ye doe take this worde hell for death it selfe and for the extremest and greatest perils daungers griefes dolours and anguishes that a man can suffer here in this worlde and whereby hee maie bee brought vnto his death and consequentlie for the guiltinesse of synne for the sting and power of death for the iudgement and wrath of god and for the bottomlesse Pit of all miseries and calamities when our sauiour Iesus Christe was so outragiously dealte withall when he did sweate blood when his soule was heauie euen vnto the death and when he was hanged most opprobriously despitefully and shamefully betwixt twoo theeues as forsaken of God and al creatures without aide helpe or comforte and so hangyng on a tree did geue vp the ghoste bearing the curse anger and furie of God whiche is a verie hell and féelyng vpon hym the condempnation paines and tormentes that were due vnto vs for our synnes then went he in deede downe into hell whiche thought to ouerwhealme hym but it coulde not bicause he was without sinne Or if ye take this worde hell for the graue and sepulchre then did our sauiour Christ go downe into hell when he was laide in the graue and descended into the lower partes of the earth as the Apostle doth witnesse and testifie Or if ye doe vnderstande by it the estate and condition of the dead then did our sauiour Iesus Christe go downe into hell when he died But moste specially when he did by his diuine power and godly might make all the elect whose soules were in Abrahams bosome to feele the efficacie strength and vertue of his death that he suffered for them and the fruites of his passion and bloodsheddyng Or if ye will take hell in this place which the Latines do expresse by this worde Inferna in the plurall nomber for the place of the damned I saie that our sauiour Iesus christ went downe vnto them I meane vnto the reprobate and damned when they did feele perceaue and vnderstande through his diuine and godly power that they were depriued of the merites of his death and passion and of the grace health and saluation that he had brought and purchased vnto his electe and chosen children And when he did by the vertue efficacie and strength of his death and bloodshedding breake the Serpents head accordyng to the promise that was made vnto our firste parentes Adam and Eue that is to saie when he did so ouerthrowe Sathan the deuill and all the power of hell that hee and his can no more preuaile against the chosen and electe of God nor yet against his true church faithfull congregation Then went he in déede downe into hell and did harrowe it whiche is a phrase and manner of speakyng that many doe vse but verie fewe doe vnderstande it for why they doe not perceiue that it is borowed of an olde custome and fashion that was vsed commonly among auncient kynges and princes when thei did make any notable warre against their enimies for then if they had taken any citie or towne they were wont not onely to beate it downe euen to the grounde but also to plowe it sowe it with Salte and to harrowe it as the like ye maie reade in the booke of Iudges howe Abimeleche sowed Salte so we reade of Fredericke Oenobarbus the Emperour that ouerthrewe Millane and sowed Salt there for that cittie toke parte with Alexander the thirde being Pope against Caesar and harrowed it after the Salte was sowen thereby to declare that the same citie or towne was brought into vtter desolation and that it should neuer be builded anie more 〈◊〉 Therfore when it is saide that our sauiour Iesus Christ did harrow hell the meanyng of it is though it be vnderstanded of fewe that Christe our sauiour did giue suche an ouerthrowe vnto sathan the deuill that he did so bruse and breake his head and that he hath gotten such a victorie ouer all the whole power of hell that it is no more able to hurte or hynder the children of God for vnto them onelie this viâ—â—â—ie is gotten hell hauyng still his full power ouer the vnfaithfull reprobate than a citie or towne that is beaten downe euen to the grounde and whiche is ploughed so wen ouer with Salte and harrowed is able to recouer it selfe or to harme the enimies that haue serued it so We must not yet imagine that our sauiour Iesus Christ did in his owne person go downe into the hell of the damned and that breakyng the yron gates he did bryng out in a rowe the patriarches and other faithfull fathers of the olde Testament for they were not there but were in the bosome of Abraham whiche as the trueth doeth saie hym selfe is a place of ioye rest and comforte suche a space beyng betwixt it and hell that the one can haue no accesse vnto the other And as for those that saie that the soule of our Sauiour Christe did suffer in hell fire although they dooe bryng and alledge certaine reasons and argumentes for them selues whiche at the firste maie séeme to haue some colour for to â—â—sell the eyes of the simple and ignoraunt yet can I in no wise allowe their opinions and iudgement in this pointe ¶ The .vj. Chapiter ¶ Reasons and argumentes of those that holde that Christe went downe to hell in his soule Aunswered THeir reasons and argumentes are these sith that our Sauiour Christe saie they did come into this worlde for to deliuer mankinde from euerlastyng damnation it was necessarie that for to make satisfaction vnto the iustice and righteousnesse of God he shoulde beare the whole malediction curse and damnation that all mankinde did deserue but the malediction curse and damnation that our sauiour christ did beare in the bodie when he did suffer his death and passion was not sufficient for the synne of man whiche he hath deserued and doth deserue euerlasting damnation is not onelie in the fleshe and in the body of man but most specially in the soule Therefore it hath not béen ordained of God that the body and fleshe onely should suffer punishment but also the soule Sithe then that man was iudged and condemned bicause of his synne to suffer euerlastyng punishment both in body and soule It was also requisite that Christe for a full satisfaction for our synnes shoulde suffer the same that we shoulde haue suffered Whiche thyng he had not doen if he had not suffered punishment as well in the soule as in the bodie Whervpon they do conclude that as he hath suffred in the body here vpoÌ„ the earth so he did also suffer in soule beneath in hell that the satisfaction might be whole perfect and full And of this opinion many of the auncient and late writers haue been Bede maketh mention of it in a certaine place not affirmyng that it was so but alledgyng onelie the opinion of some and yet without namyng
of them howbeit I thinke that he did vnderstande Origene Ierome and Tertullian But nowe we will sée howe well this doth agree with the person of Christe our Sauiour Firste and formoste if they will haue the punishmentes paines and tormentes that Christe suffered to be in all pointes corespondent vnto those synners for whom Christ died had deserued it had not been onely necessarie that he shoulde haue suffered here in the body vppon the earth And that the soule should also haue suffered in hell for a while but that hee shoulde haue suffered both in body and soule euerlastyng punishmentes with the damned But God his father did content hymself with the paines and tormentes that he was in for a while hauyng a respecte not onely vnto the paines that he did suffer but vnto his righteousnes innocencie and obedience whiche caused hym to take and allowe the paines whiche our Sauiour Christe did suffer for a tyme as sufficient for to obtaine and purchase vnto the faithfull beléeuers a full deliueraunce from euerlastyng paines and tormentes which thei had deserued through their synnes Moreouer it was no néede at all that the soule of our Sauiour Christe shoulde goe downe into hell for to suffer there for it hath suffered punishment enough here vpon earth sithe that in it I meane in his soule he did beare the same iudgement and condempnation that we had deserued for the bodie did not suffer without the soule yea if the sorowes and paynes of the one could bee separated from the sorowes and paynes of the other whiles the body and soule be ioyned together by life we should haue a iuste occation to saie that the soule did suffer afore the body and that the sorowes and griefes of the body did proceede and come firste of the soule For els what did these wordes meane my soule is heauie vnto the verie death whereof came this wofull sweate that did runne downe to the grounde as droppes of bloud and the complainte that he made to GOD his father in the Garden Wherof did also come that greate feare trouble and horror that he was possessed withall as the Euangelistes doe testifie vnto vs If he had not bene in an extreame agonie and much greater then mans wisdome can comprehende What neede should he haue of the Angels for to comfort hym Againe who would not wonder and marueile to sée christ our sauiour so sore affraide and troubled as the Euangelistes doe set hym foorth vnto vs for the death that he should suffer if he should haue had respect to none other thing but onely vnto the death Doe we thinke that there was lesse hearte lesse corage constancie and manfulnes in our sauiour christe then in many thousande of Martyres that haue gone so ioyfully and merely vnto their death for his sake But what doe I speake of Martyres howe many wicked doers doe we sée daiely goe to their death whiche they haue deserued with their wicked and abhominable doynges moste manfully and with suche a face and countenaunce that ye would thinke that they did goe to a feaste or banquet Shall we saie that the sonne of god had lesse corage then these haue in so good a cause as he did die in It must needes be then that there was some greater thing then death of the Crosse which was at hande somewhat there was I saie that was of more weight and importaunce then that whichâ— did appeare outwardly His body was not yet in the handes of the tormentours he had onely the death before his eyes and as it were an imagination of it whiche troubled hym nothyng so muche as the dreadfull iudgement of God which he knewe he must needes beare When he did then enter into this agonie then did heâ— begynne already to descende and go downe into this horrible hell where he was deteined and kepte a while for our sakes for what greater hell can one imagine to be vnto man than to féele gods wrath throughly kindled against hym to be faine to beare his terrible iudgement and furie and to bee in the same estate that our sauiour Christe was in when he did crie out saiyng My God my God why hast thou forsaken mée Although he was true and naturall God and also true and naturall man so that his godhead could not be separated from his manhoode yet the humanitie was then as if it had been vtterly forsaken of the diuinitie and left succourlesse and as if it had been both in body and soule driuen downe into the bottomlesse pit of hell and geuen ouer of God. Therefore it was no neede that the soule of christ should goe downe after any other sorte for to suffer the paines and tormentes that we had deserued For the places doo not agrauate the paines or make them more heauie and greeuous but the heauie and intollerable burden of Gods wrath and iudgement wheresoeuer it is felte or whersoeuer men are faine to beare it Therefore they that doe affirme that the soule of our sauiour Christ must néedes of necessitie suffer in hell do plainelie