A Mystery of Iniquity Disclosed and Confuted, Title page – Table of contents
A mysterye of inyquyte contayned within the heretycall Genealogye of Ponce Pantolabus / is here both dysclosed & confuted By Iohan Bale. An. M.D.xlii.
¶Marke in the capytall letters of this boke / the. A. B. C. with the name of the Author.
I wyll shewe the (sayth ye Angell to Iohan) the mysterye of the greate whore / & of ye Beast that beareth her. Apoca. 17.
☜Emprynted at Geneua. By Mychael Woode. 1545.
The Preface.
EVydent is yt (dere frynde in the Lorde) vntounto them which are in the scripturs exercysed / that our eternall God for his owne …lye honoure created man at the first / and all other creaturs for mannys behoue. This ones conceyued by fayth in Abell and Enos / at the preachynges of Adam & Seth for the first age / prouoked the one to offre vp sacrifice vntounto hi / & the other to call vponupon his most gloryouse name. In this godlye offyce was Noe founde ryghtouse / Abraham sayth full / Moses myghtye / Dauid holye / Helias feruent / and manye other more in their sortes zelouse for all the other ages. Farre to longe were yt and tedyouse vntounto the readers to recyte the examples of all the fathers in that behalfe. Iesus Christ the onlye fulfyller of all ryghtousnesse / in all his sore trauay le here / sought the onlye glorye of his heauē lye father / and taught the same lesson aboue all other to be obserued of his. In the manyfolde temptacions of sathan in the wildernesse he paciētlye answered to that was suggested / but the presumed dishonour of God in no case coulde he suffre. The holye Apostles and manye other Godlye mynysters / hauehave euermore daungered their syues in the lust quarell of the same. If we than wetyngly shuld suffre him in this age to be blasphemed / all these godlye exāples reiected / we myght thereby rather apere his enemyes / than seruauntes / his haters than louers. This consyderacion first moued my mynde / after that I had seane a thre years ago / an abhomynable Iest made vndre the tyttle of a Genealogye of heresye / & by two diuerse prentes spred abrode amonge the people / to dysclose the great mysterye of iniquyte thervndre contayned / and to restore agayne the peruerted scripturs / with the names of those Godlye menne which are oblocuted therin. In this will no man that is godlye be offended / but thynke that I hauehave herin done my bounde dewtye. Though the compylet therof by the mercyfull Goodnesse of God be conuerted to repentaunce (as I am credyblye infourmed that he is) yet remayneth his blasphemouse doctryne amonge the cō mon people in a wonderfull nombre of coppyes. I thought yt therfore mete / not vtterlye to destroye my labours / but for the abolyshment of those wycked blasphemyes to suffre them passe at large. yet I instauntlye desyre the readers of my boke / not to thynke anye thynge therin spoken agaynst him / which is now becommen Gods seruaunte / but agaynst that olde pestysent Papyst Pantolabus which styll yet blasphemeth Christ and his most faythfull wytnesses. Him wolde I not hauehave them to space / so longe as he dwesseth on the earthe / and that is that prodygyouse Iest or Generacyon of heresye. Vnsemelye were yt / so manye swete scripturs to remayne so depraued / and so manye Godlye menne so slaunderouslye reported / the veryte in them both so spyghtfullye abused / for his names sake which hath wrought wyckedlye. Though Adam recanted his errour / and Dauid his wycked workinges / Peter his denyall of Christ / and Paule his tyrannouse turmoylynges / yet are they not hydden in the scripturs / but made fiyll open to all the worlde / in re…uke and warninge vntounto vsus of soche execrable euyls. Neuer y• lesse yet those vyces so rebuked / are now vntounto them no rebuke / but a syngular prayse rather where as they are rehersed / beige wholle remitted in Christ. The great synne of Adam which is the onlye grounde of deathe in all mē is yet euerye yeare proclamed happye / amōge the Paschall ceremonyes. Whā Christ leaneth his churche vnrebuked and vntrobled forsynne / than rouneth she a straye by manye s…r…unge and vncommaunded worshyppinges. Than reygneth she commō lye in a wycked peace / and abhominablye playeth the whore abusynge her selfe in the cowche of Iesabel. Apoca. 