35

35.
his doctrine.
[B₆v] He saueth his people from their sinnes .Math. 1.
and that he only. So that ther is no nother name to be
saued by. Actes .4. And vnto hym bere al the Prophetes
recorde / that al that beleue in hym shal receave remission 5
of their sinnes / in his name. Actes .10. And by him
only we haue an entrynge in vnto the father and vnto al
grace. Ephe. 2. 3. and Rom. 5. And as many as come before
him ar theves and murtherers .Iohn .10. that is who so
ever preachith any other forgivnes of sinne than theroue 10
faith in his name / the same sleyeth the soule.
This to be true / not only of original but also of
actual / and aswel of that we commyt after our profession /
as before / mayst thou evidently se by the ensamples of the
scripture. Christ forgaue the woman taken in adulterie. 15
Iohn .8. and a nother whome he healed Iohn .5. And he
forgave publicanes and open sinners / and put none to doo
penance as they cal it / for to make satisfaction for the
sinne / which he forgave thoroue repentance and faith /
but inioyned them the life of penance / the profession of 20
their baptym / to tame the flesh in kepyng the commaunde-
mentes and that they shuld sinne no moare. And those sin-

36.
ners wer for the most parte Iewes and had their Original
sinne forgiuen them before thoroue faith in the testament
of God. Christ forgaue his Apostles their actual sinnes
after their profession which they committed in denyeng hym /
and put none to doo penance for satisfaction. Peter actes 5
.2. absolueth the Iues thorowe repentance and faith frome
their actual sinnes whiche they dyd in consentinge vnto
Christes deeth / & enioyned them no penance to make satis-
faction. Paule also had his actual sinnes forgiven hym
frely [B₇] thorow repentance and faith with out mention 10
of satisfaction. Actes .9. So that accordinge vnto this
present text of Iohn. If it chaunce vs to sinne of frail-
tie / let vs not despaire for we haue an aduocate and inter-
cessour / a true attorney with the father Iesus Christ
righteous toward God and man / and is the reconcilinge 15
and satisfaction for oure sinnes.
For Christes workes are perfecte / so that he hathe
obtayned vs al mercye and hathe sett vs in the ful state
of grace and favoure of God / and hathe made vs as welbe-
loued as the Aungeles of heauen / thoughe we be yet weake. 20
As the yonge children thoughe they can doo no good at all
ar yet as tenderly beloued as the olde. And God for

37.
Christes sake hathe promised that what so euer evel we shal
doo / yet if we turne and repent he wil neuer moare thinke
on our sinnes.
Thou wilt say / God forgiveth the displeasure but we
must soffre payne to satisfie the rightwisnes of God. A 5
then God hathe a rightwisnes whiche may not forgiue payne
and all / that the poore sinner sholde go scochfre with
out ought at al. God was vnrightwise to forgiue the thefe
his payne and al thorowe repentance and faithe vnto whom
for lak of lesyure was no penance enioyned. And mi faith 10
is / that what so euer ensample of mercy God hathe shewyd
one / that same he hath promised al / ye wil he perature
forgiue me / but I muste make amendes? If I owe you .xx.
li. ye wil forgiue me / that is / ye wil no moare be angre /
but I shal pay you the .xx. poundes. O popyshe forgiue- 15
nes with whom it goeth after the commen prouerbe / no peny
no pardone. His fatherhed givethe pardon frelie / but we
must pay money aboundantlie.
[B₇v] Paules doctrine is .Roma. 9. if a man worke / it
ought not to be sayd / that his hyre was giuen hym of 20
grace or favoure / but of dutye: But to hym that werketh
not: but beleueth in hym that iustifyeth the vngodly / his