declare that they knowe not what hell is nor what our sauiour christ did suffer for them nor yet what the vertue and efficacie of his death and passion is I allowe better the opinion of them whiche saie that this is to be vnderstanded of a spirituall descendyng or goyng downe whereby it was declared and preached through the efficacie vertue and power of christes holy spirite vnto the soules of the reprobate that were in the vnquenchable fire of hell that their vnbeléefe and stubburnnesse was the cause of their eternall and euerlasting damnation and that they should haue no deliueraunce from it by the death and passion of the onely begotten sonne of god our sauiour Iesu Christe where vnto the wordes of sainct Peter seemeth well to agree saiyng Christ hath once suffered for synnes the iuste for the vniust for to bryng vs to God and was killed as pertainyng to the fleshe but was quickened in â—he spirite in whiche spirite he also went and preached vnto the spirites that were in prisone whiche were in tymes past disobedient So we perceiue by these wordes of the Apostle that both the damned and saued had alone maner of féeling of the death and passion of Christ but yet to diuers endes for the one that is to the godly that were in Abrahams bosome was certified by the diuine power and godhead of Christe that nowe was the fulnes of tyme come to fill vp the measure of their ioye and euerlastyng saluation that they long looked hoped and thirsted for And to the damned was preached christ crucified but to the encreasing and augmentyng of their owne damnation for that they had no parte or portion by his death of gods fauour But rather an heauie iudgement bicause as S. Paule saieth Christe is Odor mortis ad mortem his c. That is the sauour of death
vnto death to those that beléeue not But howsoeuer men liste to take it this shal be my beléef that the goyng downe of Christ into hell is our deliueraunce from thence For excepte our sauiour Christe had been enuironed and compassed aboute with the sorowes and paines of hell and in a maner ouerwhelmed with them for a while hell would haue swallowed vs vp vnto euerlastyng damnation we should haue perished vtterly both in body and soule wee should neuer haue escaped the tyranny of Sathan nor be healed of the deadly wounde that we haue receiued of that olde venimous serpent the deuill and enimie to our saluation So that I denie not that article of Christes discention but of the maner howe is the question for when it is saide he will not leaue his soule in hell he speaketh not of his discendyng into hell of the damned but that he shal rise againe from the dead that is he shall not leaue hym in death or liyng continuallie in the graue For the soule in that place is taken for the whole naturall man c. For seeke all the scriptures from one ende to a nother and ye shall neuer finde that Christ in body or soule discended into hell but that he died and rose againe the thirde daie accordyng to the Scriptures For you shall note that the East Churche had it not the Counsell of Nicen Creede hath it not nor the Counsell of Ephesus c. But to be short ye shal vnderstande that christ descended into hell three maner of waies Videl Firste in power as when the Uaile of the Temple did rent in twaine from the top to the bottome and the earth did quake and the stones were clouen and the graues did open them selues and many bodies of the Sainctes whiche slept arose and came out of the graues after his resurrection and went into the holy Citie and appeared vnto many Secondly in spirite when as he saide my soule is heauy euen vnto the death and when he cried my God my my God why hast thou forsaken mee The thirde in person when as he was laide in the graue as we reade that thei tooke the body of Iesus and wrapped it in linnen clothes with the odours as the maner of the Iewes is to bury Paul saith now in that hee ascended what is it but that he had also descended first into the lower parte of the earth This deare brother is my beleefe grounded vpon the worde of GOD and not vpon men or mens dreames or phantacies And reporte not that I doe denie any article of the faithe God forbid I should wherfore reade with iudgement and with the spirite of mildenes come not pre iudicio but with iudicio Some there be againe that be of opinion that the soule of Christe went not downe into the hell of the damned but that it went onely downe for to deliuer the Patriarkes and other holy fathers of the olde Testament out of the Lymbe ▪ and also for to deliuer the soules of them that were of lesse perfection then the Patriarkes and other holy fathers out of the paines of purgatory where they were kepte for to make satisfaction for those synnes that they had done no penaunce for in this worlde But as for Lymbe I knowe none but Abrahams bosome whiche to saie truely is that moste blessed life whiche they that dye in the faithe that Abraham did shall enioye after this worlde ¶ The .vij. Chapiter ¶ Christe is our true Purgatorie and the Papistes Purgatorie is false AS for Purgatorie I knowe none other but the blood of Iesu Christe our onely sauiour that doth cleanse vs from all our sinnes Againe none other fire doe I know in all the Scriptures that hath any vertue or power to purge synnes but the fire of his holy spirite wherewith he promised to Baptize his elect and chosen and the fire of his sacred and diuine word whereof hym selfe speaketh on this maner ye are cleane bicause of the woorde that I haue spoken vnto you This is true purgatorie wherein all muste be purged afore that they can enter into the kingdome of God. That other Purgatorie that they haue inuented of their owne heades without and against Gods worde is a most deuillishe and abhominable blasphemyng against the merites and bloodshedding of our sauiour Christes death and Passion For by it the onely begotten sonne of God is made an vnperfect sauiour and of lesse aucthoritie power and strength then they will haue that fleshely ydoll of Rome and most pernicious antichriste to be vnto whom they dare attribute and giue full aucthoritie and power to absolue men and to graunte vnto them a ful pardon of all their synnes euen a poena a culpa that is to say to deliuer them not onely from the offence it self but also from the paine or punishment that is due vnto it Whereas poore Christe who hath shed his heart blood for vs and who hath troden the Wine presse alone is scarcely able by their doctrine to forgeue vs our offences at least he cānot release vs of the paine For if it be of his forgeuing we must suffer the paines that be due vnto our synnes in the fire of Purgatorie till we haue made satisfaction for them or till we haue bought them out at the antichristes handes and at the handes of his shauelinges or els we muste make a full satisfaction for them here in this worlde whiles we are here yet a liue if at least we entend for to escape that whot burning fire of theirs So that euery waie Christe shall be but halfe a a Sauiour and God his father a moste abhominable and deceitfull lyer for he saieth at what tyme soeuer a synner doth repent hym of his synne from the bottome of his harte I wil put his wickednes out of my remembraunce so that it shall no more be thought vpon How is this promise fulfilled I praie you if he doe so cruelly punishe our wickednes and offences in the fire of purgatorie after that he hath forgeuen and pardoned them Is this to thinke no more vpon them what can these deuillishe and abhominable Sophisters alledge nowe for them selues will they saie that GOD is a lier and that he doeth not performe and fulfil his promises moste truely either they must saie so what startyng holes soeuer they can finde out or els confesse and acknowledge that their doctrine is most detestable and also blasphemous against the trueth of Gods promises and against the merites of the moste precious death passion and bloodsheddyng of his onely begotten sonne our Sauiour Iesu Christe And in a nother place this moste mercifull Father and bounteous Lorde who is alwaies true and most faithfull in all his promises doeth crie out saiyng I am he I am he that taketh awaie thy wickednes and that for mine owne sake and thy synnes will I remember no more Here
body that he died and was buried in ¶ The .xij. Chapiter ¶ Of Christes ascention into heauen and how it is saide that he sitteth at the right hand of god c. And after what maner he is here amongest vs. AND he did most triumphantly in the sight of al his Apostles and Disciples ascende vp into heauen where a clowde receaued hym vp out of their sight the Angels testifiyng that as he was taken vp from vs into heauen so he shall be séene come againe at the dreadfull daie of iudgement when he shall being accompanied with his holy angels come downe to iudge both the quicke and the dead In the meane season we must not thinke though he hath taken the reall presence of his body away from vs that therfore he hath forsaken vs or that he doth not assist ayde and helpe his chosen and elect as long as they be pylgrimes and straungers here in the earth For according to his promise ▪ he is alwayes with vs vnto the worldes ende Which thing must be vnderstanded of his godly power and inuisible grace So doeth Saint Augustine saie Secundum presentiam maiestatis semper habomus christum Accordyng to the presence or as he is God we haue alwaies christ with vs againe he saieth in the same place Nam secundum maiestatem suam secundum prouidentiam secundum ineffabilem et inuisibilem gratiam impletur quod ab e◠dictum est ecce ego vobiscū sum omnibus diebus vsque ad consummationem seculi That is to saie in englishe as concernyng his diuine maiestie his prouidence his inestimable and inuisible grace these words are fulfilled that were spoken by hym beholde I am with you all the daies of your life vnto the worldes ende For as touching his humanitie or manhoode he is absent from vs and wyll be to the worldes ende vntyll he shall be séene visibly of all fleshe to come againe thereto accordeth S. Augustine saiyng Secundum presentiam carnis recte dictum est discipulis sui◠me autem non semper habebitis Accordyng to the presence of his fleshe or body it was rightly and truely saide vnto his disciples mée you shal not haue alwaies For it is to be noted that as he is both God and man so touchyng his manhoode or humanitie that he tooke in the virgines wombe ▪ he is in all thynges like vnto vs synne onely beyng excepted as the holie apostle doth write saiyng he tooke not on him Angels but the séede of Abraham that in all thinges he might be like vnto his brethren As then he did hunger and thirst in the same body was subiect to all maner of infirmities that we his brethren are subiect vnto sinne alwayes being excepted therefore Barnarde very pretily sayde Christe loued vs dulcior sapientior fortior Swéetely in that he toke our fleshe vpon him wisely in that hée had no sinne by takyng our nature vppon him strongly in that he vanquished Sathan death and sinne So hauing fulfylled the thinges that he toke it for he dyd cary it vp into heauen and there he sitteth in the same humaine body being nowe glorified and immortall on the right hande of God the father Almightie which is as much to say as that he is exalted aboue the heauens hauing receaued a full aucthoritie and power ouer all creatures both in heauen and in earth and raigning there in glorie with the father tyll his enimies