(Excerpt.)
The duke wrote that Luther had attacked the Elector of Mainz too harshly in his writing against M. Simon Lemnius Epigrammata (St. Louis edition, vol. XIV, 762).
Printed by Faber, Preuß. The excerpt given here is found in De Wette, Vol. V, p. 123, in Luther's answer to this letter.
. . . For although it is sufficiently known that there may be all kinds of abuses in the supposed spiritual state, it is also known that there may be many faithful hearts that see such abuses, and even if they do not all immediately confess the Word completely and without distinction, it is still reasonable to have patience with them. - Should we not build more than we break? In my simplicity, it is highly to be considered that there are still other ways to meet an unskilled poet with more glimpses and modesty. So then, as reported above, my kind-hearted concern and confidence caused me to write, not only because I, like the truth, do not like to see the house of Brandenburg stirred, but rather would prefer that the divine word break through, and my dear father Martin's much, and all electoral and princely houses would be more weighed, and thus through the weightiness of the person also the salutary word would be so much more promoted: so my very Christian, high and diligent request, my dear father, is that the divine word should be more weighed.
1) In Burkhardt: "furslagen und an ime vornhemen, ap" 2c.
Letters from the year 1538. No. 2450. 2451. 2452.
mer Doctor and Christian teacher, you should take all this to heart in a Christian way, also consider what else the devil might create and bring about from this, and not leave too much room for the troublesome Satan 2c.
No. 2451.
To Christian III, King of Denmark.
(Wrong address and wrong year.)
Under this wrong heading and date, both De Wette, vol. V, p. 121 and (according to him) the Erlangen edition, vol. 55, p. 207 bring the letter to Christian, the Crown Prince of Denmark, of July 24, 1528, which is found in De Wette, vol. III, p. 361 and in the Erlangen edition, vol. 54, p. 29. We have already reported it in No. 1273a. Burkhardt does not note anything about this error, and Seidemann has both addresses in the register, De Wette, vol. VI, p. 490.
No. 2452.