I besech you brethrē by the cōming of oure Lorde Iesus Christ, and for our assemble in hym, that ye be not sodēly moued frō your mynd, and be not troubled, nother by sprite, nother by vvord nor yet by epistle, vvhich shulde seme to come from vs, as though the day of Christe vvere at hande. Let noman deceaue you by ony meanes.
Some mē vnderstode by ye fourth chapter of hys fyrst epistle ye the cōmynge of ye Lorde vnto iudgmēt, & the resurrection of the dead was euē thē at hāde. Ther were also many deceauers, which affirmed planely, yt the ende of all thynges was than come. Euē as ther lacke none now adayes of the secte of the Anabaptistes, which come where as is great resort of people & ceasse not to crye, yt the daye of iudgmēt is at hāde. But Paule in thys place doth [Page] shewe what muste go before the cōmynge of the LORDE, & wyth what foresygnes and thynges, man ought to be warned before. And he doth very properly beseche ye Thessalonians by that same thynge in whiche they erred, that is to saye, by the cōmynge of the LORDE, of the which he hath hetherto spokē, and in the fyrst chapter also. Furthermore he exhorteth thē by the vnite & concorde, whiche we the mē bres haue wyth the heade Iesus Christe. For we seme to be plucked from thys holy bodye, as oft as we haue no ryght opynion of the heade or health of the mēbres. And he besecheth them that they be not sodenly moued from theyr mynde, that is from the true vnderstondynge and godly mynde. Erasmus: Be not sodenly moued (sayeth he) from your mynde, yf that hys commynge be deferred. But the playner exposycion followeth: Be not of that mynde and iudgement, yt ye shuld thynke, the daye of the LORDE to be nowe at hande. Nother be ye troubled. And to be troubled is to be amased in the mynde, to be afeared and to be destitute of counsell and helpe. After that he reherseth diuers maner of wayes, by whiche the congregacions [Page 11] are troubled.Thre special causes o [...] troublynge of the congregaciōs. The fyrst is the sprete that is a reuelacion, prophecie or tellynge of thynges to come, with the whiche certayne moost vngracious knaues haue deceaued many, bostynge thē selues to haue the sprete of God, where as they were led wyth euell lustes. The Montanystes and the Valentyniās which before tyme wer endued wt such a sprete (as Ireneus and Eusebius haue wrytten) dyd greatlye deceaue the symple people, as ye Anabaptistes do nowe. The second waye to trouble the churches is worde, yt is doctryne commyng forth of a lyuyng voyce, the whiche yf it be decked with eloquente and apparaunte wordes, it is moost pestylente. The thyrde way is a coūterfayte Epistle or some wrytynge garnyshed with a false inscrypcion or tytle. (as S. Ambrose testified) False deceauers are woūte (that they myghte the sooner deceaue) for to fayne an Epistle vnder the name of some noble wryter, to the intente that the authoryte of the mā, may set forth that, which can not be receaued by thē selues. And it can not be spokē, howe shamefully ye certayne vnthryftye knaues throughe thys crafte haue mocked ye churche of God, whyche [Page] haue thruste in amonge vs many bokes, many epistles, & workes, as though they had come frō the Apostles or apostolicall men, orels from wryters that were noble and excellente in authoryte, learnynge & holynes, whiche for all yt they neuer knew or coulde aproue, yf they were yet alyue. For ther are abrode certayne canones of the Apostles, certayn Epistles of apostolyke men, yet & many lytle bokes also, vnder ye name of Augustine & Ambrose which these men neuer sawe: What shal I say of certayne sermōs garnyshed wt the tytle of Cypriane & Augustine: The neglygence of the age yt is passed, & the couetousnes of wryters & prynters, wt the ygnoraunce & vnshamfastnes of thē was so greate yt noman can deteste it to muche. They that haue redde the wryttynges of ye olde doctoures, and haue sene ony of Erasmus iudgementes vpon ye workes of Ierome & Austen, do vnderstāde what I say. And yet shalt yu fynde mē, which thorowe the helpe of this place, wyll thrust into ye churche of God euery thyng yt they lust: Obiectyng that all thynges necessary to true godlynes are not wryttē in ye scryptures, because ye mencion is made here of ye sprete of ye [Page 12] worde, and of the Epistle, by the whiche a more perfayte doctryne myghte be delyuered to the worlde then to come. But these men do not se, that thys same place doth monyshe vs, that men shulde not be drawen awaye frome theyr mynde, that is ye wholsome faythe once receaued, through theyr tradicions: whiche beynge couered wyth the cloke of the sprete, of the worde, or of a decretall epistle, these men do caste vnto vs as Apostolike and moost holy doctryne. For after thys maner they do auaunce & only set forthe vnto vs bothe theyr popysh masses & all other thynges which they can not proue by ye testymonye of scryptures affyrmynge that they were institute by the tradycion of the Apostles, and afterwarde confyrmed by the Epistles of Apostolyke men, and by the reuelacion of the holy gooste. Let vs beware therfore of these rauenynge woulues, whyche beynge clothed wyth shepes clothynge, do come for to spoile, for to trouble, & to deuoure. Let vs kepe faythfully ye meanyng of Christ, wt the holsome and Apostolycall poyntes of true & vndefyled relygion, & then shall nomā deceaue vs by ony meanes. That learned mā Tertulyan, [Page] hath spoken more of thys matter in hys boke that he made of ye banyshmēt of Heretykes.
For the LORDE commeth not excepte ther come a departyng fyrst, and that that synfull man be opened, the lost chyld, vvhich is an aduersary, and is exalted aboue al that is called God or vvorshypped: so that he shall syt in the temple of God auauncynge hymselfe as God. Do ye not remembre that vvhē I vvas yet vvith you, I tolde you these thynges?
The LORDE shall not come, excepte that ther come a departynge [...]yrste.Ye thynke (sayeth he) that the daye of the cōmyng of the LORDE is nowe at hande, but ye are deceaued brethren. For excepte ther come a departynge fyrst, the LORDE shall not come. Excepte therefore that ther come a departynge fyrste, & that Antichriste do raygne, Christe shall not come vnto iudgemēt. Therfore ye departyng & raygne of Antichriste or rather tyrāny, shall go before ye day of iudgemēt. And here he dothe descrybe Antichriste & hys kyngdome at large. We shall touche euery thynge wyth a cōpendious brefenes, comparynge yt whiche Daniel spake of thys matter, with these thynges. For it [Page 13] semeth that the Apostle toke muche of hys out of hym. And fyrste we wyll speake of the departynge.Departing. Departynge is here taken after suche a maner, as whan a man doth slyde backe or fayle from hys author or prynce. Saynt Ambrose doth expounde it of the diuydynge of the kyngdome of ye Romaynes, and of the departyng of other kyngdomes frō it. Other haue interpreted it of the departyng of fayth, of the whiche the Apostle spake, i. Timo. iiii. sayenge: The sprete speaketh euydentlye, that in the latter dayes some shall depart from the fayth, geuyng hede vnto spretes of erroure and deuelyshe doctrynes, &c. But both cōmeth to one effecte as touchynge the substaunce of the matter. For when that same last monarchye or kyngdome beganne to be diuided, through the departynge of certayne kyngdomes from it, then began the Christen relygion and fayth to be corrupted and peruerted also, by them, which gaue hede vnto spretes of erroure & deuelyshe doctrynes. And by ye same laste monarchie or kyngdō is ment the empyre of Rome. For Daniell in hys .vii. Chapter. After .iii. myghty kyngdomes, that is to saye of the Babyloniās, [Page] Perses, and the Macedonyans, addeth to the fourthe, that is the Romaynes. I sawe (sayeth he) in a vysion by nyght, and beholde the fourthe beaste was grymme and horryble and maruaylous stronge, it had greate yron tethe, it deuoured and destroyed, and stamped the resydue vnder hys fete, it was farre vnlyke to other beastes, that were before it: For it hadde tenne hornes. I marked the hornes, and beholde ther came vp amonge them an other lytle horne, before whome ther were thre of the fyrste hornes plucked awaye: Beholde thys horne had eyes lyke the eyes of a man, and a mouthe speakynge presumptuouse thynges. Hytherto haue we rehersed the wordes of Daniell. And after he had desyred to knowe ye meanyng of this vysiō, he herde thys answere: The fourth beaste shalbe the fourth kyngdome vpon the earthe, it shalbe greater then all other kyngdomes, it shall deuoure, treade downe, and destroye all the worlde. The ten hornes are tenne kyngdomes yt shall aryse out of the kyngdom, after whom ther shall stonde vp another, whyche shall be greater then the fyrste, & shall subdue thre kynges, and so forth. S. [Page 14] Ierome declarynge this place of the Prophet,The Empyre of Rome. doth expounde it of the empyre of Rome, sayeng: He cōpared the kyngdome of the Romanes vnto no beast, & named it not: to the intent yt what cruelte more thē other we dyd suppose in the beastes, we shuld vnderstonde that of the Romaynes. And surely thys empyre hath subdued and waysted all the worlde: not beynge alonly vnlyke vnto other kyngdomes, in the settynge vp & gouernaunce of the kyngdom, but also in cruelnes, strēgth, & fearcenes. For what naciōs hath it not wasted with fyre & sweard, & vtterly destroyed, brought them in to bondage, and as it were a full and wanton beaste trode them vnder hys fete? For the which cause Mitridates the kyng of Pōtus (as Iustinus dyd note out of Trogus Pompeius) was wonte to say of the Romaynes: That they dyd trulye boste, yt theyr fyrste begynners or auncetters were brought vp wt woulues mylke, because yt all the people of Rome had wolues myndes, neuer full of bloude & euer gredy & gapynge after dominiō & ryches. Also Plinius in ye .vii. boke of his natural hystory, ye .xxv. chap. sayth of Iulius Cesar.Iulius Cesar. He fought in playn felde fyftye tymes: he only [Page] passed Marcus Marcellus a captayne of the Romaynes also whych yet had pytched & fyghten .xxxix. battayles. For besydes hys vyctoryes ouer cyties, trulye I wolde not speake to hys prayse, of eleuē C.xcii.M. men that were slayne by hym in battayles. Also the greate iniury that mankynd suffred by hym: whyche thynge to be true he hymselfe confessed, although he made no mencion of hys destruction in cyuile warres. The selfe same Plinius in the .xxvi. chapter wytnesseth, that in ye temple of Minerua, was a table hanged vp, brefly cōtaynyng the actes of Gneus Pompeius the greate which he had done in the Easte partes,Gneus Pō pe [...] in these wordes followynge: Gneus Pompeius the greate Emperoure & guyder of the Romaynes hooste, in the tyme of hys warres, which contynued .xxx. yeares, dyd beate down, put to flyghte, slewe, and toke to mercye twenty hundreth & lxxxiii. thousand men, he bowed and toke .viii. hundreth & .xlvi. shyppes, he had yeldyd vnto hym a .M.CCCCC.xxxviii. townes and castels, and subdued all ye contrye from the water of Meotis vnto the reede see. And the title or inscrypcion of hys tryumphe [Page 15] had the thyrde daye of the kalendes of October (Marcus Messala & Marcus Piso beynge cōsules) was thys: When he had once rydde the see coostes of Pirates, and had restored the Romaynes vnto theyr dominion whiche they had on the see, he brought gloryous spoyles out of Asia, Pō tus, Armenia, Paphlagonia, Capadocia, Cilicia, Syria, frō the Scythians, Iewes Albanes, out of Iberia, the Ile of Creta, and from the Basternes: And besydes these he led vnto hys triumphe these two kynges Mytridates & Tigranes. We haue touched only the actes, vyctories, & tryumphes of two Emperours: we haue spoken nothynge yet of Scipions, Fabyones, Marius and Metellus, nother yet of Lelius Sylla, Lucullus, Marcellus, Crassus, Paulus Aemilius, Flaminius, Sertorius, Cornelius Cinna and Fymbria, and of many noble men of thys sorte and degre: by whose study, feruencye, ambycion, couetousnes and desyre to beare rule: To conclude, by whose wylde cruelnes, & extreme tyrannye it came to passe that (accordynge to the prophecye of Daniell) all the world was deuoured, destroyed, and troden vnderfoote.
[Page]Ye haue now ye mystery of that cruell beaste, nowe shall we shewe what is sygnifyed by the ten hornes, and what by the halfe horne that sprange vp amonge them and plucked awaye other thre hornes. The nombre of ten signifyeth a multitude,The diuydyng of the Empyre of Rome and the departyng frō it. and hornes kyngdomes: and it meaneth that the Empire of Rome shulde be diuided agayne in to many kyngdomes: that is, ye thorow mēs departynge frō it, it shulde come to passe that manye kynges at once shulde rule in the Empyre of Rome. The whiche thynge beganne to be aboute the tyme of Constantine the greate, some gouernynge the kyngdomes of the Easte, and some of the Weste. And after that by processe of tyme manye nacions beganne to fall from it also, takynge other kynges and princes vnto them. Farthermore rude nacions brake in, and yt agaynst the Emperoure of Romes wyll: yee and subduynge the Prouinces and kyngdomes of the Empyre of Rome they raygned strongly. For those thynges are well knowen, whiche wryters of storyes do tell of the Frenchemen, Germaynes, Lombardes, and Perses.
[Page 16]And so are those thynges and storyes, also whyche credyble auctoures bothe Grekes and Latins haue wrytten of the bloudye dominion of the Gothies, Hunnies, and Wandaies. And after thys maner dyd tenne hornes sprynge oute of that beaste, and the departynge was fulfylled of whyche the Apostle hath nowe spoken.Of the spryngyngs vp of Antichrists. Nowe shall we speake of the commynge vp of Antichriste, that is to saye, of the reuelacion of that synfull man. Ther grewe vp a certayne foolyshe opynion that Antichriste shulde be one onely man, the whyche shulde be borne in Babylon, and of the trybe of Dan, and that he shuld raygne certayne yeares to the greate hurte of the faythfull. But the foolyshe men se not that Daniell dyd vnderstonde all the Kynges, Emperoures or heade rulers of the Babylonians, Perses, Macedonyans, and Romaynes vnder the names of one Lyon, Beer, Leoparde and other beastes. Therfore it muste nedes be, that he mente by that lytle horne, that is to saye by Antichriste, not some one onely man, but an whole kyngedome and an whole [Page] bodye which shuld fyghte agaynst Christe with theyr lawes, cōstitucions, maners & strength. Let vs therfore marke the wordes of the Prophete: I marked the hornes (sayeth he) and behold another lytle horne came vp among thē, before whom thre of ye hornes were pluckyd awaye. And agayn: Another (sayeth he) shall aryse after them and shall be greater then the fyrste, & shall subdue thre kynges. Ye haue nowe the mysterye, and the exposicion of the same. For the hornes do sygnifye the diuidynge and confusion of the kyngdomes. And in thys confusion of thynges, by lytle & lytle sprynge the vp another kyngdome in the world whych doth subdue thre other kynges.
Let vs cōpare wyth thys, those thynges which the wrytters of hystoryes haue shewed.Machomet of Arabia, some sayde that he was of P [...]. Nowe Machomet of Arabia in ye yeare of our LORDE .vi. hundreth and .xx that is to saye whyle ther was a maruaylous confusion of thynges both in ye East, and also in the West, sprang vp in ye tyme of Heraclius the Emperoure, whyche (as Volaterranus doth recyte out of a lybrarye) came of a lowe stocke, and beynge fatherlesse one Abdemonaples a man of [Page 17] the stocke of Ismaell boughte for his captiue and loued hym for hys fauoure and wytte: for the whiche cause, he made him a ruler ouer hys marchaūdyse and busynesse. Thē one Sergius a monke, which for the secte of heresie fled oute of the cytie of Constantynople into Arabia, endued hym with the heresie of Nestorius, & loued Machomet greatly for hys wytte. In the meane season hys mayster dyed wythout chyldren, leauynge behynde him muche ryches, and his wyfe a wydowe of fyftye yeares of age: whome Machomet maryed, and after that she was dead, he was made heyre, and greatly encreased wyth ryches: and beynge had in honoure wyth the foolyshe people (by the counsell of Sergius) beganne to call hym selfe the greate Prophet of God. Therfore after that hys name was publyshed, & hys authoryte greatly augmented amonge hys people, he made a law which he borowed partly of the Iewes, partly of the Christē, yee and also of the Heythen, and called it Alcoran. And those that obeyed it, he gaue them to name Sarracenes or Agarens, and armed them agaynste the Perses: Agaynste whom because he had metelye [Page] good fortune, he beganne to be taken for a Prophete or a man of God. And whan he had gotten hym great glorye, he dyed, after he had lyued .xl. yeares. After hys death many prynces of that naciō by succession when they had dyuyded the multytude or hoostes betwene them raygned some in one place, and some in another. And Homar the thyrde after Machomet, after that he had subdued ye Perses, toke Ierusalem and all Syria about the yeare of our LORDE .CCCCCC. lxx Constantine the fourth then reygnyng. After thys they that followed hym inuaded Egypte also, and ordeyned Calypha to be ruler ouer it. A man m [...]e reade more of the Sarracenes and of theyr kyngdome, here and there amonge the wrytters of histories. And the nacion of the Turkes commynge of the Scythyans warred vnder the Sarracenes in Asia, & toke theyr professiō and relygion of them from tyme to tyme as it were by hande from one to another: euen as they toke of them also ye greatest porcyō of theyr Empyre, & kepe it to thys daye gettynge synce therto Asia, Macedonia, Moesia, Athens, Peloponesus, Epyrus, Thratia, Illiricus, wt [Page 18] many other contryes. Nowe by thys ye perceaue what that lytle horne dyd sygnifye, the whyche commynge vp among the tenne hornes dyd plucke vp other thre. For it is Machomet the whyche cōmyng of a meane, yee of a moost lowe stocke, of a marchaunte is made a kynge, whose successoures haue holden thre of the mooste myghtyest kyngdomes of the world, Persia, Siria, and Egypte: and yet I rehearse not ye other kyngdomes of whych I made mencion euen now. For by the nombre of thre, he vnderstode many kyngdomes.
But yet all thys whyle we haue not mad an ende of ye mystery of iniquite.The bys [...]p of Rome. For ther is another certayn thyng also, which pertayneth to the perfeccion of thys body of Antichrist. Therfore whyle these thynges were in hand in ye East partyes, ye By shop of Rome goeth aboute ye dominyō of ye West in ye West partyes. Ye loked not that I shuld saye suche thynges of the By shope, but yet they are true. And who wolde euer haue thought ye the ministers of Godes word and of the churches shuld once haue come vnto suche madnes, as for to thynke & cauncell howe they myght gette the gouernaunce of the cytye and [Page] of the worlde? Specially in as muche as Christ had sayd in so playne wordes: The kynges of the gentyles do rule, but so shall not ye: but I haue chosen you, yt ye shulde go and brynge forth muche frute. And he that is greatest amonge you shalbe a seruaunte to you all. But these commaundementes of the LORDE beynge neglected, ther beganne certayne men to dispute of the primacy of the Byshope of Rome, at suche tyme, as that lytle horne was acōmynge forth. And because it was wrytten: Thou arte Peter, and vpō thys rocke wyll I buylde my churche. And I wyll geue the the keys of the kyngdom of heauē: And what so euer thou byndest vpō earth, shalbe bounde in heauen: And agayne because that Achasius the Bishop of Constantinople and Timotheus men of Grecia dyd desyre of Simplicius the Byshop of Rome, that he also wolde condempne Peter the byshop of Alexandria the follower of Euthicetys, heresye, as one whyche had rule ouer the chefe churche & whose authorite was of greate value among all mē: certayne men cōcluded vpō thys, that the seate of Rome was ye chefe of all churches, and that the Byshope of [Page 19] Rome was the head ruler ouer all byshopes. Thou seyst here also howe that lytle horne beganne to lyfte vp it selfe.Ihon of Cō stātinople. And Ihō of Constantynople puttynge more coles vnto thys fyre, helde a Councell amonge the Grecyans, in the whyche he declared hymselfe to be the vniuersall Byshop or Patriarke. The whyche thynge Mauricius the Emperoure of the Romaynes dyd sygnifye vnto Gregory the fyrst Byshope of Rome of that name, commaundynge hym for to submytte hymselfe and to be obediente vnto Ihon. But Gregory answered yt the power of byndyng & lowsyng was geuen vnto Peter, & not vnto ye Byshopes of Constantynople, and that therfore he shulde ceasse to prouoke the wrath of God vpō hym. Thys same Gregory wrytynge vnto Anastasius of Antioche and to Eulogius Byshop of Alexandria in the register of the .vii. parte of hys .xxx. Epistle, sayth: Youre worshypfull holynes knoweth, that thys name vnyuersall byshope was offered by the holy Coū cell of Calcedonye vnto them of the Apostolyke seate, whych (god so disposynge) I do nowe serue. But none of my predecessoures dyd consente for to vse so prophane [Page] a name: because surely yt yf one be called an vniuersal Patryacke, it is a derogaciō vnto ye name of other Patriarkes. But God forbyd ye ony Christē mā shuld take that to hym selfe, wherby he shulde seme to dimynyshe the honoure of hys brethren in ony parte, were it neuer so lytle These are Gregorius wordes. But not al only the Byshopes of Constantynople, but also of Rome the successoures of Gregory forgettynge these thynges, dyd not cease to stryue aboute the prymacy, vntyl that Bonyface the thyrde of that name, not longe from the tyme of Gregory, had optayned. But yet (as Platina sayeth also, not without greate cōtencion) of Phocas the Emperoure whyche slewe Mauricius wt hys chyldrē very cruelly: That S. Peters seate shuld be counted & called the head of all other churches. Of the whych thynge Paule the Deacon maketh mencion also, in the .iiii. boke of the actes of the Lombardes the .xi. Chapter. Nowe whan thys was graunted vnto the Byshopes of Rome, ther was as it were a wyndowe opened vnto ye whole Empyre: And thē they cast theyr mynde for to rule ouer the cytye & the whole world. And thē hauynge an occasyon, they gaue all theyr [Page 20] diligence to the same. And the wanders whyche were sene at that tyme, dyd sygnifye a greate chaunge of thynges, for they were suche, as were neuer sene before, of whych the hystoryes do testifye dyligētly.
And ther were thē very many occasions, whyche dyd lyfte vp the Byshope of Rome very hye, then goynge aboute the same thynge, and specially the sedycious warres and the often breakyng in of rude nacions.The breakynge in of the Sarracens For the Saracenes the generacion of Machomet, after they had taken Africa, dyd spoyle Syria and Asia and set vpon Europa. Therfore the Emperours beynge holden in the East partys because of these presente perylles, were cōpelled to set asyde the gouernaūce of the West. And by thys means it came to passe that the Frenche men and Lombardes encreased greatlye, in so muche that the Emperoure was at the laste afrayed of the kynges of bothe those nacions. For althoughe the Emperoure had set certayn Debytes for to gouerne Italy, yet was theyr power to weake for to resyste thē. The whiche thynge apeared well by thys one token, yt whē Theodorus the Emperoures Leuftenaunte in Italy, had once foughtē with [Page] the Lombardes at Scultenna a ryuer in Mutina:The kynges of Lō bardye. it was sayde that he was shamfully put to flyght and chased away, with the losse of .vii. thousand souldiers of Rome: by reason of whiche vyctory, Rotharis the kynge of Lombardye not a lytle proude, ioyned vnto hys kyngdom all Lyguria. Therfore after thys maner the Emperours power beganne to decaye in ye West, & the Byshopes of Romes power encreased, by so muche the more, as ye Lō bardes and Frenche men dyd raygne largely. For a lytle after he was exalted by theyr strength, wyth whome he beganne to falle into amitye. But it came to thys passe by lytle and lytle, of the which thyng we shall nowe speake. Yf the Byshope of Rome had bene chosen by the clergye and people of the Romaynes, yet had the eleccion ben counted as vayne, excepte ye Emperoure or the Debyte of Italye had aproued it, vntyll that Constantyne the Emperoure the sonne of Constance, whyche beganne to raygne the yeare of oure LORDE. CCCCCC. lxx. beyng moued wt the holynesse of Bēnet the second Byshop of Rome, sente a decre that from thēce forth all men shulde beleue, that man to be immediatlye [Page 21] the true vycare of Christ, which the clergye wyth the people and the souldiers of Rome shulde choyse to be the pope, wythoute any tarynge for any authoryte ether of ye prynce of Constātynople, or the Debyte of Italye, as it was wonte for to be. And after that the Byshope of Rome had gotten thys priuilege, he beganne to plucke hys necke frome the Emperours pocke, and the more boldly to parte: in so muche that wythin a lytle whyle after thys, when a mete occasion was offered hym, that is to saye, a bytter contencion betwene the Byshoppes of the East and of the West, he beganne the boldelyer to exercyse hys authoryte agaynst the Emperoure hymselfe.
For the heresye of the Monothelytes sprange vp vnder Heraclius the Emperoure:The heresy of the Monothelites. And that secte confessed onely one wyll in Christe. Martyn the fyrst of that name gathered a synode of .C. and .l. Byshopes and condemned it at Rome. The syxte synode holden at Cōstantynople cō demned the same. And that same infecciō semed then to be quenched. But Philippicus the Emperour beynge infecte with the same, after he had banyshed Cyrus a [Page] Byshop of good iudgemēt into Pontus, he made one Ihō a certayn mōke Byshop ouer Constantynople, & sente hys naughtye doctrynes into Rome, cōmaundyng ye they shuld be approued by ye consent of all mē. Here Cōstantyne ye Byshop of Rome the fyrste of that name, gettynge a good occasion to wythstande the Emperoure, gathered a councell and condemned Phylyppicus of heresye and, Ihon the monke, yee and decreed also that the ymages of those holy fathers, whiche had bene present at syxe Councelles approued of all men, shulde be paynted in S. Peters porche.Contencion aboute the vse of ymages. And therfore thorowe thys occasyon thee beganne to be a disputacion among them, of the vse of ymages also. In the whiche cōtrouersye they of ye Easte parte thought more godly then they of the Weste: But for because that a ryghteouse cause was ioyned wyth a wycked, it came to passe yt it had the lesse fauoure amōge many wyttye and learned men. And the Grekes fell not wythout affeccion into thys contencion, whome it greued that the Romaynes dyd abuse ymages, as a token of victorye in the despyte of them of the Easte: for by thys meanes they turned all theyr [Page 22] cryenge agaynst ymages. But I am not very sure whether that the Emperoures Leo and Constātyne dyd defende the learnynge of the Monothelytes: but thys is playne that they dyd abrogate ymages for auoydynge of Idolatrye, not wythout the example and authoryte of the scryptures, and cōmaunded the Romaynes more then once for to do the same. But the Byshopes of Rome by the meanes of thys occasion dyd wythdrawe all the people of Italy from the obedience of the Emperoure, and thruste in themselues by theyr owne authoryte, callyng vnto thē straūge kynges, by whose helpe the Byshope of Rome was made Lord of Italy, & the Emperoures Debyte dryuen oute. For when the Emperoure Leo had geuē a cōmaundemente, that all whyche were vnder the Empyre of Rome, shulde take awaye the pyctures and ymages of sayntes for auoydynge of ydolatrye, and that he that dyd other wyse shulde haue hym for an open enemye:The byshoppes of Rome do cōdemne the Emperoures of Rome. Gregory the secōde admonyshed all men that they wolde in no wyse fall into suche erroure, nether for feare, nether yet for ony commaundemente of theyr prynce, & steared vp all the people of Italy [Page] wyth so great vehemency of oracion, that a lytle more wolde haue made them to haue chosen them a new Emperoure. And at Rauenna trulye, after that a great sedycion was raysed vp, Paule the Debyte of the Emperoure was slayne there with hys sonne also. Gregory the thyrde followynge hys exāple dyd depreue Leo as well of hys Empyre,The byshoppes of Rome do calle vpon the helpe of the kynges of Fraunce as of the cōmunion wyth the faythfull. The same Gregorye called fyrste of all vpon the kynges of Fraunce for helpe agaynst hys enemyes. For whyles ye Luythprandus kynge of Lombardye was moued wyth the desyre to beare rule, dyd besege the cytye of Rome, and had taken all the townes on euery syde: thys same Gregory sente embassadoures into Fraūce for to desyre Charles Marcellus the father of Pipyne, that he wolde now the fyrste tyme helpe Rome and ye churche beynge in trouble. And the Byshoppes of Rome were wounte to aske helpe of the Emperoure of Constantynople, yf any euell had bene commynge towarde them by any forayne enemy. The whych thyng Gregory wolde not nowe do, because he had publyshed Leo the Emperoure to be an heretyke, or chefely because that Leo [Page 23] coulde scante defende hys regall cytye frō the Sarracens, muche lesse helpe other men. By thys meane therfore it came to passe (sayeth Platina) that then fyrst of al the defence of the church was translated frō the Emperoures of Constantynople vnto other men. Then Charles toke vpō hym thys defence, and delyuered Rome from the sege: After that he had wythdrawen Luythprandus the kynge and hys godfather from hys pourpose wyth a louynge exhortacion. But the kynge of Fraunce through thys good turne, bound the Byshops of Rome so much vnto him, That Zachary the fyrst the successour of Gregorye the thyrde, denyed not hys consente vnto Pipyne the sonne of Charles,Pipyne by the meanes of the B. of Rome is made kynge of Fraunce. in a matter moost vnhoneste. For Pipyne went about the kyngdome of Fraunce and desyred greatlye for to put Clyperichus hys Lorde, whyche came of the auncyente and noble stocke of the kynges of Fraunce, and was the laste kynge of the stocke of Merouea, out of hys kyngdom, and to make hym selfe kynge. Nowe whē he had troubled greatly both the nobylite and the laytie, yee and also the clergye aboute thys matter, at the laste he sente [Page] Burghardus the byshope of Herbipolis wyth Folradus hys preste vnto zacharye the Byshop of Rome: for to aske whether that he were more worthye to be kynge whyche was but the kynge onely in name and could do nothynge wyth hys counsell and helpe, or elles he whiche bare all the burthen of the kyngdome alone, & yet in the meane season lacked the dygnite of a kynge? Thys Byshope of Rome remembrynge what had bene done for hym, gaue an expresse sentence (I wryte the wordes of Frysingens. a wrytter of hystoryes & a Byshop) that it was meter, that he which toke the charge of all thynges shuld be called kynge, then he whiche had but onely ye name of a kynge. For of an olde costume the kynges of Fraunce dyd leaue the gouernaūce of theyr kyngdom vnto ye moost auncienteste of theyr stocke: for it was ye hygheste power nexste the kynges. Nowe whē these embabassadoures had broughte thys answere vnto ye kynge, Pipyne bearynge hymselfe bolde of the verdyte of these great learned men and chefe of relygyon, & also of the ayde of certayne prynces & noble men, dyd thruste Chylpericus hys Lorde and kynge oute of hys regall [Page 24] dygnite, and when he was oute of hys authoryte dyd shutte him in to a monastery, and he hymselfe by ye consente of hys mē toke vpon hym all the kynges power. And when thys good kynge called vpon the cō mune fydelite that mē had promysed him, and that ther were many in the realme whyche greatly improued suche tyrannye and breakynge of theyr othes, Zachary the Byshope of Rome assoyled Pipyne wyth all hys of theyr othe, whyche they had made vnto Chylpericus theyr kyng. And that thys matter was thus handeled I wyll brynge for the two wytnesses: The fyrste oute of the hystorye of Platina, and thys it is: Pipine beynge desyrous to beare rule, sente hys embassadoures vnto the Byshoppe of Rome and desyred hym that he wolde confyrme the kyngedome of Fraunce vnto hym by hys authoryte. The Byshop graunted vnto his requeste after he had remēbred what good turne he had receaued, and also the olde kyndnes yt had ben betwene the Byshoppes of Rome and ye kings of ye familie. And so by hys authoryte the kyngdō of Fraūce was iudged vnto Pipyne in the yeare of oure LORDE .vii. hundreth .liii. Thys [Page] is Platinas sayenge. Nowe followeth ye latter testymonye of Gelasius, wrytten vnto Anastasius the Emperoure, whyche is conteyned in the .xv. questyon the .vi. Canon in these wordes: Another byshop of Rome called zacharye, deposed ye kynge of Fraunce from hys kyngdome, not so muche for hys iniquyties, as because he was vnmete for so greate a dygnite,The shepe troubleth the wa ter that the wolfe shulde drynke in that is, an occasion is lyghtely founde. & dyd sette in hys place Pipyne the sonne of Charles the Emperoure, and assoyled all the people of Fraūce of theyr othe of alegiaūce. Hetherto go ye wordes. And kynge Pipyne for to recompence the Byshopes of Rome, helped Steuen the seconde, Byshop of Rome beynge oppressed of Aistulphus kyng of Lombardye and fledde into Fraunce: & after that Pipine had passed ye mounteynes twyse wt an armye of men, he baysted into Italye, and at the laste cō pelled Aistulphus to restore agayne those thynges whiche he had taken awaye: goynge aboute by thys meanes for to quyte the Byshope of Rome for confyrmyng of hym in hys kyngedom.Pipine geueth vnto the Byshoppes of Rome, that whyche belōged to the Emperour. Then was the offyce of the Debyte geuen vnto ye Byshop of Rome, and all that lyeth betwene Padus and Apenninus, frō the Placentyns [Page 25] vnto the pooles or stondynge waters of Venyce, and all that is cōteyned wythin Isaurus a floude of Apenninus and Adriaticus, and what so euer ye Aistulphus had gottē of ye men of Hetruria, and of the Sabyns: All these thynges (I saye) dyd Pipine of hys lyberalyte geue vnto the Byshope of Rome, the Emperoures Legates nothynge regarded. For as Pipine was remouynge into Italye agaynst Lombardye, Gregorye the chefe Secretary of the Emperoure Cōstantyne the fourthe met hym, and in the name of the Emperoure warned the kynge, that yf he happened to haue the vyctorye of the Lombardes, that he shulde not geue vnto the Byshope of Rome nor to the Romaynes, the Debyteshyppe ouer Rauenna, whyche was oppressed of the Lombardes and belonged vnto the Emperoure. But Pipine droue hym awaye from hym wt a metely sharpe answere, because he thoughte to do as he dyd a lytle whyle after, for the whyche cause he was the fyrste of the kynges of Fraunce that was called, the moost Christen kynge.
