W. T.

When the old scribes and pharisees had daunted Yeshua's scrip-
ture and their traditions, false interpretations & wicked sayings of flexibly wildome
and mutter up the kingdom of heaven (W is
God's Word) that the people could not EN
learn into the knowledge of Y tru way, as
Christ complayneth in the Gospel. But
xiiij. then they false doctrine, in the stead of God &
his Word, and lie in the foules of the Peo
ple, to devour their bodies, and to rebuke the
of their وزldly Substauce. But what Christ
and John the baptist had restored the scrip-
ture again into the true understanding,
and had uttered their falsehead, and impo-
ved their traditions, and confounded their
false interpretations wyth the clear and e-
vident texts, and with power of the holy
ghost, and had brought all their jugglers
and伪Christ to light, then they got the
unto the elders of the People, and per-
aded them, saying: this man is a lie, ly of the
Deuell, and his miracles be of the Deuell
no doubt. And these good works whiche
the doth in healing the people, peace, and his
preaching against our courteousnes, are but
a cloke

W. T.

a cloke to bring him unto his purpose, that
whé he hath gotten him disciples enough,
he maye wyle against the empirour and ma-
ke him selfe king, and then shall the romap
nes come and take oure land from us, and
tarpe away oure people, and put other na-
tions in oure realme, and so shall we lose all
that we have, and the most part of us out
lyues thereto. Take hede therfore betimes
whyple there is remedy, yet he goe farre
that ye be not able to relpyst him.

The elders of þe people which were rich
and wealthy, though before they in a maner
favoured Christ oz at the left way were in
different not greatly carying whether god
oz the deuel repgned so they might byde in
aucthozitie, feared immediatly (as Herode
dio of the lolle of his Ringdom, when the
Wyle menne axed where the newe Bozne
kinge of Jewes was) and conspired with
the scribes and pharisees against Christ,
toke hym and brought hym unto Pplate,
Caping: we have found this fellow per turig
the people, and for bidding to paye trybute
unto Cesar, and Caping that he is a king, an
mouing the people from Galplee unto this
place: The plate, though he lykewise was
before ingiff eret, but now in feare of þe loke

a n le

W.T.

of his office therefore such perfections as we innocent Chryste. And in very deed as the scribes and pharisees were all their lyes before him, so were they at their last ende. Blynd prophetes unto the destruction of their bodies, after they had slained Christ (diverse of his apostles, and executed thole pore wretches that belieued on him). God, to avenge the pore innocent blood, bare witness, to his truth, powred by his wrath, amonge them, that they the selves role against him. Emperor. And ofROMAYNES CA me (according as they blyndly prophesied) and we the moost part of them (carried the rest) captive into all nations, and put other nations in the Realme. But whole fault was in this infurrection against the Emperor, and because followed: That his apostles whom they falsely accused be taken away: No, Christ taught them that which pertained unto Celar, that is, that he belonged to god; even as they doth untoCELAR the lawfull body of Christ, so unto god the harte, that they may得 love of god, and receive of their euill, &c. with the wrath of God be taken from the. And the apostles taught

M. T.

aloules shuld obey the hygher powre or te
pozall rulers: But their obstinate malice þ
so hardened their hartes þ they could not
repét, and their rayling vppon the open ald
manifest truth which they could not impzo
ue, & relisting the holighooft / and fleing of
þ preachers of ryghtuouſnes, brought ht the
Wath of God vpō them, ad was cauſe of
their deſtruccion.

Euen so our ſcribes ad pharilees/now
that their h[ypocr]iste is o il cloſed/and their
ſalhed so brought to lyght that it can no le
ger be hyd, get them vnto the elders of the
people/the lozdes, gentylmen, and t[é]pozaill
officers, and eo all that loue this worlde as
theyp do/ and who so euer is great w[orth]
the king, ad vnto the kinges grace him ſel
ſe, and after the ſame enſample and with þ
ſame perſuafions, caſt the into lyke fear of
loſing of their worlde v[om]ings, ad to
be vnto them, ſaping :pe be neglygent and
care nothing at all, but haue a good ſpoz
ſe that the heretikes ſaple on vs. Bue
give them ſpace a while tyſt theyp be grow
vnto a multitude, and then pe ſhall ke them
preach as fast agav[n]ſt you/ ad more the pe
ple against you, ad do their best to th[ey]uſt you
boune alſo and ſhall crepe hauocke/ and ma

