Hereafter folowe x. certayne places of scrypture, by whome it is proued that the doctrynes and tradycyons of men ought to be auoyded

¶The fourthe place is / of Paule in his fyrste pystle / the 4 chapytre.

THe fourth place is / of Paule in his fyrst pystle / the .iiii. chapyt{er} to Thy¦mothe. The spyryte (saythe he) spe∣kyth euydentlye, that in the later tymes some shall departe from the fayth, & shall gyue hede to spyrytes of errour and to de∣uyllysshe doctryne, whiche are false spe∣kers through fayned showe of holynesse hauynge theyr conscyences marked with a hote yron, forbydynge to mary and cō∣maundynge to absteyne fro meates, whi∣che god hathe created to be receyued with thankes gyuynge, of them whiche beleue and haue knowen the treuth, that what¦soeuer god creatyd is good, and nothyng to be refused, so that it be receyued with

gyuynge thankes for it, is sanctyfyed by the worde of god and prayer / of these yf thou shalte gyue knowlege and counsell to the bretherne / thou shalte than showe thy selfe a good mynyster of Chryste, as one broughte vp in the wordes of faythe and good doctryne / whiche doctryne thou haste at all tymes folowed. But caste a∣waye from the vnghostly & olde wyues fables. O immortall god, w^t howe great sounde of wordes / euyn as it were with thondre. Dothe the apostell inuade and ouerthrowe the work{is}, doctrynes, & sectes of men. Fyrste whyle these tradycyona∣ryes here after shall take pryde that they haue receyued theyr tradycyons of the Pope and other holy fathers. What iud∣gement (I pray you) shall Chryste gyue vpon this mater? Shall he not saye on this maner? Paule was my apostell and chosen vessyll (as Luke lefte it mencyo∣ned in thapostels actes). Why than gaue ye not more credence to them than to the Pope & the fathers / seynge that ye haue no suertye whether they be the instrumen¦tes

of god or of y^e deuyll? What shall they answere than trowe ye? ¶Secondarely, I aske these tradycionaries, whether that egges, butter, chese, mylke, flesshe, & other meates / fro whiche they abstayne on fas∣tyngdayes & by theyr ordres / be the good creatures of god? Whiche yf they wyll graunt (other wyse wyll they not dare saye) than are they vndoutedly euyn the same / of whome thapostell speketh, that is. That they shulde forbyde meates whi¦che god hath creatyd for y^e vse of the true beleuers / that they also shulde forbyde to mary. And so yet shall they not wynne out / but shall be twyched somwhat more on the quycke with this texte of Paule. Nowe harke what Paule saythe of them and by what fassyons he rolleth them frō one place to another. ¶Fyrst (saythe he) they are departed from the faythe. For it were impossyble for thē to teche the ryght wysenes of workes, oneles they rekened thē selfe therby to be iustyfyed. And this Synyon of theyrs is a very sure token y^t they are departed from the faythe. For

they applye, iustefyenge to workes / whi∣che iustyfyenge shulde be gyuen onely to faythe. ¶Secondarely, they gyue hede to spirytes of errour, (he sayeth not to mē of errour) but to spirytes, that is. That they boste them selfe of spirytualytie / re∣ioysynge to be called spirytuall. And say that all theyr actes are done, by the ayde and mayntenaunce of the spiryte. But whyle they ar bareyne of fayth / it can no otherwyse be, but that they be blynded in spirytuall thynges. These two therfore folowe on the other, to departe from the faythe / and to gyue hede to spirytes of er∣rour and disceyte. ¶Thyrdly, thapostell saythe / that theyr doctryne spryngeth of the deuyll theyr authour / whiche thynge must also nedes folowe. For veryly whe∣re faythe and the doctryne of Chryste is not / there Satanas the wonderfull wor∣keman of suche thynges, leadeth these er∣ronyous spirytes with paynted doctry∣nes and wordes / so blyndly, madly, and prowdly, that they reaken them selfes e∣uyn the most spirytuall men. But for as

moch as that doctryne spryngeth not out of the scryptures / it can not be otherwyse named but deuelysshe doctryn. ¶Fourth¦ly, they are false spekers / for they peruerte holy scrypture & the sayenges of fathers to theyr owne ymagynacyons and drea∣mes, as we dayly se. That they peruerte scrypture, it is euydent by this. For theyr doctrynes & holy scryptures in nothynge agree. ¶Fyftly, theyr lyuynge is very hypocrysye / whiche thynge is so clere and opyn, that it neadeth no interpretacyon: what is theyr hoole lyfe, but a monster & hypocrysye in outwarde thyng{is} / as mea∣tes & clothes. ¶Syxtly, they haue theyr conscyence marked with a hote yron, that is / theyr conscyence is clene alyenat from the humayne nature. For of truthe other reken they synne & are grudgyd in theyr cōscyence where no parte (as we sayd be¦fore) of synne can be / euyn as we percey∣ue the prynte or marke of one wounde in the body, farre vnlyke other corrupte fuy¦sters. ¶Seuenthly, they forbed to mary & that is bycause they wolde brynge ma∣ny

in to theyr peruerse state of theyr rely∣gyon, as we daylye se bothe preestes and monkes, chanons, and freres, leade that lyfe most impurely. Wherfore dylygently away and loke for the iudgement of god vpon suche doctrynes and such maner of lyfe. As vpon doctrynes whiche sprynge of y^e deuyl erronyous / false without faith and full of hypocrysye. Good lorde what man wyll contynewe in that lyfe, and applye to suche doctrynes, syns god thre∣teneth so fearefull iudgemēt vpon them? It shall make no matter with howe ma∣ny vowes a man promyse these doctry∣nes for the more strayte vowe and othe, that in this behalfe shall be made, y^e more soone shulde it be broken of & let at large. For that that it was made by the deuyll, and agayne god. But harke, how crafte∣ly they go aboute to vnfolde them selfes from this knot, trāsferrynge this saynge of Paule to the tatyans heretykes, whi∣che vtterly cōdempne matrymony. But surelye Paule spekyth not here of theym, whiche vtterly condempne matrymony.

