of wages truly deseruid counterfaytyng of monye / robrye of the comon treasure Stealyng of all thinges bothe holy vnholy Fayth is no where sure not betwene companyōs and prynces confederate Not betwene felowes and frendes / not betwene man and wyfe The lawes of nature betwene them that be kynsfolke and of alyaunce by maryage are vanysshed awaye in to a beastelyke / wylde ād cruell Polypu◠is a fisshe with many fete / which turneth hym selfe into many colours Vertumnus atumbler or a turner in to many shapes similitudes madnes To showe a fayre face to turne the cat in the pan / as it were Polypus Vertumnus to fayne and dyssemble all thynges whyth fayer promyses to make foles fayne and to deceyne by any maner a meanes That is in conclusion the wysdome of owre worlde those thynges be the defensys and moste sure councelles of owre lyffe all ower delyte is set in lying And to be smered about the mouth with the swete venome of flaterye we gyue greate rewardes nether is there any man better accepted or more in fauor in the haules of greate prynces then flatterers / the whyche at all tymes hath bene theyr moste greuous and vtter destruction / but why do I speake of Prynces haules / whā in the chayers or pulpetes of churches where the gospell is or owght to be preched / men are founde / whyche tycle ycheynge eares with swete wordes / and wyl not scrape the lyttle tendre ones / or rubbe them harde with the bytynge truthe In those places to submytte them self fe to the iudgemente or opynyons of the the dyuyll vnto the lybertye of the chyldren of God / vnto the light of the trueth / vnto the worshyppynge of vertu and holynes vnto euerlastyng lyfe and the perfruition of Godly felicite And he hath commaunded vs for to be holy as he is holy Leuit. xix for to be perfyt as he is perfyt for to Matthe v. be salte wherewyth the worlde myght be powdered for to be lyghtes shynynge be fore other men in the purenes of lyuyng that they myght therby be prouoked / entysed / retayned / and brought vnto the felowshyp of Christe And by what waye that thinge maye be obtaynyd he hathe largely and planely expressed in his euerlastynge worde And that we might lede a lyffe agreable to so greate and soche an excellent profession he replenisshed owre myndes with his spryte sanctifyenge Nether dyd he orden vs to be gyuen to beastelye luste / as the bondmen of the fleshe Nether dyd he bynde vs to the powers of the planetes Nether made he vs subiecte to the dyuylles instigations Nether wolde he haue vs adicte to the conspyrations of the wicked But that we beyng Luke 1. delyuered from all ower enemyes / might serue hym the lorde in holynes and righteousnes Actuo i. he gaue vs his worde and spryte to be the master and guyde of owre lyuynge And that it sholde not greue vs to walke in the waye of helth he moueth / prycketh forwarde / and prouoketh vs ther vnto wyth many greate and godly promises / those not vaine For why God forbyd that the supreme and onely veryte sholde make a lye And he laboureth to dryue awaye cowardnes and sluggysshnes wyth horrible thretes prepared euermore not for the louers / but the dispysers of god / lest we shulde at any tyme slepe in death Moreouer he hath paynted before owre eyes the condytyon bothe of the good people and lykewyse of the wycked / with many greate and noble examples in the monumentes of holy scryptures / that I may speake no thynge of other hystoryes / and that I maye passe ouer wyth sylence those dedes whych be done / we lokynge vpon them But what is done with vs o yow Christen men How doth owre maners / lyuinge and dedes agre wyth the beste approued lernynge of Christe What frute or proffyt doth owre celestiall father receyue of the fylde of hys peculiare people What thankes do we rendre vnto hym for hys infynyte and inestimable benefytes If we wolde knowlege the truthe we do all thynges wyckedly For why those men whych ought not in any wyse to be made lyke to the worlde in euyll thynges / nor to drawe a yoke wyth the ◠Cor. vi wycked / doth so greatly degenerate and falle owte of kynde from all godly dysposytyon that they are fownde to be moche warse then the manyfeste enemyes of the Christen religion Loke I praye yow vpō all the maners and dedes of the common sorte of the Christen people In what obstynacye of mynde / hardenes of harte / dulnes of vertu / and wylfull blyndnes and ignorance of the truthe / lyue they Consyder all the partes of their lyfe Beholde all the owtwarde orders of the churche / Bysshopes / Preystes / deacons / kynges / prynces / Lordes / Gentlemen / elders / cytezynnes / merchauntes / yemen / husband men / masters / seruanntes And how moche do yow se of Christen Godlynes For Baal was an idole ▪ whereof meutiō is made .iij. Reg. xix therfor to bowe knees vnto Baal is to honoure worshipfalse godes I speake nothinge of them that kepe thēselues secrete and be pryuely good men / hath not bowed theyr knees vnto Baal And I wolde to God that they beinge armed wyth dyuyne power wolde ones come abrode / and set vp agayne the Lordes glorye greatly darkened wyth ower vyces / and repayre the moste extreme greuous ruyne of the churche I truste also that amonge the Tu 〈…〉 they be not all so greatly inwrapped and addicte vnto the superstitiō of Mahumet But that some of them are pertaynynge vnto the holy catholyke church / whych is the communion of sayntes / for as moche as Abdias dyd serue in the palace of Achab that iiii Reg. xviii wonderfull wycked kynge / and yet was he a moste faythfull seruaunt vnto hys Prynce / and a noble patrone of the Prophetes of God / from whose indignation Helyas flyinge supposed hym selfe to be lefte alone whych truly myght worshyp the God of Israel / but he is tawght by an oracle and diuine answere that there was reserued by the helpe of God seuen thousand faythfull worshyppers of the Lordes holy woste reuerende Maiestye / whych neuer had bowed theyr knees to ydoles / nor dyd consent to the veneratiō or worshyppynge of creatures Vnder a lyke maner iiii Reg. v Naaman the Syryane was a faythful taptayne / dyd trweseruyce to the kyng hys master / a cruell enemye to the Israelytes / and yet dyd he worshyp call vpon the name of the trwe God of Israel / that Christ myght preferre his fayth vnto the disceytfull / coloured / paynted holynes of the Iewes But the churche doth not iudge of thinges that be secrete Where fore I muste speake of the lyffe and maners bothe of the Christianes and of the Turkes / as far forth
the lorde And God dydle theyer workes and how they were conuerted from theyer euyll waye / and he chaunged his decre of sodeÌ„ vengeaunce to be browght vpon them / Nether dyd he destroye them as he had Ionas .iij. and .iiij. spokeÌ„ by the prophet Ionas / whose euyll affection God also reproued for that he was sorye to be cowntyd as a false and lyinge prophet the cytye beynge saued to the whiche he had prophecyed extreme subuersioÌ„ Wherby it is euident that there is no thinge more pleasant vnto God â–ª then that men with the amendement of theyer disposition and maners myght auoyde the sworde of his celestiall wrath shakyd at theyer heades And allthowgh that euery hole natioÌ„ or citty wyll not put awaye theyr vyces yet the amendment of some and syngulare men is very acceptable vnto the lorde And it optayneth the puttynge awaye of vrgent payne and greuous punisshemeÌ„t or elles truly a mitigation therof yf we muste nedes be slayne withe the stubborne harted For wheÌ„ the Gothians dyd inuade Rome Halarich and Radagaste beinge Halarich and Radagaste heade Captaynes to the Gothians theyr Captayne 's / a greate parte of the cyttezynnes were infideles / and they layde all the cause of that cruell warre destruction vpon Christen religion / and the despysed honourynge of ydoles And they requyred their teÌ„ple and abolysshed superstitions for to be restored and set vp agayne An other parte of them puttyng their truste in God / and flyinge to hys celestyall helpe / by theyr prayers made in the name of Christ obtayned remission of all theyer synnes Therfore the cyttye beynge taken / Halarich the emperoure of the Gothians dyd commaunde that no man sholde be spoyled in the temples of the Christianes / wherefor the good people flyinge to the lordes howses as in to a Saynctuarye were defendyd by the helpe of God and amongst them certen in infideles I caÌ„ not tell whyther I may saye professynge or sodenly faynynge the christen relygion When in the meane tyme the cyttye was defyeled with robberyes slaughter / fyer / the forcynge of women and rauysshynge of virgyns At the same tyme the Duke or captayne of the HuÌ„nians called Subtarus the brother of Mazuchus whyche brought forthe Attyla Subtarus the brother of Mazuchus father to Attyla borne in Scythia / and called the scourge oâ— god for the greate destructioÌ„ that he made in Germanye / which after he had sub dued Hungary and ouer throwne Aquncia / a cytty in Italye / returnynge home agayne / dyed was choked wyth immoderate bledynge the scourge of god / the gothianes aÌ„d the Germanes beynge dyuersely vexed dyd inuade the Burgundions whiche haue theyer habitation by the ryuer called Rhene / the formar inhabiters therof beynge dryuen awaye / that the same thinge myght chaunse vnto them that Publius Mimus dothe teache Thou muste loke to be dealte with all thy selfe as thow dealeste with other men Wherfore the Burguâ—dions vtterly mystrustinge theyer owne power / myght / weapons do turne them all to gether to the helpe of god And forbycause they had serued by the commoÌ„ fame / that the God of the christianes dothe euermore helpe his deuoute clientes whith his moste present power They do all with one consente embrace the faythe of christe And the .vii. daye from theyer baptisme thre thowsand Burgundions dyd come vpon the infinite multitudes of theyer enemyes / and ten thowsand of them beynge slayne togyther with theyer Duke They constraynyd the residue with fearefull flight to recoyle backe to theyer owne contrye Truly how moche goodnes the chaungynge of an euyll ordered lyffe dothe brynge vnto men can not to be showed in this place / and it is euery where declared in the doctrine of godlynes Chapt. xij IT foloweth therfor that I may teache it to be an Esaie thynge to traÌ„sfourme ower lyuynge to put awaye the bourdeÌ„ of iniquite / for the whiche the veÌ„geauÌ„ce of god both wyth other instrumeÌ„tes / also wyth the weapons of the turkes inuadith christeÌ„dome with ragynge violence / so that we do not disdayne to vse those facultyes whiche god him self fe dothe offer vnto the same thynge / and to walke in the ryght waye whiche the holy scriptures doth showe / and not the fayned traditions inuentyd by sophysters of contention / confession and satisfactions But leste I sholde be to full of wordes in a matter that is very playne I do thinke or iudge repentaunce as it is takeÌ„ after the maner of diuinite / for the amendemeÌ„t of all ower lyffe and a newe returninge vnto god to be verye well diffined in the wordes of the .xxxvi. Psalme / whyche also be repeted in the Epistle written vnto the Hebrues after this maner Departe from euyll do the thynge that is good and dwell for euer Now we vnderstoÌ„de that thinge to be good / that is right and honeste Agayne we houlde that â–ª thinge to be euyll that is false fylthye of the whiche .ij. thinges god doth alowe the one / he commaundith and perswadith and promyseth gyftes vnto it / and he prayseth and honoureth and rewardeth it The other he improueth / he forbiddyth / he dyswadith / he rebuketh aÌ„d he persequteth it with payne and punisshements Therfor What it is to do penauÌ„ce to repent truly to do penaunce / as dyuines speake / and to correcte ower lyffe is to caste owt of ower mynde and all the purpose maner of owerlyuynge / those thinges / whiche be coÌ„traye to the will of god / whither we ower selffe receyued them by ower owne affectioÌ„ and error / or whither they weare deliuered vnto vs by some other men / as it were with handes / and to do / yea and with greatest studye to ensue those thinges whiche are a greable vnto the supreme lawe moste perfyt reason / that is to saye vnto the minde of god / so that he whiche before tyme dyd superstitiously worship thinges created let hym now religiously worship onely the true liuing god / Whiche before was periured / may now kepe his othe aÌ„d perfourme those thinges where vnto he is sworne Whiche before was an homicyde may now abhore from slaughter bloode Whiche before was a breaker of wedloke and an vnclene person may now houlde matremonie in holy reuerence and lyue chastely Whiche dyd hurte his bretherne with crafte and gyles may now abstayne from iniuries and do good to as many as he is able to proffit Vnto the whiche thinge there is nede of a sure and perfyt knowlege of synne and vertue / whiche the boke of the ten commaundementes of the lawe of god dothe breffely expresse / and also the doctryne of Christe whiche with his passioÌ„ and death doth iustifye the wicked with owte any of theyr owne workes / or of any creature so that men onely will knowe them self fe to haue ofteÌ„ded and coÌ„fesse the same vnto god againste whoÌ„ they
creatures / they do teache the same myscheffe for to be the cause of all infelicite But yf the same thing do fortune sometymes vnto men / that they haue required of sayntes creatures we are tawght in the ChristeÌ„ doctrine that soche maner of prayers are not the cause wherfore they obtayned any maner of good thinge but an accident or a chaunce euen as it fortuned in one tyme that the Christen men whyche were hyred to playe the souldyoures vnder Marcus Aurelius in Germanye dyd Rayne gyuen by prayer vnto the souldyoures of Marcus Aurelius aske rayne of the lyuynge God by Iesus Christ / the heatheÌ„ men of warre dyd lykewyse aske the same of their false gods Now were it both a wycked a very folysh thinge to saye that the prayers of the heathen had obtayned rayne / wherby the hole armye of the RomaÌ„s was delyuered faythfull vnfaythful / not rather to attribute it to the godly supplicatioÌ„s of the Christianes and to the greate goodnes of god whiche doth euermore fullfyll the desyre of them that feare hym / heareth theyr Psal cxlv payer wyll saue them Moreouer those prayers are not effectual which al though they be powred forth in the syght of the lorde of hostes yet are they so folysshely dispersed that the wynde as it were carryeth He that wyll optayne by prayers may not Wauer them away / whiche thinge the Apostle Iames doth witues spekynge of the celestiall wysedome But that the precept of God myght haue hys full strengthe in all other thinges let hym sayeth he that lacketh wisdom aske it of god whyche gyueth it to all men abundantly and casteth no man in the tethe and it shall be Iames .i. gyuen hym But let hym aske in fayth wauer not / for he that dowteth is lyke a waue of the see whiche is toste of the windes and caryed abowte / therfor let not that man thinke that he shall receyue any thinge of the Lorde Furthermore the prayers of those meÌ„ be frayle of none effect God wyl not heare vs when we praye for vayne thinges whiche aske vayne thinges and also hurtfull or soche thinges as be contrarye to the wyll and glory of God / whyche beynge beste can not but wyll the best thinges / and therfor they be not herde wheÌ„ they praye for those thinges which be not worthy ether to be asked or ells to be receyued of ower moste holy father that is in heaueÌ„ Wherfore Christ the Lorde sayde to his Apostles desyrynge that Luke â—â— fyer fallynge downe from heauen myght burne vp the towne that had shytt them owte yow know not what sprite yow are of yower selffe / the sonne of man did not come to destroy sowles but to saue them Also saynte Augustine wryteth very eycellently vpon the fourtye Psalme Augustyne sayynge Call vpon god wyth prayse and thankes gyuynge / and not with repreheÌ„tion / for mhy when thow callest vpon hym to destroye thyne enemye / when thow wylt reioyse of an other mans hurte / and callest god vnto that euyle thow makest hym partetaker of thy malyce For why thow supposest god for to be as thow arte / wherfore it is sayde vnto the Psalm .l. in an other place these thiÌ„ges haste thow done and I helde my peace O thow wycked creature thow doste coniecture that I wolde be lyke the. Kyther to speaketh Augustyne Now therfore ower prayers owght to be made after the rule of the lordes wyll and we muste euermore pray with these exceptions Thy wyll be full fylled and not owers / Thy name be sanctifyed / as Matth. vâ— ower Sauioure dyd go before in his wordes and the vnyuersall congregation of good men dyd followe after for why the lorde knoweth what thiÌ„ges we haue nede of and what thinges be profytable or noysome vnto vs before we begynne to pray Nether will he reche a scorpion Luke .ix. vnto his children requyrynge breade / nether will he suffre vs to haue ower desyer when with owte knowlege we aske that is euyll And we receyue that is good when we be not herde Moreouer loche as be cowardely and slowthefull synners are suffred of god to departe from hym in vayne and voyde of theyer purpose and that worthely / whiche tempâ—e Sluggardes maye well babâ—e / but all theâ—â— prayer is of none effecte god and wyll not walke in the waye of health whiche god doth showe theÌ„ / nor wyll not vse those meanes / facultyes and instrumentes whiche god hath sett in the myddeste of them or elles rather gyuen in to theyer handes to remedie the euylles hangynge ouer theyr heades or elles to dryue awaye those thinges that now opresseth them and to conserue theyer healthe Agaynste whome the moste wyse aÌ„d noble man of moste famous memorye The notable senteÌ„ce of Marcus Cato Marcus Cato hath gyuen a memorable and playnely a diuine sentence / that the helpe of God is not procured with folysshe vayne tryfelynge vowes and prayers but all thinges cometh luckely to passe by diligent takynge hede / by laboryng lustâ—lye â—d by good councell When thow gyueste ouer thy self fe to slowthefullnes and cowardenes call not vpon god / for he is vtterly angry and sore displeased with the. Therfor if we will haue ower desyers to be confirmed / If we couet to fele the helpe and socure of god we muste applye ower selues withe all ower harte vnto the common health / we muste watche / be circumspecte and labore very sore and strongly and as the common prouerbe dothe monyshe vs / wyth god we muste put to ower haÌ„de / whyche vnto noble actes requireth soche as be diligeÌ„t labourers studious and actyue / and not Idle and slepye lookers on The Esopus fabâ—e oâ— the carter praying vnto Hercules / whoÌ„ the poeâ—es do rayne to be the God of strength fable also of the carter reprehendyth very wysely the cowardenes / and slowthefullnes of sluggysshe bableynge oratoures / whiche desyred of Hercules to haue his carte styckiÌ„ge faste in the myre to be draweÌ„ owte / but answer was made hym that he muste laye his shoulders vnto the wheles / aÌ„d prouoke his horses to drawe / and so by that meanes it sholde easelye begotteÌ„ owt of the swalowing goulffe last of al the eares mynde of god doth abhorre from the prayers of them the which are wrapped in deadely crimes doth nather from theyer harte desyer that theyer synnes Repentaâ—â—ce must be ioyned with ower prayers for the lorde stoppâ—â—â— his â—aâ—â—s from â—â—styâ—ate offenders myght be forgyuen them / nether do they ernestly studye to amend theyer lyuynge whyche thynge the lorde god hymselffe hath wytnesed wyth many diuyne senteÌ„ces in the holy scriptures of the whiche we wyll onely towche a fewe In the fyrst chapter of Salomons Prouerbes wysdome and the worde of god speaketh to hir dispisers because I haue called and ye refused it
