The refutation of the bishop of Winchester's dark declaration of his false articles, once before confuted by George joy. Be not deceived by this bishops false books. Hear now the other part, and judge truly of the truth. For the verity will have the victory. M. D. XLVI. To the reader. THou shalt understand (good reader) that ●n the year. M. D. xivi at easter or pash time I received this bishops book called his Declaration written against me, what time, for such trouble and unquietness as I sustained in flying & flitting from place to place, it was whitsuntide following ere I could peruse his book & gather out these principals and (as thou seest) refute them. And yet then because there went forth a straight commandment fro the emperor (by whose procurement I know not) but well I weet, the bishop was in those partis ambassiador not long before that no english books be no more printed at Antwerp ne in any other places of his neither parts of Germany, I could not get this my answer them printed without troublous time for that the pope's friends so fiercely hunted for us & our books and resisted our labours with so grievous nihibitions condempnations, banishmentes and burnings. If this book therefore seem to sharp toothed, consider in how sharp a time it was written and by whose counsel and labour then most tyrannously and ungodly so many good books, holy bibles▪ & testaments, yea & the innocent christian holy members of christ were burned. Behold how mercilessely and most cruelly and unjustly with all speed, good men were then vexed, taken, presoned, and condemned for heretics. No marvel then if any christian heart moved with piety and zeal to Christ to his holy word and his poor church beholding this cruel persecution could either contain tears, refrain speech or pen. And I namely whom this bishop that year at Antwerp dilligently hunted for, and in this his declaration now claundereth with heresy. untruly reporteth my words, and gods holy words he violently wresteth unto his false doctrine. In this time therefore very sorrowful also I was to see so many simple unlearned, having no judgement to decern his false doctrine ●ro the true, hitherto so perellousely deceived and seduced into so many damnable errors by his false books and falser preaching. For so long as no answer was made, ne his false doctrine confuted, his first tale so craftily handled and painted, might appear to many to seem true, and the pope's false doctrine to be the gospel, especially to such as be more ready to believe lies then the verity, and to them which yet more favour the romish religion than Christ's and so highly yet depend of & esteem this bishops learning, that they be addict & sworn into it, as into any oracle out of god's mouth. Right hevey I was therefore that this my answer could not be printed so soon as it was written, that the diligent indifferent readers seeing and hearing both the parties might have judged which of us standeth upon the true part, which judgement he giveth, the that by his spirit giveth the discretion to decern all mens spiritis and doctrine thorough jesus Christ. Amen. A. Ab ista tua malicia, englished, for this thy malice. fol. nineteen, b Thauthority & understanding of scriptures must depend of the bishop of rome his church after Wynchest. fo. xlii. b. Adam and Eu●s repentance fol. xxiii. b. abolish what it is. fol. c.xli b. Adsueraunce of salvation fol. c.lviii. b. antichristian apprehender fol. c.lxxvii. B. Barns burnt in smythfeld. fol. two. Barnes was vergiffen eodem. bishoprics must fall. fol. v. & vi. The bishop described of Paul. c.xlvii. b. Backward plantations. fol. c.lxi. Bishop eateth his own words. fo. ●ii. iiii Bishops whom they abuse. fol. cxxxi. Bishop confounded with his own example. fol. nineteen belief is no work of man before justification fol. c.u. b. & xlvii The bishop writeth for the pope, fo. xlii b The bishop is afraid lest he should be justified by faith only. fol. lxx. b, The bishop believeth not his own doctrine fol. lxxviii. The bbshop omitteth .v. words in his allegation. fol. lxxix The bishops works. fol. lxxxiiii. b, The bishops office. fol. lxxxvi. belief in Christ is none of Winchester's works. fol. lxxxiii Baptism cometh after faith. fol. lxx. b lxxi Baptism is the testification to the church fol. lxxi. c.lxii. & lxxx C. Contentation. fol. xv. Certainty of our election. fol. xlviii. Covered with our brother's clothes. lvii. clxiii Charity justifieth not. fol. lxi. lxii and cl Christ before John baptist. fol. lxxv Commandments be not so light. fo. cxv. Children dying before vaptisme. clxi. clxii. Christ made our rightwiseness. fol. clxiii. Christ thought as he said. fol. cxxii. cause placed after theff. cxxv b. xviii b, cxxvi Charity hath a sundry operation from faith, fol. cxliii. b Concupiscence is sin. fol. clxvii. clxix. Concupiscence lieth lurking in ●he soul. fol. clxix D. Degrees of heaviness. fol. xxii. Dimisia sunt ei peccata exponed. fo. xciii. Doctrine of the pharisais. fol. cxxii. Dead saints called not upon. fol. cxxxi. i. Divide not gods honour fol. clxxxxiii E. Exclusion of works from faith justifying folio xxxvii b. lviii Evil weeds grow with the corn. fo. lxxx, b Enstruction book, foli. cxxx, b Ears of Idols cut of. fol. cxl b F Faith material form & unformed fol. lv. b. Faith material god giveth it not. fol. lv i. faith, hope and love, distinct, but not divided. fol. lvi. cxxii. Faith by which work it justifieth. fo. lvi b. Faith justifying what it is. folio lv iii. Faith is the life of the just. folio lxi, Faith & not works fulfil the law. lxvii. cxvi b Faith certifieth us of our re. lxxvii. b. clxx b Faith is an hard condition, foli. cii, b Friar forests confiteor folio cx, Faith believeth, hope abideth, folio, cxii Flesh is a perellose Hydra, foli. cxv. b Faith and works lie not together in one bed. folio, c, xvii. c.xxx, c, xxxi. Freely for his penance & works, folio cxx. Four things appropriated to god only. folio cxxxvi Faith hope and love compared to iii, sisters, folio cxliiii b Faiths proper works. fol. cxlv. Faith is no bare foundation ne cold gift fol, cxlviii, b Faith hope and love ordered of Paul folio, cxlviii, b Faith as little as the mustard seed. clxiii. Faith and gods promises be correlatives. fo. c.lxxiiii. b G. God is honoured as himself prescribeth it. folio cxl George is not to be called upon. fol. xxxiii b gedion's sword. Idem God maketh us to work which him. cxxxii. b God giveth us common gifts. fo, cxxviij, God worketh a strange work in us. xxij. b God is not honoured after our devices. folio cxxxvij Graces three in one soul. fol. cxliiij. b. Gratis what thing it excludeth folio, vi, Good heathen deeds, folio xliiij Gods footsteps be not seen. fol, l. b. God necessiteth no man to evil ne to good folio lij God worketh all things in every thing. folio clxxxiiii Gifts three in the justified, fol. lv. God's gifts not idl●. fol. lvi. H, In hope we be saved. fol. xcix Hopes own seu●rall operation. fol. cxij Head of the church changed. fol, cxli Hope with her works. folio, cxlv, hearts two, new and old folio clxxx heart new. folio clxxxij b. I. Impossible is the law to be fulfilled of man. folio. vii.cxv, cxbi. Impossible things wherefore god commandeth. folio vij b. lxx. vii.cx●iiii. b, cxxvij b Iose●h wrought a strange work with his brethren, folio xxii b. justification how it is esteemed of us. xxviij justification by only faith, xxxvij. justified before baptism. fol. lxxix. b joys faith. folio xci jairus his only faith. folio xcii jacob doth on his elders brothers clothes folio, clxiiii. Job'S works feared. fol. clxv, justifications four folio clxxx justifications ii folio clxxxij L. The lord avengeth all wrong. fol. xxxij, Libert●e free man hath not. folio, lii, Love to ourselves deeply rooted. xcxv. b. Learning to believe, is one of Wyn. works before faith, fol, cvii cxi, Love hath her own several act. foli. cxii, Love justifieth not. folio, clu b, clv●, clvii, M Man forgiveth because he believeth. cxxv. Merit is defamed. folio .v. b Merits of Christ, folio vi Merits be fallen. Eodem, Mercies many, fol. clxxix. b. and, clxxx Merit by participation, fol, b iii, b Meatenes called worthiness. clxxxvi, b N Necess●tie voluntary fo, xlix, b Necessity without compulsion Eodem necessity to sin, where it should be sought lij Nisi an exclusive. f●lio lviii b. No idle gifts. fol, lix, b Nature of man corrupt. fol. clxv O. One & the same work is both good & ill lii. b. One gift justifieth. fol, lv, Only faith justifieth. lvii, lviii, clii, b, cliii clxxii Office of faith, fol, lix Offices of faith, hope, and love Eodem, b Operor a ●erbe passive with Win. fo. cviii One mediator. folio c.xxxiiii Original sin. fol. c, lxvi. P. Pretentat cornibus ●iam testudo. cxxi. Popis infinite treasure chest. fol. v. b Participation to merit. xxv. Paul's vij arguments. fo. clxxij. b Precept of forgiveness to hard. xxxiiii. b. Popis faith. folio xli Predestination. xlvij. b Predestination sought & found in christ. xlviii b Penance followeth baptis. fo. lxxiiii. b Penance followeth faith justifying. xvi. b R. Repentance what it is. folio, xvii Repentance ●resupposeth the preaching of the law and gospel. folio, xx, Repentance legal & evangelic. xx. b. xxi. Repugnance in Win. words, folio xxv folio xxvi, fol, lxxxiiii reconciliation, what it is. fol. xxxii, b. Repentance certifieth the congregation folio lxxx b rightwiseness, two manner. cliii receipt of the bishop. clxxix S. Slander given and received, fol. v Scripture divided in to the law & gospel folio, clij b Scriptures must assure us. fol. xv Sins where we should behold them, xx, b Sacrament of the sheep skins. fo. xxiii. b Skatre of sin is sin. fol. clxvii Strange works worketh god. folio li Sum is gods name essential. fol. liii, Servants wherefore we be unprofitable, folio, l●iii. Sacraments give not grace. folio. l●xiii stony heart first taken away. fo. cxxx, b Saints not to be called upon. fo, cxxxvij b Suscepit Israel. folio c, lxxx. b Stonney heart folio, c.lxxxiii, T To taste Christ's passion. folio. i●i. b. traitorous touches of our bish. c.xxx. b W Works all our best, filthey, folio, seven, Works justify not, fol, xx●vij, lxxvi, word exterior and interior fol, xlv, Wherefore we be predestined, folio, xlviii Works and faith together may not justify, fol, lxxvi, b Works make us uncertain, fol, lxxvii b Works excluded from justification, lxxxviii Works before justification are sin, lxxxix Work one in the mids of the earth, c, b Works and faith concur not in justificati, fol. cxvi●ii, b Works of god in man, and not of man, folio, c, xxix, b, c, thirty, etc., workers with god, folio, cxxxii, b Works three in justification, foli, c, xxxi, b Works may not sustain the judgement of god, fol, lxxiiii Worthiness on our part justifieth. clxxxi fol. clxxx●i. Uayne vocables. folio xxvii voluntary necessity. folio xlix b Use of baptism. folio lxxi, Use of benefits deserve not another benefit. folio cxiii, wynchester's collet, fo. clxxi, b Winchester maintaineth the pope's justification. folio, cx Wynchest. perverteth Peter's words taking Abbess for propter, foli. xc, b Wyn, parador. xxxviii, b winch. defendeth the pope against his adversaries folio, xliii, Wyn, refused gods calling, fol, lxxxi. Win, spoke into my favour for the truth. folio lxxi b Win sin yet sleepeth in the gates. lxxxij. b Winifrid, false faith corresponding his justification. folio. x●. b Wyn. compareth Christ's promise to the lying man. fol. ci. b Win confuted with his own example. lxx●i. b Wyn. justification xl years ago. fol, cix. Win. abused use to merit, fol, cxiii, b. Win. division to make division. cxvii. cxviij Wyn. riddle needeth an oedipus. fol, cxx Wyn relative (which) folio cxx, b Win is afraid to settle ●nd place his condition. cxxi. Wyn. & his, confound themselves. cxxiii. b Wyn. works before his justification. folio, cxxviii. etc. Wyn. is but a feeble defence for his Rome bysh, folio, cxxxvi. b Wyn. playeth two parts at once. clxxxi, b Wyn. denieth his own words, iii. &, iiii. Win. bringeth into light the thing he would hide fol. clxxi Wat the eremite cxv, b We must ask to do that we be boden to do folio, xviii y yoke of your conditions fol, lxxxvii ¶ The refutation of wynchester's declaration. YOur entry to the matter is fit for your process: Steven Gardines the bishop. for neither did I ever write such articles, ne Barnes was burnt for preaching only faith justifieth. I was by Barnes choice, his schoolmaster at the which time we entreated the article of only faith justifieth: as shall hereafter appear. MY entry into the matter was very fit for my process: joy. for although another might perchance write these articles, yet do this your own dark declaration and pertinate defence of them show the same to be yours, although they had not borne your name. For never did the child so lively resemble his own father, as do these articles & their declaration express the bishop of Rome's antichristian doctrine, by you both preached and in your other books written for his defence, thereby declaring yourself to be his own obedient sworn son. It had been therefore more honesty & less shame, yea & more godly for a christian bishop being of a christian kings council, pretending to be his friend and faithful subject, for the estiewinge of so violente a suspicion, yea rather so bold a manifest declaration, yourself to stand yet so still upon the pope's part against your so gentle and loving a prince, to have utterly renayed and renounced them for your articles, seeing they be so directly against the word of god, against the old holy doctors, against the abolishment of the pope, only stinking of Pelagiane, leavened with the pope's pharisaical sour leaven. Ye speak to me in your preface as excusing yourself of doctor Barnis death, that he was not burnt for the article of only faith justifieth. How ye handled doctor Barnes your scholar, better learned than his master, I can not tell. But this well I wot by your own words, in your preface, that anon after, the master and scholar could not agree upon this article of our faith, & his master had openly forgiven him, Barne● was v●rgi●ff●n, the scholar was sent into the tower, and in conclusion brent in smithfield. How smoothly soever ye have here first of all for your defence painted your excuse in washing your hands with pilate yet by your own words, the contention in this matter of faith was only betwixt you and him, only you he troubled, only you he offended, only you, he openly (to use your terms) encumbered with shamefacenes only you complained of him so grievously to the kings majesty. And who compelled him to recant openly, I can not tell. Only you accuse him of heresy in your book, ye might say perchance with the old holy spiritual pharisaiss and bishops, Nobis non licet interficere quemquam. It is not lawful for us to kill any man. And so after ye have accused & condemned poor christ, deliver him up into the seclar hands to do execution, because so holy bishops would not pollute their sacred anointed fingers with innocent blood. But this is plain: openly he asked you forgiveness at saint Maries spittle, where ye gave it him in an outward sign, but whether in heart, god knoweth it. And he standing at the stake asked the shrive the cause of his death and he said he knew it not. And then last of all, doctor Barnes as one suspecting only you, said these words. If doctor Steven bishop of Winchester be the causer of my death, our lord my god, for Christ's sake, forgive it him, as I would myself be forgiven. And besides all these evidences, the common fame can not be stilled. But this so weighty a cause in a bishop, that should be an edifier and no destroyer, a feather, a nourisher to minister life, and not a bloudsouper, I leave it to the judgement of God, when doctor Barnis and you shall both shortly stand before the judgement seat of Christ, It is of like truth that ye affirm of me, The bishop. that I should by these articles prove that works must justify. I never went about to prove that, how so ever it liketh you to report of me, I never wrote so, I never preached so, I never affirmed so ne enterprised to teach Barns so. This is my just report of you in my former book gathered of your articles. joy. That ye would prove that works must justify, that is, when I allege then●ber and the leaf of hi● book, it is of his first ● printed book in the greater volume with our works, we must merit the remission of our sins, which whither it be of like truth, with my former sayings, your own words within viii lines following declare it, saying. Ye would not be afraid to use that speech, that with our works we must merit the remission of our sins, if I and other had not defamed the word, merit. And in the next leaf ye say, we with the grace of god doing the works of penance taste and feel the passion of christ. Which taste and feeling cometh by doing the works of penance. Which what else is it then by doing the works of penance to deserve the taste of Christ's passion, feeling thereby the remission of our sins? joan. 6. For to taste & feel Christ's passion is to taste and feel certainly our remission of sins as John declareth it, by the eating of his flesh, and drinking of his blood, by our faith, thereof the justified to live. And if by doing the works of penance (as ye teach) we deserve this taste and feeling, so deserve we by your penance doing our justification. And even by and by ye confirm this your false doctrine of meriting, saying. That good men have called it meriting to use the benefits of Christ's passion. Which your juggling I shall disclose, when I come to the place. And in the last line of the same side, ye say. And sinners be called to grace to do the works of penance, whereby to recover that favour of god with remission and forgiveness of their sins. And in the next lief, ye say. So as Christ merited and deserved thoroughly, we by participation in using his gifts, merit and deserve. And say ye not that they that will enjoy the remission of their sins must fulfil your condition? which condition ye declare to be stuffed full of all your own good works, calling them winchester's works. Turn to your xlix leaf following, and ye shall see it true that I say. What else do ye seem to prove, but by works to merit our justification? And yet is your doctrine so intricate perplex and repugnant, that in many places ye fight against yourself to seek out your shifts to make your popish part to seem true to fools, that have neither learning ne judgement. What else did I confute with the manifest scriptures against you, than your meriting by works your remission, you ever sweating your feeble defence with pelagians papistry, as it shall appear hereafter? And therefore never deny it for shame that ye ever went about to prove it or to write it or to preach and teach it. Ye have gone about it in dead, for ye never could it it with all the shafts ye have shot. It is great shame for one that would be seen so highly learned, and a bishop to, so soon to eat his own words, & deny his own hand writing, when he seeth his part nought, and so false that he is not able by scriptures to defend it. The bis. I would not be afeard to use this speech (with our works we must merit the remission of our sins) had not you and other, to the world defamed and slandered the word (merit). It is in deed a slander, joy. not of us given, but of you supercilious pharisaiss received: who for your concupiscence of the flesh, A slander given and a slander received. & of your eyes, and for your pride, be the very world in deed, as John painteth your Romish court. For a received slander is when a thing well done or said, is sinistrely of malice evil taken, as Matthew describeth it. But as touching the church of Christ taking it, I tell you again as Elyas told king Achab. It is you and your father's house of rome for that ye have forsaken the lords precepts, & be gone after Baalim following your father's false doctrine Pelagiane, which have defamed the very only true merits of Christ's passion with your own stinking merits of your sinful works thereby to deserve remission of your sins. Which ye so laden with more merits than ye need of in your superfluous supererogations, that ye sell so dear your own overplus merits your misses, fat fastings, myndles prayers, unwilful watchings, etc. Your holy father Paul iii of Rome hath yet in store, & need be, his church's treasure, an infinite chistefull of your saints merits, yea and of Christ's merits to, whereout by participation, for money, he is ready to lash out this your merchandise of merits, and yet in nothing (to use your words) diminishing theffect of Christ's passion. This is your diffamation of merit, whose good name ye ought to restore by god's word, if ye will not be seen to stand upon your father the pope's side. Of what else foundation stood all your abbeys monasteries chantries, yea and your bishoprics to, but upon these your popish merits, in prayers and misses, for the dead, to pluck them out of your feigned purgatory? And therefore be they worthily subverted Christ so prophecienge of them. Every plantation which my heavenly father hath not planted, Math. 5● shallbe uproted. Your bishoprics therefore do but tarry the verifienge of the same. Neither I, ne any true Christian knoweth any other merits for sin then the plenteous merits of Christ's passion, by his most precious blood, perfectly & perpetually deserving for all that believe in him forgiveness of their sins. And am certified by this his almighty everlasting word. That man is freely justified by the grace of god thorough faith in jesus Christ: so that this word gratis, freely, Rom. 3. excludeth all the merits of any work of the law, from faith justifying, but not from the faithful justified man. If this saying be slanderous to merit, In his pistle to etesipho. & dialo i. Austen. in. psal. xxxi. & lxx. & in his pistle lii etc. so be Hierome and Austen great slanderers of merit, which constantelye affirm against the pelagians man to have no merits. If thou wilt (saith Austen) be quite & void of grace, boast thy merits. And god croneth his own gifts, and not thy merits. And the scriptures affirm every where all reward celestial to be given us out of the free mercy of god for Christ's sake, Ro. iiii. & xi and not for any of our merits, Ye might have seen it clearly, if ignorance & malice had not blyndened you, by the so many mighty arguments made of Paul. ex contentione, of these contraries: works and grace, merit and free gift, rightwiseness of the law and of faith, from uncertain to certain, from to have any thing of grace, and of duty deserved, from the wavering infirm unperfit deeds of the law, to the farm promise received by faith, that merits and grace, ne faith and works being so contrary in this cause of contemtion can never be concurrent into one, and the same act of our justification. The scripture holly consenteth that all our best works of the law be sin & filthy, & therefore not to have that dignity to deserve remission of sins, as I have sufficiently proved it in my confutation of your false articles, which ye have not yet, ne can disprove. The law is the will and mind of god, holy, spiritual, just, and good, and requireth such perfect holy, and just works, as be not corrupt ne stained with any carnal affect of man, but such works were there never performed but only of him, of whom the father testified This is he in whom I am pleased Wherefore man so long as he is called flesh, can not deserve by doing the works of the law. God promiseth rewards to the fulfyllers of the law, Rom. viii. but because it is impossible for man called flesh to fulfil it, therefore he sent his son Christ to fulfil it, that his fulfilling by our faith apprehended, should be ours, thus made of the father our rightewisenes, our holiness, wisdom. i Cor. i. etc. And here I writ it yet again, that ye lay so heavily to my charge. Even that god commandeth to man, Rom. viii. so long as he is called caro (which is as long as he liveth) things impossible, i.li. retract. ca ix. In en●h. ad laurens. de gratia ● li. arb. ca xvi. homili. in Io. xxix. et episto. xxiiii as Paul, and Christ, and Austen testifieth saying. Man hath not in his power to be good, either not saying for his ignorance what manner one he ought to be, or else, if he see it, yet is he not able to be such one, as he seeth himself to ought to be: And therefore sayeth he in many places. God commandeth impossible things to man, that he knowing his own imperfection and impossibility, should seek help of him in whom is all perfection, & help in our need. And all to depress man's arrogancy, and to show him to himself to be but a sinner, so to be saved only by the grace and mercy of god and not for his own merits not to glory in ourselves. i Cor. i. Ephe. two. Thus is the law the usher of the school to take us forth to christ, it showeth us our sins, it woundeth us but healeth not, It provoketh us by faith to seek health in Christ, that all the glory might be given to the grace of god in Christ Which giveth not his glory to any other neither by participation, Ephe. i. nor by retaliation. And then ye say plain contrary to all your own doctrine in your hole book thus. Christ's passion in the sight of god, The bis is (only) sufficient sacrifice for the sin of all the world, so full and so perfit, as needeth not any addition or supplement of any man's desert to the appeacing of gods just wrath against man for sin. By this exclusive (only) & your absolute speech, joy. it should follow that all men without faith, should be saved. yea and without your conditions to. Ye should have added therefore, is only sufficient sacrifice to the believers in him. But how standeth this piece with your so many good conditions, so full of your works to deserve your remission? which all, ye say, be required to that tainement of our justification. All your principles, arguments, reasons authorities violently wrested, your collets, versicles, with sancte marry & omnium sanctorum meritis, With sancta maria ora pro nobis, sancte Georgi, with all your like papistry, tend to the contrary that ye have here said. To merit by participation. For even your own praphane vain voice of your participation, maketh christ but half a deserver, half a satisfier, and but a party patched saviour. For what is it else to merit and to satisfy (as ye say) by participation, then to divide part or half to him, and part to us. It behooveth a liar, ever to have a good memory, lest his words fight against himself, compelled to utter his lies with his own mouth, as yourself hath here done openly. Divide not gods essential indivisible names from him. Halt not thus (for shame) with Baalis bishops into both parts, as Ely the prophet forbiddeth you, Either let christ be an hole entire sufficient saviour, deserver and satisfier for sin, or else none at all: Divide not his glory to your sinful merits and satisfactions. Christ is not divided saith Paul. It was he that all alone trod the wine press in his bloody robes none of all the world to have holpen him, isaiah lxiii Christ only is our hope, only Christ is our life, our way, The bis. only Christ is our saviour, wholly thoroughly perfectly absolutely, totally, entirely. etc. If christ be such one, than away with all your meritings, joy. satisfactions contentations for sin, away with all your conditions for thattainment and enjoying of the remission and salvation. Here may every reader see how shamefully repugnant is your doctrine The contention is not of the preciousness validite and effect of Christ's passion but of the use of it. The bis. joy. A goodly shameless shift lo. Be ye slipped now from th'effect so suddenly to the use? Even an evident token of a guilty conscience, that mis●rusteth and is afraid of his own doctrine, Do not the remission of our sins pertain to the preciousenes of Christ's passion? Is it not the validite & th●ffect thereof that justifieth and absoluteth the believers from sin? say ye not yourself first of all. Th'effect of Christ's passion, requireth a condition? ye never said the use thereof requireth the condition. Theffect thereof was ever the mark that ye did shoot at, and I confuted it. The contention was ever betwixt us. whether by faith only, or by works or by faith and works together man is justified, & at the same mark yet bend ye all your feeble ordinance in this your declaration. And as for the use of Christ's passion ye never spoke of till now for a shift as one weary of his false part. The use thereof presupposeth the having thereof which is the justification by only faith. Which once obtained we well use it in that we remember it with perpetual thanks giving, lauding & praising our heavenvly father, thorough our saviour christ for so rich inestimable a benefit. What faithful man doubted of this use after he had enjoyed the gift? And this use of it, is the gift of god. Now what contention and matter can ye move or make of this use? Except ye will contend to show your high wit and wily rhetoric to find a knot in a rish, as have the proverb. In your school with Barnes, ye say ye traveled to instruct him of the conditions before th'effect & agreed upon faith to be one, & then ye brought in more conditions & works as to forgive your neighbour, & your incorporation into christ by baptism or returning to him by penance. which all, for that they go before the forgiveness (after you) they can not be the use of the thing not yet obtained, wherefore neither with him, ne in your articles is there, ne could be any contention of the use of Christ's passion. But I will by way (as they say) of communication, admit your cavillation, and trap you in your own words, thus saying in the next side of your lief. And we with the grace of god, doing the works of penance, taste and feel the passion of Christ, The bis, and as good men have called it meriting and deserving to use the benefits of Christ's passion. Before ye were in the use of Christ's passion, joy. and now ye be fled to the meriting to use the benefits thereof. And this is your misty maze ye would lead your readers into, more to wonder at your high learning & wily wit, not perceived ne understanden, then to get any fruit thereby. This is your juggling cast with your wide words of (use, and meriting to use) as ye juggled with your confuse condition so full of your young conditions. Now every man seeth the benefits of Christ's passion to be infinite and innumerable, and every one to have his proper use And thus have ye brought us into a confuse wild wilderness wherein ye may with your wily romish fox, wind yourself into many perplex ways as into an C. angles. Among therefore so many benefits, for your pleasure, to take your course with your word (use) let the remission of our sins in christ by faith (if it so like you) be one of these benefits. To use a benefit well, is to increase it, remember and acknowledge it with thanks giving daily to th'author thereof. This use we must deserve with the works of penance (say you) ere we have the benefit used: a goodly godly dream lo. I had wend that the use of this benefit, as to acknowledge it, to remember it, to increase it, & to thank god, had been also the gifts of him that saith, without me ye can do nothing, no not so much as to think well, to will well, or to begin any good work: Or else after you & your good men, these benefits we must deserve to use them with the work of penance Now hath penance her use, ergo we must with another former work deserve the use of penance, and so with another former to deserve that use, & thus have ye brought us by your fond dream into your infinite intricate & endless maze of your meriting to use If (ye say) I observe not how charyly ye speak, saying thus. And we which the grace of god doing that works of penance taste & feel the passion. verily I so observe it, that I see it maketh against yourself. For Christ's passion is tasted & felt by faith. And god giveth no man such a grace as by works to deserve another grace, for so should he make his grace no grace, as Paul proveth it. Rom. xi. Then ye say adding. The bis. And by the strength of Christ's passion we deserve to do penance for sin. joy. This tale repugneth to the former head sentence. For there penance deserved to taste Christ's passion: & here by Christ's passion we deserve to do penance, here is wonders shifting with these two things one to deserve the other, now by penance to deserve to taste the passion & anon by the strength of the passion to deserve to do penance. Such is the inconstant doctrine of the unlearned papists, playing fox to hole with their penance & Christ's passion. Ye know well that Christ's passion not tasted by faith profiteth nothing at all the infidele turk or false christian, but is the savour of death unto death to them. And how then can ye by the strength of it do penance before it be tasted, by faith? ye said first that penance goth before the taste: ergo that penance before faith tasting the passion can be but a sour and an unsavoury penance even such one as was in Esau judas & in the turks penance, which yet have not by faith tasted the sweet savour of their forgiveness in Christ's passion And even this lo, is your popish penance ye would teach before faith justifying. Now then sith there be so many works, and parts of your popish penance, tell us plainly by which part or work of your penance, taste & fel● ye Christ's passion? neither by your broken contritions and attritions never healed, ne by your never satisfied satisfactions ne satispassions in your purgatory, ne by yours to scant contentations or whispering doom absolutions, ne by your auricular confessions, having not one word ne promise of God to taste so great a benefit, do ye taste and feel Christ's passion, or by which work of your penance enjoined unto your ghostly children do they taste it? I have herd (the more shame it is) your ghostly fathers in their auriclar confessions to have tasted and groped right knavyshelye their ghostly. But never thereby to have tasted Christ's passion. For that only so bitter cup, none tasted thereby so to merit but Christ, and yet ye scoff, with potestis bibere calicem. etc. May ye drink the cup which I shall drink? It appeareth here by your words, saying, It to be necessary some to taste and feel of Christ'S passion by your penance and alleging of the text, that ye never tasted it yourself, ne tasted the true understanding of Christ's words, by potestis bibere calicem. etc. judas did all your works of penance. He came and confessed openly, (which agreeth better with god's word then auricularly) his sin to the high bishops your predecessors he made restitution to them of the money, which they gave him to betray Christ, he was heavy, contrite and attrite. They gave him their absolution with. Quid ad nos? what is that to us? if thou hast betrayed the lust blood. Tu videris. Take heed to thy noun charge, and let us alone. And yet so far was judas from the taste of Christ's passion, for all these his & your works of penance that of a desperate mind he hanged himself▪ And wherefore came judas with his & this your penance to this wretched end? verily because it proceeded not out of the root of faith in Christ ne of the knowledge of the mercy of god in christ, out of the which faith and knowledge what penance or work soever proceedeth not, Ro. xiiii. it is sin. And yet will you so impudently contend & sweat for your works of your penance to go before faith justifying, & to merit the faith where by we taste and feel Christ's passion and the remission of our sins. Here is wholesome doctrine that ye teach. Ye say good men have called penance meriting and deserving to use the benefits of Christ's passion. Even such good papists as ye be to restore your misteres, merit meretrix to her spiritual spouse the pope and to you again. If your penance should deserve to use these benefits of Christ's passion, so should one deed and ever the worse deed deserve to do a better (a wise doctrine, I warrant you) set in a circle without head & tail, ye should look upon the scriptures rather than on your good pope holy men. Which scriptures tell us, that all our best deeds be corrupt & filthel● stained with sin, Isay. 64. so that they be not able neither to deserve any reward ghostly ne to sustain the judgement of god, Ps. c, ●i. but will condemn you before him so far of be they to merit, And therefore said Austen. Thy good works are the gifts of god lest thou shouldest think them to be thy merits. Rom. ●x. It is not in the willer nor doer to will or to do well but it belongeth to the mercy & grace of god preventing thy will with his grace to do good. what is it that god biddeth us to do but he biddeth us to ask grace of him to do the same, telling us plainly that if it were in our power to do it, so were it no need for us to ask the doing thereof. For no man asketh the thing which he hath. The bis. Penance hath been called likewise satisfaction, as wherein man satisfieth, that is contenteth God. It hath been likewise so called in deed, joy. even of like papists, with like authority out of no scripture, but likewise against god's word in like blasphemy to Christ's merits, and his satisfactions. To satisfy is to content god, ye say. And here ye make a sudden stop, ye should have added boldly, to content god for sin, as ye say in your book of your necessary instructions, affirming that it declareth a desire in man, to content god his father for his sin. And yet in the same book, Hebre. seven. viii.ix.x. as in this, ye say clean contrary. That christ only is the sufficient, full and perfect satisfaction for sin, which is the truth. The father's almighty voice so testifienge of Christ, to be his dearly beloved son for whose sake only he is contented, satisfied, and appeared. God give ye grace once to evomite these antichristen popish blasphemies, & to know Christ's only sufficient satisfaction and merits for your sins. If you could satisfy and content the justice of god against your sins with your rightwiseness of works, so were Christ dead for you in vain. Paul to witness. gala. two. neither were you subject to the rightewisenes of god. Rom. x. But yet happy is your silly satisfaction, that she hath gotten her a new name called now (contentation). Contentation The father's justice could not have been contented with man, until one had contented and satisfied him, fulfilling the whole law in every point, but such one was only that innocent lamb our saviour Christ, as testifieth the scripture. wherefore away for shame, which your counterfeited contentation, and with your sinful satisfactions to. And at last to wind up your tale of merits, ye bring us in a blind collet out of your popish portewes, with. Meritis & precibus beat Marie & omnium sanctorum. by the merits and prayers of blessed mary, and of all saints, for want of scriptures. Peter biddeth you to speak and allege the scriptures, for your doctrine, thereout to give a reckoning thereof. For the ferme word of God must assewer us of the true doctrine and not the dead dreams of dying men. That thing which I command the to do or to say, do it saith the lord Deuteronomii xii neither shalt thou add to, ne minish any thing thereof. Nether will we receive of you any thing in this contention which the word of god hath not or with the word fighteth, yea should there an angel out of heaven affirm it. God hath sufficiently showed it by Nadab and Abiu, Leuiti. x, where he would not any strange fire to be offered upon his altar nor brought into his temple, but vehemently did he so abhor human traditions & men's dead dreams, that with their own strange fire he destroyed them as he shall destroy you and confound you with your own strange doctrine, as in this your declaration it shallbe sufficiently declared. Men in the state of grace purchased by Christ's mediation do the works of justice, The bis, & sinners be called to grace to do the works of penance/ whereby to recover the favour of god with the remission of their sins, joy. These men in the state of grace, do not the works of justice but out of faith justifying. But tell us plainly what colour ye rekover under your word recover? To recover is to obtain again a thing lost. ye should have said plainly. By the works of penance, sinners obtain or purchase grace lost which is the favour of god and remission or their sins: And now what else have ye covered, than that penance deserve forgiveness of sins▪ which is our justification. And yet ye say before, ye never went about to prove it ' that works must justify. And yet in so saying, as works of penance to recover grace and remission ye both would prove it and also make grace no grace, ne Christ's passion of none effect. For a just confutation of this your doctrine. I shall therefore prove it clearly by scriptures, that man must be first justified by faith, Repentance followeth faith justifying. ere either he repent wholesomely or be baptised with water. And because ye have defamed true repentance and juggled so long with your do penance, making the people believe they have done it. when they have done or said all their penance enjoined them by their ghostly fathers, ye shall know, that repentance is a turning to the lord god, whereby we of the sincere fear of god humbled, acknowledge our sins, and all our hole life we make new: So that the hole life of a penitent faithful is a perpetual mortification of his flesh and a reviving of the spirit, even the perpetual custody of his life figured in baptism of water, wherein the dopinge & burying signifieth our mortification, our sins buried in Christ his death: and the lifting up out of the water teacheth our arising with Christ revived into a new life. Also the hebrewe word (his) and the greek Metanoite, in latin, Resipiscite, signify to be turned to a better mind or change your life. Which word joan and christ used saying. Resipiscite in propinquo enim est regnum coelorum. Repent ye, or change your life, or be ye turned in mind for the forgiveness of sins is nigh And christ began his preaching likewise saying. Be ye turned or repent ye, and believe the good tidings of your remission. They preached not only saying repent ye, as ye dream, and there stopped, but they evermore in all their sermons, as did his apostles, added the cause why they should repent, which cause implied and contained therein the promise of remission of their sins saying, for the remission of your sins is at hand. For so much signifieth the gospel & the kingdom of heaven in those places. Which promise apprehended by faith, anon the hearers prepared them to repentance turning their minds, converted to god whom they before knew by faith believing him for his mercies sake in Christ to receive and to forgive them. For who turneth himself, to God, whom he neither knoweth ne believeth to be merciful to him, ne loveth him before he turneth to him? For they preached first the law whereby came the knowledge of their sins, and eft soon the gospel of forgiveness promised in christ, which by faith apprehended, then began the true repentance. Also we are often commanded to repent by these words of god spoken of the prophets. Conuertimini ad me & salui eritis, convertimini ad me & ego convertat ad vos. Be ye turned to me and ye shall be self, and I shall be turned to you. Where ye see that God commandeth us nothing but he biddeth us ask the same of him, as Austen confirmeth and declareth it, yourself alleging his words, saying jube quoduis modo des quod iubeas Ergo we must ask our repentance and conversion of god, saying Convert nos deus salutaris noster, and Convert me domine & ego convertar. Convert me, LORD and I shall be converted. If this prayer be of faith, as it must nediss be, if it be made to the father in christis name so must faith go before the conversion and the petition and prayer before the thing obtained, thereby. Again, when I am promised of god to be saved if I turn to him, there my faith, first apprehending the promise proceedeth to the precept in turning to him, as doth the servant believing his masters promised covenant, address him to his service and fulfilling of his master's commandments, although his service in following his master be placed before the cause, as yourself here after giveth an example, saying, he that followeth me is my servant, placing theffect before the cause, in your lxxxviii. leaf & second side of this your book & in the lxxxix lief ye say. In this speech. I join that is out of all kind of causes to th'effect, as to follow me is no cause to be my servant but rather ensueth of service and of the covenant which is the cause why that he followeth me, & importeth that he was my servant before he followed me. Even so do the scripture place theffect of