Faythe is euer a •• a • ted and fought withall
Tyndale. MOreouer this fayth whyche we haue in Chryst[…], is […]er fought agaynste, euer assayled and bete[…] at with desperacyon / not when we synne onely, but also in all temptacyo[…]s of aduersyte, in to whiche god […]yngeth vs, to now[…]t[…]e vs and to shewe vs our […] hartes, the ypocrysye and fals thoughtes that here lyehydd[…] / our almost no fayte at all and as lytell loue, euyn thē ha[…]pely when we thowght our selues moste perfecte of all. For when temptacyons come, we can not stande. When we haue synned, fayth is feble. When wronge is done vs, we can not forgyue. In sykenesse, in losse of goodes, and in all tribulacyons we be impacyent. When our neyghbour nedeth our helpe that we muste departe with hym of ours, then loue is colde. And thus we lerne and fele that there is no goodnesse nor yet power to do good, but of god onely. And in all such temtacyons our fayth preyshed not vtterly, neyther our loue and consente vnto the l[…]w[…] of god / but they be weak[…], lykke, and wounded, and not clene dede.
More. THys chapyter hath Tyndale put in for no great effecte, but onely with a comely florysshe, to set out and furnysshe hys heresyes of the chapyter next before. wherin he techeth that in the trewe membres of hys electe chyrch, the fayth doth neuer fayle but euer contynueth, and that therfore they do neuer synne dedely, how horryble dedes so euer they do as he confesseth that they do many / & yet synne neuer dedely, bycause they do them not of malice nor of purpose, but of fraylte onely & of wekenes, thorough the frute of the synne that remayneth in theyr flesshe, & breketh out of theyr sely weke and frayle mēbres.
Now for the fe[…]ther ga[…]nysshy[…]ge of thys hys horryble heresye, hath he brought in this chapyter / in whych he neyther proueth any thynge therof, nor any thyng go[…]h ab[…]u[…] to proue / but onely falleth to prechyng, and telleth vs f[…]ll holyly that y• fayth is euer fought […]n agaynst, as though no man had euer herde that before. where as euery chyld well woteth, that the faith is alway assawted & fought agaynst, whyther he speke of hys owne false fayth and heresyes, or of the trew catholyke […]yth of Chryst. For lyke as the trew catholyke fayth is & euer hath ben oppungned and assawted, by the deuyll and all hys dyscyples suche heretykes as Tyndale is, from the begynnyng vnto thys present tyme: so hath euer hys false fayth and heresyes ben impugned, assayled, and condempned, by god and all hys prophetes, by Chryste and all hys apostles, and all hys holy doctours and sayntes, and by all the hole corps of chrystēdome from the begynnynge hytherto. And thys conflycte and batayle shall neuer ceace, tyll Chryste shall fynally refourme the worlde and fynysshe it, and delyuer the kyngdome to the father.1
And as for euery mannes fayth pryuately / who knoweth not though Tyndale tell vs not, that the deuyll dayly laboreth to quenche it, as he laboreth to destroye hope and cheryte and all other vertues.
Nor thys we nede not to lerne of Tyndale / neyther that men by temptacyons lerne to fynde and fele, that there is no goodnesse ne yet power to do good, but of god onely / yf Tyndale mene that as the trouth is, that all goodnesse cometh of god, & that man hath none nor none coulde haue, neyther man nor angell but by god[…]e[…] gyfte / nor coulde haue yet any power to do good, yf god wolde wythdrawe hys grace. How be it yf he mene in thys place as he sayth wyth hys mayster Marten in many places, that m[…]n hath no power by ye fredome of his wyll to do any good, in wurkynge hym selfe wyth goddes grace, and in resystynge of temptacyon to, and wurkynge wyth god in the ke[…]ynge of hym selfe from synne / but muste nedes in all suche thynges syt styll hym selfe […]stonyed & amased in a rechele[…]se s[…]outh, and let god wurke alone: then saye I that Tyndals holy sermon is very dampnable heresye.
Now where that in all the synnys that he reherseth, he sayth that our fayth peryssheth not vtterly, nor our loue & consent vnto the lawe of god / but that they be weke, syke, and wounded, and not clene dede: I say that his tale is to lytell purpose. For yf by fayth he mene the belyefe / then is it not of nece[…]syte loste at all in no dedely synne excepte heresye. For the ryght bylyefe and other dedely synnes maye stand to gyther well inough. For a man may byleue trewly and do falsely, byleue ryght and lyue wronge, byleue well and be nought.
And yet maye he be an electe person and fall from the trewe fayth, that is to saye the trew bylyefe, and lese it vtterly byleuynge lyes and heresyes / and fall from grace for the tyme, and yet after that wyth helpe of gra[…]e fynde the fayth and fall therto agayne, and fynally dye therin.
And yf Tyndale here by the name of fayth, vnderstande hope and truste in god, as he iugleth cōtynually with that worde / for suche equyuocacyons and dyuers vnderstandynges of one worde, serue hym for hys goblettes, hys gallys, and his iuglynge stycke in all the proper poyntes of hys hole conuayaunce and hys lygier de mayne / but as I sayde, yf by fayth he meane hope: I graunte that it dyeth not alwaye wyth the synne, nor gothe not therwyth away. But it waxeth by Tyndals doctryne oftētymes ouer grete. For by the dredeles truste of theyr techyng, the man falleth into boldenesse of synne. In whiche when he hath ferelesse longe contynued / he waxeth forcelesse and carelesse, and setteth not by synne, tyll sodeynly the deuyll out of hys hyghe harte & hawte corage stryketh hym into cowardouse drede and vtter desperacyō. For ye outragyouse encrease of theyr hope, is no very ryght hope, though it be a greater hope then it sholde be / no more then the hete of a feuer is a ryght naturall hete, though the body be more hote then it was in helth. And therfore in suche affeccyons the soule somtyme falleth from one contrary qualyte in to a nother / as ye body in an agew chaūgeth from colde to hete, and frō hete some tyme into colde agayne. Of whiche maner of chaunges of the soule, whom the deuyll dryueth out of one vice into his contrary / may be well veryfyed these wordes of holy scrypture, They shall frō colde water of the snowe, go into farre passynge hete.2 And yet I say that with these synnes, a trew member may lese all hope and fall in dyspayre / and after by grace come vnto hope agayne.