be made his footstoole For when we heare that Christ is set downe on the right hande of his father we must put all grosse imaginations out of our mindes We must beware that we imagine not that God the father is set downe as an earthly king in some visible and materiall seate and that Iesus Christ is set downe by him in another as his son or one of his princes and lordes Againe we must not thinke that God the father in his diuine essence hath a right hande and a left hande with other humayne lymmes as we sée mortall men to haue For that were to fall into the heresie of the Antropomorphites but rather we must marke that it is spoken by a similitude being borowed of princes and kinges of the worlde For as a king doth commonly cause that man to sit by him and at his right hande whom he wyll most honour and vnto whom he wyll geue most aucthoritie and power so we do vnderstande by these wordes that our Sauiour Christe is exalted aboue all creatures and that he hath power geuen vnto him both in heauen and in earth and that he raigneth with the father hauing equall power with him Or by the right hande of God we may right well vnderstande with Saint Augustine the place of felicitie and ioye where our Sauiour Christ doth raigne nowe in glorie with the holy angels and with all the blessed spirites and soules of the chosen and elect of God As contrarywise by his left hand the state and condition of the reprobate is vnderstanded and signified vnto vs. Againe it is not knowen to them that reade the scriptures that to syt is many tymes taken for to be in quiet peace and rest as when Moyses saith to the children of Gad and of Ruben Shall your brethren go foorth vnto the warre and ye syt here Againe in the prophete Euery man shall syt vnder his Figge trée When we say then that our Sauiour Christ is set downe we do vnderstande that he is after the paynefull labours of this life and the wofull death of the crosse entred into a ioyfull and quiet rest where he shal be touching his humanitie and manhoode as lorde and head ruler of all creatures both in heauen and in the earth vntyl the time that all things which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophetes since the worlde began be restored againe as the holy Apostle saint Peter doth testifie vnto vs in the Actes For a better vnderstanding of the whole matter and also that the ignoraunt and simple persons may the better auoyde the subtile trickes of the deuyls Sophistrie which is wont to dasill the eyes of the vnlearned with this like argumentes The right hand of God is taken for his almightie power but his almightie power is can be euery where Ergo sith that Christ touchyng his manhoode is on the right hand of God the humanitie or manhoode of Christe can be euery where It is to be noted and marked that the right hand of God is taken two maner of waies First by it the almightie power of God is vnderstanded as when Moyses doeth saie in his Canticle Thine hande Lorde is glorious thine hande hath all too dashed the enimie And in the Actes of the Apostles Saint Peter saieth him hath God lift vp with his right hande In these places and such like the right hande of god is taken for his almighty power wherwith he
veritie of his body It is not conuenient nor méete that the same that is in God shoulde be euery where as god For the infallible Scripture saith of vs that we be in God that we liue and moue in him and yet we are not in all places as he is And a litle after he concludeth saiyng Ne dubites christum esse in aliquo loco celi propter veri corporis modum Doe not doubte Christe to be in some certaine place of heauen bicause of the propertie and fourme of a verie body for he had said a litle before Christ in that he is God is euery where or in all places and in that he is man he is in heauen Againe he saieth in an other place Corpus enim domini in quo resurrexit in vno loco esse oportet veritas eius vbique diffusa est The body of Christe in the which he rose can be but in one place but his trueth is dispersed euery where Againe he saieth Spatia locorum tolle corporibut et nusquam erunt quia nusquam erunt nec erunt tolle ipsa corpora qualitatibus corporum non erit vbi sint ideo necesse vt non sint That is to saie take awaie from bodies limitation of places and the bodies will be no where and bicause they bee no where they will be nothyng take awaie from bodies the qualities of bodies there will be no place for them to bee in and therefore the same bodies must needes be no bodies at all Againe he saieth Christus secundum presentiam corporalem in Luna in Sole in Cruce simul esse non potuit Christ as touchyng his corporal presence could not be in the Sunne in the Moone and vpon the Crosse at one tyme. Saint Ciryll also saieth Secundum carnem abiturus erat adest autem semper virtute deitatis Touching Christes body or fleshe it is gone notwithstandyng he is present alwaies by the power of his godhead againe Nam si corpore abfuero tamen presens vt deus ero Although I shall bee absent in my bodie notwithstanding I shall be present as I am God. Saint Origene also speaketh most plainely It is not christ as being man that is whersoeuer two or thrée be gathered together in his name neither christ as being man is with vs al daies vnto the worldes ende nor Christ as beyng man is present with the faithful euery where gathered together but the diuine power or nature that is in Christe Gregorie a Pope some tyme of Rome saieth in the like sorte Verbum incarnatum manet recedit manet diuinitate recedit corpore The worde incarnate doth tary and doth go awaie doth tary and remayne by his diuinitie and Godhead doeth depart or go away by or in his body But yet Vigilius Martyr doeth make the matter more playne when he saith If the nature of the fleshe and of the worde is all one howe doeth it chaunce that whereas the worde is euery where the fleshe is not also founde to be euery where For when it was in earth truely it was not in heauen and nowe that it is in heauen truely it is not in the earth and in so much it is not in the earth that we loke that Christ shal come from heauen touching his fleshe whom touching the worde we beléeue to be alwayes with vs. Therefore after your opinion either the worde is conteyned in place with his fleshe or the fleshe is euerywhere with the worde For one nature doeth conceaue no contrarie thing in it selfe But it is most contrarie and vnlike to be euerye where and to be conteyned in place I trust that we haue already sufficiently proued that although the humanitie and Godhead of Christe be so ioyntly ioyned together in vnitie of person that the one can not be separated from the other yet it foloweth not that wheresoeuer the Godhead is there the manhoode and humanitie must be also Therefore when the Scriptures saith that our Sauiour Iesus Christ is syt downe on the right hande of the father they shal be fayne in despite of their heartes there to vnderstande with Saint Augustine by the right hande a place of eternall rest felicitie and ioye where our Sauiour Christ touchyng his manhoode beyng accompanied with all the holy angels and with all the blessed spirites and soules departed doth raigne with the father in coequal glory and maiesty For that the same right hande whereon our sauiour Christe should sit is a certaine locall place it euidently appeareth by his owne wordes where he saith If any man doeth minister vnto mee let hym folow mee and where I am there shall my minister be also Againe I wil that thei which thou hast geuen vnto mée be with mee where I am that they maie see my glory which thou hast geuen vnto mee Who doeth not see that he doeth here speake of some certaine locall place where his elect and chosen should be with hym in euerlastyng glorie and ioye For touchyng his Godhead his chosen and elect are with hym and he with them according to the promise that he hath made vnto vs saiyng Beholde I am with you alwaies vnto the worldes ende Againe if any man loue mee he kepeth my worde and my father shall loue hym and we will come vnto hym and dwell with hym Therefore those places and textes must bee vnderstanded of Christe beyng true and perfect man with whom beyng in the glorious kingdome of his father all his faithfull seruaunts and ministers shal be ▪ Else if they will still mainteine stiflie that Christe touchyng his manhoode can be euerie where thei shal be faine to graunt also that his faithfull seruauntes and ministers be euery where with him For he saieth where I am there shall my ministers be also ¶ The .xiiij. Chapter ¶ Againste popishe transubstantiation THis aunswere I knowe they will make Sith that our sauiour Christe did saie holdyng the bread of the Sacramente in his handes This is my body the body of christ muste needes be wheresoeuer the Sacrament is ministred though it be in ten thousande places at once For he saide and thei were made he commaunded and they were created This is most certaine sure his word must be fulfilled it must needes be as he saide though we can not comprehende by our naturall reason howe it can be doen or brought to passe Moreouer saie they where as twoo witnesses by the lawe of God are sufficient to proue and confirme a trueth we haue foure of the chéefest that euer were in all the whole worlde For we haue thrée of the Euangelistes and the blessed apostle Sainct Paul whiche doe with a whole and full consent rehearse these wordes that we haue alledged whiche the trueth hym selfe did vse in the institution of his Sacrament all after one fashion Whiche thyng they would not haue doen if our Sauiour
howe that their obiection is friuolous and vaine and to no purpose but onely to deceiue the symple and ignoraunt All the foure Euangelistes doe also witnesse vnto vs that these are christes wordes from hencefoorth the sonne of man shal be sittyng on the right hande of the power of god And I went out from the father and came into the worlde and I leaue the worlde againe and go vnto the father The blessed Euangeliste saint Marke doeth write on this maner When the Lorde had spoken vnto them hee was receaued into heauen and sate hym downe on the right hand of god These wordes haue we written in Luke he led them out into Bethanie and lift vp his handes and blessed them And it came to passe as he blessed them he departed from them and was caried vp into heauen But he doeth so liuely set out the matter I meane the ascendyng vp of Christ into heauen in the booke of the Actes of the Apostles that thei may be ashamed to open their mouthes for to saie that the body of Christe is still here in earth whersoeuer their holy annointed do blowe vpon a peece of bread or vpon a wafer cake Againe when the blessed Apostle saint Paul doeth byd vs to seeke Christe he biddeth vs not to seeke for hym in the Sacrament but aboue in heauen where hee sitteth on the right hande of the father If ye be saith he risen againe with christ seeke those thynges whiche are aboue where Christe sitteth on the right hand of God. And in a nother place Our conuersation is in heauen from whence we looke for the Sauiour euen the Lorde Iesu Christ whiche shall chaunge our vile bodies that they maie be fashioned like vnto his glorious bodie By these wordes we do plainely learne that Christ is not onely in heauen touchyng his manhoode but that he shall also when he cōmeth againe make our vile and corruptible bodies like vnto his glorious body Whereby it shoulde folowe