Whole Works, Tracts 1 · Tract 1 · To the reader
William Tyndale otherwyſe called Hitchins to the Reader.
GRace and peace with all maner ſpirituall fcelyng and liuyng, worthy of the kyndenes of Chriſt, be wyth the reader, & with all that truſt the wyll of God, Amen.
The cauſe why I ſet my The cauſe why W. Tyndall put his name to ſome bokes & left it out in ſome.name before this little treatiſe, and hauehave not rather done it in the new teſtament, is, that then I folowed the counſell of Chriſt which exhorteth men. Math. 6. to doe their good deedes ſecretly, and to be contente with the conſciēce of well doyng, and that God ſeeth vsus, and patiently to abyde the reward of the laſt day which chriſt hath purchaſed for vsus: & now would I fayne hauehave done likewiſe, but am I compelled otherwiſe to do.
While I aboade, a faythfull companion which now hath taken another voyage vponupon him, to preach Chriſt where (I ſuppoſe) he was neuer yet preached (God which put in hys hart thether to go, ſende his ſpirite with hym, comforte hym and bryng hys purpoſe to good effecte) one William Roye, a man William Roye a fal…e Diſciple.ſomewhat crafty, when he commeth vntounto new acquayntance, and before he be through knowne, and namely, when all is ſpent, came vntounto me, and offred hys helpe. As long as he had no money, ſomwhat I could rule hym, but as ſoone as he had gotten hym money, he became lyke hymſelfe agayne. Neuertheleſſe I ſuffered all thynges tyll that was ended, which I coulde not doe alone without one, both to write, and to helpe me to copare the textes together. When that was ended, I toke my leaue and bade hym farewell for our two lyues, and as men ſay, a day longer. After we were departed he went, and gate him new frendes, which thyng to doe, he paſſeth all that euer I yet knew. And there, when he had ſtored hym of money, he gate hym to Argentine, where he profeſſed wonderfull faculties, & maketh boaſt of no ſmall things. A yeare after that, and now xij. monthes before y• printyng of this worke, came one Ierome a brother of Grenewich alſo, through Ierome a brother of GrenewichWormes to Argentine, ſaying y• he intended to be Chriſtes Diſciple another whyle, & to kepe (as nye as God would geue him grace) y• profeſſion of hys baptiſme, & to get hys liuyng with his hādes, & to lyue no lōger idlely, & of the ſweate and labour of thoſe captiues, whiche they had taught, not to beleue in Chriſte, but in cut ſhooes, and ruſſet coats. Which Ierome with all diligence I warned of Royes boldnes, & exhorted him to beware of hym, & to walke quietly, and wyth all patiēce & long ſufferyng, according as we hauehave Chriſt & hys Apoſtles, for an enſāple, which thyng he alſo promiſed me.
Neuertheleſſe whē he was commyng to Argētine, Williā Roye (whoſe toung is able not onelyonly to make fooles ſtarke mad, but alſo to deceaue the wiſeſt that is at the firſt ſight and acquaintaunce) gate hym to hym, and ſet hym a worke, to make rymes, while he hym ſelfe tranſlated a Dialogue out of Latin into Engliſhe, in whoſe Prologue he promiſeth more a great deale, then I feare me he will euer pay. Paule ſayth. 2. Timo. 2. The ſeruaūt 2. Timo. 2.of the Lord muſt not ſtriue, but be peaceable vntounto all men, and ready to teach, & one that can ſuffer the euill with mekeneſſe, and that can informe them that reſiſte: if God at any tyme will geue them repentaunce for to know the trouth. It becommeth not then the Lordes ſeruaunt to vſe rayling rymes, but Gods worde, which is the right weapon to ſlay ſinne, vice & all iniquitie. The Scripture of god is good to teach, and to improue, ij. Timo. iij. and. ij. Theſ. ij. Paule ſpeakyng 2. Timo. 3. 2. Theſſ. 2.of Antechriſt ſayth, Whom the Lord ſhall deſtroy with the ſprite or breath of his mouth, that is, with the word of God. And. ij. Cor. x. 2. Cor. 10.The weapons of our warre are not carnall thynges (ſayth he) but mighty in God to caſt downe ſtrong holdes, and ſo forth, that is, to deſtroy high buildings of falſe doctrine. The word of God is that day wherof Paul ſpeaketh. i. Cor. iij.) which ſhall declare all thing, 1. Cor 3.& that fire which ſhal try eueryevery mans worke, and conſume falſe doctrine: with that ſword ought men ſharply to fight, and not to rayle with fooliſhe rymes. Let it not offende thee, that ſome walke inordinatly, let not the wickednes of Iudas, cauſe thee to deſpiſe the doctrine of his fellowes. No man ought to thinke that Stephen was a falſe preacher, becauſe that Nicolas whiche was choſen felow with hym (Act. vj.) to miniſter vntounto the Actes. 6.widowes, fell after into great hereſies, as hiſtories make mention. Good and euill go alwayes together, one cā not be knowen without the other.