Now where he sayth that loue and co[…]sen[…] to the lawe of god, is not lost by a trewe member of the electe chyrche: I wote not whyther Tyndals loue remayne or no / but I am sure that by synne chrysten cheryte goth away. For neyther cheryte nor grace can stande to gether wyth synne. For as saynt Poule sayth,3 what felysshyp can there be bytwene lyght and darkenes, bytwene Chryst and Beliall.
I saye also that all hys gaye goodly tale that he telleth vs here, of hys electe membres wyth theyr holy felynge fayth / to whom he wold approper some specyall pryuylege of kepynge styll fayth, hope, & cheryte, wyth all theyr heuy hepe of horryble deuelysshe dedes / I saye that as farforth as in hys wordes is any treuth, hys pryuylege is not proper to the membres of hys electe chyrche, but comon to the very fynall electes, & to the fynall reprobatys to. For bothe the tone and the tother may synne and repente, and amend and synne agayne, and amende agayn of[…]er then Tyndale hath fyngers on hys handes and toos on hys feete to. But he that fynally repenteth hys synnys in a ryght fasshyon, is an electe foresene to god from the begynnynge. And he that finally dyeth impenytēt, as dyuers wedded freres dye in theyr lechery / or he that after Tyndals doctryne repenteth without care of shryft, & dyeth in a fals heresie agaynst hys holy howsell: such folkes be fynally reprobates, fore knowen vnto god before the worlde was wrought, yt they wolde fynally for impenytence fall vtterly to nought.
And the other part of hys tale, whyche can not be veryfyed in the reprobatys, that is to wytte the kepynge of cheryte styll in the doynge of horryble dedes, can not be veryfyed in the electes neyther. And so is his tale on euery syde folysshe, false, and nought. For the semely settynge forthe wherof to make it appere fayre and lykely / bycause he can neyther bryng reason, scripture, nor other good authoryte: ye shall now se what ensample he bryngeth forth.
Tyndale. As a good chyld whom the father and moder h[…]e t[…]ght nurtour a[…]d wisedome, loueth his father and all his commaundementes / and perceyueth of the goodnes shewed hym that his father loueth hym, and that all his fathers preceptes are vnto his welthe and profy[…]e, and that his father commaūdeth hym nothyng for any nede that his father hath therof, but seketh his profyt onely / and therfore hath a good fayth vnto all his fathers promyses, […]d loueth all hys comma[…]d[…]mentes, and dothe them wyth good wyll, and wyth good wyll goeth to scole. And by the waye happely he seeth companye playe / and wyth the syghte is taken […]d ra[…]shed of hys memory, and forgetteth hym selfe, and stondeth and byholdeth and falleth to play also, forgettynge father and mother, all theyr kyndnes, all theyr lawes, and his owne profyte therto. How be it the knowledge of hys fathers kyndnesse, the fayth of hys pr[…]myses, and the lo[…]e that he hath agayn vnto his father and the obedyēt mynde, are not vtterly quenched but lye hydde, as all thynges do when a man slepeth or lyeth in a traunc[…]. And as soone as he hath played out all hys lustes, or be warned in the meane season / he cometh agayne vnto his olde professyon. Neuer the later many temptacyons go ouer his harte, and the lawe as a ryght hangman tormenteth hys conscye[…]ce, a[…]d gothe nye to persuade hym that his father wyll caste hym awaye and hange hym yf he […]etche hym, so that he is lyke a greate whyle to r[…]ne awaye, rather then to returne vnto his father agayne / feare and drede of rebuke, and of los[…]e of his fathers loue, and of punysshement, wras[…]ell wyth the truste whyche he hath in his fathers goodnes, and as it were gyue hys fayth afall / but it ryseth agayne as soone as the rage of the fyrste brunte is past, and his mynde more quyete. And the goodnes of hys father and his olde kyndnes cometh vnto remembraunce, eyther of hys owne corage or by the comforte of some other. And he byleueth that hys father wyll not caste hym awaye or destroye hym, and hopeth that he wyll no more do so. And vppon that he getteth hym home dysmayed, but not all to gyther faythlesse. The olde kyndnesse wyll not lette hym dyspayre. How be it all the worlde can not set hys harte at reste vntyll the payne be paste, and vntyll he haue herde the voyce of hys father that all is forgyuen.
More. I neyther haue yet euer herde nor neuer loke to here, any very wyse worde in all Tyndales workes. But yet herde I neuer a more peuisshe processe then this his holy prechynge is / nor therewith more pestilently perelouse, while he pretendeth to make this chapiter of faythe, and then iugleth it in to truste and hope / and yet wolde make vs bileue, that neither nother at any tyme faileth any man that ones hath goten them / nor that any man whiche ones hath the faythe y• hym selfe describeth, & thereby is ones a true mēbre of his electe church (as euery man is by his dotrine y• ones attaineth that faith) can at any tyme after lese it nor fall awaye there from, & for that cause can neuer do dedely synne, though he do neuer so many dānable dedes, or (to call them as hym selfe calleth them) horryble dedes. For as for dampnable, happely Tyndale wyll saye they be not be they neuer so horryble, bycause the seed of god, that is to wytte theyr felynge fayth, can neuer suffer suche tre[…]e membres of hys electe chyrche, do those horryble dedes wyllyngly or of purpose, but onely for weykenesse and frayltye / for whyche they can be sayth he no dedely synnes in those blessed bodyes, be the dedes neuer so deuelysshe.
And now to proue vs thys wonderfull straunge paradox, thys opynyon inopinable, to be very playne, open, euydent, and clere / he furnyssheth it wyth samples so feble and so dymme, that the faynt syghte of our sore eyes can scant attayne to perceyue, how the samples any thynge touche the mater.