if the body of our Sauiour Christe beyng glorified and immortall can be euery where or in mo places then in one at once that our bodies also sith that they shall be made like vnto his glorious body could be euery where and in all places after the generall resurrection whereby the same that the Apostle doeth speake of here shal be performed and fulfilled But this absurditie is so greate that no christian euer is able to heare it Christe hym selfe willyng that we should seeke hym none other where but in heauen and also armyng vs against those false Prophetes that should go about to perswade vs that he is here styll vpon the earth doth saie these wordes Take heede I haue tolde you before if they shal saie vnto you beholde he is in the deserte go not foorth beholde he is in the secrete places beléeue not Why should we then at these antichristes bidding runne from aulter to aulter and from pixe to pixe for to seeke our Sauiour Christe Ought we not rather to doe as we reade that an olde auncient father did vnto whom the deuill did appeare in the likenes of Christe saiyng beholde thy Lorde and thy Kyng This good olde auncient father hearing this blasphemous voice did shut vp his eyes saiyng I will not see my Lorde and my Kyng in this worlde For he hymselfe euen my Sauiour and redéemer did geue me warning that if any should say that he were in the desert or in some secrete places I shoulde not beléeue it And so the foule spirite did by and by vanishe away from him If we woulde do the like when these false annoynted do most lyingly say vnto vs Beholde Christ is in this aulter or in that aulter he is in this pixe or that pixe this abominable spirite of idolatrie wherby the christian people is pluckt away from the true worshipping of God to the honouring and worshipping of a péece of bread which being a good creature of God thei make a stincking idol should seene vanishe away from vs. But heare yet what Saint Paul saith Christe hauyng in his owne person purged our sinnes sitteth on the ryght hande of the maiestie in the highest places And in another place he saith This man after that he had offered one sacrifice for sinnes sitteth for euer at the right hande of God and from hencefoorth tarieth til his enimies be made his footstoole Let vs but marke this last saying of Paul. For here hée doth teache vs that our Sauiour Iesus Christ after that he had perfourmed done the thing wherefore he had put on our frayle nature he did take it vp into heauen where he sitteth down in it on the right hand of the maiestie of god not for a yere or two or for to be here at euery papistes becke almost euery houre of the day but for euer euen tyll his enimies be made his footstoole which thing shall neuer be tyll the worldes ende In the meane season let vs folowe the commaundement of the Apostle where he saith Whensoeuer ye eate of this bread and drinke of this cup ye shall shewe foorth the Lordes death tyll he come These wordes tyll he come must be vnderstanded either of his manhoode or of his Godhead But of his Godhead they can not be vnderstanded for touching it he is wheresoeuer two or three are gathered in his name much more where the whole congregation of the faithfull be assembled together for to heare his worde and to receaue his holy Sacramentes They must then of necessitie be vnderstanded of his manhoode which if it were there the Apostle néeded not to say tyll he come for he shoulde be there already present These places and other like whiche I néede not nowe to bring in for I haue witnesses enowe for their foure of the which yet two do make directly against them do sufficiently declare that these wordes of our Sauiour Christ This is my body ought not to be taken in that sence and signification that they will haue vs to take them for First and formost let vs marke the whole tenour of the wordes Christe our Sauiour saieth This is my body whiche is geuen for you Here he speaketh of a mortall body which in all thynges was like vnto our bodyes synne onely excepted and whiche hath a due proportion of lymmes with all other dimensions that pertaine to an humaine bodye and without the whiche it could be no humaine body And I doe beléeue that he did rise againe and was glorified in the same body hauyng his due proportion of lymmes and all other dimensions still that doe pertaine to mans bodie I beléeue also that the same body though it be now immortall is still of a iust height length breadth and thickenesse hauing a head armes handes and feete and all other members that are required in a perfect mans body Whiche thyng they will confesse excepte that they will affirme with Martion that Christe
had a phantasticall bodie whiche appeared outwardely to be a very mans body and yet was none Or except thei wil saie with Eutiches that the body of christ is deified or tourned into the godhead But I know that they would not for all the goods in the worlde be companions of heretiques Therefore I woulde fayne knowe of them howe and after what sort this body of Christe whiche lacketh nothing to the perfection of an humaine body shoulde be in such a small péece of bread I am sure that they wyll say that the body of Christ is in heauen on the right hande of the father with his due proportion of lymmes and other dimensions that apperteyne to a perfect mans body that is to witte with his iust height length breadth and thicknesse But it is in the Sacrament without any of al those things so that if we aske them where the head is where the feete be and the armes they wyll immediatly aunswere that all is head all is féete all is armes breast and shoulders and that we must seke there for no distinct proportion of lymmes nor any due order of the members But let them drinke water styll with the Swannes of Thamesis tyll they haue proued their monstrous doctrine by the word of God or by any aucthoritie of the auncient fathers of the true Catholike Churche and then I warrant that they shall neuer go drunken to bed Yea they are not ashamed to say that in the Sacrament the body of Christe doth occupie no place and yet they wyll haue there the same selfe body that was borne of the virgin that hong on the crosse and that ascended vp into heauen Is not this I pray you to spoyle our sauiour Christ of the veritie and trueth of a body For as Saint Augustine faith Take away the limittation of places from the bodyes and they shal be no where and because that they shal be no where they shall not be at all Sithe then that they wyll not haue the body of Christe to occupie any place in the sacrament we can conclude none other by the wordes of saint Augustine but that it is not there at all For the naturall body of Christe doeth occupie a place where so euer it be as ours shall after the generall resurrection of al fleshe So the same Saint Augustine saieth a litle after the place before rehearsed Ne dubites Christum esse in aliquo loco celi propter veri corporis modum Doe not doubte Christ to be in some one place of heauen bicause of the propertie and measure of a verie bodie Againe he saieth Christum secundum humanitatem visibilem corporem localem atque omnia membra humana veracitèr habentem credere conuenit confiteri We must beléeue and confesse that Christe accordyng to his humanitie is visible hath the substaunce and properties of a body is conteined in place and verely hath al the members the whole proportion of a man These testimonies are so manifest that vnlesse the papistes haue whorishe foreheades they will blushe and be ashamed But here they will alledge against mee the wonderous workes that our Sauiour Christe did worke in his body both afore his resurrection and after saiyng Maie not the naturall body of Christ be aswell vnder a small péece of bread as he did walke vpō the waters which is cleane contrary to the nature of an humaine bodie or aswell as he did come in to his apostles through the doores beyng shut fast Is the hande of god now shortened or is he not still almightie and able to doe what so euer he will both in heauen and in earth No man I trowe doth denie the almightie power of god For we doe all confesse with all submission due reuerence that he is able to do whatsoeuer he will both in heauen and in earth But it followeth not bicause he is almightie and able to doe whatsoeuer he will that therefore he will doe whatsouer wee shall imagine or inuent out of our owne heades and braynes besides or against the manifest and sacred scriptures We muste not thynke that his omnipotencie or almightie power will bee bounde to our vaine imaginations and phantasies Againe it hath béen alwaies counted a childishe argument and vnworthy to be vsed among the learned to reason a posse ad esse For who woulde not deride and laugh hym to scorne that would reason after this maner God is able through his omnipotencie and almightie power to doe this or that Ergo he hath doen it God was able to make vs Swine Sheepe Oxen Horses Trées Stones Frogges Lice Dogges c. Yet he hath not doen soe but of his meere goodnes and mercie hee hath made vs after his owne similitude and image for to inherite with hym his glorious kyngdome of heauen Hearken what that auncient father Tertullian saieth touchyng the omnipotencie or almightie power of GOD Some man peraduenture saieth he will saie there is nothyng vnpossible to God let vs vse this saiyng in our presumptious fancies and then may we imagine of God whatsoeuer we list as though he hath doen it bicause he is able to do it For we must not thinke bicause that god is almighty that therfore he hath doen the thyng whiche he neuer did Sed an fecerit requirendum est But we must first enquire whether he hath doone it or no. And so there shal be some thing vnpossible to GOD that is to wit whatsoeuer he will not Dei enim posse velle est non posse nolle For in God to be willyng is to be able and to be vnwillyng is to be vnable And vnto this maie be added the saiyng of Theodoretus who is also a very auncient writer GOD saieth he is able to doe whatsoeuer he will but he will doe none of those thinges that be not in hym of their owne nature Sith then that God is true of his owne nature he can doe nothyng that is against his worde Not bicause saieth the other catholique Fathers that he is not able to doe it but bicause that he will do nothyng against his owne nature And again bicause that it is vnméete that he should worke against hymselfe Thus farre he We may vnderstande by these auctorities now by mee alledged how we ought to reason vpon the omnipotencie and almightie power of god It is not enough for vs to saie God is almightie and able to doe all thynges Ergo the bodie of christ is really and substantially flesh blood and bones in the sacrament but first we must enquire whether God will haue it so or not If the worde of God should certifie vs that he would haue the body of his onely begotten sonne our sauiour Iesus christ after the same monstrous sorte in the Sacrament as they doo imagine and will haue other men to beleeue then ought we to beleeue it vndoubtedly and without any
