the pilde traditions of lowsie Friers where is the Testament become that God made vnto vs in Christes bloud Christ sayth Math. xxiiij And Mark xiij that there shal come Pseudo-Christs Which though I for a consideration haue translated false Christes kepyng the Greeke word yet signifieth it in the English false annoynted and ought so to be translated There shall come saith Christ false annoynted and false Prophetes and shall do miracles and wonders so greatly that if it were possible the very elect or chosen should be brought out of the way Compare the Popes doctrine vnto the word of GOD and thou shalt finde that there hath ben and yet is a great goyng out of the way and that euill men and deceauers as Paul prophesied ij Timo. iij. haue preuailed and waxed worse and worse beguiling other as they are beguiled them selues Thou tremblest and quakest saying shall God let vs go so sore out of the right way I aunswere it is Christ that warneth vs which as he knew all that should follow so prophesied he before and is a true Prophet and his prophesie must nedes be fulfilled GOd annoynted hys sonne Iesus with the holy Ghost and therfore called him Christ which is as much to say as annoynted Outwardly he disguised him not but made hym like other mē and sent him into the world to blesse vs and to offer him selfe for vs a sacrifice of a swete sauour to kill the stench of our sinnes that God hence forth should smell them no more nor thinke on them any more and to make full sufficient satisfaction or amendes for all them that repent beleuyng the truth of god and submitting them selues vnto his ordinaūces both for their sinnes that they do haue done and shal do For sinne we through fragilitie neuer so oft yet as soone as we repente and come into the right way agayne and vnto the Testament whiche God hath made in Christes bloud our sinnes vanish away as smoke in the winde and as darkenes at the commyng of light or as thou cast a litle bloud or milke into y t mayne see In so much that who soeuer goeth about to make satisfactiō for his sinnes to God ward saying in his hart this much haue I sinned this much will I doe agayne or this wise will I lyue to make amendes with all or this wil I do to get heauen with all the same is an infidell faythlesse and damned in his deede doing and hath lost his part in Christes bloud because he is disobedient vnto Gods Testamēt and setteth vp an other of his owne imagination vnto which he will compell God to obey If we loue God we haue a cōmaundemēt to loue our neighbour also as sayth Iohn in his Epistle And if we haue offended him to make him amendes or if we haue not wherewith to aske him forgeuenesse and to doe and suffer all thynges for his sake to wynne him to God to norish peace and vnitie but to Godward Christ is an euerlastyng satisfaction and euer sufficient Christ when he had fulfilled hys course annoynted hys Apostles and disciples with the same sprite and sent them forth without all maner disguising like other men also to preach the attonemēt and peace which Christ had made betwene God and man The Apostles likewise disguised no man but chose men annoynted wyth the same spirit one to preach the worde of God whom we call after the greeke tounge a Byshop or a Priest that is in Englishe an ouersear and an Elder How he was annointed thou readest i. Timothe iij. A Byshoppe or an ouersear must be faultlesse the husband of one wife Many Iewes and also Gentils that were conuerted vnto the faith had at that tyme diuers wines yet were not compelled to put any of thē away which Paule because of ensāple would not haue preachers for as much as in Christ we returne agayne vnto y ◠first ordinaunce of God that one man and one woman should goe together he must be sober of honest behauiour honestly apparelled harbarous that is ready to lodge straungers apte to teach no dronckard no fighter not geuen to filthy lucre but gentle abhorring fyghting abhorring couetousnes and one that ruleth hys owne householde honestly hauing children vnder obedience wyth all honestie For if a man can can not rule hys owne house how can he care for the congregation of God he may not be younge in the fayth or as a man would say a Nouice least he swell and fall into y t iudgement of y t euill speaker that is he may not be vnlearned in the secretes of the fayth For such are attonce stubburne and headstrong and set not a little by themselues But alas we haue aboue twenty thousand that know no more scripture then is written in their portoues and among them is he exceding well learned that can turne to his seruice He must be well reported of thē y t are without least he fal into rebuke and into the snare of the euill speaker that is least the infidels which yet beleue not should be hurt by hym and driuen from the fayth if a man that were defamed were made head or ouerseer of the congregation He must haue a wife for two causes one that it may therby be knowē who is mete for the rowme He is vnapt for so chargeable an office which had neuer housholde to rule An other cause is that chastity is an exceeding seldom gift and vnchastitie exceding perilous for that degree In as much as y ◠people looke as well vnto the liuyng as vnto the preachyng and are hurte at once if the liuing disagree and fall frō the fayth and beleue not the worde This ouerseer because he was takē from hys owne busines and labour to preach Gods word vnto the parishe hath right by the authoritie of hys office to chalenge an honest liuyng of y t parishe as thou mayst see in y ◠Enangelistes and also in paule For who will haue a seruaunt and will not geue hym meate drinke and rayment and all things necessary How they would pay hym whether in money or assigne hym so much rent or in tithes as the guise is now in many countreies was at their libertie Lykewise in euery congregation chose they an other after the same ensample and euen so annointed as it is to see in the sayd chapter of Paule and Act. vj. Whom after the Greeke word we call
by blessing vnderstand not the wagging of the popes or Bishops hand ouer thyne head but prayer as when we say God make thee a good man Christ put his spirite in thee or geue thee grace and power to walke in the truth to folow hys coÌ„mauÌ„dementes c. As Rebeccas frendes blessed her wheÌ„ she departed Gene. xxiiij saying Thou art our sister grow vnto thousand thousandes and thy seede possesse the gates of their enemies And as Isaac blessed Iacob Gene. xxvij saying God geue thee of the dew of heauen and of the fatnes of the earth aboundaunce of corne wyne and oyle c. And Gene. xxviij Almighty God blesse thee and make thee grow and multiply thee that thou mayst be a great multitude of people and geue to thee and to thy seede after thee the blessings of Abraham that thou mayst possesse the land wherin thou art a strauÌ„ger which he promised to thy graundfather and such lyke Last of all one singular doubt they haue what maketh the Priest the annoynting or puttyng on of the handes or what other ceremonie or what wordes About which they braule and scolde one ready to teare out an others throte One sayth this an other that but they caÌ„ not agree Neither caÌ„ any of them make so strong a reason which an other can not improue For they are all out of the way and without the spirite of God to iudge spirituall things Howbeit to this I auÌ„swere that wheÌ„ Christ called xij vp into the mouÌ„taine and chose them then immediatly without any annointing or ceremony were they his Apostles that is to witte ministers chosen to be sent to preach his Testament vnto all the whole world And after the resurrection wheÌ„ he had opened their wittes and geuen them knowledge to vnderstand the secretes of hys Testament how to bynde loose and what he would haue theÌ„ to do in all thynges then he sent them forth with a commaundemeÌ„t to preach and bynde the vnbeleuyng that continue in sinne and to loose the beleuyng that repent And that commaundemeÌ„t or charge made theÌ„ Byshops priestes Popes and all thyng If they say that Christ made theÌ„ priestes at his Maundey or last Supper when he sayd do this in the remembrauÌ„ce of me I aunswere though the Apostles wist not then what hee ment yet I will not striue nor say that agaynst Neuer the latter the commaundement and the charge which he gaue them made theÌ„ Priestes And Actes the first when Mathias was choseÌ„ by lotte it is not to be douted but that the Apostles after their common maner prayed for him that God would geue him grace to minister his office truely and put their handes on him and exhorted him and gaue him charge to be diligent faithfull and then was he as great as the best And Actes vj. When the Disciples that beleued had chosen vj. Deacons to minister to the widdowes the Apostles prayed and put their handes on them and admitted them without more adde Their putting on of hands was not after the maner of the dome blessing of our holy byshops with two fingers but they spake vnto them and tolde them their dutie and gaue them a charge and warned them to be faythfull in the Lordes busines as we chuse temporall officers and read their duty to them and they promise to be faythfull ministers and then are admitted Neither is there any other maner or ceremonie at all required in makyng of our spirituall officers then to chuse an able person and theÌ„ to rehearse him his dutie and geue him his charge and so to put him in his rowme And as for that other solemne doubte as they call it whether Iudas was a Priest or no I care not what he then was but of this I am sure that he is now not onely Priest but also Byshop Cardinall and Pope ¶ Of Penaunce PEnaunce is a word of their owne forgyng to disceaue vs with all as many other are In the Scripture we finde panitentia repentaunce Agite poenitentiam do repent Poeniteat vos let it repeÌ„t you Metanoyte in Greeke forthinke yo or let it forthinke you Of repentaunce they haue made penaunce to blinde the people and to make them thinke that they must take payne and do some holy dedes to make satisfaction for their sinnes namely such as they enioyue them As thou mayst see in the Cronicles when great kynges and tyrauntes which with violence of sword conquered other kynges landes and slew all that came to hand came to them selues and had conscience of their wicked dedes then the Byshops coupled them not to Christ but vnto the Pope and preached the Pope vnto them and made them to submit them selues and also their realmes vnto the holy father the Pope and to take penaunce as they call it that is to say such iniunctions as the Pope and Bishops would commaund them to do to build Abbays to endote them with liuelode to be prayed for for euer and to geue them exemptions and priuilege and licence to do what the lust vnpunished Repentaunce goeth before faith and prepareth the way to Christ and to the promises For Christ commeth not but vnto them that see their sinnes in the law and repent Repentaunce that is to say this mornyng and sorrow of the hart lasteth all our liues long For we finde our selues all our liues long to weake for Gods law and therfore sorrow morne longyng for strength Repentaunce is no Sacrament as faith hope loue and knowledge of a mans sinnes are not to be called Sacramentes For they are spirituall and inuisible Now must a Sacrament be an outward signe that may be sene to signifie to represent and to put a man in remeÌ„braunce of some spirituall promise which can not be sene but by faith onely Repentaunce and all the good dedes which accompanie repentaunce to slay the lustes of the fleshe are signified by Baptisme For Paule sayth Roma vj. as it is aboue rehearsed Remember ye not saith he that all we whiche are baptised in the name of Christ Iesus are baptised to dye with him we are buryed with him in Baptisme for to dye that is to kil the lustes and the rebellion which remayneth in the flesh And after that he sayth ye are dead as concernyng sinne but lyue vnto God through Iesus Christ our Lord. If thou looke on the profession of our harts and on the spirit and forgeuenes which we haue receaued thorough Christes merites we are full dead but if thou looke on the rebellion of the flesh we do but begyn to dye and to be baptised that is to drowne and quench the lustes and are full baptised at the last minute of death And as coÌ„cernyng the workyng of the spirite we begyn to lyue grow euery day more and more both in knowledge and also in Godly lyuyng accordyng as the lustes abate As a child receaueth yeâ—ull soule at the first day yet
them to continue still wyth violence And thus teach our deuines as it appereth by their argumentes He that taketh most payne say they is greatest and so forth The people are throughly brought in beliefe that the deede in it selfe without any further respect saueth them if they be so long at Church or say so many Pater nosters and reade so much in a toung whtch they vnderstand not or goe so much a pilgrimage and take so much payne or fast such a superstitious fast or obserue such a superstitious obseruaūce neither profitable to himselfe nor to hys neyghbour but done of a good entent onely say they to please God withall ye to kisse the paxe they thinke it a meritorious deede when to loue their neyghbour and to forgeue hym which thyng is signified thereby they studie not to doe nor haue power to doe nor thinke that they are bounde to doe it if they be offended by hym So fore haue our false prophets brought y ◠people out of their wittes haue wrapped thē in darcknes and haue rocked them a sleepe in blyndnes and ignorauncy Now is all such doctrine false doctrine and all such fayth false fayth For the deede pleaseth not but as farre forth as it is applyed vnto our neyghbours profet or the taming of our bodyes to keepe the commaundement Now must the body be tame onely and that wyth the remedies that God hath ordeined and not kylled Thou must not forswere the naturall remedy which God hath ordeined and bryng thy selfe into such case that thou shouldest eyther breake Gods commaundement or kyll thy selfe or burne nyght and day wythout rest so that thou cāst not once thinke a godly thought neyther is it lawfull to forsake thy neyghbour and to withdraw thy selfe from seruing him and to get thee into a den and lyue idlely profitable to no man but robbing all men first of fayth and then of goodes and land and of all he hath wyth makyng hym beleue in the hypocrisy of thy superstitious prayers and Popeholy deedes The prayer of fayth and y e deedes thereof that spring of loue are accepted before God The prayer is good according to the proportion of fayth and the deede according to the measure of loue Now he that bideth in the world as Monkes call it hath more fayth then the cloysterer For he hangeth on God in all thynges He must trust God to sende hym good speede good lucke fauour helpe a good mayster a good neyghbour a good seruaunt a good wyfe a good chapman marchaunt to send hys marchaundice safe to land and a thousand like He loueth also more which appeareth in that hee doth seruice alwayes vnto his neighbour To pray one for an other are we equally boūd and to pray is a thyng that we may alwayes doe what so euer we haue in hand and that to do may no man hyre an other Christes bloud hath hyred vs all ready Thus in the deede deliteth God as farforth as we do it either to to serue our neighbour with all as I haue sayd or to tame the flesh that we may fulfill the commaundement from the bottome of the hart And as for our payne takyng God reioyseth not therin as a tyraunt but pitieth vs as it were morneth with vs and is alway ready and at hand to helpe vs if we call as a mercyfull father and a kynd mother Neuer the later hee suffereth vs to fall into many temptations and much aduersitie yea him selfe layeth the crosse of tribulatiō on our backes not that he reioyseth in our sorrow but to driue sinne out of y ◠flesh which can none otherwise be cured as the Phisition and Surgion do many thinges which are paynefull to the sicke not that they reioyse in the paynes of the poore wretches but to persecute and to driue out the diseases which can no otherwise be healed When the people beleue therfore if they doe so much woorke or suffer so much payne or go so much a pilgrimage that they are safe is a false fayth For a Christen man is not saued by woorkes but by fayth in the promises before all good woorkes though that the woorkes when we worke Gods commaūdement with a good wil and not workes of our own imagination declare that we are safe and that the spirite of him that hath made vs safe is in vs yea and as God through preachyng of fayth doth purge and iustifie the hart euen so thorough workyng of deedes doth he purge and iustifie the members makyng vs perfect both in body and soule after the lykenesse of Christ Neither nedeth a Christen man to runne hether or thether to Rome to Hierusalem or S. Iames or any other pilgrimage farre or nere to be saued thereby or to purchase forgeuenes of his sinnes For a Christen mās health and saluation is with in him euen in his mouth Roma x. The word is nye thee euen in thy mouth and in thyne hart that is the word of faith which we preach sayth Paul If we beleue the promises with our hartes and confesse them with our mouthes we are safe This is our health with in vs. But how shall they beleue that they heare not And how shal they heare without a preacher sayth Paul Roma x. For looke on the promises of God and so are all our preachers domme Or if they preach them they so sause thē and leuen thē that no stomacke can brooke them nor finde any sauor in them For they paynte vs such an eare confession as is impossible to be kept and more impossible that it should stand with the promises and Testament of God And they ioyne them penaunce as they call it to fast to go pilgrimages and geue so much to make satisfaction with all They preach their Masses their merites their pardons their ceremonies and put the promise cleane out of possession The word of health and saluation is nye thee in thy mouth thyne hart sayth Paul Nay say they thy saluation is in our faythfull eare This is their hold thereby know they all secretes thereby mocke they all men and all mens wiues and beguile Knight and Squier Lord and Kyng and betray all Realmes The Byshops with the Pope haue a certaine conspiration and secret treason agaynst the whole world And by confession know they what Kings and Emperours thinke If ought be agaynst them do they neuer so euill then moue they their captiues to warre and to fight and geue them pardons to slay whom they will haue taken out of the way They haue with falsehode taken from all Kynges and Emperours their right and duties whiche now they call their freedomes liberties priuileges haue peruerted the ordinaunces that God left in the world and haue made euery Kyng sweare to defend their falsehode against their own selues So that now if any man preach Gods worde truly and shew the fredome and libertie of the soule whiche we haue in
Saint was great wyth God when he was aliue as it appeareth by the myracles which God shewed for him he must therfore be great now say they This reaâ—oÌ„ appeareth wisdome but it is very folishnes wyth God For the myracle was not shewed that thou should put thy trust in the Saint but in the worde which the saint preached which worde if thou beleuest would saue thee as God hath promysed and sworne would make thee also great wyth God as it dyd y e Saint If a maÌ„ haue a matter wyth a great man or a kyng he must goe fyrst vnto one of hys meane seruauntes and theÌ„ hyer and hyer till he come at the kyng This entising argumeÌ„t is but a blinde reason of mans witte It is not like in the kingdome of the worlde and in the kingdome of God and Christ With kynges for the most part we haue none acquaintaunce neither promise They be also most coÌ„monly mercilesse Moreouer if they promise they are yet meÌ„ as vnconstant as are other people as vntrue But with God if we haue beliefe we are accompted and haue an open way in vnto hym by the dore Christ which is neuer shutte but through vnbeliefe neither is there any porter to keepe any man out By him saith Paul Ephe. ij that is to say by Christ we haue an open way in vnto the father So are ye now no more straungers and forreiners sayth he but citizens wyth the Saintes and of the housholde of God God hath also made vs promises and hath sworne yea hath made a testament or a couenaunt and hath bounde hymselfe and hath sealed his obligation wyth Christes bloud and confirmed it wyth miracles He is also mercifull and kinde and coÌ„playneth that we wyll not come vnto hym He is mighty and able to performe that he promiseth He is true and can not be but true as he can not be but God Therefore is it not lyke with the kyng and God We be sinners say they God wyll not heare vs. Beholde how they flee from God as from a tyraunt mercilesse Whom a maÌ„ counteth most mercifull vnto hym he sonest flyeth But these teachers dare not come at God Why For they are y e childreÌ„ of Caine. If the Saintes loue whome God hateth then God and his Saints are deuided When thou prayest to y e saintes how doe they know except that God whom thou countest mercilesse tell them If God be so cruell and so hateth thee it is not likely that he wyll tell the Saintes that thou prayest vnto them When they say we be sinners I answere that Christ is no sinner saue a satisfaction and an offering for synne Take Christ froÌ„ the saintes and what are they What is Paule wythout Christ is he any thing saue a blasphemer a persecuter a murtherer and a shedder of Christen bloude But as soone as he came to Christ he was no more a sinner but a minister of righteousnes he went not to Rome to take penaunce vpon him but went preached vnto his brethren the same mercy which he had receaued free wythout doing penaunce or hiering of Saintes or of Monkes or Fryers Moreouer if it be Gods worde that thou shoulde put thy trust in the saintes merites or prayers then be bolde For Gods worde shall defend thee and saue thee If it be but thine owne reason then feare For God commaundeth by Moyses Deut. xij saying what I coÌ„maund you that obserue and do and put nothing to nor take ought therefro yea and Moses warneth straitly in an hundred places that we do that onely which God commaundeth and which seemeth good and righteous in hys sight and not in our owne sight For nothing bringeth the wrath of god so sone and so sore on a man as the idolatry of his owne imagination Last of all these arguments are contrary to the argumentes of Christ and of his Apostles Christ disputeth Luk. 11. saying If the sonne aske the father bread will he geue him a stone or if he aske him fish will he geue him a serpent and so forth If ye then saith he which are euill can geue good giftes to your children how much rather shall your heauenly father geue a good spirite vnto them that aske him And a little before in the same chapter he sayeth If a man came neuer so out of season to his neighbour to borow bread euen when he is in his chamber the dore shut and all his seruantes wyth him neuerthelesse yet if he continue knocking and praying he will rise and geue him asmuch as he nedeth though not for loue yet to be rid of him that he may haue rest As who should say what will God do if a man pray him seing that prayer ouercommeth an euill man Aske therfore sayth he and it shall be geuen you seeke and ye shal finde knocke and it shal be opened vnto you And Luke 18. he putteth forth the parable or similitude of the wicked Iudge which was ouercome with the importunate prayer of y e widow And concludeth saying Heare what the wicked Iudge did And shall not God aduenge his elect which cry vnto hym night and day Whether therefore we complaine of the intollerable oppression and persecution that we suffer or of the flesh that combreth resisteth the spirite God is mercifull to heare â—s to helpe vs. Seest thou not also how Christ cureth many and casteth out deuyls out of many vnspoken too how shall he not helpe if he be desired and spoken to When the old pharisies whose nature is to driue sinners from Christ asked Christ why he did eat with publicanes and sinners Christ aunswered that the whole neded not the phisition but the sicke that is he came to haue coÌ„uersation with sinners to heale theÌ„ He was a gift geueÌ„ vnto sinners and a treasure to pay theyr debtes And Christ sent the complayning and disdayning pharisies to the Prophet Oseas saying Go and learne what thys meaneth I desire or require mercy and not sacrifice As who should say Ye pharises loue sacrifice and offring for to feed that God your bellies withall but God commaundeth to be mercifull Sinners are euer captiues and a pray vnto the Pharises and hypocrites for to offer vnto theyr bellies to buy merites pardons and forgeuenes of sinnes of them And therefore feare they them away from Christe with argumentes of theyr belly wysedome For he that receaueth forgeuenes free of Christ wil buy no forgeuenes of them I came sayth Christ to call not the righteous but the sinners vnto repentaunce The pharisies are righteous and therefore haue no part with Christ neitheâ— need they for they are Gods themselues sauiours But sinners that repent partaine to Christ If we repent Christ hath made satisfaction for vs already God so loued the world that he gaue hys onely sonne that noue that beleue on him should perish but should haue euerlasting life For God sent not hys sonne