38.
faith (he sayth not his werkes although he commaundeth vs
diligently to worke and despiseth none that God com-
maundeth) his fayth (saith he) is rekened him for his
rightwisnes. Confirminge his sainge with the testimony
of the Prophete Dauid in the .32. Psalme: sainge. Blessed 5
is the man vnto whom god imputeth or rekeneth not his
sinne: that is to saye / which man although he be a sin-
ner: yet God laeth not it to his charge for his faithes
sake. And in the .xi. he saithe. If it come of grace
then it commeth not of workes. For then were grace no 10
grace saithe he: For it was a very straunge speakinge in
Paules eares to cal that grace that came of deservinge
of workes. Or that deseruinge of workes / whiche came
by grace. For he rekened werkes and grace to be con-
trary in siche maner of speache. But oure holye father 15
hathe coupled them to gether of pure liberalitie I dare
say / and not for couetuosnes. For as his holynesse if
he haue a cause agaynst any man / immediatlie brethithe
out an excommunication vpon hym and will haue satis-
faction for the vttermost farthinge and somewhat aboue / 20
to teache them to be ware agaynst a nother tyme yer he
wil blise agayne frome the terrible sentence of his hevy

39.
curse / even so of that blessid complexion he describith
the nature of the mearcie of God that God wil remitte his
angre to vs vpon the appoyntment of oure satisfaction.
When the scripture saithe Christ is oure rightwisnes /
oure iustifienge / oure redemp[B₈]tion / oure attonement / 5
that hathe appeased God and clenseth vs frome oure synnes /
and al in his bloude / so that his bloude / is the satis-
faction only.
And that thow mayst the better perceave the falshed
of oure holye fathers fleshlie imagination / call to 10
mynde howe that the scripture saith .Iohn. the fourth
Chapter. God is a spirite and must be worshipped in the
spirite. That is / repentance / faith / hope / and loue
towarde his lawe and oure neyboure for his sake is his
worshipe in the sprite. And therfore who so euer wor- 15
shepethe God withe workes / and referryth his workes to
God / to be a sacrifyce vnto hym / to appease hym as
thoughe he delyted in the worke for the workes sake /
the same maketh of God an image or idoll and is an image
server / and as wyked an Idolatre as euer was eny blynde 20
hethene / and serveth God after thimagination of his
owne hert and is abominable vnto God / as thow seist in

40.
howe many places God defieth the sacrifice of the children
of Israell / for the sayd imagination. So that who so
ever supposith that his candle stekynge before an Image /
his puttinge a peny in the boxe / his goynge a pilgremage /
his fastynge / his wolward goynge / barefoot goynge / his 5
crowechinge / knelynge / and payne takinge / be sacrifice
vnto God / as thoughe he delited in them / as we in the
gestures of Iake Napes / is as blynde as he that gropithe
for his way at none. Godes worship is to loue hym for his
mercye / and of loue bestowe all owre workes vpon owre 10
neyboure for his sake / and vpone the tamynge of oure
fleshe / that we synne not agayne / whiche shuld be the
chefyst care of a Christen man [B₈v] while Christ careth
for that that is once past and committed al redy / whether
before oure profession or after. For the conditions of the 15
peace that is made betwen God & vs in Christes bloude ar
thiese. The lawe is set befor vs / vnto which if we con-
sent and submit oure selves to be scholers therof / then
are not only al oure forsinnes forgiuen both pena and culpa
(with our holy fathers licence euer) but also al oure in- 20
firmities / weknes / pronite / redinese / and motions
vnto sinne are pardoned and taken aworth and we translated

41.
frome vnder the damnation of the lawe whiche damneth as
well those infirmities as the sinne that springeth of
them / and putteth vs vnder grace. Roma. 7. So that we
shal not henceforth / as longe as we forsake not our
profession be iudged / by the rigournese of the lawe but 5
chastised if we do amyse as children that ar vndre no lawe.
Nowe then if god in Christ pardone oure infirmities / by
reason of which we can not escape but that we shal nowe
and then sinne it folowith that he must likwise pardone
the actual sinne which we doo compelled of those infirmi- 10
ties in spite of oure hertes and agaynst the wil of the
sprite. For if thou pardone the syknes of the syke /
then must thow pardone the dedes which he doeth or leveth
vndone by the reasone of his syknes. If the madnese of
a mad man be pardonned and vnder no lawe / then if he 15
murther in his madnes / he may not be slayne agayne. If
children with in a certayn age ar not vnder the lawe that
sleyeth theves / then can ye not of right hang them /
though they stele. What popishe pardonnynge wer that?
This doothe Paule .Ro. 7. so conferme that al the world 20
can not quitch against it / sayenge. I consent vnto the
lawe of god [C₁] that it is good / & fayne wold I do it /

