The Life and Death of John Calvin, Text

The Life and Death of John Calvin · Text

Theodore de Beza, to the Chriſtian Reader, health and peace in our Lord.

IF it had pleaſed God to hauehave kept longer among vsus hys Faithfull ſeruaunt Maiſter Iohn Caluin, or rather if the peruerſitie of the world had not cauſed y^e Lord to take him ſo ſone to himſelfe: thys ſhould not hauehave bene y^e laſt of his labours, wherin he hath ſo faithfully & ſo aptly emploied himſelf for the aduancement of y^e glory of God, & for the edification of his Church: And alſo now this Cōmentarie ſhould not hauehave gone forth, without being as it were crowned w^t ſome excellēt Preface, as are y^e reaſt. But it fareth with it as it doth w^t poore Orphanes, which are not ſo well prouided for as their Brethren, bicauſe y^t their father is to timely taken from them. In this meane time I do ſee this Orphane to be of ſo good a houſe, thanks be to God, & ſo well reſembling his father, that without any other Teſtimonie, he wil of himſelfe become not onelyonly agreeable, but alſo very honorable to all thoſe that ſhall ſee him. And therefore alſo mine intent hath not bene to recommende him by thys Teſtimonie, (for what needeth it?) but rather to lament more with him of the death of him, which hath bene as a father, both to him & to mee: forſomuch as I neither may, nor ought to eſteeme him leſſe to be my father in that which God hath taught mee by him, than this Booke, and ſo many others, which hauehave bene by him writtē. I will then bewayle mee, but it ſhal not be w^tout conſolation: for hauing regarde to him of whom I ſpeake, I had rather hauehave had him lyuing here belowe, if y^e felicitie wherin he is now placed, did not chaunge y^e ſorowfulneſſe of my loſſe into reioyſing of his gaine: and I ſhould ſmally hauehave profited by his ſo holye & maruellous doctrine, & by his lyfe that was ſo ſincere & good, and by his death y^t was ſo happy & Chriſtian, if I had not learned by al theſe meanes to ſubmit my ſelfe to the prouidence of God, being fully contented and ſatiſfyed therwith. Now as concerning his doctrine, wherof I will firſt ſpeake, ſo farre vnable are the multitude which hauehave ſpokē againſt him, to yelde it ſuſpected with all men of good iudgement, that on the contrary, the ſame might ſerue for an infallible argument to approue and confirme the ſame: for ſo much as none hath at any time ſtoode againſt it, but he hath well felt that he hath addreſſed himſelfe not againſt a man, but againſt a very true ſeruant of God. Alſo he maye lawfully affirme (and all thoſe who hauehave knowen him will be good and lawfull witneſſes) that he had neuer enimie, which in aſſayling of him made not warre againſt God. For after that God did cauſe his champion to enter within that lyſt or ſtecade, it may be well ſayde, that Satan hath picked him out euen as though he had forgotten al the reaſt, to aſſayle him, and to plucke hym thorowly downe, if he had bene able. But on the other ſyde God hath gyuen him that grace, y^t he hath adorned him with ſo many trophees or victorious tokens, as he hath ſet manifeſt enimies againſt him. If then wee ſhall ſpeake of the combats that hee hath inwardly indured for y^e doctrine, there may nothing make them to ſeeme eaſy & ſleight, but onelyonly y^e diligence which he did alwayes vſe, bicauſe he would not ſuffer his enimies to take breath, and the conſtancy which God gaue vntounto him, neuer to yelde or bend how little ſo euer it were, in the quarell of the Lorde. The Anabaptiſtes can beare witneſſe, who ſhortlye after the beginning of his Miniſterie in thys Churche, to wit the yere .1536. that he could ſo wel and happily behaue himſelfe in open diſputation without the helpe of the Magiſtrate, that immediately y^e race of them was vtterly deſtroyed in this Church: which is y^e more to be wondred at, bicauſe that the greateſt number of the Churches of Almaigne are yet at thys day greatly hindred by them: and if there be any that is free from them, it hath bene rather by rigour of Iuſtice than otherwyſe. He had an other combat to fight againſt an Apoſtate named Carol, vpō certain calumnies & falſe reportes: who beyng alſo ouerthrowen as well by writing as by worde, and caſt out of the Church of God, dyed miſerablye at Rome in an hoſpitall, as an example to thoſe which do reuolte from Ieſus Chriſt, to folow a Maiſter which doth ſo wel recompēce his ſeruants, both in this world and in the other. And an other time, to wit the yeare of our Lord .1553. Michel Seruet a Spaniard of curſed memory, happened to come, who was not a man, but rather, an horrible Monſtre, compounded of the auncient and new hereſies, and aboue all an execrable blaſphemer againſt the Trinitie, and namely againſt the Eternitie of the Sonne of God: This ſame beyng come to thys towne, and apprehended by the Magiſtrate bicauſe of hys blaſphemies, hee was here ſo ſubſtancially encountred, that he had no defence but a certaine vntamed obſtinacie, by reaſon wherof by the iuſt iudgemēt of God and man, hee ended by the punniſhment of fyre, his wicked life and blaſphemies which he had vomited, both by mouthe & writing by the ſpace of thirty yeares & more. About two yeares before there came a certaine deceitefull fryer a Carmelite, & was ſodainly become of a deuine, a Phiſitian, named Hieroſme Bolſeck of Paris, who to get him eſtimation, thinking himſelfe to bee in Cloiſtre, and not in a Church of God, which he neuer did know but by heare ſay, and afterward being procured by certaine naughtie and euill diſpoſed perſons, of whom it ſhalbe hereafter ſpokē, began in open Congregation to condempne the doctrine of the eternall prouidence & predeſtatiō, as though we made God the auctor of ſinne, & culpable in the condemnation of y^e wicked: Caluin in y^t very place did ſtand againſt this diſguiſed Woolfe, & did ſo anſwere him by word both opēly & priuatly, & afterward alſo by writing that the aduerſarie had no trouth of his ſyde remaining, but a certaine Monkiſh ſhameleſſenes, which made him & doth make him at this day filthy & ſtincking to eueryevery man y^t hath any good vnderſtanding: yea by his owne iudgemēt, as ſhalbe declared by teſtimonie of hys owne hand whenſoeuer neede ſhal require. For this wicked man who had deſerued punniſhment for a ſeditious acte, beyng vſed by the Magiſtrate very gentlye, bicauſe that they thought that there might hereafter ſome remedie be founde for hys ſophiſticall ignoraunce, after that he had done ſo many offences and wickedneſſes as he was able in the Churches nere there about, ſeing himſelfe three times driuen out of the dominions of the Lordes of Berne, in the ende being intollerable to anye man, did giuegive glory to God, acknowledging hys errours: and eſpecially his euill conſcience, at Orleance in open general Synode of the Frenche Churches, the yeare .1562. in ſuch ſort that men had ſome hope in him. But after that being againe poſſeſſed by ſuche a lyke euill ſpirite, is retourned to his firſt errours, and is driuen from all men, as hee is well worthy, and doth ſerue yet at this preſent daye in all places where he goeth, for a teſtimonie of the wrath of God againſt all ſuch as do reſiſt y^e truth. Shortly after there was a certaine remanaunt of Seruetiſtes, who declared themſelues, as one being a lawyer of thoſe quarters: who afterwarde for the lyke cauſe was driuen from the vniuerſitie of Tubing by y^e right noble Duke of Wirtemberg, and bicauſe he did cōtinue in his blaſphemies, for which hee had bene chaſtized by impriſonments and ſuffred to recant by the iudgement of the ſayd Lordes of Berne, with this man there was confederate a