For where he sholde to make vs clerely beholde it, put hys ensemples in greate and horryble dedes, suche as hym selfe before in another chapyter confesseth that hys holy membres do: he forgetteth here now suche horryble dedes as wolde make the reders abhorre the doers of them, and speketh fayre & easely that they be feble somtyme in temptacyon, and than they can not stande / and that after they haue synned theyr fayth is faynte, and when they sholde helpe theyr neyghboure theyr loue is colde, and they be not pacyent in trybulacyōs, and when they suffer wronge they can not forgyue lo, and when men take away theyr goodes they be angry, so they be lo.
Lo how angry Tyndale is wyth hys trew membres of his electe chyrche, and how sore he layeth theyr synnes to theyr charge. And yet bycause we sholde take theyr fautes for myche the sleyghter, he mynyssheth all the mater and maketh it myche the lesse, by resemblynge and lykenynge them to a good lytell chylde, as though theyr fawtes were all but chyldyshnes / and as it were a babe that wepeth and waxeth angry wyth the kyghte, for catchynge awaye hys brede and butter, and wold complayne to hys mother, and byd her go take a rodde and bete the kyght.
But syth that Tyndale now goth aboute to playe the the mayster, and sette all the catholyke chyrche agayne to scole / and wolde haue vs lerne suche harde lessons as we neuer herde of the lyke / as that men maye comenly do myscheuouse dedes wythout any dedely synne, bycause they do them not wyllyngly where no body compelleth them: lette hym at the leste wyse syth he wyll make vs all yonge chyldren, teche vs our lesson as a good mayster techeth hys yonge chyldren. And let hym not teche vs our lesson in a small ragged hande, wherin a yonge begynner can scante perceyue one letter from an other / but let hym teche vs in a fayre greate letter of some texte hande, that is more easy to lerne vppon. And therfore we shall pray hym to lette passe ouer for thys onys hys longe chyldysshe ensample of hys good chyld, which for all the nurture of hys father and hys mother, and all the wysedome that he lerned of them, and all his loue to them and to theyr cōmaundementes, and all the trust in his fathers promyses, for whyche he goth with good wyll to scole / fyndynge yet by the waye some companyons that fall to playe, is ra[…]ysshed of his remembraūce / and forgetyng father and mother, and all theyr promyses, & all theyr kyndenes, & all theyr lawes, & all the wisedomes that he lerned of them, and all the nurtur turtur that they taught hym, standeth styll and loketh on them / and after falleth to wurke wyth them at some suche prety playes of lykelyhed as chyldrē be wont to playe, as chyrystone mary bone, bokyll pyt, spurne poynt, cobnutte or quaytyng: let vs leue I say thys good chylde at hys game, tyll he be fette eyther home wyth hys father, or to scole wyth hys mayster wyth thre strypes for hys taryenge and trewauntynge by the waye (whyche is more mete for suche a chylde, then after hys lustes played out, Tyndals tragycall processe of remembraunce of hys olde professyon, wyth temptacyons ouer hys harte, and the lawe hys ryght hange man, turmē tynge of conscyence, fere of destruccyon and almoste desperate drede of hangyng) Now let Tyndale therfore in stede of thys chyld, take for ensample some of the trew members of hys owne electe chyrche, that hath the felynge fayth of hys owne false heresyes / and not a lytell chylde, but a great slouen slouche, that out of hys boyes age is twenty wynter stepte into hys knauys age. Then let Tyndale put in hym for ensample not as he doth here, the beynge angry wyth them that doth hym wronge, or lacke of dew loue to the lyberall helpe of hys neyghbours nede (wyth whych mynde and softe ensample[…] of infyrmyte[…] feblenesse, imperfeccyon, and frayltye, Tyndale couereth and kepeth a syde the hatefull herynge and beholdynge of theyr abomynable dedes) but let hym put for ensample that hys trewe member thys Iak slouch that we speke of, is so frayle and so feble in temptacyons, that thorow the frute of the synne remaynynge in hys flesshe, and as Tyndale sayth brekynge out at his membres / he falleth into horryble dedes (for that is Tyndals worde) as into aduoutry wyth hys mother, poysenynge hys father, and murderynge hys brother, in sacryledge, and incest as frere Luther doth wyth hys nonne, fall to mockynge of almyghty god as Tyndale doth in the blessed sacrament.
Now syth we haue for ensample taken no lytell prety synnes, but great and horryble dedes / and haue also taken for ensample no lytell prety boy, but an olde greate knaue fytte and mete for the mater, as in whom may well and cō uenyently be veryfyed all Tyndals tragycall termes of tempcyons and turmentry, destruccyon, hangeman, and galowes, & all to gether: let vs in thys abomynable beste now, and in these horryble crymes, as in a great text hand, loke vpō our lesson that mayster Tyndale techeth vs, & se whyther there be wryten therin the thynge that he wolde haue vs lerne / or whyther that (syth we haue now suche a boke wyth so great large letters, as we can spell vpon and do to gether or selfe) it shall peraduenture appere that he went aboute byfore wyth a smale ragged hande, to begyle vs and make vs rede false.
ye remember good reders that he sayth, that hys trewe membres vppon greate occasyons, as vppon the syghte of suche thynges as delyteth them, be rauesshed of theyr memory, and forget them selfe (as hys lytell good chylde doth at the syghte of the playe) and so contynueth styll in the folowynge and fulfyllynge of hys luste, as it were a man in hys slepe or one that laye in a traunce / and neyther is hys fayth loste in all that whyle, nor his loue to the law of god / but though they lye hydde, yet they contynue styll bothe twayne, and hys hope and hys truste in god also. And therfore though our Iak slouche do all those horryble dedes y• we dyd put for ensample: yet beynge a trewe member of Tyndals electe chyrche, bycause of hys felyng fayth which so lyeth hydde in hys harte that he feleth no thynge therof / he consenteth not in hys mynde to none of those dedes, nor doth none of them wyllyngly nor of purpose, or at the leste wyse not malycyously (for that worde into hys olde tale putteth Tyndale of newe in hys false exposycyon vppon the fyrste pystle of saynt Iohn̄) and therfore in hym there can none of all those horryble dedes be dampnable or dedely synne.
we myghte here lette Iak slouche alone / & aske Tyndale whyther a nother slouche of hys acquayntaunce hys owne mayster Marten Luther, not onely a trewe member but also one of the chyefe membres of hys electe chyrche, hath lyen all thys whyle a slepe by the space of so many yeres to gether, syth he fyrst ranne out of hys order in apostasye, and after wedded hys nonne, & yet contynueth with her styll. Thys frere and hys nonne, dranke well of lykelyhed ere they went to theyr bryde bedde, yf they lye styll and slepe yet.