our conversion before the cause, which is faith first apprehending the promise in this & like speeches. Be ye turned to me and I shallbe turned to you, be ye turned and ye shallbe self. Repent ye for the remission is nigh. And thus lo, be ye confounded & proved to teach false doctrine & to pervert the scripture, by your own words & by your onwe example. And that faith justifying must nediss go before repentance, and our conversion to god as the scripture teacheth us, contrary to your popish papistry. But I know how falsely ye juggle with your do penance in your book of instructions, saying Resipiscite & credit evangelio. thus englishing it saying. first be contrite & knowledge your sins, and then receive the glad tidings of remission. etc. Because theffect is placed before the cause therefore ye would make fools believe theffect to be before the cause contrary to your own words in this your book in the lxxxix leaf, and by this placing, ye would prove penace to be before faith justifying: But if ye had red but ii lines before in mark, ye should have learned plainly the preaching of the gospel, that is of the glad tidings of the promised remission of sins, which is the cause of repentance as Io. bap. affirmeth it. Math. iii. to have gone before theffect of repentance commanded. But this licentious liberty, to pervert the holy gospel, that ye take to yourself also by your do penance, as ye do upon Peter's saying to Simon Mago: Resipisce igitur ab ista tua malitia, Englyshing (ab) with (fore) thus saying. Do penance for this thy malice. when the text is. Turn thy mind from this thy malice: so fain would ye hold still your popish sacrament of do penance, to merit forgiveness of sins. The true conversion to god presupposeth the knowledge of sins which cometh by the preaching of the law: It presupposeth also the preaching of the gospel whereby cometh faith, and knowledge of the mercy of god, promising forgiveness in Christ. wherefore ye see it necessarily that repentance and the conversion unto god must follow faith justifying conceived by hearing the gospel: Also faith justifying must go before baptism faith iust● fien● is before bapti●● Mat. xxvii For Christ bodde his Apostles go forth and teach all nations ere they baptised them. And what think ye they taught them? verily even the law and gospel as he had commanded them, and then as many as believed they baptised them: So that faith justifying them, went ever before the baptism of water, as it is to see in the acts of the apostles. Albeit I see how falsely and how unlearnedly ye bring in your Baptizetur unusquisque vestrum in remissionem peccatorum, for the contrary as I shall declare your ignorance and falsifying of the scriptures, when I come to the place. A note worthy to be observed. And here note it (christian reader) that so long as we see our sins in the law and in our consciences accusing and condemning us: & behold them not by faith in the promised forgiveness in the gospel of Christ's death, to have suffered for the remission of them, thus our faith rechinge the mercy of god our father unto Christ's passion suffered for them, christ thus made of him our rightwiseness, and our satisfaction: all our heaviness and sorrows contritions and attritions are but such repentance and heaviness, as took Cain, Saul, Achitophel, and judas, which call it an extorted legal heaviness (and ye will) contrary to the willing evangelical heaviness and wholesome repentance: which legal heaviness is like the extorted heaviness and heavy fearful painful repentance that is wrested out of the racked and pined Malefactors, confessing their sins for very fear and pain only: two. Cor. seven. which unwholesome repentance after the world, Paul teacheth it to be repent and cast of. But the true wholesome repentance after god, being his gift, beginneth at the contemplation of our sins by faith, forgiven in Christ's death and resurrection, his righteousness, his satisfaction and merits felt and tasted by our faith certainly and firmly to be communicated unto us. In the book of numbers we read that the children of Israel were not healed ne delivered from the hot stinging serpents so long as they looked upon them, but rather with fear and pain, the more vexed, with their venom. But when they turned their eyes from those serpents stinging them and beheld the brazen serpent exalted and hanged upon the tree, then were they healed. And likewise, so long as we behold our sins in our own consciences accusing us or in the law forbidding sin, working wrath and making sin the more to abound, we may well fear, be heavy, full of horror for pain & dread of damnation, but as for any quietness, rest, and peace of conscience, we feel none until we convert & turn our eyes by faith lifting them up beholding the brazen strong serpent christ god and man exalted upon the cross there suffering for our sins, appeasing the father's wrath, making the satisfation with the oblation and sacrifice of his blessed body. wherefore your repentance, before our sins be here known & seen with the eyes of our faith in christ lifted upon the cross there suffering for them and purging or washing them away is but judas his repentance. Also it is to be noted, Rom. seven. that as there be divers degrees to ascend from under the law unto the grace of the gospel of remission, so be there diverse heavynesses ere we come to the wholesome and fruitful repentance under the gospel perpetually and gladly to be practised. For we must first feel and taste of a desperate state deduced to hell, ere we be reduced to heaven, mortified ere we be revived. Paul entering to climb these degrees of the law in like heaviness, Rom. seven. and mortification said that sin was then dead, when he lived without the law showing him his sin, but when the law was comen and had showed him his sin, than was he dead & his sin alive. For sin now known by the law, the law worketh wrath even her lively office to fear and to condemn the sinner, to make sin the more abundant thrusting man to hell and slayeth him. And here may we see with Isaiah the prophet, God to work in us a strange work to do his own. Isa. xxviii. In which strange work working, yet we know him not (for he will be for a little space a hidden god) no more than did josephes' brethren know him for their brother joseph but took him for some cruel stranger all that while he dissembled with them, feared them, threatened them, and troubled them, whiles he hiding his face from his own brethren so vexed them with great heaviness & fear, Genes. xlii. xliii.xliiii. or he would be known to them, yea and all that whiles in so working that strange work it was great pain to joseph to hold in his tears, joseph in this strange work with his brethren figured god in christ for that he must have wrought so strange a work with them to work his own bretherly loving work, at last to open himself to them. This work also god figured to Moses, when he did set him in the cliff of the rock telling him, Exo. xxxiii. his hinder parts he should see but not his face. The former compunction and heaviness, even gods strange work in us before faith justifying, his heavy hand yet covering our face, we know it not to be his work, ne as yet believe we god to be our saviour and forgever in christ, until he show us his hinder parts: that is the incarnation of Chryst, sent and suffering for our sins. Adam as soon as he had sinned, had an heavy conscience, horryblye feared with the wrath of god, unto death and damnation, Gen. iii. flying from his voice and presence even in the mid day, which heaviness was but a desperate repentance and far of to merit any grace, as it appeareth by his flying away from God calling him. But yet the mighty merciful voice of god so stayed him, and rubbed his sin into his remembrance, that at last the gospel of the blessed promised seed preached: Adam conceived faith by the hearing thereof, and began truly to repent, for now he saw his sins not in his own naked guilty conscience accusing him, ne in the precept condemning him, but in the blessed seed christ, forgiving him. And then to confirm and to testify as it were with seal obligatory that GOD had justified him for his faith only, in that seed to come, he added his sacred sealled Sacrament, even the skins of the slain sheep, to cover Adam and eves naked shamefastness, signyfyenge to them that blessed seed, to be offered up an innocent lamb, with his rightwiseness to cover their transgression, and with his blessing to cover their malediction, upon this his bloody sheeps peltch when so ever Adam looked, he might well weep and repent himself that ever he had committed that sin which as it should bring so innocent a lamb to so guiltless a death, so could it never have been forgiven without the shedding of so innocent precious blood. And here at the contemplation of his sin in Christ'S death to come, began he fruitfully to repent, doing on daily that coote, putting him into a perpetual remembrance and into repentance, the continual custody of his life, evermore saying his sins purged in the seed to come, even in the lamb of God, that taketh away the sins of the world. But now I return to your book wherein ye add thus. saying. And now I add this gathered out of scripture, The bis. (joy. where I pray you) that like as in other actions or qualities being in god essential, we be called by participation, by the names attributed to god, and for so much as we do participate, have also the thing in deed: And therefore as god is goodness itself, we by participation from him, be good. As god is light itself, we by participation from him be light. As god is wisdom itself, we by participation from him be wise, So as Christ merited and deserved thoroughly, we by participation in using his gifts, merit and deserve And as Christ satisfied fully, so by partition we also satisfy. joy. He that gathereth not with me (saith Christ) skatereth, ye have not justly gathered with him, ergo ye have scattered by your participation. If your gathering be true in these your expressed actions and essencyals of meriting and satisfienge, so must it be true in gods other actions and essencials: but blasphemous and false, is the like gatherings in his other names and actions. Wherefore your gatherings in these be blasphemous and also ungodly. The minor I prove by your own like demonstration. God participateth to man his names of wisdom and goodness by which he created all creatures, and yet followeth it not, without blasphemy that the same man by particicipation of those names of wisdom & goodness of god, should create any one of the lest creatures that ever god made, no not so much as a wing of a gnat can he make by participation. Now how say you, Is this well gathered, that because god participateth to us his names, that therefore we may do his divine actions? God imparteth his rightwiseness to man where of man is called just, yet it followeth not that thereby by participation man might justify himself, or any other, let god impart to you his benediction, and let us then see whether therewith by participation you withal the fingers ye have, can so bless an infidel or turk, yea or your own self, that he or you be blessed and chosen of god. The lord telleth you that he will curse your blessings because ye have applied your hearts unto such blasphemies of his holy names. Mal. two. Here may every man see how unlearnedly, how blasphemously and fondly ye gather to make your antichristen doctrine to seem true to the simple unlearned, to seduce them into errors Ye must beware how ye gather which god from his essential names, to his divine actions, participated to sinful man. For though in our regeneration and incorporation into christ we do christ upon us, as writeth Paul. Gal. iii, and so be covered with his rightwiseness, holiness, wisdom, merits. etc. yet may not we there with work his divine actions only appropriated to his godhead, ye speak shameful repugnaunces in your words, saying as christ merited thoroughly and satisfied fully so do we merit and satisfy by participation. How standeth these together? he thoroughly, and fully, absolutely, totally, perfitly, as ye say before & yet we by participation, as it were partly half divided to him, and part to us, when your words be all and wholly, and fully, to him, what part leave ye for us? But admitted your term of participation, although I know the scripture hath it not expressly, but the doing upon us his rightwiseness, his goodness and other names, yet albeit it followeth god participateth to us his goodness and wisdom, and so we be good & wise: it followeth not that we having these names do the self same divine actions & works of god which he wrought with his wisdom & goodness in the creation of the world of nothing he participateth to us christes merites ergo therewith we merit as did christ for us the remission of our sins? I deny your argument, but it followeth ergo we by his merits be forgiven and saved & not for our own, he participateth to us his satis●accions ergo we satisfy for our sins? nego argumentum but it followeth ergo by his satisfaction done upon us, the father's justice is appeased and he is pleased with us as the father's voice out of heaven hath declared it, your argument (if ye be not deceived to deceive other) is a mere deceit called of sophisters. fallacia secundum quid ad simpliciter. If a man should ask you how, and wherein, the wisdom and goodness and light in god differe from these things in us, after the kinds of diffirences, really or rationally, genere, or specie etc. I think ye must be compelled as your gathering here declare you to make such an answer as should prove your wisdom but foolishness, ●. Cor. iii as Paul saith, and the light in you to be but darkness, Math. vi: as christ affirmeth it, and your merits and satisfactions to be sin and wickedness, yea blasphemy to Christ's merits and satisfactions Paul was both holy just & good and yet with those names could he not do the goodness he would do, Rom. seven. but that evil which he would not do. If christ meriteth and satisfieth for us fully and perfectly as the pistle to the hebrews declareth, so is there no part of your meriting ne satisfying by participation left for us. Away therefore with your profane vain vocables as Paul biddeth you, i. timo. vi. where ye read falsely & in the greek unlearnedly, novitates for manitates, to smite me there with, when with the same rod ye worthily smite yourself using these your newefound stertinge terms of participation, conditions, effects, to merit to use ye cannot tell what, and dare not or cannot use and speak the plain simple words of the scripture left us of the holy ghost. It is an evident token that ye suspect your doctrine to be false and mistrust your part when ye fly from the scriptures to such sliber shifts as to merit by participation. ye abuse your patched participation placing it impertinently. For the scripture calleth us good wise, just, holy, etc. because by faith in our regeneration of the spirit we by adoption made the children of god do christ upon us his vestures as his rightwiseness, holiness, wisdom, merits and satisfactions, covered now with his, as with our own of which doing upon us or clothing us, Psal. 111 ●phe. 4 6. gall. 3. Rom 13. colloss. 3. there is often mention in the scriptures & not of your participation: For these so excellent his divine essential inseparable names kover non from their contraries but such as have done Christ upon them incorporated into him ere ye can make ready your participated merits to place them a part post as ye do. ye deal not justly which Christ, to couple your vain merits, & insufficient satisfactions with his so painful merits & full satisfaction expressed out of his most tender innocent body and blood in his so bitter passion. Ye ought not therefore by participation join so contrary merits together so iniuryouslye to Christ's death & to his glory which saith I will not give my glory to any other. For it is I alone (saith he) which for my noun selves sake do away thy sins, & not for thy patched merits It is I saith he the trod the wine press all alone, not one to help me It is I that willbe alone, and have no peer ne match. etc. We esteem not therefore (as ye do) our justification so vile a thing, as to be bought and deserved with our sinful works. But we esteem it so precious as to be bought and deserved with the most precious blood of that innocent lamb our saviour Christ. The remission of our sins, in which we affirm our rightwiseness to stand is so rich and of so precious a price, that it can not be recompensed ne satisfied with any good deed of ours. And therefore could it never have been gotten ne bought unless it had been freely given us. But so came it not to christ. For it cost him no small price, It cost him his own most precious blood without which so worthy and so rich a price the justice of god could never have been satisfied ne the redemption paid for us. These things when we teach men, then are they monished that as oft as they sin, so oft do they shed that most innocent blood of christ. Also we teach our filthiness to be so lothly and stinking that it could never have been washed away but with the only fountain of this most precious holy blood. This doctrine who so hear it, conceive they not (think ye) a greater horror displeasure and fear for their sins then if we should teach them falsely (as ye do) their sins to be so easily wiped away with a buzzing absolution the priests hand laid upon their headis, with a Lady psalter penance, or with a will work of ours, with an evil will done, as for the choice of a meat and such like? yea and if there be any spark of god's spirit in them, home afraid will they be, and tremble being once purged, any more to wallow themselves wrapped again in the mire, whereby (as much as in them lieth) they trouble and infect the purity of this so sweet and clear a fountain. I have washed my feet (saith the faithful soul) and shall I defile them again? Canti. v. Now is it plain whether of us two make the forgiveness of our sins most vile, & do most slander to the dignity of our justification, As for your popish doctrine in this article is but a spightefull mock and scorn, to say god to be appeced and pleased with your own frivole sinful satisfactions and merits, that is with dirt and derme. But we affirm the offence & our sins to be much more grievous than with such manner light trifles (I call them no worse) to be purged & wiped away, yea we teach the offence committed against the high majesty of god to be more weighty, and therefore so much the more to be abhorred then with these your easy & vain of nought worth satisfactory merits to be remitted. And therefore it to be the only prerogative & price of Christ's blood to satisfy and deserve our remission. As for you if rightwiseness fail, ye teach it to be restored by your own satisfactory works, but we affirm it with god's word, to be much more precious than may be compared and recompensed with any work at all ours. And therefore for the restoring thereof we constantly teach almen to fly only to the mercy of god apprehended by only faith in Christ jesu. But I did never utter this proposition in these terms, The bis. to say that man must merit remission of sin, nor have not red it in this form: No. But ye say it by participation, joy. and under your form and colour of your conditions ye speak it plainly. Ye say that by the works of penance men taste and feel Christ'S passion, which the scripture saith is tasted by feeling remission of sins ye say that sinners be called to grace to do the works of penance whereby to recover remission of their sins. And in your collette ye pray ut mere amur assequi quod promittis. That we might deserve to obtain the thing God promiseth which is remission of our sins. And in your second article ye say They that will enjoy the remission of their sins, must fulfil pour condition, which, as ye declare it, is stuffed full of your merits and winchesters good works. And all your arguments reasons gatherings and deductions tend to the same popish point. The bis. Without I would encounter with you in railing I have nothing to say here unto: etc. joy. I rail not on you, I tell you of your false doctrine, confuting it with gods word. It is you that rail upon me and rebuke me most impudently causeless for writing the truth, and confuting your popish Antichristen doctrine, whereby ye seduce the people into errors, into theirs and your damnation, and in many places ye belie me deadly: and slander me most heinously with heresy and be not able to prove it. It is you that pervert & falsify gods word to establish your antichristen heresies. It is your devilish drift, & wicked counsel to thrust gods holy eternal word of salvation out of that noble realm. persecuting it so cruelly with sword and fire so mercylessely burning the innocent lambs of christ for professing Christ and his holy word. Ye can say nothing against me alleging the scriptures truly as I do, except ye will impugn the verity as ye do, ye have not yet in all your books justly soluted one text that I have brought against you, as every reader may see it, if he list to compare our books together. I for myself boast not my works to the world, The bis. but do the office of an hand at a cross to say, this is the right way, etc. Except ye do th'office of a true hand and just minister, not only pointing the right way into which the hand nailed to the cross never entered itself, joy. ye shall not be so excused with only pointing before Christ's judgement seat. If ye be Christ's or his apostles successor, ye must follow their examples which did not point to other the way, standing them selves still, like idle hands, but they went before their flock into the right way both in true doctrine preaching and also in example of godly living. And ye must remember that Chryst commandeth slanderous and false pointing handis (as ye be one) into wrong ways, to be cut of from the body as he did evil eyes, which be evil bishops, to be castoute of their bishoprics. Nether do I judge you otherwise then god biddeth us judge the tree by her fruits, and to be ware of you. Ye call me a runner about, and dare not appear every where. I am so i deed, but for no offences committed against god and my prince ne against any other, which is my comfort in an upright conscience before god and his holy church. I am by you droven out of my native land from my friends to wander and travel in a strange country, the more is my heaviness and sorrow and pain especially in my sickness & old age: whereof I may thank you & your popish imps persecuting the gospel and devising your ungodly and uncristen acts, inhibitions, instructions condempnations and articles whereby ye have & yet make many a poor man to smart. z●par. 24. Psal. 103. Sed dominus meus videat inquirat et judicet, qui ius reddit ac vindicat omens qui patiuntur istam iniuriam. But the lord will see to and search it, & be your judge, which giveth true sentence upon you, & delivereth all that suffer this wrong. When I traveled to instruct doctor Barnes I declared to him this proposition (Th'effect of Christ's passion hath a condition) neither darkly nor confusely. The bis, And why ye should so call it, I see not, for both the matter is certain and the words commonly used and understanden. Th'effect of Christ's passion is the work therein intended, that is to reconcile man to god & to bring him to salvation. joy. If your terms of condition & effect had been so plain as ye say, so had they needed no declaration to D. Barnes ne now to me, ye know that Christ's so plenteous a passion brought to man many rich and innumerable benefits and effectis, as ye call them And again, your confuse condition, went great with infinite conditions as yourself declare her to contain all the wills and pleasures of god. And is it not now a confuse dark speech to say. Theffect thereof hath a condicion● who knoweth of which effect and of which condition among so many ye speak? Now ye declar●theffect to be the reconciliation of man to god and the bringing of him to salvation. And yet is it not so clearly ne clerkly declared, seeing there be so many things yet contained in theffect and betwixt it, and man's salvation, standing the course of man's life. I will therefore help you to declare it. A reconciliation which is an atonement or a peace making presupposeth a discord and inimite betwixt the parties, whereof one hath offended the t'other. The parties at discord were god and man. The thing that made the discord was the sin committed by man against god his creatore. The atovemaker was christ god & man by suffering his passion for the sin committed thereby so apeacing his father's wrath and satisfying his justice that the man believing in Christ to have suffered for his sins and to have risen for his iustifycatyon shall never have his sins imputed unto him but be clean remitted and forgiven. And thus we have your effect of Christ's passion to be the forgiveness of our sins, which is our justification and absolution upon this condition that we believe in christ. Thus doth paul in many places declare it, rom. v. i. cor. v. collos. i and also the father's voice out of heaven upon Christ made for us that oblation expyatory purging our sins, that we might be perfectly made rightwise thorough him. 2. cor. v. Now it is plain what is mente by your effect. Even the remission of our sins thorough faith in jesus christ. And thus according to the words of the scripture will I hence forth call it, and let your strange termed confuse effect pass with all your confuse conditions, save only faith in christ. Which condition who so have it, he enjoyeth his remission, and if he hath it not, he is dampened, had he done all Wynchester's works contained in his condition, Than ye say. Barns and I agreed upon faith to be one condition. The bis. And because he was my scholar I would learn him more conditions than fait● required for man's forgiveness of his sins, even this where in he openly invered against me, in his sermone. That is to forgive my neighbour or else I shall not be forgiven. And concluded upon that he had granted to me before that the fulfilling of this condition was not the diminution of the glory of Christ's passion. Here ye show one of your juggling casts with doctor Barnes, joy. ye say ye would learn him more conditions than faith, and ye bring in the precept of the forgiveness of your neighbour whose fulfilling is required for the forgiveness of sin say you, And then ye run thorough as it were in wash way to your conclusion that he had granted you, That the fulfilling thereof diminisheth not theffect of Christ's passion, as though the precept were now fulfilled and you at your ways end krowing up your triumph before the victory. But hearken a little, and let me ask you this one question? Whether faith in Chryst be your first condition going before your precept or no? whereupon ye say doctor Barnes and you first agreed: By your own saying it is the first condition. Then thus. Faith in Christ implieth in itself the ferme assiewred belief in christ to have suffered for her sins according to gods promise which affirmeth to the same believer that as he believeth according to his promise so cometh it to him. Wherefore this man must nediss be justified, ere your second condition be spoken of And yet ere ye come to your conclusion I must stay your hasty journey in the fulfilling of this precept of the forgiveness of your neighbour even as ye would be forgiven yourself of god. This is an hard precept of the law and is not so soon fulfilled of man, as ye ween for. It is not in man's power to forgive his brother with the same affect as Christ forgiveth us being his enemies. ●uke xvii And therefore his disciples hearing this to hard a precept for their free choice (as ye term it) in continently prayed him saying. A dau ge nobis fidem., increase our faith, teaching us, faith to supple the impossibility of the precepts, & that no man can so forgive without the gift of faith justifying. And therefore I will deny it utterly to be any condition required for the forgiveness of our sins, till I be perfectly assured, you or any other to have fulfilled it according to the mind of the law giver, and without faith going before. And the cause why I deny it and exclude it from the act of justification is this. rom. iii Paul excludeth all the works of the law from the act of justification, this precept in your condition without faith is a work of the law, & therefore I admit it not into the attainment of the remission of sins as cause or condition without whose fulfilling his sins be not forgiven, Another cause is, I consider, 1. cor. x, & 1. Phi. 2. this precept of love who sekith not her own profit but other men's, is given to man yet corrupt with his carnal affects and stained with a natural love to himself and with hatred to him that displease him or hurt him and is his deadly enemy which is his neighbour notwithstanding, whom he is commanded to love as himself, & to devil and divide this natural love from himself into his enemies bosom him to feed to comfort, to help and to forgive as himself. But this our love to ourselves is so deeply rooted in our hearts, that we can hardly departed from it to give it to our friends, much less to our enemies. Mat. v Also for the forgiveness of my neighbour which proceedeth of love, I am commanded of god to have so perfit love, Phi. two. collos. three Rom. v. and to be so affected toward him as was christ toward me when I was his enemy which then, died for me. yea who is glad to die when he hath deserved to die. yea a man will scant die for his friend. This precept therefore of love and forgiveness was once only in one jesus christ perfectly fulfilled: when both the priest and the levite the holiest order among you and the jews slipped by their wounded neighbour dying half dead, and never turned their faces toward him. In our common forgevenesses, lurketh there no sin? Shrewd, subtile, false, and unsearchable is the heart of man who knoweth it? jere. xvi Psal. nineteen. who seeth his own sinful secret nature? Fro my secret unseen sins to myself cleanse me lord, saith the prophet. who forgiveth without little or much of these affectis? either because he would have him still to friend to do him service or pleasure or for a vantage or for fear of displeasure or for shame or hatred, or fear to be noted as no christian man with many more then one man can search out of another or espy in himself. Also sith faith & love be imperfect in man corrupt with his concupiscence, what perfect love can proceed into the forgevens of his neighbour? The law is both holy just spiritual and perfect and requireth even so persitly & spiritually and even of such one to be fulfilled. Be ye perfect, saith christ as your heavenly father is perfect, & if we should say, that this work of love and forgiveness were so perfectly, done that there remained in us no sin but that the dignity of the deed deserved forgiveness, so needed that man not to pray in his pater noster forgive me my debts: but such a man I●an calleth a liar. joan. i. But admit the fulfilling of this your sec●nde condition after faith, yet it followeth not that this your forgiver hath also fulfilled all the other precepts of the law as the love of God above a●l with all his heart, soul, mind. etc. and the last precept, Thou shalt have no concupiscence. He is accursed saith the lord that perfectly performeth not, ●eut xxvi● ne abideth in all the precepts written in the law, wherefore a man is not justified for fulfilling of one or two of your conditions, but he must fulfil all written in the book of the law, or else he is accursed. Now when you or any other will come forth and dare say, ye have so perfitly, as god's mind is, fulfilled this your condition and all the rest of yours, and all the law, then will I dispute with you of your conclusion whereunto ye hasted so swiftly, whether the fulfilling thereof dymynysheth the glory of Christ's passion, In the mean season. I will tell you as Paul saith. If you or any other could get ye remission for the deeds of the law working, so were Christ dead in vain for such men. Gala. two. God acciteth the man that willbe justified by his works unto his judgement seat and pleadeth with him thus saying. Isay xliii Put me in mind and we will reason the cause in judgement. Show me that thing or work whereby thou wilt trust to be absolved and justified. And here god beginneth with the first man & so cometh to the most holy fathers as Abraham and Moses, and concludeth all men under sin none to have deserved their forgiveness by any of their works, but faith. Thou haste made me thy servant to bear away thy sins and thrustedst me down laden with thy iniquities. Man is therefore justified, saith Paul, freely by grace thorough faith in jesus christ. wherefore your condition of works cannot be placed in the action of justification. I exclude therefore with Paul by this exclusive, Sola fide, all the works of the law from the said action affirming constantly with him. That by faith man is freely justified without the works of the law. where is now your gloriation, rom. iii in your confuse condition? exclusa est. It is excluded saith Paul, and yet ye will have no exclusive as to say sola fide. But scoff it out with your karoll alone alone Qua lege? or quo iure? by what authority or condition. by the condition or reason of works? No no saith Paul. Imo per legem fidei. But by the authority of faith. And therefore he concludeth. Man by faith to be justified without the works of the law, what can be spoken more plainly against your condition and merits, for our free justification by only faith, all the works of the law excluded from faith in the action of our justification? Thus ye see your operose condition clean excluded from this action. And now to your second Article: that is, to use plain speech, The bishop his ii article They that will enjoy the remission of their sins, must believe. (for faith ye say is your first condition) And because ye fantazie so many faiths and knowledges and belike have as many beliefs, I will restrain you to the only belief in jesus Christ to have suffered for our sins. And now let us adjoin your next article in as plain words banishing your effect and this term condition. saying thus. His. iii. a●●●cle. The fulfilling of faith (for as yet I meddle with no more of your other conditions but with only faith your first condition) requireth the knowledge of faith, which knowledge (say you) we have by faith. And thus have we your paradox. Winchester's paradox. That faith is known by faith. Is not this a proper naked mouse, whereof so great a groaning mountain hath so long traveled? Who laugh not at this naked saying, faith is known by faith? This is lo, your confuse article wrapped in so many perplex terms, when it is resolved into plain speech and sifted from your combrose conditions and dark effects. If you and your doctrine feared not the light it should never have been involved in such obscure, vain, and perplex speech. The simple plain truth knoweth no deceitful coloured sophems ne any perplexed persuasions whereby as the serpent deceived Eve, so would you deceive the simple of which wily deceit and deceitful wiliness in such teachers Paul diligently warned the Ephesions, and abhorred it in the simple verity to be mixed. Ephe. v i. cor. two It may appear in you evidently how malice blyndeneth you, The bis. when rehearsing my words, ye ask me whether faith goeth before works. etc. Beware malice hath not so blyndened you, that when, joy. as once before ye were promoted, ye saw and professed the truth, but now drowned with the world ye be so blind that ye see not the son in the clear midday. Malice blyndened me not, for I perceived your crafty juggling with your confuse condition therein to wrap your works to justify. And purposely I asked you, whether faith went before works even to souke out of your own words, the same truth which ye impugned, even only faith to justify, which ye have now granted, answering faith to have the first place. Only faith justifieth by his own grant. Of which grant let this be the principle. The remission of our sins requireth faith in christ in the first place. Then thus, who so believeth his sins forgiven in christ the same is justified, this man so believeth, ergo he is justified, he is justified by no nother of your conditions then by faith, ergo faith only justfieth, The mayor is the scripture in an C. places That who so believe in christ hath life everlasting, the minor is evident in every believer in Christ. Also wheresoever is faith and belief into christ to have suffered for her sins, there is remission of sins, here is faith first of all into christ: wherefore here is remismission by your own grant by only faith which is your first condition. For as thou believest according to my promise (saith christ) so cometh it to thee, but thou believest in me to have suffered for thy sins as I have ever promised, ergo it must needs so come unto the thus believing. Now if ye give us forth ●ny more of your conditions after this faith justifying, which is your first condition, so come they all to late to iustyfy, for the faithful is now already justified by only faith ere your other conditions can be made ready or fulfilled. Then ye ask me a question waking, because I said ye dreamt an extern knowledge. In deed I then dreamt ye went about such a thing. And now I have my dream: for that ye say, faith is known by faith: And then ye coupled your new found faith (as I said) to an extern knowledge of your outward condition, so that now by your own wise deduction we be comen into this your fin narrow issue. Faith is known by faith, for these be your words. The fulfilling of the condition requireth first knowledge: your condition ye say, is faith. the fulfilling of faith is to believe in christ: Then is this the plain sense. To believe in christ, faith into him is first required, them ye add, which, knowledge we have by faith: Now is this your saying resolve it into plain speech. The remission of our sins by Christ's passion, hath first faith into christ. This belief into christ diminisheth not the forgiveness of our sins. Then ye say, they that will enjoy their forgiveness must believe in christ. To believe in christ requireth faith, which faith is known by faith. And thus by derkening the true justification with your vain terms have ye brought us in, two faiths, The bysshop● two faiths. one to be known by the tother. Now if it should be asked: whereby know you your first faith? Ye must seek us out another former faith thereby to know it, and so be we like to fall into infinite faiths. And here let us set together all your scattered sayings following touching this knowledge of faith by your first faith. First, ye say, by faith is all our certain knowledge of gods will and pleasure, folio xviii and xix And here it would be known, by which faith, ye mean, is all this knowledge, by your former faith or by your latter saith. For ye said, faith is known by faith. And then ye say. That Barnes & you came to this. that we must have ●aith first of all to know what we should believe. And here ye juggled again with him in deed, which I espied before in your two faiths by one to know the t'other. ●●e pope's faith. For I saw it before how privily ye went about to bring us into the pope's faith, & your popish believe to be extolled above christis faith. For the thing that we should believe is the word of god in the old & new testament perfectly contained: unto the which word red or heard of such as god hath ordained to be saved, Act. xiii, faith is given to believe it and to know god the father in christ, to cleave to it and live thereafter. But you, and your holy father antichrist of Rome have dreamt & decreed us another former faith which ye here call your faith first of all, Faith first of all. to know whether the bible and the holy scriptures written by the holy ghost and with the finger of god, spoken out of God's mouth be the word of god or no: as though ye would with the serpent the devil deceiving. Eve, call it into doubt whether we must & should believe the holy scriptures or no, except ye had so admitted it, so to make the holy ghost and the spirit of truth even god himself a liar. and to doubt whether our faith given us of god fully and firmly persuading us them to be gods very word be the true christian faith or no? And thus bring ye the unlearned simple & all that yet believe in your popish doctrine into doubt of all that is written in the holy bible: as whether God created heaven and earth, and christ be the son of god made man, borne of the virgin and have redeemed us which his death and resurrection. etc. Into this damnable doubt when ye have by your devilish doctrine brought your disciples, then to be delivered theroute, ye have usurped an authority above & over god's word by bringing in this your former faith to know what we must believe, which your first faith is joined and stayed upon your father's holy decrees as ye well weet it. No man so hardly to believe or to receive the scriptures as gods word unless he with the court, church (I should say) of Rome had granted admitted permitted and delivered them to us as to be the catholic scripture. No ne any man so hardy otherwise to understand or believe them, then as this antichrist of Rome and you his bishops by your falsely usurped power have falsely exponed and interpreted them. So that this your first faith of all (as ye call it) is plainly placed upon & correlative to the pope's holy decrees. And you following your holy father's steps by your tyrannous compulsion with fire usurping the same authority above god, & over his word compel us yet so to believe it as ye falsely expone it in this your devilish dark declaration & in your other false books. Thauctori●e and understanding ●f the scrip●u●e must do ●ende upon ●he pope ● Gardiner's ●●en & mouth whose arrogant exaltation above god & his holy word Daniel & Paul so lively describe, and at last afirme you to be slain with the same breath of god's mouth whose course ye contend so mightily this day to stop and to suppress. And even this is your popish drift with your dark termed effect condition and dowblinge with our only simple plain faith to place the pope's faith first of all, thereby to know chrystis faith, even anticryst ever contrary to christ to his faith and to his word, to bring us in to the knowledge of christ and belief of his gospel. To be confedered with the pope's friends and to write against his enemies, is a shrewd token of a papist. which is an evident proof that ye stand yet upon his side to bring him in again which his first faith of all, as (your books declare you) written for his part and doctrine, against the pope's enemies. I know it reported of diverse papists, that the pope is more be holden to you for so defending him with your pen against his adversaries then to any other of his cardinals and bishops. And therefore ye may be glad of so high commendations & praise and so good a report of the pope's friends. But we that be christian men under our most noble king & have renounced the pope with his false first faith and falser doctrine, will not admit this your popish assertion. That we must have this his first faith of all to know what we should believe. For we know it by our undoubted assewered faith which is the knowledge of god's mercy toward us in christ given us of god that the holy bible is his undoubted everlasting word, and constantly we believe all that is contained there in when we read or hear it, although your holy father's authority had never so affirmed ne admitted it. For by the word of faith, as paul calleth it, 〈◊〉. l●. ●om. 10. faith is given us, & not by the false decrees of antichrist. And our faith stayed upon gods holy word is the self same knowledge of god in christ. joan confirming the same, ●oh. 17. ●sai. 53. Collos. ●. i. joan. v. saying we be certainly persuaded that the son of god is comen & hath given us mind to know him, which is the truth and we are in the truth. At last, sith the scriptures be the thing which we should believe, and your first faith of all, must go before the knowledge of the scriptures to be believed, so must your first faith be joined to, and sustained, not upon the scriptures, and word of god, but upon man's word. But every man is alyer, both your holy father, and you to, ergo your first faith of all must need stand upon and be stayed with lies. The bis. The● I asked doctor. Barns if a gentle felt h●m self moved to go hear a preaching or read some part of scripture, whether would ye call it well done of him so to do, or were it sin because it