certaine man of Calabria named Valentine Gentill, an other of Sardegna, a Piedmontois named Iohn Paul Alciat, a Phyſition of Saluces named George Blandrata. Theſe men wrought vnderunder ground as well as they coulde, ſhewing their blaſphemies againſte the three perſons in one deuine Eſſence and beyng, vntill the time that this faithful ſeruant of God withſtāding them, ſome vaniſhed awaye, others of them acknowledging their blaſphemies, hauehave demaūded mercy at y^e handes of God & of the Seignorie. But ſhortly after, thoſe wycked ones retourned (contrarie to theire othe) to theire blaſphemies, & in the ende with their complices conueyed thēſelues into Polognia, where they hauehave ſtyrred vp and doe yet at this day, innumerable troubles, yet hauehave they notwithſtanding euen to & in the very place where they are, felt & perceyued what the force was of y^e faithfull ſeruant of God, of whom we ſpeake: by whoſe writings the Churches of Polognia hauehave bene ſo fortified, that the Faithfull hauehave bene greatlye eſtablyſhed, & the enimies of the truth ſo weakened, y^t with the helpe of God, their ruine is at hande. Behold theſe are the principall combats that he hath fought within, for the doctrine, which is much more harde to ſuſtaine than to reſite, as y^e Bookes ſhall teſtifie to the poſteritie. As for y^e other enimies, they hauehave alwayes aſſailed him from a farre of, but not ſo farre of, but that he hath touched them more nigh than they would willingly: his learned workes againſt the Anabaptiſtes and Libertines can make ſufficiēt declaration. And as for the great Goliath Pighius, who was it that did beate downe and ouerthrow him and his Pelagianiſme, but only the power of the Lord in the hande of Caluin? who did ſhut vp the mouth of the glorious Cardinall Sadolet, but only hee? who hath more happily fought with & ouerthrowne y^t hierde of Boares gathered togither to deſtroy & wroute vp y^e Vineyard of y^e Lord? who hath more greuouſly or more perilouſlye in deede wounded Antichriſt to the death? who hath more boldely & more aptlye made anſwere to the wicked (interim) which hath ſo troubled Germanie? This is not all, for who hath bene of a more cleare ſight to knowe and to reproue the wickedneſſe of falſe Euangeliſts, who framed themſelues to all men meete? Who hath more conſtātly defended y^e puritie of the doctrine againſt the moſt daungerous kinde of enimies: to wit, thoſe which vnderunder the colour of peace and vnion doe endeuor thēſelues to corrupt the puritie of the ſame? And as touching the miſerable contencion that was moued about the matter of the Supper, ſeyng the fire ſo greatly kindled, his whole deſire was to quenche it by a cleare expoſition of the matter; wythout naming of any man: the which he hath ſo wel and ſo aptly done, that he that ſhal wel conſider his writings, muſt confeſſe y^e next after God, it is to him, that the honor of the reſolution is due, which ſince hath bene folowed by all men of good iudgement. This notwithſtanding, Satan enforced himſelfe by all meanes poſſyble, to hauehave ſet deuiſion betweene hym and the Churche of Zuriche in thys diſcentyon: which among others hee hath alwaye eſtemed and honored. But it was in vaine, for on the contrarie when they had in preſence conferred togither, they continued thorowlye of one accord: and then was the conſent of all the Churches of Guiſe & of the Guiſiās, framed & imprinted in many tongues, to the great edificatiō of the people of God. That did much diſpleaſe certaine obſtinate men, among whom there was one named Ioachim Weſphale, an other Tilemā Heſhuſius, which were the moſte earneſt and feruent enimies of the truth and concorde. He was thē enforced to entre into combat, whereby he dyd ſo maintaine the truth, and ouerthrowe and ſuppreſſe the ignoraunce and ſhameleſneſſe of ſuch perſonages, that he wonne great commendation, and the aboue named great ſhame: yea euen among thoſe of their ſect & nation, and the Church of God hath bene the more confirmed in the true and holeſome doctrine. In concluſiō, I think y^t there is no hereſie auncient, nor renewed, nor newly forged in our time, which he hath not deſtroyed to the very foundations. For among al other his excellēt Graces there were twoo that did ſhyne in hym: to wit, a ſingular ſharpneſſe of ſpirite to diſcouer where the difficultie of matters did lye, and then alſo a meruellous dexteritie and aptneſſe to make his aunſwers without the loſing of any one worde, as all they wil confeſſe, yea the very enimies of the Goſpell, which would attentiuely reade his workes. I hauehave alſo omitted one Monſtre which hee lykewiſe did defeate, albeit that in that behalfe I fought on hys ſide: it is one named Sebaſtian Caſtalion, who bicauſe hee had ſome knowledge in the tongues, and had alſo a certaine aptneſſe in the Latin tongue, he was here receiued to gouerne the ſchoole, But this ſpirite being ſo naturally enclined to pleaſe himſelfe, did ſo diue hym in his vanitie, that in the ende he drowned himſelfe therein, bicauſe we coulde neuer winne ſo much of him, as to cauſe him to take the paines to reade the Cōmentaries and other workes to reſolue him. That was the cauſe why he did openlye condemne y^e ſong called Canticum Canticorum, in Latin, as a filthye and wanton Booke: which when it was layde to hys charge, he vomited out openly a thouſande iniuries againſt the Paſtors of this Church: Wherupon being commaunded by y^e Magiſtrate to auouch his ſayings, and being conuinced of manifeſt malice and euill ſpeaking, by iuſtice he was appointed to depart the town after y^t he had acknowleged his fault: being then in y^e ende retired to Baſil, hee continued there, vntill y^e time of the trouble y^t was ſtirred vp by Hieroſme Bolſec, vponupon Predeſtination, the ſame man which helde alwayes of the perfection of the Anabaptiſtes, but it was ſecretelye and among his owne ſect, otherwyſe making no difficultie at all to ſhape hymſelf like to eueryevery man, and beyng alſo greatlye prouoked by the death of Seruet, he diſcouered hymſelf openly, firſt in a booke which he cauſed to be imprinted in Latin and in French vnderunder a falſe and counterfeyt name of Martin Bellie, to whoſe errors and blaſphemies I hauehave aunſwered. Hee alſo made an other treatiſe which he calleth in Latin Theologia Germanica, vnderunder the name of Theophile, and in Frenche an other treatiſe of the olde and newe man. In the ende he did turne or rather ouerthrowe and confounde y^e whole Bible in Latin and Frenche with ſo vile a ſhameleſneſſe & ignoraunce, that it is maruell that anye man coulde delight therein, were it not that newe things are alwayes agreable to Ambitious ſpirites, whereof there is at this daye as great plenty as euer there was. He did ſet before his tranſlation, an Epiſtle dedicated to the late good king Edwarde of Englande, whereby vnderunder colour of preaching Charitie, he ouerthroweth the auctoritie of the Scriptures, as darke or vnperfect: to y^e ende to ſende vsus to perticuler reuelations, to wit, to y^e dreames of the firſt abuſer & deceiuer y^t would declare and ſhew himſelfe. Hee did alſo make certaine notes vponupon the ninth chapiter of the Epiſtle to the Romaines, wherby he doth opēly maintain Pelaglaniſme, & doth not acknowledge any decree and ordinaūce of God, but only in thoſe things y^t are good of their own nature, forging in God a permiſſion cōtrarye to hys wyll, & falſely laying to our charge, that we make God the Auctor of ſinne. All this did not any thing moue the faithfull ſeruant of God, bicauſe y^t ſuch calumnies & errors had bene already aunſwered a thouſand times, vntounto the time that