were nowe compelled to leaue vnto them moste goodly triumphe of victorye Constantine newly conuerted vnto the Christen faith although not yet baptised goeth Constantyne constaÌ„tly vnto the cyte of Rome occupyed and holden of the tyraunt Maxencius / for the with turning his face vp into heuen and from thence asking helpe vnto whom from the east / the signe of the crosse was shewed / and this voice out of heueÌ„ was brought vnto him saing â—h Constantyne in this take thou the victorye Not that the signe of the crosse shuld haue that strength aÌ„d vertewe / but to certifye him / that he being sustayned with the helpe of chrâ—st / shuld haue the victorye Which thing afterward he confessed by his owne opon proclamacion / euen that the god of the chrystyans owght onely to be honoured and worshypped which is the authour of all victory and felycite Mestezel at the commandement Mestezel of Honorius the emperour / with .v. hundereth armed men goyng forth agenste Gildo the tyrant / toke vnto him out of the Iland of Capreis godly men / which shuld praye and animat the people vnto the christen faith / religion / and bertewe Which Mestezel with .lxxv. thousande meÌ„ did most happely ouercome the tyrant Clodanus / the first kinge of Clodans France that euer receyued the name of christ / being afraid at the great and cruell Hilderich hoste of Hilderich kyng of the AllmaÌ„s / became a christen maÌ„ / promising himself to enbrace Christes religioÌ„ aÌ„d to defeÌ„de hiâ— chirche / which when he had called vpon Christ nowe at his prayer being preste aÌ„d preseÌ„t to helpe him at one tyme he ouercame the sayd myghty hoste of Hilderich / aÌ„d made him to be the faithfull worshipper of the moste high kinge Iuliauus the persecutour / by the prayers of the christeÌ„ Iulianus chirch was extinct slaine Roab kinge of the Scythians was slayne with terrible Roab thunder and lyghtenings after he was ouercomen by the prayers of the christen coÌ„gregacion When the Saracens hauynge one Zulimus vnto theyer captayne Sulimus did inuade or beseyge Constantinopole with a passynge greate nauye Leo Isaurus Leo Isaurus then beynge emperoure ouer the samefor the space of .iij. yeares / the cyttye also beynge infected with a noysome pestilence and all mans helpe in a maner paste and vttely desperate they turned theÌ„ selues full and whole vnto the helpe of god / and theier superstitious worshippynges clene forsaken and cast awaie / and all theyer ymages brent vp in one fyer witâ— a solemne vowe made vnto god that all the reste sholde be serued lykewyse throwgh all the Empyre they felte the helpe of god more frely gyuen them then euer they durste desyer it For the hoste of the Saracens had these plages caste dâ—â—â—e vpon them eueÌ„ as it had bene shaarpe dartes fallynge downe from heauen / that is to weit / colde / hunger / pestelence / and sedicions among themselues / in so miche that Zulimus their capitayne was nowe deade Also in Bulgarye parte of the hoste was slayne / aÌ„d lyghtenings lycked vp and consumed their shippes / some by stormes brokeÌ„ and drowned / so that very fewe of so infinite a multitude came home agayn Oh prayers moste effectuouse Oh voices so terrible to our enemies / which strike more vehemeÌ„tly theÌ„ thoÌ„dre boltes and gunstones Oh the helthfull swete sinoke of Images set on fier / which shuld in this tyme more effectuously chase awaye owr enemies / and euen the very Turks / then the lowde blowinge vp of hornes chaseth awaye serpeÌ„ts When Ezechias and Esaye with wother godly men dyd put their cheife yea all their hole hope in the helpe of the lorde / callinge there Esay 37 vpon incessantly An aungell of the lorde in one night .clxxxv. of the Assyrians soldyours beynge slayne delyuered the cyte of Hierusalem / and then that vngodly tyraunt theyer capitayne returned homâ— telling what a fowle slaughter there waâ— in th 〈…〉 tentes that night / and was moâ— mi 〈…〉 bly and fowly slayne of his owâ— so 〈…〉 s in the presence of his Idole Ne◠〈…〉 ch It shuld be an infinite worke to briÌ„â— together in to remeÌ„braÌ„ce / what and hoâ— great victories godly praiers haue obtaâ—ned Wherfor oh ye christeÌ„ meÌ„ yf the people this daye wolde be conuerted aÌ„d turne them selues vnto these wayes which By what mâ—anes caÌ„corde and victorye maye â—aâ—aly be obtayned euer haue bene knowne to be effectuous both a christen concorde were some made and the studye of vertue sholde easaly beâ—oyned to the true religion Batayle and warâ—are sholde iustly be ceassed brought to an ende Also prayers sholde then holde the fyrste / the middest and the laste place in all ower affayres so that all felicitie and good lucke sholde iustly and duly be asked of god onely Yea and the same felicitye graunted vnto vs sholde be ascrybed I say not to George to Barbara or Christofer but vnto ower celestiall father the onely gyuer of all good gyftes with large and moste ample gyuynge of thankes Beleue me if this were done we haue the victorye oh ye christen meÌ„ we haue the victorye of these horrible fowle aÌ„d cruell Turkes / whiche thorow owr synnes and cowardely slowghtfulnes are hiâ—her to encreaced / yea and that by the iuâ—te iugement at the lorde Neuer 〈…〉 lesse â—hat this my concell or consultation whiâ—he peraduenture is set for the with to maâ—ye worden to longe a processe myght â—pere to ve no newe but an oulde thiÌ„ge / â—â—t so moche to be my concell but also the mynde of the moste holy men I wyll adâ—e and brynge in the wordes of S. Hieroâ—e in the whiche at the begynnynge of Hierome â—he Turkes incursion he tawght that the â—aine ower aduersaryes were styrred vp â—horowe ower vnfaythfulnes / but yet by the wrathe of god for owersynnes to haue bene sent of hym to plage the worlde that is to saye the vice and mischeffe of the christen people / and that these ower â—alamityes can not be put awaye norsure and perfecte helthe be optayned / oneles we beynge humbled vnder the myghtye â—hande of god do correcte aÌ„d amend ower â—vicious lyuiÌ„ge / embrace vertue / aÌ„d with ower prayer call downe from heauen inuincible power to ayde and assiste vs. The Epitaphpe is the superseriptioÌ„ that is wrytteÌ„ vpoÌ„ a grâ—ue or tuâ—e se be Hieroms wordes in the epitaphye of Nepotianus / and he swageth the heauines of Heliodorus taken for the losse of his Neeuye a ryght good man both with diuerse other reasons and with this also that he owght to reioyse aÌ„d be gladde for soche good men / for that they now slepynge in the lorde haue escaped the stormye calamityes aÌ„d so manye myseries of this present worlde Now will I come vnto priuate dignities and yet shall I not speake but of those thinges whiche haue bene done within these .ij. yeares
⧠A Godly consultation vnto the brethren and companyons of the Christen religyon By what meanes the cruell power of the Turkes / bothe may / and ought for to be repelled of the Christen people / Theodore Bibliander beinge the Author ⧠Thow shalt also fynde here most gentle Reader of the reasons wher wyth a firme and sure concorde and peace in the Churche / and the Christen publyke weale may be constytuted / and of the fyrst begynnynge and increacementes of the Turkes domynyon / and also of the superstytyous and damnable lawe of the Mahumetanes / and of other certen thynges moste worthy truly to be red and consydered The horse is prepared agaynste the days of batayle / but the Lorde alone gyueth the victorye Prouerb xxi To hys moste deretly beloued bretherne the faythull worshyppers of oure Lorde Iesus Christe / Theodore Bibliander wyssheth grace and peace from God the father WHen of late dayes the sadde tydynges of the destruccyoÌ„ of huÌ„garye had brought greate sorowe vnto all good men that thinge which ChristeÌ„ godlynes dyd requier / and that I coulde onely do in suche greate calamytyes I dyd it / that is to weit I was very sory for the mysfortune of oure men And I besought the Lord he wolde spare his people / whiche he had redemed with te bloud of his onely begot teÌ„ sonne / that he wolde not procede on styl to be reuenged vpon vs / accordinge to oure deseruinges Afterwarde I dyd begynne to consider in my mynde one thinge of an other / by what meanes we might resyste these euylles waxynge feruent so to heale the wouÌ„de receyued / that here after more deadely woundes be not gynen vnto vs Wherfore when all the speche of te vulgare people was coÌ„sumed in these vrgeÌ„t euylles And the cheiffe men rulars of cytyes dyd holde manye councells to conserue the publycke weale / I dyd suppose it not to be a thinge alienate agenâ—â—e the â—â—yce of those men that do applye â—eriâ—nâ—e and namely the holy scripture yf they dyd descrybe some firme sure reasons of holdynge warre agaynst the Turkes lying so greuously ouer Germany / that is to saye the towre of ChristeÌ„ Mathematicall masters are whych be cunnyng in Aulgry me / Musyke / Geometry aÌ„d Astronomye dome Although the Mathematycall clerkes and masters of Astronomye do take vpon them the fore knowlege of warres thorow the trientall Quincuncial aspectes of Iupiter / Saturne / and Mars / of other Planetes / and expresse the causes chaunces of them / and accomplisshe the same wyth a natural sharpenes of wytte / as men experte in some certeÌ„ vse of thinges yet wold AlexaÌ„der dyscrete sharpe AlexaÌ„der in correction the moste noble Prynce in the feates of warre / cheifely vse the councell of the olde excercysed souldioures Neuer the lesse I do iudge moche better councels to be requyred by ryght of those men that be studyous of deuyne scriptures For the deuyne lawes befuge forth the Leuyte euen the mynyster of relygyoÌ„ in to the former parte of the hoste / they Nume i. Deute xx Nume x. do sett hym betwene the multytudes now standynge rownde aboute in theyr araye / and wyth the hoorse sounde of the trumpettes they do mynister a 〈…〉 â—â—â—ce to the warres waxyng whote / that it may be prynted in the hartes of all good men / not to be chaunce and blynd fortune / not to be inconstant or slypper Mars whych Mars is fayned of poetes to be the god of battell and it is also one of the planetes rasshely myxeth togyther the troubles of warre / but that it is God the gouernoure of heaueÌ„ and erth / which by iudgement sure reason gyueth vnto some meÌ„ merye victorye / turneth an other sorte vnto flyght And that religioÌ„ wyth oute the whiche no thynge can be goueÌ„rned well and happely hathe in batell the chefeste vse / as in the moste daunger of the publyk weale Also many sermones of the Prophetes dispute of the causes chauÌ„ce of warres and eueÌ„ thys matter as a thing propre or specyally pertaynyng vnto diuynyte doth Hieremye knowlege vnto Hananiah the sonne of Azur / saying / the prophetes which were before me and the / Hiere xxviij from the begynnynge / dyd prophecye vpon landes and greate kingedomes / of warre and troble and honger / or ells of peace / were proued by thys / yf God had sent them in very dede wheÌ„ the thynge came so to passe whiche the Prophet tolde before More ouer many mynysters of Constantine holy doctryne / after the comynge of oure lorde dyd not abhorre from the pollytyck rules of kepynge warre for that I may passe by How that in the teÌ„tes of ConstaÌ„tyne Constantyne the greate / euerye pauylyon of the souldyers had lerned meÌ„ in holy thinges how â–ª Bernharde the abbot was the author Bernard of bearynge harnes agaynste the Saracecens That I may holde my peace of the Innocencianes / and the Eugenianes and soche other troÌ„pet blouwers of oute laÌ„dysh warres Saynte Augustyne the greateste Augustyne master of diuinite in his questions to the booke of Iosue doth allmoste explicate the whole reason to kepe battell godly saynt Hierome also writynge in Bethlem the Hierome same tyme wherein the Turkes dyd waste moste cruelly the lesser Asia / a parte of Syria / and at the laste had kylled all Syria / Arabye and Egypte with feare / dyd showe that the synnes of the Christen people were the cause of that plage / and that there was no sure victorye aÌ„d health to be looked for / before there were a returne vnto vertu and righteousnes The councel of the whche moste wyse and also moste holy man if oure fore fathers wolde haue vsed a great whyle ago We sholde haue had all Germanye fre at thys daye from all the feare and weapons of the Turkes and also all Europe Neyther sholde the secte of Mahumet haue obtayned the greateste parte of the worlde inhabyted And Christe the wisdome / righteousnes power of God / sholde haue bene preached in those places / where as now lyinge falshed and madde superstition doth excedingly reioyse and triuÌ„phe Therfore I folowyng the exaÌ„ple of soche men all though wyth a loÌ„ge space betwene / haue iudged it a proffitable thinge / if I sholde bringe vnto my bretherne not so moche a new couÌ„cell as to renue an olde Whiche thynge shall worthely haue now the more weyght or be the better pondered after that it is knowne by a proffe so manye euylles beynge ouercomme what skill it is to obey hym that gyueth good warnynge But my oration was to be aplyed some thinge more nerer vnto ower tymes / and the descriptioÌ„ was to be made of those reasons / with the whyche a sure and contynu all concorde myght be constituted in the Christen congregation Of the firste begynnynge and increasynges of the
