An Invective Against Swearing, Title page – Epigraphs
An Inuectyue agenst the moost wicked & detestable vyce of swearing, newly cōpiled by Theodore Basille.
Eccl. 23.
A man yt vseth muche swearing, shall be fylled wt wyckednes, and ye plage, yt is to say, ye vēgeance of god shal not go away frō his house.
¶The Inuectyue speakethe.
LAmentably do I nowe procede
Of myn Author sent at this season
In a sadde and lamentable wede
To make my complaynte & lamentacion.
Lament I must bothe daye and nyghte
To beholde the great… abhominacion
Whych thorow swearyng in all mennes syght
Is now vsed wythout lamentacion.
Lament all christen hartes do I am …u…e
To heare God and hys …reatur…s e…he one
So wyck…dly blasphemed wythout …ure
And yet noman maketh lamentacion.
Lament o…ye Swearers, lament, lament
And looke ye cease from thys great abusion,
For yf to do thus ye be not now bent
In hell shall ye make full sore lamentacion.
Lament your synnes, & take me to you
For to leaue your great abhominacion
I wyll teache you, yea & all thyng true
That ye maye be fre from lamentacion.
Lament yf ye wyll not in hel fyre
But enioye the diuine fruicion,
Looke that ye accomplyshe my desyre
So shall ye be fre from lamentacion.
To the right worshypfull Master Rycharde Skotte Theodore Basille wysheth lōge lyfe cōtinual helth, and prosperous felicitie. ✚
…GOD the father saythe by hys Prophete,Esa. lviii. Crye cease not Lyfte vp thy voyce as a trompe, and shew to the people theyr wickednes, and to y• house of Iacob theyesynnes. That this is chefelye spoken to them that are Prechers & Ministers of Gods worde, Ther is no mā that is but meanely learned, ignoraunt therof. For it is theyr dutye to crye & not to cease. It is theyr dutye to exalte & lyft vp theyr voyce as a trōpe. It is theyr duty to shew vntounto the people theyr wyckednesses & synnes. It is theyr duty to preach the Gospel to eueryevery creature. It is theyr duty to preach Repentaunce & remission of synnes in the name of Christ vntounto al nacions.…at. xxviii It is theyr dutye to gyue meate to the Lordes family & household in due tyme. It is ther duty to fede Christen people wt doctrine & knowledge.…uke. xxiiii. It is theyr duty to conforte the weake,…at. xxiiii. to bynd vp that is broken,…uke. xii. to bryng agayne that is caste awaye,Timo. v to seake vp that is loste,…zec. xxxiiii & to cheryshe all the slocke of Christ. It is ther duty to cast away vngodly & olde wyues fables,Tim. iiii. and to exercyse themselues vntounto godlynes It is theyr dutye to be an example of the faythfull in worde, in conuersacion, in louelove,Tim. v in spirite, in fayth, in purite. It is ther duty to rebuke thē that synne before all menne, that other may hauehave …eare. It is theyr dutye to shewe them selues cōmendable to God worke men y• nede not to…. Tim. ii. be ashamed, iustly dyuyding y• word of truth. It is ther duty not to stryue, but to be gentle & peaseable toward all men, redy to teache, sufferyng the euyll wyth mekenes, enformynge them that resiste, if God at ony tyme gyue them repentaunce to knowe the truthe.ii. Tim. iii It is theyr dutie to preach the word, to be feruent both in tyme & out of tyme, to reproue, to rebuke to exhorte with al foftnes and doctrine.Titus. i. It is theyr duty to watch ī al thynges, not to shrinck in affliccions, to do the worcke of an Euangeliste, to make theyr ministracion commendable euen vntounto ye vttermost. It is theyr duty to be fautles, as the stewardes of God, not hyghe mynded, not angrye, not droneken, not …yghtyng, not gyuen to fylthy lucre, but mayntenyng Hospitalite▪ studious of good thinges, so…er ryghteous, godly, temperate, & holdyng fast that faythful word, which is accordyng to doctrine, that they may be able to exhorte by wholsome doctrine,1. Pet. v. & to ouercome them that speake agaynst it. It is theyr dutye to fede y• …locke of Christ, somuch as lygheth in theyr power. To be short it is ther duty to shewe themselues dispēsatours of the diuine misteries on such māner, that they may seme & appere vntounto all menne to hauehave taken ther power to edifye & not to destroye. For they are the lyghte of the world to shew men how they ought to walk. They are the salt of y• earth to sauoure such as be vnsauerye.
