Warning to Take Heed of Fowlers Psalter, To the reader
Coloſſ. 3.
Let the vvord of Chriſt dvvell in you plenteouſly in all vviſedom, teaching and admonishing your ovvne ſelues in pſalmes and himnes and ſpirituall ſonges, ſinging vvith grace in your hartes vntounto the Lord, &c.
Prayſe God. TO THE CHRISTIAN Reader.
FOwler addeth vntounto his fiddle whiche he calleth a Pſalter, an admonition. It may (I truſt) be as lawefull for me, nowe in the ende of this booke to adde a few words in way of a neceſſary admonition. VVhen the Pope sheweth himſelfe liberal in giuinge of Pardons to them which will pray ſo as he appointeth them, & when papiſts are buſie to make vsus Pſalters and ſuch prety inſtrumentes whereon to pray, a man woulde thinke that both he & they were become very deuoute. But euen theſe very ſame men, when this word prayer is moſt buſie in their mouthes, hauehave in their hartes & hands fowle & bloody practiſes, to cut the throates of thē whom they doe allure to pray with them. In which they do not ſo cloſely work, but God of his goodnes, doth diſcouer thē, bleſſed be his name for it. He doth bevvray vntounto vsus that blood thriſt vvhichwhich lieth in their hartes. For, they do in dede ſecretly labor & practiſe the sheding of our blood & the murthering of vsus all, whileſt they doe allure vsus to pray, as they preſcribe vsus. And therfore iuſt cauſe we hauehave novve to complaine on theſe enemies as Dauid doth vppon his: Pſal. 55. The wordes of his mouth were ſofter then butter, yet warre was in his hart: His words were more gentle then oyle, yet they were ſwords. VVe may likevviſe complaine as he doth, Pſal. 120. My ſoule hath to longe dwelt with him that hateth peace. I ſeeke peace, & when I ſpeake thereof, they are bent to warre. In theſe practiſes of the ſeede of Cain, that is of theſe romish catholikes (for ſo they vvil be called) vve do ſe that fulfilled vvhichwhich vvas foretold vsus by our Sauior Chriſt. Ioh. 16. That whoſoeuer killeth you, will thinke that he doth God ſeruice. Thus are the childrē of God forevvarned that they shall finde enemies ſo deuout & cruell, that they shall thinke them ſelues to do good and acceptable ſacrifice to God in ſlaying & killing of them. This is an opinion vvhichwhich is putte into their mindes by the deuill that old murtherer & liar: & in this murthering, the murtherers do this their ſeruice to the deuil him ſelfe. The old perſequutinge Pagans thus ſerued their Gods, that is, the deuill him ſelfe in bloody ſlayinges and murtheringes of Chriſtians. In deede it is the delight of the deuil to ſmell the ſauor of ſuch ſacrifices. And therfore euen among the Pagans and Idolaters, the deuill that olde murtherer hadde ſovved this deluſion, that they vvere induced to thinke it to be a moſt acceptable ſeruice to their Idolls, to offer vntounto them men, vvomen, & children in ſlaine ſacrifice like beaſts. Yea ſome of thē did doate herein ſo egregiouſly, that they ſpared not their ovvne ſonnes, and daughters, but made vnnaturall ſlaughters of their naturall children to the deuil him ſelfe in their Idols. And this vvas amonge them a thinge ſo common and horrible,Cl. Alex. that euen of this their cruell inhumanity did ſome olde doctors and vvryters of Chriſtes church gather argumentes to proue thoſe Idols falſe deuils and their vvorshippe Idolatry, and to dravv thoſe Idolaters from their barbarous infidelitie to the faith of Chriſt. The ſame pagans alſo vvere taught by the deuill their ſchoolemaiſter to thinke ſometime that it vvas meete for them to pacifie their gods, and to procure them ſelues felicity by makinge of hauocke and cruell ſlaughters of the godly olde Chriſtians. The ſame murtherer the deuill vvhichwhich vvrought theſe miſchiefes then, doth vſe ſtill his olde pranckes, and doth ſturre vp papiſtes novv to practiſe the like inhumaine & cruell ſlaughters vponupon the poore flock & sheepe of Chriſt, as he did by Pagans then. They thinke it an acceptable ſeruice & ſacrifice to their God. But it is only a pleaſing ſeruice to the deuill of hel, and the deuill it is vvhom papiſtes do ſerue herein. They thinke by theſe meanes to extinguish the faith, the religion, & true profeſſion of Chriſt, that their popish Idols may keepe the place of God, and be counted and vvorshipped as God only and alone vppon earth, vvherein they ſerue the deuill himſelfe to the vttermoſt of their povver. Many are the vnnaturall ſlaughters vvhichwhich not onelie before vsus, but euen in our age papiſtes hauehave made in Fraunce, at Merindoll, Paris, and through that vvhole realme, in Flaunders alſo and Spayne, England and elſe vvhere as the hiſtories of our age doe beare teſtimony. But if that God vvhom Papiſts vvorship be ſuch a cruel belly god, that he is beſt pleaſed vvhen men are ſlayne for his pleaſure, vve may ſafely ſay then that, that vvhichwhich the Papiſts doe vvorshippe vvith ſuch ſeruice, is the very deuill of hell. For the Lord God the maker of heauen and earth, God the father of our Lord Ieſus Chriſt, the onelyonly true liuing God, accepteth no ſuch ſeruice, no ſuch ſacrifice, and he vvill in his appoynted time call theſe butchers and men quellers to as fearefull an accompte for theſe their cruell doings as once he called Cain for the ſlaughter of his brother Abell. Yea let them proceede, they shall but fill vppe the meaſure of their ſinnes, that vponupon them (as Chriſt ſayth) may come all the righteous blood that vvas shed vponupon the earth,Matth. 23. from the blood of Abell the righteous, vntounto the blood of Zacharias the ſonne of Barachias, &c. But you vvill ſay theſe men be deuoute in their prayers. They doe pray: ſo did Cain: ſo did Doeg, make a ſemblance of praying and ſacrificing, but this vvas but the counterfetting of theſe caſt-avvayes. And the Papiſts do think that vvhileſt they do thus nourish this vnſatiable malice and deuiſe of theſe bloody maſſacres in their heartes, yet that they doe pray ſo vvell thēſelues, that they may allure others to pray vvith them. But in theſe their thoughtes they do erre, and are deceaued. For the Lord him ſelfe ſayeth by the Prophet. Iſai. 1. VVhen you ſhall ſtretch out your hands I will hide mine eyes from you, and though you make many prayers, I will not heare, for your hands are full of blood. The prayers therfore of theſe bloody papiſts are not hearde, thankes be to God for it. But let vsus al vvhichwhich do profeſſe the religion of Ieſus Chriſt in truth, be admonished vvith care and diligence to practiſe right prayer acceptable to God by Ieſus Chriſt our Sauior, and not forget that vvhileſt vve do pray, papiſtes hauehave ſtill their ſecrete practiſes to cut all our throates, and therefore let vsus be prepared for them.
Pſal. 72.
He shall redeeme their ſoules from deceite, & violence, & deere shal their blood be in his ſight.
End of the text · Thomas Sampson, Warning to Take Heed of Fowlers Psalter (1578)