were before faith seeing faith is of hearing. And he said it was good, etc. It is good as the heathen philosophers call their civil moral virtues good and the pope's school bona ex, joy. or in genere or moraliter & not ex fide that is a good heathen deed. But seeing we be entered into the Christian religion grounded upon faith justifying. I answer that he being (as ye say) a gentle, which is an idolater not yet believing in christ, his going, his hearing or reading is nought and sin before god, though it apere good before men, for the tree is yet evil, and unto the unpure & sinful, saith Paul, nothing is clean for his heart is not yet purified by faith. Wherefore as Paul saith, what is not of faith is sin. But because ye say he is moved. I must ask you farther, whether this motion telleth him that his haythen gentylysshe religion is false and damnable, and the christian religion to be the true way to his salvation in christ? which motion now thus conceived by the spirit of faith, I say, this man, goeth forth to hear the word for the confirmation of his faith into christ to be increased and more knowledge of the same to be augmented, 〈…〉. thirsting his salvation, as did Cornelius the centurion, which had his faith iustifienge him, ere he went forth to hear Peter's sermon. And as for your vain replication of no grant, that heathen good deeds justify before faith which cometh of hearing, it is not worth a poding. For because Barnes granted the gentiles deed to be good which had not yet heard the word, therefore ye conclude to hastily, ergo, men be justified before faith, for though your gentiles deed be one of your good deeds, yet i● justifieth not, ye ask how he should have faith before he heareth the sermon, sith faith cometh of hearing? for Barnes (ye say) had granted, in that motion he was justified. Your argument therefore is nought worth For ye must learn by Christ's words, that as there be two manner of words, that is to say, the inward, and exterior word, so are there two manner of hearings, For faith cometh not only of the outward hearing of the sown that smiteth the exterior ears, but especially out of the hearing of the intern word that persethe the heart by the secret instinct and motion of the spirit regenering the faithful. Of which intern hearing the scripture speaketh saying. Audiam quid loquatur in me dominus deus. I shall hear what thing the lord god pleaseth him to speak in me. And christ saith all that have herd and be learned of the father, they come to me, and we be all taught of god, of that which ears and intern hearing, Christ when he had taught certain lessons spiritually to be understanden out of his allegorike speeches: he cried loud, who so hath ears to hear let him hear. Of this intern word of faith speaketh Paul saying. Nigh in thine heart is the word of faith, Rom. 10. and also in many other places. And because they neither mind to do any good deeds. The bis, (joy. None of your gentile iewishe good deeds.) They would persuade to the world that we can do no manner of good deeds till we have no need of them. (joy. As though a justified man were not bound ne obedient to gods precepts, lo) for our salvation, That is to say, till we be justified and clearly in gods perfect favour, & assured by our own belief of life everlasting. And as though we should say to god give me my wages afore hand, & make me sewer that I shall have heaven and then I promise that I will forgive my neighbour Oh blasphemy, joy. pernyciousely perverting Christ's holy word & doctrine, oh wicked lie most impudent for never find ye these blasphemous lies in mine ne in any other christian writers books, we exhort you to more good works in one lief of our books, than ye be able to do all the days of your life. And even this is a good deed, with god's almighty word to confute your popish doctrine: wherewith ye would yet maintain the pope, and bring him in again at your day so sore longed for It is a good deed to stand on gods part with his word to resist such antichrists with all your imps. For all our books, if ye would suffer them to be seen, persuade, and exhort the readers to such good works as god commandeth, and dissuade and dehort all men from your damnable superstitious works, rites, and traditions of lying men. we with christ lay first the foundation stone, even Christ himself in our farm and constant faith. But you perverting gods order in doctrine set your works, yea and that Heathen infidel iewysh works, before faith If a jew or a turk should come to your school, would ye first teach him your good works and popish ceremonies before the true belief into god thorough christ? and baptise him ere he believe? The jews and Turks do such good civil works before men as ye teach men to be justified thereby. They pray, they fast give almose, hear and read the scriptures, pay their debts, buy and sell, and make their wares truly and justly, keep matrimony, which they do not without the common help and grace of god, and yet be they not justified by them before god, but before men after your justification without and before faith. But we which have professed the christian religion, grounded upon faith in Christ, teach the good works which be the fruits of the spirit of faith, and not your pharisaik rightwisemaking, ne your iewishe justification, For what hath belial with Christ & the darkness to do with the light? gal. 5. The tree must be first good, ere it bringeth forth good fruit. And so if belief be required before justification, there ariseth then a marvelous perplexite, The bis, how I should work well the work of belief, before I am justified. But as we say, my sins be forgiven because I believe, so because my sins were forgiven I did believe. Go to, joy. and scoff and deride God and his holy word whiles the lord that sitteth in heaven laugheth you to scorn, and shall at last smite you suddenly with his yerney sceptre, declaring your arrogant ignorance in that ye here affirm the work of belief to be man's work, when christ and Paul telleth it you, if ye had ever learned so far. joan. vi. That hoc est opus dei (& non hominis) ut credatis. etc. This is the work of god and not of man, to believe in him whom god hath sent, Neither for the defence of any error, as ye falsely report us, do we enter into so hard a matter of gods privy counsel, as ye call predestination and make it the immediate cause of our salvation, as yourself blindly stumble in to it, no occasion given you, but to declare only your ignorance, as ye say, lest any other, espying it in deed should justly prevent you with the same stripe. For we say with Paul That god hath chosen us in christ according to his gracious good will and pleasure and not for our merits, Ephe. 1. & 2. before to world, was made But wherefore? to do what we list? as reasoneth the forlorn saying: If I be predestined to be saved, so shall I be saved do I never so evil, god forbid. but we be predestined saith paul to this end that we should here be faithful holy and blameless before god by love. Ephe. 1. which hath predestined us to be his sons by adoption thorough jesus Christ. Ephe. 2. etc. that the glory of his grace should be praised. And that we be created of god in christ jesus to do good works prepared of god, and not of ourselves, Ephe. 2● that we should here walk in them ere we obtain that promised salvation. And that we be after our election and predestination called to be regenered of the spirit by faith, which spirit of faith in Christ certifieth us of our election, having now the pledge and earnest of the spirit, 1. co●. 1. Ephe. 1. Rome. 8. even Christ himself given us, testifying to our spirits, that he hath choose us to be his. This assewraunce in faith is taught us every where in scripture by gods promises, sealed both with the intern obsignation of the spirit of faith and also with the visible seals of his sacraments testifienge to us his benevolence toward us in christ both by baptism and his holy supper. And dare you then so arrogantly say against this holy assiewerd certainty & obsignation of the spirit in the promises of GOD received in the most certitude of our faith, and be so bold as to impugn this ferme assewrance and persuasion of the spirit of faith, to persuade any man (as ye do) to dubitation ignorance unbelief & to doubt of gods holy promised election and his predestination in christ? will ye say against this. That the faithful be saved by predestination and their election in christ? whom god hath predestined and chosen they shallbe saved, for god repenteth him not of his election, but it must necessarily and immutably come so to pass in his elect according to his farm purposed decree in his everlasting immutable providence, so that it lieth in no man's hand to resist his will ne to take any of his chosen from him. And therefore whiles we that believe to be predestined and chosen in christ, Our predestination election sought and found in christ only thus search and treat the knowledge of our predestination in christ, and not in gods secret counsel, ne in ourselves, in Christ, I say, within the limits of gods express will & word, there is no such peril therein, ne is it so hard a matter as ye make it, but joyous, sweet and comfortable to every faithful humble cristian But if ye leave the light and the way of his word, and will search, treat, and measure it with your own fond reason and curiosity of your wit (as ye here do) then be ye worthily cast up of god into your own forlorn sense and ignorance, strayed away into labyrinths inextricable into your own confusion, compelled to pervert and to falsify the scriptures wresting them to seem to agree and to serve your ignorant reason for fear (as ye say) of your mere necessity all things to be done, dreamt out of your own feeble brain which cannot in the scriptures see with saint Austen, the necessity in the will of god predestening to stand with the free will of the predestined, to do good. And again with the necessity of reprobation in gods will to stand the liberty into evil in the reprobated, so that his damnation be imputed unto himself, for his own voluntary fault. ● voluntary necessite. Nether can ye see how this necessity is no compulsion, ne constrained necessity but a voluntary necessity. God will have mercy of whom he list, and harden whom it liketh him. The cause inscrutable of his divine secret will is worthily hidden from us, so profound are his judgements that man's reason cannot attain to them and yet will your fond wit be ready to accuse god of unrightwisenes, whiles he give you a reason to your mind, and a reckoning why (sith all things depend of your mere necessity▪ and of the secret godly just will) he should damn any man? As though the potter were bound to give a reckoning to his clay, wherefore he hath not made all his vessels thereof a like in honour. And as though gods deep inscrutable judgements and will, must be measured with your high wit. Oh miserable man, that thou art (saith Paul) which darest reply reason with, and incuse thy maker on this manner: as though God were bound to attemper the magnitude of his secret works to thy rude capacity. Are his divine works perverse because they be hid to thy sinful reason and carnal wit? Be we therefore content with this answer of God, Mat. 20. to the murmurs in his vineyard. It is my will, It is my pleasure thus to do with my now●e, and thus to use my creatures to my glory. It is god that hath made all things for himself, prour. 16. and for his own will, even the wicked unto an evil day. And hardined pharao's heart worthily, and yet is he not therefore th'author of evil as man's fond reason gathereth thereof. For we know that as the foot paths of the lord lie in the seas, ●sal. lxxvi. and his foot steps be not seen, even so lie his works in all things even in the wicked forlorn, and be not seen to man's reason, which at his godly pleasure so disposeth and ordaineth the secret deep judgements of his unsearchable will by his godly providence in all men, that as it pertaineth to his wisdom to foresee all things to come, so belongeth it to his power to rule and moderate all things with his almighty present forth stretched hand. Senharib was a wicked heathen king, and yet God used the same (him self not knowing it) to be his instrument to scourge his people, Isay ten the king himself intending nothing else then ambition cruelty, and mischief,. Here did neither the king ne his people the the jews in this work of god espy his jot steps, much less in his predestination and reprobation, for if they had seen them, blind reason would have anon concluded, God to be the author of evil, or else not have justly punished the king, seeing he did but gods will and his message. Let god therefore as isaiah saith work strange works unknown to us to work his own, Isay. xxvii● as he did when he sprang forth in the mount Perazim, and declared his fury in the vale of Gibeon. All that is before written of this matter, it is written saith Paul for our doctrine to have comfort by the scriptures and hope thereby of our salvation, Rom, xv and not to fear us from the wholesome study and meditation thereof, ne to bring us into any perplex doubt of our election & predestination in christ, as your process appeareth after ye left Paul's words and fell into your own reasoning therein, calling the words of the holy ghost, idle reasonings, and wrapping them in unreverently, with the idle sayings and reasonings of the greeks (as ye term them) bringing in your absolute mere necessity, and man's life, death, manners behaviour. etc. and every thing to be fixed (ye say both in scoff and derision) of God, and fastened in his place appointed, with nails, ryvetted and clenched with mere necessity. etc. By such blasphemous scornful speech and writing of the mere necessity of gods eternal moste mighty immutable will, wisdom and power, effectuousely to perform his divine decreed operations and actions, unable to be resisted, ye openly declare yourself to be not so perfitly minded as ye ought to be thus unreverently without fear, to write upon your creatore. Of which manner men of so depraved and corrupt mind, david speaketh saying The scoffing fool saith in his heart, that god is not god. Psal. 13. c 2.14. Then ye rehearse many that may be made objections against you of gods infallible foreknowledge and necessarily decreed will and providence and predestination, but with all the coloured rethrike ye have ye cannot assoil one of them. And as for free liberty to do good, no man hath it, till the spirit of liberty, thorough christ, hath taken away his bond liberty (if such one may be called free liberty) to sin and made in him a free liberty to do good as the scripture and Austen every where declareth it. And again, That the necessity unable to be changed in gods decreed will, necessiteth no man by coacction to sin but it is the voluntary necessity of man's corrupt nature that driveth him to sin in which corrupt nature ye should if ye were learned, & not in gods secret will seek man's necessity to sin. so that God is no author of sin (which be far from all christian men's thoughtiss) but just and holy in all his works, & used pharaous worthily deserved voluntary induration unto his own glory. He tempted job, and Satan temptid the same, here is one and the same action, but of unlike entents wills & endis, For god tempted, him to prove his patience, to excercise his faith hope & love and to set him up an example of patience before all afflicted faithful men, But Satan tempted him to bring him into blasphemous murmurings against god by impaciency, & so to despayer and to damnation. The scripture saith that the father delivered up his own son to be crucified for us, & christ delivered up himself into their handis. And judas and the bishops delivered him up into his crucifiers handis, But god did it for his glory and our redemption judas & the high priests did it of avarice envy and malice. So that the diversity of the endis, manner, willis, intent and the affectis of the doers in the same action, make it good to one and evil to another, Ye provoke me much to digress & to contend with you in the matter of predestination and free liberty, thereby craftily to call me into a new field from our proposed cause of justification, as though either ye were weary of, or mistrusted your false part therein, And especially in this place. Antequam Abraham fierer, Ego Sum. In which text, ye play and daley before time, after time, above time, yea and out of time to, ask me whether (before) signifieth time or no time, whereof ye say my plain scholars can no skill. (And I dare sai, no more can you) For in this text ye tumble in your tenses present and paste, done, undone, or in doing, placing the present tense, in god before the pretertense in man, as though, Sum, in that place, ego sum, were a verb substantive, and not the essential name of god to Moses. Exo. iii. that he should tell his people his name to be this word, sum, when he was bode to say. sum misit me ad vos. that is to say, jehovah, he that hath his being of himself, and all creatures their being of him hath sent me to you. For god is not measured ne tenced with time, ye should have conferred the text and ye should have seen that Christ's mind was first to declare himself to the jews to be very man in that he told them, Abraham desired to see his day, that was of his incarnation, and then in end of the chapter he declared himself to be very God naming himself by his essential name expressed to them in Exodo, where he said, ego sum qui sum Which is but as cold a speech as to say. A man is a man. except the sharp demonstration called emphasis be intended upon the later, Sum, in an higher sharper and harder accent. So that if that name ineffable might be expressed, as it cannot be of man, yet to point us unto it as it were a farrof, the learned in the tongues insinuat it by this latin noun, existo existonis as one might say, I am that essential being as I said before. So that ye have declared your ignorance in deed to take gods essential ineffable name, for the verb Sum es fui, a verb of the present tense: making no difference betwixt the first Sum and the last, in this sentence. Ego sum, qui sum. For ye may time and tense the first Sum, but so can ye not the later Sum. which god used when he bode Moses tell them, Sum, hath sent me unto you, and christ used the same his essential name, here unto the jews, in this text Antequam Abraham nasceretur ego sum. Before abraham was borne I had my being of myself and all creatures their being by me. This is the true englishing there of as we may without to scant a speech declare it. And therefore saith Austen. append verba, & agnosce mysterium etc. Antequam Abraham fieret. Intellige fieret ad humanam naturam. Sum, veroad divinam pertinere substantiam. way these words and acknowledge the mystery. Before Abraham was made, understand thou, this word (was made) to pertain to his human nature. But the word (Sum) to pertain to the divine substance. But it would ask to great a book to refute all your errors and ignorances in this peses and in other of your book, and therefore I touch but some of them, and haste me again to your saying in your xlvii. leaf following concerning our first proposed matter of justification, A controversy there is, how god worketh this justification in man, The bis. whether to justify he giveth him one gift of faith or two gifts of faith and charity. And in this controversy one thing is very perverse, that these which say that god justifieth man with one gift of faith only, will be seen more to extol god in his favour unto man than they that say god giveth three gifts in the justification. I say with Christ, saint Paul and with all the old holy doctors that god to justify man giveth but only the one gift of faith believing into Christ unto the only action of his justification, joy. albeit there be three gifts in the man justified, as faith, hope, and love, not idle waiters to be set a work, as ye rail and jest of gods holy gifts. Neither Paul taught of god, bringing but the one gift of faith, excluding all the other from the act of justification, doth perversely (as ye say) in extolling god thereby when he bringeth in Abraham only by faith justified and therefore to give all the glory unto god. Rom. iiii. and likewise of every man by faith only justified and not of works. Ephe. two. howsoever it liketh you to scoff it out, I know of how fond a dream and false a ground ye argewe against me and master Bucer to prove your charity to be concurrante with faith in the act of justification, or else (as ye full wisely say) charity to stand by idle till she be set a work. Gardiner's faith form, and unformed shaped and shaples. For ye have dreamt it with friar dunce, that there is a material shaples faith and a formal fashioned faith. And that your material faith must stand idle, as ye teste of charity, & can do nothing without her shape and formality, whereby she is form and shaped into action form with charity. By which fond dream ye would make (I say) your shapeless faith to stand idle till your cold charity had set her a work A goodly godly friarly dream lo. But the scripture teacheth us that faith in her own essential self and consideration is as actual, effectuous, and as formally fashioned as is charity in her essential self. For the single spiritual gifts of god admit no such physic composition as ye dream. And as effectually as charity loveth god known first by faith in christ so effectually and as formally worketh only faith first her proper actions, as to believe in god apprehending his promises in christ, and there is no idleness in either of the gifts, for as God giveth none of your material shaples gifts, so giveth he no idle gifts, as ye blaspheme him and his gifts, we teach therefore with god's word, faith hope and charity, to be essencyally distinct, but not divided in sundry: And we know, and teach it, that saith in herself hath her own proper formal actions as to purify hearts, to certify the soul of her forgiveness in CHRIST, faith. knoweth god in Christ, faith setteth the conscience at rest, faith apprehendeth the free promises in christ, faith seeth god and things invisible, faith pleaseth god, faith goeth unto god with many more her own peculiar works expressed. Heb. xi. Faith declareth her self effectuouselye by the works of charity of hope of patience, almose. etc. But by which of all these her proper works doth faith justify? verily the scripture saith by her believing in god thorough christ jesus, him to be given her, to have suffered and satisfied for her sins, made of god the father her rightewisenes, holiness, wisdom and redemption. By this only act of faith is man justified before she declareth herself by her works of love, for the thing loved must be first known by faith. Faith justifieth in that she worketh by belief into christ certifying and inducing us into the communion, by which work faith justifieth. and doing Christ's rightwiseness upon us to be our own vesture common to him and to us covering us thus believing in him: Gene. 27. as it was well figured in jacob covered with his elder brother's clothes and vestures so well savouring in his father's nose whereupon he received his blessing in that blessed seed contrary to the curse and malediction. This word only faith hath and doth maintain much babbling when ye join it to faith saying, only faith justfieth, The bis. & defending y●, ye trouble the people. etc. It maintaineth the more babbling and gendereth the more errors by your popish Antichristen doctrine teaching with other heretics that faith and works together must justify, joy. It is your popish Pelagians babbling, for your works, dampning christ and saint Paul in the places I alleged against you, and ye have not yet soluted them, ye accuse of sich babbling Austen, Ambrose, Hierom, Uulgarye, Chrisostom, Hugh Cardinal, Erasmus, so oft in his learned & godly work of his Paraphrase upon the new testament with many more both godly and learned men afforming only faith to justify. Read Origene (and ye wyste) upon this place. Arbitramur hominem fide justificari. etc. and call him and the other rehearsed, maintainers of much babbling. If to say only fa●th justfieth maintaineth so much babbling, as ye babble and blustre for your sinful works, so have all these said great learned and holy men interpreting the scriptures done much hurt and troubled their readers. It is no marvel ye babble so boldly, and impugn so blyndlye this verity of faith only justifying, for ye never knew what this faith is. It is neither your acquisite ne your formed ne unformed faith, neither your assenting historik faith, neither your explicit ne implicit faith, neither your feigned ne dead faith, neither the devils faith, nor yet your first faith of all, that we join with the exclusive, only, but it is the lively justifying faith, faith justifying. even the farm assiewred knowledge of god's benevolence toward us, which grounded upon the verity of the free promise in Christ, is both revealed to our minds, and presented into our hearts by the holy ghost. And therefore are these words, justitia justificatio and justificari often times joined to faith only, and never to Charity ne to works to justify before God, Paul using in express words these exclusives. Absque operibus and sine operibus legis, gratis nisi. etc. That is freely without the works of the law. And where the jew (as now do you) for his iustifycatyon objecteth his works. Paul telleth him plainly. Thy gloriation in thy works is excluded by rom. 3. by the authority of faith. And to exclude all other actions, and merits of works, he addeth. Gratis per gratiam per fidem. that is freely thorough faith. And Christ biddeth him believe only, and thou shalt have thy desire: Also Paul expresseth it with this exclusive, Gal. 2. nisi, affirming, we know it, man not to be justified of the works of the law but by faith, which like speech Christ useth by the same exclusive, luke. 18. nisi, to prove only God to be good, saying. Nemo bonus nisi unus, Nempe deus. There is none good but one, that is god, as much to say as christ himself expresseth it, there is none good nisi solus deus, but only god. For the same power hath, nisi, to exclude in negative propositions, as have Solum & tantum in affirmatives. They trouble the people with a fine distinction of offices, saying that in justification of man, The bis, it is the only office of faith to justify. And charity and hope there waiting without office whiles the man be justified. Here ye play sir Thomas Moris' part, which when he was suborned of you the spirituality to write against the truth, joy. and could not solute the scriptures ne arguments laid against him, than he skoffed and jested them out. Better learned men than you call the acts of faith and charity, offices, ne a more proper term can there be given them, if ye list to see what officium is, and whereof it cometh, marry I mean not of such offices as ye constitute among your officers, as butler's, cooks. etc. And here because the truth of God, and your lies be at so deadly a discord you having no truth for your cause to be defended, ye put to this shameless lie of me, that I should write, Charity and hope there to wait without office whiles the man be justified, which neither I ne any else but such as ye be did ever say it. But I say it yet again to you this which ye shall never justly avoid ne confute, The officie of faith, of hope, ● of love That it is the office act property or nature (call it as ye list) of faith only to apprehend the free promised forgiveness in christis moste precious innocent blood. Nether is hope idle. For it is the constant expectation of those things conceived by faith out of the word of god, which hope shameth us not. Nether is love there idle, but is the fruit of faith even the good affect toward god and beneficence toward our neighbour to fulfil the works of mercy. For the gifts of the holy ghost break not forth into works in the same instant they be sown into the soul of man, but receive their nourishment and increase and be noless idle then is the good earth and the grain sown lapped therein all that time before the grain spiereth & apere above the ground, The holy ghost as he giveth no idle but fruitful gifts at their dew tune, so suffereth he not his gifts to lie idle in his good soil, although ye have little grace to consider & see it, but rather to blaspheme him and his gifts with your scoffing idle waiting, having rather respect to your idle waiting servants in your scornful allusion. Though yourself sleep or wink and see not at all times yet may ye not say in such times, that God hath given you idle eyes. And for that your supercilious morosity, is so offended with the term (office) of faith, what difference (I pray you) put ye betwixt these two sayings. The eye only seeth, and it is ●he only office thereof to see? neither is there any man so brutish, as in this speech. It is the only office expressing the cause formal, of faith to justify, to exclude god the cause efficient out of his office. For (only as Paul teacheth, excludeth the works of the law & not god from the act of justification as ye cavil to seek evasions, verily if ye were of god, ye would never impugn so manifest verities with such trifflinge scoffs and cavillations ne trouble and hinder Christ's church to seduce them with these your fond and false books. But ye stand a little to high in your own conceight, beware ye fall not. Dominus videt et judicat. Que stat caveat ne cadat. he that stand let him beware he falleth not. The. bies And so (only) is now shifted from faith to thoficie of faith, And these be they that accuse other men of darkness. Now hearken (good reader) weather this be so dark a shift, joy. Only the ear heareth, and it is the only office of the ear to hear. this bishop would have it the office of charity also to justify, and I, to exclude charity from that office, tell him that it is the only office of faith and not of any other gift to justify. & have constantly confirmed it by scriptures. But the scripture telleth me that who so loveth not remaineth in death. The bis. And therefore if the state of a justified man be life in Christ, which is godly love hath as well her office in justification to give life as faith hath her office to be in knowledge the most certain ground and foundation of it, and hope her office to be placed and established upon them both. I deny your long babbling vain and dark argument which is this briefly in few words. joy. The office (here be ye compelled to use this term office) of charity is to give life ergo charity justifieth. A like argument the office of charity is to be patient, ergo charity justifieth. But what and if I deny your antecedence, and prove it by scripture, that faith and not love is the life of the justified. Abacuc. two. The just man liveth in his faith. For faith hath not this epithet, ut viva dicatur, that is to be called lively except there were life in her, whereof the just liveth. Abacuc. two. Also Paul saith. The life which I now live in my flesh, per fidem vivo filii dei. I live it by the faith of the son of god. And john saith, he that remaineth in love dwelleth in life, the cause why Abacuch & Paul declareth for that he that remaineth in love dwelleth in faith, which is the life of the just, So that to abide in love, declareth the man to continue in the life of faith. But I argue thus to you, charity can not love god unless she first know god. but by faith justifying god is first known, ergo faith justifying is before charity loving. Wherefore charity justifieth not. For the thing must be first known ere it be beloved, Then thus, faith justifying is before charity loving, For the man is justified in the former action of faith knowing & believing in gods mercy thorough christ. For faith is a lively faith in her own proper work of belief into christ, ere she worketh by charity. But you would make charity equal in action with faith, in the work of justification, which ye shall never do with all the pope's law ne with all his dirty divinity, ye have. And to prove your popish part, ye sweat greatly to join life to charity as though then ye had your purpose. And in your lu leaf following, ye say the scripture giveth life to charity, but ye dare not allege that scripture: as I have alleged life to be given to faith, ye would here by adjoining life in charity, to be concurrant with faith in justification (as I perceive) make faith your material shaples dead and an idle faith, till charity setteth her a work giving to faith her form & life. But this dream will not serve you, as I have told you before. And then ye say hope must be placed and established of faith and love contrary to the hole order and treaty of them throughout all the scripture, as ye see it distinctly, orderly, and plainly in all and in every part and pistle of the Apostles, and in the prophets, first of faith, then of hope, and last of all of love, if you understand them. Then ye prate pertly of your works before your justification. And I tell you Show me but any one of your good works before your justification before god and I shall soon tell you whether it be good or bad, yea and that by the true twitch stone of godis holy word that lieth not. joy violently writeth this text of scripture, The bis. when ye have done all that I have commanded you then say you we be unprofitable servants. etc., and all to diminish th'estimation of good works, joy. after. ●udolph in vita Christi. This bishop violently wresteth this text with the monks exposition of the chartir house to serve for his and their merits whereupon theirs and all other monkish houses were founded and builded till the gospel overthrew them as it shall shortly subvert your byshoprykes to, as Christ's own exposition of the same text plainly declareth it. Your monkish gloze is. That be cause god is rich enough. and want nothing, ne needeth our commodity goodis ne profit by our dediss, therefore we must say, we be servants unprofitable to him. But christ telleth us another cause, saying. Say that ye be servants unprofitable, be cause ye have done but your abounden duty. For what thank hath that servant because he hath done but that he is commanded to do? These be Chrystis words to destroy your merits and supererogation works to merit more than ye need which overplus ye sell to other men for money and land to be given to your bishoprics, & abbeys, therefore ye may be ashamed to render any such a popish cause contrary to christis own words: ye say god hath no need of our commodity, profit, and service, It is trwthe. & therefore ye serve him theraftir, readier to serve your lusts the devil the pope & the world. God commandeth us & all creatures to serve him, but after you, neither to promove ne to set forth his glory name & goodness ne one to profit another. Christ biddeth us so to let our light shine before men that they seeing our good. math. v. works might glorify our father in heaven. And what ye do to the lest of mine, ye do it to me, saith he, so that his pleasure profit and commodity by our service consisteth and remaineth yet still in his church and his members. And as the tolerances, persecutions, & inuries, done to his members he reckoneth them done to himself, as it is to see, collos. i. act. ix. so accepteth he all benefits and works of mercy and service done to his church of the poor faithful membres of christ as done and common to himself. as ye see mat. xxv. For which utility and profit done to him in his members he calleth us (contrary to your exposition) profitable & faithful servants to him, For he needeth our service in his church and members, and necessary it is that all his creatures so serve him, sith he hath therefore created them to celebrate his glorious name, and given them and us commandment so to do. Albeit god is omnisufficiente & almighty rich in himself, yet standing the creation of all things in heaven & earth to minister and serve him according to his precept, it is necessary his glory & goodness to be spread & celebrated by their service. God needeth not our goods, ergo he needeth not our service? how folowteh your argument? seeing he hath created all things to serve him. ye be a rich bishop having of all things enough and need not your servants goods, yet seeing ye have servants it is necessary that they serve you, all though ye be able to serve yourself, wherefore I pray ye be as good for god's service as for your own, for it standeth & maketh as much for his honour to require our service as it doth for your honour to be served, or else ye would pervert the universal order of the world, if kings and magistrates having, servants should have no need of their service. Ye say god needeth no service of us. when he biddeth you therefore, to go into his vineyard to plough up men's hearts with his word therein to be sown and planted, & to feed his flock. Tush, may ye say, god needeth none of my service by your exposition, for he is able enough to do it himself, my service can not profit him, and so his service and precept forsaken, ye may go into the pope's garden there to play the gardener, plant, & sow his popish rites, traditions & devilish doctrine still as ye have done to poison the simple soul's with errors and heresies. To whom it shall be said at last. O evil and unprofitable servant. etc. take him away and his hands and feet bounden, cast him into exterior darkness, where is weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then ye say. God's service is profitable to us, but if ye did believe your own saying, ye would serve him ernestlier than ye do, and seek that profit in his service with the peril of your life, as did Christ and his apostles with their true successors, forsaking all that they had to follow him in his service of faithful and free preaching his gospel. Paul in his vocation ever sought the profit of the other to be saved with the great pains, presonmentes, and peril of his own life, so that he said it were more profit for himself to be with Christ then here stil. Where ye see that Christ's servants, serve not for their own profit, as ye say in your false exposition, but for other men's profit, for charity seeketh not her own but other men's profit. Then ye say, the state of men's servants is to do their master's profit, and not their own. But I think every good faithful servant to reckon his masters profit to be his own and so should ye teach them if ye will have good servants. Let us see whether this servant in the parable being all the day in the field, 〈◊〉 xvii. doing his masters profit, contrary to your exposition, did not also his own? Had he not all his living of his master? which was no small profit to himself. 