and Prynce of all prynces whiche by the holy spryte of hym and his father / by his worde and the ministers of religion / by the rulars of the polityke ordre and lawes of the publyke weale / also by the administration and diligent seruise of Angells and of euery creature conserueth and defendeth his people on euery syde And as god hathe euer syns the creation of the worlde excellently declared his moste present godhed / wisdome and goodnes righteousnes and power in his outwarde churche / as in a peculiare people and cittye yea as it were in hys owne house euen so was it done / Christe gouerninge all thinges very god and maÌ„ in the vnite of person / so we looke that it shhal be styl vnto the ende of the worlde when all his enemyes beynge ouercome Psalm â—x made his fote stole / he shall delyuer his Kyngdome is here taken for his electe people 1. Cor. xij Kingedome vp to his father that god maye be all in all For when any people breaketh his preceptes falleth aways from his holy lawes / by and by he threieneth And if that be contemned and will not serue / he prepareth roddes to beate punyshe them Agayne when men wyll know theyer fautes and aske forgiuenes makynge promysse to amende theyer wicked and moste synfull lyuing / god is euer more wonte to be easely reconcyled that is to saye he will sone forget his angre Eze. xviij and take them to his mercye Truly the gyftes are infinite whiche Christe owre Kynge of his celestiall liberalyte doth dystrybute to hys true worshippers Nether will he suffer any thinge to chaunce whiche shall not brynge some passynge Iere. xlvi greate profitt to his true louers But the enemyes of his churche he dothe destroye Nether will he suffer them to escape vnpunisshed whyche do hys people iniuryes and despite / commaundynge his electe in the meane season to be of good comforte and to attribute the vengeaunce to hym whiche bothe can and will requite the tyrannye done vnto them with indifferent Luc. xviij iustice when he shall see the tyme to be moste for the proffit of the godly and beste to illustrate his owne glorye But lesse I shoulde make to longe a rehersall of those men whiche haue bene plaged for theyer vnrighteousnes done agaynste the Hieromâ— churche / for as moche as saynte Hierome sayeth / all the persequtors of the lordes Persequtors of the churche neuer scape vnpunyshed true faythfull congregation that euer were from the begynnynge of the worlde vnto his tyme that I maye holde my peace and speake no thinge of the tormeÌ„tes to come in the fyer of hell to haue receyued also in this present worlde the scourge of vengeaunce accordynge to the dedes of theyr tyrannye commytted / we shall here be contented with .ij. examples breffely touched and compendionsly expressed Pharao the kynge of Egypt had Pharao the kynge of Egypte neuer oppressed the people of Israel with soche moste cruell and open tyrannye yf they had not made god angrye and displeased with theyer synnes / for why they were not ther for so euyll entreated of the Egyptians because that god had Gen. xvi tolde Abraham before hande that his sede whiche is to saye the posterite of his generation sholde be afflycted or plaged by the space of fowre hondrethe yeres But for because that god dyd knowe froÌ„ the begynnynge the synnes of the Israelytes for their offences dyd therfore prophecye that they sholde so be punysshed / neuerthelesse so sone as they cryed vnto the Lorde / all thoughe they were not yet thorouly amended / god dyd not despyse their prayers / but gyuing vnto them the beste captaynes Aaron Moses Marie / dyd brynge his people froÌ„ intolerable boÌ„dage Exo. xiiij in to libertie / plaged the tyraÌ„te of Egypte and all hys kyngedome wyth Iulianus Apostate moste greuous punysshement Iulianus the Emperoure and neuye of Constantyne the greate was not admytted eyther by the negligeÌ„ce of Christ the prince / nor yet by any crueltye of God vnto the persecutioÌ„ of the church But for because that many men dyd abuse the peace which the Lorde had restored vnto the church by the beste Prynce Constantyne / as it is easye to perceyue beholde in the scouldynge altercatioÌ„ more then of harlottes / betwene the heades and Captaynes of relygyoÌ„ whyche were gathered to gether at Nice by Gods diuine sufferans The chyldren of â—rrius dyd succede their moste godly father ConstaÌ„tyne And sone after the apostata Iulianus / which rather by crafte pollyce of wytt dyd hurt the church then with cruelnes and greuous tormeÌ„tes / as it was done of other tyraÌ„tes But going forth to batayle agaynste the Persians he thretened moste cruell thynges vnto the Christen people when he sholde with victorye returne home agayne and he vowed the Christen bloode vnto false gods / agaynst whoÌ„ the church dyd fight wyth wordes / and confessyng hyr synnes desyrynge forgeuenes of hyr offences / obtayned hyr healthe at the Lordes haÌ„de whych doth iudgement and iustice in the erth Nether dyd god despyse the prayers of the church for Iulianus being brought thorow the disceyte of a certen Persiane to gether with his hoste into a solytarye place / a wood or a wyldernes / receyued a deadly wounde / not well knowne whether of a man or of an angell neuerthelesse when he sawe none other remedye but that he must neades dye / that out of hande / the wycked tyrante was constrayned to knowlege that Christ had gotten the victory / yea and that with his awne blasphemous mouth / in so moche that the very bloude spynnynge or runninge out of hys body wyth ferce violence into the element dyd proclayme / and crye oute O thow Iesus of Galyle thou haste ouercome me / thou haste ouercome me Which destynye certen godly men had prophecyed before that it sholde happen vnto hym coÌ„syderinge with them self fe what fortune euer more is wonte for to folowe the persecutors of the church Which seldome or neuer with oute blood or murder / descende vnto pluto the greate dyuyll of hell where all they be gathered to gether that haue fylled the erthe with the feare of theyer tyrannye Furthermore it is red that when the sophister Libanius after Libanius the sophister that Iulianus was gone for the agaynste the persians did inquire and aske of a certen scole master of Antioche what doth the carpenters sonne notynge verely therby meanynge Christe whiche was brought vp and norysshed vnder the gouernaunce of Ioseph whiche did exercyse carpenters crafte he made answer with out any fere sayde He buyldeth and maketh for Iulianus a chiste or a costyn for to Athanasius be buryd in / Athanasius also was wonte to call Iulianus a lyttle thynne cloude whiche shold moste swiftly passe away be blowne ouer But after
that Iuliane was slayne / the blyndenes of the heathen was compelled to know the truthe in so moche that a certen man in the title and name of wysdome moste famous amonge them / sayde How do the Christianes affirme theyer god to be full of pacience and a sufferer of iniuryes Ther is no thing more angrye / no thinge more present then his wrathe / for whyche coulde not differ his indignation and vengeaunce no not a lytle space vpoÌ„ Iuliane the emperoure The iiij Chapt. NOw my oratioÌ„ purpose maketh haste vnto the false AntichristeÌ„ shadowe of religion / for why as there is one god / one wisdome / one truthe one goodnes / eueÌ„ so lykewyse there is but one onely true religion / that is to saye the Christen Neuerthelesse thorow the craft of the deuyll the folysshenes of Diuersite of religion is the cause of greate stryfe men / as there be many lordes and gods noumbred and counted eueÌ„ so is there also many religions / and that very diuerse amonge them self fe Nether do the lerned men and also the vnlerned dyffer more in any thinge then in religion / so that well nere a monge an infinite sorte of fourmes and fasshyons of fayned religion / euerye nation supposeth his owne to be beste / yea surely and alone by it self laughinge all other to scorne as vayne folysshe / despise the as false / hateth abhorrethe as wicked damnable / and wyssheth that they were destroyed vtterly abolysshed / so that theyer owne religion might haue the vpper haÌ„d be spred abrode on euery side far nere / by the meanes where of there is greate pleÌ„ty of hatred soweÌ„ amongst men moste greuous contentioÌ„s / with warres in conclusion and slaughters of men and other all maner of persequtions Whyles euery man stryueth with greteste studye to vpholde auaunce his owne god / faythe and religion Wherefore sathan the moste spytefull enemye of godes glorye and mannes healthe / lyethe in wayte to destroye nothinge more vehemently then the vncorrupted and syncere healthe or preseruation of religion / whiche beynge saffe hole and sounde / the kyngedome of god dothe what proffitcometh of religion beyng kepte and disproffit beynge broken growe and floryshe and mannes felicite is greatly amplyfyed and encreaced / but contrarywyse beynge appayred or made weake / it can not be but the blissed name of god muste nedes be derkened and men wrapped aboute with innumerable euylls Therfore the wicked spryte stirreth vp euery meischeuous corner of his wit / and proueth all the wayes to the woode to corrupt religioÌ„ / being corrupted by his suggestioÌ„ and the fayned Imagynatyon of men whyche wythoute any respect to the worde of god do make them an ydole in theyr hart giue th 〈…〉 vnto pleasante or acceptable worship aâ—ter theyr owne affections to restrayne / suppresse kepe it vnder For that I may passeouer with silence set a syde the superstitioÌ„s of the heitheÌ„ How ofteÌ„ did the Israelytes beynge vnder the administration of the Iudges and kinges departe awaye from the religioÌ„ deeliuered them of god confirmed with woÌ„derfull workes What monsterous worshippings of Cyâ— xâ—â— Iere. â—ij god did they receyue whiche truly didnot abstayne from the slaughter of theyr owne children to offer them vnto ydolles yea truly the princes them self fe the heades of religion and all the people a fewe beynge except did coÌ„spyre to gyther in to Iere. â— strauÌ„ge rites customes of worshippinge false godes / that the prophetes shold prophecye a lye / and the prestes shuld clapps with their handes / reioyse therat / all the people shulde be wel pleased and haue greate pleasure delectation in thee thinges Therfore were not godly meÌ„ so greatly obeyed which went about to call them back agayne into the waye of health to renewe or restore relygioÌ„ being loste but they were takeÌ„ for seditious wicked persons for men starke madde outof theyr wyttes vntyll soche tyme as the people being plaged withsome greate calamyte were brought backe agayne by the scourges and whippes of the lorde from theyr false gods and dumme ydolls vnto the true god whiche lyueth for euer and dyd chaunge theyr wickednes with godlynes / theyer mischeffe with vertu / theyer ignoraunce with knowlege c. How many heresyes dyd inuade the churche of Christe with in a few yeres after the lordes ascensioÌ„ vnto the heaueÌ„s And yet for There is no heresye but it seduceth some men all that there was no heresie that euer came abrode brought forth it self fe so weake and vnresonable whiche did not drawe awaye parte of the churchis flocke far of from the truthe / so that they coulde scantly be brought agayne into the waye of helthe with the great labor of those men whiche in lernynge and lyuynge were menne Apostolyke moste holy messengers sente from the lorde What is more abhorringe not onely from the holye scriptures but also from all good reason then the doctryne of the heretyke called The heretyke Manicheus Manicheus whiche dyd knowlege one-while some infernal furye / an other while Messias / and somtyme the holy goste to be the Author of his secte / and he taught that there was an other God of the olde people before the incarnation of oure lorde / and an other of the Christianes synse he was / incarnate and in holy thinges he mixed soche abhominations as is not to be spoken But what busynes / what vexation / what troble dyd he make vnto the churche whiche certen yeres dyd houlde Aurelius Augustinus wrapped and tayed as it were in a net / beynge easely the prince of all diuines Truly there was neuer any superstition or heresye so vtterly peruerse whiche had not some thinge All heresies agre in some pointes wyth the Christen doctryne coÌ„mon or agreable with owre ChristeÌ„ true and catholyke religion and whiche lenethe to the sure foundatioÌ„ of the euerlastynge verite Nether is there any nation so vntaughte ether ells so wylde whiche hathe not giuen some euident token All natioÌ„s know that ther is a God of it selfe that it perceyueth there is a god and a supreme and prepotent nature / by whose power cheffely the worlde is gouuerned and to whome they studye to do acceptable seruyse and to pacifye the dyspleasure of the godhed with theyr owne institutions and ceremonyes / and so to wynne his fauor For why god loueth all men with oute the respecte of persons is indifferent to them all / willinge them all to come to the knowlege of his truthe and to receyue healthe / and for that cause dothe he graunte in the respect of Christe his sonne by the same Christe his wisdome and vertu the vse of a thinge most necessarye vnto a blissed lyffe / and he soweth the sedes of religion and wisdome in
owte crye O vnworthy dede and most vngracyous worlde the decrees of holy fathers of councelles / of so many lerned men / obserued and kepte so many worldes muste now be called backe agayne to scoles and altercatioÌ„ Owte vpon heauen and erthe / what a wycked a cursed thynge is thys Owre moste holy father of Rome Goddes awne â—icare in erth / and hys blessed college of Cardynales are vtterly contemned by a sorte of bag aboundes and brayneles gallowclappers Theyr holy lawes and ordinaunces made wyth good iudgemet / and receyued by the consent of the churche a great whyle a go shall they now be retracted We wyll not suffer it to be rent in peces with wylde horses we wyll rather fight as obedyeÌ„t childreÌ„ ought to do / not with argumentes and dysputatioâ—â— But wyth sworde and with all maner of boucherly instrumentes for the statutes / Actes / libertye / dignite and amplytude of ower moste holy mother and Apostolyâ—â— church of Rome agaynste the runagateâ—â— agaynste the reperypes / agaynst the herâ—tykes / and agaynste the seditious / busye and manifeste enemyes of peace and relyâ—gion both of god and all good men So 〈◊〉 I pray yow / what will yow do Remembre youre selfe well / and be not so hastyâ— for it is sayde that soche men want no woo where are yow become whyther are you gone what iustyce do yow vse wher is the lawe of owre Lorde and Sauyoure Christ / whyche Petre doth expresse the Prynce of the Apostles and the buylder as it is sayde of the church of Rome some fyme the flower of syncere fayth / and yet as I truste hathe now in store some relyques of the same / though many do counte it to be but a cage of vnclene byrdes â–ª Apo. xviii what doth the Apostle saynt Peter commaunde I praye you in hys fyrste epistle vnto the Christianes Sanctyfye sayeth â— Petr. iij he the Lorde Iesus in yowre hartes beinge readye all wayes to gyus aâ— answere to euery man that asketh a 〈…〉 son of the hope that is in yow / and that wyth mekenes and feare hauyng a good conscyence That lawe beinge gyuene by the holye goste as it owght not to be corrupted with any cursed and craftye interpretation euen so is it confirmed by the examples of moste godlye men and of the sonne of god for whye Christe by the authorite of the holy scryptures / of Moses and of the wother prophetes and with the dedes of moste holye men agreable to the scrypture dyd proue and confirme his doctryne whiche he had browght owte of heauen froÌ„ the father / and dyd declare it by myracles not onely to hys dyscyples / but also to the enemyes of the truthe the Scrybes and Pharyses How dylygeÌ„tly / how holylye / and wyth what moderatioÌ„ doth Origene dyspute agaynst Celâ—us one of the sophysters of the secte of the Epycures Tertulliane agaynste the Iewes / the gentyles and the heretykes / Augustyne agaynst Pelagius / Donatus Manicheus and whother Those olde hys-shopes of Christes churche whych ioyned to gyther the greateste lernynge wyth The mâ—â—uer conâ—dâ—tyon of the olde bysshops of Chrisâ—tes church moste holy lyuyng / men neuer suffyciently praysed / callynge a congregation for newe heresies ether waxing rype or elles spryngynge vp as of Arrius / Macedonius / Donatus / Pelagius / Nestorius and soch other were accustomed euermore syâ—fie to behowlde soche peruerse doctrynes very inwardely and to trye them by the rule of diuine scripture and then afterward with good aduisement they dyd denye them wyth sufficient testymonyes and euident demonstration and dyd cut theyr throtes in sondre wyth most weyghtye senteÌ„ces by the sworde of the spryte / whiche is the worde of god But the Authors and folowers of those euyll opinyons 〈◊〉 vi they dyd sludye to reduce bryng agayne to the knowledge of the truthe and felowshyppe of the churche Laste of all they dyd orden punysshementes by the lawes / concluded those venymous dyseases to be cut of thorowe the prouydence of the polytyke and cyuyle magistrates / leste they shholde crepe any farther vnto the destructyon of the people of God How lyke are yower maners and yower dedes agaynst the reueÌ„gerâ— proctours and attourneyes of the catholyke fayth / which make promyse that they wil To depraue is wheÌ„ a senteÌ„ce â—ell spoken is otherwyse alterâ—â— aÌ„d â—ade 〈◊〉 playnely proue the doctryne of Christ tâ— be depraued in many partes / the maners of the churche to be degenerate and fallen owt of kynde / superstityoÌ„s to be brought in wyth intollerable bourdens not to be borne / and those men to be oppressâ—â— whom Christ made fre / so that a place â—ayâ— be assygned / Audience maye be gyuen / and a tyme prescrybed fyt and conuenient / and that shortelye Truly â— yow Christen men I am greatly moued and I shake euery ioynte of me as often as I do behoulde the state and condytyon of thys tyme / into the whyche yet neuerthelesse the holy good prouydence of God hath preserued and kepte vs moste myserable wretches They knowlege their awne selffe / whych are no frendes but fenâ—es / not the pastors / but the wasters of the holy church / that there be many thinges in the rytes / the Sacramentes / the ceremonyes and maners as well of the common The 〈…〉 of the truths 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to be 〈◊〉 of ordrâ— people as of their heades clene out of frame and wrasted far awaye from theyr first institution / and their conscience heareth them recorde that there be diuerse abuses aboute soche thynges / whiche alsâ— many tymes doth bewraye them self in the face of all the worlde / and yet for all that a conuenient place and a mete tyme can not be appoyntyd that they myght â—nâ—â—ake councell / and caste theyr heades togyther / whych waye at the last the churche myght be refourmed How longe hath the churche now beinge afflycted owre gentle and louyng mother worthy to be honoured of all good men ten 〈…〉 requyred and made supplication in moste lamentable wyse by Maximiliane the emperowre of most noble memorye and other prynces before hym and after / that she might be delyuered from the greuous The godly petytion of oure mother the church vnnto hyr chyldren and importable burthen of to moche oppressed and sore trobled consciencys / that she myght be losed from the bandes of symonye / that she myght put awaye those fowle pockes and scoâ—â—es where wyth they haue defyled hir and made hir euyll fauored warse then with a leprosye / that she myght receyue agayne hyr former bewâ—ye hir oulde simplycite / integrite dygnyte / that she myght be gouuerned withe the lawes of Christe hir sauioure lorde and husbande But what dyd ower mother bosted and crackte of some men with greate and goodly wordes / whych how moche they regarde hir / they declare by theyr dedes many maner of wayes What dyd