42.
and yet haue I not al wayes power so to do / but fynd a
nother thinge in my fleshe rebelling against the wil of
my mynd & ledinge me captyue in to sinne so that I cannot
do that I wold do / but am compellyd to do that I wold not.
If saith he / I do that I wold not / then I do it not / 5
but the sinne that dwellyth in me doeth it / & then saith
he: who shal delyvre me frome this body of deth / in which
I am bounde prysonner agaynst my wil? Thankes be to God
saith he / thorowe Iesus Christ our lord / which hath con-
querid & ouercome synne / deeth / & hel / and hath put 10
the damnation of the lawe out of the way / vnto al that
professe the lawe and beleue in hym. We be vnder the
lawe to lerne it / and to facion our deades as like as we
canne / but not vnder the damnation of the lawe that we
shulde be damned thoughe owre dedes wer not perfect as the 15
lawe requireth / or thoughe of frailty we at a tyme brake
it. As children ar vnder the lawe that they stele not /
but not vnder the damnation thoughe they stele. So that
al they that ar graffed into Christ to folowe his doctrine /
ar vnder the lawe to lerne it only / but ar delyueryd from 20
feare of euerlastinge deth and hel / and al the threat-
nynges of the lawe / & frome conscience of synne / which

43.
feared vs from god. And we ar come in to God thorowe
the confidence that we haue in Iesus Christ / and ar as
familier and bolde with hym / as yonge innocent children
which haue no conscience of sinne ar withe their fathers
and mothers / or them that nouresh them. Whiche wer impos- 5
sible if God nowe (as the pope painteth him) dyd shake a
rod at vs of .vij. yeares punishement / as sharpe as the
paynes of hel for euery trespace we do / which tre[C₁v]-
space for the noumbre of them were like to make oure
purgatory al most as longe as hel / seynge we haue no 10
godes word that we shal be delyuerid thence / vntil we
haue paide the last ferdinge. And therfore coulde oure
conscience never be at rest nor be bolde and familier with
God.
If ye say the pope can delyuer my conscience from 15
feare of purgatorie (as his poetrie only putteth me in
feare) and that by this texte what so euer thou byndest
on erth. & cete. If thou this way vnderstonde the text /
what so euer thou beinge in erth / losest any where: then
might he lose in hel & bynd in heauen. But why may not 20
I take the texte of Christ .Iohn .16. what so euer ye axe
my father in my name he wil giue it youe / & desire for-

44.
giuenesse of al to gether in Christes name both a pena &
culpa / & then remayneth no suche purgatorie at al? Howe
beit the texte of binding & losing is but borowyd speache
howe that after the similitude of worldly binding & losing
locking & vnlocking: the worde of god truely preachide 5
doth bynde and lose the conscience.
God saith to Hieremias the prophet in his .I. chaptre.
Beholde I giue the poure ouer nations & kingdoms to pluke
vp by the rootes & to sheuer in peces / to destroy & cast
downe / & to byld & plant. Howe dyd he destroye nations 10
& kingdomes / & howe dyde he bylde them? verely by preach-
ing and prophesieng. What nation kyngdome or Citie he
prophesied to be ouerthrowen / was so. And what Citie he
prophesyd to be bylt agayne was so and what nation / after
they wer brought in to captiuitie he prophesied to be 15
restorid againe / wer so / & whom he prophesied to perishe /
perished / and whom he prophecied to be saued: was sauyd.
Euen so whom so euer a true preacher of godes wor[C₂]-
de saith shalbe damned for his sinne / because he wil not
repent & beleue in christ / the same is damned. And whom 20
so euer a true preacher of godes word saith shalbe sauyd
because he repenteth and belevyth in Christes bloude / the