4 w

W. T.

ke all comen. W generation of serpentes,
how wel declare ye that ye be the vyght sou
nes of the father of allves: for they which
ye call heretikes, p reach nothing, laue that
which our Sauioure Jelus Chyzste p zeas-
ched and his Apostles, adding nought ther-
to/noz plucking ought ther fro, as the scrip-
ture commaundeth, and teache all men re-
pentaunce to God and his holy lawe, and
faith vnto our Sauour Jelus Chyzst, and
the P zomplex of Mere eye made in h ynt
and o bedience vnto all that G D com-
mauideth to obey: neither teach we so much
as to relyst your most cruell tyzanny with
bodely violence, laue with Goddes wooz d
onely, intending nothing but to d zyue you
out of the temple of Chyzst, the hartes, con-
sciences and loules of m (wherin w your
lailhead pe lpt) and to restore again J elus
our Sauioure, vnto his posseffion and inhe-
titaunce boughte with his bloude, whence
ye haue arpuen hyn with your manypolde
Wyles and subtilties.

Take hede therfore wicked pzelates blin
de leaders of the blynde, inducate and obsti-
nate hypocrites take hede. For if the phary-
les for their restitynge the holigho st (p is
to laue per lecuting the open and manypel
truth

truth

W. T.

truth and cleing the preachers therof, Delta
ped not the wath and vengeaunce of god,
how shall ye escape, were fatze wozze then
the pharisees: for though the pharisees had
thut vp the Scripture, set vp theyr owne
profeations, yet they kept theyr owne pro-
feations for the most parte. But ye wobe
the chefeft in Christ s flocke, and ye wil not
kepe oneioe of the right way of his doctri-
ne. Ye haue thereto set vp wonderful pzo-
keffios to be moze holy, therby then ye thim
ke that Chyrstes doctrine is able to make
you, and yet kepe as it the word (Excerpt it be
with dilpèlacions) in so much that it a ma
are you, what youre meruious kationed
playingco ates and youre other Poppystrye
meane, and what your dyffigured Heads
and your appel plays meane ye know not,
and yet are they but Spgnes of thynges
which ye haue ptocked. Thypdly, ye wyll
be Papystes and holde the Pope; and yet
loke in the popes law, au ye kepe therof al
most nought at all; but what so ever sou
deth to make for your bellies; and to main
teyn your honoure, whether in the Scryp-
ture or in your owne tradicions; or in þ po-
pes lawe; that ye compel the lay people to
oblerue vbolentlye thretpnge them wth
your

W. T.

pour extomunpcacions et curles that they
Thalbe dampned both body & soule, if they
kepe them not. And if that helpe you not,
then pe murther them mercplesly with the
Swerd of the tempozall powers, whom pe
Ihaue made so blynde, that they be ready to
Slea whom pe commaund, and wyll not yes
heare hys caule examined, noz geue hi rouz
me to answere foz him selke.

And pe elders of the people, feare ye god
also. Sfoz as þ elders of the Jle wes, which
were partakers wyth the scribes and pha
rilees in relisting the holypghoost, and in per
secuting the open truth, and sleing the wic
ness of the rof, and in prouoking the wrazh
of God, had their part with them alio in þ
day of wrazh and sharp vengeaunce whych
shoztly after fel uppon them, as the nature
of the linne agaynst the holypghooste is to
haue her dampnation, not only in þ wozild
to come, but alio in this lyke accozdinge vn
to all the examples of the byble and aucten
tike rozies lens the wozild began, euern ly
ke wþle pe, if pe wyll wincke in so open and
sleare lyght ád let your selues be led blind
folde and haue pour parte wyth the ypocri
tes in lyke furie and milchefe, be sure, pe
hall haue youre parte wyth them in lyke
wrazh

W.T.

Wzath and vengeaunce, that is lyke hoz tip
Co fall vpon them.

And cóceraing þ the hipocrites put you
in feare of þ rilig of your cómons against
you, If an were: If ye fear pour comes, so
testify ye against pour selues þ ye are tiraü-
tes. If so, if your conscience accused you not
of euell doing, what neade pe to feare your
fomens? What comens were euier so euil
that theye role against their heades so well
doing? Moreouer ye witness against your
selues also that pe have no trust in God.
If so he hath promised þ tempoz all officers
all owence, if they minister their offices tru-
lpe, and to care for the kepinge of them as
much as they care for to kepe his lawes.