〈◊〉 nineteen. Then ye bring in for your other servant that profiteth himself and not his master christ, this text. Si vis ab vitam ingredi serva mandata. If thou wilt enter into life keep the commandments, as though he keeping the commandments should have therefore deserved heaven. And then as Paul saith, Christ had died in vain for that servant. But ye know to what servant Christ spoke those words, even to the young rich lawyer and pharisays scholar, taught of them to go to heaven, by doing good deeds & not by faith in christ. The person of the speaker, and his question induced Christ, so to temper his answer to his mind. For this lawyer was so seen & nuzzled in the law & works that he was (as ye be) persuaded by the pharisaiss to go to heaven by his own doing and not by Christ's suffering: and thus went he forth blyndened with the confidence of works. Now (I pray ye) what profit got this your young pharisaical scholar, who ye say so profited himself and not his master by his service? although he said he had kept all the rehearsed commandements from his youth, he had no profit by that service, as ye say, he had, for even here he forsook his master, and went his way heavily, christ pronouncing how impossible it was for such a servant to come to heaven. Wherefore this text with all the former exposition of the the first text make plain against yourself and against all your servants, and their services so wisely brought in for your fond and false purpose and are all your own keys to cleave your logs and your own hatches to open your locks. Even the process and conference of the text before from the beginning of the chapter whereof christ was moved to tell his disciples this parable of that bond servant not to work for wages, but because it was his abounden duty, would lead you into the true understanding thereof, had ye grace so to observe your own so oft rehearsed rule. For Christ had given his disciples in the beginning of that chapter all to hard and impossible to man, 〈◊〉 xvii. a precept of injuries, and hurts, so often to be forgiven, and bodde them beware, and take heed to themselves, saying that needs must such slanders and offendicles come. This precept of patience and love to forgive their enemies, slanderers and hurters so oft as they offend us, they knowing it to be so impossible to the nature of man to corrupt with the natural love of himself, and again, seeing faith to be so mighty a gift whereby the law is fulfilled, rome three x. cetle. xxxii when love is to weak to do it, prayed him to increase & strengthen their faith. Then Christ telleth them the power and might of faith, being as little as the mustered seed, yet thereby should they do things impossible to the nature of man to do, even to command the deep rooted great wild figtree to rend up her roots, and to be transplanted in the sea, declaring thereby, that the law impossible to man to be fulfilled, yet by faith, how faith not work fulfilleth the law. we believing christ to have fulfilled it for us, do remove his fulfilling so transplanted in us, that we by faith firmly have his fulfilling of the law as our own, he being made of his father our rightwiseness, in which his rightwiseness, and not in our own we appearing before his seat, & presence have not our sins imputed to us, so justified, obtaining that last and perpetual blessing given to all his blessed chosen children. To confirm this doctrine, and to destroy your false popish supererogition works and merits. Christ knitteth to the parable. saying, which of you having a bond servant, (all gods elect be his bond servants to do his commandments of duty, & to serve him looking for no wages) ploughing and feeding your cattles in the field will say to him as soon as he come home, come, sit down & eat, but will rather bid him, saying, go and prepare for my souper, and dress the to serve me till I have eaten▪ which done, eat thou and drink: will he commend or give him any thanks for doing but his duty? No I think. Here ye see how Chrsti expounding himself, destroyeth your merits to be looked for your deeds of duty and bond service. And even so (saith he) say ye and think it in deed, we be servants unprofitable, for that we have done but our abounden duty. Now go to, and tell you us your other tale & monkish dream, that we be servants unprofitable, because god is so rich that he needeth not our service. a fair reason, and goodly gloze for your merits, ye be a rich and valiant bishop, and be able to set up wipe, and curry your own horse, ergo ye need no service, but may do it yourself. Do not the obedient ministration of his angels and the obedience and service of his creatures all make for the glory of god to be celebrated among us, although we know him omni sufficient? Here thou seest, christian reader) how impudently and arrogantly this bishop dare render another and contrary cause and exposition of the text than Christ himself hath left us in plain words, and then say, that I in expressing and alleging justly Christ's words, do violently wrest and write them. But what is it that Antichrist dare not do and say against christ and his verity to falsify the scriptures, to th'intent he might wrest them to seem to serve his devilish doctrine? We know that god is almighty, infinite rich, and needeth not our goods but yet as he commanded the first fruits of every thing to be offered up unto him, so would he all his gifts in us, yea and all our deeds, service, words, and thoughts to be consecrated into his glory and honour, and into the edification and profit of his body and membres, which so doing we be servants faithful and profitable for him, and to other, as the scripture calleth us, and thus we sanctify and celebrate and magnify his holy name, as he commandeth it, Than ye chopin this text of zachary. Vtsine timore. etc. To prove your merits to deserve deliverance from our enemies, and so to live and serve him in holiness and well doing. But ye slightly leave out him, by whose merits we be thus delivered. Ye should have red the verses before, and then ye should have seen, that GOD the father had erected our mighty health, even christ, that by him, and his power and merits, we delivered from our enemies might serve him without fear in holy living. But such pieces ye can omit as impertinente to your evil purpose. And these be the hatchets ye bring in, to open your lewd locks. And after this sort they use predestination, The bis. which being signified to us for our comfort, do declare what care god hath of us whereby we should be the more encouraged to work having god to our help. etc. joy. Why then in your book of necessary instructions command ye the people to beware of predestination and not to meddle therewith lest they fall into any vain trust in it, these be your words, and teach that no man should be sewer thereof, ne of his election? Now ye say it is written for our comfort, and anon ye fear men from it, now it is a vain trust and then it is a comfortable adsewraunce, and anon ye put all men in doubt thereof and of their election in Christ, making faith no faith, but a wavering doubt, ne gods promise of no effect. So inconstant and wavering is your doctrine. Which predestination, ye say, we use it as your hatchet to open locks. And I say, yourself use it, as a nose of wax against the fire. But now I return to you master joy. (joy, And I to you my lord. The bis. ) And where ye appose me, whether when I considered theffect of Christ's passion, I believed it or no? I profess I believed. Then ye ask whether I believed it to be effectual to me. To this I answer you That first I believed, it was and is effectual to me in my baptism wherein I obtained remission of my sins and renovation of life. I perceive ye let great scorn to be opposed of me. joy. But yet I would ye answered me directly to my question, For I asked you whether now seen your baptism when ye taught your scholars this conclusion, then being a sinner, as every man is, when ye first considered your sins in yourself and looked upon your effect that is remission in Christ's passion, whether then, I say, ere ye looked to any other condition than upon only faith, which is your first condition, ye believed Christ's passion to be effectuous to you or not? If ye did, so must ye needs be justified by only faith & by no other condition, which ye must nediss grant magry your tethe, For as ye believe, according to gods promise so must it infallibly come to you. But in your answer, fearing lest ye should be justified by faith only, the bishop is afraid lest he should be justified by only faith. ye shift from this time, to your baptism where ye would couple your faith divided, part to christ & part to your baptism by both together to be justified, as though not faith only in christ, ne Christ's death were sufficient, But I will stop ye in from that stertinge hole thereby not so to escape, And must by your leave appose ye yet again, & ask you whether before your body was doped into the font with the words of baptism, ye believed or no. If ye say no, so make ye your godfathers and god mother liars and yourself to, which all affirmed in your person Credo. I believe, or else the priest had christened an infidel. For the order of Christis doctrine is that the doctrine and profession should go before the baptism as ye see it both in infants and waxed. If one should come to you to be baptised, ye would first instruct him in our faith and hear him openly profess it ere ye put him into the water as christ taught and commanded his apostles to do, saying, Go and teach all nations my gospel and whatsoever else I have taught you & them that believe baptise into the name of the father and etc. This order observed the apostles in their acts first preaching the law to show them their sins and then the gospel of remission in christ, the use of baptism: which thing believed, the hearers be justified before god & regenered of the spirit of faith thereby obsigned and sealed certified of their election in christ, And then is the exterior obsignation of baptism with water the testification to the church added to certify them the same person to have had received the spirit of faith Baptism is the testification to ●he church of the regeneration of the spirit. and to be regenered before of god, so that as circumcision was to the jews church, signaculum iusticie fidei that is the exterior seal testimonial of the justification by faith, lo is baptism with water the exterior seal testifying to us that the baptised is justified also by faith, and certifieth the congregation as a testification of the benevolence of God toward the baptised, and of his spiritual gifts received. For the water saith Austen, is but an element and nothing without the word of promise, which is the word of faith justifying before the person be baptised. Baptizme with water therefore is the testification and seal, certifyenge the hole congregation of his incorporation and member of Christ's church to be admitted into their society to pray to hear the word with them and to receive the lords supper. Besides that baptism in figure is the perpetual custodi of the christian life by mortification & repentance signified by the dopinge into the water in the death and burial of christ, and his resurrection us to rise up continually into a new life, ephe. iiii collos. two. gall. iii. as Paul teacheth us. Rom. vi. Thus did Philip first instruct the queen's courtier of Candace, and then asked him whether he believed with all his heart, that is constantly and purely, before he would baptize him. And Paul and Silas observed the same order with the keeper of the prison, act. xvi. when the keeper being in a desperate mind for fear they had been fled, would have slain himself, but otherwise advertised by Paul, he comen to himself, said. Masters what must I do to be saved. which answered. Believe into the LORD jesus, and thou with all thy house shalt be saved. After which belief they were baptised. This is sufficient to declare the use of our baptism with water, & that we be justified by faith only before it, ere we can repent frutfully, & thus is all your popish trish-trash contained in your other second condition clean wypt away from thatainment of justification. And if ye have any works else in your condition, ye see that they must come bake and follow faith justifying, and not go before it. For when Peter affirmeth (whom ye allege for Paul) that by faith hearts be made pure, act. xv. he showeth it, that by no extern visible ne material signs or creatures as causes essential as by water and such like, men's hearts be purified, but only of God thorough faith, where Chrisostom saith. A sola fide illa assecuti sunt & non operibus vel circumcisione. Of only faith have they obtained those things & not for works or circumcision. Then ye say. By that sacrament of your penance ye believe to recover the state of grace. I perceive that although ye be a lawyer, yet would ye seem to be seen in school matter bringing in dunces and such friars dead dreams now articled in lovayn saying. That the sacraments of the new law justify and confer grace. Sed hoc verum est ubi non interponitur obex. But that is true where there is no let to bar them out from that high privilege. The scripture affirmeth Christ every where to be the door bar, to let them and all other creatures from that privilege to give grace and remission of sins, for else he should have died in vain. But ye must ask your doctor dunce and his fryerly faryne of louvain, by what scriptures he & they prove this dream, and then are ye all set a ground. If your sacrament of penance should recover and give ye grace, and your penance a weary work, so were grace tediously deserved, and then (saith Paul) grace were no grace, Grace is a free gift given us for christis merits only, here ye do with the school men tectely with your (rekover) declare yourself a palliated pelagian. Beware of such doctrine for it is nought, and unkover it again with your rekover. For ye covered this pelagians pot before with your penance as I have justly refuted it. For and if ye were asked by which part of your popish penance, as whether by your confession auriclare, or by your contrition, or your insufficient satisfaction, or whispering absolution, or by any other deed enjoined you ye recover this state of grace, ye should bring us forth but a nakedneste out of your condition. For if ye believe (as ye say ye do) in any of the pope's sacraments or in any part of them thereby to enjoy theffect of Christis passion, having no word of faith ne promise of christ therein, ne word of institution of the same to establish and sustain your faith, ye shall have but a doubtful wave ring forgiveness and as fearful and unquiet a conscience when ye shallbe opposed in the article of death of your ghostly adversaries and assaulted with sin, desperation, the judgement of god, our works may not sustain the iudgement● of god. death and hell, For your faith in your sacrament of penance not sustained of gods promise, will then faint and have a fall. The most holy repentant men prayed god not to enter into judgement with them according to their desertis, for than should noman living be justified in god's sight. And again in the psalm If thou, lord, shouldst look narrowly upon our wykednesses, Lord, who might abide it? Hitherto have I proved constantly by scriptures, Faith iustifing to go before baptism. And now what condition of yours soever cometh after baptism the same must follow justification, but your penance followeth wrapped in clothes as rocked in cradle, when the world was yet. And even them, Adam by faith in that promised seed obtained remission and was justified as were all the holy fathers long before joan bap. was borne, and joan bap. himself, think ye not but that he was justified before christ preached? ye would make a marvelous world & bring us in a new strange doctrine, if there were no remission of sins till christ had preached & suffered. was he not the lombe slain from the beginning? If ye look well of abels oblation, and of the sheep slain to cover adam and eves nakedness with the skynes, ye shall see Christ's remission of sins long before joan preached penance. when joan preached saying, Repent ye and be converted to God for the remission of sins is nigh: and said lo, this is the lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world, and who so believe in him hath life everlasting, did he not preach the gospel annexed as the cause to persuade them to repentance? yes truly & they believed in Christ ere joan baptised them. And thus ye may see upon how feeble a Maxim as ye call it, ye a rather a minime, ye laid your false ground to argewe your popish penance to precede remission. where fore tell us plainly & be short, whether ye will teach men to be ius●ifyed, by faith only, or by works only, or by faith and works both together? If by faith only, so be we agreed, If by works only without faith, so were the heathen infidelis faithls jews justified, and Christ dead in vain, rom. ii●. and all the scripture against you, as Paul proveth it, All men to be sinners, no not one just by the works of the law stopping every man's mouth showing all the worldholden guilty obliged to sin, no flesh by the works of the law to be justified be fore god, and in an hundred places more in the scriptures. Esay. lvii. I shall, saith the lord, disclose thy good works (as thou takest them) and show the that they shall never profit the. ●et. xiii. Also Paul concludeth mightily and manifestly his sermon declaring plainly the law impossible to be fulfilled of us, and so to justify no man, and therefore by only faith man to be justified, saying thus. wherefore we conclude doing you to weet, ye men and brethren, that by this man I say, jesus Christ, the remission of sins is brought unto you, the remission and absolution (I tell you) from all the sins from which it was impossible for you to be absolved by the law of Moses. By this jesus christ I tell you, every man that believeth is justified. And what so ever is not of faith is sin, of faith saith peter purifying the hearts. 〈◊〉. xiiii. ●. xv. wherefore works alone cannot justify. Nether faith & works together as concurrant into the same act of justification may justify. For the works of the law (by which be understanden all the ceremonial, judicial and moral precepts (as Paul proveth it) and all the old holy doctors, especial Austen, called justitia legis, justitia ex lege. li. iiii. de span et littera. and justitia operum. be excluded from that act as contrary to the rightwiseness of faith, as the scripture setteth them in so manifest opposition and contrarity, that as the rightwiseness of the law was the cause of the rejection and fall of the jews out of god's favour, so was the rightwiseness of faith the lifting up of the gentiles into his grace and favour, as yourself (I think unwares) in the expounding of Paul in your predestination, here in your xxvii leaf, have said it against yourself, where ye set them with Paul to be so contrary causes that it is impossible for these two rightwisnesses to be concurrant into this one effect of justification, & justification of faith & works be so contrary that whereas is the one, the other must needs avoid and give place, as Paul in contention comparing them together esteemed his own rightwiseness of the law as dung and dirt in respect of the rightwiseness of faith before God. philip. three rom. ix. & ten and said, that our rightwiseness which cometh of the law was the fall of the jews, because they going about to seek to establish their own rightwiseness, therefore were they not subject to the rightwisens' of god. Again sith your doctrine is, noman to be sewer & certain of his forgiveness, by your text not well understanden, nescit homo an dignus sit odio velamore, And our best works, as Isay saith, be so sinful and spotted, and therefore not to quiet and certify our consciences, and again faith to be the ferme certitude that excludeth all dubitation and uncertainty seeing now that faith and works be of so contrary effects, Works make us uncertain faith c●rtifeth us all dubitation excluded it must nediss be impossible these two inconsistents & repugnants to sich an effect, to may go together into one & the same effect and action of our justification. And by this means of your merits (if ye could) ye would make Christ no hole entire perfect saviour, contrary to your saying before: Now if your condition so full of your good works be in any of the four kind of causes to serve your effect, put it in formally like a philosopher, & I shall by god's word displace it. But I can never think it that ye believe your own doctrine of works to justify, for if ye did sewrely ye would work better works than ye do. For what else do ye then write and strive against the gospoll, yea ye work your brother cain's work, slaying your brothern for the truth, ye preson ye persecute, ye burn, ye banish, ye condemn all good books & professors of gods word, to set up your own antichristen articles, & damnable popish doctrine Then ye say. The scripture requiret of a christian man that he be baptised whereby to be incorporated into christ. it is true. For noman will baptise him till he hear his belif and know him to profess faithfully the Christian religion. For the only outward baptism maketh not a christian be fore God, as ye see it in judas and Simon mago. For a very christian must be first by his regeneration of the spirit of faith incorpored into christ ere he by baptism of water be incorpored into the congregation, for the visible incorporation availeth not (Saith austin) without thinvisible incorporation and sanctification by faith. At last ye bring in this text. Baptizetur unusquisque in remissionem peccatorum, which, as I remember, is the frist scripture I have heard ye allege yet for your false doctrine, ye brought in a colet and a versicle out of your porteus to prove your part besides your participation in deed, And yet in this text ye make so great haste into remissionem peccatorum to be conjoined to baptizetur, that ye leave out .v. words, and even the chief matter, betwixt your first word & the last. For the text is Resipiscite & baptizetur unusquisque vestrum sub nomine jesu Christi in remissionem & etc. Repent ye, & let every one of you be baptised in the name of jesus Christ into the remission of sins. Now ye know that noman willbe baptised and there by profess the name of jesus Christ, but he first believe & know what is jesus christ and his name, which is the anointed saviour, which who so believeth him sichone to be to him, he is justified by that same faith only in Christ jesus to be his saviour. But I will not greatly steke with you for this little overskip. ye speak of a good rule in your book. How the scriptures, albeit they seem contrary, yet is the● but one verity, and all one true word which must be gathered out by the conference of the places noting what goeth before, and what followeth, which your own lesson if ye had there diligently observed, ye had seen this text to have made justly against you For note first what went before preached of Peter in that long sermone and ye shall see that he preached to them both the law shewing them their sins in putting to death the innocent blood christ author of life, & quitinge a murderer, and also the gospel of remission and salvation in jesus Christ as it standeth in every place of that sermon, and plain it is, that these men believed that sermon whilis it was in preaching as many as were predestined unto life. wherefore they were justified first by their faith ere they were baptised. And to confirm this, let us see what followeth, and conserre all together. When Peter had all done his exhortation, the text saith. Qui ergo libenter acceperunt sermonem eius baptizatisunt. And then All that had gladly received his sermon were baptised, gladly to receive his sermon, what else is it, then to believe his sermon which receiving by belief, ye see went before their baptism. Baptism is the seal testimonial to the church of the remission of sins But yet wherefore saith the text into the remission of sins? verily. Baptism is the visible sign of the former regeneration of the spirit by faith, and testification to the congregation that the baptised hath his sins forgiven him, and therefore to certify the Church that he is a member of them and hath received signaclum iustitie fidei, that is the seal and obsignation of the rightwiseness of faith to be incorporated into them, to pray, to hear the word in their society, is it added in remissionem peccatorum. that they now doubt not of remission of his sins. And therefore it followeth immediately Et accesserunt in die illo. And there were comen into that congregation in that day about three thousand soulis, For before they were thus certified of their religion, and faith and remission of their sins, by that extern seal testimoneall of baptism with water, they were not received into the church of the faithful. So that to be baptised into the name of jesus Christ into the remission of sins, be fore the hole congregation, is by baptism, as by the visible sign openly our profession into Christ's religion to be declared and testified to the church, and that we be conseigned with the seal and testimony of the rightwysmaking and remission by faith. A like phrase is used where it is written, joan preached repentance into the remission of sins, he saith not, preached repentance, as for or by the which deed they deserved or should deserve remission, but that thereby openly seen and known, the congregation should be certified as by a farm and infallible testimony, such repentant people to have their forgiveness not for their doing penance as the papist teach, for that false doctrine the church of christ never knew it, but for their faith only in jesus christ, and so the church not to doubt of their faith but to receive them into their society. And this is also one of winchesters works, The bis, to go to god when he is called with the help of the caller. And this is also one of Winchester's works, when god saith, believe, I must believe. Why then went ye not to him when god called you in cambridge ere the cardinal called you to his service? joy. ye were there once so called that ye defended the truth against this papistry which ye now maintain. when I was brought before doctor Shirton dean of the cardinals chapel and before doctor capon his almonor sent to cambridge to inquire for us that professed the gospel and for our books, you standing by them at the cupboard in peter college aule did speak for me & for my books as by name for pseugmata Chrisost upon Gnes. which John Oecolampadius had translated, And gave us both your good word, so that I kept the book stil. And what favourable letters afterward ye wrote to master George Stafforde to give him warning when he was complained of to the cardinal for reading and declaring truly and faithfully the pistle to the Romans & showed him how he should temper his lection in uttering the truth and excuse of himself, etc. I know it, and remember it all. For master George did ever show me your letters. Also I saw M. Chickens letters both sent unto you & yours sent to him again as concerning the cause of the gospel then in growing & favoured of you greatly as I & they perceived by your letters wherein yet I remember and forget not your words. And when I was sent for to the cardinal and accused by the byshope of lincoln langley by sir william Gascoine knight the cardinals treasurer and by the prior of Newnahams' letters, which letters ye had, it was showed me what good words & good counsel ye gave me, and even after it I did, and so escaped the cardinals and the bishops hands. For ye said, I did wisely, if I could keep me out of their hands for that time did M Bylney and artery apere before him, and I was sent for, to keep them company to have helped them to bear faggots or else to burn for god's word or to recant, But I thank god and your good premonition and counsel for that I took another way. But ah lass for pity anon after that yours so gracious a calling of god to his truth in cambridge the cardinal called you from the calling, & the world called you to promotions, and he that called christ into the top of so high an hill & showed him all the pleasures & glory of this wretched world, called you up to him also, saying, that he would give you them all if ye would fall down worship and serve him. And verily, ye have worshipped him highly and done him the most high service in persecuting and writing against gods holy eternal verity which ye once tasted and favoured ye have done satan great pleasures in slaying and burning christis innocent faithful little flock, and yet ye cease not to serve him. But take heed your Master is a false liar and a murderer from the beginning, and though he hath kept promise with you for these xix, years, yet will he in conclusion pay you with a contrary expectation If ye by faith turn not to christ repent and change your life. ye be yet carried away of your worldly fleshly stronger affects for vainglory, And in a certain, slumbering security your sin lurketh, yet hidden to yourself, which cains brother's murder, It sleepeth yet, but where? In foribus, saith the text. In the gates. gene. iiii So that when your sin shallbe awaked at the day which drawth nigh, than not only yourself shall see and feel it a perpetual gnawing worm upon your conscience even in the broad open gates where all men also going in and coming out, shall openly know that it is the very almighty word of god that ye persecute with power pen and mouth. ye say when god calleth you, ye will go, and when he beddeth you believe, ye wilbeleve. Ye know that god calleth you incessantly and biddeth you believe at all times. Io. vi Hebrew xi And therefore make no (whennes) at it. Nether go ye to him with your feet, but by faith and belief in Christ, as Christ, declareth it, but as faith is none of your gifts, so is belief in christ non of winchester's works but the work of god. joan vi ye say, to go to god, and to believe be winchesters works. In deed to go to god otherwise then by faith, may well be one of your own works and not gods work. And to believe indiffinitly or absolutely without any addition of christ, as ye speak nakedly expressing nothing into which your belief should tend, may be well also one of your works, for the devil so believeth as james saith, and the turk believeth with such a belief that there is a god. But to believe in christ, belike is none of your works ye be so loath to express & put to that name to your belief. And when god biddeth you love ye say ye must love. But yet ye do not so, for than should ye never hate. To believe thus & to love ever, as god biddeth you be no light ne easy burdens of the law as ye make them. Then when ye have rehearsed all the works of the law in fulling all gods will ye say thus. The bis. And all these works which seem a great heap of works, be contained in the condition that must be fulfilled for the obtaining th'effect of Christ's passion being remission of sin & a new state of life. And thus have I told you plainly my faith & also the works I mean of before justification & likewise the condition which ye call so confuse & blind. And thus I taught Barnes & otherwise then thus (which is the catholic belief) I thank god, I have not believed, nor dare not. etc. What is all this else then by your works to merit your remission and to be justified by your own merits? joy. which ye said at first ye never went about to prove ne to affirm preach ne teach it, and yet now ye say ye taught Barnes thus, and ye believe it to, If ye should find such shameless contradiction, lies, and repugnaunces in our books, lord how would you triumph over us? But how dare ye be so bold as to set your salvation upon so many hard and impossible conditions having not one word of faith to sustain your belief? Ye have in dead recited an importable heavy heaps of works contained in your condition, as I ever understood it, & yourself have now dclared it, and as I first confuted it, and yet ye say I understood not your articles. But and if ye can fulfil all these conditions thereby to have remission and salvation, as ye say, so may ye be heavy in your heart that Christ hath died for you in vain. gall. two. But let us see some one of these conditions containing gods will, which ye will fulfil (ye say) ere ye obtain your remission of sins. ●he bishops conditions your vocation is to be & bishop a diligent superintendente watcher over Christ's flock to feed them with the pure word of god freely faithfully and truly preached continually to them, to see that none want this ghostly food, ne perish for lack thereof, ye must tell them their sins what and who so ever they be. God's will is, to help, succour, and relieve the poor, hungry, naked, and destitute, either counsel or any other thing, yea although they be your enemies, & that with the same affects of love as Christ had toward us when he died for us, and let his life for his sheep But ye persecute, preson, and burn them for the truth, and willbe cruelly avenged of them that resist your devilish doctrine. And if they were he retiques, whom the mouth of God, their profession, their godly living & their constant patient martyrdom, declare to be the very chosen children of god, yet doth christ command his disciples to permit thevil weeds to grow together with the good corn until the harvest be comen, lest in plucking up so cruelly the evil ye pluck up the good with all. If Paul (saith Austen) had been rooted up an heretic, i. cor. xi. two. timo. two. he had never been so good corn. There must be heresies (saith Paul) among you, that the proved men may be made manifest among you. Also he biddeth the servant of god in your vocation to be no brawler, no chider, ne mocker or rebuker (so far of should ye be from so cruel persecution, & blood shedding but to be pleasant, sweet and gentle to almen, ready to teach the ignorant and sich as be out of the way, suffering the evil with meekness and to instruct them that withstand your doctrine (albeit it were true as it is openly known to yourselves and to almen to be false and erroneous) that yet it would please God at any time to give them repentance to turn to the knowledge of the truth and so to rise by repentance out of the snares of the devil, But you mistrust your own false doctrine so much that ye neither dare dispute with them and us with gods word ne suffer them to speak ne permit our answers to your false books to be seen but condemn and banesh them. But what speak I to you that yet will not know the gospel from heresy? but be so blyndened with blood and mischif, that most blasphemously ye call gods holy word, heresy, and the Pope's antichristn doctrine ye call christis gospel. whom god striketh worthily with this damnable commination saying. woe be to you that say Good is evil, and that as is evil to be Good & cete. If ye were true bishops and Christ is successors, so should ye be sent as the father sent Christ, and as Christ sent his apostles, to preach his word and not your own popish dreams, to feed his flock and not to poysyen them, to gather in the out strayed and not to persecute the true teachers and to hunt them out of the realm or else to burn them for not holding your ungodly antichristian doctrine & not believing your devilish articles, ye should be sent to edify and not to destroy, to plant & not to pluk up by the roots, to water & not to burn: to go preach & not to ride about like princes, having but meat & drink & sufficient living for you and a minister. He bode ye also that in no wise ye should be called lords. And that ye should not tangle yourselves with worldly & seculare businesses. Nether by gods will should ye have so great possessions, but the stewards to distribute them according to the first givers minds, to the poor, to whom ye be bound to restore, that as ye have so long held unjustly from them. These be but a few of your easiest conditions to be fulfilled or ye attain your remission as ye say, and your salvation. Then is there yet among many, one little one, and the last condition, called Non concupisces. Thou shalt have no concupiscens in thee, that is no lust ne desire ne any affect contrary to gods will and his holy spirit: Paul was a right chosen spiritual vessel, and wrestled with this precept all days of his life after the law began to live in him, and himself ded, and yet he confessed it with an out cryeinge that he was overmatched and ●om. seven. all to weak to fulfil it crying to god for help saying. Miser homo ego. etc. Oh wertched man that I am, who shall deliver me out of this body of sin obliged and guilty of death? act. xv: Saint Peter argewith also against your condition, of an inutilite and impossibility thus gathering his argument. The law was not given to justify, neither were our fathers justified by it, and therefore shall not we be iustifted by it. Wherefore then will ye now tempt god? They tempt god that will rather follow their own imaginations than gods word, as would the jews at that counsel, and as now would you go to heaven by another way than god hath constituted to us, as though ye would be seen wiser than god whom by this your pertinate obstinacy, as did the jews ye have provoked to cast his heavy wrath upon you, as did the jews upon themselves, even to lay such a yoke upon the necks of your disciples which neither our fathers nor we (saith peter) were able to bear. Here ye see peter to call the yoke of your conditions impossible to be borne. wherefore he concludeth, thus. we believe, by the grace of our lord jesus christ to be saved as were they. Now if ye list to go another way by other conditions to heaven than went our fathers, truly I tell you, ye be like never to come there. As many, saith Paul as be under the works of the law, which be your conditions, that is, believe to be justified by the doing o● them, are obliged and whelmed under the curse, which is contrary to the blyssinge in the blessed promised seed christ, he proveth it by Moses saying. Cursed is every man that standeth not, ●eut. xxvii. ne continueth in all the precepts written in the book of the law to do them. ye said before often, That Christ is an hole saviour, and hole forgiver, redeemer etc., wholly, totally &c. so that his sufficient sacrifice of his body needeth not any addition or supplement of any manis desertis to the appeasing of gods wrath for sin. And why then here do ye patch his absolute and perfect remission with these so many your patched to conditions for thattainment of your forgiveness making him but a peesed saviour by participation? ye have rehearsed here many of wincchesters works, but ye place them in a wrong place underpropped with a false opinion, either to justify or to be placed before faith justifying. God commuandeth us to be holy and perfect as is himself, but this burden of the law ye will spot it out by your participation, but yet will not this gloze help ye before his judgement seat. Paul therefore to give all the glory to god and non to our works, excludeth all the works commanded in the law, from faith, in the action of our justification telling the Galathians. That if ye be circumcised Christ profiteth you nothing. By circumcision understanding the hole profession and law of the jews, as do we by baptism the hole Christian profession. upon which place. Erasmus a man of noless learning then judgement, writeth in his paraphrase thus. perchance ye so please yourselves, saying that we serve not, ne fall from Christ but with Christ we couple the law, that the expectation of our salvation might be the sewerer. But Christ (I tell you) as he would this whole benefit to be common to almen, so would he it to be thankfully accepted and imputed to faith only. He will not suffer any to be his fellow ne match in this matter. For if ye truly believe your perfect saving health to may be given you of this only Christ, wherefore then pluck ye to you circumcision? If ye mistrust Christ's only remission, so knowledge ye not yet the benefit of christ of which they may not be partakers that mistrust him. For by only faith and not for your merits is it given you. These (I think) be sufficient for the refutation of this declaration of your condition stuffed ●o full of so many meritorious works to deserve your remission contrary to the justification by only faith. yet here ye harp mich of your good works before justification which (as I have told you oft) because they proceed not out of a good root which is faith purifying the heart, they must needs be sin, as Paul and Peter affirm it, and as Austen constantly writeth. What good works did Paul before his justification? he persecuted the christians to death, and yet he kept the law and precepts a●ter the pharisais fashion, which is called the rightwiseness of the law. In which rightwiseness (he saith) if any should have had confidence, I might have had as great a cause to rejoice as any other, I was circumcised the eight day, I was an Israelite in profession of the law as holy a pharisei as the best and so zealous for my rightwiseness of the law, that I persecuted the congregation, and was as touching the rightwiseness and justification which is in the law blameless before all men. But these good deeds which seemed to me then so profitable, as I believed to be saved by them, I now better taught take them for hindrance and damage, for that I now know christ to be my lord and saviour, for whom I esteem them all but for detriment and dung that I might be more profitably joined to christ and be found in him not having my noun good deeds, and rightwiseness of the law, but that rightwiseness which is thorough the faith and belief on christ which is the rightwismaking of god upon faith. phi. iii. The bis. Upon the confidence of the text ye bring a like kaye to cleave a log saying As thou believest so come it to the. Christ spoke these words to Centurio allowing his faith so much, etc. And it is a joy to see how ye will apply this to all men how soever they have conceived their faith whether it be catholic or no. And then the arriane may be saved by his faith and the sabelliane, the Lutheran, the zwinglyane, & joy by their faith, for the text serveth all As thou believest so come it to the. And if any believed that gluttony were no sin, as thou believest so come it to thee: Now truly I marvel that such a bishop as ye would be seen to be should be so far carried away of these your so ungodly and corrupt affects, as so perversely, so falsely, joy. and so ungodly to report me and so sinistrely to interpret my alleging of Christ's words. Ye say I apply them for all men's false belief. If I should have so shamelessly belied you or any man, I had been worthei the most shame and rebukes T●rne to my words in your third article and look whether I apply them not to you thus. If ye believe your sins to be forgiven in Christ's death? thus saying. If ye so believe so be ye justified by your faith only ere any other condition was known or spoken of, or else ye must make christ a liar, which saith, As thou believest so come it to the. Look (reader) and these be not my words in that place alleged as christ spoke them to the true believer centurio, and to every a like believer to the worlds end, believing according to Christ's word and promise. But now I will (because I see you in a false belief) verefy your exposition upon your own self, sith ye have ministered the occasion, believing yourself to be justified by your works, even so come it to you as ye believe, even a false faith to have a false justification, and like salvation to like faith and forgiveness. And as for joy, thorough the grace of god in his saviour Christ, believeth to be forgiven and saved by the only sufficient merits of Christ's passion and his resurrection, and that CHRIST is made of my father my only rightwiseness & rightwismaking, my holiness, my wisdom, my satisfaction apeacing my father's wrath for my sins never to be imputed to me for my faith only in jesus christ, my fulfilling of the law, my free redemption, expectation, life and resurrection and the impletion of all my just desires, my faith and confidence is in him only, and not in any of my deeds, which I acknowledge to be sinful, imperfect, and nought, worthei damnation. And therefore this little faith which god hath given me of his free benign mercy and favour in Christ, for which with all his other gifts I daily give thanks I pray to be increased and not to take his holy spirit ne word of truth at any time fro me, certi●ieth & adsiewerth me without any dubitation of my forgiveness & salvation in and for my only saviour Christ. And as I thus believe according to gods term promise in Christ, even so am I in sewer hope and confidence in him only, to come to me, to whom be glory, praise and thanks for ever. Amen. And as christ understood his saying alleged of the true faith even so do I (and not of any man's false faith, as ye so impudently belie me) understand it, and allege it, and read it with belief in his promise to be fulfilled only of every true faithful. The bis. And it is as fond that ye bring in of jairus, and maketh nothing to the purpose ye bring it for, For albeit the faith of miracles were alone w●th the faith of salvation, which your authors abhorred (because Christ said to jairus believe only) do that prove that christ requireth no nother whereby to attain salvation? Ye would mock out this text by winding in impertinently your faith of miracles. joy. Which faith, neither had jairus, ne christ meant it, but only the true faith in Christ, jairus believing him to be the very Messiah god and man and saviour of the world. And of this faith came jairus to Christ, and Christ speak thereof only, saying only believe and thy daughter shallbe self. For the faith to do miracles is such one as Paul speaketh of to may be without charity and without the faith justifying, as is in the enchanters sorcerers and witches which cannot stand with the faith of salvation as ye dream. Wherefore these words of christ. Only believe make all for the purpose. Only faith iustifienge to obtain our desires of god in Christ, whether it be remission of our sins, our salvation our health, or the reviving of our souls, as it obtained to jairus the reviving of his daughter, a miracle necessary in the beginning of the church to confirm the gospel. And you could find so plain a text of love, as to say. Only love me, and thou shalt be saved, or thy love hath saved thee, then yet might your doctrine have some appearance of truth. Neither because (as ye blaspheme) that christ bode jairus only believe, and so to have his daughter again alive, therefore did he discharge jairus of all good works, never any to be done of him, what perverse papist, would so gather of Christ's sayings? And you likewise infer of only faith justifieth, ergo, say you, let us do no good works. But we with Paul and the scriptures teach constantly and infer, ergo we must do good works. Now how say ye to the argument? For it is impossible for true faith to be idle, but is as Paul saith, effectuously working thorough love although I see how falsely and unlearnedly ye interpret the greek 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with a contrary signification, violently to wrest Paul's words to your sinful sentence. Agens sci● occult● & innata sibi ●●rtute True faith will be declared by her works as the tree by her fruits. And therefore it is shame to you to gather upon christis words to jairus. Only believe, that Christ would have him thereby to do no more good works but to live ungodly in an idle false and feigned dead faith. joy bringeth in another miracle of Christ, when he said, The bis. thy faith hath saved the. And here joy saith is no condition but faith, It is Christ that saith it adding no nother condition than faith. joy. To this I say, that this is not all the scripture. The bis. And he that will truly judge of scripture must join altogether, for that is not spoken in one place is spoken in another and all at last must make one word. That is in some part attributed to faith (as in this miracle) is in another attributed to charity, as when christ saith Dimissa sunt ei peccata multa quia dilexit multum. joy. Can ye join your scriptures no better together for love to justify? truly ye be but a young scholar, or else ye have had but a lewd master. But had ye gone as long to school with that converted penitent woman as ye have done with Simon that glorious phariseye that then bode christ to dinner, she had learned you in the same part of scripture even the same lesson that christ taught her saying. Fides tua te saluam fecit. Luc. seven. Thy faith hath saved the go thy way in peace, ye would have the scriptures joined together, and how say ye now? See ye not in the same place, to the same woman spoken before the same pharisee and for the same remission and saluacian, said unto her of CHRIST Thy faith hath saved thee? And ye had red but .v. lines farther of the same matter & marked the hole conclusion of all, ye should have seen it plainly. Thy faith hath saved the. But belike ye fetched out this versicle, Dimissa sunt ei peccata, of your portews where it standeth alone without the circumstance of the hole gospel. which hath in the correct text. Remittantur peccata eius. etc. which manner of speech, mode and tense, differ much from your versicle, confer the scriptures and look how oft ye find Thy faith hath saved thee, only believe etc. If thou canst believe etc. by faith man is justified, and such like, and again how oft ye find, Thy works have saved thee, for thy works or for thy love thy sins be forgiven the or saved for thy charity, and so for your purpose? For the conciliation therefore of these texts which (as ye have rend one out of your portews, and the t'other alleged of Christ in the gospel) seem to be contrary, one to make for you, and the t'other for me, we must confer the hole context, but first, to go to the breast of the matter, be cause it were to long to rehearse the hole story, ye must note. That the pharisees faith and doctrine was as now is yours, that they should be justified by their works, and therefore christ, when he had rehearsed the works of this womanis love, upon which such false teachers only gaze and wonder as upon only Ioans outward camels cote and leathern girdle and not upon the faith whereof the works of love proceed, he added propter quod dico tibi For the which thing I tell thee (the I say) which art a pharisay and lookest but upon her works. so that the pronoun, hath heir proper vehemency and pith in the demonstration to the pharisei which as he saw but her works & not her faith, so