fathers fathers of theÌ„ that are past And as we feele our fathers so dyd they that are past feele their fathers neither were there in the world any other fathers then such as we both see and feele this many hundred yeares as their Decrees beare recorde and the stories and Chronicles well testifie If Gods word appeared any where they agreed all agaynst it When they had brought that a sleepe then stroue they one with an other about their owne traditions and one Pope condemned an others Decrees and were sometyme ij yea thre Popes at once And one Bishop went to law with an other and one cursed an other for their owne fantasies such things as they had falsly gotteÌ„ And the greatest Samts are they that most defeÌ„ded the liberties of the church as they call it which they falsly gote with blynding kings neither had the world any rest this many hundred yeares for reformyng of Friers and Monkes and ceasyng of schismes that were among our Clergy And as for the holy Doctours as Augustine Hierome Cyprian Chrisostomus and Bede will they not heare If they wrote any thyng negligently as they were men that drawe they cleane contrary to their meanyng and therof triumphe they Those Doctours knew of none authoritie that one Byshop should haue aboue another neither thought or once dreamed that euer any such should be or of any such whisperyng or of Pardons or scouryng of Purgatory as they haue fayned And when they cry miracles miracles remember that God hath made an euerlasting Testament with vs in Christes bloud against which we may receaue no miracles no neither y â— preachyng of Paule him selfe if he came agayn by his own teaching to the Galathians neither yet the preachyng of the aungels of heauen Wherefore either they are no miracles but they haue fayned theÌ„ as is the miracle that S. Peter halowed Westminster or els if there be miracles that confirme doctrine contrary to Gods word theÌ„ are they done of the deuill as the mayd of Ipswich of Kent to proue vs whether we will cleane last to Gods word and to deceaue them that haue no loue to the truth of Gods word nor lust to walke in his lawes And for as much as they to deceaue with all arme them selues against theÌ„ with argumentes and periÌ„nasions of fleshly wisedome with worldly similitudes with shadowes with false Allegories with false expositions of the Scripture contrary vnto the liuyng practising of Christ and the Apostles with lyes and false miracles with false names domne ceremonies with disguising of hypocrisie with the authorities of the fathers and last of all with the violence of the temporall sworde therfore do thou contrariwise arme thy selfe to defende thee with all as Paule teacheth in the last chapter to y â— Ephesians Gyrde on thee the sworde of the spirite which is Gods word and take to thee the shilde of fayth which is not to beleue a â—ate of Robynhode or Gestus Romanorum or of the Chronicles but to beleue Gods woorde that â—asteth euer And when the Pope with his falshead chalengeth temporall authoritie aboue King and Emperour set before thee y â— xxv chapter of S. Math. Where Christ commanudeth Peter to put vp his sword And set before thee Paul ij Cor. x. Where he sayth the weapons of of our warre are not carnall thynges but myghty in God to bryng all vnderstandyng in captiuitie vnder the obedience of Christ that is the weapoÌ„s are Gods word and doctrine and not swordes of yron and stele set before thee the doctrine of Christ and of hys Apostles and their practise And when the Pope chalengeth anthoritie ouer his fellow Byshops and ouer all the congregation of Christ by successioÌ„ of Peter set before thee y â— first of the Actes where Peter for all hys authoritie put no man in the rowme of Iudas but all the Apostles chose two indifferently and cast lottes desiring God to temper them that the lot might fall on y e most ablest And Actes viij the Apostles sent Peter and in the xi call him to rekening and to geue accomptes of that he hath done And when the Popes law coÌ„maundeth saying though that the Pope liue neuer so wickedly and draw with hym through his euill ensample innumerable thousaÌ„des vnto hell yet see that no man presume to rebuke him for he is head ouer all and no man ouer him set before thee Gallates ij Where Paule rebuketh Peter openly And see how both to the CorinthiaÌ„s and also to the Galathians he will haue no superiour but Gods word hee that could teach better by Gods worde And because when he rehearsed his preachyng and hys doynges vnto the hygh Apostles they could improue nothyng therfore will he be equall with the best And when the Friers say they do more theÌ„ their dutie wheÌ„ they preach and more theÌ„ they are bound to to say our seruice are we bouÌ„d say they and that is our dutie to preach is more then we are bound to Set thou before thee how that Christes bloud shedyng hath bounde vs to loue one an other withall our might and to do the vttermost of our power one to an other And Paul sayth i. Cor. ix Wo be vnto me if I preach not yea wo is vnto him y â— hath wherewith to helpe his neighbour and to make him better and do it not If they thinke it more then their dutie to preache Christ vnto you then they thinke it more then their dutie to pray that ye should come to the knowledge of Christ And therefore it is no maruell though they take so great labour yea and so great wages also to kepe you still in darkenes And when they crye furiously hold the heretikes vnto the wall and if they will not reuoke burne them without any more a do reason not with theÌ„ it is an Article condeÌ„ned by the fathers Set thou before thee the saying of Peter i. Pet. iij. To all that aske you be ready to geue an aunswere of the hope that is in you and that with mekenes The fathers of the Iewes and the Bishops whiche had as great authoritie ouer them as ours haue ouer vs condemned Christ his doctrine If it be inough to say the fathers haue condeÌ„ned it theÌ„ are y â— Iewes to beholdeÌ„ excused yea they are yet in the right way and we in the false But if the Iewes be bound to loke in the Scripture and to see whether their fathers haue done right or wrong then are we likewise bound to looke in the Scripture whether our fathers haue done right or wrong and ought to beleue nothyng without a reason of the Scripture and authoritie of Gods word And of this maner defend thy selfe agaynst all maner wickednes of our spirites armed alway with Gods woorde with a strong and a stedfast fayth thereunto Without Gods word do nothing And to his word adde nothyng neither pull any
thou haue peace in thy selfe and that thou take all to the best and be not offēded lightly and for euery small trifle and alway ready to forgeue ▪ nor sowe no discorde nor aduenge thyne owne wrong But also that thou be feruent diligent to make peace and to go betwene where thou knowest or hearest malice and enuie to be or seest bate or strife to arise betwen person and person and that thou leaue nothing vnsought to set them at one And though Christ here speake not of the temporall sword but teacheth how euery man shall liue for him selfe toward his neighbour yet Princes if they wil be Gods children must not onely giue no cause of warre nor begyn any but also though he haue a iust cause suffer him selfe to be entreated if he that gaue the cause repent and must also seke al wayes of peace before he fight Howbeit when all is sought and nothing will helpe then he ought and is bound to defend his land subiectes in so doyng he is a peacemaker as well as whē he causeth theeues murtherers to be punished for their euill doyng and breakyng of the common peace of his land and subiectes If thou haue peace in thy selfe and louest the peace of thy brethren after this maner so is God through Christ at peace with thee and thou his beloued sonne and heyre also Moreouer if the wrong done thee be greater then thou mayst beare as whē thou art a person not for thy selfe onely But in respect of other in what soeuer worldly degree it be and hast an office committed thee then when thou hast warned with all good maner him that did it and none amendement wil be had kepe peace in thyne hart and loue him still and complaine to them that are set to reforme such things and so art thou yet a peacemaker and still the sonne of God But if thou aduenge thy selfe or desirest more then that such wronges be forbidden thou sinnest against god in taking the authoritie of God vpon thee without his commaundemēt God is father ouer all and is of right iudge ouer all his children and to him onely partayneth all aduēging Who therfore without his commaundemēt aduengeth either with hart or hand the same doth cast hym selfe into the handes of the sword loseth the right of his cause And on the other side cursed be the peacebreakers picquarels whisperers backbyters sowers of discorde dispraysers of thē that be good to bring thē out of fauour interpreters to euill that is done for a good purpose finders of faultes where none is stirrers vp of Princes to battaile and warre aboue all cursed be they that falsly bely the true preachers of Gods word to bring them into hate and to shed their bloud wrongfully for hate of the truth For all such are children of the deuill Blessed are they that suffer persecution for righteousnes sake for theirs is the kyngdome of heauen If the faith of Christ law of God in which two all righteousnes is contained be writtē in thine hart that is if thou beleue in Christ to be iustified frō sinne or for remission of sinne cōsentest in thyne hart to the law that it is good holy and iust and thy dutie to do it and submittest thy selfe so to do therupon goest forth and testifiest that fayth and law of righteousnes openly vnto the world in word dede Then will Sathan stirre vp his members agaynst thee and thou shalt be persecuted on euery side But be of good comfort and faynte not Call to mynde the saying of Paule ij Timo. iij. how all that wil liue godly in Christ Iesu shal suffer persecution Remember how all the Prophetes that went before thee were so dealt with Luke vj. Remēber the examples of the Apostles and of Christ him selfe and that the Disciple is no better then his Maistee and that Christ admitteth no disciple which not onely leaueth not all but also taketh his crosse to We be not called to a soft liuing and to peace in this world But vnto peace of cōscience in God our father through Iesus Christ to warre in this world Moreouer comfort thy selfe with the hope of the blessing of the inheritaunce of heauen there to be glorified with Christ if y u here suffer with hym For if we be like Christ here in his passiōs and beare his image in soule and body fight manfully that Sathan blot it not out suffer with Christ for bearyng recorde to righteousnes thē shall we be like him in glory S. Iohn iij. of hys Epistle yet appeareth not what we shal be But we know that whē he appeareth we shal be like hym And Paule Phil. iij. our conuersation is in heauen whence we looke for a Sauiour the Lord Iesus Christ which shall chaunge our vile bodyes and make thē like his glorious body It is an happy thing to suffer for righteousnes sake but not for vnrighteousnes For what prayse is it sayeth Peter in the second of his first epistle though ye suffer when ye be buffeted for your offences Wherfore in y e fourth of the same he sayth see that none of you suffer as a murtherer or a thefe or an euill doer or a busy body in other mens matters Such suffering glorifieth not God nor thou art therby heire of heauen Beware therefore that thou deserue not that thou sufferest But if thou do then beware much more of them that would beare thee in hand bow that such suffering should be satisfaction of thy sinnes and a deseruing of heauen No suffering for righteousnes though heauen be promised therto yet doth it not deserue heauen nor yet make satisfactiō for the foresinnes Christ doth both twaine But and if thou repent and beleue in Christ for the remission of sinne and then cōfesse not onely before God but also open before all that see thee suffer how that thou hast deserued that thou suffrest for breaking the good and righteous law of thy father and then takest to◠punishmēt patiently as an holesome medicine to heale thy flesh that it sinne no more and to feare thy brethren that they fall not into like offence as Moses teacheth euery where then as thy paciēce in suffering is pleasaunt in the sight of thy brethrē which behold thee pitie thee and suffer with thee in their harts euen so is it in the sight of God and it is to thee a sure token that thou hast true fayth and true repentaunce And as they be blessed which suffer for righteousnes euen so are they accursed which runne away and let it be troden vnder the feete and wyll not suffer for the fayth of their Lord and lawe of their father nor stande by their neighbours in their iust causes Blessed are ye when they reuile you and persecute you and say all maner of euil sayinges against you for my sake and yet lye Reioyce and be glad for
all that is corrupt must be salted And those personnes are of all other most corrupt and therfore may not be left vntouched The Popes pardons must be rebuked the abuse of the Masse of the Sacramentes and of all the ceremonyes must be rebuked and salted And selling of merites and of prayers must be salted The abuse of fastyng and of pilgrimage must be salted All idolatry false faith must be rebuked And those Fryers that teach men to beleue in S. Fraunces coate how that they shall neuer come in hell or purgatory if they be buryed therein may not be passed ouer with silence The payne griefe of salting made Monkes flee to their cloysture Nay say they we went thether of pure denotion to pray for the people Yea but for all that the more ye encrease and y e more ye multiply your prayers the worse the world is That is not our fault say they but theirs that they dispose not themselues but continue in sinne and so are vnapt to receaue the influence of our prayers O hipocrits if ye weee true salt and had good harts and loued your neighbours if dead men be neighbours to them that are aliue and woulde come out of your dennes and take payne to salt and season them ye should make a great many of them so apt that your prayers might take effect But now seyng as ye say they be so vnsauery that your prayers be to theÌ„ improfitable though their goods be to you profitable and yet ye haue no compassioÌ„ to come out and â—alt theÌ„ it is manifest that ye loue not them but theirs and that ye pray not for them but vnder the colour of praying mocke them and robbe them Finally salt which is the true vnderstandyng of the law of faith and of the intent of all workes hath in you lost her vertue neither be there any so vnsauery in the world as yeare nor any that so sore kicke agaynst true saltyng as ye and therfore are ye to be cast out and troden vnder foote and despised of all men by the righteous iudgement of God If salt haue lost his saltnesse it is good for nothing but to be troden vnder foote of men That is if the preacher whiche for his doctrine is called salt haue lost y e nature of salt that is to say his sharpnesse in rebukyng all vnrighteousnes all naturall reason naturall witte and vnderstandyng all trust and confidence in what soeuer it be saue in the bloud of Christ he is coÌ„demned of God and disalowed of all them that cleaue to the truth In what case staÌ„d they then that haue benefices preach not verely though they stand at the altar yet are they excommunicat and cast out of the liuing Church of almighty God And what if the doctrine be not true salt verely then is it to be troden vnder foote As must all werish and vnsauery ceremonies whiche haue losâ—e their significatioÌ„s and not onely teach not and are become vnprofitable do no more seruice to man But also haue obtained authoritie as God in the hart of man that maÌ„ serueth them and putteth in them the trust confidence that he should put in God hys maker thorough Iesus Christ his redemer Are the institutions of man better then Gods yea are Gods ordinauÌ„ces better now theÌ„ in the old tyme The Prophets trode vnder foote and defied the teÌ„ple of God and the sacrifices of God and all ceremonies that God had ordained with sastinges and prayinges and all that the people peruerted and committed idolatrie with We haue as straite a commaundement to salt and rebuke all vngodlinesse as had y e Prophetes Will they then haue their ceremonies honourably spokeÌ„ of then let them restore them to the right vse and put the salt of the true meanyng significations of them to theÌ„ agayne But as they be now vsed none that loueth Christ caÌ„ speake honourably of them What true Christen man can geue honour to that that taketh all honour froÌ„ Christ who can geue honour to that that slayeth the soule of his brother robbeth his hart of that trust and coÌ„â—â—deÌ„ce which he should geue to his Lord that hath bought him with his bloud â–ª Ye are the light of the world A Citie that is set on an hil caÌ„not be hid neither do men light a candle And put it vnder a bushell but on a caÌ„dlesticke and so geueth it light to all that are in the house Let your light so shine before meÌ„ that they may see your good woorkes and prayse your father that is in heauen Christ goeth forth and describeth y â— office of an Apostle and true preacher by another likenesse callyng them as before the salt of the earth EueÌ„ so here the light of the worldâ—… signifiyng therby that all y e doctrine all the wisdome and hie knowledge of the world whether it were Philosophy of naturall concâ—usions of maners and vertue or of lawes of righteousnes whether it were of the holy scripture and of God hymselfe was yet but a darcknes vntill the doctrine of hys Apostles came that is to say vntill the knowledge of Christ came how that he is the sacrifice for our sinnes our satisfaction our peace attonement and redemption our life therto and resurrection Whatsoeuer holinesse wisdome vertue perfectnesse or righteousnes is in y e world among men howsoeuer perfect holy they appeare yet is all dampnable darcknesse except the right knowledge of Christes bloud be there first to iâ—ftifie the hart before all other holinesse An other coÌ„clusion As a citie built on a hill can not be hid no more can the light of Christes Gospell Let the world rage as much as it will yet it wil shine on their sore eyes whether they be content or no. An other conclusion as men light not a candle to whelme it vnder a busshell but to put it on a candlesticke to light all that are in the house euen so the light of Christes Gospell may nor be hid nor made a seuerall thyng as though it pertayned to some certayne holy persons onely Nay it is the light of the whole world and pertaineth to all men and therfore may not be made seuerall It is a madnesse that diuerse men say the lay people may not know it except they can proue that the laye people be not of the world Moreouer it will not be hid but as the lightning that breaketh out of the cloudes shyneth ouer all euen so doth the Gospel of Christ For where it is truely receaued there it purifieth the hart and maketh the person to consent to the lawes of God and to beginne a new and a godly lyuing fashioned after Gods lawes and without all dissimulation And then it wil kendle so great loue in hym towarde his neighbour that he shall not onely haue compassioÌ„ on hym in hys bodely aduersitie but much more pitie him ouer the blyndenes of his soule and
