Defense of the True Doctrine of the Sacrament of the Lords Supper, Book 3 · Chapter 12 – Chapter 13
Chap. 12And meruail not good reder, that Christe at ye time spake in figures, whan he did institute that sacrament,Figuratiue speeches bee not strāge. seing that it is the nature of al sacramentes to be figures. And although ye scripture be ful of Schemes, tropes, & figures, yet specially it vseth theim whā it speketh of sacramentes.
When the Ark (which represented Gods maiestee) was come into the army of the Israelites the Philistians said that god was come into the army.…. Reg. 4. And God hym selfe sayd by his prophete Nathan,2. Reg. 7. that from the time that he had brought the children of Israell out of Egypte, he dwelled not in houses, but that he was caried about in tentes and tabernacles. And yet was not God hym selfe so caried aboute, or wente in tentes or tabernacles, but bycause the arke (whiche was a figure of God) was so remoued from place to place, he spake of hym selfe that thyng, whyche was to be vnderstand of the Arke.
Christe him self vsed figuratiue speeches.And Christ hym selfe often tymes spake in similitudes, parables, and figures, as whan he said:Math. 13. The field is the worlde, the enemy is the dyuell, the sede is the worde of God:†Mat. 11. and. 17. Iohn is Helias: *Iohn. 16I am a vine, and you be the brāches. †Iohn. 6.I am bread of lyte. *Iohn. 15 Math. 3.2.My father is an husband mā, and he hath his fanne in his hand, and wil make cleane his flower, and gather the wheat into his barne, but the chaffe he wyll caste into euerlastyng fyre. †Iohn, 4I hauehave a meate to eate, whiche you knowe not. *Iohn. 6.Woorke not meate that perisheth, but that endureth vntounto euerlastyng life. †Iohn. 10I am good shepherd. *Mat. 25.The sonne of man wyl set the shepe at his right hand, and the goates at his left hād. †Iohn. 10 Iohn, 6, Math, 12,I am a doore: One of you is the deuil. Whosoeuer dothe my fathers wylle, he is my brother, syster and mother. And whan he sayd to his mother, and to Ihon. This is thy sonne, this is thy mother.
These with an infinite numbre of like sentences, Christe spake in Parables, Metaphores, tropes and figures. But chiefly whan he spake of the sacramentes, he vsed figuratiue speches.
As whan in Baptisme he sayd, that wee must bee baptised with the holy ghost,Actu. 1, meanyng of spiritual baptisme. And lyke speeche vsed sainct Ihon the Baptiste,Math. 3. saiyng of Christe, that he should Baptise with the holy ghoste and fyre, And Christ sayd,Iob. 3. that wee must be borne againe or els wee can not see the kyngdome of God. And sayd also:Iohn. 4. Whosoeuer shall drynke of that water whiche I shall geue hym, he shall neuer bee drye agayne. But the water whiche I shall geue him, shall bee made within him a welle, whyche shall spryng into euerlastyng lyfe. And sainct Paule sayth,Rom. 6. that in Baptisme wee clothe vsus with Christe,Galat. 3. and be buryed with him. This baptisme, washing, and newe byrth by the fyre and the holy ghoste, and this water that spryngeth in a man, & floweth into euerlastyng life, can not be vnderstande of any material water, material washyng, and material byrthe, but by translacion of thynges visible into thynges inuisible, they must bee vnderstande spiritually and figuratiuely.
After thesame sort the mystery of our redemption, and the passion of our sauiour Christ vponupon the crosse, aswel in the newe, as in the old Testament, is expressed and declared by many fygures and figuratiue speeches.
The Pascall lambeAs the pure Paschal lambe without spot, signified Christ. The effusion of the lambes bloud, signified the effusion of Christes bloud. And the saluacion of the children of Israel from temporal death by the lambes bloud, signified our saluacion from eternall death by Christes bloud. And as almightie God passyng through Egipt killed all the Egyptians heyres in eueryevery house, and lefte not one aliue, & neuerthelesse he passed by the children of Israels houses, where he sawe the Lambes bloud vponupon the doores, and hurted none of them, but saued them all by the meanes of the Lambes bloudde: so lykewyse at the last iudgement of the whole worlde, none shall be passed ouer and saued, but that shall be founde marked with the bloud of the moste pure & immaculate lambe Iesus Christe.
The Lordes supperAnd forasmuch as the sheddyng of that lambes bloud was a token & figure of the sheddyng of Christes bloud than to come, and forasmuche also as all the sacramentes and figures of the old testament, ceassed and had an end in Christ: leste by our great vnkyndnes we should peraduenture bee forgetfull of the greate benefite of Christ, therfore at his last supper (when he toke his leaue of his apostles to departe oute of the worlde) he dyd make a new wyll and testament, wherin he bequeathed vntounto vsus cleane remission of all our synnes, and the euerlastynge inheritance of heauen. And the same he confirmed the nexte daie with his owne bloud and death.
