A view of the marginal notes of the popish Testament, translated into English by the English fugitiue papists resiant at Rhemes in France. By George Wither
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Title
A view of the marginal notes of the popish Testament, translated into English by the English fugitiue papists resiant at Rhemes in France. By George Wither
Author
Wither, George, 1540-1605.
Publication
Printed at London :: By Edm. Bollifant for Thomas Woodcocke,
[1588]
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Subject terms
Bible -- N.T -- English -- Versions -- Douai -- Controversial literature -- Early works to 1800.
Bible. -- N.T -- Commentaries -- Early works to 1800.
Cite this Item
"A view of the marginal notes of the popish Testament, translated into English by the English fugitiue papists resiant at Rhemes in France. By George Wither." In the digital collection Early English Books Online. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/A15622.0001.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 10, 2024.
Pages
IAMES.
Iam. 1. 14.
The text.
For ∴ euerie one is tempted of his owne concupiscence, ab∣stracted
and allured.
The note.
The ground of temptation to sinne is our concupiscence, & not God.
The answer.
Tentations are either outward or inward. Tentations out∣ward
are afflictions, wherebie God is woont to trie and prooue
men, as gold and siluer is tried in the fire. Tentations inward
whereof Iames speaketh in this place, are inordinate desires
prouoking & soliciting vs to sinne, but bicause men who receiue
corruption from Adam, are prone and readie to do as Adam did,
that is, to lay their faults frō them selues to God, therfore Iames
earnestlie admonisheth them to looke into them selues, and there
to espie and sée the roote and matter of all corruption.
Iam. 1. 25.
The text.
But he that hath looked into the law of perfect libertie, and
hath remained in it, not made a forgetfull hearer but a doer
of the worke, this man shalbe ∴ blessed in his deede.
The note.
Beatitude or saluation consisteth in well working.
The answer.
Weldoers or workers are blessed and saued, and yet notwith∣standing
beatitude & saluation doth not consist in our weldoing,
but in the mercie & goodnes of God bestowed vpon vs in Christ.
Therefore it is to be obserued that in this place Iames maketh a
comparison betwéene hearers of the word, whereof one sort are
negligent & forgetfull, & therefore neuer the better for the things
they heare. The other sort are diligent, and commit to memorie,
and put in practise in life the thing they learned by hearing, these
latter so doing and not the former, shew them selues to be blessed
and saued. For Christ preached is their saluation, their workes
descriptionPage 256
do testifie their faith, whereby they haue laied hold on Christ
their righteousnes, as fruits do witnes the goodnes of a trée.
Iames. ••. 20.
The text.
But wilt thou know ∴ ô vaine man that faith without works
is idle?
The note.
Ile speaketh to all heretikes that say, Faith onely without works doth
iustifie, calling them vaine men.
The answer.
You shew your delight, you séeke to deceiue your selues and o∣thers
by equiuocations. For you know well ynough, that faith is
not taken héere for a true and a liuely faith, which worketh by
loue, as Paul and we take it, when we speake of iustifieng by
faith. Secondly, you know also, that we make no account of anie
such faith as is idle, or separated from loue. Thirdly, you know
that saint Iames taketh not héere iustifieng, for being made iust,
but for being declared and shewed to be iust: as appéereth by the
example of Abraham which he bringeth. For God first made him
iust, and afterward he was declared and shewed so to be, by that
most excellent example of obedience, in offering his sonne Isaac.
There is therfore no contrarietie betwixt vs and Iames, though
you go about to prooue that by sound of words, which by sound or
iust meaning you cannot effect and bring to passe.
〈◊〉〈◊〉. 3. 15.
The text.
But if you haue bitter zeale, and there be contentions in
your harts: glorie not, and be not liers against the truth: for
this is not ∴ wisdome descending from aboue, but earthly, sen∣suall,
diuelish.
The note.
The difference betwixt the humane wisedome specially of heretikes,
and the wisedome of the catholike church and hir children.
The answer.
If a man compare the fruits of heauenly wisedome, with the
fruits of the wisedome of your church, he shall find them as con∣trarie
as white is to blacke. All stories testifie, that your church
hath béene the author of most of the wars and contentions in
Christendome these thrée hundred yéeres, and vpwards. Your
bookes in praise of Sodomitri••, your curtesans maintained in the
eies and bosome of your most holy father, and the beastly life of
your priests, testifie the chastitie of your church. The mercie of
your church the massacres of France, and the Marian storme in
England not yet forgotten, do sufficiently shew. I might go tho∣rough
descriptionPage 257
the rest: but peace, chastitie, and mercie wanting amongst
you, doth sufficiently shew your wisedome to be earthly, sensuall,
and diuelish.
