A Second Reply to an Answer Made by Doctor Whitgift Part 1, Reply 3
VntoUnto the 14. ſection.
I Onelie proue that their highe eſtate owght not to ſhadowe the cauſe in hand: I ſaye nothing leſſe then that men in highe eſtate can not hauehave the trewth: their is no ſyllable ſounding that waies / the contrary I plainely affirme / that manie off the Nobilitie and gentrie / are Zelous and Religiouſe. To what ende therfore theſe places owt off Iſay / Gualter / Bullinger to proue a thing not onelie not denied / but plainely afmed? For iff he thinke Maiſter Bullingers ſentence dothe hinder / that the ſaiynge off S. Paule to the Corinth. can not be vnderſtanded of theſe times: he is greatlie abuſed / conſideringe that the reaſon which the Apoſtell there vſeth / which is that no fleſhe ſhould glorie in the ſight off God / reacheth to the whole eſtate of the kingdome of Chriſt / and is not proper to that time. And when Maiſter Bullinger ſaith that it came to paſſe eſpeciallie in that time / he excludeth not the times that folowe.
Where as he ſaithe the ſimple and plaine meaning of the texte to be / that god in his electiō to eternall life / hathe neither reſpecte to learning / nobilitie / riches or any ſuche thing: he do the manifeſtly corrupte the ſentence off the Apoſtle / and the whole proces off his diputation. for the apoſtle going abowt to mainteine / the naked ſimplicitie off the preaching off the word of god / againſt thoſe that would hauehave the word preached in the ſwelling wordes off mans eloquence: amongeſt other reaſons vſeth this / that the lord vſeth for the moſt part other meanes to doo his / then the wiſdome off men would chuſe to doo their matters. And therfore that the ſimple kind off preaching / withowt all pompe and brauerie off ſpeach / might ſemeleſſe ſtrange: he ſheweth the ſame to come to paſſe in the callinge off god / in which he taketh the moſte vnlikely in mans iudgement / and paſſeth by thoſe that the wiſdome of man would ſoneſt take. And albeit it be to an other ende / this ſentence off S. Paule is the ſame in effecte with that off S. Iames: that god chuſeth the poore in the world riche in faith. Now althowghe it be trew / that god hathe not reſpecte Iam. 2. 5.to riches / or pouertie / nobilitie / or baſe degree in his eternall election: yet who is there ſo voide off all iudgement / that will ſaie that the trew and ſimple meaning off S. Iames in this place is / that god in his eternal election hathe no regard to riches / or pouertie? When he therfore reproueth them to whom he wrote for that they reiected the poore which the Lorde for the mooſt part chuſeth / and made much off the riche / which he for the moſte part reiecteth.
Saint Paule therfore ſheweth not onelyonly what came to paſſe in thoſe times: but what for the moſte part cōmeth / and ſhall come to paſſe / vntounto the worldes ende in the Kingdome of Chriſt: euen that he had before learned of our ſauior Chriſt / that the poore as thoſe that are afflicted / and caſt downe withe the ſenſe off their miſeries / oftentimes do gladlier receiue the goſpell. Neither followeth it herevpō that the riche and noble are ſhut owt off the kingdome off God / or that riches off them ſelues make men leſſe apte to the kingdome off heauen / ſeing Abraham the father off the beleuers was riche: or els that the riche ſometime goo not before the poore in receiuing off the goſpell: whiche we reade to hauehave come to paſſe in Beroe / and Theſſalonique / and which ſometimes commeth to Act. 17.paſſe not onelie in one citie / but in a whole realme / that the nobilitie embrace the goſpell / and the baſer ſort deſpiſe yt. But this I ſay which alſo the Apoſtle meaneth / that the common and moſt vſuall calling off God / reſteth in more off the porer then off the richer ſorte: that the riche and noble that hauehave receiued that benefite of this holie callinge / maie learne therby the better to eſteme the treaſure they hauehave / and the faſter to hould y…. But I feare leſt in confuting his abſurditie / I become almoſte as abſurd as he.