45.
same is saued. And this is the bindinge and losinge that
Christ ment.
Notwithstonding ye must vnderstond that when we
haue sinned though our hertes wer not to sinne / & thoughe
we repent / yer the dede be done / yet the body in sinning 5
hath ouercome the sprite / and hath got the mastry. So
that the sprite is nowe weaker & feabler to vertue & to
folowe the lawe of God & doctrine of Christ / & the fleashe
stronger to foluwe vice & sinne. Wherfor as when an old
sore is broken forth agayne / we beginne as it wer a newe 10
cure with gretter diligence & moar care then before: euen
so here must renewe our olde battayle against the flesh /
& mor strongli go to work / to subdue it & to quench the
lustis therof / which ar waxen so ranke that they bud out
openly / according to the profession of our baptim which 15
is the veri sacrament or signe of repentance / or if thei
wil so haue it callede penance / by the interpretation of
Paule Rom. 6. For the plunging in to the water / as it
betokenith on the one parte that christ hathe washed oure
soules with his bloude / euen so on the other parti it 20
signifieth that we haue promised to quench & sley the
lustes of the fleashe / with prayer / fasting / & holy

46.
meditacion / after the doctrine of Christ / & with al
godly exercise that tame the fleshe & kille not the man.
Wher vpon the busshopes that succedyd the apostles /
when men had done eny open synnes enioyned them penance
as they cal it / by the auctorite of the congregation & 5
gouerners ther of / & aduise of the most wise & discret /
& with the willing [C₂v] consent of the trespasers / to
tame the fleshe / as to go wolward to were shurtes of
heyre / to go bare foote and bare heade / to pray / to
fast breade and water / some once in the weke / some 10
twise / or al the weke / an hole yeare .ij. yeres .iij.
yeres .vij. yeres .xx. yeres / and some al their lives
longe. And to go in pilgrimage to viset the memoriall
of Sainctes to strengthe them the better to folowe then-
sample and suche lyk / and al to sley the worldly mynde 15
of the fleshe. Which maner when it was once receavid of
the people by custome / it became a lawe. And the bushopes
by litle & litle gat it hole in to their awne handes.
When the bushopes sawe that / howe they had got the
simple people vnder them in soche humble obedience / they 20
beganne to set vp their crestes and to raigne ouer them as
princes & to enioyne sore penance for smalle trifeles /

47.
nameli if ought were done agaynst their pleysure / and bet
some sore and spared other & solde their penance to the
riche / and overladyd the poore / vntil the tyranny was
waxid so greuouse that the people wold beare it no lenger.
for by this tyme / what with the multitude of Cerimonies 5
and heape of mennis constitutions whose right vse was
therto cleane forgoten / and partely because our shepardes
wer busyde to seke them selfes & their hie authorite / and
exalted euery man his throne / and wer become wolfes vnto
the flocke: the cause why the people wer disobedient vnto 10
holsome counsel: the word of God was sore darkened and no
where puerly preachyd. And therfor the prelats loothe to
loose their hie auctorite and to let the people go fre
out of their yoke begane to turne their tale & singe a
newe songe howe that this penance was enioyned to make 15
satis[C₃]faction to god for the synne that was committed
Robbyng our soules of the frute of Christes bloude and
making vs imageservantes / referring oure dedes vnto the
parson of God and worshiping him as an image of our owne
imagination with bodely werke / sainge morover / if we 20
wold not do suche penance here at their iniunctions / we
must do it in a nother worlde / & so fayned purgatorie