scithe a from the lande of India owght not to be passed ouer Owre enemyes the Turkes whiche in tymes paste dyd springe and come owt of the rockes of Caucasus and afterwarde were made fasshioned after the lawes of Mahumet do holde the name of god in greate reuerence / nether do they vsurpe it except some greate and weyghtye matter constrayne them and in the tyme of warre they bere owtwardely writtē in theyr sheyldes that there is no ouercūmer but god Nether wolde they commyt the fame or ryches of a pryuate man / I wyll not say the publyke weale / vnto the faythe or credit of any man whyche wyth oute moste greate necessite wolde sweare the dredefull name of god But how is it vsed amōge vs I wyll speake no thynge of periurye / whiche truly is a vice more often sene amonge Christians then is ether semyng or ells conuenyent / but I wyll saye that The repre hensyō of periury blasphemous swetynge thinge whiche all men knoweth to be cōtrarye to god / and yet the moste parte of vs do it / and the reste are no thinge greued in theyr myndes therwith as it wolde be seme godly people to be / and those that be iudges and rulares of the lawes do not refrayne it with conuenient grauite in ministringe iustice Tell me I pray yow is there not a light vsurpatiō of the lordes blessed name and a playne cōtempte of his diuine power in the mouthes of children / of them that are aged / of men and womē / of the magistrates the prestes and of the cōmone people If a man shall begynne to make any sporte ther is nothynge delectable / nothynge merye / no thinge pleasante or worthy to be lawght at except some blasphemous othe be added ther vnto If any thinge must be affirmed to be true or otherwyse the wordes and communication can not seme to be weyghtye / full of grauite and worthye to be beleued excepte the name of god taken in vayne be put there vnto In braulynge and chyding / in bostynge and crac liynge / in thretenynge and denyinge / no man can be beleued withowt an othe That man is not worthye to beare the name of a lustye inuentus / a iolye brute / a bolde man of warre / and a gentle man borne of a noble stoke / that can not make the heauenes / the elementes and the throne of god to breake and thonder owte of his mowthe That can not rende the lorde for alachet sroere a pase the bloode / the woundes / the crosse / the precious deathe and bitter passion of Christe Let any godly man standynge by and hearynge the same be offended therwyth and put the blasphemer in the remembrance of a better mynde And then is he ether ready The pagent ◠propertye of blasphemous sweaters to playe the iacke braggare and to drawe owte his weapon agayuste hym that was gelous for the lordes sake or elles he wyll coloure his mischeffe wyth this or some other soche lycke scoffynge excuse Holde thy peace good felowe for sayntes are a slepe Why arte thow displeased I do but remembre the name of Christe his holy membres / and thinkest thou that to be euyll done God is an honest mā and knoweth what I meane though thou being a foole arte vtterly ignorant It is a knacke of the courte / sometyme vsed also in dyuerse whother places amonge dyuerse men I wyll not saye of one but of all degrees / an ornamēt of speeche and a poynte of tisthoryke Yea shall I speake the truthe It is one of the moste pestyle ut plages of Egypte / and a coloure of the deuylles facundyous eloguence / wherwith all the wordes and tale is paynted I saye not of a Christiane / but of a man that is madde and owte of hys wytt And yet for all that who is he amōge vs that is so dyspleased with the sayde enorme and vngracyous myscheffe as he ought to be Who bryngeth for the any soche token or sygnyfycatyon of sorow and dyspleasure as the Iewes were wente to do / whych greatly dyspleased hearyng soche abhomynatyon / were acustomed to rende their clothes besyde their backes Where be the lawes of God / which wylleth Leut. xxiii a blasphemer to be correctyd wyth the losse of hys lyffe and punysshement of his heade Where is the constytutyon of the newe cyuyle ordinaunces made by the Emperowre Iustinianus What cyttye in all Christendome doth mynyster soche dewe and indyfferent iustyce as the Persyans / the Scytheans / and owre contremen the Germans were wonte for to do agaynste a lye If god whiche made and conserueth al thinges / if the holy goste / If Christe the sonne of god be owre god tell me where is his religiō If he be owre lorde where is his feare If he be owre father where is his honour If we do beleue hym to be all myghtye and moste wyse / trwe in his wordes why do we not ons bowe at his moste greuous thretes Was it spoken in the gospell to Christianes or to stones / let yower cōmunicatiō be yea yea naye naye / What so euer is Matth. ◠added more / commeth of euyll and of the diuyle Thow shalte not take the name of thy god in vayne say the the lorde and he thretenethe no man to scape vnpunisshed that will usurpe his blyssed name vnreuerenly and with owt a iuste cause And do we maruell to se the Christē common wealthe to fall dayly in decaye and owre men of warre to be slaine and ouercomen with the nations of the Turkese Let vs rather gyue thākes truly vnto the goodnes of god that the erthe doth not open from benethe nor the soden stormes of wylde fyer and brymstone fall downe from aboue / and that we do not descende abhomynable whoredome in so greate lybertye with owte any punishemēt how greate and shameull aduowtries bedayle commytted in euery parte of Christendome that I maye houlde my peace and speake neuer a worde of the rauisshement of virgins the whiche of many Christianes is taken now a dayes not for a myscheffe but for a game and sporte That I maye passe ouer the vice of inceste and the corrupte chastite of vnmaryed prestes whiche fayne them self fes to be gelded fo the Kingedome of god and yet they commytte soche vnnaturall abhomination as is not conuenient for to be named leste it shold infecte honeste eares and poyson the paper and breth of the reders / besides other myscheffe where in they excell the Turkes whose propretye is not thowgh they be the enemys of Christes name to kepe many wyues in one house as the prodigious vowe makers of wyueles thastite do kepe many cōcubines and shameles harlottes But if any man amonge them haue manye habitations and is cōstrayned by the diuersyte of bussines to dwell in diuerse places as are merchant men then are they also permitted to kepe the mo wyues and
cotages of husband men in the contrey / the howses of ryche men / of merchants / of preistes / nether wyll I compare the ordinaunces of ower enemyes to ower instytutions / whose howses it were conuenient to be as churches and the habytations of holy men Onely do yow behowlde the order and maner of greate men and of the Christen nobylytie in theyer howsehowld kepynge Let yowr eyes be caste abowte by the hawles of prynces / by the companye of studentes / by the colleges off preistes / by the cloysters off monkes / by the cowrte off ower moste holye father / the secrete chambres of hys blooddy red carnalles and the palaces and houses of owre Bisshopes moste reuereÌ„de fathers in god And you shall thinke yow to see soche a blyssed companye and soche an order and prouision of thiÌ„ges concerninge howseholde as the Poete Horatius doth paynte in these verses Horatius Nos numerus sumus fruges coÌ„sumere nati SpoÌ„si paenelopes nebulones Alcinoique In cute cur aÌ„da plus aequo operata iuueÌ„tus Horatius That is to saie we are a noÌ„bre borne to coÌ„sume the frutes of the erthe The husbandes of penelope / very vicious lyuers and yet men of greate Authoritye / In pamperinge of the flesshe / yongeth doth hys parte more then right requireth In conclusion to coÌ„pare the offices and dutyes of all ower men those thynges whiche be contrarye to honestye and vertu by all maner off wayes with the maners of the Turkes / it were an infinite labor I wyll therfor towche the matter coÌ„pendiously yet wyll I do it so largely as shall be sufficient to discerne the truthe There is in the Turkes a certen manifeste manlynes and wyse takynge hede / The wyse pollicie of the Turkes before the beginninge of theyer warres and circumspectioÌ„ in goinge a bowte theyer busynes For before they begynne theyer warres or any other matter it is theyer propretye to councell to gether in the wysdome of wordes / whiche done / they do prosequte theyer purpose and folowe soche thinges as they take in hande very ernestly with stronge and mightye dedes Nether ar there any labors so greuous and paynefull whiche they do not almoste suffer with incredible patience In ower men allthowgh ther be no excellencye wantynge nether of wytt nor mynde yet I caÌ„ not tell howe or by what meanes that ether to moche cowardenes or faynte herted sluggyshenes spryngeth vp amonge them when they muste take vpoÌ„ them any harde enterprise / honeste / and proffytable to the bublike weale Or elles we be carryed vnaduysedlye after the maner of wylde beastes into grete perelles which chaunseth many tymes vnto vs thorow ower owne rashe folysshenes and the lacke off good coÌ„syderatioÌ„ in tyme. And therfor beynge stryckeÌ„ with greate impacieÌ„cye / thowght and care / we The lake of good coÌ„sideration in tyme bryngeth the Christiannes in to greate daungers beginne to shitte the dore wheÌ„ the stede is stowlne and to ban and curse the matter so vnhappely ended whiche we had before so folyshely begun And one reprehendith an other if any thinge fortune otherwise then accordinge to theyr opinion expectacion where as the fawte is coÌ„mon and partayninge vnto them all I wyll speake no thinge of owre greate intemperaÌ„cye in sportes / in playes / in wordes / in lyuynge / in the filthy affayers of ladye Venus / in playner inglysshe called lecherye luste of the bodye or carnall concupisceÌ„ce Nother myll I saye any thinge of ower apparell whiche we chaÌ„ge dayly after the maner of apes so that no thinge offereth it selfe so folysshe worthy to be lawght at / so that it seme to be a new trycke / whiche we do not delyte to folowe I wyll saie no thinge of ower pryde and ower bostynge and crackynge not of that vertue and good thinges whiche we haue in dede But wiche we falsely fayne for to haue Some men are so greatly gyueÌ„ vnto vayne glorye that they reioyse in misscheffe and be well pleased / for that they be pore in vertu and voyde os all goodnes I will passe ouer many soche other thinges of the same kynde / in the which the honestie of the Turkes is sene to be greater theÌ„ of the common sorte of Christianes a miserable thinge and yet ah lase for pittye it is to trwe But yow peraduenter wyll saye that the Turkyshe princes and emperoures do burne with ambition that is to saye the immoderate luste and desyer of dominion / and they wrastle â–ª as thowgh they were shytte vp in some narrowe straytes amoÌ„ge the large moste wyde landes of so many kingedoms / and they ceasse not to enlarge the costes of theyr empyre It is very trwe / they do so in dede / but I wolde to God that they were syke alone of that same disease and that a greate nombre of proude and ambitious meÌ„ were not to be fownde amoÌ„ge those disciples that are named after Christe / to whome it is sayde Except Mat. ◠〈◊〉 yow wyll receyue the kyngedome of god as lyttle children yow shall not entre in to it To whome it is sayde God â— of Pe. â— resisteth the prowde and gyueth grace to the lowly For that I maye passe ouer with syleÌ„ce the greate contentioÌ„ that is amonge cyttezynnes who sholde be takeÌ„ as cheiffe / and how euerye man studyeth to exalte hym self fe That I may holde my peace speake neuer a worde how princes drawe owt theyer swordes one agaynste another / not onely for the coÌ„queste of dominioÌ„ but also for the vayne and vsurped names and tytles of rule and authorite Good god what thurste is there of vayne glorye / honor dignite what feruent desyer of promotion what gredy and hungrye huntinge after ge and sellynge and in theyr bergaynes made hyther and thyther What is in the more parte of ower men to whome the Lorde sayde ernestly except yower ryghteousnes Matthe v. shall be more abundant then of the scrybes and Phariseys yow can not entre in to the kingdome of heauen I am a frayed leste ower tyme be the same wher of ower sauioure sayde whan the sonne of maÌ„ shall come suppose yow that he shall Luk. xviij fynde faythe in the earthe And one brother shall be traye an other vnto deathe / and a mannes ennemyes shall be they of his owne house Whyles nation shall ryse vp agaynste nation / and people agaynste The greate abhominatioÌ„ reyguing in the worlde / vertu beyng baÌ„pisâ—hed righteousnes put to tâ—ghte people / ryghteousnes is put to flyght / and bannysshed owt of the coÌ„trey And in hir stede ther is cumme gyles / fraudes / dysceytes / vsurye / false barganynge / circumuentioÌ„ of pore wydowes fatherles children / corruption of marchaundyse or makynge of false wares / iniquitye in sellynge withe false weyght and measure / false performation of hyred worke and labor / losse of rewarde wyth drawynge
take awaye the causes of all ower euilles there can no thinge be browght better more sure then that whiche is the moste sincere and brefeste concell Truly that ower vngratious dedes beynge amended and ower contumacye and disobedience seta syde / by the whiche we haue despised hyther to the preceptes of the lorde ower god and father we may come agayne in to fauor with the gouernoure of all thinges The same thinge how moche it is honeste and fayer / and how it owght to be done with greateste studye / all thowgh none other proffit therof sholde be set forthe it hath no nede of probatioÌ„ For why seyng it is a fowle thinge to offende ower parentes / or ower kinsefolke / or ower frendes and companions / or any other deseruinge well of vs / and by ower offence to breake frdeship / a fowler thiÌ„ge to beare hatred still / a moste fowle thinge not to wyll to do ower diligence that the offences might be taken awaye / and frendeship renewed What a more vnworthye thinge is it and ioyned to gether with greater fylthines / to haue offendid ower celestiall father / whiche hathe garnished vs with infinite benefites / and to proroge enmitye not to wyll to be browght agayne in to fauor with hym that was hurte / and may by good right vtterly destroye vs / and yet he rather requyreth vs to eschue the paynes to posses with pleasure his goodnes neuer spente That repentaunce and amendement of lyuinge is truly proffittable vnto all men / cyttyes / people / and kyngedomes The storyes of the bible do teache euery where and it is recorded in very many places of the holy scripture planely pronounced Owte of the which onely / we wyll towche a fewe thinges For Hieremye the .xviij. Chap. declarynge the parable of the pottare / in whose iudgemeÌ„t it is set / to breke the vessell quickely now beyng made or beynge brokeÌ„ to make it agayne Towcheth very plesantly the power strength of repentauÌ„ce or of the new ameÌ„demeÌ„t of the formore lyfe that he might dryue awaye the euyls haÌ„ging ouer ower heades so greatly eueÌ„ now suppressinge or thrustynge vs downe on euery syde For euen thus he sayth May not I do with yow as the pottar doth o yow howse of Israell sayth the lorde / behowlde ye house of Iere. xviii Israell ye are in my hande euen as the claye in the pottars hande I wyll speake sodeÌ„ly agaynst a peple agaynst a kingedome that I may roote it owt / destroye waste it / but if that pepole agaynste who me I haue so deuised coÌ„uerte from theyr wickednes I wyll repeÌ„t also of the plage that I had deuysed to bringe vpon them What caÌ„ be spokeÌ„ more clerely The oratour of beste approued faithe moste worthy to be beleued maketh promyse wyth the wordes of god that he wyll call backe his punysshement / yf men wyll amend theyer synnes for the whiche he had determyned to plage and correct them For god dothe not kepe warre wyth man kynde But he perscuteth ower offences and desyreth to saue the people the very worke of his fingers Nether owght the twysted and dysagreable interpretations of sophisters to be herde of thretenynge of diffinytion and predestinatyon But the promyse of god is to be embraced and houlden sure wyth all ower harte / euen as it were wyth an holy Anchore whiche doth promyse remissyoÌ„ of synnes and forgyuenes of payne vnto all men how many so euer wyll by his helpe ameÌ„de theyr disposityon / and maners and dedes In the whyche thinge god is not chaunged nether is there wyth hym any inconstancye The nature â–ª aÌ„d mercyfull inclinatyon of God to warde vs moste myserable sinners of whose nature this is the propretye to wyll well vnto all men / to helpe them / to exhorte theÌ„ to indeuour theÌ„ selffe for to take healthe To call them backe from perissheynge To chasten them wyth whyppes / to spare them beynge ameÌ„dyd and to enryche them with good thynges O the ineffable clemencye of god whyche stryueth to make his enemyes traytours / his frendes wyth louynge kyndenes O the moste mercyfull swete and confortable voyce a faythefull witnes of greateste goodnes and declaringe to carefull synneâ—s the moste sure hope of helthe What speaketh Ezechiel vnto the Israelytes of hys tyme / when the lorde had thretened a greate while by his seruantes the Prophetes that Nabuchodonosor kinge of Babilon sholde destroye the natioÌ„ of the Iwes oneles they wolde amende If I saye vnto the wicked thow shalt suerly dye / and so he turneth from his sinnes doth the thinge that is laufull and right in so moche that he gyueth Eze. xviii the pledge agayne / restoreth that he had takeÌ„ away by robbery / walketh in the commaundementes of lyffe and doth no wronge then shall he surely lyue and not dye And a little aboue iÌ„ the same chapter it is furthermore added / as truly as I lyue sayth the lorde god I haue no pleasure in the deathe of the wycked But moche rather that he wolde turne from his synne and lyue Turne yow Turne yow O ye of the house of Israhel Oh wherfor wyll yow dye These and many suche wother thinges doth god speake by his Prophet Ezechiel the .xxxij. the .xviij. Chapters / whiche do well expresse the power of repentaunce and of turnynge agayne to the mercye of the lorde aÌ„d the studie of godlynes But what thinge sholde we God hath sworne to be mercyfull to vs yf we wyl repent seke to be more sure then the promisse of the supreme verite and that with an othe added therunto Iohn the baptisie threteneth vnto synners the wrath of god whiche shall destroye them and the whyche Iohn the Baptyste Mat. iii. shall cutte downe the vnfrutefull tree as it were with an axe set vnto the roote / but the same Iohn doth also declare that the waye to auoyde all maner of euylle is by the amendement of the former lyffe / and he sayth to the Phariseys and to those that came to the baptisme of repentaunce O ye generatioÌ„ of dipers who hathe put yow in minde to flye froÌ„ the veÌ„geanÌ„ce of god hangynge ouer yower heades Peter also promiseth vnto the Iewys Peter Actes .ii. knowlegynge the cruell haynouse offence of crucifyinge the sonne of god moste sure healthe if they wolde repent and be baptised in the name of Christe the sauioure And that we maye taste also of Moses the fountayne or springe of all diuynyte whiche when he semeth to be the moste cheyfe styffe demaunder of diuine iustice Moses Deutero xxviii aÌ„d Leuâ— xxvi neuerthelesse in the enumeration or nombrynge of rewardes and paynes Leuitici the .xxvi. Chapter and Deuteronomium the .xxviij. he showith greateste hope of health vnto synners not obstinate / but to soche as be peniteÌ„t and wyll forsake their euyll offences / in so moche that he promyseth the