Hys sonne that was called Charles the greate followed the ensample of hysCharles the greate. [...] [Page] [...] [Page 16] [...] [Page] wyth a lowde voyce, he ordeyned thys Charles to be Emperoure, & gaue him a kynges ornamenete: the people of Rome cryeng thryse together: Longe lyfe & victorye be vnto Charles Augustus crowned of God, ye greate & peaceable Emperoure. These thynges were done, the yeare of our LORDE .viii. hundreth and .iii. nor it is not lyke that these thinges were done without the consente and counsell of Irenes the Empresse of Constantinople, specially because that the Cronicles of the Grekes do shewe that ther were messaū gers dyrected from Charles and Leo vnto Irenes, to requyre her that she wolde be maryed vnto hym: the whyche wolde soone haue graūted vnto theyr requestes, yf that the prynces of Constantinople knowyng of the matter, had not banyshed her strayght way (and that before the face of Charles Embassadoures) vnto Lesbus, into an Abbey that she had buylded. But Egynhartus in the lyfe of Charles, dothe laye all the faute of the translacion of the Empyre, to the Byshope of Rome. For Charles at the fyrste (sayeth he) dyd so greatly refuse ye name of the Emperoure and augustus, that he sayde that he wolde [Page 27] not haue entred into the churche that daye, although that ther were greate solempnyte, yf he myght haue knowen the Byshopes mynde before. He addeth more: yet he suffered wyth greate pacience, the euell wyll that he had for takynge yt name vpon hym (for the Emperours of Constā tynople were greatly dyspleased wyth it) and he ouercame theyr grudynge wyth hys myghtinesse, in the whiche he passed them farre. Moreouer theyr forayne warres helde them backe, that they coulde not set vpon the Byshope of Rome and kynge Charles. And therfore dyd Nycephorus ye fyrste Emperoure of Constantynople after the diuidynge of the Empyre, make alyaunce wyth kynge Charles.
Hetherto haue we shewed at large wt what begynnynges & in what ordre,The conclusion. that lytle horne crepte vp, and gatte so greate power. Nether was ther then truely ony power so great in all the Weste partye, as the Byshoppes of Rome was. For at theyr sentēce were ther myghtye kyngedomes translated. For fyrste Chylpericus that was borne kynge of Fraunce beynge cast of, he dyd craftely constitute Pipine hys gouernour in ye kynges stede. [Page] And after that he had taken awaye the power of the eleccion and ordenynge of ye Emperoure from the heades of Constantynople & the Romaynes, he gaue Charles the kynge of Fraūce the name of Augustus. For the whiche cause he hymselfe gette the rule of that cytie, whyche is the ladye of the worlde, for a rewarde of thys gaye done dede. Furthermore he waysted that stronge naciō and myghtie kyngdom of the Lombardes thorowe his requeste & counsell. Therfore he that once optayned Rome, he threwe downe and exalted Emperoures at hys owne pleasure, and gaue Frenchemen a kynge, and vsed theyr seruyce as they had bene hys seruaūtes. For wyth theyr armyes he tamed ye Lōbardes, that he myght afterwarde raygne safely ouer all Italy. He I saye that ruleth ouer so many and so greate kyngdomes, maye he not by good ryght we are a glysterynge diademe wyth a tryple crown: No doubte the prouydence of God wolde, that thys Byshope of Rome (wyth thys maner of apparell fyte for a kyng) shuld shewe forth vnto all the worlde what he was, that is to saye, that lytle horne yt Danyell speaketh of, whyche came forth and put asyde [Page 28] thre other hornes, and wyth wonderous subtylte subdued them vnder hym.
And here vnto belongeth the gyfte of Lewes the sonne of Charles,The gyfte of ye kynges of Fraunce. whom these men (for hys fauoure and beniuolence towarde the seate of Rome) called Pius, yt is to saye, good or godly: euen as before, they had geuen Pipine to name. The moost Christen kynge. Yf ony man desyre to reade of that same gyfte, he shall fynde it dyligently wrytten of Raphaell Volaterranus, in the actes of Pipine & Charles, libro. Geog. tercio. The effecte of it is thys: I Lewes the Emperour do graūt vnto the blessed saynte Peter ye prynce of the Apostles, and thorow the vnto thy vycare my Lorde Pascall the hye Byshoppe and hys successoures for euer. The cytye of Rome wyth hyr iurisdyccion and all ye lande aboute it, wyth the cytyes, hauens and places of Hetruria that lye nye ye see, yee and all that lyeth wythin the lande of the same, and the whole dukedome of Rauenna also, euen as Charles oure father worthy to be had in mynde, and Pipine our graundsyre, dyd of late graunte vnto blessed saynte Peter. Furthermore we do also approue and graunte, the dukedome [Page] of Spoletyne, the Ilōdes also of the inner see, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicilia: the which all of them Pipine our grandsyre, of godly remembraunce, and after hym Charles the Emperoure oure father, dyd geue by wrytynge vnto blessed saynte Peter and his successours &c.The gyft of Constātine. In thys gyfte here is no mencion of Constantyne, the which verely is a fayned thyngt: for at the lēgth the Byshoppes of Rome rayned at Rome and in Italye, euen agaynste the Emperoures of Romes mynde by the helpe of the kynges of Fraunce. The Byshoppes of Rome in the meane season, do ofte cast forthe oute of theyr decrees the Canon whyche in the .xcvi. dystinction is redde after thys maner: Constantyne the Emperoure dyd graunte the crowne and all ye regall dygnyte wythin the cytie of Rome and Italye and the Weste partyes, vnto the Apostolyke man. But howe soeuer ye matter commeth to passe, we se that the Byshoppe of Rome doth rule ouer all the kyngdomes of the Weste.
The name of Augustꝰ or Emperoure translated to the Germanes.For it belongeth hereunto also, that throughe the counsell and dylygence of Ihon the .xiii. Byshope of Rome, the Empyre of Rome or the name of Augustus, [Page 29] was translated agayne from the French men vnto the Germanes. That is to say, to the prynces of the Almanes, Saxones, Bauares and Swychers. But howe they kepte them vnder theyr yocke also, ye hystoryes of many Emperoures of the Germanes do shewe full well: and specially ye Canon whiche in the .lxiii. dystynction is redde in these wordes:Kyng Otto. I kynge Otto do promyse and sweare to thy my Lorde Ihō the Pope, by the father, the sonne and the holy goost, and by thys wodde of ye lyuely crosse, and by these relyques of sayntes, yt yf by the sufferaunce of God I come to Rome, I shall exalte the holy churche of Rome, and the the ruler of the same, accordynge to my power: & thou shalt neuer lose by my wyll or my counsell, or my consente, or myne exhortaciō, nother lyfe nor membres, nor yet the same honour which thou now haste. And I wyll make no statute nor none ordynaūce in Rome, of ony thynge that belongeth vnto the or to the Romaynes, wythoute thy counsell. And what soeuer of S. Peters lande commeth to my power, I wyll restore it the agayne. And to whome soeuer I shall commytte ye gouernaunce of Italye, I shall cause hym [Page] to sweare that he shal helpe the to defende S. Peters land wyth all hys power. Surely these greate and incredible thynges, yf any man shulde compare thys greate alteracion and chaunge of thynges, and it were but wyth Gregorye the greate, ye fyrste Byshope of Rome of ye name. But these swete Byshoppes not beynge cōtent wyth these greate thynges, neuer ceassed to laye wayte for the Empyre of Rome by theyr moost subtyl counselles, vntyll that they had prescrybed lawes of the true eleccion of the Emperoures:The byshop of Rome maketh lawes for the elecciō of the Emperoures. and had decreed that the confyrmaciō of the kynge of Romanes shuld depende vpon them. And for the same cause Platina in ye lyfe of Gregory ye fyfte, wrote after this maner: Gregory knowyng ye weaknesse of the Empyre & the chaunge of fortune, to the intent yt the hyghest power shulde remayne the lenger amonge the Germaynes, & that he shulde beare rule ouer other, whych passed other in strengthe and dygnite, made a decre (Otto not denyenge it) of the eleccion of the Emperoure, in the yeare of our LORDE. M. and .ii. whyche thynge we se kepte vnto oure tyme: that is to saye, that it is lawful for the Germanes onely to choyse [Page 30] oute that prynce whyche is called Cesar and the kynge of Romaynes: and he shuld then at the laste be taken for the Emperoure & Augustus,Reade Marsilius Pataninus. dictia. 2. cap. 25 yf ye Byshope of Rome had cōfyrmed hym. I could also bryngforth other innumerable thynges of thys same sorte, But I thynk yt the reader doth vnder stōde playnely ynough by these of whome ye prophecy of Daniel & of Paule is mēte.
But some man wyll say,An obieccion. thou makest two hornes: Machomet and the Byshope of Rome: where as Daniel maketh mencion but of one onelye. But excepte that the Byshop of Rome, beynge bolde of the helpe of the Frenchemen, had broken the power of the Emperoure of the Easte, he wolde surely more strongly haue putte to flyght and persecuted the multytude of ye Sarracens. On the other syde yf that the Sarracens wyth theyr runnnyge in, had not kepte the Emperoure in ye Easte partyes, the power nother of the Byshope of Rome, nor of the Lombardes, nother yet of the Frenchmen, could not haue encreased so greatly in the Weste partyes. Therfore eche of them gaue an occasion vnto other bothe for to ouercome & to raygne. in so muche that of the Empyre of Rome [Page] lyttell dyd remayne but a bare name only For the Byshope of Rome kepeth ye cytie of Rome, & the greate Turke Constantinople. Now both of thē impugne Christes institucions & lawes a lyke: both of thē do persecute Christen mē, defendynge theyr owne lawes, & suche as holde wyth them. Wherfore I coulde not make two hornes of them that are so lyke. Yee & the kyngedome of the Perses & Medes is fygured vnder ye ymage of one beere indyfferentlye, although they seme to be tweyne. And so in the .xi. chapter, the same Daniell prophecyenge of the selfe same Antichrist, and begynnyng at the Empyre of Rome, sayth not: An arme shall stond out of him, but armes shall stonde out of hym, & shall defyle ye sentuary of strength, &c. But you haue nowe the begynnynge and goynge forwarde of Antichriste: here followeth nowe a clearer exposyciō of hys disposiciō and kyngdome, by hys dedes and properties.
The dysposycion and Kyngdom of Antichriste.For holy S. Paule, doth set forth Antichrist in dyuers wayes as it were in his colours: that he myght paynte forth, and as it were set out before oure eyes to beholde, his dysposycion and kyngdome. And [Page 31] to begynne wtall, he geueth hym to name the synfull mā. And after yt, as it were expoundynge hymselfe, the chylde of perdyciō. The whyche names after the propertye of the Ebrewe tunge, are as muche to saye, as yf one in our tunge shuld call ony man, mooste vngracious patrone, or vnhappye persone: yee and as it were myschefe it selfe and perdicion it selfe: as you wolde saye, suche a man as were the cause of wyckednes, and perdycion both to him selfe, & also vnto other. Yf ony man wold reade the hystorye of Machomet or of the Turkes (the brefenes of the whyche Raphaell Volaterranus hathe gathered, Geog. libro .vii.Of Machomet.) and wold ponder it wyth a dyligente iudgemente, he wolde sweare that thys Antichriste were the syncke of all myschefe, and the greateste destrucciō of all mankynde For he had troden down the lawe of God and had publyshed hys owne, that is to saye, a moost superstycious law, in ye whyche hypocrysye is myghtely set forth, but yet in the mean season a way opened vnto all wyckednes. He hath also subuerted mooste myghty cytyes and layde thē flat vpon the groūde: he hath destroyed ye moost holycongregaciōs of god, [Page] Antioche, Alexandria, Ierusalem and Constātynople wt all the congregacions of Grecia and Egypte: for I wyl rehearse no mo. Truely wythin thys .lxxx. yeares he hath inuaded, beaten downe & spoyled more kyngdomes, then euer any myghty prynce, or cruell tyraunte had done before hym. We haue herde suche examples of hys cruelnes, that we maye very well vnderstonde by thys chylde of perdicion and synfull man, the kyngdome of Machomet.
The lyfe of the mooste holy fathers of Rome.Nother is the seate of Rome ony thyng behynde hym in myschefe or wyckednes. Ther is no myschefe nor vngracious dede, but that they whyche are called moost holy, haue defyled themselues therwith. I wyll here vse no straunge wytnes, I do appeale vnto theyr owne Cronicles and lyues. In the meane season I am not ignoraunte, that certayne men of good fame haue cōme vnto thys seate, but thou shalt reade of very fewe, that haue dyed vncorrupte. For who can beleue yt the best man that were could syt so cleane in such a prophane & abhomynable seate, that he shuld drawe no fyltynes vnto him? But it came to passe that some were worse thē some, by ye reason of ye dyuersyte of theyr dysposycions. [Page 32] Surely for the moost parte of thē they were not behynde the mooste wyckedest man and vngraciouste knaue that is, in ambyciō, in euell and trayterous craftes, in warres, in bryberye, in extorcion, in moost vnsaciable couetousnes, in pryde moost arrogaūte, in fylthye luste and voluptuousnes. We brought examples out of hystoryes here before in oure exposycion, where we shewed by what subtilties they came into the dygnyte of ye Empyre. And Platyna although he greatly spared the Byshoppes of Rome yet beynge ouer comme wyth the euylnes, wyckednes, & vnspeakeable myscheuous dedes of some of them, lefte that in wryttynge to hys posterite, whiche he sawe to be ouertrue. Beno ye Cardinall dyd rather but touche, then descrybe, the moost vngraciouste lyfe of some Byshoppes of Rome. In ye lyfe of Gregorye the .vii. Platina dyd counte hym among the beste & moost innocente, but Beno rekenned hym amonge the worste & vnhappyest: as one whiche after sacrylege and moost wycked abhomynacions, dyd also vse wytchcrafte, & all kynde of vngraciousnes. And Marsilius Patauinus the moost learned and beste wryter [Page] of hys tyme in his worke, whiche he made at Bauarus for Lewes the fourth, of the power of the Pope and the Emperoure, and called it the defender of peace, dothe clearly shewe what the Byshopes of Rome be, and were many yeares: that is to saye, proude, hye mynded, couetous, doers of wrong, vnfaythfull, troublers of peace, and ye commune welthe, dyspysers of God and holy authoryte, enemyes of all goodnes and honestye. Let men reade the .xxii. xxiii. xxiiii. xxv. xxvi. Chapters, &c. of ye second dictiō or parte of hys boke. We haue sene also Byshopes of Rome in our tyme, that nothynge more vnshamefaste, more fylthy, more abhominable or wycked thinges can be ymagyned thē they haue done. For those thynges are well knowē, whych Volaterranus hath shewed of Paule the seconde in hys xxii. boke of Antropologia. of Syxtus the fourth, and Alexander the vi. very fewe men haue thought well. Also duke Valentyne made them both noble men. Iulius the seconde was the best beloued Pope of all vserers, dronkardes, whorehunters, moost cruell and bloudye souldyers: In so muche that they wyshed hym that he had chaunged rowmes wyth [Page 33] Maximilian the Emperoure, a mā worthy of blessed remembraunce. For they sayde that he was a man that was geuen vnto relygion, commune peace and tranquyllyte (as in dede he was a godlye and meke Emperoue) and that the other was borne for warre and troublynge of matters. Also Pasquyllus of Rome yested vpō Clement the .vii. wyth verses hangynge vpon hym on thys mater.
Pope Clemente is nowe gone by the helpe of Gods clemencye.
Pasquyllꝰ. is an ymage at Rome, wheron be fastened letters of thinges loste or of lyke matters that a man wyll haue publyshed, ether pryuely or opēly.
Let all mankynde reioyce, the whole worlde thorowe oute.
He shamed all the worlde, besydes hys owne cytye.
And was the great ruyne, of hys tyme, wythout doubte.
Thys is he whyche wyth prynces, no promyse wolde holde.
But euermore betraye them, notwythstondynge ony othe.
In ouerchargynge Italy wyth trybutes, was neuer none so bolde.
Greate ryches he had, but departe from ony he was lothe.
Thys is he, whyche hys owne contrey wyth cruell warres dyd oppresse.
[Page]And fylled all the earthe, full of Christen mens bloude.
He spoyled many cytyes, thrustynge out both more and lesse.
Oh cruell persone, who euer redde that he dyd ony good?
Infinyte other thynges of thys sorte I do ouerpasse, leste I shuld make ye godly reader for to vomyte. And surely no man (althoughe he were verye eloquente) can sufficientlye declare, what multitude of wyckednesse hath crepte from suche heades of the churche, amonge all the people of Christe: so that I haue not offended in expoundynge thys prophecye of Paule, of the Byshopes of Romes kyngdom. I wyll speake nothynge nowe of the ypocrysye, synnes and wyckednes of Monkes, Nonnes, Prestes and the spiritualte (as men call them) because that experience itselfe doth set forth all these thynges more clerlye then ony mā cā descrybe thē. For here is ye thynge fulfylled of whyche S Paule dyd prophycy: They shall resyste ye truth, men of corrupte myndes, reprobate as touchynge the faythe, but they shall preuayle no lenger: for theyr madnes shalbe euydent vnto all men .ii. Timo. iii.
[Page 34]Secondlye Paule calleth Antichriste Aduersarium, yt is to saye an aduersarye: and he calleth hym an aduersarye or Antichriste, as though one shuld saye, set playn contrarye agaynste Christe: as one whose wytte, maners, lyfe, doctryne, dedes, lawes and institucions do fyghte agaynste Christe.A comparison betwene Christe and Antichriste. Christ came to shewe peace to all the worlde, as of whose commynge ye Prophetes had shewed before, that thē moost cruell nacions shulde turne theyr sweardes into coulters, & theyr speares into sythes. Nowe Machomet doth boaste hymselfe to be sente of God in the power of armoure. Christe taught that men are not defyled wyth those thynges that go into the mouth. But Mahomet hath forbyddē hys, wyne and other meates, whiche god ordeyned to be receaued wyth geuynge of thankes. He hath also geuen vnto his, circumcision, and admitteth Polygamiam: that is moo wyues at once then one: the whyche Christ hath abrogate, and taught out of ye olde lawe, that one fleshe onely & not two or mo, ought to be in matrymony. To be shorte al the lyfe and doctryne, all the lawes, institucions and dedes of Mahomet are agaynste Christe. Nother [Page] do the sayenges, dedes, doctrynes and rytes of the Byshope of Rome wyth all hys bodye, agree ony better wyth Christe. Christe hath geuen vs in the Prophetes and by ye preachyng of the Apostles an absolute and perfecte doctryne, which alone is sufficient ynoughe to gette euerlastyng lyfe. But the Byshope of Rome sayeth, yt vnto that perfeccion we must haue tradycions of fathers, I wote not what, as thynges wythoute whyche no man can be saued, and as though those holy mē whyche lacked them were damned. Christ taught that one onely God ought to be worshypped and called vpon, and that by the meanes and intercession of hys name. But ye Byshope of Rome hathe thruste in to the churches the prayenge and worshyppyng of sayntes more diligentlye, then the true relygyon of God. The Apostles oute of the tradycion and spirite of Christ, taught that ther was but one onely hye preste, & one euerlastynge sacrifyce onely, that is Iesus Christe. But the Byshop of Rome subuertynge that order of Melchisedech, hath consecrated innumerable sacrifyces for to sacrifyse daylye for ye synnes of the quycke and the deade. The Apostelles [Page 35] taught that God onely doth remytte synnes, and that to hym onely men ought to confesse them. But the Byshope of Rome hath set forth vnto the churches wonderous lyes of the power of the keyes, of auricular confession, of cases reserued, and of the market of pardones. The Apostles dyd commende vnto the churches ye grace of God, they taught that ye beleuers were iustifyed by fayth. But the Byshop of Rome hath boasted ye merites of sayntes, yee and hath solde thē to. What nede is therof many wordes? trueth doth not so much repugne lyes, nor lyghte darknes, as Antichrist is contrarye to Christe. Christ dyd abrogate ceremonyes, he sette in theyr steade a fewe sacramētes, ye rest he wolde haue vs to serue him in sprete and truthe, and requyred fayth and charite of vs. But the Byshope of Rome as one forgettyng these thynges, hathe stuffed the churche wyth ceremonyes, yee and wyth mooste foolyshe rytes & superstycions. And those thynges whyche Christe by hys example, wordes and dedes had banyshed oute of ye churche, he once receaued them agayne & holdeth thē fast by the tethe. Christ flyeth kyngdomes, washeth hys disciples fete, [Page] taught humylite: The kynges of ye Gentyles beare rule (sayeth he) but so shall not ye. But the Byshoppe of Rome persueth not after kyngdomes onely, but the chefe Empyre it selfe, getteth it by crafte, and beareth rule ouer kynges that are subiect vnto him, yee and profereth hys fete vnto kynges to be kyssed, and suche kynges as kycke agaynste hym, & wyll not worshyp- this beaste, he stryketh them wyth ye thonder bolte of hys excommunicacion, putteth them out of theyr kyngdome, setteth other kynges in theyr rowme, & assoyleth theyr subiettes of theyr othe of obedience. Christe ware a crowne of thorne, & was clothed wyth a purple garmente. But the Byshope of Rome, decked wyth a tryple crowne, as it were Darius of Persia cō meth forth glysterynge in hys golde and precyous stones, compassed aboute wyth an hoost of men: Christ payed toll. But ye Byshope of Rome doth exempte his from it, condempnynge and persecutynge the holy authorytye, yt requyreth ony trybute of thys anoynted secte. Christe beareth a crosse: The Byshope of Rome is borne vpon the shulders of moost couetous mē. Christe was poore, he fedde the shepe, [Page 36] wente mekely into the towne, and caste oute of the temple both byers and sellers: But thys mā boasteth hymselfe to be the Lorde ouer all the Weste partyes, he spoyleth and deuoureth the shepe, and closed in wyth an hoost of men is caryed proudly in a tryumphe, he receaueth into the temple of God all byers and sellers, and thē that wyll not receaue them he excommuntcateth and pronoūceth them heretykes: To be shorte he hath suffered all the temples of Christ to be made so prophane, yt nowe they be lyke to a well trymmed market. For yf I shulde speake nothynge at all of the choppynge and chaungyng and byeng of benefyces, of the pardoners, or rather the deuelles marchaundise, of the fayers of sacramentes, masses and indulgences. Ther stande ready before the churche dores, tabernacles, tables, chayres and settelles: in them are set forth to selle fygures of waxe, lytle ymages, fete and hādes of yron and waxe, hennes ans cockes and innumerable muche of suche kynde of oblacions: and in the churches themselues, stande Idolles wyth stretched out hādes and because they be domme, they haue an, interpreter by, that lacketh no tunge. For [Page] he standynge by the aulter and by the Idoll, for to salute them that come, receaueth them, allureth them, and fedeth them wyth fayre wordes, expoundeth the vertues of the saynte, and telleth forth the fayned myracles of the Idoll: to be shorte he mylketh away the money from the superstycious and foolyshe people. And that ther shulde be nothynge to lette hym that shulde offre, he hath al sortes of money by hym, and therfore he choppeth and chaungeth & scrappeth all into the sayntes boxe. Ouer the whyche Idoll somme monke or preste hath rule, whyche of those offerynges doth noryshe hys shameles housholde, whores, baudes, yesters, scoffers, knaues and ydle houswyues: And before all thynges, the moost holy father hath hys parte of these gyftes: the whyche hathe confyrmed thys holy marchaundyse, by grauntynge of his large indulgences, for all that our LORDE hath commaunded: Frelye ye receaued, frely geue agayn. Peter also sayeng and pronouncynge: Peryshe thou and thy money, because thou thynkeste yt the gyfte of God can be gotten wyth money. But why do I prosecute these thynges so muche, seynge he is not lyuynge yt [Page 37] can sufficientlye declare the couetousnes, deceates, & vnshamfastnes of hys mooste vngracious stocke, wyth theyr workes moost contrarye to Christe and true relygion.
Thyrdlye, ther followeth in Paule:He is exalted aboue a [...] that is called God or worshyped. yt he is exalted aboue all that is called God or worshypped: whyche sentence may be expounded two maner of wayes: ether yt he is exalted aboue God hymselfe, and set vp agaynste all true relygyon and worshyppynge of God: ether that he is exalted agaynste all godly thynges, that is to say all true worshyppynge of God, takyng the persone and name of God, for true relygion and godly thynges. But why do I stande vpō these thynges so muche? seyng that the Apostle hymselfe doth ioyne vnto thys immediatly, that whyche maye expounde all the forsayde sentēce: so that he shall sytte in the temple of God, auauncynge hymselfe as God. After thys maner (I saye) is he exalted agaynste God hymselfe and all true relygion. The temple of God is here taken for the worlde, for the catholyke and vniuersall churche and the faythfull harte of euery man. To sytte, is for to raygne & to beare rule. To auaūce [Page] hym selfe as God, is to boaste hym of the power of God, & to promyse and chalenge those thynges as peculyar to himselfe, whyche belonge onely to God. Lette vs heare nowe howe these thynges are fulfylled, in Machomet and the Byshoppe of Rome. Mahomet doth not alonly despyse the moost holye trynite, but denyeth also Iesus Christe hymselfe to be very God. He affirmeth that he gaue a more perfecter lawe, then was geuen ether of Moses or of Iesus Christe: he gloryed also that ther was wrytten of hym in the lawe, and in the Gospel, yee and that his name was wrytten from the begynnynge in ye throne of God in the vpper parte on the ryghte hāde. And among vs yf ye Byshop of Rome or hys Legate had come into ony town, wt greate dilygence ye congregaciō fell down before him at his metyng & receaued him, not as a mā, but as God. All the relyques were brought forth, & all mē kneled down to hym, loked for hys blessynge, & thought it healthful yf they myght haue kyssed his fete. And yf that ony man had but once thought, that he had not had ye full power in heauē & in earth, he was strayght waye taken for an heretyke. What shall we saye [Page 38] also, that all prestes wyth wycked Freres dyd preache openly in expresse wordes in all the temples of Christen men, that the Byshoppe of Rome was the vycare of Christe, the heade of the churche, and that he had full power in heauen and in earth, yee and in purgatorye to: and that he dyd geue full remyssiō of synnes, that he could not erre, that all ye interpretacion of scripture was subiecte to hym, that hys lawes ought to be kepte as the lawe of God that he was iudge ouer all men, & that he was vnder no mans iudgemente, yee these mē were not ashamed for to put these horrible blasphemyes into publike & cōmune lawes. Of ye whyche thyng I wyll now bryng forth certayn euydēte wytnesses. distinc XXII. cap. Oēs. Vnto Peter (sayth Pope Nycolas,) the keye bearer of eternall lyfe, dyd God commytte iurisdictiō ouer heauen and earth. Item capit. Sacrosancta. Although all were Apostelles (sayeth Anacletus) yet dyd the LORDE graunte vnto Peter (yee & they wold the same amonge them selues) that he shulde haue rule ouer all the Apostles, and shulde be called Cephas, that is to saye, the heade and chefe of the Apostles: the whyche also dyd delyuer [Page] the same maner to be kepte of theyr successours and other Byshoppes. Therfore thys Apostolicall seate is ordeyned of God and of none other, to be the heade & henge: and as the dore is ruled by ye henge so by the ordinaunce of God, are all churches ruled by the authoryte of thys holy Apostolycall seate. Agayne Distinct .xix. Agatho the Pope doth wryte thus vnto all Byshoppes: All the decres of the Apostolyke seate are so to be receaued, as yf they were confyrmed by the godly mouth of S. Peter hymselfe. Item capit. In memoriam. Although that holy seate do laye a yocke vpon vs, scarslye able to be suffered, yet let vs suffre it and obediētly abyde it. And a lytle after sayeth Pope Steuen: Trulye because the holy church of Rome (ouer whyche God wolde vs to rule) is set forth for a glas and an example: what so euer it decreethe or ordeyneth, it is to be kepte of all men for euer, and wythoute ony gaynsayeng. Furthermore .ix. questi. capit .iii. Gelasius the Byshop of Rome, sayeth vnto all the Byshoppes that were ordeyned thorow out Dardania, these wordes: All the churche knoweth thorow out all the worlde, yt the Popes seate whyche [Page 39] is saynte Peters ryghte, hathe power to lowse those thynges whyche are bounde by ony mānes iudgementes what so euer they be, as one that hathe rule to geue sentence ouer euery churche. And agayn: All the churche knoweth thorowe oute all the worlde, that ye holy churche of Rome hath power to iudge ouer all men, but it is not lawfull for ony man to iudge vpō the sentēce of it: for mē may appeale vnto yt oute of ony parte of the worlde, but from that no mā is suffred to appeale. Item distinct. Abused Canon. XL. capit. Yf the Pope (saythe Boniface) be found neglygēt aboute hys own health and hys brethrens, or els vnprofytable & slowe in hys workes, or slacke to do good, whyche hurteth hymselfe greatlye and all other men, and doth also leade wyth hym by heapes innumerable people to be punyshed wyth hym euerlastyngly in hell: yet let no man in the worlde be so hardye as to rebuke hys fautes: for he beynge ordeyned to iudge all men, ought to be iudged of no man, excepte he be taken swaruynge from the fayth. Agayn .IX. Questi. III. capit. saythe Innocencius the Pope: No man may iudge ye chefe seate, whyche desyreth to moderate iustice: nother maye [Page] the iudge be iudged, ether of the Emperoure or of all the clergye, nother of kynges, nor of the people. Vpon the whyche Canon the author of the glose sayeth: that a counsell can not iudge the Pope. Vt extra de elect. Significasti. Wherfore yf all the whole worlde shulde geue sentence in ony matter agaynst the Pope, it semeth that men oughte to stande to the sentence of the Pope. &c. Ye shall fynde the same thynge agayne in cap. quanto de transla. Episcopi titulo. VII. in playne wordes: It is sayde that the Pope (sayeth he) hath an heauēlye iudgemente, and therfore chaū ge the nature of thynges in applyenge the substaunce of ony thynge to another. And of nothynge he can make some what, and make the sentence whych was nothynge worthe, somewhat worthe. For in those thynges whyche he lyste,O blasphemye. Ei est pro ratione uoluntas: hys wyll standeth for a reason or a cause: nother is ther ony mā that may saye vnto hym. Why doeste thou so? For he maye dyspense wyth the lawe, and of vnryghtuosnesse make ryghteuosnesse: in correctynge and chaungynge ye lawes,The Byshop of Rome nother god nor man. for he hath obteyned full power, &c. Herevnto belongeth it that these ioly wrytters [Page 40] of commentes do so ofte inculcate, that ye Pope is nother a man nor a God, but the vycare of God, and a certayne thynge mengled and made of God & of man. Yf ony man requyre the places, he shal fynde these damnable blasphemyes, in VI decretalium lib. I. de elect. & elect. potestate. titulo sexto in cap. XVII. Item in clemē tinarum proemio. And what nede many wordes? Thys draggon vsurped vnto him selfe the full power of God in earthe, he translated kyngdomes, and for hys owne profyte made and vnmade all lawes and rytes, and turned all the olde and true relygiō topsyturnye, & hate dashed & defyled it wt hys fylthynesse: the whyche thynge no man can denye. He sytteth therfore in the tēple of god, auaūcynge hymselfe to be god.
Now wyll we adde vnto these thynges,The prophecye of Daniell vpō Antichriste. that whyche the godly prophete Daniell hath spoken of the same thyng in the vii. chapter: Beholde ther were eyes (sayth he) lyke the eyes of a man in hys horne, & a mouthe speakynge presumptuous thynges. And a lytle after that: He shall speake wordes on ye partye of the moost hyghest, and shall destroye the sayntes of ye moost hygheste, and thynke yt he maye chaunge [Page] tymes and lawes. All these thynges are very playne, by that that goeth afore. For eyes do sygnifye prudence. He mente therfore, that thys kynde of mē shuld be moost subtyll, because that it shuld rule & brynge all thynges to passe by fraude, gyle, sutteltye, and craft And surely who so euer doth marke well howe that these Byshoppes of Rome, out of so lowe a degre haue cō me vp on hyghe, and optayned the dygnite of so greate an Empyre, he wyll saye yt they haue bene moost craftye and suttyll men. Nother coulde ony mans mouth speake more presumptuous thynges, thē it is playne here before, that Machomet & the Byshope of Rome haue done. Yee and though they haue arrogātly attrybuted so great thynges vnto themselues, yet wyll they nedes speake and be on ye syde of the moost hyghest: insomuche that yf ony mā yet nowe a dayes shuld call them the aduersaryes or enemyes of God, he shulde scarsely escape theyr handes alyue. Besydes thys, the one of them wyll be taken for the Prophete of the moost hyest, and the other for the vycar of God vpon the earthe: as men whyche had receaued this power delyuered them of God hymselfe, [Page 41] and do nowe vsurpe it by ye lawes of God. But ther haue not lacked whyche haue smelled out thys deceate and wyckednes, and haue resisted it wyth all theyr power. But the moost holy father, and the vyctorious Emperoure of the Turkes haue destroyed them. For howe muche Christen bloude bothe of them haue shedde, it is declared in the hystorye before mencyonede and how much they shedde yet stylle, vnluckye experience dothe teache vs well ynough. Nowe although in very dede that no man hath the power for to make & vnmake the good lawes of God at hys pleasure, yet hath Antichrist vsurped ye power vpon hym. Wherevpon sayth Daniell: he shall thynke that he maye chaunge the tymes and lawes: but he sayeth not, he shall haue power to chaunge them. Now Machomet and the Byshoppe of Rome haue vsurped ye power vnto them moost shamefully, which thynge we haue proued a lytle before by sufficiente testymonyes. In the eleuenth chapter the same Daniel sayeth: The kynge shall do what hym lyste: he shall exalte & magnifye hymselfe agaynst all that is God, he shall speake maruaylous thynges agaynst the God of goddes, [Page] and he shall prospere, vntyll the wrathe be fulfylled, for hys fall is appoynted and so forthe. For the Prophete hath spokē more vpon thys matter in that place, whyche may be vnderstonde of euery wyttye mā wythout ony laboure or exposycion.