Marke this alſo aboue all thinges, that Antechriſt what it is.Antechriſt is not an outward thyng, that is to ſay, a man that ſhould ſodēly appeare with wonders, as our fathers talked of hym. No verely, for Antichriſt is a ſpirituall thyng. And is as much to ſay as agaynſt Chriſt, yt is, one that preacheth falſe doctrine contrarie to Chriſt. Antechriſt was in the old Teſtamēt and fought with the Prophetes, he was alſo in the tyme of Chriſt, & of the Apoſtles, as thou readeſt in the Epiſtles of Iohn, and of Paule to the Corinthians, and Galathians, and other Epiſtles. Antechriſt is now & ſhall (I doubt not) endure till the worldes ende. But his nature is (when he is vttered and ouercome with the worde of God) to go out of the playe for a ſeaſon, and to diſguiſe hymſelfe, and then to come in agayne with a new name, and new rayment. As thou ſeeſt Scribes & Phariſeis were very Antechriſtes.howe Chriſt rebuketh the Scribes, and the Phariſes, in the Goſpel (which were very Antechriſtes) ſaying, Wo be to you Phariſes, for ye robbe widowes houſes, ye praye long prayers vnderunder a colour, ye ſhut vp the kingdom of heauē, & ſuffer thē not y• would, to enter in, ye hauehave taken away the keye of The properties of Antechriſt.knowledge, ye make men breake Gods commaundementes with your traditions, ye beguile the people with hipocriſie and ſuch like. Which thynges all our prelates do, but hauehave yet gotten them new names, and other garmentes, and are otherwyſe diſguiſed. There is difference in the names betwene a Pope, a Cardinall, a biſhop, and ſo forth, and to ſay a Scribe, a Phariſey, a ſeniour and ſo forth: but the thyng is all one. Euen ſo now when we hauehave vttered hym, he wyll change hymſelfe once more, and turne hymſelfe into an angell of lyght, 2. Cor. 11. Read the place I 2. Cor. 11.exhorte thee, whatſoeuer thou art that readeſt this, and note it well. The Iewes loke Antechriſt hath bene among vsus a lōg tyme.for Chriſt, and he is come xv. hundred yeares agoe, and they not ware: we alſo hauehave loked for Antechriſt, and he hath raigned as long, and we not ware: and that becauſe eyther of vsus looked carnally for hym, and not in the places where we ought to hauehave ſought. The Iewes had found Chriſt verily, if they had ſought hym in the lawe and the Prophetes, whether Chriſt ſendeth them to ſeke: Iohn Iohn. ….5. We alſo had ſpied out Antechriſt long ago, if we had looked in the doctrine of Chriſt, & hys apoſtles, where, becauſe y• beaſt ſeeth him ſelfe now to be ſought for, he roareth, and ſeketh new holes to hyde hymſelfe in, & chaungeth hymſelfe into a thouſand faſhions with all maner wilineſſe, falſhode, ſuttletie & craft. Becauſe that hys excommunications are Antechriſt accompteth it treaſon to bee acquainted wt Chriſt.come to lyght, he maketh it treaſon vntounto the kyng, to bee acquaynted with Chriſte. If Chriſte, & they may not raigne together, one hope we hauehave that Chriſt ſhal liue euer. The olde Antichriſtes brought Chriſt vntounto Pilate, ſaying by our lawe he ought to die, and whē Pilate bade them iudge hym after their lawe, they aunſwered, it is not lawfull for vsus to kyll any man, whiche they dyd to the intent that they whiche regarded not the ſhame of their falſe excōmunications, ſhould yet feare to confeſſe Chriſt, becauſe that the temporall ſword had condemned hym. They do all thing of a good zeale they ſay, they louelove you ſo well, that they had rather burne you, then yt you ſhould hauehave fellowſhip wt Chriſt. They are iealous ouer you amiſſe (as ſayth S. Paul Gal. iiij.) They would deuide you Gal… 4.from Chriſte and his holy Teſtament, and ioyne you to the Pope, to beleue in his Teſtament and promiſes. Some man will aſke (peraduenture) why I take the labour to make this worke, in as much as they will burne it, ſeyng they burnt the Goſpell, I aunſwere, in burnyng the new Teſtament they dyd none other thyng then that I looked for, no more ſhall they do, if they burne me alſo, if it be Gods will it ſhall ſo be.
Neuertheleſſe, in tranſlatyng of the Teſtament I dyd my dutie, and ſo doe I now, and will doe as much more as God hath ordeined me to do. And as I offered that, to al men to correct it, who ſoeuer could, euen ſo do I this. Who ſoeuer therfore readeth this, compare it vntounto the Scripture. If Gods word beare recorde vntounto it, and thou alſo feeleſt in thine hart, that it is ſo, be of good comfort and geue God thankes. If Gods word condemne it, then hold it accurſed, and ſo doe all other doctrines. As Paule counſeleth his Galathians. Beleue not eueryevery ſprite ſodenly, but iudge thē by the word of God, whiche is the trial of all doctrine and laſteth for euer. Amen.