But for as myche as Tyndale wyll not agre, that frere Luthers lechery wyth hys nonne, is any euyll dede at all, but very well done & vertuously: therfore though we nede none other ensample agaynste hys frantyke heresye to the earys of any good chrysten man, yet for Tyndale hym selfe we muste leue Luther lyenge styll a slepe wyth hys lēman, and retourne agayne to Iak slouche / whose dedes Tyndale wyll graunte and agre to be horryble, though he deny them to be dampnable bycause of Iakkes felynge fayth / whyche though he fele it not bycause he lyeth a slepe, kepeth in hym styll yet the loue to goddes lawe, and suffereth hym not to consent vnto the synne, nor to do any suche dedes wyllyngly nor of purpose, or at the leste wyse not malycyously.
Let euery man here agaynste Tyndals folyshe tale and shamelesse inuencyon, take testymony and wytnesse of hys owne wytte / whyther he that by the deuyls entycement defowleth hys mother, poyseneth hys father, and mordereth hys brother, and mocketh almyghty god, and suche other horryble and abomynable dedes oftentymes, doth delyberately wyth longe deuyce and studye bystowed about it, do thys gere wyllyngly and consent there vnto / or ellys doth all vnwyllyngly, as he were a slepe or in a traunce. Let Tyndale tell vs what he wyll / he shall I wene fynde no wyse man in thys poynt agre, that these bestes do theyr detestable dedes vnwyllyngly, wythout consent vnto synne.
Now towchynge Tyndals tother goodly refuge, that the horryble dedes of hys trew membres of hys elect chyrche be neuer dedely synnes, bycause they do them neuer of no malyce: thys is be ye sure a very comely deuyce, whych euery wyse man ye wote well muste nedes alowe and commende. For in our ensample of Iak slouche / what indyfferent iudge wolde not holde the good man excused of all those abomynable dedes, yf it myghte appere to the court, that y• defoylyng of hys mother was not for any dyspyght or malyce borne to hys father, but of vnnaturall affeccyon and very bestely luste. And also that the poysenynge of his father, grew not of anger or euyll wyll to hys person, but of loue and longynge for hys substaunce / and suche other excusys lyke, for all hys other detestable crymes, wherupō it myghte appere, y• none of them all rose of anger or euyll wyll / but some of pryde, some of couetyce, some of lechery, or such other rybaldouse appetyt. what coulde hys iudge in suche case saye to hym for very pytye, yf the poore man sayde onys he were sory / but stroke hys hed, and byd hym go home, and be a good sonne, and do so no more. And therfore for as myche as the same Iak slouche dothe none of those detestable dedes of pure malyce to any other body, but of some kynde of affeccyon towarde hym selfe, hys loue is not vtterly quenched / and therfore he is one of Tyndals electes, that synneth neuer how bad so euer he be.
For where as fynally Tyndale techeth vs, that his trew membres of hys electe chyrche do neuer synne dedely, bycause that after the luskes haue played out all theyr lustes, then they repent agayne and remember them selfe & theyr fathers formar kyndenes, and be sory: thys is a fayre tale of a tubbe tolde vs of hys electes. For euery man well woteth that thus do the fynall reprobates, and be by dew repentaunce dyuers tymes in theyr lyues restored agayne to the state of grace. And then by thys tale of Tyndale, were there no dede dāpnable nor dedely synne in any man, were it neuer so abomynable / but onely those last synnes in whiche he dyed impenitent. And then were all Tyndals hyghe descrypcyons and dyfferences of electes and reprobates all brought to thys poynt at the laste, that theyr dedes be all one, and theyr fasshyons and theyr faythes and theyr louys to the lawe of god a lyke chaungeable thorow the remanaunt of theyr lyues, sauynge that the tone sorte dye repentaunt, and the tother sorte impenytent. And thys is the same thynge that we saye. And so is Tyndale after all his longe folysh varyaunce, at laste maugry his teth agaynst hys purpose, compelled to saye the same that we haue all waye sayed and he alwaye denyed.
But then saye we one thynge forther, that where as the electes be by hys owne agreement the penytentes onely and the trewe repentauntes: neyther hym selfe whyche repenteth not his abomynable heresyes, but stuburnly standeth by them and sayth he wyll dye in them / nor his mayster Marten Luther, whyche notwythstandynge that the luske hath often tymes played out his luste, wyll not yet leue his lechery, but lye styll with the nonne, and defende for lawfull matrymony theyr fylthy lyfe that is afore god and all good men a very bestely bychery / shew them selues clerely to be any of the trewe penytentes / but vtterly to be such, as but yf they repent better ere they dye, shall elles be none of goddes fynall electes, but very wreched reprobates accursed out of goddes company, and myserable membres of the deuyls dampned chyrche in hell.
yet sayth Tindale forther in y• ende of all thys chapiter, that all be it the olde kyndenesse of the father can not let the good chylde vtterly dyspayre, for all that he hath played at spurne poynt by the waye in goynge at scolewarde: yet all the world can not set his harte at reste, vntyll the payne be past, and vntyll he haue herde the voyce of his father that all is forgyuen.
