1. of the fear of the disciples.
2 Why the pope does not praise St. Paul more than St. Peter.
Man does not understand spiritual things from his natural powers.
4. who made the child faith.
5. from St. John's epistles and canonicals.
The apostles' miraculous signs were necessary.
The apostles were also sinners.
8. from Johanne the Evangelist.
9. God is recognized a posteriori.
10. of blindness in the papacy.
1. of the fear of the disciples.
(Cordatus No. 743. 744.)
The apostles were afraid after the resurrection, since the Jews at that time did not intend anything evil against them. But when they had seen what had happened to their Lord, they feared that it would also happen to them; and they were afraid when he entered through the closed doors, because they hardly believed that he had risen from the dead, as they said [Luc. 24:21], "We hoped that he would redeem Israel," as if it was now over.
"Until ye be clothed with power from on high" [Luc. 24:49], that is, do not hasten to preach. First I will put on your armor, and it shall hold all your shots.
2 Why the pope does not praise St. Paul more than St. Peter.
It was asked: Why the papists did not praise more St. Paul, who was more certain to Rome than St. Peter? M. Luther answered: "St. Paul".
has the sword, St. Peter has the keys. They were more interested in keys, to lock the boxes, to mice, and to sweep the bags, than in the sword. It is a fable that Caiphas, Pilate, St. Peter should have come to Rome before the emperor, for the histories do not agree in this; one says this, the other that. And I am also moved by this, that Christ died under the emperor Tiberio, who reigned five years after Christ. But all histories unanimously testify that Peter and Paul died under the emperor Nerone, who reigned five and thirty years after Christ's death: but Peter reigned eighteen years after Christ's death in Jerusalem; as the epistle to the Galatians testifies: after that seven years in Antioch. And it is commonly rumored and said that he reigned in Rome five and twenty years after that.
In all the coronations of the pope some boys go before, with lighted tow, 1) the
1) Binding rope II, 120
throw them up and shout: Pater sancte, sic transit gloria Mundi, memento quod ad annos Petri non pervenies: that is: Holy Father, so the world's honor and splendor pass away, remember that you will not reach St. Peter's years etc. For no pope has reigned five and twenty years. If one adds it up, Peter should not have been crucified under Nero, because he lacks fifteen years. Summa, the calculation in histories does not agree. St. Lucas writes that St. Paul was free in Rome for a whole year and walked around, but does not remember St. Peter at all. It is dangerous to believe.
Man does not understand spiritual things from his natural powers.
(Lauterbach, March 3, 1538, p. 45.)
Afterwards Philip said about the weakness of the human nature, which is so unlearned that it cannot understand in the least what is spiritual [i.e. God of the Holy Spirit]. For even the apostles in today's Gospel understand nothing of the cross of Christ, yes, they bear suffering and want to keep Him from it, as Peter does Matth. 16, [22.) I am silent about it, that they themselves should desire to suffer. Luther said: They have well known the prophets, psalms, but as the pope understands the Scriptures. For the Jewish conception of the outward kingdom of Christ was so deep in their hearts that they could not think of the cross, although the kingdom of the Jews was so deeply degraded before the reign of the Persians. For Cyrus restored it to some extent. But from that very presumptuous hope the Jews could not desist. They could not forget the prerogatives, hold hard about it. Oh, that we could hold fast to the true gospel, for the gospel is very glorious and the declaration of all the prophets.
4. who made the child faith.
I believe, said D. M. Luther, that the words of our Christian faith are thus arranged by the apostles, who have been with each other and have made this fine symbolism so short and comforting. It is a work of the Holy Spirit to make such a great thing so short and simple with powerful and important words.
describe it. Without the apostles and the Holy Spirit, no one would have been able to grasp it and make it, even if ten thousand worlds had made it. I D. M. Luther cannot astonish me enough, therefore one should consider the words in it well.
When M. Luther saw the images of the apostles, as they lay and stood painted, 1) he said: Dear Lord God, how uncertain are the legends of the dear holy apostles, and not described.
5. from St. John's epistles and canonicals. 2)
(Cordatus No. 294.)
When John had made every effort to write his gospel in such a way that he expressed the essence of the gospel most correctly and appropriately, that is, that Jesus was the Christ, he was finally forced, while he was still alive, to reverse his language, as it were, and instead of the salvation that is in Christ, to write in his epistle for the works. The devil rages against the gospel to such an extent that the people who have the most spiritual things are not able to understand it. The devil is so furious against the gospel that people who hear the most spiritual things abuse them in the most carnal way.
