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

Luke 16. 23.

The text.

And lifting vp his eies when he was in torments, he sawe Abraham a farre off, ∴ and Lazarus in his bosome, &c.

The note.

Lazarus in Abrahams bosome and rest, but both in hell, and not in the kingdom of heauen before Christ. Hierom. epist. 3. Epitaph. Nepot.

The answer.

You wrestle in vaine for a third place, for though your errour therein be somewhat auncient, and haue some fauour of the olde writers, yet they are so vncertaine and so diuers in that matter, dissenting both from them selues, and one from another, not knowing where to place this third place, or what to make of it, that no wise man will wander after such vncertaine steps, as they lead him in. Hierome taketh this place to be paradise,* 1.1 and Hierome taketh this place not to be paradise in this place by you quoted: and if your owne authour be not constant, what shall we thinke of the rest?* 1.2 Augustine can not tell whether the bosome of Abraham be paradise or hell, but in reasoning the case, he deliue∣reth thrée reasons why it should not be hell: first, bicause hell is named in the text in the death of the rich man, and not named in the death or rest of Lazarus. Secondlie, bicause it is hard to finde the name of hell in scriptures taken in good part, for a place of ioy and rest: so that if the scriptures had said, that Christ had gone into Abrahams bosome after death,* 1.3 and had not told of the loosing of the sorrowes of death, he would haue marueiled that any durst haue béene so bold, as to haue affirmed that he discended into hel. Thirdlie, the great and wonderfull distance héere mentioned be∣twixt hell and Abrahams bosome, it were too long, and not agrée∣ing with the breuitie which I haue hitherto vsed, to rippe vp the disagréeing iudgements of the fathers, whether Abrahams bo∣some be parcell of heauen or hell, or whether it be aboue vs or beneath vs, for so alwaies it is, when men are vncertainlie cari∣ed after the vanitie of their owne minde and conceite, they wot not whither them selues. How much better had it béene for them and you to hold fast that,* 1.4 which saint Augustine calleth the faith of the Catholikes: namelie, that the kingdome of heauen is a place of ioy for the faithfull, and hell a place of punishment for

infidels and apostataes, and that a third place either for rest or punishment is vnknowne, and no where found in scriptures. These two places are héere liuelie described, for the rich man went to hell, a place of torments: but Lazarus was caried into Abrahams bosome, a place of ioy and rest. Heauen is called A∣brahams bosome, bicause that God gaue him that honour to bée father of the faithfull, therefore his children are said to be gathe∣red into his bosome, when together with him they are crowned with heauenlie ioy and rest, the reward of his and their faith.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Ad Paulam super obitu Bl••sill••e.
• * 1.2

  Epistola 57.
• * 1.3

  Epistola 99.
• * 1.4

  Hipognosticon 〈◊〉〈◊〉. 5.