Iames. 4. 6.
The text.
And ∴ giueth greater grace: for the which cause it saith, God
resisteth the proud, and giueth grace to the humble.
The note.
The boldnes of heretikes adding heere the word scripture to the text
thus: And the scripture giueth greater grace.
The answer.
The blindnes of you papists, which thinke it a boldnes to set
the nominatiue case before the verbe. I pray you tell vs what it
is that (as saint Iames héere saith) giueth greater grace, if it be
not the scripture? But the place is plain, the words afore, and the
words following do inforce, that the word scripture must be sup∣plied:
but there is none other cause of your wrangling in this,
but that you would haue euery thing left as obscure and darke,
as might be possible, to fray poore men from studieng that which
they cannot vnderstand.
Iames. 4. 8.
The text.
∴ Approch to God, and he will approch to you.
The note.
Free will and mans owne endeuor necessarie in comming to God.
The answer.
Why do you not plainly say, that we must preuent and go be∣fore
the grace of God by our will and our endeuor, bicause Iames
setteth our approching first? That we know to be your meaning,
for that your sophisters commonly contend for. But to answer
you shortly, we are commonly and vsually by the spirit of God
exhorted to that, which God must worke in vs, therefore frée will
is not prooued by those exhortations.
Iames. 4. 11.
The text.
∴ Detract not one from another my brethren.
The note.
He forbiddeth detraction, euill speaking and slandering.
The answer.
Uices, wherein you set a great péece of your delight, as in your
annotations most manifestly doth appéere.
Iames. 4. 15.
The text.
For that you should say, ∴ If our Lord will, and if we shal liue,
we will do this or that.
descriptionPage 258
The note.
All promises and purposes of our worldly affaires are to be made vn∣der
condition of Gods good liking and pleasure, and it becommeth a
Christian man to haue vsually this forme of speech in that case: If God
will: If God otherwise dispose not.
The answer.
If this note had come from Rome, as it doth from Rhemes:
from Italie, as it doth from France, we should haue woondered
how they teach others that, which they haue not learned them∣selues.
It may be you know the common Italian prouerbe, In
despite of God. And this I know, that neither this good counsell
of Iames was vsed in time of poperie, and when in the time of
the Gospell men began to leaue former corruptions, and refor∣med
their spéeches according to this rule, the papists scorned at
it, and derided it, as too much holines.
Iames. 5. 1.
The text.
Go to now ye rich men, weepe, ∴ howling in your miseries
which shall come to you.
The note.
A fearfull description of the miseries that shall befall in the next life
to the vnmercifull couetous men.
The answer.
But your religion giueth them hart of grace to contemne all
threats: for your father the pope will sell them heauen for mony.
••ames. 5. 7.
The text.
Behold the husbandman expecteth the pretious fruit of the
earth: patiently bearing till he receiue ∴ the timely and the
lateward.
The note.
He meaneth either fruit or raine.
The answer.
It is an Hebraisme, and therefore better expounded of raine
than of fruit, bicause the phrase is vsuall in the Hebrew, and so v∣sually
signifieth.
Iames. 5. 10.
The text.
∴ Confesse therefore your sinnes one to another: and pray
one for another that you may be saued.
The note.
The heretikes translate, Acknowledge your sinne, &c. So little they
can abide the very word of confession.
descriptionPage 295
The answer.
Héere is a knot sought in a rush. To acknowledge, and to con∣fesse
in English eares is all one. That we cannot abide the word
of confession is one of your impudent and shamelesse slanders,
from the which the vsuall and common vsing of it in our transla∣tions
do sufficiently cléere vs.
Iames. ••. 20.
The text.
My brethren, if any of you shall erre from the truth, and a
man conuert him, he must know that he that maketh a sinner
to be conuerted from the error of his way, shall saue his soule
from death, and ∴ couereth a multitude of sinnes.
The note.
He that hath the zeale of conuerting sinners, procureth heerby mer∣cie
and remission to himselfe, which is a singular grace.
The answer.
You dreame still of mans procuring mercie and remission to
himselfe by his owne works: but S. Iames hath no such thing,
but onely this, that the soule of the conuerted man is saued, and
his sinnes couered, that is to say, abolished.
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