55. Mother Eve said, when she brought forth the first child; Behold ! / have the man, the Lord; he shall effect the breaking of the serpent's head, and possess the kingdom: but it was Cain the murderer.
56. And thus also you now say, We have found the Lord: now we will possess the kingdom; for we have found the true doctrine, we will teach thus and thus, and then we are God's children. But hearken! You have indeed foun d the true doctrine; but you are Cain, you look after the kingdom, and not the power and virtue of Abel's sacrifice: you desire only to continue in fleshly pleasure, and retain only the shell of God's word, which hath no virtue or power: You retain the history, (and contend about it, and so destroy your country and people), but you deny the power of it: you say, We are near to the kingdom of God; and are yet far from it, which your end will testify.
57. What doth your knowledge avail? The devil knoweth as much as you, but he doth it not, no more do you: and therefore the kingdom of
God remains hidden from you both: your knowledge is the snare that catcheth you: if you were simple, you would not be so proud: what doth the simple know concerning the false, subtle, cunning deceit, if he learn it not from the wit of the turba [contentious disputations]? Do you say, that you have God's wilh and teach it? Are you not Cain that murders ]
Abel every day? Consider yourself well, you are he indeed: Abel lieth at your feet, and beseecheth you, but you are that evil beast, that treadeth Abel under foot; you ride over the bended knee, and account the poor and simple to be but dirt and dung, and yet devour his sweat and labour, and fill yourself with deceit without measure: How dare you then say, Here is the Church of Christ?
O you are Babel, that city of whoredom and falsehood.
58. Thou knowest the will of God, and yet dost only thine own will, and sayest moreover, We are gone out from Babel: we have the true teaching [or doctrine] amongst us: indeed if you had the spirit of righteousness, and truth, and would content yourself with a little, then the mother would always give you enough, you should want nothing: but your pride and haughtiness do not trust God, therefore you trust only in covetousness, and are greedy to devour the fat of the earth; you take it by force and not of right; the right you produce, claim, and plead, hath only been invented by your covetous heart, you live only in deceit: you persuade and deceive yourself to your own loss: if you had wit and understanding, you would have respect to your end, and what will follow hereafter: but you blindfold yourself with pride, and say, Behold ! here are golden times; many have desired to see what we see, and to hear what we hear, and have not seen or heard it: Hearken! indeed that shall be a witness against you, and will make your judgment the heavier; you have not hitherto been the better for it, but the worse, therefore know that what is declared to you [by the Reformation] is by your own prophet, who hath called you back again from your pride into your mother humility: but you are become worse and worse; you have broken the sword of the spirit, that you may do what you list: but he hath left you, and given you up to the turba, which shall devour you, as was
55. Mother Eve said, when she brought forth the first child; Behold ! / have the man, the Lord; he shall effect the breaking of the serpent's head, and possess the kingdom: but it was Cain the murderer.
56. And thus also you now say, We have found the Lord: now we will possess the kingdom; for we have found the true doctrine, we will teach thus and thus, and then we are God's children. But hearken! You have indeed foun d the true doctrine; but you are Cain, you look after the kingdom, and not the power and virtue of Abel's sacrifice: you desire only to continue in fleshly pleasure, and retain only the shell of God's word, which has no virtue or power: You retain the history, (and contend about it, and so destroy your country and people), but you deny the power of it: you say, We are near to the kingdom of God; and are yet far from it, which your end will testify.
57. What does your knowledge avail? The devil knows as much as you, but he does it not, no more do you: and therefore the kingdom of
God remains hidden from you both: your knowledge is the snare that catches you: if you were simple, you would not be so proud: what does the simple know concerning the false, subtle, cunning deceit, if he learn it not from the wit of the turba [contentious disputations]? Do you say, that you have God's wilh and teach it? Are you not Cain that murders ]
Abel every day? Consider yourself well, you are he indeed: Abel lies at your feet, and beseeches you, but you are that evil beast, that treads Abel under foot; you ride over the bended knee, and account the poor and simple to be but dirt and dung, and yet devour his sweat and labour, and fill yourself with deceit without measure: How dare you then say, Here is the Church of Christ?
O you are Babel, that city of whoredom and falsehood.
58. You know the will of God, and yet do only your own will, and say moreover, We are gone out from Babel: we have the true teaching [or doctrine] amongst us: indeed if you had the spirit of righteousness, and truth, and would content yourself with a little, then the mother would always give you enough, you should want nothing: but your pride and haughtiness do not trust God, therefore you trust only in covetousness, and are greedy to devour the fat of the earth; you take it by force and not of right; the right you produce, claim, and plead, has only been invented by your covetous heart, you live only in deceit: you persuade and deceive yourself to your own loss: if you had wit and understanding, you would have respect to your end, and what will follow hereafter: but you blindfold yourself with pride, and say, Behold ! here are golden times; many have desired to see what we see, and to hear what we hear, and have not seen or heard it: Hearken! indeed that shall be a witness against you, and will make your judgment the heavier; you have not hitherto been the better for it, but the worse, therefore know that what is declared to you [by the Reformation] is by your own prophet, who has called you back again from your pride into your mother humility: but you are become worse and worse; you have broken the sword of the spirit, that you may do what you list: but he has left you, and given you up to the turba, which shall devour you, as was
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