The apostles' miraculous signs were necessary.
As long as Jupiter, Diana and other idolatries and abominable idolatries of the heathen reigned, it was necessary for Christ and the apostles to perform bodily miraculous signs to confirm the doctrine of faith in Christ, and to destroy and cast down all other doctrines and idolatrous worship, and such bodily miraculous signs were to last and take place only until the gospel and baptism were confirmed. But the spiritual miracles and wonders, which Christ considers to be righteous miraculous signs, remain forever, until the end of the world; how is it that the centurion can have such great faith in Christ, who at that time was not present with his sick servant.
John the Baptist, said D. M. Luther,
1) So Stangwald instead of "stürben".
2) Stangwald, as can be seen from the content of this section, has the more correct title "Von St. Johannis Evangelio und Episteln". Canonica means the
first epistle of St. John.
had a great spirit, strength and courage, who opened his mouth with earnestness against the most holy people of the Jews; for then he attacked the swarming rightly, when he said to them Matth. 3, 9: "Only do not think that you will say among yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father'" etc. This, verily, is highly sought after.
The apostles were also sinners.
(Contained in Cap. 26, § 30.)
8 John the Evangelist. (Contained in Cap. 37, § 112.)
9. God is recognized a posteriori.
God is miraculous, and miraculously He is also recognized by His own, as St. Paul also says in 1 Cor. 1, 21: Quia Dei Sapientiam mundus non cognovit per Sapientiam, placuit Deo per stultitiam- salvos facere credentes. The world does not want to recognize God ex creatione et misericordia, so he has revealed himself in infirmitate filii crucifixii, so that it may be angry with him to death. And it happened right to her. Because she does not want to see God face to face, in glory, she must recognize him in ignorance and look at his back. Just as it happened to King Solomon with Marcolfo. It also happened to Mosiah, Exodus 33:19 ff, who was in a cave or a rocky cliff and saw God's back: when his glory with thunder and lightning and great wind and weather was over, he saw God's backside, for he could not see his face. So we must still recognize our Lord God a posteriori, and cling to Christ, and not fall away from Him through anger and impatience.
10. of blindness in the papacy.
When our Lord God's word is lost, then comes terrible blindness and darkness, that one must also worship the devil's filth for sanctity: for the devil is so wicked about us that he would gladly give us his filth to eat, if he could; as can be seen in the Vitis Patrum, in the story of Simeon on the pillar, all of which we have believed, as one has only heard it preached.
(Here a paragraph is omitted, because the same narration is already found in another relation Cap: 26, § 52. - Similarly, it is in the interpretation of the 7th cap. of the first letter to the Corinthians. Walch, old edition, vol. VIII, § 60.
Item: D. Luther told a story that when he came from Rome in 1511 and passed through Augsburg, there was a whore there, called the Virgin Ursel, who had pretended that she did not eat, drink, or do other natural necessities of life: and this whore denied the Emperor Maximilian and all the princes of the empire that they believed that the Virgin Ursel neither ate nor drank anything. And D. Luther said: He had seen her himself, and a chaplain had led him to her. He had also discussed it with her, and said: "Dear Ursel, you would like to be dead just as much, and you would like to ask our Lord God to let you die. Oh no, she said, here I know how it is, there I do not know how it is. Such a thing had greatly offended Luther; that is why he said to her: "Ursel, just see that it is done right. Oh, she said, God keep me; and she took me and the chaplain, and led us up into her chamber, where she had her devotions. There she had two altars, and on them two crucifixes, which were made with resin and blood, in wounds, hands and feet, as if blood were flowing out. But with her it was all bullshit. And she received great gifts from princes and lords, so that she collected fifteen hundred guilders. At last the Duchess of Bavaria summoned her, and it was discovered that she was a fraud. It was found that she had gingerbread under her shawl, which she had eaten. So the princess prayed for her, otherwise she would have been in trouble. After that, she attached herself to a young journeyman and went out to the gate with the money.
In tanta coecitate, blaspbemiis and ludibriis Diaboli one has lived under the pabstacy; one does not notice it yet. But learn the gospel now whoever can learn it, and hear it whoever can hear it, and stay with it whoever can stay with it, because the devil hates the gospel; and if we lose it, it will happen to us again.