could he not believe it, no more than you, that faith only should justify, but love and her works of the law, and therefore for the other doctrine of only faith to justify, they (as do you) conceived great hatred against christ & all his, fore teaching only faith to justify so short away to heaven as they and you fantazye. And therefore to condemn his, and yours hipocritish hatred and malice which fight so cruelly for love (and have none at all) to justify, to condemn, isaiah, your hatred with that sinner's love, and it to be a testimony against yours selves in your own opinion of your justification full of malice ranker and envy, let it be so said also to you that love not, I will, or let it apere to you her many sins (in your sight and after your opinion) to be forgiven be cause she hath loved mich. So that, her love, Christ made it not to the pharisee the cause of her remission but the probation thereof into his own codempnation judging himself an holy pharisei for biding Christ to dinner and the woman to be a great sinner not worthy to have had comen into his house but must have washed it after her. It is an argument a postetiore, whereby the thing is showed to him that only gazeth upon the extern works and not of faith, and proved of the evident signs following faith as Christ's similitude declareth it by the two debtors. This is the story (to join the scriptures together after your rule) which yourself so loudly observe. Ascertain pharisei bode Christ to dinner (for no great love ye may be sewer) but as you and such like now a days, will have some good simple men at your table, either so soucke out, or to trap them unwares or to make a testing stoke of their godly communication if they speak the truth so circumspectly that ye cannot set hold of them. And a non as they wereset cometh in this notable sinner (marvel the holy pharisei stopped not his nose) standing behind christ with a box of ointment weeping at his feet, washing them with her tears running down by her cheeks, wiping them with her hear, and often kissing them in the anointing. Here was great odds betwixt so holy a pharisaye and so sinful a woman, In so much that he thought, If Christ had been so holy a prophet as he was taken, he should have known who & how great a sinner she was that touched him, and so after the pharisei to have thrust her out of the house. But here Christ comen to call sinners to repentance, and not such holy pharisees, so just in their own conceight, so full of your good conditions of works, that they will be justified by their good works & break open heaven gatis with their holy dediss, having no need of Christis merits by his passion, putteth forth his similitude tectely, comparing the holy pharisei to the famous sinner present teaching him and us that the common miss women believing in Christ and repentant shall go be fore the holy hypocrites bishops and pharisees for all their holy holy works, into the kingdom of heaven, and that he came not to call sich just hypocrites that will be justified by your good conditions & there own good works, but to declare them to be farther of from forgiveness and salvation than the publicans and miss women that in faith acknowledge themselves sinners whom Christ is comen to call to repentance. And here is to be noted that christ by this smilitude of the two debtors maketh the pharisaye in his own answer to condemn himself, and to justify the sinful woman. There were two debtors, saith he, one aught five hundred pence, the t'other l And when neither of them was able to pay their debts where be now your meritis in your condition to deserve remission? where be your satisfactions with your contentations for your sins by partipation? Cum non essent soluendo, saith christ: when they were not able to pay, to satisfy ne to content ne to deserve, than their creditor merciably & freely forgave them both. Here ye must note, where Christ placeth his forgiveness, whether before or after love? He saith when neither of them was able to pay he forgave them, Ergo not for their love were they forgiven. But now speak Simon ye pharisei & condemn yourself and your own false doctrine of works to justify? which of these two shall most love his creditor? Marry quod Simon (I think he to whom is most forgiven. Thou hast judged right. lo, here it is plain that forgiveness goth before love, Ergo for her love was she not forgiven, but because she was forgiven mich, Thinnersion of t●e consequence therefore she loved mich. And here christ inverteth the consequence, turning himself to the woman, but speaking to the pharisai saying. Seest thou this woman? (he saw the woman and her works of love, but not her faith) I am comen into thy house, and thou haste done none of these tokens of love to me (he had given christ a dinner, but neither of faith nor yet of love) Thou hast not given water to my feet, she hath washed them with the tears of her eyes etc. For which thing I tell thee (but the woman he told her another cause) Remittantur peccata eius multa that is, let her great and many sins be forgiven (as thou judgest and believest) because she hath loved mich. And now because we should see the inversion of the consequence and the evident probation to the pharisee more clearly, Chryst clearlier to us and to her expresseth the remission to go before love saying. To whom is little forgiven he less loveth, which importeth. To whom is much forgiven, he most loveth, declaring love and her degrees to follow the degrees of forgiveness proceeding out of the degrees of the rote of faith justifying. But in conclusion to certify the woman whose faith was known to him and to her only, and not to the pharisee that seeth and wondereth only upon his own holy works thereby to be justified and by his own rightwiseness, he telleth her constantly affirming for the peace and tranquillity of her conscience all dubitation and doubt set a part. saying. Thy faith hath saved thee, go thy way in peace, rom. v. as Paul saith we justified by faith have peace. etc. Here is plain by your own rule of the conference of scriptures, that of faith cometh forgiveness, & out of forgiveness cometh love following faith & forgiveness into the just confutation of all that ye have and shall hereaftir bring in for your charity to justify. So that except ye frame the scriptures better and justlier for your part, ye shall (as ye so scornfully and skoffingly tell it me) bring but your crooked keys to cleave your knotty logs. But sith ye will needs strive so fondly and so unlearnedly against the truth, I shall by god's grace to my poor and little talon by gods help defend it And tell if you even here, that if ye were in very deed so well learned in the scriptures as ye covet and glory to be seen in your books and show yourself, and as ye make fools to believe, and knew it in heart, descended unto yourself to see your own ignorance as with your lips and painted pen ye feign yourself to teach in your predestination, ye would never move pen ne open your lips thus arrogantly▪ and so blindly, & so boldly, ye and blasphemousely against the lord and his anointed. For I tell it you constantly that such hipocritishe pharisees as esteem themselves better for their shining unfaithful works, then be the sinners for their only lively faith into christ, do but bid christ and his to dinner to trap them, and own more unwares than they be either able or willing to pay him. As like an unhandsome hatchet to open your locks make ye of, spe saluati sumus. that is. In hope be we saved. To open this lock that ye may see how little it maketh for your purpose, I shall by the joining of that as goth before, and that as followeth, show ye what is hope, and Paul's mind. cap. viii. He had before mightily proved, by faith only man to be absolved from sin, treating sin, the law, faith, and grace, and here he cometh to the work of hope, which is exercised & shineth in patience proved by tribulation, whereof he here maketh large mention setting forth our consolation in the mids of our afflictions by the hope of our salvation to come calling hope the expectation of those things which have been before conceived by faith, Hope that is to weet our salvation and the redemption of our bodies in the resurrection, for in this hope, saith he, we look and abide for our salvation. For we must first know the thing ere we can either wait and hope for it or love it, and be first assiewered by our faith apprehending the promise thereof to have it, ere by expectation we wait for it, wherefore the scripture saith: first we be saved by faith, and then in ferme hope we wait for our salvation, For if the thing waited and looked for by hope were seen present, saith Paul, so were it not by hope looked for, for wherefore should a man hope for the thing which he seeth? For asmuch therefore as we see not the salvation which we hope to have, therefore thorough patience we tarry and hope for it. Hitherto be Paul's words whereby ye see that we be first justified and saved by faith, as the order and process before of his pistle declareth it, ere we tarry and wait for it by hope. Is this a Good argument, By hop, or in hope we abide in a farm expectation for our salvation conceived before by faith, ergo hope saveth? By faith in hope we be saved, that is faith setteth us in a perfect hope of salvation, For the salvation is promised and received first into faith believing and knowing it ere it be waited for by hope. Men use now a days this blasphemous sophistry, when they will impugn such devout sayings as have been used in our church, The bis. when each man exhorteth other to save his own soul, or desireth another to save his neighbours soul, or else moveth his friend by almos, prayer fasting, & good deeds to work the wealth of his soul. All which salvations & workts of salvation, good & devout men understand to be done (as in deed they cannot be done otherwise) by the merits of Christ's passion and gift of god. And yet these beasts that put no difference between a key and an batcher diffame the speech. If you or any of your scholars should come to me with this fond speech to desire me to save his soul, joy. I ought to teach you, and them, according to scriptures, that there is but only one saviour jesus Christ god and man, and so show you the way to him, as testifieth Paul and christ, to go to him by faith into him, and to tell you that I am no saviour of souls, no not of my noun. And as for the deeds which ye so blasphemousely call salvations, and works of salvation thereby men to save each others souls, in so detestable a blasphemy▪ as no godly ears may hear as the scriptures abhor and detest the speech, so ought neither your mouth to have uttered it, ne with pen to have written it, For the scripture knoweth but the only work of our salvation and redemption which only christ jesus once for ever and also perfectly, openly and so plenteously wrought in the mids of the earth, as witness the psal. lxxiii. when he offered up to his father in sacrifice his own blessed innocent body to be crucified on the cross for our sins. And as for prayers almos, fasting which god commandeth, and not you, the scripture calleth them the fruits of our faith and the fruits of the spirit declaring our obedience to god and his precepts testifienge our faith justifying and our love to god and to our neighbours. Ne call us not beasts because we will not use, but rather impugn with god's word those blasphemous speeches of your popish church and devout papists pillars of the room church or rather of the court of rome, we be now god be praised under another head and in another church. Is this a godly understanding of your devout papists, To say that by the merits of Christ's passion, men by their deeds should deserve to save themself. ye blaspheme & diffame the merets of Christ's passion and rob him of his glory with your speech in so saying, and of his merits to. And even these lo, be your romish crafty keys and your own beastly hatchets ye use to deceive the simple christians and to seduce them from their only and sufficient saviour Christ into men's salvations by works of your own invented popish salvation. After your lend diviniti ye fall to fond policy, The bis, asking whether it be more profitable to take forgiveness of sins without a condition or tarry till the condition were fulfilled? which question is so fond conceived that I will answer merely to it, as the prentis of London did answer his master before the wardens, when he asked him, why son. Is not a cold capod good meat? yes quod the prentis if I had had it. Ye both falsely and truncatelye rehearse my question which is thus in my book. joy. whether you laden with sin Christ calling you and promising to ease you, freely forgiving you for your faith I ask you were it more profitable to you by that only condition of faith to set hold of his free forgiveness now offered you by Christ that cannot lie, or to tarry and send him word, ye will first know and fulfil your conditions? And you answer as did the prentes, That his master had spoken of much good meat if a man could have it, As though Christ's words and his promise to be forgiven for our faith, were but vain rehersallis of vain things never offered ne promised ne let before us, as never were the cold moton beef ne capons recherced of that vain lying man the apprentices master. Compare ye Christ's almighty infallible promises to vain menis lies? And match ye Christ's earnest holy words with such a profane light jest? Now I see the god worthily punisheth in you one sin with another even your obstinate arrogant impiety & contempt of god and his word, with blindness, & hath made foolish your wisdom, rom. i. and hath casten you up thorough your own lusts into a forlorn mind, god give ye grace to know nomo conditions & ways into your remission and salvation but only faith in Christis moste precious blood and shortly to repent. And so your maship hath said truly that a man were better, The bis, if any thing could be better than god hath ordained it, to take remission of sin without any condition. For then without any endeavour all should have it. joy. And your lordship should have learned ere this that God hath offered and promised to us all remission upon this only condition that we believe in Christ, and not upon your condition of works, as I have justly by scriptures hitherto proved it. Nether therefore followeth it, That then with out any endeavour almen should have it. Is not faith an hard condition think ye? Shall every man believe in Christ when he lestethe? and have faith when he will, without the sharp assawtis of her contrary enemies as of infidelity desperation sin devil and dubitation? shall every man have it increased at his idle pleasyre, look upon Abraham's faith so sore tempted upon job david, and of his that said, lord I believe but help my unbelief? and look upon the apostles faith tempted upon the seas and in other places. Faith is a rare and mighty gift, given not without the merits and intercession of our saviour Christ. And if ever ye shall feel the battles of sin death hell the devil, the judgement of god and desperation pressing against the spirit of faith in you, and wrestling with your spirit and little faith to drive you in to unbelief and dubitation of forgiveness & desperation, whilis ye behold your sins only in the law in your own conscience and judgement of god, your adversary accusing you, & not in the death of christ with a constant and manly saith in him, but to be brought into this desperate state to see yourself wittingly and willingly of a set malice to have resisted and thrusted the word of salvation from you, when it was so benignly offered you, to have closed up your eyes against the light, to persecute the gospel, to write and speak against it, to impugn the truth and with your damnable doctrine to have seduced so many soulis into hell and with your false enstruccions to bring many into damnable errors, and with your cruel ungodly acts and articles to be the author of so miche innocent bloudshedinge with infinite more accusations against you, ye shall feel them to be to laborious and hard an endeavour, and harder a free choice of you to assent with your faith to break thorough and smit of, and avoid all these heavy accusations? If this shallbe so hard and heavy a battle against the true faith, look never then that your false faith with your free choice and assent to it when ye list, shall stand & sustain and abide it, ye shall find it no small endeavour ne light battle to hold fast your faith in Christ, if ye had it as little as the mustard sede. Many an holy man feeling this stryff & temptation have cried. Lord give me faith, lord increase my faith, Lord strengthen my faith for christis ●ake lord lead me not into this temptation If ye had read the psalms with faith and the story of job and truly understood them, ye should have seen how just menis faith hath been tempted tried and overthrown, and how they be first slain ere they be quikened in spirit, first droven down into hell ere they be reduced into heaven. first to taste of desperation & damnation ere they taste of any strong faith and salvation. This is the soldiers life, and Hercules labour, by faith to feel remission and salvation assiewred us in our soulis and not so easy a pleasant pastime as ye yet dream● in your idle worldly wealthiness an● sinful security. True faith is n● idle assent ne acquisite quality as y● list to have it with your dreamed endeavour, But as the course of the wind is not known so know ye not yet what faith is, as your book is plainly show your ignorance. But here I omit the accusation brought against you for not doing your pastoral office according to godis vocation and like the successor of any one of the apostles, in which office (if any one of your flock be found, to have perished for want of the very food of godis word, purely faithfully and freely not preached of you) his blood shallbe required at your hands. Now say on. We must take gods benefit as it is offered, The bis. and not as we would have it. ye say true. For the benefit of our remission and salvation, joy. is every where offered us in the scripture. For our faith into christ, and not (as ye would have it) for the fulfilling of your conditions shewing yourself therein to be wiser than god and to invent another and better way (as ye believe) to heaven then by Christ, as god hath decreed and ordained, ye would belike set god to school. as ye did take upon you to teach doctor Barnes better learned than you. Ergo by the gift of god I may do well before I am justified. The bis. your handling of this my conclusion declareth plain that ye understand not what ye say. For ye fondly improve a conclusion that might stand and be true. (joy.. yea after your truth) with your ●onde paradox of only faith justifieth, unless in teaching ye will so handle the matter as Barnes did Thaia man is justified before he believeth. For if believe goth before justification, as a cause doth th'effect, then seeing in scripture, belief is called a deed and proceeding from the gift of god must needs be a good deed, it followeth necessarily, ergo I may by god's gift do a good deed before I am justified. A wise argument lo, joy. as though to believe in Christ were the deed of man & not as christ affirmeth it the work of god. joa. vi. saying. This is the work of god that ye believe in him whom he hath sent. ye shall know that by the handling of your conclusion I understand it better than ye wetesaffe, & have justly confuted it in my former book, as every reder may see it, & yourself know it, if arrogance & malice had not blyndned you to not see faith in christ justifying to be the rote & fountain of all good works and what is not of this faith purifying the heart to be sin I have hitherto removed all your conditions as your penance baptism. etc. from the place before justification & have compelled you by scriptures to place them after faith justifying. And now ye be brought to this narrow shift as to seem to prove belief to go before justification which ye say is a good deed ergo. But I shall drive you (as every reader shall see it openly) from this your last shameless shift that all men shall see you to stand naked of all evasions without any more starting holes, First ye must grant that faith into christ is the gift of god: now ye speak of belief. and ye set it confusely tantum as the sophisters say, without any thing into which the action & work of the verb should pass. And if ye will have it stand so absolutely, nothing added, so is it as good a deed as the devil doth the same. For as james saith The devils believe, & the turks and jews believe. But speak you like a christian expressing the very work of faith as it is god's gift, even to believe in christ Jesus to have suffered for your sins. And now see whether this good work be yours, as of you, or gods work in you? It is not yours saith christ, but the work & deed of god. Io. vi. Mat. xv. And again unto Peter he said flesh & blood hath not showed that this thing, that is to believe in me, but my father in heaven. And now let us see weather this work thus to believe in Jesus christ, go before justification or be the self same justification. The scripture saith that who so thus believeth is all ready justified, yea and moreover is passed from death into life. joan. 3. ●. v Now is your juggling with bare belief disclosed. Let us see what shift else can ye make? yet say on a god's name The bis. But I moved Barns of a deed before belief. That is the learning to believe by bearing sermons or reading wherein the grace of god prepareth man's will, as the scripture saith (so truly do ye say when ye call me Pelagiane) I asked Barns of that deed whether it were good or no, and pro●ed it good. If your learning to believe were the deed of your gentile, joy so have I told ye before in what kind of goodness it standeth. But ye may not juggle I say, with your naked and bare belief but add to, in christ to have died for your sins. And then the matter is plain. That this learning is faith & belief itself in christ, taught and given us of god: for the giver of faith giveth their with the learning thereof. Ready never that so oft repeated text. we be all taught of god? And I shall give my law into their minds & writ it in their hearts, and how oft pray ye the lord in the psalms to teach you his ways, and not your own dead dreams. This learning is the knowledge and the same discipline to believe in christ to have suffered for my sins, whereof god saith by his prophet isaiah. In scientia vel cognitione sui iustificabit justus meus multos. liii In the knowledge of him shall my rightwise one christ justify many: of the same knowledge speaketh Jere, ix. wherein he would us only to glory. & the wisdom saith. To know the is the perfect justification, xv which thy rightwiseness and power in justifying is the rote of immortality. And where hath god set forth this most absolute knowledge of himself clerlyer then in the scriptures & in christ his express image? I call ye not pelagian for saying god prepareth man's will, but because ye writ and teach that when god promiseth to us any gift or grace we have free will on our part and assent by fire chose to receive it and to work with it, which is theffectual receiving and the worthiness on our part whereby we be justified And note well (say ye) that there must be on our part a worthiness. etc. these be Pelagians heresies as every man may see in the pelagians pistles, & in Austin'S books against pelagian & celestium. And these be your words in thee, lxviii. leaf of your book on the second side of the leaf in the beginning declaring yourself what an enemy ye be with pelagyane to grace, yea and that in many places of this your most pestilent heretical book as I have & shall show you in the places. As for the matter of justification by faith and works, The bis. was not meant between Barnes and me to be spoken of in this conclusion. And therefore ye strive not with me but with yourself and beat your own shadow. joy No I think ye meant then rather to bring him to the fire. And it is best now for ye to say ye meant not the matter of your justification and so not to defend it any longer against god's word, for ye may be ashamed of your false part. Notwithstanding yet all your declaration in the defence of this matter all your arguments gatherings, and reasons tend into the justification by your condition so full of good works. For ye say here following to prove charity to justify and so to set faith a work, as ye english fides operatur per dilectionem, and that the scripture giveth life to charity to justify, but ye allege not that scripture. It is a great injury that ye do to the verb, operor, which being so long a verb deponent in an active signification now to press it down with a passive: saying fides operatur, faith is set a work. So may ye by like poetry make loquor to signify I am set a work to speak & to ask you. When christ said. Pater meus operatur & ego operor ad hoc usque temporis, My father and I am set a work unto this day, who did set them a work I pray you especially when they created the world of nothing? If charity should set faith a work, so should she be before faith, both in gift and operation, contrary to Paul, saying, love proceedeth out of faith unfeigned. ●. timo. i. But this absurdity and ignorance is groffer then needeth refutation, ye should have learned better of Erasmus in his annotations what the greek signifieth: & than ye should have truly thus englished it. faith which effectuously worketh thorough love, or doth by her natural in graffed power her works by love, Consider which yourself whether this turning upsidown in consideration in the doctrine of justification. xl years past may be verified on you or of me. The bis. I affirm the same justification that was then taught, and you be the turners, and by your own prophecy be noted for antichrist If ye will affirm and stand still in the same joy justification that was taught & known xli year ago, so stand ye still in that pope's false doctrine and in his justification and is not yet abolished out of your creed. The justification by faith only hath standen these five thousand and five hundred years & more. Hebr. xi For by faith Abel offered a plentuouser host to god than Cain, by which faith he deserved testimony that he should be rightwise. And as for the pope's justification by his works began with himself of late, when he justified with his indulgences pardons and pilgrimages & with his merits for building saint Peter's church and for gifts and land given to his sinful seat, yea he was & is so plenteous in justifying for works that he steketh not to justify. and will give clean remission a pena & a culpa. to as many as will lift up weapon against our most noble king and his realm, and against all them that have abolished his holiness. And if ye will stand still to this justification so be ye not the kings friend albeit we see how craftily ye turn & wind it in, us not to be the kings friends which standing on the kings part in peril of our lives with pen and mouth with the scriptures fight against the kings utter foo the pope whiles you with mouth & pen fight sore for the pope stand upon his part in his defence against us & his enemies which have and shallbe the fall of him whom ye sweat so sore to sustain and set up, ye know that his and your justification xl years ago stood up on merits & satisfactions by works upon his penance absolutions and receiving of his invented sacraments and even upon his false faith, & antichristian religion. and yet it standeth upon the same feeble foundation as yourself may see it in this your defence of him and his justification declaring yourself stiffly to stand upon the pope's part, which sith it be so great an offence against your prince, I marvel it is not espied ne looked upon. It should be quickly espied in me or in any other thus openly by books as ye do for the pope's defence to write against the pope's enemies and to succour the pope & his false doctrine in all that ye may to retain him or to bring him the easilier in again at your day so sore longed for. For what else is the pope to be still in england than his faith his doctrine & all his religion there to be maintained still depelier authorized & fermilier rooted then ever it was before? For this justification which ye so strongly defend is the principal foundation stone of the room church which so long as it still remaineth in england (colour it & cover it as ye can) the romish fox is not put out of his hole And he that mainteneth this his chief earth castle & covert, he must needs be the foxes friend. When d. Butte herd friar forest in saying his confiteor for his absolution (for he had once recanted & was comen to ideo pcor & added ideo beatam Mariam et beatissimum ac sanctissimum patrem franciscum orare pro me: By my troth, quoth he, and this friar prove not a false herlet, let me brent for him: and in deed it proved even so, For he fill to his vomit again and was brent with the idol of wales. And if ye will not turn but still affirm the same popish justification that hath been taught these xl years of the pope's disciples and of his apostles, standing still in his faith and defending his religion trust you whoso will, ye come not into my creed. When ye make answer to the books against your unadvised vows and to the crop eared fox, handle them craftilier & write more circumspectly for bewraying yourself. Ye bid me go bake fro my bakwared justification etc. But I tell you, by god's grace, I will never go bake from chrstis rightwysmakinge by faith only in him to the popes and yours antichristian absolution as ye do openly and so declare yourself by your own hand writing. And if I do not, ye say, I must place your studious work of, your learning to believe with the work of baptism. etc. before justification. To this ye be answered oft before, except ye take the studiose work of the learning of your belief, for the spelling and reading that children learn ere they can their credo. which as I have proved it enjoyed their justification before their baptism and learn their belief afterward. But take it for the learning of the belief in jesus Christ to have died for our sins printed in our hearts, so be all thus taught of god blessed, as hath the psal. Blessed is he whom thou teachest O lord, out of thy law. So that god by his spirit, in teaching giveth faith into Chryst, and his scholar in learning receiveth it at the same time, and is belessed in teaching & taught in his blessed justification by the same learning. And as for the baptised with water, God biddeth and teacheth us to prepare them before, both by the law and gospel taught them, by the law to show them their sins and by the gospel to conceive faith into christ for their remission, and thus the faithful regenered first of the spirit, be often asked whether they believe the articles of our faith recited, and if they say credo etc. then must they be baptised and not afore, after your arswarde pope's justification planting your herbs with the roots upward. God justified noman without the gifitis of faith and love, The bis. this ye gaunt. (joy, Yea, and put in hope to) Which when man receiveth, he reciveth by them justification, No sir, not by them, but by faith only he receiveth it, joy saith the scripture. Ye would fain (I perceive) by your by word (By them) tumble them in both together as the causes of justification. But therefore I deny your by word (By them) as by such causes. for only faith hath that office and strength sufficient and is the Cause formal or instrumental by which only man is justified. I will disclose your juggling (By them) in a plain example. Albeit a man hath both eyes ears and nose all together in their places in one head, as be faith hope and love together in one soul, yet it followeth not but is a gross absurdity to say the man seeth by them: or heareth by them, but as he seeth and heareth but by one only sense, so is he justified but by one only gift given him for the same office & cause. For as we give to every sense her distinct & several action, so attribute we to every distinct gift of faith hope and love her proper several operation & distinct action. Faith believeth. hope abideth and waiteth for Charity leaveth. Faithis' properation is to justify in apprehending the promsed remission in christ, hope by expectation waiteth for the salvation conceived known and believed before by faith▪ charity loveth the thing known before by faith, and waited for by hope. Now go to and say on. The bis. When man receiveth faith and love, he receiveth by them justification, wherein I call man's desert and merit. (joy you so call it but not the scripture so calleth it) only the using of the benefits offered of faith and love. joy Lord what a confuse perplex blindness is there in these latet words (wherein I call man's desert and merits in using. etc. wherein ye say) In which wherein mean ye? In faith or in love or the receiving by them justification or in the justification itself? Me think ye would the man to merit in the receiving by them, justification but as no man receiveth by them, but only by faith, justification, so can no man merit by or in such a false receiving. your receipt by them is false and ungodly (as I have proved it) ergo the meriting therein is as false and vain. here would ye build your merits upon a false ground and cleave them to the using of Christ's benefitises, as before but that false foundation with the rest of your popish tymbringe, ye see, I have clearly overthrow and subverted it: I marvel ye have so soon forgotten yourself saying before (belike your book was long in making, or else your memory is nought) in the xii. and xiii. leaves, Sinners be called to grace to do the works of penance to recover the favour of God with remission of their sins, and that Christ is thonly sufficient sacrifice for sin, so perfect so total so absolute as needeth not any addition or supplement of any manis desert and merit & cete. Did not Christ, think ye, in that his so sufficient a sacrifice merit for us and obtained us grace well to use his benefits? Do man merit either in receiving faith or in using his faith and love? ye are an enemy with Pelagiane to Christ's meritis and to grace. who worketh our will and moveth it to receive faith? Paul saith it is god that worketh it in us for his own gracious good wills sake and not for our merits. Have ye not yet red, that as Paul writeth to the Philippians in the second chapter? Deus est is qui agit in vobis & ut velitis & ut efficiatis pro bono animi proposito. That is to say. It is god that worketh in you, both that ye may will and also your will to bring it into effect, ye & that for his own good propose of mind. Paul teacheth us that the free gift of god, & our works and merits be so contrary that the thing, which is of grace may in nowise be said to be of works, or else grace were no grace, rome, ●i, ne works were no works. But you would, by the use of the first grace or gift, deserve a better grace or gift, which saying maketh the second gift but a very second grace, that is no grace at all, for that as it so deserved with your abused use, can be no free gift ne grace. Give we therefore all the glory to god, and shame & confusion to ourselves remembering. two. cor. iii. That we are not apt ne able of ourselves to think any good thought as out of ourselves but all our ability and aptness is of god who be praised and glorified for ever. amen. For what hath any man good that he hath not received? The bis. And therefore the commandments of love with our hole hearts minds. etc. is not so extreme as ye make it to a christian man whose faith speaketh to god boldly, da quod jubes as S, Austen saith▪ give that thou commandest, by reason whereof the yoke of the law impossible to be borne, is in christ easy thorough the gift of god by christ in whom we may do all. I am glad ye have granted the thing for which ye rebuke and revile me so spitefully, joy even the yoke of the law impossible to be borne of man. For now be fallen therewith all your merits both in using & in deserving your justification by the works of the law, & your satisfactions which her cōtēta●iōsly flat in the dust which fall ye well confirm which your first text saying, what hath any man good that he hath not received? here ye bring in both scripture and austin for the destruction of all your own hole doctrine. For if we pray god to give us that he commandeth, so is it not in our power to get it, for noman prayeth for that he hath or can have it when he list. Nether is the commandment of love so easy as ye ween for, ne be ye comen so easily ne so soon into christ to bear the yoke of his law so easily that it be so sweet and his burden so light to you. we must be first sharply whipped and sewery scourged ere we come to this high lesson of perfection. Remember ye not what christ said to the young rich man? If thou wilt be perfect, go sell all thou hast, give it to the poor and come and follow me. And who taketh not his cross & followeth nothin going to his passion when he is called he is not worthei to do him service. Every child he loveth he chastiseth, christ nurtureth up his children in the school of his cross & in the profesion of their baptism practizing them in the perpetual mortification of their flesh to die with him from sin and to bury them ere they rise with him into their neweslate o● holy and innocent living ye speak of. Ye say, the yoke of the law impossible to be borne, is in Chryst easy thorough, the gift of God, but ye express not the gift of faith ne love whereby it is fulfilled and the yoke thereof so easy to be borne as the scripture declareth it, when we by faith only apprehending the promise in Christ, do upon us his rightwiseness his fulfilling for ours rome, iii. viii.x.i. cor. i. gala. iii. Belike ye fancy not faith in her proper place and office, ye have so great mind to love. The continual batil between the flesh & the spirit in every just man is not so easily foughten as ye dream in your pleasant s●ombringe security and wealthiness, as ye may see in the lives and examples of them whom ye banish their native country, persecute at home prison and burn, and in the lives of christ and his apostles. Man called flesh is a perilous sturdy hydra to be overcomen of the spirit, for when one head sin is smitten of, three for one arise more fierce. And when all perchance be somewhat tamed yet will not concupiscence and the love to ourself let the spirit be at rest but make business against it Subtle and shrewd and unsearchable is man's heart. I have given you but a fore taste of this easy coming to Christ to bear your easy yoke so pleasantly. They that have experience of that sharp thorney journey as Isay hedgeth it in, and of that bitter battle, as Paul complained thereof when he felt the law alive & working her offices in him, can tell ye more of this. But wot ye what watte the herimite in cambridge once said, ●atte the eremite. when one said to him, Watte, I marvel that once being so lusty a rutfler and so and jolly a courtier wouldst take this strait religion upon the. tush quod watte. It is easy enough as I use it. And so belike the impossible heavy yoke of the law, and the burden of your pastoral office dilated so wide be light and easy enough as ye use them. The love of god with all your heart mind and soul. etc. and to love your neighbour as yourself be all light and easy enough to you as ye use them. Nether love nor faith can be in man perfect, The bis. and they need both continu all increase. It is truth, joy rom. seven and therefore sith the law is perfectly good just holy and spiritual, it requireth as perfect just and holy works in like degree of perfection out of as perfect faith and love, whereby ye see the law impossible to be fulfilled of man. For which saying lord how fiercely run ye upon me hereafter as though ye would gore me thorough with your byforked horns, and thrust me down quick into helwith a. M curses & excecrations And yet here yourself say the same again & again to, nothing afraid of Hieroms' curse. But he that knoweth our infirmities taketh in good part our imperfection for our saviour Christ's sake, The bis. upon whom our salvation is grounded and neither upon works ne faith with your division. joy It is impossible for our week sinful flesh perfectly to fulfil the law And therefore god sent his son to fulfil it for us, rom. viii. that our faith reaching to us his fulfilling might cover ou● transgression with his rightwisene● so to do christ upon us. gala. three i. cor. i. Or else if y● take it absolutely as ye speak it, s● were every man's imperfection tak● in good worth and after you, every man should be saved. Wherefore to have spoken perfitly and plainely● after the scriptures, ye should hau● added (for our faith in our saviour's christ, god taketh our imperfeccio● in good worth) and thus expressed the condition. for Christ's sake ye say And shall I be so bold to add, to mak● all se were, & not for your merits ne for the meriting to use his benefits, as ye say. Upon whom ye say, our salvation is grounded, and neither upon works ne faith with my division. Then tell us after your devise and division, how salvation in christ is grounded upon faith with your well devised division? Christ speaking to Peter without any division of saith, grounded his church upon plain faith as farm as the rock. And Paul saith: one LORD one faith one baptism one church one christ and one salvation, ye would not (I see) have me to divide faith in christ from your condition of works ne from your first faith of all, but join them together as jerman's lips to be the ground of salvation But Paul telleth you, works and faith to be so contrary unto this effect that they may not both lie together in the foundation, titum. iii. for when the benign love of GOD our saviour toward us was declared, he saved us, not for our good works which we did, but of his mercy did he save us, lo he excluded our good works called opera que sunt in justitia. Yea say also, ne upon faith with my division whereof I deceive the simple people: In good faith, when I speak of faith justifying and faith saving, I divide it not into many members but say only faith in Christ & so make no division thereof. For I speak plainly which christ paul and all the old learned doctors, excluding from the act of instification all the works of the law. And I place works after justification as the fruits of the justified tree declaring her obedience & love to God and to his law. But ye be to busy with your term of division to make such division contention & brawling about words, when ye espy your part is nought ye goaboute to make sectis and division & heresies in Christis church with your profane vain vocables of Division, participation, to merit the use, meriting to be the use, use meriting, one deed to deserve another, to merit grace, learning to come to belief, Faith to come to the knowledge of faith, works to use the gifts, a faith first of all, with many more such monsirose prophame speeches to confound men and to make division heriseiss and sectis among the simple people: Then ye add. saying As though works were at a contention with faith. verily Paul so setteth them asunder in contention and contrariety in the act of justification that he utterly excludeth works from faith, in plain and many words from that act to set faith only to justify as may every man see it, where he setteth justitiam legis contrary and against justitiam fidei, and commonly useth his arguments ex contentioneor a loco contrariorum which is the most evident and strongest kind of argumentation. Also the contrary effectis of faith and works (as I have often out o● paul declared them) show them to be so contrary in the cause of iustifition that they in no wise may be concurrant into that effect. It is soon seen by your manner of argewinge, that ye never knew the station or state of the cause of the pistles to the Romans and gala. Ne understand ye the arguments of them. except of a set malicious purpose (which God forbid) ye so wilfully so openly and not of ignorance impugn the verity, Nether know ye Paul's wont and proper phrases in these words, lex justice, justitia legis, justitia exlege, justitia nostra, and again, justitia dei, justitia ex fide and lex fidei justificatio legis, & justificatio fidei ne the difference of these contraries ye know not. For when ye add. saying like as the works of Moses law were at a contention with faith ye understand not of what works ●f Moses' law Paul speaketh ●hen he so oft mentioneth circumcision and the works of the law excluded from faith, neither know ye what faith is. The bis. And some talk of faith