The prophecy of Pauie wrested agaynste the preachers of the Gospel.And here we maye not passe ouer yt the Papystes do expounde thys place of Paule vpō vs. For nowe saye they, is this departynge fulfylled, when the Lutheryans and the Zwynglyans do departe frō the holy seate of Rome, and wyth theyr libertye do open a gate vnto all synne and myschefe, and are agaynste the Prelates of the churche: besydes thys, they are lyfte vp agaynste the vycar of God hymselfe, defylynge the authoryte of the churche, whyche neuer erred, and syttynge in the temple of God, do boaste themselues to preache the worde of God, & therfore they thynke thēselues worthye to be worshypped as God. But they do vs wronge, because we neuer departed a strawe bredth from the truthe of ye canonicall scripture. For althoughe we knowe not the churche of Rome, as it is nowe ordered, yet we do knowlede the holy catholyke churche and the onely heade therof Iesus Christ. The [Page 42] whyche in as muche as he promysed that he wolde abyde wyth vs vnto the ende of the worlde, Math. xxviii. we nede not beleue that he hath put a vycare or Debyte in hys steade. For a vycare stādeth in the steade of hym that is absente. But Christ is euermore presente wyth hys churche: hym onely do we preache, commēde, and inculcate vnto our churches. We do moue men contynually to beleue in hym, & we do teache moost dylygentlye, charyte, innocēcye and pure lyuynge. Nother do we teache ony other lybertye thē yt of whyche the Apostle spake: Ye are called into lybertye, but se that ye geue not your lybertye an occasion to the fleshe, but thorow charyte serue you one another, Galat. v. And we are agaynste none of the chefe of the churche. For the Prelates of the churche, are the mynysters of the worde & teachers of the truthe of the Gospell: and who despyseth suche? who is agaynst such? But yf ony vnder the pretēce of the church and of mynystracion do seke theyr owne, beare rule, oppresse the truthe, & settynge godlye thynges asyde, do teache mennes tradyciōs, forsothe they are of good ryght despysed throughe theyr owne defaute. [Page] For Peter sayeth: We muste obey God more then man. And our LORDE in the Gospell: Se yt no man deceaue you. For many shall come in my name, sayenge I am Christ, & shal deceaue many. Farthermore we dyd neuer defyle the authoryte of the catholyke church. For we do hyghly esteme Christe hymselfe and the canonycall truth. Nowe the strength and foundacion of the churche is Christe & the truthe. Howe shulde not we thē iudge honorably of the church? We haue neuer sytten in the temple of God, but haue mynystred alwayes: and for thys cause haue we chefly cryed agaynste you, because that ye wyl beare rule or sytte, & not mynystre as we do. Moreouer we do frely confesse that we leauynge mens tradycions do purely and symply (that is to saye as muche as ye grace of God and oure fraylnes wyll suffre) preache the canonicall scrypture, and for the establyshynge not of our authoryte but of it, do often saye wyth saynte Paul: He that refuseth these thynges, refuseth not man, but God, whyche hath geuē hys holy sprete vnto the Prophetes and Apostles, yt they shulde teache these thynges vnto vs .i. Thessalo. iiii. Yet we do geue [Page 43] all honoure to God onely in all thynges, and vnto our selues nothynge but confusion. Our churches, whyche are Christes, wyll testifye thys.
Laste of all I wyll put to ye paraphrase of saynte Ierome,The paraphrase of S. Ierome vpō these wordes of Paule. wyth the whyche he dyd expounde these wordes of saynt Paule in the .XI. question. vnto Algasia, after thys maner: Excepte (saythe he) ther come a departynge fyrste, and that all nacions whych are subiecte to the Empyre of Rome do departe from it, and that he be reueled, that is to saye opened, whom all the wordes of the prophetes do shewe forthe: The man of synne, in whome is the fountayne of all synnes, And chyld of perdycion, that is, of the deuell (for he is the destruccion of all men) whyche is agaynste Christe, and is therfore called Antichrist, and is exalted aboue all that is called god so that he treadeth downe wyth hys foote the goddes of all nacions, or els all comly and true relygion, and in the temple of God (whyche is Ierusalē as some thynke) or els in the churche (as we rather suppose) sheweth hymselfe as thoughe he were Christe and the sonne of God. Excepte (sayeth he) that the Empyre of Rome be [Page] fyrst made desolate, and that Antichriste go before, Christe shall not come, whyche shall therfore so come, yt he maye destroye Antichriste. Ye remembre sayeth he, that these thynges whyche I nowe wrytte by myne Epystle, when I was wyth you I shewed you in expresse wordes, and tolde you that Christe shulde not come, excepte that Antichriste wente before. Hetherto haue I rehearsed ye wordes of S. Ierome.
And novve you knovve vvhat vvythholdeth: euen that he myghte be vttered at hys tyme. For the mysterye or iniquite dothe already vvorke. Let hym vvhyche novve holdeth, holde styll, vntyll it be taken avvaye, and thē shall that vvycked be vttered, vvhome the LORDE shall consume vvyth the sprete of hys mouth, and shall destroye vvyth the clearnesse of hys cōmynge.
He wryteth mor playnly of ye tyme of Antichriste when he shuld come.Some man myght saye, why shuld we not beleue, that the aduersary of Christ, doth now raygne, and is alreadye come, when we do se the name of Christe, & hys doctryne by all meanes to be spoken agaynste, of all the myghtyest men of thys worlde? The Apostle doth answere: You knowe what letteth: euen that I tolde you [Page 44] that he shulde be vttered, when hys tyme is come. Forsothe a man can not denye, but that euen nowe the power of iniquyte doth worke by hym, but nowe he setteth forth hys strength more couertlye, thē he shall do when his tyme is come. For vnto the bodye of Antichriste belonge blasphemyes, cruell persecucions, heresyes and other such lyke iniquities. But these thynges beganne to budde and sprynge vp by and by, euen in the tyme of the Apostles. Wherevpon Ihon the Apostle sayeth: My lytle chyldren, it is nowe the laste tyme, & as you haue herde, that Antichriste shall come, euen nowe ther begynne to be many Antichristes alreadye .i. Iho. ii. Therfore dothe Paule more clearlye sygnyfye vnto vs, that same tyme in ye whyche Antichriste, that is to saye, the perfeccion of all iniquite shuld be vttered, sayeng: Whē that shalbe taken awaye, whyche nowe wtholdeth or letteth hym for to raygne, thē shall ye wycked be opened. That is to saye, whan that the Empyre of Rome shall be taken out of the waye, or at the leest way troubled, then shall Antichriste raygne, & after that shall Christe come bothe for to destroye thys enemye of all sayntes, and [Page] also for to iudge all flesh. For he doth now expownde that more playnely, whyche he spake of before. The wordes correspondēt to the greke texte, do make those thynges more playne for thus they sygnyfye: holdynge that now, tyll it be out of the waye: whyche is as muche to saye, as that that thynge whyche nowe onlye letteth, shall be taken out of the waye. And then shall ye wycked appeare. Or els (to speake it more playne) that thynge wyhche nowe onely letteth shall be a lette so longe, vntyll it be taken awaye:Saynte Ierome. and when it is takē awaye, then shall Antichrist come forth. And S. Ierom also followeth the same sence, wrytynge vnto Algasia these wordes in a maner: What is the cause that Antichrist cō meth not now, ye knowe full well. Nother wolde he playnely saye, that the Empyre of Rome shulde be destroyed, because that they whyche gouerne it do thynke it euerlastynge. For the whyche cause after the Apocalypse of S. Ihon, ther was wryttē in ye foreheade of the whore that was clothed in purple, a name of blasphemy, that is to saye, Rome eternall. For yf he had sayde playnely and boldly, Antichrist shall not come, excepte the Empyre of Rome [Page 45] be fyrst done away, it semeth that he shuld haue geuen a iuste cause of persecucion, agaynst the churche in the Easte partyes. And a lytle after he sayeth: The Empyre of Rome whyche nowe hath all nacions vnder it, shal ceasse and be takē out of the waye, and then shall Antichrist the fountayne of iniquyte come. Thys sayeth Ierome. Tertulian also,Tertulli [...] of the resurreccion of the fleshe: Who (sayeth he) shall be takē out of the waye? but the estate of Rome, whyche beynge cut awaye? and scattered into tenne kynges shall brynge in Antichriste, &c. For the departynge of kyngdomes from the Empyre of Rome, and the runnynge in of the rude Gotties, that is to saye of the Vandales & Hunnies, dyd geue an occasion vnto the Saracens, and vnto the Byshoppes of Rome, for to inuade and gette ye Empyre. For yf the one had not broken the strength of the Empyre of Rome, the other had not raygned. But we haue expounded all these thynges more at large in the hystory here before.
Nowe followeth the ruyne & destruccion of Antichrist.Of the destruccion of Antichrist. He shall not fall by and by after that he is stryken wyth a stroke or weapon, but by lytle and lytle, & after [Page] he hath bene made weake by many battaylles he shall at the laste peryshe. But he shall not be caste down wt mans hande, nother yet by the multytude of hoostes, nor strēgth of souldyers, or gonne strokes, but by the hande and power of God. For Christ shall fyrste consume hym wyth the sprete of hys mouthe, and after that shall he put hym cleane out of the waye, wyth hys moost gloryous commynge into iudgemēt. The fyrste of these two, dyd Paule take oute of the eleuenth chapter of Isaie, whose wordes are these: With ryghteousnes shall he iudge ye poore, and wyth equite shall he contende for the meke of the earthe, he shall stryke the worlde wyth the rodde of hys mouthe, and wyth the sprete of hys lyppes shall he slaye the wycked. Nowe the sprete of ye mouthe or of the lyppes of God, is the true exposycion of the worde of god. For the worde of God is the same swearde, wherewyth ye heade of thys proude Golyas shall be stryken of. For Antichrist speaketh on the syde of ye moost hyghest, and he sayeth yt all that he doth, is deduced or taken out of the Decrees of ye holy scrypture. For vnder the pretence of this, hath he hetherto raygned safely. But [Page 46] when that thoroughe the goodnes of God the lyght of the Gospell, that is, Goddes worde begynneth to shyne, the clowdes of thys deceauer do strayght waye vanyshe awaye. For it is playne vnto all men, that thys fellowe in hys maners and lawes, is clene contrarye to Christe. Therefore it commeth to passe, that all godlye wytted men (the truthe once knowen) do abhorre and forsake hym. Therfore the swearde wherwyth this man is slayne is the word of God, for thē is he moost surely slayne, when that hys nature and dysposyciō are manyfestly knowen by the doctryne of truthe. The knowlege of hym dothe kyll hym and cast him downe, and the clokyng and ignoraūce of hym doth sette hym vp. For they that knowe hym not, do beleue that he is an Apostolycall prophete, yee & a god to, but they yt knowe him trulye, are sure that he is Antichriste. The latter of these two dyd Paul take out of ye .vii. chapter of Daniell, where we reade: I loked tyll the seates were prepared, and the olde aged satte hym downe, and beholde, ther came in the cloudes of the ayre one lyke the sonne of man, and he came vnto the olde aged, and the iudgemente was sette [Page] and the bokes opened. Then toke I hede therevnto because of the voyce of ye proud wordes whyche that horne spake. And I behelde styll, tyll yt the beaste was slayne, and hys bodye destroyed and geuen ouer to be burnte in ye fyre. And therfore sayeth Paule: Whom the LORDE shall destroy wyth the bryghtnes of hys cōmynge, yt is to say wt his moost gloryous cōmyng. For our LORDE sayde in the Gospell: Euen as the lyghtenynge commeth oute of the Easte, and appeareth vnto the Weste, so shall the commynge of the sonne of man be. For he shall come in ye cloudes of heauen wyth greate power and glory Math. xxiiii. And euen as darknes (as sayeth S. Ierome) is dryuen away at the cōmynge of the Sonne,The battail & vanquyshyng of Antichriste. so shall the LORDE destroy and put hym awaye wyth the bryghtnes of hys commynge. Thys glorye and vyctorye is reserued vnto Christe onely. For they are deceaued whyche thynke ye Antichriste, before the daye of iudgemēte, shall by abolyshed by the strength of armes. But thys battayll betwene Christe & Antichriste shall rather endure vnto ye ende of the worlde. And he beynge bolde of the strength of armes, shall breake a sondre & [Page 47] treade vnder hys fete the sayntes of the moost hyest, but the membres of Christe shall wythstonde hym, and shall sette vpō hym wt the swearde of the worde of God, shall bewraye hys deceate, shall accuse his wyckednes, and so slaye hym. For by thys meanes shall he be put oute of mens hartes, and hys authoryte shall fall.The vyctory of ye Christen stādeth in the truth of Goddes worde and constauncy. And in ye meāseason, although he be ouercome, yet shall he take on, vntyll Christe the iudge shall putte hym quyte down. And therfore my brethren our vyctorye must stande alonly in the truth of Gods worde, & in the constanucy of our fayth. Therfore let vs betake our lyues vnto our faythfull creator, & go forward in ye affyrmyng of ye canonical truth, & glory of Christ ourredemer & LORD, agaynst ye blasphemies of this vnpure draggō. Christ wyll be presēt wt hys, although he delyuer vs into hys handes.
Vvhose cōmynge is by the vvorkynge of Satan, vvyth all povver and lyenge sygnes and vvonders and in all deceueablnes of vnryghteousnes amōg thē that perysh: because they receaued not the loue of the truth, that they might haue bene saued. And therfore god shal sende thē strōge delusiō, that they shuld [Page] [...] [Page 47] [...] [Page] beleue lyes: that all they myght be dāned, vvhych beleued not the truthe, but had pleasure in vnryghtousnes.
Antichriste raygneth by power and lyes.Hetherto hath the Apostle entreated of the reuelacion of Antichrist, of the ruyne and confusion of hym: he hath spoken also of hys kyngedome and propertyes, & nowe he turneth hym from that, and descrybeth hys strengthe and workes more at large. That deceauer shal come (sayeth he) prepared wyth the sprete and power of Satan, the whyche shall shewe forth them selfe in hym moost manyfestly. For thys maner of speakynge Vvhose cōmynge is by the vvorkynge of Satan, is so much to saye. Nowe the strength and workynge of Satan ar chefely, murther, and lyes, as our saueoure sayeth: He was a manslayer from the begynnynge, and abode not in the truthe, because the truthe is not in hym. Whan he speaketh a lye, he speaketh of hys owne, because he is a lyer and the father of it. And Paule in this place shewynge the workes of Satan by partes, doth teken vp power and sygnes, that is lyenge wonders, and the deceaueablenesse of vnryghteousnesse also. For Mahomet sayeth that he is sente of God in the strength of [Page 48] armoure, & for thys cause doth he destroye all thynges wyth fyre and swearde. And ye Byshope of Rome hath abused ye armour of al kynges and prynces, persecuteth and slayeth the sayntes, ether callynge vpon the secular arme, or els by excercysynge hy [...] owne strength. The greate destruccion of moost stronge nacions nowe in our dayes do testifye what he maye do by strength, and what murthurs, yee and betrayēge of kyngdomes, and robberyes, the deuell hath done in the world by hys procuremente. We maye thanke hys coūsell and crafte, that here wythin thys .xxxvi. yeares, we haue sene the strengthe of moost stronge nacions, that is to saye of the Heluecians, Germanes, Frenchmen and Spanyardes, after they haue bene broken, to haue fallen now into the kyngdome of Naples, nowe in the dukdome of Myllan, & somtyme into other kyngedomes, & theyr kynges or prynces banyshed or els ledde into captyuyte, mans lawes & Goddes lawes plucte vp by the rootes, good studye oppressed, moost noble cyties subuerted, and plentyfull contryes vtterly destroyed: to be shorte, ther was none age spared. I do wyllynglye passe ouer [Page] many thynges of the same sorte, whyche ye membres of thys Byshoppe, and the Ecclesiasticall prelates wyth theyr companions, haue done in dyuers partyes of the world, and in many kyngdomes, and prouynces to the greate hurte of the cōmune welthe and of all goodnesse, and specyally of the truthe. The prudente reader dothe well vnderstonde by these thynges whych I haue noted, what he shulde do, beleue, or flye.
Antichristes sygnes, and how his religiō hath ben greatly estabyshed by them.Nowe ther are two maner of sygnes, true, and false. Those are true, whyche are done in dede, and sprynge oute of no phantasye or imagynacion, but are wrought of God hym selfe by hys mynysters, for the stablyshynge of the truthe. Suche are all the sygnes of the prophetes and Apostles, of Moses & of Christe. And those are false, whyche (by the sufferaunce of God) are done by ye mynysters or workynge of Satan, to the derogacion of the truthe or stablyshyng of falshed. And of these ther are diuerse kindes. For ther are some whyche by a false appearaūce do deceaue men. Ther are other whyche are done in very dede, as they seme to be, but for thys purpose, that they myghte leade [Page 49] men away from the truthe vnto erroure. For the holy Apostle doth not call them onely lyenge sygnes and wonders, whych haue a false symilitude or appearaūce wt thē, but those also, whyche althoughe they be done in very dede, do yet brynge men vnto lyes, and deceaue the lokers on. S. Augustine hath disputed more of sygnes. In opere octoginta trium questionum. quest. LXXIX. Our LORD Iesus sayeth in the xxiiii. chapter of Mathewe: Ther shall aryse false Christes and false prophetes, and they shall do greate sygnes and wonders, insomuche that yf it were possyble, the very electe shulde be brought in to erroure. Beholde I haue shewed you before. Yf they saye vnto you, beholde he is in the wyldernesse, go not out: beholde he is in secrete places, beleue thē not, &c. Truely greate authoryte happened vnto Machometes relygion, throughe lyenge sygnes and wonders. Nother yet hath the estymacion of the Byshoppe of Romes relygiō, encreassed by ony thyng so much, as by the multytude of myracles. For by myracles hath he thrust into the worlde ye honourynge of sayntes and worshyppyng of ymages. For no man can well expresse [Page] the wonderous craftes,In this pla [...]e ye author of the commēte, called Henricus Bullingerus of Tigury had put in dyuers pylgremages of hys owne contrye. In the flede of whyche (because they were vnknowen to vs) I haue set in these of oure olde acquayntaūce withoute ony al alteraciō of the intent yt he brought them in for. wherwith ye deuel hath deceaued the whole worlde. They yt haue at ony tyme vysyted our Ladye at Wylsoon, Muswell, Ypswyche or Walsyngame, the roode of comforte, ye roode of rest, the roode of grace in Kente, S. saueoure at London, S. Thomas of Canterbury, or suche lyke Idolles: they haue sene tables, oblacions and more testymonyes of myracles, thē a great nauye of shyppes coulde carye awaye. For some one hathe crepte into the chappell of oure Lady, or some other saynte bothe croked & lame, and there hath made hys petycion to an Image, and came home agayne in good healthe: and therefore in wytnes of thys thynge hath hanged vp hys styltes before the Idolle. Another hath swymmed safe to lande frō a shyppewracke after he hath called vpon the helpe of some saynte, & therfore hanged a table or a fygure of a shyppe before the Image. The thyrde escapynge of an hoost of men of warre, made a vowe vnto the virgyn Marye, and dyd therfore dedicate hys harnesse vnto her. Some other after they haue broken out of preson, haue consecrate vnto a sayncte, ether a cheyne, or manacles or els a payre of fetters. [Page 50] Then came it to passe at length that not alonly those temples, but all churches of Christen men were polluted wyth such delusions. These false sygnes occupyed ye mooste holy seates in Christes churche, out of whyche the sygnes and truthe of ye Gospell oughte to haue ben declared. For oute of suche places were these moost vnshamefast lyes pronounced and shewed, wyth greate boldnes of the preachers, and wonderous reioycynge of the moost foolyshe people. What shall we say, that men haue sayde, yt the very Images themselues haue ether remoued out of theyr places, or els haue ben sente of God hymselfe frō heauē, or els where as they haue ben hyd in certayn places they haue come to lyght agayn. Some haue laught, and some haue wepte, other haue trembled & geuen forth beames out of them, yee & sometyme they or theyr beardes haue wōderfully growē in length or bygnesse, somtyme they were gone clene awaye alone, and many tymes they haue spoken. And it was lawfull for no man to doubte, or els frelye, that is to saye truely to talke of, these thynges, yee a man had stonde in daunger of hys lyfe yf he had not worshyppped and receaued these [Page] wyckednesses as thynges that had come from God hym selfe, and set forthe to be worshypped. Antichriste that Byshop of Rome not beynge cōtente wyth these abhominable thynges, and wyth the exteme superstycion and manyfeste Idolatry of the people, dyd almoste euery day consecrate new Gods, that is (as they call it) canonysed them, dyd ether institute new pylgrimages, or els confirme suche as were inuented or receaued alreadye: he chose oute relyques of ye moost stynkyng and wycked mens bones, and sette them forthe to be worshypped, yee & promysed pardon to the worshyppers of them, and commaunded holydayes for those fayned Goddes, & lefte nothynge vndone which myghte encreace, norysh, or set forth Idolatrye: and dyd so corrupte the true relygion, that the very Gentyles were neuer muche more corrupte. Besyde thys the prouable appearaunce and wounderous estymaciō of false myracles dyd deceaue all the wysest men in a maner.How many good people haue ben deceaued lyke wyse with ye fayned myracles of ye holy maydens of Rēt & Ipswych. It lacked but lytle, that we were not compelled to haue worshypped in ye steade of true sygnes & myracles of God, ye sygnes & wonders, whyche certayne blacke frerers cō secrate [Page 51] to the deuell had wyckedlye done in ye cytye of Berne in Nuchtlande, not wythoute the helpe of wytchcrafte you may be sure. They wente already about the confyrmacion and approbacion of the Byshoppe of Rome, and they had lyghtly obtayned it, but that the goodnes of God hauynge pytye on the symplenesse of the people, dyd dysclose thys mysterye of iniquyte to all the worlde before that it was fully fynyshed and ended, to the derogacion & shame of oll other false myracles. I thynke that the buyldyng of these cloysters of beggynge Frerers, is one porciō of ye chefe of these lyenge sygnes. He shall not be beleued I know well amonge our posteryte, that shulde tell them that beggers in so shorte a space, had buylded so large & goodly houses, of the whyche eche of them are sufficiente for to receaue & noryshe kynges and prynces. But we se many thousandes of these buylte vp on hyghe, and retched forth, bothe longe and large, and besydes that to haue gotten ye goodlyest porciōs of lande in all contryes and cyties. Yee and these deceauers thē selues, knowlegynge thys wōder, do say: No prynce or kynge coulde perfourme in [Page] certayne hundredes of yeares, ye whyche we beggers (not wythout myracle) haue fynyshed in so lytle a space. Yee and haue so fynyshed them ye our buyldynges maye compare wyth the moost goodlyest olde places that are. God hath opened by this thynge (saye they) that the rules of oure orders do not so greatly dysplease hym: as thoughe Daniell had not sayde longe tyme before, that thys shulde come to passe. For thus we reade of Antichrist in ye .xi. chapter: Such as wyll serue hym, he shall geue greate worshyppe and power, yee & make them Lordes ouer manye, & geue them the lande for naughte. &c.
Paule addeth therevnto, in all deceaueablenesse of vnryghteousnesse: vnderstonde yt Antichriste shall come after suche maner. That is to saye, when he commeth, he shall brynge wyth hym all kynde of iniquite, wherewyth he myghte brynge men away from the truthe, equyte, honestye & ryghteousnesse, & wrappe men in ypocrysy and erroures. We know therfore that by the meanes of antichrist the commune iustice, all honestye, & holy truthe shalbe moued oute of theyr place, & vnryghteousnesse, ypocrysye, vnshamefastnesse, [Page 52] voluptuosnesse, & moost vayne persuasions to be set vp in theyr steade. Whyche thynges he ye seyth not to haue all ages and degrees in possession nowe at thys tyme, lacketh both hys eyes & hys wytte. But all mē shall not be deceaued, but the reprobate: that is to saye, they, of whom the truthe was refused, and lyes receaued, that is to saye, such as do wylfully peryshe. And because that a secrete questyon myghte be moued:Why ye Antichrist hath so greate power and prosperethe so greatlye. Why hathe God suffered Satan, and Antichrist hys captyue to haue so great power? By a solucion he preuenteth the question and sayeth: because they receaued not ye loue of the truthe, that they myghte haue ben saued. That is to saye: the iustice & vengeaunce of God, requyreth ye same thyng to be done. For theyr obstynate rebelliō agaynste Christe, deserueth that all they whyche receaued not Christ, that of hys charyte was wyllynge to saue all men, & for hys truthe sake dyd opē those thynges whyche belonged to saluacion that they myght haue ben saued, shulde nowe by ye sufferaunce of God for the truthe haue falshed, in the steade of charyte tyranny, and for a saue [...]ure haue a destroyer, and [Page] that they shulde nowe beleue the lyes of a wycked man, whyche wolde not beleue Christe, that tolde them the truthe. For our LORDE hymselfe sayeth, in ye Gospell of Ihon: Ye wyll not come vnto me, that ye myght haue lyfe. I receaue not ye glorye of mē: but I knowe that you haue not the loue of God in you. I came in the name of my father, & ye receaue me not, yf an other shall come in his own name, hym wyll ye receaue, Ioh v. And oute of thys truly it semeth, that that noble sentence of the commune people was takē: They yt beleued not Christe, shall beleue Antichriste. And herevnto belonge also the wordes of Paule that followe, wherwyth he maketh that whyche goeth before more clearer, sayeng: And therfore, that is to saye, because they receaued not the loue of the truthe, and were not ye louers and followers of true relygiō, God shall sende them stronge delusiōs, that is to saye, moost euydente seduccion and deceate, that euen lyke madde persones, and men rauyshed of theyr wyttes, they can not chose but beleue lyes. And for thys cause that all they myghte be iudged, that is to saye tormēted & punyshed, [Page 53] vvhyche beleued not the pure and symple truthe: but rather approued vnryghteousnesse, ypocrysy, superstycion and erroure. Ye haue now a reason how it cōmeth to passe, that the worlde nowe a dayes is so readye to beleue the myracles, doctrynes, and rytes of Antichriste. It is the iudgemēte of God, whyche hath shewed myracles ynoughe by hys sonne, by hys prophetes and Apostles, and hath also prescrybed vs doctrynes, and rytes clearlye and sufficiente ynough. But all these thynges set asyde, we had rather be deceaued. Therefore these prestes and monkes Antichristes knyghtes, deceaued vs by gettynge awaye our moneye, and neuer ceassed to thruste in theyr lyes vnto vs, vntyl yt they had emptyed all mens cofers. Suche thynges as myghte be brought out of the Byble semed olde forworne thynges▪ all men daylye desyred to heare new matters, and therfore was it fre for euery man that wold, for to inuente euery thynge that he lyfte. He was best alowed that had brought in ony new thynge into the churche: and so throughe theyr vnshamefastnesse, and our curyosyte and foolyshnesse, it came to passe, by [Page] the ryghteous iudgemente of God, that all truthe was banyshed many yeares sence, and errour hath raygned myghtelye thorow oute the cōgregacions. Nowe though it be thus, and that experience it selfe do proue these thynges to be ouer true, yet are ther certayne euell occupyed persones, whyche go about to boulster vp the corrupte captayns of ye moost corrupte relygion, whyche are bente to dostroye the sprete of the mouth of God. But the truthe which is inuyncible, shall ouercome bothe those vayne prelates of the churche, and also theyr foolyshe defenders and shall also ouerthrowe them and bruse them all to peces, excepte they conuerte vnto the LORDE. Hetherto haue we disputed more at large, then we thought to haue done at the begynnyng, of the commynge of Antichriste, of hys kyngdome and confusion, for the readers pleasure, and for the erudycion and warnynge of the symple people. Nowe wyll we returne vnto Paule and the Thessalonyans. For Paule hymselfe after he hath fynyshed hys dysputacion of Antichriste, turneth hym vnto the Thessalonyans.
[Page 54] But vve are bounde to geue thankes alvvayes to God for you brethren beloued of the LORDE, because that God hath from the begynnynge chosen you to saluacion thorovve sanctifyenge of the sprete, and thorovv beleuynge the truthe: vvhereunto he called you by oure Gospell, to optayne the glorye of our LORDE Iesu Christ. A notable place of the election.
Theophylactus knyttynge these thynges verye goodly with those that are gone before, sayeth thus: When he had shewed them certayne horryble thynges, and suche as myght amase the mynde of the hearers, he doth afterward ease theyr hartes, monyshynge them after thys maner: Let other men be afearde of these thynges, they (I saye) whych peryshe, and ouer whome ye deuell hath great power, but we are bounde to geue thankes for you vnto God, because that he hath chosen you, and embraced you with his loue. And thys is a notable place of the eleccion of God. For God hath chosen vs vnto saluacion, and not that we shulde saye: yf God haue chosen me, I nede not feare dampnacion, and thoughe I synne neuer so muche. But God hath chosen vs [Page] vnto saluacion sayeth Paule, whych saluacion is fynyshed in vs through ye sanctifyenge of the sprete and beleuynge the truthe: that is to saye, by the sprete hymselfe, whyche purifyeth our hartes, & geueth vs true faythe. For fayth whyche is the gyfte of God, is myghtye in operacion. Paule therfore doth set true fayth agaynst the false persuasion, of ye whyche Iames speaketh, sayenge: fayth wythout workes is deade. To thys matter of eleccion, belongeth the preachyng of the Gospell also. For thorowe the preachyng of the Gospell, he calleth vs to the true fayth, and to the optaynynge or possessiō of the glorye of our LORDE Iesu Christ: that is to saye, that we myghte be made the gloryous and bewtyfull possession of our LORDE Iesu Christ, an holy, innocente and immaculate people, whyche myght honoure and worshyppe God, and that God hymselfe myght dwell in ye hartes of them that serue hym. For God hath not called vs vnto lustes and vnclennes, i. Thessa. iiii. but vnto holynes, & purenes, and that we myght become hys holy tēple. These thynges ought to be taught vnto ye congregacions. After thys maner [Page 55] suche as are captyue shulde be plucked out of the bondage of Antichrist: and yf ye ony haue not fallen into hys captyuyte, let them here learne to geue God contynuall thankes, and also to praye him that he leade them not into temptacion, but delyuer them from that euell, sanctifye them thorow the sprete, and by true fayth to kepe them in the eleccion of saluacion.
Therfore brethrē stande faste, and kepe the ordynaūces vvhych ye haue learned: vvhether it vvere by oure preachynge or by oure Epistle.
Nowe bryngeth he in that whyche he mente in the begynnynge of thys chapter where he sayde: I beseche you by the cō mynge of our LORDE Iesu Christe, that ye be not sodenlye moued from youre mynde, &c. And in the meanseason he dysputeth many thynges to thys effecte; and nowe at the laste he bryngeth in & sayeth: In as muche as it is thus, abyde you in our ordynaunces whych we taught you, whether it were by mouth when we were yet amonge you, or els by myne epistles,The Apostles taught all theyr or dinaunces, ether by mouthe or els by epistles wryttē. whyche I sente when I was absent from you. For I taughte you the true Gospell: ye nede not to seke ony other. The Papistes [Page] do abuse thys place, for the defence of mans tradycions. And we do graunte, that the tradycions of the Apostles, ought as well to be receaued as theyr epistles wrytten: but we do not graunte that all those are the tradycions of the Apostles, whyche they do thruste vnto vs vnder ye name of the Apostles. The tradycions of the Apostles, are not contrarye to theyr epistles wrytten: but these mens tradycions are playne contrarye to the wrytynges of the Apostles.
Our LORDE Iesu Christe himselfe, and God our father vvhyche hath loued vs, and hath geuen vs euerlastyng consolacion and good hope thorovve grace, comforte your hartes, and stablyshe you in all good saynge and doynge.
He dothe here after hys maner, vnto hys admonycion ioyne an happye and luckye wyshe. And he doth here very cō nynglye brynge in together the whole summe of the Gospel, that is to saye, that God hath loued mankynde, & geuen him euerlastynge consolacion, that is Iesu Christe, whyche is oure hope, and hathe geuen it vs throughe hys grace, and not [Page 56] for our merytes: that is to saye, that we myght lyue euermore. He wysheth vnto them (I saye) that the same meke and louynge God, wold comforte theyr hartes and stablyshe them in all good sayenge & doynge: that is to saye, in all ryghteousnes. For in these two thynges he cōprehendeth all the offices or dutyes of a Christen man. And we Englyshe men vsynge the same partycion do diuyde all ryghteousnes into good sayenge and doynge, or into good wordes and workes. For these are those good frutes, whyche sprynge forthe of an harte that is sanctifyed thorowe the holy goost & true fayth. Saynte Ambrose marked the ordre of S. Paules wordes,Ambrose. and because (sayeth he) that the father, and the sonne are one power and one diuinite and substaunce, therefore he doubted not to name oure LORDE Iesu Christe fyrste,Theophilactus. and afterwarde God our father. And Theophilactus noted that Paule dyd so ordre this prayer, that he dyd also prescrybe them therwyth, what it became them to do: yt is, to geue themselues, to saye well and do well, and to perseuer in goodnes, and specyallye to knowlege Christe to be the [Page] onely hope, and euerlastynge consolaciō of the faythfull.