crie and craue for mercie but no mercie shal be graunted them No lesse rigour doubtelesse shal be vsed against them if for a smale offence they wil be reueÌ„ged to the vttermost For as the scripture testifieth he that seketh vengeauÌ„ce shal finde vengeaunce of the Lorde who shall surely kepe vnto him his synnes Which thyng Christe our Sauiour teacheth vs by a a liuely parable or similitude when he bringeth in the kyng that doth call his 〈…〉 and accounte and vnto whom one was brought that did owe hym tenne thousande talenteâ— whiche he forgaue hym â—â—ite bicause that heâ— had besought him But this man was full of mischief would not shewe the like mercie vnto his felowe seruaunts that did owe hym but an hundred pence and therefore his lorde was angrie and deliuered hym vnto the Iailers tyll he had payde the vttermoste farthing Euen so shall my heauenly father do vnto you doeth our Sauiour Christe conclude excepte ye doe from the bottome of your heartes forgiue your brethren their trespasses The thirde sorte of people which shall receaue iudgement without mercie are the iusticiaries worke mongers which seeke to be saued and iustified by their owne workes and merites and which being ignoraunt of the righteousnesse of god doe go aboute to set vp their owne righteousnesse and so wyll in no wise be subiect to the righteousnesse that is auaileable before god They doubtelesse shal be called to a strayte rekcnyng and accounte For why all they that are suche doe remaine styll vnder the curse of the Lawe as sainct Paule wryteth saiyng As many as be of workes that is to say as manie as go aboute to be iustified by the workes of the lawe are vnder the curse For it is written Cursed be euery man that continueth not in all thynges that are written in the booke of the lawe to do them Beyng then vnder the curse and malediction of God bicause that thei did most vnthankefully refuse the mercifull meane that he had of his mere goodnesse appointed vnto them for to be iustified by they muste needes runne into euerlastyng condemnation Doth not the trueth hymself saie that though we did all that he commaundeth vs yet we are vnprofitable seruauntes But who in all the worlde is able to doe the tenth parte of that whiche God doeth require of vs and with that perfection as he will haue it to be doen not one man liuyng in the world What are we then but a thousande tymes worse then vnprofitable seruauntes They therfore that go aboute to be iustified by their owne beggerly workes and stincking righteousnes whiche before God is as the filthie cloutes of a menstruâ—us woman are most worthy to finde Christe whom they will make but a patched and an vnperfeate Sauiour a moste rigorous and extreme iudge whereas if mistrustyng our owne righteousnes merites and doynges we do flee and appeale to the onely mercie of God takyng a sure holde thereupon through faith in our sauiour Christe and saâ—yng vnfeinedly with Dauid and Iob O Lorde enter not into iudgement with thy seruauntes for in thy sight shall no man liuyng bee iustified If I would iustifie my selfe my owne mouth shall condemne mee if I would bee perfect he should iudge me wicked Lo though he slea me yâ—t wil I trust in him I wil reproue my waies in his sight it is so farre of that we ought to feare the daie of iudgement and commyng of our heauenly and eternall iudge or that those greuous sentences and saynges ought to be dreadfull vnto vs that rather our sauiour and iudge biddeth vs to looke vp and lifte vp our heades assuryng vs that then our saluation is at hande Yea that we might bee the more certaine of it he promiseth that al his commyng he will sende his Aungelles with a greate voice of a Trumpe and that thei shall gather together his chosen and predestinated children froÌ„ the foure windes and from the one ende of the worlde to the other Where soeuer wee shall be then I meane when our Sauiour and iudge shall come whether it bee in the bowelles of the earth or any where else here in this vale of miserie wee maie bee sure that wée shal bee gathered together vnto hym there for to receiue our full and perfecte saluation bothe in bodie and soule Let vs not therefore suffer our enemie Sathan to driue vs to any desperation by puttyng vs in remembraunce of the dreadfull daie of iudgemente But rather in the conflict and agonie of our consciences let vs haue alwaies before the eyes of our faithe besides the goodly and comfortable saiynges that haue been brought in alreadie that Christe shall not onely come as a iudge but as a moste benigne and mercifull sauiour of his people And therefore saincte Paule dooeth write that from heauen wee looke for a Sauiour euen the Lorde Iesus Christe who shall chaunge our vile bodies that thei maie bee fashioned like vnto his glorious bodie In the meane while lette vs take heede to our selues that our hartes bee not ouercome with surfettyng and drunkennesse leaste that daie dooe come vpon vs vnwares For it shall come as a snare on al them that sitte vpon the face of the earth Therefore wee haue neede to watche and praie that wee maie bee readie when he commeth and that wee maie stande before him hauyng and vsyng the weapons that fainct Paule ministereth vnto vs whiles wee are here warryng againste the fierie dartes of the deuill our enemie where he saieth Take vnto you the whole armour of God that ye may be able to resist in the euill daie and hauyng finished all thinges stande faste and your loynes girde aboute with veritie and hauyng on the breaste plate of righteousnesse and your feete shodde with the preparation of the Gospell of peace Aboue all take the shield of faithe wherewith ye maie quench all the fierie dartes of the wicked And take the helmet of saluation and the sworde of the spirite whiche is the woorde of God and praie all waies with all maner of praier and supplication in the spirite and watche therevnto with all perseueraunce and supplication for all sainctes And in an other place he saieth Take heede therefore that ye walke circumspectly not as fooles but as wise redeemyng the tyme For the daies are euill Be ye not drunke with wine wherein is excesse but bee ye fulfilled with the spirite speakyng vnto your selues in Psalmes Hymnes and Spirituall songes syngyng and makyng melodie to the lorde in your hartes By Psalmes he vndestandeth complaintes to God narrations and expostulations by Hymnes he properly conteineth thankes giuyng by songes he also conteineth praises and thaÌ„kes giuyng â–ª but not so largely and amply as Hymnes doe So now we are aliue if we stande faste in the lorde saieth saincte Paule and no damnation nor troubles nor yet the gates of hell
for vs he therefore had a loue to vs euen then when wee were enemies to hym and wrought wickednesse Therefore after a marueilous and diuine maner he loued vs euen then when he hated vs For he hated vs in that we were suche as he had not made vs and because our wickednesse had on eche side wasted awaie his woorke he knewe how in euery one of vs bothe to hate that whiche our selues had made and to loue that whiche he had made Thus farre Augustine Whereby we haue to learne what a comfortable doctrine the Predestination of GOD is whiche many can not abide of whom saincte Paule long before spake of Also howe so euer we bee synners by our owne faulte yet we remaine his creatures And howsoeuer we haue purchased death to our selues yet he made vs vnto life So is he moued by méere and free louyng of vs to receiue vs and also to reconcile vs by his sonne Christ into his fauour Therefore in respecte of our corrupte nature and then of euil life added vnto it truely we are in displeasure of God guiltie in his sight and borne to dampnation of hell But because the lorde will not loose that whiche is his in vs he findeth yet somewhat that he of his onely goodnesse maie loue vs without any goodnesse or worthinesse that is in vs through his Sonne Christe our onely Sauioure To this saincte Augustine saieth Due res sunt homo peccator Quod audis homo fecit deus Quod audis peccator ipse homo fecit dele quod fecisti vt deus saluet quod fecit oportet vt oderis in te opus tuum ames in te opus dei Theâ—e are twoo thynges Man and Synner That thou hearest man God made it That thou hearest synner Man hymself made take awaie that thou haste made that God maie saue that he hath made It behoueth that thou hate in thy self thine owne woorke that thou maiest loue the woorke of God in thee Hereto Dauid saieth Beholde I was borne in iniquitie and in synne hath my mother coÌ„ceiued me Pourge me with Hysope and I shall bee cleane Washe me and I shall bee whiter then Snowe â–ª c. This doctrine well waighed will easely teache vs that all the righteous Soules departed in the faithe before Christes commyng were in heauen And therefore no neede for Christe his soule to goe into hell to fetche them out for in that place thei neuer were nor none of Goddes predestinate and electe children was or euer shall bee For whom the Lorde euer loued saieth the Scripture be loueth vnto the ende Nowe if any man should aske me when Christe wente downe to hell I will aunswere hym When he praied to escape death he began to goe downe and so all his sufferynges that he suffered afterwarde in bodie and soule for our synnes was his goyng into hell For he felt the burden and waight of Gods wrathe for our iniquities in suche sort that no paine tormente griefe sorrowe nor punishement that euer synne and disobedience had deserued in hell But that it was laied vpon Christ for vs to bryng vs vnto God whiche paines and torments he felt in his bodie and soule Wherby we maie gather how greeuous and terrible tormentes he suffred wheÌ„ he knewe himselfe to be arained for our cause before the iudgemente seate of god For there can bee imagined no more dreadfull bottomelesse depth then for one to féele hymself forsaken and estraunged from God and not to bee hearde when he calleth vpon hym euen as if God hymself had conspired his destruction Euen thither wee see that Christe was throwne downe so farre that by inforcemente of paine and tormentes of hell did sweate and his sweate was like droppes of bloud trickelyng doune to the grounde And he was compelled to cry out My God my GOD why haste thou forsaken me c. Here thou maiest note that in the Crede we reade not in the singuler nomber descendit ad infernum hee descended into hell as thoughe it did speake of a place certaine where into he was gone but in the plurall nomber descendit in inferna he descended into the helles Comprehendyng all that was before saied in many woordes how he suffered vnder Pontius Pilate was crucified dead and buried in this one woorde helles Now gentle Reader I praie thee not to take me in this my writyng that I dooe deny this Article of Christes descendyng into hell for I doe constantly beleue it and will in no wise God willyng denye it but affirme that he descended into hell accordyngly But of the maner of his descension into hell is our question They saie his soule went downe thither whiche thei can not proue by the woorde of God and therfore I can not beleue it But I saie this that the force efficacie and strength of his death and passion did pearce vnto the damned soules in hell through his diuine power and godheade to the greater increase and certifiyng of their eternall and iust damnation For I saie vnto thée in the worde of God and lye not that all Christes sufferynges sorrowes and passions that he sustained here for vs vpon the earth and vpon the Crosse in body and in his soule for our sinnes was his going downe into the helles â–ª Wherefore let vs constantly beleeue this that he was once in the flesh a verie man like vnto vs in al thing sinne only excepted and came downe for vs men and for our saluation that he did verely suffer passion of bodie and soule that he hath verely died and been buried And that he hath been verely reuiued againe and the verie same soule retourned againe into his owne naturall bodie and after did ascende vp into heauen and there sitteth on the right hande of the father to make daiely and continuall intercession for all his electe and to saue all them that come to God by hym c. As many therfore as be Christians haue giuen their faith vnto Christ in their Baptisme vnder the witnesse of a greate meany There they promised to forsake the fleshe the world and the deuill If now thei will bee at league with the synner and at agreement with the deuill and the euill doer thei haue broken their firste promise and are founde vnfaithfull for wherevnto thei are ouercome his seruauntes thei are whether it bee of synne vnto death or of obedience vnto righteousnesse And for their faithe thus violated giuen vnto the immortall God God againe will breake with them his couenaunte of mercie if in tyme thei repente not Lette vs holde therefore vnitie in doctrine Secondlie vniuersalitie in ioynyng of voyces Thirdlie consente in spirite and iudgement For the Papistes haue tourned vnitie to diuision Uniuersalitie to singularitie Consente to open and plaine discention And so vnder the name of the faithe thei persecute the faithe c. For if thou doest forsake Christes Shippe and wilt rowe