2. as of longe tyme hath done the Romyshe Synagoge. And so becommeth she no longer his chosen spouse / but a reproued congregacion. Moche more honoure is ours / whan our synnes are rebuked by the scripturs / than whan the scripturs remayne by vsus reproued and slaundered. Amonge the prophane Phylosophers & Poetes / was euer the verite had in honoure / and preferred farre aboue all fleshlye amyte. Moche more than ought it so to be vsed amonge vsus which are of the Christē scole. The rebukes of this boke / wayeth vponupon the matter and not the man / the spyghtfull blasphemer & not the godlye recanter. That his fylthye vomete is proued here abhomynacion by the scripturs / to the intent that people shuld detest it and not therwith be poysened / can be vntounto his name no derogacion but rather a lawde amonge them that are godlye wyse. Verye vncomlye were it / that fylthynesse shuld hauehave fauer / and so be cowche… vp as a precyouse treasure / amonge menne of Christen honeste. Rather is it mete / that it were throwne fourth / & so manifesilye knowne for that it is / euen verye fylthynesse in dede. I hauehave no doubt therof / but. I. …. becomminge the seruaunt of God vtterlye nowe detesteth that fowle Papyst Pantolabꝰ that Romyshe rybalde / that ryotouse rayser with all his prodigiouse Poesyes and wolde hauehave him rather bayted awaye withe botchers dogges / than anye longar to wayte vponupon him. Full glad are we to heare it / that frō Sodome he is lately departed / leauige that beast there behinde him to receyue the lordes double plage / and that his selfe nowe trauayleth (I trust) towardes the mounte of sauegarde. That he is becomen of a wolfe a lambe / of a Saule a Paule / and of a spyghtfull persecuter a godlye Christen preacher / it is vntounto vsus no smal reioyce. We lawde that heauenlye lorde / which thus of mere pytie and mercye hath founde out his almost peryshed shepe / layed him vponupon his shulders / and brought him ageyne to his folde. If he styll perseuer accordinge to his callinge. Heshall become of a forener a cytezen with the Sayntes / and a glouryouse partyner with Christ in his eternall heritage. He shall also hauehave for his lust labours in the lordes vyneyarde here / besydes his penye wages his peculyar prayse in the sanctyfyed congregacyon of the ryghtouse. The eternall father & lorde Iesꝰ Christ indue so wt his sprete both him & vsus / that we maye vntounto the ende perseuer faithfull / to the counfort of his electes. Amen.
Finis.
¶The mysterye of iniquite doth styll worke / and is disclosed by the lyght of the lordes comminge.
2. Thes. 2.
The Table.
ABbotes hanged for treason. 31
Antibaptystes & Papistes all one. 53
Antichrist / what he is. 54
Apostat… / falselye applyed. 62. 63
Benedictus. xii. a lecherouse Pope. 21
Bysshoppes and prestes marryed. 18
Bonifacius / what yt meaneth. 20. 27
Captaynes for holye churche. 30. 42. 65
Clemen…the. vii. Pope. 22
Cardynalles with their chastyte. 22
Dyuyne / with his dyuynyte. 49
Doctours of the popyshe churche. 26. 30. 39
Dunstane / with his chastyte. 19
Eckius / an impudent papyst. 21
Epythetes of the Popes churche. 2
False prophetes trulye prophecyeth. 15. 80
Feastfull dayes superstycyouslye vsed. 59
Fylthye examples of vnchast prestes. 19
Franciscus Petrarcha / a Poete. 21
Garade & Hierome / menne lerned. 65. 67
Genealogyes are to be shurned. 1
Genealogye of papistes. 2
Heretyques were lerned menne. 3
Hoc est corpus meum. 46. 50
Husdricus bysshop of Augusta. 18
Iohan Wycleue / a Christen doctour. 9
Iohan Husse / wherfore he dyed. 12
Iohan Oecolampadius and zwing…ius. 25
Iohan Frith / not yet answered. 31. 40
Iohan Lambert / what he was. 42
Iohan Parys bryngeth impanacyon. 33
Iohan Maior disputeth of spretes. 29
kateryne showarde / prayed for. 84
kynges yll handeled of papistes. 4
Ladye Pyre / what yt is. 87
Limphardus Bisshop of Vercell. 20
Marye ryghtlye commended. 56. 87
Martyne Luther the Popes enemye. 15. 16
Masse / with his toyes. 33. 44. 46. 60
Matrymonye accused for synne. 17. 18
Names of dyuerse heretyques. 13. 44. 55
Nonne / had thre bastardes. 20
Obedience requyred to the Pope. 61. 93. 79
Oswaldus Bysshop of Worecstre. 19
Pater noster Rowe / described. 87
Pātolabꝰ a most stynkinge herety…. 81. 86
Persecuyons are blessynges. 78
Petrus Riarius a Cardynall. 21
Philippus Melanchton / a lerned man. 23
Prayer for the kynge. 85
Prophe…yes of Wycleue and Husse. 15. 40
Remigius Bisshop of Dorcesire. 20
Robert Barnes / a man lerned. 58
Sacrament abused. 33. 35. 37. 45. 47.
Sedycyouse are Christianes named. 61
Slepers and croner crepers. 72
Stewes are in Wynchestres fauer. 76
Thomas Becket / a pylgryme. 20
Toyes of the Papystes. 5. 6. 33. 70. 74.
Vyrgyne Marye ryghtlye cōmended. 56
Vocabulystes here named. 2
Watchynge deuyls bygett chyldren. 20. 29
What the papistes hauehave sought & taught. 27
Finis.