{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_2458/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_2458","id":"gutenberg_2458","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2458","summary":null,"tags":["Category: British Literature","Category: Essays, Letters & Speeches","Category: History - Early Modern (c. 1450-1750)","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Christianity","Church of England -- Sermons","Sermons, English -- 16th century"],"text":"Transcribed from the 1883 Cassell & Co. edition by David Price, email\nccx074@coventry.ac.uk.\n\n\n\n\n\nSERMONS ON THE CARD AND OTHER DISCOURSES\nby Hugh Latimer\n\n\nINTRODUCTION.\n\n\nHugh Latimer, a farmer's son, was born about the year 1491, at\nThurcaston, in Leicestershire.  He was an only son, with six sisters, who\nwere all well cared for at home.  He was a boy of fourteen when sent to\nClare College, Cambridge.  When about twenty-four years old, he had\nobtained a college fellowship, had taken the degree of Master of Arts,\nand was ordained Priest of the Roman Church at Lincoln.  In 1524, at the\nage of about thirty, he proceeded to the degree of B.D., and on the\noccasion of his doing so he argued publicly for the Pope's authority\nagainst opinions of Melancthon.  Thomas Bilney went afterwards to\nLatimer's rooms, gave him his own reasons for good-will to the teaching\nof Melancthon, and explained to him his faith as a Reformer in a way that\nsecured Latimer's attention.  Latimer's free, vigorous mind, admitted the\nnew reasonings, and in his after-life he looked always upon \"little\nBilney\" as the man who had first opened his eyes.\n\nWith homely earnestness Latimer began soon to express his new\nconvictions.  His zeal and purity of life had caused him to be trusted by\nthe University as a maintainer of old ways; he had been appointed cross-\nbearer to the University, and elected one of the twelve preachers\nannually appointed in obedience to a bull of Pope Alexander VI.  Now\nLatimer walked and worked with Bilney, visiting the sick and the\nprisoners, and reasoning together of the needs of Christendom.  The\nBishop of the diocese presently forbade Latimer's preaching in any of the\npulpits of the University.  Robert Barnes, prior of the Augustinian\nFriars at Cambridge, a man stirred to the depths by the new movement of\nthought, then invited Latimer to preach in the church of the\nAugustinians.  Latimer was next summoned before Wolsey, whom he satisfied\nso well that Wolsey overruled the Bishop's inhibition, and Latimer again\nbecame a free preacher in Cambridge.\n\nThe influence of Latimer's preaching became every year greater; and in\nDecember, 1529, he gave occasion to new controversy in the University by\nhis two Sermons on the Card, delivered in St. Edward's Church, on the\nSunday before Christmas, 1529.  Card-playing was in those days an\namusement especially favoured at Christmas time.  Latimer does not\nexpress disapproval, though the Reformers generally were opposed to it.\nThe early statutes of St. John's College, Cambridge, forbade playing with\ndice or cards by members of the college at any time except Christmas, but\nexcluded undergraduates even from the Christmas privilege.  In these\nsermons Latimer used the card-playing of the season for illustrations of\nspiritual truth drawn from the trump card in triumph, and the rules of\nthe game of primero.  His homely parables enforced views of religious\nduty more in accordance with the mind of the Reformers than of those who\nheld by the old ways.  The Prior of the Dominicans at Cambridge tried to\nanswer Latimer's sermon on the cards with an antagonistic sermon on the\ndice: the orthodox Christian was to win by a throw of cinque and\nquatre--the cinque, five texts to be quoted against Luther; and the\nquatre the four great doctors of the Church.  Latimer replied with\nvigour; others ranged themselves on one side or the other, and there was\ngeneral battle in the University; but the King's Almoner soon intervened\nwith a letter commanding silence on both sides till the King's pleasure\nwas further declared.  The King's good-will to Latimer was due, as the\nletter indicated, to the understanding that Latimer \"favoured the King's\ncause\" in the question of divorce from Katherine of Arragon.\n\nIn March, 1530, Latimer was called to preach before Henry VIII., at\nWindsor.  The King then made Latimer his chaplain, and in the following\nyear gave him the rectory of West Kington, in Wiltshire.  The new rector,\nsoon accused of heresy, was summoned before the Bishop of London and\nbefore Convocation; was excommunicated and imprisoned, and absolved by\nspecial request of the King.  When Cranmer became Archbishop of\nCanterbury, Latimer returned into royal favour, and preached before the\nKing on Wednesdays in Lent.  In 1535, when an Italian nominee of the\nPope's was deprived of the Bishopric of Worcester, Latimer was made his\nsuccessor; but resigned in 1539, when the King, having virtually made\nhimself Pope, dictated to a tractable parliament enforcement of old\ndoctrines by an Act for Abolishing Diversity of Opinion.  From that time\nuntil the death of Henry VIII. Latimer was in disgrace.\n\nThe accession of Edward VI. brought him again to the front, and the\nSermon on the Plough, in this volume, is a famous example of his use of\nhis power under Edward VI., as the greatest preacher of his time, in\nforwarding the Reformation of the Church, and of the lives of those who\nprofessed and called themselves Christians.  The rest of his story will\nbe associated in another volume of this Library with a collection of his\nlater sermons.\n\nH. M.\n\n\n\n\nSERMONS ON THE CARD.\n\n\nTHE TENOR AND EFFECT OF CERTAIN SERMONS MADE BY MASTER LATIMER IN\nCAMBRIDGE, ABOUT THE YEAR OF OUR LORD 1529.\n\n\n_Tu quis es_?  Which words are as much to say in English, \"Who art thou?\"\nThese be the words of the Pharisees, which were sent by the Jews unto St.\nJohn Baptist in the wilderness, to have knowledge of him who he was:\nwhich words they spake unto him of an evil intent, thinking that he would\nhave taken on him to be Christ, and so they would have had him done with\ntheir good wills, because they knew that he was more carnal, and given to\ntheir laws, than Christ indeed should be, as they perceived by their old\nprophecies; and also, because they marvelled much of his great doctrine,\npreaching, and baptizing, they were in doubt whether he was Christ or\nnot: wherefore they said unto him, \"Who art thou?\"  Then answered St.\nJohn, and confessed that he was not Christ.\n\nNow here is to be noted the great and prudent answer of St. John Baptist\nunto the Pharisees, that when they required of him who he was, he would\nnot directly answer of himself what he was himself, but he said he was\nnot Christ: by the which saying he thought to put the Jews and Pharisees\nout of their false opinion and belief towards him, in that they would\nhave had him to exercise the office of Christ; and so declared further\nunto them of Christ, saying, \"He is in the midst of you and amongst you,\nwhom ye know not, whose latchet of his shoe I am not worthy to unloose,\nor undo.\"  By this you may perceive that St. John spake much in the laud\nand praise of Christ his Master, professing himself to be in no wise like\nunto him.  So likewise it shall be necessary unto all men and women of\nthis world, not to ascribe unto themselves any goodness of themselves,\nbut all unto our Lord God, as shall appear hereafter, when this question\naforesaid, \"Who art thou?\" shall be moved unto them: not as the Pharisees\ndid unto St. John, of an evil purpose, but of a good and simple mind, as\nmay appear hereafter.\n\nNow then, according to the preacher's mind, let every man and woman, of a\ngood and simple mind, contrary to the Pharisees' intent, ask this\nquestion, \"Who art thou?\"  This question must be moved to themselves,\nwhat they be of themselves, on this fashion: \"What art thou of thy only\nand natural generation between father and mother, when thou camest into\nthis world?  What substance, what virtue, what goodness art thou of, by\nthyself?\"  Which question if thou rehearse oftentimes unto thyself, thou\nshalt well perceive and understand how thou shalt make answer unto it;\nwhich must be made on this wise: I am of myself, and by myself, coming\nfrom my natural father and mother, the child of the ire and indignation\nof God, the true inheritor of hell, a lump of sin, and working nothing of\nmyself but all towards hell, except I have better help of another than I\nhave of myself.  Now we may see in what state we enter into this world,\nthat we be of ourselves the true and just inheritors of hell, the\nchildren of the ire and indignation of Christ, working all towards hell,\nwhereby we deserve of ourselves perpetual damnation, by the right\njudgment of God, and the true claim of ourselves; which unthrifty state\nthat we be born unto is come unto us for our own deserts, as proveth well\nthis example following:\n\nLet it be admitted for the probation of this, that it might please the\nking's grace now being to accept into his favour a mean man, of a simple\ndegree and birth, not born to any possession; whom the king's grace\nfavoureth, not because this person hath of himself deserved any such\nfavour, but that the king casteth this favour unto him of his own mere\nmotion and fantasy: and for because the king's grace will more declare\nhis favour unto him, he giveth unto this said man a thousand pounds in\nlands, to him and his heirs, on this condition, that he shall take upon\nhim to be the chief captain and defender of his town of Calais, and to be\ntrue and faithful to him in the custody of the same, against the\nFrenchmen especially, above all other enemies.\n\nThis man taketh on him this charge, promising his fidelity thereunto.  It\nchanceth in process of time, that by the singular acquaintance and\nfrequent familiarity of this captain with the Frenchmen, these Frenchmen\ngive unto the said captain of Calais a great sum of money, so that he\nwill but be content and agreeable that they may enter into the said town\nof Calais by force of arms; and so thereby possess the same unto the\ncrown of France.  Upon this agreement the Frenchmen do invade the said\ntown of Calais, alonely by the negligence of this captain.\n\nNow the king's grace, hearing of this invasion, cometh with a great\npuissance to defend this his said town, and so by good policy of war\novercometh the said Frenchmen, and entereth again into his said town of\nCalais.  Then he, being desirous to know how these enemies of his came\nthither, maketh profound search and inquiry by whom this treason was\nconspired.  By this search it was known and found his own captain to be\nthe very author and the beginner of the betraying of it.  The king,\nseeing the great infidelity of this person, dischargeth this man of his\noffice, and taketh from him and from his heirs this thousand pounds of\npossessions.  Think you not that the king doth use justice unto him, and\nall his posterity and heirs?  Yes, truly: the said captain cannot deny\nhimself but that he had true justice, considering how unfaithfully he\nbehaved him to his prince, contrary to his own fidelity and promise.  So\nlikewise it was of our first father Adam.  He had given unto him the\nspirit of science and knowledge, to work all goodness therewith: this\nsaid spirit was not given alonely unto him, but unto all his heirs and\nposterity.  He had also delivered him the town of Calais; that is to say,\nparadise in earth, the most strong and fairest town in the world, to be\nin his custody.  He nevertheless, by the instigation of these Frenchmen,\nthat is to say, the temptation of the fiend, did obey unto their desire;\nand so he brake his promise and fidelity, the commandment of the\neverlasting King his master, in eating of the apple by him inhibited.\n\nNow then the King, seeing this great treason in his captain, deposed him\nof the thousand pounds of possessions, that is to say, from everlasting\nlife in glory, and all his heirs and posterity: for likewise as he had\nthe spirit of science and knowledge, for him and his heirs; so in like\nmanner, when he lost the same, his heirs also lost it by him and in him.\nSo now this example proveth, that by our father Adam we had once in him\nthe very inheritance of everlasting joy; and by him, and in him, again we\nlost the same.\n\nThe heirs of the captain of Calais could not by any manner of claim ask\nof the king the right and title of their father in the thousand pounds of\npossessions, by reason the king might answer and say unto them, that\nalthough their father deserved not of himself to enjoy so great\npossessions, yet he deserved by himself to lose them, and greater,\ncommitting so high treason, as he did, against his prince's commandments;\nwhereby he had no wrong to lose his title, but was unworthy to have the\nsame, and had therein true justice.  Let not you think, which be his\nheirs, that if he had justice to lose his possessions, you have wrong to\nlose the same.  In the same manner it may be answered unto all men and\nwomen now being, that if our father Adam had true justice to be excluded\nfrom his possession of everlasting glory in paradise, let us not think\nthe contrary that be his heirs, but that we have no wrong in losing also\nthe same; yea, we have true justice and right.  Then in what miserable\nestate we be, that of the right and just title of our own deserts have\nlost the everlasting joy, and claim of ourselves to be true inheritors of\nhell!  For he that committeth deadly sin willingly, bindeth himself to be\ninheritor of everlasting pain: and so did our forefather Adam willingly\neat of the apple forbidden.  Wherefore he was cast out of the everlasting\njoy in paradise into this corrupt world, amongst all vileness, whereby of\nhimself he was not worthy to do any thing laudable or pleasant to God,\nevermore bound to corrupt affections and beastly appetites, transformed\ninto the most uncleanest and variablest nature that was made under\nheaven; of whose seed and disposition all the world is lineally\ndescended, insomuch that this evil nature is so fused and shed from one\ninto another, that at this day there is no man nor woman living that can\nof themselves wash away this abominable vileness: and so we must needs\ngrant of ourselves to be in like displeasure unto God, as our forefather\nAdam was.  By reason hereof as I said, we be of ourselves the very\nchildren of the indignation and vengeance of God, the true inheritors of\nhell, and working all towards hell: which is the answer to this question,\nmade to every man and woman, by themselves, \"Who art thou?\"\n\nAnd now, the world standing in this damnable state, cometh in the\noccasion of the incarnation of Christ.  The Father in heaven, perceiving\nthe frail nature of man, that he, by himself and of himself, could do\nnothing for himself, by his prudent wisdom sent down the second person in\nTrinity, his Son Jesus Christ, to declare unto man his pleasure and\ncommandment: and so, at the Father's will, Christ took on him human\nnature, being willing to deliver man out of this miserable way, and was\ncontent to suffer cruel passion in shedding his blood for all mankind;\nand so left behind for our safeguard laws and ordinances, to keep us\nalways in the right path unto everlasting life, as the evangelists, the\nsacraments, the commandments, and so forth: which, if we do keep and\nobserve according to our profession, we shall answer better unto this\nquestion, \"Who art thou?\" than we did before.  For before thou didst\nenter into the sacrament of baptism, thou wert but a natural man, a\nnatural woman; as I might say, a man, a woman: but after thou takest on\nthee Christ's religion, thou hast a longer name; for then thou art a\nchristian man, a christian woman.  Now then, seeing thou art a christian\nman, what shall be thy answer of this question, \"Who art thou?\"\n\nThe answer of this question is, when I ask it unto myself, I must say\nthat I am a christian man, a christian woman, the child of everlasting\njoy, through the merits of the bitter passion of Christ.  This is a\njoyful answer.  Here we may see how much we be bound and in danger unto\nGod, that hath revived us from death to life, and saved us that were\ndamned: which great benefit we cannot well consider, unless we do\nremember what we were of ourselves before we meddled with him or his\nlaws; and the more we know our feeble nature, and set less by it, the\nmore we shall conceive and know in our hearts what God hath done for us;\nand the more we know what God hath done for us, the less we shall set by\nourselves, and the more we shall love and please God: so that in no\ncondition we shall either know ourselves or God, except we do utterly\nconfess ourselves to be mere vileness and corruption.  Well, now it is\ncome unto this point, that we be christian men, christian women, I pray\nyou what doth Christ require of a christian man, or of a christian woman?\nChrist requireth nothing else of a christian man or woman, but that they\nwill observe his rule: for likewise as he is a good Augustine friar that\nkeepeth well St. Augustine's rule, so is he a good christian man that\nkeepeth well Christ's rule.\n\nNow then, what is Christ's rule?  Christ's rule consisteth in many\nthings, as in the commandments, and the works of mercy, and so forth.  And\nfor because I cannot declare Christ's rule unto you at one time, as it\nought to be done, I will apply myself according to your custom at this\ntime of Christmas: I will, as I said, declare unto you Christ's rule, but\nthat shall be in Christ's cards.  And whereas you are wont to celebrate\nChristmas in playing at cards, I intend, by God's grace, to deal unto you\nChrist's cards, wherein you shall perceive Christ's rule.  The game that\nwe will play at shall be called the triumph, which, if it be well played\nat, he that dealeth shall win; the players shall likewise win; and the\nstanders and lookers upon shall do the same; insomuch that there is no\nman that is willing to play at this triumph with these cards, but they\nshall be all winners, and no losers.\n\nLet therefore every christian man and woman play at these cards, that\nthey may have and obtain the triumph: you must mark also that the triumph\nmust apply to fetch home unto him all the other cards, whatsoever suit\nthey be of.  Now then, take ye this first card, which must appear and be\nshewed unto you as followeth: you have heard what was spoken to men of\nthe old law, \"Thou shalt not kill; whosoever shall kill shall be in\ndanger of judgment: but I say unto you\" of the new law, saith Christ,\n\"that whosoever is angry with his neighbour, shall be in danger of\njudgment; and whosoever shall say unto his neighbour, 'Raca,' that is to\nsay, brainless,\" or any other like word of rebuking, \"shall be in danger\nof council; and whosoever shall say unto his neighbour, 'Fool,' shall be\nin danger of hell-fire.\"  This card was made and spoken by Christ, as\nappeareth in the fifth chapter of St. Matthew.\n\nNow it must be noted, that whosoever shall play with this card, must\nfirst, before they play with it, know the strength and virtue of the\nsame: wherefore you must well note and mark terms, how they be spoken,\nand to what purpose.  Let us therefore read it once or twice, that we may\nbe the better acquainted with it.\n\nNow behold and see, this card is divided into four parts: the first part\nis one of the commandments that was given unto Moses in the old law,\nbefore the coming of Christ; which commandment we of the new law be bound\nto observe and keep, and it is one of our commandments.  The other three\nparts spoken by Christ be nothing else but expositions unto the first\npart of this commandment: for in very effect all these four parts be but\none commandment, that is to say, \"Thou shalt not kill.\"  Yet\nnevertheless, the last three parts do shew unto thee how many ways thou\nmayest kill thy neighbour contrary to this commandment: yet, for all\nChrist's exposition in the three last parts of this card, the terms be\nnot open enough to thee that dost read and hear them spoken.  No doubt,\nthe Jews understood Christ well enough, when he spake to them these three\nlast sentences; for he spake unto them in their own natural terms and\ntongue.  Wherefore, seeing that these terms were natural terms of the\nJews, it shall be necessary to expound them, and compare them unto some\nlike terms of our natural speech, that we, in like manner, may understand\nChrist as well as the Jews did.  We will begin first with the first part\nof this card, and then after, with the other three parts.  You must\ntherefore understand that the Jews and the Pharisees of the old law, to\nwhom this first part, this commandment, \"Thou shalt not kill,\" was\nspoken, thought it sufficient and enough for their discharge, not to kill\nwith any manner of material weapon, as sword, dagger, or with any such\nweapon; and they thought it no great fault whatsoever they said or did by\ntheir neighbours, so that they did not harm or meddle with their corporal\nbodies: which was a false opinion in them, as prove well the three last\nother sentences following the first part of this card.\n\nNow, as touching the three other sentences, you must note and take heed,\nwhat difference is between these three manner of offences: to be angry\nwith your neighbour; to call your neighbour \"brainless,\" or any such word\nof disdain; or to call your neighbour \"fool.\"  Whether these three manner\nof offences be of themselves more grievous one than the other, it is to\nbe opened unto you.  Truly, as they be of themselves divers offences, so\nthey kill diversly, one more than the other; as you shall perceive by the\nfirst of these three, and so forth.  A man which conceiveth against his\nneighbour or brother ire or wrath in his mind, by some manner of occasion\ngiven unto him, although he be angry in his mind against his said\nneighbour, he will peradventure express his ire by no manner of sign,\neither in word or deed: yet, nevertheless, he offendeth against God, and\nbreaketh this commandment in killing his own soul; and is therefore \"in\ndanger of judgment.\"\n\nNow, to the second part of these three: That man that is moved with ire\nagainst his neighbour, and in his ire calleth his neighbour \"brainless,\"\nor some other like word of displeasure; as a man might say in a fury, \"I\nshall handle thee well enough;\" which words and countenances do more\nrepresent and declare ire to be in this man, than in him that was but\nangry, and spake no manner of word nor shewed any countenance to declare\nhis ire.  Wherefore as he that so declareth his ire either by word or\ncountenance offendeth more against God, so he both killeth his own soul,\nand doth that in him is to kill his neighbour's soul in moving him unto\nire, wherein he is faulty himself; and so this man is \"in danger of\ncouncil.\"\n\nNow to the third offence, and last of these three: That man that calleth\nhis neighbour \"fool,\" doth more declare his angry mind toward him, than\nhe that called his neighbour but \"brainless,\" or any such words moving\nire: for to call a man \"fool,\" that word representeth more envy in a man\nthan \"brainless\" doth.  Wherefore he doth most offend, because he doth\nmost earnestly with such words express his ire, and so he is \"in danger\nof hell-fire.\"\n\nWherefore you may understand now, these three parts of this card be three\noffences, and that one is more grievous to God than the other, and that\none killeth more the soul of man than the other.\n\nNow peradventure there be some that will marvel, that Christ did not\ndeclare this commandment by some greater faults of ire, than by these\nwhich seem but small faults, as to be angry and speak nothing of it, to\ndeclare it and to call a man \"brainless,\" and to call his neighbour\n\"fool:\" truly these be the smallest and the least faults that belong to\nire, or to killing in ire.  Therefore beware how you offend in any kind\nof ire: seeing that the smallest be damnable to offend in, see that you\noffend not in the greatest.  For Christ thought, if he might bring you\nfrom the smallest manner of faults, and give you warning to avoid the\nleast, he reckoned you would not offend in the greatest and worst, as to\ncall your neighbour thief, whoreson, whore, drab, and so forth, into more\nblasphemous names; which offences must needs have punishment in hell,\nconsidering how that Christ hath appointed these three small faults to\nhave three degrees of punishment in hell, as appeareth by these three\nterms, judgment, council, and hell-fire.  These three terms do signify\nnothing else but three divers punishments in hell, according to the\noffences.  Judgment is less in degree than council, therefore it\nsignifieth a lesser pain in hell, and it is ordained for him that is\nangry in his mind with his neighbour, and doth express his malice neither\nby word nor countenance: council is a less degree in hell than hell-fire,\nand is a greater degree in hell than judgment; and it is ordained for him\nthat calleth his neighbour \"brainless,\" or any such word, that declareth\nhis ire and malice: wherefore it is more pain than judgment.  Hell-fire\nis more pain in hell than council or judgment, and it is ordained for him\nthat calleth his neighbour \"fool,\" by reason that in calling his\nneighbour \"fool,\" he declareth more his malice, in that it is an earnest\nword of ire: wherefore hell-fire is appointed for it; that is, the most\npain of the three punishments.