The seconde tome or volume of the Paraphrase of Erasmus vpon the Newe Testament conteynyng the epistles of S. Paul, and other the Apostles : wherunto is added a paraphrase vpon the reuelacion of S. John.

¶ The .xi. Chapter.

The texte.

¶ And then was geuen me a rede, lyke vnto a rodde, and it was sayd vnto me: Ryse & meat the temple of god, and the aulter, and them that worshyp therin: and the quier whiche is within the temple, cast out and meate it not for it is geuen vnto the Gentiles, & the holy citie shall they treade vnder fote xiii. monethes. And I wyll geue power vnto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesye a thousande, two hundered and .ix. dayes, clothed in sacke clothe. These are two olyue trees, and two candelstyckes, standynge before the God of the earth. And yf any man wyll hurte them, fyre shall procede out of their mouthes, and consume their enemies. And yf any man wil hurte them, this wyse must he be kylled. These haue power to shut heauen, that it rayne not in the dayes of their prophesyinge and haue power ouer waters to turne them to bloude, and to smite the earth with all maner plages as often as they wyll.

THe lorde doth teuele and shewe vnto Iohn, that he wyll vysyte and reforme his churche, (beyng so sore fallen and decaied) whā tyme shalbe thorowe apostolical men and godly parsons, which haue eaten vp and dysgested the booke of god, and with great swetnes and plesantnes, haue bene feruent and earnest to fur∣ther and to set furth the wyl of God. And thus he geueth hym a ••e••wande in his hande (as he dyd also vnto Ezechiell) to measure & to serche out the rightuousnes of the churches, and the state of euery one: And specially of them, whiche, by reason of their office and vocacion, ought to haue a speciall respecte and regarde to the seruyce of god: among the whiche, the bysshops and the highe & most speciall doctors and teachers of the churche (whiche are vnder∣stande* 1.1 and ment by the quiere, for as muche as they are maisters and rulers of the quiere) were the mooste wicked and vngodly: And they are compared and lykened vnto the heathen and were geuen and delyuered vp vnto them to be punysshed. For the heathen, and vngodly and supersticious people geuen to al ydolatrie, whether they be spiritual or secular, they shal treade down, destroy, and defyle the churche of Christ a long time, whiche is to be vnderstande by the xlii. monethes, y^e is to saye .iii. yeares & an halfe, whiche might well sygnifye .iii.* 1.2 hundreth yeares & an halfe, from the tyme that muche false doctrine & many su∣persticious ceremonies came first into y^e churche against the manifest worde of God. Whiche thinges sprang vp thorow y^• pompe, pryde, couetousnes and pre∣sumpcion of the spiritual prelates & watchmen, as they named them selues, and so ought to haue bene in dede by their office & callyng. The two witnesses of re∣pentaunce* 1.3 & amendement of lyfe, which should take the gospel in hande againe, and should restore & bryng forthe the booke againe, are Enoche & Elyas. For in the wicked tyme of the Cainites before Noes floode, Enoche studyed & went about, without doubte, bothe with word & dede, to reforme the world, & to reduce them vnto the true faith in God, & perfyght loue to their neyghboure againe. Wherunto he was moued by the holy goost, whiche did worke & speake in him, yea & parauenture also did write thorowe him. For there were once bokes of E∣noche, whiche nowe are not to be gotten. And lyke wyse did Elyas also in y^• time of y^e lawe, but with a wonderfull zeale & feruentnes both in word & deed, thorow the mocion of the holy goost, whiche worketh in the ministers of god, whan he seeth his tyme, accordynge as the person & place requireth. And therfore they bathe receyued one rewarde of saluacion, and remayned as it were immortall and are prophecied to come againe in spirite before the latter day of iudgement, to resiste and confounde the wycked Antichrist, and to heale with the oyle of lenitie suche as are apte to receyue it, or els with the fyre of feruente zeale

to confounde the wycked enemyes of god bothe with worde & deade, as Enoche and Elyas dyd, by the commaundement and ordinaunce of god, in their tyme, whan they were vpon the wicked earth. Lyke as also suche men might be founde in our tyme with their names, writynges, and doynges, not in one place of the earth, moued with the same spirite & with the same worde and lyke zeale of god, euery one after the gyfte of grace geuen vnto him. Moued, I saye, by the holy goost, of a godly mynde and lyke purpose as the nacions, people, persons and other circumstances required. Against these and suche lyke frendes and mini∣sters of god, shall many greuous troubles be alwayes deuised and attempted, by the wicked malignant churche, bothe against their good name, bodye, lyfe, and also against their goodes. And they haue no nother refuge, succour, com∣forte, helpe nor weapon to defende them with, but the onely, holy, eternall and inuyncible worde of god in their mouthes and handes, whiche confoundeth all their aduersaries and deadly enemyes, whiche euen them selues the longer they mainteyne their euyll and naughtye cause, the worse they make it, tyll at length they shall vtterly confounde and destroy themselues. But these .ii. ministers of the spirite of god, workynge in loue and feruentnes, with all softnes & bur∣nynge zeale lyke vnto Enoche and Elyas, they haue power thorowe the spirite of god (whiche worketh all thinges in his ministers) to procure and obteyne of god grace and vengeaunce accordynge to their faith and zeale, to y^e furtheraūce of goddes glorye, and to the profite and reformacion of the faythfull christen churche, as necessitie and conueniencie shall require. Euen lyke as Elyas had ouer the water, whan as thorowe his prayer he obteyned of god that it shoulde not rayne vpon earth for the space of three yeares: And agayne also fyre from heauen, against those that mocked and contemned his offyce and testymonie.