48.
wher we must sofre .vij. yeres for euery synne. And when
the kyngdome of Antichrist was so enlarged that it must
haue an heade / they set vp our holy father of Rome / or
he rather vsurped the Roome with violence / & to him was
giuen this prerogatiue to selle whome he wold frome pur- 5
gatorye.
And the sacrament of penance they thus describe.
Contrition / Confession / and Satisfaction. Contrition /
sorowe for thy sinnes. Confession not to God and them
whom thou hast offendyd but tel thy sinnes in the prestes 10
eare. Satisfaction to do certayne dedes inioyned of them
to bye out thy sinnes. And in their description they haue
cleane excluded the faithe in the satisfaction of Christes
bloude / which only bringeth life & the sprite of life
and rightwisnes / and with out the which it is impossible 15
to please god. Hebre. xi. In whose steade they haue put
in the presumption of oure awne workes. And for lak of
trust in Christes bloude oure contrition is but a frute-
lese sorowe in the respecte of hel which makith vs hate
the lawe styll and consequently God that made it / where 20
true contrition annexyd with faithe is sorowe in respect
of the lawe / vnto which we consent that it is good and

49.
loue it and therfore moorne partely because we haue offen-
dyd it and partely because we lacke pour to ful[C₃v]fill
it as we wold.
These thinges to be true oure prelates knowe by open
histories as well as it is none when the soone is flat 5
sowthe: but it delyteth them to resiste the holy gost &
to persecute the preachers of tho thinges which if they as
well louid as they knowe to be true / they wold preche the
same them selues and lyue therafter. Herof ye may se oure
workes are but to tame the fleshe only / and can be no 10
satisfaction to God / except we make hym an image and oure
selfes imageseruantes. And herof ye may se howe out of
this open penance came the eare confession / satisfaction
of workes / purgatorie and pardones. For when they had
put the satisfaction of Christes bloud out of the way / 15
then as they compellyd to confesse open synnes and to take
open penance / euen so they compellyd to confesse secret
synnes & to take secret penance. And as they made
marchaundice of open penance / so dyd they of secrete.
And for them that wold not receaue suche pardone / fayned 20
they purgatorie / and for them that receauyd them fayned
they pardone / turnyng byndyng and losyng with preaching

50.
Godes worde vnto byeng & selling synne for money. And
sence that time hither to / the worse the people were the
better were the prelates content / euer resisting that
they shuld be made better thoroue their blessid couetous-
nes and proude desire of honoure. 5
And out of this false presumption of workes / sprange
the wycked vowes of religion which they vowe to make satis-
faction for synne / & to be hier in heauen / in steade of
the life of penance which Christ taught vs in the Gospell
to tame the flesshe and to crucify the membres with all / 10
that we hensforthe shulde walk in the wayes of Go[C₄]des
lawe / and synne no moare.
And to speak of worshiping of sainctes & praying
vnto them & of that we make them oure aduocates well nye
aboue Christ or all to gether / thoughe it require a longe 15
disputation / yet it is as bright as the day to all that
knowe the truth / howe that oure fastinge of their euens
& keping their holy dayes going bare foote / steking vp
of candels in the bryght daye in the worship of them to
optayne their fauoure / oure giuing them so costly Iuelles / 20
offering in to their boxes / clothing their images /
shooing them with syluer shoes with an ouche of Christall

51.
in the myddes / to stroke the lippes & eyes of the ignorant
as a man wold stroke yonge childrens heades to entice them
& bring them in / & rocke them a slepe in ignoraunce are
with all like seruice playne idolatrie / that is in Englishe
imageseruice. For the sainctes ar sprites & can haue no 5
delectation in bodely thinges. And because those bodely
dedes can be no seruice vnto the spirituall sainctes / &
we do them not to be a seruice to oure selues or oure ney-
boures: we serue the worke & the false imagination of oure
fleshly witte / after the doctrine of man / & not of God / 10
and are image seruantes. And this is it that Paule callith
seruire elementis mundi / to be in captiuite vnder dome
ceremonies & vayne traditions of mens doctrine and to doo
the worke for the worke it self / as thoughe God delyted
therin / for the dede it self with out all other respecte. 15
But and ye wyll knowe the true whorshippinge of
sainctes / herken vnto Paule Philip. ij. wher he saith.
Ye shyne as lightes in the worlde holdinge fast the word of
lyfe vnto my glorye or worshipe againe the day of Iesu
Christ / that I haue not run nor laboryd in vayne. 20
[C₄v] That is to wete the worshipe which al true sainctes
nowe seke and the worshipe that al the true messingers of

