their mother's womb, and had done neither good nor evil, it was said: "the elder shall serve the younger. I have loved Jacob, and Esau have I hated." Therefore it is plain, that they which are of faith, are the children of Abraham.

But some will here object (as the Jews do, and certain cavilling spirits at this day) saying, that this word faith, in the Hebrew, signifieth truth, and therefore we do not rightly apply it: and moreover, that this place out of Gen. xv. 5., speaketh of a corporal thing, namely, of the promise of posterity, and therefore is not well applied of Paul to faith in Christ, but ought simply to be understood of the faith of Abraham, whereby he believed according to the promise of God, that he should have seed; and hereby they would prove that the arguments and allegations of Paul do conclude nothing. In like manner they may cavil also, that the place which Paul a little after allegeth out of Heb. ii. 4., speaketh of faith as touching the full accomplishing of the whole vision, and not of faith only in Christ, for the which Paul allegeth it. Likewise they may wrest all the eleventh chapter to the Hebrews, which speaketh of faith and the examples of faith. By these things such vain-glorious and arrogant spirits do hunt for praise, and seek to be counted wise and learned, where they feast of all deserve it. But because of the simple and ignorant, we will briefly answer to their cavillations.

To the first I answer thus: that faith is nothing else but the truth of the heart; that is to say, a true and a right opinion of the heart as touching God. Now, faith only thinketh and judgeth rightly of God, and not reason. And then doth a man think rightly of God, when he believeth his word. But when he will measure God without the word, and believe him according to the wisdom of reason, he hath no right opinion of God in his heart, and therefore he cannot think or judge of him as he should do. As for example, when a monk imagineth that his cowl, or shaven crown, and his vows do please God, and that grace and everlasting life is given unto him for the same, he hath no true opinion of God, but false and full of impiety. Truth therefore is faith itself, which judgeth rightly of God, namely, that God regardeth not our works and righteousness, because we are unclean; but that he will have mercy upon us, look upon us, accept us, justify us, and save us, if we believe in his Son, whom he hath sent to be a sacrifice for the sins of the whole world, (1 John ii. 2.) This is a true opinion of God, and very deed nothing else but faith itself. I cannot comprehend nor be fully assured by reason, that I am received into God's favour for Christ's sake: but I hear this to be pronounced by the gospel, and I lay hold upon it by faith.

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To the second cavillation I answer, that Paul doth rightly allege the place out of the fifteenth of Genesis, applying it to faith in Christ. For with faith always must be joined a certain assurance of God's mercy. Now this assurance compre

hendeth a faithful trust of remission of sins for Christ's sake. For it was impossible that thy conscience should look for any thing at God's hand, except first it be assured that God is merciful unto thee for Christ's sake. Therefore all the promises are to be referred to that first promise concerning Christ; "the seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent's head," (Gen. iii. 15.) So did all the prophets both understand it and teach it. By this we may see that the faith of our fathers in the Old Testament, and ours now in the New is all one, although they differ as touching their outward objects. Which thing Peter witnesseth in the Acts, when he saith, "which neither we nor our fathers were able to bear. But we believe through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, to be saved even as they did," (Acts xv. 10, 11.) And Paul saith: "our fathers did all drink of that spiritual rock that followed them, which rock was Christ," (1 Cor. x. 4.) And Christ himself saith: "Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it and was glad," (John viii. 56.) Notwithstanding the faith of the fathers was grounded on Christ which was to come, as ours is on Christ which is now come. Abraham, in his time, was justified by faith in Christ to come, but if he lived at this day, he would be justified by faith in Christ, now revealed and present; like as have said before of Cornelius, who at the first believed in Christ to come, but being instructed by Peter, he believed that Christ was already come, (Acts x. 1, 3.) Therefore the diversity of times never changeth faith, nor the Holy Ghost, nor the gifts thereof. For there hath been, is, and ever shall be, one mind, one judgment and understanding concerning Christ, as well in the ancient fathers, as in the faithful, which are at this day, and shall come hereafter. we have as well Christ to come and believe in him, as the fathers in the Old Testament had; for we look for him to come again in the last day with glory, to judge both the quick and the dead, whom now we believe to be come already for our salvation. Therefore this allegation of Paul offendeth none but those blind and ignorant cavillers.