vnto him that is signified by them Saint Ciprian therefore saieth full well Before prayer the priest with a preface prepareth the hartes of the brethren saying vnto them Lift vp your heartes that when the people aunswereth We lift them vp vnto the Lorde thei may be put in minde to thinke of nothing else but of the Lorde Chrisostome also saith Clamamus in conspectu sacrificij Sursum corda We crie a loude in the sight of the oblation Lift vp your hearts S. Augustine vpon the Psalmes saith Let vs lift vp our heartes if ye be risen againe with christ he saieth vnto the faithfull he saieth vnto them that receaue the body and blood of our Lorde If ye be risen againe with Christ sauour those thynges that are aboue where Christe is at the right hande of God seeke for the thinges that bee aboue not for the things that be in earth Their owne manipulus curatorum saith thus Before the Canon the Priest saith Lift vp your hartes As if he woulde saie who so will receaue this Sacramente ought to haue his hearte lifted vp vnto God. But lette vs graunt vnto them by waie of disputation that the naturall body and blood of Christe bee really present vnder the formes of bread and wine yet we shall alwaies bee in feare to commit Idolatrie if at least their doctrine be true For they saie excepte the Priestes doe pronounce the wordes of consecration which words they be in doubt of them selues and cannot wel tel which they be vpon the creatures of bread and wine Cum intentione consecrandi That is with an intent and mynde to consecrate they be not made the body and blood of Christe but remaine still nude nude and bare creatures of bread and wine Therefore Holtcot saieth vpon the maister of sentences Laicus adorat hostiam non consecratam The laie people saith he worshippeth a wafer that is not coÌ„secrated And therfore that perill and daunger of Idolatrie may be auoyded at all tymes Thomas de Aquino in a certaine booke geueth vs counsell that we worship it with a condition saiyng Lorde if thou be there I doe worship thee if thou be not there I worship thee not Is not this a sure and certaine doctrine thinke ye and most worthy to be mainteined with fire and sworde and with suche sheddyng of innnocent blood Repeâ—t then ye Magistrates and rulers of the people and be sorie in your heartes that euer ye consented to the death of so many Martyrs that in these our daies haue been most cruelly put to death for the truethes sake and crie God mercie betimes lest ye with the beaste and hir false Prophetes whose slaues ye are now become though some of you perceaue it not be cast for euer into the lake that burneth with fire and Brimstone which is the seconde death There be some in the world that alledge Saincte Ciprian to proue that the Sacrament must be worshipped And these wordes of his doe they bryng foorthe The Sacramentes as muche as in them is can neuer be without the proper vertue nor the diuine maiestie can in any wise absent it self from the misteries It foloweth then saie they that they must be worshipped sith that the diuine maiestie is neuer absent from them I would faine aske these greate doctours of diuinitie why they doe not then worship the water of baptisme wherin we are apparelled with Christ renewed with the holy ghost and receiue free remission of our synnes I am sure that the diuine maiestie of God is no more absent from the Sacrament of baptisme then from the Sacrament of the body and blood of Christe And yet none of them all will graunt that the water of baptisme should be worshipped Christ our sauiour who is the trueth hymselfe and can not lie doth saie in his Gospell He that loueth me keepeth my worde and my father shal loue hym and we will come to hym and dwell with hym Againe He that eateth my fleshe and drinketh my blood dwelleth in mée and I in hym These also are sainct Iohns wordes whosoeuer confesseth that Iesus is the sonne of god God dwelleth in hym and he in God. By these textes we doe learne that God the father God the sonne and God the holy Ghoste dwelleth in all the faithfull beléeuers yea I dare saie a thousande tymes more effectuously then in the inuisible elementes of water or bread or of wine And yet no godly honour ought to be doen vnto them for that were a plaine Idolatrie Christe our Sauiour saiyng Thou shalt honour the Lorde thy God and hym onely shalte thou serue and worship Now all men maie see that the saiyng of Saincte Ciprian helpeth them nothyng for to maintaine their Idolatrous worshippyng of the sacrament excepte they will also graunte that the water of Baptisme and euery true christian man must be worshipped also But peraduenture some man wil aske will ye haue no maner of honour to be doen vnto the Sacramentes I doe aunswere that we doe sufficient honour vnto them when we doe receaue them with an vnfained faith and as Christ hath instituted them submitting our selues obediently vnto his holy institution and ordinaunce If we doe otherwise we receaue them vnworthely â–ª to our vtter vndoing and condemnation If then S. Ambroses saiyng after they receaue the Sacrament vnworthely that handle the misteries otherwise than Christ hath instituted If they be also guiltie of the body and blood of the Lorde that come to this holy Supper not obseruyng the institution of hym that is the aucthour of it where shall our Pope catholiques become How shall they escape damnation For none in all the whole worlde if we consider well what hath been saide before doe more abhominably and shamefully breake the ordinaunce of God then they doe Can they therefore haue a deuout mynde towardes hym that saieth Ye shal not doe euery thing as ye thynke best but that whiche I commaunde you that shall ye doe onely I am the Lorde your god Adde nothyng vnto it nor take ought awaie from it but leauing them to the righteous iudgement of hym that with the fire of his wrath did consume Nadab and Abihu in the sight of all the people bicause that thei had offered straunge fire which the lorde had not commaunded them I will goe through by the helpe of God with the rest of their obiection We saide before that thei eate the bread of the Lorde and drinke his Cup vnworthely that come to the holy misteries not hauing truly examined themselues or that come to them without true faithe in the merites of the deathe passion and blood shedding of our Sauiour Iesu Christe and that presume to take or receaue them without true repentaunce vnfeyned confession of their synnes and without amendement of their owne liues I saide also that after the saiyng of Saincte Ambrose thei
saieth he had not some certaine similitude or likenesse of the thynges whereof they be Sacramentes they should be no Sacramentes and of this similitude many times they haue the names of those thynges them selues As then the Sacrament of the body of Christe is after a certaine maner the body of Christe and the Sacrament of his blood after a certaine maner his blood So the Sacrament of faith is faith All these aucthorities are of them selues plaine enough and néede no further exposition Therefore sith that I haue sufficiently proued both by the holy Scriptures and also by the aucthorities of the auncient fathers that the Sacramentes are called by the names of the thinges whereof they be Sacramentes I wyll be so bolde to conclude that Christe our sauiour dyd at his last Supper call bread his body and the wine his blood because that they were by his holy institution made the sacramentes of his body and blood And vnto this doeth Theodoretus agrée as it hath béen declared before wheÌ„ he saith He that did call his body wheate and bread and himself a vine doth honour the bread and wine with the name of his body and blood not chauÌ„ging the nature but addyng grace vnto the nature S. Chrisostome hath euen the like wordes whereby we may also gather that the bread and wine being coÌ„secrated that is to say being applied to that holy vse that God hath instituted and ordeined for that is the true consecration as one very well sayde consecratio tota actio Christi est whatsoeuer the papistes can prate and scoulds to the contrary be called the body and blood of Christe because that being duely ministred and worthily receaued thei bring with them selues the grace vertue and propertie of his most precious fleshe and blood whose nature and propertie is to bryng immortalitie and life euerlasting that is to say to viuiâ—â—e and quicken all faithfull beleuers both in soules and bodies And this doth S. Ambrose meane when he saieth Thou doest receaue the Sacrament in a similitude but thou obteynest the grace and vertue of the true natural body of Christ and also of his blood and that eating the bread as we ought to do we are fed vnto immortalitie whiche is a propertie of the diuine substaunce This also doth saint Cyprian meane when he writeth on this maner The same bread that the Lord did reache foorth vnto his disciples beyng chaunged not in outwarde appearaunce but in nature was by the almightie power of God made fleshe Which wordes notwithstanding that they be aleaged of the papistes for to mainteyne their butcherly and grosse doctriâ—e of transubstantiation withall haue none other meanyng but that the bread remayning bread styll as it was before as it doth appeare outwardly vnto the eye the nature of it is cleane altered chaunged For whereas the propertie nature of the bread is to féede the body only and to mainteyne or continue the life of it beyng applied to that holy vse that Christ hath instituted ordeyned in his holy misteries it doth feede both the soules bodies vnto immortalitie life euerlasting so that by it not only our soules do receaue a life that neuer shall haue ende but also our bodies are made partakers of vncorruption as Ireneus doth testifie saying As the bread which is of the earth after that the name of god is called vpoÌ„ ouer it or receauing the name or calling of god is no more coÌ„mon bread but the bread of thankes geuyng consistyng of two thinges that is to say of the heauenly and earthly so our bodyes receauyng the bread of thankes geuing are no more