with his wyffe Iesabel the Sydonite dyd opresse the beste cyttezyn Naboth by a false quarrell Agaynste whome Elyas dyd immedyately pronounce sentence of deathe But when Achab herde the worde of the Lorde by Helyas / he rent hys clothes / and he couered hys fleshe wyth a shyrte of heare / and he fastyd and slepte in sackecloth / and he walked with hys heade hangynge downe to hys bosome And the worde of the Lorde came to the Prophte Elias the Thesbyte / sayinge Doeste thow not se how Achab humbleth him self fe before me Be cause he so submitteth hymselffe for the cause of me I wyll not bringe that euylle in his dayes whiche I had deuised but in his sonnes dayes I wyll brynge my plage vpoÌ„ his house These be the wordes of the storye of the kinges the third boke the .xxi iiii king i Chapter Neuerthelesse Ochozias the sone of Achab dyd not consyder his fathers mischeffe / as the wycked with Ezechiel do boste in a prouerbe The fathers haue eaten sower grapes / and the chyldreÌ„s tethe Eze. xviii are set on edge But for because he folowed the dedes of hys wycked father the thretes dyd nather moue hym brought vnto his father by the excellent Prophet of god / nor yet the plage of drowthe whiche dyd occupye the lande of Israel thre iii Kyng â—vii Iames .v. yeres and syxe monethes wyth the greate derthe in a maner of all thinges God dyd persequte the iniquite in the kynred folowynge / whyche the father had exercysed before / and the sonne dyd not ameÌ„d after many excellent warninges Whiche thinge in the dedes of the iewes kingedome is manyfestly perceyued For when the iiii â–ª Kyng xvâ—â— state of the people was moste corrupte Ezechias rayninge ouer them a godly prynce But neuer the lesse whiche was not with oute moles or red markes of the flesshe and had in hys courte asorte of vngratyous knaues / as Sobna and other / Esay xxii and the cheffe rulars and masters of relygyon dyd myserablely bewytche the vnluckye people as it is manyfeste in the Micheas .iij. wordes of Esay Micheas brought forth the sentence of God after thys maner in the thyrde chapter of his prophecie Therfore shall Syon for yower sakes be plowed lyke a felde / and Ierusalem shall become an heape of stones / and the hyll of the teÌ„ple shall be turned into an hye woode Shal we suppose God to haue spokeÌ„ those thinges in sporte Was it hys wyll to moue their myndes wyth vayne threatenynges that they myght as chyldren be sodenly taken with vayne feare No truly but the same thynge was declared by Micheas that they had deserued / and that God wolde do vnto them All though wyth no herde condytyon / that yf they wolde repent by the mercy of God they sholde be saued Therfore Sennacherib kynge of the Assyryans dyd compas truly iiii Kinges .xix. the cytye of Ierusalem rounde aboute with a greuous seyge but he dyd not talie it / as Micheas / as Esay / and as other dyuyne Prophetes had thretened wyth the worde of God Why so Verely because Ezechias and Iuda dyd feare the Lorde and prayed before his face And the Lorde repented hym of the euyll / whiche he had spoken agaynste them euen as it was bosted of the elders in the congregation of the people / whiche defendyd Hieremye agaynste the qwarelynges of false prophetes preistes / as it is wrytten the .xxvi. Chapter of Hieremye Afterwarde Iere. xxvi when Ezechias not well remembrynge how he was preserued by the helpe of God from the power of the Assirianes delyuered from his deadely dysease dyd wax proude for the message done vnto hym by the ambassadoures of Babilon iiij Re. xx and showed them all his treasures for a boste a pryde the prophet Esaye dyd Esa xxxix gyue diuyne sentence agaynste hym and prophecied that al those thinges shold be carryd away from thens vnto Babylon ij Chron. xxxiij Whose Sonne Manasses laden wyth all maner of myscheffe was taken prisoner and brought to BabyloÌ„ Neuer the lesse when he dyd knowlege his synnes / thowght ernestly for to ameÌ„de / he was restored to his fathers kingedome playde the godly vertuous priâ—ce But his iiij Reg. xxi sonne AmoÌ„ after the deathe of his father callynge backe agayne the former abolyshed wickednes was shortly slayne in his owne howse of his owne seruantes In whose steade Iosias his sonne was ordined kinge / which hearyng Hieremie and other godly men prechinge of the moste â—iij Reg â–ª xxij and xxiij corrupte state of the people dyd correct with moste syncere diligeÌ„ce the seruyse of god and the politike ordre of the publike weale falne in decaye after the rule of the holy byble Therfore Iosias beynge a lyue the Chaldeis dyd kepe no warre with the Iues But when his children which iiij Reg â–ª xxiij anâ— xxiiij rayned after hym Ichoahaz / Iehoakim / Zedekia theyr Neuye Iehoacin dyd gouerne the kingedome moste vngraciously wolde not be called backe with the preachinges of the prophetes Zedekia his councellers the false prophetes did bothe brynge theÌ„ self fe / also the people the hole countreye vnto destructioÌ„ And yet the moste stedfaste prophet Hieremie which many tymes had towlde before haÌ„de that the cyttye IerusaleÌ„ sholde be taken Iere. xxi xxxij and xxxvij aÌ„â— xxxix of the Chaldeies / that the teÌ„ple aÌ„d howses therof sholde be consumed with fyer / the kynge with his childrene to be haÌ„dled moste wrechedly in the beseygeinge therof wheÌ„ the tyme was at haÌ„de that they sholde be expulsed did promise Zedekia wyth the wordes of god / that yf he wolde delyuer vp hym self fe the cyttye in to the haÌ„des of the chaldeis / with whoÌ„ Eze. xvij he had brokeÌ„ his othe promise before he sholde bothe be gentlely intreated of the kynge of Babylon And the cytye also with their goodly temple and other holy thinges sholde not be destroyed What caÌ„ be brought more clere to declare the proffyt of vnfayned repentaunce Whyche in the laste article of troblesom paine was so greate a socure vnto the Iwes And lest any man sholde suppose the sayde godly vertu called repentance to be at any tyme in this worlde vnprofytable or ouer late euen as it is sayde in the common prouerbe it is to late to spare in the bottome the example of the Nyniuites doth teache To spare in the bottom / that is to say when all to spent vs abundantly For after that God had reproued the moste vngracious myscheffes of the sayde cyttye / and towlde them that Niniue sholde be ouerthrowne wyth in fortye dayes fyrste the inferior people and then after warde the kynge indeuoured theÌ„ self fe very ernestelyeto amende theyer maners And they we returned vnto the mercye of
and men of euerye age degre condition beynge right miserablely afflycted But what tymes passed afore / how stynkynge / how full of vngracious mescheffes both of the Ecclesiasticall and seculare persons Was it not that the churche beynge deuided thorowe the discorde of thre ambitious Bysshops / cowlde not with a couÌ„cell holden be vnited and made at one agayne Was not the generall faythfull promyse made not onely vnto Iohn Husse but also to the Iohn Husse heades and comoÌ„s of Boheme shamefully violated and broken agenste the Iuste ordre of the cyuile Iawes Was not the truthe and Christes doctryne by violence oppressed Were not the innocent men the wytnes of Christe the councell of the Christen people partly condemnynge / partely grauntynge / partely to gentlelye and fylthelye suffrynge consumed wyth cursed burnynge Who lettyd the Councell of Basill whyche all orders had decreed at Constantia that nothinge coulde be browght to passe / amended or refourmed Eugenius the fourth of that name bysshop of Rome Was it not the Bysshop Eugenius the fowrth Who styrred vp the Dolphin / that the Germans myght perceyue theÌ„ selues to be a mockynge stocke vnto the RomaÌ„s / Amadeus being in vayne created to be Bisshop after the contumacie or disobedieÌ„ce of the Romisshe Prelate Eugenius the .iiij. Who for his owne ambytion and couetousnes dyd make cursed warres in Germanie the whyche the Heluetians beynge ryhht stronge men dyd with theyr bloode restrayne Eugenius the fowrth But in the meane season what dyd Eugenius what determined he what browhht he owte of the secrete closet of his breste fyrste at Ferraria and then afterwarde at Florentia when that the Armenians and Iohn Paleologus Emperowre of Constantinopole and Patriarch of the same cyttys dyd conÌ„sayle with him What did Eugenius I saye that rome holy father determyne coÌ„clude with the sayde ArmeniaÌ„s for sothe that the Grekes sholde beleue that after this lyffe there is a purgatorye or a place of purgation / that they sholde The stronge foundatioÌ„ of purgatorye the papisticall primarie confesse the Romyshe Bysshop to be the true vicare of Christe and the Laufull successour of Peter to holde and to enioye the hyghest place in the worlde to whom both the esterly and wasterly churche sholde be duty eobey / for thus doth Platyne sett forthe in the boke that he hath wrytten of the Lyues of the Bysshops And do we yet meruell that Constantinople is taken awaye from the tyrannye of the Romyshe bysshope and after that Trapezontes How or by what meanes the Rhodes was taken of the Turkes / how possessed and loste / what truces haue with in these xxi yeares bene coÌ„cluded with Solymanne or agenst hym / or for what causes / and how moch good or euyll they browght to the scoâ—ged flocke of Christe Iesus ower Lorde and sauioure / how moche men hath here studied to set forth his glorye / who styrred vp Lewes the best prynce of hungarye to make warre / whyther he was prouoked ther vnto with studye and sett purpose to oppresse the gospell spryngynge vp throwgh the kyngedome of Boheme and Hungarye or to helpe the ChristeÌ„ affayres / who Ioyned to gether Iohn his successour and Ferdinandus I am more vnapte then that I owght to carye the comon fame any farther in the style of my wryghtynge orells to discusse the secretes of prynces But there is a God there is a Iudge of all men / before whose IudgemeÌ„t seate all men shall be stayed He is the sercher of the hartes the whyche shall Hie. xvij Matth. v. rendre vnto euery maÌ„ openly that which he hathe done in secrete He in that greate daye shall make manifest or showe forthe the defenders and oppressors the frendes and the enemyes the good couÌ„sayllours and the traytours of the ryght holy churche Chapt. xiiij NEuer the lesse this is a playue case / whiche all good and wyse men do knowlege and they do greatly complayne the shyppe of the churche to be corrupted with a stynkynge pumpe flowynge in to hir with greate vyces and moste vngracyous mischeffes / gyles / studye of lyynge / false brekynge of promyse / treasons / discorde / lyttle regarde of the publyke weale / immoderate accuration of priuate proffyt / robberye of the common treasure / sacrylege / in temperancye / surfyâ—tynge Sacrilege is the stealynge of holy thinges and dronkennes / Aduoutryes / all maner of vnclenlynes / Tyrannyes / cruel eye / supersticion / the contempt off god / contempte of the lawe / of equite / of honestye which thynges euery one of theÌ„ hath destroyed in tymes paste the moste florysshynge cyttyes and greatest kyngdoms And in al worldes ather by diuisions and robberyes amonge them self fe / or elles by some straunge enemye or by some other paynes they haue bene plaged of God in hys peculiare people And they haue brought the Turkes ower moste greuous and deadly aduersaryes the gates of Caucasus beinge vnlockyd as it were owte of an other worlde vpoÌ„ the Christen people And they haue made theÌ„ of pore men ryche men / of weake men and feble / valyaÌ„t inuincyble / froÌ„ small begynnynges by meruelous increacemeÌ„tes they be now made moste myghty feareful What coÌ„fidence therfor is there or elles rather what madnes to hope to gett the victory of theÌ„ which with ower great losses hath growne vp to an immesurable dominion and to put none ende vnto those vyces / by the whiche the ryches or substaÌ„ce of the Turkes is increaced whyles they do cruelly exequte and mynyster the paynes decreid agaynst vs of god beynge angrye And for because it greueth vs to for sake those vngracious euylles whiche hath subdued inmumerable townes / Verymany I landes / ryche kingedoms / people and natioÌ„s in tymes paste inuyncible to the dominion of the Turkes / and hath made god displeased and angrye wyth vs / and throwgh him all the worlde / what remdey is ther now at the laste wherby we wolde take awaye / I say not from the Turkes those regions that they now occupye and haue in theyer possession But to retayne or kepe them sure whiche the clemencye of ower Lorde God callynge vs backe also vnto repentance hath yet left vnto vs Shall the nature of ower contreys and stronge bulwarkes defende vs No / no For ther is nothinge that so moche dyspleaseth God as when the helpe and confidence in hym onely neglected and refused we flye vnto owre awne witt / polycy and truste in the strength of owre men / goodes / ryches / castels / and towrs / as ye may se what displeasure he toke with Dauid / for nouÌ„bring his men / and vnto what an hard choyse of thre greuous plages he did puthiÌ„ to Also it is wel knoweÌ„ that the The â—ulde fable of the rocke Tanrus other wyse named Caucasus / aÌ„d what it signified Turkes being but weake in the beginninge dyd perce the
I do abhorre yower holydayes / and where as you do ceÌ„se me wheÌ„ you come to gether I will not accepte it / and thowgh ye oshre me brent offeynges and meate offeynges yet haue I no pleasure therin As for yower fatte thanke offringes I wyll not looke vpon them Take a waye from methe noyse of yower songes I wyl not heare the sownde of yower organes and the playes of musycke But se that equite flow as the water and righteousnes as a myghtye streame Furthermore we owght for to ponder whyther god hathe gyuen vnto vs the same power which he promysed vnto Abraham / that whome so Gene. xij euer we blysse shold be blyssed / and whome so euer we curse / sholde becursyd Or elles whither the spryte of erroure hath rather disceyued vs with a false persuasioÌ„ / eueÌ„ as Balac kyng of the Moabites sayd vnto Baalam I know that he is blyssed whome thow blissest / and he is cursed / Num. xxij whome thow cursest Neuer the lesse it is wrytten I will blisse yower curses and Mala. ij I will curse yowre blyssinges sayth the lorde But wyll yow be saued by yower Superstâ—tiousâ—y to fast to nâ—t to faste that god mâ—ght be plâ—ased bâ—â— to make hym angrye fastynges wolde to god yow fasted truly and not rather after the maner of those hypocrites whome the holy goste reproueth by the prophet Esaye saying lyfte vp thy voyse lyke a trumpet / Crye as lowde as thow canste and show my people theyer offences and the house of Iacob theyr synnes for they seke me dayly / and Esa lviiâ— wyll knowe my wayes / eueÌ„ as it were a people that dyd ryght and had not forsaken the statutes of theyer god They argue with me concernynge right Iudgement / and wylbe nye vnto god Wherfore faste we saye they and thow seeste it not we put ower lyues to straytenes thow regardest it not Beholde when ye faste / yower luste remaineth still / for yow do no lesse violence to yower detters thaÌ„ yow dyd before Lo ye faste to stryffe and debate / and to smyte with yower fyste withowt mercy Now yow shall not faste thus that yower voyce myght be herde aboue Thynke ye this faste pleaseth me that a man sholde chasten hym self fe for a day and to wrythe his heade aboute lyke an whoope / to lye vpon the erthe in an hearye clothe Sholde that be called fastinge and a daye that pleaseth the lorde Doth not this fastiÌ„ge rather please me that thow lose hym owte of bondage that is in thy daungere / that thow breake the othe of thy wycked bargaynes / that thow let the oppressed go fre / and take from them all maner of burthens / to deale thy breade to the Hongry / and brynge the pore wanderynge home in to thy house / when thow seest the naked that thow couer hym and despise not thyne owne flesshe Then shall thy lyght breake forth as the mornynge and thy health floryshe right shortly Thy ryghteousnes shall go before the and the glory of the lorde shall embrace the. Now by these wordes as it is euident that the lorde abhorreth all ower fastynge whiche is prepostorous and not referred to the lawe of god eueÌ„ so lyke wyse is he dyspleased to se vs obserue superstitiously dayes / monethes / yeares / and tymes and to put a dyfference of those meates whiche he hathe created to be receyued withe thankes gynynge of theÌ„ that beleue as it apereth to the Galathianes the iiij Actes the x and to Tymothy the iiij and in many places mo But what say yow