wherewith to apprehended gods mercy, as though faith had ●andes to take and hold fast, and love none ●nd they grant that noman is justified with out charity, but yet faith properly they say apprehendeth the justification whereof how properly they speak, I shall speak heart after at large. (joy, and I shall answer you as largely. We speak of faith truly and reverently according to gods word and not after your own vain imagined material and formal faiths. joy And we say, by faith we set hold of gods merciable free promises in christ and our setting hold is better understanden of the lay man then your apprehension, And we and our readers know as well ●aith to have no material hands, as faith to have no feet when Paul saith, by faith we come to god. And christ biddeth us all that be burdened come to him. If 〈◊〉 li●t of your liberality to give to lou● handis feet and wings to, to sethold & fly to god after faith justifying hath embraced him in Christ and showed him now known by faith to love, I will not again say. The bis. ye cannot tell what conditions. Barn ● I spoke of. joy.. Of what conditions soever ye spoke ye say that he & you agreed of faith to be one, and the first. And here ye declare your second condition to be full of Winchester's good works as yourself call them, again the which good works to justify I wrote and confuted them, and therefore I know of what conditions ye mente as yourself now declare them. I ever affirmed that we be freely justified and freely saved. The bis. And yet god in giving us this freedom for christ, worketh so in order, and so willeth us to observe it, which I call the condition. As for want thereof we shall either not obtain this freedom, or lose our freedom when we have obtained it. Ye ever affirmed that ye be freely justified by your works of penance baptism. joy etc. both here and also in your book of necessary instructions which is a like speech as to have a dinner given me freely for my money If ye can set these two contradictories together in figure, freely and the same for money and freely for works, so are ye he that can blow forth out of the same mouth both hot & cold at once with one breath. But yet here is but a dark and a slyber shift that ye make to set freely and merits together, It is but an obscure riddle ye add, & needeth another oedipus to expone it, ye mean some falsehood in this peses to settle your crooked confuse condition I can not well tell where, ne upon what unstiethey stole, ye say (which I call the condition) my grammar master, when he gave me english to be made in latin and came to the relative (which) he would ever ask me, which what? because of the concord with his antecedent. And here it is necessary I ask you the same, which what call ye the condition? Before ye called the works of the law, with your penance, baptism, and the fulfilling of all gods will and pleasures the condition, & in the, lxix lief following, ye call our worthiness your condition. And here go before your relative (which) many antecedents, o● which, one is a freedom, which I can not tell whether ye take it for the freedom in justification, wherein the spirit of liberty thorough faith into Christ maketh us free from sin, or for yours and pelagians free choice and consent, when grace is offered you, either to receive it or to refuse it, as ye writ in your instruction book and again in this book in your lxviii leaf, which is even plain pelagians herelye: yet be there more antecedents nierer your relative, as the working in order, and the orde itself, & the observing of the working in order: here is a shrewd perplex peses of work, to settle your crooked combrose condition with freely. It is hard here to know which is your condition. Here have ye shaped out shifts enough and digged ye up many (but yet all to narrow and to strait) starting holes The blind slymey snail yet for fear of to hard and hurtful resistance pretentat cornibus viam, gageth the way before with her leithey horns. The freedom ye say is given us freely in christ, ergo we deserve it not by observing the order ye speak of so derkly. Place once your confuse condition upon some certain seat, and if ye be not afraid ne ashamed of your doctrine, call your condition by one or other certain proper name It is a token that ye fear your part as false and nought, that ye dare not speak in plain words plainly and tell us what thing here ye call your condition. ye say, which I call the condition, as for yours so calling, ye be but a man & every man is a liar, neither will I accept your words in this cause for truth, except ye confirm them with scripture or arguments grounded thereof, no man is bound to believe your condition seeing ye dare not openly express it, ne cannot prove it by scriptures to be the cause of your effect. you call it so: but tell us where the scripture so calleth it? ye should have added plainly with Paul, speaking thus. Freely be we justified by grace thorough the redemption by jesus Christ by faith in his blood, ●om. iii. & not as ye falsely say, freely by works of penance. joy depraveth gods preachings so abominably & detestably as even in this place God suffereth him to write so undiscreetly of him as hath not been likely seen or herd. The bis. For not being content to allege Christ's words in a sense of his own imagination he uttereth it thus. christ so said or rather so thought. etc. Here ye rage, joy here ye exaggerate and heap upon me a thousand blasphemies for saying the truth, That christ thought as he said, as he expressed his thought by his word. The pharisees young scholar came to him to know by what dediss doing, as ye teach, he might come to heaven, For they teach men to come thither by their free chose and liberty to do the works of the law, their scholar, not yet knowing his own weakness to do it, ne thimpossibility of the law to his free liberty. For the issue and end of this story is to declare man to have no free liberty of himself to fulfil the law, and also thimpossibility thereof to man, as Christ declareth it, unto this man thus drowned and deceived with the pharisees false doctrine. Christ reciteth certain precepts, which all said the scholar he had kept from his youth, He had kept them after the pharisees fashion and yours concerning the outward justice and letter of the law, but not as christ had exponed it of men's affects to be repressed. When he saw the arrogant boldness of this young phariseis, he thought by another precept to bring him into the knowledge of his own weakness, and how little free liberty he had to do gods commandments and how much free liberty and of your bond choice to evil and to not do as Christ willeth us to do, and again how impossible it is to man to to do that god commandeth him, & hereof commanded him that thing which as it lay not in his free liberty to do it, so was it impossible for him to fulfil it, as christ expressing his own former thought saith. Sooner shall the camel go thorough the needles eye then the rich enter into the kingdom of heaven, adding. That as is impossible to man is possible to god Now how say ye? Did not christ think to command that rich man a thing impossible when he said. If thou wilt be perfect go and sell all thou haste and give it to the poor & come follow me? If ye say he thought it not, so make ye him a dissembler to say one and to think another. What so ever he then commanded him, he thought the same, but he commanded him a thing impossible. Ergo he thought the same, the minor is Christ's words, solve the argument if ye can. Whiles I tell you yet more of Christ's thoughts, when he said, he came not to call just men but sinners to repentance he thought not to call such obstinate arrogant Pharisees that would be justified by their condition so full of good works as is yours. psal. lxvii● Also when god said let their own table be turned into their own snare thought he not to halter you with your own pleasant policy whereby ye think to banyssh and to suppress his gospels ye allege the scriptures for your false doctrine, and ye be haltered and confounded with your own texts. ye make books thinking by the same to extinguish the verity and to confound us, and see ye not thereby the truth the wider to be spread, and the more to know it into your own utter shame and confusion? he told his, that the heathen kings should be tikled with these flattering titles and names of your lordship and your grace, and said to you vos autem non sic, But see that you be not so called. Thought he not thereby to knock down your arrogant pride and to teach you humility? verily he foresaw and thought even then upon your pride and lordships to be exalted above himself. But soon findeth the wolf an occasion to devour the innocent lamb for drinking of the sweet waters which should be common to them both given of god to quench their thirst. Here may every reader see the venom of your kancred heart how greedily ye hunt for occasions to deprave, belly and to slander me causeless, ye say I allege Christ's words in a sense of my noun imagination. It is you and such popish imps as yet defend his antichristian doctrine that wrist so violently the scriptures to your own damnable devices. For of all sich scriptures Si vis ad vitam ingredi. etc. Si vis perfectus esse. etc. and forgive and ye shallbe forgiven, ye gather with pelagian your free choice and liberty to do good, and to keep the commandments, and to set up your popish merits and justification of works all damnable and injurious to Christ's blood as very enemies to grace and to god. when christ proveth by such texts man to have no free liberty to do good and his commandments to be impossible to man, and that no man can therefore merit his remission ne salvation. And even your own words fight against your own expositions. God commandeth us things impossible to show us to ourselves neither to have free libettie to do good ne to be able to merit our salvation, that we should not glory in our dedis ne rejoice in our worthiness but to render all glory merits and dignity to him, and that we aknowleginge our own infirmity and impossibility should seek strength and power at him, and that we should by faith embrace his rightwiseness, his holiness, his merits, and satisfactions, and his fulfilling of the law, for our own, thus to give all the glory and thanks to him for our remission, redemption & salvation thorough jesus christ. These sayings. forgive and ye shallbe forgiven, and such like contain in them both a precept and also a promise (if ye godly expended them) which promise assoon as faith a●prehendeth she addresseth herself effectuosly by love to the fulfilling of the precept, in forgiving her neighbour For there is noman that forgiveth truly unless he believe first in christ is promise to have forgiveness him self. And therefore, when christ saith, forgive & ye shallbe forgiven, faith first setteth hold upon hirowne promised forgiveness in the later sentence and so of faith proceedeth to do the precept. yourself heraftir can place theffect before the cause & yet tell us the cause to go before theffect, And can ye not as well see and admit the same order in Christ's word is as in your own examples? So that the man is not forgiven because he forgiveth as ye arsewardly imagen, but because he believeth God to forgive him therefore is the believer both forgiven himself & of that faith he forgiveth his brother. Ye should therefore according to your own example & doctrine hereaftir, of him that followeth you to be your servant, have considered & learned, that your forgiveness of your neighbour, is the effect declaring you to be forgiven of god, & the forgiveness whereby god forgiveth you to be the cause of your forgiveness of your neighbour, & thus the effect to be placed before the cause. Sich inversions of consequences in arguing fro the effect to the cause called arguments a posteriore, the comen speech & the scripture o●ten useth As to say. the flowers be sprongen forth & spread. & the trees wax green, ergo it is summer. And yet is summer the cause of this effect & th'effect placed before the cause. And christ told the phariseye. Her sins be forgiven her because she loveth mich. But in declaring the very cause with th'effect he expresseth her forgiveness of god to be the cause of her love, saying. To whom is mich forgiven they be bound mich to love: & even thus declareth it christ in his parable. mat. ● teaching us god first to forgive us the greater detts to thintent that we seeing him self merciful in forgiving us, should be moved the more gladly to forgive our brethren the less debts. So that his former forgiveness of us is the cause moving us to forgive other, saying. Behoveth it not the therefore to have pite & compassion of thy fellow servant, seeing that I am so ready to forgive y●? yea I had forgiven the before, as thou know'st it, & therefore thou oughtest likewise to have forgiven him, where it is plain, our forgiveness of god to be the cause which should move & excite us gladly likewise to forgive our neighbour. & that the forgiveness of our neighbour is placed first as th'effect before the cause as it is there & in other placs inferred saying. forgive & it shallbe forgiven you. your own example of your servant following you hereaftir brought in of you confoundeth yourself, if malice had not so blindned you, & for your malice god so worthily to have hardened your heart against the truth, that in reding his word ye neither understand it truly ne with fear & reverence embrace it, but abuse it into your own damnation & into the destruction of many other souls. If one should come to you seeking your service, and you covenant with him saying, Follow or wait upon me and thou shalt have xl s. yearly. Is not this common covenant consented there upon the cause why he serveth you? And yet is theffect here in your own words placed before the cause of his service for except the man had believed your promise and trusted to your words he would never have done ye service. And even so in this and like speeches. forgive and thou shalt be forgiven, we first by faith in gods promise apprehend our own promised forgiveness of god which causeth us to forgive our brothern. For except ye observe this order ye shall find it but a faint feigned forgiveness. I will not say against it but that ye may be a good lawyer and a ciceroniane rethrition bold & eloquent in doggish eloquence to persuade blasphemies and lies by crafty colours to turn white into black and to make fools believe the crow is white lest ye lose your estimation But as for any good & godly learning or true understanding of the holy scriptures I know there is but little or none in all your babbling books. Had ye counselled bu● with. S. Austen upon such texts Si vis ad vitam ingredi. Si. vis perfectus esse. etc. he would have learned you a truer lesson. or if ye had learned the promises & precepts contained in such speeches and considered the proper cause with her effect ye should have seen the unbelief of the young scholar of the pharisees in the promised perfection offered him of Christ to have been the cause of his departure and to not fulfil the precept of selling his good and to give it to the poor, as is the belief of the entry into life promised in these words (If thou wilt enter into life) the cause why man endeavoureth him to the keeping of the commandments. And yet is it god that worketh both thought will and endeavour in us to keep them, which when god commandeth us to ask of him to keep his preceptis, ye see it not to be in our power to fulfil them, wherefore ye be to haasty so fiercely to run upon me with so many excecrations and fulminations out of hieroms mouth, for saying the truth with christ and Paul that is The law to be impossible to man, which yourself have hereto before said and affirmed the same, speaking of man's imperfection and imfirmities, saying that the yok of the law is impossible to be borne of man. Read Austen for this matter. and confer them together with judgement as he would have all menis writings to be judged & tried by the scriptures, lib. two. de pre●atorum merits. ●a. two. &. iii, & the scriptures to be red with faith. epist. lxxxix. cc.xcu.li. de. corrept & gratia in psal. lxx. & cxviii & concio. xxvii. Ambro. ca i de lac. & vita bea. ca vi. Aug. ad valenti. God commandeth things impossible to us, that we might know what w● ought of him to aksken. As ye exponed my sayings, so have ye exponed scripture, The bis, only as ye would have it, or as ye guess at it, without any consideration how one exposition agrethe with another, ye be like yourself in perversity thoroughly. etc. My confutation & your declaration be joined together in one book let the learned Christian readers judge both our expositions, and in this book to, joy if ye dare permit it to be seen. But in this piece ye triumph over me again, ere ye have gotten the victory as though ye had me now under your feet. But yet I stand, & have you in my danger to declare your ignorant blindness & blind ignorance, how unlearnedly, impertinently and perversely ye allege the scriptures for your popish doctrine. as every reader shall see here after. When I had proved to barns that it was unadvisedly said of him that man might not do well by God's grace before justification, The bis I did first inprove that fond saying whereby he confounded the order of justification. And when I had declared that (as I have before touched) than I told him how it followed also, that by the gift of god, man might do good towards thattainment of justification. How truly ye report of doctor Barnes I know not. joy But and if ye had no nother probation then of the good work of your gentle idolatar going to hear a sermon, it was but fond and feeble as I have justly before confuted it. And here again I say That as god giveth his son to shine both upon the faithful and infideles, and giveth them both form, beauty and riches, so giveth he them of his common and general influence and grace. as well to the turks as to the Christians, victories, fair wether, corn, cattles, to move, to live, yea and to keep their promises faithfully in contracts and confederations and live in a civil moral justice, as men say that know them, more justly and faithfullyer than some baptised with water. They be merciful in helping each other with almose, they fast. etc. But before god in any good work of faith in Chryst, they have not to rejoice of, which good works christian men ought to treat teach and prove their parts, and not as ye do of the turks & jews faithless good works before men only. How prove ye that the turk may do well to thattainment of justification when he never intendeth to known believe in Christ to be God and man, his saviour, ne to be justified by his passion? but only by the good works of Mahumet's law as ye by the good works of the pope's law. by which your good dediss neither they ne you shall ever be justified Where unto hearken a little here how wisely ye speak in your justification by only faith. This I ask, who believeth? The bis. god or man? I think ye will say man by gods gift. and so god giveth the gift of faith, & man receiveth it. Do not here concur in two works god and man? which lie both in one bed, & be covered with one koverled to thacomplesshment of justification. And is god so jealous then that he will not have it spoken when he worketh, and man also worketh with him by his gift & help? Be not we called cooperatores dei in scripture ● etc. But hearken you again and behold here your juggling casts. joy ye ask who believeth, god or man? If ye had asked who believeth his remission of his sins in christ. I would answer you, the justified man. or else I know the devil believeth and the turk to, so absolutely as ye speak it, but to speak of the true belief into christ, who so believeth he is already in the same work of belief justified. And thus ye come to late to prove this man to do any good work before he be justified or any concurrant work with god to the same effect. For the very self same deed of belief into christ justifying him, is his justification wrought of god in the believer in christ, & not of the believer. I see well enough your fallacy in juggling with a truncate belief, omitting christ into whom the action tendeth in the justification, & all to form your inform faith and material belief. I see also how sleithely ye slip out from the invisible work of justification into the outward office of men's preaching called in that ministration cooperatores dei, the instruments of god in planting and watering, i, cor. iii, god giving thincrease, as Paul declareth them. Can ye convey no cleanlier god and man into one bed? I told ye before ye should find the coverled to scant (as isaiah saith) to cover them both in this one action of justification. For to believe in christ, is not the work of man, the work● of god in man & not of man but of god in man, as christ telleth you. And if ye ask who receiveth faith into the man's heart so to believe in christ? I answer with Paul, non ego, sed gratia dei in me, not I but the spirit & grace of god in me, and not the man by yours and pelagians free choce, as ye & he teacheth like false heretics & enemies to grace For the giver of faith & grace, taketh away first the stonney heart fro man's flesh ere he giveth him a new soft heart and put into him a new spirit. Ezec. thirty. It is god that worketh in us both the will to receive it and to believe therewith in effect for his own good wills sake and not for your merits by your free choice as ye with pelagian teach men in your book of instructions a book full of repugnances of false and popish doctrine, Philip. two. two. cor. iii, as it is to see to every learned reader, a book belike penned of you, for it savoureth every where of your damnable doctrine. And therefore fearing lest it should have been written against, you among yourselves have armed it with the kings title and authorized it with his name, being afraid to justify your own books. And ever there were any traitorous touch committed against his majesty, that was one, and the most ingratitude so unthankfully to abuse the gentle noble clearness & the most benign ientlenes of so gracious a prince to you which hath promoted you out of the dunghill to sit fellow-like with lords and dukes. And is this the thank and honour and humble service ye render therefore to his majesty, to father a false book upon his highness into the denigration of his clear fame making his grace to sustain the infamies and slanders of your damnable popish book? It is verily no small offence, subjects so to abuse the goodness of their prince, if it were well looked upon. The bishops and pharisees in Christ's time, when they could not by their own learning suppress christ and his doctrine, than they studied to extinguish him & his word with the secular authority and power abusing the simplicity of the magistrates. I have therefore justly by scriptures confuted your book (yours I call it and not the kings book so unworthy his name or title) which confutation would god his majesty might read once printed and judge it by the scriptures to know you in fell and flesh. Take heed. ye shall bewray yourselves at last and mash yourselves in your own knit nets. But return we. ye say that man on his part by his free choice and assent receiveth the grace of god offered him. And here ye harp again secretly upon the same string, but dare not make it to sown overloud. And then ye break out boldly as though I had granted and not espied your juggling with your naked shaples belief, and ye ask it stoutly as though your premises could not be denied. Do not here concur in two works god and man which lie both in one bed? & covered with one coverled to thacomplishment of justification? I answer, here is both god & man, & here be iii works, one is the receiving of faith which is the work of god in man (as I have proved it before (for no man cometh to christ but his father draw him. The second work is the belief into jesus christ forgiving the man his sins, philip. i & this is also the work of god. Io. vi. the, iii is the remission of his sins or justification, which is also the only work of god. Now is not your bed to short and your coverletts to scant in this act of justification, to cover & contain your man's concurrant work before his justification? Show us here any one work of man as his own & not given him of god to do it? For he is here but as the iron or matter under the smiths hands to be made the saw wherewith god intendeth to work his works and as the clay in the potter's hands. Then ye triumph which a true text, but falsely applied, saying. Be not we cooperatores dei? that is workers which god? yis verily as instruments in the extern ministration of preaching his word as Paul allegeth it: i cor iii but not in the hid invisible work of our justification before god, as ye falsely allege it. There Paul speaketh of another manner work, which ye would confound with the work of justification. God maketh us to work with him. And yet even that work of preaching do he not attribute to themselves but to god only, esteeming themselves of no value but as brittle vessels wherein god putteth his treasure & as instruments wherewith he worketh as the sawer with his saw, and addeth juxta gratiam dei according to the gift of god given us to work with him. A like key to cleave your log bring ye in of gedion's sword, which god used with Gedion as visible instruments to get the victory of the Madianites, As justly might ye have brought in this text. in circuitu impij ambulant Bishops, friars, and monks, walk round about in their cloisters and galleries for your purpose which ye go so far about in compass to prove that man worketh with god into the accomplishment of his justification. Thus ye snak & rend out texts without any respect of the circumstance of the matter, how impertinently soever they be to the thing ye would prove, ye pass not thereof, so ye may at all adventures cast them at your adversaries head, as do the drunkards in their fury, what so ever come next to hand, be it pot platter, or candle stick, it flieth at his head. Because they called upon Gedeon then a live present in battle animating him to fight for them, therefore your a like reason is, we must now likewise call upon Gedeon and his sword, & upon saint George, and such like saints dead which neither hear ne know us. The lord asketh us sharply saying with a threatening. Isai, 6●. ● Pro vivis ad mortuos? Will ye seek help at the dead for men living? Do not every nation seek it at their own gods? If we therefore be christians let us fetch counsel & seek help at our only living god one alone for us all sufficient, & neither at Gedion ne at Georg, The faithful. vicerunr regna per fidem. They had the victories upon kingdoms thorough faith. what and if gedion's sword was the word of god promising him the victory gedion at last with faith apprehending it? ephe vi Paul's interpretation maketh all for it. Belike as ye imagine of george to be called upon in battle, so ye believe, that as he was valeant (if there were any sich) in battle, so helpeth he now likewise fight and flourishing in heaven or in the air, so that what he once did alive, as to kill a dragon, the same he now dead is yet ready to do again. Hitherto tendeth all your fond & vain babbling in hole two leaves following crying, ●he bis. the sword of god & of gedion. & dno & gedioni After which sort knowing that god useth the members of his church in the ministry of his works with mutual prayer one to help another, we say. (joy.. but the scripture never said it) God and our lady help us wherein god giveth the help, & our lady prayeth for it joy.. what then doth christ if he be at home.? which is an help to obtain helꝑ. (joy. And who shall obtain us her help) And so in the honour of God and our lady. (Ioy. Soli deo honour & gloria.) God giveth not his glory from him, (joy, No, he parteth it between himself and our lady. so) Here is a goodly dead dream out of the pope's portews, joy and not one word of scripture for it, but plain against it. say not the scriptures that there is but only one mediator betwixt God and man with his prayer jesus christ, gala. iii i timo two and that the help of God is omnipotent and omnisufficient? we be here all members of Christ's church in the ministry of his works with mutual teaching exhorting helping and praying one forother, ergo shall menis works help God to justify or shall the departed into heaven do the same ministry there for us which they did here living? hitherto tendeth your deduction out of your principal purpose. Is it not the diminishing of gods honour into the derogation of his glory to attribute the proper help and his proper essential works reserved to his godhead in Christ's only humanity deserved and father them upon, or impart them to man or woman? As Gedion dirst not say, My sword, but the sword of the lord got the victory, so never bode they Godion fight for them after he was dead. Nether doth god's word bid us pray to any saint departed, albeit being alive we help each other with mutual prayers, what we do here for other, it followeth not, the same to be done of us in heaven, or else let Paul preach in heaven & make tents. etc. If Paul being in heaven in spirit, had been, or is, as profitable with his preaching or prayers to the congregation as he was here in body & soul, he would never have written these words to the Phillipians thus saying. As for myself to be in heaven with Christ it is much better and far more profitable: but to tarry here still in my flesh, I were more necessary and profitable for you. Where ye see, Saints to be more necessary & profitable to their mutal members when they & we be here together, them when they be taken from us into heaven. But this place of scripture, you ne your papistis, ever espied ne understood it belike, ne many othermoo like places against you. what else is meant by jacobs' vision beholding th'angels descending and ascending by the ladder, Gen. xxvii the lord of powers only sitting upon the top thereof, than the only Christis intercession and merits by the ministration even of th'angels to be brought unto us? And albeit abrahams' servant was committed to the custody of the angel, yet did he not pray to him in the journey, but unto the lord to prosper it and to show his mercy to Abraham. Gene. xxiii So that God therefore maketh not his angels (& then much less the soulis departed) the ministers of his power and goodness, ne to be prayed to, so to divide (as ye dream) any of his glory to them. Nether promiseth he to us his help by the service of soulis or spirits to th'intent we should divide our prayers faith and confidence betwxt god and them. For it is platos plain philosophy and the pope's heresy to go and seek to God by angels and spirits of the dead (and not by christ only) them therefore to be worshipped because they may get us help with God. ●n epi, ●. crabill. All the promises of God are in Christ, etiam and amen, i●. cor. i that is to say adsewerdly confirmed & fulfilled perfectly, wherefore there be none confirmed in marry peter George or nicolas nor in gedions sword by their intercession & prayers us to be helpen, and therefore we cannot ask help of them in any faith or belief, and if we ask it not in faith of them, never let us hope to obtain our petitions at them. Show me one word of faith to pray to saints? These four things where in consists the glory of God we ought only to attribute them holly unto him and not to impart ne divide them to any creature. that is to weet, iiii, things given to god only adoration, faithful confidence, invocation, and thanks giving. These be appropried to god only as the scripture testifieth everywhere. And it is the next sin against the holy ghost to attribute the only help of God to any mortal man or creature & so to divide his own glory or any part there of from him. Ye have neither scripture ne example in all the bible for your praying to saints, but the plain contrary. And ye be commanded to teach nonother doctrine than ye can give a reckoning thereof out of the scriptures. Ye bring in to confirm the menis works must be concurrant with gods works in justification (for hereof yssewth all your deduction) this childish fainge Christ's cross me speed & saint Nicolas. And God and our lady help. God and S. George help. who laugheth not at these fond probations? lord, what shameless shifts be they compelled to seek, and how blind be they, that have hardened their hearts against the verity? Be these your scriptures to prove your part? It is as I ever said. Selden be these popish lawyers good & learned divyns. Had the bishop of rome no better learned captains to defend his false religion it were soon fallen. But your puffed up authority and arrogant boldness armed with cruelty be mightier in mischief then your learning, ye may now lie as ye list and write what ye will, when ye have banished and condemned all men's books and answers against you. where find ye in scripture that, S. nicolas prayeth for us, or that. S. george or Gedion fighteth for us? Be it in case George were the patron of france, and the french men should call upon him as effectuousely as the englishmen in battle, should not saint George fight against himself? And god helpeth by giving of help, The bis and Nicolas by praienge for help. (joy.. And what then doth our only intercessor christ for all sufficient?) In confession whereof we set forth the honour of god. (joy. yea ye steel it from him like thieves and murderers.) Even as god would have it magnified. (joy. unde versus.) Yea even as ye would have it honoured and magnified after your own wicked invention of which devilish devisers of gods worship and glory after their own beastly wits, Paul thus saith. joy rom. i when they had known that there was god, yet did they not worship him as god, but showed their own vain curiosity and arrogancy, and curious vanity in their own reasoning for gods glorious honour, In so much that they obscured their own blind ignorant hearts, and where they thought themselves to have done most wisely for god's honour and glory, there they proved themselves stark fools and fill to woe, shipinge and calling upon the creatures in stead of God the creator of all. Agene, behold how grievously Christ striketh you with the authority of Isay for honouring God with menis precepts and traditions? mat. xv. God told Abraham that his name was (el, shaida) that is one alone for all sufficient and almighty And if ye believe him not to be such one to help you, then call to nicolas, run to George mary. etc. & say, the more, the better, as do your blind disciples. And if ye believe that Nicolas his help must help God to help you, so make ye God no God, or if ye think that Nicolas his ears be not stopped ne kut of (as ye list to lie & jest of us) or not to be a sleep. well, kry on hard upon him as did Baal's priests upon their God till Nicolas answer you. Call likewise upon George, in battle, whiles yet God winketh at your false and superstitious invocations, at last for your hardnecked idolatry, and for your persecuting and shedding of innocent blood, worthily to turn the edges of your sathanik swerdis and there popish points against yourselves most unhappily to fight for your false God. God never bode us go and call upon any other then on himself only in christ and for his sake. And if ye believe not him, get ye to some other helpers & saviours by participation and make them your false gods by adoration and invocation. For unto whom soever ye go and call upon in your anxt and need believing the same to help you, whether it be niclas jan or George, the same is your god in whom ye believe, For how can ye call upon him (saith Paul) in rom. x whom you believe not? And ye be married to that god in a false saith hope and love committing with him as the prophets testify adulterous idolatry. Beware god is a jealous god and looketh to have our hole faith confidence, hope and love, with all our hole hearts. And how standeth these together, timo, i. only to god be honour glory and praise, and yet ye give his honour and divide it betwixt him and marry and Nicklas. etc. by participation? He is content that parents and magistrates have their dew civil honour and reverence, but gods own glory honour and worship in spirit and verity by invocation of faith, I pray ye let himself only enjoy it, totally entirely absolutely, and holy as ye term it and rob him not of it ye may aswell by participation imparts his godhead and his divine power from him as his glory and honour which be his inseparable essencials. Your doctrine is blasphemose to gods holy name and glory. Rpent ye. And to confirm this damnable doctrine ye pervert christis words. saying If any man honour me, my father shall honour him in heaven where the text is. Si. quis mihi ministrat, pater meus cohonestabit eum. that is. Whoso ministereth unto me (meaning in his vocation by preaching or governing truly in his office) my father shall beutifye him in glory, even the same that Paul saith If we here suffer with christ in his true service any ignominy, we shallbe glorified with him in heaven. For he setteth ignominy against glory. But your words sown naughtily, as to say, whoso honoureth me (where honour is taken for gods honour) and then continently to say My father shall honour him, as though ye would have honour in both places to be taken a like, making God to honour his creature with his divine honour. Ye must recite the scriptures as they stand and alter not Christ's words for your wicked purpose lest, as Solomon saith, ye be reproved as a liar. God spendeth not his glory and honour ne hath the less, The bis. Ioy● No but you asmiche as in you lieth would rob him of them, and ye commit that excecrable sacrilege that Paul speaketh of Roma. two. For as in his adoration, confidence, faith, invocation and in thanks giving consisteth his glory and honour, so be they not divisible from him. But because (as ye say) GOD is rich omnisufficiente and aboundante in glory, yet therefore ought ye not to steal any from him, as say thieves. It is no sin to rob the rich that have enough. The bis. But god so spreadeth his honour abroad and is thereby magnified among us. joy He spreadeth it not abroad either to be stolen or divided from him as ye would, and teach by your participation, but to be acknowledged of us and thanked for it, which his glory and honour if ye usurp or divide them to any other so dishonour ye and blaspheme god, and ye honour the devil. For god wilbebe honoured and magnified after his own prescript words and not after your vain imaginations as they lead you though they appear in your eyes never so glorious. deuter. xii. There is no creature in heaven ne upon earth, except it be antichrist, but abhorreth & putteth it from him when it is offered him. But ye will eat still of the tree of knowledge of good & evil at the persuasion of the serpent, decerning and devising to God what glory and honour ye list, and teach it to be good without his word. ye say we cannot abide that christ suffered for our example. yisse better than you, that never followed his ' example, and yet will be called his successors. The bis. Also ye love christ but ye divide him fro● his servants his saints departed vnde● a wrong pretence of the preservation o● his holy honour. joy Christ will have his hole honour reserved to himself only, as Paul and Isay say. Nether will his saints departed desire it but refuse it offered them, as did the apostles and angels utterly thrust it from them, as did the angel in the apo. xxii. and not christ in the form of an angel: Christ himself ye call life, The bis, but ye call his servants the saints departed dead men and for spite cut of their ears. They be no living men but living spirits and dead bodies, joy neither can men cut of their ears, seeing the spirits have neither ears ne bodies ne heads, but as touching that bodily part: be resolved into dust▪ They be idle idols ears, that have ears and hear not, eyes and cannot see, whose ears ye say men cut of, and by your own consent their stockish dead bodies cast into the fire. because ye commit idolatry before them. Thus divide ye christ and make strife between his gifts also which your only faith to put charity out of office in justification. The bis Only faith to justify maketh no strife with charity which is patient and envieth not faith to do her own proper office as ye of envy uncharitably contend and strive so falsely: joy But it is your popish doctrine that maketh the strife & schism dividing yourselves from all christian faithful and true religion. For as the land is divided in situation from all other, so would ye form it to yourselves a sundry faith and religion from all other nations. Christ never changed the heude of any church either in the jews or gentiles, but he also with the same changed the body even the church, or else it were but a monstrose thing an antichristian church to have a christian head and a Christian head to have Antichristen ministers, as ye have studied long craftily to bring it to pass in england till your time & day becomen, when ye may again join your abolished head to his own reserved body so craftily kept of you for the same end. For ye know it full well, what must nediss follow so long as the pope's church stand, and his body liveth among you. And even here if ye list, take a taste of winchesters wily wit to bring home again his, in name and title only with him and his holy abolished father. To abolish a thing is so to skrape and blot it out into nought that neither s●nt ne savour ne any vestigie steep or figne remain thereof. To abolish But whether the pope's faith & religion, with his rites ceremonies & traditions be so abolished, I report me to all the realm. I bode ye in my former book seek out the text where charity justifieth, but yet have ye not found it. And therefore ye now fall to your own fond wit with this fō● sophistical argument. God justifieth: god is charity, The bis. ergo charity, justifieth. I deny your argument, joy for that your terms in the premises and in the conclusion be not of one & like signification as ye well know. Then ye bid me read a certain text of Paul again & do as plato was wont to do, saying, do it not touch me? I have red it again & here I writ it to you again to see whether ye can yet see & feel whether it toucheth you, & let all indifferent readers be judges whether it it ye not & set ye not out in your own colours & it were apelles him self had painted you saying. he that willbe justified by works & not by only faith in jesus christ, is in the way of perdition even in a corrupt mind carried away of contrary lusts and affections, ever learning & never comen to the true knowledge. For sich deceivers shall go forth worse and worse till their wickedness be ripe leading other into errors, theirselves being blind and far out of the way, averted unto vain speech and false doctrine willing to be seen Doctors and teachers and yet understand they not what they say ne of what thing they make their articles acts and instructions. peradventure ye will say ye make them not) but I dare say ye give evil counsel both to the making and also to the cruel execution upon them that will rather obey god then men's traditions. To the atteinment of justification is required faith and charity. The bis. joy.. This saying I confuted in my former book thus. Faith only saith christ and Paul, is required to thatinment of justification which is of God. Nether is charity divided from faith but from the efficacy effect & office to justify, for to this effect and office is faith only sufficient effectuously: As from fire or fro the son we exclude not heat ne brightness, but yet hath her heat and brightness their sundry effects and offices, for the heat warmeth & which her brightness she shineth and giveth lihgt Here may every reader see how falsely ye report my words and how maliciously ye report of me feigning and forming your own false foundation thus. ye say that charity is joined with faith and ye take faith and charity for ii sisters, but ye make faith the elder sister. The bis. Hitherto ye say truth of me, joy. for in the natural order of their proper operations faith worketh her action in knowledge of god and justification before charity worketh hers in loving god. &c: And ye affirm that in justification, charity, joy that ye call the younger sister is not excluded. These be your words wherein ye say the same. Isay. No ye belie me deadly, The bis. they be not my words as every reader may see it. But they be yours feigned false words thereupon to deduce your false doctrine following. And here thrice ye rather your false invented saying upon me which I never said ne thought ne wrote them isaiah that