The texte.

¶ And when they haue fynisshed their testimonye, the beast that came out of the bottom∣lesse pyt, shall make warre against them, and shal ouercome them, and kyl them. And their bodyes shall lye in the stretes of the great citee, whiche spiritually is called zodom and Egipte, where our Lord was crucified. And they of the people and kynredes, and tonges, and they of the nacions, shall se their bodyes thre dayes and an halfe, and shall not suffer their bodyes to be put in graues. And they that dwel vpon the earthe, shall reioyce ouer them, and be glad, & shal sende gyftes one to another, for these two prophetes vexed them that dwelt on the earth.

It hath alwayes from tyme to tyme bene well sene, howe this beast hathe behaued hymselfe towarde the messagiers and ministers of god, whiche were sent vnto them. And specially vnder Achab and Manasses, and suche lyke kynges and ydolatrous and hethenysshe priestes whiche serued false god∣des, whiche persecuted the faythfull ministers of God, cursed and contemned them, burnt and drowned them, so farre as god permytted them. Whiche thing was for the best vnto the persons that suffered suche thinges, and for the syn∣guler profyte of the faythfull churche and congregacion. And yet for all their persecucion, the doctrine and workynge of the faythfull was euer vpright and lyuely, and their good and holy name with the commendacion of their godly feruent zeale, was also wonderfully preserued to the vtter shame and confusiō of the abhomynable and terryble beast, and all his members and lymmes: As the examples of the whole world doe testifye and beare wynes: And specially euen in our tyme, and also the moost true and infallyble storye of the prouy∣dence and of the holy worde of god. This citie, where Christ is dayly crucified,* 1.4 is (in figure and symilitude) the citie of Ierusalem, whiche for sheadyng of the

bloude of his Apostles, hath receyued her iust and due rewarde, as she deserued: and lykewyse the wycked churche corrupte and poysoned of Sathan, wherin he beareth rule, murtheringe the faythfull frendes of God, and ministers of the gospell, whose holy zeale and truth of God, whiche they haue preached, they coulde not nor woulde not suffer nor abyde, vntyll they were alwayes at length confounded and vtterly destroyed. Whiche thinge shall vndoubtedly happen also vnto them, whiche doe resist and withstande all christen reformacion of the churche in their state and order. Yea they see already before their eyes, and smell the indignacion of god & his terryble iudgement, wherof they haue bene ear∣nestly and faithfully warned, but they were neuer affrayd nor abasshed of it. At that tyme, the holy seruauntes and ministers of god, shall be fayne to suffer muche trouble, euen the very bytter and moost slanderous death. But at length whan all thinges shall be truly discussed, all the worlde shall see and perceyue the true doctrine and belefe of the faithfull & godly, & the impietie of y^e wycked, obstinate, blinde, and vngodly infydels, whiche woulde neuer beleue. And thus fayth and truth in god, shall haue the victorye.

The texte.

¶ And after thre dayes and an halfe, the spirite of lyfe from God, entred into them. And they stode vp vpon their fete, and a great feare came vpō al them that saw them. And they hearde a great voyce from heauen, sayinge vnto them: Come vp hyther. And they ascended vp into heauen in a cloude, and their ennemyes sawe them. And the same houre was there a great earthquake, and the ••enth parte of the citie fell, and in the earthquake were slayne names of men seuen .M. and the remnaunt wer feared, & gaue glorye to the god of heauen. The seconde woo is past, and beholde, the thirde woo wyll come anone.

Howe this beast with her members the wycked hethenyshe prelates and their sworne adherentes haue alwayes & in our tyme for a long season cruelly dealt with the ministers of gods word, and with the preachers of the truth of y^e moost sacred gospell, it is playne and euident ynoughe at this day vnto all the world: and thorowe the cronicles, whiche shall be publyshed, shall not be hydden vnto our posteritie, how, whan, and by whome dyuerse godlye men haue bene perse∣cuted and murthered and moost shamefully handeled of the spirituall prelates and their sworne adherentes, onely for the true doctrine and faythes sake. But an other tyme wyll come by the very iudgement and grace of god, whan as these holy men and faythfull witnesses of Christ, shall be had in hyghe honour and estimacion, and shall bryng more to passe with their preaching, writinges, and monumentes whiche they left behynde them, to the profyte and edificacion of the churche, and to the true vnderstandynge of the truth in all landes and na∣cions of the earth, than euer they dyd in their lyfe tyme, as it is euydent that it so happened vnto the holy prophetes and martirs. And than shal all the wicked enemies and contemners of the worde of god and of Christes true religion, trē∣ble and feare the iudgement of god, not vnworthely, and they shall vndoutedly receiue their due rewarde that they haue deserued for the extreme cruelty whiche they haue shewed and declared against the faythfull ministers and seruaun∣tes of God. Whiche rewarde they shal receyue with feare, tremblynge, sorowe, smart and paine, despaire, and with euerlasting shame and confusion folowing. Whether any suche thinge hath hitherto or maye hereafter happen, let euery true christen harte that trusteth in the mercye of god well consyder and wey by him selfe.

Notes

• * 1.1

  The quier.
• * 1.2

  xlii. mone∣thes.
• * 1.3

  The .ii. wit∣nesses.
• * 1.4

  The great citie.