hee himſelfe made a certaine collection in Latin of certaine Articles and arguments, which ſome men ſaide were taken oute of the Bookes of M. Iohn Caluin, adding thereunto certaine replications: & this booke was ſent cloſely to Paris there to bee imprinted, but God prouided for it and cauſed the firſte copye to come to my hands, in ſuch ſort that we our ſelues did cauſe them to be put in print here, wyth ſuch aunſweres as it did deſerue: hee after that he vnderſtoode the whole matter, knew not how to aunſwere the Paſtors and Miniſters of Baſil, but ſayde that he was not Auctor of thoſe articles, being ſhortly after called to aunſwere vponupon the doctrine of free wyll and of the prouidence of God, in open diſputacion at Baſil, hys doctrine was condemned. And bicauſe that certaine yeares before he had bene receiued to the profeſſion of the Greeke tongue, by thoſe that did not vnderſtande of hys errors, hee was commaunded not to deale neither by worde nor writing but with hys lecture, which thing he promiſed and did verye euill obſerue it, cōtinuing alwaies as he mought, in ſowing of hys errors and diſceiptes: and of a verye malice that he had againſt mee, who at that tyme was in Fraunce greatlye troubled, to my great griefe, in the ciuil warres: or at the leaſt beyng moued with ſome vnmeaſurable ambition, hee wrote a little booke intituled, Counſell to deſolate Fraunce, without putting his name to it, or naming y^e place wherin it was printed, albeit it was a free towne: in it doth he condemne all the French Churches of ſedition and rebellion, and giueth councell to eueryevery one to beleue what he wyll, and by that very meane opening the gate to all Hereſies and falſe doctrines. I did not vouchſafe to make aunſwere to that worthy counſell, which declared this man to be ouer beaſtly and ignorant in that whereof he did entreate, & very euill exerciſed in ſuche affaires, but in the ſteade of it I did aunſwere to many pointes wherof hee rebuketh mee, mingling with them moſt villaine and intollerable errors, vnderunder colour of defēding that which I did miſlike in his Latin tranſlation. This myne aunſwere being dedicate to the paſtors of the Church of Baſil, was the cauſe that the ſame Caſtalion was called by the Churche and afterwarde by the Seignorie, and was commaunded to make aunſwere to that wherewith I charged him, and did offer my ſelfe to proue by hys owne writings: but within few dayes after death deliuered him from that trauaile. I knowe well that thys long diſcourſe ſhalbe miſliked of ſome men, as though I ſpake as a man loded with paſſions, and coulde not be content to ſuffer the dead to be at reſt in their graue. But I may well proteſt before God y^t I did neuer hate the man in hys lyfe time, with whom alſo I neuer had to doe nether in good nor euill in perticuler, much leſſe that I woulde nowe hate and perſecute the deade which are put ouer to the iudgement of the Lorde. But it was needefull to make thys knowen, to the ende that eueryevery man myght beware of hys Bookes and diſciples that hee hath left behind him. Whileſt theſe things were doing, a certaine Diſciple aduaunced himſelfe, to wit, Fraūces Baldwin, who could no more continue in one Religion than in one place, but chaunged dwelling place & condition in maner eueryevery day, & Religion at y^e leaſt three times, in y^e ende hauing no more conſciēce to looſe, he placed himſelf in a certain Religion, like to y^t of Chanonnes Regulers, the which being ſuch in general as were y^e reaſt of al their troupe, yet whē ther is a queſtion of their perticuler, thei become Moncks in y^e that is profitable for the Monkes: and on y^e contrarie they be alwayes ſeculers, when Monkry pleaſeth them not: & thys worthie perſonage did kiſſe y^e Pantophle as the reaſt hauehave done, & bicauſe y^e people ſhould be out of doubt y^t he did it vnfainedly, he receiued a good and a worthy abſolucion of his king, to enter againe into y^e fauour of his holineſſe & his Cardinals, vntounto whom for recompēce of all his euill hap he became ſlaue. If then it cōe in queſtion to hauehave one to write againſt vsus, this is the beſt Catholique in the world: but on the other ſide if he muſt frame himſelfe to thoſe y^t are as it were betweene twoo yrons, & boaſt them y^t they holde the meane, then this good man ſpitteth out y^e reformations of y^e Romiſh Church, & ſpeaketh ſtoutly of certaine abuſes, but it is w^tout touching the principal, & in ſuch ſort notwithſtāding, y^t eueryevery mā which knoweth him not, would think he did meane good faith, & not to purchaſe him credite. This galaunt for his beginning, fayled not in the yeare .1561. to ſet forth a booke of ſuch ſtuffe, w^tout any name, at the preſent time y^e men were at the conference of Poyſſy. Caluin vnderſtanding the meaning of this wicked one, made anſwere briefely according to his vſage: but verye paremptorilie and fully, giuing certaine attaints to him that was chiefely culpable of this euil. Baldwine vpō this begā to chafe, & afterwarde left not to fome oute his rage againſt him whom he had ſo often called father and Maiſter, onelyonly to make it knowen y^t he was reuolted in deede, whereupō Caluin did ouerthrow him, by one only ſilence. For as touching the iniuries and outrages againſt his perſon, he did alwayes eſteeme them honorable for the name of the Lorde whom he ſerued, forſomuch as to be blamed by a wicked man, is a token of vertue. And as for his reprehenſions concerning the doctrine, the one ſort were ſo ſlender and ſo improper in his iudgement, that they deſerued no aunſwere, the others were but recitals borowed elſewhere, and refuted more than a thouſande times. And for ſo much as it is to me, that this Apoſtate hath alſo addreſſed him to gratifie his Maiſters, I hauehave taken vponupon mee to aunſwere hym for the ſeconde tyme, which thing I hope alſo well to diſcharge, with the grace of our God. Theſe be the principall combats that this worthye perſonage hath happily endured for y^e truth of the Lorde. As touching the reaſt, in thys diſcourſe I thinke I hauehave entreated of the greateſt part of hys lyfe: for what was hys lyfe other than a continuall doctrine, as wel by worde as by writing, and by all his manners and order of lyfe? the which alſo will doe very well to be declared perticularly, to the ende y^t eueryevery man may vnderſtande the maruels of God in the perſon of this excellent man. Hee was borne in Noyon, an auncient and famous towne of Picardie, the yeare .1509. the tenth of Iuly, of an honeſt houſe and of a reaſonable wealth, his father was named Gerard Caluin, a man of good vnderſtanding and counſell, and therefore greatly deſired in the houſes of noble men dwelling in thoſe partes: by reaſon wherof his ſaide Sonne was the better and more liberallye brought vp, at his fathers charges notwithſtanding, in company with the children of the houſe of Mommor, with whom alſo he was in cōpanie at y^e ſchole at Paris. Hee was alway of a ſinguler good wit, and aboue all other things of a very good conſcience, enimy to vices, and greatly giuen to the ſeruice of God as men did then call it: in ſuch ſort as his minde was wholy to deuinitie, which was alſo an occaſion that he was prouided of a benefice in the Cathedrall Churche of Noyon. Yet was his father alwayes minded that hee ſhoulde ſtudie the Lawes, and he alſo on his part hauing alredie, (by y^e meane of a coſin and frinde of his, named Maiſter Peter Robert, otherwyſe Oliuentanus, who afterwarde tourned y^e Bible out of Hebrue into French and imprinted it at Neufchaſtle,) taſted ſome thing of the pure Religion, began to withdraw himſelfe from Popiſhe