chartie is with faith, but yet excluded from thefficacy effect and office to justify so that she is not concurrent with saith in the action of justification, as I give my plain example, but charity hath a sundry act and operation from faith as to believe in christ and to love him be two acts as be to see and to here the sundry offices and acts of two distinct senses albeit they be both together in one head. And isaiah charity is in the justified man, but not concurrent into th'effect of justification as any cause formal with faith thereof, as ye falsely report me. Here mayst thou see, good reader, what crafty falsehood he useth to argue, ex non concesus. of that I never granted it him, to make his false part appear true, I wrote more circumspectly adding a plain example, for I knew how sinistrely capciouse this bishop is, lest he should take any advantage at my words, And now when his own conscience telleth him that charity is not concurrante with faith in the work of justification contrary to his conclusion, than he seeketh his shifts, first in the, xlvii. leaf thereto place love, because they that abide in love (saith he) abide in faith which is the life of the just. There he went about to prove charity to give life, which I have refuted justly. Then in the lu leaf, he saith scripture attributeth life to charity, but that scripture can he not yet find. And now at last, as mistrusting all this not to help him. he saith. That isaiah the charity is in justification & that I say the same that he saith & belieth me falsely, for I never said it, as myboke testifieth. Another variance between you and me is ye say, The bis Albeit both sister's faith & charity be in justification, yet charity the younger sister (as ye term it) standeth still idle and only waiteth upon her elder sister. I never said these words as every man may seeit it in my book. joy When therewith will not serueye, then be ye compelled to fly to lies. In deed I call by way of doctrine faith and charity two sisters and faith to be the elder because she is the rote of charity and is first in operation. And now I will compare faith, hope, and charity to iii sisters or with Sophocles to the iii graces called charites, so connexed hand in hand as it were inseparably linked together ut gratia gratiam pariat vel trahat, impugn the similitude if ye canꝭ These iii graces or gifts put into one soul are not idle gifts of god as ye blaspeme his gifts, but be in their continual increase unto their proper distinct actions, and may be well called after their author, or soul wherein they are. Entelechia that is a lively perpetual unwearye working substance, although the body sleepeth, which solicit the good tree to bring forth her fruit in her time. which graces in their increase be known by their orderly operations and fruits. Faith in christ first believeth into him and justifieth and teacheth man all his good works to be wrought in him of god, and not of himself, faith purifieth hearts, and maketh a quiet conscience which is our holy sabbath and rest, so oft commanded in the law to be sanctified of us. By hope we continue in the thing now known and promesed. By faith, and by expectation patiently tarry for it. Faith believeth God to be true, hope tarrieth till God exhibeth his truth in time when thoccasion shallbe given. Faith believeth God to be her father, hope tarrieth till he declare himself fatherly to us. Faith believeth eternal life to be given us for christis sake, hope waiteth for the day where in it shallbe revealed unto us. Faith is the foundation stone where upon hope and charity rest and lean fast to it. charity extendeth her to god known by faith, and to her neighbour. These iii gifts, I may also by way of doctrine compare to iii distinct knids of leads throne into one and the same ground, which albeit anon they apere not above the ground, yet neither is the earth ne the seeds idle, (as ye taunt and term it) but by the secret power of the most high seadisman work their natural distinct operations and offices ere they appear and fructify their distinct fruits. Neither add I any (onelies) otherwise to faith then the scripture, and all the old holy doctors do, as her only proper distinct operation requireth, In the justified man they be all iii but not concurrant into the one and same effect of justification. but each gift severally tendeth into her proper action and be not idle, no notherwise then when the man having both eyes ears & nose, seeth with his eyes only, yet be not therefore his ears ne nose idle senses. Then by an other false supposition would ye deduce a falser conclusion, saying. In deed th'effect of faith is properly to illumine the understanding & of charity to warm. The by Now if the justification of man implied only thexpulsion of darkness from man's understanding, th'effect of faith would suffice: but seeing god in justification moveth man's heart and kindleth love in it, why may not these two virtues with their two effects by gods working concur in man's justification? first the scripture teach you that to illumine the understanding is not so properly attributed to faith but also to the declaration of the word saying, joy Declaratio sermonum tuorum illuminat & intellectum dat paruulis. The declaration of thy words illumineth and giveth understanding to the little ones. And again, praeceptum domini lucidum illuminans oculos. The precept of the lord is pure & bright illumininge the eyes of our understanding. And in another place lucerna pedibus meis verbum tuum thy word is lantern and light to my feet. If ye had red diligently and understanden the psalms ye should have seen this property attributed to the word, but I will not steke with you for so little ignorance. Then ye say. If the justification implied only thexpulsionexpulsion of darkness th'effect of faith were sufficient, As though if the justification implied not only that effect but many other it should not be sufficient but it implieth many more effects beside your warning with charity and yet is it sufficient. For in the justification by faith only, God purifieth the heart, In the justification is implied thexpulsion of dubitation of the remission, and is implied the peace and setlinge at rest of a tranquil conscience and yet all these imp●yings let not faith only the less to justify. But what and if I say, that God by faith warmeth the heart and kindleth it to love as by the rote of charity? I am able to prove it. Thus, God giveth no cold faith into manis heart but a warm faith effectuouly to warm, ergo. Faith warmeth charity and kindleth love with out the which warming faith, your charity were as cold as ice. Now is this your wise argument, God in justification kindleth love in man, ergo charity justfieth. I deny your argument: prove it if ye can, For God kindleth not love by love, but kindleth lou by faith For if love be not warmed by faith it shallbe but a cold and faithless love. I marvel ye be so blyndened & will not see the truth but so sinistrely of malice to seek these feeble childish shifts had ye read but this one text of Paul (malice not blyndinge your understanding) Porro finis precepti est charitas ex puro cord & consciencia bona & fide non simulata, timo. ● th'end of the precept is love proceeding out of a pure heart and out of a good conscience, and out of faith unfeigned. ye might have seen plainly out of what rote charity springeth, and faith iustifienge, purifying, and making a good conscience to go before charity But hearken what followeth, a quibu● quod aberrarunt quidam, defecerunt ad vaniloquium, volentes legis esse doctores non intelligentes que loquuntur neque de quibus asseverant from the which doctrine and order of faith and charity. etc. because some men have erred and gone far from it, therefore are they fallen back from the truth unto vain and lying speech false reasons and arguments against the verity, willing to be seen and to be doctors of the law and teachers of gods law not understanding what they speak, ne of what things they make assertions articles and sich like affirmations, enstruccions, etc. now how say ye, have not S. Paul lively described you here, & set ye forth in your just colours? Blame not me for reciting these words, but Paul for writing them and yourself for verifying them of your sel●e with your own deeds words and writing. truly, not with all the learning subtilite, rethrike, and wit ye have shall ye prove charity to help faith to justify, but only faith to do it, for ye strive against the truth and as christ told Paul It is to hard for ye to kick against that prick. God once illumine your heart with his word to see once only faith to justify. amen. As for Paul declareth plainly that albeit he speaketh sometime of faith without mention of charity, The bis yet he meaneth not faith, as a bare foundation, but faith with charity to justify. Albeit, joy ye be the pope's lawer and doctor to, yet do I not take ye to be of so high authority, as to believe these your bare words concerning the understanding of Paul's mind But & if Paul have so plainly declared his mind, as charity with faith to justify, seeing ye be so well seen in Paul, express Paul's mind with Paulis words for this matter, like a learned bishop. Nether we ne Paule ne Christ call faith only justifying, a bare foundation, for god giveth no such idle, bare cold gifts, as ye prate of, neither christ building his church of that rock of faith only in him, would have it called a bare foundation, all this your extenuation of faith to make it your material shaples faith I tell ye, will not serve your popish purpose, the almighty power of gods everlasting word presseth to sore upon ye, for only faith justifying. Ye could never have contended in a more difficile yea impossible argument and matter to prove, than not only faith to justify, but charity to be concurrant ye should have read it. Hebreus ten how Paul declareth his mind and order of these gifts saying and affirming, us to come to our great priest Christ with pure heart in the certainty and asseweraunce of (faith) ourr hearts ●aith sprinkled, and thevil conscience put a way, the body washed with pure water, we holding the confession (of hope) not wavering (for he is faithful which hath promised) & consider we one another, Hope into this en●e that we may provoke us (to love) & to do good works, love. where ye see in what place faith first standeth with her proper several operation, where hope with hers, and last of all charity placed with her works, which order of these iii gifts the scripture every where observeth, placing faith as the foundation and rote of hope and charity & of all other virtues, so that as Paul saith, what soever is not of faith is sin. And here, after your long vain babbling of faith the bringeth knowledge and faith that hath not charity, (as though true faith and knowledge contrary to isaiah were not all one, or were without charity) and faith not to give life but love to be the life of the just contrary to all the scriptures, than ye would have your only. only joined to only god & not to faith. As though when the scriptures with the doctors say, by only faith man is justified, they would exclude god the principal cause efficient from our justification and remission which plasphemye to think, who is so mad and brutish? And to confirm your devilish drift ye add stoutly, And this i● the plain teaching and agreeable with scriptures which must be understanden as one part be consonant with another without such hacking as ye make of it, But not one word of scripture bring ye for your teaching ne agreableness, but lordly ye say. Thus we must understand them, as though ye had the same falsely usurped authority over the scripture & our faith as hath your antichristen father of rome to compel & command us to believe & to understand what ye list, which is that usurped power & honour above god whereof daniel and Paul speak. For when Christ ever referred his doctrine to the law and prophetis, yet will this bloody beast and her whelps compel men to believe their false doctrine & falser faith for their own popish persons usurped false authority only. God gave abraham faith where with to believe in him, The bis. and charity where with to love him. And abraham as he believed in God so he loved him, both together. (joy It is true, if he could do both at once with one act) Here have ye condemped yourself For first ye say, joy God gave Abraham faith to believe in him. And now as touching this first gift what saith the scripture? credidit. Abraham deo et imputatum est ei ad justiciam, Abraham believed in God and it was imputed him unto rightwiseness, here ye see that same only act of belief in God, to be reckoned to him for his rightwiseness, ere love proceedeth to her proper work for love presupposeth the thing known by faith ere she can love it. As yourself saith within xii lives before, and that faith bringing knowledge must needs proceed love, and yet blindly, ye forgetting yourself harp still of this your only untewned string. Charity loveth, ergo charity justifieth. yourself see it, & ye say and write it, that faith & love being two distinct gifts, must needs tend into two sundry, and distinct effects, and yet be ye so blind that ye would violently make them concurrant into the one effect of justification. And ye say, charity justifieth, which speech of faith, as to say faith justifieth, offendeth your delicate ears, because, I speak it. As though all like speeches, save such as come out of your mouth thorough malice and arrogancy, yea and that so proudly, should stink as saith the psal. lxxii. upon you. I marvel ye sweat so sore with so many words, for charity to justify and have so little charity yourself and less love to faith justifying, which is truth And as often as Paul nameth faith not speaking of love, The bis. so oft and oftener, speaketh joan in his pistles of charity, without mention of faith. If the often speaking of a thing should prove, joy so do joan speak as often of sin, without mention of faith, as doth Paul of faith without mention of love. I wonder ye shame not thus fond to reason. But show us where saith joan, charity justifieth, as oft as Paul saith, by faith we be justified? who seeth not by these your vain shifts and feebler weak arguments, how false is your part, when ye can neither by scripture nor reason prove it, how oft saith Paul in one chapter. By faith all our fathers have deserved the testimony of rightwiseness? Then would ye by as fond a proof make it appear that charity justifieth, because christ saith The father draweth us to him by faith. which to make it somewhat like ye falsely expone Christ's words by putting to your own dream, saying that by love we be drawn to Christ. But and if ye had red but two lines further, ye should have seen Christ to have exponed himself, saying, us to be drawn and to come to him only by faith: thus concluding. Every man therefore that hath herd of my father and is learned of him he cometh to me. To hear of the father, the scripture exponeth it, to believe and to have faith given us of him, as christ affirmed it to peter: Mat. xvi. and as Paul declareth it, faith to come of hearing, And therefore to hear of god, and to be learned of god, and to believe in him thorough christ be alone, Paul calling it, auditum fidei, that is the hearing of faith, or faith had by hearing. And turn to the pistle to the hebrews and look whether we come not first to God by faith ere we love him, ye had need go study the scriptures yet better & learn to confer the places, & not thus to allege them at rovers. Ye say a little before, They must be understanden as one part be consonant to the other, without hacking as I make of them, but in so saying, ye twitch yourself by the nose. It here openli chop your hacking knife into your own sour herbs with a false gloze hacked into your own pottage. For ye never observed the context ne conference of the places, which is a token but of a popish learned doctor. And as for me, I have not, ne desire I any other way, as every reader may see it, to confute your falsely alleged & falselyer exponed authorities then by the circumstance & conference of the context & by like places, neither can I, ne will I use any other weapon to confute your false books. And as for the speech of (only faith justifieth) the scripture hath it not And yet hath it been spoken by some learned men to exclude the works of moses law. The bis. Albeit the scripture hath it not in the same syllables, joy yet it hath the very self same sense, as I shall so manifestly show it, and prove it that ye shall not be able to avoid it. For christ saith, as it is written, both in Luke and Mark. Only believe and thy daughter is safe, nothing else requiring of the man for the restoring of his daughter, but faith only into him. In another place he said. If thou canst believe, I can help thee, & all things be possible to him that can believe, here is nothing else required then faith of the man for driving out that evil spirit of his son. In all other his salvations and help, & hearing and granting their petitions, christ required only their saith into him, as all the story of the gospel testifieth. Now cometh Paul as the most faithful treater, and expouner of the law and gospel, which divideth the hole scriptures and the ministration of the preachers & apostles of christ into the preaching of the law and of the gospel. And here he proveth the state and condition of every man, either to be under the law or under the grace of the gospel, whereof he deduceth two manner of rightwysmakinge or rightwysenesses, one rightwiseness of the law and the t'other of the faith of the gospel, excluding with express words mightily and clearly the rightwiseness of the law from the justification by faith, as one contrary to the t'other, affirming constantly, and often. That we be siewer and certain, man to not be justified by the works of the law (which justification he every where calleth the rightwiseness of the law) but by faith. And we conclude man to be justified by faith without the works of the law. And clearly to exclude all the works & rightwiseness of the law, that the only rightwiseness of faith might stand clearly in sight, he saith men be justified freely, thorough grace, by faith. Now ye see, That there be but two things in controversy, one contrary to the t'other, to justify, that is to say, the works of the law, & the gifit of faith. But Paul constantly excludeth the works of the law, and admitteth and affirmeth only faith to justify. For nothing else then faith is annexed and joined to this justification, wherefore it is must nediss follow only faith to justify in the justification of faith Also man is not justified by any thing else then by faith, ergo only faith justifieth, man seeth not with any sense else then only with his eyes, ergo his eyes only see. What beast is so brutish as to deny or cavil against these so plain speeches? Of these Paul's arguments & Christ's words, all the old holy doctors gathered this ferme conclusion. Only faith justifieth, which you ne any else can justly impugn, ye have hitherto therefore shut out all your shafts at a wrong mark, which yet could not see ne ever it the truth ne understand what Paul meaneth by the contrary position of these his wont words. justitia fidei, & justitia legis, justitia ex fide, & justitia ex lege, justitia pro pria & justitia dei, with such like phrases, often he saith by faith man is justified, but never by charity, ne in any place of the scripture is it written. And yet you of a set proposed malice conceived against the verity, contend thus arrogantly to impugn the truth and all to show your wily wit, and high learning in persuading blasphemies to fools, lest ye should lose the false opinion, and vain estimation which the unlearned have conceived upon you. ye say some learned men have so spoken it, as only faith justifieth. And be ye so highly learned in your own conceit, that ye be ashamed or let scorn to speak the same, but thus arrogantly & unlearnedly to impugn such learned men's sayings? ye say, they said it to exclude Moses law. And I tell ye, that Paul also therefore said it, even to exclude Moses law from the act of justification. And why will not you say the same also with the same learned men to exclude the same law of Moses? are ye so wise as to vary and again say these learned men? what other law would ye exclude then Moses' law? Be not the ten preceptis contained in Moses' law? ●n your. 4 article. which I have constantly proved by the scriptures both here and in my former book that Paul and Peter understood and proved it plainly even by the works of the law, the ten commandments which ye call the morals to be excluded from faith in the act of justification as in nowise to to be concurrant into that effect. Which ye cannot avoid ne solute with all the learning ye have, And for the text ye bring in of Paul. Neque circumcisio etc. maketh directly against you, as I have plainly declared it afore. The bis. And he that hath not charity is nothing. joy And why? because he hath not faith into Christ which is the life of the just and rote of charity. Then this is your argument. He that hath charity is somewhat, ergo charity justifieth, your argument is nought: Nether yet this, God maketh his promise to them the love, as well as to them that believe, ergo charity justifieth, this is nought also. A like argument God maketh his promise to him that worketh, writeth, honoureth his parents, is patient, ergo works writing. etc. justify, these arguments be worthei the wisdom of him whom god hath blyndned and made foolish his wisdom snarled in his own wily craftiness. joan sayeth, he that loveth not god, knoweth not god. The bis. And why? because he hath not faith into christ whereby he should know god the father in christ. joy So that without love I cannot fruitfully believe, no not the believe of knowledge. etc. ergo love justifieth. The bis Love is not the cause of belief in joy christ, but the belief into christ is the cause of love. ye must, I tell you leave your juggling cast with your truncate absolute believe, and like a christian believer, put to christ in your belief, or else the devil and the turk believe without love, with the belief of your knowledge & with an historike faith, ye say ye cannot believe fruitfully without love. I believe ye well: that neither with your love, ne without it, can ye believe in christ. But I, and all other faithful to whom god giveth his gift of faith in jesus christ, we can believe in him, love not being so concurrant into the act of belief in christ as to say with love I believe in christ as well as with faith. As to say in a like speech. I am not justified without my .v. senses, and yet do they not justify me. ye speak in a like fallacy as the man told the boter wife that she made her boter with her ears. It is truth, quoth she, I made it not with out them, but had them when I made it. Yourself lo, now be ye come to daley with sich idle ridels. For no just arguments can ye make for your love to justify. Ye should impugn this saying. That without faith and belief in christ iustifienge I cannot love christ. And then let us see what ye can bring in for the younger sister to help her elder in justification, or th'effect to help her cause to work. ye argue, as the creves goeth, like the perverse gardener of whom speaketh Alexander Macedo, turning the tops o● your herbs into the ground and the roots upward, from theffect to the cause, from the top to the root, all backewarke and arsewarde. But ye now press upon me to show ye scriptures in this form of syllables, The bis. charity justifieth, and yet ye have no scripture so framed for faith, as to say, faith justifieth. No, but I have scriptures to show ye. joy That christ faide often and to many. Thy faith hath saved thee, & Paul oftener saith, that man by faith is justified. and what difference is betwixt these two sentences. To him that believeth in him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is reckoned to him for rightwiseness, & faith justifieth? what difference make ye betwixt these two sentences. By faith man is justified, and his faith justifieth him? And now show me as mich for your charity, where ye have but once this sentence By charity man is justified and I will grant it you that charity justifieth, but as I know ye shall never show it neither in sense nor syllables so shall I never to you grant it. But to answer you according to your foolishness and to stop your mouth, The bis. who begin to appose me as children were wont each other in their primers to ask, where find ye me two deus without a meus. This much I say, I find in Paul. deus justificat and then in joan, deus est charitas and so I find charitas justificat. ●oye And is this all the scripture ye can find for love to justify? Then I see well ye have not forgotten all your boys plays, nor y●t all your bragging sophistry. I am content to be called fool of you so worldly a wise, but yet Paul telleth me again. That the foolishness of this world is wisdom before god, and the wise of this world be very fools before god, But at lest wise ye should have remembered the wiseman's counsel, bidding you, Not to answer the fool according to his foolishness lest ye be made a fol● yourself. In good faith I thought not of such childish fashions and Plays when I said. Where find ye that charity justfieth? but meant it simply and plainly asking it you, to show me the place in scripture which perchance meself had never seen ne hered of before but now ye, knit up your syllogism thus saying. Deus justificat, deus est charitas, ergo charitas justificat. For quicquid predicatur de subiecto predicatur de predicato. And so if deus predicatur de iustificare to say. Deus justificat and then charitas predicatur de deo deus est charitas, the scripture the faith deus justificat, saith also charitas justificat. And thus I give ye words for words who deserve none other. For else I know that charitas que de deo predicatur est iucreata, and so differeth it a charitate qua iustificamur. joy Marry sir, I thank you with all my heart, for thus have ye soluted your own false argument, as the sophisters solute such false syllogisms saying, non tenet syllogismus ubi ter mini non supponunt omnino pro eodem. But yet hear me thinketh ye have forgotten your sophistry and know not which is subiectum copula and praedicatum in propositione. Ye say that in this your first proposition. Deus justificat deus praedicatur de iustificare. where ye show yourself not to know which is subiectum and praedicatum, ne copula. For copula nusquam incidit in subiectum vel praedicatum. Ye say deus predicatur look better of your mayor, and how your argument should stand in the third figure if deus were predicatum in the maior and subiectum in the minor. Ye be so high in divinity that ye have forgotten your logik and sophistry. But ye say they be but words for words ye give me. In deed words be taken for deceights without any truth, as ye use your vain words in all your books, all verity set a part. But in earnest, let these your trifles & scoffs pass from so grave a cause. And show us in sense seriously as I have showed you of faith justifying, albe it not in form of syllables, where it standeth in scripture, charity justifieth? For I nowmber not your syllables but I seek out of you the very true sense only, from which ye now slip like the slyper eel and the deaf asp into another tale saying thus. Now where as ye say, that if the forgiveness of our sins and our salvation should The bis depend of the condition of our works, we should never be sewer and certain of one justification, for all our works be unperfit and foul. Thus I answer you, That what sewernes ye would have, I cannot tell, but of this am I sewer, that god hath thus ordained, that baptism is necessary to attain salvation, and yet all children be not sewer to be baptised. And this do scripture tell me assewerdlye that a man must persever in good doing to th'end or else he shall not be saved. And that he that standeth in virtue, may fall and be cast out. In all these your assewranees have ye not one word ne mention of faith into god and Christ, ●oye nor yet of his most adsewered promised forgiveness apprehdesd by faith even the very undoubted certitude itself. Whereby men may see how faithless & unsewere is your doubtful wavering popish doctrine, which all these your assewerances the turk and jew may have without faith justifying. ye say ye cannot tell what sewrance I would have. wherein ye say not true. For how oft have I laid before you the assewred promises in Christ holden by faith, against your wavering works? And yet I tell ye again. That if the kings majesty would promise you before all his nobles another bishopryke now perchance void, and thereto put his own seal and writing to confirm his promise, would ye not reckon yourself sewer thereof? Miche more than, If god the verity promise me forgiveness in christ & giveth me ferme faith to believe it, writing his promise with his own hand sealed with Christis death and most precious blood, yea and giveth me thernest and pledge of this promise, even his own son Christ and his holy spirit, the pledge as Paul saith and earnest of our forgiveness and salvation testifying unto my spirit that I am his chosen beloved predestined child in christ, commanding me to call and believe him to be my merciful father, should I not believe in him & be assewered of my salvation forgiveness & perseverance in hope? all dubitation and doubt excluded? If I did not believe & constantly hope for it, so should I dishonour gods vecite (which sin be sat fro me) wherefore hath God given me the certitude and undoubted assewrance, but in hope to abide patiently waiting certainly for his performance? will ye believe better, men then God? And to excercise this our assewerd faith and hope, he sendeth us continual cross and afflictions, And we have the continual reading & hearing of his holy scriptures ut permaneamus fide fundati ac stabiles, that we persevering grounded and fast rooted in faith should not serve from the hope of the gospel. And all be it, in the strait and narrow path of charity I serve and fall by the way, yet have I gods promise apprehended by my faith that I shall not so fall as to hurt me & be broken, but to rise again. For the Lord hath promised to put his hand under me to life me up again, with a c. like comfortable promises to reduce repentant sinners into the way which promises humbly with reverence and fear and thanks I embrace It is thou, oh lord, that assewerest me to persever certainly and settest me in assewerance. Psa. iiii, How many promises have we, God to be our strength, our rock, bulwerk, castle tower, defence, helper, for Christ our intercessor and reconciler his sake with a thou said lyk comfortable exercises of our faith to strengthen and confirm our hope and expectation in sewerty and perseverance? But your doubtful doctrine knoweth neither God ne Chryst ne faith. But to confirm ours, yet after this afore said obsignation of the holy spirit, God assewerth also his congregation thereof with the visible seals of baptism & his holy souper to put us in mind of his benevolence towered us, & of his testament & covenant in chrstis blood In baptism dewli ministered I remember & see his death burial & resurrection Baptism wherein also I am taught to be mortified, my sins buried in his wounds, Roma. vi. and to rise again into a new life. And in the holy souper of the Lord, duly ministered, I remember and see with the eyes of my faith, The supper of the lor●e. in the breaking and giving of the holy bread his body broken crucified & given me into the remission of my sins, And in the holy wine likewise powered forth and given me, I remember and see his most precious blood shed for me into the remission of my sins. And even these be holy sacred adsewerances in my faith and hope of my salvation thus daily exercising my faith and hope into a perpetual perseverance in the same adsewerance while I live, which as●werances (ye say, ye cannot tell of) A shameless ignorance in a bishop & great infidelity and blasphemy is it in you, if ye will not know this so manifest a sewerance offered and given into every faithful Christianes' hand heart and mouth, Thus have I learned in scriptures, If we turn when god turneth to us. The by● If we believe when god illumineth us, If we love as god kindleth us. If we be baptised as god, commandeth us we shallbe justified. Ye juggle with your (Iffes) and half turns. joy For as there is no man turned to god with fruitful repentance but he first know gods merciable forgiveness in christ by his faith iustifienge him, so is there none but they first know God in christ, ere they love him, & believe in god thorough jesus Christ ere they be baptised into his name. For who professeth god the father the son and the holy ghost and the christian religion, unless he know it. It were a backward order and an upside down preposterous planting, the profession to go before the doctrine and knowledge of the religion, as it hath been a long season used, and therefore all such preposterous religions (as ye see) degenered into apostasy and into all the most filthy abominations and idolatry be now come to nought, as christ prophesied of all such backward plantations. And therefore your (Iffes) stand in a wrong place. For your baptism with water is such a condition, that as all they that be baptised therewith, be not therefore saved, so were not all they that believed in christ, and all the chosen infants contained under the promise, dying before circumcision or baptism dampened, but without circumcision and baptism of water saved by election and their belief. And therefore your doctrine of your (Iffes) holdeth not. And if the queen of Candaces' courtman, so instruct of Philip in the wagen▪ had died in that faith before his baptism with water, yet had his only faith saved him by Christ's own words saying, who so believe in me hath life eternal. It is not the baptism with water, ne your penance that saveth us (as ye dream) for no element, ne creature, ne man's work may do that thing. It is god only in christ that regenereth with the spirit of faith, i. pet. three Titu. three joan. three i. joan. v joan. i and by that invisible baptism be we saved of god thorough jesus christ. If you should tarry till ye have fulfilled all your conditions for your salvation, ye should come to short of the gates shutting. And therefore merciablye saith the lord in Isay. He will make short his word of rightwismakinge, Isai, x. and finish it in a plenteous abundant rightwiseness, even in christ made of him our rightwiseness holden by faith only. Children by your popish doctrine, that die before baptism, and the infants in Moses law dying before the aight day, should be dampened as ye teach, which is to hard for you to prove, when the scripture is plain against you, as I am able to prove it and can show it plainly. The baptism therefore with water washeth only the body, and the minister bringeth the water and words only & no salvation neither as causes efficientes ne formal. So that baptism with water is but the visible seal instituted of god, Baptism and ferme token of the former justification by faith in the regeneration of the spirit, the seal (I say) testifienge to the congregation that he is incorpored into them. For thus it correspondeth (saith Peter) the new birth, whereby the spots of the soul be taken away. i Pet. iii. And thus is baptism with water, signaculum iustitie fidei, the seal and testimony of the rightwiseness of faith as was circumcision, and not the self same rightwiseness itself, as ye teach ye may make it signum iustitie operis operati sive iustitie baptismi, after your school men that is the sacrament or seal of the rightwiseness of works or of the rightwiseness of baptism with water, and man thereby to be justified as ye dream, and so Christ in vain to have died. Besides this it is the figure of our perpetual mortification and repentance as I have o●ten declared the use thereof before. And as touching the imperfection of faith and charity in man (as ye say) Albeit our faith (I say) be as little as the mustard seed, and as imperfect as was his that said, lord I believe but yet help my unbelief, yet god accepteth it for our justification for Christ's sake bidding us, daily to pray for thincrease thereof. Then ye say, all our works be imperfitte. ' It is truth that ye say. And in so saying ye have condemned all your own doctrine of merits satisfactions, and conditions of works, to deserve remission. For no imperfitte works may deserve perfect remission ne make perfect satisfaction, as ye well know it. And for this cause of our imperfection, indignity, & impossibility by works to merit our remission & salvation god hath taken it out of our hands and from our works & laid it upon christ as ye see in the prophet isaiah, him by his perfect fulfilling of the law & by his so perfect works to merit, to satisfy fully and perfectly and so to obtain us the remission and salvation for our faith into him. And thus is he made of his father & ours, for us our justification our rightwiseness, redemption, our holiness, our wisdom, our satisfaction, Rom. viii & our impletion of the law, which all we by faith receive as our own for that he is given to us, holy with all his that he either did or suffered in his blessed innocent body and soul. And even these be our elder brother's clothes, Genes. 27 done upon us by faith so sweetly savouring, which so delight and please our celestial father, as did jacobs' elder brothers fragrant vestures savour in his father Isaac his nose, that he gave him his brother's blessing, as shall our father for the same doing on by faith (& not for your participation) of our elder brother christ his sweet clothes of his rightwiseness merits. Gala iii. i joan. v. etc. For who so ever be baptised of the spirit by regeneration of faith, they have done christ thus upon them. And thus with jacob be we made Israelites. And thus be we all made the sons of god, for that we have believed in jesus christ, saith Paul, & not (as ye say), for that ye have done your good works & fulfilled your condition Thus ye see how Paul, joan, & Peter & christ speak of the baptism of the spirit & not of the visible baptism of water to give remission & salvation. ye give imperfection to our works & to faith, & to love, it is truth. But yet must ye consider that th'imperfection in our works so minisheth & taketh so away the goodness & dignity or worthiness of them, that they may not be called good ne meritorious. But faith isaiah ● being imperfect & as little as the mustersede, or as week as his that said, help lord my unbelief, yea or so matched in peril with temptation, which fear, & dubitation as was Peter's faith so boldly leaping into the sea to meet his master christ, when the surges arose against him so high that with his little weak faith he began to sink, yet as little as it was, it was the good gift of god, & saved him for Christ's sake from drowning. For it is our perpetual bishop and only intercessor in heaven that continually prayeth (as he did for Peter & his fellows) lest our faith fail us, even in the mids of the stormy tempestiouse floods of the troublous sea of this world. For the gifts & calling of god be sich as it cannot repent him of them in his chosen. Rom. xi. Then ye say, job said, I feared all my works, in which, faith (ye say) may be comprehended. But it appeareth, that ye understand not Job'S words, for he never feared his faith but his works only, which were evil & imperfect. And the ebrw or chaldie word, signifieth erumnas and labores meos omnes, that is to say, I feared all my miserable works, and laborious miseries, which he called his own evil works, for it followeth sciens quod non parceres delinquenti knowing that thou wouldst not spare the trespasser. So that here ye see how that ye manakle and rend out by patches the texts for your wicked purpose not considering what goeth before ne followeth, nor yet what the words properly signify. If ye could comprehend faith in Job'S works, so would ye make faith no gift of god, ne belief gods work, but Job'S work so feared of himself And all the scriptures agre with job so speaking of his own works only and not of faith. For many holy men fearing the same, desired god not to enter into judgement with them ne to judge them after their works. Then ye take in hand to describe the sinful nature of man as borne out of Adam and Eve, saying that the powers of our soul properly receive faith and love, and upon the occasion of the world and the flesh & suggestion of the devil be ready to rebellion. etc. In which saying ye speak not truly of man in his corrupt nature as borne out of Adam, conceived in sin rooted in his soul, called altogether in scripture, flesh, the old man, the body of sin and death, enmity against God, naturally the child of wrath a continual rebellion against god's spirit. For occasion or no occasion given, ●●●es. vi. vi●i. sich one is he before he be regenered as god painteth him, saying, after the hebrewe verity. Every imagination of man's heart is only evil, is, saith the text, and not prone or ready (as ye term it) yea and that at all times, even from his youth, without the spirit of God regeneringe him, he is brydeles running into the free field of all carnal lusts. Of the power of this corrupt man's nature, ye speak, as by his free choice to receive faith with love. etc. verily this man hath no such a pelagians power of himself to receive faith, no more than had ADAM. himself pour to come to God when he fled from his voice in paradise so ferefullye with shame seeking where to hide him from his presence. There is no sich proper power properly (as ye term it) in man to receive faith or any grace, except that natural proper power be properly taken a way and purged with the spirit of liberty by faith purifying the heart so making in him a new heart prepared to receive faith making a new and free power from his natural bondage to sin. So that your free choice to receive grace may not here be placed with pelagians error enemy to grace to set up your free choice & bond liberty to sin. For although the guilt of original sin be t●ken away in baptism yet the scar of it, The by● and (as it were) the matter of it doth remain. which as it troubleth and letteth manis perfection in virtue and thereby is maintained a continual strife & debate, so is it not to be accounted our sin till we conceive it by embracing & agree in to sich carnal mocion●. joy In this your bare sayings without any scripture be contained many errors as it must nediss come to them that teach out of their own headis. First false it is that baptism with water taketh away the guilt of any sin. For it is God only yea and that by Chryst only that taketh a way the guilt of sin. And therefore Paul saith plainly that the original sin which entered into the world by only one man Adam, Rom. v. is taken away (he speaketh there, of the guilt) by the grace of God even by that only one man & free gift given us jesus Christ, and not by any creature either of water, word or minister, as cause without which the gilt is not taken away. For there, Paul in a long contention with many words setteth only christ his gift, grace, his justification and his obedience against the guilt of original sin of that only one Adam. And where ye say, The scar (as it were) the matter yet remaineth, ye speak very fond and grossly, yea falsely so to teach and so to divide it, as though there were in sin a physic and natural corporal composition ex materia & forma as ye dream of the simple gifts of faith hope and love. which all your dead dreams ye imagine to stablish your popish doctrine with the aristotilyk scolemen. The scripture, austin and ambrose call plainly your scar (as ye term it) evil concupiscence, evil lus●e and desire foreboden in the last precept, and Paul calleth it the law of sin, the body of sin, the body of death and even sin itself, And your own words following say the same, in that ye affirm it to trouble and let manis perfection in virtue etc. For that as doth and worketh such ungodly impediments so troubling manis soul hindringe it from virtue and fighting against the holy spirit of god that would make him perfect, must nediss be the mother of sin & sin itself striving against the will of God. Paul speaking of this concupiscence, which ye call the scar, saith he had not known it to have had been sin, had not the law said. Thou shalt not have such lust or desire in the. This sin original, although it be not imputed, either to the chosen infants for their election in christ, or to the faithful waxed for their faith in