The hipocrites happely bid you take
an en sample of the vplandish people of Al-
many which they ly that Marten Luther
sturred vp. If so first what one létéce in all
the writing of Marten Luther, fynd they
that teacheth a man to resist his superiour?
Moreouer if Martin Luther ao the pzea
chers h d sturred vp the comen People of
Germanpe, howe append it that Maro
ten Luther and other lyke Preachers had
not perished lyke wypse wyth them, whiche
A MCD Longe after: Ye wyll aske
me

W. T.

me who sturred them up then: If you were who sturred up the commonnes of the Jews to relyst the Emperor after that scribes and Pharisees with the elders of the people had flapne Chypste and hys Alpostles: Clerely the wath of God. And sué to here the wath of God sturred the up /partelye to destroye the ennempes and persecutours of the truth, and partelye to take vengeaunce on thole carnall beatees, whith abused the Gospell of Chypst to maie a cloke of it to defende their fleshly lyber tie, and not to obry it and to laue their loules therby.

If Kynges, Lords, and great men therfore feare the louse of this worlde: Let them feare God also for him fearing God: Shall they prolonge their dapes vppon the earth, and not with fyghting against God. The earth is Goddes only, or hys favourt and mercie, oth prolonge the dapes of kyngrs in their estate ad not their owne powre and myght.

And let all men be theyp neuer so great) harken unto this and let this be an answere unto them. Wicked Kyng Achab flapde unto the prophet Elias. Arte thou he that troubledst Israël And Elias answered, is

W. T.

tenette and pacience, ye shall epther winne
the or mitigate their fiercenes. If they ioy
me them vnto the pope/ãd perſecut you for
youre faith and hope, which pe have in the
Lord Jefus, then call to mynde that pe be
tholen to luffre here with Chryſte, that pe
may ioye with him in the lyfe to com with
ioye everal ting, y shall link my ſtyle palle this
youre ſhorte payne here. If they commaui
de y god forbi deth or forbyde that god
tomaundeth the anſ were as the Apostles
Opd. Act. v. that God must be obeyed more
then man/ik they compell you to luffre vn
eyght, then chryſt shall helpe you to beare
et his ſpirit thil comfort you. But only ſee
that neither they put pou from Gods woz
de noz yet reliſt them with bodely byoléce.
But abyde paciently a whole plll the hipo
cryſy of hipoccites be ſlayne with the ſwe
de of Gods woozde, and vntplll the woozde
be openly published and witneſſed vnto
the powers of the woſlde, that their blipnd
neſſe may be without excufe.

And then wych God awake as a ſiſſe
ſvon agaveth tholc cruel wolues in deuou
the hys Lambes, and wyll play with the hy
pocryptes and compaile t'hem in their oune
Wples, et ſend them a dalsing in þe heade, G

IWS

Of Prelates.

dred who thulde be greatest in the kyngdom of heauen, Chyrst called a pong chyld vnto him/and fet him in the middes among the lapinge: Except ye turne backe and becon as chuldzen, ye shall not entre in the Kingdom of heauen. Now yong childe ren der no rule one over an other, but all is felt lowshippe among them. And he fayd more ouer: Who toeuer humbleth him selfe after the en sample of thys chyld, he is greatest in the kyngdom of heauen, that is to say (as concerning ambicion and worldly de lye) lo childe is, that he couldest not hepue felt above thy brother/ is the verp bearing of rule and to be great in Chyftes kingdom me: And to delserbe the verp facion of th greateneffe of his kingdome / the fayd: What that receaueth one such chyld in my name receaueth me. What is that to receaue chyld in Chyrst's name: Therelip to submit to meke and to humble thy selfe and to call thy selfe under all men and to conſper al mennes infirmities and weakenesses, to helpe to heale thep[er] diſeales with þ' wo of trueth, and to lyue purelp that they ſe not contrarpe en sample in the / to what toeuere thou teacheſt them in Chyrst, that thou put no stumbling blocke before them/to make them

of prelates.