\n\nNow you have heard, that to these divers offences of ire and killing be\nappointed punishments according to their degrees: for look as the offence\nis, so shall the pain be: if the offence be great, the pain shall be\naccording; if it be less, there shall be less pain for it.  I would not\nnow that you should think, because that here are but three degrees of\npunishment spoken of, that there be no more in hell.  No doubt Christ\nspake of no more here but of these three degrees of punishment, thinking\nthey were sufficient, enough for example, whereby we might understand\nthat there be as divers and many pains as there be offences: and so by\nthese three offences, and these three punishments, all other offences and\npunishments may be compared with another.  Yet I would satisfy your minds\nfurther in these three terms, of \"judgment, council, and hell-fire.\"\nWhereas you might say, What was the cause that Christ declared more the\npains of hell by these terms than by any other terms?  I told you afore\nthat he knew well to whom he spake them.  These terms were natural and\nwell known amongst the Jews and the Pharisees: wherefore Christ taught\nthem with their own terms, to the intent they might understand the better\nhis doctrine.  And these terms may be likened unto three terms which we\nhave common and usual amongst us, that is to say, the sessions of\ninquirance, the sessions of deliverance, and the execution-day.  Sessions\nof inquirance is like unto judgment; for when sessions of inquiry is,\nthen the judges cause twelve men to give verdict of the felon's crime,\nwhereby he shall be judged to be indicted: sessions of deliverance is\nmuch like council; for at sessions of deliverance the judges go among\nthemselves to council, to determine sentence against the felon: execution-\nday is to be compared unto hell-fire; for the Jews had amongst themselves\na place of execution, named \"hell-fire:\" and surely when a man goeth to\nhis death, it is the greatest pain in this world.  Wherefore you may see\nthat there are degrees in these our terms, as there be in those terms.\n\nThese evil-disposed affections and sensualities in us are always contrary\nto the rule of our salvation.  What shall we do now or imagine to thrust\ndown these Turks and to subdue them?  It is a great ignominy and shame\nfor a christian man to be bond and subject unto a Turk: nay, it shall not\nbe so; we will first cast a trump in their way, and play with them at\ncards, who shall have the better.  Let us play therefore on this fashion\nwith this card.  Whensoever it shall happen the foul passions and Turks\nto rise in our stomachs against our brother or neighbour, either for\nunkind words, injuries, or wrongs, which they have done unto us, contrary\nunto our mind; straightways let us call unto our remembrance, and speak\nthis question unto ourselves, \"Who art thou?\"  The answer is, \"I am a\nchristian man.\"  Then further we must say to ourselves, \"What requireth\nChrist of a christian man?\"  Now turn up your trump, your heart (hearts\nis trump, as I said before), and cast your trump, your heart, on this\ncard; and upon this card you shall learn what Christ requireth of a\nchristian man--not to be angry, nor moved to ire against his neighbour,\nin mind, countenance, nor other ways, by word or deed.  Then take up this\ncard with your heart, and lay them together: that done, you have won the\ngame of the Turk, whereby you have defaced and overcome him by true and\nlawful play.  But, alas for pity! the Rhodes are won and overcome by\nthese false Turks; the strong castle Faith is decayed, so that I fear it\nis almost impossible to win it again.\n\nThe great occasion of the loss of this Rhodes is by reason that christian\nmen do so daily kill their own nation, that the very true number of\nChristianity is decayed; which murder and killing one of another is\nincreased specially two ways, to the utter undoing of Christendom, that\nis to say, by example and silence.  By example, as thus: when the father,\nthe mother, the lord, the lady, the master, the dame, be themselves\novercome by these Turks, they be continual swearers, avouterers,\ndisposers to malice, never in patience, and so forth in all other vices:\nthink you not, when the father, the mother, the master, the dame, be\ndisposed unto vice or impatience, but that their children and servants\nshall incline and be disposed to the same?  No doubt, as the child shall\ntake disposition natural of the father and mother, so shall the servants\napply unto the vices of their masters and dames: if the heads be false in\ntheir faculties and crafts, it is no marvel if the children, servants,\nand apprentices do joy therein.  This is a great and shameful manner of\nkilling christian men, that the fathers, the mothers, the masters, and\nthe dames shall not alonely kill themselves, but all theirs, and all that\nbelongeth unto them: and so this way is a great number of christian\nlineage murdered and spoiled.\n\nThe second manner of killing is silence.  By silence also is a great\nnumber of christian men slain; which is on this fashion: although that\nthe father and mother, master and dame, of themselves be well disposed to\nlive according to the law of God, yet they may kill their children and\nservants in suffering them to do evil before their own faces, and do not\nuse due correction according unto their offences.  The master seeth his\nservant or apprentice take more of his neighbour than the king's laws, or\nthe order of his faculty, doth admit him; or that he suffereth him to\ntake more of his neighbour than he himself would be content to pay, if he\nwere in like condition: thus doing, I say, such men kill willingly their\nchildren and servants, and shall go to hell for so doing; but also their\nfathers and mothers, masters and dames, shall bear them company for so\nsuffering them.\n\nWherefore I exhort all true christian men and women to give good example\nunto your children and servants, and suffer not them by silence to\noffend.  Every man must be in his own house, according to St. Augustine's\nmind, a bishop, not alonely giving good ensample, but teaching according\nto it, rebuking and punishing vice; not suffering your children and\nservants to forget the laws of God.  You ought to see them have their\nbelief, to know the commandments of God, to keep their holy-days, not to\nlose their time in idleness: if they do so, you shall all suffer pain for\nit, if God be true of his saying, as there is no doubt thereof.  And so\nyou may perceive that there be many a one that breaketh this card, \"Thou\nshalt not kill,\" and playeth therewith oftentime at the blind trump,\nwhereby they be no winners, but great losers.  But who be those now-a-\ndays that can clear themselves of these manifest murders used to their\nchildren and servants?  I think not the contrary, but that many have\nthese two ways slain their own children unto their damnation; unless the\ngreat mercy of God were ready to help them when they repent there-for.\n\nWherefore, considering that we be so prone and ready to continue in sin,\nlet us cast down ourselves with Mary Magdalene; and the more we bow down\nwith her toward Christ's feet, the more we shall be afraid to rise again\nin sin; and the more we know and submit ourselves, the more we shall be\nforgiven; and the less we know and submit ourselves, the less we shall be\nforgiven; as appeareth by this example following:\n\nChrist, when he was in this world, amongst the Jews and Pharisees, there\nwas a great Pharisee whose name was Simon: this Pharisee desired Christ\non a time to dine with him, thinking in himself that he was able and\nworthy to give Christ a dinner.  Christ refused not his dinner, but came\nunto him.  In time of their dinner it chanced there came into the house a\ngreat and a common sinner named Mary Magdalene.  As soon as she perceived\nChrist, she cast herself down, and called unto her remembrance what she\nwas of herself, and how greatly she had offended God; whereby she\nconceived in Christ great love, and so came near unto him, and washed his\nfeet with bitter tears, and shed upon his head precious ointment,\nthinking that by him she should be delivered from her sins.  This great\nand proud Pharisee, seeing that Christ did accept her oblation in the\nbest part, had great indignation against this woman, and said to himself,\n\"If this man Christ were a holy prophet, as he is taken for, he would not\nsuffer this sinner to come so nigh him.\"  Christ, understanding the\nnaughty mind of this Pharisee, said unto him, \"Simon, I have somewhat to\nsay unto thee.\"  \"Say what you please,\" quod the Pharisee.  Then said\nChrist, \"I pray thee, tell me this: If there be a man to whom is owing\ntwenty pound by one, and forty by another, this man to whom this money is\nowing, perceiving these two men be not able to pay him, he forgiveth them\nboth: which of these two debtors ought to love this man most?\"  The\nPharisee said, \"That man ought to love him best, that had most forgiven\nhim.\"  \"Likewise,\" said Christ, \"it is by this woman: she hath loved me\nmost, therefore most is forgiven her; she hath known her sins most,\nwhereby she hath most loved me.  And thou hast least loved me, because\nthou hast least known thy sins: therefore, because thou hast least known\nthine offences, thou art least forgiven.\"  So this proud Pharisee had an\nanswer to delay his pride.  And think you not, but that there be amongst\nus a great number of these proud Pharisees, which think themselves worthy\nto bid Christ to dinner; which will perk, and presume to sit by Christ in\nthe church, and have a disdain of this poor woman Magdalene, their poor\nneighbour, with a high, disdainous, and solemn countenance?  And being\nalways desirous to climb highest in the church, reckoning themselves more\nworthy to sit there than another, I fear me poor Magdalene under the\nboard, and in the belfry, hath more forgiven of Christ than they have:\nfor it is like that those Pharisees do less know themselves and their\noffences, whereby they less love God, and so they be less forgiven.\n\nI would to God we would follow this example, and be like unto Magdalene.\nI doubt not but we be all Magdalenes in falling into sin and in\noffending: but we be not again Magdalenes in knowing ourselves, and in\nrising from sin.  If we be the true Magdalenes, we should be as willing\nto forsake our sin and rise from sin, as we were willing to commit sin\nand to continue in it; and we then should know ourselves best, and make\nmore perfect answer than ever we did unto this question, \"Who art thou?\"\nto the which we might answer, that we be true christian men and women:\nand then, I say, you should understand, and know how you ought to play at\nthis card, \"Thou shalt not kill,\" without any interruption of your deadly\nenemies the Turks; and so triumph at the last, by winning everlasting\nlife in glory.  Amen.\n\n\n\nANOTHER SERMON OF M. LATIMER, CONCERNING THE SAME MATTER.\n\n\nNow you have heard what is meant by this first card, and how you ought to\nplay with it, I purpose again to deal unto you another card, almost of\nthe same suit; for they be of so nigh affinity, that one cannot be well\nplayed without the other.  The first card declared, that you should not\nkill, which might be done divers ways; as being angry with your\nneighbour, in mind, in countenance, in word, or deed: it declared also,\nhow you should subdue the passions of ire, and so clear evermore\nyourselves from them.  And whereas this first card doth kill in you these\nstubborn Turks of ire; this second card will not only they should be\nmortified in you, but that you yourselves shall cause them to be likewise\nmortified in your neighbour, if that your said neighbour hath been\nthrough your occasion moved unto ire, either in countenance, word, or\ndeed.  Now let us hear therefore the tenor of this card: \"When thou\nmakest thine oblation at mine altar, and there dost remember that thy\nneighbour hath any thing against thee, lay down there thy oblation, and\ngo first and reconcile thy neighbour, and then come and offer thy\noblation.\"\n\nThis card was spoken by Christ, as testifieth St. Matthew in his fifth\nchapter, against all such as do presume to come unto the church to make\noblation unto God either by prayer, or any other deed of charity, not\nhaving their neighbours reconciled.  Reconciling is as much to say as to\nrestore thy neighbour unto charity, which by thy words or deeds is moved\nagainst thee: then, if so be it that thou hast spoken to or by thy\nneighbour, whereby he is moved to ire or wrath, thou must lay down thy\noblation.  Oblations be prayers, alms-deeds, or any work of charity:\nthese be all called oblations to God.  Lay down therefore thine oblation;\nbegin to do none of these foresaid works before thou goest unto thy\nneighbour, and confess thy fault unto him; declaring thy mind, that if\nthou hast offended him, thou art glad and willing to make him amends, as\nfar forth as thy words and substance will extend, requiring him not to\ntake it at the worst: thou art sorry in thy mind, that thou shouldest be\noccasion of his offending.\n\n\"What manner of card is this?\" will some say: \"Why, what have I to do\nwith my neighbour's or brother's malice?\"  As Cain said, \"Have I the\nkeeping of my brother? or shall I answer for him and for his faults?  This\nwere no reason--As for myself, I thank God I owe no man malice nor\ndispleasure: if others owe me any, at their own peril be it.  Let every\nman answer for himself!\"  Nay, sir, not so, as you may understand by this\ncard; for it saith, \"If thy neighbour hath anything, any malice against\nthee, through thine occasion, lay even down (saith Christ) thine\noblation: pray not to me; do no good deeds for me; but go first unto thy\nneighbour, and bring him again unto my flock, which hath forsaken the\nsame through thy naughty words, mocks, scorns, or disdainous countenance,\nand so forth; and then come and offer thine oblation; then do thy\ndevotion; then do thy alms-deeds; then pray, if thou wilt have me hear\nthee.\"\n\n\"O good Lord! this is a hard reckoning, that I must go and seek him out\nthat is offended with me, before I pray or do any good deed.  I cannot go\nunto him.  Peradventure he is a hundred miles from me, beyond the seas;\nor else I cannot tell where: if he were here nigh, I would with all my\nheart go unto him.\"  This is a lawful excuse before God on this fashion,\nthat thou wouldest in thy heart be glad to reconcile thy neighbour, if he\nwere present; and that thou thinkest in thy heart, whensoever thou shalt\nmeet with him, to go unto him, and require him charitably to forgive\nthee; and so never intend to come from him, until the time that you both\ndepart one from the other true brethren in Christ.\n\nYet, peradventure, there be some in the world that be so devilish, and so\nhard-hearted, that they will not apply in any condition unto charity.  For\nall that, do what lieth in thee, by all charitable means, to bring him to\nunity.  If he will in no wise apply thereunto, thou mayest be sorrowful\nin thy heart, that by thine occasion that man or woman continueth in such\na damnable state.  This notwithstanding, if thou do the best that lieth\nin thee to reconcile him, according to some doctors' mind, thou art\ndischarged towards God.  Nevertheless St. Augustine doubteth in this\ncase, whether thy oblations, prayers, or good deeds, shall avail thee\nbefore God, or no, until thy neighbour come again to good state, whom\nthou hast brought out of the way.  Doth this noble doctor doubt therein?\nWhat aileth us to be so bold, and count it but a small fault, or none, to\nbring our neighbour out of patience for every trifle that standeth not\nwith our mind?  You may see what a grievous thing this is, to bring\nanother man out of patience, that peradventure you cannot bring in again\nwith all the goods that you have: for surely, after the opinion of great\nwise men, friendship once broken will be never well made whole again.\nWherefore you shall hear what Christ saith unto such persons.  Saith\nChrist, \"I came down into this world, and so took on me bitter passion\nfor man's sake, by the merits whereof I intended to make unity and peace\nin mankind, to make man brother unto me, and so to expel the dominion of\nSatan, the devil, which worketh nothing else but dissension: and yet now\nthere be a great number of you, that have professed my name, and say you\nbe christian men, which do rebel against my purpose and mind.  I go about\nto make my fold: you go about to break the same, and kill my flock.\"  \"How\ndarest thou,\" saith Christ, \"presume to come unto my altar, unto my\nchurch, or into my presence, to make oblation unto me, that takest on\nthee to spoil my lambs?  I go about like a good shepherd to gather them\ntogether; and thou dost the contrary, evermore ready to divide and lose\nthem.  Who made thee so bold to meddle with my silly beasts, which I\nbought so dearly with my precious blood?  I warn thee out of my sight,\ncome not in my presence: I refuse thee and all thy works, except thou go\nand bring home again my lambs which thou hast lost.  Wherefore, if thou\nthyself intend to be one of mine, lay even down by and by thine oblation,\nand come no further toward mine altar; but go and seek them without any\nquestions, as it becometh a true and faithful servant.\"\n\nA true and faithful servant, whensoever his master commandeth him to do\nany thing, he maketh no stops nor questions, but goeth forth with a good\nmind: and it is not unlike he, continuing in such a good mind and will,\nshall well overcome all dangers and stops, whatsoever betide him in his\njourney, and bring to pass effectually his master's will and pleasure?  On\nthe contrary, a slothful servant, when his master commandeth him to do\nany thing, by and by he will ask questions, \"Where?\"  \"When?\"  \"Which\nway?\" and so forth; and so be putteth every thing in doubt, that although\nboth his errand and way be never so plain, yet by his untoward and\nslothful behaviour his master's commandment is either undone quite, or\nelse so done that it shall stand to no good purpose.  Go now forth with\nthe good servant, and ask no such questions, and put no doubts.  Be not\nashamed to do thy Master's and Lord's will and commandment.  Go, as I\nsaid, unto thy neighbour that is offended by thee, and reconcile him (as\nis afore said) whom thou hast lost by thy unkind words, by thy scorns,\nmocks, and other disdainous words and behaviours; and be not nice to ask\nof him the cause why he is displeased with thee: require of him\ncharitably to remit; and cease not till you both depart, one from the\nother, true brethren in Christ.\n\nDo not, like the slothful servant, thy master's message with cautels and\ndoubts: come not to thy neighbour whom thou hast offended, and give him a\npennyworth of ale, or a banquet, and so make him a fair countenance,\nthinking that by thy drink or dinner he will shew thee like countenance.\nI grant you may both laugh and make good cheer, and yet there may remain\na bag of rusty malice, twenty years old, in thy neighbour's bosom.  When\nhe departeth from thee with a good countenance, thou thinkest all is well\nthen.  But now, I tell thee, it is worse than it was, for by such cloaked\ncharity, where thou dost offend before Christ but once, thou hast\noffended twice herein: for now thou goest about to give Christ a mock, if\nbe would take it of thee.  Thou thinkest to blind thy master Christ's\ncommandment.  Beware, do not so, for at length he will overmatch thee,\nand take thee tardy whatsoever thou be; and so, as I said, it should be\nbetter for thee not to do his message on this fashion, for it will stand\nthee in no purpose.  \"What?\" some will say, \"I am sure he loveth me well\nenough: he speaketh fair to my face.\"  Yet for all that thou mayest be\ndeceived.  It proveth not true love in a man, to speak fair.  If he love\nthee with his mind and heart, he loveth thee with his eyes, with his\ntongue, with his feet, with his hands and his body; for all these parts\nof a man's body be obedient to the will and mind.  He loveth thee with\nhis eves, that looketh cheerfully on thee, when thou meetest with him,\nand is glad to see thee prosper and do well.  He loveth thee with his\ntongue, that speaketh well by thee behind thy back, or giveth thee good\ncounsel.  He loveth thee with his feet, that is willing to go to help\nthee out of trouble and business.  He loveth thee with his hands, that\nwill help thee in time of necessity, by giving some alms-deeds, or with\nany other occupation of the hand.  He loveth thee with his body, that\nwill labour with his body, or put his body in danger to do good for thee,\nor to deliver thee from adversity: and so forth, with the other members\nof his body.  And if thy neighbour will do according to these sayings,\nthen thou mayest think that he loveth thee well; and thou, in like wise,\noughtest to declare and open thy love unto thy neighbour in like fashion,\nor else you be bound one to reconcile the other, till this perfect love\nbe engendered amongst you.\n\nIt may fortune thou wilt say, \"I am content to do the best for my\nneighbour that I can, saving myself harmless.\"  I promise thee, Christ\nwill not hear this excuse; for he himself suffered harm for our sakes,\nand for our salvation was put to extreme death.  I wis, if it had pleased\nhim, he might have saved us and never felt pain; but in suffering pains\nand death he did give us example, and teach us how we should do one for\nanother, as he did for us all; for, as he saith himself, \"he that will be\nmine, let him deny himself, and follow me, in bearing my cross and\nsuffering my pains.\"  Wherefore we must needs suffer pain with Christ to\ndo our neighbour good, as well with the body and all his members, as with\nheart and mind.\n\nNow I trust you wot what your card meaneth: let us see how that we can\nplay with the same.  Whensoever it shall happen you to go and make your\noblation unto God, ask of yourselves this question, \"Who art thou?\"  The\nanswer, as you know, is, \"I am a christian man.\"  Then you must again ask\nunto yourself, What Christ requireth of a christian man?  By and by cast\ndown your trump, your heart, and look first of one card, then of another.\nThe first card telleth thee, thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not be\nangry, thou shalt not be out of patience.  This done, thou shalt look if\nthere be any more cards to take up; and if thou look well, thou shalt see\nanother card of the same suit, wherein thou shalt know that thou art\nbound to reconcile thy neighbour.  Then cast thy trump upon them both,\nand gather them all three together, and do according to the virtue of thy\ncards; and surely thou shalt not lose.  Thou shalt first kill the great\nTurks, and discomfort and thrust them down.  Thou shalt again fetch home\nChrist's sheep that thou hast lost; whereby thou mayest go both patiently\nand with a quiet mind unto the church, and make thy oblation unto God;\nand then, without doubt, he will hear thee.\n\nBut yet Christ will not accept our oblation (although we be in patience,\nand have reconciled our neighbour), if that our oblation be made of\nanother man's substance; but it must be our own.  See therefore that thou\nhast gotten thy goods according to the laws of God and of thy prince.  For\nif thou gettest thy goods by polling and extortion, or by any other\nunlawful ways, then, if thou offer a thousand pound of it, it will stand\nthee in no good effect; for it is not thine.  In this point a great\nnumber of executors do offend; for when they be made rich by other men's\ngoods, then they will take upon them to build churches, to give ornaments\nto God and his altar, to gild saints, and to do many good works\ntherewith; but it shall be all in their own name, and for their own\nglory.  Wherefore, saith Christ, they have in this world their reward;\nand so their oblations be not their own, nor be they acceptable before\nGod.\n\nAnother way God will refuse thy voluntary oblation, as thus: if so be it\nthat thou hast gotten never so truly thy goods, according both to the\nlaws of God and man, and hast with the same goods not relieved thy poor\nneighbour, when thou hast seen him hungry, thirsty, and naked, he will\nnot take thy oblation when thou shalt offer the same, because he will say\nunto thee, \"When I was hungry, thou gavest me no meat; when I was\nthirsty, thou gavest me no drink; and when I was naked, thou didst not\nclothe me.  Wherefore I will not take thy oblation, because it is none of\nthine.  I left it thee to relieve thy poor neighbours, and thou hast not\ntherein done according unto this my commandment, _Misericordiam volo, et\nnon sacrificium_; I had rather have mercy done, than sacrifice or\noblation.  Wherefore until thou dost the one more than the other, I will\nnot accept thine oblation.\"\n\nEvermore bestow the greatest part of thy goods in works of mercy, and the\nless part in voluntary works.  Voluntary works be called all manner of\noffering in the church, except your four offering-days, and your tithes:\nsetting up candles, gilding and painting, building of churches, giving of\nornaments, going on pilgrimages, making of highways, and such other, be\ncalled voluntary works; which works be of themselves marvellous good, and\nconvenient to be done.  Necessary works, and works of mercy, are called\nthe commandments, the four offering-days, your tithes, and such other\nthat belong to the commandments; and works of mercy consist in relieving\nand visiting thy poor neighbours.  Now then, if men be so foolish of\nthemselves, that they will bestow the most part of their goods in\nvoluntary works, which they be not bound to keep, but willingly and by\ntheir devotion; and leave the necessary works undone, which they are\nbound to do; they and all their voluntary works are like to go unto\neverlasting damnation.  