Caput. iii. Farthermore brethren praye for vs, that the vvorde of God may runne abrode, and be glorifyed as it is vvyth you, and that vve maye be delyuered, from vnreasonable and euell men. For all men haue not fayth, but the LORD is faythfull, vvhyche shall stablyshe you, and kepe you from euell. And vve haue good hope of you thorovve the LORDE, that ye both do and vvyll do that vvhyche vve cōmaunde you. And the LORDE guyde youre hartes into the loue of God, and lokynge after Christe.
Of prayer.Ther is nothynge stronger in the syghte of God then a faythfull prayer, & therfore doth he by all meanes moue the godlye vnto that moost dylygentlye. And here he sendethe men vnto prayer also, in that mooste troublesome and wycked worlde, and in the great daunger of godly men. The truthe was preached in dede, but in the mean season ther sprange vp dyuerse schismaes amonge them also, whyche wolde seme to be the followers of true relygion. And the open enemyes [Page 57] of the catholyke relygiō dyd both bānyshe the truthe, and also persecuted the chefe setters forthe thereof mooste cruelly: nother lacked ther certayne hypocrytes & false brethren, whyche were worse then they, & dyd muche more hurte vnto true godlynesse. For it is a true sayenge, that an hypocrytycall frende doth more hurte then an open enemye. For of the one we take hede, and from the other we hyde no thynge. Therfore the greate dyshoneste, wyckednes, & vnfaythfulnesse that was vsed in those dayes, dyd make the lyfe of Christen men, (whyche otherwyse was sharpe ynoughe) much more bytter. But Paule moueth men vnto prayer, & sayth: Consyderynge the greate daungers that the worlde is nowe in, ther is none other helpe but turne vnto prayer. And he prescrybeth the pryncypall thynges, whyche they shuld aske of God by theyr contynuall prayer. Fyrste that the worde of God myghte runne abrode, and be glorifyed amonge all other nacyōs, euen as it was dyuulgate amonge the Thessalonians, and receaued of godlye mē wyth an holy reioycynge. And all the scrypture beareth wytnesse, that thys was the perpetuall & [Page] moost feruenteste wyshe or desyre of all saynctes. And in ye fourth chapter of the Actes of the Apostles, the Apostolyke church dyd aske thys one thynge of God, that he wolde geue the apostles grace & strengthe to speake the worde of God wyth boldnes. We offende greatly nowe a dayes, that we do aske these thynges so coldlye of God: yee and I wolde to God that we dyd not vtterlye forgette to aske them at all. Nowe where as he sayde to runne abrode, he spake it after the commune speche, and he mente, that it might encreasse and spreade abrode apace wyth oute ony lette. And the worde is gloryfyed, when it is receaued of men, and all the glorye geuen vnto God onely. The secōde thynge that he teacheth to be asked wyth prayer is, that we maye be delyuered from vnreasonable and euell men: that is from inordynate and frowarde men,Who vs vnreasonable & eu [...]ll men. whyche do nothynge in theyr tyme and place, but all thynges peruerslye. And the Apostle mente the enemyes of Gods worde, whō nothynge can please, and yet in the meanseason they can do nothynge well themselues. They fynde fautes, and peruerte all thynges, and depraue [Page 58] those thynges whych are well sayd and done, and do lade them and defyle them wyth shamefull suspycions. They are also called shrewde, malycious and peruerse mē. And Dauid in hys psalmes, dothe desyre very ofte to be delyuered frō them. And our LORDE dyd adde vnto ye ende of that holy prayer: Delyuer vs frō euell: not alonly from the deuell, but also from all hys armye and bodye, and specially from that spyrytuall wyckednesse & those crafty deceauers. For ther is more ieopardye in a false frende and one that dissembleth all thynge, thē in an opē enemye.Al mē haue not faythe. And herevnto belongeth that which followeth: For all men haue not fayth. For this meaneth Paul: All they are not faythfull and true whyche wolde seme to be faythfull. For faythe in thys place is vsurped in the same sygnifycacion that ye Poete taketh it, when he sayeth: Nus (quam) tuta fides, a man woteth neare whome he maye truste. Yf ye wyll not graūt this maner of speakynge, then thys is ye meanynge: Touchynge ye I do requyre your prayers so greatlye that we myght be delyuered from vnreasonable and froward men, it is because I knowe that ther are [Page] many false brethren amonge you. For all they whyche pretende fayth, and professe it wyth theyr mouthe, haue not the true fayth in dede. For oure LORDE sayeth in the Gospell. Math. xx. Many are called, but fewe are chosen. And althoughe these two sences dyffer not muche, yet ye fyrste lyketh me better. Nowe ther followeth. But the LORDE is faythfull, vvhyche shall stablyshe you and kepe you from euell For leste he shulde dyscō forte the myndes of the saynctes through the vnfaythfulnes of manye: althoughe (sayeth he) that ther be many vnfaythfull amonge you, yet the LORDE is faythful and true, whyche wyll kepe hys promyse wyth vs, and be wyth hys for euer. They do resyste the Gospell, but they shall not ouercome it: they lette it that it can not go much abrode, but they shall not dryue it cleane backe. They do betraye the fauourers of the truthe, but yet they shall not vtterlye oppresse the truth. For Iesus Christ whyche is faythfull is euer at hāde for to fyghte for hys. He shall strēghthen hys agaynste the vnhappynesse of these men, and shall kepe thē from euell. For as much as he is true, he wyll luckly [Page 59] perfourme those thynges, whyche he hath begonne in vs. These wordes that are so full of consolacion, shulde be often layde forth to such as are in perrell & are greatlye aferde also of vnreasonable and euell men. Nowe to mytygate and as it were to correcce, that whyche he sayde before, he sayeth: But vve haue good hope of you throughe the LORD, &c. As though he wolde saye: We saye not these thynges because that we doute of your constauncy, no we do rather hope of you by the helpe of the LORDE Iesus that those thynges whyche I commaunde you of prayer, of watchynge and stedfastnesse, ye both do and hereafter wyll do. And it hath muche grace wyth it, yf that in oure admonycion, we do reioyce of the thynge whyche we desyre to receaue & optayne, as it were receaued & optayned already. Agayne, leste that ony man shulde attrybute ouermuche vnto theyr owne strengthe, but that rather we shulde all knowe, that euery gyfte is geuen vs of God from heauē, the LORDE (sayth he) guyde youre hartes, into the loue of God, and lokynge after Christe. To ye wyhche Erasmus dothe adde: Charite [Page] shall cause you for to studye to do good vnto all men, euen as God is benefycyal towarde all men. The lokynge for the cō mynge of Christe, shall cause you to suffer all afflyccions manfully. Therfore in all trubles and perylles, we haue these two styltes for to beare vs vp: prayer & stedfaste fayth. Brethrē let vs remembre these thynges I praye you, & in as muche as our tymes also are mooste corrupte & troublesome, and that for thys cause it is not possible but ye sayntes shuld be vexed, let vs praye to God, and constauntly beleue that he wyl neuer fayle vs: although that in the meanseason many vnreasonable and euell men, do ether persecute or betraye the truthe. God is true & fayth full, whyche can not denye hymselfe, and the truthe shall remayn euermore inuincyble: let vs cleue therfore vnto ye truthe, and we shall haue the vyctory, althoughe that when we be ouerthrowen of the worlde, we seme to be ouercome.
Vve commaunde you brethren in the name of our LORDE Iesus Christe, that ye vvythdravve your selues from euery brother that vvalketh inordynately, and not after the instytucion [Page 60] vvhyche he receaued of vs.
It is manyfeste in the fourth chapter of the fyrste Epystle,He condemneth deli [...]es exhort the men to laboure. what gaue hym an occcasion of thys commaundemente: That is to saye, because that immediatlye after the tyme of ye Apostles, certayn curious men beganne to thruste themselues into the church of God, and vnder the pretence of relygion or euell sciences and slouthfull ydelnes, dyd gette them a swete lyuynge. And where as befor in his fyrst epistle, he dyd but easlye as it were bycker or skyrmyshe wyth them: he dothe nowe comme in open felde vpon them, ouerthrowe them, and put thē to flyghte. Fyrste of all he settethe forthe the matter generally and sayeth: I wyll not that you haue ony conuersacion wyth inordynate fellowes, and suche as ordre themselues otherwyse then we dyd ordeyne. And he speaketh not thys thynge sleghtlye, but wyth greate authoryte & pythye wordes, sayenge: Vve commaunde you brethrē. After ye, leste ony man shulde contemne hym, whan he thus commaundeth thē: he addeth to: in the name of our LORD Iesu Christe. As thoughe he shulde saye: those thynges whych we cōmaunde you, [Page] we commaunde you not so muche in our owne name, as at the commaundement and expresse byddynge of Iesu Christe. And nowe he recytethe the cōmaundemēte of Christe: that ye wythdrawe your selues from euery brother whyche behaueth hymselfe inordynatelye, that is to saye, not after the institucion whyche he receaued of vs. We wyll speake of that instytucion a lytle hereafter. Erasmus sayeth, that those are brought into an ordre, whyche are bounde to the commune lawe, and dyffer in nothynge from other men. And that it is cōtrarye to thys, whē ony man the publyke lawes neglecte, lyueth at hys owne pleasure. And yt Paule shulde meane thys, by walkynge inordynatlye, the lyfe of Monkes, whyche is receaued of vs agaynste the instytucion of the LORDE and of the Apostles agreeth wyth thys in all poyntes. But when he commaundeth, that we shulde wythdraw oure selues from them, he commaundeth vs not to do as the Anabaptystes do, whyche separatynge themselues from ye cōmunion of sayntes, do set vp a priuate cōgregacion: but that we shuld flye theyr company as muche as we can, to the intente [Page 42] that they myght be ashamed & perceaue themselues to be condempned for theyr slouthfulnesse, and so be conuerted vnto the LORDE.
For ye your selues knovve, hovve ye ought to follovve vs. For vve behaued not our selues inordynatlye amonge you, nother toke vve breade of ony man for naught, but vvroughte vvyth laboure and svveat both nyght and daye, because vve vvolde not be chargeable to ony of you. Not that vve myghte not so do: but for to make our selues an example vnto you, to follovve vs.
He shewethe by hys example what instytucion he had geuen them.Paule laboreth wt hys own hādes. He dothe also persuade men to laboure, and candēpneth ydelnesse. His wordes are playn. Althoughe (sayeth he) I myghte well lyue at your coste and stypende (for by breade he doth vnderstonde meate & drynke: yee and all suche thynges as belonge vnto ye sustentacion and necessyte of thys lyfe) yet had I rather to laboure both nyght & day, for to shewe our selues an ensample and fourme vnto all mē that they myght followe vs. And by thys we maye se what [Page] it is to walke inordynatlye,To lyue inordynatlye. and to be in ordre. They lyue inordynatly, whych are ydle and take theyr breade for naughte, ye is to saye,To lyue ordynatlye. lyke drone bees do eate vp other mens laboures. They lyue in ordre whyche wyth laboure & sweate do worke nyght and daye, that is to saye, contynuallye, and be not chargeable to ony man. The instytucions and rules of all ordres or Monkes,Monkes. after that they be touched, as it were with these holy thonderboltes, do fall flatte down. That whyche the same Paule dysputed at Myletus, wyth the brethren of Ephesus, Actu .xx. agreeth well wyth thys.
For vvhen vve vvere vvyth you, thys thynge vve commaunded you: that yf ther vvere ony that vvold not vvorke, the same shulde not eate.
He that laboreth not, ye same shuld not eate.He reherseth the same instytucion of hys, whyche he sayde to be conteyned in the expresse wordes of the LORDE. And thys is the lawe: That he whyche wolde not laboure, shulde not eate. For slouthfull people deserue none almes nother. For I thynke it not vnlyke vnto this law of God, whyche the Gētyles were woūte to saye in lyke prouerbes: Qui fugit molam [Page 62] fugit farinam: he that flyeth ye mylle flyeth the meele, that is to saye: he that refuseth to laboure, shal haue none of the vantage. And agayne: Ne (que) mel, ne (que) apes. No bees, no honye. For yf ony man wyll not suffre bees, because they haue stynges, he is vnworthye to haue ony honye. And Mimus sayeth in these wordes: Beare that whyche is greueous & paynfull that thou mayste haue that whyche is pleasaunte and profytable. Wherfore Valerius maximus .ii. boke .i. chap. sayth that the Massilians do kepe theyr gates shutte agaynste all suche whyche vnder some pretence of relygion do go aboute to mayntayne theyr ydelnesse. Yf that ye kynges and rulers of Englande had marked thys instytuciō thre hundreth yeares sooner, they had had more ryches & fewer Monkes. Plutarche sheweth in hys notable & brefe sentence of the Lacedemonians, that amonge them, the Goddes and Goddesses be paynted and portured echeone wyth a speare in theyr hande: In so muche that Venus herselfe was in complete harnesse. Sygnifyenge by thys, that not so muche as the goddes were ydle amonge thē. He sayeth farther [Page] that they haue thys prouerbe amonge them: Putte to thy hande, and calle on fortune, for so we must truste on goddes helpe, that not wythstondynge earnestly we put to our dylygence so muche as lyeth in vs. For God heareth not the prayers of the slougyshe fylbellyes. Agayne it is a cōmune sayenge: God wyll helpe thē that wyll laboure. Farther more, he that hath learnynge or an occupacion, maye go where he wyll. Also that knowlege & connynge is a hauen to men from ye stormes of pouertye, that is to saye: a science or an occupaciō is the only remedy or refuge for pouerte.Erasmus in adag [...]is: Arcem queuis alis terra. Wherfore they that are wyse (I vse the wordes of Erasmus) althoughe yt they haue substaunce ynough, wyll yet cause theyr chyldrē for to learne some occupacion, wherwyth yf they fall into pouertye, or shuld chaunce to be banyshed theyr contrye, they myght yet get theyr lyuynge. Dionysius a tyraunte amonge the Syracusans after he was put out of hys domynyon, sette vp a scoole at Corynthum & taught chyldren learnyge and Musycke. But now a dayes ther are many, whyche hauyng nothynge of theyr owne, do spende theyr tyme in rych mens [Page 61] houses, from whence yf they shuld be dryuen oute, they muste ether begge or steale. Also thys place of Paule doth condē ne all sturdy beggers. I nede not to speake ony thynge of Monkes and suche sacrifyers, as are vnprofytable to the godly mynystracion of the churche, seynge ther can nothynge be fayned whyche dothe more condempne thē then thys.A necessary exhortacion to prynces and rulers. Ye prynces and rulers of cytyes take good hede, that thys lawe of God be put in vre and haue place amonge you, yf that you loue the healthe of the cōmune welthe. I pray you suffre not the substaūce of your people, to be caste vnto these puttockes to be deuoured, lyke mē that were bewytched vnder the pretence of relygion: & wynke not alwayes at these craftye bryhers. Defende your people for Gods sake, and brynge the lawe of god agayne into your commune wealthes.
For vve haue herde saye, that ther are certayne amonge you, vvhyche vvalke inordynatly, and vvorke not at all, but lyue curiously. And them that are suche vve commaūde and exhorte by our LORDE Iesus Christe, that they vvorke vvyth quyetnesse, and eate [Page] theyr ovvne breade.
Inordenate mē must be broughte [...] to an ordre.He speaketh nowe more playnly and shortlye that thynge, whyche he hath hetherto set forth at large. The cause (sayeth he) why I speake of thys matter so muche, is, that I heare certayne men to be amonge you, whyche do walke inordynatlye: that is to saye, do no worke, but leade theyr lyfe curiously. Therfore we commaunde these men by our LORDE Iesus Christe, yt they wyll get theyr lyuynge quyetlye, workynge wyth theyr owne handes. For thys thynge dyd the LORDE commaunde, Genes. iii. And condempned ydelnesse for euer. We haue herde (sayeth he) yt ther are certayne amonge you whyche do no worke at all, but geue theyr myndes to vnprofytable thynges.Who do lyue curyouslye. For to lyue curiouslye, is to be busy and laboure in vayne: as you wolde say, to be nother ydle, nor well occupyed: that this myght be the menynge: I heare yt ther be among you whyche worke not: for althoughe they laboure myghtelye & ouermuche, yet theyr laboure is vnprofytable, and it were a greate deale better that they were ydle, then to be so euell occupyed. After thys maner we se certayne [Page 64] Mōkes, Sacryfyers, and Nonnes to laboure a pace: for they synge & mumble vp prayers both daye and nyght, they watche & leaue nothynge vndone ye suche kynde of people shuld do: But in as much as Christ sayeth, Math. xv. They worshyppe me in vayne, teachyng the doctrynes & commaundemētes of men. Theyr laboure is vnprofytable, and to none effecte. And so do the Anabaptystes crepe into all mens houses, and reade & preach both daye and nyght: but no man calleth them, nother do they studye syncerytye & and purenes, but do trouble mē. Vserers also runne all aboute, and pull euery mā by the sleue and take greate payne: but to ye intente yt they myght be ryche, & lyue by the sweate of other mē. For although that all these do laboure strōgly, yet ther commeth no prosyte of theyr labour. For they do lytle good or none vnto theyr neyghboures. What sayde I do no good? where as they not only do hurte, but are also the greatest destruccion vnto the cō mune welthe. Saynte Ambrose descrybynge a certayne kynde of curious men, of whyche sorte we lacke none now a dayes, sayeth: They whyche desyre to be [Page] ydle,Of this sort be these honeste beggers (as they seme) and they, whych fayn thēselues to be banyshed for ye truthe sake. go about to gette an occasion, that they may make the ryche men fayne on them, & to call them ofte vnto theyr houses, and as they go vp and downe, they marke suttylly the doynges and opyniōs of eche one, by thys meanes knowynge what they wold gladlye heare of euery man, that they may be fedde thankefullye and requyred also: whych kynde of doyng greatly abhorreth from the doctryne of ye LORDE. For the bellye is the God of those whyche gette theyr lyuynge by such fylthye and shameles prouision. Hetherto is S. Ambrose sayenge. How much more doth it dyffer from the doctryne of the LORDE, that Monkes and sacryfyers haue robbed the people, vnder ye pretence of the name & seruyce of God, and haue stuffed theyr bellyes wyth moost swete delycates & deyntye dyshes? Howe muche is it contrarye vnto ye doctryne of Christ also, that sturdye beggers & hypocrytes vnder the pretence of Christes name do mayntayne theyr ydelnes, at the coste & charge of Christen men? We cōmaunde and requyre suche (sayeth the Apostle) yt they worke wyth quyetnes, & rate theyr owne breade: theyr owne breade (I saye) [Page 63] as though he wolde saye, not other mens breade, but theyr own. For they yt lyue curiously do not eate theyr own breade but other mens. Farther more they laboure not wt quyetnes: for theyr laboure causeth trouble, in as much as it is vnprofytable & chargeable to ye myserabe people. On ye other syde, necessary laboure brynge the wyth it muche quyetnesse & vtylyte: for he that goeth aboute hys owne busynesse and worketh wyth hys own handes hath nede of nothynge .i. Thessalo. iiii. And therfore is chargeable to no man, but doth geue to them that haue nede. Ephe. iiii. As many of you as are chargeable vnto the people, as many of you as do no worke at all, but go aboute thynges that be to no purpose, thynke ye yt thys is spoken vnto you also. Christe shall punyshe you, excepte ye leaue your dyshonest and moost vncomlye ydelnesse, and gette you to laboure. And here is a goodly place, to speake of the kyndes of laboures and busynesse, and of the helpynge and duetyes to the poore also. For all thynges are out of ordre amonge vs, but I had rather to subscrybe vnto other better learned, then to shewe forth myne ignoraunce. Lewes [Page] Viues hath wrytten two bokes of thys matter, in the whyche yf the rulers wold exercyse thēselues cōtynually, peraduē ture the cōmune welth shuld be in better case then it is, & ther shuldbe lesse slouth & ydelnesse, & more laboure & quyetnesse.
And ye brethren be not vverye in vvell doynge. We oughte to do good vnto al mē.
The moost parte of the ryche mē do vse to vpbrayde ye poore theyr slouggyshnesse and ydelnesse, they other whyles not so euell or myscheuous, as wretched and myserable. And by thys pretēce they kepe theyr charite from them that haue nede of it. And therfore S. Paule sayeth: I wyll not by thys meanes wythdrawe ony man from well doynge, or geue ony man an occasion for to ordre myserable people the more cruelly or vngētlye. For mē ought alwaye to do good. They shlud do well to euery man, but speciallye vnto godly men, we wold not ye God shulde be werye of our necessityes. We wolde yt he shuld receaue our oftē requestes wt a mery coūtenaūce. Therfore we shuld not be weerye also, when ye hys mēbres do call vpon vs for our helpe. And it is a pyteous thynge: yee yt a very ydle person shuld peryshe [Page 64] for hunger. Agayne they offende agaynst ye doctryne of God, whych are ouer fauourable vnto sturdye vagaboundes. But good mē can determyne this stryfe, equyte beynge theyr guyde:
Yf ony man obeye not oure sayenges, sende vs vvorde of hym by a letter: and haue no cōpany vvyth hym, that he maye be ashamed. And counte him not as an enemye, but vvarne him as a brother.
He ordeneth a punyshemente for the dysobediente.A payne is ordeyned for the dysobediente. Yf that ony man (sayeth he) despyseth to obey our instytucions, sende vs worde of hym by Epistle, and in the meanseason let hym be put oute of youre familiaryte: & that for thys purpose, that after he is ouercome with shame, he may amēde. For thys dysciplyne is not ordeyned for ye destruccion of ony man, but for his health. Therfore ye shall not vtterly putte from you a synner, but loue hym alwayes as a brother: but yet in ye meanseason ye shall monyshe hym of hys faute and correcte hym. And oute of thys place we maye learne what the disciplyne of ye churche is, and vnto what ende it oughte to be putte in [...]e, & also why the Apostle [Page] doth commaunde vs to flye the company of the dysobediente: not that we shuld abhorre them as enemyes and wycked mē, not that we shulde preferre our selues aboue other in holynesse, or els stāde well in our owne conceates, or exercyse tyrannye toward the myserable people: but that he whyche is gyltye, beynge taughte through our wythdrawynge from hym, & as it were warned of hymselfe, shuld remēbre hym selfe, and esteme hys fylthynesse as it is in dede, and so beynge ashamed, to amende. And yf that by the meanes of the euell that raygned in hym he wyll not amende, & by thys meanes come to hym selfe & repente: thē shall ye sayntes take delyberaciō amonge them, by what meanes thys madde man may be holpē, leste that ether he himselfe do vtterly peryshe, or els infecte other wyth the same dysease. For they are deceaued whyche whē theyse that the auoydynge from hys company auayleth not, do set asyde all farther remedyes, thynkynge that after thys, the churche maye vse none other meanes to brynge them into the waye. But Paule sayeth, sende vs word of him by a letter. To what purpose I pray you? [Page 65] That he myghte haue the name of hym that dysobeyeth? But what profyte shuld come of yt? He wolde therfore haue knowlege of suche by an epistle, that he myght take wyth godly men suche counsell for those vnruelye people, as they shulde thynke mete. For we ought all of vs to do our diligence that we destroye not thē for whome Christe dyed, nother by our importunytie or cruelnesse, nother yet by our ignoraunce & neglygence. But these wordes of ye Apostle seme vnto some mē, to be vnderstonde of ye priuate cōuersacion of men: that is to saye, that euery mā shulde abstayne so muche as he coulde from the cōpanye & familiaritie, of suche as are dysobedyente: And many haue expounded it of the open excōmunycacion.
The very LORDE of peace, geue you peace alvvayes by all meanes. The LORDE be vvyth you all. The salutaciō of me Paule, vvyth myne ovvn hande. Thys is my token in all epistles. So I vvryte. The grace of our LORDE Iesus Christe be vvyth you all. Amen.
He concludeth hys epystle, & wysheth them the bonde of al ryghteousnesse, holy peace, that they myghte kepe yt alwayes [Page] and in all theyr busynesse For Satan is the author of discorde, chydynge, stryfe, enuye, and priuy hatred: and God is the author of concorde, meknesse, and charyte. He dwelleth wyth all sayntes, so longe as they lyue in thys world in truthe and ryghteousnesse. Hys presence is the fountayne of all goodnes, and hys absence is the cause of all darkenesse, erroure, and eternall horror. Saynte Ambrose sayethe that for feare of choppers and chaūgers and corrupters of scryptures Paule doth testifye, yt he dyd alwayes subscrybe hys salutaciō in euery one of hys epistles wt his own hande: to the intente yt ony epistle receaued in his name, myghte not be suffered yf it were not subscrybed wyth hys owne hande. The Apostles toke such care, leste that the congregacions shulde be deceaued by ony crafte or deceate. These thynges do shewe of what certayntie & verite the Apostles wrytynges be. And because that Paule dyd teache constantlye amonge all nacions yt mankynde was saued by the grace of God, therfore he repetynge his wounte signet or subscripcion dyd sette to at the ende of all his epistles, this marke and seale of [Page 66] our faythe: The grace of oure LORDE Iesus Christe be with you all. It appeareth: therfore by thys, that the Apostle vsed the helpe of a notarye or scryuener for to wryte hys epistles yt he sente.
FINIS.
The summe or substaunce of the seconde Epistle of S. Paule to the Thessalonyans.
IT semeth that thys latter epistell of S. Paule to the Thessolonyās, was wryttē strayght way after the fyrst, in the stede of a defense or bulworke to the same. For in that he handeleth certayne thynges at large, whiche in thys he touchyth more scarcely. And in the begynnynge he dothe yet stylle publyshe and prayse the fayth of the Thessalonians because that they had endured constantly in muche tentacyon and affliccion. For the whiche cause he promyseth vnto them, refreshyng & eternall lyfe, and to theyr aduersaryes, fyre & vtter confusiō: to thentent that he myght strengthen theyr myndes. Further more because that in hys fyrste Epistle, he had made mencion of the commynge of the LORDE, and the resurreccyon of ye dead, some dyd vnderstonde that they were euen then at hand: therfore he sheweth in thys, that the LORDE shall not come, before that the chyld of perdycion be reueled, [Page] that is to saye Antichriste, whose commynge and kyngdome, yee also ye destruccion, he doth connygly paynte forthe truely, euen that the world then to come beynge warned, myghte beware of that pestilence. Last of all he dothe very often inculcate, that suche men oughte to be brought into an ordre, whiche with theyr ydelnes & curyosyte dyd trouble the publyke or comen wealthe. For he had made mencion of suche in the fourthe chapter of hys fyrst Epistle. Thys Epistle truely is shorte, but yet very profytable & learned. In the style it dyffereth nothynge frō the fyrst, nother is it of any lesse erudycion then that. They saye that thys also was wrytten by Paule at Athenes, and sente by men of the same towne: Theophilactus thynketh that it was sent by Titus and Onesymus.
The fyrste Chapter.
PAule and Siluanus and Timotheus, vnto the cō gregacion of the Thessalonians, vvhiche are in God oure father, and in the LORDE Iesus Christe: Grace be vvith you and peace frō God our father, and frō the LORDD Iesus Christ. Vve are bound to thanke God alvvayes for you brethren, as it is mete, because that your fayth grovveth excedyngly, and euery one of you ouerflovveth in loue tovvard another betvven your selues, so that vve our selues reioyce of you in the cōgregacions of God, ouer your paciēce and fayth in all persecucions and tribulaciōs that ye suffre: vvhyche is a token of the ryghteous iudgement of God, that ye are counted vvorthye of the kyngdom of God, for the vvhyche ye also suffre.
HE prayseth and reioyceth at the Thessalonians, & geueth thankes vnto God for theyr constancye and encrease of vertue. Of the which we may fyrste learne, yt yf we do any thynge [Page] well we shuld geue the thākes vnto God, and not ascrybe it vnto our vertue, but to attrybute vnto hym the pryncipall effectes of all thynges, and in no wyse waxe prowde for any thynge that we do well, nor yet thynke our selues strayghte waye perfayt, yf we seme oure selues somwhat to haue profyted in vertue and goodnes: but rather let vs thynke to go forwarde euery daye, and study to passe oure owne selues in all kynde of vertues. Secondlye we maye lerne hereof that we shuld not enuey at other mens vertues, but rather reioyce with them, yee and to geue thankes for the goynge forward & good example of oure brethren. Here are also recyted the chefe poyntes of oure relygiō, fayth, charyte and sufferynge farre other maner of thynges, then those whiche the Byshop of Rome, and a many of monkes haue rehersed vnto vs. And in that he calleth the churches, not hys but Goddes, it cōmeth of humylite and fayth. For they are false deceauers whiche beyng but the seruaū [...] of God and mynisters of the churches, do requyre to be called Lordes, and to vsurpe vnto them selues, any preemynence ouer other mens seruauntes. Thys place also [Page 4] doth teach, that sayntes or holy men are appoynted to persecucion, and to be exercysed wyth contynuall affliccions: and that those trybulacions are a token or demonstracion of the ryghteouse iudgemēt of God, that is, that wycked men peryshe iustlye, but the godly are counted worthy of the kyngdome of God, for the whiche they haue suffred muche aduersytye. For after thys maner dothe he comforte and lyft vp the sayntes, settynge the paynes & rewardes before theyr eyes.The affliccions of thys lyfe, are not worthye of the glorye which shall be s [...]wed vpō vs. [...]o. viii. But yf ony man thorow the helpe of thys place, wyll contende, that saluacion is dewe vnto oure affliccyons, and not vnto the passion and bloude of Christe onely, let hym marke thys also, that the very same man sayde vnto to the Romayns, that we are iustifyed by the benefyte of faythe, & not by the meryte of oure workes. It is therfore of the fatherly liberalyte & good wyll of God, that it is here sayd, that eternall lyfe is geuen vs by ryghte, and we made worthye of the kyngdome of God thorow affliccyons: where as it is playne that all our aptenesse is of God, and that we are made happy by the grace of God. But the goodnes of God, wold not discōforte our [Page] myndes, & as it were thorow our inabilite, prouoke vs to slacknesse or weerines. And therfore the scrypture speaketh as though we deserued somwhat, and were worthy of the kyngdom of God, that we shuld do all thynges with a glad and mery mynde.
It is verely a ryghteous thynge vvith God, to recōpence trybulacion to thē that trouble you, and to you vvhich are troubled, reste vvith vs.
Thys is a cause wherby is shewed, how that trybulacion of sayntes is a token of the ryghteouse iudgement of God. Whervpon S. Ambrose sayeth very goodly: because that saynt Paul sayeth, that a token of the iust iudgement of God, doth apeare, whether vpon the good or vpon the badde, therfore he saythe afterwarde: It is verely a ryghteous thyng with god, to geue vnto euery man accordyng vnto hys dedes. What is so ryghteous as that they whiche in thys worlde do suppresse good men, and banyshe them out of theyr country thorowe persecucions, shuld suffre such lyke thynges in ye world to come, as they do them selues here: And that the [Page 3] other shuld be in rest with other sayntes, whyche commynge out of many trybulacions, shall receaue the euerlastyng kyngdom. For the Apostle doth set forthe reste or refreshyng, agaynst the fyre of trybulacion, wherwith holy men withoute ceassyng are exercised in thys world. For whē they shalbe gone from hence, all laboure and sorowe shall ceasse, and quyetnes and toye shall followe. But to the vngodlye shall happen contrary wyse. Wherevpon we reade in the Gospell, that to the ryche glutton it was sayde: Sonne remembre that thou in thy lyfe tyme receauedeste thy pleasure, & contrarye wyse Lazarus payne. Nowe therfore he is refreshed, and thou arte tormēted. It differeth nothyng frome thys, that we reade in the fourthe chapter of the boke of Sapiēce. And these thynges truly are to be layd vp in the remembraunce of ye faythfull, to the intente that in tyme of aduersyte we myght perseuer in truth and ryghteousnes,A true sayenge. agaynst the tentacions of the deuell. For the prosperyte of wycked men whiche they haue in thys world, and on the the other syde ye trouble of holy mē & theyr moost infortunate estate, do greatly vexe our myndes, [Page] for to caste of the kyngdome of God, and embrace thys presente worlde. Let vs remembre therfore the ryghteous iudgemēt of God, and the chaunge of all thynges. Forsothe ther were in the tyme of the Prophetes, contemners of God and louers of thys worlde, which (after the maner of our men) commendynge the felicite of the wycked, and scornynge or condē nynge the perylles that sayntes are in, sayde: Men serue God in vayne, for ther commeth no profyte by that we haue kept hys commaundementes. And we se that prowde men and subtyll persons are happy, and they that do wyckednes to spede well, and to be shorte, that suche are safe as do tēpte God. And what other thynge is it, that men nowe adayes do obiecte agaynste the true worshypers of God: what good haue ye gottē by your belefe? saye they. But what doth Malachie answere? The LORDE gaue hede and herde thys, and ther was a boke of remē braunce wrytten before ye LORDE, & ye shall se in tyme to cōme, that ther is great differēce betwene ye ryghteous & the wycked, betwene the seruaūte of God & the despyser of hym. Malachie the .iii. chapter. [Page 6] Vvhan the LORDE Iesus shall shevve hymselfe from heauē, vvith his myghty angelles, in flamynge fyre, rendryng vengeaunce vnto them that knovve not god, and to them that obey not vnto the Gospell of oure LORDE Iesus Christe, vvhiche shalbe punished vvith euerlastynge dāpnacyon, from the presence of the LORDE, and from the glorye of hys povver, vvhā he shall come to be glorifyed in hys sayntes, and to be made maruelous in all thē that beleue (because our testimony that vve had vnto you, vvas beleued) in that same daye.
