Tvvoo bookes of Saint Ambrose Bysshoppe of Mylleyne, entytuled: Of the vocation and callying of all nations. Newly translated out of Latin into Englyshe, for the edifiying and comfort of the single mynded and godly vnlearned in Christes Church, against the late sprong secte of the Pelagians ... By Henry Becher minister in the Church of God ...

The .iiii. Chapter.

AND these thynges whiche I haue brief∣ly and compendious∣ly touched,* 1.1 do suffice to this purpose, that we may moste certeynly knowe how that no faithful man, not departyng from GOD, is for∣saken of hym, neyther that the fall of anye manne is ap∣poynted by the ordinaunce of god. But many which yet haue the vse of reason, are therefore at libertie to tourne backe, be∣cause that not to haue tourned backe myght haue a rewarde, and that the thing which could not be don without y^e working of the spirite of God myght be reckened for theyr merites, of whom it coulde not bee done by wyll, whiche wyll in e∣uyll actions can be alone, but

in good doing it canne not be alone. For though it be agrea∣ble to mans nature to be of a good wyll: yet the vice or fault that fell into nature throughe an euyll wyll, is not ouercome by the power of nature, but by the power of grace. Therefore that first people was gouerned by the spirite of God, and dyd obteine from the felowship and maners of that cursed and fore∣dampned people, through the information of the holy ghost: kepynge a seperation of them¦selues, from mynglynge with the carnall men: whose euyls the long suffryng of Godde dyd so long forbeare, as the good menne pleased hym in that they dydde not folowe them. But afterwardes, when the good men were corrupted also

through folowyng of the euyll, and dyd through the faulte of wyll, wholly conspire together into al one wickednesse. Whom (the house of Noah excepted) one vngodlynesse had polluted, one sentence and iudgemente dyd roote out and destroy. But the goodnesse of God fayled not that part of men which remay∣ned not in charitie, but swel∣led from the beginnynge of them with the poison of the de∣uylles malice:* 1.2 For the Lorde vouchsafed through his father∣lye counsell, to mittigate the prince of that wicked Nacion, (who enuied the good woorkes of his holy brother, and imagi∣ned his death in his mische∣uous harte) saying to Cayne: Why art thou sadde?* 1.3 why doeth thy countenaunce change? If

thou offrest ryghtly, and yet de∣uideste not ryghtly: hast thou not sinned? Be content, for the amendment therof shal belong to thee, and thou shalt rule the matter. Put awaye (saith he) thy sadnesse, that aryseth of an enuious disdayne, and quench the flames of thy cruell hatred.* 1.4 Abell hath not hurte thee, nor done thee harme in pleasynge me. I haue despised thine offe∣ringes by mine own iudgemēt, not by his desire. Thou haste done a good woorke negligent∣lye. Chine oblation hadde ben ryght, yf the deuision had ben ryght. Thou oughtest to haue knowen what thou shouldeste offer, seyng thou kneweste to whō thou shouldest offer. Thou haste not ryghtlye deuided be∣twene me & thee, because thou

haste reserued the beste to thy selfe. This errour therefore is thine, & this trespace is thine owne: be quiete, and be not moued agaynst thine innocent brother, but rather let thy faut be reuoked to thy selfe. Let not sinne raigne and beare rule o∣uer thee, but rather take thou to thy selfe dominion ouer it: For by repentynge, both thou shalt not proceade into greater mischief, and also shalt be clen∣sed from the thynge wherein it greeued thee that thou haddest displeased me. Therfore when God spake such things to Cain is it to be doubted that he wold haue brought to passe (yea and it suffised as touchyng the ma∣ner of his healyng) that Caine shoulde haue repented of his vngodly furye? But his stoute

malice became the more vnex∣cusable, of that thyng whereof it ought to haue bene the bet∣ter refourmed. And doubtlesse, God knewe before to what end the conceipt of the franticke fe∣low would come: neither was his mischeuous wyl compelled to sinne by necessitie, because the knowledge of God coulde not be disceiued. From whose conspiracie and workynge also the lyfe of Abell myght haue ben preserued without harme: but that it pleased GOD with the greate prayse of his paci∣ence, that the temporarie wood¦nesse of the wicked man, should become the perpetuall honour of the iust mā. And who cannot easelye perceaue that the good∣nesse of God neuer denied it self to y^e posterite of this murtherer