And I promise you, if you build a hundred\nchurches, give as much as you can make to gilding of saints, and\nhonouring of the church; and if thou go as many pilgrimages as thy body\ncan well suffer, and offer as great candles as oaks; if thou leave the\nworks of mercy and the commandments undone, these works shall nothing\navail thee.  No doubt the voluntary works be good and ought to be done;\nbut yet they must be so done, that by their occasion the necessary works\nand the works of mercy be not decayed and forgotten.  If you will build a\nglorious church unto God, see first yourself to be in charity with your\nneighbours, and suffer not them to be offended by your works.  Then, when\nye come into your parish-church; you bring with you the holy temple of\nGod; as St. Paul saith, \"You yourselves be the very holy temples of God:\"\nand Christ saith by his prophet, \"In you will I rest, and intend to make\nmy mansion and abiding-place.\"  Again, if you list to gild and paint\nChrist in your churches, and honour him in vestments, see that before\nyour eyes the poor people die not for lack of meat, drink, and clothing.\nThen do you deck the very true temple of God, and honour him in rich\nvestures that will never be worn, and so forth use yourselves according\nunto the commandments: and then, finally, set up your candles, and they\nwill report what a glorious light remaineth in your hearts; for it is not\nfitting to see a dead man light candles.  Then, I say, go your\npilgrimages, build your material churches, do all your voluntary works;\nand they will then represent you unto God, and testify with you, that you\nhave provided him a glorious place in your hearts.  But beware, I say\nagain, that you do not run so far in your voluntary works, that ye do\nquite forget your necessary works of mercy, which you are bound to keep:\nyou must have ever a good respect unto the best and worthiest works\ntoward God to be done first and with more efficacy, and the other to be\ndone secondarily.  Thus if you do, with the other that I have spoken of\nbefore, ye may come according to the tenor of your cards, and offer your\noblations and prayers to our Lord Jesus Christ, who will both hear and\naccept them to your everlasting joy and glory: to the which he bring us,\nand all those whom he suffered death for.  Amen.\n\n\n\n\nA SERMON MADE BY M. HUGH LATIMER, AT THE TIME OF THE INSURRECTION IN THE\nNORTH, WHICH WAS IN THE TWENTY-SEVENTH YEAR OF THE REIGN OF KING HENRY\nTHE EIGHTH, ANN. DOM. 1535.  UPON THE EPISTLE READ IN THE CHURCH THE\nTWENTY-FIRST SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY SUNDAY, TAKEN OUT OF THE SIXTH CHAPTER\nOF THE EPISTLE OF ST.  PAUL TO THE EPHESIANS.\n\n\n   _Put on all the armour of God, that ye may stand_, &c.  [Ephes. vi.\n   10, et seq.]\n\nSaint Paul, the holy apostle, writeth this epistle unto the Ephesians,\nthat is, to the people of the city of Ephesus.  He writeth generally, to\nthem all; and in the former chapters he teacheth them severally how they\nshould behave themselves, in every estate, one to another; how they\nshould obey their rulers; how wives should behave themselves towards\ntheir husbands; children towards their parents; and servants towards\ntheir masters; and husbands, parents and masters should behave them, and\nlove their wives, children, and servants; and generally each to love\nother.\n\nNow cometh he forth and comforteth them, and teacheth them to be bold,\nand to play the men, and fight manfully.  For they must fight with\nvaliant warriors, as appeareth afterward in the text.  And against they\ncome to fight he comforteth them, saying, \"My brethren.\"  He calleth them\nbrethren; for though he taught them before to be subject to kings and\nrulers, and to be obedient to their superiors, yet he teacheth them that\nin Christ we be all brethren, according to the saying in this same\nchapter, \"God is no accepter of persons.\"  \"My brethren,\" saith he, \"be\nye comforted, be ye strong;\" not trusting to yourselves; no, but be bold,\nand comforted \"by our Lord, and by the power of his virtue:\" not by your\nown virtue, for it is not of power to resist such assaults as he speaketh\nof hereafter.  \"Put on, or apparel you with, the armour of God.\"  Armour\nis an apparel to clothe a man, and maketh him seemly and comely; setteth\nforth his body, and maketh him strong and bold in battle.  And therefore\nSaint Paul exhorteth generally his brethren to be armed; and as the\nassaults be strong, and not small, so he giveth strong armour, and not\nsmall: \"Put on,\" saith he, \"the armour of God.\"  He speaketh generally of\narmour, but afterwards he speaketh particularly of the parts of armour,\nwhere he saith, be armed complete, whole; be armed on every part with the\narmour of God; not borrowed, nor patched, but all godly.  And as armour\nsetteth forth a man's body, so this godly armour maketh us seemly in the\nsight of God, and acceptable in his wars.\n\nBe ye therefore \"armed at all points with the armour of God, that ye may\nstand strongly against the assaults of the devil.\"  \"That ye may stand,\"\nsaith he.  Ye must stand in this battle, and not sit, nor lie along; for\nhe that lieth is trodden under foot of his enemy.  We may not sit, that\nis, not rest in sin, or lie along in sluggishness of sin; but continually\nfight against our enemy, and under our great Captain and Sovereign Lord\nJesus Christ, and in his quarrel, armed with the armour of God, that we\nmay be strong.  We cannot be strong unless we be armed of God.  We have\nno power of ourselves to stand against the assaults of the devil.  There\nSt. Paul teacheth what our battle is, and wherefore we must be thus\narmed.\n\nFor, saith he, \"we have not wrestling or strife against flesh and blood:\"\nwhich may be understood, against certain sins, which come of the flesh\nonly; but let us take it as it standeth, \"against flesh and blood,\" that\nis, against any corporal man, which is but a weak thing in comparison,\nand with one stroke destroyed or slain: but we have to do with strong,\nmighty princes and potentates; that mighty prince, that great conqueror\nof this world, the devil, yea a conqueror: for though our Saviour Jesus\nChrist conquered him and all his, by suffering his blessed passion, yet\nis he a great conqueror in this world, and reigneth over a great\nmultitude of his own, and maketh continual conflicts and assaults against\nthe rest, to subdue them also under his power; which, if they be armed\nafter St. Paul's teaching, shall stand strongly against his assaults.\n\"Our battle,\" saith St. Paul, \"is against princes, potestates,\" that is,\nagainst devils: for, after the common opinion, there fell from heaven of\nevery order of angels, as of potentates.  He saith also, \"against worldly\nrulers of these darknesses:\" for, as doctors do write, the spirits that\nfell with Lucifer have their being in _aere caliginoso_, the air, in\ndarkness, and the rulers of this world, by God's sufferance, to hurt, vex\nand assault them that live upon the earth.  For their nature is, as they\nbe damned, to desire to draw all mankind unto like damnation; such is\ntheir malice.  And though they hang in the air, or fall in a garden or\nother pleasant place, yet have they continually their pain upon their\nbacks.  Against these we wrestle, and \"against spiritual wickedness in\n_coelestibus_,\" that is, in the air; or we fight against spiritual\nwickedness in heavenly things.\n\nThink you not that this our enemy, this prince with all his potentates,\nhath great and sore assaults to lay against our armour?  Yea, he is a\ncrafty warrior, and also of great power in this world; he hath great\nordnance and artillery; he hath great pieces of ordnance, as mighty kings\nand emperors, to shoot against God's people, to persecute or kill them;\nNero, the great tyrant, who slew Paul, and divers other.  Yea, what great\npieces hath he had of bishops of Rome, which have destroyed whole cities\nand countries, and have slain and burnt many!  What great guns were\nthose!\n\nYea, he hath also less ordnance evil enough, (they may be called\n_serpentines_;) some bishops in divers countries, and here in England,\nwhich he hath shot at some good christian men, that they have been blown\nto ashes.  So can this great captain, the devil, shoot his ordnance.  He\nhath yet less ordnance, for he hath of all sorts to shoot at good\nchristian men; he hath hand-guns and bows, which do much hurt, but not so\nmuch as the great ordnance.  These be accusers, promoters, and\nslanderers; they be evil ordnance, shrewd hand-guns, and bows; they put a\nman to great displeasure; oftentimes death cometh upon that shot.  For\nthese things, saith the text, \"take the armour of God.\"  Against the\ngreat captains, the devils, and against their artillery, their ministers,\nthere can nothing defend us but the armour of God.\n\n\"Take therefore this armour,\" saith the text, \"that ye may resist in the\nevil day, and in all things stand perfectly, or be perfectly strong.\"\nThis evil day is not so called here, because any day or time is evil; for\nGod made every day good, and all days be good: but St. Paul calleth it\nthe \"evil day,\" because of the misfortune that chanceth or cometh in that\nday.  As we have a common saying, \"I have had an evil day, and an evil\nnight,\" because of the heaviness or evil that hath happened; so saith\nPaul, \"that ye may resist in the evil day:\" that is, when your great\nadversary hath compassed you round about with his potestates and rulers,\nand with his artillery, so that you be almost overcome, then, if you have\nthe armour of God, you shall be strong, and need not to fear his\nassaults.\n\nSt. Paul hath spoken of this armour of God generally, and now declareth\nthe parts and pieces of armour; and teacheth them how to apparel every\npart of the body with this armour.  He beginneth yet again, saying, \"Be\nstrong, having your reins, or your loins girded about.\"  Some men of war\nuse to have about their loins an apron or girdle of mail, gird fast for\nthe safeguard of the nether part of their body.  So St. Paul would we\nshould gird our loins, which betokeneth lechery or other sinfulness, with\na girdle, which is to be taken for a restraint or continence from such\nvices.  In \"truth,\" or \"truly gird:\" it may not be feigned, or falsely\ngirt, but in verity and truth.  There be many bachelors, as yet men\nunmarried, which seem to be girt with the girdle of continence, and yet\nit is not in truth, it is but feignedly.  And some religious persons make\na profession of continence or chastity, and yet not in truth, their\nhearts be not truly chaste.  Such feigned girding of the loins cannot\nmake a man strong to resist the assaults of the great captain or enemy in\nthe evil day.  Yet some get them girdles with great knots, as though they\nwould be surely girt, and as though they would break the devil's head\nwith their knotted girdles.  Nay, he will not be so overcome: it is no\nknot of an hempton girdle that he feareth; that is no piece of harness of\nthe armour of God, which may resist the assault in the evil day; it is\nbut feigned gear; it must be in the heart, &c.\n\n\"And be ye apparelled or clothed,\" saith Paul, \"with the habergeon or\ncoat-armour of justice, that is, righteousness.\"  Let your body be\nclothed in the armour of righteousness: ye may do no wrong to any man,\nbut live in righteousness; not clothed with any false quarrel or privy\ngrudge.  Ye must live rightly in God's law, following his commandments\nand doctrine, clothed righteously in his armour, and not in any feigned\narmour, as in a friar's coat or cowl.  For the assaults of the devil be\ncrafty to make us put our trust in such armour, he will feign himself to\nfly; but then we be most in jeopardy: for he can give us an after-clap\nwhen we least ween; that is, suddenly return unawares to us, and then he\ngiveth us an after-clap that overthroweth us: this armour deceiveth us.\n\nIn like manner these men in the North country, they make pretence as\nthough they were armed in God's armour, gird in truth, and clothed in\nrighteousness.  I hear say they wear the cross and the wounds before and\nbehind, and they pretend much truth to the king's grace and to the\ncommonwealth, when they intend nothing less; and deceive the poor\nignorant people, and bring them to fight against both the king, the\nchurch, and the commonwealth.\n\nThey arm them with the sign of the cross and of the wounds, and go clean\ncontrary to him that bare the cross, and suffered those wounds.  They\nrise with the king, and fight against the king in his ministers and\nofficers; they rise with the church, and fight against the church, which\nis the congregation of faithful men; they rise for the commonwealth, and\nfight against it, and go about to make the commons each to kill other,\nand to destroy the commonwealth.  Lo, what false pretence can the devil\nsend amongst us?  It is one of his most crafty and subtle assaults, to\nsend his warriors forth under the badge of God, as though they were armed\nin righteousness and justice.\n\nBut if we will resist strongly indeed, we must he clothed or armed with\nthe habergeon of very justice or righteousness; in true obedience to our\nprince, and faithful love to our neighbours; and take no false quarrels\nin hand, nor any feigned armour; but in justice, \"having your feet shod\nfor [the] preparation of the gospel of peace.\"\n\nLo, what manner of battle this warrior St. Paul teacheth us, \"to be shod\non our feet,\" that we may go readily and prepare way for the gospel; yea,\nthe gospel of peace, not of rebellion, not of insurrection: no, it\nteacheth obedience, humility, and quietness; it maketh peace in the\nconscience, and teacheth true faith in Jesus Christ, and to walk in God's\nlaws armed with God's armour, as Paul teacheth here.  Yea, if bishops in\nEngland had been \"shod for the preparation of this gospel,\" and had\nendeavoured themselves to teach and set [it] forth, as our most noble\nprince hath devised; and if certain gentlemen, being justices, had\nexecuted his grace's commandment, in setting forth this gospel of peace,\nthis disturbance among the people had not happened.\n\nBut ye say, it is new learning.  Now I tell you it is the old learning.\nYea, ye say, it is old heresy new scoured.  Nay, I tell you it is old\ntruth, long rusted with your canker, and now new made bright and scoured.\nWhat a rusty truth is this, _Quodcumque ligaveris_, \"Whatsoever thou\nbindest,\" &c.  This is a truth spoken to the apostles, and all true\npreachers their successors, that with the law of God they should bind and\ncondemn all that sinned; and whosoever did repent, they should declare\nhim loosed and forgiven, by believing in the blood of Christ.  But how\nhath this truth over-rusted with the pope's rust?  For he, by this text,\n\"Whatsoever thou bindeth,\" hath taken upon him to make what laws him\nlisted, clean contrary unto God's word, which willeth that every man\nshould obey the prince's law: and by this text, \"Whatsoever thou\nloosest,\" he hath made all people believe that, for money, he might\nforgive what and whom he lusted; so that if any man had robbed his\nmaster, or taken anything wrongfully, the pope would loose him, by this\npardon or that pardon, given to these friars or those friars, put in this\nbox or that box.  And, as it were, by these means a dividend of the spoil\nwas made, so that it was not restored, nor the person rightly discharged;\nand yet most part of the spoil came to the hands of him and his\nministers.  What is this but a new learning; a new canker to rust and\ncorrupt the old truth?  Ye call your learning old: it may indeed be\ncalled old, for it cometh of that serpent which did pervert God's\ncommandment and beguiled Eve; so it is an old custom to pervert God's\nword, and to rust it, and corrupt it.\n\nWe be a great many that profess to be true ministers of the gospel; but\nat the trial I think it will come to pass as it did with Gideon, a duke,\nwhich God raised up to deliver the children of Israel from the\nMidianites, in whose hands they were fallen, because they had broken\nGod's commandment, and displeased God: yet at the length he had\ncompassion on them, and raised up Gideon to deliver them.  When they\nheard that they had a captain, or a duke, that should deliver them, they\nassembled a great number, about thirty thousand: but when it came to pass\nthat they should fight, they departed all save five hundred.  So, I fear\nme, that at the trial we shall be found but a few ministers of the true\ngospel of peace, and armed in the true armour of God.\n\nIt followeth, \"And in all things take the shield or buckler of faith.\"\nThe buckler is a thing wherewith a man most chiefly defendeth himself:\nand that must be perfect faith in Jesus Christ, in our Captain, and in\nhis word.  It must also be a true faith, it is else no part of the armour\nof God: it may not be feigned, but a buckler, which may stop or quench\nthe violence of the flaming darts of the most wicked.\n\n\"Take also the helmet or head-piece of health,\" or true health in Jesus\nChrist; for there is no health in any other name: not the health of a\ngrey friar's coat, or the health of this pardon or that pardon; that were\na false helmet, and should not defend the violence of the wicked.\n\n\"And the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.\"  Lo, St. Paul\nteacheth you battle; to take in your left hand the shield of faith, to\ndefend and bear off the darts of the devil, and in the other hand a sword\nto strike with against the enemy: for a good man of war may not stand\nagainst, and defend only, but also strike against his enemy.  So St. Paul\ngiveth us here a sword, \"The word of God.\"  For this sword is it that\nbeateth this great captain, our enemy.  Christ himself gave us ensample\nto fight with this sword; for he answered the devil with the scripture,\nand said, \"It is written.\"  With this sword he drave away the devil: and\nso let us break his head with this sword, the true word of God, and not\nwith any word of the bishop of Rome's making; not with his old learning,\nnor his new learning, but with the pure word of God.\n\nThe time passeth: I will therefore make an end.  Let us fight manfully,\nand not cease; for no man is crowned or rewarded but in the end.  We must\ntherefore fight continually, and with this sword; and thus armed, and we\nshall receive the reward of victory.  And thus the grace of our Lord\nJesus Christ be with all your spirits.  Amen.\n\n\n\n\nTHE SERMON THAT THE REVEREND FATHER IN CHRIST, M. HUGH LATIMER, BISHOP OF\nWORCESTER, MADE TO THE CONVOCATION OF THE CLERGY, BEFORE THE PARLIAMENT\nBEGAN, THE 9 DAY OF JUNE, THE 28 YEAR OF THE REIGN OF OUR LATE KING HENRY\nTHE 8.  TRANSLATED OUT OF LATIN INTO ENGLISH, TO THE INTENT THAT THINGS\nWELL SAID TO A FEW MAY BE UNDERSTOOD OF MANY, AND DO GOOD TO ALL THEM\nTHAT DESIRE TO UNDERSTAND THE TRUTH.\n\n\n   _Filii hujus seculi_, &c.--Luc. xvi.\n\nBrethren, ye be come together this day, as far as I perceive, to hear of\ngreat and weighty matters.  Ye be come together to entreat of things that\nmost appertain to the commonwealth.  This being thus, ye look, I am\nassured, to hear of me, which am commanded to make as a preface this\nexhortation, (albeit I am unlearned and far unworthy,) such things as\nshall be much meet for this your assembly.  I therefore, not only very\ndesirous to obey the commandment of our Primate, but also right greatly\ncoveting to serve and satisfy all your expectation; lo, briefly, and as\nplainly as I can, will speak of matters both worthy to be heard in your\ncongregation, and also of such as best shall become mine office in this\nplace.  That I may do this the more commodiously, I have taken that\nnotable sentence in which our Lord was not afraid to pronounce \"the\nchildren of this world to be much more prudent and politic than the\nchildren of light in their generation.\"  Neither will I be afraid,\ntrusting that he will aid and guide me to use this sentence, as a good\nground and foundation of all such things, as hereafter I shall speak of.\n\nNow, I suppose that you see right well, being men of such learning, for\nwhat purpose the Lord said this, and that ye have no need to be holpen\nwith any part of my labour in this thing.  But yet, if ye will pardon me,\nI will wade somewhat deeper in this matter, and as nigh as I can, fetch\nit from the first original beginning.  For undoubtedly, ye may much\nmarvel at this saying, if ye well ponder both what is said, and who saith\nit.  Define me first these three things: what prudence is; what the\nworld; what light; and who be the children of the world; who of the\nlight: see what they signify in scripture.  I marvel if by and by ye all\nagree, that the children of the world should be wiser than the children\nof the light.  To come somewhat nigher the matter, thus the Lord\nbeginneth:\n\n   There was a certain rich man that had a steward, which was accused\n   unto him that he had dissipated and wasted his goods.  This rich man\n   called his steward to him and said, What is this that I hear of thee?\n   Come, make me an account of thy stewardship; thou mayest no longer\n   bear this office.\n\nBrethren, because these words are so spoken in a parable, and are so\nwrapped in wrinkles, that yet they seem to have a face and a similitude\nof a thing done indeed, and like an history, I think it much profitable\nto tarry somewhat in them.  And though we may perchance find in our\nhearts to believe all that is there spoken to be true; yet I doubt\nwhether we may abide it, that these words of Christ do pertain unto us,\nand admonish us of our duty, which do and live after such sort, as though\nChrist, when he spake any thing, had, as the time served him, served his\nturn, and not regarded the time that came after him, neither provided for\nus, or any matters of ours; as some of the philosophers thought, which\nsaid, that God walked up and down in heaven, and thinketh never a deal of\nour affairs.  But, my good brethren, err not you so; stick not you to\nsuch your imaginations.  For if ye inwardly behold these words, if ye\ndiligently roll them in your minds, and after explicate and open them, ye\nshall see our time much touched in these mysteries.  Ye shall perceive\nthat God by this example shaketh us by the noses and pulleth us by the\nears.  Ye shall perceive very plain, that God setteth before our eyes in\nthis similitude what we ought most to flee, and what we ought soonest to\nfollow.  For Luke saith, \"The Lord spake these words to his disciples.\"\nWherefore let it be out of all doubt that he spake them to us, which even\nas we will be counted the successors and vicars of Christ's disciples, so\nwe be, if we be good dispensers and do our duty.  He said these things\npartly to us, which spake them partly of himself.  For he is that rich\nman, which not only had, but hath, and shall have evermore, I say not\none, but many stewards, even to the end of the world.\n\nHe is man, seeing that he is God and man.  He is rich, not only in mercy\nbut in all kind of riches; for it is he that giveth to us all things\nabundantly.  It is he of whose hand we received both our lives, and other\nthings necessary for the conservation of the same.  What man hath any\nthing, I pray you, but he hath received it of his plentifulness?  To be\nshort, it is he that \"openeth his hand, and filleth all beasts with his\nblessing,\" and giveth unto us in most ample wise his benediction.  Neither\nhis treasure can be spent, how much soever he lash out; how much soever\nwe take of him, his treasure tarrieth still, ever taken, never spent.\n\nHe is also the good man of the house: the church is his household which\nought with all diligence to be fed with his word and his sacraments.\nThese be his goods most precious, the dispensation and administration\nwhereof he would bishops and curates should have.  Which thing St. Paul\naffirmeth, saying, \"Let men esteem us as the ministers of Christ, and\ndispensers of God's mysteries.\"  But, I pray you, what is to be looked\nfor in a dispenser?  This surely, \"That he be found faithful,\" and that\nhe truly dispense, and lay out the goods of the Lord; that he give meat\nin time; give it, I say, and not sell it; meat, I say, and not poison.\nFor the one doth intoxicate and slay the eater, the other feedeth and\nnourisheth him.  Finally, let him not slack and defer the doing of his\noffice, but let him do his duty when time is, and need requireth it.  This\nis also to be looked for, that he be one whom God hath called and put in\noffice, and not one that cometh uncalled, unsent for; not one that of\nhimself presumeth to take honour upon him.  And surely, if all this that\nI say be required in a good minister, it is much lighter to require them\nall in every one, than to find one any where that hath them all.  Who is\na true and faithful steward?  He is true, he is faithful, that cometh no\nnew money, but taketh it ready coined of the good man of the house; and\nneither changeth it, nor clippeth it, after it is taken to him to spend,\nbut spendeth even the self-same that he had of his Lord, and spendeth it\nas his Lord's commandment is; neither to his own vantage uttering it, nor\nas the lewd servant did, hiding it in the ground.  Brethren, if a\nfaithful steward ought to do as I have said, I pray you, ponder and\nexamine this well, whether our bishops and abbots, prelates and curates,\nhave been hitherto faithful stewards or no?  Ponder, whether yet many of\nthem be as they should be or no?  