but of those whiche vnder a maner of ho¦lynes, and to seme the more holy forbede to mary. But be it, that these wordes we¦re spoken agayne the tatyans, may they not therfore also be spoken by the Pope? Yes moste of all, for yf the pope do those thyng{is} which the tatyans dyd, why than shuld not these word{is} agre with his act{is}? For surely Paule in this place condemp∣neth the workes notwithstandyng the re¦specte of the person. Nowe he that forbe∣dyth matrymonye (as the sygnyfyeng of the wordes playnly openyth) is the dyscy¦ple of Satan and his messanger. Than for as moche as the Pope workyth lyke workes, it muste nedes folowe that he & all his hole flocke of Sophysters, are the dysciples and messanges of the deuyll, or els Paule lyeth. ¶Eyghtly, many dayes they forbede to eate certayne meates: whi¦che god hathe created to be receyued with gyuynge thankes. Where agayne thou mayst se the tradycyons of men to be ap∣plyed to Satan euyn by god thorow the sayeng of Paule, as through goddes In¦stument.

Tell on (I praye you) what mo¦re what more abhomynable thynge can thou here of y^e humayne tradycyons than that they departe fro the fayth, erronyous false, deuyllyshe / and full of hypocrysye. And yf this one place be not suffycyent to confounde the doctrynes of men, what than shall suffyce? Moreouer yf these tra∣dycyons of abstaynynge from meates be deuyllyshe & fer from a chrysten acte, vn∣doutedly the tradycyons of clothes, sha∣uynges, places and other outwarde con∣uersacyons are also euyn as nye kynne to the deuyll & as fer from the trewe fayth of chryste. But here agayne they wyll an¦swere and say that Paule dyd speke these wordes by the manychees. Yet shall they not so escape. For Paule in this place spe¦kyth of them, whiche forbede to eate mea∣tes, whiche thynge the pope & his doynge. Nowe whether thou call y^e pope a tatyan or a manyche, I force not. Veryly the a∣postle spekyth here agayne y^t worke, whi∣che the pope is gylty in. Ferthermore this place very well appertayneth to theym.

For yf a man wolde forbede the eatynge of those meates to morowe, or .ii. dayes fo¦lowynge, shulde not this place serue hym well, al though he were not named a ma¦nyche? For shuld a man lawfully by that meanes do this thynge whiche Paule he∣re forbedyth, and saye that these wordes were not ment by hym, but by y^e olde ma∣nychees? God forbede, but whether y^e po∣pe and his monk{is}, and preestes be many∣chees or not, that refer I to other mens iu¦gementes. Howbeit I wyll this fer not feare to say, that he so moche contraryeth Paules doctryne, y^t I can scarsely know whether any manyche haue more contra∣ryed it or not. ¶Nynethly, they are vn∣thankefull. For god hath created meates for that entent (as Paule sayth) that they shuld be receyued with gyuynge thankes Nowe they for this purpose gyue in com∣maundement to absteyne fro them y^t god shuld not be lawded for the receyuyng of them. The well and orygynall of al, whi¦che thynges is Infydelyte, and lacke of the trewth of god. For the apostle saythe

that those meates were created for theym that trewely byleue & knowe the trewth that they shuld receyue them with gyuyn¦ge thankes. And nowe for as moche as they be false byleuers & ignoraunt of the treweth (as thapostle in this place callyth them) vndoutedly they are also hethens, fer fro chrysten men, blynde and without trewe knowlege. So this is the Elogye of the pope, prestes, and monkes, whiche is gyuen to them by Paule. ¶Tenthly, They are myscheuous and peryllous my¦nysters, whiche in the same place of Pau∣le is proued, where he sayth that Thymo¦the is a trew mynyster and norysshed vp in the wordes of fayth, and good doctry∣ne. Yf he shall shewe these thynges to the brethrene. Nowe of the other parte, they without doute are false mynysters, and broughte vp in wordes of false byleue & peruerse doctryne, whiche teche clene con∣trary to y^e doctryne of Paule. ¶Eleuēth∣ly, the apostle callyth theyr doctrynes vn¦ghostly and tryfelynge fables, than whi∣che I pray you what can be sayd more cō¦temptely,

that so many doctours shuld be so occupyed aboute suche tryfles, whiche the olde wyues are wonte to sporte them selfes with, whan they were gatheryd to∣gyther to theyr butteryd cakes, to theyr clensyng bolles, or to theyr wassynge sto∣les. And that theyr doctryne are vnghost¦ly, lyes, and fer from any holynes, altho∣ughe they boste that they were wryten by the ayde & cause of the holy ghoste. What man euer herde the humayne tradycyons so ernestly spoken agayne and rebuked, For that that they be bareyne of faythe, hethenysshe erronyous, deuyllysshe, false, counterfayted deuourers of cōscyences contrarye to the glorye of god, and his creatures, pernycyous fa∣bles, and olde wyues lyes, Let hym nowe that can auoyde so fearefull Iugement of god auoyde it.