Yow allow nothing which maketh againſt yow / and that yow may ſaye trew all Scriptures be they neuer ſo plaine / muſt be falſified. The place off the Cronicles in the 29. chapter / is no collection / but the plaine and manifeſt wordes off the Scripture / and ſo clere that it was not poſſible to hauehave had clerer wordes. For after that the holie goſte had ſaid / that the leuites the prieſtes brethern / had helped them vntill the worke were done / and vntill the prieſtes had ſanctified them ſelues / he addeth the reaſon foreign that is, for the leuites vvere more vpright in harte in ſanctifyinge them ſelues then the prieſtes. And here the faithe of the Anſwerer which he vſeth with his reader is to be obſerued. Which hauing one onelie tranſlation to meintaine him ſelfe / againſt a manifeſt truthe of the ſcripture / hathe followed that / and left not onelyonly the trewthe of the Hebrew / but all other tranſlatiōs bothe of the greke (wherof the oulde interpretour is nothing els but a tranſlator) and of the latin Munſter / Pagnine / Leo Iuda / Caſtalio and other tranſlations in other languages / which I am perſwaded with one full conſent / hauehave amended the error off the vulgar tranſlatiō in latin. and yet he is not aſhamed to ſaie / that ſome trā ſlatiō ſemeth to inſinuate ſōe ſuche thīge as I hauehave ſet dovvne / in ſteede that he ſhould hauehave ſaid: all trāſlatiōs the ould onelie excepted / ſo expound it: he ſpeaketh as thowghe ſome one tranſlation onelyonly had ſo turned. And in ſteed that he ſhould hauehave ſaid they plainelie and clerelie declare it / he ſaith that yt ſemeth in ſome tranſlation to inſinuate: and where he ſhould hauehave ſaid / the ſame thinge that I hauehave ſett dovvne he ſaith ſome ſuche thinge. And on the other ſide when he ſpeaketh of the tranſlation Which ſerueth his humor. He ſaith / That yff credit may be giuen to thoſe vvhichwhich be notable lerned men, ſpeaking in the plural numbre / as thowghe there were a numbre / that had ſo tranſlated it: when beſide the oulde tranſlator / he is not able to ſhew ſo muche as one. For wher he ſaith that Pellicane tranſlateth thoſe wordes / &c. he is a-abuſed: for they are the wordes off the ould tranſlator / and not off Pellicane / who neuer ſet forth any tranſlation. I graunt that Pellicane being deceiued by the oulde interpretor ſo expoundeth it: but what is that againſt ſo manifeſt both light of the texte / and conſent off all other learned men / which all with one cōſent refuſe the oulde trāſlatiō as that which dooth opē violence vntounto the trewth: ſo that I perſwade my ſelf that euen the verie papiſtes / as the monke Iſiodorus Clarius / hath in this point reformed the oulde trāſlator. And it is a mere fable / that the Leuites could be ſanctified eaſlier / or in ſhorter time then the prieſtes: neither is their any ſuche thinge in all the law of Moſes. For as touching the corporall pollutions / that happened vntounto men by touchinge of thinges which the law counted vncleane and common or off what other meanes ſoeuer men were made vnmeete / to come either into the congregation of God / or other ſocietie of men: the purgation and clenſinge accordinge to the kind off pollution / was the ſame and in the ſame time / not onelie vntounto the prieſtes and Leuites but alſo vntounto the common people / and this anſwere is manifeſtlie ouerthrowen by the wordes off the text. for in that there were ſome prieſtes ſanctified as well as the Leuites: it proueth manifeſtly that the cauſe off ſtaie was not in the time that the ceremonie off ſanctifing required / for then that ſhould hauehave alſo ſtaied the reſt off the prieſtes.
And wher he ſaith Surelie the verie circunſtance off the place doth proue that ſence to be true: there can no wordes be ſufficient to declare this bouldnes. For wher the holie ghoſte doth aſſigne the cauſe off the fewnes off the prieſtes in the worke off the lord / in plaine wordes for that the leuites were more vpprighte in hart to ſanctifie thē ſelues then the prieſtes: he would make vsus beleue that the cauſe of their fewnes in that worke was that which he hath imagined: wherof there is not a lettre in the ſcripture. For that there were to few prieſtes to fleay the ſacrifices I graunt: that the Leuites helped the prieſtes vntill other prieſtes were ſanctified / I likewiſe graunte: but that the cauſe off this fewnes was either the want off nombre off thoſe which were in the order and degree of prieſthood / or for that more time was beſtowed in ſanctifying the prieſtes then the leuites (which he imagineth) I denie / and againſt his imaginatiō oppoſe the manifeſt wordes of the holie goſte.
In the place alſo off the 30. of the Chronicles / it is manifeſt that the people were more earneſt / then either the prieſtes or the leuites. And althowgh the anſwerer hauehave here neither corrupte tranſlation / nor vntrue expoſition / nor patch off reaſon to ſet againſt it: yet he wil not yelde him ſelfe to the truthe. The holie goſte declaring the readines off the people off Iudah / in aſſembling them ſelues ſo ſpedilie / and withe ſo generall a conſent / and their zeale in breaking downe the monumentes of Idolatrie / firſt at Ieruſalem (as appeareth bothe in the laſt verſe of the 29. chapter / and in the verſe goinge before this place) and afterward in the whole contrie off Iudah (as appeareth in the beginning off the nexte chapter) iff he had ſaid nothinge els yet it might hauehave bene gathered. But when he addeth immediatelie after he had ſpoken off the readines / and zeale off the people / that the Leuites and the prieſtes vvere aſhamed: Iff this be not the cauſe / I would gladlie learne of the anſwerer what ſhould be. And the Rabbins althowghe they often times wringe the wordes off the texte / to couer the ſhame off their nation / and eſpeciallie off thoſe which were in publike charge: yet durſt neuer attempte to ſtriue againſt ſuche light off wordes as be here: but in bothe thoſe places off the Cronicles / confeſſe the faultes off their Schelomo Iarchi.prieſtes and leuites. And one of thē in this place giueth this reaſon / why the prieſtes ād Leuites differred their ſanctifiyng of them to the worke of the lorde / namelie for that they could not beleue that king Ezechias mēt good faith and therfore held of and ſtode aloufe / becauſe they ſuſpected that the king would returne to his fathers traine of Idolatrie / as it commeth often to paſſe in thoſe that ſerue the time / which waite vppon what ſide the wind will turne.
And that owght not to ſeme ſo ſtrange a thinge vntounto the anſwerer / conſidering that beſide this place / there is example off this vntowardnes of the prieſtes / and Leuites in reſpecte off the people in an other place / for when king Artaf haſta had giuen leaue vntounto the Iewes to returne vntounto Ieruſalem / Eſra. 8. ca 15, verſ.for the aduancement off the ſeruice off God with Eſra: it appeareth that there were of all ſortes off men which willinglie accōpanied Eſra in his iorneye / but of the the leuites either prieſtes / or which were ſimplie leuites / ther was not founde one / vntil ſuche time as Eſra was faine to vſe his authoritie which the king had graunted him for the cauſing of them to come.
VntoUnto the three next ſections being reproches / I anſwere not / for it is vnworthie to be anſwered / which he ſpeaketh off contrarietie with my ſelffe / becauſe I acknowledge the Biſhops my ſuperiors / which would hauehave equalitie off the miniſterie.