52.
God seke this day or euer shal seke / is to drawe al to
Christ with preachinge the true word of god / and with
the ensample of puere liuing facioned therafter. Wil ye
therfor worship sainctes truely? then hear what they
preachyd / and beleue their doctrine. And as they 5
folowyd that doctrine so conforme youre liuinge like
vnto theirs. And that shalbe vnto their hie worshipe in
the comynge agayne of Christ (when al mens dedes shal
apeare and every man shalbe iudged and receaue his reward
according vnto his dedes) howe that they not only while 10
they here liuid / but also after their dethe with the en-
sample of their doctrine and liuing lefte behinde in
writing and other memorialls vnto thensample of them that
shulde folowe / whan vnto Christ them that wer borne .v.
hundreth / ye a thousand yeares after their deeth. This 15
was their worship in the sprite at the begynnynge as they
were sprites / & lightes were steked befor their memoriales
at the beginninge to be a Cerimonie to put vs in remem-
brance that we so praysed the sainctes and bosted their
liuinges that we folowed their ensamples in our dedes / 20
as Christ saith Matth. 5. Let your light so shyne before
men that they se youre good workes and glorifie youre

53.
father that is in heauen. For preachinge of the doctrine
which is light hath but smal effecte to moue the herte if
the ensample of liuing do disagre.
And that we worship sainctes for feare lest they shuld
be displesid and angrie withe vs and plage vs or hurte vs 5
(as who is not a frayed of S. Laurence? who dare denye .S.
Anthony a flese of wol for feare of his terrible fire or
lest he [C₅]sende the poxe amonge oure shepe) is hethen
imageseruice and cleane agenst the first commaundment
which is. Heare Israel / the Lord thy god is one God. 10
Nowe God in the hebrewe is called El or Elohim in the
plurel numbre / strength or mighte. So that the com-
maundment is / Heare Israel he that is thy powre and
might / thy swerd and shyld is but one / that is / ther
is none of might to healpe or hurt the save one / whiche 15
is al to gether thyne and at thy commaundment if thou
wilt heare his voice. And al other might in the worlde /
is borowyd of hym. And he wil lend no mighte against the contrary to his promyses. Kepe therfore his com-
maundmentes and he shal kepe the. And if thou haue bro- 20
ken them / and he haue lent of his powre agaynst the /
repent and come agayne vnto thi profession and he wil

54.
returne agayne vnto his mercie and fetch his pour home
agayne / which he lent to vexe the / because thou for-
sokest hym and brackest his commaundementes. And feare
no nother creature / for false feare is the cause of al
Idolatrie. 5
More ouer al we that are baptised in Christ haue
professed to do good for euel and not to avenge oure
selues. And many of vs come vnto suche perfection that
we can be prouokyd by no temptation to desyre vengeaunce /
but haue compassion & mekely pray for them that sley vs. 10
Howe wycked a thing then is it to thinke that the
sainctes plage vs / because we do them not suche super-
stitious honoure whiche is their dishonour and our shame?
It is verely a popishe imagination / and euen to describe
the sainctes after the nature of our prelates which be meke 15
and lowly til they be where they wolde be. But when they
be once a lofte thei play the tur[C₅v]mentoures if we will
not honour them & do what so euer they commaunde / moare
ernestly then that which God hym self hath commaunded / &
feare thez aboue God himselfe. 20
And it can be but lyke abhomination also / that we
chose of a fleshly minde euery man his seuerall saincte or