them falle whyle theyp be yet Pounge and
weake in the kapth: But that thou abstayne
as Paule teacheth.i. Thelfalo.v. Ab enunt
Ipecie mala, from all that myght leme rupull
or whereof a man might lutmple ampulle, etc.
that thou loue them, that what loeu it gil't
te of god in the is, thou thyn in the faime, thes
irs and their fode and for their fakes geue
unto the as the Truthe is, and that all the
infyzmotye s be thpne, and that thou keale
them and that thpne hart mourne for them
and that wyth all thy powre thou helpe to
amende them; and keale not to lype to God
for them neither dape nor nyghyte: and that
thou let nothyping be founde in the that any
man mape rebuke, but what loeuet thou tea
theft them; thou that be: And that thou be
not a wolk in a Lambes lapinne as our hos
lpe father the Pope is, whych cometh onto
vs in Name of hypocrisye and in the triste
of curfed Chaim or Ham callyng hym selfe
Seruus servitum, the seruante of all ser
uantes, and is yet founde tyenius tyrann
nozumi of all tyzautes moste crue!! Thys
is to receaue ponge chشدern in chypres naz
me, and to receaue pong chyldre in Chyldres
name, is to beate rule in þringdō of chyft.
Thus ye maye se that Chyptes kyringdome

B is

Of Prelates.

Choritie to compell the inter your with viole
te. The w orld truly can le none other way
to rule, then with violence. For there no ná
abstepneth from euel, but to zeare, becaule
the loue of ryghtuoulnes is not wuzitten in
thez hartes. And therfore the Do-
pes kingdome is of thys worlde. For there
one lozte are your Grace, your Holynille,
your fatherhod: An other, my lozde bishop
my Lozde Abbot, my Lozde Prieur. An oz-
ther master doctour, fathet, bachelar, mal-
ter parfon, master vicar, and at the last com
meth in Cimple lir Johan. And euery man
repyneth ouer other wyth myght and haue
euery ruler his pزلon his iavler, his chap-
nes hys tozmentes euern so much as his
ers obfernauntes obferue that rule, and co-
pell euery man euther with violence aboue
the crueines of the heathé tita ûtes, so þ what
come thones in, maye neuer out to zeare of
tellyng tales out of Icole. They rule ouer
the bo dpe with violence and c ëpell it w hir
the harte wull oz not, to obferuethin-
ges of their owne making.

But in the kyngdom of God it is contra-
tye. For þe spirit that bringe th thê thether
maketh the wvillng & geueth the luste vnto
the lawe of God, & loue competeth with them to

B ii

wózke

The practice

And ke/and loue maketh every man's good and all that he can do, commune unto his nepghbours neade. And as every man is ströge in that ringdome, so loue compelleth him to take the weake by the hande, and to helpe him, and to take him, that can not god vppon his thulders and beare him. And so to do seruice unto þ weaker, is to beare ru le in that lyngdome.

And becaufe Peter did excede the other apostles in seruès ser vice towarde his brie thern, therfore is he called (not in the scrip ture but in the use of speaking) the cheliste of the Apostles, and not that he had any do minio over the. If which trueth thou may est se all the practice in the Actes of the A pos tles after the r zurteitio. For when Pe ter had bene preached in the houfe of Coz nelis an hethè miã, the other that were cir tūcpled, chode hym, becaufe he had bene in an uncircumciled houfe and had eas té w hi, for it was kozbyddé in þ laws, nep ther wist they þet þ þ hett é thuld be called. And Peter was fayne to gyue accountes unto the (which is not toké of ſupenorité) ò to them the how he was warned of the holy goſt so to do Actes.xi.

And Actes the, xv. whé a counſell was gathered

of Prelates.

Gathetetd of the apostles ûd dyscyples abou
te þ eþcûcplio of the heðé, Peter bzought
forðth not hys còmaundrmet and the aucto
ryté of hys vpcarhyppe, but the mpzacle þ
the holy goft had chewed for the heathen/
how at the preaching of the golpe, the holp
goſt had lyghted vppon the and purpyped
theyp hartes thozow fayth, and kherkoze þ
ved that they ought not to be circumcysed.

And Paule & Barnabas bzought forðth
the mpzacles alſo that God had chewed by
the/amog the heathé, thozow p reachyng of
fayth. And the James bzought forðth a þ
phecp of the olde testamét for the ſayde par-
tie: And ther with the aduerſaries gaue o
uer their hold, and thep concluded wyth one
aſſent by þ auctozytie of the ſcripture & of
þ holy goſt, þ þ heathen chyld not be circu-
tiled, and not by the commaundment of
Peter, under payne of curſing, excommu-
npcatyon interdyping and lyke bogges to
make ſoles and chyloz en akraved wyth all.