to ower litanyes and ower prayers and supplications Do not they purchase the helpe of god Hath not god promysed that by prayer we shall obtayne whatsoeuer we aske Hath not prayer made vnto god dryuen awaye greatest daungers and calamityes Hathe it not ouerthrowen the hoste of ower aduersaryes Hathe it not preserued the pauilions of good men / cyttyes / regioÌ„s / and hole kyngedoms There is truly a greate and a The necessarye vse of holye prayers necessarye vse of holy prayers at all tymes in the Christen congregation / of the whiche mo thinges shall be spoken heraster in a place coÌ„uenieÌ„t Neuer the lesse it can not be denyed and it owght not to be dissembled that the prayers of all men are not herde / nether do the petitions of euery man go thorow the heaueÌ„s For why The prayers of all meÌ„ be not herde those prayrs for to begynne with all / are to be holden as vayne and of none effecte whiche are not made vnto god the father by Christe the sauioure in the holy goste Wherfore saynte Augustine vpon Augustyne the Psalme an hdesireth .ix. sayth / that that prayer which is not made by Christ hath not onely no power to put awaye synne but the same is also turned in to synne Wherfore the Litanyes commenly vsurped amongst Christians whiche by name prayeth vnto sayntes as vnto Iames / Mauryce / Leonarde / Barbara / in theyr kynde Angelles / Archangells / Patriarches / Prophetes / Apostles / martyrs / confessors / virgyns / and wydowes doth not so greatly obtayne thinges that be good at the hand of the Lorde but they do rather make the wrath of God more greuous styrre vp the teÌ„pestes of euyll Math. iiij plages For truly that maner of callinge vpon he sayntes and she sayntes is farre wyde from the example of Christ and all good men / and also forbyddeÌ„ by the lawes of God â–ª for why it is wrytteÌ„ Thou shalt worshyp thy Lorde God / and serue hym Deuter. v onely And in the Psalme .xlix. Call vpon me in the tyme of troble / so wyll I heare the / and thou shalt honour me It is also forbydden in the fyrst precept of the boke of the .x. commaundementes / to hope or to aske those thinges that be good of any other than of God â–ª onely / from whome Iames .i. they be descendynge / or to gyue thankes for benifyttes receyued / that is to say / for victorye being gotten / for peace / for abuÌ„daunce of ryches and all other thynges pertaynynge both to the bodye and also to the sowle to any other then to God / for why he sayeth I am thy Lorde God / whych Deuter. v. brought the owte of the lande of Egypt / the house of bondage Thou shalt The heatheÌ„ wolde neuer haue prayed to theyr Idolles yâ— they had beleued theÌ„ to haue bene creatures haue no straunge gods before me It is furthermore wrytten in the storyes of the heatheÌ„ / as of the RomaÌ„s that in sharpe and daÌ„gerous tymes the people were accustomed to make their prayers fast by the beddes or tabernacles / not as they supposed of creatures but as they falsely beleued of the immortall gods and godesses The Prophetes also doth vpbrayde the people of God very greuously for their superstitious worshyppynge of the
and haue stretched owte my hande and no man regarded it / but hath despised all my councells and set my correctyon at naught therfor shall I also laughe in yower destructyon / and mocke yow wheÌ„ that thinge that yow feare shall Prouer. j. chaunce vnto yow / euen when the calamities falleth in sondenly lyke a storme and yower destruction lyke a tempest / yea when trouble and heuines cometh vpon yow Then shall they call vpon me but I wyll not heare them They shall seke me early but they shall not fynde me / and that be cause they hated knowlege and receyued not the feare of the lorde but abhorred my councell and despysed all my correction Therfor shall they eate the frutes of theyer owne waye and be filled with theyer owne inuentioÌ„s And in the .xxviij. Chapter He that turneth awaye his eare from hearynge the lawe Prouerbâ— xxxviij his prayer shall be abhominable Agayne in the .xxi. Who so stopeth his eares at the cryynge of the poore he shall crye Pro. xxi hym self fe and not be herde Mycheas also saythe / O heare thys ye prynces of the house of Iacob and ye Iudges of the howse of Israell Sholde ye not know what ware laufull and right But ye hate the Mithi iiâ—â— good and ye loue the euyll / ye plucke of mennes skinnes and theflesshe from they â—r â–ª bones / ye choppe theÌ„ in peaces as it were in to a cauldroÌ„ and as flesshe in to a pot Now the tyme shall come that wheÌ„ they call vnto the lorde he shall not heare theÌ„ / because that thorow theyr owne Imagynations they haue dealte so wyckedly The lorde also speakth in his Prophet Esaye the firste Chapter sayynge when yow houlde owte yower handes / I wyll turne myne eyes from yow and thowgh ye make many prayers I wyll heare no thinge at all â–ª for yower handes are full of blowde Wasshe yow therfor and make yow cleane / put awaye yower euyll thowghtes owt of my syght / cease from Esay â— doyinge of euyll / lerne to do right and apply yower selffes to equyte ce And in the .lviij. of Esay God professeth him self fe to be very harde and playnely inexorable vnto the wycked as it is euident by Iuexorable / that caÌ„ not be wâ—ue and obtayned by prayer these wordes Beholde the Lordes hande is not shortened that it can not helpe / nether is his eare so stopped that it may not heare / but yowre greate offences hath separated yow from yower God and yowre synnes hydeth hys face from yow that he heareth yow not / for yowre haÌ„des are polluted wyth bloude / and yowre fyngers embrued with vnryghteousnes c. Now Sayntes whyther they be deade or â—â—yne can not preuayle by prayer to helpe the wylful resysters of gods spryte and truth that the prayers of sayntes whyther they be departyd from the dutyes of this lyffe / or whether they be yet styl lyuyng in the erthe can not put away those calamytyes which God the ryghteous Iudge bryngeth vpoÌ„ the obstynate offenders and the wylfull synners agaynst the holy goste the onelye testimonye of Iohn the Euangelyste in his fyrste epistle doth sufficiently declare / where as he sayeth there is a synne vnto death / for the whyche saye I not that a maÌ„ sholde pray The Lorde also sayeth in the gospel that synne agenst the â— Ioan. v. Mat. xij holy goste shal nather be forgyueÌ„ in thys worlde nor in the world to come But Ieremy declareth it more euideÌ„tly / speaâ—inge of the sayntes / which whyles they were alyue obtayned very moch by their feruent Ierâ—m xv prayers Though Moyses and Samuel stode before me yet haue I no herte to this people dryue them awaye owt of my syght that they maye go some vnto death / some to the sworde / some to huÌ„ger / some into captyuyte And of the lyuynge sayntes there is a famylyar example Ieremye the .vij. Praye not thow for thys people / nether gyue thow thankes nor make intercession for them for in no wyse I wyll heare them Why seist thou not what they do in the cyttyes of Iuda and in the stretes of Ierusalem And the same thinge is also repeted Ieremye the .xi. Iere. xâ— chapter after thys maner It is fownde owte that whole Israel and all the cyttyzyns of Ierusalem are gone backe They haue turned them selues to the blasphemyes of theyer fore fathers whyche had no lust to heare my wordes And a lyttle after it followeth therfor praye not thow for thys people / byd nather prayse nor prayer for them for thowgh they crye vnto me in theyer trouble yet I wyll not heare them ce It is a place well set forth and moste worthy for to be looked vpoÌ„ very inwardly / for as moche as saynt Hierome that notable doctor of most famous memory interpreting the same not onely clerkely but also playnely sayeth Of these wordes we lerne that he wasteth his labor in vayne which prayeth for an other man wheÌ„ he is not worthy to receyue of god the thynge that is prayed for And that an other mannes righteousnes Ierome al though it be neuer so excellent may not defende the iniquite of other men it is moste playnely expressed the xiiij of Ezechiel That laÌ„de whych sinneth Ezâ—c xiiij agaynste me and goeth forth in wickednes I wyll stretche owte mine hande vpon it and destroye all the prouisioÌ„ of theyr breade / and sende derth vpon them to destroy man and beaste in the lande And though these thre men Noe / Daniel / and Iob were amonge them yet shall they in theyer righteousnes deliuer but theyer owne sowles / sayeth the lorde of hostes And a lyttle beneth it is sayde yf these thre men were in the lande as truly as I lyue sayeth the lorde god they shall delyuer nether sonnes nor daughters but onely be saued theÌ„ selues Wherfore it is wrytten Esay the thirde byd the righteous Esay iii. do well for they shall enioye the frutes of theyer studyes / but wo be to the vngodly in theyer wickednes for they shall be rewarded after theyer workes And in Habacuc the seconde chapter an excellent diuyne sentence is proponed / and set forthe with the whiche ower mynde may be fortifyed and kept suer euen as it were wyth an holy anchore in all parells and temptations He that is vnfaythfull his lyffe is not in safegarde within hym self fe 〈…〉 cuc â—â— but the ryghteous shall lyue by his fayth The Apostles also gyueth often warnynge that euery man sholde be honeste in all poyntes and kepe a good conscyence hauinge with in them self fe an holy reioy synge / for as moche as euerye man shall Balat vi beare his owne burthen in the day of the lorde and reape that he hath sowed For the promyse of god made vnto Abraham Be. xviij that the Sodomytes sholde
betwene a ryghteous man and a wycked / betwene hym that serueth God that serueth hym not For truly God whych hath the hartes of kynges in hys hande / and maye inclyne them whyche waye he lyste / whyche also Prou. xxi turneth a mannes enemyes for to be his frendes when he is pleased with his wayes will ather turne the hartes of the kynge and people of the Turkes vnto the thowghtes and considerations of peace Or ells yf they will styll continewe to be woode angry and to rage vpon vs with theyer warres as they haue beguÌ„ne the Lorde God of hostes shall be vpon ower syde and he shall gyue vs stronge and coragious hartes / honeste and houlesome councells / vntamed or inuyncible power so that the tentes of ower hoste muste be â–ª the pauilioÌ„s of god And ower emperour muste be god hym self fe / in whose syght manlye to dye or ells to ouercome shall be all alyke one fayer thynge / houlesome and pleasant And when the lorde shall be with vs and shall prosper whatsoeuer we shall inuade or attempte in his name / whych is a tower of strengthe before the Psalm le Pro. xviiâ— Rom. viiâ— face of owre enemyes who shall stande agaynste vs Of a suretye then shall we perceyue the same thinge to chaunce vnto vs that the Lordes mouth hath spokeÌ„ loÌ„ge ago Ye shall go forth / and the Lorde shall fighte for yow yf ye shall walke in Leu. xxvi my ordinaunces and kepe my commaundementes do them / there shal no swerde go thorowe yowre laÌ„de / and ye shall chase yower enemyes / and they shall fall before yow And fyue of yow shall chace an houndreth / and an houndreth of yow shal put ten thousand to flyght And yowre enemyes shall fall before yow vpon the swerde / and I wyll turne vnto yow Yow shall be encreaced / and I wyll perfourme my couenant with yow / and I wyll walke amonge yow / and wyl be yower God and ye shall be my people Also owre victoryes shall be ioyned together wyth the glorye of God / with the health of ower bretherne whiche serue a cruell bondage amongste the Turkes / with ower owne healthe and theyers also whiche be ower enemyes / so that they maye complayne not for that they be ouercomne of Christianes but that fortune had so longe enuied them the same felicite / that now at the laste they myght be ouercoÌ„me of true Christians Of whose preseruation we ought far awaye more diligently to thinke then of their destruction And to permyt the chaunce therof to the good wyll of owre celestiall father / whych by hys vnmeasurable mercye hath gryfted vs / beinge vnworthy and al to gether alienate from the testameÌ„tes of God into the olyue Luke .iii. tree of the people of God And is able yea euen owt of stones to rayse vp children to faythfull Abraham / and to make of Turkes / of Saracenes / of Tartarians / and Iewes / the beste Christianes As it chauÌ„ced in tymes past vnto the GothiaÌ„s Nether is the hande of the Lorde any thynge shortened or hys worde made of Iohn .iii. Luk. x. iâ—â— lesse strength or the holy gooste whyche hath lybertye to breathe wher he lyste shyt vp or tayed shorter that he can not euen styll at this present daye do the same thinge Chapt. xvi BVt for because I promysed that I wold in the thyrd place of thys my consultatioÌ„ tell declare with what weapoÌ„s and feates we must fyght agaynste the hostes of the Turkes I wyll now expresse wyth fewe wordes and wythout the paynted eloquence of Rethorike all those reasons whych I iudge to be effectuall / and beste and singulare / not onely to dryue awaye the power of owre enemyes / and to preserue ower owne affayres but fathermore to enlarge the landes of the ChristeÌ„ kyngedome by all those regyons owte of the whyche the superstytion of Mahumet hath caste forthe and thrust backe by force all ower vayne braggynge what so euer it be of the Christen name But yf any man shall brynge any better and more iuste councells I wyll moste gladly obey hym So moche is it awaye from my purpose that I wolde wysshe any man for to consent vnto my sentence / oneles euery beste and moste wyse man shall know the same to be ioyned moste nere with the glory of Christe the sauioure and the proffit of the publycke weale And firste of all / the pretensed purposes / and goodes / riches of owre enemyes are to be looked vpon Then afterwarde with what defences we owre selffe be armed And the councell of the lorde is all waye to be vsed whyche that he gyueth in the gospell of luke all thowghe but for the cause of an exaÌ„ple and in a Luâ— xiiiâ— parable saying Which of yow willing to buylde a towre doth not first sit downe conÌ„te the coste / whether he haue sufficieÌ„t to perfourme it / lest after he hath layde the foundatioÌ„ is not able to perfourme it he may fayle and gyue ouer wyth the greate irrision or laughinge to scorne of all men Or what kinge goeth to make batayle agaynste an other kynge / and doth not firste coÌ„sider whether he be able with ten thousande to mete hym that cometh agaynste hym with .xx. thousande / or ells perceyuynge hym self fe for to be to weake / whyles his enemye is yet a greate waye of / he wyll sende Ambasoudoures and desyer peace The whiche thinge we muste folowe eueÌ„ at this tyme and councell muste be taken whether it be a more proffitable thinge and an honeste to kepe warre with Solymanne emperoure of The Turkes kepe warre with vs for two causes / that is relygyon and dominion the Turkes or elles to attempte some indifferent conditioÌ„s of peace But the Mahumetanes kepe battell with the ChristeÌ„ people for .ii. causes / that they may as wet stryue with vs for religioÌ„ as for domion And in the batayle of religion they be armed with weapoÌ„s that are of greate of fecte and may do very moche with vnlerned myndes / the which do not inwardly behoulde the truthe / but laboure obstynately to obtayne the victory For the doctryne of Mahumet showeth a fayer face owtwardely of a great consent with the doctrine of Christ / for as moch as it doth confesse one true god and prayseth Christe very greatelye And it curseth the Iues Christes aduersaries and many other thinges doth it booste / so that the symple people and soche as take no hede and be not circumspecte do suppose Christe and Mahumet to haue bene coÌ„panioÌ„s and fellowes confederated / which opinion hath addyd greate strengthe vnto many sectes and heresyes Moreouer a certen exquisite kynde or face of holynes and the wonders of myracles all moste done dayly / aÌ„d the continuance of theyr secte by so many yeares / and the consente and conspriration of so many nations and
