against the bloodthirsty Saulites and Doegites. *)
1. although Doctor Urbanus Rhegius blessed etc. neither needs me, nor any preface to his books, since he is not only highly enough learned for himself, but also highly famous among the teachers of the holy Christian church in our time, recognized as a pure, righteous preacher of the holy, pure, unadulterated gospel, held dear and valuable by all pious orthodox believers; for he has been an earnest enemy of your papal abominations and of all the mobs, as the 139th Psalm says: "I hate them in all earnestness. Psalm, v. 22, says: "I hate them in all earnestness, therefore they are enemy to me." But he warmly loved the pure word of God and acted with all diligence and faithfulness, as his writings abundantly testify.
But because it should have been printed here, I wanted to have it confirmed with my testimony, especially because he means the bloodhound and assassin 1) so seriously, even if he does not name him; and to be seen, where he should have lived longer, he would have grabbed him much worse in the wool. Although all writing and complaining is too little about such an outrageous villain, that he should be reserved for God's wrath and punishment (which he now brazenly despises, and thus confidently runs and hurries to his damnation), it also helps to such haste of his damnation that one confidently writes against him, complains, cries and sighs, both to God and all creatures.
1) Duke Henry of Brunswick.
3 One can see from such a murderer that the papists despair of their cause and have decided to do everything knowingly and willfully that is dear to the devil, to the displeasure and displeasure of God; they have chosen him as their God, Lord, protection and comfort. Well then, let them go. It is cattle and stable, said the devil, and drove flies into his mother's butt. Such a god shall have such creatures; such trees, as Jothan Richt. 9, 14. says, shall have such rhamnum, briar, for a king.
We should thank God that we learn from this evil what kind of fruit the devil and his minions are, that we may beware of them and pray all the more diligently. Without a doubt, God does not allow the devil to have such great willpower and sorrow; he will work much good in the end, as St. Augustine says: "God is so good that he would not let evil happen where he did not want to make something better out of it. He let Adam fall, but out of it came such great salvation that God became man and our Savior, and thereby honored human nature much more highly than the devil had defiled it by the fall; as St. Ambrose sings: O beata culpa, quae talem meruit habere redemptorem. Not that he loves or likes evil (otherwise he would not create good on it, but let evil remain and increase), but that he, to the chagrin of evil and the devil, may show his goodness the more abundantly, to his praise and honor.
*Urban Rhegius (Regius, actually König), born at Langen-Argen on Lake Constance, studied at Freiburg in Breisgau, then went to Ingolstadt to Eck, was crowned a poet by Maximilian I, taught Protestantism at Halle am Jnn in 1522, and was therefore expelled from there. In 1530 he was in Augsburg, from where Duke Ernst of Brunswick took him as court preacher. In 1532 he came to Lüneburg to reform, in 1533 to Hanover. In 1537 he attended the convent at Schmalkalden and in 1540 that at Hagenau. He died on May 23, 1541. (Erlangen edition.) The title of the text to which Luther wrote this preface is: "Wider die Gottlosen blutdürstigen Sauliten und Doegiten dieser letzten ferlichen zeiten, Der lij. Psalm interpreted. By D. Vrbanum Regium. With a preface by D. Martini Lutheri. Vittemberg. Anno. 1.5.41." At the end: "Printed at Wittemberg, by Joseph Klug, Vnno m.xn." Quarto. In the collections: in the Wittenberg (1559), vol. XII, p. 370; in the Jena (1568), vol. VII, p. 432I>; in the Altenburg, vol. VII, p. 472; in the Leipzig, vol. XII, p. 81; and in the Erlangen, vol. 63, p. 365. We give the text after the Erlangen.
(5) And this rod of murder is good for chastening us according to the flesh, and for trying, testing, and purifying our faith, so that it will not only grow stronger in us and in ourselves, but will also spread to other countries. For it teaches and compels us to pray earnestly. But earnest prayer is an almighty, powerful and victorious thing. The papists and their god, the devil, should and must do nothing else with their raging and blustering, but blow into the ashes, so that the sparks and ashes fall into their eyes, yes, make our fire of faith and gospel shine and burn all the brighter, but finally disgrace and condemn themselves. Will keep silent that it also makes the worldly regiment valiant and careful, the lazy security, both, in spirit and flesh, that is, in the spiritual and
secular! The people of the world have been driven out of the country by many evil, useless boys, whom the murderers and bloodhounds, the papists, so shamefully deprive of their lives and put their blood on their heads.
We who believe have the right comfort of Christ our Lord [Matt. 10:30]: "The very hairs of your head are all numbered"; and [Zech. 2:8]: "He who touches you touches the apple of my eye"; therefore "take hold of your souls with patience" [Luc. 21:19]. Again, what the murderers and the papists have to wait for is sung in this psalm and many others. They want to have it that way, without our thanks; so let what is possible go, and give us room for the wrath of God, Rom. 12, 19. Our dear Lord keep and strengthen our faith, otherwise the body must perish, the belly with the food [1 Cor. 6, 13]. Amen.