Go ye to, tell me now as your\nconscience leadeth you (I will let pass to speak of many other), was\nthere not some, that despising the money of the Lord, as copper and not\ncurrent, either coined new themselves, or else uttered abroad newly\ncoined of other; sometime either adulterating the word of God or else\nmingling it (as taverners do, which brew and utter the evil and good both\nin one pot), sometime in the stead of God's word blowing out the dreams\nof men? while they thus preached to the people the redemption that cometh\nby Christ's death to serve only them that died before his coming, that\nwere in the time of the old testament; and that now since redemption and\nforgiveness of sins purchased by money, and devised by men is of\nefficacy, and not redemption purchased by Christ (they have a wonderful\npretty example to persuade this thing, of a certain married woman, which,\nwhen her husband was in purgatory, in that fiery furnace that hath burned\naway so many of our pence, paid her husband's ransom, and so of duty\nclaimed him to be set at liberty): while they thus preached to the\npeople, that dead images (which at the first, as I think, were set up,\nonly to represent things absent) not only ought to be covered with gold,\nbut also ought of all faithful and christian people (yea, in this\nscarceness and penury of all things), to be clad with silk garments, and\nthose also laden with precious gems and jewels; and that beside all this,\nthey are to be lighted with wax candles, both within the church and\nwithout the church, yea, and at noon days; as who should say, here no\ncost can be too great; whereas in the mean time we see Christ's faithful\nand lively images, bought with no less price than with his most precious\nblood (alas, alas!) to be an hungred, a-thirst, a-cold, and to lie in\ndarkness, wrapped in all wretchedness, yea, to lie there till death take\naway their miseries: while they preached these will-works, that come but\nof our own devotion, although they be not so necessary as the works of\nmercy, and the precepts of God, yet they said, and in the pulpit, that\nwill-works were more principal, more excellent, and (plainly to utter\nwhat they mean) more acceptable to God than works of mercy; as though now\nman's inventions and fancies could please God better than God's precepts,\nor strange things better than his own: while they thus preached that more\nfruit, more devotion cometh of the beholding of an image, though it be\nbut a Pater-noster while, than is gotten by reading and contemplation in\nscripture, though ye read and contemplate therein seven years' space:\nfinally, while they preached thus, souls tormented in purgatory to have\nmost need of our help, and that they can have no aid, but of us in this\nworld: of the which two, if the one be not false, yet at the least it is\nambiguous, uncertain, doubtful, and therefore rashly and arrogantly with\nsuch boldness affirmed in the audience of the people; the other, by all\nmen's opinions, is manifestly false: I let pass to speak of much other\nsuch like counterfeit doctrine, which hath been blasted and blown out by\nsome for the space of three hours together.  Be these the Christian and\ndivine mysteries, and not rather the dreams of men?  Be these the\nfaithful dispensers of God's mysteries, and not rather false dissipators\nof them? whom God never put in office, but rather the devil set them over\na miserable family, over an house miserably ordered and entreated.  Happy\nwere the people if such preached seldom.\n\nAnd yet it is a wonder to see these, in their generation, to be much more\nprudent and politic than the faithful ministers are in their generation;\nwhile they go about more prudently to stablish men's dreams, than these\ndo to hold up God's commandments.\n\nThus it cometh to pass that works lucrative, will-works, men's fancies\nreign; but christian works, necessary works, fruitful works, be trodden\nunder the foot.  Thus the evil is much better set out by evil men, than\nthe good by good men; because the evil be more wise than be the good in\ntheir generation.  These be the false stewards, whom all good and\nfaithful men every day accuse unto the rich master of the household, not\nwithout great heaviness, that they waste his goods; whom he also one day\nwill call to him, and say to them as he did to his steward, when he said,\n\"What is this that I hear of thee?\"  Here God partly wondereth at our\ningratitude and perfidy, partly chideth us for them; and being both full\nof wonder and ready to chide, asketh us, \"What is this that I hear of\nyou?\"  As though he should say unto us, \"All good men in all places\ncomplain of you, accuse your avarice, your exactions, your tyranny.  They\nhave required in you a long season, and yet require, diligence and\nsincerity.  I commanded you, that with all industry and labour ye should\nfeed my sheep: ye earnestly feed yourselves from day to day, wallowing in\ndelights and idleness.  I commanded you to teach my commandments, and not\nyour fancies; and that ye should seek my glory and my vantage: you teach\nyour own traditions, and seek your own glory and profit.  You preach very\nseldom; and when ye do preach, do nothing but cumber them that preach\ntruly, as much as lieth in you: that it were much better such were not to\npreach at all, than so perniciously to preach.  Oh, what hear I of you?\nYou, that ought to be my preachers, what other thing do you, than apply\nall your study hither, to bring all my preachers to envy, shame,\ncontempt?  Yea, more than this, ye pull them into perils, into prisons,\nand, as much as in you lieth, to cruel deaths.  To be short, I would that\nchristian people should hear my doctrine, and at their convenient leisure\nread it also, as many as would: your care is not that all men may hear\nit, but all your care is, that no lay man do read it: surely, being\nafraid lest they by the reading should understand it, and understanding,\nlearn to rebuke our slothfulness.  This is your generation, this is your\ndispensation, this is your wisdom.  In this generation, in this\ndispensation, you be most politic, most witty.  These be the things that\nI hear of your demeanour.  I wished to hear better report of you.  Have\nye thus deceived me? or have ye rather deceived yourselves?  Where I had\nbut one house, that is to say, the church, and this so dearly beloved of\nme, that for the love of her I put myself forth to be slain, and to shed\nmy blood; this church at my departure I committed unto your charge, to be\nfed, to be nourished, and to be made much of.  My pleasure was ye should\noccupy my place; my desire was ye should have borne like love to this\nchurch, like fatherly affection, as I did: I made you my vicars, yea, in\nmatters of most importance.\n\n\"For thus I taught openly: 'He that should hear you, should hear me; he\nthat should despise you, should despise me.'  I gave you also keys, not\nearthly keys, but heavenly.  I left my goods that I have evermore most\nhighly esteemed, that is, my word and sacraments, to be dispensed of you.\nThese benefits I gave you, and do you give me these thanks?  Can you find\nin your hearts thus to abuse my goodness, my benignity, my gentleness?\nHave you thus deceived me?  No, no, ye have not deceived me, but\nyourselves.  My gifts and benefits towards you shall be to your greater\ndamnation.  Because you have contemned the lenity and clemency of the\nmaster of the house, ye have right well deserved to abide the rigour and\nseverity of the judge.  Come forth then, let us see an account of your\nstewardship.  An horrible and fearful sentence: Ye may have no longer my\ngoods in your hands.  A voice to weep at, and to make men tremble!\"\n\nYou see, brethren, you see, what evil the evil stewards must come to.\nYour labour is paid for, if ye can so take heed, that no such sentence be\nspoken to you; nay, we must all take heed lest these threatenings one day\ntake place in us.  But lest the length of my sermon offend you too sore,\nI will leave the rest of the parable and take me to the handling of the\nend of it; that is, I will declare unto you how the children of this\nworld be more witty, crafty, and subtle, than are the children of the\nlight in their generation.  Which sentence would God it lay in my poor\ntongue to explicate with such light of words, that I might seem rather to\nhave painted it before your eyes, than to have spoken it; and that you\nmight rather seem to see the thing, than to hear it!  But I confess\nplainly this thing to be far above my power.  Therefore this being only\nleft to me, I wish for that I have not, and am sorry that that is not in\nme which I would so gladly have, that is, power so to handle the thing\nthat I have in hand, that all that I say may turn to the glory of God,\nyour souls' health, and the edifying of Christ's body.  Wherefore I pray\nyou all to pray with me unto God, and that in your petition you desire,\nthat these two things he vouchsafe to grant us, first, a mouth for me to\nspeak rightly; next, ears for you, that in hearing me ye may take profit\nat my hand: and that this may come to effect, you shall desire him, unto\nwhom our master Christ bad we should pray, saying even the same prayer\nthat he himself did institute.  Wherein ye shall pray for our most\ngracious sovereign lord the king, chief and supreme head of the church of\nEngland under Christ, and for the most excellent, gracious, and virtuous\nlady queen Jane, his most lawful wife, and for all his, whether they be\nof the clergy or laity, whether they be of the nobility, or else other\nhis grace's subjects, not forgetting those that being departed out of\nthis transitory life, and now sleep in the sleep of peace, and rest from\ntheir labours in quietness and peaceable sleep, faithfully, lovingly, and\npatiently looking for that that they clearly shall see when God shall be\nso pleased.  For all these, and for grace necessary, ye shall say unto\nGod God's prayer, _Pater-noster_.\n\n\n\nTHE SECOND SERMON, IN THE AFTERNOON.\n\n\n   _Filii hujus seculi_, &c.--Luc. xvi. [8].\n\nChrist in this saying touched the sloth and sluggishness of his, and did\nnot allow the fraud and subtlety of others; neither was glad that it was\nindeed as he had said, but complained rather that it should be so: as\nmany men speak many things, not that they ought to be so, but that they\nare wont to be so.  Nay, this grieved Christ, that the children of this\nworld should be of more policy than the children of light; which thing\nwas true in Christ's time, and now in our time is most true.  Who is so\nblind but he seeth this clearly; except perchance there be any that\ncannot discern the children of the world from the children of light?  The\nchildren of the world conceive and bring forth more prudently; and things\nconceived and brought forth they nourish and conserve with much more\npolicy than do the children of light.  Which thing is as sorrowful to be\nsaid, as it seemeth absurd to be heard.  When ye hear the children of the\nworld, you understand the world as a father.  For the world is father of\nmany children, not by the first creation and work, but by imitation of\nlove.  He is not only a father, but also the son of another father.  If\nye know once his father, by and by ye shall know his children.  For he\nthat hath the devil to his father, must needs have devilish children.  The\ndevil is not only taken for father, but also for prince of the world,\nthat is, of worldly folk.  It is either all one thing, or else not much\ndifferent, to say, children of the world, and children of the devil;\naccording to that that Christ said to the Jews, \"Ye are of your father\nthe devil:\" where as undoubtedly he spake to children of this world.  Now\nseeing the devil is both author and ruler of the darkness, in the which\nthe children of this world walk, or, to say better, wander; they mortally\nhate both the light, and also the children of light.  And hereof it\ncometh, that the children of light never, or very seldom, lack\npersecution in this world, unto which the children of the world, that is,\nof the devil, bringeth them.  And there is no man but he seeth, that\nthese use much more policy in procuring the hurt and damage of the good,\nthan those in defending themselves.  Therefore, brethren, gather you the\ndisposition and study of the children by the disposition and study of the\nfathers.  Ye know this is a proverb much used: \"An evil crow, an evil\negg.\"  Then the children of this world that are known to have so evil a\nfather, the world, so evil a grandfather, the devil, cannot choose but be\nevil.  Surely the first head of their ancestry was the deceitful serpent\nthe devil, a monster monstrous above all monsters.  I cannot wholly\nexpress him, I wot not what to call him, but a certain thing altogether\nmade of the hatred of God, of mistrust in God, of lyings, deceits,\nperjuries, discords, manslaughters; and, to say at one word, a thing\nconcrete, heaped up and made of all kind of mischief.  But what the devil\nmean I to go about to describe particularly the devil's nature, when no\nreason, no power of man's mind can comprehend it?  This alonely I can say\ngrossly, and as in a sum, of the which all we (our hurt is the more) have\nexperience, the devil to be a stinking sentine of all vices; a foul\nfilthy channel of all mischiefs; and that this world, his son, even a\nchild meet to have such a parent, is not much unlike his father.\n\nThen, this devil being such one as can never be unlike himself; lo, of\nEnvy, his well-beloved Leman, he begat the World, and after left it with\nDiscord at nurse; which World, after that it came to man's state, had of\nmany concubines many sons.  He was so fecund a father, and had gotten so\nmany children of Lady Pride, Dame Gluttony, Mistress Avarice, Lady\nLechery, and of Dame Subtlety, that now hard and scant ye may find any\ncorner, any kind of life, where many of his children be not.  In court,\nin cowls, in cloisters, in rochets, be they never so white; yea, where\nshall ye not find them?  Howbeit, they that be secular and laymen, are\nnot by and by children of the world; nor they children of light, that are\ncalled spiritual, and of the clergy.  No, no; as ye may find among the\nlaity many children of light, so among the clergy, (how much soever we\narrogate these holy titles unto us, and think them only attributed to us,\n_Vos estis lux mundi, peculium Christi, &c_.  \"Ye are the light of the\nworld, the chosen people of Christ, a kingly priesthood, an holy nation,\nand such other,\") ye shall find many children of the world; because in\nall places the world getteth many children.  Among the lay people the\nworld ceaseth not to bring to pass, that as they be called wordly, so\nthey are wordly indeed; driven headlong by worldly desires: insomuch that\nthey may right well seem to have taken as well the manners as the name of\ntheir father.  In the clergy, the world also hath learned a way to make\nof men spiritual, worldlings; yea, and there also to form worldly\nchildren, where with great pretence of holiness, and crafty colour of\nreligion, they utterly desire to hide and cloak the name of the world, as\nthough they were ashamed of their father; which do execrate and detest\nthe world (being nevertheless their father) in words and outward signs,\nbut in heart and work they coll and kiss him, and in all their lives\ndeclare themselves to be his babes; insomuch that in all worldly points\nthey far pass and surmount those that they call seculars, laymen, men of\nthe world.  The child so diligently followeth the steps of his father, is\nnever destitute of the aid of his grandfather.  These be our holy holy\nmen, that say they are dead to the world, when no men be more lively in\nworldly things than some of them be.  But let them be in profession and\nname most farthest from the world, most alienate from it; yea, so far,\nthat they may seem to have no occupying, no kindred, no affinity, nothing\nto do with it: yet in their life and deeds they shew themselves no\nbastards, but right begotten children of the world; as that which the\nworld long sithens had by his dear wife Dame Hypocrisy, and since hath\nbrought them up and multiplied to more than a good many; increased them\ntoo much, albeit they swear by all he-saints and she-saints too, that\nthey know not their father, nor mother, neither the world, nor hypocrisy;\nas indeed they can semble and dissemble all things; which thing they\nmight learn wonderful well of their parents.  I speak not of all\nreligious men, but of those that the world hath fast knit at his girdle,\neven in the midst of their religion, that is, of many and more than many.\nFor I fear, lest in all orders of men the better, I must say the greater\npart of them be out of order, and children of the world.  Many of these\nmight seem ingrate and unkind children, that will no better acknowledge\nand recognise their parents in words and outward pretence, but abrenounce\nand cast them off, as though they hated them as dogs and serpents.\nHowbeit they, in this wise, are most grateful to their parents, because\nthey be most like them, so lively representing them in countenance and\nconditions, that their parents seem in them to be young again, forasmuch\nas they ever say one thing and think another.  They shew themselves to be\nas sober, as temperate, as Curius the Roman was, and live every day as\nthough all their life were a shroving time.  They be like their parents,\nI say, inasmuch as they, in following them, seem and make men believe\nthey hate them.  Thus grandfather Devil, father World, and mother\nHypocrisy, have brought them up.  Thus good obedient sons have borne away\ntheir parents' commandments; neither these be solitary, how religious,\nhow mocking, how monking, I would say, soever they be.\n\nO ye will lay this to my charge, that _monachus_ and _solitarius_\nsignifieth all one.  I grant this to be so, yet these be so solitary that\nthey be not alone, but accompanied with great flocks of fraternities.  And\nI marvel if there be not a great sort of bishops and prelates, that are\nbrethren germain unto these; and as a great sort, so even as right born,\nand world's children by as good title as they.  But because I cannot\nspeak of all, when I say prelates, I understand bishops, abbots, priors,\narchdeacons, deans, and other of such sort, that are now called to this\nconvocation, as I see, to entreat here of nothing but of such matters as\nboth appertain to the glory of Christ, and to the wealth of the people of\nEngland.  Which thing I pray God they do as earnestly as they ought to\ndo.  But it is to be feared lest, as light hath many her children here,\nso the world hath sent some of his whelps hither; amongst the which I\nknow there can be no concord nor unity, albeit they be in one place, in\none congregation.  I know there can be no agreement between these two, as\nlong as they have minds so unlike, and so contrary affections, judgments\nso utterly diverse in all points.  But if the children of this world be\neither more in number, or more prudent than the children of light, what\nthen availeth us to have this convocation?  Had it not been better we had\nnot been called together at all?  For as the children of this world be\nevil, so they breed and bring forth things evil; and yet there be more of\nthem in all places, or at the least they be more politic than the\nchildren of light in their generation.  And here I speak of the\ngeneration whereby they do engender, and not of that whereby they are\nengendered, because it should be too long to entreat how the children of\nlight are engendered, and how they come in at the door; and how the\nchildren of the world be engendered, and come in another way.  Howbeit, I\nthink all you that be here were not engendered after one generation,\nneither that ye all came by your promotions after one manner: God grant\nthat ye, engendered worldly, do not engender worldly: and as now I much\npass not how ye were engendered, or by what means ye were promoted to\nthose dignities that ye now occupy, so it be honest, good and profitable,\nthat ye in this your consultation shall do and engender.\n\nThe end of your convocation shall shew what ye have done; the fruit that\nshall come of your consultation shall shew what generation ye be of.  For\nwhat have ye done hitherto, I pray you, these seven years and more?  What\nhave ye engendered?  What have ye brought forth?  What fruit is come of\nyour long and great assembly?  What one thing that the people of England\nhath been the better of a hair; or you yourselves, either more accepted\nbefore God, or better discharged toward the people committed unto your\ncure?  For that the people is better learned and taught now, than they\nwere in time past, to whether of these ought we to attribute it, to your\nindustry, or to the providence of God, and the foreseeing of the king's\ngrace!  Ought we to thank you, or the king's highness?  Whether stirred\nother first, you the king, that he might preach, or he you by his\nletters, that ye should preach oftener?  Is it unknown, think you, how\nboth ye and your curates were, in [a] manner, by violence enforced to let\nbooks to be made, not by you, but by profane and lay persons; to let\nthem, I say, be sold abroad, and read for the instruction of the people?\nI am bold with you, but I speak Latin and not English, to the clergy, not\nto the laity; I speak to you being present, and not behind your backs.\nGod is my witness, I speak whatsoever is spoken of the good-will that I\nbear you; God is my witness, which knoweth my heart, and compelleth me to\nsay that I say.\n\nNow, I pray you in God's name, what did you, so great fathers, so many,\nso long a season, so oft assembled together?  What went you about?  What\nwould ye have brought to pass?  Two things taken away--the one, that ye\n(which I heard) burned a dead man; the other, that ye (which I felt) went\nabout to burn one being alive: him, because he did, I cannot tell how, in\nhis testament withstand your profit; in other points, as I have heard, a\nvery good man; reported to be of an honest life while he lived, full of\ngood works, good both to the clergy, and also to the laity: this other,\nwhich truly never hurt any of you, ye would have raked in the coals,\nbecause he would not subscribe to certain articles that took away the\nsupremacy of the king:--take away these two noble acts, and there is\nnothing else left that ye went about, that I know, saving that I now\nremember, that somewhat ye attempted against Erasmus, albeit as yet\nnothing is come to light.  Ye have oft sat in consultation, but what have\nye done?  Ye have had many things in deliberation, but what one is put\nforth, whereby either Christ is more glorified, or else Christ's people\nmade more holy I appeal to your own conscience.  How chanced this?  How\ncame it thus?  Because there were no children of light, no children of\nGod amongst you, which, setting the world at nought, would study to\nillustrate the glory of God, and thereby shew themselves children of\nlight?  I think not so, certainly I think not so.  God forbid, that all\nyou, which were gathered together under the pretence of light, should be\nchildren of the world!  Then why happened this?  Why, I pray you?\nPerchance, either because the children of the world were more in number\nin this your congregation, as it oft happeneth, or at the least of more\npolicy than the children of light in their generation: whereby it might\nvery soon be brought to pass, that these were much more stronger in\ngendering the evil than these in producing the good.  The children of\nlight have policy, but it is like the policy of the serpent, and is\njoined with doveish simplicity.  They engender nothing but simply,\nfaithfully, and plainly, even so doing all that they do.  And therefore\nthey may with more facility be cumbered in their engendering, and be the\nmore ready to take injuries.  But the children of this world have worldly\npolicy, foxly craft, lion-like cruelty, power to do hurt, more than\neither _aspis_ or _basiliscus_, engendering and doing all things\nfraudulently, deceitfully, guilefully: which as Nimrods and such sturdy\nand stout hunters, being full of simulation and dissimulation before the\nLord, deceive the children of light, and cumber them easily.  Hunters go\nnot forth in every man's sight, but do their affairs closely, and with\nuse of guile and deceit wax every day more craftier than other.\n\nThe children of this world be like crafty hunters; they be misnamed\nchildren of light, forasmuch as they so hate light, and so study to do\nthe works of darkness.  If they were the children of light, they would\nnot love darkness.  It is no marvel that they go about to keep other in\ndarkness, seeing they be in darkness, from top to toe overwhelmed with\ndarkness, darker than is the darkness of hell.  Wherefore it is well done\nin all orders of men, but especial in the order of prelates, to put a\ndifference between children of light and children of the world, because\ngreat deceit ariseth in taking the one for the other.  Great imposture\ncometh, when they that the common people take for the light, go about to\ntake the sun and the light out of the world.  But these be easily known,\nboth by the diversity of minds, and also their armours.  For whereas the\nchildren of light are thus minded, that they seek their adversaries'\nhealth, wealth, and profit, with loss of their own commodities, and\nofttimes with jeopardy of their life; the children of the world,\ncontrariwise, have such stomachs, that they will sooner see them dead\nthat doth them good, than sustain any loss of temporal things.  