He doth here paynt and wyth expresse and very notable wordes, sette forthe before our eyes the commyng of the LORD Iesus and the maner of the iudgemenete. The same cōmynge shalbe vnto all sayntes very acceptable and moost beste welcome, and to the vngodly very sowre and sorowful. And euery word hath his strēgth and pythe. Nowe (saythe he) the matter goeth all by wordes. But whan the ende of all thynges shall come, those thynges shall apeare manyfestly, of which all sayntes haue disputed so long & many yeares. [Page] For the LORDE Iesus hymselfe to whōe all power is geuen in heauen & in earth, and to whome all iudgement belongeth, shall apeare in a corporall fourme and lykenes, for to iudge all fleshe. And nowe doth he descrybe the behaueour of thys myghtye Iudge, that vnto all hys enemyes shalbe so terryble, and so desyrous and longed for of hys frendes. He shall comme (I saye) frome heauen, not nowe (as once) crepynge vppon the earthe, nor yet lowe and despysed as he appeared in hys fyrste cōmyng: But cōpassed about wyth ye hoost of angelles. For we reade in Daniell the .vii: A thousande thousandes mynistred vnto hym, & tenne thousand tymes tenne thousande stode before hym. And therfore euē as a myghty kyng, beynge apoynted with a chosen & stronge hooste of men, doth sett vpon hys enemy, so shall the LORDE Iesus vse the mynisterye of angels in subduynge of ye wycked & mayntenaunce of the godly. Therfore doth he call them the myghty angels of God, as he wold saye: they, by whō god doth exercyse hys power or myghte. Nother shall he thē come forth gently & pleasaunte and for to heale ye vnruly, but be [Page 7] armed with horryble and flamynge fyre. The Apostle Peter beareth wytnesse also, that the LORDE shall iudge the world by fyre .ii. Petri .iiii. And the Prophete Dauid descrybynge yt maner of Christes cōmyng to iudgement, Psal. xviii. sayeth: Fyre shal go forth before him, he shall sende forth hys arowes & skatter thē he shal cast oute lyghtenynges & destroy thē. And Daniel: A fyry flowde brake forth (sayeth he) & wēt out frō his syghte. Furthermore Paul doth in playne wordes declare whō ye LORD shal destroy at his cōmynge. He shall of his wrath rēdre vēgeaūce vnto thē which knew not god, or at ye lest wold not know god, which followynge ye world, regarded not hys preceptes, & obeyed not ye Gospell of oure LORDE Iesus Christe. Which thyng agreeth very well to ye matter that is now in hāde. For the Thessaloniās obeyed ye Gospell, & suffered persecuciō for it. It was swete therfore to heare yt theyr obedience shuld be healthfull vnto thē, & to theyr aduersaries yt persecuted thē damnable. For he repetyng agayn the same thyng, whiche he had sayd euē now in other wordes: which shalbe punyshed (sayeth) wyth euerlastynge damncion. For [Page] euē so doth he rendre vengeaūce vnto thē. For he punysheth these contēpners, when he appoynteth them vnto euerlastynge fyre. For so we reade in Daniell also the xii. chapter. Many that slepe in ye duste of the earth shall waken: some to eternall lyfe, and some to shame and euerlastynge fyre. After the same maner also dothe the iudge geue sentence, Math. xxv: Departe fro me ye cursed chyldren into euerlastynge fyre, which is prepared for the deuel and hys angels: & they shall go into euerlastynge payne. And S. Ambrose sayth excellently wel: The wycked shall haue the paynes whiche are due vnto them, that is, they shall euermore fele eternall confusyon, and yet shall neuer wholy fayle, that the payne it selfe myghte engendre & renew them after a certayn maner wherby they may euer from tyme to tyme, be as it were consumed. Therfore they deceaue and are deceaued, as many as do promyse themselues delyueraunce out of hell, and do fayne that after the day of iudgemente, wycked men also shall be forgeuen. The whych thynge men saye ye Orygen thought, I wote nere how truly: but it is sure ye certayne of the Anabaptystes [Page 8] haue taught this openlye. But out of thys place it apeareth howe falsely and wyckedly. For the vngodly shall peryshe by euerlastyng death. From the presence of the LORDE, that is whē the LORDE commeth, & from the glory of hys power: that is, when he shall come gloriously, for to shewe hys power & strength vnto good and euell. For wyth these wordes (sayeth Theophylactus) he sheweth howe easy it is for God to punyshe, nether shall it be harde for hym to punyshe: because that rebellious and obstynate people shalbe tormented euē wyth the very syghte of hym. And the diuine presence shall bryng vnto some bryghtenesse wyth it, and to other punyshement & payne. For he shall come wyth glory and power, so that nother hys glorye shall wante power, nor yet his presence be without glorye. For it followeth that hys cōmyng shall not alonly be fearfull vnto the wycked, but gladde also and gloryous to ye godly. He shall come (sayeth he) to be glorifyed in hys sayntes. As though he wolde saye: when he shall come for to rendre vengeaūce vnto the wycked, he shall shew him selfe gloryous vnto the sayntes also, and make theyr vyle bodyes [Page] lyke vnto hys gloryous bodye, for ye which cause he shalbe maruaylous in al thē that beleue, who then shall prayse and magnifye hys so great goodnes and power? And thys shalbe so (sayeth he) because that ye beleued our wytnesse, that is our preachynge, whych I preached vnto you, tellyng you that that shuld come to passe, whych God shall do in that day. Ther are which thynke that these wordes: because that ye beleued oure testymony, are put in by a Parenthesis, and that to declare who be ye true beleuers, that is to saye, such as geue credence to the Apostles wytnesse. Saynt Ambrose sayeth that it may be expounded two wayes. For he shall come (sayeth he) to punysh the euell and glorifye the good. For he shall seme and shew hym selfe gloryous and maruelous, toward them that beleue, after the ensample and fayth of ye Apostles, at what tyme they shalbe crowned with glory, the Gospell bearyng wytnesse vnto thē in the day of the LORDE. And he shall appeare to the vnfaythfull a sore and heuy Iudge, at suchtyme as they shall begynne to fele the bytternesse of euerlastynge payne. For the glorye of the mayster is a reioyce and in maner of a [Page 9] crowne vnto the disciples, and hys truthe the extreme payne and mysery of the vnbeleuers: because they beleued not ye true preachers.
Vvherfore vve praye alvvayes for you, that oure God vvyll counte you vvorthy of thys callynge, and fulfyll euery good purpose to goodnes, and the vvorke of fayth in povver, that the name of our LORD Iesus Christ may be glorifyed by you and ye by hym, thorovve the grace of our God and LORDE Iesus Christe.
To harde thynges he alwayes addeth prayer. For faythe it selfe and the reuerence that we owe vnto God do teach vs, that thorowe prayer we owghte to go aboute to optayne ye chefe gyftes of God. And we shuld praye wythoute ceassynge. For S. Paule sayeth: We praye alwayes for you. And what we shulde praye or desyre, it followeth: That oure God wyll counte you worthy of thys callyng. What callynge I pray you? The same no doubt, wherwyth he shall call ye blessed into hys kyngdome, sayenge: Cōme ye blessed chyldren of my father, possesse the kyngdome that is prepared for you, from the begynnynge [Page] of the worlde. Math. xxv. Compare now thys place wyth that: Ye suffre, that ye myghte be counted worthy of the kyngdome of God, and ye shall perceaue that the fre grace of God maketh vs worthy of the kyngdome of God. For yf oure merites make vs worthy, what nede wer ther to praye the LORD yt he wolde coūte vs worthy of hys callyng. That worthynesse therfore hangeth vpon the fre liberalite of God. After thys we must praye, that God wyl fulfyll all oure good purposes to goodnes: That is, yt accordyng to hys goodnesse, wherewt he loueth vs, he wyll fortunatly perfourme that, which he hath begōne in vs. For he that cōtinueth vnto the ende shalbe safe. Math. xxiiii. It is not vnlike to this ye followeth: That he wyll fulfyll ye worke of fayth in power. That is: yt he wyll make oure fayth perfect thorow constaūcy & strēgth of mynd: the which thinge once put into our myndes by God ouercōmeth all aduersityes. Last of all we must praye, yt the name of oure Lorde, not oure name may be glorifyed through our hope, & that he may glorifye vs in his cōmynge: that is, make vs safe in soule & body. He addeth thorowe ye [Page 8] grace of oure God & Lorde Iesus Chrste: monishynge vs, yt all these thynges do depēde vpō ye grace of god, & not of our own merite. Thys is also to be marked, yt in this place also, he doth in al thinges make ye sōne equal to ye father: wherevpō it followeth, that ye vnite of God in the trinite is ryghtely defended of vs.
I besech you brethrē by the cōming of oure Lorde Iesus Christ, and for our assemble in hym, that ye be not sodēly moued frō your mynd, and be not troubled, nother by sprite, nother by vvord nor yet by epistle, vvhich shulde seme to come from vs, as though the day of Christe vvere at hande. Let noman deceaue you by ony meanes.
Some mē vnderstode by ye fourth chapter of hys fyrst epistle ye the cōmynge of ye Lorde vnto iudgmēt, & the resurrection of the dead was euē thē at hāde. Ther were also many deceauers, which affirmed planely, yt the ende of all thynges was than come. Euē as ther lacke none now adayes of the secte of the Anabaptistes, which come where as is great resort of people & ceasse not to crye, yt the daye of iudgmēt is at hāde. But Paule in thys place doth [Page] shewe what muste go before the cōmynge of the LORDE, & wyth what foresygnes and thynges, man ought to be warned before. And he doth very properly beseche ye Thessalonians by that same thynge in whiche they erred, that is to saye, by the cōmynge of the LORDE, of the which he hath hetherto spokē, and in the fyrst chapter also. Furthermore he exhorteth thē by the vnite & concorde, whiche we the mē bres haue wyth the heade Iesus Christe. For we seme to be plucked from thys holy bodye, as oft as we haue no ryght opynion of the heade or health of the mēbres. And he besecheth them that they be not sodenly moued from theyr mynde, that is from the true vnderstondynge and godly mynde. Erasmus: Be not sodenly moued (sayeth he) from your mynde, yf that hys commynge be deferred. But the playner exposycion followeth: Be not of that mynde and iudgement, yt ye shuld thynke, the daye of the LORDE to be nowe at hande. Nother be ye troubled. And to be troubled is to be amased in the mynde, to be afeared and to be destitute of counsell and helpe. After that he reherseth diuers maner of wayes, by whiche the congregacions [Page 11] are troubled.Thre special causes o [...] troublynge of the congregaciōs. The fyrst is the sprete that is a reuelacion, prophecie or tellynge of thynges to come, with the whiche certayne moost vngracious knaues haue deceaued many, bostynge thē selues to haue the sprete of God, where as they were led wyth euell lustes. The Montanystes and the Valentyniās which before tyme wer endued wt such a sprete (as Ireneus and Eusebius haue wrytten) dyd greatlye deceaue the symple people, as ye Anabaptistes do nowe. The second waye to trouble the churches is worde, yt is doctryne commyng forth of a lyuyng voyce, the whiche yf it be decked with eloquente and apparaunte wordes, it is moost pestylente. The thyrde way is a coūterfayte Epistle or some wrytynge garnyshed with a false inscrypcion or tytle. (as S. Ambrose testified) False deceauers are woūte (that they myghte the sooner deceaue) for to fayne an Epistle vnder the name of some noble wryter, to the intente that the authoryte of the mā, may set forth that, which can not be receaued by thē selues. And it can not be spokē, howe shamefully ye certayne vnthryftye knaues throughe thys crafte haue mocked ye churche of God, whyche [Page] haue thruste in amonge vs many bokes, many epistles, & workes, as though they had come frō the Apostles or apostolicall men, orels from wryters that were noble and excellente in authoryte, learnynge & holynes, whiche for all yt they neuer knew or coulde aproue, yf they were yet alyue. For ther are abrode certayne canones of the Apostles, certayn Epistles of apostolyke men, yet & many lytle bokes also, vnder ye name of Augustine & Ambrose which these men neuer sawe: What shal I say of certayne sermōs garnyshed wt the tytle of Cypriane & Augustine: The neglygence of the age yt is passed, & the couetousnes of wryters & prynters, wt the ygnoraunce & vnshamfastnes of thē was so greate yt noman can deteste it to muche. They that haue redde the wryttynges of ye olde doctoures, and haue sene ony of Erasmus iudgementes vpon ye workes of Ierome & Austen, do vnderstāde what I say. And yet shalt yu fynde mē, which thorowe the helpe of this place, wyll thrust into ye churche of God euery thyng yt they lust: Obiectyng that all thynges necessary to true godlynes are not wryttē in ye scryptures, because ye mencion is made here of ye sprete of ye [Page 12] worde, and of the Epistle, by the whiche a more perfayte doctryne myghte be delyuered to the worlde then to come. But these men do not se, that thys same place doth monyshe vs, that men shulde not be drawen awaye frome theyr mynde, that is ye wholsome faythe once receaued, through theyr tradicions: whiche beynge couered wyth the cloke of the sprete, of the worde, or of a decretall epistle, these men do caste vnto vs as Apostolike and moost holy doctryne. For after thys maner they do auaunce & only set forthe vnto vs bothe theyr popysh masses & all other thynges which they can not proue by ye testymonye of scryptures affyrmynge that they were institute by the tradycion of the Apostles, and afterwarde confyrmed by the Epistles of Apostolyke men, and by the reuelacion of the holy gooste. Let vs beware therfore of these rauenynge woulues, whyche beynge clothed wyth shepes clothynge, do come for to spoile, for to trouble, & to deuoure. Let vs kepe faythfully ye meanyng of Christ, wt the holsome and Apostolycall poyntes of true & vndefyled relygion, & then shall nomā deceaue vs by ony meanes. That learned mā Tertulyan, [Page] hath spoken more of thys matter in hys boke that he made of ye banyshmēt of Heretykes.
For the LORDE commeth not excepte ther come a departyng fyrst, and that that synfull man be opened, the lost chyld, vvhich is an aduersary, and is exalted aboue al that is called God or vvorshypped: so that he shall syt in the temple of God auauncynge hymselfe as God. Do ye not remembre that vvhē I vvas yet vvith you, I tolde you these thynges?
The LORDE shall not come, excepte that ther come a departynge [...]yrste.Ye thynke (sayeth he) that the daye of the cōmyng of the LORDE is nowe at hande, but ye are deceaued brethren. For excepte ther come a departynge fyrst, the LORDE shall not come. Excepte therefore that ther come a departynge fyrste, & that Antichriste do raygne, Christe shall not come vnto iudgemēt. Therfore ye departyng & raygne of Antichriste or rather tyrāny, shall go before ye day of iudgemēt. And here he dothe descrybe Antichriste & hys kyngdome at large. We shall touche euery thynge wyth a cōpendious brefenes, comparynge yt whiche Daniel spake of thys matter, with these thynges. For it [Page 13] semeth that the Apostle toke muche of hys out of hym. And fyrste we wyll speake of the departynge.Departing. Departynge is here taken after suche a maner, as whan a man doth slyde backe or fayle from hys author or prynce. Saynt Ambrose doth expounde it of the diuydynge of the kyngdome of ye Romaynes, and of the departyng of other kyngdomes frō it. Other haue interpreted it of the departyng of fayth, of the whiche the Apostle spake, i. Timo. iiii. sayenge: The sprete speaketh euydentlye, that in the latter dayes some shall depart from the fayth, geuyng hede vnto spretes of erroure and deuelyshe doctrynes, &c. But both cōmeth to one effecte as touchynge the substaunce of the matter. For when that same last monarchye or kyngdome beganne to be diuided, through the departynge of certayne kyngdomes from it, then began the Christen relygion and fayth to be corrupted and peruerted also, by them, which gaue hede vnto spretes of erroure & deuelyshe doctrynes. And by ye same laste monarchie or kyngdō is ment the empyre of Rome. For Daniell in hys .vii. Chapter. After .iii. myghty kyngdomes, that is to saye of the Babyloniās, [Page] Perses, and the Macedonyans, addeth to the fourthe, that is the Romaynes. I sawe (sayeth he) in a vysion by nyght, and beholde the fourthe beaste was grymme and horryble and maruaylous stronge, it had greate yron tethe, it deuoured and destroyed, and stamped the resydue vnder hys fete, it was farre vnlyke to other beastes, that were before it: For it hadde tenne hornes. I marked the hornes, and beholde ther came vp amonge them an other lytle horne, before whome ther were thre of the fyrste hornes plucked awaye: Beholde thys horne had eyes lyke the eyes of a man, and a mouthe speakynge presumptuouse thynges. Hytherto haue we rehersed the wordes of Daniell. And after he had desyred to knowe ye meanyng of this vysiō, he herde thys answere: The fourth beaste shalbe the fourth kyngdome vpon the earthe, it shalbe greater then all other kyngdomes, it shall deuoure, treade downe, and destroye all the worlde. The ten hornes are tenne kyngdomes yt shall aryse out of the kyngdom, after whom ther shall stonde vp another, whyche shall be greater then the fyrste, & shall subdue thre kynges, and so forth. S. [Page 14] Ierome declarynge this place of the Prophet,The Empyre of Rome. doth expounde it of the empyre of Rome, sayeng: He cōpared the kyngdome of the Romanes vnto no beast, & named it not: to the intent yt what cruelte more thē other we dyd suppose in the beastes, we shuld vnderstonde that of the Romaynes. And surely thys empyre hath subdued and waysted all the worlde: not beynge alonly vnlyke vnto other kyngdomes, in the settynge vp & gouernaunce of the kyngdom, but also in cruelnes, strēgth, & fearcenes. For what naciōs hath it not wasted with fyre & sweard, & vtterly destroyed, brought them in to bondage, and as it were a full and wanton beaste trode them vnder hys fete? For the which cause Mitridates the kyng of Pōtus (as Iustinus dyd note out of Trogus Pompeius) was wonte to say of the Romaynes: That they dyd trulye boste, yt theyr fyrste begynners or auncetters were brought vp wt woulues mylke, because yt all the people of Rome had wolues myndes, neuer full of bloude & euer gredy & gapynge after dominiō & ryches. Also Plinius in ye .vii. boke of his natural hystory, ye .xxv. chap. sayth of Iulius Cesar.Iulius Cesar. He fought in playn felde fyftye tymes: he only [Page] passed Marcus Marcellus a captayne of the Romaynes also whych yet had pytched & fyghten .xxxix. battayles. For besydes hys vyctoryes ouer cyties, trulye I wolde not speake to hys prayse, of eleuē C.xcii.M. men that were slayne by hym in battayles. Also the greate iniury that mankynd suffred by hym: whyche thynge to be true he hymselfe confessed, although he made no mencion of hys destruction in cyuile warres. The selfe same Plinius in the .xxvi. chapter wytnesseth, that in ye temple of Minerua, was a table hanged vp, brefly cōtaynyng the actes of Gneus Pompeius the greate which he had done in the Easte partes,Gneus Pō pe [...] in these wordes followynge: Gneus Pompeius the greate Emperoure & guyder of the Romaynes hooste, in the tyme of hys warres, which contynued .xxx. yeares, dyd beate down, put to flyghte, slewe, and toke to mercye twenty hundreth & lxxxiii. thousand men, he bowed and toke .viii. hundreth & .xlvi. shyppes, he had yeldyd vnto hym a .M.CCCCC.xxxviii. townes and castels, and subdued all ye contrye from the water of Meotis vnto the reede see. And the title or inscrypcion of hys tryumphe [Page 15] had the thyrde daye of the kalendes of October (Marcus Messala & Marcus Piso beynge cōsules) was thys: When he had once rydde the see coostes of Pirates, and had restored the Romaynes vnto theyr dominion whiche they had on the see, he brought gloryous spoyles out of Asia, Pō tus, Armenia, Paphlagonia, Capadocia, Cilicia, Syria, frō the Scythians, Iewes Albanes, out of Iberia, the Ile of Creta, and from the Basternes: And besydes these he led vnto hys triumphe these two kynges Mytridates & Tigranes. We haue touched only the actes, vyctories, & tryumphes of two Emperours: we haue spoken nothynge yet of Scipions, Fabyones, Marius and Metellus, nother yet of Lelius Sylla, Lucullus, Marcellus, Crassus, Paulus Aemilius, Flaminius, Sertorius, Cornelius Cinna and Fymbria, and of many noble men of thys sorte and degre: by whose study, feruencye, ambycion, couetousnes and desyre to beare rule: To conclude, by whose wylde cruelnes, & extreme tyrannye it came to passe that (accordynge to the prophecye of Daniell) all the world was deuoured, destroyed, and troden vnderfoote.
[Page]Ye haue now ye mystery of that cruell beaste, nowe shall we shewe what is sygnifyed by the ten hornes, and what by the halfe horne that sprange vp amonge them and plucked awaye other thre hornes. The nombre of ten signifyeth a multitude,The diuydyng of the Empyre of Rome and the departyng frō it. and hornes kyngdomes: and it meaneth that the Empire of Rome shulde be diuided agayne in to many kyngdomes: that is, ye thorow mēs departynge frō it, it shulde come to passe that manye kynges at once shulde rule in the Empyre of Rome. The whiche thynge beganne to be aboute the tyme of Constantine the greate, some gouernynge the kyngdomes of the Easte, and some of the Weste. And after that by processe of tyme manye nacions beganne to fall from it also, takynge other kynges and princes vnto them. Farthermore rude nacions brake in, and yt agaynst the Emperoure of Romes wyll: yee and subduynge the Prouinces and kyngdomes of the Empyre of Rome they raygned strongly. For those thynges are well knowen, whiche wryters of storyes do tell of the Frenchemen, Germaynes, Lombardes, and Perses.
[Page 16]And so are those thynges and storyes, also whyche credyble auctoures bothe Grekes and Latins haue wrytten of the bloudye dominion of the Gothies, Hunnies, and Wandaies. And after thys maner dyd tenne hornes sprynge oute of that beaste, and the departynge was fulfylled of whyche the Apostle hath nowe spoken.Of the spryngyngs vp of Antichrists. Nowe shall we speake of the commynge vp of Antichriste, that is to saye, of the reuelacion of that synfull man. Ther grewe vp a certayne foolyshe opynion that Antichriste shulde be one onely man, the whyche shulde be borne in Babylon, and of the trybe of Dan, and that he shuld raygne certayne yeares to the greate hurte of the faythfull. But the foolyshe men se not that Daniell dyd vnderstonde all the Kynges, Emperoures or heade rulers of the Babylonians, Perses, Macedonyans, and Romaynes vnder the names of one Lyon, Beer, Leoparde and other beastes. Therfore it muste nedes be, that he mente by that lytle horne, that is to saye by Antichriste, not some one onely man, but an whole kyngedome and an whole [Page] bodye which shuld fyghte agaynst Christe with theyr lawes, cōstitucions, maners & strength. Let vs therfore marke the wordes of the Prophete: I marked the hornes (sayeth he) and behold another lytle horne came vp among thē, before whom thre of ye hornes were pluckyd awaye. And agayn: Another (sayeth he) shall aryse after them and shall be greater then the fyrste, & shall subdue thre kynges. Ye haue nowe the mysterye, and the exposicion of the same. For the hornes do sygnifye the diuidynge and confusion of the kyngdomes. And in thys confusion of thynges, by lytle & lytle sprynge the vp another kyngdome in the world whych doth subdue thre other kynges.
Let vs cōpare wyth thys, those thynges which the wrytters of hystoryes haue shewed.Machomet of Arabia, some sayde that he was of P [...]. Nowe Machomet of Arabia in ye yeare of our LORDE .vi. hundreth and .xx that is to saye whyle ther was a maruaylous confusion of thynges both in ye East, and also in the West, sprang vp in ye tyme of Heraclius the Emperoure, whyche (as Volaterranus doth recyte out of a lybrarye) came of a lowe stocke, and beynge fatherlesse one Abdemonaples a man of [Page 17] the stocke of Ismaell boughte for his captiue and loued hym for hys fauoure and wytte: for the whiche cause, he made him a ruler ouer hys marchaūdyse and busynesse. Thē one Sergius a monke, which for the secte of heresie fled oute of the cytie of Constantynople into Arabia, endued hym with the heresie of Nestorius, & loued Machomet greatly for hys wytte. In the meane season hys mayster dyed wythout chyldren, leauynge behynde him muche ryches, and his wyfe a wydowe of fyftye yeares of age: whome Machomet maryed, and after that she was dead, he was made heyre, and greatly encreased wyth ryches: and beynge had in honoure wyth the foolyshe people (by the counsell of Sergius) beganne to call hym selfe the greate Prophet of God. Therfore after that hys name was publyshed, & hys authoryte greatly augmented amonge hys people, he made a law which he borowed partly of the Iewes, partly of the Christē, yee and also of the Heythen, and called it Alcoran. And those that obeyed it, he gaue them to name Sarracenes or Agarens, and armed them agaynste the Perses: Agaynste whom because he had metelye [Page] good fortune, he beganne to be taken for a Prophete or a man of God. And whan he had gotten hym great glorye, he dyed, after he had lyued .xl. yeares. After hys death many prynces of that naciō by succession when they had dyuyded the multytude or hoostes betwene them raygned some in one place, and some in another. And Homar the thyrde after Machomet, after that he had subdued ye Perses, toke Ierusalem and all Syria about the yeare of our LORDE .CCCCCC. lxx Constantine the fourth then reygnyng. After thys they that followed hym inuaded Egypte also, and ordeyned Calypha to be ruler ouer it. A man m [...]e reade more of the Sarracenes and of theyr kyngdome, here and there amonge the wrytters of histories. And the nacion of the Turkes commynge of the Scythyans warred vnder the Sarracenes in Asia, & toke theyr professiō and relygion of them from tyme to tyme as it were by hande from one to another: euen as they toke of them also ye greatest porcyō of theyr Empyre, & kepe it to thys daye gettynge synce therto Asia, Macedonia, Moesia, Athens, Peloponesus, Epyrus, Thratia, Illiricus, wt [Page 18] many other contryes. Nowe by thys ye perceaue what that lytle horne dyd sygnifye, the whyche commynge vp among the tenne hornes dyd plucke vp other thre. For it is Machomet the whyche cōmyng of a meane, yee of a moost lowe stocke, of a marchaunte is made a kynge, whose successoures haue holden thre of the mooste myghtyest kyngdomes of the world, Persia, Siria, and Egypte: and yet I rehearse not ye other kyngdomes of whych I made mencion euen now. For by the nombre of thre, he vnderstode many kyngdomes.
But yet all thys whyle we haue not mad an ende of ye mystery of iniquite.The bys [...]p of Rome. For ther is another certayn thyng also, which pertayneth to the perfeccion of thys body of Antichrist. Therfore whyle these thynges were in hand in ye East partyes, ye By shop of Rome goeth aboute ye dominyō of ye West in ye West partyes. Ye loked not that I shuld saye suche thynges of the By shope, but yet they are true. And who wolde euer haue thought ye the ministers of Godes word and of the churches shuld once haue come vnto suche madnes, as for to thynke & cauncell howe they myght gette the gouernaunce of the cytye and [Page] of the worlde? Specially in as muche as Christ had sayd in so playne wordes: The kynges of the gentyles do rule, but so shall not ye: but I haue chosen you, yt ye shulde go and brynge forth muche frute. And he that is greatest amonge you shalbe a seruaunte to you all. But these commaundementes of the LORDE beynge neglected, ther beganne certayne men to dispute of the primacy of the Byshope of Rome, at suche tyme, as that lytle horne was acōmynge forth. And because it was wrytten: Thou arte Peter, and vpō thys rocke wyll I buylde my churche. And I wyll geue the the keys of the kyngdom of heauē: And what so euer thou byndest vpō earth, shalbe bounde in heauen: And agayne because that Achasius the Bishop of Constantinople and Timotheus men of Grecia dyd desyre of Simplicius the Byshop of Rome, that he also wolde condempne Peter the byshop of Alexandria the follower of Euthicetys, heresye, as one whyche had rule ouer the chefe churche & whose authorite was of greate value among all mē: certayne men cōcluded vpō thys, that the seate of Rome was ye chefe of all churches, and that the Byshope of [Page 19] Rome was the head ruler ouer all byshopes. Thou seyst here also howe that lytle horne beganne to lyfte vp it selfe.Ihon of Cō stātinople. And Ihō of Constantynople puttynge more coles vnto thys fyre, helde a Councell amonge the Grecyans, in the whyche he declared hymselfe to be the vniuersall Byshop or Patriarke. The whyche thynge Mauricius the Emperoure of the Romaynes dyd sygnifye vnto Gregory the fyrst Byshope of Rome of that name, commaundynge hym for to submytte hymselfe and to be obediente vnto Ihon. But Gregory answered yt the power of byndyng & lowsyng was geuen vnto Peter, & not vnto ye Byshopes of Constantynople, and that therfore he shulde ceasse to prouoke the wrath of God vpō hym. Thys same Gregory wrytynge vnto Anastasius of Antioche and to Eulogius Byshop of Alexandria in the register of the .vii. parte of hys .xxx. Epistle, sayth: Youre worshypfull holynes knoweth, that thys name vnyuersall byshope was offered by the holy Coū cell of Calcedonye vnto them of the Apostolyke seate, whych (god so disposynge) I do nowe serue. But none of my predecessoures dyd consente for to vse so prophane [Page] a name: because surely yt yf one be called an vniuersal Patryacke, it is a derogaciō vnto ye name of other Patriarkes. But God forbyd ye ony Christē mā shuld take that to hym selfe, wherby he shulde seme to dimynyshe the honoure of hys brethren in ony parte, were it neuer so lytle These are Gregorius wordes. But not al only the Byshopes of Constantynople, but also of Rome the successoures of Gregory forgettynge these thynges, dyd not cease to stryue aboute the prymacy, vntyl that Bonyface the thyrde of that name, not longe from the tyme of Gregory, had optayned. But yet (as Platina sayeth also, not without greate cōtencion) of Phocas the Emperoure whyche slewe Mauricius wt hys chyldrē very cruelly: That S. Peters seate shuld be counted & called the head of all other churches. Of the whych thynge Paule the Deacon maketh mencion also, in the .iiii. boke of the actes of the Lombardes the .xi. Chapter. Nowe whan thys was graunted vnto the Byshopes of Rome, ther was as it were a wyndowe opened vnto ye whole Empyre: And thē they cast theyr mynde for to rule ouer the cytye & the whole world. And thē hauynge an occasyon, they gaue all theyr [Page 20] diligence to the same. And the wanders whyche were sene at that tyme, dyd sygnifye a greate chaunge of thynges, for they were suche, as were neuer sene before, of whych the hystoryes do testifye dyligētly.
And ther were thē very many occasions, whyche dyd lyfte vp the Byshope of Rome very hye, then goynge aboute the same thynge, and specially the sedycious warres and the often breakyng in of rude nacions.The breakynge in of the Sarracens For the Saracenes the generacion of Machomet, after they had taken Africa, dyd spoyle Syria and Asia and set vpon Europa. Therfore the Emperours beynge holden in the East partys because of these presente perylles, were cōpelled to set asyde the gouernaūce of the West. And by thys means it came to passe that the Frenche men and Lombardes encreased greatlye, in so muche that the Emperoure was at the laste afrayed of the kynges of bothe those nacions. For althoughe the Emperoure had set certayn Debytes for to gouerne Italy, yet was theyr power to weake for to resyste thē. The whiche thynge apeared well by thys one token, yt whē Theodorus the Emperoures Leuftenaunte in Italy, had once foughtē with [Page] the Lombardes at Scultenna a ryuer in Mutina:The kynges of Lō bardye. it was sayde that he was shamfully put to flyght and chased away, with the losse of .vii. thousand souldiers of Rome: by reason of whiche vyctory, Rotharis the kynge of Lombardye not a lytle proude, ioyned vnto hys kyngdom all Lyguria. Therfore after thys maner the Emperours power beganne to decaye in ye West, & the Byshopes of Romes power encreased, by so muche the more, as ye Lō bardes and Frenche men dyd raygne largely. For a lytle after he was exalted by theyr strength, wyth whome he beganne to falle into amitye. But it came to thys passe by lytle and lytle, of the which thyng we shall nowe speake. Yf the Byshope of Rome had bene chosen by the clergye and people of the Romaynes, yet had the eleccion ben counted as vayne, excepte ye Emperoure or the Debyte of Italye had aproued it, vntyll that Constantyne the Emperoure the sonne of Constance, whyche beganne to raygne the yeare of oure LORDE. CCCCCC. lxx. beyng moued wt the holynesse of Bēnet the second Byshop of Rome, sente a decre that from thēce forth all men shulde beleue, that man to be immediatlye [Page 21] the true vycare of Christ, which the clergye wyth the people and the souldiers of Rome shulde choyse to be the pope, wythoute any tarynge for any authoryte ether of ye prynce of Constātynople, or the Debyte of Italye, as it was wonte for to be. And after that the Byshope of Rome had gotten thys priuilege, he beganne to plucke hys necke frome the Emperours pocke, and the more boldly to parte: in so muche that wythin a lytle whyle after thys, when a mete occasion was offered hym, that is to saye, a bytter contencion betwene the Byshoppes of the East and of the West, he beganne the boldelyer to exercyse hys authoryte agaynst the Emperoure hymselfe.