to minister to him Christes Gospel Wherfore if they say it is here or there in Saint Fraunces coate or Dominickes and such like that if thou wilt put on that coat thou shalt finde it there it is falfe For if it were there thou shouldest see it shyne abroad though thou creptst not into a sell or a monkes coule as thou seest y â— lightning without crepyng into the cloudes yea their light would so shine that men should not onely see y â— lyght of the Gospell but also their good workes which would as fast come out as they now runne in In so much that y â— shouldest see theÌ„ make theÌ„sel es pore to helpe other as they now make other poore to make theÌ„selues rich This lyght and salt pertayned not then to the Apostles and now to our Bishops and spiritualtie onely No it pertayneth to the temporall men also For all kynges and all rulers are bound to be salt and light not onely in example of liuing but also in teaching of doctrine vnto their subiects as wel as they be bounde to punishe euill doers Doth not the scripture testifie that kyng Dauid was chosen to be a shepeheard and to feede his people wyth Gods worde It is an euill scholemaster that cannot but beate onely But it is a good scholemaster that so teacheth that few neede to be beateÌ„ This salt and light therefore partayne to the temporaltie also and that to euery meÌ„ber of Christes Church so that euery man ought to be salt light to other Euery man then may be a common preacher thou wilt say and preach euery where by his owne auctoritie Nay verely No man may yet be a commoÌ„ preacher saue he that is called and chosen thereto by the commoÌ„ ordinaunce of the congregation as long as the preacher teacheth the true worde of God But euery priuate man ought to be in vertuous lyuing both light and salt to hys neighbour in so much that the poorest ought to striue to ouerrun the Byshop and to preach to hym in ensample of liuing Moreouer euery man ought to preach in worde deede vnto his houshould and to them that are vnder his gouernaunce c. And though no maÌ„ may preach openly saue he that hath the office committed vnto hym yet ought euery maÌ„ to endeuour himselfe to be as well learned as the preacher as nie as it is possible And euery man may priuatly enforme hys neighbour yea and the preacher and Byshop to if nede be For if the preacher preach wrong then may any man whatsoeuer he be rebuke him first priuately and then if that helpe not to complayne further And when all is proued according to the order of charitie and yet none amendment had theÌ„ ought euery man that caÌ„ to resist him and to stand by Christes doctrine to ieoparde lyfe all for it Looke on the olde ensamples they shal teach thee The Gospel hath an other fredome with her then the temporall regiment Though euery mans body and goods be vnder y â— kyng do he right or wroÌ„g yet is the auctoritie of Gods woorde free and aboue the kyng so that the worst in the realme may tell y e kyng if he do hym wrong that he doth nought and otherwise theÌ„ God hath coÌ„maunded hym and so warne hym to auoide the wrath of God which is the pacient aduenger of all vnrighteousnes May I then and ought also to resist father and mother and all temporall power wyth Gods worde when they wroÌ„gfully do or commaunde that hurteth or killeth the body and haue I no power to resiste the Byshop or preacher that wyth false doctrine slayeth the soules for which my maister and Lord Christ hath shed his bloud Be we otherwise vnder our Byshops then Christ and hys Apostles and all the other Prophetes were vnder the Byshops of the olde law Nay verely and therefore may we and also ought to do as they dyd and to aunswere as the Apostles dyd Act. v. Oportet magis obedire deo quà m hominibus We must rather obey God then men In the Gospell euery man is Christes Disciple and a person for himself to defend Christes doctrine in his owne person The fayth of the Byshop will not helpe me nor the byshoppes keeping the lawe is sufficient for me But I must beleue in Christ for the remission of all sinne for myne owne selfe and in myne owne person No more is the Bishops or preachers defending Gods woorde inough for me But I must defende it in mine owne person and ieopard lyfe and all thereon when I see neede occasion I am bouÌ„d to get worldly substauÌ„ce for my selfe for myne houshold with my iust labour and somewhat more for theÌ„ that cannot to saue my neighbours body And am I not more bouÌ„d to labour for Gods word to haue therof in store to saue my neighbours soule And when is it so much tyme to resiste with Gods word and to helpe as wheÌ„ they which are beleued to minister the true word do slea the soules with false doctrine for couetousnes sake He that is not ready to giue hys lyue for the maintenaunce of Christes doctrine agaynst hypocrites with what soeuer name or title they be disguised y â— same is not worthy of Christe nor can bee Christes Disciple by the very wordes and testimony of Christ Neuerthelesse we must vse wisedome pacieÌ„ce mekenes and a discrete processe after the due order of charitie in our defendyng the word of God least while we go about to amende our Prelates we make theÌ„ worse But when we haue proued all that charitie bindeth vs yet in vaine then we must come forth opeÌ„ly and rebuke their wickednes in the face oâ— the world and ieoparde life all theron Ye shall not thinke that I am come to destroy the law or the propheres no I am not come to destroy them but to fulfill them For truly I say vnto you till heaueÌ„ and earth perish there shal not one iote or one title of the law scape till all be fulfilled A litle before Christ calleth his Disciples the light of the world the salt of the earth that because of their doctrine wherewith they should lighten the blynd vnderstandyng of man and with true knowledge driue out y â— false opinions and sophisticall persuasions of natural reason deliuer the Scripture out of y â— captiuitie of false gloses which the hypocritishe Phariseis had pâ—â—ched therto and â—o out of the light of trueknowledge to styrre vp a new liuyng and to salt season the corrupt maners of the old blind conuersation For where false doctrine corrupt opinions and sophistical gloses raigne in the witte and vnderstandyng there is the liuing deuilish in the sight of God how soeuer it appeare in the sight of the blind world And on the other side where the doctrine is true and perfect there foloweth godly liuing of
for vs y â— remissioÌ„ of our sinnes but also the forgeuenesse of that grosse and fleshly imagined Purgatory saue thou must bye it out of the Pope And with such traditions they tooke away the keye of knowledge and stopped vp the kyngdome of heauen that no man could enter in And as I sayd they taught the people to beleue in the dedes of the ceremonies which God ordeined not to iustifie but to be signes of promises by which they that beleued were iustified But the Phariseis put out the significations queÌ„ched the fayth and taught to be iustified by the woorke as ours haue serued vs. For our Sacramentes were once but signes partly of what we should beleue to styrre vs vp vnto fayth and partly what we should do to styrre vs vp to do the law of God and were not workes to iustifie Now make this reason vnto Iohn and vnto many Prophetes that went before him and did as he dyd yea and vnto Christ him self and his Apostles thou shalt finde them all heretickes and the Scribes and Phariseis good men if that reason be good Therfore this wise thou mayst aunswere No thankes vnto the heades of y â— Church that the Scripture was kept but vnto the mercy of God For as they had destroyed the right sense of it for their lucre sake euen so would they haue destroyed it also if they coulde rather then the people should haue come vnto the right vnderstaÌ„dyng of it as they slew the true interpretours and preachers of it And euen so no thankes vn to our hypocrites that the Scripture is kept but vnto the bottomlesse mercy of God For as they haue destroyed the right sense of it with their leueÌ„ and as they destroy dayly the true preachers of it and as they kepe it from the lay people that they should not see how they iuggle with it euen so would they destroy it also could they bryng it about rather theÌ„ we should come by the true vnderstandyng of it were it not that God prouided otherwise for vs. For they haue put the stories that should in many thynges helpe vs cleane out of the way as nye as they could They haue corrupt the Legend and lyues almost of all Saintes They haue fayned false bookes and put them forth some in the name of S. Hierome some in y â— name of S. Augustine in the name of S. CypriaÌ„ S. Dionise and other holy men which are proued none of theirs partly by the stile and Latine partly by autenticke stories And as the Iewes haue set vp a booke of traditions called Talmud to destroy the seÌ„se of y â— Scripture Vnto which they geue fayth and vnto the Scripture none at all be it neuer so playne but say it can not be vnderstand saue by the Talmud euen so haue ours set vp their Dunce their Thomas and a thousand like draffe to stablish their lyes thorough falsifying the Scripture say that it can not be vnderstand without them be it neuer so playne And if a man alledge an holy Doctour agaynst them they glose him out as they do the Scripture or will not heare or say the Church hath otherwise determined Now therfore when they aske vs how we know that it is the Scripture of God aske them how Iohn Baptist knew other Prophetes which God styrred vp in all such times as the scripture was in like captiuitie vnder hypocrites Did Iohn beleue that the Scribes Phariseis and hygh Priests were the true Church of God and had hys spirite and could not erre who taught the Egles to spy out their pray euen so the children of God spy out their father and Christes elect spy out theyr Lord and trace out the pathes of hys feete and folow yea though he go vpoÌ„ the playne and liquide water which will receaue no stepe yet there they find out his foote his elect know him but the world knoweth him not Iohn 1. If the world know him not thou call the world pride wrath enuy couetousnesse slouth glottony and lechery then our spiritualtie know hym not Christes shepe heare y â— voyce of Christ Iohn x. where the world of hypocrits as they know hym not euen so the wolues heare not his voyce but compell the Scripture to heare them and to speake what they lust And therfore except the Lord of Sabaoth had lest vs seede we had bene all as Sodome and Gomor sayd Esay 1. And euen so sayd Paul in hys tyme. And euen so say we in our time that the Lord of the hostes hath saued him seede hath gathered hym a flocke to whom he hath geuen cares to heare that the hypocritish Wolâ—es can not heare and eyes to see that the blynd leaders of the blynd can not see and an hart to vnderstaÌ„d that the generation of poysoned Vipers caÌ„ neither vnderstand nor know If they alleage S. Augustine which sayth I had not beleued the Bospell except the authoritie of the church had moued me I answere as they abuse that saying of the holy man euen so they alleage all the Scripture and all that they bring for them euen in a false sence S. Augustine before he was conuerted was an heathen maÌ„ and a Philosopher full of worldly wisdome vnto whom the preaching of Christ is but folishnesse sayth Paule i. Corin. i. And he disputed wyth blynde reasons of worldly wisdome agaynst the Christen Neuerthelesse the earnest liuing of the Christen according vnto theyr doctrine and the constant suffering of persecutioÌ„ and aduersitie for their doctrines sake moued hym stirred hym to beleue that it was no vayne doctrine but that it must nedes be of god in that it had such power with it For it happeneth that they which wyll not heare the worde at the beginning are afterward moued by the holy conuersation of them that beleue As Peter warneth ChristeÌ„ wines that had heathen husbandes that would not heare the truth preached to liue so godly that they might winne their heathen husbandes with holy conuersation And Paule sayth how knowest thou Christen wife whether thou shalt winne thine heathen husband with holy conuersation meÌ„t he For many are woÌ„ne with godly liuing which at the fyrst either will not heare or can not belene And that is the authoritie that S. Augustine meane But if we shal not beleue tyll the liuyng of the spiritualtie conuert vs we be like to bide long inough in vnbeliefe And wheÌ„ they aske whether we receaued the scripture of them I aunswere that they which come after receaue the scripture of them that go before And when they aske whether we beleue not that it is Gods worde by the reason that they tell vs so I aunswere that there are two manuer faythes an historicall fayth and a feelyng fayth The historicall fayth hangeth of the truth and honestie of the teller or of the common fame and
a multitude together by them selues without persecution temptatioÌ„ of their â—ayth as the great multitude vnder the pope is which persecute and â—…t And these which the Pope calleth heretikes shew no miracles by their owne confession neither ought they â–ª 〈◊〉 as much as they bryng no new learnyng nor ought saue the Scripture which is all ready receaued coÌ„firmed with miracles Christ also promiseth vs nought in this world saue persecution for our fayth And the stories of the old Testament are also by Paulus 1. Cor. x. our examples And there though God at a time called with miracles a great multitude yet the very chosen that receaued the fayth in their harts to put their trust in God alone and which endureth in temptations were but few and euer oppressed of their false brethreÌ„ and persecuted vnto the death and driuen vnto corners And when Paule ij Thes ij sayth that Antichristes commyng shal be by the working of Sathan with all power signes and wonders of falsehead all deceaueablenesse for them that perish because they coÌ„ceiued not loue vnto the truth to be saued by and therefore shall God send them strong delusioÌ„ or guile to beleue lies the text must also pertaine vnto a multitude gathered together in christes name of which one part and no doubt the greater for lacke of loue vnto the truth that is in Christ to liue thereafter shall fall into sectes and a false fayth vnder the name of Christ and shal be indurate and stablished therein with false miracles to perish for their vnkindnesse The pope first hath no Scripture that he dare abyde by in the light neither careth but blasphemeth that his word is truer theÌ„ the Scripture He hath miracles with out Gods word as all false Prophetes had He hath lyes in all his Legendes in all preachynges and in all bookes They haue no loue vnto the truth which appeareth by their great sinnes that they haue set vp aboue all the abhominatioÌ„ of all the heathen that euer were and by their long continuaunce therin not of frailtie but of malice vnto the truth and of obstinate lust selfe will to sinne Which appeareth in two thinges the one that they haue gotten them with wiles and falsehead froÌ„ vnder all lawes of man and euen aboue Kyng and Emperour that no man should constraine their bodies bryng them vnto better order that they may sinne frely without feare of man And on the other syde they haue brought Gods word a slepe that it should not vnquyet their consciences in so much that if any maÌ„ rebuke them with that they persecute him immediatly pose hym in their false doctrine and make hym an hereticke and burne hym and quench it And Paule sayth ij Timo. iij. in the later dayes there shal be perilous tymes For there shal be men that loue them selues couetous high mynded proud raylers disobedient to father and mother vnthankfull vngodly churlish promisebreakers accusers or pickquareles vnlouyng despisers of the good traytours hedy puâ—sed vp that loue lustes more theÌ„ God hauing an appearaunce of godlynesse but denying the power therof And by power I vnderstand the pure faith in gods word whiche is the power and pith of all godlynesse and whence all that pleaseth God springeth And this text pertaineth vnto them that professe Christ And in that he sayth hauing an appearaunce of godlynesse of that foloweth in the text of this sort are they that enter into mens houses and lead women captiue laden with sinne euer askyng neuer able to atteine vnto the truth as our hearers of coÌ„fessions do it appeareth y t they be such as wil be holyer then other and teachers and leaders of the rest And looke whether there be here any sillabe that agreeth not vnto our spiritualtie in the highest degree Loue they not them selues their owne decrees and ordinaunces theyr owne lyes and dreames despise all lawes of God and man regarde no man but theÌ„ onely that be disguised as they be And as for their couetousnesse whiche all the world is not able to satisfie tell me what it is that they make not serue it in so much that if God punishe the world with an euill pocke they immediatly paynt a blocke and call it Iob to heale the disease in stede of warning the people to mend their lyuyng And as for their high mynde and pryde see whether they be not aboue Kings and Emperour all the names of God whether any man may come to beare rule in this world except he be sworne to them and come vp vnder them And as for their raylyng looke in their excoÌ„munication and see whether they spare Kyng or Emperour or the Testament of God And as for eâ—edience to father and mother Nay they be immediatly vnder God and his holy vicare the Pope he is their father on hys ceremonies they must wayte And as for vnthaÌ„kfull they be so kind that if they haue receaued a thousand pound land of a man yet for all y t they would not receaue one of his ofspryng vnto a nights harbour at his nede for their founders sake And whether they be vngodly or no I reporte me vnto the parchement And as for churlishnesse see whether they will not haue their causes venged though it should cost whole regions yea and all ChristeÌ„dome as ye shall see and as it hath cost halfe Christendome all ready And as for their promise or trucebreakyng see whether any appoyntement may endure for their dispensations be it neuer so lawfull though the Sacrament were receaued for the coÌ„firmatioÌ„ And see whether they haue not brokeÌ„ all the appointementes made betwene them and their founders And see whether they be not accusers and â—â—aytours also of all meÌ„ and that secretly of theyr very owne Kynges and of their owne nation And as for their headmeste see whether they be not proue bold and runne headloÌ„g vnto all mischief without pitie compassion or caryng what misery and destruction should fall on other men so they may haue theyr present pleasure fulfilled And see whether they loue not theyr lustes that they will not be refrained from them either by any law of God or man And as for their apperauÌ„ce of godlynesse see whether all be not Gods seruice that they fayne and see whether not almost all consciences be captiue thereto And it foloweth in the text as the sorcerers of Egipt resisted Moses so resisted they the truth They must be therfore mighty iugglers And to poynt the popishe wyth the finger he sayth men are they wyth corrupt mindes and cast awaies concernyng fayth that is they be so fleshly mynded so croked so stubbuâ—ne and so monstrous shapen that they caÌ„ receaue no fashion to stand in any buildyng that is grounded vppon fayth but wheÌ„ y u hast turned them
of the spiritualtie and iij. of the temporaltie with the kyng of Bohem the vij to be the odde man Vmpere should â—huse him for euer and sende hym to the Pope to receaue his othe and to be crowned Neuerthelesse the Pope to keepe the Emperour a far of sendeth hym hys coronation home to him ofttymes much leuer than that he should come any nearer as a meeke spryted man that had leuer liue solitarie and alone then haue his holinesse seene ¶ A proper similitude to describe our holy father ANd to se how our holy father came vp marke the example of an Iuytree first it springeth out of y â— earth then a while crepeth along by y t grouÌ„d till it finde a great tree then it ioyneth it selfe be neath alow vnto the body of the tree and creepeth vp a litle and a litle fayre and softly And at the begynnyng while it is yet thynne and small that the burthen is not perceaued it semeth glorious to garnishe the tree in the wyntre to beare of the tempestes of the weather But in the meane season it thrusteth his rootes into y t barck of the tree to hold fast with all and ceasseth not to clyme vp till it be at the top and aboue all And then it sendeth hys braunches a long by the braunches of the tree and ouergroweth all and waxeth great heauy and thicke and sucketh the moysture so sore out of the tree and his braunches that it choketh and stifâ—eth them And then the foule stinckyng Iuye waxeth mighty in the stoÌ„pe of the tree and becommeth a sete and a nest for all vncleane byrdes for blind Oules whiche hauke in the darke and dare not come at the light Euen so the Byshop of Rome now called Pope at the begynnyng crope a long vppon the earth and euery man trode vpon him in this world But assoone as there came a Christen Emperour he ioyned him selfe vnto hys feete and kissed them and crope vp a litle with beggyng nowe this priuilege now that now this Citie now that to finde poore people with all and the necessary Ministers of Gods word And hee entitled the Emperour with chosing the Pope and other Bishops and promoted in the spiritualty not whom vertue and learning but whom the fauour of great men coÌ„mended to flater to get frendes and defenders with all And the almes of the congregation which was the fode and patrimony of the poore and necessary preachers that he called S. Peters patrimony S. Peters reutes S. Peters landes S. Peters right to cast a vayne feare and an heathenish superstitiousnesse into the hartes of meÌ„ that no man should dare meddle with what soeuer came once in to their handes for feare of Saint Peter though they ministred it neuer so euil and that they which should thinke it none almes to geue them any more because they had to much already should yet geue S. Peter somewhat as Nabucodonesser gaue his GOD Beel to purchasse an aduocate and an intercessor of S. Peter and that S. Peter should at the first knocke let theÌ„ in And thus with flateryng and fayning and vayne superstition vnder the name of S. Peter he crept vp and fastened his rootes in the hart of the Emperour and with his sword clame vp aboue all his felow byshops brought them vnder his feete And as he subdued theÌ„ with the Emperours sword euen so by sutiltie helpe of them after that they were sworne saythfull he clame aboue the Emperour and subdued hym also and made sâ—oupe vnto his feete and kisse theÌ„ an other while Yea pope Coelestinus crowned the Emperour Henry the fift holdyng y e crown betwene his feete And when he had put the crowne on he smote it of with his feete agayne saying that he had might to make Emperours and put them downe agayne And he made a constitution that no lay man should medle with their matters nor be in their Councels or witte what they did and that the pope onely should call the Councell and the Emperour should but defeÌ„d the Pope prouided allway that the Councel should be in one of the Popes Townes and where the Popes power was greater then the Emperours then vnder a pretence of condemnyng some heresie hee called a generall Councell where he made one a Patriarcke an other Cardinall an other Legate an other Primate an other Archbyshop an other Bishop another Deane another Arch deacon and so forth as we now see And as the Pope played with the Emperour so dyd his braunches and his members the Byshops play in euery Kyngdome Dukedome Lordshyp in so much that the very heyres of them by whom they came vp hold now their landes of them and take theÌ„ for their chief Lordes And as the Emperour is sworne to the Pope euen so euery kyng is sworne to the Byshops and Prelates of his Realme and they are the chiefest in all Parlamentes yea they and theyr money and they that be sworne to them and come vp by them rule all together And thus the Pope the father of all hypocrites hath with falsehode guile peruerted the order of the worlde and turned the rootes of the trees vpward and hath put downe the kyngdome of Christ and set vp the kyngdome of the deuil whose Vicare he is and hath put downe the Ministers of Christ and hath set vp the Ministers of Sathan disguised yet in names and garmentes lyke vnto the aungels of light ministers of righteousnes For Christes kyngdome is not of the world Iohn xviij and the Popes kyngdome is all the world And Christ is neither iudge nor diuider in this world Luke xij But the Pope iudgeth deuideth all the world and taketh the Empyre and all kyngdomes and geueth them to whom he lusteth Christ sayth Math. v. Blessed are the poore in spirite so that the first step in the kyngdome of Christ is humblenesse or humilitie that thou canst finde in thyne hart to do seruice vnto all meÌ„ and to suffer that all men treade thee The Pope sayth Blessed be the proude hygh mynded that can clyme and subdue all vnder them and mayntaine their right and such as will suffer of no man so that he which was yesterday taken from the dongehill and promoted this day by his Prince shall tomorow for the Popes pleasure curse him and excommunicate him and interdite his Realme Christ sayth Blessed be the meke or soft that be harmlesse as Doues The Pope blesseth them that can set all the world together by the eares and fight and sâ—ea mafully for his sake that he may come haote from bloudsheddyng to a Byshopricke as our Cardinall dyd and as S. Thomas of Canterbury did which was made Byshop in the field in complete harnesse on his horse backe and his speare bloudy in his hand Christ hath neither holes for Foxes nor nestes for byrdes nor yet whereon to lay his