The\narmour of the children of light are, first, the word of God, which they\never set forth, and with all diligence put it abroad, that, as much as in\nthem lieth, it may bring forth fruit: after this, patience and prayer,\nwith the which in all adversities the Lord comforteth them.  Other things\nthey commit to God, unto whom they leave all revengement.  The armour of\nthe children of the world are, sometime frauds and deceits, sometime lies\nand money: by the first they make their dreams, their traditions; by the\nsecond they stablish and confirm their dreams, be they never so absurd,\nnever so against scripture, honesty, or reason.  And if any man resist\nthem, even with these weapons they procure to slay him.  Thus they bought\nChrist's death, the very light itself, and obscured him after his death:\nthus they buy every day the children of light, and obscure them, and\nshall so do, until the world be at an end.  So that it may be ever true,\nthat Christ said: \"The children of the world be wiser, &c.\"\n\nThese worldlings pull down the lively faith, and full confidence that men\nhave in Christ, and set up another faith, another confidence, of their\nown making: the children of light contrary.  These worldlings set little\nby such works as God hath prepared for our salvation, but they extol\ntraditions and works of their own invention: the children of light\ncontrary.  The worldlings, if they spy profit, gains, or lucre in any\nthing, be it never such a trifle, be it never so pernicious, they preach\nit to the people (if they preach at any time), and these things they\ndefend with tooth and nail.  They can scarce disallow the abuses of\nthese, albeit they be intolerable, lest in disallowing the abuse they\nlose part of their profit.  The children of the light contrary, put all\nthings in their degree, best highest, next next, the worst lowest.  They\nextol things necessary, Christian, and commanded of God.  They pull down\nwill-works feigned by men, and put them in their place.  The abuses of\nall things they earnestly rebuke.  But yet these things be so done on\nboth parties, and so they both do gender, that the children of the world\nshew themselves wiser than the children of light, and that frauds and\ndeceits, lies and money, seem evermore to have the upper hand.  I hold my\npeace; I will not say how fat feasts, and jolly banquets, be jolly\ninstruments to set forth worldly matters withal.  Neither the children of\nthe world be only wiser than the children of light, but are also some of\nthem among themselves much wiser than the other in their generation.  For\nalbeit, as touching the end, the generation of them all is one; yet in\nthis same generation some of them have more craftily engendered than the\nother of their fellows.\n\nFor what a thing was that, that once every hundred year was brought forth\nin Rome of the children of this world, and with how much policy it was\nmade, ye heard at Paul's Cross in the beginning of the last parliament:\nhow some brought forth canonizations, some expectations, some pluralities\nand unions, some tot-quots and dispensations, some pardons, and these of\nwonderful variety, some stationaries, some jubilaries, some pocularies\nfor drinkers, some manuaries for handlers of relicks, some pedaries for\npilgrims, some oscularies for kissers; some of them engendered one, some\nother such fetures, and every one in that he was delivered of, was\nexcellent politic, wise; yea, so wise, that with their wisdom they had\nalmost made all the world fools.\n\nBut yet they that begot and brought forth that our old ancient purgatory\npick-purse; that that was swaged and cooled with a Franciscan's cowl, put\nupon a dead man's back, to the fourth part of his sins; that that was\nutterly to be spoiled, and of none other but of our most prudent lord\nPope, and of him as oft as him listed; that satisfactory, that missal,\nthat scalary: they, I say, that were the wise fathers and genitors of\nthis purgatory, were in my mind the wisest of all their generation, and\nso far pass the children of light, and also the rest of their company,\nthat they both are but fools, if ye compare them with these.  It was a\npleasant fiction, and from the beginning so profitable to the feigners of\nit, that almost, I dare boldly say, there hath been no emperor that hath\ngotten more by taxes and tallages of them that were alive, than these,\nthe very and right-begotten sons of the world, got by dead men's tributes\nand gifts.  If there be some in England, that would this sweeting of the\nworld to be with no less policy kept still than it was born and brought\nforth in Rome, who then can accuse Christ of lying?  No, no; as it hath\nbeen ever true, so it shall be, that the children of the world be much\nwiser, not only in making their things, but also in conserving them.  I\nwot not what it is, but somewhat it is I wot, that some men be so loth to\nsee the abuse of this monster, purgatory, which abuse is more than\nabominable: as who should say, there is none abuse in it, or else as\nthough there can be none in it.  They may seem heartily to love the old\nthing, that thus earnestly endeavour them to restore him his old name.\nThey would not set an hair by the name, but for the thing.  They be not\nso ignorant (no, they be crafty), but that they know if the name come\nagain, the thing will come after.  Thereby it ariseth, that some men make\ntheir cracks, that they, maugre all men's heads, have found purgatory.  I\ncannot tell what is found.  This, to pray for dead folks, this is not\nfound, for it was never lost.  How can that be found that was not lost?  O\nsubtle finders, that can find things, if God will, ere they be lost!  For\nthat cowlish deliverance, their scalary losings, their papal spoliations,\nand other such their figments, they cannot find.  No, these be so lost,\nas they themselves grant, that though they seek them never so diligently,\nyet they shall not find them, except perchance they hope to see them come\nin again with their names; and that then money-gathering may return\nagain, and deceit walk about the country, and so stablish their kingdom\nin all kingdoms.  But to what end this chiding between the children of\nthe world and the children of light will come, only he knoweth that once\nshall judge them both.\n\nNow, to make haste and to come somewhat nigher the end.  Go ye to, good\nbrethren and fathers, for the love of God, go ye to; and seeing we are\nhere assembled, let us do something whereby we may be known to be the\nchildren of light.  Let us do somewhat, lest we, which hitherto have been\njudged children of the world, seem even still to be so.  All men call us\nprelates: then, seeing we be in council, let us so order ourselves, that\nwe be prelates in honour and dignity; so we may be prelates in holiness,\nbenevolence, diligence, and sincerity.  All men know that we be here\ngathered, and with most fervent desire they anheale, breathe, and gape\nfor the fruit of our convocation: as our acts shall be, so they shall\nname us: so that now it lieth in us, whether we will be called children\nof the world, or children of light.\n\nWherefore lift up your heads, brethren, and look about with your eyes,\nspy what things are to be reformed in the church of England.  Is it so\nhard, is it so great a matter for you to see many abuses in the clergy,\nmany in the laity?  What is done in the Arches?  Nothing to be amended?\nWhat do they there?  Do they evermore rid the people's business and\nmatters, or cumber and ruffle them?  Do they evermore correct vice, or\nelse defend it, sometime being well corrected in other places?  How many\nsentences be given there in time, as they ought to be?  If men say truth,\nhow many without bribes?  Or if all things be well done there, what do\nmen in bishops' Consistories?  Shall you often see the punishments\nassigned by the laws executed, or else money-redemptions used in their\nstead?  How think you by the ceremonies that are in England, oft times,\nwith no little offence of weak consciences, contemned; more oftener with\nsuperstition so defiled, and so depraved, that you may doubt whether it\nwere better some of them to tarry still, or utterly to take them away?\nHave not our forefathers complained of the ceremonies, of the\nsuperstition, and estimation of them?\n\nDo ye see nothing in our holidays? of the which very few were made at the\nfirst, and they to set forth goodness, virtue, and honesty: but sithens,\nin some places, there is neither mean nor measure in making new holidays,\nas who should say, this one thing is serving of God, to make this law,\nthat no man may work.  But what doth the people on these holidays?  Do\nthey give themselves to godliness, or else ungodliness?  See ye nothing,\nbrethren?  If you see not, yet God seeth.  God seeth all the whole\nholidays to be spent miserably in drunkenness, in glossing, in strife, in\nenvy, in dancing, dicing, idleness, and gluttony.  He seeth all this, and\nthreateneth punishment for it.  He seeth it, which neither is deceived in\nseeing, nor deceiveth when he threateneth.\n\nThus men serve the devil; for God is not thus served, albeit ye say ye\nserve God.  No, the devil hath more service done unto him on one holiday,\nthan on many working days.  Let all these abuses be counted as nothing,\nwho is he that is not sorry, to see in so many holidays rich and wealthy\npersons to flow in delicates, and men that live by their travail, poor\nmen, to lack necessary meat and drink for their wives and their children,\nand that they cannot labour upon the holidays, except they will be cited,\nand brought before our Officials?  Were it not the office of good\nprelates to consult upon these matters, and to seek some remedy for them?\nYe shall see, my brethren, ye shall see once, what will come of this our\nwinking.\n\nWhat think ye of these images that are had more than their fellows in\nreputation; that are gone unto with such labour and weariness of the\nbody, frequented with such our cost, sought out and visited with such\nconfidence?  What say ye by these images, that are so famous, so noble,\nso noted, being of them so many and so divers in England?  Do you think\nthat this preferring of picture to picture, image to image, is the right\nuse, and not rather the abuse, of images?  But you will say to me, Why\nmake ye all these interrogations? and why, in these your demands, do you\nlet and withdraw the good devotion of the people?  Be not all things well\ndone, that are done with good intent, when they be profitable to us?  So,\nsurely, covetousness both thinketh and speaketh.  Were it not better for\nus, more for estimation, more meeter for men in our places, to cut away a\npiece of this our profit, if we will not cut away all, than to wink at\nsuch ungodliness, and so long to wink for a little lucre; specially if it\nbe ungodliness, and also seem unto you ungodliness?  These be two things,\nso oft to seek mere images, and sometime to visit the relicks of saints.\nAnd yet, as in those there may be much ungodliness committed, so there\nmay here some superstition be hid, if that sometime we chance to visit\npigs' bones instead of saints' relicks, as in time past it hath chanced,\nI had almost said, in England.  Then this is too great a blindness, a\ndarkness too sensible, that these should be so commended in sermons of\nsome men, and preached to be done after such manner, as though they could\nnot be evil done; which, notwithstanding, are such, that neither God nor\nman commandeth them to be done.  No, rather, men commanded them either\nnot to be done at all, or else more slowlier and seldomer to be done,\nforasmuch as our ancestors made this constitution: \"We command the\npriests that they oft admonish the people, and in especial women, that\nthey make no vows but after long deliberation, consent of their husbands\nand counsel of the priest.\"  The church of England in time past made this\nconstitution.  What saw they that made this decree?  They saw the\nintolerable abuses of images.  They saw the perils that might ensue of\ngoing on pilgrimage.  They saw the superstitious difference that men made\nbetween image and image.  Surely, somewhat they saw.  The constitution is\nso made, that in manner it taketh away all such pilgrimages.  For it so\nplucketh away the abuse of them, that it leaveth either none or else\nseldom use of them.  For they that restrain making vows for going of\npilgrimage, restrain also pilgrimage; seeing that for the most part it is\nseen that few go on pilgrimage but vow-makers, and such as by promise\nbind themselves to go.  And when, I pray you, should a man's wife go on\npilgrimage, if she went not before she had well debated the matter with\nherself, and obtained the consent of her husband, being a wise man, and\nwere also counselled by a learned priest so to do?  When should she go\nfar off to these famous images?  For this the common people of England\nthink to be going on pilgrimage; to go to some dead and notable image out\nof town, that is to say, far from their house.  Now if your forefathers\nmade this constitution, and yet thereby did nothing, the abuses every day\nmore and more increased, what is left for you to do?  Brethren and\nfathers, if ye purpose to do any thing, what should ye sooner do, than to\ntake utterly away these deceitful and juggling images; or else, if ye\nknow any other mean to put away abuses, to shew it, if ye intend to\nremove abuses?  Methink it should be grateful and pleasant to you to mark\nthe earnest mind of your forefathers, and to look upon their desire where\nthey say in their constitution, \"We _command_ you,\" and not, \"We\n_counsel_ you.\"  How have we been so long a-cold, so long slack in\nsetting forth so wholesome a precept of the church of England, where we\nbe so hot in all things that have any gains in them, albeit they be\nneither commanded us, nor yet given us by counsel; as though we had lever\nthe abuse of things should tarry still than, it taken away, lose our\nprofit?  To let pass the solemn and nocturnal bacchanals, the prescript\nmiracles, that are done upon certain days in the west part of England,\nwho hath not heard?  I think ye have heard of St. Blesis's heart which is\nat Malverne, and of St. Algar's bones, how long they deluded the people:\nI am afraid, to the loss of many souls.  Whereby men may well conjecture,\nthat all about in this realm there is plenty of such juggling deceits.\nAnd yet hitherto ye have sought no remedy.  But even still the miserable\npeople are suffered to take the false miracles for the true, and to lie\nstill asleep in all kind of superstition.  God have mercy upon us!\n\nLast of all, how think you of matrimony?  Is all well here?  What of\nbaptism?  Shall we evermore in ministering of it speak Latin, and not in\nEnglish rather, that the people may know what is said and done?\n\nWhat think ye of these mass-priests, and of the masses themselves?  What\nsay ye?  Be all things here so without abuses, that nothing ought to be\namended?  Your forefathers saw somewhat, which made this constitution\nagainst the venality and sale of masses, that, under pain of suspending,\nno priest should sell his saying of tricennals or annals.  What saw they,\nthat made this constitution?  What priests saw they?  What manner of\nmasses saw they, trow ye?  But at the last, what became of so good a\nconstitution?  God have mercy upon us!  If there be nothing to be amended\nabroad, concerning the whole, let every one of us make one better: if\nthere be neither abroad nor at home any thing to be amended and\nredressed, my lords, be ye of good cheer, be merry; and at the least,\nbecause we have nothing else to do, let us reason the matter how we may\nbe richer.  Let us fall to some pleasant communication; after let us go\nhome, even as good as we came hither, that is, right-begotten children of\nthe world, and utterly worldlings.  And while we live here, let us all\nmake bone cheer.  For after this life there is small pleasure, little\nmirth for us to hope for; if now there be nothing to be changed in our\nfashions.  Let us say, not as St. Peter did, \"Our end approacheth nigh,\"\nthis is an heavy hearing; but let us say as the evil servant said, \"It\nwill be long ere my master come.\"  This is pleasant.  Let us beat our\nfellows: let us eat and drink with drunkards.  Surely, as oft as we do\nnot take away the abuse of things, so oft we beat our fellows.  As oft as\nwe give not the people their true food, so oft we beat our fellows.  As\noft as we let them die in superstition, so oft we beat them.  To be\nshort, as oft as we blind lead them blind, so oft we beat, and grievously\nbeat our fellows.  When we welter in pleasures and idleness, then we eat\nand drink with drunkards.  But God will come, God will come, he will not\ntarry long away.  He will come upon such a day as we nothing look for\nhim, and at such hour as we know not.  He will come and cut us in pieces.\nHe will reward us as he doth the hypocrites.  He will set us where\nwailing shall be, my brethren; where gnashing of teeth shall be, my\nbrethren.  And let here be the end of our tragedy, if ye will.  These be\nthe delicate dishes prepared for the world's well-beloved children.  These\nbe the wafers and junkets provided for worldly prelates--wailing and\ngnashing of teeth.  Can there be any mirth, where these two courses last\nall the feast?  Here we laugh, there we shall weep.  Our teeth make merry\nhere, ever dashing in delicates; there we shall be torn with teeth, and\ndo nothing but gnash and grind our own.  To what end have we now excelled\nother in policy?  What have we brought forth at the last?  Ye see,\nbrethren, what sorrow, what punishment is provided for you, if ye be\nworldlings.  If ye will not thus be vexed, be ye not the children of the\nworld.  If ye will not be the children of the world, be not stricken with\nthe love of worldly things; lean not upon them.  If ye will not die\neternally, live not worldly.  Come, go to; leave the love of your profit;\nstudy for the glory and profit of Christ; seek in your consultations such\nthings as pertain to Christ, and bring forth at the last somewhat that\nmay please Christ.  Feed ye tenderly, with all diligence, the flock of\nChrist.  Preach truly the word of God.  Love the light, walk in the\nlight, and so be ye the children of light while ye are in this world,\nthat ye may shine in the world that is to come bright as the sun, with\nthe Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; to whom be all honour, praise,\nand glory.  Amen.\n\n\n\n\nA SERMON OF THE REVEREND FATHER MASTER HUGH LATIMER, PREACHED IN THE\nSHROUDS AT ST. PAUL'S CHURCH IN LONDON, ON THE EIGHTEENTH DAY OF JANUARY,\nANNO 1548.\n\n\n   _Quaeunque scripta sunt ad nostram doctrinam scripta sunt_.--Rom. xv.\n   4.\n\n   \"All things which are written, are written for our erudition and\n   knowledge.  All things that are written in God's book, in the Bible\n   book, in the book of the holy scripture, are written to be our\n   doctrine.\"\n\nI told you in my first sermon, honourable audience, that I purposed to\ndeclare unto you two things.  The one, what seed should be sown in God's\nfield, in God's plough land; and the other, who should be the sowers:\nthat is to say, what doctrine is to be taught in Christ's church and\ncongregation, and what men should be the teachers and preachers of it.\nThe first part I have told you in the three sermons past, in which I have\nassayed to set forth my plough, to prove what I could do.  And now I\nshall tell you who be the ploughers: for God's word is a seed to be sown\nin God's field, that is, the faithful congregation, and the preacher is\nthe sower.  And it is in the gospel: _Exivit qui seminat seminare semen\nsuum_; \"He that soweth, the husbandman, the ploughman, went forth to sow\nhis seed.\"  So that a preacher is resembled to a ploughman, as it is in\nanother place: _Nemo admota aratro manu, et a tergo respiciens, aptus est\nregno Dei_.  \"No man that putteth his hand to the plough, and looketh\nback, is apt for the kingdom of God.\"  That is to say, let no preacher be\nnegligent in doing his office.  Albeit this is one of the places that\nhath been racked, as I told you of racking scriptures.  And I have been\none of them myself that hath racked it, I cry God mercy for it; and have\nbeen one of them that have believed and expounded it against religious\npersons that would forsake their order which they had professed, and\nwould go out of their cloister: whereas indeed it toucheth not monkery,\nnor maketh any thing at all for any such matter; but it is directly\nspoken of diligent preaching of the word of God.\n\nFor preaching of the gospel is one of God's plough-works, and the\npreacher is one of God's ploughmen.  Ye may not be offended with my\nsimilitude, in that I compare preaching to the labour and work of\nploughing, and the preacher to a ploughman: ye may not be offended with\nthis my similitude; for I have been slandered of some persons for such\nthings.  It hath been said of me, \"Oh, Latimer! nay, as for him, I will\nnever believe him while I live, nor never trust him; for he likened our\nblessed lady to a saffron-bag:\" where indeed I never used that\nsimilitude.  But it was, as I have said unto you before now, according to\nthat which Peter saw before in the spirit of prophecy, and said, that\nthere should come after men _per quos via veritatis maledictis\nafficeretur_; there should come fellows \"by whom the way of truth should\nbe evil spoken of, and slandered.\"  But in case I had used this\nsimilitude, it had not been to be reproved, but might have been without\nreproach.  For I might have said thus: as the saffron-bag that hath been\nfull of saffron, or hath had saffron in it, doth ever after savour and\nsmell of the sweet saffron that it contained; so our blessed lady, which\nconceived and bare Christ in her womb, did ever after resemble the\nmanners and virtues of that precious babe that she bare.  And what had\nour blessed lady been the worse for this? or what dishonour was this to\nour blessed lady?  But as preachers must be wary and circumspect, that\nthey give not any just occasion to be slandered and ill spoken of by the\nhearers, so must not the auditors be offended without cause.  For heaven\nis in the gospel likened to a mustard-seed: it is compared also to a\npiece of leaven; and as Christ saith, that at the last day he will come\nlike a thief: and what dishonour is this to God? or what derogation is\nthis to heaven?  Ye may not then, I say, be offended with my similitude,\nfor because I liken preaching to a ploughman's labour, and a prelate to a\nploughman.  But now you will ask me, whom I call a prelate?  A prelate is\nthat man, whatsoever he be, that hath a flock to be taught of him;\nwhosoever hath any spiritual charge in the faithful congregation, and\nwhosoever he be that hath cure of souls.  And well may the preacher and\nthe ploughman be likened together: first, for their labour of all seasons\nof the year; for there is no time of the year in which the ploughman hath\nnot some special work to do: as in my country in Leicestershire, the\nploughman hath a time to set forth, and to assay his plough, and other\ntimes for other necessary works to be done.  And then they also maybe\nlikened together for the diversity of works and variety of offices that\nthey have to do.  For as the ploughman first setteth forth his plough,\nand then tilleth his land, and breaketh it in furrows, and sometime\nridgeth it up again; and at another time harroweth it and clotteth it,\nand sometime dungeth it and hedgeth it, diggeth it and weedeth it,\npurgeth and maketh it clean: so the prelate, the preacher, hath many\ndiverse offices to do.  He hath first a busy work to bring his\nparishioners to a right faith, as Paul calleth it, and not a swerving\nfaith; but to a faith that embraceth Christ, and trusteth to his merits;\na lively faith, a justifying faith; a faith that maketh a man righteous,\nwithout respect of works: as ye have it very well declared and set forth\nin the Homily.  He hath then a busy work, I say, to bring his flock to a\nright faith, and then to confirm them in the same faith: now casting them\ndown with the law, and with threatenings of God for sin; now ridging them\nup again with the gospel, and with the promises of God's favour: now\nweeding them, by telling them their faults, and making them forsake sin;\nnow clotting them, by breaking their stony hearts, and by making them\nsupplehearted, and making them to have hearts of flesh; that is, soft\nhearts, and apt for doctrine to enter in: now teaching to know God\nrightly, and to know their duty to God and their neighbours: now\nexhorting them, when they know their duty, that they do it, and be\ndiligent in it; so that they have a continual work to do.  Great is their\nbusiness, and therefore great should be their hire.  They have great\nlabours, and therefore they ought to have good livings, that they may\ncommodiously feed their flock; for the preaching of the word of God unto\nthe people is called meat: scripture calleth it meat; not strawberries,\nthat come but once a year, and tarry not long, but are soon gone: but it\nis meat, it is no dainties.  The people must have meat that must be\nfamiliar and continual, and daily given unto them to feed upon.  Many\nmake a strawberry of it, ministering it but once a year; but such do not\nthe office of good prelates.  For Christ saith, _Quis putas est servus\nprudens et fidelis_?  _Qui dat cibum in tempore_.  \"Who think you is a\nwise and faithful servant?  He that giveth meat in due time.\"  So that he\nmust at all times convenient preach diligently: therefore saith he, \"Who\ntrow ye is a faithful servant?