For the heresye of the Monothelytes sprange vp vnder Heraclius the Emperoure:The heresy of the Monothelites. And that secte confessed onely one wyll in Christe. Martyn the fyrst of that name gathered a synode of .C. and .l. Byshopes and condemned it at Rome. The syxte synode holden at Cōstantynople cō demned the same. And that same infecciō semed then to be quenched. But Philippicus the Emperour beynge infecte with the same, after he had banyshed Cyrus a [Page] Byshop of good iudgemēt into Pontus, he made one Ihō a certayn mōke Byshop ouer Constantynople, & sente hys naughtye doctrynes into Rome, cōmaundyng ye they shuld be approued by ye consent of all mē. Here Cōstantyne ye Byshop of Rome the fyrste of that name, gettynge a good occasion to wythstande the Emperoure, gathered a councell and condemned Phylyppicus of heresye and, Ihon the monke, yee and decreed also that the ymages of those holy fathers, whiche had bene present at syxe Councelles approued of all men, shulde be paynted in S. Peters porche.Contencion aboute the vse of ymages. And therfore thorowe thys occasyon thee beganne to be a disputacion among them, of the vse of ymages also. In the whiche cōtrouersye they of ye Easte parte thought more godly then they of the Weste: But for because that a ryghteouse cause was ioyned wyth a wycked, it came to passe yt it had the lesse fauoure amōge many wyttye and learned men. And the Grekes fell not wythout affeccion into thys contencion, whome it greued that the Romaynes dyd abuse ymages, as a token of victorye in the despyte of them of the Easte: for by thys meanes they turned all theyr [Page 22] cryenge agaynst ymages. But I am not very sure whether that the Emperoures Leo and Constātyne dyd defende the learnynge of the Monothelytes: but thys is playne that they dyd abrogate ymages for auoydynge of Idolatrye, not wythout the example and authoryte of the scryptures, and cōmaunded the Romaynes more then once for to do the same. But the Byshopes of Rome by the meanes of thys occasion dyd wythdrawe all the people of Italy from the obedience of the Emperoure, and thruste in themselues by theyr owne authoryte, callyng vnto thē straūge kynges, by whose helpe the Byshope of Rome was made Lord of Italy, & the Emperoures Debyte dryuen oute. For when the Emperoure Leo had geuē a cōmaundemente, that all whyche were vnder the Empyre of Rome, shulde take awaye the pyctures and ymages of sayntes for auoydynge of ydolatrye, and that he that dyd other wyse shulde haue hym for an open enemye:The byshoppes of Rome do cōdemne the Emperoures of Rome. Gregory the secōde admonyshed all men that they wolde in no wyse fall into suche erroure, nether for feare, nether yet for ony commaundemente of theyr prynce, & steared vp all the people of Italy [Page] wyth so great vehemency of oracion, that a lytle more wolde haue made them to haue chosen them a new Emperoure. And at Rauenna trulye, after that a great sedycion was raysed vp, Paule the Debyte of the Emperoure was slayne there with hys sonne also. Gregory the thyrde followynge hys exāple dyd depreue Leo as well of hys Empyre,The byshoppes of Rome do calle vpon the helpe of the kynges of Fraunce as of the cōmunion wyth the faythfull. The same Gregorye called fyrste of all vpon the kynges of Fraunce for helpe agaynst hys enemyes. For whyles ye Luythprandus kynge of Lombardye was moued wyth the desyre to beare rule, dyd besege the cytye of Rome, and had taken all the townes on euery syde: thys same Gregory sente embassadoures into Fraūce for to desyre Charles Marcellus the father of Pipyne, that he wolde now the fyrste tyme helpe Rome and ye churche beynge in trouble. And the Byshoppes of Rome were wounte to aske helpe of the Emperoure of Constantynople, yf any euell had bene commynge towarde them by any forayne enemy. The whych thyng Gregory wolde not nowe do, because he had publyshed Leo the Emperoure to be an heretyke, or chefely because that Leo [Page 23] coulde scante defende hys regall cytye frō the Sarracens, muche lesse helpe other men. By thys meane therfore it came to passe (sayeth Platina) that then fyrst of al the defence of the church was translated frō the Emperoures of Constantynople vnto other men. Then Charles toke vpō hym thys defence, and delyuered Rome from the sege: After that he had wythdrawen Luythprandus the kynge and hys godfather from hys pourpose wyth a louynge exhortacion. But the kynge of Fraunce through thys good turne, bound the Byshops of Rome so much vnto him, That Zachary the fyrst the successour of Gregorye the thyrde, denyed not hys consente vnto Pipyne the sonne of Charles,Pipyne by the meanes of the B. of Rome is made kynge of Fraunce. in a matter moost vnhoneste. For Pipyne went about the kyngdome of Fraunce and desyred greatlye for to put Clyperichus hys Lorde, whyche came of the auncyente and noble stocke of the kynges of Fraunce, and was the laste kynge of the stocke of Merouea, out of hys kyngdom, and to make hym selfe kynge. Nowe whē he had troubled greatly both the nobylite and the laytie, yee and also the clergye aboute thys matter, at the laste he sente [Page] Burghardus the byshope of Herbipolis wyth Folradus hys preste vnto zacharye the Byshop of Rome: for to aske whether that he were more worthye to be kynge whyche was but the kynge onely in name and could do nothynge wyth hys counsell and helpe, or elles he whiche bare all the burthen of the kyngdome alone, & yet in the meane season lacked the dygnite of a kynge? Thys Byshope of Rome remembrynge what had bene done for hym, gaue an expresse sentence (I wryte the wordes of Frysingens. a wrytter of hystoryes & a Byshop) that it was meter, that he which toke the charge of all thynges shuld be called kynge, then he whiche had but onely ye name of a kynge. For of an olde costume the kynges of Fraunce dyd leaue the gouernaūce of theyr kyngdom vnto ye moost auncienteste of theyr stocke: for it was ye hygheste power nexste the kynges. Nowe whē these embabassadoures had broughte thys answere vnto ye kynge, Pipyne bearynge hymselfe bolde of the verdyte of these great learned men and chefe of relygyon, & also of the ayde of certayne prynces & noble men, dyd thruste Chylpericus hys Lorde and kynge oute of hys regall [Page 24] dygnite, and when he was oute of hys authoryte dyd shutte him in to a monastery, and he hymselfe by ye consente of hys mē toke vpon hym all the kynges power. And when thys good kynge called vpon the cō mune fydelite that mē had promysed him, and that ther were many in the realme whyche greatly improued suche tyrannye and breakynge of theyr othes, Zachary the Byshope of Rome assoyled Pipyne wyth all hys of theyr othe, whyche they had made vnto Chylpericus theyr kyng. And that thys matter was thus handeled I wyll brynge for the two wytnesses: The fyrste oute of the hystorye of Platina, and thys it is: Pipine beynge desyrous to beare rule, sente hys embassadoures vnto the Byshoppe of Rome and desyred hym that he wolde confyrme the kyngedome of Fraunce vnto hym by hys authoryte. The Byshop graunted vnto his requeste after he had remēbred what good turne he had receaued, and also the olde kyndnes yt had ben betwene the Byshoppes of Rome and ye kings of ye familie. And so by hys authoryte the kyngdō of Fraūce was iudged vnto Pipyne in the yeare of oure LORDE .vii. hundreth .liii. Thys [Page] is Platinas sayenge. Nowe followeth ye latter testymonye of Gelasius, wrytten vnto Anastasius the Emperoure, whyche is conteyned in the .xv. questyon the .vi. Canon in these wordes: Another byshop of Rome called zacharye, deposed ye kynge of Fraunce from hys kyngdome, not so muche for hys iniquyties, as because he was vnmete for so greate a dygnite,The shepe troubleth the wa ter that the wolfe shulde drynke in that is, an occasion is lyghtely founde. & dyd sette in hys place Pipyne the sonne of Charles the Emperoure, and assoyled all the people of Fraūce of theyr othe of alegiaūce. Hetherto go ye wordes. And kynge Pipyne for to recompence the Byshopes of Rome, helped Steuen the seconde, Byshop of Rome beynge oppressed of Aistulphus kyng of Lombardye and fledde into Fraunce: & after that Pipine had passed ye mounteynes twyse wt an armye of men, he baysted into Italye, and at the laste cō pelled Aistulphus to restore agayne those thynges whiche he had taken awaye: goynge aboute by thys meanes for to quyte the Byshope of Rome for confyrmyng of hym in hys kyngedom.Pipine geueth vnto the Byshoppes of Rome, that whyche belōged to the Emperour. Then was the offyce of the Debyte geuen vnto ye Byshop of Rome, and all that lyeth betwene Padus and Apenninus, frō the Placentyns [Page 25] vnto the pooles or stondynge waters of Venyce, and all that is cōteyned wythin Isaurus a floude of Apenninus and Adriaticus, and what so euer ye Aistulphus had gottē of ye men of Hetruria, and of the Sabyns: All these thynges (I saye) dyd Pipine of hys lyberalyte geue vnto the Byshope of Rome, the Emperoures Legates nothynge regarded. For as Pipine was remouynge into Italye agaynst Lombardye, Gregorye the chefe Secretary of the Emperoure Cōstantyne the fourthe met hym, and in the name of the Emperoure warned the kynge, that yf he happened to haue the vyctorye of the Lombardes, that he shulde not geue vnto the Byshope of Rome nor to the Romaynes, the Debyteshyppe ouer Rauenna, whyche was oppressed of the Lombardes and belonged vnto the Emperoure. But Pipine droue hym awaye from hym wt a metely sharpe answere, because he thoughte to do as he dyd a lytle whyle after, for the whyche cause he was the fyrste of the kynges of Fraunce that was called, the moost Christen kynge.
Hys sonne that was called Charles the greate followed the ensample of hysCharles the greate. [...] [Page] [...] [Page 16] [...] [Page] wyth a lowde voyce, he ordeyned thys Charles to be Emperoure, & gaue him a kynges ornamenete: the people of Rome cryeng thryse together: Longe lyfe & victorye be vnto Charles Augustus crowned of God, ye greate & peaceable Emperoure. These thynges were done, the yeare of our LORDE .viii. hundreth and .iii. nor it is not lyke that these thinges were done without the consente and counsell of Irenes the Empresse of Constantinople, specially because that the Cronicles of the Grekes do shewe that ther were messaū gers dyrected from Charles and Leo vnto Irenes, to requyre her that she wolde be maryed vnto hym: the whyche wolde soone haue graūted vnto theyr requestes, yf that the prynces of Constantinople knowyng of the matter, had not banyshed her strayght way (and that before the face of Charles Embassadoures) vnto Lesbus, into an Abbey that she had buylded. But Egynhartus in the lyfe of Charles, dothe laye all the faute of the translacion of the Empyre, to the Byshope of Rome. For Charles at the fyrste (sayeth he) dyd so greatly refuse ye name of the Emperoure and augustus, that he sayde that he wolde [Page 27] not haue entred into the churche that daye, although that ther were greate solempnyte, yf he myght haue knowen the Byshopes mynde before. He addeth more: yet he suffered wyth greate pacience, the euell wyll that he had for takynge yt name vpon hym (for the Emperours of Constā tynople were greatly dyspleased wyth it) and he ouercame theyr grudynge wyth hys myghtinesse, in the whiche he passed them farre. Moreouer theyr forayne warres helde them backe, that they coulde not set vpon the Byshope of Rome and kynge Charles. And therfore dyd Nycephorus ye fyrste Emperoure of Constantynople after the diuidynge of the Empyre, make alyaunce wyth kynge Charles.
Hetherto haue we shewed at large wt what begynnynges & in what ordre,The conclusion. that lytle horne crepte vp, and gatte so greate power. Nether was ther then truely ony power so great in all the Weste partye, as the Byshoppes of Rome was. For at theyr sentēce were ther myghtye kyngedomes translated. For fyrste Chylpericus that was borne kynge of Fraunce beynge cast of, he dyd craftely constitute Pipine hys gouernour in ye kynges stede. [Page] And after that he had taken awaye the power of the eleccion and ordenynge of ye Emperoure from the heades of Constantynople & the Romaynes, he gaue Charles the kynge of Fraūce the name of Augustus. For the whiche cause he hymselfe gette the rule of that cytie, whyche is the ladye of the worlde, for a rewarde of thys gaye done dede. Furthermore he waysted that stronge naciō and myghtie kyngdom of the Lombardes thorowe his requeste & counsell. Therfore he that once optayned Rome, he threwe downe and exalted Emperoures at hys owne pleasure, and gaue Frenchemen a kynge, and vsed theyr seruyce as they had bene hys seruaūtes. For wyth theyr armyes he tamed ye Lōbardes, that he myght afterwarde raygne safely ouer all Italy. He I saye that ruleth ouer so many and so greate kyngdomes, maye he not by good ryght we are a glysterynge diademe wyth a tryple crown: No doubte the prouydence of God wolde, that thys Byshope of Rome (wyth thys maner of apparell fyte for a kyng) shuld shewe forth vnto all the worlde what he was, that is to saye, that lytle horne yt Danyell speaketh of, whyche came forth and put asyde [Page 28] thre other hornes, and wyth wonderous subtylte subdued them vnder hym.
And here vnto belongeth the gyfte of Lewes the sonne of Charles,The gyfte of ye kynges of Fraunce. whom these men (for hys fauoure and beniuolence towarde the seate of Rome) called Pius, yt is to saye, good or godly: euen as before, they had geuen Pipine to name. The moost Christen kynge. Yf ony man desyre to reade of that same gyfte, he shall fynde it dyligently wrytten of Raphaell Volaterranus, in the actes of Pipine & Charles, libro. Geog. tercio. The effecte of it is thys: I Lewes the Emperour do graūt vnto the blessed saynte Peter ye prynce of the Apostles, and thorow the vnto thy vycare my Lorde Pascall the hye Byshoppe and hys successoures for euer. The cytye of Rome wyth hyr iurisdyccion and all ye lande aboute it, wyth the cytyes, hauens and places of Hetruria that lye nye ye see, yee and all that lyeth wythin the lande of the same, and the whole dukedome of Rauenna also, euen as Charles oure father worthy to be had in mynde, and Pipine our graundsyre, dyd of late graunte vnto blessed saynte Peter. Furthermore we do also approue and graunte, the dukedome [Page] of Spoletyne, the Ilōdes also of the inner see, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicilia: the which all of them Pipine our grandsyre, of godly remembraunce, and after hym Charles the Emperoure oure father, dyd geue by wrytynge vnto blessed saynte Peter and his successours &c.The gyft of Constātine. In thys gyfte here is no mencion of Constantyne, the which verely is a fayned thyngt: for at the lēgth the Byshoppes of Rome rayned at Rome and in Italye, euen agaynste the Emperoures of Romes mynde by the helpe of the kynges of Fraunce. The Byshoppes of Rome in the meane season, do ofte cast forthe oute of theyr decrees the Canon whyche in the .xcvi. dystinction is redde after thys maner: Constantyne the Emperoure dyd graunte the crowne and all ye regall dygnyte wythin the cytie of Rome and Italye and the Weste partyes, vnto the Apostolyke man. But howe soeuer ye matter commeth to passe, we se that the Byshoppe of Rome doth rule ouer all the kyngdomes of the Weste.
The name of Augustꝰ or Emperoure translated to the Germanes.For it belongeth hereunto also, that throughe the counsell and dylygence of Ihon the .xiii. Byshope of Rome, the Empyre of Rome or the name of Augustus, [Page 29] was translated agayne from the French men vnto the Germanes. That is to say, to the prynces of the Almanes, Saxones, Bauares and Swychers. But howe they kepte them vnder theyr yocke also, ye hystoryes of many Emperoures of the Germanes do shewe full well: and specially ye Canon whiche in the .lxiii. dystynction is redde in these wordes:Kyng Otto. I kynge Otto do promyse and sweare to thy my Lorde Ihō the Pope, by the father, the sonne and the holy goost, and by thys wodde of ye lyuely crosse, and by these relyques of sayntes, yt yf by the sufferaunce of God I come to Rome, I shall exalte the holy churche of Rome, and the the ruler of the same, accordynge to my power: & thou shalt neuer lose by my wyll or my counsell, or my consente, or myne exhortaciō, nother lyfe nor membres, nor yet the same honour which thou now haste. And I wyll make no statute nor none ordynaūce in Rome, of ony thynge that belongeth vnto the or to the Romaynes, wythoute thy counsell. And what soeuer of S. Peters lande commeth to my power, I wyll restore it the agayne. And to whome soeuer I shall commytte ye gouernaunce of Italye, I shall cause hym [Page] to sweare that he shal helpe the to defende S. Peters land wyth all hys power. Surely these greate and incredible thynges, yf any man shulde compare thys greate alteracion and chaunge of thynges, and it were but wyth Gregorye the greate, ye fyrste Byshope of Rome of ye name. But these swete Byshoppes not beynge cōtent wyth these greate thynges, neuer ceassed to laye wayte for the Empyre of Rome by theyr moost subtyl counselles, vntyll that they had prescrybed lawes of the true eleccion of the Emperoures:The byshop of Rome maketh lawes for the elecciō of the Emperoures. and had decreed that the confyrmaciō of the kynge of Romanes shuld depende vpon them. And for the same cause Platina in ye lyfe of Gregory ye fyfte, wrote after this maner: Gregory knowyng ye weaknesse of the Empyre & the chaunge of fortune, to the intent yt the hyghest power shulde remayne the lenger amonge the Germaynes, & that he shulde beare rule ouer other, whych passed other in strengthe and dygnite, made a decre (Otto not denyenge it) of the eleccion of the Emperoure, in the yeare of our LORDE. M. and .ii. whyche thynge we se kepte vnto oure tyme: that is to saye, that it is lawful for the Germanes onely to choyse [Page 30] oute that prynce whyche is called Cesar and the kynge of Romaynes: and he shuld then at the laste be taken for the Emperoure & Augustus,Reade Marsilius Pataninus. dictia. 2. cap. 25 yf ye Byshope of Rome had cōfyrmed hym. I could also bryngforth other innumerable thynges of thys same sorte, But I thynk yt the reader doth vnder stōde playnely ynough by these of whome ye prophecy of Daniel & of Paule is mēte.
But some man wyll say,An obieccion. thou makest two hornes: Machomet and the Byshope of Rome: where as Daniel maketh mencion but of one onelye. But excepte that the Byshop of Rome, beynge bolde of the helpe of the Frenchemen, had broken the power of the Emperoure of the Easte, he wolde surely more strongly haue putte to flyght and persecuted the multytude of ye Sarracens. On the other syde yf that the Sarracens wyth theyr runnnyge in, had not kepte the Emperoure in ye Easte partyes, the power nother of the Byshope of Rome, nor of the Lombardes, nother yet of the Frenchmen, could not haue encreased so greatly in the Weste partyes. Therfore eche of them gaue an occasion vnto other bothe for to ouercome & to raygne. in so muche that of the Empyre of Rome [Page] lyttell dyd remayne but a bare name only For the Byshope of Rome kepeth ye cytie of Rome, & the greate Turke Constantinople. Now both of thē impugne Christes institucions & lawes a lyke: both of thē do persecute Christen mē, defendynge theyr owne lawes, & suche as holde wyth them. Wherfore I coulde not make two hornes of them that are so lyke. Yee & the kyngedome of the Perses & Medes is fygured vnder ye ymage of one beere indyfferentlye, although they seme to be tweyne. And so in the .xi. chapter, the same Daniell prophecyenge of the selfe same Antichrist, and begynnyng at the Empyre of Rome, sayth not: An arme shall stond out of him, but armes shall stonde out of hym, & shall defyle ye sentuary of strength, &c. But you haue nowe the begynnynge and goynge forwarde of Antichriste: here followeth nowe a clearer exposyciō of hys disposiciō and kyngdome, by hys dedes and properties.
The dysposycion and Kyngdom of Antichriste.For holy S. Paule, doth set forth Antichrist in dyuers wayes as it were in his colours: that he myght paynte forth, and as it were set out before oure eyes to beholde, his dysposycion and kyngdome. And [Page 31] to begynne wtall, he geueth hym to name the synfull mā. And after yt, as it were expoundynge hymselfe, the chylde of perdyciō. The whyche names after the propertye of the Ebrewe tunge, are as muche to saye, as yf one in our tunge shuld call ony man, mooste vngracious patrone, or vnhappye persone: yee and as it were myschefe it selfe and perdicion it selfe: as you wolde saye, suche a man as were the cause of wyckednes, and perdycion both to him selfe, & also vnto other. Yf ony man wold reade the hystorye of Machomet or of the Turkes (the brefenes of the whyche Raphaell Volaterranus hathe gathered, Geog. libro .vii.Of Machomet.) and wold ponder it wyth a dyligente iudgemente, he wolde sweare that thys Antichriste were the syncke of all myschefe, and the greateste destrucciō of all mankynde For he had troden down the lawe of God and had publyshed hys owne, that is to saye, a moost superstycious law, in ye whyche hypocrysye is myghtely set forth, but yet in the mean season a way opened vnto all wyckednes. He hath also subuerted mooste myghty cytyes and layde thē flat vpon the groūde: he hath destroyed ye moost holycongregaciōs of god, [Page] Antioche, Alexandria, Ierusalem and Constātynople wt all the congregacions of Grecia and Egypte: for I wyl rehearse no mo. Truely wythin thys .lxxx. yeares he hath inuaded, beaten downe & spoyled more kyngdomes, then euer any myghty prynce, or cruell tyraunte had done before hym. We haue herde suche examples of hys cruelnes, that we maye very well vnderstonde by thys chylde of perdicion and synfull man, the kyngdome of Machomet.
The lyfe of the mooste holy fathers of Rome.Nother is the seate of Rome ony thyng behynde hym in myschefe or wyckednes. Ther is no myschefe nor vngracious dede, but that they whyche are called moost holy, haue defyled themselues therwith. I wyll here vse no straunge wytnes, I do appeale vnto theyr owne Cronicles and lyues. In the meane season I am not ignoraunte, that certayne men of good fame haue cōme vnto thys seate, but thou shalt reade of very fewe, that haue dyed vncorrupte. For who can beleue yt the best man that were could syt so cleane in such a prophane & abhomynable seate, that he shuld drawe no fyltynes vnto him? But it came to passe that some were worse thē some, by ye reason of ye dyuersyte of theyr dysposycions. [Page 32] Surely for the moost parte of thē they were not behynde the mooste wyckedest man and vngraciouste knaue that is, in ambyciō, in euell and trayterous craftes, in warres, in bryberye, in extorcion, in moost vnsaciable couetousnes, in pryde moost arrogaūte, in fylthye luste and voluptuousnes. We brought examples out of hystoryes here before in oure exposycion, where we shewed by what subtilties they came into the dygnyte of ye Empyre. And Platyna although he greatly spared the Byshoppes of Rome yet beynge ouer comme wyth the euylnes, wyckednes, & vnspeakeable myscheuous dedes of some of them, lefte that in wryttynge to hys posterite, whiche he sawe to be ouertrue. Beno ye Cardinall dyd rather but touche, then descrybe, the moost vngraciouste lyfe of some Byshoppes of Rome. In ye lyfe of Gregorye the .vii. Platina dyd counte hym among the beste & moost innocente, but Beno rekenned hym amonge the worste & vnhappyest: as one whiche after sacrylege and moost wycked abhomynacions, dyd also vse wytchcrafte, & all kynde of vngraciousnes. And Marsilius Patauinus the moost learned and beste wryter [Page] of hys tyme in his worke, whiche he made at Bauarus for Lewes the fourth, of the power of the Pope and the Emperoure, and called it the defender of peace, dothe clearly shewe what the Byshopes of Rome be, and were many yeares: that is to saye, proude, hye mynded, couetous, doers of wrong, vnfaythfull, troublers of peace, and ye commune welthe, dyspysers of God and holy authoryte, enemyes of all goodnes and honestye. Let men reade the .xxii. xxiii. xxiiii. xxv. xxvi. Chapters, &c. of ye second dictiō or parte of hys boke. We haue sene also Byshopes of Rome in our tyme, that nothynge more vnshamefaste, more fylthy, more abhominable or wycked thinges can be ymagyned thē they haue done. For those thynges are well knowē, whych Volaterranus hath shewed of Paule the seconde in hys xxii. boke of Antropologia. of Syxtus the fourth, and Alexander the vi. very fewe men haue thought well. Also duke Valentyne made them both noble men. Iulius the seconde was the best beloued Pope of all vserers, dronkardes, whorehunters, moost cruell and bloudye souldyers: In so muche that they wyshed hym that he had chaunged rowmes wyth [Page 33] Maximilian the Emperoure, a mā worthy of blessed remembraunce. For they sayde that he was a man that was geuen vnto relygion, commune peace and tranquyllyte (as in dede he was a godlye and meke Emperoue) and that the other was borne for warre and troublynge of matters. Also Pasquyllus of Rome yested vpō Clement the .vii. wyth verses hangynge vpon hym on thys mater.
Infinyte other thynges of thys sorte I do ouerpasse, leste I shuld make ye godly reader for to vomyte. And surely no man (althoughe he were verye eloquente) can sufficientlye declare, what multitude of wyckednesse hath crepte from suche heades of the churche, amonge all the people of Christe: so that I haue not offended in expoundynge thys prophecye of Paule, of the Byshopes of Romes kyngdom. I wyll speake nothynge nowe of the ypocrysye, synnes and wyckednes of Monkes, Nonnes, Prestes and the spiritualte (as men call them) because that experience itselfe doth set forth all these thynges more clerlye then ony mā cā descrybe thē. For here is ye thynge fulfylled of whyche S Paule dyd prophycy: They shall resyste ye truth, men of corrupte myndes, reprobate as touchynge the faythe, but they shall preuayle no lenger: for theyr madnes shalbe euydent vnto all men .ii. Timo. iii.
[Page 34]Secondlye Paule calleth Antichriste Aduersarium, yt is to saye an aduersarye: and he calleth hym an aduersarye or Antichriste, as though one shuld saye, set playn contrarye agaynste Christe: as one whose wytte, maners, lyfe, doctryne, dedes, lawes and institucions do fyghte agaynste Christe.A comparison betwene Christe and Antichriste. Christ came to shewe peace to all the worlde, as of whose commynge ye Prophetes had shewed before, that thē moost cruell nacions shulde turne theyr sweardes into coulters, & theyr speares into sythes. Nowe Machomet doth boaste hymselfe to be sente of God in the power of armoure. Christe taught that men are not defyled wyth those thynges that go into the mouth. But Mahomet hath forbyddē hys, wyne and other meates, whiche god ordeyned to be receaued wyth geuynge of thankes. He hath also geuen vnto his, circumcision, and admitteth Polygamiam: that is moo wyues at once then one: the whyche Christ hath abrogate, and taught out of ye olde lawe, that one fleshe onely & not two or mo, ought to be in matrymony. To be shorte al the lyfe and doctryne, all the lawes, institucions and dedes of Mahomet are agaynste Christe. Nother [Page] do the sayenges, dedes, doctrynes and rytes of the Byshope of Rome wyth all hys bodye, agree ony better wyth Christe. Christe hath geuen vs in the Prophetes and by ye preachyng of the Apostles an absolute and perfecte doctryne, which alone is sufficient ynoughe to gette euerlastyng lyfe. But the Byshope of Rome sayeth, yt vnto that perfeccion we must haue tradycions of fathers, I wote not what, as thynges wythoute whyche no man can be saued, and as though those holy mē whyche lacked them were damned. Christ taught that one onely God ought to be worshypped and called vpon, and that by the meanes and intercession of hys name. But ye Byshope of Rome hathe thruste in to the churches the prayenge and worshyppyng of sayntes more diligentlye, then the true relygyon of God. The Apostles oute of the tradycion and spirite of Christ, taught that ther was but one onely hye preste, & one euerlastynge sacrifyce onely, that is Iesus Christe. But the Byshop of Rome subuertynge that order of Melchisedech, hath consecrated innumerable sacrifyces for to sacrifyse daylye for ye synnes of the quycke and the deade. The Apostelles [Page 35] taught that God onely doth remytte synnes, and that to hym onely men ought to confesse them. But the Byshope of Rome hath set forth vnto the churches wonderous lyes of the power of the keyes, of auricular confession, of cases reserued, and of the market of pardones. The Apostles dyd commende vnto the churches ye grace of God, they taught that ye beleuers were iustifyed by fayth. But the Byshop of Rome hath boasted ye merites of sayntes, yee and hath solde thē to. What nede is therof many wordes? trueth doth not so much repugne lyes, nor lyghte darknes, as Antichrist is contrarye to Christe. Christ dyd abrogate ceremonyes, he sette in theyr steade a fewe sacramētes, ye rest he wolde haue vs to serue him in sprete and truthe, and requyred fayth and charite of vs. But the Byshope of Rome as one forgettyng these thynges, hathe stuffed the churche wyth ceremonyes, yee and wyth mooste foolyshe rytes & superstycions. And those thynges whyche Christe by hys example, wordes and dedes had banyshed oute of ye churche, he once receaued them agayne & holdeth thē fast by the tethe. Christ flyeth kyngdomes, washeth hys disciples fete, [Page] taught humylite: The kynges of ye Gentyles beare rule (sayeth he) but so shall not ye. But the Byshoppe of Rome persueth not after kyngdomes onely, but the chefe Empyre it selfe, getteth it by crafte, and beareth rule ouer kynges that are subiect vnto him, yee and profereth hys fete vnto kynges to be kyssed, and suche kynges as kycke agaynste hym, & wyll not worshyp- this beaste, he stryketh them wyth ye thonder bolte of hys excommunicacion, putteth them out of theyr kyngdome, setteth other kynges in theyr rowme, & assoyleth theyr subiettes of theyr othe of obedience. Christe ware a crowne of thorne, & was clothed wyth a purple garmente. But the Byshope of Rome, decked wyth a tryple crowne, as it were Darius of Persia cō meth forth glysterynge in hys golde and precyous stones, compassed aboute wyth an hoost of men: Christ payed toll. But ye Byshope of Rome doth exempte his from it, condempnynge and persecutynge the holy authorytye, yt requyreth ony trybute of thys anoynted secte. Christe beareth a crosse: The Byshope of Rome is borne vpon the shulders of moost couetous mē. Christe was poore, he fedde the shepe, [Page 36] wente mekely into the towne, and caste oute of the temple both byers and sellers: But thys mā boasteth hymselfe to be the Lorde ouer all the Weste partyes, he spoyleth and deuoureth the shepe, and closed in wyth an hoost of men is caryed proudly in a tryumphe, he receaueth into the temple of God all byers and sellers, and thē that wyll not receaue them he excommuntcateth and pronoūceth them heretykes: To be shorte he hath suffered all the temples of Christ to be made so prophane, yt nowe they be lyke to a well trymmed market. For yf I shulde speake nothynge at all of the choppynge and chaungyng and byeng of benefyces, of the pardoners, or rather the deuelles marchaundise, of the fayers of sacramentes, masses and indulgences. Ther stande ready before the churche dores, tabernacles, tables, chayres and settelles: in them are set forth to selle fygures of waxe, lytle ymages, fete and hādes of yron and waxe, hennes ans cockes and innumerable muche of suche kynde of oblacions: and in the churches themselues, stande Idolles wyth stretched out hādes and because they be domme, they haue an, interpreter by, that lacketh no tunge. For [Page] he standynge by the aulter and by the Idoll, for to salute them that come, receaueth them, allureth them, and fedeth them wyth fayre wordes, expoundeth the vertues of the saynte, and telleth forth the fayned myracles of the Idoll: to be shorte he mylketh away the money from the superstycious and foolyshe people. And that ther shulde be nothynge to lette hym that shulde offre, he hath al sortes of money by hym, and therfore he choppeth and chaungeth & scrappeth all into the sayntes boxe. Ouer the whyche Idoll somme monke or preste hath rule, whyche of those offerynges doth noryshe hys shameles housholde, whores, baudes, yesters, scoffers, knaues and ydle houswyues: And before all thynges, the moost holy father hath hys parte of these gyftes: the whyche hathe confyrmed thys holy marchaundyse, by grauntynge of his large indulgences, for all that our LORDE hath commaunded: Frelye ye receaued, frely geue agayn. Peter also sayeng and pronouncynge: Peryshe thou and thy money, because thou thynkeste yt the gyfte of God can be gotten wyth money. But why do I prosecute these thynges so muche, seynge he is not lyuynge yt [Page 37] can sufficientlye declare the couetousnes, deceates, & vnshamfastnes of hys mooste vngracious stocke, wyth theyr workes moost contrarye to Christe and true relygion.