These wordes wolde I haue Tyndale apply me well to hys gostely purpose / and turnynge the sample of hys good chylde into some olde shrewe, and the playenge at spurne poynt into some detestable dede: let Tyndale then tell vs, where, what voyce, and by whom, hys trew member of his elect chyrche shall here that voyce of remyssyon. If he mene any worde spoken in scrypture all redy / then is he soone spedde, and shall not after hys synfull cryme cōmytted, fall at any greate conflycte in hym selfe bytwene hope and dyspayre, hys fayth almoste catchyng a fall for fere, and at last wyth myth worke rysynge agayne. All thys gere is soone done, yf the voyce of hys father grauntynge remyssyon set hys harte at reste, and that voyce be hys worde wryten in scrypture / for then he herde the worde before he dyd ye dede. And that worde beynge suche / yf it were vnderstanden as Tyndale techeth, that forthwyth at the bare repentynge without shryft or penaūce, all were forgyuē, synne, payne, and all, bothe eternall and temporall, bothe in hell and purgatory and in this worlde to: that worde were than I say all redy bifore the dede, not a forgyuenes onely of the synne passed, but a lycence almoste also of all horryble dedes to be done. And if he meane to here the voyce of his father afterwarde, not wrytten before / he muste here it by the mouthe of his goostely father vpon his humble shryfte and confessyon, whiche Tyndall calleth the crafte and inuencion of Sathan.
And this is lo the conclusion of Tyndall in this his chapitre, of his false faithe euer assawted / whiche is as ye se nowe taken here with assawte, pece mele on euery syde wounded, spoyled, and bounden / and quycke of felyng as any blayne or botche, but vtterly dede of grace sent downe vnto the deuyll.
Tyndale. EVyn so goth it wyth goddes electes. God choseth them fyrste, and they not god, as thou redest Iohn̄. 15 And then he sendeth forth and calleth theym, and sheweth them hys good wyll which he beareth vnto them, and maketh them se both theyr owne dampnacion in the lawe, and also the mercy that is layed vp for them in Christes blode, and thereto what he will haue them do. And then when we se his mercy, we loue him agayne, and chose hym, and submitte our selues vnto his lawes to walke in them. For when we erre not in wytte, reason, and iudgement of thinges, we can not erre in wyll and choyse of thinges. The choyse of a mans wyll dothe naturally and of her owne accorde, folowe the iudgement of a mans reason, whether he iudge right or wronge. So that in teachinge, onely resteth the pythe of a mans lyuinge.
More. THis chapiter dependeth vpon the chapiter before, in whiche he compared hys true membres of his electe chyrche vnto his good child, whom his father taught nurter and wysedome, and sent hym to scole, & he lyke a mycher & a trewaunt plaied at bokle pytte by the way / & when the game was done, fell almoste in dispayre of lyfe for fere of hangyng, yf hys father caughte hym / and yet sone after well and wysely […]cō […]orted hym selfe, wyth the remēbraūce of hys fathers olde goodnesse / and so came home agayne lyke a good lytle boy, & herde hys fathers voyce of forgeuen[…]sse / whych sette hys hart at reste / & than he wentte to supper meryly / & than the mayed put on hys byggē & brought hym to bedde / and thā he cared for no more, but was mery in the mornyng, and redy to go playe the boy agayne as he dyd before. And now therto Tyndale ioyneth thys chapytre / saynge, Euen […] it w[…]th goddes electe.
yet sith he resembleth goddes electe vnto the lytle boy / he shuld haue put into the sample of his litle chyld, that his lytle chyld sometyme whan he hathe played the lytle yong trewaunt, for all hys r[…]membraunce of hys fathers goodnes, is for fere of hys fathers angre glad to go to some other frendes of hys fathers, and pray theym to bryng hym home, and helpe to skewse hym and kepe hym frō betynge. And than he shulde haue begon thys chapytre as he dothe now and say, Euen so goth it with goddes ele[…]t. For yf the sample of hys good chyld maye pr[…]ue all the remenaunte for hym / than may it preue thys one pece as well for vs, y• the electe after hys offence, seketh vnto sayntes as hys fathers fr[…]des, and prayeth them to helpe to entreat for hym / for so do many tymes suche good chyldren ye wote well as Tyndale putteth hys sample by.
But we wyll nat now for thys tyme trouble Tyndale moche wyth that mater. I wolde that in thys chapytre all were well saue y•. Forsu[…]ely thys chapytre is very nought / and hath in hit the secrete seed of Tyndales chyefe poyson, whereby he laboreth after Luther, vnder colour & pretexte of goddes elecciō, to destroye the fre wyll of man, & ascribe all thyng to desteny. whyche thynge is natte in hyt selfe so false / but Tyndale proueth it as folysshely, as ye shall perceyue anone.
But fyrst consydre howe darkly the man walketh in his way styll. For yet he handeleth it of that fasshyon, that he wold nat we shuld se, whyther he mene by this[…] word elect, the man that is electe for the tyme, after the maner of any of those eleccyons that I declared you byfore in the begynnyng of my fourth boke / or whyther he meane of those electes yt are of god byfore the begynnyng of the worlde forsene, to be suche as by hys gyfte and grace and good wyll wurkyng therwyth, in folke of age and wytt therto, shulde and wolde dye in the state of grace and be saued, and therefore be called some tyme small electes, sometyme eternall.
Thus whyche kynd of electes hym self[…] meneth, Tyndale leueth vndeclared / & wyll we shall gesse at hys mynde vppon hys vncertayne wordes, to the ende that he myghte euer haue some refuge into a startyng hole / and whanne he were playnely cōfuted and reproued, crye out vpon me thā and say that I mysse take hym.