\"  He speaketh it as though it were a rare\nthing to find such a one, and as though he should say, there be but a few\nof them to find in the world.  And how few of them there be throughout\nthis realm that give meat to their flock as they should do, the Visitors\ncan best tell.  Too few, too few; the more is the pity, and never so few\nas now.\n\nBy this, then, it appeareth that a prelate, or any that hath cure of\nsoul, must diligently and substantially work and labour.  Therefore saith\nPaul to Timothy, _Qui episcopatum desiderat, hic bonum opus desiderat_:\n\"He that desireth to have the office of a bishop, or a prelate, that man\ndesireth a good work.\"  Then if it be a good work, it is work; ye can\nmake but a work of it.  It is God's work, God's plough, and that plough\nGod would have still going.  Such then as loiter and live idly, are not\ngood prelates, or ministers.  And of such as do not preach and teach, nor\ndo their duties, God saith by his prophet Jeremy, _Maledictus qui facit\nopus Dei fraudulenter_; \"Cursed be the man that doth the work of God\nfraudulently, guilefully or deceitfully:\" some books have it\n_negligenter_, \"negligently or slackly.\"  How many such prelates, how\nmany such bishops, Lord, for thy mercy, are there now in England!  And\nwhat shall we in this case do? shall we company with them?  O Lord, for\nthy mercy! shall we not company with them?  O Lord, whither shall we flee\nfrom them?  But \"cursed be he that doth the work of God negligently or\nguilefully.\"  A sore word for them that are negligent in discharging\ntheir office, or have done it fraudulently; for that is the thing that\nmaketh the people ill.\n\nBut true it must be that Christ saith, _Multi sunt vocati, pauci vero\nelecti_: \"Many are called, but few are chosen.\"  Here have I an occasion\nby the way somewhat to say unto you; yea, for the place I alleged unto\nyou before out of Jeremy, the forty-eighth chapter.  And it was spoken of\na spiritual work of God, a work that was commanded to be done; and it was\nof shedding blood, and of destroying the cities of Moab.  For, saith he,\n\"Cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from shedding of blood.\"  As\nSaul, when he kept back the sword from shedding of blood at what time he\nwas sent against Amaleck, was refused of God for being disobedient to\nGod's commandment, in that he spared Agag the king.  So that that place\nof the prophet was spoken of them that went to the destruction of the\ncities of Moab, among the which there was one called Nebo, which was much\nreproved for idolatry, superstition, pride, avarice, cruelty, tyranny,\nand for hardness of heart; and for these sins was plagued of God and\ndestroyed.\n\nNow what shall we say of these rich citizens of London?  What shall I say\nof them?  Shall I call them proud men of London, malicious men of London,\nmerciless men of London?  No, no, I may not say so; they will be offended\nwith me then.  Yet must I speak.  For is there not reigning in London as\nmuch pride, as much covetousness, as much cruelty, as much oppression,\nand as much superstition, as was in Nebo?  Yes, I think, and much more\ntoo.  Therefore I say, repent, O London; repent, repent.  Thou hearest\nthy faults told thee, amend them, amend them.  I think, if Nebo had had\nthe preaching that thou hast, they would have converted.  And, you rulers\nand officers, be wise and circumspect, look to your charge, and see you\ndo your duties; and rather be glad to amend your ill living than to be\nangry when you are warned or told of your fault.  What ado was there made\nin London at a certain man, because he said, (and indeed at that time on\na just cause,) \"Burgesses!\" quoth he, \"nay, Butterflies.\"  Lord, what ado\nthere was for that word!  And yet would God they were no worse than\nbutterflies!  Butterflies do but their nature: the butterfly is not\ncovetous, is not greedy, of other men's goods; is not full of envy and\nhatred, is not malicious, is not cruel, is not merciless.  The butterfly\nglorieth not in her own deeds, nor preferreth the traditions of men\nbefore God's word; it committeth not idolatry, nor worshippeth false\ngods.  But London cannot abide to be rebuked; such is the nature of man.\nIf they be pricked, they will kick; if they be rubbed on the gall, they\nwill wince; but yet they will not amend their faults, they will not be\nill spoken of.  But how shall I speak well of them?  If you could be\ncontent to receive and follow the word of God, and favour good preachers,\nif you could bear to be told of your faults, if you could amend when you\nhear of them, if you would be glad to reform that is amiss; if I might\nsee any such inclination in you, that you would leave to be merciless,\nand begin to be charitable, I would then hope well of you, I would then\nspeak well of you.  But London was never so ill as it is now.  In times\npast men were full of pity and compassion, but now there is no pity; for\nin London their brother shall die in the streets for cold, he shall lie\nsick at the door between stock and stock, I cannot tell what to call it,\nand perish there for hunger: was there ever more unmercifulness in Nebo?\nI think not.  In times past, when any rich man died in London, they were\nwont to help the poor scholars of the Universities with exhibition.  When\nany man died, they would bequeath great sums of money toward the relief\nof the poor.  When I was a scholar in Cambridge myself; I heard very good\nreport of London, and knew many that had relief of the rich men of\nLondon: but now I can hear no such good report, and yet I inquire of it,\nand hearken for it; but now charity is waxen cold, none helpeth the\nscholar, nor yet the poor.  And in those days, what did they when they\nhelped the scholars?  Marry, they maintained and gave them livings that\nwere very papists, and professed the pope's doctrine: and now that the\nknowledge of God's word is brought to light, and many earnestly study and\nlabour to set it forth, now almost no man helpeth to maintain them.\n\nOh London, London! repent, repent; for I think God is more displeased\nwith London than ever he was with the city of Nebo.  Repent therefore,\nrepent, London, and remember that the same God liveth now that punished\nNebo, even the same God, and none other; and he will punish sin as well\nnow as he did then: and he will punish the iniquity of London, as well as\nhe did then of Nebo.  Amend therefore.  And ye that be prelates, look\nwell to your office, for right prelating is busy labouring, and not\nlording.  Therefore preach and teach, and let your plough be doing.  Ye\nlords, I say, that live like loiterers, look well to your office; the\nplough is your office and charge.  If you live idle and loiter, you do\nnot your duty, you follow not your vocation: let your plough therefore be\ngoing, and not cease, that the ground may bring forth fruit.\n\nBut now methinketh I hear one say unto me: Wot ye what you say?  Is it a\nwork?  Is it a labour?  How then hath it happened that we have had so\nmany hundred years so many unpreaching prelates, lording loiterers, and\nidle ministers?  Ye would have me here to make answer, and to show cause\nthereof.  Nay, this land is not for me to plough; it is too stony, too\nthorny, too hard for me to plough.  They have so many things that make\nfor them, so many things to lay for themselves, that it is not for my\nweak team to plough them.  They have to lay for themselves long customs,\nceremonies and authority, placing in parliament, and many things more.\nAnd I fear me this land is not yet ripe to be ploughed: for, as the\nsaying is, it lacketh weathering: this gear lacketh weathering; at least\nway it is not for me to plough.  For what shall I look for among thorns,\nbut pricking and scratching?  What among stones, but stumbling?  What (I\nhad almost said) among serpents, but stinging?  But this much I dare say,\nthat since lording and loitering hath come up, preaching hath come down,\ncontrary to the apostles' times: for they preached and lorded not, and\nnow they lord and preach not.  For they that be lords will ill go to\nplough: it is no meet office for them; it is not seeming for their\nestate.  Thus came up lording loiterers: thus crept in unpreaching\nprelates; and so have they long continued.  For how many unlearned\nprelates have we now at this day!  And no marvel: for if the ploughmen\nthat now be were made lords, they would clean give over ploughing; they\nwould leave off their labour, and fall to lording outright, and let the\nplough stand: and then both ploughs not walking, nothing should be in the\ncommonweal but hunger.  For ever since the prelates were made lords and\nnobles, the plough standeth; there is no work done, the people starve.\nThey hawk, they hunt, they card, they dice; they pastime in their\nprelacies with gallant gentlemen, with their dancing minions, and with\ntheir fresh companions, so that ploughing is set aside: and by their\nlording and loitering, preaching and ploughing is clean gone.  And thus\nif the ploughmen of the country were as negligent in their office as\nprelates be, we should not long live, for lack of sustenance.  And as it\nis necessary for to have this ploughing for the sustentation of the body,\nso must we have also the other for the satisfaction of the soul, or else\nwe cannot live long ghostly.  For as the body wasteth and consumeth away\nfor lack of bodily meat, so doth the soul pine away for default of\nghostly meat.  But there be two kinds of inclosing, to let or hinder both\nthese kinds of ploughing: the one is an inclosing to let or hinder the\nbodily ploughing, and the other to let or hinder the holiday-ploughing,\nthe church-ploughing.\n\nThe bodily ploughing is taken in and inclosed through singular commodity.\nFor what man will let go, or diminish his private commodity for a\ncommonwealth?  And who will sustain any damage for the respect of a\npublic commodity?  The other plough also no man is diligent to set\nforward, nor no man will hearken to it.  But to hinder and let it all\nmen's ears are open; yea, and a great many of this kind of ploughmen,\nwhich are very busy, and would seem to be very good workmen.  I fear me\nsome be rather mock-gospellers, than faithful ploughmen.  I know many\nmyself that profess the gospel, and live nothing thereafter.  I know\nthem, and have been conversant with some of them.  I know them, and (I\nspeak it with a heavy heart) there is as little charity and good living\nin them as in any other; according to that which Christ said in the\ngospel to the great number of people that followed him, as though they\nhad had any earnest zeal to his doctrine, whereas indeed they had it not;\n_Non quia vidistis signa, sed quia comedistis de panibus_.  \"Ye follow\nme,\" saith he, \"not because ye have seen the signs and miracles that I\nhave done; but because ye have eaten the bread, and refreshed your\nbodies, therefore you follow me.\"  So that I think many one now-a-days\nprofesseth the gospel for the living's sake, not for the love they bear\nto God's word.  But they that will be true ploughmen must work faithfully\nfor God's sake, for the edifying of their brethren.  And as diligently as\nthe husbandman plougheth for the sustentation of the body, so diligently\nmust the prelates and ministers labour for the feeding of the soul: both\nthe ploughs must still be going, as most necessary for man.  And\nwherefore are magistrates ordained, but that the tranquillity of the\ncommonweal may be confirmed, limiting both ploughs?\n\nBut now for the fault of unpreaching prelates, methink I could guess what\nmight be said for excusing of them.  They are so troubled with lordly\nliving, they be so placed in palaces, crouched in courts, ruffling in\ntheir rents, dancing in their dominions, burdened with ambassages,\npampering of their paunches, like a monk that maketh his jubilee;\nmunching in their mangers, and moiling in their gay manors and mansions,\nand so troubled with loitering in their lordships, that they cannot\nattend it.  They are otherwise occupied, some in king's matters, some are\nambassadors, some of the privy council, some to furnish the court, some\nare lords of the parliament, some are presidents, and comptrollers of\nmints.\n\nWell, well, is this their duty?  Is this their office?  Is this their\ncalling?  Should we have ministers of the church to be comptrollers of\nthe mints?  Is this a meet office for a priest that hath cure of souls?\nIs this his charge?  I would here ask one question: I would fain know who\ncontrolleth the devil at home in his parish, while he controlleth the\nmint?  If the apostles might not leave the office of preaching to the\ndeacons, shall one leave it for minting?  I cannot tell you; but the\nsaying is, that since priests have been minters, money hath been worse\nthan it was before.  And they say that the evilness of money hath made\nall things dearer.  And in this behalf I must speak to England.  \"Hear,\nmy country, England,\" as Paul said in his first epistle to the\nCorinthians, the sixth chapter; for Paul was no sitting bishop, but a\nwalking and a preaching bishop.  But when he went from them, he left\nthere behind him the plough going still; for he wrote unto them, and\nrebuked them for going to law, and pleading their causes before heathen\njudges: \"Is there,\" said he, \"utterly among you no wise man, to be an\narbitrator in matters of judgment?  What, not one of all that can judge\nbetween brother and brother; but one brother goeth to law with another,\nand that under heathen judges?  _Constituite contemptos qui sunt in\necclesia_, &c.  Appoint them judges that are most abject and vile in the\ncongregation.\"  Which he speaketh in rebuking them; \"For,\" saith he, _ad\nerubescentiam vestram dico_--\"I speak it to your shame.\"  So, England, I\nspeak it to thy shame: is there never a nobleman to be a lord president,\nbut it must be a prelate?  Is there never a wise man in the realm to be a\ncomptroller of the mint?  I speak it to your shame.  I speak it to your\nshame.  If there be never a wise man, make a water-bearer, a tinker, a\ncobbler, a slave, a page, comptroller of the mint: make a mean gentleman,\na groom, a yeoman, or a poor beggar, lord president.\n\nThus I speak, not that I would have it so; but \"to your shame,\" if there\nbe never a gentleman meet nor able to be lord president.  For why are not\nthe noblemen and young gentlemen of England so brought up in knowledge of\nGod, and in learning, that they may be able to execute offices in the\ncommonweal?  The king hath a great many of wards, and I trow there is a\nCourt of Wards: why is there not a school for the wards, as well as there\nis a Court for their lands?  Why are they not set in schools where they\nmay learn?  Or why are they not sent to the universities, that they may\nbe able to serve the king when they come to age?  If the wards and young\ngentlemen were well brought up in learning, and in the knowledge of God,\nthey would not when they come to age so much give themselves to other\nvanities.  And if the nobility be well trained in godly learning, the\npeople would follow the same train.  For truly, such as the noblemen be,\nsuch will the people be.  And now, the only cause why noblemen be not\nmade lord presidents, is because they have not been brought up in\nlearning.\n\nTherefore for the love of God appoint teachers and schoolmasters, you\nthat have charge of youth; and give the teachers stipends worthy their\npains, that they may bring them up in grammar, in logic, in rhetoric, in\nphilosophy, in the civil law, and in that which I cannot leave unspoken\nof, the word of God.  Thanks be unto God, the nobility otherwise is very\nwell brought up in learning and godliness, to the great joy and comfort\nof England; so that there is now good hope in the youth, that we shall\nanother day have a flourishing commonweal, considering their godly\neducation.  Yea, and there be already noblemen enough, though not so many\nas I could wish, able to be lord presidents, and wise men enough for the\nmint.  And as unmeet a thing it is for bishops to be lord presidents, or\npriests to be minters, as it was for the Corinthians to plead matters of\nvariance before heathen judges.  It is also a slander to the noblemen, as\nthough they lacked wisdom and learning to be able for such offices, or\nelse were no men of conscience, or else were not meet to be trusted, and\nable for such offices.  And a prelate hath a charge and cure otherwise;\nand therefore he cannot discharge his duty and be a lord president too.\nFor a presidentship requireth a whole man; and a bishop cannot be two\nmen.  A bishop hath his office, a flock to teach, to look unto; and\ntherefore he cannot meddle with another office, which alone requireth a\nwhole man: he should therefore give it over to whom it is meet, and\nlabour in his own business; as Paul writeth to the Thessalonians, \"Let\nevery man do his own business, and follow his calling.\"  Let the priest\npreach, and the noblemen handle the temporal matters.  Moses was a\nmarvellous man, a good man: Moses was a wonderful fellow, and did his\nduty, being a married man: we lack such as Moses was.  Well, I would all\nmen would look to their duty, as God hath called them, and then we should\nhave a flourishing christian commonweal.\n\nAnd now I would ask a strange question: who is the most diligentest\nbishop and prelate in all England, that passeth all the rest in doing his\noffice?  I can tell, for I know him who it is; I know him well.  But now\nI think I see you listening and hearkening that I should name him.  There\nis one that passeth all the other, and is the most diligent prelate and\npreacher in all England.  And will ye know who it is?  I will tell you:\nit is the devil.  He is the most diligent preacher of all other; he is\nnever out of his diocess; he is never from his cure; ye shall never find\nhim unoccupied; he is ever in his parish; he keepeth residence at all\ntimes; ye shall never find him out of the way, call for him when you will\nhe is ever at home; the diligentest preacher in all the realm; he is ever\nat his plough: no lording nor loitering can hinder him; he is ever\napplying his business, ye shall never find him idle, I warrant you.  And\nhis office is to hinder religion, to maintain superstition, to set up\nidolatry, to teach all kind of popery.  He is ready as he can be wished\nfor to set forth his plough; to devise as many ways as can be to deface\nand obscure God's glory.  Where the devil is resident, and hath his\nplough going, there away with books, and up with candles; away with\nbibles, and up with beads; away with the light of the gospel, and up with\nthe light of candles, yea, at noon-days.  Where the devil is resident,\nthat he may prevail, up with all superstition and idolatry; censing,\npainting of images, candles, palms, ashes, holy water, and new service of\nmen's inventing; as though man could invent a better way to honour God\nwith than God himself hath appointed.  Down with Christ's cross, up with\npurgatory pick-purse, up with him, the popish purgatory, I mean.  Away\nwith clothing the naked, the poor and impotent; up with decking of\nimages, and gay garnishing of stocks and stones: up with man's traditions\nand his laws, down with God's traditions and his most holy word.  Down\nwith the old honour due to God, and up with the new god's honour.  Let\nall things be done in Latin: there must be nothing but Latin, not so much\nas _Memento, homo, quod cinis es, et in cinerem reverteris_: \"Remember,\nman, that thou art ashes, and into ashes thou shalt return:\" which be the\nwords that the minister speaketh unto the ignorant people, when he giveth\nthem ashes upon Ash-Wednesday; but it must be spoken in Latin: God's word\nmay in no wise be translated into English.\n\nOh that our prelates would be as diligent to sow the corn of good\ndoctrine, as Satan is to sow cockle and darnel!  And this is the devilish\nploughing, the which worketh to have things in Latin, and letteth the\nfruitful edification.  But here some man will say to me, What, sir, are\nye so privy of the devil's counsel, that ye know all this to be true?\nTruly I know him too well, and have obeyed him a little too much in\ncondescending to some follies; and I know him as other men do, yea, that\nhe is ever occupied, and ever busy in following his plough.  I know by\nSt. Peter, which saith of him, _Sicut leo rugiens circuit quaerens quem\ndevoret_: \"He goeth about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may\ndevour.\"  I would have this text well viewed and examined, every word of\nit: \"_Circuit_,\" he goeth about in every corner of his diocess; he goeth\non visitation daily, he leaveth no place of his cure unvisited: he\nwalketh round about from place to place, and ceaseth not.  \"_Sicut leo_,\"\nas a lion, that is, strongly, boldly, and proudly; stately and fiercely\nwith haughty looks, with his proud countenances, with his stately\nbraggings.  \"_Rugiens_,\" roaring; for he letteth not slip any occasion to\nspeak or to roar out when he seeth his time.  \"_Quaerens_,\" he goeth\nabout seeking, and not sleeping, as our bishops do; but he seeketh\ndiligently, he searcheth diligently all corners, where as he may have his\nprey.  He roveth abroad in every place of his diocess; he standeth not\nstill, he is never at rest, but ever in hand with his plough, that it may\ngo forward.  But there was never such a preacher in England as he is.  Who\nis able to tell his diligent preaching, which every day, and every hour,\nlaboureth to sow cockle and darnel, that he may bring out of form, and\nout of estimation and room, the institution of the Lord's supper, and\nChrist's cross?  For there he lost his right; for Christ said, _Nunc\njudicium est mundi, princeps seculi hujus ejicietur foras.  Et sicut\nexaltarit Moses serpentem in deserto, ita exaltari oportet Filium\nhominis.  Et cum exaltatus fuero a terra, omnia traham ad meipsum_.  \"Now\nis the judgment of this world, and the prince of this world shall be cast\nout.  And as Moses did lift up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the\nSon of man be lift up.  And when I shall be lift up from the earth, I\nwill draw all things unto myself.\"  For the devil was disappointed of his\npurpose: for he thought all to be his own; and when he had once brought\nChrist to the cross, he thought all cocksure.  But there lost he all\nreigning: for Christ said, _Omnia traham ad meipsum_: \"I will draw all\nthings to myself.\"  He meaneth, drawing of man's soul to salvation.  And\nthat he said he would do _per semetipsum_, by his own self; not by any\nother body's sacrifice.  He meant by his own sacrifice on the cross,\nwhere he offered himself for the redemption of mankind; and not the\nsacrifice of the mass to be offered by another.  For who can offer him\nbut himself?  He was both the offerer and the offering.  And this is the\nprick, this is the mark at the which the devil shooteth, to evacuate the\ncross of Christ, and to mingle the institution of the Lord's supper; the\nwhich although he cannot bring to pass, yet he goeth about by his\nsleights and subtil means to frustrate the same; and these fifteen\nhundred years he hath been a doer, only purposing to evacuate Christ's\ndeath, and to make it of small efficacy and virtue.  For whereas Christ,\naccording as the serpent was lifted up in the wilderness, so would he\nhimself be exalted, that thereby as many as trusted in him should have\nsalvation; but the devil would none of that: they would have us saved by\na daily oblation propitiatory, by a sacrifice expiatory, or remissory.\n\nNow if I should preach in the country, among the unlearned, I would tell\nwhat propitiatory, expiatory, and remissory is; but here is a learned\nauditory: yet for them that be unlearned I will expound it.  Propitiatory,\nexpiatory, remissory, or satisfactory, for they signify all one thing in\neffect, and is nothing else but a thing whereby to obtain remission of\nsins, and to have salvation.  And this way the devil used to evacuate the\ndeath of Christ, that we might have affiance in other things, as in the\nsacrifice of the priest; whereas Christ would have us to trust in his\nonly sacrifice.  So he was, _Agnus occisus ab origine mundi_; \"The Lamb\nthat hath been slain from the beginning of the world;\" and therefore he\nis called _juge sacrificium_, \"a continual sacrifice;\" and not for the\ncontinuance of the mass, as the blanchers have blanched it, and wrested\nit; and as I myself did once betake it.  But Paul saith, _per semetipsum\npurgatio facta_: \"By himself,\" and by none other, Christ \"made purgation\"\nand satisfaction for the whole world.\n\nWould Christ this word, \"by himself,\" had been better weighed and looked\nupon, and _in sanctificationem_, to make them holy; for he is _juge\nsacrificium_, \"a continual sacrifice,\" in effect, fruit, and operation;\nthat like as they, which seeing the serpent hang up in the desert, were\nput in remembrance of Christ's death, in whom as many as believed were\nsaved; so all men that trusted in the death of Christ shall be saved, as\nwell they that were before, as they that came after.  For he was a\ncontinual sacrifice, as I said, in effect, fruit, operation, and virtue;\nas though he had from the beginning of the world, and continually should\nto the world's end, hang still on the cross; and he is as fresh hanging\non the cross now, to them that believe and trust in him, as he was\nfifteen hundred years ago, when he was crucified.\n\nThen let us trust upon his only death, and look for none other sacrifice\npropitiatory, than the same bloody sacrifice, the lively sacrifice; and\nnot the dry sacrifice, but a bloody sacrifice.  