ſuperſtitiōs: which was the cauſe that beſide the ſinguler reuerence that he had towarde his father, he did agree to go to Orleaunce to the ſame ende, where there did then reade an excellent mā named Peter de l' Eſtoille, who was afterwarde Preſident of the Court of Parliamēt in Paris, vnderunder whom he did ſo profite in ſhort ſpace, that he was not accompted a ſcholer, but as an ordinarie Doctour, as oftentimes hee was rather in deede a teacher than a hearer, and he was offered to proceede Doctor without paying anye thing, which thing alſo he did refuſe. And bicauſe that the vniuerſitie of Bourges was then̄ alſo famous by the meane of that excellent Lawyer Andre Alciat which then did reade there, hee woulde him. In the meane time he exerciſed himſelf alſo ſee and heare in holye letters, with ſuch fruite and profite, that all thoſe whoſe heartes it had pleaſed GOD to touche, giuing them to vnderſtande what the differences were that were then moued concerning matters of Religion, did not onlye beare towarde hym ſinguler affection, but had him forthwith in great admiration for the learning and zeale that was in hym. Among other with whome he did frequent and companye, then at Bourges there was an Almaigne an excellent perſonage a Profeſſor of the Greeke tongue, named Melchior Volmar, whom I doe ſo much the more willingly remember, bicauſe it is very he that was my faithfull gouernor and teacher all the time of my youth, for the which cauſe I will praiſe God all the dayes of my lyfe. Thys good man ſeyng Caluin not to be well inſtructed in the Greeke tongue, cauſed him to ſtudie the ſame, wherin he did greatly helpe him, as he himſelfe hath witneſſed, dedicating to him hys Cōmentaries vponupon the ſeconde Epiſtle of S. Paule to the Corinthians, and did him the honor to call him his Maiſter & inſtructer. In this meane time his father died, which was the cauſe y^t he left y^e ſtudie of the Lawes, and returned to Noyon, and then to Paris: where notwithſtanding his youth, hee was not long vnknowen, nor without honor, by all ſuch as had anye feeling of the truthe: hee of hys parte dyd then reſolue to dedicate hymſelfe wholye to GOD, and did trauaile wyth great profyte in ſuche ſorte, that being in Paris in the tyme of the Rector named Monſieur Copus, there happened a ſeditiō whereupon hee was ſent to the Court to be preferred, where he was knowen and very well receiued of all thoſe that had any pure affection and ſounde iudgement in thoſe affayres: In the ende ſeyng the miſerable eſtate of the Realme of Fraunce, hee determined to abſent himſelfe and to be where he might liue more quietly & according to his conſcience. He then departed out of Fraūce in the yeare .1534. and in the ſame yeare he cauſed to imprint at Baſil his firſt inſtructiō as an Apologie, dedicated to Fraūces y^e firſt Frenche King of that name, in the behalfe of the poore faithfull that were perſecuted, whom they did moſt falſely name Anabaptiſtes, to excuſe them towarde the Princes Proteſtantes, of the perſecutions that they then vſed againſt them. He paſſed alſo into Italie, where he ſaw my Lady y^e Ducheſſe of Ferrare, yet at this day liuing, thankes be to God, who when ſhee had ſeene & heard him, forthwith iudged of him as hee was, and euer after vntyl his death, did louelove and honor him as an excellent Organe of the Lorde. In hys returne from Italie y^e which he had but ſeene, he paſſe (in a happie time) thorow this towne of Geneua, which not long before had receiued the Goſpell by the preaching of M. William Farell, and dyd meane nothing leſſe than to tarry there, but to paſſe thorow it and to go to Baſil, or elſe to Straſbourgh. But the Lord being euen then willing to prepare away to his ſo great goodneſſe as his pleaſure was to beſtowe vponupon his Church by the meane of him, did put in the heart of the ſayde Farel to ſtaye him: which thing was very harde for him to doe, in ſuch ſort that after many requeſtes & deſyres he was fayne to vſe adiurations. Thē he was cōtented to ſtay, not to preach, but to reade Diuinitie, and this came to paſſe in the yeare .1536. in the beginning of September. When hee was in this ſort declared Doctor in thys Churche by lawfull election and auctoritie, hee then framed a briefe forme of Confeſſion and Diſcipline to giuegive ſome ſhape to thys new erected Churche. Hee made alſo a Cathechiſme which may be wel called one of his excellēt works, and hath yelded maruellous fruite, beyng ſo well framed, that it was afterwarde turned out of Frenche into Hebrue to winne y^e Iewes, into Greeke & Latin for y^e ſcholes, alſo into Italian, Dutch, Engliſhe, Scotiſh and Flēmiſhe, & alſo Spaniſhe, for all theſe nations. Theſe proſperous beginnings dyd greatly miſlike Satan & his, who failed not, (as it was an eaſy matter to doe in the firſt change of y^e eſtate of Religiō) to ſet himſelf againſt the proceding of the Goſpel. Albeit y^t it was receiued w^t an oth by all thoſe of this town. Maiſter Caluin on y^e other ſide as he was in deede of a noble minde, withſtoode firmely & conſtantly with Maiſter Farel, y^e ſeditious perſons, hauing alſo on his ſide an other good mā named Conrant, a Miniſter alſo of this Church, being blinde of his bodily eyes, but could wel ſee w^t the eyes of his ſpirite, whom alſo y^e ſaid Caluin had brought frō Baſil, where he did remaine bicauſe of the great perſecutions, y^t were in Fraunce: The ende was ſuch, y^t the Lord being minded euen at once to take his ſeruant out frō the preſſe, & to purge this Towne of certain ſeditious perſōs which did abuſe y^e name of y^e Goſpel, to plāt his name elſe where, & laſt of al to frame his ſeruāt by certain experiēce of things which did afterward ſtand him in great ſteade: it was ordeined (y^e greater part of y^e Coūſel not being the beſt) y^t the forenamed ſhould depart y^e town w^tin .24. houres, bicauſe y^t they wold not miniſter y^e Supper of the Lord in a Citie y^t was thē ſo troubled and ſtirred. Whē thys was declared to the ſaid Caluin, his aunſwere was y^t if hee had ſerued mē, he ſhould hauehave bene ill recōpenced, but he ſerued him, who in ſteade of euil recompēcing his ſeruāts, did alwayes giuegive thē more than they deſerued. And he might iuſtly ſo ſay: for he had folowed the example of S. Paule, in ſeruing of the Church vponupon his own charges & coſt. He then departed to the great griefe of all the good, firſt to Baſil, & then to Straſbourgh, wher being receiued as a treaſure, by thoſe excellent mē M. Martin Bucer, Capito, Hedio, and others, who at y^e preſent did ſhyne as precious Pearles in y^e Church of God, hee there erected a French Church, & therin did eſtabliſh Eccleſiaſtical diſcipline in ſuch ſort, as y^e Almaignes could neuer yet attaine vntounto, for their Churche, euen to this very daye: he did alſo reade Diuinitie w^t great admiration of eueryevery man, & then he began to write vponupon S. Paule, dedicating his Cōmentarie vponupon the Epiſtle to the Romaines to M. Simon Grinee, who was accompted to be the beſt learned of the Almaigne nation, & was his great friende: he had alſo this grace among others, that hee brought to the faith a great number of Anabaptiſts which were ſent vntounto hym out of all partes, and among others one named Iohn Stordeur of Liege, who within ſhort tyme after dying of the Plague at Straſbourgh, he tooke his widow to wyfe, whoſe name was Idelleto de Bure, a verye graue and honeſt woman, with whome hee liued afterwarde verye quietly, vntyll our Lorde tooke hir away to himſelf, the yeare .1548. without hauing had any childe: at the ſame very time there were holden in Almaigne certaine imperiall aſſembles or diets for the