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Paul therefore, as I have said, rightly allegeth that place out of Genesis, of faith in Christ, when he speaketh of the faith of Abraham; for all the promises past, were contained in Christ to come. Therefore as well Abraham and the other fathers, as also we, are made righteous by faith in Christ: they by faith in him then to come, we by faith in him now present. For we entreat now of the nature and manner of justification, which is all one, both in them and in us, whether it be in Christ to be revealed, or in Christ now revealed and present. It is enough, therefore, that Paul sheweth that the law justifieth not, but only faith, whether it be in Christ to come, or in Christ already come.

At this day also Christ to some is present, to other some he is to come. To all believers he is present; to the unbelievers he is not yet come, neither doth he profit them any thing at all;

but if they hear the gospel, and believe that he is present unto them, he justifieth and saveth them.

VERCE 7. Ye know therefore, that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.

As if he would say, ye know by this example of Abraham, and by the plain testimony of the scripture, that they are the children of Abraham which are of faith, whether they be Jews or Gentiles, without any respect either unto the law, or unto works, or to the carnal generation of the fathers. For not by the law, but by the righteousness of faith, the promise was made unto Abraham, that he should be heir of the world: that is to say, that in his seed all the nations of the earth should be blessed, and that he should be called the father of nations. And lest the Jews should falsely interpret this word nations, applying it unto themselves alone, the scripture preventeth this, and saith not only, "a father of nations:" but "a father of many nations have I made thee," (Gen. xvii. 4. Rom. iv. 17.) Therefore Abraham is not only the father of the Jews, but also of the Gentiles.

Hereby we may plainly see that the children of Abraham are not the children of the flesh, but the children of faith, as Paul, Rom. iv. declareth: "who is the father of us all, (as it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations), even before God, whom he did believe." So that Paul maketh two Abrahams, a begetting and a believing Abraham. Abraham hath children, and is a father of many nations.-Where? Before God, where he believeth; not before the world, where he begetteth.

For, in the world, he is a child of Adam, and a sinner, or, which is more, he is a worker of the righteousness of the law, living after the rule of reason, that is, after the manner of men; but this pertaineth nothing to the believing Abraham.

This example therefore of Abraham, wrappeth in it the holy scripture itself, which saith that we are counted righteous by faith. Wherefore this is a strong and a mighty argument two manner of ways, both by the example of Abraham, and also by the authority of the scripture.

VERSE 8. For the Scripture foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles through faith.

These things pertain to the former argument. As if he should say, ye Jews do glory in the law above measure: ye highly commend Moses, because God spake unto him in the bush, &c. As the Jews do proudly brag against us (as I myself at sundry times heard) saying, ye Christians have apostles, ye have a Pope, and ye have bishops; but we Jews have patriarchs, prophets, yea we have God himself, who spake unto us in the busn, in Sinai, where he gave unto us the law, and in the temple, &c. Such a glory and such an excellent testimony allege ye for yourselves

against us, if ye can. To this answereth Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles: this your proud bragging and boasting is to no purpose, for the scripture preventeth it, and foresa w, long before the law, that the Gentiles should not be justified by the law, but by the blessing of Abraham's seed, which was promised unto him (as Paul saith afterwards) four hundred and thirty years before the law was given. Now the law being given so many years after, could not hinder or abolish this promise of the blessing made unto Abraham, but it hath continued firm, and shall continue for ever. What can the Jews answer to this?