For Christ himself said,\n_consummatum est_: \"It is perfectly finished: I have taken at my Father's\nhand the dispensation of redeeming mankind, I have wrought man's\nredemption, and have despatched the matter.\"  Why then mingle ye him?  Why\ndo ye divide him?  Why make you of him more sacrifices than one?  Paul\nsaith, _Pascha nostrum immolatus est Christus_: \"Christ our passover is\noffered;\" so that the thing is done, and Christ hath done it _semel_,\nonce for all; and it was a bloody sacrifice, not a dry sacrifice.  Why\nthen, it is not the mass that availeth or profiteth for the quick and the\ndead.\n\nWo worth thee, O devil, wo worth thee, that hast prevailed so far and so\nlong; that hast made England to worship false gods, forsaking Christ\ntheir Lord.  Wo worth thee, devil, wo worth thee, devil, and all thy\nangels.  If Christ by his death draweth all things to himself, and\ndraweth all men to salvation, and to heavenly bliss, that trust in him;\nthen the priests at the mass, at the popish mass, I say, what can they\ndraw, when Christ draweth all, but lands and goods from the right heirs?\nThe priests draw goods and riches, benefices and promotions to\nthemselves; and such as believed in their sacrifices they draw to the\ndevil.  But Christ is he that draweth souls unto him by his bloody\nsacrifice.  What have we to do then but _epulari in Domino_, to eat in\nthe Lord at his supper?  What other service have we to do to him, and\nwhat other sacrifice have we to offer, but the mortification of our\nflesh?  What other oblation have we to make, but of obedience, of good\nliving, of good works, and of helping our neighbours?  But as for our\nredemption, it is done already, it cannot be better: Christ hath done\nthat thing so well, that it cannot be amended.  It cannot be devised how\nto make that any better than he hath done it.  But the devil, by the help\nof that Italian bishop yonder, his chaplain, hath laboured by all means\nthat he might to frustrate the death of Christ and the merits of his\npassion.  And they have devised for that purpose to make us believe in\nother vain things by his pardons; as to have remission of sins for\npraying on hallowed beads; for drinking of the bakehouse bowl; as a canon\nof Waltham Abbey once told me, that whensoever they put their loaves of\nbread into the oven, as many as drank of the pardon-bowl should have\npardon for drinking of it.  A mad thing, to give pardon to a bowl!  Then\nto pope Alexander's holy water, to hallowed bells, palms, candles, ashes,\nand what not?  And of these things, every one hath taken away some part\nof Christ's sanctification; every one hath robbed some part of Christ's\npassion and cross, and hath mingled Christ's death, and hath been made to\nbe propitiatory and satisfactory, and to put away sin.  Yea, and\nAlexander's holy water yet at this day remaineth in England, and is used\nfor a remedy against spirits and to chase away devils; yea, and I would\nthis had been the worst.  I would this were the worst.  But wo worth\nthee, O devil, that has prevailed to evacuate Christ's cross, and to\nmingle the Lord's supper.  These be the Italian bishop's devices, and the\ndevil hath pricked at this mark to frustrate the cross of Christ: he shot\nat this mark long before Christ came, he shot at it four thousand years\nbefore Christ hanged on the cross, or suffered his passion.\n\nFor the brasen serpent was set up in the wilderness, to put men in\nremembrance of Christ's coming; that like as they which beheld the brasen\nserpent were healed of their bodily diseases, so they that looked\nspiritually upon Christ that was to come, in him should be saved\nspiritually from the devil.  The serpent was set up in memory of Christ\nto come; but the devil found means to steal away the memory of Christ's\ncoining, and brought the people to worship the serpent itself, and to\ncense him, to honour him, and to offer to him, to worship him, and to\nmake an idol of him.  And this was done by the market-men that I told you\nof.  And the clerk of the market did it for the lucre and advantage of\nhis master, that thereby his honour might increase; for by Christ's death\nhe could have but small worldly advantage.  And so even now so hath he\ncertain blanchers belonging to the market, to let and stop the light of\nthe gospel, and to hinder the king's proceedings in setting forth the\nword and glory of God.  And when the king's majesty, with the advice of\nhis honourable council, goeth about to promote God's word, and to set an\norder in matters of religion, there shall not lack blanchers that will\nsay, \"As for images, whereas they have used to be censed, and to have\ncandles offered unto to them, none be so foolish to do it to the stock or\nstone, or to the image itself; but it is done to God and his honour\nbefore the image.\"  And though they should abuse it, these blanchers will\nbe ready to whisper the king in the ear, and to tell him, that this abuse\nis but a small matter; and that the same, with all other like abuses in\nthe church, may be reformed easily.  \"It is but a little abuse,\" say\nthey, \"and it may be easily amended.  But it should not be taken in hand\nat the first, for fear of trouble or further inconveniences.  The people\nwill not bear sudden alterations; an insurrection may be made after\nsudden mutation, which may be to the great harm and loss of the realm.\nTherefore all things shall be well, but not out of hand, for fear of\nfurther business.\"  These be the blanchers, that hitherto have stopped\nthe word of God, and hindered the true setting forth of the same.  There\nbe so many put-offs, so many put-byes, so many respects and\nconsiderations of worldly wisdom: and I doubt not but there were\nblanchers in the old time to whisper in the ear of good king Hezekiah,\nfor the maintenance of idolatry done to the brasen serpent, as well as\nthere hath been now of late, and be now, that can blanch the abuse of\nimages, and other like things.  But good king Hezekiah would not be so\nblinded; he was like to Apollos, \"fervent in spirit.\"  He would give no\near to the blanchers; he was not moved with the worldly respects, with\nthese prudent considerations, with these policies: he feared not\ninsurrections of the people: he feared not lest his people would bear not\nthe glory of God; but he, without any of these respects, or policies, or\nconsiderations, like a good king, for God's sake and for conscience sake,\nby and by plucked down the brasen serpent, and destroyed it utterly, and\nbeat it to powder.  He out of hand did cast out all images, he destroyed\nall idolatry, and clearly did extirpate all superstition.  He would not\nhear these blanchers and worldly-wise men, but without delay followeth\nGod's cause, and destroyeth all idolatry out of hand.  Thus did good king\nHezekiah; for he was like Apollos, fervent in spirit, and diligent, to\npromote God's glory.\n\nAnd good hope there is, that it shall be likewise here in England; for\nthe king's majesty is so brought up in knowledge, virtue, and godliness,\nthat it is not to be mistrusted but that we shall have all things well,\nand that the glory of God shall be spread abroad throughout all parts of\nthe realm, if the prelates will diligently apply their plough, and be\npreachers rather than lords.  But our blanchers, which will be lords, and\nno labourers, when they are commanded to go and be resident upon their\ncures, and preach in their benefices, they would say, \"What?  I have set\na deputy there; I have a deputy that looketh well to my flock, and the\nwhich shall discharge my duty.\"  \"A deputy,\" quoth he!  I looked for that\nword all this while.  And what a deputy must he be, trow ye?  Even one\nlike himself: he must be a canonist; that is to say, one that is brought\nup in the study of the pope's laws and decrees; one that will set forth\npapistry as well as himself will do; and one that will maintain all\nsuperstition and idolatry; and one that will nothing at all, or else very\nweakly, resist the devil's plough: yea, happy it is if he take no part\nwith the devil; and where he should be an enemy to him, it is well if he\ntake not the devil's part against Christ.\n\nBut in the meantime the prelates take their pleasures.  They are lords,\nand no labourers: but the devil is diligent at his plough.  He is no\nunpreaching prelate: he is no lordly loiterer from his cure, but a busy\nploughman; so that among all the prelates, and among all the pack of them\nthat have cure, the devil shall go for my money, for he still applieth\nhis business.  Therefore, ye unpreaching prelates, learn of the devil: to\nbe diligent in doing of your office, learn of the devil: and if you will\nnot learn of God, nor good men, for shame learn of the devil; _ad\nerubescentiam vestrum dico_, \"I speak it for your shame:\" if you will not\nlearn of God, nor good men, to be diligent in your office, learn of the\ndevil.  Howbeit there is now very good hope that the king's majesty,\nbeing of the help of good governance of his most honourable counsellors\ntrained and brought up in learning, and knowledge of God's word, will\nshortly provide a remedy, and set an order herein; which thing that it\nmay so be, let us pray for him.  Pray for him, good people; pray for him.\nYe have great cause and need to pray for him.\n\n\n\n\nA SERMON ON THE PARABLE OF A KING THAT MARRIED HIS SON, MADE BY MASTER\nLATIMER.\n\n\n   MATTHEW XXII. [2,3.]\n\n   _Simile factum est regnum coelorum homini regi qui fecit nuptias filio\n   suo_.\n\n   The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which married his\n   son, and sent forth his servants to call them that, &c.\n\nThis is a gospel that containeth very much matter; and there is another\nlike unto this in the fourteenth of Luke: but they be both one in effect,\nfor they teach both one thing; and therefore I will take them both in\nhand together, because they tend to one purpose.  Matthew saith, \"The\nkingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which married his son;\"\nLuke saith, \"A certain man ordained a great supper:\" but there is no\ndifference in the very substance of the matter, for they pertain to one\npurpose.  Here is made mention of a feast-maker: therefore we must\nconsider who was the feast-maker: secondarily, who was his son: thirdly,\nwe must consider to whom he was married: fourthly, who were they that\ncalled the guests: fifthly, who were the guests.  And then we must know\nhow the guest-callers behaved themselves: and then, how the guests\nbehaved themselves towards them that called them.  When all these\ncircumstances be considered, we shall find much good matters covered and\nhid in this gospel.\n\nNow that I may so handle these matters, that it may turn to the\nedification of your souls, and to the discharge of my office, I will most\ninstantly desire you to lift up your hearts unto God, and desire his\ndivine Majesty, in the name of his only-begotten Son, our Saviour Jesus\nChrist, that he will give unto us his Holy Ghost:--unto me, that I may\nspeak the word of God, and teach you to understand the same; unto you,\nthat you may hear it fruitfully, to the edification of your souls; so\nthat you may be edified through it, and your lives reformed and amended;\nand that his honour and glory may increase daily amongst us.  Wherefore I\nshall desire you to say with me, \"Our Father,\" &c.\n\nDearly beloved in the Lord, the gospel that is read this day is a\nparable, a similitude or comparison.  For our Saviour compared the\nkingdom of God unto a man that made a marriage for his son.  And here was\na marriage.  At a marriage, you know, there is commonly great feastings.\nNow you must know who was this feast-maker, and who was his son, and to\nwhom he was married; and who were those that should be called, and who\nwere the callers; how they behaved themselves, and how the guests behaved\nthemselves towards them that called them.\n\nNow this marriage-maker, or feast-maker, is Almighty God.  Luke the\nEvangelist calleth him a man, saying, \"A certain man ordained a great\nsupper.\"  He calleth him a man, not that he was incarnate, or hath taken\nour flesh upon him: no, not so; for you must understand that there be\nthree Persons in the Deity, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy\nGhost.  And these three Persons decked the Son with manhood; so that\nneither the Father, neither the Holy Ghost, took flesh upon them, but\nonly the Son; he took our flesh upon him, taking it of the Virgin Mary.\nBut Luke called God the Father a man, not because he took flesh upon him,\nbut only compared him unto a man; not that he will affirm him to be a\nman.  Who was he now that was married?  Who was the bridegroom?  Marry,\nthat was our Saviour Jesus Christ, the second person in the Deity; the\neternal Son of God.  Who should be his spouse?  To whom was he married?\nTo his church and congregation: for he would have all the world to come\nunto him, and to be married unto him: but we see by daily experience that\nthe most part refuse his offer.  But here is shewed the state of the\nchurch of God: for this marriage, this feast, was begun at the beginning\nof the world, and shall endure to the end of the same: yet for all that,\nthe most part refused it: for at the very beginning of the world, ever\nthe most part refused to come.  And so it appeareth at this time, how\nlittle a number cometh to this wedding and feast: though we have callers,\nyet there be but few of those that come.  So ye hear that God is the\nfeast-maker; the bridegroom is Christ, his Son, our Saviour; the bride is\nthe congregation.\n\nNow what manner of meat was prepared at this great feast?  For ye know it\nis commonly seen, that at a marriage the finest meat is prepared that can\nbe gotten.  What was the chiefest dish at this great banquet?  What was\nthe feast-dish?  Marry, it was the bridegroom himself: for the Father,\nthe feast-maker, prepared none other manner of meat for the guests, but\nthe body and blood of his own natural Son.  And this is the chiefest dish\nat this banquet; which truly is a marvellous thing, that the Father\noffereth his Son to be eaten.  Verily, I think that no man hath heard the\nlike.  And truly there was never such kind of feasting as this is, where\nthe Father will have his Son to be eaten, and his blood to be drunk.\n\nWe read in a story, that a certain man had eaten his son; but it was done\nunawares: he knew not that it was his son, else no doubt he would not\nhave eaten him.  The story is this: There was a king named Astyages,\nwhich had heard by a prophecy, that one Cyrus should have the rule and\ndominion over his realm after his departure; which thing troubled the\nsaid king very sore, and therefore [he] sought all the ways and means how\nto get the said Cyrus out of the way; how to kill him, so that he should\nnot be king after him.  Now he had a nobleman in his house, named\nHarpagus, whom he appointed to destroy the said Cyrus: but howsoever the\nmatter went, Cyrus was preserved and kept alive, contrary to the king's\nmind.  Which thing when Astyages heard, what doth he?  This he did:\nHarpagus, that nobleman which was put in trust to kill Cyrus, had a son\nin the court, whom the king commanded to be taken; his head, hands, and\nfeet to be cut off; and his body to be prepared, roasted, or sodden, of\nthe best manner as could be devised.  After that, he biddeth Harpagus to\ncome and eat with him, where there was jolly cheer; one dish coming after\nanother.  At length the king asked him, \"Sir, how liketh you your fare?\"\nHarpagus thanketh the king, with much praising the king's banquet.  Now\nthe king perceiving him to be merrily disposed, commanded one of his\nservants to bring in the head, hands, and feet of Harpagus's son.  When\nit was done, the king showed him what manner of meat he had eaten, asking\nhim how it liketh him.  Harpagus made answer, though with an heavy heart,\n_Quod regi placet, id mihi quoque placet_; \"Whatsoever pleaseth the king,\nthat also pleaseth me.\"  And here we have an ensample of a flatterer, or\ndissembler: for this Harpagus spake against his own heart and conscience.\nSurely, I fear me, there be a great many of flatterers in our time also,\nwhich will not be ashamed to speak against their own heart and\nconsciences, like as this Harpagus did; which had, no doubt, a heavy\nheart, and in his conscience the act of the king misliked him, yet for\nall that, with his tongue he praised the same.  So I say, we read not in\nany story, that at any time any father had eaten his son willingly and\nwittingly; and this Harpagus, of whom I rehearsed the story, did it\nunawares.  But the Almighty God, which prepared this feast for all the\nworld, for all those that will come unto it, he offereth his only Son to\nbe eaten, and his blood to be drunken.  Belike he loved his guests well,\nbecause he did feed them with so costly a dish.\n\nAgain, our Saviour, the bridegroom, offereth himself at his last supper,\nwhich he had with his disciples, his body to be eaten, and his blood to\nbe drunk.  And to the intent that it should be done to our great comfort;\nand then again to take away all cruelty, irksomeness, and horribleness,\nhe sheweth unto us how we shall eat him, in what manner and form; namely,\nspiritually, to our great comfort: so that whosoever eateth the mystical\nbread, and drinketh the mystical wine worthily, according to the\nordinance of Christ, he receiveth surely the very body and blood of\nChrist spiritually, as it shall be most comfortable unto his soul.  He\neateth with the mouth of his soul, and digesteth with the stomach of his\nsoul, the body of Christ.  And to be short: whosoever believeth in\nChrist, putteth his hope, trust, and confidence in him, he eateth and\ndrinketh him: for the spiritual eating is the right eating to everlasting\nlife; not the corporal eating, as the Capernaites understood it.  For\nthat same corporal eating, on which they set their minds, hath no\ncommodities at all; it is a spiritual meat that feedeth our souls.\n\nBut I pray you, how much is this supper of Christ regarded amongst us,\nwhere he himself exhibiteth unto us his body and blood?  How much, I say,\nis it regarded?  How many receive it with the curate or minister?  O\nLord, how blind and dull are we to such things, which pertain to our\nsalvation!  But I pray you, wherefore was it ordained principally?\nAnswer: it was ordained for our help, to help our memory withal; to put\nus in mind of the great goodness of God, in redeeming us from everlasting\ndeath by the blood of our Saviour Christ; yea, and to signify unto us,\nthat his body and blood is our meat and drink for our souls, to feed them\nto everlasting life.  If we were now so perfect as we ought to be, we\nshould not have need of it: but to help our imperfectness it was ordained\nof Christ; for we be so forgetful, when we be not pricked forward, we\nhave soon forgotten all his benefits.  Therefore to the intent that we\nmight better keep it in memory, and to remedy this our slothfulness, our\nSaviour hath ordained this his supper for us, whereby we should remember\nhis great goodness, his bitter passion and death, and so strengthen our\nfaith: so that he instituted this supper for our sake, to make us to keep\nin fresh memory his inestimable benefits.  But, as I said before, it is\nin a manner nothing regarded amongst us: we care not for it; we will not\ncome unto it.  How many be there, think ye, which regard this supper of\nthe Lord as much as a testoon?  But very few, no doubt of it: and I will\nprove that they regard it not so much.  If there were a proclamation made\nin this town, that whosoever would come unto the church at such an hour,\nand there go to the communion with the curate, should have a testoon;\nwhen such a proclamation were made, I think, truly, all the town would\ncome and celebrate the communion to get a testoon: but they will not come\nto receive the body and blood of Christ, the food and nourishment of\ntheir souls, to the augmentation and strength of their faith!  Do they\nnot more regard now a testoon than Christ?  But the cause which letteth\nus from celebrating of the Lord's Supper, is this: we have no mind nor\npurpose to leave sin and wickedness, which maketh us not to come to this\nsupper, because we be not ready nor meet to receive it.  But I require\nyou in God's behalf; leave your wickedness, that ye may receive it\nworthily, according to his institution.  For this supper is ordained, as\nI told you before, for our sake, to our profits and commodities: for if\nwe were perfect, we should not need this outward sacrament; but our\nSaviour, knowing our weakness and forgetfulness, ordained this supper to\nthe augmentation of our faith, and to put us in remembrance of his\nbenefits.  But we will not come: there come no more at once, but such as\ngive the holy loaves from house to house; which follow rather the custom\nthan any thing else.  Our Saviour Christ saith in the gospel of St. John,\n_Ego sum panis virus, qui de coelo descendi_; \"I am the living bread\nwhich came down from heaven.\"  Therefore whosoever feedeth of our Saviour\nChrist, he shall not perish; death shall not prevail against him: his\nsoul shall depart out of his body, yet death shall not get the victory\nover him; he shall not be damned.  He that cometh to that marriage, to\nthat banquet, death shall be unto him but an entrance or a door to\neverlasting life.  _Panis quem ego dabo caro mea est_; \"The bread that I\nwill give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.\"  As\nmany as will feed upon him, shall attain to everlasting life: they shall\nnever die; they shall prevail against death; death shall not hurt them,\nbecause he hath lost his strength.  If we would consider this, no doubt\nwe would be more desirous to come to the communion than we be; we would\nnot be so cold; we would be content to leave our naughty living, and come\nto the Lord's table.\n\nNow ye have heard what shall be the chiefest dish at this marriage,\nnamely, the body and blood of Christ.  But now there be other dishes,\nwhich be sequels or hangings-on, wherewith the chief dish is powdered:\nthat is, remission of sins; also the Holy Ghost, which ruleth and\ngoverneth our hearts; also the merits of Christ, which are made ours.  For\nwhen we feed upon this dish worthily, then we shall have remission of our\nsins; we shall receive the Holy Ghost.  Moreover, all the merits of\nChrist are ours; his fulfilling of the law is ours; and so we be\njustified before God, and finally attain to everlasting life.  As many,\ntherefore, as feed worthily of this dish, shall have all these things\nwith it, and in the end everlasting life.  St. Paul saith, _Qui proprio\nFilio suo non pepercit, sed pro nobis omnibus tradidit illum, quomodo non\netiam cum illo omnia nobis donabit_?  \"He which spared not his own Son,\nbut gave him for us all, how shall he not with him give us all things\nalso?\"  Therefore they that be in Christ are partakers of all his merits\nand benefits; of everlasting life, and of all felicity.  He that hath\nChrist hath all things that are Christ's.  He is our preservation from\ndamnation; he is our comfort; he is our help, our remedy.  When we feed\nupon him, then we shall have remission of our sins: the same remission of\nsins is the greatest and most comfortable thing that can be in the world.\nO what a comfortable thing is this, when Christ saith, _Remittuntur tibi\npeccata_, \"Thy sins are forgiven unto thee!\"  And this is a standing\nsentence; it was not spoken only to the same one man, but it is a general\nproclamation unto all us: all and every one that believeth in him shall\nhave forgiveness of their sins.  And this proclamation is cried out daily\nby his ministers and preachers; which proclamation is the word of grace,\nthe word of comfort and consolation.  For like as sin is the most fearful\nand the most horriblest thing in heaven and in earth, so the most\ncomfortablest thing is the remedy against sin; which remedy is declared\nand offered unto us in this word of grace and the power to distribute\nthis remedy against sins he hath given unto his ministers, which be God's\ntreasurers, distributers of the word of God.  For now he speaketh by me,\nhe calleth you to this wedding by me, being but a poor man; yet he hath\nsent me to call you.  And though he be the author of the word, yet he\nwill have men to be called through his ministers to that word.  Therefore\nlet us give credit unto the minister, when he speaketh God's word: yea,\nrather let us credit God when he speaketh by his ministers, and offereth\nus remission of our sins by his word.  For there is no sin so great in\nthis world, but it is pardonable as long as we be in this world, and call\nfor mercy: for here is the time of mercy; here we may come to forgiveness\nof our sins.  But if we once die in our sins and wickedness, so that we\nbe damned, let us not look for remission afterwards: for the state after\nthis life is unchangeable.  But as long as we be here, we may cry for\nmercy.  Therefore let us not despair: let us amend our lives, and cry\nunto God for forgiveness of our sins; and then no doubt we shall obtain\nremission, if we call with a faithful heart upon him, for so he hath\npromised unto us in his most holy word.\n\nThe holy scripture maketh mention of a sin against the Holy Ghost, which\nsin cannot be forgiven, neither in this world, nor in the world to come.\nAnd this maketh many men unquiet in their hearts and consciences: for\nsome there be which ever be afraid, lest they have committed that same\nsin against the Holy Ghost, which is irremissible.  Therefore some say,\n\"I cannot tell whether I have sinned against the Holy Ghost or not: if I\nhave committed that sin, I know I shall be damned.