And leste we should forget the same, he ordeyned not a yerely memory (as the Paschall lambe was eaten but ones eueryevery yere) but a dayely remembrance he ordained therof in bread & wyne, sanctified and dedicated to that purpose, saiyng: This is my body,Math. 26 This cuppe is my bloud, whiche is shed for the remission of synnes. Do this in the remembrance of me. Admonyshyng vsus by these wordes, spoken at the makyng of his laste wyll and testament, and at his departyng out of the worlde (bycause they should be the better rememored) that whensoeuer we do eate the bread in his holy supper, and drynke of that cup, wee should remembre howe muche Christ hath done for vsus,1. Cor. 11, and howe he dyed for our sakes. Therefore, saith saint Paul: As often as ye shal eate of this bread, and drinke the cuppe, you shall shew foorth the Lordes death vntyll he come.
And forasmuche as this holy breade broken, and the wine deuided, doo represent vntounto vsus the death of Christ nowe passed, as the kyllynge of the Paschall lambe dyde represent y• same yet to come: therfore our sauiour Christ vsed the same maner of speeche of the bread and wyne, as God before vsed of the Paschall lambe.
Exod, 12.For as in the olde Testament God sayd: This is the Lordes Passeby, or Passeouer, euen so sayth Christ in the new Testament,Math. 26 This is my body, This is my bloude. But in the old mistery and sacrament, the Lambe was not the Lordes very Passeouer or passyng by, but it was a figure whiche represented his passynge by. So likewise in the newe Testament, the breade and wine be not Christes very body and bloude, but they be figures, whiche by Christes institution bee vntounto the godly receauers thereof, Sacramentes, tokens, significations, and representations of his very fleshe and bludde: instructyng their faith, that as the bread and wine fede them corporally and continue this temporall lyfe: so the very fleshe and bloud of Christ feedeth them spiritually, and geueth them euerlastyng lyfe.
What fyguratiue speaches were vsed at Christs last supperAnd why shulde any man thinke it strange, to admit a figure in these speches, This is my body, This is my bloude? seyng that the cōmunication the same nyghte (by the Papistes owne confessions) was so full of figuratiue speeches? For the Apostles spake figuratiuely whan they asked Christ, Mat. 26 Mat. 14 Luc. 22.where he would eate his passeouer or passeby. And Christe hym selfe vsed the same figure, when he sayd: I hauehave muche desyred to eate this passeouer with you.
Also, to eate Christes body, and to drynke his bloude, I am sure they wyl not say that it is taken proprely, to eate & drike, as we doe eate other meates and drynkes.
And when Christe sayde, This cup is a newe testament in my bloude. here in one sentence bee two figures. One in this worde Cup, whych is not taken for the cup it selfe, but for the thynge conteyned in the cup. An other is in this worde, Testament, for neyther the cuppe, nor the wyne contained in the cuppe, is Christes Testament, but is a token, signe and figure, whereby is represented vntounto vsus his Testament, confirmed by his bloudde.
And if the Papists wil say (as thei say in dede) that by this cup, is neither ment the cup nor the wine conteyned in the cuppe, but that therby is ment Christes bloud contained in the cuppe: yet must they nedes graunt, that there is a fygure. For Christes bloude is not in proper speche, the New testamēt, but it is the thyng that cōfirmed the new testament. And yet by this strange interpretation, the Papistes make a very straunge speche, more strange then any figuratiue speche is. For this they make the sentence: This bloud is a newe testament in my bloud. Which saiyng is so fonde and so farre from all reason, that the foolyshenes therof is euident to eueryevery man.
Nowe forasmuch as it is plainly declared and manifestly proued,Chap. 13 that Christe called bread his body,Answer to the auctorittes and argumentes of the Papistes. and wyne his bloud, and that these sentences be figuratiue speeches, and that Christe, as concernyng his humanitee and bodily presence, is ascended into heuen with his whole fleshe and bloudde, and is not here vponupon earthe, and that the substance of breade and wyne doo remayne styll, and be receaued in the sacrament, and that although they remayne, yet they hauehave changed theyr names, so that the bread is called Christes bodye, and the wyne his bloudde, and that the cause why theyr names bee chaunged is this▪ that we should lyft vp our hartes and myndes frome the thynges, whyche we se, vntounto the thinges, whyche we beleue and be aboue in heauen, (wherof the bread and wyne hauehave the names, althoughe they bee not the very same thynges in dede.) These thynges well considered and waied, all the auctoritees and argumentes, whyche the Papistes fayne to serue for theyr purpose, be cleane wyped awaie.