of his brother, althoughe they lyued in the maners of theyr forefather, if he would but con∣sider how much so long a paci∣ence of God, so greate a plentie of temporall goodes, & so great a nombre of issue encreased, myght haue profyted them? The which benefites, although they dyd nothynge helpe to the remedie and amendment of thē that were obdurate and harde∣ned: yet do thei proue that their fallyng away proceaded not of Gods ordinaunce, but of theyr owne wyll. But in the preser∣uaciō of Noah, & of his sonnes and daughters in lawe, in whō the hope of thincrease of al na∣cions was laide vp: how great workes of Gods grace were de∣clared, the holy Scripture doth tell plainly. Forasmuch as by

that ark, which was of so won¦derfull wydenesse y^t it receiued al kindes of beastes (so much as belōged to the store of encrease) the Church was figured, which was to bee gathered together out of all nacions of men, vnto it selfe: when by a tree and by water, the redemption on the Crosse and the wasshyng of re∣generation is opened: when in them that were saued frō that destruction of the worlde, the fulnesse of all the Gentilles is blessed: when the blessynge of the encrease of mankynde is re∣newed, and libertie encreased to eate what men list (strangled and bloud only forbodden) And the securitie and sauftie of our saluacion was consecrated, in the testimonie of the bowe of manye colours, that is in the

sygnes of manyfolde grace.

The whiche Sacramentes and misteryes verely, dyd not onely enstruct those fewe men of one housholde that were then: but also in them, all theyr pasteri∣ties and ofspring, to the entent that the thyng that was geuen to the reformation of the pa∣rentes, might profite towardes the instruction of the Children. And nowe, when in processe of tyme, the posterities and gene∣ratiōs of men were increased, & the great number of mortal mē were waxē proude of theyr mul∣tipliynges, and according to the height of theyr pryde, went a∣bout to builde them a tower of an vnmeasurable buyldynge, that it shuld reach vp vnto hea∣uen: How meruailous was the censure of gods iustice in repres¦sing

of that theyr arrogant pre∣sumption? which did confound that one onely speache of those people that was so consonante and agreeable with significati∣ons that were knowen to eue∣ry man amonge themselues, in to the diuersitie of .lx. and .xii. tougnes: that the agreement of the workmen perishing in disa∣greable voyces, the purpose of theyr mad enterpryse myght be brokē: and that he myght cause them to inhabite vppon all the whole face of the earth, thorow the necessarye scatterynge a∣brode of an euill gathering to∣gether. And the myracles of the Christian grace were foreor∣dayned in that woorke of Goddes prouydence, whiche should afterward call together all them that were so dysper∣sed

into the couplement of that buyldyng wherein euery knee boweth to GOD, and euery tongue confesseth that Iesus Christ is in the glory of the fa∣ther.

This same largenesse of grace dyd the promyse of Godde that was made to Abraham declare, to be opened nowe in the ful∣nesse of the times appointed, by more euident tokens, what tyme as his double succession (that is to wete, the children of the flesshe, and the chyldren of promesse) was compared to the multitude of grauell stones, & of starres.* 1.5 And the olde man be∣yng farre from the hope of ha∣uyng anye issue, throughe the aged barreynnesse of his wyfe: beleued in a cōmendable faith through the issue of one sonne,

that he should be y^e father of the whole worlde,* 1.6 foreseeyng or ra∣ther beholding him in his sede, that sayde: Abraham sawe my day, and reioysed. By the which fayth, whē Abraham was iusti∣fied, he had not yet receyued the commaundement of circumci∣sion: but his faith was counted to hym for righteousnes, when he was yet in his naturall pre∣pution or vncircumcision.

And that same fayth receyued the seale of circumcisiō,* 1.7 in that same member wherby the seede of procreation might come vn∣to that fleshe, wherein without all carnall seede,* 1.8 God, the sonne of GOD, the worde, might be∣come fleshe, and bee borne of Abrahams daughter, euen the Virgin Mary, takinge all men into the felowshippe of this his

natiuitie and byrth, which be∣ynge borne agayne in Christ by the holie ghost, shoulde beleue the thynge that Abraham be∣leued.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Gods or∣dinaunce extendeth not to the fall of men.
• * 1.2

  Cayne.
• * 1.3

  Gene. 4.
• * 1.4

  He mea∣neth that Cayne de∣uided the vvorste of his fruites to GOD, vvhereas he should haue geuē the best.
• * 1.5

  philip. 2.
• * 1.6

  Iohn. 8.
• * 1.7

  Iesus Christ.
• * 1.8

  That is the virgin Mary.