And Actes. viij. Peter was ſent of þ a
ther apostles vnto the ſamaritans, which
is an cvident token that he had in jurisdic-
tion ouer them(for then they could not ha
ue ſent hym) But rather(as the truth is) þ
the congregacion had auctozytie ouer hym

B W

m

Galla.ii.

Scripture
is the che
feſt of the
apostles.

The Præyle
and ouer all other p[r]puate Parlons, to ad
micte them for minſtres and ſend the forſt
to p[re]each whether to euerm the p[ra]ſite of god
moued them, and as they came occafyon.

And in the Epistle unto y Gallathians
thou feſt also howe Paule cozrected Peter
when he walked not the r[ug]ht waye after
the truth of the Gospell. So now thou
ſeſt that in the kirgdome of Chyſt, and in
his churche or cor gregation, and in his cou
ſeuaunts onely and Chyſt is the heade
and we all bether in: And when we call
men oure heades, y we do not, because they
be ſhozne of thauen, or because of theyz na-
mes, parſon, vicar, bi: choppe, p[ope]: But one
ly because of the woode which they p[re]each.
If they erre fro the woode, then may who
ſoever God moueth his harte, plave p[aul],
and cozrect hi. If he w[oul] not obepe the p[ri]
ſture, then have his h[e]thern auethoritie by
the p[ri]ſcripture to put hym downe to ſende
hi out of Chyſtes churche amonge the here
tikes which p[re]ferre their falſe doctrines as
h[ou]e the true woode of Chyſt.

How

Of Pzelates.

How the gospel pumilitheth trespassers
and how by the Gospel we ought to go to
lawe with oure aduerlarpes.

Though they of Chyrstles congregacion be all wyping: yet because the most part is always weake, because also that the occasions of the world be ever many and great, in so much that Chyrst, which wypen all thing beforehande, layth Mathew xviij. Who be vnto this world by reason of occasions of Ewell, and laythe also that it can not be auopded but that occasionyps shall come, therefore it cannot be chosen but that many shall ouerkaule when a weake Brother hath trespailed, by what law that he be punilshed: verely by the law of loue, whole properties thou readest in xiii. of the first to the Corinthians. If the loue of God, which is my professor, be true, then in myne hart, it wypill not let me hate my weake Brother when he hath offended me, no more then naturall loue wypill let a Brother hate her childe when it trespaileth against her. My weak Brother hath offended me, he is fallè, his weaknes hath ourrowne hi: it is not right by the lawe of loue: I should now faule vp, who, if I were

B iii in the

Anm

The Practyle

in þ mynde and destroy him vtherly: but it is
right by the law of law, þ runne to hym
& helpe him vp agayne. By what weell
we hulo go to law in our trespacers: chyld
teacheth us Math, xviij. Tell hi hys faute
betwene hi & the with all mekenesse, reme
byþng þ thou arte a man & mayst fall also,
Ff pe repèt, & thou loue hi þe shall one a
gre & the forgerne hi. And whé thou forger
ust thy nephtbour, the thou arte sure that
god forgereth the thy trespaces by his holy
pronyfle Math. vi. If he heare þ not, thyn
take a nephtboure or two. If he heare thyn
not, the tell the congregació w here thou art:
let þ preacher p[ron]oſice god's law againſ hi
& let þ faſo & diſcret mé rebuke hi & exhort
hi vnto repètaunce, if he repèt, & þ alſo loue
him accorþng to þ p[ro]ſeffyon, pe shall ſo
ne agen. If he heare not þ congregació, then
let him be taken as an hesth[é]. Ff he þ is offi
ded be weake alſo, tié let them & bost[ring]
go betwene & helpe the. And in lyke maner
if any ſime againſ þ doctrine of Chyſt c. þ
p[ro]ſeffiò of a ch[rist]é má so that he be a dzon
karb, & à horekeper, or what c[oe]uer opé ſin
me he do, or if he teach falſe learniſ: then let
ſuch be rebuked opély before þ congregació (c
by þ auctoriſtie of þ ſcripture. And if they
reperſ