corruptible hauyng a hope of resurrection Who woulde not saie that the nature and propertie of the bread is wonderfully altered and chaunged The like doeth Sainct Augustine wryte of the water of baptisme saiyng Vnde ista tanta virtus aquae vt corpus tangat cor abluat nisi faciente verbo Whence commeth this so greate vertue of the water to touche the body and wash the soule but by workyng of the worde here is a wonderfull alteration and chaunge The propertie and nature of the water is to washe awaie the filthines of our bodies to quenche our thirste and to serue vs in other thinges that parteine to this mortall life to moyst the grounde and to make it fruictfull but beyng rightly ministred and worthely receaued in the Sacrament of baptisme it washeth awaie the filthinesse of the soule and maketh the inwarde man cleane from all sinnes through the working spirit of God and yet it remaineth water still no parte of the substaunce thereof beyng chaunged so ought we to vnderstande of the sacramentall bread and wine For though beyng duely ministred worthely receaued they haue the nature propertie and grace of the precious fleshe and blood of Christ yet as Theodoretus saieth they remaine still in their former substaunce shape and figure Whereunto the olde writer Emisenus doeth agree affirmyng plainely that the corruptible creatures of bread and wine are by the consecration or worde and secret power of the inuisible priest so chaunged and turned as we be chaunged in baptisme where though we be renued by the holy ghost and made newe creatures yet we remaine stil the same in substaunce that we were before And so with the blessed Martir Ciprian he calleth the visible creatures of bread and wine the body and blood of Christ bicause of the excellent nature vertue propertie and grace of his most precious fleshe and blood that thei do receaue by the mightie word and secret power of the inuisible Priest who is our Sauiour Iesus Christe hym selfe For this excellent propertie I saie vertue and grace that the creature of bread beyng rightly ministred and worthely receaued doth obtaine by the almightie power of God. The blessed Martir sainct Ciprian with the other auncient fathers doe saie that the bread is made fleshe Else if we shoulde take his wordes so grossely as our papistes doe we should be faine to confesse that the blessed body of Christe beyng made of bread should haue his beginnyng originall and ofspryng of the corruptible creature of bread as I haue sufficiently proued already before Wherefore Saincte Ambrose saieth Sunt quae erant in alium mutantur in substaunce they are meaning the Sacrament the same they were before but in accident or qualitie they are turned into another thyng for before it was common meates For mans table nowe is turned to be meate for the Lordes table and in another place he saieth Ante consecrationem alia species nominatur post consecrationem corpus christi significatur before the consecration it is named by another kynde but after consecration it doeth signifie the body of Christe Sainct Chrisostome agreeyng herewith saieth Si incorporei essemus c. If we were bodilesse god would geue vs these thynges bare and bodylesse but for
our mediatours of intercession I woulde faine knowe of them where they learne this in the holy Scriptures and worde of god I am moste sure that as they cannot finde in all the Scriptures that we ought to praie vnto the dead sainctes So shall they finde that Christ is there appointed to be our aduocate and intercessour euen after his glorious resurrection and ascension when he had alreadie performed all maner of thynges that parteine to our saluation and to the redemption of all mankynde For S. Paule saieth It is Christe whiche is dead yea rather whiche is risen againe whiche is also on the right hande of God and maketh intercession for vs And to the Hebrues he saith plainely that Christ our soueraigne Bishop and high priest liueth for euer for to make intercession for vs Else what should his continuall appearyng before the face of God for vs whereof he speaketh in the ninth Chapiter of this same epistle profit or auaile vnto vs Againe Sainct Iohn the Euangeliste who did write his Epistles a greate while after Christes ascension when our attonement was already made and our peace fully purchased doth sende vs to none other aduocate but only to Iesus christ the righteous He saith not there in that place If any of you do sinne ye shal haue me who am the deare beloued disciple of Christ and did sleepe vpon his brest to be your aduocate vnto the virgin Marie his mother whom he did commit vnto me and whiche dyd loue me so well that she toke me for her sonne Againe he doth not say Get you to the virgin Marie or to my felowes the Apostles or to the Patriarkes and Prophetes â–ª that be alreadie dead and in glorie with God but putting him selfe in the number of sinners he saieth If we haue sinned we haue an aduocate with the father Iesus Christe the righteous He had not forgotten the wordes of his maister whiche he him selfe had set foorth by writyng For Iesus Christ did not say All that ye shall aske my father in the name of my mother or of the Patriarches and Prophetes or of myne Apostles and Disciples it shal be geuen vnto you but he saieth Whatsoeuer ye shall aske the father in my name it shal be geuen vnto you And S. Paul doth not only testifie vnto vs that he did in the time of his flesh offer vp prayers supplications with strong crying and teares and that he was hearde but also he doth write as it hath been alredie aleaged that he is on the right handâ— of God where he doeth incessantly make intercession for vs. Moreouer where S. Paul doth say â–ª that there is one mediatour of God and men whiche is that man Iesus Christ hath he not a respect vnto the prayers that he had spoken of before For after that he had sayde that we must pray for all men for a confirmation of that saying he addeth by and by that there is one God and one mediatour And none otherwise doth S. Augustine expounde it when he saith Christian men do pray one for another in their prayers But he for whom no man doth pray but he for all men is the onely and true mediatour Paul the Apostle although he were a chiefe member vnder the head yet because that he was a member of the body of Christe and did knowe that the high and true priest of the Church was entred not into the holy places that be made with handes which were but similitudes of true thinges but into very heauen he doeth also commende hymselfe vnto the praiers of the faithfull Paulus non facit se mediatorâ—m inter populum deum sed rogat vt prose orâ—nt inuicem omnia membra corporis Christi Paul maketh not hymselfe a mediatour betwéene God and the people but requireth that thei praie all one for a nother beyng all the members of the body of Christ bicause that the members are carefull one for another and if one suffereth thei doe all suffer with it And set the mutuall praiers of al the members that be yet here labouring vppon the earth ascende vp vnto the head which is gone before into heauen In whom is the satisfaction for our synnes For if Paule were mediatour the other Apostles also shoulde be mediatours and so there shoulde be many mediatours Neither coulde the reason of Paule stande where he saieth For there is one God one mediatour of God and men that man Iesus Christe in whom we are also one if wee keepe the vnitie of faith in the bonde of peace Haec Augustinus c. And in another place hee saieth these wordes At verò sacerdotem si requiras super caelos est interpellat pro te qui in terra mortuus est prote But if thou seeke for the Priest he is aboue in heauen where he maketh intercession for thee which vpon the earth died for thee Here any man may sée if he wyll sée at least howe substantiall their distinction is and what grounde it hath in the scriptures worde of god Besides all this I might reason against them vpon the right vnderstanding of this word Intercession whiche among the Latines signifieth nothing els but the letting of a matter that it goeth not forwardes When we say then that Christe maketh intercession for vs our meaning is that that he doth by the merites of his death passion and bloodshedding let or stop the wrath and vengeaunce of God that it beÌ„ not powred vpon vs for our filthy sinnes and offences Againe we say that he maketh intercession for vs when he suffereth not the ears of the father to be stopped vnto our prayers but causeth them to be hearde and accepted And it is a maner of speaking borowed of the auncient Romanes For when the Consules and Senatours of Rome went about to make any decrée or lawe that did séeme to be preiudicial and hurtfull vnto the common weale then the officers of the people called Tribunes were woont to let that decrée or lawe that it should not go forwardes and thereof did come intercessio Tribunorum that is to say a let or prohibition of the Tribunes that some matter might not go forwardes Euen so that almightie and most righteous God the father of sauiour Iesu Christ hath euery day and euery houre â–ª a most iust occasion by reason of our detestable enormities to destroy vs both bodyes and soules and by his determinate decrée and sentence to condemne vs to the euerlastyng punishmentes of hell fire But we haue in the Senate house of heauen a most mightie aduocate which doth continually appeare before the face of God for vs that so he may by his omnisufficient intercession stop this determinate decrée and sentence of that righteous iudge that it do not proceede and go forward against vs. But what if any man besides the Tribunes had taken vpon him or presumed in the olde Senate
because forsoothe that the kyng is a man and knoweth not vnto whom he maie commit the cōmon weale But for to get the fauour of God from whom nothing is hidden for he knoweth all mens merites we haue no neede of a mediatour or intreatour but of a deuoute mynde But nowe will I bryng in a similitude whiche hath a sure foundation and grounde in the holie Scriptures and sacred woorde of God whiche shall quite ouerthrowe theirs For why It is onely grounded vpon the imaginations and dreames of their owne heades What if there were a kyng benigne gentle mercifull and bounteous that he would make an acte or proclamation whereby he should exhort his subiectes that if any among thē had any matter or suite thei should all boldely without mediatours or meanes come vnto hym promising that he would heare them deliuer them frō their troubles and aduersities and from the handes of them that do oppresse them would not al men by that acte or proclamation take a wonderfull boldenesse to come vnto the king him selfe Who excepte he were starke madde or did mistrust the kynges proclamation would seke for any mediatours or meanes for to haue accesse vnto so bounteous a prince But we haue a moste sure acte and proclamation which is enacted and made in that most holie glorious and sacred counsaile of the blessed trinitie whereby we are exhorted bidden and commaunded to come boldely vnto hym who alone is able to heale all our infirmities and to deliuer vs from all troubles and aduersities be thei neuer so greate and our enemies neuer so mightie Firste the father doeth set forthe this comfortable Proclamation vnto vs saiyng Call vpon me in the daie of trouble so will I heare thee and thou shalt glorifie me Here wee are not onely exhorted bidden and commaunded