This argument, grounded upon the certainty of time, is very strong. The promise of blessing is given unto Abraham four hundred and thirty years before the people of Israel received the law. For it is said to Abraham: because thou hast believed God, and hast given glory unto him, therefore thou shalt be a "father of many nations," (Gen. xvii. 4.) There Abraham, by the promise of God, is appointed a father of many nations, and the inheritance of the world for his posterity and issue after him, is given unto him before the law was published. Why do ye then brag, O ye Galatians, that ye obtain forgiveness of sins, and are become children, and do receive the inheritance through the law, which followed a long time, that is to say, four hundred and thirty years, after the promise?

Thus the false apostles did advance the law and the glory thereof. But the promise made unto Abraham, four hundred and thirty years before the law was given, they neglected and despised, and would in nowise know that Abraham (of whom they gloried notwithstanding, as the father of their whole nation) being yet uncircumcised, and living so many ages before the law, was made righteous by no other means than by faith alone, as the scripture most plainly witnesseth: "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness," (Gen. xv. 6.) Afterwards, when he was now accounted righteous because of his faith, the scripture maketh mention of circumcision, in the seventeenth of Genesis, where it saith: "This is my covenant which ye shall keep between me and you," (Gen. xvii. 10.) With this argument Paul mightily convinceth the false apostles, and sheweth plainly that Abraham was justified by faith only, both without and before circumcision, and also four hundred and thirty years before the law. This self-same argument he handleth in the fourth chapter to the Romans; to wit, that righteousness was imputed to Abraham before circumcision, and that he was righteous being yet uncircumcised: much more then he was righteous before the law:

Therefore, saith Paul, the scripture did well provide against this your glorious bragging of the righteousness of the law and works. When? Before circumcision and before the law. For the law was given four hundred and thirty years after the promise, whereas Abraham was not only justified without the law

and before the law, but was also dead and buried; and his righteousness without the law did not only flourish until the law, but also shall flourish even to the end of the world. If, then, the father of the whole Jewish nation was made righteous without the law and before the law, much more are the children made righteous by the same means that their father was. Therefore righteousness cometh by faith only, and not by the law.

VERSE 8. Preached the Gospel before unto Abraham, saying: In thee shall all the Gentiles be blessed.

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The Jews do not only lightly pass over, but also do deride, and with their wicked glosses do corrupt these excellent and notable sentences: "Abraham believed God," &c. pointed thee a father," &c. and such like, which highly commend faith, and contain promises of spiritual things. For they are blind and hard-hearted, and therefore they see not that these places do entreat of faith towards God, and of righteousness before God. With like malice also they handle this notable place of the spiritual blessing: "In thee all the nations of the earth shall be blessed," (Gen, xii. 3. Acts iii. 25.) For, say they, to bless signified nothing else but to praise, to pray for prosperity, and to be glorious in the sight of the world. After this manner, the Jew, say they, which is born of the seed of Abraham, is blessed: and the proselyte or stranger which worshippeth the God of the Jews, and joineth himself unto them, is also blessed. Therefore they think that blessing is nothing else but praise and glory in this world; in that a man may glory and vaunt that he is of the stock and family of Abraham. But this is to corrupt and pervert the sentences of the scriptures, and not to expound them. By these words, "Abraham believed," Paul defineth, and setteth before our eyes a spiritual Abraham, faithful, righteous, and having the promise of God; an Abraham, I say, which is not in error, and in the old flesh: which is not born of Adam, but of the Holy Ghost. And of this Abraham, renewed by faith and regenerate by the Holy Ghost, speaketh the scripture, and pronounceth of him, that he should be a father of many nations: also, that all the Gentiles should be given unto him for an inheritance, when it saith: "in thee shall all the nations of the earth be blessed." This Paul vehemently urgeth by the authority of the scripture which saith,"Abraham believed God," &c. Gen. xv.

The scripture then attributeth no righteousness to Abraham, but in that he believeth: and it speaketh of such an Abraham, as he is accounted before God. Such sentences therefore of the scripture do set forth unto us a new Abraham, which is separate from the carnal marriage and bed, and from the carnal generation, and make him such a one as he is before God; that is to say, believing and justified through faith: to whom now God maketh this promise because of his faith: "thou shalt be a father of many nations." Again, "in thee shall all the nations of the