Christ, yet is it not so rooted out of the children of Adam, but that it lieth lurking in us as long as we live, as doth heat or fire in the flint & chalk, and as venom in the serpent, and is not seen till either water be cast upon the chalk, or the serpent angered. For man is patient enough till occasion of wrath be given him, & well pleased so long as he hath his desire & mind fulfilled. & so of alother sins. ye say this scar (or rather concupiscence & sin as the scripture calleth it) is not to be accounted our sin till we conceive it by consent. which saying is plain false. For whose sin else should it be then his in whose soul it lieth? Is not man conceived & borne therein and therewith? It is, saith austin, by traduction drawn out of Adam in a perpetual ysew into all his posterity, & was daughter of the sin in Adam & is mother of all the sins in us. ye say, It is not ours till we conceive it by embracing & agreeing by consent to our carnal motions, And therefore, ye say s. james saith. that concupiscence (lo, here yourself is compelled to call your scar & matter concupiscence which is sin) when it conceiveth, bringeth forth sin. ye understand not what james saith. For he presupposeth concupiscence to be in man (as David and Paul say) from his conception, as an evil seed or plant engraffed in to the nature & soul of man, as Austen declareth it to bring forth openly evil fruit, and therefore james saith not as ye say, that we conceive it not till we engrace & agree to it by consent, But he saith (if ye looked a little before) thus Every man is plukt away, and (as it were) with a bait taken & holden of his own proper natural concupiscence. And thence forth, he saith, concupiscence after she hath conceived by consent, sin is brought forth into light, meaning sin actual & not original. where ye see your scar or rather concupiscence first to be conceived into the soul ere she embrace by consent any sign actual, as is the woman a woman and apt to conceive before she conceiveth and as is the mother before her daughter, & if the daughter be sin, nediss must the mother going great with the daughter be sinful. Then ye compare as wisely, Concupiscence to a baron woman without a man, so making her man the agreement of his free-will consenting to the ill motion, of which as out of man she conceiveth. ye should have looked better of your baron woman, & noted wether she consenteth not as well as her man, and so in the woman also to be a mutual consent, lust and concupiscence as well to be the mother of sin, as her man to be father thereof. But concupiscence herself, ere she conceive and consent to commit actual sin, is (as Paul tell you) sin itself, even the daughter (as austin saith) of sin ere she be the mother of actual sin in sight, and ere she conceive (as ye say) of her man. And although she (concupiscence I mean) consenteth not, but lieth secretly in the soul, so soon as it is created & joined to the body, not yet stering, yet is she an hid venom and privy, heat as it were in the chalk or spark hid under the ashes not aperinge: unto the which hid sin the prophet looked when he said, who understandeth or seeth his sins? and fro my hid sins cleanse me, And shrewd and unsearchable is manes heart said jere. whereof joan said. If we should say that we have not sin in us, we deceive ourselves & the truth is not in us. And therefore said david, Blessed is he to whom god imputeth not his sin, he saith not blessed is he that hath no sin, but he that hath sin, & is not imputed ne reckoned to him for his faith. Paul commanded the Roma. that sin reigned not, ne should have dominion over them, so that they obeyed not it by her concupiscence. But to be clean without concupiscence, he could not so be himself, as ye see in the vii cha. complaining of it saying. I am sold a bond man under sin to do that evil which I would not do. etc., And as for your parenthesis (although men might by grace be without sin) it is so rare a bird as was ne never shallbe seen, but only christ, as the scripture & Austen affirm it. Now have I showed it to you clearly by scriptures, yours (as it were the scar and matter of original sin) to be no scar but sin it self, ne to be none so healed a wound but that we must be regenered of the spirit, and taught by the baptism of water to mortify that concupiscence, & that it is in mortifying, never mortified, till at the last breath out of our bodies. Paul himself & all faithful felt this concupiscence dwelling in them striving against the renovation of the spirit whiles they lived. It is therefore so bloody and so skabby a scar in the soul, that it is ever in cure in the wounded half dead & half a live, whom the samaritan committed to the inholder. luc▪ x. and not so cleave a scar as ye go about to cure it by baptism. And so master joy to return to our matter, The byss. if ye would for policy i'll from the work of love to the work of faith because ye would be assured, ye be no more assewered in respect by your own work by faith then ye be by charity, but all our asseweraunce is in gods promise. quia deus verax & omnis homo mendar. No (my lord) I fly not from the work of love to the work of faith, joy as ye do from faith to love, they both flying from you. But I do embrace them both. But in the work of my justification I observe the order and doctrine of the scripture, only by faith to be justified, and so to proceed to the works of love, first assewered by my faith (which assewerance love can not give me) into Christ, that he hath forgiven me my sins. Nether speak I of any other assewerance by my noun works (as ye would falsely impinge it unto me) but only by the work of faith into Christ, which is not my work, but gods work and his gift in me. But I spoke plainly of faith itself, which is the very self certitude & undoubted adseweraunce, joined to gods infallible promise, sealed with his holy spirit my pledge, pant, and earnest penny given me in Christ's promise, with which my faith thus sealed I am assewered of my remission and salvation thorough hope. But all our adsewerance (say you) is in gods promise. joy. But what asewerance have ye in gods promise except ye believe it? Even here have ye condemned yourself, and of purpose left out faith the assewered certitude of gods promise, and not charity, ye will utter the truth and bewray yourself unwares, the infallible providence of God so bringing into light by yourselves the same thing ye contend to cover and to suppress. For, this my former book against you (I dare say) ye would have punished him that should have brought it first into the realm, and now have ye made laws that none such books be openly red ne sold in the realm, but have condemned them. And yet hath God so blindened and infatuated you in your own false tyranny as to make yourself to print the same book again and yet again to, & to be openly & freely red with yours, and sold in the realm. And for one secret. C. by your own blind procurement are there now openly a M. distributed in the realm into many hands that never had then before. The byss. And therefore how soever ye and yours will test at it, I will return to my common collet a prayer in the church. Omnipotens sempiterne deus, da nobis fidei spei & charitatis augmentum, & ut mereamur assequi quod promi●ti● fac nos amare quod precipis. joy Now I pray ye return to it again, and into the pope's portewes, your versicles, litanies, matins, evensong, and miss to, that yet prayeth in the same to merit to obtain remission of sins and salvation by their popish works pardous, and pilgrimages. For in deed ye be droven from the scriptures, and compelled as every man seeth to fly to your popish portews and missal to beg your false and beggarly authorities to confirm your doubtful doctrine. I dare say, if ye had known the scriptures to have confirmed it, ye would never have sought such shifts. The byss. Wherefore the some of our health beginneth continueth: and is accomplished by god's mercy. Quia neque volentis neque currentissed miserentis dei est: so the seweraunce of our health dependeth upon god's promise. I am afraid lest as ye juggled with your bare belief, joy so would ye do with gods promise, ye should have therefore added to it, saying plainly (The asseweraunce of our health dependeth upon god's promise of remission & salvation in Christ apprehended by faith.) Marry (quoth you) and that is truth. The bis And here you will clap your hands & extol the strength of truth. (joy. yea and of faith to. As though we pharseiss, as ye saducees call us, wilt oppress it. The promise of god is all. Et ideo ex fide, say you. (joy. And therefore out of faith (saith Paul) is the heritage given. Given he saith and not deserved, ut firma sit promissio. that by grace and not by wynchester's works it be given, that farm and sewer might be the promise) joy. I think there was never heathen gentle or jew that so spitefully and so blasphemously mocketh out gods holy word, as here do you of a set proposed malice, sinning against the holy ghost. For here, because ye should not err of ignorance, god hath suffered you to fall into the place of S. Paul which utterly convinceth & destroyeth all your damnable doctrine. Here Paul, setting the law against the promise of the gospel, as one contrary to the t'other in the act of justification, maketh vii mighty arguments to prove only faith without the works of the law to justify, because the rightwiseness of works and of the law cannot stand together. For that as cometh to us by the promise (he saith) it cannot come to us out of the law, but the heritage cometh to us by the promise, ergo not out of the law, among the which arguments this is one. If our justification should depend of the works of the law, no man were sewer of his justification, both for th'imperfection of his works, & also for thimpossibility of the law to be performed of man. And again, the law worketh wrath and maketh sin the more breeme to abound. Only that thing justfieth which settleth, maketh sewer and fast our consciences out of doubt, but that is the free promise of God received by our faith, & not the works of the law, wherefore our faith only stayed upon gods free and undoubted promise justfieth. Then he argueth again thus, Every free merciable promise of god in christ to forgive us our sins is received by only faith, our justification is the free merciful promise of God in Christ, wherefore it must needs be received by faith only. For our justification were promised in vain, if we ourselves might deserve it by works. For not by the works of the law, saith Paul, cometh the promise to Abraham or to his seed, him to be the air of the world but by the rightwiseness of faith. For if they that will be justified by the works of the law be therefore made the heirs, so is faith and belief in vain, and the promise void and frustrate. For the law worketh wrath, and where as is no law, there is no transgression. Wherefore out of faith is the heritage given as out of grace, that the promise should be the more farm & sewer unto all the seed, not to it only that is out of the law, as be the jews, but also to it that is out of the faith of Abraham, even to the gentiles, which Abraham is the father of us all, if we resemble him in like faith. Into this plain piece, when this bishop had brought himself so wrapped and masshed as it were in a net, so accumbered that he could in no wise wind out himself, then beginneth he to mock, to rail, and to jest upon Paul's words, with Ideo ex fide, say you, and these words hath the scripture, say you, ut firma sit promissio, say you, And ye saducees tell us pharisees, we would oppress the truth. The promise of God is all say you. And ye Saducees would extol the strength of the truth. joy. It is Paul the vessel of God that saith all these words and not we. And why should not we Christianes' extol gods truth and defend it, against you popish Pelagians, and with the scriptures confirm it against you Antichristes'? Be ye angry that we extol, honour and praise true faith joined to gods promises against you rank pharisees, & perverse popish pelagians? Be ye not content that we take gods part to defend his honour, and magnify his glory against your devilish doctrine oh antichristian papists And now ye will percase bring in Melancthons' correlatives of faith and promise. The byss. And that the cause why we be justified by charity (saith he) is, because the promise cannot be received but by faith? joy It is not Melanch. that saith the promise of god in christ is not received but by faith only, It is Paul, it is Christ that say it. For what availeth a promise and no man believe it? Be not faith and gods promises correlatives in the faithful believers, to whom god maketh his promises? Can ye separate the faith of the just from gods promises, or his promises from their faith? Can ye confute Melan. doctrine in so teaching? ye scorn his learning and jest upon his doctrine, & of all the learned men this day which writ in Germany. And why? verily because with their pens, and by god's word, they have given your ghostly father of rome his deadly head wound. ye may mock Melanchton, and scornfully scoff and jest of the learned Germans (as ye do) but confute their doctrine justly, ye cannot, ne attain to their knowledge and learning, ne come nigh their clear judgement. But it is the property of all arrogant papistes, to contemn and mock them whose books they be not able to bear after them. And thus they reason. Seeing our salvation dependeth upon god's promise, The byss. and a promise cannot he apprehended but by faith only, we must needs say only faith justifieth. And to make the matter plain, they bring in a similitude. If one man promise another. xx.li. how can he to whom the promise is made apprehend the promise but only by believing him that promiseth? And this is the new school of germany, where sophistry is not banished, but hath a new garment, and is clothed with pretence of simplicity. For in this teaching is a marvelous appearance of plainness, and thoroughly considered, it containeth a mere deceit. And note well reader that thou mayest perceive this juggling sophistry where it deceiveth the. It is not denied, but only faith apprehendeth the promise therein is no controversy. If ye this grant, what deceitful sophistry what juggling call ye it man to apprehend gods promise by his faith only? joy God promiseth me remission in Christ's death affirming him to be justified, and to have life eternal that believeth in him, and by faith apprehendeth this promise of god. Call ye this juggling sophistry and mere deceit to believe gods promise? Here lo reader, mayst thou see whother this popish bishop is carried of his arrogant affects, so blasphemousely to rail of only faith, apprehending gods true promises? He granteth himself only faith to apprehend gods promise, and yet he impugneth only faith to justify to make god false of his promise, as though Christ never said, As thou believest so come it to the. Now let us see how ye can wind yourself out of the briars. The byss. But mark well this when god justifieth man: god ministereth mercy to us, which was the thing god promised to give us, as zachary prophesied, God to give himself to us, who ●s all mercy whereupon is grounded our salvation. joy In this prophecy of zachary, it is plain that God of his merciable goodness and not of any man's deserts had made a promise to Abraham and to our fathers to send us that blessed seed Christ our saviour, which promise who so believed had remission of their sins. Of mercy was the promise made, and the thing promised was remission of sins in Christ. And who so believed the promise was justified, wherefore only faith justifieth, now what can ye juggle or discant upon this? Sing on a god's name. Wherein we must consider distinctly and apart the promise of god, The byss. and the thing promised, which is mercy. I thought as mich ye would juggle with mercy, joy which in zachary is taken as every man may see by the conference of the text for the free merciable favour & goodness whereof without any merits of man, god was moved through: Christ to promise, and now ye would make it the thing promised, with which altering yet am I consent, if ye take mercy as the scripture oft taketh it in other places, for the forgiveness of sins in christ to the believers. But yet go to proceed in your wicked purpose till ye have haltered yourself again. As ●n their example (for I dare make no new) when one friend promiseth another. x● li. the promise is the bond, The byss. the thing promised is the. xx.li. In which example, though I grant that I apprehend my friends promise with believing him, yet I apprehend not that is contained in my friends promise with believing him, For I apprehend that with my hands, if it be paid me. And so although we apprehend gods promise with our beleaf, yet the exhibition of the mercy of god which is the thing comprehended in god's promise, we apprehend that with all sich parts of us of body and soul, as be comforted and healed by that mercy. joy Be not here jolly juggling casts with apprehending with hands and with all parts of body and soul, and apprehending with faith, now the exhibition of the mercy and then the thing promised, and the promise to ●e apprehended, who see not & laugh● not at this antichristian apprehender and holy holder of so siyber an eel by the tail? Because I receive my friends promised money with my hand and his promise which believing, therefore I must receive my forgiveness in Christ with another instrument and mean then with my faith. For I must receive my promised forgiveness with faith only, and yet the exhibition thereof saith he, I must receive with all the parts of body and soul, now go to, and tell us your wise reason, and whether faith in receiving the promised forgiveness receiveth not all so therewith your exhibition, that is in english, the giving or gift? As in the working of Christis miracles, The bis the promise of health in body & soul was received by faith in the understanding lightened by god, but the health was received in all the parts healed of body and soul. But & if by faith only, joy the healed person had not first received his promised health, it had never comen into his body nor soul, wherefore by faith only is the health promised of body and soul received, and thus be ye confuted & confounded with your own example contrary to your former apprehending. Now say on yet again. Now if ye will yet wrangle and say that the promise of god is mercy, The byss. and god will surely fulfil his promise, so as the apprehender of the promise apprehend also mercy, I will not vary with you. For our lady said. Suscepit Israel pucrum suum recordatus misericordie sue. God hath taken to him Israel his servant remembering his mercy, that is according to his merciful promise which the next verse declareth. Sicut locutus est. etc. yet ye shall note here a distinction in degree of mercy, between the mercy in the merciful promise when our lady saith, recordatus misericordie sue, & the very receiving of Israel to his service, which god death in the justification of man. For then he taketh Israel the believer that seeth god to his servant, which is a further mercy. (joy. Are not all mercies and forgiveness a like nigh to the believer? Paul saith, nigh unto the is the word of faith, even in thy mouth and heart. The byss. And the very mercy promised. So as Israel apprehendeth the merciful promise by faith. But being taken to service, receiveth the further mercy promised, in receiving a new heart a new spirit, which god createth in man with the gift of charity and resuscitateth in man life. joy. joy But tell us, ere ye wind yourself any farther into this your laborious labyrinth and misty maze, whether, when Israel received his merciful promise by faith, he was not even then taken to service, and received a new heart, and new spirit and was even then (ere charity wrought resuscited to life) if ye say no. So make ye Israel's faith receiving the merciful promise no lively faith, no faith purging the heart, no true faith, but a dead faith of no efficacy ne power. If ye say yea: so is all your confuse babbling fond vain lies. But say on. Wherefore we may not properly say, The 〈◊〉 we apprehend justification by fa●the which is the exhibition of mercy. But how happeneth it now that to joy justification ye give this new name of exhibition of mercy, and call it not by her wont and plain name as the forgiveness of sin, the absolving from sin, or your effect of christis passion, or remission, as ye were wont to call it? truly there lurketh some deceit in this your new found word (Exhibition) but say on again? Which is thexhibitionexhibition of mercy promised by God to justify man, The byss. unless we would call the promise of God and thexhibition of the thing promised all one. joy. joy when God of his mercy promiseth me remission of my sins, & even then, I hearing it, receive it by faith only, am I not now in that same receiving there of iustifiyed? Christ the write affirmeth it, as thou believest my promise so is it to the. And what then prate ye and babble ye all in vain of your distinct exhibition and of so many receipts &c. but say on yet more, The byss. And here in is the sophistry of this new school slythely to passover and juggle as this man speaketh of under the board? Here hast thou (good reader) a long confuse talk of this bish. joy which as it is all out of his own brain dreamt without any scripture, so hath it neither head ne tail, but full of crooked cavillations, and diversely devised distinctions, all to form and to fashion unto himself some slyber shifts, that the simple readers might not espy him to be confounded and confuted, but that he would have ever somewhat to say for himself against the plain verity, which saith. God hath of his mercy promised us in Christ our free forgiveness, which promised forgiveness we by faith only in Christ receive and in so receiving it we be justified. This old brief and plain speech of the scriptures, he calleth the new school and sophistry of the germans. But look thou upon these his new rehearsed receipts, one of the merciful promise by faith, an other receipt of the further mercy promised, and another receipt of a new heart. ●is recei●is. etc. and a receipt of the thing promised, and of the exhibition thereof, and thou shalt see another manner strange termed novities both of school papistry and sophistry, yea and even confuse perplexity and perplex confusion itself in all this said piece and in that as followeth. For here thou haste a promise and the thing promised, 〈◊〉 a promise without the thing received, both dystincte. Here haste thou the exhition of the thing promised, a receiving of the merciful promise by faith, ●oy● another receiving of the further mercy, and another receipt of a new heart. And all these must be things distinct, and yet all knit together in one bond, one promise is apprehended by faith, the thing promised must be received with body and soul, hands and feet. etc. Then hath this multiplier made us a promised mercy, & an exhibited mercy by exhibition, 〈◊〉 a mercy received one with faith and another with hands and parts of our body a mere mercy, a further mercy, and I ween a mercy furthest of all that shall never come nigh him. Anon he teacheth of a mercy received by faith, but the exhibition thereof with another instrument. Then he minceth mercy divided into degrees betwixt the further mercy in the promise & the nearer mercy in the receiving. So as mercy promised, and mercy exhibited and mercy received, and mercy fled so far from him, should not be all one. And here hath this mighty multiplier of mercy created us two new hearts, one created by his faithless faith, and another by his cold charity, and yet hath not this marvelous maker first taken away his own stonney heart with his free choice. And at last (as he is an ingeniose artificer) hath he juggled us forth four new justifications called of him exhibitions. One not properly apprehended by faith, another properly apprehended by faith, the third is properly called the exhibition of mercy. And the fourth is kaught by his cold charity. And this is all this highly learned lawyers divinity lo. For the which to be confirmed, he bringeth in our lady's song Suscepit Israel puerum suum. etc. But I dare say, that as for her, so holy, gracious plain woman, by those words, never thought ne mente all these so misty mazes so full of perplexities, and inextricable angles. In good faith when I saw him bring in suscepit Israel puerum. etc. for his popish purpose, I marveled greatly thereat, and thought of some other strange subtile knot (as it were) of another Gordias, not to be cut in sunder of every man's sword. And here I remembered the sword of a good merry flourishing fellow, which in construction did divide and cut Suscepit a two in the mids, and made these two words thereof saying. Sus the wild boar of rome, cepit hath taken away Israel puerum suum, our lady's son Christ called Israel, in that by his antichristian religion he taketh away and devoureth Christ's faith and his word, alluding unto the lxxx. psalm, describing the wild frothei bore of rome, wrotinge up the vineyard of christ in burning his church. But return we to Sampsons' fox tayed by tail to his fellows with fire brands to burn up the philistens good corn. As soon as man believeth, The byss. god proceedeth to the fulfilling of his promise for his part, and giveth us a new spirit and a new heart and so justifieth us (joy. What thing then doth your charity whiles man as soon as he believeth is justified? ye will condemn yourself. The byss. If we receive it and assent by our free choice unto it, and work with it, which is theffectual receiving and the worthiness on our part, whereby we be justified Yea mary. joy It was time to add your (if we receive it. etc.) but yet your (if) cometh all to late to your man that believeth. For ye say that as soon as he believeth god justifieth him, ergo he is justified and hath already received his justification before your (if). But belike ye would have said when god offered to man faith, and if we receive it by our free choice and assent▪ then god proceedeth to the fulfilling. etc. The byss. And note well this, that there must be on our part a worthiness & therefore howsoever ye will smile at it, It is a good prayer, or a pro nobis sancta dei genitrix ut digni efficiamur promissionibus christi. Pray for us holy mother of god that we may be made worthy of Christ's promises. Here thou seest the bishop to play two. parts at once, joy one contrary to the other. The first, he saith, is god's part, in proceeding to the fulfilling of his promise to the believer, the second is plain Pelagians part, which was a rank heretic and enemy to GOD and to his grace, affirming man on his part to have free choice to receive gods gifts, and to assent to them when they be offered him, and so working with them to make ourselves worthy, as Wynchester saith, to be justified effectually, And here this mighty maker maketh two justifications, one for gods part gotten by only faith, and another on our part gotten by Pelagians fire will to receive grace and to work our own worthiness, whereby we be justified, I thought Pelagiane would halter himself at last, or else ye must thrust these two contrary justifications both into one poke, where they shall agree together as the fox and the hound, and as Pelagiane and saint Austen, for this is plain that heretic Pelagians opinion and heresy, which Austen so mightily confuteth in his books against pelagian and celestium, de gracia christi & in li. de remi. peccatorum saying. Men labour to find in our will that as is ours and not of god, but how it may be found I know it not. In this piece every man may see, what an enemy with Pelagiane the bishop is to grace, & would privily drop into the people's hearts this present poison of Pelagians school. That the grace of god doth but help our weak will and infirmity: and so to make us chekmates. and fellow workers with god, us on our part and him of his part, for our justification divided betwixt us both. dividing Christ, which was and is ever an hole entier saviour. against the which heresy, god by his prophet Ezechiel, 〈…〉 declaring of what power our will is left to itself, speaketh thus, I shall give ye a new heart, & put a new spirit in the mids of you. And I shall take away the stoney heart from your flesh and give you a soft heart. Now tell us. How can man's own natural stonney rebellious heart help god, and by his free choice and assent work with god in his conversion to work his own justification, either to will well, or to endeavour, or freely to choose good or to assent, or to conform himself (as ye say) to gods will and to use his gifts? when god saith plainly. This stonney heart must be first taken away, and a new made put into man, clean contrary to his first heart and will. But here may every learned christian reader see how perversely ye handle the scripture, leaving out quite the taking away of the hard stoney heart, as though your fire choiced man had none such, ne were the son of Adam, leaping over it into a new heart and new spirit, even sich one as was Adam created before he lost his free liberty to good by sin, you dividing his works betwixt the man and god, affirming in the same, god to work his part, and the man with his free will and heart, with his assent and your free choice. etc. to work his own worthiness on his part, as two men should draw out a log together both by one line, one to help the t'other. But answer me (by your faith) truly to these two questions? what thing worketh the man on his part in the taking away of his stonney rebellious heart? If he worketh any thing with sich an heart, The affects of the flesh be enmity to god. it must needs be against god, and not with God, for what else can such an heart work but evil, Rom. viii and against God, and not with GOD, but against his own health? Also whether is this new heart and will, our own natural heart and will or no? These can not be ours, for our own stonney is taken away & this new heart is contrary to ours, so that we cannot have two contrary hearts and wills at once. Wherefore seeing they be gods gifts, let us not usurp them for our free choice, but give that belongeth to god to himself, and that as is ours to ourselves, and make them not our works on our part (as ye do so pertelye and distinctly) setting them checkmate against gods works in contention for our part, as ye do with Pelagiane enemy to god's grace and glory, and to much a friend to your own blind nature. Repent ye and observe the true Sabbothe, which god so oft in the law and prophets commanded so religiousely to be kept. Even in resting and ceasing from your own false opinions, evil will, and worse works, and suffer god to abolish all that your own is, and to work his will and works in you. And let us be so called cooperatores dei, as Paul expoundeth it of himself under correction saying, not I have so wrought and laboured in the gospel preaching, i. cori. xv. but it is the grace of god in me. We should be rather sufferers than doers or workers with God, suffering him to draw to work, to handle us which his holy spirit, as the sawer draweth and handleth his saw and attribute the work to the chief workman, & not to his saw. For it is god that worketh in us, to will, to persever, and to finish for his own goodness sake and not for our desertis. The first part of any good work is our will, the other is enforce and endeavour to prosecute and to finish it, and here ye see god to be the author of them both. Thus ye see god to work all in every thing both beginning, mids, and end, i. cori. xii. who be praised, glorified, and thanked for ever. But you with pelagian, will work with, and help him and for the confirmation of this heresy of your free choice to receive grace and so to work your own worthiness, ye bring in your authority out of the pope's portewes. Ora pro nobis sancta dei genitrix. etc. Pray for us holy mother of god (and yet was she mother but to his manhood) that we might be effectuousely made worthy the promises of Christ. For scripture have ye none. In which prayer (say you) we acknowledge and truly profess, that the promises of god require in us a worthiness, which worthiness standeth, in our free choice, to receive the promise. For the promises be not to all men without condition absolute. joy, No they be made to them that receive them by faith which is the fr● gift of god, and not to them that receive them by your free choice. Rom. iiii And therefore it is asked what and if some of them believe not gods promises? shall their unbelief frustrate the promise? God forbidden (saith Paul) for god willbe found true of his promises when all men be found liars. For as he knoweth to whom he maketh his promises, so foreseeth he who shall by faith only receive and cleave to them. Then ye would prove us to have gotten to us this worthiness by our free choice in receiving the grace and gift of gods merciable promise by the saying of Wisdom. God tempted them and found them worthy of him This text saith that god found them worthy after he had proved their patience by aff●yctions, but not by their free choice for receiving grace, but because himself in giving them his gifts of faith patience and other virtues maketh them worthy. And your own popish prayer, ora pro nobis. etc. is directly against you. For no man prayeth for that thing saith Austen which he hath, or can get it with his free choice when he list, and yourself alleged Austin's words for the same, saying. jube quod vis, modo des quod iubeas, lord command what thou wilt so thou givest me grace to perform it. Then ye bring in Centurio, who, ye say, because he said he was unworthy that Christ should come into his house, therefore would ye prove us to be worthy of god. wherein me thinketh ye be besides yourself and see not what ye say: to prove us worthy because Centurio said he was unworthy? This should prove us rather to be unworthy, except ye would make us worthy because we confess us with him to be unworthy, and so be we unworthy in deed, or else our confession is false we making ourselves thereby liars and unworthy. Thus may every reader see how false doctrine will never agree with itself, & lies will ever break forth and apere with the long ears of the ass jetting in the lions skin, press ye them down never so stiffly. At last, when ye have printed deep and fast, this Pelagians heresy of free choice in your readers hearts, then to blear the eyes of some not so simple readers, but may perceive your juggling, ye would seem to them to mitigate or to qualify your heresies with a mitigation, His worthiness is now call metenes. and moderation of the word (worthiness) calling it metenes after god's acception, as ye might thus say with your wont false colour of correction to your scholars. Albeit I have taught you, with your free choice and working with the same in assenting, to receive gods promised mercy and grace and thus on your part to obtain your own worthiness whereby to be justified, yet this notwithstanding, ye must mitigate the word, worthiness, and call it Metenes after god's acceptation. (joy. A worthy cover to Pelagians pot, loo.) Gard. so that all such may be accounted worthy as conform themselves to gods pleasure and use such gifts of god as whereby god maketh us worthy, both the gifts received and other more. (joy. Lord how this slymeis snail pretenteth her doubtful slyber way groped before with her leithey horns for fear of resistance and obstacles? Here Pelagian perceiving, the deserving of his worthiness by free choice to be to gross to be hidden or coloured, is compelled now to fly from that speech to a new fantazyed phrase. That we must deserve our worthy making of god, or our new mitigated Meatnes after his acception, by conforming ourselves to gods pleasure and by using such gifts of god as whereby god maketh us worthy both the gifts received and other more. joy. Behold, good reader, what s●yber shifts pelagian is compelled to seek for his merits and free choice in endeavouring and conforming himself to gods will and by his free choice in meriting to use the gifts of god to make us worthy and meat for god. Before he said. By free choice, we on our part had gotten & deserved this worthiness, and that there were works of penance called the meriting and deserving to use the gifts of god: Mary (as I remember) he added by participation. So that this is the sense of his prayer now to our lady, and not to our lord. That he might be made worthy, on his part, and not o● gods part to be made meat and conformable by his free choice, bond to sin to the fulfilling of god's will. etc. And after all these so intricate speeches, he maketh a plain note against himself saying. The byss. And it is to be noted, that we pray, that we may be made worthy (for we can not make ourselves worthy) but must receive all of god. (joy. joy No, of our lady we must receive somewhat, and part of our selves. Have ye so soon forgotten your prayer to our lady. ora pro nobis, pray for us holy mother of god that we may be made worthy?) The byss. Of whom is all our worthiness, and of our● selves unworthiness. joy Where is your free choice by assent to receive grace and to work with it, which ye called before theffectual receiving and the worthiness on our part whereby we be justified? where than be your deeds of penance to merit the use of sich gifts of god? where be your merits to deserve your meatnes, your worthiness, and conformite ye spoke of whereby men may conform themselves to gods pleasure and to use his gifts? The byss. And ye in thateinment of worthiness, we be workers with god by grace as is afore said ye laid before we be workers by our free choice on our part, joy for this worthiness. How stand these together? But when th'apostles mentioned gods work in them, they said, neither the planter ne the waterer is any thing, but it is god that giveth the increase, and Paul saith of himself labouring above all his fellows, as correcting his speech not I, but the grace of god in me wrought it. So that they attributed all their works and labours, ye & their will & endeavours and worthiness all to gods grace wholly & nothing to themselves and so should ye do, if ye taught truly. But here ye harp again of your untewned ●arring conditions saying. The promises of god require the condition of worthiness on our behalf wherein is required our endeavour. The bis ye should speak plainly according to the scriptures saying. joy The promised forgiveness of our sins in christ requireth our faith which is the gift of god given us for Christ's merits, and put your good conditions your worthiness and endeavours in your purse, and deal them forth into your almose. For by this scorpions tail added. (The condition of our worthiness is required on our behalf wherein is required our endeavour) so smelleth of Pelagians free choice and merits contrary to grace that it poisoneth all the rest of your doctrine. For our endeavour must proceed out of our will and understanding, which both, if they be unto any good thing moved, it must come all of god. ye bring in a text of Paul, like a key to cleave a log, The byss. for his speaking in that place, nothing pertaineth to the justification we spoke of. The kaye that I bring in of S. Paul joy openeth the door so wide that all men not being stark blind (as ye be) may see that our best, works justify us not. These be his words, i Cor. iiii where he speaketh of his office of preaching, affirming himself to have done it to truly and faithfully that no man could blame him, no not my noun conscience, said he, can accuse me of any unfaithfulness or slackness or negligence therein, saying thus of himself. Nullius mihiipsi conscius sum. I know me self faultless, in nothing concerning my ministry guilty, Sed non per hoc justificatus sum, now construe you it forth & see whether in english it be not. But yet for this doing, or by this, am I not justified. Wherefore if Paul grant him self not to be justified for so blameless laborious, so perilous and so high an office and so good a deed, look not you to be justified for any of your good conditions yet not performed Hitherto thou seest (christian reader) how this bishops doctrine is patched together of mere papistry & sophistry & of shaneles lies, & heresies, builded upon s●●●er soft sands, every where inconstant, like itself, wavering, repugnant, slyppinge from one shift to another, seeking cavillations and corners to cover himself with colets, versicles, litanies, popish prayers, with blind and bald reasons sucked out of his own wily wicked wit, no scriptures groundlye ne faithfully nor truly alleged for his part, ne for his doctrine and declaration. And as thou hast now hitherto a taste thereof, even of the same sowersavor smelleth all the rest of his book, as I shall utter it in the next part of mine answer god willing. For I know that the holy scriptures, proceeding fro the mouth of the everlasting verity. (Albeit Satan with his sworn Antichristis have ever contended to pervert, and yet cease not by all their subtyles engines and fraud serpentine and false doctrine, by teaching ignorance (as writeth this bishop) to blot out of men's hearts the knowledge of gods holy gospel, nevermore to be hard ne red, but utterly to be extinguished with fire and sword as heresies, adding their bitter comminations and cruel condempnations in banishing and burning this year so many godly books and bibles) yet are they by the almighty merciable power of GOD, so preserved rooted, defended and nourished in the breasts of his chosen, that like as the farm strong palm tree, the greater weight be laid upon her, the mightylyer she ariseth and spreadeth: even so, the word of GOD, the cruellyer it is depressed and resisted with the tyranny of the bishops & priests the stronglier it ariseth, the wider it is dilated, the myghtilyer it ascendeth the deeper it is rooted, the fasterit standeth. For there have been many excellent wits, both of the pope's sophisters, of his school divines, of his rethritions and lawyers mighty in persuading blasphemies and as subtile by sophems to pervert christis pure verity which have stretched forth their venomous tongues, exercised their wily wit is and popish pens, armed with the seclare swords, with all their senews bend against the poor plain gospel, which all, as they have hitherto enforced into their own confusion and wretched fall, so have they the highlyer promoved it against their own wills. And yet these blind beasts, worthily thus cast of from god, see not their own bloody intents now plainly frustrated, and their own wicked enforcements to have prevailed against them seluis. What, think ye, shallbe the end of themperor now incensed of the pope to subvert Christ's gospel received in germany? Shall it not be turned into their mutual confusion one to be the destruction of the t'other and each of them to be the minishing of the others strength? one to consume the t'other, the worthy wrath of God at last to be powered forth on them both? when the seclar arm thus long defending and enriching the beast of Babylon shall at last eat up her flesh and burn up her city. Collo. two. Christ in whom are hidden the treasures of all knowledge and wisdom, was once forever revealed so plenteously & manifestly, that nothing necessary for our salvation may be added ne desired, but we ought to be content with his sufficient articles and sacraments left us in scripture all unwritten verities (as they call them utterly detested. And even then were the last days and hour. as joan and Paul testify, Heb. i. whereof his sacraments and articles and his doctrine be called the last that should be taught & delivered us, the father's voice with great majesty out of heaven commanding us to hear his son as the last and sufficient most perfect teacher & master, us not to wait for any other after him, lest any thence forth should be deceived by any further vain expectation and looking for any false teachers and writers as have this bishop with his Antichristes' hitherto seduced men with their false books and falser doctrine: from that which our lord preserve and defend this his church of england, to whom be praise for ever. Amen. And now unto you (my lord) send I this first piece to occupy yourself in making answer. It was Easter ere I had your book, & then had I little time scant twenty days to read it & to make this answer, and less quietness to write. For in deed ye made me a runner about into uncertain seats and under, and otherwhiles above uncertain sour elements. But the lord see to it, and ●e judge which taketh out of your hands into liberty all that yet suffer wrong of you.