to call vpon God in the daie of trouble but also we haue a promise that if we doe it we shal be heard and deliuered who then beyng in trouble would not come boldely vnto God and call vpon hym with a good and sure confidence sithe that it is his blessed will pleasure biddyng and commaūdement whervnto he hath added so comfortable a promise that wee should doe so In the Prophete Ieremie he crieth out saying Ye shall call vpon me and I shall heare you beyng then so louynglie called let vs come vnto the seate of his mercie with a stedfast truste and hope that we shal be heard But whom I praie you would not that sweete Proclamation which his onely begotten sonne our sauiour Iesus Christe doeth make vnto all repentaunte synners encourage excéedyngly Come vnto me saieth he all ye that labour and are laden and I shall refresh you And in an other place Uerely verely I saie vnto you what soeuer ye shall aske my father in my name he will giue it you Doeth not the eternall and heauenly wisedome of the father speake these woordes Euen he whiche can not lye whiche can not denie him self why should we then be afraied to come vnto hym Or what neede haue wee to seeke for any Mediatours aduocates or intercessours for to make any intercession for vs sithe that he doth call vs so gently vnto him bindyng hym selfe and his promises with an othe which can neuer be broken Also the holie ghoste who procéedyng from them bothe is the thirde persone in the blessed Trinitie doeth set forthe vnto vs a very comfortable edicte or proclamation whē he saith by the mouth of the holie Prophet Dauid The Lorde is nigh vnto all theim that call vpon hym in truthe And in an other place who soeuer calleth vpon the name of the Lorde he shal bee saued Here haue we the moste sure and infallible proclamations of the father of the sonne and of the holie ghoste whereby wee are moste louyngly and mercifully called vnto the mercie seate of almightie God and also assured that wee shal be hearde when soeuer wee doe call vpon hym in faithe through our onely mediatour and aduocate Iesus Christ our Lorde Is it not then a manifeste signe and token that we do not stedfastly beléeue the promises of GOD nor trust in his mercie whereof wee are assured in his truthe when wee doe direct our praiers to any other then vnto hym or when wee seeke for other meanes to come vnto hym then he hym selfe hath appoincted in his holie Scriptures Reade all the whole bodie of the scriptures throughout from the one ende to the other and ye shall not finde that euer the Patriarches Prophetes or Apostles did praie to any other Mediatour Intercessour or Aduocate but onely vnto God a lone For there is no other Mediatour that can bee founde and appoincted vnto vs besides that blessed seede of Abraham our sauiour Christe Iesus For whereas thei doe alledge that it is read in the scriptures that the Aungelles doe some tyme praie for the electe people of God and also that thei dooe offer our praiers before the Lorde That same maketh nothyng for their purpose except thei coulde proue that the Sainctes bee ministryng spirites sent to minister for their sakes whiche shal be heires of Saluation or that thei be appoincted to waite vpon vs as the Angels are which haue a charge giuen them ouer vs to keepe vs in all our waies yea and also to encampe rounde aboute theim that feare the Lorde And this ministerie and office of theirs because that thei be immortall shall continue as long as there bee any men abidyng here vpon the earth that is to saie vntill the number of the children of God be fulfilled But as for the sainctes it goeth otherwise with them For as thei are bounde whiles thei be yet in this life to doe those thynges that pertaine to their vocation accordyng to the office that God hath called theim vnto So when thei haue once performed their course and are at rest with God thei haue no more to do with the liuyng their ministerie and office is at an ende and if thei make any praier vnto GOD it is that their bloud maie bee auenged on theim that dwell on the earth desiryng that the number of their felowes and brethren maie be fulfilled and that the glorious kyngdome of God beyng come thei maie receiue their glorified bodies whiche nowe lye in the earth till the generall resurrection of all fleshe I do not doubt but that thei doe wishe vs good and are very desirous to haue vs in their blessed felowship for as muche as thei are members of the same bodie that we are of But to saie that thei knowe our necessities or that thei heare our particuler vowes and praiers and offer theim vnto god It is a méere inuention of men For we haue not one onely iote in holie Scriptures that doeth certifie vs of it And as touchyng their goodly shift whiche beyng wholie destitute of the scriptures and woorde of
shall not preuaile against vs because we are builded vpon the sure rocke and stone ¶ The. xxxi Chapiter ¶ The subtile meanes that Sathan vseth to bryng vs into securitie IN any wise lette vs giue no eares to the liyng doctrines of Sathan the Deuill who doth all y euer he can for to bryng vs into a carnall securitie and to make vs beleue that the same daie is not yet at hande And that he might the better bring this his purpose to passe he did cause his idle brained Monkes and Friers to write and that without any grounde or foundation of Gods woorde of the signes and tokens that shall come before that daie wherein thei followe onely the vaine imaginations dreames of their owne heades Therefore we ought in this poinct to giue no credite vnto them but to contente our selues with the infallible woorde of GOD wherein Christe our Sauiour dooeth sufficiently teache vs what signes and tokens shall come before that dreadfull daie whiche wee see all to bee come to passe alreadie so that wee ought to looke for none other euery daie and euery houre but that the same daie shall come sodainly vpon vs all For firste where as our Sauiour saieth That there shal be signes in the Sunne in the Moone and in the Starres and that in the earth the people shal bee in suche perplexitie that thei shall not tell whiche waie to tourne theim selues Dooe we not see all these thynges to be fâ—lfilled alreadie What signes there haue been in the Sunne in the Moone and in the Starres since the ascendyng vp of our Sauiour Christe and euen in these our daies it is not vnknowen vnto theim that reade the histories Againe in what perplexitie all the worlde is now at this present daie and tyme so that no man almoste can tell whiche waie to tourne hym self wee dooe see it euen with our owne eyes Yea wil some man replie we haue not yet séen the sunne to be darckened nor the Moone to lose her light nor the starres to fall downe from heauen which thynges must all come to passe before that day as our sauiour Christ him selfe doth testifie Elyas Enoche be not yet come which are prophecied to come againe before that latter daie of iudgemente therefore we neede not yet to looke for it It is not vnknowen that many bothe of the auncient and also of the latter writers which in these our daies haue written vpon the scriptures and woorde of God doe expounde this place The Sunne shal be darckened and the Moone shall lose her lighte c. Of our Sauiour Iesus Christe hym self of his Churche and of the ministers thereof For as the naturall Sunne is darckened with the cloudes that doe arise from the waters and from the earth so our Sauiour Christe whiche is the true sonne of righteousnesse is wonderfully darckened with the mistes and cloudes of mens traditions and dreames â–ª so that many tymes his comfortable light is cleane taken awaie from the eyes of our soules and consciences By the Moone thei doe vnderstande the Churche For as the Moone doeth naturally receiue her light of the Sunne so al the light all the true wisedome and vnderstanding or heauenly knowledge that the Churche hath it hath it of our Sauiour Christ and as if the Sunne be dackened the Moone of necessitie must lose her light So when the chearfull light of the true sonne of righteousnesse is taken awaie by mens inuentions and superstitious doctrine and Popishe traditioÌ„s without all doubt the Churche muste vtterly lose her light it muste needes bee without all heauenly vnderstandyng and knowledge it must nedes be in horrible darckenesse and in the shadowe of death After their exposition it is saied that the Starres doe fall from heauen when the ministers of Goddes woorde whiche ought to shine in the Churche bothe with life and doctrine as the Starres doe shine in the Elemente doe fall from the Goâ—pell and true worde of God vnto mens inuentions and dreames and vnto earthly doctrines of the deuilishe Papistes either for hope of worldely honour promotion dignitie or els for shame as Doctour Hardyng now dooeth and others of his side Or els for feare of any trouble persecution or losse of liuynges For if accordyng to the letter the naturall Starres should fall from heauen no man should be lefte aliue againste the commyng of our Sauiour Christe sithe that accordyng to the excellent doctrine of Astronomie euery Starre is bigger then the whole earth and so the Scriptures that saie that as the daie of Noe and of Sodome was so shall the commyng of the sonne of man be could not be verified If we should followe this exposition whiche is bothe learned and also moste godlie are not all these thynges fulfilled alreadie Is not our sauiour Christ whiche is the true sonne of righteousnes vtterly taken awaie by the hypocriticall and superstitious doctrine of that Antichriste of Rome Is not the Churche altogether depriued of the light of Gods woorde beyng ouerwhelmed with the thicke darckenesse of beggerlie Traditions and Popishe dreames What should wee saie of them that ought as Starres to shine in the churche of Christ Are thei not in a maner fallen all from the heaueÌ„ly doctrine of Gods woorde and his Gospell into the vaine phancies of corrupted and earthly men We maie be sure then that the daie is at hande But goe to Let vs take it as Chrisostome doth expounde it whiche writeth that it is saide that the Sunne shal be darkened the Moone shall lose her lighte and the Starres shall fall downe from heauen because that the commyng of Christ shal bee so glorious and so bright that in comparison of it the light of the Sunne of the Moone and of the Starres shall bee but darkenesse that is to saie the Sunne then the Moone and the Starres shal bee as though thei were not at all As when the Sunne is vp whiche is the moste excellent light although the Moone and the Starres doe remaine still in the element yet are thei not seen but are euen as though thei were all falled downe from heauen It is also moste plaine and euident that by the darknyng of the Sunne of the Moone and of the Starres the greate and horrible vengeaunce of GOD is signified as we reade in Esay Ieremie Ezechiell Amos Ioel and Micheas the Prophetes For when god poureth his vengeaunce vpoÌ„ the earth it seemeth vnto them that are touched with it and that are in perplexitie and trouble that all the whole worlde is in the like case and that the Sunne is darkened the Moone hath lost her light the Starres be fallen downe from heauen that the earth doeth quake and tremble vnder theim To bee shorte thei thinke that all thynges goe to ruine with theim not because that it is so in deede but because that thei bee pressed with no lesse agonie and anguishe then if those