matter of Religion, at Woormes and at Ratiſbone, in the which Caluin was choſē for one of the chiefe by the aduiſe of all the Diuines of Almaigne, where he did ſo behaue himſelfe y^t his renoume became great euen among the very enimies, and Phillip Melancthon among others, did euen then receiue him into ſinguler friendſhip which did alwayes laſte afterwarde, and did then call him ordinarilye the Diuine, in token of ſinguler honor. In the meane time y^e Lord did execute his iudgements at Geneua, puniſhing certaine which beyng in the place of Syndique .1538. were the cauſe of the baniſhement of Caluin and Farel, in ſuch ſort as one of them beyng gyltie of a ſedition, & thinking to ſaue himſelf thorow a window, did all burſt himſelfe, an other of them hauing committed a murder, was by order of iuſtice beheaded, the other twaine being cō uinced of certain vntrouth againſt the ſtate of the towne, fledde awaye and were condemned in their abſence. When the towne was purged of this froth, they began then to bewayle Caluin, & he was deſyred thither againe by ſundry Ambaſſades frō Geneua, and by the interceſſion of the Lordes of Zuriche, to y^e Lords of Straſbourgh, who made great difficultie. On y^e other ſide Caluin ſeing how he profited in Straſbourgh, would in no wyſe cōſent therunto, albeit to declare the good wyll that he bare to the towne, the yeare .1539. a whole yeare after hys baniſhment, hee maintained the cauſe therof or rather of the truth of God againſt the Cardinal Sadolet, in a large and learned Epiſtle which is printed among the reaſt of hys workes. In thende he was threatened with the iudgements of God if he did not obey to that vocation, in ſuch ſorte that to the great ſorrowe of the Lordes of Straſbourgh, and eſpecially of Maiſter Bucer and his companions, he was licenced to be at Geneua for a certaine time. But when he came thither and was receiued of ſinguler affection by thoſe poore people which acknowleged their fault, & hauing a great deſire to heare their faithful Paſtor, they helde him there continually: wherunto in the ende the Lordes of Straſbourgh conſented, vpō condition that he ſhould be alwayes a Bourgeois of their towne. They would alſo y^t he ſhould hauehave had alwayes y^e reuenue of a Prebend which was appointed vntounto him for hys ſcipende of his reading. But as he was a man clearely voide of all greedineſſe of the goodes of thys worlde, ſo coulde they neuer bring to paſſe that hee woulde receiue ſo much as the value of one Denier thereof. And in this ſorte he was againe eſtabliſhed at Geneua, the yeare .1541. the .13. of September, where forthwith hee framed an order of Eccleſiaſticall Diſcipline, which hath alwayes ſince continued there firmely, albeit Satan and hys adherentes hauehave employed all theire forces to aboliſhe it. Now hee that woulde here declare particulerly all the trauayles & paines that thys excellent perſonage hath endured ſince by the ſpace of .23. yeares as well within as without, hee ſhoulde hauehave matter ſufficient to fil a great volume. For if euer there were towne furiouſly aſſayled by Satan, and valiantly defended during y^t tyme, it was Geneua, the honor belongeth onelyonly to God, but it ought and may lawfullye be ſaid y^t Caluin hath bene y^e inſtrumēt of hys vertue & power. If there be queſtiō of vigilance, Satan & his could neuer take him vnprouided, but either he hath warned y^t flocke before hande, or elſe preſerued it in y^e place. If wee ſhal ſpeake of integritie, he is yet vnborne, y^t hath ſene him cōmit any fault in his office, or to yelde, be it neuer ſo little, for any man liuing, or to hauehave varied in doctrine or life, nor neuer miſreported man. If we ſhall ſpeake of labour & paine, I beleue y^t his like is not to be founde, beſide y^t he preached cō tinually eueryevery daye in the weeke, and moſt commonly, and as often as he was able, hee preached twice eueryevery Sonday: hee did reade diuinitie three times in a weeke: hee made declaration in y^e Conſiſtorie or as it were a whole leſſon eueryevery Friday, in conference of the Scripture which we call Cōgregation, & did continue this order thorowly w^tout interruption vntill his death, & in dede neuer did fayle ſo much as once, except it were by extreme ſickneſſe. Further, who is able to recite his trauailes ordinarie and extraordinary, I knowe not if any man of our tyme hath had more to heare, to aunſwere, and to write, nor matters of greater importaunce. The onelyonly multitude and number of hys bookes and writings are ſufficient to aſtoniſhe any man that ſhall ſe them: but much more thoſe that ſhall reade them. And that which maketh hys labours more wonderfull, is that hee had a bodye ſo weake of nature, and ſo lowe brought with watchings and ouermuch ſobrietie, yea and being ſubiect to ſo many diſeaſes, that all men y^t had ſene him, would hauehave thought y^t he coulde not hauehave lyued at all. And notwithſtanding this, hee neuer left of day nor night his trauaile in the workes of the Lorde: & he coulde not endure to heare y^e requeſtes and exhortations of hys friendes which they daylye made vntounto him, to the ende that he ſhoulde take ſome reſt. I wyll alledge onelyonly two examples. The yeare .1559. beyng aſſayled and maruellouſly greued with a feuer quartane, he did notwithſtanding, in the chiefeſt of hys ſickneſſe, ſet forth the laſte edition of his Chriſtian Inſtitution, and did tranſlate it thorowe oute into Frenche. Likewiſe in his laſt ſickneſſes, which were the ſtone, the goute, y^e Hemorrhodes, a Phthyſike feuer, ſhortneſſe of wynd, beſide his ordinarie diſeaſe of the Miegrame, be did him ſelf tranſlate wholly that great volume of his Commentaries vponupon the foure laſte Bookes of Moyſes: examined the tranſlation of y^e fyrſt: made this booke vpō Ioſue, and did peruſe the greateſt part of the tranſlation and annotations of the Newe Teſtament, in ſor… that he neuer ceaſed from writing but only eyght dayes before his death, hys voice beginning to fayle him. Beſide hys innumerable paines and his charges, in all the miſchiefes and perilles, wherein this poore Citie hath bene, aſſayled within by many mutinous and deſperate Citizens, tormented without a hundred thouſand wayes, threatned by the greateſt Kings and Princes of Chriſtendome, bicauſe it was alwayes a refuge and defence for all the poore children of God afflicted in Fraunce, Italie, Spayne, Englande, and elſe where, it was ſo that Caluin bare alwaye the greateſt burden: to be ſhort he myght well ſaye with S. Paule, who is he y^t is troubled & I do not ſorrowe? And it was not without cauſe y^t eueryevery mā had his refuge to him: for God had adorned him with ſo wyſe and good councell, that neuer man repented him of the following of it, but I hauehave knowē many fal into great and extreme inconueniences which would not beleue him. Thys hath bene founde ſo by many experiences and proofes, namely in the ſeditions that happened the yeare .48. 