that this would be a iopardous yeare for him what for the treason that he had wrought against the Emperour and what for y t mony which he had borowed of the Commons least any rising should be against him then he thought to vndoe his desteny with his policies and went and put downe himselfe vnder a colour which the processe of the tragedy well declareth and set vp in his roome to minister forth to fight against God as he had begun the chiefest of all his Secretaries one nothing inferiour vnto his master in lying faining bearing two faces in one hode a whelpe that goeth not out of kinde from his syre the chiefest stale wherewith the Cardinall caught the kinges grace whome he called vnto the confirmation of al that he entended to persuade saying If it like your grace More is a learned man and knoweth it and is also a lay man wherefore he will not say otherwise then it is for any parcialitie to vswarde Which secretary yet must first deserue it wyth writing against Martin and agaynst the Obedience and Mammon and be come the proctour of Purgatorye to write against y â— supplicatioÌ„ of beggers And then to blinde the world withall many quarrels were picked the Cardinall might not speake with the kinges grace the broad seale was fette away high treason was layd to hys charge i. that he breathed heard I say in the kinges face when he had the french pockes O hypocrices but the very treason that he had wrought was not spoke of at all nor ought worthy of a traytour done to him at all Then they called a Parliament as though the golden world should come againe wherin the hypocriâ—s to bleare mens eyes withall made a reformation of mortuaries and probates of testamentes the root yet left behind whence all that they haue for a time weeded out will spring againe by litle and litle as before if they as their hope is may stop this light of Gods worde that is now abroad They made a reformation also of pluralities of benefices ordayning that henceforth no man may come by pluralitie of benifices with vertue and conning but with seruing for theÌ„ in y â— court Which what other thing is it saue playne symony O blinde busserdes and shamelesse hypocrites What care they to do whether agaynst God or their own lawes to flatter great men withall to blind theÌ„ But harke here The tithes were ordayned at the beginning to finde the preachers and the poore people which now goe a begging so that the church wardens ought to take the benefices into their handes in the name of the parish deliuer the preacher of Gods word there dwellyng and preseÌ„t a sufficient liuing deuide the rest among y e poore people And the king is bound to maintaine that order and not to resist them except he will be an open tyraunt Now I appele the consciences of the kinges grace and of his lordes What aunswer will they geue when they come before Christ in y e last iudgement for their robbing of so many soules in so many parishes of Gods word with holding euery man so many chaplaynes in their houses wyth pluralities of benefices and for the robbing of so many poore and needy of their due and dayly foode whose need for lacke of succour cryeth to God continually for vengeaunce against them which we see daily by a thousand misfortunes fall on them and on theyr wiues and children Let them read Exodus and Deutronomie and see what they finde there Yea and what shall so many chaplaines do First slay theyr soules then defile their wiues their daughters and their maydens and last of all betray them When this reformation the coloure and cloke of their hipocrisy was made then the spiritualtie came douking before the kinges grace and forgaue him y t mony which they had leÌ„t their pope to bring in the temporalty to make theÌ„ after their example to do likewise as louing subiects no lesse kinde vnto their Prince theÌ„ the spiritualty For their arses were vpoÌ„ thornes til y â— lone was forgeuen for feare of afterclaps wherupon the teÌ„porality forgaue their part also in hope of y t thy obteined not For assone as the lone was forgeueÌ„ the parliament brake vp because our prelates their coÌ„federat frends had fouÌ„d y â— they sought caught y e fish for which they layed the bayt of all those faces of reformations and for which the Cardinall to bring y t worlde into a fooles paradise was compelled eueÌ„ with his owne good will to resigne his chauncellorshyp that to whoÌ„ he listed him selfe And as for the bishoprike of Durham to say the very truth he could not of good congruitie but reward his old chaplaine and one of the chief of al his secretaries with all still Saturne that so seldome speaketh but walketh vp downe all day musing and imagining mischiefe a douking hypocrite made to dissemble Which for what seruice done in christes Gospell came he to the bishoprike of London Or what such seruice did he therein He burnt the new Testament calling it Doctrinam perigrinam strainge learning Yea verily Looke how strange his liuing in whose bloud that testament was made was from the liuing of the pope euen so strainge is that doctrine from the popes law in which onely and in the practise therof is Tunstal learned Which also for what cause left he the bishoprike of London Euen for the same cause he tooke it after that he had long serued for it couetousnes and ambition Neither is it possible naturally that there should be any good Bishop so long as the bisshoprickes be nothing saue worldlye pompe and honour superfluous abundance of all maner riches and libertie to do what a man listeth vnpunished thinges which onely the euill desire and all good men abhorre And assone as the Parliament was ended the Cardinall had his charter and gat him home and all Bisshops gat them euery foxe to his hole leuing yet their attournies behinde them to come againe themselues assone as the constellation is somewhat ouerrunne whereof they be afrayd ¶ What the cause of all this mischiefe is WHence commeth all this mischiefâ—Verily it is the hand of God to auenge the wantonnesse of great men which will walke without the feare of God folowing y e steps of the hye Prelates contrary vnto their profession to auenge also y t wrongs the blasphemies subtil persecuting of his word For when Martin Luther had vttered the abhominations of the Pope and his clergy with Gods worde and diuers bookes were come into England our Cardinall thought to finde a remedy against that well enough and sent to Rome for this vaine title Defender of the fayth which the Vicar of Croydon preached that the Kynges grace would not lose for all London and xx mile round about it
necessary to prepare this Pathway into the Scripture for you that ye might walke surely euer know the true frō the false And aboue all to put you in remembraunce of certaine pointes which are that ye well vnderstand what these wordes meane The old Testament The new Testament The law The Gospell Moses Christ Nature Grace Workyng and beleuing Dedes and faith Lest we ascribe to the one that which belongeth to the other and make of Christ Moses of the Gospell the Law despise grace and robbe fayth fal from meke learnyng into idle despitions brawlyng and scoldyng about wordes The old Testament is a booke wherein is written the law of God the dedes of them which fulfill them of them also which fulfill them not The new Testament is a booke wherein are conteined the promises of God and the dedes of them which beleue them or beleue them not Euangelion that we call the Gospel is a Breke word and signifieth good mery glad and ioyfull tydinges that maketh a mans hart glad and maketh him sing daunce and leape for ioy As when Dauid had killed Goliath the gyaunt came glad tydinges vnto the Iewes that their fearefull and cruell enemy was slayne and they deliuered out of all daunger for gladnes wherof they song daunced and were ioyful In like maner is the Euangelion of God which we call Gospell and the new Testament ioyfull tydinges and as some say a good hearing published by the Apostles throughout all the world of Christ the right Dauid how that hee hath fought with sinne with death and the deuil ouercome them wherby all men that were in bondage to sinne woūded with death ouercome of the deuill are without their owne merites or deseruinges losed iustified restored to life and saued brought to libertie and reconciled vnto the fauour of God set at one with him agayne whiche tydinges as many as beleue laude prayse thanke God are glad syng and daunce for ioy This Euangelion or Gospell that is to say such ioyfull tydinges is called y ◠new Testament Because that as a mā whē he shall dye appointeth his goods to be dealt distributed after his death among them whiche he nameth to bee his heyres Euen so Christ before hys death commaūded and appointed that such Euangelion Gospell or tydynges should be declared throughout all the world and therewith to geue vnto all that repent and beleue all his goodes that is to say his lyfe wherewith hee swalowed and deuoured vp death hys righteousnes wherewith he banished sinne his saluatiō wherwith he ouercame eternall damnation Now cā the wretched man that knoweth him selfe to be wrapped in sinne and in daūger to death hell heare no more ioyous a thyng them such glad and comfortable tydinges of Christ So that he can not but be glad and laugh frō the low bottome of his hart if hee beleue that the tydinges are true To strēgth such sayth with all God promised this his Euangelion in the old Testament by the Prophetes as Paul sayth Rom. 1. How that he was chosē out to preach Gods Euāgeliō which he before had promised by the Prophetes in the Scriptures that treate of his sonne which was borne of the sede of Dauid In the Gene. iij. God sayth to the Serpent I wil put hatred betwen thee and the woman betwen thy seede and her sede that selfe sede shall treade thy head vnder foote Christ is this womās seede he it is that hath troden vnder foote the deuils head that is to say sinne death hell all his power For without this seede can no man anoyde sinne death hell and euerlasting damnation Agayne Gene. xxij God promised Abraham saying in thy seede shall all the generations of the earth be blessed Christ is that seede of Abraham sayth S. Paule Gala. iij. He hath blessed all the world through the Gospell For where Christ is not there remaineth the curse that fell on Adam as soone as he had sinned so that they are in bōdage vnder the damnation of sinne death and hell Against this curse blesseth now the Gospell all the world in asmuch as it cryeth opēly vnto all that knowledge their sinnes and repēt saying who soeuer beleueth on the sede of Abraham shal be blessed that is he shal be deliuered from sinne death and hell and shall hence forth continue righteous and saued for euer as Christ hym selfe sayth in the xj of Iohn He that beleueth on me shall neuer more dye The law sayth Iohn i. was geuē by Moses but grace and verity by Iesus Christ The law whose minister is Moses was geuen to bryng vs vnto the knowledge of our selues that we might thereby feele and perceaue what we are of nature The law cōdemneth vs and all our deedes and is called of Paule in the ij Cor. iij. the ministration of death For it killeth our consciences and driueth vs to desperation in as much as it requireth of vs that which is vnpossible for our nature to do It requireth of vs the deedes of an whole man It requireth perfect loue from the low bottome and grounde of the hart as well in all thinges whiche we suffer as in the thinges which we do But sayth Iohn in the same place grace and veritie is geuē vs in Christ So that when the law hath passed vpō vs and condemned vs to death which is his nature to do then haue we in Christ grace that is to say fauour promises of life of mercy of pardon freely by y e merites of Christ in Christ haue we veritie truth in that God for his sake fulfilleth all his promises to them that beleue Therfore is y ◠Gospell the ministration of life Paule calleth it in the fore rehearsed place of the Cor. ij the ministration of the spirite and of righteousnes In the Gospell when we beleeue the promises we receaue the spirit of life and are iustified in the bloud of Christ from all thyngs wherof the law condemned vs. And we receaue loue vnto the law and power to fulfill it and grow therein dayly Of Christ it is written in the fore rehearsed Ioh. i. this is he of whose aboundaunce or fulnes all we haue receaued grace for grace or fauour for fauour That is to say for the fauour that God hath to his sonne Christ he geueth vnto vs his fauour good wil al giftes of his grace as a father to his sonnes As affirmeth Paule saying whiche loued vs in his beloued before the creation of y ◠world So y ◠Christ bringeth the loue of God vnto vs and not our owne holy woorkes Christ is made Lord ouer all and is called in Scripture Gods mercy stole who soeuer therfore flyeth to Christ can neither heare nor receaue of God any other thyng saue mercy In the old Testamēt are many promises which are nothyng els but the Euāgelion or Gospel to saue those
and he will therto consider our mekenes and what soeuer chaunceth neuer taketh away hys mercy till we cast of the yoke of our profession first and runne away with vtter defiaunce that we will neuer come more at schole Then our stubburne and hard hartes mollifie waxe soft and in the confidēce and hope that we haue in Christ and his kindnes we go to God boldly as vnto our father and receaue life that is to say loue vnto God and vnto the law also That whiche we haue seene and heard we declare vnto you that ye may haue felowshyppe with vs and that our felowshyppe may be with the father and with his sonne Iesus Christ And these thynges we write vnto you that your ioye may be full To bryng vnto the felowshyp of God and Christ and of them that beleue in Christ is the finall intent of all the Scripture why it was giuen of God vnto man and the onely thyng which all true preachers seke wherby ye shall euer know and discerne the true word of God from all false and counterfayted doctrine of vayne traditions the true preacher from the wylie hypocrite We preache vnto you sayth Iohn y t euerlastyng lyfe which we haue heard and in hearyng receaued through fayth and are sure of it to draw you to vs out of the felowshyp that ye haue with the damned deuils in sinnefull lustes and ignoraunce of God for we seeke you and not yours as sayth Paul ij Cor. xij We loue you as our selues in God therfore wold haue you felowes and equall with vs build you vpon the foundation layd of the Apostles and Prophetes which is Christ ▪ Iesus and make you of the houshold of God for euer that ye and we felowes and brethren and coupled together in one spirit in one fayth and in one hope might haue our felowship thereby with God and become his sonnes heyres with Iesus Christ beyng his brethren and coheyres and to make your ioy ful through that glad tydinges as the aungell sayd vnto the shepheardes Luke ij Behold I shew you great ioye that shal be vnto all the people how that there is a Sauiour borne vnto you this day whiche is Christ the Lord. And these tydinges we bryng you with the worde of God onely which we receaued of his spirit and out of the mouth of his sonne as true messengers We preach not our selues but Christ our Lord and vs your seruauntes for hys sake we do not loue our selues to seke yours vnto vs that after we had with wiles robbed you of all ye haue we should exalte our selues ouer you separate our selues frō you and make our selues a seuerall kyngdome free and frāke raygnyng ouer you as heathen tyrauntes holdyng you in bondage to serue our lucre and lustes tanglyng your conscience with doctrine of man whiche draweth from God and Christ and fearing you with the bugge of excommunication agaynste Gods word Or if that serued not shakyng a sword at you And this is the tydinges whiche we haue heard of hym and declare vnto you that God is lyght and in hym is no darknes at all If we say that we haue felowshyp with hym and yet walke in darkenes we lye and do not the truth But and if we walke in light as he is in light then haue we felowshyp together and the bloud of Christ his sonne clenseth vs from all sinne As the deuill is darknes and lyes so is God light and truth onely and there is no darknes of falshead consentyng to wickednes in hym And the brightnes of his light is his word and doctrine as the. C. and. xix Psalme sayth Thy worde is a lanterne vnto my feete a light to my pathes And Christe is the light that lightneth all men And the Apostles are called the light of the world because of the doctrine And all that knowe truth are light Ye were once darkenes sayth Paule Ephes v. but now light in the Lord walke therfore as the children of lyght And good workes are called the frutes of light And all that lyue in ignoraūce are called darknes as he sayth afterward he that hateth his brother walketh in darknes For if the light of the glorious Gospell of Christe dyd shyne in his hart he could not hate his brother By walking vnderstande consenting doing and working If then we walke in darcknes that is consent and worke wickednes and say we haue felowship with God we ly For to haue felowship with him is to knowe and consent and professe his doctrine in our hartes Now if the commaundementes of GOD bee written in our hartes our members can not but practise thē shew the fruite So whether light or darknes be in the hart it will appeare in y t walking For though our members be neuer so dead vnto vertue yet if our soules knowledge the truth consent vnto righteousnes we haue the sprite of life in vs. And Paule sayth Rom. viij If the spirite of him y t raysed vp Iesus from death be in you thē wil he y t raised vp Iesus frō death quicken your mortall bodies by the reasō of the spirit that dwelleth in you So that it is not possible for him that knoweth the truth consenteth thereto to continue in sinne And then finally if we haue the light in our harts and walke therein then we haue fellowship with God and are his sonnes and heires and are purged from all sinne through Christes bloud If we say we haue no sinne we deceaue our selues and trueth is not in vs. If we think there is no sinne in vs we are beguiled and blinde and the light of Gods word is not in vs and eyther folow sinne as beastes without consciēce at all Or if we see the grosse sinnes as murther theft and adultery yet we haue hanged a vayle of false gloses vpon Moses face and see not the brightnes of the law how that it requireth of vs as pure an hart to God and as great loue vnto our neighbours as was in our sauiour Iesus ceaseth not before to condemne vs as sinners If we knowledge our sinnes he is faythfull and iust to forgeeue vs our sinnes and to clense vs from all vnrigh teousnes If we confesse our sinnes not in the preistes eare though that tradition restored vnto the right vse were not dānable but in our hartes to God with true repentaunce and fast beleife then is he faythfull to forgeue and to purge vs because of his mercifull truth and promise For he promised Abraham that in his seede all the worlde should be blessed from the curse of sinne And hath aboundantly renued his euerlasting mercy vnto vs in the new testament promising that our sinnes shall be forgeuen vs in Christes bloud if we repent and trust thereto If we say we haue not sinned we make him a lyer and hys woord is not in vs. For his
