Doctrinal Treatises and Introductions to the Holy Scriptures

In the second he teacheth all degrees, old, young, men, women, masters and servants, how to behave themselves; as they which Christ hath bought with his blood, to be his pro per or peculiar people, to glorify God with good works.

In the third he teacheth to honour temporal rulers, and to obey them; and yet bringeth to Christ again, and to the grace that he hath purchased for us; that no man should think that the obedience of princes' laws, or any other works, should justify us before God. And last of all, he chargeth to avoid the company of the stubborn and of the heretics.

IN this epistle St Paul sheweth a godly ensample of Christian love. Herein we see how Paul taketh poor Onesimos unto him, and maketh intercession for him unto his master, and helpeth him with all that he may, and believeth himself none otherwise than as though he himself were the said Onesimos: which thing yet he doth not with power and authority, as he well might have done, but putteth off all authority, and whatsoever he might of right do, that Philemon might do likewise toward Onesimos; and with great meekness and wisdom teacheth Philemon to see his duty in Christ Jesus.

ABOUT this epistle hath ever been much doubting, and whether this that among great learned men, who should be the author ^istlree^tr thereof; divers affirming that it was not Paul's, partly Jfaa™ edd0™betn because the style so disagreeth, and is so unlike his other ldnt. ed. epistles, and partly because it standeth in the second chapter, this learning was confirmed to us-ward, that is to say, taught us by them that heard it themselves of the Lord. Now Paul testifieth, (Gal. i.) that he received not his gospel of man, nor by man, but immediately of Christ, and that by revelation. Wherefore, say they, seeing this man confesseth that he received his doctrine of the apostles, it cannot be Paul's, but some disciple of the apostles. Now whether it were Paul's or no, I say not, but permit it to other men's judgments; neither think I it to be an article of any man's faith, but that a man may doubt of the author.

Moreover, many there hath been, which not only have ft°™ehd*gy denied this epistle to have been written by any of the apos- £eennwri"en ties, but have also refused it altogether, as no catholic or Sel't^ godly epistle, because of certain texts written therein. For Ant.c?dhollc' first he saith in the sixth: "It is impossible that they which were once lighted, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were become partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted of the good word of God, and of the power of the world to come, if they fall, should be renewed again to repentance" or conversion. And in the tenth it saith: "If we sin wil lingly after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, but a fearful looking for judgment, and violent fire which shall destroy the adversaries." And in the twelfth it saith, that Esau found no way to repentance, or conversion; no, though he sought it •with tears. Which texts, say they, sound, that if a man sin any more after he is once baptized, he can be no moro forgiven; and that is contrary to all the scripture, and there fore to be refused to be catholic and godly.

Unto which I answer, If we should deny this epistle for those texts1 sakes, so should we deny first Matthew, which in his xiith chapter affirmeth, that he which blasphemeth the Holy Ghost shall neither be forgiven here nor in the world to A solution of come: and then Mark, which in his third chapter saith, that doubts. he that blasphemeth the Holy Ghost shall never have for giveness; but shall be in danger of eternal damnation: and thirdly, Luke, which saith there shall be no remission to him that blasphemeth the Spirit of God. Moreover, John in his first epistle saith, " There is a sin unto death; for which a man should not pray." And 2 Pet. ii. saith, " If a man be fled from the uncleanness of the world through the knowledge of our Saviour Jesus Christ, and then be wrapped in again, his end is worse than the beginning; and that it had been better for him never to have known the truth." And Paul, 2 Tim. iii. curseth Alexander the coppersmith, desiring the Lord to re ward him according to his deeds; which is a sign that either the epistle should not be good, or that Alexander had sinned past forgiveness, no more to be prayed for. Wherefore seeing no scripture is of private interpretation, but must be expounded according to the general articles of our faith, and agreeable to other open and evident texts, and confirmed or compared to like sentences; why should we not understand This not to be these places with like reference as we do the other, namely Paui'»episue. when all the remnant of the epistle is so godly and of so great learning?

The first place in the vith chapter will no more than that they which know the truth, and yet willingly refuse the light, and choose rather to dwell in darkness, and refuse Christ, and make a mock of him (as the Pharisees, which when they were overcome with scripture and miracles, that Christ was the very Messias, yet had they such lust in iniquity, that they forsook him, persecuted him, slew him, and did all the shame that could be imagined to him) cannot be renewed, (el? peravoiav saith the Greek,) to be converted: that is to say, such malicious unkindness, which is none other than the blas pheming of the Holy Ghost, deserveth that the Spirit shall never come more at them, to convert them: which I believe to be as true as any other text in all the scripture.

And what is meant by that place in the tenth chapter, where he saith, " If wo sin willingly after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacri fice for sin," is declared immediately after. For he maketh a comparison between Mos'es and Christ, saying: "If he which despised Moses' law died without mercy, how much worse punishment is he worthy of, that treadeth the Son of God under foot, and counteth the blood of the covenant, by which blood he was sanctified, as an unholy thing, and blasphemeth the Spirit of grace?" By which words it is manifest that he meaneth none other by the fore words, than the sin of blas phemy of the Spirit.