54. and .55. to breake and diſorder the diſcipline of the Church, where he thruſt himſelf naked in among y^e ſwordes drawne, and w^t hys preſence & wordes he ſo frayed the moſt deſperate mutines of them, y^t they were enforced to prayſe God. The lyke was in the conſpiracie Catilinarie, which was the verye yere .55. to hauehave murdred all the French, by y^e Captaine of y^e towne named Amied Perrin and his conſpirators, which coniuration carying with it a maruellous number of daū gers and trauayles, in the ende, the Lords of hys great grace, by the wyſedome of hys ſeruaunt brought it to that paſſe y^t it is now at: to wyt, to the greateſt quietneſſe and felicitie y^t euer this Citie did knowe. As touching his ordinary life & dyet, eueryevery man cā witneſſe that it was ſo temperate, that ther was neuer exceſſe in it, no more was there of nigardiſe, but a commendable meane, ſauing that he had alwayes to ſmall regarde to his health, being cōtented for the ſpace of many yeares w^t one repaſt in .xxiiij. houres, and neuer receiuing any thing betwene his meales in ſuch ſort y^t all that euer the Phiſitians could perſuade him vntounto in y^e point, was y^t about half a yere before his laſt ſickneſſe, he did take at times about noone a litle wine and would ſoupe of an egge, y^e cauſes were the weakeneſſe of his ſtomack, and y^e Miegrame, for the which he ſaide hee coulde neuer find any remedy but a cōtinual dyet, in ſuche ſort as I hauehave knowen him oftentimes to eate no meate in two dayes. Being of ſo ſmal a dyet, he ſlept very little: & for the more parte he was cōſtrained to warme him vponupon his bedde, whereon alſo hee hath made the greateſt number of his bookes, being continually happily occupyed in ſpirite. This is the order y^t this excellent ſeruant of God did continuallye obſerue, forgetting himſelf to ſerue God & his neighbour in his vocation & charge: yet coulde hee not ſo doe but y^e Satan did rayſe vp againſt him al the ſhamefulleſt ſlaunders of y^e worlde, but y^t is no newes, for it is the rewarde y^t the world in all ages hath giuen to thoſe that woulde drawe them from perdition. I wyll not aunſwere thoſe that doe call him Heretique and woorſe than Heretique, (whereupon they hauehave forged a name of Caluiniſtes) for hys Doctrine maketh aunſwere on the contrarye more than ſufficientlye. Some hauehave charged hym wyth ambition, but if they be able in anye point to proue it, I am content to be cōdemned. Is there any man that hath folowed greater ſimplicitie in the expoſitiō of the Scriptures, and hath more wherewith to ſet hymſelfe forthe if hee woulde hauehave profaned the Scriptures with ſubtile and vaine oſtentations? Hee would rule all, ſaye they. O villaine & falſe ſhameleſneſſe: what preheminence did hee euer ſeeke? & if he had ſought it, who coulde hauehave kept him from it? with whom did hee euer ſtriue for the firſt or the ſeconde place, when men hauehave not giuen vntounto him that which the giftes and graces that God had giuen him did require? when hath hee bene ſeene alter, be it neuer ſo little? when hath it bene ſene that euer hee did abuſe his charge and his auctoritie towarde the ſimpleſt in y^e world? when did he take in hande any thing without the aduiſe or againſt the opinion of hys companions? To be ſhort, what difference was there euer betweene him and vsus, but that he did excell vsus all in all humilitie among other vertues, and alſo in that hee tooke more paine than all we did? was there any man more ſimplye apparelled or more modeſt in al reſpectes? was there any houſe conſidering the eſtate of the man, I doe not ſaye leſſe ſumpteous, but more ſlenderlye furniſhed with moueables? And if men wil not beleue mee and ten thouſand witneſſes with mee, at the leaſt let them beleue the ſlender wealth of hys brother & onelyonly heire, and alſo the inuentorie of all his goods, and it ſhall be founde that all that euer hee lefte behinde him (accompting alſo hys bookes which were dearely ſolde bicauſe of his precious memorie, to all men that were learned) doth not exceede the value of two hundred crownes. Theſe maye alſo aunſwere theſe ſhameleſſe euill reporters who hauehave talked ſo largely, that the one ſorte ſayd hee was a Vſurer, the other that he was a very bancker: a matter ſo worthie of ſcorne and ſo falſely rayſed, that anye man that euer did knowe him, wyll neuer require aunſwere to ſuch an vntrouth. He was ſo couetous that hauing in the whole ſixe hundred Florines for his ſtipende, which doth not al amount to three hundred liures tournois, yea he ſought to hauehave leſſe, & the accomptes of this Seigniorie can witneſſe it. Hee hath bene ſo couetous of thys worldely goodes, that being in fauour, yea & honored both of Kings, Princes & Lordes of many nations, and hauing dedicated his workes to them, I know not (and I think I ſhould hauehave knowen it if it had bene otherwiſe) that euer he receiued of them to hys vſe the value of .xx. Crownes. Alſo he had the ſacred woorde of God in ſuch reuerence, that he had rather to dye than to vſe it as a bayte to Ambition or auarice. Hee did dedicate hys bookes to priuate perſons, acknowledging ſome benefite or friendſhip, as he did a very learned & ſinguler Cōmentarie vpō the booke of Seneca concerning the vertue of Clemencie & gentleneſſe, which he wrote in Parris, being of the age of .24. yeares, & did dedicate it to one of the Lordes of Monmor, wyth whom hee had bene brought vp, not at theire charges notwithſtanding. The like hee did with his Commentaries vponupon y^e Epiſtle of S. Paule to the Romanes, being dedicated to Simon Grinee: vponupon the firſt to the Corinthians, to the Lord Marques Caraciol: vpō the ſecond to the Corinthians, to Melchior Volmar his Maiſter that taught him the Greeke: vppon y^e firſt to y^e Theſſaloniās, to Mathurin Cordier his gouerner in the colledge of S. Barbara at Parris in his firſt youth: vponupon the ſecond, to Benet Textor his Phiſitian: vppon the Epiſtle to Tite, to his two ſinguler friends & companions in y^e worke of y^e Lord, Maiſter William Farel & M. Peter Viret: and the booke of offences to Lawrent of Normādie his auncient & continuall friend. As concerning y^e others which hee did dedicate to certaine Kings, Princes, or cōmon wealthes, his meaning was to encorage the one ſorte to perſeuer in y^e defence of y^e childrē of God, & to ſtirre vp the others to the lyke. Wherefore alſo when he ſaw y^t ſuch men did y^e contrary, he made not ſtraunge to put out their names & to put in others, which onelyonly came to paſſe in two of his Prefaces. This be ſaid as touching this crime of auarice. Others on y^e other ſide hauehave reported him to be prodigall & a player, but it was as true as y^e report of thoſe y^e charged him w^t fornicatiō. As concerning prodigality & the fruites therof, hys bookes wyll well declare euen to y^e ende of the world, of his paſtimes, & of the ſhameleſneſſe of ſuch lyers. As cōcerning whoredome, it is maruell y^t any mā durſt ſo farre to ſtray, as to forge y^e euil report, were it not that it is a thing accuſtomed againſt y^e moſt excellent ſeruants of God. But he is yet vnborne that euer did ſuſpect him of whom we ſpeake in any place wherſoeuer he vſed: hee liued about nine yeares in Mariage verye chaſtely, when hys wyfe was deade, hee continued in wydowerhead aboute the ſpace of .xvj. yeares, euen to hys death. In all that time who is he that euer perceiued the leaſt token that might be of ſo vnworthie an acte in him? And what woman was there ſo villaine and ſhameleſſe y^e durſt to beholde without ſhame a forehead ſo reuerende and ſhewing to all men that did beholde it, all puretie and fredome? Who hath bene a more rigorous enimy to whordome than he? It is true that the Lord hath exerciſed him touching this matter toward ſuch as touched him neare. There hath yet worſe happened in the houſe of Iacob and Dauid, than to him of whom wee ſpeake, and in a more ſtraunge ſorte. But what did Satan in this behalfe gaine of the faithfull ſeruaunt of God, but only ſhame & rebuke to himſelfe in the later daye before the ſeate of the Sōne of God? And now to them that hee had ſtirred vp, to rayſe ſuch ſclaunder, Whoredomes, Adulteries, and inceſtes, are accompted for paſtimes and exerciſes of the wicked ones, in ſort, that one of the greateſt faultes that they finde with the