one sayth so and an other thus confirming their assertions with glorious persuasions of wisedome but not after the wisedome of God whiche reasons an other denyeth with cōtrary sophismes so riseth brauling about vayne wordes without all certaintie And now litle children abide in hym that when hee shall appeare we may haue confidence and not bee made ashamed of hym at hys commyng Here are ij thinges to be marked one if we cleaue vnto Christ after the doctrine of the Apostles and as they built vs vpon him we shall be bolde sure of our selues at his comming As a seruaunt which in his maisters absence doth onely his maisters commaūdements cannot be confounded at his comming home againe But and if we folow mens doctrine how can we be bold yea how should we not be ashamed with our teachers vnto whome thē he shall say whē they boast thē selues how y t they haue bene his vicars I know you not depart from me ye that haue wrought wickednes and vnder my name haue brought in damnable sectes and haue taught your disciples to beleue in other thinges then in me Now the summe of all that the Apostles taught and how they built vs vpon Christ is the new testament But the popes doctrine is not there found but improued Confounded therefore shall he be which witting and willing shutteth his eyes at the true light and openeth them to beleue his lyes An other thing is this all the scripture maketh mentiō of the resurrectiō comming againe of Christ that all men both they that go before and they that come after shall then receiue their rewardes together we are cōmaunded to looke euery houre for that day And what is done with the soules frō their departing their bodies vnto that day doth the Scripture make no mentiō saue onley that they rest in y e Lord in their faith Wherfore he that determineth ought of the state of them that be departed doth but teach the presumptuous imaginations of his owne braine neither can his doctrine be any article of our fayth What God doth with them is a secreat layd vp in the treasury of God And we ought to be patient being certefied of the scripture that they which dye in the fayth are at rest ought no more to search that secret thē to search y e houre of the resurrection whiche God hath put onely in his owne power But this remember that the whole nature of mā is poysoned infected with sinne And y e whole life of sinne must be mortefied And the roote of al sinne and first vice we were infect with is that we would be wise where God hath not taught vs as ye see how Eue would haue ben as God in the knowledge of good bad And therefore hath God hid many thinges in his power and commaunded that we shall search none of his secrets further then he hath opened them in his scripture to mortefy this poyson of all poysons the desire to appeare wise that we be ashamed to be ignoraunt in any thing at all Wherfore they that violently make articles of the fayth with out Gods woord are yet aliue in the roote of all sinne and vice and grow out of the deuill and not out of Christ And their articles are of the blindnes of the deuill and not of the light of Christ for Christes light hath testimonie of the scripture euery where If ye know that he is righteous know that all that woorke righteousnes are borne of him Our nature is to worke wickednes and so blinde therto that it can see no righteousnes And then it foloweth that we must be borne a new in Christ ere we can either do or yet know what is righteous And in him we must first be made righteous our selues ere we can worke righteous woorkes which conclusion is contrary vnto the Pope for he sayth that the woorkes do make the man righteous And Christes doctrine sayth that the man maketh the workes righteous A righteous man springeth out of righteous woorkes sayth the Popes doctrine Righteous works spring out of a righteous man and a righteous man springeth out of Christ sayth Christes doctrine The workes make y t man righteous which before was wicked sayth the Pope The woorkes declare that the man is righteous sayth Christes doctrine but the man was first made righteous in Christ and the spirite of Christ taught him what righteousnes was and healed his hart made him consent therto to haue his lust in righteousnes and to worke righteouslie Chap. 3. BEholde what loue the Father hath shewed vs that we shold be called the sonnes of god For this cause the worlde knoweth you not because it knoweth not him Dearely beloued now wee are the sonnes of God though yet it appeareth not what we shall be But we know that when he shall appear we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is The loue of God to vs ward is exceeding great in that he hath made vs his sonnes without al deseruing of vs and hath geuen vs his spirite through Christ to certifie our hartes thereof in that we feele that our trust is in God that our soules haue receaued health and power to loue the law of God which is a sure testimonie that we are sonnes vnder no damnation Neyther ought it to discourage vs or to make vs thinke we were lesse beloued because the world hateth vs and persecuteth vs for the world knoweth vs not Neyther any maruell for y t world could not know Christ him selfe for all his glorious commyng with miracles and benefits in healing the sicke and raysing the dead But for al the oppression of the world we are yet sure that we are Gods sonnes And in like maner though the glory that we shall be in appeare not yet we are sure that we shall be like him when he appeareth As darknes vanisheth away at the cōming of the sunne and the worlde receaueth a new fashion and is turned in to light and suddenly made glorious Euen so when he appeareth and we shall see him as he is we shal with the sight of him be chaunged into the glory of his image and made like him And then shall the world both know him and vs vnto their shame and confusion And all that haue thys hope in him purge thēselues as he is pure The fayth and hope of a Christen man are no dead idle or barren thinges but liuely woorkes and fruitfull For when the law through conscience of sinne hath slayne the soule thē hope and trust in Christes bloud thorough certefying of the conscience that the damnation of the law is taken away quickeneth hir agayne maketh hir to loue the law which is the purifying of the soule and hir life and seruing the law in the inner man And then the sayde giftes of hope and fayth stretch them selues forth vnto the members dead with
it or to read in it To beleue that Iesus is Christe is to beleue in Christ that is to beleue earnestly and to put all thy trust therein and to lay the price of thy soule therupon that the sonne of Marie whom the aungell coÌ„maunded to be called Iesus because he shuld saue his people froÌ„ their sinnes is that Christ that Messias and that annoynted whiche God promised the fathers should come and blesse all nations and annoynt them with the oyle of his spirite with mercy and grace and to deliuer them froÌ„ death of their soules whiche is the consentyng to sinne and to make them a lyue with consentyng vnto the law of God and in certifiyng theÌ„ that they be the sonnes of God And to put the whole trust in all that he suffred in his fleshe for thy sake and in all promises of mercy that are in hym and that thou be full persuaded that there is no other name vnder heauen giuen vnto men to be saued froÌ„ sinne by or to purchase forgiuenesse of the lest synne that euer was coÌ„mitted An other conclusion is this whosoeuer loueth God loueth all that beleue in God For all that loue hym that begetteth loue them that are begotten of him and all that beleue in God are begotten of God through that belefe and made his sonnes theÌ„ al that loue God loue all that beleue in God An other conclusion is this When we loue God and his law theÌ„ we loue the sonnes of God Which is this wise proued The loue of God is to keepe the law of God by the text before and after the law of GOD is to loue our neighbours therfore if we loue God in kepyng his lawes we must needes loue the sonnes of God But Iohn should seme to be a very negligeÌ„t disputer to many men in that he here certifieth vs of the loue of our neighbours by the loue of God when aboue hee certifieth vs that we loue God because we loue our neighbours Hee semeth to doe as I heard once a great Clerke in Oxford stand halfe an houre in a pulpit to proue that Christ was a true Prophet by the testimonie of Iohn Baptist and an other halfe houre to proue Iohn y t Baptist a true Prophet by the authoritie of Christ as we say claw me claw thee and as euery these might lightly proue him selfe a true man in bearyng recorde to an other as false as he and takyng recorde of the same agayne Which kynde of disputyng schole men call Petitiâ— prâ—ncipij the prouyng of two certaine thynges eche by the other and is no prouyng at all as our holy father proueth the authoritie of Scripture by hys decrees for the Scripture is not autentike but as his decrees admit it to make his decrees shyne and appeare glorious and to obtaine authoritie he allegeth the Scripture after his iugglyng maner to make fooles starke mad But it is not so here for both the demonstrations are certaine both the proffe of the loue of God and his law by the loue of my neighbour and the proofe of the loue of my neighbour by the loue of God and his law For wheÌ„ ij thynges are so ioyned together that they can not be separated then the presence of the one vttereth the presence of the other whether soeuer thou first seest As if I see fire I am sure that some thyng doth burne And if I smell burnyng I am certified of fire Euen so the loue of God is the cause why I loue my neighbour and my loue toward my neighbour is the effect of the loue of God And these two loues are euer inseperable so that whether soeuer I feele first the same certifieth me of the other Iohn calleth the loue of a maÌ„s neighbour the deedes of loue after the Hebrue speach as to helpe at neede For the deede declareth what the man is within Neither can my loue to God fayth be sene to the world saue thorough the workes And by the workes doth Christ commaunde vs to iudge So that if a maÌ„ haue euill workes and continueth therin he loueth not God nor knoweth God no though he call hym selfe master doctour or Gods vicare Neither vnderstandeth he Gods word for all his high diuinitie but is in all hys preachyng an hypocrite a false Prophet and a lyer though hys preachyng please the world neuer so well Neuerthelesse a man is certified that he loueth God yer he come at the worke by the testimonie of the spirite which is giueÌ„ him in earnest The spirite sayth Paule Roma viij testifieth vnto our spirite that we be the sonnes of God and then it testifieth that we beleue in God for thorough fayth are we sonnes And then it certifieth me that I loue God For fayth and loue are inseparable The spirite thorough fayth certifieth my conscience that my sinnes are forgiueÌ„ and I receaued vnder grace and made the very sonne of God and beloued of God And theÌ„ naturally myne hart breaketh out into the loue of God agayne I seke how to vtter my loue and to do God some pleasure And because I can neither do seruice or pleasure vnto his owne person my neighbour is set before me to do God seruice and pleasure in him to be to him as Christ is to me because he is my brother bought with Christs bloud as I am And I consent vnto that law and loue it yer I come at the dede and long after the dede And then wheÌ„ I loue my neighbour in the deede accordyng to this law I am sure that I loue hym truly Or els if I examined not my loue by this law I might be deceaued For some loue their neighbours for pleasure profite glorie and for their doyng seruice onely as our spiritualtie loue vs and of that blessed loue do their busie cure to keepe vs in darkenes which loue is a signe that a man hateth God and hys neighbour therto and loueth him selfe onely But Gods law is that I should absteine from myne owne pleasure and profite and become my neighbours seruaunt and bestow lyfe and goodes vpoÌ„ hym after the example of Christ Wherfore if I loue my neighbour out of the loue of Christ and after the example of hys law I am sure that I loue him truly And his commaundementes are not greuous For all that is borne of God ouercommeth the worlde and this is the victory that ouercommeth the world eueÌ„ our faith To loue is not paynefull the commaundementes are but loue therfore they be not greuous because loue maketh the commaundements easie The seruice that a mother doth vnto her child is not greuous because she loueth it But if she should do the tenth part vnto one that she loued not her hart would brast for impacience Vnto a maÌ„ that fetleth not the loue of Christ it is as impossible to keepe the commaundementes as for a Camell to enter through the eye of a nedle But
the wordes of the iij. children Daniell 3. whiche were cast into the fornace of fire and yet preserued frō death thorough the mighty hand of God theyr wordes song was this Benedicite Anania Azaria Misaell Domino laudate superexaltate eum in secula quia eruit nos de inferno saluos fecit de manu mortis liberauit nos de medio ardentis flammae de medio ignis eruit nos That is blysse ye anania azaria and misaell the Lord prayse and aduaūce him for euer For he hath plucked vs out of hell hath saued vs frō the power of death He hath deliuered vs from the middest of the burnyng flāme and hath plucked vs out frō the middes of the fire Here may you sée the same maner of speakyng how the last ende expoundeth the begynnyng These childrē say that God hath plucked them out of hell and yet were they neither dāned nor in Purgatory nor dead But the next part of this verse expoundeth their meaning which sayth he hath saued vs from the hand of power of death So may ye know that to bee plucked out of hell and to be saued from the power of death are all one thyng And again where they say that God hath deliuered them from the burnyng flamme and that hee hath plucked them from the middes of the fire is all one sense as euery child may well perceiue and therfore is M. More to blame to be so busie seyng he vnderstandeth not the phrase and manner of speache of the Scripture THen bryngeth hee in the Prophet Zachary which sayth Tu quoque in sanguine Testamenti tui eduxisti vinctos tuos de lacu in quo non erat aqua Thou hast in the bloud of thy Testament brought out thy bounden prisoners out of the pitte or lake in which there was no water Now in hell is there no redemption and in lymbo patrum the soules were in rest wherfore it appeareth clerely that those prisoners whiche hee brought out of their payne hee brought onely out of Purgatory This text is spoken Zachary 9. for a full aunswere of this text I néeded no more but to bring the authoritie of my Lord of Rochester agaynst hym For hee expoundeth the place of the Psalme 66. for Purgatory whiche sayth Transiuimus per ignem aquam adduxisti nos in refrigeriū we haue gone thorough fire and water thou hast brought vs into colenesse If this text of the Psalme serue for Purgatory which sayth that there is both fire and water as my Lord of Rochester doth affirme bringeth also Origine to confirme it then can not this place of Zacharie serue whiche sayth that there is no water And so must M. More néedes bee ouersene for Origene and Rochester bee able to wey vp him Here might I say vnto thē both that they should first agrée with in thē selues and then would I shape them an aūswere Howbeit I know my part so sure that I will confute them both and proue that neither other place speaketh any thyng of this paynfull Purgatory that the describe But my Lord of Rochesters authoritie shall be differred vntill the thyrd part whiche shal be a seuerall booke agaynst hym This place verely approueth not Purgatory but sheweth the vertue of Christes redemption which through his bloud redemed his captiues prisoners that is to say them whom hee foūd bound with the strōg bondes of sinne to euerlastyng damnatiō which were subiectes vnto the deuil and the extreme enemyes of God but why calleth hee them his verely because they were chosen in Christ Iesu before the begynnynge of the worlde that they with him and through hym should enioy the euerlastyng inheritaunce of heauen Why are they called bounde and prisoners Surely because they were captiues boūde and imprisoned vnder the deuill through the sinne that Adā committed Roma v. why sayth he that he deliuered thē out of the pitte where in is no water Forsooth that is euen as much to say as hee deliuered them out of hell and from eternall damnation Thou wilt happely say hee deliuered them not out of hell and from eternall damnation for his prisoners that is to say they y t shal be saued neuer came there I aunswere that they should without doubt haue gone thether haue bene dāned perpetually except that Christ by his death had deliuered and losed them And therefore sayth the Scripture that Christ deliuereth vs out of hell because he saueth and deliuereth vs that we come not there which els should surely enter into it for euer It is also a common maner of speach among vs if a man should go to prison for debt or any such matter one of his frendes come in y t meane season which pacified the aduersaries payeth that debt then may we well say that he hath deliuered this man out of prison although hee came not there but should haue gone thether And likewise when we say that such a mā hath deliuered his frend from the galowes we meane not that he was all ready hanged for then were the deliueraūce to late but we meane that he deliuered him that hee should not be hanged Furthermore if a mā might bee bold to aske M. More whether Christ haue redemed loosed and deliuered him in the bloud of his Testament I thinke he would aunswere yea Now if we should aske him further from whence he hath deliuered him I am sure he is not so ignoraunt as to say that Christe hath deliuered him from Purgatory but euen that be hath deliuered him from eternall death and damnation And so hath Christe deliuered vs from the pytte wherin is no water that is to say frō hell and euerlastyng damnation not y t we were in hell all ready although we were bound vnder sinne and ready to be cast therein but because we should not enter into hell This is the pure vnderstandyng of the texte Here might I dispute w t him both of hell of Limbus patrum but because I wil be as short as possible is I will deferre y t vntil an other occasiō y t I may reason with hym somewhat at large AN other place is there also in the old Testament that putteth Purgatory quyte out of question For sayth he what is playner then the places whiche in the booke of the Machebees make mention of the deuoute remembraunce prayour asmose sacrifice to be done for soules when the good and holy mā Iudas Machabeus gathered money among the people to buy sacrifice withall to be offered vp for the soules of them that were dead in the battaile What shift finde they here Surely a very shamelesse shift and are fayne to take them to that talkyng which is their shote anker alway when they finde the storme so great that they see their shyppe goeth all to wracke For first they vse to set some
no place euen so is he not addict to any age or person but enspyreth where he will when he will and bring in for an example that he enspyred yong Timothy prouing thereby that the youth of it selfe is not to be despised but according to the learning which it bringeth and that therfore they may not despise my youth but first read what doctrine I bring and therafter to iudge it No more in this I proue not that I am enspyred and haue the spirite of God as Timothie had but onely proue that God may enspyre youth as he did Tymothe and that therefore ye ought first to read before you condemne for you know not who is enspyred and who not vntill you haue read theyr workes or séene theyr factes Thus you may sée that my wordes define not that all youth is enspired although some may be but I exhort that no man despise prophesies but proue all and approue that is good And to make the matter more playne I shall bring you an example out of Paule to the Hebrues which exhorteth them to hospitalitie for by that some men vnwares haue receaued Angels to harbour be not therefore vnmindfull of it Here Paule exhorteth you to hospitalitie and shewing you that by those meanes some men haue receaued angels into their house he would not haue you thinke y t all the gestes that you shall receaue shall be angels but some shall be leud losels And likewise I in exhorting you to read my booke and not despising my youth because that sometime God enspireth the yong would not haue you thinke that the bookes made of yong men which ye shall receaue shall be holesome doctrine but some men be lewd and vnfruitfull neuerthelesse euen as if they receaued not those gests they should also put away angels if any came So if you despise to read such bookes as be written by young men you may also fortune to despise them which are written by the inspiration of Christes spirit and therefore ye ought to read But be it in case I had indéed praised my selfe as I haue not and that I had sayd that I had the Spirite of God what inconuenience should folow thereof would you therof argue that my doctrine were false If that were a good argument then were Christes Doctrine false then were Paule a false prophet and our fayth nothing for Christ said to the Iewes that he was the light of the worlde And againe he sayd It is my Father that glorified me whome ye call your God Now if it had bene a sufficient argument to condemne hys doctrine because the world calleth it boasting thē should we haue beleued no truth at all Besides that Paul séemeth not a little to boast him selfe if men looke on it with a carnall eye for he sayth that he thincketh not him selfe inferiour vnto y t hyest Apostles and sayth againe that if they glory to be the ministers of Christ though he speake vnwisely he is more copious in labours in stripes aboue measure in prison more often often at the poynt of death c. Should we for these words thinke that his doctrine were not right Nayverely that doth not improue the doctrine but that it may be good holesome for a man may boast him selfe do well so he referre y t prayse to God from whom all goodnes commeth but be it in case that I should say that God of hys mere mercy and for the loue that he oweth me in Christ and hys bloud had geuen me hys spirite that I might be to his laude prayse to whom be thankes for euer Amen would you thinke that this were so greate a boastyng that the doctrine should be impayred therby Ah blinde guides I pray God geue you the light of vnderstandyng I beseche you brother Rastell be not discōtent with me if I aske you one question be ye a Christen man or no I am sure you will aunswere yes then if I brought you the text of Paule which sayth he that hath not y t spirite of God is none of his I pray you how will you auoyde it notwithstādyng if you wold auoyde y t text yet will I lay an other blocke in the way that you shal not be able to remoue and that is the saying of Paule 2. Corin. 13. Know ye not your selues that Christ is in you except ye be reprobate persons now how soeuer you would iudge of your selues I thinke verely that I am no such therfore whereas before I dyd not so write Now I certifie you that I am Christes cōclude what ye wil the day shall come that you shall surely know that so it is albeit in meane season I be reputed a laughyng stoke in this world for I know in whom I trust and he can not deceaue me Then bryngeth he against me that I say we haue bene long secluded frō the Scripture and also that our fore fathers haue not had y t light of Gods word opened vnto them I maruell what Rastell meaneth by bryngyng this for his purpose for I thinke it no boastyng of my selfe but if ye thinke that it be vntrue I thinke he is very blynde For what Scripture hath the poore commons bene admitted vnto euen til this day It hath bene hid and locked vp in a straunge tounge and from them that haue attayned the knowledge of that toung hath it bene locked with a thousand false gloses of Antichristes makyng and innumerable lawes And where I say our forefathers haue not had the light of Gods worde opened vnto them I meane that they haue not the Scripture in their owne mother toung that they might haue conferred these iugglyng mistes with the light of Gods word as the processe of my wordes can testifie which he hath holy left out but I besech the Christē reader once to read the place for my discharge and his confusion ye shall finde it in the secōd leafe of my booke And now he alledgeth agaynst me that I should say this iudge Christen reader what reasons Rastell hath brought and how he hath soluted thē for in my minde both his reasons and solutions are so childish and vnsauery so vnlearned and baren so full of faultes and phantasies that I rather pitie the mans déepe ignoraunce and blyndnes which hath so deceiued him selfe through Philosophie and naturall reason then I feare that he by his vayne probations should allure any man to consent vnto hym I thinke Rastell layeth not this agaynst me because I boast my selfe in these wordes And verely as touchyng the truth of those woordes I will adde thus much more vnto thē that I neuer wyst man y t was coūted wise whiche hath brought so slender reasons except he entended to destroy a thing which ye séeme to haue build And finally where as I exhorte all men to iudge and conferre the Scriptures which Syr Thomas