But I am content to take hym therfore, that waye that may[…] be the strengest for hym selfe / and that way that hys wordes gathered oute of dyuers of his chapitres, some byfore and some here after, shewe moste lykely that he shulde mene, whan they be consydered to gyther. And that is as me semeth, that he meneth of those electes that are called ye fynall and eternall electes / all be it that the place of scrypture in y•.xv. chapytre of saynt Iohn̄ whych Tyndale alledgeth here for hys electes, lytle ma[…]eth for hys purpose concernynge that fynall or eternall eleccyō / nat onely bycause the wordes of Chryste spokē there to hys apostles, can nat conuenyently serue for those whyth […]wa[…] from the trew doctryne of Chrystes catholyque chyrche that the apostles taught, into false heresyes / but also for that our sauyour in those wordes when he sayed vnto them, you haue nat chosen me but I haue chosen you, and apoynted you that you shall go forth and bryng frute, and your frute shall abyde / he spake there not of there small eleccion to saluaciō / which eleccion hym selfe foresawe in hys godhed byfore y• world was made, and whyche eleccyon therefore is called eternall. But he spake there of that eleccyon onely, by whiche he chose and elected thē to be hys apostles and messengers, to be sent about the worlde to prech hys gospel / as playnly appereth by those aforesayd wordes, I haue chosen you, & appoynted you to go and bryng in fruyt / and fynally is the same eleccyon, wherof he spake whan he sayd,4 Haue I nat elected and chosen you twelue, & lo one of you is a deuyll. And therfore as I say, the man layeth the scrypture very farre from hys mater.
But now takyng him as he wold say if his wyt wold serue him, yt is to wyt that by his worde electes, he meneth the fynall and eternall electes: lette vs se and consider what high doctrine and before vnherde, maister Tindall techeth vs of them.
He sayeth that after that god hathe chosen them (and telleth nat whan / whither after their commynge into the worlde, or before the worlde were made / so that he leaueth it by those wordes yet in doubte which eleccion he moueth, whether vnto saluacion in the churche tryumphaunte in heuen, or onely in to the churche here milytaunte in erthe) god he sayeth sendeth forthe and calleth vpon them, and sheweth them his good wyll whiche he bereth vnto them.
Nowe here falleth Tyndall in two fautes. One is that these wordes of hys can nat be verifyed vpon all electes, syth many dye in theyr cradelles, and many in theyr crysosomes / but yf he teken all those for none electes, bycause they can vnderstande no prechynge. A nother faute is, y• y• thyng whiche he semeth here to approper vnto the electes, be commune bothe to the electes and reprobates. For all this god dothe to them to, that are nat his electes, but vnto suche also as wyll be & therfore shalbe, fynall reprobates. For god of his goodnes wyllinge as the scripture sayth all men to be saued / sent his sonne in to this worlde, to call vpon the whole worlde. And he sent his apostelles aboute the worlde as a lorde and god indifferent, without accepcyon of persones as sayd saynt Peter.
But than gothe Tyndall farther and sayth, that god maketh his electes see bothe theyr owne dampnacion in the lawe, and also the mercye that is layde vp for them in Christes bloode, and therto what he wyll haue them do.
These wordes men wolde wene were but well & plainly ment. For they may seme to good playne meanynge men, to be well & plainly spoken, and as well and plainly ment. But yet as ye shall shortely see in these wordes, that god maketh his electes se his mercy / as playne wordes as they be, and as innocent and as simple as they seme, yet in them meneth Tyndale couertly to come forthe with his poyson of false prechynge the predestinacyon of god, with destrucion of the fre wyll of man concernynge any maner of deuoure of them selfe towarde the […]eleue and faythe. For he […]neth here, that god alway maketh the electes to se these thynges, without any wyll of theyr owne any thynge workynge with god towarde the syght thereof / and that all the reprobates that shalbe dampned for lacke of the beleue, be reprobated and reiected and lefte vnchosen, and kept from the syght and perceyuynge of the thynges to be beleued, without any demeryte or euyll deserte of theyr owne, onely bicause god lyste nat to make them see.
And that Tyndale thus falsely meneth by those fayre playne wordes / ye shall farther perceyue by other wordes of Tyndals owne wrytynge, afterwarde in his answere to to the fyrste chapyter of the thyrde boke of my dyaloge. For where as I there shewed, that the very bokes of the scripture if selfe, can nat make men beleue yt scripture, nor very surely knowe whyche were the very true scripture of god, and whiche were scriptures countr[…]fete, sauyng that the catholyke churche techeth vs to knowe the scrypture / and the spirite of god, with mannes owne towardes and good endeuoure, worketh in man the credulite and belefe by whiche we bothe beleue the churche in techyng vs whiche is the scripture, & also by whiche we beleue the thinges that are wrytten in the scrypture: to this bycause I sayde there, that whan we here the scrypture or rede it, if we be nat rebellious but ende[…]our our selfe to beleue, & captyue and subdue our vnderstandyng to serue and folowe fayth, prayenge for goddes gracious ayde and helpe, god than worketh with vs, and inwardely dothe inclyne our harte in to the assent of the thynge that we rede / and after a lytell sparke of our faythe o[…]es had, increaseth the credence in our incredilyte: Tyndale to this in mo[…]kage of mennes endeuour towarde the belefe, and in scornynge that we wolde captyue our vnderstandyng into ye seruyce of fayth, answereth me with an […] as exclamacion / and cryenge out vpon my fleshe[…]es and foly, […]o[…]eth out his hyghe spirituall sentence in this […] o[…].
Tyndale. O ho[…]e betlebly[…]de is flesshely reason. The wyll hath none operacion at all […] the workynge of faythe in my soule, no more […] the chylde hathe in the begettynge of his fathe[…]. […] (sayeth Paule) it is the gyfte of god and nat of vs. My […] s[…]ewe […]e […] or an appatent cause why, yer my wyll haue any workynge at all[…]
More. Nowe perceyue you good christen reders, what an vnchristen mynde this euyll christen man hathe in those wordes, that seme so fayre and playne in this present chapyter. For thoughe he speke nat out so plainly in this chapyter, as he dothe after in his answere to my thyrde boke as ye haue here herde: yet that he falsely meneth in eyther place alyke, ye may yet more plainly perceyue by hys wordes y• in this chapiter immedyatly folow / which are such sa may be as well ioyned to his foresayde wordes of his answere vnto my thyrde boke, as to the wordes vnto whiche they be knytte in this present chapyter. In whiche whan he hathe sayed that god maketh his electes se theyr dampnation in y• lawe, and also the mercy that is layed vp for them in Christes bloode, and therto what he wyll haue them do / it foloweth than forthwith,
Tyndale. And then when we se his mercy, we loue hym agayne, and chose hym, and submytte our selues vnto his lawes to walke in them. For when we erre not in wytte, reason, and iudgement / we can not erre in wyll and choyse of thynges. The choyse of mannes wyll doth naturally and of her owne accorde, folow the iugement of a mannes reason, whyther he iudge ryghte or wronge, so that in techyng onely resteth the pyth of a mannes lyuynge.