people in to the same / and the wonderfull successe of The dyuersyte betwene the Christen churche aÌ„d the Turkes church at this present tyme Cantic i. fortune in victoryes / in riches / in other temporall thinges doth vpholde and commeÌ„de the religioÌ„ of Mahumet where as the Christen church lieth in the duste appereth owtewardely very euyll fauored / sluttysshe / nedie oppressed and filled with diuerse and moche people weake feble faynt in the fayth / with many vngratious men / with many traytours And all hir beutye lyeth hyd inwardely / that is to saye fayth / the knowlege of god / holynes and righteousnes by Christe / euen as the spouse of god speaketh in the balletts of SalomoÌ„ I am blacke / but yet am I well fauored / eueÌ„ as the bagynges of SalomoÌ„ the pauilioÌ„s of Cedar And it is songe in the Psalmes that all the beutye and apparell Ps xliiij of the kinges doughter was set inwardely wrowght aboute with gowlde and curious nedle worke of diuerse coloures And ther for vnto spirituall batayle the Turkes brynge sharpe and obstinate myndes / so that a Turke beyng a proselyte is very seldome sene in the Christen churche / were as many of vs lyke false apostatataes which is a shamefull thinge greately to be lamented do forsake owre religion and fall a waye vnto them Now partely thorowe the prescription of theyr lawe whiche commaundeth theÌ„ with warres to sprede abrode theyr relygion or ells at the leste waye to make men of a contrarye religion trybutaries vnto them / and partly thorow ambition whiche is a kyns woman to slesshely dispositions / and can kepe no measure wheÌ„ the mater cometh to passe after hir owne mynde and supposerh the wynnynge or To holde the woluâ— by the cares / is tâ— be in doble aÌ„d douteful dauÌ„ger / lyke as is that man why che holdeâ—â— a wolâ—e by thâ—eares / for yf he shot de lethim go / it is daÌ„gerous â— to holdâ— hym stylâ— it is dangerous also takinge awaye of one newe kingedome / onely to be a steppe or a Grece to inuade other the Turkes also do stryue with vs for dominion / and they gape after ower temporall goodes / so that we playnely after the prouerbe may holde as it were the wolue by the eares For a substancyall sure peace can not be betwene the ChristiaÌ„s the Turkes so longe as they do obserue the law of Mahumet Wher for to abstayne from warres owght not so moch to be called a peace as a breathinge / a sekyng of some better aduantage And therfore we must praye vehemently to the Lorde owre God that he wyll wit saffe to open the eyes of the Turkes vnderstondiÌ„ge that they maye beholde the vanyte of theyr superstition and the sure and eternall truthe of the Christen relygion For why by that meanes in conclusion an holy / a good / a saffe / an honeste and houlsome coÌ„corde bothe to them and vs might be optayned Agayne to kepe batayle with the Turkes is a thinge full of greate perrell and of moche difficultie whiche way so euer we turne vs in the worlde / For why that dominioÌ„ of theirs is opened very wyde by Asia / Affrica / Europa / and it is abundaÌ„t with the multitude of meÌ„ and of all other thinges that warre hath nede of And there be leages or bondes of peace made betwene Solymanne and the moste mighty polytyke rulers of the ChristeÌ„ name as men saye Whiche thinges how moche they helpe ower enemie how greate oportunities they do brynge vnto hym / or how moch they do hurte ower affayers I holdynge my peace all meÌ„ do vnderstoÌ„de What sholde I speake of the conscripte and ordinarie multitudes of horse men and fote men and of men pertaining to theyr shippes and galyes What of they supplementes or store of artilerye as of bowes / gunnes / harnesse and of other soche lyke thinges in a maner beynge infinite What of theyer arays / vittle / lernynge / experience / prouidence / and concorde What of theyer perseuerance / theyer sufferaunce / and obseruation of dominion All whiche thinges are better knowen vnto those meÌ„ to whome the knowlege of soche thinges belongeth / then to me Nether can they be comprehended at one tyme in any consultation / seynge that many times in the former parte of the hoste / in the batayle and euen sodenly a good captayne muste take newe couÌ„cell But this thinge owght not to be dissembled that the Turkes are ower moste cruell enemyes and are beste instructe and prepared in all thinges And that ower power agaynste them is very lyttle / weake / feble and in a maner worthye to be despysed except ower healpe be looked for in the name of the lorde whyche made heauen and erthe / greate / incomparale / inuincyble / and at all tymes ready for them that feare the same lorde / and hope for healthe in his mercye Chapt. xvij NOw trulye by what meanes we maye get and optayne the same thinge and vse it euermore I wyll from henseforth tell and delcare / trustynge no thinge at all vnto myne owne witt whiche is very smale nether yet vpon anye syngulare wisdome But I wyll folowe the steppes of gods worde and the demonstration of those storyes whyche vnto soche as make dilygent inquisitioÌ„ do many festly expresse accordinge to the course of all worldes / what hath at any tyme ether proffited or hurte the churche / what god hathe done and wrowght / and with what instrumentes / or ells by what meanes / in the churche / ether before the word of god was incarnate or afterwarde And yf I do coniecture truly the lorde hath warned vs wyth a wondefull token that a sorowfull and bytter destenye hangeth ouer the churche and for what causes / and howe and by what meanes she may escape it / the fyfte yere before the Turkes dyd fyrste muade Asia Rufinus the traytour callynge theÌ„ forthe when by the space of .xxx. dayes to gether a fyerie doue dyd apere in the element / and was sene of all men Truly Prodygyous signes and woÌ„ders ought nether with conrempte to be neglected nor yet superâ—tytyouâ—ly to be obserued as wonderfull signes and straunge syghtes fasshions of thinges not acustomed to be sene owght not to be obserued superstitiously no more then dreames and other soche lyke thinges euen so lykewyse those thinges owght not to be despised whiche the maker and gouuernoure of nature hath obiected or caste in betwene the heathen and the companions of trwe relygion / as often as he wolde brynge forth any noble warke and prouoked men more inwardely to consider theyer lyuinge and also to pondre the Iudgementes of god / so that in tyme they myght flye from the euylles hangynge ouer theyr heades Wherfore the Lorde in the gospel Maâ— xxiiij of S. Luke speakynge of the destruction of the Iuysshe nation /
the churche / as when in the ballettes of SalomoÌ„ which do celebrate the couenaunt of god and man coplling to gether in Christ it is sayde to the spouse Cant. j. vâ— thow hast doues eyes And agayne in an other place / one is my doue / one is my derliÌ„g / she is the onely beloued of hir mother dere vnto hir that bare hir c. The Philosophers also called naturall / or the curious serchers owt of the secretes of nature do teache / that of all mortall creatures there is none that kepeth the fayth of wedlocke so truly as a doue and yet in The nature and propertye of a doue after the iudgement of the Philosophes the meane tyme to be moste frutefull in procreation Moreouer they affirme that syttynge by the ryuer syde to drynke or to bathe hyr she obserueth or marketh very well the shadowes of haukes and of soche other lyke rauenyng fowles / and getteth hir self fe in to some pryuye denue or hole as it were in to a sanctuarye lest she myght be the praye of soch tyraÌ„nous byrdes flying aboue and ouer hir heade All whiche thynges do meruelously agre with the catholyke churche and euery parte therof Now fyer for the manifolde power of gyuynge lyghte or bryghtnes / and of makynge whote / and of pourgynge / dothe resemble many tymes in the fygures of diuinite the afflyctions of the faythfull / as in the psalme-lxv we wente thorow fyer and water and thow The significatioÌ„ of the fyer wherwyth the doue was toÌ„ passed aboute broughtest vs owte in to a place full of comforte and refresshinge And the. xliij Chapter of Esaye in the comfortable speche which as a sure thinge payed before hande / was destinate to the captiued prysoners in Babilon it is written after this maner When thow shalte walke thorow the fyre it shall not burne the / and the flame shall not kyndle vpon the for I am the Lorde thy god the holye one of Israel thy sauioure What therfor dyd the fyer prophecye What dyd the doue sygnyfye A greate fyer / that is to saye a greate troble â—â— affliction in the space of thyrtye dayes not burnte vp or consumed in the fyer Truly a greate fyer to be prepared and by the sufferaunce af god shortly to be throwne vpon the churche But vpon what churche verely the Christen churche which had moste brodely enlarged the coostes of theyer donnimon and had the fruition of greateste felicite vnder the beste prince Theodosius / and was taught lykewise of the moste holy and beste lerned masters / of Augustine in Affrike / of Hierome in Syria / of Ambrose in Italie / and other innumerable by Greke lande / by Italy / Fraunce and Germany / vnto whome the celestiall clemencie of god had gyuen meÌ„ also that were contynuall in the redynge of holy scriptures / as Suuia and Fretela and Suniâ—â— Fretelâ— â–ª other But she slepeth and snorteth lyke an Idle houswyffe / nether dyd she regarde for to make answere with prayse and thankesgyuynge and wyth other lyke dutyes and offices of vertu vnto the celestyall husbandman for soche his greate costes labour and diligeÌ„ce speÌ„t vp on hir And therfor dyd he prepare fyer strycken owte of the caucasean rockes to come forth in to the este parte of the worlde whych by lytle and lytle myght reproue or take awaye all thynges partaynynge bothe to the body and also to the soule / and the whyche a longe tyme myght burne the whole doue rounde aboute within and withoute that the moste electe seruaÌ„tes of god also myght be vexed or prouoked vnto a wycked defection But why Burnyng in greateste opero / that is to say dereâ— in greatest afflictianâ— so May we Iudge it to be done for that intente / that the churche burnynge in greateste fyers myght be brought in to coles and asshes No verely / but that she not regardynge the benefytes of god and despysinge lyghter corrections and thretenynges / beyng chastened by an harder vexation myght receyue the clere lyght of the truthe / that holy loues towarde god and owre bretherne which euen then were very cowlde myght newly be warmed and styrred vp agayne / that the spottes / the wrynkeles / the rusty vyces / and all can herd deformyte / the despysynge of hyr husband Christe / the truste in creatures and forged loues and worshipynges / the contempte of Gods worde / the perseqution of good men / the houckster lyke sellynge of doues / that is to saye of the celestyall gyftes of Gods grace and the remyssyon of synnes / the symonyacke byinge of the Lordes passion and of all other holy thynges / the perseueratyon in hardnes of harte wyth owte repentaunce and other synnes agaynste the holye goste-myght be baked / rosted or scoured away with fyre / so that then afterwarde bothe the bellowes and the blower beynge destroyed the doue shall come owte of that meltinge fornace as it were all newe and couered ouer with siluer / whyche then all to gether beynge fayer and well fauored may please Christe hir spouse / whiche onely may looke vpon god / all hir other aduouterus louers with the whyche she had playde the harlote before beynge excluded far awaye oute of hir harte / whiche sittinge by the fresshe riinynge streames of the mellifluus wordes flowynge owte of the lordes mouthe the onely fiumtayne of euerlastinge lyffe / maye behoulde diligently the cruell dysceytes of hir enemyes and flye awaye from theyer vyolence in to the holes of that rocke / whose syde was opened vpon the crosse giuinge lyffe / his fete and handes bores thorow with wouÌ„des gyuing health / wherin conclusion / the doue beiÌ„g in safegarde / wheÌ„ she hath hid hir self fe in the merit of the passioÌ„ of the sonne of god a lyue of the sone of Marie of the house of Dauid she may bringe forth swete and moste pleasant songes to the lorde hir husband / that is to saye The confession of hir sinne / the imploration of gods helpe / prayses and thankesgyuynge in the name of Christ the onely sauioure / whyche with the father and the holy goste reygneth one god worlde wyth owte ende Amen Moreouer the coniecturatyon of this wonder whyche was obiecte and sene aboute the begynninge of the Turkes persequtioÌ„ that the churche beynge warned before hande myght beware and take hede / or ells beyng wrapped in afflictions / she myght constantly wayte for the helpe of god / doynge diligently in the meane season euerye thinge that hathe any moment or helpe of healthe be it neuer so lyttle I put it all to gether vnto the Iudgementes of good and godly men beynge myndefull of the sayynge of Ieremie the xxiii Chapter The Prophet that hath a dreame let hym tell it And he that vnder staÌ„deth my worde let hym showe it truly / so that this my interpretatioÌ„ may haue no more faythe or farther credit gyuen vnto it
then it hath optayned by the consent of gods worde and by euydent demonstration of the truthe Now from hense forth I wyll brefely towche those thinges whiche flowe owte of the Christiane religion as owte of a spryng and brynge infinite coÌ„modyties / so that with them all publyke weales be florisshinge and happye / and with owte them ther is no thinge can be well done ether at home or abrode And that is proued with a meruelous consent of gods diuine scriptures and of good reason and of the iudgement of wyse men amongste the heatheÌ„ and of histories as well that be straunge as of those that be familiare Amonge the whiche concorde obtayneth the cheiffe place / wereof Salust called as Salust I maye vse saynte Augustines wordes historicus veritatis / that is to saye a wryter of true stories / sayth / that by concorde smale substance doth increace and agayne by discorde moste greate ryches wyll waste a waye and come to naught And Publius a wryter of mery verses / neuer the lesse full of wyse sentences / affirmeth Publius Mimus weake helpe to be made stronge with sure consent Also the Psalmographe or the wryter of Psalmes commendyng concorde as a moste necessary thinge sayth Be Ps xxxiij holde how good and Ioyfull a thinge it is for brethern to dwell to gether in vnyte And in the last ende of the same Psalme it followeth There hath the lorde promised his blyssynge and lyffe for euermorâ— It wolde be an infinite thinge to reherse thorouly the testyfycations or wytnesses of coÌ„corde owte of the holy scriptures other prophane hystoryes But truly how moch dyscorde doth hurte / at the leste waye this one senteÌ„ce of Christ wil show declare Euery kyngdome dyuyded Luke .xl. with in it self fe must come to desolation And of that samethynge there be ouer many exaÌ„ples wrytteÌ„ in the familiare hystory of the church For what other thynge destroyed ConstaÌ„tinople / Thracia / aÌ„d Grecia / then warres stryffes amoÌ„ge theÌ„ selfes What was euer a more blooddy thynge or fuller of slaughter / then the contentioÌ„ of the Christen Prynces at the cyttye of Ptolomais in the battell of the Saracenes Or at the fludde Verna in the battell of the Turkes What hath so moch holpeÌ„ the Turkes aÌ„d Saracenes at Nothynge helpeth the Turkes more then the dyscorde of ChristeÌ„ Prynces amoÌ„ge theÌ„ selues al tymes / as the discorde of ower meÌ„ whyles the Romysh Puppet as it were Bauus in TereÌ„ce doth troble and inquiet all thinges / setteth the Grekes to gether by the eares with the LoÌ„uÌ„bardes The Lâ—bardes with the FreÌ„che men aÌ„d the Germanes / the Germanes with the ItaliaÌ„s â–ª But when dyd that contention / permytted of God neuerthelesse throwne in to the churche by the bysshop of Romes Labor and procurement ceasse for to sowâ— greate calamyties Therfore a certen barbarous man a Scythiane whych made or buylded the domynion of the Tartarans called by name Can Guista / dyd exhorte his .xii. sonnes whyche dyinge he lefte Can Guista behynde hym vnto concorde / as vnto the onely sure stabylyte of the publycke weale / by the example of a sheffe of arrowes / which being surely bouÌ„de â–ª to gether / none of them was able to breake a sondre But the shaftes beinge losed on froÌ„ an other they dyd very easely cracke theÌ„ in peces And by the same meanes a noble Captayne called Chria Sertorius dyd bringe hys hoste vnto a concorde showyng that the strongest men of warre coulde not Chria sâ—â—torius drawe owt the heares of an horse tayle all at on s / but takyng the weake heares dyuyded a sondre they myght sone pull them owt / one after an other wythowt any payne But the dyssymulatyoÌ„ of hatred for a tyme or the fayned promysse of freÌ„deshyppe and helpe is not to be called coÌ„corde / whych thinges as they do many tymes greatly hurt those men which take no hede / and be not circuÌ„specte and some tyme also destroy theÌ„ eueÌ„ so be they moste fylthy aÌ„d reueÌ„ged or punisshed of louing Iupiter / that is to saye of god the presideÌ„ â–ª and author of frendeship societie wyth greate paynes But concorde is a surâ— The diffinition of concorde coÌ„sent of myndes and wylles in any matter so that what soeuer thinges God saythe / to wyll the same / to not wyll the same / whose parent and conseruatryce Symilitude Similytude by interpretation is calleâ— lykenes / aÌ„d it is named amoÌ„ge lerned men to be the mother of concorde / because â—â—at wheâ—â— as men â—e of a ly 〈…〉 â—ayth 〈…〉 te as farforth as the nature of thinges doth beare and suffer bringeth al thinges vnto a vnite Nether is euerye conspiration and consent euermore good and howlsome / as the coniuration of Catelyne agenste the publyke weale of the cyttye of stome / and the heresye of the Arryanes ageÌ„st the church of Christ / but that concorde onely whiche is contracted betwyxt good men with god for to optayne honeste thinges / ryghteous and holy / and to dryue awaye those thinges wiche vnto them are repungnaunte and contrarye Whiche maner of frendeship or faythfull socyetye made stroÌ„ge as it were with soche pynnes as carpenters vse in theyr frames when they nayle or Ioyne the greate balkes and beames to the wother timbre / is at no hande belonginge to the wicked / whiche of the Apostle are called vnmanerly and reprobate vessels But it is onely partayninge vnto the companions of the one onely and true relygion / that is to saye the Christen Whyche as they be holdeÌ„ with one fayth and religion eueÌ„ so are they bounde to gether with the same Sacramentes in to one holy churche / whiche they wyll defend witth all theyer power beynge gathered to gether vnder the one onely and the greateste Byshop Iohn .x. as it were in to the shepefolde of the beste shepeherd / in towhomeal godly meÌ„beynge of one mynde do so moche consent that they do knowlege it to be the moste extreme vnfaythfullnes to fall a waye from hym and to forsake hym For what other man is that moste hye Bisshop the heade affyxed and Ioyntely knytte vnto the churche to the worldes ende then Christe Iesus Whiche ous dyinge dyd offer hym self fe for owre synnes / dayly sacrificeth / Hebr. xl dayly pacyfieth the wrath of god that he be not displeased with vs / maketh intercession for his electe / doth coÌ„secrate vs with his owne bloode / blysseth with all benediction and is of abilite to pardon and to takeÌ„ compassion of ower infirmyties for as moch as he was teÌ„pted by all thynges and made lyke vnto vs / sinne onely except Heb. iiâ—â— He also dyd communycate the same his power vnto the churche and he ordined some to be ouersears / some to be pa / stors / and theachers / that in the name of hym they myght preache