God 69. Christ sayth blessed are ye when men hate you curse you and excommunicate you for the righteousnes that is to say you nothing giltye nor worthy such affliction The Pope and Byshoppes saye that their curse is sore to be feared yea and that it maketh men as blacke as a coale in the sight of God though they haue not offended In so much that they must néedes be damned except they absoile them agayne howbeit Christ sayth that they are blessed wherfore Christ is false or els they are most vayne lyers 70. Christ sayde when thou makest a dinner or feast call not thy frendes kinsmen and neighbours that are riche but the poore lame and blinde which are not able to recompeÌ„ce thée then shalt thou be happye for it shall be rewarded thée in the resurrection of the iust The Pope and Byshoppes wyll call none such for they thinke it great shame but they call men of great authoritie and riches which wil receiue them wyth an other feast they had leuer haue their bellies well stuffed in this world then to tary for the promise of Christ They thinke it long a comming 71. Christ sayth eyther make y e trée good and his fruite good also or els make the trée naught and his fruite naught also meaning that the trée first shoulde be good and then bringe forth good fruite the fruite maketh not the trée good but the trée maketh the fruite good although we can not know that the trée is good but by hys fruite for we can iudge nothing but by his outward operation yet God séeth the quicknes in the roote which in the tyme that God hath appointed him shall bring forth his fruite And approueth y e trée to be good although he séeme dead vnto vs. The trée is fayth which is the mother of all good workes which euer worketh by charitie when he séeth occasion The Pope and Byshops say that the fruite maketh the trée good cleane contrary to all Scripture and reason And thus turne they the trées and the rootes vpwarde while they affirme that fayth springeth and is made good of workes And not the contrary eueÌ„ as a man would say the fruite bringeth forth and maketh good the trée And not the contrary O what madnes is is They woulde make men beleue if they shoulde longe continue that y e Moone is made of grene chese 72. Christ sayth I am the doore of the folde he that entreth not in by the doore but by some other waye is a théefe a murtherer and regardeth not the shéepe The Pope yea and all the cleargie for the most part enter not in by Christ but they runne in and are not called nor sent of Christ One entreth by a bagge of money wherewyth he buyeth a fatte benefice An other entreth by seruing great men and corying fauour An other because he is a great man borne must be made a Cardinall or els a Bpshop Some haue voysons of Abbayes and other places to speake a good worde for them to the kyng or other great men Some enter thorowe their curious singing and minyon daunsing fewe or none for vertue learninge 73. Christ sayth I am a good shepheard A good shephead geueth hys lyfe for hys shéepe The Pope and Byshoppes say also that they are good shepheards how be it they pille and shere the sheepe so nigh that they leaue not one locke of wolle on their backes And in all pointes may be likened vnto the shepheardes that Zacharias prophesied of which sayth I shall rayse vp a shepheard in the earth which shal not visite the thinges that are forsaken and shall not séeke that which is gone astray neither yet heale the diseased nor nourishe and mayntayne that which standeth but such a shepheard that shall norishe himselfe and not the shéepe and cryeth out of hym saying O thou shepheard and idoll thynke you that this shepheard wyll geue his lyfe for the shéepe 74. Christ sayth desire you not to be called master for you haue but one master which is Christ and all you are brothers The Pope will be called most holy hys Cardinalles most reuerend hys Byshoppes reuerend hys Abbottes and Priors most and other glorious titles haue they that passe master farre And except thou call them by those names and titles thou shalt runne farre into their indignation let Christ say what he wyll 75. Christ commaunded his Disciples that they should call no man father on the earth shewing them that they had but one father which is in heauen The Pope must be called most holy father if thou geue him not that name he will excommunicate you out of his sinagoge reason not with him you may shew him the scripture but it auayleth not for he will wrest it wring it into a thousand fashions And will neuer leaue it vntill he haue brought it vnto his owne purpose 76. Christes faithfull seruaunt Stephen sayd that God almighty dwelleth not in temples y â— are made with mans hands according vnto the prophetes saying Heauen is my seate and the earth is my footestole What house will you builde for me sayth the Lorde which is the place of my reste Did not my handes make all these thinges The Pope and his adhereÌ„tes say that he dwelleth in this place and that place the Friers say we haue hym you must bye hym of vs the Monkes say he is with vs be good to our monastery and you shall be sure to haue hym And so runne the sely soules froÌ„ Herode to Pilate But they finde not Christ for he dwelleth in no place but in the hart of a faithful maÌ„ which is the very temple of God 77. Christes Apostle Paule sayth We ought not to thinke that God is like gold siluer karâ—ed stones or any such thyng as man imagineth The Pope and his adherentes say that he is lyke a stocke and a stone causeth men to make images of hym though God commaunded contrary saying Thou shalt make no grauen image neither any maner of similitude of those thynges whiche are in heaueÌ„ aboue or on the earth beneath Neither of those thynges whiche are in the water or vnder the earth neither shalt thou honour or worshyppe them Good Christen beware of these Idolles as Saint Iohn councelleth thée truely I thinke it be one of the greatest causes of this exceâ—ation which God hath sent into the world for sinne 78. Christ sayd vnto Peter thou art Symon the sonne of Iona thou shalt be called Cephas which if it be enterpreted signifieth a stone as S. Iohn sayth in his Gospell The Pope sayth that Cephas signifieth the head and of that gathereth he to be head of all the Byshops here doth he playnly contrary to Gospell whiche expoundeth Cephas to bee a stone what impudencie is this I thinke he would say also that an Asse were a man if he thought to get any auauntage through it There
after my coūsell say that you can not come for you bée lawfully let It foloweth I shal honourably entreate the popes Legate both going and comming and in his necessitie I shal helpe him I pray you sée and prouide well that hée goe not a begging as Peter did And sée also that he neither preach nor teach but pyll and poull with all mischiefe and vnshamefastnes And why because you are sworne this to maintayne It foloweth I shall visite yearely my selfe or by some other messenger the pope of Rome vnles I bée dispenced with of them I pray you what pertaineth this to the office of a Byshop yearely to visite Rome Christ and the most of his Apostles were neuer at Rome and yet they were méetely good Christen men But I reade in the traditions of the Turke that certayne of them must yearly visite their Mahomet From whom I thinke you haue taken this custome Your owne law saith that vnto this clause must these bishops all only bée boūde that bée immediatly vnderneth the Pope Now are not you such for you sweare in your othe to the kyng that you will immediatly take your Byshopprick of him and holde it all onely of his grace Wherefore then doe you here sweare against your owne lawe And also against your othe made to your prince Moreouer you know that there was an olde custome in the dayes of kyng Henry the second that no Byshop shoulde goe out of the Realme without the kinges licence Are you not bound to kéepe this custome but answere that the Pope hath dispensed with you and that you are not bounde to kéepe any obedience towarde the actes that your prince maketh Moreouer I meruaile sore that you be all so straitly sworne of so long tyme and neuer one of you that euer went in my dayes to Rome to discharge his othe And why because you are dispensed with But were it not as good to leaue it out of your othe at the first séeing you entende not to kéepe it as afterwarde to dispence with you for it No forsothe for than the Pope coulde not bynde you to come to Rome at hys pleasure and betraye your kyng all his counselles But in your othe that is newly made that you haue sworne laste is added That if the pope bée on this side y e mountaines you shall visite him euery yeare But if hée bée beyond the moūtaines then euery three yeares One that knew not your practise and the circumstaūces of your factes y e hath béene done would litle suspect this additiō But the very truth is there is a mischieuous and abhominable treason in it agaynst Princes For if it chaunced the Emperour or els any temporall Prince neare vnto Rome to fall at variaunce with the Pope then dyd y e Pope straight runne into Fraunce that is to say on this side the mountaines where you must visite hym yearely And why Bicause your god is in distresse and hath conceiued a deadly hatered agaynst a Prince and can not bring it to passe without your helpe and counsell Wherefore you must come yearely And also hée must know through your betraying how your Prince is mynded and whether hée bée addicted to his contrary parte or not If hée bée then must you betraye his counsell and that yearely And why bicause the pope is on this side the mountaines But and if hée bée in Rome and hath all Princes neckes vnder hys gyrdell then is it sufficient that you come euery thyrd yeare For you cā at ones commyng deuise as much treason as Princes shall auoyde in fiue yeares But what belongeth this vnto a Bishop that the Pope is on this side the moūtaines or beyonde If ye bée bounde by Gods law yearely to visite the Pope then must you visite him where soeuer hée bée though hée were either with God or the deuill And if you bée not bounde by Gods law what a presumption is it of him to bynde you Yea what an ouersight is it of you to let your selfe thus to bée bounde And what a wickednes is it of you so straitely to kéepe this othe to the which you are not boūde by Scripture against your obedience made to your Prince whiche is commaunded by Gods word But I pray you what example hath either hée or you of blessed S. Peter to bynde by the vertue of an othe the other Apostles yearely to visite him at Rome All the world may perceiue that this othe is inuented of insaciable couetousnes that the Pope and you haue toward honours and dignities And that is well declared by these wordes that foloweth in your othe The possessions of my Church I shal not sell geue lay to morgage or make any feoffement or by any other meanes alienate the same without the counsell of y e pope But I pray you tell me one thing why doe you not sweare that you shall neither bye nor yet receiue any possessions to your church nor you shall neither pill nor poull nor shaue to encrease the possessions of your Church But the truth is all is fish that commeth to the nette with you And if it come ones within your cloukes it neuer cōmeth out agayne thoughe the Kyng and his Realme should stand in neuer so great néede But to receiue all his lande you are alwayes ready and it is not agaynst your othe I do not say thus bicause I would ye should sell or alienate the possessions of the Churche but bicause I sée that there is nothyng maintained by them but all onely your mischeuous pompe and your pride Your owne law commaundeth that the fourth part of the spiritual goodes should bée distributed among poore men And for that cause they bée called Bona pauperum but how litle their part is all the world can testifie Wherfore doe you sweare not to alienate your goodes without the popes licence The pope gaue them not to you but the kyng his subiectes How commeth hée now to bée so neare of your counsell in alienating them and the king is thrust out the whiche hath deserued best to bée of your counsell But doe you not remember your own law the which doth forbid that the pope in any wise or sor any necessitie should alienate the goodes of the Church except it bée old houses whiche can not bée kept without great charges This is your owne law and agaynst this will you sweare Then must you néedes bée periured for if you alienate your goodes with the Popes licence then is this Decrée agaynst you and curseth you Wherfore then put you this in your othe seyng you can not alienate your goodes with his consent nor yet without it It foloweth in your new othe decrées ordinaunces sentences disposions reseruations prouisions and commaundementes apostolike with all my power I will obserue shall and cause other men to obserue them These things were added when this Idole was brought so highe that no man durste wynche
And if they had not so great possessions I am sure an C. would speake agaynst them where now dare not one for losse of promotion As for this article I will ouercome you with the witnes of all the world you may well condemne it for heresie but it is as true as your Pater noster Iudas solde our maâ—…ter but once and you sell him as often as hée commeth in your handes But I would it were that yée coulde proue mée a lyer and that you folowed any of the Apostles sauing Iudas onely Yea I woulde that yée were in certayne pointes as good as Iudas was It had béene better for you that you had not medled against mée in these matters For now I am compelled to speake many thinges which I would for shame of the worlde neuer haue spoken But now that you will haue it so take it to you and make the best you can of it THere is not the greatest Pharisie in this Church but I am sure I pricke him with these wordes and hée knoweth that they bée true though hée say the contrary and that doe I well know This article did I speake because of Doctour Rydle which on a tyme graunted in maister Doctour Buttes house that the Byshoppes were cleane out of order And therefore I say that I know it THese ordynary Byshops and prelates doe followe that false Prophet Balaam For they woulde curse the people but by the prouision of God they were compelled to blesse them that is to say to teach them to liue well though they theÌ„selues liue most mischeuously And so the Asses which they ride vpoÌ„ that is the common people haue their liues in abhominaiton This is the haynous heresie For it speaketh against the holy fathers which bée almost as holy as Balaams Asse that did once speake the worde of God to a good purpose And so doe they neuer But I graunt that I did offende in caulling you ordinary Byshops for I shoulde haue called you inordinate butchers And as for that that I compared you to Balaam it is your owne lawe 2. quest 7. Secuti sunt And cap. Nos si And as for your liuing all the worlde knoweth it I coulde tell here many holy pointes of Byshops liuinge as kéeping of mens wiues and daughters but I will not for I shoulde bée reckened vncharitable But you may doe them breaking not your holy charitie THey set vp an Idoll to deceaue y e people withall whiche is called Baall Peor or Baall Phegor that is interpretated gasping as their lawes and constitutions the which gaspe and gape to maintayne theyr worldly honour They cause vs to do sacrifice by fayre women that is by their carnall affections and swéete wordes so that God of Israell is forgotten And thus by their swéete wordes and benediction they deceiue the simple These bée y e false maisters that Saint Peter speaketh of These bée the fountaines without water for they geue no good doctrine to the people Where is the heresie in this because I coÌ„pare your lawes to Baall But looke whether the interpretation of the worde doe agrée wyth the nature of your lawes or not What doe all your lawes but minish the auctoritie of Princes and of all other Lordes and exalte yours onely Call you not that a gasping Idoll Let this article stand till you be able to proue it heresie NOw they sell vs they sell the people they sell holy orders they sell church halowing there is no better marchandise in Chepeside Wilte thou knowe what is the price of a Church halowing no lesse than xl shillinges They sell pardons and remissioÌ„s of sinnes as opeÌ„ly as a Cow and an Oxe is solde for they neuer graunt them without money The Suffragan of Ely did aske of maister Iohn Purgolde xl s. and the offring for halowing of S. Edwardes in CaÌ„brige yea and hée woulde not doe it so good chepe quoth hée but because he had a Goddaughter buryed in the churchyarde But this may bée proued by examples ynough For bryng yée forth one church in all Englande that you haue halowed without money or without hope of money and I will graunt my conclusion false And as for your pardons all the worlde knoweth your handlyng I dare say it is the best marchaundise in the worlde as you handle it But was it not a maruaylous blindnes and a great presumption so cruelly to handle mée for these articles was there no middell to haue punished mée for speaking agaynste you but that I must néedes be an hereticke I dare say there is not one among you so shameles y e dare come forth now at this day and proue these articles heresie agaynst mee But doubtles as long as I liue and am not restored to my name and fame againe which you haue violently taken away from mée will I bée vnto you a deuill and a pestilence I require nothing of you but my good name and fame to the which I haue right and to the which you ought of your charitie restore mée though I neuer required you I thinke you haue punished mée inough for speaking of a foolishe worde or twayne against you WIlte thou know what their benedictions is worth They had rather géeue thée then benedictions then one halfepeny Is not this a sore heresie You ryde thorowe stréetes and townes blessing man and stone but you neuer géeue halfepenye to man nor childe NOwe is come a pardon wherby they say that they haue power to sende an hundreth soules to heauen And if they may so doe without any further respect then may they likewise sende an other 100. to hell For it foloweth in the text Quodcunque ligaueris that is what so euer thou byndest Is not this a sore heresye to say that you may not rule this matter at your iudgment But this is a marueylous texte Quodcunque ligaueris for it bindeth in hell and loseth in heauen and openeth mens purses cofers in earth it deposeth Princes it interditeth landes it looseth a man out of his coote yea and often tymes it loseth a man from his wife yea and the horse out of the carte And all is done by this texte Quodcunque ligaueris Is not this a merueilous text that hath so greate a power I know not such an other in all the Bible IT is abhominable to heare howe they preach and teach that they may absolue a poena and a culpa which I am sure is impossible as they vnderstand it Make of this what you can and looke of your owne scholasticall doctours The which learneth boldlye that the keyes of the church hath none auctorite ouer sinne nor yet ouer eternall payne But all onely hath auctorite to chaunge euerlasting payne vnto a temporall payne that the pope may chauÌ„ge take away at his pleasure And amoÌ„g all temporall paynes you reken purgatory y e greattest Ouer the which y t pope hath full power This is