\"  But I tell you what\nye shall do: despair not of the mercy of God, for it is immeasurable.  I\ncannot deny but that there is a sin against the Holy Ghost, which is\nirremissible: but we cannot judge of it aforehand, we cannot tell which\nman hath committed that sin or not, as long as he is alive; but when he\nis once gone, then I can judge whether he sinned against the Holy Ghost\nor not.  As now I can judge that Nero, Saul, and Judas, and such like,\nthat died in sins and wickedness, did commit this sin against the Holy\nGhost: for they were wicked, and continued in their wickedness still to\nthe very end; they made an end in their wickedness.  But we cannot judge\nwhether one of us sin this sin against the Holy Ghost, or not; for though\na man be wicked at this time, yet he may repent, and leave his wickedness\ntomorrow, and so not commit that sin against the Holy Ghost.  Our Saviour\nChrist pronounced against the scribes and Pharisees, that they had\ncommitted that sin against the Holy Ghost; because he knew their hearts,\nhe knew they would still abide in their wickedness to the very end of\ntheir lives.  But we cannot pronounce this sentence against any man, for\nwe know not the hearts of men: he that sinneth now, peradventure shall be\nturned tomorrow, and leave his sins, and so be saved.  Further, the\npromises of our Saviour Christ are general; they pertain to all mankind:\nhe made a general proclamation, saying, _Qui credit in me, habet vitam\naeternam_; \"Whosoever believeth in me hath everlasting life.\"  Likewise\nSt. Paul saith, _Gratia exsuperat supra peccatum_; \"The grace and mercies\nof God exceedeth far our sins.\"  Therefore let us ever think and believe\nthat the grace of God, his mercy and goodness, exceedeth our sins.  Also\nconsider what Christ saith with his own mouth: _Venite ad me, omnes qui\nlaboratis, &c_.  \"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are laden, and I\nwill ease you.\"  Mark, here he saith, \"Come all ye:\" wherefore then\nshould any body despair, or shut out himself from these promises of\nChrist, which be general, and pertain to the whole world?  For he saith,\n\"Come all unto me.\"  And then again he saith, _Refocillabo vos_, \"I will\nrefresh you:\" you shall be eased from the burdens of your sins.\nTherefore, as I said before, he that is blasphemous, and obstinately\nwicked, and abideth in his wickedness still to the very end, he sinneth\nagainst the Holy Ghost; as St. Augustine, and all other godly writers do\naffirm.  But he that leaveth his wickedness and sins, is content to amend\nhis life, and then believing in Christ, seeketh salvation and everlasting\nlife by him, no doubt that man or woman, whosoever he or they be, shall\nbe saved: for they feed upon Christ, upon that meat that God the Father,\nthis feast-maker, hath prepared for all his guests.\n\nYou have heard now who is the maker of this feast or banquet: and again,\nyou have heard what meat is prepared for the guests; what a costly dish\nthe house-father hath ordained at the wedding of his son.  But now ye\nknow, that where there be great dishes and delicate fare, there be\ncommonly prepared certain sauces, which shall give men a great lust and\nappetite to their meats; as mustard, vinegar, and such like sauces.  So\nthis feast, this costly dish, hath its sauces; but what be they?  Marry,\nthe cross, affliction, tribulation, persecution, and all manner of\nmiseries: for, like as sauces make lusty the stomach to receive meat, so\naffliction stirreth up in us a desire to Christ.  For when we be in\nquietness, we are not hungry, we care not for Christ: but when we be in\ntribulation, and cast in prison, then we have a desire to him; then we\nlearn to call upon him; then we hunger and thirst after him; then we are\ndesirous to feed upon him.  As long as we be in health and prosperity, we\ncare not for him; we be slothful, we have no stomach at all; and\ntherefore these sauces are very necessary for us.  We have a common\nsaying amongst us, when we see a fellow sturdy, lofty, and proud, men\nsay, \"This is a saucy fellow;\" signifying him to be a high-minded fellow,\nwhich taketh more upon him than he ought to do, or his estate requireth:\nwhich thing, no doubt, is naught and ill; for every one ought to behave\nhimself according unto his calling and estate.  But he that will be a\nchristian man, that intendeth to come to heaven, must be a saucy fellow;\nhe must be well powdered with the sauce of affliction, and tribulation;\nnot with proudness and stoutness, but with miseries and calamities: for\nso it is written, _Omnes qui pie volunt vivere in Christo persecutionem\npatientur_; \"Whosoever will live godly in Christ, he shall have\npersecution and miseries:\" he shall have sauce enough to his meat.  Again,\nour Saviour saith, _Qui vult meus esse discipulus, abneget semetipsum et\ntollat crucem suam et sequatur me_; \"He that will be my disciple must\ndeny himself and take his cross upon him, and follow me.\"  Is there any\nman that will feed upon me, that will eat my flesh and drink my blood?\nLet him forsake himself.  O this is a great matter; this is a biting\nthing, the denying of my own will!' As for an ensample: I see a fair\nwoman, and conceive in my heart an ill appetite to commit lechery with\nher; I desire to fulfil my wanton lust with her.  Here is my appetite, my\nlust, my will: but what must I do?  Marry, I must deny myself, and follow\nChrist.  What is that?  I must not follow my own desire, but the will and\npleasure of Christ.  Now what saith he?  _Non fornicaberis, non\nadulteraberis_; \"Thou shalt not be a whoremonger, thou shalt not be a\nwedlock-breaker.\"  Here I must deny myself, and my will, and give place\nunto his will; abhor and hate my own will.  Yea, and furthermore I must\nearnestly call upon him, that he will give me grace to withstand my own\nlust and appetite, in all manner of things which may be against his will:\nas when a man doth me wrong, taketh my living from me, or hurteth me in\nmy good name and fame, my will is to avenge myself upon him, to do him a\nfoul turn again; but what saith God?  _Mihi vindicta, ego retribuam_;\n\"Unto me belongeth vengeance, I will recompense the same.\"  Now here I\nmust give over my own will and pleasure, and obey his will: this I must\ndo, if I will feed upon him, if I will come to heaven.  But this is a\nbitter thing, a sour sauce, a sharp sauce; this sauce maketh a stomach:\nfor when I am injured or wronged, or am in other tribulation, then I have\na great desire for him, to feed upon him, to be delivered from trouble,\nand to attain to quietness and joy.\n\nThere is a learned man which hath a saying which is most true: he saith,\n_Plus crux quam tranquillitas invitat ad Christum_; \"The cross and\npersecution bring us sooner to Christ than prosperity and wealth.\"\nTherefore St. Peter saith, _Humiliamini sub potenti manu Dei_; \"Humble\nyourselves under the mighty hand of God.\"  Look, what God layeth upon\nyou, bear it willingly and humbly.  But you will say, \"I pray you, tell\nme what is my cross?\"  Answer: This that God layeth upon you, that same\nis your cross; not that which you of your own wilfulness lay upon\nyourselves: as there was a certain sect which were called Flagellarii,\nwhich scourged themselves with whips till the blood ran from their\nbodies; this was a cross, but it was not the cross of God.  No, no: he\nlaid not that upon them, they did it of their own head.  Therefore look,\nwhat God layeth upon me, that same is my cross, which I ought to take in\ngood part; as when I fall in poverty, or in miseries, I ought to be\ncontent withal; when my neighbour doth me wrong, taketh away my goods,\nrobbeth me of my good name and fame, I shall bear it willingly,\nconsidering that it is God's cross, and that nothing can be done against\nme without his permission.  There falleth never a sparrow to the ground\nwithout his permission; yea, not a hair falleth from our head without his\nwill.  Seeing then that there is nothing done without his will, I ought\nto bear this cross which he layeth upon me willingly, without any\nmurmuring or grudging.\n\nBut I pray you, consider these words of St. Peter well: _Humiliamini sub\npotenti manu Dei_; \"Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God.\"  Here\nSt. Peter signifieth unto us that God is a mighty God, which can take\naway the cross from us when it seemeth him good; yea, and he can send\npatience in the midst of all trouble and miseries.  St. Paul, that elect\ninstrument of God, shewed a reason wherefore God layeth afflictions upon\nus, saying: _Corripimur a Domino, ne cum mundo condemnemur_; \"We are\nchastened of the Lord, lest we should be condemned with the world.\"  For\nyou see by daily experience, that the most part of wicked men are lucky\nin this world; they bear the swing, all things goeth after their minds;\nfor God letteth them have their pleasures here.  And therefore this is a\ncommon saying, \"The more wicked, the more lucky:\" but they that pertain\nto God, that shall inherit everlasting life, they must go to the pot;\nthey must suffer here, according to that scripture, _Judicium a domo Dei\nincipit_; \"The judgment of God beginneth at the house of God.\"  Therefore\nit cometh of the goodness of God, when we be put to taste the sauce of\ntribulation: for he doth it to a good end, namely, that we should not be\ncondemned with this wicked world.  For these sauces are very good for us;\nfor they make us more hungry and lusty to come to Christ and feed upon\nhim.  And truly, when it goeth well with us, we forget Christ, our hearts\nand minds are not upon him: therefore it is better to have affliction\nthan to be in prosperity.  For there is a common saying, _Vexatio dat\nintellectum_; \"Vexation giveth understanding.\"  David, that excellent\nking and prophet, saith, _Bonum est mihi quod humiliasti me, Domine_:\n\"Lord,\" saith he, \"it is good for me that thou hast pulled down my\nstomach, that thou hast humbled me.\"  But I pray you, what sauce had\nDavid, how was he humbled?  Truly thus: his own son defiled his daughter.\nAfter that, Absalom, one other of his sons, killed his own brother.  And\nthis was not enough, but his own son rose up against him, and\ntraitorously cast him out of his kingdom, and defiled his wives in the\nsight of all the people.  Was not he vexed? had he not sauces?  Yes, yes:\nyet for all that he cried not out against God; he murmured not, but\nsaith, _Bonum est mihi quod humiliasti me_; \"Lord, it is good for me that\nthou hast humbled me, that thou hast brought me low.\"  Therefore when we\nbe in trouble, let us be of good comfort, knowing that God doth it for\nthe best.  But for all that, the devil, that old serpent, the enemy of\nmankind, doth what he can day and night to bring us this sauce, to cast\nus into persecution, or other miseries: as it appeareth in the gospel of\nMatthew, where our Saviour casting him out of a man, seeing that he could\ndo no more harm, he desired Christ to give him leave to go into the\nswine; and so he cast them all into the sea.  Where it appeareth, that\nthe devil studieth and seeketh all manner of ways to hurt us, either in\nsoul, or else in body.  But for all that, let us not despair, but rather\nlift up our hearts unto God, desiring his help and comfort; and no doubt,\nwhen we do so, he will help: he will either take away the calamities, or\nelse mitigate them, or at the leastwise send patience into our hearts,\nthat we may bear it willingly.\n\nNow you know, at a great feast, when there is made a delicate dinner, and\nthe guests fare well, at the end of the dinner they have _bellaria_,\ncertain subtleties, custards, sweet and delicate things: so when we come\nto this dinner, to this wedding, and feed upon Christ, and take his\nsauces which he hath prepared for us, at the end cometh the sweetmeat.\nWhat is that?  Marry, remission of sins, and everlasting life; such joy,\nthat no tongue can express, nor heart can think, which God hath prepared\nfor all them that come to this dinner, and feed upon his Son, and taste\nof his sauces.  And this is the end of this banquet.  This banquet, or\nmarriage-dinner, was made at the very beginning of the world.  God made\nthis marriage in paradise, and called the whole world unto it, saying,\n_Semen mulieris conteret caput serpentis_; \"The Seed of the woman shall\nvanquish the head of the serpent.\"  This was the first calling; and this\ncalling stood unto the faithful in as good stead as it doth unto us,\nwhich have a more manifest calling.  Afterward Almighty God called again\nwith these words, speaking to Abraham: _Ego ero Deus tuus et seminis tui\npost te_; \"I will be thy God, and thy seed's after thee.\"  Now what is it\nto be our God?  Forsooth to be our defender, our comforter, our\ndeliverer, and helper.  Who was Abraham's seed?  Even Christ the Son of\nGod, he was Abraham's seed: in him, and through him, all the world shall\nbe blessed; all that believe in him, all that come to this dinner, and\nfeed upon him.  After that, all the prophets, their only intent was to\ncall the people to this wedding.  Now after the time was expired which\nGod had appointed, he said, _Venite, parata sunt omnia_; \"Come, all\nthings are ready.\"\n\nBut who are these callers?  The first was John Baptist, which not only\ncalled with his mouth, but also shewed with his finger that meat which\nGod had prepared for the whole world.  He saith, _Ecce Agnus Dei qui\ntollit peccata mundi_; \"Lo, the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sins of\nthe world.\"  Also Christ himself called, saying, _Venite ad me, omnes qui\nlaboratis_; \"Come to me, all ye that travail and labour, and I will\nrefresh you.\"  Likewise the apostles cried, and called all the whole\nworld; as it is written, _Exivit sonus eorum per universam terram_;\n\"Their sound is gone throughout all the world.\"  But, I pray you, what\nthanks had they for their calling, for their labour?  Verily this: John\nBaptist was beheaded; Christ was crucified; the apostles were killed:\nthis was their reward for their labours.  So all the preachers shall look\nfor none other reward: for no doubt they must be sufferers, they must\ntaste of these sauces: their office is, _arguere mundum de peccato_, \"to\nrebuke the world of sin;\" which no doubt is a thankless occupation.  _Ut\naudiant montes judicia Domini_, \"That the high hills,\" that is, great\nprinces and lords, \"may hear the judgments of the Lord:\" they must spare\nno body; they must rebuke high and low, when they do amiss; they must\nstrike them with the sword of God's word: which no doubt is a thankless\noccupation; yet it must be done, for God will have it so.\n\nThere be many men, which be not so cruel as to persecute or to kill the\npreachers of God's word; but when they be called to feed upon Christ, to\ncome to this banquet, to leave their wicked livings, then they begin to\nmake their excuses; as it appeared here in this gospel, where \"the first\nsaid, I have bought a farm, and I must needs go and see it; I pray thee\nhave me excused.  Another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go\nto prove them; I pray thee have me excused.  The third said, I have\nmarried a wife, and therefore I cannot come.\"  And these were their\nexcuses.  You must take heed that you mistake not this text: for after\nthe outward letter it seemeth as though no husbandman, no buyer or\nseller, nor married man shall enter the kingdom of God.  Therefore ye\nmust take heed that ye understand it aright.  For to be a husbandman, to\nbe a buyer or seller, to be a married man, is a good thing, and allowed\nof God: but the abuse of such things is reproved.  Husbandman, and\nmarried man, every one in his calling, may use and do the works of his\ncalling.  The husbandman may go to plough; they may buy and sell; also,\nmen may marry; but they may not set their hearts upon it.  The husbandman\nmay not so apply his husbandry to set aside the hearing of the word of\nGod; for when he doth so, he sinneth damnably: for he more regardeth his\nhusbandry than God and his word; he hath all lust and pleasure in his\nhusbandry, which pleasure is naught.  As there be many husbandmen which\nwill not come to service; they make their excuses that they have other\nbusiness: but this excusing is naught; for commonly they go about wicked\nmatters, and yet they would excuse themselves, to make themselves\nfaultless; or, at the least way, they will diminish their faults, which\nthing itself is a great wickedness; to do wickedly, and then to defend\nthat same wickedness, to neglect and despise God's word, and then to\nexcuse such doings, like as these men do here in this gospel.  The\nhusbandman saith, \"I have bought a farm; therefore have me excused: the\nother saith, I have bought five yoke of oxen; I pray thee have me\nexcused:\"  Now when he cometh to the married man, that same fellow saith\nnot, \"Have me excused,\" as the others say; but he only saith, \"I cannot\ncome.\"  Where it is to be noted, that the affections of carnal lusts and\nconcupiscence are the strongest above all the other: for there be some\nmen which set all their hearts upon voluptuousness; they regard nothing\nelse, neither God nor his word; and therefore this married man saith, \"I\ncannot come;\" because his affections are more strong and more vehement\nthan the other men's were.\n\nBut what shall be their reward which refuse to come?  The house-father\nsaith, \"I say unto you, that none of those men which were bidden shall\ntaste of my supper.\"  With these words Christ our Saviour teacheth us,\nthat all those that love better worldly things than God and his word\nshall be shut out from his supper; that is to say, from everlasting joy\nand felicity: for it is a great matter to despise God's word, or the\nminister of the same; for the office of preaching is the office of\nsalvation; it hath warrants in scripture, it is grounded upon God's word.\nSt. Paul to the Romans maketh a gradation of such-wise: _Omnis quicunque\ninvocaverit nomen Domini salvabitur: quomodo ergo invocabunt in quem non\ncrediderunt, aut quomodo credent ei quem non audisrunt_? that is to say,\n\"Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord, shall be saved: but how\nshall they call upon him, in whom they believe not?  How shall they\nbelieve on him of whom they have not heard?  How shall they hear without\na preacher?  And how shall they preach, except they be sent?\"  At the\nlength he concludeth, saying, _Fides ex auditu_; \"Faith cometh by\nhearing.\"  Where ye may perceive, how necessary a thing it is to hear\nGod's word, and how needful a thing it is to have preachers, which may\nteach us the word of God: for by hearing we must come to faith; through\nfaith we must be justified.  And therefore Christ saith himself, _Qui\ncredit in me, habet vitam aeternam_; \"He that believeth in me hath\neverlasting life.\"  When we hear God's word by the preacher, and believe\nthat same, then we shall be saved: for St. Paul saith, _Evangelium est\npotentia Dei ad salutem omni credenti_; \"The gospel is the power of God\nunto salvation to all that believe; the gospel preached is God's power to\nsalvation of all believers.\"  This is a great commendation of this office\nof preaching: therefore we ought not to despise it, or little regard it;\nfor it is God's instrument, whereby he worketh faith in our hearts.  Our\nSaviour saith to Nicodeme, _Nisi quis renatus fuerit_, \"Except a man be\nborn anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God.\"  But how cometh this\nregeneration?  By hearing and believing of the word of God: for so saith\nSt. Peter, _Renati non ex semine mortali corruptibili_; \"We are born\nanew, not of mortal seed, but of immortal, by the word of God.\"  Likewise\nPaul saith in another place, _Visum est Deo per stultitiam praedicationis\nsalvos facere credentes_; \"It pleased God to save the believers through\nthe foolishness of preaching.\"  But, peradventure, you will say, \"What,\nshall a preacher teach foolishness?\"  No, not so: the preacher, when he\nis a right preacher, he preacheth not foolishness, but he preacheth the\nword of God; but it is taken for foolishness, the world esteemeth it for\na trifle: but howsoever the world esteemeth it, St. Paul saith that God\nwill save his through it.\n\nHere I might take occasion to inveigh against those which little regard\nthe office of preaching; which are wont to say, \"'What need we such\npreachings every day?  Have I not five wits?  I know as well what is good\nor ill, as he doth that preacheth.\"  But I tell thee, my friend, be not\ntoo hasty; for when thou hast nothing to follow but thy five wits, thou\nshalt go to the devil with them.  David, that holy prophet, said not so:\nhe trusted not his five wits, but he said, _Lucerna pedibus meis verbum\ntuum, Domine_; \"Lord, thy word is a lantern unto my feet.\"  Here we learn\nnot to despise the word of God, but highly to esteem it, and reverently\nto hear it; for the holy day is ordained and appointed to none other\nthing, but that we should at that day hear the word of God, and exercise\nourselves in all godliness.  But there be some which think that this day\nis ordained only for feasting, drinking, or gaming, or such foolishness;\nbut they be much deceived: this day was appointed of God that we should\nhear his word, and learn his laws, and so serve him.  But I dare say the\ndevil hath no days so much service as upon Sundays or holy days; which\nSundays are appointed to preaching, and to hear God's most holy word.\nTherefore God saith not only in his commandments, that we shall abstain\nfrom working; but he saith, _Sanctificabis_, \"Thou shalt hallow:\" so that\nholy day keeping is nothing else but to abstain from good works, and to\ndo better works; that is, to come together, and celebrate the Communion\ntogether, and visit the sick bodies.  These are holy-day works; and for\nthat end God commanded us to abstain from bodily works, that we might be\nmore meet and apt to do those works which he hath appointed unto us,\nnamely, to feed our souls with his word, to remember his benefits, and to\ngive him thanks, and to call upon him.  So that the holy-day may be\ncalled a marriage-day, wherein we are married unto God; which day is very\nneedful to be kept.  The foolish common people think it to be a belly-\ncheer day, and so they make it a surfeiting day: there is no wickedness,\nno rebellion, no lechery, but she hath most commonly her beginning upon\nthe holy-day.\n\nWe read a story in the fifteenth chapter of the book of Numbers, that\nthere was a fellow which gathered sticks upon the sabbath-day; he was a\ndespiser of God's ordinances and laws, like as they that now-a-days go\nabout other business, when they should hear the word of God, and come to\nthe Common Prayer: which fellows truly have need of sauce, to be made\nmore lustier to come and feed upon Christ than they be.  Now Moses and\nthe people consulted with the Lord, what they should do, how they should\npunish that fellow which had so transgressed the sabbath-day.  \"He shall\ndie,\" saith God: which thing is an ensample for us to take heed, that we\ntransgress not the law of the sabbath-day.  For though God punish us not\nby and by, as this man was punished; yet he is the very self-same God\nthat he was before, and will punish one day, either here, or else in the\nother world, where the punishment shall be everlasting.\n\nLikewise in the seventeenth chapter of the prophet Jeremy God threateneth\nhis fearful wrath and anger unto those which do profane his sabbath-day.\nAgain, he promiseth his favour and all prosperity to them that will keep\nthe holy-days; saying, \"Princes and kings shall go through thy gates,\"\nthat is to say, Thou shalt be in prosperity, in wealth, and great\nestimation amongst thy neighbours.  Again: \"If ye will not keep my\nsabbath-day, I will kindle a fire in your gates;\" that is to say, I will\ndestroy you, I will bring you to nought, and burn your cities with fire.\nThese words pertain as well unto us at this time, as they pertained to\nthem at their time: for God hateth the disallowing of the sabbath as well\nnow as then; for he is and remaineth still the old God: he will have us\nto keep his sabbath, as well now as then: for upon the sabbath-day God's\nseed-plough goeth; that is to say, the ministry of his word is executed;\nfor the ministering of God's word is God's plough.  Now upon the Sundays\nGod sendeth his husbandmen to come and till; he sendeth his callers to\ncome and call to the wedding, to bid the guests; that is, all the world\nto come to that supper.  Therefore, for the reverence of God, consider\nthese things: consider who calleth, namely, God; consider again who be\nthe guests; all ye.  Therefore I call you in God's name, come to this\nsupper; hallow the sabbath-day; that is, do your holy-day work, come to\nthis supper; for this day was appointed of God to that end, that his word\nshould be taught and heard.  Prefer not your own business therefore\nbefore the hearing of the word of God.  Remember the story of that man\nwhich gathered sticks upon the holy day, and was put to death by the\nconsent of God: where God shewed himself not a cruel God, but he would\ngive warning unto the whole world by that man, that all the world should\nkeep holy his sabbath-day.\n\nThe almighty ever-living God give us grace to live so in this miserable\nworld, that we may at the end come to the great sabbath-day, where there\nshall be everlasting joy and gladness!  _Amen_.","title":"Sermons on the Card, and Other Discourses","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":37245}