reformed Churches, is y^t there whoredome and adulterie is puniſhed: In the meane while if there be any ſuch fault or offence founde among vsus, albeit that it be extremely punniſhed, they accuſe vsus with open mouth. In ſo doing, (if they ſayde truth,) what other thing doe they than blame vsus in that that we reſemble thē? But without entring any further into this diſcourſe, it muſte needes bee, (will they or no) confeſſed y^t the theeues do not haunt where y^e Magiſtrates & Potē tates are: but to exerciſe ſuch thīgs it were more meete to dwell among thē where ſuch offence is a vertue. But to returne to my purpoſe, it ſhalbe well founde y^t this faithfull ſeruant of God hath ſhewed to all the worlde a ſinguler example, in condemning this villaine and ſtincking vice, as well in them as in others: for when there were any found faultie, he had no regarde at al w^tout accepting of perſons, but to GOD and hys Church: and I ſay nothing in thys, but that which all ſuch as did knowe hym well, wyll teſtifie before God. Ther hauehave bene others which hauehave named him to be irreconciliable, cruell, and alſo bloudye, which ſome of them woulde moderate, naming him only, to ſeuere. The defence is ſone made, God be praiſed, and it ſhoulde not be neceſſarie, were it not y^t it ſhal do well to rebuke ſome of them for their peruerſitie, and to aduertiſe the others of their ingratitude towards God. I ſayde in the beginning that which I doe now ſaye, which is, y^t he neuer had enimies but ſuch as did not knowe him, or elſe ſuch as made open warre againſt GOD. I wil bring forth to witneſſe the ſame, a proofe more than ſufficient, it is, that hardely may there be any man founde in our time of hys calling, againſte whom Satan hath made more cruel warre by al kindes of outrages, but he neuer purſued any man in any court nor attempted y^e law againſt any, no, he neuer ſought any reuenge: alſo hee neuer had houſe nor enheritaunce, nor neuer did deale w^t any traffique or occupying whatſoeuer it bee, but it is very true y^t when they banded againſt y^e doctrine of God which he taught, hee woulde neuer yelde in any thing, but would according to the holy lawes that bee here eſtabliſhed, proſecute, that the mockers of God might be hādled according to theire deſert. But which are they that will blame that, but onelyonly thoſe that doe tranſforme a vertue moſte rare and ſinguler, into a vice ouermuch common and hurtfull. By the waye, what if I ſay, and may lawfully ſay it in deede, that a number euē of thoſe againſt whom hee hath bene enforced to ſtande for matters before recited, hauehave honored his cō ſtancie by their own teſtimonies? I coulde name at y^e leaſt thre, which I wil not name, notw^tſtanding twoo of them being brought to puniſhmēt for their faults & offences, did in the ſight of all the people, thinke all the honor & thanks y^t they might yeld vntounto him during the ſame, not to be ſufficient, calling him their Father, crying out, ſaying, y^t they were vnworthie of hys preſence, aduertiſements & prayers, conſidering they had not harkened to his fatherly admonitions. The third being in his bed ſick euē to death, who had bene during his lyfe y^e counſeller of all theſe ſtrayed ones, coulde neuer be perſuaded y^e God would forgiue him, if y^e his faithfull ſeruāt, whom he had ſo much offended, did not alſo forgiue him. So far were theſe men of from charging him either w^t cruelty or ouermuch ſeueritie. I confeſſe y^t hee hath alwayes ſhewed y^e Magiſtrates, how deteſtable y^t accepting of perſons is in the ſight of God, that they muſt holde the Balaunce aright: & that God abhorreth not only thoſe which doe condemne the innocent, but alſo thoſe which pardon y^e offender. Now if it be vice to ſay ſo, & to put it in vſe, y^e holy Ghoſt muſt then be condemned who hath ſo ſaide: or if it be otherwiſe, ſuch blaſphemers that doe call the ordinance of God, crueltie, muſt hauehave their mouthes ſtopped. But, ſay they, he was ouer rigorous againſte adulterers and heretiques. I may well aunſwere that which is true, as all the towne doth know, that hee neuer iudged anye man, for it was not his office, and he neuer thought to do it: & if they hauehave demaunded his aduiſe, not to confounde the eſtates which God hath deuided, but to be gouerned according to the worde of the Lorde. I knowe well that I myght auouth it, if I ſayde that they hauehave not alwayes folowed his counſell. But leauing that, what are theſe mercifull cenſors able to alledge, when I ſhall ſay vntounto them that which is true, which is, that there was neuer yet good gouernement in anye common wealth wherein adulterye hath not bene iudged worthy of death: and yet it can not be proued that any one ſimple adulterer hath bene punniſhed in this Citie by death. As concerning Heretiques, where is, I pray you, that great rigour? where is it that this bloudy mā hath ſhewed one iote of a bloudy nature? There are fewe townes of Guiſſe and of Almaigne where they hauehave not put Anabaptiſtes to death, and lawfully: they hauehave bene cōtented here with baniſhment. Bolſec hath here blaſphemed againſte the prouidence of God. Sebaſtian Caſtalion hath here ſpoken euill of the very bookes of the holy Scriptures. Valentine hath here blaſphemed againſt y^e eſſence of God: None of them hauehave here bene put to death, twoo of them were onelyonly baniſhed, the other was ſet free by an honorable amendes towarde God and the Seignorie. Where is this crueltie? Only one Seruet was put to the fire. And who was euer more worthy than that wicked one, hauing for the ſpace of thirtie yeares in ſo many ſundrie ſorts blaſphemed againſt the Eternitie of the Sonne of God, giuing the name of Cerberus, to the Trinitie of the three perſons in one onelyonly Diuine eſſence, making the baptiſme of yong children of no value, hauing gathered and heaped togither all the filthy ſtinckes that euer Sathan did vomite out againſt the truth of God, hauing ſeduced an infinite number of perſons, and for the chiefe and principall of all his wickedneſſes, would neuer neyther repent in giuing place to the truth, wherby hee had bene ſo often times conuinced, nor ſhewe any token of conuerſion. And if wee ſhould come to the iudgement of the Churches, who would not rather alowe y^t which al the Churches of Almaigne, and namely Philip Melancthon a mā greatly renoumed for hys meekeneſſe, hath not only ſpoken, but alſo publiſhed by writing, the prayſe of ſo iuſte an execution? To ende this matter, they which diſcommende ſuch an act, coulde neither better ſet forth their ignoraunce in blaming y^t which deſerueth ſinguler commendation, nor yet their raſheneſſe, when they deale wyth him who did but the office of a faithfull Paſtour, putting y^e Magiſtrate in minde of hys dutie, endeuoring him by all meanes to bring ſuche a wicked man to ſome amendement, and in the ende, not forgetting anye thing that might let that ſuch a peſtilēce ſhould not infect his flock. There are others which hauehave reported hym to bee very cholericke, I wyll not make of a man an Angell, yet notwithſtanding, bicauſe I do know how maruellouſly God hath bene ſerued by that ſame very vehemencie, I ought not to keepe ſilent that which is true, and that I doe know. Beſyde his owne naturall inclination to choller, hys witte being maruellous prompt, the folly of many, the multitude and infinite varietie of the affaires for the Church of GOD: and towarde the later ende of hys lyfe, hys great and continuall diſeaſes, had made him vnquiet and frowarde: but ſure hee was farre of from any delight therein, for on the contrarie, no man did better perceaue nor ſo much finde it as