damnation to rewarde Briefly her meditations and her thoughtes are heauenly and all that shée doth is spirituall For shée can not erre shée cleaueth so fast to the worde of God that is the veritie And for this cause S. Paule calleth her the piller and grounde of truth not that shée is so sure of and in her owne strength but that shée sticketh so fast to the lyuyng God and to hys blessed worde that is the very true Church that is scattered thorow all the worlde and is neyther bounde to person by the reason of dignitie nor yet to any place by the reason of fayned holynes but shée is a frée thynge thorow all the worlde as S. Augustine doth witnesse in these wordes The holy Church are wée but I doe not say as one should say wée that bée here alonely that heare mée now but as many as be here faythfull Christened mē in this Church that is to say in thys Citye as many as bée in thys region as many as bée beyonde the sea as many as bée in all the worlde for from the rysing of the sunne till the goyng down is the name of God praysed so is the holy Church our mother c. Here haue you playnely that the holy Church is the congregation of faythfull men wheresoeuer they bée in the worlde And neyther the Pope nor yet hys Cardinalles bée more this Church or of thys Church then the poorest man in earth For this church standeth alonely in the spirituall faith of Christ Iesus and not in dignities nor honours of the worlde as Liranus doth declare in these wordes The Church doth not stand in men by reason of spirituall power or secular dignities For many Princes and many Popes and other inferiour persons haue swerned frō the fayth Wherfore that Church doth stand in those persons in whome is the true knowledge and confession of fayth and of veritie c. O my Lordes what will you say to Lyra I haue great maruayle that you burne hym not It is hye tyme to condemne hym for an heretike for hée speaketh agaynst your lawe xxiiij q. 1. Quodcunque Where as your glose declareth that God suffereth not the church of Rome for to erre And Lyra sayth playnely that many popes haue erred and also that the Church standeth not in dignitie but in confession of Christ and of hys blessed veritie But now here wyll bée obiected that I fayne such a Church as our Logitions doe intentionem secundam that is a thyng y t is no where Where shall a man finde a Church that is so pure and so cleane that hath neyther spot nor wrinckle in her and that is wythout all sinne séeyng that all men must of trueth saye forgéeue vs our trespasse And if any man say bée hée neuer so righteous that hée hath no sinne thē is hee a lyer and there is no veritie in hym To thys I aunswere that thys holy Church hath sin in her yet is shée pure and cleane Marke S. Paules wordes Christe hath geuen hymselfe for her that hée might make her glorious So that the cleannes of this holy church is the mercy of God toward her thorow Christ for whose sake he layeth nothing to her charge yea and if any other person woulde hée is ready to géeue her his cleanes and to let her by fayth clayme of right hys purenes for her owne For betwéene them all is common as betwéene man and wyfe So that if the Church looke on her owne merites and of her owne workes shée is full of sinne and must néedes say demitte mihi debita The which shée néeded not to say if shée had none But if shée referre her selfe vnto the merites of her blessed husbande Christ Iesus and to the cleanes that shée hath in hys bloud thē is shée without spotte For by the reason that shée sticketh by fayth so fast vnto her husband Christ and doth abyde in confession of her sinne requireth mercy for them therfore is there nothing layde to her charge but all thyng is forgéeuen her And therefore sayth S. Paule there is no damnation vnto them that bée in Christ Iesu And that this may bée the playner I wyll bryng you S. Augustines wordes the which was vexed of the Donatistes wyth thys same reason that is layd agaynst mée hys wordes bée these The whole Church sayth forgéeue vs our sinnes wherefore shée hath spottes and wrinckles but by knowledging of them her wrinckles bée extended and stretched out by knowledging her spottes are washed away The church abydeth in prayer that shée myght bée clēsed by knowledging of her sinnes As lōg as we liue hereso standeth it and when wée shall departe out of thys bodye all such thynges bée forgéeuen to euery mā wherfore by thys meane y ◠church of God is in the treasures of God wythout spotte and wrinckles and therefore here doe wée not lyue wythout sinne but wee shall passe from hence wythout sinne c. Here haue you clearely that the church of God is clensed and purified by Christ for knowledgyng of her sinnes and not by her owne purenes Wherefore such a church there must néedes bée though that y e carnall eye can not sée her nor fleshly reason can iudge of her Wherefore wée beléeue thys article by fayth that holy church is a communion or felow shyp of holy men and know it not by séeyng or féelyng as wée doe the felowshyp of Drapers or mercers for then were it none article of the faith And it is playne that all your exterior signes wyth all your holy ornamentes as your holy myters your holy crossestaues your holy pyllers polaxis your holy red gloues your holy ouches and your holy rynges your holy annoynted fingers your holy vestmentes your holy challices and your holy golden showes yea take also to helpe you S. Thomas of Canterburyes holy showe wyth all the holy bootes of holy Monkes and all these togither can not make one crumme of holynes in you nor helpe you one pricke forward that you may bée wythin thys church For if these thynges coulde helpe then were it no mastery to make an Asse to bée of the church of God But our holy mother the Church hath an other holynes that commeth from God the father thorough the swéete bloud of his blessed sonne Iesus Christ in whom is all her confidence and trust Vnto whom she sticketh onely by sted fast fayth by whose purenes shee is also pure in that that she doth confesse her vnclennes for shee beléeueth stedfastly that she hath an aduocate for her sinne to y e father of heauen which is Christ Iesus and hée is the satisfaction for her sinnes hée of his mercy not of her merites hath chosen her for to bée his and because she is his therfore must she bée cleane so long as she abideth in him This is well declared in S. Iohn where our master Christe is
it but will you condemne all thinges where by men doe take occasion of euill TheÌ„ must you fyrst put out your own eyes for by them take you occasioÌ„ to sée many idle thinges you must also destroy your handes your féete your tongue and al that you haue for these doe you mysuse very often you must also destroy your own harts whereby you haue not alonely occasion of euil but you doe thinke euil in very déede you must also destroy all fayre womeÌ„ for of them take you sore occasions of euyll you must also burne all your goodes and destroy all your riches for of theÌ„ men take occasion to be théeues and you to bée proud you must also destroy all wynes for of theÌ„ men take occasioÌ„ to bée droÌ„keÌ„ you must destroy all meates for they géeue meÌ„ occasioÌ„ of gluttony yea you muste destroye the mercy of God of the which euell men take boldenes in their myschief Briefly what is there so good a thing but that euell meÌ„ can take an occasion of euill yea and that of Christ hym selfe as Saint Paule saith which vnto the Iewes is offence and vnto the Gentyls occasion of folyshnes yet for al this you may not destroy Christ but hée must remayne stil and so likewise the Gospell for though that the euell men which will neuer bée good receiue of it occasion of euyll yet ther bée many thousandes y e receaue there by their saluation Now béecause the spider gathereth poysoÌ„ of y e good herbes it were no reason therfore to destroy al good herbes An other of your reasoÌ„s thrée bée certayne seÌ„tences in scripture y â— doe not beloÌ„g for euery man to know as our M. Christ sayth vnto you it is geueÌ„ to know the misteries of the kingdome of heauen vnto them it is not geuen I aunswere whom meane you when you say vnto you it is geuen if you meane that Apostles all onely there successors then may not you reade holy scripture for you bée not the successors of y e Apostles by my Lord of Rochesters auctorytie but if you meane the ChristeÌ„ people that haue y â— spirite of God as our M. Christ ment then bée you excluded for you haue not the sprite of God as y e effect doth declare therfore you may not read scriptures Marke also that our mayster saith vnto you it is geuen as who sayth if it were not geuen you you shoulde no more haue it then other men Now how can you proue that the vnderstanding of scripture is geuen to you â–ª but now to y e text our Maister Christ speaketh heare of the sprituall and the right vnderstanding of holy scriptures which is the gift of God onely and hée speaketh not of studying â–ª or reading of holy scripture for you haue in the same place how that many dyd followe him and heare his preaching but yet they vnderstoode him not Therefore this text maketh directly against you and your works doe declare that you bée the hearers readers of the worde of God but the vnderstanding is not geuen you But now wyllmy Lord of Rochester saye that you haue the very vnderstanding as holy doctors had it for though that scriptures in themselues and of their owne nature bée plainest best to bée knowen yet bée y e holy doctors playnest vnto vs wherefore hée that will vnderstand scripture must fyrst learne to vnderstand the doctours they shal bring hym to the true vnderstanding of holy scripture or els hée must erre I aunswere O my Lorde doe you wryte this with a safe conscyence thinke you y â— you can discharge your conscience béefore the dreadfull face of Christ with this triflyng distynction Quedam sunt notiora nobis et quedam notiora naturae I pray you if you wil proue that God were wise would you béegin to proue it at your wisedome if you would proue that God were aliue woulde you proue it by that y â— you bée aliue if you would perswade a man to beléeue that there is a God would you learne hym that hée must néedes beléeue it because y â— there bée creatures These thinges bée best knowen vnto you and if you woulde prooue that a man hath a true sence of Scriptures will you proue it by that that hée hath the sence of the doctours What if y e doctours had taken a false and a contrary sence this case is possible would you therefore say that the sence which the maÌ„ hath takeÌ„ out of scripture is false But I pray you my Lorde after this this rule how could men vnderstand scriptures in Peter Paules dayes when there weare no doctours But after your owne learning that same science which must proue the princypelles of other sciences is fyrst knoweÌ„ actualiter distinctly Now bée all the pryncipels of all other doctours proued â—rew by holy scripture therefore there is no saying nor exposition of ho ly doctours y t can bée perfectly knoweÌ„ except that scripture bée fyrst knowen this is your owne dyuynitie you can not denye it wherefore if you will proue that you haue the verytie you must proue it béecause you haue the sence of holy scripture and not the seÌ„ce of holy doctours But doubtles I haue great meruell that my Lord of Rochester is neyther ashamed of maÌ„ nor yet afrayde of the vengeance of God y â— thus triflyth w t holy scripture Besides this you haue an other bauld reason the Citie of London hath certeine priuileges and secrete counsels it were no reason that all men should know them this was my Lorde of Londons reason at Paules crosse when hée condemned the new TestameÌ„t I aunswere my Lord say of your coÌ„science did you not speake these wordes to please my Lorde the Maior of London and his brethren But I pray you is this a like similitude of y â— certeine counsels of meÌ„ the whiche must bée kept secrete bycause they bée couÌ„sels and of the holy scriptures the whiche were brought into this world not to bée â–ª kept secrete but to bée preached openly as our maister Christ commaundeth preach the Gospell to all creatures heare you to all creatures let these meÌ„ haue it for all these bee of y e counsell kéepe you it from the residue Furthermore our maister Christ saith in an other place that I haue shewed you in secretnes preach it on the tope of the house Also S. Paule sayth the Gospell is declared openly through preachyng in an other place God haue brought life and immortalitie vnto light thorough the Gospell Also our maister calleth it the light of the world nowe who will set as hée saith a light vnder a bushell and not rather openly that all meÌ„ there by may bée lightned Wherfore my lord your similitude is very far vnlike and if you were not a Lord it were woorthy to bée despised But doubtles it may bée wel thought that you were
at a sore exigent when you were compelled to prooue this thynge with so â—auld a reason Who would haue looked for so simple a reason in so earnest a matter of so wise a man of so great a Doctour of so worshipfull a father and of the Bishop of London yea and of him that is called an other Salomon notwithstanding such an haltyng similitude dyd hée neuer learne in the Prouerbes of Salomon but it had béene a better similitude of the kings proclamatioÌ„ which is proclaimed y t all men might know it and also kéepe it no man is bound to kéepe it till it bée proclaimed likewise the Gospel was geuen for to bée proclaimed and euery man is bound to kéepe it Wherfore it must néedes bée proclaimed to euery man and vnto you my Lorde I beséeche God that you may bée one of them of whom it is spokeÌ„ To you is it geueÌ„ to know the misteryes of God Amen ¶ That mens constitutions which are not grounded in Scripture bynde not the conscience of man vnder the payne of deadly sinne TO this article we must note that there bée two maner of ministers or powers one is a temporal power the other is called a spiritual power the teÌ„porall power is coÌ„mitted of God to Kinges Dukes Earles Lordes Barons Iudges Maiors Shriues to all other ministers vnder theÌ„ these bée they that haue onely the teÌ„porall sword wherby they must order al y e coÌ„moÌ„ wealth with all world ly thinges loÌ„gyng thereunto as y e disposition of these worldly goodes who shal bée right owner and who not the probation of mens testamentes the ordering of payments and customes the settyng of all maner of taskes and forfaites the correction of all transgressions wherby the coÌ„mon wealth or any priuate person is disquieted or wronged as correction of théeues murderers harlotes baudes sclanderers wranglers extortioners brybers vserers false buyers and sellers and of all other thynges whereunto béelongeth any outwarde orderyng or any corporall payne In thys power is the kyng chiefe and full ruler all other bée ministers and seruauntes as Paule doth declare â—aying let euery soule bée subiect and obedient vnto the hye powers c. Also S. Peter bée subiect vnto the kyng as vnto the chiefe heade eyther vnto rulers as vnto theÌ„ that are sent of the kyng for the punishmeÌ„t of euill doers Vnto this power must wée bée obedient in all thynges that pertaine to the ministration of this present life and of the commoÌ„ wealth not alonely as Paule sayth for auoyding of punishment but also for dischargyng of our consciences for this is y e wyll of God So that if this power commaunde anything of tyranny against right and law alwayes prouided that it repugne not agaynst the Gospell nor destroye our fayth our charitie must néedes suffer it For as Paule sayth charitie suffereth all thyng Also our maister Christ If a man strike thee on the one chéeke turne hym the other for hée doth exercise tyranny But ouer these worldly goods these present thynges and ouer thy corporall bodye which Christen men doe not alonely not regarde but dispise it Neuertheles if hée commaunde thée any thyng agaynst ryght or doe thée any wronge As for an example cast thée in prison wrongfully if thou canst by any reasonable and quyet meanes without seditioÌ„ insurrectioÌ„ or breakyng of the commoÌ„ peace saue thy selfe or auoyde hys tyranny thou mayst doe it wyth good conscience As if thou were in prison if thou couldest auoyde without any sedition thou mayst lawfully doe it thy coÌ„science is frée so doyng and thou dooste not sinne nor offende the lawe of God as Paule sayth If thou mayste bée frée vse it but in no wise bée it ryght or wrong mayst thou make any resistaunce wyth sworde or wyth hand but obey except thou canst auoyde as I haue shewed thée But if y â— cause bée ryght lawfull or profitable to the coÌ„mon wealth thou must obey and thou mayst not flye wtout sinne That men haue fled from the tyranny and the wrong of thys power wée haue it openly in diuers places of scriptures As of Elezy that fled from the tyranny of the kyng of Siria Also Helyas fled from the tyranny of kyng Achas Also S. Peter fled out of prison And S. Paule out of the Citie of Damascum and out of Iconium as it is open in the Actes of the Apostles So that agaynst this power though thou haue wrong mayst thou not make any corporall resistaunce but alonely auoyde by flying or els kéepe y e thing that is commaunded thée But if it bée ryght and to the profite of the coÌ„mon wealth thou must both fulfill it and also abyde But now wil it bée inquired of mée of this case if it please y â— kinges grace to condemne the newe testament in Englishe and to commaunde that none of his subiectes shall haue it vnder displeasure whether they bée bounde to obey thys coÌ„maundement or no To this will I auÌ„swere That I doe béeléeue that our most noble Prince hath not forbidden that Christen men may haue Christes TestameÌ„t whether it bée in latyne or Englishe French Douche Gréeke or Hebrue for Christes veritie is all one in all tonges And as his grace knoweth it were very vnreasonable that any man should eyther counsell or forbid his grace that hée shoulde know or reade the Testament of the most noble Prince hys father in the which is alouely géeueÌ„ and promised worldly goods which as soone as they bée géeuen bée ready to decay and to perishe and if I say this bée vnreasonable and vnright how much more were it vnreasonable to take awaye from vs our father of heauens testament whose legacy and promises doe as farre excell the legacies of the noble Prince his father as God doth excell man But what shoulde I make many reasons to prooue vnto hys grace that thyng to bée lawfull that the father of heauen hath sent vs froÌ„ whom coÌ„meth nothyng but goodnes Yea and it was not sent by man by Angell or by Saint but by the onely sonne of God both God and maÌ„ and diligently declared by hym to all the worlde Not vnto the Pharesies alone but vnto all maner of people and that to the houre of death and also thereof tooke his death and not yet so content but sent his glorious Apostles to declare and to learne thys godly worde thorough all the worlde And béecause the ministration of thys worde required a greater strength then was in any naturall man therefore also gaue hée them his eternall sprite to establishe them to confirme them and to make them strong in all thinges that there might bée nothing desired to the declaration and setting out of his worde Now who coulde finde in his hart that is a true subiecte and regardeth the honour of our noble Prince and the saluation of his soule eyther to thinke that his grace
is the author of all goodnes whiche if hée were away I would spit at them and despise thē But I doe not make them Christ that is my Sauiour my redéemer my cōforter my trust my hope bycause y t Christ of his mercy of his grace dwelleth in them but I séeke alonely to him y t hath made thē holy hath also alonely power both me and all men likewise to make Wherfore deare brethren if you wyll bée Christes make hym alonely your mediatour and your intercessour to the father of heauen and all thynges that you desire desire them in hys name onely Make hym first your frende and then haue you all Saintes on your side For they can not chuse but bée your frends Wherfore set all your trust hope and confidence in Christ onely and directe all your desires all your petitions all your prayers vnto hym onely And as for Saintes you shall loue them fauour them and magnifie them praise them for Gods sake and to Gods honour and where they liued well after Christes worde therein shall you folow them but in no wyse shall you béeléeue hope or trust in them or make any prayers vnto thē or desire any petition of them nor their lyuing shall bée any rule to lyue by farther then they folowed y t word of Christ for you bée cauled Christen men of Christ and not of Saintes But now will I answere to their carnall reasons First they haue a lawe whose wordes bee these Christen men doe not call worshipfull Images Gods nor they doe not serue them as Gods nor they set no hope of their saluation in them nor they doe not looke for of them the iudgement that is to come but they doe worship them and effectually pray vnto them in remembraunce and recordation of the first fruits but they doe not serue them nor yet any other creature with godly honour c. Let euery Christen man consider well in his conscience the wordes of this lawe and call also to remembraunce what God is hymselfe that is to say how omnipotent hée is how liberall hée is how mercifull hée is how gracious hée is vnto vs and thē I thinke hée shall well perceaue that this decrée is neyther made wyth faith with learning nor yet with reason but an open blasphemy agaynst God and a great mistrusting of our mercifull maister Christ Iesus Briefly there is nothing but an heape of blinde and vnfaithfull wordes inuēted to béeguile simple men thereby To the firste worde venerabiles what faith what learning what reason will that Images shoulde bee iudged worthy veneration this doth y t lattin worde venerabiles signifie séeing they bée but deafe dumme and dead what reason is it then to call them venerabiles Maister Doctour Rydley will say that no mā is so mad to worship and to honour the stocke and the stone and yet his owne law caulleth them venerabiles that is as much to say as worthy to bée worshipped honoured Call you them one thing by name and recken them vnworthy in déede It foloweth Christen men call them no Gods what néede these wordes All the worlde knoweth that they bée no Goddes in déede But then why call you them venerabiles Farthermore I would knowe of all my maisters y t lawyers why they bée such blasphemers of God such infidelles and such mortall enemyes vnto God as fo suffer yea and to compell simple men to géeue to those stockes and stones such exteriour honour as béelongeth onely to God séeing you call them no Goddes What maketh it matter for y e name so long as you géeue them the very thynge Assigne you what exteriour worshipping and honouring béelongeth to God or that wée may doe or can doe to God and I will prooue that yee compell men to geeue that same to stocks and stones and yet you thinke your selues sufficiently discharged because that men call them no gods It foloweth they set no hope in thē Then what neede men to pray vnto them what néede men to aske petitions of them what néede men to offer vnto them what neede men to vowe to them what néede men to runne to them barefooted and barelegged and to kisse them and licke them doe they aske that thyng of them which they haue no hope to receaue by them then doe they mocke them It foloweth but they pray vnto thē and worship them how thinke you by this You say they be no Godes yet men pray vnto them worship them adde to this that the Latine word signifieth as much as to aske forgeuenes of them and fully and effectually to pray to them If this stād with fayth and with the honour of God let euery Christen mā iudge But how standeth it with your decrée where in you call them no Godes this is as much to say as you bée very hypocrites and dissemblers with God and man for you say one thing in wordes and compell the people to doe the contrary in déedes that is to honour them as Godes ▪ Is not this contrary to these woordes of Scripture thou shalt honour thy Lorde God and serue hym onely Marke the holy ghost sayth Thou shalt serue God onely Here is the selfe Latin word adorare that your decrée hath Scripture will it shall all onely bée geuen to God and you will geue it to your worshypfull Images Marke also the occasion that our M. Christ spake these wordes The deuil required that hée should fall downe and honour him hée required no faith nor no hope on him nor yet that hée should make any prayers or desire any petition of him or licke or kisse his foote or make any oblation to him but alonely to fall downe and so with exteriour seruice to honor him but our maister sayd that y t belongeth alonely to God neither to the deuill nor yet to your woorshipful images Now say of your conscience doe not you that same thing to your stockes stones that the deuil required of our maister Christ how can you auoyde thys but now commeth your glose wyth a distinction and will learne our mayster Christ how that hée shall honour the deuill and excuse hym with an idle and a damnable distinction whose woordes bée these there is cultus latriae which includeth thrée things in him loue multitude of sacrifice and veneration this béelongeth onely to God saith hée There is an other worshipping which is cauled dulia thys hath but one thing in him that is veneration and it hath neither loue nor multitude of sacrifice in it and thys béelongeth to all creatures c. What bée these but an heape of idle wordes without any sentence inuented of the deuill to deceaue simple men Here saye you that Cultus Latriae which includeth loue multitude of sacrifyce and veneration belongeth to God onely Tell mée of your cōsciēce are you not ashamed of these wordes Fere you not the vengeance of God that thus