More. Now trust I good reders, that it is inoughe that we perceyue and se, what Tyndale entendeth in thys chapitre of the ordre of our eleccyō / and that for all hys great exclamacyon, we be nat yet so betle blynd, but that we spye well inough whyche way this wyly serpēt walketh / and that he goth about vnder colour of the prayse and commendacyon of goddes predestinacion[…] and ordynaunce vtterly concernyng fayth, to put a way the wurke of mānes fre wyll / and yet ouer that though […]om what more couertely, of trouthe concernyng all other good workes to.
And all be it that he seme here to gyue mannes wyll in maner lyke place, in the acte of our loue toward god, as he gyueth god in the worke of our belyefe and fayth in vs: yet whan he is well perceyued, he bryngeth all to suche ineuytable necessyte, that both in the tone and the tother, and in all maner of good workes, he taketh vtterly away all manes of meryt from the good men and electes / & gyueth vnto the euyll peple and reprobatys an excuse for thē selfe, and an occasion to lay the wight of there iuste dampnaciō, to the vniusty[…]e of goddes eternall ordynaunce and moste ryghtuouse predestynacyon. And yet are all hys reasons in thys greate mater so small, that a man may nat well wyt whyther they be more wykked or more wyttelesse.
Nowe all be it that I shall purpose to treat of thys matter more at longe wyth Tyndale, whan I shall come to the cōnfutacion of hys fond answeres made vnto the thyrde & fourth bokes of my dyaloge: yet can I nat presently forbere som what to shewe you of hys abomynable errour in thys poynt. And yet in good fayth me semeth no very great nede / hys folyes after hys wordes of bothe the places brought forth and layde togyther, be now so playne and euydent of them selfe.
For who is so betle blynde, that seeth nat clerely y• darke deuelysh heresye of thys hyghe spyrytuall heretyque, that sayth it is a betle blynde fleshely reason, to thynke that the good endeuour of the mannes parte in wyllyngly conformyng hym selfe towarde the fayth, and captyuyng and subdewyng hys reason and vnderstandyng in to the obsequy and obedyent seruyce of belyefe, shulde be no maner helpe nor furtheraunce towarde the gettyng of any […]rysten fayth but y• the wyll hath none operacyon at all in the workynge of fayth in mannes soule, no more than the chylde hath in the bygetting of his father. For here ye se wel that we speke of suche as are of age and haue the vse of reason.
If mannes wyll had no more part towarde the attaynynge of the belyefe, than the chylde hath in the bygettyng of hys owne father / I se nat wherfore our sauyoure shulde call vppon the people and byd them do penaunce, and beleue the gospell,5 as he dothe in the fyrste chapytre of saynt Marke.
For though it be very trew, that wythout goddes helpe and goddes grace preuentyng and foregoyng, no man can beleue: yet yf there were nothynge in the man hym selfe, wherby he myght receyue it yf he wolde wyth grace whych god of hys goodnesse o[…]reth apply hym selfe towardely to the receyuing therof, & wherby on the tother syde he myght frowardly refuse it, or of slouth and necligence so sleyghtly regarde it that he were worthy to lese it: yf there were I say no suche thyng in the man whe[…]by he hym selfe myght som what do therin wyth god, our lorde wolde nat call vppon men, and […]xhort them to beleue, and prayse them that wyll beleue, and rebuke them that wyll nat byleue, as he doth in many playne places of the scrypture.
But now agaynst god and hys holy scryptures, it is a worlde to se what slēdre thynges Tyndale alledgeth. Fyrst he sayth that it is a betle blynd fleshely foly, to reken that y• good endeuour of man shuld be any thyng worth towarde the atteynyng of fayth, because that […]aythe is the gyfte of god. Is nat here an hygh reason? who denyeth that faythe is a gyfte of god. But what letteth that, that a man maye nat by hys towardnes, endeuour hym selfe to receyue the gyfte of god by goddes goodnes frely offred vnto hym / or by hys […]rowardnes slougth or neclygence, lese and forgo y• gyfte of god. Is it any thyng agaynst the nature of gyfte, to be as wyllyngly receyued and taken as it is offered and gyuen? If a man wolde gyue Tyndale a cuppe of golde / wolde Tyndale call it no gyfte, yf hym selfe dyd with good wyll put forth hys hand to take it. Doth the willyng byhauyour of the taker, chaunge the name and the nature of the gyfte, or any thyng mynyshe the fre lyberall mynde of the gyuer. In good fayth I muste nedes confesse my selfe so betle blynde, that I can se no reason at all neyther fleshely nor goostly in thys reasō of Tyndale / nor as I wene Tyndals owne sharpe egle yien neyther.
what good thynge is there that is nat the gyfte of god? hoope, charytie, coutynence, pitye, lernyng, wysedome, or any thynge in this worlde y• ought is. For as sayeth saynt Iames, euery good perfyte gyfte is frome aboue discendynge from the father of lyghtes.6 And saynt Poule sayth,7 what haste thou y• thou haste nat receyued? And of whome ment he all thinge receyued, but of goddes gyfte. Nowe shall euery man than in Tyndals hyghe spirytuall iudgement, be taken for flesshely and betleblynde, that wyll be so folysshe to put any endeuoure of his owne to laboure and worke with god, in the gettynge of hope or charytie, pytefull affeccion or chastyte, lernynge, iustyce, wysedome, or any other good thynge. Bycause they be all gyftes of god, a man muste therfore sytte euyn styll and do nothynge towarde it, tyll god come and gyue hym all thynge vnware. For if he may beware before / than muste he by Tyndal, do nat so m[…]che as be willyng to receyue it. For he that by his wyll receyueth it, and whiche shulde els for his frowardenesse and contrarye wyll go without it: he dothe ye wote well somwhat more in gettyng therof, than doth the sonne in the begettynge of his owne father / wherein the sonnes wyll that is yet vnb[…]goten, can nothinge make nor marre. where as in the gettynge, attaynyng[…], and receyuynge of these vertues / the wyll of the man conformable & toward, worketh with god […]d doth somwhat / not as a dede vesel, where into Tyndale putteth and powreth hys bere / but as a quycke instrume[…]t as the hand of ye man that wyttyngly and wyllyngly receyueth a gyfte of a nother mannes lyberall offer.