repentaunce and remission of synnes and distrybute the Sacramentes / delyuerynge none other Ephe. iiij Mar. xvi relygion then the very same which Christe dyd teache with worde and fulfylled with his dede goynge before in the good example of lyuynge And he wylled greatest authorite to be vnto that office and ministration well and truly gouerned sayinge He that heareth yow heareth me / and he that contemneth yow contemneth Luke x. me â–ª and my father that sent me But agenste the stubborne and disobedient / as agenste them that be seditious / a payne is decreed / so that they which resist the ordinauÌ„ce of god are iudged to resist the Lorde / they that resyst hym shall of a truthe be destroyed of hym / as the exaÌ„ples Num. xvi expressed in Chore / Dathan Abiron do manifestly declare Nether hath the Romyshe Prelate receyued greater power of Christ the supreme and onely vniuersall Bisshope all thowgh he were eueÌ„ the best moste vertuous maÌ„ lyuyng The Romysh bysshop hath no more power gyuen hym of God / then the bysshop of Eugudye in the earth then the Bisshop of Eugubye or of any wother village in the mostâ— extreme corner of Germany Vnto whome if a message sholde haue bene sent in olde tyme as some people dyd then was this comonly the tenoure therof We seâ— thy power / thy pompe and pryde / thy superfluite and greate excesse with all thy other truÌ„prye / dedes / and affayers to be contrarye to Chryste Wewyll not fyll / thy botomles sacke and insatiable couetousnes We wyll not suffer thy cruell tyrannye / therfor will we tarrye with owte thy synagoge in the churche of ower Bysshope Chryste If Germanye had done the same thinge and vsed a lyke answer / gretynge / or salutation to hym but a fewe yeres paste â–ª we sholde haue had or this day a far better fourme and state / bothe of the churche and the publycke weale Moreouer the people of the churche are assured of thys one thyng whych a sure / a trustye / and a contynuall concorde doth euermore requier they haue Luke 1 â–ª one lawe the same also being righteous and beste They haue one kynge and Monarche Christe vnto whome the celestiall father hathe gyuen the seate of hys father Dauid that he maye rule and haue dominioÌ„ froÌ„ see to see / that he maye exequte IudgemeÌ„t iustyce in all the earth And he ordineth mynysters of Iustyce vnder hym in euery place which may Rom. xiij defende goodnes and good men / drawe oute the sworde agenst theÌ„ that be euyll when as ofteÌ„ as nede shall requyre it Owte of whose lawes all other lawes be lawfully deducted Therfor the Empyre of Germany optayneth all hyr power and Iurisdiction Not of Carolus the greate Not of the Bysshop of Rome Not of Caius Cesar Not of Romulus But of The Empyre of Germany hath all hyâ— power of God onely Christe the kynge of kynges and the Lorde of lordes as I will at some tyme here after manifestly declare if the Lorde gyue me lyffe Wherfore let the ChristeÌ„ prynces and people do the same thinge yea let them do it in dede from their very harte that Agelaus Naupactius dyd councell perswade vnto the Grekes / exhortynge Philippe aÌ„d Acheus vnto peace that they Agâ—laus Naupactius â— wolde speake and agre bothe in one thinge / and one helpe an other whereby they myght conserue them self fe and theyr cyttyes from the enmious nations of barbarous people / none other wyse then meÌ„ do take handes to gether whiche are constrayned to wade thorowe ryuers wyth owte shippes or botes For the worde of Christe ower Lorde God and sauioure eueÌ„ the byshope of ower sowles and beste 1. Pet. ij kynge owght for to stande sure and faste in ower brestes which sayeth by this thinge men shall knowe that yow be my disciples â–ª Iohn xiii yf yow shall loue one an other And this sayinge of the Apostle Beare yow one an others burthen and so shall Galat. vi yow fulfyll the lawe of Christ The most holy bande of brotherly concorde muste be euermore occupied before ower eyes vnto the whiche thinge to be retayned as often as the name glorie of Chrisie and the necessite of ower brethren doth requyer it a stronge valiant man will be readye and prepared agenst all fortune what so euer it be Chapt. xviij FVrthermore because batayle and As meÌ„ hâ—ue their names oâ— maÌ„lynes / so owghâ— they in their actes to be very manly iâ— godly vertu Dir enâ— a virtutâ— dicitur warre is holden and perfourmed moste cheifely by men / whiche as they agree in name euen so in very dede owght they to haue felowshyp and acquayntanÌ„ce with vertu And seinge that no thinge whether it be lylle or great / maye wythowte vertu be spedely done therfor is vertu to be requyred as a thinge moste necessary / namely when Christen warfare is taken in hand and openly proclaymed whiche craftely is not conceyued In tyme of warre / yf men â—â—uer studyed for god lynes and vertu / thâ— behowueth it them most ernsâ—ly to pracâ—yse them and bent to inuade the dominions of other men but Iustely to defende ower owne agenste the violence and tyranny of the Turkes which enemyes as they ar the moste sharpest olde soldyers / excercysed in fresshe and newe victories and the fyercer for that they remembre theyer olde victories eueÌ„ so they beying now any mated with one and whother shew and glitering pretence of some fayned coÌ„ceyued verten / come vnto batayl Nether be houeth it them onely to be garnesshed with vertu whiche go forth armed agenst the enemyes of them that ar called Christians but also all those whiche are lefte at home For as Marcus Cicero very Marcus Cicero clerely sayth Small and weake ar the armours without in the felde / excepte there be good consell at home Yea and so is that also of no lesse truthe / which is comonly sayde Feble / and weake / impotent / and faynte is the helpe and streÌ„gth of weapens / one lesse bothe at home and abrode men do ernestly striue who may be most godly and vertuouse to obtayne their comon helth and saluation For the prayse and flower of vertewe / and honest dealinge after the comonaltye be set at peace quietnes bringeth forth infinite proffit / conserueth and encreaseth the priuate and comon felicite of all men nether is there any other thinge that so presently puttethe from vs the tempestuouse stormes of batail And when batayl be giuneth to chaunce theÌ„ vertew endeuoureth and dilygently laboureth most that it might be put of / and auoyded with the leste losse of men and goods Nether was there at any tyme Prince or peple that dyd get them greate glory by batayl whiche did not set before their eyes the great study bothe of religioÌ„ and vertewe
rekened before with good consideration / batayl is to be taken in hande euen so must it be also faughten constantly Nether shall it be good or proffitable for men once broken with labours and contrary chaunces as full diuerse and many ar the fortunes of batayl / the lorde in the mene ceason teinting the confidence and fayth of his childreÌ„ by slaughter and soche blody plages to preferre any peace be fore armour aÌ„d batyle which thinge hath brought the greateste contempt and infinite miserys in to diuerse landes cyttyes and kyngdoms What suffered yea what dyd not the RomaÌ„s suffer by xxiiij yeres / whiles the first batayl was faughten wyth the Phenisions otherwise named the CartagineÌ„ses What and how greate daÌ„mage and losse of men and goods sustayned the Romans But yet at leÌ„gth perseueraÌ„ce had the victorie Who may tell the difficultes distresses which the same Romans sustayned in the xvii yeres of the .ij. batayl with the same PhenisiaÌ„s for throwing downe of one of theyr coÌ„federated cyttes And as MaÌ„lius 〈…〉 lius sayth in the storye of Liuius / euer did the Romans fyght more strongely then luckely A certen cyttye in Phrygya of the ChristeÌ„ name dyd chuse rather to be throne downe to the grownde standinge constantly and honestly in the confession of Christe / theÌ„ by any fowle theuisshe couenant of peace and truce to come in to the handes of the tyraÌ„te of Parthia The .xi. trybes of Israel / to auenge / the iniurie of one womaÌ„ which tribes were twyse and Iud â— â— yet agayne the thirde tyme scatered and put to flyght / with the losse of .xl. thowsande men did not yet shrynk from theyr batayl vntyl they had destroyed the Authours aÌ„d defenders of that mischeuouse abhominable cryme It were to longe to tell the longe aÌ„d moste harde beseyges of Hierusalem / Tyre / Gaze / Troie / ConstaÌ„tinople and diuerse other but onely let vs set before ower eyes the Machabeys men moste stronge valeaÌ„t aad holy why che fightinge agenste kinge Antiochus by diuerse and many chaunces do geue vs example what is conuenient for men to do whiche muste fyght a genste the AntichristiaÌ„s Therfor vnto this warfare it is necessary to seke owte the beste tried chosen captaines For whye as the moste comoÌ„ verse giueth waringe the strength of the souldioures consisteth in the pollicye and councell of the captayne Also Leonidas was wonte for to saye The herde oâ— Leonidas Hartes is more to be feared hauynge alâ— on vnto theyer captayne then an hoste oâ— Lyons hauyng an harte vnto theyer captaine And how moche it lyeth in the Emperoure ather to wynne or to lose the viâ—torye whome the vulgare people call thâ— supreme or general captaine / whether hâ— be a kynge or any other constytute in thâ— name of a prynce very many historyes do sufficiently teache and declare For wherâ— â— Re. xliâ— Saul was reiected and forsaken of Goâ— fyghtynge vnhappelye agenste the palestines he browght the people of god intâ— extreme miseryes Whome Dauid succâ—dinge a man after gods awne minde / diâ— ii Re. xi all hys feates of warre so prudently and happely that he encreased the domion oâ— Israell by subduwynge and bryngyngâ— theruÌ„to many other nacyoÌ„s of the gentyles But for hys aduoutry and slaughteâ— Intestyne battayl is when a kyngdome is deuyded with in it selfe of that ryght good man â—rias / he wrapped the kingdome with intestyne battay 〈…〉 and warre Beccause that Naaman haâ— the relygyon and feare of God before hiâ— eyes God thorow him dyd geue health â— salfegarde to Syria Achab Kynge of Israel / when he had taken Benhadad kyngâ— iiij Re. v. of Syria / and had not slayne hym / he herde thys heuy threatenyng Because thou hast let go owt of thy handes this man â—â— Re. â—â— worthy death thy lyfe shal be takeÌ„ awaye for his lyfe / and thy peple shal dye for his And after the third yere / he inuadinge the Syrians agayne / both Achab his self was slaine a greate parte of hys peple Iosaphat also kyng of Iuda a godly priÌ„ce / because he coÌ„trary to the aÌ„swere of god giueÌ„ vnto hym was confederated with the â—j Parâ—â— xviij vngodly kinge Achab a tyrant condemned of god dyd with greate dificulty escape the parell and daunger of his lyfe Iulianus the apostata / whiles he persewed Iulianus Apostata the PerthiaÌ„s rasshely and folisshely with owte any polycye destroyed in a maner all his wholl hoste at Ctesiphont after whose deatth Iouinianus the noble warrioure and confessor of Christe takinge Iouinianus the Empyre / eueÌ„ in a lytle space dyd both bringe the soldiers vnto Christes religion and delyuered the hoste froÌ„ deathes mowthe But wise men described perfitly a right god Emperowre or captayne to be A good capitayne must be endued with iiij thynges â–ª endewed with .iiij. thinges / that is to meit with CoÌ„ninge and knowledge of the feates of warre / with strenght vertewe / with Authorite and power / with felicite and good fortune For seynge that in the inferior captaynes called Centuryons / and in the homely or rude soldyers / Centurious becalled captaines ouer honderds wysdom / experience vertewe and strength ought for to be of greateste power it is conuenient that in the same thinges that man far excede and excell other / vpon whose shulders the comonaltye hath layd the cheife wayght and all the charge of the batayland warrfare Furthermore excepte the soldiers haue a cleare good opinion of the witte / wisdome / experience / vertewe and faythe of the Emperoure and cheyf ruler ouer them â–ª howe can he with his reasons / exhortacions and persuasions inflame them to fyght / staye them and refrayne them whaÌ„ he list And to be shorte / howe maye he haue them preste and redye vnto all chaunces But yet here wyl â— not omitte the fame and name of a good Emperowre to be of moche effecte AlexaÌ„der as of Alexander the greate whose fame feared and ouercame many natioÌ„s before thei had sene his baÌ„nere aÌ„d armours The felycite and good luke in puttinge by the hurtes and damages from the hoste and comoÌ„ weale / and by batayll to procure glad victory with whother commodites / cometh of no thynge ells then of the fauour of god almightye / whiche doutlesse fauoreth the godly and the louers of right dealiÌ„ge / but the vniuste wyked he turneth away and thrusteth them from hym For euen the holy scriptues threateÌ„ to thes wyked men greuouse and sharpe calamites / but to the good they promyse all that is fortunate prosperouse Wherefore Claudianus writtinge of the moste lukkye warre wherbye Theodosius ouer came Arbogastes and Eugenius in the mountans called the Alpes singeth this songe Claudianus O nimium dilecte deo tibi militat aether Et coniurati veniunt ad classica venti That is to saye Oh derely
And to set the fortune of other men a syde it shall be anowgh and sufficient for vs to wryght of the diuerse and contrarye endes and successe of the â–ª iij. late consulls or magistrates of the christen publike weale / well worthy I warrant Abundantius yow for to be promoted vnto soche authorite Abundantius beynge nedye / beggerly or fallen in pouertye was banisshed at Bithynye Ruffinus heade was Ruffinus borne vpon the poynte of a spere or a darte vnto Constantinople / and his ryght hande beynge cut of it was carryed from dore to dore and holdeÌ„ forth to begge his meate vnto the opprobrye and shame of his insaciable couetousnes Timasius sodenly Timasius beynge throwne downe as it were headelynge from the moste hygh toppe â— degre of his dignite thowght hym self fe to haue escaped because he lyueth in shamefull myserye with â—wte all glorye and worshyppe at Asca I tell not the calamityes of men miserable but the frayle state of mannes condicion My mynde is of a fraide and I quake by euerye Ioynts of me for to remeÌ„bre aÌ„d to show forth the falles of ower tyme. It is but a lyttle more then tweÌ„tie yeares a go that betwene Constantinople and the mountanes of Italye called Iulius Alpes the bloode of the Romans was dayly shed forthe The fiers and Barbarouse nations named Gothi / Sarmate / Quadi / Alani / Hunni / â—aÌ„dali / and Marcomanni dyd waste / spoyle and plucke awaye violently / Scythia / Thratia / Macedonia / Dardania / Dacia / Thessalonia / Achaia / Epyrus otherwyse called Albanye / Dalmacia / all the kingdome of Hungarye with certen partes of Germanye annexed ther vnto And truly I can not nombre how manye natioÌ„s / how manye virgyns of god and gentle fre and noble bodyes haue bene made laughynge stockes vnto these beastely cruell destroyers Byshops haue bene taken / Preistes haue bene slayne and the offices and duties of diuerse clerkes destroyde / churches caste downe flatt to the grounde and horses hath bene stabled at the altares of Christ / the reliques of martyrs were digged vp / shrines robbed / euery where wayling weping with wringing of ces the Turkes haue the victorie and thâ— Christen army is ouercomne in the playne felde aÌ„d put to shamefull flyghte And yet as thowgh all these miserable murthers and greuous slaughters were not sufficient the ciuile betayles amonge owre selues haue almoste consumed mo men at home then the swerde of owre forren enemyes hath done abrode Wretched Israelytes were they in the comparyson of whom Nabuchodosor is called a seruant Vnhappie are we which so greately greuouslye displease god that his wrathe muste with so greate indignation be poured forth vpon vs by the furious woodnes of these cruell bloodthursty and barbarous heathen Turkes Ezechias did repent aÌ„d Esap 37. an hondereth .lxxx. and fyue thowsand of his enemies the Assirians are in one nyght destroyed of one Angell Iosephat dyd call vpon the name of god syngynge ij Pa. xx laude and prayse to his diuine maiestye / and the lorde for hym so praysynge dyd ouercome his aduersaryes immediatlye Moses fawght agenst Amelech not with Exo. xvii swerde but with prayer and dyd optayne the victorie Therfor yf we wyll be lyfted vp to stande faste and sure let us repent with the Niniuites Let vs with them be throwne downe flatte vpon the erthe aÌ„d crye for mercye Ah lasse and fye for shame how folysshe is ower mynde how prone and redye vnto vnbelelefe The Romans hoste some tyme the ouercomer aÌ„d lorde of all the worlde is ouercomen of them / feareth them / yea and trembleth at the syght of theÌ„ which yet were neuer able before this tyme for co inuade theÌ„ Neuer the lesse now yf they shall ons but to wche theyer lande they rekeÌ„ them selues as deade men And yet vnderstondenot we these wordes of the Prophet Esay Esai 〈◊〉 A thowsand shall flye one maÌ„ persuynge them Nether yet do we cutt of the causes of ower disease that the syknes it self fe also might there withall be taken a waye So that we might see theyer Arowes by aÌ„d by for to giue place vnto ower dartes / theyr veluet bonets vnto ower salletes / and theyr cartehorses vnto ower Iustynge stedes Thus endeth The consultacion of Theodorus Bibliander translated qwte of Latine in to Englysshe and printed at Basill by Radulphe Bonifante in this troblouse tyme ragynge with warre and batayle by all the partes of Christendome / the yere of ower Lorde M. D. XIII Men. of Auguste