did hee. Thys be ſayde concerning hys lyfe and conuerſation in hys houſe, in whome this onelyonly default (that euer I knewe) was tempered wyth ſo great and amiable vertues, and ſo ſeldome or neuer at all acompanied with other vices which are alwayes wont to folowe y^e ſame, that he neuer offended any of hys friendes neither in woorde nor deede. But as touching in publique concerning the charge that GOD had committed vntounto him, it is there that I muſte needes maruell at the great wyſedome of God, turning all things to hys glorye, and chiefely in hys moſt ſinguler inſtrumentes and Organes. Such as hauehave ſeene and knowen wyth what kinde of men he hath moſte commonly had to doe, the thinges that God hath declared and done by him, the circumſtāces of times and places, they in deede may iudge wherto ſuche a vehemencie, I ſay, a vehemencie in déede Propheticall, did ſerue and ſhall ſerue to all poſteritie. And that which made him …ore maruellous, was, that nether hauing nor ſeeking any thing leſſe than that which is ſo muche required by thoſe that would be feared by meane of an outward apparance, the moſte obſtinate and peruers were conſtrained to bende vnderunder the great power of God, which did compaſſe about his faithful ſeruaunt. They which ſhall reade his wrytinges, and ſhall rightly ſeeke the glory of God, ſhall there ſee this maieſty (whereof I ſpeake) to ſhine. As concerning ſuch as doe at this day handle religion, as they doe politique affaires, which are more cold than yſe in Gods cauſe, and more enflamed than the fire, in y^t which concerneth their particuler cauſes, and which doe cal al y^e choller, which is more frankly ſpoken than they woulde, euen as he neuer ſought to pleaſe ſuch men, euen ſo doe I thinke it not meete to ſtand about the anſwering of them. What would theſe wiſe & temperate men ſay then, (ſeing there is no queſtion but of God,) if they had more earneſtly felt ſuch a choller? I am ſure they would hauehave bene alſo on their part as euill contented, as I doe thincke, and ſhall thinke my ſelf happy during my life, to hauehave enioyed ſo great and ſo rare a vertue, bothe openly & priuately. Euen as I coulde neuer be weary of ſolacing my ſelf in the abſence of ſo worthy and excellent a perſonage, in repreſenting him vntounto me by the diſcourſe of his rare and exquiſite vertues: no more can I without very great ſorowe, make an end of that which reſteth, and may notwithſtā ding in no wiſe bee lefte vntouched, for ſo muche as it is, as it were, the crowne and beautye of all his life. Beſide that God did place this great wiſdom and vnderſtanding in a weake bodye, and diſpoſed of it ſelfe to the diſeaſe of the Pthyſike, whereof he alſo died: the ſtudies of his youth had made him verye leane and weake, and when he came once to the affaires, he had alwaies ſo ſmall reſpect concerning the trauaile of his mind, that withoute the ſpeciall grace of GOD, (whom it pleaſed to builde his Churche by the meanes of that inſtrumente) it had not ben poſſible for him to hauehave come to the age which the Phiſitians doe call the declining. The yeare .1558. being required by the Lordes of Franckfort to make a voyage thyther, to appeaſe and prouide remedie for certaine troubles that were in the Frenche Church, which was newlye receiued in to that towne: at the retourne of thys long & trauaylſome voyage, he had a terciā feuer, very ſharpe, which was as it were the firſt puſhe at hys health: in ſuch ſorte that in the yeare of our health .1559. hee was aſſayled with a long and perillous feuer quartane, during the which, to his great grief, he was enforced to abſtaine from both preaching and reading: but hee was neuer vnoccupyed in his houſe, what counſell ſo euer mē gaue him, in ſort that during that time, hee began and ended his laſt Chriſtian inſtitution both in Latin and in French, wherof wee will ſpeake in the concluſion. Thys ſickneſſe brought him ſo lowe, that neuer afterward he coulde recouer his full health, he drewe euer afterwarde hys right legge after him, which oftentimes did greatly greeue him: his auncient diſeaſes put them in order alſo: to wit, the head ache, and great rawneſſes which cauſed a continuall defluxion: hee was alſo greued with the Hemorrhoides, ſo much the more in that that at ſome other time by chaūce that part was made verye weake: the cauſe was for that he neuer ſuffered his minde to reſt. He had a continuall vnperfect digeſtion, wherunto he neuer gaue any heede, but when the diſeaſe compelled him. The colliques alſo folowed, and then in the ende the goute and the reaſt. Beſide this, by ſtrayning himſelfe, and by a gnawing defluxion, hee fell into a ſpitting of bloud, which did weaken him to the vttermoſt. In the middeſt of ſo many diſeaſes, it is a thing very ſtraunge that this ſharpneſſe of Spirit was rather letted than diminiſhed, and this dexteritie of iudgemēt nothing altered. There was only this euil, that the body coulde not followe the ſpirite, albeit that he did ſometime enforce himſelf, vntil the time that he was ſo grieued wyth the ſhortneſſe of his wynde, that with great paine hee was ſcarcely able to remoue hym twoo or thre paces. The Phiſitiās employed all their induſtrie, and he on his ſide did folow their counſel to the vttermoſt, notwithſtanding his griefes & ſo many diſeaſes togither mingled. But it was all in vaine, as he did alwaies ſay, looking vp to Heauen, ſpeaking often theſe wordes, Lorde how long? And then in the ende he remained without ſtirring, hauing yet the vſe of hys ſpeache, but could not long ſpeake or continue any purpoſe by meane of the ſhortneſſe of his breath, yet notwithſtanding this, he ceaſſed not to laboure. For in this laſte ſickneſſe, as hath ben aboue ſaid, he did wholly tranſlate out of Latin into frenche, his Harmony vponupon Moyſes, did peruſe the Tranſlation of Geneſis, wrote vppon this booke of Ioſue: and in the ende did peruſe and correcte the greateſt part of the Frenche notes vponupon the Newe Teſtament, whiche other men had before hande gathered. Beſide this he was alwaies occupied in the affaires of the churches, anſwering by worde and by wryting, when occaſion required: all be it that on our parte wee made requeſt vntounto him, praying him to hauehave greater regard to himſelf: but his anſwer was alway to vsus, that y^e whiche he did was nothing, requiring vsus to ſuffer, that God mought finde him alwaies watching and labouring according to his ability in his worke, euen to his laſt breath. The xxv. of April, he made his Teſtamēt in brief ſort, as he did alwaies auoid the vſe of moe words than neded, as much as in him was. which doeth containe an excellent and ſinguler teſtimony for euer, that he ſpake as he beleued, which was the cauſe that I did willingly inferre this ſame, word by word, by the conſent of his brother and only heire Antonie Caluin, to the end that this acte may remain for euer, as it hath pleaſed God that the Teſtaments of ſome of his moſte excellent ſeruauntes hauehave bene enregiſtred, to be perpetuall witneſſes, that one very ſpirit of God did gouerne them, both in their life, and in their death: and alſo to make the better knowen the extreme ſhameleſſeneſſe of ſuche as would beare men in hand that hys death was not according to his life. And if any man doe thincke any thing to be herein other than trouth, I will not ſtand much in ſaying againſte him: onelyonly I doe gyue him warning whatſoeuer he be, to thinke what thing it is, that maye be true and firme among liuing men, if it be lawfull for a man to dout that which hath bene done in a Towne, in the ſighte and knowledge of ſuch as wold heare or vnderſtand it.