Now yf Tyndale wolde here labour to make vs betleblynde wyth hys bl[…]nte soteltees, and tell vs that we can do thyng tyll god […]reuent vs wyt[…] his grace nor nothyng but as hys grace goth on forth wyth vs: these tales when they be all tolde, be n[…] worth a whystle. For ye maye tell hym agayne, that we saye not that mannes endeuoure can any good do wythout god. But we saye that when men endeuoure them sel[…]e towarde so good a thynge / they maye then make them selfe sure, that god hath preuented theym wyth hys grace, for elles they coulde not so do / and that he is redy wyth hys grace to walke forwarde wyth them. And syth theyr endeu[…]re […]owarde good is good: therfore yf they wyll styll perceyuer and walke on styll wyth god, he wyll walke on styll wyth them. And theyr endeuour shall not be a voyde folysshe thynge as Tyndale calleth it / but a frutefull worke towarde the attaynynge of fayth, though Tyndale wolde saye nay therto.
I wolde also very fayne wytte of Tyndale / yf hym selfe were as ferme and as faste in the trewe chrysten fayth, as he is in hys heresyes / and then shulde happen to fall in cō pany wyth eyther Paynyme, Turke, Saracen, or Iewe, & wolde exhorte them to the chrysten fayth / and that all be it they graunted hym the bylyefe of one almyghtye god, yet for aught that he sayd vnto them, he founde them farre of from the bylyefe (not onely of the sacrament of the awlter, from whyche hymselfe is now as farre of as any of them) but also farre of from the bylyefe of the sonne & holy goste, and fynally from the takynge of our scryptures for holy or for wrytynges worthy credence: what aduyce and counsayle wolde Tyndale gyue them? wolde he not aduyse and counsayle them to pray vnto god, and to call ayde of hym, that it myght please hym to helpe to lede them in the waye of the ryght bylyefe / and that he wold with his grace helpe theym to inclyne theyr hartes in to the folowynge of that thynge, that shulde be vnto hys pleasure and the saluacyō of theyr owne soules / whych kynde & prayour they myght assente vnto wythout any preiudyce of theyr owne fayth. wolde he not also counsayle them to faste and forbere women, to the entent theyr prayour myghte be the more clene and pure / and aduyse them also to gyue good almoyse for goddes sake, as dyd Cornelius whō saynt Peter was sent vnto hym therfore. wolde he not also counsayle them to be not wylfull nor obstynate, but conformable and wyllynge to here and lerne the trouth and vpon the herynge therof gladly to prente in theyr hartes those thynges that moste make towarde the mouyng and inclynacyon of theyr myndes, toward the credence therof. And wold he not tell them that thorow suche towarde and wyllynge demeanure on theyr parte (in the doynge wherof, theym selfe not lackyng nor beyng slouthfull, god wolde not fayle to preuent them wyth hys grace, helpe, & fauour, and be before them) god wolde lede them and go forth with them, & neuer leue them nor forsake them, tyll he wolde wyth theyr owne good endeuoure walkynge and workynge with hym, brynge them fyrste into the ryght bylyefe and good hope and godly cheryte, with other many vertuouse and good wurkes procedyng therupon / & fynally by that meane, after thys transytory lyfe, into ye perpetuall blesse & eternall ioyes of heuen.
whyther wolde Tyndale aduyse them thus? whyche yf he dyd / then sholde he teche them that mannys endeuoure towarde fayth, is not a thynge to be mocked as hym selfe mocketh it now / but that mannes own wyll doth somwhat more towarde it, then doth the chylde to the bygettynge of hys owne father. Or ellys wolde Tyndale forbydde them all suche thynges in any wyse, & tell them that theyr owne endeuoure wolde rather hynder, and make theym ascrybe the fayth that is ye gyfte of god vnto the meryte & goodnes of theyr owne wyll, theyr owne towardenesse, theyr owne prayours, theyr owne cōtynence, almoyse dede, & fastynge, and all theyr other endeuoure. All whyche thynges yf Tyndale take for nought or peryllouse / then is it lykely that he wolde of consequence aduyce those dyscyples of hys to be well ware of all suche thynges, & do none of thē in no wyse, for the counsayle to such thynges coulde come but of betle blynde flesshely reason. And therfore Tyndales dyscyples, towarde the gettyng of the fayth, to the entent they shulde take therof no parte vnto theyr owne prayse, but gyue the hole glory to god / sholde I saye by hys aduyse vse none endeuoure at all, nor do no thynge, nor saye no thynge, nor thynke no thynge, but sytte euen styll sadly, and gape by daye agaynste the sonne, by nyght agaynste the mone, tyll eyther some blynde betle or some holy humble bee come flye in at theyr mouthes, and buzze in to theyr brestes an vnholsome hepe of flye blowen errours and motthe eten heresyes.
And thus good chrysten readers, the reason that Tyndale maketh vs agaynste the endeuoure of man towarde the attaynynge of fayth / whyche endeuoure he mocketh & calleth it a counsayle of betle blynde reason, bycause fayth is the gyfte of god: I dowte not I saye but that hys reason is suche, that a man that were betle blynde in dede, may perceyue well inough that Tyndale for lacke of good endeuoure, hath had of the gyfte of god lytell wytte and lesse grace, in makynge of that feble and vnlawfull reason.
Footnotes
Chapter 5 of 15