tame his body that it may waite vpon God deceiueth hym selfe All our doynges must tende to the honour of God and loue of our neighbour This boke is a preachyng of fayth and loue Here thou mayest learne a right meditation or contemplation The workes of God are supernatural We must abstaine froÌ„ outward euill though not for loue yet for feare of the vengeance of God Vnto the law of god we may neither adde nor minish We are coÌ„maunded to abstayne from Images God is mercyful to them that repent Christ hath deliuered vs therfore we ought to serue him our neyghbour for his sake Loue onely to the fulfillyng of the lawes of God We must trust onely in God not in our selues Howe a maÌ„ may trye examine hym selfe how much he loueth God and his neighbour God styrreth vp his people vnto fayth A right way of prayer The pith effect of all y e lawes of God And if wee firste loue God then out of that loue wee must nedes loue our neighbour What it is to loue and feare God and what it is to despise hym The word of god may not be altered Let no maÌ„ draw vs from gods worde Of maters of the common weals None may be condemned vnder two witnessed Christ our sauiour declared in the old testament The curse and wrath of God ouer al those that break his lawes We may not be to curious in the searchyng of Gods secretes but rather study to vnderstand to do our duety towards god and our neighbour The Papistes kept the Scriptures from the lay people because they onely will be the publishers expositors therof The scripture hath a body and a soule The scripture contayneth iij. thinges The maner of hipocrites in reading the law of god The papisticall and corrupt doctrine of the papists Now the Papistes â—ring and wrest the scriptures God correcteth where he loueth God casteth none away but such as refuse to kept his lawes and will not harken vnto hys voyce Such as hardeÌ„ their hartes and not harken to the will of God to do it God casteth out The Prophetes of God bare the weakenes of their brethren their 〈◊〉 ries also with patience The Pope and his ministers are persecutors ouer their brethren The cruell opinioÌ„ that the disciples had of Christ The ignoraunce and imperfection of the apostles God doth mercifully try tempt vs to moue vs to vtter our hartes myndes towardes hym Ionas of himselfe was an vn mete messenger to be sent of such a message but god assisted him with his holy spirit The carnal imagination of mans nature without Gods spirite Ionas so long as he was in his carnall imagination could nâ—t abyde the voice of God but fled howbeit God called hym â—…ne Ionas flesh râ—belled agaynst the spirite The wicked seke to to coâ—er their wickednes with â—ope holy workes How Ionas was â—rapped made aâ—rayed Ionas beyng afrayd comesseth his sinnes Le ts howe they may be vsed law fully Miracle moueth the heathen to know god and to call vpon him As Ionas lay three dayes and iij. nightes in y t Whals Bely so Christ lay thre dayes and three nightes in the earth How christ sheweth his death resurrectioÌ„ by Ionas the Prophet Christ by the mouth of his Apostles preached repentaunce to the Iewes Where ther is no repeÌ„tauÌ„ce there God powreth out his vengeaunce Gildas a writer of y t Brittishe Chronicle Wicleffe a preacher of repenâ—â—nÌ„ce They slew Richard y t second They set vp Henry the fourth Henry the fift Henry the sixt Christ now preacheth repeÌ„taunce vnto vs. Ionas called vpon God out of the fishes belly The sacrifice that Ionas offereth vnto God The sacrifices of the olde lawe were ordeyned to put vs in remeÌ„braunce of the sacrifice of thankesgeuyng Ionas dyd that God commaunded hym Niniue was the greatest Citie in the world â–ª Christ is mercyfull to the that repent and call for mercy The doctrine of the Phariseis and the Papists make sinne of that is no sinne This is y â— doctrine of y t Papistes and hypocriticall monkes at this day The blynd and fruteles workes of the Papistes Papisticall sinnes Papistes taught theÌ„ selues and theyr workes withall crueltieÌ„ The false wicked doctrine of the Papistes Blinde and btpocritical doctrine The Phariseto set vp a righteousnes of workes to cleÌ„se their soules withall By the worldly fleship interpretations of the scriptures the Iewes hartes were hardened The heâ—â— then repented at the preachyng of Ionas A good and profitable example Note herâ— the great mercy of God The right maner how to read the Scripture All our deedes are made perfect in christes bloud All the promised made by God in Christ are made to theÌ„ that repent The two keyes that open aâ— the Scripture A very fruitfull good lesson How thou mayst at all tymes apply the stories of the Bible to thy great comfort The law must be fulfilled with the mercy that is in Christ In thy hart are the wordes of the law in thine hart are the promises and mercy of Christ Our sinne is of our selues but remission sorgeuenes therof commeth frely of the mercy of God for christes sake God hath no nede of our works but we must do theÌ„ for our selues and for the profite of our neighbors Christ hath satisfied for our sinnes as well after baptisme as before Baptisme Our actuall sinnes are washed away in Christes bloud The Zewes to this day ar locked out from the vnderstanding of the scriptures The right way into the vnderstanding of the Scritures Iaco. 1. The generall couenaunt that God hath made with vs. Lawe In these commaundemento is contayned tee whole law Where no good 〈…〉 are there the fayth is vayne What fayth it is that saueth Two thinges are required to be in a christian man What the nature of gods word is When we heare gods will and do it not then God withdraweth his mercy and fauour from vs. He that harkeneth to the word of God doth it the same shal be blessed in his deede What it is to build vppon â—and The vncleane spirit that returneth in worse sort theÌ„ he was when hee was cast forth Such 〈◊〉 are profes sours of the worde 〈◊〉 God and will not tame and scourge theÌ„ selues theÌ„ will God plague 〈◊〉 scourge Christes deedes â—et vs in the fauour of God our owne helpe vs to continue in his fauour Loue is the fulfilling of the law Faith is cause of loue God requireth mercie and not sacrifice Onely loue vnderstandeth the law Gospell New Testament Our workes extend no farther then to our neighbour Why Tyndall vsed this worde repeÌ„tauÌ„ce rather then penaunce 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The foure partes of repentanÌ„ce What maner of satisfaction weâ— ought to make 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Why hee nameth theÌ„ Elders not priests William Tyndals Prologue vpon the Gospell of Marke The Prologue of W.
vsed by hypocrites The Popes clergie are lyers The wrath of God styrreth vp the people to destroy the enemieâ— and persecutors of the truth God is the defender of kynges and princes Wicked kynges and rulers that persecute Gods ministers are the troublers of themselues and their realme and not the preachers As many as will be the disciples of Christ must learne of him meekenes obedience to the higher powers Ye must suffer wyth Christ that ye may ioye with him in the lyfe to come God will be reuenged vpon cruell tyrauntes In the treatise folowing is shewed who are the causeâ—s of insurrection Iohn 18. Math. 1â— â–ª The mâ—…sters of Christes doctrine may not haue any temporall offices Math. 6 â–ª Math. 1â— â–ª The officers in Christes kingdome may haue no temporall dominion Math. 1â— â—o receiue a child in Christes name what it is 〈◊〉 Thes 3. The Pope is a Wolfe in a lambes skinne Why Peter was called chief of the Apostles Peter had no authoritie aboue the rest of the Apostles The â—opes kyngdome is of the world â—…able of the Popes gâ—…e 〈◊〉 â—…e his badge The ministers of the kyngdome of God must gouerne with all loue mekenes pacience Peter in y â— vse of speakyng for his diligeÌ„ce is called but not in the Scripture the chief of the Apostles Peter was inforced to render an accompt to his brethreÌ„ of his doynges Peter shewed no paâ—t of hys aâ— hoâ—…e 〈◊〉 the mighty power of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Apostles alledge the authoritie of God in Christ and no authoritie of their own Peter was sent by the other Apostles to preach 〈◊〉 Samaria Gal. Paul 〈…〉 to his 〈◊〉 Scripture is the châ—efest of the Apostles We geâ—e the 〈…〉 〈◊〉 reueâ—â—nce noâ— for them â—…es bâ—â— because of the word thâ—â—â—…y minister â–ª Math. 18. Oâ—â— brethren 〈◊〉 they 〈◊〉 must bâ— reformed by loue â–ª a 〈◊〉 â—y 〈◊〉 how we may go to the lawe wythout trespassers Math. 6. Open and 〈◊〉 offeÌ„dâ—urs are to be râ—buked openly The kingdome of Christ is spirituall Lukâ—… Officers first ordayned in Christes church Byshop Honour the aged In y e aged is experience Deacon In the primitiue Church they chose Deacons to minister to y â— poore Widowes Common goodes The â—reat and ferueÌ„t charitie in the primatiue church The couetousnes of y t Prelates was the decay of Christendome and y e encreasing of the kingdome of Mahomete The proud clergie how they spent the treasure 〈◊〉 yâ—â—oore Isacius The election was coÌ„firmed by the Emperour Note here the treasure that y e Byshops of Rome had at thys tyme. The Byshop of Rome in y â— primatiue Church was a dauÌ„gerous office At the first entry of Christes Churche there was no tythes payde to y e ministers All corruption of the Churche came first out of the Deacons Money purchased prefermeÌ„t The Prelates must bide still in the courte How the clergie first by riches theÌ„ by â—…attery aduaunced theÌ„selues When the Prelates waxed riche then they disputed who shoulde be highest Ierusalem was y â— firâ—t seaâ— of ou◠〈◊〉 byshop Constantinople Rome Hâ—â— Rome come to be y â— chifest citie Rome the seate and mother of all wickednesse Phocas Pope Boniface the thirde Phocas the Emperour first gaue priuilege to the Byshop of Rome â—o be the chief Byshop The chastitie of Priestes how it came vp Note 〈◊〉 the climing vp of the Pope Diuision in the Church The Grekes will not be vnder the Popes tyranny Mahomet the Pope began at one tyme. Gregory The Pope came vp by the French meÌ„ and by them he coÌ„tinueth his estate still Pope Zacharias the first Hildericus Pipinns The Pope put downe the right French kyng and set vppe Pipine The kyng of Fraunce was made a Monke Pope Steuen the second Estulphus kyng of Lumbardy How the Pope was aduaunced By what meanes Mahomet waxed great Carolus magnus The Pope become a great God on y â— earth Desiderius Pope Adrian the first The Pope purposed to be Emperour him selfe Charles the Pope deuided the kyngdome of Lombardy The Pope gathered a Councell and gaue vnto Charles the Empâ—re of Rome Leo the 〈◊〉 Pope Oâ—…ne whoâ—e Empyre the Pope made â—â—o Most Christen kyng Defender of the faith The eldest sonne of the holy seate Who is a Christian kyng The lyfe of Charles Charles coÌ„pelled aâ— men to the obedience of the pope Practise The Pope is a dispenser a breaker of the bondes of Matrimonie Charles a filthy whoremonger Charles hath hys whore caâ—â—ed with hym This was an Emperour for the â—â—pes own mouth Idoâ—yng Emperour The Pope made this lecherous Emperour a Saint Lewes the milde Pope Steuen the iiij The Pope elected and set vp with out the assent of the Emperour Pope Paschale The Pope how hee abused the Emperour The Pope setteth noâ— by the Emperour â—…ne Pope Nicholaus the first Pope Adrian the second Pope Adrian the third The vertue of the Pope and power oâ— y â— Emperour perished together The popes haue bene onely bloud shedeâ—â— aboue vij C. peates All Christâ—dome hath bene troubled wyth the Popes causes Vandales Hunnes Gothes The spiritualtie obeâ—ed to him that gat the victory how wicked soeuer he was Building of Abbeyes Shrining of saintes This was the tyme that false prophetes did arise in the church Beringarius Ottho Pope Iohn the. xij The oth of the Emperour made to the pope Notâ— here the dissimulation of y â— Pope in callyng his possessions S. Peters possessions Pope Gregory the fiâ—t The election of the Emperour apperteyneth to the Lordes of Germany The Iuytree springeth The maner how y â— pope did spring vp to hys great auctoritie The chusing of the Pope all Bishoppes perteyned vnto the Emperour and kinges once The almes geuen vnto the poore is become S. Peters patrimony Dani. xiiij The Pope first gat aboue all the Bishops then aboue the Emperour O Lucifer Note this deuilish â—…nable pride â—…e â—…e by the Pope The Pope createth his shauelyngs into dignities Qualis pater talis filius good naturall children The popes order compared with Christes Christ aâ—d the Pope compared together Christ bringeth a man lowe but the Pope lifteth vp a hygh The Pope receaueth his riches and kyngdomes of the deuill The Pope distributeth his fathers kyng dome The popes order compared with the order of the Apostles The popes Priestes The popes widowes The popes Deacons How the Pope deuideth the poore peoples almes Monkes Monkes made ministers to the poore Monkes robbe the poore â–ª Begging friers The charge of the â—ay people How the spiritualtie bestow their treasure The Pope maketh lawes What subtiltie the Pope vseth to stablishe his kingdome The Pope hath feined the gift of Constantine The Pope corrupteth the scripture and why Peter sayth the Pope was the head of Christes church All ministers haue as great a charge geuen them of God as Peter had Peter preached but the Pope preached not Fayth is the rocke whercon Christes Churche
bisshops make no accompt of periury The spiritualtie are neither of y ◠〈◊〉 side nor of the other for there is no truth in them more then shall serue their turne An admonition to all subiectes Luk. 15. Here Tindall sheweth himself to be voyde of malice to any priuate person God is mercyfull to the ignoraunt but he pleaseth the malicious wilful offeÌ„der The obedience of 〈◊〉 Christen man written three yeares before this booke Scriptures should be translated into â—â—â—ry language The cause of the edition of this Pathway What are contayned in the old TestameÌ„t The contentes of the newe TestameÌ„t The Etymologie of this worde EuangelioÌ„ EuangelioÌ„ is called the newe TestameÌ„t No greater comfort can happen to a sinner being penitent theÌ„ the promises of the Gospell The Gospell was promised of God in the old TestameÌ„t by the Prophets Christ hath ouer â–ª throwen y e deuill and all hys power The 〈◊〉 was geuen by Moses grace and truth by Iesus Christ The lawe requireth of vs that whiche is impossible for our nature to do When the law hath condemned vs Christ graunteth vs free pardon Christ is Gods mercy stoole so that no mercy commeth from God but through Christ The law must euer be in sight to make vs humble spirited the gospel also before our â—yes to comfort vs. Two maner of people deceaued those which iustifie theÌ„selues by thse workes those that through their blinde opinion of faith vtterly perâ—ert the liuely fayth He that hath a right fayth deliteth in the law althogh his weaknes can not fulfill the same He that iustifieth him selfe reiecteth y t law priuises The voluptuous person A true christian A proper similitude We are plucked froÌ„ Adam and graffed in Christ by grace The bloud of Iesus hath obtained al thinges for vs of God Sundry sortes of righteousnes MaÌ„s sensuall reason can not perceaue the vertue of Christes bloud Adams fall brought vs in bondage to the deuill The natural corruption of the myndes of Adams heyres playnly sâ—â— forth Man before his regeneratioÌ„ can not thinke wel of God The harts of the electâ— do eueÌ„ melt at the preachyng of Gods mercy and Christes kyndnes Christ â—eâ—â— nothyng vndone that might be to our saluation Christ an example to vs of all goodnes What faith receiueth of God thorough Christes bloud that we must bestowe on our neighbours though they be our enemyes Christ dyd not good deedes to merite heaueÌ„ for that was his all ready but frely for our sakes The law byndeth the Gospel louseth all men The force of the law The vprising sinner feeleth such ioy in the Gospell that he thinketh it â–ª impossible that God should forsake hym All synne in vs is of 〈◊〉 selues â–ª and all goodnes of Christ Workes certifie vs of euerlastyng â—nheritaunce â—ill sinne in vs and releue the necessitie of our neighbour Giftes of grace beloÌ„g to our brother as much as to our selues Holydayes necessary to come together in learne Christes will Worldly rulers to be obayed so far forth aâ— their lawes impugne not Gods lawes Though rulers appointed of God oppresse vs yet we may not auenge they being in Gods roome We must loue our neighbour as our self Our baptisme signifieth that we repent and professe a new life The perfecter we are the greter is our repentante and the stronger is our fayth Our workes deserue not y t giftes of grace The principles of scripture perfectly learned aâ— y â— rest is more easie We must first learne the profession of our Baptisme The profession of our Baptisme what it is Gospell All our sinnes for Iesu Christes sake for hys death passion are clearely forgeuen Euery Christen man must reconcile himselfe vnto his brother The right penaunce is repentaunce of sinne and amendemeÌ„t of lyfe All our lyfe must tend to this ende to came our flesh serue our neighbour Fayth in Christes bloud with a repentauÌ„t hart is the onely satisfaction that we caÌ„ make towarde God The father of loue correcteth the child God as a louyng father careth for vs and geÌ„tlye correcteth vs to keepe vs in the right way To vnderstand our baptisme is to vnderstaÌ„d the law and the Gospell The key light of the Scripture Howe the Scripture is locked vp from ouâ— vnderstandyng If we be not taught by God we do but wander â—leane out of the way He that vnderstandeth the professioÌ„ of his Baptisme can be no hereticke The Scripture teacheth low lynes and hateth prid â–ª The Scripture maketh no heretikes If God lighten not our hartes we read the Scripture in vayne The law condemneth to driue vs to faith in Christes death Heresy springeth out of the harts of hypocrites He that is souÌ„d in faith shal easely attaine to the true seÌ„ce of the scripture The papists vnwritten berities are not to be credited The papist 〈…〉 haue corrupted the scriptures abused the sacramentes The scripture to the life of Gods elect Hypocrites say that the scripture maketh heretiques The translation of the scripture is not sufficieÌ„t onely but it must be well taught that the people may haue the true seÌ„ce Introductions made to bring you to the true vnderstanding of the scripture 〈◊〉 â–ª Ioh. 1. S. Iohn witnesseth that Christ is very God That Christ is very man He that beleueth that Christ is the sonne of God also very man hath euerlasting life To beleue in Christ To beleue that Christ is God and man is to put all our trust hope confideÌ„ce in him Moses Christ is our life By nature we are the children of wrath The law coÌ„demneth vs. Christ If we submit our selues to Christ knowledge our weakenes he will of his great mercy receaue vs. The touch stone of all true doctrine and preachers The modest charitable maner of S. Paules doctrine S. Paule preached Christ and not hym selfe As God is light so the deuill is darkenes Good workes are the frutes of lyght Walkyng in darknes or in light If wee haue the spirite of God in vs then will he rayse vs vp with Iesus Christ Hee that sayth hee hath no sinne deceaueth him selfe If we confesse our sinnes to God with true fayth and repentaunce he will forgeue vs. All meÌ„ are sinners Nothing can be so well done but it may be ameÌ„ded All the nature of maÌ„ is sinfull We must resist sinne with al our power and might We sinne daily by the frailty and weaknes of our flesh Our aduocate Iesus Iesus that is God and maÌ„ calleth â—…o thee O Father for vs. Christus By Iesu Christ we are made blessed Christes bloud is the satisfaction for our sinnes Christ gaue himselfe for the redemption salnation of al the world Christ is king ouer death hell sinne Christ onely is our sauiour Christ forgeueth all our sinnes freely for his mercy sake Christ onely is our aduocate Popish for geuenesse The forgeuenesse that we haue of god for Christes sake is â—ree Faith in