But alas, the lyght of the worlde I mean Prestes, is now so do dymme, y• it shewethe almoste no …yght at al. Menne y• walke in darknes can not perceaue how to walke, the Prestes are so wrapped about wyth the workes of darkenes. The salt of y• earth I meane the Prestes, is so vnsauery that it can not sucke out the corrupte humores. The people that are diseased can not be healed, y• preastes themselues are so f…ble, weake, infirme, sycke & wounded on eueryevery part.
Morouer y• Prestes,Esay. lvi. which shuld be ouersears of y• people, are al blind as the Prophet sayth, they are all wt out knowlege, they are dumme dogges, not able once to barke, they hauehave a pleasure to looke vponupon vayne thynges, they gyue them selues to sluggyshenes, they lyghe snortynge all daye, yea they are vnshamefaced dogges, that hauehave neuer ynoughe. The sheppardes themselues are wt out all knowledge. All follow theyr owne wayes, eueryevery one of thē …s giuē into couetousnes,Esa. lviii. euen from the hyghest to the lowest. God sayth, Crye, cease not. But they turne ca…te in ye panne & saye, Cease, crye not. God sayth, Lyfte vp thy voyce as a trō pe. But they saye, whyst, not a word vnles we be suspecte to be fellowes of the new lerning. God sayth, show vntounto the people theyr wyckednesses, and rebuke theyr synneful lyuynge. Na by saynt Mary say they, al thīg saue that. It is good sleapyng in an who…e skynne. He is not wyse yt wyll cast hymselfe into trouble, whan he maye lyue in reste. O Lorde hauehave marcy vponupon vsus. By thys meanes is it come to passe, that vertue is so lytyll regarded, & vice so vniuersallye vsed. Wo be to those prestes, whiche neglecte theyr office, flatter the people & suffer them to lyue in al wyckednes. For they are the Authors of all euell. They are the occasion that so many soules perysh. They cause y• so much myschyfe & abhominacion reygneth now a dayes. Theyr negligence, ther silēce, theyr dissolute lyuing cause, y• Gods worde is so euyll regarded among many, and y• so great wyckednes suppresseth y• honour of the christen religion. Is it ony maruell? We se that y• bodye wythereth awaye, perysheth and decayeth, if it wanteth corporal sustenaunce. Is it thā to be thought y• the soule cā be in salue estate, if it wāteth her meat, I mene y• word of God?Matth. iiii. Christ sayth, Man shall not lyue wyth breade alone, but wyth eueryevery worde,Deut. viii. that cō meth forth from the mouth of God. Salomon also sayth.P…o. xxix. Whan y• preachyng of Gods worde fayleth, than perysh the people & come to nought. We fynd thys true eueryevery daye more & more. For the longer we lyue, the more wyckednes do we se reygne.
It pytyeth a Christen mannes hert to beholde y• face of thys worlde.
