A defense of the sincere and true translations of the holie Scriptures into the English tong against the manifolde cauils, friuolous quarels, and impudent slaunders of Gregorie Martin, one of the readers of popish diuinitie in the trayterous Seminarie of Rhemes. By William Fvlke D. in Diuinitie, and M. of Pembroke haule in Cambridge. Wherevnto is added a briefe confutation of all such quarrels & cauils, as haue bene of late vttered by diuerse papistes in their English pamphlets, against the writings of the saide William Fvlke.

MART. 2. And it is a worlde to see, how Beza shifteth from one signification of the word iustified, or, made iust, to an other. Sometime to be iustified, is to be pronounced qui••••e from* 1.1 all sinne, or declared iust before Gods indgement seate: and so ••e ••rāslateth it in the text Act. 13. v. 39. and as though his guil∣ty conscience were afraide of a blowe, he saith he fleeth not the terme of iustifying or iustification, because he vseth it in other places. He doth so in deede, but thē his cōmentarie supplieth the ••urne: as Ro. 2. v 13. Not y^t hearers of y^e law are RIGHTE∣OVS before God (so they delight to translate, rather than, IVST before God) but the doers of the Lawe shall be* 1.2 IVSTIFIED, that is (saith Beza) shal be pronoūced iust. The Apostle must needes say by the coherence and consequence of his words, no•• the hearers are iust, but the do••rs shall be iuste or iustified. Beza wil in no case haue it so, but either in text or cōmētarie make the Apostle say as him self imagineth. Yet in an* 1.3 other place he protesteth very solemnely, that to be iustified, is

not to be pronounced or accounted iuste, but rather to be iuste in deede: and that, he prooueth out of S. Paule. Ro. 5. v. 19.* 1.4 who maketh it all one, to be iustified, and, to be made iust. And againe by this reason, that it shoulde bee manifestly re∣pugnant to Gods iustice, to account him for iuste, that is not iuste, and therfore that man in deede is made iust. Thus Beza. Woulde you not thinke, hee were come to bee of our opinion? but hee reuolteth againe, and interpreateth all these goodly wordes in his olde sense, saying, Not that any qualitie is in∣wardly* 1.5 giuen vnto vs, of which wee are named iust: but because the iustice of Christe is imputed to vs by faith freely. By faith then at the least we are truly iustified. Not so neither, but faith (sayth he) is an instrument wherewith* 1.6 we apprehende Christ our iustice. So that we haue no more iustice in vs, than we haue glorie: for glorie also we apprehend by faith.

FVLK. 2. Al learned mē I hope do see, that you haue no regarde, how vainely you cauil, so you may seeme to the ignorant to say somthing against thē that be godly and learned. Act. 13. v. 39. Beza translateth 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, ab∣solui, that is (saith hee) to bee declared iust, or absolued. and giueth this reason, why he vseth not the worde iusti∣fica••i in that place which he vseth elsewhere.

Ne quis illud ab omnibus, perinde acciperet ac si casus esset modi, aut instru∣menti, per quod iusti••icemur, id est, iustifiamus, ac pronuncie∣mur, aut pro iustis habeamur, hoc quidem loco malui absoluē∣di verbum vsurpare. vt magis perspicua esset oratio: Least a∣nie man should take this worde of the texte ab omnibus, as though it were the case of the meane, or instrument, by which we are iustified, that is, made and pronounced iust, or accounted for iuste. In this place I chose rather to vse the worde of absoluing, that the sentence mighte bee more cleare. The Latine ab omnibus, may signifie by all things▪ or from all things.

Therefore, leaste anye manne shoulde mistake the Apostle, as thoughe hee saide wee are iustified by all those thinges, where hee meaneth wee are iustified from all thinges, Beza in

this place vseth the worde of absoluing or acquitting, in the same sense that he doth iustifying in other places, where hee speaketh of the same matter: and sayeth as plainely as a man can speake, that to be iustified, and to be made iuste, or pronounced, or accompted iust bee∣fore God is all one. Yet our Momus findeth faulte with him, for expounding, to be iustified, Rom. 2. v. 13. to bee pronounced iuste, as thoughe God will pronounce anye man iuste, whiche is not iuste indeede. But Beza (hee saith) elsewhere, protesteth that to be iustified, is not to be pronounced or accompted iuste, but rather to be iust indeede. If Martin hadde not beelyed Beza, we shoulde haue hadde Bezaes wordes sette downe, bothe in Latine and Englishe. But in truth Beza hath no suche words: yet in sense he hath thus muche, that to be iustified be∣fore God, is to be iuste indeede, and not to bee onely pronounced or accompted iuste, when hee is not so in deede. But that wee are made truely iust indeede, by the iustice of Christe, whiche is imputed vnto vs freely by faith. And as for that newe life or iustice whiche is called inherēt in vs, it is not the cause but the witnes of that iustice, by imputation of whiche, wee are saued, folowing him that is iustified, and not going before iu∣stification: and faith indede, is the instrument by which we apprehend Christ our iustice. Neither doth Beza say, that we are not truely iustified by faith: but that faith is not the principall efficient cause, which is the mercie of God, but the instrumentall cause, by whiche wee take holde of the mercie of God in Christe. In al this, Beza hath said nothing contrarie to himself, nor to the truth. And it is no absurditie to say, that the iustice of Christe, by which we are iustified is no more inherent in vs, than his glorie. And yet both assured vnto vs by faith. As for that iustice, whiche is an effect of Gods sanctifying spi∣rite, and a fruite of our iustification beefore God, by whiche also we are iustified, or declared iuste beefore men, as S. Iames teacheth, is inherēt in vs: as also the first

fruits of glorification, by that peace of cōscience, & ioy that we haue in God, being reconciled to vs by Christ.

Notes

• * 1.1

  〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. absolui. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. absoluitur.
• * 1.2

  Ius••i pronuntia∣bu••••••••.
• * 1.3

  Annot. Ro. 3. v 20.
• * 1.4

  〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.
• * 1.5

  Non quasi nobis indatur qualitas.
• * 1.6

  Annot. in Ro. 4. v. 2▪