Exposition Upon Matthew 27(1), Matthew 5 · Verse 9
Bleſſed are ye, when they reuyle you, and perſecute you and ſaye all duplicate page duplicate page maner of euell ſaynges agaynſt you for my ſake, and yet lye. Reioyſe and be glade, for your rewarde is great in heuen. Euen ſo verely they perſecuted the prophetes that were before you.
He… ſeyſt thou the vttermoſte what a Chryſten man muſt loke for. It is not ynoughe to ſoffer for ryghtwyſnes. But that no bytternes o… poyſon be lefte out of thy cuppe, thou ſhalte be reuyled and rayled vponupon,what the moſte cruel ꝑſecucyō is and euen whan thou art condempned to dethe then be excomunycate and delyuered to ſathan, depryued the felowſhype of holy church, the company of the angelles and of thy parte in Chryſtes bloud▪ and ſhalt be curſed downe to hell, defyed, deteſtat, and execrate with all the plaſphemous ralynges that the poyſon hartes of ypocrytes cā thinke or ymagyne, and ſhalt ſe before thy face whē thou goeſt to thy deth, that al the worlde is perſwaded and brought in beleue that thou haſt ſayde and done that thou neuer thoughteſte, and that thou dyeſt for that thou art as gyltles of as the chylde that is vnborne.
well thoughe inequite ſo hyly preuayle, and the truthe for which thou dyeſt, be ſo lowe kepte vnderunder and be not once knowē before the world in ſo moche that it ſemeth rather to be hyndered by thy dethe, then (furthered) whiche is of all greffes the greateſte) yet l… not thyne harte fayle the nether dyſpare, as thoughe God hade forſaken the or louelove the not. But comforte thy ſelfe with olde enſamples, howe God hath ſufred all hys olde frendes to be ſo entreated,Set the enſample of Chryſt before the. and alſo hys onelyonly and deare ſonne Ieſus▪ whoſe enſample aboue all other ſet before thyne eyes, becauſe thou art ſure he was beloued aboue all other, that thou doute not, but thou arte beloued alſo, and ſo moche the more beloued, the more thou art lyke to the ymage of hys enſample in ſufferynge.
Dyd not the ypocrytes watche him in al hys ſermones, to trappe hym in hys owne wordes? was he not ſubtellye apoſed, whether it were lawfull to paye trybute to Ceſar? were not all hys wordes wronge reported? were not hys myracles aſcrybed to Belſabub? ſayde they not, he was a Samarytane and had a deuell in hym? was he not called a breaker of the Sabothe, a wyne drynker, a frende of publicans and ſynners? dyd he ought wherwith no faute was foūde, and that was not interprete to be done for an euell purpoſe? was nat the pretenſe of hys dethe, the deſtroynge of the temple, to brynge hym in to the harte of all men, was he not therto accuſed of treſon, that he for bade to paye trybute to Ceſar? and that he moued the temple to inſurreccyon? Rayled they not on hym in the byttereſt of all hys paſſyon, as he hanged on the Croſſe, ſaynge, ſaue thy ſelfe thou that ſaueſte other, come downe from the Croſſe and we wyll beleuen in the, fye wretche that deſtroyeſt the temple of God.
Yet was he beloued of God, and ſo art thou his cauſe came to lyght alſo / and ſo ſhal thyne at the laſt, ye and thy rewarde is great in heuē with hym, for thy depe ſofferynge.
Curſed. Moſte accurſed? who?And on the other ſyde, as they be curſed which leue ryghtuouſnes deſtytute and wyll not ſoffer therewith / ſo are they mooſte accurſed whiche knowe the truthe, and yet not only fle ther from becauſe they wyll not ſoffer. But alſo for lucre, become the mooſte cruell enymyes therof and moſte ſuttyll perſecuters, and moſte falſlye lye theron alſo.
workes iuſtyfye not.Fynally thoughe God whan be promyſeth to bleſſe our workes / do bynde vsus to worke yf we wyll obtayne the bleſſynge or promyſe / yet muſte we beware of thys phareſa…cal peſtylence / to thynke that our workes dyd deſerue the promyſes. For what ſo euer God commaundeth vsus to do, that is our dutye to do, thoughe there were no ſuche promyſe made to vsus at all. The promyſe therfore cometh not of the deſeruynge of the worker (as thoughe God had nede of ought that we coulde do) but of the pure mercy of God, to make vsus the more wyllynge to do that is our dutye. &c. For yf when we had done all that God commaundethe vsus to do he then gaue vsus vppe in to the handes of tyrauntes and kylled vsus / and ſent vsus to purgatorye (which men ſo greatlye feare) or to hell / and all the aungelles of heuen with vsus / he dyd vsus no wronge nor were vnryghtuous for ought that we or they coulde calynge of deſeruynge, howe ſo euer that God vſeth his creatures / he euer abideth ryghtuous, tyl thou canſt proue that after he hath boūd hym ſelfe with hys owne worde of mercy, he then breake promyſe with them that kepe couenaunt with hym. So nowe yf nought were promyſed / nought coulde be callenge, what ſo euer we dyd And therfore the promyſe cometh of ye goodnes of the promyſer only / and not of the deſeruyng of thoſe workes of whiche God hathe no nede / and which were no leſſe our dutye to do / though there were no ſuche promyſe.