What vngodlynes, supersticion, Hypocrisye, dissimulacion, swearynge, pryde, enuye, dronkenshyp, glotony, fornicacion, adulterye, whoredome, couetousnes, & an whole sea of euelles hath ouerflowed the world? And all this is come to passe thorow the sleapye negligence of Curates, nether can ther as yet be perceuedony amendment. The Prestes go forthe styl to neglecte y• office of preaching Gods worde, and y• people remayne styll in theyr old blyndenes, not carynge much though they neuer heare one word of the holye Scripture preached vntounto them in al theyr lyfe, so lytyll pleasure hauehave the poore selye soules in it, because they knowe not what a precious tresure y• most holye worde of God is. What than remayneth, but that one of vsus mo…yshe,Colos. iii, teache and exhorte another? as S. Paule byddeth, teache & monyshe ye one another For if one laye man were no more mercyefull to a nother, than y• Preastes are for the moste part, surely the greatest part of the world shuld,phil…. ii. I thyncke, ronne hedlonge vntounto the deuel for want of knowlege. Wherfore I exhort al mē of what degre & …orte soeuer they be charitably to monyshe one a nother whan they se ony man offende, and rebuke hym by the Scriptures of God, y• we maye shyne in the myddes of a froward & croked nacion as greate lyghtes in the worlde, pure, fauteles,Rom. vi▪ & such as noman can complayne of, holdynge fast the word of lyfe. Let vsus suffer no synne to reygne in thys our mortal body, but mortifye all thynges y• stryue agenst the spirite. Let vsus so watch & gyue diligence to our selfes, y• nether Satan nor the world, nor yet the flesh, may hauehave ony interest in vsus.Math. v. Let vsus hate deteste & abhorre synne,Iacob. v. as y• mooste greuous pestilence and pestiferous poyson, that can chaunse vntounto vsus. But aboue al thynges, as Christe & Iames monyshe…he vsus, lette vsus not sweare at all, nether by heauen nor by earth, nor yet by ony thyng that is contayned in them. If one of vsus at onye tyme shall chaunse to heare a nother sweare & pollute y• name of our Lord God by vayne, idle & vnlaful othes, let vsus charitably monishe the offēder, exhorte hym to cease frō hys swerynge, and moue hym vntounto y• prayle of God and of hys moste holy & blessed name. For surely if ther were no mo synnes committedde in Englond, but only y• blasphemynge of God & of his creatures by vayne swearyng, it were ynoughe to bring final destruccion vntounto thys Realme from y• which I besech God longe to preserue it, and gyue the Inhabitaū tes thereof grace to correcte and amende theyr synful manners
And to the intent that men may knowe how great offence it is before God vaynly to sweare. I hauehave made this Inuectyue agaynste swerynge which here foloweth, wherin as in a clere myrrour they shal vnfaynedly perceue and se, what great dampnacion hanggeth ouer the heades of all swearers, and that it is not possible for them to escape y• moost greuous vengeauns of God, excepte wyth al haste they repent, for sake, theyr detestable māner of swearyng & earnestly fal vntounto the harty praises of God. Thys myne Inuectyue I dedica…e to your good Master shyppe, to whō I confesse my selfe more ende…ted & bound, than my poore beggary shal euer may be able to recompēce your moost kynd & free gētylnes, desiring you for your accustomed humanite to accept this my litle gift wt y• mind wherwyth I hauehave offered it to you and to take it as a testimomy of my faythefull and seruiseable harte towarde you. I was the gladder to dedicate this my lytyll treatyse to you, because I hauehave in times paste perceaued, and styl daylye do, howe greatly ye desyre that al menne shulde ly…e accordynge to theyr profession at Baptime, that thorowe theyr good workes they maye garnysh the doctrine of oure Lorde and Sauyoure Iesus Christ. Nether is it vnknowne vntounto me what a feruēt and godlye affeccion you beare towarde the holy scripture, & howe desyrous ye are that the worde of Christ shuld dwell in Christen men ritchely with all wysdome as saynt Paule sayth.Ioan. x▪ Chele be the singulare & great gyftes of God, which he hath wrought in you by his holye spirite, and are manifest …g…es & tokēs yt ye are the child of saluacion▪ e…heri toure of eternall glory, & one of Christes flock seynge ye are …o earnestly bent both to heare & practyse the word of god in your dayly maners.Titus. i…. For Christe sayth,Lo…o. iii. He that is of God, hearethe y• wordes of God. Agen, My shepe heare my voyce.
God mought vouchsafe to encrease these his gyftes in you dayly more &Ioan. viii. more vntounto y• glory of hys most blyssed name and the saluacion of your soule, in whome I desyre to your… ryghte worshypful Mastership and to the good Gentle womanne youre wyfe all good, luckye and prosperous thynges.
AMEN.
Yours at cōmaundement and wyll Theodore Basille.
Leuit. 24.
VVho soeuer curseth hys God, shall beare hys synne. And he that blasphemethe the name of the Lorde, he shall dye for it. All the multitude shall stone hym to death. Whyther he be Cytezyn or Straunger, if he blaspheme the name of the Lord, let hym dye the deathe.
August. in Math.
THey synne no les. whyche blaspheme Chryste reyguyng in heauen, than they whych crucifyed hym walkyng in earthe.