For them that sin of ignorance or infirmity, there is remedy; but for him that knoweth the truth, and yet wil lingly yieldeth himself to sin, and consenteth unto the life of sin, with soul and body, and had rather lie in sin than have his poisoned nature healed by the help of the Spirit of grace, and maliciously persecuteth the truth, for him, I say, there is no remedy; the way to mercy is locked up; and the Spirit is Mercy is taken from him for his unthankfulness' sake, no more to be f?omehi^ given to him. Truth it is, if a man can turn to God and J^1^61* believe in Christ, he must be forgiven, how deep soever hesoultosinhath sinned; but that will not be without the Spirit, and such blasphemers shall no more have the Spirit offered them. Let every man therefore fear God, and beware that he yield not himself to serve sin; but how oft soever he sin, let him begin again, and fight afresh, and no doubt he shall at the last overcome, and in the meantime yet be under mercy for Christ's sake, because his heart worketh, and would fain be loosed from under the bondage of sin.

And that it saith in the twelfth, Esau found no way (els- fjLerdvoLav) to be converted and reconciled unto God, and restored unto his birth-right again, though he sought it with tears, that text must have a spiritual eye. For Esau in selling his birth-right despised not only that temporal promo tion, that he should have been lord over all his brethren, and king of that country; but he also refused the grace and mercy of God, and the spiritual blessing of Abraham and Isaac, and all the mercy that is promised us in Christ, which should have been his seed.

Of this ye see that this epistle ought no more to bo refused for a holy, godly and catholic, than the other' au thentic scriptures.

And now therefore, to come to our purpose again, though this epistle (as it saith in the sixth) lay not the ground of the faith of Christ, yet it buildeth cunningly thereon pure gold, silver, and precious stones; and proveth the priesthood

NO place m Of Christ with scriptures inevitable. Moreover, there is no

WOI>k m a^ the scripture that so plainly declareth the meaning and significations of the sacrifices, ceremonies, and figures of the old Testament, as this epistle: insomuch that, if wil-

T? ° " ful blindness and malicious malice were not the cause, this epistle only were enough to weed out of the hearts of the papists that cankered heresy of justifying of works, concern ing our sacraments, ceremonies, and all manner traditions of their own inventions.

And finally, in that ye see in the tenth, that he had been in bonds and in prison for Christ's sake, and in that he so mightily driveth all to Christ, to be saved through him, and so cared for the flock of Christ, that he both wrote and sent where he heard that they began to faint, to comfort, courage and strength them with the word of God, ourgKutoebe of and in that also that he sent Timothy, Paul's disciple, other*1"1 the virtuous, well-learned, and had in great reverence; it is w- T- easy to see that he was a faithful servant of Christ, and of the same doctrine that Timothy was of, yea, and Paul him self was of, and that he was an apostle or in the apostles' time, or near thereunto. And seeing the epistle agreeth to all the rest of the scripture (if it be indifferently looked on), why should it not be authority, and taken for holy scripture?

THOUGH this epistle were refused in the old time, and denied of many to be the epistle of a very apostle, and though also it lay not the foundation of the faith of Christ, but speaketh of a general faith in God, neither preacheth his death and resurrection, either the mercy that is laid up in store for us in him, or everlasting covenant made us in his blood, which is the office and duty of every apostle, as Christ saith, ThisepMleis John xvth, " Ye shall testify of me;" yet, because it setteth JjSi?*/"1 up no man's doctrine, but crieth to keep the law of God, Kscrip" and maketh love, which is without partiality, the fulfilling of the law, as Christ and all the apostles did, and hath, thereto, many good and godly sentences in it, and hath also nothing that is not l agreeable to the rest of the scriptures, if it be looked indifferently on; methinketh it ought of right to be taken for holy scripture. For as for that place for which haply it was at the beginning refused of holy men, as it ought, if it had meant as they took it, and for which place only, for The ists the false understanding, it hath been chiefly received of the SLTfor their papists; yet if the circumstances be well pondered, it will appear that the author's intent was far otherwise than they STg same.

For where he saith in the second chapter, " Faith with out deeds is dead in itself," he meaneth none other thing than all the scripture doth; how that faith, which hath no good deeds following, is a false faith, and not the faith that3 justifieth, or receiveth forgiveness of sins. For God promiseth them only forgiveness of their sins, which turn to God to keep his laws. Wherefore they that purpose to continue still in sin, have no part in that promise; but deceive them selves if they believe that God hath forgiven them their old sins for Christ's sake. And after, when he saith that man is justified by deeds, and not of faith only, he will no more than that faith doth not so1 justify every where, that no thing justifieth save faith. For deeds also do justify. And as faith only justifieth before God, so do deeds only justify before iy the world: whereof is enough spoken, partly in the prologue on Paul to the Romans, and also in other places. For as Paul affirmeth (Rom. iv.) that Abraham was not justified by works before God, but by faith only, as Genesis beareth record; so will James, that deeds only justified him before the world, and faith wrought with his deeds; that is to say, faith, wherewith he was righteous before God in the heart, did cause him to work the will of God outwardly, whereby he was righteous before the world; and whereby the world perceived that he believed in God, loved and feared God. And as (Heb. xi.) the scripture affirmeth that Rahab was justified before God through faith, so doth James affirm that through works, by which she shewed her faith, she was jus tified before the world: and it is true.