The original in Bugenhagen's own handwriting, written in Gotha on February 28, is in the joint secret state archives in Weimar. Bugenhagen later provided it with the inscription: "Confession and Testament of our highly venerable father D. Luther, at
Letters from the year 1537. no. 2348. 2349. 2350.
Gotha in the week after Reminiscere, at night, since he could not hope to live until day with the decline of his physical strength. With me Pomeranus alone. For others were not admitted." Below this, Bugenhagen noted, "So that the most illustrious Elector of Saxony 2c., my most gracious lord, may see this, I, Johann Bugenhagen, Pomeranian, D., wrote [this] with my hand in 1537, on the day after the Octave after Easter" [9, Aprils. In Schütze, Vol. III, p. 53; in Groschii Vertheidigung, p. 34; German in Keil's "Lebensumständen D. Luthers," Vol. III, p. 99; from Bugenhagen's manuscript in Förstemanns Neue Mittheilungen, Vol. VIII, Heft 1,1846, p. 23 and in De Wette-Seidemann, Vol. VI, p.184f.
"I know, praise God, that I have done right, that I have stormed the papacy with God's word. For it is God's, Christ's and the Gospel's blasphemy 2c."
Ask for me my extremely dear Philipp (Philippulum), Jonas and Cruciger, that they may forgive me whatever I have sinned against them.
Comfort my Käthe that she may bear this for having been happy with me for twelve years. She has served me not only as a wife, but also as a servant. May God repay her! But you will take care of her and the children as much as you can.
Say hello from me to the deacons of our church. "The pious citizens of Wittenberg have often served me.
Tell our Elector and my Lord Landgrave in my name that they should not worry about this and similar cries of the adversaries: "They rob the spiritual goods" 2c., because they do not rob like certain other people. For I see that by these goods they provide that which pertains to religion. Moreover, if any of these goods accrue to them, who should rather take it? It is to the princes that such things come, not to the papal scoundrels. Command them in my name that, trusting in God, they should confidently do everything for the cause of the Gospel that the Holy Spirit gives them; I do not prescribe to them the manner. May the merciful God strengthen them so that they may remain in this right doctrine and give thanks that they have been delivered from the Antichrist. I have earnestly commanded them to God in prayer, and I hope that He will preserve them, so that they will not again give room to papist impiety. For even if they are still sinners in some things and not in others
pure in everything, and even if the adversaries reproach or perhaps accuse them of this, let them still trust in the goodness of the Lord. For this is nothing compared to the ungodliness, the blasphemies, the spitefulness, the murderous deeds 2c. of the antichristic adversaries, from which the divine mercy has delivered them. Therefore, they should be strong and continue in the name of the Lord.
I am ready to die now, if the Lord wills. But I would like to live until Pentecost, so that I can accuse this Roman beast 1) and its empire even more severely before the world with a public writing. This I will do if I live; I will not need a spur. Otherwise, others will come after me who will act even more roughly against that beast, although I will also act somewhat roughly in certain matters if I live.
Hereupon I commend my soul into the hands of the Father and of my Lord JEsu Christ, whom I have preached and confessed on earth.
No. 2349.