Thyrdlye, ther followeth in Paule:He is exalted aboue a [...] that is called God or worshyped. yt he is exalted aboue all that is called God or worshypped: whyche sentence may be expounded two maner of wayes: ether yt he is exalted aboue God hymselfe, and set vp agaynste all true relygyon and worshyppynge of God: ether that he is exalted agaynste all godly thynges, that is to say all true worshyppynge of God, takyng the persone and name of God, for true relygion and godly thynges. But why do I stande vpō these thynges so muche? seyng that the Apostle hymselfe doth ioyne vnto thys immediatly, that whyche maye expounde all the forsayde sentēce: so that he shall sytte in the temple of God, auauncynge hymselfe as God. After thys maner (I saye) is he exalted agaynste God hymselfe and all true relygion. The temple of God is here taken for the worlde, for the catholyke and vniuersall churche and the faythfull harte of euery man. To sytte, is for to raygne & to beare rule. To auaūce [Page] hym selfe as God, is to boaste hym of the power of God, & to promyse and chalenge those thynges as peculyar to himselfe, whyche belonge onely to God. Lette vs heare nowe howe these thynges are fulfylled, in Machomet and the Byshoppe of Rome. Mahomet doth not alonly despyse the moost holye trynite, but denyeth also Iesus Christe hymselfe to be very God. He affirmeth that he gaue a more perfecter lawe, then was geuen ether of Moses or of Iesus Christe: he gloryed also that ther was wrytten of hym in the lawe, and in the Gospel, yee and that his name was wrytten from the begynnynge in ye throne of God in the vpper parte on the ryghte hāde. And among vs yf ye Byshop of Rome or hys Legate had come into ony town, wt greate dilygence ye congregaciō fell down before him at his metyng & receaued him, not as a mā, but as God. All the relyques were brought forth, & all mē kneled down to hym, loked for hys blessynge, & thought it healthful yf they myght haue kyssed his fete. And yf that ony man had but once thought, that he had not had ye full power in heauē & in earth, he was strayght waye taken for an heretyke. What shall we saye [Page 38] also, that all prestes wyth wycked Freres dyd preache openly in expresse wordes in all the temples of Christen men, that the Byshoppe of Rome was the vycare of Christe, the heade of the churche, and that he had full power in heauen and in earth, yee and in purgatorye to: and that he dyd geue full remyssiō of synnes, that he could not erre, that all ye interpretacion of scripture was subiecte to hym, that hys lawes ought to be kepte as the lawe of God that he was iudge ouer all men, & that he was vnder no mans iudgemente, yee these mē were not ashamed for to put these horrible blasphemyes into publike & cōmune lawes. Of ye whyche thyng I wyll now bryng forth certayn euydēte wytnesses. distinc XXII. cap. Oēs. Vnto Peter (sayth Pope Nycolas,) the keye bearer of eternall lyfe, dyd God commytte iurisdictiō ouer heauen and earth. Item capit. Sacrosancta. Although all were Apostelles (sayeth Anacletus) yet dyd the LORDE graunte vnto Peter (yee & they wold the same amonge them selues) that he shulde haue rule ouer all the Apostles, and shulde be called Cephas, that is to saye, the heade and chefe of the Apostles: the whyche also dyd delyuer [Page] the same maner to be kepte of theyr successours and other Byshoppes. Therfore thys Apostolicall seate is ordeyned of God and of none other, to be the heade & henge: and as the dore is ruled by ye henge so by the ordinaunce of God, are all churches ruled by the authoryte of thys holy Apostolycall seate. Agayne Distinct .xix. Agatho the Pope doth wryte thus vnto all Byshoppes: All the decres of the Apostolyke seate are so to be receaued, as yf they were confyrmed by the godly mouth of S. Peter hymselfe. Item capit. In memoriam. Although that holy seate do laye a yocke vpon vs, scarslye able to be suffered, yet let vs suffre it and obediētly abyde it. And a lytle after sayeth Pope Steuen: Trulye because the holy church of Rome (ouer whyche God wolde vs to rule) is set forth for a glas and an example: what so euer it decreethe or ordeyneth, it is to be kepte of all men for euer, and wythoute ony gaynsayeng. Furthermore .ix. questi. capit .iii. Gelasius the Byshop of Rome, sayeth vnto all the Byshoppes that were ordeyned thorow out Dardania, these wordes: All the churche knoweth thorow out all the worlde, yt the Popes seate whyche [Page 39] is saynte Peters ryghte, hathe power to lowse those thynges whyche are bounde by ony mānes iudgementes what so euer they be, as one that hathe rule to geue sentence ouer euery churche. And agayn: All the churche knoweth thorowe oute all the worlde, that ye holy churche of Rome hath power to iudge ouer all men, but it is not lawfull for ony man to iudge vpō the sentēce of it: for mē may appeale vnto yt oute of ony parte of the worlde, but from that no mā is suffred to appeale. Item distinct. Abused Canon. XL. capit. Yf the Pope (saythe Boniface) be found neglygēt aboute hys own health and hys brethrens, or els vnprofytable & slowe in hys workes, or slacke to do good, whyche hurteth hymselfe greatlye and all other men, and doth also leade wyth hym by heapes innumerable people to be punyshed wyth hym euerlastyngly in hell: yet let no man in the worlde be so hardye as to rebuke hys fautes: for he beynge ordeyned to iudge all men, ought to be iudged of no man, excepte he be taken swaruynge from the fayth. Agayn .IX. Questi. III. capit. saythe Innocencius the Pope: No man may iudge ye chefe seate, whyche desyreth to moderate iustice: nother maye [Page] the iudge be iudged, ether of the Emperoure or of all the clergye, nother of kynges, nor of the people. Vpon the whyche Canon the author of the glose sayeth: that a counsell can not iudge the Pope. Vt extra de elect. Significasti. Wherfore yf all the whole worlde shulde geue sentence in ony matter agaynst the Pope, it semeth that men oughte to stande to the sentence of the Pope. &c. Ye shall fynde the same thynge agayne in cap. quanto de transla. Episcopi titulo. VII. in playne wordes: It is sayde that the Pope (sayeth he) hath an heauēlye iudgemente, and therfore chaū ge the nature of thynges in applyenge the substaunce of ony thynge to another. And of nothynge he can make some what, and make the sentence whych was nothynge worthe, somewhat worthe. For in those thynges whyche he lyste,O blasphemye. Ei est pro ratione uoluntas: hys wyll standeth for a reason or a cause: nother is ther ony mā that may saye vnto hym. Why doeste thou so? For he maye dyspense wyth the lawe, and of vnryghtuosnesse make ryghteuosnesse: in correctynge and chaungynge ye lawes,The Byshop of Rome nother god nor man. for he hath obteyned full power, &c. Herevnto belongeth it that these ioly wrytters [Page 40] of commentes do so ofte inculcate, that ye Pope is nother a man nor a God, but the vycare of God, and a certayne thynge mengled and made of God & of man. Yf ony man requyre the places, he shal fynde these damnable blasphemyes, in VI decretalium lib. I. de elect. & elect. potestate. titulo sexto in cap. XVII. Item in clemē tinarum proemio. And what nede many wordes? Thys draggon vsurped vnto him selfe the full power of God in earthe, he translated kyngdomes, and for hys owne profyte made and vnmade all lawes and rytes, and turned all the olde and true relygiō topsyturnye, & hate dashed & defyled it wt hys fylthynesse: the whyche thynge no man can denye. He sytteth therfore in the tēple of god, auaūcynge hymselfe to be god.
Now wyll we adde vnto these thynges,The prophecye of Daniell vpō Antichriste. that whyche the godly prophete Daniell hath spoken of the same thyng in the vii. chapter: Beholde ther were eyes (sayth he) lyke the eyes of a man in hys horne, & a mouthe speakynge presumptuous thynges. And a lytle after that: He shall speake wordes on ye partye of the moost hyghest, and shall destroye the sayntes of ye moost hygheste, and thynke yt he maye chaunge [Page] tymes and lawes. All these thynges are very playne, by that that goeth afore. For eyes do sygnifye prudence. He mente therfore, that thys kynde of mē shuld be moost subtyll, because that it shuld rule & brynge all thynges to passe by fraude, gyle, sutteltye, and craft And surely who so euer doth marke well howe that these Byshoppes of Rome, out of so lowe a degre haue cō me vp on hyghe, and optayned the dygnite of so greate an Empyre, he wyll saye yt they haue bene moost craftye and suttyll men. Nother coulde ony mans mouth speake more presumptuous thynges, thē it is playne here before, that Machomet & the Byshope of Rome haue done. Yee and though they haue arrogātly attrybuted so great thynges vnto themselues, yet wyll they nedes speake and be on ye syde of the moost hyghest: insomuche that yf ony mā yet nowe a dayes shuld call them the aduersaryes or enemyes of God, he shulde scarsely escape theyr handes alyue. Besydes thys, the one of them wyll be taken for the Prophete of the moost hyest, and the other for the vycar of God vpon the earthe: as men whyche had receaued this power delyuered them of God hymselfe, [Page 41] and do nowe vsurpe it by ye lawes of God. But ther haue not lacked whyche haue smelled out thys deceate and wyckednes, and haue resisted it wyth all theyr power. But the moost holy father, and the vyctorious Emperoure of the Turkes haue destroyed them. For howe muche Christen bloude bothe of them haue shedde, it is declared in the hystorye before mencyonede and how much they shedde yet stylle, vnluckye experience dothe teache vs well ynough. Nowe although in very dede that no man hath the power for to make & vnmake the good lawes of God at hys pleasure, yet hath Antichrist vsurped ye power vpon hym. Wherevpon sayth Daniell: he shall thynke that he maye chaunge the tymes and lawes: but he sayeth not, he shall haue power to chaunge them. Now Machomet and the Byshoppe of Rome haue vsurped ye power vnto them moost shamefully, which thynge we haue proued a lytle before by sufficiente testymonyes. In the eleuenth chapter the same Daniel sayeth: The kynge shall do what hym lyste: he shall exalte & magnifye hymselfe agaynst all that is God, he shall speake maruaylous thynges agaynst the God of goddes, [Page] and he shall prospere, vntyll the wrathe be fulfylled, for hys fall is appoynted and so forthe. For the Prophete hath spokē more vpon thys matter in that place, whyche may be vnderstonde of euery wyttye mā wythout ony laboure or exposycion.
The prophecy of Pauie wrested agaynste the preachers of the Gospel.And here we maye not passe ouer yt the Papystes do expounde thys place of Paule vpō vs. For nowe saye they, is this departynge fulfylled, when the Lutheryans and the Zwynglyans do departe frō the holy seate of Rome, and wyth theyr libertye do open a gate vnto all synne and myschefe, and are agaynste the Prelates of the churche: besydes thys, they are lyfte vp agaynste the vycar of God hymselfe, defylynge the authoryte of the churche, whyche neuer erred, and syttynge in the temple of God, do boaste themselues to preache the worde of God, & therfore they thynke thēselues worthye to be worshypped as God. But they do vs wronge, because we neuer departed a strawe bredth from the truthe of ye canonicall scripture. For althoughe we knowe not the churche of Rome, as it is nowe ordered, yet we do knowlede the holy catholyke churche and the onely heade therof Iesus Christ. The [Page 42] whyche in as muche as he promysed that he wolde abyde wyth vs vnto the ende of the worlde, Math. xxviii. we nede not beleue that he hath put a vycare or Debyte in hys steade. For a vycare stādeth in the steade of hym that is absente. But Christ is euermore presente wyth hys churche: hym onely do we preache, commēde, and inculcate vnto our churches. We do moue men contynually to beleue in hym, & we do teache moost dylygentlye, charyte, innocēcye and pure lyuynge. Nother do we teache ony other lybertye thē yt of whyche the Apostle spake: Ye are called into lybertye, but se that ye geue not your lybertye an occasion to the fleshe, but thorow charyte serue you one another, Galat. v. And we are agaynste none of the chefe of the churche. For the Prelates of the churche, are the mynysters of the worde & teachers of the truthe of the Gospell: and who despyseth suche? who is agaynst such? But yf ony vnder the pretēce of the church and of mynystracion do seke theyr owne, beare rule, oppresse the truthe, & settynge godlye thynges asyde, do teache mennes tradyciōs, forsothe they are of good ryght despysed throughe theyr owne defaute. [Page] For Peter sayeth: We muste obey God more then man. And our LORDE in the Gospell: Se yt no man deceaue you. For many shall come in my name, sayenge I am Christ, & shal deceaue many. Farthermore we dyd neuer defyle the authoryte of the catholyke church. For we do hyghly esteme Christe hymselfe and the canonycall truth. Nowe the strength and foundacion of the churche is Christe & the truthe. Howe shulde not we thē iudge honorably of the church? We haue neuer sytten in the temple of God, but haue mynystred alwayes: and for thys cause haue we chefly cryed agaynste you, because that ye wyl beare rule or sytte, & not mynystre as we do. Moreouer we do frely confesse that we leauynge mens tradycions do purely and symply (that is to saye as muche as ye grace of God and oure fraylnes wyll suffre) preache the canonicall scrypture, and for the establyshynge not of our authoryte but of it, do often saye wyth saynte Paul: He that refuseth these thynges, refuseth not man, but God, whyche hath geuē hys holy sprete vnto the Prophetes and Apostles, yt they shulde teache these thynges vnto vs .i. Thessalo. iiii. Yet we do geue [Page 43] all honoure to God onely in all thynges, and vnto our selues nothynge but confusion. Our churches, whyche are Christes, wyll testifye thys.
Laste of all I wyll put to ye paraphrase of saynte Ierome,The paraphrase of S. Ierome vpō these wordes of Paule. wyth the whyche he dyd expounde these wordes of saynt Paule in the .XI. question. vnto Algasia, after thys maner: Excepte (saythe he) ther come a departynge fyrste, and that all nacions whych are subiecte to the Empyre of Rome do departe from it, and that he be reueled, that is to saye opened, whom all the wordes of the prophetes do shewe forthe: The man of synne, in whome is the fountayne of all synnes, And chyld of perdycion, that is, of the deuell (for he is the destruccion of all men) whyche is agaynste Christe, and is therfore called Antichrist, and is exalted aboue all that is called god so that he treadeth downe wyth hys foote the goddes of all nacions, or els all comly and true relygion, and in the temple of God (whyche is Ierusalē as some thynke) or els in the churche (as we rather suppose) sheweth hymselfe as thoughe he were Christe and the sonne of God. Excepte (sayeth he) that the Empyre of Rome be [Page] fyrst made desolate, and that Antichriste go before, Christe shall not come, whyche shall therfore so come, yt he maye destroye Antichriste. Ye remembre sayeth he, that these thynges whyche I nowe wrytte by myne Epystle, when I was wyth you I shewed you in expresse wordes, and tolde you that Christe shulde not come, excepte that Antichriste wente before. Hetherto haue I rehearsed ye wordes of S. Ierome.
And novve you knovve vvhat vvythholdeth: euen that he myghte be vttered at hys tyme. For the mysterye or iniquite dothe already vvorke. Let hym vvhyche novve holdeth, holde styll, vntyll it be taken avvaye, and thē shall that vvycked be vttered, vvhome the LORDE shall consume vvyth the sprete of hys mouth, and shall destroye vvyth the clearnesse of hys cōmynge.
He wryteth mor playnly of ye tyme of Antichriste when he shuld come.Some man myght saye, why shuld we not beleue, that the aduersary of Christ, doth now raygne, and is alreadye come, when we do se the name of Christe, & hys doctryne by all meanes to be spoken agaynste, of all the myghtyest men of thys worlde? The Apostle doth answere: You knowe what letteth: euen that I tolde you [Page 44] that he shulde be vttered, when hys tyme is come. Forsothe a man can not denye, but that euen nowe the power of iniquyte doth worke by hym, but nowe he setteth forth hys strength more couertlye, thē he shall do when his tyme is come. For vnto the bodye of Antichriste belonge blasphemyes, cruell persecucions, heresyes and other such lyke iniquities. But these thynges beganne to budde and sprynge vp by and by, euen in the tyme of the Apostles. Wherevpon Ihon the Apostle sayeth: My lytle chyldren, it is nowe the laste tyme, & as you haue herde, that Antichriste shall come, euen nowe ther begynne to be many Antichristes alreadye .i. Iho. ii. Therfore dothe Paule more clearlye sygnyfye vnto vs, that same tyme in ye whyche Antichriste, that is to saye, the perfeccion of all iniquite shuld be vttered, sayeng: Whē that shalbe taken awaye, whyche nowe wtholdeth or letteth hym for to raygne, thē shall ye wycked be opened. That is to saye, whan that the Empyre of Rome shall be taken out of the waye, or at the leest way troubled, then shall Antichriste raygne, & after that shall Christe come bothe for to destroye thys enemye of all sayntes, and [Page] also for to iudge all flesh. For he doth now expownde that more playnely, whyche he spake of before. The wordes correspondēt to the greke texte, do make those thynges more playne for thus they sygnyfye: holdynge that now, tyll it be out of the waye: whyche is as muche to saye, as that that thynge whyche nowe onlye letteth, shall be taken out of the waye. And then shall ye wycked appeare. Or els (to speake it more playne) that thynge wyhche nowe onely letteth shall be a lette so longe, vntyll it be taken awaye:Saynte Ierome. and when it is takē awaye, then shall Antichrist come forth. And S. Ierom also followeth the same sence, wrytynge vnto Algasia these wordes in a maner: What is the cause that Antichrist cō meth not now, ye knowe full well. Nother wolde he playnely saye, that the Empyre of Rome shulde be destroyed, because that they whyche gouerne it do thynke it euerlastynge. For the whyche cause after the Apocalypse of S. Ihon, ther was wryttē in ye foreheade of the whore that was clothed in purple, a name of blasphemy, that is to saye, Rome eternall. For yf he had sayde playnely and boldly, Antichrist shall not come, excepte the Empyre of Rome [Page 45] be fyrst done away, it semeth that he shuld haue geuen a iuste cause of persecucion, agaynst the churche in the Easte partyes. And a lytle after he sayeth: The Empyre of Rome whyche nowe hath all nacions vnder it, shal ceasse and be takē out of the waye, and then shall Antichrist the fountayne of iniquyte come. Thys sayeth Ierome. Tertulian also,Tertulli [...] of the resurreccion of the fleshe: Who (sayeth he) shall be takē out of the waye? but the estate of Rome, whyche beynge cut awaye? and scattered into tenne kynges shall brynge in Antichriste, &c. For the departynge of kyngdomes from the Empyre of Rome, and the runnynge in of the rude Gotties, that is to saye of the Vandales & Hunnies, dyd geue an occasion vnto the Saracens, and vnto the Byshoppes of Rome, for to inuade and gette ye Empyre. For yf the one had not broken the strength of the Empyre of Rome, the other had not raygned. But we haue expounded all these thynges more at large in the hystory here before.
Nowe followeth the ruyne & destruccion of Antichrist.Of the destruccion of Antichrist. He shall not fall by and by after that he is stryken wyth a stroke or weapon, but by lytle and lytle, & after [Page] he hath bene made weake by many battaylles he shall at the laste peryshe. But he shall not be caste down wt mans hande, nother yet by the multytude of hoostes, nor strēgth of souldyers, or gonne strokes, but by the hande and power of God. For Christ shall fyrste consume hym wyth the sprete of hys mouthe, and after that shall he put hym cleane out of the waye, wyth hys moost gloryous commynge into iudgemēt. The fyrste of these two, dyd Paule take oute of the eleuenth chapter of Isaie, whose wordes are these: With ryghteousnes shall he iudge ye poore, and wyth equite shall he contende for the meke of the earthe, he shall stryke the worlde wyth the rodde of hys mouthe, and wyth the sprete of hys lyppes shall he slaye the wycked. Nowe the sprete of ye mouthe or of the lyppes of God, is the true exposycion of the worde of god. For the worde of God is the same swearde, wherewyth ye heade of thys proude Golyas shall be stryken of. For Antichrist speaketh on the syde of ye moost hyghest, and he sayeth yt all that he doth, is deduced or taken out of the Decrees of ye holy scrypture. For vnder the pretence of this, hath he hetherto raygned safely. But [Page 46] when that thoroughe the goodnes of God the lyght of the Gospell, that is, Goddes worde begynneth to shyne, the clowdes of thys deceauer do strayght waye vanyshe awaye. For it is playne vnto all men, that thys fellowe in hys maners and lawes, is clene contrarye to Christe. Therefore it commeth to passe, that all godlye wytted men (the truthe once knowen) do abhorre and forsake hym. Therfore the swearde wherwyth this man is slayne is the word of God, for thē is he moost surely slayne, when that hys nature and dysposyciō are manyfestly knowen by the doctryne of truthe. The knowlege of hym dothe kyll hym and cast him downe, and the clokyng and ignoraūce of hym doth sette hym vp. For they that knowe hym not, do beleue that he is an Apostolycall prophete, yee & a god to, but they yt knowe him trulye, are sure that he is Antichriste. The latter of these two dyd Paul take out of ye .vii. chapter of Daniell, where we reade: I loked tyll the seates were prepared, and the olde aged satte hym downe, and beholde, ther came in the cloudes of the ayre one lyke the sonne of man, and he came vnto the olde aged, and the iudgemente was sette [Page] and the bokes opened. Then toke I hede therevnto because of the voyce of ye proud wordes whyche that horne spake. And I behelde styll, tyll yt the beaste was slayne, and hys bodye destroyed and geuen ouer to be burnte in ye fyre. And therfore sayeth Paule: Whom the LORDE shall destroy wyth the bryghtnes of hys cōmynge, yt is to say wt his moost gloryous cōmyng. For our LORDE sayde in the Gospell: Euen as the lyghtenynge commeth oute of the Easte, and appeareth vnto the Weste, so shall the commynge of the sonne of man be. For he shall come in ye cloudes of heauen wyth greate power and glory Math. xxiiii. And euen as darknes (as sayeth S. Ierome) is dryuen away at the cōmynge of the Sonne,The battail & vanquyshyng of Antichriste. so shall the LORDE destroy and put hym awaye wyth the bryghtnes of hys commynge. Thys glorye and vyctorye is reserued vnto Christe onely. For they are deceaued whyche thynke ye Antichriste, before the daye of iudgemēte, shall by abolyshed by the strength of armes. But thys battayll betwene Christe & Antichriste shall rather endure vnto ye ende of the worlde. And he beynge bolde of the strength of armes, shall breake a sondre & [Page 47] treade vnder hys fete the sayntes of the moost hyest, but the membres of Christe shall wythstonde hym, and shall sette vpō hym wt the swearde of the worde of God, shall bewraye hys deceate, shall accuse his wyckednes, and so slaye hym. For by thys meanes shall he be put oute of mens hartes, and hys authoryte shall fall.The vyctory of ye Christen stādeth in the truth of Goddes worde and constauncy. And in ye meāseason, although he be ouercome, yet shall he take on, vntyll Christe the iudge shall putte hym quyte down. And therfore my brethren our vyctorye must stande alonly in the truth of Gods worde, & in the constanucy of our fayth. Therfore let vs betake our lyues vnto our faythfull creator, & go forward in ye affyrmyng of ye canonical truth, & glory of Christ ourredemer & LORD, agaynst ye blasphemies of this vnpure draggō. Christ wyll be presēt wt hys, although he delyuer vs into hys handes.
Vvhose cōmynge is by the vvorkynge of Satan, vvyth all povver and lyenge sygnes and vvonders and in all deceueablnes of vnryghteousnes amōg thē that perysh: because they receaued not the loue of the truth, that they might haue bene saued. And therfore god shal sende thē strōge delusiō, that they shuld [Page] [...] [Page 47] [...] [Page] beleue lyes: that all they myght be dāned, vvhych beleued not the truthe, but had pleasure in vnryghtousnes.
Antichriste raygneth by power and lyes.Hetherto hath the Apostle entreated of the reuelacion of Antichrist, of the ruyne and confusion of hym: he hath spoken also of hys kyngedome and propertyes, & nowe he turneth hym from that, and descrybeth hys strengthe and workes more at large. That deceauer shal come (sayeth he) prepared wyth the sprete and power of Satan, the whyche shall shewe forth them selfe in hym moost manyfestly. For thys maner of speakynge Vvhose cōmynge is by the vvorkynge of Satan, is so much to saye. Nowe the strength and workynge of Satan ar chefely, murther, and lyes, as our saueoure sayeth: He was a manslayer from the begynnynge, and abode not in the truthe, because the truthe is not in hym. Whan he speaketh a lye, he speaketh of hys owne, because he is a lyer and the father of it. And Paule in this place shewynge the workes of Satan by partes, doth teken vp power and sygnes, that is lyenge wonders, and the deceaueablenesse of vnryghteousnesse also. For Mahomet sayeth that he is sente of God in the strength of [Page 48] armoure, & for thys cause doth he destroye all thynges wyth fyre and swearde. And ye Byshope of Rome hath abused ye armour of al kynges and prynces, persecuteth and slayeth the sayntes, ether callynge vpon the secular arme, or els by excercysynge hy [...] owne strength. The greate destruccion of moost stronge nacions nowe in our dayes do testifye what he maye do by strength, and what murthurs, yee and betrayēge of kyngdomes, and robberyes, the deuell hath done in the world by hys procuremente. We maye thanke hys coūsell and crafte, that here wythin thys .xxxvi. yeares, we haue sene the strengthe of moost stronge nacions, that is to saye of the Heluecians, Germanes, Frenchmen and Spanyardes, after they haue bene broken, to haue fallen now into the kyngdome of Naples, nowe in the dukdome of Myllan, & somtyme into other kyngedomes, & theyr kynges or prynces banyshed or els ledde into captyuyte, mans lawes & Goddes lawes plucte vp by the rootes, good studye oppressed, moost noble cyties subuerted, and plentyfull contryes vtterly destroyed: to be shorte, ther was none age spared. I do wyllynglye passe ouer [Page] many thynges of the same sorte, whyche ye membres of thys Byshoppe, and the Ecclesiasticall prelates wyth theyr companions, haue done in dyuers partyes of the world, and in many kyngdomes, and prouynces to the greate hurte of the cōmune welthe and of all goodnesse, and specyally of the truthe. The prudente reader dothe well vnderstonde by these thynges whych I haue noted, what he shulde do, beleue, or flye.
Antichristes sygnes, and how his religiō hath ben greatly estabyshed by them.Nowe ther are two maner of sygnes, true, and false. Those are true, whyche are done in dede, and sprynge oute of no phantasye or imagynacion, but are wrought of God hym selfe by hys mynysters, for the stablyshynge of the truthe. Suche are all the sygnes of the prophetes and Apostles, of Moses & of Christe. And those are false, whyche (by the sufferaunce of God) are done by ye mynysters or workynge of Satan, to the derogacion of the truthe or stablyshyng of falshed. And of these ther are diuerse kindes. For ther are some whyche by a false appearaūce do deceaue men. Ther are other whyche are done in very dede, as they seme to be, but for thys purpose, that they myghte leade [Page 49] men away from the truthe vnto erroure. For the holy Apostle doth not call them onely lyenge sygnes and wonders, whych haue a false symilitude or appearaūce wt thē, but those also, whyche althoughe they be done in very dede, do yet brynge men vnto lyes, and deceaue the lokers on. S. Augustine hath disputed more of sygnes. In opere octoginta trium questionum. quest. LXXIX. Our LORD Iesus sayeth in the xxiiii. chapter of Mathewe: Ther shall aryse false Christes and false prophetes, and they shall do greate sygnes and wonders, insomuche that yf it were possyble, the very electe shulde be brought in to erroure. Beholde I haue shewed you before. Yf they saye vnto you, beholde he is in the wyldernesse, go not out: beholde he is in secrete places, beleue thē not, &c. Truely greate authoryte happened vnto Machometes relygion, throughe lyenge sygnes and wonders. Nother yet hath the estymacion of the Byshoppe of Romes relygiō, encreassed by ony thyng so much, as by the multytude of myracles. For by myracles hath he thrust into the worlde ye honourynge of sayntes and worshyppyng of ymages. For no man can well expresse [Page] the wonderous craftes,In this pla [...]e ye author of the commēte, called Henricus Bullingerus of Tigury had put in dyuers pylgremages of hys owne contrye. In the flede of whyche (because they were vnknowen to vs) I haue set in these of oure olde acquayntaūce withoute ony al alteraciō of the intent yt he brought them in for. wherwith ye deuel hath deceaued the whole worlde. They yt haue at ony tyme vysyted our Ladye at Wylsoon, Muswell, Ypswyche or Walsyngame, the roode of comforte, ye roode of rest, the roode of grace in Kente, S. saueoure at London, S. Thomas of Canterbury, or suche lyke Idolles: they haue sene tables, oblacions and more testymonyes of myracles, thē a great nauye of shyppes coulde carye awaye. For some one hathe crepte into the chappell of oure Lady, or some other saynte bothe croked & lame, and there hath made hys petycion to an Image, and came home agayne in good healthe: and therefore in wytnes of thys thynge hath hanged vp hys styltes before the Idolle. Another hath swymmed safe to lande frō a shyppewracke after he hath called vpon the helpe of some saynte, & therfore hanged a table or a fygure of a shyppe before the Image. The thyrde escapynge of an hoost of men of warre, made a vowe vnto the virgyn Marye, and dyd therfore dedicate hys harnesse vnto her. Some other after they haue broken out of preson, haue consecrate vnto a sayncte, ether a cheyne, or manacles or els a payre of fetters. [Page 50] Then came it to passe at length that not alonly those temples, but all churches of Christen men were polluted wyth such delusions. These false sygnes occupyed ye mooste holy seates in Christes churche, out of whyche the sygnes and truthe of ye Gospell oughte to haue ben declared. For oute of suche places were these moost vnshamefast lyes pronounced and shewed, wyth greate boldnes of the preachers, and wonderous reioycynge of the moost foolyshe people. What shall we say, that men haue sayde, yt the very Images themselues haue ether remoued out of theyr places, or els haue ben sente of God hymselfe frō heauē, or els where as they haue ben hyd in certayn places they haue come to lyght agayn. Some haue laught, and some haue wepte, other haue trembled & geuen forth beames out of them, yee & sometyme they or theyr beardes haue wōderfully growē in length or bygnesse, somtyme they were gone clene awaye alone, and many tymes they haue spoken. And it was lawfull for no man to doubte, or els frelye, that is to saye truely to talke of, these thynges, yee a man had stonde in daunger of hys lyfe yf he had not worshyppped and receaued these [Page] wyckednesses as thynges that had come from God hym selfe, and set forthe to be worshypped. Antichriste that Byshop of Rome not beynge cōtente wyth these abhominable thynges, and wyth the exteme superstycion and manyfeste Idolatry of the people, dyd almoste euery day consecrate new Gods, that is (as they call it) canonysed them, dyd ether institute new pylgrimages, or els confirme suche as were inuented or receaued alreadye: he chose oute relyques of ye moost stynkyng and wycked mens bones, and sette them forthe to be worshypped, yee & promysed pardon to the worshyppers of them, and commaunded holydayes for those fayned Goddes, & lefte nothynge vndone which myghte encreace, norysh, or set forth Idolatrye: and dyd so corrupte the true relygion, that the very Gentyles were neuer muche more corrupte. Besyde thys the prouable appearaunce and wounderous estymaciō of false myracles dyd deceaue all the wysest men in a maner.How many good people haue ben deceaued lyke wyse with ye fayned myracles of ye holy maydens of Rēt & Ipswych. It lacked but lytle, that we were not compelled to haue worshypped in ye steade of true sygnes & myracles of God, ye sygnes & wonders, whyche certayne blacke frerers cō secrate [Page 51] to the deuell had wyckedlye done in ye cytye of Berne in Nuchtlande, not wythoute the helpe of wytchcrafte you may be sure. They wente already about the confyrmacion and approbacion of the Byshoppe of Rome, and they had lyghtly obtayned it, but that the goodnes of God hauynge pytye on the symplenesse of the people, dyd dysclose thys mysterye of iniquyte to all the worlde before that it was fully fynyshed and ended, to the derogacion & shame of oll other false myracles. I thynke that the buyldyng of these cloysters of beggynge Frerers, is one porciō of ye chefe of these lyenge sygnes. He shall not be beleued I know well amonge our posteryte, that shulde tell them that beggers in so shorte a space, had buylded so large & goodly houses, of the whyche eche of them are sufficiente for to receaue & noryshe kynges and prynces. But we se many thousandes of these buylte vp on hyghe, and retched forth, bothe longe and large, and besydes that to haue gotten ye goodlyest porciōs of lande in all contryes and cyties. Yee and these deceauers thē selues, knowlegynge thys wōder, do say: No prynce or kynge coulde perfourme in [Page] certayne hundredes of yeares, ye whyche we beggers (not wythout myracle) haue fynyshed in so lytle a space. Yee and haue so fynyshed them ye our buyldynges maye compare wyth the moost goodlyest olde places that are. God hath opened by this thynge (saye they) that the rules of oure orders do not so greatly dysplease hym: as thoughe Daniell had not sayde longe tyme before, that thys shulde come to passe. For thus we reade of Antichrist in ye .xi. chapter: Such as wyll serue hym, he shall geue greate worshyppe and power, yee & make them Lordes ouer manye, & geue them the lande for naughte. &c.
