An exposycyon vpon the v.vi.vii. chapters of Mathewe which thre chapters are the keye and the dore of the scrypture, and the restoring agayne of Moses lawe corrupt by ye scrybes and pharyses. And the exposycyon is the restorynge agayne of Chrystes lawe corrupte by the Papystes. Item before the boke, thou hast a prologe very necessary, conteynynge the whole sum of the couenaunt made betwene God and vs, vpon whiche we be baptysed to kepe it. And after thou haste a table that ledeth the by the notes in the margentes, vnto al that is intreated of in the booke.

IVdge nat, that ye be nat iudged. For as ye iudge, so shall ye be iudged. And w^t what measure ye meate w^t the same shall it be mesured to you agayne. Why lokest thou on the mote that is in thy brothers eye, and markest nat the beame that is in thyne owne eye? Or howe canst thou say to thy brother. Let me plūcke out the mote out of thyne eye, and beholde, there is a beame ī thyne owne eye? Thou ypocrite, plucke fyrst the beame out of thine owne eye, and then thou shalte se clerlye to plucke the mote out of thy brothers eye.

* 1.1Thys is nat meant of the temporall iudge∣mentes, for Christe forbade nat that, but ofte dyd stablyshe it, as do Peter & Paule in theyr Epistles also. Nor here is nat forboden to iudge those dedes which are manifest agaynst the law of God, for those ought euery Christen man to persecute,* 1.2 yet must they do it after the ordre that Christ hath set. But when he saythe. Ypocrite, cast out first the beme that is in thyne owne eye, it is easie to vnderstande of what maner of iudgynge he meanethe. ¶ The ypo∣crites wyll haue fastynges, prayenges, kne∣lynge, crouchyng▪ duckynge and a thousande ceremonyes of their owne inuēcion. And who so euer do nat as they do, they counte hym a dampned soule by & by. To Christ they say. why fast nat thy disciples, as the Pharesyes do why plucke they the eares of corne and rubbe them in theyr handes (though they dyd it com∣pelled with pure hunger) and do that is nat lawfull on the Saboth day? why breake ye the tradicions of our elders / and washe nat when ye syt downe to mete? ye and why doest thou thy selfe heale the people vpon the holyday? why dyddest thou nat only heale him that was bedred .xxxviii. yeres, but also badest hī bere his beed away vpon the saboth day? Be there nat workyng dayes ynowe to do good dedes to the prayse of God, and proffyte of thy ney∣boure, but that thou must breake thy Sabothe day? He can nat be but a dāpned person that breketh the holy daye / and despyseth the or∣dinaunce

of the holy churche.

He eateth butter a frydayes with out a dispē∣sacion of our holy father the pope. ye & kake bread made with mylke and egges to / and whyte mete in lent, he taketh no holy water whan he cometh to the churche, he hereth no masse frome sonday to sonday. And eyther he hath no bedes at al, or else thou shalt nat here a stone clynke in the hande of hym, nor yet his lyppes wagge al the masse and matens whyle.* 1.3 &c. O ypocrite, cast out first the beme that is in thyne owne eye, and then thou shalt se better. Thou vnderstandest all Goddes lawes falsly / and therfore thou kepest none of them truly / his lawes require mercy & nat sacrifice. More ouer thou haste a false entent in all the workes that thou doest, and therfore are they al damp¦nable in the syght of god, ypocrite cast out the beame that is in thyne owne eye, lerne to vn∣derstande the lawe of God truly, & to do thy workes a ryght, & for the entent that God or∣deyned them. And then thou shalt se whether thy brother haue a mote in his eye or nat / * 1.4 and yf he haue howe to plucke it out / and else nat. ¶For he that knoweth the entent of the lawe and of workes though he obserue a thousande ceremonyes for his owne exercise, he shall ne∣uer cōdempne his brother or breake vnite with hym in those thynges which Christ neuer com∣maunded, but lefte indifferent. Or yf he se a mote in his brothers eye, that he obserueth nat with his brothren same certen ordinaūce made

for a good purpose because he knoweth nat the entent,* 1.5 he wyl plucke it out fayre & softe∣ly and enstructe hym louyngely, & make hym wel cōtent, which thynge yf our spiritual wold do, men wolde nat so abhore to obey theyr tyrannye. But they be ypocrites & do and cō∣maunde all theyr workes for a false purpose / and therfore iudge, slee and shede theyr bre∣threns bloude mercylesslye. God is the father of all mercy, and therfore gaue nat ypocrites suche absolute power to compelle theyr bre∣thren to obey what they lyst or to slay thē with out pytye, shewyng ether no cause of theyr cō∣maundementes at al, but so wyl we haue it / or else assignynge an entent dampnable and con∣trary to all scripture, Paule. Ro. xiiii. sayth to thē that obserued ceremonies, that they shulde nat iudge them that dyd nat, for he that obser¦ueth and knoweth nat the entent iudgeth at once, and to them that obserued nat that they shulde nat despise them that obserued, he that obserueth nat, ought nat to despyse y^e weknes or ignoraunce of his brother, tyll he perceaue that he is obstinate and wyll nat lerne. More ouer suche measure as thou geuest,* 1.6 thou shalte receaue agayne, that is, yf thou iudge thy ney∣boure. God shall iudge the, for yf thou iudge thy neyboure in suche thynges / thou knowest nat the lawe of god, nor the entent of workes / and arte therfore cō∣dempned of god.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Iudgynge.
• * 1.2

  what iud∣gynge is rebuked.
• * 1.3

  The bea∣me-
• * 1.4

  Ceremoni∣es, he that breaketh vnite for zele of ce∣remonies vnderstan∣deth nat Goddes lawe.
• * 1.5

  Ceremo∣nyes.
• * 1.6

  Measure.