Paule addeth therevnto, in all deceaueablenesse of vnryghteousnesse: vnderstonde yt Antichriste shall come after suche maner. That is to saye, when he commeth, he shall brynge wyth hym all kynde of iniquite, wherewyth he myghte brynge men away from the truthe, equyte, honestye & ryghteousnesse, & wrappe men in ypocrysy and erroures. We know therfore that by the meanes of antichrist the commune iustice, all honestye, & holy truthe shalbe moued oute of theyr place, & vnryghteousnesse, ypocrysye, vnshamefastnesse, [Page 52] voluptuosnesse, & moost vayne persuasions to be set vp in theyr steade. Whyche thynges he ye seyth not to haue all ages and degrees in possession nowe at thys tyme, lacketh both hys eyes & hys wytte. But all mē shall not be deceaued, but the reprobate: that is to saye, they, of whom the truthe was refused, and lyes receaued, that is to saye, such as do wylfully peryshe. And because that a secrete questyon myghte be moued:Why ye Antichrist hath so greate power and prosperethe so greatlye. Why hathe God suffered Satan, and Antichrist hys captyue to haue so great power? By a solucion he preuenteth the question and sayeth: because they receaued not ye loue of the truthe, that they myghte haue ben saued. That is to saye: the iustice & vengeaunce of God, requyreth ye same thyng to be done. For theyr obstynate rebelliō agaynste Christe, deserueth that all they whyche receaued not Christ, that of hys charyte was wyllynge to saue all men, & for hys truthe sake dyd opē those thynges whyche belonged to saluacion that they myght haue ben saued, shulde nowe by ye sufferaunce of God for the truthe haue falshed, in the steade of charyte tyranny, and for a saue [...]ure haue a destroyer, and [Page] that they shulde nowe beleue the lyes of a wycked man, whyche wolde not beleue Christe, that tolde them the truthe. For our LORDE hymselfe sayeth, in ye Gospell of Ihon: Ye wyll not come vnto me, that ye myght haue lyfe. I receaue not ye glorye of mē: but I knowe that you haue not the loue of God in you. I came in the name of my father, & ye receaue me not, yf an other shall come in his own name, hym wyll ye receaue, Ioh v. And oute of thys truly it semeth, that that noble sentence of the commune people was takē: They yt beleued not Christe, shall beleue Antichriste. And herevnto belonge also the wordes of Paule that followe, wherwyth he maketh that whyche goeth before more clearer, sayeng: And therfore, that is to saye, because they receaued not the loue of the truthe, and were not ye louers and followers of true relygiō, God shall sende them stronge delusiōs, that is to saye, moost euydente seduccion and deceate, that euen lyke madde persones, and men rauyshed of theyr wyttes, they can not chose but beleue lyes. And for thys cause that all they myghte be iudged, that is to saye tormēted & punyshed, [Page 53] vvhyche beleued not the pure and symple truthe: but rather approued vnryghteousnesse, ypocrysy, superstycion and erroure. Ye haue now a reason how it cōmeth to passe, that the worlde nowe a dayes is so readye to beleue the myracles, doctrynes, and rytes of Antichriste. It is the iudgemēte of God, whyche hath shewed myracles ynoughe by hys sonne, by hys prophetes and Apostles, and hath also prescrybed vs doctrynes, and rytes clearlye and sufficiente ynough. But all these thynges set asyde, we had rather be deceaued. Therefore these prestes and monkes Antichristes knyghtes, deceaued vs by gettynge awaye our moneye, and neuer ceassed to thruste in theyr lyes vnto vs, vntyl yt they had emptyed all mens cofers. Suche thynges as myghte be brought out of the Byble semed olde forworne thynges▪ all men daylye desyred to heare new matters, and therfore was it fre for euery man that wold, for to inuente euery thynge that he lyfte. He was best alowed that had brought in ony new thynge into the churche: and so throughe theyr vnshamefastnesse, and our curyosyte and foolyshnesse, it came to passe, by [Page] the ryghteous iudgemente of God, that all truthe was banyshed many yeares sence, and errour hath raygned myghtelye thorow oute the cōgregacions. Nowe though it be thus, and that experience it selfe do proue these thynges to be ouer true, yet are ther certayne euell occupyed persones, whyche go about to boulster vp the corrupte captayns of ye moost corrupte relygion, whyche are bente to dostroye the sprete of the mouth of God. But the truthe which is inuyncible, shall ouercome bothe those vayne prelates of the churche, and also theyr foolyshe defenders and shall also ouerthrowe them and bruse them all to peces, excepte they conuerte vnto the LORDE. Hetherto haue we disputed more at large, then we thought to haue done at the begynnyng, of the commynge of Antichriste, of hys kyngdome and confusion, for the readers pleasure, and for the erudycion and warnynge of the symple people. Nowe wyll we returne vnto Paule and the Thessalonyans. For Paule hymselfe after he hath fynyshed hys dysputacion of Antichriste, turneth hym vnto the Thessalonyans.
[Page 54] But vve are bounde to geue thankes alvvayes to God for you brethren beloued of the LORDE, because that God hath from the begynnynge chosen you to saluacion thorovve sanctifyenge of the sprete, and thorovv beleuynge the truthe: vvhereunto he called you by oure Gospell, to optayne the glorye of our LORDE Iesu Christ. A notable place of the election.
Theophylactus knyttynge these thynges verye goodly with those that are gone before, sayeth thus: When he had shewed them certayne horryble thynges, and suche as myght amase the mynde of the hearers, he doth afterward ease theyr hartes, monyshynge them after thys maner: Let other men be afearde of these thynges, they (I saye) whych peryshe, and ouer whome ye deuell hath great power, but we are bounde to geue thankes for you vnto God, because that he hath chosen you, and embraced you with his loue. And thys is a notable place of the eleccion of God. For God hath chosen vs vnto saluacion, and not that we shulde saye: yf God haue chosen me, I nede not feare dampnacion, and thoughe I synne neuer so muche. But God hath chosen vs [Page] vnto saluacion sayeth Paule, whych saluacion is fynyshed in vs through ye sanctifyenge of the sprete and beleuynge the truthe: that is to saye, by the sprete hymselfe, whyche purifyeth our hartes, & geueth vs true faythe. For fayth whyche is the gyfte of God, is myghtye in operacion. Paule therfore doth set true fayth agaynst the false persuasion, of ye whyche Iames speaketh, sayenge: fayth wythout workes is deade. To thys matter of eleccion, belongeth the preachyng of the Gospell also. For thorowe the preachyng of the Gospell, he calleth vs to the true fayth, and to the optaynynge or possessiō of the glorye of our LORDE Iesu Christ: that is to saye, that we myghte be made the gloryous and bewtyfull possession of our LORDE Iesu Christ, an holy, innocente and immaculate people, whyche myght honoure and worshyppe God, and that God hymselfe myght dwell in ye hartes of them that serue hym. For God hath not called vs vnto lustes and vnclennes, i. Thessa. iiii. but vnto holynes, & purenes, and that we myght become hys holy tēple. These thynges ought to be taught vnto ye congregacions. After thys maner [Page 55] suche as are captyue shulde be plucked out of the bondage of Antichrist: and yf ye ony haue not fallen into hys captyuyte, let them here learne to geue God contynuall thankes, and also to praye him that he leade them not into temptacion, but delyuer them from that euell, sanctifye them thorow the sprete, and by true fayth to kepe them in the eleccion of saluacion.
Therfore brethrē stande faste, and kepe the ordynaūces vvhych ye haue learned: vvhether it vvere by oure preachynge or by oure Epistle.
Nowe bryngeth he in that whyche he mente in the begynnynge of thys chapter where he sayde: I beseche you by the cō mynge of our LORDE Iesu Christe, that ye be not sodenlye moued from youre mynde, &c. And in the meanseason he dysputeth many thynges to thys effecte; and nowe at the laste he bryngeth in & sayeth: In as muche as it is thus, abyde you in our ordynaunces whych we taught you, whether it were by mouth when we were yet amonge you, or els by myne epistles,The Apostles taught all theyr or dinaunces, ether by mouthe or els by epistles wryttē. whyche I sente when I was absent from you. For I taughte you the true Gospell: ye nede not to seke ony other. The Papistes [Page] do abuse thys place, for the defence of mans tradycions. And we do graunte, that the tradycions of the Apostles, ought as well to be receaued as theyr epistles wrytten: but we do not graunte that all those are the tradycions of the Apostles, whyche they do thruste vnto vs vnder ye name of the Apostles. The tradycions of the Apostles, are not contrarye to theyr epistles wrytten: but these mens tradycions are playne contrarye to the wrytynges of the Apostles.
Our LORDE Iesu Christe himselfe, and God our father vvhyche hath loued vs, and hath geuen vs euerlastyng consolacion and good hope thorovve grace, comforte your hartes, and stablyshe you in all good saynge and doynge.
He dothe here after hys maner, vnto hys admonycion ioyne an happye and luckye wyshe. And he doth here very cō nynglye brynge in together the whole summe of the Gospel, that is to saye, that God hath loued mankynde, & geuen him euerlastynge consolacion, that is Iesu Christe, whyche is oure hope, and hathe geuen it vs throughe hys grace, and not [Page 56] for our merytes: that is to saye, that we myght lyue euermore. He wysheth vnto them (I saye) that the same meke and louynge God, wold comforte theyr hartes and stablyshe them in all good sayenge & doynge: that is to saye, in all ryghteousnes. For in these two thynges he cōprehendeth all the offices or dutyes of a Christen man. And we Englyshe men vsynge the same partycion do diuyde all ryghteousnes into good sayenge and doynge, or into good wordes and workes. For these are those good frutes, whyche sprynge forthe of an harte that is sanctifyed thorowe the holy goost & true fayth. Saynte Ambrose marked the ordre of S. Paules wordes,Ambrose. and because (sayeth he) that the father, and the sonne are one power and one diuinite and substaunce, therefore he doubted not to name oure LORDE Iesu Christe fyrste,Theophilactus. and afterwarde God our father. And Theophilactus noted that Paule dyd so ordre this prayer, that he dyd also prescrybe them therwyth, what it became them to do: yt is, to geue themselues, to saye well and do well, and to perseuer in goodnes, and specyallye to knowlege Christe to be the [Page] onely hope, and euerlastynge consolaciō of the faythfull.
Caput. iii. Farthermore brethren praye for vs, that the vvorde of God may runne abrode, and be glorifyed as it is vvyth you, and that vve maye be delyuered, from vnreasonable and euell men. For all men haue not fayth, but the LORD is faythfull, vvhyche shall stablyshe you, and kepe you from euell. And vve haue good hope of you thorovve the LORDE, that ye both do and vvyll do that vvhyche vve cōmaunde you. And the LORDE guyde youre hartes into the loue of God, and lokynge after Christe.
Of prayer.Ther is nothynge stronger in the syghte of God then a faythfull prayer, & therfore doth he by all meanes moue the godlye vnto that moost dylygentlye. And here he sendethe men vnto prayer also, in that mooste troublesome and wycked worlde, and in the great daunger of godly men. The truthe was preached in dede, but in the mean season ther sprange vp dyuerse schismaes amonge them also, whyche wolde seme to be the followers of true relygion. And the open enemyes [Page 57] of the catholyke relygiō dyd both bānyshe the truthe, and also persecuted the chefe setters forthe thereof mooste cruelly: nother lacked ther certayne hypocrytes & false brethren, whyche were worse then they, & dyd muche more hurte vnto true godlynesse. For it is a true sayenge, that an hypocrytycall frende doth more hurte then an open enemye. For of the one we take hede, and from the other we hyde no thynge. Therfore the greate dyshoneste, wyckednes, & vnfaythfulnesse that was vsed in those dayes, dyd make the lyfe of Christen men, (whyche otherwyse was sharpe ynoughe) much more bytter. But Paule moueth men vnto prayer, & sayth: Consyderynge the greate daungers that the worlde is nowe in, ther is none other helpe but turne vnto prayer. And he prescrybeth the pryncypall thynges, whyche they shuld aske of God by theyr contynuall prayer. Fyrste that the worde of God myghte runne abrode, and be glorifyed amonge all other nacyōs, euen as it was dyuulgate amonge the Thessalonians, and receaued of godlye mē wyth an holy reioycynge. And all the scrypture beareth wytnesse, that thys was the perpetuall & [Page] moost feruenteste wyshe or desyre of all saynctes. And in ye fourth chapter of the Actes of the Apostles, the Apostolyke church dyd aske thys one thynge of God, that he wolde geue the apostles grace & strengthe to speake the worde of God wyth boldnes. We offende greatly nowe a dayes, that we do aske these thynges so coldlye of God: yee and I wolde to God that we dyd not vtterlye forgette to aske them at all. Nowe where as he sayde to runne abrode, he spake it after the commune speche, and he mente, that it might encreasse and spreade abrode apace wyth oute ony lette. And the worde is gloryfyed, when it is receaued of men, and all the glorye geuen vnto God onely. The secōde thynge that he teacheth to be asked wyth prayer is, that we maye be delyuered from vnreasonable and euell men: that is from inordynate and frowarde men,Who vs vnreasonable & eu [...]ll men. whyche do nothynge in theyr tyme and place, but all thynges peruerslye. And the Apostle mente the enemyes of Gods worde, whō nothynge can please, and yet in the meanseason they can do nothynge well themselues. They fynde fautes, and peruerte all thynges, and depraue [Page 58] those thynges whych are well sayd and done, and do lade them and defyle them wyth shamefull suspycions. They are also called shrewde, malycious and peruerse mē. And Dauid in hys psalmes, dothe desyre very ofte to be delyuered frō them. And our LORDE dyd adde vnto ye ende of that holy prayer: Delyuer vs frō euell: not alonly from the deuell, but also from all hys armye and bodye, and specially from that spyrytuall wyckednesse & those crafty deceauers. For ther is more ieopardye in a false frende and one that dissembleth all thynge, thē in an opē enemye.Al mē haue not faythe. And herevnto belongeth that which followeth: For all men haue not fayth. For this meaneth Paul: All they are not faythfull and true whyche wolde seme to be faythfull. For faythe in thys place is vsurped in the same sygnifycacion that ye Poete taketh it, when he sayeth: Nus (quam) tuta fides, a man woteth neare whome he maye truste. Yf ye wyll not graūt this maner of speakynge, then thys is ye meanynge: Touchynge ye I do requyre your prayers so greatlye that we myght be delyuered from vnreasonable and froward men, it is because I knowe that ther are [Page] many false brethren amonge you. For all they whyche pretende fayth, and professe it wyth theyr mouthe, haue not the true fayth in dede. For oure LORDE sayeth in the Gospell. Math. xx. Many are called, but fewe are chosen. And althoughe these two sences dyffer not muche, yet ye fyrste lyketh me better. Nowe ther followeth. But the LORDE is faythfull, vvhyche shall stablyshe you and kepe you from euell For leste he shulde dyscō forte the myndes of the saynctes through the vnfaythfulnes of manye: althoughe (sayeth he) that ther be many vnfaythfull amonge you, yet the LORDE is faythful and true, whyche wyll kepe hys promyse wyth vs, and be wyth hys for euer. They do resyste the Gospell, but they shall not ouercome it: they lette it that it can not go much abrode, but they shall not dryue it cleane backe. They do betraye the fauourers of the truthe, but yet they shall not vtterlye oppresse the truth. For Iesus Christ whyche is faythfull is euer at hāde for to fyghte for hys. He shall strēghthen hys agaynste the vnhappynesse of these men, and shall kepe thē from euell. For as much as he is true, he wyll luckly [Page 59] perfourme those thynges, whyche he hath begonne in vs. These wordes that are so full of consolacion, shulde be often layde forth to such as are in perrell & are greatlye aferde also of vnreasonable and euell men. Nowe to mytygate and as it were to correcce, that whyche he sayde before, he sayeth: But vve haue good hope of you throughe the LORD, &c. As though he wolde saye: We saye not these thynges because that we doute of your constauncy, no we do rather hope of you by the helpe of the LORDE Iesus that those thynges whyche I commaunde you of prayer, of watchynge and stedfastnesse, ye both do and hereafter wyll do. And it hath muche grace wyth it, yf that in oure admonycion, we do reioyce of the thynge whyche we desyre to receaue & optayne, as it were receaued & optayned already. Agayne, leste that ony man shulde attrybute ouermuche vnto theyr owne strengthe, but that rather we shulde all knowe, that euery gyfte is geuen vs of God from heauē, the LORDE (sayth he) guyde youre hartes, into the loue of God, and lokynge after Christe. To ye wyhche Erasmus dothe adde: Charite [Page] shall cause you for to studye to do good vnto all men, euen as God is benefycyal towarde all men. The lokynge for the cō mynge of Christe, shall cause you to suffer all afflyccions manfully. Therfore in all trubles and perylles, we haue these two styltes for to beare vs vp: prayer & stedfaste fayth. Brethrē let vs remembre these thynges I praye you, & in as muche as our tymes also are mooste corrupte & troublesome, and that for thys cause it is not possible but ye sayntes shuld be vexed, let vs praye to God, and constauntly beleue that he wyl neuer fayle vs: although that in the meanseason many vnreasonable and euell men, do ether persecute or betraye the truthe. God is true & fayth full, whyche can not denye hymselfe, and the truthe shall remayn euermore inuincyble: let vs cleue therfore vnto ye truthe, and we shall haue the vyctory, althoughe that when we be ouerthrowen of the worlde, we seme to be ouercome.
Vve commaunde you brethren in the name of our LORDE Iesus Christe, that ye vvythdravve your selues from euery brother that vvalketh inordynately, and not after the instytucion [Page 60] vvhyche he receaued of vs.
It is manyfeste in the fourth chapter of the fyrste Epystle,He condemneth deli [...]es exhort the men to laboure. what gaue hym an occcasion of thys commaundemente: That is to saye, because that immediatlye after the tyme of ye Apostles, certayn curious men beganne to thruste themselues into the church of God, and vnder the pretence of relygion or euell sciences and slouthfull ydelnes, dyd gette them a swete lyuynge. And where as befor in his fyrst epistle, he dyd but easlye as it were bycker or skyrmyshe wyth them: he dothe nowe comme in open felde vpon them, ouerthrowe them, and put thē to flyghte. Fyrste of all he settethe forthe the matter generally and sayeth: I wyll not that you haue ony conuersacion wyth inordynate fellowes, and suche as ordre themselues otherwyse then we dyd ordeyne. And he speaketh not thys thynge sleghtlye, but wyth greate authoryte & pythye wordes, sayenge: Vve commaunde you brethrē. After ye, leste ony man shulde contemne hym, whan he thus commaundeth thē: he addeth to: in the name of our LORD Iesu Christe. As thoughe he shulde saye: those thynges whych we cōmaunde you, [Page] we commaunde you not so muche in our owne name, as at the commaundement and expresse byddynge of Iesu Christe. And nowe he recytethe the cōmaundemēte of Christe: that ye wythdrawe your selues from euery brother whyche behaueth hymselfe inordynatelye, that is to saye, not after the institucion whyche he receaued of vs. We wyll speake of that instytucion a lytle hereafter. Erasmus sayeth, that those are brought into an ordre, whyche are bounde to the commune lawe, and dyffer in nothynge from other men. And that it is cōtrarye to thys, whē ony man the publyke lawes neglecte, lyueth at hys owne pleasure. And yt Paule shulde meane thys, by walkynge inordynatlye, the lyfe of Monkes, whyche is receaued of vs agaynste the instytucion of the LORDE and of the Apostles agreeth wyth thys in all poyntes. But when he commaundeth, that we shulde wythdraw oure selues from them, he commaundeth vs not to do as the Anabaptystes do, whyche separatynge themselues from ye cōmunion of sayntes, do set vp a priuate cōgregacion: but that we shuld flye theyr company as muche as we can, to the intente [Page 42] that they myght be ashamed & perceaue themselues to be condempned for theyr slouthfulnesse, and so be conuerted vnto the LORDE.
For ye your selues knovve, hovve ye ought to follovve vs. For vve behaued not our selues inordynatlye amonge you, nother toke vve breade of ony man for naught, but vvroughte vvyth laboure and svveat both nyght and daye, because vve vvolde not be chargeable to ony of you. Not that vve myghte not so do: but for to make our selues an example vnto you, to follovve vs.
He shewethe by hys example what instytucion he had geuen them.Paule laboreth wt hys own hādes. He dothe also persuade men to laboure, and candēpneth ydelnesse. His wordes are playn. Althoughe (sayeth he) I myghte well lyue at your coste and stypende (for by breade he doth vnderstonde meate & drynke: yee and all suche thynges as belonge vnto ye sustentacion and necessyte of thys lyfe) yet had I rather to laboure both nyght & day, for to shewe our selues an ensample and fourme vnto all mē that they myght followe vs. And by thys we maye se what [Page] it is to walke inordynatlye,To lyue inordynatlye. and to be in ordre. They lyue inordynatly, whych are ydle and take theyr breade for naughte, ye is to saye,To lyue ordynatlye. lyke drone bees do eate vp other mens laboures. They lyue in ordre whyche wyth laboure & sweate do worke nyght and daye, that is to saye, contynuallye, and be not chargeable to ony man. The instytucions and rules of all ordres or Monkes,Monkes. after that they be touched, as it were with these holy thonderboltes, do fall flatte down. That whyche the same Paule dysputed at Myletus, wyth the brethren of Ephesus, Actu .xx. agreeth well wyth thys.
For vvhen vve vvere vvyth you, thys thynge vve commaunded you: that yf ther vvere ony that vvold not vvorke, the same shulde not eate.
He that laboreth not, ye same shuld not eate.He reherseth the same instytucion of hys, whyche he sayde to be conteyned in the expresse wordes of the LORDE. And thys is the lawe: That he whyche wolde not laboure, shulde not eate. For slouthfull people deserue none almes nother. For I thynke it not vnlyke vnto this law of God, whyche the Gētyles were woūte to saye in lyke prouerbes: Qui fugit molam [Page 62] fugit farinam: he that flyeth ye mylle flyeth the meele, that is to saye: he that refuseth to laboure, shal haue none of the vantage. And agayne: Ne (que) mel, ne (que) apes. No bees, no honye. For yf ony man wyll not suffre bees, because they haue stynges, he is vnworthye to haue ony honye. And Mimus sayeth in these wordes: Beare that whyche is greueous & paynfull that thou mayste haue that whyche is pleasaunte and profytable. Wherfore Valerius maximus .ii. boke .i. chap. sayth that the Massilians do kepe theyr gates shutte agaynste all suche whyche vnder some pretence of relygion do go aboute to mayntayne theyr ydelnesse. Yf that ye kynges and rulers of Englande had marked thys instytuciō thre hundreth yeares sooner, they had had more ryches & fewer Monkes. Plutarche sheweth in hys notable & brefe sentence of the Lacedemonians, that amonge them, the Goddes and Goddesses be paynted and portured echeone wyth a speare in theyr hande: In so muche that Venus herselfe was in complete harnesse. Sygnifyenge by thys, that not so muche as the goddes were ydle amonge thē. He sayeth farther [Page] that they haue thys prouerbe amonge them: Putte to thy hande, and calle on fortune, for so we must truste on goddes helpe, that not wythstondynge earnestly we put to our dylygence so muche as lyeth in vs. For God heareth not the prayers of the slougyshe fylbellyes. Agayne it is a cōmune sayenge: God wyll helpe thē that wyll laboure. Farther more, he that hath learnynge or an occupacion, maye go where he wyll. Also that knowlege & connynge is a hauen to men from ye stormes of pouertye, that is to saye: a science or an occupaciō is the only remedy or refuge for pouerte.Erasmus in adag [...]is: Arcem queuis alis terra. Wherfore they that are wyse (I vse the wordes of Erasmus) althoughe yt they haue substaunce ynough, wyll yet cause theyr chyldrē for to learne some occupacion, wherwyth yf they fall into pouertye, or shuld chaunce to be banyshed theyr contrye, they myght yet get theyr lyuynge. Dionysius a tyraunte amonge the Syracusans after he was put out of hys domynyon, sette vp a scoole at Corynthum & taught chyldren learnyge and Musycke. But now a dayes ther are many, whyche hauyng nothynge of theyr owne, do spende theyr tyme in rych mens [Page 61] houses, from whence yf they shuld be dryuen oute, they muste ether begge or steale. Also thys place of Paule doth condē ne all sturdy beggers. I nede not to speake ony thynge of Monkes and suche sacrifyers, as are vnprofytable to the godly mynystracion of the churche, seynge ther can nothynge be fayned whyche dothe more condempne thē then thys.A necessary exhortacion to prynces and rulers. Ye prynces and rulers of cytyes take good hede, that thys lawe of God be put in vre and haue place amonge you, yf that you loue the healthe of the cōmune welthe. I pray you suffre not the substaūce of your people, to be caste vnto these puttockes to be deuoured, lyke mē that were bewytched vnder the pretence of relygion: & wynke not alwayes at these craftye bryhers. Defende your people for Gods sake, and brynge the lawe of god agayne into your commune wealthes.
For vve haue herde saye, that ther are certayne amonge you, vvhyche vvalke inordynatly, and vvorke not at all, but lyue curiously. And them that are suche vve commaūde and exhorte by our LORDE Iesus Christe, that they vvorke vvyth quyetnesse, and eate [Page] theyr ovvne breade.
Inordenate mē must be broughte [...] to an ordre.He speaketh nowe more playnly and shortlye that thynge, whyche he hath hetherto set forth at large. The cause (sayeth he) why I speake of thys matter so muche, is, that I heare certayne men to be amonge you, whyche do walke inordynatlye: that is to saye, do no worke, but leade theyr lyfe curiously. Therfore we commaunde these men by our LORDE Iesus Christe, yt they wyll get theyr lyuynge quyetlye, workynge wyth theyr owne handes. For thys thynge dyd the LORDE commaunde, Genes. iii. And condempned ydelnesse for euer. We haue herde (sayeth he) yt ther are certayne amonge you whyche do no worke at all, but geue theyr myndes to vnprofytable thynges.Who do lyue curyouslye. For to lyue curiouslye, is to be busy and laboure in vayne: as you wolde say, to be nother ydle, nor well occupyed: that this myght be the menynge: I heare yt ther be among you whyche worke not: for althoughe they laboure myghtelye & ouermuche, yet theyr laboure is vnprofytable, and it were a greate deale better that they were ydle, then to be so euell occupyed. After thys maner we se certayne [Page 64] Mōkes, Sacryfyers, and Nonnes to laboure a pace: for they synge & mumble vp prayers both daye and nyght, they watche & leaue nothynge vndone ye suche kynde of people shuld do: But in as much as Christ sayeth, Math. xv. They worshyppe me in vayne, teachyng the doctrynes & commaundemētes of men. Theyr laboure is vnprofytable, and to none effecte. And so do the Anabaptystes crepe into all mens houses, and reade & preach both daye and nyght: but no man calleth them, nother do they studye syncerytye & and purenes, but do trouble mē. Vserers also runne all aboute, and pull euery mā by the sleue and take greate payne: but to ye intente yt they myght be ryche, & lyue by the sweate of other mē. For although that all these do laboure strōgly, yet ther commeth no prosyte of theyr labour. For they do lytle good or none vnto theyr neyghboures. What sayde I do no good? where as they not only do hurte, but are also the greatest destruccion vnto the cō mune welthe. Saynte Ambrose descrybynge a certayne kynde of curious men, of whyche sorte we lacke none now a dayes, sayeth: They whyche desyre to be [Page] ydle,Of this sort be these honeste beggers (as they seme) and they, whych fayn thēselues to be banyshed for ye truthe sake. go about to gette an occasion, that they may make the ryche men fayne on them, & to call them ofte vnto theyr houses, and as they go vp and downe, they marke suttylly the doynges and opyniōs of eche one, by thys meanes knowynge what they wold gladlye heare of euery man, that they may be fedde thankefullye and requyred also: whych kynde of doyng greatly abhorreth from the doctryne of ye LORDE. For the bellye is the God of those whyche gette theyr lyuynge by such fylthye and shameles prouision. Hetherto is S. Ambrose sayenge. How much more doth it dyffer from the doctryne of the LORDE, that Monkes and sacryfyers haue robbed the people, vnder ye pretence of the name & seruyce of God, and haue stuffed theyr bellyes wyth moost swete delycates & deyntye dyshes? Howe muche is it contrarye vnto ye doctryne of Christ also, that sturdye beggers & hypocrytes vnder the pretence of Christes name do mayntayne theyr ydelnes, at the coste & charge of Christen men? We cōmaunde and requyre suche (sayeth the Apostle) yt they worke wyth quyetnes, & rate theyr owne breade: theyr owne breade (I saye) [Page 63] as though he wolde saye, not other mens breade, but theyr own. For they yt lyue curiously do not eate theyr own breade but other mens. Farther more they laboure not wt quyetnes: for theyr laboure causeth trouble, in as much as it is vnprofytable & chargeable to ye myserabe people. On ye other syde, necessary laboure brynge the wyth it muche quyetnesse & vtylyte: for he that goeth aboute hys owne busynesse and worketh wyth hys own handes hath nede of nothynge .i. Thessalo. iiii. And therfore is chargeable to no man, but doth geue to them that haue nede. Ephe. iiii. As many of you as are chargeable vnto the people, as many of you as do no worke at all, but go aboute thynges that be to no purpose, thynke ye yt thys is spoken vnto you also. Christe shall punyshe you, excepte ye leaue your dyshonest and moost vncomlye ydelnesse, and gette you to laboure. And here is a goodly place, to speake of the kyndes of laboures and busynesse, and of the helpynge and duetyes to the poore also. For all thynges are out of ordre amonge vs, but I had rather to subscrybe vnto other better learned, then to shewe forth myne ignoraunce. Lewes [Page] Viues hath wrytten two bokes of thys matter, in the whyche yf the rulers wold exercyse thēselues cōtynually, peraduē ture the cōmune welth shuld be in better case then it is, & ther shuldbe lesse slouth & ydelnesse, & more laboure & quyetnesse.
And ye brethren be not vverye in vvell doynge. We oughte to do good vnto al mē.
The moost parte of the ryche mē do vse to vpbrayde ye poore theyr slouggyshnesse and ydelnesse, they other whyles not so euell or myscheuous, as wretched and myserable. And by thys pretēce they kepe theyr charite from them that haue nede of it. And therfore S. Paule sayeth: I wyll not by thys meanes wythdrawe ony man from well doynge, or geue ony man an occasion for to ordre myserable people the more cruelly or vngētlye. For mē ought alwaye to do good. They shlud do well to euery man, but speciallye vnto godly men, we wold not ye God shulde be werye of our necessityes. We wolde yt he shuld receaue our oftē requestes wt a mery coūtenaūce. Therfore we shuld not be weerye also, when ye hys mēbres do call vpon vs for our helpe. And it is a pyteous thynge: yee yt a very ydle person shuld peryshe [Page 64] for hunger. Agayne they offende agaynst ye doctryne of God, whych are ouer fauourable vnto sturdye vagaboundes. But good mē can determyne this stryfe, equyte beynge theyr guyde:
Yf ony man obeye not oure sayenges, sende vs vvorde of hym by a letter: and haue no cōpany vvyth hym, that he maye be ashamed. And counte him not as an enemye, but vvarne him as a brother.
He ordeneth a punyshemente for the dysobediente.A payne is ordeyned for the dysobediente. Yf that ony man (sayeth he) despyseth to obey our instytucions, sende vs worde of hym by Epistle, and in the meanseason let hym be put oute of youre familiaryte: & that for thys purpose, that after he is ouercome with shame, he may amēde. For thys dysciplyne is not ordeyned for ye destruccion of ony man, but for his health. Therfore ye shall not vtterly putte from you a synner, but loue hym alwayes as a brother: but yet in ye meanseason ye shall monyshe hym of hys faute and correcte hym. And oute of thys place we maye learne what the disciplyne of ye churche is, and vnto what ende it oughte to be putte in [...]e, & also why the Apostle [Page] doth commaunde vs to flye the company of the dysobediente: not that we shuld abhorre them as enemyes and wycked mē, not that we shulde preferre our selues aboue other in holynesse, or els stāde well in our owne conceates, or exercyse tyrannye toward the myserable people: but that he whyche is gyltye, beynge taughte through our wythdrawynge from hym, & as it were warned of hymselfe, shuld remēbre hym selfe, and esteme hys fylthynesse as it is in dede, and so beynge ashamed, to amende. And yf that by the meanes of the euell that raygned in hym he wyll not amende, & by thys meanes come to hym selfe & repente: thē shall ye sayntes take delyberaciō amonge them, by what meanes thys madde man may be holpē, leste that ether he himselfe do vtterly peryshe, or els infecte other wyth the same dysease. For they are deceaued whyche whē theyse that the auoydynge from hys company auayleth not, do set asyde all farther remedyes, thynkynge that after thys, the churche maye vse none other meanes to brynge them into the waye. But Paule sayeth, sende vs word of him by a letter. To what purpose I pray you? [Page 65] That he myghte haue the name of hym that dysobeyeth? But what profyte shuld come of yt? He wolde therfore haue knowlege of suche by an epistle, that he myght take wyth godly men suche counsell for those vnruelye people, as they shulde thynke mete. For we ought all of vs to do our diligence that we destroye not thē for whome Christe dyed, nother by our importunytie or cruelnesse, nother yet by our ignoraunce & neglygence. But these wordes of ye Apostle seme vnto some mē, to be vnderstonde of ye priuate cōuersacion of men: that is to saye, that euery mā shulde abstayne so muche as he coulde from the cōpanye & familiaritie, of suche as are dysobedyente: And many haue expounded it of the open excōmunycacion.
The very LORDE of peace, geue you peace alvvayes by all meanes. The LORDE be vvyth you all. The salutaciō of me Paule, vvyth myne ovvn hande. Thys is my token in all epistles. So I vvryte. The grace of our LORDE Iesus Christe be vvyth you all. Amen.
He concludeth hys epystle, & wysheth them the bonde of al ryghteousnesse, holy peace, that they myghte kepe yt alwayes [Page] and in all theyr busynesse For Satan is the author of discorde, chydynge, stryfe, enuye, and priuy hatred: and God is the author of concorde, meknesse, and charyte. He dwelleth wyth all sayntes, so longe as they lyue in thys world in truthe and ryghteousnesse. Hys presence is the fountayne of all goodnes, and hys absence is the cause of all darkenesse, erroure, and eternall horror. Saynte Ambrose sayethe that for feare of choppers and chaūgers and corrupters of scryptures Paule doth testifye, yt he dyd alwayes subscrybe hys salutaciō in euery one of hys epistles wt his own hande: to the intente yt ony epistle receaued in his name, myghte not be suffered yf it were not subscrybed wyth hys owne hande. The Apostles toke such care, leste that the congregacions shulde be deceaued by ony crafte or deceate. These thynges do shewe of what certayntie & verite the Apostles wrytynges be. And because that Paule dyd teache constantlye amonge all nacions yt mankynde was saued by the grace of God, therfore he repetynge his wounte signet or subscripcion dyd sette to at the ende of all his epistles, this marke and seale of [Page 66] our faythe: The grace of oure LORDE Iesus Christe be with you all. It appeareth: therfore by thys, that the Apostle vsed the helpe of a notarye or scryuener for to wryte hys epistles yt he sente.